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'I estimate that the odds of us transforming our fortunes are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' The Austrian veteran is discussing his fresh chapter as head coach of the League Two strugglers, and the immense task of preventing a drop into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that miraculous title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a winner's medal. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be achievable,' he remarks.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

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, letting out laughter. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear indication of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. Discourse runs in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He opens some post on his desk. Among it is a message from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another envelope brings a collection of old stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. Items like this makes me very content,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Until coming back from North Carolina to accept his first job in senior management 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. During that match the Newport kit man competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets dropped, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

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 the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you imagine an seasoned professional, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 studied 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 thought: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I test them psychologically?’’ 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 Stubborn Nature

Fuchs’s drive comes from his early years 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 capable enough,' he discloses. {'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 prove that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my personality is: I’m pretty stubborn. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Struggle 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 statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he says, highlighting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very physical, fourth-tier football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just hoofing it all the time.'

The general numbers present grim reading. Newport have managed 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 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men earned a crucial point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to construct a stronghold.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad 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 member of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he remarks, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the boxes – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to view each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re tackling this collectively.'