When you think of 'the Matrix', you think revolutionary. Something new and exciting that has the potential to change an entire way of thinking, as well as a blockbuster film!
This is the case with the new 'Matrix soccer coaching' DVD, presented by Sky Sports supremo Andy Gray and backed by none other than UEFA themselves.
Created by Blackburn Rovers and UEFA qualified coach Charlie Jackson, 'the Matrix' system mimics real game situations in a number of different training drills, expertly presented and explained in this DVD.
With six key elements of training forming the building blocks of 'the Matrix' idea, the alliterative combination of: Attitude, Ability, Agility, Awareness, Attacking and Achievement, all form the basics of Jackson's method.
Passing drills to enhance one-touch play are mixed well with footage of the professionals in action. One such drill, aptly named Brazil 1970, shows how the great World Cup winning Brazil side of 1970 were able to cut a team apart with their passing, movement and technique on the ball.
And it is not wasted on the guinea pigs who are being led through it. Profiling the young kids involved shows exactly what they're learning and how they're developing within the system.
One such individual, a 16 year old American who came over to England purely to learn from Jackson's method, displays incredible skills that belie his age, and goes on to win a contract with La Liga side Villarreal CF. Surely proof that Jackson is doing something right.
Plenty of footage of the likes of Henry, Eto'o, Pele and Maradona displaying their skills on the pitch is an excellent way of breaking up the DVD. Given a chance to see how the pros do it, it really does show how good the kids are when they mimic the skills in training.
Furthermore, it certainly helps that players and managers like Roy Hodgson, Marchello Lippi (FIFA World Cup 2006 Winning Coach), Diego Forlan and Benni McCarthy have lent their names to the presentation, despite not actually being involved in the drills themselves.
The multiple layers of UEFA advertising on boards around the ground also show how keen football's governing body is to be linked with this product. It is a must for all coaches and managers involved in the development of young players.
Jackson truly believes that his method will help to change the way that football is coached, and with more DVD's expected in the future, he may just be right.