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Zebo's bold claim about his Racing team-mate's current form heading into the Six Nations
By Josh Raisey
Racing 92 may have narrowly lost to Saracens on Sunday, but full-back Simon Zebo has made the claim that his team-mate Virimi Vakatawa is currently the best player in the world.
The former Ireland international missed his side’s contest at Allianz Park through injury, but he showered the France international with praise in response to his performance against the reigning champions.
The outside centre bagged two tries in the first half in north London, running in from 40 metres for Racing’s first of the match and then gliding through from close range for their third.
The Fijian-born powerhouse has been in sensational form all season for the Parisian club, and he brought that form to the English capital.
He looked unstoppable at times in the first half, running through players at will and proving to be almost impossible to put down.
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It was only in the second half, where Saracens were able to take control of the match and starve Racing of possession and the chance to move the ball wide to the 27-year-old, that they won the match.
Such is the danger that Vakatawa poses that it is imperative to subdue him in order for any side to win.
There are few players in the game that are more of a threat to defences every time they carry the ball than the former sevens star at the moment. He showed his pace on Sunday in his first try, while his power and offloading game has never been questioned.
With the Six Nations a matter of days away, he is destined to start in the No13 shirt at the Stade de France against England on the opening weekend, an opportunity for him to be able to cement his growing status as one of the best players in the world.
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Latest Comments
I guess the other option would be to start ALB, he's looked good in the 12 so far when he starts and sets up those outside him. But that would mean putting the vice captain on the bench, which is unlikely. Another option would be to drop Reiko to the bench and play Proctor, though he's gone home so that's not going to happen either.
Both of those players just offer more of the soft distribution skills good centres learn from playing their careers there. Unfortunately that's what's lacking with the current combo.
Go to commentsWhatever let's see if this load of waffle is still valid in 2 years time. ABs will rise we have a lot of new talent coming through. The NPC was the highest standard for years. The game is changing to suit the fast pace we like to play. We get to play the Springboks more, including the franchises, which will make us better! Overall I am optimistic. I will add having watched the England game multiple times we made most of the play. England are an awesome physical team, but you can expect the All Blacks to get better and better at executing the chances. It could easily have been 5 tries to one instead of 3 to 1.
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