Valencian footballer Pablo Marí is recovering after being stabbed in a shopping center in Milan

Several Italian media have reported that the attacker’s name is Andrea Tombolini, a 45-year-old man with mental problems – no violent history – who took a knife from a shelf at the Carrefour supermarket in the same shopping center and began attacking people who was close, including the footballer. The incident occurred around 6:30 p.m.

The defender was transferred to the Niguarda Hospital in Milan, where this Friday morning he was successfully operated on for the knife wounds on his back which could have been more serious, according to the ANSA agency. The CEO of Monza, Adriano Galliani, and the coach of the first team, Raffaelle Palladino, have visited him in the hospital – where he will remain, still, for three to four days under observation – to have first-hand evidence of the state of the player. The same hospital has issued a statement saying that the player will be out of action for two to three months.

Pablo Marí is fine and Monza asks to postpone the next game

The footballer has published a statement from the hospital that reassures and encourages his teammates, friends, family and supporters: “My family and I want to communicate that fortunately we are all fine despite the circumstances, and we appreciate all the messages from support and affection we are receiving,” says Marí in an Instagram post. In addition, he wanted to remember the other affected people: “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 people recover as soon as possible.”

The news has alarmed Marí’s teammates, and Adriano Galliani, the club’s representative, has asked to postpone the next game, against Bologna – which was scheduled for Monday. Marí is not in serious condition thanks to the success of the operation, and he himself shared with Galliani that the situation could have been much worse: “I was lucky.” The stab wound he suffered was close to the lung, but did not reach that organ.

The former player Massimo Tarantino reduced the aggressor

Massimo Tarantino (51 years old), former player of teams such as Inter Milan or Napoli and current sports director of SPAL Ferrara, announced that he was the one who caught and disarmed the author of the attack : “The assailant was screaming and running. Have I been a hero? I haven’t done anything…” explained Tarantino.

For its part, Carrefour has issued a note expressing “its utmost closeness to the employees and customers involved in the attack and their families.” In addition, he assured that he called the police as quickly as he could and to give the first information that the attacker had been reduced. Finally, the chain has activated “a psychological support service for all employees directly or indirectly involved in the incident”.