Moldova national under-21 football team

Moldova Under-21
Nickname(s)	Tricolorii mici (The Small Tricolours)
Association	Moldovan Football Federation (FMF)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Ștefan Stoica
Captain	Ion Borș
Home stadium	Zimbru Stadium; Nisporeni Central Stadium
FIFA code	MDA
First colours	Second colours
First international
	Moldova 0–1 Belarus ; (Chișinău, Moldova; 30 August 1992)
Biggest win
	Moldova 5–1 Georgia ; (Valletta, Malta; 27 February 2006); Gibraltar 0–4 Moldova ; (Gibraltar; 29 March 2022)
Biggest defeat
	Greece 8–0 Moldova ; (Sparta, Greece; 23 October 1996)
Website	fmf.md (in Romanian)

The Moldova national under-21 football team represents Moldova in international football at this age level and is controlled by the Moldovan Football Federation, the governing body for football in Moldova. The team is considered to be the feeder team for the senior Moldovan national football team. The team competes to qualify for the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, held every two years. Since the establishment of the Moldovan under-21 team, the under-21 side has never reached a final tournament of the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, but has produced many players, who have become regular internationals for the senior side. The team is coached by Ștefan Stoica.^[1]^[2]

This team is for Moldovan players aged 21 or under at the start of a two-year European Under-21 Championship campaign, so players can be, and often are, up to 23 years old. Players born on or after 1 January 2002 are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification.

Moldova U21s began their first competitive campaign in 1994, in which they tried to qualify for the 1996 finals. They eventually finished fourth in a five-team group, with two wins out of eight games. The U-21 team plays its home matches in many different venues all around the country, including Chișinău, Orhei and Tiraspol.

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

Win Draw Loss

2023

13 October 2023 (2023-10-13) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Sweden	4–0	Moldova	Falkenberg, Sweden
	Vilhelmsson 8', 32' Swedberg 19' Bergvall 89'	Report		Stadium: Falkenberg Arena Attendance: 1,036 Referee: Trustin Farrugia Cann (Malta)

17 October 2023 (2023-10-17) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Moldova	2–1	North Macedonia	Chișinău, Moldova
	Răileanu 55' Lupan 85'	Report	Stankovski 60'	Stadium: Stadionul Zimbru Attendance: 400 Referee: Robert Jenkins (Wales)

21 November 2023 (2023-11-21) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Moldova	1–2	Gibraltar	Chișinău, Moldova
	Mișcov 80'	Report	Borge 29' (pen.) Carrington 57'	Stadium: Stadionul Zimbru Attendance: 400 Referee: Ashot Ghaltakhchyan (Armenia)

2024

21 March 2024 (2024-03-21) Friendly	Hungary	2–0	Moldova	Budapest, Hungary
	Kerezsi 54' Jurek 90+2'	Report		Stadium: Hidegkuti Nándor Stadion Attendance: 800 Referee: Walter Altmann (Austria)

25 March 2024 (2024-03-25) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Moldova	0–3	Netherlands	Chișinău, Moldova
		Report	Rensch 7' Manhoef 45+1' Van Bommel 49'	Stadium: Stadionul Zimbru Attendance: 1,473 Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan (Armenia)

11 June 2024 (2024-06-11) Friendly	Slovakia	0–1	Moldova	Senec, Slovakia
		Report	Răileanu 19' (pen.)	Stadium: NTC Senec Attendance: 338 Referee: Jakob Semler (Austria)

5 September 2024 (2024-09-05) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Georgia	3–0	Moldova	Batumi, Georgia
	Mamageishvili 14' Kvernadze 49' Abuashvili 72'	Report		Stadium: Adjarabet Arena Attendance: 5,250 Referee: Radoslav Gidzhenov (Bulgaria)

10 September 2024 (2024-09-10) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	Moldova	0–0	Sweden	Nisporeni, Moldova
		Report		Stadium: Nisporeni Central Stadium Attendance: 2,070 Referee: Sayat Karabayev (Kazakhstan)

11 October 2024 (2024-10-11) 2025 UEFA Euro Under-21 qualifying	North Macedonia	v	Moldova	Skopje, North Macedonia
		Report		Stadium: Petar Miloševski Training Centre

2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification

Group C

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Netherlands (Q)	9	9	0	0	29	3	+26	27	Final tournament
2	Georgia (Y)	8	5	1	2	10	6	+4	16	Play-offs
3	Sweden (Y)	8	4	2	2	22	5	+17	14
4	North Macedonia (E)	8	3	0	5	5	12	−7	9
5	Moldova (E)	9	2	1	6	6	18	−12	7
6	Gibraltar (E)	10	1	0	9	3	31	−28	3

