Manchester: It is impossible to look at the hundreds of tributes to George Best laid out on a Manchester pavement and not think of Diana, Princess of Wales.

The outpouring of grief for the footballer must be the greatest the UK has seen since Prince Charles's former wife died in a Paris car crash in 1997.

Back then, the roads outside Kensington Palace were covered with flowers and cards.

For Best, it is a space opposite Old Trafford, home of his old club Manchester United, that has been drawing fans like a magnet since his death on Friday.

Stretched out along about 50 metres of pathway, there are thousands upon thousands of mementoes left to the man many insist was the most talented footballer to walk on to a pitch.

Most fans have brought football shirts and written short messages on them. The most popular tribute is "Simply the Best". Other scrawlings say he was "the greatest footballer ever seen", or proclaim "there was only one George Best".

There are balloons shaped like footballs, books on Best, flowers, photos, candles and even, in one case, a tea bag. "Not everyone knew how much you loved your cuppa," reads the accompanying message in a female script.

Kitchen fitter Tom Pye is almost moved to tears when he sees the response to Best's death.

Pye was born in the same year as Best and has been a fan since the Irishman's debut at Old Trafford. He still lives round the corner from the ground. "The tributes here have just grown and grown. We shouldn't be surprised really. I watched him through his career and he was just immense. He was the best ever without a doubt better than Pele. Pele couldn't tackle," said the 59-year-old.

Kevin Chappell, a 44-year-old IT director from north of the city, has only seen Best play on video but is in no doubt he was "something very special".

"He captured the spirit of the age. Like all geniuses, he was supremely talented but had a complication about his character that people could identify with.

"Each generation brings a star. People might say Eric Cantona also caught the imagination, but it wasn't the same. In an era when it was legitimate to virtually break someone's legs on the football field, Best still managed to be supreme. If he was playing now, at a time when referees are much stricter about behaviour, he would be untouchable."