Must-win situation for the young star
After an intense strategic battle in Game 1, Magnus Carlsen took the lead in the quarterfinal match. Yesterday, he gradually outplayed Nodirbek Abdusattorov in a closed middlegame, locking down the board with his pawns, dominating with a knight over a struggling bishop, and navigating a dangerous queen endgame with calm precision.
But Nodirbek didn’t go down quietly. His creativity and resilience in a lost position kept Carlsen on edge until the very end. He was constantly searching for counterplay, setting traps, and forcing Magnus to demonstrate flawless technique.
Today, Abdusattorov has the white pieces and absolutely must win to force a tiebreak. The time control remains the same: 90 minutes plus 30 seconds per move. It's Freestyle Chess, so today’s starting position gonna offer a brand-new puzzle.
There’s no doubt about Nodirbek’s fighting spirit, and today he’ll be doing everything he can to make a comeback.
Will Nodirbek strike back and take the match to the rapid portion? Or will Carlsen shut it down and book his spot in the semifinals?
Let’s find out.
Position #73
Starting position #73 is a tricky one, and we can expect both players to spend serious time on their early moves.
There are so many questions to solve right away: Where should the bishops go? How do you avoid leaving the knights stuck in the corners? Where to hide the king? And on top of all that,how not to lose the battle for the pawn structure before it even begins.
It’s Freestyle Chess at its finest: creative chaos from move one :)
Nodirbek decides to push the pawn in front of his king, opening the path for his queen and immediately putting pressure on one of Magnus’s pawns.
A sharp start, striking from move one.
Magnus calmly parries the pressure on his flank pawn by pushing his ow, with solid support from the rook behind it. Both players are ready for a real battle.
Abdusattorov meets black pawn with his own.
Magnus doesn’t mirror Nodirbek’s first move, instead, he pushes his king’s pawn just one square forward, possibly setting up a central break later on.
Nodirbek takes advantage of the fact that Magnus didn’t push his pawn two squares forward and grabs as much central space as he can, preventing black from potential break in the center.
Magnus takes a long think on his third move, which suggests he’s not entirely happy with how the center is shaping up.
Black’s bishops are a bit cramped by their own pawns, while White’s extra space promises a smoother and more comfortable development.
After half an hour of thought, Magnus plays an unusual move, bringing his queen out in front of the army.
His idea is to reposition the queen to a more optimal square and eventually prepare castling. It’s a long-term plan, now we’ll see if he gets the time and space to make it work.
Nodirbek responds by developing his queen as well, reinforcing his central pawns.
So far, White is clearly ahead in development, thanks to superior central control and better piece coordination.
Magnus develops his knight, eyeing central squares. A very natural step.
But the big question remains: how will he resolve the awkward placement of his queen, now standing in the way of smoother coordination?
Meanwhile, Abdusattorov castles short.
Black brings the second knight closer to the action.
With White having multiple development options, it makes sense to keep the knights near the center, ready to maneuver quickly wherever they’re needed.
Nodirbek pushes his pawn, keeping his development options flexible and maintaining control over center.
Magnus slides his queen over, clearing the square for his knight. Ideally, Black would love to trade queens, but it’s unlikely White will allow that so easily.
Abdusattorov develops his knight, securing control over the central square, and for now, Black’s hopes of trading queens remain just that: hopes.
Magnus is working hard to coordinate his pieces, but that awkwardly placed queen is still a problem.
Nodirbek might try to take advantage of the queen’s awkward placement by pushing it back and winning a pawn in the process.
A tactical idea built on a strategic weakness.
Abdusattorov goes for it.
Nodirbek attacks the queen, forcing Black to trade dark-squared bishops. He comes out a pawn up, but Black is left with two strong knights in the center and has managed to finally trade off one of the bishops that had been cramped since the very beginning.
It’s likely that Magnus is quite satisfied with the recent exchanges. Yes, he’s down a pawn for now, but in return he’s activated several pieces and disrupted White’s pawn structure.
Nodirbek has no intention of trading queens, he knows all too well how dangerous Magnus can be in endgames.
Keeping the queens on the board as long as possible is very much in his best interest.
Magnus targets his opponent’s pawn while simultaneously preparing to simplify the center.
