White can answer this move with 6 0-0, 6 lLlbd2 or 6 1Wa4. I recom mend 6 1Wa4, aiming to tidy up in the centre by activating the queen, after which White can play to disrupt his opponent's development and gener ate some pressure on the queenside. The Catalan bishop also has an im portant role to play.
Game 9 Monin-Vul Kecskemet 1992 1 d4 d5 2 c4 e6 3 g3 lLlf6 4 .i.g2 dxc4 5 lLlr3 5 lbbd7 6 1i'a4 (D) 6 ... a6
The most appropriate reply, fight ing for territory on the queenside and testing the efficacy of White's game plan in this area of the board.
a) The main alternative is 6 .. ..te7, which is perfectly playable but does
not address the more pressing mat ters on the queenside. White can ex ploit his opponent's 'wasted' tempo on the other flank to prevent the ... b7-b5 advance - 7 1i'xc4 0-0 8 0-0 and now:
a1) After 8 .• .a6 White has 9
1i'c2!, allowing him to meet 9 •.• b5
with 10 ltle5.
al l ) 9 ... :a7 was played in the
game Nikolaevsky-Anikaev, Mos cow 1972, which saw Black go to great lengths to push his b-pawn. However, 10 :d1 b6 l l lbe5 lLlb8 12 lLlc3 lLlfd7 13 lLlc4 b5 14 lLld2 .i.b7 15 e4 c5 16 d5 gave White the better game.
a12) 9 .•• c5 makes more sense,
e.g. 10 :d1 :a? 1 1 lLlc3 b5 12 a4 b4
13 lbe5 ! lbxe5 14 dxe5 lbd7 15 lbe4 and White's space advantage is sig nificant, Larsen-Prins, Moscow OL
1956.
a2) The immediate 8 ••• c5 is oc
thematic response, bringing the rook to the d-file now that an exchange of the centre pawns is practically inevi table. 9 ... 'ii'b6 (9 ... a6 10 'ifc2 leads us back to 'a2', and 9 ... cxd4 does not help, for example 10 lllxd4 1Wb6 1 1 lllc3 1Wb4 1 2 1Wxb4 �xb4 13 llla4, when Black is still not worry-free in a cramped queenless middlegame) 10 lllc3 a6 1 1 e4 cxd4 12 lllxd4 llle5 1 3 1We2 �d7 14 lllb3 .:.fd8 15 �e3 1Wc7 16 .:.ac 1, etc., Gr0nn-H.Hunt, Gausdal 1992.
a3) 8 ... .:.b8 supports the ... b7-b5 thrust while simultaneously taking the rook off the long diagonal. Of course White should remain as un compromising as possible. Thus 9 lllc3 a6 10 a4 ! is very good for White, as Black will have difficulties completing his development and the rook may be just as poorly placed on the h2-b8 diagonal if Black wants to push his c-pawn at some stage.
b) With 6 ••. c6 Black surrenders
the queenside in order to concentrate on freeing himself with ... e6-e5. There is no need for White to try to prevent this: after 7 1Wxc4 �d6 (7 ... e5? fails to 8 dxe5 lllxe5 9 lllxe5 'ifa5+ 10 lllc3 'ifxe5 1 1 �xc6+) 8 0-0 e5, 9 lllc3 0-0 10 .:.d1 'ile7 1 1 'ii'b3 exd4 12 lllxd4 is one route to advan tage for White, while 9 'ii'c2 \i'e7 10 lllc3 0-0 1 1 .:.d1 h6 12 e4 .:.e8 13 h3 a5 14 i.e3 is another.
7 'ifxc4 bS 8 'ii'c6
Certainly the most uncompromis ing reply to the attack on the 'queen. Retreating to any of the other three squares makes life considerably
Open Catalan: 5 ... l'iJbd7 79 easier for Black, who then has no problems with the thematic ... c7-c5 thrust. With the text White stub bornly blockades the c-pawn with his busy queen and puts the question to Black's rook.
