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Italy national under-21 football team

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Italy Under-21
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Gli Azzurrini
(The Little Blues)
AssociationItalian Football Federation
(Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio – FIGC)
Head coachSilvio Baldini
CaptainLuca Lipani
Most capsAndrea Pirlo (46)
Top scorerAlberto Gilardino (19)
First colours
Second colours
First international
U-23: Italy Italy 3–1 Austria Austria
(Varese, Italy; 1 November 1970)
U-21: Portugal Portugal 1–0 Italy Italy
(Funchal, Italy; 23 December 1976)
Biggest win
Italy Italy 7–0 Estonia Estonia
(Catanzaro, Italy; 23 March 1995)
Italy Italy 8–1 Wales Wales
(Pavia, Italy; 5 September 2003)
Italy Italy 7–0 Liechtenstein Liechtenstein
(Casarano, Italy; 6 September 2012)
San Marino San Marino 0–7 Italy Italy
(Serravale, San Marino; 16 November 2023)
Italy Italy 7–0 San Marino San Marino
(Latina, Italy; 5 September 2024)
Biggest defeat
Norway Norway 6–0 Italy Italy
(Stavanger, Norway; 5 June 1991)
Records for competitive
matches only.
Olympic Games
Appearances5 (first in 1992)
Best result Bronze medallist (2004)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances23 (first in 1978)
Best resultChampions (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004)
Medal record
Italy national under-21 football team
Medal record
Men's Football
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens Team

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]

Honours

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UEFA European Under-21 Championship

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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

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Year Round
Europe 1978 Quarter-finals
Europe 1980
Europe 1982
Europe 1984 Semi-finals
Europe 1986 Runners-up
Europe 1988 Quarter-finals
Europe 1990 Semi-finals
Europe 1992 Champions
France 1994
Spain 1996
Romania 1998 Did not qualify
Slovakia 2000 Champions
Switzerland 2002 Semi-finals
Germany 2004 Champions
Portugal 2006 Group stage
Netherlands 2007
Sweden 2009 Semi-finals
Denmark 2011 Did not qualify
Israel 2013 Runners-up
Czech Republic 2015 Group stage
Poland 2017 Semi-finals
Italy 2019 Group stage
Hungary Slovenia 2021 Quarter-finals
Romania Georgia (country) 2023 Group stage
Slovakia 2025 Quarter-finals
Albania Serbia 2027 TBD
Total 23/25
*Red border colour indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Olympics football Record

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Main article: Italy national under-23 football team

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.

Overage players in Olympic Games

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Tournament Player 1 Player 2 Player 3
1996
 Gianluca Pagliuca (GK) Massimo Crippa (MF) Marco Branca (FW)
2000
 Did not select
2004
 Matteo Ferrari (DF) Andrea Pirlo (MF) Did not select
2008
 Tommaso Rocchi (FW) Did not select

Mediterranean Games Record

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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

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Coaching staff

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Position Name
Head coach Italy Silvio Baldini
Assistant coaches Italy Mauro Nardini
Italy Mattia Baldini
Technical assistant Italy Andrea Barzagli
Goalkeeping coach Italy Stefano Pardini
Fitness coach Italy Vito Azzone
Match analysts Italy Diego Labricciosa
Italy Gianluca Mazziotti
Head of delegation Italy Giancarlo Antognoni
Doctors Italy Daniele Mazza
Italy Vincenzo Santoriello
Physiotherapists Italy Nicola Sanna
Italy Tommaso Cannata

Source:[2]

Results and fixtures

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The following is a list of matches played in the past 12 months and future matches that have been scheduled. Only official matches are listed.[3]

2024

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15 November 2024 (2024-11-15) Friendly Italy  2–2  France Empoli, Italy
16:15
Report
Stadium: Stadio Carlo Castellani
19 November 2024 (2024-11-19) Friendly Italy  2–2  Ukraine La Spezia, Italy
18:15
Report
Stadium: Stadio Alberto Picco

