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First published in 2009 by Gloucester Publishers plc (formerly Everyman Publishers

plc), Northburgh House, 10 Northburgh Street, London EC1 V OAT

Copyright © 2009 Neil McDonald

The right of Neil McDonald to be identified as the author of this work has been
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EVERYMAN CHESS SERIES

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Contents I Introduction I

Chess players might be divided into iLg2 0-0 6 0-0 dxe4 7 'ih2 a6 S 'i¥'xe4
strategists and power players. The bat­ b5 9 'iVe2 iLb7 10 iLd2 tiJe6 11 e3 tiJb4
Introduction 5 tle for supremacy between these two 12 iLxb4 iLxb4 13 a3 iLe7 14 tiJbd2
styles of play has led to creative strug­ MeS15 b4 as 16 tiJe5 ttJd5 17 ttJb3!
gles such as Capablanca versus
1 The Dynamic Element 11 Alekhine, Botvinnik versus Bronstein,
and Kramnik versus Topalov.
2 Catching the King in the Centre 35
The purpose of this book is to exam­
3 Opening Old (and New) Wounds 56 ine and celebrate the ideas of five fa­
mous players who have contributed to
4 The Life History of a Knight 83
the development of the power play
5 The Goldilocks Queen 107 style. I hope you find the games exciting
and enjoyable. With luck, a tiny bit of
6 Energizing the Pawns 129
the genius and magic of these five gi­
7 A Battering Ram on the f-file 153 ants might reappear in your own chess.
But first, here is an example of the
8 Backward Pawns and Indian Bishops 172
strategical sty Ie in action: 17 ... axb4 lS::ja5 �aS 19 ct:Jae6 _�xe6
9 The Psychology of Preparation 191 20 ,'";Jxe6 '�d7 21 itxd5 exd5 22 axb4
10 The Art of Surprise 215 :'feS 23 �a5 i;�fS 24 &c.Je5 '�e6 25 clxb5
Gamel
�bS 26 :'xbS �xbS 27 '�xe7 �d6 2S
V.Kramnik-M.Carlsen
·�·a5ii.xb4 29 :bl '�'d6 30 '�a4 1-0
Dortmund 2007
Index of Openings 235 Catalan Opening
Kramnik played a solid opening
Index of Players 237
which reduced to a minimum the risk
1 tiJf3 tiJf6 2 e4 e6 3 g3 d5 4 d4 iLe7 5 of any unpleasant surprises. The battle

5
Chess Secrets: The Giants of Power Play
was exclusively on the queens ide -
king safety was never an issue.
The Russian Grandmaster focused
on the weakness on c6 and spent the
whole game manoeuvring against it.
With the help of a clever temporary
pawn sacrifice he finally managed to
land a knight on the square, after which
Black's pawn on b5 became defenceless.
Kramnik was careful to leave no weak­
nesses in his own pawn structure, so
that Black's attempt at counterplay to­
wards the end was easily defeated.
I have always loved the apparent ef­
fortlessness of such games, which are
perfect examples of the phrase' art that
conceals art'. At their peak of perform­
ance, Capablanca, Karpov, Kramnik
and all the other great strategists make
chess look easy. In reality it is terribly
hard to keep control in such games, as
a first-class opponent is always looking
for ways to slip out of the bind.
The power play style doesn't make
chess look easy, but it is full of pro­
found, unexpected ideas and stresses
the human side of the game. We are
reminded that chess is a fight between
two creative minds rather than the
solving of a logical theorem.
Features of the power play style
The power play style can be summed
up in three words as a blend of prepa­
ration, psychology and dynamism. Here
is a list of specific features:
1) Playing aggressively with Black
as well as White. This requires the ac-
6 7
ceptance of risk.
2) A big attempt is made to win the
theoretical battle by surprising the op­
ponent with a new move or a new way
of handling a sharp opening system.
3) The stakes are set high, with the
enemy king often being the target,
rather than a weak pawn or square. A
pawn sacrifice is often used to acceler­
ate the attacking process.
4) Threats to the king are combined
with threats to another piece or pieces
in order to overstretch the defence.
5) Rather than a drive towards clar­
ity, there is an active search for tactical
blows hidden at the end of variations.
Whereas strategical play is a step by
step process, power play might be di­
vided into two distinct parts:
6) The first is a dynamic strategy that,
if it outwits the opponent, creates situa­
tions where combinations are likely;
7) The second is the use of tactics to
exploit the edge that has been gained.
8) Playing the man as well as the
board. For example, an opponent who
dislikes messy tactics is forced into a
double-edged fight, even if objectively
they should turn out well for him.
9) Time trouble isn't regarded as a
nuisance but rather as the chance to
confront the opponent with problems
he will struggle to solve.
10) Above all, the byword of power
play is ill/balmlec. A position with mu­
tual weaknesses and a disrupted pawn
structure contains room for creativity­
and blunders by the opponent.
Of course, a strong player is capable
of handling every situation that arises
with a high level of competence.
Kramnik can play great attacking
chess, while Topalov is capable of win­
ning smooth positional games.
Nonetheless, the fact remains that
every pla�'er has a preference for one
or other of these methods of play. For
example, when confronted with the
chance to introduce favourable-looking
complications or go for a tiny advan­
tage \vith no risk, a player will habitu­
ally choose one path or the other. A
player's opening repertoire will also
tell vou a lot about his aims when he
sits dovvn at the board.
It is time for me to introduce you to
the heroes of this book. Have fun going
through their games and expanding
vour own chess mind!
Here are brief biographies of our
heroes.
Paul Morphy (1837-1884)
The American chess genius was born in
New Orleans in 1837. Whilst still a
child he shovved an astounding natural
feel for the game. On graduation from
the Universitv of Louisiana he focused
for a couple of years on chess. He took
part in the first American chess Con­
gress which was being held in New
York in 1857 and won the first three of
his knockout matches, conceding only
one draw, before beating Louis Paulsen
in the final with a score of +5=2-1.
Having established himself as the
best player in the USA, Morphy set off
Introduction
in 1858 for London and Paris to prove
himself the best player in the world.
Besides making a big plus score in unof­
ficial games against strong opponents,
he won set matches against three lead­
ing lights of the game: Lowenthal (+9=2-
3), Harrwitz (+5=1-2), and Anderssen
(+7=2-2). He was, however, unable to
persuade Staunton, regarded by many
as his chief rival, to enter the lists.
After his great exploits in 1858 and
1859, Morphy effectively retired from
competitive chess. After a troubled life
he died in 1884.
Alexander Alekhine (1892-1946)
Alekhine was born the son of a rich
landowner in Moscow in 1892. He won
the first Soviet Championship in 1920,
but during the 1920s moved abroad.
Thereafter all ties with his homeland
were broken in 1928 when he made a
speech denouncing its Communist rul­
ers.
Along with Jose Raul Capablanca
and Emanuel Lasker, Alekhine was one
of the 'big three' players who domi­
nated the first half of 20th century
chess. To the surprise of many he beat
Capablanca in a gruelling match in
Buenos Aires in 1927 (+6=25-3) to be­
come the fourth World Champion.
Thereafter he successfully defended his
title against Bogoljubow in 1929 (+11=9-
5) and in 1934 (+8=15-3), before a shock
defeat in 1935 against Euwe (+8=13-9).
Alekhine regained his title from the
Dutchman in 1937 (+10=11-4), and held
it until his death in 1946.
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Chess Secrets: The Giants oj Power Play Introduction

As World Champion, Alekhine's another crack at the title. In Clndidates racao \\'ould ha\'e gi\'en him an excel­ dominate \vorld-class events. A sign of

two best tournament results were at tournaments he came equal 2nd-4th at lent chance of achieving the highest things to come was his win over Kas­

San Remo 1930 where he scored an Zurich in 1953 (the winner Smyslm' honour. parol' in the last round of Linares early

astonishing 14(15, \·vith Nimzowitsch went on to draw with Bot\'innik in a In 1965, when the Candidates tour­ that year. which allowed him to share

in second place on Hl; and Bled] 931, World Championship match), and naments had been replaced by first place with the Russian chess gen­

where he came five points ahead of the equal third at Amsterdam 1956. matches, Geller beat Smyslo\' but then ius. This was Kasparov's final game

field with 20/26. (Nimzowitsch, who During his peak years Bronstein lost to Spassky in their semi-final before his retirement from serious play,

came third this time, complained bit­ was a wonderful openings analyst. No­ match. In the first round stage of the and it was as if he had handed the ba­

terly 'he is playing with us as though tably, his research with his friend and 1968 and 1971 series his progress \vas ton of dynamic chess to his opponent.

with children'.) tournament rival Isaac Bolesla\'skv halted b�' Spassky (again) and Later in 2005, Topalov played in the

Alekhine was a fine annotator proved to a sceptical world that the Korchnoi, respectively, FJDE World Championship tourna­
whose writings include two collections King's Indian Defence was playable. Geller was well known for being a ment in San Luis, Argentina. He
of his own games and a study of the Bronstein was also a fine writer. His scourge of past, future and former stormed through the first half of the

New York 1924 tournament. He was account of the Zurich 1953 Candidates World Champions. For example, be­ double round event with 61/2/7 before

also a profound theoretician who tournament is regarded as one of the sides his record against Botvinnik, he cruising to first place with draws in the

helped to popularize 1... t21f6 in reply to best ever books on chess, perhaps the had (excluding draws) an 11-9 plus second cycle. This made him FIDE

1 e4, an opening that now bears his very best. score against Smyslov, 5-3 against both World Champion. The chess world,

name. Fischer and Petrosian, and was level at however, was split vvith both a FIDE

6-6 with Tal. and 'Classical Chess' World Champion,

Efim Geller (1925-1998)
Because of his fine qualities as an so in 2006 Topalov played a reunifica­
David Bronstein (1924-2006)
Geller was born in Odessa in the opening analyst, Geller acted as the tion match vvith Kramnik to resolve the

Bronstein was born in Bila Tserkva in Ukraine in 1925. He \von the USSR trainer of Boris Spassky in 1972 and matter. The Russian Grandmaster won

the Ukraine in 1924 and learnt his chess Championship in 1955 after beating Anatolv Karpov through the 1975 (in rapid tie-break games) a match

in Kiev. He was twice USSR Cham­ Smyslov in a play-off match, and then qualifying cycle. marred by off the board incidents.

pion, sharing the title with Kotov in won it for a second time 24 years later Geller annotated a fine collection of In 2009 Topalov beat Gata Kamsky

1948 and with Smyslov in 1949. He fin­ in 1979. He also shared second or third his own games entitled The AppliCiltioll in a match to decide a challenger to

ished equal first in the Budapest 1950 place seven times. or Chess TllCory. Vis\vanathan Anand, who in the mean

Candidates tournament, and won the Geller was among the top players in time had wrested the world title from

play-off with Boleslavsky +3=9-2 to the world for over 20 years without Veselin Topalov (1975-) Kramnik.

earn the right to challenge Botvinnik ever having the two or three year spell At the time of writing, Topalov has

[\1r the World Championship. Their of brilliance (and good fortune) that is Topalov was born in Rousse, Bulgaria achieved the second highest Elo rating

�'t?-t e1f 24 games' match finished tied necessary to earn a World Champion­ in 1975. He became a Grandmaster in ever after those of Kasparov, peaking

.': -:;= 14-5 \\hich meant that Bronstein ship match. The closest he came in 1992 and broke through to the world at 2813. He is greatly respected (and

: ' ."� Cl�Ille \\'ithin an ace of winning the Candidates tournaments was equal elite in 1996. He reached the final of the feared!) as an uncompromising fighter

::\..'. It I\'as particularly galling as he second with Keres at Curacao 1962 - he Candidates matches in 2002 to decide a with fantastic opening knowledge.

'.'.," leading with two games to go, be­ was half a point behind Petrosian, who challenger for Vladimir Kramnik's
;,,1'(' k1 � in g the fateful 23rd game. went on to successfully challenge the 'Classical World Champion's' (that is, Neil McDonald,

Bronstein remained one of the top veteran Botvinnik for the world title. non-FIDE) title, but lost to Peter Leko. Gravesend

pla\'ers in the world for the rest of the As Geller had a +4=7-1 life-time record It was onl\' in 2005 that Topalov June 2009

1950s without ever managing to get against Botvinnik, another point at Cu- started to show the power that would

8 9

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 C h a pter O n e I
The Dyn a m ic E l e ment

As described in the Introduction, I re­

gard power play as a fusion of dyna­
mism, psychology and forceful open­
ing preparation. To some extent this is
an ideal, as by no means all the games
in this book contain the second and
third of these elements to a marked
degree. Almost without exception,
however, they witness a dynamic fight.
So what is dynamism?
Arturo Pomar was a famous chess
prodigy (and future Champion of
Spain) who had achieved a winning
position against Alekhine in their en­
counter at Gijon 1 944. That game had
ended in a draw, which was a fabulous
result for a 12-year-old boy against a
reigning World Champion. In the fol­
lowing game, played a year later,
Alekhine had felt obliged to take some
risks to create winning chances as
Black in the French Exchange.
Game 2
A.Pomar Salamanca­
A.Alekhine
Mad rid 1945
French Defence
1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 exd5 exd5 4 .ltd 3 lbc6
5 c3 i.d6 6 lbf3 lbge7 7 0-0 ..ig4 8 l:te1
"iid 7 9 1i.g5 f6 10 ..ih4 0 -0-0 11 lbbd2
h5 12 i.g3 h4 13 .ixd6 �xd6 14 h 3
i. h 5 15 iVe2 ..if7 16 lbb3 l:tde8 17 lbc5
lbd8 18 �C2 b6
(see following diagram)
Here Pomar retreated his knight
with . . .
19 lbb3
... which led Alekhine in his annota­
tions to give him a wonderful piece of
advice:
"There are positions in which a

11
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
combination is obligatory. In order to
evade the necessary mental effort the
player lets slip his chances and little by
little finds himself reduced to the de­
fensive and ends up by suffering a de­
feat which, logically, is well merited."
(107 Great Chess Battles, Edward Winter
1980)
The World Champion recom­
mended 19 b4!, when 19 . . .bxc5 20 bxc5
"iWc6 21 ttabl intending 22 i..b5 etc
would give White a very dangerous
attack. Alekhine says he was going to
decline the knight offer with 19 ... Wb8,
when after 20 ttebl Was 21 ttJa6 c6
Black can defend okay but won't find it
so easy to carry out his attack on the
kingside.
We might say that 19 b4 is the only
way to preserve the energy of the
white position. Once the opportunity is
lost, Pomar can carry on making
moves, some of them quite good, but
there is no dynamism, no spark of life
in his set-up. It is all dull, plodding
defence.
The game actually continued as fol­
lows:
12
19 ...g 5 2 0 ttJh2 ttJe6 2 1 C4
Pomar becomes worried about
Black's kingside advance and so seeks
activity in the centre, but now he is
saddled with a permanently weak d­
pawn.
21 ... dxc4 22 i..xC4 Wb8 23 ttacl ttJd8 24
i.xf7 ttJxf7 25 "iWc4 ttJd 5
And now the World Champion
gradually outplayed his young adver­
sary:
26 'ii'b 5 1.txel+ 27 ttxel c6 28 "iWe2 ttJh6
29 ttJd2 ttJf4 30 "iWe4 'ifd5 31 ttJhf3 ttJf5
32 Whl ttd8 33 1.tcl Wb7 34 b3 "iWxe4 3 5
ttJxe4 ttJd5 3 6 ttel WC7 3 7 ttJed2 ttJb4
38 .l:!.e6 ttd6 39 tte8 ttJxa2 40 ttJe4 ttd8
41 ttxd8 Wxd8 42 ttJxf6 ttJCl 43 b4 ttJd 3
44 d5 We7 45 ttJh7 cxd5 46 b5 g4 47
hxg4 ttJxf2+ 48 Wgl ttJxg4 0-1
Knowing how to play in a dynamic
style isn't a luxury. It is essential, as
situations like that after 18 ... b6 occur all
the time during chess games. If you
think you understand strategy and see
tactics pretty well, but still there seems
to be something missing from your
chess, maybe it is this dynamic ele­
ment.
Genuine dynamism versus
one-move threats
Came 3
P.Morphy-A.Anderssen
7th matchga me, Pa ris 1858
Centre-Counter Defence
1 e4 d5 2 exd5 "iWxd5 3 ttJC3 �a 5 4 d4 e5
5 dxe5 'i!Vxe5+ 6 .te2 i.. b4 7 ttJf3 .txC3+
8 bxc3 "iWxc3+ 9 i..d 2 "iWC5 10 ttbl ttJc6
11 0-0 ttJf6 12 i..f4 0-0 13 i..xC7 ttJd4 14
'ii'xd4 "iWxC7 15 iLd3
Here 15 ...b6 followed by 16 ... i..b7
would put the bishop on its optimal
diagonal and, at the same time, solve
the problem of the loose pawn on b7.
In that case, Black would have the bet­
ter game in view of the disfigurement
of the white pawn structure on the
queenside.
Instead, there followed:
15 ...i.g4
Adolf Anderssen couldn't escape
from the mentality that said develop­
ing with gain of time must be a good
The Dyn amic Elem e n t
thing. The celebrated German master
could perform magical tricks with the
pieces, calculate 15 moves deep, create
an Evergreen Game and an Immortal
Game, but he couldn't play 15 ...b6 and
16 . . . i.b7, something that any average
master can do these days.
16 ttJg5 1
Rather than being ensconced on b7,
controlling the long diagonal from a
safe distance, the bishop finds itself
poorly placed on g4 and already the
subject of a tactical threat, namely 17
ttJxh7! ttJxh7 18 'ii'xg4.
16 ... ttfd8?
Here we have another useless at­
tacking move. The rook is brought into
play with gain of time by hitting the
white queen. But so what? The queen
runs away to a better square than d4 and
then what does the rook do on d8?
There's nothing to attack. And mean­
while it has given up its defence of f7,
the most vulnerable square in the black
camp.
An interesting alternative was
16 . . . .td7 which aims to put the bishop
on the long diagonal after all with
17. . .i.. c6. This would secure both the
bishop itself and the b7-pawn from
attack.
17 'iVb41
Here the white queen attacks b7,
supports the threat of 18 ttJxh7! ttJxh7
19 'iVxg4, and controls a possible inva­
sion square for a rook on e7.
17 ...i..c8
When we think of the fine combina­
tions that Anderssen has made, this is a
rather sad retreat.
13
Che ss S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
18 l::tfel
Despite Black's loss of time with the
bishop, if nothing happens fast he will
develop his pieces and emerge with the
better game after all, as White has bro­
ken queenside pawns. Therefore Mor­
phy has to ensure that he overwhelms
the black defence and wins at least a
pawn before his opponent is able to
mobilize. This means it is vital for
White to attack immediately without
wasting any time.
I'm sure you can see why the force
of Morphy's looming initiative is of a
magnitude several times greater than
Anderssen's one-move threats 15 ... �g4
and 16 ... l:!.fdS. The American has every
piece developed and beautifully coor­
dinated, whereas his opponent has in­
dulged in isolated attacks.
18 ...a s
Insufficient, but h e can't just allow
19 ne7. If instead lS ... .ttd7 it is mate in
three, with either 19 lleS+! ltJxeS 20
i.xh7+ c;t>hS 21 'ii'fS mate, or 19 �xh7+
ltJxh7 20 lIeS+ etc.
19 'iVe7!
Morphy, despite being an acclaimed
14
Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t
master of the mating attack, doesn't l:tee7?? or 24 J:i.e4?? in view of 24... l:td1+ see a good move, look for an even bet­
hesitate to exchange queens, as he sees mating. This isn't going to be enough ter one!
that the f7-pawn will become indefen­ to save Black despite the exchange of 2S i.d3! 1-0
sible. queens.
19 ...'ibe7 242:.f4!
Of course if 19 ... i:ld7 20 'iieS+ will The rook is well placed on the sev­
mate. enth rank, but is even better if it can go
20 llxe7ltJd S to the h-file. Thus if 24 . . . a4 25 i.g6 con­
A clever attempt to create counter­ tains the winning threat of 26 llh4+
play, as you would expect from 'it>g8 27 i.f7+ �fS 2S l:!.hS mate.
Anderssen. Hopeless is 20 . . .l:!.fS 21 i.c4, If you have a piece that is well
when the f7-pawn is attacked three placed, nevertheless ask yourself:
times and must drop. would it be better coordinated with the
21 i.xh7+ �h8 22 l1xf7 ltJC3 23 l:tel rest of the pieces if transferred else­
ltJxa2 where? In chess there is no cult of the
individual - the important thing is how Now Black's most lethal problem is
all the pieces work best together. that the rook on d8 has to remain de­
fending the back rank, but has no safe
squares. With the white bishop re­
moved from h7, 26 ltJf7+ and 27 ltJxdS
threatens to win a whole rook. If
25 .. Jhd3, which deals with the threat
of 26 ltJf7+ (or 26 i.xa6) in the most
economical way, White can mate with
26 l:i.eS or 26 l:tfS. So the only safe
square is gS, but 25 ... I:tgS 26 ltJf7 is also
mate.
This is Anderssen's idea. He has Tip: When your best moves allow
created a queenside passed pawn mate in one, it's time to resign.
which, if nothing happens on the king­ 24 .. Jla6
side, could well win the game. Once again we can see that Was Anderssen out-calculated
Therefore Morphy must quickly Anderssen is a player who knows how here? Did Morphy pulverize him with
conclude the attack. And the omens are to get the maximum out of every piece. a brilliant sacrifice? No. The Ameri­
good, as he has two rooks, a bishop He brings the rook into the fight in an can's superiority was in coordinating
and a knight assailing the black king, unconventional way and hopes to his pieces and choosing the right mo­
whereas there are only two black tempt his opponent into 25 ltJf7+ �xh7 ment to switch to an all-out attack.
pieces that are even faintly concerned 26 ltJxdS, when he can fight on, though Anderssen could perform feats of cal­
with defence - the bishop on cS, which White would surely have won even in culation just as well or better, and find
is covering some light squares, and the that case. But Morphy knew by instinct imaginative things to do with any in­
rook on d8, which is dissuading 24 one of the golden rules of chess: if you dividual piece. Morphy's greatness
15
C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
was that he knew how to combine all
his pieces into a mighty juggernaut and
then set it rolling at just the right mo­
ment. His understanding of the ideas
of force and the tempo of the struggle
were way ahead of his era.
What is a combination?
The clue is in the word itself - it in­
volves combining the action of our
pieces to change in a violent manner
the energy balance between the two
armies. Alternatively, we might talk
about a combination as exposing in
dramatic fashion the lack of coordina­
tion among the opponent's pieces.
Both definitions will help us in our
task of discovering combinations. We
need to notice when there is a lack of
harmony in the enemy camp, and
where the energy level of our own
pieces is particularly concentrated, and
then ask: are there any ' crazy' moves or
ideas that can exaggerate both of these
factors, our own energy and the oppo­
nent's lack of it?
Combinations are an essential part
of power play - an explosive way of
exploiting dynamism, as it were.
Game 4
D.Bronstein-V.Korchnoi
Mo scow vs Le n i ngrad
match 1962
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 ctJf3 ctJe6 3 i.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ctJf6
5 0-0 ctJxe4 6 d4 b5 7 i.b3 d5 8 dxe5
16
i.e6 9 e3 i.e7 10 i.e2 0-0 11 'i!Ve2 f5 12
exf6 i.xf6 13 ctJbd2 i.f5 14 ctJxe4 i.xe4
15 i.xe4 dxe4 16 'i!Vxe4 'i!Vd7 17 i.f4
li.ae8 18 'i!Ve2 ..ih4 19 i.g3 ..ixg3 20
hxg3 ctJe5 21 ctJxe5 li.xe5 22 li.fe1 li.d 5
2 3 li.ad 1 e5 24 a4 li.d8 25 li.xd 5 'i!Vxd 5 26
axb5 axb5 27 ife2 b4 28 exb4 exb4 29
'iYg4 b3 30 �h2 'i!Vf7 31 'i!Vg5 li.d 7 32 f3
h6 33 �e3 .l:!.d8 34 g4 �h8
Korchnoi had been under pressure
a long time, not just a pawn down but
with a weakness on b3 to defend. But
in time pressure he thought he saw his
salvation when Bronstein played:
35 'i!Vb6
The reply came in a flash:
35 ... li.d 2
Suddenly there is a double threat of
36 . . .li.xb2 and 36 .. :iVxf3. Has our hero
blundered?
36 "ii'b 8+ Wh7 37 li.e8!
Letting Black carry out his threat.
3 7 ...'i!Vxf3
We shall return to consider
37. . . li.xb2 later in the chapter.
38 li.h8+ �g6
With mate on g2 and the b2-pawn
hanging, it seems that Bronstein is go-
ing to have to find a queen check to
hold the draw. Instead, there came:
39 .l:!.xh6+!! 1-0
Black loses his queen after 39 ... gxh6
40 'iYg8+ Wf6 41 "ii'f8+ '.tg6 42 'iYxf3, or
39 .. shh6 40 �8+ �g5 (or 40 . . .Wg6 41
"iVh5+ �f6 42 g5+ followed by 43 "ii'xf3)
41 �5+ '.tf4 (or 41.. .�f6 42 g5+) 42
�f5+ �e3 43 �xf3+.
White's combination had to be
planned before playing 35 "iib6 or else
he would have thrown away his ad­
vantage and also jeopardized the draw.
The question is, how can we teach our­
selves to see ideas such as 39 li.xh6+.
Here's a general rule that might be use­
ful: if you are attacking the enemy king
with a queen and rook, and there are
no defenders in sight, just a bit of pawn
cover, don't trust the pawn cover to
save the king. Look for 'crazy' moves
to break through it!
We might elaborate the rule by add­
ing that a king hates being checked
I close up' by the enemy queen. So if you
are attacking the opponent's king with a
queen and rook, try to find a way to
The Dyn a mic Elem e n t
give a close-up check with your queen,
no matter how crazy it looks. And once
you have found a way to give the check,
look for a second check that might fol­
low it. So 39 li.xh6+ is a crazy move, but
it gives us 40 'i!Vg8+ and 41 'i!Vf8+, two
close-up checks following each other, or
40 �8+ and 41 �5+ another two
close-up checks. Once we have seen that
the first two close-up checks win the
opponent's queen, we get excited and
notice the power of 42 g5+ after the sec­
ond close-up check, which also wins the
opponent's queen. Bingo! Here the key
to the position is the pawn on g4. White
wins because he is able to coordinate
the action of his queen with this pawn -
it is a vital pivot for her.
As we said above, Bronstein had to
see 39 li.xh6+ before 35 �6. That
might seem a long way ahead, but
don't forget that the position is pretty
empty of pieces. White only had to ex­
amine forcing moves with the queen
and rook, nothing else. The real diffi­
culty is in seeing that 39 .l:!.xh6+ exists
as an option.
Promising-looking moves
deserve to be calculated
GameS
V.Topalov-V.Kramnik
Li n a re s 1994
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 e5 2 ctJf3 ctJe6 3 d4 exd4 4 ctJxd4
ctJf6 5 ctJe3 d6 6 f3 e5 7 ctJb3 i.. e7 8 ..te3
17

Che ss Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play
..ie6 9 lLldS Ji.xds 10 exds lLlb4 11 e4 a s
1 2 lLld2 lLld7 1 3 lLle4 fS 14 lLle3 0-0 1 5
..ie2 1i.gs 1 6 .i.f2 ii'f6 1 7 0-0 lLla6 is
..id3 �h6 19 'iVe2 'u'aeS 20 ..ie2 lLlaes 2 1
g3 e 4 22 f4 .idS 23 a3 lLlf6 24 �g2 .i.b6
25 ..ig1 lLled7 26 lLlbS ..ixg1 27 �xg1
'it'g6
In the diagram position White
would like very much to take on d6,
but 28 lLlxd6? meets with the riposte
28 . . .lLlxd5!, threatening 29 ... lLlxf4+ win­
ning the queen, when after 29 cxd5
'iVxd6 Black has a good position thanks
to the weakness of the d5-pawn and
the strength of his own protected
passed pawn on e4.
So Topalov had to settle for gaining
some space on the queenside.
2S b4 lieS
Once again offering the pawn on
d6. Now a tactical theme appears, be­
cause after 29 lLlxd6, not only would
the rook on c8 be hanging, but beyond
that a fork of the black queen and king
on e7 would be on the cards: namely
lLlxd6, lLlxc8 and lLle7+ and lLlxg6.
That's a lot of material White would be
grabbing!
18
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On the other hand Black can still re­
taliate with 29 . . . lLlxd5 and if White per­
sists with lLlxc8 he has ...lLlxf4+ and
. . .lLlxe2, grabbing the white queen.
So far it is: for White, lLlxd6, lLlxc8,
lLle7+ and lLlxg6; versus for Black,
. . . lLlxd5, ... lLlxf4+ and . . .lLlxe2.
Surely a good deal for White? He
picks up in sequence a pawn, rook, and
queen, while Black only gains two
pawns and the queen. If we look even
further ahead, we'll see that the white
knight which ends up on g6 after lLlxg6
will be attacking the black rook on f8,
while the black knight on e2 will be
attacking the white rook on g l . That
more or less cancels itself out - both
sides will have a knight hanging, and
both knights will be attacking a rook.
We should add that ...lLlxf4+ should be
met by 'it>f1, so that the black knight
does indeed hang on e2 to 'it'xe2.
Therefore, after the series of retalia­
tory blows, White will emerge with
about an extra rook for a couple of
pawns. Let's imagine this sequence: 29
lLlxd6 lLlxdS 30 lLlxc8 lLlxf4+ 31 �f1
lLlxe2 32 lLle7+ �f7 33 lLlxg6
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and you can easily verify that after
33 . . . �xg6 34 'it'xe2 or 33 . . . lLlxg1 34 lLlxf8
lLlxf8 35 �xg1 White has an extra rook.
Therefore Black has to come up with a
nuance in this sequence, or else he will
lose.
Having seen this much, Topalov
knows that 29 lLlxd6 has the capacity to
be a very good move. It is therefore
worth him devoting considerable en­
ergy to working out whether it
a good move. After all, the reward is
evident - if Black loses the vital d6-
pawn without sufficient compensation,
his game is ruined. The Bulgarian will
get to beat one of the most promising
young players in the world.
So let's see what happened in the
game. For a few moves it followed the
above analysis:
29 lLlxd6! lLlxdS! 30 lLlxeS lLlxf4+ 31 'it>f1
'it'f6
Seeing that he loses as discussed af­
ter 31.. .lLlxe2 32 lLle7+ �f7 33 lLlxg6,
Kramnik sidesteps this sequence by
counterattacking against a l .
32 lLle7+!
The knight saves itself from capture
The Dy n a mic Eleme n t
with vital gain of time. If now
32 .. .'iVxe7 33 gxf4 leaves White with an
extra rook.
32 ...�hS 33 'it'd1!
really is
The queen moves to safety and
guards aI, leaving both black knights
hanging.
33 ... lLlh3
Nonetheless, the position remains
tense as e7 and gl are both en prise.
34 lLldS!
The white knight completes its es­
cape from enemy territory. Now Black
has no time to capture on gl as his
queen is hanging.
34 ...�b2 35 �g2 f4
Being a rook down, Kramnik's last
throw of the dice is a direct attack on
the rather exposed white king.
36 gxf4 "iVes!? 37 l1a 2!
As we shall see, this prepares a
highly resourceful defensive idea.
3 7 ...lLlb6
Black would get the attack he wants
after 38 lLlxb6? ii'xf4+, but White's re­
ply kills his initiative.
3S 'iVa1!
The possibility of ii'xg7 mate means
19
Ch ess S e c re t s : The G ia n ts of Po wer Play The Dyn amic Elem e n t

that Black has no good way to avoid lbf3 �g4 6 Ji.e2 cxd4 7 cxd4 e 6 8 lbC3 (there are no other safe squares for the to deter i t further. And yet such i s the
the exchange of queens, after which all Ji.b4 9 0-0 "iVas queen) 16 "iVxaS lbxaS 17 lhe7 and explosive power of Alekhine's combi­
hope is at an end. White has won a piece. nation that the pawn nevertheless
11 d S ! charges forward. He plans to cause
maximum trouble for the enemy mon­
arch, who is sitting uneasily on e8, and
also for his 'close adviser' the queen,
who is going to be obliged to make a
hazardous journey to a l .
Let's look a t some o f the variations
the World Champion must have exam­
ined. If 1 1 . . .lId8 or 1 1 . . .0-0-0, 12 'iib3! is
very strong, as 12 . . .Ji.xc3 13 dxc6!
leaves both c3 and b7 hanging. Noth­
If White now satisfies himself in de­ ing too difficult to see so far.
38 .. J�xf4+ 39 �e1! 1-0 fending c3 with the quiet 10 Ji.d2, then Harder to calculate is 1 1 . ..lbxdS
Black would catch up in development The military genius Alexander the when we discover one of the main
There are positions in which a with 10 . . .lbf6 and 1 1 . ..0-0, whereupon Great often chose to attack a hostile points of Alekhine's combination,
com bination is obligatory White would not only have failed to army at its strongest, rather than weak­ namely the trapping of the black queen
gain any opening advantage, he would est, point on the battlefield. He rea­ on a l : 12 lbxdS exdS
Here is an example of Alekhine fol­ even have the worst of it due to the soned that the enemy general and his
lowing his own advice in a game isolated pawn on d4. close advisers were likely to have sta­
played near the end of his career. Inci­ And so Alekhine made the 'neces­ tioned themselves behind their sound­
dentally, it shows that the fourth sary mental effort' and, after a thor­ est defences. Therefore a rapid break­
World Champion was still playing ough analysis of the position, produced through in that sector, even at huge
with flair and imagination just a couple one of the best combinations of his life. cost, might quickly decide matters by
of years before his death. If Alekhine 10 a 3 ! ! cutting off the head of the enemy army
had managed to survive beyond 1946 A t first i t seems bizarre t o attack the - both literally and figuratively.
in reasonable health, he might have bishop, as the a3-pawn is pinned. But We chess players are less blood­
given Botvinnik a hard time in their Alekhine's keen tactical eye has seen a thirsty than Macedonian warrior kings,
projected match for the World Cham­ chance to trap the black queen. but we can still learn from their tech­
pionship. 10 lbf6
••• niques. Here Alexander the Chess
After 1O . . . Ji.xc3 1 1 bxc3 'iixc3 12 lIb 1 Player has chosen to strike his oppo­ 13 axb4! "iVxal 14 'iib3! (getting his
0-0-0 either 13 'iia4 or 13 �e3 gives nent on the most well-defended square own queen out of the way so that a
Came 6
White a very dangerous attack on the in his centre. Black has three units - the bishop move, say IS ii.d2, would
A.Alekhine-J.Podgorny
black king. Alternatively, if instead of queen, knight on f6 and pawn on e6 - pocket her opposite number) 14 ... i..xf3
Prague 1943
castling Black gives back the pawn all directly opposing this break­ IS Ji.gS! 'iixfl+ 16 ..txfl Ji.e4 17 f3, and
Sicilian Defence
with 12 . . . lbge7, then 13 lIxb7 0-0 14 through, along with the latent possi­ the black king will be caught under
"iVa4! still leaves him in deep trouble. bilities of ... lId8 (or ... 0-0-0), and attack in the centre, with his pieces un­
1 e4 cs 2 c3 dS 3 exds 'iix ds 4 d4 lbc6 S One threat of many is IS Ji.b2 "iVaS ... ..txc3, removing the pawn's defender, able to provide an adequate defence.

20 21
C h e s s S e c re ts: T h e G i a n ts of Po w e r Play The Dyn amic Eleme n t

In the game Podgamy managed to
avoid losing his queen and also got to
castle, but he lost too much material in
the process.
11... exd5 12 axb41 'iVxal 13 tbd2!
Threatening both 14 .ixg4 and 14
tbb3! when the black queen has no safe
squares.
13 ... .ixe2 14 �xe2+ tbe7
If instead 14 . . .�f8 White continues
IS tbb3 �a6 16 bS and wins the knight,
leading to a material balance similar to
the game, but with the black king stuck
in the centre.
15 lIel! 0-0
It turns out Black had no good way
to defend e7, but if now 16 �xe7??
IHe8 and Black is suddenly winning. So
has White's combination failed? No,
Alekhine had seen a bit further:
16 tbb3! "i!Ya6
The only move, but now White can
safely grab the knight.
17 'iVxa6 bxa6 lS l:txe7
The dust has settled. Alekhine has
two pieces for a rook and pawn, which
doesn't sound like an overwhelming
advantage. However, his minor pieces
are safe and compact and have some Even without queens, you can 't
nice central squares, especially d4, rely on natural moves
whereas the black rooks don't have any
attractive open files, nor any strong The following game appears, at first
passed pawns to support. glance, to be of a positional rather than
a dynamic nature. But a little analysis
soon reveals that Geller would have
got nowhere if he had relied on 'natu­
ral', 'strategical' moves. On the con­
trary, he had to be ready to calculate
and discover important tactical nu­
ances, or else his highly resourceful
opponent would have escaped his
grasp.
Game 7
lS.. JbbS 19 b5 1
E.Gelier-P .Keres
Not letting the knight on b3 be mo­
USSR C h a m pion s h i p,
lested by the black rook.
Moscow 1952
19 ... axb5 20 Iioxa7 b4 21 tbe2 �fcS 2 2
Nimzo-Indian Defence
f 3 n a s 2 3 ItxaS l:txaS 24 �f2 tb d 7 2 5
tbf4 tb b 6 2 6 � e 3 l:tcS 27 � d 3 g5 2S 1 d4 tbf6 2 c4 e6 3 tbC3 .ib4 4 e3 b6 5
tbh5 1-0 .id3 0-0 6 tbf3 d5 7 0-0 .i.b7 S .id2
dXc4 9 .i.xC4 c5 10 a3 cxd4 11 axb4
dXc3 12 .ixc3 tbe4 13 'iVxdS ItxdS 14
�fdl gcS
Black despairs of defending his col­
lection of weak pawns.
A fantastic display of dynamic
chess from Alekhine. White has three small advantages in
the diagram position:
1) The bishop pair.
2) Pressure on the a7-pawn.
3) Control of the d-file, which deters
. .. tbc6 in view of l:td7.
All these advantages seem on the
point of vanishing over the next couple
of moves, but let's see how Geller pre­
served them.
15 iLel!
Well, you might think that's a
strange way to begin an attack! In fact
Geller is storing energy in his position
by preventing the exchange IS . . . tbxc3,
which would also clear the way for a
second exchange with 16 . . . j"xf3. It's
good for White to keep the black
knight on e4 and bishop on b7 on the
board, as he can gain time by harassing
them. Similarly, Geller needs to pre­
serve his own pieces for the forthcom­
ing attack.
15 ... �fS
Of course if Black plays IS .. Jhc4??
he is mated. So Keres rushes his king to
the centre and makes the threat to the
white bishop real.
16 l:td4
The Ukrainian Grandmaster de­
fends his bishop, attacks the knight on
e4 and prepares to double rooks on the
d-file.
16 ... �e7
In principle it is handy for Black to
have the king bolster his defences
along the d-file, but he always has to
watch out for a sudden b4-bS and
�b4+. At the moment this isn't dan­
gerous as Black can reply ... tbcS, block­
ing out the bishop; but if the knight

22 23
Chess S e c re ts: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
leaves e4 or is eliminated, the check
might be very painful.
17 l:i.adl
The entrance of the black king
hasn't solved the problem of his
queenside development, as 17 ... tLlc6
would allow either 18 l:i.xe4 or 18 l:i.d7+.
17 ...l:i.C7
Now, however, Black is on the point
of playing 18 ... tLld7 with equality. It
looks as if White can't prevent this
with 18 tLleS?? because 18 . . . f6 19 tLlf3 eS
wins material (moving the white rook
away from d4 drops the bishop on c4).
But Geller made a habit of playing 'im­
possible' moves throughout his career.
18 tLles!
The only way to keep his advan­
tage. If White had been a lazy fellow
and looked no further than 18 ... f6 be­
fore rejecting this move as a howler,
Keres would have escaped. Instead, he
is stopped from playing 18 ... tLld7 and
remains bunged up. But the question
remains - what does happen if Black
plays to win material? The answer
came in the game:
18 ...f6 19 ..td 3 !
24
I f 19 . . . fxeS Geller intended t o exploit
Black's lack of development with a
couple of pins, diagonal and frontal: 20
l:i.xe4 iLxe4 (not forced, but otherwise
he is just left with ugly e-pawns) 21
i..xe4 tLlc6 22 bS l:i.d8 23 l:i.c1 ! and White
will end up with two pieces for a rook.
19 ...tLld6
Keres is ready to answer 20 ..txh7?
fxeS 21 �xd6 with 2 1 . . .i.. d S! trapping
the white rook on d6 and winning the
exchange. So Geller has to back off
with 20 tLlc4 tLlxc4 21 i..xc4, when Black
can equalize with 21.. .tLlc6. A pity that,
but it was a precise defence by the Es­
tonian Grandmaster. A draw was
agreed at this point.
But no, that's not how the game
ended. Geller once again played an
'impossible' move:
20 ..txh 7! fxes 21 l:i.xd6 ..tdS
The rook is indeed trapped on d6,
but Geller has foreseen that it can be
sacrificed to reach an endgame in
which White has excellent chances.
22 �6xd S! exds 23 l:i.xdS l:i.cl 24 �f1
tLlc6 2 5 �e2 l:i.d8 26 l:i.xd8 tLlxd8 27 iLC3
<;t>e6
So Black has completed his devel­
opment and, despite everything, the
players are equal on points: White has
two pawns for the exchange. However,
there isn't much that the black rook can
attack, as b2 and b4 are securely de­
fended. Meanwhile, White's bishop
pair can exert enormous pressure on
the fragile black kingside pawns. In
only a couple of moves the g7-pawn
drops off the board, whereupon White
has three connected passed pawns.
With the position in front of us it
isn't too difficult to see that White has
excellent chances. But don't forget that
Geller had to persuade himself a long
way in advance that this simplified
endgame would be good for him. He
had to use both his powers of calcula­
tion and his judgment.
Here is the conclusion of the game:
28 ..tg8+ �d6 29 f4 exf4 30 exf4 tLle6
31 iLes+ �dS 32 i..x g7 l:i.c8 33 iLxe6+
�xe6 34 Wf3 l:i.C4 35 iLC3 �d S 36 h4 a s
37 bxas l:i.xc3+ 38 bXc3 bxas 3 9 hS 'it'e6
40 �e3 1-0
After his analytical feats earlier in
the game, it's no surprise that Geller
Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t
has been able to work out that his king
is in time to stop Black's passed pawn.
A splendid effort.
Dynamism a nd psychology
In the following game, Alekhine man­
ages to introduce a dynamic element
that is highly disagreeable to his oppo­
nent.
Richard Reti was at least the equal of
Alekhine in the field of strategy when
he was playing White and had the
chance to adopt one of his beloved flank
openings. It needs only be recalled that
he used the opening that now bears his
name to beat Capablanca at New York
in 1924 - the Cuban's first loss in eight
years. If the Hungarian born Grandmas­
ter had a weakness, it was in the field of
tactics. He seemed to underestimate the
importance of dynamism and calcula­
tion. He did so well with the Reti and
English Openings because they not only
gave scope for him to demonstrate his
strategic mastery, they also helped to
mask his tactical deficiencies.
It has often been asserted that
Alekhine indulged in 'post-game ra­
tionalization' . That is to say, after win­
ning a game with a complex attack that
involved judgment and intuition as
well as calculation, he would work out
all the variations in the quiet of his
study and then claim to have seen eve­
rything to a clear conclusionduring the
game itself. Playing through his game
against Reti, you might like to ask
yourself: what did Black actually need
to see at various points in his attack?
25
C h ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
Game 8
R. Reti-A.Alekhine
Baden-Baden 1925
Reti Opening
1 g3 es 2 lbf3 e4 3 lbd4 dS 4 d3 exd3 S
'iVxd3 lbf6 6 ii.g2 i.. b4+ 7 i..d 2 i.xd2+ 8
lbxd2 0-0 9 c4 lba6 10 cxdS lbb4 11
"*,C4 lbbxdS 12 lb2b3 c6 13 0-0 .l::!.e8 14
IUd1 iLg4 lS .l::!.d 2 'iVc8 16 lbcs i.. h 3 17
�f3 ..\tg4 18 ..\tg2 i.. h 3 19 i..f3 iLg4
Here Alekhine wrongly claimed a
draw by three-fold repetition. It has
been suggested that this was a psycho­
logical ruse to persuade his opponent
to put his bishop on an inferior square.
After all, having protested his right to
continue the game, it was somehow
embarrassing for Reti to agree to a
draw with 20 ..\tg2.
20 i.. h 1 h S !
Alekhine pre-empts White's queen­
side push with a pawn advance of his
own on the kingside. As we shall see,
the retreat of White's bishop to hI and
the softening up of the g3-pawn in-
26
crease the latent energy of the black
pieces.
21 b4 a6 22 .l::!.c1 h4 23 a4 hxg3 24 hxg3
�C7 2S bS
Reti begins an immediate attack on
the queenside. Instead, the preliminary
25 e4 would drive the black knight
from the centre and avoid all the un­
welcome tactics that follow. On the
other hand, Reti loved to hold back his
centre pawns, and doesn't want to ob­
struct his bishop's view of the c6-
square.
2S ... axbs 26 axbs .l::!.e 3!
Psychology and dynamism!
Alekhine doesn't give his opponent a
second chance to dislodge the knight
from d5 with 27 e4. Therefore Reti is
denied a quiet, 'neat' game where he
can demonstrate his talent for strategy.
How did Alekhine find this idea?
Well, remember what we said in the
Bronstein extract above:
If you are attacking the opponent's king
with a queen and rook, try to find a way to
give a close-up check with your queen, no
matter how crazy it looks.
Here the black queen is staring at
the g3-square which has been under­
mined by both 20 iLhI and 23 . . .hxg3. A
crazy rook move to attack it is 26 . . ..l::!.e3,
which opens the way for a close-up
check after 27 fxe3 'iVxg3+. Once we
start looking at this, we don't have to
see beyond 28 Ji.g2 lbxe3 to realize that
White is being mated on g2. The fact
that the white queen is hanging after
28 . . . lbxe3 is of no objective relevance,
but it is a great confidence booster: 'If
I'm dreaming and it isn't forced mate
on g2, no matter as White won't have
time to save his queen!'
27 lbf3?
Reti loses his composure and im­
mediately makes a serious blunder. It
is often the case that rushing defenders
towards an endangered king causes
more trouble than the original threat.
The knight was performing an impor­
tant role on d4, guarding both the b5-
and e2-pawns. Even worse, retreating
it to f3 shuts in the bishop on hI, which
loses influence over the centre. This
reduction in the energy of the white
pieces allows Alekhine to begin a series
of tactical operations.
The logical move was 27 ii.f3!, chal­
lenging the black bishop and strength­
ening, rather than weakening, White's
hold over the e2-square.
27 ... cxbS
White has lost control and is hit by
wave after wave of attacks, with never
a moment to catch his breath.
28 "it'xbs
If Reti had kept his knight on d4 he
could have replied 28 lbxb5, and so
avoided all the grief that follows.
Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t
28 ...lbc3 !
Alekhine aims first o f all t o conquer
the pawn on e2. It is a perfect target for
the following reasons:
1) It is on a tactically sensitive
square, being the distance of a knight's
fork from the rook on d and king on
gl.
2) It is performing a vital defensive
role in guarding f3 against the attack of
the black rook and bishop.
3) It can be attacked with gain of
time by simultaneously hitting the
white queen.
Black still has a rook hanging on e3,
but he knows that, after White saves
his queen, he will get in first with
... lbxe2+ attacking the white rook on d .
Therefore n o variations needed to be calcu­
lated here. It was only necessary to no­
tice that after 29 'ifc4 b5! the white
queen has to give up her defence of e2.
29 it'xb7 it'xb7 30 lbxb7 lbxe2+ 31 Wh2
Up until here Alekhine hasn't
needed to calculate much. He has al­
ways had the luxury of knowing that
31. ..lbxd will be at least okay for him.
In fact, this would give him a tiny, but
27
Chess S e c r e ts : The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
meaningless, advantage after 32 fxe3.
Therefore at this point Black needs
to start looking at other moves. He gets
nowhere special with 31...i.xf3 32 iLxf3
liJxc1 (or 32 ...l:I.xf3 33 l:1.xe2) 33 fxe3 etc.
Instead, 31. ..l:I.xf3 32 l:1.xe2 l:I.xg3 33
'l.t>xg3 �xe2 leaves him with an extra
pawn. That's better, but still it is virtu­
ally impossible to win. So what other
moves are there? If you examine the
position enough, you should be able to
come across Alekhine's actual move.
3 1...liJe4!
Black attacks both the rook on d2
and the pawn on f2. It is worth repeat­
ing that he is risking absolutely noth­
ing in leaving the rook hanging on e3.
After 32 fxe3 liJxd2 material is equal,
but with both the white rook on c1 and
the knight on f3 hanging. Therefore
Black is bound to get in first when it
comes to grabbing material. And so it
proves after 33 liJxd2 liJxc1 when he
wins the exchange, or 33 l:I.c2 liJxf3+ 34
i.xf3 i.xf3 winning a piece.
Instead, 32 l:I.d8+ l:I.xd8 33 fxe3 has
been suggested as the best chance for
White, but this is entirely hopeless after
28
33. . .l:I.d5! 34 l:I.c4 liJ2xg3. White not only
loses a pawn but will drop more mate­
rial as his king is so badly placed; for
example, 35 i.g2 liJ£1 +! 36 �x£1 (if 36
Wg1 l:1.d1 37 �x£1 i.xf3 and wins with
38 . . . liJd2 due to the pin on £1 ) 36 . . .ii.xf3
and there is no good answer to the
threat of 37. . . .:.h5+ 38 .th3 liJg5 win­
ning a piece, as 38 Wg1 l:I.h1 is mate.
Alekhine didn't need to see all this - it
was quite sufficient to get as far as
34 . . .liJ2xg3 and conclude that Black is a
pawn up with a strong initiative.
3 2 l:1.C4!
Reti tries to confuse matters with
his clever rook move. If now 32 . . . �xf3
33 l:I.xe4! ! is a move worthy of one of
his endgame studies. Then 33 . . . �xe4
(after 33 . . .l:I.xe4 34 .txf3 equalizes) 34
fxe3 �xh1 35 <t>xh1 liJxg3+ 36 Wg2
gives White a survivable endgame.
32 ...liJxf2
Alekhine's rook has been hanging
on e3 since move 26! But now he re­
moves the threat, winning a pawn and
leaving g3 weaker.
33 i.g2
Hoping for 33 ... .txf3 34 i.xf3 ':'xf3
35 l:I.xe2 with good drawing chances.
Unfortunately for Reti, not only is he a
pawn down but his opponent can also
target his king.
3 3 ... �e6!
Beginning a regrouping of his
pieces. He attacks the rook on c4 and
wins time for his next move which
obliges the white king to walk into a
discovered attack.
34 l:1.cc2
Reti attacks e2. If he tries 34 l:I.c5
then 34 . . .l:I.aa3! is crushing.
34 ... liJg4+ 35 'itth 3 liJe5+
I suspect it was at this point that
Alekhine conceived his final combina­
tion. Everything could be worked out
due to the small number of pieces on
the board and the forcing nature of the
play - as you will see, White has
hardly any choice with his moves.
36 <t>h2
36 ...l:I.xf3 ! 3 7 ':'xe2 liJg4+ 38 'itt h 3 liJe3+!
38 ... l:I.f6!? was an interesting alterna­
tive, threatening mate on h6. Then after
39 ':'xe6 fxe6 40 Wxg4 l:I.a4+ White is
mated by 41 'itth3 l:I.h6 or 41 <t>g5 l:I.f5+
42 <t>g6 ':'g4 mate! However, White
Th e Dyn amic Elem e n t
could fight on in a losing position with
39 'itth4! .
39 <t>h2 liJxc2 40 �xf3 liJd4 4 1 l:I.f2
liJxf3+ 42 l:1.xf3 i.d 5! 0-1
The white knight is lost.
A brilliant display of power play by
Alekhine. Once he had been given his
chance with 26 . . . l::!.e3! ! he kept Reti un­
der relentless pressure.
William Hartston makes an interest­
ing comment on this game in The Kings
af Chess:
"From the 26th move ( . . . ) a se­
quence of mind-boggling combinations
take over the board, eventually involv­
ing all the pieces. Such chess, even at
the highest level, is not calculable; it is
intuition backed up by the calculation
of the essential variations at each stage.
The human mind is capable of no
more. Yet Alekhine's notes give no in­
dication of the unfathomable nature of
such play, of the doubt that must have
existed in his mind while playing the
game."
I would qualify this slightly by add­
ing that, although Alekhine might have
doubted if his advantage would be
enough to win, he was always in a po­
sition to bail out with a slight, if unreal­
izable, advantage. There was never a
stage in the complications in which he
didn't have an obvious way to remove
the tension and therefore all danger.
What I find most enthralling about the
game is how close it came to burning
out to a draw, but Alekhine always
found a way to maintain the dynamic
element. As Hartston himself remarks,
29
Ch ess S e crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
"as a triumph of imagination and
judgment in conditions of obscure visi­
bility, it is quite magnificent." Alekhine
considered it to be one of his two most
brilliant tournament games, the other
being against Bogoljubow (see Chapter
Four).
Sometimes you have to rely on
intuition
Here I wish to return to the Bronstein­
Korchnoi game given earlier in the
chapter. At move 37 let's see what
would have happened if Korchnoi had
avoided the bait on f3 and instead cap­
tured on b2. After 37 ....l::txb2 there
might now follow 38 .l::t h 8+ �g6 39
1fid6+.
If now 39 ... �gS? a nice computer
might tell you it is mate in eight moves
beginning with 40 .l::tf8! . (If Black does
the sensible thing and saves his queen
with 40 .. :ikc4 it is a much quicker mate:
41 l:tfS+ and 42 l:thS, or 41 "*"eS+ and
mate on fS or h4 as Black prefers.) But
Bronstein didn't have to see that in ad­
vance - it was quite enough to spot
30
that 40 "*"eS+ and 4 1 'ii'xb2 picks u p the
rook. So that means Black has to play
39 ..."*"f6!, when 40 'ii'd 3+ is the check­
ing reply.
In his earlier calculations, I suspect
that Bronstein stopped about here as
his intuition told him that there would
almost certainly be a way to exploit the
exposed black king. In contrast to the
game, in which Black was always
threatening ...'ii'xg2 mate, White can
afford the luxury of a quiet move or
two to pick off either the black rook,
queen, or king. And as a 'safety valve'
White always has a draw if he keeps on
checking the black king.
Analysis confirms that Bronstein's
intuition was correct. Black loses his
queen after 40 . . .'it>f7 41 'iVdS+ 'it>e7 (if
41...�g6 42 iHhS mate, or 41...'ii'e6 42
l:tf8+ ! �e7 43 .l::te8+ etc) 42 'ilVd8+ �e6 43
.l::te8+ �f7 44 11f8+ and wins.
Instead, 40 ...'it>gs is a harder nut to
crack. White would like to play 41
"ifdS+?! �f4 (if 41...�g6 it's mate on hS)
42 .l::te 8(??) when the threat of 43 l:te4
means it is checkmate to the black king
in nine moves - unless Black plays
42 . . .�4+! when it is checkmate to the
white king in three moves.
Instead, the quiet 41 �h 3!!,
stopping ... �4 ideas, leaves Black
with no good answer to the threat of 42
"*"dS+ �f4 43 I:!.e8. For example, after
41 ... "*"es 42 .l::tf8 g6 (to stop the killer
check on fS), White has 43 f4+ winning
the queen or, better still, 43 'iWd8+ forc­
ing mate.
I doubt very much - nay, it is im­
possible! - that Bronstein had seen 41
'it>h3!! when he played 3S "iVb6. In the
actual game, it was essential after
37 .. :�·xf3 to have noticed 39 .l::txh6+!! in
advance as Black was threatening mate
in one. In contrast, Bronstein had to
trust his intuition that a move like 41
\t>h3!! would exist in the position after
37 .. Jhb2. In any case, he wasn't taking
a risk as he could take a draw as he
pleased.
Hence we have seen that when
making a combination, some tactics
must be seen in advance (39 .l::txh6+! ! ),
whereas in other cases we have to rely
on our intuition and cross bridges as
we come to them (41 �h3!!).
Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t
A game saved by combinative
power
In the following game Alekhine is
positionally busted after 18 moves. But
rather than tamely submit to the loss of
a pawn he makes an unsound, but
tricky knight sacrifice. This heaped a
lot of psychological pressure on his
opponent, who of course didn't know
whether or not the World Champion
was bluffing.
The result was the proverbial tri­
umph of spirit over matter - the force
of Alekhine's personality breathed an
unstoppable power into his pieces.
Game 9
K.Opocensky-A.Alekhine
Prague 1942
Old Indian Defence
1 d4 tLJf6 2 c4 d6 3 tLJc3 tLJbd7 4 tLJf3 eS
5 g3 c6 6 i.g2 i.e7
Here we see Alekhine' s antipathy to
the kingside fianchetto. Having played
S . . . c6 he doesn't want to weaken the
d6-pawn any further and so keeps the
bishop defending it. No doubt Bron­
stein would have played 6 . . . g6, when 7
0-0 i..g7 8 e4 0-0 is similar to his games
with Zita and Reshevsky - see Chapter
Eight.
7 0-0 0-0 8 "iYc2 exd4?
A modem player would trust in the
c6/d6/eS pawn centre, and stand his
ground with, say, 8 ... "ifc7 or 8 ... .l::te8. We
shall also discuss this topic in Chapter
Eight.
31
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
Instead, Alekhine reasons that "the
pawn on d6 is weak, I should get rid of
it with ... d6-d5 in the style of the Griin­
feld. Hence taking on d4 followed by
.. .lLJb6 and . . . d6-d5 is the way to pro­
ceed." Such false logic will lead him
close to defeat.
9 tLlxd4 tLlb6 10 b3 dS 11 :td1!
Now Black would be busted after
11 ...dxc4 12 tLlxc6 fVe8 13 tLlb5! threat­
ening 14 tLlc7 trapping the queen.
11 .. .'i!id7 ?
Even so, Alekhine should make d o
with 1 1 . . .ii.d7, though h e remains i n an
uncomfortable position after 12 cxd5
lbfxd5 13 tLlxd5 tLlxd5 14 ii.b2.
12 cxdS tLlbxds 13 tLlxds cxd S 14 .Jl.b2
'ue8 1S �ac1
White has a perfect development, a
game free of weaknesses and the
chance to attack dS. Meanwhile the
black queen on d7 and bishop on c8
make a horrid impression.
1S ....Jl.d8
The bishop stops an invasion on c7
and seeks activity on b6. Of course, it
would have been much simpler to have
put the bishop on g7 in the opening ...
32
1 6 e31
If Black does nothing then the sim­
ple plan of 17 tLle2 and 18 tLlf4 will win
the d5-pawn whilst keeping a crushing
positional superiority. Therefore
Alekhine has to employ all his tactical
ingenuity to set his opponent prob­
lems.
16...tLle4! 17 tLle2 it.b6 18 tLlf4 tLlxf2 !
One can imagine how Karel Opo­
censky must have been feeling at this
moment. He has all his pieces on excel­
lent squares, while Black's rook on a8
and bishop on c8 are shut out of the
game. So the complications must work
out in White's favour. But how nerve-
wracking it must be when the greatest
tactical genius of the age (perhaps of
any age) sacrifices a piece to attack
your king!
19 �xf2?
The win was to be had with 19
�xd5! '
a ) After 19 ... �g4? the knight can be
captured with the queen: 20 1lixf2 .Jl.xe3
21 �xe3 llxe3 22 :td8+ and mates.
b) If 19 . . .�e7 the e3-point can be
shielded with 20 l:te5, followed again
by taking on f2, unless Black gives up
his queen with 20 ...�xe5, which fails to
21 ii.xe5 l:txe5 22 1lixc8+! lte8 (taking
the queen allows another back rank
mate) 23 'iixa8 (simplest) 23 . . .Mxa8 24
'i£ixf2 and Black must resign.
c) Perhaps Alekhine was planning
to give up his queen at once with
19 ... .txe3 20 llxd7. If now 20 . . . .ixd7 21
..Il.xb7 is objectively best but, person­
ally, playing Alekhine I would simplify
with 21 �xf2 ..Il.xf2+ 22 'it>xf2 with an
easily won endgame (22 . . .Mac8
..Il.xb7! ). Alternatively Black might try
20 . . .lbg4+ 21 'it>hl ii.xd7 (if 21 . . .lbf2+ 22
�xf2 simplifies and stays a piece up) 22
Th e Dyn amic Eleme n t
l:i.fl .tb5 2 3 �f5 ..Il.xfl (or 2 3... tLlf2+ 24
.uxf2) 24 �xg4 and wins.
As you can see, Opocensky had to
find the unusual manoeuvre .uxdS and
Me5 in variation 'b' and also notice the
back rank trick with 'iixc8+. If Alekhine
had chosen variation ' c' the Czech mas­
ter would have had to convince himself
that Black could achieve nothing after
the discovered check on his king with
20 . . . tLlg4+. This isn't at all easy with a
ticking clock and the World Champion
sitting opposite you.
Even though objectively he should
have lost, Alekhine was entirely correct
to gamble in this fashion. If he had qui­
etly accepted the loss of a pawn he
would most likely have been ground
down in the endgame, if he had sur­
vived that long. Certainly he would
have had zero winning chances.
Whereas after the sacrifice all three re­
sults are possible: win, loss or draw.
Opocensky feels he has the win of a
lifetime in his grasp, and believes he
can achieve it with a positional queen
sacrifice.
19 ...Sl.xe3 20 �xe3 l:.xe3 21 tLlxds
23
33
C h ess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
The white rooks control open files
and the knight threatens t o pick u p an
enemy rook in one move (22 tbxe3) or
two moves (22 tbc7 and 23 tbxa8).
Alekhine sees that the second threat
can be ignored.
2 1...l:te2!
As we shall see this is a counterat­
tack against both white bishops, not
just the one or b2. White is obliged to
go ahead with his combination as 22
tbf6+ gxf6 23 Itxd7 .i.xd7 just leaves
him material down.
22 tbc7 'ike7 23 tbxaS
Opocensky has a rook, bishop and
knight for the queen and a one-move
threat in 24 .uxc8+. But he has lost con­
trol as Black can draw with 23 .. Jlxg2+
24 'it'xg2 'iie2+, when the white king
can't evade the checks. Alekhine finds
something even stronger.
34
23 ... i.. h 3 ! !
The World Champion has achieved
a beautiful coordination amongst his
three remaining pieces. The miserable
bishop that spent almost half the game
shut in behind the queen delivers the
killer blow. If White replies 24 i..xh3 he
is mated in four moves beginning
24 ...'ike3+ 25 'it'hl 'ikf3+. If 24 i..e4 (a
desperate attempt to block the e-file),
rather than 24 . . Jhe4 25 iLa3!? "iWg5, my
computer program wants to reply with
the rather surreal 24 ... h5!. I'll leave you
to work that out!
24 11dS+ 'iixdS 2 5 i..x h3 "ii'x aS 0-1
White wins the queen but loses the
battle after 26 Itc8+ "ii'xc8 27 i..xc8
.l:1xb2.
The next time you mess up the
opening, remember this game
come out fighting!
C h a pt e r Two
Catching the Ki n g in the Centre
Leaving the king too long in the centre
is an occupational hazard for chess
players. There are many reasons why
we might gamble with the safety of our
most important piece, including in­
competence, lack of a sense of danger,
and subtle miscalculation. Although it
may appear a self-inflicted fault, power
players have employed various tech­
niques to persuade their opponents
into taking unnecessary risks with the
king.
So let's imagine we have provoked
the opponent into leaving his king in
the centre. What is the best way to pun­
and ish him? A classic power play method
is to bring the rooks with all possible
speed into the attack. The opponent is
unlikely to be able to respond by call­
ing up his own rooks into the defence,
if only because his king is getting in the
way. Therefore, even if you make a
heavy material sacrifice to involve your
rooks in the onslaught, you are still
I
likely to have too much firepower for
the defence to resist.
In the first games in this chapter,
Paul Morphy has a head start in acti­
vating his rooks as there is no knight
on bl to get in the way of the rook on
al!
Rapid development crushes an
inferior defence
Players of the mid 19th century were
all too ready to indulge in pawn and
piece grabbing, even when judicious
development and the sober refusal to
open lines was required.
In contrast, Morphy first and fore­
most aimed for a rapid and harmoni­
ous development of his pieces. He
wasn't interested in the overall size of
his army, but rather how well it func­
tioned as an attacking unit. His will­
ingness to make sacrifices to increase
the power and range of his pieces often
35
Chess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
caught his inexperienced opponents
out, who found their king slain before
he had even put his boots on.
We'll begin by looking at a couple
of the American's games played at
odds, in which a tiny, but well-drilled
force outwits a disorganized horde.
Certainly the opposition was weak, but
no one else has punished bad opening
play with such elegance and panache
as Morphy.
Came 10
P.Morphy-C.Maurian
New Orlea n s 1857
Odds Came
Remember this is an odds game - so
please remove the white knight from
bl!
l e4 e5
With an extra knight against Mor­
phy, the priority is to survive long
enough to bring all your pieces into the
game. Therefore 1 . . .e6! would be a
good way to start, shielding the f7-
square.
36
2 f4 exf4 3 tLlf3 g5 4 i.C4 g4?
Evidently Maurian has a different
view of the situation: it's nice to be one
knight up, but even better to be two
knights up!
5 d4!
Despite the smaller size of his army,
Morphy doesn't hesitate to sacrifice a
minor piece. He realizes that he will
have a superiority in numbers in the
only place where it matters, which is in
the vicinity of the black king.
5 ... gxf3 6 'ii'xf3 d5 7 i.xd5 c6?
Such pettiness when already two
pieces up. He should develop with
7. . . tLlf6!'
8 Si.xf7+!
The black king is driven into the fir­
ing line of the white queen and rooks.
8 ...Wxf7 9 Vi'h5+ cj;g7 10 ..txf4 .ii..e 7 11
0-0 'it'xd4+ 12 Whl �xe4
It seems Black is doing everything
he can to help White's attack by wast­
ing moves with the queen and opening
the e-file.
13 �ael
Reinforcements arrive from the
queenside to complete the coordination
C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre
of the white pieces. Imagine if White
hadn't given piece odds. In that case he
Came 11
would still have a knight sitting un­
P.Morphy-T.Worra ll
moved on bI. This would have blocked
New Orlea ns 1857
in the rook on al and so prevented the
Odds Came
game move, which prepares a decisive
sacrifice on e7.
(remove the white knight from bl)
1 e4 e5 2 f4 exf4 3 tLlf3 g5 4 i.C4 g4 S
d4 gxf3 6 0-01 .ii.. h6 7 Vi'xf3 tLlc6
Black is beginning to get the right
idea in developing his pieces, so Mor­
phy has to act fast.
8 �xf7+! Wxf7 9 'it'hS+ c,t;g7 10 i.xf4
�xf4 11 .l:Ixf4 tLlh6
Stopping mate on f7 and also
guarding the g4-square.
12 �afl!
Therefore Morphy would have had
to develop the piece, say with 12 tLlc3,
thus giving the defence an important
breathing space. In other words, the
fact that there is a knight missing from
bl has proved to be to White's advan­
tage, not Black's! It has given his attack
a dynamism that outweighs the mate­
rial value of the knight.
13 .. JWg6 14 .l:txe7+! c,t;f8
If 14 ...tLlxe7 15 �h6+! and mates.
15 Si.d6+ tLlf6 16 �xf6+ Vi'xf6 17 Vi'e8
mate Once again Morphy can rejoice that
An extremely attractive demolition there is no knight on bl to get in the
of some outrageously greedy play. way of his rook's deployment to the
battlefield. The immediate threat is 13
The fact that Morphy was playing .l:tg4+ tLlxg4 14 Vi'xg4+ cj;h6 15 .l:tf5! and
according to a preconceived system Black has no good way to stop mate on
against the odds-receiver is shown by h5, as if 15 ... 'ii'e8 16 'iVg5 mate.
the following game, which is won in 12 .. JiVe8 13 Vi'h4 d6 14 �f6+ c,t;g8 15
almost identical style: �xh6
37

