🔗 Share this article

"To an observer, it appears crazy," the young defender remarks, as he reflects on his recent summer, when rapid transformation felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a crazy game."

A Quick Recap

Days after winning the European Under-21 Championship with the English national team at the conclusion of June, Quansah decided to leave his childhood club, to join the Bundesliga side in a multi-million pound transfer.

The big fee brought big pressure as the young defender was tasked with finding his feet in a foreign land and at a club where the churn was substantial. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to replace Xabi Alonso and a host of key players were departing or already left – including Florian Wirtz, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, prominent athletes, experienced professionals, established players and team leaders.

Bundesliga Debut

Quansah's first league appearance came on 23 August at their home ground to Hoffenheim and the central defender found the net after the opening minutes, albeit the achievement was overshadowed by tragedy. His primary thought was Diogo Jota, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah executed Jota's gamer celebration as a mark of respect.

"Scoring on your Bundesliga debut, at home, after the opening moments, is certainly a whirlwind," Quansah states. "However, my dominant emotion was that it was a tribute to Diogo."

Early Challenges

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 following game on 30 August was equally disappointing. The squad squandered 2-0 and 3-1 leads to finish level at their reduced opponents, the equaliser coming in added time. It was no longer his responsibility for much longer. His dismissal came on 1 September.

Maintaining Composure

Quansah does not come across as the kind to worry. If composure characterizes his playing style, it was on show during the conversation he participated in after being selected for England for the international friendly against Wales and the qualifying match against Latvia.

Quansah has remained focused under the new Leverkusen manager, the Danish tactician, and continued to do what he originally planned to do at the club – compete. Hjulmand has established consistency. His team have three wins and one draw in four league matches along with ties in each of their European matches. But there is a more significant number that encourages Quansah, even bringing a measure of vindication. It is the one which shows he has been ever-present of the team's season.

International Recognition

It is one that Thomas Tuchel has noted. The national team manager was a admirer previously, including him when he named his first squad. After omitting him in June so that Quansah could concentrate on the youth tournament, he gave him a late call-up in September when the experienced defender was forced to withdraw.

Still to win his first cap, Quansah must have impressed sufficiently in training and around the camp because he was named at the outset in the manager's 24‑man group for the upcoming matches, essentially as a additional defensive option with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a debut. It is one more milestone he would certainly take in his stride.

Decision Making

"At Leverkusen, the team were interested in me for a considerable time and that's not only from the coach," Quansah says. "They were interested before he got appointed. So knowing it was a sort of internal decision and nothing would change with which manager was to take over ... it was straightforward for me to choose this path.

"We had a numerous squad members leaving and it's always tough when you see important figures leave. It has been difficult to establish new hierarchies but the outcomes we have had [under Hjulmand] demonstrate that we have developed a competitive team with talented individuals. It is requiring patience to develop and we are still progressing. But if we are achieving positive outcomes and not losing that is a solid foundation to begin from."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a difficult separation for Quansah to depart from Liverpool, his club from the age of five, where he experienced so many memorable moments – such as the league cup triumph over Chelsea in the previous season when he came on as an extra-time substitute.

Quansah was also involved in the previous campaign's domestic championship success. Yet his perspective of most of that achievement was not the one he would have preferred. He was an non-playing reserve on 25 occasions in the competition, his limited playing time falling short compared to his numbers from 2023‑24 when he started nine games.

Career Development

"I consistently developed off top-level professionals around me at my former club and it's been so good for my career," he comments. "However, for a developing defender, you need games and I'm going to be needing hundreds of games to be at my desired level.

"My primary desire was regular playing opportunities and when you are at a top-level club, it's not guaranteed because there are elite performers throughout the squad. I wanted an environment where they can trust that I might make mistakes at certain moments but they will look under that and see I can continue developing and pushing."

Foundation Building

Quansah remembers his loan to the lower division club 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 heavy loss at their opponents.

"That was a genuine revelation," Quansah reflects. "It proved a extremely important chapter in my development because I wanted to make the next step to regular senior competition. Every game I learned something new. That's when I knew how crucial practical knowledge and match practice was. You could say it informed my decision in the off-season."