Chess Puzzle #S1xzK — Expert, White to move, middlegame

Rating 2231 · Expert · attraction, kingside attack, mate, mate in 4, middlegame, sacrifice.

Position

White: king g2; queen d2; rook f1; bishop c3; knight f5; pawns c4/d5/f3/g4. Black: king g8; queen b3; rooks e4/f8; bishop c5; pawns a7/b7/c7/d6/f7/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 5 points of material. White to move.

Solution (4 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: Rxc4 — rook e4→c4, captures pawn. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Ne7+ — knight f5→e7, gives check. Opponent replies Kh8 (king g8→h8).
  3. Best move: Bxg7+ — bishop c3→g7, captures pawn, gives check. Opponent replies Kxg7 (king h8→g7, captures bishop).
  4. Best move: Qg5+ — queen d2→g5, gives check. Opponent replies Kh8 (king g7→h8).
  5. Best move: Qf6# — queen g5→f6, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

attraction, kingside attack, mate, mate in 4, middlegame, sacrifice, very long. The combination ends with Qf6# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 5rk1/ppp2ppp/3p4/2bP1N2/2P1r1P1/1qB2P2/3Q2K1/5R2 b - - 0 27

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