Robert Ris' Fast and Furious: Sicilian duels - Firouzja vs Carlsen

by Robert Ris
10/14/2024 – In his new Fast & Furious episode, Robert Ris looks at two games between Alireza Firouzja and Magnus Carlsen, in which they discussed the pros and cons of the Sicilian. Instructive and entertaining. | Fast & Furious is available on-demand with a ChessBase Premium Account. You can register a Premium account here.
Looking for a realistic way to play for a win with Black against 1.e4 without taking unnecessary risks? The Taimanov Sicilian is a reliable system, and hence one of the best options out there!

Robert Ris: "I have a look at two fascinating games between Firouzja and Carlsen, featuring the Sicilian Kan variation (2...a6 & 4...a6). In the first game, from the Julius Baer Generation Cup, Carlsen sacrificed a pawn and later his queen to secure equality and a draw.

In the second game, played in the Global Chess League, Firouzja deviated with 5.c4 to play against the well-known Hedgehog formation. Magnus showed his class in the middlegame but stumbled in the conversion."

Question: Can you spot the vulnerable points in White's position?

A. Firouzja - M. Carlsen, Global Chess League, London 2024
Black to play

Feel free to move the pieces on the live diagram!

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Robert is an International Master who mostly spends his time training and coaching talented youngsters. On the PlayChess server The Fast and the Furious is a popular show where he explains sharp opening lines for a wider audience. He is also a well-known ChessBase author who produced numerous DVDs and regularly contributes to ChessBase Magazine as well. Since 2015 he is the organizer of the Dutch Rapid Championships in his home town Amstelveen. He has started a YouTube channel with chess analysis as well.

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