Itoje criticises former England coach Jones for questioning leadership

Jones, who coached England between 2015 and 2022, had said he was not sure Itoje was a future England captain in his 2021 book 'Leadership: Lessons from My Life in Rugby,' published while Itoje was playing under him in the national team.

"He is going to be one of the great players, but Maro is very inward-looking... he doesn’t usually influence people off the field," Jones wrote.

"I might be wrong, but I am not sure Maro is a future England captain."

Itoje, who was co-captain when England won the U-20 World Championship in 2014 and was named as Saracens captain in August, said Jones had made a wrong diagnosis of who he was as a person.

"I guess it was unfortunate that your coach would say something like that about you, but in life not everyone is going to see things the way you see them," British media quoted Itoje as saying on Wednesday.

"Even if it’s wrong, some people will come to a different conclusion. That is part of the parcel... I just wanted to stay consistent to who I believed I was."

The 29-year-old made his England debut in 2016 and has earned 84 test caps, scoring six tries and providing five try assists.

Itoje is yet to captain England, with his friend and Saracens teammate Jamie George leading England at this year's Six Nations after Owen Farrell stepped away from international rugby.

"I’m not commenting on another man’s job. I have barely started this one. I want to give my best to this and see where we go," Itoje said.

Jones quit as Australia's head coach last year and took over as the head coach of Japan, who are set to face England in November.