‘He’s not a baby anymore’ – Michael van Gerwen aims digs at Luke Littler ahead of Premier League return

Michael van Gerwen reminded Luke Littler that helium is ‘not a babe anymore’ aft the defending champion arrived precocious for media duties connected the Premier League’s eve.

Littler returns to the Premier League arsenic the tournament’s defending champion and the caller satellite champion aft his ascendant performance against Van Gerwen successful January’s last astatine Alexandra Palace.

A superb maiden twelvemonth successful the athletics has already seen Littler ascend to World No.2 and rake successful much than £1million successful prize wealth on the way.

The 18-year-old faces Van Gerwen successful the archetypal lucifer of his Premier League defence successful Belfast connected Thursday, but got nether the tegument of the Green Machine erstwhile helium overslept and near his chap competitors waiting connected media time up of the tournament’s archetypal night.

And the Dutchman, a seven-time victor of the event, was keen to punctual his rival that he’s not a fresh-faced novice anymore.

‘They [the Professional Darts Coorporation] request to halt treating him arsenic a baby. He’s not a babe anymore, he’s 18 years old,’ Van Gerwen said successful his property conference.

‘It happens. He has to learn. You person to larn the hard way. It’s a nonrecreational athletics truthful you person to beryllium liable for your actions, elemental arsenic that.

‘If helium turns up precocious for an interview, I don’t truly mind. But 7 different radical were waiting for him, that’s not truly nice. But it is what it is.’

Littler laughed disconnected Van Gerwen’s not-so-subtle dig, but said helium was looking guardant to penning the latest section of their engrossing rivalry.

‘He’s going to beryllium up for it, he’s going to beryllium bare but I’m up for it arsenic the reigning champion. Whoever wins, it volition beryllium large for us,’ helium said.

‘This is the biggest tourney I americium going to support each twelvemonth astir until the Worlds. Tomorrow nighttime is truthful important to get that archetypal triumph against Michael.

Asked astir his feelings heading into his rubric defence, helium responded: ‘I’m feeling OK, I mightiness consciousness tense erstwhile it does travel to the task tomorrow, but determination are ever nerves, but I’m hoping to marque a accelerated commencement similar I did successful the final.

‘The archetypal triumph past twelvemonth came present successful Belfast, truthful I person got bully memories present and I privation to footwear on.’

Making up the remainder of the eight-man tourney are Luke Humphries, Rob Cross, Stephen Bunting, Chris Dobey, Nathan Aspinall and Gerwyn Price.

And World No.1 Humphries admitted helium has his eyes acceptable connected redemption after falling abbreviated successful past year’s last against Litler.

‘It’s 1 you privation to tick off, it is 1 of those majors you privation to triumph due to the fact that it is truthful prestigious,” helium said.

‘It is truthful hard to win, it could arguably beryllium harder than immoderate different large due to the fact that you can’t triumph it successful 1 day, it takes 3 months.

‘It would beryllium bully to implicit the set, the Worlds, the Matchplay and this. This is the biggest 1 I haven’t got astatine the moment. It would beryllium bully to beryllium successful the club.’

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