Arsenal

It’s been a season of stunning upheaval in the EPL. Leicester City have sat proudly astride the Premier League in November and boast the most lethal striker in the division in Jamie "chat s*** get banged" Vardy. The Chelsea team that won the league at a canter last season have become so accustomed to the bottom half of the Premier League table that they’re thinking of releasing a Drake-inspired charity single called "Started At The Top, Now We’re Here (In 14th)." But at least in this swirling maelstrom of change, we can rely on one anchor of stability: Arsenal are fourth.

Vlad Dragomir arrived at Arsenal in June, signed from ACS Poli Timisoara in Romania for £71,000 ($107,000). The 16-year-old Arsenal phenom was largely an unknown at the time, a central midfielder who liked to get forward on the ball and whom Wenger thought had a bright future. The only other thing we could tell was that young Vlad was a fan of posting copious selfies to his Instagram account (to be fair, what 16-year-old isn't).

The agony and the ecstasy. No it’s not a soap opera, just another champions league campaign for Arsenal football club and Arsene Wenger. Defeating a giant on the back of defeats to Dynamo Zagreb and Olympiacos feels commonplace, but this result demonstrates the gunners are developing into a formidable outfit.

The battle for the 2015/16 Premier League title is well and truly under way, and already we’ve seen fan protests over ticket prices, a new messiah and Diego Costa being suspended. Some things never change, but one this is certain: come May 15th, we’ll have a Premier League champion. It’s time to cast an eye over the pre-season English Premier League title contenders and see how their challenges are shaping up with just over a quarter of the season played.

The outside back position, where Nacho Monreal and Hector Bellarin play for Arsenal, could be considered the black swan of soccer. It’s a position known to see lots of 1v1 action, where there’s a fine line between being a hero or an Internet GIF.

However, sometimes a duo comes along that changes not only how a team defends, but how they attack as well.

Left back Nacho Monreal and right back Hector Bellerin are two of the biggest reasons Arsenal have made their claim that they will be in the hunt for the Premier League title early this season.

If Arsenal have exhausted their summer budget and are forced to make some cuts to save money, they know where to find a pilot. 

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain may just be their best bet, as te took part in Arsenal's flight simulator challenge a few years ago.

Arsenal fans were left shocked this past Saturday as West Ham defeated the title hopefuls 2-0 in the season opener. This was supposed to be Arsenal’s season; with a strong finish last season the Gunners were expected to continue where they left off. But instead, they looked flat and lacked any real sense of urgency.