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The weekend brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland earning promotion and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a solid shot."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a variety of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the football simulation Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.
The fan-favourite scoreline chosen for each game is used in the tables at the end of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach with me and training has been going well.
"It's 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 pursue a career in this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something unique.
"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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the best player in the world so getting a win over 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 impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after going down to 10 men, and it seemed here we go, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
Since then, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.
Two of their stars are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
They have not 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 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 intriguing 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 discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.
The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he makes amends.
Slot's primary concern 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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have drained them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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 opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
With the exception of 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.
The pattern suggests that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and should be recognised too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
