It has come under criticism in recent years but the 2017/18 instalment of the FA Cup’s Third Round certainly didn’t disappoint.

It was kicked off by a cracking Merseyside derby and continued with a series of high-profile upsets, not least including Nottingham Forest’s 4-2 victory over Arsenal and Leeds United’s shock loss at Newport County, ensuring doubters that the magic of the FA Cup is far from lost.

While some triumphed during the Third Round weekend, however, others inevitably toiled; here’s a look at the winners and losers…

Losers – Renato Sanches and Anthony Taylor

Swansea and Wolves’ scoreless draw lacked quality but certainly didn’t let down in terms of talking points. Renato Sanches was Europe’s Golden Boy in 2016 after signing for Bayern Munich in a deal that could eventually cost the Bavarians £72million, but was received by a chorus of jeers and boos as he limped off with a hamstring injury late in the first half.

Anthony Taylor, meanwhile, bizarrely chose the largely insignificant FA Cup clash to make a statement on cynical fouls, issuing Leroy Fer a straight red for the kind of counter-attack-stopping challenge a booking has become the customary punishment for.

Many have tipped Taylor to become the Premier League’s next flagship referee following Mark Clattenburg’s departure, but the bold decision to deviate from the laws certainly won’t sit well with PGMOL – who appoint officials for top flight games.

Winner – Frank Nouble

The great beauty of English football is that every dog eventually has their day – which is exactly how Frank Nouble must have felt as his Newport County side shocked Leeds United to claim victory from a one-goal deficit with just 15 minutes left to go.

Since graduating from the academy at Chelsea, the striker’s career has only drifted downwards throughout the Football League, managing just 40 goals in 249 appearances and now finding himself in mid-table in the fourth tier.

But those many frustrating, many goalless spells must have felt worth it when the 26-year-old’s driven cross hit Leeds’ Conor Shaughnessy and diverted into the net, and even more so when youngster Shawn McCoulsky came off the bench to head home the winner late on. Nouble may have failed at the top of the English game, but he’s etched himself into a small piece of FA Cup folklore that won’t be forgotten quickly.

Winners – Nottingham Forest’s academy

Nottingham Forest’s 4-2 win over FA Cup holders Arsenal provided the weekend’s biggest dose of Third Round magic and the lion’s share of credit must go to those working at the club’s academy.

Forest’s starting XI included five graduates from the Forest youth ranks and it was that combination of enthusiastic energy and blind bravery that allowed the former European champions to pull off such a dramatic upset despite currently having no permanent manager.

That was epitomised best by the performance of goalscorer Ben Brereton, who ran Per Mertesacker and Rob Holding ragged before converting from the penalty spot.

Loser – Mark Hughes

It had been a long time coming but a 2-1 defeat to a Coventry Side 53 rungs below Stoke City in the Football League proved to be the final nail in the coffin for Mark Hughes’ tenure at the Bet365 Stadium.

From conceding sloppy goals at set pieces to throwing on a 36-year-old Peter Crouch for desperation punts up field in search of a late equaliser, the loss at the Ricoh Arena – which qualified as one of the biggest shocks of the Third Round yet hardly caught people off guard – encapsulated everything that’s gone wrong at the Potteries over the last 18 months.

Local media described it as one of the worst results in Stoke City’s history.

Winners – West Brom

While Exeter City represented one of the lowest-ranked sides involved in the Third Round, West Brom’s 2-0 victory at St. James Park must have felt like winning the FA Cup itself for those at the Hawthorns.

The relegation-threatened Baggies hadn’t won a match in any competition since August and Alan Pardew will view the end of that four-month hoodoo as just rewards for the small but significant improvements his side have shown since replacing Tony Pulis at the end of November.

Strikers Jay Rodriguez and Salomon Rondon got on the scoresheet as well; confidence in attack will be instrumental to West Brom avoiding the drop this season.

Winner – Virgil van Dijk

There’s no better way of introducing yourself at Liverpool than scoring the winning goal in the Merseyside derby, Virgil van Dijk settling the first clash of the Third Round on Friday night by rising highest at a corner and heading beyond an onrushing Jordan Pickford.

The Netherlands international still has a long way to go before he justifies his staggering £75million price-tag, but if Jurgen Klopp’s main motivation behind spending the big bucks was signing a defender prepared to take games by the scruff of the neck – be that in the opposition box or his own – the early signs are certainly promising.

Loser – Michy Batshuayi

If there were ever any doubts over whether Chelsea would sell Michy Batshuayi this summer, they’ve surely been eradicated by a profitless showing from Antonio Conte’s second-choice striker. With Alvaro Morata rested, it was up to the Belgium international to provide the cutting edge against an inconsistent Norwich City side, but he just couldn’t break the deadlock in an eventual scoreless draw at Carrow Road.

Tellingly, Morata was brought on after 74 minutes and you have to wonder how many more chances Batshuayi will get to prove himself before the end of the season. What little faith Conte has in the 24-year-old clearly took another big dent against the Championship side.

Losers – Arsenal’s veterans

Although full credit must be given to a fearless Nottingham Forest side, the sheer scale of Arsenal’s Third Round faux pas simply can’t be ignored. This is the first time Arsene Wenger has been eliminated in the Third Round from 21 seasons at the Arsenal helm and goes down in the history books as one of the worst FA Cup defences of all time – if not officially the worst.

While that was partly due to the number of inexperienced players turning out for the Gunners, the north Londoners were truly let down by the more seasoned members of the team. Mertesacker and Mathieu Debuchy just couldn’t keep pace with Forest’s youthful legs, Theo Walcott and Danny Welbeck only made contributions in fits and spurts and Mohamed Elneny failed to provide a driving force in central midfield.

Perhaps the biggest culprit though, was the biggest veteran of them all – Wenger himself; Arsenal paid the price for severely underestimating the quality and desire of their Championship opposition.