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'I estimate that the odds of us transforming our fortunes are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his fresh chapter as boss of the Football League's bottom club, and the daunting task of preventing a drop into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a champion's gong. {'It contributed to shifting my outlook a little bit ... it proved that the unattainable can be possible,' he notes.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the part of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he comments, letting out a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear indication of his engaging character across a colourful conversation. The discussion travels in multiple pathways, from working under Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some mail on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, smiling. Another envelope brings a collection of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this really makes me very pleased,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

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. On that occasion a former full-back faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets were released, an amusing error was discovered. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Experiences from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move 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 observational approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you picture an older man, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 change anything.''

Fuchs values experiences 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 significant part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very anxious to prove himself.'

Origins and a Resolute Mindset

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 reveals. {'There are people who let that get the better of 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't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my personality is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical 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 statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season bests,' he says, highlighting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, fourth-tier football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to find its target than just hoofing it all the time.'

The broader numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have won 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 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 secured a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create 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, loves being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the boxes – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to regard 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 together.'