Arsenal go into the November international break as the Premier League leaders, with Bleacher Report’s round-up of the season so far putting Mikel Arteta’s side five points clear of Brighton & Hove Albion and six ahead of Manchester City after ten matches. The gap has been built on a very tight defence.
Arsenal’s Premier League lead at the November break: the key facts
- Arsenal have won nine of their first ten league games, according to Bleacher Report (published 9 November 2026).
- Their only defeat was a 3-0 loss at Brighton in mid-September, per the same report.
- They have conceded just five goals in ten matches.
- Wins have come against Aston Villa, Chelsea and Liverpool, among others.
The win at Anfield that took Arsenal top
The turning point was on 1 November. Reuters, via Al Jazeera, reported that Kai Havertz scored after 16 minutes from a low Declan Rice cross to give Arsenal a 1-0 win at Liverpool. The report described it as Arsenal’s first league win at Anfield since September 2012, a run that stretched across most of Arteta’s time as manager. Liverpool hit the bar through a Florian Wirtz free kick, so the margin was thin.
That result left Arsenal on 24 points from nine games. Manchester City, who had led for much of the autumn, had 21 after losing at home to Brighton the day before. Liverpool, now managed by Andoni Iraola, were fifth and nine points behind after their second league defeat of the season.
How Arsenal stretched the gap
A week later Arsenal beat Hull City, with Martin Odegaard’s 72nd-minute goal the difference, according to Dawan Africa’s match report, which described the result as moving Arsenal six points clear of City. The scoreline is not given in the portion of the report we could read, so we are not quoting one.
What stands out is the pattern. Arsenal are not winning big. Their wins have often been narrow, and AFP’s weekend talking points described the Liverpool game as a display of grit rather than flair. Conceding five goals in ten league games is the number that holds the lead together.
What is going wrong for the chasing pack
The teams behind Arsenal are not shaping up as steady challengers. Under new manager Enzo Maresca, Manchester City have lost three league games in a row, according to Bleacher Report. Brighton, managed by Fabian Hürzeler, are second and have the best case to be called the surprise of the season, with the 1-0 win at the Etihad described by AFP as their first away win at City in club history. Liverpool have slipped nine points back.
Football365’s Michael Lee wrote after the Liverpool game that Arsenal “probably won” the title. That is one columnist’s opinion published in November, and there are 28 league games left, so it should be read as such.
It is also worth remembering how the autumn has looked from the other side. Brighton’s 3-0 win over Arsenal in mid-September remains the only league defeat on Arsenal’s record, and the same club then went on to win at Manchester City. Brighton had scored 23 goals in their first seven matches, according to the Wikipedia season table updated to 18 October, so Arsenal know the threat behind them is real.
What to watch when the Premier League returns
Three questions will decide whether Arsenal’s lead holds. Can the defence keep up its current pace without a lapse? Can Arsenal win the games where the opponent does not give them space, as they did at Anfield? And can City, who have a points-deduction cloud over them according to AFP if a guilty verdict on the charges stands, recover from three straight league defeats?
If you want a refresher on how the table is decided if teams finish level, our guide to Premier League points and tie-breakers covers it, and you can keep up with every club storyline in our League Football section.
Arsenal will not mind how the lead looks at the moment. Ten games is a quarter of the season, and a six-point gap and only five goals conceded is a strong position to start the winter from.
Sources: Bleacher Report (9 November 2026), Reuters via Al Jazeera (1 November 2026), AFP via Flashscore, Dawan Africa (7 November 2026), Football365 (2 November 2026).
