Denis Law was ‘cornerstone’ of Manchester United success, says Alex Ferguson

Alex Ferguson has hailed Denis Law as the “greatest Scottish player of all time” and described him as the “cornerstone” of Manchester United’s success.

Law, who won two league titles with United and was a member of their European Cup-winning team under Matt Busby in 1968 when they became the first English club to lift the trophy, died on Friday aged 84.

Law won the Ballon d’Or in 1964 – the only Scottish player to do so – and claimed 55 caps for his country.

“He was the best Scottish player of all time,” said Ferguson, who oversaw 13 Premier League titles and two Champions League triumphs during his remarkable trophy-laden spell as United manager.

“He was a fantastic player and an incredible human being. The great thing is that he did not use his fame, he was so level-headed and down to earth and we are talking about a guy who had all of these caps for Scotland and is called the ‘King of Old Trafford’.

“It is an interesting thing because why did they call him the King? You had guys like George Best, Bobby Charlton – the greatest English player of all time and a fantastic player for our club – and they called Denis ‘the King’.

“It was something to do with the determination and the will to win every time he went on that football field. He was a really competitive human being and it was a natural thing for the supporters to associate with him as their King.”

Law made the move to Old Trafford from Torino in 1962 before going on to score 237 times, the club’s third-highest scorer in history behind Wayne Rooney and Charlton.

A year after he claimed the 1964 Ballon d’Or, Law helped fire United to their first Division One title since the Munich Air Disaster.

Having already won the FA Cup in 1963, Law inspired United to another