Both Rooks Aimed the Wrong Way

The game, move by move

Giuoco Piano

1. 1. e4 King’s pawn
2. 1… e5 The same claim
3. 2. Nf3 The knight out
4. 2… Nc6 And Black’s
5. 3. Bc4 The bishop at f7
6. 3… Bc5 Facing it
7. 4. c3 c3, preparing d4
8. 4… Nf6 The knight out
9. 5. d4 d4, the whole point of c3
10. 5… exd4 Taken
11. 6. e5 e5, pushing past the knight
12. 6… d5 d5, blocking the bishop
13. 7. Bb5 The bishop to b5
14. 7… Ne4 The knight to e4
15. 8. cxd4 The pawn back
16. 8… Bb4+ Check, and a developing move

A pawn taken on c6

1. 9. Nbd2 The knight blocks
2. 9… O-O Black castles
3. 10. O-O And White
4. 10… Bg4 The bishop to g4
5. 11. Bxc6 Taking on c6 The pawn structure this leaves is the whole game: Black has doubled c-pawns and one of them is about to go.
6. 11… bxc6 Recaptured with the b-pawn
7. 12. Qc2 The queen to c2
8. 12… Bxf3 The bishop takes the knight
9. 13. Nxf3 Recaptured
10. 13… Rb8 The rook to the open file
11. 14. Qxc6 The pawn on c6, taken A clean pawn, and it costs White ten half-moves of the queen being chased. He is happy to be chased.
12. 14… Rb6 The rook comes at her
13. 15. Qc2 Back to c2
14. 15… f5 f5, closing the centre

Everything to the g-file

1. 16. a3 a3, holding the bishop off
2. 16… Be7 The bishop steps back to e7 And stays. At the end it is one of the four black pieces blocking a square its own king needs.
3. 17. b4 b4, gaining space
4. 17… f4 f4 — the pawn goes past
5. 18. Ne1 The knight to e1, regrouping
6. 18… Rh6 The rook lifts to h6 The first of the attacking moves, and the beginning of a twelve-move manoeuvre that ends with three pieces on the g-file and none of them defending.
7. 19. f3 f3, shutting the diagonal
8. 19… Ng5 The knight to g5
9. 20. Nd3 The knight to d3
10. 20… Ne6 The knight to e6 It stands on e6 at the end, in the way of its own king.
11. 21. Bb2 The bishop to b2
12. 21… Qe8 The queen comes over
13. 22. Rac1 The rook to c1
14. 22… Qh5 The queen to h5
15. 23. h3 h3, taking g4 away
16. 23… Rg6 The rook to g6
17. 24. Nf2 The knight to f2
18. 24… Rg3 The rook to g3 A rook on the third rank in front of the white king, and it is attacking a pawn on h3 that is defended twice.
19. 25. Kh2 The king steps to h2
20. 25… Rf5 The other rook to f5
21. 26. Qc6 The queen to c6, on the seventh White has spent the game on the other wing and has arrived: from c6 the queen looks at e8, and e8 is where the mate is given.
22. 26… Qg6 The queen to g6

Mated on f7

1. 27. Rg1 The rook to g1, holding the file
2. 27… Rfg5 And the second rook to g5 Now: rook g3, rook g5, queen g6, pawn h5 coming. Four pieces on one file, and Black is one half-move from being mated.
3. 28. Ng4 The knight to g4
4. 28… h5 h5, at the knight
5. 29. Nf6+ The knight to f6, with check It cannot be taken — the g7 pawn is holding nothing and the rook on g5 would open the file White’s rook is on. The king has one square.
6. 29… Kf7 Kf7 — the only one
7. 30. Qe8# Checkmate, on e8 The queen crosses to e8 and every square is spoken for. g8 and e8 are covered by the knight on f6; f6 by White’s pawn on e5; f8 by the queen herself. And g7, e7, e6 and g6 are Black’s own pawn, bishop, knight and queen — the attack, standing in the doorway.