Contents

Ukraine national under-21 football team

Ukraine Under-21

Nickname(s)	Молодіжка (Young men)
Association	Ukrainian Association of Football
Head coach	Unai Melgosa
Captain	Volodymyr Brazhko
Most caps	Oleksandr Yatsenko (38)
Top scorer	Pylyp Budkivskyi (18)
Home stadium	Valeriy Lobanovskyi Dynamo Stadium
First colours Second colours Third colours
First international
Ukraine 0–0[1] Belarus  Ternopil,[2] Ukraine; 28 October 1992
Biggest win
Ukraine 8–0 Armenia  Kyiv, Ukraine; 13 October 1998
Biggest defeat
France 4–0 Ukraine Paris, France; 26 March 1999 Note: Records for competitive matches only.
Olympic Games
Appearances	1 (first in 2024)
Best result	TBD (2024)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	3 (first in 2006)
Best result	Runners-up (2006)

The Ukraine national under-21 football team is also known as Youth [football] team of Ukraine (Ukrainian: Молодіжна збірна України) is one of junior national football teams of Ukraine for participation in under-21 international competitions. The team is managed by the Ukrainian Association of Football staff, committee of national teams. The team participates in qualifications to the Olympic competitions and the continental (UEFA) U-21 competitions.

Their first game the team played was on 28 October 1992. Its first competition the team entered in 1994 the qualification round for the 1996 European Under-21 Championship. The team has qualified for a tournament twice. The under-21s not only qualified for the 2006 European Under-21 Championship, but also reached the final, where they lost to Netherlands on 4 June 2006 by 3–0. The under-21s also qualified to the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Championship that was held in Denmark.

History[edit]

Its first game under national flag the team played on 28 October 1992 by hosting Belarus national under-21 football team in a friendly game in Ternopil (Ternopil City Stadium).^[1] The game ended in scoreless tie and was attended by 4,000 people.^[1] The initial squad consisted of following players Sergei Aleksandrov, Dmytro Parfenov, Serhiy Fedorov, Oleksandr Koval, Vladyslav Vashchuk, Vitaliy Kosovskyi, Ihor Luchkevych, Serhiy Onopko, Vladimir Lebed, Hennadiy Moroz, Vitaliy Pushkutsa, Kostyantyn Pinchuk, Oleg Solovyov, Ruslan Romanchuk, Oleksandr Karabuta.^[1] Later two out of the squad Lebed and Aleksandrov continued to play for Russian national teams.

In August 1993, the Ukraine youth squad took part in its first tournament where it contested few teams outside of Europe. Its first competitive tournament became the Youth Euro 1996 where it was eliminated in qualification group. Its first game Ukraine U-21 played at home against its opponents from Lithuania on 6 September 1994.

It took Ukraine another 10 years to finally qualify to the tournament final when in 2006 it almost won the tournament losing in the final game to Netherlands which earned its first title instead.

Tournaments[edit]

Summer Olympics record[edit]

As U-23 team

Rules

• 1996–present: u-23 national teams (with three 'no age limit' players allowed, after an agreement between FIFA and OIC)

Note

• No tournament held in 1932

*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

**Since 1968, Spain has sent its under-23 national team.

UEFA U-21 Championship[edit]

Since 1984, it is an official U-21 European championship. Since 1992, the tournament doubles as qualifying competition for the Olympic Games every four years.^[3]

• 1994: Did not enter.
• 1996: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 6 in qualification group.
• 1998: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 5 in qualification group.
• 2000: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 5 in qualification group.
• 2002: Did not qualify. Finished 1st of 5 in qualification group. Lost qualification play-off to Switzerland.
• 2004: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 6 in qualification group.
• 2006: Runner-up. Finished 2nd of 7 in qualification group. Won qualification play-off over Belgium.
• 2007: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 3 in qualification group.
• 2009: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 5 in qualification group.
• 2011: Group Stage. Finished 1st of 5 in qualification group. Won qualification play-off over Netherlands
• 2013: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 6 in qualification group.
• 2015: Did not qualify. Finished 2nd of 5 in qualification group. Lost qualification play-off to Germany.
• 2017: Did not qualify. Finished 4th of 6 in qualification group.
• 2019: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 6 in qualification group.
• 2021: Did not qualify. Finished 3rd of 6 in qualification group.
• 2023: Qualified. Finished 2nd of 6 in qualification group. Won qualification play-off over Slovakia.

