Lidl-Trek under review: If you have Nys, Milan and Van der Poel-slayer Pedersen, you brush away physical setbacks

Lidl-Trek Lidl-Trek was present, from the first one-day race to the last, and yet the prevailing feeling remains: what if? Mads Pedersen defeated Mathieu van der Poel in Gent-Wevelgem in a head-to-head duel, creating hope for an ultimate showdown in the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. A crash in Dwars door Vlaanderen put an end to those plans. Pedersen fought hard on the ground he loves so much, but he will have to wait another year for success in a Monument.

However, the American team is no longer solely dependent on Pedersen. Toms Skujins had the year of his life: second in Strade Bianche, eighth in the E3, tenth in the Tour of Flanders, always attacking, and still in top form at the end of the year with sixth place in Montreal and fourth at the World Championships. Jasper Stuyven also showed super form but was caught in the crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen, ending his spring earlier than hoped. That meant he couldn't build on his seventh place in Omloop and second place in the E3.

So, what if? What if everyone had stayed fit? Could Lidl-Trek have formed a formidable block against Alpecin-Deceuninck and Van der Poel? As it stands, their victories in one-day races were limited to that one striking win by Pedersen. And then consider that Thibau Nys fell while in a winning position in Switzerland, Jonathan Milan could have/should have achieved more at the European Championships for sprinters, and the climbing classics were out of reach for the injured Giulio Ciccone... The Italian finished third in Lombardy, which says enough. Plenty of room for growth for the team in this area.

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In stage racing, few teams were better in 2024 than Lidl-Trek. UAE Team Emirates won a lot, but 34 victories for a team without a true grand tour leader... That is impressive! There were three stage wins and the overall victory for Pedersen in the Tour de la Provence, stage and overall victory for Juan Pédro López in the Tour of the Alps, the mighty Milan with two stage wins in Tirreno and three stages in the Giro, Pedersen in the Dauphiné, Nys in Switzerland and three wins in Poland, plus a very dominant week in the Lidl Deutschland Tour, where home team Lidl-Trek won all stages and the overall classification, again with Pedersen.

The only thing missing was major success in the Tour de France, where last year Ciccone won the mountain jersey. Intended Tour leader Tao Geoghegan Hart saw his entire season ruined by crashes, and Ciccone himself had to skip the Giro due to a saddle sore. Only the Vuelta a España went according to plan, yielding a fifth place overall for Mattias Skjelmose, along with the young rider's jersey.

Since Ciccone, Geoghegan Hart and López — all targeted GC riders — did not manage to stay fit throughout the year, we will never know if they could have contended for a strong top ten in the Giro and Tour. Because that is ultimately what the team aims for.

Last year, Lidl-Trek scored a 6.8, and after a very successful year, that score has increased by a point. A 7.8, because there is still a lot to be gained in both one-day races and stage races. However, the record of 42 victories and fourth place in the UCI Team Ranking (fifth last year) shows that the team is on the rise.

Lidl-Trek was not very active this winter, nor did it really need to be. The team already had the right guys to help them shine. This meant that only two targeted acquisitions were made: Lennard Kämna and Søren Kragh Andersen. Riders for one-day races and stage wins, but also men who can win week-long stage races. Tim Torn Teutenberg and Albert Withen Philipsen step up to the WorldTour as future talents.

Incoming: Lennard Kämna (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe), Søren Kragh Andersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Tim Torn Teutenberg (Lidl-Trek Future Racing) and Albert Withen Philipsen (Tscherning Cycling Academy)

Outgoing: Dario Cataldo (retiring), Fabio Felline (currently unknown) and Natnael Tesfatsion (Movistar)

As we said, the big 'what if' question looms over this team. What if Ciccone stays fit for a full year? What if Geoghegan Hart regains his form from the 2020 and 2023 Giro d'Italia without setbacks? What if López takes another step forward? And what can newcomer Lennard Kämna do in the team? The German is transferring in from Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe, in order to start again with a blank slate, but everyone knows his enormous potential as a stage hunter and general classification contender.

In one-day races, Lidl-Trek — if fully fit — can be a formidable force in balancing out giants like Alpecin-Deceuninck and Visma | Lease a Bike. Pedersen holds his own against Van der Poel and Wout van Aert, and Skujins and Stuyven seemed better than ever in 2024. Add to that Skjelmose and Ciccone in the Ardennes, and Nys, who will be tackling some classics for the first time, and we have a lot to look forward to.

Finally, let’s point out the sprint force and young riders at Lidl-Trek. Milan seems to be the fastest man in the peloton when it comes to pure speed, along with an excellent sprint train. Albert Withen Philipsen and Tim Torn Teutenberg are rising talents in the WorldTour. What can they achieve in this world where 18-year-olds are already winning?