Soccer Insider

*With MLS Cup kickoff approaching, I take a closer look at the scene in Seattle and an extraordinary inaugural season for the Emerald City. I have attended all 14 Cups (Ridge Mahoney of Soccer America and Michael Lewis of the New York Daily News join me in this elite group), and I have never seen a city embrace the championship game like Seattle has the past few days. Let's hope for a break in the rain pattern, a quality match ... and no penalty kicks.

*Seattle weather forecast: 39-45 degrees, 90 percent chance of rain.

*Steve Nicol has agreed to a long-term contract extension with the New England Revolution, the Insider has learned. Nicol is MLS's longest-serving head coach, having been in charge since 2002.

*Seattle Coach Sigi Schmid was hospitalized for pneumonia Thursday night after experiencing difficulty breathing. His condition has stabilized and he is improving, the Sounders said.

*D.C. United rookie Chris Pontius is representing the club at league festivities, a late replacement for Ben Olsen, who is planning to retire.

*MLS players in Seattle for the match will meet with union representatives Monday and discuss negotiations concerning a new collective bargaining agreement. The current deal expires in January.

*The second round of the NCAA tournament unfolds today with 16 matches, including reigning champion Maryland at seventh-seeded Penn State and ACC champion Virginia hosting Bucknell in pursuit of a ninth consecutive shutout.

*From Maryland to MLS Cup, Omar Gonzalez and A.J. DeLaGarza are a victory from another championship.

*Seattle's gloomy forecast.....
Today: 46 degrees, windy, 100 percent chance of rain
Sunday: low to mid 40s, windy, 70 percent chance of rain

*MLS's board of governors met Friday, but from what I understand, no major decisions were reached. However, the league is apparently giving serious consideration to holding MLS Cup at the site of the higher-seeded participant. The biggest obstacles are weather and stadium availability. Well, we've witnessed the match played in the Boston area three times without severe cold, so the risk seems worth taking, even in Toronto (48 degrees and sunny Sunday) or Chicago (54 and sunny). As for the stadiums, only a few would have potential conflicts with football games, but if the league were to commit to the new plan soon, it could ask the NFL and college officials to not schedule games in Foxborough, Seattle and Houston on MLS Cup weekend. Another issue is whether holding the final at small venues in San Jose or Kansas City would be acceptable. In those cases, alternate venues could be offered (Oakland and Arrowhead).

*USL's reaction to Baltimore and Tampa Bay joining the renegade group that is forming a new second division.

*The Virginia Tech and Virginia women were eliminated from the NCAA tournament while three other ACC teams advanced to the quarterfinals. Today Maryland will attempt to defeat North Carolina for the first time after 30 losses and one tie.

*Another Ben Olsen memory:

Galaxy star David Beckham, who has a bone bruise on his right foot and has been wearing a protective boot, says he will play in Sunday's MLS Cup. He will receive injections to manage the pain.

Today at Qwest Field, Beckham trained for the first time this week.

"We're not anticipating any issues," Coach Bruce Arena said.

Much more on the continuation .....

Ben Olsen, D.C. United's gritty midfielder who overcame severe ankle injuries to resurrect his career this season, has decided to retire, several sources told the Insider. A formal announcement is expected next week.

Olsen, 32, is not a candidate for United's head coaching job, sources said, but seems likely to remain with the organization in some capacity, perhaps as an assistant coach. Neither Olsen nor club officials were willing to discuss the matter today. Teams typically refrain from making major announcements in the days leading up to the league's marquee event, MLS Cup, which will take place Sunday night in Seattle (8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Enduring pain throughout the season, Olsen had to work with the club to carefully manage his playing time. He ended up playing 20 of 30 regular season matches and started 18.

Beyond his contributions on the field -- second in team history in games played and starts and third in assists -- Olsen was the face of the club and a visible presence in the community since leaving the University of Virginia a year early and signing with United in 1998. He won two MLS Cups (1999 and 2004) and played for the U.S. national team at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

What will you remember most about Olsen's career?

Irishman Roy Keane takes a contrarian view of the Thierry Henry handball controversy and, in typical feisty and combative style, offers a variety of rants. "They should have cleared it. The ball bounced in the six-yard box. ... Would I call him a cheat? Nah, I wouldn't think so. Did he bend the rules a little bit? Yeah. ... France was there for the taking and Ireland never grabbed it. Usual stuff. Afraid of that next step. Mentally not strong enough. They can complain all they want. France is going to the World Cup: Get over it."

*Thierry Henry says a France-Ireland replay would be the right thing to do.

"Naturally I feel embarrassed at the way that we won and feel extremely sorry for the Irish who definitely deserve to be in South Africa. There is little more I can do apart from admit that the ball had contact with my hand leading up to our equalising goal and I feel very sorry for the Irish."

Which brings up the (semi-serious) question: Would Henry be retroactively red- carded for an intentional handball?

*Maryland advances to the second round of the NCAA tournament with a 2-1 victory over Loyola. Check all the first-round results.

*In the women's tournament, Virginia Tech will attempt to continue its best season ever with a visit to Portland tonight for a round-of-16 match. All the pairings are here.

