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The weekend sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated football expert Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, the public and a variety of guests.
For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC European esports championship finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their predictions? You can make your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline selected for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the end of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualification rounds.
Eight players will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I've got a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something incredible.
"I overcame 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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"For me he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers 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 the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could potentially be title contenders.
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 boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because the Toffees are such a threatening team.
Their key midfielders are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
On form you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling 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 fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.
I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win 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 icon for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.
Liverpool 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 included for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.
Slot's focus will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
It's fair to say 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 quite open too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have drained them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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 opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Aside from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been inconsistent, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
The pattern suggests that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied 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 next to him, has also been one of the signings of the season and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
