1

First published in 2019 by Gloucester Publishers Limited, London.

Copyright © 2019 Zenón Franco

Translation by Phil Adams

The right of Zenón Franco to be identified as the author of this work has been
asserted in accordance with the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a

retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
electrostatic, magnetic tape, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
without prior permission of the publisher.

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ISBN: 978 1 78194 521 6

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Dedicated to Yudania

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Commissioning editor and advisor: Byron Jacobs

2
Typeset and edited by First Rank Publishing, Brighton.
Cover design by Horatio Monteverde.
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3
About the Author
Zenón Franco is a grandmaster from Paraguay, now living in Spain. He represented
Paraguay, on top board, in seven Chess Olympiads, and won individual gold medals
at Lucerne 1982 and Novi Sad 1990. He’s an experienced trainer and has written
numerous books on chess.

4
Contents
About the Author
Bibliography
Introduction

1 Typical Structures
2 Space Advantage
3 The Manoeuvring Game
4 Simplification
5 Attack and Defence

Index of Games

5
Table of Contents
About the Author 4
Bibliography 6
Introduction 7
1 Typical Structures 14
2 Space Advantage 115
3 The Manoeuvring Game 172
4 Simplification 265
5 Attack and Defence 343
Index of Games

Adams.M-Grandelius.N, Gibraltar Masters 2018 130

Adams.M-Wang Yue, Baku Olympiad 2016 140
Anand.V-Mamedyarov.S, Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2015 311
Anand.V-Vallejo Pons.F, Bilbao 2014 282
Aronian.L-Giri.A, Wijk aan Zee 2017 452
Aronian.L-Kramnik.V, Alekhine Memorial Paris/St Petersburg 2013 47
Boleslavsky.I-Mikenas.V, USSR Championship, Moscow 1957 435
Boleslavsky.I-Smyslov.V, Candidates, Budapest 1950 432
Carlsen.M-Anand.V, Tal Memorial, Moscow 2013 93
Carlsen.M-Aronian.L, Norway Chess, Stavanger 2018 153
Carlsen.M-Caruana.F, Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2014 367
Carlsen.M-Gelfand.B, Candidates, London 2013 132
Carlsen.M-Kamsky.G, Sinquefield Cup, St Louis 2013 205
Carlsen.M-Karjakin.S, Bilbao 2016 189
Carlsen.M-Mamedyarov.S, Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2014 172
Carlsen.M-Polgar.J, London Chess Classic 2012 124
Carlsen.M-So.W, Bilbao 2016 408
Carlsen.M-Wei Yi, Wijk aan Zee, 2017 289
Carlsen.M-Wojtaszek.R, Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2018 420
Carlsen.M-Wojtaszek.R, Tromso Olympiad 2014 182
Caruana.F-Bareev.E, Baku Olympiad 2016 414
Caruana.F-Carlsen.M, Shamkir 2014 358
Caruana.F-Gelfand.B, Wijk aan Zee 2014 104
Caruana.F-Nakamura.H, Candidates, Moscow 2016 391
Caruana.F-Ponomariov.R, Dortmund 2014 215
Caruana.F-Rodshtein.M, European Team Championship, Porto Carras 120
2011
Caruana.F-Svidler.P, Amsterdam 2010 226
 Index of Games

Caruana.F-Topalov.V, Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2014 376

Fine.R-Flohr.S, AVRO, The Netherlands 1938 428
Fine.R-Lasker.E, Nottingham 1936 296
Karpov.A-Kamsky.G, World Championship, Elista (Game 1) 1996 331
Karpov.A-Ribli.Z, Amsterdam 1980 326
Karpov.A-Salov.V, Linares 1993 443
Karpov.A-Shirov.A, Biel 1992 265
Karpov.A-Spassky.B, Candidates, Leningrad (Game 11) 1974 100
Karpov.A-Spassky.B, Tilburg 1980 440
Karpov.A-Svidler.P, Dos Hermanas 1999 303
Kasparov.G-Cebalo.M, Manila Olympiad 1992 148
Korchnoi.V-Bacrot.E, Reykjavik 2003 273
Korchnoi.V-Karpov.A, World Championship, Merano (Game 9), 1981 68
Korchnoi.V-Polugaevsky.L, Candidates, Evian (Game 7) 1977 246
Bibliography
Books
The world’s championship Chess Match played at Havana Between Jose Raul Capablanca
and Emanuel Lasker, Hartwig Cassel and José Raúl Capablanca, Privately printed,
1921.
Learn from the Grandmasters, Tal, Korchnoi, Larsen & others, Batsford, 1975
Grandmaster Preparation, Lev Polugaevsky, Pergamon Russian Chess, 1980.
Isaac Boleslavsky. Selected Games, Isaac Boleslavsky, Caissa Books, 1988.
Leonid Stein Master of Risk Strategy, Eduard Gufeld and Efim Lazarev, Thinker´s
Press, Inc. 2001.
Champion´s friend, Friendship´s Champion: Lilienthal´s 100 best games, Andre
Lilienthal, Caissa Chess Books, 2001.
School of Chess Excellence 3, Mark Dvoretsky, Edition Olms 2002.
Smyslov’s Best Games Vol 1 & 2, Vassily Smyslov, Chess Agency, CAISSA-90, 2003
My Great Predecessors, Volume 2, 3, 4, 5, Garry Kasparov, Everyman, 2004, 2005,
2006.
Winning Chess Explained, Zenón Franco, Gambit 2006.
My Sixty Memorable Games, Robert Fischer, Batsford, 2008.
Bobby Fischer. The Career and Complete Games of the American World Chess
Champion, Karsten Mueller, Russell Enterprises, 2009.
Mis mejores partidas, Anatoly Karpov, Editorial Hispano Europea 2009.
Magnus Carlsen, rumbo al título mundial, Zenón Franco Ocampos, Ventajedrez 2013.
Magnus Carlsen, Campeón del Mundo, Zenón Franco Ocampos, Ventajedrez 2015.
My Secrets in the Ruy Lopez, Lajos Portisch, Gambit 2017.
Grandes Campeones. Fabiano Caruana, Zenón Franco Ocampos, Ventajedrez 2018.

Magazines Databases and Engines

New in Chess Magazine 1984 – 2019
Mega Database 2019 Chessbase
Chess Informant, 1966-2019
Stockfish 9
Stockfish 10

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 Introduction

Introduction
“First the idea and then the move!” Miguel Najdorf used to say in his habitually
enthusiastic fashion. That statement is the perfect summary of planning in chess.
The topic of planning in chess is very broad. It can consist of improving the
position of a piece, neutralising an opponent’s piece, beginning an attack on the king,
trying to weaken your opponent’s structure, improving your own structure, deciding
which piece to exchange etc. In this book we’ll look at many different scenarios.
Emanuel Lasker wrote: “An intelligent plan makes heroes of us, and absence of
plan cowards and dullards”. Another well known saying is “Better a bad plan than no
plan at all”, along with a number of others which agree on the importance of playing
with a definite plan in mind.
I was surprised to discover that there are very few books on this topic. There are
certainly sections on planning in classics such as Play Like a Grandmaster by
Alexander Kotov, School of Chess Excellence by Mark Dvoretsky, Understanding Chess
Middle Games by John Nunn, etc., and grandmasters refer to the topic when they
comment on their games.
I believe that the reason why there are so few books about planning is because
fortunately chess is so broad and complex that the plans are many and varied. It’s
impossible to deal with all the plans in one book, because they are practically infinite;
fortunately almost every position is different and requires a “new” plan.
That doesn’t mean that we are powerless. Initially we can certainly learn from
certain typical positions and structures, where there are general plans which serve as a
guide. For the remaining positions we can improve by training in planning through
the analysis of different kinds of positions and so the improvement of such an
important aspect of the chess struggle will come about.
It’s a continual learning process; finding the correct plan is not something that
often leaps out at us immediately. It’s necessary to evaluate fully the requirements of
the position and then work out a plan of action, without neglecting the tactics
needed to implement it.
Something we must remember is that just as important as making progress with
the plan itself is putting difficulties in the way of our opponent’s plans. Of course,
the optimum outcome is to combine both of these in one single move because “It’s
better to be rich and healthy than poor and ill”, as the Russian saying goes.

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 When I learnt to play chess in my childhood, most of the books and magazines
with annotated games contained a lot of prose and few variations. There were
exceptions, of course, but most of them, even the ones which were considered good,
had annotations containing few lines of analysis; they were useful, but incomplete.
The reader could be left without an answer to his questions, especially as regards
tactics.
At present the opposite seems to be more often the case; thanks to the progress
made with analysis engines, there is more and better analysis, but fewer verbal
annotations.
Of course there are positions where the tactical element predominates almost
exclusively, but this is not so in the majority of cases.
Objectively, modern day annotations can be more accurate but for someone who
wants to learn, looking at variations with very little explanation is also inadequate.
When writing this book, I include, as I always do, comments by the players
themselves, as they are an important source of information.
As ever, all phases of producing this book were pleasurable, from the initial stage
of thinking about how to structure and organise it, searching my memory for useful
examples, looking in books and magazines, and finally writing and revising it.
To finish off this introduction I want to comment on a position which made an
impact on me when I was a youngster.

E.Znosko-Borovsky-A.Alekhine
Paris 1933

White to Play

8
 Introduction

Alekhine’s impressive account of the current position and the plans he conceived
is as follows:
“The endgame position thus reached is by no means as easy to conduct –
especially for the first player. Black’s plan of campaign, which will prove a complete
success, is divided into the following parts:
1) Exchange of one pair of rooks.
2) Bringing the king to e6, where he will be protected from a frontal attack by
the king’s pawn and be used to prevent the entrance of the remaining white rook at
d7.
3) By operating with the rook on the open g-file and advancing the h-pawn, force
the opening of the h-file.
4) After this the white king, and eventually the also the bishop, will be kept busy
in order to prevent the intrusion of the black rook at h1 or h2.
5) In the meantime Black, by advancing his a- and b-pawns, will sooner or later
succeed in opening a file on the queenside.
6) As, at that moment, the white king will still be on the other wing, the first
player will not dispose of sufficient forces to prevent the final intrusion of the
enemy’s rook on his first or second rank.
Granted that if White had, from the beginning, realised that there actually
existed a danger of losing this endgame, he probably would by extremely careful
defence have saved it. But as it happened, Black played with a definite plan and
White only with the conviction that the game must be a draw. And the result was a
very instructive series of typical stratagems much more useful for inexperienced
players than the so-called brilliancies.”

This description left me in a daze; my level of play didn’t allow me even to begin
to understand the number of plans referred to. Let’s look at the rest of the game, with
some of Alekhine’s annotations, which are in inverted commas.

16 Bh6
“Certainly not an error but a proof that White has not grasped as yet the spirit of
the position. Otherwise he would not have been anxious to ‘force’ the exchange of
one pair of rooks which, as mentioned, is quite welcome to the opponent.”
16 ... Rfd8 17 Kf1
“A more aggressive line starting by 17 g4 would perhaps be advisable. But Black
would also in this case maintain opportunities for complicating matters after 17 ...

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f6, followed by ... Kf7-e6, etc.”
17 ... f5 18 Rxd8+ Rxd8 19 g3
“19 ... f4 was a serious threat.”
19 ... Kf7 20 Be3 h5 21 Ke2 Ke6

And Alekhine has completed the second part of his plan.

22 Rd1 Rg8!
“If now 23 h4 then 23 ... Rg4, with the strong threat 24 ... f4. White is therefore
practically forced to allow the opening of the h-file.”
23 f3 h4 24 Bf2 hxg3 25 hxg3 Rh8 26 Bg1 Bd6 27 Kf1

And stages three and four are now also completed.

27 ... Rg8 28 Bf2 b5!
“Now Black shows his cards. In the event of White leaving his pawn position on
the queenside intact, the attacking plan would be ... c5-c4 followed by ... a5 and ...

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 Introduction

b4; his next pawn move shortens the procedure.”

29 b3? a5 30 Kg2 a4 31 Rd2
“In the case of 31 b4, the intention was 31 ... Rc8 32 Bc5 Ra8!, followed by ...
Ra6-c6, etc.”
31 ... axb3 32 axb3 Ra8
On reaching the fifth and sixth part of his plans, Alekhine commented, “Thus
Black has reached the position he aimed at when starting this endgame. His
positional advantage from now on will prove sufficient for the victory, especially as he
always can succeed in forcing the advance of his king by pinning (sic) the white rook
through (sic) the defence of one of the weak pawns.” The rest of the game was as
follows.
33 c4 Ra3! 34 c5 Be7 35 Rb2 b4 36 g4 f4 37 Kf1 Ra1+ 38 Ke2 Rc1 39 Ra2
Rc3 40 Ra7 Kd7 41 Rb7 Rxb3 42 Rb8 Rb2+ 43 Kf1 b3 44 Kg1 Kc6 45 Kf1
Kd5 46 Rb7 e4! 47 fxe4+ Kxe4 48 Rxc7 Kf3 49 Rxe7 Rxf2+ 50 Ke1 b2 51 Rb7
Rc2 52 c6! Kg3! 53 c7 f3 54 Kd1 Rxc7 55 Rxb2 f2 0-1

Impressive! I felt as if I were at an art exhibition, looking at a picture that the

connoisseurs were praising but whose beauty was beyond my grasp. And although I
had some doubts about it, who was I to object to it?
Many years later, Dvoretsky in his book School of Chess Excellence 3, after praising
Alekhine’s play, questioned part of Alekhine’s account and instead of 17 Kf1
suggested 17 f4!, when 17 ... e4? is bad because of 18 f5!, isolating the e-pawn.
In that way White could have blocked the first stage and thus incidentally all of
the subsequent stages of Alekhine’s plan. Dvoretsky’s evaluation was that the initial
position was completely equal, and it’s possible to add that after 17 f4 White’s
position is easy to hold, contrary to what Alekhine expressed.
The conclusion we can draw is that, even though it’s bad to play without a plan,
in general it’s neither necessary, nor possible, to make long-term plans.

Finally we have some thoughts of world champion Magnus Carlsen, who has a
similar opinion. In an interview in Denmark, last May, talking about long and short
plans he said, “There are often short term plans, but sometimes (quoted by Bent
Larsen) ‘to have no plan is better than having a bad plan’… it basically means that
often in chess you have to take it a bit move by move… Often there are just so many
possibilities that you cannot think more than a couple of moves… Most of the time
you have some ideal situation, some sort of dream that you want to obtain from that

11
particular situation but I very, very rarely have any long-term plans, it´s all short
term.”
“You have constantly revaluate the situation; that´s one of the things that sets
apart the best players from the second best, the ability to adjust to new situations all
the time.”
And about finding the best plans and moves he noted, “The good players find
the right plans most of the time because they have studied these patterns over
hundreds and thousands of hours”, and he emphasized the importance of tactical
element of the game to implement those plans.
In this book we will frequently discuss planning in the context of these patterns.

Book Structure

The book is constructed in the ‘move by move’ format, which allows greater reader
interaction. It contains 74 games, or parts of games, and is divided into five chapters:

1) Typical Structures
This consists of 14 examples, in which we’ll examine some typical structures, two in
greater depth, where the plans are more well known.

2) Advantage in Space
This made up of 10 examples, in which we’ll analyse different situations where one
side
has a space advantage.

3) Manoeuvring Play
The 16 examples here deal with various kinds of manoeuvres and regroupings.

4) Simplification
This section features 14 examples where we’ll look at situations in which it’s
necessary to decide which piece to exchange and which to keep.

5) Attack and Defence

This is the longest chapter, with 20 examples in which we’ll analyse a range of
situations which concern the placement of the kings.

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 Introduction

Naturally almost all the chapters are interconnected, as it’s unusual in chess for one
single theme to be predominant.

13
Chapter One
Typical Structures
In most positions in order to choose a plan it is necessary to consider various factors
and decide which are the most relevant. Sometimes an in-depth analysis is called for.
The task is made easier if there are clearly predominant elements, for example when
the pawn structure is one of the most important factors. Some structures have been
studied in depth, although naturally new ideas are arising all the time.
Let’s look at a concrete example where it’s vital to be aware of typical themes or
topics, as the game can be quickly decided. Yasser Seirawan commented, “Consider a
Sicilian Dragon variation where the White player sets up a Yugoslav attack, (After
e.g. 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 g6 6 Be3 Bg7 7 f3 Nc6 8 Qd2
0-0 9 Bc4 Bd7 10 h4)

[White] trades dark-squared bishops and checkmates down the h-file. Or,
conversely, in the same variation, the Black player sacrifices an exchange on the c3-
square, a bishop against the g4-pawn and plays ... Nf6xe4, with a smashing queenside
attack with a lurking g7-dragon bishop doing most of the damage.”
In My 60 Memorable Games Fischer annotated his game against Larsen in
Portoroz 1958, “Larsen was one of the diehards who refused to abandon the Dragon
until recently. White’s attack almost plays itself ... weak players even beat
grandmasters with it. I once thumbed through several issues of Shakhmatny Bulletin,
when the Yugoslav Attack was making its debut, and found the ratio was something

14
 1 Typical Structures

like nine wins out of ten in White’s favour. Will Black succeed in reinforcing the
variation? Time will tell.”
Fischer also commented regarding this variation, “I’d won dozens of skittles
games in analogous positions and had it down to a science: pry open the KR-file, sac,
sac ... mate!”
In that regard the evolution of very popular lines also allows for the introduction
of “new” ideas. In this very structure, “time told” from the 1970s onwards, in that
something initially rejected, playing ... h5 to prevent White from playing h5 and
opening the h-file, was shown to be playable, even though it weakened the castled
position. And so the Dragon variation took on a new lease of life.
It is essential to be acquainted with these and other tactical themes in order to
play the Dragon, or any other equally complex defence with established tactical and
strategic themes, as opposed to the “normal” plans of less complex structures.
Another example would be the Sveshnikov variation (after 1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 d4
cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 e5).
Furthermore such knowledge doesn’t always exist in isolation. The same plan for
White against the Dragon mentioned by Seirawan can also be applied to some lines
of the Sämisch Variation of the King Indian Defence, arising after 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6
3 Nc3 Bg7 4 e4 d6 5 f3.
Now let’s look at examples of another central structure.

1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 Nf3 c5 5 cxd5 Nxd5

This position can be reached via a variety of move orders.
6 e4
With this advance the centre is occupied and, after the exchange on c3, it is
strengthened, although this also allows Black to simplify and define the structure
after which both players are able to be clearer regarding their plans. The main
alternative is 6 e3, which can lead to isolated queen’s pawn (IQP) positions.
Recently 6 Rb1 has become popular, with the idea of continuing with 7 e4 and
arriving at the same structure but with the b4-square already controlled by the rook.
6 ... Nxc3 7 bxc3

15
 Black must make his first important decision. Continue development with 7 ...
Be7 or play something different?
7 ... cxd4
It’s better to exchange, since White’s centre gives him a space advantage and
exchanging not only grants Black greater mobility but, for the time being, reduces
White’s prospects of attack against the black king. Another plus is that the white
centre, although strong in the middlegame, can become a weakness in the endgame,
when Black’s queenside pawn majority can also become important.
Of course we’re still a long way from the endgame and also the strength or
weakness of White’s centre (and perhaps of the eventual passed d-pawn) will depend
on which pieces remain on the board.
8 cxd4 Bb4+
This is what the aforementioned 6 Rb1 is designed to avoid.
Another idea is 8 ... Nc6 9 Bc4 b5 and only then 10 ... Bb4+, which leads to
similar positions but with their own characteristics.
9 Bd2 Bxd2+

Question: If the ending suits Black, why not force more exchanges with 9 ...
Qa5?

Answer: The classics provide the answer. In that case the exchanges would be at
the cost of giving White a development advantage, which is important in this
position, even though it’s an ending. A.Rubinstein-C.Schlechter, San Sebastián 1912,
continued 10 Rb1! Bxd2+ 11 Qxd2 Qxd2+ 12 Kxd2 0-0 and now White can gain a
slight advantage with 13 Bd3, but 13 Bb5! is even stronger. “An uncommonly fine

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 1 Typical Structures

move, the object of which is to force the weakening which follows”, commented
Euwe. After provoking the weakening 13 ... a6, White retreated and after 14 Bd3
Rd8 15 Rhc1 he had an advantage in both space and development, as well as strong
pressure on the queenside, which prevented Black from exploiting his pawn majority
on that flank. This game can be found in many sources, including the book
Rubinstein Move by Move.
10 Qxd2 0-0

It was Keres who first described the characteristics of this position when he
annotated his game against Fine, played in Ostend 1937. Almost all of his
annotations remain valid more than 80 years later.
White has in his favour his strong pawn centre and the good development of his
pieces. The black position, in contrast, has no weaknesses, and it will not be difficult
for him to complete his development. Keres commented that, “with mechanical play
in the next phase of the game Black will, for example, attain exchange of the major
pieces along the c-file and then reach an advantageous ending.”
Regarding White’s plans, Keres pointed out two ideas, “The first consists of an
attempt to realise his preponderance in the centre and force through d5 with the
resulting passed pawn and the second is a concentration of all his pieces on a kingside
attack.”
11 Bc4
As it’s difficult to specify which of these two plans has the greater chances of
success, Keres considered that this bishop development supports both plans and it
seemed more logical to him than 11 Be2 or 11 Bd3.
That evaluation is still valid nowadays, in spite of the fact that different ideas
have arisen for concrete reasons, such as first playing 11 Rc1, in order to hinder the

17
plan of 11 ... Nc6, followed by ... b6 and ... Bb7; we’ll return to this further on.
11 ... Nd7
Black must also decide how to develop his pieces. First he needs to choose the
destination of his knight; with this move he seeks to transfer it to the kingside in
order to reinforce the defence. The main alternative is 11 ... Nc6, from where the
knight can be more useful in support of an action on the queenside.
Let’s now look at some examples of the plans for both sides with this structure.
Game 1 is a classic game in which White manages to carry out one of the plans
mentioned by Keres, the exploitation of the central passed pawn.

Game 1
B.Spassky-T.Petrosian
World Championship, Moscow (Game 5), 1969
Semi-Tarrasch Defence [D41]

1 c4 Nf6 2 Nc3 e6 3 Nf3 d5 4 d4 c5 5 cxd5 Nxd5 6 e4 Nxc3 7 bxc3 cxd4 8 cxd4

Bb4+ 9 Bd2 Bxd2+ 10 Qxd2 0-0 11 Bc4 Nc6 12 0-0 b6

Question: How should White deploy the rooks?

13 Rad1
Answer: The deployment of the rooks most in accord with the plans mentioned
by Keres is to develop them on d1 and e1. In this way the timely advances d5 and/or
e5 are supported.

18
 1 Typical Structures

In certain circumstances White puts a rook on the c-file. As indicated, this

should have a concrete idea behind it, for if one continues in a routine fashion it can
lead to rook exchanges which, as Keres indicated, are in principle more favourable for
Black.
A world champion played 13 Rfd1 here, which to a certain extent puts off the
idea of the attack on the kingside in favour of seeking to exploit the d5-advance.
A.Alekhine-M.Euwe, The Hague (Game 18) 1937, continued 13 ... Bb7 14 Qf4 Rc8
and White fulfilled his plan by playing 15 d5. After 15 ... exd5 16 Bxd5 Qe7 there
followed 17 Ng5, threatening to capture on f7 and after exchanges play Rd7+ and
Rxb7 (another idea was 17 Nh4 and on 17 ... g6, now that the castled position has
been weakened, to return to f3, with ideas such as Qh6 or h4). Black defended
himself with the elegant 17 ... Ne5! and after 18 Bxb7 Ng6 19 Qf5 Qxb7 he
achieved good play.
Shortly before the game we are studying, in A.Zaitsev-L.Polugaevsky, Alma Ata
1968/69, Black chose a different move order, 13 ... Na5 and, after 14 Bd3 Bb7 15
Qe3 Rc8 16 Racl Qe7, having put a stop to the main idea of 13 Rfd1, Black had a
good position.
Black has another idea at his disposal to confront the d5-advance. In T.Petrosian-
L.Portisch, Skopje Olympiad 1972, 13 ... Ne7 was seen, with a number of ideas. One
is to neutralise the idea of placing of the bishop on d5 after 14 d5?! exd5 15 Bxd5
Nxd5 16 exd5 with 16 ... Qd6! Now, unusually, the queen is a good blockader and
after ... Bb7 and ... Rad8 White can’t be satisfied with the results of his d5-advance,
while after 15 exd5 Qd6 White finds it equally hard to eliminate the blockading
queen and Black has time to put pressure on the passed pawn with ... Bb7 and ...
Rd8.
Black also has another idea available: to replace the blockading queen with a
timely ... Nf5 (or ... Nc8) followed by ... Nd6.
If White doesn’t play d5 the knight can go to g6 in due course.

19
 Exercise: How can White try to demonstrate that Black’s plan is defective?

Answer: White fully justifies the placing of his rooks with 14 a4!, seeking to
create a weak, isolated black pawn on b6 or a7. After 14 ... Bb7 15 Bd3 Ng6 16 a5
White achieves his objective.
Returning to the game, regarding the decision to place the a1 rook on d1,
Kasparov commented, “It’s surprising that such a natural move as 13 Rad1, which
became standard, should have been an unexpected novelty, based on one of the
longest opening preparations in Spassky’s career. (Those were the times, when such
moves were novelties!)
Free piece play in a position with a mobile d4- and e4-pawn pair was
undoubtedly to his taste, conforming with all the laws of harmony: quiet
development, then a blow in the centre and a powerful combinative explosion.”
Let’s also remember that chess is very dynamic. New ideas keep appearing all the
time and for specific reasons there are apparently “strange” moves, based on some
tactical detail, such as beginning with 13 Rfe1, followed by d5, as Ponomariov played
on one occasion, avoiding the continuation which we will see in Game 2. We’ll come
back to this decision later.
13 ... Bb7
Here Black can use the move order 13 ... Na5 14 Bd3 Bb7, which prevents the
game continuation by displacing the bishop from the a2-g8 diagonal. White can then
proceed as planned with 15 Rfe1, or take advantage of the fact that d4 is not attacked
and deploy the queen to the kingside with 15 Qf4, not forgetting the tactical theme
present in this structure, 15 d5 exd5 16 e5.

20
 1 Typical Structures

14 Rfe1
Completing the plan of centralising the rooks. It’s also possible to make the
advance 14 d5, in order after 14 ... Na5 to sacrifice a piece with 15 dxe6 Nxc4 16
exf7+ Kh8. Of course such a decision is difficult to make over the board. It would
certainly be justified with computer preparation, but the engines would also indicate
that Black can defend after 17 Qxd8 Raxd8 18 Rxd8 Rxd8 19 e5 with the accurate
move 19 ... Rc8!, so that e6-e7 won’t attack the rook, and after 20 e5 Bd5 Black can
defend himself and White’s winning chances are slim.
14 ... Rc8
With the rook on d1, instead of a1, it makes sense to think about 14 ... Ne7, but
then 15 d5! is definitely good and after 15 ... exd5 16 exd5, in this case 16 ... Qd6
can be met strongly with 17 Ng5!, intending Ne4, and the strength of the rook on e1
is clear. After 16 ... Nf5 instead, White’s two centralised rooks have an influence of
the tactics of the position with 17 Ne5! Nd6 18 Nc6! when White has the advantage.
T.Petrosian-V.Korchnoi, Ciocco (Game 6) 1977, continued 18 ... Bxc6?! 19 dxc6
Nxc4 20 Qf4, regaining the piece with a very strong pawn on c6, which proved
decisive.

Exercise: How to proceed now?

15 d5!
Answer: White doesn’t need to make any further improvements in piece
placement, or to strengthen his position in any way. This advance was based on deep
home preparation, as Spassky showed by playing it immediately. Petrosian now had

21
to make a difficult decision, whether to take the simplest course or else enter
complications in terrain that was familiar to his opponent but not to him.
15 ... exd5?!
After thinking for 13 minutes Petrosian decided to ‘trust’ his opponent and
acquiesce to a slightly inferior position.
The more complicated alternative was 15 ... Na5.

Exercise: What snag did Petrosian see in that?

Answer: Naturally Petrosian saw that 16 dxe6?! wasn’t dangerous. It is true that
after 16 ... Nxc4? 17 exf7+ Kh8 (or 17 ... Kxf7 18 Qd7+, regaining the piece with
advantage) 18 Qxd8 Rcxd8 19 Rxd8 Rxd8 20 e5, now, unlike the line we saw on
move 14, White has his rook on e1 (and not f1) and so wins after e.g. 20 ... Rc8 21
e6 Bd5 22 Ng5 Nd6 23 e7.
However, 16 ... Qxd2! was good, since after 17 exf7+ Kh8 18 Nxd2 Nxc4 19
Nxc4 Rxc4 20 e5 there are several defences, the clearest of which is 20 ... Bc8! 21 e6
Bxe6 22 Rxe6 Rc7, reaching a drawn rook ending after 23 Re8 Rcxf7 24 Rxf8+ Rxf8
25 Rd7 a5 26 Rb7 Rc8 27 g3 Kg8 28 Rxb6 Rc2, winning back the pawn.
However, Petrosian was more concerned about the pawn sacrifice 16 Bd3! exd5
17 e5! Nc4 18 Qf4, with complications which were almost impossible to calculate
accurately over the board We’ll return to this in the next game.

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: How should White recapture on d5?

16 Bxd5!
Answer: Stronger than 16 exd5, which creates a passed pawn, but after 16 ... Na5
17 Bf1 Black can once again blockade the pawn effectively with 17 ... Qd6 (at the
same time preventing the transfer of the white queen to f4). Then after 18 Ng5 Rcd8
it’s not possible to speak of a clear advantage for White. If 19 Qd3 (or 19 Qc2) Black
has the good defence 19 ... Qh6!, when 20 Qf5 can be answered with 20 ... g6 21
Qg4 Rxd5 and Black is okay in the ensuing complications. Or 20 ... Bc8 21 Qf4 f6
22 Ne6 Qxf4 23 Nxf4 Rfe8 and Black has little to fear.
With 16 Bxd5! the tension is maintained, and Kasparov notes, “this bishop is so
strong, that sooner or later Black will almost certainly have to take on d5, and then
White will acquire a passed pawn on this square. For Spassky, playing such a position
was sheer pleasure!” This reminds us that the practical element can be as important as
the objective situation.
16 ... Na5?!
Kasparov condemned this move for positional reasons, “Now the knight is stuck
on the edge of the board for a long time, and Black’s position really becomes
difficult.”
Korchnoi recommended 16 ... Qe7, with the idea of ... Rcd8, and 16 ... Qc7,
with the same idea, is very interesting. Then after 17 Qg5 Black might play 17 ... h6
18 Qg4 Rcd8, intending 19 ... Nb4 or 19 ... Ne7.
If White answers 16 ... Qc7 with 17 Rc1 then Black can play 17 ... Qe7 and after
18 Qf4 Nb4 the white rook is no better on c1 than on d1.

23
 Exercise: Naturally, exploiting the positional defects of Black’s last move
requires accuracy. What did White play?

17 Qf4!
Answer: The white forces move to the kingside, increasing the pressure on f7 and
threatening 18 Bxb7 as well as 18 Bxf7+.
17 ... Qc7
17 ... Qe7? is answered strongly with 18 Nd4. “By this point Petrosian had
already spent more than an hour, and Spassky – just 21 minutes.” (Kasparov).
18 Qf5 Bxd5?!
Black seeks to counterattack on the queenside, but now White gets a passed
pawn under ideal conditions. Here 18 ... h6 was more tenacious.
19 exd5 Qc2
If 19 ... Qd6 then 20 Ng5 is strong, when 20 ... Qh6 is met with 21 Nxf7!, while
20 ... Qg6 21 Qxg6 hxg6 22 d6!, followed by d7 would leave Black paralysed.

Exercise: How would you reply to the manoeuvre 19 ... Nc4, intending to
blockade on d6?

Answer: With the main idea: 20 Ng5 g6 21 Qh3 h5 22 Ne4 Nd6 23 Nf6+ Kg7
and now the beautiful blow 24 Qg3!, with a winning attack.
20 Qf4!
Another difficult decision. The alternative was a better endgame with 20 Qxc2
Rxc2 21 Re7, but after for example 21 ... Rd8 22 Rxa7 h6, the technical difficulties
would be considerable. It’s not clear that the text move is objectively better, but from
a practical point of view keeping the queens on is much more promising.
20 ... Qxa2
In Informator Geller suggested 20 ... Rce8 21 d6 Rxe1+ 22 Rxe1 Qd3, preventing
d7. However, with 23 Nd4 White is clearly better as after 23 ... Nb7 24 h3 or 24 h4
White’s activity enhances the power of the passed pawn and the advantage is clear.
21 d6! Rcd8 22 d7

24
 1 Typical Structures

So the plan laid out by Keres has worked out in ideal fashion; the passed pawn
paralyses the black pieces and prevents him from exploiting his two passed pawns on
the queenside.

Question: OK, but the game doesn’t win itself. Black seems to have everything
defended and he has two passed pawns. How does White plan to continue?

Answer: Yes, pressing home the advantage will take some effort. While keeping
an eye open for tactics, White’s plan is now to manoeuvre to ensure the safety of the
d7-pawn and then to attack the blockader at d8 with a timely Rc8 and/or Re8, and
also with the knight, if possible.
22 ... Qc4
If 22 ... Qc2, preventing White’s next move, White can proceed ideally with 23
Rc1, e.g. 23 ... Qd3 24 Red1 Qb5 25 Rc7! (even better than 25 Qc7) 25 ... a6 and
now 26 Qd6 is strong, with ideas of 27 Nd4 or 27 Rdc1 followed by Rc8, etc. Also
good would be 26 Qe4, controlling c6, with ideas of 27 Rb1 or 27 Rd5, and if 26 ...
Nb3 27 Ne5 Nc5 28 Qd5, Black is defenceless.
23 Qf5!
From f5 the queen defends d7 and also controls c8.
23 ... h6
After 23 ... Qc6 White defends his pawn with 24 Ne5, planning to play Rc1, and
then if 24 ... Qe6 White has 25 Qc2 (with the idea of 26 Qc7) 25 ... b5 (to defend
with ... Qb6) 26 Qc5! Qb6 27 Qd5, threatening 28 Nxf7 Rxf7 29 Re8+ and Black is
helpless as the white pieces dominate the board.
24 Rc1

25
 Heading for c7. 24 Ne5 was also strong, as in the previous note.
24 ... Qa6
24 ... Qa4 would also have been answered with 25 Rc7.
25 Rc7 b5

Exercise: White has made progress move by move; his advantage is decisive
but it’s necessary to realise it tactically. Bearing in mind that Black is planning
26 ... Qd6 (27 Rxa7 Qb6), what’s White’s best continuation now?

26 Nd4?
Answer: Very natural. 26 ... Qd6 is now answered with 27 Nxb5, but in fact this
is not the strongest move.
There is no time for 26 h3, due to the aforementioned 26 ... Qd6, but it’s not
necessary to create an escape square for king because 26 Re8! was already decisive.
Black can’t take twice on e8 because of Qxf7+ mating. Meanwhile the main threat is
27 Rc8! and 26 ... Nb7 fails to prevent this, e.g. 27 Rc8 Qa1+ 28 Ne1 (planning 29
Qe4) 28 ... Qd4 29 Qxb5 Qb6 30 Qe5, threatening among other things, 31 Rxf8+
Kxf8 32 Qe8+, and Black is once again paralysed
Instead 27 ... Qa4 allows White time to give the king luft with 28 h3 (setting up
various threats including 29 Ne5 or 29 Rcxd8 Nxd8 30 Qc5, etc.) and if 28 ... Qd1+
29 Kh2 Qd6+ 30 Ne5 f6 there is a simple win with 31 Qe4, attacking the knight,
but more elegant would be 31 Qg6! fxe5 32 Rcxd8! Qxg6 33 Rxf8+, followed by
mate on h8.

Question: These lines are conclusive and the themes are repeated; it doesn’t

26
 1 Typical Structures

seem too complicated for a player of Spassky’s strength. Why didn’t he play
26 Re8 then?

Answer: Any answer would be no more than speculation. Kasparov’s explanation

is very interesting, “Here the difference between human thinking and computer
calculation is clearly seen: the human doesn’t want to allow the check at a1, and have
to make the ‘unaesthetic’ move Ne1, whereas the machine simply has no such
qualms.”
26 ... Qb6?
This loses in a similar fashion to what we’ve already seen. Over the board it was
difficult to discover that the most tenacious defence was to enter the major piece
ending a pawn down by playing the move that 26 Nd4 seemed to prevent, 26 ...
Qd6! After 27 Nxb5 Qd2 28 Rf1 Nb3! 29 Rxa7 Nd4! 30 Nxd4 Qxd4 it is not easy
to press home the advantage, as Boleslavsky and Bondarevsky indicated in their book
of the match. Kasparov shares that judgement.
That is just a sample variation; there are other possibilities. Modern engines
prefer 29 Qf3, and consider that White’s advantage is decisive, although after 29 ...
Nd4 30 Nxd4 Qxd4 31 Rd1 Qb6 32 Rb7 Qc5 their initial optimism is reduced

Exercise (easy): How did White continue now?

27 Rc8!
Answer: Of course; the idea is 28 Re8, as we have already seen. Now 27 ... Qxd4
is answered with 28 Rxd8 Rxd8 29 Re8+.
27 ... Nb7
The prettiest finish, noted by Boleslavsky and Bondarevsky, arises after 27 ... b4
28 Re8! Qxd4? 29 Rxf8+ Rxf8 30 Rxf8+ Kxf8 31 Qc5+!! Qxc5 32 d8Q+. They also
pointed out that 27 ... g6 loses simply to 28 Rxd8 Qxd8 29 Qxb5.
28 Nc6 Nd6

27
 Exercise: What’s the fastest conclusion now?

29 Nxd8!
Answer “An elegant concluding stroke” (Kasparov).
29 ... Nxf5 30 Nc6 1-0
There is no defence against 31 Rxf8+, followed by the promotion of the pawn.

Game 2 is brilliant and very instructive. It shows some of the typical motifs of the
position, such as a thematic pawn sacrifice followed by a spectacular attack on the
black king. It’s also very well known for being one of the most astonishing and
effective feats of preparation in the pre-computer age.

Game 2
L.Polugaevsky-M.Tal
USSR Championship, Moscow, 1969
Semi-Tarrasch Defence [D41]

1 c4 Nf6 2 Nc3 e6 3 Nf3 d5 4 d4 c5 5 cxd5 Nxd5 6 e4 Nxc3 7 bxc3 cxd4 8 cxd4

Bb4+ 9 Bd2 Bxd2+ 10 Qxd2 0-0 11 Bc4 Nc6 12 0-0 b6 13 Rad1 Bb7 14 Rfe1
Polugaevsky wrote something that we already know, “This very position was
reached in the 5th game of the 1969 Spassky-Petrosian World Championship Match.
With his unique sense of danger, Petrosian continued here 14 ... Rc8, thereby
avoiding the main threat; although he also got into difficulties after 15 d5 exd5 16
Bxd5, and was unable to save the game. Many of the commentators on this game,

28
 1 Typical Structures

including Mikhail Tal, recommended that the bishop should be driven from c4 by
the immediate 14 ... Na5, or after 14 ... Rc8 15 d5 Na5.”
14 ... Na5
And so Tal continues with what he and the commentators believed was the
correct move order. The knight plans to get back into play via c4.
Polugaevsky commented, “Of course, they were not to know that we had
analyzed this continuation in Dubna, where simultaneously with Spassky I had been
preparing for my match against Aleksandr Zaitsev for the title of USSR Champion.
Incidentally, on completing our joint analysis, Boris and I agreed that either of us had
the right to employ it at the first convenient opportunity.”
15 Bd3 Rc8

White has various possibilities. One that seems logical is to transfer his queen to
the kingside with 16 Qf4, although after 16 ... Nc4 it’s necessary to meet the threat
of 17 ... Nb2. White also has to think about how to respond to 17 ... b5, 17 ... Qf6,
etc.
The Dubna analyses took a more concrete path
16 d5! exd5
Later 16 ... Qd6 and 16 ... Qe7 were tried but, of course, seen for the first time,
the first line to consider is the capture on d5, especially since it’s not obvious how
White can justify his advance.
17 e5!
“It was with this unexpected-pawn sacrifice that we associated the whole of our
subsequent analysis. White plays for a direct attack, which it is hardly possible to
parry.” (Polugaevsky)

29
 This idea became standard. It’s reminiscent of the thematic pawn sacrifice in the
Benoni, where White, with his pawns of e4 and f4, plays e5! and answers ... dxe5
with f5.
In both cases the black piece nullified by the pawn sacrifice is the fianchettoed
bishop, the g7-bishop in the Benoni and here the b7-bishop. White also gains the use
of a strong central square, d4 in this case, enabling the manoeuvre Nd4-f5. Here the
sacrifice also has the virtue of bringing the d3-bishop to life.
Another factor to consider is that the a5-knight and b7-bishop can’t easily come
to the defence of Black’s castled position
17 ... Nc4
Naturally Black wants to give the lie to the idea that his queenside pieces can take
no part in the struggle. White had several ideas, 18 Qf4, 18 Nd4 and primarily 18
Ng5. The move played reduces White’s options.
18 Qf4!

The queen goes to the kingside, with the idea of 19 Ng5, which is logical, but it’s
a move which can only be made after careful analysis, as it apparently allows the
exchange of the strong bishop, which is a key piece in the attack.
18 ... Nb2?!
This is the first move to consider. The position was later analysed in depth. There
are many alternatives.
Looking at the continuation of the game, a move to consider is 18 ... h6, but
after 19 Qf5 g6 20 Qg4, White has multiple threats, e.g. 21 Bxg6, and 21 e6, 21
Nd4, not to mention 21 h4 and h5, and the attack persists.
One defence suggested was 18 ... Rc6, when both Polugaevsky and Kasparov
mainly analysed 19 Nd4 and 19 Nd5.

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 1 Typical Structures

Modern engines (mid-2018) find a stronger continuation with 19 Bxh7+! Kxh7

20 Ng5+ Kg8 21 e6! Rxe6 22 Rxe6 fxe6 23 Qh4 and White’s attack gives him a clear
advantage, e.g. 23 ... Rf6 24 Qh7+ Kf8 25 Qh8+ Ke7 26 Qxg7+ Kg8 27 Qxb7.
There are other moves to consider, such as 18 ... g6, which looks dubious, but
after 19 Qh6 f5 there is compensation for the weakness and Black has defensive
chances.
Other moves are available; the engines suggest 18 ... f6 and 18 ... Qe7 in order,
after 19 Nd4, to play 19 ... g6 in better circumstances than 18 ... g6.
These are the complications that Ponomariov sought to avoid with 13 Rfe1,
followed by d5. With the white rook no longer being on d1, the move ... Nb2 makes
no sense.
19 Bxh7+!
The engines now quickly see that this version of the “Greek gift” sacrifice is
decisive, which doesn’t take any merit away from Polugaevsky, who found it many
years before analysis engines came on the scene.
19 ... Kxh7 20 Ng5+ Kg6
In the event of 20 ... Kg8 21 Qh4 Black has to give up his queen to avoid mate,
without sufficient compensation.

Polugaevsky wrote, “The first impression is that nothing comes of White’s attack,
but he has at his disposal a prepared move of terrible strength.”.

Exercise: Without preparation, but knowing that there is a strong

continuation, are you able to find it?

Answer:

31
 21 h4!!
“This is the point of the combination. Of course, to find the whole of the
subsequent lengthy variation was possible only with prepared analysis. I think it was
only here that Tal realized he was battling under unequal conditions but there was
already no way out. Hanging over the black king is the threat of 22 h5+! Kxh5 23
g4+ Kg6 24 Qf5 + Kh6 25 Qh7+ Kxg5 26 Qh5+ Kf4 27 Qf5+. 21 ... f5 fails to save
Black due to 22 Rd4!, with the same idea of 23 h5 + or 23 Qg3. His reply is
therefore forced ... ” (Polugaevsky).
21 ... Rc4
If 21 ... f5 then 22 Rd4! is decisive, with the idea of 23 h5+, as well as the quieter
23 Re3, intending Rg3.
“Neither does 21 ... Qd7 defend, because of 22 e6! fxe6 23 Qg4 Rf6 24 Nxe6+
Kh6 25 Re5 g6 26 Qg5+” (Polugaevsky).
22 h5+
Still following his analysis, White gains an advantage. The engines also suggest 22
Rd4 as well as a move they consider to be much stronger, 22 Qg3, with ideas of 23
e6 or attacking the knight with 23 Rb1 or 21 Rd2, but obviously over the board
these ideas are difficult to consider as a first choice.
22 ... Kh6
Forced. 22 ... Kxh5? 23 g4+ leads to mate, as we have seen.
23 Nxf7+ Kh7 24 Qf5+ Kg8 25 e6!

“I reached this position in my analysis that morning, prior to the game. And yet
25 moves have already been made! Now on 25 ... Qe7 the piquant 26 h6! is decisive
(26 ... Rh4 27 Rd4!). In addition, Black was on the threshold of severe time trouble,

32
 1 Typical Structures

whereas White had spent literally only a few minutes, and most of those on the first
few moves.” (Polugaevsky)
“Glancing at this position, I could not believe my eyes. It had been reached that
morning on Polugaevsky’s board in his hotel room! His analytical work in this
variation resembles the best examples of Botvinnik’s work.” (Geller)
25 ... Qf6!
The best defence, 25 ... Nxd1? is refuted with 26 e7 Qe8 27 exf8Q+ Qxf8 28
Nh6+! gxh6 29 Qg6+ and 30 Re8.
26 Qxf6 gxf6 27 Rd2!
27 Nd6? fails to 27 ... Nxd1 28 e7 and now 28 ... Rc1! is the only move, after
which White has many possibilities but none which achieve any advantage.
27 ... Rc6!
Once again the best defence. If 27 ... Na4 then 28 Nd6! is strong, while after 28
... Bc6 29 e7 Re8 30 Nxe8 Bxe8 31 Rxd5 the two passed pawns on e7 and h4 give
White the advantage.
Against 27 ... Rb4 the strongest is 28 e7! Kxf7 29 exf8Q+ Kxf8 and now for
instance 30 a3!, disturbing the black rook, and after 30 ... Rb3 31 h6 there is no time
for 31 ... Nc5 because of 32 h7 Kg7 33 Re7+ Kh8 34 Rd4 and Rg4.
28 Rxb2 Re8
Another defence was 28 ... Bc8, when Polugaevsky pointed out the line 29 Nh6+
Kh7 30 Nf5 Rxe6 31 Rc1 and White, dominating the c-file and with his passed
pawn and agile knight, is better. If 31 ... Kg8 the strongest seems to be 32 f3 (with
the idea of Nd4) when 32 ... Re5 is answered with 33 Nh4!, with advantage.
29 Nh6+! Kh7 30 Nf5 Rexe6 31 Rxe6 Rxe6
Here too Black has won back his pawn, but White’s pieces are better and the
passed pawn is very strong, hindering Black’s coordination.
32 Rc2
White wants to infiltrate with his rook. Another idea was to play 32 f3, planning
Kf2, and possibly g4 also on the agenda.
32 ... Rc6 33 Re2! Bc8
If 33 ... Rc7 White can still invade advantageously with 34 Re6.

33
 34 Re7+! Kh8
Retreating to this square lends more force to White’s following knight move, but
after 34 ... Kg8 35 Nh4 Rc1+ (or 35 ... f5 36 Rxa7 d4 37 Kf1 and Black’s
counterplay is at an end) 36 Kh2 Rc4 White has 37 g3! (better than 37 Ng6 Bf5 or
even 37 f4! Rxf4 38 Ng6) followed by 38 h6, not forgetting a timely Rxa7 capture.
35 Nh4! f5 36 Ng6+ Kg8 37 Rxa7 1-0

In Game 3, in contrast to the two preceding games, Black managed to prevent the
central break, then neutralise White’s kingside attack and finally realise his queenside
majority.

Game 3
S.Mamedyarov-Ding Liren
FIDE Candidates, Berlin 2018
Semi-Tarrasch Defence [D41]

1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nf3 d5 4 Nc3 c5 5 cxd5 Nxd5 6 e4 Nxc3 7 bxc3 cxd4 8 cxd4

Bb4+ 9 Bd2 Bxd2+ 10 Qxd2 0-0 11 Bc4 Nd7 12 0-0 b6

34
 1 Typical Structures

13 Rad1

Question: What? Wasn’t 13 a4 the most appropriate way to punish the knight
coming out to d7?

Answer: Yes, you’re right. As the winner pointed out, “13 a4 is considered as the
main line, but hard to get any advantage.” So instead of going into terrain where
White is better but Black is difficult to break down, White is trying to focus on the
centre (the d5-break) and the kingside.
It’s notable that Black didn’t start with 11 ... b6 and 12 ... Bb7, showing that he
doesn’t fear the advance of the white a-pawn. Black is willing to acquiesce to the
creation of an isolated pawn on the queenside, thinking that it’s not a serious
problem. This is an idea that has been employed by, among others, Korchnoi,
Carlsen and especially Kramnik.
After 13 a4 play can continue 13 ... Bb7 14 Rfe1, and now instead of other
moves such as 14 ... Rc8, 14 ... Nf6, etc., Kramnik came up with 14 ... Rb8, which
plans to respond to 15 a5 with 15 ... b5! when 16 Bxb5?! Bxe4 gives White nothing,
so Black has time to play 16 ... a6, avoiding the creation of a weak pawn.

Question: Even so, I’m surprised that Black submissively accepts something
which is rather inferior.

Answer: In reality Black counts on White choosing another option if he wants to

win. Possibly before the computer age it would not have been played by such strong
players, or, as Giri put it, “One other well-known plan is a4-a5 with the rook on a1,

35
but lately Black seems to have gotten that under control, mostly due to the fact that
the engines have shown that the pawn sortie is not as dangerous as previous engines
have been showing.” He closes with the sarcastic remark “so romantic.”
13 ... Bb7 14 Rfe1 Rc8
The bishop must now decide which diagonal to occupy, which affects his future
plans.
15 Bb3

White opts for the most usual idea nowadays; the bishop on b3 will provide a
boost to the eventual d5-break.
Instead, one of the aims of 15 Bd3 is to target h7, so it’s hardly surprising that
one of the main replies is 15 ... Re8, which, among other things, allows an eventual
... Nf8.
15 ... Re8

Question: Here as well? What’s the purpose in this case?

Answer: Black doesn’t face any concrete threat, therefore he has various
acceptable possibilities, such as 15 ... Qf6, with the idea of ... Rfd8. Naturally Black
doesn’t fear 16 e5, opening the long diagonal of the b7-bishop.
Also popular is 15 ... h6, controlling g5, with the plan of ... Qc7 and ... Rfd8,
etc. Then 16 Qf4 could be answered with 16 ... Qf6.
15 ... Nf6 can met by 16 d5 exd5 17 exd5 and 18 d6, (17 ... Qd6?! 18 Nd4!)
consistent with the idea of 15 Bb3.
Black’s move postpones a decision about where to place the knight and it reduces
the impact of 16 d5 by controlling the e-file. The continuation would be 16 ... exd5

36
 1 Typical Structures

17 exd5 Nc5 and the knight has the bishop in its sights. Then 18 d6 Bxf3! 19 Rxe8+
(or 19 gxf3 Qd7) 19 ... Qxe8 20 gxf3 and now the most precise move seems to be 20
... Qc6, trying to disrupt the coordination of the white pieces. For exmaple after 21
Kg2 Qd7 21 Re1 Ne6 22 f4 Rc5 the white king is a bit more exposed on g2 than on
g1.
16 h3
White also responds with a useful waiting move. In general it’s advisable to give
the king some luft, but here it also specifically provides a retreat square for the white
queen, as occurs in the game. Another idea which can often be used in similar
positions is Re3, with the idea of moving the knight at an appropriate moment and
playing Rg3.
16 ... Nf6 17 Qf4
It’s likely that in their preparation both players discovered that 17 d5 brings no
advantage in view of 17 ... exd5 18 exd5 Rxe1+ 19 Qxe1 Qd6 (not 19 ... Nxd5? due
to 20 Qe5 Rc5 21 Ng5, followed by Ne4 and Nc3, as Ding Liren pointed out) 20
Nd4 g6 (20 ... Re8, intending 21 ... Ne4, is also playable) 21 Nb5 Qc5 22 Nxa7 Re8
23 Qd2, and now ...

Exercise: How does Black win back his pawn?

Answer: With the pleasing sequence 23 ... Bxd5! 24 Bxd5 Nxd5 25 Qxd5 Re1+!
26 Kh2 Rxd1 27 Qxd1 Qc7+ and 28 ... Qxa7.
With the move played White prepares the thematic idea 18 d5 exd5 19 e5,
followed by Nd4, which would follow 17 ... h6?! for instance.
17 ... Nh5
Proposing a repetition. To avoid it White must withdraw his queen to a less
active square.
18 Qh2
After 18 Qe5 Nf6 the queen is not well situated on e5 to be able to play d5 and
White doesn’t appear to have any more useful move than 19 Qf4.

Question: But isn’t it rather unambitious to aspire only to repeat moves, even
when playing with Black?

Answer: It may seem so, but firstly Black isn’t forced to play 19 ... Nh5 and if he
wants to continue playing for a win he can play 19 ... Qc7, answering 20 Qh4 with

37
20 ... h6.
Secondly, we shouldn’t ignore the practical element. This game was played in the
twelfth round of the Candidates tournament. Mamedyarov was on ‘plus two’ and was
aiming for first place, for which he needed to get at least one and possibly two wins
in the last three rounds, which ruled out agreeing to a draw without a fight in this
game. Meanwhile Ding Liren, in spite of fighting fiercely, had drawn all eleven of his
games so far.
18 ... h6
A useful waiting move, which we already know is an option to be considered.
Black gives his king an escape hole on h7 and controls g5.
19 Ne5
Threatening 20 Nc4 and also with 20 d5 in his sights. In addition it clears the
third rank, enabling the eventual transfer of a rook to the kingside via d3 or e3.
Only here did the game diverge from what was at the time the ‘last word’ in this
variation. In the fifth round of this 2018 Candidates tournament, W.So-V.Kramnik
continued 19 d5 exd5 20 exd5 Rxe1+ 21 Nxe1 Qf6 22 Nd3, when Black replied
with the accurate 22 ... Ba6! and after 23 Qe5 Bxd3 24 Qxh5 Bc2 he had no
problems.

Question: In this line, instead of 20 exd5, wasn’t it good to carry out the same
thematic pawn sacrifice that we saw earlier, with 20 e5, threatening 21 g4,
followed by Nd4?

Answer: It’s playable, but the white pieces are not active enough for it to be
dangerous. Black would play 20 ... g6, preparing the retreat of the knight to g7, from
where it controls e6.
In fact that was exactly what happened in a subsequent game between the same
opponents: S.Mamedyarov-Ding Liren, Batumi Olympiad 2018 continued 20 e5 g6
21 Nd4 Ng7 22 Nb5 Nf5 23 g4 a6 24 Qf4 axb5 25 gxf5 Qg5+ 26 Qxg5 hxg5 27 f6,
and White gained a slight advantage (the game was drawn in 54 moves). Instead of
21 ... Ng7 it seems more precise to play 21 ... a6! first.
19 ... Nf6
The knight returns to the centre, attacking e4 and parrying for the time being the
two threats mentioned, 20 d5 and 20 Nc4.
20 Qf4

38
 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: How did Black respond? (Remember the typical plans; check that
it’s tactically correct though!)

Answer: 20 ... b5!

A move which not only prevents the main threat, 21 Nc4, which also exploits
one of the advantages of the black position by setting in motion the queenside pawn
majority. The ... a5-a4 advance is planned as soon as possible.
As we noted earlier, this is a move which could be considered ideal, since it makes
progress with Back’s own plans while simultaneously hindering the opponent’s plans.
But before playing this Black needed to recognise that it weakens c5; he also had to
take into account the possibility of the sacrifice 21 Nxf7 Kxf7 22 e5.
21 Re3
The rook is heading for g3.
21 Nxf7 Kxf7 22 e5 wasn’t dangerous as Black can play 21 ... a5!, continuing the
idea begun with 20 ... b5. He threatens 21 ... a4, so White must act quickly. After 23
exf6 Qxf6 24 Qd2 Black can play 24 ... a4 25 Bc2 Qg5, with an excellent position,
while the incursion 24 Qd6 Rc6! 25 Qd7+ achieves little after 25 ... Qe7 26 Qxe7+
Kxe7 27 d5?! Rd6, followed by ... a4.
21 ... Rc7
Defending f7 and preventing 22 Rg3 due to 22 ... Nh5. It was possible to play
21 ... Qc7 with the same idea, intending to answer 22 d5 with 22 ... Rcd8 and the
advance of the pawn to d5 has achieved little.
22 Nd3

39
 Here 22 d5 can be answered with 22 ... exd5 23 exd5 (or 23 Bxd5 Bxd5 24 exd5)
and now our familiar blockading resource 23 ... Qd6!, intending to apply pressure to
the d5-pawn. The queen is once again a good blockader.
22 ... Rc3
“I want to exchange a pair of rooks to release the pressure on the kingside”,
commented Ding Liren.
23 Nc5
White can continue with the plan to transfer his rook to the kingside, but only at
a price. After 23 e5 Nd5 24 Bxd5 Bxd5 25 Rg3, Black can play 25 ... Kf8! when 26
Qg4 allows 26 ... Qg5!, with excellent play.
23 ... Rxe3 24 Qxe3
Not 24 Nxb7? because of 24 ... Rxe4.
24 ... Bc6
Ding Liren commented that “with the knight on c5, I have to beware of the
potential e4-e5 (which would be answered with ... Nd5) followed by Ne4.”
25 Rc1 Qb6 26 f3
As Ding Liren pointed out, with this move it becomes clear that White is
abandoning the plan of playing e5. After strengthening the defence of e4 one idea is
to begin an attack on the kingside with g4.

Exercise: What would Ding Liren have played after 26 e5 Nd5 27 Qg3?

Answer: 27 ... Ne7!, preventing the plan of Ne4-d6, although after 28 Qg4 Kh8
29 Qf4, it seems best to play 29 ... Kg8, proposing a repetition of moves.
26 ... Rd8
“Improving my position slowly” (Ding Liren).
27 Kf2

40
 1 Typical Structures

Exercise (easy): Now that the placement of the rook has improved, how did
Black continue?

27 ... a5
Answer: Black proceeds with the plan which has been latent right from the very
opening.
It’s important to be on the lookout for tactical blows such as 28 Nxe6, but this
only “leads to a drawish ending 28 ... fxe6 29 Bxe6+ Kf8 30 d5 Qxe3+ 31 Kxe3 Bd7
(31 ... Bxd5 32 Rd1! only gives chances to White) 32 Bxd7 Nxd7 33 Rc7 Ke8 34
Kd4 a4 35 Rb7 Rc8 36 Rxb5 Rc2 37 e5 Rd2+ 38 Ke3 Rxa2 39 e6 Rxg2 40 exd7+
Kxd7”, as Ding Liren pointed out. Current engines see no possibility of
improvement for either side.
28 g4 a4 29 Bc2?!
Ding Liren criticised this natural retreat, after which the white pieces lose some
coordination. He considered that the best square for the bishop was e2 and he
suggested 29 Bd1.

Exercise: How did Black continue to make progress?

29 ... Nd7!
Answer: Proposing the exchange of the strong white knight, which must
acquiesce or retreat.
30 Bd3

41
 Here 30 Nd3 was possible, although after for example 30 ... Bb7 31 Bb1 Rc8!,
the exchange of rooks would not only enhance the value of Black’s queenside
majority but would also reduce White’s attacking potential on the kingside. After 32
Rxc8+ Bxc8, counterplay based on ... Qd6 become possible, with the idea of
invading on h2, which is what would happen of White tries to blockade with 33
Nb4??.
30 ... Nxc5 31 Rxc5

Exercise (easy): How did Black’s plan proceed?

Answer: 31 ... b4
Of course, after the exchange of knights the black pawns advance more easily and
forcefully. The black position is now somewhat preferable and we can add the
practical element to that, as Ding Liren pointed out, “also my opponent was in time
trouble, he had around 15 minutes at that point, while I had 40.”
32 Bc4?!
Ding Liren commented, “It’s understandable that my opponent doesn’t want to
stay passive, but after the text I have many decisive plans to support the pawns, for
example ... Rb8, ... b3 or ... b3 followed by ... a3.”
White’s move lays his cards on the table. He wants to quickly open up the
kingside but now Black’s future passed pawn will increase in power (because the
white bishop no longer controls b1) after the necessary preparation.
Ding Liren also mentioned another possibility: 32 h4 Be8 (the bishop evades the
pressure of the white rook and the black queen gains in mobility; it’s useful for it to
have access to d6) 33 Bb1 b3 34 axb3 axb3 35 Qc3 b2 36 e5, which would provide
greater fighting chances.
32 ... Bd7
The bishop protects e6 in advance and prepares a possible rook exchange with ...
Rc8. Ding Liren pointed out that 32 ... Be8 was also playable, keeping the black rook
active along the d-file, and the engines endorse this. He provided the following
sample line: 33 d5 b3 34 axb3 a3 35 dxe6 a2 36 exf7+ Bxf7 37 Bxf7+ Kh8! 38 Qc3
a1Q 39 Qxa1 Qxc5+ 40 Kg3 Qc7+, winning.
33 g5 hxg5 34 Qxg5

42
 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: We are now in tactical terrain; what is Black’s best response?

34 ... Be8!
Answer: The alternative was the natural 34 ... Rb8, preparing ... b3, but it’s less
clear because of 35 Qe7 Be8 36 Qc7 b3 37 Qxb6 Rxb6 38 axb3 axb3 39 Bd3 b2 40
Bb1.
35 Qe7
Now 35 ... Rb8 would transpose to the previous note, but Black has another
idea.
35 ... b3! 36 axb3 a3!
This is the key. This pawn will lead to a serious material loss for White.
37 b4 Ra8 38 d5
A last attempt to complicate matters, but it won’t succeed.
38 Ba2 would allow 38 ... Qxb4, and there is no defence against so many threats.
After 38 Ra5 Qxd4+ White’s king is so exposed that further resistance is doomed
to failure. Ding Liren gave the line 39 Kg2 Rxa5 40 Qxe8+ Kh7 41 bxa5 Qxc4 42
Qxf7 Qe2+ 43 Kg3 Qe1+ 44 Kg2 Qxa5, preventing the perpetual with Qh5+ and
Qe8+, and Black wins. 39 Kg3 is no better as, although it avoids the previous line by
preventing Black’s check on e2, it allows a devastating attack on the white king after
e.g. 39 ... Qg1+, followed by 40 ... Rb8, when the a3-pawn is immune due to 41 ...
Qc1.
38 ... a2 39 dxe6 a1Q 40 exf7+ Bxf7 41 Bxf7+ Kh7
“It’s important that the c5-rook gets pinned”, wrote Ding Liren.
42 Qh4+ Qh6 43 Rh5

43
 Exercise (easy): With which move did Black force White’s resignation?

Answer: 43 ... Qa7+ 0-1

The only move, but sufficient. Next comes 44 ... Qxf7, but not the careless 43 ...
Qd4+??, since there is no mate and Black’s advantage would evaporate after 44 Kg2
Qdd2+ 45 Qf2.
In Game 4 the position is more simplified, and the black pieces are not very
active, which allows White to carry out a plan which is not available in most
positions arising from this line; that was the start of another original manoeuvre.

Game 4
V.Smyslov-T.Ernst
Subotica Interzonal 1987

White to Play

Black has played his bishop to d7, where naturally it’s not as active as after ... b6
and ... Bb7. That led Smyslov to devise a rather different plan from the usual.
14 e5
Smyslov commented that his advance was “an energetic continuation that secures
White the initiative”.

Question: Why this advance?

44
 1 Typical Structures

Answer: Because at this time Black’s control of d5 is less than “normal”. Smyslov
opts for an exchange of pieces which fixes the black pawn structure, creating an
isolated pawn on d5. He retains an active knight and leaves his opponent with a ‘bad’
bishop.
It’s not a killer plan, far from it and it only provides a slight advantage, but it
leads to a position much to the liking of the seventh world champion.
Smyslov mentioned the alternative 14 d5 exd5 15 exd5 and it’s also possible to
maintain White’s structure with e.g. 14 Ne5 Bc6 15 f3, but neither line is especially
better for White.
14 ... Nd5
Retreating with 14 ... Ne8 would be answered advantageously with 15 d5.
15 Bxd5 exd5 16 Rab1 b6

Exercise: When he played 14 e5 Smyslov intended to continue with a

seemingly modest move, but one with an annoying plan in mind. What was it?

17 h3!
Answer: This is how Smyslov described this move, “A subtle positional move,
preparing the knight manoeuvre f3-h2-g4 or, depending on the circumstances, via f1
to e3.”
17 ... Rc8 18 Nh2 Ba4?!
Black doesn’t stand badly but he fails to find a way of opposing White’s gradual
progress. The threat of ... Rc2 is easily prevented and White has no reason to fear
subsequent exchanges on the c-file.
19 Rbc1 Bb5

45
 This was Black’s idea. Now that the white rook has been diverted from b1, Black
begins a plan to try to exploit his queenside pawn majority.
If 19 ... Qd7 instead, Smyslov gave the variation 20 Ng4 Rxc1 21 Rxc1 Rc8 22
Rxc8+ Qxc8 23 Qg5, with advantage to White.
We can see that White wasn’t at all troubled by the possibility of exchanging all
the rooks on the c-file, as this would leave him with the dangerous duo of Q+N
versus Q+B, as well as a mobile kingside majority.
20 Ng4 Bc4
“The bishop has taken up a favourable position for the advance of the a- and b-
pawns. However, White’s attack on the kingside proves more dangerous.” (Smyslov).

Exercise: The plan of attacking on the kingside consists of two specific moves.
What would you play?

21 Rc3
Answer: Of course; the rook heads for the kingside.
21 ... b5 22 Rg3 Kh8

Exercise (easy): How did Smyslov continue now?

23 f4
Answer: Crystal clear. This is the other necessary move. In order for the attack to
be able to proceed, the help of the kingside pawn majority is also required.
23 ... a5

46
 1 Typical Structures

On an attempt to disorganise White’s attack with 23 ... Qh4, Smyslov indicated

24 Kh2 h5 and now the black counterattack fails to 25 Ne3, planning to play 26 Nf5
or 26 f5, as 25 ... Qxf4? loses to 26 Nxc4.
24 f5 b4 25 f6
“White is the first to create real threats.” (Smyslov)
25 ... Rg8 26 Qf4!
Complete harmony. The queen moves closer to the enemy king. The direct 26
fxg7+ Rxg7 27 Nh6, planning Rf3 and a timely e6, was also strong. We should note
that Black’s bishop is out of play, neither able to assist the defence of the kingside,
nor to do much in support of a black offensive on the opposite flank.
26 ... Bxa2
If 26 ... Rc7 then 27 e6 fxe6 28 Rxe6 “with a very strong attack” (Smyslov); in
fact it’s irresistible, as the engines indicate.
If 26 ... gxf6 the most crushing continuation is 27 Nh6!, gaining a decisive
material advantage; if 27 ... Rf8 then 28 Qg4 wins.
27 e6!
The quickest.
27 ... fxe6 28 Ne5 1-0
Threatening not only 29 Nf7++, but also 29 Ng6+ hxg6 30 Qh4+.

In Game 5 White also had to resort to a risky manoeuvre with his centre. Objectively
it gave no advantage, but it did maintain the tension and kept pressure on the black
position. Black didn’t defend in the best way and White was able to create a passed
pawn in the centre, which gave him an advantage. The position continued to be
complex, leading to errors, and the result of the struggle remained uncertain for a
good while.

Game 5
L.Aronian-V.Kramnik
Alekhine Memorial Paris/St Petersburg 2013

47
 White to Play

Here Black has good control of d5 and there is no great advantage for either side.

Exercise: What would you play here?

15 e5
Answer: Aronian decided to take concrete measures, “Now White threatens to
transfer his knight to d6”, he wrote. The price is abandoning the d5-square, but of
course that’s less important than a knight situated on d6.
15 ... Bxf3
An important decision. It cost Kramnik a lot of time but it seems acceptable.
After 15 ... h6 White plays 16 Nd2, following the plan of settling on d6. Black could
still prevent this with 16 ... Bd5, but then he would end up exchanging bishop for
knight under worse conditions than in the game, since the weakness of his kingside
would be obvious after 17 Ne4 Bxe4 18 Qxe4 g6.
16 Qxf3 Qh4
“Black tries to develop harmoniously by tempo-gaining play”, wrote Aronian.
17 Qe3
Played after thinking for half an hour. “I decided to follow an active plan”,
commented Aronian.

Question: To me 17 Bb5, which forces 17 ... Nb8, seems strong. Why did
Aronian
not play this?

48
 1 Typical Structures

Answer: During his long think, Aronian naturally considered this possibility and
he commented: “Of course, I wanted to drive the knight back to b8 with 17 Bb5”,
but after 18 Qe3 Qe7 19 f4 g6 ... ”I still don’t know how then to continue to play for
an advantage”.
17 ... Rfd8

The natural follow-up to his previous move; Black is planning ... Nf8-g6.
Aronian made reference to the fact that, “It’s interesting that many computer
programs want to play ... g6 as Black at various points, completely depriving Black’s
previous play of any momentum” which demonstrates the difference in viewpoint
between a top grandmaster and a computer (at the start of 2019). The latter sees
nothing concrete here and is not afraid of being left without counterplay, something
which is unacceptable to a very strong human player.

Exercise: What plan did Aronian have in mind when he played 17 Qe3?

Answer:
18 f4
This is how Aronian explained it: “White’s main idea is to exchange his f-pawn
for the e-pawn and obtain a passed d-pawn”, and he pointed out a factor which made
the plan more dangerous to Black: “This is a very concrete idea, associated with the
temporarily bad position of the enemy knight”.
18 ... Nf8

Exercise: The position continues to be equal, but this logical move is an error,

49
 at least from a tactical point of view. How did White seek to take advantage of it?

19 Rxc8 Rxc8 20 f5
Answer: “Now Black falls into problems which are hard to resolve over the
board” (Aronian). Going back, it was more accurate to play 18 ... Rxc1 19 Rxc1 and
only then, after deflecting the white rook from the f-file, play 19 ... Nf8, as both
players pointed out.
20 ... exf5?!
This certainly can be criticised, because it gives White what he wanted, i.e. the d-
pawn becomes a passer, without giving Black any possibility of becoming active.
Logically this is something that Kramnik was aware of but, as is almost always the
case, it was caused by an error in evaluation due to a tactical oversight. Best was 20 ...
Rd8!
During the game Aronian also thought so and after 20 ... Rd8, he commented,
“the cold 21 Rf4 is less effective, because with the subtle 21 ... Qg5, with the idea of
22 h4 Qh6, Black prevents the advance g4. I was prepared to fight for the advantage
with 21 Be4, although I realised that my task would be more complicated then.”
Let’s look a little further. After 21 Be4 exf5 22 Rxf5 Qg4 23 Rf1 (not 23 d5?
Rxd5) 23 ... Ng6, Black has good counterplay since the white pawns are not secure
enough to give him any advantage.
21 Bxf5 Rd8

Exercise: Which move did Black underestimate?

22 Rd1
Answer: Now White has a lasting advantage. This is an obvious move, after
which White can prepare the d5-advance under good conditions.
22 ... Ng6

50
 1 Typical Structures

With the idea of ... Nf4 or ... Ne7, after which the knight would return to the
fray.
23 Bxg6

Question: What? Exchanging the bishop? Is this really best?

Answer: Let’s hear from Aronian, “This decision may not be strongest, but it’s
easy to understand from the practical viewpoint. Because is there anything nicer in
the world than to play a position in which the opponent has absolutely no
counterplay?”
23 ... hxg6 24 d5 Qc4 25 d6
And so White has made progress with his passed pawn, although he needed to be
aware that it comes at the cost of sacrificing his a2-pawn and it required prior
calculation.
25 ... Qe6
But it wasn’t easy for Black to opt for 25 ... Qxa2, since the queen would be out
of play, at least for the moment. White would reply 26 Qg5, forcing the sad move 26
... f6 (26 ... Rd7 fails to 27 Rc1) and after 27 exf6 Qf7 28 fxg7 “with such a king,
defending will be virtually impossible” notes Aronian.
26 Qg3 b5
Having restrained the advance of White’s d-pawn, Black sets his queenside
majority in motion.
27 h3
A good preparatory move, which facilitates a timely invasion of the black camp.
27 ... a6

51
 Question: Why so slow? Could he not play 27 ... b4 immediately?

Answer: I’ll answer that question with another ...

Exercise: What had Aronian planned in that case?

Answer: He intended to play 28 Qg5 and after 28 ... f6 29 exf6 Rxd6?! (29 ...
Qxf6 is better, but the passed d-pawn still give White the advantage) 30 f7+! and
after 30 ... Kxf7 31 Qf4+ Ke7 32 Qxb4 Aronian notes, “I thought it would be
impossible to defend such a position, with an exposed king on e7.”
28 Qe3
White is better, but there is no immediate win and White must reckon with
Black playing the ... f6-break after suitable preparation. With the text White seeks an
exchange of queens, which would have left the passed d-pawn as a decisive force.
Aronian’s move was inaccurate and later he suggested a waiting move such as 28 Kh1,
and “Black is in zugzwang, since after 28 ... Rd7 there is (28 ... f6 29 exf6 Qxf6 30
d7) 29 Rc1 and any other move so weakens Black’s position, that the realisation of
White’s advantage becomes easier.”
28 ... Rd7
A necessary precaution before playing ... f6, which if played right away would be
answered with 29 Qb6, when both black queenside pawns fall.
29 Qc5

29 ... Kh7?
“The only chance to continue the fight was 29 ... f6” (Aronian).

52
 1 Typical Structures

Question: I’m not Aronian, but it seems fairly obvious, doesn’t it?

Answer: It’s not so simple. It requires tactical justification and let’s see how
Aronian explained it, “To play this, one must see what we both missed! It turns out
that after 30 exf6 gxf6 31 Qc8+ Black loses the a6-pawn and after 31 ... Kg7 32
Qxa6 Qe2 33 Rb1 has a difficult ending” but there was something hidden which was
hard to spot over the board and with little time.
The hidden resource was 32 ... Qe3+ 33 Kh1 Qc5, “drawing, since the white
queen is absolutely helpless and the pawn on d6 is not going anywhere” (Aronian).
Aronian also wrote that he would have had to respond to 29 ... f6 with 30 exf6
gxf6 31 Qc6, “with an advantage which, with correct play, should not be enough to
win.”
30 Qd5
Black can’t exchange queens and now, with the white queen centralised, the game
is decided. But ... there are always chances, as we know, thanks to Emanuel Lasker.
30 ... Qe8

Exercise (easy): How did White continue?

31 Rc1
Answer: Of course, thanks to the dominant queen, the rook is now free to seek
activity, but we must take into account that this might leave the back rank weak.
31 ... Qd8 32 Rc6
This parries the threat of 32 ... f6 and threatens 33 Rxa6.
32 ... Qg5 33 Qd4 Rd8 34 Rc5?
“Remarkable carelessness!” wrote Aronian. 34 Rc7, or the cautious 34 Kh2, were
winning.

53
 Exercise: What was the defensive resource that White’s last move inadvertently
allowed?

34 ... Qg3?
Answer: Black fails to find the hidden defensive measure. The correct move was
34 ... f6! which looks dreadful because of 35 e6, but after the surprising 35 ... Qg3!
White can’t defend against the two threats 36 ... Qe1+ and 36 ... Rxd6.
Aronian indicated that White should probably play 35 Kh2, although after 35 ...
fxe5 36 Rxe5 Qf6 37 Rd5, White’s winning chances are more practical than real.
Black could play 37 ... Qxd4 38 Rxd4 Kg8.
35 Qf2
The simplest, attacking f7 and forcing the exchange of queens, after which there
is no longer any possibility of resistance.
35 ... Qxf2+ 36 Kxf2 f6 37 Rc6
“The attractive 37 Rc8 was also possible, but as Tal once sadly pointed out, you
only get one point for each victory” (Aronian).
37 ... fxe5 38 Ke3 Kg8 39 Ke4 Kf7 40 Kd5
Of course the obvious 40 Kxe5 wins, but what Aronian chose to play is just as
strong.
40 ... a5 41 Rc5 b4
41 ... e4 is answered with 42 Rc7 and 43 Re7. The rest is very simple.
42 Rxa5 Kf6 43 Ra7 Rb8 44 Kc6 b3 45 axb3 Rxb3 46 Ra8 Rc3+ 47 Kd7 e4
48 Rf8+ Kg5 49 Ke7 e3 50 d7 e2 51 d8Q e1Q+ 52 Kd6+ Qe7+ 1-0

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 1 Typical Structures

This chapter is about structures, which means that the isolated queen’s pawn (the
IQP), one of the most studied typical structures, can’t be ignored. The general rule is
that in the middlegame the player who has the IQP has more space and greater
mobility, thanks in part to the central pawn, whereas in an ending the weakness of
the isolated pawn carries more weight. Much has been written about typical isolated
d-pawn positions; for instance, one good book is Winning Pawn Structures by
Alexander Baburin.

Game 6 provides an example which is very well known, not only for its competitive
significance, but also for its instructional value. Black fights against the isolated
pawn, changes the structure at move 20 and finally methodicallly exploits White’s
passive play.

