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

Following victories in their last five outings, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly Bees fans find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A comprehensive 3-0 win over Sunderland moved Keith Andrews' side into fifth in the Premier League – a position that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

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

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

No one was forecasting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had departed for Tottenham after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only got the club promoted but also cemented them in the elite division.

Skipper their Danish midfielder left for the North London club and attacking duo Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa – who scored a combined of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Set-piece coach Keith Andrews was elevated to replace Frank, while there was a notable absence of a centre-forward among the summer signings.

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. Yet here we are in January with the club in the upper echelons.

So, how did they pull it off?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to timing, with Wissa's move not going through until deadline day.

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

The 24-year-old joined from Belgium in July 2024 for a then-record fee, but was hindered by fitness issues in his debut campaign, going goalless in eight appearances.

The 24-year-old has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his double against Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the most by a Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

Considering the fellow Brazilians who have preceded him, that is some accomplishment, especially with 17 games remaining.

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder Danny Murphy said. "He's a physical specimen, fast, strong, but more skilled 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 the continent's major 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 his team.

His first goal against the opposition was his 7th first goal of a game of the season. Given how often we are told the importance of the first goal in a game, having someone you can rely on to take that early opportunity 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 percent.

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

Considering the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer to provide for 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.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of credit for the type of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews 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 worked for his journey and toiled. He has got serious grit about his personality. He is improving his skill set constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a largely all-round centre-forward."

Andrews Proving Sceptics Wrong

Their star striker is the headline act but Brentford are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had key individuals – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team stronger than the individual components.

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 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 jump from specialist coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager Kieran McKenna was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced 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 vindicated.

Andrews won just a single of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, the Reds and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

"We're in good form and playing really good. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with and without the ball," he added. "We're 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 eight points, they have little choice, because things could quickly look very otherwise.

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