FIFA 2026 | 'Painful but luckily I play with my feet': Spence, with broken jaw, ready to go the extra mile for England at World Cup
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "FIFA 2026 | 'Painful but luckily I play with my feet': Spence, with broken jaw, ready to go the extra mile for England at World Cup")
Spence, with broken jaw, ready to go extra mile for England at WC Photograph: (X/DjedSpence)
Spence will wear a protective mask at the World Cup after breaking his jaw in training, but insists it won't affect him. "I play football with my feet, not my jaw," the Tottenham defender said.
England's Djed Spence is heading into his first FIFA World Cup with a fractured jaw but that has not broken his spirit. The Tottenham full-back, who made history last September as England's first Muslim senior international, earned his place in Thomas Tuchel's squad despite the injury. He was the one to offer an assist to Harry Kane's winner in England's 1-0 friendly victory over New Zealand while managing the condition. He uses a jaw support for his condition and acknowledged being in pain but remains to determined to play.
How did Spence broke his jaw?
Spence sustained a broken jaw in a challenge with Chelsea striker Liam Delap during the penultimate game of the Premier League. The injury will require three months to fully heal which means he will play the entire World Cup wearing a protective mask. The timing was brutal, arriving just days before the squad announcement and sparking widespread debate about whether he should travel at all. Yet Spence refused to let it define him.
"It's a little bit uncomfortable, but it is what it is," Spence told reporters, brushing aside any suggestion the injury might hamper his contribution. In typically grounded fashion, he put the whole episode in perspective: "It was painful but luckily I play football with my feet and not my jaw," he said.
On his World Cup call-up, Spence said: "It shows the manager believes in me, believes in my quality and I'm thankful for him and I just want to keep on putting in the performances to make everyone happy. It's a huge honour, to play for your country is a big thing and I'm over the moon and happy to be here. It's been a difficult season. There's always light at the end of the tunnel."
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England schedule in FIFA World Cup 2026
England have been drawn in Group L and will open their World Cup campaign against Croatia on June 17 at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Notably, the Englishmen were knocked out by Croatia at the semi-final stage in 2018. They face Ghana next on June 23 at Boston Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, before rounding off the group stage against Panama on June 27 at New York New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