Game 6
E.Lasker-J.R.Capablanca
World Championship, Havana (m/10), 1921

Black to Play

Black has a satisfactory isolated queen’s pawn position. White has a strong knight
on e5 but has no way at the moment to increase the pressure on Black’s castled
position. Black has good development and only needs to control d5 adequately in
order to prevent an eventual d5-advance by White. This break is always latent in
such positions. Here, however, Capablanca committed an error.
15 ... Bb5

55
 Black wants to play ... Nbd5, but this is impossible at the moment because of 16
Nxd7, winning a piece. So he prepares it by moving the bishop, gaining a tempo by
attacking the rook, but this is at the cost of reducing his control over the d5-square.
Capablanca was naturally aware of this, but his calculations indicated that it wasn’t
relevant. In fact, though, his move is a tactical error. As Capablanca pointed out,
strengthening the control of d5 with the natural 15 ... Bc6, “threatening ... Bd5,
would have given Black an excellent game”.
16 Rfe1 Nbd5
Kasparov commented, “Lasker’s next move shows that the typical methods of
playing positions with an isolated d-pawn had not yet been mastered.” This
comment surprised me, because it could be taken as an underestimation of Lasker’s
playing strength (which is not the case in Kasparov’s book My Great Predecessors,
Volume 1).
Of course, in 1921 there were fewer examples available of games with an IQP,
but Lasker had already played a number of games with this structure and his
handling of it was always worthy of study. Apparently it was once again a calculation
issue. Lasker didn’t notice that he had a stronger continuation.
17 Bxd5?
This exchange leads to a comfortable position for Black. It was later shown that
the correct continuation was the one given by Breyer, i.e. 17 Bxf6! Bxf6 18 Bxd5
exd5 and now 19 Qf5!, when Black must find a most precise defence. Following a
great deal of analysis, this is thought to be 19 ... Bxe5! then after 20 dxe5 the most
precise defence of the d5-pawn is 20 ... Bc4!, leaving c6 free, in order to be able to
manoeuvre along the third rank with ... Rc6, without ruling out counterattack with
... b5 and ... b4.
If White recaptures with a piece, 20 Rxe5, Black again has 20 ... Bc4 (planning
21 ... Qb4, and a more active defence than 20 ... Bc6) 21 a3 Qb6 22 Rd2 Rce8 and
Black can hold the position.
17 ... Nxd5 18 Bxe7 Nxe7 19 Qb3 Bc6!
Not fearing the exchange that follows. Instead, 19 ... Ba6 would allow 20 Ne4.
Capablanca mentioned the manoeuvre 20 Nd7, followed by Nc5, but after 20 ...
Rfd8 21 Nc5 Black seems to stand well with 21 ... b6.
20 Nxc6 bxc6
Now Black also has an isolated pawn on c6. It’s a weakness, but it’s easily
defended and it strengthens Black’s control of the d5-square.
21 Re5

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 1 Typical Structures

Kasparov himself gives a possible explanation of Lasker’s play at this stage,

“Apparently Lasker, true to his match strategy, didn’t object to a draw, and thought
that the weakness on d4 would be offset by the weakness on c6”. However, later he
warns, “But, as becomes clear, the d-pawn is weaker and it’s not so simple for White
to draw.”
21 ... Qb6 22 Qc2 Rfd8

23 Ne2?
The immediate 23 Rc5? was impossible due to 23 ... Rxd4!, but both champions
were in agreement about what Lasker should play, “The rook went to e5 to control
c5, therefore 23 Na4 was the right move.” (Lasker)
“Probably White’s first mistake. He wants to take a good defensive position, but
he should instead have counterattacked with 23 Na4 and Rc5.” (Capablanca)
23 ... Rd5! 24 Rxd5 cxd5
“Black has now the open file and his left side pawn position is very solid, while
White has a weak d-pawn. The apparently weak Black a-pawn is not actually weak
because White has no way to attack it” (Capablanca).
25 Qd2 Nf5 26 b3
As Capablanca pointed out this prevents ... Rc4 and frees the queen from the
defence of the b-pawn. However, Lasker was of the opinion that 26 g3 was better.

57
 26 ... h5

Question: Why is Black taking action on the kingside? Isn’t it more logical to
play
on the other flank?

Answer: That will come later. capablanca explained it like this, “in order to
prevent g2-g4 at a later stage” and added, “also to make a demonstration on the
kingside, preparatory to further operations on the other side.”
27 h3?
Another concession. Lasker’s comment was, “A completely bad move, allowing
Black to paralyse the white pawns.” 27 Ng3 was preferable, although after 27 ...
Nxg3 28 hxg3 Qc7, “White, with his weak pawns, would all the same have faced a
cheerless defence.” (Kasparov).
27 ... h4!
To tie up White’s kingside. Later on it will be seen that White is compelled to
play g2-g4 and thus further weaken his game.
28 Qd3 Rc6 29 Kf1 g6 30 Qb1 Qb4 31 Kg1

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: How did Black continue?

31 ... a5!
Answer: Now that the kingside has been fixed advantageously it’s time for Black
to act on the queenside. “This decides the outcome. From here and to the end of the
game Black plays with merciless consistency. Casablanca’s style is irreproachable”
(Lasker).
32 Qb2 a4
“Now Black exchanges the pawn and leaves White with a weak, isolated b-pawn,
which will fall sooner or later” (Capablanca).
33 Qd2 Qxd2 34 Rxd2 axb3 35 axb3

Exercise: Black is better, but in order to increase the advantage it’s now necessary
to resort to tactics, in order to make even slight progress. What did Capablanca play?

35 ... Rb6!
Answer: As Capablanca notes, “In order to force Rd3 and thus prevent the white
rook from supporting his b-pawn by Rb2 later on. It means practically tying up the
white rook to the defence of his two weak pawns.”
36 Rd3
The key point about the intermediate move 35 ... Rb6 is that now 36 Rb2? is
answered with 36 ... Rb4, winning a pawn .
36 ... Ra6! 37 g4

59
 White can no longer mark time, as otherwise the breakthrough of the rook is
decisive, e.g. 37 Nc3 Ra1+ 38 Kh2 Rc1 39 b4 Rc2 40 Kg1 Rb2 41 b5 Rb4. But now
too Black gradually wins material.
37 ... hxg3 38 fxg3
38 Nxg3 Ra1+ 39 Kg2 is no better. Black can play 39 ... Nh4+ 40 Kh2 g5 and
White is almost in zugzwang, while Black can continue with ... Rb1 or else activate
his king, and White is powerless.
39 Nc3 Rc2
Threatening 40 ... Nxd4.
40 Nd1 Ne7 41 Nc3 Rc1+ 42 Kf2 Nc6 43 Nd1!

“A pretty trap” (Kasparov).

43 ... Rb1!
Avoiding the trap: 43 ... Nb4 44 Rd1 Rb1 45 Nb2 Rxb2? 46 Rxb2 Nd3+ 47 Ke2
Nxb2, temporarily winning a piece, but after 48 Kd2 Kf8 49 Kc2 White regains the
knight and after the further 49 ... Nc4 50 bxc4 dxc4 51 Kc3 Ke7 52 Kxc4 the pawn
ending is a draw.
After 43 ... Nb4?! 44 Rd2 Rb1 45 Nb2 Black can play e.g. 45 ... Nc6 46 Ke3
Kg7, with the idea of ... Kh6, maintaining the advantage.
44 Ke2
Capablanca notes, “Not a mistake, but played deliberately. White had no way to
protect his b-pawn.”
44 ... Rxb3! 45 Ke3

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: What to do now? Should Black exchange rooks?

45 ... Rb4!
Answer: No; “It’s clearly simpler to convert the advantage with the rooks on. And
in the given instance this simplicity and inevitability, typical of Capa, creates a
particular impression, because playing White was the great Lasker!” (Kasparov).
46 Nc3 Ne7 47 Ne2 Nf5+ 48 Kf2 g5 49 g4 Nd6 50 Ng1 Ne4+ 51 Kf1
Or 51 Kf3 Rb1 52 Ne2 Rf1+ 53 Ke3 Rh1, and Black wins.
51 ... Rb1+ 52 Kg2 Rb2+ 53 Kf1 Rf2+ 54 Ke1 Ra2 55 Kf1 Kg7
After tying down the opponent’s pieces, Black activates his king.
56 Re3 Kg6 57 Rd3 f6 58 Re3 Kf7 59 Rd3 Ke7 60 Re3 Kd6 61 Rd3 Rf2+ 62
Ke1 Rg2 63 Kf1 Ra2 64 Re3 e5

61
 65 Rd3
Capablanca mentioned two alternative defences, both equally inadequate: 65
Ne2 Nd2+ 66 Kf2 e4 67 Rc3 Nf3 68 Ke3 Ne1 69 Kf2 Ng2 and Black is helpless,
and 65 Nf3 Nd2+ with a winning rook ending.
65 ... exd4 66 Rxd4
66 Ne2 Kc5 67 Nxd4 Kc4 68 Rd1 Nc3 loses more quickly.
66 ... Kc5 67 Rd1 d4 68 Rc1+ Kd5 0-1
The d-pawn continues to advance after 69 Rd1 Nf2 and 70 ... d3.

In Game 7 White achieved a dangerous initiative against the black king, which
demanded precise defence, in spite of the fact that there were some inactive white
pieces. We’ll see that general considerations can be correct, such as deciding which
piece should be exchanged, but the tactical element is just as important.
From one moment to the next there can be serious differences when carrying out an
a priori favourable exchange; the different placement of a single piece can completely
change the evaluation. The finish of this game is brilliant.

Game 7
V.Smyslov-Z.Ribli
Candidates, London (m/5), 1983

Black to Play

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 1 Typical Structures

In this position there is much more dynamism than in the previous example.
White has just played 16 Bd3 and “An attacking battery has been trained on the
shelter of Black’s king, and now he has to take great care over his choice of reply.”
(Smyslov).

Exercise: Despite White’s activity, Black’s position is very good. He has all his
pieces in play, except for the a8-rook, which can by activated in one move.
On the other hand, White is behind in development and his attack, even if he
penetrates to h7, doesn’t seem dangerous.

What should Black do now? Go straight into the counterattack, or focus first on
strengthening the defences?
16 ... Ba4?
Answer: Black decides on the second option and tries to remove the Rd1 from
the defence of the centre pawn. This looks like a good idea but for tactical reasons it
will soon be apparent that it’s a mistake.
Kasparov commented, “I think that Ribli was happy with his play in the opening
and he simply didn’t believe that Qh7 was a serious threat, since the queen moves
away from the main theatre of war in the centre.”
Smyslov suggested 16 ... Bb5, exchanging the light-squared bishops, which is
satisfactory. However, even better seems to be Kasparov’s suggestion of preventing the
infiltration with the simple 16 ... Ng6! and if, for instance, 17 Ne5 then 17 ... Bxe5!
is possible and after 18 dxe5 Bb5 White has to fight for equality. There’s no attack
and there are weaknesses in his camp
17 Qh7+ Kf8 18 Re1
“Here the rook will play an important role.” (Kasparov)
18 ... Bb5 19 Bxb5 Qxb5 20 Ng3!
“Believing in the strength of his attack, White leaves his queen at h7”, wrote
Smyslov.

Question: It seems an obvious decision, doesn’t it?

Answer: Not really; over the board the situation is not so clear. Smyslov added,
“The situation becomes extremely sharp, since Black is aiming to trap the white
queen.”
20 ... Ng6

63
 This clears the e7-square for the king and in Kasparov’s words, “Ribli must
certainly have reached this position in his calculations and was hoping for ... Rac8
with domination in the centre and the exchange of queens (at a convenient moment)
... More concretely, Ribli underestimated two factors: the strength of White’s position
and Smyslov’s ability to play strictly in accordance with the demands of the position.”

Exercise: How did Smyslov now demonstrate that 16 ... Ba4 was incorrect?

21 Ne5!
Answer: “This move has become possible thanks to the position of the rook at
e1” (Smyslov).
21 ... Nde7
Defending g6 against the threat to wreck Black’s kingside pawn structure.

Exercise: What’s wrong with the aforementioned attempt to trap the

White queen with 21 ... Bxe5 22 dxe5 Ke7 23 Qxg7 Rh8?

Answer: This is bad due to the line given by Smyslov himself: 24 Nf5+! exf5 25
e6 and White wins. Smyslov added that ... Ndf4? is also unsatisfactory because of 22
Bxf4 Nxf4 23 Nf5! Ng6 24 Nxh6!, and White’s attack gains him a material
advantage.

Exercise: Black is attacking the d4-pawn and the white queen remains cut off.
How did Smyslov continue?

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 1 Typical Structures

22 Bxh6!
Answer: “A sharp attacking stroke, provoking great complications. White’s queen
seems to be isolated, but his other pieces succeed in coming to his aid” (Smyslov).
This commentary agrees with what we’ve pointed out before, that with an
analysis engine to hand and without the tension of the game, everything can seem
simple. In practice it is not so and the combination demands precise calculation.
Smyslov noted that the move 22 Nh5 was possible and if 22 ... Nxe5 23 Bxh6!
transposes to the game.
22 ... Nxe5
In the event of 22 ... Bxe5 Smyslov had planned 23 Rxe5! Nxe5 24 Qxg7+ Ke8
25 dxe5, and he commented simply “with an attack”, offering as an example 25 ...
Qxb2 26 Qf8+ Kd7 27 Rd1+, winning.
After 23 Rxe5! there is no defence.
23 Nh5!
“The crux of White’s idea. The threat is 24 Bxg7+ with a mating attack”
(Smyslov).
Also valid was 23 dxe5 Bxe5 24 Nh5!.
23 ... Nf3+
There is nothing better. 23 ... gxh6 leads to mate after 24 Qxh6+. If 23 ... Nf5,
one of the winning lines is 24 dxe5 Bxe5 25 Bg5! However, Smyslov indicated
another with 24 Nxf6 Nxh6 25 dxe5 Nf5 26 Rac1, and it’s not possible to play 26 ...
gxf6? because of 27 Qh8+ Ke7 28 Rc7+ Rd7 29 exf6+, winning material.
24 gxf3 Nf5
Not 24 ... Qxh5 25 Bxg7+, while 24 ... gxh6 once again leads to mate after 25
Qxh6+.
25 Nxf6 Nxh6

65
 Kasparov commented, “The critical moment of the entire game. It appears that
Ribli has defended his king and that, thanks to the numerous pawn weaknesses in the
opponent’s position, he has good prospects ... ”

Exercise: And later he added, “But here a cold shower awaits him”. What was
that unpleasant surprise?

26 d5!
Answer: This typical pawn break, carried out under ideal conditions, demolishes
the black defences.
26 ... Qxb2
If 26 ... Nf5 Smyslov indicated the beautiful finish 27 Qg8+ Ke7 28 Rxe6+ fxe6
29 Qxe6+ Kf8 30 Nh7 mate.
He also mentioned another pretty variation, which modern engines can’t improve
upon: 26 ... gxf6 27 dxe6 Qg5+ 28 Kh1 fxe6 29 Rg1 Qf4, and now the astonishing
move 30 Rg7!! (Smyslov gave it only one exclamation mark) and after 30 ... Qxf3+
31 Kg1 Rd1+ 32 Rxd1 Qxd1+ 33 Kg2 Qd5+ 34 f3 Qd2+ 35 Kh3 White’s king has
reached safety and his attacking duo will deliver mate.
27 Qh8+ Ke7

Exercise: How did Smyslov continue here?

Answer:
28 Rxe6+!!

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 1 Typical Structures

“A fine finale” (Kasparov). Again Smyslov awards just a single exclamation mark.
Kasparov gives it two.
28 ... fxe6 29 Qxg7+ Nf7

Exercise: The whole pretty combination is based on the next move, which is

67
 the only winning one. What’s it?

30 d6+!
Answer: “The forcing variation concludes with an elegant pawn sacrifice. Now
Black loses his queen because of the discovered attack on the a1-h8 diagonal (30 ...
Kxd6 31 Ne4+)”, commented Smyslov. The move is an elegant zwischenzug. White
must avoid 30 Ng8+? Rxg8 and the Qg7 is pinned.
30 ... Rxd6 31 Nd5+ Rxd5 32 Qxb2
“The attack has proved successful. The conversion of White’s advantage is
facilitated by the open position of the black king” (Smyslov).
32 ... b6 33 Qb4+ Kf6 34 Re1 Rh8 35 h4 Rhd8 36 Re4 Nd6 37 Qc3+ e5 38
Rxe5! Rxe5 39 f4 Nf7 40 fxe5+ Ke6 41 Qc4+ 1-0
“A bold attack on a grand scale!” (Kasparov).

In Game 8 Black introduces a novel idea in a position which had already been much
played a century ago, and which gave it its own character. Later, on move 18, the
game has a connection with our Game 6, although here White chose a different
route. The isolated pawn became a serious weakness and the conclusion came
through an attack on the white king.

Game 8
V.Korchnoi-A.Karpov
World Championship, Merano (Game 9), 1981
Queen’s Gambit [D53]

1 c4 e6 2 Nc3 d5 3 d4 Be7 4 Nf3 Nf6 5 Bg5 h6 6 Bh4 0-0 7 Rc1

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 1 Typical Structures

This Queen’s Gambit position is very well known. Korchnoi gives it a slightly
different touch by playing 7 Rc1 instead of the more usual 7 e3, but it’s within
familiar bounds.
Now the most common continuations are Tartakower’s idea 7 ... b6 and Lasker’s
7 ... Ne4, and there are other moves too. The plan chosen by Karpov was a great
contribution to opening theory.
7 ... dxc4

Question: Well, I can’t say that this move dazzles me. Is this such a novelty?
What’s the plan?

Answer: Don’t be hasty. We’ll look at it deeply. The novelty is not so much in a
single move but in the idea behind it.
The main point is to reach an acceptable position with a white isolated d-pawn,
but of course there are many nuances and it must be tactically sound.
Karpov commented, “It’s surprising that such a simple move had not previously
occurred in grandmaster play. Chess truly is inexhaustible if, even in such a well-
analysed opening as the Queen’s Gambit, something new can be devised as early as
the 7th move!”
Kasparov was even more enthusiastic. He gave the move an exclamation mark
and stated, “One of the most valuable novelties in the match. Later experience
showed that, in return for the temporary conceding of the centre, Black gains the
opportunity to develop his queenside pieces comfortably.”
8 e3

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 One of the first questions to consider is whether White can profit from Black’s
concession of the centre by playing 8 e4 in one move. Analysis has answered this in
the negative, although 8 ... Nxe4?! would be too hasty, due to 9 Bxe7 Nxc3 10 Bxd8
Nxd1 and now 11 Be7!, winning material. Instead, 8 ... c5 is possible, with a playable
position.
However, the most accurate response seems to be 8 ... Nc6! which is “the essential
point of the plan with 7 ... dxc4”, according to Kasparov. Then 9 Bxc4? is
unsatisfactory due to 9 ... Nxe4! 10 Bxe7 Nxc3 11 Bxd8 Nxd1 12 Bxc7 Nxb2, etc.,
while 9 e5 presents no problems after 9 ... Nd5 10 Bxe7 Ncxe7 11 Bxc4 Nxc3,
followed by 12 ... b6.
8 ... c5 9 Bxc4 cxd4 10 exd4
The most ambitious continuation. After 10 Nxd4 a good response is 10 ... Bd7!,
preparing ... Nc6, as was seen later in the same match and also in the later encounter
between Karpov and Kasparov in 1984/85.
10 ... Nc6 11 0-0

Karpov commented, “A typical position with an isolated d-pawn has been

reached. But there is one important nuance, which is to Black’s advantage. The point
is that usually White’s dark-squared bishop does not hurry to come into play, but
waits for an appropriate moment.”

Exercise: What was Karpov’s idea to try to profit from the aforementioned
situation of the white bishop?

11 ... Nh5!

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 1 Typical Structures

Answer: “An important detail of Black’s opening construction. After the exchange
of the dark-squared bishops, his knights completely control the d5-square.”
(Kasparov).
Generally speaking in such IQP positions, simplification, such as the exchange of
bishops, is beneficial to Black. This is the correct way to engineer it, as 11 ... Nd5
allows 12 Bg3!, while in the event of 11 ... Ne4?! 12 Bxe7 Nxc3 13 bxc3 the change
of structure would leave White with a developmental and spatial advantage and
Karpov thought that White’s advantage would be clear in that case.
12 Bxe7
12 Bg3 is worse here, since after 12 ... Nxg3 13 hxg3 Bf6 Black has freer play and
there are no prospects of a white attack.
12 ... Nxe7
Controlling the d5-square is important in isolated queen’s pawn positions. Since
the other knight is temporarily distant from the centre, this one assumes the task of
defending d5.
13 Bb3
We are only at move 13 and it is understandable that in a match for the world
title, White would be reluctant to settle for equality, which he could achieve with the
13 d5 break. After 13 ... exd5 14 Nxd5 Nxd5 15 Bxd5 Nf4 16 Be4 the simplest
would be 16 ... Be6, with equal play. Objectively this was White’s best option.
13 ... Nf6
Now the d5-break is prevented.
14 Ne5

Exercise: It’s necessary to develop the c8-bishop. How did Karpov do this?

14 ... Bd7
Answer: In general this bishop is more active on the long diagonal, but the
particular deployment of the white pieces here discourages the move 14 ... b6, as
after 15 Re1 Bb7?! White can strike with the typical 16 Nxf7! and after 16 ... Rxf7
17 Bxe6 the position becomes complicated This is the sort of scenario that White
was seeking when he declined to play 13 d5. After the text move, however, the e6-
square remains solidly protected.
15 Qe2 Rc8 16 Ne4?!
An odd decision. White can’t find a clear plan and underestimates the fact that
with this further exchange of pieces the weakness of the d4-pawn will become more

71
important.
Kasparov commented, “When there are just heavy pieces on the board, an
isolated pawn is always and only a weakness. But White’s main problem is that it’s
very hard for him to find a ‘clear-cut plan’ – one that doesn’t in the end lead to a
similar exchange of minor pieces and to the even more obvious weakness of the d4-
pawn.”
In other words, it’s possible to suggest better moves, such as 16 Rcd1, but it’s
hard to suggest a promising plan.
Karpov suggested 16 Rfe1, which prevents 16 ... Bc6? once again due to 17 Nxf7!
Kxf7 18 Bxe6+, or 17 ... Rxf7 19 Qxe6, winning. Karpov indicated that he would
have opted for either 16 ... Rc7 or 16 ... Be8, with a good position.
16 ... Nxe4 17 Qxe4
The inclusion of 17 Rxc8 Qxc8 18 Qxe4 would lead to a situation similar to
what happens in the game.

17 ... Bc6!

Question: What’s so good about this move?

Answer: Black has a good position, but in order to gain the advantage he must
do something. The idea behind this apparently simple move is what gives it its value.
Now the exchange on c6 is forced, otherwise Black will play 18 ... Bd5.
18 Nxc6 Rxc6!
And this is the point. Black maintains control of d5.
Not 18 ... Nxc6, which would allow 19 d5.
19 Rc3?!

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 1 Typical Structures

I was lucky enough to play in the Mar del Plata tournament in1982, held a few
months after the end of the Merano match. Karpov competed there and he looked
tired and couldn’t keep up with Timman, who won the tournament.
I remember that the Argentinean grandmaster Oscar Panno was left wondering
how Karpov would have responded to 19 Rxc6 and wanted to ask him. I don’t know
whether he did so in the end. In any case, Karpov gave the answer to this query when
he annotated the game, saying, “Black is not afraid that after the double exchange on
c6 he will also be given an isolated pawn. His knight is capable of both securely
defending his own pawn, and attacking the enemy d4-pawn, whereas the functions
of the white bishop are restricted.”
So 19 Rxc6 would have been answered with 19 ... bxc6!, the same idea that we
saw in the 10th game of the Lasker-Capablanca match of 1921.
Nonetheless Kasparov considered that this was White’s best option to try to hold
the position and he also highlighted that the exchange of dark-squared bishops has
made the defence of the d4-pawn more difficult for White.
19 ... Qd6
Naturally Black doesn’t accept the proposed exchange on c3, which would
strengthen the defence of the d4-pawn, and he doesn’t fear the transfer of the white
rook to the kingside, which would be answered with 20 ... Rd8.
20 g3?!
A move which reduces White’s (scant) chances of attack, as Karpov pointed out.
Now White remains passive.
20 ... Rd8 21 Rd1

Exercise: Black must decide on a plan to try to increase pressure on White’s

73
 weakness, and he does so in a very attractive way. How does he achieve this?

21 ... Rb6!
Answer: As White can no longer create any threats against the black king, there is
time to attack the d4-pawn in ideal fashion, which is to triple the heavy pieces
against it. The text move avoids the exchange of rooks and prepares Black’s ideal
piece set-up.
The immediate 21 ... Qd7? wasn’t possible yet due to 22. Ba4. Karpov wrote that
he didn’t want to play ... , a6, preparing ... Qd7, because he didn’t want to determine
the queenside pawn structure yet. He commented that with the text move, the rook
ties the white bishop to the defence of the b2-pawn and leaves open the possibility of
attacking the d4-pawn with a timely ... Rb4.
22 Qe1 Qd7!
Now this is possible. “Consistently implementing the plan of intensifying the
pressure on the d4-pawn.” (Kasparov); d6 is cleared for the b6-rook.
23 Rcd3
Kasparov indicates that the attempt to seek activity with 23 Rc5 would fail to 23
... Rd6 24 Rdc1, and now not 24 ... Rxd4 due to 25 Rc7, followed by Rxb7, but 24
... Nc6!, not fearing the pin 25 Ba4 in view of 25 ... Nxd4! 26 Bxd7 Nf3+, winning a
pawn.
23 ... Rd6 24 Qe4
“White can only wait to see what the opponent will do.” (Karpov).
24 ... Qc6!
The queen is activated with no loss of tempo, as after 25 Qxc6 Nxc6 the break
26 d5 loses a pawn after 26 ... Nb4.
25 Qf4 Nd5 26 Qd2
The queen can’t remain active, since if 26 Qe4 then 26 ... Nb4 is strong, while if
the queen goes to the kingside with 26 Qh4, Black has a free hand to make progress
on the queenside with 26 ... b5 and/or ... a5.
26 ... Qb6!
Insisting on the idea of playing ... Nb4. Now 27 a3 would weaken the bishop’s
position, and Black could manoeuvre freely, but this was the best. On the other hand
now “Korchnoi runs out of patience and he exchanges the minor pieces, condemning
himself to a passive defence” (Karpov).
27 Bxd5?! Rxd5

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 1 Typical Structures

28 Rb3?!
White’s position is unpleasant. He can only wait passively while Black makes
progress. Korchnoi doesn’t want to accept this and he tries to find some counterplay.

Question: Well then, what would be the most stubborn defensive plan instead?

Answer: There are two possibilities now. Kasparov suggested waiting with the
rook on the d-file, and parrying the threat of 28 ... e5 by playing 28 f4, which is an
advance that sooner or later will have to be made.
On the other hand Karpov suggested trying to reach a rook ending by sacrificing
the d4-pawn, which, “would give White practical saving chances in the rook
endgame. However, it is psychologically difficult to decide on such a step of one’s
own free will.”
28 ... Qc6 29 Qc3 Qd7 30 f4
As Kasparov indicated, playing this move, which weakens the king’s position, is
inevitable.

Exercise (easy): How did Karpov proceed now?

30 ... b6!
Answer: Nullifying the attack of the b3-rook and threatening to take on d4.
31 Rb4 b5!
With the threat of 32 ... a5 33 Rb3 b4 and the d4-pawn falls.
32 a4
If 32 Rb3 then Black can play 32 ... f6, with the idea of ... e5.

75
 32 ... bxa4
“Not so much for the sake of winning a pawn, as to divert the white pieces from
the kingside” (Karpov).
33 Qa3 a5 34 Rxa4

Kasparov commented, agreeing with Karpov, “White has won the battle for the
a4-pawn, but at too high a price: his main forces are stuck on the queenside.”

Exercise: How did Karpov exploit the offside position of White’s pieces?

34 ... Qb5!
Answer: This defends the a5-pawn, ties the queen to the defence of the a4-rook
and threatens to invade the white camp with 35 ... Qe2.
35 Rd2

Exercise: Now if White plays 35 b3, freeing the queen, in addition to 35 ... Rb8
Black could play the same move as in the game – what is it?

35 ... e5!
Answer: “The culminating point of the game. Since the white king is insecurely
placed, Black opens the centre and completely gains the upper hand. The tempting
continuations 35 ... Rc8 or 35 ... g5 don’t achieve much. Here, once more, the
geometry of the position proves decisive. White can no longer hold on.” (Karpov)
36 fxe5 Rxe5 37 Qa1
With 37 dxe5? Rxd2 38 Rxa5 Qe2 White’s defeat is merely accelerated.

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: Kasparov commented, “White only needs to make one move, and his
queen, by standing at d1, will stabilise the position for a time ... ” How did
Karpov prevent that stabilisation?

37 ... Qe8!
Answer: With the threat 38 ... Re1+, Karpov stated: “When I found this strong
and surprising move, I experienced a great aesthetic satisfaction.” Kasparov wasn’t
grudging in his praise, “A splendid manoeuvre, exploiting to the maximum both the
vertical and the diagonal possibilities of the strongest piece. White’s position collapses
like a house of cards.”
38 dxe5
If 38 Rd1 then Black wins with 38 ... Re2, followed by 39 ... Qe3+ or 39 ... Qe4.
38 ... Rxd2 39 Rxa5
39 Qe1 is answered with 39 ... Qd8, and the black queen infiltrates with decisive
effect. Kasparov gives a sample line, 40 Qe3 Qd5! 41 Re4 Rd3 42 Qf4 g5!, deflecting
the queen from d2, e.g. 43 Qf5 Rd1+ 44 Kf2 Qd2+ 45 Re2 Qd4+ 46 Kg2 g4!,
winning.
39 ... Qc6 40 Ra8+ Kh7 41 Qb1+ g6
41 ... Rc2 was equally good.
42 Qf1

Exercise (easy): “A last test of Black’s vigilance” (Kasparov). How to respond?

42 ... Qc5+

77
 Answer: You passed the test. Obviously not 42 ... Qxa8?? due to 43 Qxf7+ and
it’s a draw by perpetual check.
43 Kh1 Qd5+ 0-1
44 Kg1 Rd1 would follow.

In Game 9 Black, fighting against the isolated pawn, blocked the diagonal of the d3-
bishop with ... f5. This created a weakness on e6, but it was not easy to attack it.
White chose another plan, putting pressure along the a2-g8 diagonal and against the
d5-square, upon which Black opted to change the structure by exchanging his dark-
squared bishop.
White’s method of creating and exploiting the weaknesses on the dark squares is very
instructive and the finish is very elegant.

Game 9
V.Kramnik-V.Topalov
European Chess Championship, Skopje 2015
Queen’s Indian Defence [E14]

1 d4 Nf6 2 Nf3 e6 3 e3 c5 4 Bd3 b6 5 0-0 Bb7 6 c4 cxd4 7 exd4 Be7 8 Nc3 d5 9

cxd5 Nxd5

We have an isolated queen’s pawn position, but with some special characteristics.
Black has already developed his queen’s bishop and has delayed castling.
This move order allows White to diverge from the typical plans and that’s what
Kramnik opts to do.
10 Ne5

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 1 Typical Structures

Instead of 10 Re1 or 10 Qe2 White seizes the opportunity to centralise his

knight, with the threat of 11 Bb5+.
10 ... 0-0 11 Qg4
And this continuation complements the 10 Ne5 jump. “This old theoretical line
seems to be promising for White in general”, commented Kramnik.
11 ... f5

Question: Why does Black weaken his castled position? Was this forced?

Answer: No, it wasn’t, but it certainly was “the safest choice”, according to
Kramnik.
It represents a commitment but it’s not a bad move. Black rules out any
immediate threat to his king, in exchange for being left with a weak pawn on e6 and
giving up the e5-square. In return he can count on the e6-weakness not being easy to
exploit and also having a strong outpost on d5.
The at first sight less committal alternative was 11 ... Nf6 which “is more
principled but dangerous at the same time”, as Kramnik wrote. After 12 Qh4, 13
Bg5 is threatened, and the critical continuation is then to accept the offered pawn in
exchange for conceding the initiative after 12 ... Ne4 13 Qh3 Qxd4 14 Bf4, for
which it’s necessary to be prepared.
Here we can see the importance of the practical element. Kramnik was certainly
very familiar with this position, while Topalov was less so, according to Kramnik’s
own account.
12 Qe2 Bf6
Now White needs to adapt to the change in structure and seek the best
deployment for his pieces.
13 Bc4!

Question: Why this move order?

Answer: Instead of continuing development, Kramnik seeks a good post for his
bishop, whose activity along the b1-h7 diagonal has been neutralised. Thanks to
tactics, the bishop puts pressure on the e6-weakness.
13 ... Re8

Exercise: Why not continue development by playing 13 ... Nd7?

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 Answer: Because the presence of the bishop on c4 is justified with the move 14
Nc6! Qe8 15 Nxd5 exd5 16 Bxd5+ Kh8 17 Qf3, winning a pawn or gaining the
advantage after 17 ... Bxd4 18 Nxd4 Ne5 19 Bxb7 Nxf3+ 20 Nxf3, as White’s three
minor pieces outweigh the black queen.
14 Rd1 Nd7
In the event of 14 ... Nc6 Kramnik gave 15 Nxd5 exd5 16 f4! (tactics are
essential to confirm strategic decisions; the bishop is untouchable because of 17
Qxc4+ winning, while the capture on e5 is answered with 17 dxe5) 16 ... Qd6 (or 16
... Rc8 17 Bb3) 17 Bb3, “with a clear positional advantage” (Kramnik). White’s
pieces are ideally placed.
15 Bb5
Kramnik commented that while it was possible to simply continue with the
development move 15 Bd2, with some advantage, he decided on a more ambitious
plan.
15 ... Bxe5 16 dxe5 Qe7
“The only reasonable move”, commented Kramnik. He pointed out that after16
... a6 17 Nxd5 axb5 (17 ... Bxd5 loses the a6 pawn) 18 Nb4! Qe7 19 Rd6, White
would have a clear advantage.
17 Nxd5 Bxd5

Exercise: The exchanges appear not to have given White a great deal. Black has a
good bishop on d5, the e5-pawn limits the scope of White’s dark-squared bishop
and the previous weakness at e6 has disappeared. But appearances can be
deceptive. What was the key to Kramnik’s plan?

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 1 Typical Structures

18 Qh5!
Answer: The threat of 19 Bg5 prevents Black from moving the e8-rook out of
the pin.
18 ... g6
A weakening move, which wasn’t undertaken willingly. However, there was no
good way of defending against Bg5.

Exercise: How would White punish 18 ... h6?

Answer: Kramnik indicated the line 19 Bxh6! gxh6 20 Qg6+ Kf8 21 Qxh6+ Kf7
(21 ... Kg8? 22 Rd3 loses quickly) 22 Rxd5! exd5 (22 ... Rh8? 23 Qxh8) 23 Qh7+
Kf8 24 Qxf5+ Qf7 25 Bxd7 Qxf5 26 Bxf5 Rxe5 27 Bd3 Rae8 28 Kf1 “and White is
clearly better in this endgame.”
Kramnik also mentioned the exchange sacrifice 18 ... Nxe5, acknowledging that
this would give Black some drawing chances. However, White’s advantage is clear
after 19 Bg5 Qf8 (19 ... Qf7 20 Bxe8 Rxe8 21 Qxf7+ Nxf7 22 Bd2 followed by Rac1
is not very encouraging either) 20 Bxe8 Rxe8 21 Rac1.
19 Qh6 Rec8 20 Bg5 Qf7

Exercise: The moment has come to make an important decision.

What plan to adopt?

21 Bxd7!

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 Answer: Kramnik opts for the attacking chances offered by his control of the
weak dark squares around Black’s king.
The alternative was 21 Bf4 a more positional approach, keeping some pressure.
After 21 ... a6 there would follow 22 Bf1 b5 23 b3 with some advantage.
However, from a practical point of view, and perhaps also objectively, his choice
in the game was more promising.
21 ... Qxd7 22 Bf6

Question: Hmm, but if the attack doesn’t succeed, there are opposite-coloured
bishops and Black occupies the c-file. Just how promising are White’s chances?

Answer: Let’s allow Kramnik to answer, “White has good attacking potential in
this position and even if Black might hold with precise defence it is not easy to
demonstrate over the board”. As we know, opposite-coloured bishops mean that the
attacking side practically has an extra piece. At present the black queen is tied to the
defence of g7.
22 ... Qf7

Exercise: This seems like a waste of time, but it’s necessary. What would be the
response to a more active move, such as 22 ... Rc2?

Answer: Thanks to a tactical theme present in the position, White can strike with
23 Rxd5! and after 23 ... exd5 24 e6 Qc7 25 e7 White wins. The same would happen
after 22 ... Rc4.

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Exercise: White’s plan of attack is clear. Advance the h-pawn and send
reinforcements to join in the attack with Rd3. But it’s also necessary to evaluate
Black’s chances of counterplay along the c-file. How did Kramnik continue here?

23 b3!
Answer: He began accurately with a prophylactic move, preventing the defensive
manoeuvre ... Rc4, followed by ... Rg4.
This decision was taken on seeing that the direct 23 Rd3 doesn’t bring the
desired benefits. Admittedly the careless 23 ... Rc4? would run into 24 b3! Rc2 (if 24
... Rg4 then 25 f3 followed by Rc1 is good, but even better is 25 Rxd5! exd5 26 Qd2
and the g4-rook is lost, e.g. 26 ... a5 27 a3, followed by f3) 25 Rc1! Rac8 26 Rxc2
Rxc2 27 Rg3, followed by h4-h5, with an unstoppable attack.
But Black could meet 23 Rd3 with 23 ... Rc2! and after 24 Rg3 Rac8 25 h4
Black has 25 ... R8c4! bringing a rook to the defence, a resource which allows Black
to hold the kingside. For example 26 h5 Rg4! 27 Rxg4 fxg4 28 Qg5 h6 29 Qxg4 g5
and the black queen is ready for action via h7, c7, etc.
After 23 ... Rc2, 25 b3 would be too slow. The continuation might be 25 ...
R8c7, defending the second rank, 26 h4 Qf8 27 Qf4 Qc5, and Black has activated
his pieces and neutralised the white attack. Black also has a tactical method with 25
... f4! 26 Qxf4 Qc7 and the counterattack will enable him to force exchanges and
regain the sacrificed pawn.
All of this provides the justification for Kramnik’s 23 b3!
23 ... Qf8 24 Qf4
The alternative was 24 Qg5 but, once again, prophylactic thinking won the day.
Kramnik rejected it because of the counterattack 24 ... Rc2 25 h4 Rac8 26 h5 Qb4!
(“that’s why Qf4 was chosen instead of Qg5 in the game”, explained Kramnik) 27
hxg6 Qg4! and after the more or less forced sequence 28 Qxg4 fxg4 29 gxh7+ Kxh7
30 Rd4 g3! 31 Rh4+ Kg6 32 Rg4+ Kf5 33 Rxg3 Rc1+ 34 Rxc1 Rxc1+ 35 Kh2 Rc2
the game levels out.

Exercise: What should Black do now? He has two main plans. He can strengthen
his defences, something he’ll only want to do if it’s really necessary. Alternatively
he can opt for immediate activity. It’s a critical decision.

24 ... Rc2?

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 Answer: Black opts for activity, but this move turns out to be a serious error, as
his activity will be less effective than White’s attack.
Counterattack with 24 ... a5 25 h4 a4 is also insufficient. White can abandon his
b-pawn and weaken Black’s castled position with 26 h5, since 26 ... Bxb3? loses to 27
Rxa8 Bxd1 (or 27 ... Rxa8 29 Rd7) 28 Ra7, turning the opening of the a-file to his
advantage.
“Before starting counterplay Black should have improved his king position”, as
Kramnik pointed out. The correct way was to defend the castled position with the
manoeuvre 24 ... h6! 25 h4 Rc5! “followed by ... Kh7 next and Black’s position is
passive but difficult to break”, as Kramnik indicated.
We should also note that Black always needs to watch out for a Rxd5 sacrifice.
For example instead of 25 ... Rc5! the more active continuation 25 ... Rc2? would
lose to 26 Rxd5! exd5 27 Rd1 Qc5 28 b4, followed by 29 h5, with a decisive attack.

Exercise (easy): How did Kramnik respond?

25 h4
Answer: Preventive measures are now no longer required.
25 ... Rac8 26 h5
The apparently active rooks and the control of the c-file don’t help Black to
defend against the threats on the kingside.
26 ... Qe8
26 ... Qf7 was slightly more logical, but wouldn’t change much.

Exercise (easy): OK, what now? How to continue?

27 Rd3
Answer: Of course. “Chess is easy again”, as Najdorf would say. The threat is 28
hxg6 hxg6 (28 ... Qxg6 29 Rg3) 29 Rh3.
27 ... R2c3 28 Rad1 gxh5

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Exercise: “Topalov presumably pinned his hopes on this idea”, commented

Kramnik. How did Kramnik demonstrate that this wasn’t a good defence?

29 Rxd5!
Answer: White unleashes the exchange sacrifice that has been latent for much of
the game. Black’s defences are breached and all White’s attacking units are able to
invade.
29 ... exd5 30 e6
Kramnik commented, “More forcing and leads to a forced win in all lines, so I
chose it. 30 Rxd5 was also good enough.” This would be with the idea of 31 e6 and
Rd7. If the attacked rook on c3 leaves White’s third rank then Rd3-g3 would follow.
30 ... R3c7
Kramnik commented that in his analyses during the game he got as far as 30 ...
R3c6 31 Rd3 Rxe6 32 Rg3+ Kf7 33 Qh6! and “once I noticed this move in my
calculations I understood that my attack is decisive.” After 33 ... Rxf6 White wins
with 34 Qg7+ Ke6 35 Re3+, etc.
Defending the g-file with 30 ... Qg6 doesn’t help Black. After 31 Bxc3 Rxc3 32
Qb8+ Kg7 White has 33 e7, winning.
31 Rxd5 Qxe6

Exercise (easy): How can you refute 31 ... Qg6?

85
 Answer: White can exploit the weakness of Black’s back rank with 32 Qxc7! The
same idea wins in the line 31 ... Rc1+ 32 Kh2 Qg6 33 Qxc1!
With the move played, 31 ... Qxe6, Black parries the threat of 32 Qg3+ Kf8
(again, 32 ... Qg6 is answered with 33 Qxc7) 33 Be7+! Rxe7 34 Rxf5+, winning.
32 Qg5+
Before taking on f5 White forces the Black king to place itself on the f-file, where
it stands worse.
32 ... Kf8
Or 32 ... Kf7 33 Rxf5 and the black king can’t be defended against the attack of
the three white pieces. Kramnik gives the line 33 ... Rc5 34 Qxh5+ Kf8 35 Be5+ Ke7
36 Qxh7+ Ke8 37 Rg5 (37 f4 is even better, but Kramnik’s suggestion is also
decisive) 37 ... Rxe5 38 Qh5+.
33 Rxf5

33 ... Rf7
This loses the queen, but there was nothing better. If 33 ... Rc5 34 Be7+ Ke8
then 35 Bxc5 wins simply, which is what Kramnik had foreseen. Then after 35 ...
Rxc5 36 Qxh5+ Kd7 37 Rxc5 bxc5 38 Qxc5 the rest is a matter of technique.
Possibly over the board Kramnik might have looked further and found what the
engines give, namely 35 Rf8+ Kd7 36 Bxc5, which wins more quickly, since if 36 ...
bxc5 then 37 Qg7+ Kc6 38 Rd6 wins; but this wasn’t necessary.
34 Qh6+ Ke8 35 Re5 Rc6 36 Qxh5 1-0

Game 10 bears a certain similarity to Game 4. Having evaluated the position, White
decides to change the structure to achieve a slight advantage in the ending.

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 1 Typical Structures

The advantage wasn’t great, but the pressure was troublesome and required
concrete defensive measures, which Black didn’t take.

Game 10
A.Lilienthal-I.Bondarevsky
USSR Championship, Moscow 1940

White to Play

Here we have another atypical isolated queen’s pawn position. White has an
advantage in development. His task is to discover a way to exploit this temporary
advantage.

Exercise: What plan would you initiate?

14 Be4!
Answer: Lilienthal explained his decision in this way, “I analysed the position for
a long time, until I was convinced that I had no possibilities of an attack. The black
pieces are only temporarily constrained, and Black has many defensive resources.
Therefore, although White’s has emerged from the opening with an advantage, I
opted to simplify to reach a slightly favourable ending.”
14 ... Nd5 15 Bxd5 exd5

Exercise (easy): And now?

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 16 Be5
Answer: This is the completion of the idea. The exchange of bishops is essential.
On the other hand 16 Rfe1?! would be weak because of 16 ... Bf5! 17 Qc3 Qd7 and
Black avoids the bishop exchange.
16 ... Bf5

Question: Can Black not try to prevent White’s idea with 16 ... Bg5?

Answer: This is possible, yes, but allowing it is not dangerous. After 16 ... Bg5
White can play, e.g. 17 Rfe1, threatening Bg7. After 17 ... Be6 18 Bd6 a position
similar to the one in the game is reached. White can also acquiesce to playing with
bishops of opposite colours. After 18 Nxg5 Qxg5, with either 19 Re3 or 19 Qb3
White would be slightly better. The white bishop is stronger than its black
counterpart.
17 Bxf6 Qxf6 18 Qb3 Be4 19 Ne5
With several threats, most importantly the fork on d7. However, Black also has
to consider a possible capture on b7, as well as the possibility of 20 f3.
19 ... Qb6 20 Qxb6 axb6 21 Rfc1

The ending is slightly favourable to White, thanks to the knight being better
than the bishop. The pawn on d5 restricts the bishop’s movements and the doubled
pawns don’t help Black’s position either. But realising this advantage is no simple
matter. There is no clear plan yet to increase the advantage.
It wasn’t possible to capture the doubled pawn with 21 Nd7 Rfd8 22 Nxb6??
because of 22 ... Ra6.
21 ... Rfc8 22 a3 Bf5!

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 1 Typical Structures

Black responds to the challenge. First he controls d7, in order to be able to play
23 ... f6, driving back the annoying knight.
23 g4 Be6!
In answer to 23 ... f6?! Lilienthal proposed 24 gxf5 fxe5 25 dxe5! (better than 25
fxg6? exd4!) 25 ... gxf5 and now his suggestion of 26 f4 can be answered with 26 ...
Kf7!. Instead the best seems to be 26 Rxc8+! Rxc8 27 Rd1 Rc2 (worse is 27 ... Rd8?!
28 Rd4 Kf7 29 f4) 28 b4 Ra2 29 Rxd5 Rxa3 and now there are a number of moves
to choose from. The strongest seems to be 30 Rb5 with much the better ending.
24 h3 f6
Only masochists would voluntarily play the pure bishop versus knight ending
with 24 ... Rxc1+? 25 Rxc1 Rc8 26 Rxc8+ Bxc8. Black should keep at least one rook
in order to retain some possibility of counterattack.
25 Nd3 g5?!
Lilienthal criticised this move, preventing Nf4, because it consumes time and
also, “it’s the source of future weaknesses”. It weakens the black structure and creates
a ‘hook’ for White’s possible pawn breaks on h4 and f4. He thought that it was best
to bring the king to the centre with 25 ... Kf7.
Lilienthal doesn’t mention the tempting 25 ... Rc4!, either now nor later on.
With 26 Rxc4 dxc4 27 Nb4 White would have almost an extra pawn, but it’s not all
good news for White; the mobility of the black bishop would also have been
increased.
26 f3 Kf7
Once more 26 ... Rc4 was worth serious consideration. But once the white king
is centralised the rook move will diminish in strength.
27 Kf2 Ke7 28 Ke3

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 28 ... Kd6?

Question: How can this be bad? Centralising the king seems correct, doesn’t it?

Answer: As a rule, it’s the right thing to do and both sides should centralise their
kings. In this case centralising the white king brings many advantages, apart from the
aforementioned defence of the d4-pawn. In Black’s case, centralising his king defends
the d5-pawn and thus gives greater freedom to his bishop. But there are other factors,
as we’ll see.
Instead of the king move, marked as an error by Lilienthal, he suggested 28 ...
h5!, seeking to exchange pawns under the most favourable conditions. There is no
great fear of 29 gxh5, because the bishop would be activated and Black would be able
to keep the white passed pawn under control.
Another possibility was, once again, 28 ... Rc4.

Exercise: How can White demonstrate that Black’s last move was a mistake?

29 Rxc8!
Answer: The first step in the plan to create a second front. Conceding the c-file is
not serious now, because White already has his king on the third rank and the b2-
pawn defended.
29 ... Rxc8 30 h4!
This is the key move which, as with 28 ... h5!, also seeks to exchange pawns.
However, now it is White who will be able to choose the best moment to open the h-
file.
30 ... h6
After 30 ... gxh4 31 Rh1 h5 32 gxh5 h3 is not attractive because of 33 Nf4. And
30 ... f5? is bad because of 32 g5!, gaining access to f4 and e5.
31 hxg5 hxg5
After 31 ... fxg5 Lilienthal wrote that it would not be easy for Black to defend the
pawns on h6 and g5.
32 Rh1 Re8 33 Kd2 Bd7 34 Rh6 Rf8
A passive move but, in the event of 34 ... Ke6 35 f4! Rg8 36 f5+ Kf7 37 Nb4,
Black would also be passive. If 34 ... Re6 the move 35 f4 again comes into
consideration.

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: White’s progress is evident. How can his position be improved a little
more?

35 Ne1!
Answer: The knight is heading for e3, from where it can put pressure on d5 and
can go to f5. Also to be considered was 35 f4, which objectively gives an advantage.
However, from a practical point of view is not the best. It requires calculation, the
time control is approaching and it’s not a “now or never” situation.
35 ... Ke7 36 Nc2 Rf7 37 Ne3 Be6

Exercise: The knight has reached e3. What now? How to keep making progress?

38 Kc3
Answer: The king joins in the attack, reminding us that there is a weakness on
b6.
38 ... Kd6 39 Kb4 Bd7 40 Nf5+!
The knight occupies a dominating position.
40 ... Kc7
After 40 ... Bxf5 41 gxf5 Kc6 Black loses through zugzwang, as the winner
pointed out: 42 a4! Rf8 43 Rh7 Rd8 44 Rf7 Rd6 45 b3 b5 46 a5, winning.
41 a4 Be6

Exercise: How to continue now?

91
 42 Ng3!
Answer: Now heading for h5.
42 ... Bd7 43 Nh5
“White converts his positional advantage into material.” (Lilienthal).
43 ... f5 44 Nf6 fxg4 45 Nxd5+ Kb8

Lilienthal wrote that this was the moment when he had to seal his move for the
adjournment, and he used up a lot of time. Is it possible to win with a mating attack?

Exercise: Which pawn would you take?

46 fxg4!
Answer: This is the strongest move. Both sides acquire passed pawns but now the
d5-pawn and the active white pieces combine to produce a quick win.
The alternative was 46 Rh8+ Ka7 47 Nc7 b5 48 a5 b6 and now if White plays
for mate with 49 a6??, thanks to the knight on c7 being loose Black is able both to
defend and to capture on f3 with 49 ... Bc6!. Lilienthal analyses the line 50 Rc8 gxf3
51 d5 and now even better than 51 ... Bxd5, as given by Lilienthal, is 51 ... Bb7!,
when 52 axb7? Kxb7 is hopeless for White, while after 52 Nxb5+ Kxa6 53 Nc7+
Rxc7 54 Rxc7 Bxd5 it’s again Black who wins.
Instead of 49 a6?? White should play 49 fxg4, with advantage, but this isn’t better
than the immediate 46 fxg4!.
46 ... Bxg4 47 Nxb6 Rf2 48 b3 Bd1 49 d5 Kc7
49 ... Rf3 50 d6 Rxb3+ 51 Ka5 wouldn’t change the result (Lilienthal).
50 a5 Rd2 51 Rh7+ Kb8 52 d6!
Here 52 Rh8+ Kc7 53 d6+! would also have won. The text move is similar.

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 1 Typical Structures

52 ... Rd4+
52 ... Rxd6 would block the escape square d6, allowing the ‘nice finish’ 53 Rh8+
Kc7? 54 Rc8 mate (Lilienthal).
53 Kc5 Rh4 54 d7 Kc7 55 d8Q+ Kxd8 56 Rd7+ 1-0

Let’s now turn our attention to a different type of structure.

Game 11 features the ‘Carlsbad’ pawn structure. This is typically reached from the
Queen’s Gambit, for example after 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 cxd5 exd5) but in
this game it arose from a different opening.
White managed to adapt better to the differences from the typical position,
making a good decision on move 12. He achieved a slight advantage, which increased
when Black failed to choose the most tenacious defensive plan on move 16 .

Game 11
M.Carlsen-V.Anand
Tal Memorial, Moscow 2013
Nimzo-Indian Defence [E46]

1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 e3 0-0 5 Nge2 d5 6 a3 Be7 7 cxd5 Nxd5

This is an important decision. Black could also play 7 ... exd5, fixing the
structure, but he preferred to retain flexibility. White could exchange knights on d5
and Black on c3, arriving at a different structure in each case.

8 Bd2

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 Question: Hmm, Carlsen’s treatment of the opening doesn’t appear very
promising; this doesn’t look very threatening, does it?

Answer: Carlsen’s goal wasn’t to achieve an overwhelming advantage in the

opening. His objective was more modest and practical noting, “I chose a line he
hadn’t faced for a long time. Hopefully he wouldn’t be too prepared for that.”
Now in response to an exchange on c3, White can recapture with the bishop and
occupy the long diagonal if Black plays ... c5.
8 ... Nd7
Anand varies from his game against Aronian in the 2004 Calvia Olympiad, where
he achieved a reasonable position after 8 ... Nxc3 9 Bxc3 b6 10 Ng3 Bb7 11 Bd3
Nd7. This game was drawn in 39 moves after a complex struggle, but when he
commented on the game in Informator he indicated his dissatisfaction with his 8th
and 9th moves. He marked them as dubious and suggested the move played in this
game.
9 g3 b6
Another idea is 9 ... N5-f6, with the idea of 10 ... e5.
10 Nxd5 exd5 11 Bg2

Exercise: So White opted to define the structure. Black must now choose how to
place his pieces and decide whether the ... c5 advance suits him, with the possible
appearance of hanging pawns, and if so, no less important will be the timing of
it. What would you play here?

11 ... Bb7
Answer: This is the most natural. It defends d5 and maintains the possibility of
playing ... c5. Seeing what happened in the game, though, an obvious suggestion is
11 ... Nf6 12 0-0 Bf5, when the bishop is more active on f5 than on b7.

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: “What he did is a little bit passive. I think it was played in a game
Ponomariov-Kramnik if I’m not mistaken. Ten years ago”, noted Carlsen. That
awareness helped him to find the most precise move in this position. What’s it?

12 Bb4!
Answer: The bishop exchange is convenient for White. It would get rid of the
bishop which is blocked in by its own pawns in exchange for Black’s “good” bishop.
It’s best to do this right now as 12 0-0 would allow 12 ... a5, preventing it.
Carlsen couldn’t recall the exact move order of R.Ponomariov-V.Kramnik, Wijk
aan Zee 2003, but he did remember the key idea, which was to play Bb4 “at some
point”.
That game went: 11 ... Nf6 12 0-0 Ne4 13 Rc1 Bb7 14 Qc2 Rc8 15 Rfd1 Bd6
16 Bb4! Qf6 17 Nc3 Nxc3 18 Qxc3 c6 19 Bxd6 Qxd6 20 b4, with White gaining a
comfortable advantage (1-0 in 38 moves).
The possibility of Black playing ... c5 was mentioned by Ponomariov at various
points, without it being an obvious improvement, merely a change of structure.
12 ... Nf6
Here, and on the next move, Black had the option of avoiding the bishop
exchange by playing 12 ... c5, but everything suggests that he didn’t fancy his chances
after e.g. 13 dxc5 bxc5 14 Bc3 Nf6 15 0-0 Ne4 16 Qc2 for Rfd1, Nf4, etc.. The
hanging pawns don’t seem very strong in this position.

Question: Why not double the pawns with 12 ... Bxb4?

95
 Answer: It’s possible, of course, but White’s doubled pawns are not a weakness
(how can they be exploited?). White would have two semi-open files and Black
would also be left with a passive bishop.
13 0-0 Re8

Question: Here too 13 ... c5 was possible. Wasn’t it good?

Answer: After 14 dxc5 bxc5 15 Bc3 Carlsen evaluated the position thus, “I think
this position is in general still a little bit better for White, since his hanging pawns in
the centre are more likely to be weak than a dynamic strength because his pieces are
not particularly active. Meanwhile, mine are well positioned to meet whatever he’s
going to do in the centre.”
14 Rc1
This prevents ... c5 and obliges Black to accept a rather passive but solid position.
16 ... c6 15 Bxe7 Rxe7 16 Re1

16 ... Qd6
Black initiates a plan that will prove unsuccessful. Carlsen commented, “I was a
little bit surprised by ... Qd6”, and said that he was expecting a different plan.

Exercise: What was Carlsen expecting?

Answer: He was expecting the typical Queen’s Gambit manoeuvre 16 ... Ne4 17
Nf4 Nd6 “and put the knight on d6 and then I can never really push the pawns on
the queenside as the knight is very well place to meet that.”

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 1 Typical Structures

That plan was used successfully in, for example, L.Portisch-G.Kasparov,

Skelleftea 1989, but under more favourable conditions for Black.

Exercise: However, Carlsen expressed the opinion that Black’s problems would
not be completely solved. What would do you think he would have played in
that
case?

Answer: Let’s hear what he has to say, “Nevertheless with something like Nd3,
with the plan of Re2-c2 putting pressure on the pawn on c6, we’re pretty much
playing for two results already, which is an achievement for White of course.”
17 Nf4 Bc8?!
This was the idea, to improve the placement of the bishop.
“Now he’s trying to transfer the bishop to f5, after which his problems would be
much less at least. I think it’s a decent enough positional move – it just doesn’t work.
At least as far as I could see.” (Carlsen)
This is where many of us mere mortals would have wondered, “So why didn’t I
play 11 ... Nf6 and 12 ... Bf5?”
18 Qa4 Rc7
Logical, with the idea of continuing with 19 ... Bf5, but the idea will be
punished.
If 18 ... Bd7 then 19 Qb4 is possible, given that after the exchange of queens the
weakness of c6 would be greater and White could increase the pressure by doubling
rooks on the c-file and playing Nd3-e5, or Nd3-b4.
Carlsen commented that after 19 ... Ne8, “For instance here it’s also possible to
lose quite quickly” and he gave the sample line: 20 Nd3 f6? 21 Qxd6 Nxd6 22 Nb4
Rc8? 23 Nxc6 Bxc6 24 Rxc6 Rxc6 25 Bxd5+ winning.

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 Exercise: What was the very strong plan that Carlsen initiated now?

19 f3!
Answer: “I was thinking for a while about this one but I really couldn’t see any
good plan for him so I decided just to go for it. If I manage to push e4-e5 he will
have serious positional problems”, commented Carlsen.
This plan, which can be seen in examples by Botvinnik and Kasparov, was used
for the first time in A.Rubinstein-R.Michell, Scarborough 1930. This game can be
found, among other places, annotated in the book Rubinstein Move by Move.
19 ... Be6
The defence 19 ... Qd8 20 e4 dxe4 21 fxe4 Bd7 was suggested but it isn’t a
significant improvement. White can prepare the e5-advance with 22 Qb3 or 22 Qb4
if he’s not convinced by 22 e5 Nd5 23 e6!. But not 23 Nxd5?! cxd5, which allows
Black to defend his d5-pawn, since the white queen is under attack.
20 e4 dxe4 21 fxe4 Qd7
21 ... b5 22 Qd1 Qd7 is also unsatisfactory. White could focus advantageously
on the new weak point, c5, with 23 e5 Nd5 24 Nd3.

Exercise: How did Carlsen continue?

22 d5!
Answer: With the same plan, but in a different situation. It’s natural to recall the
same 19 d5! advance in the game G.Kasparov-U.Andersson, Belfort 1988. Of course,
this advance must be justified tactically.

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 1 Typical Structures

22 ... cxd5 23 Qxd7 Rxd7

Exercise: What’s the key move in Carlsen’s plan?

24 Nxe6!
Answer: This is the key, but only in conjunction with the next move. On the
other hand 24 exd5? would be answered, not with 24 ... Nxd5?, which loses to 25
Nxd5 Bxd5 26 Rcd1, but with 24 ... Bf5 25 Re5 g6! and the greatest dangers have
already passed.
24 ... fxe6

Exercise: “I suspect that he just missed ... ” commented Carlsen. What move was
he referring to?

25 Bh3!
Answer: “It’s pretty much gone”, commented Carlsen. White recovers the pawn
and wins another one, creating a passed pawn.
25 ... Kh8 26 e5 Ng8 27 Bxe6 Rdd8
Black’s death throes would have been much longer after 27 ... Re7 28 Bxd5 Rd8,
as this wouldn’t have allowed the invasion by the c1-rook. But it wouldn’t have
changed the result.
28 Rc7 d4 29 Bd7 1-0
After 29 ... Ne7 30 Rd1 Nd5 31 Rb7 Rdb8 32 Rxb8+ Rxb8 33 Rxd4 there is no
hope for Black. Carlsen made it look easy, don’t you think?

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In Game 12 a typical position from the same Carlsbad structure was reached. Both
sides have ensured a good square for their knight, on c5 and c4 respectively. Black has
a good position, and a clear plan, but he puts it into effect at an inappropriate
moment and White takes advantage of Black’s mistake.

Game 12
A.Karpov-B.Spassky
Candidates, Leningrad (Game 11) 1974

Black to Play
After the moves b4 and ... b5, a plan which leaps out is to place the d7-knight on
c4.
16 ... Nb6?!

Question: How can this be dubious? Nothing seems more obvious that moving
the knight towards c4.

Answer: Yes, the idea is correct, but it was better to preface this with 16 ... a5!. If
White doesn’t take on a5 Black can play ... a5-a4, followed by ... Nb6-c4 and White
would have to take care of his a3-pawn.
After 17 bxa5 Qxa3 18 Bg4 Qd6 19 Bxd7 Qxd7 20 Nc5 Qc8, attacking the a5-
pawn and with the idea of ... Be7, the position would be equal.

Exercise: How did White punish Black for his error?

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 1 Typical Structures

17 a4!
Answer: Now the situation is reversed. Once White plays a5 it will be Black who
must look to the weakness of the a6-pawn. Admittedly Black’s mistake should not
prove too serious, but he needs to find an adequate solution.
17 ... Bd8?!
Seeking counterplay against the white king, but this was criticised by Botvinnik,
Karpov and Kasparov.
Black had to adapt to the new situation and look for a more harmonious defence.
Karpov suggested regrouping with 17 ... Rad8 18 Nc5 Bc8, defending a6 in the most
convenient manner. At the same time the pressure of the d8-rook and f6-bishop
against d4 would reduce the impact of an eventual central break with e4 by White.
Kasparov proposed 17 ... Rae8, followed by ... Nd7, and the white position is only
slightly better.
18 Nc5 Bc8 19 a5! Bc7 20 g3 Nc4
Black has carried out his idea of playing ... Nc4, where the knight is very well
situated, and placing his bishop on c7, forcing White to weaken his king position.
However, that’s almost the most that he can achieve without taking greater risks as, in
order to exploit the weakness of the white king, it will be necessary to advance the
kingside pawns, and this will also weaken the black position.

Exercise: How did Karpov demonstrate the flaw in Black’s approach?

21 e4!
Answer: By opening the game in this fashion White seriously weakens the
support of the knight on c4. In addition the weakness at c6 is exposed. It’s important

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that the black rooks are inactive, which serves to highlight the drawback of playing
17 ... Bd8 leaving the a8-rook out of play.
21 ... Bh3
An alternative was 21 ... dxe4 but the white pieces are more active after 22
N3xe4. If Black then plays 22 ... Qg6, Kasparov indicated that there is no need to
rush with 23 Bxc4 bxc4 24 Rxc4, when after 24 ... Bh3 25 Re1 f5 Black gains some
counterplay.
Stronger is “the cool-headed” 23 Re1! and the capture on c4 remains as a
possibility, as does the idea of Nd2, exchanging Black’s best placed piece.
Instead, 22 ... Qd5 can be answered with 23 Bf3 Qf5 24 Re1 also with
advantage.
22 Re1 dxe4
Botvinnik suggested 22 ... Rfe8, but the black position is very uncomfortable
after 23 exd5 (or Kasparov’s suggestion 23 e5 Qg6 24 Bd3 Bf5 25 Ne2 Bxd3 26 Nf4,
with a strong kingside majority) 23 ... cxd5 24 Bf3.
23 N3xe4 Qg6
“The choice for an army that has lost its coordination, is limited” (Kasparov).
The black queen stays on the kingside, to try to create some threats; this will fail, but
other queen moves were no better.

Exercise: What did White play now?

24 Bh5!
Answer: Once again expanding his possibilities before taking any concrete
measures. White is seeking something clearer than what could be obtained with 24
Bxc4 bxc4 25 Qe2 f5 26 Qxc4+ Kh8 27 Nd2 f4, which would justify Black’s
approach.
Kasparov notes, “Karpov continues to strengthen his position, not allowing the
opponent even a semblance of counterplay.”
24 ... Qh7
If 24 ... Qf5, keeping the queen more active, a strong reply is 25 Rc3!, with the
idea of g4. After 25 ... Qd5 26 g4! f5 27 Rxh3 fxe4 White captures the pawn
advantageously with 28 Rxe4, followed Bg6 and Rh5, or Qe2, etc. White is a pawn
up and has the more active pieces; the safety of his king is not an important factor in
this position.
25 Qf3 f5?

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 1 Typical Structures

Black changes plan and now tries to win material, but the white pieces are very
well placed to exploit the fresh weakness on the kingside.
“By conclusively shutting his strongest piece out of the game, Spassky effectively
signs his own death warrant.” (Kasparov).
More tenacious was 25 ... Bf5 although White’s advantage is clear after 26 Nc3,
with more active pieces and the weakness at c6 starting to be a factor, fully justifying
the plan of breaking with 21 e4!
Botvinnik and Karpov were both of the opinion that the best chance of resisting
was to play the inferior ending arising after 25 ... Qf5, even though it would be a
very unpleasant task after e.g. 26 Qxf5 Bxf5 27 Bf3, or 27 Be2.
26 Nc3 g6

Exercise: Black is winning a piece. With what sequence of moves did Karpov
show
that this wasn’t sufficient to hold Black’s position?

27 Qxc6!
Answer: The queen becomes active, putting pressure on the kingside and on the
c7-bishop. Even more important is that it makes the d5-square available.
27 ... gxh5 28 Nd5!
Black’s attempted attack is turning into a crushing white offensive.
28 ... f4 29 Re7! Qf5
29 ... fxg3 would obviously not be answered with 30 Rxh7?? gxf2+, followed by
mate.

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 Instead the elegant 30 Nf6+! Rxf6 31 Qxa8+ Rf8 32 Qxf8+ Kxf8 33 Rxh7 was
winning, or else simply 30 hxg3 Qf5 31 Ne4.
30 Rxc7
With a material advantage and still on the attack; the rest is very simple.
30 ... Rae8 31 Qxh6 Rf7 32 Rxf7 Kxf7 33 Qxf4 Re2 34 Qc7+ Kf8 35 Nf4 1-
0

In Game 13 we’ll see an example of a typical Sicilian Defence structure in which

Black plays ... e5. At a certain moment White places his knight on d5 and following
the capture on d5 he takes back with the pawn.
There are many possibilities following Black’s capture on d5, which can be with
knight or bishop. The change of structure gives White a pawn majority on the
queenside and Black one on the kingside. An ideal model of White’s winning strategy
can be seen for instance in the game E.Geller-R.Fischer, Curaçao 1962.
In our example White played in a rather unusual fashion. Instead of trying to
capitalise on his majority on the queenside, he operated on the opposite flank, which
objectively wasn’t best. But Black didn’t find the best counter-plan and White’s
atypical play proved to be justified.

Game 13
F.Caruana-B.Gelfand
Wijk aan Zee 2014
Sicilian Defence [B90]

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nf6 5 Nc3 a6 6 f3 e5

This Sicilian Defence structure where Black weakens d5 is very common these
days and it can be reached from different variations. Of course, each one has its own
characteristics.
7 Nb3 Be6 8 Be3 h5

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 1 Typical Structures

Question: A plan which involves this weakening move would have been
unthinkable thirty years ago, wouldn’t it?

Answer: Yes, you’re right. The game is changing constantly. The general rules
were much more important previously than they are now. Now the choice of moves
is based much more on calculation and concrete play. That’s to say that if it doesn’t
fail tactically it can be played. This is partly due to the influence of the computers,
which seem to give solid clues about what is playable.
In this case it’s thought that preventing White’s g4 expansion compensates for the
weakness created on the kingside.
9 Nd5 Bxd5
Black can’t tolerate the knight for ever and now the central structure changes,
which naturally affects the new plans for both sides. As a rule Black’s preferred way to
exchange is with a knight, which has also been played in this position, but is less
popular.
10 exd5 Nbd7 11 Qd2 g6 12 Be2 Bg7 13 0-0

Question: I suppose that this position is much livelier than it appears. Explain to
me a little about what is happening.

Answer: With his choice White is heading down a positional route for the
moment.
A riskier possibility is 13 0-0-0, in order to then start a bayonet attack with g4.
Months later, in Baku, in a game between the same opponents, Caruana deviated

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with 13 Na5, anticipating ... b6, with the idea of following the typical plan of
playing b4, c4 and, after adequate preparation, c5. Gelfand responded with 13 ...
Qc7 (naturally Black resists playing ... b6 until he has a suitable response to Nc6) 14
c4 e4

This advance is the basis of the counterplay that Black has available at various
times and it must always be taken into consideration. Black uses his kingside
majority to gain space and to clear the e5-square for his d7-knight, being able to
become active subsequently on the e-file. The remote positing of the white knight on
a5 makes this even more to be recommended. Now 15 f4?! can be answered with 15
... Ng4! 16 Bxg4 hxg4 17 0-0 Nc5, or 17 ... f5 followed 18 ... Nc5, and the absence
of the white squared bishop is noticeable.
Let’s look at this game a little more. It continued 15 0-0 exf3 16 gxf3 (controlling
g4 and e4, in exchange for slightly weakening the pawn structure and the white
king’s position, which doesn’t seem important for now; 16 Bxf3 would be followed
by 16 ... 0-0 and then possibly ... Rae8, preparing ... Ne4) 16 ... 0-0 17 b4 Rfe8 18
Rac1 and now Gelfand made a great positional sacrifice: 18 ... Rxe3!, in order to take
control of the dark squares, and after 19 Qxe3 Re8, with the idea of ... Nh7 and ...
Bh6, he had good compensation.
13 ... 0-0
Previously, in Anand-Gelfand, Moscow 2016, the immediate 13 ... e4 was played
and after 14 f4 Ng4 15 Bd4 Bxd4+ 16 Qxd4 Qb6 17 Bxg4 (instead of Anand’s 17
Qxb6) 17 ... hxg4 18 f5 was interesting, with a minimal advantage to White.
14 Rac1

Question: What an odd move, don’t you think? Is it necessary?

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 1 Typical Structures

Answer: Let’s hand over to Caruana, “This had been played before by
correspondence players. I didn’t fully understand the move, but I figured I should
listen to them!”
It’s a half-joking answer. The reason is that they are two almost “forced” moves,
(Rac1 and c4) so that theoretically the move order doesn’t matter much. By not yet
touching the c2-pawn, White retains the option of advancing it only one square to
c3, neutralising the g7-bishop once the long dark diagonal is open.
Caruana had been impressed by the game P.Leko-R.Wojtaszek, Istanbul 2012,
which continued 14 Na5 Rb8 15 c4 e4 16 f4 Ng4 17 Bxg4 hxg4 18 f5 and here
Black played a manoeuvre which is seen in some lines of the Maroczy Variation of
the Accelerated Dragon, 18 ... Qh4! 19 Bg5 Qh8! 20 Rab1 Be5, with complex play.
14 c4 was also possible. After 14 ... e4 15 f4 Ng4 White can play 16 Bd4 or 16 Bxg4
hxg4 17 f5, which Caruana liked less because of 17 ... Ne5, although after 18. Qe2
followed by Nd4 White is fine.
14 ... b6
After a long period of reflection Gelfand decided to prevent the manoeuvre Na5,
followed by c4-c5. It’s also possible in some cases to continue then with ... a5 and ...
a4, in order to gain the c5-square for the d7-knight.
Caruana thought that the immediate 14 ... e4 was less reliable because of 15 f4
Ng4 16 Bxg4 hxg4 17 f5. Now the manoeuvre that we saw in the previous note, 17
... Qh4 18 Rce1 Qh8, is not effective because of 19 c3 Be5 20 Bf4.
The capture 17 ... Bxb2 is not cost-free. After 18 Rce1, followed by Bd4 or Bg5,
depending on Black’s response, White gains compensation, as Black has numerous
weaknesses.
15 h3
Another preparatory move. We’ve already seen how important it can be to
control g4. Now the knight jump Nf6-g4 has been prevented and Caruana is already
considering the possibility of playing g4 in some cases.
15 ... Re8
Another idea, mentioned by Caruana, was 15 ... Nh7, followed by 16 ... f5, with
the possibility of benefiting from the queen being on d8 and then playing ... Bf6 and
... Bg5.
16 g4?!
An odd decision, explained only because Caruana wanted to punish Black for
playing 15 ... Re8 (which he considered bad) “and maybe I got carried away”, he

107
commented.
It was more logical to play on ‘his’ wing with 16 c4, followed by the typical
manoeuvre Na1-c2-b4, or Na3-b5 if Black prevents this with ... a5.
16 ... hxg4 17 hxg4

Exercise: What would you play for Black here?

17 ... Nh7?
Answer: Here Black let slip an opportunity to exploit White’s excessive optimism.
He could have played 17 ... b5!, followed by ... Nb6, when the d5 pawn is weak.
In the event of 17 ... Nc5 Caruana intended to play 18 Nxc5 bxc5. Four years
ago he commented, “Well, I’m not ashamed of it! 19 Kg2! Qd7 20 Kg3!, which stops
... e4 forever. Even though the computer insists that I’m worse here, I would be more
worried for Black. Is he not about to be mated after Rh1 and Bh6?”
Current engines don’t consider the king manoeuvre strange, and they don’t see
White as worse. But neither do they see him as better. As a rule that means that the
practical difficulties are greater for the defending side.
Nonetheless, instead of the daring king manoeuvre, White can also play 19 Rf2,
planning Rg2.

Question: Well, let’s go back to 17 ... Nh7. At move 15 this was good, but now
it’s
bad? How do you explain this?

Answer: The position is different. My answer is to set you an exercise.

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 1 Typical Structures

Exercise: What’s the best response to 17 ... Nh7?

18 g5!
Answer: Now Black won’t be able to set up a duo of pawns on f5 and e5.
18 ... f5
This forces the opening of White king’s position but also that of the black king
and the white pieces are better placed to benefit from the opening up of the game. As
Caruana pointed out, there was no other way of trying to getting free from the white
pressure.
Black could have won a pawn with 18 ... e4 19 f4 Bxb2, but after 20 Rb1 Bg7 21
Nd4 White’s compensation is very good.
19 gxf6 Bxf6

Exercise: In the event of bringing another piece to the kingside with 19 ...
Ndxf6,
what is White’s best response?

Answer: The same as in the game, our familiar manoeuvre 20 Rf2!, followed by
Rg2, now striking at g6.
20 Rf2 Bg5 21 Rg2 Bxe3+ 22 Qxe3
“The bishop exchange will not halt the attack” (Caruana).
22 ... Ndf8 23 Bd3 Ra7

Exercise: There are several possibilities now. white needs to come up with a plan.

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 What’s the strongest continuation?

24 Rf1?!
Answer: Preparing f4. “This move impressed Yasser Seirawan (the official
commentator), even though he admitted it probably is not very good! Of course I
had other stronger options at my disposal” noted Caruana.

Question: Isn’t one of them 24 Na5, to install the knight on c6?

Answer: Caruana himself was tempted by it, but although the knight is ‘optically’
good on c6, it doesn’t really do much after 24 ... Rg7 25 Nc6 Qh4.
In answer to the original question, of course 24 Bxg6 was possible, but the
rewards are scant after 24 ... Nxg6 25 Rxg6+ Rg7.
Simplest and strongest was first to include the queen in the attack with 24 Qh6!,
followed by 25 Nd2 and Ne4, when all the white pieces are attacking.
24 ... Rf7?!
The most tenacious was 24 ... Nf6, clearing h7 for the a7-rook in reply to 25
Qh6; but after 25 f4! instead, the black position is difficult.
25 Qh6
Now White indeed has a winning advantage.
25 ... Kh8

Exercise (easy): What’s White’s strongest move now?

26 Nd2

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 1 Typical Structures

Answer: Of course the g6 pawn can wait. The most distant piece is now brought
into play and is on its way to e4 and g5.
26 ... Rf4 27 Rg4?!
You always have to be careful. Obviously not 27 Bxg6? because of 27 ... Rf6! and
Black is back in the game. Caruana’s move is a good one that prevents 27 ... Rh4.
However, 27 Rh2! would have kept the queens on the board and might have enabled
White to win by direct attack. The plan is 28 Kh1, followed by Rg1.
27 ... b5
Caruana wasn’t worried about the endgame arising after 27 ... Rxg4+ 28 fxg4
Qg5 29 Qxg5 Nxg5 30 Nc4, because “it’s probably lost for Black but knights are
tricky and you can never be sure”. In other words, objectively it’s not hopeful, but the
practical element offers Black more chances.
If 27 ... Qd7 then the “greedy” (Caruana) 28 Rxf4 is good enough to win, but
Caruana gave 28 Ne4! Rxg4+ 29 fxg4 Qxg4+ 30 Kh2 as far more convincing, “and
Black’s position crumbles”. The threat is 31 Nxd6 which can still be played in
response to 31 ... Rd8.
28 Ne4 Nd7
This loses at once, but there was no way out. Other moves could be answered
with 29 Kg2 and 30 Rh1, and Black is defenceless.
29 Rxg6 Rg8 30 Ng5 1-0
After 30 ... Qxg5+ 31 Rxg5 Rxg5+ 32 Kf2 Ndf6 White plays 33 Rg1 or 33 Ke1
and the resistance is over.

To close this chapter, in Game 14 we’ll look at a familiar structure, but with some
unusual features, not only in the placing of White’s queenside pawns but especially
because both sides’ pieces are situated on unusual squares.
In return for a good pawn centre, the young Fischer fell somewhat behind in
development. When his centre was neutralised energetically on moves 16, 19 and 20,
his position became delicate.

Game 14
B.Wexler-R.Fischer
Buenos Aires 1960

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 White to Play

The position is a strange one. It’s a Benoni structure with reversed colours, but
with some minor pieces on both sides in untypical positions.

Exercise: What would you play with White here?

16 e3!
Answer: This is the strongest plan. White must increase the pressure before Black
expels the knight from g5, plays ... Nc5, etc and regroups. This pawn break is the
best way of keeping the initiative. It opens up the game when the black queenside is
still undeveloped.
16 ... dxe3
16 ... Nc5 would be answered with the strong move 17 Qa3! and after, for
example, 17 ... h6 18 exd4 exd4 19 Rfe1 Qd6 White would be better as he gets a
crushing initiative after 20 Bf4 (or the simple 20 Nh3) 20 ... Qb6 21 Re7! etc.
In the event of 16 ... h6 the simple 17 Nh3 is possible, but also adequate is 17
exd4! hxg5 18 Bxg5 Qe8 19 dxe5 Nxe5 20 Nxe5 Qxe5 (20 ... Bxe5? is bad because
of 21 Re1) 21 d4! Qd6 (21 ... Qxd4? 22 Rd1) 22 c5 Qd7 23 Rd1, when White has
only two pawns for the piece but Black is almost paralysed.
17 Bxe3 h6 18 Nh3
There are a number of badly placed pieces in this position and this knight is one
of them. But even from h3 it will be able to influence the play. On the other hand,
the lack of harmony on Black’s queenside is not easily resolved. However, according
to the engines, the position is almost equal.

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 1 Typical Structures

18 ... Kh7

Exercise: How to increase pressure on the opponent?

19 c5!
Answer: As we have already seen, the advance of White’s queenside pawns badly
cramps the black minor pieces.
19 ... Nf6?!
Karsten Müller in his book on Fischer criticises this move, which neglects the e5-
pawn. He suggests 19 ... c6 20 Re1 Ne6 21 Qc4 Re8, even though White seems to
keep an advantage after 22 a4, when 22 ... Nexc5? only helps the white attack. There
might follow 23 h5! gxh5 (if 23 ... g5 the sacrifice 24 Bxg5! is very strong, e.g. 24 ...
hxg5 25 Nfxg5+ Kh8 26 Nf7+ Kg8 27 Nd6+ Ne6 28 Nxe8, and the white initiative
is unstoppable) 24 Nh4.

Exercise: How to proceed now?

