Watford manager Aidy Boothroyd is refusing to blame the distraction of takeover talk for the dreadful slump that might yet see his side miss out on a Championship play-off place.

It is understood that a Thai consortium and a super-rich Ukrainian have shown interest in the club after chairman Graham Simpson revealed he would "welcome" an offer of significant new investment.

Speculation about a boardroom coup could not have come at a worse time for Boothroyd, whose goal-shy team must pick up at least a point from Sunday's final game at Blackpool to make almost certain of their play-off spot. Despite last weekend's home defeat by relegated Scunthorpe.

Boothroyd said: "We can make all the excuses in the world but teams like Scunthorpe should be beaten and dispatched.

Now we have to live with it and make sure we get the point, or more, that is required.

"At the moment, we aren't doing anywhere near enough. We've got to pull it around, we've got to stand and fight and not run away like we did against Scunthorpe."