When Su Dong dribbled into Liverpool's penalty area, Skrtel had already rushed to his left.
At that moment, Liverpool goalkeeper Reina was not standing right on the goal line. He had moved slightly forward because he had been wary that if Skrtel failed to keep up, he would have to rush out immediately.
Now that Skrtel had caught up, Reina had no time to retreat.
The moment he shifted his center of gravity, Su Dong would shoot without hesitation.
So Reina could only rely on Skrtel, hoping his teammate in front of him could block Su Dong's shooting angle and force him to focus on saving to one side—just as Kompany had blocked Suárez's shooting angle earlier, allowing Courtois to make an easy save.
This was also a combination that goalkeepers and center-backs often practiced between them.
Skrtel understood this as well, so he stayed tight to Su Dong's left side, using his body to press against Su Dong's left shoulder and trying to force him toward the left side of the penalty area. At the same time, he was ready to stick out a foot at any moment to block Su Dong's left foot and the shooting angle toward the left half of the goal.
Reina only needed to focus on Su Dong's right foot and the shooting angle toward the right side of the goal.
Against a player with ordinary physical ability, being squeezed by Skrtel like this would probably send him stumbling outward, leaving him with almost no shooting angle. But Su Dong was no ordinary player. His physical strength was every bit as good as Skrtel's, if not better.
While Liverpool's center-back and goalkeeper coordinated with each other, Su Dong was also watching the situation.
Scenes like this happened all the time, and he was already