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More than the midpoint of the season, The Bees find themselves in fantasy land.

Following four wins in five games, and a Samba striker netting the goals, suddenly Bees fans find themselves drifting off with thoughts of trips to Milan, Munich and Barcelona next season.

A comprehensive three-nil win over the Black Cats moved their manager's side into fifth in the top flight – a position that was good enough to secure European football last season.

Only table-toppers the Gunners have accumulated more points over the past half-dozen matches.

There's a long way to go yet but the West London outfit are firmly in the race for continental football.

No one was predicting this last summer.

The former head coach had left for Spurs after seven years in charge, a period in which he had not only guided the club to the Premier League but also established them in the top flight.

Skipper Christian Norgaard left for Arsenal and attacking duo two key forwards – who scored a combined of thirty-nine goals in the previous campaign – were out the door, joining Manchester United and Newcastle respectively.

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

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

So, how have they managed it?

Igor Thiago's Historic Season

Brentford's decision not to bring in another striker was partly down to circumstance, with Wissa's move not being finalized until the final day of the window.

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

Igor Thiago joined from Club Brugge in the summer for a then club record fee, but was hindered by injury in his first 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 Sunderland taking him to 16 league goals – the highest tally by a player from Brazil in a single English top-flight campaign.

Given the fellow Brazilians who have come before him, that is some accomplishment, especially with seventeen matches left to play.

"He has been a revelation," pundit Danny Murphy said. "He is a physical specimen, fast, powerful, but more skilled than people think. Good with his feet, either foot, he can score off both. You can see he's full of confidence. His statistics are fantastic. He must be so pleased. 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 level he is operating at.

And it is not just the volume but the timing of the goals that have been so vital for Brentford.

His first goal against the Black Cats was his seventh first goal of a game of the season. Given how often we are told the importance of the initial strike 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 30 shots this season has a better shooting accuracy than the striker's 59.1 percent.

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

Given the hardships he had earlier in life, where he labored in construction to provide for his family following the death of his father, perhaps it should be unsurprising that pressure 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 characters," the manager said. "It is really impressive. He is a really special person who has fitted into 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 learning more and more about him. He is a largely complete centre-forward."

Andrews Showing Sceptics Incorrect

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

While they had star players – 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 sum of their parts alone might not be enough to stay up.

As a result, appointing Andrews, with a blank managerial CV, and just a year at the club was seen by those external observers as a gamble.

A maiden role is a test for anyone, let alone when it comes in the world's toughest league and having made the jump from set-piece coach to the top job.

But given that Ipswich Town manager one candidate was the only other option that the hierarchy 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 correct.

The new boss won just one of his first 5 league games in charge but significant home victories against Manchester United, Liverpool and the Magpies have since occurred.

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

"We're in fine fettle and playing really well. We are playing with bravery and conviction 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 little choice, 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.