"Mathieu will have to be strong himself to take that yellow jersey" - Alpecin-Deceuninck say ahead of cobbles

Mathieu van der Poel is reaching his decisive phase of the opening week, with the goal of bringing in the yellow jersey to Alpecin-Deceuninck. Team manager Christoph Roodhooft talked about his start to the race, and where he'll go from now on. 

"We haven't won yet, but there have only been 3 winners. We have competed every day and we can look to the coming days with confidence," Roodhoft told Sporza in the rest day.

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On van der Poel, the team manager did not stress about the less agressive opening days in front. "He started this Tour a little more slowly than the last Giro or the previous Tour. I don't think that's wrong," he said. With bunch sprints and no responsibility to work, he has been given a green card to save his legs towards the upcoming days.

Today's stage into Arenberg and tomorrow into Longwy will be crucial days for him, suited the Dutchman's capabilities where he will be trying to jump into the yellow jersey. "He's been hiding a bit, but there's normally something in the offing in the coming days where he can do his thing," Roodhoft mentioned.

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"In that Tour [2021] there was pressure on the Mûr-de-Bretagne and the start of the Giro was also ideal for him. But I don't think it's realistic to go into a Grand Tour every time that way... We have to be realistic: Wout van Aert is an excellent opponent who is not easily surprised. Mathieu will have to be strong himself to take that yellow jersey," he said regarding Wout van Aert - who will be on domestique duty at Jumbo-Visma. 

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