In a previous life, Sebastien Pocognoli was a young firebrand who certainly knew how to light the blue touchpaper back home in Belgium.Whilst playing for his hometown club Standard Liege, Pocognoli was determined to lap it up after a 6-2 thrashing of their bitter rivals Charleroi back in 2012.In an incident which carried echoes of Graeme Souness in Turkey, Pocognoli planted a Liege flag in the centre spot after the match and would later be charged and fined by police for inciting violence.’It was a long time ago,’ reflected the 39-year-old, who was unveiled as Scotland’s new head coach after signing a two-year deal to replace Steve Clarke.’I was a young wolf. But actually, it was slightly too much. I will not do that again. Be careful with passion. Too much passion can be also too much and cross the line.’You need to find the balance – to be analytic and to be passionate. If you just react only with passion, you make mistakes. Scotland’s new head coach, Sebastien Pocognoli, gets a feel for the pitch at Hampden Park’I am passionate but I also try to be analytical. I am very energetic on the touchline and in my relationship with the players.’But I also try to be calm in the right moments because I need to make good choices and I need to have a clear head.’You also need a good staff around you to help to have a good voice and give good advice. Yes, passion is good but you cannot react to everything with fire.’If Pocognoli can bring success to Scotland and bring a more modern style of play, the Tartan Army will get fully on board with the new Wolf of Mount Florida.He was calm and measured at Hampden today, speaking alongside SFA chief executive Ian Maxwell and chief football officer Craig Mulholland, both of whom led the recruitment process.Pocognoli spoke decent English and expressed his desire to play on the front foot whilst bringing through young players and refreshing the squad.All of this would have been music to the ears of most Scotland fans. The whole setup had gone flat and stale under Clarke, underlined by Scotland’s miserable offering in the World Cup.Maxwell also spoke today about the need for the country to embrace change, to embrace a more modern approach, and the feeling that Scotland are ready for a new direction.That is, of course, broadly correct. But there was a slight irony in the fact that the change has almost happened by accident, with Clarke walking away from a four-year deal handed to him prior to the World Cup.Had that resignation not happened, we wouldn’t be in this position. But that’s by the by. Pocognoli is the man entrusted with taking Scotland forward and bringing a sense of excitement and ambition to the team.In terms of his credentials, he had a short stint in charge of Monaco last season. He won 16 of his 38 matches, scored plenty of goals, albeit they conceded quite a few at the other end as well.The highlight was a 3-1 win away from home over Paris Saint-Germain, part of a home and away double over the European champions. Pocognoli also oversaw victories over Marseille and Lyon.At USG in Belgium, he won a championship, which was the club’s first league title in 90 years. With the SFA tapping into data now more than ever before, he ticked a lot of boxes.If it’s a risky appointment or a gamble, the SFA have rolled the dice and done exactly what many fans have been asking them to do.’Like many coaches, you say you want to be dominant,’ said Pocognoli of his style of play. ‘That’s the reality.’But, of course, it is easy to say be dominant on paper and in training tell that to the players, but to make it happen in the heads of the players in games is a big difference.’I like to defend on the front foot, be high up the pitch. The risk is to give some space at the back but there is more chance to be dangerous high up the pitch. Pocognoli was appointed after a recruitment process led by Craig Mulholland and Ian Maxwell’So yes, to be direct, have good passing options and keep the qualities of Scottish football – be passionate, win more duels than the opponent. That to me is very important.’Change can be a really aggressive word. It’s not like changing the page in a book. It is about trying to continue and trying to improve for the benefit of Scottish football.’I hope I can be the right man for this two-year contract and I think Craig and Ian really want to help the process to continue to develop Scottish football in terms of structure.’Also, following the young talent, to work more closely with the clubs and to try to improve things. It’s a positive approach and I hope it will be a good fit.’One of the main criticisms levelled at Clarke over the years was his reluctance to give a chance to young players, that he became too loyal and too reliant on the old guard.The likes of Findlay Curtis, Lennon Miller and Kieron Bowie now have a manager who seems far more open to blooding young talent.Indeed, a key part of the remit for Pocognoli is helping bring through the next generation, whilst still delivering results in the here and now.Robbie Ure is another who should be firmly on his radar, the young striker having just completed a big-money move to Sevilla.’That is in my baggage – to work with young players,’ said the new Scotland boss, whose first matches will come against Slovenia and Switzerland when the Nations League gets under way next month.’It is easier to do in daily work, because you can help them daily. At the end of my playing career I went straight into an academy at Union SG and Genk and also the national team when you are 18-20 years old.’I know the routine of the national teams and how players have to get used to that routine.’In Union it was a project to develop players. That is something I like to do. At Monaco in a short period of time I developed many good players.’You can see they sold a lot of players this summer and I was only there for six months. That shows what I can do.’But the national team needs a different approach, you need the clubs, you need to have the support from clubs and I hope I can stimulate this.’It’s to find the right balance between trying to get the right results, otherwise you will be on me! And also to find the opportunity to develop some players. Pocognoli says it is ‘really positive’ to see young Scots such as Kieron Bowie playing in Italy’When you test or try things, it’s also a part of risk. You have to accept that I’ll try to get the benefit of a result and also develop and be ready for what is coming next season. I want to go through the processes and challenges.’I think there are some exciting names who will come [into the squad]. It will depend who is progressing at their clubs and what they achieve.’It is not easy to go at a very young age in Italy [as Miller and Bowie have done] with very specific football culture. But it can only be really positive for Scottish football.’There are a lot of names to follow. But also I would like to see these young names growing in the top clubs in Scotland because that’s where you want to see them. That is something very important for me too, to follow the young talents here.’The winds of change have blown through Hampden. There is a freshness to all of this. A lot of Scotland fans will be on board with Pocognoli purely because of the fact he’s not Steve Clarke.If the Belgian can deliver a modern, attacking brand of football and impart meaningful change, the Tartan Army could be set for an exciting new chapter.