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"To an observer, it seems crazy," the young defender remarks, as he reflects on his recent summer, when dizzying change felt like a constant. "However, that's just how it goes ... football is a crazy game."

A Brief Summary

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 significant transfer sum equalled high expectations as the young defender was charged with settling in in a new country and at a club where the turnover was substantial. Erik ten Hag had stepped in to replace Xabi Alonso and a number of key players were departing or already left – chief among them several high-profile names, key squad members, Jeremie Frimpong, Amine Adli, 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 goal was overshadowed by tragedy. His primary thought was Diogo Jota, 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, 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 player could have been forgiven for wondering what he had signed up for at the German club. From the promising start in their opening league fixture, they succumbed to a 2-1 defeat and the next match on August 30th was equally disappointing. Ten Hag's team threw away 2-0 and 3-1 leads to draw 3-3 at 10-man Werder Bremen, the tying goal coming in added time. It was no longer his responsibility for very long. His dismissal came on September 1st.

Maintaining Composure

Quansah does not come across as the type to fret. If calmness defines his game, it was evident during the conversation he participated in after being selected for England 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, Kasper Hjulmand, and continued to do what he always intended to do at the club – play. Hjulmand has established consistency. His squad have three wins and one draw in four league matches 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 one which shows he has been ever-present of the club's campaign.

National Team Attention

It is something that Thomas Tuchel has observed. The England head coach 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 the autumn when John Stones was forced to withdraw.

Yet to earn his first cap, Quansah must have impressed sufficiently in training and within the squad environment because he was selected at the beginning in Tuchel's 24‑man group for Wales and Latvia, essentially as a fifth centre-back with Stones fit again. The aspiration is a debut. It is another thing he would certainly take in his stride.

Career Choices

"With my new club, the club were interested in me for a considerable time and that's not just from the manager [Ten Hag]," Quansah says. "They were interested prior to his arrival. So knowing it was a type of internal decision and things would remain consistent with whatever coach was to come in ... it was straightforward for me to make that decision.

"We had a lot of players leaving and it's always tough when you see important figures leave. It has been tough to establish new hierarchies but the results we have had [under Hjulmand] demonstrate that we have developed a good squad with quality players. It is requiring patience to develop and we are not where we want to be. But if we are getting results and avoiding defeats that is a good place to begin from."

Liverpool Departure

It had to have been a wrench for Quansah to leave his long-time club, his team since childhood, where he experienced so many memorable moments – such as the league cup triumph over their London rivals in the previous season when he was introduced as an late replacement.

Quansah was also a part of last season's domestic championship success. Yet his perspective of most of that achievement was not the one he would have chosen. He was an unused substitute on multiple matches in the competition, his four starts and nine appearances comparing unfavourably with his statistics from the prior season when he started nine games.

Career Development

"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. "But as a young centre-back, you need games and I'm will require extensive playing time to be at my desired level.

"I just wanted game time and when you are at a top-level club, it's not promised because there are world-class players throughout the squad. I wanted an environment where they can have confidence that I could errors at times but they will look under that and see I can continue developing and pushing."

Early Experience

Quansah recalls his temporary transfer 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 "numerous wake-up calls", he notes with a smile, starting with his debut; a heavy loss at Morecambe.

"That was a true eye-opener," Quansah reflects. "It was a really valuable part of my career because I wanted to make the subsequent progression to playing first-team football. Every game I learned something new. That's when I understood how crucial practical knowledge and playing games was. You could say it informed my choice in the summer."