When the Netherlands team trot out onto the field ahead of their crucial second game of the 2026 World Cup against Sweden, one player will likely stand out.

Not because of his name. Because of his eye.

Jean Paul van Hecke has been carrying around an impressive black eye, looking less like a footballer and more like someone who has just gone a few rounds in a boxing ring.

Clearly the good news for Dutch fans is that the defender was fit enough to start, despite the bruising that has followed him through the opening days of the tournament.

How did Van Hecke get black eye?

Van Hecke picked up the injury in the Netherlands’ first game against Japan. During an aerial challenge, Japan forward Daizen Maeda accidentally caught him in the face with his boot, leaving the defender with a badly swollen eye and a bruise that quickly became impossible to ignore.

The 26-year-old later revealed the impact was serious enough to affect his vision.

“He kicked me in the eye with full force,” Van Hecke said after the game.

Despite that, he played on and recovered sufficiently to keep his place in Ronald Koeman’s starting XI for the crucial Group F clash with Sweden, where he and Virgil van Dijk will have to deal with Isak and Gyokeres.

The timing of the injury meant that it got even more attention. Just days after suffering the blow, Van Hecke completed his move to Tottenham Hotspur, meaning some of the first photos of him as a Spurs player highlighted the incident.

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