• Olympique de Marseille finds PAOK this Thursday evening in the quarter-final second leg of the Europa League Conference.

  • In the first leg, the Marseillais had won 2 goals to 1, in an explosive context marked by incidents between supporters of OM and PAOK, and Greek supporters with the police.

  • The PAOK club is increasingly sulphurous, through its president Ivan Savvidis, and its Gate 4 supporters.

They promised an evening to shake the calves to the Marseillais.

The PAOK club, in Thessaloniki, a city located in the north of Greece, welcomes Olympique de Marseille this Thursday evening in the quarter-final return of the Europa League Conference (9 p.m.), in its Toumba stadium.

Their coach, Razvan Lusescu, warned them after the first leg, won 2-1 by OM: “Of course Marseille are favourites, but it won't be easy for them to play with us.

I hope Marseille will be welcomed the way we were received here, I'm really disappointed with what I saw today.

For football it is not acceptable, ”he accused, when incidents had broken out since the day before in Marseille, between Greek and Marseille supporters, and between Greek supporters and the police.

This Wednesday, he gave a layer, ensuring "not to regret" these remarks.

"A lot of weird symbols in their stands"

A surprising communication, but not so surprising when you know a little about PAOK, and its fiery president Ivan Savvidis.

He made himself known by entering the field armed in 2018, unhappy with an arbitration decision against AEK Athens.

Which earned him a three-year stadium ban in Greece.

This close friend of Vladimir Putin - he is a member of his party - was also sentenced to twenty-five months in prison suspended in February, before appealing this decision.

The first leg in Marseille also recalled the volcanic character of the PAOK supporters, and in particular of Gate 4 of the Toumba stadium, renowned for its nationalist current.

“There are quite a few weird symbols in their gallery.

I thought, at first, that they were affiliated with Partizan Belgrade for their colors, whereas there seems rather to be an ideology behind them.

But it happens in a lot of Greek clubs, which have taken the wrong direction, ”explains Ricardo Faty, who played two years at Aris Salonika, PAOK’s rival club, “very left-wing”, according to the midfielder.

On February 1, PAOK ultras stabbed to death a 19-year-old Aris Salonika supporter.

And members of Grobari, the main group of supporters of Partizan Belgrade, behind the death of Toulouse supporter Brice Taton in 2009, were present at the Vélodrome stadium last Thursday, alongside members of Gate 4. All but children of choirs, therefore.

"Anarchists and Nationalists"

For Kostas Petrotos, a Greek journalist who follows PAOK, Gate 4 which "brings together around 8,000 supporters" is difficult to define.

“You find all layers of society, racists, nationalists, but also leftists.

At the end of the day, they only define themselves as PAOK fans.

Even if some are more anarchist, and others more nationalist,” he said.

But the nationalists seem to be taking a growing share among PAOK supporters, ultimately like Greek society.

“I left Greece almost 10 years ago so I'm not too familiar with the latest trends, but nationalism has made a very strong inroads.

In my time PAOK fans were already known for that, and there were already quite a few problems at the time.

It's a bit of the recurring evil of Greek football, there is too much letting go, ”said Ricardo Faty.

“Since the economic crash in 2010, there has been a strong rise in nationalism at that time.

They started to become very important.

They returned to government, before assassinating a far-left activist and losing popularity,” adds Kostas Petrotos.

Sold out game

For the reception of OM, without its supporters at the request of the Greek authorities, the Toumba stadium will be sold out with 30,000 supporters, for the first time since the shock against Olympiakos, in February 2020, covid obliges.

“The stadium will be full, it's a very important game to write history.

There will be no Marseille fans, so the supporters should be calm, ”the journalist believes.

The members of Gate 4 have also published a press release asking that the atmosphere be the same everywhere in the stadium as at Gate 4, while calling for nothing to be thrown on the lawn.

For Ricardo Faty, the atmosphere of the Toumba stadium is hostile, but not impressive.

“It's an open stadium, not like Galatasaray where you really have a cauldron effect.

The atmosphere is impressive, there is a nice vibe, but it's not the biggest one I've experienced either.

On the other hand, when we won there in 2010, the first victory for 10 years, we had to stay 2 hours in the locker room because the supporters did not want to let us out, ”recalls the midfielder.

Let's hope that Dimitri Payet can, at least, take the corners.

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