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More than the midpoint of the season, The Bees find themselves in a dream scenario.

Following victories in five games, and a Brazilian striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A emphatic 3-0 win over the Black Cats moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a place that was good enough to secure Champions League football last season.

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

There is a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are firmly in the fight for European football.

Few was envisioning this last summer.

The former head coach had left for Tottenham after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club promoted but also established them in the top flight.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and attacking 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 promoted to replace the Dane, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the summer signings.

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

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

The club'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 £30m striker already chomping at the bit.

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then-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 Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

Considering the countrymen who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He has been a breath of fresh air," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's a physical specimen, quick, powerful, 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. 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 Europe's top five leagues to this point shows the standard he is operating at.

And it is not just the quantity but the timing of the goals that have been so vital for Brentford.

His opener against the Black Cats was his seventh first goal of a game of the season. Considering how often we are told the importance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that first big chance cannot be overstated.

Before the game against Sunderland, no player to have attempted at least 30 shots 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 earlier in life, where he labored in construction to support his family following the passing 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," 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 improving his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

Andrews Proving 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 – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team stronger than the sum of their parts.

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 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 gamble.

A first managerial job 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 boss one candidate was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly confident they had the correct candidate.

So far, as often seems to be the case with the brains trust at Brentford, it looks as if they were vindicated.

The new boss won just one of his first five league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and the Magpies have followed.

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

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

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