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

With victories in their last five outings, and a Brazilian striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

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

Only table-toppers the Gunners have accumulated more points over the past half-dozen matches.

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

No one was predicting this last summer.

The former head coach had departed for Tottenham after a seven-year stint in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club to the Premier League but also established them in the elite division.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining United and Newcastle United respectively.

Specialist coach Andrews was elevated to replace Frank, while there was no striker among the summer signings.

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in January with the club in the top five.

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

Brentford'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 were aware they had a £30 million striker already ready and waiting.

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.

The 24-year-old 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 come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with seventeen matches remaining.

"He's been a revelation," pundit an analyst said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, strong, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, 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 a trio of global superstars have scored more in any of the continent's major leagues to this point highlights the standard 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 opposition was his seventh 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 rely on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

Prior to the game against their opponents, no player to have attempted at least 30 shots this season has a better shooting accuracy than Igor Thiago's 59.1 percent.

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to support his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that pressure 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 personalities," Andrews said. "This is really notable. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is developing 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 single-player team.

While they had star players – Ivan Toney, Christian Eriksen, Mbeumo and Wissa – under Frank, they were always seen as a team stronger than the individual components.

The concern was that once the Dane left, that may not be the case, and that the collective quality of their parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

Consequently, appointing Andrews, 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 challenge for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other option that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the correct candidate.

So far, 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 five league games in charge but big home victories against United, Liverpool and Newcastle have followed.

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

"We are in good form and playing really good. We are playing with bravery and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," he added. "We're happy 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 no other option, because things could quickly look very different.

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