Sit down with Atlanta United 2 manager Stephen Glass for a conversation about soccer and it is hard not to walk away wishing you could play for him yourself. The 43-year-old Scot is confident, direct and thorough, and his thick Dundonian accent fills the room as he talks about his own playing career in England and Scotland, the manager who most inspired him and the realities of his new job.



“The aim is not to win the USL per se, but every week we go into the game thinking ‘How do we win this game of football?’” Glass said. “My job is to set these players up for success, which means ‘Can I push them enough that there’s an opportunity to play in the first team?’”



That progression is his primary task. Glassy, as he’s called at the training ground, is frank in his assessment of young players and open about the challenges of managing a two-year-old USL affiliate with unique expectations. Atlanta United...