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Over halfway through the campaign, Brentford are in a dream scenario.

With four wins in five games, and a Brazilian striker banging in 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 Premier League – a place that was good enough 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 the West London outfit are squarely in the battle for European football.

Few was forecasting this last off-season.

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

Club captain Christian Norgaard left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United 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 difficulty, possibly even the drop, was forecast. Yet here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Historic Campaign

Brentford's decision not to sign another striker was in part down to timing, with Wissa's move not being finalized until deadline day.

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

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then club record fee, but was plagued by injury 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 the Wearside club taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight 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," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, strong, but technically better 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 proud. That's a huge compliment to him."

That only a trio of global superstars have scored more in any of Europe's top five leagues to this point underscores the level he is operating at.

And it is not just the quantity but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so important for his team.

His opener against the Black Cats was his 7th opener of the season. Given how often we are told the importance of the initial strike in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that early opportunity cannot be underestimated.

Prior to the game against their opponents, 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 often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering the struggles he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to provide for his family following the death 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 kind of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "This is really notable. He is a really unique person who has fitted into life very well. 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 skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Showing Doubters Wrong

Their star striker is the headline act 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 their previous boss, they were always seen as a team more effective than the sum of their parts.

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

Consequently, appointing Andrews, with a blank managerial CV, and just a year at the club was seen by those outside the club as a huge risk.

A maiden role is a challenge for anyone, let alone when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich boss Kieran McKenna was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the right man.

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

Andrews won just one of his first five league games in charge but big 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 Europe.

"We're in fine fettle 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 improving."

In a league where the European spots and the lower mid-table are currently separated by just eight points, they have little choice, because things could quickly look very otherwise.

But, for now, The Bees are beating the odds. And the longer that lasts, the closer to fruition those dreams of Europe will become.