Ryan Christie has been left out of the Scotland side to face Russia tonight but hoops team-mates James Forrest and Callum McGregor are in from the start.
The former Caley Thistle midfielder has been in outstanding form for Celtic this season but loses out to John McGinn and Scott McTominay with midfield the strongest area of the Scotland squad. Greg Taylor is among the subs with Christie.
Former Celts David Marshall, Stephen O’Donnell and Charlie Mulgrew are named in defence while Andy Robertson could also come into that category at a push.
Clarke picked up the pieces from Alex McLeish in May and started his tenure with a win over Cyprus followed by a 3-0 defeat away to Belgium.
McLeish’s limited success was virtually built around a scoring burst from Forrest who scored a hat-trick in the home win against Israel that gives Scotland a back-door chance of reaching the European Championships next summer through the Nations League route.
Should Scotland reach the finals it will create a massive problem for Celtic, the group stage matches run from June 12 to 24 with next season’s UEFA club qualifiers starting on July 10.
SCOTLAND: Marshall; O’Donnell, Cooper, Mulgrew, Robertson; McGregor; Forest, McGinn, Fraser, McBurnie