"I’m 58 years old, but within five minutes on stage I feel like I’m 85" - Van Barneveld is increasingly struggling with his diabetes on the darts circuit.

Despite having had one of the most illustrious careers in darting history, Raymond van Barneveld has never managed to win the World Matchplay. Now aged 58, the legendary Dutchman's latest quest for Winter Gardens glory begins with a first round meeting against his old rival Michael van Gerwen.

Whilst 'Barney' and 'MvG' have had numerous box office meetings over the years, both Dutch icons head into this meeting with their form well below the level of yesteryear. For Van Barneveld at least, age is beginning to take its toll.

"Results are not that great at the moment. I’m struggling to find my best setup, so I’m still not there in my head. But I still have a couple of days left to make a decision. Then we fly to Blackpool on Sunday," 'Barney' explains on the latest episode of Sky Sports' Love the Darts podcast. "Sometimes my body’s not the same anymore. I try to explain — I’m getting older, you know, I have blurred vision sometimes because of the diabetes, I have freezing cold hands."

"Practicing, I always do like three hours before the game. Maybe that’s a little bit too much. Maybe I need to tell myself, "Two hours before the match, that’s fine," because it makes me tired. Focus is different," continues Van Barneveld. "And on the practice board — and some of the players will know this — it’s 180s, 140s, and then as soon as I go on stage, it’s like 60, 60, 59s. Some people see me shaking my head — that means disbelief. You can’t believe that this is happening. I’m trying to find out where this is coming from. I’m not there yet in my head."

And Van Barneveld insists, his health issues are a major hurdle for his darting ambitions. "Everyone still underestimates diabetes. I don’t want to talk about it all the time, but it’s a killer — mentally," he explains. "Some moments I’m 58 years old, but within five minutes on stage I feel like I’m 85. Then three minutes later, I’m back again. It’s peaks in sugar levels all the time — it kills your energy, balance, focus."

"Sometimes you have 12 and 11-dart legs, and then 21 darts to hit a double. And there’s no solution. I spoke to Gary Anderson last week — he’s not diabetic — and he said, 'Ray, lately I never eat when I’m playing darts.' For me, that’s unbelievable. I need food — otherwise I feel dizzy and my whole body kicks in," he continues. "I’m still trying to find the 100% energy and focus — and that’s really hard. You can’t find a solution that works every time. Look at players who had diabetes — Jamie Caven, Andy Hamilton, Colin Lloyd — they’re all gone. In the end, it takes its toll."

In the form of a match with Van Gerwen though, Van Barneveld has all the inspiration he needs to roll back the years and put in a top drawer performance. "Me and Michael, we go far back. I remember a game at the World Championship — I averaged 109 and still only got two sets. He beat me 6–2. So, 109 average over eight sets — what can you do more?" 'Barney' recalls.

"We’ve had so many good clashes. And at the end, nine out of ten times, Michael was the winner. But I had some crucial wins over him — at the Worlds one day, in the Premier League final. So, I’m able to beat him," he insists confidently. "I think the last result we had was one or two years ago on the Euro Tour — I beat him. I don’t think I’ve played him since. So I’m looking forward. Michael’s always Michael — he’s unbelievable on the treble 19s. When he hits them, it’s very hard to beat him. Still number three in the world. But in all honesty, it doesn’t really matter which player you get in the top 16 — they’re all quality. Whether you get the number one like Humphries or the number 16, it doesn’t really matter. A clash against Michael van Gerwen is always awesome — everyone wants to see it."

Whilst Van Gerwen might still be world number 3 though, the Dutchman's form is also somewhat uncertain as he heads to Blackpool following a rocky few weeks both on and off the oche. "I know Michael for years. Against me, he always stands up," says Van Barneveld however. "He knows I can beat him — especially when he’s not maybe there 100% in his head because of private stuff."

"But honestly, I don’t think like that. To me, I’m playing the board this Monday. I’m not going to play Michael van Gerwen — I play the board and try to do my very best and then see what happens," Van Barneveld adds. "I saw him in the World Series, in Poland, in New York. It wasn’t the best, of course. But he knows he has to play well against me to beat me — and that’s what I’m preparing for. Playing a 100 average — that’s what you need to beat Michael."

Despite not having a similar level of success as he used to, Van Barneveld still loves playing darts. "First of all, it’s the crowd. They always keep me going. If they sing your song — “Barney Army” — it’s always great to perform in front of a crowd in Germany, the UK, wherever. That keeps you going," he says. "It’s not always great, you know — handling defeats three or four days a week. People don’t see this. We play midweeks — two or three Pro Tours or qualifiers, then we go to the Euro Tour. So sometimes it’s three or four losses a week. I can’t even handle one loss a week — so imagine three or four! And this is only one week out of 52."

With all that in mind, when it comes to the World Matchplay, Van Barneveld isn't thinking about winning. He just wants to do himself justice and put in a performance worthy of his legendary status in the sport.

"I just want to play good darts. Last week in Kiel, that was shameless — 83 average. You don’t get the answer on that," concludes the five-time world champion. "I still have to work hard to play at the highest level, especially against these players nowadays — the Luke Littlers, the Humphries, the Gerwyn Prices. Michael’s still there too — still number three in the world. You can’t underestimate him, even if his results haven’t been great. He’s still one of the best players out there."