Martin Skrtel, the Liverpool defender, is likely to miss the remainder of the season after scans revealed he has damaged his cruciate knee ligament.

The 23-year-old Slovakia international was given oxygen and left the field on a stretcher during Liverpool's 3-2 win over Manchester City after he fell awkwardly on the edge of his own penalty area.

Skrtel, who was signed by Rafael Benitez in January from Zenit St Petersburg, has forged a solid partnership with Jamie Carragher at the heart of a Liverpool defence which has conceded only four goals in seven Barclays Premier League matches this season.

"Martin underwent a scan this morning which showed damage to the posterior cruciate ligament in his right knee," a Liverpool official said.

"He will see a specialist tomorrow to assess the extent of the injury and will then have an accurate idea of the timescales involved before he is back playing again."