Arsenal centre-back Pablo Mari sent a reminder to the club of his quality on Wednesday evening with an emphatic finish for Udinese against Fiorentina in Serie A. The 28-year-old left the Emirates during the January transfer window after falling down the pecking order in north London.
Ben White and Gabriel Magalhaes have the two centre-back spots on lock under Mikel Arteta while Rob Holding remains waiting in the wings to step in when required. After a smattering of poor displays at the start of the campaign, Mari found himself out of opportunities, so jumped at the chance to move to the Serie A on loan.
With William Saliba also potentially returning to challenge for a first-team spot, Mari's future appears almost certain to play out away from Arsenal. Earlier this month confirmed that he wanted to stay in Italy for the foreseeable as well.
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"When I arrived in January, I had a clear and precise idea," the Spaniard explained in an interview with Gazetta dello Sport. "I told the coach and [club owner] Gino Pozzo that I was coming to play. But I realised that I had to earn the job day after day, workout after workout. [Head coach] Gabriele Cioffi was the first who welcomed me, well, here.
"It's the right league for me. Very tactical. I try to bring the attacker towards me. I really like having the ball and here it can be done and then there is the battle and I like having a battle on the pitch." Mari, who has only appeared 22 times for his parent club, then went on to reiterate his intentions.
"I would like to stay in Italy. I'm very well at Udinese and I'd be happy to take the club even higher in the standings," the left-footed centre-back affirmed. "Of course, I still have a two-year contract with Arsenal. I've resumed playing continuously after the operation on my left ankle where I was out for five months."
But he sent a reminder of his quality to both Arteta and director of football Edu on Wednesday night. Mari gave the visitors the lead in the 12th minute, showing some tidy footwork on the left-hand side of the penalty area before rifling a rocket of a shot into the back of the net.
