# Soviet Union national under-21 football team

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.

## 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 Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-23 Championship Group 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 Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Knockout stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group stage | UEFA European Under-21 Championship Group 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 | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | 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 | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 6 |
| 1986 | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 8 |
| 1988 | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | 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 | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | did not qualify | 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 1992 Boris Ignatyev continued already with the Russia national under-21 football team.

## 1990 European Championship squad
### Head coach

    Vladimir Radionov
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club |
| 1GK | Andriy Kovtun | (1968-02-28)28 February 1968 (aged 21) | 6 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 1GK | Dmitriy Kharine | (1968-08-16)16 August 1968 (aged 21) | 10 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 1GK | Mikhail Yeremin | (1968-06-17)17 June 1968 (aged 21) | 2 | CSKA Moscow |
| 2DF | Dmitriy Chugunov | (1968-06-09)9 June 1968 (aged 21) | 6 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Andriy Bal | (1958-01-16)16 January 1958 (aged 31) | 8 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 2DF | Vadim Rogovskoi | (1962-02-06)6 February 1962 (aged 27) | 1 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Andriy Sydelnykov | (1967-09-27)27 September 1967 (aged 22) | 6 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk |
| 2DF | Andrei Chernyshov | (1968-01-07)7 January 1968 (aged 21) | 5 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 2DF | Oleh Luzhnyi | (1968-08-05)5 August 1968 (aged 21) | 4 | SKA Karpaty Lviv / Dynamo Kyiv |
| 2DF | Ravil Sabitov | (1968-03-08)8 March 1968 (aged 21) | 4 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 2DF | Serhiy Zayets | (1969-08-18)18 August 1969 (aged 20) | 3 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 2DF | Boris Pozdnyakov | (1962-05-31)31 May 1962 (aged 27) | 2 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 2DF | Andrei Solovtsov | (1967-10-17)17 October 1967 (aged 22) | 2 | Lokomotiv Moscow |
| 2DF | Mikhail Solovyov | (1968-12-23)23 December 1968 (aged 21) | 2 | CSKA Moscow / Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Gennadi Nagornykh | (1968-05-20)20 May 1968 (aged 21) | 1 | Rostselmash Rostov |
| 2DF | Gela Ketashvili | (1965-09-27)September 27, 1965 (aged 24) | 1 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| 2DF | Kakhaber Tskhadadze | (1968-09-07)7 September 1968 (aged 21) | 5 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| 3MF | Igor Shalimov | (1969-02-02)2 February 1969 (aged 20) | 11 | Spartak Moscow |
| 3MF | Serhiy Shmatovalenko | (1967-01-20)20 January 1967 (aged 22) | 11 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 3MF | Andrei Kobelev | (1968-10-22)22 October 1968 (aged 21) | 10 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 3MF | Andrei Kanchelskis | (1969-01-23)23 January 1969 (aged 20) | 8 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 3MF | Aleksandr Mostovoi | (1968-08-22)22 August 1968 (aged 21) | 7 | Spartak Moscow |
| 3MF | Andrei Pyatnitskiy | (1967-09-27)27 September 1967 (aged 22) | 6 | Pakhtakor Tashkent |
| 3MF | Yevgeniy Smertin | (1969-01-17)17 January 1969 (aged 20) | 4 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 3MF | Igor Dobrovolskiy | (1967-08-27)27 August 1967 (aged 22) | 2 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 3MF | Zaza Revishvili | (1968-05-23)23 May 1968 (aged 21) | 2 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| 3MF | Gia Dzhishkariani | (1967-11-30)30 November 1967 (aged 22) | 1 | Dinamo Tbilisi |
| 3MF | Serhiy Pohodin | (1968-04-29)29 April 1968 (aged 21) | 1 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 4FW | Igor Kolyvanov | (1968-03-06)6 March 1968 (aged 21) | 11 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 4FW | Sergei Kiriakov | (1970-01-01)1 January 1970 (aged 19) | 6 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 4FW | Nikolai Pisarev | (1968-11-23)23 November 1968 (aged 21) | 2 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 4FW | Oleg Salenko | (1969-10-25)25 October 1969 (aged 20) | 1 | Zenit Leningrad / Dynamo Kyiv |
| 4FW | Sergei Yuran | (1969-06-11)11 June 1969 (aged 20) | 1 | Dynamo Kyiv |
Notes:
* All data through 31 December 1989.

