- Published:
- Comments: 14
The weekend heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a real chance."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, fans and a range of guests.
For week 16, 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 EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their scores? You can make your own projections below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is used in the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.
Ray, who represents Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.
A group of eight will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, competing for a substantial cash prize and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach alongside me and practice has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Obviously 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, donning the national jersey is something unique.
"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 number one in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge 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 earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could possibly be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to get back on track, but it is a tough ask because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most logical 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 take this one 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 intriguing to see what we get from Liverpool.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a icon for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond formation 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 apologises.
Slot's focus 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 unpredictable. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are vulnerable at the back too.
The Merseysiders need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 Wearside club have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.
Apart 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 pattern to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.
It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and warrants praise too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
