Bruno Fornaroli: A Journey of Goals and Determination

Bruno Fornaroli is on fire this season and enjoying every second of it. He was the talk of the league in round two after scoring four goals against the Newcastle Jets, and even at 36, he's showing no signs of slowing down when it comes to putting the ball in the back of the net. Something he's been doing for years and what still motivates him every day. An eagerness to celebrate in front of the fans, for that feeling we all crave. He has an appetite for goals you can feel when in his presence and a will to win that is unmatched, something synonymous with the Uruguayan way of life. 

We caught up with Melbourne Victory's star man last week ahead of their massive round three clash against Adelaide United on the Friday night, and it was a game that more than lived up to the hype. An end-to-end encounter with red cards, passion, a packed terrace, and, as we've become accustomed to this season, another Fornaroli goal. Goals from the man from Salto, Uruguay, are becoming a welcome habit this season for Victory fans who've been starved of consistently good results for a while now. It's a habit that we hoped would catch the eye of the Australian National Team manager, Graham Arnold, again too.

While he's missed out on another call up after his debut for Australia in qualifiers against Japan and Saudi Arabia last year, he still won't rule out more games in the future. "Maybe if I keep scoring, I will put the pressure on."

On Friday night when Zinedine Machach muscled past Ryan Kitto on the wing and drove his low cross into the path of Fornaroli, there was only going to be one outcome in this kind of form. His side-foot finish with pace was hit too well for Adelaide United's Joe Gauci, and it made us wonder if Bruno's wife, Erika, was in the stands. Why? Because after missing the week before, a rare occurrence to miss one of his games, Bruno scored four. For a superstitious man, there were jokes about Erika not being allowed back at our shoot the day earlier.

"I am allowed to come tomorrow, Bruno, no?" Erika joked. "Mum is okay; Erika, no," Bruno said with a big smile. His mother is in town once again. Something that isn't only important to Bruno but the whole family, who are as close-knit as a family unit can be.

When pressed about whether these superstitions get into Bruno's head, he agreed he has a certain way of doing things in the lead-up to games. "Yes, I definitely have my routines. I try to have the same dinner, and I go to the same coffee shop all the time, too. One day I got a green juice and scored; now every single game day, I go to the same place and get the same juice. The owner knows. I was with him the other day and told him before the Adelaide game I need this juice; when I arrive, it has to be there and ready (he laughs). Sometimes I change, but it's been similar for a while.”

Now that he's scoring so many goals this season, that coffee shop better stock up on fruits and veg so the man known as the 'prickly pear' can keep his good mojo going. The prickly pear, or 'El Tuna,' is a name that has stuck with him since he was a child. "Because of my spiky hair. I got the nickname when I was seven or eight. In South America, it's common for everyone to have a nickname like this. Everyone has something. Lautaro Martinez, for example, is 'El Toro' (the bull), Leo Messi is 'La Pulga' (the flea); 'El Tuna' is the translation to English; prickly pear. Here, it's not as normal compared to back home for everyone to have such a common nickname. Even my teachers at school, my family and friends, everyone calls me 'Tuna.'

"I am one of the only people that calls him Bruno," Erika affirms.

It's a good segue to exploring life back in the early days in Salto, Uruguay. From living in the stadium as a 12-year-old to fighting every day for survival, it's quite a contrast to life over here for most of our young players.

"I was 12 when the opportunity to come and play for Nacional happened, a huge club in South America, not only in Uruguay. For me, it was a dream come true, so I explained to my mother and father that I really wanted to do this. I need to do it. That period was a little bit tough because I said to my parents, 'This is my dream. I want to go, and you can't stop my dreams.’ I'm fortunate that they believed in me and let me go, which is something I still really appreciate, and I am grateful for. To let their son go over 400 km away at that age. At the time I was living with all the other kids who were there from outside Montevideo. That period, when I look back, is one of my favourite parts of my career. Lots of kids having fun. You feel free, no parents around, that sort of thing - but at the same time, we were all fighting hard every day to find a way to survive and make it."

Did he know at the time how cutthroat things were? "Maybe at that point in time, I couldn't see that... but when I was there, I knew I couldn't waste my time. I thought that if I am away from my family like this, I have to make it work. From the first day I got there, I was there to compete. I am extremely competitive. I knew I wanted to be the number 9 and score a lot of goals for the team. It was a very tough period because I missed family and friends for sure, but it worked out in the end."

