LONDON - Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic will miss the rest of the season after rupturing his cruciate knee ligament in the Champions League defeat by Basel, manager Alex Ferguson said on Friday.

"We thought it was a bad one," Ferguson told a news conference. "He's out for the season. It's not unexpected but it's still bad news.

"He'll see a specialist on Monday to work out the progress of when he has the operation. It won't be immediate as we have to let the swelling come down."

The Serbia centre-back was carried off on a stretcher during the 2-1 loss in Switzerland on Wednesday which sent United out of the Champions League at the group stage.

Vidic left the stadium on crutches and his agent said on Thursday the defender had "suffered a ruptured cruciate ligament".