Real Madrid star Isco forced to quell rumours of Barcelona move after being pictured with packet of Barca-branded crisps

Real Madrid midfielder Isco has moved to quash speculation he is poised to join Barcelona - after being pictured with a packet of Barca-branded crisps.

The social media faux pas on Thursday sent the rumour mill spinning, with stunned Real supporters questioning whether he was contemplating the unthinkable.

But Isco returned to Twitter to insist he won't be moving to Real's greatest rivals, saying that he didn't even eat a single one of the crisps.

The picture of Isco eating salad and potatoes with friends appeared on Thursday, with the large bag of Barcelona-branded crisps noticeable on the table.

The 24-year-old was promptly innundated with messages from outraged Real fans and so felt compelled to address the speculation later that night.

He wrote: 'I'm not going to Barca. With the photo, I wanted to say that we wanted to eat them with potatoes. #HalaMadrid!!'

A later tweet clarified: 'By the way I have not tried them! They were for my friends.'

Isco has featured regularly in Real's La Liga campaign this season but appearanced in the Champions League have been limited to just two matches.

The Bernabeu side are currently two points ahead of Barcelona at the top of the table and retain a game in hand.