Sarkozy received by Macron at Élysée Palace before five-year prison term starts on Tuesday

Disgraced former French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been discreetly received by incumbent leader Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris on Friday ahead of the start of his prison sentence.

A Paris court found Sarkozy guilty of criminal conspiracy in connection with the alleged Libyan financing of his victorious 2007 presidential campaign in September and setenced him to five years in prison.

That prison term is due to begin on Tuesday.

"It was normal that, on a human level, I should receive one of my predecessors," Macron said, when asked about the visit.

Sarkozy, who served as president from 2007 to 2012, has always maintained his innocence and immediately appealed his conviction.

In an interview with the Le Figaro daily published on Sunday, Sarkozy said that he would enter the prison "with his head held high" and would take a biography of Jesus and The Count of Monte Cristo with him.

"I will go and see him in prison," Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin said in an interview with the radio station France Inter on Monday, admitting that he felt "a great deal of sadness" at the idea of the former president being incarcerated.

Those remarks were condemned by France's largest trade union for magistrates, USM, who accused Darmanin of "mixing of genres."

Darmanin defended his comments saying that as minister of justice he is allowed to "visit any prison and any detainee whenever he wished" and that it was "his responsibility to ensure the proper organisation of this extraordinary detention."

On the right of the political spectrum, former Prime Minister Édouard Balladur visited Sarkozy at his home on Monday while Chairman of the Senat Gérard Larcher said he was "sad" and praised Sarkozy's "courage."

Former President François Hollande praised the independence of the judiciary while pointing out "what this imprisonment can represent for a man who served France."

Sarkozy's prison sentence before his appeal trial has fuelled controversy in France.

His sentence is "provisionally enforceable" meaning it can not be suspended pending appeal and that ensured Sarkozy was not be able to avoid prison.

His lawyers will be able to request his release from the first day of detention. The court has a maximum of two months to reach a decision. If it is rejected, Sarkozy will have the opportunity to make another request.

At the age of 70, Sarkozy could be incarcerated in a special section of the Parisian Santé prison intended for vulnerable persons, due to his age and public fame.

In the verdict, the judges acquitted the former leader of three other charges, including passive corruption, embezzlement of Libyan public funds, and illegal election campaign financing, stating that there was no evidence to show that the money allegedly transferred from Libya had been used for his 2007 campaign or for his personal enrichment.