12 minutes. That’s how long it took Korbin Albert to come off the bench against Australia and score an outstanding golazo for the USWNT in their final group-stage win. Though it hasn’t been long since her anti-LGBTQ stance came to light, upsetting many fans, the PSG superstar’s heroics surely make the case for fans to offer the player a clean slate. At least Alexi Lalas believes so, urging American fans to ‘forgive and forget’ whatever happened with Albert.

Hosting the latest episode of the State of the Union podcast with his usual buddy David Moose, the former USMNT star took time to heap praise on the 20-year-old midfielder for scoring yet another banger. However, he warns those who still have a grudge for Albert. “I’m happy for her and again just to reiterate, if you’re being an a**hole to Korbin Albert right now, you can stop,” said the former defender.

“This is a young woman who certainly has grown over the last months, both on and off the field and she got on the field and did what she needed to do. Plenty of people out there I hope can forgive and forget going forward because I think she’s going to be involved with this team for a long time,” concluded Lalas.

Seems like the USWNT icon is impressed by Korbin for stepping up for the 4x Olympians when it was needed the most. Hayes and Co. were ahead just before the end of the first half after Trinity Rodman opened the scoring, courtesy of an assist from Sophia Smith. Interestingly, Albert came off the bench in the 65 minutes and scored the top left corner finish at the 77th-minute mark.

Her strike proved crucial as failure to score would have seen USWNT end the match in a draw. The Matildas denied the Americans a clean sheet as Alanna Kennedy added one in the injury time. While it remains to be seen if fans will cut some slack to Albert, let’s know what exactly she did.

Here’s why Korbin Albert faces scrutiny from USWNT fans!

Notably, Korbin Albert found herself in the hot seat near the end of March after posting an anti-LGBTQ post on TikTok. However, she later apologized, calling it “insensitive and hurtful” and clarifying her acts as “immature and disrespectful.” Yet, fans kept booing her in the recent USWNT’s friendly games. As if this controversial activity wasn’t enough, Albert had also allegedly liked an Instagram post that mocked former USWNT star Megan Rapinoe’s injury in her final career game.

Emma Hayes was even slammed for giving the talented midfielder a chance in the summer games, from fans and Sam Mewis earlier. However, it’s all the ‘merit‘ that gets Albert in the 18-player roster. “Korbin has had to learn, and my experiences with her has been someone who, she’s a young person who’s understood fully the implications of her social media activity,” said Hayes, explaining the selection of 20-year-old. Likewise, teammate Trinity Rodman also came in support of Albert.

Perhaps opening her account in the Paris Olympics 2024 with a stunner might be the start for Korbin Albert to seek an apology from the USWNT fans. Let’s see if she impresses more to melt everyone’s heart.