Barnsley boss Valerian Ismael questions why VAR was not in operation at Oakwell following Tammy Abraham’s contentious opener in FA Cup defeat to Chelsea

Barnsley boss Valerien Ismael questioned why VAR was not in operation at Oakwell following Barnsley’s FA Cup defeat to Chelsea.

Tammy Abraham stroked home what proved to be the winning goal in the 1-0 win, but it is unclear if the England striker was officially onside when Reece James played the ball.

With some grounds having the capacity to have VAR and some not, there are serious irregularities and inconsistencies in the FA Cup this season, with Ismael questioning why it was not in operation on Thursday evening.

“I saw the game at Sheffield United against Bristol and that they had VAR,” he told talkSPORT’s Sam Matterface. “I was delighted that we would maybe have it but it didn’t happen and we have to accept it.

“We have to score in the first-half because if we score it could have been another game.

“The question is why one game there is VAR and one moment there isn’t.”

Ismael admitted he was ‘more than proud’ of his side’s performance after they kept the Premier League giants at bay for more than two thirds of the match.

Asked if he was proud of Barnsley’s performance, he said: “More than that. I think it was very important for us to stay true to ourselves and see how far we can bring our principles to Chelsea and I think we did it very well – especially in the first half.

“We have to score two times, two big chances and in the second-half Chelsea changed their shape with a back four and had more control on the game.

“They scored with one moment where we didn’t get the intensity of the pressure on the ball and we were punished.

“After that we come back and we were dangerous. We had the possibility to score and there was a goal-line save on the line.”