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Sunday brings the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland rising to the top flight and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a genuine opportunity."
The analyst is providing forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, the public and a variety of guests.
For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the eLions – the Football Association's official esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.
The most popular scoreline selected for each game is displayed on the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 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 successfully navigating the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a substantial cash prize 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 remarked. "There's a really good coach with me and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you pursue a career in this profession and there is an chance to represent England, donning the national jersey is something incredible.
"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.
"For me he is the top competitor in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were outstanding against the Gunners 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.
Since then, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing exceptionally and Everton have got a bit of momentum 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 good cause to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct they will win this match 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'm attending this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.
I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They 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 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 challenging encounter.
You could argue 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 vulnerable at the back too.
The Merseysiders 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 have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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
Sunderland have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to exert themselves 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 inconsistent, particularly 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 factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.
We saw how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Many pundits 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 best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
