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'I reckon that the odds of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is discussing his fresh chapter as head coach of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of averting a fall into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It helped change my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be achievable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the part of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he comments, breaking into a chuckle. This serves as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk flows in multiple pathways, from playing for Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some mail on his desk. Included is a letter from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, along with a couple of shiny pictures from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another envelope brings a stash of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion the Newport kit man competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards were released, an amusing error came to light. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Insights from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian arrived at the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach worked wonders. {'When you observe Claudio you envision 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 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 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 challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our approach as well. How can you make good players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined Nature

Fuchs’s determination stems from 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 shares. {'There are people who let that get the better of them or there are people who say: ‘Watch me, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can not do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my personality is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he points out, noting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 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 different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to arrive than just going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers present grim reading. Newport have won three of 19 league matches and are without a victory 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 last-gasp equaliser with 10 men garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he states, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the drills – two nutmegs already, yes! 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 working on this together.'