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'I estimate that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' The Austrian veteran is talking about his recent venture as manager of the League Two strugglers, and the immense task of preventing a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him much more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unattainable can be possible,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the element of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he states, letting out a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk flows in various tangents, from working under the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some mail on his desk. Included is a letter from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, paired with a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, with a smile. Another package brings a collection of old stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this genuinely makes me very content,' he states.

A Previous Visit and a Typographical Error

Until his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. During that match a former full-back duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards were released, an curious error came to light. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' found its way 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 proved inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian came to the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine an elder gentleman, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'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 values experiences 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 big part of our approach 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 driven, very keen to prove himself.'

Origins and a Determined Mindset

Fuchs’s motivation stems 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 defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Watch me, 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 show that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very stubborn. If I see potential, I’m going for it.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit numerous season bests,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he states. {'My first game, it was very direct, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just launching it all the time.'

The broader numbers make sobering reading. Newport have managed three of 19 league matches and are winless 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 crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to construct a impenetrable home.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs likes 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 thick of things. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the small-sided games – two pannas already, brilliant! I want us to regard each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this together.'