Rafael van der Vaart is joining forces with Raymond van Barneveld in a bid to help restore his fellow Dutchman to his former glories.
The ex-Tottenham star is becoming an informal helper to Barney in the hope of rekindling the talent that led to him becoming a global No 1 and five-time world champion.
Some darts fans urged Van Barneveld to quit in the wake of his recent first-round World Championship defeat at the hands of world No 111 Stefan Bellmont.
He admitted he was 'suffering' after that one, saying: 'It’s obviously been a very poor year. On paper I’m a five-time world champion, but it just doesn’t come out. How to proceed from here is something I have to figure out. No one wants to suffer every week. This one hurts.'
And Van der Vaart, who reached the 2010 World Cup final with the Netherlands and became a professional darts player after football, thinks he can help the five-time world champion.
'I can't promise anything, but I'm going to do my best. 'It hurts me [watching him struggle]. I'm a real fan of his,' he said via NOS.
'Raymond put darts on the map in the Netherlands. Raymond, like me, is a natural talent. And then you get lazy.
'It's mental. I'm convinced Raymond would knock anyone off the board when he's relaxed. Maybe he needs to drink four bacos before a match again, like he used to.
'He's often at odds with himself and overthinks things. I'm someone who doesn't think, just ask Estavana [Estavana Polman, Van der Vaart's handball star girlfriend].
'If Raymond van Barneveld and Rafael van der Vaart arrived at a tournament... then I think other people would also think: what the hell is going on here? Haha!'
Van Barneveld, who won four BDO World Championships and then the 2007 PDC World Championship, is overjoyed by the collaboration. He has previously admitted to needing a 'kick in the backside'.
'Heartwarming. Absolutely fantastic. I never expected this, of course. I was truly speechless,' he said of the offer.
'It's so sweet. It's really great that he wants to work for me. We played a demonstration game together and have kept in touch since then.
'It's still an individual sport; you're often on your own. Hopefully, Rafael's help will provide some relief, but I can't say yet exactly what it will look like.
'We'll have coffee soon, and then we'll get things concrete.
'He also said he'd love to come along a few times. He's a fan, and I've always been a fan of his. He played in a World Cup final, right? The fact that he cares about another athlete really steals my heart.'
However, Van der Vaart has played down the prospect of him being the most skilful or motivating of instructors.
'I even threw a dart with my son yesterday. I got 3-0 on the balls with an average of 26,' he said. Van der Vaart reached the second round of the BDO-ranked Denmark Open on his pro debut in 2019.
'If anyone doesn't go to the gym, it's me. But I told him I'll do my best with my network,' he claimed, adding that he will help Barney to find sponsors.
Van Barneveld has retired on a couple of occasions in the past, only to reverse his decision.
In March 2019, after a 7-1 humbling by Michael van gerwen in the Darts Premier League, he announced his immediate retirement, but that undid that the next day.
In December of the same year, he retired after losing to former postman Daniel Young in the first round of the World Championship, claiming he would never forgive himself, but he later reversed that call and regained his professional tour card 14 months later in February 2021.
In May last year, despite still 'loving' the sport, he announced plans to 'slow down' and revealed that it was 'all becoming a bit too much'.
He admitted: 'Often it’s over in the first round. At some point, you have to be honest with yourself - I have amazing sponsors, great people supporting me, but I’m also 58.'
Van Barneveld is now the world No 36 and intends to continue on the PDC tour. His first assignments this year will likely be in Hildesheim for the opening two Players Championship events from February 9-10.
He will, however, skip the lucrative Winmau World Masters due to already being pencilled in for exhibition events in Twente.