There appears to be serious competition for Diego Cohen in the US.
The 17-year-old goalkeeper has emerged as a star in Barcelona’s academy, making his first-team debut for the club in a friendly against Club América last month, and has featured on the bench in several competitive games this season.
Kochen, a Florida native, has previously represented the United States only at the youth level, was nominated for the 2022 U.S. Soccer Young Male Player of the Year, and played five games for the U-17 national team in 2022.
The teenager is still eligible to enter Venezuela through his father and Peru through his mother, and a fourth country could appear as a potential suitor in the future.
In an interview with marcaSpain’s youth national team coordinator Francis Hernández revealed that the Spanish federation had been in touch to gauge interest in Cohen.
Asked about the teenage goalie, Hernandez said: “We talked to him about what he’s going to get here. Some players haven’t seen what it’s like with us, but they have information. They’re teammates at the club. You can also learn from.”
Kochen joined Barcelona’s youth organization in July 2019 and signed his first professional contract with the club three years later.
According to the Spanish government’s naturalization rules, citizens of Latin American countries can obtain Spanish citizenship after just two years of residence in Spain.
It appears that Kochen can qualify as a citizen of a Latin American country through his parents. He would otherwise have to wait 10 years.