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Sunday sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or Newcastle?
"During the bulk of last season, it was unthinkable the Wearside club getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," stated analyst Chris Sutton.
"It is 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 season, against artificial intelligence, fans and a range of guests.
For the upcoming matchday, 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 gaming title European esports championship 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 EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.
Are you in alignment with their predictions? You can make your own projections below.
The most commonly selected scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.
A correct result (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.
Ray, who competes for Gen City and the Premier League champions as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the qualifying.
A group of eight will play for their countries at the finals in a straight knockout, competing for a substantial cash prize and a coveted spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's 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 with me and practice has been going well.
"It's always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you enter this profession and there is an chance to represent England, donning the national jersey is something incredible.
"I overcame 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.
"In my opinion he is the number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection of confidence."
Premier League Forecasts
Saturday, 13 December
Chelsea vs Everton
Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT
The London club were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking this is it, they could possibly be title contenders.
However, since that game, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.
So boss Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because the Toffees are such a threatening team.
Two of their stars are playing exceptionally and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.
On form you would probably back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.
Chelsea haven't given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct 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'm attending this game and it will be intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.
I was delighted for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the discussion with Mohamed Salah this week.
Slot shouldn't need to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a icon for the club but fundamentally Slot just wants to win games and there is no ulterior motive in his team selection.
They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.
The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is back for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he makes amends.
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.
The Merseysiders need to get back to stringing wins together, 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 almost certainly blank - 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 battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.
Apart 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.
The pattern suggests that tendency to continue on Sunday, and their fatigue is likely to be a significant issue in how this game goes because of their rivals' high press.
It was evident how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.
Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding for the Black Cats, and he has been excellent, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and warrants praise too.
All signs point to this being the best game|most exciting fixture
