🔗 Share this article

Sunday sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," commented analyst Chris Sutton.

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

He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers and a range of guests.

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

Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, IG 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? Share your own guesses below.

The fan-favourite scoreline chosen for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 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 getting through the qualification rounds.

A group of eight will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "I've got a really good coach by my side and practice has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this profession and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something unique.

"I defeated Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him throughout the year just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd never beaten 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 huge surge 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 got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

Since then, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because Everton are such a threatening team.

Their key midfielders are playing really well and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

On form you would likely back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea will take this one 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 fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.

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

Slot should not have to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a legend for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

They changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.

Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.

Slot's focus will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.

You could argue 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 defensively susceptible too.

Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, 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 opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.

Apart 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.

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

We saw how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.

All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture