Why Hearts' Landmark Title Tilt Isn't as a Shock.
HEARTS ON FIRE
Perhaps the sole surprising aspect of Hearts' victory over the Glasgow giants 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 leaves the Edinburgh side leading of the table and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was seismic in scale, nobody who has been tracking the progress of either squad this season will have been in the least shocked by the result.
For each of the last four decades, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, reducing fitba to almost a joke in the process. Several matches into the present campaign it has become apparent that Hearts – who number Stephen Hendry, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their famous supporters – might just be ready to make their move while the Glasgow duo iron is freezing cold.
CELTIC'S SLUMP
Although much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's comparatively less severe decay has been able to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have so far dropped a considerable number from nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the distant look of a man who constantly consulting his schedule to see how many time are left until his deal ends, and awoke this day to discover the number is 246.
"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he informed the media following the defeat, after they had questioned his appetite for any kind of a title fight. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the standards that we're at. Everything is under control, there is plenty of time."
NEW CHALLENGER
Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by Rangers, the Celtic boss and his men could typically be anticipated to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has joined the mix. Despite being obliged to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a small portion of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the investment and expertise of Tony Bloom to the SPL equation. In addition to putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential analytics-based proprietary scouting recruitment tool.
In an Irish defender, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the combined cost of a modest car. Seen at Tynecastle on matchday wearing a Hearts scarf, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be seen cheering each goal with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely noticed the bookies had massively underestimated his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and placed large bets accordingly.
COACH'S REACTION
"In my opinion it's a statement win," said the facial-haired team manager Derek McInnes after his side's latest victory, their eighth in nine league matches. "It might be for others on the outside looking in. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a fine line. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the lads have given us. Technically, we look in a good place, and definitely in fitness we seem in a excellent shape, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that this club is accustomed to being in." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth 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.
