Jarell Quansah has a sizeable price tag on his head this summer, and he has now reportedly been placed on the transfer shortlist for Bayer Leverkusen.
Liverpool and Leverkusen have been in close contact this year, first for Jeremie Frimpong and currently for the record transfer of Florian Wirtz.
And the German club, not for the first time, have been linked to Quansah with Fabrizio Romano claiming on X that the 22-year-old is on their “shortlist for a new centre-back” alongside Loic Bade.
With Jonathan Tah joining Bayern Munich, Leverkusen are seeking further defensive reinforcements having signed and then committed to sending Tim Oermann on loan for the 2025/26 season.
Erik ten Hag, who has replaced Xabi Alonso, inherited Piero Hincapie, Edmond Tapsoba, Mario Hermoso and Jeanuel Belocian as his senior centre-back options.
The Mail‘s Lewis Steele and fellow Liverpool journalist David Lynch both previously reported the club would seek around £50 million for Quansah, who has interest in England and Germany.
Romano explains that any contact for Quansah would be “separate” from the deal for Wirtz, which has been described elsewhere as being in its final stages.
Quansah made 25 appearances in all competitions in the 2024/25 season, starting only 13, and he would understandably be eager for increased game time following the U21 Euros this summer.
It would be a reluctant departure
As a product of the club’s academy, Liverpool would be reluctant to let Quansah leave but if his valuation is met it represents an incredible return for a player who joined at the age of five.
His future and that of Joe Gomez‘s may be tied together, however, with the Reds unlikely to allow two centre-backs to depart in the same transfer window.
The Reds were one of a number of clubs credited with an interest in Dean Huijsen before he agreed to join Real Madrid, a strong indicator they are in the market for a centre-back.
Links to alternatives are quiet but Ajax’s Jorrel Hato was previously name-checked.
Liverpool will also hope to tie Ibrahima Konate down to a new deal as he enters the final year of his contract, with the latest news claiming progress has finally been made.
