RETURNING Scotland manager Alex McLeish says he is ‘ecstatic’ to be back in the role 11 years on from his first spell in charge at Hampden Park.

The former Rangers and Aston Villa boss was confirmed as the successor to Gordon Strachan on Friday.

He immediately targeted qualification for the European Championships in 2020 and victory in Scotland’s UEFA Nations League group as his main objectives.

Read more: The 10 games that made Alex McLeish one of Scotland's most successful managers

“I'm absolutely ecstatic to be back,” he said.

“The goals are to win our Nations League group and get to the Euros in 2020.

“I believe I'm the right guy for the job, I’ve gained a lot of experience by going down to England since my last stint as manager and believe I’m a better coach for that.

“It’s great to be back and see a lot of familiar faces. So onwards and upwards and let’s see if we can give the Tartan Army a real treat by getting us to a major finals for the first time in a long time.”

McLeish’s first task will be to prepare a squad for March friendlies against Costa Rica at home and Hungary away, before the Tartan Army travel to Peru in May and Mexico in June for their much-debated summer tour.