England name team to face Argentina at Rugby World Cup

George Ford will once again start at fly-half with captain Owen Farrell at inside-centre as England look to make it three World Cup wins out of three on Saturday.

Elliot Daly, Jonny May and Anthony Watson are picked in the back three against an Argentina side narrowly beaten by France in their tournament opener.

Ben Youngs starts his 92nd game at scrum-half to become the third most capped England men’s player of all time.

And Joe Marler, who had retired from international duty a year ago, caps a remarkable comeback with a place in the front row alongside Jamie George and Kyle Sinckler.

Head coach Eddie Jones said: “Argentina is a completely different team from others we have played so far in the pool stages and are always about the physical contest.

“This week it’s about getting our game right, our set piece in a good place and making sure defensively we are organised and ready to find ways to score points against them.”

With Jones opting for a second-row combination of Maro Itoje and George Kruis, the youthful back row of Tom Curry, Sam Underhill and Billy Vunipola have once again been given the nod for a match that Argentina hooker Agustin Creevy has predicted will resemble a “war”.

Utility back Jack Nowell and prop Mako Vunipola have been selected on the replacements’ bench for the first time in the tournament after recovering from long-term injuries, with late squad bolter Lewis Ludlam also getting the nod.

More to follow.

England starting XV v Argentina:

15 Elliot Daly

14 Anthony Watson

13 Manu Tuilagi

12 Owen Farrell

11 Jonny May

10 George Ford

9 Ben Youngs

1 Joe Marler

2 Jamie George

3 Kyle Sinckler

4 Maro Itoje

5 George Kruis

6 Tom Curry

7 Sam Underhill

8 Billy Vunipola

Replacements

16 Luke Cowan-Dickie

17 Mako Vunipola

18 Dan Cole

19 Courtney Lawes

20 Lewis Ludlam

21 Willi Heinz

22 Henry Slade

23 Jack Nowell

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