LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AP) — Bayer Leverkusen has replaced former captain Jonathan Tah with Jarell Quansah from Liverpool in a club-record signing for a defender. The 22-year-old Quansah signed a contract through June 2030 and will wear Tah's former No. 4 shirt, the Bundesliga club said Wednesday. The reported fee of more than 30 million euros ($35.3 million) rising to 40 million ($47 million) with bonuses corresponds roughly with what Liverpool agreed to pay Leverkusen forNetherlands right back Jeremie Frimpongin May. Liverpool reportedly secured a buy-back option for Quansah for more than 60 million euros ($70.6 million) after he has spent two seasons at Leverkusen. Leverkusen also sold star playerFlorian Wirtz to Liverpoollast month for a Bundesliga-record fee. Tah switched to league rival Bayern Munich once the season concluded after declining to extend his contract. He had spent a decade at Leverkusen and was a key part of the team which won the Bundesliga and German Cup unbeaten in 2023-24. Quansah won the Under-21 European Championship with England last week. But he was unable to establish himself as a regular starter at Liverpool ahead of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté. "One of the most promising English central defenders. He's fast, agile, a good footballer," Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said of Quansah. "He has already made an impressive impact in a Liverpool defense dominated by world-class players. With Jarell, our defense gains significant dynamism, pace and toughness in tackling, and he's another very important building block." Leverkusen last week also signed Abdoulaye Faye for a reported fee of 3 million euros ($3.5 million) from Swedish team BK Häcken, with the 20-year-old Senegalese defender expected to go on loan for the upcoming season. ___ AP soccer:https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
