Movistar took the leader's jersey at the Vuelta a España, sending two riders to the top four, but question marks over harmony within the team were present from the start of the race and were intensified on stage 9 when Marc Soler protested the team order.

Soler was leading the race alone on the final climb of the explosive mountain stage in Andorra when he was ordered to stop to wait for Nairo Quintana, who was riding away from his rivals for the overall title.

Soler shook his head and waved his arms in remonstration as he received instructions in his earpiece from the team car. His frustration was obvious, but he complied nonetheless and pulled Quintana through the final kilometer, and the Colombian took the red jersey, even though he missed out on the stage win.

Sorel, who had won the Tour de Lavenir, was behind Quintana and Alejandro Valverde (now fourth overall) in the Movistar pecking order, but was still somewhat protected as a GC rider. However, he lost nearly 10 minutes on the second stage in Calpe.

That said, Movistar's director, former professional Pablo Lastras, said the 25-year-old Valverde had a lot to learn.

"The images are there. I'm not going to deny that I see it clearly. We have to take responsibility and make things clear," Lastras told Marca.

"On the Calpe stage, he lost a lot of time. He obviously didn't hear it.

"It's good to have personality, but he has to start listening and maturing. If you want him to be a leader, he must first become a domestique. Otherwise, let him give tutorials and show him what Miguel [Indurain] did for Perico [Pedro Delgado] and what Perico did for Miguel. These people don't understand the history of cycling."

The Vuelta had its first rest day on Monday, and Soler explained and apologized for his actions before the training ride.

"We talked about it. Above all, I want to apologize to Movistar, Nairo, and the whole team. It won't happen again. It was a temporary momentum. We came here to win races with Nairo and Alejandro. It won't happen again."

"I've never been in a situation like that, and when it happens, a lot of things come to mind. That moment was hot. If you think about it calmly and realize that all we had done and worked on from day one was to try to win with one of those two guys, it's obvious that we would regret it. That's why I apologized."