🔗 Share this article

JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised people appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the table and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to make their move while the Old Firm influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many days are left until his contract expires, and awoke this day to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he told the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. Despite being obliged to operate with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided Hearts sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his team's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a strong position, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can claim.