Zak Whitbread: 15 more cup ties for Town

Town are keen to get back to league action at Colchester on Saturday after Monday's 3-0 defeat to Manchester United.

Whitbread relished the return to the big stage against Louis van Gaal's side.

But he believes the stakes are far higher for the lower-profile trip to bottom side Us than the glamour fifth round tie, after Salop were dumped back in the relegation zone last Saturday.

This weekend's relegation clash is the first of three games in eight days, with a visit of 16th-placed Rochdale on Tuesday and a trip to Doncaster – currently 17th - the following Saturday.

And Whitbread said: "Our real business comes at the weekend and we have 15 massive games between now and the end of the season – they're all cup finals for us.

"We've got to stay in this league, so all our focus will be on that. It's been great to be involved in the cup run, but it's all behind us. There are a lot of things we can take from Monday into the league.

"But, sometimes, you do need to look at these games and not read too much into the them."

United showed the 60-place gap in league places by controlling the game against Shrewsbury. Whitbread believes there are lessons they could learn from the tie.

But he insists they weren't overawed by the occasion or the opposition, continuing: "I don't think we were fazed – I think it came down to a difference in quality.

"There are things we can work on – we were disappointed with how the goals were scored, but again we can learn from it. At our level, you probably wouldn't be punished by those bits of quality.

"There are definitely positives we can take from it. You could feel the glare, but I don't think we were too overawed by it."