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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland earning promotion and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

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

Sutton is making forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers and a assortment of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place 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 England's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their predictions? Share your own projections below.

The most commonly selected scoreline selected for each game is featured in the tables at the end of this page.

A correct result (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.

Ray, who represents Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.

Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach with me and training has been going well.

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

"I defeated Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him throughout the year 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 best player in the world so getting a win over 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 London club were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could potentially be title contenders.

In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically 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 return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Two of their stars are playing exceptionally and they have got a bit of form at the moment.

On form you would probably back the visitors, while the most logical 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 they will take this one 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 fascinating 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 after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation and two up top.

The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he apologises.

Slot's focus 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 drained them.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 Wearside club 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.

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 fatigue is likely to be a significant issue 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 a joy to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture