Maybe the sole surprising element of Hearts' victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which surprised people appeared when reports of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the standings emerged. Although this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos top of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, no one who has been following the fortunes of either team this season will have been even remotely shocked by the final score.
For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish league between them, reducing the beautiful game to something of a punchline in the meantime. Nine games into the current season it has become clear that Heart of Midlothian – who count celebrated snooker player, Olympic champion and renowned actor among their famous supporters – might just be ready to make their move while the Old Firm iron is at its weakest.
Although a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being suffered by Rangers, the complete turmoil of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to worsen below the radar. The defending title winners have already lost a considerable number from nine fixtures this term under their manager. The Celtic manager has developed the distant look of a individual who can't stop consulting his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this morning to discover the number is over two hundred.
"No one has put in more effort in all my time here," he informed reporters following the defeat, after they had questioned his desire for anything resembling a title fight. "So the motivation is present to attempt to reverse the levels that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."
Considering the dreadful beginning to the season being experienced by the other Glasgow side, Rodgers and his men could normally be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but this year an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to operate with a budget that is not just a tiny fraction of their rivals' as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, Hearts have introduced the money and expertise of a renowned businessman to the Scottish Premiership equation. As well as putting in £10m during the summer, the Premier League figurehead has granted the club exclusive use of his top secret data-driven Jamestown Analytics player identification system.
In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to discover hidden talents from an English lower-league side, the Slovak first division and the Norwegian second tier, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at Tynecastle on Sunday sporting a club colours, the notoriously astute professional gambler could be observed celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a man who had likely realized the bookies had greatly misjudged his team's chances of defeating the struggling champions, and placed large bets accordingly.
"I don't think it's a statement win," said bearded team manager the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth in nine outings. "It might be for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It might validate views that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. In terms of skill, we look in a good place, and certainly in fitness 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." Correct, the manager, it is not. But the wonderful, analytics-backed truth is that for the first time in many years, Scottish football might genuinely have a title race that somebody other than Celtic or Rangers can claim.
A tech analyst and business strategist with over a decade of experience in global markets, specializing in digital transformation and innovation.
