Tottenham held to 0-0 draw by Stoke

LONDON (AP) — Tottenham was held to a disappointing 0-0 draw at home against Stoke on Saturday to drop out of the Champions League places in the Premier League.

Stoke defended stubbornly and physically throughout the game, frustrating the hosts and keeping attacking duo Emmanuel Adebayor and Jermain Defoe quiet for almost the entire match.

Gareth Bale went close with a second-half header, as did Gylfi Sigurdsson in injury time, but Spurs were mainly restricted to long-range shots.

Stoke is now unbeaten in eight games, it's longest streak since the Premier League began.

Tottenham dropped into fifth place behind Arsenal and Everton, who both won Saturday. Spurs are also just one point ahead of Chelsea, which has two games in hand.