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Over the midpoint of the campaign, The Bees are in fantasy land.

With four wins in their last five outings, and a Brazilian striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters are dreaming of thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

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

Solely leaders the Gunners have collected more points over the past six games.

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

No one was predicting this last off-season.

The former head coach had left for Tottenham after a seven-year stint 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 Arsenal and attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining United and Newcastle United respectively.

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

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

So, how did they pull it off?

Igor Thiago's Historic Campaign

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was in part down to timing, with one forward's move not being finalized until deadline day.

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

The 24-year-old joined from Club Brugge in July 2024 for a then-record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his first 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 Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single Premier League campaign.

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

"He's been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He is a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, both feet, 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 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 underscores the standard he is operating at.

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

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

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

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

Considering the struggles he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to support 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.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of praise for the kind of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "This 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 grafted. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is improving his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a pretty complete centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Doubters Wrong

Their star striker is the man of the moment but Brentford are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had key individuals – a host of talent – under their previous boss, they were always seen as a team more effective than the individual components.

The concern was that once the Dane 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 Andrews, 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 world's toughest league and having made the leap from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna was the only other option that Brentford 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 Brentford, it looks as if they were spot on.

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

Wins that, following their excellent recent form, could prove increasingly important in the pursuit for Europe.

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

In a league where the European spots and the lower mid-table are currently separated by just a handful of points, they have little choice, because things could quickly look very otherwise.

But, for now, Brentford are beating the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to fruition those aspirations of the continent will become.