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He was the Swansea City player of the year in 2014-15 as the Garry Monk's men enjoyed a record-breaking season with 56 points and an eighth-placed finish.

Against Aston Villa the other week, the game that for many has effectively sealed the Swans' place in the Premier League for a sixth consecutive season, he made a meek exit after being hooked at half-time following an ineffectual first 45 minutes.

Ki Sung-yueng's season has mirrored Swansea City's - one which promised so much but which now has left you wondering what the future holds.

It is baffling because in 2014-15 Ki was Swansea City's best player by some distance and one last summer you suspected so-called bigger clubs may be sniffing around as they looked to solve their midfield problems.

There was in fact talk that Arsenal were looking at the South Korean captain and integrating him next to the likes of Aaron Ramsey and Mesut Ozil.

Back then Ki was the starting point of every Swans foray. He carried the ball from the base of midfield, glided past players like they weren't there, picked out team-mates in space with an incredible peripheral vision, played smart pass-and-move triangles and chipped in with his fair share of goals - especially at the back end of the campaign.

Read more:Complacent Swansea City must rip up transfer policy and spend big to avoid another season on the brink of disaster - former star

This season, though, he has cut a frustrated figure.

While signs of the old magic remain - Ki is still patently one of the most technically gifted footballers in a white shirt and there was a bright half against West Brom recently before he was knocked out by Stephane Sessegnon - he has been unable to bring his influence to bear in anything like the same way as before.

As much is obvious from a cursory comparison of Ki's vital statistics from last year and this.

Last season Ki got on the score sheet eight times - he grabbed goals against QPR, Sunderland, Manchester United, Spurs, Hull, Stoke - while this year he has a solitary goal against West Brom on Boxing Day to his name.

His shooting accuracy of 56% last season has dipped to 35.7% this term, his tackles won ratio has dropped from 81.8% to 70% and the amount of duels he has won is down to 49.7% from 54.1%.

Ki Sung-yueng Premier League goals 8 Last season 1 This season

The number of recoveries he has made is down from near 200 to 143 and he has made less successful crosses (14.3%) than in 2014-15 (22.2%).

His passing accuracy is actually marginally up from 89.8% to 91.2% but, statistics put to one side, the anecdotal evidence is there in front of Swansea fans' eyes that Ki just isn't influencing games in the same manner in which he did a season ago.

While he was once the man who gave the Swans the dynamism they needed going forward and who took on a fair chunk of the creative responsibility, that doesn't seem to be the case any more.

Also read:Why stuttering midfield has been the key to Swansea City's Premier League decline

At times in possession he has been wayward when he was laser-guided before and he has looked lackadaisical, shorn of his previous energy and verve in the middle of the field.

Perhaps the statistic that demonstrates his influence has waned most is that he has already been substituted eight times this season - double the number of he was hauled off in the whole of 2014-15.

Quite what the factors behind Ki's decline this season are remain something of a mystery; there have been the well-documented travels to South Korea and back he has to factor in. They played Lebanon in a World Cup and Asian Cup qualifier during this international break and won 1-0.

That travel time will inevitably take its toll with the cumulative fatigue possibly to blame. Jonjo Shelvey's departure won't have helped either, as he and Ki seemed to have struck up an understanding at the back end of last season, often linking up and getting on the end of one another's interplay in the box.

The way in which the Swans have chopped and changed formation and personnel much more this year may also not have helped Ki's cause, especially seen as he can be shunted around the midfield as a result of his versatility.

One thing is for sure: after his stunning renaissance following his loan to Sunderland, this season has served as something of a note of caution.

Granted there are still seven games of the season left for Ki to change perceptions.

But he will certainly need to thrive in those and take a richer vein of form into 2016-17 to ensure that his contribution last season is seen as the rule, not the exception.