The Pundit's Projections versus English Gaming Ace Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"During the bulk of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland rising to the top flight and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," stated football expert Chris Sutton.

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

Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers 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 national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title digital Euros finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

You can watch Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their scores? You can make your own guesses below.

The fan-favourite scoreline selected for each game is used in the leaderboards at the bottom of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.

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

A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious 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 said. "I have a really good coach with me and training has been going well.

"Representing your country is 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 go into this field and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.

"I defeated 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 beating him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could possibly be title contenders.

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

So manager Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because the Merseyside club are such a potent team.

Their key midfielders are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would probably back the visitors, while the most prudent prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

Chelsea haven't 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 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 am at this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from Liverpool.

I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win 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 the club but at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.

They changed their tactical setup 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 reintegrated is if he apologises.

Slot's primary concern 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 unpredictable. I always feel they have got a goal in them, but they are vulnerable at the back too.

The Merseysiders need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their energy spent at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, 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

Sunderland have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.

Aside from their brilliant performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.

The pattern suggests that trend to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.

It was evident how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated 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 excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to 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