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'I estimate that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his recent venture as manager of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of preventing a drop into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a winner's medal. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he notes.

The Surprising Path to Rodney Parade

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'I imagine that's the part that's illogical, right?' he states, erupting in a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Our talk travels in multiple pathways, from working under the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some correspondence 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 muses, with a smile. Another envelope brings a stash of old stickers, 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 happy,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Until his move back from North Carolina to accept his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. During that match David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards were released, an interesting error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you envision an elder gentleman, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs states. {'He just said he was going to watch 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 alter anything.''

Fuchs holds dear experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big 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 motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined Nature

Fuchs’s drive originates in his upbringing in Neunkirchen. {'There are parallels to where we are now, because I was told when I was 11 years old that I would never be good enough,' he reveals. {'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 not do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very stubborn. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he explains, 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 mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very physical, 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 going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have secured 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 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 secured a valuable point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the drills – two megs already, get in! I want us to regard each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re tackling this collectively.'