Scotland reached their second successive Euros in fine style, qualifying with two games to spare as they finished runners-up to eventual champions Spain.
However, Clarke’s team were trounced by Germany in the opening game and a draw with Switzerland was followed by a last-minute defeat by Hungary to crush hopes of a first appearance in the knockout stage.
“The players and myself are probably more disappointed than anybody else because we felt we had a chance to create a better history for the country,” he said.
“We didn’t do that. But now you have to bounce back, you have to show our resilience and move on.”
On the prospect of Scotland reaching a first World Cup since 1998, Clarke added: “You know me, I’m always confident.
“If you guys are saying that we’re the 24th best team in the competition this summer and only 16 European teams go to the World Cup, it’s going to be a big ask. I believe we can do it. That’s why I’m sitting here.”
Reflecting further on the Euros and where improvements can be made, Clarke explained: “We have to look at being more creative, we have to look at trying to create more chances, but we also have to keep a defensive solidity because as a team we don’t score a lot of goals, we understand that.
“In the qualifying games we were very clinical with the chances we got. In the tournament when we got the chances to score, we were perhaps not quite as clinical.
“We didn’t get the shot away early enough or didn’t show enough composure to make the finish and put the shots on target.”
