Marcus Smith has been benched by England head coach Steve Borthwick in favor of Owen Farrell, who will start at fly-half against Italy in the Six Nations on Sunday.
From inside center, where he appeared in the defeat against Scotland, Borthwick has moved his captain.
With Joe Marchant not included in the 23, Ollie Lawrence teams up with Henry Slade in a brand-new center partnership.
Ben Curry is replaced by Jack Willis in the back row, and Henry Arundell of the London Irish is one of the replacements on the wing.
Steward, Malins, Slade, Lawrence, Hassell-Collins, Farrell (captain), Van Poortvliet, Genge, George, Sinckler, Itoje, Chessum, Ludlam, Willis, and Dombrandt are the players for England.
Walker, M. Vunipola, Cole, Isiekwe, Earl, Mitchell, M. Smith, and Arundell are the replacements.
The crucial choice for Borthwick was which fly-half to select, and the Harlequins’ Smith, who has yet to consistently shown his club form on the international level, has suffered as a result of last weekend’s defeat to Scotland.
In order to partner the talented Lawrence, Exeter’s Slade returns from a hip injury, and Marchant, who started in midfield alongside Farrell last week, is not even a replacement.
