The Beeb reports that Portsmouth boss Harry Redknapp is willing to let Nugent go in order to raise funds for a bid for Nicolas Anelka. In my view it could be a swap deal with Portsmouth offering cash plus Nugent to secure Anelka’s services.
However, if Harry’s looking for a striker that can score 15-20 goals in a season for Portsmouth, isn’t Nugent the right man for it?
Given time on the pitch, even if he’s going to be coming on as a sub like Peter Crouch did for Liverpool last season, Nugent can easily score 10+ goals – he has the talent to do so and to be honest if he didn’t, Portsmouth wouldn’t have signed him. So as things stand, Harry is willing to let a 22-year old promising striker go for a 28-year old striker whose wage demands and fervent desire to play in the Champions League has put off most suitors.
With or without Anelka, Portsmouth aren’t going to be in the Champions League in the next 2-3 years (unless that cup deal that Platini is proposing goes through, but even then it’s going to be a long shot) AND Bolton are playing in Europe this season. With his stated ambitions Portsmouth doesn’t give him a step up this season, although he’s likely to do a lot better with Portsmouth than he is with Bolton (personal opinion).
Nugent, on the other hand, will undoubtedly benefit by going to Bolton where he will most likely get more playing time than at Pompey and as a result a good full season with Bolton will help him in establishing himself as a Premiership striker.
Anelka is a better striker than Nugent, no doubt, but the opportunity cost of getting him onboard, plus the long-term value that Nugent offers, makes Harry’s pursuit of Anelka a bit unreasonable, unless he’s under pressure to qualify for Europe this season, in which case breaking the bank and ditching a promising striker would make more sense.
Comments are welcome.
Also Read: The Premier League 2007 Summer Transfers Page and our transfer news section.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
