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This Sunday sees the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked analyst Chris Sutton.

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

The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers and a assortment of guests.

For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

Do you agree with their predictions? Feel free to submit your own projections below.

The fan-favourite scoreline selected for each game is displayed on 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 competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.

The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I've got a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you pursue a career in this field and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something special.

"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.

"In my opinion he is the number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just delivers a crazy boost of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The London club were excellent against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could possibly 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 head coach Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to restore momentum, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea 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 am at this game and it will be fascinating 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 stuff 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 fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their shape 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 brought back into the fold is if he says sorry.

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 mercurial. 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 put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - but I do fancy 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 week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely 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, particularly 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 their rivals' intensity.

It was evident how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and deserves some attention too.

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