Romania national under-21 football team

Romania Under-21
Nickname(s)	Tricolorii Mici (The Small Tricolours)
Association	Romanian Football Federation (FRF)
Head coach	Daniel Pancu
Captain	Louis Munteanu
Most caps	Alexandru Pașcanu (29)
Top scorer	George Pușcaș (18)
Home stadium	Various
Biggest win
	Armenia 0–5 Romania ; (Yerevan, Armenia; 16 November 2004); Azerbaijan 0–5 Romania ; (Trabzon, Turkey; 25 April 1995)
Biggest defeat
	Germany 8–0 Romania ; (Magdeburg, Germany; 9 September 2014)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	4 (first in 1998)
Best result	Semi-finals (2019)

The Romania national under-21 football team, also known as Romania under-21s or Romania U21(s), is considered to be the feeder team for the Romania national football team.

This team is for Romanian players aged under 21 at the start of the calendar year in which a two-year European Under-21 Championship campaign begins, so some players can remain with the squad until the age of 23. As long as they are eligible, players can play for Romania at any level, making it possible to play for the U21s, senior side, and again for the U21s. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (providing the player has not played a senior competitive game in his previous country.)

History

The U-21 team came into existence, following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions, in 1976. Romania qualified for the 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, and under Victor Pițurcă reached the quarter-finals, where they were knocked out by the Netherlands. Romania had been 1–0 up, but were eventually beaten 2–1. The Romanian lineup included players like: Cosmin Contra, Bogdan Lobonț, Cătălin Munteanu, Ionel Dănciulescu and Ion Luțu.

Romania once again qualified unbeaten for the finals after topping their group in the qualifying series. The Romanians reached semi-final of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship for the first time in their history in the 2019 UEFA Under-21 Euro but eventually lost 4–2 to defending champions Germany who scored twice in the dying moments. Romania qualified for the 2020 Summer Olympics for their first Olympics since 1964. Overall, Romania was a revelation at the tournament, beating both England and Croatia (4-2 and 4–1), and looked on course for a shock before Germany fought back to make the final.

Romania U21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around Romania, in an attempt to encourage younger fans in all areas of the country to get behind Romania. Because of the lower demand compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds can be used.

Competitive record

UEFA U-21 Championship Record

UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship record								UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Qualification record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1978	did not qualify							4	1	0	3	5	8
1980								4	2	0	2	7	3
1982								6	2	1	3	9	12
1984								6	2	1	3	8	12
1986								6	1	4	1	5	7
1988								6	3	0	3	7	7
1990								6	3	0	3	8	7
1992								6	2	0	4	5	9
1994								8	5	0	3	13	10
1996								10	4	4	2	17	10
1998	Quarter-finals	3	0	0	3	2	5	8	8	0	0	18	4
2000	did not qualify							8	3	3	2	10	8
2002								8	5	1	2	13	5
2004								8	2	1	5	6	7
2006								10	6	1	3	17	8
2007								2	1	0	1	4	5
2009								8	4	3	1	11	3
2011								10	8	1	1	23	6
2013								8	4	2	2	11	6
2015								8	3	3	2	14	19
2017								10	5	1	4	15	14
2019	Semi-finals	4	2	1	1	10	7	10	7	3	0	19	4
2021	Group stage	3	1	2	0	3	2	10	6	2	2	22	7
2023	Group stage	3	0	1	2	0	4	Qualified as hosts
Total	4/24	13	3	4	6	15	18	160	87	31	52	268	181

Olympic Games

Football at the Summer Olympics was first played officially in 1908. The Olympiads between 1896 and 1980 was only open for amateur players. The 1984 and 1988 tournaments were open to players with no appearances in the FIFA World Cup. After the 1988 Olympics, the football event was changed into a tournament for U23 or U21 teams with a maximum of three older players. See Romania national football team for competition record from 1908 until 1988.

