Jonathan Hilton and Dean Ippolito

Wojo's Weapons
//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Winning With White

BOSTON
This book is dedicated to Aleksander Wojtkiewicz, an artist whose passion drove
him to the height of his sport.
Jonathan and Dean

For my father, who taught me and took me to tournaments almost every

weekend for a decade.
Dean
Contents

Bibliography 6
Introduction: The "Wojo System" 7

Part I: The Closed Catalan 11

Chapter 1: An Introduction to the Closed Catalan 12
Chapter 2: The Closed Catalan with 4....ib4+ 47
Chapter 3: Assembling the Repertoire 70

Part II: The Open Catalan 77

Chapter 4: The Delayed Open Catalan with 7.tt'le5!? tt'lc6 78
Chapter 5: The Delayed Open Catalan with 7.tt'le5!? c5 (and others) 110
Chapter 6: The Early Open Catalan with 5...tt'lc6 121
Chapter 7: The Early Open Catalan with 5...c5 162
Chapter 8: The Early Open Catalan with 5...a6 6.tt'le5 .ib4+ 185
Chapter 9: The Early Open Catalan with 5...a6 6.tt'le5 c5 193
Chapter 10: The Early Open Catalan with 5...b5 or 5...c6 220
Chapter 11: The Early Open Catalan - Others (5....ib4+, 5...tt'lbd7, 5....id7) 231

Part III: The Slav Defense 253

Chapter 12: The Slav Defense with 4.�c2 dxc4 254
Chapter 13: The Slav Defense with 4.�c2 g6 281
Chapter 14: Semi-Slav Hybrids with 1.tt'lf3 d5 2.d4 c6 297

Part IV: Black's Other Defenses 305

Chapter 15: The Queen's Gambit Accepted 306
Chapter 16: The Tarrasch 332
Chapter 17: Systems with 2....ifS 360
Chapter 18: The Chigorin 373
Chapter 19: The Austrian Defense 387
Bibliography

Books
Aagaard, Jacob & Lund, Esben. Meeting l.d4 (Everyman, 2002)
Avrukh, Boris. l.d4 (Grandmaster Repertoire), vol. 1 (Quality Chess, 2008)
Davies, Nigel. The Dynamic Reti (Everyman, 2004)
Davies, Nigel. Gambiteer II (Everyman, 2007)
Davies, Nigel. Play the Catalan (Everyman, 2009)
De Firmian, Nick et al. Modern Chess Openings, 14th edition (McKay, 1999)
Dunnington, Angus. Winning with the Catalan (Batsford, 1997)
Kaufman, Larry. The Chess Advantage in Black and White: Opening Moves of
the Grandmasters (McKay, 2004)
Larsen, Bent & Zeuthen, Steffen. ZOOM 001 (Dansk SkakforlagjSkakhuset,
1979)
Matanovic, Aleksandar et al. Encyclopedia of Chess Openings, second edition,
vols. A-E. (Sahovski Informator, 1981-1996)
Nunn, John et al. Nunn's Chess Openings (Everyman, 1999)
Raetsky, Alex & Chetverik, Maxim. The Catalan (Everyman, 2004)
Sadler, Matthew. The Slav (Chess Press, 1997)
Schiller, Eric. Catalan, 2nd edition (Chess Enterprises, 1988)

Periodicals
Chess Life, Informants 1-105, Chess Today (Baburin, Alexander)

Databases
ChessBase "Big Database 2008'
Chessgames.com
365Chess.com

Other References
Extensive use was made of notes taken by Wojtkiewicz's students and amateur
video footage of Wojtkiewicz.
Introduction

During the eight years that the late Aleksander Wojtkiewicz (1963-2006) lived in
the United States, he won or tied for first place in more than 240 tournaments.
He averaged over thirty tournament victories a year - or nearly three per month.
"Wojo," as he was affectionately called by his fans, was arguably the most suc­
cessful tournament player in the United States, winning the Grand Prix six years
in a row from 1999 to 2004. During that time, however, he was not considered
one of the best players in the world. Although his name was sporadically on the
FIDE "Top 100" rating list, his official ELO rating - which peaked at 2595 - never
made it past the magic 2600 mark. How, then, did he achieve such success?

The answer is this: Wojtkiewicz was ruthlessly pragmatic in his approach to

tournament chess. His opening repertoire was designed in such a way that he
could essentially play his games on "auto-pilot." He considered his games against
non-masters to be trivial, and he rarely expended precious brainpower on them.
Between moves, he could often be seen outside the tournament hall - usually at
the nearest bar. Wojo would then return to the board after having been away,
look at the position for five or ten seconds, and throw out a move. After scrawling
on his score sheet, he would turn around and leave again. Other grandmasters
devoted their full attention to beating weaker players, but Wojo played as if he
already had everything worked out to mate.

This style of devil-may-care chess was possible for Wojo because he had - like
a professional playing multiple poker games at once - a "system" for winning
chess tournaments. Wojo realized that all he needed to do as a chess professional
was to win his games against amateurs a certain percentage of the time. To this
end he designed a repertoire that would deliver the necessary winning percentage
while requiring the least effort. In order for an opening line to be incorporated
into Wojo's "system," it had to meet certain criteria:

• It must have "surprise value."

Wojo didn't mind if his opponents had seen a particular line before, or
even if they knew some of the theory. Instead, it was more important to
him that they not have a great deal of experience in handling the result­
ing middlegame or endgame positions. This gave Wojo a "home-field"
advantage, forcing his opponents to fight on his turf.

7
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

• It must be relatively sound.

Particularly when playing Black, Wojo had no objections to playing "risky"
or "experimental" lines. But if the refutation could simply be looked up
in a book, it was off limits.

• It must be disconcerting to play against.

Wojo understood the psychology of the average "weekend warrior"
tournament player, and he knew the fastest way to beat him: force him
to play a type of position that makes him unconifortable. With this in
mind, Wojo would steer for quiet endgame advantages against "sharp"
openings, but would play to "mix things up" against more docile ones.
If the nature of the resulting middlegame or endgame position turned
out not to be to the opponent's taste, Wojo's system had done its job.

• It must fit in with the rest of the repertoire.

Wojo's openings were designed to reach certain types of positions.
For example, lines leading to queenless middlegames were commonly
incorporated into his system. By using lines that complemented one
another, Wojo was able to increase his advantage in experience over his
opponents, maintaining his "home-field" advantage.

At the time of Wojo's death in 2 006, he had nearly perfected his system.
Between 1998 and 2 006, he defeated over 1,000 master-level players in u.S.
tournaments. But - more importantly - he was able to consistently beat players
rated between 2 200 and 2400 an incredible 80% of the time. Draws made up
16%, and the remaining 4% were losses. Thus, his overall score against masters
was 88%. Against those rated between 2000 and 2 200, Wojo won 88%, drew 8%,
and lost 4% for an overall score of 92%.

This book focuses on the opening lines Wojo decided to use in his system
with White, specifically those occurring after UJf3 dS. Throughout the work, the
reader will certainly notice opportunities Black has to play for "drawn" endgames.
This is because Wojo did not require that his system be able to defeat other
grandmasters a large percentage of the time. For that, Wojo sometimes used a
different set of openings - for instance, against the Slav with l.lLlf3 dS 2.d4 c6
3.c4 lLlf6, Wojo claimed only that 4.�c2 was a great weapon for beating "weaker
players." By this, he meant players rated under 2400. Against other top players,
Wojo was far more likely to play 4.lLlc3 if he truly needed to win.

The fact that the repertoire we present allows Black to suffer to a draw in
some spots does not bother us. Here is one example. In our recommended Wojo
repertoire against the Slav Defense, the following position is reached after l.lLlf3
dS 2 .d4 lLlf6 3.c4 c6 4.�c2 g6 S . .if4 i.fS 6.�b3 �b6 7.c5 �xb3 8.axb3 hbl 9J!xbl
lLlbd7 1O.b4 ig7 11.h3 0-0 12.e3 a6 13 .i.d3 lLle4 14.cj;>e2 !l:fe8 IS.!l:al eS 16.dxeS
lLlxeS 17 . .b:e4 dxe4 18.lLlxeS .b:eS 19 .heS !l:xeS 2 0 .!l:hdl :

8
 INTRODUCTION

As we explain in Chapter 13, this position is only marginally better for White,
and should be drawn with accurate play. Yet the fact that this endgame is reached
does not invalidate our choice of 4.Wfc2, as in practice White manages to win this
type of endgame at least 1 in every 3 games - or, if White is the stronger player,
perhaps even 1 in every 2 games. That means White is scoring between 66% and
75%. Considering that even most master-level players will have made a mistake
with Black prior to this point (for instance, the defensive S....ixbl! is a difficult
move to play), White can still manage to win the required percentage of games
with 4.Wfc2 to meet Wojo's standards.

Now, on to the work itself. The book is divided into four parts, with each
part covering one significant aspect of Wojo's repertoire. Part I focuses on the
Closed Catalan, which is really the heart and soul of the "Wojo system." Because
understanding the themes found in the Closed Catalan is so essential to the rest
of the book, we have devoted the first two chapters of Part I entirely to the ideas
behind the Closed Catalan opening. Only once the reader has grasped the key
concepts do we attempt to outline a theoretical framework for that portion of
the repertoire. This meant devoting more space to the Closed Catalan than even
most "Catalan" books do, but it was well worth it: if you, the reader, are attracted
to the example games presented in Part I, you will undoubtedly be interested in
the rest of Wojo's repertoire with White. And since so many games at club level
feature the Closed Catalan, it is not hard for you to start applying the knowledge
learned in Chapters 1 and 2 immediately.

Part II of the book focuses on the Open Catalan. This is by far the largest part
of the book. It deals with both Black's more traditional methods of development
(such as ...i.fS-e7 and ... 0-0) and his other ways of bringing his pieces into the
game. We have organized the chapters in this part of the book more or less in
order of their importance. The material in chapters 4 through 7 deals with Black's
most popular responses; the remaining chapters cover tries seen somewhat less
frequently. Although we have struggled to highlight ideas and themes, some sec­
tions of Part II get quite theoretical. In our efforts to make this work an important
contribution to the body of theory surrounding Wojo's lines, we have included
much of both existing theory and our own analysis, which we hope will not be
too burdensome to the average reader.

9
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

Part III deals with the Slav Defense, and in particular, Wojo's special treat­
ment with 4.�c2 . For those who enjoyed Part I of the book, this part should also
prove to be a good read. Themes, ideas, plans, and strategies once again reassert
their predominance over theory, so there is really nothing at all in this part to
scare away anyone with a fear of theoretical variations. Even someone playing
well above master level should be able to get by without committing any varia­
tions to memory. That said, theory has largely ignored Wojo's interpretation of
the 4.�c2 Slav - it certainly isn't mentioned in many works - so we have tried to
fill that gap in the existing chess literature. If the reader is looking for extensive
coverage of the move 4. �c2, he will certainly find it.

Finally, Part IV deals with Black's miscellaneous defenses - the Queen's Gam­
bit Accepted, the Tarrasch Defense, the Chigorin, and a few other openings. Wojo's
treatments of these openings should appeal to players who play the Catalan and
want to force Black to play on their "home turf." With the exception of Chapter
16, which covers the Tarrasch Defense, these sections do not contain quite as
much theory. We could easily have chosen to include less theoretical material
in the Tarrasch chapter, but we felt that Wojo's systems with b2-b3 have gotten
less than their fair share of attention in the past and we wanted to make up for it.

We sincerely hope that this book proves useful to those looking to explore
Wojo's white opening repertoire. We also hope that, through this project, we are
able to preserve some of the vast legacy left to the chess world by the genius that
was Aleksander Wojtkiewicz.

10
 Part I
H///H/H//H///H//H///H//HH///H//H///H//Q///////Q///H///////H//H/

The Closed Catalan

11
Chapter 1
//H//QQQ/H//H/HQQ/Q/H//H/H/AIY/H/AIY/H/H/Q//H/H/H/H//H/H/Q//Q/Q/Q///Q/H//HQ///H/Q//H/H/Q//H/H/H/////Q//Q/AW//

An Introduction to the Closed Catalan

1.c �f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 Ae7

5.J.g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 c6 7.Yfc2 �bd7
(give or tak e)

Getti ng Sta rted

Playing the Catalan appears simple at Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2595)

first. For Wojo, beating experts and Langdon, Peter
class players in the Catalan Declined [E08] U.S. Open 1998
- known officially as the "Closed Cata­
lan" - was a routine part of every­ 1.�f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
day life as he played in small "Grand c6 5.J.g2 Ae7 6. 0 - 0 0 - 0 7.flY c2
Prix" tournaments around the United �bd7
States. The storyline of these Closed
Catalan games was nearly always the
same: Wojo's Catalan squeeze was the
positional equivalent of Fischer's fa­
mous "sac, sac, mate" in the Dragon
Sicilian. We'll delve into a deeper the­
oretical discussion of the Closed Cata­
lan later in this chapter. But first, in
order to better understand the cur­
rent theory, we will examine the ide­
as behind it. Let's start with one ex­
ample of a typical Wojo victory over a
club player. At the time of this match­
up, Peter Langdon's USCF rating was This is one typical starting position
1964, making him a "Class A" player. for the Closed Catalan. White spends

12
 AN INTRODUCfION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
his next few moves preparing the the­
matic e2-e4 thrust.
8.gdl b6 9.b3
White plays b2-b3 not only to
fianchetto his queen's bishop, but also
to defend his c4-pawn. He wants to
put his queen's knight on c3 to add to
the pressure on dS.
9 .tb7 10.�c3 gc8 1l.e4 dxe4
•••
As we'll discuss later, "conceding"
the center with . . . dSxe4 isn't consid­
ered Black's most testing idea. Over
the next several games, however, we'll
be focusing on the structures that oc­
cur when Black plays . . . dSxe4. The
central capture is obvious and there­
fore natural, so it is little wonder that
Black plays it more frequently than,
say, ll . . . cS ! ?
This i s a promising alternative to
12.�xe4, the main move here.
This kind of move often wastes
time for Black, who should be focus­
ing on making the . . . c6-cS break. As
we'll learn later, 12 ... h6 and 12 . . . cS are
two stronger moves.
13.h4
This kingside thrust was often part
of the "formula." White is simply gain­
ing space on the kingside by securing
the gS square. The simple 13.ttJgxe4 is
perhaps an improvement.
13 .lt'8 !? 14.�cx e4 h6 15.�xf6+
•••
�xf6 16.�f3 'lfe7 17.gel 'lfd8
18 .tb2 c5
•
White has locked down the eS
square, so striving for . . . e6-eS is out
of the question. This typical . . . c6-cS
break gives White open lines for his
pieces, but surprisingly, Black is still
doing fine.
19.9adl cxd4 20.�xd4 'fIf e7??
A costly oversight. Black could have
instead played 20. . . hg2 21. �xg2'lfc7,
when he is not in any real trouble.
Now, White is just winning a piece.
21 'fIf c7 22 .te5 'lfc5 23.hb7
••• •
exfS 24.hc8 gxe5 25.gxe5 'fIf xe5
13
 CHAPTER 1
26.hf5 g6 27 . .ld3 .lc5 28.�g2
�g7 29.ee2 ec7 30 . .le4 h5 31 . .lt'3
1- 0
This kind of game was all in a day's
work for Wojo. The "clean" feel sur­
rounding such Closed Catalan posi­
tions - and the efficiency with which
he won them - constitute a large part
of why so many players over the past
decade have desired to emulate Wojo's
style. Ironically, many strong players
have now come to regard the Closed
Catalan (particularly those lines in
which Black exchanges with . . . d5xe4)
as a "weak player's" opening, and so
they desire to stay away from it. In re­
ality, however, Black often has plen­
ty of equalizing chances in the Closed
Catalan. Note that in the above game,
Black actually had to make several
mistakes before he was clearly worse.
Black's Defensive Formation:
Sem i-Slav, or Queen's Gam bit Declined?
Wojo's move order to reach any open­
ing position almost always started
with l.ltJf3 and then either c2-c4 or
d2-d4. When asked why he didn't play
l.d4 as his first move instead, he was
occasionally known to say, "I'm too
lazy!" It's true that by playing l.ltJf3
first, Wojo avoided having to face sev­
eral unpleasant openings, such as the
Benko, Benoni, Albin Countergam­
bit, and so on, but there are other rea­
sons why l.ltJf3 was a practical weap­
on for someone who made a living off
handily winning local tournaments.
At the club level, Black players who
14
As indicated i n the note t o Black's
move 20, he could have simply played
20. . . ixg2 21.';!ixg2 Wfc7 with a rough­
ly level game. White's position looks
somewhat prettier, but with decent
play, Black should not have too many
problems reaching a draw by exchang­
ing down the d-file. White's pawn ma­
jority on the queenside is not a partic­
ularly important factor here.
In fact, many lines in the Closed
Catalan for Black are far better than
their reputations. Thus no amount of
purely theoretical knowledge is going
to allow players of White to "win like
Wojo." In order to start scoring points,
what is needed is a thorough under­
standing of the entire Closed Catalan
system. We'll begin to build this un­
derstanding by first examining the es­
sence of the Closed Catalan setup.
have a system worked out against l.d4
will generally try to use some adap­
tation of that system against l.ltJf3 as
well. Unfortunately for them, howev­
er, this is easier said than done. Two of
the most popular defenses, the Semi­
Slav Defense and the Queen's Gam­
bit Declined, lead to unpleasant posi­
tions for Black if he insists on trying
to play them against the Catalan. Once
we have examined why White scores
so well with the Catalan against these
two systems, we will be able to appre­
ciate why Black sets up the formation
he does in the "real" Closed Catalan.
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

The Sem i-Slav: Why Black's Bishop Belongs on e7

I n reaction t o White's Catalan setup, Wojtkiewicz often used this move

diehard Semi-Slav players will tend to
play . . . d7-d5, . . . e7-e6, . . . lLlgB-f6, . . . c7-
c6, and . . . ifB-d6. There are seeming­
ly many good reasons for putting the
bishop on the natural d6 square, chief
among them Black's increased ability
to play . . . e6-e5 early on. Against a nor­
mal Queen's Gambit setup by White -
which places White's light-squared
bishop on e2 - this plan makes sense.
If Black can break through in the cent­
order against an early . . . c6 by Black
so as to avoid any line where the sec­
ond player might attempt . . . d5xc4 and
. . . b7-b5, holding on to his pawn. The
main disadvantage of this approach
is that, should Black adopt the Closed
Catalan setup, White can no longer
develop his knight to c3, as in the pre­
vious game.
4 ••• lLlf6 5.g3 lLlbd7 6 .tg2 .td6 !?
•

er with . . . e6-e5, he may well be able

to free his own trapped bishop back This move signals Black's intent to
on cB . The problem with attempting play the Semi-Slav.
this plan against the Catalan, how­
ever, is that White's bishop is devel­ 7. 0 - 0 0 - 0 8.Wc2
oped to the long hl-aB diagonal. Rath­
er than trying to prevent Black's break
in the center, White welcomes it. After
the central exchanges are made, Black
will be slightly behind in development
and under fire on the d5 square. Thus
he will have to make some kind of con­
cession, such as giving himself an iso­
lated queen's pawn.
All of this doesn't, unfortunately,
guarantee White a large advantage;
in fact, Black has shown that he does
have a few precise ways to steer the
game towards equality. Regardless,
the notes to the following game dem­
onstrate why Black generally does not Black is preparing to play his . . . e6-
aim to play . . . ,tfB-d6 and . . . e6-e5 ear­ e5 break. Surprisingly, B . . . e5?! imme­
ly on in the Closed Catalan. diately is inferior, because after 9.cxd5
cxd5 (on 9 . . . lLlxd5, White gets the bish­
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2575) op pair with 1O.lLlc4 V1ie7 11.lLlxd6 V1ixd6
B hat, Vinay (2235) 12.l'!dl exd4 13.l'!xd4, granting him ac­
[EOl] San Francisco 1997 tive play) 10.dxe5 lLlxe5 1l.lLlxe5 he5
12.lLlf3 id6 13.l'!dl, White has not yet
1.lLlf3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 e6 4.lLlbd2 spent a tempo on the move b2-b3 :

15
 CHAPTER 1
Thus White can effectively devel­
op his bishop to g5 rather than b2.
For instance, in Rogers-Handoko, Ja­
karta Zonal 1993, play continued 13 . . .
ge8 (13 . . . .te6 14.Y;Yb3, hitting b7, was
strong in Damljanovic- Tadic, Yugo­
slav Chp. 2001, after 14 . . . Y;Yb6 15.'%lfxb6
axb6 16.lLld4) 14 . .ig5 !e6 15.lLld4 !e5
16.lLlxe6 fxe6 17.e4 (a typical idea,
momentarily giving Black the center
to gain the bishop pair and then im­
mediately breaking it up again) 17 . . .
h 6 18.i.xf6 '%lfxf6 19.exd5 gac8 20.'%lfd3
ixb2 21.gabl exd5 2 2 .hd5+ 'it>h8
23 .ixb7 gcd8 24.'%lff3, when White
was safely up a pawn and managed to
win.
9.b3 e5
If even now Black feels uncom­
fortable playing . . . e6-e5, he may elect
to wait one more move with 9 . . . '%lfe7.
This continuation is probably Black's
strongest, as with accurate play he
gets fair chances. After 10. .ib2 e5
1l.dxe5 lLlxe5, the "old" way to get a
slight edge against this line is 12.cxd5
lLlxd5 13.lLld4, since White has his eye
on the f5 square. The thinking is that
after 13 . . . lLlb4 14.'%lfbl, White should
be able to neutralize Black's activity.
More recently, however, strong
players have favored playing the im­
mediate 12.lLld4. One game in this line
is Petrosian-Kozhuharov, European
16
Chp. 2008, which continued 12 . . . dxc4
13.lLlxc4 lLlxc4 14.'%lfxc4 .te5 15.gadl :
15 . . . .tg4 16.f3 .id7 17.f4 hd4+
(17 . . . .td6 18.e4 is good for White)
18.'%lfxd4 .tg4 (18 . . . '%lfxe2 Ieaves White
with full compensation, for instance
19 . .if3 '%lfb5 20.g4 h6 2 1.f5 gad8
22 .l'U2, and Black is under heavy pres­
sure) 19.9del '%lfd7 20.e4:
White has a comfortable advan­
tage thanks to his bishop pair and ex­
tra space.
Backtracking to 12.lLld4, if in­
stead of 12 . . . dxc4, Black plays 12 . . .
.tb4, White should play 13.cxd5 cxd5
14.a3 as in Timman-Cifuentes, Dutch
Chp. 1997. Play continued 14 . . . .ta5
and here 15.lLl2f3 lLlxf3 + 16.hf3
lLle4 17.gfdl would have left White
with a comfortable position. Instead,
Timman played the overambitious
15.b4 .ib6 16.e4? dxe4 17.lLlxe4 lLlxe4
18.he4 .ih3, when Black's initiative
was powerful.
 AN INTRODUCfION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
10.cxd5 cxd5 1l.dxe5 �xe5
12.1 b2
12 1 g4
•••
Although this position has been
reached a number of times in practice,
it is not hard to see that Black now has
a deflated version of a Tarrasch De­
fense. Anand once tried this position
as Black and played 12 . . . lLlc6!?, but
few other players picked up the torch
and followed him. White gets a slight
advantage by way of 13.e3 ig4 14J':iael
ihS (or 14 . . . �e7 1S.lLld4 lLlxd4 16.hd4
.b3 17 . .ic5 .ixc5 IS.�xcS �xcS
19.9xc5 gacS 20.gfel gxcS 21.gxcS gcS
22.gxcS+ .ixcS 23 .lLlbl .id7 24.lLlc3
was agreed drawn in Bareev-Anand,
Biel 1993, though White could eas­
ily have played on if he had wanted
to) IS.�bl! ig6 16.�al lLlb4 17.lLlel,
when White defends everything and
is threatening .txf'6 :
Now Black played 17 . . . i.e7 IS.a3
lLlc6 19.1Llef3 as, when the simple
20.gfdl (rather than the more forcing
20.lLleS!?) would have given White the
edge in Mochalov-Linauskas, Polani­
ca Zdroj 1995.
13.Axe5 Axe5 14.�xe5 gxe5
15.�f3
15 ... .ixf3
IS . . . ge7! is Black's best move. Al­
though White retains a slight pull af­
ter something like 16.ttJd4 (or 16.gael
gcS I7.�b2 gec7 1S.lLld4, transposing)
16 . . . gcS 17.�b2 gec7 IS.gael, in prac­
tice White has failed to convert his ad-'
vantage and most games eventual­
ly wind up drawn. Alternatively, 15 . . .
ifS!? 16.�d2 ge7 17.lLld4 .ie4 I S . .ih3
�d6 19.�f4 �b6 20.gfdl gaeS 21.gacl
h6 2 2 .�d2 geS 23.�c3 ghS 24 . .ifl left
White better in Ehlvest-Fernandez,
Lake George 20OS.
Finally, IS . . . ghS!? is interesting
but not very dangerous for White.
Black lost miserably in M.Grabarczyk­
Janiszewski, Polish U20 Chp. 2003 :
16.gacl gcS 17.�d2 gc6 IS.ttJd4 ga6
19.9c5 �d7 20.gfcl lLleS 2 1.f3 .ih3
22 .g4 gg6 23.gcS J.xg4 24.fxg4 gxg4
2S.�e3. Such rash attempts by Black
to checkmate White's well-defend­
ed king are rarely effective. After
17
 CHAPTER 1
the peaceful text move, White has a
slight but secure advantage. His first
task will be to once again secure the
d4 square, this time using his major,
rather than minor, pieces.
16 .bt'3 Yfd7 17.gadUk S 1S.Y!Y b2
•
geeS 19.9d4 YffS 20.Wa3 !
White "tickles" Black's a-pawn.
From this point onward, White's ad­
vantage only increases.
20
••• a6 21.Y!Y b4 b5 22.a4 h5! ?
22 . . . bxa4 23.�xa4 would allow
White to continue building pressure.
It is difficult for Black to defend both
the a6- and the d5-pawns at the same
time, as White's next move will like­
ly be l'm-dl.
23.axb5 gbS 24.b6
18
24 ..• ge6?
A costly inaccuracy. Black should
play 24 . . . Yfe6 25.b7 %Yc6, when he can
regain the pawn. White can then play
26.l3a1 l3xb7 27.%Ya3 l3e6 28.b4, when
Black is growing increasingly uncom­
fortable: both of his queenside pawns
are isolated and blockaded.
25.b7ge5 26.� 1 We6 27.gd3 %Y e6
2S.gc3 � b7 29.Wd4 %Y eS 30.gxa6
Black has managed to capture
White's b-pawn only to see his a-pawn
fall. White now will try again to march
a b-pawn down the board.
30 Yfe7 3U:l b6 l3 e6 32.geS+
•••
�h7 33.gxb7 Yfxb7 34.Wc3 ge7
35.ge5 �gS 36.Yfd3 ge5 37.Yfd4
Yfe7 3S.h4 g6 39.b4
Now that his position on the
kingside and in the center is fully se­
cure, White decides that it is time to
start pushing his passed pawn.
39 �h7 40.b5 ge6 41.e3 gd6
•••
42 .lxd5 Wd7 43.e4 gb6 44.Yfe4
•
�eS 45.e5 1- 0
Black's resistance is ending swiftly.
After 45 . . . �g7 46.!c6 %Yd1+ 47.�g2
l3b8 (or 47 ... lLlc7 48.!f3) 48.b6, White
is completely winning.
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

Summary: Playing the "Semi-Slav" setup with ... c7-c6 and ... 1i.f8-d6 isn't
popular at the top levels for a good reason. By aiming for ...e6-e5, Black is
giving White active piece play and saddling himself with an isolated d-pawn.
Black's position is, of course, playable, but White should score well.

The Queen 's G a m bit Decl i ned: Why Black Plays . . . c7-c6

Those who play the traditional 6 . . . c5! immediately. The queen on c2

Queen's Gambit Declined are often
used to playing the maneuver . . . lLlb8-
d7, . . .b7-b6, . . . i.c8-b7, and then even­
tually . . . d5xc4 followed by a liberating
... c7-c5 break. Against the Catalan,
however, an early . . . b7-b6 can land
Black in an unfavorable version of the
Queen's Indian. There are a few dif­
ferent ways for White to play for the
advantage, but we will be focusing on
Wojo's most direct weapon, exchang­
ing with c4xd5.
Wo jtkiewicz, Alex (2669)
Morriso n, William (2385)
[E18] National Chess Congress 1999
1.c�f3 lLlf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
i. e7 5.i.g2 0-0 6.ti'c2
feels slightly uncomfortable in the en­
suing complications in the center.
6".b6! ?
When Black plays this, h e makes
it clear that his light-squared bishop
is headed for b7. This gives White a
free pass to play the c4xd5 exchange,
since the opening of the c8-h3 diago­
nal is no longer of use to Black's light­
squared bishop. If Black had played
. . . c7-c6 first, he could meet c4xd5
with . . . c6xd5, more or less equalizing
by creating a symmetrical pawn struc­
ture.
7. 0-0 i.b7
7 . . . c6 was still possible here.

Played slightly earlier than usual. 8.cxd5 exd5

Castling with 6. 0-0 was more typical
for Wojo, who would then meet 6 . . .
b6!? with 7.cxd5 exd5 8.lLlc3 1i.b7 9.1i.f4
c6 10.lLle5 and so on. Wojo's idea with
6.'�c2 was that after 6 . . . dxc4, trying to
enter the so-called "Open Catalan," he
could play 7.lLlbd2! and 8.lLlxc4, with
advantage. The downside of playing
6.'�c2 so early, however, is that Black
can (and should) now respond with
8 . . . lLlxd5 9.a3 followed by e2-e4
and lLlb1-c3 allows White to establish
a nice-looking center, so this kind of
recapture with a piece on d5 is unu­
sual, despite being a common theme
in the Queen's Gambit Declined and
Semi-Tarrasch.

19
 CHAPTER 1

his bishop pair, but the position is

complicated.
However, instead of Khalifman's
lU�adl, it seems that White's sim­
plest route to an advantage is ll.gfdl.
White is aiming to put his rooks on c1
and dl, and 1l . . . gc8 12 .gac1 ge8 runs
headfirst into 13.dxc5 bxc5 14.lLleS,
when Black's dS-pawn is coming un­
der heavy fire. The awkwardness of
Black's knight on d7 is demonstrated
9 ••• c5 clearly here, as exchanging with 14 . . .
lLlxeS IS.heS would only increase
This move seeks activity for Black White's pressure.
but ultimately does some damage to
his pawn structure. The dS-pawn will lUl� adl We8 12.ie5
prove somewhat problematic to de­
fend. The more passive 9 . . . c6 10.if4
lLlbd7 lU�adl ge8 12 .lLleS lLlf8 (12 . . .
lLlxeS!? 13 .dxeS lLld7 14.e4 d4! Is.gxd4
ic5 16.gd2 fie7 17.gfdl lLlxeS 18.a3
leaves White with the advantage) 13.e4
gave White a slight pull in Davies-Ar­
kell, Halifax (rapid) 2003. White may
get an isolated d-pawn, but his piec­
es will be more than active enough to
compensate.

10.if4 lLla6 A typical Wojo move to increase

Black often chooses to put the
queen's knight on a6, where it in­
terferes less with his defense of the
dS-pawn than it would on d7. After
10. . . lLlbd7, Khalifman once tried in­
stead ll.gadl gc8 12.fibl!? against
Ljubojevic at Linares in 1995. He
had the interesting idea of 12 . . . ge8
13.dxc5 bxcS 14.lLlgS!?, and on 14 . . .
h 6 both IS.lLlh3 and IS.lLlxf7 I S . . .'�xf7
16.lLlxdS are interesting possibilities.
Instead, Black played the solid 14 . . .
lLlf8, and play continued IS.lLlge4 fib6
16.lLlxf6+ ixf6 17.lLlxdS hdS 18.ixdS
gxe2 19.fifS gce8 20.ie3 lLle6. White
is perhaps slightly better here due to
the pressure. Black is scrambling to
reinforce his dS-pawn.
12 ... �e4 13.dxc5 ixc5
Of course, taking back with the b­
pawn is out of the question here. Black
is using tactical means to temporarily
make the dS-pawn taboo.
14.Wb3
White gets his queen out of the
line of fire from c8 and brings another
piece into the pileup on dS.
14 ... �xc3 15.ixc3 ie7 16.�e5
�c5 17.eb4!

20
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

25 .id4 .ia6 26. '@c2

•

White transfers his queen to d4.

17 '@e6 1S.'@d4 f6 19.ttld3 ttlxd3

•.•
26 •••.ic4??

19 . . . 'lWxe2 20.tLlf4 Ieaves White with
a monstrous initiative.
20.'@xd3 gfdS 21.gd2 a5
22.gfdl .ic5 23.e3 gd6 24.a3
26 . . J!c8 (as well as most other
moves) drop the a-pawn, but this los­
es instantly.
27 . .ixc5 bxc5 2S.'@xc4

White has converted his open­ Now the game is over. Black's king
ing initiative into a comfortable posi­ is forced into a mating net in short or­
tional bind. Black gains space on the der.
queenside, but his position eventual­
ly falls apart. 2S dxc4 29.gxd6 '@e5 30 .ixaS
•.• •

'@xb2 31 .id5+ �f8 32.gdS+ �e7

•

24 ••• a4 33 .ixc4 f5 34.g1d7+ �f6 35.gd6+

•

�g5 36.h4+ �g4 37.�g2 '@c2

Black plays this to stop White's b2- 3S .id5 '@e2 39.gSd7 g6 4O.fMl7
•

b4 push, but now the a-pawn is weak. 1- 0

Summary: Playing ... b7-b6 before ... c7-c6 gives White the opportunity to
play a quick and effective c4xdS. Taking back with the e-pawn isn't favorable
for Black here since he will be subjected to direct positional pressure. By uti­
lizing the e5 square and placing his pieces on good squares, White can make
Black uncomfortable.

We have now looked at two com­
mon club-level responses to the Cata­
lan, the Semi-Slav approach and the
Queen's Gambit Declined approach.
Both have their problems, but when
Black gets confused and attempts
to play both approaches in the same
game, he can lose with unprecedent­
ed speed. The two systems are already
subpar, so combining them doesn't
help. The scholastic game Hilton-J.
Beatty, Nashville 2009, went l.tLlf3
d5 2 .d4 tLlf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 b6 5.ig2
.tb7 6.cxd5 exd5 (6 . . . tLlxd5 7.0-0 ie7

21
 CHAPTER 1
B.'�a4+ Wfd7 9.'�b3 is good for White)
7.0-0 id6. Here after B.ttlc3 0-0 (B . . .
a6, stopping White's next, can b e met
by 9.ttlh4!? 0-0 10.ttlfS ib4 1l.ig5
with the initiative) 9.ttlb5! .le7 10. .lf4
ttla6 lUkl c6 12.ttlc3, Black was no
better off than he would have been
had he played the bishop to e7 in the
A Side Note: The Stonewa l l
One last idea that players often try
is an early . . . ttlf6-e4 from Black. Be­
cause White is aiming for e2-e4, they
reckon, Black should stop this by set­
ting up a quick "Stonewall" structure
in the center. This is often seen at the
club level, and before we move on to
the "real" Closed Catalan, it is useful
to see why this approach for Black is
not considered effective.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2565)
Pialan, Fernandito
[A93] Manila 1997
1.ttlf3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.d4 ttlf6 4.g3
c6 5 .ig2 ttlbd7 6.Wc2 ttle4
•
Heading for a Stonewall Defense.
In general, however, the knight should
not be placed on e4 so early. As we'll
22
first place. The game concluded 12 ...
ttle4 13.ttle5 f6? (on 13 ... c5 White con­
tinues 14.dxc5 ttlaxc5 15.ttld3, and if
14 . . . bxc5, then 15.ttlxe4) 14.ttlxc6 ixc6
15.ttlxe4 dxe4 16J!xc6 Wfd5 17.Wfb3
Wfxb3 IB.axb3 g5 19 . .id2 1!adB 20.e3
ttlbB 21.1!c7 .ld6 22.1!xa7 f5 23.f3 exf3
24.ixf3 g4 25 . .ld5+ 1-0.
see, White has no difficulties prepar­
ing the time-gaining f2-f3 and e2-e4,
rapidly gaining space in the center.
7. 0 - 0 .le7
Instead of this, 7 . . . .id6 B.b3 0-0
9.ib2 Wfe7 1O.ttle5 f5 1l.e3 leads to
a theoretical position in the actual
Stonewall Defense:
White has a slight edge here after
11. . .ttlxe5 (ll . . . g5?! 12.f3 ttlef6 13.ttld2
leaves White well placed) 12.dxe5 .lc5
13.ttlc3. The game Sasikiran-Radja­
bov, Biel 1999, continued 13 . . . ttlxc3
14.ixc3 b6 15.a3 Wff7 16.b4 ie7 17.id4
.lb7 1B.1!fcl 1!fcB 19 .Wfb2 .lfB 20.c5 b5
21.a4 a6 22 .1!a3 WfeB 23.1!cal and so
on. If Black fails to trade knights on c3,
as in Shipov-Dyachkov, Russian Club
Cup 199B, White also gets a slight pull :
13 . . . as 14.ttle2 b6 15.1!fdl ib7 16.ttlf4
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
a4 17.llJd3 axb3 lS.axb3 �xal 19.�xa1
ga8 20.�xaS+ haS 21.cxdS exdS
22 .�c1 ! ? �a7 23.he4 fxe4 24.llJxc5
bxcS 2S ..b3 �e7 26.�c3 .ib7 27 . .ixcS
and White was better. Both games
were eventually won by White.
S.b3 0 - 0 9 .ib2
• ended quickly after 14 . . . gS lS.a4 .id7
Note that White does not preoccu­
py himself with trading dark-squared
bishops immediately. Many players of
White will jump at the chance to play
something like 9 . .ia3, having been
taught that this exchange usually fa­
vors White in Stonewall structures
since Black is weakening his central
dark squares. Strategically, this is true.
Unfortunately for White, however, a
move like 9 . .ia3 leads to a significant
loss of time. After 9 . . ..ixa3 10.llJxa3
�e7, White would probably be better
if he could only manage to play llJa3-
c2-e1-d3 quickly. That maneuver takes
four additional moves, however, and at
the moment, his queen occupies the c2
square. 11.�b2 b6 12.�ac1 .ib7 13.�fd1
gac8 14.llJc2 as lS.llJce1 bS 16.cxbS
cxbS was completely fine for Black
in Grunberg-Asrian, European Chp.
2004, so the players agreed to a draw.
9 f5
•••
Thus Black achieves his Stonewall
formation.
10.llJel
White wastes no time in prepar­
ing f2-f3. 1O.llJbd2 �e8 H.llJe1 �hS
12.f3 llJxd2 13.�xd2 llJf6 14.llJd3 was
also better for White in Wojtkiewicz­
Wenaas, Montreal 1996. That game
16 . .ia3 (here the exchange of bish­
ops is good, as White's development is
complete) 16 . . . .ixa3 17.�xa3 h6 18.�4
�ab8 19.�aS a6 20.�c7 �eS 21.aS �d8
22 .�eS �c8 23.llJc5 �c7 24.�a4 1-0,
since Black's b-pawn will fall.
10 .id6! ?
•••
Black expends valuable time trying
to launch some sort of kings ide attack,
but this type of plan has little chance
of succeeding. White has too much
play in the center. Better was 10. . . .if6,
fighting for the d4 and eS squares.
Here H.llJd3 gS 12.f3 llJd6 13.cS llJbS
14.e3 Wfe7 lS.a4 llJc7 16.Wfc3 �e8 17.f4
g4 lS.llJa3, aiming for b3-b4-bS, gave
White a pleasant space advantage in
Vukic-Kovacevic, Yugoslav Chp. 1975.
1l.llJd3 1rg5 12 .ia3
•
Now that Black has wasted time
with his bishop and queen, White de­
cides to go in for this thematic exchange.
12 •••h:a3 13.llJxa3 llJdf6 14.1rcl!
23
 CHAPTER 1

White's best move, fighting for con­ ternative 2 2.lt)bd3, maintaining the
trol of the dark squares in the center. tension, was equally viable for White.

14 'llYhS
•.• 22 axb4 23.exf6 !le7?
•••

14 . . . 'llYx c1 1S.Eiaxc1 as, trying to 23 . . . Eid8 24.�xb4 �g6, looking

fight for space in a queenless middle­ to regain the pawn, was a better op­
game, was another idea, but after any tion. White would still have a clear
reasonable move White would retain positional advantage due to his space
a sizable edge. on the queenside and better pieces.

1S.f3 �d6 16:flrf4 �t717.�e2 24.9xb4 !lbe8

Black is now getting pushed Now 24 . . . �g6 would lose the ex­
back. White has an advantage on the change to 2S.tDa6.
queenside and in the center.

17 J.d7 18.�c5 !lab8 19.�b4

•.•

!lfe8

White gives Black no time to put

together a defense.
20.e4 gS
2S �d8 26.�a4 9t7 27.�b6
•••

On 20. . . dxe4 2 1.fxe4 fxe4, the blow 'llYxf6 28.�xe8 Ybd4+ 29.�h1
2 2 .g4 ! �g6 23.Eiae1 appears almost !!xe8 30.'llY d 6 'llY g7 31.f4 g4 32.exdS
decisive. cxdS 33.J.xd5! exdS

21.'llY d 2 as 22.eS ! ? 33 . . . !la8 34.ig2 would have al­

lowed Black to play on, but White is
This move allows White t o come still just up a clear exchange.
crashing through. Black must now
take on b4, as moving his own knight 34.!le7 �t7 3S.9xd7 !lf8
would hang the bishop on d7. The al- 36.'llY xdS 1- 0

24
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

Summary: If Black wants to play a Stonewall Defense, he should stick to

the regular Dutch move order. Trying to play it against the Catalan involves
committing the king's knight to e4 too early, allowing White to gain time with
f2-f3 at some point. White should be careful to avoid playing the automat­
ic ic1-a3 to trade dark-squared bishops if it means losing too much time. In­
stead, he can simply put the bishop on b2 and work toward getting a knight
to the e5 square. Control of the dark squares is a key part of White's strategy.

Conclusion: Black's miscellaneous early tries in the Closed Catalan are

playable, but beyond that not much can be said in their favor. At club level,
White should be happy to see one of these deviations, since they usually indicate
Black is already "out of book." At higher levels, these moves can be used to fight
for equality if Black has some specific idea prepared (Anand's . . . ttJe5-c6 maneu­
ver in the Closed Catalan Semi-Slav comes to mind), but there are good reasons
why they aren't seen that often.

The " Rea l " Closed Cata lan:

White's Disa ppea ring Adva ntage

When Black puts his dark-squared
bishop on e7 and plays . . . c7-c6 before
attempting to fianchetto his light­
squared bishop with . . .b7-b6, we have
a "real" Closed Catalan. This often re­
sults in positions similar to those in the
first game of this chapter, say around
move 14 or so. Seemingly, White has
the position of his dreams: a nice cent­
er, a space advantage, and active piec­
es. It comes as little surprise to most
Catalan players that White often'
scores 70-80% from such positions.
In practice, however, these results
are difficult to obtain unless one un­
derstands the nature of White's "dis­
appearing" advantage. As Black be­
gins to execute maneuvers and make
trades, White can find his center un­
der increasing pressure. If Black can
break with . . . c7-c5 or . . . e6-e5 at the
proper moment, the game often heads
straight for a rather dull kind of equal­
ity. Black's equalizing ideas are often
simple, and they don't necessarily re­
quire the skill of a strong master to be
carried out effectively in practice, ei­
ther - in the following game, one of
the authors lost his opening advan­
tage to a "Class A" player.
Hilton, Jonathan (USCF 2249)
Kluger, Alan (USCF 1874)
[E09] Parsippany 2009
1.c��f3 e6 2.c4 d5 3.d4 �f6 4.g3
Ae7 5.Ag2 �bd7 6. 0 - 0 0 - 0 7.YlYc2
c6 8.�bd2
This is just one of many moves
available to White here. By the end of
Part I, we will have discussed 8 .ttJbd2,
8 .b3, S.l:l:d1, and our main recommen­
dation, 8 . .if4.

25
 CHAPTER 1

Since Black has no immediate

plans to try to break with . . . e6-eS, this
move may appear to be a waste of time.
However, the move does have mer­
it in that it consolidates Black's posi­
tion and prepares the followup . . . tt'ld7-
f8-g6 at a later point. In the grand
scheme of things, Black's .. J!f8-e8 can
Then one realizes that Black has
often prove a useful waiting move. Af­
committed the "inaccuracy" of play­
ter the more popular alternative 8 . . .
ing his rook to e8 early. This leaves his
b6, we'll look at how Wojo handled the
knight on f6 uncomfortable, as after
position after 9.e4 dxe4 1O.tt'lxe4 .ib7
12 ... cS? ! 13.eS, something like 13 . . . tt'le4
11.�dl Ylfc8 12.tt'lxf6+ tt'lxf6 13.cS �d8
14.tt'lxe4 dxe4 1S.tt'ld2 would clearly fa­
14 . .tf4 in Wojtkiewicz-Hidding, Goch
vor White. Thus, Black would have to
1998, below.
play 12 ... tt'lxe4 13.tt'lxe4 dxe4 14.Ylfxe4.
Everything now appears to be going
9.b3 b6
fine for White, until he notices that his
bishop has been prematurely commit­
ted to the b2 square. After Black simply
develops with 14 ... Ylfc7, White sudden­
ly wishes he had time for .tb2-c1-f4 ! :

lO.e4

Some subtleties behind different Black i s threatening to play . . . c6-

move orders in the Closed Catalan are
revealed by a thorough discussion of
this move. According to one line of
thought, there may well have been
cause to linger a few more moves be­
fore making the e2-e4 break here. For
instance, after 10. .tb2 .tb7 lUUdl �c8
12.e4, it may appear at first that White
has simply gotten the same position as
in the note to his eighth move with his
knight on d2 rather than c3 :
cS, so White will likely respond with
IS.Ylfe2 or 15. �c2 . (The latter, IS.Ylfc2 ,
has the idea of meeting IS . . . cS with
16.dS ! ?) However, Black can respond
to both moves with the simple wait­
ing move IS . . . �cd8. For instance, af­
ter 16.tt'leS in either position, White
has little chance of gaining an advan­
tage after 16 . . . tt'lxeS 17.dxeS cS. Thus,
the text move, going for e2-e4 imme­
diately, is probably White's best.

26
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

1O ••• dxe4 11.ctJxe4 .tb7 12.gdl Black had few problems in Baum­
gartner-Jaeger, Seniors World Chp.
1993, after 15 . .tb2 �c7 16.E1ac1 E1ad8
17.lL'le5 c5 18 . .hb7 �xb7 19.E1d3 lL'ld7
20.dxc5 lL'lxc5 21.E:xd8 E:xd8 2 2 .E:d1
E:xd1+ 23.'lWxdl 'lWe4 ! ? White's advan­
tage is disappearing.

13 .tb2
•

This seems principled, as 13 . .tf4?!

lL'lxe4 14.'lWxe4 c5 looks suspect for
White. If then 15.d5?, Black plays 15 . . .
exd5 16.cxd5 .tf6. However, i f White
12 . . . Yfc8
wants to maintain the advantage
here, he must keep the minor piec­
First, it should be noted that the
es on the board. 13.lL'lc3, exploiting
natural break 12 . . . c5? fails here to
Black's omission of . . . lL'lf6xe4, would
13.lL'lxf6+ .ixf6 14.lL'lg5 ! .bg5 15 ..bb7
have kept more life in the game. 13 . . .
with a huge initiative. For instance,
.td6 1 4 . .tb2 'lWc7 15J�e1 e5? ! 16.E1ad1
15 . . . E1b8 16.dxc5 .tf6 17 . .tc6 hal
E:ad8 :
18 . .bd7 E1e7 19.c6 .tf6 20. .ta3 was al­
ready winning for White in Taborov­
Istratov, Kiev 2001.
The text move is an excellent try
by Black. If the queen were to go to c7
immediately, of course, White would
just play .ic1-f4. Even more accurate
than the text, however, is 12 . . . lL'lxe4
13.�xe4 lL'lf6 (not 13 . . . .tf6?! 14 . .tf4
�c8 15.lL'le5 lL'lxe5 16 . .txe5 Yfd8 17.b4
�e7 18.c5 .he5 19.dxe5 bxc5 20.b5
gac8 21.E1d6 E1c7 2 2 .bxc6 f5 23 .Yfc4 17.a3 exd4 18.lL'lxd4 E:xe1+ 19.E:xe1
1-0 Wojtkiewicz-Mrochen, Essen g6? (19 . . . a6 20.lL'lf5 was better, but
1997) 14.�e2, and here 14 . . . 'lWc8 ! with still allowed White a nice initiative)
the same idea: 20.lL'lcb5 cxb5 21.lL'lxb5 �b8 22 . .hb7
'lWxb7 23.lL'lxd6 'lWc6 24.E:d1 lL'lg4
25.�e4 'lWxe4 26.lLlxe4 1-0 was Sestja­
kov-Johansson, Kecskemet 1991. Note
that instead of 15 . . . e5? ! , the more pa­
tient 15 . . . E:ad8 16.E:ad1 a6 was more
accurate. Black would then have good
chances of equalizing by means of
. . . c6-c5.

13 . . . �c7

27
 CHAPTER 1
Black no longer fears putting the
queen on this square now that the
White dark-squared bishop has com­
mitted itself to b2.
The positions that arise after
14.llJeS llJxeS 1S.dxeS llJxe4 16.i.xe4 h6
offer White few real winning chances.
For instance, 17.Wle2 c5 18.i.c2?, des­
perately avoiding unpleasant trades,
would be bad after 18 . . :i«c6.
14 hf6
•••
This recapture is perfectly sound,
since Black is now contesting the a1-
h8 diagonal and controlling the eS
square.
There is no need for Black to rush
things. 1S . . . eS 16.dxeS llJxeS 17.llJxeS
i.xeS 18.,beS �xeS 19.�ad1 would
have still given White some initiative.
16.gadl
Again, Black is not in a hurry.
16 . . . eS? 17.dxeS llJxeS 18.llJxeS �xd2
28
19:i«xd2 heS 20.i.xeS WlxeS 2 1.Wld7
would be awful for Black. On the oth­
er hand, 16 . . . cS ! ? 17.dxcS bxcS is per­
fectly playable, but it does makes
sense for Black not to saddle him­
self unnecessarily with any isolat­
ed pawns. Not as good is recaptur­
ing with a piece by 17 . . . llJxcS, as that
would give White a pull after 18.i.xf6
gxf6 19.1lJd4.
17.J.c3
17.llJeS llJg6 18.Wle4 llJxeS 19.dxeS
�xd2 20.�xd2 i.e7 results in a struc­
ture that is, again, not that promising
for White.
17 ••• llJg6 18.h4 h6
19.a4!?
Playing for a2-a4-aS i s a common
idea, but here White misses an im­
portant opportunity to consolidate
his slight edge. 19.b4 ! ? cS is fine for
Black, but 19.hS ! llJe7 20.llJh2 was
probably White's only attempt at an
advantage. For instance, if 2 0 . . . cS,
White can play 2 1.hb7 (not 2t.lL'lg4?!
i.xd4 2 2 .i.xd4 cxd4 23.�xd4 i.xg2
24.'�xg2 llJfS and Black is fine) 2 1 . . .
Wlxb7 2 2 .dxcS �xd2 23.Wlxd2 i.xc3
24.Wlxc3 bxcS 2S.WlaS Wlb6 26.Wlxb6
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
axb6 27.l3d6 with some play in the
endgame:
Black is under pressure here, and
White is hoping to get his knight back
into play shortly with tDh2-g4-e5.
This whole line isn't forced, but oth­
er moves should also leave White with
some pressure. For instance, on 20 . . .
�fS 21.tDg4 .tg5 22 .l3e2, White i s bet­
ter.
Better is the immediate 19 . . . c5,
since 20.d5 .txc3 2 1.YNxc3 exd5 22.cxdS
�d6 is fine for Black.
20.a5
20.hS is still a better chance as, for
the moment, Black's rook on d7 is mis­
placed. 20. . . tDe7 21.tDeS .txeS 2 2 .dxeS
l3ed8 23.l3xd7 l3xd7 24.l3xd7 YNxd7
2S.�d2 YNxd2 26 . .txd2 would leave
White with a space advantage and the
bishop pair.
Now 21.hS tDe7 22.tDeS .txeS
23.dxeS c5 gives White less than be­
fore, as the light-square member of
his bishop duo will be swapped off
in short order. White can play on for
an endgame squeeze, for instance,
24.l3xd7 l3xd7 2S.l3xd7 'i;Yxd7 26.YNd2
YNxd2 27.,hd2 .txg2 2 8 . �xg2 tDc6
29.axb6 axb6 30. .tc3 :
White's king is heading to e4 and he
can expand on the kingside. Of course,
the sad news is that 30. . . tDaS 31.,haS
bxaS just leads to a draw. White's
chances of making any progress in
such a locked king and pawn ending
are next to nil - his advantage has dis­
appeared yet again.
21 .•• c5 22.axb6 axb6 23.d5
White, playing for the win, tries to
mix things up. Despite White's passed
d-pawn, however, Black stands well.
White's failure to play h4-hS at some
point has allowed Black to escape pun­
ishment for his inaccurate 19th move.
23 J.xc3
••. 24. Ybc3 exd5
25.cxd5 'ff e5!?
29
 CHAPTER!

Black's pursuit of a queen trade

ultimately allows White a slight end­
game pull, so it was probably better
just to play 25 .. J�d6, . . . ltlg6-e7, and an
eventual . . . b6-b5, with more than suf­
ficient counterplay.

26.VfJ ltl e7 27.ltl g4 ftfS

36 c4 37.bxc4 bxc4 3S.gc2 c3

•••

39.gd4 g6!

This move holds for Black. Other­

wise, White might have ltle3-f5 in all
the key variations.

4O.E:d3 E:cd8 41.E:cxc3 hd5 42 .E:c7

.ie6 43.E:xd6 E:xd6 44.�f3 should also
28.�xf5 ltlxf5 29.ltle5 E:d6 30.ltlc4
be drawn.
E:f6 is perhaps a slight improvement
on the game as Black's pieces are jum­
40 gxd5
.•• 41.�d5 .lxd5
bled.
42.�c3 gxc3 43.ltl xc3 .ic6 44. �e3
�e7 45.�e4 .lxe4 46.�xe4 �e6
2S Vxf3 29 .txt'3 b5 30.�g2
47.fS + gxf5+ 4S.gxf5 + �d6 49.h5
••• •

�f8 31 .ie4 �eS 32.g4 �f8 33.f4

f6 50.�d41f2-1f2
•

ltl cS 34 .ifS gd6 35 .lxcS gxcS

• •

36.�f2
White has transposed into an end­
game in which his knight is slightly
stronger than Black's hampered bish­
op. The advantage, however, proves to
be insufficient for a win.
Oddly enough, White still enjoys a
space advantage in the final position.
Of course, the king and pawn endgame
is a dead draw, so this fact is absolute­
ly meaningless. The "advantage" is, at
long last, entirely gone.

Summary: Although White's inaccuracies in this game were minimal, he

still gradually lost his opening advantage over the course of a 50-move strug­
gle. This is, urifortunately, a common occurrence in the Closed Catalan. The
reader should bear this in mind when facing the Closed Catalan, and be psy­
chologically prepared to either play for a win with c4-c5 (explained in the next
section) or to admit the possibility of a draw against tireless, stubborn defense.

30
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
White Gam bles on c4-c5
Often - particularly when Black
makes an inaccuracy - White gets the
opportunity to play c4-c5, physical­
ly stopping Black's cherished freeing
break . . . c6-c5. Books on the Catalan
are full of dramatic examples of White
squeezing the life out of Black after a
timely c4-c5 push. They usually tout
how Black seemingly makes no large
errors and yet still gets squashed like
a bug on a windshield. Consider the
following example game, which previ­
ously appeared in 1M Angus Dunning­
ton's classic 1997 text, Winning with
the Catalan:
Portisch, Lajos (2625)
Radulov, Ivan (250 0)
[E08] Moscow 1977
l.tDf3 tDf6 2.g3 e6 3.J.g2 J.e7
4.0-0 0 - 0 5.c4 d5 6.d4 c6 7.'l;Yc2
b6 8.gdl tDbd7 9.b3 J.b7 10.tLlc3
gc8 11.e4 dxe4 12.tDxe4
12 tDxe4? !
•••
Taking on e4 is premature, as
Black does not have the move .. :�d8-
c8 available to him. Black should in­
stead play 12 . . . c5, which keeps White's
advantage to a minimum, for instance
13.ltJxf6+ ixf6 14.ltJg5 ixg5 15 . .ixb7
l:!c7:
Here White can try:
a) 16.dxc5 ixc1 17.l:!axc1 l:!xc5 (17 . . .
l:!xb7 18.c6 l:!c7 19.cxd7 l:!xd7 20.E!xd7
�xd7 21.l:!d1 'l;Yc7 2 2 .�d3 gives White
some chances to convert his slight
pull) 18.i.e4 g6 19.b4 l:!c7 20.c5 bxc5
2 1.bxc5 �e7 2 2 .c6 ltJf6 23.i.g2 l:!fc8
24.l:!d4 ltJd5 25.ixd5 exd5 26.�d2
l:!xc6 27.l:!xc6 l:!xc6 28.l:!xd5 l:!c8
29.h4 �e4 30.l:!d8+ 12-12, Paunovic­
Dzevlan, Yugoslav Team Chp. 1991.
White certainly had some pressure
during this game, but a draw seems
like a reasonable result.
b) 16.J.e4 ! f5 17.ig2 cxd4 18.ixg5
�xg5 19.1:!xd4 e5 20.l:!d5 �e7 2 1.l:!e1
l:!c5 2 2 .�d2 with a nice edge. White
controls the d-file, has the Catalan
bishop against Black's knight, and has
some chances with his queenside ma­
jority. This is the lesser of Black's two
evils, however, as what happens to
him in the game is atrocious.
31

13.Vxe4 Ve7 14 . .1f4
IS.,ixd6 Vxd6 16.c5
This position has, quite comically,
occurred at least two dozen times in
practice. By allowing the exchange of
dark-squared bishops, Black has given
White everything he could ever want
from the opening, as we'll see shortly.
16 Ve7
••.
16 . . .bxc5 17.dxc5 Ylfc7 (17 . . . tDxc5
18 .Ylfb4 wins) 18.b4 tDf6 19.Ylfe5 tDd5
20.a3 l'%fd8 was another defensive try,
but 21.Ylfxc7 l'%xc7 22 .tDg5 with the
idea of routing the knight to d6 leaves
White with a clear advantage.
17.b4 gfd8 18.Ve2 tDf6 19.1tleS
ltl dS 20.a3 bS
Played to prevent ltle5-c4. The stage
32
CHAPTER 1
.1d6 has been set for Black's positional de­
mise; his light-squared bishop is pit­
iful. White now begins action on the
kingside.
21 .1e4 g6 22.h4 as 23.bxaS ga8
•
24.a4 b4 2S.,ixdS gxdS 26.gabl
Black's attempts at counterplay on
the queenside have only opened lines
for White to penetrate there. From
here on out, the rest is a mopup op­
eration.
26 f6 27.ltl g4 gad8 28.gxb4
•••
.1e8 29.ltl e3 gSd7
30.gb8 eS 31.dS cxdS 32.e6
gd6 33.e7 grs 34.gxdS f5 3S.Vc5
ge6 36.1be7 �e7 37.gxe8 �e8
38.gd8+ ge8 39.�e8+ �e8
40.ltl dS 1- 0
In reality, winning with the move
c4-c5 is rarely so simple. Although
many Catalan players dream of play­
ing such a game as this one, not even
Wojo managed to have more than a
handful of such aesthetic victories. Of­
ten, playing c4-c5 is more of a gam­
ble on White's part than most Cata­
lan books would have their readers
believe. After all, the move serious­
ly weakens the d5 square and renders
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

White's queenside pawn formation 1l.Yfxe4 .tb7 12.gdl Yfc8

vulnerable. In the following game,
readers are advised to pay particular
attention to the sharp positions that
arise in the note to Black's move 16.

Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2595)

Hidding, D{arkus (1906)
[E09] Goch 1998

1.�f3 d5 2.c4 c6 3.d4 �f6 4. 'tic2

e6 5.g3 .te7 6 .tg2 0 - 0 7. 0 - 0 �bd7
•

8.�bd2 b6 9.e4
13.Yfc2

13.!f4 is recommended by Avrukh

9 . . . dxe4
White's move order, which aims
for a quick e2-e4 by omitting wait­
ing moves such as b2-b3 or �f1-dl, is
played less frequently than other move
orders because here 9 . . . .ib7 leads to
positions with adequate counterplay
for Black. After 10.e5 �e8 1l.b3 �c8
12 .!b2 c5, Black is doing fine. Il.cxd5
instead is recommended by Israeli GM
Boris Avrukh, but after 1l . . . cxd5, the
closed nature of the position doesn't
fit a "dynamic" Wojo-style repertoire.
and has been played by a number of
strong players, such as GMs Alexan­
der Goldin and Ian Rogers. Avrukh's
idea is that after 13 . . . c5 14.d5 �e8
15.'tic2 exd5 16.cxd5 .tf6, White can
play 17.1Z1g5 ixg5 18 ..ixg5, winning
the bishop pair with a slight advan­
tage.
This sounds reasonable, but Black
can easily stall rather than playing
. . . c6-c5 so early: 13 . . . 1Z1f6 14.'tie2 �e8
15.1Z1e5 c5 16.dxc5 occurred in Rog­
ers-Allen, Australia 1995, when Black
could have (at least approximate­
ly) equalized with 16 . . . ixg2 17.@xg2
ti'xc5 :

10.�xe4 �xe4

10... ib7 11.�dl lZ1 xe4 12.ti'xe4 'tic8 White has a little bit of pressure,
would transpose. but it's hardly anything serious. This

33
 CHAPTER 1
actually occurred in Adla-Rodriguez
LOpez, Nigran 1996, via a much dif­
ferent move order. White tried 18.g4 ! ?
and did manage t o create some com­
plications, but after 18 .. .l:'!ad8 19.'I1Bf3
h6 20.b3 bS, Black had excellent
counterplay and was never worse. The
computer move 18 . . . .id6 ! ? also looks
good for Black: White's g4-pawn is
loose, and Black has a lot of annoying
ideas like . . . 'I1BcS-c7 and . . . lLlf6-d7.
Going back, White should prob­
ably try lSJ3ac1 rather than Rogers'
lS.lLleS. In the case of lS . . . c5, Black
doesn't quite manage to equalize, for
instance, 16.a3 ! ? cxd4 17 . .ieS ! (17.
l"!xd4?! .icS 18.l"!dd1 lLlg4 is annoying)
17 . . . lLld7 18.hd4 if6 19.hf6 (l9 .b4
eS 20.ib2 'I1Bc7 is fine for Black) 19 . . .
lLlxf6 20.b4 l"!d8 :
White's position is pleasant here.
With something like 2 1.c5 bxcS
22.l"!xc5, he can look forward to mak­
ing something of his extra activity and
queenside majority. Thus, we can also
recommend 13.if4 as a solid way to
play for the advantage. With the text
move, however, Wojo is prepared to
"gamble" with the move c4-cS, taking
his chances in order to get the prover­
bial "big edge."
34
A more normal move order to reach
the same position is 13 . . . lLlf6 14.c5 l"!d8
lS.if4. Meanwhile, 13 . . . cS is met by
14.dS, when White may have an ad­
vantage after 14 . . . exdS lS.cxdS i.d6
(lS . . . l"!d8 is met by 16.if4) 16.b3 l"!e8
17.ib2. The position is still a strug­
gle, but White has fair tactical chanc­
es of landing a strike in the center or
against Black's kingside.
14 .tf4 �f6 15.c5!?
•
Going for it. Will White b e able to
create a positional bind, or will Black
have sufficient counterplay from uti­
lizing the newly weakened dS square?
15 . . . �d5 16.ig5 �f6?!
After this move, it becomes clear
that White is simply controlling the
game. The only challenging idea was
to prevent the exchange of dark­
squared bishops with 16 . . .f6. Then
17.i.d2 bxcS 18.dxcS eS (not 18 . . . aS? ! ,
when 1 9 . .ih3 fS 20.l"!e1 .if6 2 1..igS
!a6 22 . .bf6 lLlxf6 23.lLleS l"!dS 24 . .ig2
lLle4 2S .ixe4 l"!xeS 26 . .if3 l"!xe1 +
27.l"!xe1 'it>f7 28 .'I1Bc3 left White clear­
ly better in the simultaneous exhi­
bition game Kasparov-Dubiel, Kato­
wice 1993) 19.1Llh4 ! :
 AN INTRODUCfION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
19 . . .'�e6 20.Eie1 represents what is
likely to be "best play" for both sides.
White had a nice initiative in Freisler­
Kacirek, Mlada Boleslav 1995, after
20 .. .'�f7 21.ttJf5, as White's knight on
f5 is well placed. If Black tries to stop
lLlh4-f5 with 20. . . icB ! ? instead, then
21..te4 g6 22 .hg6 leads to a draw af­
ter 2 2 . . . hxg6 23.'!1;;'xg6+ 'it>hB 24.�h6+
'it>gB 25.�g6+ , but 21.f4 EibB would
keep things interesting. Although
White has the initiative, Black's pieces
are centralized, and the c5 pawn may
prove a tactical liability in some lines :
22 . .te4 'it>hB ! 23.ixh7 ixc5+ 24.�xc5
'it>xh7 is one example. Thus, things are
not so simple, and Black is able to put
up stiff resistance if he finds the right
moves.
17 bS?
•••
Deja vu. White now has an undis­
puted advantage, similar to Portisch­
Radulov above. 17 . . . h6 with the idea of
returning the knight to d5 once again
would have kept Black in the game.
Play continues 1B.hf6 (likely better
than 1B . .te3 ttJd5) 1B . . .hf6 19.Eiac1
�c7 20.�e2 EiacB, and although Black
is under pressure, his position is more
or less intact. He can exchange on c5,
allowing Eixc5 from White, and then
play his queen to b6. Even if White
wins the c6-pawn, his d4-pawn will
still be vulnerable. After the text
move, Black winds up succumbing to
White's probing for weaknesses on
the kingside: given Wojo's prowess in
these kinds of positions, the game is
nearly over.
18.a4 a6 19.ti'e2 ctldS 20.he7
ttJxe7 21 .1e4 �c7 22.ti'hS g6
•
23. ti'fJ ttJd5
24.axbS axbS
White also keeps a dominating posi­
tion after 24 . . . cxb5 25.c6 .tcB 26.hd5
, exd5 (26 . . . Eixd5 27.ttJg4) 27.�f4.
2SJ:ixa8 gxa8 26.J.xdS exdS
26 . . . cxd5 27.�f6 h5 2 B.Eid3 doesn't
help Black much.
35
 CHAPTER 1
27.'fff6 geS
If Black plays 27 . . . h5, he finds him­
self coming up short after 2SJ!d3 �eS
29.�f3 �e6 30.\1;lfxf7+ .
2S . . . �e6 29.tlJh6+ �fS 30.WfhS+
�e7 31.tlJxf7! ends the game.
29.ttlh6+ Iif1h7 30.ttlxf7 1- 0
It cannot be emphasized enough,
however, that just because White has
the opportunity to push c4-c5 doesn't
always mean that he should. White
needs to put some thought into the
move and heed the weaknesses it will
create.
In the following rapid game, Wojo
jumped at the chance to play c4-c5,
even though some sort of preparatory
move first would likely have been bet­
ter. With best play, Black could even
have had the advantage.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2543)
Privrnan, Boris (2222)
[E01] New York 2003
1.ttlf3 e6 2.g3 d5 3.J.g2 c6 4. 0 - 0
ttlf6 5.c4 J.d6 6.d4 0 - 0 7.ttlc3 b6!?
36
Rather than trying to play a Semi­
Slav by aiming for . . . e6-e5, here Black
is actually aiming for an "improved"
variation of the Closed Catalan. The
point of putting the bishop on d6 here
will become apparent shortly.
S.b3 J.b7 9.J.b2 ttlbd7 10.Wfc2
gcS 1l.e4 dxe4 12.ttlxe4 ttlxe4
13.'ffxe4
This position has been reached a
handful of times from a variety of dif­
ferent move orders. Essentially, Black
has seized control of the h2-bS di­
agonal, making it seem unlikely that
White will ever be able to play c4-c5
and oib2-c1-f4. Oddly enough, White
manages c4-c5 anyway.
13 ••. 'ff c7
13 . . . tlJf6 14.Wfc2 has also occurred,
when Black is discouraged from play-
 AN INfRODUCTION TO THE CWSED CATALAN
ing the immediate 14 . . . cS in light of
1S.dxc5 ! . He is now forced to make
an awkward recapture on c5 with the
rook: 1S . . . .bc5?? 16.llJgS! with the
threat of ixf6 and mate on h7 wins the
bishop on b7. After 1S . . . !!xcS 16.!!ad1
or 16.llJgS ! ? !!xgS 17 . .bb7 'r!!c7 1B.i.g2
ieS 19.!!ad1, Black is awkward.
Thus, Black players often try
14 ... h6 to stop any of White's ide­
as on gS. White then turns his atten­
tion to playing an effective c4-c5, for
instance, 1S.!!ad1 'r!!c7 16.!!fe1 !!feB
17.c5 i.e7 1B.llJeS llJd7 19.1lJd3 i.f6
20.!c3 eS? 21.dxeS llJxeS 22.llJf4 llJd7
23.llJhS !!xe1+ 24.!!xe1 'r!!b B 2S . .th3
E!c7 26.ixd7, 1-0 Ryskin-Pedersen,
Minsk 1994. That example is dramat­
ic, but regardless, Privrnan's 13 .. .'�c7
is a better choice than 13 . . . llJf6.
14 ... cS immediately is possible,
but of course White can simply play
something like 1S.'r!!c 2 cxd4 16.llJgS g6
17.,hb7 'r!!xb7 1B.hd4 with a possi­
ble slight edge. However, he can also
take advantage of the fact that Black
has deserted the h4-dB diagonal with
1S.'IWh4 !?, which still keeps ideas in­
volving llJf3-gS in the air. 1S . . . cxd4??
16.�xd4 ! , winning a piece, is just one
of the points behind this move.
15.c5 ! ?
Once again, going for it. 1S.llJeS
llJxeS 16.dxeS i.e7 defends adequate­
ly for Black, and, as always, isn't that
interesting. However, the preparatory
1S.!!fe1 was probably called for here,
as we'll see in the note to Black's move
16.
15 .ie7
••.
Not good for Black is 1S . . . bxc5
16.dxc5 ixcS? 17.llJgS ! (stronger than
the obvious 17J�xd7 'r!!xd7 1B.'�eS
hf2 + 19.!!xf2 f6 20.'r!!e 3 with a clear
advantage for White) 17 .. .fS (17 . . . g6
1B.llJxh7! wins) 1B.'�c4 and White is
winning:
For instance, 1B . . . !!e7 19.!!fe1 !!feB
20.!!xe6 !!xe6 21.llJxe6 llJb6 2 2 .llJxc7+
llJxc4 23.llJxeB llJxb2 24.!!dB. Note
that after the superior 16 . . . i.e7, 17.b4
is an advantage for White, although
Black is hanging in there after 17 . . . aS
1B.a3 axb4 19.axb4 !f6.
16.b4 �f6
Black misses a prime opportuni­
ty. 16 . . . i.a6 17.!!fe1 (sacrifices such
as 17.llJd2 ? ! are speculative) 17 . . ..ic4
would have allowed Black to reroute
his bishop outside the pawn chain.
Black's worst piece suddenly becomes
37
 CHAPTER 1

his most active one, so his chances are bxc5 24.bxc5 ga2 25.,i,e4 Yfa5
preferable. Even after the game move, 26.Yfc1 ti'b4 27.,i,d4 ,i,a6
however, Black is doing fine.

17.Yfc2 �d5 18.a3 a5 19.Yfd2

axb4 20.axb4 ,i,f6

Black's position appears to be fair­

20 . . . i.a6 2UUe1 i.b5 would have
been at least equal, if not better, for
Black. The game continuation is too
complacent, and leaves White with a
fairly nice game after all. Black's light­
squared bishop must become active if
Black is to have true counterplay.
ly active, but White's two bishops ac­
tually are enough for a small edge.
Black's queenside pieces have no clear
targets.
28.,i,bl ge2??
These types of blunders often oc­
cur in rapid games. 28 . . . ga3 would
have continued the struggle.

29.gxe2 he2 30.Yfc2 1- 0

Summary: Playing c4-c5 is a game changer. If White is able to trade dark­

squared bishops and utilize his new outposts on e5 and d6, he is usually assured
a big advantage. If Black can keep the dark-squared bishops on the board and
generate counter play, the game turns into a complex struggle with chances
for both sides.

Conclusion: When Black plays . . . d5xe4, White has the better chances. In
most cases, he is able to play for a win without risk. In other cases, he may actu­
ally elect to take on some positional risk with c4-c5 in order to go after an even
larger advantage. Which approach White takes is sometimes dictated by the po­
sition on the board (for instance, a trade of dark-squared bishops usually means
White really should try for c4-c5) and is sometimes just a matter of tas�e (in
Wojtkiewicz-Hidding, there is a choice between 13.Yfc2 and c4-c5 or Avrukh's
solid 13.,i,f4). The reader should aim to score well in the . . . d5xe4 positions, but
an occasional draw is just par for the course.

38
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

Black Refuses to Play ... d 5xe4:

Delvi ng Deeper i nto Closed Cata lan Theory

In general, when White plays e2-e4,

the move . . .d5xe4 is considered a con­
cession from Black. So long as he still
has the eB square for his king's knight
- that is, he hasn't played .. JUB­
eB as a waiting move - theory con­
tends that Black should focus on a
swift counterpunch with . . . c6-cS. Al­
though move orders and piece place­
ments change from variation to var­
iation, White has two main ideas af­
ter a . . . c6-cS strike from Black. He can
9.b3 first is considered the main
either push ahead with e4-e5, trying
line, but Wojo enjoyed this move or­
to gain space, or capture with e4xdS,
der as well.
trying to create complications in the
center. Approaches with e4-eS tend
9 ... .1b7
to be inflexible and were not much to
Wojo's taste. Over the next few games,
This bishop placement is nat­
we will get a feel for how Wojo han­ ural but passive. If Black wants to
dled these types of positions and what play the variation with . . . c6-cS rath­
his ideas and opinions were. Then, in er than . . . dSxe4, he needs to extend
Chapter 3, we will attempt to assem­ the fianchetto slightly with 9 . . . ia6 in­
ble a workable repertoire against the stead. Then 10.ltJeS ! ltJxeS 1l.dxeS ltJd7
Closed Catalan by using the themes we 12.cxd5 cxd5 13.e4 d4 14J:1xd4 Wffc7
have examined. lS.if4 transposes into a line we'll ex­
amine in the next section. This is the
chief advantage of Wojo's B.ltJc3 move
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2566) order. The only visible disadvan­
Mulyar, Michael A. (2425) tage of B.ltJc3 is that Black can try 9 . . .
[EOB] Stratton Mountain 2003 dxc4. However, this move has yet to
occur in practice. Simplest for White
1.�fJ �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4 is just to regain the pawn immediate­
ie7 5 .1g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 c6 7.ti'c2
• ly with 1O.ltJd2, for instance, 1O. . . ia6 ! ?
�bd7 8.gdl b6 9.�c3 1l.,bc6 gcB 12 .1g2 b S 13.a3 Wffb 6

39
 CHAPTER 1
14.llJf3 .ib7 1S.e4 followed by llJf3-eS,
.ic1-e3, and so on. White has the center.
10.b3 gc8
The main line. The immediate
10. . . cS can be met by 1l.cxdS exdS
(ll . . . llJxdS 12.llJxdS .!xdS 13.e4 .ib7
14.dxcS .!xeS 1S.llJeS was better for
White in Castafieda-Pendurin, Tula
2006) 12 . .ib2 l'k8 13.dxeS .!xeS 14.e3,
with good play against the isolated
queen's pawn, as in Salov-Bauer, Eng­
hien 1999 . Other moves that Black has
played here include 10 .. .'�c8, 10 .. .'�c7,
10. . J'!e8, and even 10. . . .ta6.
1l.e4 c5? !
1l . . . dxe4 with the idea of 12.llJxe4
cS, as mentioned in the game Por­
tisch-Radulov above, seems like the
only thing close to acceptable for Black
here. Black's bishop on b7 will now be­
come the subject of a long tactical dis­
cussion along the Catalan diagonal.
12.exd5 exd5 13 . .ib2
The older line 13.dxeS dxc4 14.b4
was seen in Wojtkiewicz-Feldman,
New York 1993, but it is now appar­
ent that maintaining the tension in the
center is even stronger for White.
40
13 ti'c7
•.•
This is bad, but Black apparent­
ly has nothing better. He cannot just
continue his development with some­
thing like 13 .. J�e8, as White has been
successful with 14.llJgS ! ? The idea
is simply to pin Black's dS-pawn to
his bishop on b7. It works : after 14 . . .
h 6 1S.llJh3 Wc7 16.cxdS cxd4 17J�xd4
.teS 18J�dd1, Black is, amazingly, just
down a pawn. Even if he manages to
attack dS enough times to regain it, he
will have wasted valuable time and ef­
fort doing so.
The usual course of events is 13 . . .
dxc4? ! , when 14.dS i s a powerful pawn
push. White is simply threatening d5-
d6, winning a piece. Here 14 . . . llJe8 (or
14 . . . cxb3 1S.axb3 llJe8) has been tried,
but 1S.llJbS ! - even stronger than
1S.bxc4 - gives White a tremendous
initiative:
Black has no satisfactory solution
to his problems here. 1S . . . a6 16.llJa7
just wins the exchange in view of 16 . . .
ga8? 17.llJc6, winning a full piece.
16 . . . gc7? was tried in the simultane­
ous exhibition game Kasparov-Kam­
sky, New York (exhibition) 1989, but
17.llJc6 hc6 18.dxc6 gxc6 19.9xd7!
Wxd7 20.llJe5 wins on the spot. Mean­
while, accepting the pawn "sacrifice"
with 15 . . . cxb3 16.axb3 a6 17.llJa7 fares
little better, and White eventually won
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN
in Stohl-Horvath, Croatian Team Chp.
1995, after 17 . . . �d6 18.�xcS �xcS
19.1"1el. Finally, something like 15 . . J'�aS
16.d6 !f6 17.�g5 ! ixg5 1S.ixb7 just
leaves White dominating the board.
As it turns out, the text can hardly be
considered an improvement.
14.gel
A strong novelty by Wojo. Instead,
the more commonly played 14.�xd5
lLlxd5 15.cxd5 ixd5 16.dxc5 has re­
sulted in a number of quick wins for
White:
After 16 . . hf3 17.ixf3, the recap­
.
ture 17 ... Wfxc5 1S:�e2 is surprisingly
bad for Black. One example: 1S . . . �f6?
19.1"1ac1 �4 20.l''! xcS l''lxcS 2 1.gd4 �k1 +
(21.. :?Nc5 2 2 Jk4 wins) 2 2 .ixc1, 1-0,
Casagrande-Herzog, Austrian Team
Chp. 1992. After the better 17 . . . �xc5,
IS:?Nf5 l"lcdS 19.�d5 left Black under
uncomfortable pressure in Chekhov­
Goetz, Bundesliga 1996:
Things only went downhill for
Black after 19 . . . WfcS 20.Wfh5 �d7
2 1.�e4 g6 22 .�f3 f6? ! Gosing, but it's
hard to come up with much for Black,
as 22 . . . �c5 23.�d5 threatens Wff3-c3)
23.l"lac1 �S 24.Wfg4 �e5 (24 . . . �c5
25.ixg6 hxg6 26.�xg6+ <i>hS 27.l"le1
followed by l"lcl-c4-h4 wins) 25.Wfe6+
l"lf7 26.l"lxdS+ 1-0. White can meet ei­
ther recapture with l"lc1-cS, winning
on the spot.
Backtracking a bit, Black can avoid
some of these woes by stubbornly re­
fusing to give up the bishop pair with
16 . . . .ib7, though White does retain a
strong pull after 17.�f5 �xc5 1S.Wfg4
or IS.�e5. The latter was seen in Dana­
ilov-Zarnicki, Andorra 1991, in which
Black actually did suffer through the
middlegame to earn a draw. It is hard
to say whether Wojo's new move is
even stronger than 14.�xd5, which
has a proven track record of winning
games for the first player. It is easy,
however, to conclude that this whole
line is simply pitiful for Black.
14 ••• gfe8 15.cxd5
15 ••• c4
Black is losing material no matter
what. The line 15 ... �xd5 16.�xd5 ixd5
17J'!xe7 l"lxe7 1S.�g5 �f6 19.,ixd5 h6
41
 CHAPTER 1

(what else?) 2 0 . .hf7+ �xf7 21.liJxf7
Wlxf7, leaving White a pawn to the
good, is just one example. 15 . . . cxd4
16.liJxd4 liJxd5 17.!xd5 ixd5 18.liJxd5
Wlxc2 19.1iJxc2 �xc2 2 0 .liJxe7+ �f8
2 1.i.a3, losing Black a full piece, is an­
other.
16.tLle5
liJe5-c6, b3xc4, d5-d6, Wlc2-fS, i.g2-
h3, and the list goes on.
16 ••• cxb3
16 . . . i.a6 was probably an "only"
move, but White is still just a pawn up
and can play what he pleases. 17.liJc6
looks good. Now Black is lost.

White has too many tactical motifs 17.Wlxb3 a6 18.d6 hd6 19.tLlxf7
in the air for Black to keep up here : 1- 0

Summary: If Black is looking to meet White's e2-e4 break with . . . c6-c5

rather than taking on e4, he should strongly consider placing his bishop on a6
rather than b7. This particular game was miserable for Black because he had
so many tactical issues along the e-file and the long hI-aB diagonal.

In the following game, we'll look at 9 i.a6

•••

one of Wojo's treatments of the . . .i.c8-

a6 idea from Black. Rather than en­
ter one of the theoretical main lines,
Wojo elects a rare sideline which gam­
bits a pawn for positional pressure.
The idea of 10.i.b2 and 1l.liJc3 ap­
pears to be perfectly reasonable, but
the fact that Korchnoi was able to out­
play Wojo in this particular encoun­
ter has most likely contributed to the
line's present-day obscurity.

Wojtkiewicz, A1eksander (2563)

Korchnoi, Viktor (2659)
[E08] Reykjavik 2000
l.liJf3 d5 2.d4 liJf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
i.e7 5.i.g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 liJbd7 7.Wlc2
c6 8.�dl b6 9.b3
Wojo plays the usual move order in
this game.
This is Black's best move. 9 . . . i.b7
10.liJc3 would transpose into the line
in the previous game - something
Black definitely wants to avoid.
10.i.b2
With this, Wojo is preparing to
sacrifice a pawn in order to bring his
knight to the c3 square anyway. Mod-

42
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

ern theory continues along a com­

pletely different path, with White
playing into the line 10.llJbd2 l'k8 11.e4
c5 12.exdS exdS 13 . .tb2 (13.llJf1 ! ? is a
more recent try), and here 13 . . . cxd4
14.liJxd4 bS :

1l ... dxc4

Korchnoi decides to put Woj o's

gambit to the test. 1l . . . cS? ! doesn't
work well for Black here, as White's
knight on c3 puts more pressure on
There is a mountain of theory from
the center than it would on d2 . The
this position, and so far none of it has
central counterpunch 12.e4 ! ? with
seemed overly promising for White.
complications is certainly possi�le,
As we'll discuss in Chapter 3, trying
but White can get an advantage With
to play this line is rather impracti­
far less effort by just playing 12.cxdS,
cal for most Catalan players. Black is
when 12 . . . cxd4 13.llJxd4 llJxdS 14.�d2
having more than his fair share of the
llJxc3 lS ..ixc3 with ideas of llJd4-c6
fun: lS.�fS bxc4 16.bxc4 g6 and here
gives White a pleasant initiative. Oth­
17.�gS ! ? dxc4 18.llJc6 !%xc6 19 . .ixc6
erwise, 12 . . . exdS 13 J�'fS puts pressure
�b6 20. .ixd7 �xb2 21.!%abl �a3
on Black's "hanging pawns" on cS and
22 .ibS c3 23.llJc4 �cS 24.�xc5 hc5
dS. 13 . . . g6 14.�h3 doesn't help Black.
25J1dc1 hbS 26.!%xbS llJe4 27.!%xcS
Returning to the diagram, the posi­
�xcS 28.!%xc3 gives White noth­
tion that occurs after 1l . . . \¥fc7 has been
ing, while 17.\¥fh3 dxc4 18.ic3 llJc5
reached a number of times through
19.1iJc6 !%xc6 20. .txc6 llJd3 21.llJe4 �b6
Queen's Indian Defense transposi­
22.�g2 llJg4 23.!%abl \¥fxc6 24.llJf6+
tions. Then 12 .e4 dxc4, followed by
�xf6 2S . .ixf6 .ixf6 is given by Raetsky
trying to hold on to the pawn, is crit­
and Chetverik as unclear. Although
ical here. 13.llJd2 cxb3 14.axb3 offers
White could certainly play into this
White compensation for his pawn in
line and still score well, it would be
the form of queenside pressure, so
virtually impossible for him to use it
13 . . . bS ! ? was tested in the blitz game
as a "system," as Wojo liked to do. It
Grischuk-Carlsen, Tal Memorial
is all strictly analysis; there are no re­
2008, when 14.bxc4 bxc4 lS.llJa4 cS
curring positional themes, only tacti­
16.dS exdS 17.exdS llJeS 18 . .ixeS \¥fxeS
cal ones.
19.1lJxc4 .ixc4 20.�xc4 id6 21.llJc3
was just a little better for White thanks
10 gc8 1l.�c3
...

to his solid passed d-pawn:

43
 CHAPTER 1
There is still a lot to be decided in
this line, but White should certain­
ly have good prospects of getting an
edge.
Finally, 1l . . .bS ! ? has been tried a
few times, but White has all the chanc­
es after 12.c5 b4 13.lLlbl (better than
13.lLla4, which sidelines the knight)
13 . . . i.bS 14.a3 as, as played in Bau­
er-Roeder, Valle d'Aosta 2003. In ge­
neral, White should meet such . . .b6-
bS strikes from Black with c4-c5, gain­
ing space.
In that game, White slowly built up
on the queenside: IS.lLlel Wfc7 16.lLld3
.ixd3 17.Wfxd3 eS IB.e3 e4 19.Wfe2 �aB
20.lLld2 �feB 2U:ia2 Wfb7 2 2 .�dal.
Black has expanded on the kingside,
but, unlike White, he has no clear
plan. 22 . . . �ebB 23.Wfel lLleB 24.axb4
axb4 2S.i.h3 lLlfB 26.�a4 lLle6 27.�la2
lLl Bc7 2B.Wfal and White eventual­
ly wore down Black's defenses on the
queenside.
12.�e5 cxb3
Black declares that he is willing
to give up central space and play a
long defense in order to hold his ex­
tra pawn. 12 . . . lLlxeS is the obvious al­
ternative.
After 13.dxeS, Black has two possi­
ble knight blocks:
44
a) 13 . . . lLld7 14.lLle4 Wfc7 IS.f4 gives
White promising pressure. Black can­
not keep his extra pawn, as IS . . . cxb3? !
16.axb3 i.bS 17.lLld6 .ixd6 IB.exd6
with a looming kingside attack pro­
vides tremendous compensation.
b) 13 . . . lLldS 14.lLle4 b5 15.lLld6 ! ?
leads t o I S . . . i.xd6 16.exd6 f6 17.bxc4
bxc4, and here IB . .ta3 looks like a
slight improvement on IB.i.c3, seen
in Stefansson-Johannessen, Malmo
2002 . After IB.i.c3 fS? ! 19.e4 fxe4
20.,be4 c;t>hB 21.i.eS, Black wound
up suffering from king safety prob­
lems and eventually lost. Instead, with
IB.i.a3 Wfd7 19.i.c5, White controls the
dark squares.
13.axb3 �b8 14.e4 Wfc7 15.�c4
White prepares for e4.:eS and lLlc3-
e4, completing the bind. Black must
take action.
 AN INTRODUCTION TO THE CLOSED CATALAN

15 b5
••• have opted for something else, for in­
stance 21.. .lLlb6 2 2 . lLl ceS, when the
lS . . . cS? ! 16.eS lLldS (or 16 . . . lLlfd7 struggle continues.
17.dS) 17.lLlxdS exdS 18.lLle3, crashing
through on dS, is not a good idea for 21 ••• c5
Black.
Black, fully mobilized on the
16.tbe3 b4 17.tba4 J.b5 18.tbc5 queenside, strikes back.
tbbd7 19.tbd3 gfd8 20.f4
22.d5 exd5 23.exd5 J.d6
Black has gained some time off 24.tbf5? !
White's knight, so it cannot really be
said that White has an advantage in
development. He does have a tremen­
dous advantage in space, however,
and all of his pieces are well placed.
Black is vulnerable along the a-file, his
b4-pawn is exposed, and his c5 square
is rather weak. Thus, despite Black's
extra flank pawn, the balance is main­
tained.

