THERE seems little hope for Scotland. Stefan Klos was welcomed into Hampden Park by the Scottish Football Association yesterday morning, his media arrangements hastily switched from the national team’s hotel in Renfrewshire in the wake of that disastrous defeat in Georgia, to look forward to tomorrow night’s visit of his native Germany.

The former Rangers goalkeeper is the perfect house guest. Polite, courteous, he has never been one to ruffle feathers. He gave even less away in his press conferences at Ibrox, torturous affairs at the best of times, than he did when taking command of the penalty area.

It is quite appropriate that, following retirement, he should have chosen to live in that most neutral of countries, Switzerland. Even he, though, cannot bring himself to say that there is much likelihood of Scotland breathing much-needed life into their crumbling Euro 2016 campaign against Joachim Loew’s side.

Germany, in his view, are back at their best. Asked if he expects the world champions to close in on qualification from Group D by winning in Glasgow, his answer was unequivocal.

“Yes,” he replied. “They had a slow start to the campaign, but I think that was understandable. The players did not have much in the way of holidays last summer. They had won the World Cup and started the qualifying campaign for the Euros in the knowledge that even second place in the group would get you through.They were all a bit tired and found it hard to get started.

“You always like to have your team winning, but I think the set-up, where even the third-placed team can qualify, meant no-one was ever really nervous. They are focused now, on top form and they are confident. They are top of the table and I don’t think they want to go anywhere else.

“It is going to be tough for Scotland.”

That seems certain. What appears equally clear is Gordon Strachan, the Scotland manager, will have to give close examination to his own approach. He has built his Scotland side on a bank of three attacking midfielders supporting a central striker, normally Steven Fletcher. Steven Naismith, Ikechi Anya and Shaun Maloney filled those positions against Georgia, but is such an attacking philosophy advisable against a team as strong as Germany?

Klos sees midfield as the area where the world champions possess some extraordinary talent with the engine of Manchester United’s Bastian Schweinsteiger complemented in the most expert fashion by that most accomplished of passers, Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos. If Scotland are to have any chance of achieving a result, their influence on proceedings must be curtailed. A return to the more pragmatic ideology of Walter Smith or Alex McLeish might deserve consideration.

“When Schweinsteiger is fit, he is the boss in midfield,” stated Klos. “You also have Kroos, who is technically outstanding. He can play the ball wherever he wants.

“If he picks out a player, you can be sure that he will play the ball to his feet. The same applies to set-pieces.

“These two dictate the game. Schweinsteiger has had problems with minor injuries over the past couple of years and it has been difficult for him to get momentum and play 10 or 15 games in a row.

“When he is fit, though, he can dominate a game. It is just a question of him staying fit.”

Should Scotland manage to get through midfield into advanced positions, something that proved difficult against the team rated 147th in the world in Tbilisi on Friday, they will faced the added problem of having to get the better of the best goalkeeper in world football.

Manuel Neuer has broken the mould at Bayern Munich. Part keeper, part sweeper, he does more than just take control of the penalty area. As confident with his feet as his hands, it seems, his game is based on snuffing out trouble before it reaches crisis point. Klos failed to win a cap for Germany. During his time, the imposing figure of another Bayern legend, Oliver Kahn, stood in his way.

The 44-year-old sees Kahn and Neuer enjoying similar stature within the game, although he sees clear differences in their styles.

“Neuer is outstanding, but he is a different type of goalkeeper to Kahn,” he said.

“He doesn’t just play in the box. He is playing in his own half, trying to cover all of that. Kahn really concentrated on playing in his own six-yard box.”

With the 1998 World Cup the last major tournament that boasted Scotland’s presence, the tradition once enjoyed on these shores of qualifying for showpiece events is long gone. The optimism engendered by the early promise of Strachan’s reign is in danger of disappearing.

“Before the Georgia game, I thought there was a really big chance of Scotland qualifying, but I think it is going to be difficult for them now,” said Klos. Things are unlikely to look brighter by close of play tomorrow.

Stefan Klos was speaking at a William Hill media event. William Hill is a proud supporter of Scotland.