Even the most ardent Arsenal supporter would struggle to convince you they could have envisaged their team making such a brilliant start to the season.
The idea of the Gunners being title challengers in the context of a disappointing end to the previous campaign, in which they were pipped for fourth by fierce rivals Tottenham having looked certainties for Champions League qualification, was pretty fanciful – even accounting for the shrewd signings of Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko from rivals Manchester City.
And yet, here we are – just two Premier League games to play before the top flight signs off for the World Cup break and Arsenal lead the way by two points from City having lost only once in 12 league outings.
Lovers of caveats will of course point out the blindingly obvious…we're still only in November. And indeed Arsenal do have questions to answer. Is their squad deep enough to take City all the way? Are they strong enough defensively to remain contenders?
But their success so far has been built on two longer term squad members, namely in the form of local favourite Bukayo Saka and the Brazilian flair of Gabriel Martinelli and they perhaps hold the key to sustaining their present position.
Their roles in this Arsenal team have been increasingly important with Arteta having to shuffle his pack following the exits of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in January and June respectively.
The addition of Jesus has added significant star quality of course, but there is little doubt Saka and Martinelli have stepped up a gear so far this term.
Martinelli making his mark
In the North Bank at Emirates Stadium in August, Arsenal fans' chants were predominantly directed towards Hale End graduates Saka and Emile Smith Rowe.
But Smith Rowe's rise to first-team star has been tempered a little this term due to injuries, and Martinelli has grasped his opportunity at consistent playing time.
While the Brazilian made 29 Premier League appearances last season, he only completed 90 minutes on nine occasions and was subbed off in 11 of his 21 starts and received a red card against Wolves in February.
This season, Martinelli has started all 12 of Arsenal's league matches and has played the entirety of the game on eight occasions.
That has resulted in a significant improvement in front of goal, with Martinelli netting five times in 12 matches and sitting just one shy of the six-goal tally he achieved last term, adding two assists to boot.
Martinelli's involvement is up there with the best in the Premier League, standing eighth overall for the most involvements in attacking sequences (67) and ranking second in that regard for Arsenal, behind only Jesus (90).
Saka coming of age
On the opposing side, Arsenal continue to deploy Saka to expert effect, with the England international now in his fourth year as a regular fixture within the Gunners' ranks and showing real maturity at the age of 21.
While appearances have been plentiful, it has taken time for Saka to be integrated fully into his natural role after first making a breakthrough filling in at left-back, then featuring on the left-side of the attack.
Now in his favoured role on the right, Saka has shown his consistency with nine goal involvements in 12 matches (four goals, five assists). Only once in the past nine matches has Saka not registered a goal or an assist in the Premier League.
Managing Saka will be Arteta's biggest challenge given the amount of football he has played in the past four years and it is something that is clearly being considered, with Saka subbed off in seven of his 12 appearances this term.
Eyes will be cast towards the World Cup and Saka's important role for Gareth Southgate's side, which Arsenal fans may not find comfortable to watch given the injury risk to their star man – something that highlights the Gunners' need for depth beyond their first XI.
More to come
Settling into the side alongside Jesus, Arsenal's fluid front-three is one that is attracting envy across the Premier League and, worryingly for their opponents, the Gunners trio are still not at the peak of their powers.
For all their brilliance, neither Saka or Martinelli have quite managed to craft a deadly relationship with Jesus just yet – with Saka and Jesus yet to combine for an assist this season, while Jesus has laid on one for Martinelli.
In comparison, Martinelli has assisted Saka once, with two assists in the opposing direction. Last season, the pair did not combine for an assist.
The chances have been there, with Martinelli and Jesus combining for nine opportunities, while Saka and the Brazilian have combined for five. Improving those numbers will increase the chances of the assist tally also trending upwards.
The performances of Martin Odegaard, Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey have had a major influence on the attack, but if Saka and Martinelli can continue to improve their own output then Arsenal can continue to provide the role of unlikely challengers and, who knows, perhaps even end a wait for title glory that stretches back to 2004.
Vinicius suffered 'injustice' after missing out on Ballon d'or, says Brazil coach Dorival
Dorival Junior feels Vinicius Junior suffered an "injustice" by not winning the Ballon d'Or, as the Brazil head coach slammed the "unfair situation".
The Real Madrid winger failed to scoop the accolade despite scoring 24 goals and providing 11 assists last season, as Los Blancos won a LaLiga and Champions League double.
The club opted to skip the ceremony after hearing Vinicius Junior would miss out on the top award, which was won by Manchester City and Spain midfielder Rodri.
Madrid's decision not to attend generated mixed reviews. City head coach Pep Guardiola empathised with Carlo Ancelotti's side, but LaLiga president Javier Tebas accused them of "exaggerated victimhood".
Dorival acknowledges Rodri was deserving of the award, having helped City to an unprecedented fourth successive Premier League title before starring Spain's victorious Euro 2024 squad.
However, the Selecao boss believes Vinicius has every right to feel aggrieved at missing out.
"In my opinion, [it's] an unfair situation, especially because it is an individual award," Dorival told reporters during a press conference.
"Nothing against whoever won the award, quite the opposite. It is the recognition of one of the great players of Spanish football, but Vinicius - for the work he did - should have received different attention.
"But the greatest prize that Vinícius won was the recognition and respect of his people. The vast majority of the Brazilian people realised the injustice that was done to the player who could have deservedly received the award."
Man Utd must find a way to keep Van Nistelrooy at Old Trafford, says Meulensteen
Rene Meulensteen believes Manchester United must do everything in their power to keep Ruud van Nistelrooy at the club, amid Ruben Amorim's impending arrival.
United confirmed the appointment of Sporting CP boss Amorim on Friday, four days after announcing they had parted ways with Erik ten Hag following a dismal run of form.
The Red Devils currently sit 14th in the Premier League after their first nine games of the season, and welcome Chelsea to Old Trafford this Sunday.
Van Nistelrooy, who joined Ten Hag's coaching staff in July, oversaw his first game as interim boss in midweek, earning a 5-2 win over Leicester City in the EFL Cup.
Amorim will officially take charge on November 11, meaning the Dutchman will remain at the helm for United's fixtures against Chelsea, PAOK and Leicester.
The Portuguese arrives at Old Trafford with an impressive resume, having guided Sporting to their first league title in 19 years, and winning the Primeira Liga again in 2023-24.
His 120 victories in the league give him a 76.92% win ratio, which is the best of any Sporting coach on record.
But former United coach Meulensteen believes it is crucial Van Nistelrooy remains at the club, with his experience vital in helping Amorim understand the pressures of the job.
"I think the club will have to manufacture something. It's very clear that Amorim wants to bring his own staff, which I think is very understandable," Meulensteen told Stats Perform.
"He can look at it and say: 'OK, Ruud has got some experience with the players, and he might be able to help me to tell me this and that and the other'.
"That's the conversation he needs to have. If he doesn't see a place for him in and around the first team, then he has to be clear about that as well.
"Because at the end of the day, if you see a little bit of what happened with Erik, let's assume if Amorim had said: 'listen I'm staying in Sporting, I'm not doing it, forget it', then obviously we wouldn't have these conversations.
"Then, it would have been a little bit more quiet, and I would have said to Ruud: 'listen Ruud, you take over for now, right, and see how we go and see how you get on with it'.
"And if that, for instance, started to come off, Ruud would have given the board and Ineos and all those people enough confidence to say: 'listen, I'll be more than capable of carrying on with it'.
"Now they haven't gone that way, so I can also understand if the manager says: 'no, I don't want anybody that I don't know in that setup, because I really want to do my own thing'.
"Ruud made it clear he wants to stay and be part of it, so at least that's a positive for the incoming manager. If the incoming manager has other plans, then the club has to find something different."
Amorim will be United's youngest boss since 33-year-old Wilf McGuinness took charge of them on Boxing Day 1970 against Derby County.
Since March 2020, when Amorim took charge, Sporting have the highest win percentage of any team across Europe's top 10 leagues (77% - 120 wins out of 156 games).
His first game at the helm comes against Ipswich Town after the international break, but it remains to be seen whether Van Nistelrooy will remain alongside him.
Minnesota 'justified the work' by overcoming Real Salt Lake
Minnesota United "justified the work" they did in preparing for a penalty shootout after beating Real Salt Lake, so says Eric Ramsay.
Loons coach Ramsay invited the club's office staff to attend the training ground and jeer his players during penalty practice ahead of Minnesota's playoff opener against Salt Lake.
After a 0-0 draw, Minnesota came away with a 5-4 shootout victory to take the edge in the best-of-three series, meaning a win at home on Saturday would get them into the next round.
And Ramsay believes his unorthodox method of preparation paid off.
"I would like to think that probably, without that, the players wouldn't have had the level of conviction they largely showed," Ramsay said.
"It was a bit of fun. There was a real sense of us being intentional behind that.
"I was really pleased that we included that as part of our prep.
"I don't think there were big chances given up either way.
"I sort of felt like as we opened up, we started to leak a little bit more space that wasn't there in the opening stages.
"[Goalkeeper] Dayne [St. Clair] was called into action a couple more times, and so was [Salt Lake goalkeeper] Zac MacMath. So I think it was a very even game, and given that we're coming here as the away team under challenging conditions, that's hats off to us.
“It felt like if we if we won, it would have justified the work. If we lost, there wouldn't have been anything we could have done differently.
"We were very solid, very disciplined, and that's one goal allowed in six games, which is very difficult to achieve at this level.
"I'm pleased with the defensive effort. I was also pleased that we were able to start to find a foothold in the game with the ball and create a couple of really good chances."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Minnesota United - Dawyne St. Clair
St. Clair made six saves in Game 1, and has been in fine form as of late.
United has allowed only one goal in their last six matches going back to the end of the regular season, going unbeaten in that time (W4 D2). This is the first time in club history that the Loons have allowed just one goal in a span of six matches in all competitions.
Real Salt Lake - Cristian Arango
Arango attempted five shots in Game 1, the most shots attempted by a Salt Lake player in a postseason match since Damir Kreilach had six attempts against Sporting Kansas City in the 2018 playoffs.
MATCH PREDICTION: MINNESOTA WIN
Salt Lake have managed just four wins in 21 all-time away playoff matches (D7 L10) including going winless in four straight (D2 L2). RSL lost on penalties in each of the last two away matches that ended in draws (2022 at Austin FC, 2023 against the Houston Dynamo).
After Tuesday's win on spot-kicks, Minnesota have been involved in seven penalty shootouts in all competitions since joining MLS in 2017, winning six of them, including the last four in a row.
The last five meetings between Minnesota and Salt Lake have been drawn after 90 minutes.
Including playoffs, the only matchup that has been drawn six straight times in MLS play is between the Chicago Fire and the New York Revolution, who played in six straight draws from 2021 to 2024.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Minnesota United - 44.5%
Real Salt Lake - 28.6%
Draw - 26.9%
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