Stats tell Arsenal’s story these days, more than any tabloid headline or highlight reel. Everything about their 2025–26 campaign, from points chalked up to subtle tactical shifts, gets picked apart using underlying numbers. Not just wins and losses, but the “why” behind them.
Analytical outlets like Cannon Stats and The Transfer Flow churn out data by the match, and supporters latch on to these benchmarks faster than any man-of-the-match poll. One dodgy number, or a streak above expectations, can spark days of debate online. The classic drama is still there, but now it’s all filtered through metrics: granular, relentless, unforgiving.
The core process metrics behind Arsenal’s performance narrative
Points per game remains the clearest line, Arsenal’s, right now, stays at an impressive 95-point pace, pairing with a sharp +1.5 average goal difference. Numbers that used to guarantee silverware, and still might. That’s just the outer layer, though. Defensive stats are what really draw the eye. Their non-penalty expected goals against (NP-xGA) hovers near 0.57 per match, consistently among England’s best. Honest Betting Reviews and The Transfer Flow zero in here, holding Arsenal up as a model of structural discipline.
But there’s a new kind of pride, too: set pieces. This season, the Gunners create about 0.6 xG per match from corners and free kicks, bumping up from just 0.4 this time last year. Even the early tally, nine set-piece goals, triple last autumn, tells a story. Suddenly, these moments swing tight matches, not just fill scrapbooks.
Attacking struggles in contrast with defensive supremacy
On the other end, offense still stirs nerves. Arsenal’s non-penalty xG, at 1.61 a match, lags behind their own hoped-for 1.93. That internal number comes via Cannon Stats, and the gap nags. Shot output in open play, only 7.7 shots each game, drifts well under the gold-standard 12.9 for a team angling for the title. The margin? Just +2.4 over opponents, far from the targeted +7.4. A suspicion simmers, elite defending and set pieces are often masking a lack of open-play threat.
At platforms focusing on sports and online casino, these numbers fuel debates about whether Arsenal are genuinely dominant or simply maximizing small-event variance.
So, maybe the real work lies not in finishing, but in building sustained danger inside the opponent’s box. Fans and analysts haven’t missed it, either, they see the artistry at the back, the careful set-piece choreography, and sense the attack still has another gear to find.
Deep completions and field tilt sharpen tactical questions
Now, when people wonder whether Arsenal can truly push for titles, territorial stats get cited almost as often as goals. Deep completions, basically passes or carries into hot zones, sit near 22.2 for and 10.8 against, each match. That’s a solid +11.4 difference, but still not brushing against the club’s comfort target, apparently set at +18.1. More ground to make up.
Field tilt, which looks at the share of final-third passes, shines a more optimistic light, Arsenal hold 64.6%, a league high. Even then, it lags behind the historic peaks of recent Manchester City lineups. The question remains whether it will be enough to keep opponents penned in. Meanwhile, according to One-Versus-One, Arsenal’s blend of wing play with more central attacks is paying off: they sit third in expected threat (xT), showing an evolution but also exposing how thin the margins are at the summit.
Result versus expectation gaps and the path ahead
All the chatter now is about how much Arsenal’s results reflect underlying process. Are their outcomes fluky, or the result of real progress? The Transfer Flow’s latest cut of the numbers paints a largely sustainable defensive profile, few giveaways, clever set pieces, not much luck required. On the attacking side, “solid” sums it up, but “exceptional” feels just out of reach.
That distinction matters; plenty of teams have outrun their numbers, only to stumble when form deserts them. Pundits with longer memories see reason to be hopeful, while still circling those nagging margins up front.
With numbers under the microscope, every run, tackle, or hesitation will be weighed. In today’s Arsenal discourse, it seems the story will be told in stats almost as much as in silverware.