The 36-year-old Movistar rider continued his superb form on Wednesday (April 19) when he captured a fourth-straight victory and fifth overall triumph at the La Flèche Wallonne classic in Belgium's Ardennes region.

It added to his UCI World Tour victories at the Volta a Catalunya and Tour of the Basque Country earlier this season.

Valverde’s most likely challenger is 2013 winner Dan Martin, the Irish Quick-Step Floors rider who finished runner-up to the Spaniard at La Flèche Wallonne.

This is despite the absence of team-mates Julian Alaphillippe of France and Philippe Gilbert of Belgium, both of whom are extremely helpful foils.

Last year’s winner Wout Poels of The Netherlands is not competing tomorrow, but Team Sky colleague Michal Kwiatkowski of Poland is expected to put on a strong showing.

Kwiatkowski triumphed at last month’s Strade Bianche and Milan-San Remo and finished second behind Gilbert at the recent Amstel Gold Race in The Netherlands.

His best result at the Liège-Bastogne-Liège came in 2014, when he took third place. 

Astana Pro Team, headed by Denmark’s Jakob Fuglsang, has confirmed it will start the 255-kilometre race, despite the death of Italian rider Michele Scarponi today. 

The 2011 Giro d’Italia winner was killed after being involved in a crash during training.

He was riding near his home in Filottrano in central Italy when a van collided with the 37-year-old.

It comes a day after Scarponi, who was married and had two children, had finished fourth in the Tour of the Alps, of which he won the opening stage on Monday (April 17).

"It's a very hard moment, and perhaps even more so than usual because as we all know he was racing just yesterday and on the social networks he'd put up a picture of himself and the leader's jersey with his children," race director Christian Prudhomme was reported as saying by Cycling News.

"Then he went home as quickly as he could and went out training this morning early.

"There's a real feeling of sadness today in the peloton, and, of course, here in Liège-Bastogne-Liège."