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Sunday heralds the initial Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland 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 leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."
He is offering predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, the public and a variety of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title European esports championship finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their forecasts? You can make your own projections below.
The most popular scoreline selected for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the end of this page.
A correct result (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.
Ray, who also plays Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the qualifying.
Eight players will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, vying for a substantial cash prize and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I have a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this profession and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.
"I beat 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.
"I believe 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 Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after going down to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.
In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to return to winning ways, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.
Two of their stars are playing really well and Everton 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 likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
The Blues have failed to 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'll be 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 controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great 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 formation and two up top.
Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is included 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 tough one.
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 quite open too.
Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have taken out of them.
I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - 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 benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Apart 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless 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 outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the signings of the season and deserves some attention too.
This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture
