Dario Cataldo has told Cyclingnews ahead of the upcoming Tour Down Under that he has no regrets about swapping Sky black for Astana blue.

"There wasn't one specific reason why I left Team Sky, there were several, and I considered them all carefully. We'd been struggling to reach a new deal to extend my stay at Team Sky, I'd become a bit stale there and the offer from Astana was good, so I decided to make the move," Cataldo told Cyclingnews.

"I've no regrets about leaving Team Sky, despite what happened. I was happy to have ridden for Team Sky but I'm happy to be at Astana," he said. "My two years at Team Sky was a great experience and I learnt a lot. But every rider's career is in perpetual motion and I hope to now use what I learnt at Team Sky at Astana, so I can continue to develop and improve."

Cataldo acknowledged that Team Sky can be very strict but was quick to point out that he wasn’t starved of opportunities, he just couldn’t take advantage of them when they came his way.

"Perhaps Team Sky somewhat squeeze everything out of the riders but that's understandable. But there are a lot of factors that go into making a team successful and you can't always follow the same system. Each season and each race is different, and I think you also need to be flexible and use your experience to make the right choices. I think Sky still needs to understand that a little bit."

"I had my chances at Team Sky but unfortunately I wasn't able to take advantage of them," he conceded. "I was leader at the Giro d'Italia last year after Richie Porte's problems but was affected by a crash. I went close to a stage victory in Oropa and on the Stelvio but going close is not the same as winning. But I won the Giro Baby and was 12th in two editions of the Giro. I think I could have been in the top 10 last year if I hadn't crashed and lost time.”

His job at Astana will be to support Vincenzo Nibali and Fabio Aru in the high mountains. Cataldo says he notices several similarities between the Nibali and his old Sky teammate Chris Froome, who he thinks will be the man to beat in July.

"I think they're very similar in lots of ways. They're very modest but both two great people. You can really see that when you work with them," he said. "Perhaps in Italy people have learnt to understand and appreciate that quality in Vincenzo but they perhaps haven't gotten to know Chris and understand him. He's a great guy and I have a lot of admiration for him for that reason.”