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Jamie George has cautioned that the team should steer clear of being overwhelmed by the All Blacks' legendary status if they aim to secure their first Twickenham victory over the Kiwis in over a decade this weekend.

Team Updates Before Crucial Fixture

England's head coach got a timely lift with Elliot Daly returning to fitness and in contention for selection since suffering an injury on Lions duty, while the full-back and Tom Roebuck were also named in the 37-man group revealed on Sunday night.

Current Form Differs with Previous Woes

England will welcome New Zealand after extending their unbeaten run to nine matches with a decisive comfortable victory over Fiji, again pulling away in the closing stages. Their current form marks a dramatic shift from a year ago, when the team suffered six defeats in seven outings, all by narrow margins. A trio of these losses were inflicted by the Kiwis—two on the overseas tour and a tight loss at Twickenham after the fly-half failed with late goal attempts.

New Zealand narrowly edged out the Scots on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and though South Africa cemented their top ranking, the captain has hailed the All Blacks as “perhaps the best side in the world.”

In the previous 11 meetings, England's sole win over the All Blacks came in the 2019 World Cup semi-final, and New Zealand have not been beaten in the recent clashes at Twickenham.

George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis

“What a lot of teams do is sit back in admiration of New Zealand with their history and all their incredible talent,” stated the experienced hooker. “It’s easy to do that. I’ve probably done it before. We’ve also got to be aware we’ll be playing at this venue. It’s an honour to be playing here. We are going to do all we can to win that game.

“You have to be at your peak. New Zealand are without doubt the strongest team in the world right now. They’re an exceptionally skilled squad and they appear to step up a level when they come to Allianz Stadium. The important thing for us to do is identify where we could have been better in the first half last time. Additionally, have a defined gameplan which can apply as much stress as we are able to. If we do that, we’ll give ourselves a opportunity.

“We faced a lot of criticism last year for not coming out on the winning end of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Now, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve put a big emphasis on the final phases of games and closing games out. Notching multiple tries in the final segment of that game is a sign of a quality team.”

Borthwick's Outlook and Squad Changes

Borthwick is likely to make a number of changes to his lineup, with captain the lock, the flanker, and Ford all set to be reinstated to the first XV. Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso both suffered issues against Fiji but have been selected in the squad getting ready to take on New Zealand.

“We aim to challenge ourselves against the top sides and [New Zealand] are among best teams,” said Borthwick. “We’re a young side, we’re developing, I think we’re growing rapidly and we’re eager to learn. So I’m sure the upcoming going to be a valuable assessment for us.”

Earl's Reflection on Progress

Ben Earl, meanwhile, believes that the team's current ability to break away in the closing stages of matches is largely due to their triple close losses by New Zealand the previous year. “It leaves you battle-hardened, you feel like you’ve got the wounds, you’ve developed the scar tissue to build on those losses, and they stung at the time,” remarked the back-rower, who was named man of the match against the Fijians. “But I wonder among the squad in the dressing room, if we’d alter our journey now, with the joy that we’re now experiencing? I’d be curious to know because I think they’re very, very priceless lessons.”