Quick summary
Nice run — you’re converting complicated middlegames into wins, creating passed pawns and decisive promotions, and your long‑term rating curve is excellent (big gains over 6 months). The last month shows a small dip, so the goal is to keep the momentum and remove a few recurring leaks: time management, a couple of recurring opening weaknesses, and occasional coordination breakdowns in the middlegame → endgame transition.
Highlights from recent games
- Clean conversion and tactical finishing: the game where you promoted on move 45 shows excellent technique turning an attack into a passed‑pawn win — well done converting that advantage. ()
- Wins against strong opposition: you defeated players like Zugzwang_IM and Roman Pyrih — shows you can outplay high‑level opponents in tactical/complex positions.
- Opening strengths: your Closed‑Sicilian / Anti‑Sveshnikov lines and Najdorf work well for you — these have above‑60% win rates in your sample and fit your dynamic style.
What you’re doing well
- Creating and running passed pawns — you consistently convert pawn storms into decisive advantages (promotion tactics are strong).
- Active piece play — rooks and bishops often end up on aggressive squares, generating threats and limiting opponent counterplay.
- Tactical vision in sharp positions — you find mating nets and forks under pressure, and your combination finishing is reliable.
- Resilience and growth — your 6‑month trend (+781) and high strength‑adjusted win rate (~0.54) show you’re learning from games and improving rapidly.
Biggest areas to fix
- Time management: many games show you down to seconds on the clock and a few wins/losses by time or late mistakes. Practice taking slightly more time for critical positions and avoid pre‑move overuse in close endings.
- Opening consistency: your English Opening (Agincourt) win rate is low (~35%). If you like the English, tighten a small, reliable sub‑repertoire; otherwise switch to lines you already score well with (Closed Sicilian / Najdorf).
- Middlegame → endgame transitions: a couple of losses come from failing to coordinate pieces or simplifying into unfavorable material structures. Double‑check whether simplification leaves you with a real plan in the resulting endgame.
- Blunder control under pressure: reduce single‑move oversights in complicated positions — a short checklist before hitting the clock will help (see below).
Concrete next steps & daily drills
- 15 minutes daily tactics (puzzles that force you to calculate 2–4 moves). Focus on forks, pins, discovered checks and queen/rook tactics.
- 3 x 10‑minute sessions per week: play 5+0 or 3+2 training games (with increment) to practice making fewer bullet/flag decisions and to improve move quality with little time pressure.
- Endgame practice: 20 minutes twice a week — practice basic rook endgames, Lucena/Philidor ideas, and queen vs rook motifs (these appear in your games).
- Opening maintenance: spend 10–15 minutes before sessions reviewing one tricky line in the English (if you keep it) or reinforcing the Sicilian lines that already score well for you.
- Post‑game routine: annotate 5 losses/wins per week — identify one recurring mistake (time, miscoordination, wrong simplification) and write a 1‑line plan to avoid it next time.
Quick blitz checklist (use before you click)
- Is my king safe? If not, fix it or calculate the opponent’s fastest attack.
- Any loose pieces—are they hanging or can I force trades that favor me?
- Does the simplification leave me with an inferior pawn structure or passive king?
- Am I low on time? If yes, simplify if the position is equal or set a clear short plan (one move, then the next).
Openings — practical advice
Keep and sharpen what already pays off: your Closed‑Sicilian/Anti‑Sveshnikov and Najdorf work well. For the English (Agincourt) either:
- Cut the line and switch to a more tested system you’re comfortable with, or
- Spend 30–60 minutes a week on a focused mini‑repertoire: one reliable move order, two typical plans for middlegame pawn breaks, and a sample endgame to know when to exchange pieces.
How to analyze your recent loss
Review the game against Roman Pyrih move‑by‑move with an engine, but first do a human post‑mortem: where did the plan change? Was it time pressure, a strategic error, or a tactical oversight? Label the critical moment (one move) and work backwards to see the alternative plan.
Short plan for the next 2 weeks
- Week 1: daily 15m tactics + three 3+2 games. Focus: avoid flagging; practise "one‑minute sanity check" before move.
- Week 2: add two 30‑minute endgame sessions and open review of the English Opening lines you play.
- After 2 weeks: recheck your 1‑month rating (you had –98) — if it’s still falling, reduce blitz volume and add longer rapid games to focus on quality.
Motivation & next step
Your trend shows real improvement and the tactical/attacking tools are there. Remove the small, fixable issues (time control, one recurring opening) and you’ll stabilize the recent dip and keep moving up. If you want, I can:
- Make a 2‑week personalized training schedule
- Annotate one of your recent losses and show alternative plans
- Build a compact English Opening mini‑repertoire or prune it entirely and suggest a replacement
Which of the three would you like next?