My friend, the main problem here is that you are a piece down. Is not like you dont have plans, the thing is you dont have piece power to have at least one plan.
Advice: when you are a piece down, move on and look for another game, because playing such games wont help you and certainly you wont learn anything.
Good luck.;)
Surely many players are able to come back from being a piece down. I realize you're an FM and I'm rated 1k on a good day, but are you serious? If I get a piece down, look for a new game?
I agree keep playing if only a piece down at your level. also looking at move 8. trading queens would of picked up the bishop.
I agree keep playing if only a piece down at your level. also looking at move 8. trading queens would of picked up the bishop.
Good point about move 8, I appreciate that kind of insight.
The best move after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 is 3. d4
I'm guessing you like to do Ng5, but if any opponent of yours knows a tiny bit about openings, the Traxler would devastate you.
About those exchanges, you can always go back and not do the mistake.. Losing tempo isn't as bad as losing important pieces.
Hi Telurides.
I hope you didnt get offended, it was not my intention. re-reading my comment still I believe i didnt say nothing offensive, but who knows.
Ok, your question: yes Im really serious. of course there are some will disagree, but this is what I do: anytime when one of my students are a piece down, (and the piece down was not product from a sacrifice), I stop analyzing teh game, because there is no point. Of such games you wont learn nothing except how your opponent will materialize the advantage. Is a waste of time and energy that you can use in another game.
My confussion came when you asked specifically a plan starting at move 17, I click directly in the move and i realize you are a piece down... how come?
Remember, life is too short for chess. Why spend time playing hope-chess?
Good luck ;)
Surely many players are able to come back from being a piece down. I realize you're an FM and I'm rated 1k on a good day, but are you serious? If I get a piece down, look for a new game?
Well, objectively, when your a piece down, you basically have no hope of winning the game as you get to higher levels. Theres no such thing as a comeback a piece down.
And I agree with CharlyAZ. When you are a piece down, there is no such thing as planning and strategy. The game is over and you are left playing hope-chess, just hoping the opponent will give it back or miss a tactic.
You aren't losing games b/c of planning, its tactics that are the problem.
ALways assume your opponent will make the BEST move. Never hope he/she won't notice something....
@CharlyAZ: No, I never got offended, I just wasn't sure if you were being condescending or offering serious commentary.
@Everyone else: I'm surprised so many people just quit if they're a piece down. As for the game being hopeless at higher levels, there are many many (many) GM games which I'm certain will show otherwise.
Looking over my game again, I realize I did miss at least one tactical opportunity to equalize (trading queens), and I'm not saying I could have fought back beyond that point, but history has shown over and over that being a piece down doesn't necessarily lose you the game.
Being a piece down when you don't have compensation loses you the game. There are plenty of examples of people getting checkmated while having more material, but in the vast majority of cases, they have more material because the opponent sacrificed some material for mate.
When you sacrifice a piece, or maybe can find some compensation for the piece you dropped, by all means, play on and try to make something of it. When you simply drop a piece and don't have something in the position to help balance that out...you're just losing. Will your opponent convert the win? Who knows? But that's the scenario everyone is talking about with the "piece down --> resign" comments.
No, there aren't many modern GM games where a GM has one down a piece with 0 or near 0 compensation, and rapid or blindfold games don't count. Most resign immediately or a few mvoes later....
When they have sac'd it, it means they believe there is some compensation and will play on and press on. GMs may even resign when they are 2 pawns down with no compensation as well.
Down a piece is objectively losing the game. There is no point in analyzing then since all roads lead to Rome, or in this case a loss objectively. The plans don't matter at all since they all still lose with reasonable play by the opponent.
The reason you might have "come back" from being down a piece before is that your opponent also blundered. At your level, this may happen a lot but as you get better and better by studying tactics, it won't be the case anymore. You will be the one saying "wow just resign, you've lost already since your down a piece."
Just keep looking forward toward improvement.
By the way, in your game, after Qf6, the correct move was Nxd6+ and the bishop gives a discovered attack to your opponents knight. Qf3 was a losing move. And your right ...Be6 was a mistake by your opponent in that you could get out of trouble and be a winning 2 pawns up after trading with 8.Qxf6 Nxf6 9.Nd4 Bb3 10.Nxd6+ Bxd6 11.axb3. Instead, 7...Nd4 wins due to the fork threat followed by a removal of the guard of the bishop.
By the way, in your game, after Qf6, the correct move was Nxd6+ and the bishop gives a discovered attack to your opponents knight. Qf3 was a losing move. And your right ...Be6 was a mistake by your opponent in that you could get out of trouble and be a winning 2 pawns up after trading with 8.Qxf6 Nxf6 9.Nd4 Bb3 10.Nxd6+ Bxd6 11.axb3. Instead, 7...Nd4 wins due to the fork threat followed by a removal of the guard of the bishop.
Thank you for taking the time to post this.
In my opinion you exchange too much for no reason. It is hard to get a plan when you are low in material.
My friend, the main problem here is that you are a piece down. Is not like you dont have plans, the thing is you dont have piece power to have at least one plan.
Advice: when you are a piece down, move on and look for another game, because playing such games wont help you and certainly you wont learn anything.
Good luck.;)
I would listen to the advice of an FM.
People already pointed out most things, but I just want to mention another move that you could (and should) have played (don't worry for missing it though, these things will come as you improve).
21... exf4? here your opponent thinks that by threatening your bishop he can go even after you capture his knight, and you "buy his lie" (common practice in chess, happens to grandmasters too). After 22. dxc6 you threaten his rook, and after he trades 22... Rxd2 23. Rxd2 he still cannot take your bishop because you threaten to mate him on d8.
People already pointed out most things, but I just want to mention another move that you could (and should) have played (don't worry for missing it though, these things will come as you improve).
21... exf4? here your opponent thinks that by threatening your bishop he can go even after you capture his knight, and you "buy his lie" (common practice in chess, happens to grandmasters too). After 22. dxc6 you threaten his rook, and after he trades 22... Rxd2 23. Rxd2 he still cannot take your bishop because you threaten to mate him on d8.
Thanks a lot for that insight, Shoopi.
I agree with the general consensus on this one. Unless you have a good positional advantage, fighting back when down a full piece is time better spent analyzing how you lost that piece. Sometimes I play a few attacking moves after blundering a piece just seeing if the opponent will make a blunder as well, but I more often than not resign straight away.
In my most recent game I felt like I had decent position, but I realized around move 17 that I had no plan. I felt impotent, and I realized that this happens to me often. Lacking a plan of attack, my pieces end up getting pushed around aimlessly and I invariably lose, barring a colossal blunder from my opponent. Any input, especially focused on moves 1-20, would be greatly appreciated.