At 28, the midfielder is one of the more senior members of Roy Hodgson's squad, the manager having entrusted the likes of Raheem Sterling, Ross Barkley and Luke Shaw with places in a youthful 23-man party for the tournament in Brazil.
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"The first game is always important; we need a good result there," Milner said at a fans' forum event ahead of his side's opening fixture against the Azzurri in Manaus on Saturday.
"It's out in the rainforest and it's going to be pretty warm.
"With the team we've got, a lot of the lads are in good form and they've had really good seasons. Hopefully they can feed off that energy now.
"As a group going forward we've got great experience [and] a lot of youth. It's a really good mix. With that mix of energy, youth and experience, I'm sure we can do good things.
"We have a tough group but, with the squad we've got, I’m sure we'll do well. Yes, it's tough but teams are at the World Cup because they're the best in the world."
