Table of Contents

CopyRight Information
About the Author
Introduction

Open Variation
Test Yourself
Moeller variation
Zaitsev Variation
Test Yourself
Chigorin Variation with Open ‘c’ File
Chigorin Variation with Open ‘d’ File
Test Yourself
Chigorin Variation - Closed Structure
Test Yourself

Symbols and Abbreviations Used in the Book

Swipe left for next chapter

3
 Spanish Opening - Strategy and Tactics

By Roman Jiganchine

The right of Roman Jiganchine 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 from the author.

Jiganchine, Roman. Spanish Opening - Strategy and Tactics. Electronic Edition.

For questions, comments, or more information on this book, contact: Roman Jiganchine at
roman.jiganchine@outlook.com.

Copyright © 2013 by Roman Jiganchine.

4
About the Author

National Master Roman Jiganchine has been a chess coach of several Canadian junior players. His
students in the early 2000s won many Canadian championship youth titles in various age groups.
Roman has contributed to «Chess Life», Russian «64» magazine, and for several years had an
endgame column in «Chess Canada» magazine.

5
Introduction

The book is a follow up to «Exchange Slav - Strategy and Tactics» and is intended for chess players
who want to learn the Spanish opening and are looking for a quick overview of the major
variations. For each line, several sample games are followed by tactical positions typical for that
line. Any player who plays the Spanish Opening either as White or Black can benefit from learning
the specific middlegame themes presented here.

The book covers the following variations of the Spanish Opening, as each of them results in a
distinct pawn structure, which is what we’d like to focus on:
• Open Variation
• Moeller Variation
• Zaitsev Variation
• Chigorin Variation with Open ‘c’ File
• Chigorin Variation with Open ‘d’ File
• Chigorin Variation - Closed Structure
The book presents a rather straightforward repertoire for White, so let’s review briefly all the
variations, with links to the main games. The deeply annotated games tend to focus on the strategy,
and are followed by tactical puzzles to reinforce the ideas and give a better idea of how White can
fight for advantage in different pawn structures that arise from the Spanish. This approach helps to
both remember the main sections of opening theory, as well as develop a sense of the pawn
formations.
Spanish Opening - Overview
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 This move characterizes the Spanish Opening. 3...a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O

6
Black's first big decision is on move 5, he can choose between the classical lines, and the two sharp
alternatives - the Moeller Variation, and the Open Variation. 5...Be7
5...Nxe4 This is the Open variation where Black accepts the challenge and takes the unprotected
pawn. 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6

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In the Open Variation Black also obtains active piece placement, but here he pays for it with pawn
weaknesses. Regardless of whether the game opens up, or the pawn structure becomes fixed - Black
will have some difficulties equalizing, as both sample games illustrate: 9.Nbd2 Nc5 10.c3 d4 (It is a
common mistake to exchange the white bishop too soon, as the following game illustrates:
10...Nxb3?! 11.Nxb3 Be7 12.Nfd4! Nxd4 13.cxd4 O-O 14.Be3 Rc8 15.Rc1 c6 16.Nc5 Bxc5
17.Rxc5 a5 18.Qc2 Bd7 19.f4 f5 20.Rf3 Qe7 21.Bd2 a4 22.Bb4 and White exerted strong pressure
in Jiganchine,R-Trotchanovich,P/ Keres 2007, 1-0) 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 13.a4! Be7
14.Nxd4 Nxd4 15.Ne4 Ne6 16.Be3 O-O 17.f4 and White won in Karpov,A-Korchnoi,V/Merano
19815...b5 6.Bb3 Bc5

This is the Moeller - Black develops the bishop to an active position, where it can become a target.
The bishop will also be missing on the d8-h4 diagonal, so White's tries for advantage involve Bg5,
as the sample game shows: 7.a4 Rb8 8.axb5 axb5 9.c3 d6 10.d4 Bb6 11.h3 O-O 12.Re1 Bb7 13.Na3
exd4 14.cxd4 Na5 15.Bc2 b4 16.Nb1 c5 17.Bg5 h6 18.Bh4 b3 19.Bxb3 g5 20.Nxg5 hxg5 21.Bxg5
and White had a strong attack in Hracek,Z-Shirov,A/Germany 1997, 1-0
6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
9...Bb7 10.d4 Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8

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This is the Zaitsev variation where Black puts a lot of pressure on the 'e4' pawn; against this I
recommend shutting down the center on move 12 with d4-d5. When Black undermines it by c7-c6 -
White plays for occupying the d5 square, or tries to use the power of his bishop on the a2-g8
diagonal. 12.d5 Nb8 13.Nf1 Nbd7 14.N3h2 Nc5 (Allowing the white bishop to remain on b3 is
rather dangerous: 14...c6 15.dxc6 Bxc6 16.Bg5 Qc7 17.Qf3 Qb7 18.Ng3 d5 19.Ng4 dxe4 20.Qf5
with attack in Kovacevic, A-Gligoric,S/ Niksic 1997, 1-0) 15.Bc2 c6 16.b4 Ncd7 17.dxc6 Bxc6 and
White started to fight for the 'd5' square in Anand,V-Kasimdzhanov,R/Mainz 2007, 1-0
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2

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Black is at the crossroads. 12...Nc6
12...cxd4 is the main line, immediately initiating play along the 'c' file. 12...Bd7 is the most popular
alternative. 13.cxd4 Bb7 14.d5 Rac8 15.Bd3 Nd7 16.Nf1 Nc5 17.Ng3 Nxd3 18.Qxd3 Qc2?
19.Qxc2 Rxc2 20.Nf5 Re8 21.b3 Bc8 22.Nxe7+ Rxe7 23.Be3 Nb7 24.Bb6 Re8 25.Rec1 Re2
26.Rc7

10
and White won due to his domination on the 'c' file in Aseev, K-Sturua,Z/Lvov 1985, 1-0 12...Bd7
Temporarily maintains tension in the center. 13.Nf1 Rfe8 (13...cxd4 14.cxd4 Rac8 15.Ne3 Nc6
16.d5 Nb4 17.Bb1 a5 18.a3 Na6 19.b4 g6 20.Bd2 axb4 21.axb4 Qb7 22.Bd3 Nc7 23.Nc2 Nh5
24.Be3 Ra8 25.Qd2 1-0 Tal, M-Hjartarson,J/ Reykjavik 1987, 1-0) 14.Ne3 g6 15.dxe5 dxe5
16.Nh2 Rad8 17.Qf3 Be6 18.Nhg4 Nxg4 19.hxg4 Qc6 20.g5 Nc4 21.Ng4 Bxg4 22.Qxg4 f6?!
23.gxf6 Bxf6 24.a4± Fischer - Unzicker, 1959, 1-0
13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Rb8

15.axb5
15.b4 is Geller's interpretation of this line: previously White would first exchange on b5, but that
would give Black a better chance of fighting for the 'a' file. 15...c4 16.Nf1 Ne8 17.axb5 axb5
18.N3h2² (18.Ng3 g6 19.Nh2 Ng7 20.Rf1 Bd7?! 21.f4 Bh4 22.Qf3 f5 23.fxe5 dxe5 24.exf5 Bxg3
25.Qxg3 Nxf5 26.Qf2 Nb7 27.Ng4 h5 28.Ra6! hxg4 29.Rxg6+ Ng7 30.Rxg7+ and Black was
mated in Nunn,J-Short,N/Brussels 1986, 1-0) 18...f5? 19.exf5 Bxf5 20.Bxf5 Rxf5 21.Be3 Rf8
22.Nf3± Geller,E-Smyslov,V/Palma de Mallorca, 1970, 1-0
15...axb5 16.b4 Nb7 17.Nf1 Bd7 18.Be3 Ra8 19.Qd2 Rfc8 20.Bd3 g6 21.Ng3 Bf8 22.Ra2 c4
23.Bb1 Qd8 24.Ba7 Ne8 25.Bc2 Nc7 26.Rea1 Qe7 27.Bb1 Be8 28.Ne2 Nd8 29.Nh2 Bg7 30.f4
f6 31.f5 g5 32.Bc2 Bf7 33.Ng3 Nb7 34.Bd1 h6 35.Bh5

11
with a dominating position for White in Karpov,A-Unzicker,W, Nice 1974 1-0

12
 Show in Quiz Mode

Open Variation

We begin the coverage with the Open variation. The next game shows how to utilize an opening
novelty, and is a great example of technique in the endgame.
Karpov, Anatoly - Korchnoi, Viktor [C80]
World Championship Match, 1981.11.18
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4

The Open Variation of the Spanish Opening, leads to more sharp play, and at the same time is more
dangerous for Black. Korchnoi defended this line in the 1978 and 1981 World Championship
matches. Even though Black won a game or two, Karpov showed a lot of ideas for how to battle
against this variation. 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5 10.c3 d4

13
Given the opportunity, Black tries to free himself up in the center. Otherwise, as commonly done in
the Open Variation - White would put a lot pressure on the d5 pawn. At the same time - Black's king
is still in the center when the play opens up. 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 In one of the previous
games by the same opponents - Karpov played 13.Ne4, but his novelty in this game is also very
logical. 13.a4

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Question: What is the idea behind a2-a4?
Show/Hide Solution

Answer: At some point White threatens to take on d4 and take on b5, overloading Black queen
which has to guard both 'd4' and 'a8'. 13...Be7 14.Nxd4 Nxd4 15.Ne4

Best move here was to castle, followed by axb5 and Nxb5. The move played by Korchnoi is a bit
slow. 15...Ne6 16.Be3 O-O 17.f4 Threatening f4-f5. 17...Qxd1 18.Rfxd1 Rfb8

