Liam Williams says he and the Wales back line know what to expect from Manu Tuilagi ahead of their Round 3 clash with England Twickenham in the 2022 Guinness Six Nations.
Tuilagi is on Eddie Jones’ latest 25-player squad list, having impressed for Sale Sharks after recovering from a hamstring injury, much to the delight of many England fans.
In classic Tuilagi fashion, he celebrated his return to Gallagher Premiership Rugby by going viral, smashing the ridiculously powerful André Esterhuizen in a video that has been seen thousands of times on social media.
But Williams has not been phased by the centre’s return, emphasising that he and his side know what is coming when the two rivals meet at Twickenham next week.
He said: “There is only one way that bloke goes, and that is straight, but yeah look he is a good player for them.
“I know he has been injured for a little while, but I saw him play for Sale a couple of weeks ago, and he smashed the Harlequins 12 Esterhuizen.
“So yeah, he is a big name, and he is a big player for the England team, so we look forward to heading to Twickenham and playing against him.
“I think there is still a lot more to come from us. As you know, we were not at our best in the first game against Ireland, and we just got hammered.
“We lost the physicality and were second to every ball out there, so there is a lot more to come, and we have worked hard this week.”
Williams was named Guinness Six Nations Player of the Match in 2019 as Wales beat England 21-13 at Principality Stadium and scored in last year’s fixture in Cardiff as they overcame the Red Roses 40-24.
Round 3 is likely to see Williams and Tuilagi return to the Twickenham turf, and the Wales full-back has admitted that he loves playing in West London – even if Wales have not recorded a Championship win there in 10 years.
Williams added: “I think Twickenham is a great place to play. I actually quite like heading to London and playing at Twickenham.
“I know the crowd get on your back, but that is obviously part of away games, so it is a place I like to play, I have had a couple of good performances there and some good wins too.
“For me personally, I do not get intimidated by any stadium, to be honest, I try and get energy from that, from the boos and when you are driving on the bus people flicking you and all that stuff.
“So I try and get some energy from that and take it onto the pitch.”
