Liverpool face £59m buyback call on Quansah as Chelsea and Real Madrid circle

Liverpool are weighing whether to trigger a £59m buyback clause on Jarell Quansah after the 23-year-old centre-back attracted reported interest from Chelsea and Real Madrid during his debut season at Bayer Leverkusen. The clause, worth €70m, expires on 15 June 2027, giving the club a narrowing window to act.

Quansah joined Leverkusen from Anfield in a £35m deal last summer, with Liverpool retaining the option to repurchase him. That decision now carries added urgency. According to German outlet BILD, Chelsea — managed by former Leverkusen head coach and Liverpool icon Xabi Alonso — are currently leading the race for his signature and have already made contact with the Bundesliga club. Real Madrid have also reportedly identified Quansah as a primary defensive target.

Arsenal came close to signing him last August, agreeing personal terms with the defender before Leverkusen rejected a £55.5m bid. That near-miss underlines how quickly the market around Quansah has moved.

The prospect of losing him to a direct rival adds a competitive dimension to what is already a pressing squad-planning question at Anfield. Quansah made 58 appearances for Liverpool, winning the Premier League and Carabao Cup, and can operate at both centre-back and right-back. He has since established himself in Thomas Tuchel’s England squad and featured during the Three Lions’ run at the 2026 World Cup, notably starting at right-back ahead of Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Liverpool’s defensive outlook makes the decision more complicated. Virgil van Dijk’s contract expires next summer, and while an extension has not been ruled out, the club must plan for the possibility of losing their captain. At 35, the Netherlands international cannot be relied upon indefinitely, and Liverpool would need a proven replacement capable of filling one of the most demanding roles in Andoni Iraola’s system.

The club brought in the relatively inexperienced Jeremy Jacquet last summer, but another developmental signing may not be sufficient if Van Dijk departs. Quansah, by contrast, already knows the club’s culture, has demonstrated he can perform at the highest level, and would arrive without the usual adaptation period.

Liverpool’s dilemma is straightforward in outline but costly in practice: allow the clause to lapse and risk watching a homegrown talent strengthen a rival, or spend £59m to bring back a player they sold less than two years ago.