At the same time, nobody forced Gio to re-sign when his initial contract at the team was up, with Nairo clearly the leader for the future at that point. I mean, he did spend fully five years there. I always thought it was a bit of an odd move on both parts, but then after the absolute misery that was Movistar's 2011 campaign, not knowing what Valverde's level post-ban would be like and needing to build alternative plans for the GTs with the disasters befalling Soler and Tondó, picking up somebody with good all-round result capability like Visconti who'd clearly outgrown the ProConti level made some sense; he probably felt he'd get more freedom as a result, but at least at first it did mean a downturn in his fortunes, mainly as he was swapping the profitable calendar of one-day races in Italy for the worst doldrum period in Spanish cycling, but also as he transitioned away from being a premier one-day racer towards the rider he is now, he essentially became usurped in that role by Rui Costa; Gio is a decent climber but, despite having done a very good job in developing that side of his game, perhaps to do with the nature of the Spanish calendar he was now riding, to the point where he could win Giro MTFs and the GPM, in the real mountainous races it was still not enough to be the leader's right hand man, at least in the GTs, and with the team having essentially no interest in the flatter and cobbled classics, and one of the greatest riders of the modern generation for the hilly classics, he didn't get to lead there either.
Also, there is essentially the feeling that, more than many teams, the long tradition at Abarcá gives them quite a close-knit feel. They have quite a few riders who are or have been Abarcá lifers - from top stars like Indurain to domestiques like Txente and Pablo Lastras. You've got riders who I thought would move on for more opportunities who've elected to stay, you've got riders who've been there either their whole pro career (Erviti, Amador, Herrada), or for absolutely years on end (Rojas, Valverde, Castroviejo). But it also means that people grow accustomed to roles, and if that role is moving further and further away from where you feel you can, or should, be, then it's no surprise if some big names don't fit there anymore. Joaquím Rodríguez' role at Caisse d'Épargne was basically to be Valverde's kid brother, for example, while Rui Costa was leaving due to similar frustration at the end of 2010 before his suspension; returning mid-season when the ban was quashed, it was the very same team that he left who extended an olive branch with the season slowly turning sour, but then of course it should be no surprise that he extended after getting much more freedom following the losses of Soler and Tondó mid-season for the worst of reasons, nor that when his contract was up in 2013 and with Valverde and Quintana hoovering up most of the major leadership roles, that he would be looking elsewhere.
I don't feel like Gio was mistreated or anything, I just think what he was looking for from the team and what the team was looking for from him drifted apart especially once his position in the pecking order dropped beyond what he felt he deserved, and so he's slowly become less and less happy until the eventual transfer.
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