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More than halfway through the campaign, The Bees are in dreamland.

With four wins in five games, and a Brazilian striker banging in the goals, suddenly Bees fans find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A convincing three-nil win over Sunderland moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the top flight – a position that was good enough to secure Champions League football last season.

Solely leaders Arsenal have gathered more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There is a long way to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the battle for European football.

Few was envisioning this last summer.

The former head coach had left for Spurs after a seven-year stint in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club promoted but also cemented them in the top flight.

Club captain Christian Norgaard left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a total of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

Specialist coach Keith Andrews was elevated to replace Frank, while there was no striker among the summer signings.

A year of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. But here we are in the new year with Brentford in the upper echelons.

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was partly down to circumstance, with one forward's move not being finalized until the final day of the window.

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

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in July 2024 for a then-record fee, but was plagued by injury in his first campaign, going without a goal in his initial outings.

The 24-year-old has set about making up for lost time this season, though, with his brace against Sunderland taking him to sixteen 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 a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He's been a breath of fresh air," pundit an analyst said. "He's a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Good with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are fantastic. He must be so proud. 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 level he is operating at.

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

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

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

He hits the target. Do that often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering the struggles he had in his youth, 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 handles with ease.

"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 unique person who has fitted into life very nicely. 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 developing his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a largely all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Showing Doubters Wrong

Igor Thiago is the headline act but the team 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 more effective than the sum of their parts.

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

As a result, appointing Andrews, with a blank managerial CV, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a huge risk.

A first managerial job is a test for anyone, especially when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich boss one candidate was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced 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 five league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle have since occurred.

Results that, following their excellent 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 bravery and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," Andrews added. "We are happy 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 quickly look very otherwise.

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