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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people appeared when reports of the result and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos leading of the league and eight points ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this season will have been even remotely shocked by the result.

Over the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many days are left until his contract ends, and woke up this morning to learn the answer is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the mix. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. As well as putting in £10m during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's latest victory, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a title race that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.