Johnnie Beattie
Former Scotland back row on BBC Radio 5 Live

I think it will be an electric atmosphere and the worry is if it doesn’t go well for Scotland then it could get nasty. The frustration of the Scottish fan base is that it hasn’t been consistent.

There has been a lot of bad news floating around for Gregor Townsend.

He will be hoping for a massive performance today, and that a new set-piece, getting into multi-phases and stretching this English side will save him his job.

Gregor Townsend's position as Scotland head coach was already under scrutiny before this year's Six Nations got under way, following an underwhelming autumn series and a report in the Telegraph that he had agreed to take over at Newcastle Red Bulls after the World Cup.

Townsend - who already has a part-time consultancy role with Newcastle - denied signing any deal beyond the World Cup and said it was a story designed to disrupt Scotland before the Calcutta Cup.

Regardless of his explanation, if last week's defeat by Italy is backed up by a loss at home against England, Scotland's Six Nations hopes will be dead in the water and Townsend's time as head coach might be up.

Do you agree with Thomas? Click 'Get Involved' at the top of this page to have your say on the second of today's Six Nations matches.

In today's other Six Nations match, Ireland have beaten Italy 20-13 at the Aviva Stadium.

The visitors were excellent in spells and will look back with regret that they haven't won two from two.

In case you've forgotten how Scotland and England began their respective campaigns, highlights from last weekend are below.

This is the second of two Scotland v England clashes today after England overcame a couple of wobbles to win the T20 World Cup meeting in Kolkata earlier.

It is a city inextricably linked to this fixture, with the Calcutta Cup trophy made there in 1878 by melting down Indian rupee coins.

There's your history lesson for the day.

Image source, SNS

Tom English
BBC Scotland chief sports writer

Image source, Getty Images

I can only imagine England will be looking at that Scotland back three and smiling at the absence of Duhan van der Merwe, in particular, but also Blair Kinghorn. Neither make it in the 23 again.

Big Duhan is not in good form, it's true. And the way the game has gone with so much contestable kicking is not in his favour. But the guy scares the life out of England, has X-factor and is a big-game operator.

Kinghorn is on his way back to Toulouse. A penny for his thoughts. From one of Scotland's main men to a no-part player. Again, he's not been playing great, but he's pedigree and offers something different. Very surprised he's not at least on the bench as a utility man.

Ewan Ashman is injured so George Turner gets the nod with Dave Cherry on the bench. Cherry hasn't played a game (in the second tier in France for a month).

Not long after he came on in Rome, Turner got yellow-carded for a ridiculous bout of ill discipline. He seems to have been forgiven quite quickly. Gregor Hiddleston should be in this 23. The Glasgow hooker has been exceptional all season.

Mike Henson
BBC Sport at Murrayfield

Maro Itoje says he has endured an "incredibly sad, incredibly emotional" time as he prepares to start for England for the first time since the death of his mother Florence.

The 31-year-old travelled to Nigeria, where his parents are originally from, for the funeral and started the win against Wales on the bench after joining up late with England's Six Nations training camp.

He is back in the second row for today's Calcutta Cup match against Scotland - a match in which he will win his 99th cap for England.

"It's been incredibly sad, incredibly emotional, but, all in all, I'm OK and taking each day as it comes," Itoje told Rugby Union Weekly.

"Those couple of weeks were just a bit of a whirlwind, going to Nigeria.

"My family are from Delta State [a region in the south of Nigeria] so we had to catch another flight from Lagos to Warri, then we drove to the town where my family originate from.

"It was deeply emotional. It was very sad. But at the same time, it felt peaceful. It felt that it was the right thing to do to take my mother back to her ancestral home."

Captain Maro Itoje returns to the England starting XV for Saturday's Six Nations match against Scotland in Edinburgh.

Itoje, who was on the bench for the 48-7 win against Wales, starts in the second row as one of two changes to the forward pack.

Luke Cowan-Dickie is at hooker with Jamie George, who led the side in Itoje's absence last weekend, among the replacements.

In the one other change to England's matchday squad from their opening win, fly-half Fin Smith comes on to the bench in place of namesake Marcus.

After four straight defeats from 2021 to 2024, England regained the Calcutta Cup with a narrow 16-15 victory last year in London.

Image source, SNS

Gregor Townsend makes four changes for his 100th match in charge of Scotland as he seeks to maintain an excellent Six Nations record against England.

Hooker Ewan Ashman, loosehead Pierre Schoeman, lock Grant Gilchrist and back-rower Matt Fagerson drop out from the side that were beaten 18-15 in rain-soaked Rome.

In come George Turner, Nathan McBeth, Gregor Brown and Jamie Ritchie.

Townsend sticks with the same back-line, meaning there is no place in the XV for British & Irish Lions trio Blair Kinghorn, Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe.

Wing Graham is on the bench as part of a 5-3 split, with Kinghorn and record try-scorer Van der Merwe again omitted from the squad.

Townsend has five wins and a draw from his previous eight meetings with England, with Scotland losing out by a single point in London last year.

There are no Edinburgh players in the starting XV, while 10 come from United Rugby Championship leaders Glasgow Warriors.

Seven of Van der Merwe's 35 Scotland tries have come against England, including a hat-trick the last time they met at Murrayfield in 2024.

Scotland: Jordan, Steyn, Jones, Tuipulotu (capt), Dobie, Russell, White; McBeth, Turner, Z Fagerson, Brown, Cummings, Ritchie, Darge, Dempsey.

Replacements: Cherry, Schoeman, Millar-Mills, Williamson, M Fagerson, Horne, Hastings, Graham.

England: Steward; Roebuck, Freeman, Dingwall, Arundell; Ford, Mitchell; Genge, Cowan-Dickie, Heyes, Chessum, Itoje, Pepper, Underhill, Earl.

Replacements: George, Rodd, Davison, Coles, Pollock, T Curry, Spencer, F Smith.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

England travel north on a run of 12 straight wins, while Scotland's stuttering form from the autumn continued as they were edged out by Italy in Rome last week.

Pre-tournament favourites England and France both won at a canter in the opening round, meaning a final-day meeting between the sides in Paris looms large.

England have failed to win at Murrayfield for six years, their last victory coming in a 13-6 scrap in a storm in 2020.

Plenty of storylines to go at then... let's have a look at the teams.

England flying.

Scotland stumbling.

Murrayfield awaits.

Image source, SNS

Image source, SNS