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

Following victories in their last five outings, and a Samba striker scoring the goals, suddenly Bees fans are dreaming of thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A emphatic three-nil win over the Black Cats moved Keith Andrews' side into fifth in the top flight – 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 continental football.

No one was forecasting this last off-season.

The former head coach 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 cemented them in the top flight.

Skipper their Danish midfielder left for Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining United and Newcastle United respectively.

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

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

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to circumstance, with one forward's move not being finalized until deadline day.

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

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 goalless in eight appearances.

Thiago has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single Premier League campaign.

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

"He has been a revelation," pundit an analyst said. "He's a physical specimen, quick, powerful, but technically better than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are incredible. He must be so pleased. That's a big 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 standard he is operating at.

And it is not just the volume but the timing of the goals that have been so vital for Brentford.

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

Prior to the game against their opponents, no player to have attempted at least 30 shots this season has a better shooting accuracy than the striker's 59.1 percent.

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

Considering the hardships he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer to support his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that pressure 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 characters," the manager said. "It is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has fitted into life very well. He has had to forge this path. He has earned his journey and grafted. He has got real determination about his personality. He is developing his skill set constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a pretty all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Sceptics Wrong

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

While they had star players – Ivan Toney, Christian Eriksen, Mbeumo and Wissa – under Frank, 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 their parts alone might not be enough to avoid relegation.

Consequently, 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 first managerial job is a test for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the leap from set-piece coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the correct candidate.

So far, 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 five league games in charge but significant home victories against United, Liverpool and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

"We're in fine fettle and playing really well. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," he added. "We're pleased 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 no other option, because things could quickly look very different.

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