England will be hoping for a positive finish to a difficult autumn as they welcome Japan to Allianz Stadium, Twickenham in their final game of the year.
Steve Borthwick’s side are without a win in five games amid a series of near misses against top nations, but will hope to right a few wrongs as they take on a familiar foe.
Japan boss Eddie Jones will relish a meeting with his former side and brings a dangerous, if inexperienced, team that will look to test their hosts.
Could the ex-England coach mastermind one of the great rugby shocks as he takes on his former assistant Borthwick?
Here’s everything you need to know.
When is England vs Japan?
England vs Japan is due to kick off at 4.10pm GMT on Sunday 24 November at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham.
How can I watch it?
Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch the match live on TNT Sports 1, with coverage on the channel from 7.30pm GMT. Subscribers can stream the action via discovery+.
If you want to stream major sporting events while you are travelling or watching from abroad you’ll need a VPN. Get the best VPN deals in the UK. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.
Team News
Steve Borthwick names his strongest possible side for the final game of England’s autumn. Tom Curry returns from a second concussion of the season to start in a mobile back row, uniting with Sam Underhill in a partnership that worked so well for Eddie Jones at the 2019 World Cup. George Furbank is recalled in the place of Freddie Steward at full-back, while 20-year-old prop Asher Opoku-Fordjour (who can play on both sides of the scrum but covers tighthead here) is set to make his debut.
Japan are without hulking lock Warner Dearns, who has been given a four-match ban after his sending off against Uruguay. Eddie Jones shuffles his playmakers in the absence of Harumichi Tatekawa, with Nik McCurran handed an opportunity at fly half and Takuro Matsunaga providing extra distributing hands from full-back.
Line-ups
England XV: 1 Ellis Genge, 2 Jamie George (captain), 3 Will Stuart; 4 Maro Itoje, 5 George Martin; 6 Tom Curry, 7 Sam Underhill, 8 Ben Earl; 9 Jack van Poortvliet, 10 Marcus Smith; 11 Ollie Sleightholme, 12 Henry Slade, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 14 Tommy Freeman; 15 George Furbank.
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Fin Baxter, 18 Asher Opoku-Fordjour, 19 Nick Isiekwe, 20 Chandler Cunningham-South; 21 Harry Randall, 22 Fin Smith, 23 Tom Roebuck.
Japan XV: 1 Takato Okabe, 2 Mamoru Harada, 3 Shuhei Takeuchi; 4 Sanaila Waqa, 5 Epineri Uluiviti; 6 Kanji Shimokawa, 7 Kazuki Himeno, 8 Faulua Makisi; 9 Naoto Saito (captain), 10 Nicholas McCurran; 11 Jone Naikabula, 12 Siosaia Fifita, 13 Dylan Riley, 14 Tomoki Osada; 15 Takuro Matsunaga.
Replacements: 16 Seunghyuk Lee, 17 Yukio Morikawa, 18 Keijiro Tamefusa, 19 Daichi Akiyama, 20 Tevita Tatafu, 21 Ben Gunter; 22 Shinobu Fujiwara, 23 Yusuke Kajimura.
Odds
England win 1/25
Draw 100/1
Japan win 45/1
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