2025

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21 March 2025 (2025-03-21) Friendly Italy  1–2  Netherlands Venice, Italy
18:15
Report
Stadium: Stadio Pierluigi Penzo
24 March 2025 (2025-03-24) Friendly Italy  1–1  Denmark Cittadella, Italy
18:15 UTC+1
Report
Stadium: Stadio Pier Cesare Tombolato
Attendance: 7,000
11 June 2025 (2025-06-11) 2025 UEFA U21C RR Italy  1–0  Romania Trnava, Slovakia
21:00
Report Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium
Referee: Vassilis Fotias (Greece)
14 June 2025 (2025-06-14) 2025 UEFA U21C RR Slovakia  0–1  Italy Trnava, Slovakia
21:00 Report
Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium
Attendance: 15,455
Referee: Nenad Minaković (Serbia)
17 June 2025 (2025-06-17) 2025 UEFA U21C RR Spain  1–1  Italy Trnava, Slovakia
21:00
Report
Stadium: Anton Malatinský Stadium
Referee: Nick Walsh (Scotland)
22 June 2025 (2025-06-22) 2025 UEFA U21C QF Germany  3–2  Italy Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
21:00
Report
Stadium: MOL Arena
Attendance: 6,503[4]
Referee: Manfredas Lukjančukas (Lithuania)
5 September 2025 (2025-09-05) 2027 Championship qual. Italy  2–1  Montenegro La Spezia, Italy
18:15
Report
Stadium: Stadio Alberto Picco
9 September 2025 (2025-09-09) 2027 Championship qual. North Macedonia  0–1  Italy Bitola, North Macedonia
18:15 Report
Stadium: Stadium Petar Miloševski
Attendance: 7,559
Referee: Genc Nuza (Kosovo)
10 October 2025 (2025-10-10) 2027 Championship qual. Italy  4–0  Sweden Cesena, Italy
18:15
Report Stadium: Stadio Dino Manuzzi
Attendance: 4,200
Referee: Matthias Jöllenbeck (Germany)
14 October 2025 (2025-10-14) 2027 Championship qual. Italy  5–1  Armenia Cremona, Italy
18:15
Report
Stadium: Stadio Giovanni Zini
Referee: Gal Levi (Israel)
14 November 2025 (2025-11-14) 2027 Championship qual. Poland  2–1  Italy Szczecin, Poland
16:00
Report
Stadium: Florian Krygier Municipal Stadium
18 November 2025 (2025-11-18) 2027 Championship qual. Montenegro  1–4  Italy Nikšić, Montenegro
18:30
Report
Stadium: City Stadium
Referee: Miguel Nogueira (Portugal)

2026

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26 March 2026 (2026-03-26) 2027 Championship qual. Italy  v  North Macedonia TBD, Italy
31 March 2026 (2026-03-31) 2027 Championship qual. Sweden  v  Italy TBD, Sweden
1 October 2026 (2026-10-01) 2027 Championship qual. Armenia  v  Italy TBD, Armenia
5 October 2026 (2026-10-05) 2027 Championship qual. Italy  v  Poland TBD, Italy

Players

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Players born in 2004 or later are eligible for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. Players in bold have been already capped with the senior team.

Current squad

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The following players were called up for the 2027 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification matches against Poland and Montenegro on 14 and 18 November 2025, respectively.[5]

Caps and goals as of 14 November 2025, after the match against Montenegro.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Lorenzo Palmisani (2004-06-12) 12 June 2004 (age 21) 4 0 Italian Football Federation Frosinone
1GK Diego Mascardi (2006-09-26) 26 September 2006 (age 19) 1 0 Italian Football Federation Spezia
1GK Edoardo Motta (2005-01-13) 13 January 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Italian Football Federation Reggiana
2DF Davide Bartesaghi (2005-12-29) 29 December 2005 (age 19) 4 0 Italian Football Federation Milan
2DF Filippo Mané (2005-03-08) 8 March 2005 (age 20) 4 0 German Football Association Borussia Dortmund
2DF Gabriele Guarino (2004-04-14) 14 April 2004 (age 21) 3 0 Italian Football Federation Empoli
2DF Riyad Idrissi (2005-06-13) 13 June 2005 (age 20) 3 0 Italian Football Federation Cagliari
2DF Pietro Comuzzo (2005-02-20) 20 February 2005 (age 20) 2 0 Italian Football Federation Fiorentina
2DF Niccolò Fortini (2006-02-13) 13 February 2006 (age 19) 2 0 Italian Football Federation Fiorentina
2DF Brando Moruzzi (2004-07-20) 20 July 2004 (age 21) 2 0 Italian Football Federation Empoli
2DF Gabriele Calvani (2004-01-12) 12 January 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Italian Football Federation Frosinone
3MF Niccolò Pisilli (2004-09-23) 23 September 2004 (age 21) 19 5 Italian Football Federation Roma
3MF Matteo Dagasso (2004-04-01) 1 April 2004 (age 21) 6 2 Italian Football Federation Pescara
3MF Luca Lipani (captain) (2005-05-18) 18 May 2005 (age 20) 6 1 Italian Football Federation Sassuolo
3MF Giacomo Faticanti (2004-07-31) 31 July 2004 (age 21) 3 0 Italian Football Federation Juventus Next Gen
3MF Tommaso Berti (2004-03-07) 7 March 2004 (age 21) 2 1 Italian Football Federation Cesena
3MF Kevin Zeroli (2005-01-11) 11 January 2005 (age 20) 1 0 Italian Football Federation Monza
4FW Seydou Fini (2006-06-02) 2 June 2006 (age 19) 8 3 Italian Football Federation Genoa
4FW Luigi Cherubini (2004-01-15) 15 January 2004 (age 21) 6 0 Italian Football Federation Sampdoria
4FW Francesco Camarda (2008-03-10) 10 March 2008 (age 17) 4 4 Italian Football Federation Lecce
4FW Alphadjo Cissè (2006-10-22) 22 October 2006 (age 19) 2 0 Italian Football Federation Catanzaro
4FW Lorenzo Venturino (2006-06-22) 22 June 2006 (age 19) 1 0 Italian Football Federation Genoa
4FW Dominic Vavassori (2005-12-09) 9 December 2005 (age 19) 0 0 Italian Football Federation Atalanta U23

