Jarell Quansah has explained his decision to leave Liverpool for Bayer Leverkusen
Jarell Quansah meets his new Bayer Leverkusen head coach, Erik ten Hag
Jarell Quansah meets his new Bayer Leverkusen head coach, Erik ten Hag
(Image: Bayer Leverkusen)
Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag left Jarell Quansah in stitches when meeting the defender ahead of finalising his move to Bayer Leverkusen. The England Under-21s international completed his switch to the Bundesliga outfit on Wednesday (July 2) as he left Liverpool in a deal worth up to £35m.
The 22-year-old, who was a member of the young Lions side that beat Germany to win the European Championships on Saturday (June 28), underwent a medical on Monday (June 30) ahead of finalising his Anfield exit.
And Quansah burst out laughing after meeting his new head coach as the Dutchman congratulated him on beating Germany in the European Championships final, making no secret of his allegiances given the well-documented rivalry between Germany and the Netherlands.
“Congrats for winning! And for beating the Germans!” Ten Hag chuckled, much to the amusement of Quansah. “Very good!”
Meanwhile, Quansah has admitted he was eager to complete his move to Leverkusen as soon as the European Championships was over as he explained his decision to leave Liverpool.
“It was an unbelievable feeling, winning with your country,” he told the club. “It’s always probably the best thing you can do really.
“The partying has not really started yet, I would say. Obviously I was eager to come here and make sure everything was boxed off and over the line. I’m just grateful it is now.
“It’s a massive privilege to represent this club. It’s always good to be of interest to such a big club in Germany. Especially with the success over the recent years that they’ve been through. Seeing that, I’ve always been watching. I love the way they play.
"I was able to get a good impression of the team and the club when we met Leverkusen in the Champions League last season with LFC. A superb team – they played like hardly any other team at Anfield in the first 60 minutes.
"During the discussions, they explained to me exactly what ambitious goals they have here. It's a great job and challenge for me to become part of Leverkusen's current upswing."
He continued: “I come from a team that needs to win all the time. I feel like this club has got the same identity, the fans are going to expect us to win most games and we need to be able to implement that and implementing my desire to win is going to be key.
“Everyone at Liverpool who has taught me and helped over the years as a young boy, I can’t be thankful enough to them. To be able to learn off some of the best players in the world is a true honour.
“Being able to do it yourself, trying to find your own identity and the way you want to play football and also lead teams as well I think is going to be big for me in the future. Hopefully here, I can learn that and perform as well.
“Hopefully we’re going to have good years together. For this season, we’re going to give it our all. I’m going to try and play the best I can, giving hard work and a lot of energy.
“I feel that is what I can do and bring a bit of experience from what I’ve had in England. Play with a fire and intensity that I want to play with and the fans will love hopefully.”