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Korchnoi hopes to create counter play on the queenside, but the invasion of the white rook to d7
proves too dangerous. 19.Rd7 Bf8 20.f5 Nd8 21.a5 Karpov prevents most of Black's counter play
on the queenside. 21...Nc6 22.e6 fxe6 23.f6

Capturing on f6 leads to checkmate. 23...Ne5 24.Rxc7 Rc8 25.Rac1 Rxc7 26.Rxc7 Rd8 27.h3 h6

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Rd3 would be met by Kf2, and Black still has very little counter play. 28.Ra7 Nc4 29.Bb6 Rb8
30.Bc5 Bxc5+ 31.Nxc5 gxf6 32.b4

Even though the position has simplified, White's pieces remain very active. 32...Rd8 33.Rxa6 Kf7
34.Ra7+ Kg6 35.Rd7 Re8

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After the exchange of rooks, the a6 pawn would be very hard to stop. 36.a6 Ra8 37.Rb7 Kf5
38.Rxb5 Ke5 39.Rb7 Kd5 40.Rf7 f5 41.Rf6 e5

White has two connected passed pawns, and it is not clear how Black can stop them, so Korchnoi
resigned and Karpov won the match. A great example of how an opening novelty can lead to a
victory! 1-0

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 Jiganchine, Roman - Trotchanovich, Pavel [C80]
Keres Memorial 2007, 2007.05.20
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Nxe4 7.d4 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5
10.c3

10...Nxb3?! This is a positional mistake, as now White's control over d4 and c5 becomes very firm.
Black instead had 3 main moves: 10... Bg4, 10... Be7, and 10... d4, the last of which was played in
the Karpov-Korchnoi game. 11.Nxb3 Be7 12.Nfd4! Nxd4
12...Nxe5 is considered dangerous - Black is likely to lose material 13.Re1 Ng6 14.Nxe6 fxe6
15.Nd4 e5 16.Ne6 Qd7 17.Qxd5! Qxd5 18.Nxc7+ Kf7 19.Nxd5±
13.cxd4 O-O 14.Be3

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White won the majority of the games that arrived at this position. Black's pieces are rather passive,
and he has no compensation for the weaknesses along the 'c' file. However to exploit his position,
White would have to build up pressure on both sides of the board and only then execute a
breakthrough. His plan is roughly as follows:
1. establish a knight on 'c5' and control the 'c' file
2. advance pawns on the kingside and resolve the pawn structure there
3. activate the dark squared bishop to the a3-f8 diagonal
4. use the third rank for manoeuvres of heavy pieces and build pressure on both sides of the board
5. once Black pieces are tied up - either engineer a pawn break, or open a file and invade with heavy
pieces.
Of course, depending on how the opponent acts, White would have to modify his plan accordingly.
14...Rc8
14...f6 was a bit more active, but did not fundamentally change the evaluation of the position.
15.Rc1 c6 16.Nc5 Bxc5 17.Rxc5 a5 18.Qc2 Bd7 19.f4

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Not only White is putting pressure on the queenside, but he also wants to advance with f4-f5-f6, so
Black has to prevent that somehow. 19...f5 A committal move, as now the 'e' pawn will need to be
continually watched by Black.
Also possible was 19...g6 20.f5! Bxf5 21.Qd2 and White has great compensation for the sacrificed
pawn, as Black's dark squares are very weak. 21...Qd7 22.Bh6 Rfe8 23.Bg5 h5 24.Bf6 Kh7 25.Qg5
a4 26.Rf4 a3 27.b3

21
and White can continue to build up pressure, with possible sacrifices either on 'f5' or on 'h5'. Black's
position cannot be saved.
20.Rf3 Qe7 21.Bd2 a4

Black has completely surrendered the dark squares, tying all hopes to passive defence. Such
positions however are very unpleasant to defend as White can combine threats on both sides of the

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board. The game goes on for quite a while from here, but Black is always struggling due to the
weaknesses of his position. 22.Bb4 Qf7 23.Rcc3 Rfe8 24.Rh3 Re6 Black manages to trade off one
pair of rooks, which is probably to his advantage. 25.Rcg3 Rg6 26.Rxg6 Qxg6 Now my main risk is
that Black will trade off the second rook the same way, so I tried to go back and forth, hoping to tie
up the black rook to be guarding e6 or the a file. 27.Rg3 Qf7 28.Ra3

One of White's ideas is to play b2-b3, and invade on the 'a' file. This has to be timed very carefully,
of course. 28...Qe8 29.Re3
With his last move Black made sure that he is prepared to meet 29.b3 axb3 30.axb3 with 30...Ra8
29...Qe6 30.Qe2 Re8 31.Ra3 Ra8 32.h3 Qe8 33.Kh2 Be6 34.Rg3

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With the queenside threats, White forced Black to put the rook to 'a8', and now Black is unable to
quickly transfer the rook to g6. 34...Kh8 35.Bd6 White is preparing to play e5-e6 and Be5 with
pressure on g7 at the right time. 35...Qf7 36.Rc3 Qe8 37.Qf2 Ra7 38.Qh4 Ra8 39.Rg3 Qf7 40.Rc3
Bd7 41.Qg5 Qg6

42.Qe7

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42.Qxg6 hxg6 would only give small winning chances, for example - opposite colour bishop
endgame has some promise if white brings king on b6 and takes on g7 with bishop, and creates
passed pawn on kingside - but there is only a remote chance of that happening.
42...Qe8 43.Qh4 Rc8 44.Rg3 Qf7 45.Qg5 Re8 46.b3 Going back to the idea of generating play on
the queenside. It is essential in the Spanish opening to play on both sides of the board, especially if
White wants to convert his spacial advantage into a win. 46...axb3 47.axb3

47...Kg8
It would be logical for Black to take over the 'a' file, but then I was hoping to generate enough
pressure on kingside: After 47...Ra8 there was a brilliant (but predictable ) sacrifice: 48.e6!! Bxe6
49.Be5 Rg8 (49...Ra7 50.Bxg7+ Qxg7 51.Qd8+ Bg8 52.Rxg7 Rxg7 53.Qf6+-) 50.h4!!

25
and Black is completely helpless against h4-h5-h6 50...Qg6 (50...Bd7 51.h5 and Qg6 is no longer
an option) 51.Qxg6 hxg6 52.Rxg6 with double threat Rxe6 and Rh6 mate! 52...Kh7 53.Rxe6+-
48.b4 Kh8 49.Ra3 Qe6 50.Ra7 Kg8 51.h4 h6 52.Qg3 h5 53.Qg5 Qf7 54.Kh3 Kh7

55.Bc5 Re6

26
56.Kh2?!
White was winning immediately after 56.Bf8! Qxf8 57.Rxd7 Rh6 58.g3 with zugzwang! 58...Rg6
59.Qxh5+ Rh6 60.Rf7! Rxh5 61.Rxf8 with a completely winning rook endgame for White.
56...Re8

27
57.e6!? White gives up the pawn to free up the e5 square for his bishop and to disrupt the
coordination of the black pieces. 57...Qxe6
57...Rxe6? 58.Qd8+-
58.Qxh5+ Kg8 59.Qg5 Kh7 60.h5 Kh8 61.Rc7 Rc8 62.Ra7 Rg8

63.Qg6 Rc8?
63...Qe1!± was the best chance.
64.Qxe6 Bxe6 65.Re7 Bg8 66.h6! Rd8 Black tries to prevent Bd6
66...gxh6? 67.Bd6 Bh7 68.Be5+ Kg8 69.Rg7+ Kf8 70.Rxh7+-
67.Rxg7+- With the king in the corner, Black clearly has no chance to save this endgame. Opposite
colours of the bishops do not help Black because there are still rooks present on the board. 67...Bh7
68.Rc7 Rg8 69.Rxc6 Rg6

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70.Rc8+ Bg8 71.Bf8 Re6 72.Rb8 Re4 73.Bg7+ Kh7 74.Be5 Be6 75.Rb6 It took a lot of moves for
White to win the game, but the entire course of the game gave Black very little hope of escaping
from the strategic bind. 1-0

Test Yourself
Having seen a couple of annotated games, now it is time to look at the wide range of games with the
focus on tactics. You don't have to replay the entire games, and can just focus on finding the right
answers to the puzzles. However, in case you are interested in how Black got himself into trouble,
the starting moves for all games are still provided.
Dory Jeno - Hegeler, Frank [C80]
1991
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5
10.c3 Bg4 11.Re1 Nd3 12.Re3 Nxc1 13.Rxc1 Bc5 14.Re1 Qd7 15.Nf1 Rd8 16.h3 Bh5 17.Ng3
Bg6 18.Nd4 O-O 19.Qd2 Na5 20.Rcd1 Bb6 21.Qf4 c5 22.Ndf5 Nxb3

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Black expected White to recapture on b3, overlooking an intermediate shot. White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 23.Rxd5! Qe6

23...Qxd5 24.Ne7++-
24.Rxd8 Rxd8 25.axb3 Qxb3?

