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The weekend sees the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"For most of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."
The analyst is providing predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, fans and a range of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by 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 EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their predictions? You can make your own predictions below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the end of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns forty points.
Ray, who also plays Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.
The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something incredible.
"I beat Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the number one in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
Chelsea were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and many thought here we go, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
However, since that game, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a dangerous team.
Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most logical prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
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 in need of three points.
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 Liverpool.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a legend for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
Everyone 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 apologises.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
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 quite open too.
Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, 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 likely do poorly - 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
Sunderland have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely 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 hasn't been great, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.
I am expecting that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
