"Losing does stick in the throat a bit. But it draws our attention to that run of good victories we had before the defeat. What we've got to do now is concentrate on that same line, get back to winning ways and carry on picking up three points in order to add to our two point advantage."
- Gabriel Heinze
Gabriel Heinze sees last Sunday's defeat against West Ham as a potential springboard for United to kick on in the Premiership title race.
The reverse at Upton Park was only United's second Premiership defeat all season, and Gaby feels that fact should inspire another fine run of form for Sir Alex Ferguson's side.
"All defeats are disappointing so we were a little bit down after West Ham but it's in the past now, it's over," he told MUTV. "We must learn from the errors we made on the day and look ahead to Villa. That's what we're doing.
"We're still happy that we've got that two point advantage but losing does stick in the throat a bit. But it draws our attention to that run of good victories we had before the defeat.
"What we've got to do now is concentrate on that same line, get back to winning ways and carry on picking up three points in order to add to that two point advantage."
Saturday's trip to Aston Villa is the first of four games in 10 days over the festive period for United, and Gaby admits he is baffled by the absence of a winter break in the Premiership.
"It's one of the things I've never been able to understand about the game," he said. "It's a time when you should be at home with your family, yet here we are playing so many games in a short period of time.
"But it's not the footballers who run things, it's other people who make these decisions. So what you have to be is just thoroughly professional. We know it's an important, difficult, decisive period because, with so many points up for grabs, it's something which can have quite a bearing on the season ahead.
"Three home games are important, but there's not much time to rest up between games and there's little margin for error. I think it could be vital, in this season in particular, whoever makes the least mistakes will prevail and win the title."