It was captain Milan Badelj's last match for the Maksimir club, the first European goal scored by Portuguese defender Tonel, Dinamo's fourth entry into the Champions League group stage, and the first under coach Ante Čačić... On that day, Dinamo defeated Maribor at Ljudski vrt stadium 1-0 in the Champions League play-off second leg, thus defending their 2-1 advantage from the first match and securing their place in the group stage.

A decade later, just four days "before the round anniversary", Dinamo under Čačić once again secured a place in Europe's elite club competition group stage. This made him only the second coach in history to lead Dinamo into the Champions League twice. Previously, the legendary and never-to-be-forgotten Zlatko Cico Kranjčar had achieved this feat, also leading the Blues into the Champions League twice, with an 18-year gap: in 1998 and 2016.

In that 2012 season, Dinamo started their European journey in the 2nd qualifying round, dramatically overcoming Bulgarian side Ludogorets, then convincingly defeating Moldovan Sheriff, with Maribor being the final obstacle before entering the Champions League.

Coach Čačić entered that second leg with a run of 30 matches without defeat, or in other words – unbeaten throughout his entire mandate up to that point. The run later stopped at 33, broken by Porto with a 2-0 victory in Zagreb in the Champions League. However, Maribor also had a similar streak until their defeat at Maksimir – an impressive 28 matches without a loss.

The match was decided in Dinamo's favour by Portuguese defender Tonel with a goal in the 12th minute. It was his first European goal for the Blues, and interestingly, as a defender, he had previously found the net in both league and cup matches. It was the result of early pressure from the Blues, who played in golden jerseys on that occasion. First, Maribor goalkeeper Jasmin Handanović saved a powerful long-range attempt from Duje Čop, followed by two consecutive corner kicks, with Dinamo finding the net after the second delivery, when Čop crossed from the "far post" into the penalty area where Tonel appeared and deflected the ball into the net.

After concluding his mandate in Dinamo's jersey with victory at Ljudski vrt, captain Badelj immediately moved to the Bundesliga, joining HSV.