Italy have never beaten England and as such the hosts are clear favourites. However, the Azzurri are improving and it wouldn’t be a shock to see them asking more questions of this England side at Twickenham than before.
However, history is certainly not on the side of the Italians. These two teams have faced each other 29 times, with England winning all those encounters. In addition, the total number of points scored by both teams in the 16 head-to-head matches at Twickenham stands at 720 for England compared to 190 for Italy.
Steve Borthwick will say all the right things in the run-up, but in private he knows this is a must-win game, even this early in his tenure as England head coach, and the sort of game his side should win by an impressive margin if they have serious ambitions of a Six Nations title, especially after their opening game loss to Scotland.
The most points Italy have collected at Twickenham is 23 way back in 2001. They certainly need to do better to have any chance of causing a stir.
When and where is England v Italy?
This second round match will take place at Twickenham on Sunday 12 February, with kick-off at 15:00 GMT.
The other matches in the second weekend of the Championship are Ireland v France at 2.15pm on Saturday and Scotland v Wales at 4.45pm also on Saturday.
What TV channel is England v Italy on?
The match will be broadcast on ITV.
Who is in England’s limited 29-man squad?
Forward
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Ollie Chessum
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Dan Cole
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Alex Dombrandt
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Tom Dunn
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Ben Graaf
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Ellis Gene
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Jamie Georg
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Nick Isiekwe
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Maro Itoje
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Lewis Ludlam
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David Ribbans
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Kyle Sinckler
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Mako Vunipola
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Jack Walker
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Jack Willis
Backs
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Henry Arundell
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Owen Farrell
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Tommy Freeman
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Ollie Hassell-Collins
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Ollie Lawrence
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Max Malins
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Joe Marchant
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Alex Mitchell
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Henry Slade
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Fin Smith
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Marcus Smith
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Freddy Stewart
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Manu Tuilagi
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Jack van Poortvliet
What is the latest team news?
England have dropped their most capped player for Sunday’s game with Italy after Ben Youngs was left out of a restricted training squad.
Youngs, 33, delivered a disappointing performance from the bench in the Calcutta Cup defeat to Scotland that opened the Guinness Six Nations and has paid the price by losing his place to Alex Mitchell in the 29-man group that prepares for the Azzurri will step up confrontation.
Youngs is the only member of the starting XV to be omitted by head coach Steve Borthwick with his spot taken by Jack Willis, pointing to a recall for Toulouse’s open side.
Also missing is Anthony Watson, who played 15 minutes as a substitute against Scotland, with Henry Arundell taking his place as the London Irish try-scoring sensation prepares for his comeback after missing the autumn with an ankle problem.
Who is the referee?
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Referee: James Doleman (NZR)
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Assistant Referee 1: Mathieu Raynal (FFR)
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Assistant Referee 2: Tual Trainini (FFR)
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TMO: Eric Gauzins (FFR)
What happened in this luminaire in 2022?
Italy failed to score a point against England in an error-strewn 33-0 defeat at Stadio Olimpico. Read Telegraph Sport’s full coverage of the match here.
What are the latest opportunities?
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England: 1/11
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Italy: 10/1
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To draw: 50/1
The odds are correct as of February 8
What is our prediction?
A first win for the Borthwick side, with a big step up in performance and a comfortable victory, despite Italy’s progress.
Predicted score: England 32 Italy 13