🔗 Share this article

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

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

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

Only table-toppers Arsenal have gathered more points over the past half-dozen matches.

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

No one was envisioning this last off-season.

The former head coach had left for Spurs after a seven-year stint 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.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining United and Newcastle United respectively.

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

A year of difficulty, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. But here we are in January with Brentford in the upper echelons.

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Historic Campaign

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was partly down to circumstance, with one forward's move not being finalized 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-record fee, but was hindered by injury in his first campaign, going goalless in his initial outings.

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

Considering the countrymen who have preceded him, that is some accomplishment, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He's been a revelation," pundit an analyst said. "He's a physical specimen, quick, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score off 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 a trio of global superstars have scored more in any of the continent's major leagues to this point highlights the level he is operating at.

And it is not just the quantity but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so important for Brentford.

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

Prior to 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 percent.

He hits the target. Achieve that consistently and the goals will – and have – come.

Given the hardships he had in his youth, where he labored in construction to support his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that pressure on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the kind of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has fitted into life very well. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got real determination about his personality. He is improving his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Sceptics Wrong

Their star striker is the man of the moment but Brentford are not and have never been a one-man band.

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

The fear 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 stay up.

As a result, appointing their set-piece coach, with a blank managerial CV, and just a twelve months at the club was seen by those outside the club as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a test for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the leap from specialist coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other alternative that the hierarchy 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 the club, it looks as if they were vindicated.

The new boss won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

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

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just eight points, they have little choice, because things could rapidly look very otherwise.

But, for now, Brentford are defying the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to reality those aspirations of the continent will become.