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The weekend sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – Sunderland or Newcastle?

"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.

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

He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, readers and a range of guests.

For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the eLions – the Football Association's official esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

You can watch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their forecasts? You can make your own predictions below.

The most commonly selected scoreline selected for each game is used in the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.

Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.

A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a single-elimination, competing for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "There's a really good coach alongside me and practice has been going well.

"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something unique.

"I overcame 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.

"I believe he is the best player in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Predictions

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 secured a point after going down to 10 men, and it seemed here we go, they could possibly be title contenders.

In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to get back on track, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a dangerous team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing exceptionally and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will take this one 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 fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.

I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a great for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

They changed their shape 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 attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

It's fair to say it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so mercurial. 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 affected their stamina.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, 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

The Black Cats have had the week off while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Apart from their superb 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 pattern to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how incessant 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 outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.

All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture