Although Alpecin-Deceuninck have already secured the first three monuments of the season, they don't start as favourites this weekend at Liege-Bastogne-Liege. That honour goes to Tadej Pogacar's UAE Team Emirates.
"I really like that everyone really thinks that Mathieu van der Poel can win. The team was super good in Flanders and Roubaix, but the team is not good enough to take over Liege," predicts Eurosport's Jan Hermsen on the Kop over Kop podcast, insisting it will be advantage to UAE Team Emirates and Tadej Pogacar in the Ardennes monument.
"You don't have to control. You just have to follow Pogacar," counters Jeroen Vanbelleghem. "If he can follow, that's great and if he can't, he will still have a great spring with Roubaix and Flanders... Fantastic! If he can't follow, we're not going to say he rode badly. There is only one person who can beat Pogacar. Pogacar will have pressure, but van der Poel will not. Pogacar will soon think: I weigh twelve kilos less and I actually have to drop him."
Click here to create your own team for the Fantasy Liège-Bastogne-Liège. At least $1640/€1,500/£1,285 in prizes!
"Van der Poel has to stick with it on the really difficult climbs that suit Pogacar much better than van der Poel. If he sticks with it, he can make it difficult for Pogacar," adds Bobbie Traksel. "When Pogacar looks back and he sees that van der Poel is in pain, he has to keep going. It's all about looking at each other and peeking and I hope they really start racing. We know that van der Poel will race if he is with us and certainly with Pogacar he just wants the best to win."
🏛️ Un objectif monumental D’un côté @mathieuvdpoel court après son troisième monument de la saison et de l’autre @TamauPogi vise un deuxième succès sur La Doyenne. Qui lèvera les bras à Liège ? ➡️ Découvrez les principaux engagés ici : bit.ly/4aDuNKZ