Recent call-ups

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Following are listed players called up in the previous twelve months who are still eligible to represent the under-21 team.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Tommaso Martinelli (2006-01-06) 6 January 2006 (age 19) 0 0 Italy Fiorentina v.  Armenia 14 October 2025
GK Lapo Nava (2004-01-22) 22 January 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Italy Cremonese v.  North Macedonia 9 September 2025
DF Marco Palestra (2005-03-03) 3 March 2005 (age 20) 8 0 Italy Cagliari v.  Poland 14 November 2025 SUS
DF Luca Marianucci (2004-07-23) 23 July 2004 (age 21) 4 1 Italy Napoli v.  Armenia 14 October 2025
DF Alessandro Dellavalle (2004-01-05) 5 January 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Italy Modena v.  Armenia 14 October 2025
DF Fabio Chiarodia (2005-06-05) 5 June 2005 (age 20) 2 0 Germany Borussia Mönchengladbach v.  North Macedonia 9 September 2025
DF Costantino Favasuli (2004-04-26) 26 April 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Italy Catanzaro v.  North Macedonia 9 September 2025
DF Michael Kayode (2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 (age 21) 8 0 England Brentford v.  Montenegro 5 September 2025 INJ
DF Giovanni Leoni (2006-12-21) 21 December 2006 (age 18) 0 0 England Liverpool 2025 U21 Championship PRE
MF Cher Ndour (2004-07-27) 27 July 2004 (age 21) 24 2 Italy Fiorentina v.  Poland 14 November 2025 INJ
MF Lorenzo Amatucci (2004-02-05) 5 February 2004 (age 21) 0 0 Spain Las Palmas v.  North Macedonia 9 September 2025
FW Luca Koleosho (2004-09-15) 15 September 2004 (age 21) 12 2 Spain Espanyol v.  Poland 14 November 2025 SUS
FW Jeff Ekhator (2006-11-11) 11 November 2006 (age 19) 4 1 Italy Genoa v.  Poland 14 November 2025 INJ
FW Simone Pafundi (2006-03-14) 14 March 2006 (age 19) 5 0 Italy Sampdoria v.  Sweden 10 October 2025 INJ
FW Antonio Raimondo (2004-03-18) 18 March 2004 (age 21) 9 4 Italy Frosinone v.  North Macedonia 9 September 2025
FW Pio Esposito (2005-06-28) 28 June 2005 (age 20) 11 7 Italy Internazionale 2025 U21 Championship PRE

INJ Withdrew due to injury
PRE Preliminary squad
SUS Suspended for the following match

Records

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Players in bold are still eligible to represent the Under-21 team. Caps and goals with the Olympic team are included.

Most appearances

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The following is the top 10 most capped under-21 players:[6]

Rank Player Period Caps Goals
1 Andrea Pirlo 1998–2002 46 16
2 Marco Motta 2005–2009 42 1
3 Francesco Bardi 2011–2015 37 0
4 Matteo Brighi 2000–2004 35 2
5 Daniele Bonera 2001–2004 34 0
6 Matteo Ferrari 1999–2002 33 3
7 Luca Marrone 2009–2013 32 1
Alessandro Rosina 2004–2007 32 4
9 Luca Caldirola 2010–2013 31 1
Marco Donadel 2004–2006 31 1

Top goalscorers

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The following is the top 10 under-21 goalscorers:[7]

Rank Player Period Goals Caps Ratio
1 Alberto Gilardino 2000–2004 19 30 0.63
2 Andrea Pirlo 1998–2002 16 46 0.34
3 Manolo Gabbiadini 2010–2013 12 24 0.5
4 Massimo Maccarone 2000–2002 11 15 0.73
Gianluca Vialli 1983–1986 11 20 0.55
Patrick Cutrone 2017–2021 11 25 0.44
7 Cristiano Lucarelli 1996–1997 10 10 1
Robert Acquafresca 2007–2009 10 16 0.62
Christian Vieri 1992–1996 10 19 0.52
10 Gianluca Scamacca 2018–2021 9 15 0.6
Ciro Immobile 2009–2013 9 16 0.56
Andrea Belotti 2013–2015 9 18 0.5
Roberto Mancini 1982–1986 9 26 0.34
Alberto Paloschi 2008–2013 9 29 0.31

See also

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Notes

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References

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  1. ^ "Categories - All 4". www.channel4.com.
  2. ^ "Nazionale Under 21 - Squadra e staff" (in Italian). FIGC. 5 September 2025.
  3. ^ "FIGC". www.figc.it. 7 February 2020.
  4. ^ "Germany vs. Italy" (JSON). UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 22 June 2025. Retrieved 22 June 2025.
  5. ^ "Iniziata la lunga vigilia di Polonia-Italia. Baldini: "Conosciamo le difficoltà, ma sono fiducioso"" (in Italian). figc.it. 10 November 2025.
  6. ^ "Classifica Presenze". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (in Italian). 24 September 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Classifica Marcatori". Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (in Italian). 5 August 2020. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
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