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Sunday brings the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?
"For most of last season, no one would have predicted Sunderland rising to the top flight and challenging with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.
"The situation is very different now, and the way they play convinces me they've got a solid shot."
The analyst is providing scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with artificial intelligence, the public and a range of guests.
For week 16, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.
Ray is competing for honours for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's official esports team – at the football simulation European esports championship finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.
The action will be streamed on Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and England's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their scores? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.
The most popular scoreline picked for each game is used in the tables at the bottom of this page.
Getting the win/draw/loss right (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns 40 points.
Ray, who competes for his club side and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after successfully navigating the preliminary stage.
The final eight competitors will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a coveted spot in the global championship qualifiers, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.
"My mindset is really good for it," Ray said. "There's a really good coach alongside me and training has been going well.
"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an professional footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.
"I overcame 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 always lost to him in a tournament before.
"In my opinion he is the top competitor in the world so getting a win over him in a tournament like this just delivers a crazy boost of confidence."
Premier League Weekend Preview
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The Blues were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could possibly be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked lethargic 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 is a tough ask because Everton are such a potent team.
Their key midfielders are playing really well and Everton have got a bit of momentum at the moment.
Based on recent performances you would probably back the visitors, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I am not going to be sensible.
They have not given me any real reason to back them recently, but I just have a hunch Chelsea will win this match because they are at home and they are in need of three points.
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 fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.
It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a great 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 back for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he makes amends.
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 hard to predict. 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 exertions at the San Siro will have affected their stamina.
I put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, 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
Sunderland have had the week off while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser 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.
It is anticipated that that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's energetic style.
Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was a joy to watch.
Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been brilliant for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays in midfield with 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
