Beckham is relishing the countdown to the opening game against France on June 13 and admits the players are talking about going all the way in Portugal and lifting the European Championship trophy.

The Real Madrid star believes there is the perfect mix of experience and youth in the squad and the time has come for England to win a major trophy again.

England may have been disappointing during their 1-1 draw against Japan in Manchester on Tuesday night, but Beckham has warned the nation there will be no repeat performance when he leads his team out in Lisbon against the European champions.

Beckham said: "A lot of the players including myself have got the feeling we are going to do well in Portugal this summer.

"I had that feeling before the World Cup, but unfortunately it didn't happen for us on that occasion.

"We have now got a few more experienced players in the squad and a lot of talented young stars.

"We should be going into these competitions believing we can win it and I believe we can.

"It would take a lot of hard work and a bit of luck.

"Everyone has got their right to voice an opinion but the expectations are very high within the players and with our country.

"When we go into a major competition everyone expects us to win it. That is the expectation of the country and rightly so because we have a very talented team and on paper we should go out and win things. But that has not happened yet.

"The confidence in the team is very good at the moment and it will help us a lot. I believe this team can beat anyone because I believe in the ability of the players I am playing with."

England have already shown over recent years that when it comes to the big match occasion they can be a match for any side in the world.

Who can forget the emphatic 5-1 win over Germany in Munich, while Beckham's winning strike from the penalty spot also saw off Argentina in the World Cup two years ago.

And with the prospect of a mouthwatering opening game against France to look forward to Beckham is hoping England can once again rise to the occasion.

Beckham added:"I would like to think we are a big game team and it does not come much bigger than the first match against France.

"Hopefully that will prove to be the case once again, but we also need to win the other games which are not as big as the France match and have to work on them as well.

"I think we have got more experience now than we had going into the World Cup. We were without Steve Gerrard and Gary Neville, but having both of them back strengthens the squad even more.

"We had a get together with just the players on Wednesday and it felt like being in a club side. Everyone gets on so well together and there are no problems with anyone.The atmosphere in the camp is the best I have ever experienced."

Beckham is confident his side will put on a better performance against Iceland on Saturday in England's last competitive friendly at the City of Manchester Stadium.

He added: "One of the reasons we were tired against Japan was because we worked so hard with the fitness coach in Sardinia.

"We also trained on the day of the game which would not normally happen. Maybe that affected the lads more than anything.

"Our fitness levels were not as high as they should have been so that is what we are working on. We want to play well in the friendlies because the fans have paid to come see us play.

"I would rather we didn't play that well in these two games and then have a great game against France, but we still want to put on a performance and work hard on our fitness.

"I definitely feel there will be an improvement against Iceland especially in terms of the fitness. We also need to work on the team and the way we play."