Premier League teams appear to be dominating proceedings in Europe as, for the second time in this campaign's premier European tournament, five sides from the Premier League secured victories in a matchday of games.
The Gunners, The Reds, Manchester City, Newcastle and Spurs all won their matches this matchday, with the initial quartet of those sides now sitting inside the top eight - the positions they need to be in to secure direct entry for the elimination rounds.
Only Chelsea did not secure all maximum points as they were held to a surprising 2-2 draw by Qarabag on midweek, but they are still handily placed at the halfway stage of the initial phase as they reside in twelfth place.
Prior to this campaign the elite European competition had never seen five clubs from a single nation all triumph in a matchday of matches. Currently sides from England have managed it on two occasions.
"In five years' time we will look at this period of the next five years as the supremacy of English football, I don't see it any other way," Spanish football journalist the analyst stated.
"Bayern are doing really, really well, and they can challenge that dominance. Paris Saint-Germain will have periods of success, I think Barcelona and Los Blancos are trailing, but there is no other competition."
So following this commanding beginning, are Premier League clubs the frontrunners to claim the European Cup? And how probable is a fourth all-English final?
The Reasons English Teams Are Performing Excellently
The North London club are hoping to claim European glory for the first occasion and, while it is still early days, they have made a very promising start.
Themselves, Bayern Munich and the Italian side are the only sides with a perfect record so far in the group stage, sharing the lead with maximum points from a available 12.
In addition to not conceding in each of their four games so far they have also scored 11 goals - a goal tally only surpassed by Bayern Munich, PSG (both 14), Dortmund (13) and the Catalan club (12).
As a group, English teams are outperforming those from different nations, winning 17 of their 24 games, netting 56 goals - 14 more than any other leagues - and conceding just 17, a record only improved upon by teams from Ligue 1, who have three clubs in the competition compared to six English representatives.
So why Premier League sides are achieving such success?
A significant factor is the economic power they are can wield compared to teams from the other European leagues, enabling them to spend more on transfer fees and wages to secure the best talent.
TV rights have produced massive broadcast revenues for Premier League sides, with the income from that stream dwarfing those of different leagues.
This summer, English top-flight teams spent record amounts in the player market as expenditure exceeded £3bn.
To highlight just how much economic strength English teams have over elsewhere in Europe, the total spent this year was more than was spent by German, La Liga, French and Serie A clubs combined.
More money means clubs can invest in larger rosters, with Arsenal seeing the benefits of spending big this transfer window to enhance their strength in depth as they top the table in the Premier League and share first place of the Champions League table.
"Clearly in a elimination tournament anything can happen but in terms of money, talent, coaching, infrastructure and even the talent in the offices, English football are the super league of Europe," Balague continued.
"I am not saying this perhaps with the jealousy of La Liga in overall, it is just a reflection of what is happening."
Could a Record Number of Premier League Teams Advance?
This is the first Champions League season to feature six clubs from a single country and history will be made if all six of the English participants progress.
Back in 2017, The Blues, The Reds, Manchester City, United and Tottenham each advanced, making English football the pioneering nation to have five clubs in the knockouts of the competition.
However just two of those sides - the Merseyside club and Manchester City - got beyond the last 16, while the Reds went reached the showpiece after eliminating City in the last eight.
During the championship match, they were defeated by Real Madrid.
Based on statistical models, the Gunners have a virtually certain probability of progressing to the knockouts, with City on 97.4% and Liverpool on strong chance.
Nonetheless, the forecasting system is a slightly more cautious over the direct qualification of the other three sides with the Magpies on a solid chance, the Blues on 80.8% and Spurs on 72%.
"In my view at the moment it is notable what English teams are doing, but it doesn't matter what happens at the current stage because we observed what occurred last season, when Liverpool were dominating and finished top of the league stage - and then they were suddenly knocked out by Paris Saint-Germain who had been rubbish up until then," former Liverpool midfielder the analyst stated.
"Therefore I can't determine at the moment, unless you get eliminated, what effect it is going to have and it does not mean the Premier League sides are going to get through the later rounds because it all depends on the fixture luck, and how you are set up later in the competition."
What Other Clubs Are Performing Strongly?
Bayern Munich, led by the high-performing the England captain, possess a perfect record so far in the league phase.
No club has netted more often than their fourteen strikes so far - with Kane accounting for a handful - while they have allowed only a trio.
It is currently primarily the traditional powers occupying the top eight - the positions teams need to end up in to qualify automatically for the knockouts - with Inter Milan, Paris St-Germain and Real Madrid accompanying the Bavarians and the four English sides in those spots.
The team from Azerbaijan Qarabag FK are showing that finance isn't the sole factor after they held Chelsea to a draw on midweek and presently have seven points from four games, placing them on track to securing at least a qualifying place.
What Is Probably Be Required to Reach Knockouts?
Using the previous campaign - the inaugural to utilise the new structure - as a indicator for what is needed to end up in the top eight, then approximately 16 points from the eight games should be sufficient.
This implies clubs are probably need to win five of their eight fixtures, which this season's Premier League sides are on track to accomplish.
There exists a greater margin to obtain a play-off place, which is awarded to the teams who end up between ninth and 24th.
In the previous campaign, the Belgian side obtained the last play-off place, winning just three of their eight games on their way to a total of eleven points.
Who Has the Best Chance of Going All the Way?
The season is young but Arsenal's excellent beginning has them considered the most likely to go all the way and claim the trophy.
Opta predictions assign them a 23.4% chance of winning the European Cup, while City are predicted to be the next probable Premier League side to make the showpiece at a solid chance. Liverpool are third favourites from the English contingent with a reasonable likelihood.
However ex-Toffees player the pundit thinks the real examination of the Premier League teams' capabilities will come in the elimination phase.
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