Vettel branded as 'amateur' by Italian press following French GP errors

The Italian media were scatching in their criticism of Sebastian Vettel in the wake of his first-lap errors at the French Grand Prix which sent him to the back of the grid, where he had to recover to finish fifth.

Vettel ran into Valtteri Bottas on the opening lap of the race, damaging his car's nose while puncturing the Finn's tyre and, after the safety car had been deployed, both men had to work their way through the grid from the back.

The German could only manage fifth position in the race, and although he was rewarded the Driver of the Day for his efforts, many fans and observers were perplexed by Vettel's error which put him in that position in the first place.

Ultimately Vettel lost ground in the championship race to Lewis Hamilton, who cruised to victory in the race and moved back ahead of his rival, and the Ferrari-centric media in Italy were quick to slam the driver for his mistake.

La Gazzetta dello Sport commented: "Vettel committed an amateur error and this time the consequences are serious. Despite its excellent car, for Ferrari it is once again a wasted opportunity."

La Repubblica added: "Vettel makes mistakes that he cannot afford if he wants to win another world title."

La Stampa said: "It was a great catch up drive, but also ten wasted points because of too much impulsiveness."

Legend Emerson Fittipaldi has also said that Vettel needs to produce a more consistent drive in order to remain in the race for the driver's championship, while Max Verstappen blasted the media in the wake of the race for regularly criticising his driving style while at the same team being overly lenient to Vettel in the wake of his error.