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'I would say that the likelihood of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his fresh chapter as head coach of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of preventing a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a champion's gong. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be achievable,' he states.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The obvious place to start is: how did Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the aspect of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he comments, breaking into a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear demonstration of his charismatic character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk travels in multiple pathways, from playing for Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He opens some mail on his desk. Included is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, smiling. Another envelope brings a stash of old Panini stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. 'Stuff like this really makes me very content,' he states.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until coming back from North Carolina to assume his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. That day the Newport kit man competed with Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets came out, an amusing error came to light. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs remarks. '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 nice.'

Insights from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian came to the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach worked wonders. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs states. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear 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 push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our approach as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very motivated, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Resolute Nature

Fuchs’s drive originates in his childhood 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 reveals. {'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 put in the hard yards. The other thing about my character is: I’m pretty headstrong. If I see promise, I’m doing it.'

Detailed 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, displaying a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he says, emphasizing 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, lower-league football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The broader numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have secured 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 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 earned a valuable point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to create a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the thick of things. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he says, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the boxes – two pannas already, yes! I want us to see each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re striving towards this as one.'