Sebastian Vettel has jokingly called for the number of the "grip guy" to help put his Ferrari into its correct operating window.

The four-time Formula 1 champion wasn't pleased with the performance in Monaco, admitting the team "fumbled" into an eventual second-place finish.

As the expected weakness in the slow-speed corners materialised, what is frustrating Vettel more is the lack of progress being made by the Scuderia on the issue.

“The car’s [been] pretty similar the last couple of races. We had one race where performance was standing out and we were quite strong," he told RaceFans post-race.

“I saw that Valtteri was faster but there was no way he was going to pass as our straight line speed is really good. It’s just because overall we are lacking downforce, a weakness that we know.

Also Read:

• Ferrari face a conundrum to avoid 2019 flaws with 2020 car
• Ferrari should consider focusing on 2020 car soon, says Webber

“I don’t think the car is as bad as it looks. The results should be better here and there but it’s very difficult for us to get the car in the window where it is happy," Vettel explained.

"Certainly, when we get it in there we’re more competitive but still away from where we want to be. That’s really the key lesson: we need to focus on trying to get the car, short-term, more in that window.”

The next race in Canada, where Vettel won last year, is expected to be better for Ferrari due to the similar layout to Bahrain.

But beyond that, he knows the Italian team must start finding answers to their problems. 

“Looking forward to the next three, four, five races, obviously make sure we improve the car, put more grip onto the car so that we can go faster, simple as that," he said of the priorities.

"But that guy seems to hide fairly well. I don’t know exactly where he is right now, so if you find him, or if you’ve got his number, that grip guy, [tell him] we’ve been looking for him for a while."