The New England Revolution received a boost Thursday ahead of the MLS championship game on Sunday as Clint Dempsey returned to training for the first time since spraining his ankle against Chicago in the first leg of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Oct. 22. “I feel confident and if I feel confident [on Sunday] I’ll play even if I’m not 100 percent,” Dempsey said. For the second year in a row, Dempsey and the Revs are appearing in a final at Pizza Hut Park in Frisco, Texas, outside of Dallas, about 150 miles away from Dempsey’s hometown of Nocagdoches. Even though the final could be considered a homecoming for Dempsey, he stresses that the team result is what’s most important for the Revolution, who lost to the L.A. Galaxy in the final last year. “It is important for the coaches and my teammates that if I can’t contribute there is no point in my being on the field,” Dempsey said. “They will have no trouble against Houston without me. They got the win without me against Chicago and in D.C. I do want to be a part of it, but we’ll see.” The fiery Dempsey has been a regular starter for Steve Nicol’s Revolution since early 2004, and was named the 2006 Honda Player of the Year after a strong performance for the U.S. national team in Germany. Coach Steve Nicol is “cautiously optimistic” about Dempsey’s chances of playing on Sunday. “The first day back is always the easiest,” he said. “We’ll see how it feels when he wakes up [today]. This is, what, his first day training in three weeks? We’ll see how it goes the rest of the week.” If he’s fit, Dempsey is expected to play, as is defender/midfielder Steve Ralston, who injured himself in the Eastern semifinal.