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'I would say that the likelihood of us turning the season around are lower than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his new life as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of preventing a fall into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him much more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my mindset a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he notes.

The Surprising Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs wind up here? 'I suppose that's the part that's illogical, right?' he says, erupting in a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear sign of his engaging character across a colourful conversation. Discourse 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 correspondence on his desk. Among it is a note from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, accompanied by a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, smiling. Another envelope brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. 'Stuff like this genuinely makes me very content,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Until coming back from North Carolina to take on 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 competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an curious error came to light. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Lessons from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off 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 explains. {'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 modify anything.''

Fuchs cherishes insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our approach as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very motivated, very keen to prove himself.'

Origins and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s motivation stems from 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: ‘Watch me, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can't do this, you can not do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my personality is: I’m quite determined. If I see promise, I’m doing it.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he points out, highlighting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'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 probability to arrive than just launching it all the time.'

The overarching numbers present grim 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 tasted victory 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 secured a valuable point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to construct a fortress.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs relishes 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 heart of the battle. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he says, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the small-sided games – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to regard each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re tackling this together.'