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Over the midpoint of the campaign, The Bees are in a dream scenario.

With victories in their last five outings, and a Brazilian striker banging in the goals, suddenly Bees fans are dreaming of thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A emphatic 3-0 win over the Black Cats moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a position that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

Only table-toppers the Gunners have gathered more points over the past six games.

There's a long way to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the fight for European football.

Few was predicting this last summer.

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 established them in the elite division.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a total of 39 goals in 2024-25 – 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 difficulty, possibly even relegation, was forecast. Yet here we are in the new year with Brentford in the top five.

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

The club's decision not to sign another striker was partly down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not going through until deadline day.

But they also knew they had a £30m striker already chomping at the bit.

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

Thiago has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his double against the Wearside club taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a Brazilian 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," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, powerful, but more skilled 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 shows the level he is playing at.

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

His first goal against the opposition was his 7th first goal of a game of the season. Given how often we are told the significance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can rely on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

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. 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 provide for his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of praise for the kind of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "This is really impressive. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to forge this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got real determination about his personality. He is improving his skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Sceptics Incorrect

Igor Thiago is the headline act 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 stronger than the individual components.

The fear 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 avoid relegation.

As a result, appointing their set-piece coach, with no previous managerial experience, 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, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the manager's office.

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

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

The new boss won just a single of his first five league games in charge but big home victories against United, Liverpool and the Magpies have since occurred.

Wins that, following their excellent recent form, could prove all the more important in the pursuit for Europe.

"We're in good form and playing really well. We are playing with courage 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 a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very different.

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