Close calls
In the clash of co-leaders, we saw Alkaloid's Ding Liren and Dmitry Andreikin get rather quick draws with Black — Ding Liren's streak continues! On board two, Yu Yangyi and Peter Leko took longer to split the point but the game was balanced throughout. Wins by Daniele Vocaturo (Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova) and Yuriy Kryvoruchko (Alkaloid) — both with White — cancelled each other out, so the game that could have tipped the balance in the Italian team's favour took place on board four.
Dmitry Jakovenko (Alkaloid) arrived in Halkidiki after having a subpar Olympiad and faced an inspired Julio Granda with the white pieces. Granda's handling of the opening was modest but effective, and he got the bishop pair before move 20. When the time control was approaching, the computer evaluated the position as clearly favourable for Black, but there was no clear winning shot. Granda was a pawn up on move 36:
Jakovenko had been defending effectively for many moves, and he kept doing so from this point on. Soon enough, he took Black's extra pawn and the draw was signed on move 44. Alkaloid 3:3 Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova.

FIDE Vice-president Julio Granda could not convert his advantage | Photo: Niki Riga
The tie on the top table allowed other teams to join the lead.
The big individual encounter of the day was, of course, the one that faced Shakhriyar Mamedyarov and Magnus Carlsen. A 30-move draw left Carlsen exactly four rating points above Caruana with two rounds to play — Magnus will almost certainly play both games, as his team has strong chances of getting first place.
Thus, the match Valerenga vs. Odlar Yurdu was to be decided on a lower board. The decisive game ended up being Gadir Guseinov vs. Borki Predojevic. Valerenga's Predojevic accepted an exchange when it was offered to him — Guseinov should have saved his rook in the following position:
The positional exchange sacrifice is one of the most powerful and fascinating strategic weapons in chess. On this DVD Sergey Tiviakov explains why the positional exchange sacrifice is such a strong weapon and how to use it.
The Azeri grandmaster took with 22.fxg5 and allowed 22...Nxf1, confident that his bishop pair and initiative on the kingside would compensate for the material disadvantage. However, Predojevic quickly returned the exchange in a favourable situation and went on to grind a 69-move win. Valerenga 3½:2½ Odlar Yurdu.

Odlar Yurdu vs. Valerenga Sjakklubb with two superstars on board one | Photo: Niki Riga
After being held to a draw by Valerenga in round three, AVE Novy Bor went back to the fray with a win over Beer Sheva Chess Club. They started with a quick win by Vidit Gujrathi, who took advantage of a sloppy handling of the opening by Michael Roiz to score his fourth straight win in Greece. AVE Novy Bor extended his lead in the match with a victory by Radoslaw Wojtaszek, who used his queenside pawns to overwhelm Zahar Efimenko:
He was a child prodigy and he is surrounded by legends. In his best times he was considered to be unbeatable and by many he was reckoned to be the greatest chess talent of all time: Jose Raul Capablanca, born 1888 in Havana.
There is material balance in the position, but White's advanced queenside pawns give him a clear edge. Wojtaszek took about four minutes to decide it was time to give his pawns an open path to promotion with 32.Bxc7! — it was clearly a good decision, as Efimenko resigned five moves later.
Yuriy Kryvoruchko got a consolation win on board six for the Israeli squad. AVE Novy Bor 3½:2½ Beer Sheva Chess Club.

Harikrishna looks on as Wojtaszek dominates on the queenside | Photo: Niki Riga
Peter Svidler's nightmare continues in Halkidiki. He added a fourth loss to his tally after losing against Christian Bauer in the most painful manner — he lost a clear advantage with a one-move blunder and was soon forced to resign:
Svidler, with White, is three pawns up and — as long as Bauer does not get an attack going on the kingside — should easily win in the long run. The priority, therefore, was to prevent Black's knight from reaching d3, which was easily achievable with 41.Qb1. Instead, Peter went for 41.Bc3? and resigned after 41...Nd3 42.Kh1 Nf3 43.h4 Nxh4. Black actually has mate-in-4 in the final position:
Ever since the beginning of chess, the assault on the king has had its own special magic; masterly attacking games, crowned by sacrifices and unforgettable combinations, have never ceased to attract and thrill the audience. On this DVD in FritzTrainer video format, Rustam Kasimdzhanov shows us that particularly the World Champions were outstanding attackers from who we can learn a lot. From Steinitz, Lasker and Capablanca to Fischer, Karpov and Kasparov, one exemplary attacking game is presented reflecting the individual playing attitude of each of these chess legends.
That was Mednyi Vsadnik's only loss against Schachgesellschaft Zurich. The Russian team won the match without difficulty 4½:1½.