Ch ess Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play
Morphy is pleased not so much at
regaining a piece, but rather at remov­
ing an obstruction to his attack.
15 ... .1d7 16 l::i.1f3 0,e7
The other black horse rushes over to
g6 to bolster the defence.
17 h4!
Even in the middle of an attack with
heavy pieces Morphy doesn't forget
that he needs the help of pawns to re­
move obstacles.
17 ... 0,g6 1S h5!
Immediately ousting the black
knight.
1S...�g4?
For the first time in the game Wor­
rall refuses to grab material, and it is a
fatal mistake. If IS ... 0,xf4 19 l::i.g3+ 0,g6
20 hxg6 hxg6 21 l::i.xg6+ 'iVxg6 22 'iVxg6+
and Morphy has perpetual check if he
wants it, but having nabbed the queen
he should be able to find a way to win
against a knight-odds player.
19 hxg6 hxg6
After 19 . . . �xf3 20 g7! .ie2 21 'iVf6!!
there is an unstoppable mate by queen­
ing on hS. Have you ever seen a rook
caught like this in the corner? In the
38
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game another pretty mate appears:
20 l::i.fS+! 'iVxfS 21 l::i.xfS+ l::i.xfS 22 "ikxg6
mate
The defeated king is blocked in by
two defenders on his flanks, giving us
an epaulette mate.
Next we see the attacking scheme of
the Evans Gambit in its purest form.
Once again Morphy uses the absence of
the knight to good effect.
Game 12
P.Morphy-T.Lichtenhein
New York 1859
Odds Game
(remove the white knight from b1)
1 e4 e5 2 0,f3 0,c6 3 .1C4 3LC5 4 b4
�xb4 5 c3
Incidentally, one of the drawbacks
of the Evans' Gambit is that this pawn
move takes away the c3-square from
the knight on b 1. Well, there are no
complaints here as there ain't no knight
on b l !
www.Ebook777.com
C a t c h ing t h e K i n g in t h e Cen tre
The fourth stage: pressure along the
e-file, culminating in e7 being attacked
four times.
15 .l:!.fe1 0,fd5 16 "ikg4 g6 17 "ikh4 as 1S
"iVxh7 .ixd4 19 0,xg6 C5 20 0,xfS 'it>xfS
The fifth stage. Black has survived a
disaster on e7 with the manoeuvre
IS . . ..txd4 and 19 ... c5, but at the cost of
opening the d-file for the other rook.
21 l::i.a d1!
5 ....1c5 6 0-0 0,f6 7 d4 exd4 S cxd4 3i.b6
9 .ia3
The first stage of the winning
scheme. One bishop goes to c4 to attack
£7, the other goes to a3 to cut off the
black king's escape.
9... d6 10 e5
The second stage: White blasts open
the centre with gain of time by attack­
ing the knight on f6.
10... dxe5 11 "ikb3! Once again Morphy can be happy
that there is no knight on bl boxing in
his queen's rook. What follows now is
a tactical demolition.
21 ... 'it>eS 22 i.XC5! .ixC5 23 "iVgS+ 'it>d7
24 l::i.x d5+ 0,xd5 25 "iVxd 5+ .id6 26
"iVxb1+ �C7 27 'it'xaS 1-0
Here is Morphy's most famous
game, played in an opera box in Paris
during a performance of The Barber of
Seville. Its most pleasing quality is the
way Morphy blends the formal re­
The third stage, in which the white quirements of development with vig­
queen joins in the battle. Already mate orous attacking play. Of course to
is threatened by 12 �xf7+ and 13 �e6. achieve this feat needed some consid­
11 ••. .ie6 12 �xe6 fxe6 13 "it'xe6+ 0,e7 erable help from his (non-chess) titled
14 0,xe5 l::i.fS opponents, the Duke and the Count.
39
C h e s s S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
8 CDc3!
The alternative was to grab the
Game 13
pawn with 8 'iYxb7 and then slowly
P.Morphy-Duke of Brunswick
grind out the win in the endgame after
a nd Count Isouard
8 ... �4+ 9 'iixb4 i.xb4+ 10 c3 etc. That
Paris 1858
would be the classical way of handling
Philidar Defence
the position. Instead, Morphy realizes
that keeping the tension leaves his op­
1 e4 eS 2 CDf3 d6 3 d4 .tg4?! ponents with a serious difficulties in
Morphy's straightforward devel­ developing their game. This is the typi­
opment has already provoked a less cal power play approach to a position.
than noble reaction from his illustrious These two approaches are by no
opponents, who contrive to hand over means mutually exclusive: Morphy
the bishop pair and let the white queen could decide in a couple of moves time
reach an active post. to go pawn grabbing after all if it's the
4 dxes �xf3 only correct path. He simply believes
Of course 4 ... dxe5 5 "iYxd8+ c;t>xd8 6 that for the moment he can gain most
CDxe5 is unacceptable for Black. benefit through patiently mobilizing
5 "iYxf3 dxes 6 .tc4 his pieces and leaving the Count and
The bishop is developed and at the Duke to stew in their predicament. Or
same time menaces f7. perhaps Morphy, an opera fan, wanted
6 ... CDf6 7 "iYb3! to get the game over with as quickly as
Attacking both b7 and f7. Here we possible so that he could enjoy the rest
see that Morphy was quite prepared to of the performance! ?
break the rule of rapid development if I t i s also worth noting that Morphy
he saw a tactical chance to cause his had an immediate tactical opportunity
opponent problems. with 8 .ixf7+, deflecting the black
7 .. :fie7 queen, so that after 8 .. :�Vxf7 9 'ir'xb7 the
rook on a8 perishes as there is no
9 . .'*'h4+
. defence. However, Black
would then be able to build up pres­
sure on the kingside with 9 . . . .tc5 10
'iVxa8 0-0 when the f2-pawn is very vul­
nerable. Morphy always preferred to
be the player offering material for the
initiative.
8... c6 9 .tgs bS?
This move has been ridiculed for
more than 150 years. Indeed, the
American's pieces are all dressed up
40
C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre
and ready for action, so the chance to independence of decision and can only
sacrifice to open lines is heaven-sent. react to White's moves.
On the other hand, there is no obvious 10 ... cxbS 11 .txbS+ CDbd7 12 O-O-O!!
way for Black to mobilize his pieces. If
he plays 9 .. .'iVc7 then after 10 0-0-0 he
still can't develop with 1O ... CDbd7 be­
cause f7 drops.
Of all Black's possible moves, 9 ... b6
looks most solid; for example, 10 0-0-0
CDbd7. Now 11 CDb5 misses the mark
because after 1 1 . . .cxb5 12 i.xb5 Black
has the important defensive resource
12 ... 0-0-0!, whisking the king away
from the pin on d7 and getting his
queen's rook involved in the centre
battle. Morphy would have had to set­ Development with concrete threats
tle for 11 i.xf6!. If then 1 1 . . .CDxf6? 12 against f7. If now 12 . . . 0-0-0 13 Sl..a6+
CDb5! breaks through in the style of the and mate next move.
game, e.g. 12 ... CDxe4 13 'iWf3! and the 12 ... .l:l.d8 13 �xd 7! I:l.xd7 14 �dl
black king won't survive long. Mean­ Morphy completes the coordination
while Black would lose a pawn after of his pieces. It doesn't matter that he is
1 1 . . .1i'xf6 12 i.xf7+ 1i'xf7 13 il'xf7+ �xf7 a rook down as Black is bound to suffer
14 �xd7+ or similarly 11 ... gxf6 12 a catastrophe on the d-file.
.txf7+ 'iixf7 13 "iYxf7+ c;t>xf7 1 4 l:Ixd7+. 14.. :iYe6 15 Sl..x d7+
Instead, 15 i.xf6 'ir'xb3 16 Sl..xd7
mate would be rather quaint, but Mor­
phy finds an even more elegant finish.
lS ...CDXd7
10 CDxbS!
A forcing phase now begins. Until
the end of the game Black is hit by one
threat after another - he has lost his
41
C h es s S e c re ts: The Gia n ts of Po we r Play
16 'iWbS+! tt'lxbS 17 .l:.!.dS matel
A wonderful, if lightweight game.
At this point we'll get in our time
machine and go forwards 80 years to
see how Alekhine carried out a similar
type of attack, though in a far more
sophisticated manner.
A premature bid for counterplay
refuted
In the games so far we have seen a
vastly inferior defence crushed by di­
rect, vigorous developing moves. In the
next game the loser is a strong player
who received the 1M title when it was
first conferred by FIDE in 1950. His
errors are of such a subtle nature that it
requires his World Champion oppo­
nent to exert himself to the maximum.
Not many players would be prepared
to remain a rook down for a long se­
quence of moves!
Game 14
A.Alekhine-E.Book
Ma rgate 1938
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 d5 2 c4 dxc4 3 tt'lf3 tt'lf6 4 e3 e6 5
iLxC4 c5 6 0-0 tt'lc6
The reason why we have to study
opening theory is that natural moves
don't always work. You would imag­
ine that there could be no possible ob­
jection to a move that develops and
centralizes a knight on its best square.
Or at least if such a move failed it
42
would be for tactical, rather than
strategical, reasons.
Here Black should play 6 . . . a6, aim­
ing to gain space with 7... b5 and then
put his bishop on b7. After 7 a4 or 7
i.b3, showing respect for the ... b7-b5
advance, Black can develop with
7. . .tt'lc6 and 8. . . i.e7, as White has re­
nounced the idea of quick action in the
centre. In contrast, if White tried to
break open the centre with 'iWe2 and
l:1d1, the black knight is better de­
ployed to d7, where it blocks the d-file
and lends support to the c5-pawn. For
example, 7 'iWe2 b5 8 ..tb3 .tb7 9 li:tdl
tt'lbd7 etc.
7 'ii'e 2! a6
It was safer to forget all about ex­
pansion on the queenside and just de­
velop the kingside with 7... cxd4 8 l:td1
i..e7 9 exd4 0-0, when White has only a
small advantage.
S tt'lC3 b5
The second step of the queenside
pawns is decidedly risky. He had to
take measures against White's pressure
down the d-file with 8 ... cxd4
8 .. :ikc7!? For instance, after 8 . . . cxd4 9
Ii.d1 iLe7 10 exd4 tt'lb4 11 tt'le5 0-0
White has promising pressure, but the
black position is still intact.
9 i.b3 b4?
The third pawn advance on the
queenside, and this time it is fatal.
White is allowed to blast open the cen­
tre before Black is able to evacuate his
king.
10 d 5 1 tt'la5
White regains his piece with a big
attack after 10 . . . exd5 11 tt'lxd5! tt'lxd5 12
Mdl and then 13 e4 if necessary.
11 iLa4+ iLd7 12 dxe6!
Gaining a vital tempo to open the d­
file.
12 ...fxe6 13 .§.d1!
If White lost his nerve with 13
.txd7+?, then after 13 . . :iWxd7 14 l:!.dl
'iWc6 he would have nothing better than
the dismal retreat 15 tt'lbl . In that case
Black would have achieved a decent
game despite all his chess sins in the
opening. Such an outcome would be
entirely illogical. And so, having exam­
ined the position carefully, Alekhine
or sets out to punish his opponent.
13 ... bxc3
C a t c h i n g the K i n g in t h e Cen tre
In such situations you can only take
the material and hope for the best.
14 l:!.xd71 tt'lxd7 15 tt'le5 11a7 16 bXc31!
Played with wonderful insouciance.
A rook down, Alekhine calmly recap­
tures the pawn, and asks his opponent:
how are you going to get out of your
tangle?
It must be asserted that we are wit­
nessing no supreme feat of calculation
by Alekhine, with the position being
solved like a mathematical theorem. It
was impossible for him to work out all
the variations to an end. He had to ex­
amine a certain number of defensive
tries by Black to make sure there was
no obvious refutation of the sacrifice
and then trust his positional judgment
to do the rest.
Not that it takes any fine strategical
sense to notice that there is a lack of
harmony among Black's pieces. It will
take a long time for the rook on h8 to
get into the game, and meanwhile one
of the black knights is literally para­
lysed by the pin, while the other knight
is sitting uselessly on the edge of the
board with no safe moves. The great-
43
Ch ess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of Po wer Play
ness of Alekhine's achievement is not
that he saw Black would be awkwardly
placed, but rather that he realized it
was worth investing a whole rook to
cause this discomfort.
As we saw above, when Morphy
gave odds of the knight on bl, he often
succeeded in turning its absence to his
advantage by swinging his rook from a l
into the attack with greater speed. Here
Alekhine might well wish that his bish­
op on el would accidentally be knocked
off the board as then he would be able
to strengthen decisively the attack on d7
with l::i:d l! But there is a bishop on el,
and the need to move it out of the way
gives Black a little time before disaster
(in the shape of l:tdl ) strikes. Besides the
pin on d7, White has a second string to
his bow: the possibility of a queen check
on h5, which would weaken the de­
fences around the black king and win at
least some material back.
16 ... cj;;e 7
Book rules out the check on h5 and
breaks the pin on the knight, but it is
horrendous for the black king to be
blocking in his bishop.
A better try is 16 . . . ..te7, but then 1 7
�5+ g 6 18 lZJxg6 hxg6 19 ,*"xh8+ ..tf8
20 e4 gives White two pawns and a
continuing attack for the piece. After
the game the Finnish 1M came up with
the important variation 16 ... g6 (to rule
out a check on h5) 17 ,*"d3! cj;;e7 (if
17 ... "iYe7 18 i.a3 ,*"d6 19 ,*"e4 ,*"d5 20
"iYf4 intending 21 "iYf7+ keeps up the
onslaught) 18 e4 lZJf6 19 ,*"f3 iLg7 20
iLg5 l::i:f8 21 l::i:d l "iYa8 (better than
Book's 21.. ."iYc7? 22 lZJd7! and White
44
wins) 22 1ZJd7 and Black remains under
severe pressure.
If you give the position after 16 bxc3
to a computer program it will keep of­
fering brilliant defences for Black. But
during a game a human player has to
rely on judgments and assessments, as
it is impossible to see everything in
precise terms. This means that key
moves and defensive ideas are certain
to be missed. Book was never going to
be able to resist the flair and attacking
energy of his opponent. Chess remains
a battle between two minds, even in
this computer age.
17 e4! lZJf6 18 i.g5 ,*"C7
19 i.f4
Good enough to win, but 19 "iYh5!!
was more spectacular: 19 . . . "iYxe5 20
"iYe8+ cj;;d6 21 l::i: d l+ cj;; c7 22 "iYd8+ <;t>b7
23 l::i:b l+ and mates, or 19 . . . g6 20 lLlxg6+
hxg6 21 "iYxh8 "iYe5 (otherwise f6 drops)
22 "iYh7+ cj;;d6 23 ,*"xa7 and wins.
19 ..."iYb6 20 l::i:d1
White has achieved a harmonious
development which makes a striking
contrast with the inept state of Black's
kingside pieces.
20 ... g6
Book is desperate to free his bishop,
but he fatally undermine the knight on
f6. In fact he had no good move, in
view of the threat of 21 i.g5 and 22
�5 etc.
21 iLg5 i.g7 22 1ZJd 7!
Now Black has no good way to stop
23 e5.
22 ... l::i:x d7 23 l::i:x d7+ cj;;f8 24 i.xf6 i.xf6
25 e5 1-0
For if 25 ... i.e7 26 "iYf3+ cj;; g8 27 l::i:xe7
wins.
A brilliant display by Alekhine who
elaborated and refined Morphy's at­
tacking conception.
A sacrifice turns a blocked
position into an open one
Black began the next game with six
consecutive pawn moves - how often
does that happen? No one could play
like that against Morphy after 1 e4 e5
and live more than 15 moves, but such
liberties with development are possible
in the closed game. Naturally Efim
Geller wants to open lines, dreaming of
Catch ing the King in t h e Cen tre
a quick massacre in the style of Mor­
phy versus the proverbial 'NN' or
'Amateur' all over again. And as we
shall see, such games are still possible,
even in the modem age between strong
Grandmasters.
Game 15
E.Gelier-A.Dreev
New Yo rk Open 1990
French Defence
1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 lLld2 a6 4 lZJgf3 c5 5
exd5 exd5 6 iLe2 c4 7 0-0 i.d6 8 b3 b5 9
a4 i.b7?
If Black had kept his nerve with
9 ... c3! (another pawn move) the posi­
tion would remain unclear. It is ironic
that as soon as Dreev gives into his
guilty conscience about being a laggard
with his development he falls under a
big attack.
10 bXc4 bXC4
11 .\tXC4! !
It's often difficult t o judge which
piece to sacrifice in such scenarios.
Here Geller 'leads with the bishop' as
45
C h e s s S e c re t s : T h e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
he has seen the possibility of a knight
fork which will add a vital impetus to
the white attack.
11 dxc4 12 ltJxC4 iLe7
.••
After 12 .. .'�Je7 the white pieces join
the attack in Morphy style, creating
threats on every move: 13 ltJxd6+ 'tWxd6
14 iLa3 'tWc7 15 I:tel ltJbc6 16 d5!.
13 .l:i.el 'tWC7
Still, things don't appear that bad
for Black. The white d-pawn is quies­
cent and the knight on c4 is hanging.
Given time, Dreev is ready to play
14 ... ltJc6 and then answer 15 d5 with
15 . . . 0-0-0, pinning the d-pawn. It looks
a little risky for the black king to be on
the queenside, but an extra piece is a
lot of consolation for such hardship.
Geller's next move destroys this day­
dream.
14 j:!bl!
Here we see why 9 . . .i.b7 was a
poor move: if 14 . . .ltJc6 - or any other
developing move - Black is hit by the
tactic 15 .l:.xb7! 'tWxb7 16 ltJd6+ winning
the queen. Dreev therefore has nothing
better than to take the white knight,
but this invites the white rook to the
46
seventh rank.
14 ...'twxc4 15 .l:i.xb7
It is often worth investing material
to get your rooks into the game while
those of the opponent are still curled
up fast asleep in the comers of the
board. We saw in the odds games
above how Morphy would overwhelm
the enemy defence by getting the rook
on al into the attack tout de suite.
15 ...ltJc6
The key to finishing off the attack is
to energize the centre pawns. Unfortu­
nately, if 16 d5? then 16 . . .0-0-0! attacks
both b7 and d5. Geller finds a superb
alternative.
16 ltJd2!
So that if 16 ... 'iYd5 1 7 c4 and the
pawns conquer the d5-point, while af­
ter 16 ... 'tWxa4 17 d5 the pawn is rolling
and, crucially, there is no pin on the d­
file to justify Black castling queenside.
16 ..."iVxd4
Dreev decides to eliminate
pesky pawn, but now his queen is sub­
jected to a string of tempo-gaining
prods.
17 iLb2 'tWxa4 18 .l:i.e4 'tWa2 19 i.xg7
0-0-0 20 .l:i.b3!
A calm retreat which introduces
threats such as 21 .l:i.c4 followed by 22
'tWf3.
20 iLf6 21 "iVg4+
•••
Geller regains his piece while keep­
ing a decisive attack.
21 ...<;t>C7 22 'iYf4+ �c8 23 iLxf6 ltJxf6 24
'tWxf6 "iVxc2
It says something for the state of
Black's position that a computer pro­
gram will tell you that blundering his
queen in this fashion is by far his best
move.
25 'iYf5+! 1-0
the
A rook check on e8 or e7 will win
Catch i n g the K i n g i n t h e Cen tre
the black queen next move.
At the age of 65 Geller displayed
great energy to beat a bright young
player in a topical variation. The moral:
while it is perfectly acceptable to leave
your king in the centre if the position is
sufficiently blocked - if you have got it
wrong you will pay a heavy price.
An a ppeal to good old-fashioned
greed
In case this is all getting too complex,
let me remind you that dangling a
pawn under the opponent's nose still
works wonders.
Game 1 6
E.Gel ler-M.Stean
Teesside 1975
Sicilian Defence
(by transposition)
1 ltJf3 c5 2 c4 g6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ltJxd4 ltJc6
5 e4 ltJf6 6 ltJc3 d6 7 iLe2 ltJxd4 8 "ii'xd4
iLg7 9 i.g5 iLe6 10 .l:i.cl "ii'a 5 11 'tWd2
.l:i.c8 12 f3
47
C h ess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play C a t c h i n g the King in t h e Cen tre

Here Black could simply have cas­ This is the move Stean relied on, erated by 6 h4. Rozentalis therefore
tled, but he decided to swipe the pawn: seeing that 15 exd5 O-O! 16 ..txe7 l:tfeS is decides to leave his king in the centre
Game 1 7
13 ....I¥.xc4? excellent for Black. But not surprisingly and eliminate the 'Greek Gift' knight
V.Topalov-E.Rozentalis
A player should always believe in Geller has a trick up his sleeve. on f3 as quickly as possible.
E u ro pea n Tea m
his ideas and trust his powers of calcu­ 1S l:txC4!! l:txc4 7 dxc3 dXc4 8 �a4+!
Cham pionsh i p, Bat u m i 1999
lation. If he thinks a move is good, he The best chance was 15 . . . ttJb6, Naturally Topalov activates his
English Opening
should make it without hesitation, ac­ though White has a big initiative for queen rather than allowing it to be ex­
cording to the advice of Capablanca his pawn after 16 l:txcS+ ttJxcS 17 ..tb5+ changed.
(and true to his own words, didn't the 'itdS IS l:tc1 etc. 1 c4 e6 2 ttJC3 ttJf6 3 e4 ds 4 es ttJe4 5 8 . ..td7 9 �xC4 ..tc6 10 �g4 ..txf3 11
..

Cuban take the Marshall Gambit pawn
when it was first offered, and win in
brilliant style?).
But even so, to grab a pawn from
one of the greatest analysts in the
world, a Soviet Super-Grandmaster
and the trainer of Spassky and Kar­
pov ... does such a player really blunder
pawns after 12 moves?
13 ttJdS! �xa2
The pin on the c-file costs Black a
piece after 13 ... �xd2+ 14 'itxd2 b5 15
b3.
14 0-0!
Seldom is castling of such fearful
strength. Black has no good reply, as
14 . . . 0-0 15 ttJxe7+ or 14 .. .l::k6 15 ttJb4 are
hopeless.
14 ...ttJxd S
16 �xd s l:ta4 17 ..tbS+ 'itf8
Black gets mated after 17 ... 'itdS IS
�xd6+ 'itcs 19 ..td7+ 'itdS 20 ..txe7
. .. shades of the Evergreen Game
Anderssen-Dufresne.
18 l:tc1! 1-0
There's no good way to prevent a
back rank disaster. A pity that Stean
didn't allow the pretty finish IS . . . ..td4+
19 �xd4! l:txd4 20 ..th6+ 'itgS 21 l:tcS
mate.
The strength of a threatened
attack
Another way to inveigle the opponent
into keeping his king in the centre is to
make the prospect of castling appear
more dangerous.
ttJf3 ..te7 6 h4! gxf3 !
Topalov dissuades Black from cas­ Much more dynamic than 1 1 �xf3
tling, as after 6 ... 0-0? 7 ..td3! ttJxc3? (the 'keeping the pawns neat', because
knight has to stand its ground with 1 1 . . .�d5! offers an unwelcome ex­
7. . . f5!, though White can still attack change of queens (and unfortunately
with S exf6 ttJxf6 9 ttJg5!?) S ..txh7+! the even more dynamic 11 �xg7? al­
'itxh7 9 ttJg5+ we have the famous lows mate on dl).
Greek Gift Sacrifice. It is a quick mate After the game move the attacking
upon 9 ... 'itgS with 10 "iih5 ..txg5 1 1 knight has vanished, but in return
hxg5 f6 12 g 6 etc. I f 9 ... 'ith6 10 dxc3 White has the open g-file. Therefore
threatens a killer discovered check, Black cannot contemplate castling
while 9 . . .<.t>g6 10 dxc3 i.xg5 (Black kingside: 1 1 . ..0-0? 12 ..th6 g6 and White
loses the queen after 1O ... f5 11 h5+ 'ith6 wouldn't even bother taking the ex­
12 ttJxe6+) 11 hxg5 leaves Black with no change - he could build up with 13
answer to the twin threats of 12 "iVh5+ l:tdl �cS 14 h5!; for example, 14 ... l:tdS
and 12 'i!Vd3+, in either case with a deci­ 15 l:txdS+ 'i!VxdS 16 hxg6 hxg6 (or
sive attack. 16 . . .fxg6 1 7 �xe6+) 17 �3 and Black is
You will see from these variations soon mated down the h-file.
how much attacking energy was gen- Rozentalis is mesmerized by these

48 49
Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of Po wer Play
possible attacks on the kingside, and
thinks that they are the only danger
that he faces. As a result he notices the
open g-file but he doesn't notice the white
pawn on f3. He dismisses it as part of
White's fractured pawn structure, and
doesn't realize it is going to become the
chief enemy of his king.
Rozentalis is a very strong Grand­
master and only this can explain his
next move.
11 ...�fS?
It's not a good idea to undevelop
your only developed piece when you
are playing Topalov!
He should play 1 l ... g6, aiming to
answer 12 hS with 12 .. :i*'dS!, counterat­
tacking against eS, when "Black is OK"
according to Rozentalis' own notes to
the game. In fact Black certainly isn't
out of the woods even then, as White
can gambit the eS-pawn with 13 hxg6
fxg6 14 i.e3!? or 14 .1i.c4, with Topa­
lov's customary two bishop pressure
play. Nevertheless, this would be a real
fight, as compared to the massacre in
the game.
12 f4!
The 'weak' pawn on f3 begins to
flex its muscles. As we shall see,
White's pawns have actually gained
dynamism, rather than losing it, in be­
ing broken up. It's not how pretty a
pawn structure looks, but how much
work it does.
12 ...tiJd7
There's no time for 12 ... g6, guarding
the fS-square, because of 13 h5 intend­
ing 14 hxg6, when there is no safe way
for Black to recapture the pawn.
50
1 3 .1i.e3 c6 14 0-0-0 �as
Despite our criticism of Black's
play, he is only one move
15 . . . 0-0-0 with a perfectly safe game. It
appears that his queen's attack on the
a2-pawn will win him the necessary
time for this. In reality the game has
reached its most critical point. Black
will either be fine or he will come un­
der a big attack depending on the en­
ergy of White's next move.
15 fS!!
Not a second is to be wasted!
1s .. :�xa2
If 15 . . . 0-0-0 16 fxe6 tiJxeS
16 .. .fxe6 17 �c4!, planning a pin on d7
with 18 �xe6) 17 J::txd8+ 'ilHxd8 18 "ir'fS
and White wins a pawn whilst keeping
his attack. Or IS .. :"xeS 16 fxe6 'ii'xe6 (if
16 . . .fxe6 17 �c4) 17 �f4! planning i.h3
or .1i.c4 in the style of the game.
16 fxe6 "tWxe6 17 "ir'f4!
Delicately played; the white queen
shuffles one square to create some
deadly threats. The key to the white
attack is the bishop biding its time on
f1 . It proves that a chess piece is some­
times best ' developed' on its starting
square. Thus, without stirring,
bishop has achieved maximum flexibil­
ity, sitting astride two important di­
agonals. It can go to h3 to terrorize the
black queen and knight, or it can
choose to join the queen in assailing f7
as occurs in the game after 18 .1i.c4.
Rozentalis' defence is made all the
harder as he doesn't know from which
direction the terrible bishop is going to
strike him.
from
17 .. Jld S
If 17 .. :ilVxeS White's bishop chooses
18 i.h3!, when 18 .. :iWxf4 19 .1i.xd7+
(or wins a piece. More resistant
1 7 ... tiJxeS 18 �h3 �e7, but 19 "tWg3!
clears the way for 20 f4 whereupon the
black knight is ousted from eS, and
i.d7+ etc becomes decisive. The game
might continue 19 ... .l:td8 20
�xd8 21 ndl + c,t>e8 (if 21.. .�c7 22
'ud7+!) 22 �xa7 and Black is defence­
less against 22 f4 or 22 �b6 etc. This
variation shows us how the queen
sometimes has to play second fiddle to
the pawn - here she has to step out of
the way of the f-pawn.
1S �C4
C a t c h i n g the King in t h e Cen tre
the As the black king is going to be
staying in the centre, the bishop turns
its attention to an attack on the f7-
square.
1S .. :iWe7
Black's boxed-in bishop on f8 makes
a pitiful contrast to its powerful oppo­
site number on c4.
19 l:the1
White completes the mobilization of
his pieces, after which the black queen
faces being impaled against her king by
the battering ram eS-e6.
19 ... hS 20 'iVg3 !
is Simple and completely decisive:
Topalov clears the way for 21 i.gS. The
immediate 20 e6 was also possible; for
example, 20 ...fxe6 21 'ii'e4! threatening
22 �gS tiJf6 (what else?) 23 �g6+ �f7
llxd8+ 24 l:Ixe6+.
20 ... tiJxes 21 -'!txdS+ �xdS 22 i.f4 tiJxC4
Or 22 ... f6 23 �heS fxeS 24 ..tgS and
the black queen is lost for even less.
23 l:Ixe7 �xe7 24 "ir'd3 1-0
Materially speaking, it's not all that
bad for Black: he has a rook, knight
and two pawns for the queen. Unfor­
tunately two of his pieces are shut out
51
Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre

of the game. After 24. . .liJb6 (or 24. . .b5
25 b3) 25 �d6+ 'it>e8 26 "iiib8+ White can
start by massacring the black queen­
side pawns.
Nonetheless, it's hard not to get emo­ tion element of power play has fulfilled
tional about Bronstein playing the its role. Bronstein has succeeded in
swashbuckling King's Gambit against catching his opponent's king in the
Tal. centre and needs to find a forceful dy­
2 ... d5 namic sequence to exploit the advan­
Already a small victory for White. tage.
The critical reply is 2 . . .exf4, but Tal evi­ 14 lLig5!?
dently hadn't been spending much Gambiting the d5-pawn. Instead, 14
time studying 19th century theory and �el! f5 1 5 ltJg5 looks a simpler way to
so selected a 'safe' alternative. punish Black.
3 exd 5 e4 4 d 3 liJf6 5 dxe4 lLixe4 6 lLif3 14...i..xd 5
..tC5 7 �e2 i..f5 8 lLic3 �e7 9 i.. e 3!
Here Tal was about to castle queen­
side when he suddenly saw the devil­
ish gleam in Bronstein's eyes:
13 .. 0-0-0?? 14 l:I.d4! and Black loses a
.

A trap worthy of Tal piece after either 14 ... lLih5 15 g4 or

We have seen various 'explosive'
methods of detaining the opponent's
king in the centre. In contrast David
Bronstein sets a trap in such a treach­
erously peaceful-looking position that
even arch-tactician Mikhail Tal (albeit
partially) falls into it.
Game 1 8
D.Bronstein-M. Ta l
USSR Tea m
C h a m pionsh i p 1968
King 's Gambit
1 e4 e5 2 f4
When Bronstein played the King's
Gambit, it wasn't merely as a homage
to the shades of Anderssen and Spiel­
mann. It was also a carefully honed,
thoroughly studied weapon that he
used to win points in tournaments.
14 ...lLig6 15 g4. Over the last thirty
years at least nine players have fallen
for this insidious trap, with only one
surviving because the opponent missed
the strength of 14 l:I.d4. It takes the tac­
tical radar of a Tal to avoid being
snared, although it began to bleep a
All these moves are well known to little too late. If Black can't castle
theory. Black has sacrificed a pawn to queenside here, he is in serious trouble,
gain a temporary initiative which as White is about to play 14 !Iel+,
White quells with this precise bishop catching his king in the centre, while
move. also ensuring that the rook on a8 re­
9 lLixc3
... mains shut out of the game.
A solid alternative is 9 . . .i..xe3 1 0 13 ..• iL.e4
�xe3 lLixc3 1 1 "iixe7+ 'it>xe7 12 bxc3 According to Paul Keres, an eye­
..txc2 that leaves Black only slightly witness, Tal had become agitated and
worse. spent an hour on the clock trying to
10 i..xc5 lLixe2 11 �xe7 lLixf4 12 i..a 31 find a way out of the 'ambush' . The
lLid7? move he selected is a good fighting
Having come this far he should chance, since it saves the bishop from
have tried to tough it out with the trap and at the same time blocks
12 . . . lLixd5 13 0-0-0 iL.e6 14 i..c4 c6. the check on the e-file.
13 0-0-0 Here we might say that the prepara-
15 g3!?
A pretty amazing move. White
simply invites the black bishop to take
his rook!
In fact an intermediate rook check
on el looks much stronger: for exam­
ple, 15 1:i.el + 'it>d8 (also bad for Black is
15 . . .i..e6 16 g3 or 15 . . .lLie6 16 c4 as
White will break through on e6) 16 g3!
and Black dare not take on hI as
16 ... i.xhl 17 lLixf7+ 'ittc8 18 lLixh8 is fa­
tal. If instead 16 ... f6 17 gxf4 fxg5 18 .l:!.gl
gxf4 19 lhg7 gives White a decisive
initiative with moves like l:I.ee7 and
�h3 looming. Of course in this varia­
tion 16 g3 has none of the artistic ap­
peal of 15 g3 as White would be regain-

52 53
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
ing his rook at once if Black had taken
on hI.
After the game Keres asked our
hero why he didn't play 15 .l:i.el + first.
He records that Bronstein "looked at
me as if I could not understand any­
thing about the position, and said 'I
could not miss the opportunity to play
a move like 15 g3 against Tal, which I
may not have again in my whole life.'"
lS ...�xhl 16 gxf4
In return for his sacrifice White has
two attacking bishops, a strong knight,
an active rook and the chance to target
both the black king and bishop on hI.
Bronstein hoped that the powerful co­
ordination of his pieces would be
enough to finish the game in the next
five or so moves, as if 16 . . . 0-0-0 then 1 7
�h3 �c6 18 tiJxf7 and White will re­
gain his material leaving Black under
severe pressure.
Nevertheless, White's advantage
isn't as great as that in Morphy vs
Brunswick & Isouard for one simple
reason: the queens are no longer on the
board. As Tal now demonstrates, Black
has a lot of defensive resources.
54
16...cS!
An excellent blocking move. The
energy level of the white position
drops dramatically with the bishop on
a3 shut out of the game. It took a lot of
sangfroid as well as good judgment to
allow the other white bishop to con­
quer the f7-square.
17 .i.C4 i..c6 18 tiJxf7
It looks as if the white attack is go­
ing to triumph quickly as 18 .. JH8 loses
to 19 .l:i.el+. But once again Tal rises to
the occasion.
18 ... bS!
Continuing to harass the bishops
with a direct threat to one and a latent
threat of trapping the other with ... b5-
b4. If now 19 tiJxh8 bxc4 and the knight
on h8 is trapped in the comer.
You will notice how Bronstein is
striving to maintain the attacking
power of his pieces, while Tal is doing
his utmost to wreck their coordination.
He is willing to return his extra mate­
rial for this purpose.
19 tiJd6+ �e7 20 tiJxbS .l:i.hf8?
Missing the reply, after which Black
is losing again. He had to play the cold-
blooded 20 ... ii.xb5! 21 �xb5 .l:i.hd8 with
good survival chances.
21 tiJd4!
White's knight, which was 'knocked
off course' to b5, returns to the centre
with gain of time on both this move
and the next. The pressure soon be­
comes irresistible.
21 ... �g2 22 tiJe6 .l:i.fS 23 .l:i.g1 .i.e4 24
tiJC7?
A pity, as Tal would probably have
resigned upon 24 .l:i.el tiJf6 25 tiJxc5, just
in time to make it a miniature game.
24 tiJC7 .l:i.d8 2 S l:txg7+ �6 26 .l:i.f7+
After the game Bronstein was can­
did enough to admit that in his earlier
calculations he had thought this was
not only check but also mate, as he had
overlooked Black's reply.
C a t c h i n g t h e King in t h e Cen tre
26 ... �g6
And so the battle continued, with
both players getting into bad time
pressure. As Keres remarked, we
shouldn't really scrutinize moves that
were being bashed out instantly. It's
enough to see that Black is still under
severe pressure, and when the dust
settled Bronstein had done enough for
the full point.
27 l:te7 tiJf6 28 tiJe6 .l:i.c8 29 b3 .l:i.hS 30
LDgs .i.ds 31 .i.d3+ �h6 32 .i.b2 c4 33
.i.fs c3 34 .i.xc8 cxb2+ 35 �xb2 .l:i.xh2
36 .l:i.xa7 .l:i.f2 37 Ita4 �g6 38 .l:i.d4 hS 39
a4 h4 40 as .i.g2 41 a6 LDhS 42 ii.b7
tiJxf4 43 .l:i.xf4 1-0
An enthralling fight between two
players who brought so much tactical
vigour into the chess world.
55

C h a pte r T h ree
Ope n i n g Old (a n d New) Wou nd s
The question of open/closed positions
is one of the most difficult in chess
strategy. It's very easy for a player to
imagine that he is freeing his game by
advancing a pawn, when in reality he
is opening lines for the benefit of the
opponent's pieces. In this chapter we
shall examine how the energy balance
between the two armies is affected by a
sudden unblocking of the pawn forma­
tion.
Two stun ning exa m ples of line
clearance
Sometimes it can be worth sacrific­
ing the queen to unblock a vital line of
attack. Here is a striking example from
one of Geller's later games.
In the Bronstein-Korchnoi game
(see Chapter One) a rook sacrificed
itself to clear the way for the queen to
strike a deadly blow. Here the compli­
ment is returned:
56
I
Game 19
P.Delekta-E.Gelier
Ca ppelle la Gra nde 1992
Vienna Game
1 e4 es 2 lbc3 lbf6 3 i..c4 lbc6 4 d3 lbas
S lbge2 lbxC4 6 dXc4 �cs 7 0-0 d6 S .igs
�e6 9 lbdS .ixdS 10 iLxf6 ir'xf6 11
'ii'xds 0-0 12 l:[abl c6 13 iVd3 as 14 �hl
I!feS 1S f3 �e6 16 lbg3 'ii'gs 17 lbfS
(see following diagram)
Evidently time hadn't dimmed
Geller's tactical eye as the game fin­
ished:
17 ... g6! 18 lbg3 'ii'xg3 ! ! 0-1
White is mated after 19 hxg3 g5, fol­
lowed by 20 .. .l1h6. I find the double
advance of the g-pawn a very attractive
theme.
Alekhine thought that the concept
of checkmate elevated chess above all
other board games, in which victory
went to the player who captured the
opponent's men or gained the most
terrain. In chess your opponent can
have more time, space, material, but all
this means absolutely nothing if you
have control of one square, as long as
you can use that square to checkmate
his king! Alekhine saw the quest to
checkmate as a noble one, as it leads to
a spirit of self-sacrifice among the at­
tacking army.
Game 20
V. Topalov-R.Ponomariov
Sofia 2006
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 eS 2 lbf3 lbc6 3 i.. bS a6 4 .ia4 lbf6
S 0-0 .i.e7 6 liel bS 7 i.. b3 0-0 S h3 .ib7
9 d 3 d6 10 a4 lbas 11 .ia2 cS 12 lbbd2
lbd7 13 lbfl lbb6 14 .i.d2 b4 15 c3 bxc3
16 .ixC3 lbc6 17 a s lbcs is lbe3 lbSa7
19 lbfS .icS 20 lbd2 I!bS 21 f4 .ixfs 22
exfs exf4 23 'ii'g4 lbd4 24 lbe4 lbabs 2S
Op e n ing Old (a nd N e w) Wo u n d s
.id2 lbc2 26 .i.xf4 �hS 27 'ii' h s lbxel
2S I!xel 'it'xa s 29 llal i::!. bdS 30 f6 gxf6
3 1 �h2 d S
The situation in the diagram above
looks absolutely hopeless for White: he
is the exchange and two pawns down,
his knight is hanging and his bishop on
a2 is pinned against his rook. However,
Topalov defied materialistic considera­
tions in a manner that would have de­
lighted Alekhine.
32 lbxf6!! .ixf6 33 d41!
You only need control of one square
to win a game of chess, and here that
square is h7. White threatens 34 i..b1
with unstoppable mate. Black can de-
57
C h e s s S e c re ts: T h e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
fend with 33 ... l:tg8 34 .i.bl llg7, but
then 35 Iha5 grabs the queen. The fact
that there is a discovered attack on the
black queen with 34 ..ibl is integral to
the combination.
Well, so much for a spirit of self­
sacrifice when we end up nabbing the
queen. In fact the conflict between ma­
terialism and sacrifice makes chess a
rich and exciting game, even when ma­
terialism triumphs!
3 3 ..."iNxa2
The black queen ends up sacrificing
herself to save her distant consort. The
material balance now changes sharply
in White's favour, and Ponomariov
was unable to save himself despite a
long and tough rearguard action:
34 Uxa2 lDxd4 35 b4 lDe6 36 .i.e5 i.g7
37 bxc5 .l:lcS 3S ..id6 :fdS 39 lia5 �gS
40 lIxa6 .l:ld 7 41 "it'xd5 .i.fS 42 'iif3
.i.xd6+ 43 cxd6 lIcdS 44 "iNd5 lDg7 45
�aS lDe6 46 .l:lxdS+ llxdS 47 g4 h6 4S
h4 nbS 49 �g3 IIeS 50 'it>f3 lDfS 51 'iid 2
� g 7 52 't!Vd4+ �gS 53 "it'f6 �e6 5 4 'iie 7
'it>g7 55 'iiC7 �gS 56 d7 lDxd7 57 'i!Vxd 7
'it>g7 5S �d4+ �gS 59 'it>f4 �g6 60 �5
lle6 61 'ifd7 1:[g6 62 h 5
58
If White didn't have an h-pawn the
game would be a draw as the black
rook could shuttle between e6 and g6,
keeping the white king at bay. Whereas
if now 62 ... l:te6 63 'iVxe6 fxe6+ 64 'it>xe6
is a winning pawn endgame for White.
62 ... l:tg5+ 63 'it>f6 �hS 64 �eS+ ngS 65
<t;xf7 1-0
The opponent foolishly opens
lines
Sometimes it's fun being a genius
thirty years ahead of your time: you let
your opponent make a positional
blunder and then you watch as your
hands play all the right moves to
checkmate him.
Game 21
P.Morphy-Amateur
New Orlea ns 1858
Evans ' Gambit
1 e4 e5 2 lDf3 lDc6 3 i..c4 .i.c5 4 b4
.ixb4 5 c3 ..ta5 6 d4 exd4 7 0-0 dXc3 S
.ia3 d6 9 'iWb3 lDh6 10 lDxC3 .i.xC3 11
'iixC3 0-0 12 I!.adl lDg4 13 h3 lDge5 14
lDxe5 lDxe5 15 .i.e2
Morphy has played in typically bel­
ligerent style. In return for his sacri­
ficed pawns he has the two bishops
and a lead in development - the white
queen and rook on dl strike an aggres­
sive pose, while the black bishop on c8
has yet to enter the game.
Nevertheless, when it comes to tri­
umphing with power play, bringing
your pieces into the game before the
opponent is only half the battle. The
other half is to have open lines that
they can exploit.
Here Morphy is ready to open the
necessary avenues of attack with gain
of tempo by 16 f4, hitting the black
knight, and then 17 e5. If the d6-point
collapses, the white rook on dl and
bishop on a3 gain considerable energy
through embarrassing the black queen
and rook on f8.
A modem player might well play
15 ... f6 here in order to increase his con­
trol of e5. Then the game might con­
tinue 16 f4 lDf7 17 e5 fxe5 18 fxe5,
whereupon Morphy's opponent would
probably fall for the pretty combina­
tion 18 ... lDxe5? 19 .l::i.xf8+ "iNxf8 20 "ii'xe5!
dxe5 21 .i.c4+ <t;h8 (not 21..:jff7 22 l:1d8
mate) 22 .i.xf7 and White has an extra
piece. However, 18 ... i..e6!, a sensible
developing move, would give Black
good chances of escaping with at least
one extra pawn.
But you can be sure that a strong
modem player wouldn't have played
the actual game move:
15 .. .f5?
O p e n ing Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
A typical decision of the mid 19th
century. Black hopes that by challeng­
ing the e4-pawn he will activate his
rook on f8 and create more scope for
the bishop on c8. In reality he is open­
ing the position just when his oppo­
nent's pieces are fully deployed and
crying out for some lines of attack. In
other words, he is doing Morphy's
work for him. Nowadays every strong
player accepts as a basic principle that
opening lines favours the better-developed
player. In his games collection Geller
mentions a more refined precept:
"don't open the position when the op­
ponent has the two bishops!"
Still, Morphy has to be accurate in
his reply. If Black is allowed one free
move he will cement the knight on e5
with 16 . . .£4!, ruling out f2-f4 forever,
whereupon he will have a winning at­
tack after a subsequent 17 .. .£3 or
17 ... 'iig5.
16 f4!
Now Morphy begins to breathe his
tactical ingenuity into his pieces.
16 ...lDc6 17 i..c4+
The bishop returns to a post that
59
Ch ess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
has become even more powerful after
the weakening 15 ... f5. At the same time
it prevents Black developing with
. . . .i.e6.
17 ...'it>hS 1S i.b2!
Here 18 e5 looks tremendously
strong, but Morphy has seen that he
can go after bigger game in the shape
of the black king.
lS ..JWe7
The queen is obliged to defend g7.
How much less trouble Black would
have if he had played 15 ... f6! .
19 l:tde1!
The pressure becomes overwhelm­
ing, as if 19 .. .fxe4 20 l:txe4 and the black
queen is hanging and can't give up the
defence of g7.
Note that Morphy elects to play his
queen's rook to the open file rather
than 19 l:tfel. The game will be decided
on the kingside and it might be useful
to have the rook on f1 to support the
f4-pawn.
19 ... l:tf6 20 exf5 iVfS
If now 21 iVg3, hoping for 21.. .l:txf5?
22 iVxg7+! iVxg7 23 l:te8+ and mate next
move, Black can reply 21.. .i.xf5!, giv-
60
ing u p the exchange to gain a secure
position after 22 i.xf6 iVxf6.
Morphy came up with something
far more spectacular:
2 1 l:teS! !
Power play requires a sharp tactical
eye to exploit the opponent's false
ideas about a position.
21 ... iVxeS 22 iVxf6 iVe7 23 iVxg7+!
More elegant than the routine 23
iVxe7 4.Jxe7 24 f6 4.Jf5 25 .:tIel .
2 3 ...iVxg7 2 4 f6
Black has an extra queen, but none
of his other pieces are contributing to
the kingside fight. If his queen moves
to a safe square then the advance of the
f6-pawn is lethal; e.g. 24 .. :iVf8 25 f7+
4.Je5 26 fxe5 'it>g7 27 e6+ 'it>h6 28 e7 is
butchery.
24 ... iVxg2+ 25 'it>xg2 i.xh3+ 26 'it>xh3
h5 27 l:Ig1 1-0
And White won after some further
pointless (and unrecorded) moves.
A marvellous game by Morphy. I
hope you can see why 15 ... f5? is so
against the spirit of positional play.
It seems the principle that opening
lines favours the better-developed
player was little known in Morphy's
day. Modern players also sometimes
act against this principle when they
hope to achieve some other advantage
- in other words they believe they have
found an exception to the rule. And
sometimes they are right, and win the
game as a result. But in 19th century
games you get the impression that
most players didn't even know there
was a rule they were breaking. They
wanted to attack, to activate their
pieces, and it never crossed their minds
that the opponent's pieces might be
gaining the most from their plucky ad­
venture.
A pawn sacrifice opens the centre
Game 22
J.Schulten-P.Morphy
New York 1857
King 's Gambit
1 e4 e5 2 f4 d5 3 exd5 e4 4 4.JC3
Op e n i n g Old (a nd N e w) Wo u n ds
In Chapter Two we saw Bronstein's
superior treatment of the opening in
his game against Tal. With 4 d3! White
would avoid having his knight pinned
by the black bishop.
4 4.Jf6 5 d3 .i.b4 6 i.d2 e3!
...
Classic Morphy: a second pawn is
offered to open the e-file and restore
the pin on c3. In power play terms,
Black's pieces gain energy - . . ..:tIe8 will
come with gain of time - while White's
pieces lose energy - the knight on c3 is
paralysed again, meaning . . . 4.Jxd5 is on
the cards.
7 i.xe3 0-0 S i.d2
Removing the bishop from the dan­
ger zone and reviving his knight. If
now 8 ... l:!.e8+ White could try 9 4.Jce2!?
using the horse to counter the pressure
down the e-file. In that scenario
9 ... .txd2+ 10 iVxd2 would ease White's
game as he might even castle queen­
side. Morphy comes up with a more
astute decision: exchange the bishop
immediately for the knight on c3.
S ....i.xc3! 9 bxc3 1IeS+ 10 i.e2 i.g4
Not only increasing the pressure on
e2, but also deterring White's natural
61
Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po wer Play
developing move 1 1 4Jf3, as 1 1 . . . .ixf3
12 gxf3 would leave him with horren­
dous pawns. Nonetheless, objectively
speaking, the immediate 10 ... 4JxdS
looks stronger.
11 c41
I'm certain that Schulten made this
move out of greed, as he wanted to
hang onto his extra pawn. In fact it also
has a dynamic value since it denies the
black queen and knight the use of the
dS-square as an attacking base.
Alternatively, the heroic 11 'itf2!?
would lead to an interesting fight; for
example, after 1 1 . . . .ixe2 12 4Jxe2 4Jg4+
13 'itg3. The king looks in terrible dan­
ger on the third rank, but don't forget
that Black hasn't yet found time to
bring his queen's knight or rook into
the game, so his firepower isn't as yet
overwhelming.
11...c61
12 dxc6?
Here we have the proof that White
was merely counting pawns, not think­
ing about the relative power of the two
armies. Rather than speed up the de­
velopment of Black's knight, he should
62
have tried 1 2 h3!, when after 1 2 . . ..i.xe2
13 4Jxe2 cxd5 14 cxd5 'ilVxdS IS 0-0,
White has managed to escape the pres­
sure along the e-file and is fully devel­
oped, albeit with rather awkwardly­
placed minor pieces. Black has an ac­
tive game after IS . . .4Jc6 with full com­
pensation for the missing pawn, but
that's not the same as smashing his
opponent in the centre.
Of course, Schulten was an amateur
player of the Romantic age. He played
11 c4 on materialistic rather than dy­
namic grounds, which meant that he
was always going to grab the pawn on
c6 and lose horribly. The move 12 h3, if
he had even considered it, would have
been instantly rejected on the grounds
"I can't weaken my kingside like that
when I'm being attacked!"
Back in the 19th century the defen­
sive power of White's position after 1 2
h 3 was inevitably going t o b e underes­
timated. The art of a calm, clinical de­
fence, returning a pawn to blunt the
opponent's initiative, was little prac­
tised. Steinitz was the first great player
to put the emphasis on defence.
Nowadays, especially since the advent
of strong computer programs, players
are aware of latent defensive possibili­
ties even in the most dubious-looking
positions.
12 ...4Jxc6
Now the threat of 13 ... 4Jd4 wins the
game. If the white king runs to the
third rank we might have this delight­
ful finish: 13 'itf2 'ii'b6+ 14 'it>g3 gxe2! IS
4Jxe2 4Jd4 16 �el 4JfS mate!
13 <M1
Also hopeless are 13 c3 'it'xd3 or 13
iLc3 4Jd4 14 i.xd4 'iYxd4 intending
IS ... l:1xe2+! 16 4Jxe2 l:teS. We see how the
arrival of Black's two queenside pieces
has overwhelmed White's defence.
13 ... .uxe21 14 4Jxe2 4Jd4
Winning material while maintain­
ing a decisive attack.
15 'iib1 .ixe2+ 16 'iW2 4Jg4+ 17 'itg1
4Jf3+!
Easy, but elegant nevertheless.
18 gxf3 'ifd4+ 19 'it'g2 �f2+ 20 'ith3
'iVxf3+ 0-1
After 21 'ith4 it is mate in three; for
example, 21 . . .4Je3 22 llg1 (to stop mate
on g4) 22 . . . 4JfS+ 23 'it'gS 'tins mate.
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
A pawn sacrifice prevents the
centre being blocked
In his great workGrandmaster Prepara­
tion Polugaevsky gives an assessment
of the style of World Champion Tigran
Petrosian, including the following
lines:
"In those rare instances when he
did lose, or obtained an inferior posi­
tion, it was when his opponents played
directly and sharply, because Petro­
sian, at times fearing something at the
board, would avoid a critical dispute in
the opening."
In the following game Geller found
just the opening line to upset the great
strategist.
Game 23
E.Gel ler-T.Petrosian
Moscow 1963
French Defence
1 e4 e6 2 d4 d5 3 4JC3
Geller avoids his usual 3 4Jd2. He
remarks that Petrosian was very com­
fortable in IQP positions after 3 4Jd2 cS
4 exdS exdS, so he decided to choose a
sharper variation.
3 ... i.b4 4 e5 b6 5 4Jf3 �d7 6 .i.d2 .if8 7
a41?
Geller realizes that his World
Champion opponent intends to de­
velop with . . .4Jc6, . . . .i.b7 and . . . 0-0-0
and so, to quote his own words in the
Application of Chess Theory, "White de­
cides to 'frighten' him with a possible
attack on the king."
63
C h e s s S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
7 ../1.'Jc6 8 iLe2 tDge7 9 0-0 f6?
Finding the idea of immediate
queenside castling with 9... �b7 and
10 ...0-0-0 suddenly unappealing, Petro­
sian switches to a different plan: he will
attack the white centre at once, and only
after he has gained counterplay there
will he castle queenside, when his op­
ponent will be distracted from carrying
out a direct attack on his king.
The problem is that Black isn't able
to stabilize the centre, as Geller soon
demonstrates.
10 J:.e1 fxe s?
He should have blocked the centre
with 10 .. .£5, but even if Petrosian had
sensed the danger it would have been
psychologically difficult for him to
make such a move. It would have
meant admitting to his opponent, and
even worse to himself, that his last
move was a mistake, seeing that 9 ... f5
was possible at once.
Incidentally, this refusal to admit we
have chosen the wrong plan often over­
whelms common sense. It makes us
pursue a bad idea even when our gut
instinct is telling us to stop, or our tacti-
64
cal radar is sending out unmistakable
warning signs. The Russians even have
a proverb: "once you have said 'A', you
have to say 'B'''. Chess might be defined
as the tragedy of misspent energy.
11 �bS!
With this alert move Geller dashes
his opponent's hopes of playing a
slow-moving closed game after 11
tDxe5 tDxe5 1 2 dxe5. Instead, a cut and
thrust battle begins in the centre, in
which White's lead in development
and the parlous situation of the black
king on e8 become decisive factors.
11 ... tDg6
After 1 1 ...exd4 12 tiJxd4 all the lines
are opening for White's pieces, while
the attempt to keep it blocked with
1 1 . ..e4 is gruesome after 12 tiJe5 'ii'd6 13
iLf4!, when there will be a killing dis­
covered attack on the black queen.
12 tiJxes tiJgxes 13 llxes a6
There is no way to escape the pres­
sure, as if 13 . . . iLd6 14 :'xe6+! �xe6 15
�xc6+ and 16 .txa8 wins.
14 .txc6 'iVxc6 15 tiJxds
Now Geller has both an extra pawn
and the initiative.
lS ... �d7 16 �gS!
There is a tendency for players once
they have gained material to back off
and admire the plunder. Geller was
never a player of this type, despite the
fact that the initial stage of his game­
plan normally involved exerting pres­
sure on his opponent's pawns. He was
always ready to return material if the
initiative required it.
Here a lazy move such as 16 tDc3
would let Black back into the game with
16 .. 0-0-0. Beating a World Champion
.
once is hard enough, but doing it twice
in one game is near-impossible. Hence
Geller can't afford to let the tempo of his
attack slacken for even a move.
16 ... i.d6 17 'ii'h S+ �8 18 'it'f3+ \t>g8 19
nxe6!
A second pawn drops, as 19 ... �xe6
20 ctJe7+ wins the black queen.
19 ...l:tf8 20 tDe7+ iLxe7 21 �xc6 �xc6
22 l:txe7 1:!f7 23 k!.ae1 iLxa4 24 b3 iLc6
Petrosian has defended brilliantly to
reach an endgame where he is only one
pawn down. However, Geller has cor­
rectly judged that the passive rook on
h8 will mean that Black won't be able
Open ing Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
to hold on to c7, when the pawn deficit
will increase to two again. It is a hope­
less state of affairs for Black, despite
the opposite-coloured bishops.
25 lhe6 iLdS 26 :'e8+ l!f8 27 �6e7 h6
28 .l::!.xf8+ <t>xf8 29 .uxc7 '>t>g8 30 .tf4 g5
31 i.es l:;th7 32 .1:[c8+ �7 33 c4 i.b7 34
l::td 8 \t>e6 3 S l:!.d6+ �S 3 6 f3 g4 3 7 l:!f6+
\t>gs 38 f4+ '>t>hS 39 .uxb6 i.e4 40 �2
l::t b7 41 11xb7 i.xb7 42 d S 1-0
Smashing a blockade with an
exchange sacrifice
In the next game Topalov is willing to
invest the exchange and a pawn to pre­
vent his bishop pair from being shut
out of the game. He has no immediate
win, but can exert continuous pressure
on Kamsky's broken kingside.
Game 24
V.Topalov-G.Kamsky
Sofia 2006
Slav Defence
1 d4 ds 2 c4 c6 3 tiJf3 tiJf6 4 tiJC3 a6 5 cs
65
Che ss S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
ttJbd7 6 iLf4 ttJhS 7 ..td2 ttJhf6 8 l:tcl g6
9 h3 'fIiC7 10 g3 ..tg7 11 i.f4 'iVd8 12
..tg2 ttJhS 13 iLgs h6 14 ..td2 0-0 15 e4
dxe4 16 ttJxe4 ttJhf6 17 ttJC3 ne8 18 0-0
ttJf8 19 'it'b3 ttJe6 20 ..te3 ttJC7 21 ttJes
ttJfdS 22 ttJxdS ttJxdS 23 ..td2
White's knight is excellently placed,
so Kamsky took the drastic step of ex­
changing off his important
squared bishop.
23 ... ..txes?
You have to admire the American
Grandmaster's original approach to
chess strategy, even though in this in­
stance it leads him to defeat. How
many other players would have con­
templated this capture for even a sec­
ond?
Even so, careful defence
23 ... 'ilic7! was to be preferred.
24 dxeS h S
This i s the idea: Black hopes to es­
tablish a blockade on the light squares.
It comes very close to working.
25 nfel
Topalov has seen through his op­
ponent's plan and so makes an impor­
tant preparatory move.
66
2s .. :tiVc7
Having defended the b7-pawn,
Kamsky is now ready to complete the
final link of his blockade with 26 . . . i.e6,
when after 27. . . l':tad8 he will be excel­
lently centralized. In that scenario it is
hard to see how White would be able
to create any play for his bishop pair.
dark­ In fact, we have reached the critical
moment in the game. If White doesn't
find a way to prevent Black's plan the
energy will drain from his position.
26 e6!
Topalov rises to the occasion. This
exchange sacrifice isn't a luxury which
White can make according to his style
of play or mood that day - it is vital to
safeguard his position.
with 26 ... ..txe6 27 l:txe6 fxe6 28 �el �d7 29
'ij"d3 Wh7 30 .l:1e s !
Threatening 3 0 .l:.xh5+.
30 ...ttJf6 31 li'e3 1!
In putting the rook on e5 and the
queen on e3, White is following two
important rules of dynamic chess:
Firstly, when you attack with queen
and rook, it is usually better to have the
rook in front and the queen behind it.
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
The rook can then be a battering ram Topalov shows his tactical flair.
that breaks through barriers with the Rather than taking on e6, which would
support of the queen. In contrast, if the allow Black the breathing space for
queen were in front she would be too centralization with 32 . . . .l:tad8!, he tar­
important to throw herself at any de­ gets the much more important g6-
fended point, and always vulnerable to pawn. He isn't precious about the
attack. bishop pair, as the black knight is a
vital defensive piece and after
32 ...ttJxe4 33 ':xe4 the threats of 34
'iVh6+ and 34 ..tc3+ are devastating.
32 ...�7
Black has no time for 32. . . .l:i.ad8 be­
cause of 33 'ilih6+, when g6 drops with
a quick mate.
33 iLC2
The bishop, which was staring idly
at the c6-pawn, has become a fearsome
attacking piece. It is well known that
two bishops are particularly strong
Secondly, when attacking with when they control neighbouring di­
queen and bishop it usually better to agonals which rake fire on the enemy
have the queen in front and the bishop defences.
behind. This is because a queen inva­ 33 ... .:ad8 34 �h61
sion, especially with check, has an ef­ If now 34 . . .li'xd2 35 ..txg6+ c,t>g8 36
fect on all the squares around the en­ :g5!, when Black has nothing better
emy king, whereas a bishop check has than to give up his queen with
far less power. 36 ... �xg5.
In this specific instance, we can see 34 ... .:g8 35 ..tas!
that White has the devastating threat of
32 li'h6+ followed by 33 'it'xg6+ tearing
up the black kingside - if the bishop
and queen were the other way round
there would be no threat at all. Simi­
larly, White's rook can chomp on e6 at
an appropriate moment, keeping up
the pressure, whereas if the white
queen were in front then capturing the
pawn would lead to an unwelcome
exchange of queens.
31 ... Wg7 32 ..te4!!
67

