Frenchman Warren Barguil makes his Tour de France debut as a possible contender for the white jersey, but he may find the polka dot jersey easier to target given that Nairo Quintana (Movistar) is likely to dominate the former classification.

A quiet season has seen Barguil slip out of the limelight somewhat, but his rivals will know not to underestimate the 23-year-old after two Vuelta a Espana stage wins in 2013.

His final races before the Tour saw him finish 12th at the Tour de Suisse and then just outside the podium places at the national road race, so the form is coming. And if he can stick close to the contenders on the climbs, as he did in the crosswinds on stage two, he will naturally start chalking up the points.

The Giant-Alpecin team isn’t built for the mountains, instead focusing on sprint stages – led this year by John Degenkolb in place of the virus-stricken Marcel Kittel.

But just because he’ll have to do it on his own, that does not mean Barguil can’t feature at the sharp end of the race and remind home fans why he should be considered as exciting a prospect as the likes of Romain Bardet and Thibaut Pinot.