{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Very Headstrong. When I Spot Promise, I'm Going for It'|Ex-Leicester Star Christian Fuchs Speaks Candidly on Newport County Mission

'I reckon that the chances of us turning the season around are lower than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his new life as head coach of the Football League's bottom club, and the daunting task of averting a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum of success, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It contributed to shifting my outlook a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be possible,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'I suppose that's the part that's illogical, right?' he says, erupting in laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear demonstration of his engaging character across a colourful conversation. Discourse flows in various tangents, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a nearby hairdresser.

He opens some mail on his desk. Included 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 envelope brings a hoard of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Until coming back from North Carolina to accept his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the lineup cards dropped, an curious error came to light. {'You need to edit this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelt my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is hilarious because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something nice.'

Experiences from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian joined the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach worked wonders. {'When you see Claudio you picture an older man, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs explains. {'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 cherishes experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I test them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our approach as well. How can you make good players who choose wisely? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very motivated, very eager to prove himself.'

Origins and a Determined Mindset

Fuchs’s determination originates in 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 capable enough,' he discloses. {'There are people who let that get the better of them or there are people who say: ‘Fuchs you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You cannot do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and give absolutely everything. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see possibility, I’m doing it.'

Data-Driven Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led 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 many, many season peaks,' he explains, noting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he declares. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to be successful than just launching it all the time.'

The general numbers present sobering reading. Newport have won 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 tasted victory 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 dominant side at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a stronghold.'

In the Thick of It at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired 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 in here,' he says, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the small-sided games – two megs already, yes! I want us to view each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re working on this collectively.'