2 years after his big win in the Vuelta a Espana, Juan Jose Cobo finds himself in the completely opposition situation to those glorious days. Having been left on the market by Movistar, the Spaniard still has the desire to continue as a professional cyclist but has been unable to find a new team for the 2014 season.

Juan Jose Cobo had his moment of glory when the then Geox-TMC rider beat Chris Froome to win the 2011 Vuelta a Espana. Having originally started the race as a domestique for Denis Menchov, the Spaniard emerged as the strongest rider in the race and won a thrilling battle against the rider that later took over the Tour de France crown.

When his Geox-TMC team suddenly folded, Cobo was left on the market but found himself in the comfortable position of being one of the most coveted riders looking for a new team. He ended up signing a contract with the Movistar team but after two fruitless years, he now once again finds himself in the position of searching for a new team.

This time, the situation couldn't be more different. In the middle of November, the 32-year-old Spaniard still finds himself without a team for the coming season. Having early been told that his contract wouldn't be renewed, he has had plenty of time to find a new employer but until now his search has been unsuccessful.

Cobo has been one of the most inconsistent riders in the professional peloton. Mostly referred to as a fabulous rider, he has a fragile mind and even contemplated retirement just months before his big Vuelta triumph.

He first showed his talents as a Saunier Duval rider in the 2007 season when he won two stages and the overall at the Vuelta al Pais Vasco. He went on to finish 20th in the Tour de France one year later but when he returned to the French grand tour one year later, it ended up as a disaster.

While Cobo wasn't implicated in any doping affair himself, his teammates Riccardo Ricco and Leonardo Piepoli who had won three stages among them - Piepoli by riding to the top of the Hautacam alongside Cobo - tested positive for CERA and the entire team left the race. The team underwent several name changes in the subsequent period as it tried to save its existence and Cobo first showed his inconsistency by being mostly anonymous in 2009.

However, he returned to form in time for the Vuelta where he won a stage and finished 10th overall. Those results earned him a contract with Eusebio Unzue's Caisse d'Epargne team but he had a horrible 2010 season with very little racing and no results at all.

He returned to familiar surroundings at the Geox-TMC team which was the successor of his former Saunier Duval team but his disastrous riding continued in the first part of 2011. Everything changed when he suddenly found his legs for the Vuelta, taking that big career-defining triumph.

He returned to Unzue's team, now known as Movistar, and hoped to shine in the Tour and Vuelta in 2012. However, he didn't have much success in any of the grand tours but showed glimpses of his potential in the French grand tour.

This year he had hoped to focus on the GC in the Vuelta but a bad crash in the team time trial left him with no opportunity to shine and he finished an anonymous 116th. In the final part of the season, he barely raced and wasn't selected for the Vuelta despite expressing his desire to return to the scene for his biggest triumph.

According to Biciciclismo, Cobo wants to continue his career but he has been unable to find a new team. Originally, he hoped to sign for a ProTeam but knowing that it is a difficult task, he is now ready for almost anything. He only hopes to get the chance to show that he still has the abilities he showed two years ago.

Whether he will get that opportunity remains to be seen.