Valuable return man

When the Revolution beat FC Dallas to win the US Open Cup Wednesday night, they played without Shalrie Joseph, who is rated their most valuable player on the open market.

Joseph, who was suspended for the Revolution's 3-2 win, will return to the lineup tonight at the Chicago Fire. The return of Joseph, who has been slowed by a groin strain in recent weeks, should give the Revolution a boost; the team will have to contend with a possible mental letdown and/or physical exhaustion following Wednesday's match.

But coach Steve Nicol expects the Revolution (14-6-7, 49 points) to remain focused on the race for the Supporters Shield (best MLS regular-season record) and playoff preparations.

"This is going to be a hard game for us," Nicol said. "Especially after Wednesday's game. The good thing about that game was that it put a smile on everybody's face. But we tend to have a smile on our face, anyway.

"We just have to keep our heads down and get it done. More than anything else, that's one thing we always do."

First-year professionals Adam Cristman and Wells Thompson, who played key roles in the win over FC Dallas, will likely remain with the reserves for this game, but could be used as late substitutes.

"We'll see how the game is going, but they give us some options," Nicol said.

Chicago (8-10-9, 33 points) has played to four successive draws, including a 1-1 result at Chivas USA last Saturday in which coach Juan Carlos Osorio was ejected. Osorio will be suspended for tonight's match.

This will be the Revolution's first confrontation with Chicago since Osorio, a former player at Southern Connecticut State University and assistant coach at Manchester City, replaced Dave Sarachan as coach and midfielder Cuauhtemoc Blanco joined the Fire. Blanco has scored four goals in 11 games, igniting the team's attack from the midfield and providing a free kick threat.

"[Blanco] drifts to spots, so one of the things we have to do when he is on the ball is close him down," Nicol said. "If you don't, he can hurt you. He helps his teammates, they know he is not going to lose the ball; so, they can make runs based on that and also not have to always worry about tracking back."

The Revolution are challenging for the team's all-time best points-per-game mark (59 points in 32 games, 1.84 average) set in 2005, with a 1.81 average in 27 games. The Revolution have a 6-1-1 record in all games since Aug. 16, and the victory over FC Dallas was their first victory in five final appearances.

"We got over the hump of losing championships," defender Michael Parkhurst said. "This boosts the confidence of the team and, hopefully, we can use that. It's the first championship for this organization and we have worked hard all year to get here. The next step is the MLS Cup, that's our goal for the year."

Frank Dell'Apa can be reached at f_dellapa@globe.com.