UEFA U-21 European Championship record[edit]

UEFA European Under-21 Championship										UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA		Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1960–1992	Part of  Soviet Union									Part of  Soviet Union
1994	Did not enter									Did not enter
1996	Did not qualify									10	6	2	2	24	12
1998										8	5	1	2	14	4
2000										8	3	2	3	16	12
2002										12	6	1	5	16	17
2004										8	2	5	1	8	5
2006	Runner-up	2nd	5	2	1	2	4	6		14	8	2	4	27	11
2007	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	2	4
2009										8	5	0	3	16	7
2011	Group Stage	8th	3	0	1	2	1	5		10	5	4	1	16	8
2013	Did not qualify									10	5	2	3	21	10
2015										10	6	1	3	20	13
2017										10	4	2	4	14	12
2019										10	5	2	3	18	12
2021										10	5	1	4	17	11
2023	Semi-Finals	3rd	5	3	1	1	9	8		12	8	2	2	25	14
2025
Total	Runner-up	3/15	8	2	2	4	5	11		124	64	23	37	218	132

Important friendlies[edit]

Lobanovsky tournament (2006– )[edit]

• Winners (2): 2009, 2019
• Runners-up (4): 2011, 2013, 2015, 2017

Commonwealth of Independent States Cup (2012–2014)[edit]

• Winner (1): 2014
• Runner-up (1): 2013

Head coaches[edit]

As of 26 March 2024

Manager[4]	Nation	Ukraine career	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	Win %	Qualifying cycle	Final tour
Volodymyr Muntian		1992–1994	15	8	5	2	25	12	53.33	1996
Viktor Kolotov		1995	7	3	2	2	17	10	42.86	1996
Oleksandr Ishchenko		1996–1997	11	7	2	2	19	6	63.64	1998
Viktor Kolotov		1998–1999	12	6	3	3	32	16	50	2000
Volodymyr Onyschenko		1999–2001	21	9	3	9	23	31	42.86	2000, 2002
Anatoliy Kroshchenko[5]		2002	10	1	6	3	10	12	10	2004
Pavlo Yakovenko		2002–2004	20	8	6	6	24	20	40	2004, 2006
Hennadiy Lytovchenko		2003–2004	2	1	1	0	4	2	50
Oleksiy Mykhaylichenko		2004–2007	41	21	6	14	4	2	51.22	2006, 2007, 2009	2006
Volodymyr Muntian (caretaker)		2008	5	0	2	3	2	8	0
Pavlo Yakovenko		2008–2012	70	31	25	14	109	66	44.29	2009, 2011, 2013	2011
Serhiy Kovalets		2013–2015	47	26	8	13	94	50	55.32	2013, 2015
Oleksandr Holovko		2015–2018	25	13	7	5	49	34	52	2017, 2019
Ruslan Rotan		2018–2023	47	23	12	12	79	55	48.94	2021, 2023	2023
Unai Melgosa		2023–present	8	7	0	1	16	4	87.5	2025

Coaching staff[edit]

Currently approved:^[6]

Head coach

Unai Melgosa

Results and fixtures[edit]

2023[edit]

Germany v Ukraine

8 September 2023 (2023-09-08) Friendly	Germany	2–0	Ukraine	Saarbrücken, Germany
19:15	Beier 53' Lemperle 88'	Report		Stadium: Ludwigsparkstadion Attendance: 6,503 Referee: Jasmin Sabotic (Luxembourg)

Ukraine v Northern Ireland

12 September 2023 (2023-09-12) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Ukraine	1–0	Northern Ireland	Poprad, Slovakia
18:30	Roman 70'	Report		Stadium: NTC Poprad[7] Attendance: 275 Referee: Kai Erik Steen (Norway)

Luxembourg v Ukraine

12 October 2023 (2023-10-12) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Luxembourg	0–3	Ukraine	Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
20:30		Report	Krasnopir 45' Viunnyk 69' Kvasnytsya 90+4'	Stadium: Stade Émile Mayrisch Attendance: 661 Referee: Vilhjalmur Thorarinsson (Iceland)

