Mark Wotte has told Scotland fans that no manager could instantly turn the national team into World Cup standard as he warned the work he is doing at youth level will take up to "four to six years" to come to fruition.

The SFA's performance director believes that expectations are too high among the Tartan Army as the wait for a jaunt into a major tournament looks set to extend.

"I see a lot of desire in Scotland to be part of major tournaments, but sometimes the desire and expectations are a little bit mixed up," the Dutchman said.

"It's a really tough group for Scotland because we are not better than Belgium, that's for sure.

"Croatia are a very decent side so it leaves us with Serbia, Macedonia and Wales to be the No.3, which is not good enough if you want to qualify, but maybe that's realistic.

"I'm looking at it from another perspective from the fans. We have to be realistic and say how good is this squad and how good do you have to be to qualify for the World Cup?"

The 51-year-old added: "You have to realise that you can't change the squad of players. You can change the style of play and a bit of this and that, but it comes down to the quality of players.

"If the quality of players is what it is at the moment, you have to build for the future.

"I love Craig because he works his socks off for Scottish football. He puts his heart and soul into the national team.

"He is a proper Scot who loves his country, who played for Scotland, he wants only the best for Scotland.

"I cannot see anyone else. We can bring in (Jose) Mourinho, maybe he will win us games, but I doubt it."