Updated to match(es) played on 10 September 2024. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified for the phase indicated; (Y) Cannot qualify directly, but may still qualify through play-offs

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff

Position	Staff
Head coach	Ștefan Stoica
Assistant coach	Simeon Bulgaru
Goalkeeping coach	Serghei Botnaraș

Last updated: 10 September 2024
Source: FMF

Manager history

Coach	Nat.	Period
Anatol Teslev		1995–1996
Alexandru Spiridon		2000–2001
Alexandru Guzun		2002–2003
Vladimir Vusatîi		2003–2004
Boris Tropaneț		2004–2007
Ilie Carp		2007–2008
Sergiu Chirilov		2008–2011
Alexandru Curtianu		2011–2014
Igor Ursachi		2014–2015
Dănuț Oprea		2015–2017
Serghei Cleșcenco		2019–2020
Alexandru Guzun		2020
Ștefan Stoica		2021–present

Players

Current squad

The following players were selected for the 2025 Euro Under-21 qualifying matches against Georgia and Sweden on 5 and 10 September 2024, respectively.

Caps and goals correct as of 10 September 2024, after the match against Sweden.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Silviu Șmalenea	(2002-12-09) 9 December 2002 (age 21)	12	0	Petrocub Hîncești
12	1GK	Victor Dodon	(2004-03-01) 1 March 2004 (age 20)	4	0	Petrocub Hîncești

2	2DF	Cătălin Cucoș	(2003-09-29) 29 September 2003 (age 21)	13	0	Zimbru Chișinău
3	2DF	Leo Saca	(2007-01-03) 3 January 2007 (age 17)	6	0	Barcelona U19
4	2DF	Artiom Dijinari	(2005-10-26) 26 October 2005 (age 18)	3	0	Sheriff Tiraspol U19
5	2DF	Doru Calestru	(2002-11-15) 15 November 2002 (age 21)	12	0	Akritas Chlorakas
6	2DF	Ion Borș (captain)	(2002-07-25) 25 July 2002 (age 22)	18	1	Petrocub Hîncești

7	3MF	Ilie Botnari	(2003-07-25) 25 July 2003 (age 21)	9	0	Pirin Blagoevgrad
8	3MF	Cristian Păscăluță	(2005-09-08) 8 September 2005 (age 19)	5	0	Spartanii Sportul
10	3MF	Vlad Răileanu	(2003-01-09) 9 January 2003 (age 21)	8	4	Zimbru Chișinău
11	3MF	Daniel Danu	(2002-08-26) 26 August 2002 (age 22)	11	0	Chindia Târgoviște
15	3MF	Daniele Grosu	(2005-11-20) 20 November 2005 (age 18)	0	0	Treviso
16	3MF	Tudor Butucel	(2003-08-14) 14 August 2003 (age 21)	3	0	1599 Șelimbăr
17	3MF	Ștefan Bîtca	(2005-09-25) 25 September 2005 (age 19)	1	0	Zimbru Chișinău
18	3MF	Marius Ursu	(2005-01-01) 1 January 2005 (age 19)	1	0	Unattached
20	3MF	Vicu Bulmaga	(2003-07-05) 5 July 2003 (age 21)	15	0	Isloch Minsk

9	4FW	Vlad Lupașco	(2005-02-11) 11 February 2005 (age 19)	5	0	Dacia Buiucani
13	4FW	Nicolae Rotaru	(2005-12-19) 19 December 2005 (age 18)	1	0	Spartanii Sportul
14	4FW	Victor Ciumașu	(2005-06-24) 24 June 2005 (age 19)	2	0	Unattached
19	4FW	Mihai Lupan	(2004-09-08) 8 September 2004 (age 20)	8	1	Petrocub Hîncești

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the squad within the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Nicolae Danko Ciobanu	(2005-12-06) 6 December 2005 (age 18)	0	0	Livorno	v. Slovakia, 11 June 2024
GK	Roman Dumenco	(2004-07-30) 30 July 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Sheriff-2 Tiraspol	v. Netherlands, 25 March 2024

DF	Iurie Iovu	(2002-07-06) 6 July 2002 (age 22)	17	1	Istra 1961	v. Georgia, 5 September 2024
DF	Andrei Motoc	(2002-12-13) 13 December 2002 (age 21)	13	0	Athens Kallithea	v. Slovakia, 11 June 2024
DF	Cornelius Staver	(2003-03-08) 8 March 2003 (age 21)	5	0	Pescara	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023

