Italy has long believed in this.
For the premiere of its new coach, the Argentinian Gonzalo Quesada, who notably officiated at Racing 92 and the Stade Français, the Squadra Azzurra did not go far from an immense feat: beating England at the opening of the Tournament of Six Nations.
But the XV de la Rose remains, with New Zealand, one of the only two nations which have never lost to the Italians.
The first half, however, turned to the advantage of the teammates of Ange Capuozzo, absent due to gastroenteritis.
After an interesting first phase of possession, Tommaso Allan validated the efforts of his forwards by scoring a first penalty in the 5th minute.
Six minutes later, it was Alessandro Garbisi who scored the first try of the game, put into orbit by Lorenzo Cannone, himself ideally served thanks to the hard work of Juan Ignacio Brex (10-0).
The Tommy Freeman Show
Calmly, Steve Borthwick's men gradually increased the pace, pushing the Italians to make mistakes and allowing George Ford, the hero of the last World Cup on the English side, to score his team's first points at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome .
The Tommy Freeman show then began.
At only 22 years old, and for his fifth selection with the XV de la Rose, the Northampton winger was masterful, first finding an interval into which to slip before shifting Elliot Daly, who calmly flattened into a corner to reduce the gap (10-8).
But these Italians, led by the Cannone and Garbisi brothers, are no longer a bird for the cat, as they were for many years.
Thanks to a magnificent combination and a perfectly controlled three against one, Tommaso Allan scored his team's second try, before transforming it himself to get some air again.
It was then the Transalpine defense which stood out by resisting heroically in the face of great English pressure.
Frustrated, the XV de la Rose had to settle for three points, scored by George Ford.
Despite this penalty, the Italians returned to the locker room with a three-point lead, to the delight of the entire stadium (17-14).
A one-sided second half
However, the hope was short-lived in the second period.
In the 45th minute, Alex Mitchell scored England's second try by resisting three defenders.
The scrum half's second try in 12 appearances gave the third-placed side of the last World Cup the advantage for the first time in the afternoon (21-17).
A lead that they will not lose again.
More realistic and physically fresh, the English added two penalties to their total, putting the Italians more than one converted try away.
Despite some bursts of pride, and a lot of good will, Gonzalo Quesada's players lacked the energy to manage to break through the English defense and give themselves a little hope.
A yellow card from Elliot Daly five minutes from time changed nothing either, even if the Squadra Azzurra managed to snatch a defensive bonus point thanks to a final try from Monty Ioane (24-27).
This victory allows the English to take second place in the Six Nations Tournament, behind Ireland, who beat France this Friday evening (17-38), taking the offensive bonus in the process.