HISTORIC GAMETal's Sacrifices, Checked by an Engine
Six famous sacrifices run through modern analysis — which ones were sound, and why the unsound ones still won.
Archive Analysis · Intermediate
Candidates, Bled · 1959
The sacrifice nobody could refute
MIKHAIL TAL — VASILY SMYSLOV · 1–0
Tal gave away material for a position no human could hold. Engines still argue; the opponent still lost.
The moment
A knight lands where three pieces can take it and none of them should.
THE POSITION
ABCDEFGH
Move the pieces freely — this board is yours to explore the position with.
Watch analysis
Someone has already explained this.
HISTORIC GAMEConnected
Where this game leads.
B20–B99Sicilian Defense
1. e4 c5
Black refuses symmetry, trading a wing pawn for a central one and playing for the win.
LATVIAMikhail Tal
1936–1992 · Sacrificial storm
Sacrifices that engines still argue about. Tal proved that pressure on a human is worth material.
RUSSIAVasily Smyslov
1921–2010 · Harmony
A world champion whose games feel balanced even when the position is on fire around him.