Niermann ahead of Van Aert’s defining week: “We want to win, but we’re not chasing it blindly”

First up comes Wednesday, when Van Aert goes in search of revenge in Dwars door Vlaanderen. It was in that race last year that Visma | Lease a Bike let a three-against-one scenario slip away, as an inspired Neilson Powless beat Van Aert, Matteo Jorgenson and Tiesj Benoot in the sprint.

Niermann took responsibility for that outcome too. Speaking to Domestique, he said: “In the end, I’m in the team car, I’m making the calls, and it’s my responsibility, finally. I also did the wrong calls, and it’s good that we take a shared responsibility there.”

It was another disappointment for Van Aert, who endured more bad luck last spring and in the years before that in his beloved Classics campaign. Belgium felt that frustration too, understandably. Niermann believes that says something about Van Aert’s standing in the sport. “It’s not only within the team, I think he’s also loved all over the world, and especially in Belgium, of course,” he said.

Why does Van Aert inspire that affection? Niermann had a clear answer. “Because he’s a great guy and he’s a great leader of our team. And I think people love him for all the victories that he has, but also for the defeats and the bad moments he had. And yeah, he’s just a normal human being...”

If that long-awaited win is to come this spring, Van Aert will almost certainly have to beat riders such as Mathieu van der Poel and Tadej Pogačar. He managed that in E3 in 2023, but not yet in a cobbled Monument. “We know it’s not easy competing against Pogačar and Van der Poel, but absolutely the desire is there to win,” Niermann said.

Still, whether or not Van Aert wins a cobbled Monument will not define his career in the eyes of the German. “He is already a big champion, and he will be remembered, so it doesn’t matter if, at the end of his career, he has one Monument on his palmarès or five or ten.”

Van Aert’s preparation for this crucial week was different this time. Instead of going to altitude camp, he built his form through race kilometres in Belgium and Italy. Niermann sees that as a healthy change. “In general, it’s good to do different things again once in a while,” he explained. “For two or three years now, we had the plan to go on altitude and to do less racing in spring, and especially in March. But now we change it again and I think that it’s good that he already did some races now.”

Everything is aimed at finally winning the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix, but Niermann insists the team will keep perspective. “These are the races we want to win, but we are not chasing them blindly. It’s not all over if he doesn’t win Flanders or Roubaix. I think he will be remembered regardless. But his career is far from over, so there are a lot of chances.”