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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only surprising element of Hearts' triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the league and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the progress of either team this season will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

Over the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, 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 a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already lost 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to learn the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is there to attempt to 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 endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players 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 mix. Despite being forced to operate with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has provided Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his side's chances of beating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and definitely in fitness we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.