Mbwana Ally Samatta (born 23 December 1992) is a Tanzanian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a striker for

Super League Greece The Super League Greece 1 (), or Stoiximan Super League for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Greece and the highest level of the Greek football league system. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and repla ...

club

PAOK PAOK (, Πανθεσσαλονίκειος Αθλητικός Όμιλος Κωνσταντινοπολιτών, ''Panthessalonikeios Athlitikós Ómilos Constantinopoliton'', ''Pan-Thessalonian Athletic Club of Constantinopolitans''), commonly ...

, and

captains Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

the Tanzania national team. Samatta began his career as a youth player for Tanzanian club African Lyon in 2008. He turned professional in 2010 with Simba Sports Club, where he played for only half of the season before moving to

TP Mazembe Tout Puissant Mazembe, commonly referred to as TP Mazembe, is a Congolese professional association football, football club based in Lubumbashi. History Tout Puissant Mazembe, the first sports club from the Democratic Republic of the Congo with a ...

, spending a total of five years with them, initially becoming a first-team regular. He was named the 2015 African based Player of the Year and finished the season as the top goalscorer of the

CAF Champions League The CAF Champions League, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League and formerly the African Cup of Champions Clubs, is an annual football club (association football), club football competition organized by the Conf ...

, as he helped TP Mazembe to win the title. In January 2016, Samatta signed for Belgian side

Genk Genk () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality and City status in Belgium, city located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality comprises only the town of Genk itself. It ...

, helping them to qualify for the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

and win the

Belgian Pro League The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023 ...

in 2019. His twenty-goal tally saw him finish the season as the top scorer of the league; he also won the Ebony Shoe award in Belgium for his outstanding season with Genk. In January 2020, Samatta moved to

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

, becoming the first (and only) Tanzanian player to both play and score in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

Club career

Samatta was a key figure during

's run to the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...

of the

2015 CAF Champions League The 2015 CAF Champions League (officially the 2015 Orange CAF Champions League for sponsorship reasons) was the 51st edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and the 19th editio ...

, scoring seven goals in the process and finishing as the competition's top scorer. In their group stage match against

Moghreb Tétouan The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

, Samatta scored a memorable hat-trick to secure a place in the semi-finals where they were drawn against

Sudanese The demographics of Sudan include the Sudanese people () and their characteristics, Sudan, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects of the population. In Sudan' ...

side

Al-Merrikh SC Al-Merrikh Sporting Club () is a Sudanese professional football club based in the city of Omdurman. Their home stadium is Al-Merrikh Stadium, which is locally known as The Red Castle. Founded in 1908, Al-Merrikh is one of the oldest football cl ...

. Mazembe would go on to lift the cup after defeating Algerian side

USM Alger Union Sportive de la Médina d'Alger (); known as USM Alger or simply USMA for short, is a Association football, football club based in the inner suburbs of Algiers. The club was founded in 1937 and its colours are red and black. Their home sta ...

in the final 4–1 on aggregate, with Samatta scoring a goal in both legs. At the Glo-

CAF Awards The CAF Awards is an awards evening held to honour the best African association football players. It is conferred by the Confederation of African Football (CAF). History The CAF Awards was first awarded in the year 2000. It is an award conteste ...

on 7 January 2016 at the International Conference Centre in Abuja, Nigeria, he became the first player from East Africa to be crowned the CAF African Player of the Year. Mbwana garnered a total of 127 points, ahead of his

teammate and DR Congo goalkeeper

Robert Kidiaba Robert Kidiaba Muteba (born 1 February 1976) is a Congolese politician and former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He spent most of his club career with TP Mazembe, whilst at international level he collected 61 caps playing fo ...

, who amassed 88 points, and Algerian

Baghdad Bounedjah Baghdad Saddam Bounedjah (, born 24 November 1991) is an Algerian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Qatar Stars League club Al-Shamal and the Algeria national team. Throughout his club career until 2015, Bounedjah played for ...

trailed in third place with 63 points.

Genk

In January 2016, after winning the prize for best African player on the continent, he signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with

KRC Genk Koninklijke Racing Club Genk (), commonly known as KRC Genk or Racing Genk, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Genk in Belgian Limburg. Racing Genk plays in the Belgian Pro League and have won four championship title ...

. He was voted the 2017 Most Influential Young Tanzanian in a ranking poll by Avance Media On 23 August 2018, Samatta scored a hat-trick against

Brøndby IF Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening (, usually abbreviated to Brøndby IF (), is a Danish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Brøndbyvester. Brøndby IF denotes the professional football section of Brøndbyernes ...

in the Europa League for a 5–2 win. During the 2018–19 season, he led the

Belgian First Division A The Belgian Pro League (; ; ), officially the Jupiler Pro League () for sponsor Jupiler, is a professional association football league in Belgium and the highest level of the Belgian football league system. Contested by 16 clubs from the 2023– ...

in scoring with 20 goals, as Genk finished the season as league winners. In May 2019 he was awarded with the

Ebony Shoe The Ebony Shoe award (Dutch: ''Ebbenhouten schoen'', French: ''Soulier d'ébène'') is a association football, football award in Belgium given annually to the best African or African origin player in the Belgian Pro League. The jury is composed ...

award for his exploits during the campaign.

