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More than the midpoint of the campaign, The Bees are in fantasy land.

With victories in five games, and a Samba striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters are dreaming of thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A comprehensive three-nil win over the Black Cats moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a place that was sufficient to secure Champions League football last season.

Solely table-toppers the Gunners have gathered more points over the past six games.

There is a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are squarely in the battle for European football.

Few was predicting this last summer.

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

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

Specialist coach Andrews was elevated to succeed the Dane, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the summer signings.

A year of struggle, possibly even relegation, was forecast. Yet here we are in the new year with Brentford in the top five.

So, how did they pull it off?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Season

The club's decision not to sign another striker was partly down to circumstance, with one forward's move not being finalized until the final day of the window.

But they also knew they had a £30 million striker already ready and waiting.

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in the summer for a then club record fee, but was plagued by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going without a goal in eight appearances.

Thiago has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his double against Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the highest tally by a Brazilian in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the fellow Brazilians who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with seventeen matches remaining.

"He has been a breath of fresh air," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He's a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics are incredible. He must be so proud. That's a huge compliment to him."

That only Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe have scored more in any of Europe's top five leagues to this point underscores the level he is playing at.

And it is not just the quantity but the timing of the goals that have been so important for his team.

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

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

He finds the target. Do that consistently and the goals will – and have – come.

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer to support his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of praise for the type of players they bring in and personalities," the manager said. "This is really notable. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and grafted. He has got real determination about his personality. He is developing his skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty complete centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Sceptics Wrong

Igor Thiago is the man of the moment but the team are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had star players – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team more effective than the sum of their parts.

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

As a result, appointing Andrews, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those outside the club as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a test for anyone, especially when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich boss one candidate was the only other alternative that Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the right man.

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

The new boss won just one of his first five league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, the Reds and Newcastle have followed.

Results that, following their excellent recent run, could prove increasingly important in the race for European qualification.

"We are in fine fettle and playing really good. We are playing with courage and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," he added. "We are pleased with how we are going but we want to keep improving."

In a league where the European spots and the lower mid-table are currently separated by just eight points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very otherwise.

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