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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club earning promotion and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."

The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against AI, readers and a range of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and England's Twitch.

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

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is featured in the tables at the end of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who represents his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.

Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you go into this profession 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 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.

"In my opinion he is the best player in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a crazy boost of confidence."

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The London club were excellent against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

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

So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a dangerous team.

Two of their stars 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 prudent prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

The Blues have failed to given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea will win this match because they are at home and they are overdue a victory.

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 Liverpool.

I am really pleased 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 icon for the club but fundamentally 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 selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.

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 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 have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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 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.

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

I am expecting that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated 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 excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.

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