"I know Mathieu as someone who can quickly turn setbacks into beautiful things" - Alpecin-Deceuninck DS confident of Mathieu van der Poel's chances of becoming World Champion

The World Championships are right at our doorstep. The punchy and technical circuit in Glasgow will suit the riders with good bike handling and the type of effort won't be too different from cyclocross. That and the good form Mathieu van der Poel carries sees his DS confident of a possible win.

"The Tour de France was great for us as a team with four stage victories from Jasper [Philipsen], but it was not a success for Mathieu personally," Alpecin-Deceuninck DS Christoph Roodhoft told De Telegraaf. "He took a rest there and then he started training quietly again, especially because the weather was better there than here. How is he doing? He has made a full recovery and has been able to do everything he wanted to do."

Van der Poel began to look better towards the end of the Tour and won a post-Tour criterium the precise following day. He took little time to relax but instead kept focusing fully on the worlds which are according to Roodhoft his final big goal of the road season. In Glasgow he's been in the fight for the win on the 2018 Europeans, he already knows what to expect and will headline a very strong Dutch team.

"We have learned that he only gets stronger once the 250 kilometer limit has been passed. He can rely on his own strength here and compete for victory once in the final," the leader of Alpecin-Deceuninck believes. "I know Mathieu as someone who can quickly turn setbacks into beautiful things. In fact, I think his greatest quality is to quickly flip the mental switch from negative experiences to something positive."