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England's skipper has warned that the team must avoid being overwhelmed by New Zealand's formidable reputation if they aim to secure their first Twickenham triumph over the visitors in over a decade this Saturday.

Squad Boost Before Pivotal Clash

Steve Borthwick got a timely boost with Elliot Daly returning to fitness and available for his first appearance since sustaining an injury on Lions tour, while the full-back and Tom Roebuck were also named in the expanded squad revealed on the weekend.

Current Form Contrasts with Past Struggles

England will welcome New Zealand after stretching their winning streak to nine matches with a decisive comfortable win over Fiji, again pulling away in the closing stages. Their current form marks a dramatic shift from 12 months back, when the team suffered multiple losses in seven outings, all by narrow margins. A trio of these defeats were inflicted by New Zealand—two on the overseas tour and a 24-22 reverse at Twickenham after the fly-half failed with late goal attempts.

New Zealand just defeated Scotland on Saturday to maintain aspirations of a home nations grand slam alive, and while the Springboks secured their top spot, the captain has hailed the All Blacks as “arguably the top team in the world.”

In the previous 11 meetings, the team's sole win over New Zealand was during the global tournament semi, and the visitors remain unbeaten in the recent fixtures at England's home ground.

George's Perspective on Facing the Kiwis

“What a lot of teams do is stand in admiration of the All Blacks with their legacy and all their world-class talent,” stated former captain George. “It’s easy to do that. I have done it in the past. We must remember we’ll be playing at Allianz Stadium. It’s an honour to be competing at home. We will do all we can to win that game.

“It’s vital to be at your best. New Zealand are without doubt the strongest team in the world right now. They are a unbelievably fantastic team and they appear to step up a level when they visit Allianz Stadium. Our focus for us is is work out where we might have improved in the first half this week. But also, develop a defined gameplan which can put them under as much stress as we are able to. By doing so, we’ll create a chance.

“We came under a bit of heat last year for not coming out on the right side of close contests and not figuring out how to win. Currently, we’re doing the complete reverse. By no means have we cracked it. But we’ve put a big emphasis on the latter stages of games and finishing strongly. Notching however many tries in the last quarter of the match is a mark of a quality team.”

The Coach's View and Team Changes

Borthwick is likely to make a several changes to his lineup, with skipper Maro Itoje, the flanker, and the fly-half all expected to return to the first XV. Tommy Freeman and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso each took knocks against the Islanders but both have been selected in the group preparing to take on the All Blacks.

“We aim to challenge ourselves against the best teams and [New Zealand] are one of those elite squads,” commented the head coach. “We’re a young side, we’re developing, I think we’re improving quickly and we’re keen to learn. So I’m sure next week’s going to be a valuable test for us.”

Earl's Take on Growth

Ben Earl, meanwhile, thinks that the team's current ability to pull clear in the closing stages of games is largely due to their triple close losses by the All Blacks the previous year. “It leaves you seasoned, as if you’ve been through battles, you’ve got the experience to build on those losses, and they stung at the time,” said the back-rower, who was named player of the game against the Fijians. “But I wonder to a man in the changing 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 extremely valuable lessons.”