Eddie Jones reveals his four captaincy candidates for Six Nations in absence of Owen Farrell

Farrell was originally ruled out for 12 weeks on Nov 19 after he underwent surgery on his ankle that he injured in the 32-15 victory against Australia.

“He will be back towards the end of January,” Mark McCall, the Saracens director of rugby, said. “It won’t be in the next couple of weeks but it should be before the Six Nations.

"He might not be fully firing though for their first game.”

With that in mind, we look who could take over as captain for the match if the Saracens doesn't return from his injury - or if the Aussie drops him in favour of Marcus Smith

Jones said: "Courtney wasn't a leader the first time I laid eyes on him. He was a fairly laconic, laid-back, naturally talented rugby player

"And what's impressed me about Courtney is over the six years that I've been involved with him, he still has that personality, but his attitude towards his rugby is far different,

"He is much more diligent in his preparation and is much more of a contributor in a team environment."

Jones said: “He continues to impress us as a player that’s developing,” said Jones. “He’s still only 22, his body’s still filling out.

“But he’s become a real leader within our team, he drives the physical standards, drives the standards of the breakdown and he’s only going to keep improving. It’s frightening to think what he’s going to be like by the World Cup.

"He’s a strong boy, but he’s also got speed. The big thing he’s developed is his attacking game. He’s carrying the ball more than he used to.

Jones said: "I'm going to contradict myself - and contradiction's a big part of life - but I've got no doubt in the future he will captain England. Whether that's in my time or someone else's time.

"He [Itoje] is really moving in the right direction and it was interesting the role that he played in the team during the autumn," Jones continued. "He took on the role responsible for team communication.

"It is when the team get together to talk about things they need to talk to. And no one's done a better job than he has done so I'm really pleased with the way he is moving."

Jones said: "Ellis will tell you that he is from the wrong side of the tracks and we’re quite happy for him to stay on the wrong side of them,” Jones said.

“But what he will also tell you is the power of learning self-discipline and that to be a hard-running prop like he is, he needs not just to satisfy his needs, but also to know what the team needs.

“I thought the way he handled that Bristol situation was absolutely outstanding. It was his old club and he put his side in a position to win the game.

“And whether, rightly or wrongly, it was taken away from him, he handled it wonderfully.

“Can he take a formal leadership role? There’s no reason why he can’t, whether that’s in the future, or now.”