Ukraine v England

16 October 2023 (2023-10-16) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Ukraine	3–2	England	Košice, Slovakia
18:30	Voloshyn 31' Ocheretko 43' Kvasnytsia 90+4'	Report	Madueke 67' Cresswell 89'	Stadium: Košická futbalová aréna Attendance: 3,245 Referee: Gustavo Correia (Portugal)

Ukraine v Luxembourg

17 November 2023 (2023-11-17) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Ukraine	4–0	Luxembourg	Murcia, Spain
19:00	Vanat 35' Batahov 64' Voloshyn 66' Krasnopir 74'	Report		Stadium: Estadio Nueva Condomina Attendance: 1,026 Referee: Sandi Putros (Denmark)

Ukraine v Azerbaijan

21 November 2023 (2023-11-21) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Ukraine	1–0	Azerbaijan	Murcia, Spain
19:00	Brazhko 34' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Estadio Nueva Condomina Attendance: 880 Referee: Irakli Kvirikashvili (Georgia)

2024[edit]

Morocco v Ukraine

22 March 2024 (2024-03-22) Friendly	Morocco	0–1	Ukraine	Aksu, Antalya, Turkey
20:00		Report	Ocheretko 19'	Stadium: Mardan Sports Complex Referee: Halim Kolanci (Turkey)

Azerbaijan v Ukraine

26 March 2024 (2024-03-26) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Azerbaijan	0–3	Ukraine	Baku, Azerbaijan
14:00		Report	Yatsyk 25' Ocheretko 40' Rubchynskyi 56'	Stadium: Azersun Arena Referee: Dario Bel (Croatia)

Ukraine v Serbia

6 September 2024 (2024-09-06) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Ukraine	v	Serbia
TBD		Report

Northern Ireland v Ukraine

10 September 2024 (2024-09-10) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Northern Ireland	v	Ukraine
TBD		Report

England v Ukraine

11 October 2024 (2024-10-11) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	England	v	Ukraine
TBD		Report

Serbia v Ukraine

15 October 2024 (2024-10-15) U21 Euro 2025 Qualification	Serbia	v	Ukraine
TBD		Report

Players[edit]

Players born in 2002 or later are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification. Names in bold denote players who have been capped for the senior team. Names in italics denote players who not available for calling up anymore, because of the age limits.

Current squad[edit]

• The following players were called up for the friendly match and the 2025 Euro U21 qualification matches against  Morocco and  Azerbaijan on 22 and 26 March 2024, respectively.^[8]

• Caps and goals correct as of 26 March 2024, after the match vs  Azerbaijan.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Ruslan Neshcheret	(2002-01-22) 22 January 2002 (age 22)	18	0	Dynamo Kyiv
12	1GK	Yakiv Kinareykin	(2003-10-22) 22 October 2003 (age 20)	2	0	Dnipro-1
16	2DF	Arseniy Batahov (captain)	(2002-03-05) 5 March 2002 (age 22)	31	1	Zorya Luhansk
2	2DF	Kostyantyn Vivcharenko	(2002-06-10) 10 June 2002 (age 22)	26	2	Dynamo Kyiv
13	2DF	Volodymyr Salyuk	(2002-06-25) 25 June 2002 (age 22)	10	0	Chornomorets Odesa
5	2DF	Vitaliy Roman	(2003-04-15) 15 April 2003 (age 21)	9	1	Rukh Lviv
15	2DF	Artem Smolyakov	(2003-05-29) 29 May 2003 (age 21)	5	0	Polissya Zhytomyr
4	2DF	Illya Krupskyi	(2004-10-02) 2 October 2004 (age 19)	2	0	Vorskla Poltava
8	3MF	Oleh Ocheretko	(2003-05-25) 25 May 2003 (age 21)	21	4	Shakhtar Donetsk
21	3MF	Maksym Braharu	(2002-07-21) 21 July 2002 (age 21)	21	1	Dynamo Kyiv
22	3MF	Valentyn Rubchynskyi	(2002-02-15) 15 February 2002 (age 22)	10	1	Dynamo Kyiv
14	3MF	Illya Kvasnytsya	(2003-03-20) 20 March 2003 (age 21)	8	2	Rukh Lviv
10	3MF	Nazar Voloshyn	(2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 21)	8	2	Dynamo Kyiv
19	3MF	Maksym Khlan	(2003-01-27) 27 January 2003 (age 21)	7	0	Lechia Gdańsk
9	3MF	Yevhen Pavlyuk	(2002-08-18) 18 August 2002 (age 21)	4	0	Vorskla Poltava
18	3MF	Oleksandr Yatsyk	(2003-01-03) 3 January 2003 (age 21)	3	1	Zorya Luhansk
11	3MF	Ivan Varfolomeyev	(2004-03-24) 24 March 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Slovan Liberec
6	3MF	Borys Krushynskyi	(2002-05-10) 10 May 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Polissya Zhytomyr
20	4FW	Ihor Krasnopir	(2002-12-01) 1 December 2002 (age 21)	9	2	Rukh Lviv
17	4FW	Ihor Horbach	(2004-05-27) 27 May 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Dynamo Kyiv

