England star’s comments after Italy loss ‘risks gaslighting’ fans according to rugby expert

England suffered their first-ever defeat to Italy when they lost to the Azzurri in Rome on Saturday in the Six Nations.

It now means that Steve Borthwick’s side will have lost more games than they have won in this year’s competition, regardless of the France result this weekend.

Italy deserve full credit for their performance and ability to come back against England when they appeared to be flagging just after the hour mark; however, their replacements sparked new life into them, and they completed the momentous piece of history they set out to do from the start.

While a lot of the conversation following this defeat has been centred around how limited England were in attack, their game plan being so one-dimensional and the future of Borthwick’s position as head coach.

Italy's centre Leonardo Marin (C) runs with the ball to socre a try during the Six Nations international rugby union match between Italy and England

Yet, there was a positive message coming out of the England camp following the defeat to Italy, particularly from one player, which, to one rugby expert, is worrying.

Rugby journalist Will Kelleher has written in the Times his concern about a greater disconnect being created between the squad and the fans following Ben Earl’s post-match comments, as it ‘risks gaslighting’ supporters.

Ben Earl said: “There’s an element of pride because I actually thought we played pretty well.

“There was a moment I thought there was only one team that was going to win this. If that game ended at 60 minutes, you’d say that was an unbelievable performance by England. Honestly, I am so buoyant with this team; we just have to win some games of rugby, and we will.

“England rugby should never lose a game of rugby, apparently. Just have a think about what this team has achieved since Steve took over. We’ve gone third in the World Cup. We have won 12 out of 15 games. If someone asked us 15 games ago, ‘You can win 12 of your next 15 games [would you take that?],’ what do you think you would say? We’ve beaten the All Blacks for the first time in Twickenham since 2012.

“The noise is actually bonkers. It’s crazy because if anyone’s letting Steve down, it’s us. Pain now, joy later. That’s the way we have to look at it, because if we sit here and say, ‘This isn’t working; change again,’ we just won’t improve, and that’s what we want to do.”

Ben Earl of England (L) is consoled by team mate Ben Spencer after their defeat in the Guinness Six Nations 2026 match between Italy and England (Getty Images)

Kelleher pointed out in his piece that Earl is and has always been an incredibly optimistic individual, and this can be seen in his rugby when he celebrates every minor win on the pitch with great vigour.

However, the journalist is worried that these comments from the England international could ruin all the excellent work the team had done in becoming closer to the fan base following the 2023 World Cup.

It is clear Borthwick is under pressure and is not a popular choice to carry on as head coach, and Kelleher believes there must be an acceptance that even if they remain loyal to the current regime with England while maintaining a desire to continue playing within this setup and style, this Six Nations has not been good enough, along with their performance in Rome.