Why Hearts' Historic Title Tilt Isn't as a Shock.

HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how taken aback observers appeared when reports of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Edinburgh side leading of the table and eight points ahead of Celtic, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of either team this season will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

Over the past 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to something of a joke in the process. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who can't stop checking his Google calendar to see how many time are remaining until his deal ends, and woke up this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed reporters following the loss, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to operate with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth hidden talents 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 their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his team's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his team's most recent victory, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. In terms of skill, we look in a strong position, and certainly in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that a team other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.