Recent call-ups[edit]

The following players have been called up for the team within the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Pavlo Isenko	(2003-07-21) 21 July 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Vorskla Poltava	v.  Morocco, 22 March 2024
GK	Kiril Fesyun	(2002-08-07) 7 August 2002 (age 21)	7	0	Shakhtar Donetsk	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
DF	Bohdan Slyubyk	(2004-02-11) 11 February 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Rukh Lviv	v.  Morocco, 22 March 2024
DF	Danil Skorko	(2002-04-06) 6 April 2002 (age 22)	3	0	Oleksandriya	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
DF	Roman Didyk	(2002-12-02) 2 December 2002 (age 21)	3	0	Rukh Lviv	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
DF	Eduard Kozik	(2003-04-19) 19 April 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Karpaty Lviv	v.  Luxembourg, 17 November 2023 PRE
DF	Anton Bol	(2003-01-08) 8 January 2003 (age 21)	7	0	Zorya Luhansk	v.  Luxembourg, 12 October 2023 PRE
DF	Marian Faryna	(2003-08-28) 28 August 2003 (age 20)	2	0	Shakhtar Donetsk	v.  Luxembourg, 12 October 2023 PRE
DF	Andriy Buleza	(2004-01-25) 25 January 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Karpaty Lviv	v.  Northern Ireland, 12 September 2023
MF	Yevheniy Pastukh	(2004-03-19) 19 March 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Rukh Lviv	v.  Morocco, 22 March 2024
MF	Yehor Yarmolyuk	(2004-03-01) 1 March 2004 (age 20)	10	0	Brentford	v.  Morocco, 22 March 2024 WD
MF	Anton Tsarenko	(2004-06-17) 17 June 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Dynamo Kyiv	v.  Morocco, 22 March 2024 INJ
MF	Volodymyr Brazhko	(2002-01-23) 23 January 2002 (age 22)	21	2	Dynamo Kyiv	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
MF	Maksym Kucheriavyi	(2002-05-09) 9 May 2002 (age 22)	5	1	St Johnstone	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
MF	Kyrylo Siheyev	(2004-05-16) 16 May 2004 (age 20)	4	0	Shakhtar Donetsk	v.  Northern Ireland, 12 September 2023
MF	Ivan Losenko	(2004-07-24) 24 July 2004 (age 19)	1	0	Inhulets Petrove	v.  Northern Ireland, 12 September 2023
FW	Bohdan Viunnyk	(2002-05-21) 21 May 2002 (age 22)	28	6	Lechia Gdańsk	v.  Azerbaijan, 21 November 2023
FW	Vladyslav Vanat	(2002-01-04) 4 January 2002 (age 22)	12	4	Dynamo Kyiv	v.  Luxembourg, 17 November 2023
FW	Yehor Hunichev	(2003-12-31) 31 December 2003 (age 20)	1	0	Mynai	v.  England, 16 October 2023
FW	Denys Teslyuk	(2003-04-11) 11 April 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Obolon Kyiv	v.  Germany, 8 September 2023
Notes INJ = Player withdrew from the squad because of injury. WD = Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue. RES = Reserves squad – replaces a member of the squad in case of injury/unavailability.

