'The probability of a late surge is arguably a longer shot than that legendary 5,000-1 title, which strangely puts the odds in our corner.' Christian Fuchs is reflecting on his fresh chapter as head coach of Newport County, and the monumental task of averting a fall into non-league football. It is a challenge at the polar opposite of the spectrum of success, though that miraculous title win in 2016 furnished him far more than a winner's medal. {'It assisted in altering my mindset a little bit ... it demonstrated that the impossible can be attainable,' he notes.
The natural place to start is: what was the journey that led Fuchs find himself here? 'That's the element of the story that seems counterintuitive, wouldn't you say?' he comments, breaking into laughter. It is the 39-year-old's opening gambit and a clear demonstration of his playful character across a colourful conversation. Discourse flows in different directions, from playing for the current England boss and Brendan Rodgers to the immediate requirement to find a nearby hairdresser.
He looks at some correspondence on his desk. There is a letter from a Leicester supporter sending best wishes, paired with a couple of shiny pictures from that campaign. {'Young Fuchs,' he muses, with a smile. Another delivery brings a hoard of old Panini stickers, one from an album celebrating Euro 2016, when he led Austria. A greeting from the Newport Supporters’ Club has pride of place. Items like this makes me very pleased,' he states.
Until his move back from North Carolina to take on 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 cupset in the FA Cup third round. That day David Pipe faced off against Fuchs. {'He had the match of his life,' Fuchs says. But when the lineup cards were released, an interesting error emerged. {'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.'
His choice to join the Foxes in the summer of 2015 turned out to be inspired. 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 did the trick. {'When you look at Claudio you picture an elder gentleman, so a veteran of the sport, maybe a bit traditional, but he’s so not,' Fuchs says. {'He just said he was going to observe 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 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 mentally?’’ Fuchs says of Tuchel. {'That’s a significant part of our methodology 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 anxious to prove himself.'
Fuchs’s determination stems from his upbringing 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 capable enough,' he reveals. {'There are people who let that overcome them or there are people who say: ‘Forget you, I’m going to show you.’ I’ve been told too many times: ‘You can't do this, you cannot 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 very headstrong. If I see potential, I’m going for it.'
Fuchs’s assistant, Mark Smith, was born in Newport and previously led Fuchs’s Fox Soccer Academy. Fuchs opens his laptop to show data from a recent 2-2 draw, displaying a slide he used with his players. {'The team hit numerous season bests,' he points out, emphasizing ball progression and statistics about penetrating defensive lines. Passing accuracy was shown as 87%. {'Not satisfied with that … that needs to be in the mid-90s,' he insists. {'My first game, it was very long-ball, lower-league football, but we want to be different. I think a five-yard pass has a higher chance to be successful than just launching it all the time.'
The overarching numbers make sobering reading. Newport have won 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 won a game 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 secured a crucial point. {'We need to be a force at home,' Fuchs emphasizes. {'It’s just not good enough, not even having a win. We need to create a fortress.'
By his own admission, Fuchs enjoys a challenge. {'What’s so negative with that?' He hung up his boots less than three years ago and, like Tuchel, likes being in the thick of things. {'I’m a component of the group. I’m still a player in here,' he says, pointing to his chest. {'At training I’m always joining in in the small-sided games – two pannas already, yes! 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 working on this together.'
Elara is a financial strategist with over a decade of experience in wealth management and entrepreneurship.
