Chess Puzzle #23SeG — Beginner, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 852 · Beginner · crushing, endgame, fork, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen e1; rooks a1/f1; pawns a4/b3/d3/e4/f3/g2/h3. Black: king g8; queen c7; bishop e7; knight f4; pawns a7/b6/c5/e5/f7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 4 points of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qc3 — queen e1→c3. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Ne2+ — knight f4→e2, gives check. Opponent replies Kh1 (king g1→h1).
  3. Best move: Nxc3 — knight e2→c3, captures queen.

Tactical themes

crushing, endgame, fork, short. The key move is Ne2+.

Position data

FEN: 6k1/p1q1bppp/1p6/2p1p3/P3Pn2/1P1P1P1P/6P1/R3QRK1 w - - 1 27

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Puzzle data from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0). Analysis powered by Stockfish 18 in your browser.