Sutton's Projections against English Gaming Prodigy Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

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This Sunday heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," remarked analyst Chris Sutton.

"It 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 season, in competition with AI, readers and a variety of guests.

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

Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which takes place at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

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

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

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

Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.

The England Gaming star with his coach and team boss.
Numerous entrants took part in the Uefa EA Sports FC eEuros and a mere eight have qualified. Ray, pictured here with his coach Nick den Hamer and England Gaming team manager Denman, holds the team's ambitions. England also have competitive gaming squads in Rocket League and Football Manager.

Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.

Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach alongside me and preparation 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 professional footballer, but when you enter this profession and there is an chance to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something unique.

"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 defeating him in a tournament like this just gives you a massive injection of confidence."

Stingray playing.
Ray's sporting hero is Lionel Messi and he believes his virtual football style is similar to his hero. "I play with a bit of flair and creativity and I like to play with a bit of vision, so I'd say that is a good comparison," he explained. "I'm quite happy with that comparison!"

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The Blues were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

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

So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Merseyside club are such a dangerous team.

Two of their stars are playing exceptionally and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

On form you would likely back Everton, while the most logical prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

Chelsea haven't given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling Chelsea will win this match 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'm attending this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from the Reds.

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

Slot should not have to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a legend 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 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 apologises.

Slot's focus 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 vulnerable at the back too.

Liverpool need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their exertions 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 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 let their lead slip away late on.

Aside from their superb 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.

It is anticipated that that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of their rivals' energetic style.

We saw how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.

Commentators 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 signings of the season and warrants praise too.

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

Susan Ward
Susan Ward

A seasoned travel writer and photographer who has explored over 50 countries, sharing cultural insights and hidden gems.