The Brilliant South American Talent & Contradicting the Expectations – The Bees' European Push

Over halfway through the campaign, Brentford are in dreamland.

Following victories in their last five outings, and a Samba striker scoring the goals, suddenly supporters find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A convincing three-nil win over the Black Cats moved their manager's side into the fifth spot in the Premier League – a position that was sufficient to secure European football last term.

Solely table-toppers the Gunners have collected more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There is a significant distance to go yet but the West London outfit are squarely in the race for continental football.

No one was predicting this last summer.

Thomas Frank had left 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 Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a total of 39 goals in 2024-25 – were also sold, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

A year of struggle, possibly even the drop, was widely predicted. But here we are in January with Brentford in the upper echelons.

So, how have they managed it?

The Brazilian's Historic Campaign

The club's decision not to bring in another striker was partly 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.

Igor Thiago joined from Belgium in July 2024 for a then-record fee, but was plagued by injury in his first campaign, going without a goal in eight appearances.

The 24-year-old 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 Brazilian in a single Premier League campaign.

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

"He has been a revelation," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He's a physical specimen, quick, strong, but technically better than people think. Excellent with his feet, either foot, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics are incredible. He must be so proud. That's a big 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 underscores the standard he is playing at.

And it is not just the volume but the crucial nature of the goals that have been so vital 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 first goal in a game, having someone you can rely on to take that first big chance cannot be underestimated.

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

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

Given the struggles he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to provide for his family following the passing of his father, perhaps it should be no surprise that pressure on the pitch is something he handles with ease.

"Our scouts deserve a lot of credit for the kind of players they bring in and personalities," Andrews said. "It is really impressive. He is a really unique 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 improving his abilities constantly and we are learning more and more about him. He is a largely all-round centre-forward."

The Manager Showing Doubters Incorrect

Igor Thiago is the headline act but Brentford are not and have never been a single-player team.

While they had star players – a host of talent – under Frank, they were always seen as a team more effective than the sum of their parts.

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 avoid relegation.

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

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 manager's office.

But given that Ipswich boss 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 the club, 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, Liverpool and the Magpies have followed.

Wins that, following their brilliant recent form, could prove increasingly important in the race for Europe.

"We're in good form and playing really well. We are playing with courage and belief in everything we do with and without the ball," Andrews added. "We are happy with how we are going but we want to keep pushing."

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 different.

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