Fernando Hierro praises Carlos Puyol

Former Spanish centre-back Fernando Hierro has paid tribute to Barcelona defender Carlos Puyol.

Puyol revealed last week that he will depart the Camp Nou at the end of the season to seek pastures new following a number of injury troubles in recent seasons.

Hierro, who represented Real Madrid between 1989 and 2003, believes that Puyol will be remembered as "one of the best three centre-backs in the history of Spain".

"Puyol is a great, an example for everyone for his honesty and his loyalty," Hierro told AS.

"He will go down as one of the best three centre-backs in the history of Spain. I have the upmost respect for him. He'll go down in history. It's always difficult to replace a player like Puyol.

"Barca will try and search for a replacement for Puyol at home. It's not that easy to find good centre-backs who can adapt to Barca's game, when you have to defend high up."

Hierro scored 29 times in 89 games for Spain before retiring from international duty in 2002.