Firouzja Wins PRO Chess Masterpiece vs Caruana: Week 5 Highlights

Week five of the PRO Chess League is in the books and the action may have left fans with more questions than answers. Here are the top five storylines from this week's matches:

1. Saint Louis is clearly the team to beat

The Saint Louis Arch Bishops and Canada Chessbrahs had their long-awaited matchup and the Arch Bishops showed that their lineup of four 2700s is just as good on the board as they are on paper. They beat the Chessbrahs by a convincing 10-6 margin, in a match that wasn't as close as the score would indicate.

GM Fabiano Caruana had an impressive attacking win over GM Ivan Saric. Early in this game he was down four pawns!

Watch commentators IM Danny Rensch and GM Robert Hess give the call when Caruana finds the crushing 39. Rxg5

What a game by @FabianoCaruana!!! Saint Louis leads 6-2 over the Chessbrahs #prochess pic.twitter.com/Jr9xoFyBDL

— PROChessLeague (@PROChessLeague) February 3, 2020

2. Alireza Firouzja is going to inspire chess fans for years to come

It wasn't all doom and gloom for the Chessbrahs, as GM Alireza Firouzja played the game of the season against Caruana. He sacrificed a piece with ...Nxc2 and went on to win in impressive fashion against the number two player in the world. This 16-year-old superstar is shining brighter every day.

The game sent shockwaves around the Twitterverse, as even FIDE jumped in to congratulate the young star on his win. Firouzja has been catching fire lately on the back of eye-catching performances at World Rapid & Blitz 2019 as well as Tata Steel Masters 2020.

Can you play like Alireza Firouzja? Try our Play Like Alireza Firouzja course featuring five of Firouzja's best games!

Play Now!

After calling the match live, Rensch needed a second look at Firouzja's stroke of brilliance. Here he is breaking down the game:

♜ In a brilliant chess game, Alireza Firouzja defeated @FabianoCaruana with the black pieces in Week 5 of the 2020 @PROChessLeague

♜ Watch IM @DanielRensch break down the game! https://t.co/YcHYyvnH6X

— Chess.com (@chesscom) February 6, 2020

3. The Germany Bears rule the Central; France is humbled

The France Roosters said that Germany was their only competition in the Central Division, and Germany proved them right, with a convincing 9.5-6.5 victory. After the match, GM Jacek Tomczak could only laugh when asked about France's boastful claims:

Germany's Jacek Tomczak can't stop laughing about France being "too strong for the Central Division". Germany beat France 9.5-6.5 #prochess pic.twitter.com/MZckTr6n5p

— PROChessLeague (@PROChessLeague) February 6, 2020

The Germany Bears took to Twitter to boast after beating the France Roosters.

@FranceRoosters too good for the #prochess Central Division? Haha! We don't think so. 😉

— Spaeti Bears Berlin (@BerlinBad) February 6, 2020

The way things stand the Roosters should have their wish to play in the Western Division. If they finish second in the division they will play whichever team finishes fourth place in the Western Division in the first round of the playoffs.

GM Arik Braun scored an impressive 4-0. Here is his extremely quick last round win over GM Romain Eduoard. Braun won in 17 moves with black!

4. Despite Mamedyarov's shaky Internet connection, India beat China 9-7

GM Shakhriyar Mamedyarov lost two games due to his poor connection, but it wasn't enough to stop the rest of the Yogis from a convincing win over their division rival. GM S L Narayanan finished with 3/4 to lead the team. Here's his 19 move round four win.

5. The PRO Chess Finals will be held in Norway from May 21-24

Norway is already home of the world champion, and now they will crown the PRO Chess League Champion! More details, including the exact city are coming soon.

Want to catch all the PRO Chess League action? Tune in Monday, February 10 at 10:15 a.m. Pacific Time to watch Firouzja, Caruana and many others in action only on Chess.com/TV.