FORMER Newcastle player Jetro Willems was punched by one of his OWN FANS as an Eredivisie game boiled over and was temporarily suspended.
Willems, 28, who spent the 2019/20 campaign on loan in the North East, saw his struggling Groningen side fall 2-0 behind at home to Heerenveen on Sunday.
And the toxic atmosphere came to a head in the 80th minute when fans invaded the pitch, furiously protesting their team's performances.
Stewards attempted to restrain the raging supporters as the game was halted.
Netherlands international Willems was one of several Groningen players that went over to try and calm down their fanbase.
But as the ex-Magpies man tried to cool tempers, one thug punched him in the face.
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Fortunately, Willems did not appear to be seriously hurt and eventually returned to mediate with the supporters.
It has since been confirmed that the fan has been arrested following the incident.
Referee Serdar Gozubuyuk then sent the players down the tunnel as fears grew that the game could be postponed altogether.
But the two teams ended up coming back out to complete the match as Heerenveen clinched a comfortable victory.
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Groningen sit second bottom in the Eredivisie with just four wins from 26 games.
Two teams are automatically relegated to the Dutch second tier, with the third-bottom side going into a play-off.
Willems only joined Groningen in February and has played four times for the club.
He has not received a cap for his country since 2016.
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