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Over halfway through the season, The Bees are in dreamland.

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

A comprehensive 3-0 win over Sunderland moved their manager's side into fifth in the top flight – a position that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

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

There's a significant distance to go yet but the West London outfit are squarely in the fight for continental football.

Few was envisioning this last summer.

Thomas Frank 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 established them in the elite division.

Skipper Christian Norgaard left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo two key forwards – who scored a total of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A year of struggle, possibly even relegation, was widely predicted. But here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, how did they pull it off?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

Brentford's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not going through until deadline day.

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 club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going without a goal in his initial outings.

The 24-year-old 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 Premier League campaign.

Considering the countrymen who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with seventeen matches left to play.

"He's been a breath of fresh air," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He's a physical specimen, quick, powerful, 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 proud. 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 timing of the goals that have been so vital for his team.

His opener against the Black Cats 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.

Prior to the game against Sunderland, no player to have attempted at least thirty efforts this season has a better shot accuracy rate than the striker's 59.1 percent.

He finds the target. Achieve that consistently 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 passing of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the type of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very well. He has had to forge this path. He has earned 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 largely all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Showing Doubters Incorrect

Igor Thiago is the headline act but Brentford are not and have never been a one-man band.

While they had star players – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team stronger 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.

Consequently, appointing Andrews, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a gamble.

A maiden role is a test for anyone, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna was the only other alternative that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

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

Andrews won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against United, Liverpool and the Magpies have followed.

Wins 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 well. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with or 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 a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very different.

But, for now, The Bees are defying the odds. And the longer that continues, the closer to reality those aspirations of Europe will become.