A knight on a weakened central square…
Дек 4, 2009 by
04.12.2009
– ... usually means a strong positional trump. However, sometimes this alone is not enough to win the game. Here Black was facing the question whether closing the queenside with
20...b3 21.a3 (diagram) would be beneficial for him. What do you think? A) this enhances Black's spacial superiority, but doesn't yield anything concrete; B) it is a powerful continuation, considerably increasing his positional advantage; C) it's not good, White has one worry less and will be able to successfully defend himself in the centre and on the
kingside.
The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram. Sam Collins: 1.e4 Repertoire
Grandmaster lines explained for club players Constructing an opening repertoire is one of the chess players most difficult and time-consuming tasks. Turned off by masses of theory, many players shy away from critical lines and concentrate on trappy lines, universal systems, or variations which concede the advantage of the first move in order to get a playable position. More information...
Chessbase.com
The solution is here, but first ponder over it with a larger version of the diagram. Sam Collins: 1.e4 Repertoire
Grandmaster lines explained for club players Constructing an opening repertoire is one of the chess players most difficult and time-consuming tasks. Turned off by masses of theory, many players shy away from critical lines and concentrate on trappy lines, universal systems, or variations which concede the advantage of the first move in order to get a playable position. More information...
Tactics,
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Position after 20...b3 21.a3
Chessbase.com