Italy national under-21 football team
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Nickname(s) | Gli Azzurrini (The Little Blues) | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | Italian Football Federation (Federazion Italia Giuoco Calcio – FIGC) | ||
Head coach | Paolo Nicolato | ||
Captain | Marco Carnesecchi | ||
Most caps | Andrea Pirlo (46) | ||
Top scorer | Alberto Gilardino (19) | ||
| |||
First international | |||
U-23: ![]() ![]() (Varese, Italy; 1 November 1970) U-21: ![]() ![]() (Funchal, Italy; 23 December 1976) | |||
Biggest win | |||
![]() ![]() (Catanzaro, Italy; 23 March 1995) ![]() ![]() (Pavia, Italy; 5 September 2003) ![]() ![]() (Casarano, Italy; 6 September 2012) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
![]() ![]() (Stavanger, Norway; 5 June 1991) Records for competitive matches only. | |||
Olympic Games | |||
Appearances | 5 (first in 1992) | ||
Best result | ![]() | ||
UEFA U-21 Championship | |||
Appearances | 21 (first in 1978) | ||
Best result | Champions: (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004) | ||
Medal record |
The Italy national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Italy and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation.
The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, held every two years. Italy (along with Spain) is the most successful nation in the history of the competition, with five Championships won (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000 and 2004). Italy has also been twice runner-up of the competition, in 1986 and 2013.
From 1990 to 2004 the team established near-total dominance of European Under-21 football, winning five of the seven tournaments.
Italy's Under-21s played the first match at the new Wembley Stadium, on 24 March 2007, against England Under-21s. The game resulted in a 3–3 draw, with Giampaolo Pazzini scoring all 3 goals for the Azzurrini.
Prior to the 2008 Olympic games, Italy U-21s went on to win the 2008 Toulon Tournament by beating Chile (1–0) in the final. It was the first time they had won this tournament, previously their best had been runner-up on two occasions.[1]
Discover more about Italy national under-21 football team related topics
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
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. For this reason, Italy's record in the preceding U-23 competitions is also shown.
- 1972: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 3 in qualification group.
- 1974: Losing quarter-finalists.
- 1976: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 3 in qualification group.
UEFA U-21 Championship Record
Year | Round |
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Quarter-finals |
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Quarter-finals |
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Quarter-finals |
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Semi-finals |
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Runners-up |
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Quarter-finals |
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Semi-finals |
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Winners |
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Winners |
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Winners |
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Did not qualify |
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Winners |
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Semi-finals |
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Winners |
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Group stage |
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Group stage |
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Semi-finals |
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Did not qualify |
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Runners-up |
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Group stage |
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Semi-finals |
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Group stage |
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Quarter-finals |
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Qualified |
Total | 22/24 |
- *Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.
Discover more about UEFA European Under-21 Championship related topics
Olympics football Record
Since 1992 Olympic football changed to a U-23 event, and the European U-21 teams are technically U-23 teams. European national teams qualify for the Olympic football tournament through the UEFA European U-21 Championship.
- Before 1992: See Italy national football team
- 1992: Quarter-finals
- 1996: Group stage
- 2000: Quarter-finals
- 2004: Bronze medal
- 2008: Quarter-finals
- 2012: Did not qualify
- 2016: Did not qualify
- 2020: Did not qualify
- 2024: To be determined
Overage players in Olympic Games
Tournament | Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 |
---|---|---|---|
