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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland rising to the top flight and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," commented pundit Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a genuine opportunity."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public 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 formal esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
Do you agree with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own projections 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 (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.
Ray, who represents Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray 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, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach by my side and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an professional footballer, but when you pursue a career in this field 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 throughout the year just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd not previously defeated him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the top competitor in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and they have got a bit of form at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
Chelsea haven't given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will emerge victorious 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'm attending this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from the Reds.
It was great to see 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 drama. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but at its core 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 included 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.
You could argue 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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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
Sunderland have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.
Apart from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
We saw how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
