Game Analysis #17: Scandinavian Defense
This next game that I am going to analyze actually shows the difficulties of playing chess online. One of the reasons why people play chess online is because of the convenience of playing at home on your computer. You don't have to look for other players or have a physical chess board. But it comes with several disadvantages. For one, there are instances when you would lose due to your own internet connection. That's what happened to this game. My opponent forfeited the game due to a connection problem.
Despite forfeiting the game, my opponent was actually in a winning position at the end of the game. This is also a game where we both made weird moves which got us into an interesting position. Nonetheless, it was still obvious that amateurs were playing. But that doesn't mean we can't learn anything from it. I'm going to post a couple of critical positions where I think changed the tide for my opponent.
Position 1
Most of the positions that I will be showing are on my (White's) turn and that's because I really made critical mistakes and blunders during these points in the game. In the first position, everything seems fine and White only needs to make a decision whether to defend the e-pawn or capture with it. I chose to defend it by playing Nc4.
Obviously, I was looking to stick my knight on the enticing outpost on d6 which not only gives check but takes away castling rights. Moreover, Black can't get rid of my knight by b5 because his c-pawn is weak and the light-squared bishop is eyeing it. Since Black won't be able to defend the d6 square, he simply developed his piece and White was able to take two pawns. This leads us to the second position.
Position 2
This was the result of the previous moves from the first position. If we objectively assess this position, we can say that Black would have a slight advantage. Why? In terms of development, White and Black are equal, both are one move away from complete development. With king safety, White has a slight edge because of the integrity of the pawns in front of the king. However, piece activity is different for both sides. Black and White should be equal except White's pieces are vulnerable.
Currently, Black is attacking two of White's pieces and a pawn in the center. You can also say that White's queen is slightly overloaded. If it were Black to move, White will be worse after Nxe5. As it stands, it's White's turn to move and the best move is Bxd7. This move relieves pressure because there is one less piece being attacked and it also removes an attacker on the e-pawn. However, that wasn't the move I made and Black got the upper hand.
Final position
Several moves later, White would be losing a piece and soon the game. However, Black got disconnected from the game and the win was awarded to White.
I think some of the mistakes that I made were mostly due to reactive or reactionary responses instead of being proactive in a given position. There were several ways for White to maintain the advantage he gained from the two pawns he won. However, those two pawns had a cost which was putting White's pieces in precarious positions. There was a way to alleviate the pressure but White didn't take that opportunity and soon lost his footing.
Perhaps, what we can take away from this game is that we shouldn't just make moves for the sake of it, instead look for different avenues to create openings for an advantage and don't flake under pressure. Also, don't rely on fortuitous events like your opponent being disconnected because that won't help at all. In an over-the-board game, that wouldn't matter.
Take a look at the analysis of the whole game below and see the different variations or moves that could have been done to change the outcome of the game.
Analysis
Despite forfeiting the game, my opponent was actually in a winning position at the end of the game. This is also a game where we both made weird moves which got us into an interesting position. Nonetheless, it was still obvious that amateurs were playing. But that doesn't mean we can't learn anything from it. I'm going to post a couple of critical positions where I think changed the tide for my opponent.
Position 1
Most of the positions that I will be showing are on my (White's) turn and that's because I really made critical mistakes and blunders during these points in the game. In the first position, everything seems fine and White only needs to make a decision whether to defend the e-pawn or capture with it. I chose to defend it by playing Nc4.
Obviously, I was looking to stick my knight on the enticing outpost on d6 which not only gives check but takes away castling rights. Moreover, Black can't get rid of my knight by b5 because his c-pawn is weak and the light-squared bishop is eyeing it. Since Black won't be able to defend the d6 square, he simply developed his piece and White was able to take two pawns. This leads us to the second position.
Position 2
This was the result of the previous moves from the first position. If we objectively assess this position, we can say that Black would have a slight advantage. Why? In terms of development, White and Black are equal, both are one move away from complete development. With king safety, White has a slight edge because of the integrity of the pawns in front of the king. However, piece activity is different for both sides. Black and White should be equal except White's pieces are vulnerable.
Currently, Black is attacking two of White's pieces and a pawn in the center. You can also say that White's queen is slightly overloaded. If it were Black to move, White will be worse after Nxe5. As it stands, it's White's turn to move and the best move is Bxd7. This move relieves pressure because there is one less piece being attacked and it also removes an attacker on the e-pawn. However, that wasn't the move I made and Black got the upper hand.
Final position
Several moves later, White would be losing a piece and soon the game. However, Black got disconnected from the game and the win was awarded to White.
I think some of the mistakes that I made were mostly due to reactive or reactionary responses instead of being proactive in a given position. There were several ways for White to maintain the advantage he gained from the two pawns he won. However, those two pawns had a cost which was putting White's pieces in precarious positions. There was a way to alleviate the pressure but White didn't take that opportunity and soon lost his footing.
Perhaps, what we can take away from this game is that we shouldn't just make moves for the sake of it, instead look for different avenues to create openings for an advantage and don't flake under pressure. Also, don't rely on fortuitous events like your opponent being disconnected because that won't help at all. In an over-the-board game, that wouldn't matter.
Take a look at the analysis of the whole game below and see the different variations or moves that could have been done to change the outcome of the game.
Analysis
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