🔗 Share this article

HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole surprising element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people appeared when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the standings circulated. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been following the progress of both squad this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the past 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a joke in the process. Several matches into the present campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be prepared to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

While much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many time are left until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to learn the number is over two hundred.

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

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a budget that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

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 Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's most recent success, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a good place, and definitely physically we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.