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More than 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 are envisioning thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A convincing three-nil win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a position that was good enough to secure Champions League football last term.

Solely table-toppers the Gunners have collected more points over the past six games.

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

Few was predicting this last summer.

Thomas Frank had departed for Spurs 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 top flight.

Club captain their Danish midfielder left for Arsenal 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 United and Newcastle respectively.

Set-piece coach Keith Andrews was elevated to succeed Frank, while there was no striker among the summer signings.

A season of difficulty, possibly even relegation, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in the new year with the club in the top five.

So, how did they pull it off?

Igor Thiago's Historic Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was in part down to circumstance, 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 chomping at the bit.

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in the summer for a then club record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going without a goal in his initial outings.

The 24-year-old has set 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.

Given the fellow Brazilians who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with seventeen matches remaining.

"He's been a breath of fresh air," pundit an analyst said. "He is a physical specimen, quick, strong, but more skilled than people think. Excellent with his feet, both feet, he can score with both. You can see he's full of confidence. These numbers are incredible. He must be so pleased. That's a big 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 volume but the timing of the goals that have been so important for Brentford.

His opener against the Black Cats was his seventh opener of the season. Considering 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.

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

He hits the target. Do that often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering 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 unsurprising that high-stakes situations 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," Andrews said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has adapted to life very well. He has had to forge this path. He has worked for his journey and grafted. 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 pretty all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Sceptics Wrong

Their star striker is the man of the moment but the team are not and have never been a single-player team.

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

The concern 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 stay up.

As a result, appointing their set-piece coach, 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, especially when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the leap from set-piece coach to the manager's office.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other option that the hierarchy looked at, they were clearly confident 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 correct.

Andrews won just a single of his first five league games in charge but significant 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 well. We are playing with courage and belief in everything we do with or without the ball," Andrews added. "We're pleased 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 a handful of points, they have no other option, because things could rapidly look very different.

But, for now, The Bees are beating the predictions. And the longer that lasts, the closer to reality those aspirations of Europe will become.