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More than the midpoint of the season, Brentford are in dreamland.

With four wins in their last five outings, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly supporters are dreaming of thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A convincing 3-0 win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into fifth in the top flight – a position that was sufficient to secure Champions League football last term.

Only table-toppers the Gunners 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.

Few was envisioning this last summer.

The former head coach had departed 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 elite division.

Club captain 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 out the door, joining Manchester 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 off-season arrivals.

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was forecast. But here we are in the new year with the club in the upper echelons.

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Historic Campaign

The club's decision not to sign another striker was partly 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 ready and waiting.

Igor Thiago joined from Belgium in the summer for a then-record fee, but was plagued by injury in his debut campaign, going without a goal in eight appearances.

The 24-year-old has set about compensating 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.

Considering the countrymen who have come before him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with seventeen matches left to play.

"He has been a breath of fresh air," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, strong, 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 fantastic. He must be so proud. That's a huge 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 highlights the standard he is operating at.

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

His first goal against the Black Cats was his seventh opener of the season. Considering how often we are told the importance 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 Sunderland, no player to have attempted at least thirty efforts this season has a better shooting accuracy than the striker's 59.1 percent.

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

Considering the hardships he had in his youth, where he labored in construction to provide for his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that pressure on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the kind of players they bring in and characters," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very well. He has had to earn 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 learning more and more about him. He is a largely all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Doubters Incorrect

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 their previous boss, they were always seen as a team more effective than the sum of their parts.

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

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, especially when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other alternative that the hierarchy 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 the club, it looks as if they were correct.

The new boss won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but big 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 good form and playing really good. We are playing with bravery and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews added. "We are happy 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 defying the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to fruition those aspirations of Europe will become.