Mastering Pattern Recognition in the Opening
Pattern recognition is an important tool in modern chess, as it helps you to understand better the characteristics of a position. Particularly when you have been confronted with a surprise opening system played by your opponent, it helps when you can just
Dealing with the Grünfeld, top players have switched back to the former Main Line, the Exchange Variation with 7.Bc4. Tonight I will elaborate on this topic, explaining the tactical and strategical ideas behind the advance of the rook's pawn. Despite it's theoretical still OK for Black, this approach has caused Black a lot of problems in recent games.
The live show is free to watch and available on-demand for ChessBase Premium accounts.
Know the Terrain Vol. 5: The Philidor Structure
The Philidor structure (White pawns on d4 and e4, Black pawns on d6 and e5), is a fundamental position in the open games. In his new training course, IM Sam Collins shows you just how much explosive power is packed into this apparently simple structure.
Exercise: A classic example of a 17-year old Magnus Carlsen defeating Ukrainian legend Vassily Ivanchuk. Do you see what Magnus had in mind after 22...h6?
Move the pieces on the live diagram — solution below!
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When choosing an opening repertoire, there are days when you want to play for a win with Black, when you want to bear down on your opponent’s position with a potentially crushing attack. The Najdorf is perfect for just such occasions. Strategy, combinations, attack and defence, sacrifices and marvellous manoeuvres — exciting chess is all about the Najdorf!
Robert is live every other Thursday at 18:00 UTC (19:00 CET / 13:00 EST)
Special attention will be paid to Intermediate Moves, Quiet Moves, Sacrifices on Empty Squares, Mating Patterns, Ignoring Opponents Threat, Calculation in Defence and Method of Comparison. Plus 50 interactive examples to test your knowledge.
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