Jarell Quansah steps onto the pitch for Bayer Leverkusen tonight knowing he could easily have been lining up in black and white instead of trying to beat Newcastle United. It is a strange twist in a story that nearly sent him to St James’ Park, and the defender admits he has no regrets, even as he prepares to try and stop the team that once wanted him.
The 22-year-old centre-back left Liverpool in the summer and settled quickly at Leverkusen, embracing a new life in Germany. The move has pushed him straight into the England squad under Thomas Tuchel, and he has already made 18 appearances for his new club. It is a fresh chapter he believes came at exactly the right moment.
But before his Bundesliga adventure began, Newcastle United had placed him firmly on their radar. When Quansah first broke through at Liverpool, Newcastle saw a young defender with huge potential, someone capable of playing both centrally and at right-back.
In the summer of 2024, their interest grew even stronger. In fact, there was a point when he was seriously discussed in connection with a shocking swap proposal that would have sent Anthony Gordon back to Liverpool.
The idea was part of Newcastle’s scramble to raise funds quickly to avoid punishment under profit and sustainability rules. At the time, every option was being explored.
In the end, Liverpool rejected the idea outright. Gordon stayed at Newcastle, Quansah stayed at Anfield, and Newcastle found the money they needed by selling Elliot Anderson to Nottingham Forest and Yankuba Minteh to Brighton.
The club also agreed on compensation for Dan Ashworth to join Manchester United, which helped strengthen their financial position further. The whole saga faded away just as fast as it surfaced.
A year later, Liverpool went on to win the Premier League title but still decided to sell Quansah to Leverkusen for £35 million. It was a big call for a young defender, but five months on, he is convinced it was the right one.
Speaking to BBC Sport, he said he is thrilled he trusted his instincts. He explained that he felt the environment in Germany offered exactly what he needed for his career, and he didn’t want to spend his time wondering what might have happened had he stayed put.
His focus was on long-term development, not the short-term comfort of staying in a familiar league. For him, taking a step abroad was about shaping the player he wants to become at his peak.
Now he faces Newcastle in a Champions League meeting that carries plenty of weight. Leverkusen sit just a single point behind the Magpies, and a win tonight would push them above Eddie Howe’s side.
Quansah is determined to play his part in making that happen, even if the situation feels slightly ironic after Newcastle almost signed him not long ago.
He knows exactly who he must stop on the night too. Quansah singled out Nick Woltermade as one of the biggest threats in the Newcastle attack. He described him as an unusual forward, someone with the height and hold-up play of a classic target man but with far more versatility than people expect.
He compared him to Peter Crouch in some ways, but with qualities that go well beyond size and strength. Quansah admitted that controlling Woltermade will be essential if Leverkusen want to take control of the match.
The meeting with Newcastle will not feel unfamiliar for him. He made his Liverpool debut at St James’ Park, and earlier this year he faced them again in the Carabao Cup final.
For some reason, Newcastle always seem to appear in the key moments of his career, and he admits that the games between them never feel small. He says Newcastle always play with intensity, aggression and a willingness to attack early.
He expects the same energy this time and believes Leverkusen must not only match it but exceed it to secure the result they want. Their performance in the previous meeting was below their expectations, and he believes tonight is a chance to put that right.
Quansah’s journey could have taken him to Tyneside, but instead he arrives as an opponent determined to stop Newcastle’s progress.
He may once have been part of their transfer plans, but now he steps into this Champions League clash ready to block them, challenge them and push Leverkusen ahead of them in the group.
What almost happened no longer matters to him. What matters now is proving that the path he chose was the right one.
