Bruno Fornaroli Mezza (; born 7 September 1987) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for Melbourne Victory. Born in Uruguay, he plays for the Australian national team.
Club career
Nacional
Fornaroli was born in Salto, a remote town in Uruguay bordering Argentina. He started playing football at the age of 3, and by the age of 12, he travelled to Montevideo by bus after being offered a trial by Nacional, hoping to become a professional footballer. On the same bus, he befriended Luis Suárez, who was visiting his parents in Salto and would later become his teammate in the youth teams of Nacional.
During his time in the youth teams of Nacional, Fornaroli was given the nickname "El Tuna" (The Prickly Pear) due to his spiky hairstyle. On 6 July 2006, he made his senior debut, at the age of 18, in a 3–0 win against Rentistas at the Estadio Gran Parque Central. Fornaroli scored two goals, the first in his professional career, in a 2–1 Uruguayan Clásico win against Peñarol in the opening round of the 2007–08 Primera División. After the match, Fornaroli dedicated the victory to his mother who had just turned 40 at the time. He ended his debut season, scoring 17 goals in 37 appearances for the club in the Primera División and Copa Libertadores.
Sampdoria
On 22 July 2008, Fornaroli signed a three-year contract with Sampdoria, for a transfer fee of €3 million and a salary of €300,000. Additionally, a sale clause was included, demanding that 50% of Fornaroli's future transfer fee will be allocated to Nacional. He received the number 9 after having requested and replaced Vincenzo Montella who returned to Roma from his expired loan deal with Sampdoria. Additionally, due to his Italian ancestry, Fornaroli obtained citizenship which resulted in him being registered as a non-EU player for the club.
He made his Serie A debut on 14 September 2008 in a 2–0 defeat against Lazio at the Olimpico, coming on for Paolo Sammarco in the 75th minute. Five days later, he scored on his Europa League debut, after coming off the bench, and contributing to a 5–0 home win against Kaunas. He would score again in the returning away fixture against Kaunas, helping his side win the match 2–1 after being down a goal in the first half. On 13 November, Fornaroli scored the winning goal, from a penalty, in a 2–1 win against Empoli in the Coppa Italia. During the league campaign, Fornaroli struggled to find playing time within the squad despite chants from the fans who wanted to see him play when he was on the bench during games. By the end of January 2009, he amassed a total of 69 minutes played in 5 appearances in the Serie A.
Loan to San Lorenzo
On 10 February 2009, Fornaroli was confirmed to have been sent on loan to the Argentine club San Lorenzo in the First Division, with an option to extend for a fee of €100,000. Despite Argentine media speculating his first-team debut against Estudiantes, he was instead put to train with the reserve team for the club. Fornaroli scored on his reserve debut on 25 February leading his side to win 3–2 against Estudiantes reserves and impressed coach Miguel Ángel Russo who watched from the stands. His impressive performances for the reserves during matches and training led to him earning his first-team debut on 5 March, in the Copa Libertadores, against Libertad, coming off the bench in the 76th minute. Four days later, he started on his league debut in a 3–1 away loss against Rosario Central. On 18 May, Fornaroli scored two goals off the bench, his first for the club, in a 3–0 win against Gimnasia Jujuy. Fornaroli departed San Lorenzo following the end of his loan on 30 June, in total, making 15 appearances and 2 goals for the club. Sampdoria offered Fornaroli to San Lorenzo for a second season on loan but was rejected due to his high salary demands and his ability within the squad which would only make him a substitute player.