He was right. Since then, Mikel Arteta's men have been the dictionary definition of perfection.

They went on to win a first league crown in 22 years and have now won nine league games on the bounce. They have started 2026/27 with flying colours, winning their opening four matches.

Their run of form is their best since March 2004; talk about being dominant. That said, they had to work hard for their 2-0 victory over Sunderland on Saturday night. David Raya and Bruno Guimaraes came up trumps in a whirlwind 121 seconds of football.

How Raya and Bruno secured the win for Arsenal

"I'm so upset, it is unacceptable" exclaimed Arteta in the immediate aftermath of Arsenal's win in the north east. He was not unhappy with the performance. Instead, he was furious with the decision that led to Sunderland being awarded a penalty.

Ezri Konsa tangled with Dan Ballard and the referee pointed to the spot. Konsa was not at fault in this situation. Indeed, the Black Cats defender looked like he was the one who initiated the contact.

Alas, for the officials, they did not see that. Fortunately, the champions have David Raya in their ranks, the undisputed best goalkeeper in the Premier League.

Enzo Le Fee stepped up and slid a strong penalty towards the bottom corner. Yet, Raya was on hand to make a remarkable save, a jaw-dropping save to tip the ball onto the post.

It was the turning point in the game. Just moments later, Arsenal were ahead through substitute Guimaraes.

This squad is full of game-changers and in the Brazilian, they look to have found another one. Andrea Berta and Co fought hard to bring the former Newcastle midfielder to the Emirates Stadium this summer and to the tune of £75m, they have secured a bargain.

Bruno is Premier League-proven; he's a complete package, the finished article and the authority with which he played at the Stadium of Light on Saturday spoke volumes.

His goal was top-tier. Receiving the ball from Declan Rice, Guimaraes set himself and then rifled the ball beyond Robin Roefs from range. It was typical that his first goal in Arsenal colours came at the home of Newcastle's fierce rivals.

His performance, however, is not good news for every member of the team.

What Bruno Guimaraes' performance means for Arsenal

When Arsenal announced the signing of Bruno, they knew they'd struck gold. At the age of 28, he's experienced and he's a leader. This was the captain of Newcastle after all.

Compared to other signings this summer, this was a cracking deal. Sandro Tonali had moved to Spurs for £100m and Elliot Anderson had signed for Manchester City in a deal worth a mega £116m.

Truth be told, it has been a slow start for the midfielder in Arsenal colours. Hampered by injury, he has only played 64 minutes in the league thus far.

In all honesty, he's not been needed. The performance levels of Myles Lewis-Skelly have been impeccable. However, the landscape changed on Saturday.

As Arteta showed when removing Christos Tzolis from the action at half-time in the 1-0 win over Aston Villa, he's not afraid to make a change. He did just that against Sunderland, subbing Lewis-Skelly off in favour of Guimaraes. From now on, it looks likely that the Brazilian will become the regular partner next to Rice.

Why? Well, he's really rather good. Lewis-Skelly, on the other hand, had an evening to forget.

He has been nothing but sensational since being given a midfield role in Arteta's system but he really struggled to get up to speed with the pace of the game this weekend.

While the teenager did complete 93% of his passes, that didn't paint the overall picture too clearly. Indeed, this was a rare sloppy performance from the Hale Ender.

He gave away the ball on five occasions and when he did have possession, he did not do anything too productive with it.

Lewis-Skelly won just one of his six duels and failed to complete a key pass, a dribble, a tackle and he did not have a shot either. On that evidence, he offered nothing in the middle of the park.

It is hard to ever criticise the youngster's physicality but in such a tough contest, he did not turn up. Guimaraes, however, very much did.

For Lewis-Skelly, he will undoubtedly have better days but for now, do not be surprised if Arteta decides to place him on the bench next weekend against Brighton.