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More than halfway through the campaign, The Bees find themselves in a dream scenario.

With four wins in five games, and a Samba 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 the Black Cats moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a position that was sufficient to secure Champions League football last season.

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

There's a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are firmly in the battle for European football.

Few was envisioning this last off-season.

The former head coach had departed for Tottenham after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club to the Premier League but also cemented 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 2024-25 – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

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

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Historic Season

Brentford's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not being finalized until deadline day.

But they also were aware they had a £30m striker already chomping at the bit.

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in July 2024 for a then club record fee, but was plagued by injury in his debut campaign, going without a goal in his initial outings.

The 24-year-old has gone about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to 16 league goals – the highest tally by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Considering the countrymen who have come before 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 is a physical specimen, quick, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are fantastic. He must be so proud. 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 shows the level he is operating at.

And it is not just the volume but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so important 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 initial strike in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

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

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer 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.

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

Andrews Proving Doubters Incorrect

Igor Thiago is the man of the moment but the team are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had star players – a host of talent – under their previous boss, they were always seen as a team stronger than the sum of their parts.

The fear was that once the Dane 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 Andrews, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those outside the club as a huge risk.

A first managerial job is a challenge for anyone, especially 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 one candidate was the only other alternative that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly confident they had the right man.

To date, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at Brentford, it looks as if they were correct.

The new boss 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 Europe.

"We are in fine fettle and playing really well. 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 striving."

In a league where the European spots and the lower mid-table are currently separated by just eight points, they have no other option, because things could quickly 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.