In the second part of a long interview with Cycling News, Astana’s Tour de France winner Vincenzo Nibali talks about the recent doping scandals at the team and how the squad is shaping up for 2015, where they will try and help teammate Fabio Aru win the Giro and then help Nibali try to defend his Tour crown.

Astana came under fierce criticism after the Iglinskiy brothers, Maxim and Valentin, both tested positive for EPO and then a few weeks later stagiare Ilya Davidenok also tested positive at the Tour de l’Avenir. Nibali says all three acted independently and it is not a fair reflection on the rest of the team.

“It's been talked about so much that I'm starting to sick of it all to be honest. It was an external case, a family affair and nothing to do with the team. I don't think the whole team should be blamed or punished for something stupid they did. The Astana team took some serious decisions after what happened and has paid the price.”

“People think that what happened (with the Iglinskiy brothers) was because of a problem within the team but that's not the case. When people do things wrong these days, it's of their own doing. It's a personal decision that puts everything at risk for themselves, their reputation, their family, their contracts, everything. It's really stupid to think someone would risk doing that in this day and age. They're also stupid because everyone knows that the tests done today can be tested in years to come for other substances and so there's little chance for people to dope and get away with it.”

Team manger Alexandre Vinokourov has come under fire too, as much for his doping past and the fact tat he runs the team for as for the recent positive tests. Nibali defended the man nicknamed “Vino’ by his fans, saying that he was not responsible for the positive tests.

“What's Vino got to do with all of this? I don't think he's involved in any way. It's right that he's responsible as the Astana team manager for what they did but not for his own past. He's paid the price for his own past and has been allowed back into the sport by the rules of the sport, just as a lot of other people have been.”

After Nibali performed so poorly in the opening months of the season, Vino wrote a strongly worded letter to the whole team, asking them to improve, sparking off rumours that Nibali didn’t get on well with his boss and that he was looking for a ride elsewhere for 2015. Nibali made it clear in the interview he got on perfectly well with the man from Kazakhstan.

“In truth, I get on pretty well with Vino. He can be blunt, but what's important is that he makes decision and sticks to them. I prefer that to someone who is indecisive and hesitant.”

“I've won two Grand Tours while at Astana and the team has allowed me to form my own group of riders and staff within the team. That's important for me and shows they've put their faith in me. They've shown they're against doping by joining the MPCC and accepting all the anti-doping rules such as the Biological Passport. What more can I ask for from my team?”

Astana came under fire from the public for delaying Maxim Iglinskiy’s confession, which people saw as being deliberate to allow them to race their home event, the Tour of Almaty. UCI President Brian Cookson sais that he would leave it up to the MPCC to review Astana’s WorldTour license and we dot know as yet what the outcome of that review is. When asked if the team should be part of the MPCC, Nibali didn’t hesitate for a second.

“Yes, even if it can make things more complicated for us the riders. But if it helps in the fight against doping, then I'm ready to accept it. I think all the riders feel the same and we've accepted everything that has been proposed to make cycling more credible. But one thing I don't like is that when there are problems, it's always the riders who pay the highest price. That's not fair.”

He says he is happy with the team’s squad for 2015 and thinks they can do well in all three Grand Tours and the Classics.

“We've tried to strengthen the team for the spring Classics as well as the Grand Tours with people like Boom, Cataldo, Malacarne and Rosa. But we've got a big, long race calendar, like lots of other teams, so it's normal to have a strong roster.”

He says the team will be split into three, with his Tour roster, a Classics roster and a team to go to the Giro with Fabio Aru.

“I'm sure there will be a group for the Classics, a group for the Giro and a group for the Tour. I think that's logical. The Vuelta squad will probably be based on who is on form after that. That's how it usually works.”

Nibali took time to analyse the men who are expected to challenge him for his Tour crown come next July. He says if he was Contador, he would try the Giro-Tour double in 2015 too.

“To be honest, If I was Contador, I'd do the same thing. It's risky because he could win the Giro but then struggle at the Tour. But after winning several Grand Tours, going for the double is a new challenge. We'll see if he can do it. If anyone can do it, Alberto can.”

As for the man who Nibali took the Tour title from, Chris Froome? Could he bounce back in 2015 in Nibali’s opinion?

“Froome definitely crashed a lot this year, I noticed that he even crashed even in the Vuelta. But crashes are part of racing. I crashed twice in a week this year and at the world championships. It happens. At the Tour de France I almost went down on the stage over the cobbles. A teammate crashed in front of me but I managed to avoid him. You've got to stay focussed and concentrated in races but in a split second you you can slip out or some one can crash in front of you. Chris was fine in 2013 and won the Tour but then crashed out this year. I think he'll put his problems of 2014 behind and make a clean start in 2015.”

One man Nibali doesn’t have much experience competing against is Movistar’s Colombian star Nairo Quintana. He says he was impressed Quintana as the young man raced to the Giro title this year, succeeding Nibali.

“I've never gone head to head with Quintana in a Grand Tour but I saw how he's performed against Aru and Rigoberto Uran at the Giro. He's a fighter that's for sure but all of us are. We perhaps just show it in different ways. I'm more laid back most of the time but everyone in the team knows how determined I am in races. I'm looking forward to going up against Quintana in 2015.”

Nibali doesn’t limit his rivals to those three men, running the rule over BMC’s Tejay van Garderen and Cannondale-Garmin duo Dan Martin and Andrew Talansky.

“He (van Garderen) was close to the podium this year but perhaps he still needs to develop and mature as a rider. He seems to be missing that little bit of a thing to fight for a podium but I couldn't say what it is. We'll see if he can finish on the podium in the next few years as he matures and improves.”

“I honestly think Dan Martin is more of a hilly Classics rider than a Grand Tour rider. He's a good climber but he's still got to show his Grand Tour credentials. Talansky crashed out of the Tour this year, so it was difficult to understand how well he could have done. I'm not sure how much the crash really affected him. We'll perhaps seem how he handles the pressure in 2015.”

Nibali faced competition in France from various young Frenchmen and he thinks they can challenge for glory in their home Grand Tour in 2015.

“The young guys like Pinot and Bardet impressed me a lot. There's also Warren Barguil, who did the Vuelta this year but I bet he'll show his ability in next year's Tour de France. There are going to be a lot of them to worry about next year and they'll have all the French fans supporting them. It should be good a Tour.”