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'I reckon that the chances of us reviving our campaign are lower than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' The Austrian veteran is reflecting on his recent venture as boss of Newport County, and the daunting task of averting a drop into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him much more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the unattainable can be attainable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'I guess that's the part that's not logical, right?' he says, breaking into a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion flows in multiple pathways, from being managed by the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a barber in the area.

He sorts through some mail on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, grinning. Another delivery brings a hoard of old collector's items, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this makes me very content,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Prior to returning from North Carolina to assume his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an amusing error was discovered. {'You need to censor 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 pleasant.'

Lessons from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian joined the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach worked wonders. {'When you look at Claudio you imagine an elder gentleman, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s so not,' Fuchs states. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 modify anything.''

Fuchs cherishes experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good decision-makers? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very keen to prove himself.'

Background and a Determined Nature

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 overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, 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 show that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Detailed 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 presented to his players. {'The team hit numerous season highs,' he points out, 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 90-95% range,' he insists. {'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 chance to be successful 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 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 earned a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to construct a impenetrable home.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he remarks, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the drills – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to regard 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.'