Christoph Roodhooft is proud of his Alpecin-Deceuninck riders after Tour of Flanders: "As a team we have not missed a single step"

Alpecin-Deceuninck's performance in today's Tour of Flanders was nearly flawless, from controlling the early breakaways, through Gianni Vermeersch keeping attacking Mads Pedersen in the check, to dominant Mathieu van der Poel in the final phase of the race. Team boss Christoph Roodhooft hasn't got much to complain about, yet the Belgian leader still sees areas for improvement.

"The lead was big, but with those wet roads you keep assuming a bad scenario. It was a very tough race too. You never know when cramps or a breakdown might occur. We try to stay alert until the end," he admitted to WielerFlits.

"We discussed in detail in advance how the other teams were going to do. We have formed our own idea of that. As a team we have not missed a single step. We have a battery of analysts and columnists in Flanders. In the long run it becomes difficult for them to be original. It's a shame that our team has so many question marks. The race proved that we were certainly strong enough."

Just like during the race, Roodhooft does not dare to look too far ahead when it comes to the career of the world champion. "If he has the most victories in the Tour of Flanders, then he is the greatest in that respect. For the rest, let's wait and see what the future brings. Those three victories are already very good."