"I don't know how it will work. We have the same goals" - Mattias Skjelmose on mixed feelings about Juan Ayuso's signing by Lidl-Trek

Juan Ayuso was signed by Lidl-Trek but not everyone in the team was thrilled with it, in fact the opposite. Current leader Mattias Skjelmose is not a big fan of the move taking into consideration the team promised to build a block around him, and he does not see how the Spaniard fits in the current plans, sharing some quite controversial words.

"Lidl-Trek told me they believe in me. I don't know how it relates to Ayuso coming in. They've been telling me for a couple of years that they want to build a team around me. But I don't think they brought him in as a domestique," Skjelmose said in an interview with TV2, underlining the uncertainty he feels about the presence of his new teammate.

The Dane is one of the few riders who is often honest about his feelings regarding his own team and the signing of Ayuso, another strong stage-racer and Grand Tour leader, may come in the way of his own Grand Tour ambitions. Skjelmose sees himself as a leader in the team and doesn't believe Ayuso will have intentions of supporting him in his future Grand Tour plans.

"I don't know how it will work. We have the same goals. If he has some difficulty helping Tadej, then I don't know if he will want to help me in any way if it comes to that. But it could also be that he just didn't have a good time at UAE. I don't really know him, so of course I don't know what happened in that team."

Last year he finished amongst the best at the Vuelta a España, also winning the youth classification, but this year his aim of being at the Giro d'Italia was already put aside and he was instead chosen to the Tour de France where he then failed to perform. He was promised full focus on a GC run at the 2026 Giro but is now unsure if this will be fulfilled.

He expressed his surprise at the way the announcement of the signing was handled: "Those announcements were a bit of a strange situation. I found out pretty early on, without the team telling me. I think that was a little weird. But yes, it will be exciting. A new challenge."

It's not the first time the Dane is vocal about his issues to the media, having earlier this year on two occasions, once on his time-trial equipment and a second time on the calendar choices the team had for him.

"When the gap is so big, and my numbers are so good, then it's probably not just the legs that are the problem. Maybe some engineers need to get to work".

Before the Tour: "It was a bit of a strange conversation because I really wanted to ride the Giro, but the team insisted that I ride the Tour. After my Vuelta, I saw the Giro as the most natural step in terms of developing myself as an overall rider. I personally don't think I'm quite ready for the Tour yet or to perform in a general classification at the Tour."