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'I reckon that the odds of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favour, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his fresh chapter as manager of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of staving off a descent into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him much more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my outlook a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he remarks.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the element of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he says, erupting in a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his playful character across a colourful conversation. Discourse flows in different directions, from working under Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He looks at some correspondence on his desk. Among it is a note from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, along with a couple of professional photographs from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, smiling. Another package brings a collection of old stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Funny Mistake

Until his move back from North Carolina to accept his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. That day the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the official sheets dropped, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to edit 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.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian came to the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach worked wonders. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an elder gentleman, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs values lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our approach 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 focused, very keen to prove himself.'

Background and a Determined Mindset

Fuchs’s determination stems from his early years 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 shares. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You cannot do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my personality is: I’m very determined. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle 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, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit numerous season peaks,' he says, highlighting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'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 probability to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint bleak 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 secured three points 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 earned a valuable point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to build a fortress.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired 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, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the drills – two pannas already, brilliant! I want us to see each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re striving towards this collectively.'