Israel national under-21 football team

Israel Under-21
Nickname(s)	הנבחרת הצעירה (The Young Chosen Team)
Association	Israel Football Association
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Guy Luzon[1]
Captain	Gil Cohen[2][3]
Most caps	Arik Benado (39)[4]
Top scorer	Alon Mizrahi (15)[5]
FIFA code	ISR
First colours	Second colours
First international
	Greece 2–2 Israel ; (Greece; 1990)
Biggest win
	Israel 6–0 Austria ; (Israel)
Biggest defeat
	Israel 0–4 Spain ; (Israel) ; Israel 0–4 Portugal ; (16 June 2007) ; Israel 0–4 Italy ; (Tel Aviv, Israel; 8 June 2013) ; Rep. Ireland 4–0 Israel ; (Dublin, Ireland; 9 October 2017)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	3 (first in 2007)
Best result	Group Stage (2007, 2013)

The Israel national under-21 football team (Hebrew: הנבחרת הצעירה של ישראל בכדורגל) is the national under-21 football team of Israel and is controlled by the Israel Football Association (IFA). It is considered to be the feeder team for the senior Israel national football team.

It has recently qualified for the European Championships to be held in the Netherlands after beating the French under-21 team 2–1 on aggregate.

This team consists of Israeli players aged 21 or under at the start of each two-year UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship campaign, so players can be, and often are, up to 23 years old. Team members may also simultaneously qualify to various teams for Under-20s (for non-UEFA tournaments), Under-19s and Under 17s, or even the senior national team, so long as the meet the respective age restriction. It is also possible to play for one country at youth level and another at senior level (provided the player is eligible).

The U-21 team has been constructed, following the Israel's acceptance as a full member of UEFA. A draw in a qualifier against Greece in Greece was Israel U-21s' first result in 1990.

Israel U-21s do not have a permanent home. They play in stadia dotted all around Israel in an attempt to encourage fans in all areas of the country to get behind Israel. Because of the lesser appeal compared to the senior national team, smaller grounds are usually used (such as HaMoshava Stadium in Petah Tikva, Israel).

Competition history

There is no Under-21 World Cup, although there is an Under-20 World Cup. European U-21 teams compete for the European Championship, with the finals every even-numbered year. It will be held in odd-numbered years from 2007. Israel has never fared well in European Under-21 Football Championships.

The current campaign started shortly after the 2006 finals – the qualification stage of the 2007 competition. UEFA have decided to shift the next tournament forward to avoid a clash with senior tournaments taking place in even-numbered years. The competition has therefore been reduced as qualifying must be completed in a year's less time. In their three-team qualification group, Israel finished ahead of Turkey and Wales. In the two-legged play-off against France for a place in the final stage, the team achieved a surprising 1–1 draw in France and won the home match 1–0, with Amir Taga scoring in stoppage time.

Note: The year of the tournament represents the year in which it ends.

Competitive Record

UEFA European Under-21 Championship Record

The Israel national U-21 football team at the 2013 UEFA Euros Under-21 that was held in Israel

Year	Round	GP	W	D*	L	GS	GA
1992	Qualifying Stage	6	3	2	0	17	3
1994	Qualifying Stage	10	3	1	6	17	16
1996	Qualifying Stage	10	3	3	4	12	11
1998	Qualifying Stage	8	5	2	1	17	9
2000	Qualifying Stage	8	2	2	4	6	13
2002	Qualifying Stage	8	4	0	4	16	13
2004	Qualifying Stage	8	3	1	4	6	11
2006	Qualifying Stage	8	4	3	1	11	7
2007	Group Stage	7	2	2	3	5	9
2009	Qualification Playoffs	8	5	2	1	16	5
2011	Qualifying Stage	8	5	1	2	18	8
2013	Group Stage	3	1	1	1	3	6
2015	Qualifying Stage	8	5	0	3	22	15
2017	Qualifying Stage	10	6	3	1	21	4
2019	Qualifying Stage	10	4	2	4	17	18
2021	Qualifying Stage	10	3	4	3	12	14
2023	Qualified (play-offs)
Total	3/17	110	47	25	41	177	139

All-time players stats

Top Appearances

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Year(s)	U-21 Caps
1	Arik Benado	Maccabi Haifa, Beitar Jerusalem	1992–1995	39
2	Nir Sivilia	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Beitar Jerusalem	1993–1997	34
2	Shay Holtzman	Maccabi Netanya, Maccabi Haifa, Tzafririm Holon	1992–1995	34
3	Dekel Keinan	Maccabi Haifa, Bnei Sakhnin, Maccabi Netanya	2003–2007	30
4	Alon Halfon	Maccabi Netanya, Hapoel Haifa	1993–1995	29
4	Tom Almadon	Maccabi Haifa	2004–2007	29
5	Ofer Talker	Maccabi Ironi Ashdod, Hapoel Haifa	1992–1995	28
6	Ofir Kopel	Maccabi Haifa	1994–1997	27
7	Lior Jan	Maccabi Tel Aviv	2006–2008	26
8	Moshe Ohayon	Ashdod	2001–2005	24

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s.