Player records[edit]

Top goalscorers[edit]

As of 26 March 2024^[9]

Head-to-head record[edit]

This section needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (June 2013)

The following table shows Ukraine Under-21s all-time international record, correct as of 29 March 2021.^[10]

Against	Confederation	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	GF	GA	GD
Albania	UEFA	7	6	1	0	17	2	+15
Andorra	UEFA	2	2	0	0	7	0	+7
Armenia	UEFA	10	8	2	0	31	3	+28
Austria	UEFA	3	1	1	1	2	2	+0
Azerbaijan	UEFA	4	2	1	1	6	3	+3
Bahrain	AFC	1	1	0	0	4	3	+1
Belarus	UEFA	14	6	6	2	19	12	+7
Belgium	UEFA	4	2	1	1	8	5	+3
Bulgaria	UEFA	6	2	0	4	10	11	-1
Chile	CONMEBOL	2	2	0	0	3	0	+3
China	AFC	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1
Croatia	UEFA	7	3	2	2	8	7	+1
Czech Republic	UEFA	8	1	1	6	5	13	-8
Cyprus	UEFA	2	1	1	0	4	1	+3
Denmark	UEFA	12	4	4	4	16	17	-1
Egypt	CAF	1	1	0	0	3	1	+2
England	UEFA	6	1	1	4	5	11	-6
Estonia	UEFA	5	3	2	0	13	5	+8
Finland	UEFA	5	2	2	1	5	4	+1
France	UEFA	9	1	5	3	8	14	-6
Georgia	UEFA	11	5	4	2	28	12	+16
Germany	UEFA	6	0	1	5	2	14	-12
Greece	UEFA	8	5	3	0	11	2	+9
Hungary	UEFA	2	1	0	1	3	5	-2
Iceland	UEFA	5	3	0	2	13	10	+3
Iran	AFC	5	2	2	1	10	7	+3
Northern Ireland	UEFA	8	4	3	1	13	6	+7
Israel	UEFA	9	4	4	1	8	7	+1
Italy	UEFA	5	1	0	4	3	6	-3
Kazakhstan	UEFA	4	4	0	0	9	2	+7
South Korea	AFC	1	0	0	1	2	3	-1
Kosovo	UEFA	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2
Kyrgyzstan	AFC	2	2	0	0	6	0	+6
Latvia	UEFA	8	6	2	0	19	6	+13
Liechtenstein	UEFA	4	4	0	0	16	3	+13
Lithuania	UEFA	11	6	3	2	23	14	+9
Libya	CAF	1	0	1	0	0	0	+0
Luxembourg ||UEFA|| 2 || 2 || 0 || 0|| 4 || 0 || +4
North Macedonia	UEFA	5	2	0	3	5	5	+0
Malta	UEFA	6	5	1	0	19	4	+15
Moldova	UEFA	11	7	4	0	23	5	+18
Montenegro	UEFA	2	2	0	0	4	2	+2
Netherlands	UEFA	9	2	3	4	6	13	-7
Norway	UEFA	5	0	0	5	2	10	-8
Poland	UEFA	8	3	3	2	15	14	+1
Portugal	UEFA	5	3	0	2	3	3	+0
Romania	UEFA	6	3	0	3	5	13	-8
Russia	UEFA	5	2	1	2	10	9	+1
Saudi Arabia	AFC	1	1	0	0	6	1	+5
Scotland	UEFA	5	3	2	0	13	5	+8
Slovakia	UEFA	8	1	5	2	7	6	+1
Slovenia	UEFA	10	7	2	1	18	6	+12
Serbia	UEFA	6	1	4	1	5	7	-2
Spain	UEFA	4	1	1	2	2	6	-4
Sweden	UEFA	3	1	0	2	7	3	+4
Switzerland	UEFA	5	2	1	2	7	6	+1
Syria	AFC	3	1	1	1	2	2	+0
Tajikistan	AFC	1	1	0	0	4	1	+3
Turkey	UEFA	13	6	3	4	19	14	+5
Turkmenistan	AFC	1	1	0	0	5	0	+5
United States	CONCACAF	1	0	1	0	1	1	+0
Uzbekistan	AFC	5	2	3	0	7	3	+4
Wales	UEFA	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4

• Serbia and Montenegro +1=1-1 2-4 (Yugoslavia)
• Kyrgyzstan national +1=0-0 4-0
• Norway u-23 +0=0-1 0-2
• England C +0=0-1 0-2

Home venues record[edit]

Since the game Ukraine v Belarus (28 October 1992), Ukraine youth team have played their home games at 19 different stadiums.