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'The prospect of a late surge is arguably less likely than that fabled 5,000-1 title, which logically puts the odds in our corner.' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his recent venture as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the immense task of preventing a fall into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him a great deal more than a champion's gong. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he notes.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'That's the element of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he comments, letting out a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his engaging character across a colourful conversation. Our talk travels in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a barber in the area.

He looks at some post on his desk. Included is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, along with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another package brings a stash of old Panini stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this really makes me very happy,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until returning from North Carolina to take on his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. That day the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets came out, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They got wrong 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 nice.'

Lessons from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the heart 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 a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our methodology 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 Resolute Nature

Fuchs’s determination comes from his upbringing 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 overcome 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't do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my personality is: I’m very determined. If I see possibility, 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 fires up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he says, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, fourth-tier football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just launching it all the time.'

The broader numbers paint grim reading. Newport have secured 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 won a game 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 earned a crucial point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to construct a fortress.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he states, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the boxes – two megs already, get in! I want us to view each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re working on this collectively.'