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'I would say that the likelihood of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' The Austrian veteran is talking about his recent venture as boss of Newport County, and the daunting task of preventing a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it proved that the unattainable can be possible,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'I suppose that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he comments, letting out laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Our talk flows in multiple pathways, from working under the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some correspondence on his desk. Included is a letter from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, paired with a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, grinning. Another package brings a stash of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this really makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Typographical Error

Prior to returning 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 were on the end of a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion David Pipe competed with Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the lineup cards came out, an interesting error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelled 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 fitting.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs explains. {'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 observed you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear 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 test them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big 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 focused, very anxious to prove himself.'

Background and a Stubborn Character

Fuchs’s motivation 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 shares. {'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 prove that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see promise, I’m going for it.'

Analytical Approach and the Battle 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 data from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he states. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to be successful than just launching it all the time.'

The broader numbers paint grim 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 won a game 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 earned a valuable point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to construct a stronghold.'

One of the Lads at Heart

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