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'The probability of a dramatic turnaround is arguably more remote than that fabled 5,000-1 title, which logically puts the odds in our favour.' Christian Fuchs is talking about his fresh chapter as head coach of Newport County, and the monumental task of averting a fall into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that miraculous title win in 2016 provided him with much more than a winner's medal. {'It contributed to shifting my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be possible,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The obvious place to start is: how did Fuchs wind up here? 'I guess that's the part that's illogical, right?' 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 wide-ranging conversation. The discussion travels in various tangents, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some post on his desk. There is a note from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, along with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another delivery brings a stash of old collector's items, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this makes me very happy,' he adds.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the lineup cards came out, an curious error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Lessons from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs holds dear lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I test them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very driven, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Stubborn Mindset

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 shares. {'There are people who let that overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Fuchs you, 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 prove that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very stubborn. If I see potential, I’m doing 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 fires up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season peaks,' he explains, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very physical, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint grim reading. Newport have won three of 19 league matches and are without a victory 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 last-gasp equaliser with 10 men garnered a precious point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to create a fortress.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he remarks, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two nutmegs 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 working on this collectively.'