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'I reckon that the chances of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' The Austrian veteran is discussing his recent venture as head coach of the League Two strugglers, and the monumental task of staving off a drop into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him much more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be possible,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he comments, breaking into a chuckle. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his playful character across a colourful conversation. Discourse travels in different directions, from working under the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some mail on his desk. Included is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of shiny pictures from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another envelope brings a hoard of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Prior Encounter and a Funny Mistake

Prior to coming back from North Carolina to accept his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. That day the Newport kit man duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets came out, an curious error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Experiences from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach did the trick. {'When you see Claudio you envision an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs values experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I test them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our methodology as well. How can you make good players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'

Origins and a Resolute Character

Fuchs’s drive originates in his upbringing 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 good enough,' he discloses. {'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 prove that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my personality is: I’m pretty stubborn. If I see possibility, I’m doing it.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs fires up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season highs,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The general numbers present grim reading. Newport have won 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 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 garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to build a stronghold.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the boxes – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to see 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 as one.'