The Reasons Heart of Midlothian's Historic Championship Challenge Isn't as a Surprise.

JAMBOS BLAZING

Maybe the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's triumph over Celtic in the Scottish Premiership was the extent to which taken aback observers seemed when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin ahead of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this campaign will have been in the least shocked by the final score.

For each of the past four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have carved up the Scottish football between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a joke in the process. Several matches into the present season it has become apparent that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be prepared to strike while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.

CELTIC'S DECLINE

Although a lot of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by Rangers, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has meant that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The reigning champions have so far lost a considerable number from their opening nine league games this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many days are left until his deal ends, and awoke this morning to learn the answer is 246.

"I've never worked harder in all my time here," he told the media following the defeat, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to reverse the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."

EDINBURGH DISRUPTOR

Considering the dreadful start to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his men could normally be anticipated to get away with their own failure to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the fray. In spite of being obliged to operate with a war-chest that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. As well as investing ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his top secret data-driven proprietary scouting player identification system.

In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover 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. Spotted at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be observed cheering each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly misjudged his side's prospects of beating the struggling title holders, and placed large bets as a result.

MANAGER'S RESPONSE

"I don't think it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager the head coach after his team's latest success, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It could alter perceptions. It might validate views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, 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 the team is used to being in." No, the manager, it is not. But the glorious, data-driven reality is that for the initial occasion in ages, Scottish football might genuinely have a championship battle that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.