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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"Throughout the majority of last season, it was unthinkable Sunderland 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 Sunderland play leads me to believe they've got a genuine opportunity."
Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, fans and a assortment of guests.
For week 16, he takes on England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the gaming title European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and its YouTube counterpart and England's Twitch.
What are your thoughts with their forecasts? Share your own predictions below.
The most commonly selected scoreline chosen for each game is displayed on the tables at the end of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after passing the preliminary stage.
Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a knockout format, vying for a six-figure prize fund and a coveted spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"I am feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "There's a really good coach with me and preparation 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 pursue a career in this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something special.
"I beat 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.
"For me he is the best player in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking they've turned a corner, they could potentially be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got beaten by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it will be a challenge because the Toffees are such a potent team.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most prudent prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
Chelsea haven't given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch 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 am at this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from Liverpool.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a legend for Liverpool but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond 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 says sorry.
Slot's primary concern will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
One might suggest 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 quite open too.
The Merseysiders 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've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will almost certainly blank - 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 work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.
Aside from their excellent performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form hasn't been great, particularly straight after they've played in the Champions League.
It is anticipated that that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Everyone 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 deserves some attention too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
