Chess Puzzle #9rukZ — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king c1; queen g4; rook h1; knight f3; pawns a2/b3/c3/e3/e5/f4/g2/g3. Black: king h7; queen d8; rooks a8/e8; bishop h6; pawns a3/b7/c5/d5/f6/g7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

1. Opponent setup: fxe5 — pawn f6→e5, captures pawn. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Ng5+ — knight f3→g5, gives check. Opponent replies Kg8 (king h7→g8).
3. Best move: Rxh6 — rook h1→h6, captures bishop. Opponent replies gxh6 (pawn g7→h6, captures rook).
4. Best move: Ne6+ — knight g5→e6, gives check. Opponent replies Kf7 (king g8→f7).
5. Best move: Nxd8+ — knight e6→d8, captures queen, gives check.

Tactical themes

advantage, deflection, discovered attack, middlegame, sacrifice, very long. The key move Nxd8+ captures with check, forcing a response.

Position data

FEN: r2qr3/1p4pk/5p1b/2ppP3/5PQ1/pPP1PNP1/P5P1/2K4R b - - 2 24

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