"Roglič is still in a very good position and can still win the Giro" - INEOS DS acknowledges difficult competition in Roglic and Almeida but confident in Giro victory

INEOS Grenadiers prepared for the Giro d'Italia to fight for the victory, but they are currently closer than most would expect three weeks ago. Geraint Thomas has returned to his best form and entering the final block of mountain races, he leads the Corsa Rosa closely trailed by João Almeida and Primoz Roglic.

"It's good to have the maglia but the goal is to win the Giro d'Italia. Now the top five on GC is clear, now it's important to stay calm. Tomorrow and Friday are super hard days, then there's the time trial. I've got a lot of confidence in Geraint," INEOS DS Matteo Tosatto said in an interview with Cyclingnews. "Every Grand Tour is a fight to the very end and especially so the Giro and especially this one with the final time trial. What is good about Geraint is that his feet are firmly on the floor, he's not thinking the race is done even though he has the pink jersey."

The Welshman is a very experienced Grand Tour rider and knows how to race throughout three weeks. A former Tour de France winner, he continues to show his very best legs despite turning 37 years old today. With Tao Geoghegan Hart abandoning the Giro he took up a sole leadership spot, and leads the five-rider team into stage 18 with motivation to win a long-seeked Giro trophy.

"With G it's all about his mental state of mind. Some older guys get tired of training and racing and moan about young guys pushing their way into the peloton. Geraint has never complained about that, he just does his own thing and his own race," Rod Ellingworth explained.

INEOS DS Tosatto has raced alongside Thomas for many years but now leads him in the team car. The situation at the head of the GC battle remains very tight as the opening two weeks of the race were very conservative, most riders saved their legs for Monte Bondone and the days that follow now.

"I'm happy with the GC at the moment but I'd prefer to take time. If G has an opportunity, it's important to take time. Saturday's time trial is a good stage for Geraint but I think Thursday's and Friday's mountain stages are more important for him," he says. "I've got a lot of confidence in the team. When they get off the team bus they only see five bikes but I've told them they each have the strength of three men."

Tosatto has also discussed both Roglic and Almeida, which are very much within he fight for the win currently inside half a minute of gap. With the days that lay ahead, the gaps are almost meaningless, but the Welshman does get a head start.

"For me, Roglič is as dangerous as he was on Tuesday morning before the stage, he only lost 25 seconds on the stage. Riders don't recover from crashes in two or three days, they often need ten days," he explains. "He's suffered crashes, maybe felt the rest day or some pressure. Perhaps the weather, too, because it's now after lots of rain. I think Roglič is still in a very good position and can still win the Giro."

As for João Almeida, winner on Monte Bondone and a rider that frequently thrives in the final week of a Grand Tour, there is just as much danger. A strong time-trialist, but as this race and season has been proving, a world-class climber already.

"I'd expected Almeida to finish on the podium right from the start of the Giro in Pescara. He's super young but super talented. He's getting better year by year. I like him as a rider and he's super dangerous for the Giro. I like how Jumbo-Visma said yesterday that they'd lost a battle but not the war. Okay, the bike race is on. We're ready too," Tosatto concluded.