Did black misplay here or did I miss something?

Question

I'm getting back into chess after a hiatus of 8+ years, so I'm a bit rusty. This position is from a game I just played online.

I'm white and it's my move. I threaten black's rook and knight with Qd5, and this is how it played out. I'm amazed it worked in my favor, because as far as I can tell, instead of 3. - a6, he could have moved 3. - Qf6, which would save him after a few exchanges. Am I missing something, or did he just make the wrong move?

EDIT: Removed irrelevant sentence about Kf7.

r1b1kbnr/p1pp4/1p6/4nP1p/6pq/2N5/PPP1BPPP/R1BQ1RK1 w - - 0 1

1. Qd5 Nc6
2. Bb5 Nge7
3. Re1 a6
4. Bxc6 dxc6
5. Qxc6+ Bd7
6. Qxa8+ Kf7
7. Qxa6

@bof or 7. Qxc8+ right away, since the black knight is pinned. — GloriaVictis, May 05 '15 at 12:09
@GloriaVictis Was 2...Nge7 the best Black could do? What happens if he plays 2...Nf6? — bof, May 05 '15 at 12:25
@bof seems like a much better move to me; I'd say white maintains an edge after 3. Re1+, but I do not see an immediate win. — GloriaVictis, May 05 '15 at 12:43

score 2 · Accepted Answer · answered May 05 '15 at 19:31

2

As you saw in your game a6 failed terribly as it's simply inviting white to take on c6 and win the rook. Black had a better way of avoiding all of this a move earlier, i.e. 2. Bb5 Nf6 instead of Nge7. See illustration:

r1b1kbnr/p1pp4/1p6/4nP1p/6pq/2N5/PPP1BPPP/R1BQ1RK1 w - - 0 1

1. Qd5 Nc6
2. Bb5 Nf6
3. Re1+ Kd8
4. Qd2 (4. Qd3 Bc5) (4. Qc4 Bc5)

Finally as for Qf6, as has been suggested in comments by others, it simply loses to Ne4 (or the engine move which is Bf4, but it doesn't matter as Ne4 is good enough):

r1b1kbnr/p1pp4/1p6/4nP1p/6pq/2N5/PPP1BPPP/R1BQ1RK1 w - - 0 1

1. Qd5 Nc6
2. Bb5 Nge7
3. Re1 Qf6
4. Ne4 Qf7
5. Bxc6 dxc6
6. Qe5 Bg7
7. f6

So both a6 and Qf6 blunder the game away, the former bit more horribly so.

answered May 05 '15 at 19:31

Ellie

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Ah, I overlooked his way of avoiding the `Nge7` pin. Fortunately, he did too. Thank you for the clear explanation and illustrations. – Cliff May 06 '15 at 03:25
In your second variant, what happens if black plays 4. ... Qd4 or Qe5? – downhand May 06 '15 at 07:21
I believe instead 2.Bb5 white could simply play 2.Re1 first. Maybe I will answer this sometime soon by explaining why Bb5 is not so good and how Black can defend and improve its position – Pavan Nadig May 06 '15 at 11:32

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered May 05 '15 at 07:08

0

In the initial position I would chose White. Black is slightly ahead in material, but most of it is a dead wood.

... Qf6 loses to 4. Ne4, e.g. 4. ... Nd5 5. Nf6++ K~ 6. Nd5 recovering material.

answered May 05 '15 at 07:08

user58697

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Isn't there 5.Nd6++ Kd8 6.Rd8 mate? – BlindKungFuMaster May 05 '15 at 07:18
I was looking at 4.Ne4 Qf7 5.Bxc6 dxc6 6.Nd6+ cxd6 7.Qxc6+ Kd8 8.Qxa8 Nxf5 9.Bg5+ and White can grab the a-pawn. – bof May 05 '15 at 07:22
@BlindKungFuMaster 5. ... Kf7 is technically legal – user58697 May 05 '15 at 07:34
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@user58697: Not according to the rules I know … ;-) – BlindKungFuMaster May 05 '15 at 07:38
@BlindKungFuMaster Sorry I might be under influence; tell me how f7 is controlled? – user58697 May 05 '15 at 07:42
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The variation I'm talking about is 3…Qf6 4.Ne4 Nd5 5.Nd6++ (now f7 is controlled by the Nd6) Kd8 6.Re8# – BlindKungFuMaster May 05 '15 at 08:36
Yes, 4...Nd5?? is a horrible blunder. 4...Qf7 puts up a better fight. – bof May 05 '15 at 09:46

Did black misplay here or did I miss something?

2 Answers2