Arsenal face a tougher Premier League title fight than Liverpool and Man City as the race reaches the final 10 games.
Arsenal may be at the top of the Premier League, but the statistics suggest they have the toughest stretch of the three teams fighting for the title.
Mikel ArtetaThe side will have to win Liverpool and reigning champions city of manchester if they want to win the league for the first time in 20 years.
As Premier League football pauses for the international break, Arsenal They are currently in the driver's seat.
The Gunners are level on points with second-place Liverpool but have a superior goal difference.
Meanwhile, Man City sit in third place, one point behind.
Although, of course, we've been here before.
Arsenal were at the top of England's top flight for most of last season but fell to second place as Manchester City took advantage of the loss of a key star. William Saliba to injuries and their lack of depth in the team.
Just like last season, when they lost the title by five points, this time there will be little room for any error in the final 10 games of the season.
Now, two sets of statistics show the Gunners have the toughest run of the three teams looking to lift that all-important Premier League trophy.
So how difficult is the lead-up for each team as we approach the end of the season? talkSPORT.com has you covered…
The breakthrough: opponents' points per game
Arsenal's streak:
March 31: Manchester City (A)
April 3: Luton (H)
April 6: Brighton (A)
April 13: Aston Villa (H)
April 20: Wolves (A)
April 27: Tottenham (A)
May 4: Bournemouth (W)
May 11: Manchester United (A)
April 19: Everton (H)
To be confirmed: Chelsea (H)
According soccer statisticsthe Gunners' next 10 opponents standing in their way of being champions boast the best points-per-game ratio compared to Liverpool and Man City.
The form of each team that faces the Gunners home and away has been analyzed and the average of all their points per game rates has been calculated.
Currently, Arsenal's next 10 opponents have scored an average of 1.63 points per game.
For example, Chelsea, who they will face at home at some point after the break following their postponement of the original gameHe has an average of 1.29 away from home.
Meanwhile, Man City, who they will face first after the international break, have a home points-per-game ratio of 2.43, so will not have it easy in the final stages of the campaign.
Manchester City's streak:
March 31: Arsenal (H)
April 3: Aston Villa (H)
April 6: Crystal Palace (A)
April 13: Luton (H)
April 20: Tottenham (A)
April 27: Nottingham Forest (A)
May 4: Wolves (H)
May 11: Fulham (A)
May 19: West Ham (H)
TBC: Brighton (A)
pep guardiolaTeam Germany, on the other hand, has the second toughest matchup among the title contenders.
The team that shattered the Gunners' title dreams last season have to contend with a points-per-game ratio of 1.52.
Aside from Arsenal, the only other top-six team they will face is Tottenham, who have a points-per-game ratio of 2.14 at home.
But their opponents' points-per-game ratio really isn't too far off from what the Gunners face.
Liverpool matchup:
March 31: Brighton (H)
April 4: Sheffield United (H)
April 7: Manchester United (A)
April 14: Crystal Palace (H)
April 20: Fulham (A)
April 27: West Ham (A)
May 4: Tottenham (H)
May 11: Aston Villa (A)
May 19: Wolves (H)
To be confirmed: Everton (A)
So, you guessed it, the statistics suggest that Liverpool have the most favorable opponents for the title race.
The Reds can have He collapsed in extra time against Manchester United. in the FA Cup quarter-finals, but will hope they can live up to what the statistics in the league suggest to Jurgen KloppThe swing song.
Liverpool face some of the weakest teams on points per game in their last 10 meetings, including relegation candidates Everton (0.93 at home) and Sheffield United (0.43 at home).
Their opponents have an overall points-per-game ratio of 1.37, the lowest of the three title chasers.
Opta Power Ratings have reinforced the argument that the Gunners also have the toughest run.
Statisticians used the ranking of each team's opponents to assign a difficulty rating to each team's remaining matches.
With 100 being the hardest and 0 being the easiest, Opta calculates that Arsenal have the fifth toughest of the 20 teams with an average opponent rating of 88.5 per cent.
Meanwhile, Manchester City are in 12th place with 87.3 percent.
Liverpool fans can once again smile at the fact that their team is considered to have the seventh easiest performance. His opponent's average rating is 86.6 percent.
Hopefully this encourages some of you Reds! Thugs, don't shoot the messenger…