DamianE99

Quick summary

Nice run — your rating slope and recent wins show clear improvement. You’re creating concrete winning chances (passed pawns, active rooks) and converting them. The losses highlight recurring tactical and king‑safety issues in the opening plus a couple of time problems. Below are targeted fixes and a short plan you can use immediately.

What you did well (keep doing this)

• Turning passed pawns into a decisive advantage — in your last win you advanced and promoted a pawn after simplifying correctly. That judgement to trade into a pawn race is strong.
• Active rook play — you use rooks on open files and the seventh rank effectively once the middlegame clears.
• Opening variety and practical choices — you handle French and QGD structures regularly, and your results in several lines are solid, showing familiarity with common plans.
• Recovery and momentum — your overall win rate and recent rating gains show good mental resilience and learning from games.

Main recurring problems to fix

• King safety in the opening. Examples include walking the king (Kf2) or delaying castling, which invites tactics and knight forks. Prioritize safe king placement early.
• Tactical oversights around knight jumps and discovered checks — several losses featured Neg4/Neg4+ motifs. Slow down when the opponent has knights near your king.
• Leaving pieces hanging after exchanges — double‑check whether your captures create new tactical targets (see Loose Piece).
• Time management — one game ended on the clock. With 3+2, save time by playing standard opening moves quickly and reserving time for critical middlegame decisions.

Concrete examples from recent games

• Loss vs gersonselema — early Kf2 plus Neg4+ tactic. The king on f2 allowed opponent knights to hop in with checks and force simplifications that favored Black. Lesson: avoid moving the king unless forced; castle or keep the center closed.
• Win vs tactifry64k — excellent pawn push and simplification. You traded into a pawn race and steered the game into a straightforward rook/pawn endgame where promotion was unstoppable. Lesson: when ahead in pawn structure, simplify into a winning endgame.

Focused 4‑week training plan

• Daily tactics (15–25 min): focus on knight forks, discovered checks, back‑rank motifs. Accuracy first, speed later.
• 2× per week endgame drills (20 min): rook + pawn vs king, Lucena/Philidor basics, king and pawn races. This will boost conversion rate.
• 1× per week opening tune‑up (15–30 min): target the lines that gave you trouble (early Qh4+/Neg4 patterns). Learn one safe plan for each and common tactical traps.
• Post‑mortem habit: after every loss, note the critical mistake and the cause (calculation, hanging piece, king safety). Keep a short error list and review weekly.
• Play discipline: in 3+2 play the first 8–10 moves quickly, then slow down in sharp positions. If low on time, trade into simpler winning endgames when feasible.

Practical tips you can apply immediately

• Before each move, ask: “What is my opponent threatening?” and “Is any of my material en prise?” — this catches many tactical shots.
• If you have a passed pawn, calculate a simple exchange plan: can you trade pieces to make the pawn decisive? If yes, head for that simplification.
• Against early checks like Qh4+, don’t reflexively move the king unless there’s a real escape plan — consider pawn blocks or timely castling.
• Use the 2‑second increment: when equal and low on time, play safe increment moves to avoid flagging rather than hunting for a miracle tactic.

Next steps I recommend this week

• One 30‑minute session: 20 minutes tactics (knight forks/discovered checks), 10 minutes endgame (rook basics).
• Choose one recent loss and annotate the critical moment — write one sentence describing the lesson and pin it in your notes.
• Play 10 blitz games applying a single rule (e.g., “never move the king in the opening”). Track how often that avoids tactical problems.

Final note

Your strength‑adjusted win rate and sharp upward rating trend show you’re on the right track. Tighten king safety, do focused tactical practice, and manage the clock — small consistent changes will yield big rating gains.

If you want, I can build a personalized 4‑week drill schedule or annotate one of your losses move‑by‑move. Which would you prefer?