- Published:
- Comments: 14
The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club rising to the top flight and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a solid shot."
He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, the public and a variety of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their predictions? Feel free to submit your own guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
A group of eight will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, competing for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach by my side and practice 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 go into this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something unique.
"I defeated 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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the best player in the world so getting a win over 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
Chelsea were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.
In the matches following, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So head coach Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to get back on track, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a potent 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 likely back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would likely 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 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 am at 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 crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.
They changed their shape 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 focus will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
One might suggest 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 defensively susceptible too.
Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, 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 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 Black Cats have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Aside from their excellent 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.
It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
We saw how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Everyone 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 best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
