# 1990–91 NK Dinamo Zagreb season

The 1990–91 season was Dinamo Zagreb's 45th season in the Yugoslav First League. It proved to be their last season played in the Yugoslav league system. Following the season's completion and due to the breakup of Yugoslavia, Croatian clubs, including Dinamo, decided to leave the league to form Prva HNL.
Dinamo Zagreb finished runners-up in the league, with ten points behind champions Red Star Belgrade. In their last appearance in the Yugoslav Cup Dinamo have beaten Borac Bosanski Šamac in the round of 32 (7–0) and FK Sarajevo in the round of 16 (5–1 on aggregate) before reaching the quarter-finals where they were knocked out by Borac Banja Luka (2–3 on aggregate).
In European competitions Dinamo were drawn to play Italy's Atalanta in the 1990–91 UEFA Cup. After a goalless draw in Bergamo in the first leg, the return leg at Maksimir ended in a 1–1 draw, with Atalanta going through on away goals rule.

## Players
### Squad

The following is the full list of players who appeared in league matches for Dinamo in the 1990–91 season.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| --- | GK | YUG | Miralem Ibrahimović |
| --- | GK | YUG | Dražen Ladić |
| --- | DF | YUG | Željko Cupan |
| --- | DF | CRC | Rónald González Brenes |
| --- | DF | YUG | Slavko Ištvanić |
| --- | DF | YUG | Zvonko Lipovac |
| --- | DF | YUG | Damir Lesjak |
| --- | DF | YUG | Zoran Mamić |
| --- | DF | YUG | Andrej Panadić |
| --- | DF | YUG | Saša Peršon |
| --- | DF | YUG | Željko Petrović |
| --- | DF | YUG | Muhamed Preljević |
| --- | MF | YUG | Dražen Besek |
| --- | MF | YUG | Zvonimir Boban |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| --- | MF | YUG | Josip Gašpar |
| --- | MF | YUG | Mladen Mladenović |
| --- | MF | YUG | Draženko Prskalo |
| --- | MF | YUG | Kujtim Shala |
| --- | MF | YUG | Vjekoslav Škrinjar |
| --- | MF | YUG | Dževad Turković |
| --- | MF | YUG | Gregor Židan |
| --- | FW | YUG | Željko Adžić |
| --- | FW | YUG | Stjepan Deverić |
| --- | FW | YUG | Primož Gliha |
| --- | FW | YUG | Miljenko Kovačić |
| --- | FW | CRC | Hernán Medford |
| --- | FW | YUG | Alen Peternac |
| --- | FW | YUG | Davor Šuker |

