"There isn't really a tactic" - Jasper Philipsen going on feel at Milano-Sanremo

Jasper Philipsen showed good form at Tirreno-Adriatico. Two stage wins have seen him prove his current speed, however at Milano-Sanremo he will need his very best climbing legs. It won't be a mission impossible for the Belgian however who has prepared for the spring classics.

“There isn't really a tactic. You have to sit well in the front, after that it's about the legs. If we can win with the team, that would already be a great achievement," Philipsen said ahead of the race in a press conference. Alongside Mathieu van der Poel he will be the leader of Alpecin-Deceuninck, however in a lineup that also includes Soren Kragh Andersen and Quinten Hermans as outsiders.

The team's options best rely on a group finish however. In the past sprinters have won Milano-Sanremo, and virtually every year several fast men finish within the Top10. Philipsen, as a rider who's raced a lot in the classics in his early career, already has some experience and he definitely has the legs on his best day to hang close to the best on such slight ascents.

“Of course it gives confidence that the sprint is good, but a classic of three hundred kilometers is something else,” he concluded. A sprint would have to take place for him to take the win. However Alpecin may be willing to work towards him in the end. Other quality sprinters such as Wout van Aert, Mads Pedersen and Arnaud De Lie may be amongst possible allies for the 25-year old.