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White won a pawn, but Black could hope for compensation. Instead - he again underestimated the
power of the White knights and missed another sacrifice. White to move
Solution: 26.Nxg7!+- Qxb2
26...Kxg7 27.Qf6+ Kg8 28.Qxb6+-
27.N7f5 Qd2 28.Re3 Kh8 29.Ne7 Mate is inevitable. 1-0

Anderson, Renard - Mac Intyre Paul [C80]

2006
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Be3 Na5
10.Qe2 c5 11.c3 Nxb3 12.axb3 Be7

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White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 13.Rxa6! Now White is up a pawn, and eventually won. 13...Rb8

13...Rxa6 14.Qxb5+±
14.Nbd2 Nxd2 15.Qxd2 h6 16.b4 cxb4 17.cxb4 Qc8 18.Ra7 Qc4 19.Rc1 Qxb4 20.Qxb4 Bxb4
21.Nd4 Bd7 22.Rcc7 Rd8 23.Rxd7 Rxd7 24.Ra8+ Rd8 25.Rxd8+ Kxd8 26.Nc6+ Kd7 27.Nxb4
Ke6 28.f4 Kf5 29.Kf2 Ke4 30.Ke2 g5 31.Nd3 gxf4 32.Bxf4 h5 33.g3 Rc8 34.Nf2+ Kd4 35.Kd2
b4 36.Be3+ Kc4 37.Nd3 d4 38.Bf2 b3 39.Nf4 Ra8 40.Ne2 d3 41.Nf4 Ra5 42.Ng2 Ra8 43.Nf4
Ra5 44.Ng2 Ra8 45.Bg1 Ra6 46.Ne3+ Kd4 47.Bf2 Ra8 48.Nd1+ Kc4 49.Bb6 Kb5 50.Bd4 Ra1
51.Bc3 Kc6 52.Nf2 Rf1 53.Bd4 Kd5 54.Kxd3 Rc1 55.Bc3 Rc2 56.Nh3 Rxh2 57.Nf4+ Kc5
58.Bd4+ Kb4 59.Nd5+ Ka4 60.Kc4 Ka5 61.Kxb3 Rh3 62.Nf4 Rxg3+ 63.Bc3+ Kb5 64.Nxh5
Rf3 65.Ng7 Re3 66.Nf5 1-0

The following 3 examples illustrate very well how dangerous is White's early initiative in the Open
variation when Black tries to free himself up with an early d5-d4.

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 Topalov - Anand
Dos Hermanas, 1996
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5
10.c3 d4 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 13.a4 Bc5 14.Ne4 O-O!? 15.Nxc5 Nxf3+ 16.Qxf3 Nxc5
17.axb5 axb5

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 18.Bg5! This is the best chance, as White wins a queen, although the advantage is not
always sufficient for a win. 18...Rxa1! Black hopes to build a fortress, and actually succeeds in this
game.
18...Qe8 is bad due to 19.Rxa8 Qxa8 20.Be7± winning the exchange.
19.Bxd8 Rxf1+ 20.Kxf1 Rxd8 21.g3 Ne6 22.Qb7 g6 23.Qxb5 c5 24.h4 h5 25.b4 cxb4 26.Qxb4
Kg7 27.Kg2 Kg8 28.Qc3 Ra8 29.Qf3 Rb8 30.Qe3 1/2-1/2

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 Belonogov, Viktor - Golovenchenko, Pavel [C80]
1990
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5
10.c3 d4 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 13.a4 Rb8 14.Nb3 Nxb3 15.Qxb3 Bc5 16.axb5 axb5
17.Rd1 Qe7

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 18.Bg5! Again, Black is punished for delaying castling. 18...f6

The bishop cannot be taken because of the queen sacrifice: 18...Nxg5 19.Qxb5+!! Rxb5 20.Ra8++-
19.exf6 gxf6 20.Re1! Kf7 21.Ne5+! Kg7 22.Nc6 Bxf2+ 23.Kh1! 1-0

Bohlin, Ivar - Pettersson, Gunnar [C80]

1989

34
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Nxe4 6.d4 b5 7.Bb3 d5 8.dxe5 Be6 9.Nbd2 Nc5
10.c3 d4 11.Bxe6 Nxe6 12.cxd4 Ncxd4 13.a4 Bc5 14.Nxd4 Nxd4 15.Ne4 Bb6 16.Qg4 Ne6
17.Rd1 Qe7 18.axb5 a5 19.Bh6! The bishop is immune as the knight's invasion on f6 would be
deadly. 19...Kf8

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 20.Rd7
Black resigned since the variations are very clear and convincing. 20.Rd7 Qxd7 21.Bxg7+ Ke7
22.Qh4+ f6 23.Qxf6+ Ke8 24.Bxh8+-
1-0

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 Show in Quiz Mode

Moeller variation

The Moeller variation (sometimes also called Modern Archangel Defence) has emerged in the
1990s and became popular in top tournaments. Alexei Shirov has always been one of the main
proponents for Black, so this game shows one of his rare defeats in this line.
Hracek, Zbynek - Shirov, Alexei [C78]
Bundesliga, 1997.12.06
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Bc5

In this variation Black exposes himself in a couple of ways - the queenside pawns can be
undermined with a2-a4, the bishop on c5 can be a target after White plays d2-d4, and also Bg5 can
now be more unpleasant because the bishop is not on e7, as it is in most lines in the Spanish
opening. On the bright side - the bishop will be more active on c5, putting additional pressure on
the white center. 7.a4 White undermines the pawn chain, and forces Black to commit to either Bb7

36
or Rb8. 7...Rb8 8.axb5 axb5 9.c3 d6 Black re-enforces the pawn on e5, because he wants to avoid
taking on d4. 10.d4 Bb6 11.h3

Usually White plays Na3, but in this game he first prevents Bg4, which would put extra pressure on
the pawn on d4. 11...O-O 12.Re1 Now White no longer has to worry about Nxe4. 12...Bb7

37
Black finishes his development, and if White allows - plans to play Re8 and put extra pressure on
e4. 13.Na3 exd4 14.cxd4 Na5 15.Bc2 b4 The downside of playing Na3 after h3 is that now the
white knight has to go back, but things are not so simple. 16.Nb1 c5 17.Bg5 As planned - White
pins the knight. 17...h6 18.Bh4

The critical moment of the game. It was best here to take on d4 and distract the white knight from
g5, allowing Black at some point to play g7-g5 without fearing the piece sacrifice. 18...b3 After this
mistake Black's position already is difficult. 19.Bxb3 g5

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White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 20.Nxg5! hxg5 21.Bxg5

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Now this pin is really difficult to deal with, and what is worse is that White plans to transfer the
rook via a3 to the kingside. 21...cxd4 22.Ra3 Nc6 Black tries to re-enforce d4, but the problem
remains that all his pieces are stuck on the queenside. 23.Ba2

Freeing up third rank for the rook. 23...Ne5 24.Rg3 Kh7 25.f4 The knight on e5 turns out be just a
target. 25...Ned7 26.e5

40
The pinned knight on f6 is really going down now. 26...d3+ 27.Kh1 dxe5 28.fxe5 Re8 29.exf6
White gets back his piece, and the attack just continues. 29...Rxe1+ 30.Qxe1

The white queen is now threatening to come to 'h4'. 30...Qe8 31.Be3 Nxf6 Black at least tries to
prevent Rg7. 32.Qf2

The queen now also threatens to come to f5. 32...Qc6 33.Bxb6 Qxb6 34.Qf5+ Kh8 35.Qg5

41
Shirov resigned since 35...Rg8 36.Qh6+ Nh7 37.Qxb6 wins the queen. Shirov is an authority on this
line, and this only shows that in sharp lines even a strong GM can go down after a couple of
inaccuracies. It was also an excellent game by Hracek who played with great energy. 1-0

42
 Show in Quiz Mode

Zaitsev Variation

The Zaitsev variation became popular in the 1980s when it was defended by Anatoly Karpov in the
matches against Kasparov. Here I will focus on the positional approach with 12.d5.
Kovacevic, Aleksandar - Gligoric, Svetozar [C92]
Yugoslav Championship, 1997
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.d5

With d4-d5 White hopes to gain space, and if Black undermines that pawn with c7-c6 - to exploit
the weakened d5 square as a target. 12...Nb8 13.Nf1 Nbd7 14.N3h2 c6
14...Nc5 is more popular; it forces White to remove the bishop from a2-g8 diagonal and reduce
pressure on d5 and f7.
15.dxc6 Bxc6 16.Bg5 Qc7 17.Qf3

43
Now White has pressure against f7 and f6 at the same time, and it is difficult to defend both.
17...Qb7
Probably better was 17...a5 18.Ng4 a4 19.Bc2 Nxg4 20.hxg4=
18.Ng3 d5 This opens up the game, but to a large extent plays into White's hands as he develops an
extremely dangerous initiative on the kingside.
However, no better was 18...Be7 19.Ng4 putting pressure on f6 anyway, followed by Nf5 and Qg3,
and White is winning.
19.Ng4 dxe4
19...Nxg4 is bad because of intermediate 20.exd5!
20.Qf5

44
20...Nd5 21.Nxe4 Re6 22.Rad1 Rae8 23.Rd3

White threatens Rg3, so Black's position becomes critical. 23...h5 24.Bxd5 Bxd5

45
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: White begins the decisive attack with the knight sacrifice, as all his pieces are
concentrated on the kingside. 25.Ngf6+! Nxf6 26.Nxf6+ gxf6 27.Bxf6

46
27...Bh6 Rg3 was being threatened.
27...Rxf6 28.Qxf6 Re6 29.Rg3+ Kh7 30.Qf5+ Rg6 (30...Kh6 31.Qg5+ Kh7 32.Qg8+ Kh6
33.Qh8#) 31.Rxg6 fxg6 32.Qxf8+-27...h4 28.Qg5+ Kh7 29.Red1 Be4 30.Qxh4+ Bh6 31.Rd7+-
28.Rxe5 Be4

47
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 29.Rxe6! Bxf5 30.Rxe8+ Kh7 31.Rg3 Bg4 32.hxg4

32...Bf4
32...Qd7 33.Rd8! (33.Rh8+ Kg6) the last chance to prolong the struggle was 32...Bg7 33.Bxg7 h4
34.Rf3 Kxg7 35.Re5+-
33.gxh5 1-0

Anand, Viswanathan - Kasimdzhanov, Rustam [C92]

Mainz, 2007.08.17
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Re8 10.d4
Bb7 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.d5 Nb8 13.Nf1 Nbd7 14.N3h2 Nc5!?

