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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been following the fortunes of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

Over the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become apparent that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a man who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to investing £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his side's chances of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." No, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.