Mark Hughes is a man in the spotlight, and not for good reasons. He has built up a good relationship at Stoke City, having been the club's manager for the past few seasons. However, things are not going in the right direction at Stoke, and fans are not happy.

Not only are the performances insipid, but Stoke have a meager 16 points from 17 games this season. The team has only scored 16 goals in those games, letting in 26. It is the type of form that means relegation. The only reason Stoke are not in the bottom three is because a few other teams are even worse.

A run of bad results and Hughes could be the next Premier League manager out the window. And it is interesting given the speculation that he was offered the job at Crystal Palace in the summer, and turned it down.

But Hughes is playing down those rumors.

"I'm not aware of that. Why would I leave Stoke City, it doesn't make sense. I've got fantastic support from the chairman and the (Coates) family and I enjoy working here," he said.

"I enjoy working with the group of players I've got. They're a committed group and an honest group that are working exceptionally hard to turn things around."

Hughes has always maintained he wants to stay at Stoke, and he believes that he can turn around the club's fortunes. But how long will the fans remain patient?