Let's look at the other options for the places behind the big 4 + Thomas:You have to be pretty damn dismissive of the most recent Tour de France to not have Simon Yates in there.
Ayuso - didn't race
Hart - didn't race
Almeida - didn't race
Mas - crashed out on day 1
Carapaz - crashed out on day 1
Hindley - was well ahead of him before injuring himself
Rodriguez - would have beaten him without his stage 20 crash in spite of a completely disrupted first half of the season
Adam Yates - beat him
It's really not that impressive of a fourth place (similar to Gaudu's in 2022), and then to add to that he's also more inconsistent than almost anyone listed above.