'The hard work starts now after signing my first pro deal'

Jarell Quansah knows 'the hard work starts now' after the Academy defender recently signed his first professional contract with Liverpool.

The stylish centre-back, who joined the Reds at the age of five, has regularly captained Marc Bridge-Wilkinson's U18s this season.

But Quansah will not rest on his laurels after putting pen to paper on his maiden pro deal in February.

Read on for our interview with the 18-year-old...

On signing his first professional contract…

I’ve been at the club since I was five and me and my family had been waiting for this moment for such a long time. It’s an unbelievable feeling to get the contract and I’m really happy. The hard work starts now. This is one of the biggest things a footballer dreams of.

It [his time at the club] has been unbelievable, I couldn’t ask for much more. Since I’ve been here everyone has been so welcoming and I’ve had the chance to go on lots of tours representing Liverpool FC, which was just an amazing experience.

On captaining the U18s…

It’s a huge honour for me and my family and it’s always good to get that trust from your coach. You have to set an example on and off the pitch and set high levels. We’ve had a lot of injuries this season so we’ve had a lot of younger lads from the U16s coming into the team, so I’ve had to sort of nurture them and welcome them into the squad. We’ve also got a few new signings this season so I’ve just tried to make them all feel welcome and help them understand how we play and what’s required from an U18s Liverpool player. It’s important to be friendly with them and make them feel as welcome as possible because when people are comfortable, that’s when they can play their best football so it’s important to understand their personality and get the best out of them. All the new boys that came have settled really well into the group. We definitely have leaders all through this group. It’s not just me, and there’s three or four lads who are leaders and help the younger lads.

On seeing Academy graduates getting opportunities at first-team level this season…

It just shows that anything can happen at any time. You just have to be ready for anything to happen. You just have to keep performing consistently and training well, and see how far you can get to. It would be a dream one day to get that opportunity, but I’ve just got to keep working as hard as I can and give my best every day for this club.

On the U18s' season so far... 

It’s very enjoyable and it’s been great. We have had a good season so far. Credit to the lads, they are great to work with. We play a nice brand of football like the first team, which filters down to us. We play with high energy and have been free-scoring. But, as a defender, I want more clean sheets, so we are working on different things.

On looking to take the step up to the U23s in the future...

Tyler Morton and Layton Stewart have done that this season and they have done great. It’s really encouraging to see them get the opportunities and it gives a lot of hope to us all.

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