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The weekend heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."

Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, the public and a assortment of guests.

For this weekend's fixtures, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own projections below.

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

Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.

A group of eight will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

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

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you pursue a career in this profession and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.

"I overcame Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him over the course of the season just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"In my opinion he is the number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just gives you a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

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 going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

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

So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a potent team.

Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

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

Chelsea haven't given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a hunch they will take this one 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 am at 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 crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot should not have to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for the club but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their tactical setup 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 brought back into the fold is if he makes amends.

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 hard to predict. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are vulnerable at the back too.

The Merseysiders 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 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

The Wearside club 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.

Aside from 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.

It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding 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 deserves some attention too.

I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture