Mbwana Ally Samatta (born 23 December 1992) is a Tanzanian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Ligue 1 club Le Havre, and captains 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, 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, as he helped TP Mazembe to win the title.

In January 2016, Samatta signed for Belgian side Genk, helping them to qualify for the UEFA Europa League and win the Belgian Pro League 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, becoming the first (and only) Tanzanian player to both play and score in the Premier League.

Club career

Samatta was a key figure during TP Mazembe's run to the final of the 2015 CAF Champions League, scoring seven goals in the process and finishing as the competition's top scorer. In their group stage match against Moghreb Tétouan, Samatta scored a memorable hat-trick to secure a place in the semi-finals where they were drawn against Sudanese side Al-Merrikh SC. Mazembe would go on to lift the cup after defeating Algerian side USM Alger in the final 4–1 on aggregate, with Samatta scoring a goal in both legs.

At the Glo-CAF Awards 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 TP Mazembe teammate and DR Congo goalkeeper Robert Kidiaba, who amassed 88 points, and Algerian Baghdad Bounedjah 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. 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 in the Europa League for a 5–2 win.

During the 2018–19 season, he led the Belgian First Division A in scoring with 20 goals, as Genk finished the season as league winners. In May 2019 he was awarded with the Ebony Shoe award for his exploits during the campaign.

Aston Villa

On 20 January 2020, Samatta signed a four-and-a-half-year contract with Premier League club Aston Villa. 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 semi-final second-leg win over Leicester City, a result which sealed the club's place in the final of the competition.

On 1 February 2020, Samatta scored on his league debut for Aston Villa, in a 2–1 defeat to Bournemouth. 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 EFL Cup final against Manchester City, but went on to lose the game 2-1.

Fenerbahçe

On 25 September 2020, Samatta joined Süper Lig 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 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, Super League Greece side PAOK announced the signing of Samatta on a two-year contract, with an option for one year more.

Le Havre

On 5 August 2025, Ligue 1 side Le Havre announced the signing of Samatta on a free transfer. The signing made Samatta the first Tanzanian signing for a Ligue 1 club.

International career

On 13 June 2019, he was named by manager Emmanuel Amunike as one of the 23 in 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. He made his debut in the competition on 23 June against Senegal in the round-robin stage.

Samatta (right) in 2024

Personal life

Samatta is a Muslim. He made the umrah to Mecca in 2018 with his Genk teammate Omar Colley.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 22 March 2026

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Simba2010–11Tanzanian Premier League2513—22—2715
TP Mazembe2011Linafoot82——82
20122923—66—3529
20133720—66224528
2013–142915—93—3818
2014–15—78—78
2015–16—00—00
Total10360—28232213385
Genk2015–16Belgian Pro League18500———185
2016–17371342—185—5920
2017–1831840———358
2018–19382310—129—5132
2019–2020710—63102810
Total14456102—36171019175
Aston Villa2019–20Premier League1410021——162
Fenerbahçe (loan)2020–21Süper Lig27531———306
Fenerbahçe2021–223000—00—30
Royal Antwerp (loan)2021–22Belgian Pro League32511—63—399
Genk (loan)2022–2333630———366
PAOK2023–24Super League Greece29230—121—443
2024–2512440—41—205
Total41670—162—648
Le Havre2025–26Ligue 120000———200
Career total44115224421925032560206

International

As of match played 27 December 2025

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Tanzania201192
201250
2013106
201431
201572
201641
201743
201852
2019104
202010
202160
202251
202360
202480
202540
Total8722

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

List of international goals scored by Mbwana Samatta
No.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
126 March 2011National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaCentral African Republic2–12–12012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
23 September 2011National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaAlgeria1–01–12012 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
311 January 2013Addis Ababa Stadium, Addis Ababa, EthiopiaEthiopia1–11–2Friendly
46 February 2013National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaCameroon1–01–0Friendly
524 March 2013Morocco2–03–12014 FIFA World Cup qualification
63–0
74 December 2013Afraha Stadium, Nakuru, KenyaBurundi1–01–02013 CECAFA Cup
812 December 2013Nyayo National Stadium, Nairobi, KenyaZambia1–11–12013 CECAFA Cup
93 August 2014Estádio do Zimpeto, Maputo, MozambiqueMozambique1–11–22015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
107 October 2015National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaMalawi1–02–02018 FIFA World Cup qualification
1114 November 2015Algeria2–02–22018 FIFA World Cup qualification
1223 March 2016Stade Omnisports Idriss Mahamat Ouya, N'Djamena, ChadChad1–01–02017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
1325 March 2017National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaBotswana1–02–0Friendly
142–0
1510 June 2017National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaLesotho1–01–12019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
1627 March 2018National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaDR Congo1–02–0Friendly
1716 October 2018National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaCape Verde2–02–02019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
1816 June 2019Olympic Sports Center, Cairo, EgyptZimbabwe1–11–1Friendly
1927 June 201930 June Stadium, Cairo, EgyptKenya2–12–32019 Africa Cup of Nations
208 September 2019National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaBurundi1–01–1 (3–0 p)2022 FIFA World Cup qualification
2119 November 2019Stade Mustapha Ben Jannet, Monastir, TunisiaLibya1–01–22021 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
2223 March 2022National Stadium, Dar es Salaam, TanzaniaCentral African Republic2–03–1Friendly

Honours

TP Mazembe

Genk

PAOK

Individual

External links

  • at WorldFootball.net
  • at Soccerway