Soviet Union national under-21 football team

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Soviet Union U-21/23
Nickname(s)Youth (Russian: Молодежная, Molodyozhnaya)
AssociationFootball Federation of the Soviet Union
Head coach-
Most caps?
Top scorer?
First colours
Second colours
First international
1990

The Soviet national youth football team was the under-21 football team of the Soviet Union. Before 1978 it was known as under-23 team. It ceased to exist on the breakup of the Union.

Following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976, the USSR Under-21 team was formed. The team had a good record, winning the competition twice, reaching the last four once, but failing to qualify for the last eight on five occasions.

After the dissolution of the USSR (on 26 December 1991), the senior team played out its remaining fixtures, which were the finals of Euro 92. Because the USSR U-21s had, by 26 December, already failed to qualify for their version of the 1992 European Championship, the former Soviet states didn't play as a combined team at U-21 level ever again.

Of the former Soviet states, only Russia entered the 1992–1994 competition. A total of 15 former Soviet states play international football today; 11 in Europe under UEFA, 4 in Asia under the AFC.

Since the under-21 competition rules insist that players must be 21 or under at the start of a two-year competition, technically it is an U-23 competition. USSR's unparalleled record in U-23 competitions is also shown.

UEFA U-23 championship record

Started in Balkans as the Under-23 Challenge Cup which ran from 1967 to 1970, the Soviet Union did not participate.

UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group stage
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1972 Final Runners-up 6 2 3 1 13 9 2 1 1 0 3 2
1974 Semifinals Third place 4 2 0 2 9 4 4 3 1 0 8 1
1976 Final Champions 6 3 1 2 9 6 2 1 0 1 4 2

UEFA U-21 championship record

UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group stage
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
1978 did not qualify 4 2 1 1 5 1
1980 Final Champions 6 4 2 0 8 1 4 3 1 0 8 2
1982 Semifinals Third place 4 1 1 2 7 11 4 1 3 0 1 0
1984 did not qualify 6 2 3 1 8 6
1986 6 3 0 3 8 8
1988 6 3 0 3 7 9
1990 Final Champions 6 4 2 0 13 6 6 4 1 1 12 5
1992 did not qualify 6 2 3 1 6 4

Managers

  • In 1992 it also competed as the CIS national under-21 football team coached by Boris Ignatyev. Since August of 1992 Boris Ignatyev continued already with the Russia national under-21 football team.

1990 European Championship squad

The last Soviet U-21 team

Head coach
Vladimir Radionov
No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Club
1GK Andriy Kovtun (1968-02-28)28 February 1968 (aged 23) 6
Dynamo Kyiv
1GK
Dmitriy Kharine
(1968-08-16)16 August 1968 (aged 23) 10 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow / CSKA Moscow
1GK
Mikhail Yeremin
(1968-06-17)17 June 1968 (aged 23) 2 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic CSKA Moscow / deceased*
2DF
Dmitriy Chugunov
(1968-06-09)9 June 1968 (aged 23) 6 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Torpedo Moscow
2DF Andriy Bal (1958-01-16)16 January 1958 (aged 33) 8 Israel Maccabi Tel Aviv / Bnei Yehuda
2DF
Vadim Rogovskoi
(1962-02-06)6 February 1962 (aged 29) 1 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Torpedo Moscow
2DF
Andriy Sydelnykov
(1967-09-27)27 September 1967 (aged 24) 6
Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
2DF
Andrei Chernyshov
(1968-01-07)7 January 1968 (aged 23) 5 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow
2DF Oleh Luzhnyi (1968-08-05)5 August 1968 (aged 23) 4
Dynamo Kyiv
2DF Ravil Sabitov (1968-03-08)8 March 1968 (aged 23) 4 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Lokomotiv Moscow
2DF Serhiy Zayets (1969-08-18)18 August 1969 (aged 22) 3
Dynamo Kyiv
2DF Boris Pozdnyakov (1962-05-31)31 May 1962 (aged 29) 2 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Spartak Moscow
2DF Andrei Solovtsov (1967-10-17)17 October 1967 (aged 24) 2 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Lokomotiv Moscow
2DF
Mikhail Solovyov
(1968-12-23)23 December 1968 (aged 23) 2 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Torpedo Moscow
2DF Gennadi Nagornykh (1968-05-20)20 May 1968 (aged 23) 1 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Rostselmash Rostov
2DF Gela Ketashvili (1965-09-27)September 27, 1965 (aged 26) 1 Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic
Guria Lanchkhuti
2DF Kakhaber Tskhadadze (1968-09-07)7 September 1968 (aged 23) 5 Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic Dinamo Tbilisi
3MF Igor Shalimov (1969-02-02)2 February 1969 (aged 22) 11 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Spartak Moscow
3MF Serhiy Shmatovalenko (1967-01-20)20 January 1967 (aged 24) 11
Dynamo Kyiv
3MF
Andrei Kobelev
(1968-10-22)22 October 1968 (aged 23) 10 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow
3MF Andrei Kanchelskis (1969-01-23)23 January 1969 (aged 22) 8
Shakhtar Donetsk
3MF Aleksandr Mostovoi (1968-08-22)22 August 1968 (aged 23) 7 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Spartak Moscow
3MF
Andrei Pyatnitskiy
(1967-09-27)27 September 1967 (aged 24) 6 Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic
Pakhtakor Tashkent
3MF
Yevgeniy Smertin
(1969-01-17)17 January 1969 (aged 22) 4 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow
3MF
Igor Dobrovolskiy
(1967-08-27)27 August 1967 (aged 24) 2 Spain CD Castellón
3MF Zaza Revishvili (1968-05-23)23 May 1968 (aged 23) 2 Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic Dinamo Tbilisi
3MF
Gia Dzhishkariani
(1967-11-30)30 November 1967 (aged 24) 1 Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic Dinamo Tbilisi
3MF Serhiy Pohodin (1968-04-29)29 April 1968 (aged 23) 1
Shakhtar Donetsk
4FW Igor Kolyvanov (1968-03-06)6 March 1968 (aged 23) 11 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow
4FW Sergei Kiriakov (1970-01-01)1 January 1970 (aged 21) 6 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic Dynamo Moscow
4FW Nikolai Pisarev (1968-11-23)23 November 1968 (aged 23) 2 Switzerland FC Winterthur
4FW Oleg Salenko (1969-10-25)25 October 1969 (aged 22) 1
Dynamo Kyiv
4FW Sergei Yuran (1969-06-11)11 June 1969 (aged 22) 1 Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Dynamo Kyiv

Notes:

  • All data through 31 December 1991.
  • Mikhail Yeremin died on 30 June 1991 from injuries he sustained in an auto accident on 23 June, less than a week after his birthday.
  • Rogovskoi moved to Poland (
    U.S. Foggia), Yuran - Portugal (S.L. Benfica
    ).

National teams of the former Soviet republics

 Russia National team U-21 team UEFA
 Ukraine National team U-21 team UEFA
 Belarus National team U-21 team UEFA
 Uzbekistan National team U-23 team AFC
 Kazakhstan National team U-21 team (U-23 team) UEFA (AFC: 1992–2002)
 Georgia National team U-21 team UEFA
 Azerbaijan National team U-21 team UEFA
 Lithuania National team U-21 team UEFA
 Moldova National team U-21 team UEFA
 Latvia National team U-21 team UEFA
 Kyrgyzstan National team U-23 team AFC
 Tajikistan National team U-23 team AFC
 Armenia National team U-21 team UEFA
 Turkmenistan National team U-23 team AFC
 Estonia National team U-21 team UEFA

See also

  • European Under-21 Football Championship

External links