Hany Mukhtar goal disallowed in controversial VAR decision in Nashville SC's Leagues Cup semifinal

Nashville SC had a 1-0 lead against CF Monterrey early in the Leagues Cup semifinal on Tuesday at GEODIS Park — until VAR controversially struck it down.

Hany Mukhtar's curling shot tucked into the top right corner of the goal in the 12th minute, presumably giving Nashville the lead.

But after a VAR check that required the game official to jog to the on-field monitor, the decision was made to rule offside and disallow the goal.

In the clip below of the play, Alex Muyl is making a move toward the ball, but neither he nor the Monterrey goalkeeper have a chance to get close to the ball. Muyl's move may be the ultimate reason why offside was called, but his material impact on the play was minimal. The Monterrey goalkeeper is diving for the ball before Muyl enters his line of sight, and neither get a piece off the shot. Nothing Muyl does affects the keeper.

Apple TV+ analyst Danny Higginbotham, calling the game on the streaming service, said the decision by VAR was the wrong call. "Nashville can feel really, really aggrieved that this goal was taken off," he said at halftime.

Even the Leagues Cup X account (formerly known as Twitter) was less than enthused by the decision in a since-deleted tweet. "ARE YOU KIDDING VAR," the tweet read. They were not alone.

The VAR decision was unlucky for Nashville SC, who continued to create chances through the next 35 minutes but to no avail by halftime against the Liga MX side. Tuesday's winner will face Lionel Messi's Inter Miami on Saturday in the Leagues Cup final.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Hany Mukhtar goal disallowed by VAR in Nashville SC's Leagues Cup semifinal