Serbia are ready to battle Manchester United over defender Nemanja Vidic.

The Times says United are confident that they will have Vidic available for their Barclays Premier League match away to Bolton Wanderers on Saturday, regardless of whether his country are in contention, because it is not a recognised date for international fixtures.

But, contrary to earlier indications from Uefa, European football's governing body, the Serbian FA believes that it will be given special dispensation for its national team's match against Kazakhstan, which was postponed on Saturday because of adverse weather conditions in Belgrade.

Serbia will probably back down if their qualifying hopes are ended by failure to beat Poland this evening - or if Portugal pick up a point or more at home to Finland - but Javier Clemente, their Spanish coach, is determined to have Vidic available on Saturday if tonight's results go in his team's favour.

"We want to work with the clubs, but as a federation we have an obligation for our national team," a Serb FA official said. "If we have a chance to qualify against Kazakhstan, of course we would want all our players available. If we don't have a chance to qualify, the match would still be important for the seeding for the 2010 World Cup. We will make the right decision, but people must understand our situation as well as the situation for the clubs."