[Event "Manhem Chess Week 2013"]  [Site "www.ssmanhem.se"]  [Date "2013"]  [Round "2"]  [White "Rozentalis, Eduardas "]  [Black "Smith, Axel"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "C65"]  [Annotator "Tiger"]  [PlyCount "111"]  [EventDate "2013.??.??"]  [SourceDate "2011.03.24"]   1.e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 {No Giucio Piano then? No, but the structure will become the same.} 3... Nf6 4. d3 {This aims at keeping some pieces on the  board. The main line} (4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Nd6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. dxe5 Nf5 8. Qxd8+  Kxd8 {leaves White somewhat better, but it takes some very deep understanding  and analysis on GM-level in order to enter this line.}) 4... Bc5 {Many strong  players believe this move to be the most principled continuation.} (4... d6 {  is leads to another kind of game, where Black intends to fianchetto Bf8  immediately.}) 5. c3 O-O 6. O-O ({I once tried a more accelerated version of  the usual set-up:} 6. h3 d6 7. Nbd2 Bb6 8. Nf1 Ne7 (8... d5 9. Qe2 Bd7 10. Bg5  dxe4 11. dxe4 h6 12. Bh4 $13) 9. Ng3 Ng6 10. O-O c6 11. Ba4 d5 {and Black had  solved all his opening problems, in Hillarp Persson,T - Hammer,J, Gothenburg  2011. After Black plays c7-c6, it is very, very important for White to get to  play d3-d4 before Black plays d6-d5; otherwise White can forget about having  any pressure at all.}) 6... d6 {If we move Bb5 to c4, then we would find  ourselves in a Giucio Piano.} 7. h3 {This is obviously one of the candidate  moves as it fits in with almost every possible set-up that White can choose.} (  {In the beginning of my 1.e4-career I tried} 7. Bg5 {against Nils Grandelius,  in Påskturneringen in Norrköping 2008. That game continued:} a6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9.  d4 exd4 10. cxd4 Bb6 11. Nbd2 h6 12. Bh4 Re8 13. Qc2 g5 14. Bg3 Nxe4 15. Nxe4  Bf5 16. Rfe1 d5 17. Qxc6 dxe4 18. Qxh6 f6 $1 {with a good game for Black.}) ({  After} 7. Nbd2 Ne7 {the point of the move order in the game becomes clear:} 8.  d4 exd4 $5 9. cxd4 {This would just be silly if White had played h3 instead of  Nbd2, since} Bb6 {...would be met with Nc3. Now Black is ready to meet 10.h3  with 10...d5, as in Areshchenko,A (2705)-Kramnik,V (2780)/FIDE World Cup 2013.}  10. Re1 Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 {has been played a few times lately and Black has been  doing all right.}) 7... Ne7 ({After} 7... Bb6 8. Re1 Ne7 9. d4 {we are back in  the game.}) 8. d4 $1 Bb6 (8... exd4 $2 9. cxd4 Bb6 10. Nc3 $14 {is - as  mentioned above - just silly for Black.}) 9. Re1 $1 {Not only protecting e4,  but also giving Bb5 the option of hiding at f1.} c6 ({Black can also play} 9...  d5 10. Nxe5 Nxe4 {, when} 11. Nd2 Nd6 12. Ba4 (12. Bd3 {seems microscopically  better for White.}) 12... Bf5 13. Nf1 Ne4 14. Ne3 Be6 15. Bc2 Ng6 16. Nxg6 hxg6  17. Ng4 c5 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. Be3 {led to some advantage for White in  Grandelius,N (2540)-Paravyan,D (2370)/2nd Grand Europe Open 2013.}) 10. Bf1 $5  (10. Bd3 Ng6 (10... d5 11. Nxe5 Nxe4 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. Rxe4 c5 14. Nc4 $13) 11.  Be3 Re8 12. Nbd2 h6 13. Qc2 {Although it is no way clear that White is really  better here, I believe this is a position that White is very happy to reach...}  Bd7 14. Rad1 Bc7 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 dxe5 17. Bf1 Qe7 18. b4 Red8 19. a4 Be6  20. a5 Nd7 21. Ra1 b6 22. a6 $5 {with an unclear game, in Caruana,F (2770)  -Giri,A (2690)/20th Sigeman & Co 2012.}) 10... Ng6 (10... exd4 $6 11. cxd4 d5  12. e5 Ne4 13. Nc3 Bf5 14. Bd3 {leads to a clear advantage for White.}) (10...  d5 $5 {is an interesting alternative and possibly the reason why Caruana chose  to put the bishop on d3...