'If I were the team boss, I would send him' - Naesen backs Seixas for Tour de France debut

Seixas is under contract with Decathlon until the end of 2027, but that hasn't stopped rival teams from circling. Naesen, his teammate, didn't dodge the subject.

"There are no alternatives if you want to go for victory in the Tour in the coming years. Several teams are trying to sign him, but he is still under contract with us next year, said Naesen on the HLN podcast.

That reality makes the Tour de France decision this summer all the more important. According to Naesen, the team hasn't committed to taking the 19-year-old in July. 

So far, Seixas has made a huge impression in 2026. At the Strade Bianche, he was the last rider able to follow Tadej Pogačar deep into the race. He then claimed his first professional victory at the Volta ao Algarve, pushing Juan Ayuso all the way in the battle for the general classification.

On the back of those results, Naesen believes they are running out of reasons not to send him. “If I were the team boss, I would send him.”

The way Naesen sees it, this is the one year where Seixas can go to the Tour with no baggage. Nobody expects him to win. A twelfth place and a couple of cracks at stage wins would have the French going mad. But if they hold him back and he delivers a top five at the Vuelta instead, everything changes. His first Tour suddenly carries pressure that no teenager needs.

"If you send him now and he finishes twelfth and competes for a stage win a few times, that would already be a tremendous success for someone his age."

Recently Tour de France boss, Christian Prudhomme told Eurosport that momentum around the young Frenchman is clearly building behind the scenes, with a summer debut looking increasingly likely.

"There is a 90% chance. [...] I have the feeling that he is going to come," Prudhomme said. "What I sense from the various discussions is that a few weeks ago the team was wondering why he should be at the Tour, and now they are desperately looking for reasons not to put him in the Tour."

Before any of that, there is the small matter of Sunday. Seixas lines up at Liège–Bastogne–Liège for his first-ever Monument, and Naesen is not lowering expectations. "You can expect a lot from Paul. I expect him to finish on the podium, and I think he expects that himself as well."

Greg Van Avermaet was a touch more measured, calling Liège a test for Seixas to see how far he can go at a Monument, with the bigger targets still ahead.

But for Decathlon, the bigger targets might already be here. A French team, a French rider, and a window that is closing. If not this summer, when?