Hearts boss Derek McInnes says no other side in Europe are defying expectations the way his team are.

The Tynecastle club – bidding to end four decades of Old Firm title dominance – are two points clear at the top of the Premiership with just seven games to play.

And while McInnes thinks there are other teams in the division overachieving, nobody is doing it quite like Hearts.

“Listen, there’s three teams in the league who have overachieved this season – “Falkirk, Motherwell and ourselves,” the 54-year-old said.

“You couldn’t say that about everybody, but I think us three are probably ahead of where we thought we could have been this season.

“We’ve now been elevated into a position that probably nobody thought we could be at this stage of the season.

“I think when you look across Europe, across the world, for a team to have the disparity in wages and spending power as against the other two [Celtic and Rangers], it’s so unusual.

“We’re probably the only team that could be top of the league for so long and certainly top of the league with so few games to go.

“There’s teams who have spent a lot more, with a lot more expectation on them in our league who should be at the top of the league, but they’re not.

“We’re there, we’re enjoying it and we just need to try and keep maintaining our good work for the rest of the campaign.”