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This Sunday heralds the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"For most of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland rising to the top flight and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a genuine opportunity."

Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a range of guests.

For the upcoming matchday, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

You can watch Uefa's video platform, IG 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? Share your own predictions below.

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

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.

Ray, who competes for Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualification rounds.

The final eight competitors will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.

"It's always 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 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.

"For me he is the best player in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just gives you a crazy boost of confidence."

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The London club were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

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

So boss Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Their key midfielders are playing really well and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

They have not 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 overdue a victory.

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 fascinating 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 after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.

All the talk 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 apologises.

Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.

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 defensively susceptible too.

The Merseysiders need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have taken out of them.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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 let their lead slip away late on.

With the exception of their brilliant 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.

I am expecting that trend 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 incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.

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