A World Cup final between Michael van Gerwen (35) and Luke Littler (17) is a wish come true for many dart enthusiasts. Fans of the Vlijmen darts player who followed him to London are confident that he will win the world title for the fourth time on Friday evening. “I stopped gambling, but otherwise I would certainly have put money on Michael,” said Marcel, who does not want to be named. He has been at the World Cup in London since last weekend.
According to Marcel, Van Gerwen can handle the pressure better in the final than his young opponent from England. “Michael is someone who grows in a tournament and performs under pressure. I am absolutely not surprised by his final place. He has the qualities, but I think the injury to his jaw has set him back considerably in the last year and a half. That has been resolved and When he is completely fit, he can reach his very best level again.”
“We are right to be confident.”
Thomas Melisse from Hoeven saw on Thursday evening with a group of friends from the west of Brabant that Van Gerwen scored against Chris Dobey: 6-1. “Given his year, this is surprising, but not if you look at how he plays. It was part of the schedule, but it is right that he and we are full of confidence. It is close at the top of darts.”
It was not the first time he had played the World Cup in London Ally Pally visited. “The great thing about this sport is that anyone can become a hero. You don’t have to be trained, you can just be your neighbor. The atmosphere has appealed to me for years.”
“He’s going to hurt Littler with dirty finishes.”
Albert with roots in Tilburg calls the clash with Littler a dream final. “Michael is impressive and I think he can catch Littler. It will be very exciting, but at the right moments he will pop. He will hurt Littler with dirty finishes.”
“I didn’t expect him to get this far.”
For Mats van den Brand from Schijndel, Littler is the favorite on Friday evening. “I think it will be difficult for Michael. But beforehand I did not expect him to get this far. It’s nice that he is back.”
READ ALSO: For Van Gerwen, only the World Cup title counts: ‘I always kept fighting’
The final of the World Darts Championship starts at 9:15 PM. The match can be seen on Viaplay.