{Christian Fuchs: 'I'm Very Stubborn. Whenever I Notice Promise, I'm Doing It'|Ex-Leicester Star Christian Fuchs Speaks Candidly on Newport County Challenge

'I would say that the chances of us turning the season around are slimmer than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' Christian Fuchs is discussing his recent venture as head coach of the Football League's bottom club, and the immense task of preventing a descent into non-league football. This represents a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that unbelievable title win in 2016 provided him with far more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my perspective a little bit ... it showed that the impossible can be achievable,' he remarks.

'How Did Fuchs End Up Here?'

The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs end up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he says, breaking into a chuckle. This serves as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Our talk travels in various tangents, from working under Thomas Tuchel and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He opens some mail on his desk. Among it is a message from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of professional photographs from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, smiling. Another envelope 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 given special attention. Items like this makes me very pleased,' he concludes.

A Past Trip and a Misspelt Name

Prior to his move 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 suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion a former full-back faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his career,' Fuchs admits. But when the teamsheets dropped, an curious error came to light. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' crept in in place of the 'h'. It is amusing because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved inspired. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and an iconic story unfolded. The Italian joined the club in the heart of a pre-season camp in Austria and his hands-off approach produced miracles. {'When you observe Claudio you envision an seasoned professional, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'He just said he was going to monitor 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 observed you for a week and I’m not going to change anything.''

Fuchs cherishes lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I challenge them mentally?’’ 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.'

Background and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s drive originates in 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 skilled 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 cannot do this, you can not do that.’ I’m going to demonstrate that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see potential, 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 analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he showed his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' 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 percentage to find its target than just going long all the time.'

The broader numbers make 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 won a game 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 garnered a valuable point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs stresses. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to build a impenetrable home.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own acknowledgement, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a part of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the small-sided games – two nutmegs already, get in! I want us to view each other as one team. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this as one.'