Sam Greene/The Enquirer-USA TODAY NETWORK
Few players reinvent themselves on the verge of turning 30, but Emily Sonnett is living that reality right now.
Sonnett’s year began with a surprise trade from the Washington Spirit to OL Reign. The cross-country move to Seattle coincided with a shift from her usual position of center back to a defensive midfield role. It was not an outlandish idea from Reign head coach Laura Harvey — Sonnett played the position at times in college and — but it was a calculated risk. Former U.S. head coach Vlatko Andonovski eventually came around to the idea of Sonnett in that No. 6 role for the United States’ Round-of-16 match against Sweden at the 2023 World Cup. That is when the world began to notice Sonnett as a No. 6.
Now, Sonnett looks like at least the immediate answer to a question that plagued the Americans for the past two years: Who can fill such a critical role?
Granted, the sample size is small, but the results are telling. That match against Sweden was easily the Americans’ best…
