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Over the midpoint of the season, The Bees find themselves in dreamland.

With victories in five games, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly supporters find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

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

Solely table-toppers the Gunners have accumulated more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There's a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are firmly in the fight for European football.

No one was forecasting this last summer.

The former head coach had departed for Spurs after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club to the Premier League but also cemented them in the top flight.

Skipper Christian Norgaard left for Arsenal and goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Specialist 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. Yet here we are in January with Brentford in the upper echelons.

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Season

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to timing, 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 ready and waiting.

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in July 2024 for a then club record fee, but was plagued by injury in his first campaign, going without a goal in eight appearances.

The 24-year-old has gone about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the highest tally by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the countrymen who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He's been a revelation," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He is a physical specimen, quick, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, both feet, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics are incredible. He must be so pleased. That's a huge 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 Brentford.

His first goal against the Black Cats was his 7th opener of the season. Given 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 overstated.

Before the game against Sunderland, no player to have attempted at least 30 shots this season has a better shooting accuracy than the striker's 59.1%.

He finds the target. Achieve 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 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.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of praise for the kind of players they bring in and characters," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really special person who has fitted into 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 developing his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Sceptics Wrong

Igor Thiago is the man of the moment but the team are not and have never been a one-man band.

While they had star players – 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 collective quality of Brentford's parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

As a result, appointing their set-piece coach, with a blank managerial CV, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a gamble.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, especially 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 Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other alternative that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the right man.

To date, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at Brentford, it looks as if they were vindicated.

Andrews won just a single of his first five league games in charge but significant home victories against United, Liverpool and Newcastle have followed.

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

"We're in fine fettle and playing really well. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," Andrews added. "We're happy with how we are going but we want to keep striving."

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

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