England wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso will miss the entire Six Nations after dislocating his shoulder on club duty for Exeter last month.
Feyi-Waboso will undergo surgery on the joint injured against Sale on December 21 that will rule him out for around three months, the PA news agency understands.
The 22-year-old is one of England’s most dangerous players with a strike rate of five tries in eight games and, if fit, would have been an automatic choice for the Six Nations opener against Ireland on February 1.
As well as hampering Steve Borthwick’s hopes of overseeing a resurgence in the Championship after a poor autumn, Feyi-Waboso has been denied the most important stage of all to push his claim for British and Irish Lions selection.
Andy Farrell takes the Lions to Australia this summer and the Chiefs finalist was one of the back three because of his impact since making his Test debut in the Six Nations last year.
He was also forced to miss the games against South Africa and Japan in November after being concussed against Australia.
His absence adds to England’s treble resources with George Furbank set to miss the start of the Championship with a broken arm.
Ollie Sleightholme and Tom Roebuck will compete to fill the vacant spot in the wing, although the former limped off in Northampton’s win over Bath on Sunday.
Borthwick names his Six Nations squad next Tuesday with the head coach having to turn England’s fortunes around as scrutiny of his position grows after a disappointing 2024.
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