20 V:Yb8
•••

Tempting, but now White finds

himself in serious trouble on the
queenside. 24.lLlc4 anyhow may have
turned out better. Unfortunately, the
tempo White lost by playing �gl-hl
hurts him here; for instance, Black can
try 24 . . . h:c4 2S.bxc4 �e8, when he es­
sentially prevents lLld3-eS.

24 ••• c4!

Black's break on the queenside

2V.t>hl
An important loss of time, and pos­
sibly the result of indecision on White's
part. 21.lLlc4 immediately was fine. If
then still 21.. .cS ! ? , after 2 2 .dS exdS
23.exdS id6 (or 23 .. .ixc4 24.bxc4
id6 2S.ih3 �c7 26.lLleS, heading for
c6) 24.lLldeS White's chances are pref­
erable. Thus Black would probably
comes before White can create real
chances on the kingside.
25.bxc4 hc4 26.YlYf2
For the moment, it appears that
White has full compensation. His
bishops are crisscrossing the board,
his queen and rook are converging on
a7, and Black is weak along the critical

4S
 CHAPTER l

al-hB diagonal. Unfortunately, Black Clearly, Wojo had planned to play

has an unexpected tactical resource.
26 •••.lf8
Best. Black is unconcerned with
White's d-pawn and is simply trying
to consolidate.
2B .he5 here. For instance, after 2B . . .
�b5, h e has 29.i.xf6 gxf6 30.�d4,
when the kingside piece assault con­
tinues. The counterpunch 2B . . . t1:\g4 ! ,
tactically resolving Black's issues, is
most likely what he had overlooked.
The text move is hopeless.

27.tLle5 28 ••• t1:\xd5 29.gd4 VHb6

Black pins the rook on d4 with his

queen, not the bishop, just to be on the
safe side. He figures it is better to leave
the key defender on fB for now.

30.e6 ti'xe6 31.ge1 VHb6 32 .lc1 •

tLle7 0 -1

White is down three pawns and is

under heavy tactical fire. Wojo saw no
reason to play on against a player of
27••• tLlxe5 28.fxe5 Korchnoi's caliber.

Summary: Wojo played an ambitious gambit against the solid Korchnoi,

who defended adequately but didn't emerge with an enviable positionfrom the
opening. White had compensation for his pawn, but a few inaccuracies led him
down a quick path to defeat.

Conclusion: White had full compensation for his pawn in this game. Am­
bitious players of White may want to look at Wojo's idea, add their own analy­
sis, and attempt to use it as a dangerous weapon. Please note, however, that it is
not necessary to play these kinds of gambits in order to succeed with the Cata­
lan. Although we won't discuss the issue of move orders in depth until Chapter
3, being familiar with the ideas presented in this game will come in handy later
on when we start assembling a specific repertoire.
Any would-be Catalan player who has made it this far can feel confident play­
ing against the Closed Catalan system below master level. The reader has been
amply acquainted with the lion's share of the themes and ideas he will ever en­
counter at a weekend Swiss. What he doesn't know already shouldn't be impos­
sible to handle over the board. The next two chapters, however, are dedicated
to those who wish to specialize in the Closed Catalan and go after even better
returns. So if you're a club player hoping to have a Wojo-like reperto ire before
your next event, now would be a fine time to skip to Part II to get a feel for the
Open Catalan systems. But, if you're ready to head deeper into the Closed Cata­
lan, carry on.

46
Chapter 2
////////IIW//
The Closed Catalan with 4 . . . �b4+
Black's N u a n ced Move Order
Suppose that after l.ttlf3 d5 2.d4 ttlf6
3.c4 e6 4.g3, Black plays 4 . . . !h4 + .
White can certainly respond 5.ttlbd2 ! ?
here, but the most natural move - and
the main line - is 5.id2 . Now Black
retreats with 5 . . . !e7! and then pro­
ceeds to play a Closed Catalan. White
has gotten in the "extra" move 5 . .id2 ,
but the bishop is actually misplaced
here. Play continues 6 . .tg2 0-0 7.0-0
c6 8.'1Wc2 ttlbd7, and so the following
position is reached:
1.ttlf3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
!b4+
White would normally proceed by
playing either ttld2 and e2-e4 immedi­
ately or - as Wojo preferred - playing
b2-b3 first with an eye toward .tb2 .
Both approaches, of course, are im­
possible here. So what is White to do?
In order to smoothly complete his de­
velopment, he must relocate his mis­
placed bishop on d2 . The solution is
to play 9 . .if4, placing the bishop on an
excellent square. Rather than opting
for a queenside fianchetto, White is
simply aiming play in the center with
moves like l:l:f1-dl, ttlbl-c3 or ttlbl-d2 ,
ttlf3-e5, and an eventual e2-e4 break
in many cases.
In fact, the move 9 . .if4 ! is so logi­
cal that Black's best option is to play
9 . . . ttlh5, forcing the bishop to retreat.
Here we recommend 1O. .tc1, when,
as we'll see in the upcoming games,
Black doesn't have much better than
to go back with 10. . . ttlhf6. Thus, we are
back where we started. The finesse of
47
 CHAPTER 2
4 . . . i.b4+ has been completely undone,
and White is free to play 1l.b3 or an­
ything else he chooses. If he is okay
with the possibility of a draw, 1l.i.f4 ! ?
again i s even worth a try. By the end
of this chapter, it should be apparent
that Black's independent tries all lead
to easy play for White.
Before moving on, it is worth not­
ing that the number of move orders
available to both sides is astronom­
ical. Trying to keep track of them at
this point is a waste of energy.
In this section, we again try to em­
phasize positional understanding over
Wh ite's Di rect Approach: tLlf3-e5 and e2-e4
With the move 9 . .1f4, White is aim­
ing for solid piece play in the center.
His ideal situation would be to play
l'Ul-dl, tt:lbl-c3, tt:lf3-eS and e2-e4. If
Black does nothing to counterattack,
White achieves a pleasant initiative.
Furthermore, if Black mishandles the
situation in the center once White has
played the e2-e4 break, he can find
himself in a losing position quickly.
This is exactly what happens when 1M
Sandor Kustar weakens his kingside
in the following Wojo encounter.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2581)
Kustar, Sandor (2383)
[E08] Sioux Falls 2000
1.d4 tt:lf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 .ib4+
4 .id2 .ie7 S .ig2 dS 6.tLJt3 �bd7
• •
7.'i'c2 0 - 0 8. 0 - 0 c6 9.gd1
Note the slightly different move or­
der. 9J'!dl is considered more flexible
against some of Black's tries, but the
perceived downside is that the White
48
theoretical knowledge. We'll sort out
the move orders in Chapter 3. For
now, it will suffice to say that we rec­
ommend White complete his kingside
development, play YNdl-c2 , and then
look to play i.d2-f4. If Black kicks
the knight with . . . tt:lf6-hS, it generally
makes little sense to retreat the bishop
to d2, where it interferes with White's
queenside development. In all of our
recommended variations, we advo­
cate bringing the bishop all the way
back to cl.
Now, on to the ideas behind this
variation.
rook is placed better on fl in the event
of Stonewall ideas involving . . . tt:lf6-e4
and . . . f7-fS ideas from Black. White
also loses the option of playing c4xdS
and meeting . . . c6xdS with l'Ul-c1, dou­
bling on the c-file. Wojo played both
9.gdl and 9 . .1f4, and it is not clear that
he had any particular reason in mind
when he played one move order or the
other.
9 ... b6 10 . .1f4 .1a6 1l.�eS
The most straightforward idea for
White.
Black's most common option.
Avrukh points out that 1l . . . gc8 should
be met with 12.tt:lc3, rather than
12 .YNa4 ! ? tt:lb8 ! with the idea of . . . b6-
bS.
12.dxeS �d7 13.cxdS cxdS
14.e4
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .lb4+

sons his d-pawn with 15 . . . d4 16.l3xd4

�c7 in order to keep the central lines
partially closed while he gets out from
under the enemy fire:

Black is now under serious pres­

sure. 14 . . . dxe4? ! doesn't work in view
of 15 . .ixe4 EkB 16.,hh7+ (or 16.�a4
tiJc5 17.l3xdB) 16 . . .'.t>hB 17.lilc3, when
Black is simply down a pawn: 17 . . . g6? Now 17.�a4 lilc5 IB.VlJc2 lild7 re­
18 ..ixg6 fxg6 19.�xg6, threatening sulted in a quick draw in Wojtkie­
the e6 pawn, is overwhelming. Thus, wicz-Bauer, FIDE World Chp. Quali­
Black is forced to make a concession. fier 2001. But two years later, Wojo's
apprentice GM Kamil Miton managed
14 g5?
•••
to simplify with 17.l3adl l3fdB IB.h4 h6
19.h5 lilc5 (not 19 . . . lilxe5?? 20.l3xdB+
Weakening the kingside is not the l3xdB 21.l3xdB+ ixd8 2 2 .�a4 icB
correct concession for Black to make 23.ixe5 �xe5 24.VlJeB+ , winning a
here, however. piece) 20.l3xdB+ l3xdB 21.ifl ixfl
If Black insists on keeping even 2 2 . mxf1:
material, the old line 14 . . . d4? ! 15.l3xd4
ic5 16.l3dl g5 is better than the text.
White's bishop is forced all the way
back to c1 in this case. 17 . .!cl VlJe7
18.'lWa4 icB and here Tkachiev's
19.tiJd2 lilxe5 20.lilb3 gives White a
significant advantage. Tkachiev-V.
Filippov, European Cup 2006, con­
tinued 20. . . id7 2 1.�a6 l3adB 2 2 .lilxc5
ic8 23.�e2 l3xdl+ 24.�xdl bxc5
25.'lWd2 ! f6 26.�c3, when Black's
pawns were weak and White had the 22 . . . a6? ! (22 . . . l3xdl+ 23.�xdl lild7
bishop pair. 26 . . . ia6? 27.,hg5 fxg5 was a better try, though 24.�d4 with
28.'lWxe5 brought the point home. the idea of lilc3-e2 and VlJd4-c3 more
Black needs to forget about . . . g7-g5 than holds the pawn) 23.l3xdB+ �xdB
for a while ifhe is going to reach a play­ (23 . . .ixdB 24.lila4! is the problem)
able position. Simple development 24.ie3 ! lild7 25.f4 and White went
with 14 . . . l3cB is decidedly Black's best on to win in Miton-Berczes, Budapest
chance. Then after 15.lilc3, Black jetti- 2003.

49
 CHAPTER 2
Obviously, Black has to find an im­
provement. Amazingly, the waiting
tactic 19 . . . i.c5 20J!4d2 i.e7 is a stron­
ger attempt. Avrukh recommends
White answer in turn with the useful
waiting move 2 1.a3, but then he states
that Black must play 21 . . . lLlc5 anyway.
But 21...'�f8 ! ended up drawn after
22 J'3d4 i.c5 23JHd2 i.e7 24.1'3d4 i.c5
25.1'34d2 i.e7 12_ 12, Vitiugov-Toma­
shevsky, Russian Superfinals 2008.
By moving his king toward the cent­
er, Black rids White of the possibility
of �c2-a4-e8. Of course, White could
try to play on anyway, though after
22 .�a4 lLlc5 23.1'3xd8 + 1'3xd8 24.1'3xd8 +
�xd8 25.�c2 , Black's control over the
d3 square leaves him without serious
problems.
15 .ie3
• c!Oxe5 16.exd5 gc8
17.c!Oc3
Black's position is wretched. His
g5-pawn is an obvious target, and the
center is coming open rapidly. Black's
pieces are not organized effectively, so
he cannot hope to match White's fire­
power as the lines come open.
17... YlYe8
17 . . . exd5 18.1'3xd5 YlYc7 19.YlYfS is no
50
better. White's ideas include .ie3xg5
winning a pawn, ,ig2-e4 forming a
battery against h7, and the f2-f4 break.
18.d6 .id8 19.YlYd2
19.f4 gxf4 20. .bf4 c!Od7 (not 20. . .
i.f6? 2 1..ixe5 !xeS 2 2 .d7) 2 1 . .ih6 with
the possible followup of �c2-a4-g4
was even stronger, but at this point,
Wojo likely felt the win was just au­
tomatic.
19 ... ti'd7
Forced, in view of d6-d7. In the
mess that ensues, Black's king is open,
he is down a pawn, and his queen is
stuck babysitting White's passed
pawn on d6.
20 .ixg5 c!Oc4 21. YlYcl f6 22 .if4
• •
b5 23.b3 c!Oe5 24. YlYb2 b4
White is also winning on 24 . . . lLlg6
25.ih6 1'3t7 26.1'3ac1 and so on.
25 .ixe5 fxe5 26.c!Oe4 �U'5
•
27.gacl gxc1 28.gxc1 .ib6 29.c!Oc5?
1- 0
If the game score is correct, Wo­
jo's last move was actually a minor
blunder. Black could simply respond
29 . . .�xd6 or 29 . . ..ixc5 30.1'3xc5 �xd6,
snapping off White's important d­
pawn. In either case, it is difficult to
see how White would proceed. In­
stead of 29.lLlc5?, better was 29.i.h3,
after which Black's difficulties only
increase. His rook is stuck guarding
against lLle4-f6+ and the fall of the e5-
pawn, so his position should collapse
shortly. If the game score is correct,
perhaps Black's flag fell at this point.
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .ib4 +

Summary: Black did not do anything to stop White's direct approach to

opening the center. Black's game was unpleasant, but weakening the kingside
with 14... g5? was essentially the losing move. After that, Wojo was able to mow
down Black's scattered defenses.

Conclusion: Although permitting White to crack open the center with lLlf3-
eS and an eventual e2-e4 is playable for Black, the second player should be try­
ing to keep things closed, not open. In the critical line given in the note to Black's
move 14, Black is able to give up a pawn to leave White's Catalan bishop hemmed
in by its own pawn on e4. At best, this allows Black to play for a draw. Black's
position is solid, but White has all the chances.

The Stonewa l l Defense, Ta ke #2

Black has a few different methods of
preventing White's e2-e4 push. The
oldest and most obvious of these is
to meet White's id2-f4 with . . . lLlf6-
hS followed by . . .V-fS, once again en­
tering a Stonewall formation. This is
not much more effective here than it
was back in Chapter 1, and White can
count on getting a slight advantage in
all lines. Black's "extra" move . . . lLlf6-
against the strong German grandmas­
ter Ralf Lau. At the time, Lau was at
the peak of his career.
Khalifman, Alexander (2505)
Lau, Ralf (2540)
[E08] Dordrecht 1988
1.d4 lLlf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 ib4+
4.id2 .ie7 5 .ig2 d5 6.c!Of3 0 - 0
•

hS doesn't affect play all that much, 7. 0 - 0 c6 8.Wc2 c!Obd7 9 .if4•

and the ideas for both sides are more

or less the same as before. In fact, the
biggest difference between the two
variations may well be the strength
of the players who have played them
from Black's side. While the attempts
to reach a Stonewall seen in Chapter 1
have been played mainly by amateurs,
more professionals have found them­
selves trying the Stonewall against the
strong 9 . .if4. As a result, Black has
usually made fewer drastic errors and
has been more conscientious about
taking his fair share of queenside
space.
In the following game, Alexan­
der Khalifman converts a slight pull
Yet again, we have reached the
starting position for this variation via
a different move order.
9 . . . lLle4, aiming similarly for a
Stonewall, can hardly be considered
a serious try. 10.lLlfd2 fs (or 1O. . . lLlxd2
1l.lLlxd2 gs 12 . .ie3 fs 13.f3 with the
idea of .ie3-f2 and e2-e4, breaking in
the center) 1l.lLlxe4 fxe4 12.lLld2, with
an eye toward f2-f3, gives White an
easy advantage. Black's bad bishop on
c8 is a serious hindrance to his devel­
opment here:

51
 CHAPTER 2
For instance, 12 . . . i.g5 13.i.xg5
�xg5 14.�c3 ! (preparing f2-f3) 14 . . .
ttJf6 15.f3 exf3 16.ttJxf3 �h5 17.ttJe5
was a clear advantage for White in
Tukmakov-Boric, Croatian Team
Chp. 2000. The e2-pawn is taboo : 17 . . .
�xe2?? l S . .if3 ! traps the queen. Re­
turning to the diagram, no better for
Black is 12 . . ..if6 13 . .id6 1'H7 14.e3,
with the f2-f3 break coming up next.
Kaidanov-Benjamin, u.s. Chp. 1993,
continued 15 . . . e5 15.�b3 exd4 16.cxd5
cxd5 17.%Vxd5 ttJb6 1S.%Vc5 dxe3 19.fxe3
.ie6 20.ttJxe4 with a big initiative for
White.
10.i.el f5
With the exception of 10. . . ttJhf6,
this is Black's most common move.
Black is attempting to make use of
his "extra" move . . . ttJf6-h5, and the
text steers the game towards a type of
Stonewall formation already familiar
to us.
Anything other than 10. . . ttJhf6 or
10. . . f5 here is just a minor try. 10. . .i.d6
1l.e4 dxe4 12.ttJg5 ttJhf6 13.ttJc3 is giv­
en as a clear advantage to White by
Hubner. Also poor is 1O b5? ! 1l.ttJe5!
•..
.ib7 (1l ... ttJxe5 12.dxe5 makes Black's
knight on h5 an easy target) 12.ttJxd7
�xd7 13.c5, when Black was left with
two bad minor pieces, his knight on h5
and his bishop on b7, in Dizdarevic­
Short, Solingen 19S5. White will be
52
looking to generate play by breaking
on the queenside.
1l.b3
White is looking to play i.a3, trad­
ing dark-squared bishops.
1l .ld6!?
•••
Black has tried any number of
things here in order to make sense
out of his strange Stonewall position.
White isn't particularly worried about
Black's kingside chances in this sort
of structure, as it is very difficult for
Black to make real progress against
White's solid fianchetto. For instance,
the aggressive 1l . . . g5 can be met with
the levelheaded 12 .e3, among oth­
er things. Then 12 . . . g4 13.ttJe5 ttJxeS
14.dxe5 ttJg7 15.ttJc3 h5 16.i.b2 h4 (or
16 . . . i.d7 17.1'!ad1 %VeS lS.ttJe2 h4 19.f3)
17.1'!ad1 �eS lS.f3 left White with the
better pieces in Bareev-Balashov, Rus­
sian Chp. 1996.
One of Black's biggest problems is
developing his queen's bishop. Try­
ing to fianchetto with 1l . . .b6? 12.cxdS
cxd5 13.%Vc6, forking as and e6, is
a problem for Black, but 1l . . . b5 ! ?
12.cxd5 cxd5 13.%Vc6 �b6 14.�xa8
(14.�xb6 axb6 15 . .ig5 .id6 16.1'!c1 i.b7
with counterplay is given by Salov)
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .ib4 +
14 ... tLlb8 ! IS . .id2 .ib7 16 . .iaS �a6
17.�xb8 (taking the better of the two
minor pieces) 17 . . .:!:!xb8 18.b4 1eads to
a bizarre situation where White's rook
and knight look stronger than Black's
queen. Silicon chess players prefer
the black pieces here thanks to his
material advantage, but Black's light­
squared bishop is bad here, and White
will dominate the open c-file with his
extra rook. White eventually ground
Black out in Salov-San Segundo, Ma­
drid 1996. An alternative approach
to developing the queen's bishop is
to move the knight on d7 and play
... .ic8-d7. To this end, the try ll . . . tLldf6
makes a lot of sense. 12.e3 id7 13 . .ia3
.ba3 14.tLlxa3 tLle4 1S.lLlbl (returning
the knight to the action promptly) IS . . .
ie8 16.tLleS �gS 17.tLlc3 tLlhf6 18J'!ae1
�h6 19.f3 left White with all the mo­
mentum in Korchnoi-Chandler, Han­
inge 1988.
Some Black players elect not to
worry about the queen's bishop until
later. Shipov-Ostojic, Belgrade 1992,
saw Black try to gain queenside space
with ll . . . aS. After 12.tLlbd2 tLlhf6 ! ?
13.tLlgS! (forcing Black t o waste time)
13 ... tLlb8, the straightforward 14 ..ib2
was an advantage for White. Another
way to ignore the plight of the queen's
bishop is ll . . . �e8, bringing the queen
to the kingside. Play might continue
12.a4 tLlhf6 13 . .ia3, when 13 . . . lLle4? !
14.ixe7 �xe7 1S.aS gave White a nice
space advantage in D.Gurevich-Gior­
gadze, Bad Zwesten 1997. Note that
it would have been better for Black
to play 13 . . . aS, fighting for queenside
space; if White wants to avoid weake­
ning his b4 square, he can try another
approach with 12 . .ib2 instead, pass­
ing on the opportunity to swap dark­
squared bishops. Although making
this trade is strategically desirable, it
does lose some time. Playing ib2 in­
stead of the "strategic" .ia3 is often
just as valid for White.
All in all, none of Black's playa­
ble moves from the diagram are par­
ticularly better than any of the others.
White gets a slight advantage against
all of them, putting the entire 10. . . f5
idea in jeopardy. Let's see how Kha­
lifman handles White's side of this
structure.
12 .ia3
•
Black has invested an extra tem­
po trying to reposition his bishop, so
it makes sense to proceed with this
positionally motivated swap. As we
remember from the section on the
Closed Catalan Stonewall, this trade
weakens Black's dark squares consid­
erably.
12 ,ixa3 13.tLlxa3 Yfe7 14.'ffll 2
•••
This is better than retreating with
14.tLlbl. White is planning the maneu­
ver tLla3-c2-e1-d3 to take control of
eS. While White is carrying this out,
Black starts taking his fair share of
queenside space.
14 a5 15.tLlc2 �hf6 16.�cel b6
•••
17.�d3 .ib7 18.gac1
S3
 CHAPTER 2
18 . . . c5 immediately is also possi­
ble. Then 19.tlJfe5 tlJxe5 20.tlJxe5 cxd4
2 1.�xd4 dxc4, when White has his
choice of recaptures, is roughly simi­
lar to the game.
19.�fe5 �xe5 20.�xe5
The clunky 20.dxe5 ! ? tlJe4 really
isn't appealing for White. What taking
with the pawn on e5 may gain in space
it loses in style points. Khalifman's ap­
proach gives White the minute pull he
is looking for.
20•.• c5 21.l!�fdl
White sees no need to relieve the
tension.
22 ••• dxc4
The pressure on Black's center has
been mounting, so it makes sense for
him to start swapping.
23.,txb7 �b7 24.�c4 cxd4
25.�e5!
Black's d4-pawn isn't going any­
where. White takes the opportunity
54
to secure the e5 point for his knight
once and for all. Now that the lines in
the center are fully open, the knight's
watchfulness from its outpost on e5
will increase in value.
26 .. J�d8 27J:�xd4 also leaves White
with better control over the central
files. 27J�a6 ! ?, threatening tlJc6 and
l'!xa5, is also possible and somewhat
bothersome for Black.
27.�xd4 gac8
After this move, White's advan­
tage increases dramatically. 27 . . . tlJd5
28.l'!dcl l'!xc6 29.l'!xc6 keeps White in
control. He can put pressure on Black's
overextended queenside pawns or
even look to play the e2-e4 break at
some point.
28.Y:Yb6
Logical and strong. White's pres­
sure is overwhelming enough now to
force some sort of major concession
from Black.
Black acquiesces to a "parting with
the lady." 29 . . . �e8 runs into 3OJ�c1 ! ,
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . J.b4+

threatening both 0.e7 + and YNxb5. Also 34 . . . Eld7 is ineffective in view of

strong is 30J�dS ElxdS 31.0.xdS, but 35.YNc5 Elb7 36.YNc6, and here either
Black does have drawing chances af­ 3S . . . ElbS 37.YNa6 or 36 . . . Elb6 37.YNaS.
ter 31. ..0.d5 32.1�xe6+ YNxe6 33.0.xe6
�c3. 35.0 !

30.gdS+ mf7 31.YNc5 gxdS White is preparing to ram his pawn

Forced, as YNfS+ was threatened.
32.�e5+ Wxe5 33.YNxe5 �d5
to e5. This will allow him to encircle
Black's weak e6-pawn. 35.e4 imme­
diately is of course possible, but play­
ing f2-f3 first gives White a clear win­
ning plan.

35, . .b4 36.e4 fxe4 37.fxe4 �c3

3S.Wd7+ mf6

Black doesn't have enough here for

his sacrificed queen. His pawn struc­
ture is too weak: his pawns on as
and b5 are exposed, and his kingside
pawns are also loose. White will har­
ass Black's queenside, tie up his piec­
es, and then strike in the center and 011
the kingside.
34.Wd4
Threatening to pick off the a-pawn.
34,..gaS
39.e5+
Black is toast. White now mops up
the queenside pawns.
39,..mxe5 40.Wxg7+ �6 41.Wxh7
gf8 42.h4 gO 43.mg2 ge3 44.h5
�e4 45.Wg6 1- 0
There is no defense to the march
of the h-pawn to the queening square.

Summary: Black's position out of the opening was unpleasant in this

encounter. For a strong technical player like Khalijman, converting White's
slight advantages - better control of e5, Black's weakened e6-pawn, and dom­
ination of the open centralfiles - posed no obstacles.
Conclusion: The Stonewall lines with . . . 0.f6-h5 and . . . £1-fS aren't particularly
good for Black against 9.M4. Even though strong players such as Lau understand
the need for Black to take queenside space, such a course of action does leave
Black's queenside pawns slightly weak. This can be troublesome in the endgame.

55
 CHAPTER 2
The Stonewa l l , Ta ke #3:
Black Closes the Queenside with ... a 7-a5 and ... b7-b5
In modern times, Black has finally
found a more or less satisfactory way
to play the Stonewall against 9.if4.
In the previous game, we saw Black
play . . . ttlf6-h5 and . . . V-f5 first, and
only then did he attempt to grab space
on the queenside. Now, thanks to the
work of Topalov, Kamsky, and oth­
ers, an alternative approach for Black
has come out of the woodwork: lock­
ing up the queenside with . . . a7-a5 and
. . . b7-b5 first, and only then playing for
a Stonewall. This makes sense, as by
playing . . . b7-b5 early, Black can hope
to force White into making the c4-c5
push. In the following game, Kamsky
demonstrates how Black can hope to
create a fortress and hold a draw.
Gelfand, Boris (2720)
Kamsky, Gata (2723)
[E08] Sochi 2008
1.�f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
ib4+ 5.id2 ie7 6.ig2 0 - 0 7. 0 - 0
c6 S.if4 �bd7 9.Yfc2 a5
This try is quite fashionable at the
56
moment. Black can afford to spend
time taking queenside space because
White's if4 idea is slower in the center
than other approaches. He is looking
to play . . . b7-b5 next. Ideas involving
. . . b7-b6 from Black instead are dis­
cussed in the next game.
10.gdl
White stays flexible .
10••• �h5
10. . . a4 11. ttlbd2 is given byCvetkovic
as an edge for White, and we agree, as
preparations for the break e2-e4 are
well under way.
1l.ic1 b5 12.�e5 !
White takes advantage of the fact
that 12 . . . ttlxe5? ! would leave Black's
knight on h5 vulnerable to g3-g4. This
is a common tactical theme in the var­
iations with . . . ttlf6-h5.
A less effective try for White is
12.cxd5 cxd5 13.e4, played by Kram­
nik against Topalov in their 2006
World Championship match. 13 . . .
dxe4 14.'lWxe4 E1b8 15.'lWe2 ttlhf6 16.if4
E1b6 17.ttle5 looks like a slight edge
for White, but 17 . . . ttld5 18.ixd5 exd5
19.ttlc3 ttlxe5 ! was a key improvement
played in Radjabov-Topalov, Wijk
aan Zee 2007. Then, after 20.dxe5 d4
21.ie3 dxe3, taking the queen with
22.E1xd8 exf2 + 23.'lWxf2 ixd8 gives
Black two powerful bishops, so Radja-
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .tb4+
bov elected 22 .�xe3 i.g5 23.�c5 .te7
24.Y!fe3 .tg5 with a draw by repetition.
With the text, White plans to meet
...b7-b5 with the thematic c4-c5, gain­
ing space.
12 .th7
•.•
Gelfand's move keeps the play sim­
ple. White gets a nice "squeeze" but is
unable in the end to convert his advan­
tage. By keeping a pair ofknights on the
board with the immediate 13.c5, as rec­
ommended by Avrukh, White attains a
more dynamic type of advantage. After
13 . . f5 14.tDd2 tDxe5 ! ? 15.dxe5, White is
. natively, 14 . . . tDhf6 (threatening to
better because his knight is coming to
the d4 square. For example, 15 . . . �c7
should be met with 16.tDf3 Oess clear
is 16.�c3 b4 ! ? 17.�d4 .ta6 18.M3 g6,
with messy play) :
Black then has his choice between
playing a passive waiting move, or try­
ing something more radical. 16 . . . g5 ! ?
1 7. .ixg5 .ixg5 18.llJxg5 �xe5 19.f4
should lead to a slight pull after 19 . . .
�f6 20.tDf3, while pushing o n the
queenside with 16 . . . b4 ! ? - a type of
positional sacrilege from Black - cre­
ates weaknesses to be exploited via
17.a3 i.a6 18.tDd4 ! �xe5 19.tDxc6 �c7
20.llJxe7+ �xe7 21.axb4 axb4 22 . .te3
tDf6 23J�a4:
White's bishop pair, passed c­
pawn, domination of the a-file, and
pressure on the weak b4-pawn com­
bine to give him the upper hand.
Thus the move 14 . . . tDxe5 can be
deemed insufficient for Black. Alter­
take on e5 and play . . . tDf6-d7) 15.tDd3
�e8 16.tDf3 h6 was seen in Mirosh­
nichenko-Macieja, Halkidiki 20OS.
Now Avrukh's suggested improve­
ment 17 . .tf4 is troublesome for Black:
57
 CHAPTER 2
l7 . . . g5 l8.i.c7 '!Wc8 19.i.d6 is the
point, when 19 . . . .b:d6 20.cxd6 lLle4
2l.lLlc5 gives White the advantage:
The line 2l . . . lLlxd6 22.lLlxe6 E!f6
23.lLlc5 lLlxc5 24.'!Wxc5, with a clear
positional advantage for White, is
given by Avrukh. To avoid this, from
the diagram Black should opt for
2 1...lLlexc5 ! ? After 22.dxc5 '!Wd8 !
(not 22 . . . e5? ! 23.g4 ! e4 24.lLld4 fxg4
25.f3, cracking open the kingside) al­
lows Black to continue with the idea
of . . . '!Wd8-f6. Play remains complicat­
ed and the position is not so clear, but
White's strong pawn on d6 should give
him an upper hand so long as he main­
tains control of the dark squares. The
text move is less chaotic, but, depend­
ing on one's taste, perhaps that is to
its detriment.
13 "fYxd7 14.c5 f5
•••
It is important for Black to gain
some control over the e4 square before
White can engineer the break e2-e4.
The fight is for control over the e5
square here. Black frees up d7 for the
knight on h5.
58
17 .1g5
•
A good move, continuing the strug­
gle for the dark squares by trading off
Black's best dark-square defender.
Unfortunately for White, all of this
simplification is taking him down
the long road to a draw. Avrukh cre­
dits Igor Lysyj with suggesting l7.'!Wc3,
which has the aim of '!We5 and lLle5.
This would have been a more practi­
cal way to play for the win, since after
l7 . . . E!ae8, White has l8.lLle5, stopping
the . . . e6-e5 break. l8 . . . he5 19.dxeS
leaves White dominating, for instance,
19 . . . g6 20.'!Wd4 '!Wfl 2 l.i.f3 lLlg7 2 2 .h4
with ideas of @g2 , i.c1-g5-f6, and b4-
h5. Thus l8 . . . g5 looks plausible, and
here 19.'!We3 is best (worse is 19.'!Wf3 ! ?
first, a s 1 9 . . . ltlg7 20.'!We3 he5 2 1.dxeS
f4 ! ? 2 2 .gxf4 gxf4 23.'!Wd4 E!f5 ! 24.hf4
lLlh5 leaves Black with counterplay) :
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .tb4+
Now Black can either play a passive
waiting move or try 19 .. .f4 ! ? 20.Wff3
!xe5 21.dxe5 Wff7, when White main­
tains a positional advantage thanks to
Black's poorly placed minor pieces.
Both sides are playing semi-use­
ful waiting moves. White is hoping to
pressure Black into playing his next
move.
19 ... .txgS 20.YfxgS �f6 21.Wff4
Kamsky, the resilient master of de­
fense, will eventually hold this ending.
Instead, 21.lDe5 lDd7 22.lDxd7 .bd7
leaves Black ready to play . . . e6-e5.
21 ... Wfxf4 22.gxf4 ge7 23.�eS
White achieves ultimate control of
the central dark squares.
23 ... .td7 24.gd3 ga8 2S.gh3
le8 26.e3 gc7
Good defense by Kamsky. Black is
mobilized along the seventh rank, al-
Summa'Y: Closing u p the queenside before entering the Stonewall helped
Black to hold a draw in this game. White found himselfunable to make progress
on either side of the board and had little advantage in the center, despite his
healthy knight on e5.
lowing him to keep an eye on his weak
spots at c6, e6, and g7.
27.gg3 ge7 28 ..tfl gc7 29 .td3
•
'.t>f8 30.'.t>fl gd8 31.'.t>e2 ga7
32.gcgl gc7 33.f3
Taking the e4 square. Gelfand
must have realized at this point that
he had no effective breakthrough.
33 ••• �hS 34.ggS �f6 3S.gSg3
The most depressing thing hap­
pens here : White repeats moves, es­
sentially offering a draw. Every one
of White's pieces stands "better" than
its black counterpart, yet Black's po­
sition is solid enough to hold against
every try. Marching the king to the
queenside and playing a2-a4, with
hopes of provoking . . . b5-b4, looks like
the only plan. Even if this is achieved,
there is still the matter of trying to get
to Black's pawn weakness on a5, which
seems impossible. Thus the point of
Black's queenside pawn thrusts . . . a7-
a5 and . . . b7-b5 is revealed.
3S •.• �hS 36.ggS �f6 37.gSg3
1f2- 1f2
59
 CHAPTER 2

Conclusion: After multiple attempts, we have finally found an acceptable

way for Black to engineer a Stonewall Defense setup against the Catalan. None­
theless, after either 13.cS or 13.liJxd7 �xd7 14.c5, Black's situation is not enviable.
He can, however, hope to grovel for a draw against Gelfand's methods. Avrukh's
dynamic suggestions provide the greatest winning chances, but Black can cer­
tainly hope to complicate in a practical game. Which route to take is a matter of
taste and might also be determined by the tournament situation.

Black Aims for a " Fl u i d " Structu re

So far, the approaches we have exa­

mined for Black have left the second
player with little in the way of win­
ning chances. Playing for a solid set­
up against 9 .i.f4 Ieaves White in con­
trol of the game, so many players have
sought to create a more "fluid" pawn
structure as Black. Essentially, Black
aims to keep the game at least partial­
ly open. This way, Black has chances
to outplay White as the game heats up.
The first game we will examine in this
13 �hf6
section was only a blitz game, but it is
•••

The critical move. Now 13 .

still valuable for explaining how a top
..

f5 is recommended by GM Larry
grandmaster might have hoped to de­
Kaufman, who only analyzes 14.cxd5.
feat Wojo as Black in the Closed Cata­
But 14.�a4 ! liJxeS 1S.dxeS a6 16.�b3,
lan.
probing Black's queenside to create
weaknesses, is analyzed by Avrukh:
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2564)
Zhang Zhong (2639)
[EOB] Dos Hermanas Internet Final
2004

1.c�� f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4

.lb4 + 5 .ld2 .le7 6 .lg2 c6 7.Vc2
• •

0 - 0 S. O - O b6 9 . .lf4 .lb7 10.gdl

�bd7 11.�c3 gcS

Black is aiming for the counter­

punch . . . c6-cS. He plans to play it only Avrukh gives 16 . . . bS 17.e4 ! as
after partially opening the center first. strong for White, the point being that
17 . . . dxc4? 1BJ!xdB axb3 19J!d7 forks
12.�e5 �h5 13 . .lc1 Black's two bishops. And on 17 ...

60
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . J.b4+
fxe4 IB.i.h3, Black's position collaps­
es. The only thing we would add to
Avrukh's analysis is that on 16 . . . Wfc7,
Black's obvious alternative to 16 . . . b5,
White should play the line 17.J.f3 g6
18.ih6 l'UdB (IB . . . /t)g7? ! leaves Black
even more vulnerable in the center)
19.cxd5 cxd5 20.�ac1 Wfxe5 21.Wfxb6:
Black is in serious trouble here. 2 1 . . .
l"1b8? loses t o 2 2 .hh5 gxh5 23 . .if4, so
Black has to play the awkward 2 1 . . .
l"1d7, when 2 2 ./t)a4 gives White a pow­
erful queenside initiative. Note how
White's pieces are logically placed,
but Black's are scattered. This is the
logical consequence of Black's playing
a move like 13 . . . f5? ! , leaving the black
knight on h5. With the text, putting
the knight back on its rightful square,
Black is not aiming for a Stonewall set­
up. Instead, he is simply putting the
ball in White's court: if White wants
to avoid a repetition with 14.J.f4, he
must proceed in the center.
14.e4 dxc4
The point. Black has coaxed White
into blocking the Catalan bishop with
e2-e4, so now he sets about opening
the game. 14 . . . /t)xe4 15./t)xe4 dxe4
16.he4 f5 ! ? 17./t)xd7 (17 . .ig2 /t)xe5
18.dxe5 Wfc7 is fine for Black) 17 . . .
�xd7 IB.J.g2 leaves White with the
more comfortable game. The text is
far more ambitious.
Black's pieces are mobilized and he
is preparing to play the . . . c6-c5 strike.
White, for his part, is occupying the
center. This is good for a slight advan­
tage if White plays correctly. If Black
plays passively, White would like to
fianchetto his queen's bishop and pre­
pare for e4-e5 followed by /t)c3-e4
with a bind in the center.
17.b3 lUeS
Black is anticipating the opening
of lines in the center. The reason for
the rook's coming to e8 will become
apparent shortly. Less effective is the
plan of 17 . . .�fdB IB.J.b2 /t)fB ! ?, as
19.a4 a6 20.Wfe2 /t)g6 and now 21.h4 !
h6 2 2 .axb5 axb5 23.e5 /t)eB ! ? 24./t)e4
gave White a clear advantage in Vaga­
nian-Gyimesi, Antwerp 2008. Black
could not have played 19 . . . �xd4?? in
view of 20.�xd4 Wfxd4 21./t)cd5 ! Wfc5
2 2 .b4 ! , as pointed out by Davies : 22 . . .
Wfd6 23.e5 cxd5 24.exd6 �xc2 25./t)xc2
hd6 26.axb5 and White wins.
lS.h4? !
It is too early for White to start
thinking about h2-h4. It is also too
early for White to play his prized e4-
61
 CHAPTER 2

e5 push: 1B.e5 runs into 1B . . . tild5,
when White cannot play Wc2-e2 as in
the Vaganian game. Bad for White is
19.i.b2 tilxe3 20.fxe3 c5, when White's
e3-d4-e5 pawn chain is loose.
Completing development with
1B.i.b2 is the best move. If Black tries
1B . . . c5 as in the main game, White re­
sponds with 19.d5 and has a pleasant
choice of recaptures after 19 . . . exd5.
versity Chp. 2000. Now White is free to
play 19.e5, when Avrukh gives 19 . . . tild5
20.We2 a6 (not 20 . . . tilxe3?! 21.Wxe3
c5 22 .d5 ! ) 2U:!ac1 with advantage to
White. From the analysis, we can con­
clude that White should maintain an
edge with principled play. The text
move, however, is not principled.
18 c5!
•••

He can simplify with 20.tilcxd5 tilxd5

21.tilxd5 hd5 2 2 .!:1xd5, when 22 . . . tilf6 The thematic counterpunch.
23 . .bf6 hf6 24Jk1 leaves White with White's h2-h4 has left him insuffi­
a tiny pull, for instance, 24 . . . c4 25.i.f1: ciently coordinated to deal with the
opening of lines that follows.

19.d5 exd5 20.�exd5

One graphic example of why 1B.h4

was premature is 20.exd5 i.d6 2 1.a4
a6 2 2 .axb5 axb5 23 .i.b2? hg3 ! and
the knight on e3 hangs.

20 ,hd5
••• 21.tilxd5 tilxd5
22.�d5
Black is under a little pressure.
But White can also try 20.exd5, when
White's side of the struggle should ap­
peal to Catalan players. He will use his
influence in the center to put pressure
on Black's queenside: 20...i.d6 21.a4 a6:

2 2 .exd5 c4 also affords Black

strong counterplay.

22 ••• �f6 23.gdl c4

22.axb5 axb5 23.i.f1 and so on.
For this reason, Black elected to Black now has the initiative. He
meet 1B.i.b2 with the passive 1B . . . i.fB threatens . . . i.e7-c5 and . . . tilf6-g4, pil­
in Filippov-Kacheishvili, World Uni- ing up on f2 .

62
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . ,tb4+
24.bxc4
24.ie3 ,tc5 25 . .bc5 �xc5 gives
Black control of the game, but this
was preferable to the text. Now the f2-
pawn comes under heavy fire.
24 ... gxc4 25. tfe2 .ic5
The alternative was 26.ie3 lilxe4
(or 26 . . . ixe3 27.'lWxe3 'lWxe3 2 B .fxe3
4{jxe4 29.�d7 a6) 2 7.he4 �cxe4
28.1xc5 'lWxc5 29.'lWxe4 �xe4 30.�dB+
�fB 31.�xfB + �xfB, and White's
chances of holding the rook-and-pawn
ending are dismal. Black has the clear
plan of . . . �e4-a4-a3 followed by push­
ing the queenside pawns.
26... �xe4 27.tfxc4 bxc4
28.�b6 hb6
Inserting 2B . . . .txf2 + first was even
stronger. Such is Internet blitz.
29.ixe4 �xe4 30. �f1 doesn't afford
White much. Wojo is counting on his
two bishops, but Black's technique is
flawless.
29 ... �xf2 30.gd7 lile4 31.,tf4
c3 32.a4 h5 33.a5 ha5 34.�a7
�d2+ 0 - 1
White resigns, a s 3 5 . �g1 .ib6+
picks up a full rook.
Summary: In this blitz match,
GM Zhang Zhong chose a line lead­
ing to a tense middlegame struggle.
Wojo played one move out of order
(18.h4?!) and was punished swiftly. If
White plays accurately with 18. .ib2,
however, his center should assure
him the better game.
Black's "fluid" approaches all in­
volve taking on c4 in one way or the
other. In the following game, Black
takes on c4 in such a way as to give
up space but win the bishop pair. In
the next game after that, Black sacri­
fices the bishop pair in order to ac­
tually keep the c4-pawn. Note how
Wojo systematically applies pressure
to break down Black's position in both
cases.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2555)
Wolff, Patrick (2590)
[EOB] New York 1994
1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
,tb4+ 5.,td2 ,te7 6.,tg2 c6 7.tfc2
b6 8. 0 - 0 ,tb7 9.,tf4 �bd7 10.lilc3
0 - 0 ll.gfdl dxc4
Another example of a "fluid" move
by Black, aiming for a game in which
the pawn structure is not locked.
12.lild2
This is the most natural way to re­
gain the pawn. Of course, 12 . . .b5? !
would simply walk into 13.lilxb5 cxb5
63
 CHAPTER 2

14.i.xb7, so Black's next move, gaining

the bishop pair, is best.

12 ••• �d5 13.�xc4 �xf4 14.gxf4

After partially securing the queen­

Black has achieved his aim: the
pawn structure is not locked, and
some imbalances have been creat­
ed. In exchange for giving up space,
Black has the bishop pair. His dark­
squared bishop cannot truly be con­
sidered "unopposed," however, be­
cause White's central pawn formation
will securely control many of the key
dark squares. In the long run, Black
hopes to gain enough room for his
pieces to relieve his cramped position.
White, on the other hand, is seeking
to control the game by increasing his
space advantage with moves like a2-
a3, b2-b4, �c4-eS, and so on.
side against a possible . . . c6-c5 break,
White takes advantage of Black's ill-
timed knight maneuver. On 18 . . . exfS
19.'i;![xfS tLlg6 (with the idea of . . . tLlg6-
h4), 20.i.e4 ! leaves White with ac­
tive pieces and a pawn majority in
the center, so the most testing try for
Black at first glance is 18 . . . c5 ! ? 19.bxcS
bxc5 20.dS. The point is that 20 . . . i.a6
can be met by 2 1.fxe6 ! i.xc4 2 2 . ext7+
�xt7 23.'i;![a4 ! , when Black's bishop is
trapped in the middle of the board.
White has a clear advantage. Thus,
the game continuation 14 . . . g6 makes
some sense, as it is easy to understand
Black's concern over the f4-f5 push.
The position he reaches is not satis­
factory, however.
15.e3 �f6 16.a3 �d5 17.gacl gc8

14 g6! ?
•••

This move, intended t o stall any

possible f4-fS break from White, is a
rare guest in tournament play. The
concern over White's f4-fS break is
indeed legitimate, however, as illus­
trated by the following line given by
Avrukh: 14 .. -'Wc7 1S.e3 �ac8 16.a3
�fd8 17.b4 tLlf8?! (17 . . . tLlf6 is better)
18.fS ! :

64
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . J.b4+

IB.b4 immediately is also good. hand, though, White's next move may
Bauer-Korchnoi, Enghien-Ies-Bains just as well be the standard llJa4.
2003, saw Black try to break out on the
queenside with lB . . . a5 ! ? , but the open­ 21.llJa4 b5 22.�c5
ing of lines led to a quick and beauti­
ful win for White: 19.bxa5 bxa5 (19 . . .
b S 20J!bl! !a6 2 1.llJb6 llJxb6 2 2 . axb6
'lWxb6 23.llJa4 'Wa7 24.llJeS leaves
White with a clear advantage accord­
ing to Bauer) 20.'Wb3 !a6 21.llJe5 'Wd6
22 J'!al gbB 23.'Wc2 gfcB 24.llJe4 'Wc7
2S.gdcl !b5 26.llJc5 !xeS 27.'Wxc5 a4:

Success. White has created enough

weaknesses on the queenside to get
what he wanted: lovely outposts for his
knights. Now he focuses on maneuver­
ing his queen to the kingside in prep­
aration for a gradual assault down the
h-file.
2B.f5! gxf5 29 . .ixd5 exd5 30.'t!?hl
f6 31.gg1+ i>hB 32 .'Wd6 ! and Black 22 .Ac8 23.gd2 a5 24.Yfdl Wl'e8
•••

resigned here in view of 32 . . . WI'xd6 25.gdc2 f6 26.�ed3 ga7 27.�e4

33 . .!Dt7 mate. In this game, playing an .Ad7 28.�ec5 .Ac8
early . . . g7-g6 didn't stop White from
White repeats moves and tries to
eventually breaking through with f4-
wear Black down psychologically. By
f5 after all.
this point, Black's position is misera­
ble to play.
l8 ••• �g7 19.'Wa4
29.Yfe1 1rd8 30.eft ge8 31.i>hl
White now sets about probing for
.us 32 .tt3 �h8 33.�e4 .Ad7 34. Yfg2
queenside weaknesses. This queen sor­
•

tie is a common theme in these positions.

19 ••• a6 20.%Yb3 gc7

20. . .b5? ! immediately would leave

White able to play 2l.llJe4 followed
by .!DeS. Neither is 20 . . . f6 21.llJd3 any
good for Black, as it weakens his po­
sition considerably and leaves White
with every type of tactic: moves like e3-
e4 or .!DeS ! ? come to mind. On the other

65
 CHAPTER 2
White scares his opponent by pil­
ing up on the weak c6-pawn. Wojo has
no real way to actually carry out his
"threats" on c6, but worrying about
such a breakthrough is tiring for Black
in any case.
34 Yfe7 35.�ec5 icS 36.Yfg3
•••
ig7 37.ig2 YffS 3S.h4 Yfe7 39 ..if3
ggS 40.�e4 id7 41.�ec5 ieS
Oddly enough, White has achieved
something with his last two moves:
Black's bishop retreats to the a4-e8
diagonal rather than the h3-c8 diago­
nal. This means that the e6-pawn will
be weak.
42.gg1 in 43.Yfh2 ih6 44.h5
The breakthrough finally comes.
With the possible exception of the
rook on c2, which is better off on c1
to support its comrade on gl, all of
White's pieces are ideally placed.
44 •..g5? !
Black errs. 44 . . . gxh5 would have
put up the most resistance, for in­
stance, 45J'!xg8+ ,hg8 46.�xh5 i.g7
47Jkl :i::1 a 8 or 45.:i::1 cc1 :i::1 a a8 46.hh5
:i::1xgl+ 47.:i::1xgl i.g7. Other than the
somewhat vague textbook order to
66
pile up on the c6-pawn, White's win­
ning plan is not immediately obvious
in either case, despite his overwhelm­
ing positional superiority. After the
text, c6 falls.
45.fxg5 .ixg5
45 . . . fxg5 46.llJe5 will ultimate­
ly lose the c6-pawn, while 45 . . . :i::1xgS
46.:i::1xg5 ixg5 47.llJe4 doesn't help
matters for Black.
46.�e4 ih6
46 . . . :i::1c7 47.llJxg5 fxg5 48.:i::1 c5 fol­
lowed by �e5 looks even worse. By
ditching the c6-pawn right away,
Black is able to chase the possibility of
piece activity.
47.gxgS+ .ixgS 4S.�c6 b4
49.�ec5 bxa3 50.bxa3 gaS 51.Yfd6
ti'g7 52 .ixd5
•
52 Yfg4
•••
Unfortunately for Black, his new­
found activity is rather meaningless.
52 . . . exd5 53.Yfxf6 �xf6 54J'!xf6 leaves
White two pawns up and complete­
ly winning. The d5-pawn should fall
next, and Black has no counterplay:
the knights cover the black rook's
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . .ib4+
possible penetration points on the
queenside.
53 .ig2 Vxh5+ 54.�gl .dl+
• queen off the d-file. The price, howev­
55.�h2 1- 0
Black runs out of checks after 55 . . .
�h5+ 5 6 . .th3, leaving White u p a full
piece.
Summary: Black's bishop pair
ultimately did not compensate for his
disadvantage in space in this game.
His dark-squared bishop never made
an impression because White's cen­
tral pawns were so solid on the dark
squares. Wojo slowly strangled his
opponent on the queenside and then
began to crack open the kingside,
where Black eventually erred with
44 . .. g5?! and allowed his defenses to
break down .
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2535)
Zubarev, Alexander (2480)
[E08] Moscow 2002
"'�f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
1b4+ 5 .id2 .ie7 6 .ig2 0 - 0 7. 0 - 0
• •
�bd7 8.Vc2 c6 9.gdl b 6 1 0 .if4 •
1a6 11.�e5 .c8
Not a particularly popular try, and
for good reason: it is difficult at first
to understand why Black would want
to put his queen, rather than his rook,
on c8. The point is simply to get the
er, is leaving the a8-rook on the h1-a8
diagonal.
12.�c3 hc4
The only consistent try for Black,
giving up the bishop pair in order to
win the c4-pawn. There is little sense
in allowing White to secure c4 with
12 . . . Vb7 13.b3, when 13 . . . �ac8 14.e4
gave White a clear advantage in Bur­
makin-Graf, European Chp. 2001.
This is stronger than 14.e4 b5,
when the Catalan bishop on g2 is ac­
tually hindered by White's own center.
With the text, White's knight is head­
ed for the d6 square.
14 b5
•••
The modest 15.tDxf6+ tDxf6 16.b3
was less strong in Stupak-Benidze,
European U18 Chp. 2008. That game
continued 16 . . .cxb3 17.axb3 tDd5
18.�dc1 tDb4 19 .Vc3 Vd8 20.i.d2
67
 CHAPTER 2
�6 2 1.i.e3 �d8 2 2 .i.d2 �b6 1 2 - 1 2 .
White certainly had full compensa­
tion for his pawn in this game, but as
there was no obvious way to increase
the pressure, he was content with the
somewhat surprising early draw. Wo­
jo's move wins the bishop pair, giving
him more concrete play.
15 •.. ,bd6
Forced, as lS . . . �a6?! 16.a4 is pre­
carious for Black.
16.,bd6 gd8 17.a4
White's two bishops against two
knights provide him with fine com­
pensation for the pawn. White's first
order of business is to take the center
and crack open the queenside.
17 �d5
•.•
White was threatening a4xbS, so
no other move was satisfactory for
Black.
18.e4 �5f6 19.b3
19 .••• cxb3
Black's position is uncomforta­
ble here, so he now tries to relieve the
68
pressure by taking advantage of a tac­
tical resource. The alternative was
19 . . . �b6 20.bxc4 ! ? , when White, con­
fident in his bishops, welcomes mas­
sive complications in the center. Then
20 . . . gxd6 2 1.e5 ! gives White a clear
advantage after 2 1 . . . gd7 2 2 .exf6 .!iJxc4
23.axbS cxbS 24.,ba8 �xa8:
2S.dS ! 13xdS 26.13xdS exdS (26 ...
�xdS 27.13dl �a8 28.�e4, with back­
rank activity, keeps White's momen­
tum going) 27.�fS. White's activity is
brutal here.
After 19 . . . .!iJb6 20.bxc4, Black can
also enter the line 20. . . .!iJxc4 2 1.i.e7
13d7 2 2 .i.xf6 gxf6, when 23.dS ! is
promising for White. The hI-a8 diag­
onal is opening rapidly. The text move
is anything but an improvement on
19 . . . .!iJb6, however, and Wojo makes
the win look easy.
20.fixb3 �xe4
Black's aforementioned tactical
try. Black eliminates White's bishop
pair but goes down the exchange.
21.,be4
The most obvious decision, win­
ning material outright. White is also
better after 2 1.i.e7 13e8 2 2 .i.xe4 13xe7
23.axbS .!iJf6 24.,bc6 13b8 2S.�c4 fol­
lowed by doubling along the a-file and
 THE CLOSED CATALAN WITH 4 . . . J.b4+

- if necessary - increasing the pres­ defense with 24 . . . Wfd7 fails to 2S.'l;Yc2

sure with WfcS. as well.

21 �f6 22.J.e7 �xe4 23.J.xdS

.•• 25. Wfc2 'l;Yf3
YfxdS 24.gac1
Black threatens . . . lLle4-gS-h3 +, but
the attack is quickly repulsed.

26.gd3 ftf5 27.ge3 �d6

2S.Vxc6

Correctly passing on the oppor­

tunity to trade queens with 28.Wfxf5
lLlxfS. Black's two-piece attack has dis­
solved, so it is time for White to come
crashing through on c6.

Although Black does have one ex­
tra pawn, he still does not have enough
compensation for his exchange here.
White's rooks have open lines and
Black's queenside pawns are targets.
2S . . . ftd5
28 . . .l':�d8 29.Wfxd6 would, of course,
be very embarrassing for Black. Af­
ter the exchange of queens, the rest is
trivial.

24 ... Vf6 29.Vxd5 exd5 30.ge5 bxa4

31.gxd5 �e4 32.ga5 g6 33.gc7
An attempt at counterplay. Normal �d2 34.�g2 a6 35.gxa4 1- 0

Summary: White's two bishops against two knights provided more than
enough compensation for his c4-pawn. In the complications that ensued as the
center opened, White's side was far easier to play. Black tried giving up mate­
rial to get rid of White's bishop pair, but this ultimately backfired and allowed
Wojo a quick, clean win.

Conclusion: If Black truly wants to play for a win against 9 . .if4, he should
look for a line that involves taking with . . . dSxc4 and creating imbalances. For­
tunately for White, however, every such system has some sort of positional de­
fect. Most of the time, Black is ceding the center; in addition, his c6-pawn often
becomes a chronic weakness.
In sum, the move 9 ..if4 gives White good chances all around. In fact, we
think so highly of it that we recommend attempting to play it against move or­
ders from Black not involving 4 . . . i.b4+ as well ! By this point, the reader is fa­
miliar with enough Closed Catalan positions and themes to piece together an ef­
fective repertoire. In the next chapter, we'll close out Part I of this book by do­
ing just that.

69
Chapter 3
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////H///////////////////H/////////////////////////H/////////H////////

Assembling the Repertoire

t,tl�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

By now, the reader is well acquainted with Closed Catalan ideas and themes.
Actually reaching the kinds of Closed Catalan positions we've been studying,
however, can be a tricky task in itself. The purpose of this chapter is to help
readers put together a complete repertoire against the Closed Catalan. We go
through each move, move by move, and deal with subtleties and move-order nu­
ances that Catalan players should know.

Reach i ng the Closed Cata lan: The Ope n i ng Moves

Let's take a closer look at the first few a) 2 . . . e6 should be met with 3.g3,
moves played by each side en route to according to the Wojo repertoire. The
the Closed Catalan. move 3.d4 allows Black to enter his
favorite Bogo-Indian with 3 . . . !b4+
or the Benoni with 3 . . . cS. After 3.g3,
Black's moves such as 3 . . . cS, 3 . . . b6,
and 3 . . . a6 ! ? fall outside the scope of
Although this book covers the po­ this volume. Play transposes back into
sitions that arise after l.lilf3 d5, Black the Catalan after 3 . . . d5 4.d4 or 3 . . . .ie7
certainly can choose other first moves 4 . .ig2 d5 5.d4.
en route to the Closed Catalan. The b) 2 . . . c6 can be met by 3.d4, when
flexible 1...lilf6 is also popular. 2.c4 3 . . . d5 4.'I!;l[c2 leads to our recommen­
here is the Wojo move, when moves dation against the Slav in Part III.
like 2 . . . cS and 2 . . . g6 will be covered in Play might still transpose back into
a later volume. Pertinent to the Closed a Closed Catalan after 4 . . . e6 5.g3 i.e7
Catalan are 2 . . . e6 and 2 . . . c6: 6.i.g2 , etc.

70
 ASSEMBLING THE REPERTOIRE

2.d4 independent significance, and White

2.c4 was occasionally ventured by
Wojo, particularly in blitz games. We
avoid it because 2 . . . d4 gives Black a
fine game after 3.e3 iLlc6 or 3.b4 f6
preparing . . . e7-e5. It can hardly be
said that White is "up" a tempo by
should be able to meet them using the
ideas and themes outlined in Chapter
1. And last but certainly not least, 4 . . .
dxc4 5.ig2 i s the subject o f Part II on
the Open Catalan.
5 .ig2
•

playing the Benoni Defense from the

white side; Black's omission of . . . c7-
c5 actually helps the second player, as
White's b2-b4 gains space but fails to
make concrete threats.

2 ••• c!t)f6

2 . . . e6 allows Black to enter the Tar­

rasch with 3.c4 c5. This is covered in
Chapter 16. In addition, Black can
also play 3 . . . c6, achieving a Semi-Slav
without having committed to . . . iLlg8-
5 .. 0 - 0
.

f6. In Chapter 14, we dub this opening

"The Triangle" and recommend either
4.g3 dxc4 ! ? 5 . .ig2 or Wojo's 4.Wfc2
lDf6 5.g3 dxc4 6.Wfxc4 b5 7.Wfd3 . In
both cases, a transposition into Cata­
lan lines is possible.
3.c4 e6 4.g3
Reaching the diagram at the head
of this chapter. We now reach a ma­
jor branching point. Black has a wide
choice of move orders.
4 ..ie7
..
Black's main move. The check
with 4 . . . ib4+ 5.id2 ie7 is studied
in Chapter 2. This simply transpos­
es back into our main line with ic1-
f4. Alternatively, 4 . . . c6 5.Wfc2 or 5.ig2
can transpose into either a Closed Cat­
alan or the kinds of positions seen in
Chapter 14. Minor options such as 4 . . .
lDbd7, 4 . . . id6, and 4 . . .b 6 have little
The early 5 . . .c6 here is met com­
fortably by 6.Wfc2 . The "punishment"
of White playing an early 6.Wfc2
against Black's 5 . . . 0-0, outlined in the
note to White's next move, doesn't
pack much punch here: 6 . . . c5? ! would
be silly, moving the pawn twice in a
row and losing time.
Theory considers 5 . . . dxc4 inac­
curate in view of 6.iLlc3 0-0 7.iLle5.
White scores just as well by transpos­
ing back into the material covered in
Part II with 6.0-0 0 - 0 7.iLle5, howev­
er, so the move has little independent
significance. From a practical stand­
point, 6.0-0 is probably just as good.
6. 0 - 0
6.Wfc2 ! ? is possible, the point be­
ing that after 6 . . . dxc4? ! , White has
7.iLlbd2 followed by recapturing on
c4 with the knight. This gives White a

71
 CHAPTER 3
powerful bind in the center. However,
6 . . . cS instead enters a kind ofTarrasch
Defense or Semi-Tarrasch in which
White's queen is awkwardly placed on
c2 . Black has good play here, so most
Catalan aficionados consider 6.�c2
premature. That said, Wojo occasion­
ally used the move with success, meet­
ing Black's 6 . . . c5 with a different idea
almost every time. Thus, he consid­
ered the move a surprise weapon rath­
er than part of the overall "Wojo Sys­
tem."
6 ••• c6
This is slightly more popular than
6 . . . ttJbd7, which is, for the most part,
just a less flexible version of the same
thing. 7.�c2 c6 transposes back into
the main line, while 7 . . . cS ! ? B.cxd5
ttJxd5 (B . . . exd5 9.ttJc3 leads to a Tar­
rasch with Black's knight on d7 rath­
er than c6, something clearly favora­
ble for White) 9.ttJc3 ttJxc3 10.Vffxc3 !
.if6 1l . .ie3 led to a nice pull for White
in Wojtkiewicz-Ziatdinov, Antwerp
1994:
The game featured a nice tactic:
1l . . . cxd4 12 ..ixd4 .ixd4 13.�xd4 ttJf6
14.�xdB �xdB 15.ttJe5 (note the dom­
inance of the Catalan bishop) 15 'it1fB
..•
16.�fd1 �xd1+ 17.�xd1 'it1e7 18.l"1d3
(preparing to target the b7-pawn) lB . . .
ttJeB?:
72
19 . .ixb7! .ixb7 20.�d7+ 'it1f6 2 1.f4 !
(21.ttJg4+? 'it1g5 drops a piece) and
Black had to stop the threatened
checkmate with 2 1 . . .ttJd6 2 2 . l"1xd6 'it1fS
23.�d4 g5 24.ttJxf7 gxf4 25.l"1xf4+ 'it1g6
26.ttJe5+ 1-0.
7.Vffc 2 tObd7
The move order 7 . . . b6 has inde­
pendent significance here if Black is
intending a quick . . . .icB-a6. For in­
stance, B.b3 from White encourages
Black to play B . . . .ia6, which leads to
the line 9.ttJbd2 ttJbd7 10.e4 �cB ll . .ib2
cS. This is mentioned in the game
Wojtkiewicz-Korchnoi from Chapter 1
as being an impractical way for most
Catalan players to play. Although B.b3
is considered the main line, there is
no need for White to play it. Kaufman
believes that any time White plays an
early b2-b3 in the Catalan, he is los­
ing the important option of �c2-a4.
Thus, ... .icB-a6(!) is the correct re­
sponse from Black. The current case
illustrates this point well. Instead of
B.b3, it is more flexible for White to
meet 7 . . . b6 with B.�d1:
(see next diagram)
Here B . . . .ib7 9 . .if4 ttJbd7 trans­
poses back into the main line, and 9 ...
ttJa6 10.a3 �cB (10. . . cS? ! 1l.ttJc3 cxd4
12.ttJxd4 �cB 13.cxd5 ttJxd5 14.ttJdbS!
is a clear advantage for White accord­
ing to Avrukh) 1l.ttJc3 dxc4 12.ttJeS
 ASSEMBLING THE REPERTOIRE

tiJd5 13.ttlxc4 ttlxf4 14.gxf4 reaches a
position similar to Wojtkiewicz-Wolff
from Chapter 2 .
doesn't promise White much. But
15.Vf!b3 would have been an improve­
ment: 15 . . . ttlBc6 16.a3 ttld5 17.ttlc3
13fdB lB. %lia4 .tb7 19. ttlxd5 exd5 20. .te3
leaves White with a good bishop on g2
versus a bad one on b7:

However, the main point of BJ:�d1

is that if Black answers it with B . . . .ia6,
White now has 9.ttle5. Black cannot
With this, White can claim a mod­
develop his queen's knight since the
est advantage. Overall, 7 . . .b6 followed
c6-pawn would hang, so he general­
by B . . . i.a6 immediately is relatively
ly plays 9 . . . ttlfd7, when 10.cxd5 cxd5
rare. So long as White is aware that he
1l.e4 gives White some activity:
should look to put his queen's knight
on c3 against it, he should be fine.

Our recommendation: 8.M4!

After the first seven moves, White
has reached the starting point or tabi­
ya for the Closed Catalan. He has any
number of options at this point, includ­
ing B.!f4, B.13d1, B.b3, and B.ttlbd2 . Of
these, the authors prefer the first two.

Black's bishop on a6 looks mis­

placed here, as White is looking to
open the h1-aB diagonal. Now 11 . . .
tiJf6 12.exd5 ttlxd5 13.ttlc3 .tb7 14 . .te4
is slightly uncomfortable for Black, so
the game Bilek-Osnos, Budapest 1965,
saw 1l . . . ttlxe5. White played the nice
tactic 12.exd5 ! , when 12 . . . ttld3 13.d6
tiJb4 (13 .. :�xd6 14.haB %lixd4 15.ttlc3
doesn't quite give Black enough com­
pensation) 14.dxe7 Vf!xe7 15.%lia4 ttld5
16.ttlc3 .tb7 was agreed drawn. This is 8 . .tf4!
fair, since 17.ttlxd5 hd5 1B.hd5 exd5
19.!f4 %lid7 20.%lixd7 ttlxd7 21.13ac1 We have now reached the main

73
 CHAPTER 3
starting position for Chapter 2 . As we
have discussed, White gets an advan­
tage in every line now except:
8 . . . �h5 9 . .tcl �hf6 !
Nothing else leaves Black equal
here. 9 . . . f5 10.b3 is favorable for
White, as discussed in Khalifman-Lau
from Chapter 2, while 9 . . . aS ! ? has ne­
ver been played here. At the very least,
10J'M1 transposes back into Gelfand­
Kamsky (again from Chapter 2), but
10.lDbd2 is even more to the point.
At this point, if a draw is a favora­
ble outcome, White can play 1O. .if4
again. If not, White also does well with
the following move:
After 10. .if4, the ball is in Black's
court as to whether or not to avoid the
draw. The point of lO. . . aS is to suffer to
a draw in any case, so that move is out.
So, if Black really wants to avoid the
draw, he will most likely play 10. . . b6:
Now 1U!d1 .b6 (1l ... .tb7 12.lDeS
1!c8 13.lDc3 lDhS 14 . .tc1 is Wojtkie­
wicz-Zhang Zong from Chapter 2)
1ViJeS and here 12 . . . �c8 is Wojtkie­
wicz-Zubarev, also from Chapter 2 .
Better i s the flexible 12 . . . 1!c8, when
White a choice between 13.lDc3 ! ?
hc4 14.lDxc4 dxc4 1S.e4 .ib4 (1S . . . bS
74
is unclear) 16.a4 with compensation
in Damljanovic-Abramovic, Pancevo
2006, or 13 . . . lDb8 14.�b3 with pres­
sure in Dizdar-Lputian, European
Cup 1998:
Play continued 14 . . . lDfd7 1S.lDd2
lDxeS 16.heS lDd7 17 . .if4, when Black
had to be creative to get counterplay
with 17 . . . bS 18.cS gS 19 . .ie3 b4. White
reacted well to Black's bid for activity
with 20.�xb4 .txe2 2 1.1!e1 .thS 22 .�c3
as 23.lDb3, but after 23 . . . 1!a8, things
got a little too messy with 24 . .id2 !?
a4 2S.lDaS �c7. Instead, fixing Black's
weak a-pawn with 24.a4 would have
made more sense. Black is stuck de­
fending the a-pawn, so White has the
advantage. Note that game did not fea­
ture the extra moves 8 . .if4 lDhS 9 . .ic1
lDhf6 in it, so the move numbers giv­
en here are two higher than the actu­
al game score.
Black is attempting, yet again, to
reach a Stonewall. The White rook's
presence on d1 rather than f1 suppos­
edly gives Black a slightly improved
version of this. Alternatively, 10. . . b6
1l.lDc3 is Wojtkiewicz-Mulyar from
Chapter 1. Then 1l...ia6 can be met ef­
fectively by 12.lDe5, as previously stated.
 ASSEMBLING THE REPERTOIRE

As favored by Ehlvest. lLlxe5 17.dxe5 he5 18.lLlxe5 Vxe5

19 . .ib2 gives White a clearly better po­
H ••• f5 12.�el! sition despite his pawn minus. Black is
in serious trouble on the dark squares
and the game is opening up in the center.

16.a4

Thematically seeking a trade of

dark-squared bishops. White has al­
ready maneuvered his knights to their
best squares and his other pieces are
more or less developed already, so he
is not worried about the slight loss of
time that trading bishops incurs.

The point is to play for lLld3 and

16 WhS 17 .ia3 ha3 18.gxa3
••• •

tiJf3. White scores around 70% with

as 19.9aa1
this move according to ChessBase. In
this structure Black achieves more ac­
tivity on the kingside here than he nor­
mally does thanks to White's rook be­
ing "misplaced" on d1, but this is not as
big a deal as theory makes it out to be.

12 ..• .id6

12 . . . lLldf6 has also been tried, but it

doesn't look any better after 13.lLld3.
Black's move is aimed at mobilizing on
the kingside.
19 ••• gf6

The kingside attack is easily repelled.

Securing control of e5. A strong
grip on the e5 square is an essential 20.�feS gh6 21.h3
part of repelling Black's upcoming
kingside storm. Black has gotten nowhere and is
now left without a decent plan, other
14 ••. gS 1S.b3 ! than waiting.

We are following the game Eh­ 21 �xeS 22.�xeS �d6 23.e3

.•.

Ivest-Pelikian, Groningen 1997. We8 24.Vc3 �f7 2S.�d3 We7

26.gab1 gg6
1S ... Vg6
White had the advantage and went
The point is that 15 . . . g4 16.lLlfe5 on to win a 75-move endgame grind.

75
 CHAPTER 3
S u m m i ng U p: Useful Poi nters
Over the course of three chapters,
many points about the Closed Catalan
have been made. Several structures
and approaches for both sides have
been examined, and move orders have
been scrutinized. The Closed Catalan
is an opening that has been thorough­
ly researched over the past few dec­
ades, so the knowledge in these pag­
es should be sufficient for master-lev­
el players for a long time to come. In­
evitably, however, moves not cov­
ered here will come up in any player's
games. It is also possible (even prob­
able) that the reader might also forget
one of our recommendations and have
to find it again over the board. Here is
a list of pointers to keep in mind that
might prove handy when playing over
the board.
When Black plays a Semi-Slav­
like setup with . . . c7-c6 and . . . .!f8-d6,
he might be looking to play the . . . e6-
e5 break. White doesn't usually need
to prevent this, since the lines Black
opens in the center will be useful for
White as well.
If Black plays . . . b7-b6 before . . . c7-
c6, White can often exchange favora­
bly with c4xd5.
Stonewall formations are usually
good for White. He should consider
maneuvering one of his knights to d3.
Trading dark-squared bishops with
tcl-a3 helps White strategically, so
this makes sense if White can afford
the loss of time.
Winning in the Closed Catalan af­
ter Black plays . . . d5xe4 isn't as auto­
matic as it sometimes appears "in the
movies." That said, giving up the cent-
76
er is certainly a concession by Black.
White can look to play c4-c5, but he
should remember it always involves
some risk.
When Black doesn't play . . . d5xe4,
he is trying to keep the tension in
the center and on the queenside. If
Black develops his queen's bishop
with . . . .!c8-a6, this should be a clue
for White that Black isn't planning to
open the hl-a8 diagonal.
In general, White should always
try to place his queen's knight on c3
rather than on d2 , as this puts pres­
sure on Black's d5-pawn. This is espe­
cially true when Black has . . . .!c8-a6 in
the works.
When White plays ic1-f4, his ide­
as include lLlf3-e5, �f1-dl, and lLlbl-c3.
Whenever Black kicks the knight with
. . . lLlf6-h5, the bishop should retreat to
c1 rather than to d2 so as not to inter­
fere with White's coordination.
The push . . . b6-b5 (or . . .b7-b5) from
Black should usually be met with c4-
c5 from White, gaining space. White
can then turn his attention to making
the e2-e4 break.
Whenever Black plays . . . d5xc4,
White usually gets control of the cent­
er. If White is able to regain the pawn
on c4 and keep his other trumps,
he should look to play a long-term
positional squeeze. If not, he should
be sure that he has reasonable com­
pensation for the pawn. Getting the
bishop pair is usually a good start.
White's biggest trump in the Closed
Catalan is often his pressure down the
hl-a8 diagonal. Always look for tactics
involving the Catalan bishop on g2 !
 Part I I

The Open Catalan

77
Chapter 4
//////H//H////H/H/H///H/H///AW//H/H//H/AWH/H/Q//Q/H

The Open Catalan with 7.�e5 ! ? �c6

1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 Joe7

5.Jog2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.�e5 �c6

Over the next several chapters, we will take a look at what happens when Black
takes the bait on c4 and enters the traditional main lines of the Open Catalan.
Wojo often reached the position in the diagram above after the move order l.lLlf3
dS 2.d4 lLlf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 i.e7 S.i.g2 0-0 6. 0-0 dxc4, though of course many move
orders are possible. The traditional move here is 7.�c2, and after 7 . . . a6, White
has the choice between 8.�xc4 bS - which allows Black to develop his "prob­
lem" light-squared bishop to b7 - and 8.a4, which stops Black's queenside play
at the price of weakening the b4 square.
Wojo, however, was not a fan of 7.Y9c2 . So instead, he reached into the past
and brought fresh life to a move once thought "analyzed into the ground,"
7.lLleS ! ? This chapter is devoted entirely to Black's critical attempt to equalize
against this dangerous Wojo weapon, 7 . . . lLlc6.

Wojo's " Reverse G a m bit" : Wi n a Pawn, Win the Endgame

Black's 7 . . . lLl c 6 i s essentially a gambit, tics, and avoid structural weakness­

since Black is hoping to activate his
pieces at the cost of a pawn. Yet Wojo
had faith that White could neutralize
Black's activity, eventually steering
the position toward a pawn-up end­
ing. All that was required was to follow
certain principles, navigate the tac-
es, particularly on the kingside. The
following victory is a perfect example
of Wojo's formula for success in this
line. (Ed. note: As this was a private
game, Wojo's opponent is not identi­
fied, but we have given a rating range
as a measure of his or her strength.)

78
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�eS ! ? �c6

Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander
N.N. (2400+)
[E04] Lindsborg 2004

1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

1e7 5 .1g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4
•

"This is known as a safe move,"

Wojo told his students. "The problem,
of course, is the bishop on c8 ." Yet
Wojo felt that this problem had, for
the most part, been solved by modern
theory. Disgusted with the positions
he reached after the traditional 7.�c2 ,
he tried alternatives such as 7.�c3 and
even 7.tLla3 ! ? Sometime around the
year 2002 , however, he decided to try
reviving an older line.
With this move, White opens the
hl-a8 diagonal, putting a halt to Black's
plan of . . . a7-a6 and . . . b7-bS, which
would have freed his light-squared
bishop after 7.�c2 a6 8.�xc4 bS fol­
lowed by . . .ic8-b7. Now, if White is
allowed to simply recapture the pawn
with tLleSxc4, he will achieve his aim of
controlling the center. If Black wants
to avoid getting positionally squashed,
he must take advantage of the tempi
White is losing with his knight maneu­
ver to radically open the board.
8.,hc6
Less common than 8.tLlxc6, but ul­
timately more dangerous for Black.
The problem is that after 8.tLlxc6 bxc6
9 . .ixc6? ! , Black can play 9 .. J'�b8 fol­
lowed by . . . ic8-b7, after which he
has no problems whatsoever. Thus
White must find another 9th move,
but Black generally has enough activi­
ty in any case: for instance, in Larsen­
Speelman, London 1980, White tried
8.tLlxc6 bxc6 9.�c2 (9.e3 tLldS 1O.�a4
as 11.E:dl �d6 12.�xc4 .ta6 13.�c2
tLlb4 14.�d2 eS was equal in Ippolito­
Gormally, Hampstead 1999) 9 . . .'rBxd4
10.ie3 �d6 11.tLld2 tLldS l2.tLlxc4 tLlxe3
13.tLlxe3 ia6 14.E:acl E:ad8 lS.ixc6
.tgS :

This strange-looking pawn sacri­

fice is Black's best option. Black seeks
to open the game rapidly, giving up his
pawn on b7 to activate his "problem
bishop" on c8. Black's other tries, in­ Black's activity outweighs his slight
cluding the reasonable 7 . . . cS, will be structural deficit on the queenside.
presented in the next chapter. Wojo's 8.ixc6, by contrast, seeks to

79
 CHAPTER 4
keep Black's activity to a minimum by
eliminating his dark-squared bishop.
8 ...bxc6 9.�xc6 .e8
This is the traditional square for
Black's queen, since after 9 . ..d6,
. will strike the center with a quick . . . c7-
White might be adventurous enough
to slip in 10.•a4 ! ? first. This occurred
in Wojtkiewicz-Panchanathan, Vir­
ginia Beach 2005, when after 10. . . .!tJdS
1l . .!tJxe7 .!tJxe7 12J'�dl eS 13.dxeS .e6
14 . .!tJc3, White has a clear advantage
and went on to win. Thus, 9 . . ..eS is
the main move for Black.
10.�xe7+ .xe7 11 .•a4
This is the tabiya for this variation.
In return for inflicting structural dam­
age on Black's queenside, White has
given up his Catalan bishop, thus giv­
ing Black the opportunity to control
the hi-aS diagonal. What is White's
aim? Essentially, White is seeking
to win Black's c4-pawn while keep­
ing Black's potentially active pieces at
bay. Although his d4-pawn is exposed,
Wojo said he must "avoid e2-e3 at all
costs" to avoid weakening the squares
around his king. Instead, White would
like to eventually play f2-f3, blunting
Black's light-squared bishop. If White
can win Black's c4-pawn, develop his
SO
pieces, and manage to keep his king
safe, he will have good prospects of
converting his material advantage in
the endgame.
Black, for his part, must find a way
to activate his pieces. Usually Black
cS or . . . e6-eS. In this game, however,
Black decides to defend his c4-pawn
by tactical means.
1l • . .•d6! ?
An old move which stops 12 . •xc4
in view of 12 . . . .ta6. By playing his
queen to the d-file, hitting White's
d-pawn, Black heightens the tactical
tension. A similarly motivated move
is ll . . . aS !?, which also permits Black
to play his light -squared bishop to the
fl-a6 diagonal.
Although White can ignore Black's
"challenge" to take on c4 with the qui­
et 12 . .tgS, in practice most White play­
ers have wanted to prove an advantage
with 12 .•xc4 ia6 13 .• c2 :
Now 13 . . . eS 14.dxeS .xeS IS . .!tJc3
l:UeS 16.if4 .hS 17JUei .!tJg4 IS.h4
would leave Black without sufficient
compensation for his pawn. Thus
Black's best try is 13 . . . l:UdS 14J'MI cS,
breaking in the center. The line runs
IS.dxeS gxdl+ 16 .• xdl .xeS 17 . .!tJc3
.!tJg4 1S .•fl :
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6

Here we come to a crossroads.

Black must decide whether to try to
hold his c4-pawn or create piece play.

Now White's challenge will be

maneuvering his way out from un­
der Black's pressure. With patience,
it is possible; for instance, play could
continue lS . . . !b7 19.h3 �e5 20.!f4
tiJc4 (or 20 . . . �g6 21.!d2 ! �dS 2 2 .�d1)
21.b3 llJe3 2 2 .he3 \Wxc3 23.�dl ! \We5
24.\Wd4 \Wh5 ! 25.�g4 \Wd5 26.f3:
12 ••• �d5 ! ?

Black chooses the latter option. Not

a novelty, but highly unusual. Black
aims for total mobilization and seeks
to harass the white queen with his mi­
nor pieces. Black can also try defend­
ing his c4-pawn with either 12 . . . ,b6 or
12 . . . \Wa6. Wojo scoffed at the former
in view of simply 12 . . . !a6 13.!f4 \Wb6
14.hc7, though it turns out this line
White has managed to wriggle out may be playable for Black after 14 ...
of Black's grip while keep his extra �xb2 (14 . . . �xc7? ! 15.\Wxa6 gabS al­
pawn. lows White to keep his extra pawn after
Returning to the previous diagram, the clever 16.llJa3 ! gxb2 17.llJxc4 when
it is possible that lS . . . h6 (or even lS . . . 17 ... gxe2? lS.llJd2 ! traps Black's rook)
h5!?) might b e better than lS . . . !b7, 15.llJa3 \Wb7 16.gabl! \Wxc7 17.\Wxa6 c3 :
while Kotronias suggests lS .. .l:kS. The
latter should be met by 19.!f4, pro­
voking 19 . . . e5 from Black so as to take
that square away from Black's knight.
After 20.!d2, White no longer has to
fear ... llJg4-e5-c4 from Black. Regard­
less, Black's compensation is transient
at best. White has won a pawn and his
position is solid, so he can be happy
with the result of the opening.

Sl
 CHAPTER 4
White's pieces are better placed
and he has some initiative, but Black
still has equalizing chances.
Rather than meeting 12 . . ..ia6 with
13.,if4, the simple 13.llJc3, keeping
tension in the position, is a stronger
option for White. For instance, 12 . . .
.ia6 13.llJc3 13tb8 1 4 . .if4 m>6 15.13d2
llJd5 16.llJxd5 exd5 :
17.hc7 m>4 ? ! (Black should bite
the bullet and play 17. . . �xc7 18.�xa6,
when his pawn deficit in the rook,
queen, and pawn middlegame is less
obvious) 18.�xb4 13xb4 19.94 ! , when
White's advantage proved decisive in
Dizdarevic-Vasovski, Skopje 2002 .
Meanwhile, 12 . . . �a6 is the sec­
ond way of trying to hold on to the
c4-pawn. The ending that ensues af­
ter 13.�xa6 ha6 14.llJc3 is quite com­
fortable for White:
Black's light-squared bishop is
worse than White's due to the ob­
structive black c4-pawn. After 14 . . .
82
13ab8 15.e4, White was better i n Gel­
fand-Shneider, Uzhgorod 1987.
13.'lfxc4
White must, of course, take this
pawn. Otherwise, Black will play . . . c4-
c3.
13 .b6 14.�c2 llJb4
•••
The point of 12 . . . llJd5. Black forc­
es White's queen onto the awkward
d2 square, as 15.�e4? f5 would force
White's queen away from defending
against 16 . . . llJc2 .
15.�d2 gfd8
The pressure on d4 continues, but
White must avoid playing e2-e3 at all
costs. White is aiming to play f2-f3 at
some point, bolstering - rather than
weakening - his control of the squares
along the long diagonal.
16.llJc3
Wojo explained that, as much as he
wanted to play b2-b3, he knew he had
to continue developing his pieces. 16.
b3 c5 ! would have led to a dangerous
initiative for Black. After 17 . .ia3 �c7
18.hb4, trading off Black's aggres-
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? � c6

sive knight, White would have run
into 18 .. J�xd4 ! 19.W1c2 �xd1+ 20.�xd1
cxb4:
20. . . !xe2 (20. . . �xc5 2 1.W1e4 �d8
2 2 .tLlc3 tLld4 23.!e3 is again fine for
White) had given Black some play for
his lost pawn in Hausner-Haugli, St.
Ingbert 1989. Here White went astray
with 2 2 .W1e4? tLle1, giving Black a
strong attack. With precise play, how­
ever, White should have been able to
keep a slight edge; for instance, 2 1.!e3
e5 ! ? 22 .W1xe5 tLle1 23.�c7! :

Black has a clear advantage here

due to his open lines and activity. The
text move allows White to meet Black's
... c7-c5 thrust with a pawn capture.

