FORMER Saints boss Gordon Strachan is the man wanted by the Tartan Army to inject the passion back into Scottish international football.

Strachan resigned his post at St Mary's on February 13 this year and has been linked with a stream of top Premiership jobs since - including Liverpool, Manchester City, Tottenham, Everton and West Brom.

Scotland supporters want the man who won 50 caps for his country to take over from Berti Vogts, who resigned yesterday after a miserable two-and-a-half year reign in charge.

Former Rangers and Everton manager Walter Smith, is the bookies' favourite to take over after the Scottish FA's meeting on Thursday.

Strachan's former international colleague Gordon McQueen said: "When I was in Scotland at the weekend there was a lot of talk about Berti Vogts and it seemed to be that Walter Smith was the man that the majority seemed to be going for."

But John Kaylor, chairman of the Perthshire Tartan Army, said: "I'd like to see Strachan.

"Smith is a good manager but Strachan has the passion and the fire and that's what we badly need to inject into our game right now."

Another Tartan Army spokesman, Davie MacDougall, said: "I'm delighted Berti's gone. The Tartan Army's choice for the job now is Gordon Strachan.

"Whoever comes in and sorts it out will be a hero. We need someone to make players proud to play again, to make them desperate for a game."

And Marie McIntosh, a member of the East of Scotland Tartan Army, said: "I would like to see Gordon Strachan and Water Smith there with one of them driving us forward."

Former Scotland coach Craig Brown, meanwhile, has backed Smith or Strachan for the position.

He said: "Either of those names would do excellent jobs."

Vogts courted controversy by claiming the abuse he faced from a "very tiny minority" turned nasty.

He said: "'I must say the major factor in this decision has been the disgraceful abuse I have suffered, especially of late.

"It has degenerated into a physical nature, especially on recent occasions where I have been spat upon.

"This is not acceptable behaviour in a civilised society."