} 11. Nxe5 (11. dxe5 $6 Nxe4 12. Be3 Bxe3 13. Rxe3  Qb6 $36) (11. exd5 e4 12. d6 Nf5 13. Ne5 Nxd6 14. Bf4 Bc7 15. Nd2 Nd5 16. Bh2)  11... Nxe4 12. Nd2 Nd6 13. Nb3 Ng6 14. Bd3 Bf5 15. Bxf5 Nxf5 16. Qg4 Qc8 17.  Bg5 {and White had some pressure, in Dominguez Perez,L (2755)-Bacrot,E (2720)/  TCh-ESP CECLUB Honor 2013.}) 11. Nbd2 Re8 12. Qc2 Bc7 (12... d5 13. exd5 exd4  14. Rxe8+ Qxe8 15. Nc4 dxc3 16. Nxb6 axb6 17. dxc6 cxb2 18. Qxb2 Qxc6 19. Nd4  Qd6 {was seen in Swiercz,D (2650)-Hovhannisyan,R (2620)/Lake Sevan 2013. Now,  according to the engine, White could have kept some initiative with} 20. Nb5  Qd8 21. Be3) 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Nc4 {Finally, we get to the middlegame. This is  where it gets interesting.} h6 15. a4 $1 Nh7 16. Ne3 Ng5 ({After} 16... Nf4 {  the standard reaction} 17. h4 $1 {seems to work out well, since} Nf6 18. g3  Nh3+ 19. Kg2 Ng4 20. Nxg4 Bxg4 21. Be2 {leaves Black wondering what that  knight is really doing on h3. When I say that 17.h4 is "standard" it does not  mean that you can play it without thinking, obviously. It means that you  should keep it in your arsenal as a possible way to meet Nh7/Nf4}) 17. Nxg5  hxg5 18. g3 $1 {The knight must be kept away from f4. Now Ng6 is a bit  misplaced.} Nf8 19. b3 {Eduardas finds a way to activate the passive bishop on  c1...} ({Not} 19. a5 $6 Bxa5 20. Rd1 Bd7) 19... Ne6 20. Ba3 Qf6 21. Rad1 Nf8  22. Rd2 ({The engine comes up with an alternative route to keep some pressure:  } 22. Kg2 Be6 23. Nf5 g6 24. Nd6 Bxd6 25. Rxd6 {Although the position is not  exactly open; with lots of pawns on both sides of the board, White is quite  happy about having the bishop pair.}) 22... Be6 23. Nf5 g6 24. Nh6+ (24. Nd6  Reb8 25. Red1) 24... Kg7 25. Ng4 Bxg4 26. hxg4 Rad8 {So, what does it mean to  have the bishop pair in this position? Close to nothing. But, on the other  hand, having a white squared bishop definitely counts for something.} 27. Red1  Rxd2 28. Rxd2 Rd8 29. Rxd8 Qxd8 {Equal? No, still not. Imagine Bf1 on c4 or b3  and you soon realize that, for Black, the worst is not quite over yet.} 30. Bc1  Bb6 31. Bc4 Qd7 32. Qe2 f6 $6 {This slight concession is something that Black  should really try to do without.} (32... Ne6 $1 33. Kf1 (33. b4 $6 a5) 33... a5  {and White is not able to play b4 without giving up the d4 square. Still,  White keeps the pressure.}) 33. b4 a5 $1 {Allowing White to play a4-a5 would  make b7 very vulnerable in the endgame.} 34. Bb3 Kh6 {This is a good idea.  White will get the queen to g8 whatever Black does, so Axel makes sure it does  not arrive with a check.} (34... axb4 35. Qc4 Kh6 36. Qxb4 Qd8 37. Ba3 Nd7 38.  Qc4 {is very passive for Black.}) 35. bxa5 Bxa5 36. Ba3 Nh7 37. Qc4 Bb6 38. a5  $5 {This might be the result of a blunder, or Eduardas calculated very, very  far indeed.} (38. Qg8 {leads to a huge advantage for White.}) 38... Bxa5 39.  Qg8 Qg7 40. Qe8 Bxc3 {At this stage I was finished with my own game and a  spectator came up to me and asked whether I thought Axel would win. I answered  that he might very well be lost!} 41. Bg8 {The point here is that there is  nothing Black can do to stop the f6-pawn from falling and then the game will  go on with Bc3 being in exile and the Black king in trouble, It doesn't sound  too good for Black.} Qh8 42. Qe6 Qg7 $6 {This loses a tempo. Instead} (42...  Bd4 43. Be7 c5 {gives Black decent chances to defend:} 44. Bxh7 Kxh7 45. Bxf6  Qf8 46. Kg2 b5 47. f3 b4 48. Bxg5 {There might be a win for White and there  might not.}) 43. Be7 $6 ({Here} 43. Bxh7 Kxh7 44. Qe8 $1 {is much more  dangerous, intending} b5 (44... f5 $1 45. exf5 gxf5 46. gxf5 e4 47. Kg2 $36)  45. Bf8 Qg8 46. Qe7+ Kh8 47. Qxf6+ Kh7 48. Kg2 b4 49. Qe7+ Kh8 50. Bh6 Bd2 51.  Qd7 Bc1 52. Qd1 Bb2 53. Qd6 $16) 43... Bd4 44. Bxh7 Kxh7 45. Bxf6 Qf8 46. Kg2  c5 47. f4 exf4 48. e5 fxg3 (48... b5 49. gxf4 Qa8+ 50. Kh2 Bg1+ 51. Kxg1 Qa1+)  49. Kxg3 b5 50. Qd7+ Kg8 51. Qd5+ Qf7 $2 {After this White wins immediately. A  better option was} (51... Kh7 {when White has to play with precision in order to  win:} 52. Kg2 $1 (52. Qe4 $2 b4 $1 (52... Bc3 53. Qb7+ Kg8 54. Qxb5 Be1+ 55.  