Everything in Luis Engel's video course revolves around the starting position of the Najdorf

If you opt for the Najdorf Variation to counter 1.e4, you create clear conditions right from the start. White immediately realises that his opponent is after the full point. This can cause respect - if not outright fear - on the part of the first player. And why shouldn't Black take advantage of this and take a chance? After all, there are many prominent role models: Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, Alireza Firouzja and, last but not least, the great Garry Kasparov. Luis Engel is also addicted to the Najdorf and appreciates the tactical variety of this sharp reply to the kingside pawn opening.

How to play the Najdorf

Between 2004 and 2007 the 13th World Champion Garry Kasparov recorded a large 3-volume Najdorf video course. ChessBase is publishing this great classic in a complete edition in the current ChessBase Media format. Look forward to this classic of chess!

Part 1 & 2: Mainlines and sidelines of the Najdorf

This three-part Fritztrainer offers you a complete repertoire against all the possibilities White has tried after the move 1.e4 c5. In the first two parts, Engel analyses all the popular and cutting-edge variations that can arise from the above position. Part 1 deals with the lines that arise when White moves his bishop to g5, e3, e2 or c4 on move 6.

Part 2 deals in impressive detail with alternatives to the bishop moves. Engel explains: ‘There is still no convincing recipe against the Najdorf. White therefore often tries to resort to sidelines that - and you should know what to do against them.’ Like many coaches, he emphasises that it is more important to have a broad knowledge than a deep one. General knowledge is therefore required, so to speak, instead of analysing the variations up to move 25 or even further. Engel begins the section with the move 6.h3, which, according to him, could also be categorised as one of the main variations due to its current popularity.

The move 6.h3 is becoming increasingly popular.

The chapters on these 6th moves follow: g3, f4, a4, Ld3, Tg1, Sb3, h4/a3/Ld2 and Df3/Dd3/De2, each of which is dealt with in a video.

‘I was always annoyed when White avoided the Najdorf. I didn't feel like preparing for it. But White often tries these Anti-Sicilians and it pays to be prepared,’ says the Hamburg grandmaster. Part 3 therefore deals with all the possibilities White has to avoid the Najdorf and other Sicilian variations.

To mention all the moves here would be going too far and this shows what a mammoth task Engel has dedicated himself to in this part. In six well-structured chapters with several videos, he deals with both common and rare lines. They range from the Alapin Variation to the Grand Prix Attack and the Moscow Variation.

He also devotes himself to sidelines arising after White's 2nd, 3rd and 4th move - it would hardly be possible to go into more detail, and it's not even necessary. Making use of clever transpositions, he combines, for example, the Alapin Variation with the thoroughly respectable Morra Gambit, so that you don't have to prepare for two variations but reach the same position without having to worry about unknown traps.

Engel also looks at modern developments - such as those introduced by former world champion Magnus Carlsen - in lines that were previously rarely played at the top level. But he always proposes a suitable answer for Black.

Since Magnus Carlsen played like this you can assume that people will follow his example.

Part 3 Anti--sicilian: Sidelines: 3.g3/d4/Alternatives

The three parts of the course provide an excellent overview of the Najdorf, which the young German grandmaster deepens by addressing frequently occurring middlegame patterns and incorporating in-depth practice questions in Part 2. ‘My aim is to use the flexibility of the Najdorf, to understand the positions and not to memorise moves’, is how he summarises his approach.

2nd Move Anti-Sicilian Powerbase 2023

2nd Move Anti-Sicilian Powerbase 2023 is a database and contains a total of 10131 games from Mega 2023 or the Correspondence Database 2022, of which 847 are annotated.

Conclusion

You can see the young author's enthusiasm for this variation in every video. He is interested in both the tactical possibilities offered by the Najdorf and the strategic plans that can lead to positional games. One example of his practical approach is the fact that he does not deal with the Poisoned Pawn Variation, which would involve an intensive study of variations, especially for amateurs. Instead, he presents variations that have been tried and tested by him and many world-class players and are easier to play, leading to a promising game. His summaries at the end of the chapters are very helpful.

This three-part Fritz trainer - and it really is recommended that you take a close look at all the volumes as a complete repertoire - offers a complete repertoire against all possible reactions that White has tried after the moves 1. e4 c5 to counter the Najdorf or to avoid it at an early stage. Anyone who has been gripped by Luis Engel's enthusiasm for these variations, which have been popular for decades, can also raise their package to professional level with the ‘Powerbook 2024 - Sicilian Najdorf’, the ‘Powerbook 2023 - 2nd Move Anti-Sicilian’ or other Sicilian products.

The Sicilian Najdorf Powerbook 2024

The Sicilian Najdorf Powerbook 2024 has a tree structure which is based on 3.91 million computer chess games played in the engine room of playchess.com.

But even without this upgrade, anyone who has thoroughly familiarised themselves with Luis Engel's entertaining and very intensive Fritz trainers will be able to play the next tournament with confidence. This is especially true if you have worked through the extensive bonus material in the form of exercises, repertoire training and positions that can be played against the Fritz app.

Anyone who has not yet dared to play the Najdorf Sicilian because of the large number of variations or who has been afraid of the Wing Gambit, for example, can use this package to tackle their gaps in a targeted and systematic way and look forward to many exciting games with a good success rate. In addition, it won't be difficult to decide whether the queen should move to c7 or the rook to c8 in the diagram position ...