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

A Quick Recap

Days after winning the U21 European Championship with the English national team at the conclusion of June, Quansah opted to depart from his childhood club, to join the Bundesliga side in a £30m deal.

The big fee equalled big pressure as the 22-year-old was tasked with settling in in a foreign land and at a club where the churn was substantial. Erik ten Hag had taken over to replace Xabi Alonso and a number of key players were departing or already left – including Florian Wirtz, Piero Hincapié, influential figures, prominent athletes, Granit Xhaka, Lukas Hradecky and Jonathan Tah.

League Introduction

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on 23 August at their home ground to Hoffenheim and the centre-half scored after five minutes, albeit the goal was undercut by tragedy. His primary thought was Diogo Jota, 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, at home, after the opening moments, is definitely a rollercoaster," Quansah states. "However, my dominant emotion was that it was a tribute to Diogo."

Initial Struggles

The defender could have been forgiven for wondering what he had signed up for at Leverkusen. After the encouraging beginning in their first league game, they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat and the next match on August 30th was just as bad. The squad squandered 2-0 and 3-1 leads to finish level at their reduced opponents, the tying goal coming in stoppage time. It was no longer his responsibility for very long. His dismissal came on 1 September.

Maintaining Composure

Quansah doesn't appear to be the type to fret. If calmness characterizes his playing style, it was evident during the conversation he gave after joining the national team for the international friendly against their rivals 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 always intended to do at the club – compete. The new manager has brought stability. His team have positive results in four league matches 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 been ever-present of the team's season.

National Team Attention

It is something that Thomas Tuchel has noted. The national team manager was a admirer previously, including him when he named his first squad. After leaving him out in June so that Quansah could focus on the youth tournament, he gave him a late call-up in September when the experienced defender was compelled to pull out.

Yet to earn his first cap, Quansah must have done something right in training and around the camp because he was named at the beginning in the manager's 24‑man group for Wales and Latvia, effectively as a fifth centre-back with the regular starter returning. The aspiration is a first appearance. It is one more milestone he would certainly take in his stride.

Career Choices

"At Leverkusen, the club were interested in me for a while and that's not just from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah says. "Their interest existed prior to his arrival. So knowing it was a sort of internal decision and nothing would change with which manager was to take over ... it was easy for me to make that decision.

"There were a numerous squad members departing and it's consistently challenging when you see important figures leave. It has been tough to build the leadership groups but the results we have had [under Hjulmand] show that we have got a good squad with talented individuals. It is going to take time to build and we are still progressing. But if we are achieving positive outcomes and not losing that is a solid foundation to start."

Leaving Childhood Club

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to depart from Liverpool, his club from the age of five, where he experienced 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 involved in the previous campaign's domestic championship success. Yet his perspective of most of that achievement was not the perspective he would have chosen. He was an unused substitute on 25 occasions in the competition, his four starts and nine appearances falling short compared to his numbers from the prior season when he featured more regularly.

Professional Growth

"I consistently developed off top-level professionals around me at my former club and it's been so good for my career," he comments. "However, for a developing defender, you need games and I'm will require 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 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 improving."

Early Experience

Quansah remembers his loan to the lower division club in the second-half of 2022-23 where he made his first senior appearances – 16 of them, to be exact. There were "multiple reality checks", he notes with a grin, beginning with his debut; a 5-1 defeat at Morecambe.

"That represented a true eye-opener," Quansah reflects. "It was a really valuable part of my career because I wanted to make the subsequent progression to regular senior competition. Each match I gained fresh insights. That's where I knew how crucial experience and playing games was. You could suggest it influenced my decision in the summer."