England football ace David Beckham has added another tattoo, a black and white image of Jesus Christ, to his huge collection of body art.

Beckham, 34, already has 17 tattoos on his body, but got the latest one to pay a tribute to his grandfather Joe West, who died recently.

The footballer was very close to him.

The new image, on Beckham's lower right abdomen, is based on a painting called 'The Man Of Sorrows' by Catholic artist Matthew R Brooks, the Daily Mail reported.

The AC Milan striker revealed his latest piece of body art at the weekend when he took off his jersey in triumph following his team's 3-0 victory over Juventus.

The former Manchester United star's body art includes an angel with the text 'In the face of adversity', a crucifix on the back of his neck, just above a guardian angel, arms fully covered with tattoos and all of his son's names have been added to his back.

One of his most famous tattoos is the name of his wife Victoria emblazoned in Hindi on his left arm.

Beckham first got a tattoo in 1999 to mark the birth of his son, when he got his name Brooklyn etched across his lower back.

Photograph: Reuters