Krstajić faces six weeks out
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Article summary
The 33-year-old Serbia defender Mladen Krstajić will miss their UEFA EURO 2008™ qualifier in Portugal on 12 September after damaging knee ligaments.
Article body
Serbia defender Mladen Krstajić will miss their UEFA EURO 2008™ Group A qualifier in Portugal on 12 September after damaging knee ligaments in FC Schalke 04's Bundesliga match with Bayer 04 Leverkusen on Friday.
Six-week absence
The 33-year-old was already suspended for his country's home game against Finland four days earlier but he could now be out for up to six weeks with the injury, meaning he will also miss the start of Schalke's UEFA Champions League campaign. The German side face Valencia CF, Rosenborg BK and Chelsea FC in the group stage.
Žigić returns
There was better news for Serbia with Nikola Žigić likely to be fit for the crucial matches against Finland in Belgrade and Portugal in Lisbon. Poland lead the pool with 19 points from nine matches, two more than Finland. Portugal are in third with 15 points from eight games with Serbia one point further back.