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'I reckon that the chances of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his recent venture as boss of Newport County, and the daunting task of averting a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him much more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be possible,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs end up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he states, erupting in laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion runs in multiple pathways, from playing for the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a nearby hairdresser.

He looks at some correspondence on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, paired with a couple of professional photographs from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another package brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this genuinely makes me very content,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until returning from North Carolina to take on his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. That day a former full-back competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an interesting error came to light. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you envision an older man, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit old school, but he’s so not,' 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 observed you for a week and I’m not going to modify anything.''

Fuchs cherishes insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I challenge them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our methodology as well. How can you make good players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined Nature

Fuchs’s motivation 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 good 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 can't do this, you can not 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 determined. If I see potential, I’m doing it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very physical, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers present grim reading. Newport have secured 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 last-gasp equaliser with 10 men garnered a precious point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to construct a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the thick of things. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the drills – two nutmegs already, yes! I want us to regard each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this together.'