Soudal-Quickstep manager Patrick Lefebvre will have his work cut out again in the Tour de France sprinter selection.

Fabio Jacobsen showed what he is capable of by winning the second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico ahead of many big name sprinters such as Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Desseuninck) and Fernando Gaviria (Movistar). Tim Merlier won the opening stage of Paris-Nice against another strong field, making him a strong contender for selection for the Tour.

Lefebvre made it clear that Jacobsen and Merlier were on equal footing in the race for the Tour de France sprinter's slot, but tried to curb their internal rivalry.

"I don't want to play the game the media likes to play with my sprinters. They are rivals, Jacobsen is out of contract, Merlier is on a two-year contract, and with Evenpole so strong, one of them has to leave. I don't want people to tell me what to do," Lefebvre said on the Soudal-Quick Step bus in Follonica after the second stage of Tirreno-Adriatico.

The Belgian team has long had the luxury of choosing among some of the top sprinters in the sport. Most recently, they chose Sam Bennett over Mark Cavendish in 2021, although the former suffered a knee injury. Cavendish replaced him with four stage wins and the green jersey.

In 2022, Jacobsen was chosen and Cavendish was removed.

"I have always had multiple sprinters. I had Cavendish and Bennett, I had Tom Steels and Jan Svorada. People forget that there are 275 races a year. The Tour de France is only 21 days long. My sprinters do not get in each other's way. Fabio is in Tirreno and Tim is in Paris-Nice.

"They won't ride one race together. There are 12 candidates for the Tour de France and it will be a natural selection, let's hope they are both healthy." [The Belgian champion won the Tour of Oman and the first stage of the UAE Tour and the sixth stage of the UAE, as well as the first stage of Paris-Nice. Jacobsen, meanwhile, won the second stage of the Vuelta a San Juan, his second stage win of the day.

Lefebvre spent most of Tuesday's stage in the team car with Davide Bramati, but he does not intend to do the same on Wednesday's third flat stage to Foligno, insisting, not out of superstition, that his riders can win without his involvement.

Jacobsen's victory on Tuesday was a perfect response to Merlier's win in Paris-Nice.

However, Lefebvre was not willing to compare the two sprinters.

"Our goal was to win a stage here and in Paris-Nice, and we achieved both goals. But you can't judge a rider on just a few sprints. Fabio was not as good as we expected, but it is only March 10 and he has already won 14 races."

Lefebvre has criticized Julien Alaphilippe after he struggled to recover from repeated falls and illness in 2022, and their relationship appears to have been damaged. But Jacobsen's victory seems to have turned Lefebvre into a supportive father figure rather than a demanding team boss.

"It's good for him to help the team win," Lefebvre said.

"He feels pressure and expects more from himself. He was very discouraged after Strade Bianche, but I told him he should talk about the results after Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

"When he won Strade Bianche in 2019, he had finished the Ardennes. This year he has to go smoothly from Flanders Week to Liège-Bastogne-Liège, so maybe he should not be at his best yet."