Mourinho Wants Quansah As Real Madrid Join Arsenal And Chelsea In Race

Jarell Quansah's future at Bayer Leverkusen is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore.

Only weeks after Arsenal made a serious attempt to sign the England international, the defender is now reportedly attracting interest from Real Madrid, with Sport Bild claiming that José Mourinho views Quansah as one of his preferred defensive targets.

The interest makes sense in the context of Real Madrid's defensive planning. With uncertainty surrounding the futures of Antonio Rüdiger and Éder Militão, the Spanish giants could be looking for more than one centre-back next summer. Quansah's versatility only strengthens his appeal.

But Real Madrid are far from alone.

Chelsea remain interested, while Arsenal have already demonstrated how seriously they rate the 23-year-old. The Gunners reportedly pushed with a €65 million offer last summer, only for Leverkusen to reject it. The Bundesliga club valued Quansah's sporting importance above the proposed fee and refused to let him leave.

Now, Liverpool could complicate the situation.

The Reds sold their academy graduate to Leverkusen for €35 million in 2025, but crucially protected themselves with a buy-back clause. According to Sport Bild, Liverpool can bring Quansah back for €70 million next summer, with the option needing to be activated by June 15.

That does not necessarily mean Quansah would return to Anfield.

Liverpool could theoretically exercise the clause and immediately sell him to another interested club for a higher fee, turning a player they developed themselves into another significant financial return. With Real Madrid, Arsenal, and Chelsea all reportedly monitoring the defender, the possibility of competition makes that scenario particularly interesting.

Quansah's profile has changed since moving to Germany.

He has already made 50 appearances for Leverkusen, scoring five goals and providing one assist. After predominantly operating at centre-back last season, new coach Carles Martínez has also used him at right-back, further highlighting the versatility that made him attractive to England and several elite clubs.

That versatility was already one reason Arsenal considered him such an appealing target. Our team reported in August that Arsenal viewed his ability to operate centrally and on the right as an important part of his appeal.

For Leverkusen, the problem is that the market around Quansah is getting crowded.

For Liverpool, meanwhile, the situation is almost the opposite. Their buy-back clause means they still control an important part of the defender's future, even though they no longer employ him.

And if Mourinho, Real Madrid, Arsenal and Chelsea are all genuinely interested, Liverpool may not need to decide whether Quansah is their long-term centre-back.

They may simply have to decide how much his next move can earn them.