Can They Do the Impossible? The Team Hunting Down Chelsea’s Premier League Record

Can They Do the Impossible? The Team Hunting Down Chelsea’s Premier League Record

For the last two or three seasons, there has been one Premier League backline performing head and shoulders above the rest - comprised of Jurrien Timber, William Saliba, Gabriel Magalhaes and Riccardo Calafiori, Arsenal’s defensive lineup casts a foreboding shadow.

With the likes of Ben White, Cristhian Mosquera, Piero Hincapie and Myles Lewis-Skelly providing depth, the Gunners' defensive wall is just about as intimidating as any defence on the planet, and this season, they are showing exactly why.

Arsenal's defence in the last three UCL campaigns 🧱😳 pic.twitter.com/xfARd2tuqC

— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) October 21, 2025

In the 12 games they have played across all competitions this season - eight in the Premier League, three in the Champions League, and one in the EFL Cup - Mikel Arteta’s side have conceded just three goals, all of which have come in the league.

Yes, it is still extremely early in the season, and yes, it is a record that for many years has appeared virtually impossible to replicate - but at the rate the London side are conceding, they are on track to best Chelsea’s remarkable record for conceding the fewest goals in a Premier League season.

🚨 𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗭𝗬 𝗙𝗔𝗖𝗧: Arsenal have only conceded 3 goals this season. pic.twitter.com/yMKUVPVfBX

— The Touchline | 𝐓 (@TouchlineX) October 22, 2025

The current record, set by Jose Mourinho’s Blues in the 2004/05 season, saw their rivals concede just 15 times in 38 games, a truly insane stat. If they maintain their current defensive form, Arsenal will concede just 14.

Is it Possible?

Of course, it is next to impossible for Arsenal to maintain the same defensive standard they have shown in the opening stages of the season - injury, fixture congestion and the occasional, inevitable lapse in concentration will all more than likely afflict the Gunners at some point.

However, even to be in the same conversation as the famed Blues side of the mid-2000’s is rarified praise - to be compared with a side that boasted names including John Terry, Ricardo Carvalho, William Gallas and Claude Makelele is no mean feat.

Martin Zubimendi and Declan Rice first half performance is a 10/10 for me 🙃#UCL | #ARSATM pic.twitter.com/VHyKAhWQ58

— Arsenal Radar (@ArsenalRadar) October 21, 2025

Arsenal’s structure is simple: a 4-3-3 formation, classic fullbacks with equal offensive and defensive responsibilities, two towering centre-halves, and one of Declan Rice or Martin Zubimendi sitting in front of the backline as extra midfield protection.

Every game, opponents know exactly what system Arteta is going to use and generally who is going to be playing where, but even though they lack the element of surprise, Arsenal’s line of defence is of such high quality that it doesn’t matter - they simply bully attackers off the ball and gracefully move it onto their more creative number further up the pitch.

Even when one of their preferred starters suffers an injury or misses a game through suspension, they seem practically unaffected - one of Hincapie, Mosquera, White or Lewis-Skelly comes in and barely weakens the backline, highlighting how complete Arteta’s squad has become since he took over.

You Shall Not Pass

Saliba and Gabriel have been particularly impressive, and to persuade Saliba to sign a new contract last month instead of walking away to Real Madrid next year when his old deal expired was to secure Arsenal’s participation in the title race for the duration of his stay at the Emirates Stadium.

He and Gabriel provide unequalled aerial prowess, a wide range of short and long passing, and an unexpected goal threat - Gabriel has netted 11 goals since the start of the 2023/24 season, while Saliba has chipped in with a further four.

The Arsenal defense might be disappointed because they let Atletico get a shot on target. They had gone over 2 matches without facing a shot on target. Gabriel and Saliba🙌🏾. pic.twitter.com/0fsQ0EUAEf

— Brian Masembe Jajja Mapeesa (@masembe_jabulan) October 21, 2025

Both are the true definition of Rolls Royce centre-backs. It is rare we see even one these day - Virgil van Dijk has arguably been the only player of this quality for the last three or four years, but to have two in the same team can only be a recipe for success.

