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Lee McCulloch returns to the Scotland side for the first time in close to three years for Friday's opening Euro 2012 qualifier in Lithuania.

And he will be joined in the starting line-up by Rangers team-mates Steven Naismith, Allan McGregor, Steven Whittaker, Kenny Miller and David Weir.

Middlesbrough pair Stephen McManus and Barry Robson are included but there is no place for James McFadden.

Alan Hutton, Scott Brown and skipper Darren Fletcher complete the side.

Tottenham defender Hutton has not featured for his club this season after a summer hernia operation but came through training with no problems.

"I think everybody would recognise that he would be our first choice right-back," manager Craig Levein said of Hutton on Wednesday.

"Anytime you get a good player fit and available that you didn't expect to get then it's a real bonus.

With Lee Wallace injured, Whittaker makes the switch from his usual berth on the right to left-back, while Weir goes straight into the side, having been overlooked for the two friendlies Levein has overseen.

Weir, who will become Scotland's oldest ever player at the age of 40, will be reacquainted with former Celtic captain McManus, with the pair having played together at international level on many occasions.

"Davie Weir is probably the best centre-back we have got at this time," said Levein.

"He is playing week in, week out at the highest level and playing to such a standard that this type of football is something he can cope with easily."

McCulloch, who will play in a holding role, last pulled on the blue of Scotland in the last game of qualifying for Euro 2008, a 2-1 defeat by Italy at Hampden in November 2007, when Alex McLeish was the national manager.

He then made himself unavailable for selection under George Burley, saying he wished to concentrate on his club career.

However, he had a change of heart when courted by Levein, although injury ruled him out of the former Dundee United manager's first two matches in charge.

Fletcher and Brown will form the central midfield partnership as expected but the choices of Robson and Naismith, in particular, will come as a surprise to many.

Fans' favourite McFadden, who has scored 15 goals in 45 Scotland appearances, has been nursing a slight groin injury but may yet play a part from the bench.

The selection of Miller as a lone striker was also widely anticipated.

He has scored five goals in three games for Rangers this season and, prior to picking his side, Levein said: "One of the important things is to pick players in form.

"Kenny Miller would probably have played anyway but it's good to know he's in form."

Before naming his squad, injuries ruled out Craig Gordon, Kevin Thomson and Gary Caldwell, while Chris Iwelumo, Steven Fletcher and Andy Webster withdrew, along with Wallace, this week.

Jay McEveley and Garry O'Connor were later drafted in to provide cover.

Scotland team: (4-1-4-1) McGregor, Hutton, Weir, McManus, Whittaker, McCulloch, Naismith, Brown, Fletcher, Robson, Miller ...

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RANGERS have made their fourth signing of the summer by landing  Aberdeen utility man Richard Foster  on loan - with Andrius Velicka going in the opposite direction.

The former Scotland under-21 international follows James Beattie, Vladimir Weiss and Nikica Jelavic to Ibrox.

Foster, 25, comes to the champions with good experience after more than seven years of first-team games with the Dons.

He made his debut for the Pittodrie side back in May 2003 and made his 250th competitive appearance for his former club at the weekend against Kilmarnock.

Although he initially started out as a winger, he takes on a more defensive role these days and his versatility will be an important asset to Gers in the months ahead.

Foster began the campaign with a suspension and has only played three minutes in the SPL for them this term.

Having played very little part in Mark McGhee's team's pre-season campaign, he is lacking match sharpness.

But with manager Walter Smith seeking a squad man to bolster his options, he will feel he has made a good purchase in the Granite City-born player.

Velicka moves on to Aberdeen desperate to get game time under his belt following a frustrating last few weeks....

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FC Barcelona have completed the signing or Argentina captain Javier Mascherano on a four year deal from Liverpool for a fee of £17.25m.

He put pen to paper on a contract on Monday afternoon which includes a buy out clause of 90 million euros. He will wear the number 14 jersey.

Mascherano will train with his new team mates and under his new boss for the first time on Tuesday morning at 10am local time along with other players not on international duty.

The Argentine had made no secret his desire to end his three year stay at Liverpool and was clearly delighted to have realised his dream.

"The truth is it's a dream, it's a great joy," Mascherano told Barca TV.

