PSG will travel to Istanbul on Wednesday to face Basaksehir, in the Champions League.

A perilous trip for Parisians on the lawn of the club of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, against a backdrop of diplomatic tensions between the two countries.

After losing at Parc-des-Princes against Manchester United (2-1), PSG will travel to Turkey on Wednesday to face Basaksehir, for their second group match in the Champions League.

A dangerous trip more because of the diplomatic context than sporting.

Nicknamed the "FC Erdogan"

Istanbul Basaksehir is a young club which surprised by becoming Turkish champion this year for the first time in its history.

The club is often presented as the toy of President Erdogan, a big fan of football.

The club is named after the new district of Istanbul, where it is located, a district known to support the uninhibited conservative policies of Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

He who was mayor of Istanbul in the 1990s would have preferred to get his hands on one of the three historic teams: Galatasaray, Fenerbahce or Besiktas.

But Basaksehir has benefited for several years from the financial support of those close to power and has attracted renowned players such as Emmanuel Adebayor, Gaël Clichy or Robinho.

Relatives of the Turkish President at the head of the club

"The club was acquired by a private group but it was people close to Erdogan who took the leadership. It's a club where he can be present without risking being challenged. He feels like a a little bit at home ", explains Jean-François Polo, a teacher at Sciences-Po Rennes and a fine connoisseur of local football.

At the inauguration of the stadium six years ago, Recep Tayyip Erdogan had swapped his political costume for a footballer outfit, scoring a hat-trick against a particularly passive defense.

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- For the Turks in France, the current tensions are "acute but temporary"

In recent days, relations between France and Turkey have been very strained.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan attacked Emmanuel Macron again on Monday, calling on the European Union to stop the French president's "hate campaign" against the Muslim community.

France and Emmanuel Macron have been targeted since the national tribute paid to Samuel Paty, during which the French President insisted on the importance of the right to blasphemy.