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'I reckon that the chances of us turning the season around are less than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his recent venture as head coach of the League Two strugglers, and the monumental task of averting a drop into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him a great deal more than a champion's gong. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unattainable can be possible,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: how did Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the element of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he states, letting out laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear indication of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. Discourse runs in different directions, from working under Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some mail on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, along with a couple of professional photographs from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, smiling. Another package brings a hoard of old collector's items, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very content,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Typographical Error

Prior to returning from North Carolina to assume 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. On that occasion David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the teamsheets came out, an amusing error was discovered. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Insights from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach produced miracles. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an seasoned professional, so a veteran of the sport, 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 stayed out of it 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 cherishes lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘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 approach as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Background and a Resolute Mindset

Fuchs’s drive comes from his childhood in Neunkirchen. {'There are comparisons 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 cannot do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my personality is: I’m very determined. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs fires up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season highs,' he points out, noting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The broader numbers present sobering reading. Newport have won 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 tasted victory 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 valuable point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he says, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the small-sided games – two pannas already, get in! I want us to regard each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this together.'