8 ... .:.bs 8 ... .:.a7 is seen far less frequently, but with best play White must settle for just a slight edge. The point is that 9 �f4 can be met with 9 ... �b7, when it is not possible for White to capture on c7 as 10 'ifxc7? loses a piece to 10 ... 'ilxc7 1 1 �xc7 �xf3. Instead the queen must retreat, when 10 ... c5 gives Black an easy game. White does better with the immedi ate 9 'ifc2 (or 9 0-0 �b7 10 'ifc2) 9 ... �b7 10 0-0, content with the fact that the rook is rather awkwardly placed on a7. After 10 ... c5 11 a4! (D)
Black has three ways to deal with the pressure on the a-file:
a) ll ... 'ifa8 12 axb5 axb5 13
.:.xa7 'ifxa7 14 llla3 favours White, who can still chip away at Black's queenside ( ... b5-b4 hands over the useful c4-square).
b) Against ll ... 'ifb6 White can transpose to 'a' with 12 axbS axb5
80 Open Catalan: 5 . ..liJbd7 13 l:lxa7, or try instead Neishtadt's 12 .t.eJ, lining up on the enemy queen and rook. After 12 ... lLld5 13 dxc5 !, the natural 13 ••• lLlxe3? begins
a series of exchanges from which White emerges with a won position: 14 cxb6! lLlxc2 1 5 bxa7 lLlxa1 16 lbe5 ! .t.xg2 17 �xg2 lLlb6 18 a5 lba8
1 9 l:lc1 !, etc. This leaves 13 ... .t.xc5 14 .t.xc5 lLlxc5 ( 14 ... 'ifxc5? 15 'ifxc5 lLlxc5 16 axb5, etc.) with a slight pull for White.
c) In S.Garcia-Sveshnikov, Sochi 1 974, Black hit the queen before advancing the b-pawn: ll ... .t.e4 12 "ii'd1 b4 13 dxc5 "ii'a8 (13 ... .t.xc5 im proves, when 14 lLlbd2 followed by attacking the other bishop with lbd2- b3 seems like White's best chance of retaining an edge) 14 .t.g5 .t.xc5 15 lbbd2 .t.d5 16 l:lcl . Black, still play ing without his king's rook, contin ues to strive for equality, but the game took a turn for the worse for Black after 16 ... lbe4? (16 ... l:tc7) 17 lLlxe4 .t.xe4 1 8 l:lxc5 ! lLlxc5 19 "ii'd6 lLlb3 20 l:ld1 f6 21 .t.e3 l:le7 22 .t.b6 �f7 23 'ii'xb4. Also bad for Black is the ostensibly safe 16 ... .t.e7, which invites 17 e4!, e.g. 17 ... lbxe4 18 lLlxe4 ..txe4 1 9 ..txe7 �xe7 20 'ifd4! and White is clearly better, or 17 ... ..tc6 (17 ... ..tb7 1 8 ..te3 leaves Black re gretting putting the rook on a7) 18 'ilfc2 (18 ... :C7 19 lbd4 t0b8 20 ..tf4). Returning to the main game, 8 ... l:lb8 simply feels like the correct move. However, even on b8 the rook is not completely out of harm's way.
9 ..tf4!
Again White inconveniences his opponent, this time by attacking the
c-pawn and therefore forcing some kind of concession from Black. The lifeless 9 0-0 merely transposes to a position which is thought to be ac
ceptable to Black after 9 ... ..tb7 10 'iWc2 c5. In J.Benjamin-A.V.Ivanov, New York 1994, White tried 9 ..tgS, and the brief flurry 9 ... ..tb7 10 ..txf6 ..tb4+ 1 1 t0bd2 'ifxf6 12 'ilfxc7 ..txf3 was followed by the players splitting the point.
9 ... lbds
Forced.
10 ..tgS ..te7 Practically forced, as 10 ... tl\e7 obstructs the f8-bishop and 10 ... lLlf6 loses a whole tempo.
11 ..txe7
White is happy to make this ex change, which removes a potentially useful defender and diverts the black queen from the defence of the c pawn - a factor which will soon be significant.
