Steve Clarke insists he has no intention of walking out on Scotland as he’s determined to lead the nation to the Euros.
The national side boss was linked with the Stoke City job before Northern Ireland gaffer Michael O’Neill got the gig.
But Clarke revealed he never gave the position a second’s thought as he is fully committed to the Scotland cause.
The former West Brom and Fulham manager told the Tartan Army he is only just getting started and he is determined to finish the Euro qualifying campaign with wins against Cyprus today and Kazakhstan on Tuesday before going full throttle in to the Euro 2020 play-offs in March.
Clarke said: “If you get linked with a job then it means you are either doing something right or you’ve done something right before.
“It’s always good to get linked but this is my job and I am 100 per cent committed to getting Scotland to Euro 2020.
“You can never categorically say anything as you never know what could happen in life.
“Real Madrid might tempt me!
“But do I feel this is the start of something here? Absolutely.
“We’re trying to get to the Euros and that is my main objective in the first part of my Scotland career. If I get that long, sometimes it’s taken out of your hands.”
Clarke admitted he is still getting used to swapping the every day rigours of club management for the less hectic nature of the international game.
But he is convinced he will crack it in the long term.
Clarke said: “It’s a different job. It’s going to take a little bit of time before I get used to being an international manager.
“There’s still a lot of me that wants to be out working on the training pitch every day. That’s what I do best.
“But I’ll get better.
“Different can be perceived as difficult but it’s just different. I’ll find a way to make it work.”
Clarke has been left with a patchwork squad for the double header after key call-offs including Andy Robertson, Kieran Tierney, Scott McTominay and Ryan Fraser.
Steven Naismith is set to skipper the side and earn his 50th cap, while Rangers ace Ryan Jack will feature across the final two matches in Group I.
Clarke admitted it was a blow losing Scotland’s two world class left backs in Robertson and Tierney but he’s not going to gripe about the injury list.
He said: “There is nothing I can do. It is just the way it has panned out.
“It is unfortunate we don’t have both of them at the same time but there is a chance for the boys who are here in the squad.
“We don’t have an unlimited amount, but what we do have is a lot of boys who are desperate to play for their country.
“And those are the ones that I am concentrating on just now.
“I’ve been that way even in my club management, when people have been out injured, I haven’t tended to be a manager who hangs around the treatment room and tries to drag people off the treatment table.
“If they are out they are out, you have to deal with the ones you have got.
“If we can put in a structure – this is how we play when a team play this way – tactically we can be quite clear about what we want to do.
“Personnel we can then fit in and around that system.”
Clarke is convinced he still has the firepower to finish the campaign with a flourish.
He said: “I’ve got good players, good ability. All of them have been in the camp at some stage, only young Ryan Porteous who joined us late, is not used to me around the place, or how we work.
“We look forward to a good game and it is a really big chance for the 23 who are here to cement their place in March’s squad.”