16 ••• c5 17.dxc5

Wojo did not consider the tempt­ The idea behind this queen maneu­
ing 17.d5?! for long, as 17 . . . exd5 18.a3 ver is that if Black tries to use the weak
liJc6 19.W1xd5 W1xd5 20.�xd5 �xd5 light squares around White's king to
21.liJxd5 he2 gives Black active play his advantage by 23 . . . �d3 24.�c1 tLlf3+
in the endgame. 25.mh1 �e4, White can play 26.tLlc3,
adequately defending against Black's
17 �e7
.••
threats and chasing Black's bishop off
the hl-a8 diagonal. The text move is
A novelty, but both players were
perhaps somewhat less challenging.
probably unaware that this position
had ever been reached before. Previ­
18.�f4 l:!xdl+ 19.�xdl
ously, 17 . . . W1f8 18.�f4 �xd1+ 19.tLlxd1
liJc2 ! (worse is 19 . . . W1xc5, when 20.!e3
allows White to finish his development
and keep the extra pawn) 20.�b1:

83
 CHAPTER 4

Of course Black cannot play 19 . . . 22 ••• �xc3 23 .bc3 f6 24.Wd6

•

he2?? 20.�e4, winning a piece for

White. Also, 19 . . . �xc5?! 20 . .te3 al­
lows White to develop smoothly, for
instance 20 . . . �c4 21.lDc3, when it is
difficult to see how Black can contin­
ue developing an initiative. Trading
pieces to reach a "drawn" endgame
also doesn't offer many prospects for
Black: 21...lDdS (nothing comes of 21...
lDc2 22 J'!dl) 2 2 .�xc4 hc4 23.lDxdS
hdS 24.b4 would allow White to
slowly put pressure on Black's a-pawn.
24 ••• Wxe2? !
20.We5!
Black falls into the trap White set
Wojo was proud ofthis move, which on move 20. A better test of White's
sets the stage for a "clever trap" sev­ technique would have been 24 . . . .tb7,
eral moves down the road. Although though after 2S.�4 Wxb4 26.hb4 as
four of the five white pieces are on the 27 ..tc3 .idS 28.a4 followed by b2-b4,
first rank, Wojo will soon clear a path White still holds the edge. It is hard
to a won ending. Alternatively, Wojo to find a good move 24 for Black - his
felt that 20.Wd6? ! �xd6 21.cxd6 he2 pieces look active, but they have al­
was "just a draw," as White's passed ready used up all of their potential.
d-pawn is not dangerous. Meanwhile,
20.�d4?! he2 would hand Black at­ 25.gel Yfc4
tacking prospects.

20 Wxc5
•.•

Best. 20 .. .f6 2 1.�e4 .tb7 22 ..te3

wouldn't help Black's cause, as he must
recapture some of his lost material.

The rash 21.e4? �c4 could prove

unpleasant for White.
26.b3!
21 Yfc4 22 .td2
••• •

A good tactical resource, since

22.lDxdS?! exdS, which keeps the 26.�xe6+? would give up White's
queens on the board, would offer little advantage entirely after 26 . . . �xe6
hope of converting the pawn advan­ 27J:!xe6 .tc4 and . . . ha2 .
tage. White's king would be exposed
if Black managed to play . . . dS-d4-d3. 26 ••• Yfc8

84
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6
26 . . . �xc3? 27.�xe6+ wf8 28.V«d6+
1t>t7 (28 . . . Wg8 29.�d5+) 29J:!e7+ Wg6
30.�xa6 is hopeless for Black.
27.1be6+ V«xe6 28.gxe6 .ib7
An opposite-colored-bishop end­
ing typical of this variation has been
reached. White has successfully neu­
tralized his opponent's early activity,
but now faces the task of converting
his extra pawn. A degree of patience
and precision is required here; when
showing this game to his students,
Wojo would not allow them to move
the pieces until he had given them a
full verbal explanation of the correct
winning plan.
According to Wojo himself, with­
out the rooks on the board, the po­
sition would be drawn. Black would
simply defend his kingside pawns
with his bishop and blockade White's
(potential) queenside passed pawn
with his king. With the rooks on the
board, however, Wojo believed his
position to be won. "The presence of
rooks on the board makes a huge dif­
ference, because one of the important
things is that I have the so-called 'good
color' for the bishop on the kingside,"
Wojo explained. By this, Wojo meant
that White's dark-squared bishop is
the same color as the white h-pawn's
queening square. The plan is that
White will use his extra queenside
pawn to tie down Black's pieces. Then,
he will target Black's kingside weak­
nesses. Along the way, a trade of rooks
may be more or less inevitable; thus,
it is important that White be able to
win an opposite-colored-bishop end­
ing entirely on the kingside. Black will
be looking for the opportune moment
to sacrifice his bishop for the White b­
pawn, and if White's bishop is not the
"right color" for his passed h-pawn, he
may wind up with a drawn bishop and
rook pawn versus lone king endgame.
So, with all this in mind, White
executes the first step of his plan by
bringing his king to the center.
29.f4 .id5 30.gd6 .ie4 31.Wf2
a5 32.a3 gb8 33.b4
33 ... axb4
"Which way should I take?" Wojo
asked his students.
One student immediately com­
mented that White could take with
the pawn and gain the "right color"
square for the pawn on b8. After all,
having the passed pawn on b4 would
allow White to win with a bishop and
b-pawn against a lone king. To this
comment, Wojo retorted, "It doesn't
85
 CHAPTER 4

matter if I have a pawn of the 'right'
color on the queenside ! It only matters
that I have one on the kingside ! " Wojo
wanted his queenside passed pawn as
far away from Black's king as possi­
ble.
34.hb4!
White's bishop comes to a strong
outpost. According to Wojo, White
even has mating-net ideas of f4-fS
(taking away e6 and g6) and sneak-
ing a rook to the f8 square. White also
ties the Black king down to the defense
of the g7-pawn; if Black ever ventures
. . . l!?g8-h7, White can play his rook to
d7 with a possible i.b4-f8 to follow.
34 ••• ga8 35.gd7 h5 1- 0
Sadly, the rest of the moves have
been lost for the ages. It is not hard
to imagine Wojo carrying out the plan
prescribed in the note to Black's move
28, however.

Summary: Wojo enjoyed White's endgame chances after 7. ltJ eS. Much of
his success with this line was due to his understanding of how to convert an
endgame advantage. In this game, we examined two of Black's minor tries, 11. . .
Wld6 and 11 . . .05, and found them both t o be somewhat less than satisfactory.

Steering to a Better End i ng with J.g5xf6

In the previous game, White's transi­ Ippolito, Dean (2430)

tion into the endgame seemed to come
naturally. As Black launched his attack
with active piece play, White simply
developed his pieces and trades be­
gan to occur in the tactical skirmishes.
When Black breaks in the center ear­
Kaufman, Raymond (2320)
[EOS] National Chess Congress 2008
l.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.1Of3 lOf6 4.g3
.ie7 5 .ig2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.lOe5
•

ly on - say, for instance, with ll . . . cS or lOc6 8.hc6 bxc6 9.lOxc6 Wle8

ll . . . eS - he opens up a realm of com­ 1O.lOxe7+ Wlxe7 11.Wla4 c5 12.Wla3 !
plicated possibilities. In order to "rise
above" the unseemly tactical mess in
the center, White has to put serious
thought into which trades he should
be seeking and why. Often, amidst the
heavy central tension, White will see
that he has an opportunity to play the
forceful .icl-gSxf6, steering the game
towards a "good knight" versus "bad
bishop" endgame. In the following
game, Dean gets just such an oppor­
tunity.

86
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.lOeS ! ? IOc6
Although Wojo occasionally ven­
tured 12.%Vxc4, he eventually came
to prefer 12.%Va3, testing it in several
online blitz games. The text is a cun­
ning move designed to keep the center
closed. Rather than taking Black's c4-
pawn, White leaves it as an obstruc­
tion for Black's c8-bishop. Thus, af­
ter White plays i.c1-gSxf6, Black's re­
maining minor piece will be "bad."
After the alternative 12.%Vxc4, prac­
tice has shown that Black has enough
compensation to equalize. For in­
stance, Wojtkiewicz-Shulman, Still­
water (match/3) 20OS, ran 12 . . . cxd4
13.%Vxd4 eS 14.%Vh4 �b8 lS.b3 %Ve6 !
16.igS IOdS :
17.e4 IOb4 18.i.e7 �e8 19 . .ixb4
l"ixb4 20.iLlc3 ib7 21.�fe1 �d4 2 2 .%VgS
h6 23.%Ve3 �ed8 24.�ad1 :
24 .. .fS ! 2S.f3 fxe4 26.fxe4 %Vg4
27.�xd4 exd4 28.%Vd3 %VgS 29.iLldS
ixdS 30.exdS %VxdS 31.%Vc4 1 2 - 1 2 .
12 ••• .th7
Black's most common (and most
obvious) choice. Oddly enough, how­
ever, this routine move leads to a high­
ly undesirable ending for the second
player. A more innovative try is for
Black to put his queen, rather than his
bishop, on the long diagonal with 12 . . .
%Vb7! and follow u p with . . . e6-eS. This
innovative solution is analyzed in the
next game.
13 .tg5
•
Although the tension is mounting
in the center, White ignores the natu­
ral impulse to release the tension with
an inferior move such as 13.%Vxc5. Af­
ter 13 . . :�xc5 14.dxcS �c8, Black would
be tine.
Another try for the advantage is
13.iLlc3, keeping tension in the posi­
tion, but our recommended move has
the advantage of heading straight for
a superior ending. After 13.i.gS, Black
has no real threats in the center and
must now face an annoying pin.
13 ... gfc8 14.1Oc3
14 ... %Vf8
Black can also break the pin on
his c-pawn with 14 . . .'�f8, but White
87
 CHAPTER 4
still reaches his desired endgame af­
ter IS.dxc5 \Wxc5 (IS . . . l3xc5 16.h'f6
gxf6 17.l3fdl leaves Black with noth­
ing better than offering the exchange
of queens himself with 17 . . . l3cc8)
16.\WxcS+ l3xcS 17.h'f6 gxf6:
Play could continue 18.l3fc1 @e7
19.13c2 l3ac8 (or 19 . . . l3d8 20.l3dl l3xdl+
21.llJxdl followed by llJe3) 20.l3dl,
when White is threatening to swing
his rook into the d4 square.
An alternative for Black is 14 . . .
\Wd7, avoiding the exchange o f queens.
Black hopes that, with the queens on
the board, his bishop on the long di­
agonal will be a true menace. GM
Jaan Ehlvest, who worked closely
with Wojo, demonstrated that this ap­
proach doesn't solve Black's positional
problems in the game Ehlvest-Kraai,
Berkeley 2005 : IS.h'f6 cxd4 (1S . . . gxf6
16.dxc5 \Wc6 17.f3 \WxcS+ 18.\Wxc5 l3xcS
gives White his better endgame once
again) 16.hd4 §'xd4 17.l3adl \Wb6
18.l3d6 i.c6 19.l3fdl left Black choking:
88
The game continued with Black
bidding for space after 19 . . . aS 20.l36d4
§'b4, but White found 21.llJbl ! , main­
taining his advantage. There fol­
lowed 21 .. .dS 22 .\Wc3 l3ab8 23.l31d2
h6 24.\We3 ! (White plays patiently,
allowing his pieces to slowly creep
up the board; now White's knight
will emerge from its foray back to its
home square) 24 . . . .ia8 2S.llJc3 \Wb7
26.f3 \Wb4 27.@g2 \Wb6 28.\WeS, when
Black, frustrated by White's progress,
blundered:
28 ... l3d8?? 29.llJa4 ! 1-0. Black
cannot defend his pieces.
15 . .bf6 gxf6 16.gfdl
Finally, Black has run out of use­
ful moves and must break the tension
in the center.
16 ... cxd4 17.\Wxf8+
18.gxd4
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6

White has achieved his goal of undertakes a gradual reorganization

reaching a good-knight-versus-bad­ of his forces.
bishop endgame. Note how Black's
pawn on c4 obstructs his rooks and 23 •••f6!?
his light-squared bishop. Black also
Black prepares for lateral defense
has four pawn islands to White's two.
along the seventh rank for his weak
White's plan is to slowly encircle
h7-pawn, but at the price of weaken­
the c-pawn, play f2-f3 to blunt Black's
ing his kingside formation.
bishop, and bring his king toward the
center. Meanwhile, Black's king is cut
24.gdd2
off along the d-file - and trading a pair
of rooks with .. J!c8-d8 is unlikely to
24.l'!d6 l'!b6 25.l'!d7 l'!6b7 26.l'!xb7
favor Black, as his king is too far away
l'!xb7 27.�e3 l'!c7 28.b3 ! ? cxb3 ! al­
to defend the c4-pawn in any case.
lows Black to equalize, since 29.l'!xc7
On the other hand, if Black could
b2 3O.l'!xa7 .lc8 31.l'!a8 bl� 32.l'!xc8+
simply put his f6-pawn back on g7, his
�i7 poses no dangers for Black:
position would not be nearly so miser­
able. He could cling to the c4-pawn for
dear life and pray that White couldn't
break through. The "principle of two
weaknesses" is in effect here, though:
White's attack on the h-pawn with l'!h4
is always in the air, making it difficult
for Black to hold his position together.

IS f5 ! ? 19.9c1 gabS 20.gc2

•••

1a6 21.t'3 gc7 22.�f2 gcb7 23.�dl

White's passed a-pawn will not be
able to make progress against Black's
powerful queen, and meanwhile Black
has ideas of . . . @i7-g6 and . . . e6-e5, im­
proving his position on the kingside.

24 ••• �e7 25.�e3

The old adage "a knight on the rim

is grim" doesn't apply here. From dl,
the knight blockades Black's c4-pawn
by controlling the c3 square, defends
White's own pawn on b2, and pre­
pares to head to e3 at some later stage
to attack Black's c4-pawn. Now White

89
 CHAPTER 4
25 ... gc8?!
Black's best was to trade rooks im­
mediately in an attempt to activate his
king. 25 .. J'!d8 26.l=!xd8 @xd8 27.@el
.ib5 ! would have stopped White's plan
of 28.@d2 in view of 28 . . . .ia4. White
would then have to either find some
new way to reorganize his pieces or
"cash in" with 28 .liJxc4 ixc4 29.l=!xc4
l=!xb2 30.l=!h4 l=!xa2 (the passive 30. . .
l=!b7 i s also a n option) 31.l=!xh7:
Black's king is confined to the back
rank, so the onus is on him to prove
he can draw.
The white knight has successful­
ly reached e3, so it is time for White's
rook to return to its favorite fourth­
rank post.
With Black's king pushed to the
back rank, White toys with the idea of
penetrating down the d-file. The even­
tual threat of White landing a rook on
d7 lures Black's bishop to the clumsy
b5 square, where it is more vulnerable
to attack by a2-a4 and cuts off Black's
potential counterplay along the b-file.
28 ... gb8 29.ghd4 Ab5
90
29 ... @e7 was probably more accu­
rate, but Black wants to keep the sev­
enth rank open for his rooks to guard
his isolated h7-pawn. 30.g4 ! ? fxg4
31.l=!xg4 @f7 would allow Black to
keep everything covered, though his
four pawn islands still mean that he is
worse.
White could have continued to
strengthen his bind with 3Uk3, but
his aim was to lure Black into playing
the "rash" . . . c4-c3 break. As we'll see
in the game, if Black plays this break
at the right time, he can actually hold
the draw.
After 31...@e7, White can either
continue his plan with a move like
32.l=!c3, or try 32.g4 ! ? fxg4 33.l=!xg4
@f7 34.l=!cgl. Thus, most Black play­
ers would instinctively feel the need to
take action here with something more
drastic.
If Black attempts to break from be­
hind bars and play 31.. .c3, it appears
that White can corral the wayward
pawn with 32.l=!b4 a6? ! 33.b3 ! , threat­
ening to kick Black's bishop with a2-
a4. White could then follow this thrust
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�eS ! ? �c6

up by cutting off Black's communica­ White trades a pair of rooks, weak­

tion down the c-file with 1!b4-c4. How­ ening Black's defense of c3.
ever, Black may be fine after the accu­
rate 32 . . . .ia6, when he retains control
of the c4-square:

White would probably have noth­

ing better than 33.bxc3 1!xc3 34.1!xc3
l"!xc3 3S.1!a4 1!c6, when Black is hold­
ing. The text move is slow, showing
that Black is perhaps losing his sense
of positional danger.
32.<!>el? !
White begins to bring his king to­
ward the c4-pawn, again preferring
to bait . . . c4-c3 from Black rather than
stopping it 1!c1-c3. It would have been
better not to allow this, however.
32,. .c3 !
White has "successfully" lured
Black into playing this move. During
the actual game, White felt that Black's
break was a typical example of what
happens when a player is tortured for
many moves - he lashes out. The text,
however, is the correct decision.
37, ..f4?
Black goes overboard and lashes
out unreasonably. This is the real mis­
take which loses the game. Black could
hold a draw with the better 37 . . . eS:
a) 38.tt:ld1 .ic8 39.1!xc3 1!xc3
4O.tt:lxc3 .ie6 41.e4 fxe4 42.tt:lxe4 hb3
43.tt:lxf6 results in the kind of position
where Black's bishop is a strength, not
a weakness.
b) 38.tt:ldS (best) 38 . . . i.c8 39.b4 !
axb4 4O.tt:lxb4 1!c4 41.tt:ldS 1!xa4
42.1!xc3 ie6 43.tt:lxf6, when Black
still has some suffering to do, but all
of the pawns are on the same side of
the board:

33.h3

White begins corralling the c3-pawn.

33,..a5 34.a4 ia6 35.gd6 White will have considerable

91
 CHAPTER 4

difficulty making progress in the long Here Black resigned in view of 41...
term. hc4 42 .l'!xc3, winning a second pawn.
38.gxf4 gc5 39.�f2 gh5 4O.�g3 A game very much in the spirit of
gc5 41.c�c4 1- 0 "How Wojo Won ! "

Summary: White's 12. Wia3! is perhaps the move most responsible for re­
viving the entire 7 . tiJe5 line. By pinning Black's c5-pawn, White is able to keep
the center semi-closed, giving him time to execute the maneuver i.c1-g5xf6.
The knight-versus-bishop endgame is good for White, who can blockade and
target Black's c4-pawn. IfBlack has played ... g7xf6, his kingside structure will
be compromised as well, so White should look to swing a rook to the fourth
rank with l'!fJ -d1-d4(-h4}.

A Radical Sol ution for Black

Clearly, if Black wants to create seri­
ous counterplay in the spirit of a true
gambit, he has to avoid falling into this
kind of passive ending. In the previous
game, the culprit was the natural 12 . . .
.ib7, allowing White's smooth tran­
sition with .ic1-g5xf6. Black, to pre­
vent White from having such an easy
time of things, must opt for a more
radical solution: destroying the cent­
er with an . . . e6-e5 break. He can play
it as early as move 11, aiming to give
up the c4-pawn for activity - an op­
tion analyzed in the next segment of
this chapter, "Consolidating White's
Extra Pawn: A Dance with the Lady"
- or he can play 11 . . . cS 12 .Wia3 e5 fol­
lowed by 13 . . . �b7 ! . This approach al­
lows Black's queen and light-squared
bishop to converge on the g2 square
via the shot . . . i.cB-h3.
Although this plan is intended to
be dangerous for White, it backfires
quite easily. In the following game,
Dean tried to confuse Wojo with it, but
it is Black who winds up making the
decisive mistake - as early as move 14!
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2551)
Ippolito, Dean (2387)
[E05] U.S. Open 2004
l.tLlf3 d5 2.d4 tLlf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
i.e7 5.i.g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.tLle5
tLlc6
Dean had suffered a loss against
Dzindzichashvili by meeting 7.tLleS
with the placid 7 . . . c5, covered in the
next chapter. This time, he decides to go
for the most aggressive line possible.
8 ..ixc6 bxc6 9.tLlxc6 �e8
10.tLlxe7+ fixe7 11.fia4 c5
11 . . . e5 is another way for Black to
strike the center "radically." We ana­
lyze this alternative in the next game.
12.fia3

92
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.lOeS ! ? IOc6
12 Y:Yh7
•••
It is also possible to play 12 . . . eS
first. This gives him the additional op­
tion of heading for a pawn-down end­
game after 13.�xc5 �xc5 14.dxc5:
Although this peaceful queen swap
denies Black the opportunity to play
a sharp middlegame, he does obtain
good drawing chances. He has no
problems completing his development
so long as he is willing to liquidate the
queenside pawns and head for an end­
ing in which White has a 4-3 pawn ma­
jority on the kingside - which, in most
cases, is a theoretical draw.
From the diagram, Black's most
logical move is to secure his c4-pawn
with 14 . . ..!e6. He can also try 14 . . . i.h3,
as in J.Horvath-T.Bauer, Szekszard
1993, which was drawn peacefully af­
ter 1SJ3dl gfcB 16.ltJa3 i.e6 17.f3 gabB
18.�f2 gxcS. Instead, however, 16.b4 !
cxb3 17.axb3 gxc5 :
1B.gxa7 ! , taking advantage of
Black's back-rank weakness, wins a
pawn for White. Black still has decent
drawing chances, but he must keep an
eye on White's b-pawn.
Before moving on, we should
quickly note that a viable alternative
to 16.b4 ! is 16.i.gS, aiming for a good­
knight-versus-bad-bishop ending. Af­
ter 16 . . . ltJe4 17.i.e3 ltJxc5 1B.hc5 gxc5
19.1tJc3 gbB 20.gd2, however, Black
does not have a second weakness on
the kingside to attack:
Black's woes in this endgame are
considerably reduced compared to Ip­
polito-Kaufman above. In fact, White's
maneuver gal-c1 and ttlc3-d1 might
be met by a timely . . . gcS-aS, provok­
ing White into creating a weakness of
his own with a2-a3. For this reason,
we prefer 16.b4.
Returning to 14 .. ..te6, White should
again avoid the attempt to reach a
good-knight-versus-bad-bishop end­
ing with 1S.ltJc3 gfcB 16.i.gS. The
93
 CHAPTER 4
reason is that it simply doesn't work
after the simple 16 . . . tlJd7, when Black
is fine, for instance: 17J'Ud1 tlJxcS
lSJ'!d2 f6 19 . .ie3 cj;; 0 20J'!ad1 gabS:
Black has adequate counterplay on
the queenside here.
Thus, White once again should play
lS.b4 ! , fighting to keep the extra pawn.
Now the reply lS . . . cxb3 is Black's best,
though Black can try to confuse White
by trying lS . . . gabS 16.a3 as :
Since White cannot play 17 . .id2
tlJe4 here, he must play 17 . .ib2 axb4
lS.axb4 gxb4 19.heS to keep his ex­
tra pawn.
After lS . . . cxb3, play should con­
tinue 16.axb3 hb3 (after 16 . . . gfcS? !
17.b4 tlJdS l S . .td2 gcbS 19.c6! tlJxb4
20.c7 gb7 2 1.hb4 gxb4 2 2 .gd1 Black
is suffering, though 22 . . . gd4 offers
some chances for holding on) 17 . .ib2
tlJe4 lS.gel gfcS (if Black refuses to
play a pawn down on the kingside,
White's initiative increases after lS . . .
94
f6 19.f3 tlJgS 20.tlJd2 .ie6 21.h4 tlJO
2 2 .cj;;f2 gfcS 23.ga6 tlJdS 24.tlJe4)
19.9aS:
This offers more practical chances
than 19.heS gxcS, after which Black
should draw with 20.gxcS tlJxcS 2 1..id4
tlJe6 22.gxa7 gcS 23 . .te3 hS, despite
being down a pawn. After 19.9aS in­
stead, Black's position is simply no
fun to play. For instance, from the di­
agram, 19 . . .f6 20.f3 tlJgS 21.tlJd2 fol­
lowed by h2-h4 and cj;;f2 gives White
a pleasant bind.
In this game, Black is not aiming
for a position that will require this
kind of groveling for a draw. The text is
perhaps less accurate than the imme­
diate 12 . . . eS, however, for an entirely
different reason. After 12 . . -,Wb7, White
has the additional option of playing
13.dxc5 ! ?, a move which makes little
sense in the case of 12 . . . eS 13.dxc5?
i.h3. Now let's return to the game.
13.ti'xc5
13.dxc5 ! ? eS 14.ge1 offers White
some prospects for the advantage
after 14 . . . i.h3 lS-,Wf3 ! 1Mfb4 (1S . . . e4
16.1Mfc3 ! ) 16.tlJc3 ti'xc5 17 . .tgS, when
White hopes to reach a familiar good­
knight-versus-bad-bishop situation.
We recommend, however, meeting
both 12 . . . 1Mfb7 and 12 . . . eS with the
forcing 13.1Mfxc5.
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6

16 ••• gae8

Black does not gain enough com­

pensation after 16 .. JWe7 17.�c3 gfd8
18.'iNxc4 gxdl+ 19.�xdl gc8. Mean­
while, 16 . . . h5 ! ? also falls short of the
mark after 17.�c3 gad8 18.'iNxc4 (or
18.'iNxd8) 18 . . . 'iNb6+ 19.e3.

17.�c3

Black is hoping for something like

17.e4??, when 17 . . . lLlxe4 18.fxe4 gxe4
19.'iNf2 gfe8 gives the second player a
Best, as Black threatened 14 ... i.h3.
crushing attack.
14 ••• exd4?
17••• � g4?!
Black, having forgotten t�eory,
There is not much to be said in fa­
tries something that looks sufficIently
vor of the passive retreat 17 . . . .1e6, but
complex. The problem with this m �ve
after the text move, White is close to
is that it releases the central tensIOn
winning.
too early, allowing White to develop
rapidly and effectively.

15.Vxd4
White has to play accurately and
avoid playing a careless move such
The overambitious 15J��xd4? is
as 18.e4?, after which Black's attack
punished by 15 .. J!e8, when 16.�c3
would become legitimate: 18 . . . lLle5
!h3 17.f3? (17.�d5 gxe2 is preferable,
19.�f2 f5 ! leaves White struggling.
though still horrendous for White)
Another blunder would be the care­
17 .. J;xe2 ! .
less 18.i.f4??, which allows 18 . . . gxe2
19.1Llxe2 �xf3.
15 .1h3 16.f3
..•

Although both players considered

the "greedy" 18.�xc4 ! ? risky, it may
be just as accurate as the move played
in the game: 18 . . . gd8 19.1Lld5 �b6+
20.gd4 holds everything together, al­
lowing White to keep his two extra
pawns.
With the text, White prepares to
bring the knight to g5, where it will
trap Black's "active" bishop.

95
 CHAPTER 4
18 . . .fS is no help after 19.1LlgS fExe2
20.�xc4+ 'it>h8 2 1.�xe2 �b6+ 2 2 .ie3
lLlxe3 23.�f2 lLlxdl 24.�xb6 axb6
2S.fExdl, and White wins the wayward
bishop on h3.
19 . .if4
White avoids pitfalls by simply de­
veloping his pieces. One possible dis­
aster was 19.1Lld6?? fExe2 20.lLlxb7
fEg2 + 21.'it>f1?? (21.'it>hl fExh2+ 2 2 .'it>gl
fEg2 + is a draw) 2 1.. .lLlxh2+ 2 2 .'it>el
lLlxf3+ 23.'it>fl fEd2 # :
O f course Wojo, who studied with
Tal, easily spotted such dangerous
tactical possibilities.
19 ... f5
Jettisoning the bishop on h3, but
if Black fails to take action, White can
simply plaJl- 20.fEd2, defending every­
thing.
96
With time running out, Black goes
for one last trick.
21.l'�d2
Defending easily. 21.lLlxh3?? would
lose on the spot to 2 1 . . .�xf3 with mate
to follow.
21 ... h6
Black has no other options. For
instance, 2 1. . .fExd2 2 2 .hd2 fEe8
23.lLlxh3 wins for White. No bet­
ter is 21 .. .�e7 2 2 .lLlxh3 fEel+ (22 ...
lLlxh2 23.fExe2 lLlxf3+ 24.'it>f2 �xe2+
2S.'it>xe2 lLlxd4+ 26.'it>d2 and White
emerges a piece up) 23.fExel �xel+
24.'it>g2 . And after 21.. .lLlxh2 2 2 . fExe2,
Black must call it a day.
22.gxe2
Once again White should avoid
22 .lLlxh3?? lLlxh2 ! 23J�f1 fExd2
24.hd2 lLlxfl 2S.'it>xfl �xf3+, when
Black has the advantage.
22 ... hxgS 23 . .id6 gd8 24.fxg4
�c6 2S.gd2 1- 0
This loss against Wojo, which de­
cided the outcome of the u.s. Open,
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6
was particularly painful for Dean.
Missing the last available opportuni­
ty to qualify for that year's u.s. Cham­
pionship bothered him, so he began
to reflect on the way both sides han­
dled the opening. Dean describes
what happened next: "After this loss,
I started to dislike this way of playing
for Black. I thought that the position
was so messy and illogical that I didn't
like it for either side. After spending
many hours searching for some alter­
native route, I decided to finally take a
hard look at the key game in this line,
Gelfand-Anand, 2001. Initially, it ap­
peared random. But as I began to un­
derstand the position, the moves start­
ed to make sense to me. The game was
no longer a bunch of pieces thrown
across the board, but a masterpiece
before my eyes. I had decided that this
was the way to play, and the follow­
ing year, when facing Ehlvest, I under­
stood the position so well that I was
able to nullify a strong prepared nov­
elty at the board." This kind of study
and persistence in one's preparation
tends to pay huge dividends over the
board, no matter what one's level of
play. The kinds of positions found in
Part II of this book are, on the whole,
far more complex than those found in
Part I. For this reason, to truly under­
stand them well, one has to allow one­
self to be fascinated by them. That fas­
cination can fuel one's study and take
one's game to a higher level.
Facing his fear of studying these
complications worked out well for
Dean. His following draw against Ehl­
vest, in which he defused an impor­
tant novelty, is on the edge of modern
theory in this line. For the time be­
ing, it is possible for a player with a
good memory to simply mimic Dean's
first 25 moves without fear of being
surprised by a strong improvement.
In order to reach the draw, however,
Black needs to fully understand how
to properly hold his positional bind to­
gether - down an entire piece !
This is easier said than done, as the
notes to this game show.
Ehivest, Jaan (2469)
Ippolito, Dean (2362)
[E05] Las Vegas 2005
l.d4 d5 2.�f3 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
lJ.e7 5.lJ.g2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.�e5
�c6 S .txc6 bxc6 9.�xc6 ti'eS
•
10.�xe7+ ti'xe7 1l.ti'a4 c5 12.Wa3
ti'b7 13.ti'xc5 e5 14.gdl .ih3
The only good move here, and a
tremendous improvement on the pre­
vious game.
15.d5
This is White's logical response,
creating a strong passed pawn and
closing off the hl-a8 diagonal. 15.f3?
would be an illogical choice in this po­
sition, as Black is far too active: 15 . . .
gac8 16.Wxe5 gfe8 lands White in
trouble. After the text move, Black
must now prepare a sacrifice to reo­
pen the long diagonal for counterplay.
15 ••• gacS 16.ti'a5
97
 CHAPTER 4
Forced. 16.'lMle3? llJxd5 17.'lMlf3 1'!fd8
18.i.g5 11Jf4 ! , with multiple discovered
attacks, shows the type of tactics that
are in the air for Black if White is not
careful.
Black sets his forces in motion.
This knight sortie serves several pur­
poses : it frees Black to play . . . f7-f5-f4,
prepares to blockade White's d-pawn
with . . . llJe4-d6, and (most important­
ly) sets the stage for Black's next move.
17.f3
Black is looking to remove White's
strong d-pawn at any cost. 17 . . . 11Jd6 is
a playable alternative, although White
achieved a clear edge in C. Horvath­
Zelcic, Croatian Team Chp. 2002 , af­
ter 18.11Jc3 f5 19 . .ie3 f4 20 . .ic5 1'!f6 :
98
21.hd6 ! (removing the blockading
knight) 21 . . . 1'!xd6 2 2 .11Je4 1'!b6 23.d6
(White's forces are well placed to sup­
port his d-pawn) 23 . . . 1'!b5 24.d7! ? (the
non-committal 24.'lMlc3 was also possi­
ble, though White wants to win Black's
bishop on h3) 24 .. .'i;lfxd7 25.1'!xd7 1'!xa5
26.g4 h5 27.11Jf2 . White should be
close to winning, but Black, surpris­
ingly, managed to draw this after a
long struggle.
IS.Wel gxd5 !
Black hangs his knight on e4. The
point is to tie White's pieces down
by creating mating threats. Although
Black's plan is certainly ambitious, the
best he can do is draw. If Black wants
to win at all costs, he should try 18 . . .
llJd6 ! ? , when after 19.11Jc3 f5 2 0. .ie3
1'!c7, White does not have the strong
option of i.e3-c5 as in the note to the
previous move:
Although Black has a lot of activi­
ty, White's pieces are stationed well
in the center. With reasonable moves,
White shouldn't lose too much sleep
over Black's attack.
In Bauer-Lutz, European Team
Chp. 2003, White simply defended
his b-pawn with 2 1.'lMld2 , when White
was slightly better. Black now began
a maneuver to transfer his queen to
the kingside: 2 1. . .1'!e8 22 .@h1 'IMIc8
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�eS ! ? �c6
23.l"lac1 Wld7 (Black wants to put his
queen on f7 next) 24.b4 (opening the
queenside swiftly as a diversion) 24 . . .
cxb3 2S.axb3 l"lecB :
Here, it would have been a mistake
for White to try a blockading strategy
with 26.f4?! as 26 . . . ll:\bS ! 27.�a2 l"lxcl
28.l"lxc1 l"lxc1+ 29.liJxc1 exf4 30.hf4
tiJc3 is good for Black. Instead, return­
ing to the diagram, White continued to
develop his initiative on the queenside
with 26.ll:\a2 WlbS 27.l"lxc7 l"lxc7 2B .l"lc1
Eld7 29.ll:\b4 (29.Wld3 ! ?, offering an ex­
change of queens, is a reasonable way
for White to try to make use of his ex­
tra pawn) 29 .. .f4 ! 30.gxf4 e4, when
Black had counterplay according to
Lutz.
This whole line is relatively unex­
plored, and Black players may want to
look into IB . . . liJd6 ! ? as a way of "spic­
ing up" the game. However, White's
position is well coordinated and strong.
The text is Black's most reliable option.
19.E:xd5 Vxd5 20.fxe4
White has won a piece, but his
army is tied down. Black now goes
about creating a bind.
20 ... Vd4+
Black provokes e2-e3, prying open
White's defenses along the second
rank. The naturaI 20. . . Wlxe4? would al­
low White to consolidate after 2 1.Wlf2 .
21.e3
White's hand is forced, since of
course 21.'it>hl Wlxe4+ 2 2 .'it>gl Wlg2 is
checkmate.
21 . . . Y:Yd3
This move, originally mentioned
by Scherbakov, is a novelty - and a
hard one to meet at that.
Dean explains, "I remember spen­
ding almost an hour on my clock here
trying to come up with an idea. All of
those hours spent analyzing the Gel­
fand-Anand game after my loss to
Wojo in 2005 paid off, as I was able to
come up with an idea over the board
that Wojo and Ehlvest hadn't consid­
ered in their analysis."
The stem game Gelfand-Anand,
Monaco 2001, ran 22.ll:\c3 l"ldB (Black's
idea is to play . . . Wlc2 and . . . l"ldl) 23.g4!
l"ld6 (now 23 . . . Wlc2 ? 24.Wle2 l"ldl+
2S.'it>f2 l"lxc1 26.Wlxc2 l"lxc2 + 27.'it>g3 !
�g2 2B.l"lgl would force Black to give
up material) 24.Wle2 l"lg6 2S.�xd3
cxd3 26.id2 (White has nothing bet­
ter) 26 . . . l"lxg4+ 27.'it>hl l 2 - 1 2 :
99
 CHAPTER 4

A draw was agreed, as Black has White is much better, but the situa­
27. . . .tg2 + 28.�g1 .th3+ with perpet­ tion still remains somewhat murky for
ual check. the time being. Ultimately, White's ex­
It's hard to believe that both play­ tra piece should prevail. The text move
ers hadn't prepared at least some of is a key theoretical improvement for
this line in advance, especially con­ Black.
sidering that this was a rapid game.
With the improvement 2V Lld2, White
blocks the d-file and prepares to acti­
vate his shut-in rook with a2-a4 and
ga1-a3.

22 ti'c2
•••

Black almost played a bad move

such as 22 . . .fS? hoping to get lucky,
but eventually thought the better of it.
It was difficult to tell over the board
whether the idea of playing down an
entire piece would actually work, but
there is no obvious refutation.
In fact, Black's plan completely ties
down White's pieces, making a draw
the most likely result. 2 2 . . .fS? 23.a4 Black trades off White's only ac­
fxe4 (23 . . . c3 24.bxc3 f4 2S.exf4 exf4 tive piece - the queen's rook. M­
26.i.a3) 24.ga3 allows White to de­ ter the game, Ehlvest explained that
stroy Black's bind and remain a piece he had looked at the plan of 23 . . . gd8
ahead. for Black, but was surprised by the
Meanwhile, 22 . . . gb8 23.a4 c3? ! maneuver . . . gb8-b3.
(23 . . :�c2 would transpose back into Ehlvest felt that after the text, the
the game) 24.bxc3 ti'xc3 2S.i.a3 game was a draw, but only White
gd8 26.lLlf3 ti'c2 27.ti'f2 ti'xa4 was could play for a win.
Scherbakov's original suggestion for
Black: 25.gxb3 ab3 26.g4

100
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.fOeS ! ? fOc6
White prepares to bring his king
to g3, trapping the bishop. Now Black
must demonstrate his understand­
ing of the position by playing an "only
move."
Alternatively, White could have
tried to "fix" Black's queenside with
26.aS hS (26 . . . a6 ! might hold more
easily) 27.g4 ! ? .bg4 (27 . . . h4 ! ? 28.gS !
g6 29.�f2 a6 3O.'M11 i.d7 and al­
though White has improved his po­
sition somewhat, there is no break­
through yet) 2 8.�f1 i.e6 29.a6 gS
30.h4 g4 31.�f2 �f8 32 .�g3 :
Neither side can make much head­
way.
26 .•• h6 !
Black wants to wait until White
plays �f2 to take on g4. Others are
insufficient: 26 . . . .bg4? ! 27.lDf1! un-
tangles White's pieces, while 26 . . . gS?
27.�f2 hg4 28.�gl hS 29.h3 i.d1
30.�xgS+ would be good for White.
27.a5
Ehlvest said during the post-mor­
tem that he should have tried as-a6 at
some point, when it seems as if Black
needs to be particularly careful not
to allow White to untangle his piec­
es even the slightest bit. The easiest
idea for Black is to meet White's a4-
as push with the blockading . . . a7-a6,
but for several moves, neither player
realized this.
As an alternative to the text, 27.gS
was another move White considered,
after which play would likely contin­
ue 27 . . . hxgS 28.�f2 i.g4 29.�f1 i.e6
30. �g3 g4 31.aS a6. White still lacks a
way to break through.
27 • • • g5
Better is 27 . . . a6, when after 28.gS
hxgS 29.�f2 i.d7 30.�g3 g6, White is
struggling to make progress.
28.�f2
White can try 28.a6 ! ? , though af­
ter 28 . . . �g7 29.�f2 .bg4 he must
play with some degree of precision:
101
 CHAPTER 4
3O.li>g3? i.dl 31.tLlbl �xc1 32.tLlc3
�xb2 33.tLlxd1 �c2 wins for Black. In­
stead 3O.�fl ! , with the idea of bringing
the queen to c4, forces Black to play
3O. . . i.e6. Then 31.h4 g4 32 .h5 Ii>gB
33.li>g3 Ii>g7 is equal.
28 . . . .i.xg4 29.YlYfJ. !
White threatens to bring the
queen to c4, forcing Black to switch
to defense. 29.li>g3? id1 30.tLlb1 �xc1
31.tLlc3 �xb2 32 .tLlxd1 �c2 33.tLlc3 b2
wins for Black.
29 • • . �e6 ! ?
More accurate i s 29 . . . a 6 30.�c4
�dl ! 31.tLlfl �f3+ 32 .li>e1 �d1+ with
an immediate draw.
31.h4
After 31.a6, simplest is 3 1 . . .h4+
32.li>g2Ii>g7.
31 . . .g4
Now White's knight has no squares.
32.1i>f2
102
A better try was 32.a6 ! ?, after which
Black has to be extremely careful. Af­
ter 32 . . . li>fB 33.li>f2 , Black should find
the correct "tempo" square for his
king:
a) 33 . . . li>g7? ! 34.li>g1 i.d7 35.�c4
�d1+ 36.tLlf1 would give White some­
thing to play for. Black's resource 36 ...
g3 would run into 37.�d5, taking ad­
vantage of the fact that Black's king is
misplaced on the vulnerable g7 square.
b) 33 . . . li>gB ! 34.li>g1 i.d7 35.tLlc4
(now 35.�c4 �d1+ 36.tLlfl? g3 offers
White nothing, since after 37.�d5 �f3
White cannot take the e5-pawn with
check) 35 . . . i.e6 :
36.tLla3 (36.tLlxe5 f6 ! draws after
37.�xf6 �xcl+ 3B.li>g2 �d2 + with
perpetual check) 36 . . . �xe4 37.�g2
�d3 38.�d2 �e4 39.�dB+ Ii>h7
4O.�g5 i.d5 41.�xh5+ Ii>gB 42 .�g5+
and White must force a draw by per­
petual check.
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�eS ! ? �c6

32 ••• <ttfB 33 . . ..id7 34.V9f1 a6 35.ti'el

Here White could also try 3S.�xa6

ti'xc1 36.�d6+ It>e8 37.�xeS+ .ie6
38.tLlfl, putting a bit of life back into
the game. The text move is a result
of the shuffling that occurred as both
players scrambled to reach the time
control at move 40.

35 . . . .ib5 36.lt>g3 .ic6 37.V9f1

.ib5 38.Vgel .ic6 39.V9hl .ib5
40.1t>f2 It>g8
Here, too, Black could have played
32 ... a6. Both sides made the time control
with just one minute remaining.
33.Vge l

An example of how Black could

go wrong here is 33.a6 It>g8 34.lt>gl
\!{f8?! (34 . . . i.d7 ! , with the idea of
meeting any bold moves from White
with . . . i.bS, would hold) 3S.�el i.c8
36.lLlfl ha6 37.tLlg3, when White is
beginning to untangle his pieces, giv­
ing him a clearly better game.
By now, there is no way to make
progress, so Ehlvest offered a draw. If
White had tried to play on for a win
with 42 .lt>gl i.c6 43.tLlfl?, he would
only have helped Black: 43 . . . �xe4
44.�g3 �hl+ 4S.lt>f2 i.bS would have
given Black a strong initiative.

Summary: With great effort, brilliant play, and a little luck, Black can
cheat death in the line with 12 . . . � e7 13. � xc5 e5 ( or 12 . . . e5 13. � xc5 � b7). The
lines with 18 . . . tLl d6!? are somewhat shaky for Black, but D ean's ideas after the
sacrifice 18 . . . 'B xd5! should give him enough resources to draw if he puts in the
study time required to understand the nature of the position. From a practical
stan dpo int, however, White should be happy to face this line, as there are nu­
merous ways in which Black can go wrong.

Consolidating Wh ite's Extra Pawn: A Dance with the Lady

In the previous examples, White
has had unique resources - for in­
stance, the d4-dS pawn push - to deal
with Black's strike . . . e6-eS. But when
Black breaks earlier, with H . . . eS,
White must take up the task of com­
pleting his development under heavy
fire. Yet Wojo was always more than
happy to simply accept his extra pawn
and consolidate his position, some­
thing he made look effortless.
By now, however, we are already fa­
miliar with most of the moves, maneu­
vers, and concepts used in neutraliz­
ing Black's play. As there are bishops
of opposite color on the board, White

103
 CHAPTER 4
seeks to blunt the influence of Black's
light-squared bishop with the defen­
sive f2-f3; meanwhile, he activates his
own bishop by taking control of the
dark squares along the g1-a7 diagonal.
Wojo's secret to accomplishing this? A
queen dance that takes "the Lady" all
the way from a4 to the dark squares
on the kingside - either f2 or gS. In
fact, this queen dance has been used
by many strong GMs, including Geor­
giev, Filippov, Ehlvest, Izoria, and
Gelfand. In the following game, Wojo
shows us how to skillfully dance the
queen across the board.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2460)
Shapiro, Daniel (2350)
[EOS] New York 1989
1.1Of3 IOf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
.ie7 5 . .ig2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.lOe5
IOc6 8 .bc6 bxc6 9.lOxc6 � e8
•
10.lOxe7+ 'i'xe7 11. 'i' a4 e5
This is one of Black's best choic­
es against the 7.llJeS system, but with
correct play by White, the first player
should retain the extra pawn and keep
a slight edge.
12.dxe5 � xe5 13.� xc4 .ie6
14.� d3
104
The most direct way to transfer the
queen to e3. White's queen can dance
a somewhat quieter waltz with the
subtle 14.'i'c2 , after which the move
most commonly seen in practice is
14 . . . .ifS, kicking White's queen anoth­
er time. Now 1S.�d2 i.h3 16.l"!e1 l"!ad8
17.'i'e3 gets White's queen where it
needs to go.
In the game Parker-Baburin, Port
Erin 1999, White's queen sufficiently
controlled the dark squares after 17 ...
'i'dS 18.f3 llJg4 19.'i'c3 ! (keeping the
queen on the dark squares) 19 . . . l"!fe8
20.llJa3 :
Black now committed the atro­
cious blunder 20. . . l"!xe2??, not seeing
that after 21.l"!xe2 'i'xf3 White could
simply keep his extra rook with the
dark-square retreat 22 .'i'el. Comi­
cally, White played 22 .i.h6 ! ? instead,
but was still winning after 22 . . . 'i'xc3
23.bxc3 gxh6 24.llJbS.
On a more sober note, despite
some of White's practical success­
es with 14.'i'c2 , the move is unlike­
ly to gain widespread popularity.
After 14 . . ..ifS 1S .'i'd2 , Raetsky and
Chetverik give the improvement 15 ...
l"!fe8 16.llJc3 llJe4 (thus we see the dis­
advantage of the maneuver 'i'c4-c2-
d2) 17.llJxe4 'i'xe4, with compensation
due to the presence of opposite-color­
ed bishops:
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.tOeS ! ? tOc6

White keeps a very slight advan­

tage after 18J3e1, but after 18 . . . .ig4
19:�f4 .ixe2 20",Wxe4 E1xe4 2 1..tf4 c6
22.E1ac1, it is unlikely that he will have
any realistic chances of converting it.
Here a draw was agreed in Virovlan­
sky-Novikov, Aeroflot Open 2005.
14 . . . gad8
By far the most common move.
Black could venture other moves, but
they are less challenging: 14 . . . E1ab8
15.li:lc3 E1fd8 16 . .tf4 ! �hS 17.�c2 E1d4
18.f3! allows White to consolidate, for
instance, 18 . . . E1db4 19.b3 �c5+ 20.E1f2
Itld5 21..id2 :gd4 2 2 .E1c1.
Meanwhile, 14 ... li:ldS ! ? 1S.li:lc3
Itlxc3 16.bxc3 E1ad8 with compen­
sation is given by ECO, though after
17 . .tf4, Black has his work cut out for
him since 17 . . . �hS 18.�a6 is at least
a little unpleasant. Finally, 14 . . . E1fe8
15.li:lc3 E1ad8 would simply transpose
back to the main line.
15.ee3
White's queen dance is almost
complete - all that remains is to play
f2-f3. Black's problem is that his com­
pensation for the pawn is not in the
concrete form of a target. Thus, he
has many active-looking moves, but
few real threats.
15 . . . eh5
After 1S . . . �aS, Black avoids over­
investing his resources in a doomed
mission to attack White's kingside,
which will soon be tidy and secure.
White must now be careful to avoid
boxing in his queen. Best is 16.�a3
here:
This move keeps Black's queen on
the run, helping White secure his ad­
vantage. Less effective is 16.li:lc3, af­
ter which Black can equalize by har­
assing "the Lady" with 16 . . . .th3 17.E1e1
:gfe8 18.�f3 .ig4 19.�c6 E1e6, prompt­
ing White to go into an uncomforta­
ble ending after 20.�b5 �xbS 2 1.ltJxbS
E1xe2 .
Returning to the diagram, play
continues 16 . . . �6 17 . .ie3 �7 18.f3
E1fe8 19.E1e1 .th3 20. .if2 ! (keep­
ing White's kingside in shipshape)

lOS
 CHAPTER 4
20. . . llJg4 21.\&b3 \&c6 2 2 .�c3 (yet an­
other subtle queen dance, transferring
the piece from a3 to c3 with a gain of
time) 22 . . . \&b7 23.llJd2 1'!d6 24.i.c5
1'!c6 25.1'!ac1 h6 26.b4:
White had the edge in D.Gurevich­
Kiriakov, HB Global Chess Challenge
2005.
16.f3 .ih3? !
This move i s less accurate than
Black's alternatives for reasons Wojo
demonstrates in this game. After the
traditional 16 . . . 1'!fe8, White's best
queen dance is to take control of the
fifth rank with 17.\&g5 �h3? ! 18.\&c5 ! ,
giving the white queen a dominating
outpost:
Now, since White is ready to mo­
bilize the rest of his forces, players
with the Black pieces have sought to
106
develop an attack with 18 ... i.d5, set­
ting the trap 19.1lJc3?? llJg4 ! , winning
on the spot. However, this approach
fails after simply 19 .e4, when Black's
various attempts to crash through
fail miserably: 19 . . . llJxe4?! 20.fxe4
he4 21.\&f2 i.b7 22.llJc3 1'!e7 23.i.f4
1'!de8 24.1'!ad1 1eft White a piece to the
good in Lima-Leitao, Sao Paulo Zon­
al 2000, and 19 . . . 1'!xe4? is even worse:
20.fxe4 llJg4 21.1'!f2 he4 2 2 .llJc3 llJxh2
23.\&xc7 was 1-0 in Stohl-Oral, 0 10-
mouc 1997.
We should note that the move 17 . . .
\&h3?! i s a mistake from Black that
has since been fixed. Markowski­
Iordachescu, Aeroflot Open 2005,
showed the improvement 17 . . . i.c4.
Now White entered a slightly favo­
rable endgame with 18.�xh5 llJxh5
19.1lJc3 he2 20.1'!f2 i.a6 2 1.i.d2 :
White is aiming to play against
Black's split queenside pawns. After
21.. .f5 22 .llJa4 h6 23.1'!c1 i.b5 24.llJc5
llJf6 25.i.a5 llJd5 26.1'!d2 , White had
an advantage, though the game was
eventually drawn.
Returning to Black's move 16, the
modern (and best) approach is the
immediate 16 . . . i.c4 ! , a surprisingly
strong move. Play continues 17.llJc3
1'!fe8 18.�g5:
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.�e5 ! ? �c6

18 . . . �h3 19 . .ie3 (19Jl:f2? he2 !

20.!e3 hf3 2 U'ixf3 lLlg4 22Jl:f2 f6
White's kingside is now secure.
23.�f5 �e5 24.�f4 �xe3 25.�xc7
Atrocious would have been 18.�g5??
�de8 was winning for Black in the
�xe2 ! , winning on the spot.
high-level blitz game Malakhov-Gris­
chuk, Moscow 2006) and here best
18 �d5 19 . .td2
play is 19 . . . he2 ! (19 . . . lLld5 20.ha7
• • •

h6 was De1chev-Bruzon, Tarragona

2004, and now 21.�c1 keeps a small
advantage for White, for instance
21...ttJxc3 22 .�xc3 ,be2 23.�f2 with
an extra pawn) 20.lLlxe2 �d5 21.�f4
�de5 22 . .if2 (an improvement over
22 .ha7 �xe2 23 ..if2 �xb2 24.a4 h5,
with counterplay for Black accord­
ing to Kotronias) 22 . . . �xe2 23.�ael,
which results in a level - but far from
sterile - game :
Black's attack isn't as threatening
as it looks, so if White can trade down,
Black's queenside pawns will be weak
in the endgame. Now, back to the text
game.
17.�el �fe8 18.Wf2 !
White prepares to bring his knight
to c3 . Note how well the White queen
and bishop work together to dominate
the dark squares.
19 .•. f5
Black is investing too many of his
resources in an all-out attack. This is
illogical considering how well White's
kingside is defended; the queen, ro�k,
bishop, and king work together WIth
the four pawns to form a strong shield.
The bottom line is that White has
consolidated his position and has an
edge. 19 .. .'�e5, hoping to press�re
White's position, still hands WhIte
a significant advantage after 20.�c3
lLlb4 2 U�edl, as seen in Ehlvest-Shar­
avdorj , Western Class Chps. 2004. The
game continued with 21. .. .if5?! 2 2 .!f4
�a5 23.a3 lLlc6 24.E1acl, when things
looked bad for Black. Things quick­
ly went from bad to worse after 24 . . .
h 6 25.h4 lLle5 26.g4 .ih7? 27.b4 �xa3
28.he5. Black, unable to recapture
due to his back-rank problems, was
down a piece and soon resigned.

107
 CHAPTER 4

20.�c3 White is not afraid to display his

dark-square dominance. All that is
left to do is mobilize the rooks, and
White will then proceed to mop up af­
ter Black's disorganized pieces.

2 2".gdeS

Black's attack, which now sudden­

ly shifts to the queenside, is beginning
to look uncoordinated and desperate.
Alternatively, the more straightfor­
ward 20. . .f4 21.gxf4 �xc3 2 2 .,hc3 E:d6
23.<i!?h1 E:g6 24.E:g1 E:ee6 25.e4 E:xg1+
"The Lady" once again begins to
26.E:xg1 E:g6 :
dance.

23" .a5 24.gd2 g5 ! ?

Black lashes out, but now his sev­

enth rank is weak. It is too late.

25 .txc7 gc6 26.� xa5

• gh6
27.ti'xb4 .ig2 2 S.ti'c4+ \!> hS

27.E:g3 E:xg3 2 8 .hxg3 .ie6+ 29.<i!?g1

�h3 30.b3 g6 31 . .ie5 c5 32.f5 1-0, was
Akesson-Engqvist, Stockholm 1997.

2U:�ed1 ge6

21.. .�f7 2 2 .�xa7 E:a8 23.�c5 �xa2

24.ltJd5, threatening to trap the bi­
shop with ltJf4, left Black scattered in
Lagunow-Adler, Bern 1996. 29.g4! ti'h3 30 .te5+ �e5
•

31.gdS+ \!> g7 32.� gS+ M6 33. ti'f8+

22 .if4!
• \!> g6 34.gd6+ 1- 0

108
 THE OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.ttleS ! ? ttlc6

Summary: Black's early break with 1l . . . e5 is probably his soundest ap­

proach against the 7.tiJe5 line. Modern theory points out several drawish end­
game positions that can arise, and indeed, a large percentage of grandmaster
games wind up drawn. There is still enough life in all of the critical endgames
for White to play for a win, however. Overall, he takes on very little risk - it is
Black, the one with the "active" pieces, who must play precisely to avoid drift­
ing into an abysmal position.

Conclusion: Wojo's patronage of the line 7.ltleS ! ? ltlc6 8 .hc6 has helped
spur its comeback in modern times. Many of the lines once thought good for
Black, especially 1l . . . cS, are being reevaluated. In particular, 12.\1!!fa3 ! appears to
force Black into an unpleasant "good knight" versus "bad bishop" endgame ifhe
doesn't want to play the radical 12 ... eS 13.\1!!fxcS \1!!fb 7.
On the other hand, Black has good chances for eventual equality with the
pawn sacrifice 1l . . . eS. White's "queen dance" with \1!!fa4xc4-d3-e3-gS consoli­
dates his position on the kingside, but the move 16 . . . ic4 ! should result in a more
or less even game. Overall, the move 7.ltleS is a highly pragmatic, Wojo-like tool
for the Swiss System player. The line is rare enough to surprise opponents yet
strong enough to give White real chances.

109
Chapter 5
///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////1

The Delayed Open Catalan with

7.�e51? c5 (and others)

t.tl�f3 d5 2 .d4 �f6 3.c4e 6 4.g3 ie 7

5.ig2 0- 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.�e5 c5

Wh ite's "Im proved " Open Cata lan

In the main lines o f the Open Cata­ ished break. But Black can play 13 . . .
lan, when White plays 7.Wlc2 , one of c5 ! anyway. After 14.dxcS ie4 ! (forc­
Black's major objectives is to achieve ing White's queen onto a less desira­
the break . . . c7-cS. For most of the ble square) 1S.Wlc3 idS 16.�fd1 ttJe4
opening and early middlegame, play 17.Wle1 !xcS 1B.ttJxcS �xcS 19 .ttJd2
revolves around White's efforts to pre­ WlaB, Black has equalized. This meth­
vent . . . c7-cS and Black's attempts to od was first used in Dunnington­
achieve it. These days, players of the Wells, London 1997, when Dunning­
Black pieces have found many ways ton - a British 1M and an expert on the
thwart White's best preventive meas­ Catalan - had to concede the draw.
ures through tactical innovation. For So why, then, does Black not play
instance, in the position that arises af­ 7 . . . cS right after 7.ttJeS? Surely this lib­
ter l.d4 dS 2.c4 e6 3.�f3 �f6 4.g3 i.e7 erating break would allow the second
S.ig2 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7.Wlc2 a6 8.Wlxc4 player to trade off White's d4-pawn,
bS 9.Wlc2 i.b7 1O.igS ! ? (1O.id2, aiming gaining equality in the process. Yet,
for the as square to pressure c7, is con­ unfortunately for Black, this is not so.
sidered the main line), Black is able to The position that arises after 7.ttJeS cS
prepare the . . . c7-cS break with 10. . . B.dxcS is far better for White than the
ttJbd7. White now throws a monkey one that occurred after Black's thir­
wrench in Black's plans by distracting teenth move in Dunnington-Wells
the d7-knight with 11.!xf6 �xf6, giv­ above. First of all, Black has not been
ing him time for 12.ltJbd2 �cB 13.ttJb3, able to expand on the queenside with
appearing to prevent Black's cher- . . . b7-bS. This means that his light-

110
 THE DELAYED OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.lLleS ! ? cS (AND OTHERS)
squared bishop is doomed to passivi­
ty - a problem which Black's response
7.. .tLlc6 (from the previous chapter)
is designed to solve. Secondly, White
has not had to waste any time moving
his queen about. In the previous ex­
ample, White's queen was kicked and
chased multiple times before it final­
ly found a home - on the el square.
And, finally, White's knight on eS and
bishop on g2 work as a team to keep
Black's queenside passive and immo­
bilized. As we will show in this chap­
ter, Black is struggling just to develop
his queenside forces.
Hort, Vlastimil (260 0)
Ham ann, Sve nd (2490)
[EDS] Skopje Olympiad 1972
1.d4 lLlf6 2.c4 e6 3.tilf3 d5 4.g3
ie75 .lg2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.tile 5
• pressing a slight advantage. B.lLlxc4
7 c5.•.
Black has played other moves, but,
for the most part, all of them are known
to leave him with a passive game. The
following notes detail some of Black's
possibilities, none of which are very
challenging. Much of what follows can
simply be found over the board from
White's point of view, but it's worth fa­
miliarizing oneself with the different
moves Black might try before seeing
them in a tournament.
First off, 7 . . . lLldS ! ? is a very reason­
able move for Black that has been seen
in a handful of postal games. The idea
is that Black does not allow White the
option of .ic1-gS as in the main game.
After B.lLlxc4 cS (B . . . tild7 ! ? transpos­
es into the next paragraph) 9.dxc5
ixcS lO.tilbd2 ! ? lLlc6 11.lLlb3 .le7 12.e4
lLldb4 13.eS Wfc7 14.Wfe2 �dB IS . .id2
gave White the better chances in the
correspondence game Bucka-Roncz­
kowski, Germany 1994.
None of Black's other seventh
moves come close to be satisfacto­
ry, however. 7 . . . lLlbd7, a move which
would leap to the mind of someone
seeing the position from Black's side
for the first time, is playable at best
but extremely passive. White simply
regains his pawn on c4 and is already
and now:
a) On B . . . lLlb6, White should sim­
ply return the knight with 9.tLleS (al­
though 9.lLlxb6 axb6 10.lLlc3 c6 11.e4
was still a slight edge for White in
Bogdan-Bets, Bucharest 1994) 9 . . .
lLlfd7 10.lLld3 .lf6 11.e3, when White
was comfortably better in Mozny­
Zvara, Prague 1994.
b) B . . . �bB ! ? tries to untangle Black's
queenside, but winds up leaving Black
weakened after 9.tLlc3 b6 10.lLlbS a6
11.lLla7 ib7 12 .lLlc6 ixc6 13.ixc6, as
in Spiridonov-Cieslak, Bethune 1992.
White got a big edge after 13 ... lLldS
14 . .id2 tLl7f6 IS.�c1 tLle4 16.lLleS.
c) B . . . cS would have been better
played on the previous move. White
doesn't encounter any problems seiz­
ing the initiative now: 9 .lLlc3 cxd4
ID.Wfxd4 and Black is already in some
trouble. Here are two quick examples:
ID . . . icS ll.'l;Yf4 a6 12 .�dl Wfe7 13 . .ie3 eS
14.'l;Yh4 ixe3 1S.lLlxe3 lLlb6 16.lLle4 �bB
111
 CHAPTER S
17.gd6 tLlbd7 1B.tLlfS WdB 19.tLlxf6+
tLlxf6 20.gxdB gxdB 21.tLlxg7 1-0, Zil­
berstein-Kolpakov, USSR Team Chp.
1972, and 10. . . eS ll.Wd1 Wc7 12 .b3 a6
13 . .ib2 gdB 14.tLldS tLlxdS 1S.WxdS if6
16.Wd6 Wxd6 17.tLlxd6 ga7 1B.gac1
was clearly better for White in Flesch­
Emmerich, Germany 19B6.
d) On B ... tLldS ! ?, White can gain the
advantage with something as simple
as 9.e4 tLlSb6 10.tLlxb6 tLlxb6 1l.tLlc3.
For the sake of completeness, 7 ... c6
is yet another passive idea for Black.
B.tLlxc4 tLlbd7 9.tLlc3 tLlb6 10.tLleS Wc7
11.Wc2 id6 12.tLld3 was comfortably
better for White in Meissner-Kobs,
Bundesliga 1992. Along similar lines
is 7 . . . a6, when B.tLlc3 tLldS 9.tLlxc4 tLlc6
10.e4 tLlxc3 11.bxc3 bS 12.tLle3 ib7
13.gb1 Wd7 14.dS tLlaS lS.c4 was bet­
ter for White due to his strength in
the center in Polugaevsky-Kurajica,
Bugojno 19BO.
7. . . tLla6 B.tLlxc4 c5 9.dxc5 tLlxcS
to.tLlc3 left Black's knight on cS mis­
placed in Foguelman-Behrensen, Ar­
gentinian Chp. 1965. After to . . . aS ! ? ,
trying t o anchor the knight o n c S in
place, White gained a much better
endgame after 1l.WxdB gxdB 12.if4.
Black was now stuck defending his
queenside, which eventually suc­
cumbed: 12 . . . tLleB 13.gad1 id7 14.tLlb6
ga6 lS.tLlxd7 gxd7 16.gxd7 tLlxd7
17.gd1 tLlcS 1B.ie3 (Black's knight
gets no end of harassment) 1B .. .'it'fB
19.b3 tLlf6 20.gdB+ ! ixdB 2 1.ixcS+
ie7 22 .,hb7 ,hcS 23.,ha6 and White
went on to win the pawn-up ending.
Finally, 7 . . . Wd6 ! ? B.tLlxc4 'i;'!a6 is
a superficial idea that was played a
few times before rightly being aban­
doned. White can play either 9 .Wb3
or 9.tLlba3, and in both cases he has a
comfortable edge. Obviously, there is
no need to commit any of this analy-
112
sis to memory, and it could even have
been omitted from this work entirely.
The important thing to remember is
that White should regain his c4-pawn
and look to establish some form of
positional superiority.
8.dxc5 hc5
The more accurate B . . . Wc7, which
is the main line after 7 . . . cS, is analyzed
in the next game, whereas Black's pre­
mature queen exchange B . . . Wxd1? ! is
analyzed in Ippolito-Frankle below.
9 • • • id4? !
An interesting, albeit bad, move
that has been ventured on a handful
of occasions. Black's idea is to saddle
White with "split" pawns on a2 and
c3. This should give him a safe haven
for his queen along the c-file, which
should in turn allow him to develop
the rest of his pieces. The flaw in this
scheme, however, is that giving up the
dark-squared bishop critically weak­
ens the d6 square. All White need do
to create a powerful bind is to maneu­
ver his bishop to this "soft" square.
Rather than taking such risks with
Black, most players prefer the move
9 . . . We7. This prepares . . . gdB and, for
 THE DELAYED OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.tlJe5 ! ? c5 (AND OTHERS)
the most part, enables Black to com­
plete his development satisfactori­
ly. In order to mobilize his pieces as
quickly as possible, White should have
no qualms about giving up his own
dark-squared bishop and play 10.i.g5 ! ,
guaranteeing him a n edge. For in­
stance, in Neverov-Klovans, Frunze
1988, White got play against an iso­
lated Black d-pawn after 10. . . tlJbd7
l1.tiJxc4 h6 12 .id2 tlJb6 13.tlJxb6 ixb6
14.tiJa4 i.c7 15.ie3 �d8 16.�b3 :
16 ... tlJd5 17.ic5 �e8 18.tlJc3 b6
19.tiJxd5 exd5 20.i.d4 ie5 21.ixe5
'iNxeS 22.�ad1. White's advantage in
this game came about from simple de­
veloping moves.
Black may be tempted to meet
10.ig5 with 10. . . h6, but this essential­
ly forces White to play his own plan.
lU.xf6 �xf6 12.tlJxc4 tlJc6 13.ixc6 !
bxc6 14. tlJ e4 leaves White well placed
to take advantage of Black's weakened
pawn structure, and Black's bishop
pair is meaningless so long as White
has a lock on the c5 square. Now 14 . . .
'iNe7 (14 . . . �f5 ! ? 15.tlJxc5 �xc5 16.�cl
ia6 17.�a4 was a slight advantage
for White in Teske-Arbakov, 1995)
IS.tiJe5 �c7 16.tlJxc5 �xe5 17.�c2 �b8
18.b3 �h5 19.�fdl �b5 20.�ac1 would
give White a clear advantage.
What about the other square
for Black's queen, c7? Unfortunate­
ly for Black, 9 ... �c7 turns out no bet-
ter than does putting the queen on e7.
Although Black doesn't run into a pin
along the h4-d8 diagonal, his queen
is vulnerable to attack by ic1-f4 and
even tlJ c3-b5. White should simply re­
capture the pawn with 10.tlJxc4, when
he is not afraid of 10. . .ix:f2 + ? ! 11.�xf2
�xc4 because Black once again is
weak on the dark squares. Since Black
has given up his dark-squared bish­
op, the positions screams for White to
play 12.�xf6 ! gxf6 13.i.h6, ripping into
Black's kingside:
Although White is temporari­
ly down material, he has a huge ini­
tiative. For example, White won after
13 . . . tlJc6? 14.e3 ! (threatening to bring
the queen into the action) 14 . . . �d8
15.�h5 e5 16.tlJe4 �e6 17.�h4 1-0,
Ivkov-Robatsch, Vinkovci 1968.
Black can certainly improve on Iv­
kov-Robatsch, but it is difficult to find
any defense that is satisfactory. There
are an impressive number of "minia­
ture" wins for White in this line ! For
instance, the quiet 13 . . . �e8 doesn't
fare well after 14.tlJe4 tlJd7 (14 .. .'it'h8
15.tlJxf6 �c5+ 16.e3 �e7 17.tlJxe8
�xe8 18.�g4 1-0, was Petursson­
Hertan, New York simu1 1978) 15.e3 f5
16.�h5 �h8 17.�xf7 gg8 18.tlJf6 1-0,
Lees-Stein, Maryland 1981.
The check 13 . . . �c5+ also doesn't
improve things for Black, either, as
14.e3 f5 15.�cl ! led to a quick victory
113
 CHAPTER S
in Gheorghiu-Varabiescu, Romanian
Chp. 1969. As soon as Black retreat­
ed his queen with lS .. .'IWe7 (necessary,
as lS . . .l'!eB? 16.ttJe4 �xcl 17.ttJf6+ �hB
18.�xc1 wins), White simply played
16.�d4 and Black was in a world of
hurt. The game concluded with 16 .. .f6
17.hfB �xfB 1B.ttJbS ttJd7? (lB . . . ttJc6
19 . .ixc6 bxc6 20J:!xc6 with a large ad­
vantage to White was necessary)
19.ttJc7 gbB 20.ttJxe6 �e7 21.gc7 �hB
22 .ttJcS 1-0.
Black's best defense against
White's strong attack is probably 13 . . .
ttJd7 14.ttJe4 �b4 ! , though White is
still in the driver's seat after lS.gc1 fS
(lS . . . gdB? 16.ttJxf6+ gives White a dev­
astating attack, for instance lS . . . �hB
17.�d3 ! �b6+ 1B . .te3 ttJxf6 19 .�c3 �d6
20.�xf6+ �gB 21.gf1 ! gd7 22.gf4 �fB
23.gg4 and White wins) 16.hfB �xfB
(16 . . . �xfB 17.�d6+ �xd6 1B.ttJxd6
ttJb6 19.9c7 .td7 20.gxb7 is good for
White, while 16 . . . ttJxfB 17.ttJf6+ �hB
18.�dB �b6+ 19.�xb6 axb6 20.gc7! is
strong) 17.ttJd6 �dB 1B .e4. Even with
uncommonly accurate defense, Black
is still stuck defending.
If Black can't play 10. . . hf2 +, the
entire idea of Black's choosing to put
the queen on c7 suddenly finds itself
on thin ice. Another way Black can try
to make his choice of queen placement
work is by playing lO. . . gdB, though af­
ter the simple 11 . .tf4, White has an
easy game:
114
Black can't play 11 . . . hf2 + ? 12.�xf2
because his queen is tied down to de­
fending his rook ondB : 12 . . . eS 13.ttJb5!
allows White to keep his extra piece
after 13 . . . �e7 14 . .td2 . Black also can't
play l1 . . . eS? because White can simply
give up the queen and be winning after
12 . .ixeS hf2 + 13.gxf2 gxd1+ 14.gxdl
�e7 lS.hf6 gxf6 16.ttJdS. Thus Black
is forced to simply put the queen on e7
- back to where it should have gone
in the first place ! White is left with a
comfortable initiative after 11.. .�e7
12.�b3.
Before continuing with the main
game, let's note that Black's attempt
to make up for lost time and play 9 ...
ttJc6 ! ? two moves too late winds up
giving White a great endgame after
10.ttJxc6 bxc6 l1.�xdB gxdB. In the
old game Szabo-J.Kozma, Constan­
za 1969, White was clearly better after
12 .hc6 gbB 13.�f4 ! �d6 14.gfd1 gb6
lS . .ixd6 gxc6 16 . .tcS.
10.ttJxe4 he3 1l.bxe3 Vc7
12.Vb 3 ttJe6 13 .ta3 gd8 14.gfdl
•
14 . . . .td7
Eighteen long years later, someone
decided to repeat Black's first thirteen
moves and then deviate by insert­
ing 14 . . . gxd1+ lS.gxd1 before playing
 THE DELAYED OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.ttJeS ! ? cS (AND OTHERS)
IS ... id7. Perhaps Black felt that trad­
ing rooks would help relieve Black's
cramp. White still got the advantage
after 16.id6 Wlc8 17.gbl b6 18.ttJeS
.te8 19.9dl Wlb7 20.c4, though Black
did manage to hold the draw in Boye­
ro-Barcelo, Spanish Team Chp. 1990.
Thus, it is worth noting that a strong­
er continuation for White is 17.if4 ! ,
threatening t o put the knight o n d6.
After Black defends his b-pawn with
17 ... b6, White can exert pressure with
18.lt:\eS. Black's hands are tied and a
rook may soon find its way to d6.
15.id6 Wl c8 16.gd2
White's plan is simple: total dom­
ination. Black is forced to operate on
only three ranks ! Somewhat surpris­
ingly, Black manages to wiggle his way
out of White's bind over the next ten
moves or so. He never fully equalizes,
however.
16 . . . b6 17.gadl ie8 18.e4
The logical way to increase White's
advantage.
18 . . . ti'a6 19.c!LJ e3 ! ?
It would have been more direct for
White to play 19.eS, as after the text
move Black's pieces become much
more active. Perhaps White was wor­
ried about the possibility of enter­
ing an opposite-colored-bishops sit­
uation after 19 . . . ttJdS (19 . . . ttJg4 20.h3
ttJh6 doesn't look appetizing in the
least) 20.ixdS exdS, and didn't want
to take any chances on allowing Black
counterplay down the hl-a8 diagonal.
With the text move, White still retains
much of his advantage.
19 . . .c!LJ a5 20.ti'a3 i c6 21.f3 ti'b5
22.ifl ti'a4 23.ti'b2 c!LJb7
Black's pieces have snaked their way
back and forth across the queenside,
but now it is White's turn to play ball.
The black queen comes under fire and
the second player eventually loses it.
Considering the scope of White's piec­
es, it is not hard to conceive how this
might be possible.
24.gd4 ti'a5 25 .ib4 ti'g5 26.Y:Yf2
•
e5 27.h 4 ti'h 5?
27 ... Wlg6 was forced, but White is
much better in any case. Black would
need to be careful that White didn't
simply win the queen with ttJe3-fS­
e7xg6 !
28.g4! exd4
115
 CHAPTER 5

Black scrambles to get every­ 29.gxhS dxe3 30J3xdS + gxd8

thing he can for his queen, but it isn't 31.'lf xe3 ItlxhS 32.�f2 Itlf6 33 .ic4
•

enough. 28 . . . �g6 29J3xd8+ :!3xd8 ge S 34.'flY f4 ItldS 3S.'flY c7 1- 0

30.:!3xd8+ tLlxd8 31.tLlf5 is completely
crushing, for example 31.. .\t>h8 32.tLle7 Even in the final position, Black's
�h6 33.g5, winning a piece. White pieces are still tied to the defense of
now concludes the game swiftly. the back three ranks.

Summary: Black's plan with B . . . hcS 9 . tLlc3 .id4 didn't work out well,
as White's split queenside pawns weren't weak in the least. White simply got
control of the dark squares and tremendous pressure. Black eventually broke
down and blundered his queen, but his position was disheartening in any case.

Making the Most of Wh ite's Development

When Black decides to play 8 ... �c7 Dzindzichashvili, Roman

and 9 . . . �xc5 rather than the immedi-
ate 8 . . . .ixeS, White's advantage in de-
velopment grows. Although Black is
able to make things a bit trickier in the
Ippolito, De an
[E05] U.S. Amateur Team Chp. 1998
1.c4 e6 2.1tlf3 dS 3.g3 1tlf6 4 .ig2
•

short term - his king's rook will swing
over to the d-file with tempo, and his
queen will harass the advanced White
knight as it travels from e5 to c4 - he is
ultimately losing some time by bring­
ing the queen out early.
In the following game, White
gains a significant lead in develop­
ment without having to do anything
too out of the ordinary. In gener­
al, the maneuver tLle5xc4, b2-b3, and
.ic1-a3(!), chasing Black's queen, is a
strong plan for White against Black's
early queen sortie.
.ie 7 S. 0 - 0 0 - 0 6.d4 dxc4 7.ltle S c5
S .dxcS'lf c7
Despite the time the second player
will lose by moving his queen out early,
this is Black's best and most frequent
followup to 7. . . c5. Black still encoun­
ters difficulties with his queenside
development, however, just as in the
previous game.
9.ltlxc4 'flY xcS
9 . . . ixc5 would transpose into 8 ..
.

The following game demonstrates
perfectly how to handle 9 . . .�xc5 from
White's point of view. Unfortunately,
the later moves were flawed for both
sides, so we will not dwell too much
on them.
ixeS 9.tLlc3 �c7 10.tLlxc4, which is ful­
ly explained in the notes to Hort-Ha­
mann above. 9 . . . :!3d8, bringing the
rook to the d-file immediately, doesn't
solve Black's problems after 1O.�b3
tLlbd7 11.c6 ! , saddling Black with a

116
 THE DELAYED OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.tt:le5 ! ? c5 (AND OTHERS)
weak pawn on c6. 11 ... bxc6 12 . .id2 !
ILldS 13 . .ia5 til5b6 14.tilbd2 .ib7
lS.l"i:ac1 gave White a pleasant edge in
Baumgartner-Peli, 1992.
10.b3
With this move, White not only de­
fends his knight but prepares to trade
offthe dark-squared bishops with .ic1-
a3, further weakening the d6 square.
10 . . . gd8
On the "menacing" 10 .. :�h5, White
should enter the endgame immediate­
ly by trading off Black's queen with
1l.e4. Those having a hard time be­
lieving Black can be made to suffer af­
ter the exchange of queens with 11 . . .
�xdI 12.l"i:xdl tilc6 1 3 . .ib2 l"i:d8 14.tilc3
id7 15.h3, as in Razuvaev-Chernikov,
Dniepropetrovsk 1970, should read
the next section on Black's endgame
woes:
The game continued 15 . . . .ie8 16.e5
tild7 17.f4 tilb6 18.tild6 .ixd6 19.exd6
tila5 20. .ia3, when White eventually
converted his advantage to earn the
full point.
1l.1!t c2 'i'h 5
Black has forced White's queen off
of the dl-h5 diagonal before putting
his own queen there.
Not good at this point is 11 . . . tila6.
The simple 12 .l"i:dl, intended to clear
the d-file once again for White's
queen, resulted in a miniature in Civ­
idali-Stam, Gausdal 1997: 12 . . . l"i:xdl+
13.1!txdl l"i:b8? 14 ..ie3 �f5 15.,ixa7 l"i:a8
16.tilb6 1!te5 17.tilc3 �xc3 18.tilxa8
1-0.
However, 11 ... tilc6 might have been
a possible improvement for Black as
now 12 . .ia3 (best) can be met by 12 . . .
tilb4. White still has the edge after
13.�cl, for instance after 13 . . . l"i:b8 - a
move designed to allow Black to final­
ly develop his "problem child" on c8
- White can play 14 . .ib2 ! �h5 15 . .if3 :
White has the more organized po­
sition, and his threat of .ie5 is a nui­
sance for Black. Now 15 . . . tilg4 16.h4 !
leaves Black i n a n awkward pin,
and 15 . . . �h3 16 . .ie5 l"i:a8 17 . .ic7 l"i:f8
18 . .ig2 �h5 19 .tilc3 gave White a
slight pull in Alburt-Reshevsky, u.s.
Chp. 1981.
117
 CHAPTER 5

12 .ta3 ! ha3 13.�bxa3 �c6

•

14.�fdl

22 .Wxg6 + ? !

This endgame favors White, but

After exchanging the dark-squared 22 .�e4 Vlfh5 23.hc6 bxc6 looks far
bishops, White's development is sud­ better than the text.
denly completed and his pieces are all
very active. 22 .•. hxg6 23. �xb7 �xb7? !

14 �xdl+ 15.�xdl .td7 16.�d6

• • •
23 . . . lDb4 with counterplay was bet­
e5 17.�ab5 ter according to Dzindzichashvili. M­
ter 24.gd2 f5, Black's pawn mass in
Of course not 17.lDxb7? lDd4, when the center will soon shut out White's
Black suddenly has strong play. Catalan bishop. After the text, White's
job converting his extra pawn is made
17 • • • a6 18.�c7 �b8 19.�d5 much easier.

24.hc6 !!c7 25 .te4 f5 26 .td3

White skillfully maneuvers his
• •

e4?
knight to the weakened d5 square.
19.1Dxa6 is far less effective in view of There was no reason not to save
19 . . . bxa6 20. .ixc6 .ixc6 2 1.Vlfxc6 Vlfxe2. the pawn with 26 . . . a5, though Black is
still in trouble after 27.f3. After this,
19 • • • .te6 the rest is a mopup for White.

Also unappealing is 19 . . . lDxd5 27.ha6 !!a7 28.�d6 �f8

20.gxd5 when White dominates the d­ 29.!!b6 �e8 30.!!b8+ �d7 3U�b7+
file. After the text, Black's position is !!xb7 32.hb7 �c7 33.h6 �b6
weakened even further. 34 .tc4 hc4 35.bxc4 �c5 36.f3
•

ext'3 37.ext'3 f4 38.gxf4 �xc4

20.�xf6+ gxf6 21 .tf3 Vlfg6
• 39.f5 1- 0

Summary: In this game, Black tried the plan of B . . . Vlfc7 9. lDxc4 Vlfxc5.
After 1 O .b3, however, White wasjust better. Blackfailed to neutralize White's
substantial lead in development and wound up in a pawn-down endgame.

118
 THE DELAYED OPEN CATALAN WITH 7.lt:leS ! ? cS (AND OTHERS)

Black's Endgame Woes

So far, we've looked at two of Black's

possible eighth moves, B . . . hcS and
8 .'�c7. As we've seen, both of them
..

fail to reach equality. A question that

begs to be asked, however, is wheth­
er Black can simply exchange queens
and nullify White's advantage in the
endgame. The idea is simple: trade as
many pieces as possible and hold the
draw. Unfortunately for Black, how­
ever, trading queens only puts him a
small fraction of the way to this goal -
lO tObd7
and with his queenside pieces, partic­
• • •

ularly his bishop on cB, tied down and
unable to maneuver, the likelihood of
him getting the minor pieces off the
board is slim. As we'll see in the fol­
lowing game, White can make Black's
life miserable as the latter scrambles
to develop his queenside pieces.
Ippolito, Dean (24S8 USCF)
Frankie, J onathan (2272 USCF)
[E05] Philadelphia 200S
l.d4 tOf6 2.c4 e6 3.tOf3 dS 4.g3
i.e7 S .tg2 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 dxc4 7.tOeS
• ier. It was very difficult for Black to
c5 8.dxc5 �xdl
After the queen exchange, Black is
much worse. His entire queenside has
difficulty developing, and White has a
tremendous amount of pressure.
9.gxdl hc5 lO.tOc3
Waiting to take on c4 allows White
to maintain pressure on Black's po­
sition, as lO.lLlxc4 would encourage
Black to play 1O. . . lLlc6.
10. . . lt:lc6 ! ? anyway is probably
Black's best try, though White can sim­
ply ignore Black's bid for counterplay
by playing 11.lLlxc4 with similar play
to the game. Meanwhile, 1O. . . lLlfd7
11.lLlxc4 lLlc6 12 .lLle4 iJ.e7 13.lLlcd6 lLlf6
14.iJ.f4 Ei:dB 1S.Ei:ac1 was not very in­
spiring for Black in Leitao-Rodrigues,
Sao Paulo 199B.
1l.tOxc4 eS ! ?
This move gives away the dS
square, making White's play even eas­
coordinate his pieces, however. 11 . . .
lLlb6 was the least o f Black's evils,
though White has a comfortable edge
after almost any reasonable move.
For instance, 12 .lLlxb6 axb6 13.iJ.gS
Ei:aS 14.iJ.xf6 gxf6 1S.lt:le4 fS 16.lt:ld6
eS 17.a3 Ei:a4 1B .Ei:ac1 iJ.e6 19.tOxb7
iJ.d4 20.Ei:d2 was simply a pawn up for
White in Paunovic-Petronijevic, Yu­
goslav Team Chp. 1992 , while 12.lLleS
iJ.e7 13.e4 lLlbd7 14.lLlc4 eS 1S.lLldS iJ.cS
16.iJ.e3 fJ.xe3 17.lLldxe3 bS 1B.lLld6 Ei:bB

119
 CHAPTER 5

19.1l'lef5 ib7 20.ll'le7+ c;t>hS 21J!ac1 14.ll'le4 ie7 15.ih3 ll'lc5 16 . .ixcS �fxcS
gave White a completely dominating 17.ll'led6 hd6 1S.ll'lxd6 �dS 19.�d5 in
position in Kaldor-Ben Zion, Israeli C.Flear-Sahetchian, French Women's
Chp. 1974. Chp. 199S.

12.igS gb8 13 . . .bS

Black might have been better off
giving up a pawn with 12 . . . h6 13 . .ixf6
ll'lxf6 14.ll'lxe5, though it's still not so
easy for him to coordinate his pieces.
13 ... b6 14.,bf6 gxf6 15.ic6 �dS
16.ll'le4 would have put Black in a dev­
astating bind.
14.c!tlaS b4 lS.c!tla4 !

What a pretty picture ! The knights,

brothers "grim" on the rim of the
board, are exceedingly strong.

lS . . . gbS 16.c!tlb3 id4

Black has no other moves. 16 . . . ie7

17.ic6 �bS 1S.,bd7 .ixd7 19 ..ixf6 is
winning for White, whereas 16 . . . ib6
17.ic6 simply traps Black's rook.

17 . .ic6 !

Simple and strong. What can
Black do? He is probably position­
ally lost already. Prior to this game,
the move 13.,bf6 had been played,
but the text seems to put Black on the
brink of disaster. After 13 ..ixf6, White
still kept the advantage after 13 . . . gxf6
The hasty 17.e3? would have al­
lowed Black to complicate things
slightly with 17 . . . e4.
17 . . . gb8 18.c!tlxd4 exd4 19.if4
ia6 20 . .ixb8 c!tlxb8 21 . .if3 gd8
22.c!tlcS l- 0

Summary: Going into the ending with 8 . . . 'Wixdl did nothing to relieve
Black's troubles in this game. White maintained his lead in development and
his positional pressure despite the queen swap, and these advantages were
soon converted into more concrete ones - like material.

Conclusion: The positions that arise after 7 . . . c5 S.dxc5 are difficult for
Black. He is habitually falling behind in development and has nothing to coun­
ter White's pressure along the hI-aS diagonal. White should look to score
well against 7 . . . c5, as well as Black's various other seventh-move alternatives.
Clearly, only 7 . . . ll'lc6 - as discussed in the previous chapter - can challenge
White's initiative.

