Why Heart of Midlothian's Historic Championship Challenge Shouldn't Come as a Shock.

HEARTS ON FIRE

Perhaps the sole unexpected aspect of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the standings emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this season will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the current campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' comparatively less severe decline has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have already lost 10 points from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure here," he told the media following the loss, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the horrific beginning to the season being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could normally be expected to get away with 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 is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has provided the club exclusive use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at their home venue on matchday wearing a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each score with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his team's chances of beating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and definitely in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so we hope it persists. Of course, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that a team other than the traditional powers can claim.