Hoeneß: No one’s backing Bayern in the Champions League! | OneFootball

When the Champions League season 2025/26 for FC Bayern starts on September 17, they will be immediately tested by FC Chelsea. Uli Hoeneß has now tempered expectations - and surprisingly compared FCB with TSG Hoffenheim.

At the DFL gala in Berlin, where Hoeneß was honored for his life's work, the honorary president spoke about the role of the German record champions in Europe's premier class. "All I can say is that I'm looking forward to the upcoming season because we're going into the Champions League season like Hoffenheim," explained the 73-year-old.

With this, Hoeneß was referring to Bayern's underdog role - an attitude rarely seen in Munich. However, for the former manager, this is not a disadvantage: "That's exactly our chance." With this assessment, Hoeneß wants to relieve the team of pressure and at the same time point out the difficult conditions.

Hammer games with Chelsea, PSG, and Arsenal

A mammoth task awaits the Munich team in terms of sports. In the league phase, they not only meet Chelsea but also defending champions Paris Saint-Germain and FC Arsenal. This puts Vincent Kompany and his team up against one of the toughest preliminary round programs of recent years.

The discussions about the squad are ongoing. Harry Kane has already made it clear that they are "a bit thin on the ground". "It's probably one of the smallest squads I've ever played in," said the English captain.

On Deadline Day, the club reacted once again and signed Nicolas Jackson from FC Chelsea. The Senegalese is expected to strengthen the offense and provide more depth in the attack. Whether this will be enough to compete against Europe's elite remains to be seen.

Underdog or dark horse?

For Hoeneß, it's clear: Bayern must adopt a different approach in the premier class. Instead of claiming the role of the favorite, he wants to emphasize the role of the challenger. The fact that he draws a comparison with Hoffenheim, however, causes some surprise.

Whether the underdog role can actually become Munich's strength will be decided from mid-September on the pitch. What is certain is that with Chelsea, PSG, and Arsenal, three tests await that will show how competitive Vincent Kompany's squad really is.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.