CRAIG LEVEIN moved quickly to clarify the apparent contradiction surrounding Rangers ace Ian Black's inclusion in the Scotland squad for tonight's friendly.
This comes after he left out Lee Wallace due to the Ibrox club playing Third Division football this season.
The Scotland boss said last week when he announced his squad that it was difficult for him to pick players from the fourth division of Scottish football.
Eyebrows were raised then, when Black, who signed for Rangers this summer, was drafted in following the withdrawal of James Forrest, Jamie Mackie, Graham Dorrans and Phil Bardsley.
Levein, who confirmed Huddersfield Town striker Jordan Rhodes will make his first start and is hoping to give Blackpool keeper Matt Gilks his debut at some point, explained his decision.
"My quotes are there for all to see," he said. "What happened is that some people chose to use half a quote.
"It is straightforward. What I said when I announced the squad is that it will be more difficult for Rangers players to get into the international team because the standard in the Third Division isn't akin to international football.
"That is what I said and also, that the door wasn't closed on any of the Rangers players.
"We had some problems in midfield. Ian Black would have been with us to America [for the May friendly] if he hadn't been injured, so I brought him in. He is not a first-choice, he is in as back-up and it's a fairly straightforward decision to make.
"He was Hearts' best player last year. He would have played at some point in America, so you might see him."
Levein looked to draw a line under what he believes to be "perceived negativity" surrounding Black's inclusion.
The Scotland boss added: "Lee Wallace has never been the first-choice left-back, Ian Black isn't the first-choice midfielder, no disrespect to either of them.
"As I said, I will pick who I think is first in line then pick my second choice and third choice, that's the way it works."
Levein is looking to make amends for the 5-1 thrashing by the USA in Jacksonville at the end of the season.
This is the last time the Scotland boss will have his players together before the start of their 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign, which begins next month with a double-header at Hampden against Serbia and Macedonia.
Looking back on his time at the helm, he said: "I discovered quickly in this job that everybody reads everything into results so the result is important for us. Our last result was poor so I would like to win the game.
"One of the frustrating things about this job is the timespan between games. We have had to wait a while since America and it will be great to get back."