ENGLAND striker David Nugent is a reported target for Ipswich Town manager Paul Jewell as he looks to improve his goal output next season.

Jewell’s side goes into today’s final home match of the season against Preston this afternoon (kick-off 3pm) having found the net 58 times in 44 games with other teams in the top half of the table with the exception of Hull City all having scored over 60.

Nugent has a phenomenal record at Portman Road scoring freely for his former club Preston for England Under-21’s and on his last two visits for his current club Portsmouth.

The 26-year-old, who cost Pompey �6million in July 2007, is out of contract in the summer at Fratton Park.

Nugent was the subject of much speculation about joining Town when Jim Magilton was Ipswich manager three years ago.

Insiders at Portsmouth are certain Nugent will not sign a new contract offer that has been on the table since December, and that he will be moving on.

He is believed to be on �26,000 a week wages with the former Premier League club and would have to take a pay cut to stay with Pompey.

The same would be said if he moved to another Championship club although with no fee involved he could benefit financially from a summer move.

Queens Park Rangers are also said to be interested in Nugent who has found goals hard to come by in the top flight, but has always scored freely at Championship level.

Portsmouth remain adamant that current Town skipper David Norris is on his way to Fratton Park with his Blues contract expiring on June 30.

They insist that the midfielder has already agreed to move although the player has gone out of his way to stress that he will be happy to stay with Ipswich if a new deal can be agreed.

Pompey manager Steve Cotterill has his hands tied in signing pre-contract agreements with soon to be out of contract players that he wants to bring in because of delays in a Russian-based group taking over the club.

It is not unusual for post-dated contracts to be signed, but Cotterill as things stand cannot even renew the contracts of his current players.

This leaves Norris’ future still not fully decided, but it may well turn out that today’s game will be his last in an Ipswich shirt at Portman Road.