{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Pretty Stubborn. If I See Promise, I'm Making It Happen'|Former Foxes Defender Christian Fuchs Opens Up on Newport County Mission

'The prospect of a dramatic turnaround is arguably a longer shot than that legendary 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our corner.' Christian Fuchs is talking about his recent venture as boss of the Football League's bottom club, and the daunting task of preventing a fall into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that fairytale title win in 2016 provided him with much more than a Premier League trophy. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be possible,' he states.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he states, erupting in laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear indication of his charismatic character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk runs in multiple pathways, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a local barber.

He looks at some mail on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, smiling. Another delivery brings a hoard of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Prior to his move back from North Carolina to take on 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. During that match a former full-back faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his life,' Fuchs recalls. But when the official sheets dropped, an amusing error was discovered. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'

Lessons from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you envision an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s so not,' Fuchs states. {'He just said he was going to monitor training in Austria for the first week. He didn’t get involved 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 change 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 more out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our philosophy as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a comparable position to where I am now … very motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'

Roots and a Determined Character

Fuchs’s motivation stems from his early years 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 good 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 cannot do this, you can't do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my personality is: I’m very determined. If I see promise, I’m making it happen.'

Detailed Approach and the Fight for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he presented to his players. {'The team hit many, many season bests,' he explains, highlighting 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 90-95% range,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very physical, League Two football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to be successful than just hoofing it all the time.'

The general numbers paint bleak reading. Newport have won 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 last-gasp equaliser with 10 men garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a stronghold.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own admission, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he says, tapping his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the drills – two nutmegs already, yes! I want us to regard each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this together.'