'Crazy, weird' UAE Team Emirates-XRG tactics spark debate as Joao Almeida, Marc Soler & Jonas Vingegaard involved in 'bizarre' Vuelta Stage 14 finale

Were UAE Team Emirates-XRG playing too much of a risky game? Or did they get everything right yet again? The team's tactics came into question on Saturday after Marc Soler won his team a seventh stage win at La Vuelta, but his team-mate Joao Almeida lost potentially precious seconds to Jonas Vingegaard in the GC battle. Was it "bizarre" or "brilliant" to leave Soler out in front?

Highlights: UAE smile again as Soler soloes to famous win at La Vuelta

Video credit: TNT Sports

The "questionable" tactics of UAE Team Emirates-XRG during Marc Soler’s Stage 14 win at La Vuelta sparked a lively debate in The Breakaway studio on Saturday.

The Spaniard soloed to a superb victory on a challenging day in the mountains to make it seven wins from 14 stages so far at the final Grand Tour of the season for his team.

However, UAE’s red jersey hopeful Joao Almeida lost bonus seconds to race leader Jonas Vingegaard (Visma-Lease a Bike) after being pipped to second place at the line.

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The final few kilometres of the race saw Soler being chased down by his own team-mates, with the Spaniard left to chase the victory instead of dropping back to aid Almeida’s efforts to crack the two-time Tour de France winner and cut the gap at the top of the general classification standings.

Soler became the latest stage winner for UAE, but Almeida now sits 48 seconds behind Vingegaard in the GC race.

"It was a fascinating stage. The sight of Soler’s team chasing - the optics were quite weird," said Matt Stephens on TNT Sports.

"I know our very own (TNT Sports co-commentator) Sean Kelly was very critical of the tactic because it looked bizarre. But in the end, it paid off.

Vingegaard ‘happy with bonus seconds’, says Visma-Lease a Bike executed plan ‘really well’

Video credit: TNT Sports

"It took us back to 2018 or 2019 when Soler was in the break, he was told to come back and throw the stage win out of the window, and he threw his toys out of the pram. It didn’t happen today and that’s his fourth stage win at the Vuelta. He does love this race.

"There was a bit of Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe chasing in the valley, but then it was his own team-mates bringing that gap back, so that must have been really hard to hear. Clearly, they had a plan today, but to see it unfold, especially in the closing stages, was weird."

Stephens added: "He [Soler] rode one of the races of his life to basically hold off his own team.

"They pulled it off but imagine if Vingegaard had got in? He got second in the end. It was an interesting play, a risky one, but they’ve come up at the end of it with another stage win and second place overall. So, you can’t criticise it. I love the fact they’ve taken a few risks – I love it."

Presenter Orla Chennaoui raised the question of how risky the tactic was, given the potential for Vingegaard claiming both the stage win and a bigger GC advantage, but Adam Blythe believed it was the right thing to do.

"They won the race, they’ve not lost time on GC," Blythe said.

"Also, bringing Marc Soler down that mountain, the job he would’ve been able to do might have only been for a select amount of time. So, he wouldn’t have been in that situation where he’s on top of the climb with Almeida.

"So let him get in touching distance and then it’s up to the other guys. Joao can then start to play the game a little bit. I understand why we’re saying it, but also, we don’t see this often, and I think that’s why we’re criticising it."

Almeida says UAE had ‘nothing to lose’ after seventh stage win, admits Vingegaard ‘super strong’

Video credit: TNT Sports

Chennaoui replied: "I don’t know if we’re criticising it so much as questioning it. Sean [Kelly] was criticising it, but we’re asking legitimate questions.

"And we have seen Visma doing pretty much this kind of approach to a Grand Tour before and it working for them, maybe not winning quite as much as this, but allowing riders to go for the stage wins. Maybe this is just the new way of doing it."

"I think it’s brilliant. I’m all for it," said Blythe. "If you’ve got your team chasing you, they’re riding for GC so crack on lads, I’m going to stay out here for as long as I can.

"But ultimately, if it did get to a point where they are going to catch you, they will say on the radio that we are going to catch you in the next minute or two, so back off so you can give something to Joao and contribute to that. And it’s the hardest bit of the race where if he had to, he could’ve helped. I can see why people might not like it so much, but I’m all for it."

Soler 'can't explain' how UAE have won half the Vuelta stages - 'Unbelievable'

Video credit: TNT Sports

For Stephens, it was difficult to question the decision-making of the team considering the success they have achieved thus far.

Not only have UAE won half of the stages at La Vuelta this year, but they are closing in on the all-time record of 85 wins in a season set by Columbia-HTC in 2009.

"It’s not that I don’t like it, I think it’s spectacular," Stephens said.

"It’s just that when it’s unfolding, it’s just really questionable. Optically it looks absolutely crazy, but they’ve managed to pull it off time and time again.

"And they’ve managed to put the right rider in the breakaway. All these wins apart from Almeida’s have come from the break. They’ve put the right riders in the break and we’re looking at really big breaks, 20/30 riders sometimes, and each time they’ve come out on top. They’ve absolutely nailed it."