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More than halfway through the campaign, The Bees are in a dream scenario.

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

A comprehensive 3-0 win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the top flight – a place that was good enough to secure Champions League football last term.

Only leaders Arsenal have accumulated more points over the past six games.

There is a significant distance to go yet but the West London outfit are firmly in the race for continental football.

No one 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 guided the club promoted but also cemented them in the elite division.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for Arsenal and goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a total of thirty-nine goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in January with the club in the top five.

So, how have they managed it?

Igor Thiago's Historic Campaign

The club's decision not to sign another striker was in part down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not being finalized until deadline day.

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

Igor Thiago joined from Belgium in July 2024 for a then club record fee, but was plagued by injury in his debut campaign, going goalless in his initial outings.

Thiago has set about compensating 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 Premier League campaign.

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

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's physically intimidating, fast, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score with both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. These numbers are incredible. He must be so proud. 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 underscores the level he is operating at.

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

His first goal against the opposition was his seventh 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 early opportunity cannot be underestimated.

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. 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 provide for his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the type of players they bring in and personalities," the manager said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very well. He has had to earn this path. He has earned his journey and grafted. 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 complete centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Doubters Wrong

Their star striker is the headline act 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 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 their set-piece coach, with a blank managerial CV, 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, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other alternative that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the right man.

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

Andrews won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but big home victories against United, the Reds and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

"We are in good form and playing really well. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," he added. "We're pleased with how we are going but we want to keep improving."

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 defying the odds. And the longer that continues, the closer to reality those dreams of Europe will become.