What now for Cancellara?

Based on his growing palmares Fabian Cancellara is arguably the best time-trialist and classics rider of his generation, and all that's left for the Swiss master is a grand tour win, writes Michael Tomalaris.

It's easy to label Swiss legend Fabian Cancellara one of the best cyclists the world has seen over the last decade, when one looks at his magnificent career record, it's a point hard to argue with.

But is he as good as Alberto Contador, and is it fair to compare him to the Spaniard?

There's no doubt Cancellara is an all-rounder in every sense.

He has won on relatively flat stages at the Tour de France and Vuelta a Espana, he's conquered many one day Classics such as Milan-SanRemo and the cobbles of Flanders and Roubaix.

Add to this Switzerland's national time trial title on six occasions, not to mention the national road race jersey he collected last year, and the Olympic crown in Beijing in 2008, and here you have one of the most extraordinary talents in modern professional cycling.

The question remains: Is Cancellara good enough and strong enough to challenge for overall honours in a Grand Tour?

The answer is yes - but in an era when the depth of riding talent on the ProTour is at an all-time high, realistically, it's a feat he would have a tough time attempting.

He's had a good taste of what it feels like to wear the TdF's yellow jersey in the first week of racing, but I wonder if the thought of wearing the golden fleece into Paris as a Tour winner has entered his mind?

At 29, Cancellara is relatively young and is at the stage of his career where he can only get better and stronger for much longer periods of time.

So, if that means challenging the likes of Contador, then I say "go for it".

When July comes around and Contador dominates the Tour as he's expected to, the images of Cancellara's performance on the cobbles to Roubaix may be a distant memory.

Some may argue he must match the performances of Eddy Merckx before any comparisons can be made.

After all, the man known as "The Cannibal" swept almost everything before him in the 1960s and 1970s.

One day events and Grant Tours, Merckx won it all and is still regarded as the greatest ever by those who saw him compete.

But let's face it, the great Belgian raced in an era when the sport was dominated by riders from only a handful of countries such as Belgium, The Netherlands, France, Italy and Germany.

It was before the wave of riders from English-speaking nations professional cycling experiences today.

Why is that many label Lance Armstrong as the greatest cyclist ever?

OK, he's the only man to have won seven Tours, but to be fair, he's rarely contested many Spring Classics nor challenged for gold at Olympic level.

In Cancellara's case it's a different story - he truly is a complete rider.

After dominating the Paris Roubaix with an extraordinary turn of speed and pulling away from Tom Boonen and a host of other talented riders in the blink of an eye, he wrote another line in his long list of achievements.

And judging by his emotional arrival into the Roubaix Velodrome, this was a sweet success story.

I wonder if he'll, one day, react in a similar way when entering the cobbles of the Champs Elysees?