Nugent expected to join Pompey

David Nugent was reported to have agreed to join Portsmouth from Preston North End in a £6m deal after having new talks with the Premier League side.

Portsmouth had yet to confirm the news last night but Nugent is expected to complete the move after a medical today. The 22-year-old looks set to sign a four-year contract to become the manager Harry Redknapp's sixth signing of the summer and partially solve his striker crisis.

Nugent was believed to be at Preston's training ground saying goodbye to his team-mates yesterday following renewed transfer talks at Fratton Park on Monday morning.

Portsmouth were thought to have earlier baulked at Preston's valuation, but with the Nigerian striker Kanu's future uncertain after he repeatedly turned down a new one-year contract offer, and with Svetoslav Todorov joining Charlton, they may have felt obliged to pay up after Sunderland pulled out of a bid for the player. Nugent has a year left on his contract at Deepdale.

The Rennes striker John Utaka, Kanu's front-line partner in the Nigeria national side, is another striker Pompey are tracking and they could press ahead with a deal for him despite a £6m valuation from the French club.

Nugent will be expected to link up with his new team-mates on their trip to the West Country ahead of Saturday's opening pre-season friendly with Yeovil.

He follows the defenders Sylvain Distin, Hermann Hreidarsson and Martin Crainie plus two midfielders, £7m Sulley Muntari and £1.5m Arnold Mvuemba, into the club. And the continuing transfer activity will certainly please Sol Campbell, last season's star signing, who insists Pompey need more "serious" fire-power up front to be a force again next term.

Campbell faces competition for his own position at the back from newcomers Distin and Hreidarsson but insists: "The team is in good shape but for me the real buzz won't come until I see some serious players up front."

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