🔗 Share this article

Over halfway through the campaign, Brentford are in fantasy land.

With four wins in five games, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly supporters are envisioning 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 top flight – a position that was sufficient to secure Champions League football last term.

Solely leaders 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 continental football.

No one was predicting this last off-season.

The former head coach had left for Spurs after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club promoted but also cemented them in the elite division.

Club captain Christian Norgaard left for the North London club and goal-scoring duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Specialist coach Andrews was promoted to succeed 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 Brentford in the top five.

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Record-breaking Campaign

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

But they also were aware they had a £30 million striker already ready and waiting.

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

Thiago has set about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his double against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the most by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the countrymen who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He has been a revelation," former Liverpool midfielder an analyst said. "He's physically intimidating, quick, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score with both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. His statistics are incredible. He must be so proud. That's a huge compliment to him."

That only Erling Haaland, Harry Kane and Kylian Mbappe have scored more in any of the continent's major leagues to this point highlights the standard he is playing at.

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

His first goal against the opposition was his seventh 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 depend on to take that early opportunity cannot be overstated.

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

He finds the target. Achieve that often enough and the goals will – and have – come.

Considering the struggles he had earlier in life, 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.

"The recruitment team deserve a lot of credit for the kind of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "It is really impressive. He is a really special person who has adapted to life very nicely. He has had to earn this path. He has worked for his journey and toiled. He has got real determination about his personality. He is developing his abilities constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a pretty complete centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Doubters Incorrect

Igor Thiago is the headline act but the team 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 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 their set-piece coach, with no previous managerial experience, and just a twelve months 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 Premier League and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich boss one candidate was the only other option that Brentford looked at, they were clearly convinced they had the correct candidate.

So far, as often seems to be the case with the key decision makers at the club, it looks as if they were correct.

The new boss won just one of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against United, Liverpool and Newcastle have followed.

Wins that, following their excellent recent run, could prove increasingly important in the pursuit for Europe.

"We are in good form and playing really good. We are playing with courage and conviction in everything we do with or without the ball," he added. "We're pleased with how we are going but we want to keep striving."

In a league where fourth and 15th are currently separated by just eight points, they have little choice, because things could rapidly look very otherwise.

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