Mateusz

Hi Mateusz!

Great effort in your recent games. I watched both your latest victory (the Chess960 duel on 9 Apr) and your most recent defeat against rxgvk. Here’s some constructive feedback you can use right away.

What you’re already doing well

• Tactical alertness: Your wins feature several neat forks and queen swindles. In the rapid win below you converted material confidently:
  
  
• Initiative-first mindset: You’re not afraid to throw in moves like g4 or f4 to unbalance the game and seize space. That fighting spirit is valuable.
• Time handling: Your clock usage is improving; in most wins you kept at least two minutes in reserve entering the final attack. Keep this habit.

Key areas to tighten up

• Opening discipline. In several losses you entered sharp Scandinavian & Petroff lines without finishing development. Bring minor pieces out before moving the queen repeatedly (e.g. Qe5–Qe6 back-and-forth). If you stick with 1…d5/…e5, memorise the first five moves and the underlying idea (quick development & kingside safety).
• King safety and pawn pushes. Early flank pawn thrusts (g4/g5/h5) work when your king is already safe. Against stronger opponents, these pushes left weaknesses that were later exploited (see moves 10-15 of your 23 Apr loss). Ask yourself “What squares will be weakened?” before playing a pawn two squares.
• Identifying critical moments. A recurring pattern in defeats: you reach a playable middlegame but miss the one or two moves that fully equalise. Train with puzzles focused on defensive tactics—especially pins and intermezzos (zwischenzug).

Action plan for the next two weeks

1. Opening micro-work: Build a mini-repertoire of 10 moves each side for (a) the Scandinavian with …Nf6 & …c6, (b) a solid 1…e5 reply such as the Italian Two Knights. Spend 20 min/day on this.
2. 30 tactical puzzles / day filtered for rating 600-900, theme “defence” & “checkmate in 2”. Focus on accuracy over speed.
3. Review every loss immediately: locate one move you could change to keep the game equal. Save it in a personal “mistake notebook”.
4. Play with a goal: During live games set one intention (for example, “castle by move 8”). Evaluate afterwards if you achieved it.

Progress tracker

Use these dashboards to spot when you’re most successful:

Confidence boost

Your current peak rating is already 800 (2021-09-26). Breaking the next milestone is realistic if you convert half of the winning positions you currently let slip—that’s just one or two moves per game.

Keep the energy high, stay curious, and message me after your next 20 games so we can measure improvement. Good luck!