Chris Sutton's Projections versus eSports England Ace Daniel 'The Stingray' Ray

The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club rising to the top flight and being competitive 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 scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, fans and a range of guests.

For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

Do you agree with their scores? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.

The most popular scoreline selected for each game is featured in the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who represents Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.

The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, competing for a substantial cash prize and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray remarked. "There's a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.

"It is invariably 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 enter this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something incredible.

"I beat 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 never beaten him in a tournament before.

"I believe he is the best player in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just gives you a crazy boost of confidence."

Premier League Weekend Preview

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

In the matches following, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to get back on track, but it will be a challenge because the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of form at the moment.

On form you would probably back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

They have not given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will emerge victorious 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 Liverpool.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a legend 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.

Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he says sorry.

Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

One might suggest 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.

The Merseysiders need to get back to winning consistently, 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 FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - 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

The Black Cats have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.

With the exception of their superb performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been inconsistent, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.

The pattern suggests that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal 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