Chelsea youth chiefs Paul Clement and Neil Bath say the support they receive from the club has gone a long way to getting the team into tonight's FA Youth Cup final.

"Definitely, in terms of turning up at previous games, you would see Roman [Abramovich] here on a Sunday morning watching under-13 football and people wouldn't realise that. The support he gives the Academy is fantastic," Bath told Chelsea's website, while Clement pointed to the first team as a source of encouragement.

"They're very supportive. In the previous games, when we were playing on the Friday they watched it in the hotel before an away game," he said.

"In the games at Stamford Bridge Joe Cole and frank Lampard have been into the dressing room and supported us, it's great to have them around."

They also believe that being around such role models breeds the same behaviour in the youngsters.

"I would say yes, definitely. The culture we have here, you will see the young lads coming up at lunch time and having lunch around them, playing pool competitions with the first team," Bath said. "That sort of environment and culture creates a buzz around the place."