England take on Italy in the Six Nations today as Steve Borthwick aims for his first win in charge at Twickenham.
An opening weekend defeat by Scotland was not the start that Eddie Jones’ replacement as head coach would have hoped for in the Calcutta Cup, and he has since emphasised how significant the rebuild required is.
Time is not on his side though, with a World Cup looming on the horizon later in the year and more immediately a clash against an Italian side who showed plenty more promise against France.
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They led with 18 minutes remaining against the Grand Slam champions last weekend before ultimately being edged out, but the Azzurri will have taken real confidence from that display having stunned Wales and Australia last year.
A defeat to Scotland was disappointing and, for all Italy’s clear improvements, another Twickenham loss here would be absolutely disastrous for England.
England vs Italy date, kick-off time and venue
England vs Italy brings a close to the second weekend of Six Nations action, after Ireland beat France in a classic and Scotland thrashed Wales on Saturday.
The match is due to begin at 3pm GMT today on Sunday February 12, taking place at Twickenham Stadium in south-west London.
How to watch England vs Italy
TV channel: England vs Italy is being broadcast live and free-to-air on ITV1 in the UK, with coverage beginning at 2.15pm this afternoon.
Live stream: Fans can also catch all the action live online via the ITVX app or ITV website.
Live blog: Follow all the action on Sunday with Standard Sport’s dedicated match blog, with expert analysis from rugby correspondent Nick Purewal at Twickenham.
England vs Italy team news
Borthwick has split up the divisive Marcus Smith-Owen Farrell playmaking partnership, with Farrell moving from inside centre to fly-half and Smith dropped to the bench.
It’s a new centre pairing as Bath’s Ollie Lawrence partners the fit-again Henry Slade, who is back after a hip issue.
Otherwise the back division is the same, with Alex Mitchell backing up Jack van Poortvliet at scrum-half after the surprise omission of Ben Youngs and London Irish flyer Henry Arundell replacing Anthony Watson on the bench after recovering from a foot injury.
There is one change in the England pack, with Ben Curry dropped from the matchday squad altogether despite starting against Scotland as Toulouse’s Jack Willis gets the nod at openside flanker.
There are two changes to the Italy XV that started against France, with Edoardo Padovani preferred to Pierre Bruno out wide.
The other alteration is at tighthead prop, where Marco Riccioni is selected over Simone Ferrari. Gloucester flanker Jake Polledri makes a welcome return to the bench as he prepares for his first Test cap since 2020.
England vs Italy lineups
England XV: Steward; Malins, Slade, Lawrence, Hassell-Collins; Farrell (c), Van Poortvliet; Genge, George, Sinckler; Itoje, Chessum; Ludlam, Willis, Dombrandt.
Replacements: Walker, M Vunipola, Cole, Isiekwe, Earl, Mitchell, M Smith, Arundell.
Italy XV: Capuozzo; Padovani, Brex, Morisi, Menoncello; Allan, Varney; Fischetti, Nicotera, Riccioni; N Cannone, Ruzza; Negri, Lamaro (c), L Cannone.
Replacements: Bigi, Zani, Ferrari, Iachizzi, Polledri, Zuliani, Fusco, Bruno.
England vs Italy head to head (h2h) history and results
Italy have lost every match they have ever played against England, and have rarely ever got close to pulling off a Twickenham upset.
England wins: 29
Italy wins: 0
Draws: 0
England vs Italy prediction
Nothing but a win will do for England. Borthwick has claimed the team “weren’t good at anything” in the autumn under Jones, but that will be no excuse should his side be on the receiving end of a huge upset.
The defensive set-up let England down against Scotland, for all there were signs of promise elsewhere on the pitch. The attack already looked to be clicking into gear and should enjoy further success against Italy, even if questions remain over Marcus Smith and Owen Farrell playing together.
Italy threatened to pounce on an incredibly ill-disciplined display from France, who gave up 18 penalties. England will surely not be so generous, while Italy’s awful record at Twickenham, and against England generally, remains a mental hurdle.
A fast start will be important for Borthwick’s side to ensure that no nerves build in the stands, and England showed enough in attack against Scotland to suggest they can produce that. There may well be some sticky moments, but the first win of the new era should come in relatively comfortable fashion.
England to win, by 17 points.
England vs Italy odds
England to win: 1/14
Italy to win: 17/2
Draw: 45/1
