Meschak Elia
Congolese footballer (born 1997)
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Meschak Elia Lina (born 6 August 1997) is a Congolese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Süper Lig club Alanyaspor and the DR Congo national team. He received the best player award after him and his team's win in the 2016 African Nations Championship.
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Elia with DR Congo in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Meschak Elia Lina | ||
| Date of birth | 6 August 1997 | ||
| Place of birth | Kinshasa, DR Congo | ||
| Height | 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in) | ||
| Position | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Alanyaspor | ||
| Number | 12 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2015–2016 | CS Don Bosco | ||
| 2016–2019 | TP Mazembe | 93 | (21) |
| 2020–2025 | Young Boys | 145 | (32) |
| 2025 | → Nantes (loan) | 8 | (1) |
| 2025– | Alanyaspor | 18 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2016– | DR Congo | 68 | (12) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:20, 14 March 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 31 March 2026 | |||
Club career
In July 2019 it was announced that Elia would sign for Belgian First Division A club Anderlecht.[1] He, however, disappeared and allegedly falsified his year of birth,[2] which resulted in a 12-month ban by the Congolese Association Football Federation.[2] In February 2020, FIFA "provisionally cleared" Elia to play again and he signed for Swiss Super League side BSC Young Boys.[2]
On 3 February 2025, Elia joined Nantes in France on loan with an option to buy.[3]
On 12 September 2025, he transferred to Turkey, joining Alanyaspor in the Süper Lig on a three-year deal.[4] He thus departs Young Boys after making exactly 200 appearances for the club, scoring 43 goals and supplying 39 assists.[5]
Personal life
In December 2024 one of Elia's two sons died unexpectedly.[6]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 14 March 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| TP Mazembe | 2015–16 | Linafoot | — | — | 3[b] | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | — | — | 11[d] | 1 | 1[c] | 0 | 12 | 1 | ||||
| 2017–18 | — | — | 10[e] | 3 | 1[c] | 0 | 11 | 3 | ||||
| 2018–19 | — | — | 10[e] | 4 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 4 | ||||
| Total | 93 | 21 | — | 34 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 130 | 29 | |||
| Young Boys | 2019–20 | Swiss Super League | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 12 | 2 | |
| 2020–21 | 25 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 11[f] | 1 | — | 37 | 7 | |||
| 2021–22 | 30 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 12[g] | 2 | — | 43 | 10 | |||
| 2022–23 | 31 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 5[h] | 2 | — | 41 | 12 | |||
| 2023–24 | 32 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 10[i] | 2 | — | 44 | 11 | |||
| 2024–25 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6[j] | 0 | — | 23 | 1 | |||
| Total | 145 | 32 | 11 | 4 | 46 | 7 | — | 200 | 43 | |||
| Nantes (loan) | 2024–25 | Ligue 1 | 8 | 1 | — | — | — | 8 | 1 | |||
| Alanyaspor | 2025–26 | Süper Lig | 18 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 20 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 264 | 54 | 13 | 4 | 77 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 358 | 73 | ||
- Includes Swiss Cup, Turkish Cup
- Two appearances in CAF Champions League, one appearances in CAF Confederation Cup
- Appearances in CAF Super Cup
- Two appearances in CAF Champions League, nine appearances and one goal in CAF Confederation Cup
- Appearances in CAF Champions League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Eight appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Six appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
International
- As of match played 31 March 2026[7]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR Congo | 2016 | 9 | 5 |
| 2017 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2019 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2022 | 5 | 1 | |
| 2023 | 9 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 16 | 4 | |
| 2025 | 13 | 1 | |
| 2026 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 68 | 12 | |
- Scores and results list DR Congo's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Elia goal.[8]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 January 2016 | Stade Huye, Butare, Rwanda |  Ethiopia | 3–0 | 3–0 | 2016 African Nations Championship |
| 2 | 21 January 2016 | Stade Huye, Butare, Rwanda |  Angola | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2016 African Nations Championship |
| 3 | 7 February 2016 | Amahoro Stadium, Kigali, Rwanda |  Mali | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2016 African Nations Championship |
| 4 | 2–0 | |||||
| 5 | 26 March 2016 | Stade des Martyrs, Kinshasa, DR Congo | Angola | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 6 | 9 September 2018 | Samuel Kanyon Doe Sports Complex, Monrovia, Liberia |  Liberia | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 7 | 27 September 2022 | Stade Père Jégo, Casablanca, Morocco |  Sierra Leone | 3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 8 | 28 January 2024 | Laurent Pokou Stadium, San-Pédro, Ivory Coast |  Egypt | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2023 Africa Cup of Nations |
| 9 | 9 June 2024 | Stade des Martyrs, Kinshasa, DR Congo |  Togo | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 10 | 15 October 2024 | Benjamin Mkapa Stadium, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania |  Tanzania | 1–0 | 2–0 | 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualification |
| 11 | 2–0 | |||||
| 12 | 16 November 2025 | Moulay Hassan Stadium, Rabat, Morocco |  Nigeria | 1–1 | 1–1 (a.e.t.) | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Honours
TP Mazembe
Young Boys
DR Congo