Andres Iniesta will be awarded the Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Sports Merit, the highest honour in Spanish sport.

The award recognises "distinguished service in sports" and has previously been given to former Spain internationals Iker Casillas and Xavi Hernandez.

Iniesta, 34 later this month, receives the distinction just one week after confirming he will leave Barca at the end of the season.

The midfielder, who joined the Catalan club as a 12-year-old 22 years ago, has not yet announced his next move, but he's expected to move to the Chinese Super League.

Tributes have poured in since Iniesta announced his departure from Spanish football.

Deportivo La Coruna fans gave him a standing ovation when he was brought on as a second-half substitute last weekend, while Sevilla fans did the same in the Copa del Rey final the week before.

Andres Iniesta kisses the Copa del Rey trophy after Barcelona's 5-0 win over Sevilla in the 2018 final. Getty Images

Iniesta, who has won 32 trophies with Barca, is a player loved around Spain thanks to exploits with the national team.

As well as helping his country win the European Championships in 2008 and 2012, he scored the winning goal as La Roja beat the Netherlands in the final of the 2010 World Cup.

It is those achievements for club and country which have seen the government take the decision to grant him the biggest distinction in Spanish sport.

Former teammate Thierry Henry has also paid homage to Iniesta in his column on Sky Sports, comparing the Barca captain to Superman.

"Andres is the guy who, first and foremost, does his talking with the ball," Henry said.

"He's not very vocal off the field, you won't see a lot of interviews with him, but when he has the ball he can talk for days.

"I always think, when you look at him, if he walked past with a cap you wouldn't even know it was him. Chilling, low key, not doing anything -- you throw him a ball and he turns into Superman.

"You can't grab him, he'll play one-twos to get past you, it's annoying. But it's all in his head. Look at him -- did he have a little two-three step to get past you? Yeah. Was he quick? Not really. Was he strong? Not really."

Iniesta is preparing for his final four games in a Barca shirt, starting with Sunday's Clasico against Real Madrid. The aim is to end the season unbeaten in La Liga -- Barca also face Villarreal, Levante and Real Sociedad -- something which has never been done in a 38-game campaign in the Spanish top flight.

Barca have already won La Liga and the Copa del Rey this season, securing a third double in four years, but were knocked out of the Champions League to Roma in the quarterfinals.