Chris Sutton's Predictions versus England Gaming Star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

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This Sunday brings the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby after 2024, but which side will celebrate – the Black Cats or the Magpies?

"For most of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club getting promoted and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," remarked football expert Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way they play leads me to believe they've got a solid shot."

Sutton is making predictions for all 380 Premier League games this season, against artificial intelligence, readers and a variety of guests.

For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by 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 will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, IG 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 forecasts? Feel free to submit your own guesses below.

The most popular scoreline chosen for each game is displayed on the leaderboards at the end of this page.

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

The esports competitor with his coach and team boss.
Fifty nations took part in the Uefa EA Sports FC eEuros and a mere eight are left. Ray, seen here with his trainer and England Gaming team manager Denman, bears the eLions' hopes. England also have competitive gaming squads in Rocket League and Football Manager.

Ray, who represents his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is making his debut at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.

Eight players will represent their nations at the finals in a single-elimination, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a highly sought-after spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach alongside me and practice has been going well.

"It is invariably 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 pursue a career in this job and there is an chance to represent England, donning the national jersey is something special.

"I defeated Vejrgang 9-4 in qualifying to get here. I've played against him throughout the year just in practice, and in other tournaments before - but I'd not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"I believe he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a huge surge of confidence."

Daniel Ray competing.
Ray's favourite real-life player is Lionel Messi and he feels his in-game approach is comparable to his hero. "I play with a bit of flair and creativity and I like to play with a bit of incisive passing, so I'd say that is fair," he said. "I'm quite happy with that comparison!"

Premier League Predictions

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 it seemed they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

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

So boss Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask 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 momentum at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.

They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct 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 interesting to see what we get from Liverpool.

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

Slot ought not to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a great for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

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

Everyone 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.

You could argue 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.

The Merseysiders need to get back to a consistent run of form, but I am not sure how much their energy spent 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 probably lose now - 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 exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to be pegged back late on.

With the exception of 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.

I am expecting that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

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

Commentators talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been brilliant, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and deserves some attention too.

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

Kimberly Turner
Kimberly Turner

Maya Chen is an urban gardener and sustainability advocate with over a decade of experience in community-based environmental projects.