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This Sunday sees the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club earning promotion and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented pundit Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."
He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, readers and a assortment of guests.
For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and England's Twitch.
Do you agree with their scores? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.
The most commonly selected scoreline chosen for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the bottom of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.
Ray, who represents his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after passing the qualification rounds.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after 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 stated. "I have a really good coach alongside me and preparation has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you pursue a career in this field and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something unique.
"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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion 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 Blues were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.
However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So head coach Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
On form you would likely back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
The Blues have failed to given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch 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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.
I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is selected 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 tough one.
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.
The Merseysiders need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have drained them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, 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
Sunderland have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.
Aside from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been poor, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated 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 brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