Olympic Games record									Olympic Games Qualification record **
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D *	L	GF	GA	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1992	did not qualify								6	2	0	4	5	9
1996									10	4	4	2	17	10
2000									8	3	3	2	10	8
2004									8	2	1	5	6	7
2008									2	1	0	1	4	5
2012									10	8	1	1	23	6
2016									8	3	3	2	14	19
2020	Group Stage	11th	3	1	1	1	4	7	14	9	4	1	29	11
2024	did not qualify
2028	to be determined								0	0	0	0	0	0

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

**Includes both qualification phase and final tournament of UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship.

***Gold background color indicates that the tournament was won. Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

EURO 2025

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Romania	10	7	1	2	23	10	+13	22	Final tournament	—	1–0	3–1	5–0	1–0	2–0
2	Finland	10	6	2	2	21	8	+13	20	Play-offs	2–0	—	1–2	4–1	2–1	6–0
3	Switzerland	10	5	3	2	21	12	+9	18		2–2	1–1	—	1–2	4–2	5–0
4	Albania	10	5	1	4	12	17	−5	16		3–2	0–0	1–3	—	2–0	1–0
5	Montenegro	10	2	1	7	8	19	−11	7		2–6	1–2	0–2	1–0	—	0–0
6	Armenia	10	0	2	8	2	21	−19	2		0–1	1–3	0–0	1–2	0–1	—

Source: UEFA

Results and fixtures

Win Draw Loss

2023

17 October 2023 (2023-10-17) 2025 UEFA Q	Romania	1–0	Finland	Sibiu, Romania
18:00	M. Ilie 90+8'	Report		Stadium: Municipal Attendance: 7,654 Referee: Luka Bilbija (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

17 November 2023 (2023-11-17) 2025 UEFA Q	Romania	5–0	Albania	Bucharest, Romania
19:30	Munteanu 7' (pen.) M. Ilie 15' R. Ilie 37' Grameni 55' Danciu 86'	Report		Stadium: Rapid-Giulești Attendance: 2,234 Referee: Matthew De Gabriele (Malta)

21 November 2023 (2023-11-21) 2025 UEFA Q	Switzerland	2–2	Romania	Neuchâtel, Switzerland
18:30	Sanches 23' Dos Santos Correia 88'	Report	R. Ilie 11' Grameni 32'	Stadium: Maladière Attendance: 5,359 Referee: Dominik Stary (Czech Republic)

2024

26 March 2024 (2024-03-26) 2025 UEFA Q	Armenia	0–1	Romania	Armavir, Armenia
15:00		Report	C. Mihai 89'	Stadium: Armavir Referee: Damian Sylwestrzak (Poland)

6 September 2024 (2024-09-06) 2025 UEFA Q	Romania	1–0	Montenegro	Târgoviște, Romania
18:30 (19:30 EEST)	Munteanu 8'	Report		Stadium: Eugen Popescu Stadium Referee: David Dickinson, (Scotland)

10 September 2024 (2024-09-10) 2025 UEFA Q	Finland	2–0	Romania	Tampere, Finland
16.00 UTC	Miettinen 22' Liimatta 71'	Report		Stadium: Tammelan Stadion Attendance: 2,014 Referee: Kristoffer Hagenes, (Norway)

11 October 2024 (2024-10-11) 2025 UEFA Q	Montenegro	2–6	Romania	Podgorica, Montenegro
16:00	Janjić 21' Mrvaljević 70'	Report	Munteanu 16', 27', 74' R. Ilie 52' Popescu 59' Rădulescu 89'	Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium Referee: Jérémie Pignard (France)

15 October 2024 (2024-10-15) 2025 UEFA Q	Romania	3–1	Switzerland	Bucharest, Romania
18:00 (19:00 EEST)	Stoica 16', 35' Akdağ 68'	Report	Hajdari 65'	Stadium: Stadionul Rapid-Giulești Referee: Marc Nagtegaal (Netherlands)

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification Group E matches against Montenegro and Switzerland on 11 and 15 October 2024 respectively.^[1]

Note: Names in italics denote players that have been called up to the senior team.

