WORCESTER Warriors centre Ben Te’o will start for the British & Irish Lions against runaway Super Rugby leaders Crusaders at the AMI Stadium on Saturday (8.35am).

The Auckland-born powerhouse will line up at inside centre in the Lions’ third tour match in New Zealand.

And Warren Gatland has admitted centre could pose him the biggest selection conundrum when he finally starts to draw up his Lions Test team.

Head coach Gatland insists he is yet to even think about his line-up for the three-Test New Zealand series, despite fielding a potent XV to face the Crusaders.

Gatland is excited to see Te'o and Jonathan Davies forge a formidable duo in the centres - but admitted the battle for midfield spots could give him serious headaches.

"It will be interesting to see how they go, Ben went very well in that first game," said Gatland of Saturday's centre duo Te'o and Davies.

"We picked Ben because he's got more to his game than just crashing up.

"He's got offloading ability, good footwork, he's explosive over a short space. And he's a good, strong defensive player, particularly at 12.

"And Jonathan's been playing very well recently in the last few weeks for the Scarlets. He brings that experience.

"When it comes to picking the Test side, that's probably going to be one of the hardest to pick, getting that combination right.

"You've got Jared Payne, Robbie Henshaw, Jonathan Joseph, and we could put Elliot Daly in there. I'm looking forward to seeing him getting another run-out as well.

"So it's going to be one of the toughest calls on the tour, getting the balance and the combination right."

Te’o impressed in the Lions’ opener, which they won 13-7 against the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians.

However, the 30-year-old didn’t feature in the Lions’ 22-16 defeat against Super Rugby outfit the Blues in Auckland on Wednesday.

Three-times tourist Alun Wyn Jones will lead the Lions.

Gatland said: "The aim was always to start everyone in the first three matches and this selection ensures that we achieve this.

"This is an experienced team with nine of the starting 15 players having featured in 2013.

"Our squad is working hard and we are seeing improvement in their performances both at training and in the games.

"The result against the Blues was disappointing and we know we can't afford to give away so many penalties.

"We are looking forward to the clash against the Crusaders and we expect a tough game against the most successful team in Super Rugby history.”

British & Irish Lions:

15 Stuart Hogg – Glasgow Warriors, Scotland, 783.

14 George North – Northampton Saints, Wales, #792.

13 Jonathan Davies – Scarlets, Wales, #778.

12 Ben Te'o – Worcester Warriors, England, #815.

11 Liam Williams – Scarlets, Wales, #832.

10 Owen Farrell – Saracens, England, #780.

9 Conor Murray – Munster, Ireland, #790.

1 Mako Vunipola – Saracens, England, #787.

2 Jamie George – Saracens, England, #818.

3 Tadhg Furlong – Leinster, Ireland, #817.

4 Alun Wyn Jones (capt) – Ospreys, Wales, #761.

5 George Kruis – Saracens, England, #819.

6 Peter O'Mahony – Munster, Ireland, #833.

7 Sean O'Brien – Leinster, Ireland, #796.

8 Taulupe Faletau – Bath, Wales, #779.

Replacements 16 Ken Owens – Scarlets, Wales, #829.

17 Jack McGrath – Leinster, Ireland, #827.

18 Dan Cole – Leicester, England, #794.

19 Maro Itoje – Saracens, England, #825.

20 CJ Stander – Munster, Ireland, #831.

21 Rhys Webb – Ospreys, Wales, #820.

22 Johnny Sexton – Leinster, Ireland, #791.

23 Anthony Watson – Bath, England, #816.