"Van Aert and Laporte were not as strong as I expected" - Arnaud De Lie disappointed to miss out on Omloop Het Nieuwsblad victory

Despite some concerns over his form in the early part of the season, Arnaud De Lie impressed on Saturday at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, eventually coming home in 10th.

“I don't know what position I am, but I'm not coming for second or third place. I just want to win. I have also tried to do everything I can," reflected the Belgian of Lotto Dstny in his post-race interview. “Two weeks ago everyone thought I wasn't good enough, but today I showed that I am simply super strong. After Murcia I already had a lot of confidence. My condition is getting better and better, which is good for Samyn and then Paris-Nice.”

For a while it looked like things could have been even better for De Lie as he joined a six-man lead group with Tom Pidcock, Toms Skuijns and a Team Visma | Lease a Bike trio that seemed to have victory in the palm of their hands. "Matteo Jorgenson was the best in my opinion. Wout van Aert and Christophe Laporte were not as strong as I expected," De Lie assesses of the Visma trio.

Despite them eventually being caught, victory did still go to Team Visma | Lease a Bike through Jan Tratnik. "The Omloop is also just a difficult race. But riding 130 kilometers à bloc is certainly a good training for the rest of the spring," De Lie concludes.