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'I would say that the odds of us reviving our campaign are lower 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 monumental task of preventing a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that fairytale title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the unattainable can be achievable,' he states.

The Surprising Path to Rodney Parade

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'I suppose that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he comments, erupting in laughter. It is the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear indication of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion runs in various tangents, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a local barber.

He sorts through 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 memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, grinning. Another delivery brings a stash of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until returning from North Carolina to accept his first job in first-team coaching 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. On that occasion a former full-back competed with Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the teamsheets were released, an curious error emerged. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Insights from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian arrived at 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 a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 alter anything.''

Fuchs holds dear lessons learned 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 psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our approach as well. How can you make good players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined Mindset

Fuchs’s determination originates in his upbringing in Neunkirchen. {'There are comparisons to where we are now, because I was told when I was 11 years old that I would never be capable enough,' he reveals. {'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 can't do this, you can not 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 quite determined. If I see possibility, I’m going for it.'

Detailed Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he explains, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he states. {'My first game, it was very direct, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to arrive than just launching it all the time.'

The overarching numbers make sobering reading. Newport have managed 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 force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to construct a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the thick of things. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he states, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the boxes – two pannas already, brilliant! I want us to view each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re working on this collectively.'