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Over halfway through the campaign, Brentford are in a dream scenario.

With victories in five games, and a Brazilian striker banging in the goals, suddenly Bees fans find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

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

Solely table-toppers Arsenal have gathered more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There's a significant distance to go yet but Brentford are firmly in the fight for European football.

Few was predicting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had departed for Tottenham 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 top flight.

Skipper their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

Set-piece coach Andrews was promoted to replace the Dane, while there was no striker among the summer signings.

A season of struggle, possibly even relegation, was widely predicted. But here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, how have they managed it?

Igor Thiago's Record-breaking Season

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

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

Igor Thiago joined from Belgium in the summer for a then club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going goalless in his initial outings.

Thiago has set about making up for lost time this season, though, with his brace against Sunderland taking him to sixteen league goals – the highest tally by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Considering the countrymen who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He is physically intimidating, fast, strong, but more skilled than people think. Excellent with his feet, either foot, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are fantastic. He must be so proud. That's a huge compliment to him."

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

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

His first goal against the Black Cats was his seventh first goal of a game of the season. Considering how often we are told the significance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can depend 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 the striker's 59.1 percent.

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

Given the struggles he had in his youth, where he labored in construction 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.

"Our scouts 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 fitted into life very nicely. He has had to forge this path. He has earned his journey and toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is developing his skill set constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

Andrews Proving Sceptics Wrong

Their star striker is the man of the moment but Brentford are not and have never been a one-man band.

While they had key individuals – Ivan Toney, Christian Eriksen, Mbeumo and Wissa – 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 their parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

Consequently, appointing their set-piece coach, with a blank managerial CV, and just a twelve months at the club was seen by those external observers as a gamble.

A first managerial job is a challenge for anyone, let alone when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the leap from specialist coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other option that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the right man.

So far, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at the club, it looks as if they were vindicated.

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

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

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

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

But, for now, Brentford are defying the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to reality those dreams of the continent will become.