By Andrew Benson

Alonso had an unhappy season with McLaren in 2007

Double world champion Fernando Alonso is in no hurry to decide where he will drive next year, his manager says.

Renault team boss Flavio Briatore said on Monday he expected a decision from the Spaniard within two days.

Alonso's manager Luis Garcia Abad told BBC Sport: "He will decide when he knows the best option for his future."

He would not specify when Alonso would make a decision, but he denied he was waiting for the outcome of Renault's hearing on spying charges next month.

Renault have been summoned before Formula One's governing body to answer a charge of possessing confidential McLaren technical information.

McLaren, for whom Alonso had a tempestuous season in 2007, were excluded from this year's constructors' championship and fined $100m (�48.6m) after being found guilty on a similar charge in September.

606: DEBATE Could Alonso repeat his former success at Renault?

"Fernando is on holiday and we have nothing to say at the moment," Garcia Abad added.

Briatore had told Italian radio on Monday there was a "60% chance" of Alonso returning next season to the team where he won the world title in 2005 and 2006.

But on Wednesday he told the Spanish newspaper Marca: "I have no news on Fernando, just rumours. Everything is hearsay."

The 2008 F1 season starts on 14 March with the Australian Grand Prix.

It is widely believed that Brazilian Nelson Piquet Jr, who was Renault's test driver last season, will step up into one of the team's race seats.

The other will be filled by Finn Heikki Kovalainen unless Alonso re-joins the team with which he won the world title in 2005 and 2006.

Italian veteran Giancarlo Fisichella is not expected to be offered another season with Renault.

Alonso (left) and Briatore enjoyed success together at Renault

If Alonso does return to Renault, Kovalainen is the favourite to fill his former seat at McLaren alongside Lewis Hamilton.

Alonso has also been linked with Red Bull, Toyota and BMW Sauber.

But Red Bull team boss Christian Horner has appeared to rule Alonso out of his plans, saying that Mark Webber and David Coulthard are under contract and that the 26-year-old "will go to Renault".

Toyota are unlikely to be considered by Alonso to be capable of giving him a sufficiently competitive car.

And BMW Sauber also have two drivers under contract for 2008 - Nick Heidfeld and Robert Kubica.

Alonso joined McLaren last summer but had a troubled year with the British team, largely down to tensions between himself and team boss Ron Dennis based on his belief that the team were not giving him the treatment he deserved as a double champion.

He spent the season in an unresolved battle for supremacy with team-mate Lewis Hamilton, with the two men finishing tied on points one behind world champion Kimi Raikkonen of Ferrari after winning four races each.

Alonso did not expect to find Hamilton so tough a challenge and accused team boss Ron Dennis of favouring his prot�g�.