Mallory Swanson’s goal against Brazil in the triumphant Olympic gold medal game has been etched in gold in the USWNT folklore today. But it wasn’t a smooth moment on the pitch for Team USA when Swanson netted the strike. Even she had to check twice and look at the line’s referee to confirm she wasn’t offside. Meanwhile, quite a few fans and pundits argued that her strike partner Sophia Smith was offside in the build-up to the attack. Surprisingly, a majority of Swanson’s teammates from the USWNT also had doubts about whether the goal was valid or not.

USWNT midfielder Rose Lavelle was on the bench in the Olympic final, revealing that she tensely waited to know if the goal was offside or not. She also had forgetful flashbacks from the Tokyo Olympics, while Swanson and Smith were close to being offside.

What went on in Rose Lavelle’s mind when Mallory Swanson scored USWNT’s winner

USWNT stars Rose Lavelle and Emily Sonnet sat down with former US star Sam Mewis in the recent episode of the Women’s Game podcast to speak at length about the triumphant campaign. Mewis asked Lavelle how she felt when Mallory Swanson scored for the USWNT and the goal came under scrutiny.

“I thought offside at first,” said Lavelle.

She added, “I waited to celebrate because you know how annoying it feels. Like it happened to us in Tokyo, you celebrate like crazy. And then all of a sudden it’s offside and you’re like you have a headache and yeah you’re like ‘I’m embarrassed.'”

Coach Emma Hayes had benched Lavelle during the gold medal game. But since she was lacing up to hit the pitch any moment, Lavelle was worried about the enormous work she and others have to do if Swanson’s goal was ruled offside. “I waited because I was like we were like the people that were warming up we all kind of were like I think that was off and then it wasn’t,” Rose Lavelle continued.

Since the Gotham FC midfielder has brought up her teammate’s controversial goal once again, let’s recall why there was so much chaos and controversy regarding the goal.

Decoding the confusion behind Swanson’s gold medal-winning goal in Paris

In the 57th minute, when Mallory Swanson received a defense-breaking through ball, she and Sophia Smith charged at Brazil’s goal. The USWNT duo looked unbothered, as Brazil defenders struggled to cover their half in time. Indeed, the buildup to the attack had all the looks of a clear offside. Besides, notably, Smith was actually in the offside position as well.

But the goal stood because Swanson was onside and Smith’s run did not directly affect the Brazil defenders. Nor was she an obstruction to the vanquished Selecao goalkeeper. In such cases, when one forward is onside, and the other is off, referees can only call off the goal if the player on the offside is directly hindering the opposition’s defense.

It’s not surprising that Rose Lavelle initially doubted whether the goal would be counted, given the considerable intrigue and confusion surrounding it.