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Sunday sees the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland earning promotion and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play convinces me they've got a solid shot."
The analyst is providing predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, readers and a range of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's official esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch 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.
Do you agree with their predictions? You can make your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the end of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a substantial cash prize and a coveted spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach with me and practice has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you pursue a career in this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something unique.
"I overcame 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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion 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 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 earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking they've turned a corner, they could potentially be title contenders.
In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So head coach Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to get back on track, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a threatening team.
Two of their stars are playing exceptionally and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
On form you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a hunch they 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 fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but at its core 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.
The media 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 apologises.
Slot's focus 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 mercurial. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are defensively susceptible too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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
Sunderland have had the week off while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.
With the exception of 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 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 high press.
We saw how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
