Gary Smith, 19, of King's Lynn, Norfolk, had been out with friends in the town last Saturday night when they were set upon by two men.
"I thought he was punching me... I felt my head, and the blood started dripping down my arm," Mr Smith said.
All four friends were attacked with glass and were treated in hospital.
Mr Smith, a carpenter, sustained the most serious injuries, with seven lacerations to his head and face.
"I didn't realise there was anything much wrong with me but in the ambulance they couldn't seem to stop the bleeding," he said.
'Vicious and unprovoked'
"When I got to hospital I was sick and I lost consciousness because of the blood loss."
At the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, he required 32 stitches to his head and a metal clip was fitted to an artery.
Police believe at least one of the offenders was also seriously injured, which would have required medical treatment.
On Wednesday, Det Sgt Pete Jessop described the attack as "vicious and unprovoked".
"We are looking for two men who are prepared to go from what is seemingly an innocuous fight in the Tuesday Market Place to sticking broken glass into somenone's head," he added.
The offenders are described as white, in their mid 20s with short dark hair. Both were about 5ft 8in tall.
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