Arsenal have made a solid start to their Premier League title defence, collecting 15 points from their first six matches this season.
The Gunners trail table-topping Manchester City by three points. The Cityzens are the only team in the top flight with a perfect record.
Aside from the 3-0 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion before the international break, Arsenal will be pleased with their start to the new campaign.
However, the stats behind Arsenal’s performances highlight a worrying issue they must address to defend the title.
Goals scored column is concerning
If Arsenal maintain their current points-per-game average of 2.50 throughout the season, they would end the campaign with 95 points.
That average has only been bettered on three occasions by the title winners during the Premier League era – Man City (2017/18 & 2018/19) and Liverpool (2019/20).
That paints a positive picture for Arsenal, but is tempered by another element which could be troublesome if it continues for the rest of the season.
The Gunners are currently scoring an average of 1.67 goals per game, lower than their averages in each of the previous four seasons.
More concerningly, only one club has ever won the Premier League title with a lower average – Manchester United in 1992/93 (1.60 per game).
Attacking struggles against Lille highlight Arsenal’s primary issue
After finishing second in the Premier League for three consecutive seasons, Arsenal desperately needed a player who could elevate their attack.
The Gunners ultimately signed Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting CP, and he helped them end their 22-year wait to win the title.
Despite that success, it’s hard to argue that he lived up to expectations. His tally of 14 league goals in 36 appearances was respectable, not spectacular.
The striker’s scoring output in his debut season for the club clearly didn’t impress manager Mikel Arteta, who has used him sparingly at the start of this campaign.
Arteta gave the Swedish international a chance to shine against Lille in the Champions League in midweek, and he failed to capitalise.
Arsenal looked extremely blunt during the 63 minutes he spent on the pitch, before springing into life once he was substituted.
Arteta cannot ignore the goalscoring stats
Arteta has made limited adjustments to the tactics that delivered Arsenal their first title in 22 years last season. That approach is understandable.
However, the manager cannot afford to ignore what the Arsenal match statistics are telling him. Unless Arsenal address their goalscoring issues, they are unlikely to defend the title.
Although the Gunners have the joint-best defensive record in the Premier League, the 3-0 defeat at Brighton highlighted that they can be vulnerable.
Arsenal relied heavily on attacking set-pieces last season, but they have not scored from a dead-ball situation this term.
They still have players who can unlock teams, as evidenced by the improvement they showed once Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Bukayo Saka were introduced against Lille.
Despite this, Arsenal’s hopes of defending the title could ultimately hinge on Arteta’s ability to get a tune out of his misfiring Swedish striker.
Arteta is unlikely to rip up a blueprint that delivered silverware last season, but he needs to find a way to maximise Gyokeres’ talents.
Arsenal’s three consecutive second-placed finishes highlighted that they needed a prolific striker. Cajoling the Swede back into form could be the difference between success and failure this season.