## First Federal League
### Matches

| M | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Dinamo scorers | Attendance |
| 1 | 5 August 1990 | Budućnost | A | L | 0–1 | | 3,606 |
| 2 | 12 August 1990 | Velež | H (N) | W | 2–1 | Šuker (2) | 2,944 |
| 3 | 19 August 1990 | Rijeka | A | D | 0–0 (1–3 p) | | 3,301 |
| 4 | 26 August 1990 | Borac Banja Luka | H | W | 2–1 | Mladenović, Medford | 9,168 |
| 5 | 1 September 1990 | Partizan | A | L | 1–2 | Šuker | 12,483 |
| 6 | 15 September 1990 | Zemun | H | W | 2–0 | Šuker (2) | 7,825 |
| 7 | 26 September 1990 | Vojvodina | A | L | 1–3 | Šuker | 4,500 |
| 8 | 29 September 1990 | Osijek | H | D | 1–1 (6–7 p) | Boban | 3,894 |
| 9 | 7 October 1990 | Sarajevo | A | D | 0–0 (5–4 p) | | 1,629 |
| 10 | 13 October 1990 | Hajduk Split | H | D | 1–1 (4–3 p) | Šuker | 13,229 |
| 11 | 21 October 1990 | Spartak Subotica | A | D | 0–0 (4–2 p) | | 1,600 |
| 12 | 4 November 1990 | Sloboda Tuzla | H | W | 3–1 | Boban (2), Medford | 2,131 |
| 13 | 18 November 1990 | Red Star | A | L | 1–3 | Petrović | 18,130 |
| 14 | 25 November 1990 | Rad | H | W | 2–1 | Mladenović, Prskalo | 2,267 |
| 15 | 2 December 1990 | Proleter Zrenjanin | A | L | 1–3 | Medford | 4,800 |
| 16 | 5 December 1990 | Radnički Niš | H | W | 2–0 | Šuker, Boban | 1,445 |
| 17 | 9 December 1990 | Željezničar | A | W | 3–1 | Preljević, Cupan, Mladenović | 1,404 |
| 18 | 16 December 1990 | Olimpija | H | W | 3–0 | Šuker (pen.), Boban, Mladenović | 3,117 |
| 19 | 17 February 1991 | Budućnost | H | W | 6–0 | Šuker (pen.), Boban, Shala (2), Mladenović, Adžić | 3,650 |
| 20 | 24 February 1991 | Velež | A | W | 2–1 | Boban, Škrinjar | 5,085 |
| 21 | 3 March 1991 | Rijeka | H | W | 3–1 | Adžić, Shala, Boban | 7,837 |
| 22 | 10 March 1991 | Borac Banja Luka | A | D | 1–1 (5–6 p) | Boban | 6,607 |
| 23 | 17 March 1991 | Partizan | H | D | 0–0 (4–3 p) | | 17,052 |
| 24 | 22 March 1991 | Zemun | A | D | 1–1 (7–6 p) | Petrović | 1,370 |
| 25 | 7 April 1991 | Vojvodina | H | D | 2–2 (7–6 p) | Židan, Šuker | 4,971 |
| 26 | 14 April 1991 | Osijek | A | L | 1–2 | Šuker | 7,589 |
| 27 | 21 April 1991 | Sarajevo | H | W | 8–1 | Šuker (2), Boban (3), Gašpar, Shala, Mladenović | 4,208 |
| 28 | 27 April 1991 | Hajduk Split | A | W | 2–1 | Šuker (2) | 28,000 |
| 29 | 5 May 1991 | Spartak Subotica | H | W | 3–1 | Šuker (2), Boban | 3,842 |
| 30 | 11 May 1991 | Sloboda Tuzla | A | W | 3–0 | Gliha, Deverić, Boban | 972 |
| 31 | 18 May 1991 | Red Star | H | W | 3–2 | Šuker (pen.), Gašpar, Židan | 14,546 |
| 32 | 26 May 1991 | Rad | A | W | 2–0 | Šuker, Boban | 1,100 |
| 33 | 2 June 1991 | Proleter Zrenjanin | H | W | 4–1 | Šuker (2), Shala, Deverić | 4,964 |
| 34 | 5 June 1991 | Radnički Niš | A | D | 1–1 (4–5 p) | Adžić | 6,500 |
| 35 | 9 June 1991 | Željezničar | H | W | 2–1 | Shala (2) | 1,580 |
| 36 | 16 June 1991 | Olimpija | A | W | 3–1 | Boban, Shala, Gliha | 1,606 |

### Standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | PKW | PKL | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Red Star Belgrade (C) | 36 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 88 | 35 | +53 | 54 | Qualification for European Cup first round |
| 2 | Dinamo Zagreb | 36 | 20 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 72 | 36 | +36 | 46 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 3 | Partizan | 36 | 18 | 5 | 3 | 10 | 62 | 36 | +26 | 41 | Qualification for UEFA Cup first round |
| 4 | Proleter Zrenjanin | 36 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 50 | 49 | +1 | 35 | Qualification for Intertoto Cup |
| 5 | Borac Banja Luka | 36 | 14 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 42 | 38 | +4 | 35 | |
* ↑ After the season, Croatian and Slovenian clubs left the Yugoslav federation and formed their own leagues. Dinamo Zagreb, Hajduk Split, Osijek and Rijeka joined 1992 Prva HNL, while Olimpija joined 1991–92 Slovenian PrvaLiga.

### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 36 | 20 | 10 | 6 | 72 | 36 | +36 | 50 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 49 | 15 | +34 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 23 | 21 | +2 |
Last updated: 2 October 2024. Source: rsssf.org

## Marshal Tito Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A |
| R32 | 8 August 1990 | Borac Bosanski Šamac | A | W | 7–0 |
| R16 (1st leg) | 15 August 1990 | Sarajevo | H (N) | W | 1–0 |
| R16 (2nd leg) | 22 August 1990 | Sarajevo | A | W | 4–1 |
| QF (1st leg) | 10 October 1990 | Borac Banja Luka | A | L | 2–3 |
| QF (2nd leg) | 21 November 1990 | Borac Banja Luka | H | D | 0–0 |

## Europe

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance | Ref |
| R1 (1st leg) | 19 September 1990 | Atalanta | A | D | 0–0 | | 29,033 | |
| R1 (2nd leg) | 3 October 1990 | Atalanta | H | D | 1–1 | Boban 54' | 19,488 | |

## Players

Dinamo used a total of 28 players during the 1990–91 season, and there were 15 different goalscorers for the club. The club played 41 competitive matches this season (36 in the league, 3 in the national cup, and 2 in the UEFA Cup). Five players were named in the starting lineup 30 or more times.
The leading player in appearances was goalkeeper Dražen Ladić, who started 35 out of 36 league matches. The leading goalscorers in the league were Davor Šuker (22) and Zvonimir Boban (16), who finished second and third in the 1990–91 season goalscoring table, behind only Crvena Zvezda's Darko Pančev (34) who also won the European Golden Shoe for that season.
Boban scored the club's only hat-trick of the season, in a 8–1 thrashing of FK Sarajevo at Maksimir, in April 1991. Šuker had six braces in the league, with Kujtim Shala scoring two braces, and Boban one.
Dinamo was the second-highest goalscoring team in the league in 1990–91, producing 88 goals in 36 matches (2.44 per game) and had shared third-best defense, conceding 36 goals, including 10 clean sheets.
A feature of the Yugoslav league in this period were penalty shoot-outs, played in case of tied results at the end of regular time, with only the winning team earning a point. The rule was introduced to encourage attacking football and combat allegations of match-fixing. In the 1990–91 season Dinamo had ten draws in the league, and went on to win six of these shoot-outs.
In 1990–91 Dinamo were undefeated at Maksimir across all competitions, recording 13 wins and 4 draws in 17 league matches at home, winning 29 points (26 for straight wins plus 3 penalty kick wins) out of the maximum 34 (85.3%). In the cup, Dinamo played five matches, one of them at home, a 0–0 draw vs. Borac Banja Luka in the second leg of the quarter-finals in November 1990.
This does not include two "home" matches which FSJ ordered to be played outside of Zagreb due to the pitch invasion and violent rioting in the abandoned home game vs Red Star at the end of the previous season, in May 1990. Dinamo played these two matches at Stadion Kantrida in Rijeka in August: the 2–1 league win against Velež on 12 August, and the 1–0 win against Sarajevo in the Marshal Tito Cup three days later.
In Europe Dinamo held Italy's Atalanta to a 1–1 draw at Maksimir in the UEFA Cup, only getting knocked out due to the away goals rule.
Boban scored the club's only European goal of the season, against Italian club Atalanta in the return leg of the first round of the UEFA Cup at Maksimir in October 1990. At the end of the season Boban was transferred to Milan, where he would spend the following decade, while Šuker was sold to Sevilla in Spain, where he would soon become one of the league's top scorers of the early 1990s.
Before the season, Dinamo's Šuker and Panadić had been part of the Yugoslavia squad under national manager Ivica Osim at the 1990 FIFA World Cup played in Italy in July 1990. Just before that summer's tournament, Yugoslavia played a friendly at Dinamo's Stadion Maksimir in June 1990, in a controversial match which proved to be the last game played by Yugoslavia in Zagreb or anywhere else in Croatia.
Nevertheless, during the 1990–91 season the following Dinamo players earned full international caps for Yugoslavia: Petrović (1) Boban (4), Ladić (2), Šuker (2). The last Yugoslavia match to feature players from Croatian clubs was a Euro 1992 qualifier against Faroe Islands, played in Belgrade in May 1991. Petrović, who also left for Sevilla along with Šuker at the end of season, later earned 16 caps for FR Yugoslavia (later renamed "Serbia and Montenegro"), while Ladić, Boban and Šuker went on to become stalwarts in the star-studded Croatia national football team which reached the quarter-final at the UEFA Euro 1996 in England and the semi-final at the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France.

