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The weekend sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland getting promoted and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."

He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, the public and a range of guests.

For week 16, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's official 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 video platform, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their forecasts? Share your own projections below.

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

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

Ray, who also plays Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the qualification rounds.

A group of eight will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a substantial cash prize and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.

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

"I defeated 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 not previously defeated 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 gives you a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

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 being reduced to 10 men, and many thought here we go, they could possibly be title contenders.

In the matches following, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a threatening team.

Two of their stars are playing really well and they have got a bit of a positive run 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 feeling Chelsea will take this one 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 am at this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.

I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a legend for the club but essentially 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.

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 apologises.

Slot's primary concern 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 hard to predict. 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 stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.

I put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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

Sunderland have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to battle intensely 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 has been poor, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.

It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.

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

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and should be recognised too.

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