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"From the outside, it appears insane," Jarell Quansah remarks, as he reflects on his summer just gone, when rapid transformation felt like a constant. "However, that's just how it goes ... football is a crazy game."

A Brief Summary

Days after winning the U21 European Championship with England at the end of June, Quansah decided to leave his childhood club, to join the Bundesliga side in a £30m deal.

The big fee equalled high expectations as the young defender was charged with settling in in a foreign land and at a team where the turnover was substantial. The new manager had stepped in to replace Xabi Alonso and a number of star performers were gone or going – chief among them several high-profile names, key squad members, influential figures, Amine Adli, experienced professionals, established players and team leaders.

League Introduction

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on August 23rd at home to their opponents and the centre-half found the net after the opening minutes, albeit the achievement was undercut by tragedy. His primary thought was his former Liverpool teammate, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah performed his teammate's signature celebration as a mark of respect.

"To have a goal on your Bundesliga debut, in front of home fans, after five minutes, is definitely a rollercoaster," Quansah states. "But my overwhelming feeling was that it was a homage to Diogo."

Initial Struggles

The player could have been excused for questioning what he had signed up for at the German club. From the promising start in their first league game, they fell to a narrow loss and the next match on August 30th was just as bad. Ten Hag's team squandered comfortable advantages to draw 3-3 at 10-man Werder Bremen, the equaliser coming in stoppage time. It was not Ten Hag's team for much longer. He was sacked on 1 September.

Staying Focused

Quansah does not come across as the kind to worry. If composure characterizes his playing style, it was evident during the interview he participated in after being selected for England for the Wembley friendly against Wales and the World Cup qualifier against their next opponents.

Quansah has remained focused under the new Leverkusen manager, Kasper Hjulmand, and persisted in doing what he originally planned to do at the club – play. Hjulmand has established consistency. His squad have three wins and one draw in their domestic campaign along with ties in each of their Champions League ties. But there is a more significant number that motivates the player, even bringing a measure of vindication. It is the fact that demonstrates he has played every minute of the club's campaign.

National Team Attention

It is one that the England head coach has noted. The England head coach was a admirer last season, including him when he named his first squad. After leaving him out in the summer so that Quansah could concentrate on the Under-21 European Championship, he provided him with a last-minute inclusion in the autumn when the experienced defender was forced to withdraw.

Still to win his international debut, Quansah must have done something right in practice sessions and within the squad environment because he was named at the outset in Tuchel's 24‑man group for the upcoming matches, effectively as a fifth centre-back with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a first appearance. It is another thing he would surely take in his stride.

Career Choices

"At Leverkusen, the club were interested in me for a considerable time and that's not only from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah says. "Their interest existed before he got appointed. So understanding it was a type of internal decision and nothing would change with which manager was to come in ... it was easy for me to make that decision.

"There were a lot of players departing and it's consistently challenging when you see important figures leave. It has been difficult to build the leadership groups but the outcomes we have had recently show that we have got a competitive team with quality players. It is requiring patience to build and we are not where we want to be. But if we are getting results and not losing that is a good place to start."

Liverpool Departure

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to leave his long-time club, his club from the age of five, where he experienced so many significant occasions – such as the league cup triumph over Chelsea in 2023‑24 when he was introduced as an late replacement.

Quansah was also involved in last season's domestic championship success. Yet his view of most of that achievement was not the one he would have chosen. He was an unused substitute on 25 occasions in the league, his four starts and nine appearances falling short compared to his numbers from 2023‑24 when he featured more regularly.

Career Development

"I've always learned off some of the best players around me at my former club and it's been so good for my career," he comments. "However, for a developing defender, you require match experience and I'm will require hundreds of games to be at my desired level.

"I just wanted game time and when you are at a team like Liverpool, it's not promised because there are elite performers all over the pitch. I wanted an environment where they can have confidence that I could errors at times but they will look under that and see I can continue developing and pushing."

Early Experience

Quansah remembers his temporary transfer to League One Bristol Rovers in the second-half of 2022-23 where he debuted at professional level – multiple matches, to be exact. There were "multiple reality checks", he notes with a grin, beginning with his first game; a 5-1 defeat at their opponents.

"That represented a true eye-opener," Quansah says. "It was a extremely important chapter in my development because I aimed to take the subsequent progression to playing first-team football. Each match I gained fresh insights. That's when I knew how crucial practical knowledge and playing games was. You could suggest it influenced my decision in the summer."