Liverpool may have spent big on the likes of Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak this summer, but Arne Slot's Reds may have undersold one of their departed stars
Trent Alexander-Arnold looks on
Trent Alexander-Arnold left Liverpool this summer(Image: Getty Images)
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Jarell Quansah's market value has surged from the £35million Liverpool sold him to Bayer Leverkusen for. The 22-year-old centre-half, who only broke through the youth academy at Anfield three years ago, joined the Bundesliga titans this summer.
And as a result of excelling under the stewardship of Kasper Hjulmand, with eight league games under his belt, Quansah has seen his market value skyrocket. As per Football Observatory, the Englishman is currently worth between £50m and £59m, the upper end of that scale coming as an increase of £24m compared to the sum he joined Leverkusen for.
It comes as Thomas Tuchel recently broke the news that Quansah is also 'slightly ahead' of Trent Alexander-Arnold in the race to be selected for next summer's World Cup in North America, given the youngster can also operate comfortably on the right as well as centre-back.
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Alexander-Arnold also left Liverpool this summer to join Real Madrid, in a move that was met with friction from loyal supporters on Merseyside. However, life at the Bernabeu hasn't been straightforward for the full-back, who has played in just five La Liga matches under Xabi Alonso this term as a result of injury.
And with Quansah thriving in Germany, Tuchel has put marginal favour in the talent as things stand. He said after England's 2-0 win over Albania on Sunday: "I have a lot of trust in Jarell.
"I see his talent, but I see the package. He is tall, he is fast, he is strong in build-up. He is strong in the air. I saw him very strong playing for Liverpool in this position so I always wanted to try.
"And he plays every minute for Bayer Leverkusen since the under-21 Euros. So he is at the moment a tiny bit ahead."
Jarell Quansah celebrates with Edmond Tapsoba
Jarell Quansah joined Bayer Leverkusen this summer(Image: Bayer 04 Leverkusen via Getty Im)
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Explaining just how close he has been watching his current crop of players who are available for selection, Tuchel added: "First of all, it's my job now to make contact with everyone, players like Trent. Players that are on our long list, 55 or 60 players, to reach out to them, be in touch with them, explain to them why they were not here.
"Explain to them what they have to do, where they can improve. Can they even do something or is it just a choice? So this is my job in the next weeks and months.
"Why would I not? We can do group visits. We can do Jude Bellingham and Trent together. And visit the clubs. And some of them we will call.
Thomas Tuchel looks on
Thomas Tuchel has spoken about Jarell Quansah
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"But I hate phone calls. It's better on FaceTime. Then I see the expression, at least, and get a feeling for the person. Or I need to visit them. Visit training, training grounds. Let's see. Listen, we've just finished this camp and I think it's important that I reach out to everyone, even to the guys we didn't pick so regularly, to tell them where they are and give them honest feedback."
It comes as a Merseyside mural to Alexander-Arnold was vandalised earlier this month, as the star returned to his hometown for a Champions League clash between Liverpool and Real Madrid. The mural, which was unveiled on the corner of Sybil Road and Anfield Road back in 2019, was splattered with white paint while the word "rat" had been written in large letters.
Liverpool ran out 1-0 winners over Real Madrid when the two sides met at Anfield on November 4, courtesy of Alexis Mac Allister's 61st-minute strike.
Alexander-Arnold didn't start the match for Los Blancos, but did come on as an 81st-minute substitute for Arda Guler. He was met with a chorus of boos from the home crowd.
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