Hearts investor Tony Bloom delivered very ambitious comments on Monday night.
Bloom spoke to Sky Sports before the Jambos faced Aberdeen in the Scottish Premiership and outlined that he wants to see Hearts finish second this season.
That would likely require splitting the two Glasgow clubs in his first campaign as an investor in the club, while the Brighton owner pledged to win the league within the next 10 years.
Bloom clearly has a track record of delivering success with the likes of Union Saint-Gilloise, who won their first Belgian top-flight title last season in 90 years.
But can he really do it in a league where Celtic dominate?
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Julie Fleeting reminds Bloom that Celtic won’t go away
Sportsound pundit Julie Fleeting, a former Celtic FC Women player, is a fan of Bloom and respects the ambition he is showing.
But she sent a reminder to him that Celtic won’t be standing still and have the financial power to keep their distance with the likes of Hearts at the top of Scottish football.
Fleeting said live on BBC Radio Scotland: “I think what will be difficult is, when you look at the Old Firm, they are not standing still either.
“You’ve got that progression at Hearts under Derek McInnes and you can see what they are trying to build. But Celtic won’t be standing still and allowing them to catch them up.
“They’ve got that Champions League money, they’ve got enough money to bring in quality players and improve their squad when they need to at whatever time.”
What Bloom actually said about challenging Celtic
Bloom wants to see Hearts push Celtic all the way this season for the Premiership title, but admits it may take longer to actually win the league.
He said: “I’ve been thinking about investing in a Scottish club for a little while, and when I met Anne Budge, she sold it really well to me.
“I started doing a bit of homework on the history and the fan base and passion, and being in Edinburgh is also a big pull as well.
“And I really think that Hearts are going to start doing something special in the SPFL.
“And I’m really pleased with how the pre-season started and how the recruitment has gone and it’s an exciting time to be a Hearts fan.
“I think, hopefully we’ll have a big improvement on the league position from last season. And I think we can generally have a real chance of going for the title, really pushing Celtic this season.
“I think that would be a big success, even if we don’t quite make it this season.”
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