11 ... "ii'xe7 (D)
l l ... lbxe7 12 'ilfc2 still leaves Black with problems on the queen side because he has no time for ... c7- c5 and White will soon clamp down on the c5-square with lLlb1-d2-b3 .
12 W!?
A theoretical novelty aimed to im prove upon 12 0-0, which tends to lead to an ending in which White's winning chances are minimal and Black can look forward to no more than a draw. Nevertheless, such a continuation will appeal to fans of those Catalan endings which feature symmetrical pawn structures. More over, Serper's spoiler (see the note to 12 ... lbb4) may well take the sting out of 12 tLlc3 !?, so the tried and tested 1 2 0-0 could eventually prove to be the best move after all. After 12 ... .i.b7 13 W"c2 cS 14 dxcS (D) we have:
a) 14 .•• 1i'xc5 was seen in Abra
movic-Marjanovic, Yugoslav Ch 1994, which went 15 1i'xc5 tLlxc5 16 :Cl l:.c8 17 tLlel ! with a slight edge to White thanks to the pin on the hi aS diagonal. After 17 ... �e7 18 tLld2 l:.hd8 1 9 tLle4 tLlxe4 20 l:.xc8 l:.xc8 21 .i.xe4 f5?! 22 .i.g2 a5 23 f4 l:.c7 24 �f2 h6 25 a3 g5 26 lbd3 Black's self-inflicted weakness on e5 had made matters worse.
b) Black can also elect to wait be fore recapturing on c5, improving
Open Catalan: 5 ... tLlbd7 81
the position of his rook frrst with 14 •• Jtc8. This was frrst seen in An
dersson-Sunye Neto, Brazil 1981. b1) The game continued 15 liJbd2 tLlxc5 16 l:.fc1 (the alternative 16 l:.ac1 makes sense), when the po sition was already equal according to Kovaeevic. After 16 ... 0-0 17 tLle1 l:.fd8 18 'lllb1 Black could have played 18 ... tLle3 1 9 ..ixb7 'lllxb7 20 liJdf3 tLlg4 with a slight edge. In stead there followed 18 •• .l:.c7 1 9
tLle4 l:.dc8 20 tLlxc5 l:.xc5 21 l:.xc5 l:.xc5 with an even game. However, Black then made the mistake of as suming that exchanges would auto matically lead to a draw, only to be taught an unpleasant lesson by the king of endings.
b2) Twelve years after the above game White managed to breathe new life into the variation in Abramovic Vujo�evic, Yugoslavia 1993, when he produced 15 b4!?, an interesting new move which certainly kept Black on his toes: 15 ... tLlxb4 (the tempting 15 ... 'lllf6 runs into 16 tLlbd2 tLlxb4 17 'lllb3 00 1 8 lbe4) 16 1i'b2 lbd5 17 "ikxg7 'lllf6 18 1i'xf6 lbsxf6! 19 a4! l:.xc5 (19 ... b4 20 lLlbd2, when 20 ... tLlxc5 21 a5 ! and 20 ... l:.xc5 21 l:.fbl a5 22 tLlb3 are both clearly bet ter for White) 20 axb5 axb5 21 tLlbd2 0-0! 22 l:.fbl ..ixf3 23 ..ixf3 tLle5 24 .i.g2 l:.b8 and Black must still be careful. White now quickened the pace with 25 liJb3 l:.c4 26 tLla5 l:.c2 27 f4 lbc4 28 lbc6 l:.b6 29 l0d4 l:.d2 30 tLlxb5 l:.xe2 31 ..ifl l:.e4 32 ..id3, but 32 ... llJd2! 33 l:.b2 tLlf3+ 34 �f2 lLlxh2 35 �g2 lLlhg4 36 .i.xe4 tLlxe4 just about kept Black's head above
82 Open Catalan: 5 .. . liJbd7
water, and a dozen moves later the game was drawn after White impa tiently tried to exploit his material lead too soon.
Monin's enterprising 12 llk3 in troduces some interesting possibili ties. White's entire strategy thus far has been to trouble his opponent's c pawn. By undermining its defence first with .tcl -f4-g5xe7 and now with a challenge on the d5-knight White intends to capture the pawn, when the queen on c7 will once again pressure Black's queen's rook.
