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Arsenal is in a rich vein of form right now, and they enter the October international break top of the Premier League table. They deserve to be there, not only through their own hard work, but the obvious downturn in form from their main league rivals too.
What's most impressive about the start to this season is that Arsenal has mainly had to do it without their best players. At different points of this campaign, the Gunners have seen injuries to key players.
Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Noni Madueke and Kai Havertz have all suffered this fate, but none more so than Martin Ødegaard.
It seems like everyday, there is a new Martin Ødegaard injury to read about, and the weekend served up the same old narrative.
Martin Ødegaard just set a woeful Premier League record
In the first half against West Ham United, the Arsenal skipper went down injured and was forced off. He was far too uncomfortable to continue, and therefore, he will not be playing for Norway in the current international break.
According to Ryan Taylor of Football London, Martin Ødegaard just became the first player in Premier League history to be subbed off in the first half in three consecutive starts.
It's true. Since before the last international break, Ødegaard was subbed off within the first half against Liverpool, Nottingham Forest, and now, West Ham. Across his last three Premier League starts, Ødegaard has only played 56 minutes.
Of course, this wasn't due to poor form. When he's played recently, he's been one of Arsenal's best players, for crying out loud. However, it's the injury plague which is bugging him recently, and it's holding Arsenal back.
Without Ødegaard, Arsenal don't just lose their leader, but they also lose their most influential player. Most of the play runs through Ødegaard, so without him, the Gunners must look towards other players who are comfortable carrying the ball forward.
Against West Ham, Martin Zubimendi did that job well in Ødegaard's place. It wasn't ideal, but it was still great for Mikel Arteta to know that he can rely on his new recruits when the pre-existing players cannot perform for whatever reason.
Next up, after the October break, Arsenal face off against Fulham, and then Atletico Madrid. Ødegaard spent plenty of his career in Madrid, for the white side. So, Arsenal will hope to have him back in contention by then.
Let's not make it four starts on the bounce where he goes down with injury, please.