🔗 Share this article

Over halfway through the season, Brentford find themselves in a dream scenario.

With victories in five games, and a Brazilian striker netting the goals, suddenly supporters are envisioning thoughts of trips to European capitals next season.

A comprehensive 3-0 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 leaders the Gunners have accumulated more points over the past half-dozen matches.

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

Few was forecasting this last off-season.

Thomas Frank had left for Tottenham after a seven-year stint in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club to the Premier League but also cemented them in the top flight.

Club captain Christian Norgaard left for Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of 39 goals in the previous campaign – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle United respectively.

Specialist coach Andrews was elevated to succeed Frank, while there was no striker among the off-season arrivals.

A season of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. But here we are in the new year with Brentford in the top five.

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 going through until the final day of the window.

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

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

The 24-year-old has gone about compensating for lost time this season, though, with his brace against the Wearside club taking him to sixteen league goals – the highest tally by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Considering the fellow Brazilians who have preceded him, that is a remarkable feat, especially with 17 games left to play.

"He has been a revelation," pundit an analyst said. "He is a physical specimen, quick, powerful, but technically better than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score off both. You can see he's brimming with confidence. His statistics are incredible. He must be so pleased. That's a huge compliment to him."

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

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

His first goal against the Black Cats was his seventh first goal of a game of the season. Considering how often we are told the significance of the initial strike in a game, having someone you can depend on to take that first big chance cannot be overstated.

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 the striker's 59.1%.

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he worked as a bricklayer 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 kind of players they bring in and characters," the manager said. "This is really impressive. He is a really unique person who has fitted into life very nicely. 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."

Andrews Showing Sceptics Wrong

Igor Thiago is the headline act but the team are not and have never been a one-man band.

While they had key individuals – Ivan Toney, Christian Eriksen, Mbeumo and Wissa – under Frank, they were always seen as a team more effective than the individual components.

The concern was that once the manager 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 Andrews, 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 challenge for anyone, especially when it comes in the Premier League and having made the jump from specialist 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 correct candidate.

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 big home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and Newcastle have since occurred.

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

"We're in fine fettle and playing really good. We are playing with bravery and belief in everything we do with or without the ball," he added. "We are 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 no other option, because things could quickly look very different.

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