"It's a tough place to go" – England captain Maro Itoje hyper-focused for Six Nations clash with Wales

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Maro Itoje was satisfied with his side’s bonus point victory over Italy, as England took a crucial step towards their first Guinness Men’s Six Nations title since 2020. Whilst Steve Borthwick’s side need favourable results elsewhere to guarantee them the title, England find themselves still in contention as the tournament enters the final round this Saturday.

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England need to achieve a big bonus point win over Wales, and hope that Scotland can get either a win or a draw of their own against France. Itoje was happy to see his side return to their top form against the Italians, with a seven-try shut-out showcasing how dangerous England can be on the attacking foot.

Tries from Tom Willis, Tommy Freeman, Marcus Smith, Tom Curry, Ben Earl and a brace for Ollie Sleightholme established an unobtainable lead away from the Azzurri.

Speaking to ITV, Itoje acknowledged England’s desire to play with such attacking intensity next week, but the Saracen also recognised the need to tighten up defensively for the trip to Cardiff.

“We wanted to get five points and win the game. As always with games of rugby we wanted to be better in periods and tighten up our defence a little. We wanted to move the ball, find space and be aggressive with ball in hand,” said Itoje.

With England still in contention for the Six Nations title, the focus now shifts to their upcoming match against Wales. If results go their way, England could seal the championship with a win behind enemy lines, however Itoje remains grounded, with his sights solely focused on the challenge ahead. “We just have to do what we have to do. Wales in Cardiff is a massive game, it is a tough place to go,” he added.

Meanwhile, Italy captain Michele Lamaro reflected on his team’s performance, and citied inconsistency as a key issue in the heavy defeat. Despite flashes of brilliance, Italy struggled to maintain their intensity throughout the match, which ultimately cost them their first ever win over England.

“We lost a bit of consistency during the game. We had some brilliant moments but we switched off in periods. At the start of the second half we conceded two clear opportunities and they are a great team so they took them,” Lamaro told ITV1.

The Italian skipper emphasized the need for his squad to learn from their mistakes and maintain focus for the full 80 minutes. Italy have the tall order of taking on Ireland this Saturday, and the Benetton battler wants to see his countrymen hang in the fight against Simon Easterby’s side.

“We need to work on that and we have been saying it a lot but we need to look to ourselves and stay together because we have another massive week and a short period to turn it around. Even in the first half we conceded a few tries we could've controlled. We went in 21-17 but the tries we conceded were all on something we spoke about in the week. We were short on the edges and we weren't able to defend them.”

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