Top Goalscorers

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Year(s)	U-21 Goals
1	Alon Mizrahi	Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv	1992–1993	15
2	Shay Holtzman	Maccabi Netanya, Maccabi Haifa, Tzafririm Holon	1992–1995	14
3	Mu'nas Dabbur	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Grasshopper	2011–2014	13
4	Nir Sivilia	Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv, Beitar Jerusalem	1993–1997	12
5	Ben Sahar	Chelsea, Espanyol	2007–2010	8
5	Maor Buzaglo	Maccabi Haifa, Hapoel Petah Tikva, Bnei Sakhnin, Maccabi Tel Aviv	2007–2010	8
6	Eli Abarbanel	Hapoel Petah Tikva	1994–1999	7
6	Amir Turgeman	Ironi Ashdod	1992–1993	7

Note: Club(s) represents the permanent clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s.

UEFA European Under-21 Championship

2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Germany	10	9	0	1	32	9	+23	27	Final tournament	—	3–2	0–4	4–0	4–0	4–0
2	Israel	10	6	1	3	19	10	+9	19	Play-offs	0–1	—	2–2	3–0	2–1	2–0
3	Poland	10	5	3	2	26	9	+17	18		1–2	1–2	—	1–1	5–0	3–0
4	Hungary	10	4	2	4	16	17	−1	14		1–5	1–2	2–2	—	1–0	4–0
5	Latvia	10	2	1	7	5	19	−14	7		1–3	1–0	0–2	0–2	—	2–0
6	San Marino	10	0	1	9	0	34	−34	1		0–6	0–4	0–5	0–4	0–0	—

Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship play-offs

The four play-off winners qualify for the final tournament.

All times are CEST (UTC+2), as listed by UEFA (local times, if different, are in parentheses).

Team 1	Agg.	Team 2	1st leg	2nd leg
Croatia	3–3 (5–4 p)	Denmark	2–1	1–2 (a.e.t.)
Slovakia	3–5	Ukraine	3–2	0–3
Republic of Ireland	1–1 (1–3 p)	Israel	1–1	0–0 (a.e.t.)
Iceland	1–2	Czech Republic	1–2	0–0

2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament) group stage

Pos	Team	Qualification	CZE	ENG	GER	ISR
1	Czech Republic	Advance to knockout stage	—
2	England	Advance to knockout stage		—
3	Germany				—
4	Israel					—

First match(es) will be played on 22 June 2023. Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

Results and fixtures

Win Draw Loss

2021

2 September 2021 (2021-09-02) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Hungary	1–2	Israel	Ménfői úti Stadion, Győr, Hungary
17:30	Tóth-Gábor 68'		Nachmani 32' Gandelman 86'	Attendance: 210 Referee: Vladimir Moskalyov (Russia)

7 September 2021 (2021-09-07) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Poland	1–2	Israel	Arena Lublin, Lublin, Poland
20:00	Smoliński 7'	Report	Walukiewicz 32' (o.g.) Karzev 49'	Attendance: 4,386 Referee: Morten Krogh (Denmark)

7 October 2021 (2021-10-07) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Germany	3–2	Israel	Benteler-Arena, Paderborn, Germany
18:15	Tillman 34' Schade 88' Burkardt 90'	Report	Leidner 28' Gandelman 51'	Attendance: 3,262 Referee: Radu Petrescu (Romania)

12 October 2021 (2021-10-12) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Israel	2–1	Latvia	HaMoshava Stadium, Petah Tikva, Israel
18:30 (19:30 UTC+3)	Buganim 8' Shahar 89'	Report	Veips 16'	Attendance: 650 Referee: Jasmin Sabotic (Luxembourg)

11 November 2021 (2021-11-11) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	San Marino	0–4	Israel	San Marino Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino
19:00		Report	Bilu 12' Davida 13' Buganim 28' Shahar 31'	Attendance: 110 Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan (Armenia)

