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HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how surprised observers seemed when news of the outcome and its consequences for the top of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which leaves the Edinburgh side top of the league and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been tracking the fortunes of either squad this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

Over the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo influence is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop checking his Google calendar to find out how many days are remaining until his contract expires, and woke up this day to discover the number is over two hundred.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure here," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is there to try and reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

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 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 club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen celebrating each goal with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had massively misjudged his side's chances of defeating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm views 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 appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.