In his fourth year at the helm of the Italian national team, Paolo Bettini is still waiting to see one of his riders follow in his footsteps and win the UCI world road championship. For this year’s edition, which takes place near Bettini’s home in Florence, Italy, he has chosen a veteran squad  to support designated team leader Vincenzo Nibali on the undulating parcours on September 29.

The Sicilian finished the Vuelta a España as runner-up on Sunday and will be Italy’s main asset on September 29. Nibali’s failure to defend his overall lead and win the Vuelta doesn’t concern Bettini.

“Even though he didn’t win the Vuelta, Nibali still rode an excellent Grand Tour,” Bettini told Gazzetta dello Sport. “His only problem was that Horner was absolutely outstanding. You cannot launch repeated attacks on a brutally steep mountain such as the Angliru the way Nibali did unless you are in peak condition. Nibali was splendid in the Vuelta but Horner was just slightly better.”

Amidst all the praise for Nibali, though, Bettini did point out one minor shortcoming of the star of the Italian team.

"Vincenzo is the absolute leader of our squad, but we cannot bet exclusively on him because he is not as fast as some of his main rivals in case a select group of riders reaches the finish line together. Therefore, we need alternatives such as Pozzato and Paolini to take the fight to opponents such as Sagan, Cancellara and Gilbert...."

Bettini has selected the following 11 riders riders for the Italian squad: Nibali, Simone Ponzi and Alessandro Vanotti (Astana), Luca Paolini and Giampaolo Caruso (Katusha), Rinaldo Nocentini (AG2R), Ivan Santaromita (BMC), Michele Scarponi, Filippo Pozzato and Diego Ulissi (Lampre-Merida) and Giovanni Visconti (Movistar Team). Two will be discarded before September 29. The main concern now is the state of Bettini Visconti who abandoned the Tour of Britain yesterday after a fall. "It was raining, he fell and hit his right knee and at first I feared the worst. It is a severe contusion, but we’ll have to evaluate when he arrives in Italy," said Bettini.

Since making his debut as coach of the Italian national team in 2010, Bettini and the Italian selection have not been on the podium, Pozzato’s fourth place in Geelong 2010 being the top Italian result during Bettini’s reign. The Italians, fans, riders and national coach alike, will be looking to settle that score on September 29.