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Arsenal defender Pablo Mari returns to training at loan club Monza, two months after he was stabbed to death in a Milan supermarket and was ‘lucky’ to avoid life-threatening injuries.
Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has returned to training at his loan club Monza, just months after he was stabbed to death during an attack at a supermarket in Milan.
The Spaniard was taken to hospital after being one of six people who were stabbed to death in the Italian capital’s shopping center in October. One person was killed in the attack, and Mari told him he was “lucky” to avoid life-threatening injuries to him while he was undergoing surgery.
Mari underwent surgery to rebuild two injured muscles in his back, and the treatment forced him out of action for two months.
Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has been photographed in training with his loan club Monza, two months after he was stabbed.
The Spaniard – on loan until the end of the season – said he was taking things ‘step by step’
He is now preparing to return to the game after being photographed in a Monza training session, with the player claiming he is taking things ‘one step at a time’ after coming out again with the ball at his feet after posting photos on Twitter.
Last month, Mari received an emotional reception ahead of the Monza clash against Hellas Verona when he took the pitch to a standing ovation from fans, who greeted him while sporting a cast.
Writing an Instagram post from her hospital bed at the time of the incident, Mari thanked those who had shown her support.
Mari received an enthusiastic reception after being introduced to fans at Monza during his recovery.
Mari was one of six people involved in the attack, with one person killed.
“After the hard moment experienced yesterday, both my family and I want to inform you that fortunately we are all well despite the circumstances, and we want to thank all the messages of support and affection that we are receiving.
“In addition, we want to send our condolences and all our strength to the relatives and friends of the deceased person, and we sincerely wish that all the injured recover as soon as possible.”
Mari joined Monza on a season-long loan in August and had played eight times before the attack, scoring once.
The center-back came to Arsenal from Flamengo in 2020, but has not managed to get a permanent position in Mikel Arteta’s team.
He played three times in his first season of 2019-20 and then made 16 appearances in the following campaign in 2020-21. But in 2021-22 he was loaned out to Udinese, where he played 15 times, and he clearly didn’t do enough to win over Arteta, as he was later sent back to Italy with Monza.