Kf3 $16) 53. Qh1+ Kg8 54. Qd5+ Kh7 55. Qe4 {Zugzwang!} Bc3 56. Kf2 Bd4+ 57. Ke2  b3 $3 {is not as clear. After} (57... Bc3 58. Kd3 Bd4 59. Qh1+ Kg8 60. Qh8+ Kf7  61. Qh7+ Ke8 62. Qb7 Bxe5 63. Qc8+ Kf7 64. Qxf8+ Kxf8 65. Bxe5 Ke7 66. Kc4 $18)  58. Qb7+ Kg8 59. Qxb3+ Qf7 60. Qb8+ Qf8 61. Qb7 Qf7 62. Qa8+ Qf8 63. Qd5+ Qf7  64. e6 Qe8 65. e7+ Kh7 66. Bxd4 cxd4 67. Qd8 Qb5+ {I cannot see how the White  king will hide from the checks.}) 52... b4 53. Kf1 $1 Bc3 (53... b3 54. Qxb3  Bxe5 55. Qb7+ Kg8 56. Qd5+ Kh7 57. Qxe5 {wins easily.}) 54. Ke2 Bd4 {and it is  time...} 55. Qh1+ Kg8 56. Kd3 Bc3 57. Qh8+ Kf7 58. Qh7+ Ke6 59. Qc7 {There is  no defence against Qc6+, Qd5+:} Bb2 60. Qc6+ Kf7 61. Qd5+ Ke8 62. Qe6+ Qe7 63.  Qxe7#) 52. e6 $1 Qc7+ 53. Kg2 Kh7 54. Bxd4 cxd4 55. Qd7+ Qxd7 56. exd7 {and Black resigned.} 1-0   

   [Event "Open de Sants A"]  [Site "Barcelona"]  [Date "2013.08.30"]  [Round "8"]  [White "Hansen, Eric"]  [Black "Hillarp Persson, Tiger"]  [Result "0-1"]  [ECO "B09"]  [WhiteElo "2584"]  [BlackElo "2529"]  [Annotator "Tiger"]  [PlyCount "166"]  [EventType "tourn"]  [SourceDate "2011.03.24"]   1. e4 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. f4 Nf6 ({I still play} 4... a6 {, now and then,  but I was in a solid mood that day.}) 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Bd3 Nc6 7. e5 dxe5 8. fxe5  Nh5 9. Be3 Bg4 10. Be2 f6 11. d5 $5 ({The main line goes} 11. exf6 exf6 12. Qd2  Ne7 {, when White has to decide which way to castle.}) 11... Nxe5 ({This was a  decision driven by the fact that the alternative did not attract me. I felt  that} 11... Bxf3 12. Bxf3 Nxe5 13. Bxh5 gxh5 14. Qxh5 {, followed by 0-0-0,  would just be better for White.}) 12. Nxe5 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 fxe5 14. O-O-O {So  far it is pretty forced.} Qd7 ({In case you evaluate 15.Qb5 in the game as  better for White (as the engine does at first), then} 14... a6 {makes sense.  However, I belive 15.Qb5 is nothing to worry about.}) 15. Qc4 ({On} 15. Qb5 {  I was planning} Qg4 (15... Qxb5 $5 16. Nxb5 Rfc8 17. Nxa7 Rxa7 18. Bxa7 b6 19.  Rd3 Nf4 {is far from clear.}) 16. Qxb7 {and I had not decided whether to play}  Rab8 ({or} 16... Qxg2 {It seemed to me that one of these moves must be okay  for me.})) 15... Kh8 16. g4 $5 {This came as a total surprise. I only  considered ideas where White tries to keep the knight away from f4.} ({After}  16. g3 {my plan was to continue like in the game:} Nf6 17. Rhe1 Ne8 18. Qe2 Nd6  19. Kb1 Rae8 {and Black is doing fine.}) 16... Nf6 ({I did not like the fact  that White will be able to install his knight on e4 after} 16... Nf4 17. Rhg1 {  Still, this line is maybe better than the one I chose.}) 17. h3 Ne8 $1 {This  knight "belongs" on d6.} 18. h4 Nd6 19. Qe2 h6 20. Bf2 $6 {Both me and my  opponent considered this to be unsatisfactory.} ({For a moment I worried about  } 20. Bxh6 Bxh6+ 21. g5 Bg7 22. h5 {I had a feeling that I would survive this,  but it was not clear to me exactly how. Houdini considers} Qf5 23. hxg6+ Kg8  24. Qh5 Qf4+ 25. Kb1 Rf5 $19 {to be completely winning for Black, but this was  far from easy to evaluate during the game.}) ({There is something to be said  for} 20. Kb1 {, renewing the threat of Bxh6 (since the g5-pawn does not fall  with a check). I would probably have played} Kg8 {when} (20... Rad8 {is better  according to H. since} 21. Bxh6 Bxh6 22. g5 Bg7 23. h5 Kg8 24. hxg6 Rf5 {still  defends}) 21. Qg2 Rad8 {leads to an unclear game.}) 20... Rf4 $6 {This move  has the advantage of leading to a position that is easy to understand (and  defend). At this stage I was still quite happy with a draw and tried to steer  the game towards positions where I felt comfortable, rather than trying to  find some kind of advantage.