Copyright scotsman
On the day the clocks changed, so did the Scottish football landscape. Hearts must now be considered a credible title challenger in the Premiership. By defeating Celtic 3-1 at Tynecastle and moving eight points clear of the defending champions at the top of the league, Hearts reinforced their strengths and exposed their visitors’ weaknesses. Head coach Derek McInnes will trotted out the understandable one-game-at-a-time mantra afterwards but something is stirring in Gorgie. We are in uncharted territory. Hearts have threatened to be on the premises twice before this century under George Burley and Craig Levein. They held early five-point leads, but never eight. This was a result of the statement-making variety. The Jam Tarts are unlikely to go away quietly. Not since 1985 in Aberdeen has a side outside of Glasgow won the Scottish top flight. It would still be considered a bold statement to make Hearts favourites given we are nine matches into the season and have 29 left to play. Yet as Hearts motor on quite brilliantly under McInnes, both sides of the Old Firm continue to splutter. Celtic did play their part in an absorbing top-of-the-table clash at a packed Tynecastle and had a spell in the first half, after Callum McGregor cancelled out Dane Murray’s own goal in a frantic opening 12 minutes, where they looked more likely to go on and win. Hearts rode it out and came out the traps in the second half. By 55 minutes they were 3-1 up via Alexandros Kyziridis and a Lawrence Shankland penalty. Hearts weren’t spurning that sort of lead. Hearts played like a team who knew this was too good a chance to pass up. Inconsistent Celtic arrived in Gorgie without four injured key players in defenders Alistair Johnston and Cameron Carter-Vickers, plus forward Kelechi Iheanacho and Daizen Maeda. They were weak at both ends of the pitch and McInnes’ in-form side took full advantage. Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers opted for two inexperienced right-sided defenders in Murray and Colby Donovan ahead of Auston Trusty and Anthony Ralston - and they were both culpable. Murray put through his own net with a sliced clearance on eight minutes and the 22-year-old brought down Claudio Braga on 55 minutes for the penalty concession. Donovan wasn’t alert enough to stop Kyziridis chopping on to his favoured right foot to bang home an excellent strike three minutes earlier. In the absence of Iheanacho and Maeda, another 22-year-old - Johnny Kenny - led the line and while the Irishman worked hard, he was not a threatening presence to Hearts centre-halves Craig Halkett and Stuart Findlay. Midfield was where Celtic were supposedly at strongest but their trio of McGregor, Arne Engels and Reo Hatate were overpowered by the aggression, dynamism and composure of Hearts’ Cammy Devlin and Beni Baningime, two men with the power of three. Devlin in particular was exceptional, a pressing monster who made McGregor’s life very uncomfortable. Celtic’s biggest threat came down the left when Sebastian Tounekti and Kieran Tierney linked up, but their moments were fleeting. Hearts had a stronger, more varied armoury. The front two of Shankland and Claudio Braga were menacing all afternoon. Cries of “we shall not be moved” and “only one Tony Bloom” rang around an ebullient Tynecastle. Investor and 29 per cent shareholder Bloom made the journey up from Manchester, where he watched his Brighton lose to Man Utd less than 24 hours earlier, to take his place in that stand. He will have loved what he saw. Bloom claimed back in August that he could “disrupt” Scottish football, that Hearts could split the Old Firm this season and that he would be disappointed if the title wasn’t won in ten years. All three could be achieved within 12 months. It is a remarkable scenario. Hearts have risen with the help of smart Jamestown Analytics recruits such as Kyziridis and Braga and the improvement of mainstays such as Halkett and Baningime, so too Celtic and Rangers have sunk. While the Old Firm attempt to regroup from their own underwhelming starts to the season and juggle league, cup and European commitments, Hearts have a clear run at things until January. Take a look at the fixture list up until December - St Mirren, Dundee, Dundee United, Aberdeen and Motherwell - and where is the defeat coming from? Of course, this is football. McInnes continues to caution against “belts in the mouth”. The low point of the campaign so far came in Paisley against St Mirren when they were knocked out of the Premier Sports Cup on penalties. But Celtic and Rangers don’t have the gait of a team that will go on an all-conquering run between now and the January transfer window, when they will be able to flex their greater financial muscle. A unique opportunity has presented itself for Hearts. Everyone involved deserves enormous credit. The scenes in the stands at full time were a mix of joy and a little disbelief. There was a point in April where the club was flirting with relegation under then head coach Neil Critchley after a 1-0 defeat by Dundee. For a non-Old Firm club to properly challenge for the title, both Celtic and Rangers need to be well below their best. Disharmony addles the Glasgow big two. Hearts are a united front, with a deep squad and Bloom’s big database of players to peruse. Rodgers reckons Celtic will get better. Rangers, who are 13 points off top spot, could roll under new boss Danny Rohl. But they need Hearts to regress, to find their newly-assumed mantle of title contender difficult to bear. This is terra incognita for so many of us. This is what disruption looks like. To the next set of fixtures on Wednesday night in an already compelling title race with a new force.
