Town continue their pre-season friendly programme this evening with their first Portman Road match under new manager Gary O’Neil, taking on Ligue 1 Le Havre (KO 7.45pm).

Following Saturday’s away double-header at Oxford United and Wycombe Wanderers when 16 members of the squad got full 90 minutes, we understand O’Neil plans to use a different side in each half of this evening’s match.

If O’Neil selects his XIs along similar lines to the weekend, one is likely to be broadly what might be viewed as a first-choice side as things stand, based on availability and current transfer business, as at Adams Park, and the other a mix of those on the fringes plus academy players filling in where the squad is currently short, which was the case at the Kassam Stadium.

Issa Diop was a 77th-minute sub in the Wycombe game but seems likely to get a half this evening, while new 6ft 9in tall keeper Kjell Scherpen may well make his first appearance in a Town shirt for one of the halves.

Town’s other new signings, Daizen Maeda, Emersonn, Abdul Fatawu and Kayne van Oevelen, will all be making their first appearances for the Blues at Portman Road if they are involved, as will probably be the case.

Burnley midfielder Florentino Luiz is close to completing his £16 million switch from Burnley but seems unlikely to play a part before Saturday’s second Portman Road friendly against La Liga Rayo Vallecano.

Still absent will be midfield pair Azor Matusiwa and Jack Taylor, who underwent surgery in May, and Christian Walton, who suffered a foot injury earlier in pre-season.

Jaden Philogene has also been sidelined with a hamstring injury, while speculation linking him with a move away, although with no clear destination having emerged so far, continuing.

As reported last night, Harry Clarke is set for a permanent move to Stoke City, one of his former loan clubs, and Ali Al-Hamadi is closing in on a loan switch to Polish Ekstraklasa club Raków Częstochowa, so neither will be included tonight.

Le Havre, who finished 14th in Ligue 1 last season, have been in Suffolk since Saturday evening, training at Playford Road.

Le Club Doyen are managed by one-time Middlesbrough midfielder Didier Digard and have former Sunderland defender Timothee Pembele and striker Josh Maja, who joined from West Brom this summer, in their travelling party. More details on their squad can be found in a TWTD blog here.

Town fans making their way to Portman Road this evening will notice significant work has been ongoing through the summer, some of it still continuing.

The North Stand will have rail seating in the new season, while the disabled area is moving from one end of the West Stand to the other. The work to expand the West Stand concourse is still in progress.

Both those stands are closed for this evening’s match with only the Cobbold Stand and lower tier of the Sir Alf Ramsey Stand open.

Tonight’s match is being streamed on TownTV.

Photo: Matchday Images