MICAH HYDE is likely to come back into first-team contention as Watford travel to in-form, big-spending Portsmouth for what is likely to be a tough fixture.

Hyde, who hurt his ankle last week, has returned to training and is set to join an otherwise unchanged squad.

There is also good news with regard to Danny Webber, who has recovered from the kick which prevented him from playing the majority of the second-half on Saturday.

"Micah Hyde was back training on Tuesday and was looking quite good. He will come back into contention if he continues to progress," said Ray Lewington this week.

"Danny Webber is fine, Paolo Vernazza had 90 minutes in the reserves and Richard Johnson will start playing regularly in the reserves from next week."

With Heidar Helguson also due to come back into match-action next week, things are beginning to look up, with only Stephen Hughes suffering a setback, picking up an ankle strain in the reserves on Tuesday.

So with the Manchester United striker reporting fit again, Watford will be able to continue with the pairing of Webber and Tommy Smith.

"The days of having to have a big man up front is not as essential as it was although, in a perfect world, you probably want one on hand. But if you have genuine pace up there it will probably cause problems for most teams," said the manager.

Lewington was under no illusions about the tough nature of Watford's start to the season, when they play most of the promotion contenders.

"Portsmouth will be a really tough game for us, but then I did think from the moment the fixtures came out that the start was particularly tough. We are playing quite a few of the fancied sides early on," he said.

"You look at the money Portsmouth have spent and they are probably the biggest spenders in the division. The wages are hefty. They are certainly going for it.

"I've watched them on video and seen the reports. They are a good side, very good going forward and, to a large degree, the side is geared to go forward. Even so, they can leave gaps at the back. But they are a very entertaining side to watch and I quite enjoyed watching the videos. They can play, there is no doubt about that."

Meanwhile, with seven points from their first three games, Portsmouth are the fourth-favourites for promotion.

Manager Harry Redknapp has brought in nine players this summer, backed by an expansive chairman, and with the sale of Peter Crouch swelling their coffers, they have recently recruited Paul Merson, reputed in Pompey circles to have taken a drop to £10,000 a week.

Redknapp has spent in excess of £2 million on fees as Portsmouth are hoping to steal a march on their cash-strapped rivals, and the manager was set to strengthen his options still further yesterday (Thursday) be completing the signing of Gianluca Festa from Middlesbrough in time to make his debut tomorrow.

To date, Pompey have beaten Nottingham Forest 2-0, drawn with Sheffield United and won 3-2 at Crystal Palace.

The team is likely to be: Hislop; Primus, Foxe, De Zeeuw; Crowe, O'Neil, Quashie, Taylor; Merson; Burton, Todorov. Substitutes from: Pericard, Kawaguchi, Harper, Burchill, Hughes, Robinson.

August 23, 2002 13:00