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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," stated football expert Chris Sutton.

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

He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, readers and a range of guests.

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

Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their predictions? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.

The most popular scoreline chosen for each game is displayed on the tables at the end of this page.

A correct result (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns forty points.

Ray, who competes for Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualification rounds.

The final eight competitors will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray remarked. "I have a really good coach alongside me and practice has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.

"I defeated 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 beating him in a tournament like this just delivers a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The Blues were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a dangerous team.

Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would probably back the visitors, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

The Blues have failed to given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will emerge victorious 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'll be 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 important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot should not have to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but fundamentally 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.

All the talk 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 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 vulnerable at the back 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 affected their stamina.

I've selected 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 Black Cats have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Aside from their superb 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.

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 Sunderland's high press.

It was evident how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the signings of the season and should be recognised too.

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