48
This is a better try than the immediate c7-c6, as was played by Gligoric. 15.Bc2 c6 16.b4 Ncd7
17.dxc6 Bxc6

18.Bg5 The purpose of this move and the next two is to eliminate defenders of the 'd5' square.
18...h6 19.Bxf6 Nxf6 20.Ng4 Nxg4 21.Qxg4

49
This is the main line of the 12.d5 variation. White plans to activate the knight via f1-e3-d5 (or f5)
and to transfer the bishop back to b3, so Black transfers the bishop to e6 to better guard the light
squares. 21...Bd7 22.Qf3 Rc8 Black hopes to compensate for the weakness on 'd6' by pressuring
'c3'. 23.Bb3 Be6 24.Rec1

50
It is to neither side's advantage to exchange bishops because that would improve opponent's pawn
structure. 24...Be7 25.Rc2 a5 26.Qd3 Bxb3 27.axb3 axb4 28.Ne3!

Anand does not bother to win back the pawn, and instead plays against the passive bishop on 'e7'.
28.cxb4?! Rxc2 29.Qxc2 d5! would have allowed Black to escape from the bind and activate his
bishop.
28...bxc3 29.Rxc3 Rxc3 30.Qxc3 Bg5 31.Nd5!

51
Of course, allowing Black to capture on e3 would defeat the purpose of White's previous play. With
a dominating knight on 'd5' White's position is easier to handle, and Anand gradually outplays his
opponent from here. 31...Qd7 32.Ra6 Rc8 33.Qd3 Kh7 34.Kh2 Rc1 35.g3!

Preparing 'h3-h4', to take away the 'g5' square from the bishop. 35...Bd8 36.Kg2 Rc8 37.h4 Rc5?!
37...Rc1!? 38.Ne3 Bc7=

52
38.Ne3! Hitting d6 again. 38...Be7?!
38...Bc7!? was better, even though White would maintain some initiative: 39.Ra7 Qe6 40.b4 Rc1
41.Qxb5²
39.b4 Rc8?!
A better try was 39...Rc1 40.Rb6 Qe6 41.Rxb5 Bxh4 42.gxh4 Qg6+ 43.Kf3 Qh5+=
40.Rb6

Anand outplayed his opponent and despite the material equality (after the b5 pawn falls), now has a
great advantage, as the passed 'b' pawn will become dangerous. 40...g6 41.Qxb5 Qxb5 42.Rxb5
Bd8 43.Rb7 Kg7 44.Nd5 Rc4 45.Rd7 Bf6

53
Black has no defence against the advance of the 'b' pawn. 1-0

Test Yourself
Vasile, Claudiu Daniel - Balacianu, Alexandru George [C92]
ROM-ch U12, 2007.04.13
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.h3 O-O 9.c3 Re8 10.d4
Bf8 11.Nbd2 Bb7 12.d5 Ne7 13.Nf1 h6 14.Ng3 Qd7 15.Nh4 g6 16.Qf3 Nh7 17.Qd3 a5 18.Bd1
c6 19.dxc6 Bxc6 20.Nf3 Bg7 21.Bc2 Nc8 22.Be3 Nf6 23.Qf1 Qb7 24.Rad1 Nd7 25.Bc1 Qc7
26.h4 Ndb6 27.h5 g5 28.Nf5 Qd7 29.Nh2 Rd8 30.Ng4 Kh7 31.Qe2 Ne7

54
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 32.Nfxh6
32.Nfxh6 Bxh6 33.Nf6+ Kg7 34.Nxd7+-
1-0

Haist, Wolfgang - Caldelari, Andrea [C93]

1998
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.h3 d6 9.c3 h6 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.Nf1 Bb7 13.d5 Na5 14.Bc2 c6 15.dxc6 Bxc6 16.Ng3 Qc7 17.Nh2 Kh8
18.Qf3 Rab8

55
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 19.Bxh6! gxh6 20.Qxf6+ Bg7 21.Qh4 Qe7 22.Qxe7 Rxe7 23.Rad1 Rd7 24.Nf5 Bf8
25.Ng4 b4 26.Rd3 b3 27.axb3 1-0

Topalov, Veselin - Morozevich, Alexander [C92]

2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.a3 h6 13.d5 Nb8 14.Nh2 c6 15.dxc6 Bxc6 16.Qf3 Nbd7 17.Ng4 a5 18.Ba2
Qe7 19.Nf1 Nxg4 20.hxg4 Nc5 21.g5 hxg5

56
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 22.Bxg5!² White is able to regain the pawn due to a simple tactic and the "Spanish
Bishop" exerting pressure on 'f7'. 22...Qb7
22...Qxg5?? 23.Qxf7+ Kh7 24.Re3+-
23.Ng3 a4 24.Rad1 Nb3 25.Nf5 Re6 26.Rd3 f6 27.Bc1 Kf7 28.Qh5+ g6 29.Qh7+ Ke8 30.Qxg6+
Qf7 31.Qg4 Kd7 32.Qd1 Kc7 33.Bxb3 axb3 34.Qxb3 Ra4 35.f3 Re7 36.Qxf7 Rxf7 37.Bh6 Bxh6
38.Nxh6 Rd7 39.Ng4 Rf7 40.Red1 Bd7 41.Ne3 Ra6 42.Nd5+ Kd8 43.Nb4 1-0

Jansa, Vlastimil - Bilyap, Siracettin [C93]

1967
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 h6 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.Bc2 Bd7 13.a3 a5 14.d5 Ne7 15.a4 c6 16.dxc6 Bxc6 17.axb5 Bxb5 18.Ba4
Qd7

57
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 19.Nc4!± This threatens the fork on 'b6' and attacks the 'd' pawn. 19...Nc8
Since 19...Bxc4?? 20.Bxd7 is unacceptable for Black, White manages to activate the knight with
tempo.
20.Bxb5 Qxb5 21.Qa4 Qc5 22.Be3 Qc7 23.Nxa5 Nb6 24.Qb5 Nbd7 25.Nd2 Reb8 26.Qc4 Qxc4
27.Naxc4 d5 28.exd5 Nxd5 29.Rxa8 Rxa8 30.Ne4 Nxe3 31.Nxe3 Nb6 32.b4 Rc8 33.g4 Be7
34.Rd1 Nc4 35.Nxc4 Rxc4 36.f3 g6 37.Rd5 f5 38.Rxe5 fxe4 39.Rxe7 Rxc3 40.Rxe4 Rxf3 41.Kg2
Rb3 42.h4 Kf7 43.g5 hxg5 44.hxg5 Rd3 45.Re5 Rd4 46.b5 Rf4 47.Kg3 Rf1 48.Kg4 Rf2 49.Kh3
Rf3+ 50.Kg4 Rf2 51.Rc5 Rf1 52.Rc7+ Ke6 53.Rc6+ Ke5 54.Rxg6 Rg1+ 55.Kf3 Kf5 56.Rc6 Kxg5
57.Ke4 Re1+ 58.Kd5 Kf5 59.Rd6 Rb1 60.b6 Rb2 61.Kc6 Rc2+ 62.Kb7 Ke5 63.Rd1 Rb2 64.Kc7
Rc2+ 65.Kb8 Ke6 66.b7 Rb2 67.Ra1 1-0

Casabona, Claudio Dr - Meleghegyi, Csaba [C92]

1995

58
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Nd7 11.Nbd2 Bf6 12.Nf1 Re8 13.Ng3 g6 14.d5 Na5 15.Bc2 Nc4 16.a4 Ncb6 17.a5 Nc8 18.Bh6
c6 19.dxc6 Bxc6 20.Qd2 Nc5 21.b4 Ne6 22.Bb3 Ra7 23.Red1 Rd7 24.Rac1 Ne7 25.Ng5 Nxg5
26.Bxg5 Bxg5 27.Qxg5 Nc8 28.Qh6 Qe7 29.c4 Kh8 30.cxb5 Bxb5 31.Nf1 Na7 32.Ne3 Nc6
33.Nd5 Qd8 34.Bc4 Nd4 35.Bxb5 axb5

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 36.Rc8!! Black resigned, because he is unable to prevent Nf6 with mate. 1-0

Della, Morte Pablo - Benedetto, Abel [C92]

1997
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.a3 g6 13.Bc2 Bg7 14.b4 Rf8 15.d5 Ne7 16.c4 bxc4 17.Nxc4 Nd7 18.Na5
Qc8 19.Bg5 f6 20.Bh4 Nb6 21.Re3 Rb8 22.Rc3 Qd7 23.Bd3 c6 24.dxc6 Nxc6 25.Nxb7 Qxb7

59
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 26.Bxa6! Black's weak pawns on a6 and d6 are great targets for White. White's queenside
pawns, however, will be impossible to stop in the long run, so the game ended rather quickly.
26...Qxa6 27.Rxc6 g5 28.Bg3 Rfd8 29.Rxd6 1-0

Kolosowski, Mateusz - Sabuk, Piotr [C92]

2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.h3 d6 9.c3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.Bc2 g6 13.d5 Nb8 14.b3 c6 15.c4 Nbd7 16.Nf1 Qc7 17.Bd2 a5 18.Rc1
bxc4 19.bxc4 Nc5 20.Bg5 Bg7 21.Qd2 Ba6 22.Bxf6 Bxf6 23.Ne3 Bg7 24.g4 Rec8 25.dxc6 Qd8
26.Qd5 Rab8 27.Red1 Bf8

60
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 28.Qxc5! White wins the piece due to a tactical trick. 28...Qf6
28...dxc5 29.Rxd8 Rxd8 30.c7!+- was the point of the combination.
29.Qxa5 Qxf3 30.Qxa6 Bh6 31.Rd3 Qxh3 32.Nf5 Qxg4+ 33.Rg3 1-0

Fedorchuk, Sergey A - Delorme, Axel [C92]

2004
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 a6 3.Bb5 Nc6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.d5 Nb8 13.Nf1 Nbd7 14.Ng3 Nc5 15.Bc2 c6 16.b4 Ncd7 17.dxc6 Bxc6
18.Bb1 Nc5 19.Bc2 Na4 20.Bb3 Nb6 21.Nh2 h6 22.Bg5 Ra7 23.Bxf6 Qxf6 24.Ng4 Qd8 25.Qf3
d5 26.Rad1 Rd7 27.Nh5 Re6 28.exd5 Bxd5 29.Rxd5 Rxd5?!

