Stephen Glass always felt destined to become a manager.
The midfielder enjoyed a stellar playing career which started as a youngster at Aberdeen and included a man-of-the-match display in the club’s 1995 League Cup final success.
Spells at Newcastle United, Watford, Hibernian and Dunfermline would follow before Glass finished up his playing days at Carolina RailHawks.
Glass cut his teeth as an assistant at Shamrock Rovers before spending four years at Atlanta United as head coach of the MLS club’s second team.
A spell as interim head coach following the departure of Frank de Boer last July thrust Glass into the spotlight and he will now have the chance to be a manager in his own right at the club where he made his name.
Some Aberdeen supporters have questioned whether Glass has enough experience to bring the glory days back to Pittodrie but the 44-year-old insists his journey to the Dons dugout has been a long time in the making.
He said: “At 27 or 28 I started to think about it.
“Tony Mowbray came in at Hibs and made me really start thinking about the game a little bit deeper. That was probably the start when I started to do my badges and licences.
“I finished those and got my pro-licence in 2014.
“I was about 36 or 37 so I was fairly young to be fully qualified.
“When I think back I was always a player who had an opinion.
“I wasn’t crazily vocal but I had an opinion and I would speak to managers and coaches and take a little bit of note about what was going on.
“The career I have had and the people I have played for means I have had a great chance to take in a lot of different styles and knowledge.
“I have managed to tap into a lot of that and hopefully I am a more rounded coach because of that.”
He feels his time at Atlanta United will be hugely beneficial as he tries to bring his own style to the Dons.
He said: “I ended up at Atlanta after I had been coaching the young side in Carolina.
“I went a different route because people don’t always see what you do in America. The amount of hours and games I have put in over here it really adds up.
“I felt it was the best way to learn. I had the year in Ireland and I knew I wasn’t ready and I feel better prepared because of my time in the States.
“I ended up at Atlanta through the academy. Tony Annan brought me into the academy and started me learning again about professional things and what it means to be at a professional club again.
“I very quickly progressed through the ranks , coaching the under-18s, the second team and then I was fortunate enough to get a chance of taking interim charge of the first-team last year.
“I handled some big players and players who were sold for big money, with one being sold for £20 million.
“I have learned a lot with the level of players I was handling with the first team and even with the second team.
“Atlanta has been great for me, the people have been amazing and it is no surprise the clubs are linked when you see the ethos of how the clubs go about their business.”
Glass said it was a proud moment to be able to tell his family he had landed the Aberdeen job.
He said: “With the time difference I didn’t really have to keep it quiet from them.
“They knew I had a chance and I had interviewed but they were the same as me, hoping I got the chance to come home.
“I got told late on Monday night so I text my parents and I caught up with some of the family because they had been waiting and waiting.
“A lot of them would have seen it online this morning but I wasn’t keeping it from anyone because I never knew until Monday night.”
Now Glass’ challenge is to bring the good times back to Aberdeen.
He experienced them as a player with League Cup success at Hampden in 1995 and he would love to do the same from the dugout.
He added: “I had a lot of good memories at Aberdeen, starting as early as coming in at 12 or 13.
“I came in for weeks during the school holidays with a bus-full of boys from Dundee, Glasgow and the west coast, dreaming of becoming a professional.
“I remember making my debut, playing in a team that won a cup and the reason I got in the team was that we weren’t doing so well at the time.
“We managed to not get relegated that season which was a success at the time.
“Success at a club like Aberdeen means putting trophies in the cabinet and I was fortunate enough to be in a team that did that.
“My biggest memory is winning a trophy with the club and serving my club well during my time.
“I look forward to doing the same again.”
