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'I would say that the odds of us transforming our fortunes are lower than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his new life as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of averting a drop into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a champion's gong. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he states.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the aspect of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he states, breaking into laughter. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his playful character across a colourful conversation. Discourse travels in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some post on his desk. Among it is a letter from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of professional photographs from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another delivery brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he states.

A Prior Encounter and a Typographical Error

Until his move back from North Carolina to accept his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. That day the Newport kit man duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets dropped, an curious error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you envision an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s so not,' Fuchs states. {'He just said he was going to watch training in Austria for the first week. He remained on the sidelines at all. After that week we had a meeting and he said: 'I’ve watched you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs cherishes lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our methodology as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'

Background and a Determined Nature

Fuchs’s determination comes from his early years in Neunkirchen. {'There are parallels to where we are now, because I was told when I was 11 years old that I would never be skilled enough,' he reveals. {'There are people who let that overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Fuchs you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can not do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'

Detailed Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he explains, noting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, lower-league football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to be successful than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers make bleak reading. Newport have managed three of 19 league matches and are yet to win in eight in all competitions. By the time of their next home game, they will have not won a game at home for 273 days and have kept just two clean sheets in 26 matches this season. But a recent last-gasp equaliser with 10 men garnered a valuable point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to construct a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the small-sided games – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to see each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re striving towards this collectively.'