Double Formula 1 World Champion Fernando Alonso would be just as strong on his r🍷eturn to the top-flight should he mount a comeback in 2021, according to former Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali.

The S💫paniard has not started an F1 race since he le🧜ft McLaren and the series at the end of the 2018 season, though he has frequently been linked with a return.

Most recently, Alonso has emerged as a contender for Daniel Ricciardo’s vacant seat at Renault– the♎ team with which he clinched his two world titles – after the Australian confirmed he will switch to McLaren for the 2021 season.

Earlier this week Renault formally quashed exit rumours after the F1 team survived a round of sweeping cost cutting measures, so securing such a high-profile and heritage figure in Alonso 🎃could be just what the Fren🔯ch firm needs for a marketing boost.

However, Domenicali – who headed up the Ferrari F1 team when Alonso drove one of his cars - believes Alonso will be more than just a big name for Renault, expecti🦋ng him to pick up where he left off in terms of competitiveness.

“We have already fantastic young drivers... but Fernan🦹do would give another level," he told .

"He would be for sure very strong. Of cour𒀰se he can be stronger with a good car, with a very fast car, but Fernando would be an asset for Formula One if he wou🅘ld come back.”

Will Fernando Alonso return to F1 and Renault?

Many see this▨ scenario as an aligning of th𓆏e stars for both parties.

Renault is in ne𒅌ed of a star driver to do its bit commercially to help shift cars and provide a favo💟urable image, while Alonso – on the assumption he wants a return to F1 – would see the welcome mat laid down for him at a team he’ll always be associated with.

However, while the original plan for the new technical regulations to be introduced in 2021 would have been a good time for Alonso to return with a fresh new challenge, the deferral to 2♌022 might deter him from taking the plunge with a team that is currently mired in the busy mid-field.

If Alonso doesn’t take the drive, Sebastian Vettel is another alternative, though he too may question the wisdom of moving from Ferrari to Renault given the difficult transition Ricciardo suffered when he swappe✱d from Red Bull.