EPL chairman has a track record at Brighton and Union Saint-Gilloise

Long and short-term targets for Hearts were identified by the club’s new investor, Tony Bloom, just last month. He believes the Scottish branch of his growing football empire have a “very good chance of at least being second” in this season’s Premiership. Beyond that, he stated he would be “very disappointed if, in the next 10 years, we don't win at least one league title”.

Perhaps the most important question arising from such bold statements is: What is Hearts’ route to those achievements? Bloom has invested £9.86m at Tynecastle Park, but that sum alone won’t transform Hearts into title contenders. He and his associates want the Edinburgh club to follow their model and mirror the rise of the Belgian champions, Union Saint-Gilloise.

Although Bloom is chairman of English Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion, he holds a minority stake in USG, Hearts and the Australian outfit Melbourne Victory. Union were near the bottom of Belgium’s second division when Bloom invested in 2018. Three years later came promotion and, in May this year, they were crowned champions. They have gone from signing free agents to paying €4m and €5m in transfer fees, while players are now being sold for €17m and €22m.

Seven years of steady growth under Bloom’s guidance, aided by sports recruitment partner Jamestown Analytics, have transformed USG. Bloom’s plan is for Hearts to follow the same model using the same resources. There is already much better infrastructure in place at Tynecastle than Union’s meek facilities when Bloom arrived. The idea is to grow the team, spend and sell, make profits, reinvest in better players and gradually challenge Celtic and Rangers.

The last Scottish club other than the Glasgow two to win the league was Aberdeen in 1985. Chris O'Loughlin, USG’s sporting director, explained how they expanded and grew to become the best team in Belgium. “We were signing players at €300,000 in the beginning. We were signing a lot of free agents,” he told Sky Sports.

“We trained in a facility that was very modest but we made it our home. We made the most of it. We only had one and a half pitches with no drainage so the winter was challenging, but that's how we prepared to play Fenerbahce, Liverpool, Eintracht Frankfurt, Union Berlin, Bayer Leverkusen. Where we are today, we have earned that right to be here, which is pretty special.”

Union won their first Champions League tie last week, beating Dutch club PSV 3-1 in Eindhoven. Derek McInnes has already met their owner for talks and some insight into how the club mapped their route to title success. “I've met Alex Muzio, who is the owner at USG and obviously has got a keen eye on things here - and part of the whole Jamestown [operation],” said McInnes.

“He spoke passionately about what they've done there, really proudly. Clubs like USG are clearly punching way above the expectations of their support before that investment came in. We have got so much work to do. We've got to get our hands dirty as a club. We need to really knuckle down and do the work well. All going well, then I think eventually we can maybe exceed those expectations. Even the most positive, passionate Hearts supporter out there, hopefully we can get beyond what people think we can do.”

Bloom’s track record speaks for itself at both Brighton and USG. The Brighton chief executive Paul Barber is a close confidant. “You've only got to look at what he has achieved here, what he has achieved with his investment in the club in Belgium, the fact that he's a hugely successful person outside of football as well as inside,” said Barber. “He's modest, he's quiet, he's unassuming, but when he puts his mind and his effort to something, he usually delivers.”

Bloom’s predictions for Hearts prompted plenty derision from some quarters of Scottish football. McInnes knows progress will take time. “He has shot from the hip with his intentions for the club, which is all fine and well,” said the manager. “It’s great for everybody to hear that connected with the club because we’re all ambitious. We all want to do well. We all want a successful Hearts. How quickly we can get there remains to be seen. I think he delivered in his message the confidence that we can get there, hopefully as quick as we can.”