Gianluca Pagliuca (GK) | Massimo Crippa (MF) | Marco Branca (FW) | |
Did not select | |||
Matteo Ferrari (DF) | Andrea Pirlo (MF) | Did not select | |
Tommaso Rocchi (FW) | Did not select |
Discover more about Olympics football Record related topics
Mediterranean Games Record
Mediterranean Games Football tournament was U-23 event in 1993 and 1997.
- 1993: 4th place
- 1997: Winners
- 2001: a U20 event
- 2005: filled with B team
Coaches
- 1976–1986: Azeglio Vicini
- 1986–1996: Cesare Maldini
- 1996–1997: Rossano Giampaglia
- 1997–2000: Marco Tardelli
- 2000–2006: Claudio Gentile
- 2006–2010: Pierluigi Casiraghi
- 2010–2012: Ciro Ferrara
- 2012–2013: Devis Mangia
- 2013–2019: Luigi Di Biagio
- 2019–present: Paolo Nicolato
Discover more about Coaches related topics
Coaching staff
Current technical staff:[2]
Position | Name |
---|---|
Head coach | ![]() |
Assistant coach | ![]() |
Goalkeeping coach | ![]() |
Team Manager | ![]() |
Athletic Trainers | ![]() |
Match analyst | ![]() |
Doctors | ![]() ![]() |
Physiotherapists | ![]() ![]() |
Physiologist | ![]() |
Accompanying Manager | ![]() |
Secretary | ![]() |
Discover more about Coaching staff related topics
Recent results and forthcoming fixtures
Only official matches are listed.[3]
2022
25 March 2022 2023 Championship qual. | Montenegro ![]() | 1–1 | ![]() | Podgorica, Montenegro |
18:30 | Rakonjac ![]() |
Report | Ricci ![]() |
Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium |
29 March 2022 2023 Championship qual. | Italy ![]() | 1–0 | ![]() | Trieste, Italy |
17:30 | Rovella ![]() |
Report | Stadium: Stadio Nereo Rocco |
6 June 2022 2023 Championship qual. | Luxembourg ![]() | 0–3 | ![]() | Differdange, Luxembourg |
18:00 | Report | Vignato ![]() Pellegri ![]() Gaetano ![]() |
Stadium: Stade Municipal Attendance: 1,890 Referee: Elchin Masiyev (Azerbaijan) |
9 June 2022 2023 Championship qual. | Sweden ![]() | 1–1 | ![]() | Helsingborg, Sweden |
Gustavsson ![]() |
Report | Rovella ![]() |
Stadium: Olympia |
14 June 2022 2023 Championship qual. | Italy ![]() | 4–1 | ![]() | Ascoli Piceno, Italy |
Rovella ![]() Cambiaghi ![]() Pellegri ![]() Quagliata ![]() |
Report | Coventry ![]() |
Stadium: Stadio Cino e Lillo Del Duca |
22 September 2022 Friendly | Italy ![]() | 0–2 | ![]() | Pescara, Italy |
Report | Brewster ![]() ![]() |
Stadium: Stadio Adriatico |
26 September 2022 Friendly | Italy ![]() | 1–1 | ![]() | Castel di Sangro, Italy |
Colombo ![]() |
Report | Fujio ![]() |
Stadium: Stadio Teofilo Patini |
19 November 2022 Friendly | Italy ![]() | 2–4 | ![]() | Ancona, Italy |
17:30 | Cancellieri ![]() |
Report | Huseinbašić ![]() Samardžić ![]() Shade ![]() Malone ![]() |
Stadium: Stadio del Conero |
2023
24 March 2023 Friendly | Serbia ![]() | 0–2 | ![]() | Backa Topola, Serbia |
18:00 | Mulattieri ![]() ![]() |
Stadium: TSC Arena |
27 March 2023 Friendly | Italy ![]() | 3–1 | ![]() | Reggio Calabria, Italy |
20:00 | Lovato ![]() Colombo ![]() ![]() |
Kashchuk ![]() |
Stadium: Stadio Oreste Granillo |
22 June 2023 2023 UEFA U21 Champ. | France ![]() | v | ![]() | Cluj Napoca, Romania |
20.45 | Stadium: Cluj Arena |
25 June 2023 2023 UEFA U21 Champ. | Italy ![]() | v | ![]() | Cluj Napoca, Romania |
18.00 | Stadium: Cluj Arena |
28 June 2023 2023 UEFA U21 Champ. | Italy ![]() | v | ![]() | Cluj Napoca, Romania |
20.45 | Stadium: Cluj Arena |
Discover more about Recent results and forthcoming fixtures related topics
Players
Players born in 2000 or later are eligible for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. Players in bold have been already capped with the senior team.
Current squad
The following players have been selected for the friendly matches against Serbia and Ukraine on 24 and 27 March 2023 respectively.[4]
Caps and goals as of 27 March 2023, after the match against Ukraine.
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | Stefano Turati | 5 September 2001 | 4 | 0 | ![]() | |
GK | Elia Caprile | 25 August 2001 | 2 | 0 | ![]() | |
GK | Alessandro Sorrentino | 3 April 2002 | 1 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Raoul Bellanova | 17 May 2000 | 18 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Matteo Lovato | 14 February 2000 | 13 | 1 | ![]() | |
DF | Caleb Okoli | 13 July 2001 | 11 | 1 | ![]() | |
DF | Lorenzo Pirola | 20 February 2002 | 10 | 1 | ![]() | |
DF | Fabiano Parisi | 9 November 2000 | 8 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Destiny Udogie | 28 November 2002 | 7 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Mattia Viti | 24 January 2002 | 6 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Matteo Ruggeri | 11 July 2002 | 3 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Andrea Carboni | 4 February 2001 | 2 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Alessandro Zanoli | 3 October 2000 | 2 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Niccolò Pierozzi | 12 September 2001 | 2 | 0 | ![]() | |
DF | Antonino Gallo | 5 January 2000 | 1 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Samuele Ricci | 21 August 2001 | 14 | 1 | ![]() | |
