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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?
"During the bulk of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked pundit Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play convinces me they've got a genuine opportunity."
He is offering forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, readers and a variety of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is vying for victory for the eLions – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their scores? You can make your own guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline chosen for each game is used in the tables at the foot of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. The exact score earns forty points.
Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the qualifying.
The final eight competitors will represent their nations at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach by my side and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you pursue a career in this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on 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.
"In my opinion he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection 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 earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.
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 manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because Everton are such a dangerous team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing exceptionally and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.
On form you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would probably 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 hunch 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'll be at this game and it will be intriguing 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 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 legend for Liverpool but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
Liverpool 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 brought back into the fold is if he makes amends.
Slot's primary concern 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 mercurial. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are defensively susceptible too.
Liverpool need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, 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 battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Aside from their brilliant 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and warrants praise too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
