Verdict: New technology killing the emotion says David Wagner as Huddersfield Town fall to Manchester United

Those who attended on that winter’s day just over 94 years ago at Old Trafford should count themselves as the lucky ones.

An FA Cup tie on Saturday evening which periodically exhibited heart and ebullience from the hosts and two select moments of splendour from the visitors was effectively ransacked by one unfortunate topic – and it will be a game which will sadly be forever recollected for one incident.

The whys and wherefores of the call to rule out Juan Mata’s strike for offside just before half-time – after referee Kevin Friend consulted with Video Assistant Referee Neil Swarbrick – have been debated endlessly over the past 36 hours. You sense that it will do for a good while yet.

But if ever anybody required proof that technology can spoil the flow of a football match, this surely was it.

It is clear that David Wagner spoke for many after the match when he talked about his dissatisfaction about the way in which technology and external forces can wreck the passion play of a sporting occasion.

The emotion was ‘killed’ as Wagner succinctly put it. As for consulting VAR, Wagner said: “‘I don’t like this, whether the decision goes in our favour or not.”

Countless others do not like it either, Herr Wagner.

The theory behind VAR is that it is employed where there is a clear and obvious mistake – which there was not when Mata latched onto Ashley Young’s pass and looked for all the world to be level with last Town defender Christopher Schindler before rounding Jonas Lossl and netting.

The subsequent two-minute delay after referee Kevin Friend called for video assistance from Swarbrick despite minimal protests from home players, was an added frustration.

A decision of ‘no-goal’ was finally called, only for high farce to arrive when the original freeze-frame shot of what Swarbrick was basing his decision on was revealed by broadcaster BT Sport.

The lines which went across the pitch to determine whether Mata was offside or not were wonky. Later on in the half-time interval, the correct images that Swarbrick had access to were shown.

All told, it was all an unholy mess and an incident which did few people any favours, let alone the spectators.

At very best, it proved that VAR remains a work in progress and is far from foolproof, but home goalkeeper Lossl, for one, believes it is a system that can, eventually, be refined successfully.

He said: “You know what, if in the end, he whistled a goal, I would have said ‘okay’. Then you know it is right.

“Obviously it took a little long, but I like it. I like that you are certain on the key elements, so, for me, it is a positive thing.

“Of course, there is some implementation and it takes time and you know that obviously it took long with that decision, but I also heard it was very, very close.”

Parking the VAR debate to one side, this cup-tie showcased a Town side true to their instincts in a positive light, although they were forced to doff their cap to two moments of majesty which settled the tie.

The first arrived just three minutes in when Romelu Lukaku expertly cut inside Schindler after being sent clear by Mata and showed the mark of a craftsman by clinically firing low past Lossl.

Ten minutes into the second half, another classy touch saw the £75m forward gallop clear following a pinpoint pass from Alexis Sanchez – his sole meaningful contribution of an inhibited performance – and fire home his second following a deadly counter-attack which saw Town players stranded at the other end of the pitch.

That strike enabled United to play out the final half-hour comfortably on their terms, but Town had done enough before then to emerge with some credit.

Ahead of the game, Jose Mourinho was clearly wary. After a fraught visit to his bogey ground at St James’ Park six days earlier, he plainly did not want the John Smith’s Stadium to become another house of pain.

He may have shown his benevolence in posing for pre-match selfies with young home fans, but as the rain bucketed down at kick-off, he was entitled to cast his mind back to a weather-ravaged autumn afternoon in Yorkshire when his side were outfought by Wagner’s tenacious Terriers.

United’s manager was a very visible presence in his technical area early on. He may have been soothed by the sight of an early opener, but it was clear he knew what was coming afterwards. He was wise to be vigilant.

Town, just like in October, were abundant in terms of tempo, energy, desire and application and could count themselves unfortunate not to be level at the break, even taking the unfortunate Mata incident into account.

Tom Ince – promised some ‘pocket money’ by his father Paul if he knocked out his old man’s old club in the cup – was almost quids in, firing a low shot inches wide before agonisingly just failing to get a decisive touch to a defence-splitting centre from the impressive Florent Habergjonaj.

Philip Billing and Danny Williams, aggressive in the engine room, also tested Sergio Romero in a half of merit from the hosts.

Their early efforts in the second-half also possessed substance, with Rajiv van La Parra off beam when the ball broke invitingly before Lukaku’s 21st goal of the season provided belated calm and order for the visitors.