MF	Vasile Luchița	(2004-07-16) 16 July 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Milsami Orhei	v. Georgia, 5 September 2024
MF	Vitalie Dumbrava	(2004-04-23) 23 April 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Dacia Buiucani	v. Slovakia, 11 June 2024
MF	Daniel Lisu	(2002-04-02) 2 April 2002 (age 22)	16	0	Milsami Orhei	v. Netherlands, 25 March 2024
MF	Mihai Dolghi	(2002-07-08) 8 July 2002 (age 22)	10	0	CSM Reșița	v. Netherlands, 25 March 2024
MF	Alexandru Gău	(2004-01-27) 27 January 2004 (age 20)	2	0	Bălți	v. Netherlands, 25 March 2024
MF	Nichita Covali	(2002-09-07) 7 September 2002 (age 22)	8	0	Zimbru Chișinău	v. Netherlands, 25 March 2024
MF	Vladislav Zavalișca	(2003-01-23) 23 January 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Milsami Orhei	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023
MF	Mihai Morozan	(2004-03-22) 22 March 2004 (age 20)	1	0	Zimbru Chișinău	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023
MF	Vasile Bîtlan	(2004-01-31) 31 January 2004 (age 20)	0	0	Fratria	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023

FW	Sorin Chele	(2003-09-22) 22 September 2003 (age 21)	4	0	Milsami Orhei	v. Slovakia, 11 June 2024
FW	Vladimir Fratea	(2003-07-27) 27 July 2003 (age 21)	1	0	Spartakos Kitiou	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023
FW	Serghei Mișcov	(2003-04-25) 25 April 2003 (age 21)	6	1	Edineț	v. Gibraltar, 21 November 2023

Competition history

UEFA European Under-21 Championship

UEFA U-21 European Championship										UEFA U-21 Qualification record^[3]
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1996	Did not qualify									8	2	2	4	5	11
1998										8	1	1	6	5	17
2000										8	0	4	4	3	10
2002										10	2	3	5	6	13
2004										8	0	2	6	3	14
2006										10	3	2	5	8	12
2007										4	1	2	1	4	5
2009										8	4	0	4	6	8
2011										10	4	2	4	9	13
2013										8	2	1	5	10	24
2015										10	5	1	4	12	6
2017										10	2	1	7	8	18
2019										10	2	1	7	8	23
2021										8	2	1	5	6	22
2023										10	3	3	4	7	12
2025	Future event									9	2	1	6	6	18
Total	0/15									139	35	27	77	106	226

Head-to-head record

Only competitive matches are included and correct as of 10 September 2024.^[4]

Opponents	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD
Albania	2	1	0	1	5	5	0
Andorra	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3
Armenia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Austria	2	0	0	2	0	2	−2
Azerbaijan	2	1	1	0	1	0	+1
Belarus	6	2	1	3	8	12	−4
Belgium	4	1	0	3	3	8	−5
Bosnia and Herzegovina	2	0	1	1	1	5	−4
Bulgaria	4	0	2	2	0	4	−4
Croatia	2	0	0	2	0	7	−7
Cyprus	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Czech Republic	6	0	0	6	3	16	−13
Denmark	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
England	5	0	1	4	2	9	−7
Estonia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Faroe Islands	2	1	1	0	2	1	+1
Finland	4	1	1	2	2	3	−1
France	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Georgia	6	1	1	4	2	9	−7
Germany	8	1	1	6	4	20	−16
Gibraltar	4	3	0	1	9	3	+6
Greece	2	0	0	2	1	7	−6
Hungary	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Iceland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Israel	2	1	0	1	1	1	0
Italy	4	0	0	4	0	11	−11
Kazakhstan	2	1	1	0	1	0	+1
Kosovo	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Latvia	4	2	1	1	4	4	0
Liechtenstein	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lithuania	2	2	0	0	6	0	+6
Luxembourg	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4
Malta	2	0	1	1	2	3	−1
Montenegro	2	1	0	1	1	1	0
Netherlands	6	0	2	4	2	14	−12
North Macedonia	3	2	0	1	5	3	+2
Northern Ireland	4	0	2	2	1	5	−4
Norway	2	1	0	1	3	4	−1
Poland	4	2	0	2	8	8	0
Portugal	2	0	0	2	0	7	−7
Republic of Ireland	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Romania	2	0	0	2	0	4	−4
Russia	4	0	1	3	3	14	−11
San Marino	4	4	0	0	8	0	+8
Scotland	2	0	2	0	0	0	0
Serbia	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Slovakia	2	0	1	1	0	3	−3
Slovenia	2	0	0	2	1	4	−3
Spain	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Sweden	4	0	1	3	0	9	−9
Switzerland	3	0	1	2	2	7	−5
Turkey	4	0	2	2	3	6	−3
Ukraine	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Wales	8	3	2	3	4	6	−2
Total	139	35	27	77	106	226	−120