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'The prospect of a seasonal revival is arguably more remote than that fabled 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our favor.' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his recent venture as manager of Newport County, and the monumental task of averting a fall into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him a great deal more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my mindset a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the part of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he comments, letting out a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion travels in multiple pathways, from being managed by Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He opens some post on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, smiling. Another envelope brings a stash of old collector's items, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Misspelt Name

Until coming back from North Carolina to assume his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter 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 match of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards dropped, an amusing error emerged. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach did the trick. {'When you observe Claudio you picture an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I test them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our approach as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Determined Character

Fuchs’s drive comes 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 discloses. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You cannot do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite 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 previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he explains, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just launching it all the time.'

The general numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have secured 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 won a game 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 valuable point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to build a fortress.'

Still a Player 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 middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he says, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two nutmegs already, yes! I want us to see each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re tackling this together.'