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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised people seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the top of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos top of the table and eight points ahead of their rivals, was seismic in nature, nobody who has been following the fortunes of either squad this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to almost a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count Stephen Hendry, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE

While much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at Ibrox has meant that Celtic's comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester unnoticed. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who can't stop checking his Google calendar to see how many days are left until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for any kind of a championship battle. "So the motivation is present to try and flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his players could typically be expected to escape scrutiny for their own inability to start strongly, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has entered the fray. In spite of being forced to function with a war-chest that is not just a small portion of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each goal with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

MANAGER'S REACTION

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's most recent 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 lads have provided us. Technically, we look in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that somebody other than the traditional powers can claim.