Steven Gerrard has predicted the dark horse team to win this season's UEFA Champions League.
Steven Gerrard, former Liverpool captain and midfielder, has named Bayern Munich, the Bundesliga powerhouse from Germany, as the dark horse team to claim the 2025-26 UEFA Champions League title.
Bayern Munich advanced to the Champions League quarterfinals after defeating Atalanta with a 10-2 aggregate score over two legs, and Vincent Kompany's team will next face Real Madrid, who previously eliminated Manchester City.
Recently, Gerrard, a 2005 Champions League winner with Liverpool, expressed his belief that Real Madrid has a chance to beat Bayern Munich if they perform at their best, but he admitted he would not be surprised if Bayern ended up winning and called them the dark horse this season.
"I think the best version of Real Madrid will be the winners. I believe they will advance because their style in the Champions League seems to have stepped up. They played aggressively, like they did against Manchester City."
"But Bayern might be the dark horse this year. They have all their players fully fit, Harry Kane is in great form, and Vincent Kompany has trained and organized the team well. I think they are more prepared than in the past four or five seasons."
However, Gerrard chose Paris Saint-Germain as the favorites to win the UCL for the second consecutive season.
"I think Paris Saint-Germain are like Real Madrid in recent years. In big Champions League matches, they can turn the game around. They focus more on the Champions League than domestic games, and they know when to raise their level. I think Paris Saint-Germain will win again."