Alberto Contador was forced to put his impressive 2014 season to a premature end following a crash sustained in the Il Lombardia finale on Sunday, giving up on a fight with Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) for a top spot in the WorldTour individual rankings. The 32-year old Spaniard appeared at the Giro d’Italia 2015 official presentation held in Milan on Monday, reflecting on his unpleasant experience from “the race of the falling leaves” as well as on next year’s route of the Italian three-week event.

“Ending the year like that is nothing to my own liking, because again I was forced to change my schedule,” the Tinkoff-Saxo leader said.

“The Tour of Beijing is not among the most important races on the calendar, but what worries me now is the knee. So I preferred to quit and make sure fully recovers before the start of the next year.”

Despite this new setback, Alberto Contador said he’s ending the season with a good feeling.

“The overall balance has been really good, except for the Tour de France, which I couldn’t finish in a way I would have liked. In the rest of the 2014 I have been very regular, so I'm happy, although I have to say that it has been only possible because I’d trained a lot beforehand. 2014 has been one of the toughest seasons of my career, but has also brought measurable results.”

In the coming days, Alberto Contador will undergo various medical tests in order to get a full picture of damages done to his knee in recent crashes. His race programme won’t be officially confirmed before it happens, but the 32-year old Spaniard insists that the Italian Grand Tour remains his major objective for the first part of the 2015 season.

That’s why the Tinkoff-Saxo leader insisted on attending the Giro d’Italia presentation, even though he confessed that staying at home would serve him much better fullowing Sunday’s accident.

“Although it would have been better to stay at home, resting on the sofa, but for me it was important to be here because it is a race that motivates me and which I like a lot,” said Contador.

Commenting on next year’s course, Contador admitted that 2015 edition of the Giro would be entirely different to those he has attended in the past.

“It’s a different Giro than those I have ridden before, with a time trail a slightly unusual time trial. The seven mountaintop finishes will highlight the race. There are not too many mountain stages with impossible ascents, although there are some important, with Mortirolo along with few other. It is a fairly balanced Giro, maybe something less hard than the other times.”

The 32-year old Spaniard was far away from admitting that next year’s course suits him, but insisted that participation in the event serves him as a source of new motivation and he will do his very best to enter the event well prepared.

“If I could make this choice, I wouldn’t include such time trial, but I cannot do anything else than get myself well prepared and try to do my best.”

“The affection of the Italian public encouraged me to return to their race for the first time since 2011. I will also meet new challenge of my career – preparing to the Giro-Tour double from the first day of the season. I know it’s going to be really hard, but I want to try nonetheless.”