‘We’re still the best team in the league’: Portsmouth defender’s forceful message as winning run ends at Cambridge United

And the Blues defender underlined his team are still the outfit to beat, as they extended their lead at the top of League One to four points.

The 0-0 draw against the strugglers ended the seven-game perfect streak, but made it 25 League One games without defeat.

Pompey got control of the game in the first half, but failed to turn the screw after the break as the clash became stretched. Poole stated there wasn’t any negativity at the outcome in the Blues dressing room, however.

He said: ‘This is not something to be down about.

‘We’re still unbeaten and we’re still the best team in the league at the moment. No one is down in the dressing room - it’s on to Saturday.

‘This is a tough place to come and they will pick up points here this season. If we’d lost the game it’s a different story - but we didn’t. So we move on to Saturday in good spirit.

‘It’s four points (clear at the top). We’d have liked it to be six, but it isn’t.

‘These things happen and we won’t win every game this season, that’s a certainty.

‘Overall we should have won the game, but we’re not looking back being really disappointed. We forget this now and move on to the next one.’

Despite being keen to keep the result in context, Poole acknowledged Pompey needed to be more ruthless in front of goal than they were at the Abbey Stadium.

John Mousinho’s side managed to get just two shots on target from efforts as they clocked up 62 per cent possession against the U’s.

Poole added: ‘Overall, we’re a bit disappointed. We wanted to win this game and we want to win every game.

‘We’re on such a good run, but overall there were positives to come out of it.

‘Our shape was a little bit different tonight and it worked, especially in the first half. Us as outside centre-halves were a lot more attacking, but overall we’re disappointed.

‘The game fizzled out the longer it went on and it suited them.

‘If we score a goal from our chances in the first half we could have got a few more. It was a similar story Saturday, but we got a goal in the last minute.

‘We need to put games to bed when the chances are coming and be a bit more ruthless. But if we win Saturday it’s a good week all round and no one’s complaining.

‘A lot of credit goes to them. Defensively they were good and limited us in the second half, so credit to them.

‘But if we score in the first half, the game opens us and it suits us. We have players to hurt teams, but it can be tough when sides sit behind the ball.

‘It can be tough breaking sides down, no matter who we play against.

‘If the goal goes in during the first half, though, the game opens up and that suits us down to the ground.’