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This Sunday heralds the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," stated football expert Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."
Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, readers and a variety of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, Instagram 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 predictions? You can make your own predictions below.
The most commonly selected scoreline selected for each game is featured in the scoreboards at the end of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray stated. "I've got a really good coach with me and training has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you enter this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something special.
"I overcame Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him throughout the year just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a massive injection of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
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 going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic 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 is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a potent team.
Their key midfielders are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would likely back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
They have not given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct they will win this match 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 am at 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 controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.
They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
All the talk is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.
Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
It's fair to say 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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - 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 opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Apart from their excellent 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 pattern to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and warrants praise too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
