Chess Puzzle #LXX97 — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1772 · Advanced · equality, fork, opening, short.

Position

White: king e1; queen d1; rooks a1/h1; bishop f1; knights c3/f7; pawns a2/b2/c4/e4/f4/g3/h2. Black: king e8; queen c7; rooks b8/h8; bishops b4/b7; knight g8; pawns a6/b6/d6/e6/g7/h6. White is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Qxf7 — queen c7→f7, captures knight. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qa4+ — queen d1→a4, gives check. Opponent replies b5 (pawn b6→b5).
  3. Best move: Qxb4 — queen a4→b4, captures bishop.

Tactical themes

equality, fork, opening, short. The key move is Qa4+.

Position data

FEN: 1r2k1nr/1bq2Np1/pp1pp2p/8/1bP1PP2/2N3P1/PP5P/R2QKB1R b KQk - 0 14

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