Great news! Stabbing victim Pablo Mari returns to training for Monza
Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 15.12.22. | 13:35
The Arsenal loanee is fully recovered and keen to leave the horror in the past
Spanish defender Pablo Mari, who was stabbed in early October in a shopping centre near Milan, is now back in training with his Monza teammates - and could be playing top-flight football in mid-January.
Mari was welcomed onto the pitch at Monza's home Serie A fixture against Verona last month, a game the Silvio Berlusconi-owned side won 2-0. His comeback looked a long way away at that point. Everyone was just happy he's survived the incident - unlike cashier Luis Fernando Ruggieri, who lost his life that terrible day.
However, the Arsenal loanee responded better than expected to the requests of the first work session, earning plaudits from his colleagues and young head coach Raffaele Palladino. According to the Italian press, Pablo could even be fit to return to the field by mid-January, or for the Lombardian derby with Cremonese on Saturday, 14 January or for the Coppa Italia match at Juventus five days later.
Even though the Spaniard appeared in his first training session following a long break, he was even doing a bit of work with the ball at his feet, which is highly encouraging for the Serie A debutants. The former Udinese defender, on loan from Arsenal, worked both individually but also with the rest of his teammates. All Serie A clubs experienced the news with great enthusiasm, with a sigh of relief and a lot of renewed hope for Pablo's near future.
The good news came after the toast with the journalists on Wednesday. We're not sure if Pablo's quick recovery has anything to do with the weird promise made by the red and whites' unhinged president Silvio Berlusconi.
Monza sits 14th in the Serie A table after 15 games and will resume its campaign with a trip to Fiorentina on 5 January.
