Portugal National Under-21 Football Team
The Portugal national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Portugal and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF).
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (September 2019) |
They are nicknamed "Esperanças." Esperança means hope, thus they are Portugal's hopes for the future.
| Nickname(s) | Esperanças (Hopes) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Federação Portuguesa de Futebol | ||
| Head coach | Rui Jorge | ||
| Captain | Henrique Araújo | ||
| Most caps | Manuel Fernandes (30) | ||
| Top scorer | Hugo Almeida (16) | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Portugal 3–1 South Africa  (Lisbon, Portugal; 16 November 1958) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Portugal 11–0 Liechtenstein  (Vizela, Portugal; 7 October 2021) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Italy 6–0 Portugal Piacenza, Italy; 2 December 1987 Records for competitive matches only. | |||
| UEFA U-21 Championship | |||
| Appearances | 10 (first in 1994) | ||
| Best result | Runners-up (1994, 2015, 2021) | ||
Following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976, the Portuguese under-21 team was formed. Until 1994, the team had a rather poor record, failing to qualify for each of the first eight UEFA under-21 Championships. Since 1994, the team has improved its record greatly, qualifying for five of the next seven tournaments, including the 2006 finals.
Having qualified for the 2006 tournament finals, UEFA announced that Portugal would host the finals in May and June. From 2007 onwards, host nations will be announced before the qualification stage and will not need to qualify.
Competitive record
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
| Year | Round | Position | Games | Won | Drawn | Lost | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | did not qualify | |||||||
| 1980 | ||||||||
| 1982 | did not enter | |||||||
| 1984 | did not qualify | |||||||
| 1986 | ||||||||
| 1988 | ||||||||
| 1990 | ||||||||
| 1992 | ||||||||
 1994 | Runners-up | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 |
 1996 | Quarter-finals | 7th | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
 1998 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2000 | ||||||||
 2002 | Group stage | 5th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 |
 2004 | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 11 |
| 2006 | Group stage | 6th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
 2007 | Group stage | 6th | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
 2009 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2011 | ||||||||
 2013 | ||||||||
 2015 | Runners-up | 2nd | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
 2017 | Group stage | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 5 | |
| 2019 | did not qualify | |||||||
  2021 | Runners-up | 2nd | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 4 |
 2023 | Quarter-finals | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | |
| Total | Runners-up | 10/24 | 39 | 19 | 8 | 12 | 56 | 39 |
- *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
- **Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
- ***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.
Player records
Top appearances
- As of 7 July 2023
| Rank | Player | Club(s) | Year(s) | U-21 Caps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manuel Fernandes | Benfica, Portsmouth, Everton, Valencia | 2004–2008 | 30 |
| 2 | João Pereira | Benfica, Gil Vicente, Braga | 2004–2008 | 28 |
| Ricardo Quaresma | Sporting CP, Barcelona, Porto | 2002–2006 | ||
| Silvestre Varela | Sporting CP, Casa Pia, Vitória Setúbal | 2004–2007 | ||
| 5 | Fernando Brassard | Marítimo, Gil Vicente, Vitória Guimarães | 1991–1994 | 27 |
| Hugo Almeida | Porto, União Leiria, Boavista, Werder Bremen | 2002–2007 | ||
| 7 | Ednilson | Roma, Benfica | 2000–2003 | 26 |
| Raul Meireles | Aves, Boavista, Porto | 2003–2006 | ||
| 9 | Cândido Costa | Porto, Vitória Setúbal, Derby County | 2000–2004 | 25 |
| Fábio Vieira | Porto, Arsenal | 2019–2023 |
Note: Club(s) represents the clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s.
Top goalscorers
- As of 26 March 2024
| Rank | Player | Club(s) | Year(s) | U-21 Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hugo Almeida | Porto, União Leiria, Boavista, Werder Bremen | 2002–2007 | 16 |
| 2 | Fábio Vieira | Porto, Arsenal | 2019–2023 | 14 |
| Gonçalo Ramos | Benfica | 2020–2022 | ||
| 4 | Fábio Silva | Porto, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Anderlecht, PSV Eindhoven, Rangers | 2021– | 12 |
| Hélder Postiga | Porto, Tottenham | 2001–2003 | ||
| Toni | Porto, Braga | 1992–1994 | ||
| 7 | Henrique Araújo | Benfica, Watford, Famalicão | 2021– | 9 |
| 8 | Diogo Gonçalves | Benfica, Nottingham Forest | 2017–2018 | 8 |
| Diogo Jota | Paços Ferreira, Atlético Madrid, Porto, Wolverhampton Wanderers | 2015–2018 | ||
| Paulo Costa | Alverca, Inter Milan, Reggina, Porto | 2000–2002 | ||
| Rui Fonte | Arsenal, Crystal Palace, Sporting CP, Vitória Setúbal, Espanyol | 2008–2012 | ||
| Simão Sabrosa | Sporting CP, Barcelona | 1998–2001 |
Note: Club(s) represents the clubs during the player's time in the Under-21s.
Players
Current squad
Players born on or after 1 January 2002 are eligible for the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship.
The following 23 players were called up for the UEFA Under-21 Euro 2025 qualifying matches against Faroe Islands and Croatia on 21 and 26 March 2024, respectively.
