Alpecin-Deceuninck have seen their rival teams lose several of their leaders ahead of the Tour of Flanders, which will favour them on the big day. Mathieu van der Poel's presence is confirmed at the Belgian team reveals Jasper Philipsen will not race after all.
Philipsen, winner of Milano-Sanremo, prepared for the classics season and a return to Flanders was in the plan. However it was decided that he would not race, most likely to be fresh towards Paris-Roubaix next week - whilst realistically, it would be difficult for him to have a key support role for van der Poel. The World Champion is the sole team leader and the main favourite for the race following his triumph at the E3 Saxo Classic and the mass crash that took place at Dwars door Vlaanderen.
Gianni Vermeersch who was involved in that fall has recovered enough to be present at the start, he and Soren Kragh Andersen will be important support riders whilst Philipsen's replacement Axel Laurance could also prove to be an interesting card. Silvan Dillier, Xandro Meurisse and Oscar Riesebeek complete the lineup.
Alpecin-Deceuninck for Tour of Flanders:
Mathieu van der Poel, Soren Kragh Andersen, Silvan Dillier, Axel Laurance, Xandro Meurisse, Oscar Riesebeek and Gianni Vermeersch.
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