Italy wing Monty Ioane believes his side have a good opportunity to finally beat England in their Six Nations clash this weekend, though he insists the visitors will be far from an easy target despite recent poor performances.
England are the only Six Nations side Italy have yet to beat, losing all 32 previous meetings between the teams in all competitions, but there is a feeling Saturday's game could be Italy's best chance to end that run.
Steve Borthwick's England arrive in Rome on the back of defeats by Scotland and Ireland, with the coach making nine changes to his starting side against Italy.
"We can't take away from the team that they are because we know what they can bring, especially with the squad they've put out," Ioane said.
"They've completely changed the whole back line, so obviously they're here to bring something. And although they lost heavily against Ireland, it doesn't mean it's going to be an easy target for us.
"The good thing about this game for us is, although we know there's a huge challenge, it's a good opportunity for us to hopefully get this win."
Italy opened their campaign with a win over Scotland before falling to battling defeats against Ireland and France with performances that have many believing this is perhaps the best Italian side seen in the Six Nations, but Ioane wants more.
"If you look at it from the outside, I guess everyone else would see it as quite successful," Ioane told Reuters.
"It's frustrating from our point of view because we feel that we're a team that has grown year after year. So, yeah, it's been frustrating, but it's also been very positive for us."
MENTALITY SHIFT
Two years ago in Rome, Italy ran England close. Ioane scored a late try as Gonzalo Quesada's first game in charge ended in a 27-24 loss, but Italy ended up having their best Six Nations campaign and continue to win over admirers.
"For us we've had a massive shift in the mentality side of the game," Ioane said.
"We've got a lot of the same players from the previous six or seven years, we've grown together as a squad but one downfall for us was always our mental side of it and that's obviously a big part of our game now."
Ioane's first try for Italy came against the English in his debut Six Nations campaign in 2021, and he would dearly love to finally be on the winning side against England.
"Obviously it'll be something historical for the team, for the country," Ioane said.
"Since being with the team, I've been a part of many massive wins for the squad and every time it's always a huge pleasure.
"We know we've got to keep our feet grounded and we know it's going to be a big battle for us, but hopefully if everything goes right, then things will go our way."