## 1992 European Championship cycle squad

The last under-21 squad which is also known as the Olympic. All caps and goals are based on the Soviet team performance at the 1992 UEFA European Under-21 Championship in 1990–1991.

### Head coach

    Boris Ignatyev
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
| 1GK | Gintaras Staučė | (1969-12-24)24 December 1969 (aged 22) | 5 | -2 | Spartak Moscow |
| 1GK | Vladimir Pchelnikov | (1970-03-30)30 March 1970 (aged 21) | 1 | -2 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Serhiy Bezhenar | (1970-08-09)9 August 1970 (aged 21) | 6 | 1 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk |
| 2DF | Yuriy Nikiforov | (1970-09-16)16 September 1970 (aged 21) | 6 | 0 | Chornomorets Odesa |
| 2DF | Omari Tetradze | (1969-10-13)13 October 1969 (aged 22) | 5 | 0 | Mertskhali Ozurgeti / Dynamo Moscow |
| 2DF | Vyacheslav Tsaryov | (1971-05-04)4 May 1971 (aged 20) | 3 | 0 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 2DF | Dmitri Khlestov | (1971-01-21)21 January 1971 (aged 20) | 3 | 0 | Spartak Moscow |
| 2DF | Viktor Onopko | (1969-10-14)14 October 1969 (aged 22) | 3 | 1 | Shakhtar Donetsk |
| 2DF | Oleh Benko | (1969-10-21)21 October 1969 (aged 22) | 2 | 0 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk |
| 2DF | Serhiy Zayets | (1969-08-18)18 August 1969 (aged 22) | 2 | 0 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 2DF | Sergey Shustikov | (1970-09-30)30 September 1970 (aged 21) | 2 | 1 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Yuriy Moroz | (1970-09-08)8 September 1970 (aged 21) | 1 | 0 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 2DF | Igor Chugainov | (1970-04-06)6 April 1970 (aged 21) | 1 | 0 | Lokomotiv Moscow / Torpedo Moscow |
| 2DF | Yevgeni Bushmanov | (1971-11-02)2 November 1971 (aged 20) | 1 | 0 | Spartak Moscow |
| 2DF | Sergei Mamchur | (1972-02-03)3 February 1972 (aged 19) | 1 | 0 | Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk |
| 3MF | Serhiy Shcherbakov | (1971-08-15)15 August 1971 (aged 20) | 3 | 1 | Shakhtar Donetsk |
| 3MF | Mirjalol Qosimov | (1970-09-17)17 September 1970 (aged 21) | 3 | 0 | Pakhtakor Tashkent |
| 3MF | Bakhva Tedeyev | (1969-09-18)18 September 1969 (aged 22) | 3 | 0 | Spartak Vladikavkaz |
| 3MF | Sergei Mandreko | (1971-08-01)1 August 1971 (aged 20) | 2 | 0 | Pamir Dushanbe |
| 3MF | Anatoliy Mushchynka | (1970-08-19)19 August 1970 (aged 21) | 1 | 0 | Karpaty Lviv |
| 3MF | Oleh Koshelyuk | (1969-09-07)7 September 1969 (aged 22) | 1 | 0 | SKA Odessa / Chornomorets Odesa |
| 4FW | Dmitri Radchenko | (1970-12-02)2 December 1970 (aged 21) | 6 | 1 | Zenit Leningrad / Spartak Moscow |
| 4FW | Sergei Kiriakov | (1970-01-01)1 January 1970 (aged 21) | 5 | 0 | Dynamo Moscow |
| 4FW | Yuri Tishkov | (1971-03-12)12 March 1971 (aged 20) | 4 | 1 | Torpedo Moscow |
| 4FW | Oleg Salenko | (1969-10-25)25 October 1969 (aged 22) | 3 | 0 | Dynamo Kyiv |
| 4FW | Valeri Popovitch | (1970-05-18)18 May 1970 (aged 21) | 2 | 0 | Spartak Moscow |
| 4FW | Igor Simutenkov | (1973-04-03)3 April 1973 (aged 18) | 2 | 0 | Dynamo Moscow |

## 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 |