It’s Your Move: daily chess puzzle # 10

Black to play: can he defend?

White has just played 1 Qg4 threatening 2 Qg7 mate; and if 1….Qg4, 2 Ra8 mates.

Engelbert v Hofmann, Schleusingen 1961

Solution

In the game, black resigned, but he should have played on. 1…Rb1+ forces 2 Kg2, when 2….Nf4+! starts to complicate matters.

Firstly, if 3 Kf3? then 3…Ne6 secures everything, and black is not worse. Stockfish tells me black is better, -1, and that might be so, but converting any advantage would be hard. The engine suggests 4 Ra4 Rg1; the latter would never occur to me, but, once seen, must be too keep white's king out in the open.

So, instead, 3 Qf4 Qa6

After 4 Qe5, threatening mate both on g7 and e8, black must bail out for a draw: 4…Qd3+ with a perpetual check.

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