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The weekend brings the initial Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland earning promotion and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, the public and a assortment of guests.
For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is competing for honours for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their predictions? Share your own projections below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the tables at the foot of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after passing the qualification rounds.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you pursue a career in 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 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 delivers a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Predictions
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could potentially be title contenders.
Since then, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to get back on track, but it won't be easy because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of form at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would probably back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
Chelsea haven't given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will win this match 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 am at this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.
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 shouldn't need to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.
Everyone 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 focus 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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I have whacked 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
Sunderland have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
With the exception of their excellent 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 tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Everyone 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 signings of the season and warrants praise too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
