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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only unexpected aspect of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people seemed when news of the result and its impact for the top of the table circulated. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been following 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 divided the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many time are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this day to learn the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. Despite being forced to function with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided the club exclusive use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for others 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 provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we seem in a good place, so we hope it persists. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can win.