Caps and goals correct as of: 26 March 2024, after the match against 
Croatia
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Samuel Soares | 15 June 2002 | 11 | 0 | Benfica |
| 12 | GK | João Carvalho | 9 April 2004 | 1 | 0 | Braga |
| 22 | GK | Diogo Pinto | 18 June 2004 | 0 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 2 | DF | Tomás Esteves | 3 April 2002 | 5 | 0 | Pisa |
| 3 | DF | Renato Veiga | 29 July 2003 | 7 | 1 | Basel |
| 4 | DF | Tomás Araújo | 16 May 2002 | 10 | 0 | Benfica |
| 5 | DF | Rafael Rodrigues | 27 January 2002 | 8 | 0 | Benfica |
| 13 | DF | Leonardo Buta | 5 June 2002 | 3 | 0 | Gil Vicente |
| 14 | DF | Eduardo Quaresma | 2 March 2002 | 10 | 0 | Sporting CP |
| 16 | DF | Tiago Santos | 23 July 2002 | 4 | 0 | Lille |
| 6 | MF | Mateus Fernandes | 10 July 2004 | 7 | 2 | Estoril |
| 7 | MF | Vasco Sousa | 3 April 2003 | 11 | 0 | Porto |
| 8 | MF | Paulo Bernardo (3rd captain) | 24 January 2002 | 23 | 7 |  Celtic |
| 15 | MF | Bernardo Folha | 23 March 2002 | 2 | 0 | Porto |
| 18 | MF | João Marques | 13 February 2002 | 5 | 1 | Estoril |
| 20 | MF | Gustavo Sá | 11 November 2004 | 1 | 0 | Famalicão |
| 21 | MF | Martim Neto | 14 January 2003 | 2 | 0 | Gil Vicente |
| 9 | FW | Fábio Silva | 19 July 2002 | 22 | 12 | Rangers |
| 10 | FW | Pedro Santos | 10 February 2003 | 5 | 3 | Benfica |
| 11 | FW | Tiago Tomás | 16 June 2002 | 14 | 2 | VfL Wolfsburg |
| 17 | FW | Carlos Forbs | 19 March 2004 | 4 | 1 | Ajax |
| 19 | FW | Youssef Chermiti | 24 May 2004 | 2 | 1 |  Everton |
| 23 | FW | Rodrigo Gomes | 7 July 2003 | 6 | 3 | Estoril |
Recent call-ups
The following players have previously been called up to the under-21 squad and remain eligible for selection.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Francisco Lemos | 13 September 2002 | 0 | 0 | Atlético CP | v.  Greece, 20 November 2023 |
| GK | Gonçalo Ribeiro | 15 January 2006 | 0 | 0 | Porto | v.  Belarus, 12 September 2023 |
| DF | Gabriel Brás | 25 March 2004 | 0 | 0 | Porto | v. Greece, 20 November 2023 |
| DF | Rafael Fernandes | 28 June 2002 | 0 | 0 | Lille | v. Greece, 20 November 2023 INJ |
| DF | André Amaro | 13 August 2002 | 4 | 0 |  Al-Rayyan | v.  Andorra, 8 September 2023 INJ |
| MF | Dário Essugo | 14 March 2005 | 3 | 0 | Chaves | v. Greece, 17 October 2023 |
| MF | Hugo Félix | 3 March 2004 | 1 | 0 | Benfica | v. Greece, 17 October 2023 |
| MF | João Neves | 27 September 2004 | 6 | 1 | Benfica | v. Belarus, 12 September 2023 |
| FW | Henrique Araújo (Captain) | 19 January 2002 | 22 | 9 | Famalicão | v. Greece, 20 November 2023 |
| FW | Francisco Conceição (Vice-captain) | 14 December 2002 | 23 | 6 | Porto | v. Greece, 20 November 2023 |
| FW | Tiago Morais | 3 September 2003 | 3 | 0 | Boavista | v. Greece, 20 November 2023 |
| FW | Diego Moreira | 6 August 2004 | 4 | 0 | Chelsea | v. Belarus, 12 September 2023 |
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury. | ||||||
Head coaches
- As of 14 November 2017
| Manager | Period | Record | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | ||
| José Alberto Costa | –1993 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 22 | 10 | +12 | 66.67 |
| Nelo Vingada | 1994–1996 | 22 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 33 | 14 | +19 | 63.64 |
| Jesualdo Ferreira | 1996–2000 | 33 | 19 | 5 | 9 | 64 | 36 | +28 | 57.58 |
| Agostinho Oliveira | 2000–2002 | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 39 | 21 | +18 | 50.00 |
| Rui Caçador | 2002 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 66.67 |
| José Romão | 2002–2004 | 18 | 12 | 2 | 4 | 44 | 27 | +17 | 66.67 |
| Rui Caçador | 2004 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0.00 |
| Agostinho Oliveira | 2004–2006 | 18 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 36 | 9 | +27 | 77.78 |
| José Couceiro | 2006–2007 | 13 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 22 | 9 | +13 | 53.85 |
| Rui Caçador | 2007–2009 | 27 | 15 | 4 | 8 | 54 | 22 | +32 | 55.56 |
| Oceano Cruz | 2009–2010 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 12 | +5 | 50.00 |
| Rui Jorge | 2010–present | 69 | 47 | 14 | 8 | 154 | 54 | +100 | 68.12 |
Source:
Honours
- UEFA Under-21 European Championship runners-up: 1994, 2015, 2021
See also
References
External links
- Official site (in Portuguese)
- UEFA Under-21 website Contains full results archive
- The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation Contains full record of U-21/U-23 Championships.
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