120
Chapter 6
Q////Q/QN////H/HAW/H//HHH/HH/H///H//H/H//H///H/H/H//HHH//H/AWH/H/H/H/H/H/AV//HAVH/
The Early Open Catalan with S tLlc6
Black's Most Flexible Cou nter to the Cata lan
Many strong players like to meet
White's Catalan by accepting the prof­
fered c4-pawn immediately with 1.11Jf3
dS 2.d4 llJf6 3 .c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4. This
"early" Open Catalan allows Black
flexibility in how to develop his pieces,
as only one of them - his king's knight
- has been committed to a square al­
ready. His dark-squared bishop can
be developed anywhere along the a3-
fS diagonal, and he can put his queen's
knight on either c6 or d7, depending
on the situation. His light-squared
bishop can commit itself to d7 early,
or simply wait to see if the c8-h3 diag­
onal opens up with . . . e6-eS. In some
endgame variations, Black has even
tried castling queenside ! Further­
more, it's not even likely that Black's
...
1.c�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5 . .tg2 �c6 6.t7a4
knight will stay committed to the f6
square for long, as it often comes to
e4, dS, or even b6 via d7. With so many
options available for Black's pieces,
it's no wonder strong players favor
this approach.
Club players are far less likely to
play 4 . . . dxc4 than are strong masters,
however. Because playing such a flex­
ible (Le., "unclear") move requires
both "guts" and a rather specialized
knowledge of the ideas at Black's dis­
posal, most non-masters shy away
from these lines and play something
that feels more like a "system," such as
the Closed Catalan. Thus, many club
players are oblivious to the rich pos­
sibilities available in the Early Open
Catalan.
121
 CHAPTER 6
Wh ite's Slight In itiative: Many Roads Lead to Rome
Even though Black's approach with
4 . . . dxc4 gives him numerous ways to
configure his pieces, it doesn't in itself
address Black's main problem in the
Catalan : the initiative White gets by
having the more active light-squared
bishop. Thus, a "slight pull" or "slight
initiative" for White is the usual eval­
uation at the end of most theoreti­
cal lines. There are so many lines in
the Early Open Catalan for Black to
choose from, however, that the sec­
ond player often has the advantage of
surprise. If White errs, Black has good
chances of seizing the initiative.
Unfortunately, there is no one­
size-fits-all way to slay Black's many­
headed Early Open Catalan beast.
There are some similarities among
the many variations, however, which
we will note as we cover the materi­
al. White's presence on the h1-a8 di-
Black Ga l lops to the Endgame with ... ttlf6-d7-b6
After l.tDf3 dS 2 .d4 tDf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4, White's best move is to sim­
ply continue developing with S.i.g2 .
It is also possible to play S.�a4+ im­
mediately, but we do not recommend
this approach for White: after S . . .
tDbd7 6.�xc4 a 6 7.ig2 b S 8 .�c6 (a
sideline Wojo tried a few times him­
self, without great success), Black
gets serious counterplay with 8 .. .l'�b8
9.if4 (targeting Black's backward c7-
pawn) 9 . . . ib4+ 10.tDbd2 ib7 11.�xc7
�xc7 12.1xc7 gc8 followed by . . . gc2 .
122
agonal and his control of the eS square
are common to every line. And be­
cause White is aiming for a similar
type of advantage against every one
of Black's options - things like hav­
ing the better light-squared bishop,
getting a pull down the c-file, playing
tDf3-eS with pressure, and so on - the
amount of theory that the average Cat­
alan player needs to know is relatively
small. Knowing the first dozen moves
of the main lines certainly helps, but
being familiar with the thematic ele­
ments of Wojo's play is even more im­
portant. By playing over the games
presented in Part II of this book, the
reader should acquire a good feel for
the different ideas and plans for both
sides.
Now, let's begin our investiga­
tion of Black's different development
schemes in the Early Open Catalan.
Although White is probably no worse,
practice has shown that maintaining
the tension with S.ig2 is White's best
try for the advantage.
After S . . . tDc6 - the topic of this
chapter - we recommend that White
play 6.�a4, taking advantage of the
fact that Black no longer has the op­
tion S . . . tDbd7. Black can, however,
try putting his king's knight on that
square. On 6.�a4, one of Black's tries
is to reroute his king's knight to the
queenside with 6 . . . tDd7 7.�xc4 tDb6:
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH s . . . ltJc6
What does this bizarre-looking
idea achieve? The point behind this
maneuver is not so much strategic as
it is tactical, as demonstrated in the
following game. Black chases White's
queen and prepares for a quick . . . e6-
eS break, allowing her to simplify into
a queenless middlegame.
Yevseev, Denis (2530)
Galliam ova, Alisa (2547)
[E04] Russia 2001
l.d4 ltJf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.J.g2
dxc4 5.tLl£J tLlc6
The most popular move for Black,
but S ... a6, S . . . CS, and even the slight­
ly awkward-looking s . . . .id7 are play­
able, among other moves. These al­
ternatives (and many others) are cov­
ered in subsequent chapters. With 5 . . .
Itlc6, Black makes i t difficult for White
to regain his c4-pawn. The familiar
maneuver ltJf3-esxc4 is stopped, and
sometimes Black meets 6.�a4 with
6 ..ib4+, inserting a piece on b4 to
..
prevent �xc4. Finally, Black is pres­
suring d4, discouraging White from
moving his queen at all. For this rea­
son, s ... ltJc6 is considered by theory to
be the most topical line in the Early
Open Catalan.
6.Y;Ya4
6. 0-0 is an ambitious pawn sacri­
fice that Wojo didn't favor. After 6 . . .
�bB, Black hangs o n t o his c4-pawn
by playing . . . b7-bs. White can occu­
py the center with his pawns and get
compensation, but this was not in the
spirit of how Wojo won. With the text,
White is looking to recapture on c4
with his queen, castle kingside, and
then look for ways to put pressure on
Black's position.
6 . . . tLld7!?
This attempt to swing Black's f6-
knight to the queenside is no longer a
popular try for Black. In both theory
and practice, White has been success­
ful in reaching endings that give him
a slight initiative. 6 . . . .ib4+ 7.i.d2 will
be covered later in this chapter, as will
6 . . . .id7.
7.Y;Yxc4 tLlb6 S :Wd3
White is already a little better, as
Black's bishop on cB is inactive. 8.�bs
is a move that has been tried recently
by Kramnik. The point is to provoke
B . . . a6, which was seen in Kramnik­
Naiditsch, Dortmund 2007. After then
B . . . a6 9.Y;Yd3 es 10.ltJxeS ltJb4 11.�d1
�xd4, following a parallel path to our
main variation, Kramnik was able to
123
 CHAPTER 6

uncork 12.�xd4 ! tDc2 + 13.�dl tDxd4 move) which transposes back into the
14.!e3 tDf5 15.,ixb6, as Black was main game after 10. . . �xd4 11.0-0. If
forced to play 15 . . . cxb6, giving White Black avoids 9 . . . e5 and tries 9 . . . �d5!?,
the better pawn structure. Although as in Shipov-Gofshtein, Paris 1995,
B.�b5 is interesting, White has to be White can gain the edge with 10. 0-0
prepared to deal with any number of tDxa2 11.�xc7 !d6 12 .�c2 :
variations and deviations by Black.
Since the main line with 8 .�d3 still
gives White excellent chances of main­
taining his opening initiative, it is the
move we recommend.

8 ... e5

Black's best move, as otherwise her

bishop will be stuck on cB for a long
time to come. Such haste to break
open the center is fully justified, since
simple development allows White to
consolidate his positional advantag­
es after B . . . ie7 9 . 0-0 if6 10J'!dl 0-0
Il.tDc3, as in V.Morais-S.Rocha, Al­
garve 1999. This pawn "sacrifice" with
B . . . e5 is only a temporary measure to
transpose swiftly into the endgame.
If Black wants to avoid the end­
game, she can make a somewhat cheesy
bid for activity with the awkward B . . .
tDb4 ! ? The idea i s that i f White plays
9.�b3, the strike 9 . . . e5 ! is exceptional­
ly strong. Likewise, the crazy variation
9.�dl e5 ! 10.a3 e4 gives Black a play­
able game after 11.axb4 exf3 12 .hf3
hb4+ 13.tDc3 c5, since 14.dxc5 (14.d5
!h3 ! ) 14 . . . �xdl+ 15.<;hdl hc5 leaves
White only slightly more active after
something like 16J'!a5.
The problem with B ... tDb4 is that
White can simply play 9.�c3, adding
additional firepower to the struggle
for control of e5. If Black plays 9 . . . e5 as
before, White can try either 10.dxe5 ! ?
!f5, when Black may have full com­
pensation for her sacrificed pawn, or
the quiet 10.tDxe5 (our recommended
White is better here, as he will soon
be able to bring his queen's knight into
the game and build a strong position
around his extra center pawn. Black's
development, although active, is un­
harmonious and a bit random - note
Black's knights on a2 and b6 and his
problem bishop on cB.
A simple and principled capture.
White should not play 9.dxe5? ! , since
after 9 . . . �xd3 1O.exd3 tDb4 1l.tDa3
tDxd3+ 12.�e2 tDxcl+, Black has
gained the two bishops and has no
weaknesses. Wojo himself once tried
9.!g5 ! ? f6 10. .te3 exd4 11.tDxd4 ib4+
12.tDc3 tDxd4 13.hd4 c5 14.i.e3 �xd3
15.exd3, when, according to Mikhal­
chishin, 15 . . .if5 16.,ixb7 l'!dB 17.ie4
he4 IB.dxe4 tDa4 would have given
Black compensation in Wojtkiewicz­
Mikhalchishin, Nova Gorica 1997.
White's 9.tDxe5 is a move likely to ap­
peal to those trying to reach a Wojo­
like queenless middlegame.

124
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . lLlc6
Black is setting up the . . . V;Yxd4 tac­
tic. The impatient 9 . . . lLlxd4? ! isn't as
good, since after 10.�e3 White has a
pleasant initiative:
From this point, here are some of
Black's options:
a) 1O. . . �b4+ 11.lLld2 cS allows White
to transition into a better ending af­
ter 12.ixd4 V;Yxd4 (12 . . . cxd4 13.V;Yb5+
Itld7 14.V;Yxb4 lLlxe5 leaves White much
better after 15.lLle4, when Black's diffi­
culty castling will cause him no end of
grief) 13.V;Yxd4 cxd4. White has a slight
advantage here due to the weakness
of Black's d-pawn. He can even chase
after Black's bishop pair with 14.a3,
since 14 . . . hd2 + 15 .'i!;lxd2 f6 16.lLlf3
Itlc4+ comes to nothing for Black af­
ter 17.@el, when White is ready to play
b2-b3 and @b2 .
b ) 10. . . ttJe6 11.V;YxdB+ lLlxdB 12.lLld2
gives White an advantage in devel­
opment. His bishops target Black's
queenside nicely.
c) After 10. . . c5 ! ? 11.hd4 V;Yxd4,
White can play 12 .V;Yb5+ lLld7 13.lLlxd7
�xd7 14.ttJc3 with a slight initiative.
d) 1O. . . i.cS 11.lLlc3 (with the idea of
b2-b4, deflecting Black's bishop) 11 . . .
f6? 12.ttJc6 ! was good for white i n Ip­
polito-Vera, New York Open 1997.
Black's helplessness here is pictur­
esque.
10. V;Yc3 V;Yxd4
And the tactic is executed. Black
regains his pawn, but White is able to
get a slight initiative in the endgame.
11. 0 - 0
It is possible to play 11.V;Yxd4 lLlc2 +
12.@d1 lLlxd4 13 .i.e3, though Black has
few difficulties here. If White wants to
play this way, he should play Kram­
nik's B.V;Yb5 to first provoke . . . a7-a6.
11" .Ybc3
Black's best chance for equality is
most likely this queen swap, as 11 . . .
V;YdB can b e met b y 12.a3 lLl4d5 13.V;Yf3
with the idea of e2-e4, gaining the
center with tempo. Trading queens is
more or less the entire point of Black's
play.
12.lLlxc3
White now has his slight end­
game initiative thanks to his lead in
development. But is this enough to
gain a lasting advantage? Most like­
ly, the answer is yes : White's pieces
are well coordinated and he has the
longterm goal of putting pressure on
Black's queenside. Although Black
has decent chances of surviving to a
draw, she needs to neutralize White's
125
 CHAPTER 6
activity without making a major con­
cession first - something much easier
said than done.
12 . . . .id6
This is Black's most common
move, though there is one other possi­
bility worth investigating, namely 12 . . .
f6 13.ttJf3 :
With 12 . . .f6, Black avoids creat­
ing a targetable piece configuration
in the center: one advantage of this
move over the text, for instance, is that
White's ttJc3-b5 will no longer harass
Black's dark-squared bishop. Now
three moves come under considera­
tion for Black:
a) 13 . . . ttJ4d5 wastes time, as
14.ttJxd5 ttJxd5 15.ttJd4 is unpleasant
for the second player.
b) After 13 . . . c6, an aggressive move
is 14.i.d2 ! ? The idea is to meet 14 .. .
ttJc4 with 15.i.f4, for instance: 15 . . .
ttJxb2 (15 . . . g5 ! ? might transpose after
16.ttJd2 , though there is much to be in­
vestigated here) 16.ttJd2 g5 17.i.c7 i.e6
IBJ'i:abl ttJc4 19.ttJxc4 i.xc4 20.a3 ttJd5
2U�xb7! and White has a lot of activi­
ty. Another line after is 14 . . . i.g4 15.h3
i.d7 16J:l:fcl cj;>t7 17.a3 ttJ4d5 IB.ttJe4
:!:IeB 19 .ttJd4, as played in the game
Smirin-Kishnev, USSR 19B9. After
19 . . . i.xh3 ! ? (the game saw 19 . . . i.cB
20.b4 a6 21.ttJc5 i.d6 22 .:!:Iabl! with a
126
clear advantage for White) 20.ttJxf6
cj;>xf6 2 1.i.xh3 c5 22 .ttJb5 :!:Ixe2 23.:!:Idl,
White has something of an attack:
Black's rook will soon be ousted
from the second rank (cj;>f1, oig4, and
ttJc3 are all possibilities) and White
will then have all the activity with his
two powerful bishops. He is temporar­
ily down a pawn, but it will take a long
time for Black to develop the rook on
hB.
That said, it is certainly not nec­
essary to meet 13 . . . c6 with 14 . .id2. If
White wants, he can keep things rel­
atively simple with 14.:!:Idl as in the
main game. For instance, the compu­
ter idea 14 . . . ttJc2 ? ! , trying to gain the
initiative, is a train of thought easi­
ly derailed after 15.:!:Ibl .ie6 (to target
a2) 16.:!:Id2 ttJb4 17.a3 ttJa2 IB.ttJd4. Af­
ter IB . . . i.t7, White will have the bet­
ter game after trading two pieces for
a rook and two pawns with 19.ttJxc6,
as Black is still behind in develop­
ment. And in the case of IB . . . ttJxc3
19 .bxc3, White has split pawns on the
queenside but plenty of open lines to
develop an attack. Instead of going for
all this, Black must simply keep devel­
oping her pieces after 14.:!:Idl and al­
low the game to develop normally.
c) 13 . . . .id7 ! ? gives Black the option
of castling queenside, when 14.a3 then
allows White to prepare queenside ex­
pansion with b2-b4. White passed up
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . lLlc6
this opportunity in the game Mikhal­
chishin-Kaidanov, Lvov 1988, and
played 14J!d1 .id6 (14 . . . 0-0-0 ! ? might
possibly have justified Black's play)
15.!f4, when 15 . . .hf4 16.gxf4 0-0
was somewhere between equal and
slightly better for White. White still
had the opportunity to play a2-a3 on
his fifteenth move, however: 15.a3
would have been a big improvement.
15...tt\c2 (the passive 15 . . . lLla6 looks
best, but White keeps the initiative
with 16.b4; also, 15 . . . lLlc6?! 16.lLlb5 is
a clear advantage for White) 16J:!a2 !
traps Black's wayward knight:
White now threatens b2-b4. 16 . . .
ie6 17.b3 lLlxa3 (17 . . . ,txb3 18.l:!b2
liJa1 19J!xd6 ! cxd6 20.l:!b1 l:!c8 2 1.lLlb5
is great for White) 18.l:!xd6 ! cxd6
19J"lxa3 ! with the idea of lLld4 gives
White a material advantage, as his two
pieces will be stronger than Black's
rook and pawn.
What about Black's other twelfth
moves? Well, they exist, but they aren't
known to be very good. For instance,
12 ... g6? ! , aiming to kick White's knight
out of e5 with a fianchetto, should be
met with 13.lLlb5 ! lLla6 14 . .if4. White
has a strong initiative here, and Black's
problems are further compounded by
the fact that the defensive 14 . . . c6 is
met by 15.lLlxc6 ! bxc6 16.,txc6+ i.d7
17.ixa8. Once again, we see that a
rook and two pawns can be stronger
than two minor pieces. 17 . . . ,txb5 (17 . . .
lLlxa8 18 . .ie5 ! l:!g8 19.a4 .ic5 20.l:!fc1 is
a clear advantage for White according
to Tukmakov) 18 . .ie5 l:!g8 19 .l:!fc1 .ie7?
(19 . . . Wd7 20. .if3 .ie7 2 1.b3 .ia3 2 2 .l:!c2
lLlb4 23.l:!d2 + We6 24.i.b2 , after which
White is still better, is again Tukma­
kov's analysis) 20.a4 ! was much bet­
ter for White in Tukmakov-Gelfand,
USSR Chp. 1987. Let's return our dis­
cussion to 12 . . . i.d6, the main line.
13.lLlfJ c6 ! ?
This move - which for the time
being is the most popular option for
Black - is intended to stop lLl b5 from
White. It does nothing to help Black's
development, however, and it allows
White to turn his small advantages
into something slightly more concrete
by saddling Black with an isolated d­
pawn.
13 . . . i.d7 is a less common but more
solid choice. White still gets to sad­
dle Black with an isolated pawn after
14.a3 lLl4d5 15.lLlxd5 lLlxd5 16.lLld4 c6
17.l:!d1 l:!d8 18 ..ixd5 cxd5 19.i.f4 .ixf4
20.gxf4 We7 21.l:!d3, when White was a
little better in Razuvaev-Dautov, Reg­
gio Emilia 1995:
Black eventually held the draw, but
White certainly holds a substantial ad­
vantage here thanks to his control of
the dark squares.
127
 CHAPTER 6
14.gd1
It is hard to say for sure if this is
White's most accurate move, as the
first player may prefer to put this rook
on c1 in a good knight versus bad bish­
op endgame. However, sliding the
king's rook to d1 is the only move that
has been seriously tested in practice.
14.a3 immediately is an origi­
nal idea by Dean, aiming for an end­
game more in the style of Razuvaev­
Dautov in the note to Black's previous
move. Play might continue 14 . . . til4dS
1S.tilxdS tilxdS 16.tild4 0-0 (16 . . . .id7
would transpose into Razuvaev-Dau­
tov above) 17.hdS cxdS 1B . .if4 ixf4
(1B . . . .ie7 would allow 19JUc1 with the
idea of lk1-c7) 19.9xf4, and White is
slightly better due to his firm grip on
the dark squares :
In this ending, White's plan is to
maintain tension down the c-file while
he brings his king to the center. M­
ter his king is sufficiently well-placed,
he can allow all of the rooks to be ex­
changed, put his king on d4, and pro­
voke a second weakness somewhere in
Black's camp by probing with his knight.
For those seeking to enhance their un­
derstanding of this kind of ending, we
highly recommend the book Endgame
Strategy by Mikhail Shereshevsky,
which provides many instructive ex­
amples of such schemes in action.
12B
14 . . ..te7
The most sensible move, and again
Black's most popular try. The alterna­
tives aren't inspiring: 14 . . . \ile7? brings
the king into the center far too ear­
ly, as White's activity allows him to
harass Black's monarch: 1S.tile4 ! ic7
16.ie3 with the idea of ie3-c5 gives
Black problems.
Playable is 14 . . .ic7, but White is
still in the driver's seat. For instance:
1S.tild4 .ig4 (1S . . . .id7? 16.a3 til4d5
17.tilxdS tilxdS 1B.tilbS ! is a useful
theme to know, as 1B . . . ibB 19.,bd5
cxdS 20.tilc3 led to a win for White in
Kiss-Wigger, Koszeg 1999) 16.a3 til4d5
17.tilxdS tilxdS 1B.hdS cxdS 19.tilb5
O-O-O! (the saving move) 20.tilxc7
\ilxc7 2 1.if4+ and Black was uncom­
fortable due to his exposed king in
Ippolito-Sarkar, New York 2003.
15.a3
An obvious yet strong pawn punch.
White is preparing to exchange on the
dS square multiple times in order to
saddle Black with a backward d-pawn.
An even more ambitious idea for White
is the immediate 1S.e4 ! ? , taking the d5
square away from Black's knight. Ac­
cording to Beliavsky, White's idea is to
follow up with a2-a3. The way White
plays in the main game, however, is
very straightforward.
15 . . . til4d5 16.�xd5 �xd5
17.�d4 0 - 0
Black can't avoid having an iso­
lated d-pawn with 17. . . tilb6? ! , since
1B.tilxc6 bxc6 19.hc6+ \ilfB (19 ...
.id7 20.fud7! tilxd7 21.,baB wins two
pawns) 20.,baB tilxaB 21..ie3 ttJb6
22 J:l:ac1 with the idea ofl3c7 is crushing.
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . ltJc6
18.hd5 cxd5
By saddling Black with an isolated
d-pawn, White has achieved his aim of
turning his lead in development into
a more concrete kind of positional
advantage. However, in the process,
Black has gained the two bishops.
Here, as is often the case, White - the
player who does not have the bishop
pair - can neutralize Black's two-bish­
op advantage by trading off just one
of them. If White can remove both
dark-squared bishops from the board,
Black will be left with only his bad
light-squared bishop against White's
powerful d4-knight. Thus, White now
seeks to positionally force Black to ex­
change dark-squared bishops.
19 .ie3 !
•
White is going to make his own
dark-squared bishop so powerful that
Black will have no choice but to trade
her own for it. With the text, White
intends to plant his bishop on the d4
square, even though one might nor­
mally want to reserve this spot for
White's knight. Instead, the aggres­
sive 19.1tJbS ! ? gave White a win in Re­
lange-Chabanon, French Chp. 2001,
after 19 . . . .ig4 20.f3 .icS+ 2 V.t?g2 .ie6
22 .if4 h6 23.l''1 ac1 .ib6 24 . .ic7 .id7
. 23.gd2 .id8 24.gcl .la5
2S.ltJd4 hd4 26J3xd4 Eife8? 27.e4.
But Black was probably fine after 26 . . .
.ie6. The solid text move i s more prin­
cipled.
19 • • • .ld7!?
Black has to develop his light­
squared bishop to make room for a
rook on the c-file, but she has some
difficulty finding a useful square on
which to put it. 19 . . . .ig4, provoking
20.f3, may have been an improvement
since after 20. . . .id7 White's knight can
no longer use f3 as a retreat square.
Meanwhile, 20. �g2 (with the idea of
h2-h3) runs into 20. . . .lf6, when White
cannot prevent the exchange of his
knight on d4 for Black's bishop.
Even though White's knight must
leave the d4 square in order for the
bishop to occupy it, this doesn't mat­
ter: White's knight can return to d4
later on.
20 • • • .lb5
Black continues to make rather ar­
tificial moves with her light-squared
bishop. Now, having found a home for
her bishop on bS, Black struggles to
figure out what to do with the other
member of her bishop pair.
2 1 .�f1 .lf6 22 ..id4 gfe8
22 ... hd4 23.ltJxd4 would give
White exactly the kind of position he is
looking for, so Black concedes the best
dark-square diagonals on the board to
White's powerful d4-bishop.
129
 CHAPTER 6

27. . . a6 28.gb6

White plays patiently, knowing

the bishop on cl will eventually fall.
28.�xdS l3ed8 would allow Black good
chances to save the bishop on cl, for
instance 29.�xd8+ �xd8 30.�e2 �xd4
and . . . 1xb2.

28 ... gac8 29.�el

The incautious 29 .�e2? would be

punished by 29 . . . �c2 + .

A truly spectacular idea. With this

incredible pseudo-sacrifice of the ex­
change, White transforms his ad­ Now 29 . . . �c2 30.�xb7 �ec8 31..ic3
vantage from a positional to a ma­ would be awkward for Black.
terial one. The point is that Black's
dark-squared bishop, which has al­
ready seen its share of difficulties
this game, will finally get trapped on
cl. 2S.b4 .id8 would still leave White
with the upper hand, but Black would
have succeeded in softening up a few
squares on the queenside for her light­
squared bishop.

2S . . . hd2 26.gxbS .iel

26 . . . 1h6, saving the bishop, might

have been a better try, but after the
simple 27J!xb7 White would have
Preparing to cut Black off along the
more than enough compensation for
c-file with 1c3. This extra reinforce­
the exchange. His ideas include play­
ment on the c3 square makes it diffi­
ing lDeS to attack fl, playing e2-e3 and
cult for Black to sacrifice back the ex­
bringing his king to the center, and
change.
rounding up Black's weak pawns on
a7 and dS. 32 . . . bS 33 . .lc3 ge8 34.�c2

27.e3 Carefully guarding against Black's

Locking in the prisoner on cl.
27J:!xb7? would justify Black's last
move after 27 .. J:!eb8, with an attack
on the b-file.
potential threats. 34.�xc1?? d4!,
when White loses a piece, would have
been an unpleasant surprise.
34 . . . he3 3S.fxe3

130
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . tlJc6

White now has a slight material ad­ 37 • • • aS? !

vantage - two minor pieces for a rook
and pawn. Yet, as we know from watch­ Black weakens her queenside
ing Wojo, this is enough for White to pawns. The patient 37 .. .l'l:e6 was more
win. Black soon self-destructs. stubborn.

3S •.• !k4 36. 'i!?d2 hS 37. tlJb4 3S.tlJd3 h4 39.gxbS hxg3

4O.hxg3 gg4 41.gxaS lhg3 42 .id4 •

White, who has succeeded in cre­

ating connected passed pawns on the
queenside, is now completely win­
ning.

42 . . . gg2 + 43 .'i!?c3 gcS +

44.'i!?b3 gS 4S.hf6 'i!?f7 46.J.d4
gd2 47.tlJeS+ 'i!?e6 4S.tlJfJ gd3 +
49.'i!?a2 ggS SO.ga6+ 1- 0

Summary: White had a slight lead in development in the queenless mid­

dlegame that resulted after B . . . e5 9 . tlJxe5 tlJ b4. He was able to convert this into
a structural advantage by saddling Black with an isolated d-pawn. A few arti­
ficial moves by the second player left her defensive effort disorganized, allow­
ing White to win material brilliantly with 25. gc5!. Thus, the progressionfrom
a slight development lead to a winning material advantage seemed to occur
smoothly and naturally for White in this game.

Conclusion: With the move 6 . . . tlJd7, Black appears to be groveling for a

draw at best. Although Black initiates tactical skirmishes early on, the maneu­
ver . . . tlJf6-d7-b6 does not give him any real firepower. This system is certain­
ly not dangerous for White, who shouldn't really need to know any theory past
move 12 or so. As long as White is up for grinding his opponent out in the end­
game, he can expect to score well against this system.

Putti ng a Bishop on d6: Black's other Attem pt at ... e6-e5

As we saw in the previous section, the to play the more straightforward 6 . . .

ultimate objective of Black's maneu­
ver beginning with 6 . . . tlJd7 is to
achieve the . . . e6-eS break. This break
is, of course, highly desirable for the
second player - with it, he can free his
imprisoned cB-bishop. Another way
Black can prepare the . . . e6-eS break is
i.d6, o r first 6 . . . i.h4+ 7.i.d2 and only
then 7 . . . i.d6. This, like 6 . . . tlJd7, was
popular in the past but has since fallen
out of favor. Black obtains a playable
position, but he often fails to achieve
. . . e6-eS. This leaves him with a some­
what cramped game.

131
 CHAPTER 6
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2563)
Goldin, Alexander (2566)
[E04] Oak Bridge 2000
1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5.J.g2 �c6 6. YlYa4 J.b4+
Forcing White to commit his bish­
op to d2, where it is slightly awkward.
The straightforward 6 . . . .id6 is playa­
ble, but sets White no particular chal­
lenges. 7.0-0 0-0 8.�xc4 e5 9. lLJ c3
gave White a pleasant initiative in
Romanishin-Pomes, Terrassa 1991:
Black tried to get some activity
with 9 . . . exd4 1O. lLJ xd4 lLJ e5 11.�a4 c5? !
(weakening Black's position along the
d-file like this is a bad idea) , when
12. lLJ db5 .ib8 13 . .ie3 �e7 14 . .ig5 �e6
15 . .ixf6 �xf6 16. lLJ d5 �d8 17.�a3 a6
18J'1ad1 .id7 19. lLJ bc3 Ieft White with a
tremendous position. Better is the di­
rect 10. . . lLJ xd4 11.�xd4, but White still
has the freer game, for instance 11 . . .
�e7 1 2 . .ig5 .ie5 13.�e3 !1e8 14.!1ad1
with ideas of f2-f4 and lLJ e4.
7.J.d2 J.d6
An interesting, formerly trendy
way for Black to prepare . . . e6-e5. The
point is that White's bishop on d2
blocks the d-file, making Black's cen­
tral break earlier. Dean discussed this
move with Wojo almost a decade ago,
132
when the move was in vogue. These
days, however, White players have
discovered plenty of ways to make
problems for the second player.
Black can also continue to play
for . . . e6-e5 after the more compla­
cent 7 . . . ixd2 + . White retains a sim­
ple, slight edge after 8 . lLJ bxd2 0-0 (8 ...
c3 ! ? 9.bxc3 J.d7 1O.�b3 !1b8 11.0-0
0-0 12.e4 looked nice for White in
Bauer-Godena, Escaldes Zonal 1998)
9.�xc4 :
In the lines that follow, White gen­
erally has a choice between allowing
Black to play . . . e6-e5 or taking some
sort of measure to prevent it. For in­
stance, 9 ... �e7 can be met by the di­
rect 10. lLJ e5 lLJ xe5 11.dxe5 lLJ d5 12.0-0,
which is similar to the game. It will be
several moves before Black has played
his mobilizing maneuver . . . !1f8-d8
followed by . . . J.c8-d7-e8, and in the
meantime White is ready to put pres­
sure down the d- and c-files. On the
other hand, White would still have
been slightly better had he chosen
not to physically stop Black's central
break. The more subtle 10. 0-0 e5 11.dS
led to a positional edge for White in
Rausis-Gorbatow, Porto San Giorgio
2000, after 11. . . lLJ b4 12.e4 c6 13.a3 lLJ a6
14.dxc6 bxc6 and so on. Which way to
play with White may be more a matter
of taste than anything else, though in
general Black's life is tougher psycho-
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . lLlc6
logically when White takes concrete
measures to stop . . . e6-e5.
Black can try moves other than 9 . . .
WJe7, and i n fact, 9 . . . �d6 ! ? may b e a
better try. White, obviously, does not
have the option of launching a knight
into e5 here. He can, however, play
10.l'kl, discouraging . . . e6-e5 indirect­
ly by putting pressure on c7. Again,
however, White need not prevent
... e6-e5 to retain at least a slight pull.
Instead, Mrkvicka-Luffy, corr. 19B5,
saw 1O.a3 ! ? , when Black avoided 10. . .
eS o f his own will i n view o f 11.dxe5
ILlxe5 12.�f4 lLlxf3+ 13.ixf3, when
White is just slightly better placed.
Black would probably have had to
play . . . c7-c6 (ceding the d6 square for
White's knight) at some point to blunt
the Catalan bishop. His chosen move
in the game, though, certainly wasn't
better: 10. . . a6 11.0-0 b5 12.�c2 gbB
13.e3 ib7 14.gac1 left Black congest­
ed on the queenside.
Finally, 9 . . . �d5 doesn't assist
Black in his goal of . . . e6-e5, so normal
developing moves should give White
better control over the game. In fact,
the only thing 9 . . . �d5 accomplishes is
the exchange of queens, which doesn't
relieve Black of his passivity here.
Two quick examples : 10. 0-0 gdB 11.e3
WJxc4 12.lLlxc4 id7 13.gfc1 ieB 14.a3
as IS.lLlel (with the idea of lLlel-d3)
left White better in Cu.Hansen-Stra­
til, Uzhgorod 19BB, and lO.gc1 �xc4
lU�xc4 gdB 12.lLlb3 gbB 13.0-0 lLleB
(defending c7) 14.gfc1 lLle7 15.lLle5 c6
16.l"1b4 gaB 17.lLla5 lLld6 IB.l"1b3 lLld5
19.tLld3 was also better for White in
Filippov-Frey, Carlos Torre Memori­
a1 2000 .
The text move is more challeng­
ing for White than 7 . . . .bd2 + because
it forces him to reckon with the awk­
ward placement of his bishop on d2.
8 .ic3 ! ?
•
The one advantage o f White having
his bishop already on d2, of course, is
that he can play this move. Although
the bishop may not look strong now
on the al-hB diagonal, it does assist
White in controlling the key e5 square.
For many years, the immediate
8.�xc4 and B.ic3 were considered
interchangeable, but in the recent
game Likavsky-Tregubov, Bundesliga
2007, Black got an active position af­
ter B.ic3 id7 9.�xc4 b5 ! ? 1O.�b3 b4
11.id2 lLla5 12.�d3 gbB. Therefore,
we recommend playing 8.�xc4 first,
which simply transposes back into the
game after B . . . O-O 9.ic3 . Instead of
transposing, preventing . . . e6-e5 phys­
ically with 9.if4 ! ? was an approach
Wojo tried at least twice before finally
deciding to put the bishop on c3 . Gol­
din had equalized easily the year be­
fore with 9 . . . Wie7 10.lLlc3 e5, Wojtkie­
wicz-Goldin, Foxwoods 1999, when
the players shook hands and split the
point without further ado, while after
9 . . . lLld5 ! ? 10.ig5 WieB l1.0-0 h6 12 .id2
lLlb6 13.Wic2 e5 14.dxe5 lLlxe5 15.lLld4? !
(15.lLla3 ! would have been murkier)
15 . . . c6 16.b3 Wie7 17.h3 geB IB.e4 ic5,
Black was better in Wojtkiewicz-G.
Flear, Neuchatel 199B. White's bishop
on d2 is simply misplaced here.
133
 CHAPTER 6
Backing up a move, White has other
move 8 tries as well, such as the messy
and aggressive 8.lLleS ! ? .ixeS 9 . .ixc6+
bxc6 1O.dxeS �dS ! 11.f3 lLld7 12.lLlc3
�cS I3.f4. White has sacrificed a pawn
and is going to castle queenside. This
bizarre line remains, for the time be­
ing, unresolved. Although Wojo did
try this approach against GM Jan Gus­
tafsson three months after the text
game, he was unsuccessful. We pre­
fer the more positional line used in
the text, which leads to middlegames
much easier to understand.
s . . . o - o 9.1bc4
Simply allowing Black to play
. . . e6-eS is inadvisable here, since after
9.0-0 eS 10.dxeS lLlxeS 11.lLlxeS heS
12 . .ic3 �e7 practice has shown Black
is no worse.
Black's most common move, con­
tinuing to play for . . . e6-eS. It's also
possible, though relatively untested,
for Black to play 9 . . . lLle4, chasing after
the bishop pair. In Ziiger-Marciano,
Bie1 1998, White didn't get anywhere
after 10. 0-0 �e7 lU'1dl a6 12.lLlbd2
lLlxc3 13.�xc3 eS 14.dxeS lLlxeS
IS.lLlxeS .ixeS 16.�e3 .if6 17.�xe7
.ixe7 18.lLlc4, when the players agreed
to a draw. Therefore, we recommend
simply playing 1O.lLleS as in the game:
134
Black has three different captures
he can play here:
a) 10. . . .ixeS 11.dxeS lLlxc3 12.�xc3
gives White strong play and is fairly
similar to the game, for instance, 12 ...
.id7 13.lLld2 �e7 14.0-0 gab8 IS.lLle4
and so on.
b) 10. . . lLlxc3 11.lLlxc6 bxc6 12 .bxc3
probably would lead to the fall of
Black's c6-pawn, and although it's
possible Black has some compensa­
tion down the b-file and by playing
with the two bishops, White should be
better.
c) After 1O. . . lLlxeS 11.dxeS lLlxc3,
12.exd6 ! works out tactically: 12 ...
lLlxbl 13.�xc7! leaves Black's knight
trapped on bi. After 13 . . . lLld2 14.�xd8
gxd8 15. \f;>xd2 gxd6+, keeping the ma­
terial level, White is still much better
after 16.\f;>e3. Black's bishop on c8 is
tied down to b7, hindering the devel­
opment of his queen's rook.
Finally, it should be noted that 9 .. .
lLldS - another attempt to chase af­
ter the bishop pair - isn't common,
but looks more or less plausible for
Black. White can keep it simple with
10. 0-0 lLlxc3 11.lLlxc3 eS 12.gfdl, with
a slight advantage. (Actually, just as
this volume was being completed, the
game Beliavsky-Kohlweyer, Vlissin­
gen 2009, emerged: instead of 12.gfdl,
White played 12.dxeS lLlxeS 13.gadl,
also achieving a pull.)
10. 0-0 would again allow 10... eS,
when Black equalizes.
10 • • • .ixe5 H.dxe5 lLld5 12. 0 - 0
gdS
Black's alternatives don't prom­
ise him anything better. 12 . . . lLlxc3
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . llJc6
13.�xc3 .id7 14.llJd2 :i:!fd8 15.llJb3 gave
White an advantage similar to the
main game in Schmidt-Luther, Bun­
desliga 1998, while 12 . . . .id7 13.llJd2
iUd8 14.llJf3 llJxc3 15.�xc3 �b4 ! ?
16.�c2 was good for White i n Ziiger­
Lagumina, Montecatini Terme 1999.
White has many pluses in the di­
agrammed position. He has more
space in the form of his e5-pawn, the
half-open c-file, and the better light­
squared bishop. Yet Black's position is
solid, and these advantages could eas­
ily slip away if Black could suddenly
take all four rooks off the board. Then,
the c-file would be meaningless, and
White's e5-pawn would not necessari­
ly be a strength in the ending. (Black's
3-2 majority on the queenside, howev­
er, would be one.) Thus, White must
now play with precision to avoid ex­
changing all four of the rooks.
13.:gdl!
We consider this move to be
White's best. 13.llJa3 ! ? llJxc3 14.�xc3
id7 15.llJc2 ie8 16.b4 gave White a
miniscule edge in a blitz game between
Anand and Kramnik way back in 1998,
but Wojo's way keeps the half open c­
file uncluttered and allows White to
bring his knight to the b3 square.
Also less accurate was GM Sargis­
sian's 13.llJd2 .id7 14.llJe4 ! ? , when after
14 . . . .ie8 15J3fdl llJxc3 16.�xc3 :i:!xdl+
17.:i:!xdl :i:!d8, White couldn't avoid the
exchange of rooks : 18.:i:!c1? runs into
18 . . . llJd4. Thus, the game Sargissian­
Kraser, Politiken Cup 2007, continued
18.:i:!xd8 �xd8 19.f4 �dl+ 20. �f2 llJd4
2 1.�e3 llJc2 22 .�d2 �xd2 23.llJxd2
b6. White did maintain a slight edge
after 24.a3 llJd4 25.e3 llJc6 26.g4 llJb8
27.g5 .tb5 2 8 .b4, but Black was able
to hold the draw with relative ease.
Keeping the rooks on the board with
Wojo's move order is the most ambi­
tious way to play.
13 . . . .td7 14.llJ d2 llJxc3
Black releases the tension too soon,
giving White too free a hand. However,
it is difficult to recommend anything
significantly better for Black. 14 . . . .ie8,
keeping the tension in the position for
just one more move, might have made
a slight difference, but Black is un­
comfortable in any case. Compare the
scope of the two light-squared bish­
ops !
In hindsight, perhaps Black should
have tried 14 . . . a5 ! ? 15.:gac1 a4 16.llJe4
a3 17.b3 (17J':ib l ! ?) 17 . . . ie8, but then
White has the simple plan of e2-e3 fol­
lowed by ic3-d4-c5. After 18.e3, the
tactical trick 18 . . . b5 ! ? leaves White
better after 19.�xb5 llJxe5 20.�e2
llJxc3 21.:i:!xc3 . Thus, Black is quickly
running out of ideas.
15.�xc3 .ie 8 16.llJb3
A powerful square for White's
knight, which will now hop to cS. Black
tries to relieve the pressure on his po­
sition, but - significantly - he is only
able to exchange off one pair of rooks.
135
 CHAPTER 6

16 J:�xdl+ 17.gxdl gd8 18.gcl!

.• 24 • • • �d4 25.�e3

Preserving a pair of rooks. Black, A skillful transition into the deep

from his cramped position, has no real endgame!
means of exploiting the open d-file.
Therefore, White abandons it in favor 25 ... �e2 + 26.�xd4 gxg2
of putting pressure on the c7-pawn. 27.�c7+ �d6 28.gxh7 .1c6

18 f6
• •. White is now up a pawn, but Black's
position is hard to crack. White's next
A natural choice, breaking up move is intended to force a weakness.
White's bind and freeing the e8-bi­
shop. Yet Wojo now heads for the end­
game.
A tactic: the b2-pawn cannot be
19.exf6 Ylxf6 20.Ylxf6 gxf6 taken in view of mate.

White has achieved what looks like 31 . . . ge4+ 32.�c3 �c5 33.h4+
only a very meager endgame advan­ �d5
tage. Is there any possibility of exploit­
ing it? With Wojo at the wheel, yes : he
continues to gain space, he brings his
king to the center, and he puts pres­
sure on Black's position until the op­
ponent cracks.

21.f4 �f7 2 2 . �f2 �e7 23.�c5

gd2 24.�d3

With this expert knight maneu­

ver, White has succeeded in central­
izing his pieces. The d2-rook is now 34.a4!
trapped, and Black must give up a
pawn in order to free it. White has managed to partially

136
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . llJc6

tame Black's aggressive rook while 45 gd1+ 46. c;t>c3 ggl 47.h5
• • •

putting his pieces on their best squares. gxg3 + 4S. c;t>d4 gg7 49.h6 gh7
So, Wojo now begins an assault on
Black's queenside pawns.

34 ha4 35.gxb7 a6 36.gbS

.••

!"!e3 + 37.c;t>d2 ga3 3S.llJd3

The knight returns to the d3 square.

White now has a definite winning
plan: he will place his knight on c5,
attacking e6 and a6. Black's position
was tenable so long as the e6-pawn
was his only weakness, but White's
queenside assault has achieved its de­
All of Black's pieces are tied down !
sired effect.
His king must guard the e5 square,
while his bishop must defend a6. The
3S .tb5 39.gdS+ c;t>c6 40.�c5
•••

!"!a2 + 4l.c;t>c3 ge2 42.gd2

A simple but effective retreat. After
defending his kingside pawns, White
will slowly begin to focus on improv­
ing his king's position: he sees a weak­
ness on e5, so he heads for it !
42 ge3+ 43.c;t>d4 gel 44.h4
• • •
rook on h7 is miserable. Wojo repeats
a few moves before proceeding to
break down Black's position.
50.gh3 .tfl 5l.ghl .tb5 52.gh2
.tfl 53.�b3 .tb5 54.�d2 .tc6
55.�c4 + c;t>e7 56. c;t>e5 .tb5 57. �d6
.tc6 5S.ga2 ! gxh6 59.gxa6 ghl

\t,>d6 45.gh2 The bishop could not be saved:

59 . . . ,td7 60.llJxf5+ ! .
White switches plans. The threat of
the h-pawn's promotion ensures vic­ 60.gxc6 gel+ 6l.c;t>d4 gdl+
tory. 62.c;t>e3 l- 0

Summary: Black never achieved any meaningful pawn breaks in this

game. White prevented . . . e6-e5 with llJj3-e5, and Black had a cramped game.
White made sure to keep one pair of rooks on the board so that his positional
trump for the middlegame - pressure down the half-open c-file - could be ex­
ploited. Eventually, Black had to settlefor the ugly . . .j7-f6 break, which led to
a slightly worse endgame for the second player.

Conclusion: There is a good reason why this line is not particularly fash­
ionable for Black. White gets a space advantage, pressure down the half-open c­
file, and (as usual) the better light-squared bishop. Black's 3-2 majority on the
queenside isn't threatening, but perhaps Black must find a way to start gaining
space on the queenside in the middlegame rather than going into a worse end­
game, as Goldin did here against Wojo.

137
 CHAPTER 6
Black's Bid for Piece Activity, 7 ttJdS
S o far, we've looked at two attempts
by Black to play . . . e6-eS, one of Black's
most logical ideas connected with the
move S . . . lLlc6. Rather than playing for
this break, Black can also decide to roll
up his sleeves and get to work creating
complications on the queenside. After
6.'lWa4 .tb4+ 7 . .td2 , Black can try the
ambitious 7 . . . lLldS 8 . .bb4 lLlxb4 :
Black has succeeded in obstructing
White's plan to recapture the pawn
on c4 with his queen, and he hopes
to follow up with . . . l'i:b8 and . . . b7-bS,
further cementing his material ad­
vantage. White, for his part, has the
scheme 'lWa4-bSxc4 in the works to re­
gain this crucial pawn. When he suc­
cessfully recaptures the pawn on c4
- which he always does, with correct
play - he can look forward to a slight
advantage in the center thanks to his
d4-pawn. The one caveat is that Black
will be trying to keep things compli­
cated by throwing his pieces at White
the whole time. In this section, we'll
examine Wojo's interpretation for
White with 9.0-0 l'i:b8 1O.lLla3. In all
the main lines, White is able to nulli­
fy most of Black's activity and steer to­
ward a slightly better endgame.
138
. . .
Delchev, Aleksander (2560)
Atahk, Suat (2575)
[E04] Bled 2002
1.c4 e6 2 .lLlf3 d5 3.d4 c!lJf6
4.g3 dxc4 5 .tg2 lLlc6 6.ea4 .ib4+
•
7 . .id2 lLld5
Black seeks to muddy the waters
by not allowing White a simple path
to regaining the c4-pawn. This vari­
ation has had an enduring populari­
ty among strong players, and is one of
Black's most testing tries against the
Catalan.
8.hb4
White's best option, as 8 . 0-0 lLlb6
allows Black to coordinate his piec­
es and retain the c4-pawn. It is pos­
sible for White to try 8.'lWbS ! ? , a move
which Wojo used in Wojtkiewicz­
Benen, World Open 2003. Although
this looks like a quick attempt to re­
gain the lost pawn on c4, it is actual­
ly a pawn sacrifice, and White needs
to be prepared to play material down
after 8 . . . .bd2 + 9 .lLlbxd2 c3 1O.bxc3
lLlxc3 1l.'lWd3 lLldS 12.0-0 0-0 13.l'i:ac1
'lWe7 14.e4 lLlb6 1S.l'i:fd1 l'i:d8 16.lLlb3, as
in Romanishin-Dokhoian, Bonn 1994.
He also needs to be prepared for the
sequence 8 . . . 0-0 9.'lWxc4 lLlb6 1O.'lWd3
.bd2 + 1l.lLlbxd2 eS 12.lLlxeS lLlb4,
with the idea of recapturing on d4 with
the queen next move, as in De Boer-Z.
Polgar, Dutch Team Chp. 1996. (This
. . . lLlb4-c2 maneuver occurs frequent­
ly in the Early Open Catalan ! ) In any
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . lt'lc6
case, we recommend the safer 8 .hb4,
drawing Black's knight to the insecure
b4 square, as a sure way to play for the
advantage with White.
8 . . . �dxb4 9. 0 - 0
White is now ready to play a2-
a3, kicking Black's knight out of the
b4 square and opening up a path for
�xc4. The immediate 9.a3 ! ? is a crazy,
testing line which scores satisfactori­
ly for Black after 9 . . . b5 ! 1O.�xb5 lt'lc2 +
11.lt>d2 �xal 12 .�xc6+ .td7 13.�xc4
c5 ! , when Black gets a flurry of activi­
ty. Although White is by no means in
bad shape here (the line was even ven­
tured by Garry Kasparov), this entire
idea is beyond the scope of our Wojo
repertoire.
The try 9.�e5, hoping to triple
Black's pawn on the c-file, is a simple
alternative for White. Unfortunately,
it is also premature and peters out to
equality quickly. We recommend pay­
ing close attention to the following
line, which demonstrates a number
of typical themes in the whole 7 . . .
ItJd5 variation. 9 . . . 0 - 0 10.hc6 �xc6
1l.ltJxc6 bxc6 12.�xc4 l'!b8 ! . Black's
counterplay down the b-file comes
more quickly here than in the main
game, ensuring him equality. Now
13.b3 �d6 is fine for Black:
Black's rooks are coming to d8 and
b4, where they will put substantial
pressure on White's position.
And if, rather than b2-b3, White
plays, 13.0-0 - a move given by Chek­
hov - Black again has no problems :
13 . . . l'!xb2 14.�c3 §'d6 15.l'!abl l'!b6
16.l'!fc1 l'!d8 17.e3 e5 18.dxe5 �xe5
was good for Black in Staj cic-Luther,
Kecskemet 1993, since his light­
squared bishop has become an excel­
lent piece.
Obviously, Black is getting too
much play down the b-file in this line.
What if White captures only once on
c6, so as not to allow Black the oppor­
tunity to play . . . b7xc6? Unfortunate­
ly for White, he doesn't get far with
1O.lt'lxc6 It'lxc6 1l.e3, as Black is suffi­
ciently mobilized to break with . . . e6-
e5 in a timely manner. The lack of
minor pieces in the position has re­
lieved Black's cramp. 1l . . . .id7 12 .�xc4
e5! is equal, for example, 13.d5 �e7
14. 0-0 c6. Black does not fear 15.d6 ! ?
�f5, and o n other fifteenth moves by
White, he should be able to liquidate
the center.
Thus, we can see why it is best for
White not to be impatient. Castling is
principled and keeps tension in the
position. After the text move, Black
must take quick action to keep his ac­
tivity going; otherwise, White will just
play a2-a3, take on c4, and have the
better game.
139
 CHAPTER 6
Aiming to send forth a pawn to bS.
The slightly dubious 9 . . . a6, aiming to
hold on to the c4-pawn with . . . b7-bS,
is well met by the immediate lO.ltJeS.
After 10 ... 0-0 (if here 10 ... bS??, White
plays 1l.ltJxc6 bxa4 12.ltJxdS and Black
suddenly discovers his rook on as is
hanging) 1l.ltJxc6 ltJxc6 12 .,bc6 bxc6
13.'lWxc4 !'i:bS 14.b3 'lWd6, it looks as
if Black has suddenly gotten his ide­
al equalizing position from the previ­
ous note:
He is now threatening . . . !'i:bS-b4,
and his major pieces are going to be
very active. The difference between
the position in this diagram and the
one in the last note, however, is that
the moves . . . a7-a6 for Black and 0-0
for White have been inserted. This
tradeoff obviously favors White.
Is this subtle difference enough to
give White the edge? We believe so, as
Black's move . . . a7-a6 just further hin­
ders the mobility of his bad bishop on
cS. White is also much closer to finish­
ing his development here, giving him
the chance to seize the initiative: for
instance, White was better in Delchev­
Timoshenko, FIDE World Chp. 2001,
after 1S.!'i:c1 !d7 16.ltJd2 !'i:b4 17.'lWxa6
!'i:xd4 1S.ltJc4 :
140
White's pieces have fully mobilized
before Black's, ensuring that the black
light-squared bishop remains a bad
piece.
Backing up to the previous analy­
sis diagram, if Black had tried to gen­
erate activity with 1S.!'i:c1 !'i:b4 ! ? rather
than the passively defending the pawn
on c6, White could play 16.'lWxc6 !'i:xd4
(16 . . . 'lWxc6? ! 17.!'i:xc6 !'i:xd4 1S.ltJa3 ! ,
heading for the c4 square, ends with
White being up a pawn) 17.'lWxd6 !'i:xd6
(after 17 . . . cxd6, Black's rook will be
misplaced on d4, and White will have
control of the c-file, a queenside ma­
jority, and the better minor piece)
1S.ltJa3 ! !'i:d7 19.!'i:c2 and White has a
slight endgame bind. White's move
1S.ltJa3 keeps the c-file open while
aiming to eventually transfer the
knight to c4.
So much for the slow 9 . . . a6. Black
can also try the direct 9 . . . .id7, hoping
for 1O.a3 ! ? bS! 1l.'lWxbS ltJc2 12.'lWxc4
(12 .!'i:a2 ltJ6xd4 13.'lWxc4 !bS gives
Black a lot of play, for instance 14.'lWc5
'lWd6 ! and Black's pieces are suffi­
ciently mobilized) 12 . . . ltJxa1 13.ltJbd2
!'i:bS 14.'lWc3 0-0 1S.!'i:xa1, and although
White has some compensation for
the sacrificed material - better pawn
structure, a space advantage, and bet­
ter dark-square control - Black's ma­
terial advantage will prove a long­
term asset. Instead, the active 1O.ltJe5
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . tZlc6
is again good for White. The point
is that, after 10. . . 0-0 1l.tZlxc6 tZlxc6
12 .1!;l(xc4, Black's bishop on d7 inter­
feres with his coordination. White no
longer has any need for e2-e3 to de­
fend the d4-pawn, for instance :
After the "liberating" 12 . . . eS ! ?
13.dxeS (best, a s 13.dS tZld4 14.tZlc3
c6 gives Black some counterplay, and
winning the pawn with 13.hc6 ! ? hc6
14.dxeS is rather risky for White due
to his weakness on the light squares)
13 ... tZlxeS, White is slightly better af­
ter either 14.�c3 or 14.�dS. We rec­
ommend the latter, after which it is
difficult for Black to escape White's
pressure. After normal development
with 14 . . . tZlc6 1S.tZlc3 .ie6 16.�xd8
lll xd8 17.E!fd1, Black is still struggling
to develop his pieces. Therefore Black
might consider 14 . . . �f6 ! ? , giving up
a pawn, though White would happily
cash in and play 1S.�xb7 .ic6 16.hc6
lll xc6 17.tZlc3 E!ab8 18.�xc7 E!fc8
19.�f4 �xf4 20.gxf4 E!xb2 21.E!ac1 fol­
lowed by E!f1-dl.
From this analysis, we can con­
clude that White is better after 9 . . ..id7
10.tZleS 0-0. Another move that has
been tried is 10. . . tZldS? ! , calling off the
entire campaign to hold the c4-pawn
and going into retreat. But 11.�xc4
lll xeS 12.dxeS simply leaves Black in
an uncomfortable bind, for instance
12 . . . ic6 13 .tZlc3 0-0 (13 . . . �d7? 14.E!fd1
E!d8 1S.E!d3 followed by doubling on
the d-file would be a disaster for Black)
14.E!fd1 tZlb6 1S.�cS (taking control of
the dark squares) 1S . . . tZld7 (more or
less forced) 16.�d4 ,ixg2 17. <;t>xg2 tZlb6
18 .�e4 and White has a nice space ad­
vantage. Finally, Black shouldn't play
10. . . tZlxeS?! 11.�xb4 tZlc6 12.�xc4 0-0
13.tZlc3, as Black is once again con­
gested and miserable.
By now, it seems that 9 ... .id7 isn't
such an accurate choice for Black af­
ter all. The key to Black's position (af­
ter 10.tZleS) is a move Informant gave
an exclamation mark, lO. . . aS ! . This
anchoring thrust allows Black to hold
on to his knight on b4. The point is
that after the usual 1l.tZlxc6, Black
can trade off the light-squared bish­
ops with 1l . . . hc6 ! 12 .hc6 tZlxc6 and
White is once again forced to make the
concession 13.e3 (or 13.E!d1) to save
his d4-pawn. As we know, without the
added congestion of his bishop being
stuck on d7, Black shouldn't have any
trouble equalizing.
This means that White must en­
ter the jungle and play 1l.tZlxd7 �xd7.
Since 12.a3? ! tZldS 13.�xc4 tZlb6
(threatening the d4-pawn) 14.,ixc6 !
tZlxc4 1S.,ixd7+ <;t>xd7 16.b3 tZlb6
leaves Black well placed for the end­
ing, we recommend White keep de­
veloping fearlessly with the flexi­
ble 12.tZlc3 ! This is an important new
move, and appears to be more accu­
rate than 12.E!d1 or 12.e3. The point is
that White's rook on f1 shouldn't be
committed so early to the d1 square.
The analysis below demonstrates how
this added flexibility can lead to a clear
advantage for White.
141
 CHAPTER 6
a) First of all, 12 . . . lLlxd4? is aw­
ful for Black after 13.�xd7+ 'it>xd7
14.!iadl ! (it is better to use this rook)
14 . . . cS 1S.e3 eS (1S . . . lLld3? 16.b3 ! is
winning) 16.f4 ! and Black's position is
ready to crumble.
b) 12 . . . �xd4 gives White a nice pull
after 13.a3 lLldS (the cute 13 . . . 'it>e7,
connecting rooks so that 14.axb4 runs
into 14 . . . axb4, allows White to crank
up the pressure along the long hl-aB
diagonal with 14.�b5 ! ) 14J�fd1 �eS
1S.,bdS exdS 16.!ixdS �e6 17.�xc4
0-0 1BJ�ad1, when White is fully mo­
bilized.
c) 12 . . . lLldB, hoping to head straight
to the endgame, allows White to play
the odd-looking 13.�bS ! , This move
gives him the initiative, because after
13 . . . �xbS, as played in S ebenik-Mazi,
Bled 2003, 14.lLlxbS unblocks the c­
file with tempo. After 14 . . . 'it>d7 1S.!ifc1
(note again that White's rook doesn't
necessarily come to d1; S ebenik-Mazi,
though, did see 1S.!ifdl ! ? from White)
1S . . . lLldc6 16.!ixc4, White has a very
pleasant ending.
Note that the ambitious 13 . . . lLlc2 ! ? ,
trying to avoid the queen trade, isn't
as good as it looks after 14.!iac1 c6
(14 . . . lLlxd4? 1S.�xd7+ 'it>xd7 16.!ifd1
eS 17.e3 wins for White) 1S.�gS, when
White has plenty of compensation in
piece activity. Black's knights have
clearly overexerted themselves.
142
Black has two ways to kick White's
powerful queen here, 1S .. .f6 and 15 . . .
h 6 . After 1 S . . .f6, 16.�hS+ g 6 17.�h4
lLlxd4 18.!ifd1 is great for White. And
on 1S . . . h6, 16.�f4 (16.�xg7 �xd4
would be less clear) is strong, as
White's dark-square control gives
him the advantage. 16 . . . lLlb4 17.lLla4
will allow White to recapture the pawn
on c4. Play might continue 17 . . . �e7
1B.lLlb6 !ia6 19.lLlxc4 lLlxa2 20.!ia1 lLlb4
21.!ixaS !ixaS 22 .lLlxaS, with White
having all the chances.
c) 12 . . . 0-0 13.a3 lLldS 14.�xc4 gives
White a good game, as 14 . . . lLlb6 is met
by 1S.,bc6.
d) 12 . . . !idB transposes back into
"known" territory after 13.!ifd1 (White
should go ahead and commit his rook
now that Black is adding fire pow­
er to the d-file) 13 . . . 0-0 14.a3 lLldS
(14 . . . lLlxd4? 1S.�xd7 !ixd7 16.axb4
axb4 17.lLlbS ! c5 1B.e3 was winning
for White in Mikhalevski-Beshukov,
European Chp. 2000) 1S.�xc4 lLlb6
16.�c5 ! lLlxd4 17.�xaS �e7 1B.�a7!
lLlb3 19.!ixdB !ixdB 20.!id1 White has
a clear advantage due to his strong at­
tack on the queenside.
This "Wojo weapon" has recent­
ly undergone a surge in popularity.
At the time Wojo introduced the text
move, 1O.lLlc3 was the established main
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . tDc6
line. Although the lO.tlJc3 line still has
more total games, even Avrukh now
believes the text is a better try for the
advantage :
Wojo, who first used the move
lO.ttJa3 ! ? in the mid '90s, was possi­
bly the first grandmaster to incor­
porate it into his regular repertoire.
Sadly, he scored poorly with it: three
straight losses (Sergey Ivanov, Polish
Team Chp. 1995 ; Alexey Yuneev, Yer­
evan 1996; and Michal Krasenkow,
Manila 1998) must have been dis­
heartening. Since the turn of the 21st
century, however, strong GMs such
as Ftacnik, Bareev, and Gelfand have
all revisited Wojo's 10.tlJa3. Essential­
ly, Wojo had the basic lines worked
out correctly, and he understood how
to take the opening directly into a fa­
vorable ending for White. It was only
once he was there, however, that he
would somehow mishandle the posi­
tion. We'll take a look at Wojo's mis­
takes as we come to them and try to
learn from them along the way.
10 ••• a6
After this move, the game heads to­
wards a better endgame for White. This
is not to the taste of most Black players,
so 10 ... 0-0 is more common. We exam­
ine this approach in the next game.
Alternatively, 10. . . .td7!? allows
White to play 11.�b5 0-0 1 2 .1�xc4,
simply retaking the c4-pawn with
the better game. White got an edge
in Tkachiev-Godena, Cannes 1999,
after 12 ... Wfe7 13.e4 a6 14.Wfc3 E1fc8
15.E1fdl b5 16.d5 exd5 17.exd5 tlJxd5
18.E1xd5 b4 19 .Wfd3. The point of the
text move is to prevent White's Wfa4-
b5xc4 maneuver.
ll.c�eS 0 - 0
Black's solid choice. 1 l. . .Wfxd4 ! ?
12.tlJxc6 tlJxc6 13 .hc6+ bxc6 can be
met by 14.Wfxc6+ , when 14 . . . Wfd7 (14 . . .
i.d7? ! 15.Wfxc7 with the idea o f E1f1-dl
is clearly better for White) 15.Wfxc4
0-0 (both 15 . . . .tb7? ! 16.E1fdl Wfc6
17.Wfxc6+ hc6 18.E1ac1 and 15 . . . E1xb2?
16.Wfc3 E1b8 17.Wfxg7 are clearly better
for White) 16.E1fdl �e7 17.Wfc3 leaves
White slightly better. (This was re­
cently played in Djoudi-Hnatovsky,
corr. 2006.) Previously, White had
tried 14J�fdl, which was similar to
the main game after 14 . . . Wfc5 15.Wfxc4
Wfxc4 16.tlJxc4.
12.ctlxc6 ctlxc6
Of course, 12 . . .bxc6? 13.E1fdl gives
White a clear advantage.
13.Ybc4 Ylrxd4 14.hc6 Ylrxc4
lS.tlJxc4 bxc6 16.b3
143
 CHAPTER 6

White has a nice-looking bind. The
problem for White in converting his
advantage is not so much Black's ex­
tra pawn, which is doubled, but that
Black is often able to creep out of
White's hold with moves like .. J�b8-
bS combined with . . . a6-aS, or . . . t7-f6
followed by . . . e6-eS.
stance, 19 .. .f6 20.E1ac1 .ig6 21.E1c3 fol­
lowed by �g1-f1-e1.
The immediate 17 . . . aS 18.E1c3 a4
19.bxa4 E1b4 20.aS .ia6 21.tt:leS is a lit­
tle better for White.

18.gc2 e5 19.f3 f6 2 0 .gac1 �f7

21.�f2 .ib7 22.gc3 .ta8 23.e4 as
16 . . . E1d8 is somewhat less ambi­ 24.a4 l:k5 25.�e3
tious, but also quite playable . Play
would continue 17J'!fd1 .id7 18J'�d2
.ie8, as in Wojtkiewicz-Krasenkow,
Manila 1998. Now Wojo made an in­
structive mistake with 19.E1xd8 E1xd8
20.�f1 �f8 21.E1c1 �e7 22.lLJ aS?! (bet­
ter is 2 2 . �e1, when White is still a lit­
tle better), allowing Black to pene­
trate on the second rank. Wojo prob­
ably expected a quick handshake after
22 . . . E1d2 23.a4 E1b2 24.tt:lxc6+ hc6
2S.E1xc6 �d7 26.E1xa6, but Black de­
cided to plan for a win here: 26 . . . E1b1 +
27.�g2 E1xb3 28.E1a8 cS 29.E1a7+ �d6 Notice how White is slowly turning
30.E1xt7 c4 31.E1f8 �c5 : the screws. Black's pieces look some­
what awkward but his pawns are de­
fended, meaning White has to work
hard to make something of his advan­
tages.

2S . . . .ib7 26.tt::\ b 2 !

White begins to wear down Black's

defense of the as-pawn.

26 . . . �c3 + 27.�c3 gb8 28.�d2

Black's strong passed c-pawn even­
tually allowed him to get the better of
this ending.
Instead, it was better to avoid trad­
ing rooks with 19.E1c2 , given by Chek­
hov as a slight edge for White. White
plans E1a1-c1 as his followup, for in-
White is attempting to defend his
b3-pawn so that he can use his rook
and knight to attack Black's queenside
pawns. Another approach was 2 8 .tt:lc4
ga8 29.tt:ld2, after which it appears
Black can defend against White's plan

144
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . ttJc6

of �c3-cS and ttJd2-c4 with 29 . . . �e6,
for instance 30.�c5 �d6 31.�xaS?!
!'ixaS 32.ttJc4+ �cS 33.ttJxaS .ia6, and
White is the one who's struggling. In­
stead, 3O.f4, trying to expand on the
kingside and somehow push Black's
king away from the indirect defense of
as, would lead to a continued struggle.
2S . . . AcS
Black prepares to gang up on b3
with . . . !e6. White now sees a chance
to complicate the game and takes
Black targets White's pawn on f3,
and, in the process, the pawn on e4.
Although White's chances are still to
be preferred, it is difficult to find any
improvement on his play, which ulti­
mately leads to a draw. His next move
prepares to meet 33 . . . !g2 with 34.ttJe1.
33. ttJd3 Aft 34. ttJc5
34.ttJe1 �c8+ allows Black to de­
fend his as-pawn laterally from cS.
34 .!g2 35.gxa5 .ixf3 36.gb5
•.•

it, though he could try 29.�c2 .ie6
30.ttJd3 �e7 31.ttJcS. He is still not
breaking through convincingly here.
29.gxc6 �b3 30.gxc7+ <i?g6
31.ci>c2 gbS 32.ga7
gdS 37.a5 .!e2 3S.i(}e6
The resulting endgame is a draw,
as Black's bishop is powerful enough
to both attack on the kingside and halt
White's passed pawn on the queenside.

3S • .. hb5 39.i(}xdS �g5 40.h3

White was most likely afraid of

40.ttJe6+ �g4 41.li'lxg7 �f3 42.li'lf5
!c6 43.li'ld6 �g2 , when Black's
counterplay is quite strong.

4O g6 41.i(}e6+ �h5 42.i(}c7

• • •

Ac6 43.�d3 f5 44.ext'5 lh-lh

Here the players agreed to a draw,

since it will be difficult for White to
It now appears that White is win­ make progress. If his king heads to
ning a pawn, but Black has a strong the queenside to help promote the
defensive resource. passed a-pawn, Black will have his
own passed pawn in the center as a
32 ..• .!h3 ! distraction.

Summary: White achieved the kind of endgame advantage he was hoping

for out of the opening, but with accurate defense, Black held on for the draw.
White's knight proved to be better than Black's bishop throughout the opening,
middlegame, and most of the endgame, but when the boardfinally opened up
(with Black being down a pawn), the bishop finally gave Black enough activ­
ity to save the day.

14S
 CHAPTER 6
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2550)
Yuneev, Alexey (2415)
[E04] Yerevan 1996
l.tOO d5 2 .d4 tOf6 3.c4 e6
4.g3 dxc4 5 .tg2 tOc6 6.�a4 .tb4+
•
7 . .td2 tOd5 8.hb4 tOdxb4 9. 0 - 0
�b8 10. tO a3 0 - 0 1l.�b5
Bypassing the b4-knight in order
to recapture the c4-pawn.
1l • • • b6
Black seeks active development
on the fl-a6 diagonal for his light­
squared bishop. 1l . . . a6 12.�xc4 �dS
was agreed drawn in Wojtkiewicz-Se­
villano, Western States Open 2002 ,
but 13.�xdS lilxdS 14.lilbd2 or 13 . . .
exdS l4.lilc3 should give White a slight
pull in the endgame.
12.�xc4
12 • • . .ta6
If Black wants to avoid transition­
ing into an endgame, 12 . . . aS is a way to
do so. Black is simply gaining space on
the queenside so as to make the devel­
opment of his bishop on a6 100k less ar­
tificial. White should now send his a3-
146
knight toward the center with 13.�c3
i.a6 14.lilc4, when White's centrali­
zation gives him a better game. Now
passive approaches such as 14 . . . tOe7
allow White to fully take the center
with IS.e4 c5 16JUdl and so on, so 14 ...
lildS IS .�cl f5 ! ? was seen in Bareev­
Aleksandrov, FIDE World Chp. 2000.
This prevents e2-e4 from White, but it
severely weakens the eS square. Thus,
Black didn't quite manage to get a
playable game: 16 .e3 �c8 17J�dl �e7
18.a3 !i'J a7 (organizing counterplay
with . . . c7-c5) 19.1ilfeS cS 20.�d2 and
White was better thanks to his control
of the dark squares.
The key position arose after 20. . .
cxd4 21.�xd4, when all lines look bad
for Black:
a) The tactic 21 .. .:1:lxc4 2 2 .lilxc4 lilc6
23.�d2 hc4 falls short after 24.�dc1
bS (24 . . . lileS 2S.�d4 �f6 26.f4 lilg4
27.�xf6 gxf6 28.�xc4 lildxe3 29.�c6
is no better) 2S.b3 !i'JeS 26.bxc4 !i'Jxc4
27.�e2, when White has a material
advantage.
b) 21.. .hc4 2 2 .!i'Jxc4 lilc6 (22 ...
!i'JbS? 23.�eS with the pin on the e-file
leaves White winning) 23.�d3 �fd8
24.�b3 �b8 2S.�b5 lila7 26.�a6 b5
27.lileS a4 28.�ac1 gives White a clear
edge. Black is disorganized and weak
on the queenside.
c) 21 . . . !i'JbS (the move played in the
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . lLlc6
game) 22 .Wd3 'it>h8? ! worked out ter­
ribly for Black after 23.Wb3 ! (target­
ing the b6-pawn, with a2-a4 to fol­
low) 23 . . Jk5 24.a4 Wc7? ! 25.axb5
E1xb5 26.Wa3 �b4 27.�acl. White, up
an entire piece, won quickly. Best is
22 . . . �fd8, when 23.e4 lLld6 (23 . . . fxe4
24.ixe4 is a positional concession
from Black, while 23 . . . lLlf4? 24.lLlc6 !
wins for White) 24.exd5 ixc4 (or 24 . . .
IiJxc4 25.b3 lLlxe5 26.Wxa6) 25.lLlxc4
IiJxc4 26.We2 e5 27.�ac1 lLld6 28.�c6
gives White a slight advantage. Thus,
with accurate defense, Black can suc­
ceed in allowing White only a moder­
ate amount of pressure.
The text move is considered the
main line, and Black's chances there
are probably better than with 12 . . . a5,
which doesn't do much to aid stop
White from dominating the center.
13.lLlb5
It may seem counterintuitive to
walk into this pin, but White's queen
and knight are working to pressure
Black's queenside pawns on a7 and
c7. They will soon be joined by a rook
on the c-file.
13 . . . Wd5
White was threatening a2-a3, win­
ning a piece, so Black had to act. White
now gets his pleasant endgame.
14.Ybd5 c!Llxd5
Recapturing with 14 . . . exd5 ! ? is less
in the spirit of this entire variation for
Black. Black wants active piece play,
and if he takes back on d5 with the
pawn, the position suddenly turns
into a slow maneuvering game. After
15.lLlc3, White's plan is to put pres­
sure on the queenside with �f1-c1, e2-
e3, a2-a3, b2-b4, and so on:
Black, for his part, has two ways to
react to White's pressure on the c-file.
First, he can try to organize . . . c7-c6. For
instance, in Miton-Nakamura, World
Open 2005, Black played 15 . . . �fe8
16.�fd1 ! lLle7 (after 16 . . . ixe2? 17.lLlxe2
�xe2 18.a3 lLlc2 19.�ac1 or 18 . . . lLla6?
19.if1, White will win Black's knight)
17.�ac1 �bd8 18.a3 lLlbc6 19.e3 lLlb8 !
20.b4 c6 and the game was eventually
drawn. White still has the advantage
here thanks to his queenside pressure,
but Black is undeniably solid.
The second way Black can react
to White's pressure on the c-file is by
playing for . . . c7-c5. This is more to
the taste of aggressive Black players,
but White still had an advantage after
(from the diagram) 15 . . . lLle7 16.�fd1
c5 17.�ac1 in Wojtkiewicz-S.lvanov,
Polish Team Chp. 1995. Things looked
slightly unclear after 17 . . . �fd8 18.dxc5
bxc5 19.�d2 g6, but Wojo was able
to begin chipping away systematical­
ly at Black's hanging pawns. 20.lLla4
(provoking Black's next move) 20. . . c4
21.lLlc3 ic8 22.�cd1 ie6 23.lLld4 'it>g7
24.h3 (taking space on the kingside)
24 . . . h5 25.a3 lLla6 26.e4 lLlc7 27.exd5
lLlcxd5 and White was undeniably bet­
ter:
147
 CHAPTER 6

. . . i.c8xb5, White will be able to open

the a-file to target the weak a7-pawn.

Considered best. 15 . . . �fd8 should

also be met by 16.ttJe5, when 16 . . . ttJxe5
(16 . . . ixb5? 17.axb5 ttJxd4 18.e3 ttJxb5
19.ttJc6 forks the rooks; 16 . . . ttJ a5 in­
stead would transpose into the next
Cashing out with 28.ttJxe6 + ? ! 28 . . . game) 17.dxe5 leads to a pleasant ad­
fxe6 29.ixd5 ttJxd5 30.ttJxd5 exd5 vantage for White. If Black even plays
31.�xd5 �xd5 32.�xd5 �xb2 33.�d7+ . . . c7-c5 to defend his c-pawn, White
't!;>f6 34.�xa7 wound up leaving White may have access to the d6 square.
worse, however, after 34 . . . 't!;>e5 35.�c7 Similarly, Avrukh gives 15 . . . ib7
't!;>d4. Black's passed c-pawn was dan­ 16.ttJe5 ttJxe5 17.dxe5 a6 18.i.xd5 i.xd5
gerous and soon won the game. This is 19.ttJxc7 ic4 20.�ac1 i.xe2 21.�fe1 .td3
remarkably similar to what happened 22.�c6 as giving White the initiative.
in Wojtkiewicz-Krasenkow, given in The text move, which vacates the h1-
the note to Black's move 16 in the pre­ a8 diagonal while preparing active
vious game. Against strong players, piece play on the queenside, is the
rather than maintaining the pressure, only move treated seriously by mod­
Wojo would occasionally "cop out" - ern theory.
and then it would turn out that his
pawn-up rook endgame was losing,
not drawing or winning. This kind of
mistake occurs at all levels and is just
part of chess.
We can learn from Wojo's expe­
rience, however. From the diagram,
28.i.fl was the way to go. White is
threatening ttJxe6+ followed by i.xc4,
and 28 . . . ttJxc3? isn't possible in view
of 29.ttJxe6 + , so 28 . . . �bc8 29.ttJe4 just
leaves White with increasing pressure.
White has ideas of ttJxe6 and moving
a rook to the c-file, trying to win the
c4-pawn, and this is surprisingly hard
We'll examine Black's attempt to
to meet. Also, the immediate 28.ttJe4,
improve with 16 . . . �fd8 in the next
with the same ideas of a possible ttJg5
game. The position in the diagram is
or ttJc5, was also strong.
now highly topical, but was essential­
ly unknown at the time of this game.
15.a4

White IS Increasing his hold on

the queenside. If Black ever plays White's most natural-looking

148
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . llJc6
move, and probably still part of Wo­
jo's home analysis. Theory has con­
demned it because Wojo lost this
game, but Black has to play precisely
for five or six moves in order to equal­
ize against it.
Trying to force matters with
17.hd5 ! ? now runs into the Zwischen­
zug 17 . . . .b:b5, when 1B.axb5 (lB.
he6?! ieB 19.b4 fxe6 20.bxa5 E1xd4
21.axb6 cxb6 22 .a5 E1d5 left Black
with no problems in Grischuk-Gel­
fand, Sochi 200B, which was drawn)
18 . . . E1xd5 19.b4 llJb3 20.E1xa7 llJxd4
21.tLlc6 llJxe2+ 2 2 .'j;lg2 would have
been a draw in Cemousek-Klovans,
Czech Rep. 200B, if Black had played
22 ... E1d7 23.llJe5 E1d5 24.llJc6 E1d7 and
so on. Instead, 22 . . . E1xb5? 23.E1xc7 1eft
Black's knight and b5-rook stranded:
23 ... e5 (to give the knight a way out)
2U1e1 llJd4 25.E1xe5 E1xe5 26.llJxe5 b5
27.!1d7 llJc2 2B.llJc6 g6 29.E1b7 allowed
White to win a pawn.
The topical try for White, howev­
er, is Avrukh's suggestion 17.llJxa7.
Now 17 . . . llJb4 1B.E1ac1 favors White,
since 1B .. .f6 ! ? (Avrukh gives 1B . . . E1xd4
19.tLlb5 ixb5 20.axb5, leaving White
with his powerful light-squared bish­
op) 19.1lJac6 llJaxc6 20.llJxc6 llJxc6
21.E1xc6 is stronger for White than it
might look at first glance:
As usual, White's pieces are better
coordinated here. For instance, 2 1 . . .
E1xd4 (21.. .ixe2?! 2 2 .E1e1 ia6 23.E1xc7
E1xd4 24.E1c6 gives White excellent
chances, since 24 . . . E1b4? 25.E1cxe6
E1xb2 26.id5 is actually winning for
White) 22 . E1xe6 E1xa4 23.id5 �hB
24.E1d1 E1b4 25.E1d2 h6 26.f3 and White
has an endgame squeeze. He hopes to
eventually penetrate to the seventh
rank with his rooks.
Thus, 17 . . . llJb3 is considered
the critical move, and the line runs
1B.llJac6 ixe2 19.E1a3 ! (nothing else
is sufficient for an advantage, since
19.E1fe1 llJxal 20.llJxdB E1xdB 21.llJc6
E1d6 2 2 .ixd5 exd5 23.E1xe2 �fB is fine
for Black, and 19.1lJxdB ixfl 20.ixd5
exd5 21.E1a3 llJxd4 22.llJdc6 llJxc6
23.llJxc6 ih3 24.itJe7+ �hB 25.itJxd5
E1dB gives White zero winning chanc­
es) 19 . . . ixfl 20.�xf1 llJa5 21.ixd5
exd5 (not 2 1. . .E1xd5? 2 2 .llJe7+ �hB
23.llJxd5 exd5 24.E1c3 with a clear ad­
vantage for White) 22 .llJxdB E1xdB :
Avrukh gives 23.E1c3 f6 24.llJd3,
which is a little better for White thanks
to his potential to make a passed pawn
on the queenside. But 23.b4 is per­
haps more to the point. After 23 . . .
llJc4 24.E1c3, we now reach a critical
moment: 24 . . . llJxe5?! is a mistake for
Black, since after 25.dxe5, passively
defending the c-pawn will allow White
to make progress with a4-a5. But any
bid for active play will simply lose ma­
terial, as White is in a much better
149
 CHAPTER 6

position to take Black's pawns than 19.e3 c5

Black is to take White's. Thus, 24 .. J�a8
is the only real try. Best play is 2S.tt:lxc4 Black must continue to play ac­
dxc4 26 . .E1a3 ! , when again Black can go tively, or else White's piece pressure
wrong, as 26 . . .bS? ! 27.aS .E1a6 28 .E1e3
• on the queenside will simply leave him
@f8 29 . .E1eS ! (not 29.@e2 f6 !) 29 . . . better. Insufficient is 19 . . .f6 ? ! in view
c6 30.@e2 gives White a clear advan­ of 20.tt:ld3, when Black must essential­
tage. Black must guard White's power­ ly play 20. . . c5 anyway. Then White has
ful passed pawn with his rook, where­ 21.tt:\xb4 cxb4 2 2 .f4 ! , looking to crack
as Black's pawn on c4 is hardly a threat. open the center with d4-dS or f4-fS.
So best defense for Black is 26 . . . @f8
27.aS, when White has good practical
chances of converting this rook and
pawn endgame. With best play, Black
should probably draw, but it is better to
be on the sunny side of torture.
Wojo would certainly not be sur­
prised that modern grandmasters
have taken such an interest in the
endgames resulting from his favorite
10.tt:la3. Wojo's text move is intend­
ed to keep tension in the position; the
game doesn't erupt into an all-out tac­
tical battle, but rather a tension-filled
middlegame with good chances for Again an "only" move, looking to
Black to go wrong. break up Black's piece play before it
gets dangerous.
17 . . . tt:lb3 18Jllcd l
20 ••• tLlc2 ! ?
White has succeeded in luring
Black's as-knight to b3, where it can This i s not Black's best. 2 0. . . tt:\xd3
be chased with .E1d3 with .E1f1-c1 as the 21..E1xd3 gives White a nice pull, for in­
followup. stance 2 1 . . .c4 (21.. .,bbS 2 2 . axbS tt:\a5
23 . .E1fd1 or) 22 . .E1c3 ,bbS 23.axbS l"1c8
24.f4 with the point of l"1f2-c2 and if1.
But 20 ... ,bbS 21.axbS as ! is recom­
This move does three things : it pre­ mended by the computers, when play
vents .E1d3, guards the weak c6 square, could easily peter out to a draw with
and opens up an attack against the 22 .bxa6 (22.tt:\xb4 axb4 23.dxcS tt:\xc5
d4-pawn. Without this move, Black is is more than okay for Black) 22 . . . tt:\xa6
in serious trouble. For instance, 18 .. . 23.tt:\eS tt:\b4 (23 . . . cxd4 24.tt:\c6 l"1d6
f6? 19.tt:\c6 is just terrible, and 18 .. . 2S.exd4 100ks a little better for White)
cS? ! 19.dxcS tt:\xcS 20.tt:\c6 .E1d7 21..E1al ! 24.dxcS tt:\xcS.
leaves Black under heavy pressure The text move is an attempt to con­
on the queenside. Now, White's next tinue Black's active piece play. It is un­
move is forced. derstandable that he did not go for the

150
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . tLlc6

computer line, since he was probably 23.tLle5 �c5 24.�c7 �b4

not looking for such solid moves here. 25.�xa6 �bxa6 26.�xc4

21.dxc5 bxc5

Keeping the tension. Allowing

White to make trades with 21...tLlxcS
22.liJxcS bxcs 23J�xd8 �xd8 leaves
Black slightly worse after 24.�c1 �d2
25.ie4 liJb4 26.g4 ! (preventing . . . t7-fS)
26 ... �xb2 27.�xc5. Black's pieces are
less organized than White's here - his
main problem in this entire variation.

The point of this move is to pre­
pare liJeS. There was no need to play
this, however, since 22 .liJeS immedi­
ately is possible: 22 . . . tLld2, trapping
the rook, can be met by 23.liJc6 �d7
24.<i>h1, when Black's knight on d2
is suddenly pinned. White will sim­
ply follow up with �gl, after which he
will have a tremendous advantage on
the queenside, Black's energy having
been wasted on a senseless campaign
that brought both knights to the sec­
ond rank. The text is, in part, a waiting
move. In this case, it works: Black gets
overambitious and responds rashly.
22 • • • c4?
After this, Black's c-pawn will be­
come weak and fall. 22 . . . liJb4 23.liJeS
f6 24.liJc4 was a better route for Black
here, when White stands only slightly
better thanks to his coordinated pieces.
Over the course of four moves,
Black has lost a pawn and had to make
a full-fledged retreat on the queenside.
White should have a substantial pull.
26 • • • gb8
26 . . . tLlxa4 27.�a1 �4cS 28.�aS is
uncomfortable for Black.
27.a5 gb4 28.gcl �d3 29.gc2
lUb8 30J;dl??
An atrocious blunder. White for­
gets that his f2-pawn will be hanging
after Black's next move. The cautious
30. <i>gl first would have left White
with every advantage, as 30. . . liJxb2?
31.tLleS! (31.tLlxb2 �xb2 32.�xb2 �xb2
33.�d1 is also good) with the threat of
tLleS-c6 leaves White winning.

