Fernando Alonso has revealed he will require further surgery on the broken jaw he suf꧋fered in a cycling accide♎nt, but not until after the 2021 Formula 1 season.

The returning two-time world champion’s preparations for his F1 comeback with the rebranded Alpi😼ne squad hit a setback when he fractured💦 his jaw in a cycling accident while training last month.

Alonso underwent a successful corrective operation on the fracture and has fully recovered in time to take part in pre-season testing this week in Bahrain, with the Spaniard set to drive Alpine’s new-l🌱ook A521 for tꦡhe first time on Saturday.

Asked how badly theও injury had impacted him, Alonso replied: ♍“I don’t expect any issues, honestly.

“I’v𝐆e been training for now three weeks or two💧 weeks, absolutely normal. I’ve been in the simulator as well Monday and Tuesday so the preparations were not affected too much.

“I missed only a couple of marketing days and filming days, which I was happy 💟about in a way! Then I recovered everything yesterday afternoon🐽, I had a very intense day of marketing activities.

"I feel fine. Obviously one thing is the professional side and drivin♔g side, which I’m 100 percent.

“On the personal I will have to remove two titanium plates which I have in the upper ja♈w which will be removed at ꦬthe end of the season. So still some things going on at the end of the championship but it will not affect my professional life.”

Alonso has stressed he is returning to F1 a “m⭕ore complete” driver after spending the last two years racing in different categories including the Le Mans 24 Hou𓆏rs, Indy 500 and Dakar Rally.

And the 3൲9-year-old feels ready to take on the challenge of an intense midfield scrap amid F1’s longest-ever seas♔on in 2021, which features a record-breaking 23 rounds.

“I don’t fear any particular challenge,” he said.

“How the midfield is right now is very competitive, so it♊’s something that we are aware of, that we need to maximise and make perfection every weekend ꦕif we want to score good points.

“Then another challenge, not only for me but everybody in the team and in the paddockꦜ, will be the 23 races.

“We have to be aware of that number and try to save energy when you can during the year, even in the month of June, August, September, ev🅷en if you feel fresh the more you save, the bette♎r you will be in November, December.

“There are a couple of things after being a few years out I will have to relearn a little bit and get used to but in t🌺erms of driving again or in terms of approaching the weekend working with the team, it should be quite smooth.

“I was not two years at home,꧟ I was racing every weekend basically, so it should be fine.”