12 ... ttlb4
The most tempting, interesting and consequently fashionable con tinuation. Still, White's last move 'closed' the c-file, permitting Black to avoid all the fun by forcing an ex change of queens with 12 ... .tb7 13 ti:lxd5 .txc6 14 ttlxe7 �xe7, offer ing good prospects of equality ac cording to Serper:
a) In his notes Vul gave 15 :et as slightly better for White, and at frrst glance White's continued pressure on the c-file does look uncomfort able for the second player. Later this assessment was put to the test in Gleizerov-Serper, Moscow 1992. After 15 ... :b6 16 0-0 (16 �d2 is fine for Black after both 16 ... :d8! followed by ... e6-e5, and 16 ... l:lc8 !? followed by 17 ... .txf3 18 .txf3 l::.d6 and ... c7-c5 - Serper) 16 ... :c8 17 ttlg5!? (clamping down on c5 with 1 7 b4 invites 17 ... a5 !? or 17 ... .td5 18 a3 a5 !) 17 ... .txg2 18 �xg2 l::.d6! 19 e3?! (19 l::.fd1 c5 is equal) 19 ... c5 20 dxc5 l::.d5 ! Black had a slight advantage which was eventually
converted. Instead of White's odd 17th move the more appropriate 17 lbd2 is worth investigating. The knight is aiming for b3, so 17 ... .txg2 18 �xg2 c5 is forced, when 19 dxc5 l::.xc5 20 ti:lb3 l::.xc 1 21 l::.xc 1 gives White a tiny edge in view of his slightly more active pieces.
b) 15 0-0 was tried in Wojt kiewicz-Kaidanov, New York 1993, the point being to bring the king's rook to c 1 in order to leave the other to support the a2-a4 advance. Then the thematic b2-b4 - which failed in 'a' - has more impact as White is ready to meet the undermining ... a6- a5 with b4xa5 followed by a2-a4. No doubt with this in mind, Kaidanov reacted immediately: 15 ... .txf3 16 .txf3 c5 17 dxc5 fuc5 18 :Cc1 l::.hc8 19 l::.c2 ti:ld7 20 l::.ac l ti:lb6. Now 21 l::.xc8 (21 l::.c7+ �d8 !) 21...l::.xc8 22 l::.xc8 ttlxc8 23 ..tb7 allowed White to grab a pawn in return for the bishop being trapped after 23 ... ttld6 24 ..txa6 �d7, etc. Six moves later a draw was agreed: 25 b3 �c6 26 a4 �b6 27 ..txb5 ttlxb5 28 axb5 �xb5 29 �g2 �b4 30 �f3 �xb3 1h-1h.
Incidentally 12 ... ttlxc3 1 3 1i'xc3
is clearly better for White in view of the weaknesses on c6 and c7.
13 "ii'xc7!
Far from obvious. White intends to follow up the coming sacrifice of a rook by bringing his knight to e5, ex erting pressure on the b8-rook and on Black's queenside in general. 13 "ii'e4 .tb7 14 'ifb1 achieves nothing more than equality.
13 ttlc2+ 14 �dl!
Believe it or not, 14 �d2? loses. After 14 ... li)xa1 15 lDe5 (15 :xal is too slow) 15 ••• 'ifb4! White is in trouble:
a) 16 li:lxd7 'ii'xb2+ 17 �d3 'ii'c2+ 18 �e3 i.xd7 19 'ii'xb8+ �e7 20 'ii'c7 (20 'ii'xh8 'ii'xc3+ 21 �f4 'ifxd4+) 2o ... :c8.
b) 16 �cl 0-0 17 ltlxd7 i.xd7 1 8 'i'xd7 :fd8 19 'i'a7 :bc8.
c) 16 liJc6 'i'xb2+ 17 �d3 'i'c2+ 18 �e3 'ifxc3+ 19 �f4 'ifd2+.
With the king on d 1 White de prives his opponent of ... 'if(e7- b4)xb2+.