Mosquera and Hincapie provide exceptionally capable and versatile backup, with both able to play in central areas as well as at full-back. Moreover, they were acquired for what could be considered bargain prices in the modern transfer market - Mosquera arrived from Valencia for the measly sum of £18 million, while Hincapie arrived for a more pricey but still reasonable fee of £45 million.

This is the best defence in the world.
How Arsenal got them under £100m is INSANE business 🤯 pic.twitter.com/VXwaCRbQll

— Forever Arsenal (@ArsenalN10) October 19, 2025

When these types of players fail to make it into the starting eleven more often than not, you know a defence is reaching an elite level.

To further enhance the effect of the backline, Calafiori and Timber provide a superb balance on the left and right of defence, respectively.

Though his minutes were limited last season due to various injury problems, Calafiori came back with a point to prove at the start of the season, and has proved virtually impassable in defence, while in attack, his influence in the attacking phase has seen him collect two assists and a goal for his efforts.

On the other side, Timber presents an immensely physical challenge - opposing wingers won’t get past him without a true battle, and they will only succeed if they outwit and out-think the Dutchman, something which seems to be becoming increasingly rare with each passing game.

Similarly to Calafiori, he has also proved his worth in attack, mirroring the Italian’s tally by netting twice and setting up another.

“Define consistency”

Jurrien Timber: pic.twitter.com/cqsxcbvcGF

— ⚡️ (@clinicalkai) September 29, 2025

The aforementioned pairing have looked so formidable this season that White and young star Lewis-Skelly frequently need to resort to cameos off the bench to impress their manager, such is the standard of competition they are competing for position with.

And we haven’t even mentioned their Spanish shot-stopper, David Raya, who has gone from strength to strength and accumulated a catalogue of world-class saves since signing for the Gunners permanently last season. Even if the backline is breached, there is no guarantee the ball will find the back of the net if the Spaniard has his way.

How Is Arteta Getting the Best Out of Them?

While Arteta certainly has some immensely talented defenders on his hands, talent alone is not enough to create such an impenetrable wall - the players constantly need direction from the manager, and the Spaniard will have given them instruction on what he wants to see on the pitch down to the most minute detail.

What became clear early on in the new campaign was Arteta’s preference to defend in an aggressive front-foot fashion – after all, attack is the best form of defence.

When they see an opening, his defenders fully commit to their role, whether it be intercepting a pass, marking an opponent so tightly they have a rash by the time they let go, or tackling with such force that the man can sometimes go further than the ball, all while maintaining their rigid discipline.

It is early but Arsenal's defense is pushing to unprecedented heights, the combination of shot suppression, minimizing shots allowed, while restricting the caliber of opponents' opportunities just has not been done in the xG era. pic.twitter.com/64pVmYqTHZ

— Scott Willis (@scottjwillis) October 21, 2025

Thanks to this pugnacious approach to defending, Arsenal have allowed the lowest shot quality against them (0.071) of any Premier League side since the 2017/18 season, and have limited the number of shots conceded per game to just over eight.

By closing opponents down early, showing them onto their weaker foot, and blocking any lines of sight at goal, Arsenal have managed to create one of the tightest defensive structures in the world, and 99% of the time, their opposition has to pass out wide or backwards in order to reset the move.

And with a holding midfielder invariably protecting the backline each game, opponents must first bypass Rice or Zubimendi to even make the backline break sweat, which in itself is no easy task.

Yes, it is a stretch to think that Arsenal can maintain this insane level for the entire season - we are only in October - but with the players Arteta has at his disposal, and with the template and style he has implemented at the back, they will get closer to Chelsea’s record than most.

15 goals in 38 games is the target. Sounds daunting, doesn’t it? However, if there is one manager that will stop at nothing, and come up with the strangest solutions to the most insignificant problems in order to squeeze an extra 1% out of his players on the pitch, it is Mikel Arteta.

Chelsea 15 goals defensive record, we’re coming. pic.twitter.com/CE4B1JgrAW

— Sxnti (@PeakSxnti) July 25, 2025

He may be called an overthinker; he may even be labelled as mad, but one thing is for sure: he is a hugely talented coach, and with the work he has done in North London so far, who is to say his side can’t become part of a new generation of record breakers?