This fighting spirit at a young age seems to be ingrained in Uruguayans, and when you think of the likes of Fornaroli and his fellow countrymen - Suarez, Nunez, Cavani, Valverde, the list is endless... one thing, in particular, unites them all: an intense will to work and a hunger for success. No matter if things aren't working out, you just keep going. "This mentality is something we all have. No one can make it into a first team in Uruguay without this passion for hard work. You look at Darwin Nunez for Liverpool now, for example - he is working very hard to be the best. It's a characteristic I love to see in Uruguayan players."

The contrast to this can be observed in the more relaxed nature of Australia as a country, compared to the win-at-all-costs, fight-for-survival mentality prevalent in everyday life back in Uruguay. This contrast might explain, in part, why we don't have as many top, top players in our population of nearly twenty-six million compared to Uruguay's three and a half million.

"The lifestyle is different here. It's laid back, making it an easier place to live. I want to continue to live here and teach the next generation how hard you must work to be successful. It's something I think about."

After breaking through at Nacional and going on to score a goal in every other game, the lure of Europe came calling. One of the biggest names in Italy, Sampdoria, was the club he got his chance at. An experience he still holds dear to him.

"Sampdoria was great. It has a beautiful stadium. It's maybe more like an English stadium. It felt good to arrive at a big club, a really good club. When I got there, we played in the UEFA Cup, and it was a great time."

Pressed on whether there were any other stadiums from his time in Europe that he enjoyed playing at, there was one that sprang to mind. "San Siro. Amazing. I was on the bench against Milan early on in my time there, and it was incredible. It's the only stadium when I arrived on the bus where I was truly like, wow. Usually, with stadiums, they might be built down into the ground a bit. San Siro just stands out like a colosseum." 

When we asked if playing in front of a packed crowd was something that gets him going, he was adamant it makes him a better player. "When you walk into the stadium here at Victory, and fans start making the noise they make, it's the best. You hear the noise, and you know - it's on. It's so important. For me, it gives me that extra boost. Scoring in front of a big crowd is the best feeling in the world."

In 2009, Bruno moved to San Lorenzo, another massive club in South America, and it was here he played under Diego Simeone, someone that Bruno knew would go on to big things as a manager. "He's one of those guys that understands all of his players and how to get the best out of them. When to push them hard. He is intense." We asked Bruno if he'd watched the documentary everyone seems to be talking about at the moment, Beckham, and discussed Simeone's villain role and not being fussed at all about the furore he'd caused, still to this day getting on with things and going about things in his own way. "I think you need this to be successful. If you don't worry about external things, it's perfect."

After other stints in Europe and South America, 2015 was the year Bruno landed in Australia at Melbourne City - and he's been scoring ever since. And while we didn't go into old ground regarding what it's like playing for Melbourne Victory nowadays, when we mentioned we were looking forward to the Melbourne derby, Bruno piped up, "23rd! 23rd of December. We must make sure we have a good Christmas," said with a determined tone. You know he's going to be on it in that fixture against his old side.

We wanted to know what a Uruguayan Christmas looks like in Australia. "It's more meat. Seafood quality back home is not so good. So, Christmas is all about meat and we continue that here. I like asado, which is with the bone. I like it with the bone - more flavour." Will some big wins over the festive period allow for some downtime and time off? "That will be top (having a good Christmas period). But I'm not sure about days off with Poppa (he laughs)."

This will be the Fornaroli family's 9th Christmas in Australia. Ever since he burst onto the scene with 23 goals in his first season at City, he's been a dangerous player who is always looking to make an impact. On current form, he'll notch his 100th league goal sooner rather than later, and those landmarks, as well as finishing as the top scorer, still motivate him. When asked if he's one to look at the stats and who's fighting for the golden boot, "Of course."

Things looked a little bit touch and go for tomorrow night's clash with Wellington Phoenix. Bruno was issued a show-cause notice by the independent match review panel after a heated exchange with Adelaide coach, Carl Veart. The notice was thrown out though, so we might be seeing Bruno on the scoresheet in front of a big crowd again... and with Oskar Zawada, sitting second on the top scorer's list, also on the pitch, there will be even more motivation for Bruno to keep the goals up.

Things are going well at Melbourne Victory this season, and confidence looks high. Even after Roderick Miranda was sent off against Adelaide, it felt like Victory could have pinched it. A sign that things are going well across the board with a galvanized squad. We wanted to know if anyone, in particular, was training the house down, and one of the stars from our MVFC away jersey shoot was the standout. "I love Nish. He is doing really well."

Nishan Velupillay's form has been rewarded with a new three-year contract, and it's a strong vote of confidence that could propel him to new heights this season. "I think the new contract is making him even more confident now. For him, it's more relaxed; he can focus on playing his best football. He feels like he's an important player, and when you feel important and feel good - you play good football."