Chess Secrets: T h e Gia n ts of Po wer Play
Combining attacks on enemy pieces
with an assault on their king is an im­
portant facet of power play. Topalov
saves his bishop from capture and
forces his opponent to deal with two
threats: the obvious 36 i.xdS and the
quiet but lethal 36 J:IgS.
3 5 :ikd4
•.
Kamsky tries to complicate, but
now White's bishop gets to c3 with
gain of time.
36 i.C3 'iWC4
Black has managed to ward off the
evil of 37 J:IgS which can be answered
by 37 ... lLle4. However, disaster now
strikes from a different direction.
37 i.b3!
The bishop attacks e6 through the
black queen.
When you are convinced that you
have a strong initiative and the oppo­
nent blocks your chosen line of attack,
don't become disillusioned. Instead,
look around for some other route into
his position. If chess is a logical game
and your judgment is right, there is
sure to be one right under your nose.
37 'iWd 3 38 i.xe6+ <;.ite8 39 <;.itg2
•••
68
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White doesn't need to hurry. He
safeguards his king and, by cutting out
the queen check on bl, introduces the
threat of 40 J:Ie3 followed by 41 i.xf6.
Hence Kamsky defends f6 again with
his rook, but this allows the white
queen to invade on g7.
39 ... J:If8 40 'iWg7
Now Black has no good defence
against White's next move.
40 ..• J:Id5 41 i.f5!
An extreme form of a well-known
power play device: the threat of mate
on e7 is combined with an attack on the
black queen.
41 ...J:If7 42 J:Ixe7+! 1-0
The power of the white bishops is
such that after 42 .. Jhe7 43 "iVhS+ <;.itf7
White doesn't even need to take the
black queen, as it is mate with 44 'iWxf6+
<;.iteS (the same move answers 44 . . . <;.itgS)
4S "iVhS+ <;.itf7 46 'iWg7+ <;.iteS 47 'iWgS.
A fine example of power play.
Catching a rook in a terrible pin
In the following game Geller, at the
cost of a rook, opens lines for his queen
www.Ebook777.com
and bishop to exert a stranglehold on
the black kingside. An amazing con­
ception.
Game 25
E.Gelier-D.Velimirovic
Hava na 1971
King 's Indian Defence
1 lLlf3 lLlf6 2 d4 g6 3 c4 i.g7 4 g3 0-0 5
i..g2 d6 6 0-0 c5 7 lLlC3 lLlc6 8 d5 lLla5 9
4:ld2 e5 10 e4 lLlg4 11 b3 f5 12 exf5
Black could recapture with 12 . . . gxfS,
but Velimirovic decided first of all to
activate his bishop with . . .
12 .•• e4?
Now 13 "iVxg4 ii.xc3 favours Black,
while 13 lLldxe4 gxfS leaves the white
knights in trouble. If Geller plays a
passive move, say 13 .tb2, the game
resumes its natural course with
13 ... gxfS, and his opponent has active
play. But the Ukrainian Grandmaster is
always on the watch for tactical oppor­
tunities, and manages to throw a span­
ner (or f-pawn) into the works.
13 f6!
O p e n ing Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
The first point of this move is obvi­
ous: White wants to capture on e4 with
his knight without allowing 13 ... gxfS in
reply. The second point is much deeper
and more brilliant: over the board
Geller has had to calculate and assess a
rook sacrifice.
13 ... lLlxf6 14 lLldxe4! !
14 ... 4:lxe4 15 4:lxe4 i.xal 16 i.g5 i.f6
The only move, as otherwise 1 7
'iWxal gives White a decisive attack in
view of the dark square weaknesses in
the black kingside.
17 lLlxf6+ J:Ixf6 18 'iWal!
Strengthening the pin on the rook.
An important tactical point is that
IS ... <;.itg7, hoping to play 19 . . .h6, can be
met by 19 J:Iel h6 20 Sl.xf6+ 'iWxf6 21
J:Ie7+! winning the black queen.
18 <;.itf7
•..
The forcing line has come to an end.
This is the position that Geller had to
weigh up before 13 f6. White is a rook
down for a pawn, with no mating attack
in sight. Normally this would mean it is
time to resign, but here the pressure on
f6 is very awkward for Black. Further­
more, the knight on as is paralysed, and
69
Che ss S e crets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
it's hard to see how it can ever join in
the defence. The other black pieces on
the queenside will also take time to mo­
bilize. Still, if White doesn't do some­
thing fairly fast, Velimirovic will coor­
dinate his scattered forces, in which case
he will undoubtedly win.
19 llel!
My favourite move of the game.
Geller calmly develops his rook with
the plan of 20 Ite3 and 21 �f3 to attack
f6 a third time. It seems terribly slow
but in fact Black can't organize a good
defence against it.
19 .. J:tb8
Velimirovic seems resigned to giv­
ing back his extra material. Instead,
19 . . .h6 doesn't help much, as after 20
ii.xh6 White can restore the pin next
move with 21 .igS, seeing that 20 ... l:!.fS?
allows mate on g7.
20 .l:!.e3 b6
One of the recurring themes of this
book is that an attack always needs the
help of pawns at some point. If 20 ... i.fS,
sheltering f6, Geller gives the variation
21 h3! (planning to drive the bishop
away with 22 g4) 21...hS 22 g4! (anyway)
70
2 2... hxg4 23 hxg4 i.xg4 2 4 l:e4! and the
bishop can't do two jobs: if 24 ... ii.h5 25
l:te6 or 24 ... .i.f5 25 l:th4, when the white
rook will give a killer check on h7.
21 .l:i.f3 ii.f5
Here, too, the attack of the white
pieces needs to be crowned with a
pawn stab:
22 g4! 'ii' h 8 23 ii.xf6 "iixf6 24 'ii'xf6+
�xf6 25 gxf5 gxf5
So Black has avoided a disaster on
f6, but he hasn't been able to keep any
of his booty. In the endgame that fol­
lows his pieces can't compete with the
activity of the white rook and bishop.
26 1le31
Not 26 .th3 which allows 26 .. J�g8+
and 27 .. .11gS. The game move plans to
tie Black's knight down to the d6-pawn
and then push his king back with the
bishop. Velimirovic fights hard, but he
isn't able to save the game. The remain­
ing moves were:
26 ...lLib7 27 :!.e6+ <M7 28 ii.f3 %:tg8+ 29
'it'fl eM8 30 iLh5 l:tg5 31 .l:i.e8+ 'it'g7 32
l:ie7+ 'it'h6 33 l:txb7 l:txh5 34 l:txa7 litxh2
35 l:Id 7 'it'g5 36 l:txd6 �4 37 'it'e2 b5 38
cxb5 'it'e5 39 l1d7 l:th4 40 a3 .l:!.h3 41 f3
�d4 42 b6 .l:!.h2+ 43 '.tel �hl+ 44 'it>f2
�h2+ 45 'it'el l:thl+ 46 'it'f2 :h2+ 47
'it'g3 l:tb2 48 b7 l:txb3 49 a4 c4 50 a s ( 3
51 a6 l%b6 52 .i::tC7 1-0
The never-ending attack on h7
Castling has a surprisingly long history,
having already been given in its modem
form in a book by Ruy Lopez in l S6l.
Therefore players have had around 500
years to refute it. They have arrived at
two conclusions: namely that if Black
castles kingside his weakest square is on
h7, while if White castles kingside his
weakest square is h2. The obvious way
to prove this is by putting a white
bishop on c2, the queen on d3, and -
Geronimo! - 'ifu7 mates the black king.
After a couple of hundred years
Black realized what was happening to
him and started to put a knight on f6.
Just try mating on h7 after that! And so
White replied by eliminating the
knight with ii.g5 and i.xf6, after which
Black was mated all the same with
"iih7. And then Black tried playing
...h7-h6 to stop iLgS. So White started
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
opening the f-file and then playing
l:txf6 and "iih7 mate. After that Black
made sure he played his other knight
via d7 to f8 to guard h7 before White
had time to open the f-file. And then
White started a diversionary action on
the queenside to stop the knight ever
reaching f8. He found the passed pawn
he acquired there so wonderful that he
forgot all about his plan of attacking h7
. . . and so positional chess was born.
We still can't answer the question:
should Black be mated on h7? But I can
tell you that if he lets Topalov aim his
queen and bishop at that square with
impunity it is very likely to happen.
After the following game, Ruslan
Ponomariov, a former FIDE World
Champion who is consistently rated
over 2700 Elo, remarked: "I thought
that I made all normal moves, but then
I found myself in a bad position." Yes,
even the absolutely best players in the
world can completely misunderstand
the needs of a position. As we shall see,
Ponomariov made a lot of moves that
were in perfect accordance with gen­
eral ideas about how the opening he
had chosen should be played. Unfortu­
nately for him, he was up against an
opponent who knew about the h7-
square . . .
Came 26
V. Topalov-R.Ponomariov
Sofi a 2005
Queen 's Indian Defence
1 d4 lLif6 2 c4 e6 3 lLif3 b6 4 g3 i.a6 5
71
C h e s s Secrets: The G ia n ts of Pow er Play
b3 i.. b4+ 6 i.d2 i..e7 7 ttJe3 0-0 8 !lei e6
This allows White to seize space in
the centre. Instead, no-nonsense devel­
opment of the queenside with 8 . . .i..b7 9
i.. g2 d5 10 ttJe5 ttJa6 had proved safe
enough for Black in a Topalov­
Kramnik encounter.
9 e4 d5 10 e5! ttJe4 11 i.. d 3 ttJxe3?
Hindsight is a wonderful thing:
can drink my tea and calmly point out
that Black should eliminate the more
dangerous white piece with 1l ... ttJxd2!'
12 .l::txe3 ! e5
Ponomariov plays the standard
freeing move. And why not? The white
pieces are ill deployed to support their
72
own pawn centre, let alone cause grief
to the advancing black pawns.
Indeed, there appears to be a dis­
tinct clutter in the white camp. The
queen has lost influence over the d4-
square, as two bishops block her view.
A clumsy-looking rook is sitting on c3
which Black can gain time by attacking
with ... c5xd4. And finally, the white
bishop has 'stupidly' gone to d3 rather
than to g2, where it could put pressure
on the long diagonal by attacking d5.
Hence we see that the three main
enemies of the black pawn centre are
either misplaced (the bishop on d3),
blocked in (the queen), or off the board
(the knight has vanished from c3).
It's no wonder that Ponomariov
was optimistic under these circum­
stances. His plan is clear: a quick . . .ttJc6
will be coupled with the exchange of
pawns on the c-fiJe and d-file, when he
will have completed his development
with the chance to attack the loose
pawn on e5. It seems that he is going to
emerge with an easy and safe game.
The above assessment of the posi­
tion is completely logical; in most
games of this type Black equalizes - or
more - when he has avoided trouble
down the c-fiJe or the hl-a8 diagonal.
But before we jump to conclusions let's
see what actually happened in the
game:
13 dxe5 bxe5 14 h4!!
Exactly. What Ponomariov has
missed is that the white pieces, so inef­
fectually bunched for a centre struggle,
are splendidly placed for an attack on
the black king.
Yes, all the white pieces can be di­
rectly or indirectly involved in the on­
slaught. That includes the rook on hI.
Thus if 14 ... ttJc6, Black gets hit by the
famous Greek Gift Sacrifice: 15 1i.xh7+!
\t>xh7 16 ttJg5+ 'it>g8 (16 ... i..xg5 17 hxg5+
�g8 18 "ifu5 comes to the same thing)
17 "i!fu5 i..xg5 18 hxg5 f5 19 g6 and
there is no good way to stop mate on
h8.
Such is the dynamism in the white
set-up that Black never finds a spare
moment for the developing . . .ttJc6 - a
quite remarkable fact. Another turn­
about in the position is that the black
bishop on a6, which looked like it was
doing a pretty good job putting pres­
sure on c4, is suddenly shut out of the
main battle.
The Ukrainian Grandmaster's logic
was impeccable, but he was, as it were,
fighting the wrong war. Positional fac­
tors often compete for attention in a
game of chess, and the ones which
govern a specific situation can often
only be deduced by a sceptical attitude
towards 'natural moves'.
14 ... h6
Open i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
Meeting the threat of the Greek Gift,
but creating a kingside weakness that
Topalov immediately pounces on.
15 i.bl!
Played according to the golden rule
described at move 31 in Topalov­
Kamsky above. The Bulgarian Grand­
master loses no time in maximizing the
pressure on the black kingside. The
threat of 16 'Yic2 and then mate on h7
means that Ponomariov has to com­
promise the structural integrity of his
kingside further, as 16 . . . g6 allows 1 7
.i.xh6.
15 ...f5 16 exf6 i.. xf6 17 "iWe2!
Topalov mustn't back off even for a
moment, as moving the rook from c3
would allow the vital developing move
17 ... ttJc6.
17 ...d4
Keeping the bishop on f6 for de­
fence, as 17 . . . i..xc3 18 i..xc3 intending
19 'ifh7+ is crushing. One possible fin­
ish is 18 .. Jhf3 19 'it'h7+ �f8 20 �xg7+
�e8 21 i..g6+ and mate next move.
Ponomariov hopes his pawn move
will either eliminate the rook on c3 and
so stop it joining in the attack, or better
73
Ch ess Se crets: Th e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
still persuade his opponent to spend a
precious tempo saving it from capture.
18 ttJg5!
Power play involves outwitting an
opponent in a sharp battle, which re­
quires tactical prowess and courage.
Here White could lose his nerve and
save the rook, by 18 inl7+ <;¥tf7 19 .l:lc1,
for example, whereupon 19 ... .1i.b7! pins
the white knight and generates coun­
terplay. Topalov realizes he has to
strike at once, not giving his opponent
any time to bring his queenside pieces
into action. With the game move he
cuts off the black king's flight to f7 and
threatens mate in one on h7, thereby
compelling his opponent to take the
knight.
18 ... hxg5
The rook on c3 shows it isn't just
bait for the black pawn after 18 ... .txg5
19 'iVh7+ �f7 20 .1i.xg5! hxg5 21 1:tf3+,
when White picks up the rook on f8
and wins on material, e.g. 21... <;¥te8 22
.1i.g6+ \t>d7 23 �xg7+ 'ike7 24 'iVxf8.
19 hxg5 dXc3
As indicated by the variation above,
this isn't the wanton capture of irrele-
74
vant material while his king's resi­
dence is on fire: Black eliminates the
rook before it can join the attack, and
hopes the threat to d2 will slow down
White's initiative.
20 .1i.f41
Calm and collected. The flashy 20
l:th8+ would lead to an attack in the
style of the game after 20 ... <;¥tf7 (not
20 ... <;¥txh8? 21 inl7 mate) 21 'iVg6+, but
as we soon see, it's better to keep the
rook check hanging over Black's head.
20...<;¥;>f7
There is no time for Black to save
the bishop on f6, as if 20 . . . .id4 21 'iVg6!
denies the king the f7-square, when 22
!ih8+ is a winning threat.
21 'it'g6+ <;¥te7 22 gxf6+
The black king loses the only minor
piece that has tried to protect it. Now
the attack from the white queen, two
bishops and rook is clearly lethal.
22 ....t!.xf6 23 1i'xg7+ 1:!f7 24 .1i.g5+ <;¥td6
25 'iixf7 'iVxg5
Ponomariov fights to the bitter end.
He is a piece up and has a couple of
interesting checks looming, so White
has to be forceful.
26 lith7!
Threatening mate on c7.
26 .. :iVe5+
The black king has no escape,
whereas his counterpart slips away
into a safe haven after 26 ... 'i!i'cl+ 27 <;¥te2
'i!fd2+ 28 <;¥tf3 �dl + 29 <;¥tg2.
27 <;¥;>f1 <;¥tc6 28 'iWe8+ \t>b6 29 'iVd8+ <;¥tc6
30 .1i.e4+! 1-0
It is mate upon 30 .. :�xe4 31 'iVc7.
Black was defeated without moving
either his queenside rook or knight!
Due to their absence from the struggle,
Topalov was able to conduct a Mor­
phy-like attack.
A freeing move that fails
Alekhine's opponents often thought
that they were freeing their game by
breaking open the centre, when in fact
they were falling into a positional trap.
They were giving the World Cham­
pion's pieces just enough freedom and
dynamism to allow him to strike one of
his famous tactical blows against their
king.
The play of Akiba Rubinstein (1882-
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
1961) has been described as the perfect
embodiment of Steinitz's theories. He
knew all about the steady accumula­
tion of positional advantages; for ex­
ample, the benefits in acquiring the
two bishops, or control of an open file,
or a more compact pawn structure, and
so on. In game after game we see him
inflicting a slight structural weakness
on his opponent and then gradually
increasing the pressure with a me­
thodical, step by step plan. Rubinstein
always strived for solid positional
domination - he was content to have a
slight advantage with White from the
opening and with Black a shade of po­
sitional disadvantage, which he could
gradually iron out with some precise
defensive moves. For this reason
Rubinstein was a genius of the Queen's
Gambit Declined - with White he
would give his opponent a slight
queenside weakness and gradually
wear it down, always keeping his op­
ponent at arm's length; while with
Black he would get somewhat the
worst of it but gradually soften up his
opponent.
It was this formidable player that
Alekhine had to face as White at Carls­
bad 1923. He could be sure that Rubin­
stein would counter 1 d4 with the
Queen's Gambit, and seek to equalize
by a series of accurate exchanges and,
in time, the standard freeing move
. . . c7-c5. The Polish Grandmaster would
also seize every opportunity to accu­
mulate small advantages, such as those
just mentioned: weakening the white
centre and grabbing the bishop pair.
75
Chess S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of Po we r Play
So how could Alekhine use power
play against such an opponent?
Well, the game was played in 1923,
which was rather a long time after
Rubinstein's finest results in the run-up
to World War One (in 1912 he won five
international tournaments!). He was
still positionally very strong, but his
tactical eye was perhaps rather
blunted. In any case, in 1923 very few
opponents could compete with
Alekhine in an exchange of tactical
blows.
So the 'second half' of the power
play method is straightforward
enough: once Rubinstein has been
forced into a tactically sharp position,
our hero is likely to outwit him. But
how can such a position be reached?
Rubinstein isn't going to allow any un­
clear, messy positions!
Alekhine found an ingenious solu­
tion to his problem: he discovered a
position in which he could use the
supposed accumulation of small ad­
vantages as 'bait' to lure Rubinstein
into a double-edged battle.
Game 2 7
A.Alekhine-A.Rubinstein
Carlsba d 1923
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 ctJf3 ctJf6 4 ctJC3 iLe7 5
ii.g5 ctJbd7 6 e3 0-0 7 l'tc1 c6 8 �C2 a6 9
a4 l'te8
A theoretical battleground of the
1920s: Black wants to play a freeing
manoeuvre with ... d5xc4 and ... ctJd5,
76
but he wants to wait until White plays
ii.d3 so that he gains a tempo. Hence
he dallies with moves like 8 ... a6 and
9 ... l'te8, and similarly White puts his
queen and rook on the c-file and plays
9 a4. But now Alekhine decides he
needs to develop his bishop.
10 ii.d3 dXc4 11 iLxC4 ctJd5
Rubinstein goes about his business.
Now after 12 iLxe7 �xe7, followed by
the exchange of knights on c3, he
would be ready to attack the white cen­
tre with ... e6-e5. After this simplifica­
tion he would be well on his way to
complete equalization.
12 i.f4!!
You may recall above that we
talked about accumulating small ad­
vantages such as the bishop pair and
inflicting a weakness in the opponent's
centre. Well, with just one move
Alekhine hands over the two bishops
and allows his pawns to be broken up.
Surely he is just playing into Rubin­
stein's hands? Let's see what happens:
12 ...ctJxf4 13 exf4
Alekhine has flouting standard
Queen's Gambit 'rules', but we should
remember that such rules often serve
as no more than very educated guesses
about what should be good or bad in a
position.
So we should consider the situation
with unprejudiced eyes. If White's
pawns are left unchallenged on d4 and
f4, then the pawn ram f4-f5 is a perma­
nent menace to the black kingside. Fur­
thermore, the pawns support the move
ctJe5, putting the knight on an excellent
central square where it can't be kicked
away by ... f7-f6 without creating a
weakness on e6. The knight's attack on
f7 would be complemented by the
enormous pressure that White would
be able to exert on e6, the pawn that
shelters it.
On the other hand, if Black re­
moved the knight with . . . ctJxe5, White
could recapture d4xe5, regrouping his
pawns with a space advantage.
So there is method in Alekhine's
madness. But can't Rubinstein just dis­
solve the centre pawns, with a good
game?
13 ... c5
The two bishops, a split white cen-
O p e n i n g O l d (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
tre, and now an unopposed freeing
move ... c6-c5 - Rubinstein must have
been delighted by all these 'presents'.
However, Alekhine has seen that Black
is violating a positional rule himself by
immediately attacking d4. Let's see the
fourth World Champion comment on
the diagram position:
"This move (13 ... c5), which goes
against the general principle of not open­
ing up fresh lines to a better-developed op­
ponent, is dictated by the wish to elimi­
nate White's troublesome pawn on f4.
White, who has not yet castled, can
scarcely oppose this plan, and the
game speedily assumes a most ani­
mated appearance. II (Alekhine's italics)
In other words, Rubinstein feels
obliged to punish Alekhine's positional
'blunder' 12 i.f4 with a positional
'blunder' of his own. Who prospers the
most from this state of affairs? Objec­
tively speaking, neither player: the
game has gone from being solidly bal­
anced to being dynamically balanced,
with White maintaining the slight edge
he had on move one.
Still, to borrow Alekhine's phrase, it
77

Chess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
has become "most animated" . This
change in the nature of the game un­
doubtedly favours the power player
Alekhine over the classical player
Rubinstein. As you would expect, he
quickly gains the upper hand in the
sharp tactical battle.
14 dxc5 "ilC7 15 0-0 �xf4
Black removes the more dangerous
pawn, the one that could ram him with
f4-fS or support 4:JeS. He also hopes to
gain time by attacking the c4-bishop.
16 4:Je41
With this temporary pawn sacrifice
White meets the threat to the bishop
and maintains the initiative. Instead,
the pusillanimous 16 4:Je2? leaves
White without enough energy to com­
bat the weakness of his queenside
pawns after 16 .. .'iWc7 17 b4 as! .
16 ...4:Jxc5
Here Kotov recommends 16 ... ..txcS
17 4:JegS .tf8! "with a fully defensible
position", but it isn't that easy for Black
after 18 ..id3, with pressure similar to
that in the game.
17 4:Jxc5 .txc5 18 ..id3
The discovered attack on cS ensures
78
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that the black king will be disturbed.
18 ... b6 19 ..txh7+ '>t>h8?
A routine move; the black king is
checked and it hides in the corner, as
the centre is a big bad world. In fact,
his majesty would be much safer after
19 . . .'iitf8! . The reasons why are dis­
cussed after the next move.
20 ..ie4 lia7?
Another serious mistake. Instead,
20 . . . Ii.b8 would have made Alekhine
work much harder for his win. In his
own notes he claims it can be achieved
in the variation 20 .. JIb8 21 g3 �f6 22
b4! Ji.d6 (or else 23 "fIc7 traps the rook
on b8, winning at least a piece) 23 �fdl
"ile7 24 ..tc6 �d8 2S I:I.d4, but here Ko­
tov says that Black can still resist with
2S . . .'iitg8! .
A t this point w e might talk about
'power play, part two' beginning. This
is the phase of the game in which
Alekhine is given the chance to show
off his brilliant control of the initiative
and eye for tactics. He can build on
four strands:
1) The black king can be attacked
along the open h-file.
www.Ebook777.com
2) The f7-pawn is undefended by
the black king.
3) The black rook on e8 is unde­
fended.
4) Back rank mates are possible
with 'iVxc8! if the black bishop is forced
from cS.
You will notice that none of these
four themes would have applied if
Black had played 19 ... '>t>f8! rather than
the 'obvious' 19 ... �h8. Routine is the
enemy of every chess player, no matter
how strong.
21 b4!
The bishop is forced to retreat, al­
lowing the white queen to infiltrate
down the c-file.
21.....tf8
The only move, as if 21.. . ..txb4 22
'ii'xc8! .l:!.xc8 23 .l:!.xc8+ and mate next
move.
22 'iic 6!
And now White wins more time by
hitting b6 and the rook on e8.
22 ....l:td7
There's no joy in 22 ... ..id7 23 'iixb6.
23 g3!
Not of course 23 'iixb6? 'iixe4. But
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n ds
now the black queen is forced to re­
treat, when her vital defensive power is
removed from the kingside.
23 .. :iWb8
If 23 .. .'iYd6 Alekhine intended to
combine threats to the black king and
pieces with 24 'ilVc4!, planning 2S ..tc6
':c7 26 "ikh4+ followed by 27 ..txe8.
Black is helpless; e.g. 24 ... �g8 2S ..tc6
11c7 26 :tfdl \i'e7 27 �d3! and the rook
on e8 is trapped.
24 4:Jg5!
With all the black pieces wrong­
footed on the queenside, Alekhine
suddenly switches to a direct attack on
the kingside.
24....l:!.ed8 25 Si.g6!
Exploiting the weakness of f7 to get
the white queen to the h-file with gain
of time.
25 .. :iWe5
The black queen returns to the cen­
tre, but only at the cost of an exchange
and pawn.
If instead 2S .. .fxg6 26 'ilVe4 threatens
mate in two with 27 'ilVh4+, when
26 .. J::td4 27 iVxg6 wouldn't help Black.
Or if 2S ... 'iitg8 26 �c4 �d4 27 ..txf7+
79
Chess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
Wh8 28 �c2 �d3 29 1i'e2 and the mate
threat on h7 decides the game.
26 l2Jxf7+ �xf7 27 iLxf7 "i!ff5 2S lUdl!
Scotching any hopes Black might
have had of picking up the f7-bishop.
2S .. Jbdl+ 29 ':xdl it'xf7 30 �xcS '.t>h7
31 'ii'x a6 'i!Vf3 32 'iYd 3+ 1-0
Coordinating the pieces across
the whole boa rd
In the following game, White's rooks
on the queenside are unexpectedly co­
ordinated with his other pieces in the
centre and on the kingside in an attack­
ing finale. It shows that even the great­
est players in the history of chess can
go badly wrong if their judgment of a
position is too far away from its reality.
Game 28
D.Bronstein-M.Botvinnik
2 2 n d matchga me,
Moscow 1 9 5 1
Dutch Defence
1 d4 e6 2 c4 f5 3 g3 l2Jf6 4 iLg2 i..e7 5
80
l2JC3 0-0 6 e 3 d 5 7 l2Jge2 c 6 S b 3 l2Je4 9
0-0 l2Jd 7 10 i.b2 l2Jdf6 11 'i!Vd3 g5 12
cxd5 exd5 13 f3 l2JxC3 14 i.xc3 g4 15
fxg4 l2Jxg4 16 .ih3 l2Jh6 17 l2Jf4 iLd6 is
b4 a6 19 a4 'iie 7 20 �abl b5 21 oltg2
l2Jg4 22 oltd2 l2Jf6 23 :b2
With his last move Bronstein has
signalled his intention of doubling
rooks on the a-file with the sequence of
moves l:tal, 'iWb3, to add a defender to
b4, and then Uba2.
Botvinnik could counter this with
23 ... l2Je4!, as after 24 i.el the plan of
l:tal would be obstructed. Or if White
presses ahead with 24 l1al he can ex­
change off with 24 ... l2Jxd2 25 'Yi'xd2 fol­
lowed by 25 ... .td7. In the absence of
White's dark square guardian, Black
can use his pressure against b4 and e3
for counterplay.
The game actually continued:
23 ... iLd7? 24 nal l2Je4 25 i.el!
It seems that the World Champion
got the relative value of his knight on
e4 and his opponent's bishop on el
completely wrong. It was an easy to
make such a misassessment as the
black horse is sitting on an impressive
outpost square in the centre, while the
white bishop is doing nothing much at
the moment except defending b4. In­
deed, it looks as if it has been put on el
solely to avoid getting in the way of the
work of the 'more important' pieces
down the a-file.
I think most of us would fall for
Bronstein's positional trap. Only later
do we see the role that the 'harmless'
bishop on el is going to play in mating
the black king.
25 .. JUeS 26 �b3 WhS 27 IIba2 li'f8?
Botvinnik adds a defender to a8 as
he needs to be able to answer 28 axb5
with 28 . . . axb5. But once again he makes
a misjudgment in avoiding an ex­
change of pieces. He should play
27 ... iLxf4!' Then after 28 exf4 he has for
counterplay the e-file and the chance to
attack d4. Instead, 28 gxf4 looks the
better recapture, but 28 ... 'iie6! ? intend­
ing 29 axb5 cxb5 and then 30 ... �g8
looks more or less satisfactory for
Black.
Botvinnik has failed to see the dam­
age that the white knight is going to do
to him once he spares its life. He is
O p e n i n g Old (a n d N e w) Wo u n d s
thinking in the following terms: "my
bishop on d6 is more valuable than the
white knight as it guards the dark
squares and attacks b4. And besides,
after ... .txf4 and White recaptures
g3xf4, his bishop might become active
with .tM. Why should I allows that?
Anyway, I can play . . . iLxf4 any time I
want."
28 l2Jd3 !
On the contrary, Bronstein under­
stands that he shouldn't give his oppo­
nent a second chance to exchange on
f4. Now he is all set for a 29 axb5 axb5
30 l1a7 breakthrough, so Botvinnik vol­
untarily concedes the fight for the a­
file.
2S ...l1ab8 29 axb5 axbs 30 11a7
Horrible things often happen to the
opponent's king when Bronstein's rook
reaches the seventh rank.
30 ...i::!.e 7 31 l2JeSI
We can easily see why 31.. ..txe5 32
dxe5 would leave Black in a much
worse way than if he had swapped on
f4 with 27 ... .ixf4 28 gxf4. The passed
pawn White acquires on e5 is a danger
in itself, or it could be sacrificed to
81
Chess Se cre ts: Th e G i a n ts of Po we r Play
open up an attack on the black king
with a sequence such as 'iVd3, 'iWd4,
.txe4, .tc3 and e5-e6, when the white
queen and bishop are deadly on the
dark squares.
31 .....ie8 32 g4!
A second great move, after which
the black position begins to totter. The
g-pawn undermines e4, breaks open
the f-file for the rook, and clears the
way for the bishop on el to enter the
attack. Note that if Black had played
27 . . ..txf4 then, after 28 gxf4, there
wouldn't have been a white g-pawn on
the board to cause havoc.
32 ...fxg4 33 .txe4 dxe4 34 ..ih4!
The dark-squared bishop joins the
attack to complete the coordination of
the white pieces.
34 ....l:i.xes
Here's a possible finish
82
34.. .l:ha7: 35 lIxa7 �6 36 'iWc3! ii'xh4
(or similarly 36 . . . .txe5 37 dxe5 "ifxh4 38
e6+) 37 tLJg6+! ..ixg6 38 d5+ �g8 39 'ifg7
mate.
35 dxes i.xes 36 �f1 'iWg8 37 .tg3!
If now 37 ... iLxg3 38 iic3+
mates, or 37 ...'ihb3 38 I!f8+ 'ifg8 39
.i.xe5, when the bishop that Botvinnik
sneered at back at move 23 has check­
mated his king.
37 ... .i.g7 38 "ifxg8+ 1-0
The rook on b8 drops. This is per­
haps Bronstein's best game: he shows
enormous strategic vision in combining
pressure on the queenside with action
in the centre and on the kingside. Not
many players succeeded in outwitting
Botvinnik in a positional struggle. The
World Champion's sins - namely the
avoidance of key exchanges - were
after
dealt with in ruthless style.
C h a pte r F o u r
The Life H istory of a Kn ight
In this chapter we'll take a look at the
and vicissitudes of fortune that a knight
might endure on the chess board. We'll
start with his happiest moments, when
he can add his unique power to that of
the queen in a combination. Then we
shall see him surveying the whole bat­
tlefield from an outpost square, de­
lighted not fearful to be in the front line
of the attack. After this, the mood
darkens, when the knight finds himself
caught up in an assault that fails. And
finally to his utter shame the horse is
hamstrung by the actions of mere
pawns.
Com binations with the knight
As you will be aware from reading this
book, Morphy had a stronger grasp of
strategy than any of his contemporar­
ies. Nonetheless, he has gone down in
popular legend as a brilliant,
swashbuckling tactician, not unlike
I
Anderssen. Certainly when the Ameri­
can was playing relatively weak oppo­
nents in unofficial games he gave his
astonishing tactical powers full expres­
sion. Here is my favourite example of
his genius for a combination.
Game 29
T.Barnes-P.Morphy
London 1858
Philidor Defence
1 e4 eS 2 tLJf3 d6 3 d4 fS 4 dxes fxe4 5
tLJgs dS 6 e6 ..icS 7 tLJf7 'iVf6 8 .te3 d4 9
.i.gs "iVfs 10 tLJxh8 'iNxgs 11 iLC4 "iVxg2
12 I:!.f1 lL'lc6 13 lL'lf7 lL'lf6 14 f3 lL'lb4 15
tLJa 3
This position was reached after a
messy tactical fight. Both kings are
trapped in the centre. You would imag­
ine that Morphy has enough compen­
sation for the exchange, but a tough,
double-edged battle still seems to lie
83
C h e s s S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay
ahead. Instead, Morphy's tactical vi­
sion cut through all the complications
and gave Black a decisive advantage in
just two moves:
15 ....l1.xe6! 16 .l1.xe6 liJd3+!!
It's all over, as White will be mated
upon 17 cxd3 .ib4+. Unbelievable but
true. White perishes because of the
weakness of the b4-square, despite
Black only having two pieces - the
queen and bishop - involved in the
attack.
Barnes gives up his queen, but it's
beyond hope against Morphy.
17 �xd3 exd3 18 0-0-0
The double threat of mate on e2 and
84
the bishop check on b4 oblige White to
part with a knight as well.
18 ... .l1.xa3 19 i.b3
To stop mate on b3.
19 ...d2+!
Not even letting the white rooks use
the e-file.
20 �b1 iLC5 21 liJe5 �f8 22 liJd3 Ue8!
Morphy is tactically sharp right un­
til the end of the game.
23 liJxC5 �xf1 24 liJe6+
He is mated on the back rank if he
takes the queen.
24 ...Uxe6 0-1
Game 30
D.Bronstein-E.Gelier
USSR C h a m pion s h i p,
Moscow 1961
Nimzo-Indian Defence
1 d4 liJf6 2 c4 e6 3 liJC3 i.b4 4 a3 ..ixc3+
5 bxc3 0-0 6 f3 d5 7 cxd5 exd5 8 e3 .if5
9 liJe2 liJbd7 10 liJf4 c5 11 .id3 .l1.xd3
12 �xd3 Ue8 13 0-0 Uc8 14 Ub1 �a 5
15 Uxb7 liJb6 16 g4 h6 17 h4 cxd4 18 g5
dxe3 19 gxf6 UXC3
Our two giants evidently assessed
the diagram position in contrasting
fashions. Let's tune into their thoughts:
Geller: I really don't understand
why Bronstein let his rook be shut out
of the game on b7. He practically in­
vited me to give up a piece for two cen­
tral passed pawns. It looks promising
for me as none of White's pieces are
coordinated with each other - his rooks
are widely separated, the bishop on c1
is passive, the knight is doing nothing
much on f4 and, best of all, I'm attack­
ing the white queen.
Bronstein: I agree with my oppo­
nent's assessment. But I have the most
powerful weapon in chess: the next
move!
20 �g6!! 1-0
Black had to resign as after 20 . . . fxg6
the reply 21 Uxg7+ and 22 liJxg6 mate
follows.
It turns out that the white queen
and rook on b7, which appear to be cut
off from each other, can join forces in
mating the black king, along with the
pawn on f6 and our hero the knight on
f4.
Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a Kn ig h t
The power of a n outpost
Knights love being situated on centre
squares where they are supported by a
friendly pawn and can't be evicted by
an enemy pawn. If a horse can be se­
curely established on such an outpost
deep in enemy territory then the game
is often strategically won. Paul Morphy
understood this long before such ideas
were codified into the laws of posi­
tional chess by the teachings of Steinitz
and other great thinkers. Morphy knew
intuitively what others had to discover
through hard work and deep analysis.
Game 31
P.Morphy-L.Paulsen
New York 1 8 5 7
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 liJf3
Morphy plays a prototype Morra
Gambit. After 3. . . e5 4 c3! (but not 4
liJxe5? �a5+) White will gain an initia­
tive for the pawn, so Paulsen leads
play into the main line.
85
Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play
3 ...e6 4 ttJxd4 i.cs
A modem interpretation of this idea
would be 4 ... a6 5 SLd3 SLc5 6 ttJb3 i.a7.
With the white bishop on d3 blocking
the queen's view of the d6-square, i.f4
could be met by seizing centre ground
with ... d7-d6 and . . . e6-e5, assuming
that Black didn't have an even better
tactical response.
S ttJb3 .ib6 6 ttJC3 ttJe7 7 SLf4 O-O?
It was imperative to free his game
with 7. . . d5!, even though it meant be­
ing saddled with an isolated pawn.
S SLd6!
A very simple example of removing
the energy from the opponent's posi­
tion. If you stop your opponent from
moving his d-pawn, you stop him de­
veloping his bishop on cS, which in
tum stops him developing his rook on
a8. While Black is concerned with ex­
tricating these pieces from the bind, he
is going to be outgunned in the strug­
gle for control of the centre. Morphy
can use his extra power either to begin
a direct attack on the black king or to
assail the backward pawn on d7.
In the game things happen rather
86
differently. Paulsen makes no effort to
free his queenside pieces, but instead
starts a kingside attack. This is doomed
to failure against a resourceful oppo­
nent.
S ...fS 9 eS a6 10 �e2 ttJbc6 11 0-0 1:tf7
12 <t>h1 f4?
An aggressive gesture that very
kindly gives the white knight the e4-
square.
13 ttJe4 ttJfS 14 .ihS!
Provoking Black's reply, after which
an even better post for the white knight
appears on f6.
14 ... g6 lS �g4 ttJg7 16 �f3 hS
The 'attack' continues. It can have
no positional justification when Black
has a rook and bishop entombed on the
queenside, but Morphy nevertheless
has to be vigilant.
17 i.h3 �h4 18 ttJf6+ 'it>hS 19 'iYe4!
When you have achieved ascen­
dancy on the dark squares, you should
always look for a winning break­
through on a light square. Here White
has d6, e5 and f6 in his grasp, so Mor­
phy tries to conquer g6. If he is allowed
to play 20 'ilVxg6 the game would end at
once due to the threat of mate on the h­
file and the attack on the black rook.
19 .. :iVgs
Being tied to the defence of a weak
pawn is seldom a good role for a self­
respecting queen.
20 g31
An excellent move. Morphy plans
to open the f-file for his rooks with
20 . . . fxg3 21 fxg3!. You can see that the
logic of the position is against Paulsen.
It is White, not Black, who is bound to
prosper from the German Master's ill
conceived plan of throwing forward
his pawns on the kingside. How could
it be otherwise when Black is minus the
services of a rook and bishop?
20 ...f3
Paulsen tries to keep the kingside
closed. He hopes to deflect the white
queen so that 21 "iVxf3 ttJxe5 allows him
to loosen some of the bind (though
even here 22 �c3! is still excellent for
White).
21 ttJd211
Brilliant. Instead of capturing on f3
with his queen, which would have lost
energy, Morphy intends to take on f3
Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t
with the knight, adding new power to
his kingside attack.
You won't ever see a better example
of the adage that tactics should support
strategy. Only one white minor piece
wasn't contributing to the harmony of
the white position, and that was the
knight on b3. So Morphy brings it into
action through the 'forbidden' d2-
square, as after 21.. .'Wxd2 22 'iYxg6 ':xf6
(what else?) 23 exf6 Black has to resign.
21 ... i.dS 22 ttJxf3 'ii'h6 23 .l::tg1
Planning 24 g4 when if 24 ... h4 25 g5
traps the queen. It makes sense for
Black to keep the g-file blocked, but
24 . . .h4 is an example of strategy not
being supported by tactics!
2 3 ...SLXf6
Paulsen succeeds in eliminating the
white knight, but the opening of lines
soon proves fatal.
24 exf6 ttJeS?
He should fight it out with
24 . . .�xf6, even though 25 ttJe5 looks
entirely gruesome - he would soon be
mated by l;Iafl etc if he took the pawn
on f2.
2S i.f4 CLlxf6
87

C h e s s Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
2S... 'ii'h7 26 tiJgS etc is no better.
26 'iVxc6!
Nowadays the desperado is a famil­
iar tactical motif, but Paulsen appears
to have overlooked it.
26.. :iWxf4 27 'i!Vxc8+
A vital zwischenzug.
27 ...J:.xc8 28 gxf4 .:!:XC2 29 Itac1
Black is a piece down and, in trying
to get some more pawns as compensa­
tion, he permits Morphy to finish the
game with a mating attack.
29 ...nxf2 30 Itc8+ tiJg8 31 tiJe5 !lg7 3 2
tiJxg6+ � h 7 3 3 tiJf8+ �h6 3 4 tiJxd7!
This is all very elegantly played. It
is impossible not to love Morphy's en­
ergy, even when we are sometimes
made rather unpleasantly aware of the
weakness of his opponents.
34.. Jlxd7 35 rl.cxg8 lIxf4 36 !iL.xe6 l:!.e7
37 l:t8g6+ �h7 38 .tg8+ �h8 39 �h6+
!lh7
If this was a game played in the
20th century I would be tempted to say
that Paulsen must have been in such
desperate time pressure that he didn't
have the chance to resign.
40 liIxh7 mate
88
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The power of a knight on fS
Bronstein once said that
prompted him to start his investiga­
tions into the King's Indian Defence­
was the powerful urge to deny the
white knight the fS-square with a quick
... g7-g6. The next two games show us
why, as an unchallenged horse hovers
like one of the Valkyries over the bat­
tlefield.
Game 32
E.Gelier-A.Kotov
USSR Cha m pion s h i p,
Moscow 1955
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 es 2 lDf3 tiJc6 3 .tbS a6 4 iLa4 tiJf6
S 0-0 !iL.e7 6 l::.e1 bS 7 i.b3 0-0 8 d 3
Geller's restrained approach t o the
opening has been used with success by
both Fischer and Kasparov. Notably,
the Marshall Gambit theory fest after 8
c3 dS is avoided.
8 ... d6 9 c3 tiJa5 10 .te2 c5 11 tiJbd2
'it'c7?!
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This is a standard move if White
has committed himself to d2-d4, when
what Black can exert pressure along the c-file
after ... cSxd4 etc. Here, however, Geller
is able to manoeuvre quietly with the
aim of embarrassing the queen with a
future tiJdS. Instead, Black managed to
hold on after 1 1 . . .tiJc6 12 tiJf1 Ite8 13 h3
h6 14 d4 cxd4 15 cxd4 exd4 16 tiJxd4
tiJxd4 17 'ii'xd4 i.b7 in G.Kasparov­
p.svidler, Linares 1999.
12 CDf1 tiJc6 13 tiJe3 Ire8?!
The immediate 13 ... .te6 to control
the dS-square looks more sensible,
though White can get a slight edge
with 14 tiJgS!? intending IS 'it'f3, and
then if permitted 16 CDxe6 fxe6 17 'it'h3!
with some pressure on the e6-pawn.
14 d4
14 CDd5!? looks quite strong.
14 ... exd4 1S exd4 i.f8?!
Kotov plays to win a pawn. He
should prefer lS ... cxd4 16 tiJxd4 tiJxd4
17 'it'xd4 with some advantage to
White.
16 b3! lDb4
A necessary preliminary to pawn
grabbing, as if 16 ... tiJxe4?? 17 CDd5 and
The L ife History of a Kn ig h t
Black loses a piece.
17 i.b1 tiJxe4
Consistent with his previous moves,
but it leads to a lot of trouble.
18 .iLb2
I like the nonchalance of the moves
16 b3 and 18 i.b2: White calmly de­
ploys his bishop and leaves Black to
figure out how to meet the threat of 19
a3 CDc6 20 tiJdS.
18 ... .iLb7
Kotov develops and prepares to an­
swer 19 a3 with 19 .. .tZJdS.
19 d S ! !
A successful attack depends on ob­
structing the action of the defender's pieces
as well as opening lines for your own
pieces. Geller's move closes the diago­
nal of Black's bishop on b7 and pre­
vents his knight returning to the centre
with 19 . . . tiJdS. The consequences of 19
dS will be felt right until the end of the
game. The knight on b4 will never be
involved in the defence of the black
king, either directly or indirectly, and
when the bishop on b7 tries to help the
defence it ends up blocking the vital
action of its own rook.
89
Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play
Geller's move also introduces the
threat of 20 a3, trapping the black
knight, which means that Kotov
doesn't have the chance to reinforce his
kingside defences before the storm
breaks.
19 ...e4
So 20 a3 c3! (better than 20 . . . lZ'ld3) 21
.iel c2! is a nuisance for White.
20 bxe4 bxe4 21 .ixe4!
White has to overcome a psycho­
logical barrier in making this move, as
the light-squared bishop is a wonderful
attacking piece. On the other hand, the
exchange on e4 wins vital time to bring
his queen and knights into the attack.
Here 'power play, part two' has be­
gun: the sharp, tactical exploitation of
the advantage that has been gained in
the preparatory phase. From now on
Kotov is hit by one threat after another.
21 .. J:txe4 22 lZ'lgs
If Black had left his queen on d8
back at move 11 this knight move
would have been ruled out.
22 ...l:te7 23 'iWhs h6 24 lZ'lfs ll
Black's pieces are allowed no res­
pite.
90
24 ....l:r.xel+ 25 J:bel hxgs
If 2S ... .ixdS White is nevertheless
able to exploit the weakness of the f7-
square: 26 .ixg7! �xg7 27 'u'e7 'iiVc8 28
lZ'lxf7! with decisive threats, such as 29
lZ'l7xh6+ or the quiet 29 'iWg6! aiming to
mate on g7.
26 ne3!
The white rook prepares to swing to
h3 to finish matters.
26....ieB
If 26 . . . .ixdS 27 nh3 f6 28 'iVg6 with
the winning threat of 29 lZ'lh6+ 'it>h8 30
lZ'lf7+ 'it>g8 31 .iIh8 mate. Instead, after
26 . . . f6 27 'iiVg6 i.c8 28 lDh6+ 'it>h8 Black
has kept the rook out of h3, but it can
strike lethally from another direction:
29 .ixf6! lZ'lxdS 30 lIe8 and again White
wins.
27 .ixg7!
One of Geller's favourite techniques
is to combine a frontal attack down an
open file with pressure along a key
diagonal. Here the diversionary sacri­
fice on g7 will win time for an invasion
on e8.
27 ....ixg7 2B l:teB+ i.fB 29 l:!.xfB+! 1-0
It's mate on h8 next move.
Next up is a game between two of
the greatest forces in the history of
chess. Emanuel Lasker became W orId
Champion in 1894, and Alekhine's
reign ended in 1946. Once again the
knight on fS is a vital attacking force.
Game 33
A.Alekhine-Em.Lasker
Zurich 1934
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 ds 2 e4 e6 3 lZ'le3 lZ'lf6 4 lZ'lf3 .ie7 5
.ltgs lZ'lbd7 6 e3 0-0 7 lIel e6 B .id3
dxe4 9 .ixe4 lZ'lds
Lasker plays the Capablanca freeing
manoeuvre.
10 i.xe7 'ttxe7 11 lZ'le4
White retains the knight which is
usually exchanged off after 11 0-0 lZ'lxc3
12 1:txc3 eS.
This was something of an Alekhine
speciality. He used it eight times in his
1927 match with Capablanca, but his
score of eight draws wasn't entirely
satisfactory. On the other hand he
managed four wins and two draws
The L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t
with it in tournament games.
11 ...lZ'lsf6
The correct way to challenge
White's knight, as after 1 1 .. .lZ'l7f6 12
lZ'lg3 Black can't play 12 . . .eS.
12 lZ'lg3 es 13 0-0 exd4 14 lZ'lfs
White attacks the black queen at
once, as after 14 lZ'lxd4 lZ'leS IS lZ'lgfS she
has the c7-square available to her - a
better square than d8, as will be seen.
14..JiVdB 15 lZ'l3xd4 ttJes 16 .ib3 .ixfs
17 lZ'lxfs
So the exchange of minor pieces
that Alekhine avoided with 11 lZ'le4 has
occurred after all, but with the differ­
ence that White's knight has been
swapped for the black bishop rather
than knight. In situations such as this,
the white bishop on b3 is always going
to be slightly superior to a black
knight. Hence Lasker doesn't find the
endgame with 17 . . . 'iVxdl 18 .l:f.fxdl very
appealing, especially as lZ'ld6 is loom­
ing.
17 ...'iVb6?
In avoiding the slightly worse end­
game Lasker unexpectedly falls under
a direct attack. Alekhine's play from
now on is superb. He knows that if he
is lazy for even one move his oppo­
nent, perhaps the most resourceful de­
fender in the history of chess, will slip
out. For example, if left in peace Black
completely equalizes with 18 .. J�ad8.
Therefore White has to keep hitting the
black position with direct threats.
lB 'ifd6!
As we shall discuss in the next
chapter, Alekhine was unsurpassed in
the art of finding attacking squares for
91
Chess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o wer Play
his queen. It isn't an easy skill to learn
- if the queen is kept a little too far
from the battle an attack often fails for
want of energy; if she is put a little too
much into the melee she can be either
exchanged off for the enemy queen or
hounded by the other enemy pieces.
Alekhine normally aimed to stick his
queen somewhere on the third rank,
where she could boss the battlefield
whilst keeping out of range of the en­
emy's fire. Here he has seen that the
g3-square will become available after
Black's reply.
1S ... lLled7
If 1 8 .. JIfe8? 19 lLle7+ or 18 ... lLlfd7?
19 f4 and Black drops material. Ideally
he would like to use his knight to
shield the g-file, but 18 ... lLlg6 allows 1 9
lLlh6+ gxh6 (the pressure o n f 7 from
White's bishop rules out 19 .. .'�h8?) 20
"iVxf6 etc, when his pawns have been
smashed up.
19 11fd1 !lad8?
A routine move that loses the game.
The last chance Black had to save him­
self was to correct his 17th move with
19 .. :�a5! or 19 ... "iVb5!, when his queen
92
rejoins the fight. Besides attacking the
white knight she would be in a posi­
tion to swing over to e5, challenging
the dominance of the white queen.
20 'ii'g 3 g6
Black is still only one move from be­
ing perfectly okay, as 21.. .lLlc5 would
exchange off White's strong bishop and
begin simplification down the d-file
with .. Jlxd1 and ... J:!.d8 etc. In that case,
Lasker's queen would be in the thick of
the action, while her white counterpart
would be rather isolated on g3.
With his next move Alekhine en­
sures that the focus of events is on the
kingside, so that it is his queen rather
than Lasker's that is full of energy.
21 "it'g51
The black knight on d7 is paralysed
by the need to keep f6 defended, and
so the vital freeing move 21...lLlc5 is
prevented.
21 .. .';t;hS 22 lLld6 'it>g7
White has all his pieces on excellent
attacking squares, but he still needs to
find extra power to overcome the de­
fence. As so often this is supplied by a
humble foot soldier.
23 e4!
There are two ideas behind this
move. The first is to advance 24 e5,
which would drive the knight back
from f6 and introduce tactics, such as a
piece sacrifice on f7 followed by a fork
with e5-e6. The other idea is to clear
the way for a white rook to join the
queen in a direct attack on the king­
side.
Lasker is so preoccupied with tak­
ing measures against the first idea that
he completely misses the strength of
the second one.
23 ...lLlgS 24 1:[d3
Alekhine is in no rush to play 24 e5.
He prepares to double rooks on the d­
file, while also giving his opponent the
chance to fall for a trap.
24...f61
The black knight has retreated to g8
to avoid being hit by e4-e5, and now a
barrier is put up against the white
pawn advance. Evidently Lasker felt he
had survived the worst, and would
even be able to use the e5-point as a
base for his knight with 25 . . .lLle5. Alas
for him, he should have been looking
Th e L ife History of a K n ig h t
towards the right of the board, rather
than the centre. In any case, after say
24 .. :�c7 25 !lcd1, Black is under severe
pressure and would have little chance
of holding out against an Alekhine.
25 lLlf5+ 'it>h8 26 "iVxg611 1-0
A beautiful end to the game, for if
26 ... hxg6 27 .t1h3+ lLlh6 28 J:!.xh6 mate. It
is fitting that Alekhine's fine manoeu­
vres with his queen were capped with
her sacrifice.
Sometimes you have to retreat
to go forwards
Game 34
E.Gelier-S.Gligoric
USSR vs Rest of the World
match, Belgrade 1970
RUy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 lLlf3 lLle6 3 iLb5 a6 4 .ia4 lLlf6
5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:1e1 b5 7 iLb3 d6 8 e3 0-0 9
h3 h6 10 d4 l:1e8 11 lLlbd2 id8 12 lLlf1
.ib7 13 lLlg3 lLla5 14 iLe2 lLle4 15 b3
lLlb6 16 iLb2 lLlbd7 17 'iWd2 e5 18 J:!.ad1
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 The L ife History of a Knig h t
Chess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play

'iia 5 19 dxc5 dXc5 20 c4 b4 21 a4 fliC7 Threatening 31 ttJe7+! iLxe7 32 'i'h7+

In return for two minor pieces,
22 ttJf5 Geller has a rook and a mobile centre and mate next move.

pawn. He has succeeded in pushing 30 ... �g6 31 �e2!

back the black knight from f6, but how

Here Gligoric played:
22 ...ttJb8
He intends the manoeuvre ... ttJc6
and ... ttJd4. This is a great positional
idea, but for the space of one move it
puts the knight out of the game and
leaves Black's centre under-defended.
In chess as well as life, you have to
strike while the iron is hot. Geller has
one fleeting moment to carry out his
is he to continue his initiative? If noth­
ing happens fast Gligoric will be able
to organize his pieces and come out on
top. Once again Geller found the way
to give his pieces vital energy.
27 ttJh411
We all admire 'loud' moves such as
23 ttJxe5!, but it is often an unobtrusive,
The white pawns have succeeded in
quiet move of this kind which wins a
bagging the black queen.
game. Its paradoxical nature means
33 ... flixe5 34 'ii'g4+ 'iig7 35 ttJxg7 ttJf6
that it catches the opponent off guard,
Now it's the black queen's tum to 36 "iVf4 .ltxg7 37 'ikC71
as he has only been looking out for ob­
be menaced by the knight check on e7. As I remark elsewhere, players tend
vious 'body blows'.
In running away she falls into a more to 'back off' once they have won mate­
It seems that Philidor was right af­
insidious trap. rial. Not so Geller: he keeps on harass­
ter all when he claimed that the pieces
31 .. :i'g5? ing the black pieces and concludes the
were the servants of the pawns. The
Necessary was 31...'i:Ye6. Then Geller game in the quickest way.
knight is ordered to retreat from its
gives a variation which is characteristic 37 ... ltb8 38 ltd6 ttJg4 39 l:txc6 .ltd4+ 40
dream outpost on f5, as the f-pawn
of his power play style: 32 'iWe4! (notice �f1 1-0
wants to use the square.
27 ...ttJc6 the way he gets his queen from d3 to e4

attack or it will be too late. He seized If Geller had shown any indecision with gain of time so that his rook can A battle between potential
his chance with: on the previous move, the Serbian use the open d-file) 32 .. :i'g6 33 �d7! outposts
23 ttJxe 5 ! Itxe5 24 iLxe5 'i'xe5 25 f4 Grandmaster would be in a position to (one of the Ukrainian Grandmaster's

