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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 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 earning promotion and being competitive with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."
He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this season, against AI, fans and a range 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 official esports team – at the football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch 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 forecasts? Share your own predictions below.
The most popular scoreline picked for each game is used in the scoreboards at the end of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (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 passing the preliminary stage.
A group of eight will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a substantial cash prize and a prestigious spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach with me and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Obviously when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an chance to represent England, donning the national jersey is something unique.
"I beat 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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"For me he is the top competitor in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a massive injection of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent 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 potentially be challengers for the crown.
However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to get back on track, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
The Blues have failed to given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch they 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 fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but fundamentally 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 and two up top.
All the talk 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 attention will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
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 defensively susceptible 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 affected their stamina.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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
Sunderland have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Apart from their excellent 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.
I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' high press.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the signings of the season and should be recognised too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
