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Over halfway through the season, Brentford find themselves in a dream scenario.

Following four wins 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 comprehensive 3-0 win over Sunderland moved their manager's side into fifth in the top flight – a position that was sufficient to secure Champions League football last term.

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

There is a significant distance to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the race for continental football.

Few was predicting 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 promoted 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 total of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

Specialist coach Keith Andrews was elevated to succeed Frank, while there was no striker among the off-season arrivals.

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

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to timing, with one forward's move not going through until the final day of the window.

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

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

The 24-year-old has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against Sunderland taking him to sixteen league goals – the highest tally by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

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

"He has been a breath of fresh air," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He is a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. These numbers are fantastic. He must be so pleased. That's a big compliment to him."

That only Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe have scored more in any of the continent's major leagues to this point underscores the level he is operating at.

And it is not just the volume but the timing of the goals that have been so pivotal for his team.

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 first big chance cannot be overstated.

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

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

Considering the hardships he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction 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 praise for the type of players they bring in and personalities," the manager said. "It is really impressive. He is a really special person who has fitted into life very nicely. He has had to forge this path. He has earned 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 pretty all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Proving Sceptics Incorrect

Their star striker is the headline act 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 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 Brentford's parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

As a result, appointing Andrews, with a blank managerial CV, and just a year at the club was seen by those outside the club as a gamble.

A first managerial job is a test for anyone, let alone when it comes in the Premier 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.

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

Andrews won just one of his first 5 league games in charge but big home victories against Manchester United, the Reds and the Magpies have since occurred.

Wins that, following their brilliant recent run, could prove increasingly important in the pursuit for European qualification.

"We're in good form and playing really good. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews 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 a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could quickly look very different.

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