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'I estimate that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his new life as head coach of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of preventing a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum, though that fairytale title win in 2016 furnished him much more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: how did Fuchs end up here? 'I imagine that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he comments, letting out laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. The discussion travels in multiple pathways, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a nearby hairdresser.

He sorts through some mail on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of shiny pictures from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, smiling. Another envelope brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he captained 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 Misspelt Name

Until returning 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 suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets were released, an interesting error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs remarks. '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 pleasant.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice 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 observational approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s so not,' 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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I challenge them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our methodology as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Resolute Character

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 skilled 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't do this, you can not do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see promise, I’m going for it.'

Detailed Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs fires up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he points out, highlighting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very physical, fourth-tier football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers present 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 injury-time equaliser with 10 men garnered a precious point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to create a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two megs already, yes! I want us to see each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this together.'