Roger Schmidt is hoping for a successful season with Bayer Leverkusen. SASCHA SCHURMANN/AFP/Getty Images

Bayer Leverkusen coach Roger Schmidt believes his side can compete for the Bundesliga title after being backed to win it by Hertha Berlin boss Pal Dardai.

In an annual dpa poll among the 18 Bundesliga coaches, Leverkusen were named favourites to win the league by Dardai, with the rest of his colleagues -- barring Borussia Dortmund's Thomas Tuchel, who did not want to name a club -- singling out Bayern Munich.

"Leverkusen will cause a surprise this time. They are a really dangerous team," Dardai said. "They've got speed, a good coach. They'll do well. And Bayern [winning] all the time is just boring."

When asked about his thoughts on Dardai's comments, Schmidt was quoted by kicker as saying: "If a colleague believes we can achieve something like that, it's certainly something you like to take along. He was definitely not joking."

However, Schmidt added that Leverkusen, who finished third last season, will not be the only club pushing for the 2016-17 Bundesliga title.

"We are aware of our quality, but we are also aware of the quality other teams have, and that we are in a strong competition," he said. "We need to constantly play at a high level and then we can get more points than last season."