Caps and goals are correct as of 15 October 2024, after the match against Switzerland

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Răzvan Sava	(2002-06-21) 21 June 2002 (age 22)	10	0	Udinese
12	1GK	Robert Popa	(2003-03-05) 5 March 2003 (age 21)	1	0	UTA Arad
23	1GK	Alexandru Roșca	(2003-11-12) 12 November 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Dinamo București

2	2DF	Alexandru Pantea	(2003-09-11) 11 September 2003 (age 21)	12	0	FCSB
3	2DF	Cristian Ignat	(2003-01-29) 29 January 2003 (age 21)	9	0	Rapid București
11	2DF	Andrei Borza	(2005-11-12) 12 November 2005 (age 19)	8	1	Rapid București
5	2DF	Ümit Akdağ	(2003-10-06) 6 October 2003 (age 21)	4	1	Toulouse
4	2DF	Costin Amzăr	(2003-07-11) 11 July 2003 (age 21)	3	0	Al-Nasr
13	2DF	Gabriel Dănuleasă	(2003-05-08) 8 May 2003 (age 21)	3	0	Farul Constanța
18	2DF	David Maftei	(2004-07-12) 12 July 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Oțelul Galați
14	2DF	Cristian Licsandru	(2003-03-27) 27 March 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Dinamo București

8	3MF	Constantin Grameni	(2002-10-23) 23 October 2002 (age 22)	17	3	Rapid București
10	3MF	Octavian Popescu	(2002-12-27) 27 December 2002 (age 21)	15	2	FCSB
17	3MF	Marius Corbu	(2002-05-07) 7 May 2002 (age 22)	15	1	APOEL
19	3MF	Rareș Ilie	(2003-04-19) 19 April 2003 (age 21)	10	3	Nice
15	3MF	Cătălin Vulturar	(2004-03-09) 9 March 2004 (age 20)	8	1	Rapid București
6	3MF	Ovidiu Perianu	(2002-04-16) 16 April 2002 (age 22)	5	0	Unirea Slobozia
20	3MF	Mihnea Rădulescu	(2005-09-17) 17 September 2005 (age 19)	2	1	Petrolul Ploiești
16	3MF	Robert Silaghi	(2002-04-02) 2 April 2002 (age 22)	2	0	Universitatea Cluj
21	3MF	Cristian Mihai	(2004-09-23) 23 September 2004 (age 20)	1	1	UTA Arad

9	4FW	Louis Munteanu (captain)	(2002-06-16) 16 June 2002 (age 22)	15	5	CFR Cluj
7	4FW	Ianis Stoica	(2002-12-08) 8 December 2002 (age 21)	12	3	Hermannstadt
22	4FW	Vladislav Blănuță	(2002-01-12) 12 January 2002 (age 22)	5	0	Universitatea Cluj

Recent call-ups

Players born in or after 2002 are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

The following players have also been called up in the past to the Romania under-21 squad and remain eligible to play in the qualification matches for 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship:

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Otto Hindrich	(2002-08-02) 2 August 2002 (age 22)	1	0	CFR Cluj	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
GK	Alexandru Borbei	(2003-06-27) 27 June 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Lecce	v. Albania, 12 September 2023

DF	Tony Strata	(2004-09-07) 7 September 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Ajaccio	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
DF	Bogdan Oteliță	(2002-08-12) 12 August 2002 (age 22)	2	0	Sepsi OSK	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
DF	Ștefan Ștefanovici	(2002-02-20) 20 February 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Politehnica Iași	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
DF	Ștefan Duțu	(2004-02-16) 16 February 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Afumați	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
DF	Sergiu Rimovecz	(2003-07-29) 29 July 2003 (age 21)	0	0	CSM Reșița	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
DF	Matei Ilie	(2002-12-11) 11 December 2002 (age 21)	6	2	CFR Cluj	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
DF	Darius Oroian	(2003-08-01) 1 August 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Sepsi OSK	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
DF	Răzvan Pașcalău	(2004-05-05) 5 May 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Dinamo București	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023
DF	Gabriel Buta	(2002-01-29) 29 January 2002 (age 22)	0	0	Farul Constanța	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023
DF	Dan Sîrbu	(2003-04-22) 22 April 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Farul Constanța	v. Albania, 12 September 2023
DF	Radu Drăgușin	(2002-02-03) 3 February 2002 (age 22)	9	0	Tottenham Hotspur	v. Netherlands, 27 September 2022
DF	Andrei Coubiș	(2003-09-29) 29 September 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Milan Futuro	v. Netherlands, 27 September 2022
DF	Daniel Bîrzu	(2002-05-28) 28 May 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Viitorul Târgu Jiu	v. Slovakia, 7 June 2022

