England captain Owen Farrell is a doubt for the start of the 2022 Guinness Six Nations.
The 30-year-old will undergo surgery on the ankle injury he suffered playing in the 32-15 victory over Australia in the Autumn Nations Series last weekend at Twickenham.
Farrell’s club Saracens have since confirmed that he has been given a timeline of between 10 and 12 weeks for his recovery, meaning he could miss the start of the Championship.
Fellow England international and Saracens teammate Jamie George is also expected to be out of action until the end of January after the hooker sustained a knee injury in the same game.
Saracens revealed 31-year-old George is set to miss between eight and 10 weeks with his injury, which also leaves him in a race to be fit for England’s Championship opener.
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Eddie Jones’ men face Scotland in their 2022 Guinness Six Nations curtain-raiser on February 5 before travelling to Italy the following weekend to take on the Azzurri (February 13).
England and Saracens will be boosted by the return to training of Elliot Daly, however, who has been out of action since the end of the Lions’ tour to South Africa.
The 29-year-old had surgery on a stress fracture but is now available for selection.