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Sunday sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club getting promoted and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," stated football expert Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a real chance."

Sutton is making forecasts 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 is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held 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.

Are you in alignment with their forecasts? Share your own guesses below.

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is featured in the tables at the end of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.

Ray, who also plays his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.

The final eight competitors will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a substantial cash prize and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "There's a really good coach by my side and practice has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you pursue a career in this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something unique.

"I beat 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 top competitor in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were excellent against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, 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 beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a threatening 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 Everton, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

They have not given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea 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'm attending this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

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

The media 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 attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

One might suggest 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 defensively susceptible too.

Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.

I put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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 work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

With the exception of their excellent 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.

I am expecting that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a key element 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 dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and warrants praise too.

All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture