Bernie Eisel’s tenth place is unlikely to have made huge waves in the cycling world, but the reaction of his team was certainly interesting. ‘Testing his legs’ they termed his sprinting effort on Twitter – testing for what it remains to be seen, but we can certainly hazard a few guesses. Team Sky’s quality in the stage races is undoubted, but now in their fifth year as a ProTeam such success is yet to be reflected in the Classics.

With Sir Bradley Wiggins reportedly targeting Paris-Roubaix victory, Luke Rowe an unabashed admirer of the cobbles, and Geraint Thomas keen to make his mark on an individual level this year, Team Sky’s fortunes could change. And 2010 Gent-Wevelgem winner Bernie Eisel should certainly not be counted out of leading such an occurrence. All eyes are on Tom Boonen, Fabian Cancellara (Trek) and Peter Sagan (Cannondale) ahead of the spring, but if Eisel were to test his legs a few more times perhaps we should give a more than a sideways glance in the Austrian’s direction.