A direct injection internal combustion engine of compression ignition type is provided with a piston cavity offset from the piston center and with an injection nozzle which injects a hollow conical fuel spray having a tangential velocity component and relatively weak penetration into a swirl set up in the combustion chamber. The injection geometry and the offset are such that squish and swirl flows interact to form an excellent air-fuel mixture over the whole volume of the cavity without forming local fuel concentrations or wetting the cavity wall.