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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the standings emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos top of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was seismic in scale, no one who has been following the progress of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the result.

Over the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the process. 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 – could be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far lost 10 points from their opening nine league games this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly checking his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to learn the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he told reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his players could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. Despite being forced to function with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's prospects of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and definitely physically we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can win.