Alberto Javier Salazar Cabezas FM

Hi Alberto!

Great to see your recent activity and the ambitious style you bring to each game. You have scored convincing wins against strong players (e.g. vs. elmagneto77 and walidelachhab), showing that your tactical eye and attacking instincts are top-notch. Your current 2418 (2025-01-10) underlines that you are already performing at an impressive level.

What you’re doing well

• Opening variety. You handle both 1…d5 Scandinavian set-ups and French structures with confidence as Black, while alternating between Réti/KIA systems and 1.e4 as White.
• Tactics under time pressure. Quick finishes like 29.Na6# or the back-to-back 60-second checkmates on 13 Feb show you can calculate sharply even with seconds left.
• Piece activity. When you win, it’s often because your pieces flood the board (see the pile-up on the d-file in Rxd8#). Keep nurturing that habit of rapid development and centralisation.

Growth areas

1. Time-management & conversion.
   Half of the recent losses came in still-winning positions where the clock or a single slip cost the game. Try adding a “speed-up” trigger: if you drop below 25 % of your initial time, simplify or repeat moves for 2–3 ply to rebuild the buffer.
2. Pawn storms without a clear target.
   Advances like g4–g5 (vs. chesscoach762) or h4–h5 in your French games gave the opponent durable squares. Before pushing a flank pawn ask: “Does this gain a tempo, open a file, or restrain a key pawn?” – if not, consider improving a piece instead.
3. Endgame technique.
   In the long struggle with Slovafn the rook ending turned unexpectedly. Focus on two themes this month: opposition with the king and the power of the outside passed pawn. A daily 10-minute drill on fundamental rook endings will pay big dividends.
4. Handling cramped French positions.
   Two recent French losses show difficulty when the opponent locks the centre with e5/c5. Study model games by Ulf Andersson or Peter Leko in the Classical French and notice how they maneuver pieces before striking with …f6/…cxd4.

Illustrative snapshot

Below is a fragment from the game vs. Chesscoach762 where a small mis-placement snowballed. Replay it once, then set the position against the engine and try finding a safer plan:

[[Pgn| 23.Bd6 Kf7 24.Rdf1 Kg6 25.Rfg1 Nd5 26.Kd2 N7f6 27.Be5 Nxb4 28.Rg3 Nbd5 29.Rhg1 Nh7 30.Bxg7 Kxg7 31.Rxg5+ Nxg5 |fen|r1r3k1/pp4pp/3p2n1/3Bp1R1/5P1P/3K2R1/2P5/6k1 b - - 1 31]]

Action plan for the next 30 games

• Play 10 blitz games starting from the diagrammed position until you consistently hold the draw.
• Adopt a strict “10-second rule” in the opening: invest those seconds to double-check each pawn push.
• Review one model French game per day; annotate ideas in your own words.
• Use the post-game checklist: (1) where did I spend >20 % of my time? (2) critical pawn moves, (3) missed endgame resource.

Visual trackers

Keep motivation high by glancing at:

 

Final encouragement

Your attacking flair is already fearsome; pairing it with tighter clock control and endgame polish will push you well beyond the 2300 mark. Enjoy the process and keep the games coming!