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The weekend brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented analyst Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."
Sutton is making forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, the public and a assortment of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the football simulation European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their predictions? You can make your own guesses below.
The fan-favourite scoreline chosen for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the end of this page.
A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, vying for a substantial cash prize and a highly sought-after spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and preparation has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on 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 not previously defeated him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the number one in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Predictions
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were outstanding against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought here we go, they could potentially be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a potent team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and they have got a bit of form at the moment.
On form you would likely back the visitors, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
The Blues have failed to given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct 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 interesting 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 discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot should not have to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
Everyone 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 difficult fixture.
You could argue 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 quite open too.
Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - but I do fancy them to 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 be pegged back late on.
Aside from their brilliant performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been poor, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
We saw how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the signings of the season and warrants praise too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
