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Sunday brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"For most of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," commented analyst Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, the public and a variety of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their predictions? Share your own guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline selected for each game is featured in the scoreboards at the foot of this page.
A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.
Ray, who competes for Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, vying for a substantial cash prize and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray remarked. "There's a really good coach with me and training has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you pursue a career in this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something special.
"I beat Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the best player in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just gives you a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could potentially 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 manager 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.
Their key midfielders are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
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 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 intriguing to see what we get from Liverpool.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive 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 selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he makes amends.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.
One might suggest it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so hard to predict. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are quite open too.
Liverpool need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.
Aside from their brilliant performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been inconsistent, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
