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This Sunday heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a genuine opportunity."

He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, fans and a assortment of guests.

For week 16, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

You can watch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their predictions? Share your own predictions below.

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the foot of this page.

A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.

Ray, who also plays his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.

The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach alongside me and preparation has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something incredible.

"I defeated 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 not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"For me he is the number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just delivers a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

However, since that game, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to get back on track, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a potent team.

Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would probably back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

Chelsea haven't given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will emerge victorious because they are at home and they are overdue a victory.

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 fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.

I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot should not have to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.

The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he apologises.

Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

You could argue it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so mercurial. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are vulnerable at the back 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 think they can 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 Black Cats have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.

Apart from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been poor, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.

I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.

We saw how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture