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'I would say that the odds of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his new life as manager of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of preventing a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him much more than a champion's gong. {'It helped change my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs find himself here? 'I imagine that's the part that's illogical, right?' he says, letting out a laugh. It is the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear demonstration of his engaging character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk travels in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the immediate requirement to find a local barber.

He opens some mail on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, along with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, smiling. Another package brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this really makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Funny Mistake

Until his move back from North Carolina to accept his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion a former full-back duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an interesting error came to light. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Experiences from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian arrived at the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach produced miracles. {'When you look at Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very motivated, very keen to prove himself.'

Origins and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s determination comes from his upbringing in Neunkirchen. {'There are similarities to where we are now, because I was told when I was 11 years old that I would never be good enough,' he shares. {'There are people who let that get the better of 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 can not do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see promise, I’m doing it.'

Detailed Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he explains, highlighting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very physical, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just going long all the time.'

The general numbers make grim reading. Newport have won three of 19 league matches and are without a victory 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 injury-time equaliser with 10 men secured a crucial point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a stronghold.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves 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 getting involved in the drills – two pannas already, brilliant! I want us to see each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this collectively.'