�e6 26 e5 ttJe8 complete his development with favourite tactical devices is the combi­

2B ... lIdB. Instead, he is overwhelmed nation of diagonal pressure against the

by a series of forcing moves.
28 'iWd3!
The threat of mate on h7 compels
Black to make a 'hook' on g6 for
White's f4-f5 advance. Bronstein once
said of a similar situation: "along with
the witty and subtle finesses aimed at
provoking weakenings of the king's
pawn cover, one should not forget such
things as one-move mate threats."
28 ...g6 29 f5 ! gxf5 30 ttJxf5
enemy king with the utilization of an
open file in the centre) 33 . . . iLcB 34 e6!
(and here is another feature of his style:
the pawn ram! - both c6 and £7 are now
attacked, so Black has no choice but to
give White a passed pawn) 34 ... iLxd7
35 exd7 ttJg7 36 ttJxg7 'it>xg7 37 'iixg6+
fxg6 38 iLe4! and White regains his
piece with 39 .ixc6, when the d-pawn
wins the game for him.
32 h4 iif4 33 g3!
Game 35
D.Bronstein.S.Gligoric
Moscow 1967
RUy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 iLb5 a6 4 i..a4 ttJf6
5 0-0 i.e7 6 iLxc6 dxc6 7 d3 ttJd7 8
ttJbd2 0-0 9 ttJc4 f6 10 ttJh4 ttJC5 11 ttJf5
i..xf5 12 exf5 l;Ie8 13 b3 'iVd5 14 iLb2 e4
15 ttJe3 �f7 16 d4 ttJd7 17 flig4 c5 18
flixe4 cxd4 19 iLxd4 c6 20 lIad1 ttJC5 21

95
94
Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
�g4 ..tf8 22 tLlc4 lIad8 23 ..te3 bS 24
lLld2 ndS 2S c4 'udd8 26 cxbS cxbS 2 7
lLlf3 1.:tdS 28 lLld4 lIees 2 9 �d2 1Vd7 30
lIcl b4
Here Bronstein might have re­
treated his knight with 31 lLlf3, when
he has some edge after 31 . . .lIe4 32 'iVh3.
Admittedly his queen would be rather
out of things, but he could hope to
build up pressure against the rather
loose black queenside while his oppo­
nent was preoccupied with regaining
his pawn. However, Bronstein saw a
clever tactical trap that allows him to
pursue a far more powerful strategy.
31 h 3 !
Making a hole o n h2 t o escape back
rank threats, but also giving his oppo­
nent the chance to err. If now 31.. .l:te4
32 li'd1 ! and this time the white queen
stays in the thick of the action.
31 ...lLle4
Both sides have advanced pawns
that provide outposts for their knights
in enemy territory. White's pawn on f5
supports lLle6; the black pawn on b4
supports . . .lLlc3. Gligoric hopes to seize
his own base after 32 l:td3? lLlc3, when
96
the pin on the d-file means that Bron­
stein can't reply lLle6. In fact the pres­
sure on d4 would be so great that he
would have to try to save himself with
the exchange sacrifice 33 l:tdxc3.
32 lidc21 ':xd4
Gligoric is jubilant as he has elimi­
nated the threat of lLle6 and expects to
gain two pieces for a rook. Instead, he
should have modestly taken control of
his own outpost with 32 ...lLlc3, when
the white rooks are shut out.
Not that this would have given him
an easy life, as White can then jump
into e6. After 33 lLle6! Black has no time
to dismantle the outpost with
33 ... lIxf5? as White can return the com­
pliment in the severest style with 34
lLlxf8 <;t>xf8 35 �xb4+, not only disman­
tling the outpost but winning the
knight as well! If Black supported his
outpost with 33 ... .td6 (or similarly
33 ... a5 34 a3! ) White can break open a
new line for his rooks with 34 a3! as 35
axb4 axb4 36 l:ta2 ! ! . If now 36 . . . lLlxa2 37
l:tc8+! and, thanks to the power of the
knight on e6, Black is mated by 37 ... i..f8
38 llxf8 or 37. . . �f7 38 �xg7 mate.
These variations demonstrate an
important rule of dynamic strategy: an
outpost near the opponent's king is more
valuable than an outpost on the other wing.
Or as a great player once remarked:
"when you put a knight on e6 you can
go to sleep - the game will win itself!"
33 :c7!
Black has avoided the danger from
the white knight, but at the cost of the
rooks infiltrating into his position.
33 ... 'ilVds
The outpost on c3 wouldn't save
Black any longer, as after 33 ... lLlc3 34
lixd7 .uxd7 he lacks the one move
needed for consolidating with . . . a6-a5,
which gives White the chance to create
a passed pawn with 35 �c4+ �f7 36
�xa6 l:txf5 37 a4!.
34 i..xd4 �xd4 3 s lIxg7+!!
Bronstein had to foresee this mating
move before he played 31 h3.
3S ...i..xg7 36 lic8+ cj;;f7 37 'iih S+ rtie7
38 'iWe8+ rtid6 39 lic6+
Evidently White was enjoying him­
self too much to play 39 �d8 mate.
39...cj;;d S 40 "iVd7+ 1-0
It is mate in two moves.
The L ife H is t o ry of a Knig h t
An attack with knights doesn't
always win!
If the defender has avoided any chess
sins, such as allowing a piece to be shut
out of the game or gratuitously weak­
ening his defences, there is no reason
why he should fall victim to a pair of
marauding knights. Here for the sake
of balance is a fine defen­
sive/counterattacking effort by Veselin
Topalov against an over-eager attack.
Game 36
A.Morozevich-V.Topalov
Dortm u n d 2001
Petroff Defence
1 e4 eS 2 lLlf3 lLlf6
The modern elite player with the
style closest to that of Adolf Anderssen
is Alexander Morozevich. He tries to
generate double-edged, obscure posi­
tions which suit his combinative flair
and keen eye for tactical chances. Most
players try to push their opponent over
the cliff's edge while avoiding the drop
themselves. In contrast, Morozevich is
willing to plummet earthwards whilst
grappling with his opponent, confident
that he will find an outlying branch to
grab at the last moment.
Against such a dangerous adver­
sary, Topalov decides he should qui­
etly centralize his pieces. He wants
solid ground under his feet when the
complications start. The dull Petroff is
the perfect way to provoke his restless
opponent into premature action.
97

Chess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
3 liJxe5 d6 4 liJf3 liJxe4 5 ..td3
Aha! The bishop is already dream­
ing of mating the black king on h7 ...
5...liJf6 6 h3 ..te7 7 0-0 0-0 8 e3 e5 9
..te2 liJe6 10 d4 i.e6 11 I1el h6 12 .ie3
l:te8 13 liJbd2 i.f8 14 liJe4 liJd 5
Topalov sees the chance to grab his
beloved bishop pair. Morozevich isn't
too concerned as it allows his heavy
pieces to take up an aggressive posture
along the e-file.
15 dxe5 liJxe3 16 l:txe3 dxe5 17 "iVe2
"WIe7 18 l:tel ltad8 19 liJeg5!?
The first probe. Black is given two
chances to go wrong:
a) If 19 . . . .id7? 20 'i'd3! when the
98
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queen and bishop battery against h7 is
triumphant. Morozevich needed to
calculate 20 . . . g6 21 liJxf7! i.. f5 (it's mate
in one if the knight is captured) 22
liJxd8! i..xd3 23 Ihe8 1i.xc2? (he is los­
ing too much material anyhow) 24
l:txf8+! 'it>xf8 25 liJe6+ and the black
queen is lost.
b) 19 ... hxg5? 20 liJxg5 g6 (Black's
king won't survive long after 20 . . . i.. d6
21 "Yi'h5) 21 i.xg6! fxg6 22 liJxe6 "Yi'f7 23
liJxd8 1::!.xd8 and White has a rook and
two pawns plus attacking chances for
two pieces.
19 •.. l:td61
Rebuffing White's attack with the
power of centralization.
20 liJe4
Back again - no harm has been
done in seeing if Black would falter.
20 ...�dd8 21 liJfg5!
White tries again with his other
knight. Now 21.. .hxg5 22 liJxgS would
transpose to variation 'b' in the note to
19 liJeg5.
You can see that Black doesn't have
the ... J:1d6 defence that he used at move
19, as the rook would hang to the
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Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t
knight still on e4. But on the positive centralization defeating a premature
side, unlike after 19 liJeg5, there is no attack. Topalov pins the knight and so
pin on the e-file, so Topalov can acti­ threatens the simple 23 . . . ..txe4 24 ..txe4
vate his bishop. lIxg5. Therefore White's reply is
21 ... ..td 5 ! 22 "iVh 5? forced.
White is too ambitious. He should 2 3 f4 !!f5 !
make do with the quirky 22 liJh7!. Then Intending t o get maximum value
the knight is taboo because if from having his rook on his fourth
22 . . . 'it>xh7? 23 liJf6+ 'it>h8 24 l:lxe8! (even rank. White's position would start to
better than 24 liJxe8, winning the ex­ crumble if he allows the f4-pawn to fall
change) 24... gxf6? 25 'iNd3 and the at­ to the black queen.
tack on h7 comes up trumps. Instead, 24 g3 g6 25 "Yi'h4 e4!!
after 22 . . . 1i.e7 23 liJxc5! the tactics work
out in White's favour, the simplest be­
ing 23 . . . 1i.xc5?? 24 !he8+ and mates,
while the attack on h7 wins again after
23 ... 'it>h8 24 liJf6! gxf6 25 "iVd3 etc.
So Black would have to respond
with the simplifying 22 . . . ..txe4! 23 .l:Ixe4
J:!.e7! (not giving White the chance to
set up the queen and bishop battery
with 23 .. .1he4? 24 "Yi'xe4) 24 liJxf8 (now
after 24 liJf6+? gxf6 White has no good
follow-up to his attack, as Black can
defend with . . . .tg7 as necessary) The value of this pawn push be­
24 ... 'it>xf8 with about equal chances. comes clear at move 29. Black could
22 ...�e5!! already go for the line 2S . . .hxgS 26
liJxgS �xgS 27 "iVxgS, but with the
white pieces in a tangle there is no
need to rush.
26 'it>h2
Morozevich can't extricate his
knight with 26 liJ£3, as after 26 ... .lte7! 27
"ii'xh6 ..txe4! (but not 27 ... l:thS?? 28
liJf6+! when Black is mated in two
moves - you can never be too careful!)
28 .¥i.xe4 l:thS the white queen's reckless
adventure on the h-file has led to her
being trapped.
A classic example of the power of 26 •.• Wg7 27 "Yi'g4 hxg5
99
Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
At last it is the right moment to
takes the material.
28 lL'lxgS tlxgs 29 �xgs �b6!
Topalov's defence against White's
attack is made all the easier thanks to
his 2Sth move which allows his queen
to engage in a counterattack.
30 fS
White has many successes in this
book through thrusting his f-pawn at
the black defences. Indeed, it looks
highly menacing here as both 31 f6+
followed by .i.xg6! and 31 fxg6 are
looming. But Topalov has prepared
well for this move with 2S ... c4! and
29 . . :iVb6! '
30....i.e7!
A complete answer to White's
threats, for if 31 tlxe7 Black mates in
one move!
31 �f4 �xb2
Topalov's attack gets in first as
Morozevich lacks time to play 32 tlxe7
and 33 f6+.
32 tlxe7 "iVXC2+ 33 tl1e2 "iVxfs
The disappearance of the f-pawn
robs White of any way to cause prob­
lems for the black king. His continued
1 00
resistance smacks of time trouble.
34 �xfS gxfs 35 tle8 tld 7 36 tld 2 �f6
37 �gl lL'les 38 �2 lL'ld 3+ 39 �e3 .i.c6
40 tlb8 tle7+ 0-1
White's final ignominy is that his
king is mated after 41 �d4 tle4.
The weakness of a knight denied
centre squares
Having praised the knight for most of
this chapter, we shall now attempt to
bury it. Its chief weakness, compared
to the bishop, is that it can't control
squares from a distance. Therefore it
can be a feeble piece if it is denied a
safe post in or near the centre.
Topalov had studied Gata Kam­
sky's games in the Poisoned Pawn
Variation and seen a chance to disrupt
the harmony between the American's
pieces and pawns.
Game 37
G.Kamsky-V.Topalov
Sofia 2006
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 cS 2 lL'lf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 lL'lxd4 lL'lf6
5 lL'lC3 a6 6 .i.gs e6 7 f4 "iVb6 8 lL'lb3
White wants a more positional fight
and so declines to offer the pawn.
8 ... ii.e7 9 "iVf3 tZJbd7 10 0-0-0 "iVC7 11
ii.d3 bS 12 tlhe1 .i.b7 13 �h 3?
A poor move that allows his knight
on c3 to be driven out of the game.
More circumspect was 13 �bl, when if
13 . . .b4 14 lL'le2 keeps the knight central­
ized. But Kamsky was still following
one of his earlier games ...
13 ...b4! 14 tZJb1
After 14 lL'le2 the white queen is no
longer defending e4, so Black can fairly
safely snaffle a pawn with 14 ... tZJxe4 IS
i.xe7 �xe7. Naturally, if Kamsky had
wanted to play a double-edged pawn
sacrifice he would have given up the
poisoned pawn on move eight!
14...eS!
With his last two pawn moves To­
palov wins the opening battle. In an
earlier game G.Kamsky-LSmirin, FIDE
World Cup, Khanty Mansiysk 200S,
Black had played the immediate
14 ... aS?!, which had allowed White's
knight to become active with IS lL'ld4!.
From this central square it introduced
ideas of both lL'lbS and the sacrifice
tZJxe6. What's more, Black could no
longer play . . .e6-eS without allowing
the dangerous lL'lfS move, which meant
that the pawn ram e4-eS was always a
latent threat. White's game was there­
fore dynamic.
Now let's examine the situation af­
ter 14 . . . eS. Firstly, the white knight has
been denied a central post on d4. Sec-
Th e L ife History of a K n ig h t
ondly, Black has ruled out the pawn
ram e4-eS without allowing any lL'lfS
attack. And thirdly, with ideas such as
e4-eS, lL'lbS or lL'lxe6 all gone out of the
window, the white queen is looking
rather shut out of things on h3.
This brief assessment shows us how
14 ... eS! has sapped most of the energy
out of the white position. Topalov's
queenside pawns are mobile, and can
be supported in their advance by the
black pieces, whereas Kamsky's pieces
and pawns are no longer cooperating
together to generate active play. In
other words, White's game is passive.
lS lL'lld2 a s !
This pawn thrust i s all the better for
being delayed a move. Good moves
need to be played at the right moment!
16 �b1 a4 17 lL'lc1
17 ...0-0!
It is interesting that Topalov doesn't
rush into 17 ... a3, forcing 18 b3. If then
18 ... "iVc3? 19 lL'lc4 and the white knights
have the last laugh after all with the
threat of 20 tZJe2 trapping the queen.
The black pawn thrust 17 ... a3 looks
tremendously strong at first glance, but
101
Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play
should be held back unless there is a
convincing follow-up. After all, if Black
is unable to exploit the hole on c3, all
he has done is renounce the potentially
more useful plan of opening lines with
... b4-b3.
18 tLle2 l:tfc8 19 tLlg3
The white knight has taken three
moves to get in range of the fS-square,
whereas it could have got there in one
move after 14 ... aS? ! 15 tLld4. Even
worse, its journey proves a waste of
time as it is once again thwarted by a
pawn move.
19...g6!
The white queen is now a pitiful
sight, boxed in by her knight in the
corner of the board. She can't cause the
black king any problems because her
kingside pawns are passive. In con­
trast, the black pawns are working
hard with their pieces to assail the
white king.
20 tLlC4 .ia6 21 b3
If 21 tLle3 a3 and White can no
longer play 22 b3 because 22 ..."Yi'c3 wins
at once. It would also be hopeless to
allow a breakthrough with 22 ... axb2.
1 02
Therefore Kamsky is obliged to defend
his knight on c4 with the game move,
which does Black's work for him by
opening the a-file.
Here we see the excellence of Topa­
lov's judgment in holding back the
. . . a4-a3 pawn thrust at move 1 7.
21 ... axb3 22 cxb3 tLlcS
If now 23 �f1 �a7 etc is soon over­
whelming. Therefore Kamsky tries to
confuse matters by offering the e4-
pawn.
23 tLle2 tLlfxe41
Topalov foresees that he will drop
the exchange but gain an irresistible
attack.
24 �xe7 "Yi'xe7 25 ..txe4 tLlxe4 26 tLlb6
'iWa7 ! 27 tLlxa8
If 27 tLlxc8 .td3+! 28 "iVxd3 "iVxa2+ 29
'it>c1 "iVal+! 30 fibl l:txc8+ and Black
mates.
27 .. J'ixa8 28 a4 .iLxe2 29 l:tc1
Or 29 �xe2 tLlc3+ when Black will be
a piece up.
29 ...'i!if21 0-1
Two pieces and a pawn down for a
rook and facing a decisive attack, Kam­
sky called it a day.
Th e L ife H i s t o ry of a K n ig h t
The weakness of a kn ight against Already Black is poised to seize a
a passed pawn space advantage with . . .e6-eS.
9 �b3 'it>h8 10 'iVC3 esl
Compared to the bishop, the knight is A simple example of tactics sup­
notoriously poor at dealing with an porting strategy: White hasn't suc­
advancing passed pawn. We shall see ceeded in holding back his opponent's
how Alekhine exploited this to score a expansion in the centre, since if 11 dxeS
famous victory. dxeS 12 tLlxeS? tLlxe5 13 �xe5 "*,xd2
and Black has won a piece.
11 e3 a s !
Game 38
Not only restraining any counter­
E.Bogoljubow-A.Alekhine
play with b2-b4, but also preparing to
Hasti ngs 1922
take the initiative on the queenside.
Dutch Defence
12 b3 'iWe8!
1 d4 fS
Like Morphy and the young Topa­
lov, Alekhine found the Dutch Defence
a useful way to generate double-edged
positions with the black pieces.
2 c4 tLlf6 3 g3 e6 4 ..tg2 .iLb4+ 5 .iLd2
.txd2+ 6 tLlxd2?!
Already an error. White should re­
capture 6 'ii'xd2 and then play 7 tLlc3.
The knight is passively placed on d2
and also lessens the white queen's in­
fluence over the centre. Normally we see Alekhine indulge
6 ..tLlc6 7 tLlgf3 0-0 8 0-0 d6
. in manoeuvres on the queenside as a
1 03
Chess S e cre ts: The G i a n ts of Pow er Play
prelude to a direct attack on the enemy
king. Here the situation is reversed.
Black wants to fix the situation on the
kingside in the most favourable man­
ner before switching to action in the
centre.
13 a3 'iVh5
Once again tactical means are used
to preserve the e5-pawn, for if 14 dxe5
dxe5 15 lDxe5? lDxeS 16 'fixeS lDg4 and
the threat of man on h2 costs White his
queen.
14 M
Evidently White was afraid of a
possible .. .fS-f4 advance followed by
. . .�h3 and ... lDg4.
14... lDg4 15 lDg5 i.d7 16 f3 lDf6 17 f4
e4 18 IHd1 h6 19 lDh3
Bogoljubow has responded to his
opponent's threats by blocking the
kingside. If this were one of Morphy's
games, Black would no doubt aim to
engineer a breakthrough involving
... �g8 and ... g7-g5. A lot of misplaced
ingenuity would be spent trying to
make it work. In fact, playing through
Morphy's games is always a pleasure
until you reach an encounter with a
1 04
blocked centre. Then it is distressing to
see how the whole of strategy seems to
be reduced to a mantra "If I'm White,
I'll play l:tgl and g2-g4; if I'm Black I'll
play .l:!.g8 and ... g7-gS" .
For example, Morphy himself lost
game 10 of his match with Anderssen
through making a . . . g7-g5 move that
Steinitz rightly deemed "a bad strategi­
cal error" .
Unlike Morphy, Alekhine has had
the benefit of Steinitz's games and
teachings on how to play in closed po­
sitions. Therefore he comes up with a
superior strategy, which involves gain­
ing control of a light square complex of
pawns. We never see such a sophisti­
cated approach in Morphy's games -
the closest we come are his games as
Black with Harrwitz (see Chapter
Nine).
You might be wondering why
Alekhine went to the trouble of
13 ... 'iVhS etc when he intends to switch
the weight of the struggle to the other
wing. The point is that White has been
provoked into the twin advances h2-h4
and f2-f4 which have drained all ex­
pansive power from his kingside
pawns. This has deprived the knight
on h3 and bishop on g2 of any active
role. In contrast, their black opposite
numbers on f6 and d7 are much more
flexibly placed for a battle on the
queenside and in the centre .
I would suggest that 13 . . . 'iihS!
goaded Bogoljubow into closing lines
on the kingside partly out of fear of his
adversary's reputation as an attacker
par excellence. It is ironic that it is pre-
The L ife H is t o ry of a K n ig h t
cisely these lines that the white pieces
might have used for counterplay once
Alekhine's real assault begins on the
queenside.
19 ...d 5 !
24 l:tg2 dxc4 2 5 bXc4
White had the highly disagreeable
choice between giving up the a4-pawn
or surrendering the light squares with
2S 'fixc4, when 2s ... lDfdS followed by
2 0 lDf1 26 ... bS! is horrible for him.
I've no idea why this knight slinks 25 ... ii.xa4 26 lDf2 .i.d7 27 lDd2 b5!
away from the queenside struggle. Alekhine wants the dS-square for
With three minor pieces passively his knight. Bogoljubow buys him off,
placed on the kingside, it's no wonder but at a terrible cost.
things begin to fall apart for White on 28 lDd1 lDd3! 29 l'!.xa5 b4! 30 l:txa8
the other wing.
20 ...lDe7
With the positional threat of 21...a4!,
when if 22 b4 dxc4 and the d5-square
becomes a beautiful base for the black
knights.
21 a4
White has no wish to play 21 cS as
21.. .iLbS brings the black bishop to life.
21 ...lDc6!
Flexible thinking: the knight goes
back to c6 as the b4-square has become
available. Now the straightforward 30 .. :it'xa8
22 l:td2 lDb4 23 ii.h1 "ii'e 8! 31 "iVb3 'iVaI, threatening 32 ... .lfLa4,
The black queen returns to the cen­ would probably finish the game in a
tre and increases the pressure on the couple of moves - White's bishop on
a4-square. hI and rook on g2 are a sorry sight. But
1 05
C h e s s S e c rets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
Alekhine was an artist, not just a collec­
tor of points, and he couldn't resist a
once in a lifetime chance to sacrifice
two rooks and a queen for the sake of a
pawn:
30 •.• bxC3!! 3 1 l:!.xe8 c2
The plucky pawn sneaks past all the
defenders. This is one of the extremely
rare instances of a study-like theme
appearing in a tournament game.
32 l1xf8+ '>t>h7 33 lbf2 cd*'+ 34 lbf1
lbe1 3 5 l:.h2 1i'xc4
He could have gone after e3 at once
with 35 . . .lbc2! ? to create another passed
pawn.
3 6 nb8 �b5
1 06
White's pieces are in such a tangle
that he has to give up the exchange,
after which he is losing on material as
well as position.
37 ':'xb5 1i'xb5 38 g4 lbf3+ 39 i.xf3
exf3 40 gxf5 "e2!
Paralysing the white pieces, as if 41
lbh3 lbg4! 42 �xe3 fxe2 and Black will
get another new queen.
41 d5 '>t>g8 42 h5 �h7 43 e4 lbxe4 44
lbxe4 'iixe4 45 d6 cxd6 46 f6 gxf6 47
l:td 2 'iVe2
48 1:txe2 fxe2 49 <M2 exf1'iV+ 50 '>t>xf1
�g7 51 �2 rtif7 52 '>t>e3 '.t>e6 53 '>t>e4
d5+ 0-1
A most original and creative game.
I
C h a pte r F i ve
The Goldi locks Queen
The queen is by far the strongest piece
on the board, and so exceptional care
has to be taken with her deployment.
In the vast majority of power play
games, it is the presence or absence of
the queen that is the deciding factor in
whether an attack breaks through or
the defence triumphs.
This creates a positional dilemma,
as if she stands too far away from the
action, the chances of a successful out­
come are reduced. On the other hand,
if she strays too close to the frontline
the defenders will gain time by harass­
ing her with threats from which she
must always flee (the only exceptions
are those glorious, mind over matter
moments called ' queen sacrifices' ).
The solution is to find her a place
amid the skirmish which, like the por­
ridge in Goldilocks, is neither too hot
nor too cold. This is by no means easy,
and skill in the use of the queen remains
one of the hallmarks of chess mastery.
The queen radiates energy on the
third ra nk
Alexander Alekhine was particularly
adept at finding secure but powerful
posts for his queen 011 the third rank.
From such a vantage point she could
survey the whole board, and conduct
an attack without being in any great
danger. I have always been impressed
by his subtle handling of the queen in
the two games that follow. In both ex­
amples a simple manoeuvre led to a
massive shift in the energy balance be­
tween the two armies.
Game 39
A.Alekhine-F .Marshall
Baden-Baden 1925
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 d5 2 c4 lbf6 3 cxd5 lbxd5 4 e4 lbf6
5 .1l.d3 e5 6 dxe5 lbg4 7 lbf3 lbc6 8 �g5
107
Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o we r Play
iLe7 9 il.xe7 �xe7 10 lLlC3 lLlcxe5 11
lLlxe5 �xe5
An attractive recapture that Alek­
hine will punish very severely. Instead,
1 1 ...lLlxeS 12 0-0 0-0 is about equal.
12 h 3 lLlf6
Here the obvious move is 13 0-0
which develops with a view to 14 f4,
when the black queen is pushed from
her fine central post and White's centre
becomes mobile. However, Black has
the excellent reply 13 . . . gS!, cementing
the queen on the eS-square. The white
pawns would be deprived of expansive
energy, which in tum would cast
gloom over the white pieces. And if all
that wasn't bad enough, Black might
castle queenside and then use the g­
pawn as a battering ram against the
white king's position, which has been
weakened by h2-h3.
At this point I would like to remind
you of Grandmaster Rudolf Spiel­
mann's famous comment that he could
have made any of Alekhine's combina­
tions, but he couldn't get the positions
from which the combinations started.
You are about to witness some of the
1 08
dynamic play that created the fertile
ground from which Alekhine's combi­
nations flowered.
13 'it'd2 ! iLd7
After 13 ... gS the reply 14 h4 looks
very strong. For example, 14 ... g4 IS
'tIVgS! evicts the queen from eS, as
Is .. :ikxgS 16 hxgS lLld7 17 .i.e2 lLleS 18
lLldS is horrible for Black.
14 �e3 !
I t is better to deny the black queen
any dark squares in the centre before
pushing her backwards. Hence the sec­
ond white queen move generates more
energy than 14 f4 at once which would
allow 14 . . . 'iVcS.
An equally important point
Alekhine's manoeuvre is that Black is
unable to castle queenside due to the
attack on a7. This persuades Marshall
to send his king to the kingside, where
it is in range of White's mobile centre
pawns.
14 ...iLc6
If instead 14 . . . gS, the reply IS h4
still looks very strong. Or else White
could simply castle queens ide and ask
his opponent: where are you going to
put your king? Black can't stomach
IS ... 0-0-0? 16 �xa7, while IS ... 0-0 16 h4
isn't the sort of position you want
against someone called A.Alekhine.
15 0-0-0 0-0 16 f4 'tIVe6 17 e5
White's central pawns are bursting
with energy. Marshall tries to fight
against them using his pieces, but with­
out the restraining influence of any
black pawns there's no way he can hold
them back.
17 ... .l':i.fe8 18 .l:the1 l:Iad8 19 f5
It's almost too easy. The pawns
sweep forwards without meeting any
resistance at all.
19 .. :i!ke7 20 'ikg5 lLld 5 21 f6
of Notice how the white pawns ad­
vanced in unison. At every step of the
way forwards they keep abreast of
each other, with one pawn advancing
and then the other moving up along­
side it. First of all they sat next to each
other on the fourth rank; then they
sprinted forward to the fifth rank; and
now one pawn has reached the sixth
rank. Positionally speaking, the next
step is therefore to arrange
Alekhine engineers it with his next
move.
21..:iikf8 22 iLc4!
Try removing the black pawn from
c7 and putting it on e6, and you'll see
that we have a real fight on our hands.
Put the pawn back on c7 and there's
nothing to stop White powering
through with eS-e6 at the appropriate
moment.
22 ... lLlxc3 23 .uxd8 l:.xd8 24 fxg7 !
Instead, 24 e 6 threatens 2 S exf7+
<;t>g8 26 fxg7+ 'iVxg7 27 'iVxd8 mating.
Th e Goldilo cks Q u e e n
Alekhine says he avoided this line be­
cause of 24 ... l:tdS, but 2S i.xdS lLlxdS 26
e7 lLlxe7 (if the queen moves, it's 27
'iVxg7 mate) 27 fxe7 wins very easily
with the passed pawn. This was the
way to win the game without giving
the opponent any glimmer of counter­
play, although it would still take a
couple of moves to oust the black
queen from e8.
On the other hand, the move actu­
ally chosen is the quickest and most
efficient way for a player with a com­
plete mastery of tactics to finish the
game. Alekhine isn't afraid to let Mar­
shall try for one of his famous swindles
as he sees the attempt can easily be de­
feated.
eS-e6.
24...lLlxa2+ 25 ..tb1!
Black is alive and kicking after 2S
.i.xa2 �cS+ 26 ..tbl nd7! (and if 27 e6??
'iVxgS!).
25 ...�e8 26 e6 iLe4+
Tricky to the last, but I wonder
what odds you would get on Alekhine
falling for 27 ..txa2?? 'iVa4 mate.
27 �a1!
27 li.xe4 is also good enough, but it's
109
Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po wer Play
simpler to avoid the rook check on dl.
27...f5 28 e7+ Itd 5 29 �f6
Threatening a decisive check on f8.
29.. :YWf7 30 e8�+ 1-0
After 30 ...'ilVxe8 31 ii.xd5+ it's mate
next move.
Thanks to his fine queen manoeu­
vre, Alekhine was able to energize his
pawns, which in tum gave extra power
to his pieces. It is one of the rules of
positional chess that pieces that are ac­
tively supported by their pawns will almost
always triumph over pieces acting on their
own.
Frightening the opponent
Game 40
A.Alekhine-KJu nge
Po land 1942
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 tLJf3 tLJc6 3 .tb5 a6 4 .ta4 tLJf6
5 0-0 .te7 6 "iVe2 b5 7 .ib3 0-0 8 c3 d5 9
d3 dxe4 10 dxe4 .tg4 11 h3 .th5 12
.tg5 tLJe8 13 i..xe7 .txf3 14 �xf3 tLJxe7
15 Udl tLJd6 16 tLJd2 c6 17 tLJfl 'fIHC7 18
a4 £lad8 19 tLJg3 tLJec8 20 axb5 axb5 21
tLJf5 tLJb6
Alekhine has all his pieces posted
on aggressive squares, but is suffering
from the fact that the fixed centre de­
nies him any pawn breaks. As we
know, almost any attack requires the
use of pawns at some point. Alekhine
found a clever way to tighten the pres­
sure on his opponent.
110
Now we can see what Alekhine has
achieved with his little queen move -
the pawn break that his position
needed has appeared on the board.
23 ... c5
Black can't stop the forward ad­
vance of White's pawn, because
23 .. :�e7 would leave his knight en
prise, while after 23 .. .'�jd7, hoping to
block with 24 ...tLJf6, the white rook can
invade on the queenside with 24 l:ta7! .
In this variation we see how important
22 �e3 ! ! it was for White to find time for 18 a4,
A quiet little move, but it gives Black opening the a-file. He needed to
a lot to think about. The queen radiates squeeze every piece of dynamism he
power along two important diagonals. could out of his pieces, or else 23 ...tLJd7
On the queenside there is the immediate would have been perfectly okay for
threat of 23 tLJxd6 l:.xd6 24 �xd6 "it'xd6 Black.
25 �xb6 winning a piece; on the king­ 24 f6!
side Black has to worry about sacrifices A pawn throwing itself at the op­
such as 23 tLJxg7 Wxg7 24 'ilVgS+ or 23 ponent's defences will be a familiar
�xd6 l:!.xd6 24 'ikgS. Junge is unnerved, sight to readers of this book.
and decides to remove the knight that is 24 ...gxf6 25 �h6
tormenting him. Another benefit of 22 �e3 - the
22 ...tLJxf5? white queen jumps into the hole in the
He should have played 22 ...tLJbc4! opponent's pawn wall. Now White
with chances of a successful defence. threatens both 26 "iVxf6 and 26 �c2.
23 exf5 25 .. .f5 26 St.xf7+!
The Go ldilocks Q u e e n
The tactical alertness of an
Alekhine. He immediately seizes on
the fact that Black's last move left the
g5-square undefended.
26..JWxf7
If 26 ... Wh8 27 "iVf6 mate, or 26 ... Wxf7
27 "iVxh7+ winning the queen, or finally
26 .. Jhf7 27 �g5+ and 28 �xd8+ wins.
27 �xd8 lDa4
Of course if 27 .. Jlxd8 28 �g5+ etc.
28 b3 1-0
The queen bosses the show on
both wings
The next game illustrates the tremen­
dous power of an unfettered queen.
First of all she prevents the enemy
queens ide pieces from developing
properly. Then she quickly switches to
the kingside to orchestrate an attack.
And finally she sacrifices herself in the
centre to force checkmate.
Game 41
V.Topalov-A.Naiditsch
Do rt m u nd 2005
Queen 's Gambit
l lDf3 lDf6 2 c4 e6 3 lDc3 d5 4 d4 dxc4 5
e4 ii.b4 6 .tg5 c5 7 e5 cxd4 8 lDxd4
.ixC3+ 9 bXc3 "iVa5 10 exf6 "iVxg5 11
fxg7 �xg7 12 'iVd2 0-0 13 .ixc4 a6 14
0-0 �d8?
The immediate 14 ... b5 was correct,
when 15 ..te2 .tb7 16 .tf3 .txf3 17 lDxf3
led to a quick draw in O.Almeida
Quintana-A.Kolev, La Roda 2008. Of
course Topalov would have found a
111
Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
way to keep the tension, probably with
the sharper 15 i..b3.
In any case, Naiditsch should have
gone down this road. The attempt to
profit from the pin along the d-file in­
stantly leads him into trouble.
is �f4!
The alert Bulgarian Grandmaster in­
tends to exploit the undefended state
of the rook on d8 to hinder Black's de­
velopment.
lS ... bS
Instead, 16 ... e5 weakens Black's cen­
tral squares without winning any ma­
terial after 17 'iWh4!. For example,
17 . . ..:f8 18 ctJc2, when the plan of 19
Uael and 20 .l:l.e3 is awkward to meet.
16 �C7!
Stopping Black from playing
16 ... i..b7, when the threat of mate on g2
would buy him time for ... ctJc6 with
equality.
16 ...iff8
The queen retreat is a significant
concession, as ... i..b 7 won't corne with
a mate threat on g2, and ... e6-e5 is no
longer possible to evict the knight from
d4. However, 16 .. JH8 allows 17 ctJf5!
112
exf5 (if 1 7. ..'ii'xc3 1 8 .l:l.ac1 and then 19
ctJe7+ wins the bishop on c8) 18 1i.d5,
trapping the rook on a8 and emerging
the exchange up.
17 i..d 3
Now the terrible threat of 18 i.e4
forces Black to achieve ... i..b7 at all
costs.
17 ...�d7 18 1i'f4 i.. b7
It seems that White's plan has failed
as his queen has been driven back from
c7 and Black is ready for 19 . . . ctJc6. In
reality, Topalov has been using his
queenside pressure to entice the black
pieces away from their defensive roles
on the kingside. Thus the black queen
is on f8 rather than g7, where she
guarded h7 and prevented any queen
checks on the g-file. The black bishop
has gone to b7, which is an impressive­
looking diagonal, but it has stopped
defending the e6-pawn against a possi­
ble breakthrough sacrifice. And thirdly,
the black rook on d7 no longer protects
the back rank. It is also keeping the
knight from being brought quickly to
the defence of the kingside via d7.
As we shall see, without his pre-
liminary operations on the queenside,
Topalov's final attack wouldn't have
succeeded, as it culminates in a sacri­
fice on e6 and the exploitation of
Black's weak back rank.
19 .1:l.ael
The rook threatens to decide mat­
ters with 20 .lle3 and 21 �g3+.
19 ... �g7 20 i..e4
Meeting the mate threat on g2. If
now 20 ... e5 21 i.xb7 exf4 22 .l:l.e8+ 'fig8
23 .l:l.xg8+ �xg8 24 i.xa8 and White has
won a rook.
20 .. .'.th8 21 .l:i.e3 i.xe4 22 'iYxe4 .l:l.dS
Or 22 .. J�a7 23 'iWf4 (attacking b8)
23 ... .l:l.ac7 24 1'1g3 e5 25 'fif5 'ifu6 26
'fixe5+ and White mates.
23 ctJxe61
Beginning a finish that is worthy of
a game by Morphy. White can afford a
sacrifice as he will still have superior
firepower where it matters on the king­
side.
23 ...fxe6 24 �xe6 .l:l.d7
If 24. . .�g5 25 'iVc8+ 'iWg8 26 .l:!.e8 wins
the queen.
2S l:tg3 'ii'f8 26 l:tel l!aa7 27 �f6+!! 1-0
It's mate after 27. . .'ii'xf6 28 l:te8+.
The G o ldilocks Q u e e n
This magnificent display reminds
me of a similar effort by Morphy's
queen, who also obstructed the enemy
pieces before sacrificing herself to de­
cide the battle.
The queen as blockader
Game 42
L.Paulsen-P.Morphy
New York 1857
Four Knights Opening
1 e4 es 2 ctJf3 ctJc6 3 ctJC3 ctJf6 4 i.. b s
iLcs 5 0-0 0-0 6 ctJxes Jle8 7 ctJxc6 dxc6
8 i.C4 bS 9 i..e 2 ctJxe4 10 ctJxe4 i!xe4 11
�f3 1Ie6 12 C3?
White could have played 12 d3, but
instead he aims to expand in the centre
with 12 d4. Morphy blocked this off
with:
12 ..:ifid3 !
The black queen i s not only power­
ful in herself, but is also affecting the
energy level of other pieces. Thus she
shuts in the white bishop on c1 and
113
Che ss S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
prevents d2-d4, which would curb the
scope of the black bishop on c5. As will
be seen, in a general sense all of Black's
pieces are vitalized by her presence on
a commanding square.
An intriguing positional battle now
begins. Paulsen strives to evict the
black queen from her dominant posi­
tion, when he hopes to emerge with the
better game thanks to his superior
pawn structure. In contrast, Morphy
wants to use the energy of his queen to
generate decisive tactical threats
against the white king before she can
be driven away.
13 b4 .tb6 14 a4
Threatening to trap the bishop with
15 as and so forcing Black to weaken
his pawns.
14 ... bxa4 15 "iVxa4 .td7?
A surprising error for the supreme
tactician Morphy. He should have
played 15 ... 1i.b7!, keeping the white
queen out of a6. If then 16 ':a2, plan­
ning to challenge the queen with 1 7
iVc2, there follows 1 6. . .l1ae8!. This de­
veloping move contains an important
tactical threat, for if 1 7 "iVc2? Black wins
114
at once with 1 7.. :iixf1+! 18 �xf1 .l:!.el
mate. Therefore White's plan is de­
feated as he must submit to 17 'ifdl,
whereupon 17 ... .ia6! wins the ex­
change.
16 1:.a2 1
White misses his chance for 16
�a6!' After 16 .. :iha6 17 nxa6 llae8 1 8
nal ! (avoiding any tricks based on
... c6-c5 and ... .tb5), White has some
advantage. So Morphy might have re­
plied 16 . . . "it'g6 17 d4 .l:!.ae8 maintaining
the tension, though his bishop on b6 is
now boxed in.
16 ...l1ae8
I assume that Paulsen was planning
17 'iVc2, but saw 17 . . . "it'xfl+! at the last
moment. Hence he puts his queen on
a6, where she defends f1 'through' the
black queen.
17 �a6
Tartakower once described chess as
"the tragedy of one tempo". The queen
has delayed for one move going to a6,
and as a consequence the verdict
changes from "after 16 "it'a6 White is
slightly better" to "after 17 'iVa6 White
will be crushed in beautiful style". As
long as Morphy sees the winning move
of course . . .
1 7 ..."it'xf3 11
According to William Hartston in
The Kings of Chess, "Mr Stanley, one of
the bystanders, remarked of Morphy,
on making this seemingly rash move,
that he should be confined to a lunatic
asylum."
I'm sure that Morphy had no prob­
lem in discovering the queen sacrifice -
most likely he had seen the possibility
some moves earlier. The difficulty of the
move is that the resulting variations
can't be calculated to a forced win.
There are simply too many of them.
Therefore, having looked at a limited
number of possibilities, and satisfied
himself that they offered winning
chances, Morphy had to break off his
analysis. He had to trust his intuition
that told him Black must have a good
answer to all White's defensive tries.
Nowadays, when combinations
have become standardized and classi­
fied in books, many players would
have the courage to make the sacrifice,
despite being unable to see everything
Th e Goldilocks Q u e e n
to a winning conclusion. But back in
1857 the queen sacrifice seemed like
magic, or at least the creation of a gen­
ius (or a madman, as Stanley quipped).
Morphy himself thought for 12
minutes before taking the plunge,
which doesn't sound very long, but it
was in fact the most time he spent on
any move at the New York tourna­
ment. Paulsen thought for even longer
before he captured the queen (now
what on earth could he have been
thinking about?).
18 gxf3 ilg6+ 19 'l.t>hl .th3
Threatening 20... .tg2+ 21 Wgl iL.xf3
mate.
2o .l:!.dl
If 20 l1g1 l:txgl+ 21 Wxgl .l:!.el+ and
mates. A tougher defence is 20 �d3,
aiming to sacrifice the queen on g6 as
required. But 20 ... f5! rules this out, af­
ter which Black has a winning initia­
tive. For example, 21 Mdl .ig2+ 22 �gl
1i.xf3+ 23 'itf1 1i.xdl 24 .1:al (or 24 ii'c4+
Wf8 25 d4 .if3 when 26 ... .tg2+ is lethal)
24 . . . .l:!.ge6 (threatening 25 . . . �e2+) 25
'it'g2 1i.e2 26 'iVh3 .l:!.g6+ 27 �hl iL.f3+ 28
"it'xf3 �el mate.
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C h ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay
20 ... .itg2+ 21 'it>gl .itxf3+ 22 �1 .tg2+
23 �gl .lth3+
Good enough to win, but Morphy
could have crowned his attack with
mate in four moves: 23 . . . .te4+! 24 'it>f1
.tfS! (this quiet move, which threatens
mate on h3, was very difficult to
visualise in advance) 25 'iie2 .ith3+ 26
�e1 11g1 mate.
24 �hl i.xf2
Now Paulsen has to give back the
queen to avoid mate on g2, leaving him
three pawns down and still facing a
massive attack.
25 'iifl i..xfl 26 l1xfl .lle 2 27 Ital .ll h 6
28 d4 i.e3 0-1
If 29 .ltxe3 Ithxh2+ and mate next
move.
The art of the quiet queen move
After having our senses stunned by a
couple of queen sacrifices, it's probably
a good idea to look at something a bit
more peaceful. I have to confess to the
reader that I find Morphy's 18th move
below more attractive than any of the
violent queen moves above.
116
Game 43
P.Morphy-A.Anderssen
3 rd matchga me, Paris 1858
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 lbf3 lbc6 3 .ltb5 lbf6 4 d4
lbxd4 5 lbxd4 exd4 6 e5 c6 7 0-0 cxb5 8
i.. g5 .ite7 9 exf6 .itxf6 10 �el+ �8 11
iLxf6 'iixf6
There followed a typical Morphy
move:
12 C3!
An improvement on opening theory
at move 12. Rather than try to attack at
once with the direct 12 �e2, or aim to
regain the pawn with a laborious ma­
noeuvre 12 lbd2, 13 lbb3 and 14 t2Jxd4,
the American master finds a middle
ground: not too fast and not too slow.
If now 12 ... dxc3 13 lbxc3 White has a
very dangerous initiative so, unsurpris­
ingly, Anderssen returns the pawn at
once.
In his own annotations to the game,
Morphy mentions an earlier game by
the German master Max Lange which
featured 12 lba3, when 1 2 ... a6 leaves
the knight shut out of things. The
American certainly knew his theory,
and after the debacle in the present
game, Anderssen never dared venture
1...eS against him again.
12 ... d5 13 cxd4 SLe6 14 lbC3 a6 15 Ite5
.ttd 8
Morphy i s still a pawn down, and
there is no mating attack or strong tac­
tical blow in sight. On the other hand
he has several positional advantages:
superiority over the dark squares, an
aggressive rook on the e-file, and the
black king badly placed on f8, where
he interferes with the connection of the
rooks. Morphy now improves the co­
ordination of his pieces by bringing the
rook on a1 into the game:
16 'iib 3 'fIie7
So that 17 lLlxdS can be met by
17 . . . 'iid6, winning the knight.
17 nael g5
Anderssen intends to bring his rook
on h8 into the game via g8. A safer ap­
proach was 17 ... g6 and 18 ...�g7, when
the rook could be centralized .
18 "tIVdlll
Th e G o l dilo cks Q u e e n
I love the lack of prejudice shown
by this retreat - having made way for
the rook to go to e1, the queen has no
qualms about returning back home to
d l . In an age when almost all his op­
ponents were trying to play 'loud',
overtly aggressive moves, Morphy's
genius whispered to him that some­
times it is the quietest move on the
whole board that contains the most
power.
18..:�if6 19 l:f.le3 �g8??
Anderssen can't stand the slow tor­
ture any longer. He hopes next move to
put his rook on the third rank and start
to generate combinative play, but he
has made a grisly oversight.
The consistent move was 19 . . . g4,
which avoids the disaster that follows.
In that case we might imagine that
Morphy would have replied 20 g3!,
intending 21 t2Je2 and 22 lbf4 to in­
crease the pressure on e6.
20 .llxe6 1-0
The game ends abruptly as if
20 .. .fxe6 21 �f3 wins the queen.
Anderssen was kept boxed in through­
out the whole game and wasn't given
117

Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po we r Play
the slightest chance to show his tactical
genius.
A cowardly queen
The energy level in our position will
rise sharply if we can persuade our
opponent's queen to flee the battle. In
the following encounter she takes
fright at the first sign of trouble.
Game 44
N.Spiridonov-E.Gelier
Novi Sad 1978
Catalan Opening
l ctJf3 ctJf6 2 c4 e6 3 g3 ds 4 �g2 �e7 5
0-0 0-0 6 d4 dxc4 7 ctJes ctJc6
Good psychology against the type
of player who favours the super-solid
Catalan; Black is willing to suffer a
broken pawn structure in return for
active play.
8 i.xc6
Spiridonov sees he can win a pawn
and so goes the whole hog in giving up
his Catalan bishop. The alternative was
8 ctJxc6 bxc6 9 i.xc6 l:!.b8 is unclear.
118
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8 ... bxc6 9 ctJxc6 'itVe8 10 ctJxe7+ �xe7
11 'itVa4 es!?
Black is doomed to lose the c4-pawn
and so needs to generate counterplay
by breaking open lines in the centre.
The alternative was 1 1 . . .c5, aiming to
put the light-squared bishop on b7.
Geller prefers to create a role for it
along its other diagonal.
12 dxes \\i'xes 13 'itvxc4 ii.e6
14 'itVa6?
The white queen runs away from
the fight. Instead, she might have re­
treated to c2, to help defend her second
rank. Another approach is 14 'iYd3!?
lIad8 15 \\i'e3 'iVh5 1 6 f3. Then she has
evicted her opposite number from the
centre, though she herself remains a
possible target. A person who likes the
initiative would prefer to be on the
black side of the argument, whereas a
player who prefers being a pawn up
albeit facing some 'aggro' would
choose White.
Incidentally, Georgiev used this line
as White to beat Karpov at the Dubai
rapid tournament of 2002. The Bulgar­
ian Grandmaster rightly assumed that
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the former World Champion, who isn't
renowned for slashing attacks with the
black pieces, wouldn't be entirely
happy with having the role of aggres­
sor thrust upon him. Sure enough,
Karpov allowed simplification in re­
turn for getting his pawn back, but
eventually perished because of the
weakness of the c7-pawn.
14 ...i.. h 3
The bishop attacks g2 from one di­
rection. . .
ls Itel �d S
. . . and the queen attacks it from an­
other. White is compelled to loosen the
pawn cover around his king.
16 f3 ctJg41
The next stage in Black's strategy is
to force e2-e3 so that White's f3-pawn
becomes very weak. He needs to use
his queen and knight to carry out the
task.
17 ctJC3 �c S+ 18 e3
The only move, but White can't re­
joice at d3 and f3 both losing pawn
protection.
18 ... ctJes 19 'it'e2 Itad 8
Stopping White developing his
Th e Goldilo cks Q u e e n
queens ide, a s the game would end
abruptly after 20 �d2 lhd2! with a
fork on f3.
20 Itdl h6 21 �d2 fS!
As we have seen so often in this
book, the pieces acting on their own
can' t overwhelm a defence. At some
point the help of a pawn is always re­
quired.
22 i.. e l 'itVc6 23 Itxd8 .l::txd8 24 'i.t>f2
Spiridonov appears to have
strengthened his defensive line, and
only needs one free move to bring up
his reinforcements with 25 .l:td 1. The
best that piece play can offer Geller is a
draw with 24 ... ctJd3+ 25 'iit>g l ctJe5 etc.
But what about pawn play?
24...f4!!
A thunderbolt. Let's look at some
variations:
a) 25 gxf4 'iVg6 and White has no
good answer to the threat of 26 ... 'iYg2
mate, for if 27 e4 l:!.d3 (simplest) 28 �d2
'iVg2+ 29 'iit>e l \\i'gl+ and mate next
move.
b) 25 exf4 'iWc5+ 26 �e3 ctJd3+ 27
'it>e2 i..f l+! 28 'it>xfl (or 28 'it>d2 ctJxel+)
28 .. :iVxe3 and wins.
119
Chess S e crets: The G ia n ts of Pow er Play
c) 25 e4 'iHc5+ and mate next move.
d) 25 .l::i.d l fxe3+ 26 'iNxe3 (there's no
joy in 26 'it>xe3 'ifb6+) 26 ... lZ'lg4+! 27 fxg4
'iVg2 mate.
25 .td2 lZ'lxf3 ! 26 .l::td l
I f 2 6 �xf3 ltxd2+ 2 7 lZ'le2 fxe3+ 28
'iVxe3 (or 28 �xe3 .l:!.d3+!) 28 .. :ii'g2+ 29
�el nxb2 30 "iVe8+ 'it>h7 and wins.
26 ...lZ'ld4! 0-1
Spiridonov called it a day as it is
checkmate after 27 exd4 �g2+ 28 'i£tel
�gl+.
A daredevil queen
Sometimes the problem is that the
queen is too reckless rather than too
timid.
Game 45
A.Strikovic-V.Topalov
Forl i 1988
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 c5 2 c3 lZ'lf6 3 e5 lZ'ld5 4 d4 cxd4 5
lZ'lf3 b6 6 lZ'lxd4 e6 7 c4 lZ'lC7 8 li"f3 .tC5
9 i..e3 0-0 10 .id3 d5 11 exd6 �xd6
120
After a sharp opening struggle,
Strikovic thought he could safely win
the exchange with:
12 tDb5 lZ'lxb5 13 i.xc5 'iVxC5 14 'iVxa8
It appears that Black has no time to
close the trap on the white queen with
. . .lZ'lc6 as his other knight on b5 is hang­
ing. But Topalov nevertheless played:
14 lZ'lc6!
•••
If now 15 cxb5? it is mate in two:
15 . . . 'iVc1 + 16 �e2 lZ'ld4 mate! (Perhaps
in his earlier calculations Strikovic had
only seen 16 .. :ii'xh1? 17 'ji'xc6 when
White is winning.) This means that the
knight on b5 is inviolable, and to make
matters even worse for White it threat-
ens 15 . . . tDc7, trapping the queen.
Thus the black horse either mates
the white king or traps the queen. If
there was only a threat to the white
king, it could be defended against,
while the white queen could be saved
if she were the only target. But the com­
billation of the two threats is fatal.
In the game Strikovic couldn't
avoid a massive loss of material:
15 .1i.e4 tDbd4 16 .txc6 lZ'lxc6 17 0-0
.la6 18 b4 "ivxc4 19 lZ'la3
It's a dismal state of affairs when
the best you can hope for is 19 .. :�'xfl +
20 .lhfl .l:!.xa8 21 b5 .1i.b7 22 bxc6 .txc6 -
two pawns down in an endgame
against Topalov. The young Bulgarian
chooses an even surer path to victory.
19 •.. .l:Ixa8 20 tDxC4 .txC4 21 l:,fcl iLd5
22 a3 'it>f8 23 f3 �e8 24 �f2 'i£td7 25
'it>e3 as 26 b5 lZ'le7 27 l:!.c2 .l:!.c8 28 .l::i.acl
!'!.xc2 29 l:i.xc2 tDf5+ 30 �d3 lZ'ld6 31 a4
t2Jb7 0-1
Using psychology to make the
enemy queen desert her post
"To lose one's objective attitude to a
The G o l dilocks Q u e e n
position nearly always means ruining
your game," observed David Bron­
stein. Following in the footsteps of
Emanuel Lasker, Bronstein was a
shrewd psychologist who often 'egged
on' his opponents into choosing over­
ambitious plans. Here, for example,
Stahlberg is cajoled into thinking that
he stands better, which leads to a loss
of objectivity and a sharp defeat.
Game 46
G.Stahlberg-D.Bronstein
Candidates, Buda pest 1950
Dutch Defence
1 c4 f5 2 tDf3 lZ'lf6 3 g3 e6 4 �g2 .ie7 5
0-0 0-0 6 lZ'lC3 c6 7 d3 d6 8 e4 fxe4 9
dxe4 e5 10 C5 ttJa6 11 cxd6 i..xd6 12
ii..e 3 'i£th8 13 'ii'e2 ii..g4 14 h3 .1i.h5 15
�fdl 'iVe7 16 g4 .tf7 17 lZ'lh4 ii..c5 18
lZ'lf5 "iVC7 19 .tfl g6 20 lZ'lg3 .ie6 21
Itacl 'iNe7 22 .ixC5 lZ'lxc5 2 3 b4 lZ'lcd7
24 �d2 "iif7 25 .ilc2 a6 26 'iNg5 !!.ae8 27
�cd2 ne7 28 'ij'e3
White has his queen excellently cen­
tralized on the 'Alekhine' square e3.
121

C h e s s S e crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
She not only helps bolster the slightly
compromised kingside pawns but also
puts pressure on the black queenside.
Bronstein's next move shows that
he is deeply alarmed by the threat of an
invasion with 29 "iVa7, or at least he
wants to pretend as much to his oppo­
nent.
28 .. Jb8 29 lba4
Black's passive move has made
Stahlberg optimistic about his chances
on the queenside and so he launches an
immediate attack. He has seen that af­
ter 29 ... i.xa2 he can simplify to a fa­
vourable endgame with 30 g5; for ex­
ample, 30 ... lbh5 (or 30 . . .lbe8 31 llxd7
lixd7 32 �xd7 "iVxd7 33 lbb6 'iit'd8 34
lbxa8 Vi'xa8 35 'iVc5, when the mate
threat on f8 means that White regains
his pawn) 31 !txd7 l:txd7 32 1lxd7 'ii'x d7
33 lbb6 iVe8 34 lbxh5 gxh5 35 lbxa8
'ii'xa8 36 'iWc3 "iVe8 37 f4 �e7 38 h4 and
White's mobile pawns far outweigh
Black's lifeless queenside majority.
29 ..JU8!
Back again. If 30 �a7, the pawn
grab 30 . . . ..txa2! is now strong, as with
the knight on a4 31 �xb7? runs into
3 1 . . . .i.b3 32 Ita1 ..Itxa4 33 .l:!.xa4 lbc5
when White loses material. Once again
Stahlberg has the chance to repeat
moves with 30 lbc3, but he presses
ahead with his attack.
30 lbcs lbxcs 31 'ii'xcs lbd7 !
Defending the e5-pawn and kicking
the white queen away from c5. If she
retreats back to e3, Black can safely
pick up a pawn with 32 ... i.xa2, while if
she counterattacks against b7 with 32
'ifa7, then 32 ... lbf6! contains threats
122
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such as 33 ... .ixa2 and 33 ... h5!, which
means that White would have nothing
better than to repeat moves with 33
�c5 lbd7 etc.
But now psychology comes into
play: having been offered three chances
to agree a draw by repetition, Stahlberg
has become oblivious to any danger the
position might contain.
32 'iiC 2?
This amounts to a vital loss of en­
ergy for White's position as the queen
loses contact with the dark squares in
the centre and on the kingside. It is
never a good sign when the strongest
piece is moved to a passive square
simply to meet a threat like 32 ... ..Itxa2.
As stated above, White should re­
peat moves to draw with 32 'iVa7 lbf6
33 'iWc5 lbd7 34 "iVa7 etc. Of course
Bronstein might have avoided this se­
quence, but then he would be the one
taking the risk, not Stahlberg.
32 ... hS!
If the white queen were still sitting
on e3, this pawn advance could be
countered by an invasion with 'iih6+.
Instead, her self-inflicted exile means
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that the flimsy white pawn cover on
the g-file collapses as soon as the first
blow is struck.
33 gxh s gxh S 34 lbfS
The knight jumps before it is pinned
with 34 .. J1g8, when 35 ... h4 would be
on the cards.
34...iLxfS 3S exfs �g8+ 36 .ig2 �g7
The black queen takes advantage of
her unchallenged dominance of the g­
file to compel White to shut in his
bishop and further weaken his dark
squares.
37 f3 lbf6!
White can't prevent the knight from
reaching its dream outpost on f4.
38 �d8 lbdS 39 �xg8+ �xg8 40 �d2
The queen finally returns to the
dark squares that she so unpardonably
abandoned with 32 �c2.
40 ...lbf4 41 �h2?! 0-1 (see diagram)
Here Stahlberg resigned in view of
the strength of 41..J:td7!, when taking
the rook is taboo because of mate on
g2, while if the queen moves away
42 ... �xd 1 wins.
If instead 41 'iWd8, White gets a lost
pawn endgame after 41...1:1g7 42 �xg8+
The G o ldilocks Q u e e n
I1xg8 43 �d2 �xg2+ 44 ltxg2 lbxg2 45
Wxg2 �g7 46 Wg3 �f6 47 �h4 �xf5 48
Wxh5 b6! 49 h4 c5 etc.
White was also lured into an inap­
propriate adventure with his queen in
the following game.
Knowing when to switch from
defence to cou nterattack
Bronstein was a versatile and danger­
ous counterattacker who was adept at
choosing the right moment to abandon
a weak point and carry the fight to an­
other sector of the board. Such a strat­
egy, or series of tactical operations, is
particularly effective against an oppo­
nent with a cautious, ultra-logical style
of play. In the example given here,
Bronstein was facing the Hungarian
Grandmaster Barcza who was noted
for being a very solid, 'nervous' player,
with no appetite for tactical complica­
tions. Barcza had many draws to his
name, but when given the chance to
improve his position in a strictly logical
manner he was highly formidable. A
good example is his win as White ver-
123
C h es s S e c rets: Th e G ia n ts of P o w e r Play Th e Go ldilo cks Q u e e n

sus Smyslov at the Moscow Olympiad Here Black could target the b4- the rook, which can cause problems for

in 1956, where he ground down a pawn with 27 ... i..f8, but after 28 li:Jf3 f6 the white bishop or knight by swoop­

World Champion by utilizing his it would get draughty around his king. ing down to a2 or a1 respectively.

queenside pawn majority. And so Bronstein played the simple . . . Meanwhile, the bishop on g7 is per­

Playing for a win as Black against 2 7 ...� h 7 ! forming 'fire brigade duties' by shelter­

such an opponent requires a mixture of ... and challenged his opponent to go ing the king, and also deters White

patience and tactical alertness. Missiles after the b5-pawn. The whole point of from removing the pesky knight with

thrown too early are going to bounce the Reti Opening is to capture a weak .ltxf4, as we saw in the previous note.
off his solid armour. Instead, Bronstein pawn on the queenside so, morally 30 'i¥c6?

offers some 'bait' on the queenside, speaking, Barcza can hardly refuse. The game might have ended in a
which lures his opponent out of his 28 'ifcs draw after 30 'ilt'xb5! li:Je2+ 31 �f1 li:Jg3+
solid defensive shell. Indeed, this seems very powerful as 32 �gl li:Je2+ with a repetition. Perhaps

Black has to watch out for not only 29 Barcza was afraid of 30 .. ..1:1a2, but he 3 1 ...li:Jxd 3 ! 3 2 'i¥xfs

'ii'xb5, but also 29 1Id6, winning a piece. has the excellent reply 31 'i¥b7!, when So that if 32 ... gxf5 33 �f1, when
Game 4 7 Black had better force the draw again White will regain his pawn either on f7
28...li:Jf4!
G.Barcza-D.Bronstein with 31...li:Je2+ 32 �f1 li:Jg3+ etc, as or by attacking b5 with .l:Ib7.
Dealing with both threats, as 29
Buda pest vs Moscow 31.. . .l:Ixd2? allows 32 .l:Ixf7 attacking 3 2 ...li:Jxe111
'fWxb5? falls for the fork 29 ... li:Je2+ 30
match 1949 both f5 and g7. Then the queen sacri­
'it>f1 ttJd4. And 29 .txf4? would be fool­
English Opening fice 32 . . . 'ifxf7 fails after 33 'ifxf7 �d1 34
ish as it brings the bishop on g7 to life:
29 ... exf4 30 'ilt'xb5? l:la1 31 �f1 'iVe7 and 'ittf1 li:Jxd3 35 �e2!, when Black won't

1 c4 eS 2 a3 li:Jf6 3 d3 as 4 li:Jc3 d6 s li:Jf3 the pin on e 1 is fatal. get more than a rook and bishop for his
li:Jbd7 6 e3 g6 7 ii.d2 Ji.g7 8 b4 axb4 9 29 .l:IC7 'iVfS ! queen.
axb4 l:i.xa1 1o 'iixa 1 0-0 11 'iVa7 'iVe7 12 As we have discussed above, Barcza
e4 c6 13 ..te2 d S 14 cxdS cxdS 15 'iia 4 wasn't the type of player who liked
b6 16 0-0 i.. b7 17 exds li:Jxds 18 li:Jxds being inveigled into complications .

