Andrei Amador's long-awaited move to Team Ineos is one step closer. The Movistar team announced Tuesday that it has reached an agreement with the Costa Rican player to terminate his contract.

Amador's move was complicated by a prior agreement to extend his contract with Movistar, where he has been for the past 11 years. Team boss Eusebio Unzué had demanded that Amador pay a termination fee.

"We are not going to stop him from leaving, but he has to pay compensation. This dispute has a simple solution: pay and leave," Unzie said in January.

Amador thanked the team on Instagram, writing: "Time to say goodbye. I am grateful for the 11 years I shared with this great team and always will be.

"First of all, thank you for giving me the opportunity to fulfill my dream of competing in the biggest race in the world. With hard work and sacrifice, you can make any dream come true, but in life you always need someone to believe in you.

"Leaving Costa Rica at a young age and being so far away from my family was never easy, but I soon found a second family.

"It was the team that supported me during the most difficult moments of my career. The quality of the staff allowed me to overcome them and move forward."

Amador, who finished fourth in the 2015 Giro d'Italia, was an important lieutenant to Richard Kalapas, who won last year's Corsa Rosa and also moved to Ineos. Both players share a common agent, Giuseppe Accadolo, who also manages Nairo Quintana, who left Movistar in the off-season.

The falling out between Unzier and Acquadro was attributed to Giro, who claimed that Unzier had negotiated a contract extension for Calapaz knowing that Acquadro had already reached an agreement with Team Ineos. The situation escalated in the summer when Unzier refused to sign with Acquadro. At the Tour de France, Acquadro told reporters that Unzier "would suffer,"

adding that he would sign the athlete simply to take him elsewhere.

The conflict also affected current Movistar players, with newcomer Sergi Samitier having to find a new agent before joining the team; in October, Aqkadro's client Oscar Rodriguez left Euskadi Murias for Astana transferred to Astana.

Amador is now set to move to Ineos, and will be far from being Acquadro's first client, following the likes of Egan Bernal and Ivan Sosa.

In December, Amador's dispute was taken up by the UCI's arbitration committee, but the proceedings were delayed due to the Christmas vacations; in January, the case was opened again, although there had been no news on the matter since the beginning of the year.

On December 31, Amador was reportedly seen running in La Garriga, Catalonia, wearing an Ineos team kit with his last name embroidered on it.

"It is time to part ways," Amador's statement continued. There is a lot of speculation, but at 33 years of age and having spent almost my entire career with this great team, I feel I need a new challenge in my professional life."

"I never leave this team because of inadequacies, problems, or anything else. On the contrary, I always felt at home."

"Aside from the great and not-so-great moments we experienced, if I ever behaved badly towards anyone or offended anyone, I sincerely apologize.

"I would like to thank, among others, Eusebio Unzue, that man who always supported me. You are one of the people I remember most fondly for giving me a chance and for putting up with me all these years. All I can say is thank you. This world needs more people like you."