Abdusattorov develops his knight, allowing Magnus to recapture the pawn.
Magnus takes his chance to level material on the board.
Abdusattorov aims to use the now half-open file, previously occupied by the white pawn, as a channel for pressure and activity.
Magnus shifts his bishop to a better square, putting more control over the center.
Seems like Magnus’s last move was a bit too slow, and he missed White’s opportunity.
Nodirbek brings his bishop into the game, targeting Black’s knight, and now he’s ready to bring his rook in as well. The initiative is shifting.
Magnus defends his knight, holding on for now. But overall, White’s pieces are far more active, the harmony is clearly on Nodirbek’s side at this stage of the game.
Abdusattorov slides his rook, bringing his last piece into the game.
Placing it right in front of black queen.
Carlsen moves his king away with a castle, hoping that White has no dangerous knight jumps available.
It’s a critical moment for Nodirbek, and he clearly senses it taking his time to think deeply about the next moves.
Unable to find anything concrete, White retreats the bishop to a safer square, where it will be protected by a pawn.
Magnus pushes his edge pawn forward, reinforcing the position of his knight, limiting white's options.
Abdusattorov finds an excellent way to keep up the pressure. Now he’s threatening to leap forward with his knight.
Magnus didn't see anything better than moving his queen back.
Abdusattorov trades his bishop for a knight in order to take full control of the center.
White achieves full domination, all the pieces are active, coordinated, and pressing forward. Magnus is running out of space and defensive resources.
White’s pawns look menacing, and Magnus is backed up against the wall. He has to sacrifice exchange in order to release some tension.
Magnus manages to find some sort of defensing setup with his pieces.
We’ve reached that point where Magnus might need to start believing in chess fortresses :)
Abdusattorov lands his knight in opponent's camp, tying up black's queen.
Black can capture White’s pawn, but doing so would only give White’s pieces more room to maneuver.
Magnus is in a tough spot, there’s virtually no counterplay on the board, and he's left playing purely on defense.
Being out of useful waiting moves Magnus decides to grab on of the double pawns.
White's queen immediately gets into active square, targeting the knight.
Magnus puts his trust in the powerhouse knight sitting in the center, a piece that’s nearly impossible to dislodge from its sweet spot.
It's the anchor of his position at the moment.
What a unique position we've got, Black has managed to set up solid defensive fortifications, and despite the overwhelming number of pieces on the board, breaking through isn’t easy for White.
Nodirbek places his rook on the open file, even though Black’s pawn on the seventh rank is well protected by the bishop, it’s all about pressure and creating new targets.
Magnus finds a good moment to trade queens, easing the pressure and simplifying the position just a bit.
Both players are now under five minutes. It’s all going to be decided in time trouble.
Pressed for time, Nodirbek misses the best opportunity in the position.
Magnus is now closer to saving the game than he’s been at any point, a remarkable defensive effort when it mattered most.
Magnus keeps rooks on the board, supporting his pawns and targeting white's double pawns in the future.
Magnus aims to trade off White’s last truly dangerous pawn, and whatever remains, his bishop should be able to handle it… like Spider-Man holding back the train in that iconic meme.
The last pawn that posed any real threat to Black has been eliminated.
Now Magnus can simply hold, just sit tight and wait. The fortress is built, and there’s no clear way in.
Abdusattorov managed to trap black's rook temporarily, but there are two more friends to help that rook. Black's bishop and king.
Securing central square for the bishop and freeing up space for the rook.
The light-squared bishop is eyeing both of White’s pawns, keeping them under control.
White is out of ideas, the game is heading toward a draw. What a defensive stand by Magnus!
Fortress Mode Activated
Under immense pressure for most of the game, Magnus Carlsen showed why he’s one of the greatest, surviving Nodirbek Abdusattorov’s relentless initiative with calm, resourcefulness, and near-perfect defense.
Despite White’s domination and active play, Magnus built an inventive fortress, slowly neutralizing all threats. A masterclass in holding a worse position.
Credit to Nodirbek for his phenomenal fighting spirit and ability to pose serious problems to the strongest player in the world. He pushed Carlsen to the limit and made him work for every move.
Draw on the board - match to Magnus.
Semifinals await.