} ({With a more aggressive mindset I might have  gone for} 20... b5 $1 {, forcing Nc3 to explain it self.}) 21. Bg3 Rxg4 22.  Bxe5 Rf8 {So, all my pieces are active and I still have an extra pawn. My  kingside is in fact quite solid, since there is no way to attack the pawns  without trading more pieces.} 23. Rde1 Bxe5 ({The engine prefers} 23... h5 {,  when the h4-pawn will become very weak in the endgame. Also, it is easier for  the rook to defend g6 than it is to defend h6, after the exchange of h4-h5 for  g6-g5.}) 24. Qxe5+ Kg8 25. h5 ({The endgame after} 25. Qxe7 Qxe7 26. Rxe7 Rf7 {  is very unpleasant for White. Partly due to the weak h-pawn, and partly  because Black is much better coordinated.}) 25... g5 26. Rhf1 Rgf4 27. Rg1 ({  It is better to play} 27. Rxf4 Rxf4 28. b3 {although Black has a clear  advantage here after} Qh3 $1) 27... Qf5 $1 28. Qxe7 $5 {Oh, you could take  that one?! I had not calculated very far and was not sure whether I would have  to force a draw or not.} Re8 29. Qxc7 {During the game I was very relieved to  see this. Instead} (29. Qxe8+ Nxe8 30. Rxe8+ Kf7 31. Rge1 {was the line I  expected, when I had seen that} Rf1 {is at least a draw. The question is if I  would have gone for the stronger line? I do not know.} ({The stronger line goes  } 31... Qd7 $1 32. Rh8 Qd6 {when Black is winning.})) 29... Rf2 {Now I thought  I would win easily, but that turns out to be an overstatement.} 30. Nd1 $1 Rc8  31. Qxc8+ Nxc8 32. Nxf2 Qxf2 ({The engine prefers} 32... Qf4+ 33. Kb1 Qxf2 34.  Rgf1 Qg2 {,when the circumstances seem to favour Black.}) 33. Rgf1 Qc5 34. Re6  $2 ({Here} 34. Rf6 $1 {would have given White excellent chances to survive.  After} Qxd5 35. Re8+ Kg7 36. Rg6+ Kf7 37. Rxc8 Qh1+ 38. Kd2 Qxh5 39. Rgg8 Qh2+  40. Kc3 Qd6 {Black should win, but it ain't over yet.}) 34... Nd6 $1 35. b3 ({  Neither does it help White to play} 35. c3 $5 {due to} g4 $1 {, when White can  win the g-pawn, but then d5 will fall, followed by h5.}) 35... Qd4 $1 ({  Obviously not} 35... Qxd5 $2 36. Rg6+ Kh7 37. Rd1 {when only White can be  better.}) 36. Kb1 Qxd5 37. Rxh6 Ne4 38. Rg6+ Kh7 39. Re1 $1 Qe5 40. Rxe4 Qxe4  41. Rxg5 {I believe this position should be won for Black.} Kh6 42. Rb5 a6 43.  Rc5 b6 44. Rc4 Qe1+ 45. Kb2 Qe5+ 46. Kb1 Kxh5 47. a4 b5 $6 48. axb5 axb5 49.  Rc8 Kg4 $1 (49... b4 $5 50. Rg8 {and although it is complicated, Black can  drive the rook away from the g-file and thereby slowly walk with the king to  the center:} Qd5 51. Rg1 Qd2 52. Rg8 Qd1+ 53. Kb2 Qd5) 50. Rd8 Kf3 $4 ({It is  absolutely necessary to play} 50... b4 $1 {here, in order to keep winning  chances. I immediately realized that there was a possibility that I had  bungled it. However, I had too little time to really make sure this was the  case.}) 51. Rd3+ Ke2 52. Rd8 $4 ({I believe that} 52. b4 $1 {holds a draw.  During the game I realized this, but I was not sure that White would draw if I  got the b-pawn. Indeed, Black can win if the b-pawn goes, but I do not believe  that is the case here...} Qe4 53. Rb3 {and it seems there is no "zugzwang"  that can break the "festung" :)}) 52... Qf5 $6 53. Rd6 $6 ({After} 53. b4 Qe4  54. Rd3 Qxb4+ 55. Ka2 {and Black will have to fight very hard to win. The  winning plan is to play b4 and Qc3 at the right moment. According to the  engine Black gives mate in 43 (!) moves with} (55. Rb3 $4 Qxb3+ 56. cxb3 b4 $19  ) 55... Qc4+ 56. Kb1 $1 (56. Kb2 b4 57. Rh3 Qd4+ 58. Kb1 Qe5 59. Rb3 Qc3 {  illustrates the winning idea.}) 56... b4 57. Kb2 Qc8 58. Kb3 Qc5 59. Kb2 Qc4  60. Rh3 Qd4+ 61. Kb3 Qd5+ 62. Kxb4 Qd6+ {and White can choose between losing  the pawn and losing the rook.}) 53... b4 {Now I believe the position to be  winning again. The point is that I will win the pawn endgames if I get to  exchange my queen for rook and pawn on d3. Without the b3-pawn, this would not  be possible. This is the reason why White should have sacrificed the b-pawn  when he had the chance.