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'I would say that the likelihood of us reviving our campaign are slimmer than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is talking about his fresh chapter as head coach of Newport County, and the monumental task of averting a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the scale, though that fairytale title win in 2016 provided him with much more than a champion's gong. {'It helped change my outlook a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he notes.

The Illogical Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the element of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he says, breaking into a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear indication of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. Discourse runs in multiple pathways, from working under Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some post on his desk. Included is a letter from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of shiny pictures from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, smiling. Another delivery brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this really makes me very content,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Misspelt Name

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to accept his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. During that match a former full-back competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets dropped, an interesting error came to light. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. '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.'

Experiences from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you picture an seasoned professional, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit old school, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs values insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get additional 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 players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very focused, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Stubborn Nature

Fuchs’s motivation originates in his childhood 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 skilled enough,' he discloses. {'There are people who let that defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Watch me, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can not do this, you can not do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and give absolutely everything. 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 boots up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not pleased 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 chance to arrive than just launching it all the time.'

The overarching numbers present sobering reading. Newport have secured three of 19 league matches and are winless 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 garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to create a impenetrable home.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes 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, yes! I want us to see 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 collectively.'