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'I estimate that the chances of us reviving our campaign are lower than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his new life as boss of Newport County, and the daunting task of averting a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him a great deal more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the unattainable can be possible,' he states.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'I suppose that's the part that's not logical, right?' he states, 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 being managed by Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager 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 wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, grinning. Another package brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this genuinely makes me very content,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Typographical Error

Until his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. During that match David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets were released, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Insights from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach worked wonders. {'When you observe Claudio you envision an elder gentleman, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to watch 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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to modify anything.''

Fuchs holds dear insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our approach 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 focused, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Resolute Mindset

Fuchs’s determination stems from 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 skilled enough,' he shares. {'There are people who let that overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can't do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my character is: I’m pretty headstrong. If I see promise, I’m doing it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led 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 numerous season highs,' he says, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'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 launching it all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have managed 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 tasted victory 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 construct a stronghold.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he says, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the boxes – two megs already, brilliant! I want us to view each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re working on this as one.'