Watford boss Brendan Rodgers says Town midfielder Veliche Shumulikoski could come back into his thoughts in the summer. The Blues pulled out of a recent swap loan deal involving the Macedonian.

Rodgers says nothing is now likely to happen before the emergency loan window closes on Thursday, but that Shumulikoski could be a target in the close season: "I shall be looking to bring in players in the summer, and he is an intelligent player and could come back into my thoughts.

"Ipswich were interested in a double swap and you will have to ask them who our player was. But it appears all over for the time being.”

On Friday, chief executive Derek Bowden denied that Town had asked about central defender or full-back Adrian Mariappa, one of a number of Hornets players who is out of contract at the end of the season and someone who has been linked with the Blues on a number of previous occasions.

After Shumulikoski had revealed Watford's initial interest in him, boss Jim Magilton said that Town were looking at the swap in order to cover "a few injury concerns”. During that week, Moritz Volz had learnt he required surgery on a groin problem and David Wright was suffering from an ankle injury, so the Blues were particularly short of cover at right-back.

If that was the area of the squad Magilton was looking to add to, then Lloyd Doyley would appear to be the most likely candidate. Like Mariappa, the 26-year-old, who can play anywhere in defence but primarily on the right, is out of contract at the end of the season, although the Hornets plan to offer him an extension to his current deal.

Shumulikoski is contracted to Town until the summer of 2010, having signed for around £500,000 from Turkish side Bursaspor in January 2008. The Blues turned down a move to Preston, while QPR have also been linked.

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