| Santiago Mele | |
| Fullname: | Santiago Andrés Mele Castañero |
| Birth Date: | 6 September 1997 |
| Birth Place: | Montevideo, Uruguay |
| Currentclub: | Atlético Junior |
| Clubnumber: | 77 |
| Position: | Goalkeeper |
| Youthclubs1: | Fénix |
| Years1: | 2016–2017 |
| Clubs1: | Fénix |
| Caps1: | 6 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2017–2020 |
| Clubs2: | Osmanlıspor |
| Caps2: | 13 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2017 |
| Clubs3: | → Ankaragücü (loan) |
| Caps3: | 0 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Years4: | 2018 |
| Clubs4: | → Lleida Esportiu (loan) |
| Caps4: | 0 |
| Goals4: | 0 |
| Years5: | 2020–2024 |
| Clubs5: | Plaza Colonia |
| Caps5: | 40 |
| Goals5: | 0 |
| Years6: | 2022–2023 |
| Clubs6: | → Unión Santa Fe (loan) |
| Caps6: | 48 |
| Goals6: | 0 |
| Years7: | 2023 |
| Clubs7: | → Atlético Junior (loan) |
| Caps7: | 20 |
| Goals7: | 0 |
| Years8: | 2024– |
| Clubs8: | Atlético Junior |
| Caps8: | 21 |
| Goals8: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2015 |
| Nationalteam1: | Uruguay U18 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 3 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Nationalyears2: | 2015–2017 |
| Nationalteam2: | Uruguay U20 |
| Nationalcaps2: | 28 |
| Nationalgoals2: | 0 |
| Nationalyears3: | 2019 |
| Nationalteam3: | Uruguay U22 |
| Nationalcaps3: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears4: | 2023– |
| Nationalteam4: | Uruguay |
| Nationalcaps4: | 4 |
| Nationalgoals4: | 0 |
| Pcupdate: | 3 June 2024 |
| Ntupdate: | 26 March 2024 |
Santiago Andrés Mele Castañero (born 6 September 1997) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Categoría Primera A club Atlético Junior and the Uruguay national team.[1]
A youth academy graduate of Fénix, Mele made his professional debut on 30 August 2016 in a 1–0 loss against Cerro.[2]
On 4 September 2017, Turkish top division club Osmanlıspor announced the signing of Mele on a five-year deal.[3] He was immediately loaned out to second division club Ankaragücü for 2017–18 season.[4] However, with Korcan Çelikay and Altay Bayındır ahead of him in pecking order, he didn't receive any playing minutes.[5]
Mele's loan was cut short in following January and he subsequently got loaned out to Spanish third division side Lleida Esportiu.[6] 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.[7]
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.[1] He was also part of the Uruguay under-22 team which finished fourth at the 2019 Pan American Games.[8]
On 21 October 2022, Mele was named in Uruguay's 55-man preliminary squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[9] He made his senior team debut on 28 March 2023 in a 2–1 win against South Korea.[10]
In June 2024, Mele was named in Uruguay's 26-man squad for the 2024 Copa América.[11]
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Fénix | 2016 | Uruguayan Primera División | 6 | 0 | — | — | 6 | 0 | |||
| 2017 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | |||||
| Total | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |||
| Osmanlıspor | 2017–18 | Süper Lig | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | TFF First League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | 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 | 19 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 21 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 40 | 0 | |||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Uruguay | 2023 | 3 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 4 | 0 | ||
Atlético Junior
Uruguay U20
Uruguay
Individual