NOISES OFF...:THAT WAS THE WEEKEND THAT WAS

"We can play better than this... our movement was good but our passing was sloppy. I was delighted with the result but only reasonably pleased with the performance." - Liverpool manager ROY EVANS. There's just no pleasing some people...

"We played more against ourselves than Liverpool today. None of my players did what I know they can." - RUUD GULLIT, rudely brought down to earth.

"It seemed we were prepared to settle for a no-score draw. The goal stirred us into action but a game is over 90 minutes, not half an hour," - RON ATKINSON, lamenting a case of too little, too late by Coventry at Sunderland.

"It wasn't a case of Arsenal creating anything - we gave them two goals. Maybe we believed the press instead of getting on with our jobs," - BRYAN ROBSON, seeking explanations for Middlesbrough's burst bubble.

"The referee is effectively accusing one of my players of being a cheat and I'm very unhappy about that." - Forest's FRANK CLARK, making a stand in the face of officialdom - unlike his winger Chris Allen, booked for a "dive" against West Ham.

"We were trying to get too many balls through to Andy Cole, trying to get his confidence going. But it cut the link too." - Manchester United's ALEX FERGUSON, proving that the Premiership is no place for compassion.