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Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Spingo Empire

The Pundit's Forecasts vying with England Gaming Star Daniel 'Stingray' Ray

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This Sunday brings the first Wear-Tyne derby since 2024, but which side will celebrate – Sunderland or Newcastle?

"For most of last season, you couldn't have imagined Sunderland getting promoted and holding their own with Eddie Howe's Newcastle, much less being above them in the table," commented football expert Chris Sutton.

"It is very different now, and the way Sunderland 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 AI, fans and a range of guests.

For week 16, 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 football simulation digital Euros finals tournament, which will occur at Twickenham Stadium on Saturday.

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

Are you in alignment with their scores? Feel free to submit your own predictions below.

The fan-favourite scoreline picked for each game is displayed on the scoreboards at the bottom of this page.

A correct result (choosing a win, draw or defeat) is worth 10 points. An accurate scoreline earns forty points.

The England Gaming star alongside his coach and team boss.
Numerous entrants competed in the Uefa EA Sports FC eEuros and only eight have qualified. Ray, shown here with his trainer and England Gaming team manager Denman, carries the eLions' hopes. England also have competitive gaming squads in the vehicular soccer game and the management simulation.

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 qualifying.

Eight players will play for their countries at the finals in a single-elimination, playing for a $100,000 prize pool and a prestigious spot in the FC Pro World Championship Play-Ins, with Denmark's Anders Vejrgang defending the title he won last year.

"I'm feeling really good for it," Ray said. "I have a really good coach with me and practice 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 real-life footballer, but when you enter this field and there is an opportunity to represent England, donning the national jersey is something special.

"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 not previously defeated him in a tournament before.

"In my opinion he is the top competitor in the world so defeating him in a tournament like this just provides a massive injection of confidence."

Stingray playing.
Ray's footballing idol is Lionel Messi and he feels his virtual football style is reminiscent of his hero. "I play with a bit of flair and creativity and I like to play with a bit of incisive passing, so I'd say that is a good comparison," he said. "It's flattering with that comparison!"

Premier League Forecasts

Saturday, 13 December

Chelsea vs Everton

Stamford Bridge, 15:00 GMT

Chelsea were excellent against Arsenal at the end of November, when they secured a point after going down to 10 men, and I was thinking they've turned a corner, they could possibly be challengers for the crown.

Since then, however, they were beaten physically by Leeds, looked flat 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 get back on track, but it won't be easy because the Merseyside club are such a threatening team.

Their key midfielders are playing exceptionally and Everton have got a bit of a positive run at the moment.

Based on recent performances you would likely back Everton, while the most sensible prediction would probably 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 feeling 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 am at this game and it will be interesting to see what we get from Liverpool.

I am really pleased for Reds boss Arne Slot to get such a great win at Inter Milan on Tuesday following all the stuff with Mohamed Salah this week.

Slot shouldn't need to put up with that distraction. I know Salah has been a icon for the club but essentially Slot just wants to win games and there is no bias in his team selection.

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

Everyone 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 says sorry.

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

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 defensively susceptible too.

Liverpool need to get back to stringing wins together, but I am not sure how much their exertions at the San Siro will have drained them.

I put a couple of Brighton players in my FPL team, so they will probably lose now - but I do fancy 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 work so hard 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 trend to continue on Sunday, and their tiredness is likely to be a key element in how this game goes because of Sunderland's intensity.

It was evident how incessant Regis le Bris's side are. They dominated the Gunners, and it was amazing to watch.

Everyone talks about how Granit Xhaka has been outstanding 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 deserves some attention too.

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

About the author

Courtney Caldwell

Elara is a tech enthusiast and writer with over a decade of experience in digital innovation and startup ecosystems.

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