Julien Alaphilippe's suitability for the Tour de Flanders was demonstrated in his ill-fated debut in the fall of 2020, when he joined Mathieu Van der Pol and Wout Van Aert in the race for the win.

The relationship between the Frenchman and Rondet never recovered. The following spring, he was relatively quiet as teammate Kasper Asgreen took the win. Last year, another crash jeopardized his race, and he finished 51st.

Alaphilippe will again lead the Sourdal Quickstep this year along with Asgreen, but he has fallen far short of expectations in his spring campaign and is in the outsider's position. The French rider said as much at the Soudal headquarters in Turnhout on Friday.

"I'm going in with the ambition to get a result," Alaphilippe told RMC radio. 'But above all, I consider myself a rider who gives his all and aims for the best results.' I don't want to put myself in the hierarchy of the current riders, and I don't care about that."

"I know the level is very high and I know there are very, very strong riders. There is a big contender in Mathieu Van der Pol, but we are concentrating on what we have. We are far from the favorites, so we know we have to adapt. It will be difficult to win, but we will give it our all.

Alaphilippe, who finished ninth in Milan-San Remo two weeks ago, has made little impression in his two races on the cobbles, the E3 Saxo Classic and Dwars door Hlaanderen. Meanwhile, last weekend, Soudal-Quick Step director Patrick Lefebvre suggested that it was a mistake to tie Alaphilippe, Asgreen, and Yves Lampert to their current contracts.

This critique was, of course, mild compared to some of Lefebvre's other jabs at Alaphilippe over the past year or so. In an interview with Humo magazine published last month, Lefebvre was rather more scathing about Alaphilippe, suggesting that the blame for his poor performance lay in his lifestyle and his relationship with his partner, Tour de France Femme director Marion Luce He said.

Later that week, when Sourdal-Quick Step held a press conference prior to Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, it was decided by the team that Alaphilippe would not speak on the matter. Around that time, Ruth responded to Lefebvre's comments on social media, calling on the Belgian to "show a little more class." On Friday, Alaphilippe rejected the notion that he was influenced by Lefebvre's criticism.

"I really detached myself from it as much as possible, as I often do," Alaphilippe told RMC. 'I was more frustrated with Marion. She didn't like to get involved in things that were pointless and meaningless. It was a little annoying that it kept coming up when it was supposed to be personal. But for me, no, it doesn't matter anymore. In fact, I don't care. [All I can do is] do my job well. As long as I feel that way, the rest doesn't matter. All that matters to me is that my son is healthy and that I do my job to the best of my ability."

Lefebvre, meanwhile, was asked about his criticism of Alaphilippe in an interview published in L'Équipe on Saturday, again claiming that his original comments in Dutch were taken out of context when translated.

"I don't want to look back on this episode. I just want you to understand that I am also shocked that I can't speak my mind. It's not just about Julien," Lefebvre said, later adding: "The problem is that you French, like the English, don't try to translate what I say properly. "

Both Lefebvre and Alaphilippe agree that Sudar Quick-Step has a point to prove in Sunday's Tour de Flanders. The team has won the race eight times in the past, but will have to overcome the challenges of the cobbled classic this season.

"It is still my goal to win the Tour de Flanders one day," Alaphilippe said. But looking at the last few weeks, it seems like that dream is getting further and further away. But you always have to believe. We are here to win races and we will give it our all.

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