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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback people seemed when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the summit of the table circulated. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the table and eight points ahead of Celtic, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay 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 term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to try and reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. Despite being forced to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager Derek McInnes after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It might change opinions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and definitely in fitness we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.