### Squad statistics
#### Key

Numbers indicate starting appearances + appearances as substitute. Goals column shows total goals, numbers in brackets indicate penalties scored in regular time, excluding penalty shoot-outs in case of ties. Players with name struck through and marked † left the club during the playing season. Age as of 6 August 1990, first matchday of the season.
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | DoB (Age) | League | League | Cup | Cup | Europe | Europe | Total | Total |
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | DoB (Age) | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | | Dražen Ladić | (1963-01-01)1 January 1963 (aged 27) | 35 | 0 | | 0 | 2 | 0 | 42 | 0 |
| DF | | Željko Petrović | (1965-11-13)13 November 1965 (aged 24) | 32 | 2 | | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 2 |
| FW | | Davor Šuker | (1968-01-01)1 January 1968 (aged 22) | 32 | 22 (5) | | 3 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 25 |
| MF | | Mladen Mladenović | (1964-09-13)13 September 1964 (aged 25) | 28 | 6 | | 3 | 2 | 0 | 32 | 9 |
| DF | | Saša Peršon | (1965-02-28)28 February 1965 (aged 25) | 28 | 0 | | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 0 |
| MF | | Zvonimir Boban | (1968-10-08)8 October 1968 (aged 21) | 26 | 16 | | 0 | 2 | 1 | 30 | 17 |
| DF | | Gregor Židan | (1965-10-05)5 October 1965 (aged 24) | 26+2 | 2 | | 1 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 3 |
| DF | | Slavko Ištvanić | (1966-07-12)12 July 1966 (aged 24) | 25+5 | 0 | | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 35 | 0 |
| FW | | Kujtim Shala | (1964-07-13)13 July 1964 (aged 26) | 24 | 8 | | 3 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 11 |
| MF | | Željko Adžić | (1965-08-28)28 August 1965 (aged 24) | 19+4 | 4 | | | 0 | 0 | 24 | 3 |
| DF | | Muhamed Preljević | (1964-06-16)16 June 1964 (aged 26) | 19+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 |
| DF | | Andrej Panadić | (1969-03-09)9 March 1969 (aged 21) | 18 | 0 | | 0 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 0 |
| FW | | Josip Gašpar | (1973-03-15)15 March 1973 (aged 17) | 13+2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 |
| MF | | Vjekoslav Škrinjar | (1969-06-02)2 June 1969 (aged 21) | 11+10 | 1 | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 2 |
| FW | | Hernán Medford | (1968-05-23)23 May 1968 (aged 22) | 10+4 | 3 | | 0 | 0+2 | 0 | 19 | 3 |
| DF | | Zvonko Lipovac | (1964-10-09)9 October 1964 (aged 25) | 10 | 0 | | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| MF | | Damir Lesjak | (1967-03-31)31 March 1967 (aged 23) | 8+3 | 0 | | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| MF | | Draženko Prskalo | (1964-04-18)18 April 1964 (aged 26) | 7+9 | 1 | | 0 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 1 |
| DF | | Željko Cupan | (1963-12-30)30 December 1963 (aged 26) | 7+1 | 1 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| MF | | Dražen Besek | (1963-03-10)10 March 1963 (aged 27) | 6+2 | 0 | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| DF | | Rónald González | (1970-08-08)8 August 1970 (aged 19) | 4+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| FW | | Stjepan Deverić | (1961-08-20)20 August 1961 (aged 28) | 3+4 | 2 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 |
| MF | | Alen Peternac | (1972-01-16)16 January 1972 (aged 18) | 2+5 | 0 | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 |
| FW | | Primož Gliha | (1967-10-08)8 October 1967 (aged 22) | 1+1 | 2 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| GK | | Miralem Ibrahimović | (1963-01-19)19 January 1963 (aged 27) | 1 | 0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | | Zoran Mamić | (1971-09-30)30 September 1971 (aged 18) | 1 | 0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | | Miljenko Kovačić | (1973-03-19)19 March 1973 (aged 17) | 0+6 | 0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| FW | | Dževad Turković | (1972-06-17)17 June 1972 (aged 18) | 0+4 | 0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| MF | | Nick Dasovic | (1968-12-05)5 December 1968 (aged 21) | 0 | 0 | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |