UFC star Karolina Kowalkiewicz left with broken eye socket and patch after brutal kick to the face

UFC star Karolina Kowalkiewicz is sporting a patch after suffering a broken eye socket during her defeat to Yan Xiaonan.

The strawweight was dominated on Saturday as she endured a fourth straight loss.

Kowalkiewicz was given little to smile about after Xiaonan landed a sublime headkick with pictures perfectly revealing the savage moment of impact.

She bravely continued to fight until the finish at UFC Auckland, losing via points, despite struggling with her eyesight.

And now she has taken to Instagram to reveal the full extent of the damage she suffered against the Chinese ace.

She wrote: ”Hi guys, thank you for your support. First time in my life after a fight, I cannot say I’m okay.

“Like you see, at the beginning of the first round, I have broken small bone here. I couldn’t see nothing. My vision was double and everything was like in the fog.”

The Pole’s injury left her unsafe to travel, keeping her in New Zealand for a few days.

She added in a tearful video message: “After the fight, I spent all day in the hospital.

“Today I going to a specialist and they (are) going to make a decision because I need an operation. And I’m waiting for a decision here or I go back to Poland and make this operation in Poland.

“But doctors said I have to say here because flying with this eye is very dangerous.”

The battler would later post again, vowing to return to the cage in the future.

She said: “S*** happens. I still love this sport and @ufc. Don’t worry I’ll be ok.”

Weili Zhang became the first UFC champion from China when she dethroned Jessica Andrade of the strawweight title last August.

But in another battle of Poland vs China, former champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk challenges for Zhang’s belt on March 7 at UFC 248.