Bauer's went from having a losing position to almost mating the white king | Photo: Niki Riga
After facing Mamedyarov, Carlsen will most likely go against the other 2800-player in the field — and one that has not lost in ages —, as Valerenga is paired against Ding Liren's Alkaloid in round six. AVE Novy Bor vs. Obiettivo Risarcimento is the other co-leaders match-up.

Nobody wants to miss a chance to see the World Champion in action | Photo: Niki Riga
Games annotated by GM Daniel Fernandez
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1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.dxc5 Nc6 5.Bb5 e6 6.Be3 Nge7 7.c3 Bd7 7...Nf5 8.Bd4 Be7 9.Nf3 0-0 10.0-0 Bd7 11.a4 Qc7 12.Nbd2 b6 13.cxb6 axb6 8.Bxc6 Nxc6 9.f4 Qc7 9...g5!? 10.Nf3 10.fxg5 Nxe5 11.Nf3! 10...gxf4 11.Bxf4 Bxc5 12.Nbd2 Qb6 10.Nf3 Na5 11.b4 11.Nbd2 Bxc5 12.Bxc5 Qxc5 13.Nd4= Qb6! 13...0-0 14.N2b3 Nxb3 15.axb3 a5 16.0-0 14.Rb1 Bb5! 11...Nc4 12.Bd4 b6 13.cxb6 axb6 14.0-0 Be7 15.Nfd2 15.Nbd2 Na3!? 15...Nxd2 16.Qxd2 0-0 17.a3 Ra6 18.Ne1 Rfa8 19.Nc2 Ba4 16.f5 Ba4! 16...exf5 17.e6 fxe6 18.Bxg7 Rg8 19.Be5 17.Qe1 exf5 18.e6 f6!∞ 15.f5?! exf5 16.e6 fxe6 17.Bxg7 15...0-0?! 15...Nxd2 16.Qxd2 0-0 16.Nxc4 dxc4?! 16...Qxc4 17.Nd2 Qc6 18.a4 17.Nd2! 17.a4 17...Rfd8 18.Qe2?! 18.a4± 18...b5 19.Ne4 19.a4 Rxa4 20.Rxa4 bxa4 19...Bc6 20.f5?! 20.Bc5 Bxe4 21.Bxe7 Qxe7 22.Qxe4 g6 20.Nc5 Bd5 21.Rfd1 Ra3 22.Qb2 Rda8 23.Rd2 h5 20...exf5 21.Rxf5?! 21.Nd6 g6 21...Rxd4! 21...Bxb4? 22.e6!+- 22.cxd4 Qd7 23.Rff1 Qxd4+ 24.Nf2 Qd5 24...Bxb4 25.Rad1 25.Nh3 Bxb4 26.Ng5 26.Nf4 Qe4 27.Qxe4 Bxe4-+ 26...Qd2 27.Qg4 h5! 28.Qg3 h4 28...Qe2! 29.Rxf7? 29.Nxf7 Bc5+ 30.Kh1 Rxa2-+ 29...Rxa2! 30.Rxg7+ Kxg7-+ 29.Qg4 Be7 30.Nf3 30.Nxf7 Qe3+ 31.Kh1 h3-+ 30...Qd7 31.Qxd7 31.Qh5 g6 32.Qh6 Ra3-+ 31...Bxd7 32.Rfd1 Bf5 33.Nd4 Bg4 34.Nxb5 Bxd1 35.Rxd1 Rxa2 36.Kf1 Bc5?? 36...Rb2-+ 37.Rd8+ Kh7 38.Rc8 Be3 39.Rxc4 g5 39...Rf2+ 40.Ke1 Rxg2 41.Rxh4+ Kg6 42.Re4! 40.Re4 Bf4?! 40...Ra1+ 41.Ke2 Bf4 42.h3 42.e6? fxe6 43.Rxe6 Ra2+ 44.Kf3 Bxh2 42.g3?? Bxg3!-+ 42...Ra5 43.Nd6 Kg6 44.e6! Bxd6 45.e7 Bxe7 46.Rxe7 41.g3 hxg3 42.hxg3 Bxg3 43.e6 fxe6 44.Rxe6 ½–½
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Jakovenko,D | - | Granda,J | - | ½–½ | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Vocaturo,D | - | Eljanov,P | - | 1–0 | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Mamedyarov,S | - | Carlsen,M | - | ½–½ | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Guseinov,G | - | Predojevic,B | - | 0–1 | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Prujissers,R | - | Chigaev,M | - | 0–1 | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Wojtaszek,R | - | Efimenko,Z | - | 1–0 | 2018 | | European Club Cup | |
Please, wait...
Round 6 pairings (top 10 boards)
1 |
2 |
|
AVE Novy Bor |
9 |
|
: |
|
9 |
Obiettivo Risarcimento Padova |
|
6 |
2 |
5 |
|
Valerenga Sjakklubb |
9 |
|
: |
|
9 |
Alkaloid |
|
1 |
3 |
7 |
|
Molodezhka |
8 |
|
: |
|
8 |
Itaka |
|
9 |
4 |
22 |
|
Nordstrand Sjakklubb |
8 |
|
: |
|
8 |
Mednyi Vsadnik St.Petersburg |
|
4 |
5 |
15 |
|
Dunajska Streda |
7 |
|
: |
|
7 |
Odlar Yurdu |
|
3 |
6 |
8 |
|
Beer Sheva Chess Club |
7 |
|
: |
|
7 |
E.S. Thessalonikis |
|
17 |
7 |
21 |
|
Eynatten |
7 |
|
: |
|
6 |
DJK Aufwaerts Aachen |
|
16 |
8 |
24 |
|
BSG |
6 |
|
: |
|
6 |
Echiquier Amaytois |
|
35 |
9 |
11 |
|
KGSRL |
6 |
|
: |
|
6 |
KC Deloitte |
|
32 |
10 |
27 |
|
CC Gambit Asseco SEE |
6 |
|
: |
|
6 |
Rehovot Chess School |
|
25 |
Games from Round 5
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Russian squads go through in women's section
The two Russian teams that are participating in the women's section of the European Club Cup qualified to the final knockout stage after round five. Ugra and SSHOR will play against favourites Cercle d'Echecs de Monte Carlo and Nona, respectively, in Wednesday's semi-finals.
In order to get there, Ugra defeated Mulhouse Philidor 3:1. On board four, Baira Kovanova pushed her opponent Salome Neuhauser to resign — after the latter had suffered for over 35 moves — in a clear case of opposite-coloured bishops working at different speeds:
In chess, the technique of exchanging pieces is the ultimate knowledge. The biggest specialists of this were such greats as Akiba Rubinstein and Vasily Smyslov. The exchange bishop for knight is the most common case. The technique of exploiting the individual power of these pieces is completely different.
White is up a pawn and the exchange, but it is the queen-and-bishop battery the factor that scares the most. Natalija Pogonina and Marina Nechaeva also won for Ugra.

