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"To an observer, it seems crazy," Jarell Quansah says, as he reflects on his summer just gone, when dizzying change felt like a constant. "However, that's just how it goes ... football is a crazy game."

A Quick Recap

Days after claiming victory in the European Under-21 Championship with England at the end of June, Quansah decided to leave Liverpool, to join Bayer Leverkusen in a £30m deal.

The big fee equalled high expectations as the 22-year-old was charged with finding his feet in a new country and at a team where the turnover was substantial. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to replace the previous coach and a number of star performers were gone or going – chief among them Florian Wirtz, key squad members, influential figures, Amine Adli, Granit Xhaka, Lukas Hradecky and Jonathan Tah.

Bundesliga Debut

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on 23 August at home to their opponents and the central defender found the net after the opening minutes, though 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 tribute.

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

Early Challenges

The defender could have been excused for questioning what he had signed up for at the German club. From the promising start in their opening league fixture, they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat and the following game on 30 August was equally disappointing. The squad threw away comfortable advantages to draw 3-3 at 10-man Werder Bremen, the equaliser coming in added time. It was no longer his responsibility for much longer. His dismissal came on 1 September.

Staying Focused

Quansah does not come across as the type to fret. If calmness characterizes his playing style, it was evident during the conversation he gave after joining England for the Wembley friendly against Wales and the World Cup qualifier against their next opponents.

Quansah has kept his head down 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 team have three wins and one draw in four league matches along with ties in each of their European matches. But there is a broader statistic 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 admirer last season, selecting Quansah when he announced his initial selection. After omitting him in the summer so that Quansah could focus on the Under-21 European Championship, he provided him with a late call-up in the autumn when John Stones was compelled to pull out.

Still to win his international debut, 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 additional defensive option with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a debut. It is one more milestone he would surely handle with ease.

Decision Making

"At Leverkusen, the club were keen on signing me for a while and that's not only from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah says. "They were interested before he got appointed. So knowing it was a type of organizational choice 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 departing and it's always tough when you lose key players. It has been tough to build the leadership groups but the results we have had recently demonstrate that we have developed 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 Liverpool, his team since childhood, where he experienced so many memorable moments – such as the league cup triumph over their London rivals in the previous season when he came on as an late replacement.

Quansah was also a part of last season's domestic championship success. Yet his perspective of much of that was not the perspective he would have preferred. He was an non-playing reserve on multiple matches in the competition, his limited playing time falling short compared to his statistics from 2023‑24 when he started nine games.

Career Development

"I consistently developed off top-level professionals around me at Liverpool and it's been incredibly beneficial for my career," he says. "But as a young centre-back, you need games and I'm going to be needing hundreds of games to be at my desired level.

"I just wanted regular playing opportunities and when you are at a top-level club, it's not promised because there are elite performers all over the pitch. I wanted somewhere where they can have confidence that I could errors at certain moments but they will see beyond that and recognize I can continue developing and improving."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his temporary transfer to the lower division club in the later part of that season where he made his first senior appearances – 16 of them, to be precise. There were "numerous wake-up calls", he says with a smile, beginning with his debut; a heavy loss at their opponents.

"That was a genuine revelation," Quansah reflects. "It was a really valuable chapter in my development because I wanted to make the next step to regular senior competition. Each match I learned something new. That's when I understood how crucial practical knowledge and match practice was. You could suggest it influenced my choice in the off-season."