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'I reckon that the likelihood 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 new life as boss of Newport County, and the immense task of staving off a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a champion's gong. {'It contributed to shifting my mindset a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be achievable,' he states.

The Surprising Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the part of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he comments, letting out laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear indication of his engaging character across a wide-ranging conversation. Discourse runs in multiple pathways, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some mail on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, along with a couple of professional photographs from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another envelope brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. 'Stuff like this really makes me very happy,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Until coming back from North Carolina to assume his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion David Pipe competed with Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the teamsheets dropped, an amusing error emerged. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They got wrong 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 move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach did the trick. {'When you see Claudio you imagine an elder gentleman, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to watch 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 change 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 psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our methodology as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Resolute Character

Fuchs’s motivation 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 good enough,' he reveals. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Watch me, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You cannot do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite determined. If I see possibility, I’m going for 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 analytics 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 penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very direct, 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 general numbers present 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 won a game 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 secured a crucial point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to construct a stronghold.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he states, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the drills – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to see each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re tackling this as one.'