Bruno Henrique made his senior international debut for Brazil in 2019.
Club career
Early career
Born in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Bruno Henrique joined Cruzeiro after being named the best player of the 2012 Copa Itatiaia (an amateur competition in the state) while playing for Inconfidência FC.[3] He made his senior debuts while on loan at Uberlândia in 2012, and after another loan stint at the club,[4] signed a permanent deal in late 2013,[5] after recovering from an Achilles tendon rupture, as his contract with Cruzeiro had expired.[6]
In July 2014 Bruno Henrique was loaned to Itumbiara.[7] He scored seven goals in only 12 matches for the side, including braces against América-GO and Iporá.
Goiás
After scoring seven goals for Itumbiara, Bruno Henrique moved to Goiás on 7 January 2015.[8] He made his debut for the club late in the month by starting in a 2–2 Campeonato Goiano home draw against Trindade, and scored his first goal on 4 February in a 3–1 away win against CRAC.
Bruno Henrique made his Série A debut on 10 May, starting in a 0–0 away draw against Vasco.[9] He scored his first goals in the category six days later, netting his team's all goals in a 2–0 home win against Atlético Paranaense.[10]
Wolfsburg
Bruno Henrique moved abroad for the first time in his career on 29 January 2016, joining Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg.[11] He made his debut in the category on 6 February, coming on as a second half substitute for Max Kruse in a 3–0 away loss against FC Schalke 04.
On 23 January 2017, Bruno Henrique joined Santos back in his home country, after an € 4 million offer was accepted by Wolfsburg.[14] He was officially announced at his new club four days later, signing a four-year contract.[15]
Bruno Henrique made his debut for the club on 12 February 2017, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 3–2 Campeonato Paulista away win against Red Bull Brasil. He scored his first goals on 12 March, netting a hat-trick in a 4–1 away routing of São Bernardo FC.[16]
On 23 July 2017, Bruno Henrique scored all his team's goals in a 3–0 home defeat of Bahia. He finished the season with 18 goals and 11 assists, being best of his team in both attributes.[17]
Bruno Henrique only played for ten minutes during the first match of the 2018 season before suffering an eye injury which kept him out for three months.[18]
Flamengo
On 23 January 2019, Bruno Henrique agreed to a deal with fellow top tier club Flamengo,[19] for a rumoured fee of R$23 million, plus Jean Lucas on loan to Santos for one year.[20]
In the 2019 Campeonato Carioca, Bruno Henrique finished as top scorer with eight goals, six of them as braces in Clássicos against the state's other heavyweights, Botafogo, Fluminense and Vasco da Gama.[21] The last of these was on 14 April in a 2–0 away win in the first leg of the final, which Fla won 4–0 on aggregate.[22]
On Bruno Henrique's Série A debut for Flamengo on 22 April, he scored twice in a 3–1 home comeback win over his former team Cruzeiro, who had not lost in 2019.[23] By late October in the end stages of the national championship, Bruno Henrique and strike partner Gabriel Barbosa had 60 goals over the year, more than five whole Série A teams.[24] On 3 November, he scored a hat-trick in a 4–1 win over Corinthians at the Maracanã Stadium.[25]
Bruno Henrique scored five goals in the 2019 Copa Libertadores, which his club won for the second time in their history. In the quarter-final against compatriots Internacional, he scored both goals in the first leg and assisted Gabriel Barbosa's equaliser in the second, for the Rubro-Negro to make the last four for the first time in 35 years.[26] In the final on 23 November in Lima, Peru, Flamengo won 2–1 with a late comeback against River Plate. Deep into added time, Bruno Henrique was kicked while on the floor by opponent Exequiel Palacios who was sent off, while Gabriel Barbosa was also dismissed for applauding the decision.[27] He was named Player of the Tournament by CONMEBOL.[28]
At the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup in Qatar, Flamengo finished as runners-up to Liverpool. Bruno Henrique scored in the semi-finals as the team came from behind to win 3–1 against Asian champions Al Hilal of Saudi Arabia.[29]
On 6 January 2024, Bruno Henrique extended his contract with Flamengo until December 2026.[30]
International career
Coach Tite called up Bruno Henrique to the Brazil squad in August 2019 for friendlies against Colombia and Peru in the United States. He debuted against the former at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on 6 September, replacing Philippe Coutinho for the last ten minutes of a 2–2 draw.[31]
Personal life
Bruno Henrique's older brother, Juninho, is also a footballer and a forward. Both played together at Uberlândia in 2013.[32]
Style of play
Described as "a complete player" by former coach Jorge Jesus,[33] Bruno Henrique is most well known for his acceleration and pace, being considered one of the fastest strikers in the world.[34] He is usually deployed as a winger or a striker in the left side of the attack, where he uses his dribbling technique and speed to beat opponents in one-on-one situations.
Since joining Flamengo in 2019, Bruno Henrique has been dubbed "Rei dos Clássicos" ("King of derbies") for often scoring against local rivals Vasco da Gama, Fluminense and Botafogo.[35]
^"Bruno Henrique zum VfL" [Bruno Henrique to VfL] (in German). VfL Wolfsburg. 29 January 2016. Archived from the original on 29 January 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2016.
^Stiva, Caíque (9 February 2019). "Santos anuncia contratação de Jean Lucas" [Santos announce signing of Jean Lucas] (in Portuguese). Globo Esporte. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
