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'I reckon that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his fresh chapter as head coach of the Football League's bottom club, and the daunting task of staving off a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him a great deal more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs end up here? 'That's the part of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he states, letting out a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear indication of his engaging character across a wide-ranging conversation. The discussion travels in different directions, from playing for Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a barber in the area.

He opens some correspondence on his desk. There is a note from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another delivery brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. Items like this really makes me very happy,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. That day a former full-back faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets were released, an curious error emerged. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelt 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 pleasant.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, 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 joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you envision an elder gentleman, 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 observe training in Austria for the first week. He didn’t get involved at all. After that week we had a meeting and he said: 'I’ve observed you for a week and I’m not going to modify anything.''

Fuchs cherishes lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I test them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our approach as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Origins and a Determined Nature

Fuchs’s drive comes from his upbringing 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 good enough,' he shares. {'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 cannot do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m pretty determined. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs fires up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he says, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very physical, lower-league football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to find its target than just hoofing it all the time.'

The broader numbers make sobering 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 tasted victory 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 precious point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the boxes – two megs already, brilliant! 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 tackling this as one.'