Frank Lampard made his 75th international appearance a decade after his debut and set his sights on joining an elite band of England players to win 100 caps.

Former skipper David Beckham is closing in on Peter Shilton as England's most capped player but Lampard is determined to join his team-mate as a centurion.

The Chelsea midfielder, 31, is likely to face Belarus at Wembley tomorrow night as England close their World Cup qualifying campaign and he said: "I want to make it 100. I am determined to try and do that. I have enjoyed every cap I have got and am very proud to have reached that level because I never thought I would get that number when I won my first cap 10 years ago.

"It doesn't seem like 10 years. I will try and carry on playing for my country and will work hard to do as much as I can for as long as I can. If it gets me to a century of caps great, although if it gets me to a World Cup win, it would be even better."

Lampard made his debut against Belgium under Kevin Keegan but took time to establish himself at the top level. He added: "I was disregarded for a couple of years - probably quite rightly because I don't think I was ready to play regularly for my country then - and I have had my ups and downs.

"But anyone who has played for 10 years has probably had the same kind of thing. I am very proud to have reached this level."

Taking a rounded view of that early appearance under Keegan and the sporadic selections by Sven-Goran Eriksson that followed an 18-month interlude, Lampard's main gripe has been the expectation that has surrounded the Three Lions during his time.

The problem started with a golden generation label, which was given to the squad by then Football Association chief executive Adam Crozier, who is now in the firing line as head of the Royal Mail.

"And look what happened to him," shrugged Lampard, when informed of the culprit.

"It was frustrating," he said. "As players, we just went out and played. But it kept getting mentioned.

"By calling us that it was almost as if people were waiting for us to fail. The golden generation should only be said once you have won something.

"The team that won the World Cup in 1966 were a golden generation.

"It was said much too early about us but people picked up on it.

"They are very talented individuals but we have not made the most of it. We have all held our hands up to that many times."

The 100 club

Caps
Peter Shilton 125
David Beckham 114
Bobby Moore 108
Bobby Charlton 106
Billy Wright 105