} 54. Rh6 ({After} 54. Rc6 Qe5 55. Rc4 (55. Rc8 Qd6 56.  Rc4 Kd2 57. Rh4 Qe5 {leads to the main line.}) 55... Kd2 56. Rxb4 Qe1+ 57. Ka2  Kc1 58. Ka3 Qe7 59. Ka4 Kxc2 {Black is winning without too much problem.})  54... Qe5 55. Rh3 Qd6 {My opponent was rather short on time and defended very  well. I had about a quarter of an hour to spend and could not find anything  decisive. The winning technique seems to be quite difficult.} 56. Rh7 $1 {  White keeps my queen away from c7.} (56. Rh1 $2 Qc7 $1 {and Black wins with  Kd2.}) 56... Kd2 57. Rh3 Ke2 58. Rh7 Qc6 59. Rh3 Qe4 60. Rh8 Qf5 61. Rh6 Qf1+  62. Kb2 Qf4 63. Rh7 Qd6 $2 (63... Qf5 64. Rh2+ Ke3 {would have led to the same  position that arose after 79...Ke3.}) 64. Kb1 Qd1+ 65. Kb2 Qd4+ 66. Kb1 Qe4 67.  Rh8 Qe7 68. Rh2+ Ke3 69. Rh3+ {I was getting low on time and decided to play a  few moves and just keep the game going; to start over.} Ke4 70. Rh1 Qf6 71.  Re1+ Kd4 72. Rd1+ Ke3 73. Rd3+ Ke2 74. Rd7 Qf5 75. Rd6 {This is the same  position as on move 53, but with Black to move. Now I decided that it would  probably be a good idea to lure the white king to a more vulnerable square,  before playing Qf8...} Qf1+ $1 76. Kb2 Qf8 77. Rd7 (77. Rc6 $2 Qh8+ {and Black  wins with a check on either a8 or h1! Nice symmetry.}) (77. Rg6 $5 Qh8+ 78. Kb1  Qh1+ 79. Kb2 Qd5 80. Rg4 Kd2 81. Rxb4 Qe5+ 82. Kb1 Qe1+ 83. Ka2 Kc1 {wins in a  similar manner to the line given om move 54.}) (77. Rd3 Qf5 {and there is  nowhere the rook can go:} 78. Rd8 (78. Rd6 Qe5+) (78. Rg3 Qe5+) (78. Kb1 Qxd3)  78... Qf6+) 77... Qc8 ({After the game, my opponent pointed out to me that}  77... Qf5 $1 {forces a win since he can no longer keep the king away from d2:}  78. Rb7 (78. Rd3 Qxd3) (78. Rd8 Qf6+) (78. Rd6 Qe5+) (78. Rc7 Qe5+) 78... Kd2  $19) 78. Rh7 Qf5 79. Rh2+ Ke3 80. Kb1 $2 (80. Kc1 $1 Qf4 81. Rh7 Qf1+ 82. Kb2  Qf5 {and Black wins.}) 80... Qg4 {This move means that my king will get to c3,  which equals game over.} 81. Rh1 (81. Kb2 Qg7+ 82. Ka2 Qg3 83. Rh1 Kd2 84. Kb1  Kc3 85. Rd1 Qg6 $19) 81... Kd2 82. Rh2+ Kc3 83. Rh1 Qg2 {and White resigned.}  0-1   

   [Event "Sants 2013"]  [Site "Barcelona"]  [Date "2013.08.27"]  [Round "5"]  [White "Iturrizaga, Eduardo"]  [Black "Munoz Pantoja, Miguel"]  [Result "1-0"]  [ECO "A43"]  [WhiteElo "2550"]  [BlackElo "2455"]  [PlyCount "69"]  [EventDate "2013.??.??"]  [SourceDate "2011.03.24"]   1. d4 c5 2. d5 Nf6 ({If you intend to play e5, then there is a strong argument  for doing it now. With the knight on it's original square Black is more  flexible and Bf8 will have two alternative routes in order to be exchanged for  Bc1 (e7-g5 and h6).} 2... e5 3. e4 d6 {and now} 4. Bb5+ {is a wise check,  intending either} Nd7 ({or} 4... Bd7 5. a4 {when it becomes quite tricky for  Black to arrange the queenside in a satisfying manner.}) 5. a4 Be7 6. Nf3 {,  when there is no Bg4 (followed by Bxf3 and Bg5)}) 3. Nc3 d6 4. e4 e5 {This is  generally only played after White is committed to c2-c4. The reason is that  without a pawn on c4 a white knight there will become almost too strong.} 5.  Nf3 Bg4 $6 {It is not a bad idea to exchange the white squares bishop for a  knight if you are able to exchange the dark squared bishops in the process.  Black is generally happy to play with two knights against knight and bishop  (preferably white squared).} 6. Be2 Bxf3 7. Bxf3 {The downside of this  exchange is that Black becomes completely passive since the two possible  sources of counterplay - b5 and f5 - both become almost impossible to achieve  under favourable circumstances when there is no counterpart to Bf3.} Be7 $2 ({  The principled move here is} 7... g6 $1 {intending h5 and Bf8-h6. After} 8. g3  {Black gets a decent - though still worse - position with} (8. a4 h5 9. b3 $1 {  I like this better.} Bh6 10. Bb2 {and White has a small but clear advantage.