Alfa Romeo team principal Frederic V🌳🌳asseur is “convinced” Antonio Giovinazzi will turnaround his form following a difficult start to the 2019 Formula 1 season.

The Italian is yet to get off the mark for Alfa Romeo since returning to the F1 grid for his first full-season in the sport, wꦕhile teammate Kimi Raikkonen has gone on to re🀅cord three straight points finishes in Australia, Bahrain and China.

Giovinazzi’s Chinese Grand Prix weekend was curtailed by recurring engine ins🌱tallation issues which prevented him from taking part in qualifying and left him at the back of the Shanghai grid, before he recovered to 15th.

“It’s frustrating for everybody because I think from the beginning Antonio showed that the pace is there,” Vasseur said. “He was very fast inꦛ Melbourne Q1, did a better laptime than Kimi managed overal✨l, or it was more or less the same.

“In the race in Bahrain the pace was there, in quali he did a small mistake at the end of the lap but he was a bit faster than Kimi also. He’s struggling to put ev꧙erything together and the team didn’t help him [in China].

“It’s a shame but I think he will recover and if you have a look on last year the start🉐 of the season was also difficult for our drivers. We are very pushy with them, very supportive and they were able to improve during the season and we have to do the same with Antonio.

“I think he has also the advantage to have Kimi as a leader a⛦nd Kimi is able to sඣhow not only the pace but also the way you have to manage the weekend. For Antonio it will be helpful.

“At 🦩least the pace is there,✅ it’s important for us and important for Antonio and his mind but I am convinced he will do it.”

Giovinazzi’s difficult start to the season has prompted comparisons to Charles Leclerc, who struggled at the opening three rounds of 2018 before going on to turn in an💧 impressive campaign on his way to sealing a Ferrari dr𝓡ive.

Asked whether he sees similarities between Giovinazzi and Leclerc, Vasseur replied:ꦬ “It’s too early and you know that the next step is always the most difficult.

“It is the same for Charles, to move from the back to the best of the rest was one thing and now to mo🦄ve fr꧑om the best of the rest to win races it’s another story.

“For Antonio he is able to do well and I hope that he will be able to put everything together qui꧃te soon and I am hopeful. It is🐻 not the first time in my life that I find myself in this situation.

“I’m not at all worried ab🌠out the situation,” he added. “I don’t want to make any comparison🐽s with Charles but just to remind you that Charles was presented like the world champion in Barcelona.

“Then I h✃ad the question in the press co🤡nference in Bahrain or something like this, after the race that somebody asked me that 2018 was probably too early for Charles.

“Then after 10 🦹races it was ‘OK he needs to go to Ferrari and he will be the next world champion’. It’s not that one day one guy is doing a good job and he will be world champion and because hꦺe’s making a mistake he will never achieve it.

“I have full confidence, more ಌthan this, in Antonio. He showed that he was able to do the job under pressure in F2, he was able to do the job under pressure in Melbourne in Q1.

“He has very good feedback and he is working very well in the team even in the tough times. For example [qualifying] it was 200% the fault o๊f us and nothing to do with Antonio. That’s life.”