Former Strictly Come Dancing professional Brendan Cole believes it was a "mistake" to bring Shaun Wright-Phillips' dad, Ian Wright, onto the show so early in the competition. Cole, who was a professional dancer on the BBC show from 2004 to 2017, has been sharing his thoughts on this year's series.
Last weekend, Shaun found himself in the bottom two alongside Gavin and Stacey star Melanie Walters. After both contestants performed their routines again, the judges were split over who to save before Anton Du Beke, who had the deciding vote, opted to save Shaun.
Questioning the choreography decision
Reflecting on the result, Brendan suggested Aljaz Skorjanec may have made a mistake by bringing another choreographer into the room to help put together his and Melanie's Charleston.
As for Shaun, the professional dancer also questioned whether bringing his dad, Ian, onto the show during the first week of the competition, rather than saving the appearance for later, was an error.
Brendan's verdict on Shaun's chances
Speaking to Sky Vegas, he said: "Shaun came in with a lot of talk and a lot of gusto, which I loved, but he hasn't been able to match that with what he's delivered.
"Is he going to be the best dancer on the show? No. Has he got the personality and charisma to carry him a couple of weeks? Yes. Has he got the personality and charisma to carry him all the way through to the end? Probably not," he shared.
"They've already used his dad in the VT. They can't do that every week. Ian's very, very popular, probably one of the most popular TV pundits there is. They've already used that early doors.
"They could have probably used that next week or the week after to try to keep him in but I'd imagine his days are numbered on the show," Brendan continued.
Shaun's take on the competition
As part of Icons Week, Shaun and his professional partner performed a Couple's Choice routine to a James Brown medley in the hope of making it through to another week.
Previously speaking on behalf of OLBG, the football pundit opened up about his experience on the show so far, saying: "Do you know what? It'll be great to be at the top of the leaderboard. I am not going to sit here and deny that. But most importantly for me, I just want to get better.
"I just want to improve each week, and that's what I'm going to keep working hard at - improving on everything that I'm being taught and learning as much as possible," he added. "I've honestly been worried about all of [the dances], to be honest with you. But no, I'm actually enjoying the learning process, and the challenge of getting your feet into positions - especially for me - that they've never, ever been in before, to try and make the dance look the way it's supposed to," he continued.
Strictly Come Dancing: The Results airs tonight at 7.10pm on BBC One.