20 Re1!
Answer: This prepares the destruction of the black centre, putting pressure on
the e5-pawn just as Müller indicated.
20 ... Ng4
20 ... e4 21 Nd2 only facilitates the opening up of the game in White’s favour.
21 Bf4
The difference in activity of the pieces of each side is becoming more evident.
21 ... Nf7 22 Nxe5! Ngxe5 23 d4 Be6 24 dxe5 Rab8

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 No better is 24 ... Bxa2 25 Rb2 Be6 26 Bxb7 Rab8, although Müller considers
that it was preferable from a practical point of view, as then Black’s position contains
more dynamism.
25 a4 Rfd8 26 Qe3 Bc4 27 b6!
White continues to drive forward his initiative very energetically.
27 ... Rd3?!
If 27 ... cxb6? then 28 e6 is conclusive. 27 ... Be6 28 bxc7 Qxc7 29 Rb6 was no
solution either.
28 Qc1 Be6 29 bxc7 Qxc7 30 Rb6 Bd5
30 ... Qd7 is answered with 31 c6, winning.
31 e6 Ne5 32 Rd6

Even though he has had a won game for some moves now, I can recall the words
of the Argentinean master Bernardo Wexler who said, with his usual modesty, “After
this move I now truly believe there is no defence for Black”.
32 ... Bxg2 33 Rxd3 Bxh3 34 Bxe5 Qc6
34 ... Bxe5 loses to 35 Rd7+.
35 f3
“He saw the threat!” commented Mednis, in How to Beat Bobby Fischer.
35 ... Rd8 36 Rxd8 Qxf3 37 Qd2 Bxe5 38 Qf2 1-0
“Too much is too much!”, commented Mednis, so much so that the young
Fischer resigned.

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 2 Space Advantage

Chapter Two
Space Advantage
In this chapter we’ll look at some examples where one side has a space advantage.
There is a struggle as this player tries to profit in some way from his advantage, while
the opponent tries to neutralise it.
Almost as a continuation of the previous chapter we’ll look at four examples of
typical structures, such as the Maroczy formation with the pawns on e4 and c4
against a Sicilian structure.
In Game 15 the side with the space advantage gains the initiative and some
advantage, but as the struggle grows sharper many options have to be considered and
breaching the defence is not an easy task.
After a complex struggle, with time trouble and understandable errors, this time
the defence came out on top.

Game 15
L.Polugaevsky-L.Portisch
Mar del Plata, 1982

In this ‘Hedgehog’ structure there are some special features. Both sides have pieces on
squares which could be better. On White’s part there are several possible plans, one of
which is to improve the placement of the d2-knight and transfer it to a more active
square with Nf3-d4. Another idea is to play Nf1-e3, strengthening control of d5.
In the game White tries to exploit the situation of the g6-knight, followed by a
tactical blow typical of the Sicilian structure.

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 White to Play

19 h4!
The immediate idea is to play h5, followed very possibly by h6, weakening
Black’s castled position.
19 ... h6 20 h5 Ngf8 21 Nd5!
And this was the other idea. I had the good fortune to play in this tournament
and I remember that Portisch, even after winning the game, was critical of his play
because he allowed this knight jump to be effected under good conditions.

Exercise: How did Black respond?

21 ... Bd8
Answer: Very calmly, accepting the presence of the knight on d5 for the time
being. Although White has the initiative there is no overly serious continuation. In
contrast, opening the game with 21 ... exd5? 22 exd5 Bxd5 23 Bxd5 Bf6 24 Ne4
would give White a great advantage in view of his more active pieces.
22 Qg4 e5
Forced. In return for giving up control of d5 Black neutralises the b2-bishop and
the white initiative is restrained for the time being.
22 ... f6? wasn’t appropriate, as it weakens the structure too much. White can
withdraw his knight to c3 or b4, with advantage, but retreat is not even necessary. 23
Nf3 is possible, when 23 ... exd5?! 24 exd5 Ba8 25 Nh4 would give White a winning
attack which is not surprising, seeing that so many black pieces are a long way from
the castled position.

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 2 Space Advantage

23 Nf3
This increases the pressure on e5, but Black is able to cope with this. It wasn’t
easy to find a promising plan for White. There are various moves to consider, such as
the prophylactic 23 Kh2 which, after 23 ... Nf6, would allow the retreat of the queen
with 24 Qe2, leaving Black with the decision about what to do about the knight on
d5.
23 ... Nf6!
Black manages to support his pawn on e5 with a series of intermediate moves and
he achieves a satisfactory game.
24 Nxf6+ Bxf6 25 fxe5 Bd7! 26 Qf4 Ne6! 27 Qe3
White could opt for an exchange of queens with 27 Qd2 dxe5 28 Qd6, but this
is not worrying for Black, as he can play for instance 28 ... Qxd6 29 Rxd6 Be7,
followed by ... f6.

Exercise: How to recapture on e5?

27 ... dxe5
Answer: A very natural move. After the game the Argentinean master Rubinetti
asked Portisch about the 27 ... Bxe5 capture, given that after taking with the pawn
the bishop is very passive. Apparently Portisch, to judge by the expression on his face,
didn’t even consider this and explained that, although the bishop was for the time
being inactive, later it could certainly be activated.
28 Rd5 Nc5?!
Black begins the tactical struggle with an active move. It’s the most ambitious
from a practical point of view because of the impending time pressure but it wasn’t
the best.
Preferable was 28 ... Nf8 and after 29 Bxe5 Bxe5 30 Nxe5 (30 Rxe5 is also
answered with 30 ... Be6, with the idea of ... Nd7) 30 ... Be6, White must sacrifice
the exchange, for which he receives some compensation.

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 Exercise: The struggle has become tactically sharper and the time has come to
calculate. There are several possibilities. What move do you think is the best?

29 a5?
Answer: White wants to weaken the black structure before playing Nxe5, but this
will work well. After 29 Nxe5 Be6 the exchange sacrifice is once again forced,
although in better circumstances for Black than before, because of the knight’s more
active situation.
29 b4! was strongest move, pushing the knight out of play. The engines suggest
this immediately and after 29 ... Nxa4 30 Bxe5 Bxe5 31 Nxe5 Be6 White sacrifices
the exchange under ideal conditions after 32 Qd4! Bxd5 33 exd5 when the bad
position of the knight on a4 gives White the advantage. Now 33 ... b5? can be
answered simply with 34 c5, with a crushing position.
29 ... Be6 30 Bxe5 Bxe5 31 Rxe5 Rac7
By supporting the knight, Black gains reasonable compensation for the pawn in
the form of a counterattack on the queenside and by exploiting the bad position of
the white rook on e5. Yet even stronger was 31 ... Rd7! preventing 32 axb6? because
of 32 ... Rd3 33 Qe2 Rxf3 (or simply 33 ... Rxb3) 34 Rxc5 Rxg3 35 Rxc8+ Bxc8!,
threatening ... Bh3, as well the capture on b6 or b3. Black has a winning advantage,
in spite of the white queenside pawns, which will fall one after another.
32 Rd5 would be preferable, but Black would have the advantage after 32 ...
Bxd5 33 exd5 bxa5.
32 Nd4 bxa5 33 Nxe6 fxe6 34 Rxa5??
Time pressure begins to take its toll and this is the decisive mistake.

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 2 Space Advantage

As Portisch pointed out, 34 Bh3 was necessary, and after 34 ... Kh8 35 Bxe6
Nxe6!? (35 ... Re8 36 Rxc5 Rxc5 37 Qxc5 Qxg3+ leads to a draw by perpetual
check) 36 Rxe6 Rb7 the game becomes equal after 37 Qf4. However, 37 Ra3? is not
recommended because of 37 ... a4! 38 bxa4 Rxc4, with a strong attack. Modern
engines see no defence for White.
34 ... Qb6
Stronger was 34 ... Nxb3! 35 Bh3 Rc6, (or 35 Rxa6 Nc5! and Black wins
material) 36 Ra5 Qb6 37 Rb5 Qd6, winning the exchange advantageously.

35 Ra1?
The hidden path to salvation was 35 Raxc5! Rxc5 36 Bh3! and White is not
worse.
35 ... Qd6
On the other hand now White’s position collapses.
36 Rxc5
36 Qf4 Qd4+ and 36 Qc3 Nxb3 are no better.
36 ... Rxc5 37 Rf1 Rg5 38 g4 Rxg4 39 Qf3 Qc5+ 40 Rf2 Rg5 41 Qf7+ Kh8
0-1

The space advantage that White had in Game 16 needed several moves to consolidate
it and prevent the position from opening up prematurely in favour of the opponent.
Once this had been achieved, a new stage began with equal chances.
An error on move 20 allowed White to gain the advantage. In order to exploit it
he had to skilfully choose the most effective deployment of his forces and judge the
right moment at which to move on to the offensive with the infantry. The final step
chosen by Black didn’t alleviate the situation and finally the space advantage proved

119
decisive.

Game 16
F.Caruana-M.Rodshtein
European Team Championship, Porto Carras 2011

White to Play

In this Maroczy formation the situation of the white king is striking.

Exercise: There are many possibilities here. Which would you choose?

15 Rc1
Answer: Played before taking any radical steps such as f4. “First it’s important to
make sure Black has no counterplay.” (Caruana).
The engines have no objection to moves such as 15 h4 or 15 Nd5, but over the
board it’s ‘human’ to strengthen the position first and only then take concrete steps.
15 ... Qa5
It was possible to insert 15 ... Rfc8 and after 16 b3 a6 17 a4 Nd7 18 Bxg7 Kxg7
19 f4 Qc5+ 20 Kg2 the situation is similar to the game, although somewhat better
for Black, according to Caruana and the thematic break 20 ... b5! appears to prove
him right. After 21 cxb5 Qb4 22 Nd5 Bxd5 23 exd5 Rxc1 24 Qxc1 Qxb3, or 21
axb5 axb5 22 Nxb5 Nf6 23 Nc3 Rcb8, followed by ... Ra3, Black has good
counterplay.
16 Kg2 Rfc8 17 b3 a6

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 2 Space Advantage

Exercise: What to play now?

18 a4
Answer: Of course, this forced in order to prevent ... b5, although playing a4 is
not without cost as the weakening of the b3-pawn could be an important issue.
18 ... Nd7 19 Bxg7 Kxg7

Exercise: We see that Black offered to exchange the dark-squared bishops,

seeking to exploit the various weak points in the White camp, but how can
White
demonstrate that there is a possible downside to this?

20 f4!
Answer: Now that everything is ‘in its place’, the moment has arrived to go over
to the offensive.
As Caruana pointed out, if Black wants to benefit from the weakness of the b3-
pawn he’ll need to play ... Nc5, which will leave the black kingside unprotected.
White can then play Rf1, followed by f5.
20 ... Nf6?
“A strategic mistake. Black opts for a passive defence, hoping his position is
sufficiently solid that White can’t break through. However, White has more than
enough resources to attack on the kingside” was Caruana’s instructive commentary.
It was necessary to do something on the other flank. In the event of 20 ... Nc5 21
Rf1 f6 Caruana had planned 22 Rf3, ready to reply to 22 ... Qb4 with 23 Nd5! Bxd5

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24 exd5 and Re3, with a slight advantage, even though Black has a solid position.
But instead of 22 ... Qb4 Black can strike the thematic blow 22 ... b5! under
good conditions, achieving an acceptable position.
Therefore, instead of 22 Rf3, it’s preferable to play 22 Qc2, defending e4 and
maintaining the tension, so that White’s chances continue to be somewhat better.
21 Bf3
Overprotecting e4. We already know that it’s useful to do this in order to
discourage ... b5, so that after axb5 the knight could take on b5.
21 ... Rab8 22 Re1 Rd8
Black continues to make waiting moves, but meanwhile White makes progress.
Black could have attempted to force matters with 22 ... b5 23 axb5 axb5 24 Nxb5
Rxb5 25 cxb5 Rxc1 26 Qxc1 Qxb5 27 Qc3 Qxb3 28 Qxb3 Bxb3 29 Rc1, “when I
felt I would be able to win the endgame, but matters are not totally clear.” according
to Caruana.
It’s worth noting that White could try to bring about the exchange of queens in
rather more awkward circumstances for Black with 27 Re3 Bxb3 28 Qb2 Bc4 29
Qxb5 Bxb5 30 e5, when taking on e5 loses a pawn, so Black would be forced to
accept an isolated pawn d6, e.g. 30 ... Nd7 31 Rb3 Ba6 32 Ra3 Bc4 33 Ra7 Be6 34
exd6 exd6 35 Ra6, forcing Black to Play 35 ... d5, weakening the dark squares.
White would continue with 36 Kf2.

Exercise: What’s White’s strongest continuation now?

23 g4!
Answer: “The time has come to begin the assault”, commented Caruana. White
plans f5 and g5, driving away the black minor pieces, with Nd5 and Qd4 also in the
air and the black king would be lacking protection.
23 ... h6 24 h4 Rh8
This prevents g5, but now White can change plan advantageously.

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 2 Space Advantage

25 Qd4!

Question: Why not continue attacking with 25 f5 Bd7 26 Nd5? Was this no
good?

Answer: It certainly was a good alternative in order to keep attacking.

Caruana’s move has another idea. It threatens 26 g5, and he’s prepared to
exchange queens but in very good circumstances, with the black structure much
weakened.
25 ... Qc5
This leads to an inferior ending, but it’s not easy to suggest anything better.
26 Qxc5
The black forces will be left uncoordinated after the following forced sequence.
26 ... dxc5 27 f5 Bc8 28 e5 Ne8 29 fxg6 fxg6 30 Nd5

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 Black has mobility problems and serious weaknesses. On the other hand, White
has all his pieces active, and it’s only a matter of time before he invades the black
position. The game is decided.
30 ... Rf8
Caruana notes that defending the pawn with 30 ... e6 would lead to a comic
situation, where Black can hardly move any piece. After 31 Nb6 Rf8 32 a5, for
example, White continues 32 ... Nc7 33 Rcd1 Na8 34 Na4, etc.
31 Nxe7 Be6 32 Kg3 Rf7 33 Nd5 b6 34 Rcd1 Nc7 35 Nxc7 Rxc7 36 Rd6
Re7 37 Bd5 Rbe8 38 Bxe6
Simplifying to a rook ending is the simplest way.
38 ... Rxe6 39 Rxe6 Rxe6 40 Kf4 Kf7 41 Ke4 1-0

The side with a space disadvantage must play flexibly, combining the possibility of
improving his pieces with that of preparing a liberating pawn break. Manoeuvres
where ‘nothing’ happens are not uncommon.
In Game 17, Black overlooked the moment when he could improve an inactive
piece and White took advantage of the erroneous black decision and gained the
advantage by exploiting the weakness created.
The initiative gave rise to a dangerous attack. In order to neutralise it here too
Black went into an ending, but as in the previous case, White’s space advantage and
greater activity were decisive.

Game 17
M.Carlsen-J.Polgar

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 2 Space Advantage

London Chess Classic 2012

White to Play
As usual in the Hedgehog structure, there are many slow manoeuvres. This
position has some differences from a ‘normal’ Hedgehog position, the most notable
being the placing of a knight on f8 instead of f6.

Exercise: There is no possibility of carrying out either of the typical breaks ... b5
or
... d5. What move and /or plan would you choose with Black here?

22 ... g6?
Answer: A move criticised by Carlsen and by almost everyone, “Perhaps she
wants to play ... e5 or ... f5”, said Carlsen, but now he will show what is wrong with
this idea.
Black’s position is uncomfortable but after this move the situation of the f8-
knight is even more unfortunate, which led Carlsen to wonder if Black intended to
play 22 ... g5, but didn’t trust it; “it must be bad because of a timely e5”, he said.
Kavalek suggested 22 ... h6!, when the f8-knight gains some mobility. There
doesn’t seem to be anything better.

Exercise: What’s White’s most precise plan now?

23 e5!

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 Answer: It’s important to realise when it’s time to stop manoeuvring and it’s
appropriate to make a committal decision. In this case that decision is motivated by
the fact that, once ... g6 is played, the weakness of f6 will be obvious.
“These opportunities must not be allowed to slip away!” (Nepomniachtchi).

23 ... Bc6
Carlsen mentioned that in the event of 23 ... Bxf3 24 Nxf3 dxe5 25 fxe5 Qb7
(25 ... g5, giving mobility to the Nf8, is Nepomniachtchi’s recommendation, and
after 26 Rd4 Red8 27 Rcd1 a6, “it’s important not to allow the knight to go to d6,
and after, for instance, 28 Qe3 h6 29 h4 Qc7 Black, miraculously, continues to
fight”) 26 Ne4, with a big advantage, especially thanks to the bad situation of the
knight on f8.
Another suggestion by Nepomniachtchi is 23 ... dxe5 24 Bxb7 Qxb7 25 fxe5 h5
and place trust in the robustness of the black defences. It’s true that the engines view
very sceptically both suggestions by the Russian GM, but we should note that he
wanted to avoid at all cost the type of position reached in the game, considering it
untenable.
24 Bd4 Red8
“I suppose that she doesn’t have another more useful move”, commented Carlsen.
“Probably neither do I, so I decided to take,” he added.
25 Bxc6 Rxc6 26 Nf3
Defending the e5-pawn, in order to be able to play Ne4.
26 ... dxe5
Closing the long diagonal. If the tension is maintained with 26 ... Rdc8 there can
follow 27 exd6 again with a pleasant advantage to White after, for example, 27 ...
Bxd6 28 Ne4 Be7 29 Ba1, intending Nd4, Qb2, etc., as Carlsen indicated.

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 2 Space Advantage

The engines find something more direct: 29 Ne5 R6c7 (after 29 ... Nxe5 30
Bxe5 Qb7 White can play either 31 b5 or 31 Ba1, and the threat of Qb2 forces the
sacrifice ... e5) 30 Ng4, winning.
27 fxe5
The d4-bishop is now blocked but, on the other hand, the e5-pawn controls f6
and d6 and the space gained allows the White pieces to manoeuvre more easily.
We should also notice that the f-file has been opened up, which doesn’t seem
important now, but will be decisive in the future.
27 ... Rdc8
If 27 ... a5, seeking to open a second front in order to distract White from his
attack, there are several possibilities. Kavalek indicated that White doesn’t need to
deviate from his objective. He can play 28 Ne4 (28 Nb5 is what the engines prefer)
28 ... axb4 29 axb4, then if 29 ... Bxb4 White can play 30 Qe3! Kg7 (controlling h6;
in the event of 30 ... Bc5 White wins with 31 Bxc5 Nxc5 32 Nf6+ Kg7 33 Ng4 etc)
31 Qf4 h6 32 Be3, winning.
27 ... g5 is again another resource to give some scope to the passive knight on f8,
and above all to ‘disturb’ the position somewhat, although such a further weakening
of the king’s position doesn’t allow for much optimism. White would play 28 h4.
28 Ne4 Qc7 29 Nfd2
In an economical fashion White neutralises the pressure on his c4 weakness in
order then to continue making progress with his offensive. Carlsen also examined the
plan of playing on the queenside but now 29 c5 doesn’t achieve much after 29 ...
bxc5 30 b5 Rb6 31 a4 a6!, etc.
29 ... a6
In the event of 29 ... Nxe5 30 b5 Rc5 it’s possible to capture advantageously on
c5. Carlsen also mentioned 31 Nb3.
30 Nf2
Regrouping to prepare the attack on the black king. Carlsen also considered 30
c5, but there is no promising continuation in sight after 30 ... bxc5 31 bxc5 Nxc5!,
etc.
30 ... Bg5?!
The pressure on c4 will not have any useful effect.
“Perhaps she should play 30 ... h5 for ... Nh7 and activate the knight. In any case
White is better,” commented Carlsen. The black kingside would be weaker then.

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 Exercise: What strong plan did White initiate now?

31 Rf1!
Answer: Pointing out that the black pieces seem have ‘forgotten’ that the f7-point
is very weak.
31 ... Bxd2
“I don’t see that she has anything better, the knight will return to e4” (Carlsen).
The engines suggest 31 ... f5 but you have to be very optimistic and/or tenacious.
Nepomniachtchi said that “it’s embarrassing even to recommend it”.
32 Qxd2 Nxe5
In the event of 32 ... Rxc4 there “obviously follows 33 Rxc4 Qxc4 34 Ng4, etc.”,
according to Carlsen when the threats of 35 Nh6+ and 35 Qf4 are very convincing.
Preventing Ng4 with 32 ... h5 naturally weakens the castled position even more.
White wins with another infiltration: 33 Ne4 Nh7 34 Qh6!, threatening 35 Rxf7,
and if 34 ... Nxe5 the most convincing and beautiful continuation is 35 Rxf7!! Qxf7
36 Bxe5 Rxc4 (or 36 ... Rf8 37 Ng5! with a very quick mate) 37 Rxc4 Rxc4 38 Nd6
etc, winning.
33 Bxe5 Qxe5 34 Ng4 Rd6 35 Nh6+ Kg7 36 Rxf7+ Kh8 37 Qf2 Qd4
Forced. It’s essential to exchange queens to parry the threats of mate.
38 c5
Played quickly. The computers suggest 38 Rb7 and 38 Rb1. All three moves are
of similar strength.
38 ... bxc5

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 2 Space Advantage

It’s possible to try 38 ... Qxf2+ 39 Kxf2 bxc5 but White’s better king position
makes itself felt after 40 bxc5 (40 Rxc5 Rxc5 41 bxc5 Rc6 42 Rxf8+ Kg7 43 Rf3
Kxh6 44 Rc3 Kg5 45 Ke3 Kf5 46 Kd4 is also advantageous) 40 ... Rdc6 41 Ke3 e5
(not 41 ... Rxc5? 42 Rxf8+!) 42 Ke4, with much the better position.
39 Qxd4+ Rxd4 40 Rxc5

And the white advantage is decisive. The black king is almost caught in a mating
net. The white pieces are much more active and White has a queenside pawn
majority.
40 ... Rcd8
A line mentioned by Carlsen is 40 ... Rxc5 41 bxc5 Rc4 42 Rxf8+ Kg7, which
fails to 43 Rf4!, emerging with an extra piece after 43 ... Rc1+ 44 Rf1, etc.
The defenceless state of Black’s position is clear after 40 ... Rdd8 41 Rxc8 Rxc8
42 Ra7 (42 Ng4 is possibly even stronger, with the plan of Nf6, Ra7, Kf2, etc.) 42 ...
Rc6 “and probably 43 Kf2, as “if she captures on h2 she will lose any pawn race ... ”
(Carlsen).
41 Rcc7 Rd1+ 42 Kg2 R1d2+ 43 Kh3 R2d5 44 Ng4 Rh5+
After 44 ... Nd7 45 Re7 Carlsen commented, “I’m not threatening much but
she’s in zugzwang,” for example 45 ... Rd2 (if 45 ... Kg8 then 46 Rcxd7) 46 Nh6,
winning.
45 Kg2 Rd2+ 46 Kf3 Rf5+ 47 Ke3 Rxf7 48 Rxf7 Rd8 49 Nf6
We’ve reached a position similar to the one described at move 40 but with several
tempi advantage to White.
49 ... Rb8 50 Kf4
Threatening Kg5-h6 and Rg7.
50 ... h6 51 Ke5 a5 52 bxa5 Ra8 53 a6 1-0

129
 The finish would be 53 ... Rxa6 54 Rxf8+ Kg7 55 Rd8 Ra5+ 56 Kxe6 Ra6+ 57
Rd6, etc.

To finish, let’s look at a simpler example in Game 18. As we know, the player with
the space disadvantage must be on the lookout for a pawn break which would
provide some activity and, in ideal conditions, the chance to exploit the weaknesses
created by the pawn advances of the player with the space advantage.
As usual, having an idea and a correct plan is not enough. It also has to be
tactically sound and calculation is indispensable.

Game 18
M.Adams-N.Grandelius
Gibraltar Masters 2018

White to Play

Here we have a Hedgehog structure with the light-squared bishops exchanged.

Black’s position is essentially fine.

Exercise: How to continue? You have to either opt for some ‘normal’ move such
as 12 ... a6, 12 ... Rc8 or even 12 ... Qc7 first, or else assess whether conditions
are
right for the liberating break 12 ... d5. What would you choose?

12 ... d5?

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 2 Space Advantage

Answer: This is a good idea carried out at what is a bad moment, for tactical
reasons. Opening up the game will favour White, as you are about to demonstrate!
13 exd5 exd5

Exercise: Which move is practically winning here?

14 Nf5!
Answer: And Black loses a pawn. As simple as that. According to what was
reported, Black didn’t fear this move because he thought that Black had at his
disposal 14 ... dxc4?, failing to notice until too late that 15 Nxe7+ Rxe7 16 Qxd8+
wins the rook on e7.
14 ... Bf8

Exercise: If 14 ... Qd7 White can simply take twice on e7 and capture the d5
pawn,
but he has something stronger. What’s it?

Answer: 15 Nxg7! Kxg7 16 Nxd5, e.g. 16 ... Bd8 17 Rxe8 Qxe8 18 Nxf6 Bxf6
19 Qg4+ Kf8 20 Bxf6, etc.
15 Rxe8 Qxe8 16 Nxd5 Nxd5

17 Nh6+!
Better than 17 cxd5 Qe4 18 Ng3 Qd3, and Black can put up greater resistance.
17 ... Kh8
Not 17 ... gxh6?? 18 Qg4+.
18 Qxd5 Qe6

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 If 18 ... Ne6 then 19 Re1! and there is no defence against the threat of 20 Nxf7+,
which wins another pawn. It’s not possible to play 19 ... Rd8? 20 Qxd8! Qxd8 21
Nxf7+.
19 Nxf7+ Kg8 20 Qxe6 Nxe6 21 Ne5 Rd8

Exercise (easy): How did White respond?

22 Bc3
Answer: Of course, preventing infiltration on d2. Now all that’s needed is to
bring the rook into play and centralise the king.
22 ... Bc5 23 Kf1 Bd4 24 Bxd4 Rxd4 25 Re1! Nc5
25 ... Rd2 is answered with 26 Nf3.
26 Nf3 Rd6 27 Ng5
And thanks to the threat of mate with Re8, the exchange of knights is inevitable.
27 ... Rd8 28 g3 h6 29 Ne6 Nxe6 30 Rxe6 Kf7 31 Re5 Rd2 32 a4 Rb2 33
Rb5 b6 34 h4 Ke6
34 ... g6 was slightly better but, two pawns down, the chances of salvation are nil.
35 h5 Kd6 36 a5 Kc6
Or 36 ... bxa5 37 Rxa5 Rxb3 38 Rxa7.
37 axb6 axb6 38 Kg2 1-0

The player with the space disadvantage, even if it’s only a small one as in Game 19,
must sometimes choose between allowing or preventing the opponent from
increasing their space advantage. The player with less space must also try to activate
their pieces and counterattack.
Black opted to block White’s expansion on move 14 and chose the most active
plan on move 20. It wasn’t easy to know what was the correct decision. In this case
the snag with the second decision was only apparent many moves later, for tactical
reasons, and Black was left only slightly worse. It took the sublime technique of the
world champion to increase his slight advantage.
Despite this being a battle of manoeuvres, the tactical element was very
important at all stages of the game.

Game 19
M.Carlsen-B.Gelfand
Candidates, London 2013

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 2 Space Advantage

Sicilian Defence [B30]

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 e6 4 0-0 Nge7 5 Re1 a6 6 Bf1 d5 7 exd5

White opens the e-file, activating his e1-rook. another possibility is 7 d3,
maintaining the tension. Black then has the option of playing 7 ... d4.
7 ... Nxd5 8 d4 Nf6 9 Be3 cxd4 10 Nxd4 Bd7

Exercise: How to develop the queenside?

11 c4
Answer: Before playing Nc3, White controls the d5-square; Carlsen’s second,
Nielsen commented, “This is the concept. White has a bit more space and a
queenside majority. Black, of course, has a healthy and solid position.”
11 ... Nxd4

Question: Why exchange now? Isn’t it better to continue with development?

Answer: This move enables the d7-bishop to take up a good post on c6. On the
other hand, after 12 ... Be7 13 Nc3 0-0 White can avoid the exchange by playing 14
Nf3, leaving the black pieces short of space and getting in each other’s way.
12 Bxd4 Bc6 13 Nc3 Be7 14 a3

Question: I would have expected 14 Qd3, followed by Rad1. Is this better?

133
 Answer: That plan is good, no doubt, but it can be played later. White’s move
obliges Black to evaluate whether he should allow b4 or not.
“I wasn’t sure whether I should play with a3 and a5 or not. In general White is a
little better, but it’s playable for Black.” (Carlsen)
14 ... a5
So, he doesn’t allow it. The alternative was 14 ... 0-0 15 b4, when the engines
suggest 15 ... Qd6, with ideas such as ... Rfd8.

Question: But what did White really achieve by including the sequence 14 a3 a5?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Carlsen, “I was happy to have deprived the queen of
the a5-square, after which the black position remains a bit cramped.”
15 Qd3 0-0 16 Rad1 Qc7

Exercise: “If I manage to play Qg3 I’ll stand very well, so ... Qc7 is almost
forced”,
said Carlsen. How did he continue?

17 Be5
After Carlsen’s comments the answer is easy, but this move comes at a cost. Now
b6 is available for the black queen.
17 ... Qb6 18 Qg3! Rfd8

Exercise: There are several possibilities now. Which is best?

Answer:
19 Rxd8+!
Carlsen also analysed the attractive 19 Nd5?! “but it’s easily refuted,” said
Carlsen, with for example 19 ... exd5 (not 19 ... Bxd5? 20 Bc7 Qxb2 21 cxd5 “ ...
but that wasn’t important,” he added.) 20 Bd4 Bc5 21 Bxf6 and Black has 21 ...
Bxf2+!, solving his problems.
No good either is 19 Bc7?! Rxd1 20 Bxb6?! (20 Nxd1 is better) 20 ... Rxe1, and
the two rooks will be better than the queen.
19 ... Qxd8
Obviously not 19 ... Rxd8?? 20 Bc7.
20 Rd1

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 2 Space Advantage

20 ... Qb6
“With ... Qb6 I hoped for a good game,” said Gelfand, but ultimately this didn’t
come about. The engines are of the opinion that 20 ... Qf8 was better, but this could
be answered with 21 b4, “and I believe I’m better” notes Carlsen. After 21 ... axb4 22
axb4 the line 22 ... Nd7 23 b5 Nxe5 24 Qxe5 Bf6 25 Qe3 Be8 is unpleasant for
Black.
But he has available the move 22 ... Nh5!, suggested by Speelman after the game.
After 23 Qh3 Bxb4 24 Qxh5 f6 the complications after both 25 Qh3 fxe5 and 25
Bd3 g6 are not serious for Black. Of course this was very difficult to see over the
board before deciding between 20 ... Qf8 and 20 ... Qb6.
21 Bd4! Qb3 22 Rd3!
22 Nd5?! achieves nothing now after 22 ... Qxd1 23 Nxe7+ Kh8! (not 23 ... Kf8?
24 Qd6) 24 Bxf6 gxf6 25 Qf4 Kg7, and there’s no advantage. It’s interesting that in
2013 the engines preferred the cautious 22 Rd2. Five years later they prefer Carlsen’s
choice.
22 ... Qc2
This is what the 2013 engines disliked.

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 Exercise: What did Carlsen have planned?

23 b4!
Answer: A decision which, as was demonstrated, is correct. The white plan to
advance his queenside pawn is logical. The b5-advance is troublesome, but it requires
tactical support, for in return the a-file is opened up in Black’s favour.
23 ... axb4 24 axb4
“I was pleased to reach this position. It seems a little dangerous, but Black isn’t
able to make the tactics work for him” (Carlsen).
24 ... Nh5!
Forced. Faced with b4-b5, the engines see no other defence than to enter these
complications. 24 ... Ra1? loses because of the weakness of Black’s back rank after 25
Bxf6.
25 Qe5
Played quickly. The engines also like 25 Qe3, with the idea of responding
advantageously to 25 ... Bxb4 with 26 Qg5.
25 ... Bf6
The sequence 25 ... Nf6 26 b5 Ra1 27 Qe2! Qxe2 28 Nxe2 Be4 29 Re3 Ra3
(only move) 30 Bxf6 Rxe3 31 Bxe7, etc also favours White. In the press conference
after the game both players analysed, or reviewed, 25 ... Ra1 26 Nd1 Rxd1 27 Qb8+
Bf8 28 Rxd1 Qxd1 29 Bc5 h6 30 Qxf8+ Kh7 ...

Exercise: This was what Gelfand initially wanted to play, but here comes the
aforementioned “only move I didn’t see”, as Gelfand put it. Can you find it?

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 2 Space Advantage

Answer: It was 31 Qd6! With this move White nullifies Black’s activity and then
his pair of bishops and queenside majority give him a clear advantage. On the other
hand after 31 Qxf7?? Be4, Black wins.
26 Qxh5 Bxd4 27 Rxd4 Qxc3

Exercise: All this was foreseen by White. At first sight the situation is complex
and doesn’t seem attractive, but he had a move up his sleeve which clarified
the situation.

28 Qa5!
Answer: A key move. “Now it’s obvious that we are playing to win or lose, but
there is still a long way to go.” (Carlsen). The black rook has to move to a passive
square. White coordinates his forces and the queenside majority becomes stronger.
28 ... Rf8 29 Qb6 e5!
“The only way to fight” (Nielsen).
30 Rd1
Calmer than 30 Rd8 g6 31 b5! (one could be led astray by 31 Rxf8+?! Kxf8 32
b5 Be4 33 f3? [better is 33 Qd6+ Kg7 34 c5] 33 ... Bf5 34 Qxb7? Qe3+ 35 Kh1 Qe1
and White loses) 31 ... Be4 32 Rd7, with all the pieces active, and the advantage.
30 ... g6
30 ... h6 was suggested by Carlsen, although after 31 b5 Be4 32 h3 White
remains better.
31 b5 Be4 32 Qf6

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 “This wins a pawn more or less by force” said Carlsen. The engines prefer 32
Rd7 or creating luft with 32 h4.
32 ... h5
32 ... Bf5 33 h4 h5 comes to the same.
33 h4 Bf5 34 Rd5 Qc1
After 34 ... Re8 35 c5 strong is and White continues to make progress.
35 Qxe5
With an extra pawn, just as Carlsen said, although he still had to show his
magnificent technique .
35 ... Be6 36 Rd4 Ra8

Exercise: Black threatens to become active. How should White continue?

37 Qe2!
Answer: This move, which strengthens White’s defences, was much praised by
Nigel Short in his live commentary. In the press conference a satisfied Carlsen said: “I
think that Qe2 is a really good move”.
37 ... Kh7

Exercise: One of the reasons why 37 Qe2 is so strong is that now 37 ... Ra1 is
not a
good move. Why is that?

Answer: Because White gains a decisive advantage after 38 Rd8+! Kh7 39 Qe5!
Qxf1+ 40 Kh2 Qg1+ 41 Kg3, and Black is defenceless. The engines consider 37 ...

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 2 Space Advantage

Qc3 and 37 ... Qa1 more tenacious.

38 Rd1!
“Now it’s very, very difficult for Black. I can’t see a defence for Black from now
on”, said Carlsen.
38 ... Qc3 39 Qe4! Ra1?!
More tenacious, but quite depressing, was 39 ... Ra7. In the event of 39 ... Ra2?
40 Qxb7 Qc2 41 Qf3 Black’s activity comes to nothing. After 41 ... Bxc4 42 Rd8
Ra1 43 Qf6 White gets there first.
40 Rxa1 Qxa1

Exercise (easy): What’s wrong with Black’s decision to exchange the rooks?

41 c5!
Answer: Precisely. Activating the queenside majority is now easier.
41 ... Qc3 42 Qxb7
Better was 42 b6, as Carlsen admitted, laughing. After 42 ... Qxc5 White plays
43 Qxb7 “and it was over”, e.g. 43 ... Bd5 44 Qd7 Kg7 45 b7, etc.
42 ... Qe1
“I missed ... Qe1. I saw it immediately after playing my move. In any case there
are no chances for Black ... Of course, I wasn’t pleased not to have seen it, but it
didn’t worry me much.” (Carlsen)
43 b6
“Really I wanted to place my queen on f3. Since I had lost a piece it was sensible
to play as solidly as possible” (Carlsen).
43 ... Bc4 44 Qf3! Qxf1+
44 ... Bxf1 was slightly more tenacious but still hopeless.
45 Kh2 Qb1 46 b7 Qb5 47 c6 Bd5 48 Qg3 1-0

In game 20 White took firm control of the only open file and gained some
advantage. Black found a good plan of counterattack on the queenside and managed
to gain some counter play.
The chances were balanced, although Black had more difficulty finding the most
effective defences, which were not the most evident, and when he chose a passive
defence, White took control of the contest.
Once again precise tactical play was needed to realise White’s advantage.

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Game 20
M.Adams-W.Yue
Baku Olympiad 2016
Petroff Defence [C42]

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Nxe5 d6 4 Nf3 Nxe4 5 d4 d5 6 Bd3 Nc6 7 0-0 Be7 8 Nbd2

Question: What a timid move, don’t you agree?

Answer: There are certainly sharper moves, such as 8 c4 and 8 Nc3, but it’s not
clear that they are better. This move was used by the young Kasparov, who was far
from timid in his approach, and later occasionally by Anand and Kramnik, among
others.
Here’s how the player with White saw it, “Although White’s edge is not too large
(as is fairly inevitable against the Petroff anyway), he does get a more comfortable
position with very little risk.”
8 ... Bf5 9 Re1 Nxd2 10 Qxd2 Bxd3 11 Qxd3 0-0

Question: Black gladly agreed to the exchanges and his position seems playable.
What’s the justification for White’s ideas?

Answer: White has a slight advantage in development. It’s not very relevant but it
allows him to occupy the only open file more quickly, not forgetting the awkward
position of the knight on c6. It’s not much, but it makes it more comfortable to play
with White.

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 2 Space Advantage

12 Bf4
The alternative is 12 c3, but the text move is the latest attempt to put pressure on
Black’s game, speeding up development.
12 ... Bd6
Adams considered this the most logical move. Black eliminates the pressure on c7
with a an exchange of pieces. 12 ... Qd7 is the alternative, currently used less than the
move in the game.
13 Bg3

Question: I thought White was going to occupy the e-file quickly. Why not
exchange on d6 and double rooks?

Answer: 13 Bxd6 Qxd6 14 Re2 was of course possible. Adams explained his
choice as follows, “This looks natural, as the swap of bishops will resolve any back
rank issues for me, and I gain a little time by letting my opponent make the
exchange.”
13 ... Bxg3 14 hxg3 Qd7
14 ... Qd6 has also been played. The move in the game has the virtue of
controlling f5, depriving the white queen of the use of that square.
15 Re3
White continues with his initial idea of trying to dominate the open file.
15 ... Rfe8 16 Rae1 Rxe3 17 Rxe3

17 ... h6
Black also makes his king secure.

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 Exercise: Why didn’t Black contest the file with 17 ... Re8?

Answer: Because White can exploit the weakness of Black’s back rank with 18
Qf5! Qd8 (or 18 ... Re6 19 Ng5 g6 20 Qh3!, winning.) and even better than
capturing the d5-pawn after exchanging rooks is 19 Ng5! Rxe3 20 Qxf7+ Kh8 21
Qh5 Re1+ 22 Kh2 and Black must give up the queen to prevent mate.
18 Qb3

Exercise: Playing 18 Qb5 looks more active, as it attacks b7 and puts pressure on
d5. How would you respond to that?

Answer: I would be alert and play 18 ... Rb8, followed by ... a6, avoiding 18 ...
b6? due to 19 Rc3.
18 ... Rb8
Here 18 ... b6 was certainly possible, but Black wants to keep the option of
becoming active on the queenside by advancing his pawns.

Exercise: White dominates the open file and is exerting slight pressure on the
black position. It’s nothing great but this is what we were expecting. Now it’s
necessary to come up with some plan to try to increase the slight superiority
provided by the space advantage. What do you think Adams played here?

19 Ne5!
Answer: The knight is not actively placed on c6 but it’s doing good work
defending e7, as well as the a7-pawn, and there is no other obvious way of trying to
make progress. Adams explained it like this, “I felt I needed to keep the momentum,
instead of playing the useful 19 c3 when Black could try 19 ... b5 or 19 ... g6.”
19 ... Qd6 20 Nxc6 Qxc6 21 c3

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 2 Space Advantage

Question: White has achieved his objective, but it doesn’t seem to me to be

anything of significance ...

Answer: You’re not the only one who thinks that. Let’s look at Adams’s
instructive commentary, “Of course White’s advantage is hardly huge here, but I was
somewhat surprised by how many people considered this a cast iron draw. When
almost everything else is identical, one advantageous feature in a position can quickly
magnify in importance and here occupation of the e-file and the ability for my rook
to also operate laterally should not be underestimated over the board.”
21 ... a5
Black looks for counterplay by advancing his pawns. Another plan was to
reposition the queen in order to defend the entry square on e7 e.g. with 21 ... Qd7,
to be followed by ... c6 and freeing up the Rb8. But as the winner pointed out, there
are disadvantages. After 22 Qa3! a6 23 Qe7 Qxe7 24 Rxe7 Rc8 25 Rd7. Also if 21 ...
Qd6 White has 22 Qa4.
In these lines we can see that exchanging knights was a good decision by White,
as the black position has become more uncomfortable, although there is still no
tangible advantage.

Exercise: How to continue?

22 Qa3
Answer: The most incisive. It attacks a5, with the possibility of infiltrating at e7.
22 ... b6

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 An alternative of similar value was 22 ... Qb5. After 23 b3 b6 24 Qe7 White
continues to have some slight pressure. Nothing serious but it’s more uncomfortable
to play with Black. As Adams explains, “Practically it’s not so simple as there is no
clear cut way to make a draw, but only a number of roughly equivalent
continuations.”
This scenario was pleasing to White but wasn’t worrying for Black either, for in
the words of his opponent, Wang Yue “is a particularly doughty defender, who
normally excels at extinguishing the danger in such situations.”
23 Qe7 b5
In the event of the less active 23 ... Rf8, White can continue to make gradual
progress slowly with the g4-advance (which can be prepared with 24 f3), maintaining
slight pressure on Black’s solid position.

Exercise: Adams commented that he had seen a recommendation to pursue the

offensive on the queen’s wing with 24 ... Qc4. How would you have responded in
that case?

Answer: By trying to exploit the remoteness of the black pieces from the kingside
with 25 g4! and after 25 ... b4 26 axb4 axb4 27 Rf3 Rf8 (forced, since 27 ... f6? loses
to 28 g5! hxg5 [28 ... fxg5 29 Rf7] 29 Qe6+ Kf8 [29 ... Kh7 30 Qf7!] 30 Rh3) and
after 28 g5! “Black has both actual and practical difficulties.” (Adams).
25 axb4 axb4 26 cxb4

26 ... Qc1+?!
And here the first important inaccuracy occurred. It’s a question of tactics. This
move is very tempting, as Black regains his pawn and attacks no less that three white

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pawns after taking on b2, but his heavy pieces become temporarily uncoordinated
and White can take advantage of this.
Preferable was 26 ... Qb6! 27 Rf3 and now the best move is one that Black would
be reluctant to make over the board, 27 ... f6!. Then White can try to infiltrate the
seventh rank with his rook by playing 28 Rc3 but then Black can hold with 28 ...
Qxd4 29 Rxc7 Qd1+ 30 Kh2 Qh5+, with perpetual check. 26 ... Qc4!, also
suggested by Adams, is the move the engines prefer, with similar ideas.
Another attempt is 27 Qe5 but Black can still defend with 27 ... Qxb4 28 Qxd5
Qxb2 29 Re7 and now Black can solve his problems by taking refuge in a rook
ending with 29 ... Qb3! 30 Qxb3 (30 Re8+ Kh7 “could be worrisome at the board”
wrote Adams, but it comes to nothing) 30 ... Rxb3 31 Rxc7 Rb1+ 32 Kh2 Rd1 33
Rd7 Kf8 “and the extra pawn is not that significant here.” (Adams).
27 Kh2 Qxb2 28 Rf3?!
Adams was satisfied that he already had a slight advantage and he played this
logical move, which seems to force a passive defence.
But stronger was 28 Qxc7! Qxb4 and now the key move 29 Re5!, “since after
winning the pawn, my major pieces will remain well placed as attempts to simplify
with 29 ... Qb7? (or 29 ... Qb6? 30 Re8+) 30 Re8+ fail badly.” (Adams).
28 ... Rf8?
Weakening the second rank with 28 ... f6! would be unpleasant and difficult to
decide on over the board, but in fact it was a better defence. Then 29 Re3 isn’t
dangerous because Black can hold with, among other lines, 29 ... Qxf2 (29 ... Qxb4
30 Qxc7 Kh7 31 Re7 Rg8; and 29 ... Qc2 also seem adequate) 30 Qxc7 Qxe3 31
Qxb8+ Kh7, attacking d4 and with the idea of 32 ... Qe2, with the same perpetual
check that we’ve already seen.
If 29 Qxc7 Qxb4 30 Rf5 Black is able to reach an ending with good drawing
chances after 30 ... Qb6! 31 Qxb6 Rxb6 32 Rxd5 g5!?, seeking to restrict the white
king, followed by ... Kf7, even though it’s “not a simple draw”, according to Adams.

Exercise: How did White punish Black for his mistake?

29 Qc5!
Answer: And the most likely outcome is that White wins a pawn in good
circumstances.
29 ... c6
If 29 ... g6 simplest is 30 b5, and a black pawn falls.

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 30 Qxc6 Qxd4?!
Black opts for maintaining the material balance, but after this capture the passed
pawn and the active white pieces make the defence more difficult.
More practical chances were offered with 30 ... Qxb4 31 Qxd5 Qe7. Of course
defending this position is an unpleasant job. Adams suggested 32 Qc5 (32 Qa5 is an
alternative if one doesn’t want to exchange queens just yet) and Black must allow the
passed pawn to advance or play 32 ... Qxc5 33 dxc5 Rc8 34 Rc3. Unlike the previous
endings, now it’s the white rook which is placed behind the passed pawn. Adams
gives as an example 34 ... f6 35 g4 Kf7 36 Kg3 Ke6 37 Kf4 “which looks pretty
tough.”
31 b5
“The disparity in activity between the major pieces means that my passer is
seriously fleet of foot.” (Adams).
31 ... Qe5
31 ... Qc4 is answered with 32 Qd7!, attacking f7 and d5, which allows the
passed pawn to continue advancing.
32 b6 Re8

Exercise: “This move looks good, threatening mate in two, but I suspect Wang
Yue underestimated the difficulties that persist after my response, which secures
my king position” (Adams). What did Adams play here?

33 Rf4!
Answer: Preparing to defend against 33 ... Qh5+ with Rh4. Of course not 33
b7?? Qh5+ 34 Kg1 Re1 mate.

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 2 Space Advantage

33 ... Qe6
After 33 ... g5 almost any retreat is good, e.g. 34 Ra4.
34 Qb7
The natural 34 Qc7 was faster. Adams explained that he didn’t play it because of
34 ... Re7? (34 ... Qe7 is better) and here he saw 35 Rb4! but he thought that Black
achieved perpetual check after 35 ... Rxc7 36 bxc7 Kh7 37 Rb8 Qe5 38 c8Q Qh5+,
followed by 39 ... Qd1+, overlooking the fact that White has 39 Qh3 available.
34 ... g5 35 Ra4
This is the ‘human’ move. Modern-day engines (at the start of 2019) prefer 35
Rb4! “but the variations are rather confusing – I think it would be very hard to play
this in a game” (Adams).
It is less effective to carry on pressuring f7 with 35 Rf3, since this allows 35 ... d4!
and the d-pawn provides unexpected counterplay after 36 Qc7 Rc8 (36 ... Qe7!?) 37
Qa7 Qg6!, once more threatening mate with 38 ... Qh5+ 38 g4 Qd6+ 39 g3 Rf8
“and Black holds on by his fingertips.” (Adams).

Exercise: The black position is still difficult to breach. What Black’s best defence?

35 ... Qe2?
Answer: Black’s threat is easy to parry and Black will be left helpless.
In response to 35 ... Qg6? Adams had calculated that he could defend with 36
Ra1!, when Black can’t prevent the b-pawn from continuing its advance, e.g. 36 ...
Kg7 (if 36 ... Qd6 then 37 Ra8 is possible and the b-pawn queens) is answered with
37 Qa7.
The most tenacious try was the useful waiting move 35 ... Kg7!, which avoids
back rank problems, e.g. 36 Qa7 (36 Qc7 Qe7 37 Qa7 transposes) 36 ... Qe2! 37 f3
Qf1, intending ... Re2, “Then after 38 Ra1 Qf2 39 b7 Qxa7 40 Rxa7 Rb8 41 Kg1
Kf6 42 Kf2 Ke5 43 Ke3 it’s not clear if Black can survive, but it had to be tried.”
(Adams).
36 f3!
Various moves win now, but this is the strongest. There is no need to play Ra1,
there are no perpetuals now and the b-pawn gains in strength, because now
exchanging with Ra8 is a possibility.
36 ... d4
There is no time for 36 ... Kg7 because of 37 Ra8 Re7 38 Qb8 or 38 Qc8. With
the king on g8 36 ... Qf1 is not effective because of 37 Ra8.

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 37 Qd7
Also good was 37 Ra8 d3 38 Qc6! Rxa8 39 Qxa8+ Kg7 40 b7 d2 41 b8Q, with a
mating attack.
37 ... Qe7 38 Qxe7 Rxe7 39 Ra7 1-0
The b-pawn is unstoppable after b7 and Ra8.

In game 21 White’s space advantage led to his obtaining a fine manoeuvring post
within the black camp. After an error by Black on move 22 his pieces were left poorly
coordinated. White’s advantage increased when he created a second front, thanks to
moves 26 and 29.

Game 21
G.Kasparov-M.Cebalo
Manila Olympiad 1992

White to Play

White has the bishop pair, but this is not the most relevant factor in the position.
More significant is that he has a space advantage, providing his pieces with greater
mobility. The doubled pawns are not a weakness, but rather a help, as they provide a
semi-open file, and besides the f-pawn can be used as a battering ram in the future.
Black can’t point to any compensating factors, which is why White has a preferable
position.
13 f4
This is a ‘compulsory’ move in the short term, as is playing Rad1.

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 2 Space Advantage

13 ... cxd4
An exchange to make way for the a6-knight.
14 Qxd4 Nc5 15 Rad1 b6

Exercise (easy): Why is it not appropriate for Black to try to simplify the game
with 15 ... Nfe4?

Answer: The knight move fails to simplify the game. As the winner pointed out,
it would be answered with 16 Qxg7+! Kxg7 17 Nxe4+ Kg8 18 Nxc5, and the three
pieces are worth much more than the queen.
16 Nd5
With the strong threat of 17 Rxe7!.
16 ... Ne6
Black can now simplify the game with 16 ... Nh5, but the exchange of bishops
will leave the black king weak after e.g. 17 Qd2 Bxb2 18 Qxb2 (with the idea of 19
Bf3) 18 ... e6 (18 ... b5 runs into 19 cxb5 Rxb5 20 Bf3! Ng7 (20 ... e6 21 Nc3) 21
Rxe7!) 19 Ne3, with ideas such as Bf3, followed by Ng4.
Also 17 ... Nd3? (instead of 17 ... Bxb2) fails tactically to 18 Nxe7+! (18 Rxe7! is
also good) 18 ... Rxe7 19 Rxe7 Qxe7 20 Bxg7 Ndxf4 21 Bb2 and the weakness of
the long black diagonal and the d6-pawn give White a big advantage.
17 Qd2 Nxd5

Exercise: What would you recapture with on d5?

18 cxd5!

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 Answer: The alternative 18 Bxd5 was also good but this capture, which closes the
long white diagonal, has more virtues.
18 ... Nc5 19 Bxg7 Kxg7

Exercise: How did White continue here?

20 b4!
Answer: The d5-pawn also serves to take e6 away from the knight, which now
finds itself displaced to a less active position.
20 ... Na4 21 Qd4+ Kg8

Exercise: What was one of the ideas behind 18 cxd5?

22 Rc1
Answer: Occupying the c-file, with an excellent support point on c6.
22 ... a5?
Black’s position is uncomfortable, but this advance only manages to create more
weaknesses after the obvious white response. Kasparov suggested 22 ... b5! when
White is still better and can play 23 Rc6 or 23 h4, but the black knight is better than
in the game and can quickly come back to b6.
23 a3
This is the ‘human’ move, maintaining the structure without getting into
complications.
23 ... axb4 24 axb4 b5

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 2 Space Advantage

Exercise: How to play now?

25 Rc6!
Answer: Preventing the a4-knight from getting back into play via b6.
25 ... Rb7
If 25 ... Qd8, still trying to play ... Nb6. White could continue with 26 Bf1.

Exercise: White has the initiative and a free hand; now he needs to create some
more targets. What would you play?

26 f5!
Answer: Weakening the black kingside. Another good idea, which doesn’t require
calculation, was 26 h4!
26 ... Qxf5
If 26 ... gxf5 there are several ways to attack the weakened black king (and at the
very least White can win back the pawn). Kasparov pointed out one way: 27 Bh3 e6
28 Qf4 (28 Qe3 is also good) 28 ... exd5 29 Rxe8+ Qxe8 30 Qg5+ Kf8 31 Rxd6
Qe1+ 32 Bf1 and Black is defenceless.
If 26 ... Reb8, still trying to play ... Nb6, there are various strong moves, such as
27 f6, while 27 fxg6 hxg6 28 Re4 is another idea.
27 Rxd6
The pawn exchange has made the d5-pawn mobile and indirectly improved the
scope of the g2-bishop.
27 ... Reb8 28 Rc6 Rd8
After 28 ... Nb6 the struggle will be decided on the kingside. Kasparov indicated
one way: 29 d6 exd6 30 g4 Qg5 31 Rxd6 Nc4 32 Bxb7 Nxd6 33 Qxd6 and now 33
... Rxb7 is not possible because of 34 Re8+ Kg7 35 Qf8+ Kf6 36 Qh8++.

Exercise: With the black pieces in disarray there are various options now. Which
do you think is the strongest?

29 h4!
Answer: Seeking to weaken the black king even more.
29 ... Qd7
29 ... h5 also weakens the castled position. A possible continuation is 30 Re5 (30
Kh2, with the idea of Bh3, is also decisive) 30 ... Qb1+ 31 Kh2, with ideas such as

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32 g4 or 32 Qf4, intending Qh6, or Be4 followed by sacrificing the bishop on g6.
Black can’t defend against the attack by the four white pieces,
30 h5 Qe8 31 Bh3
As there is no counterplay, White improves his position a little more before the
final offensive.
31 ... Qf8 32 Kg2 Qg7 33 Re5!
Strongest, with the idea of 34 Qe3.
33 ... e6 34 Qe3 Nb2
The knight gets back into play but it’s already too late. If 34 ... exd5, the most
direct and elegant response is 35 Rc8! gaining a decisive material advantage.
35 h6 Qf6 36 dxe6 Nd1
If 36 ... Nc4 then one way to win is 37 exf7+ Rxf7 (or 37 ... Qxf7 38 Rxc4 and
Be6.) 38 Re8+ Rf8 39 Qe6+ Qxe6 40 Bxe6+ Kh8 41 Rxf8+ Rxf8 42 Bxc4, as
pointed out by Kasparov.
37 exf7+ Qxf7 38 Qe2 Kf8

Exercise (easy): There are various winning continuations now.

Which is the most direct?

39 Qxd1! 1-0
Answer: Winning a piece. Black lost on time.

As in Game 20, White achieved a slight superiority, thanks to his control of the only
open file (the e-file) encouraged by Black’s deceptive-looking 14th move. White put

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pressure on the black position on both flanks. Black resisted the attacks until he
made a serious error on move 27 in a slightly inferior position.
As the world champion explained, the practical element is important. It’s more
difficult to find the best moves in a somewhat inferior position after being facing
unpleasant pressure, than when one is better.

Game 22
M.Carlsen-L.Aronian
Norway Chess, Stavanger 2018
Berlin Defence [C67]

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 0-0 Nxe4

5 Re1
Instead of going into the typical ending after 5 d4 Nd6 6 Bxc6 dxc6 7 dxe5 Nf5,
Carlsen this time opts for a calmer line which seems ideally suited to the world
champion’s style. 5 ... Nd6 6 Nxe5 Be7 7 Bf1 Nxe5 8 Rxe5 0-0 9 d4 Bf6 10 Re1

Question: To tell the truth I don’t find this very attractive. It seems boring,
with only one open file and nothing tactical in sight.

Answer: It’s true that the position tends towards equality and many games with
this line between players of similar strength do end in a draw. However, the situation
is rather like the one in the previous game, where White also aspires to be first to
occupy the only open file and to activate his pieces a little more quickly.
10 ... Nf5

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 The alternative is to dispute the open file right away with 10 ... Re8, which had
already been played in the world title match between Steinitz and Zukertort in 1886.
11 d5

Question: Is this good? It appears to weaken the structure – in exchange for

what?

Answer: To begin with, let’s look at the alternative, which is 11 c3, which would
be answered with 11 ... d5 and Black has no space problems.
With the move played, White gains space and Black’s development is not as
harmonious. It’s not a better move, but it does give more life to the position.
11 ... Re8 12 Rxe8+
Another logical move is 12 Bd3, but White has another plan.
12 ... Qxe8

13 Qd3

Question: What a strange move. Is this better than the natural 13 Bd3?

Answer: That’s the most natural move but White chooses another plan, one
which is in accordance with 11 d5. In the first place it develops the queen, gaining
time, and it also prepares Nd2-e4. The queen can also be activated on c4 at an
opportune moment, attacking c7. And finally, it brings the a1-rook closer to the
open file. It has various strengths, so that after the initial surprise it should be viewed
with more interest.
13 ... d6 14 Nd2

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 2 Space Advantage

It is foreseeable that the next few white moves will be Ne4 and then preparing
Re1 with c3 and Bd2. The knight goes to d2 and not to c3, in order to have the
option of Nf3.

Exercise: What do you think is most precise black response?

14 ... Bg5?
A bad move? Yet it seems very logical, since it solves Black’s space problem and
makes Ne4 ineffective, because now the dark-squared bishops will be exchanged and
the white knight will be awkwardly placed on e4. It’s true that it seems logical, but
we’ll soon see that it has its flaws.
Carlsen commented, “I was surprised by his last move ... Bg5. I can play like I
did and get a comfortable advantage.” After the game, he was even more dismissive,
describing the move as “terrible” to chess.com.
Answer: A good choice instead was 14 ... c6!, accepting a good version of
‘hanging pawns’ after 15 dxc6 bxc6, It’s true that now Black has three ‘pawn islands’,
but in return Black solves his space problems and regains control of some central
squares after a timely ... d5.
However, from a practical point of view it was difficult to take this decision if
there seemed to be a more solid alternative available.

Exercise: There is more than one plan for White now – which plan do you think
White chose?

15 Nf3
Answer: The simplest, and it guarantees that White will be able to occupy the e-
file before the opponent.
An alternative idea was to play 15 g3, intending h4, taking advantage of the
situation of the black bishop, but it’s not necessary yet to touch the kingside pawns.
Little is to be gained from expanding on that wing, because there are no pieces there
to attack. It was playable, but it doesn’t seem to be better than Carlsen’s choice.
15 ... Bxc1 16 Rxc1 Bd7 17 Re1

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 17 ... Qd8

Question: This leaves the rook on e1 dominating the open file. Why didn’t Black
choose 17 ... Qf8, with the idea of ... Re8?

Answer: Here we see one of the reasons for playing 13 Qd3. White wouldn’t wait
for ... Re8 but would take advantage of the disparity in activity between the queens
by playing 18 Qc4!, attacking c7. The response 18 ... c6 would not be as satisfactory
as previously, for the hanging pawns after 19 dxc6 bxc6 would not be as strong, now
that the dark-squared bishops have been exchanged.
18 Qc4!

Question: Hmm, the fact is that this move which attacks the defended c7 pawn
doesn’t impress me. Why is it good?

Answer: There is nothing specific for White to do, so he strengthens his position.
With this seemingly innocent move White increases the options for his other pieces,
the most immediate point being that on clearing d3 he has the possibility of
activating his only remaining inactive piece with Bd3. But that’s not its only virtue,
as we’ll see.
18 ... g6 19 h3
White makes another useful move before the fight gets complicated. An escape
square for the king can be handy in the future and also White might consider the g4-
advance, forcing the knight to retreat.
19 ... Ng7

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 2 Space Advantage

The knight is on its way to defend c7, liberating the black queen.

Exercise: How did White take a small step forward now?

20 Re3
Answer: Immediately benefitting from the retreat of the knight, White improves
another piece. On the third rank the rook too can thank 18 Qc4 for increasing its
scope. The rook can head over to the queenside, putting pressure on the black pawns.
20 ... a5?!
Black still doesn’t want to weaken his structure, but 20 ... c6 (or 20 ... c5) would
give more life to the black pieces. After 21 dxc6 it’s necessary to consider both
recaptures, with the bishop and with the pawn. White would be a little better, but
the black position is still very solid.
21 a4 Ne8
Once again, changing the structure with 21 ... c6 was worth serious
consideration.

Exercise: Black has completed his plan for defending c7 and thus his queen has
gained more mobility. How did White respond?

22 Qd4!
Answer: The white queen is centralised and prevents its black counterpart from
being deployed more actively on f6. Now 22 ... Qf6?? is prevented due to 23 Rxe8+.
22 ... Ng7

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 Exercise: How to make progress now?

23 g4!
Answer: The black pieces are being squeezed back, move by move. It’s true that
the position of the white king has now been weakened a little, but the black pieces
aren’t able to exploit it.
23 ... c6
At last Black alters his structure, seeking to benefit from White’s last move.

Exercise: How did White respond?

24 c4
Answer: Without indulging Black. Now 24 dxc6?! would be bad because of 24 ...
Bxc6, but we should note that White’s move offers a pawn sacrifice.
24 ... Ne8
A sacrifice that Black doesn’t accept. After 24 ... c5 25 Qf4 Bxa4 there is clear
compensation and White has various possibilities, such as 26 Ng5, attacking f7.
Then if 26 ... Be8 27 Ne4 is strong, while in the event of 26 ... f5 there follows 27
Ne6 Nxe6 (not 27 ... Qd7? 28 b3) 28 Rxe6, when White regains the sacrificed pawn
and acquires a passed pawn, while Black’s position is left weakened.
25 Qf4 Kg7
Preparing ... Qf6. In the event of 25 ... Nf6 White can play 26 Nd4, with the
idea of Rf3, and if 26 ... c5 then 27 Ne6! is good.
26 Rb3

Question: Now for the queenside?

Answer: Carlsen emulates Lasker or Petrosian, with a game of cat and mouse.
Carlsen’s second, Nielsen, described the series of moves initiated with 26 Rb3,
“Magnus now pulls off an almost basketball-like trick, first looking to one side, but
then attacking fiercely on the other.”
26 ... Rb8 27 Ng5! Nf6?
Now Black’s time trouble hastens the end. The best defence was 27 ... Qf6, when
White would respond with 28 Qd2, attacking the a5-pawn and with the idea of Rf3.
Then after 28 ... h6 29 Ne4 Qd8 he obtains the advantage with 30 c5!, opening up
the game with all his pieces active, e.g. 30 ... dxc5 31 Rf3! cxd5 32 Qxd5 Be6 33

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 2 Space Advantage

Qe5+ Kh7 34 Nxc5, or else 30 ... cxd5 31 Qxd5 Be6 32 Qd4+ Kh7 and now 33 Rb5
seems to be slightly stronger than 33 Rb6, but in all cases White’s superiority is clear.
The weaknesses of a5 and b7 are significant, but there would still have been a
struggle.

Exercise: How did White punish Black’s mistake?

28 Rf3!
Answer: Threatening 29 Qd4, followed by Ne4, in addition to the simple 29
Qxd6.

Question: This doesn’t seem a very complicated refutation. How do you explain
Black’s collapse, albeit he was in time trouble?

Answer: Carlsen explained it like this, “I felt that very early on I had a very nice
position, not a lot better but certainly more pleasant. In positions where you have a
slight advantage with more space it’s easier to find good moves. For him, it’s trying to
break out and then it’s easy to go wrong.”
28 ... h6
There was no defence. 28 ... Qe7 would be answered with 29 Re3 Qf8 and now
strongest is to carry out the initial threat with 30 Qd4!.

Exercise: What now?

29 Ne4!

159
 Answer: Stronger than 29 Nxf7 Kxf7 30 Qxh6, which also gave a big advantage.
29 ... Nxe4 30 Qxf7+ Kh8 31 Qxg6 1-0
Black is faced with multiple threats, such as 32 Rf7 and 32 Qxe4, not to mention
32 Bd3, taking on h6, etc.

In the position in Game 23, White stood a little better. In order to prevent a specific
Black reaction and to try to increase his advantage, White changed the structure.
Black didn’t cope well with her reduced room to manoeuvre and was left with an
inactive piece.
“If one piece is bad, the whole position is bad,” wrote Tarrasch. To demonstrate
this, White increased the pressure on the black position, finally creating a second
weakness and then a third.

Game 23
V.Kramnik-J.Polgar
Dortmund 1997

White to Play

The first noticeable thing about the position is that the dark-squared bishops
have been exchanged. White’s remaining bishop on g2 is more active than its black
counterpart on b7 which, combined with the turn to move, gives White a slight
advantage.

Exercise: How can White try to benefit from this slight advantage?

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 2 Space Advantage

13 c5!
Answer: This advance prevents the black bishop from being liberated with 13 ...
c5, which would happen after any ‘normal’ move, such as 13 b4 or 13 Rfd1.

Question: Yes, but ... aren’t White’s options very limited now, after releasing the
pressure on d5?

Answer: In return White gains space, and the threat of 14 c6 forces some
concessions from Black.
13 ... c6
The first victory. The black bishop is now a very passive piece.
13 ... bxc5 wasn’t pleasant either. After 14 Qxc5 the a7-pawn is attacked and 14
... Qa4 is answered with 15 Qc3, with the idea of Nb3-c5, with advantage for White.
13 ... Ba6 is answered simply with 14 Rfe1, threatening to win with 15 c6,
followed by Qa4. This can easily be prevented but the black bishop will remain cut
off from the struggle.
14 Qa4
14 ... Ba6 is not particularly frightening, but White doesn’t want to allow it, so
he prevents it with a gain of time, by attacking a7.
The main alternative was 14 Rfd1 Ba6 15 e4 but, as there’s no hurry, White
wants to prevent ... Ba6 first. It’s also interesting to play 14 e4 immediately. White
then achieves adequate compensation after 14 ... dxe4 15 Nxe4 Qxd4 16 Rfd1 Qe5
17 Nxf6+ Qxf6 18 Rd7 but there is no need to sacrifice any material.
14 ... Ba8?!
Very passive, allowing White a free hand. It was more tenacious to play 14 ...
Qc7, with the idea of ... Nd7 and perhaps ... a5. There was no need to fear 15
Qxa7?! Ra8 16 Qxb6 Qxb6 17 cxb6 Rxa2, attacking b2, with the idea of ... Ra6.
White would possibly continue as in the game, but Black’s position would be more
flexible.

Exercise (easy): Is some preparatory move necessary or can active measures be

taken already?

15 e4

161
 Answer: Of course, there is no need to wait any longer. The move 14 Qa4 also
defends the d4-pawn.
15 ... dxe4
In the event of 15 ... Rfd8, White would gain more space with 16 e5 also with a
clear advantage.
16 Nxe4 Nxe4 17 Bxe4 Rfd8 18 Rfd1 g6 19 b4
Reinforcing the c5-pawn before continuing to manoeuvre. The advance on the
queenside might also be useful in the future.
19 ... Qc7

Exercise: White has more space, but there is still nothing concrete. What plan
did
White initiate now?

20 Qa3!
Answer: “First the idea and then the move.” White is going to increase the
pressure on c6 with the queen on f3. Equally strong was 20 Qb3.
20 ... Qe7 21 Qf3
Among his possible plans, White has the a4-advance and a later b5, which
explains Black’s response.
21 ... b5 22 a4
Kramnik doesn’t want to wait. Another good move, consistent with his previous
play, was 22 Ra1, preparing a4. In his annotations in Informator Kramnik suggests
the line 22 Qf4 Rd7 23 Rd2 Rcd8 24 Rcd1, with a slight advantage.

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 2 Space Advantage

Exercise: In that case White would be slightly better, but not as much as in the
game. Black then has a possibility of gaining counterplay. What’s it?

Answer: She can strike back with 24 ... a5!?, since after 25 bxa5 Ra7 she regains
the pawn and has at least the a-file as a counterweight.
22 ... bxa4
22 ... a6 would be answered with 23 Ra1.
23 Ra1 Bb7
When he played 22 a4 White must have considered the counterblow 23 ... e5
here and concluded that Black fails to solve her problems of a passive bishop and
weaknesses on the queenside after 24 dxe5 Rxd1+ (24 ... Qxe5 25 Rxd8+ Rxd8 26
Rxa4 is worse) 25 Qxd1 Qxe5 26 Bf3, with clear advantage to White (Kramnik).
24 Rxa4 a6

25 Ra2

Question: Why this retreat? Wasn’t it better to put pressure on the new weakness
at a6 in some way, with 25 Qe3, defending d4, for instance?

Answer: The retreat is to defend the d4-pawn from the imminent attack by
Black’s heavy pieces.
25 Qe3 was interesting. Kramnik states that it has the idea of Bf3-e2, although
Bd3 immediately is also interesting. It is not clear whether even after the capture of
the a6-pawn (not forced) White has a big advantage. After 25 ... Rd7 26 Bd3 Qf6 27
Bxa6 Bxa6 28 Rxa6 the technical difficulties in realising the extra pawn are
considerable. There might follow 28 ... Rb7 29 Qc3 Qd8 and White’s extra pawn

163
seems insignificant. Keeping the bishops on the board suits White, until the point
when exchanging them will give him a very big advantage.
25 ... Kg7
Supporting a timely ... Qf6.
26 Rad2 Rc7 27 Qf4
White seeks an exchange of queens, which would leave Black with the weaknesses
at c6 and a6 and the bad bishop. White’s own weakness at d4 is easier to defend.
27 ... Rcd7 28 Qe5+ Qf6
The alternative was the counterblow 28 ... f6 29 Qf4 e5 but Black’s situation
doesn’t improve much after 30 dxe5 Rxd2 31 Rxd2 fxe5 32 Qe3. There is nothing
immediate but Black’s position is weak and the defects in the position already
mentioned are still there.
If 28 ... Kg8 a good response is 29 h4, seeking to create more weaknesses in the
black camp.
29 f4 h5?!
Black can’t tolerate passivity, but this advance will only favour her opponent, as
we’ll see. Kramnik states that Black had to resign herself to playing the inferior
ending arising after 29 ... Qxe5 30 fxe5 f6 31 exf6+ Kxf6 32 Kf2 and Ke3.

Exercise: How to improve the position?

30 Kf2!
Answer: As we have seen, the king is needed on e3 to support the d-pawn and
liberate at least one rook.
30 ... h4 31 Ke3

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 2 Space Advantage

Continuing the plan, although 31 gxh4 Rh8 32 Kg3 followed by Bf3 and a
timely h5, was also very strong.
31 ... hxg3 32 hxg3 Ba8
In the event of 32 ... Rh8 it’s possible to make progress with 33 g4, intending g5
and preparing a future Ke4-e5, not fearing 33 ... Rh3+ since after 34 Bf3 White
threatens to play 35 g5 Qxe5 36 dxe5 and then win by invading along the d-file.
Kramnik mentions the immediate 33 Rh1!? and after 33 ... Rxh1 34 Bxh1
Qxe5+ 35 dxe5 the bishop ending is won by bringing the king to a5 and then
capturing the a6 pawn with the bishop.
33 Rh2
Naturally White occupies the open file and the game is essentially over. The
threat is 34 Rh7+.
33 ... Qxe5 34 fxe5

34 ... Kf8
There is no defence. 34 ... Rh8 is answered with 35 Rxh8 Kxh8 36 Ra1 Ra7 37
Bd3 Bb7 and White creates a passed pawn with 38 b5 and then infiltrates the
queenside with his king.
35 Rf1
There are several ways to win. Kramnik takes aim at the black king and the
weaknesses on f7 and g6.
35 ... Rxd4
Or 35 ... Kg7 36 Rfh1, with the idea of 37 Rh7+ Kf8 38 Rf1, followed by Bxg6,
or the immediate 38 Bxg6 since the bishop is untouchable due to mate in two.
36 Rh7 R8d7
36 ... R4d7 is answered with 37 Bxg6.

165
 37 Rh8+
Winning a piece. Kramnik pointed out that 37 Rhxf7+ Rxf7 38 Rxf7+ Kxf7 39
Kxd4 was also good. The ending is easily won by bringing the king to a5.
37 ... Ke7 38 Rxa8 Rxb4 39 Bxc6 Rb3+ 40 Kf2 Rd2+
If 40 ... Rb2+ the simplest is 41 Kg1.
41 Ke1! 1-0

In Game 24 White conceived a good plan to increase his slight space advantage.
Black didn’t accept this passively and reacted well. In a complex position Black
needed to decide whether to play actively or more passively. So what is the correct
plan in such cases? Once again, there’s no universal law, at least in any objective
sense. In the end the tactics decide, and in this case the tactics didn’t justify Black’s
decision, although White had to play elegantly and precisely to prove it.

Game 24
V.Kramnik-V.Topalov
Tromso Olympiad 2014

White to Play

White has a space advantage, conferred by the queenside structure with his pawn
on c5, but at first sight there is no clear plan to profit from this. The piece that
suffers most in this structure is the c8-bishop but Black has apparently solved its
mobility problems with ... b6 and ... a5. In order to try to increase White’s advantage
he has to initiate a long-term plan.

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 2 Space Advantage

22 h3
White starts with an apparently inoffensive move. It seems that White is simply
preventing ... Ng4, although the usefulness of having the bishop on e3 is not
obvious. However, White’s move is more poisonous that it appears.
22 ... h6
The position is calm for now and there are various possibilities. Kramnik
suggested 22 ... Re8 as an alternative but the evaluation is similar, as Kramnik
pointed out, “In general Black can’t do much here, just to try to get ready to meet the
actions of the opponent accordingly.”
23 Nd2 Ba6

Exercise: What was the plan that White initiated with 22 h3?

24 f4
Answer: This was the idea. Now White plans to play Bf2, followed by e4, and
once the centre is open (or if the e5 advance is permitted) it would be clear that
Black’s light-squared bishop would not take any further part in the struggle. “Good
or bad, Black has to do something about it”, noted Kramnik.
24 ... bxc5 25 bxc5 Nxc5
Black chooses a tactical solution, after which the character of the position
changes.
26 dxc5 d4 27 Bf2 dxc3 28 Qxc3
Kramnik plays the obvious move from the ‘human’ point of view and didn’t even
consider the one preferred by the engines, namely 28 Nf3. Kramnik observed that
this was “too delicate for me, especially since I saw that the forthcoming
complications are in favour of White.”
28 ... Nd5?!
Black agrees to fight a tactical duel, but White’s calculations will be very accurate
and the complications now set in motion will favour White.
The engines of five years ago and those of today agree in preferring the quieter
move 28 ... Qc7, with only a slight advantage for White. They also suggest the more
committal move 28 ... h5, slowing down the g4-advance for the moment.

Question: What would White have achieved in that case?

167
 Answer: It wouldn’t really be an overwhelming advantage, but after the exchanges
Black has two weaknesses to attend to, the pawns on c6 and a5. This reduces his
mobility and there are two potential outposts for the white pieces, on b6 and d6. The
e4-advance, followed by e5, would remain a possibility, for a time when this would
be advantageous. Kramnik was surprised by how little advantage the engines gave to
White in that case, although he considered that White was better after 29 Rab1.
29 Qc2 Bf6?!

Exercise: How did White respond to Black’s active moves?

30 e4!
Answer: With this strong retort as foreseen by White. Instead of 30 Rab1? Nc3
or 30 Rac1 Rb8, White sacrifices the exchange for substantial compensation.
30 ... Bxa1
Black has to accept the sacrifice, as 30 ... Nc7 31 e5 loses the c6-pawn.
31 exd5 Qf6

Exercise: How do you think that White would respond to 31 ... Bf6?

Answer: The materialistic 32 dxe6 opens up the game without it favouring

White after 32 ... fxe6, when 33 Bxc6?! Rb8 would not be appropriate, while 33
Rxe6 Bd4 or 33 ... Qd3 would allows Black to activate his position with reasonable
counterplay.
So 32 d6! is stronger, with a protected passed pawn on the sixth rank. This is
what Kramnik had planned during the game and after 32 ... Qd7 33 Nf3 Rab8 34

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 2 Space Advantage

Bd4 Black’s difficulties are evident. The winner commented, “Black has difficulties
defending the key c6-pawn, plus his bishop is out of play in addition to all other
problems of his position.”
32 d6!
Once again the strongest. Kramnik pointed out that “32 dxe6 is the computer’s
first choice, but again I had (justified) plans to promote my d-pawn”.
Kramnik quoted the computer line 32 ... Bd4 33 exf7+ Rxf7 34 Ne4 Qd8 35
Nd6, which is very advantageous to White.
Five years on, the engines look more favourably upon 32 d6! and accept that
White has an advantage with that line but in the line mentioned above, instead of 34
... Qd8?, they improve Black’s play with 34 ... Bxf2+ 35 Qxf2 Qg6. Here even
though White is able to take on c6, after 36 Nd6 Rff8 37 Bxc6 Rab8 there are too
many open lines for the black rooks. Even considering the weakness of Black’s castled
position, White’s advantage becomes less after 32 dxe6 than after 32 d6.
On the other hand, after 32 d6 the game is more closed and the passed pawn is
important in many lines.
32 ... Qc3
The exchange of dark-squared bishops with 32 ... Bd4 is not a solution either. 33
Nb3 is a good reply, although it seems even stronger to play 33 Nf3 Bxf2+ 34 Kxf2
Rab8 35 Ne5 g5 36 Kg1! and, after regrouping and strengthening his position,
White will capture on c6, creating two connected passed pawns, e.g. 36 ... gxf4 37
gxf4 Kh8 (in order to occupy the g file. Instead, 37 ... Qxf4?! 38 Re4! Qf6 39 Nd7
Qa1+ 40 Kh2 gives White a winning counterattack) 38 Qf2 Qg7 39 Kh2 Rg8 40
Rg1, followed by Bxc6.
33 Qd1 Bb2 34 Bxc6
This is obviously a huge step forward, although Black can still resist.
34 ... Rad8?!
Kramnik expected 34 ... Rab8, which seems more logical, “after all the rooks
belong on the open files, but the computer is not impressed with it either.” It
wouldn’t have changed White’s plan much.

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 Exercise: There are various attractive possibilities here. Which do you think
White chose?

35 Nb1!
Answer: In this position the priority is to avoid unnecessary complications. With
this move, once more a seemingly modest one, White defends a3 and eliminates the
possibility of any activity by Black. Kramnik explained it as follows, “Not the best
square for a knight in general, but with such passed pawns White just needs to stop
possible counterplay (tricks) of the opponent.”
35 ... Qf6 36 Qd2!
Preventing 36 ... e5 and overprotecting f4 with a gain of time.
36 ... Rb8 37 Be4
A good retreat, preparing the c6-advance and controlling d3. This is better than
37 Bg2, after which 37 ... Rb3 would gain in strength.
37 ... e5

Exercise: Once again there is more than one good move, according to the
computer. Which do you think is the best move from the ‘human’ point of view?

