REVEALED: A-League clubs' Christmas wish lists

Michael Huguenin

REVEALED: A-League clubs' Christmas wish lists image

Merry Christmas A-League fans! A source based at the North Pole has revealed what each club in Australia's top tier wants from Santa Claus.

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Below you can see what each club is hoping to receive from jolly old Saint Nick on Friday morning as they look to improve through the rest of the 2015-16 A-League season.

What would you like to see your A-League club get in their Christmas stocking?

Adelaide United

A fit Iacopo La Rocca 

The 31-year-old Italian was meant to add some grit and steel to the Reds' midfield this season but a foot injury has seen the defensive midfielder sidelined throughout 2015-16 so far. With the AFC Champions League (ACL) looming, La Rocca's defensive nous and height at set-pieces would be a big boost for Adelaide.

Personality transplant for Guillermo Amor

The sideline antics of former Adelaide coach Josep Gombau were one of the highlights of the A-League. His successor - former Barcelona midfielder Amor - is terribly bland by comparison. Some things may be lost in translation, but Amor's standing amongst the fans and media would improve with some knee slides and adventurous quotes.

Brisbane Roar

New stadium

The men in orange have never gone close to filling the cavernous Suncorp Stadium week after week. The Roar's best attendance so far in 2015-16 came in Round 2 - 14,471 against Central Coast Mariners - and was still well short of the 52,500 capacity. Brisbane would benefit more than any other club with a boutique stadium of around 20,000 capacity. Maybe Santa can whip one up in his workshop?

Shooting boots for Thomas Broich

In each of Brisbane's three championship-winning seasons, 'Mozart' ended the A-League campaign with goal tallies of six, three and three, respectively. Broich has yet to hit the back of the net this term, with the playmaker having shot just nine times in 11 games. A goal-hungry Broich could turn John Aloisi's team into title favourites.

Central Coast Mariners

Fox in the Box

Leading into Round 11, Central Coast had the worst shot conversion rate in the A-League with just 10.6 per cent of attempts ending in goals. Tony Walmsley's men may have embraced his attacking philosophy but their failure to score is killing them. Roy O'Donovan's unfortunate ability to miss gilt-edged opportunities means the Mariners need a genuine finisher.

Christmas-inspired kit

The Mariners appear to be trying to set a record for the most playing kits used in a season. Already Central Coast have played in their yellow home kit, blue away kit and a pink kit, while they have a Surf Life Saving-inspired kit prepared for a game in February. Maybe when they face Sydney FC on Boxing Day they could play in Santa suits?

Melbourne City

More fans

Before Saturday night's Melbourne derby, City's average home attendance was 7,370 this season, which left them second bottom in the A-League. This is the highest-scoring team in the A-League with arguably the most in-form Australian player at the moment in Aaron Mooy. A few thousand supporters in City's Christmas stocking would be ideal.

Truly magic spray

John van 't Schip's team has been plagued by injuries this season with the likes of Ivan Franjic starting the campaign unfit, while Corey Gameiro and Connor Chapman have both suffered knee injuries recently. Perth Glory and Newcastle Jets could also use some help in the physio room, but City may be the club most in need of some truly magic spray.

Melbourne Victory

FBK 1.0

The Tunisian attacker has yet to reach the heights of his debut A-League season, although he arguably produced his best performance of the campaign in Saturday night's derby. In April, Ben Khalfallah was the hottest property in the A-League but has barely earned his spot in Victory's starting XI this season. Could Santa wind back the clock on the 33-year-old for Kevin Muscat?

A four-leaf clover

Victory have had their share of bad luck during their four-game losing streak - shots just keep coming back off the woodwork. Against City, Besart Berisha saw a shot rebound off Thomas Sorensen's face, while Ben Khalfallah hit the inside of the post but the ball bounced out. Muscat would certainly be grateful for a four-leaf clover or rabbit's foot for good luck.

Newcastle Jets

An attacking injection

No team has attempted fewer shots this season than Newcastle (76), with Scott Miller's side infamously finishing a match without shooting when they drew 0-0 at Adelaide last month. Miller's focus on defensive solidity means the Jets seem scared to attack. Perhaps a foreign striker to replace outgoing full-back Li Ki-je is the answer?

A rule book

Against Melbourne City in Round 10, the Jets were offside 13 times. Milos Trifunovic seems keen to inherit Archie Thompson's crown as the A-League's 'Offside King'. If a rule book was to drop down Newcastle's chimney on Friday, the Jets might win more games, or Santa could sit Trifunovic down with some salt-and-pepper shakers to demonstrate offside.

Perth Glory

Another import spot

While the Glory are unbeaten in three games, including wins over Central Coast and Victory, Kenny Lowe may have found the key to lifting his team into the A-League finals. The only problem is he doesn't have an import spot for striker Andy Keogh. The Irishman is back in Perth but unless the Glory can move another foreign player on, he won't play until next season.

A purple bus

Heading into Round 11, Perth sat equal second in the A-League for shots faced (151 alongside the Mariners) with only Newcastle (154) having faced more. Western Sydney Wanderers sent another 12 Ante Covic's way on Saturday night but Lowe could give the veteran goalkeeper a helping hand if Santa brings him a bus to park in front of goal.

Sydney FC

Goals

No team in the A-League's top six has scored fewer goals than the Sky Blues (11). Marquee forward Filip Holosko (4 goals) may be the team's leading scorer but his finishing has not always been up to scratch, while Shane Smeltz (0 goals) is in one of the longest goal droughts of his career. Is Graham Arnold sure sending Marc Janko on his way was a good idea?

'Get out of jail free' card

Both Arnold and Sydney defender Jacques Faty could use this. Faty has conceded late penalties in Sydney's past two matches, which have cost the Sky Blues points, while Arnold's mouth keeps getting the veteran coach into trouble. The former Socceroos striker has already been cited twice by Football Federation Australia (FFA).

Wellington Phoenix

A-League licence extension

Metrics? What metrics? Wellington's clash with Sydney on Saturday afternoon had the second-highest TV rankings of the weekend behind the Melbourne derby, while the Phoenix's average home attendance is 9,378 this season. That's higher than Central Coast and Perth, while it would also be better than City - as mentioned earlier - but for the derby.

Another shot at replacing Nathan Burns

Replacing a Johnny Warren medallist was always going to be difficult. Last season, Burns scored 13 goals and notched six assists. Burns' ostensible replacement Jeffrey Sarpong has managed just one assist in 11 appearances and has generally sat on the bench for Ernie Merrick's side. The Scotsman would surely love a Mulligan on his decision to sign Sarpong.

Western Sydney Wanderers

Contract extension for Popa

After a tough 2014-15 A-League campaign where the Wanderers failed to deal with their ACL exertions, coach Tony Popovic has led Western Sydney back to the top. The Wanderers sit in pole position after 11 games and have adapted brilliantly to a new attacking style. A new long-term contract for Popovic would be every Western Sydney fan's best Christmas present.

Proper marquees

Imagine if Wanderland was the home of two top-class marquee players with genuine international profile. Federico Piovaccari and Dario Vidosic are hardly the biggest names to play in the A-League, while their output so far - 3 goals combined across 19 collective appearances - is not worth writing home about. Western Sydney would be irresistible with another Ono or Del Piero.

Michael Huguenin