Chess Puzzle #9xeE4 — Intermediate, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1474 · Intermediate · advantage, fork, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen d1; rooks a1/e1; knight h3; pawns a2/b2/c3/d4/g2/h2. Black: king c8; queen g5; rooks d5/h8; knights c6/e5; pawns a7/b7/c7/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qg6 — queen g5→g6. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nf4 — knight h3→f4. Opponent replies Qd6 (queen g6→d6).
  3. Best move: Nxd5 — knight f4→d5, captures rook.

Tactical themes

advantage, fork, middlegame, short. The key move is Nf4.

Position data

FEN: 2k4r/ppp2ppp/2n5/3rn1q1/3P4/2P4N/PP4PP/R2QR1K1 b - - 3 18

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