"That's easy to say and too bland a statement to make."

- Glenn Hoddle in response to a comment from a Guardian interviewer, who said England's second-round exit from the World Cup was nothing to write home about. Does bland mean `true'?

"Where do I start?"

- Macclesfield manager Sammy McIlroy after his side lost 7-0 to Coventry in the FA Cup on Saturday.

"That's nine goals we've scored in the last two home games so you can see I'm trying to change my image and put a bit of excitement into our side. But if you believe that, you'll believe anything."

- George Graham after Spurs beat Watford 5-2 in the FA Cup.

"I've got three top class strikers but I wish I could say the same about the players at the back."

- George Graham, after the same game, pays tribute to his defenders.

"I know the English would be happier if Villa won the League with 11 of their players, rather than Chelsea with 11 foreigners - that is because the English are very nationalistic. They struggle to admit it when somebody brings something good to their island."

- Gianluca Vialli makes himself very popular with Jimmy Hill.

"It's not his fault that he was valued at £7 million."

- Blackburn manager Brian Kidd tries to take the pressure off Kevin Davies (two goals in 20 games) - but you kinda feel he wanted to add "£100,000 would have been more like it".

"Peter is one of the most exciting signings in Hartlepool's history."

- Hartlepool director Harold Hornsey on the club's signing of Peter Beardsley, who is. . . 37 years old.

"In some of the games, some players go over the top. They pass the ball to me too much because I'm also the manager. Meanwhile somebody else doesn't give me the ball at all because he doesn't want to be considered a creep."

- Gianluca Vialli explains the difficulties of life as a player-manager.

"We've hit rock bottom - we're having the s**t kicked out of us."

- Nottingham Forest assistant manager Mickey Adams after the team were knocked out of the FA Cup by Portsmouth on Saturday. C'mon Mickey, stop looking at life through rose-tinted glasses.