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Over halfway through the campaign, The Bees are in a dream scenario.

With four wins in their last five outings, and a Samba striker banging in the goals, suddenly Bees fans find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A comprehensive 3-0 win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into fifth in the top flight – a place that was good enough to secure European football last season.

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

There is a long way to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the battle for continental football.

No one was forecasting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had departed for Tottenham after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club to the Premier League but also established them in the top flight.

Club captain Christian Norgaard left for the North London club and attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining United and Newcastle respectively.

Specialist coach Keith Andrews was promoted to replace the Dane, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the off-season arrivals.

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

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was in part down to timing, with Wissa's move not being finalized until the final day of the window.

But they also knew they had a £30 million striker already waiting to go.

The 24-year-old joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then-record fee, but was plagued by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going goalless in his initial outings.

The 24-year-old has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his double against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a Brazilian in a single English top-flight campaign.

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

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He's a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Good 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 pleased. That's a big compliment to him."

That only a trio of global superstars have scored more in any of Europe's top five leagues to this point shows 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 first goal against the opposition was his 7th opener of the season. Considering 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 overstated.

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

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

Considering the struggles he had in his youth, where he worked as a bricklayer to provide for his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that pressure on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of praise for the type 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 well. He has had to earn this path. He has earned his journey and grafted. He has got real determination about his personality. He is improving his abilities constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty 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 single-player team.

While they had key individuals – a host of talent – under their previous boss, they were always seen as a team more effective than the individual components.

The concern was that once the manager left, that may not be the case, and that the sum of their parts alone might not be enough to avoid relegation.

Consequently, appointing their set-piece coach, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those outside the club as a gamble.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist 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 confident 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 correct.

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

Results that, following their excellent recent form, could prove all the more important in the pursuit for European qualification.

"We're in good form and playing really well. We are playing with courage and belief in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews added. "We're pleased with how we are going but we want to keep pushing."

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could quickly look very otherwise.

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