Championship side Derby County have signed experienced forward David Nugent from Middlesbrough for an undisclosed fee.
The former Preston North End, Leicester City and Portsmouth player joins the Rams on a two-and-a-half-year deal, and goes straight into their squad for Friday’s Championship fixture against Leeds United at Elland Road.
The deal was confirmed on the club’s official website on Monday afternoon.
The 31-year-old began his career at Bury after progressing through the Shakers’ youth ranks, and earned a £100,000 move to Preston after netting 18 times for the club.
It was at Deepdale where Nugent made a name for himself as a clinical goalscorer in the second tier; after adapting to the league surprisingly quickly, he went on to terrorise defences across the country, scoring 33 times in two seasons for the Lilywhites.
Later in his career he enjoyed spells in the Premier League with Portsmouth and Leicester City, before joining Aitor Karanka’s Middlesbrough in 2015.
However, following the arrivals of Alvaro Negredo and Jordan Rhodes on Teeside, Nugent struggled to cement a place in the starting side at Boro.
His new boss Steve McClaren had been looking to add to his attacking threat this month, having also been linked with attackers Jerome Sinclair and Stewart Downing earlier on in the window.
Speaking to the club website, he said: “We’re delighted to complete the signing of David Nugent.
“He is a proven goalscorer at Championship level and he also has a great deal of experience as well to bring to the table.
“David has a track record of scoring important goals as well and we’re pleased to add him to the attacking talent that we already have.”
The former England boss will be hoping Nugent’s goals can fire Derby to a playoff spot this season; the Rams are once again firmly embroiled in the promotion shakeup this campaign, sitting just two points outside the league’s top six.
