Soviet Union national under-21 football team

Soviet Union U-21/23
Nickname(s)	-
Association	Football Federation of the Soviet Union
Head coach	-
Most caps	?
Top scorer	?
First colours	Second colours
First international
	Spain 1–2 Soviet Union ; (Málaga, Spain; 30 March 1971); Last International; Soviet Union 1–1 Italy ; (Simferopol, Ukrainian SSR; 16 October 1991)
Biggest win
	Soviet Union 6–0 Czechoslovakia ; (Yerevan, Armenian SSR; 10 April 1974)
Biggest defeat
	West Germany 5–0 Soviet Union ; (Aachen, West Germany; 30 March 1982)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	3 (first in 1980)
Best result	Winners, 1976 (as U-23), 1980 & 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

1972: Runners-up.
1974: Losing semi-finalists.
1976: Winners.

UEFA U-21 Championship Record

1978: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 3 in qualification group.
1980: Winners.
1982: Losing semi-finalists.
1984: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 4 in qualification group.
1986: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 4 in qualification group.
1988: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 4 in qualification group.
1990: Winners.
1992: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 4 in qualification group.

1990 European Championship squad

The last Soviet U-21 team

Head coach: Vladimir Radionov

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Club
GK	Andriy Kovtun	28 February 1968 (aged 23)	6	Shakhtar Donetsk / Dynamo Kyiv
GK	Dmitriy Kharine	16 August 1968 (aged 23)	10	Dynamo Moscow / CSKA Moscow
GK	~~Mikhail Yeremin~~	17 June 1968 (aged 23)	2	CSKA Moscow / deceased*
DF	Dmitriy Chugunov	9 June 1968 (aged 23)	6	Shinnik Yaroslavl / Torpedo Moscow
DF	Andriy Bal	16 January 1958 (aged 33)	8	Maccabi Tel Aviv / Bnei Yehuda
DF	Vadim Rogovskoi	6 February 1962 (aged 29)	1	Torpedo Moscow
DF	Andriy Sydelnykov	27 September 1967 (aged 24)	6	Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk
DF	Andrei Chernyshov	7 January 1968 (aged 23)	5	Dynamo Moscow
DF	Oleh Luzhny	5 August 1968 (aged 23)	4	Dynamo Kyiv
DF	Ravil Sabitov	8 March 1968 (aged 23)	4	Lokomotiv Moscow
DF	Serhiy Zayets	18 August 1969 (aged 22)	3	Dynamo Kyiv
DF	Boris Pozdnyakov	31 May 1962 (aged 29)	2	Spartak Moscow
DF	Andrei Solovtsov	17 October 1967 (aged 24)	2	Lokomotiv Moscow
DF	Mikhail Solovyov	23 December 1968 (aged 23)	2	Torpedo Moscow
DF	Gennadi Nagornykh	20 May 1968 (aged 23)	1	Rostselmash Rostov
DF	Gela Ketashvili	September 27, 1965 (aged 26)	1	Guria Lanchkhuti
DF	Kakhaber Tskhadadze	7 September 1968 (aged 23)	5	Dinamo Tbilisi
MF	Igor Shalimov	2 February 1969 (aged 22)	11	Spartak Moscow
MF	Serhiy Shmatovalenko	20 January 1967 (aged 24)	11	Dynamo Kyiv
MF	Andrei Kobelev	22 October 1968 (aged 23)	10	Dynamo Moscow
MF	Andrei Kanchelskis	23 January 1969 (aged 22)	8	Shakhtar Donetsk
MF	Aleksandr Mostovoi	22 August 1968 (aged 23)	7	Spartak Moscow
MF	Andrei Pyatnitskiy	27 September 1967 (aged 24)	6	Pakhtakor Tashkent
MF	Yevgeniy Smertin	17 January 1969 (aged 22)	4	Dynamo Moscow
MF	Igor Dobrovolskiy	27 August 1967 (aged 24)	2	CD Castellón
MF	Zaza Revishvili	23 May 1968 (aged 23)	2	Dinamo Tbilisi
MF	Gia Dzhishkariani	30 November 1967 (aged 24)	1	Dinamo Tbilisi
MF	Serhiy Pohodin	29 April 1968 (aged 23)	1	Shakhtar Donetsk
FW	Igor Kolyvanov	6 March 1968 (aged 23)	11	Dynamo Moscow
FW	Sergei Kiriakov	1 January 1970 (aged 21)	6	Dynamo Moscow
FW	Nikolai Pisarev	23 November 1968 (aged 23)	2	FC Winterthur
FW	Oleg Salenko	25 October 1969 (aged 22)	1	Dynamo Kyiv
FW	Sergei Yuran	11 June 1969 (aged 22)	1	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 (Zagłębie Lubin), Sydelnykov - Germany (SG Wattenscheid 09), Pozdnyakov - Austria (FC Stahl Linz), Tskhadadze - Sweden (GIF Sundsvall), Shalimov - Italy (U.S. Foggia), Kanchelskis - England (Manchester United F.C.), Pyatnitskiy - Russia (Spartak Moscow), Mostovoi - Portugal (S.L. Benfica), Dobrovolskiy - Switzerland (Servette FC), Kolyvanov - Italy (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-20 team	AFC
Kazakhstan	National team	U-21 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-20 team	AFC
Tajikistan	National team	U-20 team	AFC
Armenia	National team	U-21 team	UEFA
Turkmenistan	National team	U-20 team	AFC
Estonia	National team	U-21 team	UEFA