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The weekend heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club getting promoted and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a range of guests.
For week 16, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch 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 scores? You can make your own guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 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 getting through the qualification rounds.
The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, playing 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 defending the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on 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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just provides a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
Chelsea were outstanding against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought here we go, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.
In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically 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 get back on track, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a threatening team.
Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of momentum 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.
The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a hunch they will win this match 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'm attending 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 important victory 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 no ulterior motive in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their tactical setup 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 makes amends.
Slot's focus 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 vulnerable at the back too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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
The Black Cats have had the week off while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Aside from their excellent 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' high press.
It was evident how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and should be recognised too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
