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Stoke-on-Trent, England (SportsNetwork.com) - Manchester United will open the new year with a difficult fixture as the Red Devils will travel to the Britannia to take on Stoke City on Thursday. United claimed a point from a hard-fought 0-0 draw at Tottenham on Sunday, but it was not a costly result as Manchester City and Chelsea also were held to ties from their respective contests, leaving Louis van Gaals men in third place where they sit 10 points back of Jose Mourinhos side. The Red Devils dominated the opening period at White Hart Lane but failed to convert any of its gilt-edge chances. There was a feeling that United would concede a goal against the run of play to come away empty-handed, but Tottenham also failed to find the back of the net despite having the better of play in the second half. According to Van Gaal, Uniteds struggles in the second period were a result of naming an unchanged side while playing two games in the span of three days. And while the United boss now has the luxury of an extra day of rest and a few players returning from injury, Stoke will be out to disrupt visiting United by any means necessary. The Potters were made to grind out a 1-0 victory at Everton on Boxing Day before running out to a 2-0 home win over West Bromwich Albion on Sunday, a result that lifted the club to 11th place in the Premier League with 25 points. Despite manager Mark Hughes plans to develop a more attractive style of play at the Britannia, the Potters have been getting results by way of a continued physical presence, something that is sure to frustrate Manchester United in its quest for a 10th straight league match without a loss. Uniteds unbeaten run can only be matched by Manchester City, which has not tasted defeat in 10 league outings. The Citizens will attempt to prolong that streak on Thursday when they welcome Sunderland to the Etihad. The Citizens are only three points back of first-place Chelsea, and with the Blues set to kick off in Thursdays final fixture, they will looking to match Citys result in order to maintain - or possibly extend - their lead at the summit. West Ham United appears to be coming out of the festive period worse for the wear. The Hammers suffered successive defeats to Chelsea and Arsenal to slip out of fourth place, but they will hope to rebound with a more forgiving fixture against a struggling West Brom side at Upton Park. Arsenal moved into a tie with Southampton by improving to 33 points, and the two sides will battle for sole possession of fourth place on Thursday when they meet at St. Marys. Liverpool appears to have found some form after a 4-1 defeat of Swansea City on Monday granted the club a second successive victory. The Reds enter the new year in eighth place in the table and will seek a third win on the trot when they host lowly Leicester City on Thursday. Evertons descent down the Premier League table continued with a third straight loss on Sunday, but the Toffees will attempt to get back to winning ways with maximum points at Hull City on Thursday. Elsewhere in Englands top flight, Newcastle will look to continue its upward trend with a positive result against Burnley, Crystal Palace will attempt to climb out of the drop zone with some much-needed points at Aston Villa and Swansea will hope to rebound from a disappointing defeat when it travels to Loftus Road on short rest to take on QPR. Nathan MacKinnon Jersey . Left-handed reliever Boone Logan agreed to a $16.5 million, three-year contract on Friday, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. Ian Cole Jersey . And I wanted to take this opportunity to share some of my experiences gained through International competition and the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. Seven NHL referees and six linesmen will be assigned upcoming games in Sochi by the IIHF as part of their 28-man officiating roster comprised of 14 refs and 14 linesmen. http://www.hockeyavalanche.com/authentic...alanche-jersey/. - Veteran Kings defenceman Robyn Regehr, sidelined since Game 1 of the Anaheim series, says hes close to returning. Nathan MacKinnon Avalanche Jersey . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Mikko Rantanen Jersey . "You hate when they score," he said with some distaste at the thought. "You take pride in it. METAIRIE, La. -- All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham and the New Orleans Saints met Tuesday for arbitration on his contract. Graham filed a grievance through the players union. He contends he should be considered a wide receiver, not a tight end, when the team designated him with the 2014 franchise tag. The difference in salary would be more than $5 million. Arbitrator Stephen Burbank is conducting the meetings that also involve the NFL Players Association, the NFLs Management Council, and the Saints. No ruling is expected immediately. The Saints gave Graham the franchise tag for about $7 million as a tight end, the position he has been listed at for his entire four-year career. But he believes because he often is split out away from the tackle, he is a wide receiver.dddddddddddd That franchise tag is worth about $12.3 million. According to an analysis by ESPN Stats and Information, Graham lined up split on 67 per cent of his snaps: 45 per cent of the time in the slot and 22 per cent out wide. But the Saints note that he made the All-Pro team and the Pro Bowl as a tight end and was drafted as a tight end. Such disputes are not frequent, but draw lots of attention because they can set a precedent. Baltimores Terrell Suggs, the 2011 Defensive Player of the Year, argued in 2008 that he should be tagged as an end, not a linebacker. The difference back then was about $800,000. Suggs wound up signing a new deal with the Ravens, then helped them win the 2012 NFL championship. ' ' '