The Movistar announced yesterday its seventh signing for 2022: Iván Sosa, 23-year-old Colombian climber from Ineos, who signs until 2023. A cyclist by Giuseppe Acquadro, manager with whom Eusebio Unzué works again after a dialectical battle and the departures of Andrey Amador and Richard Carapaz in the opposite direction, to Ineos, in 2020. Before Sosa, the telephone team announced the additions of Max Kanter, Oier Lazkano, Gorka Izagirre, Óscar Rodríguez and Alex Aranburu, plus the renewals of Mathias Norsgaard, Juri Hollmann, Einer Rubio, Nelson Oliveira, Jorge Arcas, Antonio Pedrero, Carlos Verona and Sergio Samitier. For the next course the template is made up of, currently 22 runners. Facelift is necessary with so many recent messes, and there will be more ups and downs.
Because the blues also reported the Superman’s extension until 2023 in the days before La Vuelta, but Miguel Ángel López and the Navarrese squad broke their union on October 1… After the controversial withdrawal on the way to Mos from the third provisional place in the race. Both parties entered into a confidentiality agreement. However, the problems did not stop there. How could AS know, José Luis Arrieta, director closely linked to Nairo Quintana’s time at Movistar, will not continue the following campaign after being removed from the final competitions. In fact, the technician values taking legal action. The landing of Patxi Vila, head of performance, reduced his authority, with opposing points of view since 2020.
In the An atypical season of confinement, Movistar was the worst structure on the World Tour with only two wins, both by Marc Soler. The Catalan, noted for his indiscipline, leaves in 2022 to the UAE. 15 victories closed 2021. Since 2011, when the M arrived, it always exceeded 20 targets, with years above 30. The trend since 2018 is downward. Then the extra-sports fuss began with the tricefalia of Valverde, Nairo and Mikel Landa. In the 21st century there are only five greats (Tour of 2006, with Pereiro, by disqualification of Landis; Vuelta of 2009, with Valverde; Giro of 2014 and Vuelta of 2016, with Nairo; and Giro of 2019, with Carapaz), and the Murcia, at 41, still remains the most prominent of the squad (Superman achieved four successes and the only stage in a three-week appointment, at the Gamoniteiro, but he is no longer there). Valverde and Quintana served as the best ambassadors for Movistar, and one of them is off at the Arkea and the other will hang up the bike in 2022. Enric Mas’s second place in La Vuelta should catapult his confidence, while the sports management needs to make the right decisions and let the youth explode… or the journey without references will be complicated. Of course, the sponsorship of Telefónica was secured until 2023.