Tony Meola has called on Barcelona goalkeeper Diego Kochen to be given his first U.S. men's national team cap in the Gold Cup this summer.
Kochen, 19, is considered one of the top goalkeeping prospects in Spain but is also untested at the senior level.
The Florida native has impressed with Barcelona Atlètic this season, playing 16 times for the reserve team of the Catalan giants. Kochen made his Barcelona first-team debut in a December 2023 friendly, and has routinely made the bench for first-team games. He has yet to play for Barcelona's senior team in a competitive match.
It is a similar story for Kochen at the international level. The teenager has starred for the U.S. at various youth international levels and has earned multiple senior national team call-ups. He is, however, still searching for his first USMNT cap.
With the USMNT goalkeeping position highly uncertain at present, Meola has called on Mauricio Pochettino to give Kochen a chance at the Gold Cup.
"Diego Kochen, he's on the bench at Barcelona. He's not been in the first team but in a tournament like this, I'd like to see him in camp, and depending on what happens in the draw, there's got to be a game in there for him," the former USMNT goalkeeper said on the "Call It What You Want" podcast from CBS Sports.
"I don't know that we need to see the same goalkeeper for three games in the first round. I don't need to see Matt Turner, I don't want to know that Matt Turner is getting sharp on national team games."
Turner has continued to maintain his hold on the USMNT's starting position despite only playing four games so far this season on loan at Crystal Palace. Pochettino called in Patrick Schulte and Zack Steffen alongside Turner for the recent Concacaf Nations League Finals, but Turner started the semifinal and third-place match.
Meola did add that if Kochen wants to be in the mix to play at the 2026 World Cup, he'll have to be starting for a senior club team somewhere next season.
"Kochen, for me, if you're not playing in the first team — I know people are screaming for him to come in the camp — you can't start him in a World Cup," Meola said.
Watch Meola call for Kochen to get USMNT shot