🔗 Share this article

The weekend sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club earning promotion and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a genuine opportunity."

He is offering predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, fans and a variety of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on 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.

Are you in alignment with their predictions? You can make your own predictions below.

The most popular scoreline selected for each game is featured in the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualification rounds.

The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I've got a really good coach with me and training 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 enter this job and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.

"I defeated 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.

"For me he is the best player in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just delivers a crazy boost of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The London club were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

However, since that game, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a hunch they will win this match 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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing 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 distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but essentially 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.

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 primary concern 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 hard to predict. 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 winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have drained them.

I put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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 Black Cats have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to work so hard 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 hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.

I am expecting 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 high press.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and deserves some attention too.

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