🔗 Share this article

More than the midpoint of the season, The Bees are in fantasy land.

Following victories in five games, and a Samba striker scoring the goals, suddenly Bees fans are envisioning thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A comprehensive three-nil win over the Black Cats moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the top flight – a position that was good enough to secure European football last term.

Only leaders Arsenal have collected more points over the past half-dozen matches.

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

Few was envisioning this last summer.

Thomas Frank had departed for Tottenham after a seven-year stint in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club promoted but also cemented them in the top flight.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a total of thirty-nine goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A season of difficulty, possibly even relegation, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, what is behind their success?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

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

But they also were aware they had a £30m striker already waiting to go.

Igor Thiago joined from Belgium in the summer for a then club record fee, but was plagued by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going goalless in eight appearances.

Thiago has set 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 Brazilian in a single English top-flight 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 an analyst said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, strong, but more skilled than people think. Good with his feet, both feet, he can score with both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. His statistics are fantastic. He must be so pleased. 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 underscores 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 Brentford.

His opener against the Black Cats 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 depend on to take that early opportunity cannot be overstated.

Before the game against Sunderland, no player to have attempted at least thirty efforts this season has a better shooting accuracy than Igor Thiago's 59.1%.

He hits the target. Do that often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering 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 high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he takes in his stride.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of credit for the kind of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "This is really notable. 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 toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is improving his abilities constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

Andrews Showing Sceptics Incorrect

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

While they had key individuals – a host of talent – under their previous boss, they were always seen as a team stronger 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 their parts alone might not be enough to avoid relegation.

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

A first managerial job is a challenge 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 Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

So far, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at the club, it looks as if they were vindicated.

Andrews won just one of his first five league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, the Reds and Newcastle have followed.

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

"We are 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 are happy 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 a handful of points, they have little choice, 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 dreams of Europe will become.