Scotland boss Gordon Strachan given backing by Scottish FA

Gordon Strachan has been given unanimous backing by the Scottish Football Association board.

Strachan will continue as Scotland manager after board members accepted his assertion that he could turn their World Cup campaign around.

In a statement, SFA chief executive Stewart Regan said: "We support Gordon unanimously in improving our qualification prospects."

Strachan's future came under scrutiny for the second month running after last Friday's 3-0 defeat by England left Scotland fifth in Group F with four points from as many matches.

But he convinced SFA board members, whose review resulted in a decision to "continue to support Gordon Strachan and his staff".

Regan said: "The board have considered the team's performance since the start of the campaign and subsequently discussed the disappointing points total after four matches.

"Gordon shared the disappointment of the board and, of course, the fans. He is adamant, however, that we can recover the position and believes a play-off place still to be attainable.

"The board are convinced that he still has the hunger for this challenge and we have four home qualifiers in 2017 to rejuvenate our campaign."

Strachan added: "We were all extremely disappointed with the result on Friday night but, having reflected on our performance, I still believe we can get ourselves back into contention in the group.

"There are still 18 points to play for and the players, the staff and I, as in previous games, will give everything we have to turn things around.

"I have said consistently that our fans deserve success and a return to a major tournament finals.

"Although we have had a difficult start to the campaign, I firmly believe that this group of players, together with our supporters, can maximise our chances of a play-off place, starting with the home match against Slovenia in March."