"This is a real team victory", Brennan said afterwards. "We were here at the start as a development team, but if you see how the guys rode today, it could have been the WorldTour team. Everyone gave the full 110 percent and was eager to prove themselves today. The compliments are for the whole team. I'm glad I was able to finish it off."

With the win in Cologne, Brennan brought his season total to seven. Earlier this year, the talented Brit already booked two stage wins in the Volta Ciclista a Catalunya, a stage win in Tour de Romandie and was the strongest in one-day races such as Le Tour des 100 Communes, GP de la Ville de Lillers and GP de Denain. For Team Visma | Lease a Bike, it was the fourteenth win of the calendar year. 

"It's super special to win this race with the Development Team", sports director Robert Wagner said. "All the guys were extremely looking forward to racing with Matthew (he made the switch from the Development Team to the WorldTour team this season). Everyone was extremely motivated and committed to working for him. That was great to see."

"We had a clear strategy: go all in for Matthew", Wagner continued. "We took responsibility by controlling the course and left nothing to chance. Matthew always had at least two riders around him. Pietro and Will did an excellent job in the final and brought Matthew to the key point at 750 meters. We knew: if we can get him in a good position there, he has a great chance of winning. For him to finish like that is really class."