14 ll:lxa1 15 lDes! (D)
Black has an extra rook in the dia gram position, but only one of the several moves available to him keeps him in the game.
15 ..• 'ii'd8!
Black's most accurate defence in volves setting himself up for two knight forks!
a) Now 15 ••. 'it'b4 loses on the
spot to 16 ltlc6, threatening both 17 'ifd8# and 17 ll:lxb4.
b) 15 •.• f6 16 ltlc6 and after the re
ply 16 ... 'iff8 (16 ... 'iff7 allows 17
Open Catalan: 5 . ..t'iJbd7 83 'ifd8#) Black's king must remain in the centre.
c) 15 .•. f5 16 li:lxd7 ! i.xd7 (or
1 6 ... 'ifxd7 17 i.c6) 17 'ifxb8+ 'ifd8 1 8 'ifxd8+ �xd8 19 �cl, etc.
d) 15 •.• b4 16 ll:le4 0-0 17 ltlc6
'ii'e8 ·t8 ltld6.
e) 15 ..• 0-0 16 ltlc6 'iff6 ( 16 ... 'ife8
1 7 ll:lxb8 b4 18 li:lxd7 bxc3 19 bxc3 with �d1 -d2 coming) 17 ltle4 'i'h6 1 8 li:lxb8.
f) 15 •.. li)xe5 16 'ifxb8 0-0 (if
16 ... 'i'd7 17 'ifxeS b4, then 18 �d2! bxc3+ 19 bxc3) 17 1i'xe5 b4 1 8 ltlds 1i'd7 1 9 �d2 ! with a clear ad van- tage.
16 'ifxd8+ �d8 17 lbc6+!
Sometimes it is better not to be presented with a couple of similar avenues from which to choose. In this case White has the made the cor rect decision in going for the queen's rook. Less accurate is 17 ltlxf7+?! �e7 1 8 ltlxh8, e.g. 18 ... b4 19 ltla4 b3 20 a3 ltlc2 21 e3 i.b7 22 i.xb7 :xb7 23 �d2 :c7 ! (preventing 24 �c3), and now White has a knight trapped in enemy territory.
17 ••• �c7
18 li)xbS �xb8 Two other moves have been played in high-level games:
a) Black ignored the invading knight altogether in Wojtkiewicz S.Ivanov, Slupsk 1992, but this was unnecessarily risky: 18 ••• li:lb6?! 19
ltlc6 i.b7 20 d5 i.xc6 21 dxc6 b4 22 lDe4 b3 23 ltlc5, and Black still faced difficulties liberating his knight - around which the rest of the game revolved. The way in which White
84 Open Catalan: 5 ... lC.bd7 refused to give his opponent even the slightest respite is worth further study. The game continued 23 .. .'iii>d6 24 lC.b7+ �c7 25 �d2 lC.c2 26 �c3 lC.d.s+ 27 .i.xd5 exd5 28 lC.c5 ! a5 29 lC.xb3 lC.b4 30 lC.xa5 lC.xa2+ 3 1 �b3 l:r.a8 32 l:r.a1 l:r.xa5 33 l:r.xa2 l:r.b5+ 34 �c3 �xc6 35 :a7 d4+ 36 �xd4 :xb2 37 :xn :xe2 38 :xg7 h5 39 l:r.h7 1-0.
b) More recently, in the game Illescas-Onishchuk, Wijk aan Zee 1997, Black elected to take on b8 with his knight, perhaps in order to clear the d-file for the rook to hit the d4-pawn. However, on b8 the knight is then two moves away from the useful outpost on b6 (which gives Black more control over the d5- square and introduces the possibility of ... lC.b6-c4). After 18 ••• lC.xb8 19
�d2 lld8 20 e3 e5 21 d5 f5 22 l:r.xa1 e4 23 l:r.c 1 �d6 24 f3 exf3 25 .i.xf3 White had managed to keep the extra pawn, for which there was no com pensation.
Apart from enabling Black to add more support to the d5-square, the text also removes the king from the c-file in anticipation of a time-gain ing check from White's rook.
19 �d2 lC.b6 20 llxa1 b4!
