Bayer Leverkusen's Jarell Quansah Keeps Calm and Carries On in His Gradual Ascent to Football Fame

"From the outside, it seems crazy," the young defender remarks, as he looks back on his recent summer, when dizzying change felt like a constant. "However, that's just how it goes ... football is a unpredictable game."

A Quick Recap

Days after claiming victory in the U21 European Championship with England at the conclusion of June, Quansah decided to leave his childhood club, to go to the Bundesliga side in a multi-million pound transfer.

The significant transfer sum brought big pressure as the 22-year-old was charged with finding his feet in a new country and at a club where the churn was dramatic. The new manager had stepped in to succeed Xabi Alonso and a host of key players were gone or going – including Florian Wirtz, key squad members, influential figures, prominent athletes, Granit Xhaka, established players and Jonathan Tah.

Bundesliga Debut

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on August 23rd at their home ground to Hoffenheim and the centre-half scored after the opening minutes, albeit the achievement was undercut by sadness. His primary thought was Diogo Jota, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah performed his teammate's signature celebration as a tribute.

"Scoring on your Bundesliga debut, in front of home fans, after the opening moments, is certainly a whirlwind," 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 following game on August 30th was just as bad. The squad squandered comfortable advantages to finish level at their reduced opponents, the tying goal coming in stoppage time. It was not Ten Hag's team for very long. He was sacked on 1 September.

Maintaining Composure

Quansah doesn't appear to be the type to fret. If composure defines his game, it was evident during the conversation he gave after joining England for the international friendly against their rivals and the qualifying match against Latvia.

Quansah has kept his head down under the current coach, Kasper Hjulmand, 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 their domestic campaign along with ties in each of their Champions League ties. But there is a more significant number that encourages Quansah, 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 previously, 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 September when John Stones 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 beginning in Tuchel's squad selection for the upcoming matches, essentially as a additional defensive option with Stones fit again. The dream is a first appearance. It is one more milestone he would surely take in his stride.

Career Choices

"With my new club, the club were interested in me for a considerable time and that's not just from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah explains. "They were interested prior to his arrival. So understanding it was a type of internal decision and things would remain consistent with which manager was to take over ... it was straightforward for me to make that decision.

"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 recently demonstrate that we have developed a competitive team with quality players. It is going to take time 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 club from the age of five, where he enjoyed 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 a part of last season's domestic championship success. Yet his view of much of that was not the perspective he would have preferred. He was an unused substitute on multiple matches in the league, his four starts and nine appearances falling short compared to his statistics from 2023‑24 when he started nine games.

Professional Growth

"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. "But as a young centre-back, you need games and I'm will require hundreds of games to be where I want to be.

"I just wanted game time and when you are at a top-level club, it's not promised because there are world-class players throughout the squad. I wanted somewhere where they can trust that I could errors at certain moments but they will look under that and recognize I can keep pushing and improving."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his loan 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 "multiple reality checks", he says with a grin, starting with his first game; a heavy loss at their opponents.

"That represented a true eye-opener," Quansah reflects. "It proved a really valuable part of my career because I aimed to take the next step to playing first-team football. Each match I learned something new. That's when I understood how valuable experience and match practice was. You could suggest it informed my choice in the off-season."