The 2014 season will see the welcome return to the professional peloton from former Giro d'Italia king of the mountains Matthew Lloyd. After a one-year absence, the Australian will ride in the colours of American continental team Jelly Belly which is hopeful that their new signing is capable of a top 10 finish in one of the major American stage races.

It may not be a return to WorldTour level but in 2014 Matthew Lloyd will be back in the peloton. The Australian has signed a one-year deal with American continental team Jelly Belly that could potentially see him line up in the biggest races on North American soil.

Lloyd turned professional with Predictor-Lotto in 2007 and proved his talents one year later when he won the Australian road race title. His upwards trajectory continued and in 2010 he enjoyed his career highlight when he won a stage of the Giro d'Italia and won the mountains jersey.

However, his career started to unravel in the off-season when he was hit by a car and he struggled to overcome his injuries. A second injury in 2011 led to him to part ways with Omega Pharma-Lotto midway through the season and he sat out the rest of the season.

He returned to the peloton in 2012 with Lampre-Merida and started his season with a bang when he finished 2nd at his national championships. However, he again struggled with health issues and abandoned most of his races in Europe.

This year health issues prevented him from doing any more races than his national championships, the Tour Down Under and the Volta a Catalunya. He hasn't raced since March and his contract with the Italian team wasn't renewed.

Lloyd is now hopeful that he can put his injuries behind him and that a good year in the USA will allow him to return to the WorldTour. Jelly Belly manager Danny Van Haute whose team has mostly been known for its aggressive attitude and sprinters like American champion Fred Rodriguez, hopes that Lloyd will add another dimension to the team, with the Australian set to focus on GCs.

"He brings power to the team, giving us a general classification contender rather than just stage winners," he told Cyclingnews. "If we can put a guy in the top 10 of a major stage race here, that's big for us and our sponsors."

Lloyd is not the only former WorldTour rider who will ride for Jelly Belly in 2014. Former Garmin-Sharp rider Jacob Rathe has also stepped down to the continental team and is equally hopeful that he can return to the highest level.

The plan is for Lloyd to join the team at a training camp from March 1 to 10 and to do his first race at the Tour of the Gila in May. Van Haute hopes to earn an invitation to the Tour of California from which Lloyd will head to the Phlly Classic and the Tour de Beauce in Canada.

He will then return to Australia before returning to the USA for a training camp in Colorado that will allow him to prepare for the Tour of Utah, the USA Pro Challenge and the Tour of Alberta for which the team is also hopeful of wildcards.

The Giro d'Italia stage and the national championships are Lloyd's only professional wins.