🔗 Share this article

'The prospect of a dramatic turnaround is arguably less likely than that fabled 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our favor.' The Austrian veteran is discussing his recent venture as boss of the League Two strugglers, and the monumental task of staving off a drop 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 gave him much more than a winner's medal. {'It helped change my outlook a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be attainable,' he notes.

'How Did Fuchs Find Himself Here?'

The logical place to start is: what brought Fuchs find himself here? 'I guess that's the part that's illogical, right?' he comments, erupting in a laugh. This remark acts as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear indication of his playful character across a wide-ranging conversation. Our talk travels in different directions, from being managed by the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the urgent quest to find a local barber.

He opens some post on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that memorable year. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, grinning. Another delivery brings a hoard of old collector's items, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. 'Stuff like this genuinely makes me very pleased,' he states.

A Past Trip and a Funny Mistake

Until coming back from North Carolina to take on his first job in frontline management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion a former full-back faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his life,' Fuchs admits. But when the official sheets came out, an amusing error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They got wrong 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.'

Insights from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired 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 see Claudio you imagine an seasoned professional, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit old school, but he’s the complete opposite,' Fuchs says. {'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 watched you for a week and I’m not going to modify 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 mentally?’’ 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 motivated, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Stubborn Character

Fuchs’s drive comes from his early years in Neunkirchen. {'There are comparisons 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: ‘Watch me, 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 pretty headstrong. If I see promise, I’m going for it.'

Analytical 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 fires up his laptop to show statistics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit many, many season highs,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was logged at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very direct, League Two football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The general numbers make bleak reading. Newport have secured three of 19 league matches and are without a victory 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 earned a precious point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to create a stronghold.'

Still a Player at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs likes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the heart of the battle. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player at heart,' he states, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two megs 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 tackling this as one.'