Preview: Italy v England

31 Jan 2024 | 6 min |

Everything you need to know ahead of England's Guinness Men's Six Nations opener against Italy in Rome.

Saturday's fixture will be the first time either head coach has taken charge of a senior national side at Stadio Olimpico; Steve Borthwick faced Italy as England head coach in last season's 31-14 encounter at Twickenham, but for Gonzalo Quesada this will be a first taste of international rugby as Italy's head coach.

When?	Saturday 3 February
Where?	Stadio Olimpico, Rome
Kick off	14:15 GMT
Where can I watch?	ITV

The last time the two sides met, Jack Willis, Ollie Chessum, Jamie George and Henry Arundell all scored for England while Marco Riccioni and Alessandro Fusco crossed for the Azzurri.

VIEWS FROM CAMP

Steve Borthwick

On selection: "After an excellent week’s preparation in Girona, we look forward to the challenge of playing Italy in Rome. The Azzurri are a dangerous team, with some talented ball carriers and players who like to find space. We’ll need to make good decisions, keep our discipline, and maintain a level of intensity to our performance from the first whistle to the last."

"Winning a first cap for your country is always a very special occasion. We’re delighted for the debutants who have all worked incredibly hard to get themselves selected in the 23 to face Italy. I know Saturday will be a very proud moment for the players and their families. My message to them this week has been to be themselves, to grasp their opportunity, and to play with the strengths and skills that deservedly got them selected to a strong Six Nations squad."

GIRONA, SPAIN - JANUARY 25: Fin Smith of England passes the ball during a training session at Camiral Golf & Wellness on January 25, 2024 in Girona, Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

Kevin Sinfield

On Fin Smith: "We've been blessed with the 10s we've got and Fin has been in camp before. His form has been outstanding for Northampton and he has been training great too. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to work out where that might leave us. Fin is a young gun who has been in top form and that puts us in a very good position.

"His form has been outstanding for Northampton. They've done a great job with him and the combinations they've got in their backline has really helped us. Fin's got a maturity about him with his game management which is what you would expect from someone a bit later in their career. He is going to be a fantastic test player."

Teams

England

15. Freddie Steward, 14. Tommy Freeman, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Fraser Dingwall, 11. Elliot Daly, 10. George Ford, 9. Alex Mitchell, 1. Joe Marler, 2. Jamie George (c), 3. Will Stuart, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. Ollie Chessum, 6. Ethan Roots, 7. Sam Underhill, 8. Ben Earl.

Replacements

16. Theo Dan, 17. Beno Obano, 18. Dan Cole, 19. Alex Coles, 20. Chandler Cunningham-South, 21. Danny Care, 22. Fin Smith, 23. Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

Italy

15. Tommaso Allan, 14. Ange Capuozzo, 13. Juan Ignacio Brex, 12. Tommaso Menoncello, 11. Monty Ioane, 10. Paolo Garbisi, 9. Alessandro Garbisi, 1. Danilo Fischetti, 2. Gianmarco Lucchesi, 3. Pietro Ceccarelli, 4. Niccolo Cannone, 5. Federico Ruzza, 6. Sebastian Negri, 7. Michele Lamaro (c), Lorenzo Cannone.

Replacements

16. Giacomo Nicotera, 17. Mirco Spagnolo, 18. Giosue Zilocchi, 19. Andrea Zambonin, 20. Edoardo Iachizzi, 21. Manuel Zuliani, 22. Stephen Varney, 23. Lorenzo Pani.

STATS

England have won each of the 30 men’s Test matches they have played against Italy, including all 24 in the Six Nations, their average margin of victory in those 24 Championship matches is 28 points.

The last time Italy hosted England in the Six Nations (2022) they failed to score a point as they lost 33-0, it was the first time they’d failed to score a single point against England in the Championship and the sixth and most recent time against any opposition in the tournament.

Italy have won half of their last eight home matches (W4 L4), including each of their last two (v Romania and Japan), the last time they won three on the spin at home was between 1997 and 1998, when they secured victories against Ireland, Scotland and finally Argentina.

Italy come into this match off the back of two 50+ point defeats in the 2023 Rugby World Cup, against New Zealand and France, only once in their previous 50 Test matches had they suffered a defeat of this magnitude and not since 1999 had they endured back-to-back losses by such a margin (both v South Africa), they’ve never lost three consecutive matches by 50+ points.