Jonathan Milan unsure stage 9 will end with a sprinter victory: "It's very tough"

With a stage victory under the belt and a solid lead in the points classification, Jonathan Milan has had a pretty successful start to the Giro d'Italia. It can get better today in Napoli if Lidl-Trek's plans fit to perfection, but the Italian sprinter is unsure if a bunch sprint will take place.

“It was quite a tough stage yesterday, but I ended up in the grupetto and was able to save as much as possible," Milan said in words to Eurosport at the start of stage 9. "But all the sprinters have given up. I was disappointed then, but today the finale is even more tricky. It's very tough.”

Milan has thus far impressed and looked as strong as one could expect. He was second on stage 3, won stage 4 and was the winner of the bunch sprint for fifth place on stage 5. The 23-year old has looked the strongest sprinter in the race thus far and the fast men are rewarded with another opportunity today. However he warns:

“I saw from the images that it was going to be very difficult. The last kilometer is the same as last year's stage to Napoli, but we enter the city from a different side. In that respect it will be something different." Milan currently holds 134 points in the points classification, against the 97 of his closest competitor Kaden Groves.