is it that easy. I'm not sure they will continue to be consistent until the end of the competition. things will change quickly if they are not consistent. manchester city is still the strongest team to win the title at the end of the 2022/2023 competition. Arsenal haven't met manchester city and liverpool this season which I think they can drop points against bigger teams. but I am quite optimistic that this season's arsenal squad is more promising than the previous season and they deserve to be counted as a challenger team to manchester city.
Of course you are right, Arsenal are still struggling to maintain their good form against a top team like when they were beaten by Manchester United.
I agree that this season Arsenal's performance is much better than last season. Their current team composition looks quite ready to compete for the title, but they have a lot to prove especially about their ability to pick up points in tough match like against Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea or Tottenham. If Arsenal are capable, then I believe they deserve to be called strong candidates.