A number of young players could make the trip to Fratton Park as Gills prepare to take on Portsmouth in the EFL Trophy.
Portsmouth v Gillingham
Fratton Park
EFL Trophy Group Stage Fixture
Tuesday October 10
Kick-Off, 7.45pm
Team News:
Oli Hawkins and Tim Dieng remain unavailable for selection as both players continue to recover from injury.
Ashley Nadesan is unlikely to feature in Keith Millen’s squad, having been forced off the pitch with an ankle problem in the Gills previous match against MK Dons.
Shaun Williams, Jonny Williams and George Lapslie could potentially be available for selection after missing Saturday's fixture.
All will continue to be assessed ahead of Kick-Off at Fratton Park.
As for Pompey Josh Dockerill (knee), Tom Lowery (knee), Marlon Pack (ankle) and Anthony Scully (knee) are unavailable.
Former Gills defender, Connor Ogilvie, has returned to full training following a groin problem, but is unlikely to feature.
Terry Devlin, Paddy Lane, Regan Poole and Alex Robertson are all away on international duty.
Manager Comments:
John Mousinho: “There will be quite a few guys involved who played for us against Port Vale on Saturday and not as many changes as before.
“We want to keep up that winning mentality and we also want people to come in and compete for spots to give me a headache."
Keith Millen: “I was so pleased for the players on Saturday. Last week was a tough week for them and I think they deserved the three points.
“It’s an important game for us in this competition. We’ve won a game already, but we probably need to win two in the group stage to go through.
“There are a lot of tired legs in the squad, we’ve got a few injuries and of course we need to consider our game away at Walsall next weekend, but there’s no way we are heading to Fratton Park thinking anything other than how we can win the game.”
Previous Meeting:
Gillingham made the trip to Pompey for a Sky Bet League One fixture in April 22, as the Gills looked to secure valuable points in the fight against relegation.
Portsmouth were straight out the blocks from the whistle, putting together some great combinations and linking up well down the Gillingham left. A drive down the flank gave Marcus Harness the space to get a dangerous cross away, finding Ronan Curtis in the box.
The forward muscled past his marker to touch the cross into the top corner, putting the hosts in front in the fourth minute.
The Gills managed to compose themselves and were level on 29 minutes played.
A counter-attack saw the ball come to Ben Reeves left of the area, his cross met by defender Ryan Jackson whose shot across the box fooled Pompey keeper Gavin Bazunu and found the opposite corner.
Portsmouth dominated the ball for the remainder of the first half and regained the lead in the second minute of added time. Curtis again finding himself unmarked in the Gillingham area, having plenty of time to compose himself for a shot on Aaron Chapman’s goal, sending the ball into the bottom corner.
Portsmouth found their third on 54 minutes.
Clark Robinson, rising highest to meet a corner ball into the box, making great contact to send a powerful header past Aaron Chapman to make it 3-1 to the home side.
Head-to-Head:
Gillingham – 9
Draw – 10
Portsmouth – 22
The Gills travel to Portsmouth this Tuesday evening with a relatively poor record across all competitions with their hosts. The visitors have recorded eight league wins against Pompey in the past, with a solitary victory in cup competition coming in 05/06.
Portsmouth have enjoyed a dominance over the Gills since the two clubs first met over a century ago, way back in September 1920. The hosts have notched 22 wins in all competitions, six of those wins have come in cup competitions.
Ticket Information:
Gills fans can pay on the night at Fratton Park from the Anson Road ticket office or the hut behind the Fratton End (from 4pm).
Card purchases only.
There is a £2 increase on the prices, which can be found here.
Odds:
Portsmouth Win – 8/15
Draw – 3/1
Gillingham Win – 4/1
Special Bet: Gillingham to win 1-0 – 14/1
Match Officials:
Referee – Farai Hallam
Assistants – Justin Amey & Daniel Flynn
Fourth Official – Carl Brook
Sat Nav: PO4 8RA