*Soccer atop Seattle, with Qwest Field in the background (photo courtesy of MLS):

What are you going to watch?
SATURDAY
Russia, Rubin Kazan-Zenit 6 a.m. ET Setanta
England, Liverpool-Manchester City 7:30 a.m. ESPN2
Germany, Schalke-Hanover 9:30 a.m. GolTV
England, Sunderland-Arsenal 10 a.m. Fox Soccer Channel
England, Chelsea-Wolverhampton 10 a.m. Setanta
Spain, Deportivo de Coruna-Atletico Madrid 11:55 a.m. ESPN Deportes
Spain, Tenerife-Sevilla noon GolTV

D.C. United midfielder Ben Olsen, the heart and soul of the club who has endured numerous ankle operations and medical setbacks during a standout career spanning 11 years, is mulling retirement, the Insider has learned. A decision is expected within a week.

United officials declined comment and said Olsen, 32, would not discuss the issue.

Last winter, after missing all but one game of the 2008 season and undergoing three additional surgeries, Olsen contemplated retiring. But he held up well in preseason workouts and went on to make 20 league appearances and 18 starts playing primarily in defensive midfield in a 3-5-2 formation.

Olsen's 221 regular season games played and 200 starts are second in club history behind Jaime Moreno. He is seventh in goals (29) and third in assists (49).

Whether or not he calls it quits next week, Olsen has a bright future in the sport. He has been active in players' union causes and seems to have the personality, leadership qualities and tactical understanding to become an effective coach in some capacity.

*Landon Donovan is the MLS most valuable player, finishing ahead of Golden Boot winner Jeff Cunningham of Dallas and New England midfielder Shalrie Joseph. In the league's complicated voting procedure involving media, coaches, general managers and players, Donovan received a weighted score of 39percent, Cunningham 25.3 and Joseph 17.6.

Donovan had 12 goals and six assists in 25 regular season matches for the Western champion Galaxy. The only other Los Angeles recipient was Carlos Ruiz in 2002. Donovan is only the second U.S.-born winner the past nine seasons (Taylor Twellman).

*After three seasons at Chivas USA, Preki was introduced as Toronto FC coach today. "Preki has everything we were looking for, and we feel he will be a perfect fit with our club," TFC Director of Soccer Mo Johnston said. "His resume with Chivas is impressive -- having made it to the playoffs in every season he was there. His experience is what we need to take this club to the next level, and we can't wait to get started."

*The new USL-1 club in Tampa Bay has hired its first coach: Paul Dalglish, 32, who played two seasons for Houston and is the son of EnglishScottish legend Kenny Dalglish.

*The Galaxy has cancelled its postseason friendlies in Germany -- Kaiserslautern on Nov. 26 and a Dec. 1 match against a unidentified club -- because of "lack of communication and performance by the organizer and promoter."

*MLS will announce the MVP winner Thursday after 4:30 p.m. ET on ESPNews. However, none of the three finalists will be present for the ceremony in Seattle. Jeff Cunningham is returning from the USA friendly in Denmark, Shalrie Joseph is apparently on vacation and Landon Donovan will be en route from Los Angeles with the Galaxy. I'm thinking Donovan is the winner.

*Guidelines for next Wednesday's expansion draft are set: Philadelphia will select 10 players; current clubs must submit their 11-man protected list by Monday afternoon; no club will lose more than one player, which means five teams won't lose anyone; Generation Adidas and home-grown players (for D.C. United, that means Rodney Wallace and Bill Hamid) need not be protected; developmental players claimed must be offered a senior contract; clubs must protect designated players that have no-trade clauses.

DCU will surely protect Pontius, Namoff, Quaranta, Simms, Jakovic and James. Despite high salaries, Moreno and Olsen might be included because of their value to the organization. Emilio and Fred make a lot of money and probably wouldn't be targeted by Philadelphia. There's a chance DCU wouldn't re-sign them anyway, so the club instead could choose to protect affordable players such as McTavish, Szetela, Khumalo, Shipalane, Jacobson or Barklage.

So much more on the continuation of this thread.....

The USA finished the 2009 calendar with a thud -- a troubling 3-1 loss at Denmark after seizing the lead in the first half. Jeff Cunningham scored on a left-footed strike from about 21 yards, but the Danes shredded the USA backline in the first 10 minutes of the second half with three routine goals, including the equalizer 70 seconds after the break.

Edgar Castillo made his long-awaited debut, entering midway through the second half on the left side of midfield. Frankie Hejduk showed his age. The USA was without several regulars, but most of those given the opportunity to shine flopped.

The Americans played 24 matches this year (13-8-3 record) and used 54 players. The starting lineup was different every match, except for the Gold Cup semifinal and final.

Positives: Securing World Cup berth, finishing first in final round, upsetting Spain to advance to Confederations Cup final, taking lead at Azteca, coming from behind several times to earn points.

Negatives: 5-0 loss in Gold Cup final, Costa Rica nightmare, relinquishing two-goal lead vs. Brazil, meltdown against Denmark, long-term injuries.

Wins: Sweden, Mexico, T&T (twice), Honduras (four times), Egypt, Spain, Grenada, Panama, El Salvador.

Losses: Costa Rica, Italy, Brazil (twice), Mexico (twice), Slovakia, Denmark.

Draws: El Salvador, Haiti, Costa Rica.

Hello: Stuart Holden, Edgar Castillo, Jeff Cunningham (Jermaine Jones?).

Welcome Back: Benny Feilhaber.

Goodbye: Freddy Adu, DaMarcus Beasley, Frankie Hejduk, Pablo Mastroeni.

Next: Training camp with available players starting in early January at Home Depot Center, home friendly late in the month.