There have been nine changes to the starting XI from the side that lost 1-0 to Japan at the weekend, with Liam Kelly replacing Angus Gunn in goal.

In defence, Ross McCrorie, Dom Hyam, Kieran Tierney and John Souttar come in, while in midfield Billy Gilmour and Ryan Christie return to the starting line-up. In attack, Che Adams takes the place of Lyndon Dykes, while George Hirst also comes in after a decent cameo against Japan.

Scotland XI: Kelly; McCrorie, Souttar, Hyam, Tierney, Robertson, Gilmour, Christie, McTominay, Adams, Hirst.

Subs: Gunn, Bain, Patterson, McGinn, Dykes, Hendry, Miller, Ferguson, Conway, Ralston, McLean, Irving, Curtis, McKenna.

Line-ups should be released at any point from the next five minutes, so here’s a reminder of the early Scotland team news…

Steve Clarke confirmed following the defeat to Japan that there would be “six or seven changes” to his side. The likes of Ryan Christie and Billy Gilmour could start, while Che Adams, John Souttar and Grant Hanley didn’t feature, so they may be involved.

Clarke praised Tommy Conway, who made his first Scotland start at Hampden, while George Hirst and Findlay Curtis came off the bench and will be pushing for more involvement alongside Lennon Miller.

Ben Gannon-Doak, Lawrence Shankland and Craig Gordon were not fit enough to make the squad.

Scotland and the Ivory Coast have never previously faced in any competition.

The Scots have lost four of their previous seven matches against African nations (W2 D1), with this their first since a 2-2 draw with Nigeria in May 2014.

Scotland step up their preparations for this summer’s World Cup by hosting Ivory Coast – but the international friendly will be staged in England and at Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium in Liverpool.

Steve Clarke’s team faced Japan at Hampden on Saturday but the Tartan Army will be heading down the road and away from their traditional home on Tuesday night as Everton’s new ground hosts its first men’s international fixture.

Officially, the fixture is part of marketing agency Pitch International’s ‘Road to 26’ series – which has featured a number of games between teams who have qualified for the World Cup, staged at neutral venues.

This will be Scotland’s first game played on English soil without facing England since May 2014, when they drew 2-2 in a friendly with Nigeria at Craven Cottage.

The Ivory Coast have only lost two of their last 13 internationals (W8 D3), winning two of their last three by at least a three-goal margin (3-0 v Burkina Faso and 4-0 v Korea Republic). They have also kept nine clean sheets across these 13 games, conceding just seven times overall.

The dates for Scotland’s World Cup group games will be as follows:

13 June: Scotland vs Haiti – Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts.

19 June: Scotland vs Morocco – Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts

24 June: Scotland vs Brazil – Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, Florida.

Having been placed in Pot 3, they will face a daunting test against Brazil from Pot 1 and Morocco, semi-finalists at the last World Cup, from Pot 2. They will also face Haiti from Pot 4, who are returning to a World Cup for the first time since 1976.

Scotland’s first World Cup outing in 28 years will be against that side, with the venue for the clash now confirmed as the Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Here’s the report from last week’s narrow loss to Scotland…

Steve Clarke revealed his surprise and disappointment after hearing some boos from the Tartan Army following Scotland’s 1-0 defeat by Japan at Hampden in Glasgow.

The Scots were cheered off the pitch in November after a dramatic 4-2 win over Denmark qualified them for the World Cup finals for the first time since 1998.

However, their return to the national stadium for the first of their warm-up games for North America was more sedate.