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Sutton's Projections versus England Gaming Star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

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This Sunday sees the initial Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or the Magpies?

"For most of last season, no one would have predicted the Wearside club rising to the top flight and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented analyst Chris Sutton.

"The situation is very different now, and the way Sunderland play makes me think they've got a real chance."

Sutton is making scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this season, in competition with AI, fans and a range of guests.

For week 16, 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 will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

The action will be streamed on Uefa's YouTube, Instagram Live and TikTok channels, as well as EA Sports FC Twitch and YouTube and the national team's Twitch.

Do you agree with their forecasts? Share your own projections below.

The most popular scoreline picked for each game is featured in the leaderboards at the foot of this page.

Predicting the right outcome (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. The exact score earns 40 points.

Daniel 'Stingray' Ray with his trainer and manager.
Fifty nations entered the Uefa EA Sports FC eEuros and only eight have qualified. Ray, seen here with his coach Nick den Hamer and England Gaming team manager Denman, bears the nation's aspirations. England also have competitive gaming squads in Rocket League and Football Manager.

Ray, who represents Gen City and Manchester City as well as England, is competing for the first time at the eEuros finals after getting through the preliminary stage.

Eight players will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, vying for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the world finals play-offs, with the Danish representative Anders Vejrgang looking to retain the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray stated. "There's a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.

"It is invariably an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, putting the shirt on is something incredible.

"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 not previously defeated 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 massive injection of confidence."

Daniel Ray in action.
Ray's footballing idol is Lionel Messi and he feels his virtual football style is comparable to his hero. "I utilise a bit of flair and I like to play with a bit of vision, so I'd say that is fair," he explained. "It's flattering with that comparison!"

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea 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 potentially be challengers for the crown.

In the matches following, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked uninspired against Bournemouth and this week got turned over 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 the Toffees are such a threatening team.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Iliman Ndiaye are playing at the top of their game and Everton have got a bit of form at the moment.

Current evidence suggests you would probably back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

They have not given me any good cause to back them recently, but I just have a feeling they will take this one 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 intriguing to see what we get from the Reds.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a crucial result at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot should not have to put up with that drama. I know Salah has been a great for the club but at its core 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.

Everyone is going to be talking about whether Salah is included for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he makes amends.

Slot's focus 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 defensively susceptible too.

Liverpool 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 drained them.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will likely do poorly - 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 week off while Newcastle had to work so hard against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to let their lead slip away late on.

With the exception of their excellent performance against Everton a couple of weeks ago, Newcastle's away form has been inconsistent, especially straight after they've played in the Champions League.

The pattern suggests that trend to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's high press.

It was evident how relentless 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 superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays next to him, has also been one of the top transfers and should be recognised too.

This promises to be this being the best game|most exciting fixture

Written by

Gabriel Greer

Tech entrepreneur and startup advisor with a passion for innovation and mentoring new founders.

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