Could Arne Slot rectify one of last year's mistakes?placeholder image
Could Arne Slot rectify one of last year's mistakes? | Getty Images
Liverpool made a mistake in the last summer transfer window when they sold Jarell Quansah - but they may have a chance to make it right.
Amid all the controversy and chaos of Liverpool’s last, free-spending summer transfer window, the departure of Jarell Quansah ended up looking like little more than a footnote. Now, nine months on from his move to Bayer Leverkusen, his sale looks like a significant mistake.
While Liverpool’s depleted defence has struggled in no small part due to a lack of depth, Quansah has flourished in Germany. The £30m earned from last July’s transfer suddenly seems like small beans, especially given that a clause in that deal means that they would have to spend nearly twice as much to bring him back to Anfield – and according to recent reports, that’s precisely what they might be about to do.
Could Liverpool re-sign Jarell Quansah this summer?
TeamTalk are among a handful of gossip outlets to suggest that Liverpool have been keeping an eye on Quansah with an eye on re-signing him in the coming summer window just a year after he moved on – a possibility that could prove rather expensive should the club go through with it.
A clause in the agreement which sent the 23-year-old to Germany apparently means that Liverpool can take him back for €60m (£52.5m). That clause isn’t due to kick in until 2027, but TeamTalk’s report suggests that Leverkusen would “reluctantly” agree to bring the clause forward if the player pushed for such a deal to take place.
Signing an academy product back at a considerable loss just a year after he was sold would be rather embarrassing for the club’s decision makers, but it would surely be better to be willing to own up to a mistake than to get stuck inside of a sunk cost fallacy. If Quansah is what Liverpool need, then it’s better to eat the financial loss and the sarcastic comments from rival supporters than to refuse to be left red-faced.
Quansah has certainly looked to be worth rather more than £30m since moving to the Bundesliga. Leverkusen may struggling, by their standards, and are some way from the title conversation, but the one-cap England international has flourished, with two goals in Leverkusen’s last five games capping a fine run of form. But has he grown enough to be worth spending £52.5m on this summer?
Why it could be worth the money and the embarrassment to bring Quansah back
Operating on the right-hand side of Leverkusen’s back three, Quansah has not only demonstrated his prowess as a centre-half but also as a right-back, often taking up positions close to the touchline in possession – and suggesting, in the process, that he could have been the answer Liverpool have needed at two different positions in their back four.
He has also grown demonstrably as a defender. Where he won just under half of his one-on-ones at Anfield, he now wins 63%. He is recovering possession more than twice as often as he did last season. He is in the right place at the right time more often and contributing more to his team’s attack than was the case a year ago.
Whether he would have shown the same growth at Liverpool had Arne Slot put any faith in him is an open question, but after being taken off at half-time against Ipswich Town on the opening day of the 2024/25 season, Liverpool’s head coach never seemed to find any cause to believe in his young charge.
That, in itself, is perhaps a reason not to consider re-signing Quansah: If Slot is still there, why buy a player who he has already discarded once? But perhaps Slot won’t be there if Liverpool fail to make the top four, and perhaps Quansah will have proven his point after a fine campaign.
Everyone at Liverpool knew that Quansah had the technical and physical traits to become an elite defender, nut his decision-making and positioning came under scrutiny. They have patently improved, whether as a result of more sympathetic coaching or simply due to his natural growth and improvement as a player.
If that improvement continues, then he will be a player worth rather more than £30m. Selling him and signing him back at a hefty loss may look ridiculous, but it may prove better not to follow one mistake with another – and judging by Quansah’s recent performances, selling him was most certainly a mistake.
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