Watford boss Malky Mackay believes his side could still make the play-offs after two good results in the last week.

The Hornets have slid down the table in the last month or so after they failed to win in nine games in all competitions.

But they ended that run against Millwall on Saturday and deservedly held high-flying Swansea City to a draw at the Liberty Stadium on Tuesday.

The Championship is tight once again, with nine points separating Nottingham Forest, in sixth, and 13th-placed Portsmouth.

Mackay said: “I think anyone in the top 12 or 14 can get into sixth position. There are an awful lot of games left to go and you only need to go on a little run to get into the top half.

“I said all along that everyone looks to hit 52 first and you are lying if you tell me you are a manager in this division and you are not looking at 52 points to start with.

“The minute you hit that then you look upwards. The fact we have hit 50 now, we will keep charging on. We have had one defeat in six now and we have to believe in our ability.

“We have been hamstrung in the last six weeks or so with injuries, in terms of important players, but we have got a couple of them back now.

“We brought three Under-18s with us to Swansea and they are part of the squad, because that is where we are at now.

“But what we have is bundles of energy, enthusiam and real potential.”

“It is a very tight league,” Mackay continued.

“You only have to look at the performances of some of the teams tonight, look at some of the results tonight again. Some real shocks and every week there will be shocks between now and the end of the season.

“I have been in the division an awful long time and on any given night anyone can win.

“So that being the case, strange results happen and if you can manage to put results together and have consistency between now and the end of the season then anyone has the chance of reaching the play-offs.

“And I think there are still five or six teams that can hit the second place as well.”

Watford face Sheffield United tomorrow and will be boosted by the return of Lloyd Doyley, who has not played since February 15 due to a hamstring injury.

Mackay said yesterday: “Lloyd trained with us this morning and he will be in the squad. It is good to get him back.

“He has been out for a little period so the fitness and medical departments have worked hard with him.”

Manchester United midfielder Danny Drinkwater is still at his parent club after suffering a dead leg against Doncaster Rovers two weeks ago but Michael Bryan is close to returning after a few months out with an ankle problem.

Mackay said: “Danny Drinkwater is still with Manchester United. We are talking to their medical department every day but he still has a problem.

“Michael Bryan has been back for the last couple of days and then the only other injury is Stephen McGinn.”

The Blades are second from bottom after just two wins in their last 19 games, although one of those was Tuesday night’s 2-1 victory against Nottingham Forest on Tuesday.

When asked if he was surprised by Sheffield United’s position considering the strength of their squad, Mackay replied: “I would agree with that. I suppose there has been a little bit of instability at the club in the last year or so. I think they have had three managers in the last year.

“They have a sizeable squad and have brought in several loans as well. But then that brings its own problems as well.

“They had a great result in the week and reading Micky’s [Adams] comments, they were unfortunate not to come away with a win last weekend.

“It will be a tough game, make no mistake about that.”