Wales national under-21 football team
| Nickname(s) | Young Dragons | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Football Association of Wales | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach | Paul Bodin | ||
| Most caps | Shaun MacDonald (25) | ||
| Top scorer | Ched Evans (13) | ||
| FIFA code | WAL | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 England 0–0 Wales  (Molineux Stadium, Wolverhampton; 15 December 1976) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Wales 6–2 Cyprus .svg.png.webp){kind=small} (Ninian Park, Cardiff; 22 October 1993) Wales 5–1 Luxembourg  (Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli; 31 March 2009) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Italy 8–1 Wales (Stadio Pietro Fortunati, Pavia; 5 September 2003) | |||
| UEFA U-21 Championship | |||
| Appearances | None (first in n/a) | ||
| Best result | 1st of 5 in qual. group, 2009. Lost in play off. | ||
The Wales national under-21 football team, also known as the Wales U21s, is the national under-21 football team of Wales and is controlled by the Football Association of Wales. The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, held every two years. To date Wales haven't yet qualified for the finals tournament but in recent years have shown good form, losing in a playoff (5–4) to England in the 2009 qualifying campaign and finishing second in their group two years later, after leading their group until their last game Wales only needed a draw to qualify for the play-offs but lost 1–0 away to Italy.
The under-21 team came into existence following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976. A goalless draw in a friendly against England at Wolverhampton Wanderers' Molineux Stadium was Wales U21s' first result.
The national under-21 team is the highest level of youth football in Wales, and is open to any players who were born in Wales or whose parents or grandparents were born in Wales. This team is for Welsh players aged 21 or under at the start of a two-year European Under-21 Football Championship campaign, so players can be, and often are, up to 23 years old. Also in existence are teams for Under-20s (for non-UEFA tournaments), Under-19s and Under 17s. As long as they are eligible, players can play at any level, making it possible to play for the U21s, senior side and again for the U21s.
Recent history
Historically the team was viewed by the Welsh national management as a hole to be filled rather than a team to be used to nurture young international players. Many of the great Welsh players spent little time in the under-21 team. Ryan Giggs only made one appearance for the under-21 team before making his senior debut against Germany the next day.
From 2004 onward however, the former Wales national football team manager John Toshack and former Wales Under 21 manager Brian Flynn used the under-21 team to create a pool of youthful Welsh talent. The team now has a much better tracking system of young Welsh players, and has seen a marked improvement in players and team results. Recent results have seen them achieve big wins against Estonia (5–1), Northern Ireland (4–0) and France (4–2).
Players who have made the step from the U21s to attain over 50 caps for the senior squad are Gary Speed, Simon Davies, Carl Robinson, Craig Bellamy, Robert Earnshaw, James Collins, John Hartson, Andy King, Joe Ledley, Sam Vokes, Wayne Hennessey, Chris Gunter, Gareth Bale, Aaron Ramsey and Joe Allen.
On 15 May 2008, they played a friendly against England U21s to mark the 100th match in the history of the side, losing 2–0.
A 3–0 victory against Romania in September 2008 meant that the Under-21 side finished top of their qualifying group for the first time in their history. It meant Wales would go into a two-legged play-off against England in October 2008 for a place in the finals of the 2009 UEFA Under-21 Championship to be played in Sweden. Wales lost the playoff 5–4 over the course of two legs. Losing 3–2 at home in the first leg and drawing 2–2 away in the second.
Wales started their qualifying campaign for the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship with a 1–0 away win against Andorra, a 3–1 away loss against Montenegro, a 1–0 home win against Montenegro, a 1–0 home defeat against Czech Republic and a 0–0 away draw against Armenia.
