The return of captain Zvonimir Boban after four months of absence and increasingly loud announcements about changing the club's name were the main topics among Maksimir fans on the eve of the match against Atalanta in the 1st round of the UEFA Cup. Although the Zagreb side were close to progression and at times left a better impression than their opponents, the eventual winner was Atalanta, who advanced thanks to an away goal.

What's more, Dinamo's then-president Zdenko Mahmet even made a bet with technical director Velimir Zajec, claiming that the draw would pair them precisely with Atalanta. And so it was. The star name of the Italian team was the famous Argentinian Claudio Caniggia, at the time one of the biggest stars in world football. Caniggia had shone just a few months earlier at the World Cup in Italy, where he scored the winning goal against Brazil for Argentina in a 1-0 victory, and continued in the competition all the way to the final where they were stopped by West Germany.

However, the media also specifically warned that Caniggia liked to simulate fouls and thus provoke penalties. He tried this in the first match in Bergamo as well, but Danish referee Peter Mikkelsen didn't fall for it. However, East German referee Siegfried Kirschner did fall for it in the return leg at Maksimir Stadium. Atalanta's players in Bergamo imposed a harsh and at times extremely rough style of play.

Swedish midfielder and international Glenn Strömberg couldn't play against Dinamo due to a three-match suspension following an earlier red card. On the bench of the Bergamo team was new, young coach Pierluigi Frosio, whom the Maksimir crowd had already had the chance to meet, but 11 years earlier as a player. Frosio had defeated Dinamo with Perugia in the 1st round of the UEFA Cup in 1979.

Dinamo had two great chances in the first match in Bergamo, threatened on the counter-attack, and although they didn't score, they earned a valuable 0-0 away draw. Andrej Panadić excellently marked Caniggia, and the Blues were on the verge of victory two minutes before the end. Captain Boban effectively assisted Maksimir's Costa Rican Hernan Medford, who broke through alone in front of goalkeeper Fabrizio Ferron and – shot over the goal.

The match in Bergamo was also the comeback appearance of Dinamo captain Zvonimir Boban after a full four months of absence due to suspension. He was punished for the well-known events at the abandoned match between Dinamo and Red Star on May 13, 1990. The break lasted four months and six days.

At Maksimir Stadium, between the two matches against Atalanta, there was a change of coach. Josip Kuže left the bench, and Zdenko Kobešćak took his place. Boban's masterful free-kick goal into the top corner in the 54th minute provoked an eruption in the stands, but just eight minutes later everything was calmed by referee Kirschner, who carelessly awarded a penalty that Brazilian Evair converted into a goal and passage for the Italians.

In the first match in Bergamo, the team was led by coach Kuže, and he explained why Kujtim Shala was given preference over Hernan Medford in Italy: "Medford is needed for lightning counter-attacks, but Atalanta doesn't really open up much. With Shala we can be stronger in play and combination."

The media also reported on fan group incidents in those days: "Around 2,000 BBB members traveled to Bergamo. Trouble with one of their groups started already the day before the match. Unfortunately, the seating arrangement at the stadium wasn't the most fortunate choice either – there was too little space, only one entrance, the police got a bit 'relaxed' and started pushing fans with batons into the 'bottleneck'. That was the signal for a counter-charge, a big 'battle' followed in which there were injuries and arrests. Everything eventually calmed down though."