After both Sunderland and Portsmouth had bids in the region of £6 million accepted for the player, Nugent was eventually unveiled as a Pompey player at a press conference alongside John Utaka on 11 July 2007. However, rumours followed just weeks later that Derby County were considering a bid for Nugent and that he would be leaving Portsmouth in the same transfer window he arrived in. In a post-match press conference following a League Cup match early on in Nugent's Pompey career, in which he scored his first goal for the club, Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp publicly stated Nugent would be free to leave the club if the right offer came in to help fund a move for more players. However, Nugent stated he wanted to stay at Portsmouth.