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'I estimate that the likelihood of us turning the season around are less than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his recent venture as manager of Newport County, and the immense task of preventing a drop into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that miraculous title win in 2016 provided him with much more than a winner's medal. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it proved that the impossible can be attainable,' he states.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the element of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he states, letting out a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. The discussion runs in multiple pathways, from being managed by the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a barber in the area.

He opens some post on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, along with a couple of glossy photos from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, grinning. Another package brings a stash of old collector's items, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this really makes me very happy,' he adds.

A Prior Encounter and a Typographical Error

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to take on 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. During that match David Pipe competed with Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets came out, an curious error emerged. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelt 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 pleasant.'

Lessons from Ranieri, 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 the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you picture an elder gentleman, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit old school, but he’s so not,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 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 thought: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I push them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our methodology as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very focused, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined 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 discloses. {'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 can not do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my character is: I’m very stubborn. If I see promise, I’m doing it.'

Detailed Approach and the Battle 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 data from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very physical, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The broader 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 injury-time equaliser with 10 men earned a crucial point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

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