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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised observers appeared when news of the result and its consequences for the top of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the table and a significant margin ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following the fortunes of both squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to something of a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear 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 freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many time are left until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to learn the number is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific start to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.