Monza have confirmed that on-loan Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has undergone successful surgery after being stabbed in a Milan supermarket on Thursday evening.
The 29-year-old was targeted by a knife man at the Carrefour supermarket in the Milanofiori shopping complex in Assago while out shopping with his wife and son.
A total of six people are believed to have been stabbed, one of whom - 47-year-old Luis Fernando Ruggieri, an employee of the supermarket - died from his injuries.
Mari was immediately rushed to Niguarda Hospital, where his injuries were not deemed to be life-threatening, and news broke of the stabbing in the dying embers of Arsenal's Europa League defeat to PSV Eindhoven.
Monza CEO Adriano Galliani and head coach Raffaele Palladino both went to the hospital to visit Mari after the attack, and the former revealed that the Spaniard had sustained a deep cut to his back.
The knife did not hit any vital organs, and Arsenal subsequently confirmed in their own statement that Mari was recovering well in hospital.
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Now, Monza have announced that Mari has undergone an operation to repair the damaged muscles in his back, and he will likely remain out of action for two months while he rehabilitates.
"The specialists of the General Surgery-Trauma Team of the Niguarda Hospital in Milan carried out this morning the surgery to reconstruct the two injured muscles on Pablo Marí's back," a statement from the Serie A club read.
"The surgery went well and a hospital stay of two or three days is expected. After the resignation, 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 attacker is understood to be a 46-year-old man with a history of mental health problems, who was taken into custody by police after being apprehended by supermarket staff and customers.
One of the people who intervened was former Inter Milan and Napoli defender Massimo Tarantino, who helped to tackle the suspect after he grabbed a knife from the store shelves and began stabbing people at random.
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Mari spoke to Gazzetta dello Sport in the wake of the incident and recounted the horrors he witnessed, saying: "Today I was lucky, because I saw a person die in front of me."
Monza CEO Galliani has claimed that the centre-back's 6ft 4in frame saved him from serious injury, and he has been left 'deeply disturbed' by what he witnessed.
"I've spoken to Pablo. He told me about this incredible incident. He had his son in a trolley & his wife next to him. He didn't notice anything. He then felt something painful in his back, which was the criminal's knife," Galliani told Sky.
"I imagine he was saved by his height because he was struck on the shoulder. Unfortunately, he also saw the criminal stab someone in the throat. He saw everything that happened & it was deeply disturbing."
Mari has scored one goal in eight appearances for Monza since joining on loan in the summer, and his move will become permanent if the Lombardy-based club avoid relegation to Serie B.
Ben Knapton
