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'I would say that the odds of us reviving our campaign are less than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his new life as head coach of Newport County, and the monumental task of preventing a fall 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 a great deal more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be possible,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'I guess that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he states, letting out laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear indication of his charismatic character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion runs in various tangents, from being managed by 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 sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of professional photographs from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another package brings a collection of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this genuinely makes me very content,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Typographical Error

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards came out, an curious error emerged. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Experiences from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian arrived at the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you picture an older man, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to modify anything.''

Fuchs cherishes experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I push them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant 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.'

Background and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s determination 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 skilled 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 cannot do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Detailed Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs fires up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing 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 logged at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very direct, fourth-tier football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just launching it all the time.'

The broader numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have won 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 secured three points 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 garnered a precious 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 fortress.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he states, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the drills – 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 collectively.'