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

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

A convincing 3-0 win over the Black Cats moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a place that was good enough to secure Champions League football last season.

Only leaders the Gunners have gathered more points over the past six games.

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

Few was forecasting 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 guided the club promoted 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 thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A season of difficulty, possibly even the drop, was forecast. But 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 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 Club Brugge in the summer for a then club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going goalless in eight appearances.

Thiago has gone about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the countrymen who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He has been a breath of fresh air," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He is physically intimidating, fast, strong, but more skilled than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. These numbers 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 standard he is playing at.

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

His first goal against the opposition was his seventh first goal of a game of the season. Considering how often we are told the importance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can rely on to take that early opportunity cannot be underestimated.

Before 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 percent.

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

Given the hardships he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to support 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 credit for the type of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "This is really notable. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very nicely. 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 developing his skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty complete centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Sceptics Wrong

Their star striker is the headline act but Brentford 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 individual components.

The concern was that once the Dane left, that may not be the case, and that the sum of their parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

Consequently, appointing their set-piece coach, with a blank managerial CV, and just a twelve months at the club was seen by those external observers as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a test for anyone, let alone 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 option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

So far, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at the club, it looks as if they were correct.

The new boss won just a single 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 increasingly important in the pursuit for Europe.

"We are in good form and playing really well. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with and 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 little choice, because things could rapidly look very different.

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