USWNT roster for Sweden, France friendlies includes Washington Spirit’s Kelley O’Hara, Emily Sonnett

USWNT head coach Vlatko Andonovski has announced his roster for the April international window. The United States will play Sweden on April 10 in Stockholm, and then head to Paris for a match against France on April 13. Washington Spirit duo Kelley O’Hara and Emily Sonnett are on the 23-player squad, while hopefuls like Andi Sullivan and Aubrey Bledsoe were left out.

O’Hara and Sonnett have been fixtures for Andonovski, and both appear to have strong cases for a place on the final 18-player Olympic roster later this year. O’Hara remains the starting right back, as she has been for years, while Sonnett’s versatility makes her a possible spot starter at every defensive position.

Spirit head coach Richie Burke had listed this camp as “a target” for Sullivan, while Bledsoe has also been among a long list of goalkeepers vying to be Alyssa Naeher’s back-up going forward. However, without current league matches to make the case, the job is quite difficult for both, increasing the importance of starting the season well before one last pre-Olympic international window in June.

Players will depart in the coming days for a European-based camp, and as a result will miss the start of the NWSL Challenge Cup. For the Spirit, this definitely means their opening match on April 10 at the North Carolina Courage, and it almost certainly includes their April 16 home game against Sky Blue FC. It is theoretically possible for O’Hara and Sonnett to clear the required three-day quarantine and test negative in time for the second game, but in practice it would involve a cross-Atlantic flight after two games in three days.

The full squad is as follows:

Goalkeepers (3): Alyssa Naeher (Chicago Red Stars), Jane Campbell (Houston Dash, Casey Murphy (North Carolina Courage)
Defenders (8): Kelley O’Hara (Washington Spirit), Abby Dahlkemper (Manchester City), Becky Sauerbrunn (Portland Thorns), Crystal Dunn (Portland Thorns), Midge Purce (Sky Blue FC), Alana Cook (Paris Saint-Germain), Tierna Davidson (Chicago Red Stars), Emily Sonnett (Washington Spirit)
Midfielders (6): Samantha Mewis (Manchester City), Julie Ertz (Chicago Red Stars), Rose Lavelle (Manchester City), Catarina Macario (Olympique Lyonnais), Lindsey Horan (Portland Thorns), Kristie Mewis (Houston Dash)
Forwards (6): Lynn Williams (North Carolina Courage), Alex Morgan (Orlando Pride), Christen Press (Manchester United), Sophia Smith (Portland Thorns), Carli Lloyd (Sky Blue FC), Megan Rapinoe (OL Reign)