38 Nc3!
Answer: Of course, heading for d5, if this plan is not prevented. The alternative
was 38 d7.
20 ... Qe6
There’s no hope after 38 ... Bxc3 39 Qxc3 exf4 40 Qxf6 gxf6 41 c6.

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 2 Space Advantage

39 Nd5
The h3-pawn is not relevent. It’s more important to support the passed pawns.
What a good post the knight has journeyed to, from b1, don’t you think?
39 ... Qxh3 40 Bg2 Qh5 41 d7
Also decisive was 41 c6.
41 ... exf4 42 Qxf4 Bxa3
42 ... Bb5 is also answered with 43 c6, planning 44 Ne7+.

Exercise: Kramnik commented that for the first time in several moves he
now had to do some calculation, as there are several winning paths.
Which would you choose?

43 Qxb8!
Answer: The most elegant. Preparing this with 43 g4 would not even allow the
game continuation, but Kramnik’s move also wins easily. The following sequence is
forced.
43 ... Rxb8 44 Re8+ Kh7 45 Rxb8 Qd1+ 46 Kh2 Qh5+ 47 Bh3 Qf3
If 47 ... Bf1 the simplest is 48 Nf4, mating quickly after 48 ... Qf3 49 d8Q
Qxf2+ 50 Bg2.
48 d8Q Qxf2+ 49 Bg2 1-0

171
 Chapter Three
The Manoeuvring Game
In this chapter we’ll look at examples where manoeuvring predominates, where you
have to choose a general plan and within it work out the best way to optimise the
placement of the pieces. You also have to try to improve your pawn structure,
attempt to create weaknesses in the enemy camp, etc, and at the same time try to
neutralize any such plans on the part of your opponent.

In game 25 White has a central pawn majority and various possibilities to

advance it. As we will see, the placing of a single piece can strengthen or weaken an
advance. Black failed to react in the best way, and was left with a cramped position
and a very badly placed piece, which meant that for a large part of the game he was
practically playing a piece down. White took advantage of its absence to sharpen the
play, before that piece could return to the fray. Once again careful tactical calculation
was necessary to round off the game.

Game 25
M.Carlsen-S.Mamedyarov
Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2014
Queen’s Gambit [D52]

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 e6 5 Bg5 Nbd7

Black declines to enter into a theoretical duel in either the Moscow Variation
with 5 ... h6 or the Botvinnik Variation with 5 ... dxc4. Instead he prefers the more
solid Cambridge Springs variation.
6 e3 Qa5 7 cxd5 Nxd5

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

8 Rc1
This pawn sacrifice, instead of the more traditional 8 Qd2 Bb4 9 Rc1, was
introduced by Kramnik against Shirov in the Tal Memorial, Moscow 2010.
8 ... Nxc3
In the event of 8 ... Bb4, Kramnik’s idea was 9 a3 Bxc3+ 10 bxc3, sacrificing the
a3-pawn in return for the bishop pair and a strong centre. In the stem game which
saw the resurrection of this line, Kramnik-Shirov, Black inserted 8 ... h6 9 Bh4 and
the game continued 9 ... Bb4 10 a3 Bxc3+ 11 bxc3 Qxa3 12 Qd2 b5 13 Bd3 0-0 14
0-0 Bb7 15 c4 with compensation for the pawn, but instead 15 e4 appears stronger.
9 bxc3 Ba3
Another way of capturing is with 8 ... Nxc3 9 bxc3 Qxa2, which doesn’t concede
the bishop pair, but the central pawn majority is still present. If Black then castles
kingside, which is the most likely destination for the king, his monarch will have few
defenders after 10 Bd3 Bd6 11 0-0 Qa5 12 c4.

Exercise: Instead of 11 ... Qa5 the natural 11 ... 0-0? loses. How?

Answer: It loses to 12 Ra1 Qb2 13 Bxh7+! Kxh7 14 Qd3+ and 15 Rfb1.

10 Rc2 b6
Black is following the plan of exchanging the bishops often used by Dreev and
already played by Carlsen as Black. Another plan, in order not to be left with the
passive bishop, is 10 ... 0-0 11 Bd3 e5, opening the h3-c8 diagonal.
11 Be2

Question: Developing the bishop on e2? Isn’t this more passive than on d3?

173
 Answer: Playing 11 Bd3 is the most natural. That’s what was played in Gelfand-
Carlsen, in the 2013 London Candidates. After 11 ... Ba6 12 0-0 Bxd3 13 Qxd3 0-0
Gelfand played 14 e4 (another possibility is 14 c4) and now if 14 ... Rfe8, raising the
possibility of a timely ... e5, one option is 15 Bf4, controlling e5, but White chose
the more concrete 15 e5, an advance which attracted criticism.

There followed 15 ... h6 16 Bh4 c5! (it is vital for Black to weaken the White
centre before White’s forces can regroup and neutralise this counterblow) 17 Nd2
cxd4 18 cxd4 Rac8 Black had no problems. He even had the better structure now
and he ended up winning after a long struggle.
Carlsen came to the conclusion that after the bishop exchange (as he played
against Gelfand), his queen would be rather better placed on e2 than on d3.
11 ... Ba6 12 0-0 Bxe2 13 Qxe2 0-0
White has the central majority. The struggle will now be based on whether that
centre is strong enough to neutralize the counterblows ... e5 or ... c5.
14 e4
This logical advance was improvised over the board, according to Nielsen,
Carlsen’s second. We’ll see that the placing of the queen on e2 influences the choice
of this advance. 14 Rd1, not deciding yet between c4 and e4, had been played
previously in several of Dreev’s games.
14 ... Rac8?!
A move which will prove to be unjustified. White won’t open the c-file
(something that did happen in Gelfand-Carlsen, as we have seen), so this move will
become a wasted tempo.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

The immediate 14 ... c5 is possible, but naturally Black must reckon with 15 d5,
leaving the bishop on a3 out of play. After, for example, 15 ... exd5 16 exd5 Rfe8 17
Qc4! b5?! 18 Qg4 White’s position is becoming threatening.
It’s more useful to play 14 ... Rfe8, creating x-ray pressure between the rook and
the queen, preparing ... c5 and not fearing White’s d5-advance. In the event of 15 e5
it is possible to play 15 ... c5! under reasonable conditions, e.g. 16 Nd2 b5, which
has been played several times.
Recently the immediate 14 ... e5 has also been played.

Exercise: Back to our game. How did White continue here?

15 e5!
Answer: The same plan used by Gelfand against Carlsen, but this time with the
queen on e2. Let’s compare it with the previous diagram. Here 15 e5 is much better,
for 15 ... c5? is answered strongly with 16 d5! and now 16 ... exd5? loses to 17 e6!
fxe6 18 Qxe6+ Rf7 19 Ne5.
15 ... Qa4
Attacking the rook on c2 and so preventing Nd2.
One plan to consider here is a rapid ... b5, with the idea of ... Nb6. It is possibly
even better to put the question to the g5-bishop first with 15 ... h6. If 16 Be3 then
16 ... c5 is certainly possible while after 16 Bh4 Black could try 16 ... b5. Obviously
this is an important decision, because moving pawns in front of the castled position
can create weaknesses.
16 c4 Rfe8

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 Now 16 ... c5 is answered with 17 d5 under good conditions. So with this move
Black prepares the ... c5 advance creating x-ray pressure by the black rook on the
white queen. Once again it is interesting to play 16 ... h6, forcing White to commit
the g5-bishop. After 17 Bh4 he could play 17 ... Rfe8, while after 17 Be3 the d8-
square remains available for a rook.
17 Rd1 c5
With this move Black goes ‘all in’. Naturally it was more prudent to play 17 ...
Bf8 first, but Black wants to profit from the situation of the white queen on e2. Yet
again 17 ... h6, before taking any other decision, was to be considered.
18 d5!
Accepting the challenge.
18 ... exd5 19 Rxd5
19 cxd5 was the alternative, Carlsen couldn’t see clearly whether he could win
after the more or less forced line 19 ... Nxe5 20 Nxe5 Rxe5 21 Qxe5 Qxc2 22 Re1,
when mate is threatened on e8 and the passed pawn provides clear compensation.
However after 22 ... Rf8 23 Be7 Re8 24 d6 Qa4! 25 Qd5 Qd7, it’s not clear that the
compensation can be increased. Nielsen continued the line a little further with 26
Re3 Bb2 27 Rf3 Bf6 28 h3 h6 when White recovers the pawn and is fine, but with
few winning chances.
Carlsen preferred to keep the tension, without forcing the position.
19 ... Nf8?
A solid move, strengthening the unprotected monarch and hoping to compensate
for the absence of the a3-bishop. However, this doesn’t create any problems for
White’s progress.
Everything suggests that it was better to play 19 ... Nb8!, both to put pressure on
the e5-pawn from c6 and also to be able to jump to d4 at an opportune moment.
Obviously it must be justified tactically, because the black king is effectively left
unprotected.
The game could continue 20 Qe4 Nc6 (not 20 ... h6? 21 Bxh6 gxh6 22 Nh4
Re6 23 Rc3, with a very strong attack) and now 21 Bf6 looks dangerous, when 21 ...
gxf6? 22 Qg4+ Kh8 23 exf6 Rg8 24 Ng5! Rcf8 25 Qe4 gives White a crushing
attack. However, after the calmer 21 ... Nd4! 22 Qg4 Ne6, or even 22 ... g6, the
castled position holds.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: There are various ideas to consider here. Which plan would you
choose?

20 h4!
Answer: A useful luft for the king, with ideas of hindering a future ... Ng6.
20 ... h6 21 Be3 Ng6
Planning ... Ne7-f5, but after White’s next move Black must reckon with h5,
gaining time. Carlsen disapproved of Black’s move.
There are several alternatives, such as 21 ... Ne6, 21 ... Rc7 or 21 ... Rcd8, but
none of them solve Black’s major problem, which is that the bishop on a3 is out of
play.

Exercise: Hindering the opponent’s plan is as important as advancing your own

plan (assuming it’s a good one, of course). What did White choose here?

22 Qd3!
Answer: This increases White’s command of the open file and controls f5,
preventing the aforementioned knight manoeuvre ... Ne7-f5.
22 ... Re6
For a human player it was difficult to acknowledge the error and play 22 ... Nf8,
but not for a computer. Returning to f8 is its first suggestion, although
understandably it’s less optimistic about Black’s position than it was two moves ago.
23 h5 Ne7 24 Rd6!

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 Another human move, as now 24 ... Rxd6? 25 exd6 Nc6 26 Re2!, preparing d7
and a future Re8, is losing for Black. But otherwise a timely exchange of rooks on e6
will seriously weaken Black’s structure.
With a computer at your side it’s a lot easier to decide on a forcing line such as
24 Rd8+ which is the best according to the engines. After 24 ... Rxd8 25 Qxd8+ Kh7
26 Rd2!, heading for d7, the black position appears critical. However, let’s not forget
that, unlike what happens in the game, here the a3-bishop can come into play and
after 26 ... Bc1! (not 26 ... Qxc4? 27 Bxh6! gxh6 28 Qe8, or 28 Qf8 with the idea of
29 Qxf7+ or 29 Rd8, winning) 27 Rd7 Bxe3 28 fxe3 Qxa2 29 Rxe7 Rxe7 30 Qxe7
Qxc4 31 Qxa7 b5 White is better but Black has good practical chances. All this is
very difficult to evaluate before opting for 24 Rd8+.
24 ... Bb4
The tactics seem to help Black after 24 ... Nc6 25 Rxe6 Nb4 26 Qf5 Qxc2, e.g.
27 Qg4! Qd1+ 28 Kh2 Qd7.

Exercise: Show in what way this first impression is mistaken. In reality White is
winning now. How?

Answer: By taking advantage of the absence from the kingside of the a3-bishop
and the b4-knight with 29 Bxh6! fxe6 30 Bxg7!. The reply 30 ... Qxg7 is then forced
but after 31 Qxe6+ Qf7 32 Qxc8+ White’s attack is decisive, specifically thanks to
the absence of black defensive pieces. The continuation might be 32 ... Kg7 33 Qg4+
Kf8 34 Ng5, etc.
25 Rc1!
Evading the threat of the queen on a4 in order to give the white queen more
freedom of movement. 25 ... Qxa2? hardly needs calculation as 26 Rd8+ Rxd8 27
Qxd8+ Kh7 28 Qf8 is very strong.
25 ... Re8
With the idea of 26 ... Nc6.

Exercise: What would you play now?

26 Rxe6
Answer: Of course, “just as important, etc., etc.”; White makes this exchange
now, before Black can play ... Nc6 and recapture on e6 with the rook. Black’s
structure is now damaged.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

26 ... fxe6

Exercise: How did White proceed?

27 Nh4!
Answer: Once again White restricts Black’s options. The f5-square is now
controlled, preventing 27 ... Nf5 and the knight also eyes the new weakness created
on g6, planning to occupy that square when the time is right.
27 ... Qc6
The black king would be left defenceless after 27 ... Qxa2? 28 Qd7 Kf7 29 Ng6!
“and he is in a bind,” according to Carlsen, e.g. 29 ... Qa6 30 Rd1, when one threat
would be the astounding 31 Bxh6! gxh6 32 Nxe7! Rxe7 33 Qd3!, exploiting the
weakness of g6. Another plan would be to prepare the sacrifice on h6 by playing 31
Rd3 first, ready to attack along the third rank with the rook. After 29 ... Ba3 30 Rd1
Bb2 the advance 31 f4! is strong, with the idea of 31 ... Qxc4 32 f5! exf5 33 Rd6.
28 a3
Once more the most human choice. White will be playing practically a piece up
as long as he can prevent the black bishop from entering the game. Five years ago
nobody suggested or perhaps even imagined the idea that some engines, (specifically
Stockfish 9 and 10 – not the others) now suggest as winning for White: 28 Bxh6!!
gxh6 and now the ‘quiet’ move 29 Rd1.

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 Amazingly Black is powerless against White’s plan of a slow invasion of the black
camp with the series of moves starting with Qg3+, followed by Qf4, Rd6, Qf7
and/or Qf6, etc.
The explanation for why this works is that Black, with his bishop stranded over
on the queenside, is playing practically a piece down, while White dominates the
only open file. This allows him to exploit Black’s multiple weaknesses on the kingside
and in the centre.

Question: Hmm, it also seems rather odd to me that nobody, including the
world
champion, saw or mentioned this continuation.

Answer: The idea would probably have surfaced if it had been the only way to
win but the move played gave White a considerable advantage and he has every
chance of increasing it. Furthermore, nobody mentioned it, because at the time no
engine was strong enough to evaluate, several moves before, the position arising after
29 Rd1, which now they can do.
28 ... Ba5 29 Rd1 Qc7 30 Ng6
Instead of continuing to apply pressure by playing 30 f4, Carlsen prefers to
simplify, since he is virtually playing a piece up.
30 ... Nxg6
30 ... Nf5 would be answered with 31 g4 and after 31 ... Nxe3 32 Qxe3 there is
no time for the bishop to return to the fray after 32 ... Rd8 33 Rxd8+ Qxd8 34 Qf3!,
since if 34 ... Bd2 then infiltration with 35 Qb7 is decisive.
31 Qxg6 Qf7

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: How does White’s plan continue?

32 Rd3!
Answer: This prevents ... Bc3, without avoiding the queen exchange, because in
the ending the ‘extra’ piece will also be decisive.
32 ... a6
After 32 ... Qxg6 33 hxg6 Kf8 34 Kf1 Ke7 35 Bf4!, intending 36 Bg3-h4, Black
is helpless. 35 ... Rd8 would be futile because of 36 Rxd8 Kxd8 37 Bxh6!. Naturally
White now prevents 33 ... b5.
33 a4 Rf8 34 g4 Qe8 35 Rd6
It’s striking that for the first time in the game Carlsen makes a ‘computer’ move.
This is the engines’ top choice, and it needs calculation. Carlsen rejected 35 Qxe8
Rxe8 36 f4, followed by centralising the king with 37 Kf2-f3-e4 and preparing f5,
with a winning position.
35 ... Qxa4
Of course 35 ... Qxg6 36 hxg6 Re8, reaching a position mentioned earlier, is
untenable for Black after Kg2, f4, etc.
36 Qxe6+ Kh8

Exercise: What had White planned?

37 Bxh6!
Answer: The strongest move, which needed careful calculation to confirm that
there is no perpetual check.

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 37 ... Qa1+ 38 Kg2 Rxf2+!?
This is what had to be evaluated correctly.
39 Kxf2 Qe1+ 40 Kg2 Qe4+ 41 Kh3!
As Nielsen pointed out, it’s strange that the white king’s escape route should be
h4-g5, at the mercy of checks from the black bishop, and with the b1-h7 diagonal
controlled by Black. The reason is that the black queen will have to give check and
leave the e4-square, making the squares f5 and g6 available.
41 ... Qh1+
Also losing was 41 ... Qf3+ 42 Kh4 Be1+ 43 Kg5 Qe3+ 44 Kf5, mating quickly.
42 Kg3 Qe1+
Or 42 ... Be1+ 43 Kf4 Qh2+ 44 Kg5 Bh4+ 45 Kg6 Qc2+ 46 Qf5, winning.
43 Kf4 Bd2+

Exercise (easy): What to play now?

Answer:
44 Rxd2!
Avoiding the final pitfall; not 44 Kf5?? Qb1+ mate!
44 ... Qxd2+ 45 Kf5 gxh6 46 Qe8+ Kg7 47 Qe7+ 1-0
The continuation would be 47 ... Kg8 48 Kg6 Qd3+ 49 Kxh6 Qe3+ 50 g5.

In Game 26 the game quickly moved away from the most usual lines, Black came out
of the opening well but in the subsequent manoeuvring phase he played very
optimistically. White gained a slight edge by demonstrating the defect of Black’s weak
13th move and he gained good squares for his pieces.
A further questionable decision by Black on move 19 allowed the world
champion to increase his advantage with an accurate manoeuvre which enabled him
to concentrate all his forces against Black’s weak kingside, culminating in a nice
finish.

Game 26
M.Carlsen-R.Wojtaszek
Tromso Olympiad 2014
Sicilian Defence [B26]

1 e4 c5 2 Nc3

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Question: Isn’t it true that for some time now this variation has been employed
very little? Why did the world champion choose it?

Answer: This decision also forms part of the planning, but it takes into account
factors away from the chessboard. The Closed Variation wasn’t usually a part of
Carlsen’s repertoire. He chose it in order to take the game into an area which was
uncomfortable for his opponent.
It could be said that part of the victory was based on this planning. Carlsen
commented that Wojtaszek was Anand’s second for a long time (in other words, at
that stage, when Carlsen and Anand had played two matches, Wojtaszek must have
worked on Carlsen’s usual opening repertoire), that his strength was the opening and
that he plays better in complicated positions. For this reason Carlsen decided to play
a closed and not very theoretical position.
2 ... d6 3 g3 Nc6 4 Bg2 g6 5 d3 Bg7

6 Be3
In this position another world champion, Boris Spassky, almost always used to
play 6 f4 and after 6 ... e5 used to choose 7 Nh3.
6 ... e5
Black employs the setup popularised by Botvinnik.
7 Nh3
Now Carlsen emulates Spassky, who frequently used this move in the Closed
Variation, even if, as we have seen, he did so without having yet decided the
destination of the c1-bishop.

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 The knight is on h3, rather than e2 or f3, in order after a future f4 to be able to
retake with the knight on f4, aiming at the weak point in the black structure, d5.
From h3, it is more active than on e2, because in some circumstances it can even go
to g5, and also it doesn’t get in the way of the queen in the event of playing f5, i.e. if
Black plays ... gxf5 the queen has direct access to h5. All of this compensates for the
obvious defect of placing a knight on the rim.
Another, more usual, idea is 7 Qd2.
7 ... Nge7 8 f4 Nd4
Increasing control of f5. After 8 ... 0-0, as we discussed in the previous note,
White has the possibility of sacrificing with 9 f5 gxf5 10 Qh5, showing a positive
side to the deployment of the knight on h3, keeping the diagonal d1-h5 open.
9 0-0 0-0 10 Qd2 Bd7
Another more common idea is 10 ... Rb8, evading the x-ray pressure of the
bishop on g2 and thus enabling either the usual queenside expansion with ... b5-b4
or simple development with ... b6 and ... Bb7. In the event of White playing 11 Rf2,
in order to double the rooks, a useful move is 11 ... f6! controlling g5 and preparing
... Be6.

Exercise: What plan would you choose for White here?

11 Nd1!
Answer: This was one of the ideas behind 10 Qd2. It’s a normal plan in this line;
the knight heads towards the kingside and enables White to expel the black knight
from d4 with c3.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Another White ideas, which is to double the rooks, can’t be carried out here after
11 Rf2 f6, as 12 Raf1?! is answered with 12 ... Qc8!, when White is forced to sacrifice
a pawn with 13 f5, in this case for insufficient compensation.
11 ... Qc8?!
This move is not especially useful and neither does it have an associated plan
behind it. It seems to confirm as correct Carlsen’s comment which we quoted at the
beginning (and at the end) of the game, that Black didn’t manage to find the correct
way forward in this phase of the game.
It was possible to play 11 ... b6, when 12 f5?! is bad due to 12 ... gxf5 13 exf5
Ndxf5!, with more than enough compensation for the exchange.
12 Ndf2 Ndc6 13 c3 b5?!
The usual move in this type of position is 13 ... b6, ready to answer 14 fxe5 with
14 ... dxe5 without losing control of the centre and or allowing Nf4.

Exercise (easy): What did White play now?

14 fxe5!
Answer: Of course. In this way White gains a small victory; he has an extra pawn
in the centre, which, after suitable preparation, will start marching forward with d4.
14 ... Nxe5

Exercise: How to continue now?

15 Bh6
Answer: Postponing Nf4, so as not to make this bishop temporarily inactive.
After the exchange of Black’s defensive bishop it remains clear that in the future the
opponent’s king will be one of White’s targets.
15 ... N7c6 16 Bxg7 Kxg7 17 Nf4 Qd8 18 Rad1
The engines prefer the manoeuvre Nd1-e3, ensuring the presence of a knight on
d5, (after a possible ... Ne7 by the opponent), but the world champion prefers to
prepare d4, bringing his only inactive piece into the battle.
18 ... Rc8

Exercise: What to play now?

19 Qe2

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 Answer: Black can’t undertake anything active and therefore there’s no hurry. It’s
possible to strengthen the position first. Carlsen makes another prophylactic move
before playing d4. From e2 the queen controls g4 and evades a possible attack with ...
Nc4.

19 ... h5?
The idea is clear, to obtain g4 for the knight, but it’s obvious that the security of
Black castled position will no longer be the same. Nonetheless, it’s easy to criticise
this move after seeing what happened, but less easy to suggest an alternative. There
seems to be nothing better than the sad retreat 19 ... Ne7, in order to make room for
the e5-knight to withdraw.
20 d4 cxd4 21 cxd4 Ng4 22 h3
The following exchange is welcome to White because it assists the coordination
of his remaining pieces, and in any case the f2 knight didn’t have a brilliant future.
22 ... Nxf2 23 Qxf2 Ne7
Deterring the f4-knight from jumping to d5.

Exercise: Which plan to choose now?

24 Rd3!
Answer: White’s methodical concentration of forces continues. The rook heads
for the f-file increasing the pressure on the kingside.
24 ... b4
In order to be able to play ... Bb5, but this will not be relevant.
25 Rf3 Qe8
Black can only wait.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: Why doesn’t Black continue with the idea of diverting a rook from the
f-
file with 25 ... Bb5?

Answer: Because the concentration of white forces on the kingside was already
overwhelming. There would have followed 26 Nxh5+! gxf5 27 Rxf7+, with a quick
mate.
More tenacious was the prophylactic 25 ... Kg8, but White’s superiority would
remain in no doubt. It would even be possible to respond as Carlsen did in the game.

Carlsen commented about this moment, “I saw that Garry came to look at the
game. He was standing to the side for a minute, then I moved ... ”

Exercise: What did Carlsen play now?

26 g4!
Answer: “ ... And he went on his way smiling. I think that he too would have
made that move”, concluded Carlsen. The defects of 19 ... h5? now become evident.
Kasparov commented “ ... I was impressed by how he sharpened things up with
the pawn sacrifice 26 g4!. I don’t know what the computers think, but it was
obviously the best move to put pressure on the opponent’s fragile position.”
The engines of five years ago liked 26 d5, which threatens the a7-pawn and also
the one on b4 after 27 Qd4+ and Qxb4. In the event of 26 ... a5 White has 27 Qb6,
also winning a pawn, unless you prefer to continue attacking an the kingside with 27
Qd4+ Kg8 28 Qf6, or even with the more violent 28 g4.

187
 The strongest engine at the beginning of 2019, Stockfish 10, likes Carlsen’s idea
more, but prefers to play first 26 Qd2 and only after 26 ... a5 to play 27 g4!. Of
course these are ‘computer moves’, and it’s very difficult to move the queen from f2 if
there is no very obvious reason.
It’s hard to know which is best. It’s a clear example of the divergence between the
‘human’ approach to chess and that of the computer. Carlsen said that his choice
seemed so good to him that he didn’t look for alternatives. That’s the ‘human’
approach, taking the practical element into account.
26 ... hxg4 27 hxg4 Bb5
27 ... Bxg4 would be answered with 28 Rg3 Qd7 29 Bh3!, making good use of
the semi-open g-file. 29 ... Bxh3 loses to 30 Nh5+! Kh6 31 Qf4+ Kh7 32 Nf6+.
29 ... f5 is also bad due to 30 d5, intending Ne6+ and/or Qd4+
28 Re1 Qd8

Exercise: How to make progress now?

29 g5!
Answer: Once more activating an inactive piece, the idea is 30 Bh3, as well as to
control f6, which is now accessible to White. Black has no useful move.
29 ... Qb6?!
Very slow, but by now it was very difficult to defend.
30 Bh3 Rcd8

Exercise: There are several strong moves now. What would you play?

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

31 Be6!
Answer: Carlsen chooses the most artistic move which is also the strongest.
Pressure is increased along the f-file and the threat to invade along the h-file is
strengthened by preventing a timely defence with ... Rh8.
31 ... Be8 32 Nd5
32 Rh3 was another possibility, the one preferred by the computers. If 32 ... Bd7
White wins with 33 Nh5+ gxh5 34 Qf6+ Kg8 35 Rxh5, while 32 ... Rh8 is refuted
with 33 Bxf7! (making way for the knight and subsequently the queen; 33 Nxg6! is
another way) 33 ... Rxh3 ( 33 ... Bxf7 allows mate with 34 Ne6+ and Qf6) 34 Ne6+
Kh7 35 Nf8+ Kg7 36 Qf6+, mating.
“I don’t think Magnus even bothered to calculate. He simply looked for
harmony” commented Carlsen’s first trainer, Simen Agdestein in New in Chess
2014/6.
32 ... Nxd5 33 Bxd5 1-0
And here Black resigned, powerless before the threat of 34 Rh3, followed by
Qf6+ or Qh4.
Carlsen’s summary of the game was, “I simply tried to play some good chess. I
soon felt that I had a comfortable position and that he didn’t really know what he
was doing. In the opening yes, but afterwards no”.

In Game 27, the play once more quickly took on a character all its own. Black
manoeuvred very well in the first phase of the game and achieved good piece play,
but on move 20 he chose the wrong plan and allowed White to take the initiative
with a simple but effective plan, which Black was unable to oppose. Of course, the
battle continued and White still had to play carefully in order to increase his
advantage.

Game 27
M.Carlsen-S.Karjakin
Bilbao 2016
Sicilian Defence [B50]

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 d6 3 c3 Nf6 4 Be2

Question: Why does even the world champion play such a modest line?

189
 Answer: In many games Carlsen adopts a novel approach to the opening, one
more typical of Lasker’s era. He doesn’t aim for a great advantage, but to reach a
middlegame with a position that he enjoys playing, and ideally in which his
opponent doesn’t feel as comfortable. A starkly opposite approach was that of
Kasparov, who played very sharp lines in the opening, in which deep preparation was
essential, in view of the tactical complications involved.
As we see, this too is an aspect of planning.
4 ... g6 5 0-0 Bg7 6 Bb5+
Answer: I have never understood this manoeuvre. White played Be2, and now he
loses another tempo with the bishop?
Answer: Once Black castles White will have to do something about the defence
of his e4-pawn, which is immune at present because of Qa4+. Of course this can be
done with 6 d3 or 7 d3, but it doesn’t suit White to leave his bishop inactive on e2.
One of the ideas of 6 Bb5+ is to be able to play d4 in good circumstances.
6 ... Nc6
6 ... Nbd7 and 6 ... Bd7 are more usual. In the event of 6 ... Nbd7 White can
play 7 Re1 defending e4 and the d4 advance is now possible. After 7 ... a6 for
example, the bishop can return to f1. Admittedly the bishop manoeuvre back to f1
would be in three tempi and not two, but the tempo gained by Black would be the
move ... a6.
After 6 ... Bd7 Carlsen would be on familiar ground: 7 Bxd7+ Nfxd7 8 d4 was
played in the game M.Carlsen-Wang Hao, Norway 2013 (blitz).
7 d4

“And Magnus had his beloved-pawn centre,” commented Agdestein in a similar

position, adding, “He likes harmony, and two pawns in the middle certainly are

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

harmonious”.
7 ... Qb6
A very unusual move. More common are 7 ... Bd7, 7 ... 0-0 and 7 ... cxd4 8 cxd4
0-0.
8 Ba4

Question: Why lose a tempo? Isn’t it better to develop a piece with 8 Na3?

Answer: In general that would be correct but here Black can benefit from the fact
that on a3 the knight doesn’t influence the centre by playing 8 ... cxd4 9 cxd4 and
now 9 ... d5!, with a good position after 10 exd5 Nxd5, or10 e5 Ne4, since there is
no Nc3 or Nbd2 as in ‘normal’ positions with the knight still on b1.
8 ... cxd4 9 cxd4 0-0 10 d5 Nb8

Question: Isn’t this retreat an admission that Black has played the opening badly?

Answer: No, Black has no problems. The knight is going to go to d7 and then it
will have a choice between e5 and c5, while White has achieved nothing special, just
a little more space. It’s true that 10 ... Na5 doesn’t seem bad either. The knight is
inactive just now, but later it can go to c4.
11 Nc3 Bg4
The bishop is rather in the way and the best thing is to get rid of it, in order to
gain more mobility.
12 h3 Bxf3 13 Qxf3

191
 Question: Black got rid of his bishop to gain more mobility, as you said, but isn’t
it
a concession to give up the bishop pair?

Answer: Not here. The position is not an open one and the central structure is
fixed, so that the bishop pair is not an advantage at this time. A different matter is
whether the position is to the liking of the person playing it.
13 ... Nbd7 14 Rb1

Question: Is this precaution needed? Isn’t 14 Be3 better? Taking on b2 looks

dangerous, doesn’t it?

Answer: White has a different destination in mind for the bishop, so that 14 Be3
would not gain time. Black can simply play 14 ... Qa5 followed by ... Rfc8, with no
major problems. After the necessary calculations, it’s even possible to play 14 ...
Qxb2, since after 15 Rfc1 Qa3 16 Rab1, threatening Rb3, Black has the resource 16
... Nc5! available. This is based on the fact that after 17 Bxc5 Qxc5 18 Rxb7 the
balance can be restored with 18 ... Nxe4! 19 Qxe4 Bxc3 and the pin on the bishop
isn’t dangerous because Black can unpin with 20 ... Qd4 or 20 ... Qa3, attacking the
white bishop.
14 ... Rfc8
Harmony also reigns among the black forces.
15 Bc2

Question: And this move? It’s not very active, is it? What’s the plan?

Answer: The position doesn’t yet allow for a clear plan, so White continues to
play useful waiting moves before taking any concrete long-term steps. The bishop no
longer serves a useful purpose on a4, so he overprotects e4 while waiting to see what
Black chooses to do, in order then to decide how to deploy his pieces.
15 ... Ne5
Heading for c4 and making room for the other knight.
16 Qe2 Nfd7 17 Bg5
Finally he decides where to put this bishop. It’s not attractive to place it on e3,
bearing in mind that ... Nc4 is in the air. Although there’s no immediate threat to

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

capture on e7, at some point Black will need to come to a decision about it, because
otherwise he’ll have to consider this capture move after move.
17 ... h6
Demonstrating that there is no threat to the e7-pawn. A good ‘computer’ move
here is 17 ... Bf6, offering the exchange of the bishop that’s defending the kingside.
After 18 Bxf6 Nxf6 19 Kh2 Qa6, or 19 ... Nc4 20 Bd3 Qd4, Black can play on the
dark squares, but 17 ... Bf6 isn’t really a ‘human’ move. In other words it’s not the
first or the second thing that would occur to a master, unless the alternatives were all
bad.
18 Bh4

Exercise: Show why 18 Bxe7 wasn’t to be feared.

Answer: It would be answered with 18 ... g5!, cutting off the bishop’s retreat and
after 19 Nb5 Ng6 20 Nxd6 (20 Bxd6 a6) 20 ... Nxe7 21 Nxc8 Nxc8 material is
approximately equal, but the black minor pieces are soon going to occupy ideal
squares and Black has the advantage.
18 ... g5
Objectively a good decision, reminiscent of what is played in similar Benoni
positions. Black secures the fine position of his knight on e5 and can forget about
defending the e7-pawn. Obviously, even if right now it’s not important, this move
also weakens Black’s castled position.
A less committal move was ... a6, controlling b5, but Black doesn’t want to rule
out the chance of playing ... Qa6 at an opportune moment.
19 Bg3 Qa6
This was what Black was planning, and it’s correct, strengthening the control of
c4, given that 20 Qxa6? would merely give Black one more open file on his strong
wing, without the doubled pawns being an exploitable weakness.
A different idea was 19 ... Ng6, controlling f4 and h4, activating the bishop and
creating the possibility of placing the d7-knight on e5, or even of playing ... Be5, in
order to have f4 accessible for the g6-knight. But the least committal continuation
would be to play 20 ... Rc7 and ... Rac8.
20 Qd1

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 20 ... Rc4?

Question: Bad? I don’t think so. It prepares to double rooks on the open file.
How
bad can that be?

Answer: It’s true that this move looks fine. But there’s is a tactical flaw, as we’ll
see, and besides, doubling the rooks on the c-file doesn’t create any particularly
dangers for White.
The c4-square is the ideal destination for the e5-knight. The move the position
seems to be crying out for is 20 ... Nc4. After 21 Bd3 Qb6 22 Qe2 Nde5, harmony
reigns in the black position.
Even 20 ... Ng6 was still playable, ready for ... Nde5, but obviously this wasn’t
the idea Black had in mind when he played 19 ... Qa6.

Exercise: Demonstrate that Black’s move was bad.

21 Kh1!
Answer: With a simple and very strong plan, to play f4, exploiting the fact that
several black pieces are away on the queenside. Even 21 ... Ng6 is not possible now,
because of 22 Bd3, demonstrating another weak point of 20 ... Rc4?
On the immediate 21 f4, thanks to the white king being still on g1, Black has
available the tactical resource 21 ... Rd4!, which almost forces the exchange of
queens.
21 ... Rac8 22 f4 gxf4 23 Bxf4 Qb6

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

The queen was no longer useful on a6 and this move prepares a timely
strengthening of the defence with ... Qd8.

Exercise (easy): How to continue now?

24 Qh5
Answer: Quite an obvious move, isn’t it?
Bringing the queen into the attack against the opponent’s weakened castled
position and threatening to capture a pawn. It surprised me that modern engines
prefer to focus on the queenside. The move they consider to be the strongest is 24
Qd2, but after 24 ... Kh7 or 24 ... Rb4 they can’t see a convincing way to increase the
advantage.
24 ... Nf6

Exercise: Black tries to defend himself by regrouping his pieces. How would you
respond to 24 ... Kh7?

Answer: 25 Bd3! is very strong. After 25 ... Nxd3 White demolishes the kingside
with 26 Bxh6!, when taking the bishop leads to mate after Rxf7+ while if 26 ... Nf6
then 27 Rxf6, with the idea of 28 Be3+, wins.
In the event of 25 ... R4c7, White wins material, thanks to the awkward placing
of Black’s heavy pieces and with the same tactical themes, e.g. 26 Nb5! when 26 ...
Nxd3 is again answered with 27 Bxh6!, while 26 ... Rc5 is punished with 27 b4!
Rxb5 28 Qf5+ Kg8 29 Bxe5, now exploiting Black’s numerous tactical weaknesses
(the c8-rook, the f7-pawn, the d7-knight, etc.).
25 Qf5 Qd8
It’s not necessary to retreat the centralised knight with 25 ... Ng6, as 26 Bxe5
dxe5 27 Qxe5? is answered with 27 ... Nxe4. Even if Black didn’t have the ... Nxe4
tactic, for White it wouldn’t be worth winning a pawn at the cost of giving up total
control of the dark squares after ... Nd7 and ... Ne5.
26 Bb3
Forcing Black to decide where to put the rook..

Question: Hmm, yes, but the bishop is not really better on b3 than on c2, is it?

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 Answer: You’re right. On b3 the bishop now has no influence on the struggle,
but this move is the first step in a surprising plan.
26 ... Rd4 27 Bxe5
And this is the second surprising step. The first move to be considered by mere
mortals is 27 Be3, but after 27 ... Rb4 it’s not easy to see how to exploit the exposed
situation of the rook.
27 ... dxe5

Question: What did White achieve with the 27 Bxe5 exchange?

Answer: One of the pieces that gained most from the change of structure was the
b3-bishop. Now, with d5-pawn no longer fixed, we need to consider the d6-advance
at an opportune moment. Exchanging on e5 also eliminated an active black piece
and left the black bishop inactive. These are several positive achievements, but as yet
there is nothing concrete.
28 Rbd1

Question: What a strange move!

Answer: You’re not the only one to be surprised. Agdestein commented, “I would
never have managed to come up with this plan! I guess Magnus’s reasoning is simply
to take away the most active black pieces to eliminate all counterplay.”
28 ... Qd7 29 Qf3
Of course White doesn’t exchange queens. His target is still the weakened black
castled position.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

29 ... Rb4?!
Black doesn’t want to part with his active rook and, as will soon be clear, he
makes another questionable move with that very rook.
The obvious continuation is to exchange rooks. Naturally, this is what Carlsen
took into account when he decided on his chosen plan. After 29 ... Rxd1 30 Bxd1
White will regroup and then have the plan of playing Ne2-g3, when Black’s problems
would be far from over.

Exercise: How did White exploit Black’s inaccuracy ?

30 Rd2!
Answer: This is the problem with not having exchanged rooks. White can use his
rook to join in the attack along the second rank, while the black rook is nowhere
near to having similar usefulness.
30 ... Rf8
It’s understandable that Black strengthens the defence of his f7-square, in order to
restore mobility to his knight.

Exercise: How did White continue?

31 g4!
Answer: Tripling on the f-file seemed like an obvious role for the d2-rook.
Carlsen selects an even better post for it, on the g-file, and Black’s defence is now very
difficult.

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 There is a certain similarity between 30 Rd2! and 31 g4! in this game and 24
Rd3! and 26 g4! in the preceding game, don’t you think?
31 ... a5
Black seeks counterplay on ‘his’ wing. It won’t arrive in time, but there were no
really better ideas. White’s lethal plan is simple: play Rg2, followed by g5, or h4 and
g5.
32 Rg2 Nh7
If 32 ... a4 then 33 g5! is decisive. After 33 ... hxg5 34 Rxg5 Black is mated after
34 ... axb3 35 Rfg1 Ne8 36 Qg3.
33 h4 Rb6 34 g5 Kh8
After 34 ... hxg5 35 hxg5 Rg6 White would play 36 Qh5, exploiting the opening
of the h-file and planning Rfg1, followed by Rh2 as well as Bd1-g4-f5. Black would
be powerless.
It’s possible to try to improve this defence by playing the immediate 34 ... Rg6,
which prevents 35 Qh5?? because of 35 ... Qh3+ 36 Kg1 Rxg5, but in fact this only
delays the invasion by one move. White can play 35 Rfg1, with Rh2 and Qh5 on the
agenda.
35 Rfg1 f5
Proof that Black can’t find a reasonable defence. Creating further weaknesses for
himself can’t turn out well.
Opening the h-file with the king on h8 would now be worse, while after 35 ...
Rg6 36 Rh2 Black has no counterplay and White has a free hand. After 37 Qh5 he
will even be able to consider once again the manoeuvre Bd1-g4-f5.
36 Qh3
Applying more pressure, now on f5, which gives more force to the threat of 37
gxh6 Bxh6 38 exf5, winning a pawn because of the weakness of Black’s back rank.
This could be the response for instance to 36 ... Rd6, defending the queen.
36 ... Rb4
The same weakness on Black’s first and second ranks appears after 36 ... Rg6 37
gxh6 Rxg2 38 Qxg2 Bxh6 39 d6 e6 40 exf5, or 40 Qg6.
37 gxh6
Now no further preparation is needed. White can win in several ways.
37 ... Bxh6 38 Qg3
Another way to win was 38 Rg6 Bf4 39 Qg2, or 39 d6.
38 ... Nf6

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Exercise (easy): What was the strongest move now?

39 Qg6
Answer: And there is no good way to defend the bishop. If 39 ... Ng8, then,
among other things, the simple 40 d6 wins.
39 ... Ng4 40 Rxg4 1-0

In Game 28 a seemingly natural move by Black turned out to be a mistake, because

of a precise and careful manoeuvre by White.
White gains the advantage “ ... but from this general evaluation, to the end of the
struggle, there is still a long way to go”, wrote the winner.
The route towards increasing White’s advantage involved not only the usual
themes, such as applying pressure to the opponent’s weaknesses and regrouping in
the best way, but also some atypical and instructive manoeuvres by the white pieces.

Game 28
A.Lilienthal-M.Botvinnik
USSR Championship, Moscow 1940

Black to Play

Lilienthal wrote, “White has opened the c-file. The backward pawn on c7 is in
danger, and also the c6- and e6-squares are weak. If White can bring his knight to
d4, his advantage would be unmistakeable.”

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 Exercise: What’s the best defence? Where should the attacked knight retreat?

13 ... Nb4?
Answer: This seems to be the most natural response. It attacks the queen and the
d5-pawn and seeks a suitable redeployment for the knight. But it’s not the best move,
as will become evident.
Probably 13 ... Ne5 was preferable, with only a slight advantage for White. 14
e4? would not be possible yet because of 14 ... Ba6.
14 Qd2!
“A far from obvious move. white is now able to cramp Black on the queenside.”
(Lilienthal)
14 Qc4! was also good, with the same idea as 14 Qd2, but the queen is fine on
d2 to support Bb2 later. Lilienthal commented that Botvinnik had assumed that
White had to protect his d5-pawn with 14 Qb3 when, after 14 ... a5 15 a3 Na6,
Black should be able to equalise.
14 ... a5
Botvinnik later expressed the opinion that he needed to play 14 ... c5, even
though after 15 dxc6 Nxc6 16 Nd3 the black position is difficult.
It was a matter of choosing the lesser of two evils and having seen what happened
in the game it’s quite possible that Botvinnik was right, he should have played 14 ...
c5. Even though there would be no compensation for the weaknesses on d5, d6, e6,
etc. in the black camp, White’s task would have been more difficult.
15 a3 Na6

Exercise (easy): How did White highlight the drawback of 13 ... Nb4?

16 b4
Answer: This was the idea behind 14 Qd2, to leave the black knight stranded on
a6, and in fact, there it remained until almost the end of the game.
It’s significant that one of the greatest strategists in history found himself
positionally in trouble only a few moves after leaving theory. Let’s not forget the vital
role played by the d5-pawn, which caused the c7-pawn to remain backwardas well as
dominating e6 and c6, and making the b7-bishop passive.
16 ... Bf6 17 Bb2 Qd7

Question: Isn’t it better to exchange, in order to neutralise the white pieces’

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

greater mobility?

Answer: The problems of Black’s position would not be solved. Let’s hand over to
Lilienthal, “If Black were to initiate exchanges with 17 ... Bxb2 18 Qxb2 Qf6 19
Qxf6 Rxf6 he would have an inferior ending after 20 Nd3. White would continue to
put pressure on the c7 pawn, and continue relegating the Na6 to a passive role.”
18 Bxf6 Rxf6

Exercise: Is it appropriate yet for White to try to win material?

19 Nd3
Answer: “Naturally not 19 bxa5 because of 19 ... Nc5! and thanks to the threat
of 20 ... Nb3, Black has a splendid position,” commented Lilienthal. In fact, after 20
axb6 Nb3 21 Qc3 Nxa1 22 bxc7 Rf7 23 Nd3 Qxc7, even though White has two
pawns for the exchange, they’re not strong ones.
19 ... a4
Having prevented ... Nc5 White was now threatening to take on a5. Here 19 ...
axb4 20 axb4 Qb5 looks attractive as it attacks d5 and creates pressure. However, the
lack of harmony among the black pieces can be highlighted in various ways.
Lilienthal pointed out that 21 Ra3! was strong, with the idea of doubling or even
tripling along the a-file. Another idea was 21 Rfb1 Bxd5 22 Bxd5+ Qxd5 23 Qa2 c6
24 Qxd5+ cxd5 25 Nf4, with a big advantage.
20 Rac1 Qf7 21 Nf4
“The knight has reached a dominating position, and Black’s position is
strategically lost. But from this general evaluation, to the end of the struggle, there is

201
still a long way to go”, commented Lilienthal.
21 ... Bc8

Exercise: How to proceed now?

22 Rc3
Answer: Of course, White gets ready to double rooks on the c-file. With Black’s
pieces so uncoordinated it would be a mistake to evict the knight from f4 with 22 ...
g5?. After 23 Ne6 h6 White is able to open up the game favourably with 24 f4 g4 25
e4. Black must regroup before thinking about activity.
22 ... Bd7 23 Rfc1 h6 24 h4
There are many attractive moves, but there is no urgency, given that Black is not
threatening anything, which is why White first hinders any counterplay based on ...
g5.
24 ... Ra7
Once more 24 ... g5? is bad because of 25 hxg5 hxg5 26 Ne6.
25 h5 Ra8

Exercise: White has a free hand to choose how to continue. What would
you play?

26 Re3!
Answer: The alternative was to break in the centre with 26 e4, or 26 Re1
followed by e4. Opening up the game would be favourable to White. Lilienthal
commented that it would be less energetic to play 26 e3 and Bf1, with the plan of

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

increasing the pressure on c7, because Black could play ... b5, holding the queenside
together.
White’s move is an unusual way of taking advantage of an opponent’s semi-open
file and it is very effective. This semi-open file would almost always be controlled by
Black, but the poor deployment of his pieces and the weaknesses in the black camp
mean that it’s White who can benefit from it more,
In order to exploit the weaknesses of e6 and g6, together with the strong position
of the Nf4 and the favourable circumstance of the a6-knight being shut out of play
on the queenside, White begins operation on the e-file and on the kingside.
26 ... Kh7
It was suggested that, sooner or later, Black should exchange rooks but after 26 ...
Re8 27 Rcc3 Rxe3 28 Rxe3 there would be no substantial change in the position. It
continues to be advantageous for the white rook to dominate the e-file.
27 Rcc3 Rb8
If 27 ... Bb5 then as well as 28 Qc2, White could play 28 Ng6 Re8 29 Bh3, and
Black’s position is very shaky.
28 Qd3 Ra8
Here 28 ... b5 was suggested, in order to release the b8-rook, but we’ve already
seen that exchanging a rook is not really a solution for Black. White could play 29
Ng6 Re8 30 Qd4, followed by Rxe8 and Re3, and the situation hasn’t improved
much for Black.
29 Ng6
White considers his position sufficiently strengthened now and he begins active
measures. The threat of 30 Re7 can only be parried by sacrificing the exchange, as
Lilienthal indicated.
29 ... Rxg6
After 29 ... Qg8 White could play 30 Bh3 Rf7 and now 31 Re7, threatening 32
Rxd7 and 33 Bxf5, or 31 Rf3 Qc8 32 Nh4, etc. white could also consider a recurrent
theme, the spectacular 30 Re6!.
30 hxg6+ Kxg6
Or 30 ... Qxg6 31 Re7.

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 31 Re6+!
“Simpler was 31 g4!” according Lilienthal. True, but what was played is just as
strong or stronger, and more elegant.
31 ... Kh7
If Black accepts the exchange, then after 31 ... Bxe6 32 dxe6 Qe8 White wins
with 33 Bxa8 or even 33 g4.
32 g4! c5
“The last attempt to complicate the position tactically” (Lilienthal).
The passive 32 ... g6 fails to 33 Qe3 practically forcing 33 ... Re8, and after the
exchanges Black would remain the exchange down with his knight still inactive.
33 b5
Not wanting to concede any counterplay, although there were stronger
continuations, such as 33 gxf5 cxb4 34 f6+ Kg8 35 axb4 Nxb4 36 Qg3 a3 37 Rxa3
Rxa3 38 Qxa3 etc.
Also good was 33 Rxd6 and the knight’s activity is not serious after 33 ... cxb4 34
axb4 Nxb4 35 Qf3, threatening to take on b6, or to play Rc7.
33 ... Nc7 34 gxf5 Nxb5
Lilienthal believed that the most tenacious defence was 34 ... Re8, to which he
intended to reply 35 Qe4, which is good, but even more crushing is 35 f6+ g6 36
Rxd6 Bxb5 37 Qg3, threatening 38 Rxb6 or 38 e4.
35 f6+ Kg8
Or 35 ... Kh8 but after 36 fxg7+ (or the simple 36 Rc4) 36 ... Qxg7 37 Rg6 Qh7
(37 ... Qxc3? 38 Rxh6+ Kg8 39 Qh7+ Kf8 40 Rg6 leads to mate) 38 Be4 Black’s
position is untenable.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise (simple): What did White play now?

36 Rc4
Answer: Threatening 37 Re7, but White must not let his guard down. 36 Re7??
would be suicidal due to 36 ... Qxf6, attacking both rooks.
36 ... Re8 37 Rg4 g5
If 37 ... Bxe6 the strongest continuation is 38 Rxg7+ Qxg7 39 fxg7 Bd7 40 Bh3!
Bxh3 41 Qxb5, when several queenside pawns fall and White makes a passed pawn.
38 Rxe8+ Bxe8 39 Re4 Kf8
After 39 ... Qg6 there are many ways to win, such as 49 Qh3, but Lilienthal
considered the simplest to be 40 Re7 Qxd3 41 Rxe8+ Kf7 42 Re7+ Kxf6 43 Re6+.
40 Re7 Qg6
40 ... Qxf6 is answered with 41 Rxe8+ Kxe8 42 Qxb5+.
41 Be4 Qh5 42 Bf3 Qg6 43 Rxe8+! Qxe8 44 Qh7 Qf7 45 Qxh6+ Kg8 46
Bh5 1-0

In Game 29 Black had a threatening position, with an imminent pawn attack on

White’s castled position. White had to get ready to defend. He did so with “an
economical defence” as the world champion described it.
Black proceeded with his attack, which was met with an unexpected
counterattack on move 30 and the roles were reversed. White then had an attack,
which continued to increase inexorably until it became irresistible.

Game 29

205
M.Carlsen-G.Kamsky
Sinquefield Cup, St Louis 2013

White to Play

Black’s position looks menacing. The ... g4 advance is on the agenda and White
needs to find a plan which might provide some counterplay.

Exercise: What did White play here?

27 Rc2!
Answer: Carlsen was dissatisfied with his hesitant play up to here, but he was
pleased with his play in this phase of the game, beginning with this multipurpose
move. “It’s a good example of economical defence”, he pointed out. The rook
defends the second rank and at the same time threatens to infiltrate on the c-file,
once the other rook comes to c1.
27 ... Rg7
Further firepower. The ... g4 advance is supported and is now unstoppable.
28 Rdc1 Nf6
Kamsky now had little time left. The natural 28 ... g4! was better, depriving
White of some important options, as we’ll see.
29 hxg4 fxg4 would not be advisable, since the opening of the f-file favours
Black. Nonetheless White is still fine after 29 Qf4! gxh3 30 f3 Ng3 31 Kh2 hxg2 32
Rxg2, regaining the pawn. It’s necessary to take into account that endings will tend

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

to be very favourable for White, as the white king can be activated very powerfully
along the black squares.
29 Qd1 g4?!

Exercise: The advance takes place one move later, but at this moment ... “It was a
horrible move,” said Kamsky after the game.

Carlsen had achieved a slight edge after the opening, but had then played
inaccurately. Nonetheless, Carlsen said that, paradoxically, that was what helped him
to win this game. Kamsky became optimistic and started to advance his pawns on the
kingside. He explained that he was influenced by the fact that “(Carlsen) is famous
for pressing small advantages. I didn’t want to give him that opportunity. I decided to
attack him and then, I just couldn’t see anything”, he said, perhaps exaggerating the
last part a little.
Horrible or not, as White you have to respond well, because 29 ... g4 doesn’t look
bad and it threatens to take on h3. How should White defend?
30 f3!
Answer: A move which might go unnoticed, as happened to Kamsky, whereas
once again 30 hxg3 fxg4 opening the f-file would not be favourable to White. Black
would maintain a harmonious position with good attacking chances.
Normally you’re not supposed to open up the flank where you’re weak. The
question here is which player this applies to. White with 30 f3 or Black with 29 ...
g4?
“He hit me very nicely. I didn’t see f3”, said Kamsky.

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 Carlsen was very pleased with this move. About his aforementioned “economical
defence”, Carlsen noted, “don’t try to defend with more pieces than necessary”.
30 ... gxh3?!
Carlsen thought that Black should have played 30 ... g3, closing the position,
although this would be admitting the failure of the preceding moves, with which he
tried to open up the game and attack White. Nonetheless, there would have followed
31 Bb4, and White, with a free hand now, would have an appreciable advantage. But
Black should have chosen “the lesser of the evils”.
31 Bxh4
The entry of this bishop into the game seems to answer the question after 30 f3!
about which side had most to gain from opening up the game on the kingside: it was
White.
“The attacker has become the attacked,” commented Jon Ludvig Hammer,
Carlsen’s second at that time.
31 ... Kf7
In the event of 31 ... hxg2, as well as 32 Rxg2 White can advantageously
postpone that capture and play 32 Qe1! with the idea of 32 ... Qe7 33 Rc7 Qf8 34
Rxg7+ Qxg7, taking over the dark squares in the ending with 35 Qg3 or in the
middlegame with 35 Bg3, followed by Be5.

Exercise: Black has cleared his back rank, making way for his rook and maybe his
queen. What did White play now?

32 Qe1!

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Answer: Not bothering about defence, White prepare the queen’s entry into play.
There is nothing to be feared from 32 ... Reg8? in view of 33 Rc7+ Kg6 34 Qg3+,
winning.
32 ... hxg2?!
We have already seen that opening files hurts Black’s king more than White’s. It
was preferable to forget about aggressive plans for the time being and to find a better
refuge for the king with for example 32 ... Kg8 33 g3 Kh7, although after 34 Kh2,
followed by Kxh3, opening the h-file, the black king will continue to be weak and
Black must limit himself to waiting passively.
33 Rc7+ Re7

Exercise: “What move did White choose now?

34 Bxf6!
Answer: An exchange that further weakens the black king’s defences. When the
position is as good as this then, generally speaking, there is often more than one way
to win. Here it was also strong to first play 34 Rc8!, with lines similar to those in the
game.
34 ... Kxf6 35 Rc8 Qd6

Exercise: How does the idea begun with 34 Bxf6 continue?

36 Qh4+
Answer: Of course, attacking the king which is now weaker.
36 ... Kf7 37 Qh5+ Rg6 38 f4!
Black has fewer and fewer resources. It’s impossible to defend against the entry of
the queen at h8. Also possible was the immediate 38 Qh8, but there is nothing
wrong with first shutting off any possible way into the kingside for the black queen.
38 ... Qa3 39 Qh8 Rg7 40 Qh5+ Rg6 41 Qh8 Rg7 42 Qf8+ Kg6

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 Exercise: What’s the best way of continuing the attack now?

43 Kxg2!
Answer: This is the missing element, the opening of the g-file and it’s decisive.
Of course, calculation was needed to confirm that the white king doesn’t suffer from
the opening up of the game.
43 ... Rgf7 44 Qd8
With the white king exposed on g2 Black’s activity must not be underestimated.
Here 44 Qg8+ Rg7 45 Qd8? fails due to 45 ... Qb2+ 46 R8c2 Qxb3 47 Kf3 Kf7! 48
Rc8 Rg3+!, and it’s a draw.
44 ... Rh7
Mate is also inevitable after 44 ... Qb2+ 45 R8c2 Qxb3 46 Kf3.

Exercise: There are a number of winning moves now. Which is the fastest way?

45 Rg1!
Answer: Using the inactive rook to attack along the g-file. It’s mate in eleven
moves, say the engines.
45 ... Qa2+ 46 Kf3+ Kf6 47 Qg8!
The fastest way. This threatens 48 Rg6 mate.
47 ... Rh3+ 48 Rg3 Rxg3+ 49 Qxg3 1-0
And there is no good defence against 49 Rf8+ and 50 Qg5 mate.

In Game 30 White gained a slight edge and thought up a troublesome plan to

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

increase the pressure. Black decided to seek counterplay by sacrificing a pawn, which
led to a complex struggle which ended in a win for White.
The plan that White had to try to increase the advantage if Black chose the
alternative defence is also instructive.

Game 30
R.Wojtaszek-M.Vachier-Lagrave
Biel 2015

White to Play

White is better. He has managed to open up the queenside favourably and to

infiltrate without making any concession to Black. Even the exchange of dark-
squared bishops works in his favour. However, as yet nothing decisive.
It’s necessary to find a plan to increase the pressure on Black’s solid position.

Exercise: What’s the best continuation for White here?

25 Nc1!
Answer: “An important manoeuvre. White aims for a5 and now it’s clear that
with so many pieces around the c6-pawn it will be very difficult to defend,”
commented Wojtaszek.
25 ... Rb8!?
Black sacrifices the a7-pawn to try to obtain counterplay. It’s an interesting
practical try. That objectively it is not completely correct may not be all that

211
important over the board.
White is forced to calculate what happens after 26 Qxa7 and decide whether it
suits him or whether he prefers to exchange queens.
What helps Black to Play this way is that passive defence such as 25 ... Nd8 isn’t
satisfactory. If 26 Qxc8 Bxc8 27 Nb3 a5 (preventing Na5) White would double
rooks on the b-file. After 28 Rb2 Ra7 29 Rfb1 Black has no counterplay and White
would regroup with his minor pieces, retreating his a4-bishop in order to move his
knight there and invade b6.
Wojtaszek commented that he overlooked that instead of 27 ... a5 Black could
insert 27 ... Ba6, activating the bishop before playing ... a5. After 28 Rfe1 Bd3 29
Rb2 a5 Black seems to have improved his position.

Exercise: Demonstrate that White is still better. What’s the move and what’s
the plan?

Answer: White has at his disposal 30 g4!, creating another pressure point and
carrying out the ideal plan when you have a better ending: creating a second
weakness in the black camp, as the winner indicates.
26 Qxc8
The most practical choice and it’s a good one. With the aid of an analysis engine
it would easier to opt for 26 Qxa7 when the attempt to create counterplay with 26 ...
Rxb1 27 Nxb1 g5 28 fxg5 Nxg5 doesn’t achieve much for Black after 29 Ne2,
heading for f4, after which White brings the b1-knight into play with Nc3.
26 ... Rexc8 27 Nb3
The knight returns to a5 and once more Black must seek another way to avoid
having to wait passively.
27 ... Nc7
The knight heads for the queenside. If Black tries to bolster his defence with 27
... Kf7 28 Na5 Nd8 White has a free hand and there is a plan available to increase the
pressure.

Exercise: What’s the plan that White would play?

Answer: The inactive Nc3 can improve its activity appreciably with 29 a3!, in
order to play Na2-b4 and possibly Na6, taking control of the b-file.
28 Na5 Nb5

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

29 Ne2
A good move. White is planning Rb3, followed by doubling rooks.

Exercise: Wojtaszek was critical of this decision and he indicated another, more
effective, continuation. What’s it?

Answer: 29 Bxb5 cxb5 30 Rb3! was very strong. The idea is to double rooks and
then play a4. There is little Black can do. Wojtaszek gave this convincing line: 30 ...
a6 31 Rfb1 Ra8 32 a4 Kf8 33 axb5 axb5 34 Nb7 Rcb8 35 Nd6 Ke7 36 Ndxb5,
“with a healthy extra pawn”.
As an alternative there is also our familiar manoeuvre 30 a3, followed by Na2 and
Nb4, with a clear advantage.
29 ... Na3
Once again the most active move. Black sacrifices a pawn in order to activate his
rook. There were no better plans. In the event of 29 ... Kf7 White would continue
with the same idea, doubling rooks on the b-file but not with 30 Rb4?? because 30 ...
Nc3! and surprisingly Black wins material. Instead he plays 30 Rb3! and then after
30 ... Ke7 31 Rfb1 a6, he would certainly play 32 Rb4!, in order to retreat the bishop
and play a4. Wojtaszek commented that this was the idea he had in mind when he
played 29 Ne2.
30 Rxb8 Rxb8 31 Bxc6 Bxc6 32 Nxc6 Rb2 33 Nc3 Rc2
Sacrificing another pawn, but if 33 ... Kf7 there would follow 34 Rf2 and there is
no compensation for the pawn.
34 Ne7+ Kf7 35 Ncxd5

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 “To be honest I didn’t expect any problems and it went rather smoothly during
the game but it turned out that there is quite some poison here,” wrote Wojtaszek.
35 ... Nc4
This is not the poison that Wojtaszek was referring to. It’s true that activating the
knight seems natural but 35 ... Nxd5 offered more practical chances, seeking to
create problems for the white knight. However, White should also be successful after
36 Nxd5.
If 36 ... Rc4 the knight can escape the harassment with 37 Nc7! Ke7 38 Na6!
Ra4 (or 38 ... Kd7 39 d5!) 39 Nb8!, and the two passed pawns are ready to advance,
supported by the rook and the far-flung knight.
Winning after 36 ... Ke6 would also require some work, e.g. 37 Nc7+?! Kd7 38
Na6? would be wrong, since Black recovers with 38 ... Nc4!, regaining a pawn with
good counterplay.
The correct and only way is to play 37 Nb4! and after 37 ... Rb2 38 d5+! White
wins after 38 ... Kf6 39 d6 Rxb4 40 c6 Nb5 41 Rd1 Nxd6 42 Rxd6+.
We can conclude that White should still win after 35 ... Nxd5 but there were
several pitfalls. “All this would be required to score the whole point,” wrote
Wojtaszek.

Exercise: How was White able to profit from Black’s last move?

36 Rb1!
Answer: Of course, occupying the b-file
36 ... Nh5

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

36 ... Nxd5 37 Nxd5 Ke6 was easily losing, thanks to 38 Nb4, followed by 39
d5+.
37 Nc6 Nd2 38 Ncb4
Exchanging rooks, and with two extra pawns the task is now easy. Wojtaszek
pointed out a faster way with 38 Ne5+ Kg7 (38 ... Ke6 39 Rb7 Kxd5 walks into
mate after 40 Rd7+ Ke6 41 d5+ and 42 Rf7++) 39 Rb7+ Kh6 40 g4!, but that has
little importance.
38 ... Nxb1 39 Nxc2 Ke6 40 Nc7+ Kd7 41 Nd5 Ke6 42 Ndb4 Nf6

Exercise (easy): How can White speed up the advance of his pawns?

43 d5+!
Answer: Of course. Now 43 ... Nxd5 is answered with 44 Nd4+ and Black loses
the knight.
43 ... Kd7 44 d6 Nc3 45 Nd4 Nfd5 46 Na6 1-0
The threat of 47 Nb8+ and queening the pawns prevents 46 ... Nxe3 and White
wins.

White gained a slight edge in Game 31 after benefitting from an error by Black at
move 14, but the tremendous battle was only just beginning.
White carried out accurate manoeuvres to try to increase the advantage,
continually improving the position of his pieces. Black responded in excellent fashion
to these regroupings, maintaining his position.
Only on move 34 did Black commit a scarcely perceptible error. White needed to
use beautiful combinative play in order to exploit the mistake.

Game 31
F.Caruana-R.Ponomariov
Dortmund 2014
Petroff Defence [C42]

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Nxe5 d6 4 Nf3 Nxe4 5 Nc3 Nxc3 6 dxc3

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 In the 90s this variation gave a new lease of life to the very dry Petroff Defence,
leading to more complex positions than the hackneyed 4 d4. “It might seem a bit
innocuous to the uninitiated, but this quiet line carries with it a surprising amount of
positional poison,” wrote Caruana.
6 ... Be7 7 Be3 Nc6 8 Qd2

Question: What can you tell me about this position?

Answer: The immediate plans are clear. White is preparing to castle queenside,
while Black must decide on which side to castle.
In previous games Ponomariov had chosen to castle kingside, which can lead to
attacks against the kings situated on opposite flanks. This time he opts for the
queenside, “where it’s unlikely to meet a crude attack”, declared Caruana.
8 ... Be6 9 0-0-0 Qd7 10 Kb1 Bf6
This is a very common tabya, of which both sides already had experience. This
and 10 ... a6, preparing for queenside castling, are the most usual tries.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

11 h3
11 h4 was for some time the most usual move. Caruana-Landa, Reggio Emilia
2010, continued 11 ... h6 12 Nd4 Nxd4 13 Bxd4 Bxd4 14 Qxd4 0-0 15 Rg1 Rae8
16 g4 and now moving the queen away with 16 ... Qc6? didn’t turn out to be a good
idea. There followed 17 Bg2 Qa6 18 b3 Bd7 19 g5! h5 20 g6 and 1-0 in 25 moves.
As we can see, the black king is more insecure on the kingside.

Question: But in that case why did Caruana vary with a seemingly inoffensive
move, 11 h3, instead of repeating the successful 11 h4?

Answer: The black king is definitely more secure on the queenside, but castling
kingside is not bad either. Black just needs to defend more accurately. Caruana
confirmed that in those three years between his game against Landa and this one that
Black had found better ways to defend against 11 h4.
Despite its modest appearance, the move played has an ambitious idea behind it.
White is planning to play g4 and Bg2.
11 ... h6
A useful move, which prevents both Bg5 and Ng5. Mamedyarov had already
introduced it as a third option on the previous move, 10 ... h6.
12 b3
This move restricts both the e6-bishop and the black knight, which after an
eventual ... Ne5 will no longer have access either to g4 or c4.
12 ... a6
Preparing to castle queenside, as before. Removing the a-pawn from the eye of
the e3-bishop and controlling b5 is a reasonable measure.

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 12 ... 0-0-0 could be met with 13 Nd4, with the idea of 14. Bb5, and now it’s
not possible to play 13 ... Nxd4?! 14 Bxd4 Bxd4 15 Qxd4 because this attacks two
pawns.
13 g4 0-0-0 14 Bg2 g5?!
Caruana pointed out that, although White’s play is slow, Black is under slight
pressure here. Ponomariov took a difficult decision, which concedes ‘something’ to
White: the possibility of sharpening the play with a timely h4 or f4.
It was more prudent to play 14 ... Kb8, in response to which Caruana intended
to play 15 Ng1, with ideas of Ne2-f4 or f4-f5, depending on Black’s response.

Exercise: How did White react?

15 Nd4!
Answer: Immediately seizing the opportunity. In this way White opens his
bishop’s diagonal and prepares a timely f4.
15 ... Nxd4 16 cxd4 d5

Exercise (easy): How did White continue?

17 f4!
Answer: Of course. With this break White exploits the defect of 14 ... g5. After
the exchange which follows, Black’s kingside is left weakened and the activity of the
white pieces increases.
17 ... gxf4 18 Bxf4 h5

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Black gets rid of his weakness on h6 and gains the f5-square, in return for
conceding space.
19 g5 Bg7

Exercise: A decision must be taken. What would you play?

20 Rde1!
Answer: Seeking the favourable exchange of dark-squared bishops and preventing
20 ... f6 for tactical reasons.
Caruana didn’t see a favourable way of continuing after 20 h4 f6, and he
commented that he wasn’t happy about allowing ... h4, but he thought that it was
more important to prevent ... f6.

Question: But I think that after 20 h4 f6 White is fine playing 21 Rde1 and also
21
g6 comes into consideration. Why is it so clear that they don’t give an advantage?

Answer: You’re right, it’s not all that clear. However, we already know,
(knowledge handed down from Lasker) that more important than the objective truth
is how comfortable or uncomfortable a player feels at the board, and Caruana wasn’t
convinced.
20 ... h4

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 Black has also gained something, having been able to fix the pawn on h3, but
White is still a bit better.

Question: But how did 20 Rde1 prevent 20 ... f6?

Answer: I’ll answer that with an ...

Exercise: How can 20 ... f6 be punished?

Answer: White can gain a positional advantage by exchanging the bishops with
21 Be5, but even better is 21 exf6 Bxf6 and now 22 Bxc7! Kxc7 23 Qf4+ wins a
pawn.
21 Be5
Caruana warned that, although with this favourable exchange White manages to
weaken the dark squares, his own g5 and h3 pawns are also weak, so that the task of
increasing the advantage is not simple.
21 ... Rdg8 22 Qf4 Qd8

Exercise: How did Caruana manoeuvre here in order to make progress?

23 Bf1!
Answer: By regrouping. On g2 the bishop was ‘biting on granite’, so now it
heads for d3, where it will have greater activity.
23 ... Kb8 24 Bd3

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Caruana made an amusing comment about this move, “Creating the threat of g6.
I felt that this was a clever manoeuvre, but Ruslan quickly responded with an even
more clever defence”.
24 ... Bc8!
An ingenious defence against 25 g6, temporarily sacrificing the f7 pawn.
25 Kb2
Caruana was at first attracted by the line 25 Qxf7 Bxe5 26 dxe5 Rf8 27 e6,
sacrificing the queen, which he though promising in the event of the sacrifice being
accepted, but then he saw that Black had available 27 ... Qxg5! 28 Qg6 Qe7!, “and
the e6 pawn is safely blockaded.”
25 ... Bxe5 26 Rxe5 Rg7 27 a4
Caruana admitted that at this moment he couldn’t see a clear way of making
progress but as Black had a defensive position which could also not be easily
improved, he was able to “pass” and hand the move to Black.
27 ... a5
Black decided to put a stop to the eventual advance of White’s a-pawn, at the cost
of weakening b5, something which at the moment seems unimportant.
28 Ka2
Another waiting move.
28 ... Ka7
Black also makes a noncommittal move.
It wasn’t easy to opt for the counterattacking continuation suggested by Caruana:
28 ... Rhg8 29 Qxh4 Rxg5 30 Rxg5 Qxg5 31 Qxg5 Rxg5 32 h4 Rh5 33 Be2 Rh6 34
h5. Conceding a passed pawn seems dangerous, and indeed it is, but Caruana
thought that with the white king so far away Black wouldn’t have much difficulty in
defending himself.
From a practical point of view, it wasn’t easy to choose that line, as there were
safer alternatives.
29 Qd2 Kb8 30 Qf4 Ka7

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 Exercise: Caruana didn’t want to wait any longer. How did he try to make
progress?

31 Rhe1
Answer: White threatens to improve his rook by defending his weak h3-pawn
from the more active e3-square which makes the capture that follow seem advisable
for Black.
31 ... Bxh3 32 Rh1

Question: But exchanging pawns doesn’t on its own guarantee that White’s
situation will improve, does it?

Answer: Certainly. While it’s true that exchanging pawns is not as a rule a good
way to make progress, White could see no other way of changing the situation. And
in this case it’s a correct decision. After the coming simplification his pieces will be
more active. Besides, he did it at a good point, when the black king is rather more
exposed, on a7.
Nothing was to be gained from playing 32 Re7 because of 32 ... Qd6, as Caruana
indicated, e.g. 33 Qf6 Qxf6 34 gxf6 Rg3 35. Rxf7 Rf3, controlling the f6-pawn,
followed by ... Bc8 and ... h3.
32 ... Bc8

Exercise: Black must give back the pawn. 32 ... Qd7 was bad. Why?

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Answer: Because of 33 Qf6 Rhg8 34 Re7 Qc8 35 g6!, and Black’s position falls
apart.
33 Rxh4 Rxh4 34 Qxh4

White has made some progress, but Black’s position is objectively sound. What
does influence things though, notes Caruana, is that Black is forced to conduct a
rather unpleasant defence.
34 ... b6?
“The first and perhaps already the decisive error”, commented Caruana.
This weakening of the castled position wasn’t necessary and will have serious
consequences, even though that’s not yet obvious. 34 ... c6 was safer, defending the
d5-pawn solidly, after which it’s not easy to breach Black’s position.

Exercise: How is it possible to demonstrate that 34 ... b6 is a mistake?

35 Qh6!
Answer: The white queen gets ready to take advantage of the opportunity.
35 ... Rg8

Exercise: How did the plan begun by White with his previous move continue?

36 Qc6!
Answer: “A very powerful move, luring Black’s bishop to b7,” noted Caruana.
36 ... Be6?!
In the event of 36 ... Bb7, which moves the bishop away from its best defensive
square, e6, Caruana’s idea was to continue with 37 Qf6! Qxf6 38 gxf6 Kb8 39 Re7

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Rf8, and Black’s position is completely paralysed. Over the board he had calculated
40 Bb5!, although even stronger seems to be the idea of inserting 40 c4 first, since 40
... dxc4? 41 Bxc4 loses the f7-pawn, while after 40 ... c6 41 cxd5 cxd5 42 Bb5 is even
stronger, in order to then activate the king.
The engines suggest another way: 41 c5 bxc5 42 dxc5, followed by 43 b4, and
after 43 ... axb4 to regain the pawn with Kb3, and Black is again helpless.
Naturally it would be painful to play the ending a pawn down after 36 ... Rxg5
37 Rxg5 Qxg5 38 Qxc7+ Bb7 39 Qxf7, which “might be defensible, but I’d rather
not endure such a torture,” wrote Caruana.
The move chosen, 36 ... Be6, is the most economical way of defending the f7 and
d5 pawns. The snag is that it abandons the queenside and leaves the black king
weaker than ever.

Exercise: How did White continue now?

37 g6!
Answer: Opening more lines, in favour of the white rook in this case, and
White’s position becomes a winning one, although it will take a good helping of
imagination to prove it.
Black now has an unpleasant defensive task. In the event of 37 ... Bd7 White has
the crushing sequence 38 Qxd5 fxg6 39 Be4 Qc8 40 Re7 Rd8 41 Qf7 (threatening
42 Bf5), 41 ... Kb8 42 Qxg6, “and besides being down a pawn, Black is also horribly
passive, with a weak king” (Caruana).

Exercise: What’s the beautiful line that White had worked out against 37 ... Rf8?

Answer: Caruana intended to play 38 g7 Rg8 and now the lovely 39 Rg5!!, when
39 ... Qxg5 is not possible because of 40 Qxc7+ and 41 Bb5, and so Black is
powerless against 40 Rg1 and Bh7.
37 ... Rg7
Chess is science, art, etc. Is it also a game? Of course.
Let’s see what Caruana had to say, “When he played this move I became very
excited. I had already seen the winning combination while he was thinking about his
36th move, but could hardly believe my good fortune when he fell into it. So I spent
my remaining time double and triple-checking”.
38 gxf7 Bxf7

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: Test position: “White to Play and win”.

39 Re7!!
Answer: The lovely initial deflection, of the queen, which has to neglect the back
rank.
39 ... Qxe7
39 ... Kb8 is answered with 40 Ba6.

Exercise: What’s the key move now for solving the problem I set you?

40 Ba6!
Answer: This second deflection is the key. Now mate is inevitable.
40 ... Kxa6 41 Qa8 mate
A satisfied Caruana commented on the mate he had carried out, calling it, “one
of the most satisfying combinations I have played!”

In Game 32 White prepared a plan to improve his structure and to improve the
position of an inactive knight. That plan had various stages. It was necessary to take
critical decisions with respect to the structure and with respect to the exchange of
pieces.
White achieved his objective, but Black fought back, seeking dangerously active
play, and the position became complicated. At one point Black miscalculated and
White’s advantage increased, through careful and not-at-all obvious moves. As usual,
tactical precision was decisive in cementing the advantage, for instance the fine

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tactical blow on move 34 and the ever-present resource of move 36.

Game 32
F.Caruana-P.Svidler
Amsterdam 2010

White to Play

Exercise: What did White play at this point?

Answer: 16 Qf3?! Qxf3 17 gxf3 Nf6 was the course of Cheparinov-Ivanchuk,

Cap d’Agde 2008 and other games such as Nyback-Ni Hua, Wijk aan Zee 2010. But
as Caruana points out, Black is fine in this atypical endgame and the weakness of the
white structure can make itself felt. In fact, Black won both games.
16 Qe1!
This strong novelty was found two months before this game by Caruana and his
second at the time, Boris Avrukh. The latter commented proudly that, “no engine
suggests it”.
The plan is to play 17 h3 and force the knight to retreat to f6, rather than e5,
after which White will play 18 e5, as happened in the game.
It immediately became popular and it continues to be the main move eight years
later, although now it’s the favoured suggestion of the engines.
16 ... Nf6
This voluntary retreat wasn’t considered by Caruana and Avrukh, although it
leads to similar situations to those they analysed. It’s important that 16 ... cxd4 17

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

cxd4 Rxd4? isn’t playable due to 18 h3 Nf6 19 Ne2, winning.

16 ... b6 was considered the main line and it’s what has been played most often.
After 17 h3 Nf6 18 e5 the game position is reached but with the inclusion of the
moves h3 and b6.

Exercise: How did White respond in our game?

17 e5!
Answer: This advance is natural, but you have to be aware of its negative aspects,
which means giving up the d5-square, not forgetting that frequently, “to get squares
you have to give squares, old chap!” as Don Miguel Najdorf would say.
17 ... Nd5

Exercise: What was the idea of playing 17 e5?

18 Bxd5!
Answer: By giving up his strong bishop White is able to mobilise his centre and
restore harmony to it, not on d4 and e4 but in a better position, on d5 and e5.
The capture 18 dxc5? doesn’t generally worry Black in this kind of Grünfeld
structure, and that’s also the case here. Black gets good play for the pawn by striking
at White’s weakened structure, starting with 18 ... Nc7.
18 ... Rxd5 19 c4! Rd8
Now 19 ... Rxd4? is bad because of 20 Ne2, when 20 ... Qxe5, opening files, is
disastrous because of 21 Nxd4 Qxd4 22 Qxe7.

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 20 d5
The strong white centre grants him an advantage and Black is forced to do
something radical, for as Caruana indicated in his interview on the official
tournament website, if Black doesn’t do something special, White would play 21
Qe4, or 21 Qe2 followed by Rfd1, and Black’s position would be strategically almost
lost.
20 ... b5!?
Typical of the Grünfeld, an active blow seeking to weaken the centre before
White can consolidate.
21 Qa5! Bd7

Exercise: What to play now?

