Sutton's Predictions vying with England Gaming Prodigy Daniel 'The Stingray' Ray

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This Sunday sees the inaugural Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but who will emerge victorious – Sunderland or the Magpies?

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

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

He is offering scoreline guesses for all 380 Premier League games this campaign, against AI, fans and a assortment of guests.

For the upcoming matchday, he is challenged by England Gaming star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray.

Ray is competing for honours for the eLions – the Football Association's recognised esports team – at the EA Sports FC 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 its YouTube counterpart and the national team's Twitch.

Are you in alignment with their predictions? You can make your own projections below.

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

Getting the win/draw/loss right (selecting a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. A perfect prediction earns forty points.

Daniel 'Stingray' Ray alongside his coach and manager.
Fifty nations entered the European esports championship and only eight have qualified. Ray, seen here with his trainer and England Gaming team manager Denman, carries the nation's aspirations. England also have esports teams in Rocket League and Football Manager.

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 passing the preliminary stage.

The final eight competitors will fly the flag at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a six-figure prize fund and a prestigious spot in the world finals play-offs, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"My mindset is really good for it," Ray remarked. "I've got a really good coach by my side and preparation has been going well.

"It's always an honour to play for your country. Naturally when you are younger, you dream about doing it as an real-life footballer, but when you pursue a career in this profession and there is an opportunity to represent England, wearing the Three Lions is something special.

"I defeated 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 number one in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection of confidence."

Daniel Ray in action.
Ray's footballing idol is Lionel Messi and he thinks his game playing style is similar to his hero. "I play with a bit of skill and I like to play with a bit of vision, so I'd say that is a good comparison," he said. "It's flattering with that comparison!"

Premier League Predictions

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

The Blues were impressive against the Gunners at the end of November, when they earned a stalemate after being reduced to 10 men, and many thought this is it, they could potentially be challengers for the crown.

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

So head coach Enzo Maresca is in need of a win here to return to winning ways, but it won't be easy because Everton are such a dangerous team.

Two of their stars are playing at the top of their game and they have got a bit of momentum at the moment.

On form you would probably back the visitors, while the most sensible prediction would probably be a draw, but I'm throwing caution to the wind.

They have not given me any compelling evidence to back them recently, but I just have a gut instinct Chelsea will win this match 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 fascinating to see what we get from Liverpool.

It was great to see for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a important victory at Inter Milan on Tuesday after all the stuff 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 at its core Slot just wants to win games and there is nothing personal in his team selection.

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

The media is going to be talking about whether Salah is selected for this game, but the only way he is going to be brought back into the fold is if he apologises.

Slot's focus will be on winning this game, but it is a challenging encounter.

It's fair to say 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.

Liverpool need to get back to winning consistently, 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 Fantasy Premier League side, so they will probably lose now - 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 Wearside club have had the benefit of a free week while Newcastle had to battle intensely against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday, only to concede a late equaliser late on.

With the exception of 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 pattern to continue on Sunday, and their lack of freshness is likely to be a factor in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

Their match against Arsenal demonstrated how unwavering Regis le Bris's side are. They overpowered 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 superb, but Noah Sadiki, who plays alongside him, has also been one of the best acquisitions and warrants praise too.

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

Craig Smith
Craig Smith

Victoria Sterling is a precious metals expert with 10 years of experience in bullion trading and market analysis.