Barca Residency Academy standouts Isaiah Kaakoush and Aidan Marquez have been selected to train at FC Barcelona’s famed youth academy – La Masia, from November 13 to 25 in Barcelona, Spain. This opportunity is a part of the academy’s unique partnership with the club, which provides exclusive trial and training opportunities for Barca Residency Academy’s top prospects.
“We are extremely excited for both Isaiah and Aidan to be given the opportunity to spend a couple of weeks fully immersed within the La Masia environment,” said Ged Quinn, Barca Residency Academy Director. “The guys have been excellent for us during their time here in Arizona and the opportunity to go and test themselves at the best academy in the world is a unique opportunity that is fully deserved for both players and is one of the major benefits of our partnership with FC Barcelona.”
Isaiah Kaakoush, in his third season at Barca Residency Academy, will return to La Masia for his second training stint of the calendar year. Kaakoush was invited in February and will rejoin the Cadet A team during his time in Barcelona.
“Isaiah is a versatile center back who has consistently played up age groups within our program and is extremely comfortable both in possession and recovery moments of the game,” said Quinn. “As a true U15 player last season, he finished the year impressively, playing up four age groups representing our U19s in their playoff run, showing great maturity to lead the team despite his youth. Isaiah also joined the same Dallas Cup Super Group team that Aidan did, representing himself extremely well against top international competition. In addition, Isaiah was also called into the U.S. U15 YNT camp, which went to Spain back in April to play games against England, Spain, and China. All of this has resulted in an exciting year for Isaiah, and we look forward to seeing how he does during this next opportunity for himself in La Masia.”
Aidan Marquez, also in his third season at Barca Residency Academy, will join La Masia’s Juvenil B team during his training stint.
“Aidan is an exciting winger who has an impressive ability to beat people in 1v1 situations and is extremely dangerous in the final third of the field,” said Quinn. “Over the last few seasons, he has been one of the most consistent performers within our program and has contributed immensely to the success of our teams. Last year, he helped our U17 team make a run at playoffs and also contributed greatly playing up with our U19 team in the prestigious Dallas Cup Supergroup event, playing against international competition such as Fulham FC, São Paulo, and Bota Fogo.”
During the two-week training period, Kaakoush and Marquez will train and compete in matches in the very environment that produced several world-class players such as Messi, Iniesta, Pedri, and Gavi to name a few. They’ll also follow in the footsteps of Bara Residency Academy pro alumni Julian Araujo, Matthew Hoppe, Caden Clark, Brooklyn Raines, Leo Orejarna, and Sean Petrie who were also selected for training opportunities at La Masia during their time at the Academy.
