The father of Arsenal defender Pablo Mari has provided a reassuring update after his son was stabbed in an attack at a Milan shopping centre on Thursday evening.
The Spaniard is currently on loan at Serie A side Monza and was one of six victims of the stabbing at a Carrefour supermarket in Assago.
The attack reportedly unfolded at 17:30 UK time, and Mari received a deep wound to his back by the perpetrator - alleged to be a 46-year-old man with a history of mental health problems - before being rushed to Niguarda Hospital.
Early indications were reassuring on Mari, who was not believed to have suffered any life-threatening injuries, and that has now been confirmed by both Arsenal and Monza.
The 29-year-old's father spoke to Cadena Cope in the wake of the incident, during which he confirmed that his son was conscious and on the mend in hospital.
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"I was able to talk to my son and he told me that he was fine and that he loved us very much," Mari's father Pablo Mari told the radio station. "These have been very bad hours.
"They have started calling me at eight in the afternoon and my heart has skipped a beat. Veronica (Mari's partner) has not told us how it happened, but she has told us that she has seen a person die in front of her. She has reassured us confirming that they are fine and that everything has been a fright for them."
One person - a store cashier in his 30s - is believed to have died in the attack, while a further three people have been left seriously injured, and another victim did not require hospital treatment.
Italian media have stated that the attacker grabbed a knife from the store shelves before attacking people at random, but he was quickly apprehended by customers and store employees before being arrested and taken into custody.
Monza CEO Adriano Galliani and coach Raffaele Palladino both went to the hospital to pay Mari a visit after the attack, and the former confirmed to TG2 that the Spaniard's injuries were not life-threatening.
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"Unfortunately I received terrible news, the store cashier died. As for Pablo Mari he had a fairly deep wound on his back, a penetrating one, which however did not touch vital organs such as lungs or other," Galliani said.
"He is not in danger of life, certainly has problems but should recover quickly despite some injured muscles. He is conscious and getting stitches."
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta confirmed after his side's loss to PSV Eindhoven in the Europa League that Edu had been in touch with the player's family, while Mari's agent told the Gunners that the defender was recovering in hospital.
"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," an Arsenal statement read.
"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."
Since joining Monza on loan, Mari has scored once in eight Serie A appearances for the newly-promoted side, and he will join them permanently if they avoid relegation to Serie B.
Ben Knapton
