Pablo Mari has moved to confirm he is fine after the Arsenal player was stabbed during an horrific attack in an Italian supermarket.
Posting a picture of himself in a hospital bed, alongside his wife, he said: "After the tough time we had yesterday, both my family and I want to communicate that thankfully we are all fine despite the circumstances and to thank all the messages of support and love we are receiving.
"In addition, we want to send condolences and all our strength to the relatives and friends of the deceased person, and we sincerely wish that all injured people recover as soon as possible.
Mari was shopping with his wife and son when a man is believed to have grabbed a knife from a Carrefour shelf, located in a shopping centre near Milan, on Thursday and went on a rampage. Six people were attacked with one tragically dying.
Mari was among those hurt, with his back slashed. The defender was airlifted to hospital where he was in a conscious and safe state. On Friday, the 29-year-old underwent surgery to have two muscles repaired. He is expected to be out of action for two months.
Monza's CEO Adriano Galliani and coach Raffaele Palladino rushed to the hospital after the incident. Galliani spoke after his visit and relayed what Mari had told him: "I was lucky, because I saw a person die in front of me.
"I had the trolley, with the baby inside. I felt excruciating pain in my back. After that I saw this man stab a person in the throat, in front of me. I'm fine, I'll be on the field on Monday."
A statement from loan club Monza on Friday, however, revealed the extent of Mari's injuries. It read: “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.
“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.”
Arsenal released a club statement shortly after the shocking news emerged. Following the club's 2-0 defeat to PSV, it read: "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."
