VAN VEEN FACES BURNOUT FEARS IN PREMIER LEAGUE
10/02/2026 By Aaron Nijjar
GIAN VAN VEEN faces a burnout danger during his Premier League campaign, according to ex-pro Paul Nicholson.
‘The Giant’ reached the final of week one in Newcastle during his debut before falling to Michael van Gerwen in the final.
World No.3 Van Veen making the event showpiece underlined why expectations around the youngster are already sky high.
But Nicholson stressed that managing his workload will be key for the Dutchman over the long campaign.
He told Betway: “It’ll be interesting to see how Van Veen does, but if anybody’s going to fit in like a round peg in a round hole, it’s going to be that young man.
“He’s so eloquent, he’s so smart and so well prepared. The only question mark I have for is will he take his foot off the gas at the right times during this campaign?
“Will he take that European tour event off? Will he have a two-week break just to make sure he’s ready for the second half of the season?
“Because if he plays too much, we saw what happened to Stephen Bunting last year and Damon Heta.
“They just played a little bit too much and they left themselves with nothing in the tank.”
The 23-year-old produced a statement performance at the Weekly Invitational, overcoming both Luke Littler and Jonny Clayton.
He enjoyed an impressive 2025 campaign, highlighted by European Championship glory and his maiden ProTour triumph.
Van Veen returns to action this Thursday, where he will face Gerwyn Price in the Premier League at Antwerp, Belgium.
Image by Taylor Lanning.