})  8... h5 9. a4 Bh6 10. Bxh6 Rxh6 {Instead of 8.g3 I would try the line with 8.  a4.}) 8. g3 {A calm move that fulfills more than one purpose. Firstly, it means  that Nf6-somewhere, can be met with h4, avoiding the exchange of the dark  squared bishops. Secondly, it aims to keep protecting the e4-pawn with the  bishop, in order to give the knight the freedom to find a better purpose. And,  thirdly, the bishop will eventually be very well placed on h3.} O-O (8... h5 9.  h4 $1 {and Black gets nowhere.}) 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Bg2 {I find this position  quite horrible for Black and it seems truly mysterious why one would like to  play like this against Iturrizaga.} ({However, the mystery becomes even bigger  when you consider that Munoz Pantoja has played this position once  before! I know; some say that the best way to win a game is to get into a  worse position. But this position!?!} 10. a4 Qa5 11. Bd2 a6 12. b3 $6 (12. Bg2  {would lead to our main game and is clearly the stronger move.}) 12... c4 $1  13. Rb1 cxb3 14. cxb3 {Now White is better, but Black is no longer forced to  handle a losing pawn structure.} Rac8 15. b4 Qd8 16. a5 Ne8 17. Be2 (17. h4 $1)  17... Bg5 18. Be1 g6 19. Na4 f5 20. b5 Ra8 21. bxa6 bxa6 22. Nb6 {and White  went on to win in Grigoryan,K (2550)-Munoz Pantoja,M (2455)/XV Sant Marti Open  A 2013.}) 10... a6 11. a4 {Now a4-a5 is a positional threat that will turn the  black queenside into a sitting duck.} Qa5 $6 {This superficially active move  only makes matters worse. Still, from a human point of view, it might be the best  practical move; trying to stir things up a bit.} ({The slow} 11... b6 {  intending to play on the kingside, does not work.} 12. Qe2 g6 13. Bd2 Kh8 14.  Nb1 Ng8 15. Na3 f5 16. exf5 gxf5 17. Nc4 {In this kind of pawn structure Black  generally comes to regret not having a white squared bishop. The reason can be  seen after:} Ngf6 18. f4 e4 19. Bc3 b5 20. Ba5 Qe8 21. Ne3 {when Black cannot  hold the f-pawn.}) 12. Bd2 $1 {The main point here is that Black sooner or  later must move the queen and at that point White will himself play a4-a5,  when the Black pawn-structure will become crippled.} c4 $5 {This is definitely  the right thing to do here. Black is positionally bankrupt, but maybe he can  get enough activity with Be7-d8-b6 and Nd7-c5, to compensate for everything  else?! No, not against Iturrizaga...} 13. Qe2 $1 Rfc8 ({Black does not get  anywhere with} 13... Qb4 14. Rfb1 $1) ({and} 13... Qc5 14. a5 {is similar to  the game.}) 14. Nd1 $1 {Very instructive. The knight is not doing anything on  c3, so Iturrizaga leads it towards a more promising future on e3 (from where  it attacks the c4-pawn and threatens to jump to f5).} Qc5 15. a5 $1 {This is a  very important move. Without it White would not be able to claim any advantage  at all. Now the Black queenside is bound to fall into further disarray.} Bd8 (  15... Rab8 16. Ne3 Qb5 17. Rfb1 g6 18. f3 {freeing Bg2 from the protection of  e4} Bf8 19. b3 {and Black's best:} c3 20. Qxb5 axb5 21. Be1 Bh6 22. Bf2 {just  is not god enough. b4 and Bf1 is coming next.}) 16. Ra4 $6 ({It was more exact  to play} 16. Ne3) 16... b5 ({Here Black could have played} 16... Qb5 $1 17. Ra2  (17. Rb4 Qxa5 18. Rxb7 Qa4 19. Bb4 Nc5 20. Nc3 Qe8 21. Bxc5 Rxc5 22. Rb4 $14)  17... Nc5 18. f3 b6 19. axb6 Bxb6 20. Kh1 Na4 {with better chances than in the  game.}) 17. axb6 Nxb6 18. Ra5 Qc7 19. Ne3 g6 20. Bb4 {This is exactly what  Black should not have allowed to happen. At the same time; after move 7...Be7,  this is one logical continuation. Black has to play in a desperate manner and  if White keeps cool, then Black will be busted.} Rcb8 21. c3 Be7 22. Rfa1 Qc8 {  Only one White piece that does not participate in the game. How to bring it  into the game?} 23. f3 $1 Ra7 24. Bf1 {The pawns are falling. The rest is  simple.} Rc7 25. Rxa6 Ne8 26. Qf2 Rcb7 27. Qe2 Rc7 28. Ra7 Rbb7 29. Rxb7 Qxb7  30. Ba5 Nf6 31. Bxb6 Qxb6 32. Kh1 Nd7 33. Nxc4 Rxc4 34. Qxc4 Qxb2 35. Ra7 1-0   

