{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Very Determined. When I Spot Potential, I'm Making It Happen'|Former Foxes Defender Christian Fuchs Opens Up on League Two Task

'I estimate that the odds of us turning the season around are lower than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' The Austrian veteran is discussing his fresh chapter as head coach of Newport County, and the immense task of preventing a drop into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 gave him far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It helped change my outlook a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be achievable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Wind Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: how did Fuchs end up 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 sign of his engaging character across a fascinating conversation. The discussion runs in different directions, from working under Thomas Tuchel and Brendan Rodgers to the pressing need to find a local barber.

He looks at some correspondence on his desk. There is a message from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, accompanied by a couple of shiny pictures from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, smiling. Another package brings a stash of old collector's items, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A note from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Items like this really makes me very happy,' he concludes.

A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name

Until returning from North Carolina to accept his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match David Pipe duelled against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets were released, an interesting error emerged. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelt 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.'

Insights from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester brought in Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian arrived at the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an elder gentleman, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s so not,' Fuchs explains. {'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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to alter anything.''

Fuchs values lessons learned 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 major part of our philosophy 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 keen to prove himself.'

Background and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s drive originates in his upbringing 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 discloses. {'There are people who let that get the better of them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, 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 demonstrate that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my personality is: I’m quite stubborn. If I see possibility, I’m making it happen.'

Analytical Approach and the Struggle for Survival

Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and had been in charge of Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he says, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very direct, lower-league football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher probability to find its target than just launching it all the time.'

The general numbers paint sobering reading. Newport have managed 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 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 secured a crucial point. {'We need to be a dominant side at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the middle of the action. {'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 boxes – two nutmegs already, yes! I want us to regard each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re a collective, we’re tackling this collectively.'