The Pundit's Predictions against English Gaming Prodigy Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

This Sunday heralds the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club earning promotion and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a real chance."

Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against artificial intelligence, readers and a range of guests.

For this weekend's fixtures, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title European esports championship finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

Do you agree with their predictions? Share your own predictions below.

The most commonly selected scoreline chosen for each game is displayed on the tables at the foot of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score 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 successfully navigating the qualification rounds.

The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a substantial cash prize and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach with me and training has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this profession and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something unique.

"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 never beaten him in a tournament before.

"For me he is the top competitor in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just delivers a massive injection of confidence."

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after being reduced to 10 men, and it seemed they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

However, since that game, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So head coach Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it won't be easy because Everton are such a threatening team.

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

Based on recent performances you would likely back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea will emerge victorious because they are at home and they are overdue a victory.

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.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a icon for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

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

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

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 unpredictable. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are defensively susceptible too.

The Merseysiders need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have drained them.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

With the exception of their excellent 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.

It is anticipated that that tendency 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 high press.

We saw how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied 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 best acquisitions and should be recognised too.

All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture