Gerwyn Price backs Nathan Aspinall to take final Premier League playoff spot: "But you can never write Michael van Gerwen off"

Three players have secured a place at the O2 Arena for the playoffs of the 2025 Premier League Darts, meaning just one spot remains to be fought for. With just two nights play remaining, the fight for 4th place is realistically down to a battle between Michael van Gerwen and Nathan Aspinall, although Rob Cross could still have a part to play.

Ahead of tonight's penultimate night of the league phase in Aberdeen, Gerwyn Price, who alongside Luke Littler and Luke Humphries has already guaranteed a finish in the top 4, analysed the battle to join him at the O2 Arena.

"I think Rob Cross needs to win tomorrow night if he's got any chance at all," Price told Sky Sports earlier this week. "If he doesn't I think he's probably out of the equation then but yeah it's a big game between Nathan and Michael."

As touched upon by Price there, Aspinall and Van Gerwen meet in the quarter-finals in Aberdeen tonight. With just one point separating 4th placed Van Gerwen and 5th placed Aspinall in the league table, whoever wins that match could go a long way in securing themselves the advantage over the other heading into the last night of the regular season in Sheffield next Thursday.

As for Price, the Welshman is quietly expecting Aspinall to get the better of the battle. "I'm glad I'm not in that situation but at the moment Nathan's probably got a little bit more determination and a little bit more fight and you know he's a target player who will grind out results no matter if he's 5-1 behind or 5-0 behind. I think he'll still be fighting right till the end," assesses 'The Iceman'. "If I had my cards on the table I'd probably say Nathan but you can never write Michael off."

As he says though, Price is by no means writing Van Gerwen off. "I think he missed out on final night once before so he knows that feeling and I think he'll probably be on the board trying not to be back in that situation again," Price says. "But like I say, you can never write Michael off. He's a great player; we've all seen what he can do in the past but is that gone? No, we don't know that."

"If I'm fourth, third, second, doesn't really matter. For me, the vital thing was just to get to the O2 and wherever you play, it doesn't really matter," Price continues, turning his attention back to himself. "You know, you're going to have to play really well to win the tournament. But, yeah, without a doubt, there's £10,000 up for grabs as well and it probably gives me the opportunity to try out a new set of darts."

That opportunity to experiment is one Price is looking to seize as well. "For me it's a free night and something where I can test out maybe a new set-up, just a new barrel, a completely different dart," he concludes. "I'll take the darts with me. I'll have a throw in the practice room and if they don't feel right I won't use them. But I might use them."