League leaders Arsenal may have endured a slight wobble in recent games, although that should not detract from what has been a stellar season so far under manager Mikel Arteta.
After having missed out on Champions League qualification at the tail end of last season, the Spaniard has since transformed his youthful outfit into genuine title contenders, with the club's impressive recruitment having been vital in that recent resurgence.
The £32m arrival of Oleksandr Zinchenko, in particular, has helped to spur on the north London outfit this season, with the Ukrainian gem having gone from something of a peripheral figure at former club Manchester City to now being a leading figure at the Emirates.
The versatile left-back's impact has been recognised by his manager who hailed him a "perfectionist", with few having been able to anticipate just how vital the 26-year-old would become in his new home.
The former City ace is not alone in having potentially proved any doubters wrong during his time in the capital, with teammate Aaron Ramsdale having also quashed early scepticism after signing from Sheffield United back in the summer of 2021.
How good has Ramsdale been for Arsenal?
As club legend Ian Wright noted last season, the England international had been somewhat "ridiculed" following his arrival in a £30m deal, with fans and pundits alike having questioned the wisdom in bringing in a player who had suffered back-to-back relegations with the Blades and for Bournemouth.
Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher has also recently admitted that he had been "scratching his head" at the time of the goalkeeper's switch to north London, although has "never been more wrong" such has been the 24-year-old's impact to date.
The £60k-per-week rock's fine form has also been praised by journalist Pete O'Rourke, with the respected insider telling Football FanCast that the stopper could well be among the best signings of Arteta's tenure thus far.
Asked where Ramsdale would rank among the best additions of the decade, O'Rourke stated: "Yeah, I think he's got to be up there. Came under the radar and obviously came in for a bit of criticism when he first arrived at the club.
"Arsenal did spend big money on him when they signed him from Sheffield United, who had just been relegated, so it was a lot of question marks about paying the big money for him. And obviously, he came in as the number two goalkeeper originally with Bernd Leno still number one, but he's worked really hard. He got that number one shirt midway through last season as well and he's held on to it."
The 6 foot 2 ace has been in particularly impressive form so far this season after keeping 12 clean sheets from his 31 Premier League outings, having been rather heroic in the recent draw away to Liverpool.
The one-time Cherries gem notably denied Mohamed Salah with a stunning, sprawling save late on in that thriller at Anfield, before remarkably keeping out Ibrahima Konate at point-blank range when the Frenchman appeared nailed on to score.
That "exceptional" performance against the Reds – as per Arteta – has only served to rubberstamp just how impressive Ramsdale has been for the Gunners thus far, with the point he neared his side potentially pivotal in the title reace.
Indeed, the Stoke-born titan has left a lot of those initial naysayers looking rather silly.
