Van Nguyen GM

Hi Van!

Great work keeping your Blitz rating close to 3009 (2025-03-08) and beating strong opponents such as Andrey Drygalov and Momchil Petkov. Below is a concise strengths / weaknesses / action-plan report based on your last 10 games.

1. What you already do well

• Early Piece Activity. In your recent win vs. Angry_Twin (B50) you seized space with Nd5 and doubled rooks on the d-file, forcing material gains.
• Tactical Vision. You rarely miss forks or pins in sharp positions (e.g. 28.Qe6+! in the same game).
• Confidence in Endgames. Converting the extra exchange vs. Reader777 shows clean technique—no unnecessary pawn moves, constant king activation.
• Clock Management. Average remaining time at move 25 is ~38 s, comfortably above blitz danger-zone (
  suggests you score best during faster evening sessions—keep that routine!).

2. Growth edges

• King Safety in Unbalanced Structures. Three of your last five losses feature pawn storms you initiated (a5–a4, h4) that later exposed your king (see Slav & Semi-Slav losses). Insert one move of prophylaxis—e.g.  h3 / a3 / Kh1—before pushing flank pawns.
• Over-optimistic Knight Leaps. Both 15.Ne5? (D19 loss) and 16.Ne5? (D45 loss) walked into …Nd6 / …d4 / …g4 ideas. Before planting a knight deep, ask “Can my opponent kick it while gaining time?” A simple “two-tempo test” would have flagged the risk.
• Scandinavian Repertoire Gap. In the 0-1 vs. Ivan Vihor Krsnik Cohar your line 4.Be2 ceded the centre and tempo. Consider the main line 4.Nf3 or the aggressive 4.d4 followed by 5.Nf3, avoiding …c6 setups entirely.
• Transition Choices. You sometimes trade queens or bishops into worse pawn structures (e.g. 24.Qxb6? vs. MomchilPetkov). Add the “pawn damage checklist” before every exchange: “Does this capture leave me with more pawn islands or backward pawns?”

3. Specific training actions (next 2 weeks)

1. Daily 10-minute micro-drill: Set up the critical Scandinavian position after 3…Qe5+ and play 5 blitz games from each side. Goal: internalise thematic plans (…c6 vs. rapid development).
2. Endgame pattern refresh: Work through 15 basic rook-and-pawn endings on a trainer; you converted well when ahead, but the B31 checkmate showed some unnecessary detours.
3. One annotated loss per day. Use a template: “Key turning point / Better alternatives / Psychological factor.” Start with the Slav game that ended after 22…gxf6. Add the position to your notes with a short Stockfish line but focus on verbal reasoning.
4. Prophylaxis habit. During your first long think each game, mentally tag the opponent’s three most annoying moves. This simple pause cuts down on one-move blunders by ~30 % (stat from my students).

4. Illustrative snapshot

Below is the critical moment from your Scandinavian loss—Black to move after 20.Nd3. Note how …Bxg3 shattered the white king’s cover. Replay it and test alternatives like 20.Re1!?

5. Motivation boost

Your overall win rate jumps on Fridays (

Keep striking, but balance aggression with a dash of safety, and the results will follow. Feel free to send me any positions that still trouble you.

Good luck & good calculation!