SWP next to be out in the cold in Jan

[Tokyo Blue]

It doesn't take a genius to see that not much money will be spent by City in the next transfer window. The team need time to play together and settle, not further disruption. There may be minor tweaks but nothing drastic.

As the squad will be largely similar to what we have got now, SWP will still be an important part of it. So, to the OP, no.

[Twobob]

I think the op's thoughts are taken from the last couple of games only and seem like a knee jerk reaction, swp is suffering from a dip in form and thats all!

I wonder if hes also carying a bit of an injury as he seemed off pace sometimes and he does get clatterd a fair bit.

Can see him getting through this like the fighter he is!

[Pretty Boy Lee]

I'd be gutted if he went, same as Robinho. Somewhat less gutted if they he to be just rested for a game, hey it's not extreme, but it just might work.

[Rag_hater]

I think he has been picked by Don Fabio in the England squad so I dont think his form could have slipped that much.

[MaineRoadMemories]

Shaun is still the player he was last year and the year before that. What supporters are starting to notice is that he doesn't have the first touch, awareness or composure to be an automatic starter for a top of the table team

This is because he is being shown up by the close control and skill of his team-mates. An awful lot of moves this year have broken down when the ball has been given to SWP, most notably he will fail to control the ball first time or run straight into the left back and lose possession.

This is also why he isn't a starter for England and gets overlooked by the likes of Lennon and Beckham.

I've got a feeling he doesn't thrive under pressure or competition very well and instead of rising to the occassion, he focusses on his weaknesses too much instead of playing to his strengths.

It was interesting to see the warm up at Villa Park when the players were taking shots at Taylor in goal. There was Tevez, Adebayor, Bellamy, SWP - the other three were finding the target 9 times out of 10. SWP was hitting Villa fans in row Z most of the time.

At 28/29 I doubt his first touch is going to improve much and I think this is all we will get from Shaun. He's a great squad player and will play his part in many games over the next couple of years. However, if Weiss proves to be the next big thing then his place will be under greater threat.

[sky_blue_stew]

His form will return, it's just with the quality of players competing for positions now, players are more conspicuous when they are underperforming. Maybe there is some truth that SWP doesn't tend to thrive well under pressure, although to get where he has done so far in his career must indicate a considerable strength of character. He's demonstrated in the past that his first touch shouldn't be a problem, so his problems at the moment are psychological rather than ability-related. It will take some good management from Hughes to coax him back to his best, although such outcomes are less likely now given players like SWP will get a great deal less attention from the gaffer than he might have done 4 years ago.