Harry Maguire scarier than Ally Pally final! Luke Littler felt ‘more nerves’ facing Man Utd heroes than he was at World Darts Championship

The 17-year-old became a sporting sensation at the start of 2024 when he enjoyed an incredible run through to the final of the biggest event in his chosen profession. With his stock soaring, Red Devils fan Littler has since been invited to Carrington and Old Trafford as a guest of the Premier League giants that he is an avid follower of.

It was during a trip to United’s training ground that Littler found himself throwing against England international Maguire and Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen. He has told the Daily Mail of that experience: “It was good to see most of the lads, who were fit and who were training. I spoke to Scott McTominay and Harry Maguire. Most of the other guys was a handshake and they said ‘well done’. Then I spoke to Erik and he said ‘it's nice weather’ even though it was raining! But it was just crazy to meet them and to play against Harry and Christian, that was good fun and I actually felt more nerves in front of them that I did at Ally Pally.”

Littler also got the chance to speak with legendary United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, but claims to have been unable to take much that conversation. The teenager added: “It was crazy to meet him. Obviously my dad and my manager, they've witnessed all of his glory years and 1999. I didn't actually get much out of him because of his accent but I did hear him say ‘stick with it and stick at it’.”

Unsurprisingly, Littler came out on top in his meeting with Maguire and Eriksen. The United pair threw 171 and 136 respectively with nine darts, only to see Littler post a maximum score of 180 with his first three arrows thrown at the board. The youngster is now readying himself for a debut showing in the PDC Premier League, while the Red Devils will be in top-flight action themselves when travelling to Wolves on Thursday.