Given that it is becoming a matter of historic intrigue when Scotland last reached an international football finals, George Burley has looked out old footage – though hopefully not old Pathe newsreels – to inspire his players to make it to the World Cup in South Africa in 2010.

If Scotland are successful in reaching South Africa, qualification for which begins in September, then it will be the country’s first finals in 12 years, which is about as sore as it can get for the long-suffering Tartan Army. Yesterday, the new Scotland manager said he intended to end all this suffering.

Burley evidently believes that the Scottish greats of the past – excepting 1978 in Argentina – can inspire his players, which is why he has put together a montage of Scotland highlights of former years for his squad to feast on at their Loch Lomond get-together this week.

“We’ll be showing clips from Scotland in World Cups over the years – it sends a tingle through me, it is exciting stuff,” said Burley yesterday, oozing with enthusiasm for his new job.

“That is my dream, my vision to take my country to a World Cup finals. And that’s what I want the players to envisage.

“I was there in 1982 with Scotland, and I’ve got good memories of Spain. But only Christian Dailly and David Weir have been involved in a World Cup finals, the rest haven’t. Barry Ferguson hasn’t been there, and he’s 30 now, so Barry has got to be thinking, ‘I want to try to lead this team to a World Cup.’ You need that belief and vision to make it happen.”

Burley, who was hardly going to show up for his first squad-gathering as Scotland manager and talk his players down, said he was convinced there was enough natural talent now flourishing in the country to make his World Cup vision a reality.

“I think the last campaign has given them a confidence and a belief, and we need to take that on to the next competition,” he said. “The team has recently done the country proud under Walter Smith and Alex McLeish, but now we have got to move on.

We’ve got to take the positives from the last campaign and add it to something new which, hopefully, can take us that stage further.

“I’m going to ask the players, ‘how are we going to get better?’ The players are going to speak as well, it’s not just about me.

“It’s not just going to happen, you’ve got to make it happen.

“I knew this would be a huge job. But I was proud to be asked to be manager of my country. I know there will be ups and downs but I’m going to give it everything I’ve got, and my aim is to get everybody going for it.”

Burley’s first acid test will be the friendly against Croatia at Hampden Park next month. The Scotland manager says he may make one or two changes, but will basically stick by the players who served the team admirably throughout the Euro 2008 qualifiers.

It is all a part of the preparation for the first World Cup qualifier against Macedonia in September.

“There will be changes, though not major ones, for the Croatia game,” said Burley. “I have time to assess things and look for players who will be able to take us to a World Cup. I’ll think about players and ask, ‘are they playing on a regular basis?’ There will also be some younger players to think about.

“For example, I’ve known David Weir since he was at Falkirk. “He’s really enjoying his football and I think he’s a bit surprised at how well it has gone for him at Rangers. He is still performing at a high level, and I certainly haven’t ruled David out. But, at 37 years old, I’ll have to look for alternatives because he can’t go on for ever.

“Croatia is a game in which we want to do well, but I think it is also a game that will show me a lot of things.”

As for Alan Hutton, now of Tottenham Hotspur, Burley yesterday paid a glowing testimonial.

“You can see his attributes – he’s got the capability to be one of the best attacking full backs in Europe,” he said. “I think going to Tottenham will really push him on. The Premier League in England is a very difficult league, so it will be a big challenge for him.”

Burley also insisted that, in Terry Butcher and Steven Pressley, he has chosen the perfect back-up team.

“When I was looking for someone to assist me I wanted top quality – that’s why I came up with Terry,” he said. “As for Pressley, he was captain for me at Hearts, he’s a big personality, and he wants to get involved on the coaching side and has done all his badges. He knew the players inside out, so combining Terry and Steven made sense to me.” Some believe that Burley will have his work cut out, and that it won’t necessarily be an easy task following in the footsteps of Smith and McLeish. For two years now Scotland have been ascending the Fifa rankings, finally breaking back into the top 20 again following the dismal Berti Vogts years. The pressure is on the new Scotland manager to maintain this momentum. Arguably, it would be easier for him to be taking over a slightly ailing team.

“There is always that pressure on you, whether you are doing well or not,” he said. “We are a proud country, and football is our No 1 sport, but there are lots of countries bigger than us who also have good players. International football is very competitive, so it isn’t going to be easy. But I think if we have the belief and the team-spirit that we have shown in the past, then we can do it. I really believe that.”

Burley at least fills the first criterion of any football manager – he talks a good game.