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'The probability of a late surge is arguably less likely than that legendary 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our corner.' The Austrian veteran is talking about his fresh chapter as manager of the Football League's bottom club, and the monumental task of staving off a descent into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that fairytale title win in 2016 furnished him much more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be possible,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The natural place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the part of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he says, letting out a chuckle. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a colourful conversation. Discourse travels in various tangents, from working under Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.

He looks at some post on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, along with a couple of professional photographs from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, grinning. Another delivery brings a collection of old collector's items, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is given special attention. Things like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he adds.

A Past Trip and a Typographical Error

Prior to coming back 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 a former full-back competed with Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs says. But when the teamsheets dropped, an curious error was discovered. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs remarks. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Lessons from Claudio, 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 the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you imagine an elder gentleman, so long in the business, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s so not,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 studied you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs values experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always considered: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I push them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a major part of our methodology 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 driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Stubborn Nature

Fuchs’s drive comes from his childhood 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 capable enough,' he discloses. {'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 work my socks off. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite determined. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Struggle 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 analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit several season bests,' he says, highlighting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'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 chance to find its target than just going long 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 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 crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to create a stronghold.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

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