You need games to improve but that’s not guaranteed at a club like Liverpool, 22-year-old says
England defender Jarell Quansah has said he left Liverpool to join Bayer Leverkusen because he needed regular football and the chance to develop in a new environment.
The 22-year-old centre-back had found opportunities limited at Anfield before joining the Bundesliga side last the summer.
Having started just four games for Liverpool last season, he has since established himself as a regular in Germany, playing every minute of Leverkusen’s opening nine matches and scoring on his league debut against Hoffenheim.
Quansah said the move was about taking responsibility for his own progress.
“As a young centre back, you need games to improve,” said Quansah. “I’ve obviously been learning off some of the best players around me at the time at Liverpool, and being able to do that has been so good for my career.
“But at this point in my career, I’m 22 turning 23 and I’m going to be needing hundreds of games to be where I want to be at the end of the day.”
The defender was part of England’s U-21 side that won the European Championship in June but is now already pushing for his first senior cap after being named in Thomas Tuchel’s squad for the October fixtures.
“It’s been good for myself to make that step and go abroad,” Quansah said. “When you’re at a team like Liverpool, it’s not promised, because world-class players are all over the pitch.
“I just wanted somewhere where I know they can trust that I might make mistakes at times and I can develop under that and just keep pushing and keep pushing.”
