The Reasons Hearts' Historic Title Tilt Isn't as a Shock.
HEARTS ON FIRE
Perhaps the sole unexpected element of Hearts' triumph over Celtic in the Scottish top flight was the extent to which taken aback people seemed when news of the outcome and its impact for the summit of the table emerged. Although this 3-1 win at Tynecastle, which puts the Jambos leading of the league and a significant margin clear of Celtic, was earth-shattering in nature, nobody who has been following the progress of either team this season will have been in the least astonished by the result.
For each of the last 40 seasons, the Glasgow duopoly of Celtic and Rangers have divided the Scottish football between them, turning fitba to almost a punchline in the meantime. Several matches into the current season it has become apparent that Heart of Midlothian – who number celebrated snooker player, Sir Chris Hoy and Ken Stott among their celebrity fans – might just be ready to strike while the Glasgow duo iron is at its weakest.
CELTIC'S SLUMP
While a lot of the attention in the Scottish game has been on the absolute bin-fire being endured by the Ibrox club, the full-spectrum nightmare of the situation at their stadium has resulted in that the title holders' slightly less terminal decline has been able to fester below the radar. The defending title winners have already dropped a considerable number from their opening nine fixtures this season under their manager. The Celtic manager has acquired the thousand-yard stare of a individual who constantly checking his schedule to find out how many time are remaining until his deal expires, and awoke this day to learn the number is over two hundred.
"No one has put in more effort in all my time at the club," he informed the media following the loss, after they had doubted his desire for anything resembling a championship battle. "Therefore the drive is present to try and flip the standards that we're at. It's absolutely fine, it's still so early."
NEW CHALLENGER
Considering the horrific beginning to the campaign being endured by the other Glasgow side, the Celtic boss and his players could typically be expected to get away with their own inability to roar out of the traps, but on this occasion an Edinburgh disruptor has joined the mix. In spite of being forced to function with a war-chest that isn't so much a tiny fraction of Celtic's as a comparative budgetary baw-hair, the Tynecastle outfit have added the money and expertise of Tony Bloom to the Scottish Premiership mix. In addition to putting in ÂŁ10m during the off-season, the Brighton owner has granted Hearts sole use of his highly confidential data-driven Jamestown Analytics recruitment tool.
In Oisin McEntee, Alexandros Kyziridis and a Brazilian prospect it has enabled them to discover unpolished gems from an English lower-league side, the Slovakian top flight and the Norway's second division, among other exotic footballing outposts, for the total price of a modest car. Seen at their home venue on Sunday wearing a club colours, the notoriously astute sports betting expert could be seen celebrating each score with the enthusiasm of a person who had likely realized the bookies had massively underestimated his team's chances of beating the out-of-sorts champions, and filled his boots accordingly.
COACH'S RESPONSE
"In my opinion it's a message-sending victory," said bearded Hearts gaffer the head coach after his side's latest victory, their eighth win in nine outings. "Perhaps it is for those on the outside looking in. It might change perceptions. It might validate opinions that there's a tightrope. But we must be realistic, we are delighted with what the players have provided us. Technically, we look in a strong position, and definitely physically we look in a good place, so long may that continue. Of course, this is not a situation that the team is accustomed to being in." No, the manager, it isn't. But the wonderful, data-driven reality is that for the first time in ages, the Scottish game might actually have a championship battle that somebody other than the traditional powers can win.