Summary: Both sides played what is now the main line of the 1 O . tLl a3
variation, when Wojo's choice of 17. '8.acl is certainly better than its reputa­
tion. Black had to play precisely to equalize, but instead he got carried away
with active piece play and self-destructed. White simply won a pawn and had
a clear advantage - but then he blundered a piece, ending the game unfavo­
rably. A similar tragedy occurred in Wojtkiewicz-S.[vanov, given in the notes,
making for an incredible coincidence.

lSI
 CHAPTER 6
Gelfand, Boris (2733)
Neubauer, Martin (2417)
[E04] Austria 2009
1..!Df3 .!Df6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
dxc4 5 .i.g2 .!Dc6 6 .'ilY a4 .i.b4+ 7 .i.d2
• •
.!Dd5 8.hb4 .!Ddxb4 9. 0 - 0 gb8
10 .!Da3 0 - 0 11.�b5 b6 12.Yfxc4
•
.i.a6 13 .!Db5 Yfd5 14.�xd5 .!Dxd5
•
15.a4 .!Da5 16 .!De5 gfd8? !
• Here, Black's rook on b8 instead of
With this move, Black prepares
counterplay with . . . c7-c5 by keeping a
rook on the b-file. The main drawback
is that White constantly has threats of
ttJc6, forking Black's rooks. As far as
the authors know, this was first test­
ed in the rapid game Ippolito-Furdzik,
New York 2002 .
If White tries 17.ttJxa7 here, as he
does when Black's b-rook comes to the
d-file, Black can no longer play 17 . . .
ttJb3 18.ga3 because White has addi­
tional threats involving forking Black's
rooks with ttJc6. But he can enter the
line 17 . . . ttJb4 (guarding c6) 18.E!ac1 f6
19.ttJac6 ttJ axc6 20.ttJxc6 ttJxc6 21.E!xc6
E!xd4 22 .E!xe6 E!xa4.
What is the difference between this
position and the one examined in the
note to White's move 17 in the previ­
ous game?
152
f8, so White no longer has 23 . .i.d5 in
view of 23 . . . @f8. White can still play
23.E!e7 with a tiny edge, but Black's
king is no longer boxed in a corner on
h8, so White's advantage should be
smaller here. Thus, it makes sense for
White to look for something stronger.
Also insufficient for an advantage
here is 17 . .i.xd5. Now 17 . . . exd5?! 18.b4
ttJb3 19.E!ad1 leaves Black's knight
is weak on b3, so, in order to defend
the c7-pawn, Black must once again
throw in the intermezzo 17 . . . hbS.
Ippolito-Furdzik, continued 18.axbS
E!xd5 19.b4 f6 (Black can also equalize
with 19 . . . ttJb3 20.E!xa7 ttJxd4 21.ttJc6
ttJxc6 - but not 21.. .ttJxe2 +??, which
loses to 22 . @g2 E!e8 23.ttJe7+) 20.ttJf3
ttJb3 (20 ... ttJb7? ! 21.E!xa7 E!xb5 22 .E!c1
c5 23.bxc5 bxc5 24.@g2 ! leaves Black
under pressure) 21.E!xa7. Here Black
blundered his knight and lost quick­
ly after 2l...E!xb5?? 22 .E!a3 ! , but Black
should draw easily here after the better
2l...ttJxd4 22.ttJxd4 E!xd4 23.E!c1 E!c8.
The text is White's most ambitious
try. Interestingly, the move that Wojo
played against 16 . . . E!bd8 is the critical
test against 16 . . . E!fd8.
17.gac1 c5
The point of Black's previous move.
17 . . .f6 18.,bd5 exd5 19.ttJc6 ttJxc6
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . ttJ c6
20J''1xc6 !xb5 21.axb5 gd7 22.gfc1 gc8
23.e3 and so on would be a simply
miserable ending for Black.
18.dxc5 bxc5
18 ... lLlb3? 19.1Llc6 lLlxc1 20.gxc1
ixbS 21.axb5 bxc5 2 2 . gxc5 will leave
White up a pawn or two in the ending.
Meanwhile, 18 . . . ixb5? ! is little bet­
ter: 19.axb5 bxc5 20J�al (20J�xc5 ttJb3
2U'k2 :Bxb5 22 .:Bd1 is good for a nice
pull) 20. . . gxb5 21.:Bxa5 :Bxa5 22.ttJc6
is a problem for Black. Finally, 18 . . .
f6, trying t o eradicate the threat of
tDc6 once and for all, runs into 19.b4 !
fxeS (19 . . . lLlxb4 20.c6 gbc8 21.c7 ge8
22.tLlxa7 fxe5 23.lLlxc8 !xc8 24.:Bfdl
leaves White with a clear advantage)
20.bxa5 ixb5 21.axb5 bxa5 22.gfdl,
when Black is under fire.
19 ... ,hb5?
On 19 . . . lLlb3, White is better after
20.Eixd5 exd5 21.lLlc6 or 20.gc2 !xb5
21.axb5 :Bxb5 22 .gdl. Now, howev­
er, was the time for 19 . . . f6. White can
cash out for a slight endgame pull with
20.tLlc6 lLlxc6 21.:Bxc6 ixb5 22.axb5
EixbS 23.:Bxe6 - the "safe" option - or
try for more with 20.lLlxa 7 or 20. .ih3 ! ? ,
which both look strong but lead to
complications. After the text move,
Black already has few chances of sav­
ing the game.
20.gxb5 gxb5 21.axb5 gb8
22.gc1
White is now simply up a pawn.
2 2 . . . f6
2 2 . . . g6 23.ixd5 exd5 24.gc5 d4
25.lLlc6 is hopeless for Black. But now
White has a nice reply.
Black's king cannot come to fl to
defend his e6-pawn.
23 . . . fxe5 24.,he6+ �f8
25.,hd5 gxb5 26.e4 gxb2 27.gc7
White is winning, and the rest is
just technique. White's powerful light­
squared bishop dominates the board,
and Black's king is open.
27 . . . a6 2 8.gfl+ <.!;1e8 29.:Bxg7 is
equally useless for Black.
2 8 . gb7 gb 1 + 2 9 . <.!;1g2 �d2
30.gxa7 g5
White threatened to win the g­
pawn with :Bfl + in any case.
3UW17 g4 32.gf7+ �e8 33.gg7
�f3 34.gxg4 �e1+ 35.�h3 �d3
36.gg8+ �e 7 37.gg7+ �d6
38.gg6+ �c5 39.gc6+ 1- 0
Black's king is now forced to step
on to the b-file, where it will be com­
pletely cut off from the kingside.
153
 CHAPTER 6

Summary: Black attempted to improve by swinging his other rook to the

dB square. If White goes in for 17. tiJxa7, this is indeed a slight improvement,
but Gelfand's 17. 'Sael seems to be theflawfrom Black's point ofview. Black was
already lost by move 2 0 .
Conclusion: Wojo was a pioneer in the system with lO.tLJa3 for White and
he tended to get good positions with it. His actual results were discouraging,
however, and perhaps it is for this reason that it has taken so long for the move
to come to the forefront of Catalan theory. The endgame (or queenless middle­
game) positions that occurred in Wojo's three 10. tLJ a3 losses are still key start­
ing points for modern theory, with top players like Delchev, Gelfand and Avrukh
having made significant contributions. Any Catalan player who has studied the
material in the section should have gained the understanding necessary to play
for these endings (and win them ! ) in his own games.
For the present, Black's best option against 10.tLJa3 appears to be heading for
the bad bishop versus good knight endgame from Delchev-Atahk above. Black
has fair chances of drawing if he conducts a good defense. This line is not pop­
ular, however, because Black's task is tedious and mundane - in other words,
not to the taste of players using such an active approach in the opening. And al­
though the "hanging pawn" endgame from Wojtkiewicz-S.lvanov is considered
somewhat dubious for the second player, Avrukh's 17.tLJxa7 is a headache for
Black in the main line, so some players may start looking at 14 . . . exd5 again. In
sum, Black's 7. . . tLJd5 is still playable, but Black cannot count on having any fun
when facing Wojo's system.

Black Maneuvers for ... c7-c5

So far, we've looked at Black's various
attempts to break with . . . e6-e5, as well
as his attempts to generate piece ac­
tivity with . . . .ib4+ and . . . tLJd5. There
is another important plan for Black
in the 5 . . . tLJc6 systems we must exam­
ine: striving for the . . . c7-c5 break. Al­
though 5 . . . tLJc6 blocks the c-pawn, af­
ter White plays 6.Wfa4 it is possible for
Black to play 6 . . . .id7 7.Wfxc4 tLJa5:
Black succeeds in generating activ­
ity for his queenside pieces and pre­
paring . . . c7-c5.
The longstanding main line has
been for White to play 8.Wfd3 here.
There are many reasons to put the
queen on this square, chief among
them that White's queen is sheltered
on the d-file by the d-pawn, rather
than placed on the potentially more
dangerous c-file. Nevertheless, Wojo
chose the square c2 for his queen
when facing German Grandmaster
Robert Rabiega in the game below.
There have been more tests of move
8.Wfc2 since, and it has scored at least
as well - if not better - than the heavi­
ly analyzed main line. Those seeking a
more complicated game should inves­
tigate 8.Wfc3 ! ?, an invention of Dean's.

154
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . lLlc6
This approach (analyzed in Ippolito­
Olafsson below) is unexplored and ap­
pears promising, particularly as a sur­
prise weapon.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2550)
Rabiega, Robert (2490)
[E02] Graz 1996
t.tLlf3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5 .ig2 �c6 6.�a4 .id7 7.�xc4
• the text move, Black prepares to play
�a5 S.�c2
By putting his queen on c2, White
discourages Black from freeing him­
self immediately with B . . . cS.
s ... gcS
In D.Gurevich-Shapiro, World
Open 1999, White gained a tremen­
dous advantage after B . . . cS? ! 9.dxcS
E1c8 10.b4 lLlc6 1l.a3. Although White
was not able to hold on to his extra
pawn - Black's forces are all pointed
at the queenside, making the a3-b4-
c5 pawn chain a target -he was able
to change his material advantage into
a structural one after 1l . . . aS 12.Wlb3
axb4 13.axb4 b6 14.0-0 bxc5 lS.bS.
Now, White has a strong passed b­
pawn, and his Catalan bishop on g2
will combine with his other pieces to
create a bind on the queenside. The
game continued lS . . . lLlb4 16.Wlc4 Wlb6
17.lLla3 i.d6 1BJ!d1 0-0 19.Wlh4 i.c7
20.i.b2 i.dB 21.lLlc4 WlxbS 2 2 .lLld6, and
White went on to win.
Black cannot give up on the idea of
. . . c7-cS, however. Passive play gives
White a free hand in the center. For in­
stance, B . . . i.c6 9 . 0-0 i.e4 1O:�a4+ lLlc6
1l.lLlc3 Wld7 12.lLlxe4 lLlxe4 13.i.e3 gave
White a better game in M .lvanov-Ed­
vardsson, Hafnarfjordur 1997. With
his c-pawn break.
9. 0 - 0 c5 10.�c3
10 . . . �c6 ! ?
After this move, White i s able to
gain the upper hand. Another unor­
thodox move for Black is 10. . . bS ! ? , al­
lowing White to play 1l.dxcS hcS
12.Wld3 ! , when Black's b-pawn is more
a liability than a strength. In Seres­
Eperjesi, Budapest 1996, play contin­
ued 12 . . . b4 13 .lt'le4 lLlxe4 14.Wlxe4 0-0
(14 ... i.c6 1S.WleS is slightly uncomfort­
able for Black) lS.i.gS i.e7 16.E:ad1!
i.xgS 17.lLlxgS WlxgS 1B.E:xd7, and
White had a fair amount of pressure.
Black's best here is probably 10. . .
cxd4 1l.lLlxd4 icS (or 1l . . . Wlb6 12.lLlb3
with i.c1-gS soon to follow), when
here 12 .lLlb3 (12 .E:d1 Wlb6 13.e3 0-0
gives Black smooth development) 12 . . .
lLlxb3 (the computer move 12 . . . i.a4? !
155
 CHAPTER 6
gives White the initiative after 13.i.g5)
13.�xb3 left White slightly better in
Priehoda-Plachetka, Litomysl 2003.
The game continued 13 . . .b5 14.i.g5
h6 15.ixf6 �xf6 16.tLle4 (16.tLlxb5?!
is risky after 16 . . J'�bB 17.tLlc7+ me7
18.�c4 id6 19.1':ifd1 �e5, when the
knight is "overextended") 16 . . . �e7
17.l':ifd1 0-0 1B.tLlxc5 Eixc5 19.�a3 icB
and here White could have kept his
slight advantage with something sim­
ple like 20.Eid2. White is going to dou­
ble on the d-file and Black's queenside
is under pressure.
1l.9d3
White could also take on c5, with
the usual plan of 1l.dxc5 hc5 12 .ig5.
Wojo's approach keeps more tension
in the position.
1l • • • h6
This move wastes time, but there
is a good reason for Black wanting
to play it. If Black seeks to develop
his kingside with 11...cxd4 12.tLlxd4
tLlxd4 13.�xd4 i.c5 14.�h4, he trans­
poses into a theoretical line known to
be good for White : for instance, 14 . . .
�b6?! i s met by 15.ih6 ! with the in­
itiative. After 14 . . . ic6 15.Eid1 (15.ig5
ie7 16.Eifd1 also gives White a pull)
15 . . . �b6 16.hc6+ Eixc6 (or 16 . . :�xc6)
17.ih6 ! , White sets Black serious
problems developing:
156
The problem for Black is that 17 ...
ixf2 +? fails after 1B.mg2, when White
threatens moves like ixg7 and tLla4.
1B . . . 0-0 19.ixg7! mxg7 20.�g5+ is an
important point. In practice, Black
has favored the passive 17 . . . i.fB, when
1B.Eid2 with ig5 soon to follow simply
leaves White with an extensive lead in
development.
After Black's precautionary text
move, White is able to seize the initi­
ative.
12.ie3
White is not afraid to give up his
dark-squared bishop, as it was in the
way of the rest of his development.
This is particularly true after Black's
choice of 1l . . . h6, which takes away the
g5 square. This trading of the queen's
bishop via ic1-g5xf6 in this opening
is thematic to many other lines in this
book, such as those found in Chapter
14.
1 2 tLlg4 13.gadl tLlxe3 14.9xe3
• • •
cxd4 15.tLlxd4 9b6
White's development puts tactical
pressure on Black, who has yet to cas­
tle. Developing the bishop with 15 ...
ic5? would be a mistake after either
16.tLlxc6 Eixc6 17.ixc6 ixe3 1B.ixd7+
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . llJc6
rll e7 19.fxe3 �b6 20.E:d3, with more
than enough material for the queen,
or 16.llJe4 .ixd4 17.llJd6+ mf8 18.�a3
VNe7 (otherwise White plays llJf5 with
discovered check, picking up the bish­
op on d4) 19.1lJxc8 hc8 20.�xe7+
rllxe7 2 1..ixc6 .ixf2 + 2 2 .mxf2 bxc6
23.me3, when White is up the ex­
change for a pawn.
16.llJa4 �a5 17.llJxc6 hc6
18 .bc6+ bxc6
•
After 18 . . . E:xc6 19.�d4 E:d6 20.�f4
it is still uncertain how Black will com­
plete his development. Now, however,
White has a clear positional target. He
immediately sets up a bind on the dark
squares.
19JM4 Yfc7 20.b4 e5 21.�g4
h5!?
How else can Black force White's
queen off the g-file?
2 2 .Yfg5 Yfe7 23.Yfe3 Wc7 24.llJc5
Black's loose pawns have prevent­
ed him from playing anything but de­
fensive moves.
24 .•• .td6
24 . . . .ixc5 25.�xc5 would be mis­
ery for Black once White landed a rook
on d6. Now White wins the wayward
pawn on h5.
25.Wg5 0 - 0 26.Wxh5 hc5
27.bxc5 �kd8
Black has managed to castle, but
White still has a bind. The open h-file
will be the telling factor in the major
piece battle to come, as Black's king is
constantly under attack from all direc­
tions.
28.Yff3 gd7 29.E:xd7 �xd7 30.e3
E:d8 31.E:bl Yfe6 32.a4 g6 33.mg2
gd5 34.E:b8+ mg7 35.�e4
Black dearly misses his h-pawn.
35 .•. �e7
Defending against White's threat
of �h4. Instead, 35 . . . E:xc5?? would be
met by 36.�h4, winning on the spot.
3 6.a5
If the White a-pawn makes it to a6,
White will be able to attack along the
seventh rank.
36 • • • gxc5 37.�g4 e4?
157
 CHAPTER 6
Black's back rank collapses. Black
could have continued to resist with
37 . . J�b5, forcing White's rook onto
c8, which in turn takes away White's
option of \Wc8 . White would then be
forced to play 38J"1c8, as 38.ga8 allows
38 . . . \Wb7 with tempo. After 38.gc8 e4
(38 . . . gxa5? 39 .\Wh3 ! wins) White is
still pressing an advantage after 39.a6.
38:�c8 �f6 39 .\Wb8+ �f5
40.ge8 \Wg5 41.b3 1- 0
Summary: Black eventually
managed the ... c7-c5 break after the
preparatory . . . gaB-cB, but White still
maintained a noticeable pull. Black
ended up losing too much time in the
opening with moves like 1l. . . h6 and
12 . . . '1Jg4, especially when White often
plays �c1-g5Jif6 to give up his light­
squared bishop anyway. These moves
were designed to relieve the pressure
on Black's position, but in the end,
Black lost a pawn outright and bare­
ly managed to castle.
Ippolito, Dean (USCF 2426)
6lafsson, Helgi (USCF 2551)
[E02] New York 1997
l.d4 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.�f3
dxc4 5 .tg2 �c6 6.\Wa4 .td7 7 •xc4
• •
�a5 8.\Wc3 ! ?
158
The idea behind this novelty is two­
fold. First, White is provoking Black
into playing . . . '1Jd5, where the knight
will be easy to hit with the counter­
punch e2-e4. Second, White is tar­
geting Black's loose knight on as. He
"threatens" .td2 , forcing the knight
to retreat. 6lafsson now sunk into
deep thought, eventually coming up
with what he believed was a way to
equalize.
8 . . . c5 !
Although White's 8 .\Wc3 discour­
ages this move, it doesn't complete­
ly prevent it. After the tempting 8 ...
'1Jd5 ! ? , the White queen heads to d3 as
in the main lines. The presence of the
knight on d5, however, makes Black's
position especially shaky. After 9.�d3
c5 10. 0-0, Black has numerous possi­
bilities :
a ) 1 O. . . '1Jc6, with the aim o f return­
ing Black's pieces toward the center,
gives White exactly the kind of game
he wants after 11.dxc5 hc5 12.a3 0-0
13 .b4 !e7 14.!b2.
b) 10. . . cxd4 was played in the game
Ippolito-Eperj esi, Budapest 1998,
when White got a comfortable game
after 1l.'1Jxd4. After 1l . . . '1Jb4 (11.. .liJc6
12.'1Jxc6 hc6 13.'1Jc3 is a slight edge
to White) 12.\Wd1 \Wb6 (on 12 . . . '1Jac6,
White plays 13.'1Jb5 a6 14.'1J5c3, with
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . ttJc6
the idea of a2-a3) 13.i.e3? ! , Black
blundered with the awful 13 . . .�c5??
14.a3 ttJbc6 15.b4 .ixd4 16.bxa5 1-0.
Since instead 13 ... ttJc4 would have
been a strong move for Black, simply
13.tiJc3, with an advantage in devel­
opment, should have been preferred
over developing the bishop to e3 im­
mediately.
c) 10 .. .l'k8 is Black's most natural
move and sets a small trap. If White
continues with the normal-look­
ing 11.dxc5 !xc5 12.a3? ! , Black has
12 ... �b6, the point being that 13.b4?
.bf2 + takes advantage of White's un­
defended bishop on cl. Now the ob­
vious 11.ttJc3 is good for a slight ad­
vantage. Black has plenty of move 11
choices, but White seems to retain
an advantage against each of them:
for instance, 11 ... cxd4 12.ttJxd5 exd5
13.tiJxd4 is nice; and 11 . . . c4 ! ? 12 .�dl
makes Black's knight on d5 some­
what of a liability. Black would like to
play 11 . . .i.c6 here, but with his king's
knight having been lured to the d5
square, it is unlikely that Black will
succeed in exchanging light-squared
bishops. White can play 12.dxc5 !xc5
13.tiJxd5 �xd5 (13 . . . .ixd5? ! runs into
14.�b5+ i.c6 15.�xc5 .ixf3 16.�e5)
14.�c3 with a pull.
d) 10. . . ttJb4 ! ? 11.�dl i.c6 is a rea­
sonable idea for Black, trying to make
use of his "extra" tempo. It is unclear
as to whether White's positional ad­
vantages outweigh Black's activity:
12.a3 .ixf3 ! ? (12 . . . ttJ a6 13. ttJbd2 100ks
good for White) 13 . .ixf3 ttJbc6 14.d5
tiJd4 15.dxe6 ttJxf3 + 16.exf3 �xdl
17.ext7+ It>xt7 18 .l';xb3 ttJb3 19J'!a2
gives Black some compensation for
his pawn because White's rook is mis­
placed:
The diagrammed position can be
considered critical to the evaluation of
8.�c3 ttJd5. Play might continue 19 . . .
i.e7 20.ttJc3 E1ad8 2 1.E1el E1d3 2 2 .i.e3
E1hd8 23.ttJe4, when White will try to
make progress on the kingside, de­
spite essentially playing down a rook.
He can eventually try to thrust his a­
pawn forward to free his trapped piece
on a2, and, if he succeeds - and it
seems probable that he will - he will
be in a position to make the most of
his two extra kingside pawns.
e) On 1O �b6, White should con­
•..
tinue with 11. ttJc3 , preserving his
slight edge.
f) 10. . . c4 ! ? relieves the pressure
on White's center, but allows Black to
take some space on the queenside. Af­
ter 11.�dl or 11.Y9c2 , White should be
slightly better, as he has ideas of ttJf3-
e5 and playing in and around the cent­
er.
g) 10. . . �c6 is a useful move for
Black, after which White's best is
11.i.d2 ! with ideas of E1f1-c1 and ttJf3-
e5. After 11 ... cxd4 (ll. ..ttJb4 12 . .ixb4
cxb4 13.ttJbd2 is comfortable for
White), White can play 12 . .ixa5 (be­
fore Black gets in . . . ttJd5-b4) 12 .. .'�xa5
13.ttJxd4 with a slight advantage.
After the text, White has to work
harder for the advantage.
159
 CHAPTER 6
9 .id2
• edge: the tries 1l . . . bxcS 12.0-0, 11...
The point. Bad would be 9.dxcS l:!c8
10.b4? ltJdS 11.�d2 ltJc4 12.�c2 ltJxb4
13.�xc4 l:!xcS, when Black is winning.
9 .•• lLlc6
This appears to be the most level­
headed move, but better is the risky­
looking 9 . . . b6!?, opening up the long
diagonal but preparing to vacate it
immediately. White must continue
10.dxc5 here, as 1O.ltJeS l:!c8 1l.ltJxd7
�xd7 gives Black too much initia­
tive. Now Black should gambit a pawn
with 1O. . . l:!c8 ! (lO. . . hcS? ! 1l.b4 hf2 +
12.<.tlfl and Black's bishop is trapped
on f2) when White should eschew
1l.b4 ! ? ltJdS in favor of 11.�d3, polite­
ly stepping off the c-file:
Black's various ways of retaking
the c-pawn continue to give White the
160
i.xcS? 12 .b4, and 1l ... l:!xcS 12.0-0 '?9c8
13.i.c3 are all uninspiring for Black.
He should reject all three options and
offer to gambit the pawn yet again
with 1l . . . ltJc6 12.cxb6, when he can
win the two bishops and retain his in­
itiative with 12 . . . ltJb4 13.!xb4 !xb4+
14.ltJc3 (or 14.ltJbd2 �xb6, and Black
is fine) 14 . . . �xb6 IS.0-0 0-0 16.ltJe4
(16.ltJeS l:!fd8 looks fine for Black) 16 ...
ltJxe4 17.�xe4 i.c6 18.�h4 �b7, when
Black has almost enough pressure for
his pawn.
10.dxc5 lLle4 11:ffc 2 lLlxc5
Black can also try 1l . . . ltJxd2
12.ltJbxd2 �aS 13.0-0 �xcS 14.�xc5
!xcS IS.lLle4 i.e7 16.l:!fdl, with a small
pull in the endgame for White.
12 .ic3?!
•
This move is unambitious, and
so Black is able to equalize without
much difficulty. Instead the aggres­
sive 12 .b4 ! is called for. Now, Black's
knights look awkward. Olafsson had
seen the variation 12 . . . ltJa6 13.b5 ! ?
(the quiet 13.a3 leaves White a small
edge) 13 . . . ltJcb4 14.�b2 ixbS IS.a3
�d3, a cute pseudo-sacrifice of the
queen, but then 16.hb4 ltJxb4 17.ltJc3
defends against Black's threats and
leaves him with too many loose pieces
to defend. After 17 . . . �c2 18.l:!bl �xb2
19.1:!xb2, something must give. After
the more passive move played in the
game, White can no longer claim to
have the advantage.
12 b5 13.lLld4 lLlxd4 14.hd4
• • •
gc8 15.Yfd2 .ic6 16. 0 - 0 hg2
17.mxg2 Yfd5+ 18.f3 e5 19 .ic3 •
Yfxd2 20.lLlxd2
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . tLlc6

Black has fully equalized, as White

has nothing to play for in this ending.
A draw is the most reasonable result.

20 .id6 21.l::l a cl me7 2 2 .l::lfdl

• • •

f5 23 .ib4 �b7 24 .bd6+ �xd6

• •

25.e4 fxe4 26.�xe4 �xe4 27.fxe4

l::lhd8 28.l::lxc8 l::lxc8 29.l::l d 2 me6
30.mf3 a6 31.me3 112-112

Summary: Whitefound the novelty 8. 'ff c3!? over the board and the move
turned out to set Black some interesting challenges. Black's moves were solid,
but he should have been worse after 12.b4! Instead, White played more pas­
sively with 12. i.c3 and the game petered out to a draw.

Conclusion: Against 6 . . ..id7 7.'ffxc4 tLla5, Wojo liked the simple 8 .'ffc2 .
White stays flexible and gets a quiet pull without taking any risks. The maneu­
ver i.c1-g5xf6 to complete queenside development is thematic, something which
echoes the lines in Chapter 14 on Semi-Slav hybrids. Meanwhile, Dean's inven­
tion 8.'ffc3 ! ? leads to sharper play. If White is feeling ambitious, this line is prob­
ably worth a spin.

161
Chapter 7
////////QQQ/Q///Q;I6WQ/H/Q///Q//Q/H//QH/H//H///AW
Black Plays 5 . . . c5
Wojo's Queenless Midd legame Approach
One of the most important positions
in the Catalan occurs after 1.�f3 dS
2 .d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4 S . .ig2
cS 6. 0-0 �c6. This position can be
reached by at least a dozen different
popular move orders, so no matter
what the specifics of a player's person­
al Catalan repertoire, it is important to
have something prepared for it. White
has two main moves here, 7.�a4 and
7.tt'leS, and Wojo played both of them.
He also had a third weapon, how­
ever, which is not considered crit­
ical by mainstream theory: 7.dxcS.
White heads straight for a queenless
middlegame, aiming for only a mod­
est advantage. Wojo played the end­
ings so well, however, that his results
with 7.dxcS were every bit as good as
they were with either of the two main
moves. The system isn't hard to learn
162
1.c� :f3 d 5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e 6 4.g3
dxc4 5 . .ig2 c5
and shares many similarities with our
chosen line against the Queen's Gam­
bit Accepted in Chapter 15, 1.tt'lf3 d5
2.d4 tt'lf6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3 a6 S . .bc4 c5
6.0-0 .ie7 7.dxcS.
With best play, Black can eventual­
ly equalize against this line. However,
this hasn't discouraged grandmasters
like Bareev, Speelman, Yusupov, Rib­
li, Miton, and Miles from playing it as
a legitimate winning attempt. The fol­
lowing game illustrates the kind of dif­
ficulties Black faces if he fails to play
precisely against 7.dxcS.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2575)
Kagan, Frederick (2322 USCF)
[E04] Washington, D.C., 1997
1.c��:f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
dxc4 5 . .ig2 c5 6. 0 - 0
 BLACK PLAYS 5 . . . c5
There isn't anything wrong with
playing 6.1l«a4+ to win back the pawn
immediately, of course, but Black has
few troubles equalizing after 6 . . . .td7
7.�xc4 .tc6 8.dxc5 lLlbd7 9.lLlc3 hc5
10.0-0 l'!c8, as in Ippolito-Manion,
Chicago 1996.
6 • • • .!Dc6
By far the most logical move. Black
has a few other tries, but White gets
a free hand in the center after all of
them. For starters, 6 . . . .id7 aims to put
the bishop on c6 to challenge White's
Catalan bishop on g2, but the idea is
fairly slow. White has time for 7.lLla3
ic6 8.lLlxc4 and here:
a) 8 . . . .id5 9.dxc5 ! .ixc5 (9 . . . ixc4
1O.�a4+ regains the piece) 10.lLle3
ixe3 1l.he3 gave White the bish­
op pair and a stable position in
Dizdarevic-Kovacevic, Yugoslav Team
Chp . 1989.
b) 8 ... cxd4 9.1l«xd4 leaves White
with tons of activity. Black has lost
too much time maneuvering his bish­
op to the c6 square, and is scrambling
to complete his development. 9 . . . lLla6
10.�h4 lLlc5 1l . .ig5 .ie7 12.l'!fdl lLlcd7
13.lLlfe5 was a definite advantage for
White in J.Horvath-Bartels, Leeu­
warden 1995.
c) 8 . . . h6 stops .ic1-g5, but neglects
Black's development. Now 9 . .if4 .idS
10.dxc5 leaves White slightly better,
but the more ambitious 10.�a4 + ! ? al­
lows White to go after a big advantage:
10. . . 1l«d7 1l.1l«c2 lLlc6 12.lLlce5 was ex­
cellent for White in YIj6Hi-Kanko,
Helsinki 1984.
d) 8 ... lLlbd7 ! ? is a tricky move that
tempts White to head for the "loose"
d6 square. 9 . .if4 is White's best re­
sponse, as 9.dxc5 hc5 1O.lLld6+ cJ;e7
gives Black the kind of active game he
is seeking. After 9 . .if4, Black shouldn't
play 9 . . . lLlb6 in view of 10.lLlce5 .txf3
11 . .ixf3 lLlfd5 12 .�3 with activity for
White in Rajkovic-Halasz, Lillafured
1989. So Black's best response is 9 . . .
cxd4, when the simple 1O.lLlxd4 .ixg2
11. cJ;xg2 is comfortable for White; he
can also try for more with 10.1l«xd4 .ic5
1l.lLld6+ cJ;e7 12 .1l«d2 or 10.lLld6+ ixd6
1l.hd6 hf3 12 . .ixf3 1l«b6 13 . .ia3
0-0-0, which gave White enough com­
p ensation in Bogdanovski-Smagin,
Prilep 1992.
Going back, another idea for Black
is the "premature" 6 . . . cxd4. This is a
rare line, and with p recise play, White
can often gain a large advantage after
7.lLlxd4. The critical line here is prob­
ably 7 . . . a6 ! ? 8.lLlc3 e5 9 .lLlc2 �xdl
10.l'!xdl lLlc6 1l . .ig5 .ic5 12.lLle3 .ie6
13.ixf6 gxf6 14.lLled5 0-0-0 15.lLlxf6,
which is a slight edge for White ac­
cording to Avrukh, who analyzes this
line extensively. However, White can
drastically cut down on the amount of
theory he needs to know by just play­
ing 7.�xd4, which gives White a de­
cent edge and fits better with our rep­
ertoire. Then Black can try to prevent
the queen swap with 7. . . .id7, when ei­
ther 8 . .ig5 lLlc6 9.�xc4 .ie7 10.lLlc3
or 8.lLle5 lLlc6 9.lLlxc6 hc6 10.hc6+
bxc6 11.1l«xc4 1l«d5 12 .1l«c2 looks good
for White. Thus, the only idea that is
ever played here is 7 . . . �xd4 8.lLlxd4
163
 CHAPTER 7
a6. (This is played to prevent tLlbS, for
instance, if 8 . . . tLlbd7, White gets the
advantage after 9.tLlbS �b8 10.tLlxa7.)
Play here continues 9.tLld2 i.cS 10.tLlc2
c3 11.bxc3 tLlbd7 12.tLlb3 1e7 13.�b1,
with a pull for White on the queenside:
A key game is Balashov-A.Petro­
sian, Yerevan 1986, which ran 13 . . .
tLldS 14.1d2 b S IS.tLlb4 tLl 7b 6 16.tLlaS
1d7 17.tLlxdS tLlxdS l8.c4 bxc4 19.tLlxc4
i.bS 20.�fc1 0-0 21.a4 ixc4 2 2 . �xc4,
when White converted his bishop pair
after 22 . . . �ac8 23.�bc1 tLlb6? (23 . . .
�xc4 24.�xc4 �b8 holds on) 24Jk7!
1a3 2S.�xc8 �xc8 26.�xc8+ tLlxc8
27.1b7 tLlb6 28.aS tLldS 29.ha6.
6 . . . a6? ! has been tried a few times,
but it doesn't make much sense. White
gets an improved version of our main
recommendation after 7.dxcS �xdl
8.�xdl hc5 9 .tLleS. After 9 . . . tLlbd7
(9 . . . 0-0 10.tLlxc4 �a7 11.1e3 tLlbd7
12.tLlc3 is a slight edge for White)
1O.tLlxc4 �a7 11.tLlc3 bS 12.tLld6+ <Jle7
(12 . . . ixd6 13.�xd6 �c7) 13.tLlce4 tLlxe4
14.tLlxe4 �c7 1S.1d2 , Black resigned in
Razuvaev-Geller, USSR 1988. Razu­
vaev concludes that Black is losing af­
ter IS . . . 1b7 (IS . . . 1b6 16 . .ib4+ or 15 . . .
fS 16.tLlxc5 tLlxcS 17.1aS �d7 18.1b4
win for White) 16.1aS �cc8 17J�xd7+
'i!lxd7 18.tLlxc5+ �xc5 19.ixb7. Finally,
6 . . . tLlbd7 transposes into Chapter 11.
7.dxc5
164
7 • • • YlYxdl
The easygoing 7 . . . hcS is another
way for Black to consent to the trade
of queens. If White backs out of the
queen trade with 8.�a4, a common
idea, 8 . . . 0-0 9.�xc4 �dS ! equalizes for
Black. Thus we recommend 8 .�xd8+,
when Black has two different ways
to recapture. After 8 . . . <Jlxd8, 9.tLlbd2
<Jle7 10.tLlxc4 led to a typical end­
game advantage for White in Miles­
A.Sokolov, Crans Montana 2001. Af­
ter 10 . . . tLldS 11.a3 bS 12.tLlceS tLlxe5
13.tLlxeS 1b7 14.tLld3 �hc8 1S.i.d2 i.d4
16.�fc1 �xc1+ 17.�xc1 �c8 18.�xc8
hc8 19.e3 i.b6 20.e4 tLlc7 2 1.1b4+,
White had a slight edge, though the
game was eventually drawn.
The other recapture for Black is
8 . . . tt:lxd8, which leads to slightly more
complex play. Here 9.tLleS i.d7 10.tt:ld2
transposes into E. Donaldson-Bagin­
skaite, given below, but 9 . . . tLldS ! ? is
not so clear. Thus White usually plays
9.tLlbd2 , inviting the pawn jettison 9 ...
c3. After 10.bxc3 b6 (10. . . tLlc6 11.�dl
actually transposes back into the main
line with 7 . . . �xdl) 11.tLlb3 was agreed
drawn in Pigusov-Smagin, Sochi 1987,
but White gets a tiny initiative after
11 . . . i.e7 12.a4 i.b7 13.aS, etc.
After 9.tLlbd2 , note Black does
not have to play the . . . c4-c3 pawn
 BLACK PLAYS 5 . . . c5
ditch. Another option is 9 . . . ,id7. Here
lO.llJe5 ! is given by Ftlicnik:
Now it is probably too late for
Black to still play 10. . . c3? ! - Black
was lucky to escape White's fierce in­
itiative in Atahk-Smagin, 199 2 , af­
ter 1l.llJxd7 llJxd7 12 .llJe4 l:kS 13.bxc3
ie7 14J3d1 llJb6 15.ie3 llJd5 16 . .b:a7
f5 17.c4 ! gxc4 lS.llJd2 ga4 19 ..b:d5
exd5 20. .tb6 if6 21.gab1 0-0 2 V iJf3
l"lxa2 23.e3 llJc6 24.gxd5 g6 25.gd7 gt7
26.gxt7 �xt7 27.i.d4 llJdS 1 2_1 2 :
Here, rather than taking a draw,
White could have played 2S.gb6 .b:d4
29.exd4 ! with some chances to play
for a win. So, rather than try to ditch
the pawn, Black is better off trying
the quieter 10. . . ib5. Here 1l.llJdxc4
l"lcS 12 .ie3 0-0 13 . .b:c5 gxc5 14.b3
l"lc7 15.gac1 gave White a tiny edge in
E.Donaldson-Baginskaite, Leningrad
19S5.
Finally, Black doesn't have any par­
ticularly good options for avoiding the
queen trade. 7 . . . .td7 gives White time
for S.llJa3 .b:c5 9 .llJxc4 0-0 10.ig5,
with an advantage in Backe-J ohans­
son, Arboga 1977. The sharp idea of
7 . . . �a5? ! , preparing S . llJ a3 c3, is cov­
ered in Ippolito-Klein below.
8.gxdl .!xeS 9.llJbd2 0 - 0
Oddly enough, this natural move
is uncommon. Black has many more
challenging options available, so the
unambitious 9 . . . 0-0 isn't to many
players' taste. We'll look at Black's al­
ternatives over the next few games;
for now, sit back and enjoy watching
Wojo strangle his opponent.
10 . . • llJ d5? !
With this, Black starts drifting into
a dangerously passive position. The
active 10. . . llJg4 ! should be tried here.
After 1l.e3 gbS 12 .id2 b6 13.gac1 ia6
14.a3 gbcS, White needs to play active­
ly to keep a slight edge. 15.b4 (15.ie1
gfdS 16.gxdS+ llJxdS 17.,if1, played in
Adorjan-G.Horvath, Hungarian Chp.
1995, wasn't active enough for more
than a draw) 15 . . . i.e7 16.h3 hc4 (16 . . .
llJf6 17.llJfe5) 17J�xc4 llJge5 and here
White can try something like lS.gcc1
165
 CHAPTER 7
l:!fd8 19.tiJe l ! ? , keeping enough pieces
on the board to maintain an edge. His
two bishops provide him with winning
chances. Regardless, Black should be
able to hold a draw with accurate play.
11.<lLlfe5
Simple and strong.
1l • • • tiJxe5 12.�xe5 f6 13.�e4
It was also possible to play 13.tiJd3
.id6 14 . .id2 l:!d8 IS.l:!ac1 with a lead in
development.
13" . �b6
On 13 . . . l:!e8, just 14 ..id2 (among
other moves) allows White to keep
his slight pull. There is no need to be
greedy with 14.i.xdS? ! exdS IS.l:!xdS.
After IS . . . b6, Black gets the two bish­
ops and has caught up in develop­
ment.
14.�a5
Wojo's power in this position is
derived from the contrast between his
Summary: In the queenless middlegame that arose after 7.dxc5 Yf1xdl,
a few inaccurate moves by Black left him positionally strangled. 1 O . . . tiJ dS?!
looked active, but only 1 O . . . tiJ g4! would have worked.
166
own Catalan bishop on g2 and Black's
passive clergyman on c8. This move,
further attacking b7, is a logical step
for White. An even stronger alterna­
tive was 14.ie3 ! , trading off Black's
only remaining active piece. If 14 ...
tiJxc4? IS.hcS l:!e8 16.l:!ac1 tiJxb2?
17.l:!d4 ! traps Black's knight, and 17 ...
as 18.ia3 eS 19.1:!d6 tiJa4 20. .id5+
mh8 21.ic4 ! finishes the job. Mean­
while, if Black takes the other way
with 14 . . . ixe3 IS.tiJxe3, White is sim­
ply planning to play l:!al-c1 and pen­
etrate to the seventh or eighth ranks.
14" .gb8 15 .id2 �d5 16.gac1
•
J.b6 17.�e4 .ie7
Black is trying awkwardly to ar­
range a defense, but his setup is inef­
fective.
18.�e3 !
After this move, White i s win­
ning. Black cannot defend all of his
queenside pieces and pawns.
18".�xe3 19 .ixe3 .ie5 20 .ic5!
• •
ge8 21.f4 .ie7
Suddenly, Black discovers that af­
ter 2 1 . . .hb2? 2 2 .l:!c2 his bishop is
(quite comically) trapped. This was
the point of White's 20 . .icS.
22 .ixa7
• ga8 23.�e7 �a7
24.a3 1- 0
By this point, Black's cause is hope­
less, so he resigns.
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . cS
Wea k Pawns and Pressure
One of the most common debates in
the 7.dxc5 system involves a key trade­
off between pawn structure and p res­
sure. Black can give White a weak c­
pawn with the ditching move . . . c4-c3,
but White can often return the favor
by playing llJf3-d4x(llJ)c6. In general,
White's extra activity and slight lead
in development allow him to call the
shots and get the better of the ensu­
ing pawn-structure war. The question
is not whether White will get a struc­
tural advantage - it's whether he'll be
able to convert it into a win. In the fol­
lowing game, Polish GM Kamil Miton,
who studied with Wojo, only manages
to convert his advantage after numer­
ous mistakes by Black.
Miton, Kamil (2516)
Papp, Gabor (2291)
[E04] Athens 200t
1.�f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 c5 4 .ig2 •
�c6 5. 0 - 0 d5 6.d4 dxc4 7.dxc5
BxdI 8.gxdl .ixc5 9.�bd2
9 . . . c3
Of the many moves Black has tried
here, this is justifiably the main line. If
Black is going to lose the c-pawn, why
not weaken White's queenside pawn
formation in the process? On the oth­
er hand, this pawn ditch has its down­
sides : White gets the open b-file and
increased control of the center. Before
moving on, let's briefly note Black's
other possibilities, just for reference.
a) We covered 9 . . . 0-0 in the previ­
ous game, but 9 .. J::1b 8 is an attempt to
keep the king in the center for a few
more moves. Black remains flexible as
to whether he will castle or play . . . <JJ e7,
and in some cases he may have the
punch . . . b7-bS. After 10.llJxc4 llJe4 ! ?
(played to stop llJd6), White wast­
ed no time in Ulybin-Pandavos, Ath­
ens 1997, with 1l.i.e3 he3 12 .fxe3 !
(12.llJxe3 <JJ e 7 13J::1 a c1 i.d7 14.llJc4
was good for a smaller edge) 12 .. .
<JJ e 7 13.llJfeS llJxeS 14.llJxeS llJf6 (14 .. .
llJcS lSJ::1 a c1 llJa6 16.b4 gives White a
strong initiative, for instance 16 . . .f6
17.bS fxeS 18 .bxa6 bxa6 19.9c7+ <JJ f6
20.i.e4) lS.gac1 llJe8 16.llJxf7! <JJxf7
17J::1 d 8 and White went on to win.
b) 9 . . . <JJ e 7 is a normal-looking
move, but after 1O.llJxc4, Black has no
sure route to equality. For instance,
10. . . llJ e4 11.i.e3, trading off Black's
most active piece, is good for White. If
Black instead deploys the knight with
10. . . llJg4, then 1l.e3 gb8 (1l . . . i.d7 12 .h3
167
 CHAPTER 7
�f6 13.�feS ghd8 14.�d3 i.e8 lS.i.f3
gave White a pull in Chiburdanidze­
E. Donaldson, Women's World Chp.
1986) 12.�d4 �geS 13.�xc6+ �xc6
14.a3 bS lS.b4 ! is an edge for White.
So, this leaves the reasonable 10. . . gd8
- but after 11.gxd8 �xd8 12.�feS �dS
(12 . . . i.d7 is met with 13.i.e3) 13.�d3
bS 14.�e3 .ixe3 lS . .ixe3 �b7 16.gc1
id7 17.i.xdS exdS 18.gc7, White had
a large advantage in Sorokin-F.Benko,
Buenos Aires 1997.
c) 9 . . .i.d7, looking to castle
queenside, doesn't solve Black's de­
velopment problems, either: 1O.�xc4
0-0-0 11.i.f4 and Black has to deal with
inconveniences like 11. . .�dS 12 .id6!
and 11 ... �e4 12 .e3 f6 13.�e1 ! . As these
variations demonstrate, Black is sim­
ply disorganized; castling queenside
makes little sense considering White's
open lines.
d) The desperate 9 . . . i.xf2 +? is a
bad move based on the tactic 10. �xf2
�g4+ 11. �gl �e3. White can't save
the exchange, but he can play 12.gfl
�xfl 13. �xfl, as in Jiretorn-Tikkanen,
Hallsta 1996, when Black's c4-pawn is
ripe for harvesting.
e) 9 . . . eS? ! just weakens Black's con­
trol of the center. 1O.�xc4 e4 (10. . . �g4
11.�d6+ .ixd6 12.gxd6 �e7 13.gd1 was
good for White in Ribli-Van der Ster­
ren, Munich 1990) l1.�gS ifS 12 .ie3
i.e7 13.�d6+ .ixd6 14.gxd6 was a
clear advantage for White in Antunes­
Santos, Portuguese Team Chp. 1994.
f) 9 . . . �aS? ! , trying to hold on to
the c4-pawn, certainly doesn't help
Black after lO.�eS, for instance 10. . . c3
11.bxc3 �d7 12.�ec4 �xc4 13.�xc4 f6
14.�d6+ hd6 1S.gxd6 and White was
clearly better in Davies-Chernin, Mos­
cow 1988.
g) Finally, 9 ... �g4 ! ? is an "annoy-
168
ing" possibility for Black covered in
the next game.
If one has an understanding of how
to play against 9 . . . 0-0, 9 . . . c3, and 9 ...
�g4 ! ? , the rest of Black's ninth-move
alternatives aren't too hard to figure
out.
10.bxc3
This is considered the tabiya for the
entire 7.dxcS variation. At first glance,
Black appears to be doing just fine, but
it is not so simple to equalize. White
has potential pressure along the hl-aS
diagonal, up the b-file, and in the cent­
er. Meanwhile, Black still has to figure
out how to complete his development.
10 • • • 0-0
This most obvious move, and
therefore the most common one. The
only important alternative, 10. . . id7,
refrains from committing the king
immediately. An example of how
this can be useful occurs in the game
D. Gurevich-A. Sokolov, St. Martin
1992, when Black found cause to cas­
tle queenside: l1.�gS ! ? i.e7 12.�de4
�xe4 13.�xe4 �aS 14.�d6+ ixd6
lS.gxd6 O-O-O! 16.gd4 and here 16 ...
ic6 would have been equal according
to Ivanchuk.
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . cS
Emphasizing the queenside with
l1.lLlb3 is a more principled try for
White. After 1l . . . .ib6 12.lLlfd4 0-0-0
(12 ... lLlg4? ! 13.a4 as 14.h3 lLlgeS
15.ia3 gave White control of the im­
portant diagonals in Speelman-King,
Brighton 1984) 13.lLlbS lLle8 14.i.a3
IDeS IS.lLlSd4, White had pressure in
Muhvic-Franic, Croatian Team Chp.
1998. In view of this, it makes more
sense for Black to keep his bishop on
the a3-f8 diagonal with 1l . . . i.e7, when
White is only a little better - for exam­
ple, play might continue 12 .lLlfd4 lLlxd4
(12 . . . 0-0-0 13.lLlbS a6 14.lLld6+ .ixd6
15J''lxd6 .ie8 16.i.a3 l3xd6 17.i.xd6 .id7
18.l3dl gave White the two bishops in
Levin-Held, Budapest 1997, while
12 ... 0-0 simply transposes into the
lines where Black castles immediate­
ly with 10. . . 0-0) 13.cxd4 lLldS 14.i.d2
!'k8 IS.l3ael 0-0 16.e4 llJf6 17.llJc5 (on
other moves, . . . i.e7-a3 from Black is
annoying) 17 . . . i.c6 18.f3 lLld7, as in
Mikhalevski-Sahu, Ubeda 1997:
At this point, White should have
admitted that Black had just about
equalized and played 19.1lJxd7 i.xd7
20. .ifl, for instance 20. . . i.a3 21.l3xc8
l"lxcB 22.l3bl b6 23 . .id3 and so on. In­
stead, White played 19 . .ie3 ! ? llJxcS
20.dxcS, when his "strong" c-pawn
was a liability.
11.�b3 ie7
Keeping control of this diagonal
seems best, as 1l . . . .ib6 12 . .ia3 would
allow White to seize control of the posi­
tion. Then 12 . . . l3eB isn't active enough,
so 13.llJfd4 llJeS 14.icS llJc4 IS . .txb6
axb6 16.llJbS led to a clear advantage
for White in Kataj ainen-Meskanen,
Helsinki 1996. Black should challenge
the d-file with 12 . . . l3dB, when here
White has two good ways to fight for
an advantage. The first (and simplest)
is just to swap rooks with 13.l3xd8+,
when 13 . . . hdB (13 . . . llJxd8 14.c4 al­
lows White to keep his slight initia­
tive rolling) 14.llJfd4 llJeS IS.l3dl llJdS
16.llJfS left White a little more active in
Pein-Smagin, Lloyds Bank 1990. The
second is the ambitious 13.llJfd4 .id7
14.llJbS, and here 14 . . . llJeS lS.llJd6 i.c6
leads to the key position:
Now White should eschew the var­
iation 16.llJxb7? ! l3xdl+ 17.l3xdl hg2
18.<j;lxg2 llJe4 19.13el llJc4, when Black
had activity in Ippolito-Lipman, Fox­
woods 2002, in favor of 16.hc6 bxc6
17.c4. Then 17 . . . .ic7 1B.l3ael llJeB I9.cS
was good for White in Markowski­
Rustemov, Bundesliga 2001. Wheth­
er White chooses to play 13.llJfd4 or
13.l3xdB, the bottom line is that he
should be looking to get a slight but
clear edge.
12.�fd4
169
 CHAPTER 7
This is typical play for White. Black
finds himself under more and more
pressure.
12 . . . gd8
The alternative 12 . . . .td7 is some­
what more common. Now White
needs to develop the bishop to a
square where it puts direct pressure
on Black's position. Putting the bish­
op on f4 just makes it a target for
. . . e6-e5, while putting it on e3 does
little to challenge Black's develop­
ment: 13 .i.e3 l:Uc8 14.tLlb5 tLld8 ! suc­
cessfully defended all of Black's weak
spots in Markowski-Kaidanov, Aero­
flot Open 2002 , so only White's weak­
nesses were noticeable. Hence we rec­
ommend 13 . .!g5, which sets Black the
most problems :
Here Black must decide how to de­
velop his rooks along the back rank.
170
This decision is surprisingly impor­
tant, as there are subtle tactical differ­
ences depending on which rook Black
chooses to move and where he choos­
es to put it. 13 . . . l:Ud8 transposes into
the main game, so in this note we will
focus on Black's other two moves.
On 13 .. J'Uc8, the immediate
14.hf6 ! is a concrete approach for
White. It is also possible to get the
upper hand with more flexible play,
such as 14.gabl tLld8 15.tLla5 (Aroni­
an-Vaganian, Bundesliga 2006), but
just taking the knight seems to give
Black a real headache. 14 . . . i.xf6 (14 ...
gxf6 ! ? runs into some tactical shots by
White starting with 15.tLlf5 ! , played in
Blagojevic-Abramovic, Serbia 2008:
15 . . . gc7 16.tLlxe7+ tLlxe7 17.hb7!,
the idea being 17 ... gxb7 18.tLlc5 gc7
19.9xd7 gac8 20.tLle4! with the ad­
vantage) 15.tLlc5 tLlxd4 16.cxd4 .!c6
17.tLlxb7 hg2 18.Wxg2 gab8 19.tLlc5
hd4 20.gxd4 gxc5 21.gbl! gf8 2 2 . gb7
ga5 23.a4 gave White the better of the
rook ending in Gleizerov-Adly, Dubai
2008 . Black's rooks are far less active
than White's here, and White can try
to make progress pushing his pawns
on the kingside to create a weakness.
Going back to the diagram, on 13 ...
gac8, the try 14.!xf6 is no longer so
strong here. After 14 . . . hf6 15.tLlc5
(15.tLlb5 tLlb8 ! is good for Black, who
has all the activity and none of the
weaknesses) 15 . . . tLlxd4 16.cxd4, Black
has 16 . . . .!b5 ! , a move that isn't pos­
sible when Black's rooks are on a8
and c8 - the simple hb7 would fork
them. Thus, White's best response is
undoubtedly 14.tLlb5 ! , first suggest­
ed by Speelman. This seems to give
White a slight edge: for instance, after
14 . . . tLlb8 15.tLlxa7 gxc3 16.gacl gxcl
17.gxc1, and White is better placed.
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . cS
13 .lg5
• pletely equal in Sepp-Seeman, Es­
An alternative for White is 13 . .lf4,
but 13 . . . i.d7 seems fine for Black.
14.tt:lbS is met by 14 . . . eS, and even af­
ter the better 14.lLlxc6 .ixc6 1S . .ixc6
bxc6 16.c4, White doesn't seem to
have much here.
13 • • • .ld7
14 .lxf6
.
The most concrete approach for
White, aiming to land a knight on cS.
White can also try 14.lLlbS ! ? , when after
14 ... tt:ldS, he must play precisely to get
an advantage. For instance, 1S . .ixdS
,ixgS 16.i.g2 i.e7 is equal (Kaidanov­
Kholmov, Pinsk 1986), and 1S.c4 .ixgS
16.cxdS exdS 17J''1xdS i.f6 18.E1adl .lg4
gives Black counterplay. Thus White's
best is IS ..ixe7 lLlcxe7 (IS . . . lLldxe7? !
16.tt:lc5 is excellent for White) 16.c4
hbS 17.cxbS E1ac8 (17 . . . lLlc3 ! ? is met
by 18 . .ixb7) 18.E1acl, when White had
a nice pull in Urban-Fernandes, Yer­
evan Olympiad 1996.
Whatever White's approach here,
however, note that he needs to play
with energy. Bland exchanges get him
nowhere: the "trade, trade, and trade
again" approach with 14.lLlxc6 .ixc6
lS.hc6 bxc6 16.E1d4 E1dS was com-
tonian Chp. 2003. And a move like
14.E1abl is too slow - after 14 . . . E1ac8,
as in M .Ivanov-Rombaldoni, Vero­
na 2006, Black had finished his devel­
opment. White has a slight structural
weakness on c3, so it follows that he
needs to exploit his extra activity be­
fore Black consolidates.
14 • • • .lxf6
14 . . . gxf6 ! ? might be a better way
for Black to go, but after IS.lLlxc6 .ixc6
16 . .ixc6 bxc6, White keeps a slight
structural advantage. Then 17.e4 ! ?
prevents . . .f6-fS b y Black, who sud­
denly discovers that none of his pawns
can move without becoming positional
weaknesses. On the queenside, . . . c6-c5
can always be met with the "fixing" c3-
c4, and . . . a7-as can likewise be met with
a2-a4. In the center, . . . e6-eS creates
weaknesses, and . . . h7-hS might also be
"fixed" with h2-h4. Meanwhile, White
can concentrate on bringing his king
toward the center, something he can
do much more easily than Black can.
15.1tlc5 Itlxd4
Forced. On IS . . . E1ab8?, White has
16.lLlxd7! E1xd7 (16 . . . lLlxd4?? 17.lLlxf6+
wins a piece, of course) 17 . .ixc6 bxc6
18.lLlxc6 E1xdl+ 19.E1xdl E1b2 (19 . . . E1b6
20.lLlxa7) 20.e4 ! with the idea of e4-eS :
171
 CHAPTER 7
White has a clear advantage, for
instance, 20. . J'�xa2? 2 1.e5 l!a6 2 2 .exf6
with the threat of a back-rank mate
wins. And 20. . . l!b6 21.llJxa7 g5 22 .c4
l!a6 23.l!d7 l!xa2 24.llJcB l!c2 (on 24 . . .
i-e5, 25.llJe7+ c;!;>g7 26.llJc6 i s good
for White) 25.llJd6 .tc3 (25 . . . .td4?
26.l!dB+ c;!;>g7 27.llJeB+ c;!;>fB 2B.llJc7+
wins the bishop on d4) 26.llJxf7 1-0
was Ulybin-Belozerov, Russia Cup
1997. Black's cause is hopeless; for in­
stance, 26 . . . i.e1 27.llJxg5 i.xf2 + 2B. c;!;>fl
leaves White winning.
16.cxd4
The blunder 16.hb7?? would lose
to 16 . . . llJxe2+ 17.c;!;>g2 i.b5 1B .haB
l!xaB, with an overwhelming mate­
rial advantage for Black. After the
text move, however, Black faces a
positional dilemma. Can he neutralize
White's pressure without compromis­
ing his structure?
16 .•• .tc6
Black chooses to compromise his
pawn structure. The more passive
16 . . .i.cB 17.e3 l!bB 1B.l!acl, played in
Cernousek-Bernasek, Brno 2006, kept
Black's structure intact but didn't im­
mediately relieve the pressure on his
position. The game was eventually
drawn, however, after IB . . . .te7 19.llJe4
c;!;>fB :
172
20.l!c7, when it turned out that
White's invasion to the seventh rank
was too early: 20. . . l!d7 21.l!xd7 hd7
22.llJeS !xeS 23.dxc5 c;!;>eB left Black
equal, and the game was soon drawn.
From the diagram, however, White
has many other tries for the advantage
and needn't settle for simple equality.
Delaying penetration to the seventh
rank with space-gaining tries such as
20.f4 or 20.h4 would have been a more
ambitious approach.
17 .Axc6
•
White heads for a "knight versus
bishop" ending where he will have the
superior minor piece - these types of
endings should be becoming famil­
iar by now. If instead the shortsight­
ed 17.llJxb7? ! , White gives up his ad­
vantage: 17 . . . hb7 1B.hb7 l!ab8
19.i.f3 hd4 20.l!ab1 i-b6 2 1.e3 c;!;>f8
22.l!xdB+ l!xdB was completely equal
in Cipres-Vega, Oviedo (rapid) 1992 .
17 bxc6 18.e3
• • •
What if Black tries the obvious
breakthrough IB . . . e5, attacking the
head of White's central pawn chain?
White can reach a slightly better
 BLACK PLAYS 5 . . . c5

rook ending by playing 19.1lJe4 exd4
20.llJxf6+ gxf6, but it is important to
realize that the position after 2U'!xd4
(21.exd4 is only marginally better)
2l...13xd4 2 2 .exd4 13d8 23.13cl 13xd4
24.13xc6 13a4 25.13c2 r1lg7 is just a draw:
ficult for Black to develop his rook on
a8 or bring his king to the center. For
instance, 20 .. J'!xdl+ 2U'!xdl l3b8? !
22 .13d7 is a clearly better ending for
White. If 20. . . g6 instead, White has
21.llJ d7! i.g7 (21.. .i.c7 2 2 . 13bcl) 2 2 . l3b7
and White is ready to play l3cl next.
After the text move, White has
a straightforward plan for applying
pressure to Black's position.

Covering b2 and preventing . . . e6-

e5 for a few moves.

19 . . . l!lliS ! ?
This position was reached from
a Tarrasch Defense in I.Sokolov­ Black tries t o activate his rook
Golubovic, Bosnian Team Chp. 2002 , along the fifth rank, but this maneu­
except that White's rook was on d2 ver only places his pieces further on
rather than c2, and it was Black's the sidelines.
move. So we can play 26.13d2 for
White, and from there play contin­
ued 26 . . . h5 27.r1lg2 (27.h4 doesn't
help White much, since his rook is
tied down to his pawn on a2. Sokolov
thinks allowing Black to trade off a
pair of pawns, giving White a passed
pawn on the h-file, is the best winning
attempt) 27 . . . h4 28.gxh4 13xh4 29.13d3
l'!a4 30.13g3+ r1lh6 31.a3 f5 32 .h3 f6
33.l'!c3 r1lg5 34.r1lg3 r1lg6 35.r1lf3 r1lg5
36.r1le2 13e4+ 37.r1ld2 13f4 38J'!g3+
<;!{h4 39.r1le2 13e4+ 4O.r1lfl 13a4 41.13f3
<;!{g5 42.r1le2 13e4+ 43.r1ld2 13d4+
44.r1lc3 13a4 45.r1ld2 1 2- 1 2 . Essential­ Black is now is an uncomfortable
ly, White tried to make something out situation. His next move, which stops
of nothing and got nowhere. his rooks from being forked by llJb7,
This leaves White with 19.dxe5 is forced.
!xe5 20.13abl, with pressure. White
has more reasonable chances of con­
verting his advantage here since his
knight is still slightly better than Necessity calls. Black must play
Black's bishop. Furthermore, it is dif- this break while he still can: for in-

173
 CHAPTER 7

stance, 23 . . . g6? is bad in view of 24.e4 made more sense to keep the bishop in
l:!h5 (24 . . . l:!d8 25.lLIb7) 25.lLId7 i.e7 play with 27 . . . !e7.
26.lLIb8 and so on.
28.tOb3 gdS

28 . . . hd4 29.tOxa5 leaves Black's

24.lLIe4 is not as strong, since 24 . . . c-pawn hanging.
exd4 25.lLIxf6+ gxf6 26.exd4 l:!d6 with
the idea of . . . l:!a5-d5 Ieaves Black okay.

24 ..• exd4 Bad for Black is 29 . . . c5 30.e4 l:!eS

31.f4 l:!e8 32.a5 .id8 33.l:!xc5 l:!xe4
It may have been better to play 34.l:!c8.
24 . . . h6, as Black would still have been
fine after something like 25.l:!b8+ �h7 30.aS .id8 31.tOd4 ha5
26.lLIe4 exd4. Then 27.lLIxf6+ gxf6 32.tOxc6 .ib6 33.tOxa7
28.exd4 c5 29.l:!xc5 l:!axc5 30.dxc5
l:!xc5 31.l:!b5 l:!c6 should wind up be­ White has managed to win an extra
ing a draw. pawn. But is this advantage enough to
win? In theory, no, but in practice, a
win from this type of position is quite
possible. Defending this endgame is
25.lLIb3 ! l:!a6 26.lLIxd4 was a way torture for Black.
for White to win Black's weak c-pawn.
Black would be forced to play a move 33 g6 34.tOc6 �g7 3S.tOeS gd5
• •.

like 26 . . . g6, allowing 27.lLIxc6, be- 36.tOf3 h6 37.�g2 gd6 38.gb4 gc6
cause 26 . . . hd4?? runs headfirst into 39.tOeS ge6 40.gbS
27.l:!b8+ .

2 S gd8 26.�d8+ hd8 27.�d4

.••

.ib6?!

40 .ic7 41.tOf3 gd6 42.g4 .idS

.•.

43.tOd4 ga6 44.gb7 .if6 4S.tOe2

.igS 46.�g3 ga2 47.tOc3 ga5
48.tOe4 .if6 49.h4 ga4 SO.tOxf6
Black once again puts one of his
pieces on the sidelines. It would have White has made as much progress

174
 BLACK PLAYS 5 . . . c5
as he can with the minor pieces on the
board, so he decides to trade. The re­
sulting "4 vs. 3" rook-and-pawn end­
game should be drawn. A full, theoret­
ical analysis of this position falls out­
side the scope of a repertoire book,
but we will provide enough comments
for the reader to get a good feel for
White's winning chances here.
so • • • mxf6 SI.gbS
White is getting ready to play h4-
h5, which seeks to break up Black's
pawn formation. If Black had been
able to get in . . . h7-h5 before White had
played g2-g4, holding the draw would
be a relatively simple matter. But now,
things are far more difficult.
SI gc4 S2.f4 gc6 S3.mfJ gc4
• • •
54.hS gc6 SS.gaS gb6 S6.gdS me6
57.gaS mf6
SS.hxg6 fxg6?!
58. . . �xg6 leaves Black with split
pawns, but White's plan there is not
so clear. After the text move, White
has undisputed control of the seventh
rank, sealing Black off from retreat.
White was threatening E:h7.
60.f5 hS 61.gxhS mxf5 62.gf7+
�e6 63.gg7 gbS 64.gc7
Better than 64.�g4 E:e5 65.E:xg5
E:xe3, which is a draw: for instance
66.h6 �f7 67.h7 E:e8 68.�h5 (68.
�f5 E:h8 69.E:h5 �g7) 68 ... E:el ! al­
lows Black to hold. Then the "bridge­
building" strategy with 69.E:g4 E:hl+
70.E:h4 fails miserably after 70 ... E:xh4+
71.�xh4 �g7.
64 •.• geS 6S.h6 �f5
66.h7 immediately seems strong­
er: 66 . . . E:e8 (66 . . . g4+ 67.�f2 E:e8
68.e4+ �f4 69J'!f7+ �xe4 70.E:e7+ !
wins) 67.e4+ �g6 68.e5 and so forth.
66 . . . �g6 67.h7 geS 6S.ge7 gaS
69.�g4 gf8 70.gb7 geS 71.ge7 E:f8
72 .geS mxh7 73.gxgS geS?
A losing move: Black lets White's
king cross the f-file. 73 . . . E:f2 would
have held the draw, for instance
74.�g3 E:f8 75.e4 (75J:!b5 allows
Black's king into the defense with 75 . . .
�g7) 75 . . . l:!g8, and Black can hold the
ensuing king-and-pawn ending with
175
 CHAPTER 7
76.c;!;>f4 i!xgS 77.c;!;>xgS c;!;>g7. Note that
Black must wait for White to start
pushing his pawn with e3-e4 before
he can safely trade rooks.
According to the tablebases, only
7S.i!g3 ! was sufficient to force a win.
The point is that after 7S . . . c;!;>hS, White
has 76.e4 i!f8+ 77.c;!;>e3, slipping safe­
ly behind the pawn and preparing to
march it up the board. After 77 . . . i!a8
78.i!g2 ! i!a3+ 79.c;!;>f4, Black's maneu­
vers on the side of the board will ulti­
mately fail to impede White's progress.
The paradoxical 76 . . . c;!;>h4 ! draws.
77.i!g7 (77.e4 i!xe4+ ! equalizes on the
spot) 77. . . i!f8 + 78.c;!;>eS i!e8+ 79.c;!;>d4
i!d8+ 80.c;!;>c3 i!c8+ 81.c;!;>d2 i!e8 and
White cannot make further progress.
Again, the sly 77.i!g3 ! is the only
move strong enough to force a win.
176
Black is correct to give this check,
and is back on the path to achieving
a draw.
White creeps up with his king,
threatening mate.
79 . . . c;!;>hS ! instead, coming toward
White's pawn, holds the draw. For in­
stance, 80.i!gS+ (on 80.i!g3, Black has
c;!;>h4) 80. . . c;!;>h6 81.i!eS i!f8+ 82 .c;!;>e7 i!f2
83 .e4 c;!;>g6 ! (not 83 . . . c;!;>g7? 84.i!gS+)
84.i!e6+ c;!;>g7 8S.eS i!a2 86.i!d6 i!aS
87.e6 i!a8 and Black reaches a com­
mon theoretical draw: 88.i!d8 i!a7+
89.i!d7 i!a8 90. c;!;>d6+ c;!;>f6 91.i!f7 + c;!;>g6
and White can make no progress.
The only way to win. Now, White
reaches a well-known Lucena-style
winning position and quickly converts
for the full point.
82 gfJ+ 83.c;!;>e6 gf2 84.e5
• • •
ge2 85.c;!;>f6 gf2 + 86.�e7 gfJ 87.e6
gf2 88.c;!;>e8 ge2 89.e7 ge4 90.gdl
c;!;>g7 91.c;!;>d7 �'f7 92.gf1+ 1- 0
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . cS

Summary: White managed to get a slight pull out of the opening thanks
to his plan with 13 . igS, 14. ix.f6, and lS. tiJcS. In theory, though, Black ought to
have been able to hold a draw in this game. This is easier said than done over­
the-board, however, and White was able to play for a win the entire time with­
out once taking on any risk. Both sides made numerous errors in the rook-and­
pawn endgame that arose, something which is not unusual even in games be­
tween strong players. Of course, when mistakes abound, it is better to be on
the side with the extra pawn than on the one trying to hold a theoretical draw.

Computer Moves and "Annoyi ng" Responses from Black

Often, computers come up with The logical response: White is de­

"unnatural" moves that look bad at fending f2 , attacking Black's bishop,
first sight but have some sort of tac­ and possibly heading for d6. 10.e3? !
tical basis. A human player can be­ ixe3 ! ? or 10. . . ltJgeS is far less clear.
come disoriented when facing such
moves and fail to find the best way IO • • . i.e7
to proceed. In the following example,
Kasparov shows us how to deal with
such computer-like annoyances from
Black in the 7.dxcS system. The game
is taken from his 1992 blitz match with
the computer program Fritz 2 . 0 .

Kasparov, Garry
Fritz 2 . 0
[E04] Cologne 1992

l.c!Of3 c!Of6 2 .g3 c5 3.ig2 d5

4. 0 - 0 c!Oc6 5.d4 e6 6.c4 dxc4
7.dxc5 ti'xdI 8.gxdl hc5 9.c!Obd2
�g4 ! ?
Although this move was first played
in the 1962 game Barcza-Tolush, its
popularity has increased since the ad­
vent of computers. Although White
has to play carefully against this move,
it isn't particularly good. Black is bet­
ter off completing his development, as
in the main lines.
Black can try to maintain his pres­
sure against f2 with 10. . . i.b6? ! , but
White can simply kick the knight
with 11.h3. Then 1l . . . ltJgeS (1l . . . ltJf6?!
12.ltJd6+ is of course good for White)
12.ltJxeS ltJxeS 13.if4 ltJg6 14.ltJd6+
rtJe7 1S.ltJxcB+ !'laxcB 16.id6+ rtJf6
17.,ixb7 gave White a tremendous
advantage in Bauer-Saatdjian, Metz
200B. Black's over-ambitious play has
fallen short.
10. . . i.b4 ! ? keeps the bishop on
the a3-fB diagonal, but after 1l.h3
ltJf6 (ll . . . ltJgeS is once again met by

177
 CHAPTER 7

12.tlJxe5 tlJxe5 13.if4, for instance
13 . . . tlJc6 14.tlJd6+ hd6 15.hd6 and
White has the bishop pair and a better
position) 12.tlJxf6+ gxf6 13.tlJd4 .id7
14.tlJxc6 hc6 15 . .bc6+ bxc6 16 . .ih6,
Black's weak pawns made his position
difficult in Hausrath-Claesen, Belgian
Team Chp. 2000 . Note that attempts
to keep the extra pawn such as 13 . . .
tlJa5 give White plenty o f compensa­
tion, as Black cannot hold on to c4 for­
ever: 14.tlJc2 .ie7 15 . .id2 tlJc6 16.tlJe3
and so on.
1l.tlJfd2 !
the computer assigns an edge of near­
ly four-tenths of a pawn to Black. This
may seem alarming at first, but once
one goes further into the analysis, it
becomes clear that White has abun­
dant compensation for his pawn. Let's
see how he should continue.
First of all, White shouldn't get fan­
cy here. There is no need for 12 .h3 !?,
which is perhaps too messy after
12 . . . fxe4 13.hxg4 e5 14.tlJxc4 hg4
15.tlJd6+ hd6 16.E1xd6 rJ;; e 7 17.E1d5
he2 lS.he4. Instead, White should
just play 12.tlJc3, confident in his com­
pensation:

Kasparov's handling of the posi­

tion is efficient and effective. White
has tried a number of other moves
with varying degrees of success. In
general, though, White will always
have compensation even if he fails to
regain the c4-pawn immediately.
1l.h3 is more common than the
text, but 1l . . . tlJf6 ! comes close to
equalizing for Black. For instance,
12.tlJed2 (12.tlJxf6+ .ixf6 13.tlJd2 tlJd4, After 12 . . . .ic5 13.e3 tlJge5 (13 ...
seen in Csom-Flesch, Hungarian Chp. he3 14.fxe3 tlJxe3 15.E1b 1 ! ? tlJxdl
1975, gives Black near equality: 14.';t:(f1 16.tlJxdl tlJe5 17.tlJe3 leaves White bet­
.id7 15.tlJxc4 .ic6) 12 . . . c3 13 .bxc3 0-0 ter, as Black's c4-pawn will fall) 14.tlJa4
14.tlJd4 tlJxd4 15.cxd4 tlJd5 16 . .ib2 .ib4 (14 . . . .ie7 15.f4 tlJf7 16.tlJxc4 e5
.id7, as in D.Pavlovic-Vukovic, Yugo­ 17 . .id5 ! ? looks good for White) 15.f4
slav Chp. 1992, gives Black a decent .ixd2 16.hd2 tlJd3 17.b3 cxb3 (or 17 ...
position. He has counterplay down e5 lS.id5 cxb3 19.axb3) 18.axb3 e5
the c-file and on the queenside in ex­ 19.fxe5 tlJdxe5 20.tlJb6 E1bS 21.tlJxc8
change for his slight space disadvan­ E1xcS 22 . .ic3, White is clearly better:
tage in the center.

1l ••• tlJd4? !

In typical computer fashion, Fritz

2.0 goes pawn-grabbing. Modern ver­
sions of Fritz realize the fallacy of this
greedy move instantly.
Many generations of Fritz later,
1l .. .f5!? is the top candidate. Initially,

17S
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . cS
White has two bishops against two
knights and open lines for his rooks.
Black's extra pawn is not important
here, as both his queenside pawns will
likely fall soon, anyway.
Including all of this analysis was
rather unnecessary, as few humans
would be attracted to an idea as ob­
scure as . . . ltlf6-g4 followed by . . . V-fS.
To make matters worse, Black even
wastes time playing . . . i.c5-e7 followed
by . . . �e7-cS again. No matter what the
computer's evaluation, a human play­
er can be confident in White's com­
pensation after such a sortie by Black.
Finally, to wrap up, after ll . . . ltlaS -
another move favored by the compu­
ter - White plays 12 .h3 ltlf6 13.ltlxf6+
gxf6 (13 . . . i.xf6 14.ltle4 �e7 1S.�d2 ltlc6
16.�c3 with either ltld6 or ltld2 on the
way) 14.b3 cxb3 1S.axb3 ltlc6 16.ltlc4.
This was actually the original Barcza­
Tolush game from Leningrad 1962.
White has strong compensation and
is currently threatening ideas such as
ILlc4-b6.
12.ltlxc4 ltlxe2+ 13.c.t>f1 �xcl
14.�cd6+
In this game it is Kasparov, not
Fritz, who is playing with what would
now be called "computer-like" accuracy.
14 • • • c.t>f8 15.gaxc1
15 • • • .id7 16.�xb7
Simplest. It was possible to in­
sert 16.h3 ! ? first, with the idea of 16 . . .
ltleS?! 17.f4 ltlg6 18.ltlxb7, but this
was unnecessary, since after 16 . . . ltlf6
17.ltlxf6 hf6 18J'k7 �d8, White has
to make some choices. He can play ei­
ther 19.�xb7 immediately or 19.1tlxt7
c.t>xt7 20.�dxd7+ �xd7 21.�xd7+ Iflg6
22 .hb7 hb2 23 .�e4+ Iflf6 24.�xa7.
Kasparov's choice gives Black no op­
portunities to escape from White's
pressure.
16 • • • .ic8
16 . . . �bS+ 17.lflg1 ltleS 18.�c7 isn't
likely to contain anything for Black, ei­
ther.
The knight heads to d7. White will
soon come crashing through on the
seventh rank.
17 • • • gb8
17 . . . ltlxh2+ 18.lflg1 ltlg4 19.1tld6
(19.ltld7+ is also still strong) 19 . . . hd6
20.ha8 wins the exchange.
18.ltld7+.ixd719.�d7f5 20.gcc7
fxe4 21.�e7 �xh2+ 22.c.t>el
179
 CHAPTER 7

The king will be far more useful 30.mxf3 gb5 31.gaS+ gbS 32.gxa6
(and safe) in the center than it would gb4 33.gaS + gbS 34.gxbS+ mxb8
have been on gl. 35.gg5 me7 36.gxe5 h4 1- 0

22 �fJ+ 23 . .ixf3 exf3 24.gf7+

•••

meS 25.gxg7 a6 2 6.b3 mdS Black is lost, so it's time to pull the
27.ga7 e5 2S.md2 h5 29.me3 meS plug.

Summary: Computer-like tries for Black get him nowhere in this open­
ing. He may win a pawn in the opening, but White will be left with important
trumps like the two bishops, piece activity, and openfilesfor his rooks.

Black Avoids the Excha nge of Queens

Finally, we must examine Black's at­

tempt to avoid the trade of queens with
7. . . �aS. This has been played a hand­
ful of times, but Dean's treatment of
it in the following game gives one the
impression that it is simply dubious.

Ippolito, Dean (USCF 2452) -

Klein, Erez (USCF 2373)
[E04] New York 1999

l.d4 �f6 2.e4 e6 3.�fJ c5 4.g3 8 ... �xcS 9 . .te3 simply hands White
d5 5 .tg2 �e6 6. 0 - 0 dxe4 7.dxe5
•
the initiative.
�a5

This is an extremely rare idea, but An aggressive novelty. The text

the point is that Black is preparing
. . . c4-c3. By keeping the queens on the
board, Black is taking a major gam­
ble. White can often afford to bring his
queen out early in the Catalan to play
�a4 or �c2 , targeting a Black pawn on
c4 - but can Black, a move or two be­
hind in development, afford the same?
S.�a3 c3 !?
move actually prepares a sharp sacri­
fice, but White is the player with the
initiative, so he can afford it.
9 . . . �xd4
Black plays cautiously. White's
point here is that 9 . . . cxb2 1O.1tJxc6 !
bxa1� 1l.ltJxaS gives White a strong
attack, for instance l1.. . .txcS? 12.ltJb3

180
 BLACK PLAYS S . . . CS
�e5 13.i.f4 �fS 14.e4 ttJxe4 lS.i.xe4
�xe4 16.ttJxcS �c6 17.�g4 ! �xcS
18.�xg7 l'!f8 19.ttJbS �xbS 20.i.d6, win­
ning. Another try is 11 . . . �xa2, though
after 12.ttJxb7 White keeps the attack
rolling. 12 . . . i.xb7? loses after 13.�a4+
/Lld7 14.c6 i.c8 lS.cxd7+ i.xd7 16.i.c6,
so Black has to find the only defen­
sive resource, 12 . . . ttJdS. Then 13.e4
ixb7 14.�a4+ <t;e7 (14 . . . <t;d8 lS.exdS
is crushing) and here either lS.�bS or
15.c6 gives White a strong attack.
10.�xd4 .ixc5
After 10. . . cxb2 11.hb2 hcS 12. �eS
ib6 13.�xaS haS 14.l'!ab1, White has
more than enough compensation for
his pawn, which he wins back short­
ly. With the text, Black wins up having
to defend a familiar-looking queenless
middlegame anyway.
11.�xc3 �xc3 12 .bxc3 a6
13.�c4
13 • • • ga7? !
The endgame is not at all pleasant
for Black, but this was probably not
the way to continue development.
On 13 . . . ttJdS, Dean was considering
14.i.xdS exdS lS . .ie3. It turns out that
White can't quite manage an advan­
tage here, though. lS . . . dxc4? ! 16 . .txcS
gives White good chances since Black
doesn't have time to set up a fortress
with . . . t7-f6, . . . <t;e8-t7, and . . . 1c8-
e6, for instance, 16 . . . 1d7 17.l'!fd1 1c6
18.l'!d4 and White has an edge. But
lS . . . ,ixe3 16.ttJxe3 .ie6 leaves White
with nothing:
a) The natural I7J'Udl l'!c8 18.ttJxdS
(18.l'!d3 <t;e7 19.1'!ad1 l'!hd8 20.f4 f6
is even, as is 18.l'!ab1 bS) 18 . . . i.xdS
19.1'!xdS l'!xc3 20.l'!adl 0-0 is equal.
b) On 17.f4 ! ? f6 18.l'!fbl (18.f5 1t7
19.ttJc2 0-0-0 20.ttJd4 l'!he8 with the
idea of . . . l'!e8-e7-c7, hitting the c3-
pawn, gives Black equality) 18 . . . 0-0-0!
19.1'!b6 l'!he8 20.l'!ab1 l'!e7, Black de­
fends comfortably.
c) 17.l'!fbl O-O-O ! ? 18.l'!b6 l'!d7 19.f4
g6 20.l'!dl l'!hd8 also keeps the game
level.
Thus, the way to maintain an ad­
vantage is to keep the minor pieces on
the board with 14.i.d2, simply trust­
ing that White can develop an initia­
tive. Then 14 . . . l'!a7 IS.e4 ttJb6 16.ttJaS
with the idea of 1d2-e3 at some point
was suggested by Kasparov; Black is
under heavy pressure here. After the
text move, things deteriorate rapidly
for the second player.
14.a4
White embarks on a plan to immo­
bilize Black's queenside with a2-a4-aS
and ttJc4-eS-d3.
181
 CHAPTER 7
14 . . . J.d7
Nothing else looks any better:
14 . . . 0-0 15J1d1, 14 . . . a5 15J3b1, 14 . . .
lDd5 15.J.xd5 exd5 16.ie3, and 14 . . .
b5? 15.axb5 axb5 16.lDd6+ all give
White a clear advantage.
The careless 15 . . . b5? would be met
with 16.lDc6.
16.aS !1lcS
Again, Black has no satisfactory
moves. 16 . . . .ib5 is met by 17.c4, and
16 . . . gb8 17.gb1 only allows White to
increase the pressure.
17.�d3
17 ... b6
Black must play this, as otherwise
White will always have some win­
ning tactic on the dark squares. Black
is in trouble here because of his trou­
bles on the a3-f8 and gl-a7 diagonals,
and White's queenside bind means he
should be positionally winning.
This is not White's most accurate
182
move. 18 . .ia3 ! was a superior way to
attack Black's queenside structure,
which soon falls apart: 18 . . . �e8 (18 ...
.ixa3 19.axb6 wins) 19.9fbl .tb5 20.c4
J.xc4 2 1.axb6 and Black's position is
resignable. After the text move, White
still gets a strong passed pawn, but the
game is not over yet.
IS . J.bS 19.c4 .ixc4 20.axb6
. .
.ixd3 21.bxa7
Not 21.exd3? gd7 22 . .if4 .id6,
when Black's position is solid.
21 . . . .ixbl
22.aS�? !
It is difficult to believe that this
natural move is a mistake, but White
is missing a clear win with 2 2 .,ia3.
The key is that after 22 . . . .te4 23 .J.xc5+
�d7 24.J.xe4 lDxe4 25.gb1 �c7, the
move 26 . .id4 ! maneuvers the bishop
onto the key h2-b8 diagonal. White
is threatening to check on c1 and
swap rooks, but 26 . . . ga8 27.gb8 gxb8
28 . .ie5+ wins for White, as does 26 ...
ltJd6 27 . .ie5 ga8 28.gdl.
This leaves only 22 ... .ixa3, when
play continues 23.gxb1 .ic5 (23 . . . ,id6
24 . .ib7! gd8 25.ga1 will leave White
just up the exchange) 24.gb8 ha7
 BLACK PLAYS 5 . . . c5

25J'!xc8 and White should eventually

be able to convert his extra material.
After the game move, Black has some
drawing chances.
22 ••• gxa8 23.ha8 .le4
On 23 . . . i.f5 White has 24.i.d2 and
l'Ul-al.
24 .lxe4 � xe4 25 .lb2 �xf2 ! ?
• •
This i s a n interesting try from
Black. White will be up a piece for
two pawns, but the win is not obvious.
Black's alternative 25 .. .f6 was not fully
satisfactory: 26.e3 as 27.l"'icl ! (27.l"'ial
ib4 gets White nowhere) 27 ... <j;ld6
28.id4 .ib4 (not 28 ... ,hd4 29.exd4 a4
30J'!c4) 29.<j;lfl �d2 + (29 ... a4 30.<j;le2
\!IdS 31.l"'ic7 a3 32.l"'ixg7 e5 33 ..ial .ic3
34.f3 ! wins) 30. <j;le2 lLlb3 31.l"'ibl lLlxd4+
32.exd4 <j;ld5 33.<j;ld3 and White will
continue with l"'ibl-c1-c7.
Black's king heads in the wrong
direction. It is difficult to believe he
could ever force White to give up his
bishop for the a-pawn, so Black should
concentrate on defending his kingside
pawns. During the post-game anal­
ysis, Lapshun suggested 28 . . . <j;lf7
29. <j;lxf2 e5 30.e4 g6 3 1 . <j;le3 f5 3 2 . <j;ld3
<j;lf6 as a major improvement. After
the text move, White has little trouble
in finishing Black off.
A simpler win was to be had by
30.i.f8 g6 31.ig7 f5 32.<j;le3 <j;ld5
33.<j;lf4, forming a dark-square block­
ade. Now Black has enough time to
defend his pawn on f6 rather than
move it.
30 <j;ld5 31 .lfS g5 3 2 .lg7 �e5
• • • • •

33. �d3 h5 34.<j;lc4

34.e4 as 35.i.f8 a4 36 . .ia3 f5

37.i.b2+ wins even more easily, ac­
cording to Zilbermintz.

34 h4 35.gxh4 gxh4 36.<j;lc5

• • •

h3 37.�b6 �e4 38 .lxf6 �e3 •

39. �xa6 �xe2 4O. �b5 1- 0

There is no draw for Black since

White has the "right" color bishop for
his rook's pawn.

Summary: Black's try with 7. . . '�a5 seems dubious in view of B . lLl a3 c3

9. &iJd4!, giving White a tremendous initiative. The best Black could do was
swap queens, leading to a better endgame for White. Inaccuracies were made
by both sides, but White's position was simply easier to play throughout.
Black's mistakes led to a loss; White's mistakes only made it harderfor him to
convert his advantage.

183
 CHAPTER 7

Conclusion: Heading for a queenless middlegame with 7.dxc5 is a practi­

cal approach for White. He needs to know far less theory here than in the more
critical lines, 7.V;Va4 and 7.�e5, which Black will already be prepared for anyway.
That said, there are routes that lead to equality for Black - or, at least, to slight­
ly inferior versions of equality. Black should always be able to play for a draw,
whereas White is playing for two results : either a win or a draw is possible.

184
Chapter 8
H/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////H///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////H/H/H////////H///////////////////Q/

The Ea rly Open Cata l a n with

S . a6 6. tLl e5 .ib4+
..

1.c�� f3 d5 2 .d4 tOf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

dxc4 5 .ig2 a6 6.tOe5 .ib4+
•

For the sake of completeness, any cover in Chapter 10, White gets strong
modern Catalan book has to prepare positional compensation for the pawn
its readers against Black's various at­ - preparing the . . . b7-bS push with
tempts to simply take the "gambit more flexible approaches such as 5 . . .
pawn" with . . . dSxc4 and hold on to it. a6 or S . . . c6 has.
These tries are fairly rare at the non­ Over the next few chapters, we will
master level, as most club players have look at Black's different ideas to hold
a profound fear of opening the long the c4-pawn and outline our sugges­
h1-a8 diagonal for White's Catalan tions against each of them. For most
bishop. Considering that Black's chief tournament players, however, there
way to hold on to his c4-pawn is to is little point in investing too much
play . . . b7-bS, it is understandable that time memorizing theory. Wojo didn't,
usually only strong players looking to although he did keep up with any
win are willing to take such a risk for new ideas that emerged in the popu­
a single pawn. Although the line l.lLlf3 lar lines. In this chapter, we examine
dS 2.d4 lLlf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4 S.i.g2 what happens when Black plays 5 . . .
b5 never caught on at the 1M or GM a 6 - s o without further ado, let's get
level - probably because, as we'll dis- started.

