With the Premier League season in full swing, ESPN's Ryan O'Hanlon and Bill Connelly have reranked all 20 teams. The rankings come against a cloud hanging over the league, as Manchester City face 114 guilty charges and the possibility of expulsion from the competition.
Arsenal's recent form has raised questions. They barely beat Sunderland 2-0 despite near-even expected goals and shots, and then lost 3-0 to Brighton, who pressed the Gunners into trouble and led 2-0 at halftime. Brighton outshot Mikel Arteta's side 17-11 in that match. Still, the underlying numbers show little change from last season, with Arsenal averaging 1.5 non-penalty expected goals per match and conceding 0.7. Extrapolated over 38 games, that slight dip would mean about 3.8 fewer goals, and key attackers Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka, Kai Havertz and Riccardo Calafiori have started all five matches. Havertz is already injured again.
Arsenal's attack also showed resilience, with 26 shots and more than 4 expected goals on the road against Napoli in the Champions League. Their set-piece dominance has yet to fully materialize, ranking ninth in the league in expected goals created from set pieces. New signing Bruno Guimarães has had little impact so far.
The rankings also address Chelsea's poor start and whether Hull City can avoid relegation. With 33 games remaining, the writers see a possible title race between Manchester City and Arsenal, while much of the rest of the table remains open.
Source: ESPN Soccer · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing