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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland rising to the top flight and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.

"Things are very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a genuine opportunity."

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

For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the England's esports team – the Football Association's official esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their predictions? You can make your own guesses below.

The most popular scoreline picked 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 10 points. The exact score earns forty points.

Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after passing the qualification rounds.

Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, 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's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you dream about 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 unique.

"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.

"I believe he is the best player in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and it seemed this is it, they could possibly be title contenders.

Since then, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over 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 Everton are such a threatening team.

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

Current evidence suggests you would probably back the visitors, while the most sensible 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 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'll be at this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from Liverpool.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

They changed their formation 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 brought back into the fold is if he apologises.

Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

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.

Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will almost certainly blank - but I do think they can 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 let their lead slip away late on.

With the exception of their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been poor, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.

I am expecting that pattern 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.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.

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