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The weekend heralds the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"During the bulk 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," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"Things are very different now, and the way they play makes me think they've got a genuine opportunity."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with artificial intelligence, fans and a assortment of guests.
For this weekend's fixtures, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the England's esports team – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
You can watch Uefa's video platform, IG Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
Do you agree with their forecasts? Feel free to submit your own guesses below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the tables at the end of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns forty points.
Ray, who also plays his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.
A group of eight will represent their nations at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach alongside me and practice 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 professional footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something unique.
"I overcame 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.
"For me he is the best player in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just provides a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they got a draw after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking they've turned a corner, they could potentially 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 boss Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a threatening team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
On form you would probably back Everton, while the most logical prediction would probably 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 feeling they 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 am at this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from Liverpool.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory 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 Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
They changed their shape against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he apologises.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a tough one.
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 defensively susceptible 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 drained them.
I have whacked a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - 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
Sunderland have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.
Apart from their superb 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
