Both Dons and Shrews have improved since November draw

When Dons and Shrewsbury met in November, Dons were 17th, while Shrews were mired in the drop zone after a seven-game winless streak. It looks set to be a wholly different story when they meet tonight.

With Russell Martin's side the form team in the division and sitting 11th in the table, Shrewsbury too have turned a corner since their trip to Stadium MK. Barely had the sun risen the following day from the 2-2 draw in Milton Keynes had Sam Ricketts been given his marching orders as Shrewsbury manager, having watched his side blow a 2-0 lead against a poor Dons side who failed to fire into gear for the first hour.

Since the departure of Ricketts though, Shrewsbury have lost just four times in their last 16 outings and have moved nine points clear of the drop zone and up to 17th spot.

"I think it’ll be a different game," said Martin, comparing what he expects at the Montgomery Waters Stadium tonight. "We were very poor and then played very well in the second-half. They were fearless that day.

"It’s like Northampton. The team and mentality has changed. It’s a different game from the last one as both teams are different. They’ve games in hands to lift them up the table, I’m looking forward to it because it’s a good challenge for us and our team."

Manager Steve Cotterill can be credited with the turnaround, but he has been hospitalised with Covid-19, leaving former Dons striker Aaron Wilbraham to take over the squad in the last month.

Martin continued: "I was so pleased to see the news Steve is out of hospital. I sent him a message, it’s brilliant he’s out and hope he’s on the road to recovery. Alby has done brilliant, and he’s someone we all know. It’s his first coaching role and then had to deal with that. It’s huge, they’ve done it brilliantly. The players have worked hard to do what they’ve done."

Dons though head to Shropshire having won four of their last five games on the road, with Martin adding: "The last few away games have given us confidence. It’s going to be such a tough game but one we can go in and attack, dictate the game and can all look forward to it."