Graphic: Premier League tactical analysis

Arsenal for the title? They would be Sir Alex Ferguson’s preferred choice of winners if Manchester United fail to retain their crown, but what might have seemed a fanciful suggestion before the start of the season has gained in credence on the back of two impressive visits to the North West.

The cautious observer may proffer that not too much should be read into a couple of games, but do not underestimate the significance of resounding victories away to Blackburn Rovers and Bolton Wanderers for an Arsenal team who, under Arsène Wenger, have suffered a nosebleed when they have strayed into these parts.

Arsenal’s failure to win the title over the past four seasons has had much to do with their lamentable record in the North West. Of the 81 points available during that time, only 36 have been taken, with 13 of those 27 matches ending in defeat.

The manner of Arsenal’s victory at the Reebok Stadium in March, when they came from two goals down to win 3-2, despite playing the last hour with ten men after the sending-off of Abou Diaby, hinted at a turning tide and Saturday’s entry into the canon of memorable clashes with Bolton served only to strengthen the belief that Wenger’s players have added steel to their bewitching skill.

Bolton would have beaten most opponents, including the Arsenal team who succumbed to defeats here in three of the previous four campaigns. In this mood, though, Arsenal are a different proposition.

Gary Megson, the Bolton manager, talked about Arsenal possessing quality “as good as you’ll see throughout the world”, but as beguiling as they are on the ball, it was their response to going behind to Kevin Davies’s fourteenth-minute header that impressed most. Robust and resilient, they displayed reserves of character more often associated with a team such as Bolton.

“In the past we have allowed ourselves to be intimidated here, but this time we knew it would be tough and we were ready for that,” Kolo Touré, the Arsenal defender, said. “We know that we have to win our away matches if we are to be champions because we dropped too many points on the road last season.

“In the past, we have been too easy to beat away from home, especially in the North West, but we have shown over the last week, against Blackburn and Bolton, that we are able to win these games.”

Not that Arsenal’s sensitive side was absent. The hysterical reaction to Davies’s hard but legitimate challenge on Gaël Clichy that left the Arsenal left back with a badly bruised shin almost seemed rehearsed. “If you are going to allow tackles like that, you might as well get kids in off the street because they can make those challenges,” Touré said.

Even that melodramatic assessment, though, could not match the theatre provided by Arsenal, not least during an intoxicating 20-minute spell in the first half when they hit back, through Emmanuel Eboué and Nicklas Bendtner.

Denilson, arguably the best of a brilliant bunch, added gloss to the scoreline late on after Theo Walcott, on as a substitute, had left a clutch of Bolton players trailing in his wake during what is fast becoming a trademark 50-yard run.

Even if Arsenal fail to win the league for a fifth season — and on this evidence it may be only their relative inexperience when compared with that of United and Chelsea that hampers them in the long run — Wenger’s faith in his players will not waver. And nor should it. The average age of his front six players against Bolton was under 22, an ominous sign for the rest.

Bolton (4-1-4-1): J Jaaskelainen 6 - G Steinsson 5, D Shittu 5, A O’Brien 5, J Samuel 5 - J O’Brien 6 - R Gardner 7, F Muamba 6, K Nolan 7, E Smolarek 5 - K Davies 7. Substitutes: M Riga 7 (for Smolarek, 56), G McCann 6 (for J O’Brien, 61), R Vaz Té (for Muamba, 81). Not used: A Al Habsi, N Hunt, H Helguson, T Cohen.

Arsenal (4-4-2): M Almunia 7 - B Sagna 6, K Touré 7, W Gallas 7, G Clichy 6 - Denilson 9, F Fàbregas 8, A Song 8, E Eboué 8 - E Adebayor 8, N Bendtner 8. Substitutes: J Djourou 6 (for Clichy, 46), T Walcott (for Bendtner, 73), A Ramsey (for Eboué, 85). Not used: L Fabianski, R van Persie, C A Vela, K Gibbs.