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'I would say that the odds of us turning the season around are less than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his fresh chapter as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of staving off a drop into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unattainable can be attainable,' he states.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'I suppose that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he comments, breaking into laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. Discourse runs in different directions, from working under the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some post on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, paired with a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another package brings a stash of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. Things like this genuinely makes me very content,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Funny Mistake

Until coming back from North Carolina to assume his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards were released, an amusing error came to light. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian arrived at the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach worked wonders. {'When you observe Claudio you envision an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s so not,' Fuchs explains. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs cherishes lessons learned 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 significant part of our methodology as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Roots and a Resolute Character

Fuchs’s motivation 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 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 can not do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my character is: I’m very determined. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit numerous season peaks,' he explains, highlighting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very physical, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to find its target than just going long all the time.'

The general numbers make sobering 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 earned a precious point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a stronghold.'

In the Thick of It 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, loves being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the small-sided games – two pannas already, brilliant! I want us to view each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re striving towards this together.'