Defeat to Charlton hasn’t knocked Gillingham’s confidence, says captain Gabriel Zakuani.

The defender was pleased with how they performed at The Valley.

“We feel quite positive,” said Zakuani following the 2-0 defeat.

• Reaction: Gills lack quality in attack

“There wasn’t much in the game, they got two breaks and the second goal was a decent strike.

“But the way we started, we put the game to them. There wasn’t much discouragement, we were all positive.

“We went at them, that was the plan – to give as good as we got.

“We attacked well and we defended well for the majority of the game. It was a shame we conceded early.

“The boys were out on their feet at the end, they gave so much and we will take the positives. The run we had been on was good, we just need to make sure we bounce back quickly.”

Awaiting next is a home game against league leaders Portsmouth. They arrive at Priestfield on Boxing Day with just two league defeats this season, one of those against Gills.

“We know we have a good psychological advantage after beating them at their place,” said Zakuani.

“We know they will be coming at us but that may suit us. We can find gaps when they go all out attack, hopefully. We have a lot of belief.

“Hopefully when we see them we pick up the three points we missed out on against Charlton.”

The Gills are due to train on Christmas Day in preparation of Pompey’s visit.

Zakuani said: “We have a job to do and we will do the training that we need to.”

Missing from the team at Charlton were leading scorer Tom Eaves and defender Max Ehmer.

The captain admitted losing Eaves to injury was a blow but felt replacement Brandon Hanlan, along with Ehmer’s stand-in, Alex Lacey, handled the job well.

He said: “(Eaves) is a big miss and you notice it when the ball doesn’t stick quite as well. Sometimes when you are chasing a game you have got to go long and he is a good outlet to have.

“He is a good finisher and with the little things in the box that fall down, he has got that good instinct to put them away.

“Alex did well, there was nothing he could do about the goals, he defended as well.

“He is good to have around the squad because he keeps myself and Max on our toes. He did well and Brandon put himself about, they didn’t let themselves down.”