Julien Alaphilippe (opens in new tab) and Sam Bennett (opens in new tab) will lead the Detuning Quick-Step (opens in new tab) in the Tour de France (opens in new tab), which opens Saturday in Nice.

Bennett will lead the pack sprint, but general director of sports Tom Steele said he will not necessarily be looking to replicate his remarkable performance in last year's Tour, when Alaphilippe led the race until the final Friday.

Mikhail Morkov will lead out Bennett in the sprint, Tim Declercq will once again lead the peloton, and Dries Devenyns will play a key role as Alaphilippe's most trusted domestique. Zdenek Stival, Bob Jungels, and newly crowned Danish Champion Kasper Asgreen complete the strong lineup.

Alaphilippe held the yellow jersey for 14 days at the 2019 Tour, winning two stages and ultimately finishing fifth overall in Paris. The modified 2020 Tour route seems better suited to his punchy style, but also has more mountains.

Steele warned that Alaphilippe would have difficulty replicating last year's results.

"For Julien, it will be very difficult to replicate last year's Tour. We will take it day by day with him and see what happens," said Steele's.

"There are some great opportunities for him, but I can tell you that I don't see a scenario like the last Tour.

Alaphilippe finished second in Milan-San Remo two weeks ago and attacked the Criterium du Dauphiné as part of his preparation for the Tour, but struggled to become a consistent overall contender.

Bennett will return to the Tour for the first time since 2016, looking to win the Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a España as well as a stage victory at the Gran Bucru.

He warmed up for the race with stage wins at the Vuelta a Burgos and Tour de Wallonie, but his sprint chances are limited on the 2020 Tour route.

"Sam is a bunch sprint contender and the route is one of the toughest in recent memory, so it will not be as straightforward as in the past," Steele said.

"I think there are up to four clear stages for sprinters in three weeks.

"Michael will be Sam's last man and will lead him through the hectic last kilometer, but at the same time Casper and Styby will also play an important role in his lead-out train, keeping an eye out for escape opportunities.

Jungels and Devenyns will support Alaphilippe throughout, while Tim Declercq was voted the peloton's best domestique (open in new tab) by Cycling News.

"Tim controls the races he does best. He is a world-class domestique and has the power and knowledge to do so," Steele said.

Julien Alaphilippe (France), Kasper Asgreen (Denmark), Sam Bennett (Ireland), Tim Declercq (Bell), Dries Devenyns (Bell), Bob Jungels (Lux), Michal Molkov (Denmark), Zdenek Stival (Czech Republic) [31].