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More than halfway through the season, Brentford are in dreamland.

With victories in five games, and a Brazilian striker banging in 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 their manager's side into fifth in the top flight – a place that was good enough to secure European football last season.

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

There is a significant distance to go yet but Brentford are firmly in the race for European football.

No one was forecasting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had left for Spurs after a seven-year stint 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 goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a total of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining United and Newcastle United respectively.

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

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

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Historic Season

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was in part 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 chomping at the bit.

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

The 24-year-old has set about making up for lost time this season, though, with his double against the Wearside club taking him to 16 league goals – the highest tally by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

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

"He has been a breath of fresh air," pundit an analyst said. "He is a physical specimen, fast, strong, 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. His statistics are fantastic. 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 the continent's major leagues to this point underscores the level he is playing at.

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

His opener against the Black Cats was his 7th 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 rely on to take that early opportunity cannot be underestimated.

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

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

Given the hardships he had in his youth, where he worked as a bricklayer 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 praise for the kind of players they bring in and characters," Andrews said. "It is really impressive. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very well. 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 largely all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Doubters Wrong

Their star striker is the headline act but Brentford are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had key individuals – 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 Brentford's parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

Consequently, appointing Andrews, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a gamble.

A first managerial job is a test for anyone, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other alternative 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 spot on.

The new boss won just one of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against United, the Reds and the Magpies have since occurred.

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

"We are in fine fettle and playing really good. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews added. "We're happy with how we are going but we want to keep improving."

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just a handful of points, they have little choice, 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 dreams of Europe will become.