Had Itoje accepted one of the offers, he would have become ineligible for England selection due to a rule that prohibits Steve Borthwick from picking players based overseas.
I felt like my time in an England shirt was not quite done yet,” said Itoje, who is one of 17 players on an enhanced contract with the Rugby Football Union.
Itoje leads England into Saturday’s crunch Six Nations clash at Allianz Stadium satisfied that his decision to commit to Saracens in January last year, amid offers from Lyon and Toulon, was the right call.
England M Smith; Freeman, Lawrence, Slade, Sleightholme; F Smith, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Stuart, Itoje (capt), Martin, T Curry, Earl, Willis.
Maro Itoje has revealed that he turned down lucrative offers from French club rugby due to his unfulfilled ambitions with England.