The hasty 20 ••. l:r.d8? would be a
mistake Black can ill afford to make while he is still a pawn down. After 21 e3 White's option to drop his knight back to e2 leaves him with a clear advantage.
21 lC.d1
The only possibility to try for an edge since the otherwise desirable
21 lC.e4 invites 2 l .. . .i.b7, creating an uncomfortable pin (threatening 22 ... f5) which guarantees Black an equal position in view of22 f3 lC.c4+ or 22 .i.f3 :ds, etc.
21 •.• :dS (D)
22 �e3?
Tantamount to a draw offer. There is still considerable life in the game if White exploits the fact that he can choose the circumstances in which the pawn - which cannot be de fended - is returned. 22 e3 seems to offer as little as the text after 22 ... e5, but with 23 b3 ! exd4 24 e4 White re tains the advantage. Then the d pawn is a weakness rather than a strength, isolated from Black's forces and vulnerable to attack. White's newly created kingside pawn ma jority is free to advance and his
knight can return to the game via b2 (or f2). White's lead is by no means decisive after 22 e3, but it is a defi nite and promising lead neverthe less. Indeed, Black's defensive task is more arduous here than in the end ings arising from the earlier queen exchange prompted by 12 ... .i.b7.
23 �d3 lbe.S+ 24 �cl
It is possible that when White played 22 �e3 he overlooked that the aggressive 24 �e4 runs into 24 ... ll:lc6 25 e3 ll:lxd4! 26 exd4 .i.b7+. As it is, White's error has re sulted in his extra pawn being re turned without Black having to make
Open Catalan: 5 ... t'iJbd7 85
a concession of any kind. Conse quently the position is level.
The remaining moves were: 24 .•• J:.xd4 25 a3 bxa3 26 l:.xa3 i.b7 27 l:.b3 l:.d7 28 f4 l:.c7+ 29 M ll:Jg4 30 .i.xb7 l:.xb7 31 :Xb7+ �xb7 32 ll:Je4 ll:lxh2 33 ll:ld6+ �c6 34 ll:lxf7 ll:ln 35 �d3 ll:Jxg3 36 ll:lg5 �d6 37 �7 e5 38 e3 th,.t/2.
7 5
. . ...te7 : Introduction and 6
0-0 0-0 7 ilic2 a6 8 a4
With 5 ... .te7 Black is satisfied with completing the development of his kingside before turning his atten tions to the other flank. After 6 0-0 0-0 White has many moves - 7 'W'c2, 7 lLle5, 7 lLla3, 7 lLlbd2, etc. In this book we concentrate on the sensible 7 1i'c2, which is considered to be the main line. Note that Black often plays 4 ... .te7 5 .ig2 0-0 6 0-0, and only then captures with 6 ... dxc4.
After 7 'W'c2 Black almost always plays 7 ... a6 with the intention of fol lowing up with ... b7-b5. Before in vestigating how the game develops after 8 a4 and 8 Wxc4, here is a brief round-up of Black's 7th move alter natives:
a) 7 ... b5? 8 a4 is something to avoid. After 8 ... c6 9 axb5 Black can not recapture as 9 ... cxb5? 10 lLlg5 leaves him unable to block the long diagonal with 10 ... lLld5 due to the
mate on h7. Thus 8 ... bxa4 is best, but then Black has nothing to compen sate for the weak queenside pawns.
b) 7 •.• cS aims to liquidate the
centre pawns and seek equality, but White is guaranteed a comfortable advantage despite the symmetry of the resulting positions.
b1) 8 'ifxc4 cxd4 9 lLlxd4 e5 1 0 lLlb3 lLlc6 1 1 .ie3 .ie6 12 'W'b5 ! gives White a typical pull.
