Dan Martin has spoken to Cyclingnews about just how important his win in Il Lombardia at the end of 2014 was for his mental state and the way he approached 2015.

"I think it was really important to finish on a high last year because had I finished on a low it would have changed my morale and the atmosphere during the winter," Martin said.

"I've always been very fortunate in my career not to suffer from bad luck but last year, suddenly, bad luck hit me all in one go and I kind of went into a bit of a shell. But finishing on such a high at the end of year, it shows momentum. Hopefully, I'll be able to carry that momentum from the end of 2014 straight through to the 2015 season."

Martin once again targets a strong performance in the Ardennes Classics, with the 2013 Liege-Bastogne-Liege win and 2014 Fleche Wallonne podium on his palmares already, he is looking to improve once more, with a Fleche win firmly in his sights.

"The Ardennes Classics are an obvious objective of mine every year because I love those races and also, I'm quite good at them," Martin said. "It's my favourite week of the year. I get to race bikes over a terrain that suits me, and hang out in a hotel with a bunch of my mates for a week. It's just a really good time.”

"Flèche Wallonne is on my bucket list," Martin said. "I've been sixth, fourth and second there. I would love to win that race, especially with the Tour de France going through the Mur de Huy this year, that would be a huge confidence boost if I could do well at Flèche Wallonne."

He is also going to be at the Tour de France, but he doesn’t expect to be leading the team in the GC, that will be for Andrew Talanksy, but he does hope to be the team’s chief stage hinter, with some stages suiting him perfectly in the opening week.

"The way the calendar lays itself out, the Tour fits better for me this year," Martin said. "I'm fortunate to have Andrew, who really wants the pressure of being team leader, and I can race how I want to. It's different from other races, people ride a lot more conservatively than other races, and that's not my style. I'd like to go into the Tour aggressively.”

"The stage with the Mur de Huy is high on my list," Martin said. "It's an opportunity to really get a good result in the first week of the Tour… that would be incredible. It would hopefully set the tone for the whole team."

Martin, 28 years of old, is by no means an old pro, but is one of the oldest in his team and is expected to be the team leader in 2015, along with Talansky and veteran Canadian Ryder Hesjedal.

"My role as team captain is to help those guys develop, and to see them develop is very exciting. I'm happy to offer my experience and it’s really cool for me to see their progression. We have an incredibly talented squad assembled. It’s a squad that will surprise people."

"Formolo is obviously the outstanding talent from last year but we don't know who of the other young guys is gonna really step up this year and improve. At that age, they will develop at different levels and different speeds, so you never know who will be the next to have an outstanding performance. That's what makes it so exciting to work with the younger riders."