61
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 30.Nxe5 This is better than regaining the exchange, as the Spanish bishop is a very
powerful piece in this position. 30...f6
Better was 30...Rdxe5 31.Rxe5 and White still remains up a pawn, because 31...Rxe5?? 32.Qxf7+
Kh7 33.Qg8+ Kg6 34.Bf7+ Kg5 35.f4+ Kh4 36.g3+ Kxh3 37.Be6+ leads to mate.
31.Nf4 Red6 32.Nxd5 Nxd5 33.Nc6 Qd7 34.Rd1 1-0

Milde, Lars - Van der Meer Heine [C92]

2006
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Bb7 10.d4
Re8 11.Nbd2 Bf8 12.d5 Nb8 13.Nf1 h6 14.Ng3 g6 15.Be3 Nbd7 16.Qd2 Kh7 17.a4 Nb6 18.a5
Nbd7 19.c4 bxc4 20.Bxc4 Qe7 21.b4 c6 22.dxc6 Bxc6 23.Qd3 Reb8 24.Bd2 Bb5 25.Rac1 Ne8
26.Bxb5 Rxb5 27.Rc6 Nb8

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White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 28.Rxa6! Again, the vulnerability of the 'a' pawn plays a decisive role. 28...Nxa6
29.Qxb5 Nec7 30.Qc6 Rb8 31.Rc1 Qe6 32.h4 Qe8 33.Nf1 Qxc6 34.Rxc6 Rb7 35.Ne3 Nb8
36.Rc1 Nba6 37.h5 Ne6 38.hxg6+ fxg6 39.Nd5 Kg7 40.Rc6 1-0

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 Show in Quiz Mode

Chigorin Variation with Open 'c' File

We are now moving on to the Chigorin, and will first consider the line where Black exchanges on
d4. The open 'c' file gives him some initial counterplay, but Black has to be careful so that White
does not take over that file, as Black has some considerable weaknesses on the queenside. In both
sample games White generated a lot of interesting play in that side of the board and gained the
initiative.
Tal, Mikhail - Hjartarson, Johann [C99]
Reykjavik it, 1987
Mikhail Tal was known as a young chess genius since his early years. And as he aged he lost some
of the energy of his younger years. However his excellent opening preparation and ability to spot
tactical ideas remained with him until the end of his career. In this game he shocked the young
Icelandic grandmaster with an amazing sacrifice followed by an attack against the black king which
Tal conducted brilliantly. The game was recognized by the Chess Informant as one the best games
of the year. 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.c3 d6 9.h3
Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2

64
This is a starting position of the Chigorin variation. Black here has several options. 12...Bd7 13.Nf1
cxd4 14.cxd4 Rac8 Putting pressure on the Bishop on c2. 15.Ne3 Finding the place for the a5
knight is one of the challenges in the Chigorin Spanish for Black. In this game Black puts the the
knight on c6, but that doesn't solve all problems. 15...Nc6 Exchanging on d4 now becomes a
possibility for Black. While it is strategically undesirable because it would leave the d6 pawn weak,
it can sometimes tactically work out for Black. For that reason White shuts down the center. 16.d5

65
This pawn structure has ups and downs for both sides. The pawn on d5 creates an outpost for White
knight on c6. It also determines the plans for both sides for the next many moves and now Black
has a target to undermine - the base of White's pawn chain on e4. In the meantime White will try to
utilize his space advantage. 16...Nb4 17.Bb1 White now threatens to trap the black knight with a2-
a3. 17...a5 18.a3 Na6 19.b4 White is taking away the 'c5' square from the black knight. 19...g6
Preparing Nh5 and f5. In the case of the immediate
19...Nh5? Black would have to be concerned about 20.Nxe5 followed by Qxh5.Black could not
take on b4 twice because, it would cost him the knight. 19...axb4 20.axb4 Nxb4 21.Bd2 Qc5
22.Qb3+-
20.Bd2 axb4 21.axb4 Qb7 Now there are two pawn islands - on b5 and on b4. These pawns create
outposts for both sides. White wants to bring his knight to a5 and then to c6. Black in his turn -
wants to bring his knight froma6toc4 22.Bd3 Putting pressure on the pawn on 'b5' so that as the
white knight goes to 'a3', it does more difficult for Black to transfer his knight to c4 because the 'b5'
pawn would be attacked. 22...Nc7 23.Nc2 Nh5

66
Because Nc7-a8-b6 is too slow, Black begins playing against the white center and prepares to
undermine it with f7-f5. The other knight stays on c7 to keep attacking the d5 pawn. The downside
of Black's plan is that it gives White a bit of a free hand on the queenside. Also when Black plays
f7-f5 - his king would become somewhat weakened. 24.Be3 Ra8 25.Qd2 Connecting the rooks, and
since White is now controlling f4 - he also threatens to play g2-g4. 25...Rxa1 26.Nxa1 The knight
now is heading to a5 26...f5

67
Threatening f5-f4 27.Bh6 Ng7?! This is a bit passive and allows White to take over the imitative.
Less clear was 27...Ra8!? 28.exf5 gxf5 29.Nxe5!? dxe5 30.d6 Bxd6 31.Qg5+ Kh8 32.Qxh5 with
complicated play.
28.Nb3 It turns out that the tension on e4-f5 is in White's favour, as it is never good for Black to
take on e4 - giving White important squares. 28...f4 29.Na5 Qb6 30.Rc1 Ra8 31.Qc2 Nce8 32.Qb3

68
Threatening Ne5 32...Bf6 33.Nc6 Nh5 34.Qb2 Building up pressure against e5 34...Bg7 35.Bxg7
Kxg7

This allows a shocking sacrifice. Question: how can White utilize the pressure on e5, and build up
attack against b5?
Show/Hide Solution

69
Answer: By an amazing move that sacrifices a full rook! 36.Rc5!! Qa6 Threatening Qa1 with
exchange of queens - while the white rook is still hanging.
Immediately losing was the natural 36...dxc5 37.Nfxe5 with a winning attack because White
threatens to take on d7 with discovered check, winning the queen.
37.Rxb5 Nc7 38.Rb8 Qxd3 39.Ncxe5! Qd1+ 40.Kh2 Ra1

This is Black's last chance for counter play, but Tal's attack comes just one move quicker. Question:
How does White wrap up the game with a mating attack?
Show/Hide Solution

Answer: by using two knights to give checkmate! 41.Ng4+ Kf7 42.Nh6+ Ke7 43.Ng8+ Kf7
44.Ng5# Quite a brilliant attack by Mikhail Tal who demonstrated that despite advancing age - he
could still produce a lot of sparks over the board. 1-0

70
 Aseev, Konstantin - Sturua, Zurab
USSR U-26 Championship, 1985
I saw this game a long time ago, and at the time it really impressed me by how White's consistent
strategy brought him a victory in the endgame. 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7
6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5 10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 cxd4 13.cxd4 Bb7

Black tries to put pressure on the white center by attacking e4, but White immediately shuts down
that diagonal - leaving the bishop on b7 biting on granite. 14.d5 Now both Na5 and Bb7 are
constrained and it will take them time to regroup. Time is important in this position because there is
an open 'c' file. 14...Rac8 It seems that Black is the first one to take over the 'c' file, but reality is
that he is badly placed to fight for it in the long run. 15.Bd3 Nd7 16.Nf1

71
Black's best try here was to play f5, if White takes - that would be activating the bishop on b7.
16...Nc5 17.Ng3

White is exploiting the fact that the bishop does not cover f5 from b7 the way it would from d7.
17...Nxd3 18.Qxd3 Qc2 The exchange of queens is a decisive mistake as White will take over the
open file. 19.Qxc2 Rxc2 20.Nf5 Re8 21.b3

72
Perhaps a decisive move as now Na5 has no squares. 21...Bc8 22.Nxe7+ Rxe7 23.Be3 Nb7 24.Bb6
Again, White constrains Nb7 and prevents it from going to d8. 24...Re8 25.Rec1

Even though Black wins the e4 pawn, it won't compensate for the positional disadvantages at all.
25...Re2 26.Rc7 Rxe4 27.Ng5 Rf4 28.g3 Rf6 29.b4

73
Restricting the knight even further. 29...Rg6 30.Nf3 e4 31.Nh4 Rg5 32.Ng2 Rac1 was tempting,
but would have given Black counter play. 32...Rxd5 33.Rac1

Now White is going to win the pieces without allowing any counter play. 33...Be6 34.Nf4 Rd2
35.Nxe6

74
White will double up rooks on 7th rank so Black resigned. The strategy of constraining opponent's
pieces in this game is quite instructive. 1-0

75
 Show in Quiz Mode

Chigorin Variation with Open 'd' File

The plan with opening up the 'd' file became popular for White in the 1930s when it was
popularized by Vladimir Rauzer. White opens up the file, hoping occupy on the light squares d5 and
f5, but this plan tends to work best only if Black is not well prepared to meet it.
Fischer, Robert James - Unzicker, Wolfgang [C97]
Zuerich, 195905
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2

12...Bd7
12...cxd4 is the main line, immediately initiating play along the 'c' file. 12...Bd7 is the main
alternative.
13.Nf1 Rfe8 Black is regrouping to better protect 'e5'. 14.Ne3

76
14.b3 g6 15.Bg5 is a powerful alternative for White, as it prevents Black from continuing with his
plan of transferring the bishop to 'g7'.
14...g6

Question: What are the possible plans for White here?

