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"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. "But it is one of them ... football is a unpredictable game."

A Brief Summary

Days after winning the U21 European Championship with the English national team at the end of June, Quansah opted to depart from his childhood club, to join the Bundesliga side in a multi-million pound transfer.

The big fee brought high expectations as the 22-year-old was tasked with finding his feet in a new country and at a team where the turnover was substantial. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to succeed Xabi Alonso and a host of star performers were departing or already left – including several high-profile names, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, prominent athletes, Granit Xhaka, Lukas Hradecky and team leaders.

League Introduction

Quansah's first league appearance came on August 23rd at their home ground to Hoffenheim and the centre-half found the net after the opening minutes, albeit the achievement was overshadowed by tragedy. His primary thought was his former Liverpool teammate, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah executed Jota's gamer celebration as a mark of respect.

"To have a goal on your Bundesliga debut, at home, after five minutes, is certainly a whirlwind," Quansah says. "However, my dominant emotion was that it was a homage to Diogo."

Early Challenges

The defender could have been forgiven for wondering what he had signed up for at the German club. After the encouraging beginning in their first league game, they succumbed to a narrow loss and the following game on 30 August was just as bad. Ten Hag's team squandered 2-0 and 3-1 leads to finish level at 10-man Werder Bremen, the tying goal coming in stoppage time. It was no longer his responsibility for very long. He was sacked on 1 September.

Staying Focused

Quansah does not come across as the kind to worry. If composure defines his game, it was evident during the interview he participated in after being selected for England for the Wembley friendly against their rivals and the World Cup qualifier against their next opponents.

Quansah has remained focused under the new Leverkusen manager, the Danish tactician, and continued to do what he always intended to do at the team – play. Hjulmand has brought stability. His team have positive results in their domestic campaign 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 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 omitting him in the summer so that Quansah could concentrate on the Under-21 European Championship, he gave him a late call-up in September when John Stones was compelled to pull out.

Still to win his international debut, Quansah must have done something right in practice sessions and within the squad environment because he was selected at the outset in Tuchel's 24‑man group for the upcoming matches, effectively as a fifth centre-back with the regular starter returning. The dream is a debut. It is one more milestone he would certainly handle with ease.

Decision Making

"With my new club, the club were keen on signing me for a while and that's not only from the coach," Quansah explains. "Their interest existed prior to his arrival. So understanding it was a sort of organizational choice and nothing would change with whatever coach was to come in ... it was straightforward for me to choose this path.

"We had a numerous squad members leaving and it's consistently challenging when you see important figures leave. It has been tough to build the leadership groups but the outcomes we have had [under Hjulmand] show that we have developed a good squad with quality players. It is going to take time to build and we are still progressing. But if we are getting results and not losing that is a solid foundation to begin from."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to leave Liverpool, his club from the age of five, where he enjoyed so many significant occasions – such as the Carabao Cup final victory over their London rivals in the previous season when he came on as an extra-time substitute.

Quansah was also a part of the previous campaign's domestic championship success. Yet his view of much of that was not the one he would have preferred. He was an unused substitute on 25 occasions 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 Liverpool and it's been incredibly beneficial for my career," 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 top-level club, it's not guaranteed because there are world-class players throughout the squad. 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."

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 "numerous wake-up calls", he says with a grin, starting with his debut; a 5-1 defeat at their opponents.

"That was a true eye-opener," Quansah reflects. "It proved a really valuable chapter in my development because I aimed to take the next step to playing first-team football. Each match I gained fresh insights. That's where I understood how valuable experience and match practice was. You could say it influenced my choice in the summer."