22 Rfe1!
Answer: Completing the regrouping manoeuvre begun with the previous move,
White supports his centre and renews the threat of taking on b5.
Caruana wasn’t convinced at the time by 22 cxb5 Qxe5 23 Rxc5 for, despite
being a pawn up his pawns are weak and his knight is out of play, which could allow
Black to regain his pawn and achieve good play.
Eight years on, in contrast to the engines of that time, current engines agree with
Caruana’s intuition after 23 ... Be6.
22 ... Be8
Resorting to 22 ... Qd4? 23 e6! fxe6? fails because of the intermediate move 24
Rcd1! and after the black queen retreats, for example with 24 ... Qf6, the pin is
decisive after 25 dxe6.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

22 ... bxc4? 23 Qxc5 is not acceptable either as Black loses a pawn without
compensation.
23 cxb5
Now the game enters a critical stage. It could be said that Black has been
successful in his counterattack, but precise calculation is required.
Caruana’s first idea was to play 23 Qc7 and in the event of 23 ... bxc4 24 Qxe7
Rxd5 to continue with 25 Ne4!, with ideas such as e6 and Nf6+, achieving a
crushing initiative. But after looking more deeply he saw that Black’s idea was to play
23 ... Rac8! and now after 24 Qxe7 Rd7! 25 Qf6 Qxf6 26 exf6 bxc4, it’s possible that
White could be slightly better, but as the d5-pawn is weak, Black achieves reasonable
counterplay.
23 ... Rxd5 24 b6
This is why White took on b5 and it’s the most critical move, although
objectively it may not be the best. The engines prefer the ‘inhuman’ 24 Ne2, which
tactically supports the e5 pawn, since 24 ... Qxe5? is no good because of 25 Nc3.
However, in practice this is not a natural move.
24 ... Rd2?
Black plays the most active move, but there is a tactical flaw.
Caruana was expecting 24 ... Rxe5, with a very unclear outcome. It seems Black
has good chances of survival after 25 b7 Rb8 26 Qxa7 Rxe1+ 27 Rxe1 Bc6 28 Qxc5
Bxb7 29 Qxe7 Bc6, thanks to his strong bishop.

Exercise: How did White reply?

25 Ne4!
Answer: Natural and good, although this is what Black was counting on.
25 ... Rb2
25 ... Re2? fails to 26 b7! (but not 26 Rxe2? Qxc1+ 27 Re1 axb6! and it’s Black
who wins) 26 ... Rb8 27 Qc7, winning.

Exercise: And now?

26 Qxc5!
Answer: It’s necessary to change objective and give up the passed pawn, as 26
bxa7? Bc6 gives no advantage. The a7-pawn is not dangerous and the black pieces are
becoming active.

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 26 ... Rxb6
Ideally Black would like to be able to play 26 ... axb6 but it’s not possible due to
27 Qd4! with a double threat, attacking the rook and threatening 28 Nf6+.
27 Qxe7
With an extra pawn, the e5-pawn protected and the imminent arrival of the
knight on f6, White’s position is almost winning. It’s not surprising that in the press
conference the interviewer noted that at that point Svidler’s body language indicated
that he was very unhappy with his position.
27 ... Bc6
This move surprised Caruana, who now thought for half an hour trying to mate
the weakened black king. 27 ... Re6 is answered with 28 Qc7, indirectly defending
the e5-pawn because of the check on f6.
28 Nf6+
In the press room they considered 28 e6, but Caruana rejected it because of 28 ...
Bxe4 29 exf7+ Qxf7 30 Qxe4 Rf8 and, although White is a pawn up, Black has good
defensive possibilities at his disposal. Caruana preferred to keep the knight.
Neither did Caruana think that 28 Nd6 Bd5 was better than what he chose to
play.
28 ... Kg7

Exercise: What did White play now?

29 Rf1!
Answer: A prophylactic move, before taking concrete measures.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Question: This isn’t the kind of move you would consider first, is it? How was it
decided on?

Answer: You are right, at first Caruana tried to find a mate by incorporating the
rook, but after 29 Rc3 Rab8 30 Rg3 (30 Rh3 is answered with 30 ... h6) 30 ... Rb1,
White’s back rank is very weak, (the ‘computer move’ 30 ... Qd2 is even stronger),
and now 31 Nh5+? Kh8 is simply losing for White. After that analysis he decided to
concern himself first with defence.
Avrukh praised this ‘quiet’ move, which defends f2 in advance and neutralises a
future black invasion with ... Rb1, since the c6-bishop would be en prise. Caruana
himself didn’t display much enthusiasm when they commented on it to him.
29 ... h6
With the idea of 30 ... Qg5. The immediate 29 ... Qg5? fails to 30 Ne8+.
30 Rc3 Rab8 31 Qc5
A change of plan. If 31 Rg3 Black can play 31 ... Qf5! with the idea of 32 ...
Rb1, and White’s advantage evaporates.
Caruana saw that 31 ... Qc4 apparently fails because of 32 Nh5+ Kh7 and here
he worked out 33 Rxg6 Kxg6? 34 Qf6+ Kxh5 35 Qf5+ Kh4 36 g3 mate. However,
the surprising 33 ... Rb1! changes the evaluation and now Black wins.
Nonetheless, instead of 33 Rxg6 White has the very strong move 33 Qf6!, and
after 33 ... Qxf1+ 34 Kxf1 Bb5+ 35 Ke1 Rxf6 36 Nxf6+ Kg7 37 Rb3!, the pin is
annoying and White’s extra pawn would make itself felt.
In 2010 the strongest engine of the time, Rybka, preferred the materialistic 31 g3
Qf5 32 Qxa7, when 32 ... Qxe5? fails to 33 Rxc6! Rxc6 34 Nd7, but modern engines
are less optimistic about White’s position, in spite of his having two extra pawns.
Black’s activity makes up for them after 22 ... Qe6!, with the idea 23 ... R8b7, and in
a few moves Black wins back one pawn when the strong bishop again gives him
sufficient compensation.
31 ... Ra6?
With the idea of activating both rooks by playing 32 ... Rb5.
After 31 ... Rb1 White must respond with 32 Rcc1, with an advantage thanks to
his extra pawn. On the other hand 32 Qxc6? Rxf1+ 33 Kxf1 Rb1+ 34 Ke2 Rb2+ 35
Rc2 Qc1! forces a draw with, for example, 36 Ne8+ Kg8 (36 ... Kf8 37 Qd6+ Kxe8
38 Rd2 Rxd2+ 39 Qxd2 Qc6 also seems to be sufficient, but why give up material?)
37 Nf6+ Kg7.

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 The move 31 ... Bb7, with the idea of ... Ba6, ... Rc8, etc. avoids what follows,
but hinders Black’s coordination. Now White can play 32 Rg3 Qf5 33 h3, with a
solid extra pawn.

Exercise: How did White punish Black for his mistake?

32 Qd6!
Answer: Attacks ‘everything’ and forces the black pieces into disarray.
32 ... Rbb6
It would be depressing to play 32 ... Rc8, remaining passive, but it was the only
thing to do. White could then play either 33 a4 or 33 a3, when 33 ... Bb7? loses to
34 Rxc8! Rxd6? 35 Rg8 mate.

33 Re3
Defending e5 and with the idea of 34 Qd8. This defence is sufficient.

Exercise: However, there was something better. What was it?

Answer: 33 Nh5+! gxh5 34 Rg3+ forces black to give up the queen with 34 ...
Qxg3 (34 ... Kh7? loses to 35 Qf8) 35 Qf6+! Kg8 36 hxg3 and the check on d8
makes 36 ... Bb5 ineffective. Not, however, 33 Qd8? Qxe5! 34 Qg8+ Kxf6 and
there’s no mate.
33 ... Rxa2?!
More tenacious was 33 ... Qb4, although White could play 34 Nh5+! Kh7 (34 ...
gxh5? 35 Qf6+ Kg8 36 Rg3+ Kf8 37 e6! mates quickly) 35 Qf6 Qf8 36 e6! Ba4 (or
36 ... Bb5 37 Rfe1) 37 Nf4, with a decisive attack.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: How did White continue now?

34 Nh5+!
Answer: In a way that we are already familiar with. On the other hand the
careless 34 Qd8?? would fail to 34 ... Qxf2+! 35 Rxf2 Rb1+ 36 Rf1 Rxg2+ and mate
next.
34 ... gxh5 35 Rg3+ Qxg3 36 Qf6+!
This intermediate check improves White’s chances, preventing 36 hxg3 Bxg2.
36 ... Kg8 37 hxg3
There are many weaknesses in Black’s camp and victory is only a matter of time.
37 ... Be4
As we know, thanks to 36 Qf6+, it’s not possible to play 37 ... Bxg2? because of
38 Qd8+.
38 Qd8+ Kh7 39 Rc1 Bf5 40 Rc7! Be6

Exercise: How did White now deal a decisive blow?

41 Rxa7!
Answer: The key idea is that after 41 ... Rb1+ 42 Kh2 Rxa7 White has 43 Qd3+.
41 ... Rxa7 42 Qxb6 Ra4 43 Qb1+ Kg7 44 f4
In order to play f5-f6 at the right moment.
44 ... Ra5

45 Qd1! 1-0

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 Question: Why does this receive an exclamation mark? Wasn’t 45 f5 winning?

Answer: In reality 45 f5? would be hasty, since it allows the possibility of creating
a fortress with 45 ... Rxe5! 46 fxe6 Rxe6. Svidler surrendered, cutting short the
agony. After 45 ... Bg4 46 Qd4 Be6 now 47 f5! really is a winning move.

Game 33 features some deep regrouping manoeuvres. Right from the diagram
position White exploits the positions of Black’s king and queen, culminating in
moves 20 and 23. which enable him to destroy the enemy position with a crushing
finish.

Game 33
O.Panno-B.Larsen
Palma de Mallorca 1971

White to Play

Exercise: Black is a pawn up, but his monarch still is in the centre, which can
be important, even though the position is closed and Black has a strong knight
on d5.

What’s White’s best continuation here?

18 Nd2 h6
Of course not 18 ... Bg7? in view of 19 Nc4-d6+, winning.
19 Nc4 Qc7

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: And now? What’s White’s best move?

20 Ncb6!
Answer: Instead, 20 Nd6+? Bxd6 21 Rxc7 Bxc7 wins the black queen, but this
would provide some relief for Black, because his centralised pieces would be very
strong.
20 ... Qb8 21 Nxd7
And the black king must remain in the centre. Of course not 21 Nxa8?? hxg5.
21 ... Kxd7 22 Bf6 Rg8
Black can’t play 22 ... Nxf6? due to 23 Nb6+! Kd8 24 exf6, when 24 ... Ra7?!
fails to 25 Be4! Qd6 26 Bxb7 Qxb6 27 Rc8+ Kd7 28 Qa4+ Qb5 29 Bc6+, or 25
Qa4! Qd6 26 Qa5 Ke8 27 Bb5+.
23 Be4!
This threatens 24 Qxd4 and also prepares to eliminate Black’s best defensive
piece, after which his position will deteriorate appreciably.
23 ... Qa7 24 Rc4 Be7 25 Rxd4 Rgd8

Black just needs a single tempo to be able to play ... Ke8, after which he could
face the future with greater optimism.

Exercise: How to respond?

26 Bxd5! Bxd5
Answer: 26 ... exd5 is answered with 27 e6+! fxe6 28 Qg4, with a winning attack.

235
 Exercise: What’s the key follow-up to White’s last move?

27 Rxd5+!
Answer: This exchange sacrifice ensure that the black king will be trapped in the
centre.
27 ... exd5 28 e6+! fxe6 29 Bd4!
And the outcome is decided. This is simpler than 29 Qg4 Bxf6 30 Qxe6+ Kc7
31 Rc1+ Bc3 32 Qe7+ Rd7 33 Qxb4, which is also good.
29 ... Qc7 30 Nb6+ Kc6
Or 30 ... Ke8 31 Qg4 and the black king can’t hold out much longer.
31 Nxa8 Rxa8 32 Rxe6+ Kd7 33 Rxg6
Threatening 34 Qg4+.
33 ... Qc4 34 b3 Qb5 35 Rb6 1-0
A curious fact about the game is that White never moved his queen!

In Game 34 White also carries out several regrouping manoeuvres to improve the
placement of his pieces, for instance his moves 19, 22 and 24, which are all precisely
aimed at increasing the activity of his pieces. On move 24 Black fails to find the best
defence and the game ends following a further regrouping, which proves decisive.

Game 34
L.Stein-T.Petrosian
USSR Championship, Moscow 1961

White to Play

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

The first thing that comes to attention is White’s horrible pawn structure, in
comparison to which Black’s is much healthier. A slightly deeper look reveals that the
white pieces are more active, with many open lines at their disposal. It’s also evident
that the black king isn’t totally comfortable. Although it’s not in any immediate
danger, if the position opens up it could have problems.

Exercise: How did White try to sharpen the play?

19 a4!
Answer: With this tremendously strong move, which prepares to bring the
bishop into play via a3.
19 ... Bxa4
At least Black now has an extra pawn. Instead, after 19 ... f5 (or 19 ... f6) it’s
hardly surprising that the opening of the centre has negative consequences for the
black monarch. There might follow 20 exf6 gxf6 21 Qe2!, to support Bh5, 21 ...
Kd8 22 Bh5 Be8 23 g4, followed by 24 Qf2, or Ra1 and then Ba3, when Black’s
difficulties would be serious.
Incidentally 21 Qe2! is a ‘human’ move and such an effective one that there’s no
need to search for an alternative, but the insatiable engines find the attractive move
21 Ba3!. This is also strong and after 21 ... Qxa3 22 Rxf6 the engines show that
White regains the piece and/or gains a decisive attack.

Question: Why doesn’t Black seek a refuge for his king by castling?

Answer: Because although this would solve the immediate problem, others will
crop up. 19 ... 0-0 allows 20 Ra1 Qd8 21 Ba3 Re8 22 Bd6 Rc8 and once the
powerful dark-squared bishop has been activated White’s kingside attack, which has
come at no cost in material, is very strong after 23 Rf3 or 23 Bh5. Meanwhile Black
lacks any counterplay.
20 Ra1 b5
Another factor in White’s favour is that Black’s bishop is unable to assist the
defence. After the retreat 20 ... Bc6 White can play 21 Rxa7 and his bishop will reach
a3 just the same.
21 Ba3 Qd7

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 Exercise: How did White continue?

22 Rf2!
Answer: Preparing to bring more force to bear on the kingside. Doubling rooks
on the f-file will naturally increase White’s dynamic possibilities in that sector.
22 ... Rb7
Bolstering the defence of f7.
23 Raf1 Qd8
Defending f7 and also controlling g5.This would not be the case after 23 ... Qc8,
which would allow 24 Qg5! (threatening to win with 25 Rxf7 Rxf7 26 Qxg6) 24 ...
Rh6, and now a further piece joins in the attack with 25 Bh5! when after 25 ... Qd8
the most deadly continuation is the quite 26 Qg4, renewing the threat of 27 Rxf7!.
If 23 ... Nf8 instead, the strongest way is once more to continue to accumulate
forces against the black monarch with 24 Qg5!, when after 24 ... g6 25 Bxf8 Rxf8 26
Qxg6 wins, as Kasparov indicated.

Exercise: After 23 ... Qd8 White needs to launch a new wave of attack. How did
he
achieve this?

24 Qd1
Answer: A multipurpose move. The queen supports the move Bh5 and prepares a
timely invasion of the kingside via g4. This is the right idea, but for tactical reasons
(as we’ll see, in one of the lines it is important to control the e3-square!) it was more

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

accurate to play 24 Qe2!. Then 24 ... a5 allows the latent combination 25 Bxe6! fxe6
26 Qg4, when the white attack is decisive.
If Black tries 24 ... b4!? then after 25 Bxb4 Qg5 the line mentioned by Beim and
endorsed by Kasparov is 26 Ba3 Qh6 27 Bh3 Qh5 28 Qe1!? Bc6 29 Qa1 with a clear
plus for White.
Nevertheless 25 cxb4 is also worthy of consideration, since although the a3-f8
diagonal has been closed off for the bishop, White is no longer a isolated pawn down.
His pawn structure will be much improved after c3 and the bishop can always be
reactivated via c1. 25 ... c3? loses to 26 Qa6 Qd7 27 Rxf7, while 25 ... Nf8 can be
answered with 26 Bc1, when Black still suffers from an unsafe king and a lack of
counterplay.
24 ... Rh6?
This isn’t the best defence.
The threat of Bh5 can’t be prevented with 24 ... Qg5? as White simply plays 25
Bc1 and 26 Bh5 next.
24 ... a5, seeking to close the diagonal of the a3-bishop with ... b4, can be simply
answered with 25 Qd2, preventing ... b4 and controlling g5, but there is an even
stronger way of continuing, given by Beim, which is the ever-present motif of 25
Bxe6! fxe6 26 Qg4. The best defence now is 26 ... Ne7 27 Qxg7 Kd7 28 Rf8 Rxf8
29 Rxf8 and, as Kasparov indicated, the most tenacious move is 29 ... b4, although
after 30 Rxd8+ Kxd8 31 cxb4 axb4 32 Bc1 b3 33 cxb3 cxb3 34 Bb2 Be8, “White has
real winning chances after 35 Qf6 Kd7 36 g4.”
Kasparov quotes Beim’s opinion that the only defence was 24 ... b4, seeking to
deflect the bishop from the c1-square. The lines are very complex, but of course the
computer-aided analysis of more than ten years ago can be improved upon by the use
of today’s more powerful engines.
Let’s examine the line which leads us to believe that 24 Qe2 was better than the
24 Qd1 played in the game. 24 Qe2 b4 25 Bxb4 Qg5 and now after 26 Ba3 Qh6 27
Bh3 the black queen infiltrates with 27 ... Qe3 28 Qa1 Rxh3! 29 gxh3 (not 29 Bc1?
Qxg3 30 Qxa4+ Kf8, winning) 29 ... Qxg3+ 30 Rg2 (or 30 Kh1 Qxh3+ 31 Rh2
Qg4! with equality) 30 ... Qe3+ 31 Rff2 Nh4 32 Rxg7 Bxc2 and Black is fine.
But this line can be improved. Instead of 28 Qa1? it’s better to play 28 Kh2 when
after 28 ... Qxc3 29 Bd6, planning 30 Qg4, the black position is still bad. If 29..Qe3
the white queen has another way to become active with 30 Qa1! Bb5 31 c3, followed
by Qa5.

239
 In this line it’s interesting to capture on b4 with the pawn. After 25 cxb4, the
suggested response was 25 ... Bb5 and for the moment Black holds on, but after 26
c3, with the idea of Bc1 and Bh5, the black position is far from satisfactory, for
example 26 ... 0-0 27 Bh5 Nh8 (27 ... Qg5? 28 Bc1 Qxg3 29 Rf3 Qh4 30 Bxg6 is
worse) 28 Qg4.

Exercise: How did White continue after 24 ... Rh6?

25 Bc1!
Answer: Driving away the defender of g6. Now 25 ... Rh8 would be answered
with 26 Bh5, threatening 27 Rxf7, as well as 27 Bxg6 and Qg4, among other things.
25 ... Rh7

Exercise: And now, how did White finish the game?

26 Bxe6! 1-0
Answer: Now 26 ... fxe6 27 Qg4 is worse than after 25 ... Rh8 because on h7 the
rook doesn’t guard against 28 Rf8+, so 27 ... Ne7 doesn’t work.
In the event of the sad move 26 ... . Nh8 there are many ways to win, such as 27
Qg4, threatening 28 Bg5 followed by Bxf7+ as well as 28 Bxf7+ Nxf7 29 Qg6.

Game 35 is a positional work of art. White keeps gradually improving the position of
his pieces and at the same time tries to disrupt the harmony of the opponent’s
development. The manoeuvre begun by White on move 18 is very instructive and
later became standard.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

White keeps provoking weaknesses in the black camp with his regrouping
manoeuvres, until the moment comes for him to resort to tactics to exploit his
advantage, when he deals out a series of precise and attractive blows starting with
move 24.

Game 35
T.Petrosian-V.Smyslov
USSR Championship, Moscow 1961

White to Play

There is no great imbalance in the position. Both sides development is similar

and the pawn structure is also balanced. There are only two details which favour
White at the moment. The fact that it’s his move and the exposed position of the
black queen.

Exercise: How would you try to profit from these details?

12 Bd2!
Answer: This is the sharpest move. White postpones castling in order to start
harassing the black queen as soon as possible.
12 ... Nc6
A natural developing move, although it isn’t better than 12 ... 0-0, postponing a
decision about where to deploy the knight. After 13 Rc1 (or 13 Bb4 Qc7) 13 ... Qd5
14 Qc2 h6 15 Bc3, Black might prefer 15 ... Nd7, leaving the diagonal open and

241
bolstering the f6-square, in order to be able to play ... Bf6 and recapture with the
knight.
13 Rc1 Qd6
Kasparov commented that it was essential to keep the queen on Black’s fourth
rank. After 13 ... Qd5 14 Qc2 Rc8 15 Bc3 it’s possible to play 15 ... Qh5, followed
by 16 ... 0-0, and Black would have prevented White from manoeuvring as in the
game.
14 Qc2 Rc8 15 0-0!
Not fearing 15 ... Ne5? on account of 16 Bb5+, when 16 ... Kf8? fails to 17
Qxc8+ Bxc8 18 Rxc8+ Bd8 19 Bb4 etc.
15 ... h6?!
This is another concession, or another slight inaccuracy. Kasparov considered
that the lesser of the evils was 15 ... g6, which looks bad, and he admitted that after
16 Bc3 0-0 17 Rfd1 Qb8 18 b4 White has a definite advantage.
It’s possible that it was best for Black just to ignore the attack on the h7-pawn
and play 15 ... Bf6!. Then after 16 Rfd1 Qb8 17 Be4, threatening to win with 18
Qa4, Black can play 17 ... 0-0! and after 18 Bxh7+ Kh8 the threatened discoveries by
the black knight contain some venom. After, for example, 19 Bc3 Ne5! Black
succeeds in weakening White’s pawn structure and gains reasonable compensation for
the sacrificed-pawn.
16 Rfd1 0-0 17 Bc3
“The white bishops create obvious difficulties for Black”, wrote Kasparov.
17 ... Qb8
17 ... Qc5 was recommended by Petrosian as the lesser evil, with the idea of 18 ...
Qh5, but Kasparov pointed out that this was also insufficient to equalise after 18
Bh7+ Kh8 19 Rd7 Ba8 20 Be4 Rfd8 21 b4 Qh5 22 Rcd1 “with a great advantage,
close to decisive”.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Now the white bishops are the masters of the position. Kasparov commented, “It
follows that this symmetry is only apparent. Note the qualitative difference in the
placing of the two sides’ pieces. About the bishops it has already been said – Black’s
are clearly inferior to White’s. The knight at c6 is rather passive, and it would stand
far better at f6. The black queen rushes about the board, not knowing where to go. It
finally hides at b8, but here too White finds an elegant manoeuvre.”

Exercise: How did White continue?

18 Qa4!
Answer: Petrosian described this move as, “A simple move, but one of murderous
strength. The switch of the queen to the kingside enables White to obtain an
irresistible attack.” Decades later Kasparov commented that, “nowadays this
manoeuvre has become typical, classical. It’s not altogether clear how Black should
defend his king, although at first sight there are as yet no direct grounds for
concern.”
18 ... Rfd8 19 Qe4
Provoking further weaknesses.
19 ... g6 20 Qg4! h5
20 ... Kh7? fails to 21 Bxg6+! fxg6 22 Qxe6 Rf8 23 Nh4!, which is more elegant
but no better than the prosaic 23 Rd7.
21 Qh3
With the idea of 22 g4.
21 ... f5?

243
 Preventing 22 g4, but according to Kasparov this is “the decisive mistake,
catastrophically weakening the e6- and g6-squares.”
Instead, 21 ... Rd6 to double rooks fails to prevent 22 g4!, e.g. 22 ... Rcd8 (if 22
... Rd5 then 23 Bxg6! and 24 gxh5 is decisive) 23 gxh5! Rxd3 24 Rxd3 Rxd3 25
hxg6 fxg6 26 Qh8+ Kf7 27 Ne5+, winning.
Kasparov analyses 21 ... e5 at length in My Great Predecessors, Volume 3, although
he notes that, “it’s most likely that this ‘terrible’ move wasn’t even considered by the
two players.”
In response 22 Bxg6 fxg6 23 Qe6+ Kf8 24 Qxg6 fails to convince. After 24 ...
Rxd1+ 25 Rxd1 Rd8 White has no advantage.
Kasparov thought that Petrosian would have played 22 Bc4!, after which in the
main line of his analysis Black has a difficult position.
However, there seems no reason for White to reject 22 g4!.
22 Bc4 Rxd1+ 23 Rxd1 Kf7

Exercise: With 21 ... f5 Black was trying to keep the position closed; how can it
be
demonstrated that he failed in this objective?

24 e4!
Answer: “Black is still harbouring some hopes of a successful defence, but the
following energetic blow dispels this illusion. See how spectacular the end of the
game is – this is another refutation of the myth that Petrosian wasn’t very confident
in complicated, highly tactical positions.” (Kasparov).
Not 24 Rd7? Rd8! and the queen on h3 is out of play.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

24 ... Qf4
Black activates his queen and attacks e4, with x-ray pressure on the c4-bishop.

Exercise (easy): how did White respond?

25 Re1!
Answer: Simply defending the pawn and increasing the pressure on e6.
25 ... Qg4
If 25 ... Bf6 there is more than one winning continuation. Kasparov commented
that the combination of “human + machine” quickly discovers a line which leaves the
black king helpless: 26 Bxe6+! Kxe6 27 exf5+ Kf7 28 fxg6+ Kxg6 29 Bxf6 Kxf6 30
Qd7! and there’s no defence, for instance: 30 ... Nd8 31 Qe7+ Kg6 32 Ne5+ Kh6 33
Qd6+ Kg7 34 Qg6+ Kh8 35 Nd3.
A similar combination is even quicker: 26 exf5!, for example: 26 ... Qxc4 27
fxg6+ Kxg6 28 Rxe6 Rf8 29 Qg3+ Kf5 30 Rd6, and the result is the same.

Exercise: After the move played “some simple tactics prove decisive”, commented
Kasparov. How, exactly?

26 exf5!
Answer: And once again the black king is left defenceless. The rest is easy; it’s like
a boxing match in which one groggy combatant (the black king) is pursued around
the ring.
26 ... Qxc4 27 fxg6+ Ke8
Or 27 ... Kxg6 28 Rxe6+ Kf7 29 Rxc6!.
28 g7! e5
Equally hopeless is 28 ... Kd7 29 Rd1+ Bd6, and now among other things, 30
Be5 wins.
29 Qxh5+ Kd7 30 Rd1+ Bd6 31 Bxe5 Nd4 32 Nxd4 1-0

An almost imperceptible inaccuracy by Black in Game 36 allows White to disrupt

the coordination of the black pieces and seize the initiative.
White puts pressure on the black position with some accurate manoeuvres,
improving the deployment of his pieces with ‘normal’ moves, such as move 27, as
well as brilliant ones, such as move 30, culminating in a decisive combination,
utilising the activity of his pieces and the weakness of the black monarch.

245
Game 36
V.Korchnoi-L.Polugaevsky
Candidates, Evian (Game 7) 1977

Black to Play

The chances are equal. White has all his pieces in play, unlike his opponent.
Black has the bishop pair, although the position is not very open. Both sides have a
structure that contains weaknesses. Black’s d-pawn is isolated, while White has
doubled pawns, but for now they don’t constitute a weakness.
21 ... Qd7?
A natural move preparing ... Rfc8 or ... Rd8, but it seems symptomatic of Black
having lost any sense of danger and it gives White an opportunity to seize the
initiative. Black could have kept the balance by playing 21 ... Rxc1 22 Rxc1 and
then, among other things, 22 ... Qd7 23 Qf4 Rc8, as was played subsequently.
Kasparov also mentioned, “the unclear” 21 ... Re8, seeking put pressure on the e4-
pawn, which is the preference of the current engines.

Exercise: How should White exploit his opportunity?

22 Rxc5!
Answer: The first step.
22 ... Bxc5

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Exercise: What’s the second link in the plan?

23 g5!
Answer: After diverting the bishop from e7, White gets rid of his doubled-pawn
and at the same time weakens Black’s castled position.
23 ... hxg5
Here 23 ... h5?! would merely create further weaknesses after 24 g6! fxg6 25 Bc4+
Kh8 26 Qg5. The pawn sacrifice 23 ... Qg4 24 gxh6 Re8 25 hxg7 Kxg7 seems most
easily answered with 26 Re1, since 26 ... Bxe4? 27 Rxe4 Rxe4 28 Bxe4 Qxe4 fails to
29 Qg5+.
In the event of 23 ... Qe6, Kasparov indicated that 24 Rc1! Bb6 25 Qf4, “also
leaves White with a dangerous initiative” but just capturing on h6 to weaken Black’s
structure also comes into consideration.
24 Qxg5 Qe7
There is no completely satisfactory solution to the attack on the bishop. 24 ...
Rc8 can be answered with 25 b3, preparing Bc4, while 24 ... Bb6 allows 25 Ne5,
increasing the activity of White’s pieces.

Kasparov commented that “Polugaevsky apparently thought that he would be

able to parry White’s threats on the h-file without much difficulty, but it all turns out
far worse for him.”

Exercise: How can White make progress?

25 Qh5!

247
 Answer: Of course, White wants to exploit the weakness of Black’s kingside; now
the threat is 26 Ng5. Neither the exchange of queens nor the loss of a pawn would
concern Black, thanks to his bishop pair. Kasparov pointed out the sample variation
25 Qxe7 Bxe7 26 Rc1, when 26 ... Rc8 27 Rxc8+ Bxc8 28 Nxd4 Bf6 29 Nc6 Bd7
30 Nxa5 Bxb2 is not forced but should be quite satisfactory for Black, who has
compensation for the pawn.
25 ... g6
An important concession, further weakening the castled position. If 25 ... Qd6,
to defend against 26 Ng5 with 26 ... Qh6, White maintains the pressure on the c5-
bishop and initiates a new plan with 26 Re1!. Then if 26 ... Rc8? White continues
strongly with 27 e5 Qh6 28 Qf5, with ideas such as Ng5 and e6.
If 26 ... Bb6 White’s new idea is revealed by 27 e5 Qh6 28 Qxh6 gxh6 and now
29 e6!, and Black will be hard pressed to maintain material equality, since 29 ... Bxf3?
would lose to 30 e6 Re8 31 Bb5.
26 Qh6 Qf6
In the event of 26 ... Re8 the black monarch comes under heavy fire with 27 Ng5
Qf6 28 Bc4 Re7 and White has a pleasant choice between 29 Rd3! Bxe4 30 Bxf7+
Qxf7 31 Nxf7 Bxd3 32 Qg5 and 29 e5! Qg7 30 Qh2! (threatening 31 e6) 30 ...
Qxe5 31 Bxf7+ Kf8 32 Qh6+ Qg7 33 Ne6+, winning in both cases.

Exercise: How did White continue his offensive?

27 Bc4!
Answer: Increasing the pressure on f7, given that 27 ... Bxe4? fails to 28 Ng5.
27 ... d3
Seizing the opportunity to activate his passive bishop. Now if 28 Rxd3? Black can
play 28 ... Bxe4, since 29 Ng5? allows mate after 29 ... Qxf2+.

Exercise (easy): How did White proceed?

28 e5
Answer: Of course, the advance e6, opening up Black’s king position even more,
is now in the air.
28 ... Qf5
Dislodging the invading queen with 28 ... Qg7 brings no relief. White’s attack
continues unrestrained after 29 Qg5! Bxf3 30 gxf3 Bd4 31 f4 Bxb2 32 Rxd3

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

(Keene), and there is no good defence against the main threat e6, for example 32 ...
Rc8 33 e6! Bf6 34 exf7+ Kf8 35 Qxa5 (the engines indicate that 35 Qb5 is even
stronger) when 35 ... Rxc4 loses to 36 Qa8+ Kxf7 37 Qd5+.
29 Rxd3 Be4

Exercise: “In time-trouble Polugaevsky considered this position still not

altogether clear, but now comes a highly spectacular finish”, commented
Kasparov. How should White proceed?

30 Rd6!
Answer: A neat invasion as if 30 ... Bxd6 then 31 Ng5 wins. One idea now is 31
e6, since 31 ... Bxd6 still loses to 32 Ng5. There is also the threat of 31 Rf6, followed
by e6.
30 ... Qg4
If 30 ... Qh5 31 Qxh5 gxh5 then 32 Rd7 is very strong. There is no reason for
White to fear the disruption to his pawn structure arising from 32 ... Bxf3 33 gxf3
Kg7 because in reality after 34 f4 the white pawns are very strong, for example 34 ...
.Kg6 35 Bd3+ Kh6 36 b3, fixing the a5-pawn, followed by Kg2 and Black is
defenceless.
31 Rf6
Renewing the threat of e6. All the white pieces are in ideal positions to exploit
the weakness of Black’s kingside.
31 ... Bf5 32 b3
Now that the bishop is protected Black is once more confronted with the threat
of e6 to which there is no good defence.

249
 32 ... Bd4 33 Nxd4
There are several more complicated ways to win but White chooses the most
practical and at the same time the most effective.
33 ... Qxd4

Exercise: What was Korchnoi’s idea here?

34 Rxg6+!
Answer: An elegant but simple combination which leaves White with a winning
endgame.
34 ... Bxg6 35 Qxg6+ Kh8 36 Qh6+ Kg8

Exercise (easy): What’s the decisive move?

37 e6
Answer: Of course, finally executing the long-latent threat, regaining the
exchange and emerging with two extra pawns.
37 ... Qe4 38 exf7+ Rxf7 39 Qf6 Qb1+
If 39 ... Qxc4 almost any queen check wins, such as 40 Qg5+ Rg7 41 Qd8+.
40 Kh2 Qh7+ 41 Kg3 Qd3+ 42 f3 Qxc4 43 Qd8+ 1-0

When there is tension in the centre with contact between each side’s pawns, it’s
essential to consider on every move whether it’s appropriate to exchange immediately,
postpone an exchange or prevent it. In Game 37 that decision arose on several
occasions.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Both sides manoeuvred, regrouping their pieces in accordance with concrete

plans. We know that it’s important both to proceed with one’s own plans as well as to
try to impede the opponent’s intentions. White neglected this aspect on move 22 and
made an error on move 23.
As always the tactical factor was decisive. Black played several accurate attacking
moves (such as moves 24 and 25), combined with some quieter moves (26 and 29,
for instance) to clinch the victory.

Game 37
J.Mestel-V.Smyslov
Las Palmas Interzonal 1982

Black to Play

There are several playable moves in the position. It’s preferable to select one that
fits in with a plan.

Exercise: What plan do you think seventh world champion devised here?

13 ... Rf8!
Answer: “Black is not in a rush to exchange on d5. While retaining this as an
option, he carries out a regrouping of his forces. The closed character of the position
allows unhurried play,” had been Smyslov’s comment a few moves earlier, and it’s still
valid here.
14 Qb3

251
 White seems unwilling to take any concrete measures, such as 14 h3, followed by
Be3, which seems appropriate.
14 ... Kh8

Question: Isn’t this very passive?

Answer: Another move in the same spirit. The intention is not altogether passive.
Smyslov said that it was a “prophylactic move for the preparation of ... f5”.
15 Bb2
White continues with a strategy similar to Black’s, although in contrast to Black’s
last two moves, the usefulness of having the bishop on b2 is questionable. Smyslov
suggested 15 dxc6 bxc6 16 b5, which is a typical method for gaining the control of
the d5-square, although here Black seems to have little to fear. Smyslov mentioned 16
... Bg4, “with complex play”.
15 h3 is once again interesting.
15 ... cxd5!
In Informator 34 Smyslov awarded an exclamation mark to this exchange, but he
omitted it from the book of his best games.
16 cxd5

Exercise: The exchange on d5 was the start of a plan. How should Black
continue?

16 ... Ng4!

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Answer: “After the central pawn formation has been determined, Black initiates
activity on the kingside” (Smyslov). Here 16 ... Nh5 was a good alternative, also in
accordance with Black’s plan.
17 h3 Nh6 18 Rbc1
If 18 g4, Smyslov indicated the manoeuvre 18 ... Nh4, with the idea of
regrouping and playing ... g6 and ... f5.
18 ... f5 19 Nb5
“White is threatening to play his knight via c7 to e6. Even so, in the further
course of the game Black is able to disclose the drawbacks to this move. Interesting
play now begins.”
In Informator Smyslov proposed another idea namely 19 exf5 Bxf5 20 Ne4,
although after 20 ... Nf4 Black is fine, with ideas such as ... Qd7, or ... .Ng8 with the
plan of ... Bxe4 followed by ... Nf6, or ... Nf6 immediately.

Exercise: How did the interesting play mentioned by Smyslov begin?

Answer: 19 ... fxe4! 20 Rxe4 Bf5 21 Rec4

Exercise: Now that the f-file is open and the bishop has been activated, how did
Black continue?

21 ... Nh4
Answer: Smyslov wants to eliminate the white king’s defenders, which, in this
position and in a practical game, is very dangerous. The alternative, perhaps
objectively slightly better, was 21 ... Nf4!, with an excellent position,
22 Nxh4?!
White acquiesces to the exchange of knights, because he wants to continue with
his attack on the queenside. Smyslov wrote that after 22 Nc7 he would play 22 ...
Rc8 and then if 23 Ne6 Bxe6 24 dxe6 Nxf3+ the safety of the white king would be
clearly compromised.
23 Nxh4 Bxh4 24 g3 Bg5 is not satisfactory either. White’s safest course of action
was to focus on defence with 22 R1c3!.
22 ... Bxh4
Most of White’s pieces are some distance away from the kingside, so he should be
thinking about defence.
23 g3?

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 Also bad was 23 Nxd6? Bxf2+ 24 Kxf2 Bc2+.
White fails to utilise his only defensive resource, which was 23 Rxh4! and after
23 ... Qxh4 24 Nxd6 Qf6 (24 ... Bxh3 25 Qe3) 25 Nc4 Be4 26 Qe3 Bxd5 27 Nxe5
White has all his pieces active and adequate compensation for the exchange.
23 ... Bg5 24 Rd1

Exercise: How did Black strike a deadly blow here?

24 ... Qb6!
Answer: “The knight at b5 unexpectedly comes under threat and simultaneously
the f2-pawn is attacked” (Smyslov).
25 h4
A desperate attempt to complicate the game. It doesn’t succeed, but there was
already no good defence.
25 ... Ng4!
And the threats are now too strong.
26 Rdd4 Bh6!
The bishop retreats, maintaining control of the important d2-square.
27 Nc7 Rac8 28 Ne6 Bxe6 29 dxe6

Exercise (easy): What move decides the game now?

29 ... Rce8!
Answer: And there is no way to defend f2; 30 Rxg4 is answered with 30 ...
Qxf2+.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

No 29 ... exd4?? 30 e7 Rfe8 31 Rxc8 Rxc8 32 Qf7 and White wins.

30 Be2 Nxf2 31 Rd5 Nh3+ 32 Kg2 Qg1+ 33 Kxh3 Qh1+ 34 Kg4 Qxd5 35
Rf4 Rxf4+ 0-1
If 36 gxf4 then 36 ... Qg2+.

Sometimes it’s difficult to realise when you’re in a critical position, one where making
‘normal’ moves is insufficient and instead you need to come up with a plan right
away - it can’t be put off any longer.

In Game 38 White made an apparently natural move, one which seemed to improve
his position, but in fact missed the opportunity to seize the initiative.
The white position started to become somewhat uncomfortable, while Black kept
regrouping and gradually improving the deployment of his pieces. Black’s moves 22
and 24 seemed harmless enough, but Black’s chances kept improving.
White also sought to improve his pieces but he lacked precision in doing so.
Black was able to gradually increase the pressure on White’s weaknesses to a point
where something had to give.

Game 38
N.Short-A.Karpov
Dos Hermanas 1997

White to Play

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 The position is approximately balanced. It’s evident that the d5-pawn is weak,
but so is the one on e5. Black has a strong knight on e4 and is well developed. It
seems that White loses all sense of danger with his next move.
20 Rd1?!

Question: This is a move that seems natural enough. Why is it dubious?

Answer: Yes, developing a piece with a gain of time by attacking a pawn looks
good, but its strength proves illusory. It’s possible that White wasn’t using
‘prophylactic thinking’ here, as recommended by Dvoretsky in his books. In other
words, before moving, ask yourself what the opponent is going to do in response
then, after evaluating that, see whether your intended move is best or not.
If White had foreseen Black’s next move he would surely have played 20 a4!,
opening the queenside in his favour and weakening the black pawn structure.
Expressing it in the terms of the title of this book, 20 Rd1 can be categorised as a
move made without any definite plan, unlike 20 a4.
Karpov expressed it in this way, “after this, I can hold up White’s offensive, but
by continuing with 20 a4 Short would have maintained good prospects. Now,
however, Black seizes the initiative.”

Exercise: How did Black grasp the initiative?

20 ... Rc4!
Answer: A move that appreciably improves the black position. It renews the
threat to capture the e5-pawn and rules out White’s chances of counterplay with a4.
21 Bd4 Qb8
More pressure on e5.
22 Rd3
White would like to bring his now inactive queen back into play. Here many
players (the author included) would have been assailed by thoughts such as “how
different things would look if only I’d played 20 a4!” or “Why didn’t I play it when I
had the chance?” etc., but objectively the situation isn’t yet a cause for concern.
Karpov commented that, “in the event of 22 Nd2 Nxd2 23 Rdxd2 Black,
without going further, could capture the pawn on e5.”
22 ... f4

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

Black now controls e3, after which the white pieces lose a degree of mobility.
Another idea here was 22 ... a5.
23 Qd1 Rc6 24 Ne1?!
White wants to dislodge the black knight but since this proves unsuccessful,
White’s knight will remain passive. White could have made a tacit offer of a draw
with 24 Qb3 or played 24 Nd2 and even 22 a4, although now that would have had
less venom than before.

Exercise: How did Black reply?

24 ... Rce6!
Answer: Now 25 f3 would be answered with 25 ... Nd6!, when the knight’s
prospects would be seriously improved thanks to ideas of 26 ... Nc4 or 26 ... .Nf5
(thanks to 22 ... f4).
25 Nc2?!
White tries to justify 24 Ne1 but this move fails to improve the knight’s
prospects. It wasn’t too late to ‘repent’ and play 25 Nf3.
25 ... Qb7
Now that Black has bolstered d5, “if White does nothing” (apparently this is a
phrase that Karpov uses a lot when analysing, according to Lajos Portisch in his book
My Secrets in the Ruy Lopez), Black could expand with ... g5, which persuades White
to start an active plan.
26 f3 Nd6 27 b3 Nf5 28 Qd2
After preventing ... Nc4 with 27 b3, White executes the idea that he began with
25 Nc2 (which defended e3), which is to attack the pawn on f4.

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 Exercise: How did Black respond to the attack on his pawn?

28 ... h5!
Answer: Defending it indirectly with a useful move, one which doesn’t weaken
his pawn structure. As Karpov commented, “this is much stronger than advancing
the neighbouring pawn 28 ... g5”, when after 29 g3! fxg3 simply 30 hxg3 leaves a
complicated position with chances for both sides.
29 Re1
With 28 ... h5 Black controls g4 so that now of course 29 Qxf4?? loses to 29 ...
Bh6.
29 ... a5
Black opts to prevent Nb4; he had some other strong continuations, but there is
no need to rush – Black’s advantage is already clear.

Exercise: What move did Black prepare with his previous one?

30 ... Qc7!
Answer: And the e5-pawn is in serious difficulties.
31 Kg1 Kh7
31 ... Bxe5 was good now, but there’s no hurry, White has no counterplay and
Black is able to further strengthen his position before capturing the pawn.
32 b4 a4 33 Kf1 Qc4!
Another strong preparatory move. Black has time to activate the queen before
playing ... Bxe5.

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

34 Kg1 Bxe5
“The pawn was doomed, and after its loss White has nothing to hope for.”
(Karpov).
35 Bxe5 Rxe5 36 Rxe5 Rxe5 37 Nd4 Re3 38 Rxe3 fxe3 39 Qd1 Qxc3 1-0
Karpov indicated that “in the event of 40 Nxf5 gxf5 41 f4 Kg6 42 h3 Qd2 43
Qf3 simply 43 ... h4 is decisive.”

Let’s round off this chapter with two simpler examples.

In Game 39 White begins a regrouping manoeuvre with a move which at first
sight seems incomprehensible. The key moment is at move 21, after which White’s
advantage becomes clear. From move 24 onwards White’s initiative continues to grow
until finally, as always, some accurate tactical calculation is needed to exploit the
dynamic advantage.

Game 39
Wang Hao-V.Gandrud
Gibraltar Masters 2018

White to Play

White has a pleasant choice. Thanks to having eliminated the opponent’s light-
squared bishop, White can look forward to the better ending as well as middlegame.

Exercise: What do you think White played here?

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 19 Qb1!
Answer: This retreat is far from being the first idea that comes to mind. The
ending resulting from an exchange of queens on c4 would be pleasant for White, but
taking into account the weakness of Black’s kingside, the middlegame is even more
attractive.
At first glance it seems reasonable that White wants to avoid obstructing the c1-
bishop playing 19 Qe3, but in that case 19 Qc2 looks more natural, but White’s
surprising choice will prove to be fully justified, as we’ll see.
19 ... 0-0 20 Bg5 Qe6?!
Black defends his bishop, in order to unpin the knight, but this is an inaccuracy.
Black would be only a bit worse after 20 ... Rfe8, for instance, which would have met
with the same reply.

Exercise: What did White play here?

21 Bd1!
Answer: This was the idea behind Qb1. The bishop leaves its passive position
and heads for a more favourable post, from where it will exert control over some vital
light squares, such as d5, and will exert pressure on f7.
21 ... Nh7 22 Bb3 Qd7 23 Bh6
Logically White is reluctant to simplify just yet and declines with a gain of time.
23 ... Rfe8

Exercise (easy): How did White continue?

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

24 f4
Answer: As simple as it is effective. More pieces join in the assault on the black
king.
24 ... Bf8 25 f5!
The most direct. 25 ... Bxh6 would be answered with 26 fxg6, followed by
regaining the piece after opening lines against the black king.
However, White has more than one attractive move here. He could simply play
25 Bxf8, followed by Qd3, Rad1, etc., when Black has several problems to attend to,
the main one being the insecurity of his king.
For practical reasons, unless it’s clearly very advantageous, White is unwilling for
the game to acquire an untypical character with 25 fxe5 Bxh6 26 Rxf7 Qxf7 27
Bxf7+.
In this position it suits White to Play logically, as he has the advantage.
25 ... Kh8
Black is unable to close the kingside with 25 ... g5, since White plays 26 Bxf8
Rxf8 27 f6!.

Exercise: How to continue now?

26 Qc1!
Answer: Once more playing the most rational move. The queen hurries to join in
the kingside attack. It was also advantageous to play 26 fxg6 Bxh6 27 gxh7, but this
would give Black more chances to muddy the waters with 27 ... Bf4.
26 ... h4 27 fxg6 fxg6 28 Rf7 Qd8
This retreat is forced. 28 ... Re7 would be met with 29 Rxf8+ Rxf8 (only move)
30 Bxf8 Nxf8 31 Qh6+ Nh7 and the kingside pawns fall, although White could play
32 Rf1 first.
29 Rxb7 g5

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 30 Qe3!
An attractive and original combination, taking full advantage of having his rook
on the seventh rank.

Question: Was this necessary? Didn’t you just say that it was important to be
practical and avoid complicating matters unnecessarily?

Answer: No, it wasn’t necessary. The simple 30 Bxf8 Rxf8 31 Be6 was also very
strong, followed by Bf5, Qd2, etc.
But in reality White’s move doesn’t lead to unmanageable complications. In the
event of 30 ... Bxh6 White’s play is direct and simple, with 31 Qa7! Nf6 32 Rf1
(threatening 33 Rxf6 and mate, which would for instance follow 32 ... Ra8) 32 ...
Rb8 33 Rf7, when 33 ... Rxb3 is forced in order not to lose a piece. Then comes 35
Qf2! Bg7 36 Qf5 Qe8 37 Qg6! Qg8 and, after regaining the exchange with 38 R1xf6
Rxf6 39 Rxf6 Bxf6 40 Qh6+ Qh7 41 Qxf6+, White reaches a winning king and-
pawn ending.
30 ... Re7 31 Bxg5!
Even better than 31 Rxe7 Bxe7 32 Qf2, with an extra pawn, which should also
be winning.
31 ... Bh6 32 Bf6+! Nxf6 33 Qxh6+
With two extra pawns and the enemy king weak, the rest is very easy.
33 ... Nh7 34 Rxe7 Qxe7 35 Rf1 Rf8 36 Rxf8+ Qxf8 37 Qxh4 Qb8 38 Qg3
Nf6 39 Qg6 Qa7+ 40 Kf1 Qe7 41 Bf7 Qd8 42 Qh6+ Nh7 43 Bg6 1-0

King safety is almost always the most important factor in a position. In Game 40 the

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 3 The Manoeuvring Game

black king is insecure, but at first sight there doesn’t seem to be any direct way for
White to exploit this. White manages it with an attractive initial regrouping which a
few moves later leads to an unstoppable white attack.

Game 40
I.Saric-M.Bosiocic
European Championship, Batumi, 2018

White to Play

Black is a pawn up but this will be unimportant if White manages to exploit the
very exposed position of the black monarch. It’s worth noting that there are bishops
of opposite colour. This generally favours the side with the attack, although at the
moment it doesn’t seem of any significance.

Exercise: What did White play here?

23 Bc1!
Answer: A splendid way to attack! The bishop retreats to make way for 24 Qe3,
with a double attack.

Question: Hmm, it doesn’t look all that impressive; what’s special about it?

Answer: Be patient, you’ll see.

23 ... Rf3 24 Qd2 Kh8

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 Exercise: Black seems to have parried the most serious threats. How did White
demonstrate that this was a false impression?

25 b3!
Answer: Here we see the hidden virtue of 23 Bc1!, the bishop will be lethal on
the long diagonal.
25 ... Rbf8

Exercise: What’s the quickest way to win?

26 Qh6+
Answer: The first step. Now 26 ... Qh7 loses because it gives up control of e5, so
27 Bb2+ wins.
26 ... Bh7

Exercise: And now? How to finish Black off?

27 Rd7! 1-0
Answer:
With another elegant move, deflecting the black queen from the e5-square. Now
if 27 ... Qxd7 then 28 Bb2+ e5 29 Bxe5+ R3f6 30 Qxf8+ and mate.

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 4 Simplification

Chapter Four
Simplification
In this chapter we’ll see examples where simplification is an important factor. In
almost every game a decision has to be made about which of your own pieces to keep
and which to exchange. It’s equally important to decide which of the opponent’s
pieces should be eliminated.
The situation with the pawns is similar. It’s not just the pawn structure that’s
important. It’s also a question of which pawns to exchange, which exchanges to
avoid, and the best timing.
On occasion these decisions can be equally valid and just lead to different types
of positions, but sometimes they can determine the further course of the game.

Game 41 – as well as being a true work of chess art, in every respect, with
positional domination and a brilliant finish – is also extremely instructive.
If we just focus on the theme of this chapter, there are two key moments where
an appropriate simplification would have given Black an equal game, and others
where an accurate exchange of pawns and later pieces granted a clear advantage to
White.
Specifically, moves 16, 17, 21 and 25 by White are particularly worthy of
attention.

Game 41
A.Karpov-A.Shirov
Biel 1992
Semi-Slav Defence [D46]

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nc3 Nf6 4 e3 e6 5 Nf3 Nbd7 6 Qc2 Bd6 7 Be2 0-0 8 0-0 dxc4
9 Bxc4 b5 10 Be2

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 10 ... Re8

Question: I appreciate that we are still in the opening and there are specific
reasons for the moves, but surely this one could have been postponed, couldn’t
it? Isn’t it more logical to continue with development and play 10 ... Bb7 first?

Answer: Yes, you’re right. In this regard Kasparov commented, “10 ... Bb7 is
more natural, but in those years the prevailing opinion was that White’s plans should
involve e3-e4, and then after ... e6-e5 the black rook will prove well placed (as had
already occurred in one of Shirov’s games).”
11 Rd1
White deploys the rook to this central file, in effect with a gain of time, since
Black will scarcely be able to become active in the centre if the d-file becomes open
and the d1-rook exerts x-ray pressure on Black’s queen on d8.
11 ... Qc7 12 b3 e5 13 h3
Against the threat of 13 ... e4 followed by capturing on h2.
13 ... Bb7 14 Bb2 a6
Having overprotected b5, Black is all geared up to be able activate his b7-bishop
with 15 ... cxd4 16 Nxd4 c5. Instead, recapturing on d4 with the pawn (16 exd4)
would leave White with an inferior type of IQP position, with the b2-bishop shut in
by its own pawn.
15 dxe5 Nxe5

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 4 Simplification

Exercise: How did White continue?

16 a4!
Answer: In this way White, for the moment at least, prevents the advance, since
the price that Black would have to pay to achieve it (with 16 ... b4, or 16 ... bxa4)
would be too high. He would end up with a bad-pawn structure and multiple
weaknesses, conceding squares to the white pieces.
Karpov noted that this still isn’t the right moment to seek activity with 16 Ng5,
since Black would then be able to play 16 ... c5, when 17 Bxb5? axb5 18 Nxb5 fails
18 ... Qc6, attacking g2. Meanwhile, if 17 a4 then, instead of rushing to play 17 ...
b4? when after 18 Nce4 Nxe4 19 Nxe4 the c5-pawn is left weak and meanwhile
Black must reckon with Ng5, Black can instead gain good prospects by dislodging
the knight from g5 with 17 ... h6!. With the pawn still on b5, White can’t play 18
Nge4? Nxe4 19 Nxe4 Bxe4 20 Qxe4 because of 20 ... Nc4, winning material, as 21
Qc2 runs into 21 ... Nxb2 22 Qxb2 Be5.
16 ... Rad8?
This natural move is an important error.

Question: You surprise me. What can be bad about developing the inactive a8-
rook to a central file, after which all Black’s pieces are in play?

Answer: The reason isn’t the move in itself. It’s that it fails to take into
consideration what White is going to do. The right move was 16 ... Nxf3+! and after
17 Bxf3 the typical manoeuvre to sideline the white king with 17 ... Bh2+ 18 Kh1

267
and now 18 ... Be5, with good play, as the freeing move ... c5 can no longer be
prevented.
Sometimes a move is good regardless of what the opponent does, but that’s not
the case here. It’s never superfluous to recall the concept of ‘prophylactic thinking’
that Mark Dvoretsky emphasises in his books. Before making natural and even
apparently ‘forced’ moves, it’s important to ask oneself what the opponent can do in
reply. The ideal is to combine the progress of our own game with the obstruction of
the opponent’s plans.

Exercise: How did White punish Black’s error?

17 Ng5!
Answer: We can see now why it was essential to exchange this knight, which in
tandem with its colleague creates awkward threats. The main idea is to place a knight
on e4, restraining ... c5. But let’s not forget that on g5 the knight also eyes the h7-
square, so for instance 17 ... Bf8? isn’t possible now due to 18 Nd5!, winning.
17 ... Qe7
The queen goes to e7 to hinder the white knight from settling on c5 and also to
prepare ... Bb4 by guarding the b4-square. The immediate 17 ... Bb4? loses to 18
Nce4 Nxe4 19 Qxe4, with a double attack.
18 Nce4 Nxe4 19 Nxe4 Bb4
“In the event of 19 ... Bc7, White could have advantageously provoked ... b5-b4,
e.g. 20 Ba3 b4 21 Bb2” (Kasparov).

Exercise: There are several playable moves now. Which one do you consider to be
the most incisive?

20 Ng3!
Answer: White could already execute an advantageous exchange of pieces and
gain control of the c5-square by playing 20 Bc3 Bxc3 21 Qxc3 Bc8, but White is
striving for more than this advantage. With 20 Ng3! White has his eye on the f5-
square, and makes way for an eventual Qe4.
After the text move Kasparov wondered, “How to counter the threat of Nf5
followed by f2-f4?”
20 ... f6

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 4 Simplification

Black has numerous tactical weaknesses and opts for supporting e5-knight. This
move weakens the king’s position, although this doesn’t seem important at this
moment. Black is also happy to see the b2-bishop lose some of its scope.
With the dark-squared bishop on b4 rather than f8, playing 20 ... g6 to control
the f5-square would come at a price, since it weakens the king’s position and several
dark squares, increasing the potential of the b2-bishop.
In his Great Predecessors series Kasparov wrote that Black’s defensive task after 21
Ne4 was complicated, and he illustrated this with some variations.

Exercise: We’re at another critical moment. White is better, and there are many
attractive moves; what would you choose?

21 Bxe5!
Answer: At first glance this is a very strange exchange to make. There were several
moves to consider, such as 21 h4, planning to use the pawn as a battering ram which
was also a good option. The move played “is justified by concrete calculation”,
according to Kasparov.
White gives up his powerful b2-bishop. The black knight was well placed but not
dangerous. The motive for the exchange lay in other factors. White will be able to
further weaken Black’s kingside and then invade it, thanks to the new weaknesses
that Black will be forced to create.
21 ... Qxe5
It would scarcely be any improvement to be saddled with an isolated pawn after
21 ... fxe5. Karpov then gave 22 Bf3, with a clear advantage to White, although it
seems slightly more accurate to play 22 Bd3 first, weakening the black kingside even

269
more and then answering 22 ... g6 with 24 Be4. In either case Kasparov commented
that, “Black would have faced a cheerless defence, which clearly didn’t appeal to
Shirov.”
22 Bd3 h6
Black is forced to weaken all the light squares. “You need to have great courage to
decide on 22 ... g6”, wrote Kasparov. If 22 ... g6 then 23 Bxg6 hxg6 24 Qxg6+ Kh8
(24 ... Kf8 loses to 25 Nf5, since the defence ... Bf8 isn’t available) 25 Qh6+! (not 25
Nf5? Bf8, nor 25 Nh5? Qg5) 25 ... Kg8 26 Nh5!, with a winning position. Let’s
probe a little deeper ...

26 ... f5 27 Nf6+ Kf7 28 Nxe8 Rxe8 29 Qh7+ Qg7 30 Qxf5+ Qf6 “with a
choice between retaining the queens, and an endgame where the four connected
passed pawns should, of course, ensure a win, but the two black bishops plus the
potential passed pawn on the c-file should also not be underestimated” was
Kasparov’s evaluation of a slightly different position, which is also valid here.
It seems that White can choose the ideal moment to exchange queens, specifically
when Black’s compensation, his queenside pawn majority, doesn’t count. For example
31 Qg4, attacking the bishop on b4, 31 ... Be7 (or 31 ... Bf8 32 Rd7+ Re7 33 Rad1,
planning Rd4, with an unstoppable attack) 32 Qh5+ (intending 33 Rd4) 32 ... Qg6
and now 33 Qxg6+ Kxg6 34 Rd7 Bc8 35 Rc7 (winning a pawn) is decisive, since 35
... c5? loses to 36 axb5 axb5 37 Ra8.
“Shirov, who in this game didn’t make a single bad move (but a whole series of
second-rate ones) preferred not to disrupt the material balance, hoping to survive the
opponent’s attack on the light squares. But his hopes were not realised. Karpov
concludes the game quickly and impressively”, was Kasparov’s description.
23 Bg6!

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 4 Simplification

It’s noteworthy that Karpov didn’t think that it was better to force the black king
to go to h8 with the typical manoeuvre 23 Bh7+ Kh8 24 Bg6, etc., as for the
moment the king is more exposed on g8.
23 ... Rf8 24 Nf5 c5
Finally Black is able to activate the b7-bshop, but the cost is very high. One snag
with this move is that if Black is unable to advance his queenside pawns further, the
b4-bishop will be left out of play.
The other way to activate the b7-bishop was 24 ... Bc8 but White could simply
reply with 25 Nd4, winning a pawn.
Kasparov analysed another defensive try, 24 ... Qc5, which after 25 Qe4 Bc8 can
also be breached by 26 Rdc1 Bxf5 27 Bxf5 Bc3 28 axb5 (opening the a-file to create
the threat of Ra7) 28 ... axb5 29 Qg4 Ra8 30 Rab1, and we are in a typical position
where the bishops of opposite colour favour the attack. Kasparov gives the variation
30 ... Qe5 31 Qg6 Rfd8 32 Qh7+ Kf8 33 b4, planning to redeploy the bishop with
Bc2 and Bb3.

Exercise: How to continue here?

25 axb5!
Answer: This is the other price charged for opening the long diagonal. The a-file
is opened at the most convenient moment for White. The a1-rook infiltrates and
White’s activity increases.
So far Black has managed to contain the threats on the kingside but the creation
of a second front favours the more active side and soon Black will be unable to cope.
25 ... axb5 26 Ra7 Qc7

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 Let’s now see the attractive finishes given by Karpov, which demonstrate the
strong influence exerted by the a7-rook and the importance of the complex of weak
light squares in Black’s kingside:
If 26 ... Qe4 it’s mate after 27 Qxe4! Rxd1+ 28 Kh2 Bxe4 29 Rxg7+ Kh8 30
Rh7+ Kg8 31 Nxh6 mate.
The same happens after 26 ... Rxd1+ 27 Qxd1 Qc7 (if 27 ... Qb8 the idea we’ve
already seen, 28 Qd5+, wins but 28 Qd7 is quicker), when there are several winning
continuations. Kasparov gave 28 Nxh6+ gxh6 29 Be4 Rb8 30 Bxb7 Kf8 (or 30 ...
Rxb7 31 Qd5+) 31 Qh5 Rxb7 32 Qxh6+ Kg8 33 Qg6+ Kf8 34 Qxf6+ Kg8 35 Ra6,
with an unstoppable attack.
If 26 ... Qb8 White wins with 27 Ne7+ Kh8 28 Bf5 Qxa7 (no better is 28 ...
Rxd1+ 29 Qxd1 Rd8 30 Qg4 Qxa7 31 Qg6, etc.) 29 Ng6+ Kg8 30 Be6+ and mate.
27 Nh4
Now the threat is 28 Bh7+ and Ng6+, which induces Black to exchange rooks to
divert the queen, but this weakens Black’s back rank, and the white queen will still
find a way in.
27 ... Rxd1+ 28 Qxd1 Ra8
Escaping from the pin with 28 ... Qb6 would be refuted with 29 Qd7 Qxa7 30
Nf5, winning, while if Black tries to prepare this with 28 ... Rd8, to answer 29 Qg4
with 29 ... Qb6 (or 29 ... Qd7), then White concludes with 30 Rxb7! Qxb7 31
Qe6+ Kf8 (if 31 ... Kh8 the bishop heads for the other diagonal with 32 Bc2, with
the same result) 32 Bh7, etc.

Exercise: The position is ripe for White to round off the game by exploiting
Black’s kingside weaknesses and the absence of the bishop on b4 from the fight.

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 4 Simplification

Karpov did this brilliantly – how?

29 Qg4!
Answer: The first step is to include the queen in the attack, thanks to which 29
... Rxa7 would lose to 30 Qe6+ and Qe8 mate.
29 ... Qc6

Exercise: Black unpins and at the same time protects the e6-square but White
has
devastating reply ready - what is it?

30 Rxb7!
Answer: Demonstrating that the black queen is overworked.
30 ... Qxb7 31 Qe6+ Kh8 32 Be4 1-0
“The conclusion of the light-squared symphony!” (Kasparov).
Black resigned, preventing a version of “Philidor’s mate”: 32 Be4 Qa6 33 Ng6+
Kh7 34 Ne5+ Kh8 35 Nf7+ Kg8 36 Nxh6+ Kh8 37 Qg8+! Rxg8 38 Nf7 mate.

Piece exchanges were crucial in Game 42. The exchange of queens led not to an
endgame but to a queenless middlegame. A surprising decision by White on move 15
sharpened the struggle. Black failed to defend with the necessary precision and
White’s initiative grew until it became overwhelming

Game 42
V.Korchnoi-E.Bacrot
Reykjavik 2003
Slav Defence [D23]

1 c4 Nf6 2 Nf3 c6 3 d4 d5 4 Qc2 dxc4 5 Qxc4 Bf5 6 g3 e6 7 Bg2 Nbd7 8 Nc3

Be7

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 9 Qb3
White varies from the most usual move 9 0-0 to attack the pawn on b7 and reach
a less well known position, with neither king committed yet.
9 ... Qb6
Korchnoi mentioned 9 ... Nb6, although Kasparov commented that this, “would
have diverted the knight from the key e5-square.”
10 Nd2 Bg6
“On encountering an unfamiliar plan, Bacrot makes a cautious prophylactic
move”, wrote Kasparov. Korchnoi himself suggested the natural 10 ... 0-0, which
offered greater chances of equality. White might continue with 11 Nc4, when Black
has an acceptable position after 11 ... Qxb3 12 axb3 Bb4, preventing e4, and if 13 f3
then 13 ... c5! is good while varying the move order with 11 e4 Bg6 12 Nc4 allows
Black to avoid the exchange queens and play 12 ... Qa6, threatening 13 ... b5 and ...
b4.
11 Nc4

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 4 Simplification

11 ... Qxb3
This is a important decision, as is almost always the case with the exchange of
queens, which can permanently affect factors such as king safety. In general, without
the queens, the dynamic elements of the position are less important than in the
middlegame, while in contrast, structural weaknesses tend to grow in importance. Of
course, this is a generalisation, and each position has its own characteristics.
Objectively Black’s decision is a correct one. It doubles the opponent’s pawns, in
return for conceding a half-open file.
We can acquire a different perspective on the decision if we consider factors that
the engines can’t evaluate (as yet). As Kasparov pointed out, “By exchanging queens,
Black steps into his opponent’s territory. The playing of complicated endings with
prospects of an initiative has for a long time been Korchnoi’s forte!”
11 ... Qa6 was also playable.
12 axb3 Nd5 13 0-0 f5?!
Bacrot fortifies the position of his knight on d5, at the cost of reducing the
activity of his bishop on g6.
White’s doubled pawns are weak, but as Kasparov again pointed out, “Korchnoi,
as we’ll now see, also takes into account the dynamic factors of the position,
transforming his weaknesses into a strength!”
Kasparov disapproved of Black’s move but Korchnoi himself was less critical,
categorising it as interesting. 13 ... 0-0 was suggested instead, but after 14 Na5 Rfb8
instead of 15 e4, as in the commentaries, it seems easier to play 15 Nxd5 cxd5 16
Bf4, followed by Nxb7 and Rfc1.

Exercise: What’s wrong with 13 ... N7b6?

275
 Answer: It allows 14 Nxd5 Nxd5 15 Bxd5! cxd5 16 Nb6!, followed by Rxa7.
14 Na5 0-0-0

Exercise: “This all appears very logical ... ” (Kasparov). With his next move
White
apparently, and only apparently strays from the logical – how?

15 Bxd5!
Answer: A very surprising decision at first sight. Exchanging the bishop on g2
isn’t the first move one would consider. A deeper analysis reveals that, despite the fact
that the queens are off the board, White is seeking to attack. It’s worth noting that
the g6-bishop has no useful role, either in attack or defence.
As Kasparov commented, “in the given instance Korchnoi exploits the concrete
features of the position – the ‘holes’ around the black king. It’s important for White
to retain his knight at c3, in order to threaten Nb5.”
15 ... exd5
It’s imperative to keep the c-file closed.

Exercise (easy): How did White continue?

16 Bf4
Answer: Of course, the target is the black monarch and now White threatens 17
Nxd5 cxd5 18 Rfc1+.
16 ... Nb8?

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 4 Simplification

This is Black’s first clear mistake. To reduce his king’s discomfort, Black wants to
exchange the bishops with ... Bd6, but this exchange will be favourable to White,
who has another effective plan after the exchange

Exercise (easy): What’s wrong with 16 ... Bf7, to protect d5?

Answer: White has 17 Nxc6! bxc6 18 Rxa7 Rde8 19 Rc7+ Kd8 20 Ra1,
winning.
Korchnoi pointed out the only way to offer any resistance. Black should first
protect d5 with 16 ... Nb6!, and then if 17 Rfc1 control b5 with 17 ... a6!.

But to be fair it should be said that this would have required a lot of accurate
calculation to make sure that this doesn’t just lose by force, because the black king
would be subjected to a violent onslaught.
Let’s take a closer look. Korchnoi thought that the tempting continuation 18 b4
Bxb4 19 Nxc6 bxc6 20 Na2 achieves nothing after 20 ... Bf8 21 Rxc6+ Kb7 22 Rc7+
Kb8, when 23 Rxg7+ Ka8 24 Rc7 looks very promising but, in fact, Black can
defend miraculously with 24 ... Rc8. After 25 Rac1 Rxc7 26 Rxc7 Black can regroup
and gradually release himself from White pressure with 26 ... Be8, controlling c6,
followed by ... h5, intending ... h4. If White prevents this the rook enters play with
... Rg8-g7
23 Nc3 Bd6 24 Rc6 is no better, because Black can then regroup successfully
with 24 ... Nc8!.
Bacrot’s suggestion of 18 Be5! is preferable when, in the event of the passive 18 ...
Rhg8?!, White can play 19 b4! under better circumstances because then if 19 ... Bxb4
the fact that the g8-rook is unprotected can be exploited with 20 Nxc6! bxc6 21 Na2

277
when 21 ... Bf8? loses to 22 Rxc6+ Kb7 23 Rc7+ Kb8 and now 24 Rxg7+.
Alternatively, if 21 ... Ba5 instead then 22 Rxc6+ Kd7 23 Rd6+ Ke7 24 Rxd8 Rxd8
25 b4, recovering the piece with a big advantage.
18 ... Bg5 is an improvement, although after 19 f4 Bf6 20 Na4 Nxa4 21 bxa4
Bxe5 22 dxe5 White stands better. Black’s bishop is bad and the white knight has
various strong squares available. The open lines also favour White. The white king
can be easily centralised and the passed pawn on e5 will grow in strength with each
exchange of pieces.
17 Rfc1 Bd6 18 Nxd5
Here 18 Bxd6 Rxd6 19 Nb5 was also good. The knight will be in no danger after
20 Nxa7+ and White can also look forward to playing b4-b5, when the other knight
on a5 is a big help, putting pressure on b7 and c6.
18 ... Bxf4 19 Nxf4 Rxd4

Exercise: What should White play now?

20 Nc4!
Answer: The knight has achieved all it can on a5, so Korchnoi centralises it and
at the same time opens the a-file for the rook to attack the pawn on a7. Now 20 ...
a6? fails t 21 Ne6!, the rook as well as threatening 22 Nb6 mate.
We can see that even after the exchange of bishops the black king is not
completely safe.
20 ... Bf7
Bacrot gives up the pawn, which is his best practical chance.

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 4 Simplification

If 20 ... Na6 then 21 e3 Rdd8 22 Nxg6 hxg6 23 Ne5 (“an ultra-powerful

knight!” according to Kasparov), threatening 24 Nf7, and if 23 ... Rd2 then 24
Nxc6! (Korchnoi) 24 ... bxc6 25 Rxc6+ Nc7 26 Rxa7 Rd7, followed by 27 Ra8+ Kb7
28 Rxc7+, with a winning endgame.
Black could have hung on to his pawn, but only at the cost of serious
concessions, with 20 ... b5 21 Ne6 Rd7 22 Ne5 Rd6. Here the fearless engines see
that White can get away with playing 23 Nxg7, but given more time to analyse they
consider that White’s advantage is even greater after Korchnoi’s 23 Nc5!, e.g. 23 ...
Re8 24 f4 Re7 25 Rd1, with a crushing advantage.
21 Rxa7
The extra pawn gives White the advantage but at the moment the passivity of the
black pieces is even more important.
21 ... Bxc4
Black finally gets rid of his passive bishop, hoping to create some activity for his
rooks. Instead, after 21 ... Re8 White just strengthens his position with 22 e3,
followed by 23 h4 and Black can do nothing.
22 Rxc4

Question: Isn’t it better to undouble the pawns by playing 22 bxc4?

Answer: It’s a difficult decision, since both moves are good. Korchnoi opted for
activating his rook. Nevertheless, after 22 bxc4 Rd2 White could play 23 Ra5
(avoiding any anxieties about the rook being imprisoned on a7) 23 ... g6 24 b4 with
advantage.
22 ... Rd1+
Now if 22 ... Rd2 White has 23 Rb4, attacking b7 and with 24 Ne6 on the
agenda.
23 Kg2 Re8
“The ending was technically won for White, but let’s learn from Korchnoi how
to convert a pawn to the full point” (Macieja).
24 Rc2 Kc7
Here 24 ... Na6 allows 25 Ra8+, which would be a step forward for White..

Exercise: How did Korchnoi continue his technical task?

25 Ra5

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 Answer: Now it’s necessary to retreat the rook, before it’s imprisoned with 25 ...
Na6; White is able to achieve this with a gain of time.
25 ... g6

Exercise: And now?

26 Nd5+!
Answer: Now it’s the knight’s turn to play its part. It manoeuvres to e3, to force
the d1-rook to retreat. If possible, White would like to force further piece exchanges.
26 ... Kc8
If 26 ... Kd6 then 27 Nc3! Rd4 28 Ra4 Rxa4 29 bxa4, making further progress.
27 Ne3 Rd4 28 Ra4
The retreat 28 ... Rd7 would be a very sad one, leaving all his pieces passive.
28 ... Red8 29 Rxd4 Rxd4 30 Nc4
“Every exchange brings White’s victory closer” (Macieja). White is now planning
to play 31 Rd2.
30 ... Rd1 31 Rd2 Rb1

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 4 Simplification

Exercise: How did White continue to make progress?

32 b4!
Answer: Seeking to undouble the pawns.
32 ... b5
If 32 ... Kc7 White achieves his objective simply with 33 b5 cxb5 34 Na3;
likewise after 32 ... Na6 33 b5 cxb5 34 Nd6+.
33 Ne5
Black has prevented the exchange of pawns, but his chances haven’t improved.
“Apart from an extra pawn, White also has total domination. The fall of the
black kingside pawns and the march to the queening square of the white h-pawn are
practically inevitable.” (Kasparov).
33 ... Kc7 34 h4 Kb6
If 34 ... Na6 then 35 Rd7+ and 36 Rxh7, easily winning the race to queen a
pawn.
35 Kf3 Na6 36 Nd7+ Kc7 37 Nf8 Nxb4 38 Nxh7
The rest is very simple.
38 ... Nd5 39 Nf8 Nb6 40 Nxg6 Nc4 41 Rc2 Nxb2 42 Ne5 b4 43 Rxc6+ Kb7
44 h5 1-0

On occasion you have to choose between losing a tempo and conceding a

positionally unfavourable change to the position, such as doubled pawns, exchanging
your “good bishop”, etc.

281
 Choosing the least favourable option might not be punishable quickly, or even at
all, but it can affect future decisions, as we’ll see in Game 43.
At an early stage of the struggle Black took a decision that increased not only his
own mobility but also that of the opponent, who was then able to manoeuvre more
easily.
It’s notable that by the time that Black managed to make a theoretically
favourable exchange, White had already accumulated other advantages, which made
that factor irrelevant.

Game 43
V.Anand-F.Vallejo Pons
Bilbao 2014
Queen’s Gambit Accepted [D20]

1 d4 d5 2 c4 dxc4 3 e4 Nc6 4 Nf3 Bg4 5 d5 Ne5 6 Bf4 Ng6 7 Be3 e5 8 Bxc4 Nf6
9 Nc3

9 ... a6

Question: I suppose that this has been played many times. Controlling b5 seems
useful, in addition to which the a-pawn evades the pressure exerted by the e3-
bishop. This is is irrelevant at the moment, but can become important when
Black wants to develop the a8-rook. It might even be possible to play ... b5 later.

But wouldn’t it be better to play 9 ... Nh4, attacking g2 and threatening to

double White’s pawns?

282
 4 Simplification

Answer: This has been played, even by some strong masters, so it deserves
attention. It forces 10 Rg1, but it isn’t so clear that exchanging on f3 is favourable to
Black. It opens the g-file and the weakness of the doubled pawns can’t be exploited
for the moment. After 10 ... a6 11 Be2 the most played move is 11 ... Ng6, which
means that Black has used two tempi to force Rg1. The current assessment is that 12
g3 Bd6 13 Nd2 gives a slight advantage to White, although of course this is still
fairly unexplored territory.
10 Be2 Bd6 11 Nd2

Exercise: We are already in a position where Black has to take an important

decision, whether to exchange bishops, at the cost of being left with reduced
control over the light squares, or lose a tempo with 11 ... Bd7?

11 ... Bxe2?!
Answer: Black decided not to lose any time. This has often been played and is
even recommended by the current (early 2019) engines, but after this the black
position is, at least, the more difficult to handle. Anand himself said that it was better
to play 11 ... Bd7, although then White would have gained time.
12 Qxe2 0-0 13 0-0

Question: How we can evaluate more precisely that the exchange of bishops is
convenient for White?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Anand himself, “Here I was very happy with my
position. The absence of light-squared bishops means that Black’s attack will struggle

283
to have an impact and White has pleasant prospects (for instance, Nd2-c4-a5) on the
queenside.”
13 ... Qe7 14 Rfd1 Rac8

Black is planning to play ... c6 to try to gain some space.

Exercise: How did White improve his position?

15 g3!
Answer: This leaves the g6-knight with few prospects and, “if one piece is bad,
the whole position is bad”, according to Tarrasch. Naturally this is not a definitive
statement. Sometimes a position containing a bad piece is only a bit bad.
15 ... h6
This prevents Bg5, which can be annoying, but Anand disapproved of it. The
weakness created on the kingside isn’t important now, but will be later.
16 Rac1
The c-file might become open, so White brings his only inactive piece into play.
The afore-mentioned plan of 16 Nc4, heading a5, isn’t appropriate yet, as Black can
play 16..b5 and 17 Na5 runs into 17 ... b4, followed by ... Nxe4.
Anand mentioned 16 a3, controlling b4, with the possibility of playing 17 b4
and Nb3. He considered that after 16 ... Bc5 17 Rac1 the position would also be
more pleasant for White. In the event of 16 ... c6 17 Nc4 cxd5 18 Nxd5 Nxd5 19
Rxd5 Bc5 20 Rad1 we would reach a position similar to the game.
16 ... c6

Exercise (simple): Black has executed his idea; how did White respond?

284
 4 Simplification

17 Nc4
Answer: Of course, to be able recapture on d5 with a piece.
17 ... cxd5 18 Nxd5
White opts for the ‘cleaner’ option, which is also the most practical. If a simple
continuation gives an advantage, it isn’t practical to delve into complicated variations
which might well be objectively favourable but which over the board simply can’t be
assessed with any certainty. On the other hand, this is the ideal scenario for the side
that stands worse!
The alternative was 18 Nb6 and although after 18 ... Rcd8 White retains a strong
knight on d5, but this was perhaps the best Black could do. 18 ... d4? 19 Nxc8 Rxc8
20 Nd5! is worse, as Anand pointed out.
But the position would become complicated after the exchange sacrifice 18 ...
Rxc3 19 bxc3 dxe4. It would be hard to foresee that White has 20 Qc4!, threatening
of 21 Nc8 and setting Black serious problems. Finally, 20 Nd5 is also interesting.

Exercise: In this line 20 c4 looks attractive, intending c5, but in fact it’s not an
improvement. Why?

