Chess Puzzle #iv74H — Expert, White to move, middlegame

Position

White: king c1; queen a4; rooks a1/h3; bishop f1; knight d2; pawns a2/b2/c3/d4/g2/h6. Black: king h8; queen g1; rooks c8/f8; knight e3; pawns a5/b4/c4/d5/e6/f7/g6/h7. White is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

1. Opponent setup: Nxf1 — knight e3→f1, captures bishop. Now White to move.
2. Best move: Qd1 — queen a4→d1. Opponent replies Qxg2 (queen g1→g2, captures pawn).
3. Best move: Qxf1 — queen d1→f1, captures knight.

Tactical themes

equality, middlegame, short. The key move is Qd1.

Position data

FEN: 2r2r1k/5p1p/4p1pP/p2p4/QppP4/2P1n2R/PP1N2P1/R1K2Bq1 b - - 9 25

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