MF	Cătălin Cîrjan ^INJ	(2002-12-01) 1 December 2002 (age 21)	3	0	Dinamo București	v. Montenegro, 11 October 2024
MF	Ștefan Baiaram	(2002-12-31) 31 December 2002 (age 21)	12	2	Universitatea Craiova	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
MF	Rareș Pop	(2005-06-14) 14 June 2005 (age 19)	3	0	Rapid București	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
MF	Andrei Bani	(2002-08-22) 22 August 2002 (age 22)	2	0	Dinamo București	v. Finland, 10 September 2024
MF	Alexandru Musi	(2004-07-17) 17 July 2004 (age 20)	2	0	FCSB	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
MF	Luca Mihai	(2003-10-11) 11 October 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Gloria Buzău	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
MF	Andrei Pandele	(2003-07-09) 9 July 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Voluntari	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
MF	Ștefan Pănoiu	(2002-09-23) 23 September 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Botoșani	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023
MF	Aurelian Ciuciulete	(2003-04-04) 4 April 2003 (age 21)	0	0	Concordia Chiajna	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023
MF	Alexi Pitu	(2002-06-05) 5 June 2002 (age 22)	8	0	Unattached	v. Albania, 12 September 2023
MF	Marian Danciu	(2002-04-24) 24 April 2002 (age 22)	1	1	Universitatea Craiova	v. Albania, 12 September 2023
MF	Robert Filip	(2002-03-02) 2 March 2002 (age 22)	1	0	CFR Cluj	v. Albania, 12 September 2023

FW	Rareș Burnete	(2004-01-31) 31 January 2004 (age 20)	3	0	Lecce	v. Armenia, 26 March 2024
FW	Adrian Mazilu	(2005-09-13) 13 September 2005 (age 19)	7	0	Brighton & Hove Albion	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023
FW	Filip Ilie	(2002-07-05) 5 July 2002 (age 22)	1	0	Unirea Slobozia	v. Switzerland, November 21, 2023

Notes

^INJ = Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury
^SUS = Player is serving suspension
^WD = Player withdrew from the squad
^COV = Player withdrawn from the squad due to positive COVID-19 test
Names in italics denote players that have been capped for the Senior team.

Coaching staff

Role	Name
Head Coach	Daniel Pancu
Assistant Coaches	Lucian Sânmartean Răzvan Rotaru
Goalkeeping Coach	Răzvan Stanca
Fitness Coach	Vlad Nicoară
Video Analyst	Ovidiu Popescu
Doctor	Costin Dan
Video Analyst	Ovidiu Popescu
Physioterapists	Constantin Crețu Mădălin Tălpălaru

Footnotes

References

^ "U21 spre EURO 2025 / Lotul României pentru meciurile din luna octombrie, decisive pentru calificarea la Campionatul European" (in Romanian). Romanian Football Federation. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 5 October 2024.

External links

UEFA Under-21 website Contains full results archive
The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U-21/U-23 Championships.
FRF.ro

[1] "U21 spre EURO 2025 / Lotul României pentru meciurile din luna octombrie, decisive pentru calificarea la Campionatul European" (in Romanian). Romanian Football Federation. 30 August 2024. Retrieved 5 October 2024.

[1]

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