Eyal Grinberg IM

Hi Eyal, great to see your recent games!

Snapshot

• Current time-control focus: 3-minute blitz.
• Your best blitz rating so far: 2653 (2018-12-23).
• Playing volume & mood: see
  and
  to notice when your performance peaks.

Your strengths

• Sharp tactical eye: In your Vienna Defence win versus Toligor you converted after 7…Rxh4! and 11…Nxc2!, seizing every tempo-gaining capture.
• Flexible piece play: You switch smoothly between King’s Indian, Pirc-type pawn structures and English/Réti setups, keeping opponents guessing.
• Practical mindset in complications: You tend to choose forcing continuations that put the clock pressure on the opponent—very useful in fast time controls.

Biggest improvement themes

1. King safety after pawn thrusts.
   In several losses (e.g. vs arceusisthebest and pingpong2k) the sequence …b5-b4 or h-pawn storms created lasting dark-square holes around your king. Develop before you launch flank pawns and keep a minor piece near the castle.
2. Conversion in favourable positions.
   Against fermatslastblunder you were a pawn up but drifted and resigned once the rook invaded. Add 10 minutes of end-game drill to each study session (rook vs pawn endings, opposite-coloured bishops). It will pay dividends.
3. Clock management.
   Two defeats were on the clock or with <5 seconds while still equal on the board. Try the “10-second rule”: if you haven’t moved for 10 seconds in blitz, play the most forcing move available—even a small inaccuracy beats a timeout.
4. Forcing sequences & calculation depth.
   Versus Jpablit you overlooked 28…Be4+!—a classic zwischenzug. Daily puzzle rush or one game of 5+5 where you verbally calculate lines will sharpen this skill.

Opening guide (next 2 weeks)

• With White: Your Réti/English positions are solid, but sometimes the early b-pawn push costs time. Mix in 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 to learn classical queen’s-pawn structures and reduce early pawn commitments.
• With Black: Instead of the risky 1…a6/…b5 systems, test a reliable setup: 1.e4 e5 → 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 (you showed comfort here)
  1.d4 → …d5 and meet c4 with …e6 heading for an improved Queen’s Gambit Declined you can memorise in an evening.
• Add one new mini-line each study day; annotate your blitz games afterwards to see if you followed the plan.

Illustrative moment

A single tactic decided your loss to Jpablit. Play through moves 22-31—can you spot Black’s winning idea sooner?

Action plan

• Daily: 20 tactical puzzles + 10 min end-game drill.
• Every other day: Review one of your own blitz games without an engine for 15 min, then with an engine for 5 min to confirm.
• Weekly: Play two 15+10 games focusing on opening discipline; annotate them fully.
• Track progress using the charts above and aim for a 5 % increase in win-rate during your best performing hour.

Keep the energy and creativity, Eyal, and blend it with a little more structure—your next rating jump is around the corner. Enjoy the journey!