Aston Villa

On 20 January 2020, Samatta signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with

club

. In doing so, he became the first Tanzanian to sign for a Premier League club. The transfer fee paid to Genk was reported as £8.5 million. Samatta made his debut for the club 8 days later in Villa's 2–1

EFL Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

semi-final second-leg win over

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

, a result which sealed the club's place in the

of the competition. On 1 February 2020, Samatta scored on his league debut for Aston Villa, in a 2–1 defeat to

Bournemouth Bournemouth ( ) is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole unitary authority area, in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. At the 2021 census, the built-up area had a population of 196,455, making it the largest ...

. This made him the first player from Tanzania to play, and subsequently score in the Premier League. On 1 March 2020, Samatta scored his only other goal for the club in the

final against

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

, but went on to lose the game 2-1.

Fenerbahçe

On 25 September 2020, Samatta joined

Süper Lig The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...

club Fenerbahçe S.K. on an initial loan deal until the end of the season. As part of the deal, Samatta signed a four-year contract at the end of his loan spell in July 2021. On 1 September 2021, Samatta joined Belgian side

Royal Antwerp Royal Antwerp Football Club (commonly referred to as Royal Antwerp or simply Antwerp) is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Antwerp. They compete in the Belgian Pro League, the top flight of Belgian football. Founded in 1 ...

on a season-long loan. On 16 August 2022, Samatta returned to Genk on loan, with an option to buy.

PAOK

On 17 July 2023,

side

announced the signing of Samatta on a two-year contract, with an option for one year more.

International career

On 13 June 2019, he was named by manager

Emmanuel Amunike Emmanuel Amunike (born 25 December 1970) is a Nigerian professional football manager and former footballer who played as a winger. Playing career Amunike played for Zamalek, Sporting CP, Barcelona, and Albacete. He played 28 times for Niger ...

as one of the 23 in

2019 Africa Cup of Nations The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (abbreviated as AFCON 2019 or CAN 2019), known as the Total SE, Total 2019 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 32nd edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's associati ...

. He made his debut in the competition on 23 June against

Senegal Senegal, officially the Republic of Senegal, is the westernmost country in West Africa, situated on the Atlantic Ocean coastline. It borders Mauritania to Mauritania–Senegal border, the north, Mali to Mali–Senegal border, the east, Guinea t ...

in the round-robin stage. Mbwana samatta in kinshasa

Personal life

Samatta is a Muslim. He made the

umrah The Umrah () is an Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, the holiest city for Muslims, located in the Hejazi region of Saudi Arabia. It can be undertaken at any time of the year, in contrast to the '' Ḥajj'' (; "pilgrimage"), which has specific d ...

to Mecca in 2018 with his

teammate

Omar Colley Omar Colley (born 24 October 1992) is a Gambian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Super League Greece club PAOK and captains the Gambia national team. Club career Gambian clubs Colley started out playing youth football wit ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Tanzania's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Samatta goal.''

Honours

TP Mazembe *

Linafoot The Vodacom Ligue 1 is the top division of the Congolese Association Football Federation, the governing body of football in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was created in 1958. In 2013, the highest attendance was set in the match DC M ...

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...

, 2013–14 *

DR Congo Super Cup The DR Congo Super Cup is a Congolese association football competition, which takes place in an annual match between the Linafoot champion team and the winners of the DR Congo Cup. Finals References External linksRSSSF.com {{Football in the ...

: 2013, 2014 *

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

Genk *

: 2018–19 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( ; ; ), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian Pro League champions (also received the Super Cup host) and the Belgian Cup winners. If both teams are the same, ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

PAOK *

: 2023–24 Individual * Linafoot Top scorer:

, 2013–14 * African Inter-Club Player of the Year: 2015 *

CAF Team of the Year The CAF Team of the Year is an annual football award given by the Confederation of African Football during the CAF Awards. In 2007, the CAF did not choose the team of the year, but rather the best ten players of the last fifty years. The ten play ...

: 2015 *

Top scorer:

: 2019 * Belgian First Division A Golden Shoe: 2018–19

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Samatta, Mbwana 1992 births Living people Footballers from Dar es Salaam Tanzanian Muslims Tanzanian men's footballers Men's association football forwards African Lyon F.C. players Simba S.C. players TP Mazembe players K.R.C. Genk players Aston Villa F.C. players Fenerbahçe S.K. footballers Royal Antwerp F.C. players PAOK FC players Tanzanian Premier League players Linafoot players Belgian Pro League players Premier League players Süper Lig players Super League Greece players Tanzania men's international footballers 2019 Africa Cup of Nations players 2023 Africa Cup of Nations players Tanzanian expatriate men's footballers Tanzanian expatriate sportspeople in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Tanzanian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Tanzanian expatriate sportspeople in England Tanzanian expatriate sportspeople in Turkey Tanzanian expatriate sportspeople in Greece Expatriate men's footballers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey Expatriate men's footballers in Greece 21st-century Tanzanian sportsmen