Michael van Gerwen has been out of form over recent months, leading to questions over if he has lost his “hunger”.

Van Gerwen has only been beyond his opening appearance once in his last five tournaments when he lost to Scott Williams in the quarter-finals of Players Championship 30.

Besides that, he suffered an opening-round exit to Ryan Joyce at the World Grand Prix, lost to Daryl Gurney at the World Series of Darts Finals, lost to Benjamin Pratnemer in Players Championship 29, and against Damon Heta in the Flanders Darts Trophy.

Speaking on his own stream, Van Gerwen said he was “annoyed” at his recent Grand Prix result that he believes he should have won.

However, speaking on the Love the Darts podcast, Colin Lloyd admitted he was worried that the Dutchman no longer had the “fire” and if he took a break, he may not return.

“It was a free hit. I don’t want to say he wasn’t ready for it, but he didn’t look comfortable,” Lloyd said.

“There has been some odd results throughout the last six to eight months where you think everything seems to be going well.

“Michael has had a lot going on in his private life. He loves spending time with his kids and whatever. Perhaps just that little bit of hunger’s gone. That little bit of hunger’s gone.

“There’s no question that Michael’s still a class player but it is just a case of – when you start losing that little bit of hunger and you lose that little bit of fire in you.

“I don’t personally believe that if Michael van Gerwen steps away, you won’t see Michael van Gerwen come back.

“He won’t come back because financially he’s set. He can spend so much more time with the kids and he can put in the odd exhibitions here and there, the odd appearances here and there.

“He has been doing it since he was 17. He won the World Masters at 17 years old, which is 20 years ago or whatever it is.

“People will say he is still young enough but he has got battle scars. He has got battle scars from that 17-year-old kid all the way up to now.

“At some point or another, mentally and physically, you think to yourself, do I really need to go through this anymore?”

Wade in the Premier League instead?

It is almost an opposite story for James Wade who has been hitting heights of old over the past year or so.

He reached the semi-finals of the World Grand Prix for the first time since 2014, picked up his first World Series title at the Australian Darts Masters in August, and won the Flanders Darts Trophy in September which marked his first Euro Tour title in a decade.

Not only that, he has won 14 of his last 16 matches as he continues to show true consistency.

That is why, for Matt Edgar, Wade is an almost certainty for the Premier League in 2027. Indeed, a dead cert if there is an increase to 10 players from eight.

“I was going to say Premier League, but it seems every time I mention it in the moment people want say it is too early,” Edgar said on the Love the Darts podcast.

“I was kind of surprised he wasn’t in it this year or at least in the conversation because it was sort of Stephen Bunting and Danny Noppert wasn’t in that split decision for the eighth position.

“I was surprised James Wade wasn’t in the consideration then. He has to be, he has to be now.

“There are rumours about the potential growth to 10 players. If that is the case, I think he is a certainty. I think it’s a tough argument right now to say he’s not.

“We know the short term and the recency bias kicks in. If he has a poor World Championship, if the back end of the year doesn’t go well, people can forget what happens through the rest of the season very quickly.”

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One of the first things you notice in Alex Inglethorpe’s office at Liverpool‘s AXA Training Centre is a framed image gifted by Trent Alexander-Arnold.

It is a picture from 2019 of the academy director and player watching a game together. Alexander-Arnold left for a new challenge at Real Madrid last year, after 20 years on Merseyside, but his story is one of inspiration for everyone that enters Liverpool‘s academy.

He joined as a six-year-old in 2004 and went on to win the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup, League Cup, Community Shield, Uefa Super Cup and the Fifa Club World Cup with Liverpool.

“The ideal for any academy, and certainly for us, is wanting young players – and hopefully they’re local players – to improve the first team and in doing so, they come and win trophies,” says Inglethorpe.

“At Liverpool the bar is high, so to have a player capable of winning everything that you could possibly win is a dream.”

Inglethorpe and his team oversee the development of younger players and ensure there is alignment between the academy and the first team.

One of the phrases used is ‘the first team pitch is only 300 metres away from the academy building in Kirkby, but the journey might take 10 years to get there’.

Under new boss Andoni Iraola, players like Rio Ngumoha, Trey Nyoni, Lewis Koumas and James McConnell, who have spent time at the academy, have all featured this season.

“We were fortunate because of how the calendar worked, with players still at the World Cup and a delayed return. Andoni and his staff spent a lot of his first week here watching the academy,” says Inglethorpe.

“So we felt ahead, in terms of building a relationship from the outset.”