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Sunday brings the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club getting promoted and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play convinces me they've got a genuine opportunity."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a range of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch 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.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? You can make your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline chosen for each game is used in the tables at the foot of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.
Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I have a really good coach alongside me and preparation 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 go into 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 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 best player in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just provides a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, they could possibly be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would likely back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
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'll be at this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from Liverpool.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They 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 selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he apologises.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
One might suggest it is the same for most teams but I find Brighton so mercurial. 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 energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - 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
The Wearside club have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
With the exception of their brilliant performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.
I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing 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 warrants praise too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
