"He could have won... but instead he opened the door" - Jayco coach reflects on Michael Matthews 'missed opportunity' at Milano-Sanremo

Michael Matthews has long been a consistent threat for victories in some of the biggest races. A monument win is still something that has proved elusive for the Aussie ace, although he can't come much closer than in 2024 at Milano-Sanremo where Matthews was an agonising second.

With the victory being decided by a reduced bunch sprint, Matthews would have rightly fancied his chances of success. Even as the sprint began the Team Jayco AlUla leader looked good initially, but in the end, just had to concede defeat to Alpecin-Deceuninck's Jasper Philipsen by the barest of margins. The one that got away? Well according to Team Jayco AlUla coach Valerio Piva the victory was definitely there for the taking for Matthews. 

"He could have won, but Matthews was correct in a certain sense, because he didn't insist on keeping Philipsen on the rope. He had the right because he was in front, instead he opened the door for him and clearly the other one passed," Piva recalls of the 'missed opportunity' in conversation with Bici Pro. "Instead, at Flanders they disqualified him from third place for a slight movement, but that's another story."

"It was an option, clearly Michael was one of the possible ones. But in the moment, second place is fine, because at the start you never know if you can win," the coach continues, recalling his own experience of the finale. "From the car you see television images that are already delayed, plus it's jerky. Then you hear the radio, but in those moments they don't give much information. So we also stay quiet or we cheer and give final recommendations. But it's not like you can guide the rider or tell him exactly what to do, from then on it's up to them to decide. Plus I didn't watch television and I didn't even see what happened in the sprint. I then heard the order of arrival and I discovered that he had arrived second. But then watching the film, it started to burn even more."

It could also be that Matthews lacks something of a killer instinct. "From how I got to know him this year, sometimes he seems a bit soft. From the outside I always thought he was a real bulldog, a dog, one of the tough ones. When I had Van Avermaet, he fought with him and with Sagan. I always thought he was really tough, but getting to know him and hearing what they say in the team, it turns out he is always a bit doubtful," Piva explains. "He is a rider with a lot of class and that is why he gets his results : you can say anything to him except that he is unfair. In fact, unfortunately it is the opposite."