IN Leading, the excellent new tome he has written with the renowned venture capitalist Sir Michael Moritz, Sir Alex Ferguson reflects on his fleeting spell in charge of Scotland.

He took over the national team on a temporary basis following the tragic sudden death of Jock Stein, his friend and mentor, at the end of a World Cup qualifier against Wales in Cardiff in 1985.

The side he inherited successfully negotiated the two-legged play-off with Australia and then, despite failing to win a game, acquitted itself admirably against Denmark, West Germany and Uruguay in the finals in Mexico the following year.

However, it is fair to say the Glaswegian, despite being a fiercely patriotic Scot, doesn’t look back on his time with his country with any great fondness.

“It was definitely not my cup of tea,” he writes. “In my opinion, international management jobs are for experienced men in the later stages of the career who have the patience to deal with the shortcomings of the post and carry the reputation needed to command a dressing room full of players with whom they spend little time.”

The knight of the realm from Govan is always worth paying heed to when it comes to football – and Leading is, as you would expect, packed full of fascinating anecdotes, insights and revelations from his four decades in the dugout - and on this particular subject that is especially true.

Scotland need a leader who is mature, who no longer yearns for the day-to-day involvement of club football and who commands the respect of men he goes for months on end without seeing or speaking to. In short, they need Gordon Strachan.

There will be those who will, given the rabid nature of many football supporters, clamour for Strachan to be replaced if Scotland should fail to finish in third place in Group D and secure a play-off place following the final Euro 2016 double header against Poland at home and Gibraltar away this week.

But what would really be gained by such a move? Would somebody else out there be able to eke any more out of this committed but, at international level at least, highly limited group of players? I doubt it greatly.

Strachan is far from perfect and this qualifying bid has, he would be the first person to admit, not exactly been flawless despite many enjoyable highlights. The 1-1 draw and the overall team performance for long spells away to the Republic of Ireland back in June were certainly bitterly disappointing.

The 1-0 defeat to Georgia over in Tbilisi last month was also poor. Scotland failed to register a single shot on target against opponents who had failed to register a single point at home previously in their campaign.

Yet, the fixture over in Dublin came more than a month after many of his players had last kicked a ball in a competitive match and presented him with some complex problems. He can, then, be forgiven for overthinking his team selection.

He did, too, pick what was widely accepted as being the correct side in Tbilisi only to be let down by many of his most experienced and influential players, including his captain Scott Brown and forward Steven Naismith.

The 58-year-old’s contract expires following the Gibraltar match and he has been non-committal about his future. The job, though, is his if he wants it. Both Alan McRae, the SFA president, and Stewart Regan, the governing body’s chief executive, have stated as much publicly.

Hopefully he will, irrespective of whether Scotland can halt Robert Lewandowski and defeat Poland on Thursday night, extend his stay. With any luck he will, regardless of whether we can leapfrog Ireland and sneak into the play-offs, remain in situ.

Bringing in a replacement to oversee our World Cup qualifying campaign now would be way too risky. Anybody who recalls what the national team was like under many of Strachan's predecessors would be wary of taking that drastic step.

International breaks used to be riven by problems. There were fall-outs with key players, ludicrous friendlies were arranged and subsequently devalued by call-offs, bizarre formations which had never been seen before and have never been uted since were utilised and the tactics were often convoluted and ineffective. At times, it was nothing short of embarrassing.

Jettisoning Strachan - who has, even his most ardent critic would be forced to agree, improved his country significantly during his tenure - now would risk sending Scotland backwards and would jeopardise our already slim chances of making it to Russia.

Of course, maybe Strachan will decide to go of his own volition. The former Coventry City, Southampton, Celtic and Middlesbrough manager is highly regarded in England and would not be short of offers.

Who would we turn to then? Who understands the game after years of involvement at the top level? Who would be prepared to forgo the attractions and riches of the club game? Who has the necessary gravitas for the important role? Who would inspire confidence in his squad? There are very few, if any, out there who satisfy all of the criteria.

Unless, of course, Fergie would consider coming out of retirement . . .