b2) 8 dxcS invites an exchange of queens: 8 ... 'W'c7 (8 ... .ixc5 9 'W'xc4 'ile7 { 9 .. .'i!i'c7 10 .ie3 } 10 .if4 lLlc6 1 1 lLle5 and White has the more ac tive pieces) 9 'ii'xc4 (9 lLla3 is possi ble, intending to take on c4 with the knight) 9 ... 'W'xc5 10 'ifxc5 .ixc5, and Black has not necessarily helped himself, e.g. ll lLle5 lLlbd7 12 lLld3 .ib6/e7 13 lLlc3, or 11 a3 lLlc6 12 b4 .ie7 13 .ib2 .id7 14 lLlbd2 l:.ac8 15 l:.ac 1 l:.fd8 16 lLlb3, Khodos-Kro gius, USSR 1967, with a difficult queenless middlegame for Black in both cases.
c) 7 .•• li:lbd7 8 'i!i'xc4 transposes
to 'a' in the note to Black's 6th move, Monin-Vu1, Game 9.
Returning to the main line, White can prevent an immediate ... b7-b5 with 8 a4, or ignore/provoke the 'threat' and simply take on c4. Both courses are completely sound, and as
5 .. . i..e7: Introduction and 6 0-0 0-0 7 'ii'c2 a6 8 a4 87
White's decision is purely a matter of taste, I cover both moves in detail in this book. The problem with a2-a4 is the subsequent weakness of the b4-square, while 8 'ii'xc4 (see next chapter) allows Black to expand on the queenside with gain of time.
In this chapter we deal with 8 a4, when Black has 8 ... i..d7 (Games 10 and 1 1), 8 ... llk6 (Game 12) and 8 ... c5 (Game 13). Game 10 Khalifman - Lautier Biel /Z 1 993 1 d4 dS 2 c4 e6 3 lDf3 tDf6 4 g3 4 i..e7 5 i..g2 0-0 6 0-0 dxc4 7 1Wc2 a6 8 a4 (D) 8 i..d7 9 'iVxc4 i..c6 10 i..gS i..dS Black finally brings his light squared bishop into the heart of the board, freeing the c-pawn in the process.
11 'ii'd3!
After 1 1 1Wc2 i..e4 Black should be able to achieve equality or enough counterplay, depending on where the white queen runs to and how Black subsequently reacts:
a) 12 'ii'cl!? is best answered by 12 ... tDc6 (rather than 12 ... c5?! 13 dxc5 ! lLlbd7 14 lbc3 ! which gives White a comfortable advantage). Kotronias then gives 13 e3 i..b4!? 14 tDc3 i..xc3 15 bxc3 'ii'd5 1 6 c4 "iif5 17 i..f4 h6 with a complex position. b) Following 12 'ii'd1, on the other hand, 12 ... c5 does lead to an equal game after either 13 dxcS i..xc5 14 lLlc3 i..c6 (Polugaevsky Geller, Leningrad 1977) or 13 lDbd2 i..c6 14 dxc5 i..xc5 15 "iic2 lLlbd7 16 i..xf6 gxf6, e.g. 17 lLlb3 l:tc8 18 lLlxc5 lLlxc5 19 'ii'xc5 i..xf3 (Timo shchenko-Pigusov, Irkutsk 1983).
11 . . . i..e4
The next main game (Marin Gomez) deals with l l ... cS.
12 'iVe3!?
This is why the queen retreated to d3 - Black does not have the time to play ... c7-c5 because of the indirect attack on his roving bishop, so he contents himself with development.
12 i..c6 13 tDc3 lLlbd7 14 1i'd3 (D)
Now that White has completed his development he is ready to turn his attentions to increasing his authority in the centre with a timely e2-e4 (the reply ... tbd7-c5 must not be over looked). Already rather cramped, Black is not in a position to hinder White's planned expansion in the centre, so instead he must provide
88 5 ... i.e7: Introduction and 6 0-0 0-0 7 'ifc2 a6 8 a4
himself with adequate breathing space.
14 ... i.b4 Indirectly covering the e4-square by attacking one of the pieces that defends it.
15 l:[fel
The new pin on the e l -a5 diagonal is not a problem for White because he has no intention of moving the c3- knight. Moreover, e 1 is a natural home for this rook, which is playing an important role in the struggle for the e2-e4 thrust.
15 ... h6
A useful move which guarantees a little more freedom of movement however White responds. 15 ••. l%fe8
transposes to the game Gabriel-Mas