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'I would say that the odds of us reviving our campaign are lower than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his fresh chapter as head coach of Newport County, and the monumental task of preventing a drop into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a winner's medal. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be possible,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'I imagine that's the part that's illogical, right?' he says, letting out a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear indication of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion travels in various tangents, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a local barber.

He looks at some correspondence on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, with a smile. Another delivery brings a collection of old Panini stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he states.

A Prior Encounter and a Typographical Error

Until his move back from North Carolina to take on 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 competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets came out, an curious error emerged. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious 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 turned out to be a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian arrived at the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach produced miracles. {'When you look at Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'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 modify 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 additional out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very focused, very anxious to prove himself.'

Origins and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s motivation originates in 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 capable enough,' he reveals. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can't do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my personality is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Detailed Approach and the Struggle 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, displaying a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit numerous season highs,' he says, highlighting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers make sobering reading. Newport have managed 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 tasted victory at home for 273 days and have kept just two clean sheets in 26 matches this season. But a recent 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men secured a crucial 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 build a fortress.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He hung up his boots 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 at heart,' he says, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the boxes – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to regard each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re working on this collectively.'