Show/Hide Solution

Answer: White can either keep tension in the center and increase pressure on the queenside, or open
up the center and begin some play on the kingside. Either option is a legitimate plan. 15.dxe5 An
important decision to simplify the pawn structure and relieve tension. Now White's goal is to play
for 'd5' square.
15.Bd2 Bf8 16.Rc1 Bg7 17.b4 is another idea.
15...dxe5 16.Nh2 Rad8 17.Qf3 Be6 18.Nhg4 Nxg4 19.hxg4

77
Taking with the pawn is part of White's plan to restrict Black's pieces. The white knight will now
aim for d5 instead of the kingside. 19...Qc6 20.g5 Nc4 It was worth accepting the challenge, and
going for
20...Bxg5!? 21.Nd5 Bxc1 22.Nf6+ Kh8∞ with some complications that are nonetheless - are not
too dangerous for Black.
21.Ng4 Since Black covered up 'd5' - White switches his attention to the kingside. 21...Bxg4
22.Qxg4

78
Question: What, if anything, should Black do about the white pawn on 'g5'?
Show/Hide Solution

Answer: ignoring the g5 pawn was best, at least at the moment. 22...f6?! Concerned about lack of
space, Black tries to relieve the pressure, but this weakens his 'e5' pawn. Better was
22...Nb6 23.g3 c4=
23.gxf6 Bxf6 24.a4 White opens the second from so that the rook could invade along the 'a' file.
24...Nb6 25.axb5 axb5 26.Be3

79
Putting pressure on c5. 26...Ra8 27.Red1 Kh8 28.b3 White covers up 'c4'. 28...Bg7 29.Qh4 Bf6

30.Bg5 A non-obvious decision, the goal of which is to make it more difficult for Black to defend
'e5'. 30...Bxg5 31.Qxg5 Rxa1 32.Rxa1 Nd7 33.Bd1 Nf6 34.Ra7 With the rook on the 7th rank,
White will now always threaten Qh6, so Black knight is tied down to 'f6'. 34...Qd6
34...Nxe4? 35.Qh6 was losing immediately.

80
35.Be2

Black's position has become critical as White is trying to convert his positional advantages into a
material one. 35...Re7
Black could have tried to defend the 'b5' pawn with 35...Rb8 but White still has a way to break
through: 36.Rf7 Ng8 37.Rd7!? Qxd7 38.Qxe5+ Qg7 39.Qxb8 Qxc3 40.Bxb5!+-According to
Kasparov and Huebner, the best practical chance was 35...c4!? 36.bxc4 Qb6!?
36.Rxe7 Qxe7 37.Bxb5 White won the pawn and the rest is the matter of technique. 37...Kg7
38.Be2 Qc7 39.Qe3 Qa5 40.g3 Qa3 41.Kg2 Qa5 42.Qd3 Qb6 43.Qc4 Qc6 44.Bd3 Qb6 45.b4
cxb4 46.cxb4

81
White created a passed pawn and Black still has very little counter play. 46...Ng4 47.Qc5 Qxc5
48.bxc5 Kf7 49.f4 Ke7 50.Kf3 Nf6 51.Bb5 Ke6 52.Bc4+ Ke7 53.c6

53...Ne8 54.fxe5 h6 55.Ke3 Nc7 56.Kd4 h5 57.Ke3 g5 58.Be2 h4 59.gxh4 gxh4 60.Bc4 Ne8
61.Kf4 Kd8 62.Kg4 Kc7 63.Bf7 Ng7 64.Kxh4 Kxc6 65.Kg5 An impressive game from Fischer,
where it is not very clear where Black made the decisive mistake. 1-0

82
Test Yourself
Gemignani, Manrico - Huttenlocher, Carlos A [C98]
1973
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.c3 d6 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.dxc5 dxc5 14.Nf1 Be6 15.Ng5 Bd7 16.Ne3 h6 17.Nf3
Rfd8 18.Qe2 Qc8 19.Nd5 Rb8?

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 20.Nxe5! White wins a pawn and maintains a dominating position. 20...Re8
20...Nxe5 21.Nxe7+ Kf8 22.Nxc8+-

83
21.Nxd7 Nxd7 22.f4 Nf8 23.Qf2 b4 24.Nxe7+ Nxe7 25.f5 Qc6 26.c4 Kh8 27.e5 1-0

84
 Show in Quiz Mode

Chigorin Variation - Closed Structure

In this structure, White shuts down the center with d4-d5 and gains space advantage. The important
goal then for White is to generate play on both sides of the board as it will be difficult for Black to
transfer pieces from one flank to another.
The following game by Karpov is one of the most instructive games to show how to play in the
closed Chigorin variation.
Karpov, Anatoly - Unzicker, Wolfgang [C98]
Nice Olympiad, 1974.06.17
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 This game was particularly instrumental in making this
move the main line because Karpov demonstrated many plans that White has to exploit his spacial
advantage. 13...Nd8

85
This may not look like the most attractive square for the knight as it disconnects the rooks, but the
knight might be able to transfer to either b7 or f7. The other retreats to a7 or to b8 are not very
popular either. 14.a4 This move is particularly unpleasant because Black's rooks are disconnected.
14...Rb8 Black decides to deal with the threat by conceding the 'a' file. Eventually this move is
almost forced because otherwise White can build up pressure against the 'b5' pawn by playing Qe2
and Bd3. 15.axb5 axb5 16.b4 This is a very important move. In general White's plan is to transfer
pieces to the kingside and attack there, but Karpov also shows that in this line White can play on
both sides of the board and create pressure on the queenside as well. 16...Nb7

Trading on b4 would have made the b5 pawn easier to attack and opened up the 'c' file to White's
advantage. Black's play in this line - Black's plans have been focused on playing g6, Ng7, f6, Nf7
and f5. In this game Black had to defend on both kingside and queenside making his task more
difficult. 17.Nf1 Bd7 18.Be3 Ra8 19.Qd2 Rfc8
Better was 19...Rfb8 followed by Qc8 - controlling both 'a8 and 'c5' with the queen - as
recommended by Karpov and Kasparov.
20.Bd3 g6 21.Ng3 Bf8 22.Ra2 c4

86
Finally Black is unable to keep the tension and pushes the pawn. White has to choose where to keep
the bishop - b1 or f1. 23.Bb1 Karpov wanted to keep the bishop here to fight f7-f5. 23...Qd8

It seems that Black could fight for the 'a' file, but he underestimated White's next move. White to
move
Show/Hide Solution

87
Solution: 24.Ba7! Using the bishop as a cover - White will concentrate all his forces on the
queenside and open up the 'a' file when he chooses. 24...Ne8 25.Bc2 Nc7 26.Rea1 Qe7 27.Bb1

Be3 now becomes a potential threat. 27...Be8 Now that Black prepared for aggression on
queenside, White begins to transfer pieces to the kingside. it is difficult for Black catch up with him
as he has less space. 28.Ne2 Nd8 29.Nh2 Bg7 30.f4 f6?! Black underestimated that White can
advance the pawn to f5.
It was better to play 30...exf4!?, even though White still had the advantage after 31.Nxf4²
31.f5! g5?

88
Perhaps the decisive mistake from Black as now his light squares are weak. 32.Bc2 Bf7 33.Ng3
Nb7 34.Bd1 Bishop will be transferred to h5 to trade off Black's bishop. 34...h6?! Weakening g6
further was not necessary. 35.Bh5 Qe8 36.Qd1 Nd8 37.Ra3 Kf8 38.R1a2 Kg8 39.Ng4 Kf8
40.Ne3 Kg8

89
Black does not have any useful moves, so he just moves back and forth. 41.Bxf7+ Nxf7 42.Qh5
Nd8 43.Qg6 White exploits weakness of g6 as it is bad for Black to take it. 43...Kf8 44.Nh5

White threatens to take on g7, exchanging on g6 will allow White knight to f5, so Black just
resigned. A great example of how to develop initiative in this line of the Chigorin. White's play on
the queenside with Ba7, gain of space with f2-f4-f5 and his exchange of light squared bishops on h5
are all very instructive. 1-0

Geller, Efim - Smyslov, Vassily [C98]

Palma de Mallorca Interzonal, 1970.12.01
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.c3 d6 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Rb8 15.b4

90
Geller's novelty at the time! It still scores better than immediate axb5. Previously White would first
exchange on b5, but that would give Black a better chance of fighting for the 'a'file
15.axb5 axb5 16.b4 Nb7 17.Nf1 Bd7 18.Be3 Ra8 19.Qd2² was Karpov,A-Unzicker,W, Nice 1974
15...c4 16.Nf1 Ne8 17.axb5 axb5 18.N3h2²

91
18.Ng3 g6 19.Nh2 Ng7 20.Rf1 Bd7?! 21.f4 was Nunn,J-Short,N/ Brussels 1986, 1-0
18...f5?! This kind of 'active play' is not appropriate since it gives up the 'e4' square.
More common now is 18...f6 19.f4 Nf7 20.Nf3 g6 21.f5 Ng7² 1/2-1/2 Karpov,A-
Spassky,B/Moscow 1973
19.exf5 Bxf5 20.Bxf5 Rxf5 21.Be3 Rf8 22.Nf3±

White has a number of advantages

1. Black's light squares are weak
2. d6 is weak
3. White controls the 'a' file
22...Nf6 23.Ng3 Nf7 24.Ra7! Rb7 25.Ra5 Qd7 26.Qd2 Rfb8 27.Rea1 Bd8 28.Ra6

92
28...h6
Also possible was 28...g6 29.Ng5 Nxg5 30.Bxg5 Kh8 31.Bxf6+ Bxf6 32.Ne4± with a great knight
against bad bishop
29.Nh2 Bb6 30.Nhf1 Bc7 31.Qd1

93
31...Nh8
31...e4? would try to get an e5 outpost for the f7 knight, but Black's pieces are too passive for this.
32.Nh5! Nxh5 33.Qxh5 Ne5 34.Ng3 and the e4 pawn is getting lost.
32.Nh5! Nxh5 33.Qxh5 Qf7 34.Qxf7+ Kxf7

White has a large advantage in the endgame, because he has more space, great outpost for the
knight on e4, and has more space. Black's pieces are all passive, and while he can try to improve
their position, the bishop will remain restricted by his central pawns that are placed on the dark
squares. 35.Ng3 Ng6
Black can't cover both f5 and e4 35...Kg6 36.Ne4
36.Nf5

94
36...Ne7 Hoping to activate his pieces, Smyslov gives up the 'd6' pawn.
36...Rd8 37.Ra7 Rdb8 38.R1a6±
37.Nxd6+ Bxd6 38.Rxd6 Nf5 39.Re6 Re7 40.Raa6 Rd8 41.Bc5 Red7 42.Kh2 Ne7!
42...Rxd5 43.g4 Nh4 44.Re7+ Kg8 45.Raa7+-
43.Rxe7+ Rxe7 44.Bxe7 Kxe7 45.Re6+ Kd7

95
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 46.Kg3!+- Activating the king is the best way to victory.

Trying to immediately regain the pawn was not a good idea: 46.Rxe5?! Ra8 47.Re6 Ra3 48.Rg6?
Rxc3 49.Rxg7+ Kd6 50.Rb7 Kxd5 51.Rxb5+ Kd4

96
and the position becomes unclear since Black has a dangerous passed pawn.
46...Ra8 47.Kf3 Ra3 48.Ke4 Rxc3 49.Rg6 Rc2 50.Rxg7+ Kd6 51.Rg6+ Kd7 52.Rg7+ Kd6
53.Rg6+ Kd7 54.Kxe5

White's pieces are more active and he is up a pawn; the rest was a matter of technique. 54...Re2+
55.Kd4 Rxf2 56.Rg7+ Kd6 57.Rg6+ Kd7 58.g4! Rd2+ 59.Ke5 Re2+ 60.Kd4 Rd2+ 61.Kc5 c3

97
62.Rd6+ Ke7 63.Re6+ Kd7 64.Re3 c2 65.Rc3 Rh2 66.h4 Rxh4 67.Rxc2 Rxg4 68.Rh2 Rg6
69.Kxb5 Kd6 70.Rh5 Kc7 71.Kc5 Rf6 72.Rh1 Kb7 73.b5 Rg6 74.Rh5 Kc7 75.Rf5 Rg1 76.b6+
Kb7 77.Rf7+ Kb8 78.d6 Rc1+ 79.Kd5 Black resigned here; Geller's play in the endgame is
noteworthy as much as in the middlegame. 1-0

Nunn, John - Short, Nigel [C98]

OHRA-A, 198612
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8

14.Nf1
14.a4 Rb8 15.axb5 axb5 16.b4 Nb7 17.Nf1 Bd7 18.Be3 Ra8 19.Qd2 Rfc8 20.Bd3 g6 21.Ng3 Bf8
22.Ra2 c4 23.Bb1 Qd8 24.Ba7 Ne8 25.Bc2 Nc7 26.Rea1 Qe7 27.Bb1 Be8 28.Ne2 Nd8 29.Nh2
Bg7 30.f4 f6 31.f5 g5 32.Bc2 Bf7 33.Ng3 Nb7 34.Bd1 h6 35.Bh5 Qe8 36.Qd1 Nd8 37.Ra3 Kf8
38.R1a2 Kg8 39.Ng4 Kf8 40.Ne3 Kg8 41.Bxf7+ Nxf7 42.Qh5 Nd8 43.Qg6 Kf8 44.Nh5 1-0
Karpov - Unzicker,1974
14...Ne8 15.a4 Rb8 16.axb5 axb5 17.b4 If Black takes on b4 - the white bishop on Be3 will
become very active, controlling important a7 and b6 squares. 17...c4 18.Ng3 g6 19.Nh2 Ng7

98
20.Rf1
20.f4 is also natural, but there is no reason not to prepare it first by Rf1.
20...Bd7
Nunn recommends 20...f6 21.f4 exf4 22.Bxf4 Nf7 23.Ng4 Bxg4 24.Qxg4 Qb6+ 25.Kh2 Ne5 and
Black remains relatively solid as he achieved the key goal in this variation - establishing the knight
on e5.
21.f4 Bh4 22.Qf3 f5

99
23.fxe5 dxe5 After this White gets strong pressure on the 'f' file.
23...f4!? was an interesting try.
24.exf5 Bxg3 25.Qxg3 Nxf5 26.Qf2 Nb7 The knight has to move so that the black rooks get re-
connected; otherwise White was threatening with g4. 27.Ng4 Now Black is facing a dilemma of
how to continue; for example he can't play 27...Ra8 because of 28.Rxa8 Rxa8 29.Nh6+! Nxh6
30.Bxh6 Bf5 31.Bxf5 gxf5 32.Qg3+ Kh8 33.d6 Nxd6 34.Qxe5+ Kg8 35.Qd5+ Nf7 36.Qxa8+ and
White is winning. 27...Rbe8 was relatively better and would have allowed to put up some
resistance. 27...h5?!

100
Question: In a difficult position, Black overlooked a decisive shot. What did he miss?
Show/Hide Solution

Answer: Black overlooked that White's queenside rook can join the attack on the kingside!
28.Ra6!+- hxg4 Other moves don't save Black either.
28...Nbd6 29.Nxe5+-28...Kh7 29.Nf6+ Kg7 30.Bxf5 Bxf5 31.Qe3 Rxf6 32.Rxf6 Kxf6 33.Rxf5+!!
gxf5 34.Qh6+ Kf7 (34...Ke7 35.Qe6+ Kf8 36.Bh6++-) 35.Qh7+ Kf6 36.Qxc7+-
29.Rxg6+ Ng7 30.Rxg7+ Black resigned because mate is inevitable.
30.Rxg7+ Kxg7 31.Bh6+! Kxh6 32.Qh4+ Kg7 33.Qh7#
1-0

Test Yourself
The following examples illustrate the danger of White's direct attack on the kingside.

101
 Palosz, Andrzej - Jaracz, Barbara [C99]
1999
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 cxd4 13.cxd4 Bd7 14.Nf1 Nc6 15.Ng3 Rfe8 16.Re2 h6 17.Be3
Rac8 18.a4 Na5 19.d5 Nc4 20.Bc1 bxa4 21.Bxa4 Bb5 22.Bxb5 axb5 23.b3 Nb6 24.Be3 Nfd7
25.Nf5 Bf8 26.Rea2 Ra8 27.Qd3 Rxa2 28.Rxa2 b4 29.Bd2 Qc5 30.Rc2 Qa5 31.Rc6 Nc5 32.Qe3
Nc8 33.N3h4 Kh7 34.Qe1 Nd3 35.Qe2 Nc5 36.Qe1 Nd3 37.Qe2 Nc5 38.Bxh6 gxh6 39.Qh5
Qa7

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 40.Nxh6! Bxh6 41.Nf5 There is now no good defence against White's attack. 41...f6
42.Qxe8 Nxe4 43.Rc2 Bf4 44.Qh5+ 1-0

Rodriguez, Gonzales Jesus - Aguirre, Pedro [C98]

1960

102
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 Na5 9.Bc2 c5 10.d4
Qc7 11.Nbd2 O-O 12.h3 Nc6 13.d5 Nb8 14.Nf1 Re8 15.g4 Bf8 16.Bg5 Nbd7 17.Qd2 c4 18.Ng3
g6 19.Bh6 Kh8 20.Kg2 Ng8 21.Be3 f6 22.h4 Nc5 23.g5 Qd7 24.Rh1 Nxe4 25.Nxe4 f5 26.Ng3
f4 27.h5 fxe3 28.Qxe3 Kg7 29.hxg6 hxg6 30.Qe4 Ne7 31.Rh6 Nf5? 32.Rah1 Kf7

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 33.Rxg6! White's pieces have concentrated on the kingside; this sacrifice breaks through
Black's defences. 33...Kxg6 34.Nxf5! Re6
34...Qxf5 35.Nh4++-
35.Nxd6+ 1-0

Ljubarskij, Juri - De Leeuw Johannes [C98]

2004
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Be7 5.O-O Nf6 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Nc6 12.Nbd2 Qc7 13.d5 Nb8 14.Nf1 Re8 15.g4 Qd8 16.Ng3 g6 17.Bh6 Bf8

103
18.Qd2 Re7 19.Bg5 Re8 20.Rf1 Bg7 21.Nh2 Nbd7 22.Rae1 Qe7 23.Kh1 Qf8 24.Rg1 h6 25.Be3
Kh7 26.Rg2 Qe7 27.Reg1 Rg8 28.g5 hxg5 29.Bxg5 Qf8 30.f4 Bh6 31.Nf3 Rh8 32.f5 Bg7 33.Nh4
Qe8 34.Rf1 Kg8 35.Kg1 Nh7 36.fxg6 fxg6

White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 37.Nxg6! This opens up the 'g' file with decisive effect. 37...Qxg6 38.Nf5 1-0

