Quansah credits World Cup call-up to leaving Liverpool

Jarell Quansah has a World Cup squad spot, and he’s pretty clear about why: he left Liverpool.

The 23-year-old centre-back earned his first senior England call-up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup after a move to Bayer Leverkusen last summer. Walking away from one of European football’s most storied clubs, fresh off a Premier League title, to go play in Germany required genuine courage at the time.

The Liverpool problem

Quansah came through the club’s renowned academy and made his first-team breakthrough during the 2023-24 season under Jurgen Klopp. He racked up 58 appearances across two seasons and played a genuine role in Liverpool’s 2024-25 Premier League title win.

Under Arne Slot, Quansah found himself competing for minutes rather than accumulating them. Quansah has been remarkably candid about the calculus. He left Liverpool to play “hundreds of games,” in his own words, recognizing that sitting on a bench at Anfield wasn’t going to advance his international ambitions.

The Leverkusen bet pays off

Quansah’s move to Bayer Leverkusen was finalized on July 2, 2025. The deal was worth an initial £30 million with potential add-ons of £5 million, bringing the total package to approximately $40 million.

Liverpool retained a buy-back clause reported to be as high as €80 million, essentially outsourcing Quansah’s development while keeping a financial trapdoor open for later.

The call-up came around May 22, 2026, just weeks before the tournament kicks off. Less than a year after leaving Liverpool, he’s an international footballer heading to the biggest stage in the sport.

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