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'I would say that the chances of us transforming our fortunes are lower than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his recent venture as manager of Newport County, and the daunting task of preventing a drop into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It assisted in altering my mindset a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unattainable can be achievable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs find himself here? 'I suppose that's the part that's illogical, right?' he says, erupting in laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Our talk travels in various tangents, from being managed by Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He sorts through some post on his desk. Among it is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of professional photographs from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, grinning. Another envelope brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this makes me very pleased,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter 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 suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs says. But when the lineup cards dropped, an curious error came to light. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. '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 Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed 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 imagine an seasoned professional, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs values insights gained 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 challenge them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'

Background and a Resolute Nature

Fuchs’s motivation comes from his upbringing 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 capable enough,' he reveals. {'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 can't do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very determined. If I see promise, I’m going for it.'

Detailed 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, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season bests,' 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 different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to find its target than just going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint bleak 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 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men earned a valuable point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to build a stronghold.'

Still a Player 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, enjoys being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he states, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the small-sided games – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to view each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this collectively.'