UAE Team Emirates will put out a well-balanced team for two days of racing in Northern Europe as they take on the Brussels Cycling Classic and the GP de Fourmies.

Blending experience and youth, the team will be led by 2017 European champion Alexander Kristoff and supported by 2013 world champion Rui Costa.

Alongside them will be an Italian quartet of Marco Marcato, Filippo Ganna, Matteo Bono and Oliviero Troia, as well as the team’s Argentinian stagiaire Nicolas Tivani. The team will be guided by experienced sports director, Daniele Righi.

The Brussels Cycling Classic is first up on Saturday, September 1, with the GP de Fourmies taking place the day after.

Commenting on the weekend of racing Righi said: “This weekend we will take on the two races with a team that’s a mix of experience and future talent.

“We are aiming for a result with Kristoff, but it’s also a chance to test young riders like Tivani. The Argentine has the qualities to be the last lead-out man for sprinters, but also one who can win from escapes.”

The Brussels Cycling Classic is a well-established late-season race in Belgium. The flat 201.4km route departs from Jubelpark and loops round the south west of the city before culminating in a fiercely contested sprint finish in Heizel.

The GP de Fourmies, which is held in the north of France, has been running since 2005. This year’s course is 205km long and will, like the Brussels Cycling Classic, end with a bunch sprint finish.