Alejandro Sáez: The Endless Grinder Behind al_sa_co
Meet Alejandro Sáez
Alejandro Sáez, known online as al_sa_co, is a FIDE Candidate Master with a serious appetite for online chess. His profile lists Rapid as the preferred time control, but his numbers tell a bigger story: tens of thousands of games played, a bullet peak of 2872 (2024-11-23), and a blitz peak of 2681 (2025-06-09).
Alejandro is a grinder's grinder. Across Rapid, Blitz, Bullet, and Daily chess he has piled up a remarkable record, with checkmate wins, long winning streaks, and an 89.47% comeback rate after falling behind. His longest winning streak is 15 games, and his longest losing streak is also 15, which suggests he never backs down no matter what is happening on the board.
The Online Grinder
Alejandro's rating graph shows a player who kept improving and kept playing. His Blitz rating crossed well beyond 2600 during a scorching 2025 run, and his Bullet rating touched 2872 in late 2024. The volume is almost industrial: more than 15,000 Bullet wins, over 2,000 Blitz wins, and a perfect 15-0 record in Rapid.
- Bullet: 15,311 wins, 16,231 losses, 2,180 draws
- Blitz: 2,088 wins, 2,150 losses, 363 draws
- Rapid: 15 wins, 0 losses, 0 draws
- Daily: 7 wins, 0 losses, 0 draws
Opening Repertoire
Alejandro almost always opens with 1.d4, and his repertoire is full of sharp and unusual lines. As White he leans on the London System and the East Indian Defense setups. As Black he is happy to wade into structures like the Benoni Defense, the Modern Defense: Pterodactyl Variation, and the Döry Defense. He has also played the Amazon Attack and the Amar Gambit thousands of times, which shows a love for chaos.
His best results come in the East Indian Defense, where he wins more than 55% of his games, and he has a dangerous habit of finding checks with rooks and queens. He tends to score far better as White, around 49.3%, than as Black, around 41.6%, so the opening choice matters a lot to him.
Rivalries and Resilience
No biography of Alejandro would be complete without mentioning his most frequent sparring partners. The list is led by Anselm Wagner, who has faced him 252 times, followed by javier with 212 games and ladycockroach with 190. These rivalries are fierce. Against benecyrill he has 92 wins, 145 losses, and 15 draws, meaning the two know each other's habits very well.
Alejandro is also a player who turns lost positions back into wins. His comeback rate is 89.47%, and he still wins 43.69% of games after losing a piece. His early resignation rate is only 0.44%, so he rarely gives up before the checkmate.
When He Plays Best
The data suggests Alejandro is a morning person on the chessboard. His best winning rates come around 07:00, with other strong hours at 06:00 and 10:00. Sundays are his strongest day of the week, followed closely by Saturdays.
Despite the ups and downs, including a tilt factor of 15 and a same-length losing streak, Alejandro keeps returning to the board. With a FIDE Candidate Master title, a preferred Rapid setting, and an online record that would make most players tired just reading it, al_sa_co remains one of the most active and recognizable fighters on the platform.