Caleb Yuan said that strength in numbers will be the key to success for him and his team, Lotto Doustony, in Saturday's Milan-San Remo.

The Australian has twice finished second in La Primavera and two years ago led the pack just a few meters behind Jasper Stuyven.

In an era where leaving sprinters behind on late attacks and poggios is the order of the day, two sprinters leading a team in Milan-San Remo seems anachronistic.

However, the Lotto pair is a versatile duo, both able to handle the hills and strong enough to go toe-to-toe with the best on the decisive final climb.

"The numbers are key," Ewan told the media at the team presentation in Abbiategrasso on Friday. 'It's like a lottery to see if you can survive in Poggio. It's often a lottery to see if you can survive in Poggio.

"In that scenario, you can't bring everyone back and win a sprint. Hopefully, Arnaud de Lier and I will survive and have one more teammate. That way we can reduce the risk of a late break. But it's easier said than done."

Ewan has won the non-UCI Schwalbe Classic criterium this season, and he recently lost a controversial win in a photo finish at the GP Montserrat. De Lier, meanwhile, began his second professional season with three wins and a second-place finish at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

Both are among the main contenders in the 294-km race, even if the likes of Tadej Pogačar, Wout van Aert, and Mathieu van der Poel enjoy lower betting odds. For Ewan and De Lier to succeed, they will need to work together in the top group heading to San Remo.

"I think we are the two sprinters most likely to survive Poggio," Ewan said. The most important thing is that we can communicate openly with each other. We have the advantage of having two of us. But I don't want to reveal too much about our tactics.

Team director Alan Davies agreed that having two sprinters in the lineup was a boon for the Belgian team.

"Caleb has five appearances and two podiums under his belt. Caleb has the experience of five appearances and two podiums. For Arnaud Des Rieres, it's his first race and it's important to get as much experience as possible. It's the first time for Arnaud Des Rieres and he will be looking to gain as much experience as possible.

"We have gone through a lot of possible race scenarios within the team, but we need to see how the race unfolds and choose the right tactics from there. In any case, we have a solid team that can protect Caleb and Arnaud well at the start. We will aim for the best possible result."

Once known as the "sprinter's classic," Milan-San Remo has seen fewer pure sprinters and by the end of the seven-hour race, smaller groups are battling for the win.

Arnaud Demare's victory seven years ago was the last time a group of 30 or more contested the finish. Pogachar and his UAE team Emirates, for example, are hoping to make the fast riders suffer, as they did in last year's acceleration in Cipressa.

However, Ewan said it was a mistake to leave fewer riders in Poggio to torment the sprinters. If I were in Pogachar's shoes, I would do things differently.

"For me, he used the wrong tactics. 'He went full throttle in Chipressa and neutralized the race. That's why I was so calm going into Poggio."

"All the guys who were still at the bottom went over the top. If you don't attack in Cipressa, you attack in Poggio in a bigger group and with higher intensity. If I were in his shoes, I would wait until Poggio and then attack. 0]

And as for a possible attack on the technical descent to San Remo, where Matej Mohoric was so successful last year, Juan is confident that he can follow the Slovenian, or whoever else decides to take off at the top.

"In that case I will have to follow him and attack the corners without fear. I think I'm good downhill. I think I'm good downhill, good enough to keep up with him, but not good enough to make a gap on him."