Egan Bernal is considering the possibility of making his Giro d'Italia debut in 2021 and told La Gazzetta dello Sport that competing in the race is his "first option."

In late December, the Ineos rider appeared to suggest that he would target the Tour de France again this season, but in an interview with La Gazzetta on Friday, the Ineos Grenadiers leader said he still has the Giro in mind.

"I really want to. Yes, I do. 'The interview I had recently in Colombia showed that I am preparing for the Tour. But the Giro comes first on the calendar, and in my mind, the first option is to be at the start. Because it's something special

"I don't know if I have the conditions to go there as a team leader, and I don't know if it's to help my teammates or to help my captain, who is running better than me. But that doesn't mean it's set in stone. I have to define things with the team and see how my recovery goes."

The route for the 2021 Giro has not yet been revealed, but Vincenzo Nibali, Bauke Mollema (Trek-Segafredo), Emmanuel Buchmann (Bora-Hansgrohe), and Remco Evenpole (Deceuninck-Quickstep) are among the GC contenders have announced their participation.

Bernal was scheduled to lead Ineos in the 2019 Giro, but withdrew from the race after crashing in training just before the race. He recovered to win that year's Tour de France ahead of teammate Geraint Thomas.

The 23-year-old's title defense was hampered by a back injury. He was later diagnosed with scoliosis, which ended his season.

"I was in Germany, England, France, and Spain. I had tests and heard different opinions. At some point, I couldn't stand for more than five minutes without pain. It was complicated, but it's getting better and I'm starting to feel like a cyclist again," Bernal said, explaining that the root of the problem is that one leg is longer than the other.

"I've been dealing with back pain for as long as I can remember, but never as strong as in the Tour. My left leg is about 2 cm - 1.7 cm longer. Because of this, I had scoliosis of the spine. One of the discs was pressing on the nerve that "controls" the hip and leg. It is to eliminate [the pain] completely, but it will be a long process."

Chris Froome moved from Ineos to Israel Startup Nation, but Bernal has three Grand Tour winners: 2020 Giro champion Tao Geoghegan Hart, 2019 champion Richard Karapas, and 2018 Tour champion Geraint Thomas. The team will keep experienced riders on the roster. The British team has also signed Richie Porte, Adam Yates, and Criterium du Dauphiné winner Daniel Martinez.

Bernal has not yet finalized his race program for 2021, but his season is expected to start with either the Colombian Championships or the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana.

"I feel good, I'm motivated," he said. I haven't raced in almost four months. Even if I'm not in the best shape, I'm going to start again in early February."