Next year Eros Capecchi goes into his 10th season as a professional, his third with the Movistar team. Like most of his teammates, his main job is to work for team leaders Alejandro Valverde and Nairo Quintana but he has not given up his personal ambitions. The Italian rider admits that he has not been at his best in the blue jersey and hopes to regain the level of previous years.

At just 28 years of age, Capecchi is already a veteran after he made his debut with Liquigas where he rode from 2006 to 2007. He joined Scott-American Beef / Fuji / Footon-Servetto from 2008 to 2010 and was back at Cannondale from 2011 to 2013 before he signed with Movistar Team in 2012. Having won a stage of the Giro and the 2008 Euskal Bizikleta, he knows that he has more to offer and hopes to do so in 2015, both collectively and personally.

Despite his lack of succes, Capecchi is fully integrated in his new team.

"Every year I feel better in this team," he told Biciciclismo. "It may not have been the two best seasons I've had from a sporting point of view, but this group, this environment gives me more strength to do better each year. It's like a family. Already at Footon I was in a Spanish team.

It was not a problem to adapt."

Capecchi now hopes to put his disappointments behind him and return to his former level.

"I want to return to the level I had at Cannondale, not only to win personally but also to work for the leaders," he said. "I want to do things right and return to being the true Eros."

"All seasons are not equal. Maybe I've trained too much. In the first year I had the desire to improve and I did a little more than I did in the previous year. And I made the same mistakes again. This year I hope to rest well, train well and get back to my best level.

"I have always been professional. I do not leave anything to chance and do things one hundred percent. I have no doubt about that. But that does not mean that things go well."

This year Capecchi was at his best in the Tour de Suisse where he finished 10th.

"I was even a little disappointed," he said. "I was going so well that I could have finished in the top 5. I have talked to Eusebio (Unzue, manager, ed.) about it. When you lose the habit of riding for the win, you are always afraif of failing. When the favourites attacked, I could have stayed with them. I was going really well but for some reason I did not follow them. Due to a lack of confidence, I didn't seize the moment and I lost a few positions. That won't happen next time."

Capecchi is now looking ahead to next season and has a good idea about his race schedule.

"Above all, I want to have good feelings go well and make progres," he said. "I don't want to get worse and I want to be consistent. If I have a good feeling, I know I can do important things, working for others or riding for myself. So I want to start as soon as possible to show my skills."

"I have asked to start in Australia. We'll see what the team decides, for me it will not be a problem: I go where they send me. Personally I would like to do the Tour because I'm fine with the heat and the climbs in France are more regular. But being an Italian, I am always attracted by the Giro. I have already done six Giri and it is a passion."

Capecchi has no trouble riding in support of Nairo Quintana and Alejandro Valverde.

"They make everything easier," he said. "They are two winners and when you rider with them, you have to be good and stay with them for as long as possible. And they take away the pressure. I will get my own responsibility too but it is normal. We are professionals and it is our job."

Capecchi was part of the team that won the Giro with Quintana.

"For me it was a pleasure to ride with Nairo in the Giro and the satisfaction after the win was an incredible feeling. Before I had done the Giro with Italian leaders but we had never succeeded."

Italian cycling is suffering. With the demise of Cannondale, Lampre-Merida is the only Italian team at the highest level.

"The demise of Cannondale is a shame," Capecchi said. "You could say that it was the only 100% Italian team. Furthermore, I knew many of the people and it is a great shame because many are left on the street. It's like when Euskaltel said goodbye. We are now in a crisis.  We must pass this bad moment and wait for things to improve."