Patrick Lefevere gives Pogačar surprising Roubaix advice: 'I don't know if he really needs to get rid of Van der Poel'

In the last 20 years, Soudal Quick-Step have won Paris-Roubaix no fewer than six times. Under the wing of Patrick Lefevere, many riders in blue have achieved great success on the cobbles of northern France. But in recent years the well has run dry. The cause is the dominance of other riders, and this year Lefevere again sees Tadej Pogačar and Mathieu van der Poel as the stand-out favourites.

Lefevere sees that Pogačar is better than ever. "His performance at the Tour of Flanders proves that," he explains to Le Soir. "I am a little more reserved about Milan-Sanremo, because when he crashed with his rivals before the Cipressa, the race organisers did not put up a roadblock; the riders were able to come back between the team cars and nobody attacked. They were led like sheep to the slaughter."

In the Tour of Flanders, the former team boss saw a different story. UAE Team Emirates-XRG broke the race open, after which the world champion seized the race by the scruff of the neck, soloing to the finish in Oudenaarde. Paris-Roubaix, however, is a different story. Lefevere believes Van der Poel will be able to play a different game than in Flanders.

"Pogačar will not systematically benefit from the support of his main rival, Mathieu van der Poel, as he did in Flanders. A support system that has been wrongly criticised by some, because a true thoroughbred does not hold back; it is a matter of honour. You cannot sit in the wheel of the best rider and beat him in a sprint without having taken a turn at the front yourself."

If the pair come into the velodrome together, most would expect Van der Poel to out sprint Pogačar. But not Lefevre. "I don't know if he really needs to get rid of him. Maybe it is better to settle the matter on the velodrome track. Neither Mathieu nor Tadej has much experience on the velodrome track. After a race like that, freshness is the most important thing."

What can we expect from Soudal Quick-Step? "I saw a very good Jasper Stuyven in the Tour of Flanders," says Lefevere. "He rode very intelligently, stayed at the back and perhaps took the lead twice at most. And he finished as the "best of the rest", in sixth place. He was ill at the start of the season, so he still needs to improve a bit."

Dylan van Baarle was brought in by the Belgian team as co-leader in the classics, but lacked the legs to compete when it mattered. "Where Jasper often relies on his brains, Dylan is capable of attacking where you least expect it. Ideally, the Dutchman would end up in the leading group, which would allow Jasper to follow, and they would find themselves together in a two-man move in the finale."