For most of the time being assessed as "playing well", Arsenal still faced persistent criticism for their overly cautious playing style.
Some people think that the London team's playing style is boring, while other opinions advise Mikel Arteta to shed caution in attack so that Arsenal can maximize their potential. 1-0 victories and dependence on set pieces once made them considered not strong enough to conquer the Premier League.
But the championship of the 2025-2026 season has changed everything. After 22 years of waiting, Arsenal finally won the championship, and Arteta has the most convincing answer to doubts about his method.
When the pressure to win titles has disappeared, Arsenal enters the new season with a different mindset. They play confidently, proactively and are no longer obsessed with the risk of failure.
After a summer of strengthening forces, Arsenal won all 4 Premier League opening matches, and also won 3 more in other competitions and only conceded one goal. Arsenal leads the rankings, while Opta supercomputers determined they won the championship in 57.2% of simulations at the time of statistics.
It is noteworthy that Arsenal has not scored from set pieces, except for penalties. They have scored 8 goals from live balls, showing that attacking power is clearly improving.
Personnel stability plays an important role. No key players leave after a successful season, while quality rookies are added to complete the squad. Thanks to that, Arteta's well-functioning capital system becomes even smoother.
The players understand each other's positions, know when to pass the ball and how to move to create space. Arsenal therefore does not need too many individual touches to make a difference. They can put pressure with seemingly simple handling plans.
Dribbling statistics show that. The "Gunners" have only performed 43 dribbles in the Premier League this season, ranking 19th, while their number of successful dribbles is only 17, the lowest in the league. This number is even more noteworthy when they own Bukayo Saka, one of the world's leading wingers.
Saka seems to be prioritized to keep the ball and maintain the structure instead of constantly facing directly with the defenders. Arsenal accepts ignoring dangerous plays to exchange for control.
The same thing is also shown through passes. Arsenal has the highest pass accuracy in the Premier League in the last 1/3 of the field, reaching 81.2%. Throughout the field, they are fourth, showing special caution in the attacking area.
The pass completion probability index (xP) further clarifies Arsenal's operation. A pass with high xP means a high chance of success. Overall, Arsenal ranks sixth in average xP, but rises to third when only counting the area in the last 1/3 of the field, with a level of 0.799.
The interesting thing is that Arsenal's safe passes still create great damage. The xT index, measuring the level of a pass that increases the probability of a shot in the next 10 seconds, ranks Arsenal fourth in the final 1/3 area. Tottenham is 12th, and Aston Villa is 20th.
That is the difference of Arsenal. They do not need to constantly take risks to create opportunities. Arteta's system allows Arsenal to make passes with a high probability of success, while still opening up scoring opportunities.