185
 CHAPTER 8
Energy: A Key Factor for Both Sides
If Black plays a defensive system such
as the Closed Catalan, it can be said
that he is not aiming to "play with en­
ergy" right from the opening. Con­
versely, if he eschews making many
defensive pawn moves and seeks to
develop his pieces as quickly as possi­
ble, his play can be described as "en­
ergetic." Our recommendations for
White seek to fight fire with fire - and,
as is often the case, once the fireworks
are started neither side can back out
easily. After our recommended 5 . . .
a 6 6.tLle5, there i s already n o turn­
ing back for either side. The following
game is famous for its messiness, but
note that White is always the one at­
tacking.
Kramnik, Vladimir (2769)
�orozevich, AJexander (2758)
[E04] World Championship,
Mexico City (2)
1.tLltJ tLlf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
dxc4 5 . .!g2 a6
Black's plan is simply to protect the
c4-pawn by playing . . . b7-b5. A sim-
ilarly motivated plan is 5 . . . tLlc6 with
the idea of . . J:�a8-b8 and . . . b7-b5, cov-
ered in Chapter 6. Recall that after 5 . . .
tLlc6, we favored the immediate 6.Wfa4,
seeking to regain the c4-pawn. This is
not possible here, of course.
186
This is White's most concrete ap­
proach, looking to regain the pawn
immediately. Wojo played both 6.tLle5
and 6.0-0 in practice, but we believe
he had more success with the former.
6 . . . .!b4+
Of course, Black has to react to a
move like 6.tLle5 with some urgency.
If he simply allows White to recap­
ture the pawn on c4 with tLlxc4, his
move . . . a7-a6 will have been wasted
time. For instance, 6 . . . tLlbd7 7.tLlxc4
is too passive for Black. White has a
nice Catalan: 7 . . . cS 8.0-0 tLlb6 9.tLlxb6
Wfxb6 10.dxc5 ixcS ll.tLlc3 i.e7 12 .ie3
and so on. We'll look at Black's oth­
er "energetic" response, 6 . . . cS, in the
next chapter.
An interesting attempt for Black is
6 . . . Eia7 ! ? The point for Black is that
after 7.tLlxc4? ! b5 8.tLle5 c5, Black's
rook on a7 is fully mobile - Black is
the one playing "with energy." There­
fore, White should eschew the op­
portunity to win back his pawn. After
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.ctJeS .tb4+
7.0-0, Black has a number of different
moves, though none that fully blunts
White's initiative:
For starters, 7 . . . ie7 seems passive.
A well-prepared Alexandra Kosteniuk
played this against Dean in 2005, but
within a few moves, it became clear
that the rook was misplaced on a7.
In fact, this looks like a better ver­
sion of the Open Catalan with 6 . . .
dxc4 7.lLleS ! ? for White. Play contin­
ued 8.a4 0-0 9.lLlc3 and here Black
has to be careful : for instance, if 9 . . . cS
1O.dxcS ixcS ll.lLlxc4, Black's rook be­
ing on a7 makes all the difference after
11.. .�c7?? 12.if4, winning the knight
on b8. Thus Black played 9 . . .b6, when
1O.lLlxc4 .tb7 1l.e4 gave White a com­
fortable edge in Ippolito-Kosteniuk,
Las Vegas 2005. The game was agreed
drawn here, but play might have con­
tinued 1l . . . cS (1l . . .ib4 12 .l'!el lLlbd7
13.if4 l'!a8 14.�b3 as lS.l'!adl was
good for White in Cvitan-Mateo, Biel
2000) 12 .dS exdS 13 .exdS and so on.
The rook is also misplaced after
7 ... cS 8.ie3 or 7 . . . bS 8.a4. One com­
ical example of how the rook on a7
can find its in dire straits occurred in
the Internet game Bauer-Sargissian,
Petrosian Memorial (Internet) 2004.
Black played 7 . . .id7, and play contin­
ued 8.lLlc3 .tb4 9.i.gS 0-0 10.lLlxc4 ic6
11.tt'le4 .te7 12.ixf6 ixf6 13.e3 ixe4? !
14.ixe4 bS?? IS.�hS ! g 6 16.�cS 1-0.
Black's rook is trapped.
Perhaps Black's best idea is to play
7 . . . b6 in an attempt to trade light­
squared bishops after 8.lLlc3 ib7.
The downside of this approach is that
Black has weakened his light squares
on the queenside. After 9.�a4+ lLlfd7,
Beliavsky points out that White can
simply play 10.l'!dl with a larger than
normal opening edge. Note that the
paradoxical 8 . . .bS? ! is sneaky but du­
bious. Black has waited for White to
deploy his knight to the "vulnerable"
c3 square, but after 9.a4 b4, White
gets good play with 10.lLla2 cS 1l.lLlxc4
cxd4 12.aS ! White can possibly regain
his pawn via the tactic lLla2xb4 fol­
lowed by �dl-a4+, leaving him with
an edge in development.
In conclusion, the move 6 . . . l'!a7 ! ?
only gives Black the kind o f energy he
is seeking if White grabs the c4-pawn.
If White keeps applying pressure with
moves like lLlc3 and a2-a4, the rook is
simply misplaced.
7.lLlc3
7.,id2 �xd4 doesn't seem to give
White quite enough compensation for
his pawn. After the text move, Black
must keep attacking.
7 • • • tt'ld5
187
 CHAPTER B
8. 0 - 0 !
Kramnik's novelty, which we be­
lieve leads to good play for White.
8.'iNc2 ? ! has been played on a couple
of occasions, hoping to transpose back
into the game after B . . . O-O 9 . 0-0 be­
low while not affording Black the op­
portunity to grab material on c3. The
problem with this move order is that
it runs into B . . . �xc3 ! 9.bxc3 'iNxd4,
when after 1O.'iNa4+ �d7 1l.'iNxb4
'iNxeS 12.ia3 cS 13.'iNxc4 0-0 14.0-0,
Black stands well.
Instead, the longstanding main
line is B . .id2 bS 9 . 0-0, when White's
idea is to set up a secure pawn cen­
ter and then pry open the f-file with
f2-f4-fS. White gets full compensa­
tion for his pawn, but in recent times
Black has managed to obtain satisfac­
tory counterplay on the queenside.
Now Black must tread carefully, as
9 . . . 0-0? loses material after lO.�xdS
hd2 11.�f4 followed by taking the
rook on aB. Meanwhile, 9 . . . .ib7? ! is a
mistake for similar reasons : lO.�xdS
ixd2 11.�f6+ gxf6 12.ixb7 fxeS
13.ixaB is rather unsightly, but White
is up material and will emerge with a
clear advantage after 13 . . . c3 14.dxeS
cxb2 1SJ3bl. Thus, Black must play 9 . . .
ixc3 10.bxc3, when 10. . .f6 runs into
1l.e4 ! �e7 12.�g4, when White has
good prospects for an attack. 10. . . 0-0
is stronger, and now:
1BB
a) White can try 1l.a4 ! ? c6 12 .e4
�b6, for instance, Raetsky and
Chetverik give 13.aS � 6d7 14.�xd7
�xd7 lS.eS as giving White compen­
sation. Taking the analysis further, af­
ter lS . . . .tb7 16.f4, with the idea of f4-
fS, White stands no worse. A plausi­
ble continuation is 16 . . . l3bB (seem­
ingly stronger than 16 .. :�c7, which
fails to keep an eye on the f6 square,
among other things) 17.fS exfS 1B.l3xfS
c5 19.hb7 l3xb7 20.'iNg4 'iNe7 2 1..ih6
f6 22.l3afl cxd4 23.exf6 �xf6 24.l3xf6
l3xf6 2S.l3xf6 'iNxf6 26.'iNcB+ 'iNf8
27:�xb7 gxh6 (27 . . . dxc3 ! ? 2B.'iNdS+
�hB 29 .,txg7+ ! �xg7 30:�gS+ and
White should also force a draw by per­
petual check) 2B .'iNdS+ 'iNf7 29.'iNd8+
�g7 30:�xd4+ 'iNf6 31:�d7+ and
White draws. This type of outcome
seems very reasonable - White has a
nice attack, but not a winning one.
b) More critical is 1l.e4 �b6 12.f4
(12.h4 ! ? is another move) 12 . . . .ib7
13.fS :
Essentially, this pawn lever i s the
entire point of White's plan beginning
with kingside castling. Now Black can
either take up the challenge or focus
on repelling White's attack:
b1) After 13 .. .f6, play continues
14.�g4 'iNd7 1S.�e3. Black has numer­
ous tries here, such as lS . . . eS? ! 16.dxeS
fxeS 17.f6 l3xf6 1B.l3xf6 gxf6 19.'iNf3
�c6 (19 . . . 'iNxd2 20.l3d1!) 20.�g4 'iNg7
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.tt)eS .ib4+
(20... 1.Wxd2 21.1.Wxf6 is winning)
21.liJxf6+ @hS 22J'!ft l3f8 23.\WhS 1.Wg6
24.1.Wh4 with a strong attack for White.
And if lS . . . exfS, then 16.liJxfS lLlc6
17.1.Wg4 @hS 1S . .if4 (lS.l3ae1 13aeS 19.h4
b4 is less clear) lS . . . l3aeS 19.13ae1 lLla4
20.eS ! gives White strong compensa­
tion. Finally, a third line is lS . . . @hS
16.fxe6 1.Wxe6 17.l3f4 lLlSd7 1S.1.WhS 1.Wf7
19.1.We2 l3aeS 20.h4 with compensa­
tion for White yet again. If White en­
joys playing these kinds of positions,
he may score well with this line.
b2) After 13 . . . exfS, Nogueiras­
Ivanchuk, 2006, continued 14.l3xfS
liJ 8d7 ls.lLlg4 (lS.1.Wg4 lLlxeS 16.l3xeS
f6 17.l3hS 1.We7 lS.l3ft g6 19.13h4 l3aeS
is unclear) lS . . . 1.We7 16.1.Wc2 . Here
White's central influence gives him
full compensation, but nothing close
to an advantage. Black has plenty of
play on the queenside, and the onus is
on White to prove that he can contin­
ue playing down a pawn.
In conclusion, White's move or­
der S.id2 bS 9 . 0- 0 hc3 1O.bxc3 is
good enough to give him fair attack­
ing prospects - but from a theoretical
standpoint, however, White has not
been having much luck proving an ad­
vantage. Catalan players are turning
to other ideas, and in fact most Cata­
lan books today recommend 6. 0-0 in­
stead of 6.lLleS. We believe Kramnik's
move order, which jumps straight into
8 . 0-0 ! ? rather than wasting time on
8.,td2 , is exactly what the 6.lLleS vari­
ation needs to turn the theoretical tide
again.
8 . . . 0-0
This may b e Black's best response,
but essentially White is now getting to
play a "tempo up" on the S .id2 var-
iation. His next move, bringing his
queen to c2, is far more useful than
the awkward id2 .
Bad here is S . . . ,ixc3?!, a move
which gives White two pleasant op­
tions. The first, 9.bxc3 liJxc3 10.1.Wc2
1.Wxd4 (or 1O. . . lLlbS 1l.e3 0-0 12.l3b1)
1l.lLlxf7! @xf7 12 .,tb2, leads to a prom­
ising attack for White. The second,
9.e4 ! , may be even stronger: 9 . . . ,iaS
10.exdS ! (stronger than 1O.lLlxc4 c6
1l.lLlxaS �xaS 12.exdS cxdS) 10. . . exdS
1l.lLlxf7 and White wins back the piece
by force after 1l . . . @xf7 12.�hS+ g6
13.,ixdS+ ie6 14.1.Wf3 + ! 1.Wf6 lS.,ixe6+
@xe6 16.�xb7 lLld7 17.1.We4+ @f7
lS.1.WdS+ 1.We6 19.1.WxaS.
Let's look at the most critical test
of Kramnik's move, namely, 8. .. lLlxc3.
After 9.bxc3 ,ixc3 10.l3b1, there are
two ways for Black to capture White's
d4-pawn:
a) 10. . . 1.Wxd4 is an attempt to ex­
change queens. If White tries 1l.1.Wxd4
hd4 12.lLlxc4 lLld7 13.l3d1 icS, he
does not have enough for two pawns.
He can get back one (or maybe even
both) but it's hard to believe that this
ending is what White wanted. Thus,
White plays 1l.1.Wa4+ instead. Then
11.. .bS (1l . . . lLld7? leads to serious
problems after 12 .,tf4 ! , when White
has a tremendous initiative) 12 .1.Wa3
1.WxeS, when Baburin suggests 13.haS
lS9
 CHAPTER B

id4 14.if4 �eS 15.�xc5 ixeS 16.i.xc7

rtJe7 17.a4 .id7 1B . .ib7, for instance,
1B . . . b4? 19J'Uc1 c3 20. .ia5 ! winning for
White. An improvement on Baburin's
analysis might be 13.if4, which looks
even more effective: 13 . . .�f6 14.,ixc7!
(not 14.ixaB e5 15.�xc3 exf4 16.'1Wxf6
gxf6 17.gxf4 .ie6, as given by Baburin)
14 .. J'�a7 15.,ixbB E:d7 16 . .ic6, and
White is doing well.
b) 10. . .i.xd4 is the most critical
capture. After 11.ttJxc4 0-0 12 . .ia3 E:eB Worse is 11.. .E:a7 12.E:b1, as given
13.e3 .tf6 14.�c2 , White, of course, has by Baburin. The text blunts the hI-a8
excellent compensation because of his diagonal, though the downside is that
pressure against Black's queenside. Black's pawn on c6 is now a target.
From a theoretical perspective, how­
ever, concrete analysis is needed. Best 12.e4? !
play might be 14 . . . ttJd7 15.ttJa5 c5 ! ? ,
when White seems t o b e doing well af­ A reasonable attempt to open the
ter 16.ttJxb7 ixb7 17.ixb7 E:bB 18 .�a4. center. Although the sheer depth of
He should regain his material and still the complications that ensue makes
have at least a little pressure. this move a wonderful practical try -
White seems to be doing well in all particularly the first time around - the
of these variations. Just think: for all piece sacrifice followup doesn't strike
of these years, strong players have de­ one as being particularly sound.
fended against Black's "threats" with In hindsight, it is better for White
B . .id2 and lost valuable time ! If White to play 12.bxc4. The idea is that af­
scores around 54% in the database ter 12 . . .bxc4 13.e4, Black doesn't have
with the more passive B . .td2 , then he 13 . . .f6? here in view of 14.ttJxc4. Thus
should score even better with the en­ 12 . . . dxc4 is the correct recapture, but
ergetic B . O-O. after 13.E:d1, White has strong com­
pensation for his pawn:
9.�c2 b5 10.�xd5

Here, after 10.a4 f6 1l.ttJf3 ib7

12.axb5 i.xc3 13.bxc3 axb5 14.E:xaB
haB 15 . .ta3 E:eB 16.e4 ttJb6, White
does not have enough compensation
for a pawn. Kramnik's move is the
most logical idea: White is going to
break up Black's central pawn mass,
leaving the Black bishop looking loose
on b4.
White has control of the center and
10 ... exd5 1l.b3 c6 Black's queenside pieces are difficult to

190
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.�eS .tb4+
untangle. For instance, after 13 ... .tb7
14.1e4 (provoking a kingside weak­
ness) 14 . . . h6 1S.1h7+ <,!{hB 16 . .tfS,
White controls the d7 square and has
forced Black's king onto the a1-hB di­
agonal. White can follow up with .tc1-
b2 and look for a way to break with d4-
dS. Although Black has an extra pawn,
his position is uncomfortable.
12 . . . f6 13.exd5 !
White is playing with energy to rip
open the hl-aB diagonal for his Cata­
lan bishop. Without this move, 12.e4
would be pointless.
13.exd5 fxe5
Black must accept the sacri­
fice in view of 13 . . . cxdS 14.bxc4 bxc4
lS.tt:lxc4, when White has a tremen­
dous lead in development and will be
able to attack Black's weak dS-pawn
with �c4-e3 and �c2-b3.
14.bxc4
This has the advantage of free­
ing the b3 square for White's queen.
14.dxc6? first would have run into 14 . . .
1f5, helping Black complete his devel­
opment.
14 • • • exd4 15.dxc6
15 •.• .te6
Schipkov gives 1S .. J'!a7 16.cxbS
<,!{hB (White threatened �c4+) 17.if4
�xf4 1B.b6! (better than 1B.gxf4? !
axbS) 1B . . . �xb6 19.9xf4. White has a
rook and pawn for two pieces - which
some would argue is a material disad­
vantage - but his passed c-pawn and
activity fully compensate. Meanwhile,
1S . . . ic3 ? ! doesn't threaten anything
after 16.cxbS, when 16 . . . ixa1 17.c7
gives White the initiative.
But the possible improvement 1S . . .
�d6 was played i n the correspond­
ence game Winkler-�asybu11in, 2007,
when 16.c7 (16.cxbS first deserves at­
tention) 16 . . . d3 (16 . . . tlJc6? ! 17.cxbS is
good for White, but 16 . . . �a7 17.�b3
.tcS 1B . .tf4 �xf4 19.cxbB� �xbB
20.gxf4 .te6 21.�fe1 .tfl leaves White
with an extra exchange) 17.�b3 bxc4
1B.�xc4+ .te6 19 ..tf4 .txc4 20. .txd6
hd6 21.�ac1 �a7 was agreed drawn in
view of 22.cxbB� �xbB 23.�xc4, with
an endgame probably not worth play­
ing out in a postal game.
16.cxb5 d3
Now was the time to get off the
hl-aB diagonal with 16 . . . �a7, for in­
stance 17.�b1 (17.i.f4 �xf4 1B.b6 �xb6
19.9xf4 is an improved version for
Black of the position given after 1S . . .
�a7) 1 7. . . d 3 18.�d1 i.cS 19 . .te4 �afl
20. .tf4 �xf4 21.gxf4 �xf4 and sudden­
ly Black has the initiative.
17.c7! �d4?
Best is 17 . . . �d6 1B.�a4 tlJd7 (this
looks safer than 1B . . . d2 ! ?) 19 . .txaB
�xaB 20. .tf4 �dS 21.�ac1 .tc5 2 2 .�xa6
tlJb6 23.�xcS �xcS 24 . .te3 �xc7
2S . .txb6 �xa6 26 . .txc7 �xa2, with a
191
 CHAPTER B

probable draw according to Schipkov. 2 U�acl with the idea o f 2 1 . . .l''kB

Schipkov also gives 17 . . . dxc2? !
IB.cxdBWl �xdB 19.ixaB axb5 20.ie4 !
(even more convincing than 20.i.g5
�cB 21.a4, suggested by Davies) 20 .. .
�cB 21.if4 ia3 2 2 .�ael ih3 (22 . . .
ixa2 is met comfortably by 23 .ixc2
�xc2 24.�eB+ �f7 25.�xbB) 23 . .icl !
ixc1 24.�xcl. White simply escapes
with an extra pawn here: 24 . . . .ixfl
25. �xfl followed by �c1xc2 and so on.
18.Yfa4 �d7 19.Ae3 Yfd6 2 0 .ha8
l:!xa8
22.�c6 was roundly declared to have
been White's best after the game, but
Black was already in severe time pres­
sure here.
21 • • . YffS?
Missing 21 . . . Wld5, when 22.�ac1
(not 2 2 .Yfxb4? Wlf3 and . . . .ie6-dS)
22 . . . .ic5 23.Wlxa6 �b6 24.�xc5 WlxcS
25.ie3 Wlxc7 26.ixb6 �xa6 27.ixc7
�xa2 reaches the same drawish end­
ing as in the note to move 17.

2 2 .b6 �e5

Also losing is 22 . . . �xb6 23.Wlc6.

Black is lost.

23.he5 Yff3 24.Yfdl ti'e4 25.b7

White handles Black's threats easily.

25 • • . gfS 26.c8ti' Ad5 27.f3 1- 0

White is now up a pawn, the ex­

21.Af4? !
change, and a queen.

Summary: Kramnik played the novelty 8. 0- O ! and Morozevich passed on

the opportunity to capture on c3. White went all-out to open the center by sac­
rificing a piece. Both sides made afew inaccuracies, but Black ultimately got
into time trouble, essentially ending the game.

Conclusion: The old main line with B . .id2 doesn't given White an advan­
tage, so advocates of 6.�e5 have been looking for other ways to play. We believe
Kramnik's B.O-O is a superior try for White. The critical test, B �xc3 9.bxc3
• . .

ixc3, gives White sufficient compensation after 10.�bl. This sort of thing should
lead to a slight positional advantage for White after Black finds a way to return
his material.
In the stem game, Morozevich tried B . . . O-O. Objectively, Morozevich should
have been fine after Kramnik's 12 .e4, for instance with 16 . . . �a7. White's posi­
tion - a piece down - is harder to play, as he must then prove compensation. We
recommend playing 12 .bxc4 first, eliminating Black's option of . . . f7-f6. There,
White's advantage in development and control of the center should provide am­
ple compensation for his pawn.

192
Chapter 9
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////H//////////////////////

The Ea rly Open Cata la n with

S . . a6 6.tl)e5 c5
.

1.lDf3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

dxc4 5 . .tg2 a6 6.�e5 c5

I n the previous chapter, we looked at the theoretical evaluation of 7.lDa3.

what happens after Black plays l.lDf3 Dean responded that, although he felt
d5 2 . d4 lDf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4 5.i.g2 Black should be okay, the move was
a6 6.lDe5 i.b4+ . Now, we'll examine "interesting." Wojo decided to exam­
Black's main alternative, 6 . . . cS. For ine the line for himself, and soon he
many years, Dean has responded to was playing it with success. In this
this counterpunch in the center by chapter, we seek not only to outline
simply ignoring it with 7.lDa3. White the traditional theoretical lines re­
essentially allows Black to grab the d4- garding 7.lDa3, but also to speculate
pawn "for free," trusting that the bind on Wojo's own contributions. This
he will achieve after 7 . . .cxd4 8.lDaxc4 chapter is packed with pleasant "Wo­
will give him full compensation. jo-like" endgames and tactical tricks,
something which should make it in­
Wojo, who often kept an eye on teresting even to those Wojo fans who
what other strong Catalan aficionados would rather skip over the somewhat
were playing, once asked Dean about lengthy theoretical details.

Black's Endgame Ditch: 7. . . VNxd4

After White plays 7.lDa3, it is possi­ ing with 8.�xd4 cxd4 9 . lD axc4, since
ble for Black to immediately ditch the it turns out White has little trouble re­
complex theory of 7 . . . cxd4 by instead covering his lost pawn if he is patient.
opting for 7 .. .'IWxd4. Here we recom­ Rapid development is the way to go,
mending heading straight for the end- and White should be wary of "cash-

193
 CHAPTER 9
ing out" to regain his pawn too soon.
Computer evaluations may initially fa­
vor Black because of his extra pawn,
but in reality White is in little danger
of falling into a truly worse position.
The following game, taken from the
blindfold portion of the prestigious
Melody Amber tournament, demon­
strates how White can look to both re­
gain his pawn and preserve a slight in­
itiative at the same time.
Karpov, Anatoly
Van Wely, Loek
[E04] Monaco 200t (blindfold game)
l.c�� :f3 d5 2.d4 lOf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5 .1g2 a6 6.lOe5 c5
• sov, USSR U20 Chp. 1986) 13 . . . liJxc3
This is considered Black's most
principled move. White has left his
d4-pawn vulnerable by playing 1Of3-
e5 so early, so Black endeavors to at­
tack it.
Wojo's preference and our recom­
mended move. Essentially, this is a
pawn sacrifice. White sees the oppor­
tunity to create a strong bind by plac­
ing his knights on c4 and e5, so he
194
does not mind allowing Black to grab
the d4-pawn.
7.i.e3 is White's main alternative.
The bishop looks awkward on e3, but
White is prepared to accept doubled
pawns along the e-file in order to gain
time. Objectively, this move is proba­
bly just as strong as 7.liJa3, but from a
practical standpoint, our recommen­
dation cuts down on Black's options.
After 7 . . . liJd5 8.dxc5 liJd7 9.i.d4 liJxeS
10.he5, White has to be prepared
to face either 10. . . b:c5 1l.,bg7 l"!g8
or 10 .. .f6 1l.i.d4 hc5 12 .hc5 %YaS+
13.liJc3 (13.liJd2 %Yxc5 14.l"!cl b5 15.b3
i.b7 16.0-0 liJe3 ! 17.fxe3 %Yxe3+ 18.l"!f2
hg2 19.@xg2 l"!d8 20.l"!c2 c3 was
good for Black in Ivanchuk-Kuporo­
14.%Yd6 liJd5+ 15.@f1 %Yd8 16.%Yxd8+
@xd8, when White has compensation
for the pawn:
In addition, Black has a number
of other playable options, such as 8 ...
f6. That said, either seventh move for
White seems to be a valid bid for an
edge.
7 . . %Yxd4
.
The text is a rare move which has
suffered from a dubious reputation.
However, considering that it has been
ventured by GMs Azmaiparashvili,
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5

Naiditsch, Beliavsky, and - in this

game - Van Wely, one has to wonder
whether this attempt to get the queens
off the board early is really that bad.
In reality, it is more likely that this
move's unpopularity can be attribut­
ed to the fact that players who play 5 . . .
a 6 generally aren't i n the mood t o play
defense in a queenless middlegame.
Black's standard reply, 7 . . . cxd4, is far
White has played patiently and
more ambitious. It is covered in the
built up a powerful bind on the
next game.
queenside. Black did, however, man­
Meanwhile, a similar approach for
age to pull together a defense after
Black is 7 . . . 'Sa7, inviting the exchange
26 . . . r;t>d6 27.lLlxd7 lLlxd7 28.'Sxb5 g5,
of queens. Although some players
eventually holding the game despite
have tried the complicated 8 . .ie3 ! ? being a pawn down.
b S 9.dxc5 lLld5 here, we believe White
should be happy to enter the queen­ 8.Wxd4
less middlegame that occurs after
8.dxc5 \Wxd1+ 9.r;!;>xdl. Then 9 . . .hc5 8 .\Wa4+ ! ? is an interesting alterna­
lO.lLlaxc4 b5 1l.lLld3 'Sd7 12.lLlce5 'Sd8 tive given by Raetsky and Chetverik,
13.id2 .ib6 14.a4 gives White pres­ but the queen trade is considered the
sure on the queenside: critical test of Black's play.

8 . . . cxd4 9.lLlaxc4

An instructive example of how to

play this position with White is Roma­
nishin-Kveinys, Gausdal 2006, which
continued 14 . . . 0-0 15.axb5 (this is the
strongest approach for White, play­
ing against Black's exposed b-pawn)
lS . . . axb5 16 ..b5! lLlfd7 17.r;!;>c2 haS
18.'Sxa5 lLlxe5 19.1Llxe5 f6 20.lLld3 id7
21.r;t>d2 'Sc8 2 2 .'Sc1 'Sxc1 23.r;t>xc1 'Sc8+
24.r;t>d2 r;t>f7 25.b4 r;t>e7 26.lLlc5 :
Black has garnered the d4-pawn,
but White's Catalan bishop and cen­
tralized knights put the second play­
er under a lot of pressure. White plans
to simply castle and develop his piec­
es, not worrying about Black's ex­
tra pawn. Meanwhile, Black is under

195
 CHAPTER 9

psychological pressure to find a way

to "keep" his extra pawn, as it is his
only trump. This means he will often
try . . . i.fS-cS, or even the slow . . . �f6-
d7 followed by . . . f7-f6 and . . . e6-eS.

9 ... �bd7

Moving the other knight with 9 . . .

�fd7 should also b e met with 10. 0-0,
for instance, 10. . .f6 11.�xd7 �xd7
12 .e3 (White is now making a genu­
ine "gambit" of his lost pawn) 12 . . . �cS
13.exd4 hd4 14J:�d1 :
The position nowlooks equal, but in
reality Black has some chances on the
kingside with his strong 4-3 pawn ma­
jority. On the other hand, queenside
majorities aren't always as powerful
as one would think; the problem for
White is that he is unable to activate
his king, which remains stuck on the
second or third ranks. The game con­
tinued 20.�d2 13dS 21.�e2 13cS 2 2 .13c1
13xc1 23.hc1 eS 24.f3 �e6 2S.b3 f5
26.ie3 hS 27.�b2 gS 28.�c4 g4 :

14 . . . eS? ! (14 . . . i.cS lS.if4 eS 16.i.e3

he3 17.�xe3, when White has more
than enough compensation for the
pawn, was preferable) lS.�d6+ �fS
16.i.e3 he3 17.fxe3 �cS was Ra­
zuvaev-Beliavsky, USSR Chp. 19S0,
when Razuvaev points out that White's
simplest was lS .b4 �e6 19.�xcS 13xcS
20..ixb7. White should pick up the a6-
pawn and have a winning position.
Note that it is important for White
to castle kingside and focus on his de­
velopment. In Ehlvest-Azmaiparash­
viii, Liepaja 2006, White regained his
pawn but lost all of his other advan­
tages after he met 9 . . . �fd7 from Black
with 10.i.f4 ! ? i.b4+ 11.�d1 0-0 12.13c1
�xe5 13.�xeS f6 14.�d3 i.e7 lS.13xcS
13xcS 16.hb7 �d7 17.e4 dxe3 lS.haS
13xaS 19 . .ixe3 'it>f7:
29.f4 e4 30.�d4 h4 31.�e3 �b8
32 . .ic3 h3 33.�d4 �c6 34.i.c3 i.c5
3S.�d2 �e7 36 . .ib2 �dS 37.�xd5
�xdS 3S. �e2 �gl 0-1. Black made
the win look easy. It is important to re­
member what happened in this game
because, otherwise, it is tempting to
think that innocuous-looking play
from both sides should lead to a draw.
White needs to focus on preserving his
slight initiative, not on winning back
his pawn.

196
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.�eS cS
10. 0 - 0
This is an improvement over
1O.tLlxd7 tLlxd7 11.0-0 .icS 12 .e3, when
White has good compensation for
his pawn, but Black is usually able
to hold a draw in practice. 12 . . . 0-0
13.exd4 .bd4 14.gd1 eS lS ..ie3 he3
16.fxe3 (16.tLlxe3 also gives White full
compensation) 16 . . . gb8 17J�ac1 bS
18.tLld6 tLlb6 19.tLlxc8 tLlxc8 20.b3 tLle7
2 Uk7 tLlfS 2 2.<i> f2 gfc8 23.gdd7 gxc7
24.Elxc7 <±>f8 2S.g4 tLld6 26.gc6 <±>e7
27.Elxa6 was probably a little better
for White in the correspondence game
Modr-Larrass, 1988, but the game was
eventually drawn. With the text move,
White is not so hasty to release the
tension.
10 • • • tLlxe5
Black correctly seeks to reduce
White's pressure. 10. . . .ics 11.tLld3 .ie7
12 .b3, when White is preparing to sim­
ply target the d4-pawn with .ic1-b2,
would not have helped Black's cause.
1l • • • .id6
Black jettisons the d4-pawn and
seeks only to hold his queenside
together. On 11 . . . �d7, White could
"cash in" with 12.tLlxd7 .bd7 13 ..bb7,
but after 13 . . . ga7 14 . .if3 eS 1S.e3 Black
can defend adequately with lS . . . .icS.
Instead, White should avoid trading
off his well-placed knight with 12.tLlc4,
when Black is uncomfortable. There is
no clear way for White to win back the
d4-pawn, but he can effectively "gam­
bit" the pawn away with e2-e3 instead:
after 12 . . . eS 13.e3, nothing looks sat­
isfactory for Black. For instance, 13 . . .
ic5 14.exd4 .ixd4 lS.ge1 0 - 0 16 . .ie3
.be3 17.gxe3 f6 18.gd1 gives White
more than full compensation for the
pawn, and 13 . . . d3 14.gd1 fS 1S.gxd3 e4
16.tLld6+ hd6 17.gxd6 yields him the
bishop pair.
Finally, 13 . . . dxe3 14 . .ixe3 ie7
lS.gfd1 Elb8 (not lS . . . 0-0? 16 . .ixb7! ,
when the knight o n d7 i s hanging)
16.gac1 f6 17.f4 is uncomfortable for
Black:
Play might continue 17... 0-0 18.tLld6
hd6 19.9xd6 exf4 20. .idS+ <±>h8
2l.gxf4 ! (taking control of the eS
square) 21 . . . ge8 2 2 .<±>f2 tLlf8 23 . .ia7
Ela8 24.id4 tLlg6 2S.ge1 gf8 26.<±>g3,
when Black is utterly passive.
12.tLlc4 .ic7 13 .if4
•
By trading the dark-squared bish­
ops, White gains control over key
197
 CHAPTER 9

squares in Black's camp such as b6 19.9xd5 i.e6 20.gd4 ghd8

and d6. Also, his g-pawn coming to f4 2l.gadl
will greatly increase his control of the
center.

l3 . . . J.xf4 l4.gxf4 gb8 l5.gfdl

�e7 l6.�d4 .id7 l7A�d6

2l . . . g6

2 1 . . . .b:a2 ? 22.lZlf5+ allows White

to pick up the g7-pawn.

22.a3 f5 23.t'3 gd7 24.e4 fxe4

White has regained his pawn and
25.fxe4 gfS 26.e5 ge7 27.gld2 b5
emerged with his slight initiative in­
28.�g2
tact.

White is close to having a win­

l7 ••. �d5? !
ning position, but Black's light-square
blockade is difficult to break.
With this, Black seeks more than
anything else to break White's grip
28 . . . gel 29.�g3 ggl+ 30.gg2
on the position, even at the cost of
gel
a pawn. On 17 . . . i.c6, it would be a
mistake for White to split Black's
The trade of rooks would have
queenside pawns with 18 . .b:c6 bxc6,
made the extra activity of White's king
as Black has too much activity: 19.b3
even more relevant.
�hd8 20.�adl li:ld5 21.li:lc4 li:lxf4 ! wins
a pawn, since White's rook is pinned
3l.�e4 ge4 32.ggd2 h6
along the d-file. Instead, White should
33.gxe4? !
play 18,l'!adl, when he maintains a
slight edge. After the text move, Black
It would have been worth wait­
is struggling.
ing another move with 33.h4 to probe
Black's intentions. Allowing Black to
l8 .ixd5 exd5
recapture on c4 with the b-pawn al­
•

lows Black some interesting defensive

Insufficient is 18 .. .'�xd6 19.,ixb7+
resources.
�e7 20.,ixa6 �xb2 2Ukl, when White
penetrates to the seventh rank. 33 bxe4 34.�c5
•..

198
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5

34 ••. gS ! 36 • • • c3 !

34 . . . Eib8, with pressure down the
b-file, was the alternative. 35.ttJxe6
then gives Black drawing chances af­
ter 35 . . . @xe6 36.Eid6+ @t7 37.Eif6+
rlJg7 38.Eixa6 Eixb2 39.Eic6 Eib3+
4O.rlJg4 Eixa3 4l.Eixc4 Eial 42.Eic7+
rlJg8, when it is difficult for White to
break through given the activity of
Black's rook.
Meanwhile, 35.ttJxa6 is no bet­
ter after 35 . . . Eib3+ 36.mf2 c3 37.bxc3
Eixa3.
Black was probably most con­
cerned with the simple 35.@f3, after
which White's king is coming to e4
and it is not clear what Black can do
about it. The text move, which is a try
for immediate action, is far more ap­
pealing.
3S.fxgS
Going all out. Black's tactics to
break up White's pawn formation and
achieve a draw are particularly effec­
tive in the chaos of blindfold chess.
37.bxc3 ga8 38.�c7
38.Eid6 Eic8 is also difficult for
White to win.
The immediate 4O.@g4 Eixc3
41.@xg5 @xe5 leads to a draw, for
instance, 42.Eie2+ @d6 43.h4 Eig3+
44.@f4 Eih3 45.@g4 Eihl 46.h5 Eigl+
47.@f5 Eih1 48.@g6 Eigl+ 49.@h7 md7
SO.h6 Eig3 (not SO. . . @d8?, when 51.Eie6
builds a bridge with Eie6-g6 and so on)
and Black is able to hold a draw by
staying on the g-file:

It would not have been any more

effective to play 35.Eid6 gxf4+ 36.@f3
198 (clinging to the important c4-
pawn) 37.ttJxa6 Eif5 38.ttJb4 (cover­
ing d5, locking in Black's bishop) 38 . . .
Eixe5 39.Eixh6, a s Black i s probably on
the verge of drawing after 39 . . . Eie3+
4O.mxf4 Eie2 4l.h4 Eixb2.
This is a basic theoretical draw: at­
3S • • • hxgS 36.�xa6 tempts by White such as 51.@h8 Eigl

199
 CHAPTER 9

52.h7 gg3 53.ga2 get nowhere after
53 . . . �e7 54.ga8 �f7 55.gg8 gh3 56.ggl
gf3 (covering the f-file) and so on.
40 ... gxc3 + 41.�g4 gc8 42.�xg5
gg8+
This ending is also drawn accord­
ing to the computer tablebases.
43.�f4 gf8+ 44.c;t>g4 gg8+
45.�f3 gg5 46.�f4 gf5+ 47.�g4
gf8

White finds himself frustrated in

his attempts to make progress.

48.h4 gg8 + 49.c;t>h3 gh8

50. gel �f5 51.e6 ge8 52 .gfl + c,!Ig6
53.gg1 + c;t>f6 54.h5 gxe6 l/2-l/2

With only one lonely h-pawn re­

maining, the game is drawn.

Summary: The move 7. . ffxd4 has probably been given a bad rap. Sever­
.

al strong players have used it as an equalizing weapon, and Black actually has
decent chances to steer the game towards a draw. Regardless, White should be
more than happy to exchange queens with B. ffxd4 and playfor pressure in the
queen less middlegame. Considering how hard Black has to struggle to hold the
draw, it is unlikely that 7 . . ffxd4 will ever gain real popularity.
.

Black's Trendy Test: 7... cxd4 8.Naxc4 Bc5

Now that we have examined the
endgame that occurs after 7 . . . ffxd4
8.ffxd4, we are able to fully appreci­
ate Black's decision to play 7 . . . cxd4 in­
stead. After 8.ttlaxc4, White is ready to
ramp up the pressure on the queenside
with .ic1-d2 , ffdl-b3, and gal-c1. In
the following game, we will look at
one of Black's most fashionable ways
to fortify his queenside: B. . . .ic5, rein­
forcing the d4-pawn and safeguarding
the "loose" b6 square, which is often
the Achilles' heel of Black's queenside.
Kiss, Pal (2419)
Beliavsky, Alexander (2618)
[E04] Magyarorszag 1999
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.�f3 �f6 4.g3
dxc4 5 . .tg2 a6 6.�e5 c5 7.�a3
cxd4 8.�axc4 .tc5

200
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.�eS cS

lLlbxd7 13 .hb7 l%bS 14.�xaS wins a

pawn.
In the actual game, Almasi played
10.Wfb3, with strong pressure on the
queenside. However, Black nearly
managed to equalize after playing sev­
eral precise moves : 10. . . �bd7 11.hb7
a4 12.Wff3 .b:b7 13. Wfxb7 lLlxeS 14.lLlxeS
WfdS lS.Wfc6+ Wfxc6 16.�xc6, and here
16 . . . i.cS ! 17.l%c1 .ib6 would have been
fine for Black, for example lS.!b4
lLldS 19.i.a3 f6 and so on. Instead,
This move is starting to become
Black faltered with 16 . . . lLle4?! 17.f3
fashionable. Black develops in such a
lLlxd2 1S.<.!ixd2 , with a better endgame
way as to support his d4-pawn.
for White.
For the sake of contrast, S . . . i.e7? !
does nothing to stop White's planned
9 .id2
invasion on the queenside. Then
.

9.id2 threatens i.aS, so the artificial­

White targets the dark squares
looking 9 . . . aS was played in Almasi­
on the queenside, particularly as.
Vadasz, Budapest 1997:
It seems useful to develop White's
queenside as quickly as possible, even
if this means delaying castling for a
couple of moves.
Alternatively, one of the great mys­
teries of this line occurs after 9.0-
o 0-0 10.b4 ! ? , which was played in
the game Russo-De Haro, Guarapua­
va 1992, and has not been repeated
since. White sacrifices a second pawn
for an initiative on the queenside. Is
Here White can play the novelty it enough? The game continued 10. . .
10.Wfa4 + ! , which yields a clear advan­ hb4 11.l%b1 !cS ! 12.lLld3 (12 .Wfc2
tage in all lines : lLldS) 12 . . . ie7 13.lLlb6 l%a7 when, ob­
a) 10. . .�fd7 (leaving the bS-knight jectively, Black is fine:
to cover the c6 square) 11.ha5 l%a6
(or 11 . . . <.!ifS ! ? 12.liJd3, stopping Black's
tactics along the e1-aS diagonal)
12.V9bS b6 13.i.b4 leaves White with
superior piece placement.
b) 10. . . lLlbd7 11 . .b:aS <.!ifS (now 11 . . .
l"1a6 loses after 12 .WfbS b 6 13.lLlc6)
12.lLld3 is a clear edge for White.
c) 10. . . !d7 11.lLlxd7 Wfxd7 (or 11 . . .
�bxd7 12 .hb7 l%a7 13.!c6) 12.Wfxd7+

201
 CHAPTER 9
He is two pawns up, and the pres­
sure on his position will not last for­
ever. White has a few possible tries
here, but none appear sufficient. For
instance, 14.e4 tDc6 15.f4 tDd7 16.tDxc8
�xc8 and White has something of a
kingside attack, but not enough of
one for his invested material. Or if
14.e3, simply 14 . . . tDbd7 15.tDxc8 �xc8
16.exd4 b5 and Black is up a pawn. In
the game, White played 14.�b3, and
play continued 14 . . . tDc6 15 . .tb2 e5?
16.tDxc8 �xc8 17.tDxeS ! tDxe5 18.hd4
�cS 19.he5. Many mistakes later,
White went on to win, and thus the
gambit 10.b4 ! ? became immortalized
as a footnote in Catalan literature.
However, Black should instead have
opted for 15 . . . �d7, threatening . . . tLlc6-
as. White would then have been strug­
gling to prove compensation for two
pawns. The text move is a far more se­
rious attempt to put pressure on the
queenside.
Covering the b6 square immedi­
ately is best. Black is preparing for
White's invasion �d2-a5. After 9 . . . �e7
10.tDd3 0-0 1Uk1, an early draw was
agreed in Ippolito-Aagaard, Hamp­
stead 1998, but 1l . . . tLlc6 12 .hc6
(12 .tLla5 ! ? is also possible) 12 . . . bxc6
13.tLla5 �b6 14.tLlxc6 �b7 15.0-0 with
the followup tLld3-e5 would have left
White with a miniscule edge.
9 . . . 0-0 is an inaccurate move or­
der after 10.tDd3 ! , when Black should
play 10. . . �e7, transposing to the pre­
vious paragraph. Instead 10. . . �e7 left
Black having to take repeated punch­
es: 11.�aS �e8 12 .tLlb6 !%a7 13.tDxc8
�xc8 14.!%c1 tLlc6 1S.�b6 !%a8 16.hd4
�d8 17.hf6 hf6 18.hc6 bxc6
202
19.�a4 �d5 20. 0-0 �5 2 1.�c4 and
White finally emerged with a slight
edge in Solozhenkin-Rytshagov, Fin­
nish Team Chp. 2005.
10. gel
It makes more sense to focus on de­
veloping the queenside with this nat­
ural move than it does to play 10.tDd3
immediately. One extra option avail­
able to Black here is 10. . . �b6 !?, giv­
ing up the dark-squared bishop in or­
der to stop White's progress on the
queenside.
1O.i.a5 is also possible, hoping
for 10 . . . b6? 1l.b4 ! with big problems
for Black. However, 10. . . �e7 leaves
White with his bishop committed to
as prematurely. Thus the text move is
White's best.
10 • • • 0-0 11. 0-0
1l . . . b6 is an alternative here, when
play revolves around whether Black's
queenside formation is solid enough
to fully withstand White's mounting
assault. In Mittelman-Rabiega, Ber­
lin 1998, White made considerable
progress with 12 .�b3 tDd7 13.!%fd1:
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.toeS cS
13 . . . lLlxeS 14.lLlxeS Wie7 1S . .ib4 Wid6
16.ttJd3 as 17.hcS bxcS 18.lLlxc5 E:b8,
and here 19. Wia3 would have allowed
White to keep a considerable advan­
tage. Black improved significantly on
this in the grandmaster game Gus­
tafsson-Berkes, European Team Chp.
20OS, when Black opted for 13 . . . aS ! ?
from the diagram. White targeted
Black's weakened light squares with
14:�a4 Wic7 1S.!f4 lLlxf4 16.gxf4:
Here Black moved his rook out
of the line of fire with 16 . . . E:a6, but
White achieved a tiny edge after out­
maneuvering Black on the queenside:
17.Wic6 Wia7 C17 . . . Wixc6 18.lLlxc6 .ib7
19.1Llxd4 hg2 20.'ihg2 is a little bet­
ter for White) 18.WibS lLlb8 (18 . . . lLlxeS
19.1LlxeS leaves White with compen­
sation) 19.1Lla3 Wie7 20.lLlc2 f6 21.lLld3
.id7 2 2 .Wic4 E:a7 23.lLlxd4 E:c7 24.lLlxcS
ElXCS 2S.Wib3.
Thus, it has been suggested that
16 . . . lLlxeS was the way for Black to
handle White's queenside bind. White
loses material after 17.ha8? i.d7, so
instead 17.lLlxeS i.b7 C17 . . . E:a7 allows
White to regain his pawn with 18.E:xd4
when, for instance, the forcing se­
quence 18 .. .f6 19.1Lld3 .id7 20.Wid1
hd4 2 1.E:xc7 E:xc7 2 2 .e3 .icS 23.lLlxcS
bxcS 24.Wid6 E:fc8 2S . .ifl leaves White
better) 18.Wid7! Wixd7 19.1Llxd7 hg2
20.i>xg2 E:fc8 21.Elc4 and White has
enough pressure to regain his pawn.
After White piles up with E:d1-c1, he
can look forward to playing a pleasant
endgame.
12. c!lJd3 b6
White stands well after 12 . . . .ia7!?
13 . .iaS. If Black plays into the line 13 ...
b6 14 . .ib4 lLlcS lS . .ia3, his bishop will
be shut in on a7 for a long time to come.
Thus, 13 . . . Wif6 100ks better, when after
14.lLld6, Black is still cramped. White
should have more than enough com­
pensation for his pawn here.
13. c!lJa5 !
This is far better than 13.b4 .ie7
14.f4, when White's position is dubi­
ous after 14 . . . .ib7 lS.fS exfS 16.E:xfS
lLl7f6.
13 ••• ge8
2 03
 CHAPTER 9

Capturing the knight with 13 . . .bxaS

14.ttJxcS ttJxc5 1S.gxc5 �b6 16.�c2
was a little better for White in Mager­
ramov-l.Ivanov, USSR Chp. 1979.
But 13 . . . �f6 may prove to be Black's
best move here, however. Then a sim­
ple way for White to either win his
pawn back or achieve a slight advan­
tage is 14.ttJb3 :

Here 17 . . . �d8 18.e4 ttJe7 19.e5

a) 14 . . . i.e7? 1S.gc6 aims to pin
Black's e-pawn to his queen, leaving
his knight on dS hanging.
b) 14 . . . !d6 1S.!b4 takes advantage
of the many pins in the position, giv­
ing White an advantage.
c) 14 . . . gb8 1S.hdS exdS 16.i.b4 is
also a little better for White.
d) 14 . . . .ib7! (best) 1S.ttJbxcS ttJxcS
16.ttJxc5 bxcS 17.gxcS. Now the critical
position for this line occurs after 17 . . .
�e7 18.gc4 eS, when Black has control
of the center but White has the bishop
pair. Chances are level.
More ambitious play by White is
possible but not necessarily recom­
mended. For example, rather than
14.ttJb3, a more complicated try for
White is 14.b4 ! ? i.d6 1S.ttJc4 !b8
16.e4. After 16 . . . dxe3, White should
take with the pawn, as 17.ttJxe3? .ib7
18 .�3 ttJeS! was worse for White
in Kiss-Istratescu, Hungarian Team
Chp. 2005. After the correct 17.fxe3,
the following position is reached:
ttJdS 20.�hS gives White a decent at­
tack, for instance 20 . . . .ib7 2 1..igS f6?!
2 2 .i.e4.
Instead, Black should probably
play 17 . . :�e7, when after 18.e4 ttJSf6,
neither 19 . .igS eS nor 19.eS ttJd5
20:�hS .ib7 2 1.i.gS f6 are particular­
ly strong for White. But 19.bS ! ? leaves
everything subject to capture:
19 . . . axbS (19 . . . aS leaves Black with
a damaged queenside formation, so
20.i.gS eS should give White enough
compensation now) 20. .ib4 W/d8
21.eS ! ? bxc4 (not 2 1 . . .ttJdS?! 2 2 .ttJd6
ttJc5 23.ttJxc8 �xc8 24.ttJxcS bxc5
2S.hcS ge8 26 . .ixdS exdS 27.�xd5
heS 28.gxt7, which leaves White
with a clear advantage) 2 2 .ha8 cxd3
23 . .ixf8 <;t>xf8 24.exf6 ttJxf6, with a
strange and approximately equal ma­
terial imbalance. If anything, it is
probably easier to play Black here, as

2 04
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.tOeS cS
White's king is somewhat open. Since
it is deceptively easy to evaluate such
an aggressive line too optimistical­
ly for White, we would recommend
sticking with 14.tOb3.
14.tOc6 ! ?
This i s ambitious but logical. For
the next several moves, simply taking
the bishop pair with lDxcS might have
been considered. Here, for instance,
14.1Z1xc5 would have given White a
slight edge after either 14 . . . lDxcS lS.b4
ttlb7 (not IS . . . lDd7? ! 16.lDc6 '.Wf6 17.e4
dxe3 18.fxe3 '.Wg6 19.e4, when Black's
forces are scattered on an open board)
16.1Z1c6'.Wd6 17.lDxd4 eS l8.lDc2 or 14 . . .
bxc5 IS.e4 lD e 7 (IS . . . dxe3 16.fxe3 and
White's two bishops leave him bet­
ter) 16.eS g(b8 17.lDc4 lDdS (17 . . . lDfS? !
18.iaS '.WgS I9.ic7 should win the ex­
change) 18.f4.
In this latter case, White's two bi­
shops and structural superiority pro­
vide him more than full compensation
for his pawn.
14 ••• lYf6 15.b4
This was the natural followup to
White's previous move. Here, it is un­
clear whether White has enough com­
pensation after IS.lDxcS bxc5 16.e4
dxe3 17.fxe3 '.Wxb2 18.e4. The two
bishops are strong, but now White has
sacrificed two pawns, not just one.
15 • • • J.b7!
Also an ambitious move, as Black
seeks to keep the game interesting.
Equality would have resulted after 15 . . .
id6 16.e4 ( a familiar theme by now)
16 . . . dxe3 17.fxe3 '.Wg6 18.e4 eS ! (not
18 . . . ib7? 19.exdS '.Wxd3 20.dxe6 g(xe6
2 1.if4 '.Wxdl 2 2 .g(fxdl hf4 23.gxf4,
when Black is utterly disorganized)
19.1DdxeS lDxeS 20.lDxeS heS 2 1.exdS.
White has a passed d-pawn, but it isn't
going anywhere for the time being.
16.lDa5!?
All this knight-hopping borders on
dubiousness. Even after this move,
however, White is probably still okay.
Of course, 16.bxc5 hc6 17.cxb6
g(ac8 is good for Black, as the b6-pawn
is weak and Black's center pawns will
prove a great asset. Even here, though,
White can minimize his losses by
heading into an inferior endgame after
18.e4 lDSxb6 (18 . . . lDc3 19.ixc3 dxc3
20.b7 g(cd8 21.'.Wb3 is fine for White)
19.9(xc6 ! g(xc6 20.eS'.Wg6 21.ixc6'.Wxd3
2 2 .i.aS '.Wc4 23.ixb6 '.Wxc6 24.ixd4.
The dark-squared bishop will never be
as strong as all of Black's play is on the
light squares, but White is not in much
real danger yet.
But 16.lDxcS ! would have left
White slightly better: 16 . . . lDxcS (not
16 . . . hc6?? 17.1Z1e4, losing a piece, or
16 . . .bxcS 17.lDaS g(ab8 18 .bxcS, which
gives White a powerful passed c-pawn)
17.bxcS ixc6 18.cxb6 ib7 19.'.Wb3, and
White has the two bishops and a little
pressure:
205
 CHAPTER 9
For instance, after 19 . . . E:ad8, plan­
ning . . . e6-eS, White has the tacti­
cal resource 20.E:c7! when his rook
is immune from capture, since 20. . .
liJxc7? 2 1.bxc7 would leave too many
of Black's pieces hanging. After the
game move, Black can be happy with
his strong fortification in the center.
16 • •• bxa5 17.bxc5 .ic6 18.ha5
Grabbing this pawn may have been
a waste of time. The immediate 18.e4
was to be considered.
18 • • • e5
19.,ixd5?
White gets zero points for giving up
the Catalan bishop without just cause.
Clearly, White is cracking from the
strain of "keeping up" with a strong­
er player. This kind of mistake is typi-
206
cal for matches in which one player is
a few hundred rating points stronger
than the other.
19.e4, suggested by Dean as a crit­
ical improvement, was necessary to
maintain the balance. Now 19 . . . liJe7
20.f4 would give White a strong attack,
so play continues 19 . . . dxe3 20.fxe3
'lWe6. Black's strong formation in the
center is offset by White's bishop pair
and passed c-pawn. Here White can
play 2 1.'lWd2 :
If Black tries to neutralize White's
bishop pair with 2 1 . . . liJSf6, White
plays 2 2 . liJb4 .ixg2 23.\!{xg2. White's
Catalan bishop is traded off, but
Black's blockade of the passed c-pawn
is notably weakened - thus, the deli­
cate equilibrium is maintained.
19 • • • hd5 20.liJb4 .ic6 21 .ic7•
White is trying to make a strength
out of his c-pawn, but his Catalan
bishop is noticeably absent from his
kingside defense. This leaves him
clearly worse - Black is already too
strong in the center. Perhaps a better
try was 21.'lWd2 ! ? with the idea off2-f4,
desperately contesting Black's central
control. Regardless, Black is better af­
ter 2 1 . . . E:ac8 2 2 .f4 'lWg6 23.liJxc6 'lWxc6.
2 1 a5 22.�xc6 'lWxc6 23 .id6
• • • •
�f6 24.e3
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.tOe5 c5
24J�bl tOd5 is also unpleasant for
White.
24 tOe4 25.Wf3 gac8 26.exd4
. • •
exd4 27.gfel ge6
Black continues building. White's
bishop is stuck on d6, so there is little
White can do to halt Black's impend­
ing assault. That said, it would be a
mistake to give the impression that a
win for Black is inevitable.
28.h4 h6 29.gcdl ed5 30.ge2
l"ke8 31.ged2
31 . . . gf6 32.eg2?
The "Main Line": 8 J:ta 7 ..
From the beginning, 8 . . J�a7 has
been considered Black's most prin­
cipled move. Although it may seem
odd that this strange rook lift has en­
joyed more popularity over the years
than the "natural" 8 . . . i.c5, the idea is
hardly new - many systems against
the Catalan involve Black using such
a move to prepare . . . i.c8-b7, neutral­
izing White's Catalan bishop. Because
this line has a rich, interesting, and
well-developed theory, we will first
examine the traditional "main line,"
3 2 .i.f4 would have kept White in
the game. Black might then settle for
3 2 . . . exc5 3 3J:!xd4, when White may
yet pull off a draw, as 3 2 . . . g5 33.hxg5
hxg5 34.l'!xd4 (34.Wg4? l'!xf4 35.gxf4
lDxd2) 34 . . . Wf5 35.l'!xe4 ! l'!xe4 36.eh5 !
gives White a surprising amount of
counterplay.
32 . . . Wh5 33 .i.f4
There was really nothing better.
33 . . . tOxd2 0 -1
Summary: Black's move B . . . i.c5
is gaining popularity for a reason.
It's based on sound logic and gives
him reasonable chances to play for
the win. On the other hand, although
White - in this case, the weaker play­
er - lost this game, the analysis shows
that he had many interesting ways to
fightfor the advantage along the way.
Readers should pay particular atten­
tion to the suggestions 16.lDxc5 and
19.e4, respectively. Thefirst seems to
give White a slight pull, whereas the
second leads to a complex game with
balanced chances.
signaled by the move 12.lDa5 in the
following game. Then, in Wojtkiewicz­
Anka, below, we will branch off and
look at some original ideas by Wojo
and other Catalan practitioners.
Zhu Chen (2548)
Zhao Xue (2517)
[E04] Istanbul 2008
l.d4 tOf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.tOf3
dxc4 5 . .tg2 a6 6.tOe5 c5 7.tOa3
cxd4 8.tOaxc4 ga7
2 07
 CHAPTER 9
This is the longstanding main line.
It is only recently that the move 8 . . .
icS, a s i n the previous game, has be­
gun to steal the limelight. With this
rook lift, Black aims to prepare . . .b7-
b6 and . . . i.b7 as quickly as possible.
Black succeeds in exchanging light­
squared bishops, significantly reduc­
ing the pressure on his queenside.
9.i.d2 b6 lO.'i'b3
This is still currently the main line,
but Wojo's also played the move order
10. 0-0 here, which is awarded an ex­
clamation point by Atahk. (See next
game.) No coverage of this line could
be complete, however, without some
scrutiny of this popular queen devel­
opment.
lO • • • .ib7
The logical followup to Black's
rook lift. 10. . . bS? 11.i.aS bxc4 12.tDxc4
is terrible for Black, and 1O. . . tDfd7
1l.tDd3 1eaves him cramped. Thus 10. . .
icS was played i n Ippolito-Strugat­
sky, 2000, when Dean played the the­
matic 1l.ih4. Then 11.. .'�c7 12 J'k1 0-0
13.0-0 tDfd7! 14.tDd3 ib7 lS.tDxb6 !
ixg2 16.tDxd7 tDxd7 17.hcS left White
a little better. Regardless, we now be-
208
lieve the correct reaction is simply to
play 11.tDd3 tDbd7 12.tDxcS, keeping a
slight edge.
1l .txb7 gxb7 12.�a5
•
Again following the main line. In­
stead 12.0-0 would have transposed
into Wojtkiewicz-Anka below.
Even though Black has some po­
tentially interesting possibilities after
other moves, this is considered Black's
only serious attempt to avoid an even
or slightly worse ending. In particu­
lar, 12 .. J'k7 allows 13.\l;Yxb6, not fear­
ing 13 .. Jk1+? 14J�xc1 \l;Yxb6 lSJ'k8+
@e7 16.gxb8 \l;Yxb8 17.tDec6+, when
White is up a piece. Black has three
other tries:
a) 13 . . . d3? ! is met by 14.tDac4 ! (14.
exd3 tDg4 1S.tDxg4 �c1+ 16.�xc1 \l;Yxb6
17.�c8+ @d7 is far less clear) with the
idea of 14 . . . dxe2 lS.iaS, with a clear
advantage.
b) 13 . . . tDg4 ! ? is an interesting try.
Black is again baiting White into los­
ing his queen via . . . �c7-c1+ . Then
14.tDec4 (14.tDxg4? ! �c1+ lS.�xc1
\l;Yxb6 is good for Black after 16.�c8+
@d7 17.�c2 f6, and the tempting
14.tDac6? actually loses after 14 ...
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5

Itlxc6 15.lLlxc6 Wfd5 ! 16.'m>B+ It>d7

17.WfdB+ It>xc6 1BJ'k1+ �c5 19J3xc5+
Y;Vxc5 20.WfxhB Wfc2 , with a crushing
attack) 14 . . . 1c5 15.Wfb3 Wfd5 16.0-0
Itld7 17.h3 lLlgf6 1B.i.f4 l'kB 19J'�ac1
gives White a slight edge:

The bishop o n a 5 i s taboo, as 1 3 . . .

White stands better due to the
slightly more active positioning of his
minor pieces and his superior con­
trol over e5 and other queenside dark
squares.
c) 13 . . . .!c5. The only move ever
attempted in tournament practice.
14.Wfb3 0-0 15.0-0 �d5 16.�xd5 lLlxd5
17.Eifc1 left White slightly better in
Bykhovsky-Kaidanov, USSR Chp.
19B3.
So much for 12 . . . Eic7. The main
"problem" with 12 .lLla5 is that, with
safe but accurate play, Black has a clear
route to equality with 12 . . . Eia7. Let's go
through it step by step. White's best
now is 13.0-0, as practice has shown
that 13.lLlac6? ! lLlxc6 14.lLlxc6 WfaB is
fine for Black. Play generally contin­
ues 15.Eic1 Eic7 16.Wfxb6 lLld5 17.WfbB+
Y;VxbB 1B.lLlxbB Eixc1+ 19 .hc1 .!d6
20.lLlc6 (20.lLlxa6, self-trapping the
knight on the edge of the board, is too
risky) 20. . . e5, with a slight edge for
Black.
Going back, after White simply
castles with 13.0-0, Black must react
precisely with 13 . . . lLle4 ! :
bxa5? ! 14.ha5 leads t o unfavora­
ble complications for Black. Black is
forced to play the awkward-looking
14 . . . Eic7, as the two obvious alterna­
tives lose: 14 . . . Wfd6? fails immediate­
ly to 15.lLlc4, and 14 . . . �cB? loses more
slowly to 15.Eiac1 �b7 16.Wfb6! Wfxb6
(or 16 . . . i.e7 17.Wfxb7 Eixb7 1B.EicB+)
17.EicB+ It>e7 1B.hb6. After the forced
interposition 14 . . . Eic7, White may then
continue 15.Eifcl ! (it proves useful to
keep the queen's rook on a1 to guard
the a2-pawn) 15 . . . .!d6 (15 . . . lLld5?!
16.hc7 lLlxc7 17.�f3 puts Black under
dangerous pressure) 16.Eixc7! hc7
17.'m>7, winning back his piece given
the extraordinary number of pins Black
is facing. Then 17 . . . 0-0 1B.hc7 Wfd5
19.'m>6 lLlbd7 20.lLlxd7 Wfxd7 21.1e5
leaves White with a clear advantage.
Continuing with our main line after
13 . . . lLle4, play proceeds with 14.Wfa4+
b5. Not 14 . . . lt>e7? 15.lLlac6+, winning,
or 14 . . . lLld7 15.lLlac6 lLldc5 16.Wfc2 with
a clear advantage for White according
to Ftacnik. Then 15.Wfc2 :

2 09
 CHAPTER 9

lS . . . lilxd2. Alternatively, lS . . . d3
16.lilxd3 �c7 17-,Wd1 i.e7 is also equal
(Ftacnik). 16.VNxd2 VNdS. This pre­
cise series of moves was first played
in G.Dizdar-I.Novikov, Lucerne 1997.
White responded 17.lilf3, when Black
decided to give back the pawn with
17 . . . i.c5 18.lilb3 0-0 19.1ilxc5 VNxcS
20.�fc1 VNdS 21.VNxd4 VNxd4 22.lilxd4
�d7 23.lilb3 �fd8, and here a simple
idea such as 24.�c2 followed by dou­ His primary compensation lies
bling on the c-file would have resulted simply in the superior quality of his
in obvious equality: pieces. Black's dark-squared bishop is
hemmed in by the d4- and eS- pawns,
and his knight on b8 is awkward at
best. Every point in Black's camp is
under pressure, making it easy for him
to err. For instance, 2 2 . . . �fd8? ! runs
into 23.�cS.
This position has never been
reached in tournament practice be­
fore, but here are two sample lines:
a) After 22 . . . lilc6 23.lilcS, Black
can choose between 23 . . . �a7 and 23 ...
�c7. On 23 . . . �a7, there is 24.lile41e7
Regardless, some endgame lov­
2S.e3 and White is thematically crack­
ers might wish to play this position on
ing open Black's center. It is easy for
with White, noting the slight weaken­
Black to find himself worse here, as
ing of Black's queenside pawns. The
something like 2S . . . �c7 26.lilxeS!
maneuver lilb3-cS-d3 might prove
leaves him tangled in pins. He must
useful at some point.
then play 26 .. .f6 to avoid losing mate­
Of course, it is more critical for
rial, but 27.�xc6 fxeS 2 8.VNe6+ VNxe6
Black to attempt to keep his extra
29.�xe6 leaves White with the bet­
pawn with 17 . . . �d7. White must now
ter endgame, since yet again Black's
play precisely to get full compensation
pawns are loose:
for the pawn.
Best play for both sides is 18.�ac1
(18.VNf4? is premature as 18 . . .i.d6
19.VNxd4 VNxd4 20.lilxd4 i.eS is good
for Black) 18 . . . i.e7 19.VNf4 ! (stop­
ping Black's planned . . . e6-eS) 19 . . . 0-0
20.lilb3 i.f6 (20 ... VNhS ! ? 21.lilbxd4 i.f6
22 .VNe4 �fd8 23.e3 is equal) 21.�fd1 eS
22 .VNfS.
What does White have to show for
his pawn?

210
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5
On the other hand, after 23 . . J:k7
instead, 24.lLlxa6 �a7 25.lLlc5 �xa2 ! ?
gives White a tiny edge: 26.lLld7
0,e7 27.�xf6 ! �xd7 (not 27 . . . gxf6? !
28.ltJxf6+ wg7 29.lLlxd5 ltJxd5 30.�c5
0,b6 31.�xb5, leaving White a pawn
up) 28.�xe5 ltJg6 29.�xd4 �xd4
30.ltJxd4 �xb2 31.�b1 and Black's b­
pawn falls.
b) 2 2 . . . �e8 23.e3 cracks Black's
center open yet again. 23 . . . ltJc6 24.lLlc5
l'1dd8 25.exd4 ltJxd4 (or 25 . . . exd4
26.�xd5 �xd5 27.ltJxa6) 26.ltJxd4
exd4 27.�xd5 �xd5 2 8 .lLlxa6 gives
White a slight yet comfortable end­
game edge:
After Black deals with the current
threat of ltJa6-c7, forking the rooks,
White will have time to maneuver his
knight to d3 via c5. Black's b5-pawn is
slightly loose, so White's penetration
along the c-file will eventually lead to
tangible pressure.
Hence, it was fear of these kinds of
positions led Black to discard his extra
pawn on move 17 in favor of equality
in Dizdar-Novikov. It is unlikely that
White can improve much on Dizdar's
play, so the correct assessment of
this whole variation with 1O.�b3 and
12 .ltJa5 is that it should lead to a draw.
13.0-0 is another move order, but
13.�c1 follows our principle of devel­
oping the queenside as quickly as pos­
sible in this line. Note that 13.lLlac6 is
insufficient here for the same reason
as in the line with . . . �b7-a7: 13 . . . ltJxc6
14.lLlxc6 �a8 15.�c1 �c7 16.�xb6 lLld5
17.�b8+ �xb8 18.ltJxb8 �xc1+ 19.hc1
.id6 20.ltJc6 e5 2 1.ltJa5 We7 and so on.
This paradoxical move is Black's
only strong continuation. 13 . . . bxa5?
14.�a4+ lLlbd7 15.ha5 �a8 16.0-0
leaves White with a crushing attack for
his piece, for instance 16 . . . g6 17.ltJc4 !
with the idea o fltJ d 6 o r lLlb 6 and White
is winning. Meanwhile, 13 . . . lLle4 is in­
sufficient after 14.lLlac6 ltJxc6 15.lLlxc6
�a8 16.�xb6, when 16 . . . ltJxd2? ! is re­
futed by 17.ltJxe7! i.xe7 (17 . . . �xh1+
18.Wxd2 and White wins) 18.Wxd2
0-0 19.�c6, with a clear advantage for
White due to his extra exchange.
With the game continuation,
Black removes his rook from the
ugly e7 square. By delaying putting
the rook on c7 for a move, Black has
ruled out the possibility of �b3xb6
from White.
14. 0 - 0 .ic5 15.�d3
211
 CHAPTER 9

Black's position looks unstable un­ This is White's clearest route to an

der White's pressure. advantage. Black's next move, defend­
ing the d4-pawn, appears forced.
15 ••• 0-0
21 ••• ctlc6
This is Black's improvement over
Kopylov-Gypser, Bad Wiessee 2004, 21...�fd8? 2 2 . llJb7 �f8 23.llJd6 and
which continued IS . . . llJbd7? ! 16.!f4 White will win the d4-pawn anyway.
eS (16 . . . llJe4, sacrificing the exchange
for stability, is refuted by the clev­ 22 .bf6 gxf6 23.llJd7
•

er 17 . .bc7 Vlixc7 18.Vlia4 ! bxaS 19.f3,

when White will both keep his materi­ The point of White's play. Now,
al and maintain his positional trumps) Black struggles on mightily for the
17.llJxeS llJxeS 18 . .beS �d7 19.1lJc6 draw.
Vlia8 20.Vlif3 with a tremendous advan­
tage for White. 23 .•• gfdS 24.llJxf6+ �g7 25.ctle4

16.ctlxc5 bxc5

Of course not 16 . . . �xcS? 17.llJb7.

17. !f4 gcS 1S.llJb7 Yfd7 19.llJxc5

25 • • • d3 ! ?

A courageous attempt t o simpli­

fy down to a draw. Note the similar­
ities between this endgame and the
Black is taking one punch after an­ one that occurred in Karpov-Van Wely
other. earlier in this chapter.

19 Yfb5
26.exd3 llJb4 27.�cS gxc8
•••

With this, Black escapes into the 2S.llJd6 gbS 29.gcl ! ?

endgame, but White is up for the
challenge. 19 . . . Vlie7 20.llJd3 would also 29.d4, seeking t o preserve the d­
leave White with a nagging edge. pawn, was also possible.

20. YlYxb5 axb5 21.!e5 !

212
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5

draw) 43 .. .l:k2 + 44.l:!e2 l'%el 45.h3 e5,

and Black has good chances of reach­
ing a theory-approved blockade of
White's g- and h-pawns:

30. . . l'%a6 was better. Much of

White's advantage is deteriorating,
That said, holding these kinds of
as 31.l'%c3 ! ? l'%xa2 32.l'%b3 l'%a1+ 33.�g2
draws in practice is seldom easy. Af­
tLlc2 34.l'%xb5 liJe1 + 35. �h3 liJxd3 gives
ter the game move, however, Black's
Black good drawing chances. After the
drawing chances decrease dramatical­
game move, White is ganging up on
ly. There are too many pieces on the
the f7-pawn.
board for Black to find a draw simple
enough to hold in a practical game.
3U:�c7 �xd3 32.�d6 ga8
33.gxf7 + �g6 34.ge7
41.�g2 �cS 42.gbS �d7 43.h4
�f6 44.g4 gd3 4S. �f2 gh3 46.hS
A clever trick for White was 34JU3!
tLlxb2 35.a3, when Black's b-pawn
White is rapidly making progress,
should fall. The game continuation is
and soon Black will be clearly lost.
not so accurate.
46 eS 47.�d2 �gS 48.gb4 ga3
34 �f6 3S.gxh7 �a2 36.gf7+
•.•

49.�f3+ �f6 SO.gc4 ga6 Sl.�g3

.••

c!>g6 37.gb7 gxb2 38.�bS gxf2

ga3 S2 .h6 �g6 S3.gS ga6 S4.gc8
39.gb3 gd2

Black should have drawing chanc­

es here, but in this game it was not to
be.

40)t::Jc4 gdl +
4O. . J�k2 (staying on the second
rank) 41J�xd3 l'%xc4 would probably
have led to a draw, as Black's piec­
es are more active than White's. For
instance, 42 .l'%e3 �f5 43.�f2 (43.h3
lk2 44.g4+ �f4 45.l'%xe6 �g3 46.l'%e3+
�h4 leads to a well-known "fortress" This kind of position is now com-

213
 CHAPTER 9

pletely hopeless for the defending side. 10 . . . .ib7 1l . .ixb7 gxb7

Having the knights on the board en­
sures no blockade of the connected
passed pawns is even remotely possi­
ble.

54 . . . gd6 55.gg8 + �h7 56.gg7+

�h8 57.ge7 �f6

Desperation.

58.gxf6 gxf6 59.�xe5 1- 0

The h6-pawn cannot be taken due

to the fork on fl. 12.Wb3

Summary: The traditional main Instead, 12.'gc1 here is the truly

line with 12Jija5 still contains in­
teresting resources for both sides. If
Black wants to avoid playing an even
or slightly worse endgame, he will
have to either take some risks or play
in a provocative manner. Black's at­
tempt to mix things up with 12 . . . 'ge7!?
seems poor based on White's play in
the above game. If Black is content
to enter an even endgame, howev­
er, there are plenty for him to choose
from. Overall, one can expect to score
well with the 12. 0, as line in practice -
the description "sometimes you win,
sometimes you draw" comes to mind.
lVojtlde�cz, AJeksander (2552)
Anka, Emil (2425)
[E04] National Open 2006
"independent" continuation starting
with 10. 0-0. Theory may soon favor
this over the text move, since White
comes very close to having a slight ad­
vantage:
a) 12 . . . i.cS runs into 13.b4 i.e7
14.i.e3 ! . Black cannot play 14 . . . dxe3
15.�xd8+ because, no matter which
way he retakes, he will wind up having
his king and a rook forked. Thus the
game Huzman-I.Novikov, Montreal
2004, continued 14 . . . 0-0 15.i.xd4 0,fd7
16.�b3 0,xe5 17.i.xe5 'gd7 18J:!fd1 '8d5
19.e4 '8d7 20.a3, with a slight advan­
tage to White. After 20. . . 0,c6 21.'8xd7
�xd7 2 2 .�xb6 �b7, White could have
played 23.i.xg7! ! , a very surprising
tactical shot that works out well in all
lines :

1.�fJ �f6 2.c4 e6 3 .g3 d5 4.d4

dxc4 5 .ig2 a6 6.�e5 c5 7.�a3 cxd4
•

8.�axc4 ga7 9 .id2 b6 10. 0 - 0

•

10.�b3 .ib7 1 l . .bb7 'gxb7 12 . 0-0

transposes into this game, but using
this move order, White has a signif­
icant opportunity to break with the
main line on move 12.

2 14
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.�eS c5
23 . . . @xg7? 24.Wlc3+ is losing for
Black, and if 23 . . . Wlxb6 24 . .bf8 .bf8
25.Wle3 ! , White's rook and two pawns
should be slightly stronger than
Black's two pieces, considering the
health of both sides' respective pawn
skeletons. White does not fear accept­
ing doubled pawns along the e-file to
trade queens, since his rook will pen­
etrate and round up Black's a6-pawn.
And finally, 23 . . J:!d8? 24.bS ! c!iJaS
(24 . . . Wlxb6 2S.l3xc6 WlxbS 26.�xbS
axbS 27.i.b2 just leaves White a pawn
up) 2S.bxa6 Wlxa6 26.'lWb2 l3b8 27 . .ih6
(threatening mate) 27 . . .f6 28.i.e3 and
White holds everything together, hav­
ing won two pawns.
Instead, Huzman played the logi­
cal 23.tLlc4, when 23 . . . tLlxeS 24.c!iJxeS
�xe4 led to a draw. Regardless, White
was still a little bit better.
b) 12 . . . c!iJe4 is a more tactical at­
tempt to solve Black's problems. This
move essentially jettisons the d4-
pawn, which Black will no longer be
able to defend. Here the key line is
13.Wlc2 tLlxd2 14.tLlxd2 i.cS 1S.b4 i.d6
16.Wfe4 l3c7 17.tLldf3 :
Now i t would b e a n awful mistake
for Black to take the bait and play 17 . . .
ixb4? ! , a s 18.l3xc7W1xc7 19. tLlgS ! leaves
him under attack: 19 . . . f5 20.Wlxd4 i.c3
2Ukl ! hd4 2 2 . l3xc7 0-0 23.c!iJef3 i.f6
24.tLlxe6 l3e8 2S.c!iJed4 g6 26.e3 is a
clear advantage for White. Thus, Black
should play 17 . . . 0-0. Then 18.c!iJxd4
heS (18 . . . l3xcl? ! 19.13xc1 hb4
20.c!iJxe6 �d2 2 1.c!iJd3 ! fxe6 2 2 .Wlxb4
Wlxe2 23.�b3 and White, despite be­
ing down a pawn, is better) 19.WlxeS
l3d7 20.e3 100ks favorable for White:
For instance, Black is worse after
20. . . �e7? ! 21.l3c4, when White dou­
bles on the c-file. However, Black
managed to equalize here in Tkachiev­
Atahk, Aeroflot Open 2005, with 2 1 . . .
l3dS ! 2 1.Wlc7 a s 2 2 .bxaS (22 .bS? eS
23.Wlxd8 l3fxd8 24.c!iJc6 c!iJxc6 2S.bxc6
l3c8 26.c7 @f8 and the c-pawn falls)
22 . . . l3xaS. Play continued 23.Wlxd8
l3xd8 24.l3b1 eS 2S.c!iJf3 f6 26.l3xb6
l3xa2 and the players soon agreed to
a draw. The attempt to improve with
2 1.Wle4 doesn't promise much after
2 1.Wld6, which also would be equal
after 2 2 . a3 as 23.'lWb1 axb4 24.Wlxb4
Wlxb4 2S.axb4 tLla6. Then 26.tLlc6 l3d2
27.l3fd1 l3b2 28.l3b1 l3xbl 29.l3xb1 l3a8
30.l3a1 tLlc7 should also result in a
draw.
12 .ic5
••.
Black is copying the game Wojt­
kiewicz-Van Wely from earlier that
same year. Although Van Wely was
undoubtedly playing for a win with
Black, in this game, a draw might have
been a perfectly acceptable outcome.
In that case, 12 . . . �dS may be a more
2 1S
 CHAPTER 9

accurate move order. The point is that 13 .tb4

•

13.ib4 can now be met by 13 . . . b5,

when White is forced to play 14.llJd6+
ixd6 15.1!Bxd5 llJxd5 16.ixd6. Sim­
plest now is 16 .. .f6 17.ixbB l:!xbB
18.llJc6 l:!cB 19.1lJxd4 :

Play is sufficiently complicated to

Objectively, this sort of position
should be dead equal, though Black's
queenside pawns are once again just a
little loose.
Note that if White wants to make
the game more lively himself, he can
try 13.l:!ac1 ic5 14.llJd3 0-0 (14 . . .
llJbd7? 15.llJb4 1!Be4 16.llJd6+ ixd6
17.l:!cB+ �e7 1B.llJc6+ 1!Bxc6 19.1:!xc6)
15.llJa5 1!Bxb3 16.llJxb3 llJbd7 17.ib4,
which gives him compensation for his
pawn:
make for an interesting struggle. Wo­
jo's two surviving games in this varia­
tion indicate that White has good play
here for his pawn, but there is still
much to be explored.
13 ••• 1!Be7
13 . . . llJe4 is an awkward-looking at­
tempt to defend the bishop on c5 fa­
vored by computers. Most natural now
is 14.l:!fd1, preparing e2-e3. (Note that
14.1!Bf3 hb4 15.1!Bxe4 1!Bd5 16.1!Bg4 b5!
would instead lead to complications
favoring Black.)

14 ..b:eS exeS 15.ef3

White plays to keep the initiative.

One sample line here is 17 . . . ixb4

1B.llJxb4 a5 19.llJc6 e5 20.f4 a4 2 1.llJd2
exf4 22.l:!xf4. Black's queenside pawns
are loose and pieces of both colors are
scattered across the board, leaving
much unresolved.

216
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . a6 6.�e5 c5

This is an artificial-looking rook

placement. The more natural 15 . . .
'8c7 was simpler. 16J!ac1 b 5 (16 . . . 0-0
17.�d3 Wfb5 18.a4 ! is slightly better
for White) 17.llJd3 Wfe7 18.llJce5 and
White is ready to win back the d4-
pawn. 18 . . . 0-0 19.'f9f4 �fc8 20.�xc7
'8xc7 21.Wfxd4 would then leave White
just slightly better.

16.b4! 30.�c6 ! ? (White decides to cop out

for a draw rather than maintain the
An excellent invention by Wojo.
balance with the repositioning 30.�c1)
16 . . . 9c7 30. . . �xc6 31.Wfxd6 �e6 3 2 .Wfxe6 fxe6
3 3 . llJxc6 d3 34.exd3 exd3 35.c;ilfl llJg4
This is Black's planned improve­ 36.c;ilel llJxh2 37.llJe5 h5 3 8 .llJxg6
ment on the prior game Wojtkie­ llJf3+ 39.c;ildl e5 4O.llJe7+ c;ilf7 41.llJc8
wicz-Van Wely, Foxwoods 2006. Van b5 42.llJd6+ c;ile6 43.llJxb5 c;ild5 44.a4
Wely played the ambitious 16 . . . Wfxb4, 12_12:
which ran into 17.llJd3 ! Wfxc4 18.�fcl
�xc1+ ? ! (18 . . . 'f9d5 ! 19.Wfxd5 llJxd5
20.�c8+ c;ild7 2 1.�xh8 llJc6 2 2 . �xh7 f5
is unclear, as Black has some compen­
sation) 19.�xc1 0-0 20.Wff4 and White
seemed to have the better end of this
bizarre material imbalance:

White's knight will reach e4, from

Let's quickly examine how that
game went: 20. . . �d8 (20 . . . e5 21.llJxe5
'8fe8 2 2 . llJd3 �xe2 23.Wfxd4 favors
White) 21.�c4 �ed7 2 2 . llJe5 (22 .�c7
'8d5 2 3.�a7 also looks a little better for
White) 2 2 . . . �d5 2 3.�c7 llJbd7 24.llJc6
'8e8 25.llJb4 e5 26.9f5 �d6 27.llJxa6 e4
28.llJb4 g6 (28 . . . llJc5 is met by 29.�c8)
29.Wff4 llJe5:
which it will be able to spring a sur­
prise hit on Black's d3-pawn via c5, se­
curing the draw. A truly magnificent
fight! To summarize, Black does have
some interesting options, but we be­
lieve White had the better chances in
this fight. Considering that Van Wely
is a world-class player, a draw as the
end result certainly held no shame for
Wojo.
17.9f4 0 - 0 18.'f9xd4 �c6
On 18 ... b5, White plays 19.1lJa5
�d8 20.Wfb2 followed by llJe5-d3.

2 17
 CHAPTER 9

19.�xc6 ti'xc6 20.�eS

Both sides overlook 26J3xc8+ VNxc8

27.VNa7, when White wins a pawn:
27 . . . ti'c1+ 28.'it>g2 VNc2 29.VNxf7+ 'it>h7
30.VNxe6 VNe4+ 3l.'it>h3 VNxe2 32 .VNf5+
'it>g8 33.'it>g2 . After the text, White still
maintains control of the position.

26 VNdS 27.0 gc2 28.1t>t2 ti'xd4+

•••

29.l;xd4 �dS 30.'it>el f6 31.�d3

We have reached a typical "Wojo"

position. White has a small but stable
edge, and he now proceeds to grind his
opponent down in typical Wojo style.

20 ti'b7 21.gfdl gc7 22.gac1

•••

h6 23.a4

White advances on the queenside,

putting on the "squeeze. " White is now ready to kick Black's
knight out with e2-e4 and then pene­
23 ••• bS? ! trate to the sixth rank with his rook.
Black should be able to save himself,
23 . . J'Uc8 24J3xc7 VNxc7 was Black's
however, because he should have a
most accurate idea.
typical drawing tactic involving the
rook and knight.
24.aS gxc1
31 ••• gc4??
24 . . J3fc8 25J�xc7 VNxc7 would have
been similar to the game. A catastrophic blunder. Any other
move would have sufficed for equali­
2S.l;xc1 gc8 ty, for instance 3 1 . . .g5 (and many other
moves) would probably be met by 32 .e4
tLle3 33J3d6 tLlg2+ (33 .. J�h2 34J'!xa6
is exceedingly risky for Black) 34.'it>dl
tLle3+ 35.'it>e1 tLlg2 +, with a draw.

32.gxc4 bxc4 33.e4! �c3

34.�c5 1- 0

Black sees that his a6-pawn will fall

and decides not to play on. This is not
surprising, considering Wojo's superb
endgame technique.

218
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . a6 6.�eS cS

Summary: Wojo's ideas involving castling kingside rather than commit­

ting to an early CiJc4-aS allow both sides interesting play. Whitefocuses on his
development before initiating any skirmishes, so his moves are certainly prin­
cipled. It remains to be seen whether anyone will now take up the torch and
begin combining Yffdl-b3 with 0-0 as Wojo did. Meanwhile, the combination
of10.0-0 and 12.'gcl, as in Tkachiev-Atallk, 2005, is very much in the spirit
ofWojo's interpretation of this line. Whitefocuses on his development, encir­
cling and eventually winning back the d4-pawn. For the time being, it appears
Atallk's answer is sufficientfor Black to achieve sterile equality.

Conclusion: White's answer 7.CiJa3 is an interesting attempt to gain an ad­

vantage. Objectively, if Black knows what he is doing and understands theory,
he should be fine. However, this usually means he will have to enter an equal
endgame with few chances to play for the win - which, basically, is what Black
is trying to do by playing a risky move like S . . . a6 in the first place.

2 19
Chapter 10
/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////Q/

The Early Open Cata lan with

S bS or S c6
... ...

l.tOf3 d5 2.d4 tOf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

dxc4 5.Ag2 b5 (or 5 . . . c6)

With these systems, Black declares his intention to go "all-out" in an effort to

hold on to his c4-pawn. The move 5 . . . b5 seems natural, as Black hopes to devel-
op his light-squared bishop to b7. 5 . . . c6 seems somewhat more artificial and is
not nearly as flexible as 5 . . . a6, as studied in Chapters 8 and 9.
Both these moves are exceedingly rare in tournament play. In fact, we have
been unable to obtain a single game that Wojo played against either of them -
even after going through a database of over two thousand of his Internet blitz
games. For this reason, we have singled out just one, easy-to-remember set of
ideas White can use against either move.

Whi te Blasts Open the Cen ter: d4-dS

With either 5 . . . b5 or 5 . . . c6, Black is each o f the following games, king safe­
preparing for play on the queenside. ty is a major issue for Black.
In so doing, however, he rarely man­
Agzamov, Georgy (2590)
ages to castle in a timely fashion. The
Foisor, Ovidiu Doru (2430)
easiest way for White to take advan­
[E04] Sochi 1985
tage of this is to develop aggressive­
ly, castle kingside, and blow open the 1.d4 tOf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.Ag2
center by playing e2-e4 and d4-d5. In dxc4 5.tOf3 b5 6.a4

220
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . .bS OR S . . . c6
Immediately challenging Black's
risky . . .b7-bS push.
S .•. c6 7.�eS
This early tlJf3-eS hop should look
familiar by now: we use it against 5 . . .
a6 as well.
7. . . �d5
Black's main continuation. A rare
sideline is 7 . . . �b4 + ! ? , after which
White has S . .td2 ixd2+ 9.'<!Mxd2 tlJdS
1O.axbS cxbS 11.tlJc3, transposing into
a line analyzed by Avrukh:
If Black plays 11 . . . i.a6?, White
gets a clear advantage with 12.tlJxdS
exdS 13.'<!Mb4, when Black's develop­
ment comes to a standstill. Thus, 11 . . .
f6 is Black's only move. Now Avrukh
suggests 12 .tlJxbS! fxeS 13.dxeS 0-0
14.ltJd6 14 ... tlJb6 ! ? with chances for
both sides. White is somewhat bet­
ter after IS.haS tlJxaS 16.tlJxc4, when
White's pieces are well placed. Black
may instead try 14 . . . 'kt>hS ! ? IS.hdS
exdS (IS . . . c3 ! ? 16.bxc3 exdS 17.'<!MxdS
'<!Mc7 IS.0-0 tlJc6 19.e6 with the idea
of tlJd6-f7+ looks good for White)
16.'<!MxdS '<!Mb6 17. 0-0 (17.�xaS? '<!Mb4+
IS.'kt>fl �h3+ 19.'kt>gl '<!Mxb2 is dan­
gerous) 17 . . . tlJc6 IS.tlJxc4 �c7. M­
ter 19 JUc1, White has a nice pull de­
spite the material imbalance. White's
knight is looking to go to d6, where it
will create numerous threats.
8 . 0 - 0 .tb7
Also possible is S . . . a6, when 9.b3
cxb3 10. .tb2 transposes into the next
game.
9.b3
White is breaking up Black's
queenside pawn mass. He general­
ly doesn't regain his lost pawn in the
process, but the point is to open up
lines on the queenside. White is sig­
nificantly ahead in development
here because he has already castled;
Black's uncastled king soon comes
under fire.
9 . . . cxb3
Black must accept White's offer.
9 . . . c3? ! 10.e4 c2 11.'<!Mxc2 tlJb4 12.'<!Mdl
would leave White in full control of the
center.
10.axbS
This appears to be White's most ac­
curate move order, since 1O.'<!Mxb3 a6 is
less forcing.
221
 CHAPTER 10
10 •.• cxb5 11. YlYxb3 a6 12.e4 �f6
Moving the knight to the queenside
with 12 . . . tLlb6 is worse: White still con­
tinues with 13.d5 ! , blasting open the
center. Now 13 . . . exd5 14.exd5 �d6
(14 . . . hd5 15.YlYe3, with the threat of
1!fl-dl, gives White a tremendous in­
itiative) 15.tLlc6 leaves White with a
slight advantage. Black's extra pawn is
hardly meaningful here given White's
control over the game.
13.d5 !
Black i s still uncastled, s o White
must start attacking and clearing
lines. At this juncture, only one move
allows Black to successfully defend
against White's threats.
13 ••• YlYb6?!
This is not it. After the text, which
is not as bad as some of Black's other
options, Black will still be some moves
in castling.
13 . . . �c5 ! is correct, when Black is
nearly ready to castle. After 14.dxe6
fxe6 15.'�xe6+ YlYe7 16.'�xe7+ h.e7
(or 16 . . . @xe7 17.i.b2 1!d8 18.tLlc3)
17.tLlc3, both Agzamov and Dunning­
ton believe White has a slight advan­
tage:
222
Different computer engines give
different evaluations here: some pre­
fer Black's connected passed pawns
on the queenside, while others pre­
fer White's activity and king safety. So
long as White can keep Black's passed
pawns restrained, however, he is in­
deed better. White should look to play
in the center by using the d5 square.
For instance, 17 . . . 0-0 18.�d5 h.d5 (or
18 . . . tLlxd5 19.exd5 �d6 20.tLlc6 with a
pull) 19.exd5 �d6 20.1!el 1!e8 2 1.ib2
leaves White active. Black's queenside
pawns aren't getting too far yet, so
White can look forward to ideas of
tLle5-c6 or i.g2-h3-e6.
Black's other tries on move 13 are
all too risky. 13 . . . tLlbd7? ! 14.tLlxt7 !
gives White a tremendous advantage
after 14 . . . tLlc5 (or 14 . . . @xf7 15.dxe6+
@e8 16.exd7+ tLlxd7 17.1!dl) 15.tLlxd8
tLlxb3 16.tLlxb7 tLlxaI 17.dxe6. Also du­
bious is 13 . . . i.d6, when 14.tLlc4 ! would
leave White with similar compensa­
tion to the game.
And finally, opening the cent­
er with 13 . . . exd5?! 14.exd5 hd5?! is
sure to lead to disaster for Black. (Los­
ing is 14 . . . tLlbd7? 15.tLlc6 hc6 16.1!el+
!J.e7 17.�a3, but better is 14 . . . !J.d6
15.tLlc6, with just an edge for White.)
Now Dunnington gives 15.'�e3 ! as be­
ing not good for Black, and leaves it at
that. This decade-old evaluation still
holds up in the age of computer analy-
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . .bS OR S . . . c6

sis. Now lS . . . V!!e 7 is Black's only move,
as lS . . . .ixg2? 16.iLlc6+ fie7 17.iLlxd8
hf1 18.�xf1 �xd8 19.V!!b 6+ �c8
20.ga2 and lS . . . fie7? 16.gd1 with the
threat of iLlb1-c3 both win for White.
16.tLlc3 ! White develops his pieces.
Black is still a long way from castling.
16 ... i.xg2 17.�xg2 and here:
23.if4+) 2 2 .iLlcS ! V!!b 6 23.V!!f4.
c2) 18 . . . fie7 is Black's only move.
After 19.V!!x e7+ V!!x e7 20.iLlxe7 �xe7
2 1.ge1+ �d7 2 2 .iLlxbS, White isn't
too worried about being down a pawn
since Black's open king will still prove
a liability in the endgame. White
should develop the rest of his piec­
es and continue to harass the enemy
monarch.