Ugra's Olga Girya and Marina Nechaeva | Photo: Niki Riga
The story was very different in Group B, where SSHOR qualified despite losing in round five. The Russians lost against the strong Cercle d'Escacs de Monte Carlo and were caught up in the standings by Odlar Yurdu, which defeated Caissa Italia Pentole Agnelli. However, the tiebreaks favoured the team led by Anastasia Bodnaruk.

Marina Brunello from Caissa Italia Pentole Agnelli | Photo: Niki Riga
Semi-finals
1 |
7 |
|
SSHOR |
6 |
|
: |
|
9 |
Nona |
|
1 |
2 |
2 |
|
Cercle d'Echecs de Monte-Carlo |
10 |
|
: |
|
8 |
Ugra |
|
4 |
Standings - Group A
1 |
|
Nona |
* |
2½ |
2 |
3½ |
3½ |
4 |
9 |
0 |
2 |
|
Ugra |
1½ |
* |
3½ |
2½ |
3 |
4 |
8 |
0 |
3 |
|
Kyiv Chess federation |
2 |
½ |
* |
3½ |
3 |
3½ |
7 |
0 |
4 |
|
Beer Sheva Chess Club |
½ |
1½ |
½ |
* |
2 |
4 |
3 |
1 |
5 |
|
Mulhouse Philidor |
½ |
1 |
1 |
2 |
* |
3½ |
3 |
2 |
6 |
|
AMO Galaxias Thessaloniki |
0 |
0 |
½ |
0 |
½ |
* |
0 |
0 |
Standings - Group B
1 |
|
Cercle d'Echecs de Monte-Carlo |
* |
3 |
3 |
3½ |
4 |
3½ |
10 |
2 |
|
SSHOR |
1 |
* |
3 |
2 |
2 |
4 |
6 |
|
|
Odlar Yurdu |
1 |
1 |
* |
3 |
3 |
4 |
6 |
4 |
|
Caissa Italia Pentole Agnelli |
½ |
2 |
1 |
* |
3 |
3½ |
5 |
5 |
|
ZSK Maribor |
0 |
2 |
1 |
1 |
* |
2 |
2 |
6 |
|
Caissa Italia Banca Alpi Marittime |
½ |
0 |
0 |
½ |
2 |
* |
1 |
Games from Round 5
Replay and check the LiveBook here |
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