De Ley accumulates ‘missed exam opportunities’ in Paris-Nice: ‘He is not sufficiently surrounded in this crowd’ | Paris Nice

Arnaud de Lys struggled three times from wheel to wheel in the frantic sprints of Paris-Nice. “You can’t draw a line at all,” says Jose de Coer. “Merlier, Pedersen and Kooij have shown they can handle that.”

“It seems that De Lee is paying a lesson,” adds Renate Schott.

“De Lie might lead the fastest race the first time around. He’s come from farther than Merlier. Although he really has to pay a lesson at WorldTour level,” his teammate agrees.

His teammate Guarnieri – the guy who has to do it – doesn’t take the lead and doesn’t take guys like Brent Van Moer under his wing. That’s why they start looking around. The train is clearly not on the rails, Lotto – Dstny is definitely missing out. Someone like Jasper de Buest.”

Which train is on the rails? “Because the feeling you get is that no train can get here,” Schott says.

“It’s also because trains don’t exist,” replies de Couer. “There’s no van Lerberghe, no Morkoff, no de Boest…these guys make a difference. If you see how van der Poel brought down Philipsen in Tirreno, it’s not here.”

“Riders come from all sides. The track is so encouraging with a couple of roundabouts in the last kilometer and a half. Somehow Di Li just couldn’t get his exam here.”

The commentator concludes, “The observation from the outside is probably: Di Li is not sufficiently enclosed.” Or is this shortsighted?

“It’s not very short-sighted, it’s the reality,” de Couer says. “Guarnieri is no longer the youngest, and he also fits better in a story where others take the lead, like De Buyst. Now Lotto-Dstny can’t or dare not. It’s frantic activity, and not every rider is suited to it.”

“There’s still work to be done. It’s not easy for the team to motivate and teach your riders about that. Although you also have to be able to develop that speed.”

However, Schott believes the team cannot be blamed for a lack of commitment. His commenting partner agrees. Schott: “You can’t blame the team for the lack of effort, because they spent the whole day at the front with De Gendt.”

“Di Li himself would be surprised at what happens in such a sprint. He jumps from left to right, hoping it will work out. But this is not a pisig, as there is no change.”

“Well, that’s just a snapshot,” he concludes. “De Lay is 20 years old, no man overboard. He just has to learn through and through. De Lay has been put in his place many times, but he’s still an outstanding player.”