According to a source, negotiations with Robbie Fowler's representatives broke down when the player's salary demands suddenly increased from $1 million to $3 million. An unidentified MLS club (not New England) was bidding to bring Fowler to MLS as a Designated Player at a salary of approximately $1 million. Fowler's contract with Liverpool expires in June and his place with the club could be under threat with Dirk Kuyt, Robbie Crouch and Craig Bellamy already on the roster and Ukrainian Andriy Voronin arriving on a free transfer from Bayer Leverkusen in a few months. The Revs apparently …

So how about that rumor of a $2 million bid from Glasgow Celtic for Shalrie Joseph that was supposedly turned down by MLS? It's news to his agent, Ron Waxman, who also refuted rumors that another stumbling block was a contract laden with incentives and a rather low-ball base salary. "Celtic twice offered $1 million for Shalrie, once in the summer and then again in the January window," says Waxman. "Those are the only offers I know about. And we can't discuss the specifics of a contract until the league agrees on a transfer fee, which …

WHAT'S IN A NAME? Credit Colorado for jumping on the lucrative academy bandwagon and dressing it up with a prestigious name, as done in Los Angeles (David Beckham Academy) and Real Salt Lake (the Real Madrid Something-or-Other.) The Arsenal Centre of Excellence (note the clever "English" spelling) will be housed at Dick's Sporting Goods Park as part of the marketing partnership announced by the clubs last week. By the time the Centre is opened, the Rapids might have a new nickname and one guess is all that is needed to know which English club Rapids vice president …