14.tLlc4 V!! c7

On 14 . . . V!!d4 lS.ga4 ! , White is able

to take advantage of Black's lack of
development. White threatens iLld6+,
winning the queen, so Black has two
possible responses. The first, the
threatening lS . . . V!!c S, is dealt with by
a) 17 . . . b4? 18.iLlbS leavesWhitewith
16.iLlaS .b:dS (16 . . . ic8 17.ga3 ! ? gives
a crushing initiative. For instance, 18 . . .
White compensation as in the game)
IiJdS 19.V!!e4 iLlb6 20.ge1! f6 21.iLlc7+
17.exdS bxa4 18.V!!b 7 V!!xaS 19.if4 !
'i!ld8 (or 2 1 . . .V!!xc7 2 2 .iLld7+ �xd7
(better than 19.V!!x a8 i.d6) 19 . . . V!!d 8
23.V!!e 6+ �d8 24.V!!e 8#) 2 2 .iLlxa8 and
20.dxe6 fxe6 21.V!!x a8. The second,
White is winning. And on 18 . . . tLlfd7, the
lS . . . V!!a7, doesn't work after 16.i.e3 ficS
cleanest way is 19.i.b2 ! iLlxeS 20.i.xeS
(or 16 . . . bxa4 17.V!!xa4+ i.c6 18.dxc6
(threatening iLlbS-c7 check) 20. . . V!!b 7+
V!!c7 19.iLlb6, winning) 17.iLld6+ �e7
21.r;t>gl V!!xbS (21...axbS 2 2 . gxa8 V!!xa8
18.iLlxbS V!!b 6 19 . .b:cS+ V!!xcS 20.d6+
23.if6+ �d7 24J'!d1+ i.d6 2S.V!!e7+
�d7 2 1.iLlc7 ga7 2 2 . gc4 V!!eS 23.V!!b 6.
'i!lc8 26.gc1+ wins) 22 ..ixg7+ fie7
23.ixh8 and White's material and at­
15.tLla5 e5
tack should win.
b) 17 ... iLlbd7 18.iLlxd7 iLlxd7 (not
18 .. .'�xe3? 19. iLlxf6 + ) 19.iLlxbS V!!xe3
20.ixe3 �d8 21.gfc1! leaves White
clearly better despite his pawn minus.
Black's king is open and White has
ideas of iLlbS-a7-c6 and iLlbS-c7.
c) 17 . . . v!!b 7+ appears most criti­
cal at first sight. Then 18.iLlc6+ leaves
Black with a life-or-death decision:
c1) Losing is 18 . . . �d7? after
19.9d1+ i.d6 (19 . . . �xc6 20.V!!f3 + �c7
2U.f4+ �c8 2 2 .gd8+) 20.iLle4 ! �c7
(not 20. . .iLlxe4 2 1.iLlaS ! ) 21.gxd6 iLlxc6 Black must close the lines in the
(no better is 2 1 . . .iLlxe4 2 2 .V!!xe4 �xd6 center if he ever wants to castle.

223
 CHAPTER 10

White's compensation for his pawn develop any of his queenside pieces.
now takes on a positional nature: he
has a strong passed d-pawn, a large 19 .hc5+ 20.gxc5 .lc8 21.Vc3
•••

advantage in space, good squares for 0 - 0 22.gc7 Ve8 23.tLld2 lLlbd7

his pieces, and the open c-file to work
with. It is no wonder Black doesn't last
long.

16 . .ie3 .id6 17.gcl Ve7 18.t'3

White is looking to gain total con­

trol of the c-file. The text move de­
fends e4 so that White can play i.h3
next.

18 • •• Vd7?

Black prevents �3, but there is
a tactical flaw in this move. IB . . . O-O
19.i.h3, when Black's queenside de­
velopment is paralyzed, doesn't look
much better though.
19 .lc5
•
Black has managed to develop one
of his queenside pieces, though at
the price of "undeveloping" another.
Black is helpless.
24.lLlc6 @h8 25.lLlb3 lLlg8

This is about the best plan availa­

White misses his opportunity for
an immediate win with 19.i.h3 ! Vxh3
20.tLlxb7, when Black's defenses crum-
ble: 20. . . i.e7 (20. . . @d7 21.tLlxd6 @xd6
22 .Vc3 and 20. . . Vd7 21.tLlxd6+ Vxd6
22 .gcB+ also win for White) 2 1.d6 .idB
22.tLlxdB @xdB 23.Vxt7 and Black gets
mated by i.e3-b6.
The text allows Black to castle, but
White still wins because Black cannot
ble for Black.
26.gc1 f6 27.lLla7 lLlb6 28.Vc6
lLlc4 1- 0
This hangs the rook on aB, so Black
resigned. Better was 2B . . . gbB 29.tLlxc8
Vxc6 30.g1xc6 lLlxcB 31.gxa6, though
White's positional advantage should
still be decisive in the endgame.

Summary: Black got an extra pawn on the queenside, but it didn't help
him much: White's d-pawn in the center proved far more useful. Further­
more, Black's queenside excursions in the opening left took time away from
his kingside development - and castling. By the time Black hadfinally castled,
White was dominating the c-file, leading to a quick loss for the second player.

224
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . .b5 OR 5 . . . c6
Uti lizing Wh ite's Space Adva ntage
In this book, we are striving to use
more or less the same system against
S ... c6 as we are against 5 . . . b5 in or­
der to save study time. For instance,
had Black played B . . . a6 instead of B •..
ib7 in the previous game, we would
have seen a direct transposition from
the 5 . . . b5 Early Open Catalan to the
S ... c6 Early Open Catalan. Let's brief­
ly discuss the issue of move orders.
After 1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5 . .tg2 c6, we now play 6.0-0.
It is certainly possible to play 6.�e5
right away, but we would then need
to also examine the move 6 . . . .tb4+ .
Then 6 . . .b 5 i s by far Black's most pop­
ular move, and 6 . . . �bd7 7.a4 trans­
poses into the line 5 . . . �bd7, covered
in Chapter 11. We then strike at Black's
queenside pawns with 7.a4, when 7 . . .
ib7 i s again by far Black's most pop­
ular option. Instead, 7 . . . a6 B.�e5 �d5
9.b3 cxb3 10.!b2 !b7 11.�xb3 simply
transposes. After 8.�e5 a6 9.b3 cxb3
lO.!b2 �b6 11.�xb3 we reach the fol­
lowing position:
Although Black may choose not to
put his queen on b6, the diagrammed
position is essentially the start­
ing point of our recommended ap­
proach against the 5 . . . c6 line. White
has lost one of his queenside pawns,
but in return, he has open lines on the
queenside, pressure in the center, and
a space advantage. One could even ar­
gue that White is not down a full pawn
here because his center pawn on d4
is worth more than either one of its
counterparts on c6 and b5.
In order to keep his advantage,
White needs to maintain control over
the center. He must control the c5
square - for instance, via �e5-d3 and
�f1-c1 - as well as the e5 square. In the
long term, White hopes to continue to
take space until Black is squeezed onto
the last two ranks, just as in the previ­
ous example game. Black is limited to
only three ranks already, so the move
a4-a5 is often useful for White to de­
prive Black's pieces of the b6 square.
In the following game, White success­
fully manages to push Black back to
the last two ranks by move 17. Black
defends with great patience, howev­
er, so things aren't so easy for the first
player.
Kaidanov, Gregory (2629)
Galkin, Alexander (2568)
[D30] Moscow 2003
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3 . �f3 c6 4.g3
dxc4 5 . .ig2 b5 6.�e5 .ib7 7.a4 a6
8. 0 - 0 �f6 9.b3 cxb3 10 . .ib2
225
 CHAPTER 10
White would continue similarly on
10... ie7 with 1l.'�xb3 0-0 12.lZ'ld2 fol­
lowed by l3fl-d1 and l3a1-cl.
A good example of how to han­
dle this position with White is Orlov­
Pupols, Seattle 1990. White, a strong
1M, outclasses his master opponent:
10. . . �b6 11.�xb3 lt'lbd7 12 .lt'ld2 lt'lxe5? !
13.dxe5 It'ld7 14.�c2 ie7 15.lt'le4 and
suddenly the knight is heading for
the d6 square. White dominated after
15 . . . 0-0 16.l3fd1 l3fd8 17.lt'ld6 :
17 . . . ixd6 18.l3xd6 lt'lf8 19.i.d4 VfJc7
20.�c3 (targeting g7) 20. . . l3dc8 2 1.i.c5
l3d8 (Black is planless) 2 2 .h4 It'ld7
23.h5 h6 24.l3ad1 lt'lb6? 25.�a5 1-0.
Depending on the circumstan­
ces, . . .It'ld7xe5 from Black can be a
positional mistake, giving White con­
trol of the dark squares. Sometimes,
however, White should meet a black
226
knight coming to d7 by simply back­
ing up with It'le5-d3, though. This
prevents . . . c6-c5. For instance, 10...
It'lfd7! ? should be met with 1l.lt'ld3,
when 1l . . . lt'lb6 12.�xb3 bxa4? 13.�c2
It'l8d7 14.lt'lc3 i.e7 15.lt'lc5 ! was a clear
advantage for White in Kuzmin-Barle,
Bled/Portoroz 1979 :
Black played 15 . . . �c7 and was suf­
fering after 16.lt'lxb7 �xb7 17.lt'lxa4
It'ld5 18.l3fc1, but the alternatives
weren't much better: 15 . . . lt'lxc5?
16.dxc5 ixc5 17.lt'lxa4 It'lxa4 18.l3xa4
leaves Black scrambling to defend c5,
g7, and c6, while 15 . . . ixc5? ! 16.dxc5
It'lxc5 17.lt'le4 ! It'lxe4 18.ixe4 0-0 (not
18 . . .f5? 19.ixc6+ ixc6 20.�xc6+
�f7 2 1.Vfib7+, winning for White)
19.ixh7+ �h8 20.l3fd1 and l3d1-d4-b4
gives White a crushing attack.
1l.�xb3 �d7 12.�d3
Taking control of c5. Avoiding
trades is usually a good idea for the
side with more space, so this also
makes positional sense.
12 .•• J.e7 13.�d2
Often, d2 is the best square for
the queen's knight: White avoids any
trades and doesn't obstruct his control
of the half-open c-file.
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . b5 OR 5 . . . c6
13 . . . 0 - 0 14.�Ucl �b8
An unusual square for the queen,
but Black decides to avoid giving
White the option of playing a4-a5
with tempo. After either 14 . . . �bB or
14 . . �b6, Black's queen is heading to
. 19.1tJdc5 ltJxc5 20.ltJxc5 leaves White
the a7 square, where it influences the
center while staying out of the cross­
fire.
15.a5
A good move, depriving Black of
the b6 square.
15 . . . �a7 16.e4 �c7
Black has now been forced to op­
erate along the last two ranks. He has,
however, managed to arrange his piec­
es with great skill; no piece is yet too
passive, and Black has a little space on
the queenside. White must now find
the correct plan to maintain his ad­
vantage.
17.�c3
The batteries along the al-hB diag­
onal and down the c-file look intim­
idating, but this move is not White's
best. According to analysis in the In­
formant, 17.ltJb4 is bad in view of 17 . . .
e5 1B.ltJxc6 hc6 19J3xc6 exd4 20.gael
ltJc5 with the idea of . . . ltJc7-e6. But
White's best was 17.e5 followed by
ltJd2-e4, when his powerful bind is
sufficient compensation for his pawn.
For instance, 17 . . . ltJd5 IB.ltJe4 gacB
in control of the game. After the text,
Black's chances of equalizing increase
significantly: White is losing time, al­
lowing his opponent to prepare . . . c6-
c5.
17 . . . gac8 18.�c5? !
White likely felt that his advan­
tage in mobility over his opponent
had peaked, leaving him nothing to
gain from less aggressive play. This
move is an attempt to shut down all
play on the queenside and move the
action to the kingside. The nature of
the position now changes, going from
fluid to locked. Despite White's space
advantage, however, the second play­
er should be able to play solid moves
and have no real problems. The pa­
tient IB.gc2 has been suggested as an
improvement.
18 . . . �xc5 19.dxc5 e5 20.�f3 f6
21.�h4
The kingside assault begins.
Black's queen and light-squared bish­
op are far away from the action.
21 . . . gce8
Black probably disliked 2 1 . . .g6 in
view of 2 2 .f4, when 22 . . . exf4 23.gxf4
ltJe6 24.�b3 hc5+ 25.mhl followed
by i.h3 or f4-f5 is murky.
22 .J.h3 gf7 23.h3
227
 CHAPTER 10

White is now down a full piece, but

his space advantage, better coordina­
tion, and connected passed pawns in
the center make up for this. Black now
throws back some of the material in an
attempt to equalize.

33 . . . gxc5? !

33 . . . llJfS (heading to d4) 34.d6 gc6

3S.dxe7+ gxe7 would have left Black
with the advantage.
White frees up his queen to leave
the defense of the c-pawn. At this
34 .txc5?
•

point, Black seems to be holding eve­

rything together nicely. Soon, he will Instead, 34.gxcS .ixcS 3S.l'kl gc7
begin to untangle. 36 . .ixcS+ \!;Ig8 37.d6+ gf7 38 ..ta3
maintains White's initiative.
23 .ic8 24 .txc8 gxc8 2S.Wb3
.•• •

g6 26.gdl �e8 34 . . ..txcS 3S.d6 ti'e6 36. ti'd5

.td4 37.Wa8+ llJe8 38.gc8 gd7?
Transferring the knight to the
kingside and freeing up more room
Black would have been winning af­
for Black's major pieces.
ter 38 . . . b4 ! 39.gdcl ic3.
27.We6 gc7 28.�g2 �f8 29.gac1
Y!nJ8 30.�e3 Wc8 31.Wb3 �g7
32.�dS ! ?
The last move of the time control.
White's pieces are well organized, Black has suddenly lost his winning
but without this move, he would be advantage: his queen is now trapped
planless. Black should be fine here, on the back rank!
but both sides were nearing time trou­
ble before the time control at move 40. 41.gc8 ti'xc8 42.ti'xc8

32 . . . cxdS 33.exdS

228
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . .b5 OR 5 . . . c6
42 . . J:!xd6 43:�c7+ �e6 44.�xh7
would give White good chances of cre­
ating a passed pawn on the kingside.
The text is an attempt to set up a for­
tress.
43.1Yxa6 f5 44.1Yxb5 c.!?xd6
45.c.!?f1 13e7 46.�a6+ �d5 47.�c8
1a7 48.h4
White's plan is to break down
Black's kingside pawns. Over the
course of the next several moves, he
brings his king around to the center.
48 e4 49.h5 c.!?e5 50.�c6 gxh5
•••
51.n6 1317 52.ti'xh5 �e6 53.1Yg5
1d4 54.ti'g8 .1a7 55.1Yd8 ge7
56. ti'f8 gf7 57. ti'g8 c.!?f6 58. c.!?e2 ge7
59.ti'd8 �e6 60.1Yf8 1317 61.n6+
md5 62.1Yf4 c.!?e6 63. c.!?d2
White is making slow but steady
progress.
63 �e7 64.c.!?c3 c.!?f8 65.c.!?c4
•••
mg7 66.c.!?d5 h6 67.ti'e5+ c.!?g6
68.c.!?e6?!
Post-game analysis showed that
6B:�hB! would have led to a win,
for instance 6B . . J:!h7 (or 6B . . . i.xf2
69.�e6) 69.�eB+ �f6 70.�e6+ �g7
71. �xf5 and so on.
68 gf8 69.ti'b2 ge8 + 70.c.!?d7
•••
gf8 71.ti'a2 .1c5 72 .1Ye6+ gf6
73.ti'g8 + c.!?h5 74.g4 + ?
White starts t o self-destruct. There
was a clear win here with 74.�c4,
putting the question to Black's bish-
op. Black should lose after 74 . . . .ixf2
75.�e2+, 74 . . . .ifB 75.a6, or 74 . . . .ia7
75.�e7.
74 ••• �h4
Not 74 . . . fxg4?? 75:�d5+.
76.�cB ! with the idea of �g7-e5
was more accurate.
76 •.• 13a6 77.1Yc3
Of course, now 77.�e5? could
be met by 77 . . . .id6+ 78 .�xd6 Eixd6
79.�xd6 f4.
77 .txf2 78.gxf5 �g5 79.ti'e5
•••
gf6 80.1Yxe4 �
Much of White's advantage has
disintegrated. Black is able to sacrifice
229
 CHAPTER 10

his bishop for White's a-pawn, achiev­ 89.ge4 gf4

ing a fortress draw.
81.ge7+ � 82.ti'OO+ c,!>g5
83.9g8+ M4 84.a6 h5 85.ti'c4+ c,!>g5
86.c,!>b7 h4 87.a7 ha7 88.c,!>xa7 h3!
According to the tablebases, this is
the only move that draws. It is useful
for Black to have an advanced passed
pawn.
Again the only move to draw: Black
escorts his king up to defend the pawn.
90.ge5+ c,!>g4 91.'i'e2 + c,!>g3
92.gel+ c,!>g2 93.ti'e2 + lf2-l/2
After 93 . . . c,!>g3, White has nothing
better than to repeat with 94.�e1+
again.

Summa'1l: White's opening worked well. By not trading minor pieces,

putting pressure down the half-open c-file, gradually taking space, and ex­
panding in the center, White forced his opponent onto the last two ranks. But
with 17. �c3 and 18JiJ c5?!, he lost the thread of the position. Black was able to
consolidate and relieve his cramped position with . . . e6-e5 and .. .p-f6. Lucki­
ly, White had enough trumps left to create complications right before the time
control. Several mistakes by both sides eventuallyfavored White, whofailed to
ultimately convert his material advantage - possibly due to fatigue.

Conclusion: The moves S . . .bS and S . . . c6 are ambitious tries by Black, who
is trying to grab space on the queenside. In this chapter, we have presented only
one system for White against these moves - there are many other options avail­
able to him, most of which can be found in other books. The system we have out­
lined for White, however, is not only effective: it's also easy to understand. White
sacrifices a pawn or two to get rapid development, a space advantage, and play
in the center. Often, his space advantage alone provides full compensation for a
pawn. Both S . . . bS and S . . . c6 are seen infrequently, so few players need to know
anything more about them to play the Catalan.

230
Chapter 1 1
///////////////////////H////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////H/////H//////////////////////

The Early Open Cata lan with

5 cib4+ (and others)
. . .

1.1Of3 d5 2.d4 IOf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3

dxc4 5 .tg2 .tb4+
•

It seems unlikely at first glance that s . . . ib4+ can possibly be considered a seri­
ous try in the Open Catalan. After the simple 6.id2 , the dark-squared bishops
are likely to come off the board - something which, in general, favors White.
Black will be left only with his light-squared bishop on c8, commonly referred
to as Black's "problem child" in the Queen's Gambit Declined.
The difficulty for White is that, when Black elects S . . . ib4+, he rarely does so
for its positional merits, which are few. Instead, he usually has a "surprise weap­
on" of sorts up his sleeve. Because S . . .ib4+ looks so innocuous, it has not re­
ceived much attention in the past; thus, it is relatively easy for strong players to
come up with new tries for Black. In this chapter, we will devote thre e games to
S ... ih4+ and two additional ones to Black's "other" fifth moves. None of these
games is particularly related to the others. The only similarity between the three
S . . . ib4+ games is that the dark-squared bishops do, indeed, come off the board.
In the final two games, we take time out to look at S . . . ltJbd7 and S . . . id7, moves
which are basically sound but are not difficult to meet.

Going for 6 . . . a5: Black's Bogo-Indian

When Black meets 6.id2 with 6 . . . aS, up space in order to trade the dark­
play transposes into the line l.d4 tt:lf6 squared bishops. Although the Bogo­
2 . c4 e6 3.tt:lf3 ib4+ 4.id2 as S.g3 dS Indian is not considered as reliable as
6.ig2 dxc4 from the Bogo-Indian De­ either the Nimzo-Indian or the Queen's
fense. In general, the Bogo-Indian is Indian, its practitioners are often re­
characterized by Black willingly giving vered for their positional creativity.

231
 CHAPTER 11
The following game is an excel­
lent example of how Wojo dealt with
these Bogo-Indian games. He simply
develops his pieces and tries to create
some pressure in the center and on the
queenside. Meanwhile, Black's play in
this game is indeed creative: he plays
a new move as early as move 8, devel­
ops his queen's rook to the a7 square,
and leaves his queen's knight on b8
until move 18. The fact that Black de­
fended so successfully is truly remark­
able, but on the other hand, it is un­
likely that many players will want to
copy Gulko's play.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2554)
Gulko, Boris (2585)
[E04] U.S. Championship 2006
1.�f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
dxc4 5 .i.g2 .i.b4+ 6 .i.d2
• •
6 •.. a5
On the immediate 6 . . . ,ixd2+,
White should also answer with 7.�xd2
as in the game. The only difference is
that Black is missing the extra move
. . . a7-a5, something which does little
to affect the position: 7 . . . 0-0 8.�a3
and White regains his pawn with ad­
vantage.
Retreating with 6 . . . �e7 is possible
but relatively uninteresting. Black ar-
232
gues that White's bishop on d2 is mis­
placed. Although theory contends
that 7.�c2 here is White's best move,
we believe the straightforWard 7.0-0
is stronger. If Black proceeds with
7 . . . 0-0 8.�c2 a6 9.�xc4 b5 1O.%Vc2
ib7, White's move ic1-d2 turns out
to be useful as the bishop can go to as,
putting pressure on Black's c7-pawn.
White is up a full tempo on a theo­
retical line, and lUCkl lLlc6 l2.e3 left
White with pressure in Psakhis- Kuraj­
ica, 2002 . Thus Black, rather than
castling, should play 7 . . . .i.d7 8.�c2
ic6, when Verdihanov thinks Black is
equal in Informant 70. After 9.�xc4
0-0, however, we have reached a posi­
tion strikingly similar to one found in
the main-line Open Catalan :
That line runs l.ttJf3 d5 2.d4 liJf6
3.c4 e6 4.g3 ie7 5.ig2 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4
7.�c2 a6 8.a4 id7 9.�xc4 ic6. You
won't find that particular line in this
work since we advocate 7.ttJe5 ! ? for
White instead. This is an improved
version of the line for White, howev­
er, and here we recommend it whole­
heartedly. The only differences be­
tween the two positions are that, in
the diagram, White's bishop is on d2
and the moves a2-a4 and ... a7-a6 have
been retracted. This second difference
favors White since one of Black's main
ideas in this line is to break with . . . b7-
b5 for counterplay. Thus 10.lLlc3, con-
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . i.b4+ (AND OTHERS)
trolling the center, should leave White
better.
With the text, Black is essentially
transposing into a Bogo-Indian. It is
not tempting for White to exchange
on b4 as Black would achieve pres­
sure down the a-file. A similarly moti­
vated move is the interesting 6 . . . cS ! ? ,
covered i n Rasmussen-Robson below.
7.'ffc 2
White is simply aiming to recap­
ture his pawn on c4. Avrukh advo­
cates 7.0-0 as being a better try for
the advantage, and he is probably
right. Wojo preferred to keep things
simple with the text move, however,
as have many strong players. 7.'ffc 2
is still considered the main line and is
good enough for at least a tiny edge in
the endgame.
7 .•• h:d2 +
Previously, the pair had shaken
hands quickly after 7 . . . b6 B .'ffxc4 .ia6
9.�c2 0-0 10.a3 i.xd2+ 1l.'ffxd2 ttJbd7
12 .ttJc3 cS 13.0-0 l:%cB 12-12, Wojt­
kiewicz-Gulko, U.S. Chp. 2004. Of
course, if White is feeling more am­
bitious there is no reason to take a
draw. Ribli-Lekic, Bosnian Team Chp.
2004, saw more ambitious play with
8.0-0 .ib7 9.i.xb4 axb4 1O.�xc4 ttJa6
11.lt:\bd2 0-0 12.l:%fdl �e7 13.ttJeS, with
the usual Catalan pressure.
Another quick Wojo handshake
was 7. . . ttJc6 B .'ffxc4 'ffdS 9.�d3 �fS
1O.�c4 �dS 12-12, Wojtkiewicz­
Stocek, World Open 2006. Again, how­
ever, White could have played for
more: 1O.�xfS exfS 11.0-0 .ie6 12.a3
id6 13.ttJc3 h6 14 . .if4 .bf4 1S.gxf4 ttJdS
16.e3 1eft White a little better thanks to
his dark-square control in Gustafsson­
Baklan, Austrian Team Chp. 20OS.
B.'ffxd2
It may seem illogical to recapture
with the queen on d2, but there is a con­
crete point: White avoids B .ttJbxd2 ! ?
b S 9.a4 c6, when Black successfully
holds on to his extra pawn. Now B •..
bS? ! is met by 9 .�gS, forking Black's
pawns on g7 and bS. Then 9 . . . 0-0
10.�xbS .ia6 11.�xaS ttJbd7 12 .'ffd 2
left Black with not nearly enough com­
pensation in Laznicka-Kosten, Austri­
an Team Chp. 200B.
8 . . .b6
A novelty, but not a theoretical­
ly critical one. Black's idea is to trade
off White's Catalan bishop with . . . .ib7.
The topical move B . . . c6 is covered in
the next game. Other than that, Black
has any number of minor tries here, all
of which lead to about the same sort
of thing: White regains his pawn on
c4 and claims his slight advantage.
For instance, on B . . . .id7, White has
a pleasant choice between 9 .ttJeS and
9.ttJa3.
233
 CHAPTER 11
Black has successfully evacuated
the hI-aS diagonal.
1O.�a3 .tb7 1l.hb7 lhb7
12.�axc4 0 - 0 13. 0 - 0
White stands better here. His
knights are posted on good squares
and Black will be forced to defend his
weak squares on the c-file. Of course,
in this game Black is a seasoned
grandmaster capable of withstanding
Wojo's pressure.
13 Ve7 14.gfdl gd8 15.Vc2
• • •
�d5 16.a3 f6
Many players would refuse to play
this move because it weakens the e6-
pawn. Black correctly realizes that
White's play along the c-file is danger­
ous and that there is an urgent need
to keep White from eventually pene­
trating on c6.
17.�f3 Ve8 18.gael �d7
A good move. Black is making all
necessary preparations to play . . . c7-
c6, and this maneuver ensures that
the queen's knight is not stranded on
bS for the rest of the game.
19.e4 �e7 20.Vb3
234
Threatening to play tLlxa5 and tar­
geting the black pawn on e6.
20 ... ga7 21.c�e3 Vt7 22.gc3 �f8
The point of Black's move IS. From
here, the knight defends e6 and guards
the kingside. Black doesn't have a lot
of maneuvering room, so it is also for­
tunate for him that his knight on fS is
tucked safely out of the way and won't
interfere with the coordination of his
other pieces.
23.gdel
Playing it safe. White can try to
make progress with 23.d5 exd5, when
he maintains a slight pull after either
24.exd5 a4 25.�c4 tLld7 (coming to c5)
26.d6 cxd6 27J3xd6 �xc4 2S.l'!xc4 or
24.tLlxd5 tLlxd5 25J�xd5 l'!xd5 26.Vxd5
c5 27.l'!b3.
23 •.. gd7 24.gc4 Vg6 25.�g2 h6
Black must bide his time. The e4-
pawn is untouchable in view of 25 ...
�xe4? 26.d5 with serious prospects
for a large advantage.
26.g1c3 gb7 27.Vc2 c6
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . i.b4+ (AND OTHERS)

Black finally is forced to play this
move. Note how carefully Black has
prepared to make this concession:
his knight on e7 is on the perfect
square. White, having passed on his
earlier chance to play d4-d5, is agreea-
ble to a draw here and so takes the op­
portunity to repeat moves and shake
hands.
28.�h4 V!1f7 29.�f3 1rg6 30.�h4
V!1f7 31.�f3 1f2- 1f2

Summary: Black played a creative opening and defended patiently to

hold the draw. White's peaceful mood helped Black to some extent and it was
certainly possiblefor White to have played more aggressively. It is not surpris­
ing that no one has yet repeated Gulko's B . . . b6.

Black's S c6: The Kra m n i k-Topalov Endga me

...

In 2006, Topalov ventured 5 . . . i.b4+ 9.a4 b5

against Kramnik's Catalan in the first
game of their controversial World
Championship match. Topalov gained
the upper hand in the queenless mid­
dlegame that arose but lost when he
overpressed. Although White won
the game, strong players immediate­
ly began copying the opening moves
of both sides. Avrukh states that the
endgame reached is "basically sound"
for Black, which is true. On the oth­
er hand, it is much easier for White to
play and fits well with our Wojo rep­
ertoire. In the following game, we will
outline some of White's possible at­
tempts to pose Black problems.
9 . . . �e4 ! ? is a rare alternative. The
point is that after 10.V!1c2 �d6 11.ltJbd2
ltJa6 12.ltJxc4 ltJb4, Black has maneu­
vered his knight to a strong outpost on
b4. The downside is that Black's bish­
op on c8 is poor and Black has already
exchanged off the dark-squared bish­
ops. This was demonstrated graphi­
cally in Skoberne- P .Horvath, Austrian
Team Chp. 2008, when after 13.ltJxd6+
V!1xd6 14.V!1c3 0-0 15.ltJe5 ! ? Black was
unable to play . . . b7-b6 and . . . i.a6 :

Gleizerov, Evgeny (2552)

Luther, Tho�as (2534)
[E04] Predeal 2007

1.d4 e6 2.c4 �f6 3.g3 d5 4.�f3

dxc4 5.i.g2 .ib4+ 6 .id2 a5 7.V!1c2
•

hd2 + 8.V!1xd2 c6 After the reasonable 15 . . . f!'xd4

16.V!1xd4 ltJc2+ 17.�d2 ltJxd4 18.�c3
Black prepares to hold on to his ltJf5 (18 .. .f6? ! 19.�xd4 fxe5+ 20.�xe5
pawn on c4 with . . .b7-b5, so White's is good for White as 20 .. J�xf2 ? 21 ..if3
next move is directed against this. followed by �e5-e4-e3 traps Black's

235
 CHAPTER 11
rook) 19Ji:hdl liJe7 20.e4 f6 (20 ... b6
2 Ui:d6 is uncomfortable for Black)
21.liJc4 eS 2 2 . liJb6 l:i:b8 23.'it>c4 ! .ie6+
24. 'it>cS, White had tremendous
positional compensation for the pawn
and went on to win. Of course, White
can also avoid sacrificing any materi­
al with IS.0-0, in which case he is still
slightly better due to his pawn on d4
and better bishop.
10.axb5 cxb5 11. YlYg5
11 ••• 0-0
The correct decision. Black saves
the more important of the two hanging
pawns. Davies states that there is "a
case" for 1l ... b4 ! ? 12.'lWxg7 l:i:g8 13 .'lWh6
i.b7, keeping Black's queenside pawns
intact. This is likely just bluster since
Black's king will be stuck in the mid­
dle of the board for the rest of the mid­
dlegame. After 14. 0-0, White is bet­
ter. What's more, White can also play
12.liJeS ! ? l:i:a7 13.liJxc4 with a clear ad­
vantage: 13 . . . 'lWxd4 14.liJd6 + ! 'lWxd6
IS.'lWxg7 l:i:g8 16.'lWxf6 is double-edged
but White's king should prove safer
here as well.
12.'l!Yxb5 Aa6
12 . . . liJa6 13.'lWxc4 liJb4 14.'lWb3
236
eS? ! was Black's bid for activity in
Grischuk-Moiseenko, Russian Team
Chp. 2006, but White simply won a
pawn after 1S.liJxeS l:i:b8 16.0-0 YlYxd4
17.l:i:xaS. The text move is the only try
yet known to be sound.
13.YlYa4
13. 'lWxaS allows Black to relieve the
tension too early: 13 . . . .ib7 14.'lWxd8
l:i:xa1! 1S.'lWxf8+ 'it>xf8 16.0-0 l:i:a2
17.liJbd2 hf3 (not 17 . . . .idS? 18.l:i:c1
l:i:xb2 19.e3, when White wins the c­
pawn) 18.liJxf3 was agreed drawn in
Postny-Luther, Bundesliga 2006, in
view of 18 . . . l:i:xb2 19.1:i:c1 l:i:xe2 20.l:i:xc4
liJbd7 with equality. By staying in the
middlegame, White hopes his pres­
sure against Black's weak queenside
pawns will amount to something.
13 YlYb6
•••
Counterattacking the b2-pawn.
14. 0 - 0
14.liJbd2 ! ? has been tried recently,
but not with much success. 14 . . . .ibS
1S.'lWa3 liJc6 gave Black plenty of activ­
ity in Uk6-Kramnik, Dortmund 2009.
14 ••• YlYxb2
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)
Black's supposed path to equality.
Alternatives may crop up here, but at
least now l4 . . . .tbS ! ? can be met by the
active lS.%Ya3 lDc6 l6.lDc3, unlike in
Lek6-Kramnik above.
White is threatening l6J!tbl %Yc3
17J:1a3, trapping the queen.
15 ••• .lb5 !
Forcing White's response. 15 . . .
1!9b4 i s worse, since after l6.lDeS lDdS
17.%YxaS %YxaS l8.EixaS c3 19.1Db3
leaves Black's bishop on a6 pinned
and his c-pawn weak.
16.lDxc4 ha4
Of course not l6 . . . hc4? ! l7.'�xc4,
when White's initiative on the
queenside will be tremendous.
17 • • • .lb5
The bishop retreats to attack the
e2-pawn. 17 . . . .tc6 is an attempt to neu­
tralize the Catalan bishop, but Black
should be looking to evacuate the hl­
aB diagonal, not contest it. l8.Eifel,
hitting the c6-bishop, leaves Black
somewhat tangled on the queenside.
White can proceed with moves like e2-
e3, Eial-a3 and Eicl-al, and lDf3-eS-c4,
securing the center and putting pres­
sure on Black's a-pawn.
One of White's recent attempts to
set Black problems. 19 . .tf3 was played
in the first game in this line, the famous
Kramnik-Topalov, World Champi­
onship (match/I) 2006, but White's
bishop is not well-placed here. 19 . . .
lDbd7 20.lDec4 Eib8 21.Eitbl gS ! 2 2 .e3
g4 23 . .idl .tc6 allowed Black to seize
the Catalan diagonal. For this reason,
it may be that 19 . .tf3 deserves the dis­
tinction of being dubious.
White does have at least one good
alternative to the text move, howev­
er. The natural 19.1Dbc4 hasn't been
played at the time of writing, but is
likely to be tested soon. One point is
that 19 . . . Eic8?? 20.lDd6 loses materi­
al for Black. White is applying direct
pressure to the as-pawn and plans
Eifl-cl followed by e2-e3, for instance,
19 . . . lDdS 20.Eifcl and Black is having
difficulty developing his queenside.
One attempt to solve Black's problems
is 20. . . hc4 21.lDxc4 lDc6 2 2 .e3 :
White has the clear plan of dou­
bling on the a-file and has a modest
237
 CHAPTER 11
advantage. Two alternatives to 19 . . .
lLld5 are 1 9 . . . hc4? ! 20.lLlxc4 a 4 2 U�a3
with l:!f1-al to follow shortly and 19 . . .
a4 20.l:!ibl hc4 21.lLlxc4 lLld5 2 2 . l:!a3,
with a similar type of advantage.
19 . • . tLlfd7
The most natural way to relieve the
pressure on Black's position is to ex­
change pieces.
21.dxe5 ! ? is suggested by some
computer programs but seems too ar­
tificial after 2 1 . . .ixd3 2 2 .exd3 lLld7. It
is not entirely clear the White will win
Black's a-pawn, and with all of White's
pawns on the same side of the board,
the bishop is not stronger than the
knight.
21 • • • tLlxd3 22.exd3
Here we have an interesting situa­
tion. Black's a-pawn is being hunted,
but should he bother trying to save it?
22 ••• a4
22 . . . l:!d8, counterattacking the d4-
pawn, was the obvious alternative.
Here 23.l:!a4 followed by d4-d5 should
238
give White good prospects, as he will
round up Black's a-pawn. Instead,
23.d5 ! ? a4 was slightly more compli­
cated in Georgiev-Pavasovic, Valjevo
2007.
23 . . . l:!d8 24.l:!b4 lLld7 25.l:!bxa4
l:!xa4 26.l:!xa4 lLlf6 is another defen­
sive attempt, with play similar to the
game.
24 .tc6 tLlf6?!
•
It would have been better to go
down a pawn immediately with 24 ...
l:!c8 25.hd7 l:!xd7 26.l:!xa4 'it>f8, when
Black should draw. After the text,
White still wins the a-pawn but has
better winning chances since a pair of
minor pieces remains on the board.
2S.llli4 gd8 26.gaxa4 �a4
27.gxa4
As we will see, this endgame holds
winning chances for White. After acti­
vating his king, White will try to make
progress on the kingside. Meanwhile,
Black's main frustration is his inabil­
ity to occupy the d5 square. With two
pairs of rooks on the board, the block­
ading move . . . lLlf6-d5 would be a no-
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH s . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)
brainer. Here, however, White would
have real chances in a single-rook
endgame.
27••• mf8 28.mg2 gc8 29.l'ik4
gb8 30. mf3 hS
It makes sense for Black to take
kingside space. If he does not, White
will start advancing there himself.
With his next move, White stays flexi­
ble and lures Black forward.
31.h3 gS ! ? 32.gc5 g4+ 33.hxg4
hxg4+ 34.me3 me7 3S .ig2 gd8•
36.ggS gd7
Black has succeeded in fixing the
kingside, but this has come at a price:
the g4-pawn is weak, and this is a seri­
ous problem for Black in the rook end­
game that ensues.
37.dS !
White has improved his position as
much as he possibly can, so now is the
time to strike.
37 exdS 38.md4 ga7 39 .ixdS
. .• • 1- 0
IOxdS 40.gxdS
White remains up a pawn. This
endgame is difficult for Black because
his g4-pawn is overextended.
40 . . . ga2 41.me3 me6 42.ggS f5
43.gg6+ mdS
Black elects activity. 43 . . . mt7
44J:i:b6 leaves Black's king cut off
along the sixth rank.
4s ••. me6
4s .. J%a3 46Jk8 gb3 47.gcs+ c;t>f6
48.c;t>f4 gb4+ 49.gc4 gb6 SO.d4 allows
White to make some progress.
46.d4 gb2 47.ge8+ mn 48.ga8
gb3+
Little better is 48 . . . c;t>e6 49J:i:a6+
c;t>ds? ! SO.gf6 gb3+ s1.mf4 gf3+
s2.c;t>gs c;t>e4 s3.ds gxf2 s4.d6 13d2
ss.gxfs gxd6 s6.c;t>xg4 gd8 57. gaS
13g8+ s8.c;t>h4 13h8+ s9.13hs ! with a
technical win.
49.mf4 gf3+ so.mgS gxf2
Sl.gaS gf3 S2.gxf5 + me6 S3.dS+
White wins a second pawn with
c;t>xg4, so Black sees no point in play­
ing on.
239
 CHAPTER 11

Summary: Although this line is becoming popular for Black due to the
Kramnik-Topalov game, the endgame is unpleasantfor the second player. Af­
ter White's solid 1 9 . tiJ bd3, Black hadfew winning chances and was eventual­
ly ground out. An interesting alternative for exploration is 19. CiJbc4 with the
plan of putting pressure on Black's as-pawn. Wojo-style players can be satis­
fied with taking the White side of this endgame.

Conclusion: The move 6 . . . a5 is a hot topic in modern theory, but White can
get a good game without having to know an extensive number of "book moves."

The Ray Robson Specia lty

Just when you think you know eve­

rything about the Catalan, some new
move comes along. The try 6 . . . c5 ! ?
was originally played i n 1986 by GM
Yuri Balashov and was roundly con­
demned as dubious. At the time of
writing, this move is undergoing a
small revival as a surprise weapon.
Perhaps its most important advocate
is the up-and-coming American 1M
Ray Robson, who has no qualms about
playing the move against grandmaster
7.,bb4
opposition.
The following Robson game il­
At the very least, this has been giv­
lustrates the current theoretical de­
en by Catalan authors as White's best
bate around this variation. Black
move since Schiller's 1988 edition of
finds a piece sacrifice strikingly simi­
Catalan. The weaker 7.dxc5 was seen
lar to the one seen in Ehlvest-Ippolito
in a casual blindfold game Hilton­
from Chapter 4, only this time White's
Robson, 2009, which continued 7...
pieces are completely cut off from the
Axc5 8.'I1;l[a4+?! id7 9.'I1;l[xc4 'I1;l[b6
kingside.
10. 0-0 ib5 11.'I1;l[c2 CiJbd7, when Black
had no problems and won handily.
Rasmussen, Allan Stig (2536) The game Sharavdorj-Robson, SPICE
Robson, Ray (2491) Spring Invitational 2009, also fea­
[E04] Troms0, Norway 2009 tured these moves and saw the young
American defeat his grandmaster op­
l.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.CiJfJ CiJf6 4.g3 ponent after 12.CiJc3 E1c8 13.'I1;l[b3 ia6
dxc4 5.,tg2 ,tb4+ 6.,td2 c5 ! ? 14.'I1;l[xb6 CiJxb6 15.CiJg5 0-0 16.CiJge4

240
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)
iiJxe4 17.lLlxe4 .ie7 18.lLlc3 lLlc4 19 . .ic1
if6.
Prior to this game, Rasmussen him­
selfhad played 7.dxc5 in A. Rasmussen­
K.Rasmussen, Danish Chp. 2009, and
he tried the somewhat better 8. 0-0
0-0 9.�c2 lLlbd7 10.lLla3 ! ? Here, rath­
er than 10. . . lLlb6 1l.lLlxc4 .id7 12.lLlaS
- which left White with a plus - the
critical test of White's play would have
been 10. . . .ixa3 1l.bxa3 lLlb6 with . . .
ic8-d7 t o follow. For instance, 12J'Ud1
id7 (threatening ... .id7-a4) 13 . .ib4
�e8 14.lLleS lLlfdS ! would leave White
without concrete play for his pawn.
7 ••• cxb4 8.lLle5
The principled response. If White
is allowed to recapture his pawn on
c4 and develop unchallenged, he will
be slightly better due to his d4-pawn.
But Black has just such a challenge in
mind.
8 ••• 0 - 0 9 .�xc4 �c6
Hitting the d4-pawn. It is impor­
tant for Black that White not be giv­
en time to complete his development
here.
10.e3 e5
Black again plays the most chal­
lenging move. 10. . . �e7 1l.lLlbd2 .id7
12 .0-0 l=!fd8 13.lLlf3 l=!ac8 14.�e2
was the original game with 6 . . . c5 ! ? ,
Bareev-Balashov, USSR Chp. 1986.
White has completed his development
and has a pleasant advantage. Black
has tried other tenth moves, but they
are not particularly challenging either.
Robson's move is the modern idea in
this variation.
H.d5
This is the most positionally mo­
tivated response. If the black knight
moves from c6, White can follow up
with e3-e4, creating a powerful center.
Meanwhile, accepting the pawn sacri­
fice with 1l . .ixc6 bxc6 12.lLlxeS c5 is
given by Avrukh as giving Black good
compensation. White has given up his
prized Catalan bishop and his cent­
er is under attack; on the other hand,
the position after 13.dxcS seems quite
playable for White and deserves test­
ing:
Now Black can either swap the
queens or keep them on the board:
a) 13 . . . �aS 14.�d4 ! . A neat compu­
ter move. The point is that 14 . . . l=!d8?
runs into 1S.lLlc6 l=!xd4 16.lLlxaS l=!dS
17.lLlb3. Instead, Black will most like­
ly play 14 . . . .ia6 (or 14 . . . .ie6 15.lLld2)
241
 CHAPTER 11
15.lLld2 gfdB 16.lLldc4 'lWb5 17.'lWf4
'lWxc5 1B.0-0, when White has suc­
ceeded in completing his development
and his knights are well placed. Black
still has reasonable compensation for
his pawn, but White should be better.
b) 13 . . . 'lWxd1+ 14.c.1Jxd1 lLle4 (14 . . .
gdB+ 15. c.1Je1 leads t o the same type of
position) 15. c.1Je1 lLlxc5 16.lLld2 and it is
probably Black who must think about
equalizing. Again, the compensation
is certainly there, but White has the
clear plan of lLle5-c4 and b2-b3, con­
solidating his position.
The text move is considered critical.
1l •••b5
Without this resource, Black would
be in serious trouble from a positional
standpoint.
12.dxc6 Yfxdl+ 13.c.1Jxdl bxc4
14.a3
So far the players are both follow­
ing Avrukh's analysis. White is trying
to inflict damage on Black's b4- and
c4- pawns. This endgame is double­
edged; White's strong passed pawn on
c6 is backed up by his Catalan bish­
op, but his king is open and his rooks
are not yet into play. If White can
find a way to solve his development
242
problems, he should stand better.
A few months later, in Kacheishvi­
li-Robson, Chicago 2009, White tried
to improve with 14.lLld2 . After 14 ...
ig4+ 15.c.1Je1 c3 16.bxc3 bxc3 17.lLlc4
e4 1B.gel gacB 19.1Lle5 ie6 20.gxc3,
White appeared to have a slight ad­
vantage. However, after the calm 20. . .
gfeB ! , i t was hard for White t o prove
anything: 2 1.gc5 id5 (21.. .gbB ! ? , look­
ing to take the initiative, was an inter­
esting attempt according to Kacheish­
vili) 2 2 .ih3 gc7 and Black drew easi­
ly. More practical tests will be needed
to determine whether 14.lLld2 or 14. a3
is a better try for an edge.
14 ig4+
•••
No other move is sufficient for
Black. 14 . . . gbB ? ! to defend the pawn
meets with 15.axb4 gxb4 16. 'iflc1
lLlg4 (Black is scrounging for activi­
ty) 17.gfl lLlxh2 1B.gd1 lLlg4 19.9d2,
with a clear advantage for White ac­
cording to Avrukh. Black is a pawn
up, but his entire army is scattered
in an incoherent fashion. After 19 . . .
a 6 20.lLlc3, White's initiative i s dan­
gerous. Also, 14 . . . gdB+? immediately
would be a mistake in view of 15. 'iflc1,
when White is threatening to win ma­
terial with c6-c7.
15.�c1 b3
Robson's improvement. Avrukh
gives only 15 . . . a5 16.lLld2, when
Black's queenside pawns are falling
apart. His analysis continues 16 . . . c3
17.bxc3 bxc3 1B.lLlc4 e4 19.9b1 gac8
20.lLle5 gfdB 21.gb3 with a clear ad­
vantage for White. Robson's move is
more challenging because Black pre­
serves the integrity of his queenside
pawns.
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH S . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)
16.�c3
White has been given this square,
so he should take it. It was also nec­
essary for him to prevent the power­
ful maneuver . . . .ig4-e2-d3 from Black.
16 •.. gac8 17.h3 .ie6 18.gdl
1Ud8
19.f4? !
This is the start of an inaccurate
plan by White. Expansion on the
kingside is premature, as White's rook
on al and king on c1 are still boxed in.
FM Dennis Monokroussos pointed out
on his weekly ChessBase radio show,
"Great Games with Dennis Monokrous­
sos," that 19.fu:dS+ gxdS 20.a4! with
the idea of a4-aS and lifting the rook to
a4 was White's best course of action.
20 ... aS to prevent this seems forced,
when 21.tLlbS aids White in support­
ing the advance of his c-pawn :
Monokroussos gives the following
variations:
a) 2 1 . . .e4 2 2 .tLld4, and White's king
is free to come to c3 : 22 . . . i.dS 23.i.f1
gcS 24.'it>d2 tLleS 2S.gcl tLld6 26.'it>c3
hc6 27.tLlxc6 gxc6 2 S . gdl and White
will mop up Black's weak queenside
pawns.
b) 21 . . . .idS 2 2 . c7 gcS 23.i.xdS
tLlxdS 24.'it>d2 tLlxc7 2S.tLlxc7 gxc7
26.'it>c3 gd7 27.gfl ! f6 2S.'it>xc4 gb7
29.gal and White again wins pawns
on the queenside;
c) 2 1 . . .tLleS 2 2 .c7 gd3 (22 . . . gcS
runs into 23 . .ib7) 23 ..ie4 gd7 24 ..ic6
and Black is in trouble. Just to be sure
Black has no ideas along the lines of
the game, we can carry the analy­
sis slightly further: 24 . . . gd3 2S.heS
hh3 (with the idea of . . ..ig4 and
. . . gd3-dl#) 26 . .ic6 and White stops
all of Black's ideas - for instance, 26 . . .
h S 27 . .ie4 i s decisive.
d) 2 1 . . . 'it>fS 2 2 .c7 gd3 23.g4. White
is preventing . . . hh3. 23 . . . h6 (what
else?) 24 . .ib7 'it>e7 2S.cS'I1*f .!xcS
26.ixcS g6 (26 . . . tLle4 runs into 27 . .ifS)
27.i.b7 and White again stops Black's
threats. His idea is to play tLlbS-a3 to
win the c4-pawn.
In all of these variations, White's
position appears preferable. After the
text, White needs to be looking for a
way to equalize.
19 ••• e4
The logical response, shutting
down White's piece play.
20.g4
20.tLlxe4 runs into 20. . . tLl dS, when
Black has all the activity.
243
 CHAPTER 11

This move contains a deep idea
reminiscent of the one in Ehlvest­
Ippolito from Chapter 4. Black fore­
sees that he will be playing a whole
piece down, but White is boxed in on
both sides of the board, so this doesn't
matter.
l!d7+ 33.mc5 ! is one example. Black
may be able to stir up some play on
the kingside, but White should not
stand much worse. Rather than trying
to queen the c-pawn, this is the kind of
position White should have been look­
ing to reach.

21.,ixe4 �xe3 22 ••• gxd8 23.c7 gd4 24 .ih7

•

h6!

The point. White is in Zugzwang

and is essentially forced to win his ex­
tra piece.

25.f5 .id7 26.c8tr+ ,ixc8

27.,ixc8 mfS

22Jh:d8 +?

White is tempted by the material.

Monokroussos points out that 2 2 J'!el
instead would still have been fine for
White after 2 2 . . . llJd5 23 . .i.xd5 .i.xd5
24.c7! l!d7 25.l!dl .ic6 26.l!xd7 .i.xd7
27.llJd5 mf8 28.md2 i.c6 29.llJe3 l!xc7
30.mc3 : Amazingly, this position is los­
ing for White, despite his extra piece.
White's king and rook are trapped,
leaving Black's king free to march
down to el.

28 .ia6
•

White threatens a3-a4-a5, win­

ning.

28 .•• gd6 29 .ih7

•

Although Black has the annoying

plan of . . . .ie4-d3 here, White should White's last hope was 29.a4!?,
be able to find his own sources of giving up the bishop, but 29 . . . l!xa6
play: 30. . . i.e4 31.l!c1 ! ? i.d3 32.md4 30.md2 llJc2 3U'!dl l!d6+ 32 .me2 l!xdl

244
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . i.b4+ (AND OTHERS)

33.�xdl �e7 and 29 . . . llJc2 ! 30.ixc4

ttlxal 31.�bl llJc2 32.ixb3 llJe3 both
look miserable for White.

29 ••• aS

Preventing any further attempt

at a2-a4-a5 from White, who is now
helpless to prevent what comes next,
save for resigning.
39 �eI 40.f6 gxf6 41.gxf6 gd2
.••

42.gal gc2 + 43.�bl llJf1 0 -1

30.J.f3 �e7 31.a4 gd4 32.J.e2
mf6 33.h4 �eS 34.gbl �f4 3S.llJbS On 44.llJe4, Black mates with 44 . . .
gd7 36.�c3 �g3 37.gS hxgS llJd2+ 45.llJxd2 �xd2 followed by 46 . . .
38.hxgS �f2 39.J.hS El cl.

Summary: White underestimated the danger of letting his king and rook
get shut in on the queenside and was properly punished. Had White tried hard­
er tofree his queens ide, either with 19. ElxdB+ ElxdB 2 0 .a4! or 22. Elel, it is un­
likely that he would have suffered such a defeat. In the case oftheformer move,
White appears to be better.

Conclusion: For the time being, the move 6 . . . c5 is still rare and should not
be of much concern to the average Catalan aficionado. Current analysis of 14.a3
shows White getting the last laugh in all lines, but if Robson - who is known
for his extensive home preparation - continues to pursue things from the Black
side, players wishing to be in the theoretical "know" should follow his games.

Fi nish ing Up: Black's Other Choices on Move 5

Black has two other fifth moves of
note, 5 . . . llJbd7 and 5 . . . i.d7. The first
one is an obvious developing move,
while the second one is an attempt
to wrestle the Catalan diagonal with
. . . i.d7-c6. Each of these moves could
easily have an entire chapter devoted
to it, but since neither of them is par­
ticularly challenging, it makes sense
for us to be brief.
There is no point in expending doz­
ens of pages on these relatively rare
tries. Without further ado, let's tack­
Ie them.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2SS0)
Kaenel, Hansjiirg (232S)
[E04] Neuchatel 1997
1.<��f3 �f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 dS 4.d4
dxc4 S.J.g2 �bd7 6. 0 - 0

245
 CHAPTER 11
Black isn't threatening to hold the
c4-pawn, so there is no rush for White
to take it.
6 ••• c6
Now Black is making a serious at­
tempt to hold the c4-pawn. 6 . . . c5 is
more usual here, when White should
play 7.llJa3 to win back his pawn.
Then 7 . . . llJb6 8 .llJxc4 llJxc4 9.Wa4+
!d7 10.Y;Vxc4 b5 (or 10 .. J3CB 1l.llJe5
b5 12 .Wd3) 11.Wd3 c4 12.Wc2 !c6
13.b3 reaches a position very similar
to those described in Chapter 14 on
Black's Semi-Slav hybrids:
White gets his usual slight advan­
tage: 13 .. .l'kB (or 13 . . . ie4 14.Wb2 Y;Vd5
15.bxc4 bxc4 16.llJel! l:kB 17.he4
llJxe4 IB.f3 c3 19.Wb3 llJd6 20.llJc2
with a secure center) 14.bxc4 !e4
15.Wb2 bxc4 16.Wb5+ Wd7 17.a4 ! as in
Cu. Hansen-Browne, Nrestvedl9B5.
246
Similarly, 6 . . . llJb6 should be met
with 7.llJbd2, when 7 . . . c5 B.llJxc4
would transpose back into the above.
The move played in the game isn't par­
ticularly good, but it is interesting.
7.a4
There is no reason why White
should not play this move to restrain
. . . b7-b5. Black no longer has the pos­
sibility of . . . llJbB-a6-b4, and his strike
. . . c6-c5 would now have wasted a tem­
po. White should also meet 6 . . . a6 this
way, since after 7.a4 c5 B.llJa3 cxd4
9.llJxc4, White will regain his d4-pawn
with easy development.
7 . . . ie7
Now 7 . . . b5 B.axb5 cxb5 9.llJe5!?
(9.llJc3 Y;Vb6 10.b3 as in Fine-Euwe,
New York 1951, is also possible) 9 ...
llJd5 10.llJc3 ! leaves White slightly bet­
ter thanks to the looseness of Black's
queenside. The hI-aB diagonal is a
particular sore spot for Black:
10. . . llJxe5 (worse is 10. . . ib7 11.llJxbS
a6 12.llJc3 llJxc3 13 .bxc3 hg2 14.mxg2
llJxe5 15.dxe5 Wxdl 16.l'!xd1 ic5 when
Black's queenside pawns were weak in
David-Delorme, 2llJantes 003) 1l.dxeS
ic5 (ll . . . ib7 12 .llJxb5 Wd7 13.tLld6+
hd6 14.exd6 0-0 15.e4 is slightly bet­
ter for White) 12.tLlxb5 0-0 13.tLld6
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)

hd6 l4.exd6 .ib7 l5.e4 lLlb4 l6.i.e3 to. 'lNxb3 with compensation for the
a5 l7.'lNd2 ga6 l8.d7 ! ? lLld3 l9.b3 'lNxd7 pawn.
20.bxc4 gave White the two bishops in
Akesson-Goloshchapov, Cappelle la 9.'lNa4 vge7
Grande 2007.
Alternatively, 7 . . . a5 could be
played to stop White's next move, but
8.tLla3 .ixa3 (or 8 . . . lLlb6 9.lLle5) 9.bxa3
gives White control over the dark
squares. For instance: 9 . . .b6 10.'lNc2
ia6 1l.lLld2 c3 l2 .lLlbl gc8 l3.lLlxc3 c5
14.dxc5 gxc5 l5.'lNb2 0-0 l6 . .if4, and
Black sorely misses his dark-squared
bishop, or 9 . . .b5 ! ? 10.'lNc2 with pres­
sure (gal-bl and e2-e4 will follow) in
Baburin-Gonzales, New York Open
1997.
10 .td2
•

8.a5 ! ?
A typical Wojo move. White is
gaining space on the queenside and
preventing any possible . . . a7-a5 from
Black. 8.lLla3 is also good. Wojo
tried it in the blitz game "Alexwojt"­
"JncooI68," Internet 2005, when
White achieved a winning posi­
tion quickly after 8 . . . 0-0 9.lLlxc4 b5?
10.axb5 (10.lLlfe5! is even better) 10. . .
cxb5 1l.lLla5 vgb6 l2.lLle5 lLld5 l3.lLlec6
id8 l4.e4 lLl5f6 l5.d5. Of course, on­
line blitz games are rarely of high qual­
ity: White made a terrible mouse slip
Just like in many other Catalan po­
sitions, the exchange of dark-squared
bishops favors White here.
10 .ixd2
••• 1l.lObxd2 0-0
12.lOxc4 1Od5 13. 1Uc1
White has a dream Catalan posi­
tion here and his advantage on the
queenside is tremendous. Wojo now
sets about slowly increasing his pres­
sure.
13 gd8 14.e3 1Of8 15.lOce5 f6
•••

on move 32 and failed to recapture his 16.lOd3 gb8

queen, giving Black the win.

8 .ib4
•••

Black tries to plug the dark-square

hole on b4, but this is rather artifi­
cial. Black is running out of space, so
8 ... b5, ugly as it looks, may have been
called for here. White has choice be­
tween 9.axb6 'lNxb6 10.'lNc2 , with an
advantage thanks to Black's weak­
ened queenside pawns, or 9.b3 ! ? cxb3

247
 CHAPTER 11

The prospect of playing a move like 23 •.. gd7

16 . . . a6 is most unappealing. White can
increase the pressure on the backward Black chooses to defend passively.
b-pawn starting with 17.�3. Trying to break free with 23 . . . eS ! ? was
worth a try, but White can simply ig­
17.a6! nore Black's bid for activity with the
calm 24.llJb3.
White's pieces are all on their ide­
al squares, so now is the time to strike.
24.�b3 gc7 25.�bc5 1t>f7
26.Ah3 g5 27 . .tg4
17 b5
..•

Trying to provoke more weakening

Even worse was 17 . . . bxa6 18.VNxc6
moves from Black.
when White is essentially playing up
a pawn thanks to Black's useless dou­
27 f5
bled a-pawns. White, having gotten
..•

the positional concession that he

It is hard to come up with a useful
wanted out of the middlegame, now
move for Black. 27 .. .'J1e7? 28.e4 llJb6
takes Black into the endgame. Grind­
29.llJxb4 just drops Black's extra pawn.
ing Black down takes several dozen
moves, however, so White might have
28 . .tf3 �d7 29.g4 �7b6
considered keeping the queens on the
30.�e5+ It>f6 31.lt>g2 h6 32 .h3
board with 18.VNb3 instead.
�d7 33.gxf5 ! ?
18.VNa3 1ba3 19.9xa3 gb6
20.�d2 b4 21.ga5 �a6 22.gcal

2 2.llJ b3 first, planning to recapture

on as with the knight, was also strong.
With the text, White is quite clear that
he does not mind being down a pawn
so long as his pieces dominate Black's.

33.llJed3 would o f course preserve

White's advantage, but Wojo senses
that the most practical course of ac­
tion is to create complications. Per­
haps Black was slipping into time
pressure.

33 .•• �xe5 34.dxe5+ �xf5?

Black inexplicably drops a piece.

248
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)

34 ... 'it>xe5 was necessary. After 35.fxe6, is not going to keep three pawns for
Black has two choices: his piece.

38.�xb4 gb7 39.�d3 gb3

4O.ie2 a6 41.ga2

a) 35 ... 'it>d6 36 . .ig4 ltJf6, when ei­

ther 37.f4 ltJxg4 38.ltJe4+ 'it>xe6 39.fS+
rll e7 4O.hxg4 or 37.ifS ltJe8 (with the
idea of . . . ltJe8-g7) 38.ltJe4+ 'it>e7 39 ..ig4
�f6 4O.ltJxf6 'it>xf6 4U�f5+ 'it>g7 42 .Eie5
1"ie7 43.f4 leaves White better. White is threatening ltJc5 to win
b) 35 . . . he6 ! 36.ltJa6 Eig7! 37.ltJxb4 Black's a-pawn. This is grim for
(37.e4 g4 makes things appropriate­ the second player, who has no real
ly messy) 37 . . . 'it>d6 38 .hd5 hd5+ counterplay.
39.ltJxd5 cxd5 4O.Eia6+ 'it>e5 41.Eixh6
1"ib7 42.Eia6 Eixb2 43.Eixa7 Eib4 and 41 ••• gb5 42 .b4 'it>e7
Black has excellent chances of hold­
ing the rook endgame. Not surprising­ 42 . . . e5 43.ig4 forces further sim­
ly, by this point in the game Black was plification in view of 43 . . . .ib7 44.ltJc5.
unable to calculate these lines over the
board. 43 .ga4 'it>d6 44.�c5 gb6
After the text, Black is in serious 45.ixa6 ixa6 46.gxa6 gxa6
trouble. 47.�xa6

35.e4+ 'it>xe5 36.exd5 cxd5 Black is lost.

37.�d3 + �f6?!
47 'it>c6 48.�f3 h5 49.�e3 e5
•••

37 ... 'it>d4 was probably a better 50.�c5 'it>b5 51.c�d7 'it>xb4 52.�xe5
try, but it is already clear that Black 'it>c3 53.�c6 'it>c4 54.�d4 1- 0

Summary: Black allowed White to gain space on the queenside early on,
and this led to a clear advantagefor White. Itproved a diffic ult one to convert,
but Wojo was up to the task and was willing to mix things up toward the end.

249
 CHAPTER 11
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2570)
Ziatdinov, Raset (2511)
[E04] World Open 1999
1.c�� f3 d5 2.d4 tOf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3
dxc4 5 .ig2 .id7 6.tOe5
• fortable amount of counterplay. In­
The principled way to meet Black's
last move. If Black wants to contest
the hl-aB diagonal, he must do so at
a price.
6 .ic6
•••
Played anyway. 6 . . . tOc6 instead
would make no sense, as 7.tOxc4 would
just be good for White.
7.tOxc6 tOxc6 8. 0 - 0
8 .•• Vd7
The main move. B . . . tOxd4?! is just
bad after 9 . .ixb7 E1bB 10. .ig2, when
White's Catalan bishop is strong.
White will force Black's knight back
with e2-e3 and try to pick off the c4-
pawn.
Another try is B . . . i.e7. For a long
time the main response was 9.e3,
the point being to meet 9 ... 0-0 with
10.tOd2, recapturing on c4 with the
knight. But Black's position becomes
active after 9 . . . e5 ! 10.i.xc6+ bxc6
250
11.dxe5 '?;Yxdi I2.E1xdl tOg4 I3.f4 ic5
14J�e1 0-0-0 15.h3 tOh6 I6.tOd2 (not
I6.g4? ! i.b4 I7.E1fl E1d3 followed by
. . . E1dB) I6 . . . tOf5 I7.tOe4 i.b4 IB.E1e2
E1dI+ I9.';t;>f2 E1hdB, with an uncom­
stead, Avrukh's suggestion of 9.'?;Ya4
gives White a risk-free advantage af­
ter 9 . . . 0-0 10.e3 and so on. Here 10...
e5 ! ? doesn't give Black much after
1U�d1: White is just better after ei­
ther 11 . . . '?;YcB 12.'?;Yxc4 exd4 13.exd4
id6 14.tOc3 or 11 . . . exd4 12 . .ixc6 bxc6
13.E1xd4.
9.e3 :Elb8
Black's idea is to evacuate the
hl-aB diagonal and prepare . . .b7-
b5 to hold on to his c4-pawn. Any­
thing else is just a minor try, for in­
stance, 9 . . . 0-0-0?! is asking for trou­
ble: 10.'?;Ya4 h5 11.tOc3 h4 12.tOb5 and
White's attack should come faster than
Black's. Another minor try is 9 . . . ie7,
when 1O.'?;Ya4 tOb4 (10. . . 0-0 11.'?;Yxc4 is
also better for White) 11.'?;Yxd7+ tOxd7
IVt:ld2 ltJb6 I3.i.xb7 E1bB I4.i.f3 gave
White a comfortable edge in Z.Polgar­
Marie, Tilburg 1994.
10.We2 b5
11.:Eldl ! ?
 THE EARLY OPEN CATALAN WITH 5 . . . .ib4+ (AND OTHERS)
Wojo always loved to put his king's
rook on d1 after playing e2-e3 and �d1-
e2, but this is actually an inaccuracy.
White should play the immedi­
ate break 11.b3, which is considered
the main line. After 11 . . . cxb3 12.axb3
l:lb6, defending c6 and "threatening"
to keep the extra pawn with . . . a7-a6,
White has a pleasant choice between
13Jld1!?, keeping the pressure, and
the simple 13.,bc6 �xc6 14J�xa7, re­
gaining the pawn while keeping a
positional plus :
Now the main continuation is 14 . . .
id6 (14 . . . .ib4 1 5 . .id2 hd2 16.ttJxd2
helps White) and here Avrukh's novel­
ty 15 . .id2 gives White pressure. White
is ahead in development and should
be able to focus on the queenside.
Meanwhile, Black can also try to
play as in the game with 12 . . . .ib4,
when here 13.l:�a6! ttJd5 14 . .id2 hd2
15.ttJxd2 l3b6 16.l3xb6 cxb6 17.�xb5
tiJcb4 18.�xd7+ mxd7 19.ttJc4 l3b8 was
slightly better for White in Janjgava­
Abramovic, New York Open 1990, but
Avrukh's recommendation of 14 . .ib2 !
and getting the center pawns rolling
looks even stronger.
By playing the immediate 11.l3d1,
Wojo limits his options slightly.
1l . • . .1b4
In Wojtkiewicz-Hawelko, Polish
Team Chp. 1989, White got enough
compensation for his pawn after 11 . . .
.ie7 12 .b3 cxb3 13.axb3 l3b6 14.ttJa3 ! ?
a 6 1 5 . .ib2 0 - 0 16.e4, but certainly not
more than that. Thus, Wojo's 11.l3d1
seems too slow to pose Black serious
problems in developing his pieces. On
the other hand, by refusing to clarify,
he is taking the game into uncharted
waters. The tactical skill of the players
will decide this game, and Wojo was
willing to gamble in this case.
12 .b3 cxb3 13 .axb3 a5
A good move, giving Black more ac­
tivity than is usual for this line. Black
hasn't been forced into the awkward
. . . l3b8-b6 and . . . a7-a6, and this is a
good sign for the second player. That
said, White still has roughly enough
compensation for his pawn here. Wojo
sets about attacking Black's queenside.
14.1Yc2 �e7
14 . . . ttJd5 is possible, but this would
allow White to get in e3-e4 with tempo.
15 ..1d2 0 - 0
15 . . .hd2? ! 16.ttJxd2 would give
White a clear advantage, as Black can­
not defend his a-pawn.
16.hb4 axb4 17J::f a7 �fd5
18.e4!?
251
 CHAPTER 11

White with enough pressure for his

pawn after 24 . . . �g4.

Wojo goes all out for a big advan­

tage. 18.�c5 first made more sense.

lS tLlc6!
•••
23 ••• cxd6??

Black takes the bait! 23 . . . �g4

A useful intermezzo, guarding the
would have been fine for Black. 24J'id4
c-pawn. Now things get complicated.
cxd6! is the point, when 25.�xb4 �e6
or 25J''ixd6 lDbd5 keeps everything
19.!1la6 tLlb6 20.dS exdS 21.exdS
afloat. Black is not worse in either case.
tLle7 22.�c5

The point of White's play. It looks

as if White has tremendous pres­
sure on Black's position, but in real­
ity White is suffering somewhat due
to his inability to develop the queen's
knight. White has just enough com­
pensation here.
22 ••• !1lfdS 23.d6!
Winning on the spot. Perhaps Black
had only considered 24.�xb4, when
White has reasonable compensation.
24 ••• dxc5 2S.!1lxd7
Both of White's rooks are taboo.
White is now just up a piece.

The best move and a tactical trick. 2S tLlfS 26.!1lxbS g6 27.!1lxb8

•••

23.�xb4 tLlbxd5 24.�c5 doesn't leave !1lxbS 2S .tdS l- 0

•

Summary: Wojo had compensation for the pawn in this game, but it took
a serious blunder from Blackfor White to win. This victory can be credited to
Wojo's tactical superiority rather than the merits ofll. 'il.dl.

Conclusion: Against 5 ... i.d7, White should react immediately with 6.tLleS.
In the main line, White wins the bishop pair and Black's pawn formation on the
queenside is compromised. Wojo tried to keep play complicated with 11.'il.dl !?,
but it makes more sense for White to play the normal ll.b3, regain the pawn, and
maintain good pressure on the queenside. This entire line is out of fashion for
Black nowadays, and for good reason: against solid play, Black is simply worse.

252
 Part I I I

The S l av

253
Chapter 12
/////H////H/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////Q

The 4.�c2 Slav with 4 . . . dxc4

1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 c6 4.Ylrc2

dxc4 5.ti'xc4

The fourteenth edition of Modern Chess Openings one of the most common­ -

ly used chess opening references - devotes a total of 24 pages of analysis to the

Slav Defense, l.d4 d5 2 .c4 c6. All but one single, lonely page of this analysis is
devoted to when White plays l.d4 d5 2 .c4 c6 3.tDf3 tDf6 4.tDc3, and the analy­
sis of this ever-popular fourth move by White keeps getting thicker and thicker.
In recognition of this growing body of theory, many modern Slav players often
feel they must be "booked to the brim" in sharp variations such as the Meran.
Wojo wanted to take Black players out of their preparation early on, and his
move 4.�c2 ! ? (which, incidentally, is not mentioned in Modern Chess Open­
ings) leads to a game in which White has strong chances for a slight edge.
Although a handful of players, including GM Constantin lonescu and 1M Michal
Konopka, have followed in Wojo's footsteps and started to use this move suc­
cessfully in practice themselves, the theory in this variation is still young. The
line is intended to "drain" the sharpness from the position and simply leave
White with a more comfortable structure. Thus, dozens of move orders are avail­
able to both sides. For this reason it is more useful to think in terms of schemes
of development than individual moves and variations. Whether you are playing
the white or black side of this line, understanding of the position trumps theo­
retical knowledge.
Before we begin to analyze how Wojo won against the Slav, there is an impor­
tant disclaimer that needs to be made. If you are following the analysis in this
book with a computer program, such as Fritz, it may initially balk at White's po­
sition after the first dozen moves and assign Black an advantage of three or four
tenths of a pawn, making the evaluation "equal-over-plus." Do not panic. As the
variations progress, this initial computer reaction almost always reverts back to
equal or "plus-over-equal." It's understandable that, after White's tenth move

254
 THE 4.Wc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4

in the game below, the computer prefers Black's position - Black has fully de­
veloped his pieces, his bishops look active, and he has no immediate structural
weaknesses. Meanwhile, White's queenside is undeveloped and he has "weak­
ened" the light squares around his king with the pawn pushes e2-e3 and g2-g3.
Once White's queenside pieces emerge from their barracks, however, his extra
center pawn will begin to make its presence felt.

