'I would say that the chances of us transforming our fortunes are slimmer than Leicester winning the Premier League, so they are in our benefit, right?' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his fresh chapter as boss of Newport County, and the immense task of staving off a descent into non-league football. It is a challenge at the complete other end of the spectrum, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him a great deal more than a Premier League trophy. {'It helped change my outlook a little bit ... it proved that the unattainable can be possible,' he states.
The Illogical Path to Rodney Parade
The logical place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the part of the story that isn't straightforward, wouldn't you say?' he comments, letting out a chuckle. This serves as the 39-year-old's introductory line and a clear indication of his engaging character across a wide-ranging conversation. The discussion flows in multiple pathways, from playing for the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the pressing need to find a nearby hairdresser.
He sorts through some post on his desk. Among it is a letter from a Leicester supporter offering encouragement, paired with a couple of professional photographs from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he remarks, with a smile. Another delivery brings a stash of old stickers, one from an album marking Euro 2016, when he captained Austria. A card from the Newport Supporters’ Club is displayed prominently. Things like this makes me very pleased,' he adds.
A Prior Encounter and a Misspelt Name
Prior to 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 suffered a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man competed with Fuchs. {'He had the game of his career,' Fuchs says. But when the official sheets came out, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to censor this,' Fuchs jokes. 'They got wrong my name – somehow a 'k' found its way in in place of the 'h'. It is funny because Fuchs, in German, means fox, so it’s something fitting.'
Experiences from Claudio, Rodgers and Tuchel
His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 proved brilliant. A couple of weeks later Leicester hired Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian came to the club in the middle of a pre-season camp in Austria and his light-touch approach worked wonders. {'When you look at Claudio you imagine 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 stayed out of it 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 holds dear experiences from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always pondered: ‘How can I get additional out of the players? How can I test them psychologically?’’ 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 focused, very anxious to prove himself.'
Roots and a Determined Character
Fuchs’s determination comes from his early years in Neunkirchen. {'There are parallels 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 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 not do this, you can not do that.’ I’m going to show that I can and work my socks off. The other thing about my character is: I’m quite headstrong. If I see potential, I’m making it happen.'
Data-Driven 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 fires up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, presenting a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit several season bests,' he says, noting ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was recorded at 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the 90-95% range,' he states. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, League Two football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to arrive than just launching it all the time.'
The overarching numbers make bleak reading. Newport have managed three of 19 league matches and are winless in eight in all competitions. By the time of their next home game, they will have not secured three points at home for 273 days and have kept just two clean sheets in 26 matches this season. But a recent injury-time equaliser with 10 men garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a power at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not satisfactory, not even having a win. We need to build a stronghold.'
In the Thick of It at Heart
By his own confession, Fuchs relishes a challenge. {'What’s so bad with that?' He ended his playing career less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, enjoys being in the middle of the action. {'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 getting involved in the drills – two megs already, get in! I want us to see each other as a unified group. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this collectively.'
