Steve Clarke is confident he can achieve success with Scotland after being named as Alex McLeish’s successor on Monday.
Former Chelsea player Clarke left his position as Kilmarnock boss to take up the reigns with Scotland and has signed a three-year-contract that will take him through to the 2022 World Cup qualifying campaign.
The 55-year-old was appointed after leading Killie to a third-place finish in this season’s Scottish Premiership – their highest standing since 1966 – while he was also named PFA Scotland and the Scottish Football Writers’ Association Manager of the Year.
Those performances helped Clarke emerge as the leading candidate to replace McLeish, who was sacked following a disappointing start to Scotland’s Euro 2020 qualifying campaign, particularly their 3-0 defeat in Kazakhstan.
Clarke knows he has work to do to get Scotland’s campaign back on track, but is confident he can achieve success given the talent at his disposal.
“It is an honour to be appointed Scotland National Head Coach and I will undertake those responsibilities with pride and commitment,” he said.
“I firmly believe we have a talented group of players who can achieve success on the international stage. I look forward to working with them and helping them to fulfil those ambitions.”
Clarke does not have to wait long for his first matches in charge, as the Scots will first take on Cyprus in Euro qualifying at Hampden Park on June 8 before visiting Belgium in the same competition three days later.
Scotland have not qualified for the finals of a major tournament since 1998, and they are priced at 501.00 to go on and claim Euro 2020 glory next summer.
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