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This Sunday heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a genuine opportunity."
He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, the public and a range of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by 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.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? You can make your own predictions below.
The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the end of this page.
A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualification rounds.
A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.
"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this profession and there is an opportunity 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 recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd not previously defeated him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the top competitor in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be title contenders.
Since then, 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 is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a potent team.
Their key midfielders are playing exceptionally and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a hunch 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'll be at this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation 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 apologises.
Slot's focus 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 unpredictable. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are defensively susceptible too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - but I do fancy 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 benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away 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.
It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.
We saw how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
