Nugent's signing ends one of the longest transfer sagas of the summer so far and has signed from Preston on a four year deal. In a press conference the England striker said that he was delighted to be joining a massive club and Harry sold the club to him with the signings he's made so far and the mixture of youth and experience currently in the squad convinced him that Pompey were the right club for him.
Prior to his time at Preston, Nugent made a name for himself at Bury and they will be receiving £1,200,000 of the fee due to the sell on clause in his Preston contract. The 22-year-old netted 33 times in 94 appearances for North End and also has an England cap to his name, scoring on his debut against Andorra (even if he did steal it from Defoe!)
John Utaka has also signed for four years from French club Rennes and can play as a forward, support striker or as a right winger. Utaka made a name for himself in France with Lens and Rennes, scaring defenders with his dribbling skills and then scoring two consecutive hat-tricks for Rennes against Lyon and Lens.
The 25-year-old has 17 caps for Nigeria and has scored 3 goals. In the press conference he said that he joined the club on the advice of Kanu and because Harry Redknapp really wanted him at the club.
Both Nugent and Utaka stated that their aims are to help Pompey into Europe, a very ambitious statement by our two new frontmen and I personally believe that this double signing is a statement of our intent and will make other clubs in the Premier League stand up and take notice. After all, our sixth and seventh major signings of the season have taken our summer spending to over £21 million and we're still not done yet!
A very big welcome to Utaka and Nuge! Pompey are now showing that they mean business.