Celtic thought they had their moment at Ibrox when Daizen Maeda turned the ball into the net during the first half.
Liam Scales had flicked the ball into the danger area, and Maeda reacted quickest, bundling it home to spark wild celebrations in the Celtic end.
Those celebrations did not last long.
VAR stepped in and ruled Scales offside in the build-up, wiping out what looked like a valuable opener for Martin O’Neill’s side.
On the live broadcast, former Celtic manager Neil Lennon described the freeze-frame used for the check as “so tight” while on co-commentary.
When the offside lines were eventually shown, they did little to clear things up.
The graphic placed the lines through two Rangers players, although the deepest defender did not appear to be included in the final decision. From the images shown, it looked far from conclusive.
Scales’ trailing left foot did appear to edge beyond the defensive line, but there was also a Rangers defender positioned only a few yards away who looked capable of playing the Celtic centre-back onside.
The images left plenty of doubt.
Michael Stewart, who was on punditry duty for Premier Sports , was unconvinced by what he saw.
“No,” he said when asked on the Scottish Football Social Club if the offside lines drawn by the VAR team looked right.
“I think I said it in the studio, when you look at a monitor that is 10-15 feet away and it’s not like a phone that you can zoom in on, it’s difficult.
“You just look at it, and it’s all about trust. You’ve got to trust the lines are in the right place, but my gut is, I think Scales is offside, but Djiga, who is the deepest Rangers defender, the line is not drawn on him.
“His left shoulder, for me, appeared to be the deepest part of a Rangers defender. I think he would still be offside, but those lines just don’t look right.”
Stewart went further, questioning the value of the technology after such a major moment was left open to debate.
For Celtic, it was one of the few attacking moments they managed to carve out during the match.
O’Neill’s side spent long spells defending and digging in, particularly with key figures missing.
Kieran Tierney and captain Callum McGregor were both absent, forcing changes and putting extra strain on the side.
Celtic held their shape and battled through a match that demanded patience and discipline more than flair.
Over the full 120 minutes, the Hoops registered just one shot on target.
It turned into a backs-against-the-wall effort from Celtic, with the defensive unit standing firm under sustained pressure.
The offside call will remain a talking point, but the wider picture from the performance should not be ignored.
Celtic now move on to Hampden, where they will face St Mirren in the semi-final on the weekend of April 18/19, with the exact date and kick-off time still to be confirmed.
Why would a probable corrupt “fabricated” drawn line from the SFA VAR team surprise anyone at Celtic?
Sure! Due to injuries to key men, we knew our game plan had to change which meant a completely different style to anything we’ve done in recent times.
But it doesn’t alter the fact that the rules were altered and lines fabricated as usual, to favour the SFA establishment club, and to go AGAINST Celtic!
Like I said! Why would we be surprised?
Absolutely Joe!