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'I would say that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his recent venture as manager of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of averting a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with a great deal more than a champion's gong. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the element of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he states, breaking into a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his playful character across a fascinating conversation. Discourse flows in various tangents, 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. There is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, paired with a couple of glossy photos from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, grinning. Another package brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. Items like this really makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Prior to returning 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. That day the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is funny 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 a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian came to the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs explains. {'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 modify anything.''

Fuchs holds dear lessons learned 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 driven, very keen to prove himself.'

Background and a Stubborn Character

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 shares. {'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 put in the hard yards. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very stubborn. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he explains, noting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, fourth-tier football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to find its target than just hoofing it all the time.'

The general 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 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 crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a stronghold.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to view each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re working on this together.'