by Renee Israel
Matt Cardle thanked his fans for voting him through to one of the last rounds of this year's X Factor and promised to sing better next time.
Cardle was suffering from a virus on Saturday and performed against the advise of his doctors.
Even after being told that singing could damage his voice permanently and advised by his mentor, Dannii Minogue, that his health came first, Cardle insisted that he didn't want to miss the semi-finals and sang to the audience.
Unfortunately, he failed to impress Simon Cowell who told him that his rendition of "Always a Woman' was his "worst song".
"It is exactly what you're not," he was told. "You're not that safe artist. You shouldn't be singing a song like that you can't put your stamp on."
X Factor 2010 is now down to the final four contestants, namely Cardle, the boy-band One Direction, Rebecca Ferguson and Cher Lloyd.
Matt continues to be the odds-on favourite to win the competition.
One Direction are second favourites to win at 9/4, while Rebecca Ferguson is close behind at 7/2.
There is only one week to go before X Factor wraps up for another year and fans are flocking to back their favourite singers.
Each of the finalists has a unique quality that could definitely make them a star, given the right marketing and promotion.
It's safe to say that the finals will be very close and anyone who wins will be promised stardom from the word go.
