Chris Sutton's Forecasts vying with English Gaming Ace Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

This Sunday heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"For most of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland rising to the top flight and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a solid shot."

The analyst is providing forecasts for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against AI, the public and a range of guests.

For week 16, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is vying for victory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

You can watch 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 forecasts? Feel free to submit your own projections below.

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

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.

Ray, who represents his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.

A group of eight will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I am feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "I have a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an professional footballer, but when you pursue a career in this job and there is an chance to represent England, donning the national jersey is something incredible.

"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.

"For me he is the number one in the world so getting a win over 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 secured a point after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed here we go, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

Since then, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked flat against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Two of their stars are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will win this match because they are at home and they are in need of three points.

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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.

I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a great for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

They changed their tactical setup against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.

All the talk is going to be talking about whether Salah is selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.

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

You could argue 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 vulnerable at the back too.

Liverpool 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've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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 Wearside club have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.

Aside from their excellent 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 pattern 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 dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the top transfers and deserves some attention too.

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