David Beckham says his 'heart is heavy' as he breaks silence on death of friend

David Beckham described Denis Law as 'a true gentleman,' after the Hall of Fame footballer died at the age of 84

David Beckham, 49, has shared a moving tribute to the late Denis Law, who passed away on January 17.

Scottish footballer Denis died at the age of 84 after a very successful career that saw him get inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame. David shared photos from David’s time on the pitch on Instagram, alongside a touching message.

"Tonight we lost a true gentleman of the game… Our love goes out to Denis's family. Our hearts are heavy tonight. A legend on the field but the perfect gentleman off… The King,” he wrote.

Denis’ death came just days after David attended a funeral to mourn the loss of Manchester United legend Kath Phipps. The long-serving receptionist died aged 85 at the start of December, prompting an outpouring of tributes. Kath spent 56 years working for United, having first joined the club in September 1968 when Sir Matt Busby was in charge.

Kath started out as a switchboard operator, and ended up working on the reception at Old Trafford's director's entrance, as well as the entrance to the training ground at Carrington. David was among those who turned out at Manchester Cathedral on January 6 to pay his respects, joined by sporting icons such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Roy Keane. David was also joined by his mum Sandra and dad Ted, after having revealed his personal family connection to Kath.

David was particularly close to Kath, and visited her last year before she passed away. After her death, he shared an emotional post on social media to explain her importance to him and to the club.

He wrote: "Forever in our hearts... The first and last face I would always see was Kath sat at reception at Old Trafford waiting to give me my tickets for the game , she was the heartbeat of Manchester United, everyone knew who Kath was and everyone adored her.

"I moved up to Manchester at 15 and Kath made a promise to my mum and dad 'I'll look after your boy for you don't you worry' and from that first day till the last day I spent with her that's exactly what she did. Old Trafford will never be the same without your smile as we walk through those doors... We love you."

Alongside grieving two major football figures, David is also contending with the resurgence of cheating claims made by his former PA, Rebecca Loos, 47. Rebecca first made the claims in News of the World in 2004, but has now spoken out again.

In an interview with James English for his Anything Goes podcast, Rebecca admitted she was "no angel" and said the backlash she received was "unfair.” She complained: "The funny thing is, I got the s***, Victoria got the s***, David f****** never got any s***. That's the world we live in."

* Follow Mirror Celebs on Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .