Chess Puzzle #Gkdav — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king g1; queen d3; rooks c1/c2; knight e1; pawns a5/b4/c3/d4/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g7; queen b5; rooks c7/c8; knight d5; pawns a6/b7/d6/e6/f7/g6/h6. Material is balanced. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Nxb4 — knight d5→b4, captures pawn. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Qxb5 — queen d3→b5, captures queen. Opponent replies axb5 (pawn a6→b5, captures queen).
3. Best move: cxb4 — pawn c3→b4, captures knight.

Tactical themes

advantage, intermezzo, middlegame, short. The key move Qxb5 wins material.

Position data

FEN: 2r5/1pr2pk1/p2pp1pp/Pq1n4/1P1P4/2PQ4/2R2PPP/2R1N1K1 b - - 14 33

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