🔗 Share this article

JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising aspect of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which surprised people seemed when reports of the result and its consequences for the summit of the table emerged. Although this 3-1 win at their home ground, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, nobody who has been following the progress of both team this campaign will have been even remotely astonished by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the dominance of two Glasgow clubs of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the present campaign it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – could be prepared to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to fester unnoticed. The defending title winners have already lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The team's boss has developed the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly consulting his schedule to see how many time are left until his contract ends, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

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

NEW CHALLENGER

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be anticipated to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an capital city challenger has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a budget that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have introduced the money and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.

In an Irish defender, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a mid-range family saloon. Spotted at Tynecastle on matchday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed celebrating each goal with the gusto of a person who had almost certainly realized the bookies had greatly underestimated his side's prospects of defeating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots as a result.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager the head coach after his team's latest victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for others on the periphery. It could alter perceptions. It may confirm opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in ages, Scottish football might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.