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"To an observer, it appears insane," Jarell Quansah says, as he reflects on his summer just gone, when rapid transformation felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a crazy game."

A Quick Recap

Days after claiming victory in the European Under-21 Championship with England at the conclusion of June, Quansah opted to depart from his childhood club, to join the Bundesliga side in a multi-million pound transfer.

The big fee equalled big pressure as the young defender was charged with finding his feet in a foreign land and at a team where the turnover was substantial. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to replace Xabi Alonso and a number of star performers were gone or going – including several high-profile names, Piero Hincapié, Jeremie Frimpong, Amine Adli, Granit Xhaka, Lukas Hradecky and team leaders.

Bundesliga Debut

Quansah's first league appearance came on August 23rd at home to their opponents and the central defender scored after the opening minutes, albeit the goal was overshadowed by sadness. His primary thought was his former Liverpool teammate, who was tragically lost in a road incident. Quansah executed Jota's gamer celebration as a tribute.

"To have a goal on your Bundesliga debut, in front of home fans, after five minutes, is definitely a whirlwind," Quansah says. "But my overwhelming feeling 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 fell to a narrow loss and the following game on August 30th was equally disappointing. The squad squandered 2-0 and 3-1 leads to finish level at 10-man Werder Bremen, the equaliser coming in stoppage time. It was no longer his responsibility for much longer. His dismissal came on 1 September.

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 participated in after joining the national team for the Wembley friendly against Wales and the qualifying match against Latvia.

Quansah has kept his head down under the current coach, the Danish tactician, and persisted in doing what he always intended to do at the team – compete. The new manager has brought stability. His squad have three wins and one draw in their domestic campaign along with ties in each of their European matches. But there is a more significant number that encourages Quansah, even bringing a sense of justification. It is the fact that demonstrates he has played every minute of the team's season.

International Recognition

It is something that the England head coach has observed. The national team manager was a fan last season, selecting Quansah 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 last-minute inclusion in September when John Stones was compelled to pull out.

Still to win his first cap, Quansah must have done something right in practice sessions and within the squad environment because he was named at the outset in the manager's squad selection for the upcoming matches, essentially as a fifth centre-back with Stones fit again. The dream is a first appearance. It is another thing he would certainly take in his stride.

Decision Making

"At Leverkusen, the team were keen on signing me for a considerable time and that's not just from the coach," Quansah explains. "They were interested prior to his arrival. So understanding it was a sort of organizational choice and things would remain consistent with which manager was to take over ... it was straightforward for me to make that decision.

"There were a numerous squad members leaving and it's consistently challenging when you see important figures leave. It has been difficult to establish new hierarchies but the results we have had [under Hjulmand] 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 achieving positive outcomes and avoiding defeats that is a solid foundation to start."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to leave his long-time club, 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 was introduced as an late replacement.

Quansah was also a part of last season's Premier League title triumph. Yet his view of much of that was not the perspective 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 statistics from 2023‑24 when he featured more regularly.

Professional Growth

"I consistently developed off some of the best players around me at Liverpool and it's been so good for my career," he comments. "But as a young centre-back, 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 promised because there are elite performers throughout the squad. I wanted an environment where they can trust that I could errors at certain moments but they will look under that and see I can keep pushing and pushing."

Foundation Building

Quansah remembers his temporary transfer to League One Bristol Rovers 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 notes with a grin, starting with his debut; a heavy loss at Morecambe.

"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 when I knew how crucial experience and playing games was. You could say it influenced my choice in the off-season."