{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Quite Headstrong. Whenever I Notice Promise, I'm Making It Happen'|Former Foxes Defender Christian Fuchs Speaks Candidly on Newport County Challenge

'I would say that the odds of us transforming our fortunes are less than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' The Austrian veteran is discussing his recent venture as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the daunting task of preventing a descent into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a winner's medal. {'It assisted in altering my mindset a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be attainable,' he states.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The obvious place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'I guess that's the part that's not logical, right?' he comments, breaking into laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear sign of his engaging character across a colourful conversation. Our talk runs in different directions, from being managed by Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a local barber.

He sorts through some correspondence on his desk. Included is a message from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another package brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this really makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Previous Visit and a Funny Mistake

Until returning from North Carolina to accept his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s previous visit to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match a former full-back competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets were released, an curious error was discovered. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in 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 worked wonders. {'When you observe Claudio you imagine 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 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs values lessons learned 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 push them mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our methodology as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a analogous place to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Resolute Character

Fuchs’s drive stems from his early years 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 capable enough,' he shares. {'There are people who let that overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Fuchs you, 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 put in the hard yards. The other thing about my personality is: I’m pretty stubborn. 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 previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he says, highlighting 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 mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very direct, League Two football, but we want to be unique. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to find its target than just going long all the time.'

The general numbers make bleak reading. Newport have won three of 19 league matches and are without a victory 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 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men earned a valuable point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to construct a stronghold.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the thick of things. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he states, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the small-sided games – two nutmegs already, brilliant! I want us to regard each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re tackling this together.'