The Pundit's Forecasts against England Gaming Star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

An illustrative graphic for the feature
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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – the Black Cats or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined the Wearside club getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, let alone being above them in the table," stated pundit Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland play makes me think they've got a genuine opportunity."

The analyst is providing predictions for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, in competition with AI, readers and a assortment of guests.

For week 16, he faces off against England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is going for glory for the national gaming squad – the Football Association's official esports team – at the EA Sports FC digital Euros finals tournament, which is being held at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

Viewers can catch Uefa's video platform, Instagram Live and short-form video channels, as well as the official Twitch channel and YouTube and England's Twitch.

What are your thoughts with their scores? You can make your own guesses below.

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is featured in the tables at the foot of this page.

Getting the win/draw/loss right (picking a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns 40 points.

The England Gaming star alongside his trainer and team boss.
Half a hundred countries took part in the Uefa EA Sports FC eEuros and just eight remain. Ray, shown here with his trainer and England Gaming team manager Denman, bears the team's ambitions. England also have competitive gaming squads in Rocket League and Football Manager.

Ray, who competes for his club side and Manchester City as well as England, is entering the fray at the eEuros finals after passing the qualification rounds.

Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, 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 practice has been going well.

"Representing your country is always an honour to play for your country. Of course when you are younger, you imagine doing it as an actual footballer, but when you go into this field and there is an chance to represent England, putting the shirt on is something special.

"I beat 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 not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"For me he is the top competitor in the world so beating him in a tournament like this just provides a huge surge of confidence."

Stingray playing.
Ray's footballing idol is Lionel Messi and he feels his game playing style is comparable to his hero. "My style involves a bit of flair and creativity and I like to play with a bit of incisive passing, so I'd say that is accurate," he explained. "I'm quite happy with that comparison!"

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The London club were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and I was thinking here we go, they could possibly be title contenders.

However, since that game, however, they were outfought by Leeds, looked lethargic against Bournemouth and this week got turned over by Atalanta in the Champions League.

So head coach Enzo Maresca desperately requires a win here to restore momentum, but it is a tough ask because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.

Their key midfielders are playing really well and they have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would probably back Everton, while the most logical prediction would likely be a draw, but I'm going against logic.

The Blues have failed to 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 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'm attending this game and it will be fascinating to see what we get from the Reds.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the controversy with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot ought not to put up with that nonsense. I know Salah has been a icon for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

They changed their formation against Inter and went with a midfield diamond and two up top.

All the talk is going to be talking about whether Salah is selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be reintegrated is if he says sorry.

Slot's primary concern 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 quite open too.

Liverpool 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 drained them.

I've selected a couple of Brighton players in my Fantasy Premier League side, 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

The Black Cats have had the opportunity to rest while Newcastle had to exert themselves against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

Aside from their superb 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.

I am expecting that pattern to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of their rivals' intensity.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how relentless Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered the Gunners, and it was incredible to watch.

Many pundits talks about how Granit Xhaka has been phenomenal for the Black Cats, and he has been superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside 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

Michael Williams
Michael Williams

Rylan Vance is a gaming industry analyst and tech reviewer with over a decade of experience testing and reviewing gaming hardware.

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