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"To an observer, it seems insane," the young defender remarks, as he reflects on his summer just gone, when dizzying change felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a crazy game."

A Brief Summary

Days after winning the U21 European Championship with England at the conclusion of June, Quansah decided to leave Liverpool, to go to the Bundesliga side in a £30m deal.

The big fee equalled high expectations as the 22-year-old was tasked with finding his feet in a new country and at a club where the churn was substantial. The new manager had stepped in to succeed the previous coach and a host of key players were departing or already left – chief among them Florian Wirtz, Piero Hincapié, Jeremie Frimpong, 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 centre-half found the net after five minutes, though the goal was overshadowed by sadness. All he could think about was his former Liverpool teammate, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah executed his teammate's signature celebration as a tribute.

"To have a goal on your Bundesliga debut, in front of home fans, after the opening moments, is definitely a rollercoaster," Quansah says. "But my overwhelming feeling was that it was a tribute to Diogo."

Initial Struggles

The defender could have been excused for questioning what he had committed to at Leverkusen. After the encouraging beginning in their opening league fixture, they fell to a narrow loss and the next match on August 30th was just as bad. Ten Hag's team threw away comfortable advantages to finish level at 10-man Werder Bremen, the tying goal coming in stoppage time. It was not Ten Hag's team for much longer. He was sacked on September 1st.

Staying Focused

Quansah does not come across as the type to fret. If composure defines his game, it was on show during the interview he participated in after being selected for England for the Wembley friendly against Wales and the qualifying match against Latvia.

Quansah has remained focused under the new Leverkusen manager, Kasper Hjulmand, and persisted in doing what he always intended to do at the team – compete. Hjulmand has brought stability. 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 motivates the player, even bringing a measure of vindication. It is the one which shows he has been ever-present of the club's campaign.

International Recognition

It is something that the England head coach has observed. The England head coach was a admirer last season, including him when he named his first squad. After leaving him out in the summer so that Quansah could focus on the Under-21 European Championship, he gave him a last-minute inclusion in the autumn when John Stones was forced to withdraw.

Yet to earn his first cap, Quansah must have done something right in practice sessions and within the squad environment because he was selected at the outset in the manager's 24‑man group for the upcoming matches, essentially as a additional defensive option with the regular starter returning. The dream is a first appearance. It is another thing he would surely take in his stride.

Decision Making

"With my new club, 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 knowing it was a type of internal decision and things would remain consistent with which manager was to come in ... it was easy for me to choose this path.

"There were a numerous squad members leaving and it's consistently challenging when you lose key players. It has been difficult to establish new hierarchies but the results we have had recently show that we have got a good squad with talented individuals. 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 solid foundation to start."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a difficult separation for Quansah to depart from his long-time club, his club from the age of five, where he enjoyed so many memorable moments – such as the Carabao Cup final victory over Chelsea in the previous season when he was introduced as an late replacement.

Quansah was also involved in last season's Premier League title triumph. Yet his view of most of that achievement was not the one he would have chosen. He was an unused substitute on multiple matches in the league, his limited playing time comparing unfavourably with 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 career," he comments. "However, for a developing defender, you need games and I'm will require hundreds of games to be at my desired level.

"My primary desire was game time 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 might make mistakes at certain moments but they will see beyond that and recognize I can continue developing and pushing."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his loan 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 notes with a grin, starting with his first game; a 5-1 defeat at Morecambe.

"That was a true eye-opener," Quansah says. "It proved a extremely important chapter in my development because I aimed to take the subsequent progression to regular senior competition. Every game I learned something new. That's when I understood how crucial experience and playing games was. You could say it informed my decision in the summer."