kids

A photo of David Beckham and his daughter has sparked a massive parenting debate.

Scores of trolls have taken to David Beckham’s Instagram account after the former professional footballer uploaded a photo kissing his five-year-old daughter Harper on the lips.

“Kiss for Daddy,” he captioned the photo as the family holidayed in Tanzania.

“David, to kiss lips of your daughter that’s wrong,” wrote one user, while another added “I just think she’s a little too old for that is all.”

“To be honest kissing your daughter on the lips is a little weird,” one more wrote.

A post shared by David Beckham (@davidbeckham) on

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The photo, liked by nearly two million people, also had the support of hundreds of other Beckham fans who leapt to the defence of the father-of-four.

“Gorgeous pic. Keep kissing your kids! Why should something so pure and affectionate be made to feel wrong?” one wrote.

“This picture is everything that is right with the world …the negative comments are everything that is wrong with the world,” another added.

Interestingly, the Beckham family are no stranger to this specific kind of debate, with Victoria finding herself the centre of a similar social media storm last year.

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In July, Beckham uploaded a photo with daughter Harper. “Happy Birthday baby girl. We all love you so much,” Victoria captioned the photo of her kissing her daughter on the lips.

The trolls – predictably – came out in force, writing that the image was “inappropriate” and “so lesbian”.

It comes just months after actress and singer Hilary Duff also addressed criticism for uploading a photo doing the same thing.

In a post on Instagram, Duff commented on the criticism directed at her after she uploaded a photo kissing her son at Disneyland, writing that those who found the image “inappropriate” are more than welcome to unfollow her.

“For anyone commenting that a kiss on the lips with my four year old is ‘inappropriate’ go ahead and click a quick unfollow with your warped minds and judgement,” she wrote.