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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only unexpected element of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight 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 their home ground, which puts the Jambos top of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either team this campaign will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a joke in the meantime. Nine games into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his deal ends, and awoke this morning to learn the answer is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the dreadful beginning to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be anticipated to get away with their own failure to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined 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, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts exclusive use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had likely realized the bookies had massively misjudged his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's latest victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly in fitness we look 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, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that somebody besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.