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The weekend brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club rising to the top flight and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked analyst Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a solid shot."
He is offering predictions for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, the public and a range of guests.
For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's official esports team – at the football simulation European esports championship finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
Do you agree with their scores? Share your own predictions below.
The most commonly selected scoreline selected for each game is displayed on the tables at the end of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.
Ray, who also plays his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.
Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach by my side and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this job and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something incredible.
"I beat 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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the best player in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just gives you a massive injection of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a dangerous team.
Two of their stars are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would likely back Everton, while the most logical prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct they will take this one because they are at home and they are in need of three points.
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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.
They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he makes amends.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
You could argue 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 quite open too.
Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will almost certainly blank - 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
The Wearside club have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.
With the exception of their excellent performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
