Sutton's Predictions vying with English Gaming Prodigy Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

This Sunday sees the first Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club earning promotion and holding their own 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 they play makes me think they've got a solid shot."

The analyst is providing predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, readers and a range of guests.

For the upcoming matchday, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the EA Sports FC Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, IG Live and short-form video channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their forecasts? Share your own projections below.

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the bottom of this page.

A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the preliminary stage.

The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you fantasise about doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.

"I beat Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him over the course of the season just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd always lost to him in a tournament before.

"In my opinion he is the number one 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

The London club were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and many thought they've turned a corner, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

Since then, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a potent team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of form at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would probably back the visitors, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

Chelsea haven't given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea 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 am 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 after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not 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 no ulterior motive in his team selection.

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

The media 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 makes amends.

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 exertions at the San Siro will have drained them.

I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will almost certainly blank - 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 week off while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Apart from their excellent 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.

The pattern suggests that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.

It was evident how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible 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 best acquisitions and should be recognised too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture