Why Hearts' Historic Title Tilt Shouldn't Come as a Shock.
HEARTS ON FIRE
Maybe the only surprising element of Heart of Midlothian's victory over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was just how taken aback people seemed when reports of the result and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. While this convincing victory at Tynecastle, which leaves the Jambos top of the league and eight points clear of their rivals, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been tracking the progress of both squad this campaign will have been even remotely shocked by the result.
For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of the Old Firm have divided the Scottish league between them, turning fitba to something of a joke in the meantime. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Hearts – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and renowned actor among their celebrity fans – might just be prepared to strike while the Old Firm influence is freezing cold.
THE CHAMPIONS' DECLINE
While much of the focus in Scotland has been on the disastrous season being suffered by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the circumstances at Ibrox has resulted in that Celtic's slightly less terminal decay has been allowed to fester below the radar. The reigning champions have so far dropped a considerable number from nine league games this season under Brendan Rodgers. The team's boss has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a man who can't stop checking his schedule to see how many time are remaining until his contract expires, and awoke this day to discover the answer is over two hundred.
"No one has put in more effort in my entire tenure at the club," he told the media following the loss, after they had questioned his desire for any kind of a title fight. "So the motivation is there to attempt to flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, there is plenty of time."
NEW CHALLENGER
Given the dreadful beginning to the season being endured by Rangers, Rodgers and his men could typically be anticipated to escape scrutiny for their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an capital city challenger has entered the fray. Despite being obliged to operate with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a minuscule amount in comparison, the Tynecastle outfit have introduced the investment and knowledge of a renowned businessman to the SPL mix. In addition to putting in ÂŁ10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted the club sole use of his top secret analytics-based proprietary scouting player identification system.
In Oisin McEntee, a Greek talent and Cláudio Braga it has allowed them to unearth hidden talents from Walsall, the Slovak first division and the Norway's second division, among other lesser-known leagues, for the total price of a mid-range family saloon. Seen at their home venue on Sunday wearing a Hearts scarf, the famously shrewd professional gambler could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely realized the oddsmakers had greatly underestimated his team's chances of defeating the out-of-sorts title holders, and placed large bets accordingly.
MANAGER'S RESPONSE
"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded team manager Derek McInnes after his team's most recent victory, their eighth win in nine league matches. "Perhaps it is for those on the periphery. It might change opinions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But let's not kid ourselves, we're really pleased with what the players have given us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely in fitness we seem in a good place, so long may that continue. Naturally, it's not a position that this club is used to being in." Correct, Derek, it isn't. But the wonderful, analytics-backed reality is that for the initial occasion in many years, the Scottish game might genuinely have a title race that somebody besides the traditional powers can claim.
