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This Sunday heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.

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

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

For the upcoming matchday, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

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

You can watch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their scores? Share your own guesses below.

The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is used in the leaderboards at the end of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.

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

A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, 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'm feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach alongside me and preparation has been going well.

"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this profession and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.

"I beat 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 never beaten him in a tournament before.

"I believe he is the number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just gives you a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they got a draw after going down to 10 men, and it seemed this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

Since then, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked lethargic 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 get back on track, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a threatening team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would likely back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct they 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 intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for the club 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 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 says sorry.

Slot's attention 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.

Liverpool 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've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Apart from their brilliant 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.

The pattern suggests that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.

We saw how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied 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 brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and should be recognised too.

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