Safvat, Yousof - Calero, Ivan [C98]

1962
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 Na5 9.Bc2 c5 10.d4
Qc7 11.h3 O-O 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nb8 14.a4 b4 15.c4 Ne8 16.g4 g6 17.Nf1 Qd8 18.Ng3 Ra7
19.Bh6 Ng7 20.Kh1 Kh8 21.Rg1 Rg8 22.Rg2 Ne8 23.Qd2 Nd7 24.b3 Bf8 25.Rag1 Bxh6
26.Qxh6 Qf6 27.Ng5 Nf8 28.Nf5 gxf5 29.gxf5 Rg7 30.Qh5 Kg8 31.f4 h6 32.fxe5 dxe5 33.Nf3
Rxg2 34.Rxg2+ Ng7 35.Nh2 Kh7 36.Qf3 h5 37.Qg3 Re7 38.Bd1 Re8

104
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 39.Bxh5! Black resigned, not without reason, but perhaps a bit prematurely.
39.Bxh5 Kh8 (39...Nxh5? 40.Qg8+ Kh6 41.Ng4#) 40.Ng4 Qg5 41.Bxf7 Re7 42.h4 Qf4 43.Nxe5
Qxg3 44.Rxg3 Rxe5 45.f6+-
1-0

Tseshkovsky, Vitaly - Henry, Paul [C98]

1969
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 O-O 8.c3 d6 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nb8 14.a4 Bb7 15.c4 b4 16.Nf1 Nbd7 17.g4 Rfb8
18.Ng3 g6 19.b3 Bf8 20.Kh1 Bg7 21.Rg1 Kh8 22.Be3 Ng8 23.g5 f6 24.h4 Nf8 25.h5 fxg5
26.Nxg5 Bc8 27.hxg6 hxg6 28.Nf5 Bh6 29.Nxh6 Nxh6 30.Rg2 Kg7 31.Qf3 Nf7 32.Rag1 Nxg5
33.Rxg5 Qf7 34.Qh5 Ra7

105
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 35.Qh6+!! Kg8 36.Rxg6+ Nxg6 37.Rxg6+ Qxg6 38.Qxg6+ Rg7 39.Qxd6 Rh7+ 40.Bh6
1-0

Arshaev, Ajush - Ismayilov, Nijat [C98]

2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Bb7 13.d5 Bc8 14.a4 Bd7 15.Nf1 Rab8 16.Ng3 bxa4 17.Bxa4
Qb6 18.Bg5 Bb5 19.Nf5 Bd8 20.Bxb5 axb5 21.N3h4 g6 22.Nh6+ Kg7 23.Qf3 Ng8 24.N4f5+
Kh8 25.Bxd8 Rbxd8

106
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 26.Ne7 Black resigned, because capturing either knight leads to Qf6 mate, and otherwise
White will capture on 'g8' himself. 1-0

Moiseev, Viktor - Massing, W. [C98]

1990
1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 e5 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Bb7 13.d5 Bc8 14.b3 Nb7 15.Nf1 c4 16.b4 a5 17.N3h2 axb4
18.cxb4 Bd7 19.Ng3 Rfc8 20.Kh1 Ra6 21.a3 Ne8 22.Ne2 Bf6 23.Ng4 Bxg4 24.hxg4 Qd8
25.Nc3 Nc7 26.Qe2 Raa8 27.a4 Qd7 28.g5 Be7 29.Be3 Qd8 30.Qg4 Qe8 31.g3 Na5 32.bxa5 b4
33.Kg2 bxc3 34.Rh1 f6

107
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 35.Rxh7! This is a nice tactical shot, but strategically speaking, White wins because he
has more space, and is better able to transfer pieces from flank to flank. 35...Qg6
Also losing was 35...Kxh7 36.Rh1+ Kg8 37.g6 and there is no defence against mate along the 'h'
file.
36.Rah1 Kf7 37.R1h6! 1-0

Treguer, Pierig - Le Loarer Herve [C98]

2001
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 Na5 9.Bc2 c5 10.h3
O-O 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Na5 14.b3 c4 15.b4 Nb7 16.a4 a5 17.axb5 Nd7 18.Qe2
Nb6 19.bxa5 Rxa5 20.Rxa5 Nxa5 21.Ba3 Bd7 22.Nxe5 Bxb5 23.Nef3 Re8 24.Nd4 Bd7 25.Bb4
Nb7 26.Qh5 g6 27.Qf3 Bf8 28.Rb1 Bh6 29.Nf1 Re5 30.Nh2 Nc8 31.Ng4 Bxg4 32.Qxg4 Kh8
33.Ba3 Nc5 34.Nb5 Qd8

108
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 35.Nxd6! Nxd6

Also losing is 35...Qxd6 36.Qxc8+
36.Bxc5± Rg5 37.Qf3 Qd7 38.Qf6+ Kg8 39.Qxd6 Qxh3 40.Rb8+ 1-0

Shailendra, P. - NOVAG, MONSTER Y. [C98]

1985
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.Nf1 Nb7 15.g4 h5 16.N3h2 hxg4 17.hxg4
Qd7 18.Ne3 Qc7 19.Qf3 Bd7 20.Nf5 Bxf5 21.gxf5 Nd7 22.Kh1 b4 23.Rg1 bxc3

109
White to move
Show/Hide Solution

Solution: 24.Rxg7+! This forces mate because White is dominating the center and Black's pieces
are unable to transfer to the kingside. 24...Kxg7 25.Qg4+ Kh8 26.Qh5+ Kg8 27.Be3 Rfb8
28.Rg1+ Bg5 29.Bxg5 1-0

Carlsen, Magnus - Harestad, Hans Krogh [C98]

2003
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Re1 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Ra7 15.Nf1 g6 16.Bh6 Re8 17.Ng3 Nd7
18.Nh2 f6 19.Be3 Nb6 20.axb5 axb5 21.Bd3 Bd7 22.Qd2 Nf7 23.Rxa7 Qxa7 24.Qe2 Qa6
25.Ng4 Kg7 26.Bc1 Na4 27.Bc2 Ra8 28.Qe3 c4 29.Rf1 Nc5 30.Nh6 Ng5 31.f4 exf4 32.Qxf4
Bxh3 33.Qh4 Bd7 34.e5 dxe5 35.Nh5+ gxh5

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White to move
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Solution: 36.Qxg5+ White forces mate. A nice tactical shot from the future world's strongest chess
player! 36...fxg5 37.Rf7+ Kxh6 38.Rxh7# 1-0

Euwe Max - Van den Hoek Arnold [C98]

1942
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Qb7 15.Nb3 Ne8 16.Na5 Qc7 17.b4 c4
18.Be3 Bd7 19.Qd2 f6 20.Ra3 Rb8 21.axb5 axb5 22.Rea1 Nf7 23.Kh2 Bd8 24.Ng1 g6 25.Ne2
Ng7 26.f4 Qc8 27.Rf1 Ra8 28.Rfa1 Rb8 29.f5 gxf5 30.exf5 Bxf5 31.Nc6 Rb7 32.Ra7 Rxa7
33.Rxa7 Bd7 34.Nxd8 Qxd8 35.Bh6 Nh8 36.Bxg7 Kxg7 37.Ng3 Rf7 38.Nh5+ Kg8 39.Qh6 Ng6

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White to move
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Solution: 40.Bf5! White dominates both the kingside and the 'a' file. This wraps up the game.
40...Nf8
The bishop cannot be taken: 40...Bxf5 41.Rxf7 Kxf7 42.Qg7+ Ke8 43.Nxf6+ wins the queen.
41.Be6! 1-0

Zuckerman, Bernard - Kostro, Jerzy [C98]

1972
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.d5 Nd8 14.a4 Rb8 15.b4 Nb7 16.Nf1 Bd7 17.Bd2 Rfc8
18.Bd3 Ra8 19.Qe2 c4 20.Bc2 Ne8 21.a5 Nd8 22.g4 g6 23.Ng3 f6 24.Kh2 Nf7 25.Rg1 Ng7
26.Rg2 Kh8 27.Rag1 Rg8 28.Ne1 Raf8 29.f4 exf4 30.Bxf4 Ne5 31.Nf3 Qc8 32.Nd4 Re8 33.Ngf5
gxf5 34.gxf5 Nf7 35.Rg4 Ne5 36.Rh4 Ref8 37.Rg6 Nf7

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White to move
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Solution: 38.Rxh7+! Kxh7 39.Qg4 Mate along the 'h' file is inevitable. 1-0

Brenjo, Slavisa - Bulatovic, Nikola [C98]

2008
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Re1 b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.c3 O-O 9.h3 Na5
10.Bc2 c5 11.d4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 Nc6 13.dxc5 dxc5 14.Nh2 Nd8 15.Ndf1 Ne6 16.Qf3 Bb7 17.Ng3
g6 18.Bh6 Rfd8 19.Rad1 Ne8 20.Ng4 f5 21.Nxf5 gxf5 22.Qxf5 N8g7 23.Bxg7 Nxg7 24.Nh6+
Kh8 25.Qf7 Rf8

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White to move
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Solution: 26.Qg8+
26.Qg8+ Rxg8 27.Nf7#
1-0

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Symbols and Abbreviations Used in the Book

Position Evaluation
∞ – Unclear: It is unclear who (if anyone) has an advantage.
= – Even position: White and Black have more or less equal chances.
+= – White has slightly better chances.
+/− – White has much better chances.
+− – White has a clear advantage.
=+ – Black has slightly better chances.
−/+ – Black has much better chances.
−+ – Black has a clear advantage.
Move Evaluation
?? - Blunder
? - Mistake
?! - Dubious move
!? - Interesting move
! - Good move
‼ - Brilliant move

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Indice
Inizio 1

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