Alexander Kristoff can count on his teammates at the Tour of Flanders this weekend, especially with Luca Paolini, the Gent-Wevelgem winner. His role will be to protect the Norwegian rider who hopes to be present with the favorites in the final.

"Alexander is our leader, but as you saw at Wevelgem, I can have my chances if he’s not there,” Paolini said according to Velonews. “Personally, I believe Alexander can win. He is strong enough to make the selection, and no one can beat him in a sprint. If he has good legs and good luck, I think he can win Flanders.”

According to the Italian rider, Kristoff has an advantage over other riders. After 240 kilometers, he has always his speed finishing kick even if he has been beat by John Degenkolb (Team Giant Alpecin) at Milano-San Remo.

“Alexander can go the distance. When it’s more than 240km, there is no one who can beat him. Only a very strong John Degenkolb, who timed his sprint perfectly, could beat Alexander at Sanremo. The other sprinters cannot last the longer distances of the classics. That’s a big advantage for Alexander, because he can still be very fast at the end of a race that’s 240km, 260km long.”

“If Alexander is in the finale, he has a very good chance to win,” Paolini said. “The entire team is believing in him. He’s already won Milano-Sanremo, so I think his time has come.”