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"From the outside, it appears crazy," the young defender says, as he reflects on his recent summer, when dizzying change felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a unpredictable game."

A Brief Summary

Days after winning the European Under-21 Championship with the English national team at the conclusion of June, Quansah decided to leave Liverpool, to go to Bayer Leverkusen in a £30m deal.

The big fee brought high expectations as the 22-year-old was tasked with settling in in a new country and at a team where the churn was substantial. Erik ten Hag had taken over to replace the previous coach and a host of key players were departing or already left – including several high-profile names, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, prominent athletes, experienced professionals, established players and Jonathan Tah.

League Introduction

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on August 23rd at home to Hoffenheim and the centre-half found the net after the opening minutes, though the goal was overshadowed by tragedy. All he could think about was Diogo Jota, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah performed his teammate's signature celebration as a mark of respect.

"Scoring on your first Bundesliga match, at home, after five minutes, is definitely a whirlwind," Quansah says. "But my overwhelming feeling was that it was a tribute to Diogo."

Initial Struggles

The player could have been forgiven for wondering what he had committed to at Leverkusen. After the encouraging beginning in their opening league fixture, they fell to a 2-1 defeat and the next match on 30 August was just as bad. The squad squandered 2-0 and 3-1 leads to draw 3-3 at their reduced opponents, the equaliser coming in stoppage time. It was no longer his responsibility for very long. He was sacked on September 1st.

Staying Focused

Quansah doesn't appear to be the type to fret. If calmness characterizes his playing style, it was evident during the conversation he gave after being selected for the national team for the international friendly against their rivals and the qualifying match against their next opponents.

Quansah has kept his head down under the new Leverkusen manager, the Danish tactician, and continued to do what he originally planned to do at the team – compete. The new manager has brought stability. His squad have positive results in four league matches along with ties in each of their European matches. 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 been ever-present of the club's campaign.

National Team Attention

It is one that the England head coach has observed. The national team manager was a fan previously, selecting Quansah 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 September when the experienced defender was compelled to pull out.

Still to win his first cap, Quansah must have impressed sufficiently in practice sessions and around the camp because he was selected at the beginning in Tuchel's squad selection for Wales and Latvia, essentially as a fifth centre-back with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a debut. It is one more milestone he would certainly handle with ease.

Career Choices

"At Leverkusen, the team were keen on signing me for a while and that's not only from the coach," Quansah says. "They were interested prior to his arrival. So understanding it was a type of internal decision and things would remain consistent with whatever coach was to come in ... it was easy for me to choose this path.

"There were a lot of players leaving and it's always tough when you lose key players. It has been difficult to build the leadership groups but the outcomes we have had recently show that we have got a good squad with quality players. It is requiring patience to develop and we are still progressing. But if we are getting results and not losing that is a good place to start."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to depart from Liverpool, his team since childhood, where he experienced so many memorable moments – such as the Carabao Cup final victory over their London rivals in 2023‑24 when he came on as an extra-time substitute.

Quansah was also involved in last season's domestic championship success. Yet his view of much of that was not the one he would have chosen. He was an non-playing reserve on multiple matches in the league, his limited playing time falling short compared to his numbers from the prior season when he featured more regularly.

Career Development

"I've always learned off top-level professionals around me at my former club and it's been incredibly beneficial for my professional development," he says. "However, for a developing defender, you need games and I'm going to be needing extensive playing time to be at my desired level.

"My primary desire was regular playing opportunities and when you are at a team like Liverpool, it's not guaranteed because there are world-class players all over the pitch. I wanted an environment where they can have confidence that I could errors at certain moments but they will see beyond that and see I can continue developing and improving."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his loan to the lower division club in the second-half of 2022-23 where he debuted at professional level – 16 of them, to be precise. There were "multiple reality checks", he notes with a smile, starting with his first game; a 5-1 defeat at their opponents.

"That was a genuine revelation," Quansah reflects. "It was a really valuable part of my career because I aimed to take the subsequent progression to playing first-team football. Every game I gained fresh insights. That's where I understood how valuable experience and match practice was. You could suggest it influenced my decision in the off-season."