John Degenkolb will join Paris-Roubaix winner Philippe Gilbert in 2020 to take his new team, Lotto Soudal, to the next level.

After three years with Trek-Segafredo, the German will move on and work with Gilbert to revive the Lotto-Soudal cobbled classics. since Peter van Petegem won the Flanders-Roubaix double in 2003, the Belgian team has been a major contender since the 2005 Since Peter Van Petegem won the Flanders-Roubaix double in 2003, the Belgian team has only won one race, Ghent-Wevelgem, which was won by Nico Mattan in 2005.

"We have already had our first team meeting, where we discussed broadly the direction we want to take, especially in the Classics. We want to take the team to a higher level and be more successful than we have been in the past."

The contracts of the two Monument winners, who have won seven races, were announced a few days apart in mid-August. Degenkolb, who is also eager to race with sprinter Caleb Yuan, said the announcement gave the two a chance to talk during the Vuelta a España, adding that they have a good understanding.

"It was already clear at the Vuelta that both of us would be moving to Lot Soudal. We have already had several opportunities to talk. We understand each other very well."

"There will be more overlap in the spring and we will be on the road together in the winter.

Degenkolb and Gilbert's schedule and season goals have not yet been set, and the 30-year-old Gilbert has yet to reveal anything. But the Cobblestone Classic must be a major goal.

It is also no secret that the 37-year-old Gilbert is aiming to win the Milan-San Remo, which Degenkolb won in 2015, before retiring; he posted a video on Twitter of him riding through the San Remo train tunnel decorated with placards of past winners.

Degenkolb has also remained silent about his reasons for leaving Trek-Segafredo, and did not discuss it when he spoke to Cycling News at the season-ending Tour of Guangxi. The German was not selected for this year's Tour de France, saying only that the decision did not affect his choice to move from the American team.

"Not being selected for the Tour doesn't mean I'm looking for another team," he said. That's not why I left the team."

Degenkolb will soon get a chance to meet Gilbert and his new teammates. Lot Soudal will hold an end-of-season training camp and team presentation in Mallorca, Spain, in mid-December.