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Sunday brings the inaugural 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 getting promoted and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

"Things are very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."

He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against AI, readers 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 England's esports team – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the EA Sports FC European esports championship finals tournament, which will occur 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 EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their scores? Share your own predictions below.

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

A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who also plays his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time 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 substantial cash prize and a coveted spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's 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 with me and training has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this job 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 recently just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.

"For me he is the number one in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a massive injection 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 got a draw after going down to 10 men, and it seemed here we go, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

Since then, 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 restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a potent team.

Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most logical 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 gut instinct 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 interesting 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 stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot should not have to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

They changed their formation 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 included for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he makes amends.

Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.

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.

The Merseysiders need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have drained them.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - 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

Sunderland have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.

Aside from 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of their rivals' high press.

It was evident how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and should be recognised too.

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