England left-back Leighton Baines has insisted that team spirit within the crop of players in the World Cup squad is high ahead of their opener against Italy.

Roy Hodgson's men will have to tackle the heat of Manaus when they take on Italy in Group A on Saturday.

"For the time I've been involved with England, this is as good a group as there's been," Baines told the Football Association's official website.

"There's a real good spirit throughout the camp and part of that is probably down to the preparation we've been doing.

"We've been working hard but have obviously been spending a few weeks together that has enabled us to get that kind of club feel to the international setup."

England will also face Uruguay and Honduras in Group D.