Is VAR used in Carabao Cup as Man City face Watford in third round?

This week, the focus shifts from the Premier League as Manchester City participate in midweek Carabao Cup action.

Pep Guardiola's side join the competition at the third round stage due to their European commitments. They will be aiming to avoid any surprises against lower-league rivals.

City enter the tournament on Tuesday night, just over 24 hours after what was an intense Premier League clash against title-rivals Arsenal. They host Championship opposition in the form of Watford.

Pep Guardiola is anticipated to rotate his squad for the match, but City are still expected to progress to the fourth round. If successful, they'll discover their next opponents in Wednesday night's fourth-round draw.

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However, there is a slight variation in the game at the Etihad Stadium. Although the Carabao Cup was the first English football competition to trial VAR, the rules governing its use differ.

Here's what you need to know.

The application of VAR in the Carabao Cup differs from its use in the FA Cup later in the season. In the FA Cup, if the technology is available at the host venue, it is used.

This is not the case for the Carabao Cup, with the EFL instead opting to not use the technology in the earlier stages to ensure fairness across the board.

Indeed, the plan is to introduce the technology for the first time in this year's competition at the semi-final stage. However, if a team without the technology reaches the final four, VAR will not be utilised until the final at Wembley Stadium, with both semi-finals foregoing the use of the technology.

Sky has