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Sunday heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

"Things are very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."

Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against AI, fans and a variety of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the gaming title European esports championship finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their forecasts? Share your own projections below.

The most popular scoreline chosen for each game is used in the scoreboards at the end of this page.

A correct result (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.

Ray, who competes for Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after passing the preliminary stage.

Eight players will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a substantial cash prize and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you pursue a career in this profession 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 delivers a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could potentially be title contenders.

Since then, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a dangerous team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

They have not given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a feeling they will win this match 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 am at this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the discussion 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 at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their formation 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 difficult fixture.

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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their efforts 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 likely do poorly - but I do fancy them to 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 be pegged back late on.

Aside 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.

I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

We saw how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered 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 in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture