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"From the outside, it appears insane," the young defender says, as he looks back on his recent summer, when rapid transformation felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a crazy game."

A Brief Summary

Shortly after claiming victory in the U21 European Championship with England at the end of June, Quansah decided to leave Liverpool, to join Bayer Leverkusen in a multi-million pound transfer.

The significant transfer sum equalled big pressure as the 22-year-old was tasked with settling in in a foreign land and at a club where the churn was dramatic. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to replace the previous coach and a host of star performers were departing or already left – chief among them Florian Wirtz, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, prominent athletes, Granit Xhaka, Lukas Hradecky and team leaders.

League Introduction

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on August 23rd at home to their opponents and the central defender found the net after five minutes, though the achievement was undercut by tragedy. His primary thought was Diogo Jota, who was tragically lost in a road incident. Quansah performed Jota's gamer celebration as a mark of respect.

"Scoring on your first Bundesliga match, at home, after five minutes, is certainly a rollercoaster," Quansah states. "However, my dominant emotion was that it was a homage to Diogo."

Initial Struggles

The player could have been forgiven for wondering what he had signed up for at the German club. After the encouraging beginning in their opening league fixture, they succumbed 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 finish level at 10-man Werder Bremen, the tying goal coming in added time. It was not Ten Hag's team for much longer. His dismissal came on 1 September.

Staying Focused

Quansah does not come across as the type to fret. 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 qualifying match against their next opponents.

Quansah has remained focused under the current coach, the Danish tactician, and persisted in doing what he originally planned to do at the club – compete. Hjulmand has established consistency. His squad have positive results in four league matches along with draws 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.

National Team Attention

It is something that Thomas Tuchel has noted. The England head coach was a fan previously, including him when he announced his initial selection. After leaving him out in June so that Quansah could focus on the Under-21 European Championship, he gave him a late call-up in September when John Stones was forced to withdraw.

Still to win his first cap, Quansah must have done something right in practice sessions and around the camp because he was selected at the beginning in the manager's 24‑man group for the upcoming matches, effectively as a additional defensive option with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a debut. It is another thing he would certainly handle with ease.

Career Choices

"At Leverkusen, the team were interested in me for a while and that's not just from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah says. "They were interested before he got appointed. So understanding it was a type of organizational choice and things would remain consistent with which manager was to take over ... it was easy for me to make that decision.

"We had a numerous squad members leaving and it's consistently challenging when you lose key players. It has been tough to build the leadership groups but the outcomes we have had [under Hjulmand] show that we have got a competitive team with quality players. It is going to take time to develop and we are not where we want to be. But if we are getting results and avoiding defeats that is a good place to start."

Liverpool Departure

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to depart from Liverpool, his club from the age of five, where he enjoyed so many memorable moments – such as the Carabao Cup final victory over Chelsea in 2023‑24 when he came on as an late replacement.

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

Professional Growth

"I've always learned off some of the best players around me at my former club and it's been so good for my professional development," he says. "But as a young centre-back, you require match experience and I'm will require hundreds of games 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 promised because there are world-class players all over the pitch. I wanted somewhere where they can trust that I might make mistakes at certain moments but they will see beyond that and see I can keep pushing and pushing."

Foundation Building

Quansah remembers his loan to the lower division club in the later part of that season where he made his first senior appearances – multiple matches, to be exact. There were "numerous wake-up calls", he says with a smile, beginning with his first game; a heavy loss at Morecambe.

"That represented a true eye-opener," Quansah says. "It proved a extremely important part of my career because I aimed to take the next step to regular senior competition. Every game I gained fresh insights. That's where I understood how valuable practical knowledge and playing games was. You could say it informed my choice in the summer."