An Owen Farrell England return is a distinct possibility in the future, according to the France-bound fly-half.

Farrell took a step back from international duty after last year’s Rugby World Cup to prioritise his and his family’s wellbeing before deciding to join French Top 14 side Racing 92 on a two-year deal from next season.

Read more: Lawes calls for England to relax overseas rule to avoid “hurting themselves”

The Rugby Football Union (RFU) rules on overseas-based players mean Farrell will be unavailable for selection for England for the duration of his stay at Racing unless that protocol is relaxed.

Despite that, the 32-year-old has left the door open for a return to international action.

“I’ve stepped back and there’s ­obviously a change happening next year [moving to France],” Farrell said. “Then we’ll see. There’s no point in saying ­anything now because I don’t know how I’m going to feel later down the line.

“I want to play for as long as I possibly can as long as I am enjoying it. I love playing. That’s always been the case, even during the tougher bits as I’ve spoken about.

“I want to enjoy all of it a bit more. I’ve been getting back to doing it here at the club, I’ve done that over this time during the Six Nations, and I want to really do that towards the end of the year.

“And then I want to get better at it next year as well. That’s how I think I am going to get the best out of myself and play my best. We’ll see what happens.”

While he will be ineligible to feature for Steve Borthwick’s England, the fly-half will be available for his father Andy Farrell, who will lead the British & Irish Lions in next year’s three-Test tour of Australia.

“Have I ­spoken to my dad about it? I’ve told him, ‘Well done,’ if that counts,” he added. “There’s nothing to talk about – whatever happens, happens.

“There are no decisions to be made about any of that. When it gets closer to the time, I guess things become clear or they don’t. You see how people are at that time. There is nothing to talk about there at the minute.”

As for the immediate future, Farrell is hoping to end his 16-year stay with Saracens on a high. The reigning Gallagher Premiership champions sit fourth in the table, eight points adrift of leaders Northampton Saints with a game against derby rivals Harlequins next.

Saracens also have a last-16 Champions Cup tie against Bordeaux-Begles to look forward to.

“It just makes me want to enjoy it more,” Farrell said. “It just makes me want to finish it off well and I think when we’re ­enjoying it the most, we’re playing our best stuff and we’re getting the best out of ourselves.

Related: Wade says Farrell “in for a treat” under Lancaster at Racing

“That’s the focus, that’s what we got into at the back end of last year and we managed to finish the season off well so there’s a great opportunity to do that this weekend in a big game, so we’ll see what happens.”

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