While Geraint Thomas’ may have entertained dreams of enjoying a protected role during the Tour de France earlier this year, those aspirations now appear to have been shelved, at least for the time being, with the Welsh rider set to ride as a domestique deluxe for defending Tour de France winner Chris Froome.

A former track rider, Thomas has added a new level to his transformation into a serious contender in stage races on the road in 2016, winning the Volta ao Algarve and Paris-Nice earlier in the year. That, however, meant that expectations were high as he entered the Tour de Suisse. By Thomas’ new standards, he performed disappointingly and finished outside of the top-ten. On the eve of the Tour, he confirmed that it had taken him some time to change his focus but that helping Froome win back-to-back Tours was now his focus.

“Suisse didn’t really go to plan. It certainly wasn’t where I hoped to be. That was a big disappointment but I’ve rested up and I’m raring to go,” Thomas said at the Team Sky pre-race press conference at Omaha Beach in Northern France according to Cyclingnews.

“This is all about doing my job for Froome. Hopefully when we start climbing I feel good and if I’m up there, anything extra would be a huge bonus but in the last two weeks I’ve got my head around being here for Froome. If anything else happens that’s great but I’m not really thinking about personal ambitions.”

Thomas, who finished 15th in last year’s Tour, acknowledged that he may have pushed his Tour preparations too far.

“I had a good camp in Tenerife and was a bit keen maybe and trained hard. I pushed the diet as well and it’s just one of those things. This is the first year I’ve concentrated on stage races and the start went really well. I think I was just a bit too keen. You have those races from time to time but I’ve done everything possible since then to freshen up and fuel up. I’ll be good when it matters.”

Nevertheless, Thomas looks set to play a crucial part in Froome’s defence. Like Ian Stannard and Luke Rowe, he can perform well on the flat stages and will be a presence when Froome needs protection in the first week. His climbing abilities will be of service to the Sky captain during the second week, while Team Sky will rely on him to find his best form in the difficult third week of the race.