STEVEN Naismith has told his Hearts team-mate John Souttar that he has to aspire to the level of the Belgian players who made his Scotland debut such a chastening experience at Hampden on Friday night.

The defender acquitted himself well despite the 4-0 scoreline, showing off his range of passing and standing up well to the physical challenge posed by the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Michy Batshuayi.

The defeat represents a rather sizeable bump in the road for a Scotland team who are collectively on a learning curve, but Naismith believes the experience can be particularly invaluable for the likes of the young Tynecastle defender.

“I think the biggest thing from Friday is that it was a lesson,” Naismith said. “They are the cream of the crop. That’s the best in the world. I was talking to John Souttar after the game and saying to him: ‘That is the level’. That is where he has got to aspire to get to, even though these are the first steps for him.

“The biggest thing from us was naivety. There were some positives when we got to grips with it and tried to play at the right times, but when we tried to play at the wrong times, we got punished every single time.

“That is going to happen when you change the way you want to play, but the majority of the squad has also changed from the last campaign.

“It was a punishing night, but I am sure it is one we will learn from. Look at how few caps there are in the squad. That was the top level we were up against and, in terms of the bigger picture, that is the level we need to get up to quickly.”

Mercifully, the challenge posed by Albania tomorrow night won’t be as severe, but Naismith has warned the Scots against taking their opponents lightly despite the drop in standard from Friday evening.

“I don’t think we can underestimate them,” he said. “If you look back at their competitive games over the last two campaigns, they have been a good team. A lot of their players play in Italy and are comfortable on the ball.

“When they have got it, we’ll need to be solid. It’s your first game of the campaign and you want to get off to a good start, but it is about us setting the tempo we want to play at rather than the opposition setting it.”

Naismith is setting his ambitions high ahead of the first Uefa Nations League, hoping to take advantage of a what looks a more than feasible route to tournament football. The first step on that journey will be to edge out both the Albanians and Israel in Group C1.

“Winning the group has got to be the aim,” he said. “There is a very good selection in the squad of young guys who don’t have any fear. It is more about them wanting to make their stamp on the national team than worrying about being in the starting line-up.

“You have to be positive about there being two routes. In my time in the international squad, this is probably the best chance we’ve had, and you have got to take advantage of that. We have to grasp it.”

Naismith turns 32 next week, so he knows that the European Championships in 2020 could be his last chance to get to a major tournament with his country. And he is grateful to manager Alex McLeish for bringing him back into the fold following the withdrawal of the injured Oli McBurnie.

“During the summer and in the last campaign, when I wasn’t really involved, it did take its toll,” he admitted. “Coming back in starts from doing well at club level. The manager spoke to me and said that he saw me being involved. I have loved being back.”