Thelo Aasgaard on what Wigan Athletic learned from Manchester United tie - and what might have been...

And he believes the experience gained will hopefully stand them in good stead as they focus on the No.1 priority of the season - securing their League One status.

A goal in either half from Diogo Dalot and Bruco Fernandes (penalty) sent United through to round four, and a trip to either Newport County or Eastleigh.

But Latics were far from disgraced in front of a packed house at the DW Stadium.

"They are the games you want to play in, and we'll all cherish the opportunity," said Aasgaard, one of the senior players in the side at 21. "We're a young squad but I think we gave a really good account of ourselves.

"They showed their quality, but I think we also showed our quality...maybe it was just too much for us in the end

"I think we've got the second youngest squad in League One, and I've played with most of these lads through the years in the Academy.

"As much as we wanted the result to be different, I really enjoyed playing alongside them on such a big stage.

"Unfortunately the result wasn't to be, but it means we can fully focus on achieving our goals in the league.

"We've got a massive game at Northampton on Saturday, and there's so many positives we can take from this experience.

"We played some really good football against a really good team, and for long periods we more than gave them a game."

The best chance of the night from Latics' point of view was actually their first, when Aasgaard found the ball at his feet with only Andre Onana to beat.

Although the shot was fiercely struck, Onana made a fine save - leaving Aasgaard and Latics to wonder about what might have been.

When asked whether his eyes had lit up when the ball was played to him, Aasgaard added: "Yeah, it's a good save to be fair.

"If it was on my right foot, I would have had the confidence to maybe lift the ball a bit. But he's got down well, and credit to him for that, it didn't knock my confidence."