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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole surprising element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people appeared when news of the result and its impact for the top of the standings circulated. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S SLUMP

While a lot 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 their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decline has been able to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already lost 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many days are left until his deal expires, and woke up this morning to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he told the media following the loss, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. In spite of 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 added the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on Sunday wearing a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had almost certainly noticed the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views 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 definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.