George Ford returns to the England starting line-up as one of five changes made by Eddie Jones ahead of the Round 2 clash with Italy at Twickenham this weekend.
Ford slots in at fly-half, with Owen Farrell shifting outside to No.12 and Ollie Lawrence dropping out of the matchday 23 entirely.
By altering his 10-12 axis, Jones will hope to spark his backline after they failed to make a single linebreak during the 11-6 defeat to Scotland in their 2021 Guinness Six Nations opener.
The other four changes come in the pack, with an entirely new front row consisting of fit-again Mako Vunipola, Luke Cowan-Dickie and Kyle Sinckler.
The starting trio against Scotland – Ellis Genge, Jamie George and Will Stuart – all drop to the bench.
The final alteration sees Courtney Lawes get the nod at blindside flanker instead of Mark Wilson, who drops out of the squad entirely.
Jones has reverted to a 6-2 split on the bench, as Dan Robson and Max Malins are deemed sufficient cover in the backs.
“As always, we’ve picked what we think is our strongest 23 to try and win the game,” explained Jones
“We’re pleased to have Mako and Kyle back into the team and we’ve made some changes to our starting XV, but our finishers are just as important to our game plan. We look at the whole 80 minutes.
“We’ve trained very well this week, I’ve been very pleased with the players’ attitudes and work-rate. We’re hoping to put on a good performance on Saturday and kick on with our Guinness Six Nations campaign.”
England team to face Italy at Twickenham in Round 2 of the 2021 Guinness Six Nations: 15. Elliot Daly (Saracens, 48 caps) 14. Anthony Watson (Bath Rugby, 47 caps) 13. Henry Slade (Exeter Chiefs, 35 caps) 12. Owen Farrell (C) (Saracens, 89 caps) 11. Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby, 62 caps) 10. George Ford (Leicester Tigers, 73 caps) 9. Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers, 105 caps) 1. Mako Vunipola (Saracens, 63 caps) 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, 27 caps) 3. Kyle Sinckler (Bristol Bears, 40 caps) 4. Maro Itoje (Saracens, 44 caps) 5. Jonny Hill (Exeter Chiefs, 5 caps) 6. Courtney Lawes (Northampton Saints, 86 caps) 7. Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 29 caps) 8. Billy Vunipola (Saracens, 57 caps)
Replacements: 16. Jamie George (Saracens, 55 caps) 17. Ellis Genge (Leicester Tigers, 24 caps) 18. Will Stuart (Bath Rugby, 9 caps) 19. Charlie Ewels (Bath Rugby, 17 caps) 20. Ben Earl (Bristol Bears, 9 caps) 21. Jack Willis (Wasps, 2 caps) 22. Dan Robson (Wasps, 8 caps) 23. Max Malins (Bristol Bears, 4 caps)
