Mourinho wants dress down final

Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho has told his players they will not be able to wear special suits for next week's Carling Cup Final.

In a major break with tradition, Mourinho wants to treat the final showdown with Liverpool in Cardiff on 27 February like any other away match.

Even though it is the club's first final under the Portuguese coach, it means that the club will not be supplying their star players with designer suits for the match at the Millennium Stadium.

The move is all the more surprising when Roman Abramovich's vast wealth is taken into account. According to new figures out today, Abramovich has propelled Chelsea to 10th place in the Deloitte and Touche rich list of world football's biggest clubs.

But Mourinho doesn't want his players to be distracted from their pursuit of the Champions League and Premiership titles. So he has ordered his players and staff to make sure the build-up to the match is low key.

Usually, clubs make a big deal of participating in a showpiece event by fitting out their stars in designer wear.

When Chelsea last reached a final, their 2-0 defeat by Arsenal in the FA Cup three years ago, they won style points for their Giorgio Armani blue pinstriped suits.

But this time the players will use the normal Hugo Boss club suits the Chelsea squad wear to away matches. Smart though they are, they will do nothing for Mourinho's reputation at Chelsea as an unimaginative dresser.

Despite his millions, Mourinho has taken to wearing a grey trench coat his wife bought him to games since the winter weather kicked in because he believes it brings him luck.

Meanwhile, the findings of today's Deloitte and Touche money league report shows Chelsea still trail Manchester United, whose position as the wealthiest football club in the world remains unchanged.

But during Abramovich's first year of ownership Chelsea increased their revenue by a staggering £ 50.6million to £143.7m, allowing the Premiership leaders to leapfrog Arsenal and Juventus.