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'I would say that the likelihood of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is talking about his fresh chapter as manager of the League Two strugglers, and the immense task of averting a fall into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the element of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he states, erupting in a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear demonstration of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. Discourse flows in different directions, from playing for Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a barber in the area.

He sorts through some correspondence on his desk. Among it is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, along with a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, grinning. Another delivery brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. 'Stuff like this makes me very happy,' he states.

A Previous Visit and a Misspelt Name

Until returning from North Carolina to assume his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport shock defeat 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 admits. But when the teamsheets came out, an curious 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 hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Lessons from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian came to the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach did the trick. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'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 considered: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very focused, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Stubborn Character

Fuchs’s determination comes from his early years 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 discloses. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Fuchs you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can not do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite determined. If I see potential, I’m doing it.'

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 fires up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit numerous season peaks,' he says, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very physical, League Two football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to be successful than just launching it all the time.'

The general numbers make sobering reading. Newport have secured 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 injury-time equaliser with 10 men garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a fortress.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the thick of things. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he remarks, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to regard each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re tackling this collectively.'