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"From the outside, it seems crazy," the young defender remarks, as he looks back on his summer just gone, when rapid transformation felt like a constant. "But it is one of them ... football is a unpredictable game."

A Quick Recap

Days after claiming victory in the European Under-21 Championship with England at the conclusion of June, Quansah decided to leave his childhood club, to go to the Bundesliga side in a £30m deal.

The big fee equalled big pressure as the young defender was tasked with settling in in a new country and at a club where the churn was dramatic. Erik ten Hag had taken over to succeed Xabi Alonso and a number of star performers were gone or going – including several high-profile names, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, Amine Adli, Granit Xhaka, established players and Jonathan Tah.

Bundesliga Debut

Quansah's Bundesliga debut came on 23 August at their home ground to Hoffenheim and the central defender found the net after the opening minutes, albeit the achievement was overshadowed by sadness. All he could think about was Diogo Jota, who was killed in a car accident. Quansah executed Jota's gamer celebration as a mark of respect.

"Scoring on your Bundesliga debut, at home, 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 defender could have been excused for questioning what he had committed to at the German club. From the promising start in their first league game, they succumbed 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 tying goal coming in stoppage time. It was no longer his responsibility for much longer. His dismissal came on 1 September.

Maintaining Composure

Quansah does not come across as the kind to worry. If composure characterizes his playing style, it was on show during the interview he participated in after being selected for England for the international friendly against Wales and the World Cup qualifier 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 club – play. Hjulmand has established consistency. His squad have three wins and one draw in their domestic campaign along with draws 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 one that the England head coach has observed. The England head coach was a admirer previously, selecting Quansah when he announced his initial selection. After omitting him in June so that Quansah could focus on the Under-21 European Championship, he gave him a last-minute inclusion in the autumn when the experienced defender was compelled to pull out.

Still to win his international debut, Quansah must have impressed sufficiently in practice sessions and within the squad environment because he was named at the beginning in Tuchel's squad selection for Wales and Latvia, effectively as a additional defensive option with the regular starter returning. The dream is a debut. It is one more milestone he would certainly handle with ease.

Decision Making

"At Leverkusen, the team were keen on signing me for a while and that's not only from the coach," Quansah explains. "They were interested before he got appointed. So understanding it was a sort of internal decision and things would remain consistent with which manager was to take over ... it was easy for me to choose this path.

"There were a lot of players leaving and it's always tough when you lose key players. It has been difficult to establish new hierarchies but the results we have had [under Hjulmand] demonstrate that we have developed a good squad with talented individuals. It is requiring patience to develop and we are not where we want to be. But if we are achieving positive outcomes and avoiding defeats that is a solid foundation to start."

Liverpool Departure

It had to have been a wrench 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 league cup triumph over Chelsea in 2023‑24 when he was introduced as an extra-time substitute.

Quansah was also involved in last season's domestic championship success. Yet his perspective of much of that was not the perspective he would have preferred. He was an unused substitute on 25 occasions in the competition, his four starts and nine appearances comparing unfavourably with his statistics from 2023‑24 when he featured more regularly.

Career Development

"I've always learned off top-level professionals around me at my former club and it's been so good for my career," he says. "But as a young centre-back, you require match experience 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 top-level club, it's not guaranteed because there are world-class players all over the pitch. 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 keep pushing and improving."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his loan to League One Bristol Rovers in the second-half of 2022-23 where he debuted at professional level – multiple matches, to be exact. There were "multiple reality checks", he says with a smile, starting with his first game; a heavy loss at their opponents.

"That represented a genuine revelation," Quansah says. "It proved a really valuable part of my career because I wanted to make the subsequent progression to regular senior competition. Every game I learned something new. That's when I knew how crucial practical knowledge and match practice was. You could say it influenced my choice in the off-season."