Jerome Gambit: Positional Oddity & Sharp Tactics

The following Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+) game has both a positional oddity and sharp tactics to bring the pawn home.

angelcamina - Mauricio26

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ 

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Bb4

Black's pieces own the field - for now.

8.dxe5 Bxc3+ 9.bxc3 Ne8 

How quickly things change.

Black has an edge. White has the initiative.

10.Qd5+ Kf8 11.Ba3+ d6 12.exd6 cxd6 13.O-O-O 

13...Nf6 

Attacking the enemy Queen, but overlooking something.

Stockfish 16.1 suggests 13..Qe7, but then 14.Rhe1 would keep the pressure on. 

14.Bxd6+ Ke8 15.Qe5+ Kf7 

16.Qg3 

A bit more accurate was 16.Qf4. 

16...Qe8 

Escaping the file with the enemy Rook. He could have held on with 16...Re8, e.g. 17.e5 Ng4 18.h3 Nh6 19.Bb4 Qb6 and an equal game. 

17.e5 Ne4 18.Qf3+ Nf6 19.exf6 g6 20.Rhe1 Qc6 

Looking at White's development and the placement of Black's King, it is not hard to see that there is now a forced checkmate.

21.Re7+ Kg8 

If, instead, Black plays 21...Kf8, then White exchanges Queens  22.Qxc6 bxc6, and then has 23.Rxa7+ Ke8 24.f7+ Kd8 25.Be7 checkmate. Nice. 

22.f7+ Kg7 23. Be5+ Kh6 24. Bxh8 Qxf3 25.gxf3 

Ramarkable. White has 7 isolated pawns: two singles plus doubled pawns plus tripled pawns.

And the forced checkmate is still on.

25...Bf5 26.Re8 Rd8 27.f8=Q+ Kg5 28.Bf6+ Kf4 29.Rdxd8 Kxf3 30.Bd4 h5 31.Rd5 Kg4 32.Rxf5 Black resigned