Arsenal defender Pablo Mari recovering in hospital after Italian supermarket knife attack

Written by on November 5, 2022

Pablo Mari, the Arsenal defender stabbed in a Milan supermarket ambush, has described how he and his family were lucky to escape worse injuries.

The 29-year-old will spend around “two or three days” recovering in hospital following successful surgery to reconstruct two damaged back muscles.

In a message from his bed, he insisted, however, that he is “fine” after becoming one of at least seven victims of a frenzied knife attack on Thursday.

Mari, who is on loan at Serie A Monza, went on to express condolences for another victim – said to be an employee of the Carrefour supermarket – who had died. Five others were also injured.

“After the hard moment we experienced yesterday, both my family and I want to communicate that fortunately we are all fine despite the circumstances, and we want to thank all the messages of support and affection that we are receiving,” Mari tweeted.

He posted the message alongside a picture of him and his wife Veronica Chacon in hospital with their thumbs up.

“In addition, we want to send our condolences and all our strength to the family and friends of the deceased person, and we sincerely wish that all injured people recover as soon as possible,” Mari added.

The attack and subsequent surgery will rule out the Spaniard, who is on season-long loan with Serie A team Monza, for at least two months whilst he recovers.

A statement from Monza published on Friday said: “General surgery and trauma team specialists of the Niguarda hospital in Milan this morning carried out surgery to reconstruct two injured muscles on Pablo Mari’s back.

“The surgery went well and a hospital stay of two or three days is expected. After being discharged the player will be able to start a rehabilitation process. This type of muscle injury usually requires two months of rest before you can resume physical activities.”

The club’s president, Adriano Galliani, told Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport that he had asked Serie A if the team’s next scheduled match against Bologna can be postponed, due to the impact the attack had on his players.

He told Gazzetta: “I’m happy with the outcome of the surgery, but we asked to postpone the next league game.

“Last night our players were crying. The boys are in shock. We do not know if our request will be accepted or not.”

Galliani visited Mari in hospital along with the Serie A side’s head coach Raffaele Palladino, told Gazzetta: “Pablo is an amazing guy. He had the strength to joke and tell me that he will be back in training on Monday.

“I brought him greetings from [club president Silvio] Berlusconi and everyone else. His team-mates wanted to come here but obviously it was not possible.”

Speaking further about the attack, Galliani added: “It is shocking news. My thoughts are with the families – what happened today seems impossible for a city like Milan. It can’t be possible that someone gets up in the morning to go to work and then loses their life because of the actions of a criminal.”

Gazzetta reported that Mari had been walking with his wife and son – who was in a trolley – in the shop in Assago near Milan when he felt a pain in his back. The attacker, later identified as a 46-year-old man, was arrested by police. Local reports say any terrorist motive for the attack has been ruled out.

Arsenal issued a club statement on Thursday night saying: “We are all shocked to hear the dreadful news about the stabbing in Italy, which has put a number of people in hospital including our on-loan centre-back Pablo Mari. We have been in contact with Pablo’s agent who has told us he’s in hospital and is not seriously hurt. Our thoughts are with Pablo and the other victims of this dreadful incident.”

Speaking after Arsenal’s 2-0 defeat to PSV, Mikel Arteta said he was still establishing details of what had happened. “I know [technical director] Edu has been in touch with his relatives,” he added. “He is in hospital. He seems to be OK. I will get a briefing now about what happened.”

Mari’s loan deal at Monza includes a buy option, which would become permanent should Monza avoid relegation. He has made eight appearances and scored one goal this season.

Pablo Mari, the Arsenal defender stabbed in a Milan supermarket ambush, has described how he and his family were lucky to escape worse injuries.

The 29-year-old will spend around “two or three days” recovering in hospital following successful surgery to reconstruct two damaged back muscles.

In a message from his bed, he insisted, however, that he is “fine” after becoming one of at least seven victims of a frenzied knife attack on Thursday.

Mari, who is on loan at Serie A Monza, went on to express condolences for another victim – said to be an employee of the Carrefour supermarket – who had died. Five others were also injured.

“After the hard moment we experienced yesterday, both my family and I want to communicate that fortunately we are all fine despite the circumstances, and we want to thank all the messages of support and affection that we are receiving,” Mari tweeted.

He posted the message alongside a picture of him and his wife Veronica Chacon in hospital with their thumbs up.

“In addition, we want to send our condolences and all our strength to the family and friends of the deceased person, and we sincerely wish that all injured people recover as soon as possible,” Mari added.

The attack and subsequent surgery will rule out the Spaniard, who is on season-long loan with Serie A team Monza, for at least two months whilst he recovers.

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