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The dominant Edinburgh side surged eight ahead of their Glasgow rivals at the top of the Scottish top flight to strengthen their early championship claims and deepen the struggles around the Celtic team.

A superb goal from Kyziridis and Lawrence Shankland's penalty gave the Hearts team a 3-1 lead that the reigning champions could not recover from.

Dane Murray - among three youth players in the Celtic starting lineup - slashed into his own net early on to put the home side ahead at a bouncing their home ground, and it was the 22-year-old's foul that led to the spot-kick.

Callum McGregor's classy first goal of the season had quickly cancelled out the first goal, and Benjamin Nygren almost put Celtic in front, opting for finesse over power and allowing Alexander Schwolow to make a crucial stop.

But the unstoppable Hearts side regained dominance to hand Celtic to back-to-back losses for the first time since last year.

It also gives the Hearts a commanding advantage at the top of the table.

The last time they were so far clear was in 2005-06 under their former manager, when they ended as runners-up - a rare instance that a team has not secured the title after building such an advantage in the past 27 years.

The Hearts coach, whose Aberdeen side were second to Celtic on multiple times, has been working hard to downplay title talk, as the club seek their first top-flight crown since 1960.

The Celtic boss has seen it all before at Celtic - both flawless and stuttering starts to a season. He's yet to finish second best.

But on Sunday's evidence, this Hearts team showed they deserve serious consideration.

Match Analysis: The hosts Capitalize of Depleted Celtic

The Edinburgh side started with the self-assurance of a side undefeated in the league this season - the popular attacker poked a cross in for the striker to stab wide.

The Glasgow team didn't help themselves with some uncharacteristic carelessness in possession and they buckled under their initial test.

Claudio Braga's header was touched on to a post by the Celtic keeper and the follow-up from Shankland was turned into the net by the unfortunate Murray, in for the absent center-back.

Celtic found their rhythm and started building moves. From one such move, the midfielder released the full-back to set up the captain, who slotted home.

Apart from the opportunity for Nygren, the visitors struggled to create much for lone frontman Jonny Kenny or his substitute Yamada amid the unavailability of injured forwards Kelechi Iheanacho and Daizen Maeda.

The home team rediscovered their energy and versatility in creating chances in the opposition half. Kyziridis, one of the finds of the club's scouting network, fired a low shot past Schmeichel from the just outside the area.

Almost straight away, the defender fouled Braga in the inside right channel and Shankland converted. And it could've been an more comprehensive victory, had substitute Ageu not been stopped by the shot-stopper.

Celtic's second half was somewhat summed up in a couple of moments involving big-money recruit Engles.

The set-piece from Engles delivery was in stark contrast to his midweek exploits in the continental victory over Sturm Graz and the national team player was then yellow-carded for a cynical foul.

Post-Match Comments

The Hearts manager: "The effort from the squad is evident, the team spirit. That's not always enough to win games consistently.

"What we have got, is skillful players. You're witnessing it from multiple individuals who have been here before. Recent additions are eager to show that.

"We're in a positive moment at the minute, but it's only three points. It's important for us to maintain this form. We've got loads to do, plenty to improve. Following the initial fixtures is typically a benchmark of where you are."

The Celtic boss: "It's a really poor goal from our perspective. We failed to push up when the ball went back as a defensive unit so when they play it, they should have players offside but weren't. We have got to improve with the shot.

"Plenty of matches to play for. It's only the beginning. It's just nine matches. Clearly, being eight points behind is not ideal. The positive is there's so many games to play.

"Our attention must turn on the here and now and look to achieve greater stability and more quality in our play."

What's Next for These Teams?

Celtic are returning to their stadium on Wednesday against newly-promoted Falkirk (evening kick-off). At the identical hour in the Scottish Premiership, the Edinburgh outfit are at St Mirren.

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