MF | Salvatore Esposito | 7 October 2000 | 10 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Edoardo Bove | 16 May 2002 | 7 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Nicolò Fagioli | 12 February 2001 | 7 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Cesare Casadei | 10 January 2003 | 2 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Giovanni Fabbian | 14 January 2003 | 1 | 0 | ![]() | |
MF | Bruno Zapelli | 17 May 2002 | 1 | 0 | ![]() | |
FW | Lorenzo Colombo | 8 March 2002 | 16 | 4 | ![]() | |
FW | Matteo Cancellieri | 12 February 2002 | 9 | 4 | ![]() | |
FW | Samuele Mulattieri | 7 October 2000 | 5 | 3 | ![]() | |
FW | Gaetano Oristanio | 28 September 2002 | 3 | 0 | ![]() | |
FW | Tommaso Baldanzi | 23 March 2003 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
Recent call-ups
Following are listed players called up in the previous 12 months that are still eligible to represent the Under-21 team.
Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | Marco Carnesecchi | 1 July 2000 | 19 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
GK | Alessandro Plizzari | 12 March 2000 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Andrea Cambiaso | 20 February 2000 | 7 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Diego Coppola | 28 December 2003 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Giacomo Quagliata | 19 February 2000 | 5 | 1 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Riccardo Calafiori | 19 May 2002 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Giorgio Cittadini | 18 April 2002 | 2 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Christian Dalle Mura | 2 February 2002 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Giorgio Scalvini | 11 December 2003 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Simone Canestrelli | 11 September 2000 | 2 | 3 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
DF | Alessandro Circati | 10 October 2003 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Fabio Miretti | 3 August 2003 | 3 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Nicolò Rovella | 4 December 2001 | 18 | 3 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Filippo Ranocchia | 14 May 2001 | 5 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Filippo Terracciano | 8 February 2003 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Franco Tongya | 13 March 2002 | 0 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
MF | Gianluca Gaetano | 5 May 2000 | 3 | 1 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Emanuel Vignato | 24 August 2000 | 10 | 2 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Nicolò Cambiaghi | 28 December 2000 | 7 | 1 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Lorenzo Lucca | 10 September 2000 | 6 | 2 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Cristian Volpato | 15 November 2003 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Pietro Pellegri | 17 March 2001 | 5 | 2 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Sebastiano Esposito | 2 July 2002 | 7 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Luca Moro | 25 January 2001 | 1 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
FW | Kelvin Yeboah | 6 May 2000 | 4 | 0 | ![]() |
v.![]() |
INJ Withdrew due to injury |
Discover more about Players related topics
Records
Players in bold are still eligible to represent Under-21 team. As of 31 May 2021.
Top appearances
The following is the top 10 most capped under-21 players:[5]
Rank | Player | Period | U-21 Caps |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Andrea Pirlo | 1998–2002 | 46 |
2 | Marco Motta | 2005–2009 | 38 |
3 | Francesco Bardi | 2011–2015 | 37 |
4 | Matteo Brighi | 2000–2004 | 35 |
5 | Daniele Bonera | 2001–2004 | 34 |
6 | Matteo Ferrari | 1999–2002 | 33 |
7 | Luca Marrone | 2009–2013 | 32 |
Alessandro Rosina | 2004–2007 | 32 | |
9 | Luca Caldirola | 2010–2013 | 31 |
Marco Donadel | 2004–2006 | 31 |
Top goalscorers
The following is the top 10 under-21 goalscorers:[6]
Rank | Player | Period | U-21 Goals | U-21 Caps |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Alberto Gilardino | 2000–2004 | 19 | 30 |
2 | Andrea Pirlo | 1998–2002 | 16 | 46 |
3 | Manolo Gabbiadini | 2010–2013 | 12 | 24 |
4 | Patrick Cutrone | 2017–2021 | 11 | 25 |
Massimo Maccarone | 2000–2002 | 11 | 15 | |
Gianluca Vialli | 1983–1986 | 11 | 20 | |
7 | Robert Acquafresca | 2007–2009 | 10 | 16 |
Cristiano Lucarelli | 1996–1997 | 10 | 10 | |
Christian Vieri | 1992–1996 | 10 | 19 | |
10 | Andrea Belotti | 2013–2015 | 9 | 18 |
Ciro Immobile | 2009–2013 | 9 | 16 | |
Roberto Mancini | 1982–1986 | 9 | 26 | |
Alberto Paloschi | 2008–2013 | 9 | 29 | |
Gianluca Scamacca | 2018–2021 | 9 | 15 |
Discover more about Records related topics
Source: "Italy national under-21 football team", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 28th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italy_national_under-21_football_team.
Further Reading
Football in Italy
Demetrio Albertini

