Dingwall can have Rodri-like impact - Mitchell

Guinness Men's Six Nations: England v Italy

Venue: Allianz Arena, Twickenham Date: Sunday, 9 March Kick-off: 15:00 GMT

Coverage: Listen to match commentary on BBC Sport website and app; live text commentary and highlights online; watch on ITV1

Fraser Dingwall can have an impact for England like Rodri has at Manchester City, says scrum-half Alex Mitchell.

The Northampton Saints centre, 25, is set to win his third cap for England against Italy in the Six Nations on Sunday as he replaces Henry Slade.

"He is like a Rodri at Man City," Mitchell said, referencing the Ballon d'Or-winning midfielder who is influential at the Premier League champions.

"He doesn't always get the great goals or the assists or whatever, but he is a mainstay in your team and does all the great things. He is similar to that.

"He is a quality player, a lot of the time he goes unnoticed because he does his job so well.

"He is like the glue guy - he is fantastic. His talk on the pitch is second to none. He talks you through the game and defensively he is quality. Hopefully we will see some of that [against Italy]."

Dingwall is playing his first England game since the 2024 Six Nations, where he won his first two caps in England's opening wins over Italy and Wales. He was part of 10 international camps before his first outings for his country.

Mitchell plays alongside him at club level but adds he did not need to console Dingwall after being overlooked by England on several occasions.

"He has got a good head on him, he has captained quite a lot at Northampton so he knows how to deal with himself," said Mitchell.

"With selection, you chat to them to see if they need anything from you. He is a fantastic human so he knows how to look after himself."

England head into the game against Italy third in the table after a loss against Ireland and narrow wins over France and Scotland.