   [Event "Open de Sants A"]  [Site "Barcelona"]  [Date "2013.08.26"]  [Round "4"]  [White "Bruzon Batista, Lázaro"]  [Black "Hillarp Persson, Tiger"]  [Result "1/2-1/2"]  [ECO "B12"]  [WhiteElo "2698"]  [BlackElo "2529"]  [Annotator "Tiger"]  [PlyCount "58"]  [EventType "tourn"]  [SourceDate "2011.03.24"]   1. e4 c6 {The Caro Kann is not exactly my main defence against 1.e4. However I have played it five times during the last twenty years, so I'm not a complete beginner. ;) } 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 {Andreikin's handling of this variation in the World Cup has inspired me.} 4. Ne2 {I was not prepared for this. Time to think.  The first move seems rather obvious:} Nc6 5. c3 {...but now I took my time. I  do not want to play 5...e6 as that would land me in a French Defence Advance  variation, where I have wasted an important tempo with my c-pawn (although Ne2  is not perfectly placed either). Then I started thinking about alternatives  and in the end I decided on a move that I believed could not hurt me.} g6 $5 {  I am extremely surprised to find that this has only been played once before.} (  {I also thought about} 5... Bf5 6. dxc5 e6 7. b4 {when I did not like the  position of the bishop on f5 as White will be able to play Nd4 and attack it.  Still this is one of the main lines.}) (5... a6 {is another move that I  considered before deciding on 5...g6. It is not too bad, but I was not too  sure how I would continue if White just played something non-committal.}) 6. Nf4  $1 {After my last move I took a short walk around the playing hall and when I  came back I immediately realized that this is the best move for White. For one  thing; 6...f6 can be met with the annoying 7.Bb5. As I stared pondering the  consequences of this, my opponent moved.} ({Another standard idea in these  lines} 6. dxc5 {doesn't work at all here as} Nxe5 7. Nd4 a6 8. Bf4 Bg7 {is  very nice for Black. The g6-move turns out to be of great use.}) ({In the  other game where 5...g6 was played; Vachier Lagrave - J.Degraeve, Nimes 2009,  White tried a similar plan to our game:} 6. h4 h5 7. Nf4 {Apart from  sacrifice hovering over g6 in the future I do not see that the insertion of h4  and h5 favors White. Rather; the h4-pawn might turn out to be weak.} e6 8. Bd3  {I find this to be a bit speculative, but as the author of this move is  currently in the World Cup semifinals, I'd better keep my criticism to a  minimum.} (8. Bb5 Bd7 9. Bxc6 Bxc6 {and White will have to do something about  the h4-pawn before castling short.}) 8... Qb6 (8... Nge7 9. Be3 Bg7 10. Na3 a6  11. O-O O-O 12. Nc2 c4 13. Be2 Nf5 14. g3 b5 15. Bd2 Rb8 $13) 9. O-O Bd7 (9...  cxd4 $1 {and it hard to believe in the White position...} 10. cxd4 Qxd4 11. Nc3  a6 12. Re1 Nge7 {Houdini supports my conclusion that this is good for Black.  Not to everybody's taste though.}) 10. Re1 (10. dxc5 $5) 10... a6 {I'll show  the game in it's entirety because Vachier Lagrave makes a great show of it:}  11. Nd2 cxd4 12. c4 $1 {Suddenly the Black pieces are in the wrong places. Try  to find a decent move for Black!} dxc4 13. Nxc4 Qc7 $2 (13... Qa7) 14. Nd5 $3  Qb8 (14... exd5 15. Nd6+ Ke7 16. Bg5+ f6 17. exf6+ Kxd6 18. Bf4+ $18) 15. Ndb6  Ra7 16. Bg5 Nh6 17. Qf3 Rh7 18. Rad1 Ng4 19. Qf4 Bc5 20. f3 Ne3 {and black  resigned. One way to win is:} 21. Rxe3 dxe3 22. Be2 Bc8 23. Nd6+ Bxd6 24. exd6  Bd7 25. Qxe3 {when every single black piece is passive.}) 6... e6 $5 {White is  considering dxc5 and my bishop on c8 cannot get on the outside of the pawn  chain (6...Bf5 7.g4!). Also the knight is not optimal on f4, so I thought it  was time to play the "French" move.} (6... Bg7 {can also be considered, but  maybe - like in the game - I prefer to have the c5-pawn protected in the near  future.