Slovenian Tratnik, Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s leader for the Portuguese stage race, is on course for a podium finish with one stage to go. "Tratnik had an excellent time trial. He also had a good feeling on the road. He got a good result”, sports director Marc Reef said.

Sepp Kuss dropped from third to eleventh in the general classification, but Reef was still satisfied. "We all know that the time trial is not Sepp's speciality. For his part, he did well. He lost some time on the competition, but that was to be expected.”

With Van Aert - who has paid little attention to his time trial this winter - still among the best in the standings, Team Visma | Lease a Bike has several riders capable of finishing high in the general classification on the final day. "We are now third, fourth and eleventh overall. This puts us in a good position. Looking at tomorrow's stage, with another uphill finish, a lot is still possible.”