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HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole unexpected aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people appeared when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table circulated. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While much of the attention in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been able to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his Google calendar to find out how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is present to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit 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 Brighton owner has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a person who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's most recent success, their eighth win in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It could alter 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 provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly physically we seem in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.