"Visma is off the cards" - Visma rider puts himself in the market after lackluster year

Team Visma | Lease a Bike did a few surprising transfers last winter and one of them was Arkéa leadout man Dan McLay who had shown great talent at helping Arnaud Démare previously. He was signed to support Olav Kooij but after not having a perfect partnership and Kooij departing to Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale, McLay has also confirmed he won't stay with the team and wants to find a new place in the sport.

"Not needing too much help, so we always try and keep it free. I just try to help him when needed, but we're not too rigid about it," McLay told Cyclingnews regarding Olav Kooij, a sprinter who has the habit of going through the final kilometers more isolated than most. That ultimately did not bode well for the Briton who was signed specifically to be a leadout man for the Dutchman - now both are leaving at the end of the season.

The one-year contract made it clear that it was an experiment from the team, to test and see how McLay fit in the team block, but not all signings fit in ideally and the Briton - will be moving on at the end of the season, he confirms it himself: "I'm not signed up yet, so if anyone wants me for the next year or two, I'm still going. I think Visma is off the cards, they want a big, pure bunch sprinter for next year, so that rules that out."

McLay has been racing the Tour de Pologne this week where Kooij did win the opening stage and Matthew Brennan has also been able to raise his arms up, making the 33-year old's final months with the team more positive. "I had a nice training camp in the summer, so I'm looking forward to getting back into it. This time last year, I was recovering from the Tour de France, so overall my legs aren't too bad. And the sun's shining too."