Mark Hughes backs Shaun Wright-Phillips

Queens Park Rangers boss Mark Hughes has backed Shaun Wright-Phillips to have a major say in the club's fight against the drop.

The 30-year-old was named on the bench for the R's win over Liverpool on Wednesday, and was again restricted to a second-half appearance in the 3-1 loss to Sunderland at the weekend.

Hughes, however, has handed the former Chelsea winger a vote of confidence.

"Shaun has just been struggling for a little bit of form. Having worked with Shaun for a long time I know exactly what he is. He gives so much in training and in games and he'll never say he's struggling," Hughes told Sky Sports News.

"But I think some players sometimes just need to be taken out of the fray to give them time to recuperate. Shaun will be a big player for us from now until the end of the season, definitely."

QPR sit 18th in the Premier League table.