Steven Gerrard says he will be a proud man when he leads England out against Italy on Saturday night - but even more proud if the team gives the nation everything they have.
The Liverpool midfielder is set to earn his 112th cap for the Three Lions, and his 37th as captain, when they face the Azzurri in their much-anticipated 2014 World Cup opener.
Gerrard has every faith in the youthful England squad that he says has talent and ability in abundance, and if they can get some fortune along the ways reckons their hard work will pay off.
England v Italy
2014 FIFA World Cup
Group D
Arena da Amazonia
11pm BST, Saturday 14 June 2014
BBC1 and 5 Live
"I believe this squad is in a very good place," said the 34-year-old. "The talent is there and the ability is there, but this is the most difficult and most pressured stage to perform and deliver on, both personally and as a group.
"It is alright having all the ability and talent but it is also being clever and having that know-how to beat these sides.
"Everyone has got what we have got. Everyone has got a good blend of players, everyone has prepared right and then it boils down to who wants it the most and who gets the small details right and that bit of luck.
"That is what I can’t answer any questions on, on how we are going to be lucky, or how the small details are going to go.
"All I can say is what we can control we have done. We haven’t cut any corners."
Having figured in two previous World Cups - he missed out of 2002 in Korea/Japan due to injury - Gerrard has one simple message for his team-mate: have no regrets.
Three of Gerrard's last four tournaments with England, including European Championships, have ended in penalty shootout defeat, and he says they will need to use their experience to go far in this competition.
And while Roy Hodgson's side is blessed with pace in attack, he knows they will have to vary their game to also be hard to beat.
"There will be a lot of verbal exchanges around the dressing room. But towards the end when we are going out the message will be ‘let’s not have any regrets’," revealed the skipper.
"All the preparation is there, so let's believe. We have got all the energy, all the legs and talent. The key is to come off the pitch without any regrets and to do what it takes to get that result.
Gerrard trains in Manaus
"We have got to be cute, clever and experienced. Yes we can attack and show tempo and pace, try and hunt them down and win the ball high up at times.
"But there is also going to be times in this game where it is going to be tough on the legs and we are going to have to get close, narrow and be hard to beat."
Gerrard admits leading England at the World Cup - he wore the armband in all four games in 2010 - is a dream come true.
And with a football-loving nation back home cheering them on, as well as their travelling support in South America, he wants to make it a tournament to remember for them, too.
"I have been asked it many times throughout my career 'what was the dream when you were growing up'," said Gerrard.
"What was the dream? The dream was to play for England, so to play for England and be the captain at a World Cup in Brazil, from an international point of view, is the pinnacle.
"I will be proud leading them out against Italy but I will be even more proud if we come home from this tournament with our heads held high and that we have given the English public everything that we have got."
He added: "The lads are ready to give everything that they have."