Answer: Black has the strong blow 20 ... Nf4!. If the queen retreats then 21 ...
Nd3 follows, while if 21 gxf4 exf4 then 22 Bd4? isn’t possible due to 22 ... f3,
followed by ... Ng4, with a winning attack. Instead, White would have to resort to
22 c5 and Nd5, but his chances would not be superior to Black’s.
18 ... Nxd5 19 Rxd5 Bc5
Just as White did on move 11, Black now also exchanges the opponent’s strong
bishop, but we shouldn’t forget that this is merely one element of the position. Its
importance depends on the other factors. It was indeed relevant on move 11, because
there didn’t seem to be anything of greater priority but, in this case, White has
already gained other advantages, as we’ll see.
20 Rcd1 Bxe3 21 Nxe3

285
 Question: Can you enumerate the advantages that White has accumulated?
What stands out the most?

Answer: Let’s allow the winner to give us his convincing response, “The point of
White’s play. White dominates the d-file (and any exchange of rooks will give White
a passed pawn). The knight on e3 is far superior to the one on g6. Eventually, some
combination of Nf5, Qg4, h4-h5 and the appropriate rook move should be decisive.
Despite the equal material, White has a huge advantage.”
21 ... Qb4 22 Nf5 Rc4
22 ... Qc4 23 Qg4 Qxa2 24 h4 just wins.
23 Nd6
White defends his e4-pawn and at the same time drives away the rook, so that he
can then achieve a favourable piece setup and thus preserve his advantage. Anand
commented that the engines find a more accurate continuation with 23 a3!, when
White gains a big advantage if Black captures on e4, e.g. 23 ... Rxe4 24 Qf3 Re1+ 25
Kg2 Qe4 26 Rxe1 Qxe1 27 Rd1! Qa5 28 Qxb7, with the idea of Rd6. It’s strange
that Anand saw this line but missed that the move he thought was an improvement
for Black, 27 ... e4?, in fact loses the queen after 28 Qh5!, when the only ‘safe’ retreat
28 ... Qa5 loses to 29 Nxh6+.
23 ... Rc6 24 a3
First of all White reduces the mobility of the black queen, in order to neutralise
the pressure on his e4-pawn.
24 ... Qb3

286
 4 Simplification

Exercise (simple): There now follows the series of moves that began with 24 a3,
designed to improve White’s position. What’s the next step?

25 R5d3
Answer: Driving the queen to a more passive position.
25 ... Qb6
If 25 ... Qa4 the response would have been the same.

Exercise: How did White proceed?

26 Nf5
Answer: “Having ejected the queen, White goes back to the Qg4 and h4 plan.”
(Anand).
If Black had played 25 ... Qa4 after 26 Nf5 then 26 ... Rc4? would lose to 27 b3
Rxe4 28 Qf3.
26 ... Re8

Exercise: How can White make progress now?

27 Rd7
Answer: Preventing 27 ... Ne7; 27 Qg4 was also good, but not the immediate 27
h4 due to 27 ... Ne7.
27 ... Rf6
Here 27 ... Nf8 allows 28 Ne7+ Kh8 and now, even better than 29 Nxc6 Nxd7
30 Rxd7 Qxc6 31 Rxf7, is 29 Nd5, followed by Rxf7.

287
 28 Qg4 Qc6
Anand pointed out that if 28 ... Qxb2 then 29 h4 is strong. After the forced
repy29 ... h5, White can play 30 Qxh5 Qxa3 31 Qg4, threatening h5. If Black then
protects g7 with 31 ... Qf8 then White still plays 32 h5 and answers 32 ... Ne7 with
33 Rxe7! Rxe7 34 Rd8!. So Black would have to play the ugly 32 ... Nh8, after which
the simple 33 Rxb7 leaves White with an overwhelming position..
29 h4 h5
The only way to fend off the pressure against g7, but of course the black king is
now even weaker.
30 Qxh5 Qxe4

Exercise: What’s the quickest way to win now?

31 Rd8!
Answer: Forcing Black onto the defensive, so that White can revert to his original
plan of attack.
Instead 31 Nd6? would be a mistake due to 31 ... Qc2!, attacking f2, and White
is forced to defend with 32 Rf1, losing coordination. The d7-rook is then exposed
and Black even has some advantage. Note that 32 Nxe8 Rxf2 even wins for Black.
31 ... Qc6
Now 31 ... Rfe6 allows 32 Rxe8+ Rxe8 33 Nd6, winning the exchange, since the
white queen defends the rook on d1.
32 Qg5
And now there is no good defence against 33 h5.

288
 4 Simplification

32 ... Qe6 33 R1d6 1-0

In Game 44 Black gains good play, having effectively countered White’s initial steps
on the kingside. On move 15 White has to make an important choice about which
piece to exchange and makes a good decision. Black’s position remains fine, but he
needs to decide which plan to follow.
The plan chosen by Black on move 18 significantly altered the position. He made
an exchange that was a pleasant surprise to White, as there were better and less
radical continuations available.
It’s important always to consider the practicalities. Although objective analysis
shows that Black’s plan wasn’t the best, neither was it clearly bad. But the result was
that Black was subsequently forced to make further decisions that were difficult to
get right over the board. He failed in this task and White was able to consolidate his
advantage, which gradually increased to a point where it became decisive.

Game 44
M.Carlsen-Wei Yi
Wijk aan Zee, 2017
Bishop’s Opening [C24]

1 e4 e5 2 Bc4
Both Carlsen and his opponent sometimes resort to this old opening as a way to
avoid the Petroff Defence.
2 ... Nf6 3 d3 c6 4 Nf3 d6
Recently the most critical line has been 4 ... d5 5 Bb3 Bb4+, provoking 6 c3
before playing 6 ... Bd6, avoiding the pressure on the centre that White can exert
after the immediate 5 ... Bd6 with 6 Nc3. Instead of 6 c3 the move 6 Bd2 is also
played.
Black’s move is also playable, because White has no particularly dangerous plan.
5 0-0 Be7 6 Bb3
White decides to deploy his bishop in the style of the Ruy Lopez, with c2 as a
retreat square. Another idea is play a4, or even a3, to keep the bishop on the a2-g8
diagonal.
6 ... 0-0 7 c3 Nbd7 8 Re1 Nc5
Both sides can deploy their pieces in various ways. Black opts to manoeuvre to
hinder White from playing d4.

289
 9 Bc2 Bg4 10 Nbd2 Ne6

11 h3
According to Carlsen’s post-game comments, the alternative he considered was 11
Nf1 with the idea that after 11 ... Nd7 12 Ne3 Bh5 13 g4 Bg6 14 Nf5 he would
achieve his aim of placing a strong knight on f5.

Question: So why didn’t he play this?

Answer: On account of an exchanging manoeuvre that we should be aware of in

this type of position. After 12 Ne3, instead of retreating his bishop, Black plays 12 ...
Bxf3 13 Qxf3 g6, controlling f5, followed by ... Bg5. The exchange of the dark-
squared bishops considerably reduces White’s active opportunities.
Carlsen was sceptical about the plan of playing 14 g3, followed by h4. He was
unhappy about not being able to play d4 and thought that in this line his knight was
“a bit clumsy” on e3.
11 ... Bh5 12 Nf1

Exercise (simple): After the previous note I suppose that it won’t be difficult to
work out what Black played here.

12 ... Nd7!
Answer: As we’ve seen already, this is an essential component of the plan started
with ... Bg4, once White has played 13 Ng3
13 g4

290
 4 Simplification

White was reluctant to reach a position similar to the one mentioned in the note
to move 11. After 13 Ng3 Bxf3 14 Qxf3 Black would play 14 ... g6, restricting the
g3-knight for the time being, with the idea of a quick ... Bg5.
13 ... Bg6 14 Ng3

Question: White has prevented the above-mentioned idea and has achieved his
objective of being able to install his knight on f5. Furthermore the bishop on g6
is
passive. So, White has the advantage now, doesn’t he?

Answer: That’s the positive side of 13 g4, but the negative is that he has
weakened his dark squares on the kingside and Black can exploit this. The position is
complex, but the chances remain balanced.
14 ... Ng5
Black needs to exchange a few pieces to gain some mobility and to try to exploit
the weaknesses created in the white camp. Black is now attacking the pawn on h3
and White must decide which piece he prefers to exchange.
15 Bxg5
A difficult decision, which took the world champion twenty minutes’ thought.
Carlsen considered 15 Kg2, but rejected it in view of 15 ... Nxf3 16 Qxf3. Here it
was suggested that 16 ... Re8 was good, preparing the manoeuvre 17 ... Nf8-e6,
when we see the negative side of 13 g4, the weakening of the dark squares.
Carlsen pointed out that Black can even play 16 ... Nc5 immediately, followed by
... Ne6, “and I’m probably worse”, he said.

291
 Sacrificing the h3-pawn with 15 Nf5 was Carlsen’s initial idea. After 15 ... Nxh3+
16 Kg2 Bxf5 17 gxf5 Ng5 White can play 18 Rh1 Nxf3 19 Qxf3 Bg5 20 Qh5 h6 21
Bxg5 Qxg5+ 22 Qxg5 hxg5 23 Rh5, with pressure.
If, instead of 16 ... Bxf5, Black plays 16 ... Nf4+, the continuation would be 17
Bxf4 exf4 18 d4, with very good compensation. Carlsen didn’t fear this either.
He rejected 15 Kg2 in view of the simpler line 15 ... Bxf5 16 gxf5 Nxf3+ 17
Qxf3 and now once again 17 ... Bg5, exploiting White’s weaknesses on the dark
squares.

Carlsen stated that although this position looks good for White, in reality he
doesn’t have much. His remaining bishop isn’t very strong and once Black plays ...
Nf6 ensuring the safety of his monarch, “I will never mate him without the dark
bishops” said Carlsen. Black could play ... Kh8, ... Rg8 and then play “his business
with ... d5”.
15 ... Bxg5 16 d4 Bf4
Black takes full advantage of his domination of the dark squares. One of the
virtues of this move is that 17 Nf5 Bxf5 18 exf5 Re8 “is completely uninspiring”, (for
White), according to Carlsen. Nevertheless, the position remains balanced, White
has no serious problems with the intruder on f4.
17 Ne2 Qf6 18 Kg2

292
 4 Simplification

18 ... exd4?
“An absolute gift”, commented Carlsen. With this exchange Black opens the
centre, but obtains nothing in return, while on the other hand the white pieces gain
mobility.
Instead 18 ... Rfe8 was sound move, increasing the pressure on e4. Then
exchanging with 19 Nxf4 Qxf4 20 Qd2 Qxd2 21 Nxd2 isn’t to be feared, as Black
can strike back with 21 ... exd4 22 cxd4 d5!, as Giri pointed out.
18 ... Rfe8 was mentioned by Carlsen, although he was mainly concerned about
18 ... h5, which is also the move preferred by the engines.
19 Nfxd4 Rfe8 20 Nxf4 Qxf4

Exercise: How did White continue here?

21 f3
Answer: Solidifying his e4-pawn before anything else. “Now I have a centre and I
can go for it” (Carlsen).
21 ... Nb6
Black prepares ... d5, after which he wants to be able to recapture with a piece. If
Black plays 21 ... d5 immediately he would be left with an isolated pawn on d5 after
22 exd5 Bxc2 23 Qxc2 cxd5. Even less attractive would be 22 ... cxd5 23 Rxe8+
Rxe8 24 Ba4!,
when White would have the advantage of good knight versus bad bishop.
Nevertheless, the engines suggest a slight improvement for Black, avoiding being
left with a isolated pawn, with a series of far-from-obvious ‘only moves’: 22 ... Rxe1

293
23 Qxe1 Bxc2 24 Nxc2 and now 24 ... Ne5! 25 Qe3 Ng6! 26 Re1 Qb8! but, as Giri
said, that sequence “is unlikely to happen in a human game”.

Exercise: How did White continue now?

22 Qc1!
Answer: Black’s queen on f4 is the one thing preventing White’s centre from
advancing
22 ... Qxc1 23 Raxc1 d5
This was the idea behind 21 ... Nb6. Black tries to assail the white centre by
tactical means, but it won’t work. However, playing more passively offered little hope.
After for example 23 ... f6 24 Bb3+ Bf7 25 Bxf7+ Kxf7 Carlsen pointed out 26 c4,
with a space advantage and the possibility of advancing his kingside pawn majority
after suitable preparation. Carlsen liked the white position. Even though the
advantage is not yet great, White can build on it.

24 e5!
Accepting the challenge, having established that 24 ... Nc4, attacking two pawns,
can be answered with 25 f4.
The alternative that Carlsen considered here was 24 Bb3, with the idea of
answering 24 ... dxe4 with 25 f4, incarcerating the black bishop. This looks very
tempting, but as Carlsen pointed out, “his bishop is cut off on h7 but with ... Kf8
and ... Bg8 may be not for very long.”
As we’ve seen before, we are in a typical situation where one side has no need to
deviate from his plan if it provides some advantage and the alternative isn’t very clear.
24 ... Nd7 25 f4 Bxc2 26 Rxc2 Nc5

294
 4 Simplification

Black continues to seek an active plan. The knight will look very attractive on e4
but although it’s certain that the bad position of a piece generally makes the whole
position bad, it’s also true that the good position of a single piece doesn’t compensate
for a position with weaknesses. Black will have less space and White will continue
improving his position. Furthermore, as we’ll see, the knight’s position on e4 will
prove to be unstable.
27 Re3
White improves his pieces, first of all restricting the enemy knight before trying
to make progress.
27 ... Rad8 28 Kf3
Now it’s the monarch whose position is improved.
28 ... Ne4
Black carries on with his idea. In the event of other moves, such as 28 ... a5,
Carlsen would have continued with 29 h4, followed by 30 h5 and at the right
moment f5 as well.
29 b4!
Cutting off the knight’s retreat, with the idea of c4 followed by cxd5, weakening
the black pawn structure and opening the c-file in White’s favour.

Question: Was this move really necessary? Why not immediately 29 c4?

Answer: That would have suited Black, who would have answered 29 c4 with 29
... Nc5!, and the black rooks come back to life.

29 ... g5?!

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 Black keeps trying to justify his idea of playing actively against the white centre
but White will refute this idea. This isn’t very surprising since, in effect, White is
playing with an extra piece – the king.
It was imperative to play 29 ... f6!. Then if 30 e6 Nd6 it wouldn’t be at all easy to
break the blockade. Despite the fact that Carlsen said that he doesn’t believe in
fortresses, he wasn’t very optimistic about breaching this one.
He would have played 30 exf6 and after 30 ... Nxf6 31 Ne6 Rc8 32 Rce2 White
is better, but there is still play in the position, whereas now the black position rapidly
deteriorates.

Exercise (simple): How did White continue?

30 c4!
Answer: Logical and crushing. White plans to open the c-file with cxd5 and then
play b5.
30 ... c5
Consistent, but ... ineffective. However, if 30 ... gxf4 then 31 Kxf4, followed by
Nf5 and taking on d5, would be crushing.

Exercise: It remains for you now to find one last accurate move, a move which is
better than all the rest.

31 Nb5!
Answer: Better than 31 Nf5, as we’ll see, because this controls the c3-square.
31 ... gxf4 32 Kxf4 cxb4 33 cxd5 1-0
And Black resigned. Carlsen commented that perhaps this was slightly
premature, but after 33 ... Nc3 34 Nxc3 (this shows why 31 Nb5 was better than 31
Nf5) 34 ... bxc3 35 Ke4 the c3-pawn falls and although Black can carry on playing,
his position is indefensible.

In the opening position of Game 45 White has the advantage, thanks to the
unfortunate position of one of Black’s pieces. As we know, in almost all cases “if one
piece is bad, the whole position is bad”, but of course it’s always necessary to find a
concrete way to prove it. White found an effective and somewhat unusual method.

Game 45

296
 4 Simplification

R.Fine-E.Lasker
Nottingham 1936

White to Play

Black’s knight on h5 is completely out of play, which is a serious defect in his

position.

Exercise: How was White able to exploit this?

24 Rxc8+
Answer: The first step in the idea.
24 ... Qxc8

Exercise: What now?

25 Qc2!
Answer: “Seizing the open file, for if in reply 25 ... Qxc2? 26 Bxc2 the threat
Nc6 wins a pawn” (Fine). That is to say, White can invade the queenside unopposed,
thanks to the exposed situation of the pawns on a5 and b4.
25 ... Qb7
25 ... Qd8 was suggested by Alekhine in the tournament book. After 26 Nc6
Qb6 27 e5 Nd7 (or 27 ... Nd5? 28 Nxa5) 28 Qc4 the white position is very superior.
He has ideas of Qe4, attacking the black king, as well as playing Qb5 at an
appropriate moment and continuing with the attack on the a5-pawn,.

297
 Also attractive is 28 Bh7+, followed by 29 Be4. The black king would be worse,
whether on h8, decentralised, or on f8, more exposed. In contrast the white queen
would gain in mobility, with the immediate threat of 30 Qd1.

Exercise: How to continue now?

26 Qc6!
Answer: Once again proposing a very favourable exchange of queens.
26 ... Qa7
“Loses a piece, but if, instead, 26 ... Qb8 27 Qc5 a4 (if 7 ... Qd8 then 8 Qa7 can
follow), 28 Nc6 wins”, (Fine).
27 Qc8+ Kh7

Exercise: How can White win now?

28 Nc6
Answer: Followed by e5 and “the rest is easy” (Fine).
28 ... Qc5 29 e5+ g6 30 exf6 Nxf6 31 Qb7 Kg8 32 Be2 Nd5
Or 32 ... Qc1+ 33 Kg2 Qxb2 34 Nd8, winning.
33 Ne5 1-0

In the opening position of Game 46 White has some advantage. To increase it,
Portisch conceives an effective exchanging plan which sharpens the play and weakens
the black king.
Naturally there were many tactical complications to solve and White had to
choose between various complex lines of play. In almost all cases White selected the
most ‘human’ solution, exploiting the pins, activating the pieces as much as possible,
weakening permanently the enemy king, etc.
It comes as no surprise that in his book My Secrets in the Ruy Lopez, Lajos
Portisch made the following comment en passant, “The first game with the Grünfeld
was one of the best in my chess career.”

Game 46
L.Portisch-J.Nunn
Interzonal Playoff Budapest 1987

298
 4 Simplification

White to Play

White has a slight advantage in development and a strong knight on d5, but we
should be aware that that these are both temporary advantages.

Exercise: How did White continue?

13 b4!
Answer: With an exchange, not of pieces in this case, but of pawns, after which
the white pieces become more active and create new problems for Black.
Attempts to increase the pressure with for instance 13 a3 are less effective. Black
can fall back with 13 ... Qd8 14 b4 Nd7 15 Re1 and neutralise ‘public enemy
number one’ with 15 ... Nb6. After 16 Nxb6 axb6 17 Bxe6 fxe6 18 Qxd8 Rfxd8,
although White is slightly better, the activity of the black rooks largely compensates
for Black’s weakened structure and passive bishop.
But it’s even better to eliminate the knight immediately with 13 ... Bxd5! and
after 14 Qxd5 e6 15 Qd1 Rfd8 16 Qe2 Black can regroup with 16 ... Nd7! 17 Rfe1
Nb6 18 Bb3 (or 18 Bd2 Qa4 19 Bb5 Nd4) 18 ... Nd5, with a good position.
If 14 Bxd5 there might follow 14 ... Ne6 15 Bxe6 fxe6 16 g3 Qb5, increasing the
pressure on e5 and with the idea of 17 ... Rad8, with good play. White gains nothing
from 17 Qd7 Qd5 18 Qxb7?! Nd4! 19 Qxd5 Ne2+ 20 Kh1 exd5.
If 13 Qe2 the same recipe works: 13 ... Bxd5! 14 Bxd5 Ne6 15 Bxe6 fxe6.
13 ... Nxb4 14 Nxe7+
This is no advantage in playing 14 Bd2? Bxd5! 15 Bxd5 Ncd3, when it’s even
Black who takes control of the position, for example 16 Bxb4 (16 Bxb7 Rad8) 16 ...

299
Nxb4 17 Bxb7 Rad8.
14 ... Kh8

Exercise (simple): And now?

15 Bd2!
Answer: Of course, now this pin creates serious problems. The delicate position
of the other knight on c5 is also a concern for Black.
15 ... Rad8
After 15 ... Rae8 one winning continuation is 16 Bxe6 Nxe6 (or 16 ... Rxe7 17
a3! Qxa3 18 Ra1 Qb2 19 Rb1 Qc2 20 Bxb4) 17 Rb1.
15 ... Qa3 is punished with 16 Rc3! Qa4 17 Qxa4 Nxa4 18 Bxe6 Nxc3 (or 18 ...
fxe6 19 Ra3) 19 Bxc3 fxe6 20 Bxb4
If 15 ... Qb6, then changing the pin with 16 Be3! threatens 17 Bxe6 and after 16
... Rad8 then White can play 17 Qe2 renewing the threat.
16 Bxe6 fxe6
If 16 ... Nxe6 then 17 Qe1! and after the exchange sacrifice Black has insufficient
play.

17 a3!
According to the engines there are several strong continuations here but this is
the strongest ‘human’ option. By that we mean a line that provides an advantage
without resorting to extremely unnatural moves or entering impractical
complications, which might be objectively better but which require accurate
calculation.

300
 4 Simplification

One good line was 17 Rc4! Qc7 18 Rxb4 Qxe7, but now White has to find the
only move that gives a clear advantage, 19 Bg5!. After 19 ... Rxd1 20 Bxe7 Rxf1+ 21
Kxf1 Rc8 22 Bxc5 Rxc5 23 Rxb7 Kg8 24 Rxa7 Bxe5 25 Nxe5 Rxe5 26 a4, we reach
a winning rook ending.
If instead of 17 ... Qc7 Black chooses 17 ... Qxa2, then 18 Rxb4? Rd7 achieves
little. 18 Rxc5 Rd7 19 Rc8 is better, but even stronger is 18 Rh4!, with the threat of
19 Rxh7+! Kxh7 20 Ng5+ Kh8 21 Nxg6+ Kg8 22 Ne7+, forcing mate.
17 Ng5!, making room for the queen, is also good, although, according to
Stockfish 10, the strongest move of all is 17 Nh4! and this seems convincing.
Portisch’s move also gains a clear advantage but without having to follow up so
accurately that one false move would place his whole advantage at risk. So, from the
‘human’ or practical point of view, 17 a3! was a logical choice for White!
17 ... Qxa3 18 Rxc5 Na6
Black manages to keep the material balance, but not without some positional
cost, as we’ll see.
19 Nxg6+ hxg6 20 Rc2
White has not won any material but has gained several advantages. Black’s pawn
structure and king position have been weakened and the black pieces have lost
coordination, with both the bishop and knight being ineffective.
20 ... Nb4

Question: Isn’t it better to take advantage of the pin on the d-file and exchange
the passive bishop with 20 ... Bh6?

Answer: The problem is that the black king would lose another defender. The
continuation might be 21 Qe2 Bxd2 22 Rxd2 (with the idea of 23 Nh4 or 23 Rxd8
Rxd8 24 Qe4) 22 ... Qe7 23 Rd6!, to double rooks and after 23 ... Rxd6 24 exd6
Qxd6 25 Ne5 White will achieve a decisive advantage with Rd1, followed by
bringing the queen into the attack.
21 Bxb4 Qxb4

301
 22 Qc1
This move, planning to regroup his forces, is a good one. It prepares 23 Rc4 as
well as 23 Qg5. It retains the advantage, but it’s not the best.
It was more precise to play 22 Qe2!, also with the idea of 23 Rc4, (or of 23 Rb2
Qe7?! 24 Qe4), e.g. 22 ... Rd7 23 Rc4 Qe7 24 Rg4, and the g6-pawn will soon fall.
22 ... Qe7?!
Now normal service is resumed. It was more tenacious to play 22 ... Qf4!,
although after 23 Qb2 Rf7 24 Re1, planning Qa2, (better than 24 Qb3 Bxe5 25
Qxe6 Bd6 when 26 Qxg6? fails to 26 ... Rg8) 24 ... b6 25 h3 (or 25 h4 and the
white pieces can choose where to strike, either with Rce2-e4 and then on to the
kingside, or with 26 Rc6 attacking the e6-pawn, with Qa2 on the agenda.
23 Qe3
White once again plays the most human move, discouraging the possible
exchange sacrifice ... Rxf3 and preparing to bring his only inactive piece into play
with 24 Rc4, as well as eyeing the pawn on a7.
The immediate 23 Rc4! was also strong.
23 ... Rf5 24 Rfc1
Methodical. In contrast, 24 Qxa7?! Rxf3 25 gxf3 Qg5+ 26 Kh1 Qf5 would give
Black practical chances.
24 ... Kg8 25 h3
A final prophylactic move, creating a useful escape square for the king and this
freeing all his pieces for active duty.
25 ... b6?!

302
 4 Simplification

Time trouble hastens the end.

Exercise (simple): How did White punish Black’s error?

26 Nd4!
Answer: Exploiting the weakness created on c6. Now 26 ... Rxe5 loses to 27 Nc6
Rxe3 28 Nxe7+ Kf7 29 Nc6.
26 ... Rxd4 27 Qxd4 Rxe5 28 Qg4 1-0

In the position of Game 47, White conceives an exchanging manoeuvre aimed at

disturbing the balance. Black defends well until he makes an unfavourable exchange.
At that point it wasn’t serious, but the defence soon became more uncomfortable. In
the new situation White manoeuvred in a very attractive manner. Once again on
move 30 White evaluated correctly which piece to retain and which to exchange.
Next on move 35 White restricted Black’s counterplay until a further favourable
exchange gave him a definite advantage.

Game 47
A.Karpov-P.Svidler
Dos Hermanas 1999

303
 White to Play

The position is balanced. Both pawn structures contain weaknesses and, although
the white pieces are slightly more centralised, just now that doesn’t seem very
important, as the black pieces are also active.

Exercise: How did Karpov try to gain the advantage?

26 Raa1!?
Answer: Karpov would like to eliminate the most active black piece, in order to
try to seize control of the c-file. Attempting this with 26 Rc1 Rxc1+ 27 Bxc1 allows
Black to activate his other rook with 27 ... Rf5 28 Ra3 Rb5 and Black has a
comfortable game.
26 ... Nb4
Of course it was inappropriate to play 26 ... e5? due to 27 dxe5 Nxe5 28 Nxe5
Bxe5 29 Bxh6, but 26 ... Nd5! was good, e.g. 27 Rac1 Ncb4, followed by 28 ... Ra8,
and with queenside blocked it would be far from easy for White to make any
progress. Black can hold his position.
27 Rfc1

Exercise: How should Black respond?

27 ... Rxc1+?!
Answer: A concession. In contrast, with 27 ... N6d5! the black pieces would be
well coordinated and it would not be easy for White. After 28 Bd2 c5! 29 Rxc2 (29

304
 4 Simplification

Nxc5? fails to 29 ... Rxf3! 30 Rxc2 Nxc2 31 Ra2 Ncb4 and Black wins material) 29
... Nxc2 30 Ra6 Nxd4 31 Nxd4 cxd4 32 Rxg6 Kh7, followed by ... Rc8, or ..Ra8,
and the position is balanced.
28 Rxc1 N4d5 29 Nc5!
With the threat of 30 Ne6 and, finally, White has a small advantage.

Question: But the threat can be parried and there is very little material left on the
board, so how can White be better?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Karpov, “Now it becomes very obvious how hard it’s
for Black to sail between his own pawn islands. White has only a few pieces left, but
they are free to leap into the centre of the board from one square to another.”

30 Bd2!
“Depriving Black of possible counterplay after 30 Ne5 Nxe3 31 fxe3 Nd5,”
commented Karpov. It’s worth noting that 30 Ne5 is the first choice of the engines,
but from the ‘human’ point of view Karpov’s move is more awkward to meet, since it
avoids exchanges and Black must stay alert on more fronts.
30 ... Rd6 31 Nb7 Rf6
Black loses right away after 31 ... Rd7? 32 Ne5 Bxe5 33 dxe5 Kh7 34 e6.
Furthermore 31 ... Re6 can be met with 32 Nd8 (or immediately 32 Ne5) 32 ... Rf6
(not 32 ... Re4? 33 Nf7+ Kh7 34 N7g5+) 33 Ne5, threatening Ng4, and also with
the idea of strengthening the position with 34 g3, 35 Kg2, etc, and Black can only
wait.
32 Ne5 Kh7 33 g3 Rf8 34 Nc5 Ra8

305
 Exercise: Both sides have strengthened their positions. How did Karpov continue
now?

35 Rc2!
Answer: ‘Prophylactic thinking’, as Dvoretsky used to say. Karpov commented,
“By occupying the second rank with my rook, I emphasise Black’s helplessness”.
35 ... Rd8 36 Kg2 Bxe5?!
Svidler makes White’s task easier. The absence of this bishop and the change in
the structure both favour White, as we’ll see. “36 ... Rd6 37 Nb7 Rf6 was more
tenacious, although after 38 Ba5 the threat of Rc5 is extremely unpleasant.” (Karpov)
If 36 ... Ra8 White can play 37 Nc6 with the idea of Ne6, Rc5, Ba5, etc, and
Black once again can only wait passively, although there is still no decisive blow.
37 dxe5 Nd7

Exercise: What now? To exchange or not?

38 Nxd7!
Answer: Seeking more than could be achieved by 38 Ne6 Rc8 39 Kf3 (39 f4
allows 39 ... c5! and “Black could have rid himself of almost all his problems in the
endgame” (Karpov) 39 ... c5 (not 39 ... Nxe5+? 40 Ke4) 40 Ke4 N5b6 41 f4.
38 ... Rxd7

Exercise: Each exchange of pieces brings the game closer to equality, unless
there’s some factor that justifies it. What’s the point of the previous exchange?

306
 4 Simplification

39 Rc6!
Answer: “Complete domination of the light squares” (Karpov). If Black could
play ... e6 his position would be almost impregnable.
39 ... Nb6 40 Bc1 Rd5 41 Re6 Nc8
If 41 ... Rd7 White can continue as in the game, or play 42 Kf3 first.

Exercise: How did Karpov continue?

42 h5
Answer: Guaranteeing a clear advantage. Another idea, favoured slightly more by
the engines, was 42 Ba3, increasing the pressure, e.g. 42 ... Rd7 43 Bc5 Kg7 44 Rc6,
followed by e6, or 42 ... 43 Rc6 Na7 44 Rc7 Nb5 45 Rxe7+ Kg8 46 Bc1.
42 ... gxh5
If 42 ... g5 then 43 f4! Rd1 44 Be3 when White breaks through and also wins a
pawn.
43 Rxh6+ Kg7 44 Rxh5 c5 45 Kf3 c4 46 Be3!
“With the loss of the pawn, Black’s problems don’t come to an end” (Karpov).
46 ... e6?!
The only way to try to continue to resist was 46 ... Rd7 but it would have been
extremely unpleasant for Black. White would mobilise his kingside pawn majority
with 47 Ke4, e.g. 47 ... Rc7 48 f4 c3 49 f5 c2 50 Rh1 Na7 51 g4. The try 46 ... c3
would not have saved Black after 47 Rh4!, with the decisive threat of 48 Rc4.
47 Rh4 Ne7 48 Rxc4 Ng6 49 Bd4 1-0
Preparing Ke4 and f4. The pawn is immune thanks to 50 Ke4, winning.

Naturally, no first-rank master makes a positionally unfavourable exchange unless he

feels it’s forced. On occasion the consequences aren’t serious and it’s the best solution.
However, at other times, it’s the start of serious difficulties. Of course, choosing the
best option requires good tactical analysis.

This is the scenario in Game 48. Black fails to find the best solution and White
takes the lead. Once White has gained the advantage he needs to employ tactics to
impose his superiority on moves 22 and 23 and culminating with move 26.

Game 48
V.Kramnik-L.Aronian

307
Istanbul Olympiad 2012

Black to Play

White has some pressure on the c-file, which he threatens to increase with for
example the manoeuvre Nb3-c5.

Exercise: What’s the best way to relieve the pressure?

19 ... Bd6?
Answer: The dark squares on the queenside will be left weak after the exchange
of bishops, something of which Aronian would be aware, but everything indicates
that his move was a tactical error.
Black’s situation would be unpleasant after 19 ... e5 20 dxe5 fxe5, when simply
21 Bg3, with ideas of e4 or Nb3-c5, would leave the black centre exposed, granting
White the preferable position.
As Kramnik commented, “19 ... Na7!, with the idea of exchanging both rooks on
the c-file, is a very precise defensive move which seems to equalise.”
Of course this would require accurate calculation, because White can invade with
his rook, e.g. 20 Rc7 Qd8 and now tactics enable Black to stay afloat: 21 Nb3 Rxc7
22 Bxc7 Qd7 23 Bb6 Nc6, and Black has no problems.

Exercise: Instead of 22 Bxc7, the rook recapture 22 Rxc7 is bad? Why?

308
 4 Simplification

Answer: Due to 22 ... e5!, when after 23 Rxb7 exf4 24 Qxa6 Black has the
defensive resource 24 ... Qc8!. Now if 25 Nc5 Nc6 26 Nd7 then 26 ... Be7 (also
adequate is 26 ... Kh8 27 Qb6 – not 27 Nxf6? Bg7 winning – 27 ... fxe3 28 fxe3 Bd6
29 Nxf6 Ne7) 27 Qb6 fxe3 28 fxe3 Nd8 29 Rc7 Qa6, leaving White with
insufficient compensation for the piece.
20 Bxd6 Qxd6 21 Nb3 Rc7?
After this move the black position becomes almost indefensible.
It was essential to play 21 ... b6, “although still after the accurate 22 Nd2! Qd7
23 Qb3 b5 24 Qc3 Ne7 25 Qa5 Rxc2 26 Rxc2 Qd8 27 Qb4 White has a serious
positional advantage”, according to Kramnik.

Exercise: Kramnik chose the strongest move here. What is it?

22 Na5!
Answer: Stronger, for tactical reasons, than 22 Nc5, which maintains a slight
advantage.
22 ... Rac8

Exercise: And now?

23 Nxb7!
Answer: This piece sacrifice is the key. White obtains two passed pawns for the
piece and the pins on the c-file and the sixth rank force Black to consume several
tempi freeing himself from them, which gives White enough time to advance his b-
pawn.

309
 23 ... Rxb7 24 Qxa6 Rbc7 25 b4 Qd7

Exercise: Now, after Black has managed to unpin, Kramnik had foreseen a key
move. What’s it?

26 Qb6!
Answer: This move, attacking the c7-rook, is decisive, since it prevents Black
from releasing himself from the pressure along the c-file.
This is stronger than 26 b5, when after the forced 26 ... Ne7! (if 26 ... Nd8 then
27 Qxc8! Rxc8 28 Rxc8 wins) 27 Rxc7 Rxc7 28 Rxc7 Qxc7 29 Qxe6+ Kf8 30 Qxf6+
Ke8 and although White has four pawns for the knight, Black has more defensive
chances than after the move in the game.
26 ... Qe8
Black finally unpins and intends 27 ... Nxd4.
Black’s tactical difficulties can be seen for instance in the event of 26 ... Rb7 27
Rxc6! Rxb6 28 Rxc8+ Kf7 29 R8c7.
Something similar occurs after 26 ... Rb8 27 Qxb8+! Nxb8 28 Rxc7 Qb5 29
R1c5 Qb6 30 Re7 and the two rooks tip the balance in White’s favour. For example
30 ... Kf8 31 Rcc7 Na6 32 Rf7+ Ke8 33 Rb7 Qc6 34 Rxh7 winning.
27 b5!
The strongest move, “falling into the trap”, as Kramnik commented. The simpler
27 Rc5, preparing 28 b5, was also strong.
27 ... Nxd4
The following sequence is forced.
28 Rxc7 Ne2+ 29 Kh1 Nxc1
“It seems that Black managed to trick his opponent, but White’s 31st move
clarifies matters.” (Kramnik)
30 Rxc8 Qxc8

310
 4 Simplification

Exercise (simple): What clarifying move was Kramnik referring to?

31 Qc6!
Answer: Now the black queen is prevented from becoming active. After 31 ...
Qxc6 32 bxc6 the pawn promotes. The black knight is too far away and can’t help
the defence.
31 ... Qd8
Equally hopeless is 31 ... Qb8 32 b6 Nd3, when the 33 Qc7 is the quickest way.
32 b6
The pawn is unstoppable. The rest is easy. There’s no defence against the threats
of 33 Qc7 and 33 b7.
32 ... Kf7 33 Qc7+ Ke8 34 Qa7 d4 35 b7 1-0

As we’ve seen several times, it’s important to know not only which piece to exchange,
but also the appropriate moment to do so. In Game 49 Black played ambitiously, but
for tactical reasons this wasn’t the best plan. However it wasn’t at all obvious how
White could try to take advantage. White employed a well-known and attractive
strategic device on move 28 and was able to put pressure on the black position.
The next phase of the struggle became very complex. The engines keep finding
improvements for both sides, but over the board this hardly matters. The practical
element is as, or more, important and in the end White emerged as the victor.

Game 49
V.Anand-S.Mamedyarov

311
Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2015

Black to Play

White has a space advantage and his pieces are deployed harmoniously. The black
position is quite solid. There’s a weakness on d6, but this isn’t serious. There is
another one on a4, but this also has its merits in that it artificially isolates the c4-
pawn. Black needs to decide how to proceed.

Exercise: What would you play with Black?

22 ... Red8?!
Answer: A ‘normal’ move, seeking to bolster the defence of d6. However, it
becomes apparent that it is based on a lapse in “prophylactic thinking”, to use
Dvoretsky’s term. In other words Black fails to ask himself, “how can my opponent
respond?”
A good reply was 22 ... Nxf3+! 23 Bxf3 and now there is a choice between more
than one satisfactory line, such as 23 ... Bxd4 (it’s also worth considering 23 ... Red8,
defending d6 in advance and planning after 24 Be2 to regroup with 24 ... Bxd4 25
Rxd4 Nc5 26 Qc3 Nb3 27 R4d3 c5, gaining the d4-square) 24 Rxd4 Ne5 25 Be2
and now Black has the counter-strike 25 ... b5.
Playing 22 ... b5 immediately when the pieces are less active is not as clear. After
23 Bxc5 Nxc5 24 Nxe5 dxe5 25 cxb5 cxb5 26 Qc3 White is slightly better.

Exercise: How can White show that Black’s move wasn’t the best?

312
 4 Simplification

23 Nh4!
Answer: The knight moves to the edge of the board but with the idea of bringing
it to f5 at an opportune moment and playing f4.
23 ... Bxd4 24 Rxd4 c5
An interesting sacrifice to start active dark square play. The alternative was 24 ...
Nc5 but after 25 Nhf5 Bxf5 both 26 Nxf5 and 26 exf5, threatening 27 f6, are
promising.
25 Rxd6 Nc6
Black’s manoeuvre has defined the d4-square as an ideal destination for this steed.
26 Nhf5 Nd4 27 Qd2 Ne5

Exercise: The point of Black’s idea, begun with 23 ... Bxd4, and involving a
subsequent pawn sacrifice, is now apparent. How did White respond?

28 Rd5!
Answer: A typical offer of the exchange, reminiscent of similar sacrifices by
Petrosian and Botvinnik, although there are also important examples in Anand’s
praxis, such as his victory over Kasparov in their match in New York 1995.
Instead 28 Rxd8+ Rxd8 would give Black sufficient compensation, for example
after 29 Nxd4 Rxd4 30 Qc2 b5!?.
28 ... Bxd5 29 cxd5 Qb6 30 f4
The materialistic computer prefers 30 Nxd4 cxd4 31 Qxd4, with two pawns for
the exchange. However, the move played, preserving the queens, is more ambitious
from the practical point of view.

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 30 ... Ng6 31 Bc4
Defending the d5-pawn, with the idea of playing e5. Black urgently needs to
look for counterplay.
31 ... Qa5
With the plan of expanding on the queenside and opening lines.
32 Qf2 b5
If Black exchanges with 32 ... Nxf5 then, in addition to 33 Nxf5, White has 33
exf5 Nh4 and now once again the pawn sacrifice mentioned earlier 34 f6! with a
dangerous attack.
33 Nxd4 cxd4 34 Ba2
The consistent continuation, with the idea of playing e5. Another idea was 34
Bd3 planning f5-f6 or Nf5, followed by Qg3 and/or h4.
34 ... b4

35 Nf5
Anand once again plays the healthiest move. The knight not only puts pressure
on Black’s kingside but also plans Nxd4.
However, the apparently dubious advance 35 f5, giving Black the e5-square, was
worth consideration. If 35 ... Ne5 then 36 Nh5, planning 37 Qg3.
35 ... bxa3
Naturally Black needs open lines in order to try to invade the white position. In
contrast, 35 ... b3? 36 Bb1 would leave White with a free hand.
36 bxa3 Qc3 37 e5
And White carries out his idea. However, Black has also made progress with his
plan of counterattack on the queenside.
37 ... Rab8

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 4 Simplification

Very natural, but 37 ... Rdb8! deserved attention and after 38 Rd2 Qxa3 if White
plays 39 Nxd4 then 39 ... Qc1+ 40 Kh2 a3, with the idea of ... Rb2, and the rook on
a8 is very well placed.
38 Rd2

38 ... Qxa3?
Now the pawn is less important. Black could gain good play with 38 ... d3! and
after 39 d6 neutralise the a2-bishop with 39 ... Rb3!, followed by ... Rdb8.
39 Nxd4 Qc1+ 40 Kh2 Rbc8
Now 40 ... a3? fails to 41 Nc6.
Here 40 ... Rd7 has been suggested, but Black’s difficulties don’t disappear after
41 d6, preparing e6 or Nf5.

Exercise: How can White take a big step forward?

41 d6!
Answer: The complete triumph of the idea initiated with 30 f4. The pawns
continue their advance and White’s two minor pieces control many vital squares.
41 ... a3 42 Nf5
Threatening to win with 43 Bxf7+ Kxf7 44 Qa7+.
42 ... Rf8 43 d7 1-0
If 43 ... Rcd8 then 44 Qd4 and e6.

Generally it suits the side with less space to exchange a piece to gain some mobility.
rarely can the result have been as satisfactory as in Game 50; with an accurate
manoeuvre Black was able to solve his problems and equalise.

315
 White failed to adapt to the new situation and played ambitiously but objectively
poorly, and Black gained a slight initiative.
White didn’t find the best regrouping plan and Black’s initiative continued to
grow. Nevertheless, in the ensuing complex struggle both sides took some sub-
optimal decisions, but finally Black was able to exploit his material advantage to win
the endgame.

Game 50
B.Parma-V.Smyslov
Moscow 1971

Black to Play

The initial impression is very unfavourable for Black, who has a bad pawn
structure and poorly coordinated pieces, whereas White has all his pieces developed.

Exercise: Show that in this case the appearances are deceptive, due to a
particular element in the position.

13 ... Bxd4!
Answer: The first step.
14 Rxd4

Exercise (simple): What was the idea?

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 4 Simplification

14 ... d5!
Answer: “After the advance of his pawn to d5 (15 exd6 is not possible because of
15 ... Qe1+) Black has solved his development problems”, commented Smyslov.
We should note that, were it not for the weakness of White’s back rank the initial
evaluation would have been correct.
15 Bg3?!
White fails to adapt to the new situation and wants to fight for the initiative, but
it soon becomes apparent that he is in no condition to do so. It was safer to bring the
last piece into play with 15 Re1 and reinforce e5, at the same time preparing to
retreat the f4-bishop to d2 or c1. Smyslov noted that 15 h3 could be answered with
15 ... Nc5, not fearing the attacking manoeuvre 16 Bg3 Ne6 17 Rh4 h6 18 Rd1 Qg5
19 Qf3 and here he indicated 19 ... Nf8, “with a solid defence”, although 19 ... Qg6,
followed by ... a5, ... Rb8, etc., also seems good.

Exercise: How to continue with Black?

15 ... Nd6!
Answer: The white back rank issue allows Black to bring his knight to a more
active square.
16 Re1 Nf5

The results of the 13 ... Bxd4! trade are already very positive. In fact the situation
has been transformed. Smyslov noted that the transfer of the knight from b7 to f5
means that Black can now start thinking about seizing the initiative.
17 Rdd1

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 If 17 Rf4 Smyslov indicated an advantageous line for Black: 17 ... g6 (not
immediately 17 ... f6 18 Re2! g6? 19 exf6) 18 Qf3 f6!, again exploiting the weakness
of White’s back rank.

Exercise: How did Black seize the initiative?

17 ... Qb4
Answer: “After strengthening the position of the king, Black begins active play on
the queenside” (Smyslov). The otherwise useful move 18 b3 would leave the knight
undefended.
18 Rb1 Be6 19 Qg5 Rab8
Black exerts pressure along the b-file and makes moves that strengthen his
position, before taking any more active measures. Of course, as objectively there is
still no appreciable imbalance in the position.
20 a3 Qc4 21 Qd2
In order to be able play b3 and restore the mobility of the b1-rook.
21 ... h6
Another strengthening move. This providing the king with an escape square
creates more options, as we saw with White earlier.
22 Ne2 c5

The first important step; with this advance Black gains control of d4. White can’t
attack these pawns and must be alert to possible further advances.
23 b3
In his annotations in Informator 12 Smyslov criticised this move and suggested
23 f3, with the idea of Bf2 and Ng3, but in the book of his best games he removed

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 4 Simplification

the question mark. Nevertheless, his initial evaluation is possibly accurate. At least
the move played is dubious compared with 23 f3!, because “if one piece is bad, the
whole position is bad”, and the g3-bishop is contributing nothing useful in either
attack or defence.
23 ... Qa6 24 Nf4?!
The pawn on a3 doesn’t require protection at the moment due to 25 Ra1, so
White seeks a better square for his knight. Once again 24 f3! was appropriate.
24 ... d4
The pawns continue their advance. It was also interesting to play 24 ... c4 at
once, with the idea of taking on b3, followed by ... c5, or else playing ... d4. A key
point is that 25 Nxd5?! allows Black to take the initiative with 25 ... Rbd8 26 Nb4
Qb7 27 Qc3 c5 28 Na2 Nd4, or 28 ... cxb3 29 cxb3 h5. In view of the knight on a2
and Black’s initiative, the justification for the sacrifice is clear, but Black prefers
something quieter.
25 Nd3?!
This natural move is weak, as it allows Black to continue to make progress
unhindered.

Exercise (simple): How did Smyslov continue?

25 ... c4!
Answer: The queenside is opened up and Black has a numeroical superiority
there. The f5-knight supports the d4-pawn, while the g3-bishop contributes nothing.
26 bxc4 Rxb1 27 Rxb1 Qxa3
Here 27 ... Qxc4, followed by ... c5, and later ... c4, was also attractive, but
Smyslov prefers to obtain the passed a-pawn. He highlighted that this was even more
relevant due to the distant location of the bishop on g3.
28 Qb4 Qa2 29 Qb3
“White seeks salvation in the endgame, relying on his activity on the b-file.”
(Smyslov)
29 ... Bxc4 30 Qxa2 Bxa2 31 Rb7
Instead, 31 Ra1 achieves nothing due to 31 ... Rb8.

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 Exercise (simple): How did Black reply?

31 ... a5!
Answer: Retaining the passed pawn because, “It has been assigned the leading
role in the subsequent events.” (Smyslov)
32 Bf4
Finally bringing the bishop back into play. In the event of 32 Ra7 Black could
play 32 ... Bb1! 33 Rxa5 (or 33 Rxc7 Ra8) 33 ... Bxc2, gaining another strong passed
pawn.
32 ... a4! 33 Bc1
If 33 Ra7 then 33 ... Bb1 still works, when 34 Nb4 fails to 34 ... c5.
Following 34 Ne1 34 ... g5! is strong, e.g. 35 Bd2 Rxe5 36 g4 (36 Rxa4 37 Nxc2
Re2 is worse) 36 ... Ng7 37 Rxa4 Ne6, followed by ... Re2, since if 8 Kf1 then 38 ...
Rc5 wins.

Exercise: And now?

33 ... c5!
Answer: An new unit joins the offensive.
34 f4
34 Nxc5 loses the e5-pawn and then the one on c2: 34 ... Rxe5 35 Nd3 Re2 36
Rc7 (or 36 Rb2 Bc4 37 Kf1 Rxc2! 38 Rxc2 Bxd3+) 36 ... Bb1 37 Kf1 Rxc2.
34 ... Rc8?

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 4 Simplification

It was simpler and stronger to continue with the initial plan. After 34 ... Ra8! 35
Nxc5 a3, followed by ... Bd5, Black wins easily.
35 Kf2?
35 g4! was more tenacious. Smyslov gave the line 35 ... Ne3 36 Bxe3 dxe3 37
Ra7 Bb3! 38 cxb3 axb3 39 Rb7 c4 40 Ne1 Rd8

Now not 41 Rb4?, as Smyslov gave, due to 41 ... Rd1 42 Kf1 c3! 43 Rxb3 c2 44
Rc3 c1Q 45 Rxc1 Rxc1, with a winning endgame.
But instead of 41 Rb4 the reply 41 Kf1! is surprisingly good. White gains
counterplay with the threat of 42 Ke2 and after 41 ... Rd2 42 Rb8+ Kh7 43 f5! Black
can’t play 43 ... b2? owing to 44 e6, when White even gains the advantage.
Instead of 35 ... Ne3 Black should probably play 35 ... Bd5 36 Ra7 Nh4, with
some advantage, but much less than in the game.
Smyslov pointed out that 35 Ra7 can be met strongly with 35 ... h5 36 Rxa4
Bd5, when the black pawns advance forcefully, e.g. 37 Ra5 c4 38 Rc5 Rd8 39 Nb4
Be6, “not fearing 40 Nc6 in view of 40 ... Rc8 41 Ba3 d3 42 cxd3 cxd3 43 Kf2 d2
44 Ke2 Rxc6 with an extra piece.”
35 ... Bd5
Now the game resumes its course.
36 Ra7 c4 37 Nb4

Exercise (simple): What had Smyslov foreseen?

37 ... Ra8!
Answer: Preserving the passed pawn.
38 Rxa8+

321
 Equally hopeless was 38 Rc7 Be6 39 g4 Ne3! 40 Bxe3 (40 f5 Nxg4+) 40 ... dxe3+
41 Kxe3 Bxg4, since if 42 Rxc4 Black wins with 42 ... a3 43 Na2 Be6.
38 ... Bxa8 39 g4 Nh4 40 c3 d3 1-0
There is no good defence against 41 ... Nf3. A possible line is 41 Ke3 Nf3 42 h3
g5! 43 fxg5 hxg5, winning a second-pawn, as indicated by Smyslov.

Chances are balanced in the opening position of Game 51. Black conceives a
manoeuvre to improve his pieces and White has to decide whether to prevent it with
an exchange of pieces or allow it and seek an alternative.
The decision that White took is debatable, since following Black’s accurate
response he took the intiative while White was unable to create counterplay. The
defence in such situations is very uncomfortable. You have to wait and be alert to the
possible transformations in the position. Furthermore, in this case, Black also stood
better objectively and White was unable to hold the position.

Game 51
E.Mednis-V.Smyslov
Szolnok 1975

Black to Play

At first sight there is no appreciable imbalance in the position. Maybe Black

stands a little better with his pressure along the f-file, but the bishop on g5 is not
doing much. The white knight stands badly on d1, but it can be routed to a good
post on d5, which might force Black to weaken his pawn structure with ... c6.

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 4 Simplification

Exercise: What manoeuvre did Black conceive as a way of improving his chances?

25 ... Bc1!
Answer: The bishop seeks to become more active via a3-c5, increasing the
pressure on f2.
26 Nb2?
This is the simplest way to prevent Black’s idea, but it leads to a passive position.
If White ignores Black’s plan with 26 Nc3?! then 26 ... Ba3 27 Nd5 Bc5 forces
the knight to retreat but after 28 Ne3 Rf4! 29 f3 Black can take the initiative with 29
... g5.
It was preferable to ‘swallow his pride’ and prevent the bishop manoeuvre with
some ‘ugly’ move or other.
Playing an immediate 26 Qa2, controlling a3 and with the idea of 27 Nc3, is
possible, but it’s rather unpleasant. After 26 ... Qg4 27 Nc3 Qg5, 28 Nd5 can be
answered with 28 ... c6 since 29 Nxb6? fails to 29 ... Be3.
It’s more accurate to play 26 Rg3 first, intending to answer 26 ... Kh7 with 27
Qa2. If Black plays 26 ... h4 instead he weakens his grip on the g4-square and Black’s
position becomes less threatening after for example 27 Rd3 Ba3 28 h3! Bc5 29 Ne3.
26 ... Bxb2 27 Qxb2

Exercise: How can you show that the trade of minor pieces has helped Black, if
only a little?

27 ... g5!

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 Answer: As White has no counterplay, Black can advance his kingside pawns.
It was tempting to play 27 ... Qg4, since if 28 f3 then 28 ... Qxe4!, but it’s not
clear that Black’s advantage is enough to win after 28 Re3, as 28 ... Rxf2 29 Qxf2
Rxf2 30 Rxf2 Qd1+ 31 Rf1 Qd2 32 Rfe1 is a position where Black would find it
very difficult to realise his material advantage.
28 Qd2 Qg6 29 Re3 g4

Question: Admittedly Black has a free hand on the kingside, but the advance of
his pawns doesn’t look dangerous, since White has all his pieces on the kingside.
What concrete threat does Black have?

Answer: It’s true that there are no concrete threats, but White is very passive.
Black plans to play 30 ... Rf4, followed by ... h4, or else 30 ... h4 (and if possible ...
g3), followed by ... Rf4 or ... h3, weakening the white king’s position.
30 h4
White decides to prevent the advance of Black’s h-pawn once and for all, but of
course this is a weakening move, after which White will need to defend accurately.
In the event of 30 g3 another weakness appears, on f3, and this would also
provide Black with a ‘hook’, inviting ... h4, so that after a preparatory move such as
30 ... Kh7, Black could play 31 ... h4 32 gxh4 Rf3, with the initiative.
30 ... Rf4 31 Qe2 Rf3
With the idea of 32 ... R8f4. The exchange of one rook should favour Black’s
offensive.
32 Kh1?
This threatens to capture on f3, but it’s a mistake and now the white position
rapidly deteriorates. White needed to play another passive move, such as 32 Qd2,
and wait.

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 4 Simplification

Exercise: How did Smyslov punish White’s error?

32 ... Qf6!
Answer: Attacking both h4 and f2. 32 ... R8f4! was also effective, since if 33 gxf3
gxf3 34 Qxf3 then 34 ... Rxh4+ 35 Qh3 Rxh3+ 36 Rxh3 Qxe4+ leads to a winning
endgame.
33 gxf3 gxf3 34 Rg1+ Kh7 35 Rxf3
The rook ending arising after 35 Qxf3 Qxf3+ 36 Rxf3 Rxf3 37 Rg5 leaves White
with three weaknesses. Black can win with 37 ... Rxf2 38 Rxh5+ Kg6 39 Rg5+ Kh6
and the threats of 40 ... Rf3, 40..Rf4, etc, make the defence untenable.
35 ... Qxh4+!
Even better than 35 ... Qxf3+ leading to the previous note. Now Black reaches a
rook ending with a gain of material.
36 Kg2 Qg4+ 37 Kf1 Qxf3 38 Qd2
In this position, keeping the queens on is equally hopeless.
38 ... Rf4 39 Rg2 Qxe4 40 Qd1 Qf5 0-1

Every exchange should be assessed accurately. Some won’t affect the position but
others can be crucial. The exchange of queens is often very important, since it can
affect the future role of the kings. That wasn’t the case with Black’s decision to
exchange the queens in Game 52 but it was still of great importance in the
development of the struggle. White was able to put pressure on the black position by
means of accurate regrouping manoeuvres on moves 19, 20 and 21. When, on move
21, Black took an erroneous decision regarding an exchange, White’s advantage

325
crystallised and he was able to continue to make gradual progress towards victory.

Game 52
A.Karpov-Z.Ribli
Amsterdam 1980

White to Play

The position is balanced. Black plans to play ... Rac8, followed by doubling
rooks on the open file. The queen on a2 puts pressure on the b2-pawn and hinders
White from manoeuvring freely, while the b5-rook and the e3-bishop are biting on
granite.
It’s essential for White to neutralise the black queen in order to gain mobility.
17 Qa1
As 17 Qb3 fails to 17 ... Qxb3 18 Rxb3 Rac8, followed by ... Rc7, White offers
the queen exchange in a different way.

Exercise: What’s Black’s best response?

17 ... Qxa1?
Answer: The exchange of queens fails to maintain equality. In contrast to the
position arising from 17 Qb3, here the white pieces will left better situated and able
to exert annoying pressure on the black queenside.
It was preferable to play 17 ... Qe6, when the queen could help to support the
black position and the chances would remain balanced.

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 4 Simplification

18 Rxa1 Rfb8
Black would like to regroup with 19 ... Rb7 and thus free his a8-rook, but now
White no longer has to worry about the c-file.
If 18 ... Rfc8 there are several promising possibilities, including 19 Ra6!, e.g. 19
... Rc2 20 b3 Rxe2 21 Rbxb6 (Karpov) 21 ... Re1+ 22 Kg2 Ra1 23 Rxa1 Bxa1 24
Ra6 (Kasparov).
19 Kf1 is also interesting, as 19 ... Rc2 20 Rxb6 Rxb2 21 Rxb2 Bxb2 22 Rxa7
leads to an endgame “with only two results”.

Exercise: There now followed a series of accurate moves to keep up the pressure.
How did White proceed after 18 ... Rfb8?

19 Ra6!
Answer: Now 19 ... Rb7 leads to the loss of a pawn and an unpleasant rook and
bishop endgame after 20 Rbxb6! Rxb6 21 Bxb6 Bxb2 22 d4! e5 23 d5, according to
Kasparov.
19 ... Kf8

Exercise: How did White improve his position?

20 Rb4!
Answer: It’s essential to include the inactive rook in the attack.
20 ... Be5
The bishop comes to the defence of the queenside.

Exercise: And now?

21 Rba4!
Answer: Instead 21 b3 allows Black create a fortress employing the idea behind
20 ... Be5, which was to play 21 ... Bc7 22 Rba4 Rb7, as Karpov indicated.

327
 21 ... b5
Karpov and Kasparov both criticised this decision. “Now the transition into the
difficult endgame ‘five against four’ becomes a dream, the fulfilment of which
depends entirely on White’s desire,” commented Kasparov.
According to Karpov, Black needed to play 21 ... Bxb2 22 Bxb6 Rb7 23 Bxa7
Rc8, when White would have technical difficulties in realising his extra pawn.
As the pawn on a7 is doomed anyway, it seems more promising to postpone its
capture and first improve the position by playing for instance 23 Bc5, followed by
Kg2, and then choose how to advance his pawn majority, whether with d4 or f4, etc.
22 Ra2 Rb7

Exercise: How did Karpov make progress now?

23 b3!
Answer: By maintaining the pressure, instead of entering a pawn-up rook ending
with 23 Bxa7 Bxb2 24 Rxb2 Raxa7 25 Rxa7 Rxa7 26 Rxb5, which wouldn’t be easy
to win.
23 ... Bb8 24 Bc5 Ke8 25 d4 Kd7 26 e4
Karpov could also have continued to build up his position with 26 b4, but this
advance would be essential at some point, to realise his advantage in the centre.
Kasparov pointed out that after 26 d5, “Black could have been forced to go into a
rook endgame – 26 ... Bd6 27 Bxd6 exd6, which looks completely won for White.
But he justifiably wanted more.”
26 ... e6 27 b4 Kc8

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 4 Simplification

Exercise (simple): How did Karpov continue now?

28 d5!
Answer: There’s no need for White to build up his position further. The passed
pawn created with this move a very powerful weapon.
28 ... exd5 29 exd5 Rd7
It isn’t possible to break out with 29 ... Be5 due to 30 Re2 (Karpov) and the rook
infiltrates the black camp.
30 d6 Rd8

Exercise (simple): And now?

31 Kg2
Answer: Black’s pieces are stalemated, and now the white king comes into play.
31 ... Kd7

Question: How does White win if Black waits passively e.g. with 31 ... Kb7?

Answer: In that case Karpov indicated that White would break into the kingside
after 32 Kf3 Re8 33 Kf4 h6 34 h4. Kasparov continued this further, giving the
sample line 34 ... Kc8 35 R2a5 Kb7, and now 36 h5!, when after 36 ... gxh5 37 Kf5
Re6 38 f4 Rg6 39 Ra3 Kc8 40 Rd3 Kd7 41 Re3 and White wins. Instead, 39 ...
Rxg3 40 Rxg3 Kxa6 41 Rf7 is no better.
Something similar would occur after 31 ... Re8 32 Kf3.
32 Re2!

329
 Here 32 R2a5 Ke6 33 Rxb5 Rd7 34 Rba5 Bxd6 35 Bxa7 was also good, as
Kasparov pointed out.
32 ... Kc8
The exchange of rooks after 32 ... Re8 33 Rxe8 Kxe8 34 Kf3 Kd7 35 Ke4 Ke6 36
g4, or 36 h4, would leave Black paralysed. In a few moves White will open the
kingside and infiltrate.
33 Re7 Rd7

Exercise: What’s the winning plan now?

34 Ra2!
Answer: The other rook comes into play with decisive effect. It’s curious that 34
Rc6+ is not as bad as both Karpov and Kasparov thought. Although 34 ... Kb7 35
Rxd7+ Kxc6 36 Rxf7 (or 36 Rd8 a5) 36 ... a5! would have allowed Black saving
chances: 37 Rxh7 Bxd6 38 Bxd6 Kxd6 39 bxa5 Rxa5 40 Rg7 b4 41 Rxg6+ Kc5”
(Kasparov), there is something better.

Exercise: What should White play instead of 35 Rxd7+?

Answer: White has the neat resource 35 Ra6!; Black has nothing better than 35
... Kc8.
34 ... a5
If 34 ... Kd8 White can continue simply with 35 Rae2, although 35 Bb6+ is
quicker, while 34 ... Bxd6 loses the bishop after 35 Rxd7 Kxd7 36 Rd2.

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 4 Simplification

35 Rc2 1-0

In Game 53 Black also took a wrong decision when he exchanged queens, leaving
himself slightly worse. Although Black’s disadvantage wasn’t great, White was able to
manoeuvre and regroup more comfortably, making the defence unpleasant. The way
in which White was able to keep creating new problems for Black was most
noteworthy. With his plan begun on move 25, followed by move 27, he forced Black
a take important decisions until finally the black position became critical.

Game 53
A.Karpov-G.Kamsky
World Championship, Elista (Game 1) 1996

Black to Play
Every possible exchange should considered carefully. As previously mentioned, in
many situations the exchange of queens is a very important decision. It can suck the
energy out of an attack, for example, or perhaps lead to a better endgame. However,
it is not always obvious which side benefits from exchanging or retaining the queens.

Exercise: What decision should Black take in this position?

20 ... Rfb8?!
Answer: Black prepares his counterplay on the queenside, creating pressure
against b2 with the plan of advancing his a-pawn, but it will soon be apparent that

331
the endgame is uncomfortable. It was preferable to play 20 ... Qf6 or 20 ... Qd7,
with balanced chances.
21 Qxf5 Nxf5 22 Nd3
Consolidating White’s clear superiority following the exchange of queens.

Question: For now I have only your word for that. What’s the basis for your
assessment that White is so much better?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Karpov, “The knight has taken up an ideal square,
where it fulfils many important functions. It controls the queenside and the kingside,
defends its own b-pawn and blockades the enemy d-pawn. In short, this knight has a
decisive influence on the game.”
22 ... Bh6

Exercise (simple): How did White begin his plan of improving his pieces?

23 Re1
Answer: Of course; as a first step the rook occupies the only open file.
23 ... a5 24 Bg4 Nd6

As Karpov pointed out, the black knight occupies the same square in his own
camp as the white knight, but it doesn’t carry out the useful functions of his white
counterpart.

Exercise: How did White proceed?

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 4 Simplification

25 Re2!
Answer: The follow-up to 23 Re1. “For complete domination it only remains for
me to occupy the c- file, but the c1-square is under attack, so the rook makes a
knight-style move from e1 to c2”.
25 ... a4 26 a3
Fixing the black pawn, with plans to attack it in the future. The price is the
weakening of b3, but the advantages outweigh this drawback.
26 ... Ra5

Exercise: How should White respond to this attack?

27 Rc2!
Answer: More energetic than 27 Bf3 Rb3 28 Rd1 Ra7, with the idea of 29 ...
Nc4, and it would be difficult for White to make progress.
Instead the immediate 28 ... Nc4, intending to sacrifice the exchange after 29
Rc2 with 29 ... Rxd3 30 Rxd3 Ne5, would lead to a somewhat worse position.
White would play, not 31 Be2, in view of 31 ... Nxd3 32 Bxd3 Rxd5 33 Rxc7
“with an imminent draw” (Karpov), but the accurate sequence 31 d6! (to clear the c-
file and create a passed pawn) 31 ... cxd6 32 b4! Ra7 (the move 31 d6! would more
than justify itself in the event of 32 ... axb3 33 Rxb3 d3 34 Rc8+! Kg7 35 Bd1) 33
Be2 Nxd3 34 Bxd3, and in spite of the lost pawn, the passed pawn on b5 gives some
advantage to White.
27 ... Rxd5
If 27 ... Rb7 then 28 Bd7 is very unpleasant, so the exchange is forced.
28 Rxc7
The exchanges White have proved to be in White’s favour. His rook has
penetrated along the c-file and the weakness on a4 will be more uncomfortable than
the one on b2.
28 ... Ra5 29 Bf3 Bg5 30 Rd1
Karpov commented that if White could play 30 Re1, occupying the open file,
followed by and then 31 Bd1, White would obtain a very favourable position, but
Black can prevent this with 30 ... Rb3!. After the move played Black must take into
account a timely Nb4.
30 ... Rc8
By exchanging the annoying rook Black reduces White’s dynamic chances.
31 Rxc8+ Nxc8

333
 Exercise: White’s advantage is minimal, based on the structural weakness of the
pawns on d4 and a4, but something more is needed to enable White to exploit
this. How did Karpov proceed?

32 h4!
Answer: Forcing the bishop to choose a diagonal, enabling White to activate his
rook on the c-file.
32 ... Bf6
In the event of 32 ... Bh6 White would play 33 Nb4 and after 33 ... Bg7 White
plays 34 Rc1 in any case.
33 Rc1 Nd6 34 Kf1
The white monarch move towards the centre, to be able to restrain the d4-pawn
and thus give the d3-knight more freedom of movement.
34 ... Be7 35 Ke2 Kf8 36 Rc7 Bf6 37 Kd2

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 4 Simplification

37 ... h5
In Informator Karpov criticised this natural move. It weakens the black structure,
which might be important in an ending, since it could present a target for the white
bishop, or to be precise, it would limit Black’s chances, since some endgames would
no longer be viable.
38 Ke2 Nf5?!
This isn’t the best try, but it wouldn’t be easy to defend in the event of 38 ... Bd8
39 Rc5 Rxc5 40 Nxc5 Nc4 41 Nxa4 Bf6, when the structural weakness on the
kingside mentioned by Karpov would soon become apparent. For example 42 Bd5!
(better than 42 Kd3 Ne5+ 43 Ke4 d3) 42 ... d3+ 43 Kxd3 Nxb2+ 44 Nxb2 Bxb2 45
a4 Be5 46 a5 Bc7 47 a6 Bb6 48 f4, winning, since the black monarch can’t go to the
queenside because then his kingside would fall. It was necessary for Black to wait
passively, leaving the knight on d6.

Exercise: How did White take advantage of Black’s inaccuracy?

39 Rc4!
Answer: The target is the pawn on a4.
39 ... Nd6 40 Rb4 Ra6
Preventing 41 Bc6 but, as Karpov pointed out, the pawn can’t escape.
41 Nc5 Ra7 42 Kd3
White could also play 42 Rxa4! Rxa4 (if 42 ... Rc7 then both 43 b4 and 43 Nd3
are good) 43 Nxa4 Nc4 44 Bd5! d3+ 45 Kxd3 Nxb2+ 46 Nxb2 Bxb2 47 a4,
reaching the same endgame as before.
42 ... Rc7 43 Nxa4

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 The white position, with an extra pawn and two connected passed pawns, is
winning, although he will need to coordinate his forces well.
43 ... Rc1 44 Nb6
This threatens to win another pawn with 45 Nd7+ and Nxf6.
44 ... Bg7

Exercise (simple): What did Karpov play now?

45 a4
Answer: Of course, passed pawns must be pushed. White doesn’t fear 45 ... Rf1
in view of 46 a5 Rxf2 and now 47 Be2 (Karpov mentioned 47 Bd5, which is also
effective) 47 ... Rf5 48 a6 Ra5 49 Ra4 and the passed pawns are decisive after 49 ...
Rxa4 50 Nxa4 Nc8 51 b4.
45 ... Ra1 46 Nd7+ Ke8 47 Nc5 Ke7 48 Kc2
Following the advice to avoid rushing in the endgame. This move prepares the
defence of f2. 48 Bd5 was also strong, but it’s more practical no avoid unnecessary
calculation.
48 ... Rf1 49 Nd3 Ra1 50 Kb3
With the idea of Rb6-c6-c1.
50 ... f5
Seeking to create counterplay with ... Ne4.
51 Rb6
White continues with his plan as well as hinting at the weakness of g6. There is
also a third idea in mind.
51 ... Bh6 52 Bd5 g5 53 Ra6

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 4 Simplification

This was the other idea. The rook supports the advance of the passed a-pawn.
53 ... gxh4 54 gxh4 Rd1 55 Bc4 Rh1 56 a5 Rxh4 1-0
Here the game was adjourned. White sealed 57 Bd5 but Black resigned without
resuming. After for instance 57 ... Rh3 58 Kc2 Rh2 White continues his plan with
59 Ra7+ and after 60 a6 the pawn is unstoppable.

The exchange of queens was also an issue at various points in Game 54, where White
had lost the right to castle. Black initially took an optimistic decision, which he failed
to justify. Following an accurate exchange the advantage passed to White after a
couple of weak moves (20 and 21) by Black who, by that stage, was possibly
regretting his decisions regarding the exchange of queens.
The finish of this, the last game of the chapter, following the sacrifice of two
pawns, is very attractive.

Game 54
F.Vallejo Pons-A.Onischuk
Reggio Emilia 2011

Black to Play

Both kings are in the centre. Black must decide whether the exchange of queens
would be in his favour or not.
13 ... Qf5?!

Question: How can this be dubious? Since White has can’t castle surely it’s in

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 Black’s interest to retain the queens?

Answer: Black, like you, was very optimistic, but with and his knight unstable in
the centre and his queen the only other developed piece, it’s difficult to share this
optimism.
“I was quite happy when I saw that move on the board”, commented Vallejo.

Exercise: Naturally it still remains to be demonstrated why the move played is

weak. What would you play here?

14 c4
Answer: Both the knight and the queen can be attacked. White’s move is good,
but there was a slightly better alternative in 14 Nd4! and after 14 ... Qg6 White can
profit further from the situation of the black queen with 15 h4. As well as harassing
the queen this allows White to develop his rook via h3. White’s position is the more
pleasant after 15 ... c5 16 h5 Qb6 17 Nf5. The move Nd4 also remains latent in the
position and would be the answer to 14 ... Ne7 or 14 ... Nb6.
14 ... Nb4 15 Bd2
It was difficult to choose between this developing move, which prepares Bc3, and
15 a3, which is also pleasant for White after 15 ... Nd3 16 Nd4 Qg6 17 h4. The
exchange of the c1-bishop for the knight would merely help White develop.
15 ... Bc5

Exercise: When White chose 15 Bd2 he had to anticipate the possibility of

15 ... Nxa2, when the knight can’t be captured due to 16 ... Qb1+. So, what’s the
snag with this?

Answer: The problem is that the black pieces are left very poorly coordinated
after 16 Nd4 Qg6 17 f4, threatening f5, and Black has serious problems.

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 4 Simplification

Exercise: How to continue now?

16 Bxb4!
Answer: Vallejo’s original intention was to play 16 Bc3, but then 16 ... Nxa2!
would indeed be good.

Question: Earlier you referred to the exchange of the white bishop for the black
knight, following ... Nd3 and ... Nxc1. Is it really advantageous to trade the
bishop?

Answer: “What’s important is not what leaves the board but what remains”. The
agile white knight will have no reason to envy the black bishop, as we’ll see.
16 ... Bxb4 17 Rd1
Once again 17 Nd4, with the idea of h4, came into consideration. Perhaps this
was slightly more accurate.
17 ... 0-0
Black replies with a natural and consistent move, although 17 ... Bc5, not yet
committing the monarch, was maybe slightly better. In an endgame (which Black
doesn’t want), queenside castling, followed by ... d6, might be more attractive.
18 Qd3 Qe6
And once again Black declines. This is logical since he has already castled,
whereas the white king is still on f1. So, at first sight, keeping the queens on can’t be
unfavourable.

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 “18 ... Qxd3+ 19 Rxd3 is a more pleasant ending for White, although Black can
hold it with good play, 19 ... d6!” (Vallejo).

Exercise: How to proceed now?

19 Ng5!
Answer:
After this preliminary move, driving the black queen to an uncomfortable square,
White brings his only inactive piece in play. Objectively though the chances remain
balanced.
19 ... Qh6 20 h4! Rad8?!
Vallejo was more concerned about 20 ... Rae8!, “immediately attacking my weak
e5-pawn before I have time to coordinate the rook on h1”. Then Black would
maintain the balance after 21 a3 Be7 22 Rh3 a5.
The move played is more passive. 21 ... d6 isn’t really a threat, so White can
continue to improve his coordination.
21 Rh3
This was the idea, although the engines prefer 21 g3, followed by Kg2.
21 ... d5?!
Black wants to open up the game, but it will soon become apparent that this
wasn’t the best move. 21 ... Be7 or 21 ... a5 were more appropriate.

Exercise: “A natural reaction, but already a mistake”, commented Vallejo. How

can this be demonstrated?

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 4 Simplification

22 Qf5!
Answer: “A beautiful idea. From f5 the queen will attack h7 and f7, and the rook
on h3 will try to find better squares, probably d3 or f3.” (Vallejo)
22 ... Rde8
If 22 ... dxc4? then 23 Rxd8 Rxd8 24 Qxf7+ Kh8 and now simply 25 Kg1 and
the weakness of the black king is decisive. The engines indicate that the ‘inhuman’
line 25 Qxc4 Rd1+ 26 Ke2 Rd2+ 27 Kf3 is even stronger.
If 22 ... Bc5, as well as 23 Rf3, with a big advantage, 23 b4 is possible, to deflect
the bishop from attacking f2. After 23 ... Bxb4 24 e6 fxe6 25 Qxe6+ White wins
material.
23 Rf3
“It’s a decent move, and best of all, prepares a very well hidden trap”, commented
Vallejo.
Objectively best was 23 cxd5!, “but during the game I wasn’t sure about the ideas
involving ... f6!”, commented the winner. The immediate 23 ... f6 can be answered
with 24 Ne4, while 23 ... cxd5 24 a3! (24 Rxd5?! f6! is less clear) 24 ... Bc5 25 Rxd5
Bb6 26 Qc2 gives White the advantage, but it’s easier to come to this conclusion
after the game, free from time pressure.
23 ... Qxh4?
Black falls into the trap. Black is able to capture two pawns, the second even with
check, but it’s really a tactical blunder. The opening of the h-file will prove decisive.
The best defence was 23 ... dxc4!, and although there are many attractive lines
there is nothing decisive. White is better after 24 a3 Be7 25 Nxf7 but the struggle
continues with 25 ... Qg6 26 Qxg6 hxg6 27 e6 Bf6 28 Re3 Rb8!. Less attractive is 28
... Bxb2 29 e7 Rxf7 30 Rd8, with an inferior endgame for Black after 30 ... Rxf2+!
and 31 ... Kf7.
24 Rh3 Qxc4+ 25 Kg1 g6
This move, weakening f6, is forced.
26 Qf6 Be7

Exercise: What’s the refutation of 26 ... h5?

Answer: 27 e6 wins, but 27 Rxh5! gxh5 28 Qf5 is quicker. To prevent mate

Black must give up his queen with 28 ... Qe4.

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 Exercise: Now there is just one move that wins, which White calculated when he
played 23 Rf3. What is it?

27 Nxh7!!
Answer: “A wonderful idea, one of the best I have found lately over the board.”
(Vallejo). If 27 ... Bxf6 then 28 Nxf6+ and mate.
27 ... Qg4

Exercise: Attacking both white rooks. 27 ... Qe2 would not be answered with 28
Rdd3? due to 28 ... Qxd3, but would meet with the same reply as in the game.
What is it?

Answer:
28 Qxe7!! 1-0
If 28 ... Qxd1+ 29 Kh2 the mate is unstoppable, while if 28 ... Qxh3 then 29
Nf6+ is decisive
“When you think chess is also an art, you can’t miss the opportunity to play such
a move in your game. I had this picture in mind when I played Rf3!!” (Vallejo).

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 5 Attack and Defence

Chapter Five
Attack and Defence
In this final chapter we’ll see examples in which attack, defence and counterattack all
play leading roles at particular moments. Naturally this is not decided in advance,
but arises from the logic of the position. An attack is launched when it’s judged that
there are sufficient preconditions to justify it.
As Lasker’s games have demonstrated, unless the defender’s position is very
compromised, an effective counterattack, the fruit of a good defence, can have as
much success as a direct attack.
As well as having the right idea it’s important to choose the right moment for
carrying it out. In Game 55 Black mistimed his counterplay and White gained a
small advantage, which increased when Black conceived a faulty plan of
counterattack on move 12 and then increased the tension to White’s benefit.
White’s play also serves to provide examples of favourable or unfavourable
exchanges on moves 24 and 25 as well as of manoeuvring play, for instance on moves
18, 29, 34 and 36. The game culminated in a devastating demolition of the Black
monarch’s defences.

Game 55
V.Topalov-V.Kramnik
World Championship, Elista (Game 9) 2006
Slav Defence [D12]

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 e3 Bf5 5 Nc3 e6 6 Nh4 Bg6 7 Nxg6 hxg6 8 a3

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 Question: What a passive move! Don’t you agree?

Answer: It’s a surprising move. It seems passive, but isn’t really. It’s not just to
prevent ... Bb4. As we’ll see, in the event that White plays c5 at some point, it’s also
useful to be able to support this advance with b4. With a similar idea, later White
played 8 Rb1.
8 ... Nbd7 9 g3
To some extent this is consistent with 8 a3. Other ‘normal’ moves are 9 Be2 and
9 h3.
With 9 g3 allows a future Bg2.
9 ... Be7
The position is very flexible and there are many possibilities of equal value. 9 ...
Bd6 was the main alternative.

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 5 Attack and Defence

10 f4
This was the ambitious idea behind the two previous moves. White prevents the
counter-blow ... e5 and plans 11 c5, since he has a free hand to operate anywhere on
the board.
Once White has played 11 c5 the response 11 ... b6 is not to be feared, since
White would support his pawn with 12 b4, which would be very solid thanks to 8
a3.
We should note, in passing, that White’s more advanced-pawns would be situated
on black squares, restricting the enemy bishop.
The text move didn’t become very popular and later White started employing
other moves, such as 10 b3, followed by Bg2 or 10 Bd3.
From the competitive point of view White’s idea, starting with 8 a3, was a success
in this game. Although he initially reacted well, the exceptionally strong player with
the black pieces is soon practically shut out of the game and his play is notably weak
in the next phase.
10 ... dxc4!
Although for now this gives up the centre, Black plans to attack the white centre
later.
Another idea would be create more central tension with 10 ... c5, attempting to
show that 10 f4 has weakened White’s position.

