From bricklayer to Brentford frontman: Thiago shines with brace against United

Brentford striker Igor Thiago once hauled fruit at markets and laid bricks to help his family survive. On Saturday, he ripped Manchester United apart in a 3-1 win.

The 24-year-old Brazilian's two early strikes at the Gtech Community Stadium sent Brentford fans wild and left United in tatters. He became just the second man ever to score twice against the Red Devils inside 20 minutes of a Premier League match. For Ruben Amorim's side, it was another grim afternoon.

Signed for a club-record £30m from Club Brugge in 2024, Thiago endured a nightmare first year. A shredded knee in pre-season, a nasty infection, and eight goalless games left him a forgotten man before he had even started. Now, with four goals in six league outings, plus another in the Carabao Cup, he looks every inch the striker Brentford believed they were getting.

When star striker Ivan Toney was banned in 2023, Bryan Mbeumo stepped up and became the leading frontman for the Bees, recording 20 goals and eight assists in the following season. When Toney finally moved to Al-Ahli, Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa (19 goals and five assists in the same season) carried the load with style up front. But both departed this summer, leaving Brentford seemingly short again. Fortunately, for the Bees, they seemed to have found the answer in what many believe will be a difficult season.

"Igor Thiago is like a throwback centre-forward," gushed Joe Cole on TNT Sport. "He attacks space, he's technically sound, and his all-round game is fantastic."

Alan Shearer was blunter: "He's scoring goals. That's what matters."

"He barely played last season because of injury but he got his two goals in that half and that's what a striker is going to get judged for.

"He looks like he can fill the void left by Mbeumo and Wissa."

But Thiago's story runs deeper than football cliches. His father died when he was 13. To support his mother, he laboured at fairs and construction sites before football gave him an escape. From local side Vere FC, he clawed his way to Cruzeiro, then Bulgaria's Ludogorets, where he fired 15 goals to win the league title in 2022-23. At Brugge, he hit 29 in a season and was crowned Conference League young player of the year.

Overcoming adversity is nothing new for Thiago.

"When I was 13 years old, my father passed away," the frontman told Brentford's official website last summer.

"I started to work at the fair carrying fruit. I also worked as a bricklayer. I had several jobs when I was younger, before I got into professional football and got the opportunity to play abroad.

"It helped me as a man, and it helped me as a person. It helped me to appreciate the little and big things in life, because today I look at my life and see that I'm privileged with everything I have."

Brentford boss Keith Andrews insists Thiago's rise was inevitable: "His injuries were brutal last year, but he never stopped working. He wants it so much. Now the world is seeing it."

United's hapless defenders saw it first-hand and could do nothing to stop it. While Brentford celebrate the introduction of a new talisman, Amorim's United -- currently placed 14th with two wins, three losses, and a draw in their opening six matches (same as Brentford but with a poorer goal difference) -- are left asking the same old questions: when will they get a taste of former glory?