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More than halfway through the season, Brentford are in fantasy land.

Following four wins in their last five outings, and a Brazilian striker scoring the goals, suddenly Bees fans are envisioning thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A convincing 3-0 win over Sunderland moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a position that was good enough to secure Champions League football last term.

Only table-toppers the Gunners have collected more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There is a significant distance to go yet but the West London outfit are squarely in the fight for European football.

Few was predicting 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 promoted but also cemented them in the elite division.

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 out the door, joining United and Newcastle respectively.

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

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

So, how did they pull it off?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not being finalized until the final day of the window.

But they also knew they had a £30 million striker already waiting to go.

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his first campaign, going without a goal in eight appearances.

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

Given the countrymen who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with seventeen matches left to play.

"He has been a breath of fresh air," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He is physically intimidating, fast, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. These numbers are incredible. 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 the continent's major leagues to this point highlights the standard he is playing at.

And it is not just the volume but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so vital for his team.

His first goal against the opposition was his 7th first goal of a game of the season. Given how often we are told the significance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can rely on to take that first big chance cannot be overstated.

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

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer to provide for his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that pressure on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of praise for the type of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "It is really notable. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to forge this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is developing his skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Proving Doubters Incorrect

Their star striker is the man of the moment but Brentford 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 stronger than the individual components.

The fear was that once the Dane left, that may not be the case, and that the sum of their parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

As a result, appointing their set-piece coach, with no previous managerial experience, and just a twelve months at the club was seen by those outside the club as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the leap from specialist coach to the manager's office.

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

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

Andrews won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle have followed.

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

"We're 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're happy with how we are going but we want to keep striving."

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just eight points, they have little choice, because things could rapidly look very otherwise.

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