"If he’s outside the top 10 in the world, he might not be in the Premier League" - Hugely important time period ahead as Michael van Gerwen encouraged to find best form

Michael van Gerwen is coming into a crucial period in his darts career that could even spell doom for his time at the top of the sport. He could be outside the top 20 by the start of 2027 with his long-standing place in the Premier League Darts also under immense threat. Paul Nicholson backed the Dutchman and urged him to keep trying to get it right to avoid the imminent fall from grace.

Van Gerwen is defending a lot of prize money at the end of the year, specifically from his final run at the 2025 PDC World Darts Championship, where he lost to Luke Littler. However, aside from that, there is a chance for him to gain some ranking money.

Early exits in all of the other major tournaments mean that he could gain some traction up the rankings and limit the possible damage that could emerge at Ally Pally. However, his form states otherwise.

A first round exit at the World Series of Darts Finals after missing match darts against Daryl Gurney sums up the situation he is in. A shambolic title defence added to his prior woes and setbacks throughout the year.

Aside from the World Cup of Darts, the three-time world champion has failed to reach the quarter-finals in any of the major events. Making the final session of European Tour events just four times from 11 events with no final appearances is also a daunting figure.

There have been positives. He won Players Championship 15 while boasting some monsterous averages in the process. He competed in three World Series of Darts events, reaching the final in all of them while clinching the title in Bahrain and Denmark. Nevertheless, there is still much work to do if he is going to get back to his best.

Van Gerwen's fall from grace has been well documented by darts fans and analysts. When speaking on the Love the Darts podcast, Nicholson stated how pivotal this upcoming period is for 'Mighty Mike.'

"It’s easy for us to sit here and say that he’s coming towards the end of his career because he’s going only one way in the rankings, but this fall down the rankings is about to define this period of his career," he stated.

He was very supportive of van Gerwen, and for good reason. "I’ll always be in Michael’s corner because he’s been there for a lot of people when they haven’t been at their peak and when they’ve struggled. He’s the kind of person who will put an arm around your shoulder and say, “Are you okay? Are you all right? Do you need anything?” He’s done it to more than one person, and I will always be grateful for what he’s done for myself and others because of that."

The Englishman outlined what van Gerwen has to do next. "As he slips down the rankings, what we should do as a collective is say, 'You’re not finished. You know you’re not finished. You’ve got people in your corner, but what are you going to do about it?' Ultimately, it’s all up to you. Get it mentally right. Get it practised right, which he always seems to do. But the definition of a comeback is from what you do on the stage in moments, and those moments are fewer than before.

"So go out and average 122 in a semi-final like he’s done this season against Martin Schindler. That was proof to the world that the game is still there, but will it be there for the next four months? Because if he’s outside the top 10 in the world for the first time in 15 years, he might not be in the Premier League."

Van Gerwen will face Ryan Joyce in the opening round of the World Grand Prix, a tournament he has won six times, most recently in 2022.