UEFA European Under-21 Championship

UEFA European Under-17 Championship

Hungary national under-21 football team

Ukraine national under-21 football team

France national under-21 football team

Czech Republic national under-21 football team

Poland national under-21 football team

San Marino national under-21 football team

Italy national under-20 football team

Italy national under-19 football team

2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

UEFA European Championship qualifying

Spain national under-23 football team

2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship

Italy national under-23 football team
Notes
References
- ^ "Categories - All 4". www.channel4.com.
- ^ "Staff" (in Italian). FIGC. 18 March 2021.
- ^ "FIGC". www.figc.it. 7 February 2020.
- ^ "Doppia amichevole con Serbia e Ucraina. Cinque novità per Nicolato: Coppola, Pierozzi, Zapelli, Fabbian e Baldanzi". 16 March 2023.
- ^ "Classifica Presenze". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (in Italian). 24 September 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
- ^ "Classifica Marcatori". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (in Italian). 5 August 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
External links

- Official website, Italian language
- Official website, English language
- The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U-21/U-23 Championships.
Categories
- Articles with short description
- CS1 Italian-language sources (it)
- Commons category link from Wikidata
- European national under-21 association football teams
- Italy national under-21 football team
- Pages using football kit with incorrect pattern parameters
- Short description is different from Wikidata
- Use dmy dates from July 2021
- Youth football in Italy
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