The Initiative: A new show hosted by GM Jan Werle

by Jan Werle
4/12/2025 – Welcome to The Initiative – a show dedicated to the relentless battle for momentum in chess! In every game, players fight to seize control, dictate the pace, and keep their opponent on the back foot. But what does it really mean to have the initiative? How do the world’s best players maintain pressure and transform small advantages into crushing attacks?
Dominate the Open Catalan: Unlock key strategies and dynamic plans for a lifetime repertoire!

In this series, we dive deep into the opening and middlegame, analyzing the most dynamic and aggressive ways to take charge. Through expert commentary, thrilling games, and insightful breakdowns, you’ll discover the art of initiative—how to grab it, how to keep it, and how to use it to dominate your games.

These DVDs will show you dangerous new sidelines that are ideal for combatting the Sicilian after 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6/d6 3.Bb5(+), with your author giving you the positional ideas behind less well-trodden Sicilian paths that avoid the main and winding main

Are you ready to take control? Then let’s begin the fight for The Initiative!

Example of the first show: Gukesh vs Harikrishna, Tata Steel 2025

Position after 11.Rb1

This week's show

The author

GM Jan Werle is a professional chess trainer, coach and author. In 2008 he became EU-champion in Liverpool and reached his peak rating of 2607. He is giving chess lessons online to pupils worldwide but also in schools. He enjoys to help and teach his students and to watch them improve. Werle regularly publishes video courses with ChessBase. His most recent one being a two volume course on the Catalan.

Mastering piece setups in various pawn structures and transitioning to a dominant middlegame, this course equips you with the insight and flexibility to outmanoeuvre your opponents in the Closed Catalan.

Review by IM Hannes Langrock

In volume 1 of his Catalan repertoire, Jan Werle looks at the Open Catalan, i.e. playing with an early ...dxc4. The Dutch grandmaster tends to choose "tough", concrete variations to pose Black difficult problems. In 9 hours and 30 minutes of video time, he designs an ambitious main line repertoire. Such a repertoire requires a good deal of theoretical knowledge, but it is also extremely powerful. The course has made me want to play the Catalan more often again – even without deferred c2-c4!

Dominate the Open Catalan: Unlock key strategies and dynamic plans for a lifetime repertoire!

Read the whole review here...

A recent example of Supergrandmasters playing the Catalan...

Links

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Topics: The Initative
Jan is a professional chess Grandmaster, trainer, coach and author. In 2008 he became EU-champion in Liverpool and reached his peak rating of 2607. Hereafter finished his law studies obtaining two master law degrees (civil and commercial law) before he commenced with his job as a lawyer. But now he's back in chess.
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Video

60m How to fight Queen's Pawn Openigns

After 1.d4 d5 many players with White avoid the great amount of theory in the Slav, Semi-Slav, QGA and Orthodox Queen's Gambit and do not therefore play 2.c4. This is not very ambitious, but the painful experience of many chess players has been that the Colle System, the Trompowsky Attack, the Torre Attack and the London System are nevertheless extremely dangerous. Black has to be prepared for each of these openings and IM Valeri Lilov offers you some help with his six instructive videos, in which he demonstrates for each single opening a relevant plan for Black. In addition to the openings mentioned, the Bulgarian trainer also delves into the Catalan, the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit and the Richter-Veresov Opening.

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