Pablo Mari returned to the stands to watch AC Monza win 2-0 on Sunday, in a boost for both player and club.

Last Thursday, Pablo Mari was one of a number of people stabbed by a man whilst in a supermarket with his wife and child. Fortunately, all three escaped the incident, though Mari required surgery and will miss two months of football.

In an encouraging sign of his recovery, Mari was able to attend AC Monza’s game against Hellas Verona on Sunday. The Arsenal loanee sat in the stands to watch the match, sporting a sling over his left shoulder.

Monza must have wanted to put on a display for their injured teammate, as they ran out 2-0 winners over Verona.

The victory put Monza seven points clear of the relegation zone, with Cremonese, Sampdoria, and Verona all on six points or less after 13 games.

Avoiding relegation is the primary goal for Monza this season, having been promoted from Serie B earlier this year. But it’s also an important factor for Mari’s long-term future.

Mari has a clause in his loan deal that makes the loan permanent under certain conditions, and the key one of those is that Monza must avoid relegation.

So if Monza continue to stay clear of the drop, the defender will move to Italy permanently.

But those are considerations for later. For today, it was just great to see Mari back with his team and enjoying a win.