'I would say that the odds of us transforming our fortunes are less than Leicester lifting the Premier League, so they are in our favor, right?' Christian Fuchs is talking about his fresh chapter as manager of the Football League's bottom club, and the daunting task of staving off a descent into non-league football. Here lies a challenge at the polar opposite of the scale, though that fairytale title win in 2016 gave him much more than a winner's medal. {'It assisted in altering my outlook a little bit ... it showed that the unthinkable can be possible,' he states.
The Unlikely Path to Rodney Parade
The natural place to start is: what brought Fuchs wind up here? 'That's the part of the story that defies logic, wouldn't you say?' he says, erupting in laughter. This serves as the 39-year-old's initial statement and a clear indication of his charismatic character across a colourful conversation. Our talk runs in different directions, from playing for the current England boss and the former Leicester manager to the urgent quest to find a local barber.
He looks at some correspondence 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 muses, grinning. Another package brings a collection of old stickers, one from an album commemorating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Things like this really makes me very pleased,' he states.
A Past Trip and a Typographical Error
Prior to returning from North Carolina to take on his first job in senior management last month, Fuchs’s last trip to Rodney Parade was in January 2019, when Leicester endured a Newport giantkilling in the FA Cup third round. During that match the Newport kit man competed with Fuchs. {'He had the performance of his career,' Fuchs recalls. But when the official sheets were released, an interesting error was discovered. {'You need to redact this,' Fuchs says with a smile. 'They misspelled 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 fitting.'
Lessons from Ranieri, Rodgers and Tuchel
His move to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 was a masterstroke. A couple of weeks later Leicester appointed Claudio Ranieri and the rest is history. The Italian joined the club in the midst of a pre-season camp in Austria and his observational approach did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an older man, so long in the business, maybe a bit set in his ways, but he’s anything but,' Fuchs explains. {'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 change anything.''
Fuchs holds dear lessons learned from Rodgers and Tuchel, under whom he worked while on loan at Mainz. {'He always thought: ‘How can I get extra out of the players? How can I challenge them psychologically?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a big part of our methodology as well. How can you make good thinkers on the pitch? Back then he was probably in a similar situation to where I am now … very motivated, very anxious to prove himself.'
Roots and a Resolute Character
Fuchs’s drive originates in 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 good enough,' he shares. {'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 can not do this, you cannot do that.’ I’m going to prove that I can and put in the hard yards. The other thing about my make-up is: I’m very determined. If I see potential, I’m going for it.'
Analytical Approach and the Fight for Survival
Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and formerly ran Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs boots up his laptop to show analytics from a recent 2-2 draw, sharing a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit several season peaks,' he points out, highlighting ball progression and statistics about breaking defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not happy with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he states. {'My first game, it was very direct, fourth-tier football, but we want to be distinct. I think a five-yard pass has a higher percentage to be successful than just hoofing it all the time.'
The broader numbers present 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 93rd-minute equaliser with 10 men garnered a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs says. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to construct a fortress.'
One of the Lads 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, loves being in the thick of things. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he remarks, indicating his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the drills – two megs already, brilliant! I want us to regard each other as a single unit. Yes, you’re the ones on the field, but we’re one team, we’re tackling this together.'