}) 7. Bb5 $1 {White has to do something about the pressure against d4.}  Bd7 $1 {during the game I thought this to be virtually the only move for Black,  as the pawn structure after Bxc6 - bxc6 would be very awkward for me. It is  not easy to prove though:} (7... a6 $5 {This is worse than some of the  alternatives, but it illustrates the difficulties.} 8. Bxc6+ bxc6 9. O-O a5 $1  10. Nd3 Ba6 11. Re1 cxd4 12. cxd4 Qb6 (12... Nh6 13. Bxh6 Bxh6 14. Nc5 O-O 15.  Nc3 {and the knights dominate the bishops, while the weak c6-pawn will come  back and haunt Black later.}) 13. Be3 Qb5 14. Nc5 Qxb2 15. Nxa6 Rxa6 16. Nd2 {  and White till follow up with Rb1 and Qa4, with a strong initiative.}) 8. Bxc6  Bxc6 9. dxc5 $1 Bxc5 10. O-O h5 $5 {This might be a bit too much, but I did  not like} (10... Ne7 11. Nd3 Bb6 12. Bg5 {when it seems to me that my king  will soon be in trouble.}) 11. b4 Bb6 $6 {This is somewhat counter intuitive,  considering that I have built a perfect little nest for the bishop on g7. I  was carried away by the narrative: "my two strong bishops are calibrated  towards the White king".} ({After} 11... Bf8 12. a4 a6 13. Be3 Bg7 14. Bd4 Ne7  15. Nd2 Nf5 16. Nf3 O-O {the position is beyond exact evaluation.}) 12. a4 Nh6  13. Nd2 Nf5 ({I spent some time evaluating} 13... Ng4 14. Nf3 d4 {, but  decided that} 15. a5 $1 Bc7 16. cxd4 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Nh6 18. Qa4+ Kf8 19. Be3 {  is clearly worse for me.}) ({and} 13... a6 $5 {seemed to slow, as} 14. Nf3 Nf5  15. Ne2 {, intending Bg5 and Ned4, makes me wish I had gone with the bishop to  the kingside.}) 14. Nf3 ({Here I feared the consequences of} 14. b5 $1 Bd7 15.  c4 $1 Bd4 $1 16. Ra3 Bxe5 17. Nf3 {I had not decided how to continue here, but  it seems that Black is very close to equality after} Bxf4 18. Bxf4 O-O 19. cxd5  a6 {Still, there is plenty of play left.}) 14... g5 $5 {Played after a long  thought. I came to the conclusion that the alternatives were no better and  more passive:} (14... d4 15. c4 $1 (15. a5 Bc7 16. Nxd4 (16. cxd4 Bxf3 17. Qxf3  Qxd4 {is fine for Black.}) 16... Bxe5 17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Qc2 {is unclear.})  15... g5 16. Nd3 g4 17. Ng5 {and Black has walked into a tactical dead end,  where the road behind is falling apart.} Nh4 18. f3 $1 {No, I did not see this  during the game, but it proves my evaluation to be correct.} Rg8 19. Nh7 gxf3  20. g3 Rg6 21. b5 Be4 22. Bg5 $1 Rxg5 23. Nf6+ Kf8 24. Nxe4 Rg7 25. Nf6 Rc8 26.  Kh1 {and as the last active Black piece has to retreat, the Black position  becomes hopeless.}) ({Maybe the best was} 14... a6 $1 15. Ne2 O-O 16. Bg5 Qd7  17. Ned4 Nxd4 18. cxd4 $14) {Considering the lack of good moves for Black here,  I believe an improvement has to be looked for on move 11.} 15. b5 $1 ({Somehow  I managed to miss that} 15. Nd3 d4 16. c4 g4 17. Ng5 {leads to the same  position as 14...d4.}) 15... gxf4 16. bxc6 bxc6 17. a5 $6 ({Here} 17. Bxf4 Rg8  18. Kh1 $1 Rg4 19. Qc1 $1 Bc5 20. h3 Rg7 21. Bg5 {leads to a small, but clear,  advantage for White.}) 17... Bxa5 $1 18. Qa4 Bb6 19. Qxc6+ Kf8 20. Qa4 Rc8 21.  Ba3+ $6 {My opponent is getting into time trouble and plays another inexact  move.} Kg7 22. Qxf4 Rxc3 ({Another way to a nice advantage for me is} 22... Rc4  23. Qd2 Rh6 24. Rab1 Rg6 25. Kh1 Qc7 {, but I felt materialistic and grabbed  the pawn.}) 23. Rfc1 Rxc1+ ({I considered} 23... Re3 $5 {but failed to see how  to continue after} 24. Bc5 Re4 25. Qd2 Bxc5 26. Rxc5 {Even here Black is a bit  better after} Nh4 27. Nxh4 Qxh4 28. Rc7 a5 $1) 24. Rxc1 {Now g2-g4 seems like  a threat.} Rh6 $1 25. h4 Rg6 26. Ng5 Qd7 27. Qb4 Qd8 $6 ({I was down to a few  minutes on the clock and was too happy with a repetition to consider:} 27... Qe8 $1 28. Rb1  (28. Qf4 Bd8) 28... Bd8 29. Bc1 Be7 30. Qf4 a5 {which would have kept some  winning chances.}) 28. Qf4 Qd7 29. Qb4 Qd8 {Draw by repetition.} 1/2-1/2