While the use of VAR has proven consistently controversial, it was the lack of it that made headlines as Aston Villa took the lead in the FA Cup fourth round against Newcastle.

Tammy Abraham opened the scoring with his first goal since returning to Villa in January, with his happy moment under the microscope as replays showed the striker was offside, with no way to overturn his close-range effort.

The Villa striker found the back of the net after he appeared to catch Newcastle out, getting on the end of Douglas Luiz’s free-kick to finish from inside the box.

Naturally, Newcastle fans will be absolutely fuming with VAR’s absence.

But, in the wake of a controversial and lengthy decision in last weekend’s Premier League clash between Liverpool and Manchester City, Abraham’s goal perhaps demonstrates the merits of VAR, in spite of its downsides.