Liverpool $47M transfer move should not be forgotten after Jeremy Jacquet deal

Liverpool sold Jarell Quansah to Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, with the England international doing well in the Bundesliga and the Champions League, learning valuable experiences

Bayer Leverkusen center-back Jarell Quansah during a Bundesliga game against Borussia Monchengladbach(Image: Christof Koepsel/Getty Images)

Given the injury problems and lack of form that have dogged Liverpool at center-back this season, it is easy to wonder how different things might have been — for the player and the club — had Jarell Quansah remained at Anfield last summer.

But the senior England international, who turned 23 last month, needed a guarantee of minutes. With Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate ahead of him in the pecking order, a move away made sense. He could have filled in at right-back, but that isn't his best role.

"Jarell is fast, strong and comfortable on the ball," Arne Slot said at the back end of last season. "He has every ingredient a center-back for this club should have. Now the last parts should be consistency in his performances."

To achieve that, Quansah needed to play regularly. As a result, a $47 million (£35 million) move to Bayer Leverkusen was agreed, with a buy-back clause that comes into effect from 2027.

"I have been learning from some of the best players around me at the time at Liverpool," Quansah said in October. "Being able to do that has been so good for my career.

"It has always been a big part of it. At this part of my career, I need 100s of games to be where I want to be. I think overall that's why the decision was made and why I thought going abroad was best for me."

Darwin Nunez, Luis Diaz and Jarell Quansah all left Liverpool during the summer transfer window(Image: Getty Images)

Quansah has started the majority of Leverkusen's games so far in the Bundesliga and the Champions League. Aside from four fixtures — two where he was injured, one where he was suspended, and one where he was rested — he has been a mainstay.

"Bayer Leverkusen brought in a lot of new faces last summer, and Quansah is one of the few who has actually managed to nail down a starting spot," Rune Gjerulff from Bulinews tells Liverpool.com.

"The general consensus is that he's having a solid first season. He's settled in well and shown what he's about, even if he's not quite among the best center-backs in the league yet."

Erik ten Hag was the manager who signed Quansah and Kasper Hjulmand has since taken over. But even amid the potential chaos that might have caused, Leverkusen sits sixth in the Bundesliga standings, and the former Liverpool man has done well.

"What really stands out is his composure — he's brave on the ball and his passing range is top-class for a center-back," Gjerulff says. "On top of that, he has good pace, which is crucial for a Leverkusen side playing with a high defensive line.

"That said, there's still room to grow. To reach the very top, he needs to cut out lapses in concentration and add a bit more physicality to truly dominate his duels."

While Liverpool has already snapped up Giovanni Leoni and lined up an $83 million (£60 million) deal for Jeremy Jacquet, Quansah could still return at some point. If he does, he will be a much better player for the experience.

Short-term, Quansah would have been useful for Slot this season, but the longer-term normally takes precedence at Liverpool. He needed a platform to develop, and at Bayer Leverkusen, he has found one.