Exercise: How would you play in that case?

Answer: It would be ineffective and inconsistent with the ambitious 10 f4 to

initiate mass exchanges with 11 dxc5. After 11 ... Nxc5 12 cxd5 Nxd5 13 Nxd5

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Qxd5 14 Qxd5 exd5, the weaknesses in White’s position compensate for the isolated
pawn on d5.
Instead, 11 cxd5! is better and, after 11 ... exd5 12 dxc5 Nxc5 13 Bg2 Nce4 14
Nxd5, there is no adequate compensation. Meanwhile after 11 ... Nxd5 12. Bg2!
(better than embarking on hectic complications with 12 e4 cxd4), the opening of
lines means that the g2-bishop becomes important.
Instead 10 ... 0-0 allows White implement his idea and eliminate the central
tension with 11 c5. Cheparinov mentioned another possible possibility in New in
Chess: 11 cxd5 cxd5, and, after stabilising the centre and secure in his bishop pair and
his space advantage, White can play 12 g4, when Black has problems organising his
pieces. Then if Black responds to g5 with ... Nh5, White would play Be2.
11 Bxc4

11 ... 0-0?!
This move is too passive. After conceding the centre to the opponent, it’s
important to quicly counterattack, before White can fortify and consolidate his
central pawn majority.
Despite its bad appearance, 11 ... c5! is interesting, to answer 12 d5 with 12 ...
Nb6! 13. Bb5+ Kf8. This is with the idea of sacrificing a pawn after 14 dxe6 Qxd1+
15 Kxd1 c4!, etc, but not 12 ... exd5?! due to 13 Nxd5, and once again the opening
of the centre favours White.
Black could also prepare his counterblow with 11 ... Nb6! and after 12 Be2 c5 13
dxc5 Qxd1+ 14 Nxd1 Bxc5 15 b4 Bd6 16 Nf2, White has a slightly more pleasant
position, as Cheparinov notes, but no more than that.

Exercise (simple): How to continue now?

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 5 Attack and Defence

12 e4
Answer: Of course. If it’s possible, the centre should be occupied in good
circumstances like this.
12 ... b5?!
It will soon be apparent that this counterattack isn’t best. Once again it was
essential the attack the centre with 12 ... Nb6 13 Be2 c5!.

Exercise: Where should White retreat the bishop?

13 Be2
Answer: Here we see an unexpected benefit of 8 a3. As ... b4 isn’t to be feared,
the bishop doesn’t need to go to d3 to protect the e4-pawn and can go to a more
promising diagonal, h1-a8, weakened by 12 ... b5.
13 ... b4 14 axb4 Bxb4 15 Bf3 Qb6?!
The cause of Black’s defeat is clearly that he failed to find the appropriate
moment to apply the correct plan, which was to attack the white centre. Also
ineffective is 15 ... Nb6?! 16 0-0 c5, since after 17 Na2! the white centre remains
stable.
It was best to play 15 ... c5!, when 16 e5 Nd5 isn’t to be feared. More logical
seems 16 Be3, but with 16 ... Nb6 (Bareev recommended 16 ... Qe7) 17 dxc5 Nc4
Black would still gain good counterplay.
16 0-0 e5?
This increase in the tension is now counterproductive, because White has no
problems supporting his centre, and the inevitable opening of lines will favour
White.
16 ... c5 is not satisfactory either, because 17 e5 is strong. For eample 17 ... Nd5
18 Nxd5 exd5 19 Be3 cxd4 20 Bxd4 Bc5 21 Bf2 and Black has difficulties protecting
all his weaknesses.
The exchange sacrifice 17 ... Bxc3 18 bxc3 Nd5 19 c4 Nc3 20 Qd3 cxd4 21
Bxa8 Rxa8 doesn’t provide enough compensation. A good response is 22 Rf2,
defending e2 and intending 23 Ba3, or immediately 22 Ba3.
16 ... Rfd8 17 Be3 c5 is no better, in view of 18 e5 (18 d5 is also attractive, when
18 ... Bxc3?! 19 bxc3 exd5 is weak due to 20 e5!) 18 ... cxd4 and now both 19 Bf2
and 19 Na4 Qb5 20 Bxd4 are promising for White.

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 Given how delicate the position is, and taking into account the last line above, it
was preferable to play 16 ... Rad8, with the same idea of 17 ... c5 but without
sacrificing the exchange.

Exercise: How did White reply?

17 Be3
Answer: Of course, the most natural move is often the best. There is no need to
activate Black’s position with 17 fxe5 Nxe5.
17 ... Rad8

Exercise: Isn’t it better to exchange in the centre with 17 ... exd4?

Answer: It isn’t clear that this is better, White would reply, not with the
immediate 18 Bxd4, due to18 ... Bc5, and White’s pressure is reduced, but with the
intermediate move 18 Na4!. After 18 ... Qb5 19 Bxd4 Black has problems protecting
his weaknesses and neutralising White’s strong bishop pair.

Exercise: How should White continue now to support his centre?

18 Na4
Answer: This eliminates the problems caused by the pin along the g1-a7 diagonal
and gives greater freedom to the white pieces.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Question: But doesn’t it leave the knight badly placed?

Answer: It’s true that for the time being the knight is left on the edge of the
board, but it’s more important to gain mobility for the other pieces. The knight can
always return to the centre later, without any great problems, given that Black can’t
exploit its absence from the centre.
18 ... Qb8

Exercise: What now?

19 Qc2
Answer: This was the idea of the previous move. White’s plan is to regroup,
enabling the rooks to occupy the appropriate central files.
19 ... exf4
Instead, 19 ... exd4 20 Bxd4 Nb6 is no better, in view of the simple retreat 21
Be3, after which Black must protect his weak points, while White organises the
advance of his kingside pawn majority.

Exercise: How to recapture?

20 Bxf4
Answer: Of course, opening the f-file with a gain of time. This is better than 20
gxf4, which would allow Black more play with 20 ... Rfe8, threatening 21 ... Nxe4
22 Bxe4 Nf6.
20 ... Qb7 21 Rad1
There are several promising move here. White opts to bring his inactive rook to
the centre, before taking any active measures.
21 ... Rfe8

Exercise: How can White make progress now?

22 Bg5
Answer: White improves the position of his bishop, and creates the threat of 23
e5.
22 ... Be7 23 Kh1

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 It was already possible to recentralise the knight with 23 Nc3, but there’s no
hurry. White first makes a prophylactic move, leaving the knight the option of going
to c5 in some lines.
23 ... Nh7 24 Be3
White follows the well-known rule that side with a space advantage and greater
mobility should not exchange pieces.
Nevertheless, the concrete line 24 Bxe7 Rxe7 25 e5 Rc8 (better than 25 ... Nb8
26 Nc5) 26 Nc3, with the idea of Ne4, was also favourable.
24 ... Bg5

Exercise: Once again the same dilemma - to exchange, or not?

25 Bg1!
Answer: Here it’s definitely best to follow the above-mentioned rule. Instead, 25
Bxg5 Nxg5 26 Bg2 Ne6 would unnecessarily improve the black position.
25 ... Nhf8 26 h4
This and the next move are interchangeable. White forces start to advance.
26 ... Be7

Exercise (simple): What’s the best continuation now?

27 e5
Answer: The complement of the plan initiated with 26 h4, forcing an unpleasant
retreat and allowing the light-squared bishop to come powerfully into play.
27 ... Nb8 28 Nc3

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 5 Attack and Defence

Just as on move 21, before entering any complications White decides to

recentralise his inactive piece. Now Black must take into account the advance d5,
which would follow 28 ... Ne6 for example.
28 ... Bb4 29 Qg2
Once more White is fighting for control of the d5-square.
29 ... Qc8
If 29 ... Nfd7, preventing 30 d5 due to 30 ... Nxe5 then, as well as the promising
moves 30 h5 and 30 Ne4, White has the elegant regrouping manoeuvre 30 Nd5! a5
31 Nf4, etc, and in a few moves the knight has moved from the distant point a4 to
the heart of the struggle.
30 Rc1
The x-ray on the black queen creates an unpleasant situation for Black. ‘Normal’
moves such as 30 Ne4 or 30 Be3 were also appropriate.
30 ... Bxc3?!
A weak move. This exchange can only favours White, but Black’s position was
already very difficult. 30 ... Ne6 allows 31 d5!, winning material, but even the most
tenacious move, 30 ... Qb7, didn’t hold out much hope.
31 bxc3
The logical recapture, strengthening the centre White and thus freeing White’s
hands. At the elite level of these two players, the white position is winning.
31 ... Ne6 32 Bg4
Over the following moves White is able manoeuvre at will until he has attained
the maximum productivity of all his forces. All Black can do is wait.
32 ... Qc7 33 Rcd1 Nd7 34 Qa2
Further x-ray pressure, this time on the weak point at f7. This phase of the game
reminds me of the situation in a game of tennis where one player has the initiative
and is able to force the player on the defensive to run from one side of the court to
the other to chase down shots.
34 ... Nb6

Exercise: What’s the best plan now?

35 Rf3!
Answer: White needs to double rooks on the f-file. 35 Rd3 with the same idea is
also effective.
35 ... Nf8

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 If 35 ... Nd5 then 36 Rdf1 Rd7, and now the central pawn majority can start to
advance with decisive effect after 37 c4 Nb6 38 d5! cxd5 39 Bxb6 and 40 cxd5.
36 Rdf1 Re7 37 Be3
White wastes no opportunity to improve a piece. Now the threat is 38 Bg5.
There are other strong moves, but this is the best.
37 ... Nh7

Exercise (simple): How can White bring the game to a conclusion?

38 Rxf7!
Answer: And the game is effectively over. If 38 ... Rxf7 then 39 Rxf7 Qxf7 40
Be6.
38 ... Nd5 39 R7f3 1-0

“Distrust natural moves” was a saying of Richard Réti’s. On move 13 of Game 56

Black made a natural retreat, when the most accurate move was an untypical one
which would have prevented White from improving his position in the centre. Black
was left slightly worse and his inferiority became more serious when shortly after, on
move 16, he failed to counter appropriately and White was able to consolidate his
central control and then manoeuvre more easily.
Once Black took the risk of opening the position, White’s bishop pair helped
him gain a decisive attack.

Game 56
V.Topalov-B.Xiangzhi

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 5 Attack and Defence

Sofia MTel Masters 2008

Slav Defence [D19]

1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 dxc4 5 a4 Bf5 6 e3 e6 7 Bxc4 Bb4 8 0-0 0-0 9

Qe2 Ne4
An old move, played in the first half of the twentieth century. Black holds up
White’s e4-advance. The main line is 9 ... Nbd7 10 e4 Bg6 11 Bd3, which has been
played many times, including games in important events such as the Topalov-
Kramnik match for the
world title in 2006.

10 Ne5
“The most ambitious move,” commented Topalov.

Question: Is this better than 10 Bd3? That’s the most usual move, isn’t it?

Answer: Yes, but opening theory is very dynamic. Other common moves are 10
Na2 and 10 Nxe4.
Topalov commented after this game that “in that case White can only aspire to a
minimal advantage” Nevertheless Topalov’s move has never become very popular.
10 ... Nd7
Accepting the pawn with 10 ... Nxc3?! 11 bxc3 Bxc3 12 Ra3 Bb4 as played in the
game B.Sahl-E.Parr, Gausdal 2001, is risky due to 13 Rb3 a5 14 e4, according to
Topalov. After 14 ... Bg6 there are several attractive continuations, such as 15 Rh3
Qxd4 16 Nxg6 hxg6 17 Rd1 Qe5 18 f4 Qc5+ 19 Be3 Qe7 20 f5, with an
unstoppable attack.

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 Accepting the pawn with 10 ... Bxc3?! 11 bxc3 Nxc3? is also bad due to 12 Qb2.
11 Nxd7 Qxd7

Exercise: How to proceed now?

12 Na2
Answer: This was the idea behind 10 Ne5. White avoids further exchanges and
prepares the creation of a strong pawn centre with f3 and e4. The knight on a2 will
have no difficulty in coming back into play later.
12 ... Be7
The bishop retreats to its most natural square.
An important game (albeit a blindfold one) continued 12 ... Ba5 13 b4 Bc7 14 f3
Nd6 15 Bb3 Bg6 16 e4 and White has implemented his plans, gaining a “pleasant
space advantage,” to quote Topalov. In L.Van Wely-B.Gelfand, Monte Carlo 2006,
Black played 16 ... Rae8, seeking to strike back with ... f5, but this didn’t work out
well. Instead 16 ... a5 is interesting.
13 f3 Nf6?!
The most natural retreat, but it allows White’s plans to proceed unhindered.
It seems more precise to play 13 ... Nd6 and after 14 Bb3 challenge the white
centre with 14 ... Bg6 (14 ... Bf6 15 Rd1 e5 was suggested by Topalov) 15 e4 Kh8,
preparing ... f5 or ... f6. This was played soon after in a game E.L’Ami-E.Bareev,
Amsterdam 2008.
14 e4 Bg6
Of course 14 ... Qxd4+?? loses to 15 Be3.
15 Be3

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 5 Attack and Defence

The strong white centre leaves Black’s minor pieces short of squares. Topalov is
making it difficult to advance with either ... e5 or ... c5.
15 ... Qc7

16 Nc1

Question: Isn’t it better to activate the rooks with 16 Rfd1 or 16 Rfc1?

Answer: Possibly. White opts to recycle his worst-placed piece. The knight is
headed for d3, from where it controls the key squares c5 and e5. Now Black has to
come up with a plan, and this is your next exercise.

Exercise: What would you play as Black?

16 ... a5?
Answer: This is a common move in the Slav and in this instance it serves to
hinder one of White’s ideas, which was to gain space with a timely b4. However, this
is a position where concrete measures are required, rather than moves of a general
nature.
The counterblow 16 ... c5! was an acceptable way to relieve some of the pressure.
After 17 Nb3 cxd4 18 Nxd4, with the idea of Rac1, Black can play 18 ... Bd6 19 g3
Qe7, with a reasonable position.
17 Nd3 Nd7 18 Rac1
The x-ray on the queen hinders the counter-blows ... e5 and ... c5.
18 ... Rfe8

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 Bu plans the typical Slav manoeuvre to recycle the g6-bishop with ... f6 and ...
Bf7, but first it’s necessary to protect the pawn on e6.
19 g3 Bd6

20 Nf4!
This prevents Black’s idea, and threatens 21 e5, followed by 22 h4.
20 ... e5?!
“Opening the position when the opponent has the bishop pair never is never a
good idea” commented Topalov en New in Chess. Topalov considered that the lesser
evil was 20 ... Bxf4 21 Bxf4 Qb6, considering that White would still be better. 21 ...
e5 22 dxe5 Nxe5, followed by ... Kh8 and ... f6 was another possibility, although also
with some advantage to White.

Question: Hmm, but in that case doesn’t the position open up for White’s bishop
pair.

Answer: Certainly. But, as we’ll see, the situation in the game is more than
favourable for Black.
21 Nxg6 hxg6

Exercise: How to continue now?

22 f4!
Answer: White’s plan is to become active on the f-file and especially target the f7-
square.
22 ... exd4

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 5 Attack and Defence

The complications following the sacrifice 22 ... exf4 23 e5 Nxe5 favour White,
who can exploit the weakness of f7 after 24 dxe5 Rxe5 25 Rxf4 Rxe3 26 Rxf7! (even
better than 26 Qxe3 Bxf4) 26 ... Rxe2

Exercise (simple): What’s the strongest move here?

Answer: 27 Rf4+! (not 27 Rxc7+?? Kh7 and the advantage evaporates) 27 ... Qf7
(27 ... Kh7 allows mate.) 28 Rxf7, winning.
23 Bxd4
White’s advantage is considerable (perhaps winning, according to Topalov). Black
has great difficulty defending against the pressure on f7.
23 ... b6?!
A miscalculation. Black wants to play 24 ... Bc5 (if 23 ... Bc5 immediately then
24 Bxf7+), but can’t afford to waste a single tempo. It’s hard to see a much better
continuation.

Exercise (simple): Which move is the most consistent with the plan indicated
above?

24 f5!
Answer: Of course. This strong move would also be the response 23 ... Nf8.
24 ... g5 25 Qh5 Nf6
Or 25 ... Ne5 26 f6 g6 (or 26 ... gxf6 27 Rxf6) 27 Qh6 Bf8 28 Bxe5, eliminating
the defender of g6 and winning.
26 Bxf6 gxf6

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 Exercise (simple): and now?

27 Qg6+
Answer: This brutal move was overlooked by Bu. Now his position collapses.
27 ... Kf8 28 Qxf6 Be5 29 Qxg5 Qe7 30 f6 Bd4+ 31 Rf2! 1-0
The quickest. If 31 ... Bxf2+, not 32 Kxf2? Qc5+, but 32 Kf1!.

Creating a central outpost that can serve as a base for the pieces and opening
diagonals for the bishops are both logical plans often worth considering. However, as
pawns can’t move backwards, it’s also necessary to evaluate the cost of losing control
of a square.
In Game 57 Black rejected a particular pawn advance on move 13, delaying it to
move 18. White was able to show this wasn’t the ideal moment.
Of course the way forward for White wasn’t obvious. It required a complex
struggle in which White held a space advantage and had greater mobility. Then,
thanks to a tactical error by Black, White’s advantage became substantial, although it
still required some time to convert.

Game 57
F.Caruana-M.Carlsen
Shamkir 2014
Berlin Defence [C67]

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 5 Attack and Defence

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 0-0 Nxe4 5 d4 Nd6 6 Bxc6 dxc6 7 dxe5 Nf5 8
Qxd8+ Kxd8
Vladimir Kramnik made probably the greatest contribution to opening theory of
the last twenty years when he successfully defended this endgame several times
against Garry Kasparov in their match in London 2000.
Kasparov characterised it as not so much an endgame as “a queenless
middlegame”, emphasising the multitude of plans and tactical complications that the
position contains.
9 h3

Caruana frequently plays this move before Nc3. Most of the time it simply
amounts to a transposition.
9 ... h6
As is the case with many openings, the world’s best players employ the Berlin
with both colours. Although there are many more games with this position that
feature Caruana with the white pieces, there are also quite a few in which he was
Black. One of the important decisions facing Black is choosing which square to move
his king to.
In the match for the world championship, played a few months before this game,
Carlsen chose the plan of 9 ... Bd7, with the idea of bringing his king to the
queenside with ... Kc8, ... b6 and ... Kb7. This plan has also been seen in some of
Caruana’s games, with both colours.
In one of the most recent examples Caruana, playing with Black against So in the
2017 US Championship, chose the plan of 9 ... Ke8 10 Nc3 and now 10 ... h5. It’s
worth noting that if Black opts to play this advance, which weakens g5, it’s essential
for the king to go to e8.

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 10 Rd1+ Ke8
Caruana commented that the king is forced to go to e8, “which generally
speaking is an awkward square “.

Question: Awkward? Didn’t you say that he played this himself on the previous
move?

Answer: It’s forced. Time for another exercise.

Exercise (simple): Why can’t Black play 10 ... Bd7?

Answer: It loses material after 11 g4 Ne7 12 e6!, followed by Ne5.

11 Nc3 Bd7 12 Bf4 Rd8 13 Ne4
This move was a novelty at the time. White prepares to advance with c4 at an
opportune moment. Caruana had deeply analysed this exact line following his game
against Ponomariov, in the Paris Grand Prix event, a few months earlier. There he
chose 13 e6 Bxe6 14 Bxc7, but he failed to gain much after 14 ... Rxd1+ 15 Rxd1
Be7 16 g4 Nh4 17 Nd4 Bd7 18 Re1 Kf8.
13 ... Be7
Caruana considered that 13 ... c5 was the most critical move at this point. He
intended to play 14 e6 Bxe6 15 Bxc7 Rc8 16 Bh2, “with a small advantage, but
Black should be able to defend with accuracy”.

Exercise: How do you think Caruana responded?

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 5 Attack and Defence

Answer: 14 g4

Question: This advance is in the air and can be played at various points. Why
did
Caruana specifically play it here?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Caruana. After 13 ... Be7 he commented, “I was
happy to see this move. After the trade of knights (now forced, since the e7-square is
occupied) White’s position is very comfortable”.
We can deduce from this that Caruana considers that White can now make
progress more easily, without having to worry about the activity of the black knight.
For example he can now play c4 when he considers it appropriate, without having to
worry about ... Nd4, preceded by ... c5.
14 ... Nh4 15 Nxh4 Bxh4 16 Kg2 Be6 17 f3
White is indeed able to proceed untroubled. First Caruana overprotects g4, as a
precaution against a possible ... h5, and now he will be thinking about playing c4.
17 ... b6 18 b3 c5?!

Question: So, you consider this move dubious? This advance is quite usual at
some point. Why is it inaccurate here?

Answer: Having exchanged his knight, controlling d4 isn’t really very useful for
Black. Caruana commented, “A strategic mistake. After the game, Carlsen said he
wanted to use the d4-square but underestimated the importance of the d5-square”.
Caruana was expecting 18 ... Rd7 19 c4 Kd8.

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 He explained that if Black is allowed time to play ... Kc8 and ... Rhd8 he would
have a good position.

Exercise: This position is instructive. What plan do you think Caruana would
have
adopted in that case?

Answer: “White has to act fast,” commented Caruana. He must mobilise his
kingside pawn majority right away with 20 Bg3 Be7 21 f4 g6, and now 22 Rf1!, with
the strong threat of 23 f5.
Returning to Black’s 18th move, we should note that Black is manoeuvring
without occupying e7 with his king, so that he will be able to retreat his bishop in
the event of an eventual Bg3. In general, with his king on e7 Black needs to take into
account a possible Nc3-d5.
19 c4
In the game it’s not important, but Caruana considered that the move order 19
Bg3 Be7 20 c4 was more accurate, not giving Black the chance to play ... Bd8 on the
next move.
19 ... Rd7
In the event of 19 ... Rd4 White plays 20 Be3, when 20 ... Rxd1 21 Rxd1
“doesn’t solve Black’s problems”, according to Caruana.
20 Bg3 Be7 21 Rxd7 Bxd7
Caruana thought that this recapture was possibly an inaccuracy.

Question: An inaccuracy? Why? It seems quite logical to me that the bishop

should retreat, in anticipation of the possible advance f4-f5, which we’ve already
seen is a logical plan for White.

Answer: Yes, this move is natural, but the reason why 21 ... Kxd7 is preferable
isn’t on account of some general rule or other but for a concrete reason. Capturing
with the king has the virtue of solving the problem of its uncomfortable situation.
After 22 f4 g6 23 Rf1 Kc8 24 f5 gxf5 25 gxf5 Bd7 Black has a more pleasant position
than in the game.

Exercise: How did Caruana continue?

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 5 Attack and Defence

22 Nc3
Answer: Of course, this was the idea of the manoeuvre begun with 9 Ne4.
22 ... Kd8?!
Carlsen continues with his plan of bringing the king to c8 and later playing ...
Rd8, but there is a tactical flaw. Caruana suggested playing 22 ... Bd8 23 Nd5 Bc8
and then just wait, “unpleasant though it may be,” but of course this wasn’t what
Carlsen intended.
23 Nd5 Re8
Played quickly. In the event of 23 ... c6, “White should simplify into an opposite-
coloured bishop ending”, according to Caruana, who considered that after 24 Nxe7
Kxe7 25 f4 White would have good chances.
24 Rd1 Kc8??
Carlsen has lost his sense of danger. Of course 24 ... c6 25 Nxe7 (25 Nc7 Rg8 26
e6 fxe6 27 Nxe6+ Kc8) 25 ... Rxe7 26 Bh4 g5 27 Bg3 “is awful for Black, but there
was already no choice” (Caruana).

Exercise (simple): Why is the world champion’s move bad?

25 Nxc7!
Answer: Winning a pawn, without conceding anything in return. This is one of
the few occasions when Carlsen has committed a clear error.
25 ... Rd8 26 Nd5 Re8 27 Be1
An interesting practical decision. The game will be decided on the kingside, but
before advancing his pawns Caruana deploys his bishop to a more useful square to
support the advance.

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 27 ... Bd8 28 Bc3 g6 29 Kg3
In his annotations in New in Chess and CBM Caruana stated, “Now I would
prefer 29 a4!, snuffing out any hope of counterplay”.
29 ... b5 30 cxb5 Bxb5

Exercise: Why didn’t Caruana prevent 29 ... b5?

31 Ne3
Answer: Because the knight is going to c4, where it will be even more active than
on d5.
31 ... Re6 32 f4 Ra6
“Black is trying to create counterplay any way he can, but White is too solid”,
commented Caruana.
33 Rd2
Of course, although 33 a4 would also be favourable it’s not necessary to change
the pawn structure yet.
33 ... h5
Carlsen continues to try to “shake up the board” but, as Caruana said, the solid
white position resists all attempts to complicate the play and this advance has
consequences favourable to White.
34 gxh5 gxh5

Exercise: How did Caruana continue?

35 Nf5!
Answer: Of course. White moves his knight to the square made available on the
previous move. The knight is now headed for d6. White’s advantage is both material
and strategic.
35 ... Rg6+ 36 Kh2 Bc6 37 Nd6+ Kb8 38 f5 Rg8

Exercise: What’s the most accurate move?

39 f6!
Answer: It’s important to restrict the possible activity of the d8-bishop, which
can no longer move to h4, which it would have done after 39 Nxf7?.
39 ... Bb6

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: Black is still trying to activate his dark-squared bishop. How should
White respond?

40 Nc4
Answer: The safest move, considering that it was the last move before the time
control, but it isn’t the best. With more time to think Caruana would probably have
played 40 Nxf7!, based on the fact that if 40 ... c4 White wins by giving his monarch
an escape square on h3 with 41 h4!
40 ... Re8?!
It was more tenacious to play 40 ... Bc7, when 41 Ba5 “is probably winning for
White, but he could have put up serious resistance”, according to Caruana. Today’s
merciless engines see no chance for Black to save this endgame.
41 Nd6 Rg8 42 Nxf7!
Now, with time to think, White captures the pawn. “A pawn is a pawn, after all”,
wrote Caruana.
42 ... c4 43 h4 Rg4

Exercise: What’s the move that Caruana didn’t until after the time control?

44 e6!
Answer: The pawn advances and allows the bishop to join the defence from e5.
44 ... Be3 45 Be5+!
Controlling f4.
45 ... Ka8 46 Rd8+ Kb7 47 Bg3 c3

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 There are several ways to deal with advance of this pawn, for example 48 Nd6+
Kb6 49 Rb8+ Ka6 (or 49 ... Kc5 50 f7 with a mating attack) 46 Rc8. Caruana opts
for an effective manoeuvre using just his rook.
48 Rb8+ Ka6 49 Rc8

49 ... Bd5

Question: But doesn’t Black have the spectacular resource 49 ... Rc4 here?

Answer: It’s playable, but Caruana had foreseen it and over the board he had
worked out the line 50 bxc4 c2 51 Rxc6+ Ka5 52 Bc7+ Ka4 53 Ra6+ Kb4 54 Bd6+
Kc3 55 Ba3. In his annotations he wrote humorously, “Good calculation, but
unfortunately I missed mate in two moves with 52 Be1+”
50 Rxc3 Bd4 51 Rd3 Re4 52 Rd2 Rxe6 53 Ng5 1-0
Winning a piece.

I once read an annotation which said something along the lines of, “the top players
avoid technical positions like the plague”. What was meant by this was that they
avoid worse positions where the opponent can make unhindered progress and where
there are no clear chances of counterplay. The best way to avoid such positions is
generally to sharpen the struggle at all costs. This is what happens in Game 58. To
avoid landing in an unpleasant position, White plans a radical transformation of the
position, starting on move 15.
A complicated struggle ensued, with a maze of tactical complications where in
the end Black prevailed.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Game 58
M.Carlsen-F.Caruana
Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2014
Bishop’s Opening [C24]

1 e4 e5 2 Bc4
The world champion plays the Bishop’s Opening occasionally, in order to avoid
the Petroff and leave theory quickly.
2 ... Nf6 3 d3 c6

4 Nf3
This was Carlsen’s invariable choice until 2018, when he preferred 4 Qe2 against
Hou Yifan in Karlsruhe, preventing 4 ... d5. After 4 ... Be7 5 Nf3 d6 6 c3 Nbd7 7
Bb3 0-0 8 0-0 he had gained no advantage but his position was sound and he won a
long manoeuvring game in which, in typical style, he gradually accumulated small
advantages.
4 ... d5 5 Bb3 Bb4+
This finesse, instead of the older immediate 5 ... Bd6, is designed to prevent Nc3,
putting pressure on the d5-pawn, with possibilities such as 5 ... Bd6 6 Nc3 dxe4 7
Ng5 0-0 8 Ncxe4 Nxe4 9 Nxe4. It’s a matter of taste; neither line is better than the
other.
6 c3
The alternative is 6 Bd2.
6 ... Bd6 7 Bg5 dxe4 8 dxe4 h6 9 Bh4 Qe7

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 Black postpones castling and prepares ... Nbd7, with the idea of ... Nc5. For this
Black needs to protect the d6-bishop.

Question: But Black ends up defending his centre. What’s the difference?

Answer: White hasn’t gained any activity. The central structure has been defined
without White having gained any advantage. Let’s listen to Caruana, “Although
Magnus was playing relatively quickly, I couldn’t understand the point behind his
play. I felt I had effortlessly achieved a very comfortable position. The bishop on h4
is misplaced”.
10 Nbd2 Nbd7 11 Bg3

Question: The bishop retreats, releasing the pin on the f6-knight in order to
attack a pawn that’s protected ... what’s the explanation?

Answer: A trivial comment would be to say that it was more logical to play 11 0-
0, something that the world champion obviously knew. Caruana pointed out that
although Carlsen’s move attracted criticism, it was difficult suggest an alternative, one
that would hold promise of advantage, naturally. It’s possible that it was a inaccuracy,
based on a miscalculation, as we’ll see.
11 ... Bc7
The bishop retreats before a possible attack, and not just with Nc4. If Black
castles immediately then Black would need to reckon with 11 ... 0-0 12 Nh4,
threatening 13 Ng6 as well as 13 Nf5.
12 0-0

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 5 Attack and Defence

Now 12 Nh4 can be answered simply with 12 ... g6, followed by ... Nc5.
12 ... Nh5

Exercise: Caruana thought that Carlsen had played 11 Bg3 in the belief that this
move was unplayable because he would capture on e5. What’s wrong with 13
Nxe5 now?

Answer: It’s not very complicated. 13 Nxe5?? fails to 13 ... Nxe5 14 Qxh5 Bg4
15 Qh4 g5, trapping the queen.
13 h3
Caruana suggested that a more accurate way to implement the same idea would
be 13 Nh4 Nxg3 14 fxg3 Nf6 15 h3, relying on White’s dynamic chances, although
he considered that Black would be slightly better then
13 ... Nxg3 14 fxg3

14 ... Nc5

Question: This is very dangerous, isn’t it? I’m looking at the f7-square; this move
seems to justify White’s plan of opening the f-file. Wasn’t it safer and better to
play 14 ... 0-0?

Answer: Naturally Caruana was aware of the danger. This is how he explained his
choice, “A provocative move. There were safer ways to continue, but I was already
playing for the maximum”.
14 ... 0-0 was admittedly safer, but after 15 Nh4 White’s dynamic possibilities, as
mentioned by Caruana, are obvious, and haven’t required any sacrifice of material.

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 15 Bxf7+
“Naturally, Magnus was looking for the first chance to change the course of play,”
commented Caruana, who pointed out that 15 Bc2 a5 would leave White’s forces
passive and with no compensation for the weakened structure.
15 ... Kxf7 16 Nxe5+
A move that Caruana unsurprisingly let pass without any comment. It seems
obvious, as for the piece White gains two pawns, but the snag is that it opens the h2-
b8 diagonal for the bishop on c7.

Question: How we can tell which is the best continuation?

Answer: There is no obvious answer. It depends on the outcome of calculation.

This can sometimes give a clear verdict but at other times not even calculation can
indicate which continuation is best, so the decision must then take into account the
practical element: which continuations provides easier play for one side, or more
complicated for the opponent.
This position is very complicated. The alternative was 16 Nh4+ when, after 16 ...
Kg8 17 Ng6, playing 17 ... Qg5 seems to give Black no advantage. The game might
continue 18 Rf8+ Kh7 19 Rxh8+ Kxg6 and now not 20 Qf3?, due to 20 ... Bg4, but
20 Qf1!, when 20 ... Qxd2 leads to a draw after 21 Rxc8! as the rook can’t be
captured due to mate, while 21 ... Qe3+ 22 Kh2 Nxe4 23 Rxc7 Qxg3+ 24 Kg1 Qe3+
leads to a draw.
It’s better to sacrifice the queen, gaining a material advantage with 17 ... Qe8 (or
17 ... Qd6) and after 18 Rf8+ Qxf8 19 Nxf8 Kxf8 20 Qh5 Be6 21 Nf3 Nd7 Black is
better, but White has chances after 22 Rf1, thanks to the situation of the black king.
16 ... Kg8 17 Ng6

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: What’s the best square for the queen?

17 ... Qg5
Answer: Here calculation produces a clearer result. It’s best to keep the queen for
attack. In the event of 17 ... Qe8? 18 Rf8+ Qxf8 19 Nxf8 Kxf8 White gains a strong
initiative and has some advantage after 20 Qh5 Kg8 21 Rf1 Be6. Now the king
should leave the diagonal g1-a7 with 22 Kh2, threatening 23 Qxc5, when 23 ... Nd7
is answered with 23 Qg6.
18 Rf8+ Kh7 19 Nxh8
Caruana could see no defence for White after 19 Rxh8+ Kxg6, and he pointed
out that 20 Nf1? is punished with 20 ... Bg4!, which was important to have foreseen.
20 Nf3 is better but then 20 ... Qxg3 21 Qe1 Qxe1+ 22 Rxe1 Rb8 leads to a
ending in which Black’s material advantage gives him the edge. 21 Qc2 is worse “due
to the already familiar shot 21 ... Bg4!, and Black should win”, as Caruana pointed
out.
19 ... Bg4
Played after a long think. The first line Caruana examined was 19 ... Bxh3 20
Rxa8 Qe3+ 21 Kf1 Bxg2+ 22 Kxg2 Qxg3+ 23 Kf1, when there is a draw with 23 ...
Qh3+, but nothing more, after 24 Ke2.
He also analysed inserting 19 ... Qe3+ 20 Kh1 and then 20 ... Bg4 21 Qxg4 (if
21 Qf1? then 21 ... Qxg3) 21 ... Rxf8 22 Ng6, “and stopped my calculation here,
seeing that White is not losing material”.
With many complex lines to analyse and with limited thinking time, it’s natural
to stop calculation, but after the game Caruana found that “White faces a long fight

371
for survival” after 22 ... Rf7 (if 22 ... Rf6 then 23 Nf1) 23 Nf1 Qg5! 24 Nh4 (24
Qxg5? hxg5 loses a piece) 24 ... Qxg4 25 hxg4 Rf2. The move played is good enough
to gain an advantage.
20 Qf1

20 ... Nd3
This spectacular move, leaving three pieces hanging, was calculated by Caruana
on the previous move and came as surprise to Carlsen.
It controls f2, setting up a threat to win with 21 ... Qe3+, followed by 22 ...
Qxg3.
Nevertheless, Caruana noted, “impressive though it may look, it’s not clear if it
was the best chance to win”. Caruana explained that over the board he was focused
on a mating attack and didn’t think about entering an endgame with a material
advantage after 20 ... Rxf8 21 Qxf8 Be6 22 Nf1 Qf6, or 22 ... Qd8.
Instead of 21 ... Be6 Caruana thought that 21 ... Qxd2 22 hxg4 Nd7! was even
better (this retreat is the move that he missed) 23 Qf3 Ne5 24 Qf5+ Kxh8, although
four years on the engines are sceptical about this.
21 Qxd3
21 Rxa8? loses simply after 21 ... Qe3+ 22 Kh1 Nf2+ (or 22 ... Qxg3) 23 Qxf2
Qxf2 24 hxg4 Qxd2.
Caruana had seen “the even more spectacular move” 21 Ng6, but he didn’t take it
seriously. Later he considered that it would have provided chances of defence after a
long and almost forced sequence: 21 ... Qe3+ 22 Kh1 Qxg3 23 e5 Rxf8 24 Nxf8+
Kg8 25 Ng6 Nf2+ 26 Kg1 Nxh3+ 27 Kh1 Nf2+ 28 Kg1 Be6! 29 Ne7+ Kh8 30
Ng6+ Qxg6 31 Kxf2, although here too Black has the advantage after 31 ... Qc2!,

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 5 Attack and Defence

with a strong initiative. The absence of the a1-rook and the exposure of the white
king would make defence difficult.
21 ... Rxf8 22 hxg4
The knight on h8 is doomed and the tripled-pawns “make a comical impression”,
according to Caruana. This, together with the insecurity of the white king,
practically guarantees the recovery of the lost material. Caruana indicated that
White’s main trump is his passed e-pawn, which Carlsen will try to advance as soon
as possible.
22 ... Qxg4
It was difficult to ascertain whether 22 ... Kxh8 first was more accurate. If 23 Nf3
then 23 ... Qxg4, while 23 Nb3? is worse due to 23 ... Bb6+ 24 Kh2 Qxg4, and
Black will soon win material.
23 Nf3?!
White would have better chances of resisting with the counter-intuitive 23 Nb3!
(preventing 23 ... Qxg3), although he would still be worse.
23 ... Qxg3
It was more precise to play 23 ... Kxh8 first, preventing the resource 24 Nf7
mentioned in the next note and transposing to the game after 24 e5 Qxg3.
24 e5+?!
During the game, Caruana was more worried about 24 Nf7!, when after 24 ...
Rxf7 25 e5+ Qg6 Black has a slightly better ending but it would be very difficult to
win against good defence.
Possibly it would be better to retain the queens with 25 ... g6! and if 26 Rf1,
threatening 27 Ng5+, then 26 ... Kg8!, with advantage to Black.
24 ... Kxh8 25 e6?!
This was White’s idea, but since the pawn is going to be blockaded, the opening
of the bishop’s diagonal will prove more important.
“The machine suggests 25 Rf1!, which looks odd but is really a very clever idea.
White is overprotecting the knight on f3 and preparing to meet Rf4 by Qd7 against
... Rf4”, wrote Caruana, with the sample line 25 ... Bb6+ 26 Kh1 Rf4, (threatening
27 ... Rh4+), 27 Qd7!, enabling defence with Qh3.
Nevertheless, Black’s position would remain preferable after 27 ... Qg6, followed
by ... Kh7, and the white position is riddled with weaknesses. black has ideas of ...
Rg4, ... Qc2, etc.
25 ... Bb6+!
An accurate check. Instead, 25 ... Qg4? 26 e7 Bb6+ allows 27 Kf1.

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 26 Kh1 Qg4 27 Qd6!?
“A great move”, commented Caruana, which came as a surprise to him. He was
expecting 27 e7, when Black wins easily after 27 ... Re8 28 Re1 Qh5+ 29 Nh2 Bc7
30 Qh3 (or 30 g3 Qf7) 30 ... Qxh3 (more elegant and equally effective is 30 ...
Rxe7!) 31 gxh3 Kg8.

Exercise (simple): It isn’t possible to support the advance of the e-pawn with 27
Re1 – why?

Answer: Due to 27 ... Rxf3! 28 Qxf3 Qh4+.

Exercise: Caruana wrote that after White’s last move he began to feel uncertain.
He couldn’t see a clear way to victory, but after a think he managed to quell the
sensation of rising panic and eventually found a way to win. What did he play?

27 ... Rd8!
Answer: “Thankfully I managed to find a very nice idea to win the game!”,
commented Caruana. The strongest response to 28 Qe7 is the beautiful 28 ... Rd2!.
28 Qe5

Exercise: How does Black’s idea continue?

28 ... Rd5!
Answer: The white queen is driven from the centre. Black is able to keep the
white passed pawn under control.

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 5 Attack and Defence

29 Qb8+ Kh7 30 e7 Qh5+

Instead the hasty 30 ... Rh5+?? would lead to defeat after 31 Nh2.

31 Nh2?
A blunder that terminates the game abruptly.
31 Qh2 was forced. On move 27 Caruana had calculated the response 31 ...
Qe8!, capturing the advanced-pawn, since 32 Re1 is castigated with 32 ... Bf2!,
followed by 33 ... Rh5 or 33 ... Rd1.
31 ... Rd1+
Winning a piece and the game.
32 Rxd1 Qxd1+ 33 Nf1 Qxf1+ 34 Kh2 Qg1+ 0-1

Playing with the king in the centre naturally has its risks. However, sometimes it
allows you to advance the pawns more easily, and to become active, even to start an
attack, especially if the position is closed or semi-closed.
That’s what happened in Game 59. Black played in a way that objectively correct
but risky, since he as obliged to be on maximum alert for possible tactics. This could
be compared to the situation of a boxing match in which one of the fighters is agile
and quick on his feet and is able to skip round the ring, showering rapid punches on
his more powerful but slower opponent. Logically the fast-moving one has less
margin of error.
With his king in the centre and his pawns advanced Black chose a good
positional plan, but one which required precise preparation. This didn’t happen and
White was able to land ‘knock-out blow’ on move 24.
Once again, to a great extent the error was caused by a miscalculation.

375
Game 59
F.Caruana-V.Topalov
Sinquefield Cup, Saint Louis 2014
Sicilian Defence [B46]

1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 Nc6 5 Nc3 a6 6 Nxc6 bxc6

Question: I’m aware that this is a theoretical line, but I don’t really understand
why White helps Black to obtain two pawns in the centre. Is the best
continuation?

Answer: It’s impossible to say whether this is the best continuation. It’s just one
of the many options at White’s disposal. It’s true that the black centre is reinforced,
but it’s not all positive for Black. Now White can to deploy his pieces aggressively,
aiming at the kingside, and can play e5, cramping Black’s position.
7 Bd3 d5 8 0-0 Nf6 9 Re1 Be7 10 e5
In the chess of this century it’s quite common for both players to play the same
position with both colours. That’s also the case here, but only on a few occasions.
The advance 10 e5 is the most usual move here. The only time Topalov played
this position with White he preferred to keep the tension with 10 Qf3, against
Mamedyarov in Sofia 2007.
10 ... Nd7 11 Qg4

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11 ... Kf8

Question: Hmm, why give up castling rights? Why not play 11 ... g6 instead?

Answer: Here you have an important ally, “11 ... g6 is more natural”,
commented Svidler in his live commentary for Chess24 com, but “all that glitters is
not gold”, as we’ll see.
It’s not clear which is best. It’s necessary to choose between ‘two evils’: lose
castling rights or weakening the pawn structure. In this case the moves appear to be
of similar strength.
The loss of castling can’t be immediately exploited and with accurate play by
Black it shouldn’t cause any serious problems but is more awkward from the practical
point of view.
Weakening the dark squares is not pleasant either. After 11 ... g6 the most direct
continuation is 12 Bh6, which Black can answer with ... Bf8 at some moment, but
most usual is to counter with 12 ... Rb8, with the idea of ... Rb4.
Let’s see an example. After 13 Qh3 Rb4 one idea is to infiltrate with 14 Bg7 Rh4
15 Qg3 Rg8 16 Bf6, with unclear play.
Instead of 14 ... Rh4, Anand introduced a surprising idea with 14 ... Rg8,
sacrificing a pawn and the exchange: 15 Qxh7 Rxg7 16 Qxg7 Bf8 17 Qg8 Qg5
(J.Polgar-V.Anand, Sofía 2005), when with the white queen out of play and the e5-
pawn looking very weak, Black seems to be fine, “at least according to my
knowledge” said Svidler at this point. Four years on, today’s engines regard Black’s
sacrifice rather sceptically and instead of 18 g3 they see an advantage to White with
18 Re3, followed by Rae1.

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 But none of this would have occurred if Topalov had played 11 ... g6. After 12
Bh6 Rb8, a short time before, in Dubai 2014 (rapidplay), Caruana had beaten
Svidler with a prepared idea, 13 Nd1!. After 13 ... Rb4 he chose a different plan,
opening the queenside with 14 c4 dxc4 15 Bxc4 Qa5 16 Ne3 Nxe5 17 Qd4 f6 and
now better than 18 Qc3 Qc5 19 Rac1 a5, which allowed Black to resist (although
the result was 1-0 in 44 moves) it was better to play 18 a3! Qb6 19 Qh4! Rxb2 20
Bg7 and White should win.
Instead of 13 ... Rb4, playing 13 ... Bf8 “is more prudent, but I couldn’t resist the
challenge”, commented Svidler.
12 Na4
A month before this game Caruana had defended the black cause. In D.Solak-
F.Caruana, Tromso 2014, White chose the less critical 12 Qe2, and the continuation
was 12 ... c5 13 b3 Bb7 14 Bb2 g6. With the white bishop on b2, Black can castle
artificially and reach a satisfactory position after 15 Nd1 Qb6 16 c4 d4. The central
structure is one that is frequently seen and Black is fine here.
12 ... Qa5
A novelty by Topalov, but Caruana’s preparation will prove superior. 12 ... c5 13
b3 is the most common continuation.
13 Re2
Played right away. Caruana mentioned that this was an idea prepared for use
against Svidler in the European Team Championship the year before.
“Not a killing idea,” explained Caruana, but the practical effect was devastating.
Topalov was expecting 13 Bg5 Bxg5 14 Qxg5 h6, with a playable game.
13 ... h5
The most ambitious move, played after 20 minutes thought. Black is disregarding
the safety of his monarch and fighting for the initiative.
13 ... c5 was the alternative, when after 14 b3 the impetuous 14 ... c4?! fails to
win material and is risky. The continuation might be 15 Bd2 Qb5 16 Nc3 Qb8 17
bxc4 Nxe5 18 Qh5, which isn’t advisable with the king on f8.
It would be better to play 14 ... Bb7 15 Bd2 Qc7, although after 16 Qh5 the
white position is rather more pleasant.
The exchange of queens after 13 ... Qb4 14 Qxb4 Bxb4 15 c4 leaves White with
slight pressure.
14 Qf4 g5 15 Bd2
A forced move.
15 ... Qc7?!

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Here 15 ... gxf4 16 Bxa5 was analysed deeply by Svidler and he considered that it
leads to an endgame which is complicated but not necessarily worse for Black. A later
game Yu-Grachev, Antalya 2017, continued 16 ... h4 17 Bd2 Bg5 and Black
experienced no major problems.
Although going into the ending was objectively the most advisable, this wasn’t
what Topalov had in mind when he opted for 13 ... h5 and 14 ... g5.
16 Qg3 h4 17 Qg4

17 ... Rg8?!
Black has many possibilities here, but this move allows White to consolidate his
position.
One suggestion was 17 ... h3 18 Bxg5 Bxg5 19 Qxg5 hxg2, but this can hardly
be called a satisfactory outcome of Black’s decision to open the kingside. Among
other things White can play 20 c4 Bb7 21 cxd5 cxd5 22 Rc1, with advantage.

Exercise: Why not answer 17 ... h3 with 18 g3?

Answer: Because this allows 18 ... Nxe5! and after 19 Rxe5 Qxe5 20 Bc3 Black
has the resource 20 ... d4! 21 Bxd4 Qd5, threatening mate on g2.
We should also mention the piece sacrifice 17 ... Nxe5, when after 18 Rxe5 Qxe5
19 Bc3 Qf4 20 Qxf4 gxf4 21 Bxh8 f6 White has an extra piece but it’s trapped. Best
now seems 22 Nb6 Rb8 23 Bxa6!, with some advantage to White.
The most appropriate continuation after 11 ... Kf8, followed by the advance of
the kingside pawns, was to play 17 ... c5, when after 18 Bg5 Bxg5 19 Qxg5 the move
19 ... c4? fails to 20 Bf5!, as 20 ... exf5 is punished with the quiet move 21 Rae1!,
followed by e6, and Black is defenceless. Instead, Black would have to play 19 ...

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Bb7, followed by ... Bc6, and/or ... h3. Possibly this is best, but of course it involves a
pawn sacrifice.
18 Rae1 c5
In the event of 18 ... f5? the opening of the game after 19 exf6 Nxf6 20 Qf3 only
makes the situation of the black king worse. This isn’t the only plan. Svidler pointed
out 19 Bxf5! exf5 20 Qh5!, threatening 21 e6 among other things, and this is also
very strong.
19 c4 dxc4

Question: Isn’t it better to play 19 ... d4, reaching the same structure that we saw
earlier?

Answer: Here this isn’t as satisfactory. White can play 20 Qh5 Bb7 21 b3
followed by f4, which is very strong, not forgetting the knight manoeuvre from a4 to
d3.
The problem here is the bad situation of the black king, for which there is no
compensation either in material or position.
20 Bxc4 Bb7 21 h3!
Taking his time. White can strengthen his position but for Black that’s not so
easy. 21 Bc3 immediately was also possible.
21 ... Rd8 22 Bc3 Nb8

Exercise: Black begins a manoeuvre aimed at bringing his knight to d4. If he can
achieve this without having to make any concessions, he will have a good
position. How did Caruana hinder this plan?

Answer:
23 Re3!
After the game Caruana said that had already foreseen his next move.
23 ... Nc6?
23 ... Rg7 was more tenacious, as Svidler pointed out, bolstering the position of
the king before continuing with his plan. Another possibility which prevents
Caruana’s reply was 23 ... Bd5, although this isn’t as trustworthy. The exchange of
bishops would give White the c4-square for his knight.

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Exercise: How did Caruana respond?

24 Bxe6!
Answer: This sacrifice came as no surprise to Topalov, but he underestimated it.
Caruana said he was surprised that his opponent allowed it.
24 ... fxe6 25 Rf3+ Ke8
25 ... Kg7 had been Topalov’s intention, but now he saw that after 26 Qh5 Rdf8
the move 27 Rf6! is decisive.
26 Qxe6
Practically all White’s pieces are taking part in the attack and he already has two
pawns for the piece. Black is defenceless.
26 ... Rg7

Exercise: There are several good moves now; which is the strongest?

27 Qh6!
Answer: Attacking the rook and preparing the next move.
27 ... Nd4

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 28 e6!
The prettiest of several winning moves, such as taking on g7, and it’s also the
strongest.
28 ... Nxf3+ 29 gxf3 Bf8
If 29 ... Rg8 then 30 Qh5+, followed by mate.
30 Qh5+ Ke7 31 Bxg7 1-0
31 ... Bxg7 32 Qf7+ Kd6 33 e7 wins.

In Game 60 we see a titanic struggle to seize the initiative. White played ambitiously
but objectively unsoundly in the initial phase. His fifteenth move was bad, but of
course this needed to be demonstrated tactically. The struggle was unrelenting and it
was very difficult find the best moves in such a complex position and Black gave
White the chance to reorganise.
Black kept attacking and all three results were possible until White, in a very
tricky position and under time pressure, made a blunder on move 31 which Black
was able to exploit to the full.

Game 60
V.Kramnik-F.Caruana
Dortmund 2015
Grünfeld Defence [D78]

1 Nf3 d5 2 g3 g6 3 Bg2 Bg7 4 d4 Nf6 5 0-0 0-0 6 c4 c6

Via an unusual move order we’ve reached a well-known position from the
Grünfeld, one which became very popular after it was debated several times in the

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matches between Kasparov and Karpov in the 1980s. Caruana played this variation
no less than four times in this tournament.
7 Nbd2

Question: Hmm, this move doesn’t seem very active, does it? Why does the
knight
go to d2 and not c3? Isn’t this stronger?

Answer: 7 Nbd2 might not be the strongest move, but it’s impossible to say.
Kramnik is trying to reach positions which he has analysed and which are likely be
more familiar to him than to his opponent. It’s an interesting approach, although in
this case the result was unfavourable.
The more usual moves here are 7 Qb3, maintaining the tension in the centre,
which was played by Grischuk in the same tournament and 7 cxd5, clarifying the
central structure, which was Topalov’s choice.
The more active move 7 Nc3 involves the sacrifice of a pawn after 7 ... dxc4,
since the standard reply 8 Ne5 is answered with 8 ... Ng4.
7 ... a5

Question: And is this the most logical reply?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Caruana, “This is how you’re supposed to exploit
Nbd2 before White plays b3, since the knight can no longer go to c3.”
Other common moves here are 7 ... Ne4 and 7 ... Bf5.

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 With 7 ... Bf5 8 b3 Ne4 9. Bb2 Ne4 we would transpose to the game
Nepomniachtchi-Caruana, played in the first round of the same tournament, via a
different move order (6 b3 and c4 later).
8 b3 a4
At this point Caruana admitted that he was aware of only one previous game,
Radjabov-Carlsen, Wijk aan Zee 2012, which continued 9 Bb2 Bf5 10 Ne5 Nbd7
11 Nxd7 Bxd7, with equality, but during the game he wondered whether 9 Ba3
might be better than 9 Bb2.
9 Ba3
Precisely. On a3 the bishop is more active. Here it’s clear that Kramnik was more
familiar with the subtleties of the position and he is the first to introduce a novelty,
although it doesn’t give White any significant advantage.
9 ... axb3
After this the fact that the rook on a8 is loose requires special care. This isn’t
particularly difficult for Black, but there would have been no harm in keeping the
tension. In a later game Caruana played the immediate 9 ... Bf5 and after 10 e3
Nbd7 11 Qe2 Re8 12 cxd5 cxd5 13 Rfc1 Qb6 the chances were equal, Topalov-
Caruana, San Luis (blitz) 2016.
Caruana also played this position with White in Caruana-Grischuk, San Luis
(blitz) 2017, which continued 9 ... Re8 10 e3 Bf5 11 Qe2 e6 12 h3 Ne4, and again
Black reached a satisfactory position.
We should keep in mind that these were both blitz games.
10 axb3 Bf5 11 Nh4 Be6

Kramnik had a long think here, which surprised Caruana, who considered that
the continuation 12 e3, followed by 13 Qe2, was natural and in keeping with

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Kramnik’s style. On the other hand it didn’t seem at all clear to Caruana how Black
should continue. He was considering replying with 12 ... Na6, since if 12 ... Nbd7 he
was concerned about a move that he had seen in a similar position from a game
between S.Karyakin and L.Domínguez (Baku 2014) – the advance 13 f4.
12 Re1

Exercise: White played something different. How did Caruana respond?

12 ... Ne4!
Answer: Not complying with the opponent’s wishes, although there wasn’t
anything wrong with allowing White to Play e4. After 12 ... Na6 13 e4 Nxe4 14
Nxe4 dxe4 15 Rxe4 Re8 Black has no great difficulties, but the move played is
stronger in practice, since it obliges White to look for another plan.
“A tactical solution to positional problems is just what I needed,” wrote Caruana.
It suits Black to exchange a pair of knights to relieve his problems of space and
mobility.
13 Bxe4

Question: What a surprise! Giving up the fianchettoed bishop isn’t the most
obvious move, is it?

Answer: Agreed, it isn’t the most natural response, but the other capture, 13
Nxe4, leads to equality after 13 ... dxe4 14 Bxe4 Qxd4 15 Qxd4 Bxd4 16 Bb2 Rxa1.
The move played is typically Kramnik; he finds the most ambitious way to fight
for the initiative. Kramnik keeps his knight, assessing that it will be a stronger piece
than the bishop.
It was possible keep the tension with 13 e3, although Caruana considered that it
would be a slightly better version for Black after 13 ... Nxd2 14 Qxd2 Na6.
13 ... dxe4
More ambitious than 13 ... Bxd4 14 Bb2 which just gives equality.
14 Nxe4
This was the idea. If 14 e3 Black is fin with 14 ... f5, followed by ... g5.
14 ... Qxd4 15 Qc2?
White continues with his plan, but it fails for tactical reasons; it was essential to
play 15 Qxd4 Bxd4 16 Bb2, with equal play.

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 Exercise: Caruana had already seen a few moves earlier what was wrong with
this. How did he respond?

15 ... Bf5!
Answer: A strong reply which exploits the momentary lack of coordination of the
white pieces.
16 Nxf5 gxf5 17 Ng5
The point is that the natural retreat 17 Nd2 runs into 17 ... Qc3!, and Black
wins material after for instance 18 Qa2 Qa5.

Exercise (simple): What did Caruana play now?

17 ... Qg4
Answer: Also winning material.
18 f4 Bxa1 19 Rxa1 h6
Black has won the exchange and has a considerable advantage. However, in the
next phase Caruana fails to play accurately, although it wasn’t easy to find the
strongest line.

Exercise: Instead of 19 ... h6, how could Black’s play be improved?

Answer: 19 ... c5! was much more effective, to develop the knight on c6.
Naturally Caruana saw this idea, but he was concerned about 20 h3, since 20 ...

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Qxg3+ leads to a rather unclear position after 21 Kh1, followed by 22 Rg1, while
retreating the queen to h5 loses the f5-pawn.
“I didn’t realize that giving up f5 is not a big deal,” commented Caruana. In fact
20 ... Qh5! was very strong, as after 21 Qxf5 Nc6 (21 ... Qg6 is also interesting)
White has no way to create serious threats. Black plans to continue to activate his
forces with 22 ... Nd4 or 22 ... Rfd8, but if 22 Bb2 Rxa1+ 23 Bxa1 Qg6 the position
clarifies in Black’s favour, since the exchange of queens is forced.
20 Nf3 Nd7?!

Question: How can such a natural move be bad?

Answer: For tactical reasons, since it allows White to solve the problem of the a-
file pin with no loss of time.
The development of the knight could wait. It was stronger to improve the
placement of the queen with 20 ... Qg7! 21 Ra2 Qf6, defending f5 and still not
allowing White to escape from the pin. Black could develop his knight to d7 or, as
Caruana indicated, further improve the placement of his queen with 22 ... Qe6 and
... Qe4.
21 Rd1!
White doesn’t waste his opportunity to improve his chances by evading the pin
and activating his rook.
21 ... Rxa3 22 Rxd7

Exercise: The position has become complicated. White has all his pieces on good
squares and is about to capture a pawn. Caruana played the strongest move

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 now; what was it?

22 ... Qh3!
Answer: “My only move chance for an advantage is to go on the attack,” wrote
Caruana.
23 Qc3
In the event of 23 Rxe7 the attack begins with 23 ... Ra1+ 24 Kf2 Qf1+ 25 Ke3
Rc1 26 Qd3 and now opening lines with 26 ... b5! is decisive.
Here Caruana commented, “Even something like 23 Qd1 Rfa8 24 Rd8+ Kh7 25
Rxa8 Rxa8 26 Kf2 is unclear due to my chronic weaknesses and offside queen.”
However, despite this pessimistic comment, Black’s material advantage gives him the
advantage. The current engines also prefer the black position after 26 ... Ra3!,
attacking b3, with the idea of 27 ... Qh5, improving his queen and after 27 b4 Qh5
there is no need to fear 28 Qd7 due to 28.. Rxf3+! 29 exf3 Qxh2+, followed by ...
Qxg3, when the material advantage and the passed h-pawn give Black the advantage.
23 ... e6?!
Unable to see anything better, Caruana defended one of the attacked-pawns,
trying to maintain a healthy pawn structure. However, it’s question of tactics once
again, rather than general rules. It was better to play actively with 23 ... Rfa8!, but
Caruana couldn’t see how to continue after 24 Rxe7 Ra1+ 25 Kf2. Nevertheless there
was a decisive continuation, beginning with 25 ... Rf1+ 26 Ke3 Qg2 27 Qf6.

Exercise: Of course it was very difficult to foresee all this with any exactitude,
several moves ago and with limited time, but what was it that Caruana had
overlooked at this point?

Answer: Black wins with 27 ... Rxf3+! 28 exf3 Qg1+ 29 Kd3 Qd1+ 30 Ke3
Qe1+ 31 Kd3 Rd8+, mating quickly. In the event of 24 Rd1 the strongest move is 24
... c5!, preventing Qb4.
Caruana wrote that White’s best was 24 Kf2 Ra1 25 Rd8+ Rxd8 26 Qxa1, with
drawing chances, but after 26 ... f6! Black can still play for a win.
24 Rxb7
“The position is already objectively fine for White”, commented Caruana.
White’s pieces are active and the possibility of a timely Qf6 restricts Black’s freedom
to attack. The engines gives a precise evaluation: “0 00”.
24 ... Rfa8 25 Kf2

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Both now and on the next move it was possible to play Qf6, but there is no
urgency yet.
25 ... Ra1 26 Ke3 Rf1
Caruana continues to play for a win. Here he saw that he could force a draw with
26 ... Qf1 27 Qf6 Qc1+ 28 Kf2 Qf1+, “but I wasn’t quite ready to draw so soon after
having a winning position,” he commented, which gives us further proof of his
fighting spirit and self-confidence.
27 Qf6
Now this is forced, since Black was threatening 27 ... Qg2 and the exchange
sacrifice on f3 is in the air, as we’ve already seen.
27 ... Rf8 28 Rd7
Kramnik resigns himself to waiting. It’s strange that he didn’t continue in the
spirit of his last few king moves and move out of danger with 28 Kd4!, when 28 ...
Rxf3 29 exf3 Qxh2 would be answered with 30 Kc5 and, as Caruana indicated, the
most probable result is a draw by perpetual check on one of the kings.
Black can’t make any progress. If he tries to attack with his queen its absence
means White will play Qxh6 and give perpetual check.
28 ... Rb1 29 Rb7
Of course not 29 Nd2? due to 29 ... Rd1.
29 ... c5 30 Rb5 Rf1

31 Nd2?
Finally White commits the decisive error. 31 Rxc5! was correct. According to
Caruana this “wasn’t difficult to calculate, but with little time on the clock it might
have looked a bit scary”, e.g. 31 ... Rxf3+ 32 exf3 Qxh2 isn’t dangerous, e.g. 33 Ra5,
and the white king is safe.

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 31 ... Qg2 required more calculation, when there is only one way to equalise. 32
Qxh6!, and after 32 ... Qf2+ 33 Kd2 Rd8+ a key moment is reached.

Exercise: How must White reply?

Answer: The only move to escape the pressure is the elegant 34 Rd5!, with Qg5+
and perpetual check on the agenda. After the exchange of rooks 34 ... Rxd5+ 35 cxd5
and then 35 ... Qb6 to prevent the perpetual, the white king is no longer in as much
danger and after the possible continuation 36 Qg5+ Kf8 37 Ne5 Qd4+ 38 Nd3
Qxd5 39 Qh6+ Ke8 40 Qh8+ Kd7 41 Qf6, there’s nothing more than a draw.

Exercise: Back to the game. How did Caruana deliver the fatal blow?

31 ... Rc1!
Answer: Threatening to take on h2 and the threat of a rook check on c3 limits
White’s options. For example if 32 Rxc5 then 32 ... Qxh2 33 Nf3 Qxg3 34 Rc7 Rf1,
with a winning attack, as losing control of d8 with 35 Qxh6 allows 35 ... Rxf3+!,
while other moves allow 35 ... Qf2+, and the white king falls under an unstoppable
attack.
If 32 Nf3 Black can make further progress with 32 ... Qf1, when 33 Qxh6 fails
to 33 ... Rc3+ 34 Kd2 Qc1 mate.
32 Qb2
Now it’s no longer necessary for Black to worry about Qxh6 and perpetual check.
32 ... Rd1 33 Qc2 Rh1 34 Nf3

Exercise: How did Caruana continue now?

31 ... Qg2
Answer: Including the queen in the attack proves decisive.
35 Qc3
If 35 Rxc5 then 35 ... Rd8 or first 35 ... Rf1, threatening ... Rxf3+.
35 ... Rf1 36 Qf6 Rf2 37 Kd3 Rxe2 38 Ng5 Rd2+ 39 Kc3 Rc2+ 40 Kd3 Qd2
mate

In Game 61 we’re going to see competing attacks, with the kings situated on opposite

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wings. In such cases, the speed with which lines can be opened against the enemy
king are of crucial importance.
The way in which White tried to speed up his attack on move 13 is instructive
and once again it’s also important to emphasise that the correct idea must be backed
up by correct timing and tactical precision.
The difference between the attacks is that on both move 16 and move 17 Black
played “the most natural move and ... not the best one”, after which his attack lost its
venom. Of course the success of White’s own offensive required great tactical and
technical precision in a complicated struggle and finding some key moves, such as at
moves 18 and 25.

Game 61
F.Caruana-H.Nakamura
Candidates, Moscow 2016
Berlin Defence [C65]

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 d3

This time Caruana decides not to enter the Berlin endgame.
4 ... Bc5 5 Bxc6
Caruana had some new ideas in this line, which he had played not long before
against the Nakamura himself.

Question: But exchanging on c6 before Black plays ... a6 is a bit strange, isn’t it?
It’s like giving Black a free tempo in Exchange Variation, isn’t it?

Answer: Vachier-Lagrave provided an instructive comment aboit this. After

making it clear that, like you, he didn’t like to give up the bishop without
provocation, he noted that it isn’t exactly an Exchange Variation a tempo down. In
the new structure that has arisen, the black knight on f6 and bishop on c5 both badly
placed and it will take some time to redeploy them.
5 ... dxc6 6 Nbd2
This modest-looking move is the start of a new plan.
Earlier Caruana had played this position with Black and faced one White’s usual
plans: 6 h3 Nd7 7 Be3 Bd6 8 Nc3 c5 9 0-0 Nf8 10 Nd2 (improving the knight and
preparing the f4-break) 10 ... Ng6 11 Nc4 Be6 12 Ne2 and here the simplest is the

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natural 12 ... 0-0, when White didn’t gain much from the opening, although he
eventually won in M.Carlsen-F.Caruana, Zurich 2014.
Subsequently Caruana had the white pieces against another Berlin specialist and
gained very little from the opening after 6 h3 Nd7 7 0-0 0-0 8 Nc3 Re8. Now the
game followed a course similar to previous one: 9 Be3 Bd6 10 Nd2 Nf8 11 Nc4 Ng6
12 a4 Be6 13 Nxd6 cxd6, and now White tried the break 14 d4, but Black was fine
in F.Caruana-L.Aronian, Zurich 2015 (blitz).
6 ... 0-0
6 ... Be6 is the main alternative, preparing to play ... Nd7 with the bishop already
developed. In the afore-mentioned encounter F.Caruana-H.Nakamura, London
2015, Black preferred 6 ... Qe7 7 h3 0-0 8 Nc4 Nd7 and here Caruana employed the
idea with which he said he’d been “toying”, 9 Qe2, and after 9 ... b5 10 Ne3 Nb6,
instead of castling, the game branched off with 11 Nf5 Bxf5 12 exf5, followed by
Nd2-e4.

7 Qe2

Question: So this is the new idea? It doesn’t seem very aggressive.

Answer: Don’t be hasty. Caruana wrote, “This prepares queenside castling and is
one reason for the resurgence of interest in this system”. Long castling possibly
prefaces an attacking race with the kings situated on opposite wings.
7 ... Re8 8 Nc4 Nd7 9 Bd2 Bd6
Both sides’ moves are easy to understand. White continues to prepare queenside
castling, while Black plans the manoeuvre ... Nf8, followed by a timely ... Ne6
(intending ... Nd4) or (less likely) ... Ng6, depending on how White plays.

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Question: Isn’t it more solid to protect the e5-pawn with 9 ... f6, leaving the
bishop
more actively placed on d6?

Answer: It’s possible. Nakamura had already played like this against Adams in
London 2015, but it’s not clear whether it’s better. The negative side of 9 ... f6 is that
it creates a ‘hook’ on g5, which can be important in the event of a kingside pawn
storm by White.
10 0-0-0
Completing the new idea. This move is more flexible than 10 h4, as Caruana had
played earlier in Wijk aan Zee 2016 against Karyakin, or 10 g4, as Anand played
against So in Bilbao 2015. The disadvantage is that, having castled, the white king is
now a clearer target for Black.
10 ... b5
Nakamura starts a bayonet attack, specifically trying to exploit the fact that the
king is now on the queenside, although after the game he was unhappy with this
decision.

Question: But that seems to be the most logical plan, doesn’t it? Attack the
enemy king and try to strike hard before White can get his attack going. Were
there any alternative plans?

Answer: This isn’t a bad decision, but there were indeed alternatives. One
interesting idea was seen in M.Pérez Candelario-G.Sargissian, Villafranca 2010. After
10 ... c5 11 Kb1 Black chose another route for his knight with 11 ... Nb8!, heading
for d4, and following 12 c3?! Black already had his desired ‘hook’, to open lines with
... b4, and he achieved a good position with 12 ... Nc6 13 Ne3 b5.
11 Ne3 a5 12 Nf5

Question: It’s clear that both sides are attacking the opposing king and the most
logical outcome is that “the one that arrives first” will win. What led Caruana to
believe that his attack would be the more effective?

Answer: This is a case in which we can see how chess is evolving regarding the
treatment of the openings. In the past, the answer could never have been given based

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on the degree of objectivity that’s possible now, thanks to the computers. Here
Caruana commented, “We checked this position and positions similar to it the night
before and decided that White has many defensive resources against Black’s
counterattack.”
12 ... a4
The most direct. Caruana pointed out that another move order was possible,
namely 12 ... Nf8, with the possible continuation 13 g4 b4 14 h4 a4 and now there
would be a choice between continuing to advance the pawns or first playing the
prophylactic move 15 Kb1.

Exercise: What did Caruana play in this position?

13 Bg5!
Answer: Naturally 13 g4 was possible but in Caruana’s preparation the idea of
this interesting manoeuvre had cropped up. White provokes the move ... f6, which is
generally useful for Black but which here, given the situation of the kings, benefits
White by providing a ‘hook’ on f6 for his advancing g-pawn.
13 ... f6
Although the engines don’t mind playing 13 ... Nf6, with a self-pin, this isn’t an
easy move for a human to make over the board. The game might continue 14 g4 Be6
15 Kb1 b4 and now White has to choose between 16 h4, 16 Rhg1 and even 16 d4.
14 Be3
For some reason this move took Nakamura by surprise. He commented that in
his analysis, both at home and when he played 12 ... a4 over the board, he only
considered 14 Bd2, after which Black’s attack is the more dangerous, e.g. 14 ... Nc5

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 5 Attack and Defence

15 g4 Be6 16 Kb1 Qd7 17 Rhg1 Bf7 18 g5 Qe6, when 19 b3? fails to 19 ... axb3 20
axb3 (or 20 cxb3 Rxa2) 20 ... Nxb3, with a decisive attack. The bishop is much
better on e3, controlling d4, leaving d2 free for the knight and especially allowing the
queen to defend along the second rank in the line mentioned above.

Question: But why did Nakamura not consider 14 Be3 in his analysis? It doesn’t
look particularly strange to me?

Answer: It isn’t easy to say. One explanation is that at the end of 2015 or the start
of 2016 the move 14 Bd2 was considered by the engines to be preferable to 14 Be3,
but two years is a long time in the development of these programs and today they
prefer 14 Be3.
14 ... Nc5 15 g4 Be6
It was also possible to play 15 ... b4 immediately, which Caruana was intending
to answer with 16 Rhg1, and after 16 ... b3 the game would be similar what we’ll see.
16 Kb1

16 ... b4?!
This move, which looks so natural, is inaccurate. The pawn storm isn’t the
strongest continuation. Nakamura lamented this decision after the game and
admitted that he hadn’t assessed the position accurately. Of course it wasn’t easy
foresee what Caruana had analysed.
Over the board Caruana was more worried about a piece attack on White’s king
position with 16 ... Qd7! 17 Rhg1 Qf7, provoking weaknesses in White’s king
position. Playing 18 a3 “is going to be scary” as Caruana pointed out, due to 18 ...
b4 immediately, or after preparation with a rook on b8. After 18 g5, calturing on a2

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gives Black nothing, but 18 ... a3! is better, e.g. 19 b3 Bxf5 20 exf5 e4 21 g6 hxg6 22
fxg6 Qd5 with a very unclear position. Then 23 dxe4? would be answered with 23 ...
Nxe4!, so White would need to play 23 Nd4 instead.

Question: What’s the big difference between 14 Be3 and 14 Bd2, which makes
the plan of 17 ... Bf7 and 18 ... Qe6 (mentioned in the note White’s 14th move)
less
effective now?

Answer: After 17 ... Bf7 18 g5 Qe6 White can play 19 b3! axb3 20 cxb3 Nxb3
and now 21 gxf6! is winning, as Nakamura himself pointed out after the game. For
example 21 ... Nd4 22 Rxg7+ Kh8 and now, among other things, White can play 23
Ng5 with a decisive attack.
The arrangement of the white pieces with the bishop on e3 is much better
defensively.
The engines are even happy to play the “bizarre” 19 a3, instead of 19 b3, since
after the queen check and the capture on b2 the white king is safe on d2, with the
a3-pawn preventing a bishop check on b4 and White’s attack is very quick. This idea
is also interesting, but 19 a3 is a difficult move to make over the board.
17 g5 b3?
“Again the most natural move, and again not the best one”, wrote Caruana.
Instead, 17 ... a3! was better and after 18 b3 Bxf5 19 exf5 e4 we reach a slightly
worse version for Black, compared to the lines examined above, but this was what he
needed to play in order to stay in the game.
Following 20 dxe4 Nxe4 21 Qc4+ Kh8 22 Bd4, the black position seems on the
point of collapse, but then Black has “a move that I think few people would be able
to have seen in advance”, wrote Caruana, 22 ... Ra5! and the rook helps to defend the
kingside. After 23 gxf6 gxf6 24 h4 Rd5 25 Ng5 Nxg5 26 hxg5 Be5, Black is holding.
Caruana mentioned 20 Nd4, when after 20 ... fxg5 21 h4 g4! 22 Qxg4 Qf6 the
position isn’t clear. Caruana also thought that after 20 d4 exf3 21 Qc4+ Ne6 22 fxe6
Qe7 Black was fine, for example 23 Qxc6 Qxe6 24 h4 the struggle continues.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: Why isn’t this obvious attack effective?

18 Rhg1!
Answer: This move is the fruit of Caruana’s pre-game preparation. In such cases
White can just ignore the thematic advance ... b3. Caruana evaluated the position
thus, “The funny thing is that Black’s attack lacks real punch, because neither ...
bxa2+ and ... bxc2+ open a route to the king. Meanwhile I’ve nearly broken through
on the kingside.”
18 ... bxa2+
Caruana was expecting 18 ... g6, although White’s chances are much better after
19 cxb3 axb3 20 a3, closing the queenside, when he can resume his attack.
After 20 ... gxf5?! 21 gxf6+ Kh8 White can win with 22 f7! Bxf7 23 Bg5 Be7 24
Nxe5 Rf8 25 Nxc6, “a pretty finish” according to Caruana.
If 24 ... Bg6 one of the winning lines is 25 Be3! Qd6 (if 25 ... Rg8 then still 26
Rxg6!) 26 Rxg6! Qxe5 27 f4.
24 ... Na4 is an improvement, although White can continue to make progress
with 25 gxf6 Qxf6 26 Bg5 Qf8 27 Bh6 Qf6, and now one possibility is 28 Bg7 Qd8
29 Bxe5.
19 Ka1 Bxf5
“No choice but to get rid of this knight now”, wrote Caruana.
20 exf5 a3 21 b3 Na6
Nakamura’s first intention was to play 21 ... e4, but then he saw the continuation
22 dxe4 Rxe4 (or 22 ... Nxe4 23 Qc4+ Kh8 24 gxf6 Nxf6 25 Ng5) 23 Rd4! Rxd4 24
Bxd4, with an unstoppable attack or if 23 ... Kh8 then 24 b4.

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 22 c3!
A good move and the strongest from the practical point of view. Black is
prevented from playing ... Nb4 and for the time being the long dark diagonal is
closed.
22 d4 was also objectively good, as after 22 ... e4 23 Qc4+ Kh8 24 gxf6 Qxf6 25
Ng5! White is still attacking, while Black’s woes have been increased with the
weakness on c6 and the poor coordination of his pieces.
However, 22 Nd2 would allow 22 ... e4, with greater practical chances than in
the game.
22 ... Bf8
If 22 ... Nc5 then 23 Bxc5 Bxc5 24 d4 exd4 25 Qc4+ Qd5 26 gxf6 and the
exchange of queens brings Black no relief.

Exercise: How did Caruana proceed?

23 Nd2
Answer: “Very simple, very powerful. The knight on e4 will kill any hope of
attack against the white king, while supporting the kingside breakthrough” (Vachier-
Lagrave).
Once again this is the most ‘human’ move. The engines are also attracted to 23
d4.
23 ... fxg5 24 Rxg5
Despite appearances, over the board it’s not that simple. Caruana commented on
this move, “I had to have seen my next move when playing this one”.
24 ... Nc5

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: What’s it that Caruana had to have foreseen?

25 Rg3!
Answer: “A really nice move, ending all Black’s hopes”, wrote Caruana.
In the event of 25 ... Qxd3 then 26 Qxd3 Nxd3 27 Ne4 Nb2 (27 ... Nf4 loses to
28 Nf6+, while if 27 ... Red8 then 28 Bg5 wins, revealing one of the points of 25
Rg3, as Caruana noted) 28 Rdg1, and all the white pieces are attacking, while the
offside black knight and the a8-roook are unable to help the defence. The threat is 29
Bh6, while 28 ... Kf7 is answered with 29 Bc5!
25 ... e4
Black tries to prise open the diagonal leading to White’s king, but this won’t
succeed. 25 ... Qd5 is equally futile, in view of 26 Bxc5 Bxc5 27 Rdg1 Bf8 28 f6 g6
and now for example 29 Qh5, followed by Rxg6.
26 Bxc5
26 dxe4 was also good, but Caruana prefers to place his knight on e4. Lasker
would possibly have played the same.
26 ... Bxc5
26 ... exd3 fails to 27 Qg4.
27 Nxe4
The black position is collapsing. All White’s pieces are placed harmoniously and
his attack will reap a decisive material advantage.
27 ... Bd6 28 Rh3
With the idea of 29 Qh5.
28 ... Be5

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 If 28 ... Qg5, one of the ways to make progress is 29 Qf3 Qf4 30 Qh5 h6 31
Rh4 (seeking more than winning the exchange with 31 Nf6+) 31 ... Qe5 32 Rg1 Kf8
33 Qg6, and there is no good defence against 34 d4 or 34 f6.
29 d4 Bf6 30 Rg1 Rb8

Exercise (simple): “30 ... Bxd4 was the last crucial thing to calculate”,
commented
Caruana. How can this be refuted?

Answer: 31 Rd3 wins, since if 31 ... Bxc3+ 32 Rxc3 Qd4 White has the defence
33 Qc4+ Qxc4 34. Rxc4.

Exercise: With a decision reminiscent of Lasker, Caruana chose the most

practical
move. What did he play?

31 Kxa2
Answer: “Finally capturing the doomed-pawn”, commented Caruana; the white
king defends b3 and is now safe enough for the queenside pawns to regains their
mobility.
31 ... Bh4 32 Rg4 Qd5 33 c4 1-0
Winning a piece.

In Game 62 Black committed an inaccuracy early on, move 8 to be precise. It didn’t

seem important, but White initiated a strong plan on move 11, which soon became

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 5 Attack and Defence

decisive when Black failed to respond with the necessary precision. The finish was
very attractive.

