Itoje warns England not to sleepwalk against Japan's 'chaos' as World Cup spots hang in the balance

Maro Itoje has called on England to remain sharp and avoid complacency when Japan arrive at Allianz Stadium on Saturday, acknowledging that former England head coach Eddie Jones will have spent the week engineering disruption.

Jones, who handed Itoje his England debut in 2016 and worked with him for seven years, has openly promised an afternoon of “chaos”, arguing that “the English don’t react well to unorthodox rugby”. Japan enter the Nations Championship fixture as heavy underdogs, without a win in seven Tests against England, but Itoje is taking nothing for granted.

“Most coaches want to keep you thinking,” Itoje said. “Eddie would throw a whole load of weird and wonderful things at us to keep us sharp and keep us on our toes. Whether it’s unorthodox shapes in attack, things around the set piece — I know Japan are going to want to keep the ball in play or come up with special unique plays.”

The England captain was direct about the mindset required. “Let’s not sleepwalk into things and think ‘most teams play like this’ because Japan aren’t most teams. One, we need to be alive. Two, we need to impose our game. If we’re alive and we’ve got our house in order then we should be able to deal with what they throw at us.”

The stakes extend well beyond the result. Head coach Steve Borthwick has made clear that this second of four autumn Tests is an audition for Rugby World Cup places, with up to 28 of his 33-man squad already identified. Fringe players including Max Ojomoh and Will Joseph have a rare chance to press their claims.

Itoje, however, cautioned that chasing personal glory at the team’s expense would be counterproductive. “The way you impress is by fully expressing yourself within the context of the team,” he said. “If you have 15 players doing their own thing it won’t look great and then no one really shines. We want them to fully express themselves but within the context of the team so that we can all work together and it be coherent.”

England arrive at the fixture with momentum after a 45-22 demolition of Australia in their autumn opener, and Itoje himself is in strong form after benefiting from a full off-season — his first in over a decade — following a decision to rest him during the July tour. The summer also brought personal news, with his wife Mimi giving birth to their first child, Moses, who made his own Twickenham appearance last Sunday.

“When my son was born I felt an overwhelming sense of duty — a duty to him, a duty to my wife,” Itoje said. “I want to set a good example for him, guide him and help him to be a responsible person in this world.”