Having previously driven for the Scuderia between 2007-09, Raikkonen returned with the car well off the pace and struggling to compete for podiums in 2014.

But development over the winter, particularly on the engine, combined with a better atmosphere behind the scenes has allowed Ferrari to emerge as Mercedes’ closest challenger.

Asked how Ferrari compares now to when he rejoined for 2014, Raikkonen said: “The team has changed a lot, how things are working.

“Obviously some people have changed but it’s a very solid team and the atmosphere is very good and the results [in 2015] help.

“It’s a great place to be again and it’s very nice how the team is running now and where we are going.

“We are doing the right things and I think everybody appreciates in the team where we have gone in that very short time.

“We all know why we are here, we all want to be in the front, fighting for championships and winning races.

“Yes, we are happier when things are going better, but we’re still not where we as Ferrari want to be, and hopefully next year we can be there.”

Ferrari has scored just 15 points in the last two races, but Raikkonen is convinced the direction the team is working in is the right one.

“Obviously the results have been pretty bad in the last three races,” he said.

“But we know where we are, more or less, and we just have to do a better job with no mistakes.

“I don’t think we’re going to do anything differently to what we have been doing so far.

“We’ve been doing a good job as a team and going in the right direction, so there’s no point to change anything in the last two races that are left.

“We’re going to do our maximum and finish as well as we can and then put all of the effort through the winter into preparing for next year.”