Luke Littler has issued a pre-match warning to Michael van Gerwen that he is not hoping for a friendly World Darts Championships final tonight.

It is less than an hour until 'The Nuke' and 'Mighty Mike' go throw-for-throw on the biggest stage of them all. Up for grabs is the Sid Waddell trophy and £500k prize money, with the 17-year-old from Warrington aiming to become the youngest-ever to win it.

Littler set himself up for this final with an emphatic demolition of Stephen Bunting in the semi-finals on Thursday night and is feeling as confident as ever he can take the top prize tonight.

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"I'm excited to get back on stage tonight. It's the final, the last game and the trophy is on the line. I'm sure me and Michael will give everything," he told Sky Sports upon arrival at Alexandra Palace this evening. "It could reach the numbers me and Luke Humphries matched this time last year. I know."

"Since the Ryan Meikle game I've felt very confident. I felt like I've been at home on stage, especially against Nathan [Aspinall]. Just enjoyed it.

"I had a tough test against Ryan Joyce, but I enjoy myself and I don't need to put much pressure on myself tonight."

In those earlier rounds facing good friend 'The Asp' and fellow Runcorn-born star Ian White, he experienced some friendly Ally Pally match-ups. Just last night he was whipping up the crowd for Bunting as 'The Bullet' claimed his only set of their 6-1 match.

But vowing he will not be on the same page tonight, he added: "I assure you there won't be any fist-bumps after each set."

The two finalists have sparked up a tasty rivalry over the past year, with six wins apiece from 12 meetings prior to tonight.