Andrews hails Thiago after Brazilian's brace sinks Sunderland

LONDON, Jan ‌7 : Brentford manager Keith Andrews hailed Igor Thiago as a sensational player he would not swap for anyone after the Brazilian scored twice in a 3-0 demolition of Sunderland on Wednesday.

The win sent Brentford fifth in the Premier League table, with Thiago setting a record for most goals in a single season by a Brazilian player.

Now on 16 goals from 21 games, with five in his last two outings, Thiago is second only to Manchester ‌City's Erling Haaland (20) in the goalscorer table.

He could have had a second ‌successive hat-trick- after three against Everton last Sunday - but for an early miss and Andrews substituting him off in the 82nd minute as a precaution after the player took a knock.

"I had to just make that decision, which obviously wasn't entirely popular with him, but I think he's understood it," Andrews told reporters.

"He's been sensational. The way he's attacked the league, the way he's affected the league, the ‍way he's developing his game - I think you can see that in the types of goals that he's scoring now compared to earlier in the season.

"And it's not just the goals, it's his overall performance and the selfless way he plays the game. He's not a centre-forward that just stays between two centre-backs and ​looks to poach goals.

"He's all action. He ‌leads the line, he runs the channels, he presses back, he's amazing from set pieces. He's a complete centre-forward."

Asked whether he backed his player to make it into Brazil's ​2026 World Cup side, Andrews left little doubt about his opinion.

"It's not for me to pick the Brazil squad, ⁠but I know what I think of Thiago ‌and I hold him in the highest regards," he said. "I wouldn't be swapping him for anybody. ​I only see the trajectory going one way