The French team Total Direct Énergie wants its showman.
This spring, Jean-René Bernaudeau, the historic boss of the Vendée training, strongly considered making a contract offer to Julian Alaphilippe.
His dream did not last long because the world champion preferred to extend his lease with his Deceuninck - Quick Step team.
But one hope can hide another.
Bernaudeau knows that his sponsors, without giving him a specific envelope for recruitment, can release funds if an exceptional offer arises.
And in the world of cycling, the other popular and efficient head of the gondola is called Peter Sagan.
At 31, the Slovak sprinter, triple world champion, is on the market because at the end of his contract with his team Bora-Hansgrohe.
For a long time the favorite to enroll him was precisely… Deceuninck - Quick Step, Julian Alaphilippe's team.
But the negotiations are complicated because Sagan is demanding.
For his salary of course, but because he wants to come with his close guard, three teammates: Daniel Oss, Maciej Bodnar and his own brother Juraj Sagan.
But also his personal mechanic, his press officer and his masseur.
A "very very serious" track
All these requirements do not put Total Direct Énergie off. According to the Italian sports daily, Gazzetta dello Sport, the French team is even in pole position now. Officially, no one can speak on this issue since transfers in cycling are not supposed to start until August 1. A big joke because on this date, in reality, everything has already been stalled for a long time with the teams.
According to our information, the Sagan track is considered "very very serious" within the Vendée formation.
The latter has dreamed of major success for several years.
In 2019, she had thus enlisted the Dutchman Niki Terpstra, winner of Paris-Roubaix 2014 and the Tour of Flanders 2018. Without much success so far.
The possible arrival of Peter Sagan would be of another scale, in particular with the French public where his sympathy rating remains very high.
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Obviously, there remains the question of Sagan's sporting level. Last season, he only won one race, the 10th stage of the Giro. This season, his record is a little more substantial: three victories (6th stage of the Tour de Catalogne, 1st stage of the Tour de Romandie and 10th stage of the Giro). On the current Tour of Italy, he currently wears the cyclamen jersey for the points classification which he intends to add to his collection of seven green Tour de France jerseys.