Game 62
W.So-V.Akobian
USA Championship, Saint Louis 2016
French Defence [C10]

1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 Nc3 dxe4 4 Nxe4 Nd7 5 Nf3 Ngf6 6 Nxf6+ Nxf6 7 c3 c5 8

Be3

8 ... cxd4?!
Black parries the threat of 9 dxc5, deviating from the most usual move, 8 ... Qc7.

Question: But why is this dubious? Black exchanges and then continues his
development, without losing time on a move of doubtful utility, like 8 ... Qc7.
This
doesn’t seem a bad plan.

Answer: It’s true that at first glance it seems irreproachable. The problem is that
it improves the mobility of the white pieces, as we’ll see. Black’s error is in his
evaluation of the possibilities of both sides following this exchange.

Exercise: How should White recapture?

9 Bxd4

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 Answer: The bishop takes advantage of the unusual opportunity to take up this
centralised position, from where it puts pressure on f6. This is important, as we will
see.
9 ... Be7 10 Bd3 0-0
Black completes his idea of developing rapidly.

Exercise: How can White try to show that Black’s play isn’t as sound as it looks?

11 Qc2!
Answer: Threatening to take on f6 and h7, which forces Black to weaken his
castled position.
11 ... h6

Exercise: And now?

12 0-0-0
Answer: Of course. White opts for a struggle in which the kings are placed on
opposite wings. both his bishops are aimed at Black’s kingside and there is a ‘hook’
on h6.
There is an immediate threat to win with 13 Bxf6 and 14 Bh7+.
It’s curious that the current engines (in early 2019) don’t give this as their first
preference.
12 ... Qa5
This move is what the engines dislike. Black parries the threat with a gain of time
by attacking a2.
13 Kb1
The computer prefers 13 g4, Ignoring the threat, but this is the most ‘human’
move. White defends his pawn and improves the location of his king.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: How should Black play here?

13 ... Rd8?!
Answer: Black replies passively and his position rapidly deteriorates.
With the kings castled on opposite flanks, the priority, if possible, is to create
threats against the opposing monarch. Akobian himself commented that his best
move was 13 ... b5, when after 14 Be4 Rb8 15 Ne5 (if 15 Be5 Black has the defence
15 ... Bb7!) 15 ... Bb7 16 Bxb7 Rxb7 17 f4, when “White is only slightly better”
(Akobian).
Logically White has other attractive moves, such as 14 Qe2, 14 Ne5 and 14 h4,
but Black would have fewer difficulties than in the game.
This helps explain why, instead of 13 Kb1, the engines prefer the “wild” 13 g4,
which would be very difficult to choose over the board without preparation.
14 Ne5 Bd7

Exercise: There is more than one attractive continuation. What would be your
choice?

15 Qe2
Answer: “I was hoping that my opponent would capture my light-squared
bishop, giving him a slight advantage but still leaving me with a solid and playable
position”, commented Akobian. The move played is more ambitious. White prevents
... Bb5 and starts to increase the pressure on the kingside.
A very interesting alternative was 15 g4.

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 15 ... Bc6
Akobian mentioned the exchange sacrifice 15 ... Ba4 16 Rde1 Bc6 17 Rhg1
Rxd4 18 cxd4 Bd5, in order to reduce White’s attacking chances, but of course
voluntarily giving up material during the game should be reserved for when there is
really no alternative. It’s a difficult decision to make. In any case, though, here
White’s chances would be clearly better after 19 Bc4 Be4+ 20 Ka1.

Exercise: What’s the next stage of the plan initiated with 15 Qe2?

16 Rhe1
Answer: White brings his only inactive piece into play and increases the pressure
against the black kingside, specifically the f7-square, and by unpinning the g-pawn a
timely g4-advance becomes a possibility.
16 ... Bd5
The exchange sacrifice 16 ... Rxd4 17 cxd4 Bd5 was still possible and according
to Akobian it was the best practical chance.
17 c4 Bxg2
Of course opening the g-file isn’t ideal. Akobian himself commented, “This looks
very dangerous, but I didn’t have a choice.”

Exercise: Why did he reject 17 ... Bc6?

Answer: White has two good continuations. The quieter one is 18 Bc3 Qc7 19
f4, followed by 20 f5 if possible or by 20 g4‚ and Black is exposed to a very strong
attack.
The other way is 18 Nxf7!, and after 18 ... Rxd4 19 Qxe6 Rxd3 20 Rxd3 Qxe1+
21 Qxe1 Kxf7 22 f3 White has a material advantage.

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 5 Attack and Defence

18 Bc3

18 ... Qb6
This move allows White to proceed unhindered.
Akobian regretted not playing, after 30 minutes thought, his initial idea, which
was 18 ... Bb4. This would have been a good practical choice (but again, no more
than that),
since it complicates the position, increasing the chances of a tactical error. White
would be presented with a range of options. For example the line 19 Nxf7 is
tempting, but after 19 ... Rxd3! 20 Nxh6+ Kh8 21 Rxd3 Bxc3 22 Rxc3 Be4+ 23 Ka1
gxh6 24 Qd2 Qg5 White’s advantage isn’t decisive.
Black also holds in the event of 21 Bxf6 Rxd1+ 22 Rxd1 gxf6 23 Rd4 (or 23 Rg1
Qc7!, with the idea of 24 ... Qh7+) 23 ... Re8! 24 Qg4 Kh7 25 Qxg2 Rd8 26 Qh3
Rxd4 27 Nf5+ Kg6 28 Nxd4 Qe5 when once again White is better, but with no clear
win.
However, White has a clearer continuation in 19 Bxb4 Qxb4 20 Rg1 Bc6 21
Qe3, threatening Qxh6, when the pressure on Black’s kingside is very strong. For
example if 21 ... Kf8 then 22 Qg3 Ne8 23 Qf4 Nf6 24 Rxg7! Kxg7 25 Rg1+,
winning. Instead Black should give up some material with 21 ... Rxd3, but after 22
Nxd3 Qxc4 23 Qxh6 White’s advantage is clear.
19 Rg1 Bc6?!
This fails to offer much resistance. Once again, to avoid losing in the
middlegame, the exchange sacrifice was the most tenacious option, although after 19
... Rxd3 20 Nxd3 Qc6 21 Ne5 Qe4+ the ending would be very favourable to White.

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 Exercise: To a ‘human’ eye, the position look ripe for a decisive assault. What did
Wesley So play here?

20 Nxf7!
Answer: What could be more human than demolishing the king’s defences? Of
course it still required accurate calculation.
It’s surprising that one of the top choices (if not the top) of the engines in early
2019 is 20 Ka1. Once we have overcome the initial surprise at this choice, the
conclusion is that the white position is so superior that he can afford the luxury of
spending a tempo in order to neutralise the eventual sacrifice of ... Rxd3, followed by
... Be4.
20 ... Kxf7
Possibly the engines want to prevent resources such as 20 ... Rxd3, although after
21 Nxh6+ Kf8 22 Rxd3 Be4 (22 ... gxh6 23 Rdg3 is worse) 23 Ng4 Rd8 24 Ne5
White’s advantage is greater than after the exchange sacrifices mentioned above.

Exercise: What’s the follow-up to White’s previous sacrifice?

21 Rxg7+!
Answer: White sacrifices a piece and a rook to destroy the defences of the
exposed black king
21 ... Kxg7 22 Qxe6
As well as 23 Qxe7+ followed by mate, White threatens 23 Rg1+ with mate in a
few moves.

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 5 Attack and Defence

22 ... Qxf2
If 22 ... Re8 the engines give 23 c5, a seemingly incomprehensible move. The
idea is dislodge the queen from b6 and if 23 ... Qd8 then 24 Bc2 and Black must
give up the queen, while 23 ... Qxc5 loses to 24 Rg1+ Kf8 25 Bxf6.
If we explore the position further to decipher the purpose of 23 c5, we find that
after 23 Rg1+ Kf8 White wins with 24 Qf5!, with threats of 25 Bxf6, 25 Qg6, 25
Rg6, etc., and if 24 ... Qd8 the quiet moves 25 Ka1 or 25 Bc2 win, but not the
immediate 25 Qg6? due to 25 ... Qxd3+! 26 Qxd3 Be4.

Exercise: Instead of 24 Qf5! what’s wrong with playing the obvious 24 Bxf6?

Answer: Black has 24 ... Bg2!! 25 Bxe7+ Rxe7 26 Qxb6 axb6 27 Rxg2 Rg7 and
the white advantage has evaporated.
23 Qxe7+ Kg8 24 Bh7+ 1-0
The most elegant move, winning the queen, although the simpler 24 Bxf6 was
also decisive.

In the next game the world champion conjured up a seemingly modest but very
interesting idea on move 9. With this plan he forced the enemy bishop to commit
itself, so that he could then adapt his play accordingly.
Black thought that White’s advance could be exploited by gaining the better
structure on move 12. That was indeed the case but it came at a price. Black’s pieces
lost some coordination and the black king remained in the centre. As the position
was closed, this didn’t seem too high a price to pay but it required very careful
subsequent play from Black. However, he made a mistake on move 15 and White

407
devised an accurate plan to exploit this lapse and the situation of the black king
became critical.

Game 63
M.Carlsen-W.So
Bilbao 2016
Berlin Defence [C65]

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 d3 Bc5 5 Bxc6 dxc6 6 Qe2

Question: I don’t know the theory of this line, but this move is unusual, isn’t it?

Answer: There are many options for both sides, but there is a point to White’s
move, naturally. Now there is a threat of 7 Nxe5, since f2 is now defended. The
immediate 6 Nxe5? loses to 6 ... Qd4, e.g. 7 Be3 Qxe5 8 d4 Qxe4 9 dxc5 Qxg2.
6 ... Qe7 7 Nbd2 Bg4 8 h3 Bh5

Question: Is this the best plan? To me, placing the bishop passively on g6 doesn’t
look great.

Answer: Let’s leave it to the world champion to reply, “Naturally, there are plenty
of other options on this and the previous move, but this plan is always decent. The
bishop will temporarily be misplaced on h5/g6, but it will usually come into play via
f7 after ... Nd7 and ... f6.” (Carlsen).
9 a3

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 5 Attack and Defence

Question: And what about this? White is neglecting development, isn’t he?

Answer: Granted, this was an improvisation at the board, but logically it would
be one thing if White’s last three moves were played by a novice but quite another if
played by the world champion.
Carlsen thought for more than 20 minutes before deciding on this move, which
is ambitious despite its modest aspect. “I won’t hide the fact that playing h3 and a3
on consecutive moves in the opening gave me pleasure”, commented Carlsen.

Question: Hmm, but what precisely is the reason or the idea behind playing 9
a3?

Answer: Carlsen explained that he needed to choose between several plans. One
is to play Nf1-g3, which Anand had played in the first match for the world title, but
it was without the inclusion of the moves 6 Qe2 Qe7, so that after 9 Nf1 Nd7 10
Ng3 Bxf3 11 Qxf3 g6 White would have wasted a tempo playing 6 Qe2.
Other ideas are to play g4, followed by Nf1-g3, or Nc4, but none of these
seemed very promising, so Carlsen thought up this move. It has the idea of playing
b4 and forcing the black bishop to choose a diagonal.
9 ... Nd7

Question: Why doesn’t Black just prevent White’s idea by playing 9 ... a5?

Answer: This was possible, but there was a snag. Black still has to decide where to
put his king. Playing ... a5 would more or less rule out queenside castling.
Nevertheless, Carlsen commented that it was playable “ ... , and probably the most
challenging option”.
10 b4 Bd6
Black opts to keep the bishop on its original diagonal.
The other possibilities also deserved attention. The problem with 10 ... Bb6 is
that the bishop is exposed to an eventual c4-c5 advance, which would cause a master
to regard this possibility with great suspicion but this the engines aren’t bothered and,
in fact, 10 ... Bb6 is their preferred option.
10 ... Bd4 was “a very solid option” according to Carlsen. Instead of the rather
passive retreat to d6 the idea is to exchange the bishop after 11 Rb1 Bc3 12 0-0 Bxd2

409
(before the knight can escape), “But I wasn’t too unhappy about this, as the extra
space on the queenside feels useful”, wrote Carlsen.
11 Nc4 f6
Here 11 ... Nf8 also appears playable, although after 12 Na5 Black would have to
be willing to play 12 ... 0-0-0. Black rejected this, although it doesn’t appear to be
worse that what he played.

Exercise: The position is approximately equal. What do you think is the

continuation that’s the most consistent with the plan initiated with 9 a3?

12 Ne3
Answer: This was the idea. White wanted to expel the bishop from c5, to prevent
... Bxe3. Carlsen explained that now White can play Nf5, keeping the g4-advance in
reserve for when it would be clearly advantageous or necessary.

Exercise: There are several possibilities here. What do you think is the best plan
for Black?

12 ... a5?!
Answer: An ambitious and risky move. Black wants to weaken White’s pawn
structure but it shouldn’t be forgotten that opening lines while the king is still in the
centre requires careful play subsequently.
Carlsen was more critical, pointing out that this wasn’t the most practical option,
“That’s why I’m assigning it a question mark, rather than it’s objective value.”, he
wrote.

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 5 Attack and Defence

However, even objectively the typical manoeuvre 12 ... Nf8 was preferable,
heading for f4 or d4, and after for instance 13 Nf5 Qd7 14 Be3 Ne6 Black is fine.
13 Nf5 Qf8
This is the move that’s most consistent with 12 ... a5, since it maintains the
pressure on b4 and forces a concession on White’s part.
In the event of 13 ... Qf7 White wouldn’t have take on a5. Instead he could play
14 Rb1, keeping the structure intact, and after 14 ... axb4 15 axb4 0-0 16 0-0
Carlsen commented that although Black controls the a-file for the moment, the rest
of his pieces aren’t so well placed in comparison with the position following 12 ...
Nf8.
14 bxa5 Rxa5 15 0-0 Qf7?!
A necessary loss of tempo, if he wants to castle or play ... Nf8.

Question: This looks like a good idea; why is it dubious? Is there anything better?

Answer: This move isn’t entirely positive, given that safeguarding the king is
starting to be a more and more urgent priority. Also note that 16 ... 0-0 isn’t going to
be possible anyway, due to 17 Bh6!.
The far-from-obvious 15 ... Kd8 was worth consideration, seeking refuge on the
queenside. The game might continue 16 Bd2 Ra4, or 16 a4 Bb4, “and in both cases
it’s not so easy to generate a serious initiative on the queenside” (Carlsen).
16 a4 Nc5
We already know that 16 ... 0-0? is answered with 17 Bh6.

Exercise: What plan did Carlsen initiate at this point?

17 Qe1!
Answer: “17 Bd2 was also good, but this move, freeing up the knight and
attacking the rook, just felt too natural not to be played.” (Carlsen)
17 Bd2 would have the idea of continuing with moves such as Rfb1, or Be3,
depending on Black’s response black, and d4 at the right moment. Carlsen’s idea is
different.
17 ... b6
It isn’t possible to play17 ... Rxa4? due to 18 Rxa4 Nxa4 19 Qa5, winning.
If 17 ... Ra8 Carlsen intended 18 N3h4, to play Nxd6 at the right moment and
then place the knight on f5. After 18 ... Bf8 then 19 a5 (fixing b7 as a target) 19 ...

411
g5 20 Nf3 Bxf3 21 gxf3 and White is firmly in the driver’s seat” (Carlsen).
Alternatively if 18 ... Ne6 then 19 Rb1 and it’s difficult for Black to hold the
position.

Exercise: What’s the follow-up to 17 Qe1?

18 Nd2!
Answer: White offers a pawn sacrifice to activate his forces and try to exploit
Black’s lag in development.
18 ... Rxa4

Exercise: And now?

19 Nc4
Answer: “The idea. Every move comes with a threat.” (Carlsen). He is able to
activate the knight ‘for free’, thanks to the threat to take on d6.
19 ... Bf8?!
If this is the best Black can do, incarcerating the rook on h8, clearly the position
is more than dubious.
19 ... Be7 was preferable. Then 20 Be30-0? loses to 21 Nxe7+ Qxe7 22 Bxc5, so
Black needs to play 20 ... Kd7, when 21 Rxa4 Nxa4 22 f4 would give White a strong
initiative, but Black could offer more resistance than in the game.
20 Be3!
Another move with a threat. The idea is 21 Bxc5 Rxa1 22 Rxa1, allowing White
to infiltrate decisively with the queen and then the b1-rook.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Now 20 ... Rg8 was the most tenacious to prevent the rook being loose on h8
and to be able to recapture with the bishop on c5. However, after 21 f4 the black
position is indefensible from the practical point of view, as Carlsen pointed out. In
addition objectively White has a clear advantage.
20 ... Kd7

Exercise: How did White increase the pressure?

21 Qc3!
Answer: Bringing the queen into play and connecting the rooks.
“All natural moves, and by now I felt that I was winning.” (Carlsen). The threat
is 22 Nxb6+! cxb6 23. Bxc5 Rxa1 24 Rxa1 Bxc5 25 Ra7+ winning the queen.
21 ... Nxe4

Question: The hand to hand struggle doesn’t inspire confidence. Wasn’t it a

better try to sacrificing the exchange to relieve the pressure with 21 ... Rxc4?

Answer: You’re right. Perhaps this was the best practical chance but it wouldn’t
save Black, because all the white pieces still come into play after 22 dxc4 Nxe4 23
Qd3+ Nd6 24 g4! Bg6 25 Rfd1, threatening 26 Bxb6 cxb6 27 Ra7+; 25 ... c5 can be
answered with 26 Ra7, or first 26 Bxc5 bxc5 27 Ra7, with a decisive attack.

Exercise (simple): There are several good moves. Which is the most crushing?

22 Nxb6+!

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 Answer: “Again opening up the seventh rank and leaving the black king
completely naked.” (Carlsen)
22 ... cxb6 23 dxe4 Qc4 24 Qd2+ Kc7
24 ... Ke6 also loses, for example to 25 Rxa4 Qxa4 26 Qd8 Qxe4 27 Qc8+ Kf7
28 Ra1.
25 g4
Finally the g4 advance. Much later than expected, but much more powerful.
25 ... Bg6 26 Rfd1 1-0
This was the idea behind 25 g4. “I had no wish to calculate Bxb6 here or on the
previous move, as this forces immediate resignation”, commented Carlsen.
There is no defence. 26 ... Bxf5 fails to 27 Qd8+ Kb7 28 Qxb6+, mating. 26 ...
Ba3 loses to 27 Rxa3 Rxa3 28 Qd6+.

In Game 64 Black didn’t respond well to White’s unusual early advance on the
queenside with 7 a4. It was almost as if this offensive put the black player to sleep
and he failed to find an effective way to resist White’s gradual progress. After White’s
accurate 13th move, Black tried to change the course of the struggle with violent play
but White gained a big advantage with an accurately planned breakthrough plan
starting on move 15 and implemented on move 18. This proved to be decisive.

Game 64
F.Caruana-E.Bareev
Baku Olympiad 2016
Caro-Kann Defence [B12]

1 e4 c6 2 d4 d5 3 e5 Bf5 4 Nf3 e6 5 Be2 Nd7 6 0-0 Bg6

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 5 Attack and Defence

7 a4

Question: I don’t think this is the most usual move here. Is it the best?

Answer: Indeed, this isn’t the most common move. 7 Nbd2 and 7 c3 are more
popular, but as Caruana pointed out, White has many plans here and although there
is little experience with this line, queenside expansion seems reasonable.
As to your question, as is often the case, it’s impossible to say which is best.
7 ... Ne7
The most usual reply is 7 ... Nh6, but the offside position of the knight needs to
be remedied soon, or White could play a timely c4, which would also be strong in
the event of 7 ... c5.
8 a5

Question: Why didn’t Black prevent this advance with 7 ... a5?

Answer: This is a possible response, although Caruana considered that it was a

type of concession, as playing ... c5 would then be less attractive owing to the
weakness of b5 and furthermore the a5-pawn would be exposed. Protecting it later
with ... b6 would further weaken the queenside.
8 ... a6?!

Exercise: 8 ... Nf5 was preferable. How did Caruana respond now?

9 b4!

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 Answer: Preventing Black’s intended move, 9 ... c5. Black is left without any
queenside counterplay.
9 ... Nf5 10 c3 f6
Black seeks counterplay before White can play Nbd2-b3 and perhaps Nc5.
In the event of 10 ... Be7 11 Nbd2 0-0 12 Nb3, “I’m having all the fun in the
position,” wrote Caruana. Another possibility is 11 Bf4 and also, with a black knight
on f5, the omnipresent advance 11 g4 always deserves consideration and is promising
in this case. White has the advantage after 11 ... Nh4 12 Nxh4 Bxh4 13 f4.
11 Bf4
Developing the bishop to support his e5-pawn, before initiating a knight
manoeuvre.
Caruana considered 11 Nbd2 but didn’t want to sacrifice a pawn after 11 ... Qc7
12 Nb3 fxe5 13 dxe5 Nxe5, although after 14 Ng5 White’s initiative is very strong.
11 ... fxe5 12 dxe5!
“This is a debatable decision but not a bad one, in my view”, commented
Caruana.
12 Nxe5 Nxe5 13 Bxe5 Bd6 14 Bxd6 Nxd6 15 Nd2 would also give White a
positional advantage, since the exchanges would leave Black with several weaknesses
on the dark squares. The move played aims to achieve more.
12 ... Be7
Caruana suggested another way for Black to complete his development with 12
... Bh5. Then if Black is prepared to exchange this bishop after 13 Nbd2 Be7 14 h3
Bxf3 15 Nxf3 0-0 16 Bd3 White has some advantage, given that 16 ... Nh4? fails to
17 Nd4!.
16 Qd2 is also to be considered, to connect the rooks with the c4-break in mind.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: How did White reply?

13 g4!
Answer: The continuation 13 Nbd2 0-0 14 Nb3 is natural, according to
Caruana, but he concluded that after 14 ... Bh5 “my pieces are awkwardly placed”.
Current engines are fully in agreement with Caruana.
13 ... Nh4

Exercise (simple): How to proceed now?

14 Nd4
Answer: Of course, centralising the knight and leaving the black knight out of
play on h4.
14 ... Bf7

Exercise (simple): What’s the most natural and strong continuation now?

15 Bg3
Answer: Making way for the f-pawn to advance and putting pressure on the h4-
knight.
15 ... h5?
Caruana considered that this was already the decisive error. This move came as a
surprise to him, since Black sacrifices a pawn but gets very little in return.

Exercise: Black is in some difficulty but he could have resisted more tenaciously.
What was his best chance?

Answer: Waiting passively with 15 ... 0-0 is unpleasant due to White’s planned
advance 16 f4.
The 15 ... c5 break in itself doesn’t greatly improve the situation. After 16 bxc5
Nxc5, the improvement in the position of this knight brings Black little comfort and
the opening of lines (such as the b-file) generally favours the better developed side.
White could play 17 Nd2, with the idea of 18 f4, which can’t be prevented with 17
... Ne4 due to 18 Nxe4 dxe4 and now 19 Qc2 Qd5 20 Rfd1, when 20 ... e3 fails to
21 Qa4+ Kf8 22 f3.

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 However, Black has 17 ... g5!, which probably transposes to Caruana’s suggestion.
He considered that the immediate 15 ... g5! was best, and after 16 Bxh4 gxh4 17 f4
c5 18 bxc5 Nxc5 19 Nd2 Qc7 Black is worse but there are better chances of gaining
counterplay. That’s also the opinion of the strongest engines, three years later.
16 gxh5
“Now I was pretty convinced that I would win”, wrote Caruana, once again
showing his great self-confidence.
16 ... Qc7
Caruana considered that 16 ... Nf5 was better and after 17 Nxf5 exf5 18 Na3
Nf8 19 Nc2 Ne6 20 f4 the blockade gives Black some possibilities of resistance,
although it would be “no fun for him”, he commented.
Of course it’s understandable that Bareev wanted to avoid this like the plague.

Exercise: Why was the unpleasant 16 ... Nf5 necessary?

17 Bg4!
Answer: Because now the bishop also comes into play.
17 ... Rh6

Exercise: How did White proceed now?

18 f4!
Answer: Of course. “Now it’s all over”, commented Caruana.

Question: Why was he so categorical?

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 5 Attack and Defence

Answer: Because the knight on h4 is very exposed. White can attack it and in
addition Black must always be on the lookout for the advance f5. Black has no
compensation for this.
18 ... c5 19 bxc5 Qxc5
If 19 ... Nxc5 White can already play 20 f5.

Exercise: How can White make progress now?

20 Kh1
Answer: There is no hurry. White first restores mobility to the d4-knight.
20 ... 0-0-0 21 Nd2 Rdh8

Exercise: How did White strike the decisive blow?

22 Qe1
Answer: White finally puts the outcome beyond doubt. He wins material by
force and “the rest is just desperation” (Caruana).
22 ... Bxh5 23 Bxe6

Exercise: Caruana’s initial idea was 23 Nxe6. Why did he change his mind?

Answer: He noticed the queen sacrifice 23 ... Bxg4! 24 Nxc5 Nxc5, which would
allow Black some completely unexpected activity.

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 From the practical point of view, for the side with such a great advantage, it’s
better to play a more standard position and in this case Caruana’s choice is also
objectively best.
23 ... Be8 24 f5
“My only concern now was to avoid massive blunders.” (Caruana)
24 ... Bd8 25 Rf4!
Once more putting pressure on the knight on h4 and at the same time preparing
c4, by protecting the d4-knight.
25 ... g5
Black prevents White’s plan, but at the cost of conceding two connected passed
pawns; however, there wasn’t anything better.
26 Rf2 Bc7 27 Qe3 Kb8 28 f6 Nf8 29 Bg4 Nhg6 30 N2b3 Qa7 31 f7 1-0
“And Bareev resigned, because pawns on f7 and e7 are probably going to be
enough to win”, wrote Caruana.

Game 65 very soon entered uncharted territory. On move 9 Black made a choice that
would be logical in a comparable ‘normal’ position but here there were important
differences, as the world champion quickly demonstrated.
After a further inaccuracy by Black on move 11 White’s advantage was already
clear, as the black king was stuck perilously in the centre. But Lasker taught us that
chess is always a struggle. After White missed the most incisive continuation, Black
had some chances of his own, but he failed to grasp them. Finally White exploited
the insecurity of the black king to win material.

Game 65
M.Carlsen-R.Wojtaszek
Gashimov Memorial, Shamkir 2018
Sicilian Defence [B23]

1 e4 c5 2 Nc3 d6

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 5 Attack and Defence

Seeking to transpose to the Najdorf variation.

3 d4

Question: Really? What’s this?

Answer: It’s a tribute by the world champion to Vugar Gashimov, in whose

memory this tournament was held. Gashimov used to play this line.
The game takes an unusual course from the very first moves, which in general is
to Carlsen’s liking. Now both sides must adapt to the non-standard situation of the
pieces and try to find the most appropriate plans.
3 ... cxd4 4 Qxd4 Nc6 5 Qd2
This indicates that the c1-bishop is going to be deployed on the long diagonal,
which is most uncommon in the main lines of the Open Sicilian.
The alternative was 5 Bb5, preparing to exchange this bishop, followed by Bg5
and queenside castling.
5 ... Nf6
Black is developing in a natural fashion, first 4 ... Nc6 with a gain of time and
now the other knight also goes to its most natural square.
Nevertheless, logically there were alternatives, such as 5 ... g6, and if 6 b3, in
addition to 6 ... Bg7, Black has 6 ... Bh6. Then after 7 f4 Nf6 8 Bb2 the game enters
rather unexplored territory.
6 b3 e6 7 Bb2 a6
Black continues making typical Sicilian moves. This one prepares ... b5.
It was also possible, now or on the next move, to continue with ... Be7. Given the
unusual nature of the position, 7 ... d5 doesn’t look bad. After 8 exd5 exd5 9 0-0-0

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Be6 10 Nge2 Qa5, the isolated d-pawn can be supported with ... Rd8 or even ... 0-0-
0, but from the practical point of view it was difficult to decide to change the
structure if there was no compelling reason to do so.
8 0-0-0 b5 9 f3

Defending e4 in the most solid way.

As Nielsen pointed out, the position bears some resemblance to the Rauzer
Attack. The black pieces are on their ‘normal’ squares. The difference is in the
deployment of White’s pieces. His queen’s bishop is on b2 instead of g5 and also the
knight which is usually on d4 by now is still on g1.

Question: Seen in that light, the differences seem in Black’s favour, don’t they?

Answer: It’s deceptive though. The bishop on b2 is very well placed, aiming at
the kingside as well as defending its own monarch, the pawn on b3 means that the
c6-knight doesn’t have its usual manoeuvre to c4 available, while the knight on g1,
although undeveloped so far, has various options available.
But it’s also true that there is no concrete plan that will give White the advantage.
The position is approximately equal, but it will be necessary to choose plans which
are in tune with the differences pointed out above.
9 ... h5?!
This is a normal plan in many similar positions. Black prevents the advance g4 at
the cost of compromising his king’s safety in the medium term.
If this was the idea, it was slightly better to play 9 ... Be7, since 10 g4? is bad due
to 10 ... Nxg4! 11 fxg4? Bg5, so the most logical move would be 10 Kb1, and then
indeed Black might play 10 ... h5.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Black could also play 10 ... 0-0, and after 11 g4 Bb7 Black would be ready to
play ... b4, combining this with the manoeuvre ... Nd7-c5.

Exercise: How did White demonstrate that Black’s plan wasn’t the most accurate?

10 Nh3!
Answer: Profiting from the differences from the ‘normal’ Rauzer position. The
knight now has access to the attractive g5-square, creating pressure against the black
king.
This doesn’t give White any great advantage, but it does restrict Black’s play.
10 ... Be7 11 Ng5 h4?!
Preventing the knight from being consolidated on g5 with a timely h4, but it’s
yet another pawn move by Black.
It was difficult to opt for kingside castling after playing ... h5, but this is
something that Black needs to keep in mind as a possibility, since it isn’t safe for the
king to remain in the centre for long.
It’s logical to suggest a developing move such as 11 ... Bb7, intending ... Qa5 or
... Qc7 and then perhaps even ... Rd8. White possibly would play f4 instead of h4,
and we would have a complex struggle.
12 f4
White makes two moves to solidify his position before deciding how to continue.
First he overprotects his knight.
12 ... Bb7 13 Kb1
And now he improves his king’s position.
13 ... Rc8 14 Be2!

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 Question: What’s so good about this? The bishop really doesn’t impress on e2.

Answer: It’s not about the move itself. This was the moment to look for the best
plan and decide how best to situate the pieces. First, the bishop doesn’t have to stay
on e2 – it can go to f3, initiating a very strong plan to exploit the situation of the
black monarch, although at first sight it doesn’t look very impressive.
14 ... Qc7

Exercise: How did White continue?

15 Rhe1!
Answer:
Now at last we are starting to see some typical Sicilian themes. The knight
sacrifice on d5 is in the air.

Question: Hmm, OK, but why do you talk as though the white position is
superior? There’s still nothing concrete and I can’t believe that Black is all that
badly off here.

Answer: The difference between the two sides is that White can keep improving
the position of his pieces, targeting the black king in the centre. In contrast, it’s
difficult to find a promising plan for Black.
15 ... Nh7
Eliminating the annoying g5-knight, at the cost of losing the right to castle. If 15
... 0-0 White could play 16 g3, opening the kingside.
16 Nxh7 Rxh7

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: There are several attractive continuations because the black king needs
a few tempi to find shelter. What’s strongest way to continue for White now?

17 g4?!
Answer:
A good move. White launches his offensive at no cost in material and without
any risk.
Nevertheless, there was a somewhat better way, as Nielsen indicated, “At the press
conference, Magnus explained that he indeed saw the crushing 17 Nd5! but thought
his position so dominating that sacrifices were not even necessary.”
Following the typical Sicilian sacrifice 17 Nd5! the knight can’t be tolerated for
long. After 17 ... Qb8 White could consider, among other things, 18 Qd3, with x-
ray pressure on the h7-rook which is needed to protect g7. Alternatively after 17 ...
exd5 18 exd5 all the white pieces are active and the black pieces are badly
coordinated, so it’s unsurprising that the position is untenable. For example 18 ...
Nb8 loses to 19 Bd3! Rh5 20 Rxe7+! Qxe7 21 Re1, with a winning attack after 21 ...
Rxd5 22 Rxe7+ Kxe7 23 Qe2+ Kf8 24 Qg4.
If 18 ... Nd8 the same themes occur, e.g. 19 Bd3, as well as 19 Bg4-f5.
17 ... hxg3 18 hxg3 Bf6 19 Bd3
Again White improves his position with a gain of time; now the threat is 20 e5.
Carlsen didn’t consider it necessary to play 19 e5 dxe5 20 Ne4, which was also good.
19 ... Rh8

Exercise: How to continue now?

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 20 g4?!
Answer: This is definitely a more glaring inaccuracy than the previous g4-
advance. After opening the h-file it’s difficult to understand why the world champion
didn’t play 20 Rh1!, with an overwhelming advantage after 20 ... Rxh1 21 Rxh1 Nd4
22 Nd1!, removing the knight from attack by the black pieces. White could then
exploit the open h-file with Rh7 and perhaps g4-g5.
20 ... Nd4
With the threat of 21 ... Nf3 (and 21 ... Nxb3); now the 22 Nd1! move is not
available!

Exercise: White’s reply was now forced; what was it?

21 Re3!
Answer: Forgetting about the h-file for the moment, but defending f3 and
preventing 21 ... Nxb3? in view of 22 axb3 Bxc3 23 Bxc3 Qxc3? 24 Bxb5+.
21 ... Kf8

Exercise: White must adapt to the new situation. How did he continue?

22 Ne2!
Answer: Eliminating the most annoying black piece in order to regain some
mobility.

Question: But with the ensuing simplification White’s chances of exploiting the

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 5 Attack and Defence

insecurity of the black king diminish, don’t they?

Answer: In theory, yes, but the black king remains a problem. In practice great
care is needed, since the safety of the monarch is almost always the most important
factor in the position.
22 ... Nxe2 23 Rxe2 Bc3?
Black makes a serious inaccuracy. White is now able to exchange the bishops
under ideal conditions, as we’ll see.
24 Bxc3 Qxc3

Exercise: Why is Black’s idea imprecise?

25 Qe3
Answer: Of course. White prevents the exchange of queens and transfers the
queen to the kingside.
This leads us to find the best continuation for Black at move 23 which was 23 ...
Bxb2 24 Kxb2 and now 24 ... Qc5!, preventing this move, with a position much
more defensible than in the game.
25 ... Rc5?!
25 ... Qc5 was still was preferable, but after 26 Qg3 White is better; he plans to
continue with g5 and f5, with advantage, but Black could put up more fight than in
the game.

Exercise: What was the defect of Black’s last move?

427
 26 e5!
Answer: Forcing the opening of lines. If 26 ... d5 then 27 f5 would be crushing.
26 ... dxe5 27 fxe5 Rh1
This makes White’s task easier but the situation was already delicate. White was
planning to occupy the f-file with Rf2 and/or Rf1.
28 Rxh1 Bxh1

Exercise (simple): What move now tilts the balance strongly in White’s favour?

29 Rh2!
Answer: Of course the e5-pawn is no longer important. White exploits the open
lines to achieve a decisive attack. As well as the attack on the bishop there is a threat
of 30 Rh8+ Ke7 31 Qg5+ mating.
29 ... Rxe5

Exercise (simple): How does White win now?

30 Rh8+!
Answer: Winning the bishop after the following check.
30 ... Ke7 31 Qa7+ 1-0

Keeping the king in the centre for a long period is not uncommon when the position
is closed, but when the position opens, or is about to open, it’s advisable to seek a
refuge for the king as soon as possible.
However it should not be forgotten that this is just one element in the position,
often the most important one, but it’s not a fixed rule. There are also other factors
which on occasion can be more important, as we’ll see in Game 66.

Game 66
R.Fine-S.Flohr
AVRO, The Netherlands 1938

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 5 Attack and Defence

Black to Play

Black is somewhat behind in development and must play carefully.

Exercise: What do you think is the best plan defensive for Black?

10 ... h6?!
Answer: “To castle. On 10 ... 0-0? at once White wins with the sacrifice 11
Bxh7+ Kxh7 12 Ng5+ Kg6 13 Qg4.” (Fine)
However, according to Kasparov it was necessary to play 10 ... a6.

Exercise: After the move played, “White is now in danger of losing the initiative,
so he thinks of something”, wrote Fine. What did White come up with?

11 Na4!
Answer: Black was threatening to castle, after which he would have no major
problems but now he must make an important concession of some sort.
11 ... Bf8
If 11 ... Be7 12 Nxh4 Bxh4 13 Qg4 Black can’t castle.
11 ... Nxf3+ 12 Qxf3 Be7 13 Qg3 is similar and 11 ... Bb6 12 Nxb6 axb6 13
Nxh4 Qxh4 14 Re3 is also unappealing.
Now we can see why it was important to play 10 ... a6!, to give the bishop a
better retreat square, where it wouldn’t impede Black’s development.

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 Exercise: The retreat to f8 is a big concession, but the position is closed. How
can
White open it, to try to exploit the lead in development?

12 Rc1!
Answer: Kasparov awarded this move two exclamation marks and commented, “a
seemingly awkward, but exceptionally deep and effective move, preparing a decisive
opening of the centre”.
12 ... Bd7
With the threat of 13 ... Nxf3+ 14 Qxf3 Nxe5.

Exercise: How to continue?

13 Nxh4 Qxh4 14 c4!

Answer: A defence of the a4-knight consistent with White’s previous move,
“Blocks the threat and creates new problems for Black” (Fine).
14 ... dxc4 15 Rxc4 Qd8

Exercise: “White’s development is very superior, but the problem of how to

continue isn’t easy to answer. In such situations it’s essential find moves which
maintain the attack” (Fine in 1951).

In other words, what now? How can White maintain the pressure and at the
same time deal with the threat of 16 ... b5?
16 Qh5!

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 5 Attack and Defence

Answer: The f7-point is extremely weak.

16 ... Ne7
If 16 ... b5 then 17 Rf4 wins, while if 16 ... g6 then naturally 17 Bxg6.
17 Rd4!
17 Nc5! was the alternative.
17 ... g6 18 Qf3 Qc7 19 Nc3
Once again 19 Nc5! was a good option. If 19 ... Qxc5 then 20 Rxd7 Kxd7?! 21
Qxb7+.
19 ... Nf5
“Hoping for some freedom.” (Fine)
20 Nb5 Qb6
After 20 ... Qc6, one of the winning lines, taking advantage of the weakness of
the black monarch, even without the queens, is 21 Qxc6 bxc6 22 Nc7+ Kd8 23 Bxf5
Kxc7 24 Ba5+ Kc8 and now, among other things, 25 Red1.

Exercise: How did White continue?

21 Rxd7!
Answer: “By now this is obvious. What was more difficult was the play that led
up to it.” (Fine)
21 ... Kxd7 22 g4 Nh4
If 22 ... Ne7 then 23 Qxf7 is decisive. Fine considered that Black’s best option,
although also unsatisfactory, was 22 ... a6 23 gxf5 axb5 24 fxe6+ fxe6 25 Qf7+ Be7
and now instead of 26 Bb4, 26 Be3! is stronger, clearing the d-file with a gain of
time. If 26 ... Qc6 then 27 Rd1! wins.

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 23 Qxf7+ Be7 24 Bb4 Rae8
With the threat of 25 ... Rhf8.
25 Bxe7 Rxe7 26 Qf6
“Winning a piece, but there is even more in sight,” wrote Fine.
26 ... a6 27 Rd1!
This was what Fine was referring to. Naturally 27 Nd6 also wins, but the move
played is more attractive.
27 ... axb5 28 Be4+ 1-0

In the endgame, very often one of the most urgent tasks is to centralise the king.
However, this is not always the case. For exmaple in the “Berlin ending”, which arises
after 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nf6 3 Bb5 Nf6 4 0-0 Nxe4 5 d4 Nd6 6 Bxc6 dxc6 7 dxe5 Nf5 8
Qxd8+ Kxd8, we’ve already seen that sometimes the most advisable plan is to leave
the black king in the centre and play e.g. ... Kc8, with the idea of ... b6 and ... Kb7.
Game 67 shows us a case when it’s necessary to decide whether the black king is well
placed in the centre or not.

Game 67
I.Boleslavsky-V.Smyslov
Candidates, Budapest 1950

Black to Play

Exercise: As indicated in the introduction, the task is to ascertain which is the

best decision with respect to the black monarch.

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 5 Attack and Defence

11 ... Ke7?
Answer: An incorrect evaluation of the position, wrote Boleslavsky. Is true that in
the endgame the king is generally better placed in the centre, but Black has failed to
assess adequately that in the coming endgame the black king will be very insecure. 11
... 0-0 was better, with a slight advantage to White.
12 0-0 Bd7 13 e5! Nh5
The natural 13 ... Ne8 runs into 14 Bg5+, when 14 ... f6 is unsatisfactory due to
15 Bh4, followed by Rad1, and the uncoordinated black pieces can only gain
mobility by weakening his structure.
After 14 ... Kf8 15 Rad1 Bc6 16 Nd4 Black is forced to exchange one of his
bishops, while the rest of his pieces are badly placed.

Exercise: How to continue now?

14 Be3!
Answer: This quiet move is an unpleasant surprise for Black.
Instead, 14 Bg5+? is well answered with 14 ... f6 15 exf6+ gxf6 16 Bh4 and now
Black is able to make his centralised king an advantage, as he can quickly occupy the
open files. After 16 ... Rhg8 17 Rfe1 Rg4 18 Re4 Rag8 the black pieces improve their
chances substantially.
14 ... Rhc8
Black refrains from capturing on e3, but two moves later he will find himself
forced to do so. If 14 ... Bxe3, then 15 fxe3 g6 16 Nd6, attacking b7 and f7.
15 Be2 g6 16 Ne4! Bxe3
After 16 ... Bb4 17 g4 Ng7 18 Bg5+ Kf8 19 Nf6, White wins a pawn with an
overwhelming position
17 fxe3 Rc2
This leads to a rapid defeat. It was more tenacious to play 17 ... Bc6 or 17 ... Rf8,
although the white position would still be much superior. The black pieces lack
coordination, there are serious weaknesses at a7 and f7 and the dark squares are
under White’s control.
18 Nbd6!
More elegant than 18 Nd4, which was also decisive.
18 ... Rf8
Now 18 ... Rxe2 is bad due to 19 Rxf7+ Kd8 20 Rf8+ etc.

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 Exercise: White has several good moves now. Which do you think is the
strongest?

19 Bxa6!
Answer: The attacked bishop is exchanged for an inactive piece, but in return the
black bishop is deprived of a secure post at c6.
19 ... bxa6 20 g4 Ng7 21 Nf6!
Threatening 22 Nxh7. The f8-rook can’t move due to 22 Nxd7, followed by
Rxf7, so Black plays his last card.
21 ... Bc6

Exercise: What’s the most effective continuation now?

22 Rfc1! 1-0
Answer: 22 e4 was also good, but after 22 ... Rb8 Black would have greater
defensive possibilities. Now after 22 ... Rxc1+ 23 Rxc1 Black is defenceless against
the rook invasion of his second rank. On the other hand, if 22 ... Rg2+ 23 Kf1 Rxh2
then White plays 24 Rxc6, not fearing 24 ... Rh1+ 25 Kg2 Rxa1 in view of 26 Rc7+
Kd8 27 Rd7 mate.

As we know, when the kings are castled on opposite wings, the priority is to attack
the enemy monarch by quickly opening lines, while at the same time trying to
restrain the opponent’s assault in the most economical way. That’s the general rule
but, as we know, chess is so rich that sometimes other factors take priority. It’s not

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always easy to tell if we are facing a normal case or an exception; this was White’s first
dilemma in Game 68.

Game 68
I.Boleslavsky-V.Mikenas
USSR Championship, Moscow 1957

White to Play

Exercise: What’s White’s best continuation here?

18 a4!
Answer: It’s important to consolidate the c4-knight. Instead, 18 Bxg4?! hxg4 19
Qxg4 b5 would allow Black to regain the pawn with a reasonable position.
It was also good to protect e5, for example with 18 Rfe1!, renewing the threat of
Bxg4.
The move played focuses more on attack.
18 ... f5
Capturing the e5-pawn at the cost of weakening the king’s position with 18 ...
b5? would be bad. White can play 19 axb5 cxb5 20 Na5 Nxe5 21 Bg2, with the idea
of 22 c4 for instance, opening more lines against the black monarch.
19 exf6 Nexf6

Exercise: What move is most consistent now with White’s last few moves?

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 20 b4!
Answer: “There is no sense in taking the e6-pawn at the present moment, since
this would make the opponent’s pieces more active. Black doesn’t succeed in
defending it, since White’s offensive on the queen’s flank is very dangerous,” wrote
Boleslavsky.

Question: Yes, but what about the wise advice of Najdorf ’s auntie that you
quoted earlier? “Better a pawn up than a pawn down!”

Answer: Since you’re clearly not satisfied with Boleslavsky’s own explanation, let’s
add Euwe’s rather similar comment, “In accordance with the requirements of the
position both sides play sharply for attack. In such positions a pawn less or more
means nothing, and White doesn’t bother to capture on e6. The open e-file would
benefit only Black.”
20 ... Rhf8
To parry the white attack, Black is contemplating nothing less than the sacrifice
of a rook.
21 b5 Kb8
Trying to keep the game closed with 21 ... c5 could be answered with 22 a5 Qf7
23 a6 b6 24 f3, which wins a pawn at the very least and the black king position is left
weak.
22 bxc6 Qxc6 23 Bg2 Qc7
If 23 ... Nd5 then 24 Rab1, when the fork 24 ... Nc3? fails to 25 Qe1!.
24 Rab1
An illustrative example of “converging lines” (Euwe) against b7.
24 ... Nd5

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 5 Attack and Defence

25 Qxe6
This is the right moment to capture the pawn, since it destabilises the d5-knight
and thus makes b7 an accessible target once more.
25 ... Rxf2!?
The most combative response. Other moves loses without any complications.
26 Rxf2 Qxg3
What’s the best defence?” asked Euwe.
27 Rf3!
This isn’t the only good move, but it’s the strongest.
27 ... Qh2+ 28 Kf1 b6
If 28 ... Qxh4 then 29 Rxb7+ (only the engines would play 29 Rf7, which mates
slightly more quickly) 29 ... Kxb7 30 Rf7+ Kb8 31 Qc6 Nde3+ 32 Ke2, winning, as
pointed out by both Boleslavsky and Euwe; it’s mate in a few moves.

Exercise: “And now? attack or protect?” asks Euwe; what would you do here?

29 a5!
Answer: “The beginning of a combination. White gives back the rook, but blows
up the fortifications of the black king.” (Boleslavsky)
29 ... Nf4
“The drama reaches its climax,” wrote Euwe. If White can’t find anything
concrete now he’ll be forced to give perpetual check.
30 Rxb6+! axb6 31 Qxb6+ Kc8 32 Qc6+ Kb8

Exercise: How does the sequence winning begin?

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 33 Qb5+!
Answer: Now 33 ... Ka7 allows 34 Qb6+ followed by capturing the rook with
check. 33 ... Kc8 also loses, to 34 Qf5+, winning the knight on f4.
33 ... Kc7

34 Rf2!
Once again combining attack and defence in ideal fashion. Now mate is
threatened on b7. There are other winning moves but this is the simplest.
34 ... Rd5
34 ... Nxg2 loses to 35 Rf7+.
35 Qb6+ Kc8
If 35 ... Kd7 then White wins with 36 Qb7+ Ke8 37 Qb8+ Kd7 38 Rxf4, or 38
Nb6+ with mate in eleven according to the engines.
36 Qc6+ Kd8
If 36 ... Kb8 the quickest is 37 a6.
37 Qa8+ Ke7 38 Qb7+ Rd7
The black king doesn’t escape after 38 ... Kd8 39 Qb8+, or 38 ... Kf6 39 Qxd5
Nxf2 40 Qc6+ Kf7 41 Ne5+ etc.
39 Qe4+ Ne6 40 Re2 Kf8 41 Qxe6 1-0
And here the game was adjourned and Black resigned without resuming since
there is no satisfactory way to fight on. After 41 ... Qf4+ 42 Bf3! Qxf3+ 43 Ke1 Nf6
(if 43 ... Qf7 44 Qxf7+ Kxf7 45 Ne5+ Nxe5 46 Rxe5 the rook ending is hopeless for
Black) 44 Ne5 and White wins at the very least the exchange and another pawn, e.g.
44 ... Qg3+ 45 Kd1 Re7 46 Ng6+.

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 5 Attack and Defence

“He can attack, but he can’t defend!”, was how Don Miguel Najdorf used to
harangue his sparring partners in blitz games whenever they managed to win with an
attack but could not defend successfully in a subsequent game
All the great champions have excelled in both situations, both devastating attack
and skilful defence, as we can see, for instance, in Game 69, featuring a young Bobby
Fischer in his first USA Championship.

Game 69
H.Seidman-R.Fischer
USA Championship, New York 1957

Black to Play

Black seems be in a very dicey situation here. White is threatening for instance 25
c3, eliminating the threat of mate on c2, and after 25 ... bxc3 he can win with 26
Qh5, since Black must play 26 ... Bf8, giving up the exchange without adequate
compensation.

Exercise: How did the young Fischer defend his position?

24 ... Kh7!!
Answer: “An amazing defensive resource. The king steps out of harm’s way and
only allows the check on f7 later, when it’s not dangerous.” (K. Müller )
25 c3 bxc3 26 Rxe7 Qb6
And the counterattack on b2 neutralises the white attack.

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 27 Rxf7+
Not 27 b3? c2+ 28 Kc1 Qd4, and Black wins.
27 ... Kg8
Attacking the queen and the rook. White is obliged to force a draw.
28 Qg4+ Kxf7 ½-½

When both kings are weak it’s essential to combine the attack on the enemy monarch
with defence of one’s own. Which is more important? Is it better to attack right away,
to try to strike first, or should one first safeguard one’s own king?
Of course there can be no universal response. Sometimes the answer is obvious.
When one’s attack is clearly winning, one should not hesitate but at other times it’s
prudent to attend to one’s defence first, because the opponent’s attack is stronger.
But very often it’s unclear which course of action is best, and once again an
accurate assessment the situation is required, based on good tactical calculation.
This is the case in Game 70.

Game 70
A.Karpov-B.Spassky
Tilburg 1980

Black to Play

Exercise: Neither king looks completely safe, but Black’s is clearly the more
exposed of the two. What’s the best plan for Black here?

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 5 Attack and Defence

19 ... Rb5?
Answer: Black conceives a counterattack based on the weakness of the white king
but it will fail. We can say that it’s a tactical error, but not a crude blunder.
Black was fine. If he had seen the refutation of his idea he would probably have
found the correct plan. The priority in the position is secure the situation of the king
which could be achieved with 19 ... Kd7!. Of course this decision would also require
good calculation.
The direct attempt with 20 Qe2 is answered with 20 ... Qc7, intending 21..a5 or
21 ... Qf4+ and the immediate 20 ... a5! is also strong, as Kasparov pointed out. After
21 c4 axb4! 22 cxd5 Qa5! 23 dxc6+ Kc8 24 Kb1 b3 25 a3 Rb5 it is Black who has a
very strong attack.
It’s preferable to play 20 c4 when Black can continue with his plan to find a safe
refuge for his monarch with 20 ... Kc7 and after 21 cxd5 cxd5 22 Qd3 he needs to
find the key defensive idea 22 ... Qd7! and following 23 Qxa6 Qc6! Black solves his
problems. The ending after 24 Qxc6+ Kxc6 25 Kc2 h5 is even good for Black. It’s
very difficult for White to exploit his two passed pawns.
If 24 Qa5+ Kb7 25 Qa7+ Kc8 instead, then 26 Qxf7? is bad due to 26 ... Rxb4,
while after 26 Kb1 Ra8 27 Qxf7 Black can play 27 ... Rxa2! 28 Qe6+ (not 28 Kxa2?
Qa4+, mating) 28 ... Qxe6 29 fxe6 Rb2+ 30 Kc1 Re8 31 Rge1 Ra2, with balanced
chances.
20 Rge1+ Kd7 21 c4
White accepts the challenge, taking the risk of this further slight weakening of his
king’s position.
21 ... Rxc5 22 bxc5 Bg5?
This was Black’s original idea, but it will not succeed.
22 ... Qb8 was also insufficient, in view of the simple 23 cxd5 Bg5 24 Re3, when
best is 24 ... Bxe3 25 fxe3 and now the worse ending after 25 ... Rd8 26 dxc6+ Ke7
27 Qc2 Rxd1+ 28 Qxd1 Qc7 29 Qd5 h5 30 Kd2 is not “so catastrophic, but things
are very difficult for Black in the queen endgame” (Kasparov).
Instead 25 ... Qe5 leads to a winning attack after 26 dxc6+ Kxc6 27 Qd7+ Kxc5
28 Qa7+ and this is the line given by Kasparov in 2004, which today’s engines
endorse even fifteen years later. Play continues 28 ... Kb5 29 Qb7+ Kc5 30 Rd2!
Qa1+ 31 Kc2 Qxa2+ 32 Kd1 Qa4+ 33 Rc2+ Kd6 34 Qc7+ Kd5 35 Qc5+ Ke4 36
Ke2! Qb5+ 37 Rc4+.
The best defence, although it wasn’t part of Black’s plan, was 22 ... Qf8!, reaching
an inferior ending after 23 Qb4 Qb8 24 Qxb8 Rxb8 25 cxd5 and now it’s a choice

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between 25 ... Rb5 and 25 ... a5, with advantage to White in both cases, but Black
can still resist.
23 f4 Qf6!?

Exercise: The plan initiated with 19 ... Rb5 was based on this ingenious resource.
What was the reply that Black underestimated?

24 cxd5!
Answer: 24 fxg5? was bad due to 24 ... Qa1+ 25 Kc2 Qxa2+ 26 Kc1 (or 26 Kd3
Qxc4+ 27 Ke3 hxg5! and the black rook comes into play decisively) 26 ... Qa1+ 27
Kc2 Qa4+ 28 Kc1 Rb8! and Black soon will capture the white queen for his rook,
remaining with a winning material advantage.
Almost equally bad was the attempt to close the diagonal with 24 Re5?, since
after 24 ... Qxe5! 25 fxe5 Bxd2+ 26 Rxd2 Re8 the ending is much better for Black.
Better than these options was 24 Qd4 Qxd4 25 Rxd4 Bf6 26,Rd3 Rb8 but this
offered less advantage than can be achieved with 24 cxd5!.
24 ... Qa1+ 25 Kc2
With this move the white king ‘goes for a walk’ but White manages to parry the
attack of the queen and the black bishop before Black’s rook can join in the attack.
25 ... Qxa2+ 26 Kd3 Qxd2+
Or 26 ... Qb3+ 27 Qc3 Qb5+ 28 Qc4, when White manages to protect his
monarch adequately while retaining a material advantage; and soon the weakness of
the black king will once again be relevant.
27 Rxd2 Bxf4

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise: What’s the strongest move now?

28 Ra2!
Answer: “This concludes the game. The threat of d5-d6 doesn’t allow Black to
defend his a6-pawn, after which both White’s rooks and his king become terribly
active.” (Kasparov)
28 ... cxd5 29 Rxa6 h5 30 Kd4 h4 31 Kxd5 Rb8 32 f6! gxf6 33 Rxf6 Bg3 34
Rxf7+ Kd8 35 Rf8+ 1-0

In Game 71 the situation isn’t as dramatic as in the previous example. The kings
aren’t in any imminent danger, so it would seem that having the move is less
important here, but there is still some similarity. It’s important to evaluate whether
we need to take preventive action against some plan of the opponent’s or whether it’s
possible to proceed with our own plan. The decision has greater importance that it
appears at first glance.

Game 71
A.Karpov-V.Salov
Linares 1993

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 Black to Play

We are in a Benoni structure where the pieces are strangely placed. The black
bishops are passive and the thematic break ... b5 isn’t easy to implement in favourable
circumstances.
White has made some progress on the kingside, but his own thematic break e5 is
also looking remote and so he’s been seeking an alternative route for his offensive.

Exercise: How should Black respond here?

16 ... Re8?
Answer: Black makes a seemingly useful move, occupying a half-open file and
clearing the f8-square for manoeuvres, but here it isn’t the best. This was a moment
for taking specific measures, rather than selecting moves on general grounds.
16 ... Nf6 is unambitious. After 17 Nf2 there is a threat of g5, so the knight
would have to retreat and after 17 ... Nd7 White could play18 g5 when 18 ... f6 is
forced, exploiting the fact that 19 h4 (to recapture with the h-pawn) is ineffective
since after 19 ... fxg5 the f4-pawn would be en prise, but after 19 gxf6 Bxf6 20 Nce4!
Be7 21 Qd2 b5 22 Bh3 Black will need to defend carefully.
The pawn sacrifice 16 ... b5?! is playable but isn’t the strongest move. After 17
axb5 axb5 18 Nxb5 Qb6 19 Nbc3 Black hasn’t achieved much.
A good response was to think about defence first and play 16 ... h6!, when it’s not
clear how the white attack can proceed.
17 g5
Now White makes progress unhindered.

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 5 Attack and Defence

17 ... Bf8 18 Kh1

Question: It looks as though with this White has also chosen a move on the
grounds that it’s generally useful, isn’t that so?

Answer: Yes, the king clears g1 and moves off the g1-a7 diagonal. The difference
with 16 ... Re8 though is that White can do this without being punished.
18 ... b5
“It’s probable that Salov decided on this with a heavy heart, but there is no other
way of creating counterplay” (Kasparov).
If 18 ... Rb8 White has two attractive plans, one on each flank. 19 Rb1 is
possible, with the idea of answering 19 ... b5 20 axb5 axb5 advantageously with the
typical advance 21 b4.
Another idea is transfer the queen to the kingside but 19 Qd3 allows 19 ... b5!,
when there is no advantage for White in playing 20 axb5 axb5 21 Qxd5 (not 21 ...
Nxb5?? Ba6) 21 ... Bxd5, but an improvement would be for White to prepare Qd3
with the useful move 19 b3.
19 axb5 axb5 20 Nxb5 Qb6 21 Nbc3
“Black’s activity on the queenside is aimed merely at diverting White’s attention
from the kingside”, commented Kasparov.

Question: OK, I can see that right now Black can’t take on b2 due to 22 Rb1,
but if
he does recover the pawn then his pawn sacrifice would be justified, wouldn’t it?

Answer: Kasparov also answered this, “Even if (Black) should succeed in winning
the b2-pawn, this will only signify the restoring of material equality, and not at all
the creation of real counterplay.”
That’s to say, Black would be unable to benefit from the b-file, whereas White
could continue to make progress on the kingside.
21 ... Qb4

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 Exercise (simple): By preventing 22 Rf3, Black is trying to slow down White’s
attack, but in fact there is a way for this to continue – how?

22 Qd3
Answer: Of course. As we’ve already mentioned, the queen joins in the attack.
Here we can also see one of the points of 18 Kh1. It prevents 22 ... Qd4 coming
with check, which would force the exchange of queens.
22 ... Nb6 23 Qg3 Kh8
23 ... Nxd5 24 Nxd5 Bxd5 fails to 25 Nf6+! gxf6 26 gxf6+ Kh8 27 Bxd5 and the
attack along the g-file is unstoppable, e.g. 27 ... Ra7 28 Rg1 Bh6 and now after
protecting f4 with for instance 29 e4, there is no good defence against 30 Qh4 Bf8
31 Qg5.
24 Rcd1
“White has an extra pawn, well placed pieces and the prospect of a direct attack
on the king, whereas the opponent’s counterplay is illusory – all the indications are
that Black has completely lost the battle” (Kasparov).
24 ... Nc4
Black could regain the pawn with 24 ... Na4 but after 25 f5 Nxb2 26 Rb1 Ra3
(preventing Nd1), but the pin on the b2-knight is a very high price to pay. White’s
attack is decisive after 27 Rf4 c4 28 Rh4, threatening both 28 g6 and 29 Rxh7+
Kxh7 30 g6+ Kg8 31 Qh4, mating) 28 ... Rxe4 and now the most direct is 29 Rxh7+
Kxh7 30 g6+ fxg6 31 fxg6+ Kh6 32 Bxe4, mating quickly.
24 ... Bc8 25 f5 Re5 also fails to hold. White can play the quiet 26 Nf2
(threatening 27 Nd3) 26 ... Re8 (if 26 ... Rxf5 or 26 ... .Bxf5, then 27 e4, winning

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 5 Attack and Defence

the exchange while keeping the attack) 27 Nd3 Qb3 28 g6, with a decisive attack. 26
g6 is also good.
25 b3!
Sidelining the knight before continuing the attack.
25 ... Nb6
Here too 25 ... Qxb3 26 Rb1 Nb2 would land Black in dire straits as his pieces
are tied up and offside. White would have a free hand to attack and could choose
between 27 f5 and 27 Qh4, intending 28 Rf3 and 29 Rh3, not to mention the
possibility of f5 at any moment.

26 g6!
“The most energetic – ‘Sicilian style’ – development of the attack.” (Kasparov).
There were also other good options, such as 26 f5 Ra3 27 g6 f6 28 Nxf6 (more
energetic than 28 gxh7 Nd7) 28 ... gxf6 29 Rf4 Qxb3 30 Qh4 h6 31 Qxf6+ Bg7 32
Qf7 Rf8 33 Qxb7.
26 ... fxg6

Exercise: And now what?

27 f5!
Answer: Of course. This was the idea – to open lines.
27 ... gxf5 28 Rxf5 Nd7 29 Rdf1
29 Nxd6 and 29 Ng5 are also effective, but Karpov’s move is just as strong and
will prove to be more artistic.
29 ... Ne5 30 R5f4!
30 Ng5 allows Black to put up greater resistance with 30 ... Qg4.

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 30 ... Qb6
If 30 ... Ng6 then 31 Rg4 (threatening to win with 32 Rxg6 hxg6 33 Qh3+ and
34 Ng5) 31 ... Ne5 32 Rh4, planning our now familiar blow 33 Rxh7+, as well as 33
Ng5, among other things.
31 Ng5
Threatening 32 Be4 and also 32 Nxh7! Kxh7 33 Rh4+ Kg8 34 Be4.
31 ... Ng6
If 31 ... Be7 White can win with either 32 Nf7+ Nxf7 33 Rxf7 Bf8 34 Be4!,
followed by 35 Rg1, or 32 Nxh7 Kxh7 33 Qh3+ Kg8 34 Be4 g6 and now 35 Bxg6
Nxg6 36 Qh6, among other winning continuations, such as 35 Qh3 h6 36 Qf5.
32 Nf7+ Kg8

Exercise: What’s the artistic finish that Karpov had in mind?

33 Qxg6! 1-0
Answer: If 33 ... hxg6 then 34 Rh4.

We’ve seen several examples in which a king can remain safe for some time in the
centre, even in a semi-open position. When the position is closed, logic indicates that
the situation should be even safer. Fortunately chess isn’t so simple. The general rule
applies most of the time, but not always.
Having the king in the centre in a closed position isn’t always risk-free. Even
though the king itself might not be in danger, the position might suffer. In Game 72,
the task is to assess whether the position obeys the general rule or is one of the
exceptions.

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 5 Attack and Defence

Game 72
F.Vallejo Pons-M.Marin
Spanish Team Championship, Sanxenxo 2004

White to Play

The position is closed and although Black is slightly behind in development at

first glance there doesn’t seem to be any way to radically change the situation.

Exercise: If this a case where the appearances are deceptive, how might White try
to demonstrate this?

Answer:
10 c5!!
A beautiful pawn sacrifice to try to exploit Black’s development lag.

Question: But the position remains closed. What’s the basis for being so
optimistic?

Answer: There are several features of the position that, put together, make the
sacrifice very promising.
First of all, after the following check on b5 the black king must move.
Secondly, whichever way Black takes the pawn, his queen will be badly placed.
This will occur either on b6, subject to harassment by Nd2-c4 (or Na3-c4), or on c5,

449
exposed to attack on the c-file. In either case Black is likely to fall further behind in
development.
Black will need several tempi to bring his king to safety and White can use this
time to gain other advantages, as we’ll see.
10 ... Qxc5
10 ... dxc5 would meet with the same reply: 11 Bb5+ Bd7 (or 11 ... Kf8 12 Na3
Nf6 13 Re1, when Black continues to suffer mobility problems) 12 Bxd7+ Kxd7 13
Nd2 ( intending Nc4) 13 ... Nf6 (if 13 ... Qb4 then 14 b3!) 14 Qf3, threatening e5,
followed by Nc4, Bf4, etc.
11 Bb5+ Bd7
If 11 ... Kf8 White has several continuations. The most accurate seems to be 12
Na3, followed by developing the bishop and Rc1, or Re1 first. The black king
remains uncomfortable and Black can’t quickly improve his piece coordination.
12 Bxd7+ Kxd7

Exercise: There are several possibilities now. Which is the most incisive?

13 Qb3
Answer: Exactly. The queen is activated, attacking b7 and with the third rank
available to avoid the exchange of queens if Black proposes this.
13 ... Rc8

Question: Isn’t it better to defend with 13 ... Qb4, forcing the white queen to
lose a
tempo?

Answer: This isn’t clear. On b4 the black queen also remains exposed. After 14
Qd3 (perhaps slightly better than 14 Qh3+ Ke8 15 Bd2) 14 ... Nf6 15 Bd2 Qb6 (15
... Qxb2 16 Na3 merely facilitates White’s task) 16 Na3 Rhc8 17 b3! (not 17 Nc4
Rxc4! 18 Qxc4 Nxe4 when Black even has the advantage) followed by 18 Nc4 and
very possibly 19 f4, White gains a strong initiative.
14 Bd2 Nf6 15 Re1
There is no hurry. White defends e4 and maintains the pressure on b7, but there
is no rush to capture on b7 – the priority is to develop the knight with Na3.
15 ... Rhd8

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 5 Attack and Defence

15 ... Ng4 doesn’t achieve anything. After 16 h3 Ne5 White plays 17 Na3, with
threat of f4.
16 Na3 Ke8

Exercise (simple): Black has completed the first part of his plan to evacuate his
king, although it will still require several tempi to reach safety. How should
White continue?

17 Rac1
Answer: Of course. This gains more tempi on the black queen.
17 ... Qa7 18 Nb5 Qb8 19 Bxa5
So White has regained the sacrificed-pawn. His pieces are still more active than
Black’s and with the black king still dubiously placed, White’s advantage is clear.
19 ... Rxc1 20 Rxc1 Rc8 21 Bc7
Although there is no immediate danger to the black queen, after White’s next
move the threat will be real and the black queen will be shut out of play.
21 ... Nd7
Not 21 ... Nxe4? 22 Qc2. The most tenacious move is 21 ... Qa8, a move that
will soon be forced anyway. White could respond with 22 Qc4, followed by f4 and
the prophylactic b3 also on the agenda. Black can only wait as 22 ... Nxe4? would
lose to 23 Re1.
22 Rc4!
The most effective way to unpin. Now both 22 ... Ne5 and 22 ... Nc5 would lose
to 23 Bxb8.
22 ... Qa8

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 Exercise: And now? What’s White’s most convincing continuation?

23 Bxd6!
Answer: Winning material, thanks to the possible forks on c7 and d6. If 23 ...
exd6 then 24 Rxc8+ followed by Nxd6+.
23 ... Rxc4 24 Qxc4 Kf8 25 Bc7 d3
By now there is no good defence. This unsupported-pawn is doomed.
26 b3 d2 27 Qc2 Nc5

Exercise: What’s the strongest move now?

28 d6!
Answer: Black continues to suffer from having his king in the centre!
28 ... Qe8 29 dxe7+ Kg8 30 Bd6 Qd7 31 Qxd2 Nxe4 32 Qe2 1-0
32 Qa5 was slightly stronger, but how can we criticise a move that induces Black
to resign? White is two pawns up, with one of them on the seventh rank.

The fight for the initiative can sometimes lead to a situation where a player has to
decide whether to let the game follow a ‘normal’ course, which would allow the
opponent to carry out his plans and gain satisfactory play or, conversely, take drastic
measures to prevent this. That’s the dilemma White faces, in the initial position of
Game 73.

Game 73

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 5 Attack and Defence

L.Aronian-A.Giri
Wijk aan Zee 2017

White to Play

Black has just taken an important decision, playing ... Bxa3, exchanging his
valuable dark-squared bishop, followed by 11 ... Nd6, seeking to force a concession
from the opponent.

Exercise: How did White reply?

12 c5!
Answer: The most committal and best decision. Instead, 12 cxd5 exd5 would
liberate the c8-bishop, while 12 Nd2 would allow 12 ... Nf5, exchanging the bishop
on e3.
12 ... Nc4
This was the idea, obliging White to justify his advance. In contrast, after 12 ...
Nf5 13 Bf4 Black would be left with no justification for having given up his dark-
squared bishop.

Exercise: What was the next step in White’s plan?

13 Rxc4!
Answer: “The simplest continuation”, commented Aronian. Well, no doubt
sacrificing the exchange is simple for him! Of course, this decision was already taken

453
when he played 12 c5.
13 Bf4 also came into consideration, but this pawn sacrifice is less clear. After 13
... .Nxa3 Black can play a quick ... b6 or ... b5 and the knight can always return to
c4.
13 ... dxc4

Exercise: What move had Aronian seen that convinced him to sacrifice the
exchange?

14 Qc2
Answer: “I had taken note that after a future 14 Qc2 Black gets development
problems” wrote Aronian, adding that now Black can’t permit 15 Ng5, since this
“would lead to disharmony in the black position ( ... g7-g6 would then weaken the
king, whilst after ... Nd7-f6 the advance e6–e5 would no longer be possible).”
14 ... h6 15 Qxc4

White has a pawn for the exchange but if Black plays accurately his position
should be reasonable.

Exercise: What’s Black’s correct plan?

15 ... b6?
Answer: The idea is definitely correct, to bring the bishop to life, but the
execution is faulty.

Exercise: What’s wrong with Black’s move?

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 5 Attack and Defence

16 Bf4!
Answer: “The bishop on d6 will be worth at least a rook and a pawn.” (Aronian)
This points towards the best way to try to liberate the c8-bishop. The correct
move was 15 ... e5. Aronian noted that after 16 dxe5 Qe7 17 Qc3 Re8 18 Rd1
White is better, although after 18 ... Nf8, releasing bishop, Black is far from
defenceless.
16 ... Re8 17 Bd6 Bb7

Exercise: How did Aronian proceed?

Answer: 18 Ne5

Question: Hmm, simplifying when he’s the exchange down? Why is this good?

Answer: Aronian explains it thus, “After the exchange of knights Black can
abandon all hopes of any activity. In addition, he also then gets problems with the
defence of his king.”
18 ... bxc5
Following 18 ... Nxe5 19 dxe5 Aronian considered that it was difficult for Black
to cope with White’s plan to play Be4, followed by f4-f5. We can add that in the
event of 19 ... Qc8, to answer 20 f4 with 20 ... Ba6 21 Qc2 bxc5, seeking
counterplay along the open b- and d- files, White can frustrate Black’s plan by first
playing 20 Qa4!.
19 dxc5 Nxe5 20 Bxe5

Question: The position has opened up and Black can hope to activate his rooks
and even his bishop, although not in the immediate future. What was so good
about White’s plan of playing 18 Ne5?

Answer: Let’s hand over to Aronian, “After the opening of the files Black has even
more worries than previously. On account of the potential vulnerability of his king
and the weakness of the c6–pawn he has no time to activate the Bb7.”
20 ... a5

Exercise: As you indicated, Black seeks to activate his bishop; how did White

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 respond?

21 Rb1!
Answer: Treating Black’s idea with appropriate respect, White postpones his
activity on the kingside in order to frustrate the opponent’s plan. Now if 21 ... Ba6
22 Qc2 Qd7 White plays 23 a4 and “It becomes quite clear that the freedom of the
black bishop is in reality illusory.” (Aronian).
21 ... Ra7 22 Qc3!
Forcing Black to weaken his position even more. Aronian highlighted the fact
that “on account of the weakened position of his king it’s difficult for Black to
coordinate his pieces.”
22 ... f6 23 Bd6 Ba8

The bishop retreats to a sad position, which it will never leave. Black’s idea is to
activate the a7-rook.

Exercise: Now that he has managed to weaken Black’s kingside, what plan did
White initiate?

24 Be4!
Answer: The inactive bishop joins in the offensive against the black king. As well
contemplating 25 Bg6, White’s idea is to play 25 Bc2, followed by Qd3.
24 ... f5

Question: But this move closes the diagonal, so is White’s bishop manoeuvre
any good?

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 5 Attack and Defence

Answer: Yes, it is. Just be patient.

25 Bc2 Rb7
In the event of 25 ... Rd7 there are several attractive continuations.

Exercise: What would White have played?

Answer: Aronian commented that his plan, which is the strongest, was to play 26
Rb8, and after 26 ... Qxb8 27 Bxb8 Rxb8 although Black has two rooks for the
queen, his pieces are passive, which allows the white queen to capture material. For
example 28 Qe5 (28 Qc4 is also strong, threatening the pawns on e6 and f5) 28 ...
Re8 29 Bxf5 Rd5 30 Bxe6+ Kh8 31 Qc7, and the bishop is taboo due to 32 Qc8+,
with a winning advantage.
26 Rd1
White prevents the exchange of rooks, since the white one can support the
attack.
26 ... Rd7

Exercise (simple): Demonstrate that the manoeuvre begun with 24 Be4 is good.

27 e4!
Answer: Of course. White open the kingside to give more power to the c2-bishop
as well as the rest of the white pieces.
27 ... Qf6 28 Qc4

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 The engines prefers 28 Qxa5, but Aronian prefers to continue with his kingside
play. This was his explanation, “I decided to maintain the tension rather than hurry
to gain material.”
28 ... Kh8 29 Re1 Qf7 30 Qd3 f4?
Black tires of waiting passively and tries to complicate the game, but his passive
pieces provide no basis for optimism. More tenacious was 30 ... Rdd8, continuing a
waiting policy and placing the onus on White.
31 gxf4 e5 32 Qh3
Once again Aronian highlights the practical aspect of the struggle, “One of the
safest ways to win. Because his rook on d7 is hanging, Black loses material.”
32 ... Rxd6
If 32 ... exf4 then 33 e5 with the idea of 34 e6.
33 cxd6 Qg6+
Black opts to eliminate the d6-pawn. If 33 ... Qxf4 White could play 34 Re3 to
neutralise the activity of the black queen, with ideas such as 35 d7, 35 Qg3 or 35
Qf5, with both a material and positional advantage.
34 Qg3 Qxd6

Exercise: What’s the most convincing reply?

35 Rd1
Answer: And now the e5-pawn falls; in the event of 35 ... exf4 36 Rxd6 fxg3 37
hxg3 the centre pawns are unstoppable.
35 ... Qc5

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 5 Attack and Defence

Exercise (simple): How can this attempt at counterattack be refuted?

36 Rd7
Answer: Of course; the attack on the king gains a decisive material advantage.
36 ... Rg8 37 Bb3 exf4 38 Qg6 f3 39 h4
The black queen on its own presents no danger, since all the white pieces are
active.
39 ... Qc3 40 Bxg8
This is quite safe. The white king can take the air and, to quote Aronian, “it’s
always pleasant to let your king take a walk among friends.”
40 ... Qe1+ 41 Kh2 Qxf2+ 42 Kh3 Qf1+ 43 Kg4 1-0

We arrive at Game 74, which is the final example. It’s a game by the author of this
book.
In the initial position White must decide whether to start an attack, which at first
sight seems very promising, or else play in a more positional manner.
As we know, there is no fixed rule to tell you what’s best in such a case. Accurate
calculation is essential to arrive at the objectively optimal decision.

Game 74
R.Zacarias-Z.Franco Ocampos
Championship of Paraguay, Asunción 2018

White to Play

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 The first feature of the position that stands out is that the black king is weak.

Exercise: What’s the best plan for White?

23 Re3
Answer: White opts for the attack, but, as we’ll see, this will give him no
advantage.

Question: Surely it’s hardly surprising that White’s attack fails, given that his
knight is out of play?

Answer: It’s a matter of calculation. Generally the weakness of the king is a very
important factor, one which reduces the importance of the other features of the
position. In each case it’s necessary to calculate.
It’s true that all that would be needed for the offensive to succeed would be for
the a4-knight to be closer to the kingside but on the other hand it can be argued that
the rook on a8 is also inactive.
Recycling the knight would indeed give White a positional advantage. After 23
Rd1 Qc6 24 Qg4+ Kh8 25 Nb2, followed by Nc4, White would have all his pieces
in play and would stand better.

Exercise: White is threatening to win with 24 Rg3+ Kf8 (24 ... Kh8? 25 Rh3) 25
Qh6+ Ke8 26 Rd3 Qc7 27 Qxh7.

Black has only one defence – what is it?

23 ... Qd2!
Answer: The queen comes to the defence with this counterattack against White’s
back rank.
24 Rg3+ Kh8 25 h3
With the threat of 26 Qf7.

Exercise: How to defend?

25 ... Qf4!
Answer: Once again the only move. Instead, 25 ... Rf8 26 Qg4 Qg5 27 Qxg5
fxg5 28 Rc3 Rf4 29 Rc4 would leave Black with Black with a horrible pawn structure

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 5 Attack and Defence

and White would still have strong threats such as 30 Kg1 followed by g3.
26 Rg4 Qc1+ 27 Kh2

Exercise: White still has threats of 28 Qf7 or 28 Rh4. How should Black
respond?

27 ... f5!
Answer: This is the third ‘only’ move. Instead, 27 ... Rg8? loses to28 Rxg8+ Kxg8
29 Qe8+.
28 exf5?
It was necessary to retreat the attacked rook without making this exchange. After
for example 28 Rg3 Rf8, Black would have repelled the attack and would be fine, but
nothing more.

Exercise: How did Black seize the advantage here?

28 ... e4!
Answer: And the bishop comes into play with decisive effect.
29 Qf7?
This only speeds up the defeat, but Black’s advantage would also be decisive after
29 Rg3 Bf6! (intending 30 ... Bd4) 30 Nc3 Qf4! 31 Qg4 Qxf5 32 Nxe4 Be5.
29 fxe6 also loses after 29 ... Bd6+ 30 g3 Qxc2+ and the rook joins in the attack
with ... Rf8.
29 ... Bd6+ 30 g3 Qxc2+ 31 Kh1 Qb1+ 32 Kh2 Qxa2+ 33 Kh1 Qb1+ 34
Kh2 Qc2+ 35 Kh1 Qd1+ 36 Kh2 Qe2+ 37 Kh1 Be5

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 The bishop defends and attacks at the same time; there’s no defence now and the
rest is easy.
38 f6 Qf3+
First of all it’s necessary to eliminate the pawn on f6.
39 Kh2 Qf2+ 40 Kh1 Bxf6
White has no time to reorganise his defences.
41 Rf4 Qe1+ 42 Kg2 Bd4 43 Rf1 Qe2+ 44 Kh1 Rg8
Finally the rook is activated and helps Black strike the final blow.
45 g4 Qd3 46 Kg2 Qxb3 47 Qd7 Qc2+ 48 Kh1 Qd3 0-1

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