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Middlegame tactics Puzzles from the Italian Game

Real puzzles from rated games · median rating 1368 · solved 98,970,496 times

Opening: Italian Game

These middlegame tactics puzzles were set in games that began as the Italian Game: 52,572 puzzles, median rating 1368, solved 98,970,496 times. The twelve below are among the most-solved of them; try each on the board, then read the numbers further down to see how the solutions are built.

All middlegame tactics puzzles Print a worksheet About the Italian Game

By the numbers

middlegame tactics puzzles from Italian Game games: the numbers

There are 52,572 middlegame tactics puzzles from Italian Game games, solved 98,970,496 times in total. The median rating is 1368.

How hard are they?

Foundation
21,195 · 40.3%
Developing
12,251 · 23.3%
Challenging
10,412 · 19.8%
Advanced
8,714 · 16.6%

Often combined with

Checkmate · 19,797Mate in 1 · 13,187Kingside attack · 11,513Fork · 7,114Mate in 2 · 5,171Pin · 4,425Sacrifice · 3,868Discovered attack · 3,776

Which openings produce them?

Italian Game · 52,572

Counts computed from the full puzzle set.

How the solutions work · counted by a rules engine

What a typical middlegame tactics solution looks like

Sample: 2,000 middlegame tactics puzzles from Italian Game games (3.8% of all 52,572).

23.6% need 1 solver move, 49.8% need 2 solver moves, 21.6% need 3 solver moves, 4.1% need 4 solver moves, 0.9% need 5 or more solver moves. Median rating: 888 for the shortest solutions, 2277 for the longest.

43% open with a queen move. The first move captures in 50.2% and gives check in 62.8%; 36.3% end in checkmate, 22.8% involve a sacrifice, 49.8% have White to move.

50.2%first move captures
62.8%first move gives check
36.3%end in checkmate
22.8%involve a sacrifice

How many moves does the solver need?

1 solver move
23.6% · median rating 888
2 solver moves
49.8% · median rating 1409
3 solver moves
21.6% · median rating 1826
4 solver moves
4.1% · median rating 2174
5+ solver moves
0.9% · median rating 2277

Which piece plays the key move?

Key move by a queen
43%
Key move by a knight
21.2%
Key move by a bishop
15.6%
Key move by a rook
12.4%
Key move by a pawn
6.6%
Key move by the king
1.2%

What does the solver win?

Most valuable capture: queen
30.2%
Captures nothing along the line
18%
Most valuable capture: pawn
15.9%
Most valuable capture: rook
14.8%
Most valuable capture: knight
11.4%
Most valuable capture: bishop
9.7%

Material balance along the whole line, counting every capture by both sides (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9):

No material gained (mating or positional)
25%
Up to 2 pawns’ worth
19.9%
3–4 points (about a minor piece)
24.8%
5–8 points (a rook or more)
20.7%
9 or more points (a queen’s worth)
9.5%

How much is left on the board?

28 or more pieces on the board
14.7%
21–27 pieces
81.1%
13–20 pieces
4.2%
12 pieces or fewer
0%

How it is counted: every puzzle in the sample is replayed move by move with a chess rules engine. A sacrifice means a piece that is captured on the very next ply and was worth more than what it captured itself (pawn 1, minor piece 3, rook 5, queen 9). Sample of 2,000 puzzles. Percentages are shares of the sample.

Where it happens

Where the key move lands

Where the solver’s first move ends, drawn from their own side (rank 1 is their back rank). Busiest squares: f7 (11.2%), f6 (7.3%), h7 (6.4%), g7 (5.9%), g5 (4.5%).

2.44.328
1.14.311.25.96.47
1.41.42.77.33.62.46
3.92.11.64.52.15
22.421.32.51.14
1.63
1.32
1
abcdefgh

Counted from the same 2,000-puzzle sample. Squares under 1% are left blank.

Study positions

The most-solved middlegame tactics puzzles, from each difficulty level. Play each one on the board, then open the answer for the full line.

♜♛♜
♟♟♟♚
♟♟
♝♟
♟♙
♘♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♕♔♖
White to move · rating 881 · solved 2,511 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rh8

Solution: Qxh6+ → Kg8 → Qxh8#

♜♝♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♞
♕
♘♛
♙♙♙♙
♔♖♖
White to move · rating 1073 · solved 2,598 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: b6

Solution: Qxf8+ → Kxf8 → Rd8+ → Ne8 → Rexe8#

♜♜♚
♟♟♙♟♟
♞♖
♗
♟
♕♝♛♙
♙♙♙
♖♗♔
Black to move · rating 1104 · solved 2,850 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bd5

Solution: Qxf2+ → Kh1 → Qf1#

♜♜♚
♟♟♙♟♟♟
♗
♖
♙♙♙♙
♖♘♞♔
Black to move · rating 1298 · solved 2,983 times · 3 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Bxe6

Solution: fxe6+ → Ke1 → Nd3+ → Ke2 → Nxc5

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♚♟♟
♟♟♞
♘♟♙♗
♕♙
♙♙♙♙
♞♔♖
White to move · rating 1298 · solved 2,903 times · Mate in 1.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c6

Solution: Qe6#

♜♝♛♜♚
♟♟♟♟
♟♟♞♟
♟
♗♙♞♘
♙♘♙♙
♙♙♕♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 1408 · solved 3,291 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Ng4

Solution: Bxf7+ → Kh7 → Bxg6+

♜♚
♟♟♟♟♟
♟♜
♗♝♕♛
♘♙♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
Black to move · rating 1465 · solved 4,004 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Qg4

Solution: Rg6 → Qxg6 → hxg6

♜♝♛♜
♟♟♝♟♟
♚
♟♟♘
♕♗
♙
♙♙♙♙♙
♖♔
White to move · rating 1624 · solved 1,313 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: c5

Solution: Rb1+ → Kc7 → Bxe5+

♜♚♜
♟♟♟♟
♙♟
♕♝♛♞
♙
♙♘♙♙♙
♖♗♖♔
Black to move · rating 1667 · solved 2,314 times · Mate in 3.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: a3

Solution: Ne2+ → Kh1 → Rxh2+ → Kxh2 → Qh4#

♚♜♝♜
♟♟♟
♛♞♟
♝♟
♘
♙♗♙
♙♙♘♕♙
♔♖♖
Black to move · rating 1965 · solved 1,832 times · Mate in 2.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Nd4

Solution: Qxc3+ → bxc3 → Ba3#

♜♛♜♚
♟♟♟♞♗♟♞
♝♗
♟♙♕
♟
♙♙♙
♙♙♙
♖♔♖
White to move · rating 2038 · solved 402 times · 4 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: dxe4

Solution: Bxg7+ → Bxg7 → Bg6 → Bh6 → Qxh6 → Nxg6 → fxg6

♜♜
♟♟♟♚
♞♛♟
♟♟
♙♙♕
♙♙
♙♙♙♙
♖♖♔
White to move · rating 2220 · solved 711 times · 2 solver moves to find.
Reveal line

Opponent's last move: Rag8

Solution: fxe5 → Rxg4 → Rxf6+

Positions and move sequences come from real rated games (CC0 data). Engine evaluations, where shown, are stored evaluations of the position (CC0).

Same opening, other tactics

More puzzles from the Italian Game

CheckmateOpening tacticsKingside attackForkMate in 2Discovered attack

Same theme, other levels

Middlegame tactics puzzles by difficulty

Advanced levelFoundation levelChallenging levelDeveloping level