Derek McInnes seems increasingly assured about Hearts’ chances of pipping Celtic to the title after their dramatic victory over Hibs in the Edinburgh Derby.
Hearts struck late to secure all three points at Tynecastle, stretching their advantage to nine points clear of Celtic and six ahead of Rangers at the summit of the Scottish Premiership standings.
With Celtic set to face Livingston tonight — and the Bhoys still holding a game in hand — there remains ample opportunity for Martin O’Neill’s side to reel in the Edinburgh outfit with 14 fixtures still remaining.
However, Derek McInnes appears to have firmly nailed his colours to the mast, delivering a confident title outlook that could well fire up Celtic in the days ahead.
McInnes claims Hearts winning the title would be a ‘disaster’ for Celtic:
The Hearts manager has consistently insisted his side are taking things one match at a time, previously playing down their prospects of lifting the trophy this campaign.
Yet with 12 matches left and a solid cushion over both Celtic and Rangers, McInnes struck a far more assertive tone in his post-match remarks following the triumph over Hibs.
McInnes told The Scottish Sun, “We have been convinced for a while that we’ve got a chance. It would be foolish to think, with 12 games to go, that we don’t.
“We understand where we are in the pecking order. If Rangers and Celtic don’t win the league it’s a disaster for them.
“For us we’re enjoying what we’re doing.
“You’ve got to celebrate these moments, we know how important they are.”
McInnes says Hearts are ‘well convinced’ they can beat Celtic to the title:
Hearts are fully entitled to feel optimistic as the countdown to the top-six split continues — but has their boss spoken too soon?
McInnes added, “You’ve just got to win it some way, it was a tough watch at times.
“Our change in the second half helped us. I thought we had some good play, more control and there was less drama at our end.
“No team played well enough to win it. But it just became about sheer desire. You see this place at the end, such a beautiful sight.
“[The players] find a way late on, they don’t need to play at their best. It’s a really important three points in the context of the season.
“We’ve been well convinced for a while we have a chance [to win the league]. It would be foolish to think with 12 games to go that we don’t have a chance.”
Celtic — and Rangers, to be fair — will ultimately determine whether Hearts can genuinely carry this challenge over the line.
Should they pull it off, it would represent Scotland’s most remarkable title triumph in more than four decades. If they fall short, though, it could go down as the most dramatic collapse since Celtic and Albert Kidd famously snatched the championship from Hearts in 1986.
McInnes may yet find those bold comments coming back to haunt him.