Rio Ferdinand ´may be out until September´

Rio Ferdinand could be out of action until early September, after Manchester United coach Sir Alex Ferguson revealed on Sunday that the England defender is still six weeks away from full fitness.

Ferdinand injured knee ligaments in pre-World Cup training with England on June 4, but in early July United suggested he might be fit to face Newcastle in the club’s opening Premier League game on August 16.

But Ferguson suggests that will be difficult, telling the club’s official website: “Rio is probably around six weeks away from playing.”

That would likely mean Ferdinand misses England’s first two Euro 2012 qualifiers against Bulgaria and Switzerland on September 3 and 7.