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More than halfway through the season, Brentford are in dreamland.

Following victories in five games, and a Brazilian striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters are dreaming of thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A emphatic three-nil win over the Black Cats moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the top flight – a place that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

Solely leaders the Gunners have gathered more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There's a long way to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the race for continental football.

Few was forecasting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had departed for Spurs after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club to the Premier League but also established them in the elite division.

Skipper their Danish midfielder left for Arsenal and attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a total of thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Set-piece coach Andrews was elevated to replace Frank, while there was no striker among the off-season arrivals.

A year of difficulty, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. But here we are in January with Brentford in the top five.

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to timing, with Wissa's move not going through until deadline day.

But they also were aware they had a £30m striker already chomping at the bit.

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in the summer for a then-record fee, but was plagued by injury in his debut campaign, going without a goal in his initial outings.

Thiago has gone about making up for lost time this season, though, with his double against Sunderland taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a Brazilian in a single English top-flight campaign.

Considering the countrymen who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with seventeen matches remaining.

"He's been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, powerful, but technically better than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics are fantastic. He must be so pleased. That's a big compliment to him."

That only a trio of global superstars have scored more in any of Europe's top five leagues to this point highlights the level he is playing at.

And it is not just the quantity but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so important for Brentford.

His opener against the Black Cats was his seventh opener of the season. Given how often we are told the importance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that first big chance cannot be overstated.

Before the game against their opponents, no player to have attempted at least 30 shots this season has a better shooting accuracy than Igor Thiago's 59.1%.

He hits the target. Achieve that often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering the hardships he had in his youth, where he labored in construction to support his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the type of players they bring in and characters," Andrews said. "It is really impressive. He is a really special person who has fitted into life very well. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got real determination about his personality. He is improving his abilities constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Doubters Wrong

Igor Thiago is the headline act but Brentford are not and have never been a one-man band.

While they had star players – a host of talent – under their previous boss, they were always seen as a team stronger than the individual components.

The fear was that once the Dane left, that may not be the case, and that the collective quality of Brentford's parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

As a result, appointing Andrews, with a blank managerial CV, and just a twelve months at the club was seen by those external observers as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other alternative that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

To date, as often seems to be the case with the brains trust at Brentford, it looks as if they were correct.

The new boss won just a single of his first five league games in charge but big home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and the Magpies have followed.

Wins that, following their brilliant recent run, could prove all the more important in the pursuit for Europe.

"We are in fine fettle and playing really well. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews added. "We are happy with how we are going but we want to keep striving."

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very different.

But, for now, The Bees are beating the odds. And the longer that lasts, the closer to reality those dreams of Europe will become.