{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Pretty Stubborn. Whenever I Notice Promise, I'm Making It Happen'|Ex-Leicester Star Christian Fuchs Speaks Candidly on League Two Challenge

'I reckon that the odds of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' The Austrian veteran is talking about his recent venture as manager of the League Two strugglers, and the immense task of averting a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that fairytale title win in 2016 provided him with a great deal more than a winner's medal. {'It contributed to shifting my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he states, letting out a chuckle. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear indication of his playful character across a fascinating conversation. Discourse runs in multiple pathways, from playing for Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He looks at some mail on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another envelope brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. 'Stuff like this really makes me very happy,' he states.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until his move back from North Carolina to take on his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport shock defeat in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs recalls. But when the official sheets were released, an curious error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. '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 pleasant.'

Insights from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach worked wonders. {'When you see Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so long in the business, maybe a bit old school, but he’s so not,' 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 change anything.''

Fuchs holds dear insights gained 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 challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our methodology 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 defeat them or there are people who say: ‘Watch me, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can't 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 possibility, I’m doing it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Battle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he explains, 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 mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very physical, lower-league football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to arrive than just hoofing it all the time.'

The overarching numbers paint 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 last-gasp equaliser with 10 men secured a precious point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to construct a fortress.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he states, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always participating in the boxes – two nutmegs already, get in! 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 working on this together.'