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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only surprising element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised observers appeared when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the table circulated. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and eight points ahead of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the fortunes of both team this season 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 football between them, reducing fitba to almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been allowed to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to find out how many days are left until his contract ends, and woke up this day to learn the answer is over two hundred.

"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. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific start to the season being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could normally be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the fray. In spite of being obliged to function with a budget that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has provided Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his side's chances of beating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer 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 tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that a team besides the traditional powers can claim.