🔗 Share this article

More than halfway through the campaign, The Bees find themselves in a dream scenario.

With four wins in their last five outings, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly Bees fans are dreaming of thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A emphatic three-nil win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the top flight – a position that was good enough to secure Champions League football last season.

Solely leaders Arsenal have collected more points over the past six games.

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

Few was predicting this last off-season.

The former head coach 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 elite division.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for Arsenal and attacking 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 succeed Frank, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the summer signings.

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was forecast. But here we are in the new year with Brentford in the top five.

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Campaign

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was partly down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not going through 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 without a goal in eight appearances.

Thiago has set about making up for lost time this season, though, with his double against Sunderland taking him to sixteen league goals – the highest tally by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

Considering the fellow Brazilians who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games remaining.

"He's been a breath of fresh air," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He's physically intimidating, fast, strong, but technically better than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics 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 standard he is operating at.

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

His first goal against the Black Cats was his 7th first goal of a game of the season. Considering how often we are told the significance of the initial strike in a game, having someone you can depend 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 shot accuracy rate than Igor Thiago's 59.1 percent.

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer to provide for his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that pressure 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 characters," Andrews said. "This is really notable. He is a really special person who has fitted into life very well. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and grafted. 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 Showing Doubters Wrong

Igor Thiago is the man of the moment but Brentford 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 more effective than the sum of their parts.

The concern 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 outside the club as a huge risk.

A first managerial job is a test for anyone, let alone 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 boss one candidate was the only other alternative that Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

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

Andrews won just one of his first five league games in charge but big home victories against United, Liverpool and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

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

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 rapidly look very different.

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