- Published:
- Comments: 14
Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented pundit Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, fans and a variety of guests.
For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their predictions? Share your own projections below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the bottom of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.
Ray, who represents Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and practice has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an actual footballer, but when you pursue a career in this field and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.
"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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the best player in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just gives you a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
Chelsea were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly 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 really needs a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will emerge victorious because they are at home and they are due a win.
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.
I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal 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 makes amends.
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.
Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 Wearside club 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 hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing 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 top transfers and warrants praise too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
