He has locked horns with the All Blacks on seven occasions, helping England register two victories and a draw before bringing down the curtain on his time with the world champions last summer.
The 32-year-old number eight helped England end their 30-year wait for a Test victory on Kiwi soil, with Martin Johnson's men securing a famous 15-13 victory in Wellington before going on to win the World Cup.
Of the current Lions, only a section of the English contingent have finished on the winning side against New Zealand, so Dallaglio understands the psychological edge the All Blacks will hold.
"Fixtures against New Zealand seem to have been held back. I played once in New Zealand before the World Cup and only three times in New Zealand overall for England, whereas I've lost count of the number of times I've played in Australia and South Africa," he said.
"I think for that reason there is this myth for a lot of people about playing against the All Blacks. But if you speak to an Australian counterpart, they just don't have that myth.
"The Australians respect the All Blacks, as we all do. But because of that familiarity and regular contact it's very different to the way a Home Nation or the Lions view playing New Zealand in their back yard.
"History is against us. No-one is under any illusions as to the challenge we face. It's not as if we haven't sent really good players over there in past Lions tours.
"Some of the best players this part of the world has ever produced have gone down there and not won.
"That shows you how difficult it is. We have a 10% success rate in terms of Lions Test victories. I went there as part of the England team in 2003 and we won but we hadn't done that for 30 years. It's a tough place to tour."







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