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JAMBOS BLAZING

Perhaps the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish Premiership was just how surprised observers seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the top of the standings emerged. While this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Edinburgh side top of the league and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the result.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing fitba to almost a joke in the process. Several matches into the current season it has become clear that Hearts – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo influence is at its weakest.

THE CHAMPIONS' SLUMP

While much of the focus in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decline has been able to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have already dropped 10 points from nine league games this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who constantly checking his Google calendar to see how many days are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is 246.

"I've never worked harder in my entire tenure at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Given the horrific start to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to start strongly, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. Despite being forced to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting recruitment tool.

In an Irish defender, 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 total price of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on matchday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be observed celebrating each goal with the gusto of a man who had almost certainly realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and filled his boots accordingly.

COACH'S RESPONSE

"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's latest success, their eighth win in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It could alter opinions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. 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, it's not a position that the team is accustomed to being in." Correct, Derek, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can win.