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'I reckon that the likelihood of us transforming our fortunes are less than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his recent venture as manager of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of preventing a descent into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a Premier League trophy. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be possible,' he states.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The logical place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs wind up here? 'I imagine that's the part that's illogical, right?' he comments, erupting in laughter. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Discourse flows in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a local barber.

He looks at some post on his desk. Among it is a note from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of shiny pictures from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, grinning. Another envelope brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this makes me very happy,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Until his move back from North Carolina to accept 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 cupset in the FA Cup third round. During that match David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his life,' Fuchs recalls. But when the teamsheets dropped, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Insights from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian joined the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach did the trick. {'When you observe Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' 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 change anything.''

Fuchs values lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I push 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 focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Roots and a Resolute Mindset

Fuchs’s determination originates in his early years 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 discloses. {'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 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 character is: I’m pretty stubborn. If I see potential, I’m going for it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Fight 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, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he explains, highlighting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very physical, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint 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 won a game 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 garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to construct a fortress.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he remarks, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the drills – two megs already, yes! I want us to view each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this together.'