Vincenzo Nibali's retirement gave Filippo Ganna hope for Milan-San Remo, but the absence of Tom Pidcock made the Italian the star of the Ineos Grenadiers.

Pidcock will miss Milano-Sanremo after it was confirmed on Wednesday that he suffered a mild concussion in a crash on the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. It is not yet clear when the Strade Bianche winner will return to competition.

Meanwhile, Ganna won the opening time trial of Tirreno-Adriatico and held the blue jersey for three days. Ganna then honed his form on tough stages to Sassotet and Osimo.

"It felt harder and longer than usual, and I suffered a lot on the mushy stage

in Marche," Ganna told La Gazzetta dello Sport (open in new tab). But in general, the sensations were much better than in previous years.

"The build-up we did with trainer Dario Cioni was good. It paid off."

Ganna has competed in Milan-San Remo five times and has never finished higher than 51st, but in 2021 he replaced Pidcock and 2017 winner Michał Kwiatkowski in the poggio.

His appointment as gregario at this time drew a certain amount of ire in Italy, with one BiciSport headline ridiculing him: "Wake up Ganna, you could have won Milan - San Remo."

Ganna quickly diffused the polemic by explaining that he had been ill before the race. He said, "Let's not play DS with all the ifs and buts."

Ganna had another bout of illness last March, but this season is off to a good start: he finished second overall at the Vuelta a San Juan in January and did the same at the Volta ao Algarve the following month. The following month he did the same at the Volta ao Algarve.

If Ganna is to win at Via Roma on Saturday, he will need a late charge like Fabian Cancellara's in 2008 or Jasper Stuyven's two years ago.

"First we have to get a good position down the descent of Poggio and then we have to think about whether to attack immediately or go a bit further. But it's hard to attack before that," Ganna said.

"If we fall behind in Chipressa, we will be in trouble. You have to work twice as hard to improve your position and you may not be able to do that. This year we have to understand Poggio and his downhill strategy. I've never been able to stay in front of the best group before."

Taddei Pogachar broke up the lead group with a series of stinging accelerations on the Poggio 12 months ago. After his performance in Paris-Nice, it seems inevitable that the Slovenian's moves will once again have a major impact on how the finale unfolds.

"Some players are fuori class like him, others like me have to work more. We all have two arms and two legs. Positioning is fundamental."