- Published:
- Comments: 14
Sunday sees the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"For most of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked analyst Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a genuine opportunity."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a assortment of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's official esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and TikTok 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 guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is used in the scoreboards at the foot of this page.
A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach with me and practice has been going well.
"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this profession and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey 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 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 delivers a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Predictions
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed here we go, they could potentially be title contenders.
In the matches following, 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 desperately requires a win here to return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.
Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of form at the moment.
Current evidence suggests you would likely back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
Chelsea haven't given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling they will win this match 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'm attending this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a legend for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond 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 brought back into the fold is if he says sorry.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.
You could argue 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 defensively susceptible too.
Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have drained them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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
Sunderland have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to work so hard 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 poor, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.
The pattern suggests that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
It was evident how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Commentators 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 best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