For the number of goals Bruno has scored in his time in Australia, the number of trophies he's won doesn't quite fit his output. Will this season finally be the year he gets to add to that 2016 FFA Cup win for Melbourne City? Time will tell. But one thing is for sure: he's going to fight tooth and nail to ensure his Victory side goes close and even at his age, he still enjoys training and learning. A pure student of the game.

"Throughout my career, I've always tried to pick up things from every club, every changeroom. At every place I've been, there's always been good characters and players, and I've always watched others to try and learn and become better. One thing I learned when I was very, very young was to look at the best player and try to understand what they do. Why are they the best? I tried to learn. It doesn't matter if a player is older or younger than me to this day; I study them and try to work out how they are so good. What can I do to be better?"

When we discussed if there was anyone in particular he modelled his game after at a young age, his answer was one for the purists. "When I was young, it was Enzo Francescoli. He was at River Plate. His technique was top. He wasn't a typical forward. He could create as well - I was always watching him hoping my game would be like his one day." One of the most impressive things we've found about Bruno is that he isn't comfortable with his game. He's always looking to find more from himself. "I always say the day I stop learning is the day I finish on the pitch."

Another impressive point on learning is that it doesn't just stop on the football pitch. He's recently enrolled in study, and we weren't surprised it had to do with football given his passion for the game. "I am studying Sports Business online at the Johan Cruyff Institute in Barcelona. It's cool. I'm enjoying it. Learning about business and marketing and what clubs are doing. In my life so far, I've entered the pitch, done my job, and never understood the things clubs do all throughout the year behind the scenes. It's massive. Now that I'm studying, I'm understanding more, and I've really enjoyed it. I like to learn, to understand. Things like how the younger generation need to communicate in different ways using different technology and how they use things differently. Everything is a lot quicker. Learning is beautiful. I'm happy."

It's clear that Bruno loves the game, and while we don't see him retiring any time soon, it will be interesting to see what he does post-career. With top players, you often don't get to hear about any challenges they face during their intense football careers. So we spoke about it, and one point in particular was around family time. "The difficult part of being a pro relates to family, for sure. The things you miss when you play, train, and travel. Sometimes my kids ask why I'm missing things at school or other events. But they understand my job. It's normal... and on the other side, now that they are older, they also see what I'm doing more. For example, after the fourth goal last week, my phone was going crazy. My daughter was asking, why is the phone like that? I had to explain to her that scoring four goals is crazy, and things are going well, and that's why. But maybe next week I won't score, and things will be quiet. It was a good moment to teach her that it doesn't matter what someone says now in the moment. You're the best, you scored this or you did that. Hard moments will also come. You have to know who you are, believe in yourself, and keep pushing all the time. The people close to you, your family, will always be close to you no matter what is happening."

To finish up, we had to ask about Uruguay hosting the opening game at the 2030 World Cup and whether it would be something on his list to go and see. "I've never been to a World Cup, actually. Never. So we will see if I can make it to this one. It will be packed. They will play it at Centenario, the host of the 1930 World Cup. If you can get there, get there. It will be incredible."

With Marcelo Bielsa at the helm of the national team, we wondered if we might see Uruguay take more steps in the right direction. "It's great to see Suarez and Cavani back in the national team setup with Bielsa now. I think they both deserve to be back. They are showing the next generation how to do it. We have so many good young players, having them around will help their development. We have lots of talent. For example, I think Fede Valverde is the profile of the perfect player. Quick, box-to-box, can play anywhere, good with the ball, can shoot - everything. It's exciting."

On more Uruguayans potentially coming to play in Australia one day, "I think it would be good. More Uruguayans and big names. We all want the league to grow. It's not so far to get home now too; we have a direct flight from Melbourne to Chile, then you go to Montevideo. Twelve and a half hours. It's not so bad now."

One player we won't see in the A-League but at one point we'd hoped might have is his pal, Luis Suarez, who looks destined to end up at Beckham's Inter Miami. "If he does end up in Miami, which is what he wants, I will be happy for him to play with his good friend there, Leo (Messi) again, and keep enjoying his football."

We hope Bruno continues to enjoy his football this season and beyond. You can catch him on pitch in Melbourne Victory's home game against Wellington Phoenix tomorrow night.... and now that he's clear to play you know he'll have something to say on pitch. "There's a good energy around the club. We will fight."

Photos by Aleksandar Jason. A special shout-out to Erika for the styling!