Chelsea present £78 million trio together for the first time

Above is the first photo of Chelsea's £78 million trio of signings from La Liga together for the first time.

Cesc Fabregas, £30 million, Diego Costa, £32 million, Filipe Luis £16 million, were pictured together in Austria after jetting out for the club's pre-season training camp.

All three will hope to feature for the Blues in their third game of pre-season, when they play Austrian side RZ Pellets on Wednesday.

The trio represent substantial strengthening on the club's part this summer, with Fabregas and Luis replacing the released Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole in the squad.
Diego Costa also fills the void left by Didier Drogba in 2012, even though the 36-year-old Ivorian has been linked with a surprise return.

Fabregas, the biggest surprise addition of the trio, is sporting a new haircut which makes him look very different to his last spell in the Premier League, with his receding hairline reminiscent to his former Barcelona teammate Andres Iniesta.

Which of Fabregas, Luis and Costa will be the best signing for Chelsea?

FIFA World Cup - 2014 - World Cup Bronze Match (Brazil vs Netherlands)

Probable Lineups

Missing Players

Team News

Brazil

• Neymar is again ruled out with the back injury he suffered in the win over Colombia.
• Thiago Silva returns from suspension and is expected to come in for Dante at centre-back.
• Despite underwhelming against Germany, Fred and Hulk should start for A Seleção.
• Maicon could also start again at right-back, meaning Dani Alves is likely to remain on the bench.

Netherlands

• Bruno Martins Indi could drop out of the starting XI after a disappointing 45 minutes against Argentina.
• Daley Blind will be expected to move to centre-back if that is indeed the case.
• Daryl Janmaat should come in on the right, meaning Dirk Kuyt will switch to the left flank.
• Jordy Clasie may come in for Nigel De Jong, who was substituted after an hour on Wednesday.
• Ron Vlaar is a doubt and may not be risked, with Joël Veltman tipped to come in, while Michel Vorm may start so every player gets minutes at the World Cup.

Match Facts

Netherlands are undefeated in their last 31 matches in FIFA World Cup.

Prediction

• Brazil's World Cup hopes were dashed on Tuesday night having fallen to a disappointing 7-1 loss to Germany. The semi-final defeat to the European powerhouse will be a bitter pill to swallow, but Scolari must rally his troops if they're to save face in the third place playoff.
• The players appeared disjointed against Germany without captain Thiago Silva in defence, but the PSG centre-back is expected to return to the starting XI alongside David Luiz, which should vastly improve the solidity of the hosts.
• Netherlands fell to defeat to Argentina through the medium of penalties on Wednesday and Louis van Gaal must boost morale in the camp ahead of the meeting with Brazil.
• The Oranje can perhaps consider themselves unlucky not to have progressed to the final against a poor Argentina side and must show the same form they did in the group stages if they're to overcome their South American counterparts.
• Brazil, despite their defeat to Germany, will be out to bow out on a high and may benefit from the extra days rest that could see them secure victory.

Argentina Beat the Netherlands on Penalties, Will Face Germany in the World Cup Final

After a historic goal glut in the first semifinal between Germany and Brazil, the score of the Argentina-Netherlands semifinal was the exact opposite, with Argentina winning on penalties after a relatively listless 0-0 regulation and overtime. The opening 90 minutes produced a goalless affair that seemed devoid of attacking ability. Though both teams are graced with world class forwards like Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben for the Netherlands, and Lionel Messi for the Argentinians, none of them were able to find space or support to mount decent chances. It was only on penalty kicks that the goal could be found.

In overtime, it was more of the same, with little or no opening to speak of. Mere half chances from Robben and Messi were greeted by the crowd in Brazil with the kind of enthusiasm that normally welcomes spectacular offense. This trend basically told the story of the game. Each team seemed poised to exploit the other's mistake. Only when no mistakes came (since they were taking the same negative strategy), it rendered the semifinal stale, and lifeless until penalty kicks. The final of the 2014 World Cup will now take place between Germany and Argentina on Sunday, July 13th at 3 p.m. EST (in a rematch of the 1986 and 1990 World Cup finals). Here are the rare highlights, few as they were.

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Netherlands v Argentina predictions, tips, line-ups

Netherlands look to return to the World Cup final when they clash with Argentina on Wednesday at Arena Corinthians in São Paulo. Both sides have managed to get through to this stage without totally convincing. This article contains a complete NETHERLANDS v ARGENTINA betting preview with tips.

NETHERLANDS v ARGENTINA BETTING PREVIEW

Netherlands eliminated surprise package Costa Rica with a rather unusual move by Van Gaal as the Dutch manager replaced his starting goalkeeper Cillessen with Newcastle’s Tim Krul for the shoot-out, after the match finished 0-0. The risk paid off as Krul saved two penalties. Their performance against the Central Americans was unconvincing and very distance from the one against Spain (5-1) or Chile (2-0) in the first part of the tournament.

 The Oranje will be without their powerful midfielder Nigel de Jong, who has a torn groin muscle. A possible replacement, Leroy Fer, is recovering from a hamstring injury and it is not clear if he will be fit. Ron Vlaar is a slight doubt with a knee problem so Veltman could come into contention

Argentina beat Belgium in a tight contest in the quarter-finals, with Gonzalo Higuain’s goal the difference with the South Americans winning 1-0. where Alejandro Sabella’s squad finally played as a unit and proved that they do not solely rely on superstar Lionel Messi. The Albiceleste has managed to top Group F after winning their opening clash against Bosnia-Herzegovina (2-1) and followed this up with successes against Iran (1-0) and Nigeria (3-2). In the last 16 they needed the extra time to secure a 1-0 win over Switzerland.

Angel Di Maria will miss due to a thigh strain which is likely to rule him out of the rest of the tournament while Sergio Aguero has been declared fit to play. Martín Demichelis should keep his place ahead of Fernandez at the back, while Marcos Rojo returns from suspension and should replace Basanta on the left. Sabella must choose whether to give Ezequiel Lavezzi a start or bring in one of Fernando Gago or Maxi Rodriguez in Di Maria's place.

The Dutch have not lost to Argentina in their last four encounters, winning two and drawing two. While the South American squad is known for their attack, their defense has not given up a goal in the two knockout-stage matches. Netherlands, however, are the highest scorers in the competition, scoring 12 goals so far. Argentina are still yet to win by more than a single goal in the tournament so we expect a very close match.

NETHERLANDS v ARGENTINA PROBABLE LINEUPS

Netherlands (3-5-2): Cillessen – de Vrij, Vlaar, Martins Indi – Kujt, Wijnaldum, Blind, De Guzman, Sneijder – van Persie, Robben

Argentina (4-3-3): Romero – Zabaleta, Demichelis, Garay, Rojo – Biglia, Mascherano, M.Rodriguez – Messi, Aguero, Higuain