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The weekend brings the initial Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but will it be – the Black Cats or the Magpies?
"For most of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club earning promotion and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, never mind being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play makes me think they've got a real chance."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, readers and a range of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is going for glory for the eLions – the Football Association's formal esports team – at the gaming title Uefa eEuro 2025 finals tournament, which is being held 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.
Are you in alignment with their predictions? You can make your own guesses below.
The most popular scoreline selected for each game is featured in the tables at the foot of this page.
Predicting the right outcome (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth ten points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City 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 straight knockout, competing for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.
"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.
"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you pursue a career in this job and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.
"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 never beaten him in a tournament before.
"I believe he is the number one in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
Chelsea were impressive against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and it seemed this is it, they could possibly be title contenders.
Since then, however, they were overpowered by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got defeated by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So manager Enzo Maresca really needs a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because the Toffees are such a potent team.
Their key midfielders 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 likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.
The Blues have failed to given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will take this one 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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.
I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for Liverpool but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.
Liverpool changed their shape 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 apologises.
Slot's attention will be on winning this game, but it is a difficult fixture.
It's fair to say 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 winning consistently, but I am not sure how much their efforts at the San Siro will have drained them.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, so they will likely do poorly - 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
The Black Cats 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 brilliant 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.
It is anticipated that that trend to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
We saw how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They bullied the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant 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 should be recognised too.
I am expecting this being the best game|most exciting fixture
