The 29-year-old got to 99 with his strike against Liverpool on Wednesday and will get the chance to pass 100 when Chelsea travel to Blackburn on Sunday.

"I'm looking forward to getting my 100th goal," he said.

"It would be a big achievement for me to get that mark in six and a half seasons.

"Reaching this mark was something I wouldn't have dreamed of doing when I first came here - so I hope I can get it done pretty soon and look to future landmarks.

"I feel very proud when I see the names I'm alongside or getting towards - players like Peter Osgood and Jimmy Greaves. I don't know if I'll ever get to reach their levels, but it'll be very nice to be in that club."

Lampard's strike against Liverpool helped put Chelsea in the semi-finals of the Carling Cup and was the perfect response after they had lost at Arsenal in the league last weekend.

Midfielder Michael Essien still feels Chelsea can be part of the Barclays Premier League title race, despite Arsenal and Manchester United establishing a small gap at the top.

"We are not far behind the leaders," said the Ghana international.

"The Christmas period is a difficult time, but we have to keep going and we'll see what we can do.

"We can bounce back after Sunday. We play every game to win. We had one setback against Arsenal, and I think we showed against Liverpool how much we hate losing and that we can win something.

"We are very bad losers. We hate to lose - we always like to win. It was tough to lose at Arsenal but it was up to us to forget it, keep ourselves together and come back from us."

Essien will miss a part of the season while playing for Ghana in the African Nations Cup. He wants to make his mark in England before his international duty - and he is confident Chelsea also have the quality in depth to cover when he has his break from domestic football.

"I want to do well for my club before I go away - and then the other players can do their job when I'm away," he said.

"I will keep working hard and do something before I leave.

"We have got other world-class players here, so I'm sure they can do their job."

Meanwhile, Michael Ballack has spoken of his surprise at suggestions he was unhappy with his treatment from Chelsea's medical team as he recovered from an ankle injury.

The midfielder, who returned to first-team action against Liverpool for the first time in eight months, insists he is grateful for all his club's efforts to get him back to fitness.

Ballack said: "The Chelsea medical department has made its best possible efforts.

"I am very grateful for the work that everyone has done - in particular the physios - over the last couple of months in order to get me finally back on the field. Now I am ready to repay all their hard work by doing my best for Chelsea."