Chess Puzzle #MB6Tu — Intermediate, Black to move, middlegame

Rating 1427 · Intermediate · advantage, endgame, fork, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen b4; rook a1; knight c5; pawns c3/d4/e5/f2/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen d5; rook f8; knight e7; pawns c4/e6/f7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 1 point of material. Black to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Ra7 — rook a1→a7. Now Black to move.
  2. Best move: Nc6 — knight e7→c6. Opponent replies Qb2 (queen b4→b2).
  3. Best move: Nxa7 — knight c6→a7, captures rook.

Tactical themes

advantage, endgame, fork, short. The key move is Nc6.

Position data

FEN: 5rk1/4nppp/4p3/2NqP3/1QpP4/2P5/5PPP/R5K1 w - - 1 26

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