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

JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the table and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was seismic in scale, no one who has been tracking the progress of both team this season will have been even remotely shocked by the result.

Over the last 40 seasons, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the process. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have so far lost a considerable number from nine league games this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his contract ends, and woke up this day to learn the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

NEW CHALLENGER

Given the horrific start to the campaign being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own failure to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. In spite of being obliged to operate with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have added the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL mix. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has provided the club sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed 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 mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be observed cheering each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. Technically, we appear in a good place, and certainly in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Naturally, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.