Finding Candidate Moves
Finding the correct candidate moves is often one of the most difficult aspects of becoming a better chess player. Kotov, as well as other teachers, recommend using a system of pattern recognition, looking at the elements of the current position to determine what might be a feasible move. For example, if a player notices that his opponent's King is on the g8 square, and that his Knight is on f3, then a candidate move might be Ng5, a fairly common beginning to a sacrifice.
Once a player has found a good number of candidate moves (every position is different, although four to six moves is usually the norm), a player may then begin to systematically analyze these moves. The idea behind candidate moves is to help structure one's analysis and prevent it from becoming jumbled; inexperienced players who do not carefully consider candidate moves will often find themselves jumping between lines of analysis haphazardly.
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