Maybe the sole unexpected element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over the Glasgow giants in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback observers seemed when news of the result and its impact for the summit of the standings circulated. Although this convincing victory at their home ground, which leaves the Jambos leading of the table and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in scale, no one who has been following the progress of either team this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the result.
Over the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have carved up the Scottish league between them, turning the beautiful game to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – could be ready to strike while the Old Firm iron is freezing cold.
While a lot of the attention in Scotland has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by the Ibrox club, the complete turmoil of the circumstances at their stadium has resulted in that Celtic's slightly less terminal decline has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped 10 points from their opening nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly checking his Google calendar to find out how many days are left until his deal ends, and woke up this morning to discover the answer is over two hundred.
"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he told reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for anything resembling a championship battle. "So the motivation is there to attempt to flip the levels that we're at. Everything is under control, it's still so early."
Given the horrific beginning to the campaign being experienced by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could normally be expected to escape scrutiny for their own failure to start strongly, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a budget that is not just a small portion of their rivals' as a minuscule amount in comparison, Hearts have added the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL equation. As well as putting in ten million pounds during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted the club exclusive use of his highly confidential analytics-based Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.
In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and Cláudio Braga it has enabled them to unearth unpolished gems from Walsall, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on Sunday sporting a club colours, the famously shrewd sports betting expert could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely noticed the oddsmakers had massively underestimated his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.
"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer Derek McInnes after his side's most recent victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It may confirm views that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have given us. In terms of skill, we appear in a good place, and certainly physically we look in a good place, 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, analytics-backed reality is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might actually have a title race that a team besides Celtic or Rangers can claim.
Elara is a passionate writer and photographer who shares insights on creativity and mindful living through engaging storytelling.
