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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people seemed when reports of the result and its consequences for the top of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the league and eight points ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been following the progress of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

Over the last four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the present season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare 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 reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from nine league games this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his deal expires, and woke up this day to discover the answer is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he told reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. Despite being obliged to operate with a budget that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can win.