Captain Itoje returns to England XV to face Scotland

Captain Maro Itoje returns to the England starting XV for Saturday's Six Nations match against Scotland in Edinburgh.

Itoje, who was on the bench for the 48-7 win against Wales, starts in the second row as one of two changes to the forward pack.

Luke Cowan-Dickie is at hooker with Jamie George, who led the side in Itoje's absence last weekend, among the replacements.

In the one other change to England's matchday squad from their opening win, fly-half Fin Smith comes on to the bench in place of namesake Marcus.

After four straight defeats from 2021 to 2024, England regained the Calcutta Cup with a narrow 16-15 victory last year in London.

"Scotland are a top-quality side," head coach Steve Borthwick told BBC Sport.

"I spoke to our players involved in the summer's Lions tour about Scotland's players and coaches who were on that tour and our players thought incredibly highly of them. They are so talented.

"You look at that backline - it almost a Lions backline from that tour, with Finn Russell, Sione Tuipulotu, Huw Jones, Darcy Graham, Blair Kinghorn and Duhan van der Merwe. That is an incredible backline and the way they move that ball is so dangerous.

"Are they going to play that way? Are they going to go to a kicking game like they did against Italy, which you could understand in that weather? If they bring that phase game, our defence has to be perfect."

Up until last weekend, Itoje had started every England Six Nations game since 2020.

However, he missed the start of their training camp in Girona to attend his mother Florence's funeral in Nigeria and came on as a second-half replacement against Wales.

The British and Irish Lions skipper partners another Lion Ollie Chessum at lock, with Alex Coles on the bench.

England's backline is unchanged, with Henry Arundell on the left wing after his first-half hat-trick last weekend, and Northampton pair Fraser Dingwall and Tommy Freeman in the midfield despite the availability of Ollie Lawrence.

Tom Roebuck retains his place on the right wing after making a try-scoring return to fitness against Wales, with Freddie Steward at full-back and Alex Mitchell and George Ford the half-back partnership.

Steward; Roebuck, Freeman, Dingwall, Arundell; Ford, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Chessum, Itoje, Pepper, Underhill, Earl.

Replacements: George, Rodd, Davison, Coles, Pollock, T Curry, Spencer, F Smith

England travel north on a run of 12 straight wins, while Scotland's stuttering form from the autumn continued as they were edged out by Italy in Rome.

Pre-tournament favourites England and France both won at a canter in the opening round, meaning a final-day meeting between the sides in Paris looms large.

However, number eight Ben Earl insists England's sole focus is on reversing a poor run of form in Scotland.

England have failed to win at Murrayfield for six years, their last victory coming in a 13-6 scrap in a storm in 2020.

"I promise you no one is talking about Paris in our camp," he told the Rugby Union Weekly podcast.

"No one. We said in our huddle [after Wales]: 'Well done, but we haven't won at Murrayfield for years.'

"We have got to right some wrongs."

Full-back Steward is savouring the trip to Murrayfield, having been dropped in favour of George Furbank when England last visited in 2024.

Steward had started England's first two matches of that Six Nations campaign - victories over Italy and Wales - but was left out of the team for five months, before returning on the summer tour of New Zealand.

"It was tough, I was gutted," Steward told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"Looking back on that time I think I learned a lot - I am a lot better rugby player for that period. I have matured a lot and yeah, I am not saying I needed it, I wouldn't want it to happen again, but it definitely helped me.

"I don't think I was ever guilty of believing the hype, I think I have always been quite grounded and process-focused, but when you get something you love so much taken away from you, it really does hurt."

With Furbank suffering a string of injuries and the versatile Marcus Smith used more off the bench, Steward, who at one point had a run of appearing in 28 consecutive Tests, has made the 15 shirt his own once again.

He started the twin summer wins over Argentina and the autumn Tests against Australia, New Zealand and the Pumas to come into the tournament as first choice.