16 November 2021 (2021-11-16) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Israel	3–0	Hungary	HaMoshava Stadium, Petah Tikva, Israel
18:40 (19:40 UTC+2)	Bar 5', 51' Zasno 90+2'	Report		Attendance: 930 Referee: Yaroslav Kozyk (Ukraine)

2022

24 March 2022 (2022-03-24) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Israel	2–2	Poland	HaMoshava Stadium, Petah Tikva, Israel
17:30 UTC+1 (18:30 UTC+2)	Abada 50' Gandelman 73'	Report	Benedyczak 10' Kamiński 78'	Attendance: 3,870[6] Referee: Bram Van Driessche (Belgium)

29 March 2022 (2022-03-29) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Israel	0–1	Germany	HaMoshava Stadium, Petah Tikva, Israel
16:45 UTC+2 (17:45 UTC+3)		Report	Katterbach 60'	Attendance: 5,000 Referee: Jérémie Pignard (France)

2 June 2022 (2022-06-02) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Latvia	1–0	Israel	Skonto Stadium, Riga, Latvia
17:30	Ozoliņš 46'	Report		Attendance: 300 Referee: Bulat Sariyev (Kazakhstan)

7 June 2022 (2022-06-07) 2023 UEFA Euro U-21 qualification	Israel	2–0	San Marino	HaMoshava Stadium, Petah Tikva, Israel
18:00 (19:00 UTC+3)	Berkovich 2' Podgoreanu 14'	Report		Attendance: 1021 Referee: Jamie Robinson (Northern Ireland)

23 September 2022 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification Play-off 1st leg	Republic of Ireland	1–1	Israel	Tallaght Stadium, Dublin, Ireland
19:00 IST (21:00 IST)	Ferguson 65'	Report	Gorno 45'	Attendance: 6,786 Referee: Dario Bel (Croatia)

27 September 2022 UEFA European Under-21 Championship Qualification Play-off 2nd leg	Israel	0–0 (a.e.t.) (3–1 p)	Republic of Ireland	Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel
18:15 IST (20:15 IST)		Report		Attendance: 22,752 Referee: Nathan Verboomen (Belgium)
	Penalties
	Karzev Peretz Cohen Davida		Coventry Wright Ferguson Devoy

1–1 on aggregate. Israel won 3–1 on penalties and qualified for the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.

2023

22 June 2023 (2023-06-22) UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament) group stage	Germany	–	Israel	Kutaisi, Georgia
20:00		Report		Stadium: Ramaz Shengelia Stadium

25 June 2023 (2023-06-25) UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament) group stage	England	–	Israel	Kutaisi, Georgia
20:00		Report		Stadium: Ramaz Shengelia Stadium

28 June 2023 (2023-06-28) UEFA European Under-21 Championship (Final tournament) group stage	Israel	–	Czech Republic	Kutaisi, Georgia
20:00		Report		Stadium: Ramaz Shengelia Stadium

Coaching staff

As of 15 September 2022[1]

Position	Name
Head coach	Guy Luzon
Assistant coach	Haim Cohen
Fitness Coach	Yossi Kakun
Goalkeeper Coach	Victor Buchnik
Analyst	Liron Glat

Players

Current squad

The following players were called-up for the friendly matches.[7]
Match dates: 23 and 28 March 2023
Opposition: Croatia and Switzerland
Caps and goals correct as of: 19 November 2022, after the match against Ukraine

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1GK	Omer Niron	(2001-04-17) 17 April 2001	5	0	Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv
1GK	Sharif Kayouf	(2001-06-25) 25 June 2001	1	0	Maccabi Haifa
1GK	Tomer Tzarfati	(2003-10-16) 16 October 2003	0	0	Maccabi Netanya

2DF	Gil Cohen	(2000-11-08) 8 November 2000	19	0	Ashdod
2DF	Or Blorian	(2000-03-07) 7 March 2000	15	0	Hapoel Be'er Sheva
2DF	Karem Jaber	(2000-10-31) 31 October 2000	10	0	Maccabi Netanya
2DF	Noam Malmud	(2002-08-02) 2 August 2002	4	0	Hapoel Jerusalem
2DF	Roy Herman	(2000-06-21) 21 June 2000	2	0	Botev Plovdiv
2DF	Roey Elimelech	(2002-07-03) 3 July 2002	0	0	Hapoel Afula
2DF	Roy Revivo	(2003-05-22) 22 May 2003	0	0	Hapoel Jerusalem

