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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, fans and a range of guests.
For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? Share your own predictions below.
The most popular scoreline chosen for each game is used in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.
Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.
"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something incredible.
"I overcame Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him over the course of the season just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.
"For me he is the best player in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just provides a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Predictions
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could possibly be title contenders.
In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because the Toffees are such a dangerous team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea will emerge victorious because they are at home and they are due a win.
Sutton's prediction: 2-1
Stingray's prediction: With this being at the Bridge, I am going to back Chelsea. I think they will start off really well and go 2-0 up, then Everton will nick one back but then Chelsea score late. 3-1
AI's prediction: 2-0
Liverpool vs Brighton
Anfield, 15:00 GMT
I am at this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from the Reds.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.
The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he says sorry.
Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
One might suggest it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so unpredictable. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are vulnerable at the back too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - but I do fancy them to get something at Anfield.
Sutton's prediction: 2-2
Stingray's prediction: This is a game which is going to give Liverpool a bit more of their confidence back. Obviously they had a good win in midweek and they can build more momentum here. 2-1
AI's prediction: 3-1
Sunday, 14 December
Sunderland vs Newcastle
Stadium of Light, 14:00 GMT
Sunderland have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
With the exception of their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been poor, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
The pattern suggests that trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' high press.
It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
