After watching the Tour de France from home, Wout van Aert is ready to return as a protagonist in a Grand Tour. Tomorrow the Belgian will start the Vuelta a España, the final three-week appointment of the season, with a precise objective: to win a stage immediately. Preferably from the first day, when the peloton will face the individual time trial of 9.4 kilometers on the roads of Monaco.

For Van Aert it will be a sort of redemption after a summer hampered by an elbow injury that prevented him from starting the Tour de France. However, the Belgian has progressively regained form and confidence, arriving at the Vuelta with a different program than usual and, above all, with a team built to attack.

"We want to win as many stages as possible, but we start with the first one - Van Aert explained on the eve of the start - I think it's clear that we have a team aiming for stages and not the general classification; this is different from usual. And that's fine with me, obviously. I'm a versatile rider and with this course there are many opportunities."

Words that perfectly capture the mission of Visma | Lease a Bike. No rider called to defend a position in the general classification at all costs, no captain forced to follow rivals on the big mountains. The objective will be much simpler and at the same time ambitious: seek opportunities, attack and win.

The first opportunity will come immediately. The Vuelta will indeed start with a 9.4-kilometer time trial, short but technical, in the spectacular setting of Monaco. A course that Van Aert has already studied and tried to interpret with his time trial bike.

"I inspected the time trial course, or at least I tried to with all that traffic," he said with a smile. The route, according to the Belgian, presents some particular difficulties: "I think it's a bit too technical. The final section is a bit on the edge for a time trial bike. The Monaco setting, however, is truly special."

Van Aert therefore doesn't hide his ambitions. The time trial won't just be a first test to gauge his fitness level: it can immediately become an opportunity to claim a stage victory and, above all, to wear the red jersey.

"The sensations are not bad at all - explained the Flemish rider - I've dedicated myself to it more lately, because there's something to win. The time trial itself also gives me the chance to be close to the general classification and aim for the red jersey the day after. I've focused on this in recent weeks and we'll see how it goes."

The strategy is therefore clear. Van Aert wants to start strong, exploit his time trial qualities and try to remain in the top positions of the standings after the first day. Then, in the second stage, a rolling course will arrive that could suit his characteristics even better. The second fraction will indeed be another opportunity for the Belgian. Short climbs, attacks, descents and a far from straightforward finale: terrain where Van Aert can play his cards both in a reduced sprint and through a long-range attack.

The problem, if any, will come the next day. The third stage will take the peloton towards Font Romeu, at almost 2,000 meters altitude. There the red jersey could change hands quickly.

But Van Aert doesn't seem inclined to worry about it. His Vuelta won't be built around the general classification. It will be a race to live day by day, seeking the best opportunities and exploiting the freedom granted by the team. At his side will be important riders like Matthew Brennan, Sepp Kuss and Christophe Laporte, in a group where there is no single leader for the general classification. And for a rider with Van Aert's characteristics, this freedom can become a formidable weapon.

The Belgian also arrives in Spain with encouraging signs. After a preparation period, Van Aert raced the Tour of Denmark, where he claimed three stage victories and the general classification. Subsequently he participated in the Belgian gravel championships, finishing second behind his friend Daan Soete. A particular approach, but one that seems to have restored his brilliance.

Now we'll need to see if that form can last for three weeks. The Vuelta is a completely different race and features a grueling course, with mountains, heat and numerous complicated finishes. But Van Aert arrives at the start without the weight of having to defend a specific result and this could make him even more dangerous.

Among the Belgian's objectives is another jersey: the points classification. The Vuelta's course offers several opportunities for fast and complete riders, just like Van Aert, although the competition will be particularly fierce.

The name to beat is Mads Pedersen, fresh from a Tour de France where he claimed the points jersey. The Dane, however, spent a lot on the French roads and it remains to be seen if he will intend to face another long battle for the points classification, although, from his initial statements, he seems interested only in stage victories.

But first, there's Monaco. There are those 9.4 kilometers to tackle with the time trial bike, corners to interpret at the limit and a red jersey that could be there, within reach.

"We'll see how it goes," Van Aert says laconically. But the message is clear: after missing the Tour, the Belgian wants his Vuelta to be a completely different story. And the first opportunity to get his redemption comes already tomorrow.