"It is a great club with great players and I will try to adapt as quickly as I possibly can," added the star. 

The Catalan club have been long time admirers of Mascherano's talents and failed in an attempt to sign the midfielder last summer but on his return from the World Cup this year the player told Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson his wish was to leave the club and that his wife could not settle in the area.

Hodgson was less than impressed with this approach and called the player ''selfish''.

"Players have got something they want to do and they just expect the club to bow down and accept it," he said.

"Unfortunately there are going to be periods of time when there will be some unpleasantness because players must also understand that when you sign contracts you sign contracts to play."

With the arrival of Mascherano, whose former clubs include West Ham, Corinthians and River Plate, Barcelona have declared that their transfer business is complete.

At the press conference arranged to present Mascherano to the media Barca's sporting vice-president Josep Maria Bartomeu stated ''the squad is closed and we will not sign anyone else...we have come to the conclusion that we do not need to further strengthen the team.''

However sporting director Andoni Zubizarreta did concede ''we are staying alert'' should an opportunity presents itself before the transfer deadline at midnight on Tuesday.

Meanwhile Barcelona have loaned defender Martín Cáceres to fellow La Liga outfit Sevilla for the season. Sevilla will pay the player's wage and have an option to buy.

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Jose Mourinho failed to record a win in his first La Liga game in charge of Real Madrid as his side drew 0-0 with Mallorca at Ono Estadi. The self named Special One handed debuts to Ricardo Carvalho, Sergio Canales and Angel di Maria from the start while Sami Khedira and Mesut Ozil appeared from the bench but Mallorca, so strong at home last season, kept them at bay thanks in no small part to goalkeeper Aouate.

However Mourinho wanted to focus on the positives post match, stating ''we had sufficient chances to score, this is the positive'' but he recognises his team have to improve, ''we didn't play well, especially in the first half''.

''It is important when a team isn't on top form, when it is far from it's maximum potential, that it defends well and doesn't make mistakes.  And also to score in the few chances that they normally create. We have defended well and we have made more chances than we could have imagined but we haven't scored.''

Mallorca also have a new manager this season in Michael Laudrup and he was delighted to take a point off Madrid in his opening game.

''It is a phenomenal start for the players and the club'' he said.

''The point has been deserved because they [Real Madrid] have to demonstrate their superiority and they didn't achieve this. The youngsters didn't fear the opponent despite having rivals of great quality.'' continued the Dane.

''Madrid had more of the ball, more chances, but this is normal. It is what is always expected of them. Until the last second we tried to take the ball from the back, playing, looking for the victory. The draw is an important morale booster.''






Elsewhere in Spain the Champions Barcelona cruised to a 3-0 win away to Racing Santander thanks to goals from Messi, Iniesta and a first La Liga goal in Barca colours for David Villa. The Catalans carried on from where they left off last season playing in their usual fluid, easy on the eye manner and in reality should have racked up more than three goals on the scoreboard. FIFA World Player of the year Lionel Messi sprung to life on 4 minutes, taking advantage of a defensive error to tear through the middle and beat the keeper with a delightful chip. Next up Iniesta on 33 minutes guiding the ball home from distance after keeper Toño's punched clearance fell kindly to him. In the second half it was new signing David Villa that rounded off the scoring with an expertly executed header from Dani Alves' cross after 62 minutes.

Newly promoted Real Sociedad made a dream return to La Liga after a three year spell in the second division by beating Villarreal 1-0 at home thanks to Xabi Prieto's 57th minute strike. Boss Martín Lasarte was careful not to get carried away after one victory in what will be a tough season but did praise his side's work ethic. ''Here we do not have stars, what prevails is the group.''

Espanyol made a solid start to the campaign at Estadi Cornellá-El Prat where they defeated visitors Getafe 3-1 with striker Pablo Osvaldo, on loan from Bologna, bagging a brace.

Sunday's other two matches, like Mallorca v Real Madrid, failed to produce a goal between them. Deportivo and visitors Zaragoza managed just six attempts on target between them at Municipal de Riazor while Osasuna and Almería could only manage five in total at Reyno de Navarra.

In the remaining fixture of La Liga's opening weekend Atlético Madrid host Sporting Gijón on Monday, live on Sky at 9pm.

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