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The weekend sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"During the bulk 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," stated football expert Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."

Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, fans and a assortment of guests.

For this weekend's fixtures, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their scores? Feel free to submit your own projections below.

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

Getting the win/draw/loss right (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.

Ray, who also plays his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualification rounds.

Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach by my side and training has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something special.

"I overcame 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 not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"I believe he is the number one in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Two of their stars are playing really well and they have got a bit of form at the moment.

On form you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

Chelsea haven't given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea 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 Liverpool.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

Liverpool changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.

All the talk is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he apologises.

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

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 a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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 Wearside club have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Apart from their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been inconsistent, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.

It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture