Santiago Mele
Uruguayan footballer (born 1997)
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Santiago Andrés Mele Castañero (born 6 September 1997) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for AFA Liga Profesional de Fútbol club Independiente, on loan from Liga MX club Monterrey, and the Uruguay national team.[2][3]
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Mele in 2024 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Santiago Andrés Mele Castañero[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 6 September 1997[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Montevideo, Uruguay | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Goalkeeper | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team |
Independiente (on loan from Monterrey) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fénix | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2017 | Fénix | 6 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017–2020 | Osmanlıspor | 13 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2017 | → Ankaragücü (loan) | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | → Lleida Esportiu (loan) | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2020–2024 | Plaza Colonia | 40 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | → Unión Santa Fe (loan) | 48 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | → Atlético Junior (loan) | 20 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024–2025 | Atlético Junior | 53 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025– | Monterrey | 17 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2026– | → Independiente (loan) | 0 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Uruguay U18 | 3 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2017 | Uruguay U20 | 28 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2019 | Uruguay U22 | 4 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Uruguay | 9 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 1 August 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 24 September 2026 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Club career
A youth academy graduate of Fénix, Mele made his professional debut on 30 August 2016 in a 1–0 loss against Cerro.[4]
On 4 September 2017, Turkish top division club Osmanlıspor announced the signing of Mele on a five-year deal.[5] He was immediately loaned out to second division club Ankaragücü for 2017–18 season.[6] However, with Korcan Çelikay and Altay Bayındır ahead of him in pecking order, he didn't receive any playing minutes.[7]
Mele's loan was cut short in following January and he subsequently got loaned out to Spanish third division side Lleida Esportiu.[8] With Diego Rivas Rego as first-choice goalkeeper, Mele failed to find playing minutes again.
Two years after joining the club, Mele made his debut for Osmanlıspor on 17 August 2019 in a 2–1 win against Boluspor.[9]
International career
Mele is a former Uruguay youth international. He was part of Uruguay under-20 team which won the 2017 South American U-20 Championship and finished fourth at the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup.[3] He was also part of the Uruguay under-22 team which finished fourth at the 2019 Pan American Games.[10]
On 21 October 2022, Mele was named in Uruguay's 55-man preliminary squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[11] He made his senior team debut on 28 March 2023 in a 2–1 win against South Korea.[12]
In June 2024, Mele was named in Uruguay's 26-man squad for the 2024 Copa América.[13] On 31 May 2026, he was named in Uruguay's 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[14]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 8 December 2024[2]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Fénix | 2013–14 | Uruguayan Primera División | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | Uruguayan Primera División | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2015–16 | Uruguayan Primera División | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| 2016 | Uruguayan Primera División | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | ||||
| 2017 | Uruguayan Primera División | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||||
| Osmanlıspor | 2018–19 | TFF First League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2019–20 | TFF First League | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 0 | |||
| Total | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | |||
| Ankaragücü (loan) | 2017–18 | TFF First League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Lleida Esportiu (loan) | 2017–18 | Segunda División B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Plaza Colonia | 2020 | Uruguayan Primera División | 20 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| 2021 | Uruguayan Primera División | 20 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |||
| Total | 40 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 43 | 0 | |||
| Unión (loan) | 2022 | Argentine Primera División | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 41 | 0 |
| 2023 | Argentine Primera División | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 0 | |||
| Total | 38 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 58 | 0 | ||
| Atlético Junior (loan) | 2023 | Categoría Primera A | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| Atlético Junior | 2024 | Categoría Primera A | 37 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 48 | 0 |
| Career total | 154 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 190 | 0 | ||
International
- As of match played 24 September 2026[2]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uruguay | 2023 | 3 | 0 |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 9 | 0 | |
Honours
Atlético Junior
Uruguay U20
Uruguay
- Copa América third place: 2024[15]
Individual
- Uruguayan Primera División Team of the Year: 2021[16]