3MF	Ido Shahar	(2001-08-20) 20 August 2001	17	3	Apollon Limassol
3MF	Arad Bar	(2000-01-29) 29 January 2000	7	3	Maccabi Petah Tikva
3MF	Oz Bilu	(2001-01-16) 16 January 2001	5	1	Maccabi Netanya
3MF	Eitan Azulay	(2002-05-26) 26 May 2002	4	0	Maccabi Netanya
3MF	Yoav Hofmayster	(2000-12-25) 25 December 2000	4	0	Ironi Kiryat Shmona
3MF	El Yam Kancepolsky	(2003-12-22) 22 December 2003	1	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv

4FW	Osher Davida	(2001-02-18) 18 February 2001	13	1	Standard Liège
4FW	Itay Buganim	(2001-05-29) 29 May 2001	9	2	Hapoel Haifa
4FW	Hisham Layous	(2000-11-13) 13 November 2000	3	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv
4FW	Dor Turgeman	(2003-10-24) 24 October 2003	0	0	Maccabi Tel Aviv

Recent call-ups

The following players have previously been called up to the Israel under-21 squad in the last 12 months and remain eligible for selection.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Lior Gliklich	(2003-01-02) 2 January 2003	0	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022

DF	Stav Lemkin	(2003-04-02) 2 April 2003	2	0	Hapoel Tel Aviv	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
DF	Zohar Zasno	(2001-11-21) 21 November 2001	6	1	F.C. Ashdod	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
DF	Li-On Mizrahi	(2002-10-24) 24 October 2002	0	0	Beitar Jerusalem	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022

MF	Omri Gandelman	(2000-05-16) 16 May 2000	7	3	Maccabi Netanya	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Niv Gotlieb	(2002-10-29) 29 October 2002	0	0	Hapoel Hadera	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Loai Halaf	(2000-08-08) 8 August 2000	0	0	Maccabi Bnei Reineh	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Ilay Madmon	(2003-02-23) 23 February 2003	0	0	Beitar Jerusalem	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Itamar Noy	(2001-04-28) 28 April 2001	0	0	First Vienna	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
MF	Oscar Gloukh	(2004-04-01) 1 April 2004	2	0	Red Bull Salzburg	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
MF	Aviel Zargari	(2002-12-11) 11 December 2002	2	0	Maccabi Haifa	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
MF	Adir Levi	(2002-01-06) 6 January 2002	0	0	Ashdod	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
MF	Tai Abed	(2004-08-03) 3 August 2004	0	0	PSV Eindhoven	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
MF	Shimon Daniel	(2002-03-13) 13 March 2002	0	0	Maccabi Petah Tikva	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022

FW	Shavit Mazal	(2001-11-29) 29 November 2001	0	0	F.C. Ashdod	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
FW	Timothy Muzie	(2001-08-24) 24 August 2001	0	0	Hapoel Ironi Kiryat Shmona	v. Ukraine, 19 November 2022
FW	Stav Nachmani	(2002-10-06) 6 October 2002	5	1	Hapoel Hadera	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
FW	Suf Podgoreanu	(2002-01-20) 20 January 2002	4	0	Maccabi Haifa	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022
FW	Idan Gorno	(2004-08-09) 9 August 2004	0	0	Maccabi Petah Tikva	v. San Marino, 7 June 2022

References

"Israel Football Association - U21 National Team - Team Staff".
"Latvia-Israel | Under-21 2023".
"Israel-San Marino | Under-21 2023".
http://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamAppearance.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1
http://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamCaptivate.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1
"לדרמן: "רוצה לשחק בפולין, מאמינים בי" – ספורט 5".
"נבחרת עד גיל 21" (in Hebrew). ההתאחדות לכדורגל בישראל. Retrieved 23 March 2023.

External links

Uefa Under-21 website Contains full results archive
The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U-21 Championship hosts and additional statistics, such as the Group Winners table for the 1998 qualifiers.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.

[september2022-Coaching-staff-israelU21-1] "Israel Football Association - U21 National Team - Team Staff".

[latviaU21-isarelU21-2june2022-2] "Latvia-Israel | Under-21 2023".

[israelU21-sanmarinoU21-7june2022-3] "Israel-San Marino | Under-21 2023".

[4] ttp://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamAppearance.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1

[5] ttp://football.org.il/NationalTeam/Pages/NationalTeamCaptivate.aspx?NATIONAL_TEAM_ID=943&PAGE_NUM=1

[6] "לדרמן: "רוצה לשחק בפולין, מאמינים בי" – ספורט 5".

[7] "נבחרת עד גיל 21" (in Hebrew). ההתאחדות לכדורגל בישראל. Retrieved 23 March 2023.