João Almeida supports UAE and Pogacar's tactics: "He is taking time on almost everyone, that is the most important thing"

UAE Team Emirates had a clear plan today: Control the breakaway, win the stage and have Tadej Pogacar take time on Jonas Vingegaard. Safe to say it essentially exploded in their face. João Almeida talks about a well executed plan and the confirmation of a strong Jonas Vingegaard.

“It could have been better, but it was a good day." Almeida in reality wasn't really part of the team's plan. He and Juan Ayuso managed to just sit in the wheels of the GC group whilst Pavel Sivakov and Adam Yates paced up Puy de Mary before Pogacar attacked. Almeida sat in the chasing group where Carlos Rodríguez did most of the work, coming through the finish line in sixth place, 1:49 minutes down on the stage winner. Almeida had a lot to say about the Dane that beat his teammate.

"I think they came here as underdogs, but we knew he was very good. I can’t say more, because you can see that Jonas is flying," Almeida said in words to Wielerflits. "I think his descents are quite good. Maybe he is not the best descender, but he is doing quite well. That shows that he has recovered from the fall.” In the end Vingegaard was able to put a stop to UAE's masterplan, and although he only won one second on the day, having beaten Pogacar in his terrain could've been a difficult blow for the team.

But Almeida assures that the team is neither tired of racing aggressively or that Pogacar was downbeat after a day without a major win. “We wanted to attack and make a difference, the team did a great job so we will definitely try again. He is taking time on almost everyone, that is the most important thing," the Portuguese concluded. With Juan Ayuso falling down the overall standings, Almeida climbed to fifth and sits 4:20 minutes down on Pogacar into stage 12.