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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table emerged. While this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the league and eight points clear of their rivals, was seismic in nature, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of both squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from their opening nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his Google calendar to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this day to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific start to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to unearth 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. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each goal with the gusto of a man who had likely noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his side's prospects of beating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might genuinely have a championship battle that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can win.