From correspondents in Europe, 04:32 PM IST

Barcelona defender Rafa Marquez will almost certainly be out of action for the rest of the season, after breaking the cartilage in his left knee in Tuesday's Champions League semi-final first leg 0-0 draw at home to Chelsea.

The Mexican defender suffered the injury in the 49th minute, and was stretchered off in tears of pain.

The digital versions of Mundo Deportivo and Sport claim that he has torn the external cartilage in his left knee and will need an immediate operation. They speculate that Marquez could be out of action for up to three months.

Barca head doctor Ricard Pruna said that he prefers to wait until he has carried out checks on Marquez on Wednesday before reaching a conclusion.

Marquez, 30, was replaced by club captain Carles Puyol, who immediately picked up a yellow card and so will also miss next Wednesday's second leg against Chelsea in London.

The Marquez injury comes at a difficult time for Barca. On Saturday they are away to historic rivals Real Madrid, who are now just four points behind them in La Liga.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)