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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people appeared when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the table and eight points clear of Celtic, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of either squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

Over the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While a lot of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already lost a considerable number from nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has developed the distant look of a man who can't stop consulting his Google calendar to find out how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and woke up this day to learn the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific start to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the mix. Despite being forced to operate with a budget that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the investment and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as investing £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Spotted at their home venue on matchday wearing a club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly underestimated his side's prospects of beating the struggling champions, and placed large bets as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a good place, and definitely physically we look in a good place, so we hope it persists. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is used to being in." Correct, the manager, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, the Scottish game might actually have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.