Nicklas Bendtner has confirmed that he was present as a friend of the victim at a horrifying knife attack in New York's Upper West Side last week.
The former Arsenal and Denmark forward was shown in CCTV footage of events leading up to and following the attack, in which an unidentified 55-year-old Danish former footballer was slashed in the face with a knife.
Bendtner and his compatriot can be seen walking down the street together before a man runs after them. The attack itself is not captured on video. The alleged attacker, Joshua Zinberg, then comes back into frame holding a blade-like object.
Cult Arsenal star Nicklas Bendtner was involved in the ordeal
Bendtner was recognised in the footage and contacted by Danish outlet BT, to whom he confirmed it was him pictured. Asked how he was feeling given his close proximity to the attack, Bendtner said: "I have no comment on that. But I can confirm that it is me in the video. It's hard to run away from."
The victim has not been named, but the New York Post report that he was treated for 'non-life-threatening injuries'. Zinberg has been arrested and charged with attempted murder and assault.
Bendtner, 36, announced his retirement from football in 2021, but had not played a competitive game since leaving FC Copenhagen in 2019.
The centre-forward was an extremely highly-rated prospect during his time in Arsenal's academy and played 171 first-team games for the club, scoring 45 goals, as well as having loan spells at Birmingham City, Sunderland and Juventus.
Bendtner departed for Wolfsburg in 2014 and returned to England for a short-lived spell with Nottingham Forest in September 2016. He left for Norwegian side Rosenburg just six months later
In contrat with his often-frustrating club career, Bendtner's best form came for the Danish national team, for whom he scored 30 times in 81 appearances.
He has entered the world of competitive video gaming since retiring, specialising in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
