Coach Chesswick
Constructive Feedback for Oleg Gladyszev
1. Quick Snapshot
- Current strength: aggressive, tactical style that scores well when the initiative is yours.
- Biggest pain-points: letting counterplay grow on the queenside in your Grand-Prix/Closed-Sicilian games, and technical slip-ups in simplified positions.
- Peak rating so far: 2557 (2025-03-10) – well earned, but a few small fixes could push you higher.
2. What You’re Doing Well
- Initiative-first mindset. In several wins (e.g. vs. Enriquack and LanEdNes) you seized space early, kept the enemy king in the centre and converted before move 30.
- Resourceful tactics under pressure. Even when down material you often find counter-shots such as 27.Rxg6+! or 32.Qd5+! to turn the tables.
- Opening variety. Mixing 1.e4 and 1.d4 keeps opponents guessing and is useful for long-term growth.
3. Priority Fixes
A. Grand-Prix / Closed-Sicilian as Black
Your last loss to pisher (moves 8-15) shows the recurring problem:
- …a6-b5-b4 looks tempting but gives White clear squares (Nd5/Nf5 or Nb6-c4-d6).
- The queen often lands on a5/c7 and becomes a tactical target.
- The pawn on b4 leaves c4 and d5 weak – strong outposts for White’s knights.
B. Transition to Technical Endgames
Two recent defeats (vs. patzer-reloaded and zeitistgeld1) show promising middlegames drift into lost rook-or-minor-piece endings because:
- You exchange into endings without a plan to create a passed pawn.
- Pawn structure decisions (e.g. …g5 or …f6) create long-term weaknesses the opponent slowly targets.
C. Clock Management
In most games you spend >40 seconds on a single move around moves 15-25, then finish with <10 seconds for 20 moves. Blitz rewards consistent pace. Try the “30-20-10” rule:
- First 10 moves: max 30 sec in total (play prep).
- Moves 11-20: max 20 sec per move (critical middlegame).
- Moves 21+: aim to keep >10 sec increment-style buffer.
4. 30-Day Action Plan
| Day(s) | Task | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| 1-7 | Build a “safe” anti-Grand-Prix repertoire (…d6-e6 lines) and review 5 GM games. | Stabilise main opening weakness. |
| 8-14 | Daily 20 puzzles focusing on zwischenzug & overloaded defender. | Sharpen tactical edge. |
| 15-21 | Endgame drill: 15 random rook endings on a trainer & annotate 2 of your own. | Convert winning positions, save worse ones. |
| 22-30 | Play 30 blitz games with the “30-20-10” clock rule, tag moments when you broke it. | Ingrain time discipline. |
5. Key Concepts to Revisit
- BackwardPawn & how to provoke it in the Sicilian.
- ExchangeSacrifice on c3/d4 (watch Nepomniachtchi’s games).
- MinorPieceEndgame – opposite-coloured bishops are not always drawish when pawns are on both wings.
6. Motivation Boost
“Small improvements repeated daily lead to giant rating jumps.” You already play at ~2550 blitz; one cleaner opening line and better clock control could push you to 2650 within a couple of months.
Keep enjoying the game, keep the tactics flowing, and let me know if you’d like deeper opening files or endgame drills!