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More than the midpoint of the campaign, The Bees are in fantasy land.

With four wins in five games, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly Bees fans are dreaming of thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A convincing 3-0 win over the Black Cats 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 accumulated more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There's a significant distance to go yet but Brentford are squarely in the fight for European football.

Few was envisioning this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had departed for Spurs after seven years 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.

Skipper Christian Norgaard left for Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in the previous campaign – were out the door, joining United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A year of difficulty, possibly even the drop, was forecast. Yet here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, what is behind their success?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

Brentford's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to timing, with one forward's move not going through until deadline day.

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

The 24-year-old joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then-record fee, but was plagued by fitness issues in his first campaign, going goalless in his initial outings.

Thiago has gone about making up for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a Brazilian in a single Premier League 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 revelation," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He is a physical specimen, quick, strong, but technically better than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score off 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 standard he is operating at.

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

His first goal against the opposition 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 rely on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

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

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

Given the hardships he had in his youth, where he labored in construction to support his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that high-stakes situations on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of praise for the type of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "This is really impressive. He is a really special person who has fitted into life very well. He has had to earn this path. He has earned his journey and grafted. He has got real determination about his personality. He is developing his abilities constantly and we are discovering more and more about him. He is a pretty all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Proving Sceptics Wrong

Igor Thiago 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 stronger 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 their parts alone might not be enough to avoid relegation.

Consequently, appointing their set-piece coach, with no previous managerial experience, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a huge risk.

A first managerial job 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 top job.

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

So far, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at the club, 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 the Magpies have followed.

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

"We are in good form and playing really well. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," he added. "We're pleased 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 little choice, because things could rapidly look very otherwise.

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