Alex McLeish has attempted to distance himself from the recently vacated Scotland job on talkSPORT radio.
Craig Levein was sacked by the Scottish FA yesterday afternoon; however SFA cheif executive Stewart Regan claimed it was due to Levein’s decision to step down at the end of the current 2014 World Cup campaign, not because of Scotland’s terrible start in qualifying Group A.
“A key piece of information was his stated intent to step down at the end of the World Cup campaign, irrespective of what happened” said Regan.
“Craig shared that with me privately some time ago. The board were made aware of that following the meeting we had with him last Tuesday.”
Many from the Tartan Army have been calling for Levein’s head for some time following dismal performances in World Cup qualifying Group A. Scotland are currently bottom with just two points from four games. In September, the Scots had to fight back to earn a home draw against Macedonia, and a month later suffered defeats to Wales and Belgium.
A wealth of managerial talent is available for the Scotland post, including Gordon Strachan, Joe Jordan, Graeme Souness, Kenny Dalglish and Owen Coyle. Alex McLeish was also considered a favourite for the position but the former Birmingham and Aston Villa manager has rejected the notion of becoming the next Scotland manager, stating that he wants to concentrate on club football.
“I don’t want to come out and say I don’t want the Scotland job, I'd never want to say that” said McLeish. “But I do feel I’ve still got some time left in club football and that's what I want to focus on.
“There’s nothing really pending, I had to have break after Aston Villa and now I’ve got itchy feet again.”
The Scot continued by giving his backing to former Southampton and Celtic boss Gordon Strachan.
“Gordon looks a pretty good choice to me,” he added. “He's had great success at club level with Celtic. Whether he wants to come away from his TV role, because he's very good at that, is a big decision for him to make."
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