..ixds 19 fibS 'fWd6 20 I!.c1 h6 21 li:Je1 Perhaps he saw 31 '1Wb7! but only calcu­

.l4.d8 22 i..f3 li:Jf6 23 ii.xdS li:Jxd s 24 1:tc6 lated as far as 33 ... I!d1 and concluded

'iVd7 25 'fWc4 1:ta8 26 'iVc1 bS 27 h3 that Black would get too much for the
queen. However, it is most likely that
the Hungarian Grandmaster made the Now Barcza has no time to save his
game move purely on intuitive queen as 33 'i¥xf7 li:Jf3 is discovered
grounds. His plan is to put the queen check mate!
on e4 to quieten down the position and 33 �1
then try to pick off Black's pawn on b5 It still seems that all is not lost for
or f7. White, as 33 ... gxf5 34 ii.xe1 is about
Much better than the passive
30 ... .:.a1 3 1 ir'e4 equal. But Bronstein's combination
29 ... 'ife8. Bronstein has decided it is the
Barcza is hoping for 31...'iVxe4 32 hasn't finished yet.
right moment to give up the defence of
dxe4 li:Jd3 33 �f1 with some advantage 33 ... li:Jc2+! 34 Ji.c1
b5 and seek to counterattack. In this
to White. Unfortunately Bronstein has If 34 �e2 there is a final
task his queen is excellently supported
other ideas. zwischenzug to save the black knight
by the well-posted knight and also by

125
124
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po we r Play
before capturing the white queen:
34 .. .'�Jd4+! 3S '>td3 gxfS and Black keeps
his extra piece.
34.. J:tXC1+ 35 '>te2
As Alekhine once remarked, some­
times a player is too short of time to
resign.
3 S ...lt:id4+
Of course 3S ... gxfS is entirely win­
ning, despite the fact that White can get
back one piece with 36 '>td2. But Bron­
stein prefers to be two pieces up rather
than one.
36 '>t>d2 It:ib3+ 0-1
Exploiting a misplaced queen
with direct threats
So far we have looked at examples in
which the enemy queen abandoned the
main scene of action either voluntarily
or after some 'gentle prodding' . Geller
treats her in a far more brutal manner.
Game 48
E.Gel ier-L.Portisch
Moscow 1967
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 es 2 It:if3 It:ic6 3 i.bs a6 4 i.a4 lt:if6
5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:t.e1 bS 7 i.b3 d6 8 c3 0-0 9
h3 h6 10 d4 l:t.e8 11 It:ibd2 .if8 12 It:if1
i.b7 13 lt:ig3
It is amazing how much hot water
Portisch got into after the innocent­
looking move ...
13 ..:�d7?
Now Geller was able to take advan­
tage of the poor placement of the black
126
queen to generate a fierce attack on her
king that ended the game after only 23
moves. Let's see how it was done:
14 dxes dxes?
The lesser evil was 14 ... lt:ixeS,
though White nonetheless has the mak­
ings of a kingside attack after IS It:ixeS
dxeS 16 "ilff3, as threats like 17 i.xh6 are
already looming.
1s lt:ihS!
Harassing the defender of the black
queen. One of the lesser known rules of
chess strategy is: if you
want to win in 25
moves, act as if you are willing to play a
game that lasts 100 moves. Here Black
could take play into an endgame with
Is ... i¥xdl 16 tt:Jxf6+ gxf6 17 l:t.xd l . But
this doesn't happen as Portisch has no
wish to endure a gruelling defence
with broken pawns. He prefers to take
his chance in the middlegame.
Incidentally, this explains why
world-class players often lose in sharp
style on the rare occasions that things
go wrong for them in the opening.
They realize that, rather than endure
an endgame which is a technical pro­
cedure for their opponent, it is better to
gamble with their king's safety. This
forces the opponent to work harder,
which means he has more chances of
going wrong. The problem for Portisch
is that his opponent in this case is a
sublime master of power play.
1s .. :iVe7 16 lt:ih4! It:ixhs
Portisch has no time for 16 . . . l:t.ad8,
as 17 It:ifS! is a crushing reply. If Black
then takes on dl, he loses the exchange,
while if he moves his queen to safety
18 It:ixf6+ begins a wipe-out. Therefore
he has nothing better than the game
move, which brings the white queen
into the attack.
17 i¥xhs lt:ias
The Hungarian Grandmaster is un­
derstandably desperate to ease the
pressure on f7 with 18 . . . lt:ixb3, as even
the natural move 17 .. :iVf6 leads to dis­
aster after 18 i.gS! hxgS (or 18 ... "ilfxgS
19 i¥xf7+ and mate next move) 19 CDg6!,
when he must part with his queen to
avoid mate on h8.
18 .igS!
So that if 18 ... i¥xgS 19 "ilfxf7+ or
18 . . . hxgS 19 It:ig6 and White wins as in
the previous note.
Th e Gold ilocks Q u e e n
18 ..."ilfd7 19 l:!ad1!
Now Black's bishop has to go to d6
to block the attack on the queen, after
which his kingside loses a vital de­
fender.
19 ... .id6 20 .ixh6! gxh6 21 "ilfg6+ '>tf8
22 "ilff6
Threatening 23 CDg6+ '>tg8 24 "i!fh8
mate.
22 ...'>tg8 23 l:t.e3 1-0
The black king is about to be butch­
ered; for example, 23 . . . '>t>h7 (to avoid
the check on g3) 24 i.xf7 l:t.g8 2S i.g6+
l:t.xg6 26 "ilfxg6+ '>th8 27 l:!g3 etc.
Geller's relentless punishment of
13 ... "ilfd7 might seem out of all propor­
tion to the crime. Did Portisch really
deserve to be crushed just because he
misplaced the queen? On the other
hand, the refutation had to be severe
and rapid or there would have been no
refutation at all. A little quiet spell and
Black would have avoided danger with
... tt:JaS and ... CDxb3. And would 'chess
justice' have been better served if Por­
tisch had escaped scot-free after a blun­
der, rather than be beaten in 23 moves?
A beautiful loss for Alekhine
When David Bronstein visited England
in the 1990s I asked him what was his
favourite game. After a brief pause he
said he loved Euwe's queen manoeu­
vres at the end of the following game
from the 1935 World Championship
match. Apparently his hesitation in
recommending the game was because
Euwe had had the luxury of finding the
127
Chess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of Po wer Play
winning manoeuvre during the ad­
journment of the game, whereas Bron­
stein always championed spontaneous
creativity at the board.
My apologies to fans of Alekhine,
but any combination good enough to
impress Bronstein can't be ignored!
Game 49
M.Euwe-A.Alekhine
2nd matchga me,
Netherla nds 1935
Grunfeld Defence
1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 g6 3 lbc3 d5 4 'ifb3 dXc4 5
'ifxc4 �e6 6 'ifb5+ lbc6 7 lbf3 l:tb8 8
lbe5 �d7 9 lbxd7 �xd7 10 d5 lbd4 11
'ifd3 e5 12 e3 tiJf5 13 e4 tiJd6 14 f4 "iVe7
15 i.e3 tiJg4 16 i.xa7 �a8 17 h3 .l:i.xa7
18 hxg4 iLg7 19 'it'e3 �a5 20 f5 i-f6 21
a4 i.h4+ 22 g3 i.g5 23 'ikf3 0-0 24 b4
l:i.aa8 25 l1a2 tiJe8 26 �b2 tiJf6 27 ..te2
c6 28 dxc6 bxc6 29 0-0 !load8 30 c;,t>g2
Ud4 31 b5 cxb5 32 axb5 llb8 33 fxg6
fxg6 34 b6 �b7 35 'it>h3 'ud6 36 tiJd5
'itg7 37 �c2 tiJxd5 38 exd5 lrxb6 39 �c6
Ilxc6 40 dxc6 �e7
128
The sealed move was:
41 i.C4!
I
Planning to check on f7 and then
push through the passed pawn with
c6-c7 and ..te6.
41 ...'it>h6
C h a pt e r S i x
The king looks very safe here, but
Euwe found a clever retreat:
42 'iWhl!
Menacing a discovered check and E n ergizing the Pawns
then I:tf7+.
42 ...l:tb2
Alekhine stalemates the white king
to prevent the threat, but now his rook
is no longer fighting the passed pawn.
43 l:tf7 'ike8 44 c7
The intention is 45 'ikd5 and 46 'ike6, A sure way to measure the energy level iLe2 0-0 6 0-0 iLg4 7 i-e3
forcing the pawn home. of a position is to ask: "how well do the A restrained opening system that
45 ... i:tC2 45 'ifb71 1 1-0 pieces and pawns cooperate?" In this became popular in the early 1980s after
chapter our giants demonstrate that a it was used many times by the reigning
pawn, or a group of pawns, can have World Champion Karpov. Neverthe­
an effect on the game that is out of all less, we can't say that Geller was copy­
proportion to their nominal value. ing fashion, as he probably taught
Karpov the opening in the first place.
Creating a passed pawn in the 7 lbc6 8 'ifd2 �e8 9 ftfel a6 10 1!adl
.••
centre e5 11 dxe5 dxe5 12 �Cl "fIe7?
The following game is trademark Geller:
a positional threat involving pawns - in
this instance the passed pawn's "lust to
expand" - is combined with tactical
White wins after 45 .. Jhc4 46 threats against the enemy king.
Ihh7+! (but not 46 c8'iV, threatening
mate on h7, as Black escapes with
Game 50
46 ... 'it'xf7! 47 'it'xf7 ilxc8) 46 . . . 'it>xh7 47
E.Gelier-J.Pribyl
c8'it'+ 'ike7 48 'ii'xe7+ iLxe7 49 'ifxc4.
Soch i 1984
The paradoxical retreat 42 "iWh1 !, fol­
Pirc Defence
lowed by the ' ambush' 45 "ifu7!, would
have greatly appealed to the 'maverick' The quiet course of the game seems
chess mentality of Bronstein. 1 e4 d6 2 d4 tiJf6 3 ltJc3 g6 4 ltJf3 ..tg7 5 to have put Black to sleep. He should
129
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
play 12 .. .'it'cB with good chances of
equalizing, for if 13 llld5? in reply he
could capture on e4.
13 llld S !
A t last Geller decides i t i s time to
stop playing all the 'Karpov' moves
and switch to direct aggression. One of
our giant's great strengths was his abil­
ity to transform the game in an instant
from quiet manoeuvring to a dynamic
struggle. Here he sees that he can use
the unfortunate position of the black
queen to gain time to create and utilize
a central pawn ram.
13 ...lllx dS 14 exds lll d 8 is c4 fS 16 cS
lllf7 17 d6!
The Ukrainian Grandmaster always
aimed to get full benefit from any error
he thought his opponent had perpe­
trated in the opening. Sometimes this
led him to overpress, but almost al­
ways he was right in his judgment, as
is the case here. Black has gone wrong
with 12 . . . ife7 and must be punished!
17 ... cxd6 18 cxd6 'iVd7
If IB ... lllxd6 19 �c5 l:t.adB 20 �c4+
�hB 21 l:txd6! l:txd6 22 lllg5 looks very
awkward for Black.
1 30
19 11f'C71
Just in time before 19 .. .l::tacB.
19 ...nad8
After 19 ... 'i'xc7 20 dxc7 Black can't
challenge for control of the open d-file,
whereas White can build up with
moves like l:td7 or i.c4 or �b6 etc.
20 �C4 h6
Pribyl thinks he is safe as he has
prevented both 21 lll g5 (attacking £7)
and 21 �g5, which by threatening dB
would have caused the blockade of the
passed pawn to fall apart. But Geller
has a surprise for him.
21 �gS II
Anyway!
21 ...'it'xc7
The bishop offer can't be accepted,
for if 2 1 . . .hxg5 22 lllxg5 l:tfB (also hope­
less are 22 ... ..txdl 23 �xf7+ �hB 24
'i'xd7 l:.xd7 25 �xeB :'xd6 26 lllf7+ �h7
27 lllxd6 and 22 .. .'iixc7 23 dxc7 !i.xdl 24
.txf7+ �fB 25 l:!.xdl .ixdl 26 iLxeB) 23
f3! �h5 24 �e6! 'ifxc7 25 dxc7 lIeB 26
l:id7 and White wins.
22 dXc7 :xdl 23 .l:[xdl f4
Upon 23 ... hxg5 24 l:tdB!, the passed
pawn will queen.
24 h3
More precise than 24 Ii.dB �fB 25
lllh4, when Black can linger on for a
while with 25 ... lllhB. Geller wants to
keep the pin on f7 a bit longer to avoid
any ... lllhB defence; hence he arranges
to play lllh4 before l:tdB.
24... �c8 2S lll h4! 1-0
Geller wins a miniature game, as if
25 . . .hxg5 26 .l:i.dB �fB 27 lllxg6+ is deci­
sive.
Setting the centre pawns rolling
Here is evidence that a mobile pawn
centre, supported by the pieces, can be
worth a serious material investment,
even when the enemy king isn't a di­
rect target.
Game 51
V.Topalov-L.Aronian
Wijk aan Zee 2006
Queen 's Indian Defence
1 d4 lllf6 2 C4 e6 3 lllf3 b6 4 g3 �a6 S
b3 �b4+ 6 �d2 .ie7 7 .tg2 c6 8 �C3 d s
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
9 llles lllfd7 1 0 lllxd7 lllx d7 11 llld 2 0-0
12 0-0 lllf6
The previous year Anand had
played 12 ... ncB against Topalov at the
World Championship tournament in
San Luis, which led to a sharp struggle
after 13 e4 c5 etc. Lev Aronian chooses
another method of challenging White's
space advantage.
13 e4 bS 14 exd S
Upon 14 liel Black can achieve dy­
namic equality with a well-established
positional piece sacrifice: 14 . . . dxe4 1 5
'iVc2 l:tcB 16 Itadl lll d5! ! . Now the game
A.Karpov-J.Polgar, Buenos Aires 2000,
went 17 �b2 (getting the bishop out of
the way so that it isn't pinned, as oc­
curs after 17 cxd5 cxd5) 17 .. .£5 18 cxd5
cxd5 19 �1 b4.
Judit Polgar has transformed her
rather lumpy pawn structure into a
solid central mass. The game continued
in eventful fashion 20 lllfl �6 21 f3
�f6 22 llle3 1::tc3! (giving up more mate­
rial in order to get the centre pawns
rolling) 23 �xc3 bxc3 24 lll c2 e5 25 llle3
exd4 26 lllxd5 'iWc5 27 lllxf6+ l:i.xf6 28 b4
"iVc4 29 "iVb3 d3 30 "iixc4+ iLxc4 (despite
131

Chess S e c rets : Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
his extra rook, the former
Champion has to battle to stem the
flood of black pawns) 31 .tf1 l:Ic6 32
fxe4 d2 33 bS l:'!cS 34 i.xc4+ l:'!xc4 3S
exfS dxe1'iV+ 36 l:'!xe1 �f7 37 .i:tc1 'i.t>f6 3 8
'i.t>f2 J:'!a4 39 J:'!c2 l:'!aS 40 �e3 <it>xfS V2-1/2.
We should return to the game Topa­
lov-Aronian. As we shall soon see, the
Bulgarian Grandmaster intends to bor­
row the idea of a sacrifice to create an
invincible centre and apply it to the
White side of the position. Let's see
how it's done:
13 ... bS 14 exds exds is l:'!el l:'!b8 16 cS
.tc8 17 tLlf3 tLle4
Aronian confidently attacks
white bishop, planning next move to
complete the manoeuvre of his bishop
from a6 to the kingside. Instead, there
came a shocker:
18 l:'!xe4!! dxe4 19 tLles
Topalov had prepared this sacrifice
for his game with Anand at the San
Luis tournament, but the
Grandmaster diverged in time with
12 . . .l:'!c8 (see the note to 12 ... tLlf6).
Sometimes you have to wait for years
or even decades to use an opening im-
132
W orId provement, but as Geller
"sooner or later mines always explode,
and the more of them a player has in
his arsenal, the better."
The preliminary stage in White's
plan is to draw the energy from the
black pawns and make them targets
that have to be defended by the big
pieces. Then, once Aronian's attempt at
an initiative has been quelled, the
white pawns will march forward in the
same style as Polgar's. It sounds sim­
ple, but nothing is easy when you are
playing a modem elite Grandmaster.
19 ...�d S!
A self-respecting queen never en­
joys the role of nursing a sick pawn.
Nonetheless, Black mustn't give up the
e4-pawn without a fight, as
19 ... �c7 20 ii.xe4 he faces an endless
defence of c6 with no counterplay.
20 �el!
The white centre pawns are actually
quite fragile, and so care is needed to
prevent Black from breaking out with a
counter sacrifice on cS. For example,
the plausible 20 �c2 fS 21 f3? allows
the 21...i.xcS! 22 dxcS �xcS+ 23 �h1 b4
and White has lost his bishop due to
the pin on the queen.
After the game move, 20 ... fS can be
answered safely with 21 f3, when the
defence of c6 will become a horrible
chore for the black pieces.
2o ... ii.fs 21 g4!
Indian The black bishop is forced to retreat
to g6, after which White can exchange
with tLlxg6 at an appropriate moment -
a useful option if the knight's base on
eS is undermined.
21 ... ii.g6 22 f3
wrote,
All these moves had been carefully
analysed and tested using computers
by Topalov and his trainers. For exam­
ple, the Bulgarian Grandmaster says
that 21 g4 was found by Cheparinov.
after Meanwhile Aronian has been on his
own, having to discover all the impor­
tant moves and ideas under the pres­
sure of a racing clock. If you add to this
the unpleasant psychological burden of
knowing that you have fallen into a
prepared variation, it is no wonder that
the Armenian finally cracks.
22 ... b4?
If the c6-pawn drops it is a posi­
tional catastrophe for Black, as his op­
ponent would have connected passed
pawns. Therefore Aronian decides his
best chance is to allow a white pawn to
occupy e4, as this will block the attack
of the bishop on g2 against c6. How­
ever, as we shall soon see, this doesn't
save the life of the c6-pawn, which
means that the white centre has merely
been broadened and strengthened.
Instead, he should have broken up
the white pawns with 22 . . . iLxcS! 23
En e rg iz i n g t h e P a w n s
dxcS �xcS+ 2 4 'i.t>h1 b4. Thereafter he
could aim to activate his rooks along
the open files in the centre and try to
take advantage of the rather flimsy
pawn cover around the white king.
White's two pieces would have the
edge over a rook and a couple of
pawns, but it would be a hard fight.
23 fxe4 �e6 24 .tb2 .tf6
Aronian is in for a big surprise if he
thinks he has stabilized the centre.
2S tLlxc6!
There goes the key pawn.
2S ...'iVxc6 26 eS 'iVa6 27 exf6
Now White's passed pawns will
undoubtedly win the game, unless
something drastic happens on the
kingside.
27 ...l:'!fe8
White still has to play carefully to
neutralize Black's counterplay. Re­
member one of the rules of dynamic
play is: if you are attacking with a queen
and rook, it is better to have the rook in
front, backed up by the queen. With a deft
manoeuvre Topalov makes sure his
opponent's pieces end up the wrong
way round!
133
C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
28 'iVfl! 'iVe2
Not 28 ... l:te2? 29 ii.f3 with a fatal
pin.
29 'iVf2 !
Very finely played. If Topalov had
put his queen on f2 straightaway with
28 'iVf2, the black rook would have in­
vaded with 28 . . . .l:!.e2.
waited until the black
blocking the e2-square.
29 ...'iVxg4 30 h3 'iVg5 31 ..iel!
The bishop will reach the f4-square
with gain of tempi by hitting the black
queen and rook on b8, after which it
can help shepherd home the passed
pawns.
31 ..• 'iVh5 32 ii.f4 .l:!.bd8 33 e6
Finally the pawns start to roll.
33 .....ie4 34 e7 l:te8 35 .l:!.el 'iVg6 36
.l:!.xe4!
Topalov probably didn't need much
calculation to persuade
make this sacrifice. If nothing dramatic
happens, the passed pawns are going
to steam-roller everything in their way.
And it would be very strange indeed if
the black rooks should cause any trou­
ble for the white king when one of
134
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
them has to watch out for the c7-pawn Bringing a pawn mass back to f2-f4 advance, a s the preparatory move
promoting. life 1 1 g3? leaves too many holes in his
kingside after 1 1 . ..ii.h3. Of course,
In the game above, Topalov's centre Black has no intention of castling king­
pawns were a sleeping giant that he side himself.
awakened with an exchange sacrifice. The upshot is that Bronstein can't
In the next example Bronstein's queen­ find a way to energize his game, and
side pawns are a giant sliced in half, he is gradually outplayed by his for­
which he glues back together at the midable opponent. We shall rejoin the
cost of a knight. action 24 moves later:
11 ..ie2 lbf4 12 ..ia4 ..id7 13 lbg3 'iVf6
14 d5 lbe7 15 ..txd7+ 'it>xd7 16 .l:!.bl
Game 52
.l:!.hb8 17 'iVa4+ �d8 18 'iVe2 h5 19 lbf5
D.Bronstein-V.Smyslov
lbfg6 20 lbe3 'iVh8 21 a4 f6 22 as 'iVe8
Cand idates, Buda pest 1950
36 ... .l:!.xe4 37 d5 .l:!.ee8 38 d6 .l:!.el+ 39 23 'iVdl lbf8 24 'iVf3 'iVg6 25 lbe2 lbd7
Nimzo-Indian Defence
'it>h2 'iVf5 26 lba3 a6 27 �e3 'it>e7 28 .ltd2 b6 29
Of course 40 d7 had to be pre­ axb6+ lbxb6 30 �d3 lbd7 31 .l:!.al .l:!.b6
vented. 1 d4 lLlf6 2 e4 e6 3 lLle3 ii.b4 4 a3 �xe3+ 32 lbe2 f5 33 f3 f4 34 .l:!.a5 g4
40 'iVg3! 5 bxe3 e5 6 e3 lLle6 7 ..id3 e5 8 lLle2 d6
Therefore he The threat of mate on g7 wins time Here the usual move order for
queen was to force the exchange of queens. White is 9 0-0 and if 9 ... 0-0 10 e4, but
40 g6 41 'iVg5
•.. Bronstein first played ...
g e4
... after which Smyslov took advan­
tage of his inadvertent transposition of
moves:
9 lLlh5!? 10 0-0 g5!!
•••
Smyslov's mobile kingside pawns
have been steadily advancing, while
Bronstein has nothing similar to throw
himself to at the black king. Our hero's plight is all
41 'iVxg5
•.• the more unpleasant as, even if he man­
If 41.. .'iVe6 42 d7! 'iVxd7 43 1\Vh6 and ages to survive the direct attack on his
mates on g7. king, an endgame would be hopeless
42 ii.xg5 .l:!.dl 43 ..ie6 .l:!.e2+ 44 'it>g3 1-0 for him due to Black's passed pawn on
The checks will run out and then a6, which is virtually an extra pawn due
the pawn promotes. White has been denied his natural to White's doubled c-pawns.
135
Chess Secrets: Th e G ia n ts of Po wer Play
The stakes were very high in this
game, since if Bronstein lost he would
for all purposes be out of the running
for first place in the tournament, which
would have meant no World Champi­
onship match with Botvinnik. He
therefore dug deep into his creativity
and came up with an imaginative idea:
3 5 lLlb4!!
This knight move contains no
threats at all, but it upsets Smyslov. For
a couple of moves he ignores it, but at
last he can't resist the temptation of
being a piece up.
35 ...gxf3 36 �xf3 'i¥g4 37 'iWf2 cxb4??
Morphy would have approved of
Bronstein's piece offer, but it's strange
to see Smyslov react with the greed of
one of Morphy's opponents. There was
no compulsion to take the piece. But in
the heat of battle strange decisions are
made.
38 cxb4
The moribund white pawns are
suddenly full of life again. With the
support of their pieces they are able to
ram their way through the black de­
fences and get at the most important
136
target of all: the black king. And all this
at the cost of a mere knight!
In short, the white pieces and
pawns have fallen in love with each
other again. The force of White's pawn
juggernaut soon compels Smyslov to
return the piece, after which he can't
survive with all the lines open on the
queenside. In particular, the black
queen has been left stranded by the
action on the other wing.
38 cxb4 :bb8 39 C5 lLlc8 40 �cl 'it;>d8 41
c6 .nbS 42 h3 'iNg6 43 cxd7 'it;>xd7 44
�e2 1txa5 45 bxa5 lLle7 46 iLel 'iWg5 47
l:tc3 l:tb8
Black doesn't achieve adequate
counterplay, but if he just waited
White could take the a6-pawn from
him with 48 J:Ib3 and 49 l:tb6.
48 'iNxa6 :bl 49 iVe2 lLlg6 50 'iNf2 �e8
51 a6 f3 52 g3 �al 53 a7 �d7 54 'it;>h2
h4 55 lIxf3 hxg3+ 56 l:txg3 'iff4 57
"ifxf4 lLlxf4 58 ng8 1-0
We can see from this game that,
when it comes to the subject of work­
ing and non-working pawn majorities,
even the best players in the world can
get it wrong. Bronstein let his pawns be
crippled by 10 . . . gS, and then Smyslov
allowed them to be restored to full
health with 37 ... cxb4.
Bronstein magic
Bronstein isn't just willing to give up a
knight for the sake of his pawns. In the
next game he sacrifices a rook to keep
them intact.
"Bronstein and Ljubojevic are rep­
resentatives of different generations,
but their styles have common elements:
sharp, rich in ideas, and with a ten­
dency towards the bizarre." - Jan
Timman, The Art of Chess Analysis.
Game 53
D.Bronstein-L.Lju bojevic
Petro pol is I nterzonal 1973
Alekhine Defence
1 e4 lLlf6
The Alekhine Defence. We shall see
how the fourth World Champion han­
dles his pet opening later in the chap­
ter. Bronstein responds with the Four
Pawns Attack which indicates he is
looking for a full-blooded struggle.
2 e5 lLld 5 3 d4 d6 4 c4 lLlb6 5 f4 dxe5 6
fxe5 c5
Taking the philosophy of the
Alekhine to an extreme: White is al­
lowed an imposing mobile centre
which Black aims to demolish with
blows from the wings.
7 d5 e6 8 lLlC3 exd5 9 cxd5 c4 10 lLlf3
iLg4
En erg izing t h e P a w n s
The question i s whether the far ad­
vanced pawns can be held together
against the pressure about to be ex­
erted on them. The answer is yes - as
long as White is prepared to give up a
rook!
11 �d4!
Attacking one black bishop and
preventing the other one from going to
cS.
11 ...iLxf3 12 gxf3 .ib4 13 .ixc4
The only good way to meet the
threat to dS.
13 ... 0-0
White is a pawn up, but his centre is
looking vulnerable and his king is still
stuck in the centre. But never mind:
Bronstein is going to attack the black
king.
14 l:tgl!
Threatening both IS e6 and I S iLh6.
14...g6
Now Ljubojevic is poised to play ei­
ther IS ... lLlc6! 16 'ii'e4 lLlxeS, when the
white centre crumbles, or 15 . . .�c7 with
the double threat of 16 . . .lLlxc4 or
16 ... iLcs, skewering the rook on gl .
Therefore no time is to be lost by
137

Ch ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of Po wer Play
White: he has to do or die with a king­
side onslaught.
15 i.gS!!
It wasn't possible to calculate the
consequences of the following sacrifice
over the board. Instead, Bronstein re­
lied on his intuition which told him the
cramping effect of his central pawns
would give him the chance to exploit
the dark square holes around the black
king.
Where does the ability to make such
fine judgments originate? We might
mention that our hero was a big fan of
Morphy and other players of the 19th
century, and his deep study of their
games amplified his attacking flair. His
perception had also been sharpened by
more than three decades of deep re­
search and fierce tactical battles by the
time he sat down to play Ljubojevic.
But there is an inexplicable quality
to Bronstein's talent which we can only
describe in three words, no more and
no less: genius for chess.
1 s ..:iVC7 16 �b3 i.cs 17 it'f41
17 'ikg4? 'ii'xe5+ is hopeless for
White. Keeping the pawn centre alive
138
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is far more important than the rook on
gl.
17 ... ..ixg1
Now White could crown his attack
with 18 �f6, followed by 19 'iWh6 and
inevitable mate on h6, were it not for
Black's one and only defence: 18 . . .it'c5!,
when the threat of exchanging queens
with 19 ... it'e3+ ruins the white initia­
tive.
18 d6 'iVc8?
Both Jan Timman, in The Art of
Chess Analysis, and Jon Speelman, in
Best Chess Games 1970-1980, annotate
this game to death. Building on the
Dutchman's analysis, Speelman con­
siders that correct play is 18 .. :ifc5 19
lbe4 't!i'd4 20 l1dl 'ii'xb2 21 l:td2, after
which there is a draw by repetition
with 21.. .it'al+ 22 lld1 it'b2 etc, or a
likely conclusion with a draw by per­
petual if Black plays to win, e.g.
2 1 . . .'iVc1+ 22 <;te2 lb8d7 23 ..if6 lbxf6 24
lbxf6+ �g7 2s lbh5+ gxh5 26 'ii'g5+ �h8
27 'ii'f6+ etc.
19 <;te2?
Bronstein's plan is to utilize the c­
file and so he avoids castling queen-
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side. In fact 19 O-O-O!, planning to break
through in the centre with e5-e6, was
the winning move. For example,
19 ... it'c5 (if 19 ... �c5 20 e6! fxe6 21 it'e5
.l:!e8 22 ..ih6 'iVd7 23 lbe4 and wins -
Bronstein) 20 e6 lb8d7 21 exf7+ �g7 22
'it>bl ! and there is no good answer to 23
�h6+.
19 ...i.cS?
Black would have the advantage af­
ter 19 ... it'c5!; for example, 20 e6 lb8d7!,
aiming to give back some material to
neutralize the attack, or 20 lbe4 "ifb5+
21 �d2 lbc4+ 22 �e1 lbe3! - Speelman.
20 lbe4 lb8d7 21 l;'i.c1 "it'c6
22 l;'i.xcSI
A sacrifice reminiscent of
Alekhine's stratagem of drawing away
defenders of the opponent's king as a
prelude to an all-out attack. It was pre­
pared by 19 <;te2, persuading Black to
retreat the bishop to c5 (as we saw
above, he should have refused with
19 . . . 'ii'c S!); then the c-file was cleared
with 20 lbe4, making possible 21 l:tc1;
and finally the blow itself was struck
with 22 l:txc5.
It is a pity that the three consecutive
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
question marks - 1 8 . . .'iVc8? 1 9 <;te2?
and 19 . . ...ic5? - tend to obscure the bril­
liance of Bronstein's conception. It's
not often that the king plays a key part
in the preparation of an attack; nor­
mally he is regarded as a nuisance, a
piece that gets in the way and uses up
defensive resources that could have
been spent on the attack. Artistically
speaking, the move 19 <;te2 is much
finer than the 'correct' 19 0-0-0. It also
proved good enough to beat Ljubo­
jevic, who was leading the tournament
at the time of this game.
22 ... lbxcs 23 lbf6+ �h8 24 'iih4 'it'bS+
2 s �e3! !
Preventing the knight o n c5 from
joining in a counterattack. Putting the
king on the third rank is much more
accurate than 25 �f2, when Black can
fight on after 25 ... lbd3+ 26 �g2! h5 27
lbxh5 fkb4!.
2 S ... h S 26 lbxh S �xb3+
Black is mated after 26 . . . gxh5 27
�f6+! <;tg8 28 'ii'g5+ etc, while he would
run out of decent checks after
26 ... 'iid3+ 27 �f2 ttJe4+ 28 fxe4 �d4+ 29
'it>g2 "iVxb2+ 30 �h3, as if 30 ... i¥c3+ 31
139
C h e s s Secrets: The Gia n ts of Po we r Play
liJg3+ 'ittg8 32 i.f6 and mates on h8.
Ljubojevic could resign here, but his
opponent was desperately short of
time and so he plays on to the time
control at move 40.
27 axb3 liJd S+ 28 �d4 liJe6+ 29 'ittxd S
liJxgs 30 liJf6+ 'ittg 7 31 'iixgs �fd8 3 2
e 6 fxe6+ 3 3 'ittxe6 IU8 34 d 7 a s 3 5 liJg4
z:ta6+ 36 �es l:tfS+ 37 'i'xfs gxfS 38
d8� fxg4 39 'i'd7+ �h6 40 �xb7 ftg6
41 f4 1-0
A dynamic build-up versus an
a nti-positional attack
In the following game, Morphy and
Anderssen make 'mirror image' ad­
vances on the kingside, but only one
player was improving his piece/pawn
harmony.
Game 54
P.Morphy-A.Anderssen
5th matchga m e, Paris 1858
Centre-Counter Defence
1 e4 d s
Anderssen was so impressed by
Morphy's knowledge of theory that he
decided to play unconventional open­
ings. On the whole he achieved reason­
able positions in the early middle game,
but was subsequently outplayed.
That's the problem with meeting a gen­
ius on territory that is unknown to both
players: his inspiration will provide
him with safe passage through all the
swamps and pitfalls, leaving his oppo­
nent, who lacks any strategic signposts,
140
floundering in the quicksand.
2 exds liJf6 3 d4 liJxds 4 c4 liJf6 5 liJC3
i.fs 6 liJf3 e6 7 i.e3 iLb4 8 'i'b3 iLxc3+
9 bXc3 i.e4 10 liJd2 i.c6 11 i.d3 liJbd7
12 �C2 h6 13 0-0 0-0 14 z:tae1 b6
A good move, though Anderssen
didn't play it with the correct plan in
mind.
15 h 3
1S ...�c8?
Here the simple IS ... i.b7! would
clear the way for a positional attack on
the white centre; e.g. 16 'itth2 (not a
good move but the one Morphy chose
in the game) 16 ... cS and Black is ready
for 17 . . ..llc8 etc. In that case Black's
pressure along the c-file would hamper
any attempt by White to build up an
initiative on the kingside. Leaving the
queen on d8 also sets a nasty trap
(though Morphy would never have
fallen for it!): IS ... .tb7 16 'itth2 cS 17 g4?
liJxg4+! when if 18 hxg4? iVh4+ mates
next move.
It's rather harsh to criticize
Anderssen for failing to grasp the need
to prepare ... c7-cS. A positional plan to
undermine a pair of doubled pawns
isn't part of the Romantic school of
chess. Such an idea belongs in the
games of later masters such as Steinitz,
Rubinstein and Capablanca.
Instead, we get a tactical confronta­
tion on the kingside typical of the style
of mid 19th century chess. Morphy
builds up with �h2, �gl, g2-g4 etc -
and Anderssen responds in kind with
... 'itth8, . . . .l:tg8 and ... g7-gS. Both players
try to attack and strike a knockout
blow against the enemy king.
If that's how both players agree to
contest the game, there is only going to
be one winner, and that is White. In
particular, Morphy has a bishop on e3
that is going to become very menacing
once Black compromises his kingside
with ... g7-gS.
Players such as Steinitz, with their
advanced understanding of positional
chess, would have caused Morphy a lot
of problems with ... i.b7 and ... c7-cS.
But Anderssen, the brilliant tactician,
has no choice but to trust his own more
limited strategic ideas, even though
they lead him to defeat.
Note that I couldn't help describing
lS ... i.b7, the move that eluded
Anderssen, as "simple"! I guess by
simple I mean "calm and positional,
not trying to force matters". It's only
simple to find such moves when you
have seen the games of Petrosian and
other chess artists, who were born
many years after the death of
Anderssen .
Now let's return to the game and
see how the battle unfolds.
16 'itt h 2
En e rg iz i n g t h e P a w n s
Morphy prepares a direct attack
down the g-file as described above ...
16 ...'it>h8
. . .and Anderssen copies him. After
16 .. :ii'h7 Black would run out of ideas,
as he can't get in . . . c7-cS attacking d4.
However, it was still possible to play
16 . . . �b7! and after 17 .I:lgl cS.
17 .I:lg1 :g8 18 g4 gs
The only consistent move, though
highly regrettable.
19 f4
Both players have made aggressive
pawn advances on the kingside, but
Morphy has a tremendous trump in the
dark-squared bishop, which can be
used to undermine the black pawns on
gS and h6. Furthermore, White has al­
ready been able to coordinate his rooks
on the first rank, whereas Black needs
to get his queen out of their way.
19 .. :ti'f8
Anderssen finds a good post for the
queen on d6. If he loses this game it
isn't because of his lack of imagination:
it is simply that the underlining logic of
the position is against him. He has dis­
located his kingside pawn structure,
141
C h e s s S e c re ts : Th e G i a n ts of P o we r Play
breaking rules of thumb such as "don't
open the position when your opponent
has the two bishops" and "don't move
pawns on the side of the board where
your opponent has the initiative". And
above all, he has omitted the vital at­
tack on d4 with ... c7-c5.
20 l:tg3 .l:!.d8 21 tiJf3 ..\txf3
Safeguarding the g5-point; and, be­
sides, the knight mustn't be allowed to
go to e5. However, the white rooks
gain freedom of action on the f-file, and
unless something drastic happens, the
weakness of f6 or f7 is sure to tell
against Black.
22 .!1xf3 �d6 23 '>i1ig2 tiJhs
Once again we can't help but ad­
mire the energy and inventiveness of
Anderssen's play, even if it is ulti­
mately doomed. He cannot wait, as
White will bulldozer down the f-file
with 24 l:!.efl and then 25 �f2, if neces­
sary, when f4xg5 will either win the
knight on f6, or if it flees, the pawn on
f7. Note that playing . . . g5xf4 won't do
Black any good in this sequence, as the
weaknesses on the f-file will remain
and a new one will be created on h6.
142
And so Anderssen seeks counterplay
with a knight sacrifice.
24 fxg5
Not of course 24 gxh5? gxf4+ when
Black regains his piece.
24 ... hxgs 25 gxh5 g4 26 hxg4 11xg4+ 27
'&til f5 28 �f2
There is no logical reason why
White should lose to a combination, no
matter how ingenious, when he has all
his pieces, in particular the queen,
supporting his king. Anderssen has
one more try at upsetting his illustrious
opponent.
28 ... tiJe5 29 dxe5
Perhaps the cleanest way for White
to win is 29 ..if4!, when if 29 ... l:!.xf4 30
6txe5! or 29 ... tiJxd3 30 .i.xd6 tiJxf2 31
..\te5+ ..t>h7 32 Wxf2 etc.
29 .. :iVxd3+ 30 'iie 2 �e4 31 ..\tf2 'ike6 3 2
.tt d l l:!.xdl+ 33 �xdl �xe4+ 34 �d3
'i¥xa2 3 5 l:i.g3 'i'e4
With a heavy heart the tactical
maestro is compelled to swap off
queens, as otherwise his king would
come under a deadly attack.
36 'i!kxe4 i:lxe4 37 litg6 l:i.e6 38 e4!
Morphy takes measures against the
advance of Black's passed a-pawn,
which can be met with ..\td4 if neces­
sary.
38 ... as 39 '>i1ie2 l1xe4
Rather than wait for 40 ..t>d3, when
his rook would have no safe move,
Anderssen concedes the e6-pawn and
makes one last attempt to save himself
on the queenside.
40 l:i.xe6 l::te 2+ 41 �f3 a4 42 l::tg6
Morphy makes rather heavy
weather of the endgame. The simplest
way to win was to utilize the passed e­
pawn with 42 �e8+ ..t>g7 43 e6. For ex­
ample, if 43 . . .a3 44 .i.d4+ '>i1ih6 45 e7, or
43 ... .l:rc4 44 e7 when 44 ... '>i1if7 allows the
neat finish 45 h6! �xe8 46 h7 and the h­
pawn queens, while 44 .. Jie4 45 iL.h4 a3
46 l:i.f8 a2?! 47 �f6+ '>i1ih6 48 .l:rh8 is
mate.
42 ...l:i.e4 43 �gl a3 44 e6 a2 45 l:i.al lIe4
46 l:i.xa2 lbe6 47 <Jtf4 lld6 48 'it>xf5
.l;td S+ 49 ..t>g4 b5 50 lla8+ '>i1ih7 51 lia7
�d7 52 ..\tg3 l:!.g7+ 53 '>i1ih3 1-0 (D)
Because his bishop controls the
queening square of the h-pawn, White
can happily exchange rooks, blockade
the passed queenside pawns and then
En e rg izing t h e P a w n s
advance his king, putting Black in
zugzwang. For example, 53 . . . c5 54
�xg7+ 'it>xg7 55 .i.d6 c4 56 ..\tb4 'it>h6 57
'it'g4 �h7 58 ..t>g5 'it'g7 59 h6+ '>t>h7 60
'l£ih5 'it'g8 61 �g6 ..t>h8 62 i.c3+ and
wins.
A wing pawn adds vital energy to
an attack
Came 55
T.Radjabov-V.Topalov
Wij k aan Zee 2003
Catalan Opening
1 d4 tiJf6 2 e4 e6 3 tiJf3 d5 4 g3 .i.b4+ 5
iLd2 i..e 7 6 ..\tg2 0-0 7 0-0 e6 8 �e2 b6 9
iLf4 SLa6 10 tiJbd2 tiJbd7 11 l:i.fdl �e8
12 l:i.ael tiJh5 13 e4 tiJxf4 14 gxf4 tiJf6
15 tiJes tiJh5 16 'i6a4 ..\txe4 17 tiJxe6 b5
18 'ti'a6 �xe6 19 �xe6 tiJxf4 20 tiJxe4
bxe4 21 exd 5 exd5 22 :te3 ..ih4 23 l'iIg3
.lIe8 24 l::tg4 Ite6 25 'i'e5 tiJxg2 26 l::txg2
a6 27 �a3 g6 28 �e3 'i'e7 29 b3 'ika3
30 'ilVe2 �e7 31 �1 exb3 32 'i!kxb3 'ilVd6
33 �d3 'i'f4 34 �d2 'i'f5 35 l\r'd3 1!e4
3 6 l\r'b3 ..t>g7 37 �d3
143

Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
In the diagram position the Bulgar­
ian Grandmaster has sacrificed the ex­
change for a pawn. He has succeeded
in tying down the white pieces to the
pawns on d4 and f2, but it isn't clear
how he can increase his initiative. For
example, if he plays ... ..Iif6 at some
point, to put pressure on d4, White will
be able to reply liIg3!, followed by l:l.f3
if necessary, to activate his rook. Be­
sides, the a6-pawn is hanging.
Topalov realized that manoeuvres
by his pieces on their own would get
him nowhere. Therefore he needed to
tap an unused source of energy in the
black position: his pawns.
37 ... h5! 38 'ikb3
It turns out that 38 'ii'xa6? allows
38 ... ..txf2! 39 l::txf2 'i'kh3+ 40 �gl (40 t!.g2
'iff3+ 41 'it>gl 'iVxd1+ is even worse for
White) 40 . . .�g4+ 41 �h1 �xd1+ 42 11£1
'it'xd4 and Black wins.
38 .....tf6 39 I:tg3 Itf41
Better than 39 . . . ..txd4 40 :f3. Black
wants to keep the white rook boxed in
on g2, not allowed the freedom of the f­
file. There will be time later on to cap­
ture the d4-pawn.
144
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40 'iVe3 h 4 41 J:Ig2
Black's h-pawn, with the help of his
queen and rook on the f-file, has suc­
ceeded in pushing the white rook back
onto its passive square. In other words,
it has taken over guard duty from the
black bishop, which is now free to at­
tack d4 without worrying about the
white rook slipping out via g3. This
amounts to a significant change in the
energy balance between the two ar­
mies: basically the black bishop has
gained power of movement without
allowing the white rook on g2 to gain
any reciprocal power of movement.
41 ... .l:i.f3 42 �e2 a s ! 43 'it>gl J::tf4 44 'it>h1
l::te4 45 'iVf1 a4
Black's a-pawn has edged forwards.
The further it advances, the more dan­
gerous it will be as a potential passed
pawn if White's a2-pawn drops. The
game never reaches such a scenario as
the white position quickly fragments in
the centre and on the kingside. Never­
theless, you should always be looking
out for ways to improve your position
' for free' with pawn moves like 42 ... aS
and 4S ... a4. They can't do any harm,
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and might make a crucial difference.
46 t!.d2 ..txd4
At last Topalov decides to nab the
d4-pawn.
47 'iVd1 ..te5
48 f3
Black's h-pawn is seen in a more
aggressive role after 48 lhdS h3 49 .1:.g1
(or 49 .l:i.g3? 'it'xf2) 49 .. :ii'f4, when the
best way for White to stop mate on h2
is with SO llxeS, leaving him a pawn
down and still menaced by the pawn
on h3 after SO .. J:lxeS. With the game
move Radjabov at last gets to bring his
rook from g2 into the centre.
48 ... lIb4
Threatening the queen with 49 ...11bl.
49 11d3 h3 50 l:te2 d4
The black pawns on a4, d4 and h3
have the white pieces in a stranglehold.
51 t!.f2 i.f4 52 'iVe2 .:tb1+ 53 1Id1
The passed d-pawn has to be al­
lowed to advance, as thanks to its com­
rade on h3, the white back rank col­
lapses after S3 �fl 'ii'e6! S4 'ii'f2 'ii'x a2!.
53 ...d3 54 'ii'f1 t!.xd1 5 S 'ii'x d1 d2 56
l:le2 'ii'd 3 57 llf2 i.e3 58 11f1 ..Iid4 59 a3
Wg8!
En erg iz i n g t h e P a w n s
Zugzwang i s the quickest way to
end the game, as if 60 'iVbl 'iVe2 threat­
ens mate on g2.
60 f4 'ife4+ 61 t!.f3 .tf21 0-1
Disaster follows on e 1 .
A s you can see, pawns are a vital
part of the power play style.
The 'berserker' pawn
Every once in a while one of Alekhine's
pawns is mad enough to challenge the
whole of the opponent's army. The
reckless pawn met with sensational
success in his game with Bogoljubow
in Chapter Four. In the following ex­
ample it has its career sadly cut short,
though not before it manages to terror­
ize the enemy pieces.
Game 56
E.Znosko-Borovsky -
A.Alekhine
Pa ris 192 5
Alekhine Defence
1 e4 ctJf6
145
Chess S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
A little over a hundred years after it
was rejected as inferior by Allgaier (in
1 819), the opening now known as
Alekhine's Defence had a resurgence at
the Budapest 1921 tournament. It was
played in four games, including a win
and a draw by Alekhine himself as
Black versus Steiner and Samisch re­
spectively. Thereafter it was seen in the
games of chess notables such as Reti
and Emanuel Lasker. (Another big fan
was the famous artist and chess maniac
Marcel Duchamp.)
Nowadays White usually responds
with 2 eS ttJdS 3 d4 d6 4 ttJf3 .ig4 S
ii.e2, keeping a slight but solid edge. In
contrast, Alekhine often got the upper
hand in the opening, because his op­
ponents either declined the chance to
build a pawn centre or, having done so,
failed to consolidate their space advan­
tage properly. Znosko-Borovsky cer­
tainly isn't dazzled by 1 . . .ttJf6 in the
current game.
2 eS ttJdS 3 c4 ttJb6 4 d4 d6 S f4 dxes 6
fxes ttJc6 7 i.. e3 i.fS 8 ttJf3 e6 9 ttJC3
9 .. .tiJb4?!
Alekhine wants to attack the white
146
centre without any more ado. How­
ever, the developing 9 ... i.e7 was to be
preferred, and only after 9 dS then
9 ... ttJb4 with a sharp game.
10 .l:!.c1 cS 11 a3?
A slow move which justifies Black's
ninth move adventure. Instead, the
quiet 1 1 ii.e2! is awkward for Black, as
after 1 1 . . .cxd4 12 ttJxd4 the centre is
becoming open, leaving his knight
poorly placed on b4.
11 ••• cxd4
Now chances after 12 ttJxd4 ttJc6 are
about equal. White tries for more and
is hit by an Alekhine combination:
12 ii.gS? dXc31
1 3 ii.xd8 ':xd8?
Alekhine should have recalled his
masterpiece against Bogoljubow where
the rampant pawn single-handedly
defeated the white pieces. After
13 ... cxb2! 14 ii.xb6 bxc1'iW IS 'it'xc1 ttJc2+
16 'i.t>f2 axb6, intending 17 ... ii.cS+ etc,
Black has a decisive positional advan­
tage. Alekhine gives (instead of 14
.ixb6) 14 ii.g5 as a better chance, but
even then, after 14 . . .bxc1 � IS ii.xc1
ttJc2+ 16 'i.t>f2 l:!.d8 17 �e2 i..cS+ 18 'i.t>g3
0-0, White is being crushed: the threats
include 19 . . . .id3 or 19 ... ttJa4 followed
by 20 ... ttJc3 trapping the white queen.
Despite his material advantage,
Znosko-Borovsky is being pushed
around, as all the action is happening
without any input from his rook on hI .
14 'ii'b 3 cxb2 1S 'iix b2 ttJa4 16 1i'a1!
Alekhine admitted after the game
that he had missed this crafty retreat.
He is winning after other moves; for
example, 16 "iVb3? ttJcS! 17 1i'xb4 ttJd3+
18 ii.xd3 ii.xb4+ 19 axb4 l:!.xd3 and
Black is a pawn up, or 16 �f2 ii.cs 17
�g3 ttJc2+ 18 lhc2 i..xc2 with a rook
and bishop for the queen and a con­
tinuing attack.
16 ... ttJC2+?
Another slip. Here 16 ... ttJd3+! 17
ii.xd3 �xd3, threatening to trap the
white queen with 18 .. Jha3, is much
stronger - Alekhine.
17 nxc2 ii.xc2 18 ttJd4!
The beginning of a spirited fight­
back. The Russian master exploits the
hanging black bishop to improve the
coordination of his pieces.
18 ... ii.g6 19 c S !
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
A slower move would have been
answered by 19 ... ii.cS and 20 ... 0-0. By
sacrificing a pawn White frees his
bishop and succeeds in disrupting his
opponent's build-up, as 19 . . . .ixcS? 20
.ibS+ 'it'f8 21 ttJb3! would embarrass
the black knight and bishop on cS.
19 ...ttJxcS 20 ii.bS+ ttJd7 21 �C3!
Preventing 21. ..ii.cS. Now the future
World Champion became anxious
about 22 �c7, increasing the pressure
on d7, but, as he demonstrated after
the game, it was harmless: 21...i..e7! 22
'iic7 a6 23 ii.a4 ii.e4! (it's important to
rule out ttJc6 by White before playing
his next move) 24 0-0 bS 2S i..c2 ii.cs
"and Black easily disentangles himself'
- Alekhine.
Going two moves further, after 26
i.xe4 .lii.xd4+ 27 �hl 0-0 Black still has
only a rook and knight for the queen,
but he is going to capture a third pawn
on eS, giving him a significant material
advantage. Meanwhile White is lacking
one of the saving graces when the op­
ponent makes a positional sacrifice of
the queen: either a passed pawn or an
attack on an unsafe king. Even if White
147
Ch ess S e c rets: T h e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
picks up Black's two queenside pawns
in return for his own pawns on e5 and
a3, he is probably going to lose the
endgame due to Black's passed pawn
on the e-file.
21 ... a6? 22 i.xd7+ .l:i.xd7 23 'ifcS+ .l:td S
24 �xb7!
The piece sacrifice guarantees
White at least a draw.
24... .l:i.xd4 25 'i¥c6+ .l:i.d7 26 O-O!
Threatening to win at once with 27
.l:i.dl, so Alekhine has to tread very
carefully.
26...i.d3
Black would only create
chances for himself if he moved his
king, as White could at worst force a
draw by perpetual or repeating moves
after 26 . . .�e7 27 �c5+ etc.
27 .l:i.xf7 i.C5+ 2S �h1 i.b5!
The only move, as Black loses a
piece after 28 ... �xf7? 29 'i¥xd7+ and 30
�xd3.
29 �xe6+ .l:i.e7
Alekhine has to acquiesce
draw, as after 29 ... �d8 30 .l:i.xd7+ i.xd7
31 �d5 the double threat of 32 �xc5
and 32 e6 wins for White.
148
3 0 .l:i.xe7+ i.xe7 3 1 'i¥cS+ i..d S 3 2 'i¥e6+
iLe7 33 �cS+ i.dS 34 �e6+ Yz-Yz
Eugene Znosko-Borovsky (1884-1954)
must have been a very popular player.
Despite being annoyed at failing to win,
Alekhine was generous enough to say
that his opponent had "faultlessly ex­
ploited all possibilities for saving the
game and demonstrated admirable tac­
tical acuity". Similarly, when Capablan­
ca lost to Znosko-Borovsky from a win­
ning position and so failed to receive a
gold cup, the Cuban wrote that he de­
losing served "great credit for the way he con­
ducted his exceedingly difficult defence" .
Znosko-Borovsky was only a minor
chess master, but he had qualities that
impressed two of the giants of the
game. Whereas most players of his era
would cave in under pressure, Znosko
understood how to tum a defence into
a counterattack. This gives the above
game a very 'modem' feel, with both
players striving their hardest to gain
the initiative.
Destroying piece/pawn
coordination
Game 5 7
L.Pol ugaevsky-D.Bronstein
USSR C h a m pio n s h i p,
Len in grad 1971
English Opening
to a
1 c4 c5 2 li'lf3 li'lf6 3 li'lC3 d5 4 cxd 5
li'lxd5 5 g3 g6 6 �b3 li'lb4 7 li'le4
Lev Polugaevsky relates how he
had used this variation with success in
an earlier game against Furman, which
had continued 7. . .b6 8 iLg2 iLe6 9 �c3
f6 10 a3 etc. Bronstein had studied that
game and was waiting to ambush Polu
with an amazing improvement:
7 ...iLg7!?
Black ignores the attack on c5. He
takes away the c3-square from the
white queen and threatens 8 ... i.e6,
gaining more time, so White has no
choice but to accept the offer.
S li'lxC5 'iVa 5 9 a3 li'l4c6
If 9 ... li'l8c6 10 �c4! threatens n li'lb3
and then 12 axb4. The reply 10 ... b5
would fail to 11 "ife4 iLf5 12 axb4! -
Polugaevsky. Therefore Bronstein feels
obliged to retreat his knight.
10 �C4 b5!
Forcing the white queen to run
away along the fourth rank, as after 1 1
'ifc2 she might become a target t o one
of three ideas: . . ..l:tc8; or . . . iLg4 and
... .l1.xf3 followed by . . . li'ld4; or ... .l1.f5,
when White has no wish to loosen
himself with e2-e4 in reply.
11 �h4
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
Now Black i s minus a centre pawn,
with no lead in development or attack
in sight. It seems that Bronstein has
been crazy to try to smash the solid
armour of the English Opening.
But here is a paradox: the white ar­
mour is so solid that, apart from along
the c-file, which will soon fall into
Black's hands, there is little room for
the white pieces to manoeuvre behind
it. And the white queen, who is caught
outside the armour, can't find a way to
get back inside it!
In other words, we have an extreme
example of pawns and pieces not
working together. Black's pawn on b4
will contain more dynamic energy than
the whole white pawn structure. We
might add that the open c-file is made
all the more valuable to the black
pieces because the 'beautiful' white
pawn structure doesn't contain any
outlets for its own pieces.
It took the genius of Bronstein to
comprehend that, after 7 ... iLg7, the im­
perviousness of the white pawns is no
joy but rather a hindrance to the white
pieces.
149
C h e s s S e c rets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r P l ay
11 ... b4 12 ttJd3 ttJa6 13 ii.g2 ii.d7 14 0-0
nc8 15 ttJde1 ttJcS!
The black knight has discovered a
great square on b3.
16 ttJC2 ttJb3 17 .l:Ib1 'iVcS 18 ttJe3
White has so little space that he
drops the rook on bl after 18 ttJxb4
ttJxb4 19 axb4 'ir'c2.
18 ttJcd4
.•.
A pawn structure that loses its mo­
bility stifles its own pieces, which in
tum become less able to defend it from
attack. Here Bronstein focuses his as­
sault on the e2-square.
19 ttJxd4 ttJxd4 20 1:!.e1 ii.bs 21 axb4
'ii'd 6
Black is in no hurry to recapture on
b4, as if 22 d3 then 22 . . . 'iVxb4 comes
with greater force as it attacks el.
22 ii.f1 0-0 2 3 'iVe4 e6 24 b3 fS 25 'iVf4
es 26 'ir'gs
White's queen is being pushed
around, without any means to escape
her confinement on the kingside.
Meanwhile the bishop is still stuck on
el, breaking one of the golden rules of
development: the minor pieces should
remove themselves from the first rank as
150
soon as possible, so that the rooks can coor­
dinate their action and mutually defend
one another.
Given this disharmony it's no won­
der a combination suddenly occurs:
26 ... iLxe 2 ! 27 iLg2
If 27 %he2 ttJf3+ wins the queen,
while 27 iLxe2 ttJxe2+ 28 Mxe2 �d3
forks two rooks.
27 ii.d3
.••
The loss of the e2 has wrecked
White's centre, leaving him with big
holes on d3 and f3. Polugaevsky makes
a valiant bid to free his game by sacri­
ficing the exchange, but it proved fu­
tile. The remaining moves were:
En ergizing t h e P a w n s
28 l:[a1 e4 29 ttJC4 �d7 30 iLb2 ii.xC4 31
iLxd4 ii.xd4 32 bXc4 ii.xa1 33 �xa1
l:txc4 34 ii.f1 .l:i.d4 35 !'i.a6 'it>g7 36 bS
:txd2 37 1:!.xa7 �xa7 38 'iYxd2 �b6 39
"iVc3+ 'i'f6 40 'iVcs �d8 41 b6 �d6 42
'iVc3+ 'ii'd 4 43 "iVc6 �d6 44 'iiC7+ l'J.d7 45
"iNc6 �d6 46 'ti'c3+ �f6 47 'iVcs 1:!.b7 48
�bS 'iVxb6 49 �es+ 'ir'f6 0-1
Preventing a freeing pawn move
1 7 .ixd6 1 8 'it'xd6
••.
Game 58
And now in the style of Paulsen­
v.Topalov-C.Lutz
Morphy in Chapter Five, the queen
Cand idates To u rn a ment,
takes up the role of blockader.
Dortm u n d 2002
18 ... cxb3 19 axb3 as 20 1:!.d4!
Sicilian Defence
Disarming the pawn ram 20 . . . a4.
20 J�ta6 21 'if'a 3 dS
.•
1 e4 cS 2 ttJf3 e6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ttJxd4 ttJc6
5 ttJc3 "iiC7 6 .ie3 a6 7 "iVd2 ttJf6 8 0-0-0
ii.b4 9 f3 ttJes 10 ttJb3 bS 11 'it>b1 ttJC4
12 ii.xC4 bXc4 13 ttJC1 'ifb7
Black is understandably keen to at­
tack down the b-file, but it was better
to try the alternative 13 ...nb8, when the
continuation 14 ..if4 e5 15 ii.g5 leads to
interesting play. Moving the queen to
b7 weakens his hold on the dark
squares in the centre, a fact that Topa­
lov soon pounces upon.
14 ttJ1e2 I:tb8 15 b3 0-0 16 ii.f41 So Lutz has succeeded in breaking
Driving the black rook back into the the hold on d6, but the episode will
corner. leave him with a deathly sick pawn on
16 .•. :a8 17 ii.d6 d5.
A blocking technique also em­ 22 exds exds 23 ttJf4 ii.e6 24 �hd1 h6
ployed by Morphy in his game with Black decides to give up the pawn,
Schulten in Chapter Ten. The bishop as 24 .. J:td8 25 ttJe4! ttJxe4 36 fxe4 is
plugs the d6-square before Black can highly unpleasant.
free his game with . . . d7-d5. 25 ttJcxdS ttJxdS 26 ttJxdS �b8?
151
Che ss S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
The simplifying 26 . . . .txd5 27 l:txd5
a4 was the last chance. After the game
move it looks like Black has the mak­
ings of a strong attack with 26 ... a4, but
Topalov gets in first with an unex­
pected combination:
2 7 l2Jf6+!! gxf6 2S l:!dS+ �xdS 29 1:txdS+
Wh7 30 'tiffS �g6
It takes longer but Black is also
mated after 30 ... h5: i.e. 31 g4! hxg4 32
fxg4 Wg6 (or 32 . . ..txg4 33 li'g8+ 'it>h6 34
li'xg4 na8 35 .l:!.d3 intending 36 l:th3
mate) 33 'tifg8+ 'it>h6 34 li'h8+ 'It>g5 35
'i'g7+ �f4 36 'iVxf6+ 'it>e4 37 .l:td4+ �e3
152
38 'iWf4+ We2 39 l:td2+ 'itJe1 40 'ilkf2 mate.
31 li'gS+ 'it>hs 32 'ilVg7!
This quiet move is a very neat way
to end the game. If now 32 .. JIa8 33 g4+
�h4 34 li'xh6 mate.
32 ... fS 33 11d4!
Intending 34 l:I.h4+! �xh4 35 'iWxh6
mate.
33 ... .tcS 34 g31 1-0
The only way to stop mate on h4 is
by giving up the queen, so Black pre­
ferred to resign.
Topalov played like Morphy in both
a positional and tactical way!
C h a pt e r S eve n
A Batte ri ng Ra m on the f-fi le
On the way to his World Champion­
ship match in 1951, Bronstein excelled
his opponents in all three components
of power play: psychology, opening
preparation and the understanding of
dynamics. As a result, he won impor­
tant games against Najdorf and Keres
by infusing his f-pawn with attacking
energy. In this chapter we shall exam­
ine these games and also look at how
our other four giants have used the f­
pawn as a ' magician's wand'.
Bronstein ' s mastery of power
play
In the following game, Miguel Na­
jdorf, one of the very best players out­
side the USSR at the time, is going to
be crushed in 21 moves. Here are the
power play factors that make this in­
evitable:
1) Opening preparation of forcing
variations. Bronstein had come to the
I
1950 Candidates tournament having
studied sharp lines in the 4 a3 Nimzo­
Indian in great detail.
2) Understanding of dynamics. Na­
jdorf is undone by the power of the f4-
f5 pawn ram. It would seem it took a
long time for the chess world to wake
up to the power of this advance.
3) Psychology. Najdorf had been
watching Bronstein's game with Szabo
in the Nimzo-Indian earlier in the
tournament and had said to Bronstein's
trainer and mentor, Boris Weinstein,
"Your David is bluffing." Not surpris­
ingly, Weinstein didn't try to change
his mind. After the Szabo game, which
Bronstein won, Najdorf had begun
suggesting improvements for Black.
Evidently the Argentine Grandmaster
regarded himself as a great Nimzo­
Indian expert.
Feeling over-confident and facing a
new opening idea from Bronstein is not
the healthiest combination!
153
Chess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
Game 59
D.Bronstein-M.Najdorf
Candidates Tou rn a ment,
Buda pest 1950
Nimzo-Indian Defence
1 d4 ttJf6 2 C4 e6 3 ttJC3 ii.b4 4 a3 i.xc3+
5 bxc3 c5
Szabo had played 5 . . . 0-0 in the
aforementioned game.
6 e3 ttJc6 7 ii.d3 0-0 8 ttJe2 d6 9 e4 ttJe8
Alternatively he could grab space in
the centre with 9 . . . eS! ?
10 0-0 b6 11 f4 i.a6??
The losing move. Black is convinced
that his opponent's kingside advance is
"all bluff" and goes straight after the
pawn on c4. The only move was
1 1 .. .£S!, blocking the white f-pawn.
12 fS I
Perhaps Najdorf had only consid­
ered 12 eS, opening the diagonal for the
bishop on d3, which is fairly harmless.
In any case, at this point the Argentine
Grandmaster realized the danger he
was in, but it was one move too late.
1 54
He thought for an hour without find­
ing a way to escape. And no wonder:
the threat is 13 f6 and the attempt to
block it with .. .f7-f6 leads to catastro­
phe after 12 ... exfS 13 exfS f6 14 .ie4!
'it'd7 15 ii.dS+ '.t>h8 16 ttJf4, when White
will have the pleasant choice between
the positional 17 ttJe6, or 17 'ii'hS threat­
ening 18 ttJg6 mate, or even 17 ttJg6+!'
12 ...e5 13 f6! '.t>h8
If 13 ... ttJxf6 14 i.gS puts Black in a
horrible pin, with 15 ttJg3 and 16 ttJhS
looming. Alternatively, after 13 ... g6 14
i.h6 he loses the exchange whilst keep­
ing a rotten position.
14 d5 ttJa5 15 ttJg3 gxf6 16 ttJf5
So what has White gained with the
f-pawn battering ram? Well, his dark­
squared bishop has an open diagonal,
the knight has the fS-square, and his
queen and rook on f1 can quickly be
brought into the attack. And on the
Black side, the prevention of his own
.. .f7-f6 move means that the queen and
rooks are unable to defend their king
along the second rank. Furthermore,
the pawn on h7 is a ready target for the
white pieces.
Black is absolutely lost. Why then
did Najdorf, one of the best players in
the world, miss that 12 £5 is so lethal?
As we discussed above,
confidence, lack of opening research,
and no ' feel' for the strength of the f­
pawn ram all contributed their part.
16 ... ii.c8 17 'ilVh s
So simple: the white queen intends
to mate on h7.
17 ...�xf5 18 exf5 �g8 19 llf3 lIg7 20
i.h6 �g8 21 .l:th3 1-0
If 2 1 . ..ttJg7 22 'ifu4 ttJe8 (otherwise
23 .ltgS wins) 23 ii.f8 and wins.
Bronstein's trusty f-pawn
formed the same trick in the last round
of the tournament against Keres. Bron­
stein needed to win this game to catch
up with Boleslavsky and force a play­
off match to decide who faced Botvin­
nik. No easy task when you are playing
one of the all-time chess greats! Once
again power play came to his rescue:
1) Opening preparation of forcing
variations. Bronstein was armed with
an interesting new pawn
A B a tt e r i n g Ram o n t h e f-fi le
against Keres' habitual Ruy Lopez.
2) Understanding of dynamics. Like
Najdorf, Keres falters before the ad­
vance of White's f-pawn. It seems he
over­ just didn't appreciate the strength of
the threat he faced. Otherwise, no mat­
ter how short of time or otherwise dis­
tracted, his chess instinct wouldn't
have permitted the abysmal 26th move
that decides the game.
3) Psychology. Keres wasn't the sort
of player to collapse before a double­
edged pawn sacrifice. Nevertheless, the
opening surprise could be expected to
get him short of time, which is exactly
what happened. Furthermore, it was
the last round of the tournament, and
the Estonian Grandmaster had no
chance of qualifying to play Botvinnik.
Therefore in a hard fight he wouldn't
have the same incentive as Bronstein,
for whom this was the most important
game of his life. If pushed hard
enough, Keres might just crack. . .
Game 60
D.Bronstein-P.Keres
Cand idates To u rnament,
per­
Buda pest 19 50
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 ii.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ttJf6
5 0-0 Ji.e7 6 lie1 b5 7 i.b3 0-0 8 d4 d6 9
c3 ii.g4
On principle Keres had to pin the
knight, as otherwise White has got d2-
d4 in without wasting a move on h2-
h3. But now Bronstein gets to demon­
sacrifice strate his preparation.
155
C h e s s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
10 h3!? .ixf3 11 'ifxf3 exd4 12 'ifdl!
A paradoxical move typical of
Bronstein's chess art. The white queen
retreats to her starting square in order
to further the white attack. Or perhaps
our hero was remembering the Mor­
phy-Anderssen game with 'ikd 1 ! from
Chapter Five ...
12 ...dxe3 13 liJxe3
In return for his pawn, White has
more freedom of action than his oppo­
nent: that is, the two bishops and the
chance to gain space with an eventual
f2-f4. On the other hand, Black has all
his pieces developed, a safe king and
no serious structural weaknesses to
worry about. Objectively we have to
state that White doesn't have enough
for the pawn.
But when we consider the psycho­
logical circumstances White's chances
are much enhanced. There is an old
saying that no matter how dubious
they look in the laboratory or post mor­
tem, "all gambits are sound in practical
play".
Furthermore, Keres has failed in his
aim in the tournament, it is the last
156
round, he is tired and fed up, and he
wants to go home! And Bronstein sacri­
fices a pawn against him ... there's no
chance to have a snooze, not even in
the opening!
In what follows, White makes no at­
tempt to launch a quick attack on the
black king. Instead, he keeps the ten­
sion, so that Keres has problems to
solve on every move, and is pushed
further and further into time trouble.
We should jump ahead to move 20:
13 ...liJa5 14 ..te2 ne8 15 f4 b4 16 liJd 5
liJxd5 17 'iVxd5 e6 18 'iWd3 g6 19 c;t>hl
.if8 20 11fl ..tg7
The first sign of uncertainty from
Black. Here the centralizing 20 ... d5!? 21
e5 liJc4 was a better way of handling
the position.
21 ..td2 e5
Nonetheless, things are starting to
look ominous for Bronstein, as his op­
ponent is beginning to utilize his pawn
majority on the queenside. However,
he refuses to panic and finds a ma­
noeuvre to reduce the effectiveness of
the black pieces in countering the ad­
vance f4-f5 .
22 .i.a4
In order to prevent the black knight
returning to the centre via c6. At the
same time the rook on e8 is driven to a
more passive square.
22 .. JH8 23 .l:!.abl
A calm defensive move of the type
that pushes the opponent closer to time
trouble.
23 .. :iii'b6
Keres' queen joins his queenside at­
tack, but now she is no longer oppos­
ing the advance of White's f-pawn. Our
giant decides he should wait no longer:
24 f5 ..td4
Naturally he doesn't want the
bishop entombed by 25 f6.
25 'iVg3 liJe4
Here Pachman suggests 2S ... c4 26
iLh6 liJb7! as an efficient way to offer
the exchange to break White's attack.
26 ..th6
Objectively it was better to keep the
tension with 26 .tel !, preparing 27 ..tb3
etc, to increase the pressure on f7. But
did Bronstein sense his opponent was
beginning to feel hazy?
26 .....tg7??
A B a tt e r i n g Ram on t h e f-fi le
The 'inexplicable' collapse occurs.
In reality, Keres has been befuddled by
his opponent's deadly brew of dyna­
mism, psychology and preparation. In
encroaching time pressure, the Esto­
nian Grandmaster sees a ghost, panics,
and makes a ruinous blunder.
The only move consistent with his
queenside build-up was the exchange
sacrifice 26 ... liJxb2!, when after 27 .ixf8
lhf8 Black is unlikely to be mated and
meanwhile can advance with ... cS-c4
etc. I'm sure that Bronstein would have
found various ways to irritate his op­
ponent in time trouble. Still, I can't
help thinking that after 26 . . .liJxb2! there
would have been no Bronstein­
Boleslavsky or Bronstein-Botvinnik
matches. How narrow is the difference
between success and failure in chess!
We may talk about the heartbreak
of losing game 23 of the Botvinnik
match, but at various points in the 1950
Candidates Bronstein might have been
denied the life-long glory of playing a
World Championship match, albeit one
he could 'only' draw.
On the other hand, our hero created
his own luck by preparing the imagina­
tive pawn sacrifice before the game,
and then having the courage to actu­
ally play it. Bronstein deserved a tilt at
Botvinnik's crown more than anyone
else in the world in 195 1 .
27 .ixg7 c;t>xg7 2 8 f6+ c;t> h 8 29 'iVg5
It is sometimes said that tactical
imagination can't be taught, that it is "a
gift from the gods" . On the contrary, its
effects can be studied and systematized
in the same way as positional ideas.
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Chess S e crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
Thus the general mating pattern that
follows is very familiar to all strong
players. The 'formula' is: pawn on f6 +
queen on h6 + rook that can go to the h­
file = 'it'xh7+! and mates.
29 ... b3 30 axb3 'it'b4 31 bXc4 "iixa4 32
Itf4 �C2 33 �h6 1-0
If 33 .. :�xb1+ 34 '>th2 �g8 35 'it'xh7+!
and mate next move.
A slow burning attack beats a
temporary initiative
It is a hallmark of Topalov's games that
his pieces often seem to have less en­
ergy than those of the opponent in the
early middlegame, but move by move
they steadily increase their power.
Meanwhile the opponent can't do any­
thing 'real' with his visually impressive
position and eventually finds himself
flattened by a steam-roller. The same
might be said about Morphy's games.
The American genius would develop
his pieces in a calm and patient manner
and then punish his opponents for in­
dulging in time-wasting and uncoordi­
nated excursions with the pieces.
158
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In the following game we see that
Geller is also a master of this strategy.
He is willing to play slow, unpreten­
tious moves while letting his opponent
enjoy a temporary activity, sure in the
knowledge that Truth and Righteous­
ness (a player whose opponent has a
knight shut out on as) will triumph in
the end.
Game 61
E.Gelier-V.Smyslov
5th matchga me,
Moscow 196 5
Griinfeld Defence
1 d4 lLlf6 2 c4 g6 3 lLlC3 d5 4 cxd5 lLlxd 5
5 e4 lLlxC3 6 bXc3 i.. g7 7 i..c4 c5 8 lLle2
0-0 9 0-0 lLlc6 10 i.. e 3 'iVC7 11 �Cl l:td8
12 f4 e6 13 'it'hl b6?
A safe way to handle the position
was 13 . . . lLla5 14 i..d3 f5!, blocking the
white f-pawn. Instead, Smyslov wel­
comes the further advance of the en­
emy pawn, hoping to profit from the
resulting open lines for his pieces.
14 f5 !
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Geller never needs a second invita­
tion to charge at the enemy kingside!
14 .. .lba5
Smyslov drives the white bishop
away from its post on c4, so that he can
put his own bishop on the highly at­
tractive b7-square without worrying
about the e6- or f7-pawn dropping off.
It is obvious that the former World
Champion is thinking optimistically in
terms of "what can I do to improve the
energy of my pieces?", rather than
"what can I do to restrain the energy of
the white pieces?" According to the
logic which he believes governs the
position, he is playing correctly, but as
we shall see the logic itself is faulty.
That is why 13 . . . lLla5, intending . . . £7-£5
as part of a preventive strategy, was
good, whereas one move later exactly
the same knight move, intending
... i..b7, is a positional error.
15 i..d 3 exf5 16 exf5 i.. b7 17 1Wd2 Ite8
18 lLlg3 'iVc6
Black is first with a tactical threat:
19 .. Ja.xe3! 20 "i'xe3 "iixg2 mate.
19 l:tf2 1Iad8
At first glance it seems that Smyslov
A B a t tering Ram o n t h e f-fi le
has coordinated his pieces in exem­
plary style. Both his rooks are de­
ployed on central files, while both
bishops enjoy open diagonals, with one
supporting the queen in an attack on
White's tender spot on g2 and the other
staring at the remnants of the white
centre on d4. Meanwhile Geller has
played some slow-looking moves:
namely i..d3 retreating one bishop,
ifd2 guarding the other bishop, and
nf2 to reinforce the vulnerable g2-
square.
Nevertheless, if we think in terms of
potential energy, some serious doubts
begin to creep in about Smyslov's set­
up. Will the knight on as be able to re­
turn to the centre? And if not, won't
the black army be outnumbered when
the tactical battle begins?
In contrast, the white position has
plenty of scope for improvement. Step
by step Geller will be able to deploy his
forces against the black kingside, and
in the long term he is always going to
have superior firepower for the simple
reason that his knight on g3 can join in
the battle, while Black's knight on as is
out on a limb.
We are entering the second phase of
power play, with direct threats replac­
ing dynamic strategy.
20 i.h61
The first sign of an energy build-up
is that the white bishop, which was
previously a target on e3, threatens to
exchange itself for the vital defender of
Black's dark squares.
20 ... .lth8 21 'iVf41
And now the queen comes to life
159
Chess Se crets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
with unmistakable intentions down the
f-file after 22 fxg6. Less obvious is the
support she is giving to White's next
move.
21 .. J:td7 22 ttJe4!
If now 22 .. Jhe4 23 �xe4 'it'xe4 24
"ii'b8+ and Black is suddenly mated on
the back rank!
The fact that he can no longer keep
the white knight out of the e4-square
shows that the energy is fast draining
away from his game.
22 ... c4
Smyslov kicks the bishop back so
that White won't have i..f1 as an option
to defend his back rank.
23 �c2 l:!.de7
It appears that Black's pressure
down the e-file might save him after
all, as the impetuous 24 ttJd6? runs into
24 . . .l:!.e1+ and White will be mated on
the g2-square.
24 l:tdl ! !
Geller gets maximum benefit from
his 'extra' knight by offering it as a sac­
rifice. Black has little choice but to ac­
cept, as with . . . lie1 + no longer an op­
tion if the white knight moves, he is
160
facing destruction on f7 after 25 fxg6
hxg6 (or 25 ... fxg6 26 'iff8+! and mates)
26 ttJd6 etc.
24 ...l:i.xe4 25 fxg61
The first point behind the sacrifice is
that if 25 .. Jhf4 26 gxh7 is mate!
2 5 ... f6
The only move, as after 25 ... 'iVxg6 26
i.xe4 i.xe4 27 'iVxf7+ �xf7 28 l:!xf7
Black has no good defence against 29
1:I.f8+ l:!.xf8 30 l'1xf8 mate.
26 'iVg5!?
Geller can't resist a second queen
offer. Armed with a computer engine it
is easy to criticize a player for making
inaccuracies in what is a highly com­
plex position. Suffice to say that 26
'iVg3! looks simpler, with the same
threat of 27 g7, wiping out the bishop
on h8. If then 26 ... 'iYd7 (there is no real
choice) 27 gxh7+ �xh7 (27 ... �f7 28
.Ij,xf6+! �xf6 29 'iYg7+ 'it>e6 30 �xf6+ is
too ghastly for words) 28 l1f4! gives
White a decisive attack, as 28 . . . �xh6
allows mate in two with 29 .l::I.h4+! l:!.xh4
30 'iYg6. Black lingers on longer after
28 ... .l::I.g8 29 'it'h4 �ge8 30 i.xe4+ i.xe4
31 l:txe4 .l:'Ixe4 32 'iixe4+ 'iotxh6 33 .l:f.f3!
�g7 34 �h3, but would still have to
resign, as he has no answer to a killing
check on h7: 34 ... 'it>g8 35 'iVa8+ wins the
bishop and then the house.
26 ... 'ifd7
It is mate in two with the familiar 27
l1f8+ if Black touches the queen.
27 'it>gll
Geller says he moved his king as he
saw that, after the tempting 27 .l::I.xf6
i.xf6 28 'iYxf6 hxg6 (28 ... 'iYe7 29 �f7+!)
29 't!Vxg6+ �h8 30 i.g5 .:t4e6 31 i.f6+
l:!.xf6 32 l:!.xf6, Black's king is defence­
less and would be mated by 33 ifu6+
and 34 �g6+, but unfortunately the
white king gets mated first after
32 .. J::tel+!. Therefore Geller put his king
on gl to avoid this scenario, as he had
calculated that Black couldn't do any­
thing meaningful with his extra tempo.
27 ...il..g7
After 27 .. J18e6 one strong reply
would be 28 .l:!.f3!? simply planning 29
l'tg3 with decisive threats.
28 l:txf6 .l:!.g4
Upon 28 . . . i.xf6 Geller would have
played as in the note to 27 'iotgl, when
. . . Ilel+ would now be a mere spite
A B a t t e ring Ram o n t h e f-fi le
check after �f2.
29 gxh7+ Wh8 30 i.xg7+ 'iVxg7 31
'iixg4! 1-0
White will get the double delight of
a new queen and an instant mate after
31...'iixg4 32 l:!.f8+ Itxf8 33 l:!.xf8+ etc.
A fine display by Geller. It took
courage, tactical calculation and subtle
judgment to triumph in the attack.
No time is to be lost preparing
the pawn ram!
Game 62
E.Geller-V.Korchnoi
H ava n a 1963
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 i.b5 a6 4 i.a4 ttJf6
5 0-0 i.e7 6 l:tel b5 7 i.b3 0-0 8 a4 i.b7
9 d3 d6 10 i.d2 it'd7 11 ttJC3 ttJd4 12
ttJxd4 exd4 13 ttJe2 c5 14 ttJg3 g6 15 c3
dxc3 16 bxc3 d5 17 e5 ttJe8 18 axb5
axb5 19 �xa8 i.xa8 20 i.h6 ttJg7 21 d4
I;Ic8
Now White sounded the charge:
1 61

C h ess Secrets: The Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play
22 f4!
If Black could close the position
with 22 .. .£S and 23 ... liJe6 he would have
an excellent game: White's 4-3 pawn
majority on the kingside would be fro­
zen by the blockading knight on e6,
and meanwhile the 3-2 black majority
on the queenside can easily be con­
verted into a passed pawn.
Alas, for Black he doesn't have time
for this manoeuvre. After 22 ... liJe6? he
is hit by 23 fS; while if 22 ... fS White ex­
ploits a tactical opportunity to break
open all the lines around the black
king: 23 exf6 i.xf6 24 liJe4! (a powerful
entrance by the white knight) 24 ... .te7
2S .Jtxg7 �xg7 26 liJxcs and Black is
busted as 26 . . . .txcS? (he had better just
accept the loss of a pawn) 27 dxcS
l1xcS? 28 �d4+ is fatal. Nor does
22 . . .liJfS hold back the tide of white
pawns after 23 liJxfS 'iVxfS 24 ..tc2 �d7
2S fS! etc. Finally, an attempt to lessen
the impact of a breakthrough by ex­
changing off pieces fails after 22 ... .th4
23 ..txg7 �xg7 24 fS! ..txg3 (24 ... gxfS 2S
'iif3 ..txg3 26 'iVxg3+ is also pretty
ghastly) 2S f6+ �h8 26 hxg3 and the
1 62
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white pawns are as menacing as in the
game.
Why are things so thoroughly bad
for Black in all variations? The simple
answer is that he is playing minus any
help from the bishop on aB. This piece
hardly registers in any of the variations
listed above - it might as well be back
in the box for all the help it gives Black
in fending off the kingside attack.
22 ...cxd4
Korchnoi realizes his only chance is
to create a counter demonstration on
the queenside, but Geller completely
ignores it.
23 i..xg7 'it>xg7 24 f5 !!
You must strike while the iron is
hot. Just one moment of hesitation can
be fatal against a resourceful opponent.
If Geller had played the 'lazy' 24 cxd4,
then 24 .. .£S! would remove most of the
attacking energy from his kingside
pawns. In that case Black's queenside
passed pawn and strong dark-squared
bishop would give him at least equal
chances.
24 ....id8
With the damage already done on
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A Ba ttering Ram o n t h e f-fi le
the f-file, White could answer 24 ... gxfS 27 ....ta5 28 l:tf1 'i'd7 29 liJf4 �g8
with the simple 2S cxd4, followed by 26 Korchnoi is a great defender and
iYf3 etc, with a huge attack. has done all he can to brace for impact.
25 cxd4 'iVc6 But you only have to take one look at
The f-pawn can't be eliminated, as the bishop on aB to know who is going
after 2S . . . gxfS 26 �S or 26 i.c2 White's to win the central struggle.
knight lands on fS heralding a mating 30 e6!
attack.
26 f6+
A committal move of this nature
should only be made if there is a clear
follow-up. The pawn looks very impos­
ing on f6, but it also blocks the f-file,
and this can reduce the energy of the
other white pieces. Normally, putting
the pawn on £6 can be justified, as with
the black king on gB it leads to a mat­
ing attack of the 'fid2 and 'i!Vh6 kind, as
we saw in Bronstein-Keres above. Here
Geller has another plan in mind. 30 ...fxe6 31 'ii'g4 'i'f7 32 liJxe6
26 ...'it>f8 27 liJe2! ! Threatening 33 liJgS.
32 ... h5 33 'iVf4! .td2
If 33 ... 'it'xe6 34 f7+ 'it>fB 3S �6+ and
the pawn goes through.
34 'fixd2 'iVxe6 35 i.c2 'it>h7 36 'figS!
I don't know what the reader
thinks, but I'm always impressed by
regrouping moves of this kind. Perhaps
it's because they reflect a patience I
lack as a player! Geller intends a break­ Black no longer has any defence, as
through with liJf4 and eS-e6 and there the queen is threatening the hS-pawn
is nothing that Black can do about it. as well as the g6-pawn.
1 63
C h e s s S e c re t s : The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play A Ba ttering Ram on t h e f-fi le

3 6.. Jbe2 3 7 f7 lIe8 38 f8'ii' ':'xf8 3 9
�xf8 iLe6
The bishop has joined the party
rather late, don't you think?
40 h4 'it>g7 41 .ti.f3 1-0
A double pawn ram
After his opponent failed to keep the
position closed, Alekhine was able to
combine pawn breaks on d5 and f5.
Game 63
A.Alekhine-A.Selezniev
Bad Pistya n 1922
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 ds 2 ltJf3 ltJf6 3 e4 e6 4 ltJe3 iLe7 s
iLgs ltJbd7 6 e3 0-0 7 .l:'ie1 e6 8 iLd3
dxe4 9 iLxe4 ltJds 10 iLf4
Another version of the
treatment we saw in Alekhine's game
with Rubinstein in Chapter Three.
10 ...ltJxf4 11 exf4 ltJb6 12 iLb3 ltJds 1 3
'iVd2 li'd6 1 4 ltJes ltJxe3 1 S bxe3 e S 16
0-0 bS 17 .te2 iLa6 18 .l:'ife1 �ad8 19
.l:!.ed1
Here Black made an obvious ex­
change:
19 ... exd4?
But he had overlooked that his c­
pawn was needed to block a white at­
tempt to storm his kingside. Instead, he
should have played 19 ... g6!, which
curbs the power of the white bishop on
c2 and deters a f4-f5 pawn ram. If then
20 i.b3, with combinational possibili­
ties of the 21 liJxf7 ':xf7 22 .l:!.xe6 type,
Black can slam the door in the bishop's
face with 20 ... c4! .
I n contrast, after 19. . .cxd4 White's
bishop becomes a monster, even sup­
porting a queen sacrifice.
20 exd4 g6 21 iLb31
central
Of course he wasn't going to miss
the chance to put pressure on the e6-
and f7-pawns. Power play, part two
has begun. Until the end of the game
Alekhine will make one forcing move
after another, hitting the black pieces
with a series of attacking waves.
21 ... iLe8
Selezniev is reduced to passive de­
fensive moves. He would love to be
able to challenge White's bishop with
2 1 ...�b7 and then 22 . . . iLd5, but there
isn't time: 22 'i¥d3! (a typical Alekhine
queen move: the lady unpretentiously
steps forward one square and intro­
duces threats on both sides of the
board) 22 ... a6 (or else b5 drops) 23
ltJxg6! ! hxg6 24 l::lxe6! fxe6 25 �xg6+
'it>h8. In his notes Alekhine says "26
..tc2 and mates in a few moves", but
this allows the riposte 26 . . .1:!.f5!, when
the defence somehow holds together.
Instead, 26 �6+ 'it>g8 27 iLxe6+ gives
excellent winning chances, as Black
must part with his queen, seeing that
27 .. .1::.£7 28 .l:!.d3! would soon make him
part with his king.
22 �e2!
Not 22 d5? exd5 23 iLxd5 i.e6! when
White has fallen into a pin. As in the
variation at move 21, the quiet realign­
ment of the white queen is the prelude
to a violent attack. Black must deal with
the threat to b5, whereupon the pawn
ram comes with great impact.
22 ...a 6
Even so, Selezniev should get his
queen out of danger with 22 .. :�lfu6.
23 d S !
No rest for the opponent's pieces!
23 ...�b6
After 23 ... exd5 24 iLxd5 the un­
blocking of the e-file and the bishop'S
approach to f7 mean that Black is ter­
rorized by 24 i.xf7+ or 24 ltJxf7, not to
mention the prosaic 24 ltJc6, hitting
both d8 and e7.
24 ltJe6!
Alekhine sees that, in order to in­
crease the energy of his attack, he has
to eliminate the piece that is guarding
the dark squares around the black
king.
24... !tde8 2S ltJxe7+ .uxe7 26 fS!!
The second prong of the pawn ram.
If Black accepts the offer with 27 ... gxf5
his king becomes fatally exposed: the
white queen and rooks can launch a
quick attack while the black queen is
shut off on the queenside. For example,
27 �5 (threatening to pick up a rook
with a check on g5) 27 ... 'it>h8 (or 27 ... f6
28 dxe6 iLxe6 when White has the
same pretty winning move as occurs in
the game: 29 l::ld7! ! .l:!.xd7 30 �xe6 fol­
lowed by a killer discovered check) 28
�6 'ufe8 29 �f6+ 'it>g8 30 .l:'id3 f4 31

1 64 1 65
C h e s s Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
1:te5 and Black is defenceless along the
g-file.
26 ....l:tb7
Or 26 .. JHeS 27 d6 �b7 2S 'tWe5! with
massive pressure.
27 dxe6 fxe6 28 fxe6 lle7
If Black had hoped to blockade and
finally win the passed pawn he is in­
stantly disillusioned.
29 tt.d7!
29 ..JUe8
Alternatively, 29 . . . ..ixd7 30 exd7+
�hS (after 30 . . . .l::tef7 31 ..ixf7+ .l:!.xf7 32
"ilid2 l:tfS 33 �eS the passed pawn rolls
through) and White could lose most
embarrassingly with 31 'i!ixe7?? it'xf2+
when his king is mated in two moves!
However, the neat alternative 31 dS'iV!
would deflect one of the black pieces
from the attack on f2, whereupon
White could safely capture on e7, re­
maining with an extra piece.
30 "iWf3!
Infiltrating with the queen down
the f-file in order to attack the rook on
e7 is the final part of White's winning
strategy.
30 ...�C5
166
Black is hoping for 31 �f6? lIfS! 32
�xe7?? (32 'i!ib2!) 32 .. :�xf2+ and mates.
31 'it'f7+!
A spectacular way to get the queen
to f6 with gain of time. If she is cap­
tured then the most precise way to win
is 31.. .l:txf7 32 exf7+ ..t>g7 33 fS'it'+! �xfS
34 llf7+ �gS 35 l:txeS+ and mates.
31 ...�h8 32 'i!if6+ �g8 33 h4! 1-0
So that after 33 . . .ltfS White can
safely take on e7; i.e. 34 �xe7 'i!ixf2+ 35
..t>h2 'it'f4+ 36 �h1 and wins. Seeing his
last hope gone, Selezniev surrendered.
If 33 ... a5, White could conclude the
game with 34 lied1 a4 35 .i:!.dS axb3 36
.l:i.xeS+ !heS 37 'ikf7+ ..t>hS 3S "ilixeS+
..t>g7 39 e7, threatening mate on fS to
add to all Black's other miseries.
A very impressive attack by
Alekhine, who hounded the black
pieces mercilessly after his opponent
gave him the chance with 19 ... cxd4?
The pawn ra m outweighs a
'perfect ' knight
Game 64
V. Topalov-V.lva nch uk
Nanj i ng 2008
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 c5 2 tt'lf3 ttJc6 3 d4 cxd4 4 tt'lxd4 e6
5 tt'lC3 ttJf6 6 ttJdb5 i.. b4 7 a3 ..txc3+ 8
tt'lxC3 d5 9 exd5 exd5 10 .id3 0-0 11 0-0
d4 12 ttJe2 ..tg4
Ivanchuk provokes White's reply,
after which a hole appears on the e3-
square. This will be an excellent base
for the black knight, which can be sup­
ported by both the pawn on d4 and a
rook on eS.
13 13 !
Topalov accepts the challenge. The
black horse gets its dream square, but
in return White will gain the two bish­
ops and the chance to attack with f4-f5 .
13 ... ..th5 14 tt'lf4 1Ie8
The Ukrainian Grandmaster carries
on with his plan. He prefers to hand
over the bishop on the h5-square rather
than with 14 ... i.. g6 15 tt'lxg6 hxg6, as he
doesn't �ant to have a pawn on g6
providing a 'hook' for an f4-f5 advance
by White.
15 ttJxh 5 tt'lxh5 16 f4 ttJf6 17 "it'f3!
The queen heads to h3 to attack h7.
Why is this, when the pawn is soundly
defended by the knight on f6? One of
the secrets of chess strategy is to antici­
pate the plan of the opponent. Ivan­
chuk believes in his ideas and always
plays to win, and so it is reasonable to
assume that he is intending ... ttJd5 and
... tt'le3. Therefore the pawn on h7 is
going to lose its defender, without
White needing to apply the slightest
A Ba ttering R a m on t h e f-fi le
'persuasion' . Some squares become weak
as a matter of course when both players
carry out their plans.
17 ...ttJd5
As predicted, the knight goes off to
seek its fortune and the h7-pawn be­
comes a target.
18 �h3 g6?
Weakening his dark squares and
presenting a hook after all for the ad­
vance of White's f-pawn. He should
play IS . . .h6! . If then 19 'i!if5 ttJf6! keeps
everything solid. Black has apparently
wasted time with his knight, but the
white queen isn't so hot either on f5,
where she gets in the way of the ad­
vance of the f-pawn. So the game
might end as a bizarre draw by repeti­
tion after 20 'iWh3 ttJd5 21 'iVf5 ttJf6 etc!
As we said above, Ivanchuk is a
very creative Grandmaster who always
tries to gain the maximum from any
position. He trusts that the strong
knight he will land on e3 will cover a
multitude of sins on the kingside. Un­
fortunately for him he is being over
optimistic, though it takes a player of
Topalov's skill to prove it.
167
Che ss Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play
19 f51
All power players love a pawn ram,
especially when aimed at the enemy
king. It opens up lines of attack for
their own pieces and loosens the pawn
defences.
19 ...ttJe3
It seems that the attack on f1 will
give Black a vital move to consolidate
his kingside defences.
20 'ii'h 6!
Remember Alekhine's dictum in
Chapter One:
"there are positions in
which a combination is obligato ry". When
both players are trying to impose their
will on their opponent, a single tempo
can make all the difference. By refusing
to yield before the threat to his rook,
Topalov gives his kingside attack vital
energy.
20...'i'ie7
If 20 . . .ttJxfl White can win the black
queen with 21 fxg6 hxg6 22 i.xg6 fxg6
23 'iVxg6+ rj;h8 24 .tg5 ttJe3 25 .txd8
l!axd8. Then he has a draw in hand by
perpetual and the chance to play for
more with 26 'ii'g6+ 'i¥th8 27 .l:te1 !, plan­
ning 28 c3 to undermine the defence of
168
the black knight on e3, when the white
rook can join in the attack on the black
king.
However, I expect that Topalov
would have kept the tension with 21
.tg5!, when if 21.. .f6? 22 i.c4+ 'i¥th8 23
fxg6 forces mate in a couple of moves,
disaster striking on f6 or h7. So Black
must reply with 21.. :ikd6, when the
simple 22 .l:txfl maintains strong pres­
sure, the immediate threat being 23
fxg6 hxg6 (again if 23 ... fxg6 24 .tc4+ is
the killer move) 24 .tf6 and wins.
21 Itf4
Now to avoid 22 .l:.h4 f6 23 fxg6 Iv­
anchuk must mess up his own pawns.
21 ...gxf5 22 i.d2
In contrast to move 20, White
doesn't have to hurry here as the f5-
pawn can't run away.
22 ...:tad 8 23 .txf5 ttJxf5 24 �xf5 .l:td6
The black rook arrives on the third
rank just in time to prevent a disaster
on the g-file.
25 'iiff4 �g6 26 1:1f1 'tie2 27 g3 .l:tf8 28
�f2 'ii'e6
Topalov has all his pieces on excel­
lent attacking squares, but as usual it
needs the intervention of a pawn to
add the extra bit of power to break
through the defence.
29 h4! ttJe7 30 lIe5 'ii'd 7 31 h5 lIg7 32
�g5
Having dislodged the black rook
from g6, the threat is 33 I!xg7+ �xg7 34
h6+ �g8 35 'ii'g5+ ttJg6 36 'iVf6 and mate
next move.
32 ...f5!
Ivanchuk manages to hold every­
thing together by clearing the way for
his queen to defend the second rank.
33 lIxg7+ 'i¥txg7 34 "iWe5+ 'i¥tg8 35 .th6
ttJc6 36 'ii'f4 Jlf7
Our giant has used a full range of
kingside pawns to prosecute his attack.
First of all he sent forward his f-pawn
to split up the black defences. He then
drove the black rook from g6 with the
help of his h-pawn. And now it is time
to attack the obstacle on f5, which re­
quires the use of his g-pawn.
37 g4!
37 ... d3
Black is defenceless after 37 ... ttJe7 38
l:ig2!, while if 37 .. .fxg4 38 'iVg5+ �h8 39
i.g7+! 'i¥tg8 (or 39 .. Jhg7 40 l:i.f8+ and
A Ba ttering Ram o n t h e f-fi le
mate next move) 40 .te5+ 'i¥tf8 41 'ii'g7+
rj;e8 42 'ii'g8+ and wins.
Ivanchuk therefore has to part with
the f5-pawn, after which he is soon
forced to enter a hopeless endgame in
order to avoid losing to a direct attack.
The remaining moves were:
38 cxd3 'i¥th8 39 gxf5 "iVxd3 40 'i¥tg2
"iWd 5+ 41 "iVf3 ttJe7 42 "iVxd 5 ttJxd5 43
l:rc2 .l:i.C7 44 lIxc7 ttJxC7 45 <ti3 'i¥tg8 46
�e4 ttJe8 47 rj;e5 <t>f7 48 i.g5 ttJC7 49
h6 ttJb5 50 .te3 b6 51 a4 ttJC7 52 'i¥td6
ttJa6 53 'i¥tc6 ttJb4+ 54 'i¥tb7 ttJd5 55 .tg5
a5 56 'i¥tc6 ttJb4+ 57 'i¥txb6 ttJd3 58 b3
1-0
Morphy softens up the black
defences
Finally, we see that Morphy knew all
about the f-pawn ram 92 years before
Bronstein sat down to play Najdorf.
Game 65
P.Morphy-H.Bird
Lo ndon 1858
Evans ' Gambit
1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 .tC4 .tC5 4 b4
i.xb4 5 c3 .tC5 6 d4 exd4 7 cxd4 .tb6 8
0-0 d6 9 d5 ttJa 5 10 e5 ttJxC4 11 'ii'a 4+
i.d7 12 'ii'xC4
To modem eyes the obvious move
here is 12 ... ttJe7, developing the king­
side and preparing to castle, whilst
keeping the centre blocked. Instead,
Bird set out on a tactical adventure
with:
12 ... dxe5? 13 ttJxe5 'ii'f6
169

Chess Se crets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
The black queen attacks the knight
and has designs against the rook on a l .
A t the same time she puts pressure on
the f2-square to rule out 14 l:!.el, and
clears the way for queenside castling,
which would secure her king. Morphy
must therefore act fast to disrupt
Black's game.
14 ttJxd7 'it>xd7
After 14 .. :it'xal 15 ttJxb6 axb6 White
has a crushing attack with 16 "ili'xc7, or
he could simply trap the queen with 16
ttJc3 ttJe7 17 'it'b3 and 1 8 i.a3.
15 'iVg4+ '>ite8 16 i.g5! liig6
The bid to upset White's build-up
by attacking al has failed, as if
16 .. :ii'x al 17 :el+ ttJe7! (after 17 ...'it>f8
18 'itb4+ ttJe7 19 'ii'xe7+ Black will be
mated on the back rank), and now
White should remember the dynamic
rule that when you attack with a queen
and rook, the queen should lead from
the front. Thus 18 I::txe7+? would leave
a mate hanging on bl, whereas 18 'it'b4!
is decisive; e.g. 18 . . .'it>d8 (remember
that Black has already moved his king
so he can't castle!, and 18 . . . c5 19 dxc6 is
hopeless) 19 'i'xe7+ 'it>c8 20 ir'xf7, and
Black has no good way to meet the
threat of 21 :e8+ with a back rank
mate.
After the game move Bird is ready
to answer 17 :el+ 'it>f8 18 'ib4+ with
the blocking 18 .. :it'd6.
17 ttJC3!
Once again the American maestro
pointedly ignores any attempt by the
black queen to disrupt his build-up.
Thus after 17 ... h6, pinning the bishop,
he could play 18 l:Iael + 'it>f8 19 'it'b4+
1 70
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'ii'd6, and now not the energy-sapping
exchange of queens, but rather 20 'ikh4!
keeps up the initiative with a counter
pin against the pawn on h6.
17 ... ttJf6 18 �ae1+ '>itf8 19 'iib4+ 'it>g8
20 i.xf6 liixf6 21 ttJe4 'ii'g6
Morphy has completed the devel­
opment of his pieces, while Bird has
problems both with his king and get­
ting his rook on h8 into the game. On
the other hand, it looks as if the white
initiative has come to a dead end - no
combinations are possible down the e­
file and there are no weaknesses in the
black king's pawn cover. Given a cou­
ple of moves Bird will be able to con­
solidate and think about how to exploit
his extra pawn.
So has our giant played it all
wrong?
22 'it>h1!!
This quiet move is the way to add
fresh impetus to the white attack. It
breaks the pin on f2, after which a fear­
some new weapon is added to White's
arsenal: the line-breaking f-pawn. Inci­
dentally, we see here why Morphy pre­
ferred 18 l:!.ael+ to 18 :fel+. Keeping
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the rook on fl to back up the f-pawn
gives more energy to the white set-up
than would have been gained by trying
to use the queen's rook for an attack
down the d-file or c-file.
22 ... h5
Bird responds with a pawn advance
of his own, but at best it can be sup­
ported by the queen and rook on h8,
while all White's pieces are at hand to
support the f-pawn.
23 f4 h4 24 f5 �h5 2 5 l:!.f4!
If now 25 ... h3 White has 26 ttJf6+!
gxf6 27 ng4+ 'it>h7 28 :h4, winning the
black queen.
Instead, Black's best defence
25 ... l:!.h6!, bringing his rook forwards to
bolster the third rank. In that case
Morphy could have exploited the fact
that his opponent's queen is 'stale­
mated' on h5 by widening the struggle
with a second pawn ram on the queen­
side: 26 a4! threatens 27 as trapping the
bishop. Then 26 ... a5 27 'ib5 intends a
third pawn stab with 28 d6! to under­
mine the bishop and keeps up the ini­
tiative. Here, White's pawn ram on the
A B a ttering R a m o n t h e f-fi le
kingside could be seen as a holding
operation to keep the black queen shut
in, whilst further breakthroughs take
place on the queenside and in the cen­
tre.
It's a great pity that Bird now blun­
dered, as there would have been a
highly interesting fight after 25 .. J�h6.
2 5 ...f6?
Perhaps Bird saw the danger in 26
a4 etc, and so was in a hurry to return
his queen to the centre via f7. If so this
is a classic example of a positionally
well-motivated move failing for a tacti­
cal reason.
26 ttJxf6+! gxf6 27 l:.g4+ ir'xg4
If the black king staggers away then
a queen check on e7 will mate him in at
most three moves.
28 'it'xg4+ 'it>f8 29 l:!.e6 llh6 30 'it'f4 '>itg7
31 :e7+ 1-0
is
One of the tragedies for fans of
Morphy is that his opponents fre­
quently collapsed before his tactical
powers, thereby denying us the chance
to see the full expression of his genius
for strategy.
1 71

C h a pt e r E i g h t
Backwa rd Pawns a n d I n d i a n Bish ops
Back i n the 1920s both Lasker and Ca-
pablanca feared that the best players in
the world would soon perfect their
opening and strategic knowledge. All
the games among players with this
knowledge would inevitably end in
draws and as a result competitive chess
at the highest level would come to an
end. This was described as /I draw
death".
It should be mentioned that Capab­
lanca expressed his concerns while he
was still World Champion, so they
were by no means the grumblings of a
defeated man. Furthermore, the Cuban
himself managed to avoid losing be­
tween February 10, 1916 and March 21,
1924 so it was reasonable for him to
assume that other players among the
elite would in time develop a similar
invincibility.
This prophecy was, thankfully,
never fulfilled for two reasons. Firstly,
there is an inherent dynamism in posi-
1 72
I
tions reached from even the most
symmetrical or classical openings -
that is, games beginning 1 d4 d5 or 1 e4
e5. This means that not everything can
be worked out by logic and common
sense alone. It is necessary to calculate
variations and make decisions based
on intuition, which allows space for
human creativity, poor judgment and
good old-fashioned luck - and there­
fore wins and losses. How did Capa go
eight years without losing? Well, he
was a genius. His astonishing intuition
guided him in obscure positions which
defied exact calculation. It didn't fol­
low that 'ordinary' elite players were
going to follow in his footsteps.
Nevertheless, imagine if 150 years
of testing had demonstrated that the
only openings that were okay for Black
were the Queen's Gambit Declined and
the Ruy Lopez. In that case the proph­
ecy of draw death might have come
much closer to hitting the mark. You
might recall the 40 draws from the first
Karpov-Kasparov match in 1984/85,
where neither player could make much
headway in classical games starting 1
d4 d5. In fact it could be argued that
'draw death' triumphed in that match,
as it was called off after 48 games
without a result (the score being at the
time 5-3 to Karpov with 40 draws in a
"first to win six games" match).
But what really banished the spec­
tre of draw death was the discovery
that non-classical openings were play­
able for Black. For this we have to
thank Nimzowitsch and the other so­
called Hyperrnoderns, who proved to
the chess world in the 1920s and 1930s
that Black doesn't need to answer 1 d4
with 1 . ..d5 and 1 e4 with 1 . ..e5. As soon
as symmetry is avoided, we have an
imbalanced position, with the promise
of a double-edged struggle.
Introd ucing the Indian bishop
One of the greatest generators of dy­
namism is the 'Indian' bishop - that is,
a bishop fianchettoed in the opening on
g7. We can see the power it might exert
on the a1 -h8 diagonal in the conclusion
to a game by Morphy.
Game 66
T.Barnes-P.Morphy
Lo ndon 1858
RUy Lopez
1 e4 eS 2 ttJf3 ttJc6 3 .ibs ttJf6 4 d4 exd4
S eS ttJe4 6 0-0 a6 7 .ia4 ttJcS 8 �xc6
B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s
dxc6 9 ttJxd4 �e7 1 0 ttJc3 0-0 1 1 i.e3 f6
12 exf6 lIxf6 13 "ife2 lIg6 14 'it>hl i..d6
is J::ta d1 "iYh4 16 f4 �g4 17 ttJf3 �hS 18
i..xcS i.xcs 19 ttJe4 �b6 20 ttJegs h6 21
�C4+ �h8 22 ttJf7+ �h7 2 3 ttJ7es l:tf6
24 ttJxg4 ifxg4 2S ttJes �e6 26 �e4+
'iNfs 27 �xfS+ llxfS 28 g4 l:.f6 29 fS I1e8
Black has the inferior pawn structure
due to his doubled pawns. Therefore
White should neutralize any possible
counterplay with 30 .l:f.de1; for example,
30 ... .l:i.d8 (not 30 ... i..d4? 31 ttJd7! winning
the exchange) 31 ttJf3! etc, keeping the
black rook out of the seventh rank. Then
he could try to exploit his 3-2 majority
of pawns on the kingside. If Morphy
had been playing White this is the
course the game might well have taken.
But Thomas Wilson Barnes is a 'Roman­
tic' player - he isn't interested in all this
nonsense about preventive play and
exploiting a pawn majority in the end­
game. Instead, he goes straight for the
jugular and falls prey to an excellent
exchange sac by the American:
30 ttJg6 lie21
Barnes thought he had deterred this
move.
1 73
C h e s s Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r P l ay
31 .l:1d8 11xg6
The only way to stop mate.
32 fxg6+ �xg6 33 nd7
He could have tried to save some of
his queenside pawns, but the English
master is wrapped up in his attack.
33 ... nxC2 34 11ff7
Now White seems close to victory
as 35 l1xg7+ looks unstoppable, when
his kingside pawns outweigh Black's
queenside mass.
34 ...i.d4!
An excellent move that turns the ta­
bles, as 35 l1xd4? allows 35 ... c;t>xf7. The
bishop defends g7 and can be sup­
ported by ... c6-c5 if necessary. Hence
the black pieces and pawns are helping
each other - a healthy state of affairs
for any position.
3S l:txC7
Too obvious. If Barnes had realized
the danger he wouldn't have allowed
Black a passed pawn on the a-file. A
safer approach was 35 b3; for example,
35 . . . ..te5 36 llfe7 kIxh2+ 37 �gl l:!e2 38
.l:1xc7 etc.
3S ... .l:!.xb2 36 11xb7 l::.x a2
The reader who plays (or plays
1 74
against) the Griinfeld might be aware
that a black passed a-pawn, supported
by the dark-squared bishop on g7, can
be a particularly potent force. For ex­
ample, 1 d4 tLlf6 2 c4 g6 3 tLlc3 dS 4 tLlf3
i..g 7 S cxd5 tLlxdS 6 e4 tLlxc3 7 bxc3 c5 8
lIbl 0-0 9 i.e2 cxd4 10 cxd4 'ii'a5+ 1 1
..td2 'iVxa2 1 2 0-0 iLg4 1 3 iLgS h 6 14
i.e3 tLlc6 IS d5 ..txf3 16 i.xf3 tLleS 17
ktxb7 and here, rather than defend e7,
Black can play 1 7. . . aS!, putting his trust
in the passed pawn to give him enough
counterplay.
It is often well worth the sacrifice of
the exchange to acquire the bishop plus
passed pawn scenario. Naturally nei­
ther Barnes nor Morphy had ever
heard of the Griinfeld, so they couldn't
use this comparison as a 'strategical
signpost' . But most of the time Morphy
was able to fill the gaps in his knowl­
edge with accurate calculation and
built-in positional genius.
37 h4
Barnes has awoken to the danger
and activates his own pawns in the
search for counterplay.
37 ... as 38 hS+ c;t>gS!
It would be a terrible mistake to try
to shelter the king with 38 . . . c;t>h7??, as
that allows White to decide the game
with mating threats: 39 i:.f8 a4 40 Itbb8
g6 41 .l:1f7+ i.g7 42 l1bb7, winning the
bishop. In any case, the king needs to
be activated in the endgame.
39 l::txg7+
He can't just wait for his opponent
to advance his pawns.
39...c;t>h4
Morphy spurns the capture on g7 as
his king is planning a rendezvous with
his opposite number. . .
40 l:tge7?
The way to resist was 40 .l:!.gd7 c5 41
gS!, trying to use his own pawns.
40 ... a41 0-1
An unexpectedly sudden ending.
There is no good defence to ... c;t>g3 or
...c;t>h3 and then mate on either h2 or a1.
The perils of pawnless play
The Morphy game above demonstrates
the power of the Indian bishop, and so
it is no surprise that Hypermodern
players in the 1920s and 1930s experi­
mented with putting the bishop on g7
B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B is h ops
i n the opening. Their successes were
mainly with the Griinfeld, as they
didn't know how to handle the King's
Indian set-up properly.
Came 67
A.Alekhine-F .Samisch
1st matchga me,
Berl in 1921
English Opening
1 c4 eS 2 tLlC3 tLlf6 3 g3 g6 4 ..tg2 iLg7 S
tLlf3 d6 6 d4 exd4?
Already Samisch shows his lack of
surety with the opening by prema­
turely conceding the centre. Instead, he
should wait until White has created a
potential target by playing e2-e4 him­
self before carrying out this exchange.
Therefore holding his ground with
6 ... tLlbd7 was required.
7 tLlxd4 0-0 8 0-0 tLlbd7 9 b 3 !
Note that Alekhine is shrewd
enough not to rush to play 9 e4, when
Black could attack the pawn with
... tLlc5 and . . .ne8 etc.
9 ... tLlcS 10 i.b2 �e8 11 'ii'c2
1 75
C h es s S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
11 lZJe6?
•••
Samisch is unable to find a good
plan. Jumping ahead more than thirty
years, the Bronstein/Boleslavsky ap­
proach to the position would be 1 1 . ..aS,
stopping the knight being evicted from
c5. Then after 12 l:tadl, which threatens
to establish a bind on the queenside
with 13 lZJdb5, followed in time by
lZJdS, Black should guard the bS- and
dS-squares with 12 . . . c6! ! . Black then has
a tough solid, position. Should White
play 13 e4 (a move he should hold back
in favour of probing along the d-file)
we would be well into the territory of
the Bronstein and Geller games given
later in the chapter.
It is hard for modem players to ap­
preciate just how anti-positional the
move 12 ... c6 would have appeared to
players in 1921 . White plays 12 l::ta dl
and how does Black respond? Why, by
giving himself a backward pawn on d6
with 12 . . . c6. It seems a ridiculous, ab­
surd decision.
In contrast, nowadays it seems that
Black went to absurd lengths to avoid
... c7-c6 in some of these pre­
Bronstein/Boleslavsky King's Indian
games. Here, for example, is the open­
ing of A.Alekhine-E.5pencer from a
simultaneous display in Great Britain,
1923: 1 d4 lZJf6 2 c4 d6 3 lZJc3 lZJbd7 4 e4
eS (" a strategic error" says Alekhine -
quite wrongly, of course) S lZJf3 g6 6 h3
..tg7 7 .i.e3 "tie7 8 "iVc2. Now what
could be more natural than 8 ... c6,
guarding the dS-square? But Spencer
doesn't want to give himself the back­
ward pawn on d6, and so played
1 76
8 . . .lZJf8. Alekhine broke open the c-file
with 9 lZJdS! lZJxdS 10 cxdS and had an
excellent game after 1O ... lZJd7 11 ..igS f6
12 ..ie3 etc.
Returning to Alekhine-Samisch . . .
12 l1ad1 "iie 7 13 :tfe1 .tt b8
Alekhine is building up his game as
much as possible before committing
himself to the e4-eS push in the centre.
Meanwhile, Black's pieces are thrash­
ing around aimlessly because they
aren't getting any help from their
pawns. You should compare this situa­
tion with Bronstein's aforementioned
games with Zita and Pachman, where
Black has pawn breaks available to him
on both sides of the board. One of the
rules of dynamic chess is that a loose
pawn structure that energizes the
pieces is always to be preferred to a
neat and lifeless one.
14 lZJf3
An exchange of pieces is welcome
to a player with a cramped game, and
so Alekhine retreats his knight.
14 ..."tif8 15 e4
At last it is time for decisive action
in the centre.
1S .. .tZJd7 16 ..ta3!
With two threats: the strategic 17 eS,
exploiting the pin on d6, and the tacti­
cal 17 lZJb5 a6 18 lZJxc7! lZJxc7 19 .i.xd6
1:te7 20 ii.xc7, when White has won two
pawns. Here we see that the black
knight should never have left its post
on cS.
16 ... lZJes 1 7 lZJxes .i.xes 18 f4! iLd4+ 19
\t>h1 "iVg7 20 lZJd s
Samisch's pawnless play
proved catastrophic. The threat is 21 fS
when, if the knight retreats, 22 lZJxc7
wins a pawn, or even better 22 Mxd4
'fixd4 23 i.b2 and then 24 lZJf6+ etc
with a decisive attack.
B a c k wa rds Pawns a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s
20... .i.f6 21 lZJxf6+
The exchange of his dark-squared
bishop is the death knell for the black
position.
21 ..."iVxf6 22 iLb2 "iie7 23 "iiC 3
The threat of checkmate on h8
forces the German master to give up a
pawn.
23 .. .f6 24 'fixf6 'iVxf6 25 iLxf6 bS 26
cxbS .l:!.xbS 27 es dxes 28 iLxes
But not 28 iLc6? ..tb7. The rest is
very easy for an Alekhine.
28 ... iLb7 29 i.xb7 :txb7 30 l:td7 hS 3 1
�ed1 �8 3 2 l::tf1 'iJ.e7 3 3 fSI
A neat use of the pawn ram to win a
second pawn. If 33 .. Jhd7 34 fxe6+
wins a piece.
33 ... gxfs 34 l:1.xfS+ \t>e8 35 llxe7+ <J;xe7
36 .ttx hS 1-0
It's no wonder that in the 1930s the
King's Indian had a bad press. From
move seven onwards Samisch makes
has 16 consecutive moves with his pieces
without once using his pawns. This is a
sure sign of a lack of harmony in his
camp. As Bronstein once remarked,
"how can you win games if you never
advance any pawns?"
1 77
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C h e s s S e c re ts: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
B a c k wa rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s

Enter Bronstein and Boleslavsky The first step towards a dynamic

By the end of the 1930s, the Nirnzo­
Indian and Griinfeld were well estab­
lished against 1 d4. Versus 1 e4 the Sicil­
ian was just starting to get into gear
(Capablanca even tried the Sicilian
Dragon - just imagine!). The Caro-Kann
was seen more frequently and Alekhine
was playing a lot of French Defences as
Black, as well as lending his name to 1
e4 lLlf6. Alekhine was quick to stress
that he wasn't a Hypermodern player,
but in reality any world-class player of
that era who was receptive to new, suc­
cessful ideas couldn't help but become
in part a Hypermodern.
Bronstein and his close friend, com­
petitor, and training partner Isaac Bole­
slavsky (1919-1977) added a significant
new weapon to the arsenal of dynamic
chess by proving in the 1940s that the
King's Indian Defence was playable for
Black. Once this had been achieved, all
the ground work for modem chess was
in place - a vibrant game which was in
no danger of suffering a draw death.
Game 68
F.Zita-O.Bronstein
Moscow vs Prague
match 1946
King 's Indian Defence
1 c4 eS 2 lLlC3 lLlf6 3 lLlf3 d6 4 d4 lLlbd7 !
Bronstein has n o intention o f con­
ceding the centre until White has loos­
ened his own position with e2-e4.
5 g3 g6 6 iLg2 i.g7 7 0-0 0-0
game is to choose a counterattacking
opening. It helps if the opponent has
no idea how to play against it.
8 b3 �e8 9 i.b2?
It is no surprise that Zita reacts with
the entirely plausible plan of putting
the bishop on b2. In fact this is a fun­
damental mistake. The bishop should
be placed on e3 where it bolsters d4,
strengthens the f2-pawn (yes,
pawn will become a target) and deters
Black's queen from going to the b6-
square.
Therefore White should play 9 e4 c6
10 h3, when 10 .. :�lVb6? can be countered
by 1 1 i.e3.
9 ... c6!!
A vital contrast to the Samisch
game. Bronstein fearlessly weakens his
pawns in order to increase the energy
level of his pieces. Furthermore, the
white knight is kept out of the b5- and
d5-squares, which means there will be
no lLld5 disaster of the kind suffered by
Black in the two Alekhine games dis­
cussed above.
10 e4 exd4 11 lLlxd4 �b6!!
Here we see the second purpose of
.. . c7 -c6: the way has been opened for
the black queen to take up an active
post on the queenside. Instead of wan­
dering around aimlessly, we might say
she is settled on an 'Alekhine' square -
as we have seen in Chapter Five and
elsewhere in this book, the fourth
World Champion often found a way to
place his queen on a safe and powerful
this
square on the third rank.
12 �d2 lLlcs 13 �fe1 a s ! 14 �ab1 a4
Beginning a frontal attack against
White's queenside pawn structure.
This is the prelude to a combination
that exploits the diagonal pressure ex­
erted by both the black queen and
bishop on g7.
15 i.a1
Black would regain his pawn hav­
ing broken up the white queenside af­
ter 15 lLlxa4 lLlxa4 16 bxa4 �a6. But as
we shall see, the bishop will prove a
target on a l .
l S... axb3 1 6 axb3 lLlg4 17 h 3
17...!:!.xa 1 ! !
A n exchange sacrifice to remove the
energy from the white position by de-
stroying the only rival to the Indian
bishop .
18 �xa1 liJxf2!!
Active play on one wing followed
by a surprise attack on the other wing
is one of the hallmarks of Bronstein's
style. And haven't the games of Mor­
phy shown us that White's f2, along
with Black's f7, is the weakest square
on the board?
19 �e3
After either 19 �xf2 lLld3 or 19 '.itxf2
lLlxb3, White's position collapses: first
of all his knight on d4 drops, leaving
the one on c3 hanging as well, and
meanwhile a rook is attacked on either
al or e l .
1 9. . .lLlxh3+ 2 0 '.ith2
Upon 20 iLxh3 �xh3 White's dark
squares are left far too flimsy - not that
he can boast much about his light
squares either.
20 ... lLlf2 ! 21 �f3
Or 21 �xf2 �xd4.
21 ...lLlcxe4 22 'iVf4 lLlg4+ 23 '.ith1 fS!
Threatening to trap the queen with
24 ... i.h6. Meanwhile d4 is still hanging.
This relentless harassing of two or

