Billy Vunipola implies he may be about to leave Saracens

Out of favour England No.8 Billy Vunipola has implied that he’s ready to leave Saracens after the Rugby World Cup, should an opportunity arrive.

Vunipola has enjoyed a stellar domestic career with Sarries, having won everything there is to win at club level, while also amassing 64 caps with England, since joining the side in 2013.

Now, with the reduced Gallagher Premiership salary cap starting to pinch, the potential for high-profile players like Vunipola, who are on the margins of the England team, to pen lucrative deals with clubs overseas is becoming ever more enticing. Vunipola and his older brother Mako have been regularly linked with moves to France in recent years but have ultimately lumped for staying put in London.

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Now that could be about to change, for Billy at least.

“I think in terms of Saracens, we’ve done everything we can do with them,” Vunipola told The Big Jim Show podcast. “In terms of wanting to experience something new, I’m definitely open to it. This is a big year for everyone involved with England and Saracens.

“I want to get picked for England. I want to play for England. After that we can see where we are.

“For me in my head, it’s firmly on trying to play as well as I can; finding a way to make more metres; finding a way to be more prominent in games, especially at international level.

My interview with @bvunipola is live. Also available on Apple and Amazon. https://t.co/WabIKuchkP pic.twitter.com/26FHD4YiSM

— Jim Hamilton (Vice Captain) (@jimhamilton4) January 23, 2023

“I’ll be in a better position to make a call on… if teams look at me and think ‘He can actually help our team’ instead of being a hindrance or not being that good.

“In terms of experiencing France, Japan or Super Rugby [I’m interested]. My wife’s Australian. It’s definitely something that I’ve thought about before but I’ve never done. I mean I’m thirty now. Now would be the right time to pull the trigger on something like that.”

You can listen to The Big Jim Show podcast in full here.