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Sunday heralds the initial Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club earning promotion and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a real chance."
He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, the public and a range of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, 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 recognised esports team – at the gaming title European esports championship finals tournament, which takes place 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 the national team's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the end of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline 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 preliminary stage.
A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray stated. "I've got a really good coach with me and training has been going well.
"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something special.
"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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the top competitor in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after going down to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.
Since then, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to get back on track, but it won't be easy because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would probably back Everton, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a hunch 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'll be at this game and it will be intriguing 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 controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need 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 bias in his team selection.
They changed their tactical setup 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 says sorry.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
One might suggest 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 winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - 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 Black Cats 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.
Aside from their excellent performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
The pattern suggests that trend to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.
It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and should be recognised too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
