IT’S crunch time in the Carabao Cup as the competition enters the semi-final stage – but there is still a bit of confusion on the rules.
Manchester United will be hoping to get past Nottingham Forest in what is expected to be a mouthwatering two-legged tie.
Manchester United beat Aston Villa to get into the semi-final
And the winners will meet either high-flying Newcastle or Southampton in the final.
But the one question everyone wants to know is, do away goals count?
Do away goals count in the Carabao Cup semi-finals and is extra time played?
Cup football is great fun but can sometimes get a little bit confusing.
Especially when the rules seem to change from competition to competition.
If a Carabao Cup semi-final ends level on aggregate after two legs this season, the away goals rule will NOT apply.
Should this happen, the tie will go into 30 minutes of extra time.
There is no golden goal or anything similar – and if the sides are still level following ET, it’s the dreaded penalties.
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Does the Carabao Cup have VAR?
From the semi-final stage up to the final, VAR WILL be used in the Carabao Cup.
But it will NOT be used in rounds up to the semi-finals this season.
VAR was used in the Carabao Cup in 2018/19 but the EFL opted to get rid of the system last season on the grounds that it was only being used at Premier League venues.
This caused particular controversy in the FA Cup when Man City were given a controversial penalty at Swansea and no VAR was allowed to be used even though the Liberty Stadium had the system installed.