🔗 Share this article

'I would say that the odds of us reviving our campaign are lower than Leicester claiming the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his recent venture as manager of Newport County, and the monumental task of preventing a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the complete other end of the scale, though that miraculous title win in 2016 gave him far more than a Premier League trophy. {'It assisted in altering my mindset a little bit ... it proved that the unthinkable can be attainable,' he states.

The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade

The obvious place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the aspect of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he says, breaking into a laugh. This serves as the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear sign of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. The discussion runs in various tangents, from being managed by the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a barber in the area.

He sorts through some post on his desk. Included is a note from a Leicester supporter wishing him well, accompanied by a couple of glossy photos from that season. {'Young Fuchs,' he says, with a smile. Another delivery brings a stash of old stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he skippered Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very content,' he adds.

A Prior Encounter and a Funny Mistake

Until returning from North Carolina to assume his first job in first-team coaching last month, Fuchs’s most recent encounter to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester were on the end of a Newport cupset in the FA Cup third round. On that occasion the Newport kit man faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the game of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets came out, an amusing error emerged. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They misspelled my name – somehow a 'k' smuggled itself in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something pleasant.'

Experiences from The Tinkerman, Rodgers and Tuchel

His decision to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and what followed is legendary. The Italian arrived at the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach produced miracles. {'When you see Claudio you envision an elder gentleman, so experienced in the game, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to watch 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 studied 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 pondered: ‘How can I get more out of the players? How can I push 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 comparable position to where I am now … very driven, very eager to prove himself.'

Roots and a Stubborn Mindset

Fuchs’s determination comes from 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 capable enough,' he discloses. {'There are people who let that defeat 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 show that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see potential, 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 presented to his players. {'The team hit numerous season peaks,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about getting behind defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not pleased with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' 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 percentage to be successful than just going long all the time.'

The overarching numbers make grim 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 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men earned a precious point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not acceptable, not even having a win. We need to create a fortress.'

One of the Lads at Heart

By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so wrong with that?' He retired less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, loves being in the middle of the action. {'I’m a member of the group. I’m still a player inside,' he says, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always getting involved in the boxes – two megs already, yes! I want us to regard each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re all in this together, we’re tackling this together.'