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Chess S e c rets: The Gia n ts of Po we r Play
more enemy pieces was a distinct fea­
ture of Morphy's style.
24 tZ'lxe4 l::txe4 25 'iWxd6 ':'xd4
The knight has finally fallen, leav­
ing White a lot of material down and
still facing an attack.
26 'iWb8 l::td 8 27 l::ta 8 �e5 28 'iWa7 'iWb4
29 'iWa2 'iWf8 30 .ih3 'iWh6 0-1
An explosive way for the modern
King's Indian to arrive on the scene.
What about the backward pawn
on d6?
Bronstein got away with his queenside
adventure in the game above, but if
180
White had replied carefully, would he
have suffered because of the weakness
on d6? A backward pawn on an open
file is surely a serious structural defect.
It was this consideration that was be­
hind Samisch's pathological refusal to
play . . . c7-c6 in the game above.
In fact Bronstein and Boleslavsky
had discovered through concrete
analysis that White doesn't have the
luxury of focusing on the d6-pawn -
such is the force of Black's potential
queenside initiative.
In the next game a world-class
player disrupts the coordination of his
pieces in order to get at the backward
pawn. The Swedish Grandmaster Ul£
Andersson memorably described it as
"a duel between two equal giants, but
the one standing on rock and the other
on quicksand."
Game 69
S.Reshevsky-D.Bronstein
Candid ates Tou rna ment,
Zurich 1953
King 's Indian Defence
1 d4 tZ'lf6 2 c4 g6 3 g3 �g7 4 �g2 0-0 5
tZ'lc3 d6 6 tZ'lf3 tZ'lbd7 7 0-0 e5 8 e4 l::te8 9
h3 exd4 10 tZ'lxd4 tZ'lC5 11 ':'e1 as 12
'iWC2
If Reshevsky had been aware of the
strength of Black's counterplay, he
might have played 12 l::tb 1 ! . The idea
would be to 'tidy up' things on the
queenside before commencing opera­
tions in the centre. Play might go
12 ... a4 13 b4! axb3 14 axb3 c6 (if Black
avoids this move then he falls into a
bind after 14 . . . h6 15 tZ'ldb5!, when ... c7-
c6 is ruled out) 15 b4 and the black
knight is driven back.
This is G.Kasparov-RGerber from a
simultaneous display in Cannes 1988.
You will notice that: a) Black doesn't
get a strong pawn on a3; b) he doesn't
get an active and safe square for his
queen on a5; and c) he doesn't get bril­
liant outposts for his knights on b4 and
c5 either. The white queenside pawns
are living, mobile, and not just props
on which Black can rest his pieces.
12 ... c6!
All according to plan. With his pre­
vious move the American Grandmaster
had set a little trap: 12 ... tZ'lfxe4? 13 tZ'lxe4
�xd4 14 �g5 'iWd7 (14 ... f6? loses at
once to 15 �xf6!) 15 tZ'lf6+ �xf6 1 6 .ixf6
and the disappearance of the dark­
squared bishop is grievous for Black.
13 �e3
Reshevsky prepares to round up the
'criminal' on d6 as quickly as possible
with the plan of l::ta dl, tZ'lde2 and l::txd6.
If Black chooses to defend the pawn
with ... 'iWc7, a little more pressure will
B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d In d i a n B i s h o p s
d o the trick: l::td2 followed by l::t e dl and
then J::i.xd6.
13 ...tZ'lfd7 14 J::i.a d1 a4 15 tZ'lde2?
Reshevsky seems obsessed with the
d-file and remains oblivious to events
on the queenside. It wasn't too late to
prevent his queens ide becoming dead
wood with 15 b4!; for example,
15 ... axb3 16 axb3 'iWa5 17 J::i.b l tZ'la6 18
J::i.a 1 'iWc7 19 'iWd2 tLJdc5 20 J::i.ebl �d7 21
b4 as in A.Greenfeld-J.Hjartarson, Lu­
cerne Olympiad 1982.
15 •.• 'iWa5!
This activity is all very well, but has
the d6-pawn been abandoned to its
fate? No, because 16 J::i.xd6 meets with a
'global' combination that harasses the
white pieces on the queenside, centre
and kingside: 16 ... tZ'le5! 17 b3 (to defend
c4) 17 . . . axb3 18 axb3 �xh3! 19 �xh3
tZ'lf3+ 20 �f1 tZ'lxel 21 'it>xel tZ'lxe4 22
J::i.d3 tZ'lxc3! 23 tZ'lxc3 'iWal + 24 tZ'ldl J::i.a2
with a huge initiative to Black.
16 i.f1
A poor square for the bishop. Actu­
ally, having gone this far, Reshevsky
should probably have tried 16 J::i.xd6
anyway but, after 16 . . . tZ'le5, returned
181

C h es s S e c rets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
the pawn with 1 7 �dd l ! 'Llxc4 1 8 i..d 4!,
as played by Smyslov. White can't re­
joice at having exchanged his c-pawn
for the d6-pawn, but at least he gets rid
of Black's strong dark-squared bishop.
16... 'Lle5 17 'Lld4
The fact that the knight returns to
d4 shows that the plan to attack d6 has
ended in fiasco.
17 ... a3
As we saw in the extracts from
modern games above, Kasparov and
others are careful not to let Black get a
pawn to a3. Here it paralyses Re­
shevsky's queenside, making b4 an
excellent outpost for a black knight,
and casts a blight over his endgame
chances.
18 f4 'Lled7 19 b3 'Lla6!
The black knights take the b4- and
c5-squares.
20 i..f2 'LldC5 21 11e3 'Llb4 22 "iVe2 i..d 7
White's queenside is in a dark
square stranglehold. If he does nothing
fast the pressure will spread to the
kings ide after 23 ... lIe7 and 24 .. .l:tae8. A
strong player knows that a passive po­
sition usually declines into a lost posi-
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tion, and so Reshevsky tries a central
breakthrough:
23 e5!? dxe5 24 fxe5 'u'ad8 25 g4!
A fine move that clears the way for
the dark-squared bishop to enter the
fray via h4.
25 •.. 'Lle6!
Bronstein sees the danger and starts
an immediate counteraction against d4.
26 .Jth4 'Llxd4 27 l:!.xd4
It looks as if Black is about to lose
the exchange, but our hero has every­
thing under control.
27 1lVc5! 28 �de4 i.. h 6! 29 �h1 i..e6 30
•..
g5
The strength of the a3-pawn is seen
in the variation 30 i..xd8 ktxd8! 31 Uf3?!
!td2 32 'tWel 'Llxa2.
30 ... i..g7 31 .l:!.f4 .Jtf5
White's attack is running out of
steam and the e5-pawn is very weak.
Therefore he tries again to mix things
up:
32 'Lle4 i.xe4+!
32 ... 'tWxe5? was very tempting, as 33
'Llf6+? ..txf6 34 �xe5 .txe5 is a very
powerful queen sacrifice. But
shevsky had prepared the marvellous
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trap 33 .uxf5! gxf5 (or 33 ...'Wxf6 34 'Llf6+
i..xf6 35 11xe8+ l:lxe8 36 �xe8+ <;t>g7 37
gxf6+ and wins) 34 'Llf6+ ..txf6 35 gxf6!!
(he doesn't want the black queen!)
35 .. :�xe3 36 iVg2+ <;t>h8 37 iVg7 mate.
33 l:lfxe4 'Lla6!
Threatening to paralyse the white
centre with 33 ... 'Llc7 and 34 ...'Lle6, so
White must press forwards, even
though his position is becoming very
loose.
34 e6 fxe6 35 .l:!.xe6 l:lf81
Bronstein keeps the rooks on the
board to further his initiative. You only
need to look at White's two rotten
bishops to realize that he won't be able
to create any dynamic chances on the
e-file.
36 l:le7 i.. d4 37 !t3e6 iVf5
Now 38 i..g2 'Llc5 traps the rook on
e6, so Reshevsky has no choice but to
enter a horrible endgame.
38 l:le8 'Llc5 39 l:txd8 'Llxe6!
The best recapture, as White has
counterplay after 39 .. .1:hd8 40 l:le8+.
40 l:lxf8+ 'Ot>xf8 41 i.g3
Reshevsky decides to give up the g­
Re­
pawn at once and put his trust in the
B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B i s h o p s
opposite-coloured bishops. I f instead
41 'tWg2 i.c5 leaves White in zugzwang;
for example, 42 .te2 'Llf4 43 'tWg4 'Llxe2
44 'tWxe2 'i'xh3+ 45 1lfh2 'tWfl + and
mates.
41 'tWxg5 42 �xe6 'Wxg3 43 'tWc8+ <l;e7
.•.
44 'tWg4
In a strange reversal of their usual
roles, the white queen gets shoved into
the corner by the black king after 44
�xb7+ 'Ot>d8 45 'tWa8+ <l;c7, when there
are no more good checks and the white
king is mated; for example, 46 i.. g2
�el+ 47 <l;h2 .Jte5 mate.
44 'tWC3 45 'iitg2 'tWb2+ 46 'iVe2+ <l;d6
..•
47 <;t>f3 i.. C 5!
Bronstein plays the endgame with
great skill, gradually pushing the white
king back and then putting him in
zugzwang. Of course, the exchange of
queens doesn't help White, as the re­
capture creates a passed pawn on b2.
48 �e4 �d4+ 49 �f3 'Wf6+ 50 'iitg2 <l;c7
51 'iVf3 �b2+ 52 'tWe2 'iVd4 53 'ii1f3 h5 54
�g2 g5 55 <l;g3 'tWf4+ 56 <;t>g2 g4 57
hxg4 hxg4 58 �h1 �b6 59 <l;g2 rj;;C7 60
�h1 .td6 61 <l;gl �b6 62 �g2 i.. C5+ 63
�h1 'ifh6+ 64 �h2 �e3 65 b4 i.. d4! 0-1
183
Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
After 66 'ifg2 g3 White will run out
of pawn moves on the queens ide,
when he is in zugzwang. If his queen
moves from g2, it is mate on gl, while
if the bishop leaves f1 it no longer sup­
ports 'iWh3, so the reply .. :iVh6+ forces
mate.
An epic battle. After his poor open­
ing the American Grandmaster played
with great verve, but he couldn't over­
come the superior coordination of the
black pieces and pawns.
Gel ler joins in the act
Following the example of Bronstein,
Geller became a great fan of the King's
Indian Defence. He loved the opportu­
nity it gave him to play dynamic chess
with the black pieces. As you would
expect, he gives the set-up a creative
twist by deploying his queen to the
kingside.
Game 70
M.Germek-E.Gelier
B led 1961
King 's Indian Defence
1 d4 ttJf6 2 c4 g6 3 g3 i-g7 4 i..g2 0-0 5
ttJf3 d6 6 0-0 ttJbd7 7 'iYc2 e5 8 �dl l:te8
9 e4 c6 10 ttJc3 exd4 11 ttJxd4 'Wie7
White has played a quick .l:!.dl, so
Geller removes his queen from the
danger file, at the same time adding a
defender to d6 and counterattacking
against e4.
12 b3 ttJC5 13 f3
Germek bolsters his e4-pawn, but
1 84
on the other hand his central dark
squares are slightly weakened.
13 ... a51
As we have already seen, the a­
pawn not only prevents the knight
from being evicted by b3-b4 but also
prepares to ram White's queenside
structure.
14 i..a 3 ?
Having already compromised his
dark squares with 13 f3, Germek moves
their natural defender to the edge of
the board. To make matters worse, the
bishop will become a target after ... a5-
a4. A logical alternative was 14 i..b2,
planning 15 l::Id2 and 16 l:tadl to try to
prove that the pawn on d6-pawn is
weak after all. Incidentally, that is how
Korchnoi handled the white position in
a later game.
14...ttJfd7!
By now the reader will be fully
aware that one of the keys to conduct­
ing a dynamic game is finding a strong
and safe square for the queen. Here
Geller has seen that he can significantly
increase the pressure on the white
pawn structure by vacating f6 for her;
an Alekhine' square on the third rank.
I get
15 "YWf2
Whereas the black queen is about to
take control of an attacking post, her
opposite number has assumed a defen­
sive role by overprotecting d4 and f3.
Now after 15 ... a4 16 ttJce2 ttJe5 17 ttJf4
White would manage to keep every­
thing solid.
15 ...ttJe5 16 iLfl
Keeping the black knights out of d3,
but now f3 has lost one of its defend-
ers.
16 ...'Wif6!
One of the characteristics of Geller's
style is that he is always looking for
ways to combine frontal pressure
against a pawn structure with diagonal
pressure against a vulnerable piece
(preferably the king!). Here his queen
performs both tasks: she attacks f3 in
combination with the knight on e5, and
at the same time makes things uncom­
fortable for the white pieces along the
al-h8 diagonal.
17 11acl
Once a pawn structure loses its mo­
bility it tends to become a target. We
B a c k w a rds Pawns a n d In d i a n B is h o ps
a demonstration of the black
queen's power if White tries to free
himself with 17 f4: 17 . . . ttJg4 18 'iff3 (he
just loses a pawn after 18 'iYd2 ttJxe4)
18 . . . 'ifxd4+! 19 lhd4 iLxd4+ 20 '>tg2
(even worse is 20 'ithl ttJf2+ 21 'it'gl
ttJdl + picking up c3, or here 21 'it'g2
i.h3+ etc) 20 . . . ttJe3+ 21 'ithl i.g4 22 �f2
1l.xc3 23 �xe3 i..xal and Black wins 'on
points'.
17 ... a4!
Black's pieces are on active squares,
but his attack won't get anywhere
without the help of pawns. Finding a
dynamic harmony between the pieces
and pawns is the ideal of power play.
When the pawns and pieces refuse to
work together, the energy drains out of
even the most promising-looking posi­
tion.
18 b4
Now the bishop on a3 is boxed in
and the c4-pawn becomes vulnerable.
18 ...ttJe6 19 ttJce2 h51
Geller is playing on both sides of
the board. He intends to loosen the
white kingside even more with a pawn
exchange on g3. Jumping a long way
1 85
C h ess Se crets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
ahead, the opening of the h-file will
allow a direct attack on the white king.
20 tZ'lxe6 .txe6 21 tZ'ld4
One of the techniques of dynamic
chess is indirect defence of a weak
point. The white rook finally has the
pawn on d6 in his sights, but he can't
take it as f3 hangs.
21 ... h4 22 .te2 hxg3 23 hxg3 .1:tad8 24
<it>g2
Germek appears to have covered
his pawn weaknesses quite well, but a
third pawn ram uncovers all the defi­
ciencies in his position.
24 ... d 5 ! 25 exd5 exd5
26 tZ'lxe6
Upon 26 c5 we see a striking exam­
ple of the conversion of advantages:
the weak pawn on c4 has vanished but
is replaced by a strong outpost for the
black knight with 26 . . . tZ'lc4, which in
tum becomes a strong passed pawn
after 27 .txc4 dxc4 28 CDxe6 "iVxe6 etc.
It's important to see how one advan­
tage 'flows' into another - in the con­
text of power play we could say that
one form of (attacking) energy is con­
verted into another.
186
You can see in this variation that
24... d5 wouldn't have had the same
energy without the preliminary soften­
ing up of c4 with the ... a5-a4 pawn ram:
a white pawn on b3 would have kept
the black knight out of c4.
27 "iVxe6 27 exd 5 .1:txd5 28 f4?
..•
White has a miserable position,
with one bishop shut out of the game
on a3 and the other a target on e2.
Nevertheless, giving away all the light
squares isn't the way to save himself.
He should try 28 .1:txd5 "iVxd5 29 .1:tc2, as
29 ... tZ'lg4 doesn't yet hit the mark due to
30 .tc4!.
28....1:txd1 29 .1:txd1 tZ'le4 30 .txe4 "iVxe4
31 .1:td2 .te3!
It appears that Geller is playing to
win the b4-pawn, but in fact he is pre­
paring an unexpected finish on the
other wing.
32 .1:te2 "iVe4+ 33 <it>h2 <it>g7!
Here is the concealed idea. If White
takes the bishop he is mated in two
moves with 33 ... .1:th8+.
34 g4 .1:th8+ 0-1
White loses his queen after 35 <it>g3
"iVd3+ 36 "iVf3 l:i.h3+.
Thus a defence that Alekhine re­
jected as unsound became fully estab­
lished in the ranks of modem chess
openings. Still, we have no right to
criticize the fourth World Champion.
One of Alekhine's greatest qualities
was his unremitting search for im­
provements in opening theory. When
he annotates one of his games he often
explains his choice of move by a phrase
of the kind "I wanted to test this rec­
ommendation by X" or "I wanted to
confirm my opinion of variation Y".
His curiosity and urge to understand
meant he was willing to try out most
openings, except those as Black involv­
ing a fianchetto on g7.
It is simply the case that Alekhine
was born too early to appreciate the
merits of the King's Indian Defence. In
tournaments he always played for a win
with Black, unless a draw was required
to achieve the sporting aim. This meant
he sometimes pushed too hard to un­
balance the position. If he had played
his chess in a later age he would un­
doubtedly have followed Fischer and
the young Kasparov in making the
King's Indian Defence fundamental to
his repertoire. It is the perfect way to
achieve winning chances with Black
without taking unacceptable risks. All
lovers of fighting chess owe a debt of
gratitude to Bronstein and Boleslavsky
for their pioneering work.
Living with a backward pawn
Bronstein and Boleslavsky's research
also had an influence beyond the con-
B a c k w a rds Pa wns a n d I n d i a n Bis h o ps
fines of the King's Indian Defence. The
idea that a structural or static weakness
is acceptable in return for active play
has a bearing on openings with no In­
dian bishop in sight. For example,
nowadays no one blinks an eye if a
player accepts a backward pawn in the
Sveshnikov Sicilian.
Game 71
S.Karjakin-V.Topalov
Wij k aan Zee 2006
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 e5 2 tZ'lf3 tZ'le6 3 d4 exd4 4 tZ'lxd4
CDf6 5 CDe3 e5 6 CDdb5 d6 7 .tg5 a6 8
tZ'la 3 b5 9 ct:Jds .te7 10 .txf6 .txf6 11 e3
.tgs 12 CDe2 0-0 13 a4 bxa4 14 .1:txa4 as
15 .te4 .1:tb8 16 .1:ta2 <it>h8 17 CDee3 i.xe3
18 ct:Jxe3 CDe7 19 b3 f5 20 exf5 CDxf5 21
ct:Jd5 .tb7 22 0-0 .1:te8 23 "iVd3 ct:Jh4 24
.1:td 1 h6 25 "iVg3 ct:Jf5 26 "iVg4 .1:te5 27
l:i.ad 2 .te8 28 "iVe4 .tb7
White's pieces are overprotecting
the knight on d5 in a manner that
would have made Nimzowitsch shed
tears of gratitude. On the other hand,
187

Chess Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po wer Play
what Karjakin would really like to do
is apply direct pressure with his rooks
and queen against the backward d6-
pawn. An exchange of knights would
clear the way for an eventual �xd6
breakthrough.
There are a lot of obstacles in the
way of such a plan: one of the most im­
portant is the fact that White's knight is
pinned by the black bishop, and if he
moves his queen to g4, the bishop fol­
lows with ... i.c8! (this happened at
move 27). And even if Karjakin's queen
escapes the attentions of the bishop, and
he manages to exchange off knights,
there is still the danger of a combinative
blow against his vulnerable g2-square.
Black may have a backward pawn on
d6, but his queen, rooks and bishops are
all ready for action.
You may have noticed how similar
the dynamic considerations here are to
those in Bronstein's King's Indian set­
up. In both cases there is a white
knight sitting in front of a backward
pawn on d6. It would seem a simple
business to move the knight away and
get at the pawn, but the horse can't
abandon its post without allowing
Black to make an important dynamic
gain in another sector of the board.
29 h3?1
Karjakin doesn't want to give the
game up as a draw with 29 �g4 i.c8
etc, so he decides to goad the black
pieces into an attack on the kingside, in
the hope that he will have the last
laugh with a Mxd6 breakthrough in the
centre.
29 ••• tbh4!
188
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The Bulgarian Grandmaster needs 32 'iWg4
no second invitation to initiate dy­
namic play.
Now it looks as if Black is in trou­
ble, as after 32 . . . Mg5? 33 tbxc3 (but not
30 .id3?! 33 'iWxM? .l:!.xg2+ and 34 ... 'iVxM)
Of course Karjakin doesn't imagine 33 .. ..l:txg4 34 hxg4 Karjakin is about to
that he will succeed in mating the black achieve his aim of crashing through the
king with 31 'ifh7, but he is using the d-file with 35 l:!xd6. Note that a subse­
threat to try to get the black pieces into quent Itd8+ is always going to be a
a tangle. In reality every step White mating threat, as the white bishop on
takes with his plan does more damage bl denies the black king the h7-square.
to the coordination of his own pieces. However. . .
Thus it would have been better to have 3 2 ... h5!!
left the bishop on c4. This pawn move ruins his oppo­
30...l'1f5 ! nent's strategy. The white queen is
Shades of Topalov's game with forced to retreat to a markedly inferior
Morozevich in Chapter Four, where square, after which it is the black queen
our hero beat off White's impetuous who becomes the dominant attacking
attack with 23 ... nf5! etc. force on the kingside.
31 .ibl? Despite all the manoeuvres and
The young Grandmaster offers the threats by the big pieces, what decides
c3-pawn as the next stage in his cam­ the game is the energy given to the
paign of discomforting the black black position - or you could say drain­
pieces. Instead, he had to play 31 c4 or ed from the white position - by a pawn.
31 i.c4, though his position has already 33 'iWe2 'iWg5 34 f4
deteriorated. Karjakin keeps on fighting and
3 1 .. J!xC3 might still have tricked a lesser player
Topalov demonstrates that he can than Topalov. He stops the mate on g2
safely grab the pawn. with a pawn attack of his own on the
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B a c k w a rds P a w n s a n d I n d i a n B i s h o p s
enemy queen. I n fact all three o f Black's
heavy pieces are now en prise!
34 ...MXf4!
But this bankrupts White's position,
as taking either rook allows his king to
corne under a crushing attack: 35
tbxc3? tbf3+ 36 'iith l 'iVg3 37 gxf3 (or
mate on h2) 37. . ...txf3+ and wins, or 35
tbxf4 tbf3+ 36 'iitf2 tbxd2 37 �xd2 �g3+
38 �f1 exf4 when White is mated in
two moves if he takes the pawn on d6.
You will notice that after White plays
35 tbxc3 or 35 tbxf4 he is tantalizingly
close to carrying out his aim of Mxd6,
threatening to mate the black king.
Alas for him, he never has the free
move he needs. It's no wonder that
Tartakower described chess as "the
tragedy of one tempo".
3 5 �hl tbxg2 36 'iWxg2
I imagine that if he was in time
trouble White didn't give much
thought to 36 tbxc3, which exposes his
king to a discovered check. In fact GM
Rogozenko gives the non-checking
36 . . .�4 as the strongest response: 37
�h2 tbe3 38 'iVxe3 Mf3 39 �xf3 i..xf3
and Black wins.
1 89
C h e s s Secrets : Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
36 ..Jig3
According to Rogozenko, 36 ... 'ii'h4
is still the quickest way to win.
37 tLlxf4 ..txg2+ 38 tLlxg2 nxh3+ 39
�gl :g3
White has only a shade worse of it if
we count the material on the board: a
rook and two minor pieces versus a
queen and four pawns. Unfortunately
for him, his king has no pawn cover
and so the advance of Black's h-pawn
is going to cost him dear.
40 l:if2 �g8
It would be a shame to fall for a
mate on f8.
41 11xd6 h4!
This pawn only makes two moves
190
but it has been an absolute hero in
Black's cause.
42 :c6 'iVg4
It wasn't too late to lose with 42 . . .h3
43 l:ic8+. After White's reply Topalov is
able to force a decisive simplification.
43 1d5
43 ... .l:!.xg2+! 44 .l:!.xg2 iVxf5 45 l1cg6 iVf7
46 tt6g4 �f6 47 �h2 �7 48 'i£th3 e4 49
1:tg5 e3 50 �xh4
It seems that Karjakin wasn't pre­
pared to resign until he had revenge on
the pawn that ruined all his hopes.
50 ... g6 0-1
After 51 J::i.a2 Black could play to the
gallery with 5 1 . . :i¥f2+! 52 lhf2+ exf2
and queens.
C h a pte r N i n e
The Psychol ogy of Prepa ration
Our five giants have had mixed for­
tunes in the quest to be recognized as
the best player in the world. Morphy
was born before the World Champion­
ship was invented; Alekhine died as
World Champion; Bronstein proved
himself equal to the reigning World
Champion but never gained the acco­
lade; Geller beat umpteen World
Champions in tournaments without
achieving a match for the title; and To­
palov won the World Championship in
a tournament and at the time of writing
may yet win it in a match.
In this chapter I wish to examine
how psychological preparation, which
includes a deep appraisal of the oppo­
nent's style of play, has played a role in
our five players achieving an optimal
performance.
The Morphy-Ha rrwitz match
Daniel Harrwitz (1823-1 884) had be-
I
come the resident chess professional at
the Cafe de la Regence in Paris follow­
ing the death of Kieseritzky. He was
therefore one of the most formidable
opponents that Morphy had to face
during his conquest of Europe in 1858.
A match was arranged with the rules
stating that the victor would be the first
player to reach seven wins.
The omens weren't good for the
American. In their pre-match warm-up
game, Harrwitz had won when Mor­
phy sacrificed too much material. Evi­
dently Harrwitz had no wish to dis­
close his opening ideas in a 'friendly'
encounter, opening 1 e4, whereas he
played 1 d4 in the official match games.
In the first of these, Morphy was im­
pressively outplayed as Black in a
Queen's Gambit. The static position
that arose from the opening gave him
no chance to show either his positional
or his tactical creativity. He was soon
forced into an unpleasant endgame:
191
C h ess Secrets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
Game 72
D.Harrwitz-P.Morphy
1st matchga me, Pa ris 1858
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 ttJC3 ttJf6 4 ii.f4 a6 5 e3
c5 6 ttJf3 ttJc6 7 a3 cxd4 8 exd4 dxc4 9
ii.xC4 b5 10 i.. d 3 �b7 11 0-0 �e7 12
.lies 0-0 13 'iYe2 ttJd5 14 ii.g3 'it>h8 15
Itfe1 i..f6 16 'iYe4 g6 1 7 ttJxd5 �xd 5 18
'iYxd5 exd5 19 ttJe5 ,l:1ad8 20 ttJxc6 i..xc6
21 �ac1 .l:tc8 22 i..d6 .l:tg8 23 i..e5 �g7
Here Harrwitz centralizes his king
and increases his grip on the dark
squares:
24 f4! i..d 7 25 'it>f2 h6 26 �e3 l:txc1 27
�xc1 .14.c8 28 .l:tC5! .ltxe5 29 fxe5 .lte6 30
a4?!
Typical 19th century impatience in
the endgame. More exact was 30 .te2,
intending 31 i.f3 to force 31..Jld8.
Then the black rook is tied down to d5,
leaving the white rook free to probe the
queenside. And if after 30 i..e2 Black
tries 30 ... f6, 31 a4! is all the stronger.
30 ... bxa4 3 1 .ixa6
192
3 1 ....l:tb8?
Black could save himself with
31. ..!!a8! 32 ii.b7 'ub8 33 J::tc7 g5! fol­
lowed by 34 ... �g6. If White's king
heads to the queenside, the black king
can counterattack with ... �f5 and
. . . �e4 etc.
32 �b5! .l:Id8 33 .l:!.b6 1:!.a8 34 �d2
The threatened intervention by the
white king on the queenside persuades
Morphy to give up a pawn at once.
34 ... ii.c8 35 i.xc8 I:i.xc8 36 l:!.b5 �a8 3 7
.6txd5 a3 38 bxa3 .uxa3 3 9 .l:tC5!
So that if 39... .l:ta2+ 40 .l:tc2. Morphy
is now slowly ground down, the re­
maining moves being:
39 ...�8 40 'it>e2 �e7 41 d5 'it>d7 42 :c6
h5 43 l1f6 We7 44 d6+ 'it>e8 45 e6 fxe6
46 J::!.xe6+ �f7 47 d7 .l:ta8 48 ll:.d6 'it>e7
49 l:txg6 �xd7 50 I1g5 .l:th8 51 �f3 �e6
52 �g3 h4+ 53 Wg4 h3 54 g3 �f6 55
�h5 1-0
Despite his impetuous 30th move,
this was a fine positional display by
Harrwitz. It shows that not all of Mor­
phy's opponent's were dedicated tacti­
cians. In game two of the match, Mor-
phy was thirsting for revenge. He built
up strong pressure but gradually lost
the thread - and a knight! - in the face
of his opponent's tough defence.
Game 73
P.Morphy-D.Ha rrwitz
2nd matchga me, Paris 1858
Philidar Defence
1 e4 e5 2 ttJf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 �xd4 ttJc6
5 �b5 ii.d7 6 .ixc6 i.xc6 7 �g5 ttJf6 8
ttJc3 Ji..e7 9 0-0-0 0-0 10 l:the1 h6 11
i.h4 ttJe8 12 i..x e7 'iYxe7 13 e5 ii.xf3 14
gxf3 Wig5+ 15 'it>b1 dxe5 16 .l:!.xe5 'iVg2
17 ttJd5 'iVxh2 18 .l:tee1 'iVd6 19 Ilg1
�h7 20 'iVe3 fS 21 ttJf4 'iYb6 22 'iVe2 l1f7
23 'iVC4 �f6 24 ttJh5 'iYe7 25 ftde1 'ikd7
26 a3 ttJd6 27 'iYd4 1Ig8 28 ,Ug2 ttJe8 29
'iVc3 f4
Here Morphy went wrong with:
30 l:th1?
30 Itg4! is the best chance.
30 ••. g6 3 1 klhg1 'iYd 5!
The knight has been cornered.
32 �e1 �xh5 33 .l:tg5 "ir'xf3 34 �e6 .l:!.f6
35 'iVe7+ J::!. g7 36 'iYxe8 hxg5 3 7 \\\Ve 1
The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n
'iYc6 0-1
The score: 2-0 to Harrwitz in the
match, 3-0 overall if you include the
friendly game.
At this pOint the American must
have paused to reflect on the situation.
As we saw above, he had been com­
prehensively outplayed with Black in
the Queen's Gambit. Evidently
Harrwitz's strength was the ability to
grind an opponent down in simple,
'dull' 1 d4 d5 type positions. At the
same time, Morphy's attempt to attack
had ended in fiasco in game two, as
well as the warm-up game. You might
call it luck, but how many other play­
ers were fortunate enough to beat off
two consecutive Morphy onslaughts?
No, there is no doubt that Harrwitz
was a good defender against a direct
attack.
One of the defining features of
Morphy's genius was how quickly he
learnt from experience. He was a very
clear-headed, shrewd judge of his op­
ponents. So let's imagine what he
might have thought to himself when he
retired to his Parisian lodgings the
night after the second game.
"As Black, it's obvious I should
avoid a fixed centre pawn structure
like that in the Queen's Gambit.
Harrwitz mustn't be allowed a clear
plan. He should be engaged in a com­
plex battle over the whole board,
which means combining threats to his
king and his pawns.
"As White, I should build up in the
centre in my usual style. But once I
193
Ch ess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
have gained a positional advantage, I
need to target more than just his king.
The struggle must be as wide as possi­
ble, to wrong-foot his pieces. I should
only sacrifice when the outcome is en­
tirely clear."
In the remaining games of the
match, we see Morphy employ the per­
fect 'anti-Harrwitz' strategy. Let's look
at what happened in game three.
Game 74
D.Harrwitz-P.Morphy
3 rd matchga me, Paris 1858
Dutch Defence
1 d4 f5!
So there will be no 'classical'
Queen's Gambit. How does Harrwitz
like the imbalanced pawn structure
that arises from the Dutch? Not very
much, as we shall see.
2 c4 e6 3 ttJC3
Unluckily for White the kingside fi­
anchetto was little known in the 19th
century, so the response generally con­
sidered best by modern theory - 3 ttJf3
and 4 g3, or 3 g3 at once - couldn't be
part of his technique.
3 ttJf6
..•
Naturally he avoids 3 . . . d5, as this
would give his opponent a more famil­
iar type of pawn centre. We shall jump
ahead to the key position at move 18:
4 iLg5 iLb4 5 'iVb3 c5 6 d5 e5 7 e3 0-0 8
i.d3 d6 9 ttJge2 h6 10 i.xf6 1ifxf6 11 a3
i.xc3+ 12 'iVxC3 ttJd7 13 0-0 "iWg6 14 b4
b6 15 f3 h5 16 i.. c2 i-b7 17 iLa4 'iVf7
1 94
This was the moment when the
course of the match suddenly turned in
Morphy's favour. The German master
should play 18 i..c 6! .l!i.ab8 19 J:!abl, just
maintaining the tension. But Harrwitz
needs a dear plan, and the best he
could come up with was to open the b­
file at once:
18 i.xd7? "iix d7 19 bXc5 bxc5 20 f4 e4
21 ,Mabl?
He should have kept the black
queen out of a4 with 21 a4! .
21 ... iLa6 22 llfcl "iVa4!
The upshot of Harrwitz's incorrect
strategy is that he has a queen and one
rook tied down to the c4-pawn, while
the other rook can't do a jot down the
open b-file.
23 ttJg3 h4!
White is deprived of any counter­
play on the kingside, so that Morphy
can focus on building up his queenside
pressure.
24 ttJfl l:ab8 25 ttJd2
Now what is the move that adds the
most power to the black position?
2 5 ...l:tb6!!
I would also award this move two
exclamation marks if it had been
played by Topalov against Kramnik.
White is given a frightful choice: either
he must concede control of the b-file or
else exchange on b6, when Black is
given a lever with which to prise open
the white centre pawn structure.
26 litxb6 axb6 27 'iVb3
The exchange of queens doesn't
help much, but if Harrwitz had just
waited he could be assailed with . . . na8
and . . .b6-b5, when the a3-pawn would
be a target for the black queen.
27 ... 'iWxb3 28 ttJxb3 b5 29 cxb5 iLxb5 30
ttJa5
The attempt to counterattack
against d6 is defeated by the arrival of
the black king.
30 Jb8 31 ttJb7 J::!.a 6 32 .i:.c3 'itJf8! 33
.•
ttJd8 i.d7
The knight is denied an exit via e6,
as 34 ttJe6+ iLxe6 35 dxe6 We7 is hope­
less for White.
34 l:Ib3 �e7 35 J::!. b8 c4!
Harrwitz's pieces are in disorder
and cannot prevent the loss of a couple
of pawns.
The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n
3 6 'itof2 c 3 37 �e2 l:xa3 38 ttJc6+ i..xc6
39 dxc6 c2 40 'itJd2 1Ic3 !
A neat touch that ensures very dif­
ferent fortunes for the passed c-pawns.
The rest is easy for Morphy.
41 �c1 11xc6 42 l::t b3 �6 43 J::!. a 3 g5 44
g3 hxg3 45 hxg3 gxf4 46 gxf4 'itog6 47
i:Ia5 J::!. C5 48 l:a6 l:tc3 49 J::!.xd6+ 'itoh5 50
J::!.d 2 'itg4 51 �g2+ �f3 52 J::!.g 5 J::!.C 5 53
J::!. h 5 'itoxe3 54 11h4 �3 0-1
Morphy's genius was able to supply
him with a complete understanding of
the little-known pawn structure,
whereas Harrwitz had no such aid to
call upon. As soon as he was removed
from his Queen's Gambit comfort zone,
he was helpless.
If the above attack on c4 had been
carried out in similar circumstances by
Alekhine, I would probably have clas­
sified it as of a positional, rather than
power play, nature. The gap of 50 or so
years between the careers of these two
giants meant that the Russian learnt his
chess in an age that had models of
technique, including Harrwitz­
Morphy, already available to it.
195
Ch ess Secrets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
In contrast, when Morphy put his
queen on a4 and the bishop on a6, he
was being guided by his genius, with
no prior model on which to base his
technique. The idea of entering into
this unknown territory was a decision
made before the game, with the aim of
energizing the struggle - that is, escap­
ing from the Queen's Gambit centre.
Hence it involved preparation, psy­
chology and dynamism, making it a
power play game.
We have already seen Morphy's
drab performance in his first game as
White against Harrwitz. In the second
such encounter he produced one of the
best games of his life.
Game 75
P.Morphy-D.Harrwitz
4th matchga me, Pa ris 1858
Philidar Defence
1 e4 es 2 ct:Jf3 d6 3 d4 exd4 4 "ir'xd4 ct:Jc6
S .tbS
Giving up the bishop pair but en­
suring that his queen gets to stay on its
strong central post.
S ... .td7 6 �xc6 ..Itxc6 7 .tgs f6
Harrwitz varies from 7... ct:Jf6 as he
played in the second game of the
match (see above), but Morphy will
make him pay for the weakness created
on e6.
8 .th4 ct:Jh6 9 ct:Jc3 'ii'd 7 10 0-0 �e7 11
l:1adl 0-0 12 'iVC4+ �f7
The simple 12 ... �h8 was more solid.
However, Harrwitz is also trying to use
psychology. In his first game as Black
196
against Morphy, the German master
had profited from the rather loose at­
tacking play of his opponent.
And so he hopes to cajole his oppo­
nent into more premature action with
13 e5?, which on the face of it looks
good, as 14 e6 is a threat and 13 . . . fxe5?
loses the exchange to 14 ct:Jxe5. But after
13 . . . Wt'g4! 14 'ii'xg4 (or 14 .l::t d4 'ifg6 and
f3 is hanging) 14 . . . ct:Jxg4 15 e6, White
wouldn't have much to show for his
initiative beyond a rather vulnerable
pawn on e6.
But Morphy has learnt that you
shouldn't rush things against Harrwitz,
and instead continues his positional
build-up.
13 ct:Jd4! ct:Jg4 14 h 3 ct:Jes 15 'iVe2 gS?
A truly dreadful move which is the
only indication in the whole game that
it was played a couple of centuries ago.
Black wants to cement his horse on the
e5-square, but in doing so he hands
over an even more powerful centre
post on f5 to the white knight. At the
same time he exposes his pawn struc­
ture to being fractured by f2-f4, which
opens lines for the white rooks.
No modem master would play such
a move. He would submit to the knight
being pushed back from e5 with a con­
solidating move such as 15 .. Jle8, and
then if 16 £4 (possibly premature)
16 ... ct:Jg6, try to put pressure on the e4-
pawn after . . .i.f8 etc.
16 .tg3 .i:!.g7 17 ct:JfS .l::!.g6 18 f4 gxf4 19
Itxf4 Wh8 20 l:th4!
Just in time to thwart any hopes of a
black attack down the g-file,
20 ... l:1ag8, which looks a logical and
strong move, allows 21 .l:i.xh7+! Wxh7 22
'ii'h5+ and mates.
20....tf8 21 i.xes!
An astute exchange. The semi­
blocked nature of the position favours
White's knights, as there aren't any
good pawn breaks that Black can util­
ize to enliven his bishop pair - if he
tries to arrange ... d6-d5 his position
would soon fall apart. Another good
point of the exchange is that White's
rook gets the open f-file.
21 .. .fxes 22 �fl 'iVe6
Harrwitz is ready to answer 23 'iVh5
with 23 . . . iVg8, with the type of solid
defensive line that smashed Morphy's
The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a ra t i o n
attack i n game two o f the match. But as
we discussed above, the American was
always quick to learn from his mis­
takes. He was a great psychologist and
knew how to lead the game into paths
uncongenial to his opponent. And so,
rather than launch a quick attack, Mor­
phy switched his attention to the other
side of the board:
23 ct:JbS ! !
as A n unpleasant surprise for Harr­
witz. If he returns his queen to d7 to
guard c7, then 24 'i¥h5! threatening 25
'iVxg6 is strong. Besides, no one likes to
change a plan halfway through.
Meanwhile if 23 . . ..txb5 24 'iVxb5 b6,
Black is deprived of the natural guard­
ian of his light squares. The remaining
bishop on f8 is a useful defensive piece
in the event of an all-out kingside at­
tack by White, but it can't do much else
as it is shut in by its pawns. Morphy
would no doubt have probed away on
the queenside, in time advancing his
pawns there, to emphasize the feeble­
ness of the bishop.
23 ... 'iVg8
Harrwitz sees he can put his queen
197

Ch ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play
on g8 after all, and relaxes. For if 24
4Jxc7? �c8 25 4Jd5, Black has the devil­
ish trap 25 ... .ib5!! which wins the ex­
change, as White would be mated on
g2 after 26 "Yi'xb5?? !:txg2+ 27 'it>h1 �h2+!
28 'it>xh2 �xc2+ etc.
24 �f2!
Morphy sees through his oppo­
nent's combination and adds a de­
fender to g2. Now Black has no good
way of meeting the attack on c7, as
24 . . . ii.xb5 25 "Yi'xb5 is a worse version of
23 . . . i.xb5 - the black queen is less able
to aid her queenside on g8 than on e6.
Harrwitz decides to sacrifice the c­
pawn in order to activate his queen's
rook, but he fails to get any compensa­
tion.
24 ...a6 25 4JxC7 �c8 26 4Jd5
26 ...i.xd 5
It is a positional catastrophe for
Black whether he lets the knight enjoy
a great outpost on d5 or removes it at
the cost of his vital bishop.
27 exd5 �C7
It seems likely that, in his earlier
calculations, Harrwitz had missed that
27 . . . "Yi'xd5 loses to the combination 28
198
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�xh7+! 'it>xh7 29 "Yi'h5+ .ih6 (or 29 . . .�h6
30 4Jxh6 i.xh6 31 I:!.f7+ 'it>g8 32 "Yi'g6+
and mates) 30 4Je7! "Yi'e6 31 4Jxg6 and
Black is defenceless, as 31..:i-i'xg6 32
�f7+ costs him the queen, while the
attempts at consolidating with 31. ..�e8
or 31...�g8 drop the exchange to 32
4Jf8+.
28 c4
It's already game over, as Black is a
pawn down and hopelessly weak on
the light squares, but the method of
execution is still delightful.
28 ... i.e7 29 �h5 "Yi'e8 30 C5!!
Crowning his positional and psy­
chological achievement. Morphy knew
that Harrwitz couldn't be beaten by
launching a direct attack on his king
right from the opening. Therefore the
struggle had to be on both sides of the
board. A pawn ram on the queenside
that lays the groundwork for a mating
combination is the perfect emblem of
this successful strategy.
30 ...�xc5
Or 30 ... dxe5 31 "Yi'xe5+.
31 �xh7+! 'it>xh7 32 'iWh5+ 'it>g8 33
CDxe7+ 'it>g7
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33 ... "Yi'xe7 34 "Yi'xg6+ is easy for
White.
34 4Jf5+ 'it>g8 35 4Jxd6! 1-0
A pretty finish. Of course, after
35 . . .�xg2+!? we can safely assume that
Morphy would have taken on g2 with
the right piece...
Rarely is there such a fantastic
blend of tactics and strategy in one
game. It's hard to see how a modern
great such as Topalov or Kasparov
could have improved on Morphy's
play.
The match had completely turned
around. Morphy had won two games
in a row, playing the best positional
chess that had ever been seen up to
that time. Our giant then added games
five and six to his tally, drew game
seven after being very close to a win,
and won game eight. The score was
thus 5-2 with one draw. Although the
rules prescribed that the victor would
be the first player to gain seven wins,
Harrwitz resigned the match as he
knew he had no answer to the Ameri­
can's sublime play.
The Psyc h o l ogy of Prep a r a t i o n
Why Alekhine beat Capablanca
In 1927 Alekhine finally got the chance
to play a World Championship match.
Despite his brilliant play and out­
standing results, few experts thought
that he could unseat the champion,
Jose Raul Capablanca (1888-1942).
There was an aura of invincibility
around the Cuban, who had lost only a
handful of games in the previous ten
years. Moreover Capa had just won the
New York 1927 tournament in crush­
ing style, no less than 2% points ahead
of the second-placed Alekhine.
Capablanca's genius allowed him to
play pawn structures that his contem­
poraries had yet to master. In an age
dominated by 1 d4 d5 and 1 e4 e5, here
are three examples of the Cuban's posi­
tional creativity: against Corzo at Ha­
vana in 1913 he opened as Black with 1
d4 4Jf6 2 c4 d6 3 CDc3 4Jbd7 4 e4 e5, and
went on to win the best game prize;
against Nimzowitsch at 5t Petersburg
in 1914 he played a strategic pawn sac­
rifice that anticipated by many decades
the ideas of the Benko Gambit; and
versus Alekhine himself at the afore­
mentioned New York tournament he
won crushingly as Black in a Benoni
pawn structure.
When things went wrong for the
Cuban, both his admirers and his de­
tractors put it down to carelessness and
a lack of application at the board. He
seemed to treat chess as a hobby, and
sometimes appeared a little restless
during games.
It was hard to imagine that in a
199
C h ess Secrets: The G ia n ts of P o w e r Play
World Championship match Capab­
lanca would show the same careless­
ness. But Alekhine was given cause for
hope by a game they played at New
York in 1924. His majestic opponent
was desperate for a win as he was trail­
ing Lasker in the fight for first place.
Capa outplayed Alekhine and reached
a winning endgame, but then made
some imprecise moves and only drew.
This was a revelation to Alekhine, who
recorded his thoughts in his book On
the road to the World Championship:
°1 had finally detected a slight
weakness in my future opponent: in­
creasing uncertainty when confronted
with a stubborn resistance! Of course I
had already noticed Capablanca com­
mitting occasional slight inaccuracies,
but I should not have thought he
would be unable to rid himself of this
failing even when he tried his utmost."
So let's imagine Alekhine lounging
on the deck of the liner taking him to
Buenos Aires in 1927 and scribbling
down his match strategy on the ship's
note paper:
1) Capa plays unusual pawn struc­
tures brilliantly, but his opening reper­
toire doesn't explicitly aim for such
positions.
2) He gets weary and careless in a
protracted fight; but...
3) His battle lust and genius is
aroused if his opponent 'insults' him
by trying a direct, not entirely sound,
attack right from the opening.
Conclusion: I must keep the open­
ings as narrow and solid as possible,
200
and wait for my opponent to grow
careless. I mustn't awaken the lion in­
side him!
In other words he had to restrain
Capablanca's positional genius, and
the way to do that was to play classical
openings which Alekhine had analysed
in great detail. How can you show
your special understanding of pawn
structures in endless games starting
with the Queen's Gambit?
Capablanca's laziness meant that he
hadn't broadened his opening reper­
toire to give scope to his genius. If his
opponent made an interesting attempt
to win he could exploit it in brilliant
style. But he lacked the ability to be the
instigator of a strategically complex
battle.
The match was a long, hard strug­
gle, with many colourless draws. It's
difficult not to agree with Golombek
that, on playing through the games,
1/ one tends to wish that the Orthodox
Defence to the Queen's Gambit had
never been invented". But being pre­
pared for a long, boring match was an
essential part of Alekhine's strategy.
He also had to overcome one of his
own character faults, which was the
tendency to overpress with the black
pieces.
In the end Alekhine's restraint of
his opponent's genius and exploitation
of his small errors proved triumphant.
He won the match 6-3 with 25 draws.
Alekhine wanted the world title as
the aim of his life, and we can only ap­
plaud his achievement. It is still con-
Th e Psyc ho logy of Prep a ra t i o n
side red to be one of the greatest ever
upsets in the history of the World
Championship, as Capablanca was far
from being a spent force in 1927.
As an example of Alekhine's match
strategy and the careless errors it pro­
voked in his opponent, here is the 21st
game.
Game 76
J.R.Capablanca-A.Alekhine
21st matchga me,
13 dxcS ct'lxcS 1 4 ct'ld4?!
Bu enos Ai res 1927
The first sign that Capablanca is
Queen 's Gambit
restless. He could exchange off with 14
1Ii'xd8 lHxd8 15 !:lfdl, thereby avoiding
1 d4 d S 2 c4 e6 3 ct'lc3 ct'lf6 4 i.gs ct'lbd 7 any danger. But it seems he didn't
S e3 iLe7 6 ct'lf3 0-0 7 ncl a6 8 a3? want to admit so early on in the game
As in Alekhine's game with Rubin­ that he had lost his opening advantage.
stein (see Chapter Three) White tries to 14...ki.c8 is b4?
benefit from delaying i.d3. Instead, he Another careless move, and this
could have kept a small advantage time it is of a serious nature. It need­
with 8 cxd5 exd5 9 iLd3. lessly creates a hole on c4 which
8 ... h6 9 i.h4 dXC4! 10 i.xc4 bS 11 i..e2 Alekhine will exploit in perfect style.
iLb7 He should have offered the exchange
Here we see that ... a7-a6 has proved of bishops with 15 i.. f3.
much more useful than a2-a3, as it has lS ... ct'lcd71 16 iLg3 ct'lb6 17 1Ii'b3 ct'lfd S
allowed the b7-square to be cleared 18 .\tf3 .uc4!
with gain of time. Black might already
be said to have a slight advantage as
his light-squared bishop on b7 is better
placed than its opposite number on the
e2-square.
12 0-0 cS
Thanks to his superior handling of
the opening, Alekhine achieves the
standard freeing move without any
risk whatsoever. Indeed, it is Capab­
lanca who has to be wary of the active
black pieces.
201
C h ess S e crets: The Gia n ts of P o w e r Play
Black begins to get a grip on the
light squares in the centre.
19 lbe4 'it'c8 20 ':xc4?
The third careless move, after which
White's game heads inexorably down­
hill. Alekhine points out that he should
play 20 'it'b1 ! with the aim of easing his
game by exchanging with 21 lbd6 or 21
i.d6. Then after 20 ...ftd8 21 lbd2!
(evicting the rook from the outpost
square) 2 1 . . . .l:.xc1 22 l:txc1 1¥a8 23 iJ.c7,
further simplification keeps the bal­
ance.
20 ... lbxC4 21 .l:tcl 1¥a8!
Alekhine breaks the pin on c4 and
increases his dominance of the light
squares.
22 lbc3 nc8 23 lbxdS i.xds 24 i.xd s
'ifxd s
At first sight it looks pretty equal, as
there is a symmetrical pawn structure,
both sides have all their pieces devel­
oped, and neither king is facing an at­
tack. So we should pause and consider
the nature of Black's advantage. It will
tell us a lot about the concept of energy
which is central to a power play strat­
egy.
202
The white queenside pawns are on
dark squares, and so can be targeted by
Black's bishop. In contrast, the white
bishop is staring into space - it can nei­
ther attack the black pawns nor defend
its own pawns. Black's knight is also
far superior to its opposite number. It
is invincible on c4, whereas the white
horse can be driven back from its cen­
tre post, as we shall see next move.
As his minor pieces aren't up to the
job, White's queen and rook are tied to
the defence of the queenside pawns.
This means that the black queen and
rook have more freedom of action. In
other words, the superiority of Black's
minor pieces confers extra power on all
his pieces. And not just the pieces - the
black pawns have been energized, and
this will be the proverbial straw that
breaks the camel's (or Capa's) back.
25 a4
This makes Alekhine's task easier.
Generally speaking, getting rid of a
pair of pawns should give more
chances of escape, but Black's b5-pawn
never becomes a target, whereas the
white b4-pawn remains constantly un­
der pressure from the black bishop.
Therefore it was better to endure pa­
tiently the weak pawn on a3.
2S ... i.f6 26 lbf3 i.b2!
Alekhine explains that he was in­
tending the ... e6-e5 pawn push, and so
wanted to avoid any danger that his
bishop might be cut off from the
queenside by the reply e3-e4. The move
also has the virtue of forcing the white
rook to a more passive square.
27 'uel
After 27 �d1 bxa4! 28 �xa4 lbb6 29
.l:.xd5 lbxa4 30 .l::!.d 1 i.a3!, White has no
good way of saving his b-pawn in view
of his weak back rank, as if 31 .l:.b1
i.xb4 or 31 i.d6 .l:.d8 with a fatal pin.
27 ... l1d8 28 axbS axbs 29 h3 est
As in Alekhine's game with his
other great rival Lasker (see Chapter
Four), the advance of a central pawn to
drive back a knight proves too much
for an already shaky defence.
30 .ubl e4 3 1 lbd4?!
Tactical blunders come easily in bad
positions. This move and his next just
save White a lot of unnecessary suffer­
ing, as 31 lbe1 �d2! leaves him in a
hopeless mess; for example, 32 �c2
�xc2 33 lbxc2 'u'd2 34 lbe1 lba3 and the
white rook has suffocated.
31 ... i.xd4 32 lldl?! lbxe3! 0-1
White's rook drops off after 33
'iVxd5 1:txd5 34 fxe3 i.xe3+.
The Bronstein-Botvinnik match
In the World Championship match of
1951 David Bronstein didn't quite
manage to unseat the incumbent Mik-
The Psyc h o logy of Prep a r a t i o n
hail Botvinnik (1911-1995), but h e came
mightily close. He was leading by a
point after 22 of the 24 stipulated
games, but lost in game 23 and drew in
game 24 to 'only' tie the series 12-12. A
little more belief in his positional skills
and a little less fear of his opponent's
adjournment analysis might well have
made Bronstein the seventh World
Champion.
Game 77
M.Botvi nnik-D.Bronstein
5th matchga me,
Moscow 1951
Nimzo-Indian Defence
1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 e6 3 lbC3 i.b4 4 e3 0-0 5
i.d3 c5 6 lbf3 b6 7 0-0 i.b7 8 lba4 cxd4
9 a3 i.e7 10 exd4 'it'C7 11 b4 lbg4 12 g3
f5 13 lbc3 a6 14 �el lbc6 15 .tfl lbd8
16 i.f4 i.d6 17 iJ.xd6 'it'xd6 18 i.g2
lbf7 19 c5 �C7 20 !lcl .l::!.a e8 21 lba4 b5
22 lbC3 f4 23 d5 fxg3 24 fxg3 exd5 25
'it'd4 lbf6 26 lbh4 �e5 2 7 ':xe5 �xe5 28
'iVxe5 lbxe5 29 lbf5 lbc4
Botvinnik liked to play according to
203

Chess Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play
a clear strategic model. He would pre­
pare an opening system that gave his
opponent a weak pawn or a weak
square, and then keep hammering
away at it until his opponent's position
fell to pieces. He won many brilliant
technical games in this fashion.
In their World Championship
match, Bronstein did his best to avoid
the positional 'bear hug' of his oppo­
nent. One psychological method was to
play Botvinnik's own openings against
him. In the very first game after his
opponent's 1 d4, Bronstein replied
1 . . .e6. He showed he was willing to
play either the French after 2 e4 dS or
the Dutch after 2 c4 fS, both of which
were at the time Botvinnik's favourite
defences.
The World Champion believed in
the strategic soundness of his defences
when playing Black, so it was an un­
pleasant task for him to have to prove
they were unsound when playing
White. The ploy worked as Botvinnik
lost no less than four times with the
white pieces, and didn't produce a sin­
gle smooth game of the '1 d4 and wins'
type.
In the above diagram Botvinnik has
managed to catch his wily opponent in
a technical game. He could regain his
pawn at once with 30 lbe7+ and 31
lbexdS, with a slight plus due to the
isolated pawn on d7. But the 'Iron Lo­
gician' wants to do things properly.
First of all the rook should be put on
dl, so that after the pawn has been re­
captured it will be attacking d7.
The game continued:
204
30 1:td1 �h8!!
A nasty surprise for White. It turns
out that after he takes on dS he wins
the positional battle but loses the game:
31 lbxdS? lbxd5 32 .l1.xd5 il.xdS 33 .l:i.xdS
g6! 34 lbd6 lbe3! and the threat of
3S .. .l:Hl mate wins a rook.
Whereas the World Champion was
thinking in general terms about pawn
weaknesses and open files, Bronstein's
mind was focused on the specific tacti­
cal features of the position.
Botvinnik still has several chances
to save himself, but he is confused by
the 'bizarre' failure of his plan and
soon ruins his position. So it could be
said that the quietest imaginable move
on a chessboard, namely . . . �h8, won
the game for Black. I'm sure that Bron­
stein would have enjoyed the paradox.
31 l:te1
Safer was 31 ktd3.
21 ... lbxa3 32 lbd6?
Botvinnik still thinks he is attack­
ing, and so puts his knight on the 'ex­
cellent' d6-square. Instead, he should
have been satisfied with blockading the
dS-pawn with 32 lbd4.
32 ... i.c6 33 .:ta1 lbc2 34 Iba6 d4!
Much more promising than the ma­
terialistic 34. . . lbxb4. With the white
rook and the knight on d6 no longer
restraining its advance, the weak, dou­
bled, contemptible d-pawn is full of
energy. It sets White problems that are
very difficult to meet, especially in time
trouble.
3s lbcxbS .l1.xg2 36 �xg2 lbg4 37 lbfS
The best chance was 37 lbe4.
37 ... d3 38 �d6 �xfS 39 �xd3 lbge3+
0-1
The white king will be mated by the
rook on fl or hS.
Geller, slayer of World
Cha mpions
Efim Geller was justly proud of his fine
record against World Champions. In
his book The Application of Chess Theory
he gives every game bar one in which
he won against them (the game omit­
ted was against Tal, round 20 at Cura­
cao 1962, which was marred by errors
in time pressure). Excluding draws,
Geller's record includes a 4-1 plus
The Psy c h o logy of Prep a r a t i o n
score against Botvinnik and S-3 against
Fischer.
Alas for the Ukrainian Grandmas­
ter, he never managed to get over all
the hurdles to playing a match for the
highest title. One of the toughest of
these barriers was Boris Spassky, who
twice beat him in qualifying matches.
How to beat Bobby Fischer
There has never been a perfect chess
player. Perhaps the very idea is a logi­
cal absurdity: after all, if you adapt
your style to make it harder for your
opponents to beat you, the harder it
becomes for you to win against them.
So whatever you gain in 'armour' and
solidity, the same amount is being lost
in flair and vitality.
In fact, as soon as someone can be
said to have a 'style', you can also be
sure that they have weaknesses.
During the years 1969-1972 Bobby
Fischer was streets ahead of all opposi­
tion. But he also had his weaknesses -
or perhaps we should say "less brilliant
aspects of his game when compared to
other world-class players". Notably he
didn't always shine in obscure, 'ran­
dom' positions. Here's what Geller had
to say about this:
" .. .it was clear to me that the vul­
nerable pOint of the American Grand­
master was in double-edged, 'hanging',
irrational positions. When the play was
of this nature, Fischer often failed to
find a win even in a won position."
(Geller, the Application of Chess Theory).
Geller managed to win twice as
205

Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play
Black against the mature Fischer from
lost positions. In both cases he played a
sharp, counterattacking Sicilian varia­
tion, and in both cases Fischer became
confused at the point of victory.
One of the two games, Fischer­
Geller, Skopje 1967, is given as Game
58 in Fischer's My Sixty Memorable
Games. Here is the other game.
Game 78
RJ.Fischer-E.Gelier
Monte Carlo 1967
Sicilian Defence
1 e4 cs 2 ctJf3 d6 3 d4 cxd4 4 ctJxd4 ctJf6
5 ctJC3 a6 6 i.gs e6 7 f4 �b6!?
They always tell you in books not to
grab poisoned pawns, but Fischer,
Geller, Kasparov, Anand and Topalov
are just some of the idiots who don't
heed this advice!
8 �d2 �xb2
Black is obviously taking risks, but
removing the b2-pawn prevents White
from achieving a smooth attacking de­
velopment with 9 0-0-0. It is therefore
the best way for Geller to disrupt the
logical flow of the game.
9 l:!,bl �a3 10 fS ctJc6 11 fxe6 fxe6 12
ctJxc6 bxc6 13 eS ctJds?!
This is consistent with the Ukrain­
ian Grandmaster's plan to choose the
most risky moves, but 13 ... dxe5 was
objectively safer and better, as later
played by Kasparov and Anand.
14 ctJxdS cxdS 15 i.e2?!
An in-depth investigation of the
Poisoned Pawn is beyond the scope of
206
The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n
tical and strategical mastery without
this book. Suffice to say that 1 5 .td3!?
ever being able to confuse the position.
dxe5 16 0-0 is the modern approach to
The correct move was 20 �c2!, as
the position, which was used by the
played by Tal a couple of months after
young Magnus Carlsen to score a
the present game. Upon 20 ... e4, to meet
crushing victory in 2004.
the threat of invasion by the white
queen on h7, the move 21 Ji.g4! is sud­
denly decisive. The difference with 20
Ji.g4? one move earlier is that Black
can't use his queen in the centre to
hinder the white attack as . . . "iVd3 would
allow White the killer check "iVa4+! .
20 i.g4? Fischer missed this subtlety and so
Despite thinking for more than ends up losing in 25 moves with White.
twenty minutes, Fischer misses the win 20 ...dxc4 21 .txe6
and as a consequence loses the game. At first glance it looks as if White's
Not that the winning line was at all attack is about to succeed, as mate on
easy to find - after the game there was d7 is threatened.
15 ... dxe5 16 0-0 3£.C5+?
an hour long post mortem in the tour­ 21... �d 3!
It is ironic that Geller played this
nament hall involving Geller, Fischer
wild opening line to upset Fischer, but
and other intrigued competitors with­
he himself is the first to lose his nerve.
out the decisive continuation being
He has made a lot of 'crazy' moves and
discovered.
feels that it is time for a couple of ' sane'
The American genius had ex­
developing moves: namely bringing
claimed angrily that "it was a crushing
out the bishop with check, and then
position!" and he was right. But
putting the rook on f8. But normal
whereas Fischer would win almost
moves don't work in crazy positions.
every time with a tiny advantage and a
And so he should play the 'odd' but
clear plan to improve his position, here
strong 16 . . . l:!,a7!, which keeps the c5-
he falters as he has a huge advantage
square free for the black queen to re­
but no strategic signposts to guide him.
turn to the defence. The tempo she
And it was a lack of inspiration in such However, Geller is able to block the
might have gained by checking the
situations that was Fischer's Achilles' d-file and threaten a mate of his own
white king from c5 is the difference
heel. It should be added that only a on f1 . As we discussed above, this
between life and death in such situa­
handful of players were equipped with counterattack by the black queen
tions.
the necessary qualities to take advan­ would have been impossible if White
17 �hl l:!,f8 18 c4!
tage of it, and none of them managed had taken the chance to play 21 �c2. In
Not only attacking d5, but also
to successfully compete with Fischer that case after 21.. .e4 22 Ji.g4 �d3 23
opening up the c2-square to the white
during his peak years. They were al­ "iVa4+ forces mate.
queen.
most always defeated by Fischer's tac- 22 �el 3£.e4!!
18 ... l:!,xfl+ 19 l:!,xfl i.b7
207
Che ss S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
A tremendous move. The bishop
shuts out the white queen's attack on
e5 and clears the way for 23 .. J�tb8, fol­
lowed either by 24 . . . OUb1 with a win­
ning simplification, or 24 ... l:!.b2 with a
lethal counterattack against g2.
23 .tg4 l!b8 24 .td1
White's last hope is a bishop check
on a4. Geller scotches this with a fine
king manoeuvre.
24 ... 'it>d7!
It turns out that the safest place for
the black king is on the third rank.
2 S l1f7+ <;t>e6 0-1
After 26 .l::i.f1 !:tb2 27 i.g4+ 'It>d5 the
black king is delighted on d5, and the
white king is in despair on hI.
How to beat Anatoly Karpov
Once again we see Geller employing all
three facets of power play: he wins the
psychological battle as early as the third
move, the preparation battle at move
nine, and caps his dynamic middlegame
victory with a marvellous queen sacri­
fice. As a fan of the French Defence,
I've always been impressed by Geller's
208
achievement. Just imagine: Black plays
1 . ..e6, and what does Geller do? He
takes the pawn with "iix e6!!, even when
it is still defended by the f7-pawn . . .
Game 79
E.Gelier-A.Karpov
USSR, Moscow 1976
French Defence
1 e4 e6 2 d4 dS 3 ct:JC3 !
Karpov rarely plays the French and
so must have prepared something spe­
cial against his opponent's usual 3 tLld2
move. Therefore Geller decide to get
his surprise in first. This was an astute
decision, as the young World Cham­
pion is distinctly uncomfortable in the
unfamiliar pawn structure.
3 ...1i.b4 4 es 'ikd7 5 tLlf3 b6 6 .td2 iLa6
7 .txa6 tLlxa6 8 0-0 ct:Jb8 9 ct:Je2 1
Clearing the way for the plan of l:td
and c2-c4, when a line of attack is
opened against the c7-pawn.
9 . .te7?
. .
Up until here Karpov has played a
competent, if rather uninspired, de-
fence in the style of Petrosian. But now
he puts the bishop on a square where it
blocks in the knight on g8. Just how is
the poor horse meant to get into the
game, seeing that ... ct:Jh6 can always be
answered by .txh6 breaking up Black's
kingside pawns? Experienced French
players realize that in this type of sce­
nario you either have to go right back
with the bishop to f8, which is risky
here as White is poised for a quick lld
and c2-c4, or else exchange with
9 . . . i.xd2, which looks like the best idea.
Karpov tries to keep his 'good' bishop
without undeveloping it - but he wants
more than the position is willing to
give him. As a result, he will end up
being horribly mangled.
If you have ever wondered how a
player like Morphy would fare in a
modern chess tournament, with no
knowledge of the development of the
game since his own time, then Kar­
pov's play in the present game makes
for a pessimistic forecast. Karpov was
the reigning World Champion, young,
fresh, gifted with a fine grasp of strat­
egy, in short on top of his game. Yet
when he is forced into a pawn struc­
ture that is unfamiliar to him, with no
theoretical knowledge to fill in the gaps
in his understanding, he is completely
at sea. If Morphy faced a modern
player, he would be confronted with
pawn structures and technical riddles
that he couldn't solve over the board.
The American was undoubtedly a gen­
ius in the field of chess. But if he were
playing a modern elite player, his gen­
ius would be overwhelmed by a host of
The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n
genii from later ages: the ideas of
Steinitz, Rubinstein, Capablanca,
Fischer, Kasparov and many others
would be showing his opponent how
to outwit him in the opening and mid­
dlegame.
On the other hand, Morphy had a
fantastic capacity for assimilating the
ideas of players he met and using them
to refine his own understanding of the
game. If Morphy were given a year to
study modern theory he would un­
doubtedly emerge as one of the best
players in the world.
10 l:tc1 bS
Karpov does his best to mute the
power of the c2-c4 breakthrough, but it
can't be prevented forever.
11 ct:Jf4
With ideas of 12 ct:JhS. Black is still
unable to develop his knight, as
1 1 . ..ct:Jh6 runs into 12 tLlhS ct:JfS 13 g4!.
11 ... hS 12 b3 i.a3 13 ':b1 as 14 c4 c6
15 cS!
Geller shows his excellent judg­
ment. It seems paradoxical that he
closes the queenside, but he is about to
give his opponent an ultimatum: if you
2 09
Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
don't open lines for me I'm going to
trap your bishop.
15 ... i.. b4
A World Champion quickly learns
from experience. Six moves earlier
Karpov spumed an exchange on d2,
but now he is desperate for it to hap­
pen.
16 j,C1!
Opportunity only knocks once.
Now 17 a3 SLc3 18 b4 is looming, when
the bishop is encased in a coffin of
white pawns.
16 ... a4
White achieves his aim of opening
lines, as Karpov is obliged to make a
retreat square for his hapless cleric,
even though it costs him a pawn.
17 lbd3 j,a5 18 bxa4 bxa4 19 'it'xa4
'fia7 20 SLg5 i..C7
21 ':xb8+!
Pure Geller. Our hero has won the
positional battle on the queenside, but
he has no intention of pursuing victory
in a mean-spirited way by grasping
tightly to his extra pawn. Instead, he
aims at a direct assault on the enemy
king who has been caught in the centre.
210
2 1.. :iVxb8 2 2 "iVxc6+ '>t>f8 2 3 lbf4 .l:!.a7
Black defends his bishop again so
that his queen is free to challenge her
opposite number. Therefore White has
to act fast or all his advantage will dis­
appear.
24 lbh4! 'it'e8 25 'it'xe6! !
The most brilliant move Geller ever
played. In his games we often see the
subtle undermining of a pawn struc­
ture followed by an imaginative attack,
but here in one move we have a tactical
explosion that uproots a pawn struc­
ture.
It turns out that the only part the
rook on h8 is going to play in the game
is as victim of the marauding white
knights.
2 5 ...fxe6
Or similarly 2S. . .'fixe6 26 lbxe6+
fxe6 27 lbg6+ <;1(e8 28 lbxh8.
26 lbhg6+ 'it'xg6
With a heavy heart Black gives back
the queen at once, as she is removed by
force after 26 ... 'it>f7 27 lbxh8+ 'it>f8 28
lbfg6+.
27 lbxg6+ '>t>e8 28 lbxh8 .l:!.a4
Karpov is a host of pawns to the
bad, but he fights on grimly in the
endgame. Geller has to play carefully
to subdue him, but eventually adds
another name to the list of World
Champions he has beaten.
29 .ud1 0,e7 30 j,xe7 <Ji;xe7 31 0,g6+
'>t>f7 32 lbf4 i..x e5 33 dxe5 .l:!.xf4 34 .uc1
'>t>e8 35 c6 'it>d8 36 c7+ '>t>c8 37 g3 .l:!.a4
38 .l:!.c6 .l:!.xa2 39 .l:!.xe6 g5 40 .l:!.d6 J:Id2 41
e6 '>t>xc7 42 e7 1-0
Steel versus armour
The World Championship match be­
tween Kramnik and Topalov in 2006
pitched a profound strategist of the
Botvinnik school against a very well­
prepared, imaginative player of the
Bronstein mould. We got to see some
fascinating clashes.
With the black pieces, Kramnik
adopted very sound match tactics: he
aimed to develop sensibly and solidly,
keeping on the watch for counter­
chances if his opponent over-pressed,
but content to simplify and draw.
In the following game Topalov
managed to catch his opponent in a
The Psyc h o logy of Prep a ra t i o n
positional trap. Black seemed t o stand
well, but he couldn't improve his posi­
tion or force any simplification. Mean­
while, from a slow beginning Topalov
was able to build up an attack by utiliz­
ing the latent dynamism of his pieces.
This fine feel for the energy con­
cealed in a position is one of the keys to
the success of the Bulgarian Grandmas­
ter. He prepares opening variations
which his opponents are very happy to
go down because their computer pro­
grams tell them that they are doing fine.
Maybe they have attacking chances, or a
lead in development, or more space. But
Topalov has noticed that his position
contains a latent energy that the com­
puter program has failed to grasp, de­
spite its absolute mastery of tactics. The
opponent thinks he is doing well, but he
can't achieve anything definite, and so
the game gradually turns against him.
And the main reason for this is that his
pawns don't contribute enough to the
actions of his pieces.
Game BO
V.Topalov-V.Kramn ik
15th match ga m e,
E l i sta 2006
Slav Defence
1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 lbf3 lbf6 4 e3 i..f5 5
lbc3 e6 6 0,h4 i.. g6 7 .te2 lbbd7 8 0-0
i.d6 9 g3
Here Kramnik made the momen­
tous decision to concede the pawn cen­
tre. He hopes that a well-timed ... e6-eS
will give him compensating piece play.
211
Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
With hindsight we can conclude that
he should hold his ground, say with
9 . . .0-0.
9 ...dxC4? 10 ..ixC4 lbb6 11 �e2 0-0 12
lbxg6 hxg6
White has the two bishops and a
slight space advantage, but the black
position looks very compact. Topalov
utilized his kingside majority at once.
13 e4 e S
Blocking the white advance and
breaking open the d-file. You would
imagine that this would give his oppo­
nent pause for thought, but Topalov
presses on.
14 f4!
It takes a very fine feeling for the
dynamics of a position to realize that
White can live with Black's initiative
down the d-file.
14 ... exd4 1S �xd4 �e7
Saving the bishop from the 16 e5
fork by threatening 16 ... �c5.
16 �g2 .l1.CS 17 �d3 .l::!. a d8 18 iVc2
Black has gained two tempi by har­
assing the white queen. The question is
whether he can make anything out of
this burst of activity. If he can't, then
212
White will be able to exploit his latent
advantage of the two bishops and mo­
bile kingside pawns. Hence Kramnik
realizes he has to act as forcefully as
possible down the d-file. He begins
with an indirect attack on e4 which
wins his knights the d5-square.
18 ... .l1.d4 19 es lbfds
Intending 20 . . .lbe3+ 21 .l1.xe3 ..txe3,
when White's bishop pair has vanished
and the threat of an invasion with
22 ... .l::!. d2 means that Topalov has to
agree to a double exchange of rooks
with 22 .l::!.a d1 .l::!.x d1 23 .l::!.x d1 .l::!.d8 etc.
This massive simplification would take
all the energy out of any advance by
White's kingside pawns.
20 �f3!
An awkward-looking move, but it
does the business. Topalov doesn't
mind having to make a series of defen­
sive moves if they maintain the dy­
namic potential of his set-up.
20...lbxC3
Thwarted in his attempt to simplify,
Kramnik switches to Plan B: he clears
the way for his rooks to strike down
the d-file.
21 bXc3 ..icS 22 .l1.d2 .l::!.d 7 23 .l::!.e 1 .l::!.fd8
Black's pressure on the d-file is
looking serious. Has Topalov lost con­
trol of the position?
24 �d3!
There is something rather ungainly
about the bishop flinging its body in
front of its comrade on d2. But as we
saw with 20 .l::!.f3, the white pieces are
prepared to sacrifice their dignity to
keep the enemy shut out.
24 ...iVe6
Intending 24 . . .lbc4 or perhaps even
the heroic 24 .. .'*,c4!? in some cases.
25 ..iC1!
After all his retreating moves, Topa­
lov is ready to strike with 26 f5! . Then
the advantages he has
hoarded - the bishop pair and mobile
centre pawns - will rip away the black
kingside pawns and leave his king de­
fenceless.
25 ...fS
Kramnik takes the chance afforded
to him by White's last move to block, at
least temporarily, the advance of the
f4-pawn, as 26 exf6? would leave e1
hanging. Still, this is a massive posi-
The Psych ology of Prep a r a t i o n
tional concession, a s the black pawn on
f5 can be undermined both directly
with a well-timed g3-g4, and indirectly
with h4-h5 to remove its pawn support
from g6.
26 �e2
Topalov refuses to be hurried. His
queen move rules out 26 ... lbc4.
26 ...�f8
Fearing White's light-squared
bishop, Kramnik puts his king onto a
dark square.
27 .l::!.d 1
Another patient move. The bishop
on d3 is overprotected so that the white
queen is freed for action.
27 ... iVe7 28 h4!
carefully At long last the Bulgarian Grand­
master begins to utilize his kingside
pawns. The idea is to break through
with l1h1 and M-h5, followed by con­
quering the f5-pawn. Then nothing
would hold back the white rooks and
bishops from their assault on the black
king.
28 ... .l::!.d S 29 "tlVC2
Now that the black queen has
abandoned e6, Topalov is less afraid of
213
C h ess S e crets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play
...lLlc4 ideas and so puts his queen on
her optimum square, where she backs
up the bishop's attack on the f5-pawn.
29 ... lLlc4 30 .l:i.h1
The white attack is about to crash
through with 31 h5, but Kramnik de­
lays the victory celebration by drag­
ging the rook back to the defence of dl.
It should be recalled that this was one
of the rapid tiebreak games played at
the end of the Topalov-Kramnik match,
and under these circumstances you
can't always expect the most precise
moves.
30 ... lLla3 31 �e2 "iYd7 32 .l:i.d1 b5 33 g4!!
White's major pieces are tied down
to the defence of d3, but it turns out
that his pawns are able to stage a
breakthrough anyway.
33 ...fxg4 34 .l:i.g3
Intending 35 e6 'ike7 36 .l:i.xg4, or if
35 . . . "iYd6 36 �xg4!, when 36 ... l:txd3 37
.l:i.gxd3 �xd3 38 l:txd3 .l:i.xd3 39 "iVxg6
threatens both the rook and mate on f7.
34 .. .'iii>e 7 35 f5! gxf5 36 ..ig5+ 'it>e8 37
e6!
All the latent energy that was stored
in the white bishops and kingside
214
pawns is released against the belea­
guered black king.
37 .. :iVd6 38 �xf5 ! .l:i.xd1 39 �g6+ 'it>f8
40 e7+ 'ii'xe7 41 �xe7+ i£.xe7 42 �d3
Giving up the queen won't save
Black, as his king is still at the mercy of
White's light-squared bishop.
42 ... .l:i.a1 43 'iVb2 .l:i.d1 44 'iVe2 l:ta1 45
'iVxg4 .l:i.xa2+ 46 'it>h3 i..f6 47 "iVe6 .l:i.d2
48 ..ig6 .l:i.2d7 49 l:i.f3 b4 50 h5! 1-0
It is fitting that White's one remain­
ing kingside pawn gets to have the last
word. Black is helpless against 51 h6
and then either 52 hxg7+ or 52 h7.
This was a remarkable struggle be­
tween the power of a temporary initia­
tive and a defence that contained latent
dynamism. Why did Kramnik lose? It
was because his pieces on their own
didn't have enough power to break
White's defensive line on the d-file.
They were given no help from their
pawns. In contrast, as soon as Topalov
was able to consolidate against his op­
ponent's threats, his lively kingside
pawns and the bishop pair meant that
he came out trumps.
I
C h a pte r Te n
The Art of Su rprise
A forcing variation i s a (long) sequence
of moves in the opening that involves a
sharp collision between the two armies.
Even in Morphy's day many forcing
variations were well established as part
of theory, though mainly after 1 e4 e5.
A power player enjoys the chal­
lenge of finding new moves either dur­
ing or at the end of a forcing variation.
Needless to say, the expression "all's
new that is forgotten" applies here. The
discovery doesn't necessarily have to
be a good move, but it must set the op­
ponent enough problems that, on the
balance of probability, it will yield a
better result than the usual move.
In some ways a power player re­
minds me of the monster in the film
Forbidden Planet. This fearsome creature
is impossible to destroy as it is being
recreated millisecond by millisecond
by the evil dreams of Dr Morbius and
powered by an underground nuclear
plant of unimaginable dimensions. In
the same way, the power player is rec­
reating his style game by game, always
staying a step ahead of the blows of his
opponents, and has his own secret
'laboratory' where his opening novel­
ties are created and tested.
In his later years Bobby Fischer
came to regard forcing variations as a
blight upon chess, which is why he
wanted to shuffle the pieces at the start
of the game. This dislike of established
opening lines is no modem phenome­
non. As we have seen, after some un­
pleasant experiences in his match
against Morphy, Anderssen decided to
avoid forcing variations with openings
such as 1 e4 d5 and 1 e4 c5 as Black - in
those days the Scandinavian and Sicil­
ian were far less studied - and the ex­
treme 1 a3 as White. The German tacti­
cal genius generally emerged from
these openings with promising posi­
tions, but Morphy was still too good
for him in the middlegame.
215
Chess Secrets: Th e G i a n ts of Po wer Play
Morphy plays a novelty
Here is an example of the opening
preparation that the German master
was keen to avoid.
Game 81
P.Morphy-J.Schulten
New Yo rk 1857
Ruy Lopez
1 e4 es 2 ctJf3 ctJc6 3 i.bs ii.cs 4 c3
ctJge7 5 0-0 o-o?
Black should retreat his bishop with
S ... i.b6, so that 6 d4 cxd4 7 cxd4 can be
answered by 7... dS, keeping a pawn
foothold in the centre.
6 d4 exd4 7 cxd4 ii.b6 8 ds ctJb8 9 d6
cxd6 10 ii.f4!
Morphy himself described his 1 0th
move as U an improvement on that
given in the leading treatises of the
day". According to Sergeant he was
referring to Hanstein-Von der Lasa,
given in Staunton's Handbook, in which
White made the obvious capture on d6.
However, after 1 0 iVxd6 Black can
216
free himself with 1 O. . .ii.c7 1 1 iVd3 dS!,
which also gets rid of the weak pawn
on d7. Morphy's move not only devel­
ops but also keeps his opponent's
pieces bunged up.
10 i.c7?
•••
Opening novelties have always at­
tracted bad replies. Black should play
the freeing move 10 ... dS anyway,
though after 1 1 exdS d6 White has
more advantage than he would have
gained with 10 iVxd6.
11 ctJC3 a6 12 ii.C4 bs 13 ii.b3 i.b7 14
i.xd6 ii.xd6 15 �xd6
Schulten has managed to develop
his bishop from c8, but his knight re­
mains sadly stuck on b8, for if lS . . . ctJc6
16 l:f.ad1 gangs up on the d7-pawn.
ls ... h6 16 l:f.adl ctJc8 17 iVf4 ctJb6 18
ctJe s !
All Black's minor pieces are a long
way from his king, sitting passively on
the b-file. So it is no surprise that the
attack on f7 wins material, no matter
how Black plays, for if 18 ... �e8 or
18 ... iVe7 then 19 ctJg6!.
18 .. :iiVf6 19 �xf6 gxf6 20 ctJg4 'it'g7 21
ctJxf6!
One of the characteristics of Mor­
phy's play is that he doesn't just shut
his opponent's pieces out of the game,
he actively targets them. If now
21.. .'it'xf6 22 l:f.d6+ 'it'g7 23 .l:Ixb6 is hope­
less for Black.
21 •.• ii.c6 22 es as 23 l:f.d3 l:f.h8 24 ctJcds
ctJc4
He should have exchanged off a
couple of pieces on dS. The attempt to
gain counterplay on the queenside
leads to another weak pawn on c4.
25 i.xC4 bxc4 26 l:f.g3+ 'it'f8 27 ctJb6 l:f.a7
28 l:f.dl
In his non-match games, we often
see Morphy looking for a mating attack
long after a modern master would be
content to win slowly and surely with
his extra pawns. The American knew
that, against amateur opponents, this
was the fastest and therefore most effi­
cient way to end the game. Schulten
wasn't suddenly going to start defend­
ing his king like Korchnoi!
28 ... i.bs 29 l:!d4 l:f.C7?
He should try 39 ... 'it'e7.
30 l:f.dg4 1-0
And here we have the proof: Mor-
The A rt of S u rpr ise
phy has saved himself the trouble of a
laborious endgame. Black resigned as
the threat is 31 l:f.g8+ (or even more ef­
ficiently 32 ctJbdS! and 33 l:f.g8+)
31.. . .:xg8+ 32 l:f.xg8+ �e7 33 l:f.e8 mate,
and if 30 . . .'it'e7 31 ctJbdS+ is lethal.
Su rprise outweighs sound ness
Alekhine had been planning his re­
venge on Euwe for two years after los­
ing his world title to him in 1935. Here
is the sixth game from the return
match, in which our hero had a little
surprise waiting for the Dutchman on
move six.
Game 82
A.Alekhine-M.Euwe
6th matchga me,
Netherla nds 1937
Slav Defence
1 d4 ds 2 c4 c6 3 ctJC3 dXc4 4 e4 es 5
i.xc4
Actually Dr Euwe's confusion must
have begun here. Why had he been
allowed to take on d4? He didn't have
to wait long for an answer.
s ... exd4
After S ... iVxd4 6 iVb3 iVd7 7 ii.gS!,
threatening 8 ':dl, we have an attack
reminiscent of Morphy vs Brunswick &
Isouard in Chapter Two.
6 ctJf3 !?
A startling reply. Eighty years (and
eight chapters) earlier, Paul Morphy
had shown the world that he could
give his opponents knight odds, and
217
Ch ess Se crets: Th e G ia n ts of Power Play
Alekhine wants to do the same. . .
6 ... b S ?
A year after this game was played,
analysis by Goncharov showed the cor­
rect path for Black: 6 ... dxc3 7 il..xf7+
We7 8 �3 (the only way to keep up
the attack) 8 ... cxb2! ! (it seems bizarre to
develop White's bishop for him, but in
fact it is being deflected from giving a
powerful check on gS and will be a tar­
get on b2 after Black's next move) 9
..txb2 �6 10 il.. a3+ cS 1 1 ..txg8 llxg8 12
..txcS+? (or 12 i¥xg8 'iVaS+ 13 lLld2 �xa3
with better chances for Black, though
this is the way White should play it)
12 . . .'ihcs 13 0-0 (if 13 'iVxgS 'iVc3+ 14
c,¥;>e2 ..te6 IS 'ilfxh7 ..tc4+ and Black
wins) 13 .. :iVhS!! (another fine move; it
sidesteps 14 .l:!.ac1 and helps to trap the
white queen on h8) 14 "ii'xg8 il..e6 IS
'ins lLlc6 with a clear advantage for
Black as the white queen is shut in.
50 we must conclude that
Alekhine's sacrifice isn't sound. But
then with his clock ticking, how on
earth could Euwe ever have found a
move like 8 ... cxb2! !, which is com­
pletely counter-intuitive? And how
218
could he possibly have seen that a fur­
ther five moves after that his queen
should go to h5?
I guess there was a very small
chance that Euwe might have stumbled
on these moves, so to speak, 'by acci­
dent' . But it was always far more likely
that he would go wrong, as in fact oc­
curred in the game. Euwe looks around
for a move that his opponent might
have analysed less and comes up with
something pretty awful.
7 lLlxbS!
White regains his pawn, as if
7... cxbS 8 ..tdS traps the rook on a8.
That means there is equal material,
with White a long way ahead in devel­
opment and Black saddled with a very
weak pawn on d4.
7 ... ..ta6 8 'i¥b3 !
8 ...'i¥e7
Or 8 ... ..txbS? 9 il..xf7+ 'iit d7 10 lLlxd4!
with a winning attack for White (but
not 10 ..txgS? lIxg8! 1 1 'ilfxg8? J.. b4+
when he loses his queen).
9 o-o! ..txbS 10 ..txbS lLlf6
He still can't play 1 0 ... cxbS, as the
rook perishes after 1 1 'ilfdS.
11 ..tc4 lLlbd7 12 lLlxd4
Euwe is utterly lost and could quite
reasonably throw in the towel here. But
I guess he wants to get to a respectful
number of moves before resigning.
"World Champion loses in 12 moves"
wouldn't be a very nice headline to
read at breakfast the next day, espe­
cially if you had to go out and play
Alekhine again...
12...li!b8 1 3 'iVc2 'ilfcs 14 lLlfS lLles 15
J..f4 lLlhS 16 ..txf7+!
Picking up a second pawn and forc­
ing decisive simplification.
16 ...c,¥;>xf7 17 'ilfxcs �xcS 18 ..txeS J1bS
19 ..td6 ..tb6 20 b4 .l:!.d8 21 .tladl cS 22
bxcS ..txcS 23 kIdS 1-0
As we said above, a novelty doesn't
have to be objectively sound. If
Alekhine hit Euwe with ten different
novelties of this type, I would expect
him to win seven or eight, draw one or
two, and totally mess up and lose the
other one. In other words he would
make a very big plus score by playing
ten interesting and complex, but 'bad'
moves! On the other hand, if he had
Th e A rt of S u rp r ise
repeated 6 ..tc4 against Euwe the next
time he played White, he would have
been lucky to get away with a draw.
Naturally, if a move is objectively good
or at least a decent 'try', it can be re­
peated quite safely, but it won't have
the same effect as when it was played
for the first time. It ceases to be a nov­
elty, but is still a useful addition to our
knowledge of the game.
Alekhine gave a radio interview to
the BBC in 1938 and quotes this game
as evidence that there is always some­
thing new to learn in chess, since Dr
Euwe, a great openings expert, had a
lost position after only six moves. The
recording has been preserved and is
available on internet sites such as You­
Tube. When I first heard Alekhine's
rather reedy voice it reminded me that
his contemporaries described him as a
nervous man, whereas his aggressive
chess style and the colourful path of his
life made me expect to hear someone
more like Marlon Brando in the Godfa­
ther.
Su rprising the opponent with a
bra nd new (old) opening
Dr 5iegbert Tarrasch (1862-1934) had
an excellent grasp of positional chess,
perhaps the best in the world during
his peak years in the early 1 890s, but
was somewhat lacking in tactical abil­
ity and tended to underestimate the
importance of dynamism. Lasker had
taken advantage of these slight defi­
ciencies to defeat Tarrasch in their
World Championship match of 1905.
219
Chess S e c rets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r Pl ay
When the following game was
played, the German master was al­
ready in his 60th year. It is evident that
Alekhine wanted to engage him in a
hard tactical fight, whilst avoiding a
'classical' pawn structure, as Tarrasch
grew up in an age when 1 d4 d5 and 1
e4 e5 were de rigueur. A modem
player might reach for the King's In­
dian, but this defence was little known
in 1922, and even less respected. In­
stead, Alekhine decided to introduce
into top-level chess an idea of the Rus­
sian master Blumenfeld. It is the just
the type of 'modem', counterattacking
opening to upset Tarrasch.
Game 83
S. Tarrasch-A.Alekhine
Bad Pistya n 1922
Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit
1 d4 ttJf6 2 c4 e6 3 ttJf3 C5 4 d5 b5!?
The Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit is
a forerunner of the Benko Gambit: 2 c4
c5 3 d5 bS. A key difference in the
Benko is that, rather than try to seize
the centre with pawns, Black is satis­
fied to fianchetto on g7 and maintain a
solid position while exerting pressure
from the wings; for example, 4 axb5 a6
5 bxa6 g6 6 ttJc3 .1i.xa6 7 ttJf3 .1i.g7 8 g3
d6 etc.
Even in the modern age the Blu­
menfeld has its Grandmaster support­
ers, but probably isn't quite sound. I
suspect Alekhine might have thought
so at the time. But remember we are
playing the man as well as the board;
220
and what does the good Doctor make
of all this?
5 dxe6
Instead of accepting the pawn,
White could have gambited as pawn
himself with 5 il.g5!?, when if 5 . . .bxc4
(5 . . . exd5 6 cxd5 d6 is safer) 6 ttJc3, he is
ready to expand in the centre with 7 e4.
In other words, White's pawns would
be working harder than the black
pawns. In the game the situation is
soon reversed.
5 ...fxe6 6 cxb5 d5
By deflecting the white pawn from
c4, Black has succeeded in building a
broad pawn centre. Morphy would
have been fully conversant with the
idea from playing the King's Gambit,
where White deflects the pawn from e5
with 1 e4 e5 2 f4 exf4, so that after 3
ttJf3 (to rule out 3 . . .�4+) he is ready to
seize the centre with 4 d4.
7 e3?
Alekhine's choice of opening is vin­
dicated . You can imagine that Capab­
lanca would have shrugged his shoul­
ders and then fianchettoed with 7 g3!
without giving it too much thought.
But Tarrasch learnt his chess in an age
when the fianchetto was a rarity so, on
being surprised, his intuition or com­
mon sense wasn't going to tell him to
put the bishop on g2.
Here's what might happen after 7
g3: 7. . . i.d6 8 1l.g2 0-0 9 0-0 ttJbd7 (the
b5-pawn is a nuisance to Black as it
rules out the natural 9 ...ttJc6) 10 ttJbd2.
Should Black try to expand
1O ... e5?, he can be hit by the pawn ram
11 e4! . After 1 1 . . .dxe4? 12 ttJg5 White
will regain his pawn on e4 having
smashed up the black centre. If instead
1 1 . . .d4 the black centre has congealed
on the dark squares, losing all its ex­
pansive energy and leaving massive
light square holes. So rather
1O ... e5? Black should continue to de­
velop with 1O ... 1l.b7, when the game
might continue 11 b3 "t!Ve7 12 il.b2. Now
12 . . . e5 still meets with 13 e4!, while an
attempt to attack with the pieces allows
White to advance his own centre
pawns: 12 ... ttJg4 13 h3 ttJge5 14 ttJxe5
ttJxe5 15 £4 ttJf7 16 e4! and White's
pawns had initiative in the game
P.Nikolic-F.Izeta Txabarri, Oviedo
(rapid) 1993.
Seeing these variations, which flow
naturally out of the position after 7 g3,
it is easy to understand why the Blu­
menfeld was superseded by the Benko
Gambit. In the latter opening Black also
gambits a pawn with ...b7-bS to disrupt
the white centre, but he doesn't then
expose his centre pawns to attack.
If you look at the variations given
above and compare them with what
happens in the Tarrasch-Alekhine
The A rt of S u rpr ise
game, you will learn virtually all you
need to know about the dynamic use of
pawns in chess. As we saw in Chapter
Six, a game is often decided by the dif­
ference in energy between a working
pawn structure and an inert one.
7 ... Ji.d6 8 ttJc3 0-0 9 i.e2 ii.b7 10 b3
ttJbd7 11 i.b2 iVe7 12 0-0
with
than
The bishop on e2 is on a passive
square where it can't support an e3-e4
counterattack in the centre. There is
also a serious defensive drawback to
White's avoidance of a fianchetto: he is
deprived of the g2-g3 pawn move
which would block the action of the
black bishop on d6 against the h2-
square, and shield the g2-square
against a future attack by the black
queen. Naturally, without the fi­
anchetto the move g2-g3 would
weaken too many of the light squares
around the white king.
12 ... .l:tad8 13 iVC2 e5 14 l:tfe1?
For better or worse White must
make a stand in the centre with 14 e4;
for example, 14 ... d4 15 .ic4+ '.t>h8 16
ttJdS creating some counterplay. Once
he allows Alekhine's next move the
221
Ch ess Se crets: The G i a n ts of P o w e r P l ay
black centre is untouchable, and all
hope is gone.
14... e4
The fourth World Champion opens
the diagonal for his bishop, clears the
e5-square for his knight, and drives the
white horse away from f3, after which
the f2- and h2-squares are open to at­
tack.
14 ... e4 15 liJd 2 liJe5 16 liJd1 liJfg4 17
i.xg4 liJxg4 18 liJf1
Tarrasch plays according to
Steinitz' s defensive model, which re­
quires the knights to be placed where
they can't easily be assailed by enemy
pieces. He succeeds in covering the f2-
and h2-squares, but the g2-square re­
mains vulnerable. If only White had
fianchettoed!
18 .. .'ii'g 5 !
Alekhine knows that you should
always attack the weakest point in the
enemy camp.
19 h3 liJh6 20 �h1 liJf5
An excellent redeployment of the
knight. It both supports a pawn ad­
vance in the centre and threatens
21.. .liJh4.
222
The A rt of S u rp rise
21 liJh2 29 b6 opponents had ever dared play 7. . . e4
So that 21 .. .liJh4 can be met by 22 If 29 liJf1 i..e 6!, intending 30 . . . i.xh3! when he was White. The usual reply is
l:.g1 without weakening his pawn 31 gxh3 �g1 mate, is entirely hopeless 8 'iVe2, but it suddenly struck Bron­
front. On the other hand, White's con­ for White. stein: had Morphy intended 8 dxe4,
trol of the g3-square is lessened which 29 ... liJg3+ 30 Wg1 axb6 31 'ii'xb6 d2 3 2 giving up a piece for a mobile pawn
allows Black to engineer a knight sacri­ 1:l:f1 liJxf1 centre?
fice there. Compare the situation here with Bronstein was due to play the Nor­
21...d4! that at move 25. Only now does wegian Master Rojahn at the 1956
Alekhine take the exchange, having in Olympiad being held in Moscow, and
the meantime driven the white queen decided to test 8 dxe4 against him. But
further from the defence and played first of all, in his own words, "1 got
useful attacking moves such as ... i.d5 permission from my team colleagues".
and . . . h7-h5. I would like you to try and imagine
33 liJxf1 i.e6 34 �h1 i.xh3! Kasparov, Anand or Topalov having to
Beginning the final onslaught. get permission from their Olympiad
35 gxh3 Itf3 36 liJg3 h4 team-mates to play a sacrifice. I guess
Now we see the value of 28 ... h5. If this shows how carefully a Soviet
the knight runs away, his king is mated player in the 1950s had to guard his
on the h-file. reputation against any accusation that
37 i..f 6!? li'xf6 38 liJxe4 .uxh3+ 0-1 he wasn't taking seriously the task of
Alekhine's pawns are rushing After 39 �g1 iLh2+ White loses his representing his country.
through the centre, taking away vital queen, while after 39 �g2 "iVf3+ he In any case, Bronstein got permis­
squares from the white pieces. Mean­ loses his king. sion and this is the result:
while White has a 3-1 pawn majority 8... lz:Jxc4 9 "ikd4 liJb6?
on the two outer files of the queenside In the footsteps of Morphy An obvious retreat, but 9 . . . lZ:Jd6!
that is entirely irrelevant. looks better, despite the fact that it
22 .Yl.c1 seems to invite a pawn fork. However,
Taking on d4 would allow the White has no wish to see his centre dis­
bishop on b7 to join in the attack after
Game 84
solve away after 10 e5? liJf5, when both
. . . e4-e3 .
D.Bronstein-E.Rojahn
his queen and d5 are hanging.
Moscow Olym piad 1956
22 ... d3 23 "iVC4+ �h8 24 iLb2 liJg3+! 25 For his sacrifice to work, Bronstein
Two Knights ' Defence
Wg1 needs to broaden and maintain his
If 25 fxg3 'i'xg3 26 lZ:Jfl l:.xfl + and pawns as a solid wedge in the centre
27 .. :+i'h2 mate. 1 e4 e5 2 liJf3 lZ:Jc6 3 i.C4 liJf6 4 liJg5 d5 until he has brought up all his pieces to
25 ... .Yl.d5! 5 exd5 liJa 5 6 d3 h6 7 lZ:Jf3 e4 8 dxe4!? support them. This is something he
Black could cash in at once with Bronstein relates that he had always can't do after 9 . . . liJd6, as the natural
25 ... d2 winning the exchange, but wondered how Morphy intended to reply 10 liJc3 robs him of the chance to
Alekhine prefers to keep up his initia­ answer 7 ... e4. The American had play c2-c4. Hence, by making a con­
tive. He is right, of course! played the black side of this variation certed attack on e4, Rojahn could have
26 'iVa4 liJe2+ 27 �h1 l:.f7 28 "it'a6 h5! on several occasions, but none of his denied his opponent the time he
223
Chess Secrets: Th e Gia n ts oj P o w e r Play The A rt oj S u rp rise

needed to make his idea work.
On the other hand, it's no surprise
the Norwegian played the 'natural'
move 9 .. .'�Jb6:
he thought that Bronstein
had simply blundered a piece with 8 dxe4.
This gave our hero a huge psychologi­
cal advantage, as Rojahn wasn't look­
ing for nuances like 9 . .liJd6; he was
. This is very smooth play: the bishop
expecting to win the game with some
straightforward developing moves.
10 e4!
Bronstein takes the chance to in­
crease the size and power of his centre.
10 ...eS?
Not a good decision, as Black will
no longer have any means to challenge
the white centre with his pawns. In­
stead, 1O ... c6 has been recommended.
11 �d3
nected passed pawns to the opponent.
11 ... iLg4 12 liJbd2 i..e 7 13 0-0 O-O?
As his bishop is going to end up en­
tombed on h7, Black should have taken
the chance to exchange it off with
1 3 . . . iLxf3.
14 liJes iLhS 15 b31 liJbd7 16 .ltb2
gets to b2 just in time to support the
knight.
16 ... liJxes 17 iLxes liJd7 is .lte3 iLf6 19
�ae1 iLxe3 20 'i¥xe3
The exchange of a couple of pieces
hasn't helped Black, as there are now
fewer defenders who can be called
upon to give up their lives to break the
power of the white pawns. As we saw
above, the piece Rojahn really needed
to get rid of is still sitting on h5.
20 .. :�f6 21 eS 'ii'fs 22 f4
placed, with no gaps in their pawn cen­
tre, whereas the black pieces have no­
where to settle and are being continu­
ally harassed.
2s .. :iVg6 26 fS �b6 27 �g3 f6
Rojahn is desperate. He gains the
e5-square for his knight, but at the cost
of removing any restraint on the white
centre pawns.
2S e6 liJes 29 h4!
Yet more pawns join in the charge.
29 ... 'it'hS 30 gs llbeS 31 'it'h1 �dS 32 g6
iLxg6 33 fxg6 bS 34 d6 "ii' b6 35 d7
liJxd 7 36 exd7 lledS 37 liJxf6 'iWe6+ 3S
�g2 1-0
The advance of White's pawns re­
minds me of a Roman legion using
their shields not just as defensive
weapons, but as bludgeons to smash
their way through the enemy lines.
following game against Timman illus­
trates.
But first of all, take a quick look at
this game from the most famous match
of all time:
Game 85
R.Fischer-B.Spassky
6th matchga me,
Reykjavi k 1972
Queen 's Gambit
1 e4 e6 2 liJf3 dS 3 d4 liJf6 4 liJe3 i..e7 5
i.gs 0-0 6 e3 h6 7 iLh4 b6 S exds liJxds
9 i.xe7 "iWxe7 10 liJxds exds 11 11e1
.lte6 12 'i'a4 eS 13 'iWa3 .l:i.eS 14 .ltbS a6
15 dxes bxes 16 0-0 �a7 17 .te2 liJd7
is liJd4 'ii'fS 19 tbxe6 fxe6 20 e4 d4 21
f4 'fIe7 22 eS l:bS 23 iLe4 c;t>hS 24 'fIh3
liJfS 25 b3 a s

A novelty that tra nsforms a

positional squeeze into a power
play fight

It might seem surpnsmg that Geller,

Now Bronstein is able to develop all
his pieces and then steam-roller
through the centre. Rojahn still has his
extra knight, but his pieces aren't going
to get any help from their pawns.
Black's queenside pawns remain pas­
sive until the end of the game, while
the ones on the kingside only manage
the move 27 .. .£6, which concedes con-
White's pawns are now magnifi­
cent.
22 ... iLg6 23 liJe4 l:!.abS 24 �f3 i.. h 7 25
g4!
Widening the pawn front even fur­
ther. The relentless pressure exerted on
the black pieces is very Morphy-like.
The white pieces are all comfortably
who was always looking for active play
with the black pieces, should be a great
fan of the 'solid' Queen's Gambit. In
fact it suited his style very well. At the
start of the game he was always look­
ing for ways of softening up the oppo­
nent's pawn structure, and he liked to
do this from a sound base. Further­ 2 6 f S exfs 27 l:txfS liJh7 2S 11d1 'fIdS 29
more, Geller loved to utilize a pawn as 'fIg3 .l::i.e 7 30 h4 l:!.bb7 31 e6 llbe7 32
a battering ram if he felt his opponent's 'fIes 'fIeS 3 3 a4 'i¥dS 34 111f2 'fIeS 35
had transgressed the 'laws' of good �2f3 �d8 36 iLd3 'ti'eS 37 'iVe4 liJf6 3S
strategy. The Queen's Gambit affords llxf6 gxf6 39 ILxf6 'it'gS 40 i..e4 'ii;;> hS 41
Black the chance to use his so-called 'fIf4 1-0
'hanging pawns' in this fashion, as his Black was absolutely crushed in

224 225
C h e s s Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play
strict positional style. His pawns on cS
and d4 became dead wood in the cen­
tre, with no expansive energy at all.
Meanwhile Fischer could use his mo­
bile kingside pawns to smash through
the black position with 26 fS.
Fischer was playing the best chess
ever seen on planet earth between 1970
and 1972, but Spassky didn't put up
much resistance in the game above. He
just let all the energy drain away from
the black centre.
Now let's see how, in the same
opening variation Geller not only
maintains the dynamism of Black's set­
up, but even uses its energy to smash
up the white position.
All three facets of power play are
revealed. Firstly, there is preparation -
Geller has found an excellent im­
provement in the opening for Black.
Secondly, there is psychology. The
young Timman has been dazzled by
Fischer's effortless achievement in the
game above, and can't believe that the
American's opening can possibly con­
tain any flaws. And thirdly, there is
dynamism. The 'solid' Queen's Gambit
reveals a wonderful latent energy.
Game 86
J.Timma n-E.Gelier
H i lversu m 1973
Queen 's Gambit
1 d4 d5 2 e4 e6 3 tDe3 iLe7 4 tDf3 tDf6 5
�g5 0-0 6 e3 h6 7 ..th4 b6 8 exds tDxd5
9 ..txe7 �xe7 10 tDxd5 exds 11 Ue1
�e6 12 'iNa4 e5 13 'iNa3 Me8 14 iLbS
226
So far, so Fischer. After all, what
reason could the Dutchman possibly
have for not following in the great
man's footsteps? (Hindsight is more
powerful than genius, and so modern
chess prefers 14 ..te2 here.)
14 ... 'iNb71
This is Geller's improvement. There
is a positional threat of lS ... c4, cutting
off the retreat of White's bishop, after
which it can be used as a target to mo­
bilize the black queenside pawns with
16 . . . a6 17 �a4 bS.
15 dxe5 bxe5 16 .l:.xe5 .l:i.xe5 17 'ii'xe5
tDa6
The point of the pawn sacrifice.
White's queen can't stay defending the
bishop, and after the capture on a6, his
king finds himself trapped in the cen­
tre.
18 ..txa6 'iVxa6 19 'iVa3
Getting his queen out of the way of
19 ... .l:tc8 with gain of time.
19 .:iie4 20 'iitd 2
.
Now after the obvious 20 .. J:Ic8
White would be able to consolidate
with 21 ctJd4, shutting the black queen
out of the c2-square. Timman would
have a completely winning position: an
extra pawn, a grip on the dark squares
and a safe king. We might say that all
the energy would have drained from
the black position.
It is instructive to see how Geller
maintains his essential dynamism.
20.. :iVg4! 21 �gl d4!
The second pawn sacrifice prevents
any ctJd4 shut out.
22 ctJxd4 �h4!
An attack on the enemy pawn struc­
ture is a key feature of Geller's style. It
persuades his opponent to give up the
f2-pawn, as 23 .l:i.fl allows 23 ... ..tc4,
while after 23 'iite1 both 23 .. :iVxh2 or
23 . . . .l:i.c8 leave White wondering how
he is going to extricate his king from
the centre.
23 l::te 1 'iixf2+ 24 .l:i.e2 'iYf1
Now the black bishop threatens to
strike in two directions: 25 ... �c4 or
2S ... �g4. It therefore has to be elimi­
nated, even though the disappearance
of White's knight leaves his king terri­
bly exposed.
25 ctJxe6 fxe6 26 'iVd6 Wh8 27 e4 ne8
28 �e3 11f8 29 z:td2 es! 30 �xes
T h e A rt of S u rp rise
A computer might tell you that this
is the losing blunder, but in reality it
has long been a hopeless struggle for
White. It is scarcely possible to defend
with 100% accuracy when your king is
floating around in the centre. If every
move you have to make is an 'only'
move, sooner or later there will be a
fatal slip. For this reason it is easier to
attack than to defend.
30...'iVe1+ 3 1 !te2 'iVg1+ 32 �d3 'ud8+
33 �e3 'tid1 34 'iVb5 �d4+ 3 5 �e2
But now what? Remember that the
pieces acting on their own can't over­
whelm a defence. At some point the
help of a pawn is always required!
35 ... a6!
Now the white queen can't stay de­
fending both her rook and the cS­
square.
36 'iVxa6 'iNe5+ 0-1
It is mate upon 37 Wb1 !!d1 or 37
'iitb3 lIb8+ 38 'iita4 'iib4.
Preparation in the 21st century
Nowadays players such as Kramnik
and Aronian frequently, but by no
22 7
C h e s s S e c rets: Th e G i a n ts of P o w e r Play
means always, try to avoid forcing
variations. They are satisfied with a
restrained development of their pieces
and chances to outmanoeuvre their
opponent. There is nothing wrong with
this approach, which often leads to
beautiful, creative chess.
For a power player, the necessity of
finding new, interesting moves in the
opening is more acute than ever. In an
age of instant information, Topalov's
rivals know about a new opening idea
he has concocted within hours of him
revealing it on the board. Indeed, they
may start preparing against it the very
second he moves a piece or pawn to a
new square, if they happen to be fol­
lowing the game live on an internet
transmission!
For this reason the novelty may
only be good for one game, but a win
in a world-class tournament is so ex­
traordinarily difficult to achieve that
Topalov is satisfied if he gets one pre­
cious point in return for his analytical
labours.
In the following game the Bulgarian
Grandmaster applies the three facets of
power play: preparation, psychology
and dynamism. He was facing his
long-time trainer and fellow Bulgarian
Ivan Cheparinov, a very strong and
imaginative player in his own right. As
an 'insider' Cheparinov not only knew
all Topalov's secret opening ideas, he
had even suggested a lot of them in the
first place! It's interesting to see how
our hero overcame this awkward situa­
tion.
228
Game 8 7
V.Topa lov-I.Chepa rinov
Sofia 2008
Grunfeld Defence
1 d4 lbf6 2 c4 g6 3 lbC3 dS 4 cxds lbxdS
S �d 2
The first sign that Topalov i s eager
to avoid a theoretical battle against his
young trainer.
s ... lbb6 6 lbf3 i.g7 7 e3
Since the black knight has retired to
b6, White might activate his bishop
with 7 i.f4 or 7 .l:tc1 0-0 8 ..ItgS. Instead,
he shuts it in with a move that seems
too quiet to have attracted much atten­
tion from the theorists - which is ex­
actly why Topalov played it.
7 .•• 0-0 8 1Ic1
It should be recalled that, although
a brilliant analyst, Cheparinov was
only 21 years old. He hadn't played
enough games to fully develop his po­
sitional awareness, as becomes clear
with his next move.
8 lb8d7?
•••
Expecting to equalize after 9 JLe2 eS,
but he meets with an unpleasant sur­
prise. As will be seen, the knight is
misplaced on d7. Correct was 8 . . . lbc6,
when after 9 .ltbS i.d7 Black can pre­
pare . . . e7-eS with reasonable play.
Topalov's opening strategy has
worked perfectly. If he had played
down a long theoretical line, his oppo­
nent would have been his equal. By
diverging at an early point from
mainline theory, he gave him the
chance to make a strategical mistake.
9 a4!
Threatening to win a piece with 10
as and so provoking Black's reply. Of
course, if Black had played 8 ... lbc6 this
move would be pointless.
9 ... aS
This may not appear to be a major
concession but, as we shall see, Topa­
lov plans to target both the as-pawn
itself and the knight on b6. The fact
that Black can no longer play . . . a7-a6 to
cover the b5-square is also significant.
10 e4!
White expands in the centre before
his opponent has time to play ... e7-e5,
Th e A r t of S u rp r i s e
so that h e can establish a pawn on dS.
10... eS
Cheparinov has to challenge the
white centre, and the other pawn stab
with 10 ... c5 leaves a very ugly hole on
bS after 1 1 dS.
11 dS c6
The knight on b6 10ses its remaining
pawn support, but he had to deal with
the threat of 12 lbbS, pocketing the c7-
pawn.
12 JLg S!
The next step in White's plan is to
put the bishop on e3 to apply direct
pressure on the beleaguered black
knight. But first of all Topalov pro­
vokes his opponent into either weaken­
ing his kingside pawns with 12 . . . f6 or
else misplacing his bishop on f6.
12 ... .tf6 13 i.e3 �e7
The need to defend b6 ties down the
knight on d7, which blocks in the
bishop on c8, who in tum shuts in the
rook on a8. With so many black pieces
paralysed on the queenside, Topalov
decides to fix the central situation and
then start an attack on the kingside.
14 d6
229
C h e s s Secrets: Th e Gi a n ts of P o w e r Play
Killing off any hopes that Chepari­
nov might have entertained of activat­
ing his game with 14 . . . cxd5 or 14 .. :ikh4.
Normally this advance would be risky,
as the pawn is cut off from its support,
but here the black pieces are too tied
up to trouble it.
14 ..Ji'e6 15 b3!
And now he rules out any chance
that Black might get rid of his bad
knight with 15 ... ttJc4.
15 ... .tg7 16 h4!
His opponent has two knights, a
rook and bishop hemmed in on the
other wing, so an attack on the extreme
edge of the kingside is eminently logi­
cal.
16 ...f5
Normally this is a good counterat­
tacking move, but here it leads to a
speedy collapse. On the other hand, he
couldn't just wait for the white attack
to steam-roller him.
17 ttJg5 'i*'f6 18 b41
Highly flexible thinking. Topalov
switches his attention back to the
queenside and threatens 1 9 bxa5 Ilxa5
20 �3+, winning a piece.
230
18.. .f4
18 ... axb4 19 'iWb3+ �h8 20 'i*'xb4 c5
21 �S! is also horrid for Black.
19 .txb6 ttJxb6 20 bxa5 ttJd7
Saving the knight from 21 �3+.
21 a6!
Not wanting to give Black any
counterplay after 21 .tc4+ '>ith8 22 ttJe6
lIxa5! 23 ttJxf8 .txf8 etc. Cheparinov's
reply avoids losing the exchange, but
he ends up a sound passed pawn down
and still facing an attack.
21 ... <it>h8 22 ttJbl!
The knight retreat to b 1 boosts the
energy of the white position - a para­
dox which would have delighted Bron­
stein.
22 ... .th6 23 ttJf3 bxa6 24 �xe6 .tb7 25
Ite7 .txe4 26 l:txd7 "iWf5
Black hits both bl and d7. It appears
that Cheparinov might be getting some
counterplay, but Topalov quickly
crushes the 'revolt'.
27 'U.e7 .ixbl 28 ttJg5! i..g7
After 26 ... �xg5 27 hxgS the rook on
hI attacks h7 with lethal effect.
29 .te4 i.. c2 30 'i'd 5 !
A powerful centralization. The
white queen's first move of the game
not only helps the white pieces gang
up on £7, but also introduces combina­
tional motifs against a8 and eS.
30 ... h6 3 1 lIf7!
If you are wondering why Black is
so outgunned in the melee, take a look
at how hard White's rook is working
on the seventh rank. His rook on hI
also played an important role by sup­
porting 28 ttJgS!. In contrast, the black
rooks only made half of one move in
the whole game, when Black castled.
3 1.. J!Ve8
If 31..JIxf7 32 ttJxf7+ and a8 is hang­
ing.
32 l:txg7! 1-0
Black is mated after 32 ... �xg7 33
�xeS+ l:H6 34 'iVe7+ etc.
A wonderful power play game. To­
palov handled all three elements of
psychology, preparation and dyna­
mism with great skill.
A clash of chess styles
A good place to end our study of
power play is with a sharp battle be-
The A rt of S u rp r ise
tween Topalov and one of the greatest
strategists of his era. The Bulgarian
Grandmaster managed to impose a
dynamic struggle on his opponent with
a remarkable piece sacrifice.
Game 88
V.Topalov-V.Kramnik
Wij k aan Zee 2008
Semi-Slav Defence
1 d4 d5 2 e4 e6 3 ttJf3 ttJf6 4 lbe3 e6 5
i..g 5 h6 6 .th4 dxe4 7 e4 g5 8 i.g3 b5 9
�e2 .tb7 10 0-0 lbbd7 11 ttJe5 �g7 12
ttJxf7! !
A massive shock for Kramnik. It
wouldn't surprise me if the Russian
Grandmaster had already started to
write the 'normal' move 12 lbxd7 on
his score sheet when Topalov picked up
his knight. In that case 12 ... lbxd7 13
i.. d 6 1eads to a double-edged but 'well­
rehearsed' variation which Kramnik
had played with both White and Black.
Instead, Topalov's knight landed on
f7 and he removed the black pawn
from the board - the Bulgarian had
231
C h e s s Secrets: The G i a n ts of Po we r Play The A r t of S u rp rise

caught his long-term rival in a pre­
pared variation!
12 ...'it>xf7 13 e5 ttJd5 14 ttJe4
Threatening a knight fork on d6.
The last two moves have been forced
for Black, but now he has to make an
important decision: should the king go
to e7 or gB?
because they become alarmed a t the
slightest sign of danger to his majesty's
health.
Kramnik has come through the first
'test', but I wonder how much time on
the clock and mental energy this cost?
15 ttJd6 'ii'b6
The queen defends the bishop,
clears the way for the rook on aB to
come to fB to bolster the defence, and
frees the retreat square on dB for her
king.
riously investigating the sacrifice on £7. on e6, which led to a hard fight and
Until, that is, Topalov and his team set eventual draw after 17 iLxh5 l:'1afB 1B
to work. iVg4 iLh6 etc.
So what did they notice about the 17 �C2
position that had been missed by other
theorists? Crucially, that the sacrifice
12 ttJxf7 has not only displaced the
black king, it has also removed the
support of the e6-pawn. It is a curious
feature that, despite Black having so
many pieces in the centre, the e6-
square is hard to defend . Thus the king
on e7 gets in the way of ... :eB, the
knight on d7 blocks ... iLcB, and the en­
emy knight on d6 stops the queen de­
fending along the third rank after ... c6-
c5. The pawn can be bolstered with 17 'iNxd4?
...

14 ...'it>e7!
The black king stays in the centre,
as he hopes in time to be able to slip
away to the queenside, where he will
find shelter behind the large clump of
black pawns. Besides, after 14 .. .'iitgB the
rook on hB is shut in. White would be
able to prepare an f2-f4 breakthrough
in the style of the Morphy knight-odds
games we have seen in Chapter Two.
One of the hardest calls to make in
chess is how much the safety of the
king should be jeopardized in order to
achieve a strategic aim, such as the win
of a pawn or a more fluid develop­
ment. Very strong players sometimes
suffer a sharp defeat because they take
slightly too great a risk with their king
- whereas inexperienced players miss
opportunities to improve their game
This position has arisen as a natural
consequence of the sacrifice on move
12. We should therefore pause and
consider what Topalov has gained for
his piece. A quick look tells us that he
has won time to get his knight to d6
and the black king is stuck in the cen­
tre. However, this hardly seems
enough compensation. In contrast to a
Morphy knight-odds game, all the
black pieces are engaged, or ready to
be engaged, in the fight. Furthermore,
the centre is still blocked, making it
difficult for the white pieces to get at
the king. It is considerations of this
kind which prevented players ever se-
... ttJc7, but Black doesn't want to retreat
his well-placed knight; while the alter­
native ...ttJfB has the drawback that it
rules out the move .. J::taf8 and so
makes a white breakthrough with f2-f4
all the stronger.
Of course, a weakness is only a
weakness if it can be attacked, and
here, too, 12 ttJx£7 shows its value. The
removal of the f7-pawn has opened the
g6-square for the white queen, where
she can join forces with her light­
squared bishop on g4 to assail the e6-
point.
Therefore Topalov has a clear plan
to improve the coordination of his
pieces - namely an assault on e6 - and
enough energy to compensate for the
missing knight.
16 iLg4! l:'1af8
In a later game against Shirov, the
forearmed Karjakin played 16 ... h5!?,
deflecting the bishop from the attack
Kramnik aims to disrupt White's
build-up by hitting the bishop on g4.
He also undermines the defence of e5,
and should that pawn be captured as
well, the white knight will lose its cen­
tre base. Unfortunately for him, the fact
that he has left b7 undefended means
that, after White's reply, he is going to
drop both of his bishops.
The critical move was 17 .. .lIhgB!,
defending g7. If then 1B "ii'g6, keeping
to his original plan, after 1B . . .ttJc7 the
threat of a discovered attack by
19 ... iLxe5 means that the white queen
has to run away. Thereafter White
managed to outwit his opponent with
19 'ilt'e4 .taB 20 f4 in V.Kiselev­
B.Gundavaa, Moscow 200B. Another
sharp line begins IB l:'1ad1 c5!?
But Kramnik couldn't investigate all
this with a ticking clock! The psycho­
logical pressure and the sheer complex­
ity of the problems he faced made it

232 233
Chess Sec rets: Th e G i a n ts of Pow er Play

virtually impossible for the former 2 8. . .ttJf4 29 .txf4 Ilxf4 30 ltJb5+! cxb5 31
World Champion to find a good de­ cxb5+ �d8 32 lHd I! and Black has no

fence over the board. Topalov would
have been bitterly disappointed if he
had failed to win after 'using up' his
novelty.
18 'ii'g6!
The main threat is 19 'ii'xe6+.
18 ... 'ii'xg4 19 �xg7+ �d8 20 ttJxb7+
�c8 2 1 a4!
I
good way to defend d7, as 32 .. J�h7
loses at once to 33 'it'g8+.
27 ... IIxf7 28 :xc6+ 'iitb8 29 ltJxf7 l:!.e8
I n d e x of O p e n i n g s
According to Scherbakov 29 . . .ltJb6!
30 ltJxh8 ltJxd5 would give Black good
chances to survive, due to the strength
of the passed pawn.
30 ltJd6 :h8 31 11c4 'iWe2 32 dxe6 ltJb6
3 3 l:tb4 'iita 8

Figures refer to page numbers.

Alekhine Defence 137, 145

Blumenfeld Counter-Gambit 220
Catalan Opening 5, 1 18, 143
Centre-Counter Defence 13, 140
Du tch Defence 80, 103, 121, 194
English Opening 49, 124, 148, 1 75
If now 21.. .c�xb7 22 'ii'x d7+ wins. So
Evans' Gambit 58, 169
Topalov has got all his material back Now Topalov is able to exchange
Four Knights Opening 1 13
bar one pawn, which means he has a his front e-pawn for Black's passed
French Defence 1 1, 45, 63, 208
strong attack on the black king almost pawn. Thereafter his beautiful piece
Griinfeld Defence 128, 158, 228
'for free'. coordination, safe king and remaining
King's Gambit 52, 61
21 ...b4 22 l:tacl c3 23 bxc3 b3 passed pawn all add up to a win.
King's Indian Defence 69, 1 78, 180, 184
Kramnik strives to keep lines closed 34 e7 ltJdS 3S nxb3 ltJxe7 36 Itfbl ltJdS
Nimzo-Indian Defence 23, 84, 135, 154, 203
on the queenside and also hopes for 37 h3 hS 38 ltJf7 :c8 3 9 e6 a6 40 ltJxgs
Odds Game 36, 37, 38
counterplay with his passed pawn. h4 41 .td6 :g8 42 lt3b2 �d3 43 e7 ltJf6
Old Indian Defence 31
24 c4 1Ug8 2S ttJd6+ <j;C7 26 'ii'f7 lIf8 27 44 .tes ltJd7 4s ltJe6 1-0
Petroff Defence 97
cxd S?
Philidor Defence 40, 83, 193, 196
In the heat of battle it's difficult for The battle between power play and
Pirc Defence 129
even the strongest players to keep a positional chess continues into the fu­
Queen's Gambit 42, 76, 91, 1 07, 1 1 1, 164, 192, 201, 225, 226
cool head. After 27 h3! the queen ex­ ture, but it's time to say goodbye to the
Queen's Indian Defence 71, 131
change 27 . Jhf7 28 hxg4 leaves Black's
. reader. Let me wish you the best of
Reti Opening 26
knight and rook on f7 both hanging, luck and enjoyment of your chess,
Ruy Lopez 16, 57, 88, 93, 95, 1 1 0, 1 1 6, 126, 155, 161, 1 73, 216
while if 27 .. :�!ie2 28 'ii'xe6 the white at­ whatever your preferred manner of
Semi-Slav Defence 231
tack in soon decisive; for example, play!

234 235
C h e s s Secrets: The G ia n ts of Po wer Play

Sicilian Defence 1 7, 20, 47, 85, 100, 120, 151, 166, 187, 206
Sla v Defence 65, 2 1 1, 217

I
Two Knights' Defence 223
Vienna Game 56
I n d ex of P l aye rs

Figures refer to page numbers. Bold type indicates that a player had the black pieces.

Alekhine 11, 20, 26, 31, 42, 76, 91, 103, 1 07, 1 1 0, 128, 145, 164,
1 75, 201, 217, 220
Amateur 58
Anderssen 13, 116, 140
Aronian 131
Barcza 124
Barnes 83, 1 73
Bird 169
Bogoljubow 103
Book 42
Botvinnik 80, 203
Bronstein 16, 52, 80, 84, 95, 121, 124, 135, 137, 148, 154, 155, 178,
180, 203, 223
Brunswick & Isouard 40
Capablanca 201
Carlsen 5
Cheparinov 228
Delekta 56
Dreev 45
Euwe 1 28, 217
Fischer 206, 225
Geller 23, 45, 47, 56, 63, 69, 84, 88, 93, 118, 126, 129, 158, 1 61,
184, 206, 208, 226

236 23 7
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In dex of Play e rs
C h e s s Secrets : The Gia n ts of Po wer Play

Germek 184 Schulten 61, 216

Gligoric 93, 95 Selezniev 164

Harrwitz 192, 193, 194, 196 Smyslov 135, 158

Ivanchuk 166 Spassky 225

Junge 110 Spiridonov 118

Kamsky 65, 1 00 Stahlberg 121

Karjakin 187 Stean 47

Karpov 208 Strikovic 120

Keres 23, 155 Tal 52

Korchnoi 16, 161 Tarrasch 220

Kotov 88 Timman 226

Topalov 1 7, 49, 57, 65, 71, 97, 100, 1 1 1, 120, 131, 143, 151, 166,
Kramnik 5, 17, 211, 2 3 1
187, 2 1 1, 228, 231
Lasker 91
Lichtenhein 38 Velimirovic 69

Ljubojevic 137 Worrall 37

Lutz 151 Zita 1 78
Marshall 107 Znosko-Borovsky 145

Maurian 36
Morozevich 97
Morphy 13, 36, 37, 38, 40, 58, 61, 83, 85, 113, 1 1 6, 140, 169, 173,
192, 193, 194, 196, 216
Naiditsch 111
Najdorf 154
Opocensky 31
Paulsen 85, 1 1 3
Petrosian 63
Podgorny 20
Polugaevsky 148
Pomar Salamanca 11
Ponomariov 5 7, 71
Portisch 126
Pribyl 129
Radjabov 143
Reshevsky 180
Reti 26
Rojahn 223
Rozentalis 49
Rubinstein 76
Samisch 175

239
238

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