In May 2012 Brian Flynn vacated his position as Wales under-21 manager at the end of his contract and in July 2012 Geraint Williams was appointed team manager [1] Williams resigned as team manager on 5 December 2016. On 15 March 2017 it was announced that former Port Vale and Northampton Town manager Rob Page had left his position on the coaching staff at Nottingham Forest to become Wales under-21 manager. In August 2019 Page was appointed assistant coach to the senior Wales squad under Ryan Giggs with Paul Bodin stepping up from the Under 19's to manage the Under 21 team.[2]
Players
Latest squad
Players born on or after 1 January 2000 are eligible for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
Wales squad for the EURO 2023 qualifying matches against Switzerland and Bulgaria on 25 and 29 March 2022.[3]
Caps and goals as of 17 November 2020. Players in bold have attained full international caps. Clubs as of the date of the announcement.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | George Ratcliffe | 12 September 2000 | 6 | 0 | Cardiff City | ||||
| GK | Nathan Shepperd | 10 September 2000 | 1 | 0 |  Dundalk | ||||
| GK | Lewis Webb | 12 September 2001 | 1 | 0 | Shelbourne on loan from Swansea City | ||||
| DF | Zac Ashworth | 6 September 2002 | 0 | 0 | West Bromwich Albion | ||||
| DF | Ryan Astley | 4 October 2001 | 0 | 0 | Everton | ||||
| DF | Oliver Denham | 4 May 2002 | 0 | 0 | Cardiff City | ||||
| DF | Morgan Boyes | 22 April 2001 | 6 | 0 |  Livingston | ||||
| DF | Eddy Jones | 25 October 2001 | 1 | 0 | Altrincham on loan from Stoke City | ||||
| DF | Fin Stevens | 10 April 2003 | 4 | 0 | Brentford | ||||
| DF | Ed Turns | 18 October 2002 | 0 | 0 | Brighton & Hove Albion | ||||
| MF | Joe Adams | 13 February 2001 | 4 | 1 | Dundalk | ||||
| MF | Oli Hammond | 13 November 2002 | 0 | 0 | Nottingham Forest | ||||
| MF | Rhys Hughes | 21 September 2001 | 0 | 0 | Everton | ||||
| MF | Eli King | 23 December 2002 | 0 | 0 | Cardiff City | ||||
| MF | Sam Pearson | 26 October 2001 | 2 | 0 | Inverness Caledonian Thistle on loan from Bristol City | ||||
| MF | Terry Taylor | 21 June 2001 | 4 | 1 | Burton Albion | ||||
| MF | Daniel Williams | 19 April 2001 | 2 | 0 | Dundalk on loan from Swansea City | ||||
| FW | Isaak Davies | 25 September 2001 | 1 | 0 | Cardiff City | ||||
| FW | Luke Jephcott | 26 January 2000 | 3 | 0 | Plymouth Argyle | ||||
| FW | Chris Popov | 26 October 2004 | 0 | 0 | Leicester City | ||||
| FW | Elliot Thorpe | 9 November 2000 | 0 | 0 | Luton Town | ||||
| FW | Jack Vale | 3 March 2001 | 2 | 3 | Blackburn Rovers | ||||
Recent call-ups
The following players have also been called up to the Wales under-21 squad and remain eligible. Players in bold have caps for the senior team.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Daniel Barden | 2 January 2001 | 2 | 0 | Livingston on loan from Norwich City |
v.  Moldova, 8 October 2021WD |
| GK | Adam Przybek | 2 April 2000 | 3 | 0 | Wycombe Wanderers |
v.  Germany, 17 November 2020 |
| DF | Owen Beck | 9 August 2002 | 0 | 0 | Liverpool |
v.  Switzerland, 25 March 2022WD |
| DF | Brandon Cooper | 14 January 2000 | 10 | 0 | Swindon Town on loan from Swansea City |
v. Switzerland, 16 November 2021 |
| DF | Ben Margetson | 1 September 2001 | 0 | 0 | Swansea City |
v. Switzerland, 16 November 2021 |
| DF | Billy Sass-Davies | 17 February 2000 | 2 | 1 | Crewe Alexandra |
v. Switzerland, 16 November 2021 |
| DF | Niall Huggins | 18 December 2000 | 2 | 0 | Sunderland |
v. Moldova, 8 October 2021WD |
| DF | Cameron Evans | 23 February 2001 | 0 | 0 | Swansea City |
v. Moldova, 4 June 2021 |
| MF | Sam Bowen | 14 January 2001 | 3 | 0 | Cardiff City |
v. Switzerland, 25 March 2022WD |
| MF | Kieron Evans | 19 December 2001 | 0 | 0 | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Linfield on loan from Cardiff City |
v.  Gibraltar, 12 November 2021INJ |
| MF | Siôn Spence | 2 November 2000 | 3 | 0 | Bristol Rovers on loan from Crystal Palace |
v. Gibraltar, 12 November 2021INJ |
| MF | Keenan Patten | 7 April 2001 | 0 | 0 | Hereford on loan from Cardiff City |
v. Moldova, 8 October 2021WD |
| MF | Ryan Stirk | 25 September 2000 | 6 | 0 | Mansfield Town on loan from Birmingham City |
v.  Bulgaria, 7 September 2021INJ |
| MF | Rubin Colwill | 27 April 2002 | 1 | 0 | Cardiff City |
v. Republic of Ireland, 25 March 2021 |
| MF | Dylan Levitt | 17 November 2000 | 1 | 0 | Dundee United on loan from Manchester United |
v. Moldova, 11 October 2019 |
| MF | Tom Pugh | 27 September 2000 | 2 | 1 | Scunthorpe United |
v.  Albania, 11 June 2019 |
| FW | Christian Norton | 21 May 2001 | 0 | 0 | Stoke City |
v. Bulgaria, 7 September 2021INJ |
| FW | Lewis Collins | 9 May 2001 | 0 | 0 | Newport County |
v. Moldova, 4 June 2021 |
| FW | Brennan Johnson | 23 May 2001 | 4 | 2 | Nottingham Forest |
v.  Bosnia and Herzegovina, 4 September 2020 |
- Key
- SUS = Suspended for next match.
- SEN = Called up to senior squad.
- INJ = Withdrew from the squad due to injury.
- WD = Withdrew from the squad for non injury issue.
See also
External links
- UEFA Under-21 website Contains full results archive.
- The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U21/U23 Championships.
- FAW official site Contains fixtures/results and news for every Welsh national football team.