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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback observers appeared when reports of the result and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the league and eight points ahead of Celtic, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many days are left until his deal expires, and awoke this day to discover the answer is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he informed the media following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the mix. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Spotted at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his team's prospects of defeating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his team's most recent success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly physically we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can win.