What's happened to Igor Thiago?

Igor Thiago's first season as a Premier League player, in 2024/25, was heavily disrupted by knee injuries - and he more than made up for lost time the following season.

The striker started all bar one of Brentford's league games and scored 22 goals - the most by a Brazilian in a single season in Premier League history.

You have to go back 88 years to find the last time a Brentford player scored as many top-flight goals.

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So far in 2026/27, though, Thiago has failed to hit the same heights. Seven games in, he has scored one goal and provided one assist.

Ahead of the Bees' trip to the MKM Stadium to face Hull City on Super Sunday, Sky Sports takes a look at why...

Has the World Cup affected him?

Thiago was a surprise inclusion in Brazil's starting line-up for the opening game of the 2026 World Cup against Morocco.

"For this game, Igor is strong up front, he's aggressive, he can fight for the ball in the air. I believe Igor can be good for the team in this game," said Brazil head coach Carlo Ancelotti.

After 13 minutes, Vinicius Junior clipped in a brilliant ball from the left, finding the striker just outside the six-yard box. But he mistimed his jump and made minimal contact, at best.

"It's not working for Thiago up top. He's missed a big chance and his hold-up play has been very stodgy," wrote Sky Sports' Lewis Jones during the game.

Early in the second half at the MetLife Stadium, a fierce shot from distance was beaten away by Yassine Bono.

At the 62-minute mark, he was replaced by Zenit Saint Petersburg winger Luiz Henrique - and he did not feature again at the tournament.

How has his season gone so far?

On the opening weekend, he had the chance to make the ideal start when Brentford - already 3-0 to the good against Tottenham - won a penalty after Rodrigo Bentancur bundled Kevin Schade over.

He stuttered his run-up and, even though goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky dived the wrong way, he managed to hit the base of the left-hand post. Thiago shook his head, rolled his eyes and looked to the heavens.

After four league games, he had racked up 2.41 worth of xG, but a goal drought that started at the end of 2025/26 was extended to seven games.

That drought finally came to an end on September 18 when he reacted quickest after Schade's shot was saved to put Brentford 2-0 up against Chelsea. With that being the last game before the extended international break, it seemed the burden had been eased at the perfect time.

But in the 2-2 draw with Aston Villa, he had just one shot, and while he provided the assist for Keane Lewis-Potter's opener against Liverpool, he missed the chance to earn a point for the Bees. Jaidon Anthony picked him out after a lightning run, but he could not apply contact from close range.

How does this season compare to last?

Compared to the same stage last season, Thiago is taking, on average, around three more touches in the opposition box per game and hitting more shots, but fewer of those are finding the target.

His xG is higher, too, but after seven games in 2025/26, he had scored four, compared to one in 2026/27.

Andrews says he isn't worried

Brentford head coach Keith Andrews responded to a question about Thiago's confidence in his post-match press conference after the Liverpool defeat.

"He's fine. I don't sense anything around his demeanour, whether it's in training, the calmness he has in front of goal," he said.

"He's a marked man, for obvious reasons. He's getting some really close attention from the opposition players.

"We've had nine different goalscorers and what that is doing is creating more space for other players to exploit, which we have done.

"Thiago being Thiago, he wants to score more goals. That's only natural. But his overall performances have been really good so I'm not really worried."

Speaking on the topic in September, Andrews said: "We value him so much as a player, not just because of his goals. He's in a good place and he's enjoying his football. He loves being here and we love having him here."

And it's clear to see why

As Andrews highlighted, the key thing here is Brentford are not struggling as a result of Thiago's lack of goals.

In 2025/26, he scored 22 of Brentford's 53 Premier League goals, but there were 11 other scorers who contributed 31 goals between them as they finished ninth.

In 2026/27, Andrews' men have scored 13 goals, with 12 of those scored by eight players other than Thiago. They sit sixth with only Brighton (23), Manchester City (19) and Chelsea (17) having scored more.

He is still working as hard as ever, applying more high pressure than any of his team-mates and winning plenty of duels. Only Vitaly Janelt (83.16km) and Kristoffer Ajer (74.66km) have covered more distance than him (72.7km).

To drop the Brazilian for his lack of goals would seemingly serve only to risk the momentum he is clearly building. And with data playing as big a part as it does for Brentford, they will know that.

And if his all-round performance levels are consistent, it may only be a matter of time before the goals start flowing again.

Watch Hull City vs Brentford live on Sky Sports Golf from 12.30pm on Sunday; kick-off 2pm.