Understanding before Moving 32: To trade or not to trade

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6/20/2021 – Herman Grooten is an International Master, a renowned trainer and the author of several highly acclaimed books about chess training and chess strategy. In the 32nd instalment of his ChessBase show "Understanding before Moving", Herman asks whether "to trade or not to trade". | Photo: Tommy Grooten

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To trade or not to trade?

The Ukrainian grandmaster Eduard Gufeld is known for being a great lover of the dark-squared bishop on g7 and he liked to say that even the worst bishop is still better than the best knight.

Gufeld also loved to play the King's Indian Defence and he won many fine games with it. Of course, the question is how strong the black-squared bishop really is or how strong it might become. Which, of course, depends on the position and therefore a player must always remain flexible in his thinking.

The following diagram is a good example of this approach. This position arose from a Modern Defence in which Black opted for an early ...e5xd4, which Nimzowitsch once called "giving up the center". With 9...f7-f5 Black tried to free his game and after 10.exf5 Black came up with a surprise. Which one?

This week’s show (for Premium Members only)