Twelve wishes for the New Year

A new year brings with it new hopes and dreams. So in that spirit here are 12 wishes for UAE football for 2012. It will be interesting to see whether any of these come to pass by next December. Let's hope so…

1. Send promising Pro League players to Europe for pre-season - It would give them a priceless perspective on what it takes to get to the next level in terms of dedication, skill and fitness. And hopefully they would bring some of that learning back.

2. Pro League teams to reach the second round of the AFC Champions League - Since Al Wahda reached the semi-finals of the tournament in 2007, not a single UAE side has got past the opening group stages, a woeful record. Last season they won just six of 25 matches. For the credibility of football in this country that has to change.

3. A tight title race - Al Jazira ran away with things last season, now Al Ain are threatening the same. It would be great to see two or three clubs slugging it out going into the final round.

4. More chances for local strikers - The UAE national team's Achilles heel has been its inability to score. In the Asian Cup at the start of the year it failed to find the net in three matches. One reason may be the Pro League clubs' preference for expensive imports instead of local talent. That needs to change and a quota system is one option to help that happen.

5. More English language Pro League coverage on TV - For the past year the Pro League has started to tap into the expatriate community's love of football by offering one match per week with English commentary. That needs to be expanded and publicised better; at the moment it is the game's best-kept secret.

6. UAE friendlies - The UAE's woeful World Cup qualifying campaign has seen its Fifa ranking slide to 130. That hardly makes the country an attractive opponent for top sides but money talks and the UAE must seek to try and get high-profile friendlies to expose its players to a better class of opponent and raise the game's profile.

7. Give coaches more time - The revolving door policy of hiring and firing coaches at both national and Pro League level is hardly conducive to success. Al Jazira stuck with Abel Braga for three years before he delivered the double last term. There's a lesson there…

8. Improve clubs' commercial activities and marketing - The AFC has been critical of clubs' reliance on wealthy owners ahead of sound business plans. That needs to change. Regular school visits by players to let people know clubs exist would be a start. Improvement of the match-day experience should also be a priority, with more effort to draw in families.

9. Standardised kick-off days and times - so far this season Pro League matches have started at 10 different times on five different days of the week. That's hardly a recipe for helping potential fans get into the habit of watching their club.

10. UAE FA and Pro League clubs moving in the same direction - The imminent appointment of a new UAE FA President offers a golden chance for the sport's national governing body and the clubs to come up with a shared vision for the game. The opportunity needs to be taken.

11. Keep Maradona - El Diego has been superb for the Pro League and UAE football. He has been a great investment and not just for Al Wasl.

12. Icon players to each club - One way of dragging up the domestic players as well as raising the profile of the league would be to get a high-profile, top quality player from Europe or South America into each side. The key would be for the new recruits to have something left in the tank (not like David Trezeguet) and be willing and able to lead by example.