Why Hearts' Landmark Championship Challenge Isn't as a Shock.

HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the sole surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback people appeared when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the table circulated. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of both squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Nine games into the current campaign it has become clear that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have so far lost a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this day to discover the answer is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he told reporters following the loss, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to try and flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the dreadful start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based Jamestown Analytics player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, 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 matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the gusto of a person who had likely realized the bookies had massively misjudged his team's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S REACTION

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded team manager Derek McInnes after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly in fitness we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can claim.