The Reasons Hearts' Historic Championship Challenge Isn't as a Shock.

HEARTS ON FIRE

Maybe the only unexpected element of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised people seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the table and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been tracking the progress of either team this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.

Over the last four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to something of a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Hearts – who count Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

While much of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at Ibrox has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decline has been able to worsen unnoticed. The reigning champions have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine league games this term under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his schedule to find out how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this day to discover the number is over two hundred.

"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is present to try and reverse the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful start to the season being endured by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be anticipated to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an capital city challenger has entered the fray. In spite of being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing £10m during the summer, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had almost certainly noticed the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his team's prospects of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his team's latest success, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It may confirm views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have provided us. Technically, we appear in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we look in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, it's not a position that this club is accustomed to being in." No, Derek, it isn't. But the glorious, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.