Karsten Müller

Karsten Müller, born 1970, has a world-wide reputation as one of the greatest endgame experts. He has, together with Frank Lamprecht written a book on the subject: “Fundamental Chess Endgames” in addition to other contributions such as his column on the website ChessCafe as well as in ChessBase Magazine. Müller's ChessBase-DVDs about endgames in Fritztrainer-Format are bestsellers. The PhD in mathematics lives in Hamburg, where he has also been hunting down points for the HSK in the Bundesliga for many years.

Recent news

Breaking through

7/20/2021 – In the diagram position White is a pawn up but can she win? And how? Should White push her h-pawn to break through with her pawns? Or her f-pawn? Or should White wait and bring the king into a better position?

Breaking the wall

7/13/2021 – Pawn endings must be calculated precisely and the activity of the king is very important. In the diagram position White has a protected passed pawn on b6 but it is not immediately apparent whether this is enough to win. Do you have an idea how White can overcome Black's defensive set-up?

A magic knight

7/6/2021 – Knights that fight against pawns can be clumsy but sometimes they can also work magic. In the diagram position, Black's a-pawn wants to queen but the white knight can still stop him. On the other hand it is hard to see how Black can stop White's e-pawn from queening. But Black can help her knight to do some magic and win. Do you have an idea how?

Aronian triumphs, Karsten Müller analyzes

7/4/2021 – It was a rather quick victory by Levon Aronian in the finals of the Goldmoney Asian Rapid tournament. The Armenian won the first set on Saturday and scored back-to-back wins in the second mini-match to make it impossible for Vladislav Artemiev to equalize the score and take the match to tiebreaks. Karsten Müller analyzes two endgames in which Aronian showed his excellent technique with the black pieces.

The king is a strong piece

6/29/2021 – It was Steinitz who claimed that the king is strong, even in the opening and the middlegame. However, the more enemy pieces on the board, the greater the danger for His Majesty. But in the endgame the king can often show its power. In the diagram position Black is a pawn down but is still able to draw. How?

A versatile knight

6/22/2021 – Knights that fight against pawns in the endgame can be versatile or very clumsy. In the diagram position the black knight turned out to be very versatile. How did it help Black to win the game?

Endgame tactics

6/15/2021 – The diagram position is complicated and extremely sharp. Both sides have dangerous passed pawns which the knights might or might not stop. However, it was Black to move and he had a way to win. But in the game Black failed to find the winning move - can you do better?

Bishop vs pawns

6/8/2021 – Connected passed pawns can be powerful, in the middlegame but especially in the endgame. A good reason to stop them sooner rather than later. What should White do in the diagram position to stop Black's pawns from becoming really powerful?

A fast and versatile knight

6/1/2021 – In the duel between bishop and knight it is often the knight which is too slow. However, one should not underestimate knights - they are versatile and often surprisingly quick, e.g. in the diagram position. Can the black knight play on both wings to help Black win the game?

Small move, big impact

5/25/2021 – Simplifying into a pawn ending must always be calculated carefully. In the diagram position Black is a rook up but White has powerful passed pawns. But how and when to advance them?

The sharpest endgame weapon

5/18/2021 – The German word "Zugzwang" describes the phenomenom that the rules of chess force you to make a move when it's your turn even if it would be better to do nothing. In chess, you simply cannot pass. "Zugzwang" is a typical endgame phenomenon that often decides the game. In the diagram position White can use "zugzwang" to force the opponent to self-destruct. How?

Historical riddle: M. Tal vs O. Panno

5/12/2021 – Mihail Tal played many mind-boggling and beautiful games full of stunning tactics and surprising sacrifices. Modern engines may find out that Tal's sacrifices might not always have been correct but it is still fun to play through and analyse his games. Now, Karsten Müller invites the ChessBase readers to take a close look at one of Tal's classics.

Bishop stops bishop sacrifice

5/11/2021 – In the diagram position White just attacked the bishop on f6 which is a prelude to a bishop sacrifice on e7 which will allow the white pawns to run. But with correct play the black bishop can stop the pawns. How?

A magical knight

5/4/2021 – The diagram position looks pretty bad for Black. He has a passed pawn that is close to queening and he is to move but White has the nasty threat of 55.Rd8+ that is hard to parry. But Black's knight can do some magic and save the game. What should Black do?

When only one way leads to Rome

4/27/2021 – In the diagram position White is two pawns up but has only one winning move. Which one?

Endgame riddle solved: 50 moves are just enough

4/25/2021 – In the endgame riddle from 15 April ChessBase readers were invited to analyse an interesting and complicated endgame knight vs bishop. In the game E. Torre vs O. Jakobsen, Amsterdam 1973, from which the riddle was taken, the knight defeated the bishop, but Karsten Müller wanted to know whether the knight would also have won against best defense. Now, he has the answer.

Candidates, Rd. 9: Ding Liren missed a win

4/21/2021 – In round eight of the Candidates, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave had a difficult endgame against Fabiano Caruna. "MVL" could have drawn but lost. In round nine, "MVL" again had a difficult endgame, this time against Ding Liren. The game ended in a draw but Ding Liren could have won. Karsten Müller took a closer look. | Photo: Lennart Ootes

A difficult endgame: Fabiano Caruana vs Maxime Vachier-Lagrave

4/20/2021 – Fabiano Caruana had a lot of time to prepare for his game against Maxime Vachier-Lagrave in round 8 of the Candidates, and he used it to find a new and dangerous idea in the Poisoned Pawn variation of the Najdorf, a favourite of the French player. "MVL" survived the opening and escaped into an endgame that objectively was a draw but difficult to defend. Karsten Müller took a closer look.
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