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'The probability of a seasonal revival is arguably less likely than that historic 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our corner.' Christian Fuchs is talking about his recent venture as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the monumental task of averting a drop into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that miraculous title win in 2016 gave him far more than a champion's gong. {'It assisted in altering my perspective a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be possible,' he states.

The Illogical Path to Rodney Parade

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs wind up here? 'I guess that's the part that's unpredictable, right?' he states, letting out a chuckle. It is the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. The discussion runs in multiple pathways, from being managed by Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He sorts through some post on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, smiling. Another delivery brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Prior Encounter and a Funny Mistake

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 were on the end of a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. That day David Pipe duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets dropped, an curious error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian arrived at the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you imagine an elder gentleman, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs states. {'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 observed you for a week and I’m not going to modify anything.''

Fuchs values insights gained from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major 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.'

Background and a Resolute Nature

Fuchs’s determination comes from his childhood 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 defeat 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't do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my character is: I’m pretty stubborn. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very physical, fourth-tier football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers present bleak 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 injury-time equaliser with 10 men earned a precious point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes 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 thick of things. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two megs 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 striving towards this collectively.'