Michael Valgren has signed a two-year contract with EF Pro Cycling. The Danish rider joins the US WorldTour team after two years with NTT Pro Cycling.

The 28-year-old, who won both the Amstel Gold Race and the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in 2018, joins EF Pro Cycling to strengthen its One Day and Classics teams for the upcoming season.

Valgren has long been touted as a rider capable of winning most of the spring one-day classics, but has been plagued by illness and bad luck the last two seasons; he has not won a race since leaving Astana in 2018, but he did win the 2019 in Harrogate he has been impressive in the 2012 World Championships road race, finishing sixth behind winner and teammate Mads Pedersen.

With sponsor NTT set to withdraw from the sport at the end of the year and the team's future looking bleak, Valgren was linked to him by both Team Ineos and Israel Startup Nation, making him one of the peloton's most high-profile riders and became one of the most high-profile riders in the peloton.

However, Jonathan Vaughters' team won the race for the Danish rider, and the 2021 season will provide an environment and culture in which Valgren can fully reinvent himself and resume his career.

The EF Pro Cycling Classic team already includes 2019 Tour de Flanders winner Albert Bettiol, Sebastian Langefeldt, Moreno Hofland, and Jens Keukerer. With Sepp Vanmarcke leaving the team for Israel Startup Nation, Valgren now occupies a central position in the core of an already established group.

Vaughters welcomes the Danish rider to the team and hopes to capitalize on the rider's raw ability in major races, especially the spring classics.

"Michael has a big motor and is a true talent. He excels in the classics and is extremely valuable to the team in the stage races. I am looking forward to seeing what he brings to our crew. He gives us another card to play when things get crazy in the cobbled races.

Valgren added that he has already spoken with the Danish athletes on the EF roster and that the team seems to be having fun.

"I am most excited to move to EF and start working with all the people there. Of course, as a fellow Dane, I've also spoken with Matti Breschel and Magnus Kort. They both said it's a great team and I'm looking forward to being a part of it. From the outside, EF looks like a very fun team. I can't wait to be a part of it. I think I will fit right in."

"I think my strength as a rider is my endurance and my ability to read a race. So I think that's a great combination, especially in a one-day race. The longer the race goes on, the better I get at reading the riders in the race. That's one of my greatest qualities on the bike.

Valgren's 2021 race program has yet to be determined, but given his pedigree and background, he will likely compete in some of the spring classics. The 28-year-old Valgren has identified the Tour de Flanders as a race he would particularly like to win in the future.

"It's a special race. It's very intense, long and hard, but somehow it goes by so fast. I'm always good there," explained Valgren, who finished fourth in the 2018 Tour de Flanders.

"But the combination of the course, the atmosphere, and the history make the Ronde van Vlaanderen a really great battle.

Valgren joined Tinkoff Sachs in 2013 after working for Team Cult Energy with Magnus Court. He then joined Tinkoff Saxo in 2014, where he spent three years before moving to Astana in 2017. He won the under-23 Liège-Bastogne Liège in 2012 and 2013 before breaking through on the World Tour in 2018.