Luke Littler is eyeing up a maiden World Darts Championship title (Image: Getty)
will face the toughest test of his campaign when he takes on at Alexandra Palace on New Year’s Day.
Aspinall has looked imperious at times during his run to the last eight and has dropped just one set throughout his three matches so far.
In his latest victory, the Stockport-born arrowsmith despatched Ricardo Pietreczko in straight sets and has been rewarded with a clash against tournament favourite Littler.
The duo are said to be close friends away from the board and are currently under the same management group.
But that hasn’t stopped him from throwing a brutal dig the way of the 17-year-old, recently claiming he hasn’t ever ‘seen him so skinny’.
Aspinall was taking part in a trend with darts content creator Jessie Sale, where he was .
He was shown a photo of a fresh-faced Littler sat in the cockpit of a plane, with Aspinall confidently replying with his guess of… .
The Asp was stunned by his wrong suggestion, saying: “Luke Littler?!? What? Oh, I’ve never seen him so skinny, that’s the problem.”
Nathan Aspinall is keen to spoil the Luke Littler party (Image: Getty)
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He’ll be hoping the comment doesn’t come back to bite him on Thursday afternoon when the pair face off at the oche.
But Aspinall is also heading into that game with a score to settle, having blasted the media for not giving him enough respect for his past achievements.
Speaking after his last-16 victory, the 2023 World Matchplay champion said: “You underestimate me, all of you. I never get any respect, I’m not going to go all Joe Cullen here [and storm out of the press conference].
“But I always get written off. Nobody ever talks about me. I’m a two-time major a champion, a fantastic darts player. I come back fighting and keep proving people wrong time and time again.
“It’s up to me to go up on that stage and prove you lot wrong, who write me off. The crowd help, obviously. But flip it, I’m playing for 3,500 people out there. So, when I’ve got a double and they’re all willing me to hit that double, it’s hard.”
The winner of the Littler vs Aspinall tie on New Year’s Day will take on either or in the semi-final.