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This Sunday sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."
The analyst is providing forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, readers and a assortment of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation Uefa eEuro 2025 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 its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
Do you agree with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline selected for each game is displayed on the tables at the bottom of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 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 getting through the qualifying.
Eight players will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and practice 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 actual footballer, but when you enter this field 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 recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd never beaten him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the best player in the world so defeating 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 outstanding against Arsenal 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 possibly be title contenders.
Since then, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.
Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game 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 logical prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
Chelsea haven't given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling they will emerge victorious 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'll be at this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.
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 nonsense. I know Salah has been a great for the club but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond 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 reintegrated is if he says sorry.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
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 defensively susceptible 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 put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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 Black Cats have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves 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.
The pattern suggests that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
