Ahead of the qualification campaign getting underway against Malta on Sunday, Gordon Strachan received the news that Stuart McCall would be moving to Bradford City.
He has since called on the services of former Scotland assistant coach Andy Watson who, along with Alex McLeish led Scotland in their final games of the EURO 2008 qualification campaign, seeing them beat France 1-0 and going desperately close to reaching the tournament.
He went on to work for Birmingham City and Northern Premier Division side Ilkeston FC, coaching under Manager Gavin Strachan, Gordon’s son.
Reflecting on his new role within the Scotland national team, he spoke to Michael Lamont from the Scottish FA and said: “It’s a Scottish recall for me.
“In the summertime when Stuart had left, I missed a call from Gordon. Eventually I managed to speak to him and he asked how I would feel coming in to work with Mark McGhee and him.
“I was absolutely delighted. To be involved with your national side is a great honour and to be able to contribute and be amongst really good people is incredibly special.
“Since my last involvement with the national team I’ve been at Birmingham City, winning the Carling Cup. Being involved with them in the Premier League was a fantastic experience.”
When he last donned a Scotland tracksuit, the nation were riding high and he’s confident those good times are just around the corner again.
He said: “The campaign leading up to Euro 2008 was great but a bit like the last campaign, we came so close! It was really hard to take with just one result against Georgia really hurting us. Beating France gave everyone such a lift but unfortunately we couldn’t finish the job.
“Judging by the last campaign, Scotland weren’t far away and we need to take confidence from that.
“It’s the start of a new campaign which is a different feeling for me as I came in at the tail end of the campaign last time.
“It’s nice to be here for the inception of it.
“We’ve got a good chance of qualification and the challenge for us is to play well and be competitive in every game.”
With the squad meeting earlier this week, Andy has been impressed with what he’s seen and can’t wait for the campaign to get underway.
“Tuesday was my first day and right away you could see that the players were all comfortable with each other and there is a good blend of personalities.
“There are no primadonnas and everyone is pulling in the right direction.
“We know that this time we can move forward and be a threat in the group we’re in.”