Albania national under-21 football team
The Albania national under-21 football team is the national under-21 football team of Albania and is controlled by the Football Association of Albania. The team competes in the European Under-21 Football Championship, which is held every two years.
Following the realignment of UEFA's youth competitions in 1976, the Albanian under-21 team was formed.
History
Balkan Youth Championship
Albania Under-21 participated in the Balkan Youth Championship as a succeder of Under-23 team, in the 1976–78 and 1981 competitions, winning both with finals against Romania and Bulgaria. Notably in 1978, the second leg of the final match against Romania was characterized by a large Albania's win 7–1, which is the largest win ever recorded by Albania U-21.1984 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship
Albania Under-21s have managed to qualify only once in their history, and that came in the year of 1984 when they managed to qualify for the 1984 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, although they were competing for the first time in such tournament. They were drawn in a very tough group which included the West Germany, Turkey and Austria. The historic event was the first time any Albanian squad qualified for a Europe or World Championship, and is only the second time any Albanian squad qualified for the major championships. To this day the team that qualified for 1984 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship are still regarded as the most successful team in Albanian football history. Albania U21 managed to qualify without losing a single game and managing two very good draws against one of the biggest and best footballing nations, West Germany.Albania played the quarter finals against Italy, against which it lost twice 0–1, and 0–1, in Albania and Italy respectively. Italy advanced to the semifinals of Euro '84 and lost them against England, eventual champions of the tournament.
1986–1994
In the 1986 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania came last in group after Poland and Greece, and could not qualify. In the 1988 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania came again last in group after Spain, Romania and Austria. In the 1990 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania came last in group after Sweden, England and Poland. In the 1992 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship managed to precede Iceland as last in the group, but was preceded by Czechoslovakia, France and Spain. In the qualifiers of the 1994 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania preceded bottom team Republic of Ireland, but was preceded by Spain, Germany and Denmark.1996–2002
In the 1996 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship qualification Albania did not participate. In the qualifiers of the 1998 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania left behind Armenia, but had to trail in the final rankings Germany, Ukraine, and Portugal. In the qualifiers of the 2000 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania trailed Greece, Norway, Georgia, Latvia, and Slovenia and closed at the bottom of the group. In the qualifiers of the 2002 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania came again last behind England, Greece, Germany, and Finland.2004–2007
In the qualifiers of the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania had the best result since Euro '84, when it had won the group, as it left two teams behind, but was preceded by Switzerland and Russia, and thus failed to qualify to the main tournament. In the qualifiers of the 2006 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania left behind itself Kazakhstan, but was preceded by Denmark, Ukraine, Greece, Turkey, and Georgia. In the qualifiers of the 2007 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, in a 3 teams group, Albania came last behind Spain and Slovakia and failed to qualify.2009–2013
In the qualifiers of the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania was fourth out of 6 teams in the final ranking, leaving behind the Faroe Islands and Azerbaijan, but trailing behind Italy, Croatia and Greece. In the qualifiers of the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania left again behind Azerbaijan but trailed Scotland, Belarus, and Austria in the final rankings. In the qualifiers of the 2013 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Albania came last trailing behind Russia, Portugal, Poland, and Moldova. However, as a consolation for the first time an Albanian footballer, Armando Sadiku was the top goalscorer of the group. Albania drew in Russia against the famous hosts during that tournament, a noticeable fact.2015 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
Group stage
2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
Group 4
2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification
Group 2
Fixtures and results
Players
Current squad
COACH: Alban BushiThe following players were called up for a 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification match against England on 5 November 2019.
Caps and goals as of 11 November 2019.
Recent call-ups
Following players have been called up in the previous 12 months and are still eligible to represent Under 21 team.;Notes
- INJ = Withdrew due to the injury.
- KOS = Withdrew to play for Kosovo U21.
Coaching staff
| Position | Name |
| Head Coach |  Alban Bushi |
| Assistant Coach | Arjan Bellaj |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Alfred Osmani |
| Athletic Coach | Iris Selimi |
| Team Doctor | Erald Derveni |
| Physiotherapists | Gledi Rexha |
| Physiotherapists | Edison Koçi |
| Base materials | Roland Rarani |
Competitive record
UEFA European Under-23 Championship
The event was classified as a U-23 tournament where at time were played three competitions, 1972, 1974 & 1976.UEFA U-21 Championship Record
*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.*The 2019 Competition in Italic is currently playing
Balkan Youth Championship Record
Honours
;Balkan Youth Championship- Winners : 1978, 1981