Exploiting Wh ite's Central Adva ntage: Strivi ng for e3-e4

Black's best and most common res­
ponse to White's 4.1l;Yc2 in the Slav is
to concede the center with 4 . . . dxc4
5. �xc4 .if5, which is the focus of this
chapter. Black develops rapidly and
harmoniously, so if White wants to
earn his opening advantage, he has to
use his extra center pawn to his advan­
tage. The positions that arise in this
line offer a number of different op­
tions for White to do so. In the follow­
ing two Wojo games, we will try to get
a sense of what these options are, how
they work, and when White should ap­
ply them.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2571)
Shipunsky, Alexander (2530)
[D23] New York 2003
1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 c6 4.YlYc2
play 4.1l;Yc2 or 4.Wb3 is a matter of per­
sonal preference.
4oo.dxc4
Black's most logical option, baiting
White's queen out into the open and
trying to gain time for development.
Keeping the center closed with 4 . . . g6
is covered in the next chapter.
5.1l;Yxc4 .lfS
Again Black's most popular move.
Black is fighting for control of the
center by aiming to occupy e4 at some
point. S . . ..ig4 and other less common
alternatives are explored in Dreev­
Dobrov later in this chapter.
6.g3 e6 7.i.g2 8. 0 - 0

Dean has often used the move or­

der 4.1l;Yb3 here instead. This move
has the advantage of avoiding Black's
try 4.1l;Yc2 g6, planning to develop the
bishop to fS, which is covered in the
next chapter. It also does not permit
Black's "junk" tries involving . . . ltJb8-
a6-b4 (also covered in the next chap­
ter) that, while ultimately bad, are an­
noying. After either option, Black's
main move is 4 . . . dxc4, so whether to 8oo .i.e7

255
 CHAPTER 12
This is Black's most flexible move
order, preserving the option of thrust­
ing his b-pawn forward. Playable, but
less challenging for White, is B . . . lDb6
9.'M>3 �dS, seeking a queen exchange.
Here White should simply continue to
develop with 10.lD bd2 :
White is not afraid to enter the
endgame early as his pieces are or­
ganized somewhat more comfortably,
and his extra center pawn gives him
pressure. His knights can hop into cS
and eS, hitting the weak points b7 and
fl. What follows are two examples of
how White can convert his space ad­
vantage into a bind or material.
In the game H6Izl-Arduman, Eu­
ropean Team Chp. 1997, White gained
control of the dark squares after 10. . .
�xb3 11.lDxb3 !d6?! 12 . .if4 ! hf4
13.gxf4 lDbdS (13 . . . !g4 14.e3 hf3
lS . .hf3 0-0-0 16.a4 gives White pres­
sure on the queenside) 14.e3 0-0
lS.lDaS �abB 16.a3 �fcB 17.�fc1 �c7
1B.b4 :
2S6
Black is now under immense pres­
sure, and White won by transferring
his knight to the weakened d6 square
after 1B . . . !e4 19.�a2 lDd7 20.lDc4 'i!1f8
21.lDd6 .ixf3 2 2 . .ixf3 rJle7 23.lDc4 f6
24.h4 �bcB 2S.�ac2 b6 26.rJlh2 c5
27.fS lDfB 2B.fxe6 rJlxe6 29.e4 1-0.
Instead of 1l ... !d6? ! , allowing
White to trade Black's key defender
of the dark squares after 12.if4, Black
should play the more sensible 1l . . . !e4,
aiming to neutralize White's advantag­
es in the center. Then, Wojo himself
once played 12.lDaS!?, and after 12 ... 0-
0-0 13.lDeS !g6 14.e3 he had a pleas­
ant edge in Wojtkiewicz-Kostic, Milu­
tin 2001. But it is possible for Black
to insert 12 . . . hf3 ! 13.ixf3 and only
now play 13 . . . 0-0-0, however, so we
recommend an alternative approach.
White got a promising game in Borges
M ateos-Abreu, Cuban Chp. 2007, with
the simple move 12.lDeS - a themat­
ic knight hop that enables White to
organize his minor pieces. The game
continued 12 . . . ixg2 13.rJlxg2 !d6
14.lDd3 lDc4 lS.lDbcS b6 16.lDa4:
Having provoked a weakness
on the queenside, White simply re­
treats the knight and regroups. Black's
weakened c6-pawn will come under
fire along the c-file. The game contin­
ued 16 . . . �dB 17.b3 lDa3 1B.ib2 liJb5
19.�ac1 .b3 ? ! (Black should have pas­
sively defended his c6-pawn instead of
lashing out) 20.ha3 lDxa3 :
 THE 4.Yfc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
Here, White could have put some
life into the game with the computer­
found line 21.ll'le5! �xd4 2 2 .ll'lxc6 �d7
23.ll'lxa7! 0-0 24.ll'lc6 b5 25.ll'leS �d2
26.1t>f3 �xa2 27.�a1 �c2 28.�fc1 �xc1
29.�xc1, when Black's knights are un­
comfortable. White still got a slight
edge in the game after (from the di­
agram) 21.�xc6 �xd4 2 2 . �c8+ �d8
23.�xd8+ It>xd8 24.ll'le5 <ll e 7 25.�c1,
but Black managed to defend against
all White's threats after 25 . . . ll'lb5
26.ll'lc3 ll'lxc3 27.�xc3 ll'ld5.
From the examples above, we can
conclude that 10. . . �xb3 is complacent
at best. Trying to gain equality in this
endgame is not to the taste of many
Black players, so Black has also oc­
casionally tried 10. . . ll'le4 ! ? , as played
in the game Enkhbat-Milman, U.S.
Chess League 20OS, which ran 11.�e3 !
ttlxd2 12 .ll'lxd2 �b5 (12 . . . �d7 13.�c3
1e7 14.e4 .i.g6 15.ll'lb3 �d8 16 . .ie3
0-0 17.a4 gave White a comfortable
game in Ionescu-Anastasian, Europe­
an Team Chp. 1999) 13 .�f3 �d8 14.e4.
Play continued 14 . . ..i.g6 15.ll'lb3
as 16.�d1 a4 17.ll'lc5 heS 18.dxeS
ll'ld7 (18 . . . YfxeS allows White to build
a powerful initiative after 19.�xd8+
It>xd8 20. .ie3 �b4 2 1.h4 ! h5 2 2 . .id4 ! ,
when Black has difficulties defend­
ing his kingside weaknesses and
White has the bishop pair) 19.�c3
0-0, when, instead of 20. .i.e3, which
left White clearly better, 20. .i.g5 ! f6
21.�xd7! �xd7 2 2 .i.f1 would have
trapped Black's queen.
Backing up a bit, it is interest­
ing to note that some computer pro­
grams suggest 10. . . ll'le4 11.�e3 eS? ! for
Black. The idea is that 12.dxeS !xc5
13.�f4 .id6 leads to a draw by repe­
tition at best for White. Meanwhile,
Black might eventually be able to play
. . . c5-c4, creating a light-square bind,
against normal development. This
"computer move," however, defies
human intuition - intuition which
smells danger for Black, who has too
many pieces lined up along the h1-
a8 diagonal. The human-discovered
move 12 .ll'lh4 ! leads to the collapse
of Black's light-square "bind" in the
center after 12 . . . cxd4 13.�f4 :
13 . . . g5 (13 . . . 1d6 14.he4 ixf4
15.hd5 hd2 16.hb7 hcl 17.�axc1 is
a clear advantage for White) 14.ll'lxe4 !
(threatening check on f6) 14 . . . !xe4
15.�xe4 �xe4 16.he4 gxh4 17.hb7
�b8 18 . .ic6 + :
257
 CHAPTER 12
White a comfortable edge in the
ending.
In conclusion, after 8 . . . lLlb6 9.WI'b3
Wl'd5, Black is slightly worse after the
queens come off; in serious trouble
if he allows White e2-e4 unopposed;
and tactically weak if he tries to cre­
ate a queen-and-bishop "stronghold"
in the center. It's a "darned if you do,
darned if you don't" situation for the
second player. For this reason, Black
has for the most part abandoned this
approach to the position. Simple de­
velopment with 8 . . . ie7 and 9 . . . 0-0 is
far more likely to equalize.
9.e3! ?
Later in his career, Wojo preferred
this move order as opposed to the
traditional 9.lLlc3 . With 9.e3, White
avoids the possibility of Black's trad­
ing on c3 through . . . lLlf6-e4 so ear­
ly. He also frees the e2 square for his
queen, discouraging Black from play­
ing the space-gaining thrust . . . b7-b5.
The text has the advantage of making
Black's play less clear, as White's de­
velopment remains flexible. Still, be­
fore we delve into Wojo's pet line, it is
worth concretely exploring what hap­
pens after 9.lLlc3 and why Wojo aban­
doned it. It is often said that one can­
not decide how to live the future with­
out knowledge of the past, and chess is
no exception.
258
The line 9.lLlc3 0-0 10. .ig5 was one
of Wojo's older weapons. White's idea
is straightforward: he keeps his eye
on a possible e2-e4, gaining space in
the center, while developing his dark­
squared bishop outside of the pawn
chain that would occur after the move
1O.e3, analyzed below. One of the big­
gest problems with 10. .ig5, howev­
er, was that it allowed Black to em­
bark on a wholesale swapping of mi­
nor pieces "for free" - that is, it let
too much tension out of the position
too soon. White's play fizzles after
10. . . lLle4 1l . .ixe7 Wl'xe7 12 .l'Ud1 lLlxc3
13.WI'xc3 (13.bxc3 .ie4 14.a4 c5 gives
Black counterplay) 13 . . . ie4:
Black is quite comfortable, for in­
stance 14.l':id2 l':ifd8 15.l':iad1 h6 16.a3
lLlf6.
How can White keep more ten­
sion in the position? Players with
the White pieces switched to play­
ing 9.lLlc3 0-0 1O.e3. Although White
passes on the opportunity to develop
his bishop outside the pawn chain, he
prepares to retreat his queen to e2 and
expand in the center with e3-e4. Many
players with the Black pieces aimed
to stop White's e3-e4 plan physically
by putting a knight on e4 themselves.
As we have seen, playing the maneu­
ver . . . lLlf6-e4xc3 followed by . . . if5-e4
can be a very reasonable approach for
Black. White's edge was usually kept
 THE 4.Yrc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
to a minimum in these games.
Players of the White pieces could
still be happy with their results, how­
ever. It was not until practice proved
that Black had a more ambitious way
to play the position - 10. . . bS ! , gaining
swift counterplay on the queenside -
that White started looking once again
for alternative ways to play with White
on moves 9 and 10:
After this move, White finds him­
self forced to retreat with 11.�e2
or 11. �b3, as taking the pawn with
11.�xc6? ! hands Black a strong initi­
ative, for instance 11.. .b4 IVtJe2 (12 .
liJbl i.d3 13,l'! e l �aS ! 14.llJbd2 E!fcS
lS.llJb3 �hS 16.�a4 as ! is strong for
Black) 12 . . . �aS 13.llJd2 E!acS 14.llJb3
�b6 IS.�xb6 llJxb6, when Black has
compensation for his sacrificed pawn
due to his control of the c-file and his
extra queenside space.
If, instead of 11.�xc6, White re­
treats with 11.�b3, Black can equalize
after 1l . . . b4 12.llJa4 i.e4 13 .i.d2 �aS.
Play could continue 14.E!fc1 (or 14.a3
�hS IS.�dl bxa3 16.bxa3 E!abS, with
fine play for Black) 14 . . . E!fdS IS.llJel
hg2 ! (a novelty by Dean) 16.llJxg2
liJe4 17.i.el llJgS ! IS.llJh4 �dS I9.�xdS
cxdS and so on.
Thus, 11.�e2 is White's only seri­
ous try for the advantage. Although
White maintains a space advantage
in the center - one of his goals in this
entire opening variation - Black has
enough space on the queenside to give
him a good game. After 1l . . .b4 12.llJa4
�aS 13.b3, Black has good chances
of taking the initiative with 13 . . . i.e4,
neutralizing White's pressure:
Now 14.llJd2 (instead, 14 . .ib2 llJb6
IS.llJxb6 axb6 16.E!fc1 �hS ! 17.�dl
�dS IS.llJel .ixg2 19.1lJxg2 E!aS gave
Black counterplay in Georgiev-Fon­
taine, French Team Chp. 2003, accord­
ing to Huzman) 14 . . . i.xg2 IS.'it>xg2
llJb6 16.llJxb6 axb6 17.e4 �a6 ! IS.llJc4
�b7 19.f3 E!a6 20.i.e3 E!faS resulted in
a balanced position in Kaspi-Huzman,
Israeli Chp. 2000, since Black's a-file
pressure makes up for White's advan­
tage in space.
After all this analysis, we can now
appreciate White's struggle to gain
any advantage after 9.llJc3 ie7 10.e3.
One time, in a somewhat desperate
bid to prevent . . . b7-bS, Dean himself
even tried the move 1O.a4. But after
10. . . aS, Black controlled the b4 square,
giving him an improved version of an
already equal game. Another modern
handling of the position is 1O.E!el!?,
but this falls outside the scope of this
book. Here, we will concentrate on
what happens after Wojo's deviation
on move 9, which avoids the whole
. . . b7-bS mess entirely.
9 . . . 0 - 0 10.ee2
2S9
 CHAPTER 12
The queen has retreated to a square
from which it can support White's op­
erations in the center. Wojo's move or­
der, retreating the queen before devel­
oping the knight on b1, avoids Black's
play with . . . b7-b5, which would make
little sense now that there is nothing
to attack with . . . b5-b4.
Black's most common move, hop­
ing to exchange off White's queenside
knight as soon as it is deployed. How­
ever, the less common 10. . . c5 ! , strik­
ing the center to exploit White's lack
of queenside development, may be
Black's best response to Wojo's move
order. It, along with its counterpart,
the preparatory 10. . . VNb6, is analyzed
in the next game.
Meanwhile, Black has many oth­
er playable moves here, after which
White has good chances of keeping a
small initiative. Theory is almost non­
existent for these alternatives, since
most of them have only been test­
ed once or twice in practice. For the
sake of completeness, we will provide
an overview of what has been played;
please note, however, that there is ab­
solutely no need to memorize what
follows. After playing through these
variations once, the reader should
have a good feel for some of the differ-
260
ent approaches available to both sides
in these positions. In particular, the
reader should heed how White choos­
es to develop his knights in each ex­
ample. The maneuvers tLlf3-e1, tLlb1-
d2, tLlf3-d2-c4, and tLlb1-c3 can all be
combined in different ways to gain
control of the center.
a) 1O .. .l'kB 1l.tLlbd2 (White is get­
ting ready to push in the center) 11. . .
c 5 (Black could play 1l . . . tLle4 here, but
the point of 10. . J�cB is to prepare . . . c5)
12.e4 .tg4 13.h3 hf3 14.tLlxf3 cxd4
15.tLlxd4 gave White a pull in Ionescu­
,iach, Odorheiu Secuiesc 1992. When
White gets to play e3-e4 so easily, he
usually has a comfortable edge.
b) 10 .. :�c7 (a normal-looking
development move) 1l.tLlc3 tlJe4
12 . .id2 ! ? was played in Andersson­
Tereick, Bad Zwesten 2006. White,
the peaceable GM tnf Andersson -
a Swede notorious for his nonvio­
lent draws - "miniatured" his FM op­
ponent after 12 . . . e5 13.tLlxe4 ixe4
14 . .tc3 exd4 15.tLlxd4 i.xg2 16.lflxg2
.tf6 17.gfd1 gfeB 1B.gael gadB 19.tlJb5
VNbB?? 20.gxd7! gxd7 21.ixf6 1-0. It
would have been interesting to see
what would have happened had Black
accepted White's offer of the bish­
op pair with 12 . . . tLlxd2 13.tLlxd2, after
which White would have had an easy
time gaining space in the center, but
would have to find a way to gain the
initiative against 13 . . . e5 14.d5 tlJcS.
An alternative approach to Anders­
son's interpretation is the more direct
12.tlJd2, leaving White with a dynamic
edge after 12 . . . tLlxc3 13.bxc3 e5 14.e4.
This position is very similar to the one
in the following note.
c) 10. . . a5 1l.gd1 Wc7 12.tLlc3 tlJe4
13.tLld2 tlJxc3 14.bxc3 .ic2 15.ge1 .tg6
16.e4 e5 17.tLlc4 (perhaps 17.h4 im­
mediately was even stronger) 17...
 THE 4.YlYc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
f6 1BJ:!d1 b5 19.1.lJe3 I.lJb6 20.h4 �!fdB
21.h5 if7 2 2 .l.lJfS gave White an im­
pressive attack in the game Xu Jun-Ye
Rongguang, Jakarta 1994 :
This type of position offers White
exciting and aggressive possibilities,
though of course it is not nearly as qui­
et as the small advantages more typi­
cal of this opening.
d) 10. . . h6 is commonly played by
weaker players, but this move wastes
time, and White should simply con­
tinue with 1U!d1 or 1l.l.lJc3. White
was not planning on playing 1.lJf3-h4
in any case. Hilton-Filipovich, World
Open 2009, continued 11.�d1 Wff c7
12.lLlc3 l.lJe4 13.l.lJe1 ! ? (the more forc­
ing 13.l.lJd2 I.lJxc3 14.bxc3 was seen in
Sosonko-Sellos, 1995, giving White an
edge after 14 . . . c5 15.e4 .ih7 16.l.lJc4)
13 ...l.lJdf6 and here Cannes 14.l.lJb1 !
was the clearest route to a small ad­
vantage. Black's pieces are left jum­
bled: 14 . . . �adB 15.f3 I.lJg5 16.e4 .ig6
17.1.lJc3 and so on. And on the odd re­
treat 14 . . . l.lJd7, White is better after
lS.f3 l.lJd6 16.e4 ig6 17.1.lJc3 .
In the actual game, White played
the logical 14.f3 I.lJxc3 15.bxc3, when
he was still better after 15 . . . e5 16.e4
ie6 17 . .ie3 �adB 1B.l.lJd3 I.lJd7 19.f4
exd4 20.cxd4 f5. Now 20.d5 fxe4
21.dxe6 exd3 2 2 . �xd3, rather than the
bailout 20.l.lJc5? ! , would have given
White a strong initiative.
e) 10. . . id6 (this is another one of
Black's tries to prepare the . . . e6-e5
break) 1l.l.lJbd2 ig4 (again fighting
for . . . e6-e5) 12 .h3 ih5 13.b3 a5 14.a3
�eB 15.ib2 Wffe 7 16.�fe1 hf3 17.1.lJxf3
e5 1B.dxe5 l.lJxe5 19.1.lJd4 was comfort­
able for White in I onescu-Mirosh­
nichenko, Bucharest 199B.
Nothing more than simple devel­
opment was required for White to gain
an edge against Black's awkward bish­
op moves.
t) 10 �eB ! ? is an ingenious idea
••.
from GM Nguyen Anh Dung. Odd­
ly enough, this move is aimed at dis­
couraging 1l.l.lJc3, when Black now
plays 1l . . . ib4 ! and here White has
difficulty playing the natural 12.e4 be­
cause 12 . . ..txc3 13.exfS leaves White's
queen exposed to Black's rook on eB.
Things turned out well for Black in
F.Braga-Nguyen Anh Dung, Calvia Ol­
ympiad 2004, after 12 .a3 hc3 13.bxc3
e5 14.a4 I.lJd5 15.Wffb 2 id3 16.�d1 e4.
Thus, we recommend continuing with
the simple 1l.�d1 as a better way for
White to proceed. White can decide
where to put his queen's knight over
the next couple of moves.
g) After 10. . . Wff a 5, one of Black's
strongest minor options, White has a
choice between 1l.id2 and 1l.l.lJbd2 .
After 1l.id2 ! ? , the game heads into
an ending after 1l . . . Wffb5 (retreat­
ing the queen with 1l . . . Wffb6 makes
no sense after 12.l.lJc3, since Black
shouldn't take the pawn on b2 any­
how: 12 . . . Wffxb2? 13.e4 .ig4 14.�fb1
Wffa3 15.�b3 ! Wffa 6 16.Wffxa6 bxa6 1eaves
Black with irreparable pawn structure
damage) 12.Wffxb5 cxb5 13.�c1 �acB, as
in Konopka-Votava, Bundesliga 2006.
Black's control of the c-file and space
on the queenside easily compensate
for his structural damage, so the posi­
tion is roughly level.
261
 CHAPTER 12
Thus, 11.lLlbd2, as played by GM
Ionescu, seems to be the move of
choice. White simply continues his
development without trying to "pun­
ish" Black's adventurous queen. Here
11...h6 is usually tried. Black's idea is
to provoke White into setting up the
e4Jd4 pawn duo in the center and
then begin tactical skirmishes direct­
ed against it - for instance, the game
Ionescu-Smagin, Biel 1990, contin­
ued with 12 .e4 !h7 13.b3 WbS ! ? , after
which White rightly avoided the ex­
change of queens with 14.We3 :
White would like to simply play
h2-h3, shoring up his queen position
against . . . lLlf6-g4, and then finish his
development. Thus Black ventured
forth with 14 . . . lLlg4, trying to mix
things up. After IS. WeI cS 16.h3 lLlgf6
17 . .ib2 l'Ud8 18.We3, White had a com­
fortable game. Play continued 18 . . .
Wa6 ! ? 19.1'Ucl cxd4 20.hd4 b 6 2 U'k7
gac8 22 . .1£1 'i;YaS 23.lLlc4 WhS 24.gxa7
lLlxe4 (24 . . . he4 2S.gxd7! gxd7 26.g4
Wg6 27.lLlfeS 'i;Yh7 28.lLlxb6 gcd8
29.lLlexd7 lLlxd7 30.lLlxd7 gxd7 31.a4
leaves White up a pawn) 2S.g4 WdS
26.lLlxb6 lLlxb6 27.hb6, after which
Black, down a pawn, had to struggle
for a draw.
We can see clearly from Konopka­
Votava and Ionescu-Smagin that try­
ing to disrupt White's center with the
maneuver . . . WaS-bS has its plusses
262
and minuses. So long as White focus­
es on completing development rath­
er than pining for a queen exchange,
he should be fine. This general rule of
thumb holds up in most cases; for in­
stance, another idea for Black is (after
lO. . . WaS 1l.lLlbd2 h6 12.e4 !h7 13.b3)
the break 13 . . . cS. White got the ad­
vantage in Ionescu-Kuczyllski, Ma­
nila Olympiad 1992, after 14 ..ib2 gfd8
lS.gfd1 cxd4 16.lLlxd4 gac8 17.lLlc4 Wa6
18.We1 eS? ! (18 . . . lLlc5 19.eS lLl dS was to
be preferred) 19.1LlfS hfS 20.exfS.
Again, it cannot be overempha­
sized that these are only examples.
In this opening, most "theory" con­
sists of ideas and plans rather than
specific moves. In all of these games,
White did something to fight for the
center using his center pawns and his
knights. The main game features an
important knight maneuver, 12 .lLle1,
which is a theme found in the above
variations.
lU�dl
Wojo favored this flexible rook
move rather than committing White's
queen knight with 1l.lLlbd2 , which is
also possible. As we'll see from the
game, having the option of lLlb1-c3
comes in handy for White.
1l 'i;Yc7
•••
Black can also place the queen on
the more aggressive b6 square, af­
ter which White continues to force
through e3-e4 in the center: 1l . . . Wb6
12.lLlbd2 lLlxd2 13.lLlxd2 gad8 14.e4
!g6 lS.lLlc4 gave White a slight edge
in N.Gaprindashvili-Shaw, Groningen
1999.
12.�el
 THE 4.lYc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4

White has other ways of prepar­ continued 14 . . . .ih4 15.f4 .if2 + 16.�f1
ing e3-e4, but this was Wojo's idea. he1 17.l'!xe1 tDdc5 :
12.lz\fd2 allows Black to relieve some
ofthe pressure by exchanging knights,
but was still a little better for White in
Davies-L.B.Hansen, Groningen 1992 ,
after 12 . . . tDxd2 13.hd2 l'!ad8 14.tDc3
,ig6 15.e4 l'!fe8 16.!e3 tDf6 17.l'!ac1.
Note that White should concern
himself with achieving e3-e4 in this
situation and not get too sidetracked.
A good demonstration of White los­
ing time in setting up his center was
18.�g1 (cleaner than 18.f5 'iNxe5
Bareev-Shirov, Monaco (rapid) 2005:
19.fxg6 'iNxh2 20.gxh7+ 'iNxh7 21.�g1
12 .b3 ! ? a5 13.tDfd2 tDxd2 14.tDxd2 .ic2
l'!ad8) 18 . . . l'!ad8, when here the direct
lS.l'!f1 a4 and White was under a lit­
19.f5 'iNxe5 20.fxg6 fxg6 21.tDc3, rath­
tle pressure :
er than 19.1'!f1 ! ? f5 ! , would have been
White's easiest path to victory.
Instead, the text move is reasona­
ble, as Black is expending a tempo to
take the sting out of White's upcoming
f2-f3 and e3-e4 punches. Thus, White
now changes tracks.

He did, however, eventually man­

age to achieve his central pawn duo
after 16 . .ib2 .tg6 17.l'!fc1 tDb6 18 .h4
h6 19.tDc4 tDd5 20.e4, but by now
Black was well organized enough to
strike a tactical blow with 20. . . a3 !
21.tDxa3 he4, destroying the pawn
center White had struggled to build.
The game was eventually drawn after
22.tDb5 'iNd7 23.he4 cxb5 24.a3 fol­
lowed by some further adventures. White invites Black to take on c3,
12 . . . .tg6 moving White's b-pawn closer to the
Worse is 12 . . . e5? ! , as in Hilton­ center. This is a good choice here be­
J.Kane, Chicago 2009, when White cause Black has not been very aggres­
found 13.g4 ! .ig6 14.dxe5, when Black sive in challenging White's play. In­
was in trouble. Black cannot recap­ stead, 13.f3 ! ? tDef6 14.e4 e5 15.!e3
ture on e5 since White would trap was possible, but Wojo's way offers
the bishop on g6 with f2-f4-f5. Play more prospects for the advantage.

263
 CHAPTER 12
13 ... �xc3
Black can also try 13 . . . lLldf6. Then
White can switch plans and play
14.lLlxe4 lLlxe4 15.f3 lLlf6 16.e4, when
he is far closer to completing his
queenside development than he is
after 13.f3 ! ? as in the previous note.
Slightly more risky but also valid is
14.f3 lLlxc3 15.bxc3 e5 16.e4, with in­
teresting play.
14.bxc3 c5
Now 14 . . . e5 15.e4 favors White,
who, having not yet wasted time on
f2-f3, is ready for a quick f2-f4.
15.e4 cxd4 16.cxd4 gac8
17.lLld3
White's knight returns to play
and heads for the f4 square. Black
has counterplay down the c-file, but
White's center and well-placed pieces
guarantee him a slight edge. Over the
next few moves, White completes de­
velopment and prepares the break d4-
d5 ! ?, which he hopes will give him a
strong passed d-pawn.
17 . . . gfd8 18.i.b2
The bishop could just as soon have
264
gone to the more compact e3 square
with IB.i.e3, which would be a more
useful idea for preserving the e4/ d4
pawn duo. An eventual f2-f3 would
finish shoring up the center, giving
White a slight pull in the endgame af­
ter the rooks came off the board. In the
meantime, however, Black does have
some counterplay in the works with
ideas such as . . .'�a5-a4, . . . lLld7-b6-c4,
and invading along the c-file. Wojo,
sensing this, decides to be the first to
strike. He steers the game toward a
somewhat more decisive course of ac­
tion, and his choice of b2 for the bish­
op goes well with his idea of stirring up
the tactics with d4-d5.
18 . . . ti'a5 19 .�f4 ti'a4
Black is taking control of the light
squares, and is now prepared to dou­
ble rooks on the c-file with . . .l:k2 and
. . J'!dcB. His knight may eventual­
ly come into play with . . . lLld7-b6, too.
Thus, White chooses to strike imme­
diately.
20.d5 ! ?
White "goes for it" and opens the
center, forcing Black to play with ac-
curacy. One false move could allow
White a material advantage. A more
 THE 4.lYc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
solid alternative for White was 20.h4,
making Black's bishop on g6 squirm.
A defensive try for Black is now 20. . .
ik2 21.l'!d2 l'!xd2 2 2 .�xd2 lLlf6, when
White could preserve his central duo
with a sequence like 23.lLlxg6 hxg6
24.�e3.
20 ••• gc2 21.gd2 gxd2 22 .Y!Yxd2
he4
Black correctly executes this first
tactical sequence, delivering his own
blow to the center.
23 .txe4 �xe4 24.l'!el
•
White is crashing through on e6,
where his pawn, knight, and rook con­
verge.
24 . . . Y!Yc4
A computer-discovered defense
for Black was 24 . . . �f5 25.dxe6 fxe6
26.lLlxe6 (26J'!xe6?? lLlc5) 26 . . . lLle5 !
27.�c3 �xe6 28.l'!xe5 �f7, when Black
has survived the worst of White's tac­
tical onslaught.
25.dxe6 �f6?!
Black has much better chances
of neutralizing White's initiative af-
ter moving his knight to a more ac­
tive square: 25 . . . lLlc5 ! 26.exf7+ �xf7
27.�a5 lLld3 2 8 .lLlxd3 l'!xd3 29.�xa7
l'!d2 30.id4 'lWd5 ! followed by . . . l'!d2xa2
would most likely have resulted in a
draw.
26.exf7+ lYxf7 27.'lWa5
White now has a slight pull, as
Black's knight is not nearly so active
on f6.
27 . . . b6 ! ?
Black gives u p one o f his queenside
pawns with the hope of relieving the
pressure. 27 . . . a6 would have, tempo­
rarily at least, saved the pawn, but
White would have a lot of possibilities
since his knight is prepared to hop to
e6.
One idea both players probably
contemplated during the game was
2 8.'lWc7 l'!d7 29.'lWc8+ �f8 30.�c4+
�f7 31.lLle6, which is uncomfortable
at best for Black.
28.Y!Yxa7 .ic5
Black's idea is to force the trade of
queens. Giving Wojo a pawn-up end­
game, however, was never a desirable
option !
265
 CHAPTER 12
29.Ybf7+ mxf7 30.ge2 gd6
31.h4 �g4
32 .ic3
•
White has successfully defended
his f2-pawn, leaving him a pawn to the
good. But how can White convert this
advantage? He starts by playing this
"creeping" move, increasing his fu­
ture possibilities. He is ready to play
ge2-b2 at some point to pressure b6,
and by opening up the second rank, he
defends his a2-pawn. White can slow­
ly creep up the board with moves like
mg1-g2, h4-hS, lLlf4-hS, and so on. In a
way, however, White is patiently wait­
ing for Black to make a false move.
32 . . . �xf2?
Black becomes overly ambitious !
Considering this was a rapid game at
the New York Masters, both sides were
undoubtedly low on time by this point.
After this error by Black, White is able
to win in fine style. Watch how Wo­
jo's two minor pieces completely dom­
inate Black's rook in this endgame.
33.gxf2 gdl+ 34.mg2 .ixf2
35.mxf2 gc1 36.�e2
White's knight on e2 beautifully
266
defends c3 and g3, allowing White to
slowly move his king into the center.
36 . . . gc2 37.a3
White's bishop will soon go to b4,
where it can be defended independ­
ently of White's knight.
37. . . g6 38.me3 ga2 39 .ib4 me6
•
40.�c3 ga1 41.�a4
White's knight successfully wins
the pawn on b6! After 41. . . mfS 41. ..
bS 42.lLlc3, Black's pawn finds itself
blockaded and subject to capture on
the next move.
42.�xb6 ggl 43.mf3 gdl
44.�c4
White anticipates Black's counter­
play, which might include . . . gd1-d3
and . . . 'it>f5-g4, by bringing the way­
ward knight back to the kingside.
A period of shuffling now occurs as
White regroups, attacks the kingside,
and subsequently retreats, having de­
cided that the correct strategy is to run
the a-pawn up the board.
44 . . . gd3 + 45.�e3+ me5 46.MB
gd7 47.�g4+ 'it>d4 48.�h6 me5
49 .ib4 gd3 + 50.mg2 me4 51.�g4
•
 THE 4.Vlc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4

�f5 52.�f2 gb3 53 . .tfS gb2 54. �f3
gb3 + 55.�g2 gb2 56 . .te7 �e6
57 ..tb4 �f5 5S . .tc5 gb3
wave of attack. After the text, White is
now ready to convert his advantage.
59.a4! gc3 60 .tb6 ga3 6l.a5
•

ga2 62 . .tc7 g5

Black essentially throws in the

towel by allowing White to fix his
kingside pawns on the dark squares.
There is no way he can hope to hold af­
ter 62 . . . �a3 63.g4+ �e6 64.ltJe4, when
White's knight is ready to come to cS
and support as-a6.

63.g4+ �f6 64.h5 gb2 65 .tdS + •

�e5 66.,txg5 ga2 67 .tdS �f4 •

6S . .tc7+ �e3 69.�g3 gal 70 . .tb6+

S8 . . . �a2 , stopping White's next
move, would allow S9.�f3, when
Black has no check on the third rank to
chase White back to g2 . With the king
in play and Black's rook misplaced on
a2, White would be able to make real
progress on the kingside in a second
�e2 7l.�f4 l- 0
Here Black resigned, as he will
stand completely helpless as White
promotes on either the kingside or the
queenside. Masterful technique from
Wojo.

Summary: When Black plays his most common system of development

against the 4. Vlc2 Slav - that is, 4 . . . dxc4, 5. . . i.j5, . . . e7-e6, . . . ltJ b8-d7, . . . JJ.f8-e7,
and . . . 0 - 0 - White should look to build a pawn center in the middlegame. Wo­
jo's modest-looking move order with 9.e3 and 1 0 . VI e2 limits Black's optionsfor
counterplay and seems good enough for a slight pull. Against . . . ltJf6-e4 from
Black, White should seek to challenge and remove this blockading knight. Po­
tential maneuvers include ltJj3-el combined with ltJ bl-c3, a Wojo specialty;
CUj3-el withf2-j3 and e3-e4, effective in some situations; and ltJ bl-c3 with the
modest ltJj3-d2 tofollow.

Meeting Black's Early ... c6-c5 Brea k

As we saw in the previous game, Black's
attempts to clog the center - such as
8 . . . ltJb6 9.Vlb3 YlYdS, and 8 . . . i.e7 9.e3
0-0 10.YlYe2 ltJe4 - have their disad­
vantages. In general, Black is subject­
ed to playing defense, and if White
plays his cards right he will wind up
with a slight edge. So what can Black
do? Well, rather than trying to set up
a blockade in the center, a somewhat
better option at Black's disposal is the
less common lO. . . cS ! ?
Wojo met this plan by playing
11.�dl and 12 .ltJc3, aiming to pass
up Black's cS-pawn with the double­
punch e3-e4 followed by d4-dS. To

267
 CHAPTER 12

prevent this, Black must release the

central tension at some point with
... cSxd4, giving White the kind of ad­
vantage found in the following game.

Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2539)

Zatonskih, Anna (2440)
[D23] U.S. Chp., San Diego 2004
1.�f3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 �f6
4.ec2 dxc4 5.exc4 M5 6.g3 e6
7 .ig2 �bd7 8. 0 - 0 .ie7 9.e3 0 - 0
•
10.ee2 c5
White will have a comfortable edge
if he is simply allowed to complete
his development, so the game took
an interesting turn after Black mixed
things up with 17 . . . e4 ! ? 18 . .ib2 tt'lcS.
Play continued 19.tt'la4 ! (stopping
Black from landing a knight on d3)
19 . . . tt'lxa4 20..hf6 gxf6 2 1.bxa4 cxdS
2 2 . l3xdS l3fd8 23.l3bS ec6 24.eb2 b6
2S.h4 h6 26.hS .ih7 27 . .ih3 :

This early break, seeking to chal­

lenge White's extra center pawn from
the get-go, may well be Black's best
option. Black has a choice between
playing 10. . . cS right away or playing
the preparatory 10. . . eb6 first. Both
moves allow different side possibili­
ties for both White and Black, but, of­
ten, they simply transpose.
10. . . eb6, a move played by Kamsky
against Wojo in 2004, allows White
the strong option of 11.tt'lbd2 ! , eyeing
the c4 square. Now 1l . . . tt'le4 12.�eS
gave White slightly better chances
in Ionescu-Urzica, Romanian Team
Chp. 1992 , after 12 . . . tt'lxeS (essentially
forced, since White's knight can fork
Black's queen and rook from the d7
square) 13.tt'lxe4 (the correct recap­
ture) 13 . . . �d7 14.�c3 .ig6 lS.l3d1 .if6
16.b3 eS 17.dS :
27 . . . l3d3 28.l3c1 ed6 29.aS @g7
30.axb6 axb6 31.l3c2, when White had
good chances of slowly grinding down
his opponent. Black's bishop on h7
is confined and his pawns are weak.
Unfortunately, White allowed him­
self to be the victim of an untimely
queen-and-bishop checkmate on the
g2 square and lost.
Note that instead of 11.�bd2 , the
"normal" 1l.l3d1, which was played in
Wojtkiewicz-Kamsky, New York Mas­
ters (rapid) 2004, simply transposed
back into the main game after 1l . . . cS.
Zatonskih's move order with 10. . . cS

268
 THE 4.ti'c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4

immediately seems the most straight­ was agreed drawn in Ionescu-A.Vaj­

forward approach. da, Bucharest 2003.

1l .•• ti'b6 12.�c3

Basically, Wojo liked playing Since Black is rapidly developing

lU�dl for White after almost any pressure on White's d-pawn, White
tenth move from Black. As mentioned should move his knight to the aggres­
in the previous note, against 10. . . 'm>6, sive c3 square. This gives him support
the move order l1.ttJbd2 is probably for playing d4-d5 after he gets in his
White's most accurate choice - but e3-e4 push.
Wojo played 11.a:dl after both moves
away. After 10. . . c5, White's alterna­ 12 . . . cxd4
tives aren't very enticing, as Black
Black releases the tension. Two
can easily dismantle White's initia­
months prior to this game, in the
tive. The text move prompts Black to
aforementioned rapid game Wojtkie­
"waste" a move with his queen, which
wicz-Kamsky, 2004, the once and fu­
suddenly feels uncomfortable on the
ture World Championship challeng­
d-file. This gives White time to devel­
er had played 12 .. J:%fd8 instead. Here
op an edge, rather than allowing Black
White's most principled reaction
to equalize as in the following lines:
would have been 13.e4 ig4 (13 . . . .tg6
a) 1l.ttJc3 ttJe4 12.ttJd2 ttJxd2
14.d5 gives White a big edge) 14.ie3 ,
13.,bd2 and here Black is fine af­
which is a better try for the advantage
ter both 13 . . . cxd4 14.exd4 ttJf6 15.il.e3
than Wojo's 13.h3 ! ? , which prevents
�d7, as in Tregubov-Minasian, Kras­
. . . .if5-g4 from Black but is ultimately a
nodar 1998, or 13 . . . ttJf6 ! , when White
tad slow. After 13 . . . ttJe4 14.ttJd2 ttJxd2
played the awful 14.,bb7? a:b8 15.Wa6
15.,bd2 cxd4 16.exd4 ttJf6 17.il.e3 ttJd5
�c7 16.il.g2 a:xb2 in Lautier-Gelfand,
18.ttJxd5 exd5, the players continued
FIDE World Chp. 1997. Black had a
trading pieces until a draw was agreed.
significant advantage and went on to
In the sequel to the main game
win.
(Wojtkiewicz-Zatonskih, Lindsborg
b) 1l.ttJbd2 is not as strong against
2004 - played only one month lat­
this move order, since after 1l . . . ttJe4
er) Black chose 12 . . . ig6 !?, a novelty.
the move 12.ttJe5? makes no sense.
White quickly seized the initiative with
Only when Black's queen is placed
13.ttJe5! cxd4 14.exd4 ttJxe5 15.dxe5:
on b6, allowing the ttJe5-d7 fork, does
this trick work. Thus, White doesn't
have anything special here and af­
ter 1l . . . ttJe4 12.a:dl ttJxd2 13.hd2 ic2
14.a:dc1 ie4 15.ic3 a:c8 16.dxc5 ttJxc5
the game was equal in Ionescu-Ma­
nea, Romanian Chp. 2001.
c) Finally, 1l.b3 is too slow for
White to gain any advantage. 1l . . . cxd4
12.ttJxd4 il.e4 13.ttJd2 ,bg2 14.mxg2

269
 CHAPTER 12
Unfortunately for White, after
15 . . . i.h5, White gave up a queen and
pawn for three pieces with 16.exf6?!
i.xe2 17.fxe7 i.xdl IB.exfBV;V+ �xfB
19.1lJxdl �dB when Black was slight­
ly better and won after a long strug­
gle. White had a much better alterna­
tive on move 16, however: best was the
simple retreat 16.V;Vel, when after 16 . . .
ixdl (16 . . . llJd5 17.llJxd5 exd5 IB.�xd5
just leaves White up a pawn for noth­
ing) 17.exf6 ixf6 1B.V;Vxdl �fdB I9.V;Ve2
�acB 20.i.e3, White's two pieces are
slightly stronger than Black's rook and
pawn.
13. lilxd4
After this move, White's position
is flexible, fluid, and strong. His task
will now be establishing more perma­
nent advantages, such as space, ma­
terial, or strong outposts for his piec­
es. Less good is 13.exd4 i.b4 ! , after
which Black has control over the d5
square. Then 14.i.e3 V;Va5 15.i.d2 �acB
16.a3 ixc3 17.hc3 V;Vb6 IB.llJe5 llJxe5
19.V;Vxe5 i.c2 20.�dc1 i.a4 2 1.V;Va5
V;Vxa5 2 2 .ha5 was equal in Gunawan­
Gyimesi, Calvia Olympiad 2004.
13•.•i.g4 14.fJ .tIt5 15.e4
White is beginning to mobilize his
pawns. Although White opens the gl-
270
a7 diagonal, he has tactical justifica­
tion for this pawn advance.
15 e5 16.lila4 V;Va5 17.lilf5 J.b4
.•.
18.b3
Although Black's . . . e7-e5 stopped
the march of White's e-pawn, White
has emerged with a few permanent
advantages, including a strong out­
post for his knight on f5. He continues
to push Black back into retreat over
the next few moves.
18 �fd8 19.a3 i.t'S 20.i.d2 'f!lc7
.•.
21Siac1 �8 22 .i.b4
Having gained the upper hand,
White now begins to look at ways to
penetrate on Black's weak d6 square.
The space-gaining 2 2 .b4 was also pos­
sible, but Wojo's move is more direct.
22 hb4 23.axb4 lilt'S 24.lilc5
••.
furdl+ 25.'f!lxdl
White's pieces are all well placed;
his queen looks down the d-file, his
rook controls the c-file, and his knights
are on aggressive outposts. It will be
another ten moves before White re­
locates his own light-squared bishop
with ,tg2-fl-c4, but for now, Black's
bishop on h5 is out of play.
 THE 4.'ec2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
2S 'ffc7 26.'ed6 ! ?
•••
White sees the opportunity to
trade into a better ending and takes
it. It was also possible to keep the
queens on the board, but even here
Black must defend accurately to hold
the draw.
26 'ffxd6 27.�xd6 b6 28.�cb7
•••
�e6 29.c;t>f2
29 . . . �e8
Black could also venture forth with
29 . . . ltJd4 ! ? , but she probably felt that
this wasted time needed for defense.
Few players would feel comfortable
abandoning control of the c7 square
in this kind of position. Play might
continue as in the game with 30Jk8+
l"ixc8 31.ltJxc8, or White might prefer
to keep the rooks on the board with
something like 30.h4.
30.B:c8
White retains a bind even after ex­
changing the rooks. His goal is to pick
up an extra pawn on the queenside -
something he does accomplish, but
not in a manner that allows him to win
the game.
30 B:xc8 31.ltJxc8 �d4 32 . �xa7
•••
�c7 33.g4
White, having achieved his goal of
winning an extra pawn, now frees up
his bishop from defense of f3.
33 olg6 34.olfJ. f6 3S.olc4+ c;t>f8
•••
36.bS hS 37.h3 ole8 38.�d6 old7
39.�ac8
The natural way for White to in­
crease his advantage. Black now plays
an exceptionally accurate defense.
39 �cxbS
•.• 4O.J.xbS �xbS
41.�xb6 �xd6 42.�xd7+ c;t>e8
43.�b6 h4!
Black fixes White's pawn on h3 and
prepares to reroute her knight to gS
via fl. After 43 moves, Black is final­
ly getting real counterplay!
44.�c4 �f7 4S.c;t>e2 c;t>d7 46.�e3
�d8 !
The knight heads for d4. White
now has nothing better than to "cash
out," giving up his extra b-pawn for
Black's pawn on h4.
47.�f5 �e6 48.�xh4 �d4+
49.c;t>d3 gS !
271
 CHAPTER 12

All of White's pawns are now 5 0 .�f5 �xb3 51.h4 gxh4

fixed, and the game is drawn, despite 52.�xh4 �c5+ 53.�e3 �e6 54.�g2
White's pawn edge. White has no way �e7 55.�f2 �f7 56.�g3 �g7 57.�e3
to make progress. �f7 58.�d5 �g7 1f2-1f2

Summary: Although Kamsky's move order with 10 . . . vtf b6 allows 11. � bd2!
from White, aimingfor the c4 square, Black's idea of1 0 . . . c5followed by . . . vtf d8-
b6 or . . . 'BaB-cB is certainly a viable option. The ideal move order might be 10 . ..

c5 11. 'Bdl vtfb6 12. liJc3 'BfdB, when White should play 13.e4 iLg4 14. iLe3. This
should still yield a slight edgefor White, but Black has activated nearly all of
his pieces and has achieved a desirable level of complexity. In the text game,
however, White achieved a comfortable edge which he never quite converted.

5 Ag4 and Black's Other Approaches

. . .

Although 5 . . ..if5 is the most popular
try by far, there are plenty of other ap­
proaches for Black after 4.vtfc2 dxc4
5.vtfxc4. The most notable alternative
is 5 . . . i.g4, not trying to physically stop
White's e2-e4 push but rather aim­
ing to develop smoothly around it. In
the following game, we'll look at how
Wojo thought White should develop
his pieces against this system. We'll
also stop in and examine a few other
fifth moves from Black along the way.
Dreev, Alexey (2697)
Dobrov, Vladimir (2515)
[ D23] Internet 2006
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.�f3 �f6
4.YflJ3 dxc4 5.ti'xc4 .ig4
lead to the win of the bishop pair, giv­
ing White an edge. Thus Ippolito­
Alexopoulos, New York 1994, contin­
ued 8 . . . h6, when 9.liJe5 e6 10.f3 would
have been White's easiest route to an
edge.
b) 5 . . . liJbd7 blocks Black's bishop
from developing to f5, so here 6.liJc3,
controlling the e4 square, makes a lot
of sense. 6 . . . liJb6 7.vtfd3 e6? ! shut in
Black's light-squared bishop for the
rest of the opening in Homith-Kli­
ment, Basel 2000 . White easily gained
a strong upper hand after 8.g3 i.e7
9.i.g2 0-0 10. 0-0 'Be8 11.'Bdl, and sub­
sequently subjected his opponent to
an effortless kingside attack after 11. ..
h6 12 .vtfc2 a6 13.e4 i.d7 14.liJe5 'Bc8
15.i.e3 vtfc7 16.'Bac1:

Black has other ways to play. Con­

sidering their relative rarity compared
to 5 . . . .if5 and 5 . . . .ig4, they each de­
serve a side note at best.
a) The immediate 5 . . . vtfd5 ! ? , look­
ing to exchange queens immediate­
ly, gives White a slight advantage af­
ter 6.e3 .if5 7.liJc3 vtfxc4 8 .hc4. If
Black plays 8 . . . e6, then 9.liJh4 should

272
 THE 4.1rc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
16 . . . i.d6 17.%Ye2 ged8 18.CDd3 CDe8
19.eS .if8 20.%Yg4 fS 2 1.%Yg6 <;t>h8??
(21. ..CDf6 ! holds, since 2 2 .exf6? .ie8 is
fine for Black - instead, 2 2 .CDf4 .ie8
23.CDxe6 .b:g6 24.CDxc7 gxc7 2S.exf6,
and White is better) 2 2 .CDf4 CDc4
23.%Yf7 1-0.
c) S ... ie6 hits White's queen, but
doesn't do a lot for Black's develop­
ment. A typical example of how play
develops is 6.%Yc2 g6 7.e4 .ig4 8 . .ie3
ixf3 9.gxf3 ig7 10.CDc3 0-0 1l.i.e2
tiJbd7 12. 0-0-0 bS 13.<;t>b1 %Yb8 14.f4,
which was better for White in Golz­
Zinn, East Germany 1963. Black does
have one interesting attempt, howev­
er: rather than 6 . . . g6, he can try 6 . . .
�aS + ! 7.i.d2 %YfS, when 8.%YxfS .ixfS
9.CDc3 h6 10.CDeS CDbd7 1l.CDxd7 CDxd7
12 .e4 i.g6 13 . .ie2 e6 14.0-0 was only
a slight edge for White in Ibragimov­
Saltaev, Capelle la Grande 2001.
d) S . . .bS ! ? is GM Shabalov's spe­
cialty. White should play 6.%Yc2 i.b7
7.e4 e6, and here 8.CDc3 was tried in
Ehlvest-Shabalov, Lake George 2005.
The game continued 8 . . .b4 9.eS ! , giv­
ing White structural superiority:
Black felt compelled to enter the
line 9 . . .bxc3 10.exf6 cxb2 (10. . . gxf6
1l.%Yxc3 �b6 12.a3 cS 13 . .ie3 gives
White an initiative) 11.�xb2 %YaS+,
and here 12 .i.d2 with the idea of 12 . . .
�c7? ( 1 2 . . . %Yb6 13.gb1 i s a little bet-
ter for White) 13.dS ! would have given
White the advantage. Instead, White
had to struggle to hold a draw after
12.CDd2 ? ! .ic8 ! 13.fxg7 .ixg7 14 . .id3
.ia6 ! 1S . .ixa6 %Yxa6 16.gb1 0-0 17.%Yb7
%Yxb7 18.gxb7 CDa6 19.CDf3 gtb8
20.gxb8+ gxb8 21.<;t>e2 CDb4 and so on.
e) S . . . g6 6.g3 ig7 7.ig2 ie6 and
here the best move is likely 8 .%Ya4,
so that the queen will not be vulner­
able to . . . CDb8-a6-b4 or . . . .ie6-fS from
Black. The main line continues 8 . . . 0-0
9 . 0-0 CDbd7 10. CD c3, when White is
comfortable. He has what resembles a
slightly improved version of the Rus­
sian System against the Griinfeld De­
fense (1.d4 CDf6 2 . c4 g6 3.CDc3 dS 4.CDf3
.ig7 S.%Yb3 dxc4 6.%Yxc4 .ig7 7.e4) .
6.CDbd2
This is the simplest solution for
White, and although Wojo played this
way, it doesn't seem to promise much
of an advantage. We'll examine Boris
Gelfand's preference 6.CDc3 in the next
game. Meanwhile, the more aggres­
sive 6.CDeS has never caught on, as af­
ter 6 . . . .ie6 7.%Yd3 CDbd7 8.CDxd7 �xd7,
Black has a large lead in development.
After 9.e4 gd8 1O.i.e3 CDg4, practice
has favored Black.
273
 CHAPTER 12
It is interesting to note that on the
immediate 6 . . . e6, most players aim to
simply transpose back into the main
line with 7.g3 llJbd7. However, the
game Atahk-Kachian, Burbank 2005,
saw the innovation 6 . . . e6 7 -,Wb3 ! . Black
then defended his exposed b7-pawn
with 7 . . . Y;Yb6, and here White seized
the initiative with 8.llJe5 i.h5 9.llJec4.
The ending after 9 . . . Y;Yxb3 10.llJxb3
i.h4 + ! ? 11 . .id2 llJa6 12.f3! 0-0-0 13.e4
ixd2+ 14.�xd2 llJc7 15.h4 i.g6 16.�e3
turned out badly for Black. Thus, 6 . . .
llJbd7 i s Black's strongest move order.
Black can also try 6 . . . g6, when
White has two approaches. The most
obvious is 7.g3 i.g7 8 .i.g2 0-0 9.0-0,
when here Wojtkiewicz-Kamsky, U.S.
Chp. 2004, ran 9 ... Y;Yc8 (or 9 ... llJa6
10.e3 with an eye towards normal de­
velopment with Y;Yc4-e2, h2-h3, !ifl­
d1, and possibly b2-b3) 10.b3 llJd5
11.i.b2 i.h3 12.e4 ixg2 13.�xg2 llJb6
14.Y;Yc2 llJa6 12- 1 2:
A draw is a surprisingly reasonable
result from this position, as Black has
finished his development in smooth
fashion. He can play . . . Y;Ye6 or try to
break with . . . c6-c5, the latter likely re­
sulting in quick equality.
Therefore, we recommend White
take the bull by the horns and play a
different approach with 7.h3, exploit­
ing the fact that Black's bishop can no
longer retreat to the h5 square. Then
274
7 . . . i.e6 8 .Y;Yc2 i.g7 9.e4 0-0 10. .ic4 Y;Yc8
11.0-0 gave White a nice pawn center
in Reicher-Ghitescu, Romanian Chp.
1971. Thus, with this more aggressive
treatment, White gets some advan­
tage.
7.g3
Here 7.h3 can be comfortably met
by 7. . . i.h5, unlike in the lines where
Black has played an early . . . g7-g6.
7 . . . e6
More aggressive Black players of­
ten look to get in the break . . . e7-e5
without wasting time on this move. As
we'll see, there is no reason why Black
should not be patient and just develop
first. In Ippolito-Kleiman, New York
2009, Black tried 7 . . . Y;Yc7 8 .i.g2 e5?!
and wound up in trouble after 9.dxe5
llJxe5 10.llJxe5 Y;Yxe5 11 . .ixc6+ ! ' This
was originally analyzed by Huzman
as good for White. 11 . . . bxc6 12 .Y;Yxc6+
�e7 13.Y;Yb7+ �e6 14.f3 i.c5 (14 . . . !ib8
15.Wfc6+ Y;Yd6 16.Y;Yc4+ Y;Yd5 17.fxg4 is
a clear advantage for White) 15.fxg4
Y;Yd4 16.!ifl and White won shortly.
Black can also try preparing a quick
break in the center with 7. . . Y;Ya5, but
this leads to the same thing after 8.i.g2
e5 9.llJxe5 (not 9.dxe5?! hf3) 9 . . . llJxe5
(9 . . . i.e6 10.Y;Yc2 solves nothing for
Black, as White still has his eye on the
c6-pawn) 10.dxe5 Y;Yxe5 11.ixc6+.
8.i.g2 i.e7
Another move for Black is 8 . . .
i.d6. Here w e recommend 9.Y;Yb3 Y;Yb6
10.llJc4 (or 10. Y;Y c2 with the idea of llJd2-
c4) 10. . . Y;Yxb3 1l.llJxd6+ �e7 12.axb3
.ixf3 (not 12 . . . �xd6? ! 13.llJe5 ! llJxe5?
14.dxe5+ �xe5 15.h3, winning, for in-
 THE 4.YlYc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
stance 15 . . . ih5 16.i.f4+ 'it>f5 17J:!a5+
b5 lS.hc6) 13.hf3 'it>xd6 14.i.d2 :
White had good chances in Razu­
vaev-Pelletier, Biel 1995.
The "normal" move order is 9.0-0
0-0 10.llJe5 ih5 11.llJxd7 llJxd7 12 .llJb3.
The text is perhaps slightly more forc­
ing.
9 J.h5 10)t�xd7
•••
Dr. Tarrasch would turn in his
grave at this seemingly inexplicable
waste of time by White, but there is
a subtle motivation behind this ex­
changing maneuver. By trading his
king's knight for Black's queen's
knight, White is building a slight ini­
tiative on the queenside.
10 ••• tilxd7
Black feels obliged to bring a piece
towards the queenside himself. As we
can see, White has really not wasted
much time at all: in two moves it has
taken him to play llJf3-e5xd7, Black's
only two moves have been . . . .ig4-h5
and . . . llJf6xd7. Meanwhile, 10 .. .'�xd7
1l.llJb3 would result in a less effective
piece placement by Black, as his queen
on d7 is awkward.
1l.tilb3 a5 12.a4 0 - 0 13. 0 - 0
13 h6? !
••.
This is a waste of time here. The
immediate 13 . . . e5 ! , liberating Black's
position, was played in Goldin­
Bareev, World Team Chp. 2005. White
wound up in a miserable position after
14.dxe5?! llJxe5 15.'�c2 .ig6 16.e4 �d3
17.�xd3 llJxd3 lS .id2 ib4 and even­
tually lost. Instead, the critical line is
14J'!dl, trying to build an advantage in
piece activity. Then 14 . . . �b6 15.i.e3 !
he2 16.�xe2 �xb3 17.d5, with full
compensation according to Huzman,
is surprisingly strong for White.
After a waiting move such as 14 . . .
geS, however, White appears t o have
nothing more than equality. For in­
stance, 15 . .ie3 can be met by 15 . . . llJb6
or 15 . . . .ig5. Thus play likely continues
15.dxe5 llJxe5 16.�c2 �c7 17.if4 ig6
lS.e4 i.b4:
275
 CHAPTER 12

Black's active pieces and solid Alternatively, 20. . . llJb6 21.llJxa5

structure mean that he has equalized.
Recently, GM Fabiano Caruana played
another similarly motivated waiting
move, 14 . . . \Wc7, in the game Grivas­
Caruana, Wijk aan Zee 2008. White
could find nothing better than 15 . .id2
gfd8 16.,ie1, when 16 . . . exd4 17.llJxd4
if6 18.,ic3 llJe5 similarly equalized.
This line with 13 . . . e5 ! is the main rea­
son why Wojo's 6.llJbd2 seems far less
dangerous than Gelfand's 6.llJc3 .
llJxa4 2 2 .llJxb7 llJxc3 23.bxc3 would
leave Black down a pawn and strug­
gling. After the text, however, Black's
position is miserable.
21.,ixb4 axb4 22.a5 llJb8
Holding on to the b4-pawn for dear
life. White now builds his position is a
direct and logical manner.

14.,id2 \Wb6 15.gfel gfe8

16.Hac1 .ifB 17 .ic3
•

Black's play has been passive, al­ 24.e4, trying to gain space, was
lowing White to consolidate his space certainly an alternative. White is try­
advantage. White now has a nice edge. ing to play super-solidly here.

17•••\Wc7 18.llJd2 \Wb6 ! ? 24 llJxc5 25.gxc5 .ig6 26.gal

•••

b3 27.ga3 .ic2 28.a6 Hxa6 29.gxa6

18 . . . llJb6 19.�b3 llJd5 20.llJc4 llJxc3 bxa6 30.,ixc6 gd8 31.e3
2 1.bxc3 gives White a favorable pawn
structure, but now Black is just shuf­
tling. White now steers the game into
a passive endgame for Black.

19.\Wb3 Bxb3? !

Black acquiesces t o the queen trade

too hastily. His a5-pawn will now be
difficult to hold.

20.llJxb3 .ib4

276
 THE 4.Yfc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4

Having secured his position in the stronger. Black's rook on d6 prevents

center, White will now bring his king his king from coming to that square in
into the game, making Black's defen­ a timely fashion.
sive task difficult.
34".gS 3S. 'it>d2 f5
31 f6 32.�f1 lM6
•••

The pawn storm is too little, too

Black is again playing passively,
late. White appears to be completely
but reacting with 32 . . . eS ! ? 33.dxeS
winning.
fxeS 34 . .1dS+ ! Oess accurate is 34.E1xeS
gdl+ 3S.'it>e2 E1bl) 34 . . . 'it>f8 3S.e4 is
36.'it>c3 'it>f7 37.gaS 'it>f6 38.'it>c4
also unattractive for Black.
Ae4 39.'it>c5 1- 0
33.'it>el eS 34.dS
Black's pawn on a6 falls, giving
34 . .tdS+ 'it>f8 3S.dxeS fxeS 36.e4 White a free hand to march his d­
was again possible, but the text is pawn down the board.

Summary: When Black plays 5. . . i.g4 instead of 5. . . .tfS, White can play
quietly with ljj bJ-d2, g2-g3, .1fl-g2, 0 - 0 , and so on. Throughout the opening
moves, however, he should be alert for move-order nuances that might give
him an advantage. For instance, after 5. . . .1g4 6. ljj bd2 g6, White's best is 7.h3
combined with a quick e2-e4. Or if6 . . . ljj bd7 7.g3 Y!! c7followed by a quick . . . e7-
e5, White needs to look for sacrificial opportunities on c6.
Unfortunately, the game Goldin-Bareev has dealt White's "quiet" system
against 5. . . i.g4 a major blow. Of course, a more effective approach may be
foundfor White at some point, butfor now it appears that he must be content
to play the position after J3 . . . e5!, which is about equal. For this reason, White
plays may wish to adopt Gelfand's system with 5. ljj c3, demonstrated in thefol­
lowing rapid game.

Gelfand, Boris (2733) lS.Y!!e 2 bS 16.Y!!g4 E1g8 17 . .td3 was

Fressinet, Laurent (2646) promising for White in Shimanov­
[D23] Calatrava 2007 Papin, Russian U20 Chp. 2008.

1.d4 dS 2.c4 c6 3.ljj f3 ljj f6 7.e4

4.Yfb3 dxc4 S.Y!!xc4 Ag4 6.ljj c3

White's most aggressive option, pre­

paring to set up a pawn center with e4.

Black's most popular continua­

tion. Instead, 6 . . . e6 7.e4 hf3 8.gxf3
ie7 9.E1g1 0-0 10.i.h6 ljj e 8 11.0-0-0
i>h8 12 . .1e3 ljj d7 13.'it>bl as 14.f4 ljj d 6

277
 CHAPTER 12

7 ••. e6 !? 2008, though 13 . . . \1;\'c7 14.i.g2 followed

The text move seems too passive.
The most common move for Black
(and most principled one) is undoubt­
edly 7. . . .ixf3 , doubling White's pawns
as soon as possible. Now 8.gxf3 e5
9.dxe5 lLlxe5 1O.\1;\'e2 i.c5 11.i.d2 0-0
12.0-0-0 gave White attacking pros­
pects in Stefanova-Pahtz, North Urals
Cup 2007:
by castling short and looks slightly bet­
ter for White, who has ideas of f3-f4.
8.i.e3
8.i.e2 immediately is also possible.
8 . . . i.e7
8 . . . .ixf3 9.gxf3 .ie7 10.\1;\'b3 was a
slight edge for White in Gelfand-Gagu­
nashvili, World Blitz Chp. 2006. After
10. . . \1;\'b6, Gelfand's 11.0-0- 0 ! ? \1;\'xb3
12.axb3 didn't yield him any advan­
tage, but 11.\1;\'c2 c5 1 2 . 0-0-0, keeping
the queens on the board, would have
been more in the spirit of this system.

9.i.e2

Black develops his pieces to rea­

White has the two bishops and open sonable squares, but his omission of
lines, but Black has resources, too, . . . .ig4xf3 will cost him dearly. His po­
however, such as . . .b7-b5 and . . . lLle5- sition will soon be remarkably passive.
c4. The game continued 12 . . . b5? ! ,
when here 1 3 . .ig5 \1;\'e7 14.f4 would 9 ••• 0 - 0 10. 0 - 0 l:k8 11.'ffb 3
have given White dangerous play: 14 . . .
lLleg4 (14 . . . lLlg6 15.e5 h 6 16.lLle4 hxg5
17.exf6 gxf6 18.l"!d7! lLlxf4 19.\1;\'c2 \1;\'e6
20.lLlxc5 \1;\'xa2 21.h4 is good for White)
15.e5 lLlxf2 16.l"!gl leads to a crushing,
semi-sacrificial attack.
In fact, White's kingside is so
strong that the game Vitiugov-Las­
tin, Russian Chp. 2008, saw Black im­
prove with 11 . . . \1;\'e7 12 .f4 lLled7 13.0-
0-0 O-O-O ! , though White was still
slightly better after 14.e5 lLld5 15.lLlxd5
cxd5 16 . .ie3. A standard move, withdrawing the
If White isn't comfortable with Ste­ queen from the exposure of the c4
fanova's 11 . .id2 , he can also try the square and improving White's mobil­
more docile 11.i.e3 he3 12 .fxe3 . Af­ ity.
ter 12 . . . g5 13.l"!dl, a draw was agreed in
Khenkin-Avrukh, Ma' alot-Tarshiha 1l ••• Yfb6 12.'ffc 2

278
 THE 4.ti'c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . dxc4
Correctly avoiding the exchange of
queens. White has a space advantage
and wants to keep pieces on the board;
trading would only bring Black closer
to equality.
12 ti'c7 13.gael ft'bS 14.gfdl
•••
gfdS IS .igS .ixf3 16 .ixf3 eS
• •
Black has finally organized his
pieces in such a fashion as to sup­
port this pawn break. After this "lib­
eration" of Black's army, White main­
tains a pull.
17.dxeS tLlxeS IS .ie2 tLlg6 19.g3
•
fieS 20 .ie3•
20. . . .ic5? !
Inserting 20. . J3xdl+ 21.l3xdl first
would have made 2 1 . . . .tc5 less danger­
ous for Black, although 2 2 .�d3 he3
23.�xe3 still leaves White with a nag­
ging edge. After the text, White has a
nice tactical shot.
21 .ixc5 �xc5 22.tLldS !
•
Black probably overlooked this
move.
22 . . . ti'xc2
2 2 . . . ltJxe4 23.�xc5 ltJxc5 24.l3xc5
cxd5 25.l3dxd5 ! is annoying for Black,
as White will penetrate to the seventh
rank.
23.ltJxf6 + gxf6 24.gxdS + gxdS
2S.gxc2 tLlfS
White has a nice endgame, which
he skillfully converts.
26.f3 tLle6 27.c;tf2 c;tfS 2S.c;te3
c;te7 29.gc4
White is preparing to expand on
both the kingside and the queenside.
29 . . . l3d7 30.f4 h6 31.b3 a6
32 .ig4 gdS 33.b4 gaS 34.gc3 ggS
•
34 . . . a5 35.l3a3 is frustrating for
Black, but it was probably better to try
to seek some activity.
3S .idl gdS 36 .ib3 tLl d4 37.gd3
• •
tLle6
37 . . .ltJxb3 38.l3xd8 c;txd8 39.axb3
also gives White excellent chances of
winning the king-and-pawn ending,
as his 4-3 majority will enable him to
gain space on the kingside.
279
 CHAPTER 1 2

Transitioning t o a winning king­

and-pawn ending.

38 . . . gxd3 + 39.c;t>xd3 fxe6

40.c;t>d4 b6 41.g4 c;t>d6 42.e5+
fxe5+ 43.fxe5+ c;t>e7 44.h4 c;t>d7
45.a4 1- 0

White's space advantage is deci­

sive. Black cannot hold his queenside
together (the damaging a4-a5 is com­
ing) while stopping White's soon­
38.,be6 ! to-be passed g-pawn on the kingside.

Summary: After Black's 5. . . ig4, the move 6 . !iJ c3 as played by Gelfand

seems to offer White more prospects than does the quiet 6. l'iJ bd2 and 7.g3.
White sets up a pawn center with e2-e4 and his pieces achieve full mobility. If
Black wants to avoid a passive position as in the main game, he should consid­
er doubling White's pawns with . . . ig4xj3 early on. However, the line 6. l'iJc3
l'iJ bd7 7.e4 hj3 8.gxj3 e5 9.dxe5 l'iJxe5 1 0 . Wi e2 ic5 ll. id2 0-0 12. 0 - 0 - 0 , as
played by Stefanova, probablyfavors White. The move 6. l'iJ c3 is a relatively re­
cent theoretical development, so the theory will probably change quickly over
the nextfew years.

Conclusion: Black's most popular continuation against the 4.Wic2 Slav is

4 . . . dxc4 5.Wixc4 if5, and for good reason. Wojo's modest yet creative system of­
fers White good chances for a slight advantage against even the most reason­
able play by Black, making it frustrating for Slav players to face. Opening and
middlegame play is based on positional themes rather than strictly on theory,
making the line highly accessible to players at all levels. Meanwhile, the line 5 . . .

ig4 6.l'iJc3 offers White attacking prospects. Play may become more theoretical
in the future as more practice becomes available in this line, but for now, only a
handful of games have been played. After reading this chapter, the reader should
be fully equipped to meet Black's 4 . . . dxc4.

280
Chapter 13
/AW//////H///H///AV///H/H//Q/H/

Th e 4.�c2 Slav with 4 . . gS .

1.c�fJ d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 c6 4. YlYc2

g6 5 .lf4
•

In this chapter, we will consider Black's other main possibility against the 4.YlYc2
Slav, namely, 4 . . . g6. Black prepares to play . . .�c8-fS, kicking White's queen.
Usually, when Black plays this system, he is aiming for the kind of quiet queen­
less middlegame found in the first game below. He also has some less challeng­
ing (and therefore less common) ideas which are covered in the games after that.

Queenside Space i n a Queenless M idd legame

The move 4 . . .g 6 by Black often signals
the rise of a queenless middlegame
situation. After Black kicks White's
queen with . . . .tc8-fS, White responds
with YlYc2-b3, hitting the b7-pawn.
Black parries this threat with . . . YlYd8-
b6, but White's response c4-cS, lock­
ing up the queenside, gives White a
nice space advantage. Exploiting this
advantage in space was one of Wo­
jo's specialties, as demonstrated in
the following game. Note that Black's
position remains more or less tenable
until around move 30, but eventual­
ly he runs out of defensive resources.
Only after several positional mistakes
is Black in danger of losing. For this
reason, Wojo felt that a strong play­
er (by which he meant someone over
2400 FIDE) ought to be able to hold
a draw with Black, but against weak­
er players, the 4. YlYc2 Slav would prove
a highly effective weapon. The identi­
ty of Wojo's opponent in the following
game remains a mystery, but he could
easily have been a player of master
strength.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander
N.N.
[Dll] 2004 (?)
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3 . �fJ �f6 4.YlYc2
g6 5 .if4
•

281
 CHAPTER 13
White's best move, getting the
queen's bishop outside the central
pawn chain before playing e2-e3.
5 . . . U5
.
Black hits White's queen imme­
diately. S . . . .ig7 6.e3 .if5 7.VNb3 VNb6
usually transposes, but Black also has
some other options which are covered
later on in this chapter.
6.VNb3 VNb6 7.c5
White forces the favorable queen­
less middlegame that follows. The
more cautious 7.e3 first is also fine, but
Wojo preferred to head straight for his
desired structure with the text move.
7 . . . Bxb3 8.axb3
8 . . . ctlbd7
After this natural move, White
achieves strong play across the board.
The modern approach for Black is
to grab the knight on b1 immediate­
ly with 8 . . . i.xb1 9J!xb1 llJbd7, trying
to neutralize White's queenside bind.
According to Wojo in a 2004 lecture,
White now gets an edge with 10.b4 .ig7
1l.h3 0-0 12 .e3 a6 (to stop White's b4-
bS advance) 13.id3 llJe4 14.'�e2 :
282
"The trick is to keep the king in
the center," Wojo told his students.
His idea was to meet 14 .. J'l:fe8, which
plans the freeing . . . e7 -eS advance, with
1S.llJeS llJxeS 16.dxeS, when Black's
knight on e4 is beginning to look un­
comfortable. This all seems promising
for White, but unfortunately after 16 ...
f6 17.e6 (17. .ih2 fxeS 18.he4 dxe4
19.1'!hd1 l'!ed8 20.l'!xd8+ l'!xd8 2 1.l'!c1
l'!d3 doesn't give White anything) 17...
as (not 17 . . .fS?! 18.f3 llJf6 19.94 fxg4
20.hxg4 and so on) it is difficult for
White to claim an advantage:
a) 18.f3 llJgS 19 . .ixgS fxgS 20.bxaS
l'!xaS 21.l'!hc1 l'!ea8 should be about
equal for Black.
b) No better for White is 18.he4
dxe4 19.bxaS l'!xaS 20.l'!hc1 fS 21.l'!c2
l'!bS 2 2 .b4 l'!a8.
c) 18.l'!hd1 axb4 19 . .ixe4 dxe4
20.l'!d4 l'!aS 21.l'!xb4 l'!xc5 2 2 . l'!xb7
l'!c2 + 23.�e1 fS doesn't give White
much, either.
White players should not despair,
 THE 4.1fc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6
however, since there are a number of
other attractive interpretations of the
8 . .ixbl line for White to choose from.
. .
Although White's bishop pair does not
guarantee him an advantage due to the
semi-closed nature of the position, he
does have a comfortable edge in space
on the queenside. Rather than the
committal IS. tileS, White can play to
alter the pawn structure with the ex­
change IS . .!xe4 dxe4 16.tild2 :
Now either 16 . . .fS 17.tilc4, with
the idea of 1:!hl-dl and d4-dS, or 16 . . .
eS 17.dxeS .!xeS 18 . .!xeS 1:!xeS 19.tilc4
'ge7 20.1:!bdl should give White a last­
ing edge.
If White is looking for a conven­
ient transposition into a rook end­
ing, IS.1:!al is also a possibility. Then
lS . . . eS 16.dxeS tilxeS 17 . .!xe4 dxe4
18.tilxeS !xeS 19 . .!xeS 1:!xeS 20.1:!hdl
gives White something to play for if he
is fond of squeezing wins out of such
positions :
Technically speaking, White may
not appear to have much here. He
did win the game Miles-Rivas Pastor,
Linares 1985, however, after outplay­
ing his opponent: 20. . . 1:!ae8 21.1:!d4
hS 2 2 .h4 1:!8e7 23.1:!c1 �g7 24.�dl
�f6 2S. �c2 as (or 2S . . . 1:!fS 26.1:!f1 gS
27.hxgS+ �xgS 2 8 . �b3) 2 6 . �b3 axb4
27.�xb4 b6 28.1:!d6+ 1:!7e6 29.1:!xe6+
�xe6 30.1:!c2 �d7 31.cxb6 1:!bS+ 3 2 . �c4
1:!xb6 33.1:!d2 + �c7 34.�d4 fS 3S.�eS
and so on. Although Black should be
able to hold a draw after almost any
reasonable move from the diagram,
his clearest antidote to this particular
line seems to be 20. . . 1:!b8, for instance
21.1:!d6 b6 2 2 . 1:!xc6 bxcS 23.1:!xcS 1:!xc5
24.bxcS 1:!xb2+ 2S.�dl ! ? �f8 26.1:!xa6
1:!xf2 27.1:!a4 1:!xg2 28.1:!xe4 1:!gS 29.1:!c4
�e7, with a draw.
Going back a few moves, anoth­
er interesting try for White is to run
the g-pawn down the board as quick­
ly as possible. The idea is to dominate
the kingside before Black has time to
castle, play . . . tilf6-e4, and prepare the
. . . e7-eS break. Move order is espe­
cially important here, as things didn't
go well for White in Wojtkiewicz­
Lukasiewicz, Geneva 1997, after (in­
stead of 13.i.d3) 13.g4 ! ? tile4 14.gS f6
IS.gxf6 tildxf6 16.!g2 tild7 17.h4 1:!ae8
18.i.h3 eS ! :
Wojo was now lucky to cash out for
a draw against his lower-rated oppo-
2 83
 CHAPTER 13

nent with 19 . .txd7 exf4 20. .txe8 fxe3

21.fxe3 gxf3 2 2 .@e2 12-12. White is
up the exchange, but 22 . . . gf2 + would
have left Black better. Black has the
clear plan of piling up on White's weak
e3-pawn with . . . gf2-g2-g3 and . . . !lg7-
h6.
The plan of running the g-pawn
down the board is fully playable for
White with a better move order,
however. For instance, returning to White's position is perhaps slight­
White's 1l.h3, it is also possible to play ly preferable. His plan is to play f2-f3
the subtle 11.gal. Now the position af­ and h2-h4, expanding on the kingside.
ter 11.. .!lg7 was reached (by a differ­ In conclusion, after the correct cap­
ture 8 . . ..b:bl, Black is close to equality.
ent move order) in Efimov-Berthelot,
White's chances are slightly better af­
French Team Chp. 2003, which saw
ter any number of different interpreta­
12.gg1 ! ? with the idea of playing g2-
tions, however, and White can control
g4-gS without the move h2-h3 :
the flow of the game. Wojo's approach
of keeping the king in the center with
14.@e2 seems strongest, with IS.he4
rather than IS.lLleS being White's best
try for the advantage. Meanwhile,
Miles's double-rook ending might ap­
peal to technical players confident of
outplaying their opponents from an
objectively drawn position. Lastly,
Efimov's interpretation with ghl-gl is
an excellent surprise weapon, as Black
is worse after "natural" moves.
The game continued 12 . . . lLlhS ! ? Finally, before returning to the
13.!ld2 e S 14.g4 ! e4 IS.gxhS exf3 main game, it is worth noting that
16.e3 0-0 17.gg3 lLlf6 18.hxg6 fxg6 the try 8 . . . lLla6 ! ? from Black is hard­
19.9xf3 lLlg4 20.!le2 gxf3 2 1.ixf3 ly dangerous. Black heads to the "out­
lLlxh2 2 2 . .ig2 , when White's two bi­ post" on b4, but in reality he is just los­
shops gave him the better chances. ing time. After 9.lLlc3 lLlb4, the blow
Black could improve with 12 . . . lLle4 in­ 1O.ga4 ! leaves Black struggling:
stead, however, continuing to focus on
the center. Efimov's idea was likely to
push 13.g4 0-0 14.gS, when Black does
not have time to prepare . . . e7-eS, for
instance 14 . . . gae8? ! IS.!lh3. There­
fore, Black should consider meeting
13 .g4 with 13 . . . gS, when play might
continue 14.!lcl h6 IS.e3 0-0 16 . .id3
eS 17.dxeS lLlxeS 18.lLlxeS !;.xeS 19.9hl
gfe8 20.@e2 :

2 84
 THE 4.YHc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6

Now 10. . . aS is met by 1l.e3, when

White is already threatening to play
if4-c7 at some point in the near fu­
ture. Black fares no better after 10 . . .
tLlc2 + 11.�d2 tLlg4 12 .tLldl, when
White is ready to expel Black's invad­
ing knights with a gain of time.
Going back, Black has also tried
meeting 9.tLlc3 with 9 . . . tLlhS, when
10.id2 ig7 Il.h3 ic2 12.e3 tLlb4? !
13.tLlbS ! id3 14.tLlc7+ �d7 and here
15.hb4 hfl 16.tLlxa8 .bg2 17.�gl This is a concession by Black, al­
ixf3 18.�xa7 would have been close lowing White to strengthen his already
to winning for White in Beliavsky-Van impressive pawn chain with b2xc3. In­
Wely, Groningen 1994. stead, 12 . . . 0-0 13.g4 gives White some
advantage after 13 . . . tLlxc3 (or 13 . . . ie6
9.tLlc3 J..g7
14.id3) 14.gxfS (not 14.bxc3?! ie4
IS.ie2 eS with good play for Black)
9 . . . tLlhS from Black is too early to
be effective in view of the tactical trick 14 . . . tLle4 IS.tLleS ! , as in Tregubov­
10.ic7 �c8? 11.�xa7!, when even af­ Lebedev, Moscow 1996. White has the
two bishops and Black's minor pieces
ter ll . . . tLlxc5, Black goes down a pawn
with 12 .ieS f6 13.dxcS fxeS 14.tLlxeS. are under attack.

13.hxc3 0 - 0 14.J..h 2
10.h3

White is preparing to allow Black

A multipurpose move, freeing h2
for White's bishop and preparing g2- to play . . . e7-eS by simply stepping out
g4 at some point. of the way. White can ignore Black's
push for space in the center.

14 • • • eS lS.J..e 2
Black is honing in on the al-h8
diagonal and now has the threat of
... tLld7xcS.

1l.h4

Defending against Black's threats

and gaining space on the queenside.

1l . . . a6 12 .e3

(see next diagram)

12 • • • �xc3 lS • • • exd4? !

28S
 CHAPTER 13
A positional error. With this move,
Black abandons the fight for the cent­
er. Something along the lines of 15 . . .
f6, preserving Black's central space,
was necessary. White would then need
to execute the break c3-c4 to make
progress.
16.cxd4
Stronger than 16.tDxd4, which is
also quite appealing for White. After
the text move, White plans to play the
maneuver tDf3-d2-b3-a5, piling up on
Black's weak b7-pawn.
16 . . . r!fe8 17.g4
17.tDd2? immediately runs into
17 . . . hd4 18.exd4 .!d3.
17 . . . .ie6
Black can also trade off his bad
light-squared bishop with 17 . . ..!e4
18.0-0 .!xf3 19 . .!xf3, a strategy which
would likely have turned out better
than the text move. White still keeps
a comfortable advantage due to his
bishop pair and strong pawn forma­
tion, however. After 19 . . . tDf6 20.mg2
tDe4 21.�fdl, White will try to gain
space on the kingside.
18,1l�d2 �ad8 19.f3 �f6 20. �b3
.ic8 21.md2 h6
286
White has now established clear
dominance.
22 .h4? !
Wojo himself criticized this move,
which he felt allowed Black to success­
fully blockade the kingside. His orig­
inal idea was to open the h-file with
g4-g5, but Black's next move rules out
this plan. In hindsight, Wojo said he
should have continued to play for e3-
e4 here: 22 . .id3 followed by �al-el­
e2, .!h2-f4, and �h1-el would have
been White's most straightforward
way to proceed.
22 . . . h5
Blocking up the kingside. White's
reply is now positionally forced, as
23.gxh5 tDxh5 simply gives White an
isolated h-pawn.
23.g5 �h7
Black's plan will now be to reroute
his pieces to take advantage of his new­
ly created outpost on f5. On 23 . . . tDd7?,
24 . .ic7 would win the exchange.
24 .id3
• �fB 25.r!ael �e6
26.�c1
White sends his knight to g3 to
fight for control of fS. 26J:!e2 .!f8
27J:!hel tDg7 28.tDa5 �e6 29 . .!e5 .!g7
30.f4 is similar to the game, except
that White's knight is less useful on as
than it is on g3.
26 . . . .ifB 27.�e2 �g7 28 . .ie5
(see next diagram)
 THE 4.'i'c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6

to start a counterattack. Thus, White's

king may never actually be able to
leave the center.

30.�g3 .ixe5 3 l.fxe5

White now has the win within

sight. All he needs to do is trade into a
double-rook ending, as his rooks will
be able to penetrate Black's position
via the f6 square.
Black goes back to e6 with the
3l . . . �g7 32.ghfl J.g4 33.gf6
aim of playing . . . .if8-g7, as 28 . . . .ifS
�e6 34.'it>c3 ga8 35.gal �c7
29.ixg7 ixg7? 30.ixfS gxfS 31.lLlf4
36.'it>b3 �e6 37.ga2 gab8 38.�c3
wins for White. Even after the better
29 . . . ixd3 30..if6 ixe2 31.hd8 i.xf3
White of course realizes that
32.l'!hfl .ie4 33 . .if6, when White is
38. 'it>a4 b6 is risky for White, so he
up material but appears to have no
heads back the other way with his king.
breakthrough, there is still the plan of
marching the king to b6.
38 • • • ge7
29.f4 J.g7? !

Even here, Black still had some

chances for counterplay. Continuing
the fight for f5 with 29 . . . lLlg7 was cor­
rect, for example: 30.lLlg3 (30.hg7
ixg7 31.f5 hf5 3 2 .ixfS gxfS 33.lLlf4
l"lb8 34.lLlxhS b6 3S.l'!bl l'!b7 is not en­
tirely clear) 30. . . lLlfS ! 31.ixfS hfS
32.lLlxfS gxf5 33.l'!al 'it>h7:

39.J.e2

With this move, White manages to

trade off one pair of minor pieces. The
knights will be traded next after White
plays lLlg3xe2-f4. Instead, 39.e4 lLlc7,
controlling the dS square for Black,
was less promising.
Although White has the plan of 39 .ixe2 40.�xe2 gd8 4l.gal
•••

putting his king on b6, Black has the �g7 42.gafl b6

plan of . . . .if8-g7, taking on eS, and
then (after White recaptures with ei­ According to Wojo, this move
ther f4xeS or d4xeS) pushing a pawn showed that Black was "desperate"

287
 CHAPTER 13
to create counterplay. This "mistake"
proves decisive, but it was unlikely
that Black could have held a draw here
in any case. Waiting passively would
simply have allowed White to contin­
ue his plan with lLle2-f4.
43.cxb6
Wojo said he preferred this to
43J'!a1 bxcS 44.bxcS l:!b8 4S.l:!xa6
l:!eb7 46.l:!xc6 (46.lLlc1! is best) 46 . . .
l:!b3+, for instance 47.c;t>d2 l:!a8 ! with
counterplay.
43 gJ,8 44.lLlf4
•••
44.l:!a1 l:!xb6 4S.lLlc1 l:!eb7 46.lLld3
also came under Wojo's considera­
tion, when White plans on organizing
an attack on a6. The text is more forc­
ing, and therefore preferable.
44 ••• lLlxf4
Forced, as 44 . . . l:!xb6 4S.l:!xf7+ ! l:!xf7
(4S . . . c;t>xf7 46.lLlxdS+ c;t>e8 47.lLlxb6)
46.lLlxe6+ c;t>g8 47. l:!f6 ! l:!xf6 48.gxf6
l:!b7 49.lLlgS followed by eS-e6 is dev­
astating, for instance 49 . . . c;t>f8 5O.e6
l:!b8 Sl.e4 and so on.
45.exf4
The point. White now has the f4-
fS break.
288
45 ••• l:!xb6 46.f5 gxf5
46 . . . l3eb7 loses after 47.fxg6 fxg6
48.e6 l:!xb4 49J!t7+ c;t>g8 5O.l:!f8+ llg7
Sl.l31f7+ gxf7 S2.l:!xf7+ , winning a
whole rook.
47.g6 !
Worse is 47.g1xf5 geb7 48.g6 fxg6
49.ggS gxb4 5O.l:!gxg6+ c;t>h7. The text
is simply one move faster.
47 •••geb7
Wojo had calculated the line 47 ...
fxg6 48.l:!gl geb7 49.ggxg6+ llh7
(49 . . . c;t>h8 5O.gh6+ gh7 Sl.gxh7+
c;t>xh7 S2.l:!xf5 is a winning rook and
pawn ending for White) SO.l:!h6+ llg7
51.gfg6+ c;t>f7 52 .e6+ c;t>f8 53.gxh5
l:!xb4 54.gh8+ c;t>e7 55.gh7+ c;t>f8 (or
55 . . . c;t>d6 56.e7+ c;t>d7 57.e8�+ c;t>xe8
58.gg8#) S6.e7+ l:!xe7 57.gf6+ ! (57.
gxe7? gc4+) 57 . . . c;t>e8 58.l3h8+ lld7
59.c;t>xb4, winning. The text loses in a
less stylish fashion for Black.
48.gxf7 gxf7 49.gxf7+ c;t>xf7
50.gxf5+ 1- 0
The rest of the game has been lost,
but, not surprisingly, White success­
fully converted his pawn advantage.
Summary: Wojo enjoyed White's
chances in the kind of queen less mid­
dlegame positions found in the notes
to this game. White should both
achieve an advantage and be able to
play without risk, but Black general­
ly has to make some positional errors
for White to win. The capture B . . . hbl
prevents White from achieving the
kind of total bind that occurs in this
game, though White has a number of
ways to get a slight edge while keep­
ing the game interesting.
 THE 4.ti'c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6

Black Goes All-out with . . . tl}a6-b4

Those who are always looking to enter 6.e3 At'S 7.ti'b3

the sharpest possible lines with Black
may choose the bizarre 5 . . . llJa6 ! ? as a
way to "mix things up" when facing the
4.�c2 Slav. Black launches his knight
into b4, sacrificing it to White's queen
in order to gain time. This line has al­
ways been on shaky grounds theoreti­
cally, but it scores well against unpre­
pared White players in practice. No
grandmaster has ever successfully re­
lied on it as his primary answer to the
4.�c2 Slav, however. GM Alexander
Shabalov included it as part of his rep­ 7 • • • �b4 ! ?
ertoire in the 1990s, but has since dis­
carded it. Other attacking GMs, such This pseudo-sacrifice i s the point
as Alexander Morozevich and Jonny of Black's opening move order. Here
Hector, have also ventured it on occa­ 7 . . . �b6 would be inaccurate, as 8.llJc3
sion. llJb4 gives White a comfortable edge
According to Filipovich, Wojo after 9.c5 llJd3+ (or 9 .. :�a5 10Jk1)
banged out the moves of the follow­ 1O. .ixd3 �xb3 1l.axb3 .ixd3 12 .llJe5
ing game without hesitation. Unsur­ 1l.f5 13.b4, as in Skembris-Titov, Euro­
prisingly, the game Hilton-Filipovi­ pean Team Chp. 1992 . And if 8 . . :�xb3,
ch, 2009 - played at the same annu­ then 9.axb3 llJb4 1OJ�a4 a5 11.1l.c7 was
al World Open tournament some eight good for White in Goldin-Borkowski,
years later - saw the Canadian master Naleczow1987.
abandon 5 . . . llJa6 and fare better with
4 . . . dxc4. 8.ti'xb4 e5 9.ti'xb7

Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2576)

Filipovich, David (2223)
[Dll] Philadelphia 2001

1.0�� f3 d5 2.d4 llJf6 3.c4 c6 4.Vc2

g6 5.Af4 �a6 ! ?

5 . . . .1f5 6.�b3 llJ a 6 7.e3 usually

transposes, though this move order
also gives White the option of 7.�xb7
llJb4 8.llJa3, when Black might not
have enough compensation for his White should enter the complica­
pawn. tions without fear. Instead, 9.cS exf4

289
 CHAPTER 13
10.exf4 was tried in Epishin-Kupre­
ichik, Daugavpils 19S9, but this is
hardly the critical test of Black's plan.
White may be up a pawn, but Black has
the bishop pair and the break . . .b7-b6.
9 ... exf4?! lO.lLle5 is considered
good for White, for instance 10. . . lLld7
1l.lLlxc6 V«cS 12 .'i;YxcS+ �cS 13.cxd5
or 10. . . .td7 1l.lLlxc6 V«cS 12.V«xcS+
l:l:xcS 13.lLle5 fxe3 14.lLlc3 and so on.
10.'i;Yxc6+ J.d7 11.'i;Yxf6!
White sacrifices his queen but gets
a lot of material in exchange. Worse is
1l.'i;Ya6, played in Altounian-Lapshun,
u.s. Chp. 2004, when 1l . . . exf4 12.c5
fxe3 13.fxe3 .ih6 14.lLlc3 .ixe3 15.c6
.ie6 16.V«xa7 'i;Yd6 17.c7 l:l:xb2 ! lS.V«a4+
�e7 19.lLlb5 gaS ! was good for Black.
1l •.• 'i;Yxf6 12.J.xe5 'ffb 6 13.b3
White takes time out to defend his
position. Black's rooks are forked, so
there is no rush to capture material.
13 • • • J.b4+
This move is considered the main
line, but 13 . . . 'i;Ya5+ is the modern try
290
for Black. Then simplest is 14.lLlfd2
(worse is 14.lLlbd2? ! l:l:xb3 15 . .ixh8
.tb4 16.gd1 gb2 17.J.d3, as here 17...
hd2 + 18.lLlxd2 'i;Yc3 19.�e2 dxc4 is
dangerous) 14 . . . gxb3 15.axb3 V«xa1
16 . .txh8:
In Finegold-C.Holt, U.S. Chp.
Qualifier 2008, Black lost with 16 ...
.if5? ! 17.cxd5 V«a5? (17 ... ixbl 18 . .tb5+
�dS 19.0-0 V«a5 would save the piece,
but Black is down several pawns)
lS.�d1 V«a2 19 . .tb5+ �dS 20. .if6+
�c7 21. �e2 .ib4 2 2 .gel + �b7 23 . .ic6+
�a6 24.l:l:c4 .ta5 25.b4 1-0. Also bad
for Black is 16 . . . V«b2 ? ! , when 17.c5
would have left White with a tremen­
dous advantage in Eriksson-Hector,
Swedish Team Chp. 2006, for instance
17 . . . hc5 18.dxc5 'i;YxhS 19.J.d3 and so
on. Best for Black from the diagram,
however, is 16 . . . .tb4 ! 17 . .id3 (17.�e2 !?
seems risky) 17 ... hd2 + 18.�xd2
V«b2 + 19 . .tc2 .tf5 20.l:l:el ixc2 21.l:l:xc2
V«xb1 2 2 .cxd5 V«xb3 23.gcS+ �d7
24.l:l:c5 and Black should hold a draw:
 THE 4.ti'c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6

With the queen on the board, there
is bound to be a perpetual check; one
computer line is 24 . . . VBb2 + 2S.�e1 f6 ! .
For instance, 26 . .hf"6 �a1+ 27.�d2 (27.
It>e2? �a6+ picks up the bishop) 27...
%Va2+ 28.�e1 �a1+ 29.�d2 and so on.
Thus, with the novelty 16 . . ..ib4, Black
can likely avoid a catastrophic loss.
�g2 23.�ag1 traps the queen) 2 2 .lLlc6
�b6 23.�ac1 (23.lLlxb4 �xb4 24.�h1 is
good for White) 23 . . . ia3 24.�c2 �xh2
2S.lLlxa7 hS 26.lLlbS .ie7 27.a4, White
managed to lose in a complicated (but
clearly better) position :

14.�bd2 0-0 15.hb8 gxb8

16 .id3
.

S o long a s White looks t o control

the h1-a8 diagonal with f3-f4 and .id3-
e4 at some point, though, he should do
well.

17. 0 - 0 !

16 .ig4? !
•••
Far stronger than 17.lLleS.

17 .•• ti'a5 18.�e5

Instead, 16 . . :�aS here is necessary
in order to stop White from castling, The point. White now threatens
but White is already clearly better in �xg4 and lLlc6. Instead, 18.�fd1? hd2
any case. Now 17.�e2 .ig4 18J�hd1 is would leave White unable to defend
best for White: all of his material.
a) 18 . . .!c3 19J!ac1 .ixf3+ 20.lLlxf3
.

Vffxa2 + 2 Uk2 �xb3 2 2 .cxdS and 18 hd2 19.�xg4 .ic3 20.gad1

•••

Black is struggling. His passed a-pawn ti'xa2 21.�f6+ �g7 22.�xd5 �xb3
will not be strong enough to outweigh 23.�xc3 ti'xc3 24.c5
White's strength in the center, for in­
stance, 22 . . . aS? ! (better is 22 . . . ib4,
allowing 23.e4) 23.d6 a4 24J!dc1 .iaS
2S.d7 �f8 26.�c8. White has the clear
plan of lLlf3-eS-c6, leaving him close to
winning.
b) 18 . . . dxc4 19.lLlxc4 (19.bxc4 is also
strong) 19 . . . i.xf3+ 20.gxf3 �hS 2 1.lLleS
should have been strong for White
in Shapar-Panarin, Krasnodar 2001,
but after 2 1 . . . �g7 (21.. .�xh2? 2 2 .�h1

291
 CHAPTER 13

White has emerged with a winning would have a win with the "sacrifice"
position. Black's passed a-pawn may . . .•cSxc7.
look dangerous, but in reality, the rest
is just a mopup operation. 30.c7 gc8 3 U�c6

24 a5 25 ..Ae4 a4 26.gc1 .a5

•.• White systematically dismantles
27.c6 a3 28.d5 .c7 29.gfdl .d6 Black's blockade of the connected
passed pawns.
Wojo enjoyed pointing out the
humorous line 29 . . .•e5 30.c7 !'1cS 31 ••• •e5 32.d6 a2
31.d6 .xe4 32 .d7 .e6 33.dxcS •
•xcS 34.!'1dS here, noting that Black 32 . . .•xe4 33.d7 fares no better.
is still unable to prevent White's c­
pawn from queening. Were the black 33.gcc1 .xe4 34.d7 gxc7
pawn already on a2, however, Black 35.d8. 1- 0

Summary: Black's response S. . . tiJa6 is, for the most part, unsatisfacto­
ry against a prepared opponent. At best, Black canfightfor a draw with 13 . . .

• 05+; at worst, White's rook, bishop, and pawns will simply overrun Black's
queen. While the S. . .tiJ a6 line is playable, surprising, and entertaining, White's
chances are to be strongly preferred.

Black's " Passive System" with 5 . . . Bg7

So far, we've been looking at Black's however, Black shouldn't encounter

attempts to somehow exploit the move
4 .• c2 : taking with 4 . . . dxc4 to lure
White's queen into the open, playing
. . . g7-g6 and . . . icS-f5 to hit it, and go­
ing after it with . . . ttJbS-a6-b4. Black
can, however, simply develop his
pieces with . . . g7-g6, . . . !fS-g7, . . . 0-0,
... ttJbS-a6, and so on. This type of set­
up is frequently seen in non-master
games, as Black - who may have nev­
er seen the move 4 .• c2 before - often
plays cautiously so as to avoid theo­
retical lines.
In practice, Black's results with
such an approach have been less
than satisfactory, as White is sim­
ply allowed to build a pleasant po­
sition in the center. Objectively,
many problems developing his piec­
es and achieving a playable game. The
following game illustrates the kind of
initiative White can count on when
facing Black's "passive system."
Drasko, Milan (2485)
Kosic, Dragan (2435)
[D93] Cetinje 1992
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.�fJ �f6 4 .•c2
g6 5.M4 �a6
Move order is not so critical here.
5 . . . ig7 is Black's most common route
to reach the "passive system" setup.
6.e3 .Ag7 7.�c3 0 - 0

292
 THE 4.Wc2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6
8 .te2
.
This is White's main continuation,
though Wojo occasionally tried the
move 8 .h3 here with the goal of keep­
ing his development flexible. White
is trying to play a "waiting game," so
that, when Black plays . . . dSxc4, he can
recapture M1xc4 without having lost
a tempo. In the game Wojtkiewicz­
Schweiger, Arco 1997, Black played
8 .. .'�aS and was without counterplay
after 9.a3 dxc4 (9 . . . cS was more the­
matic here) 10.ixc4 bS 1l.ie2 b4? !
12 .Wa4 ! Wb6 13.axb4 ttJxb4 14.ttJeS
1e6 1S.0-0:
Black's position was full of weak
squares and he soon collapsed tacti­
cally: 1S . . . ttJd7 16.ttJxd7 .ixd7 17J��fc1
1!fe8 18.'i'b3 eS 19.dxeS .ixeS 20. .ic4
1e6? 21.ttJa4 Wb8 2 2 .heS hc4
23.1!xc4 1-0.
By the year 2004, however, Wojo
felt the move 8.h3 didn't do enough to
stop Black's counterplay with 8 . . . cS.
He switched to advocating 8.'i'b3 ! ? ,
which transposes into a passive line
for Black in the Russian System of
the Griinfeld. The idea is that White's
pressure against the dS-pawn pre­
vents Black from achieving effective
counterplay. White should get an ad­
vantage here despite being down a
tempo from the Griinfeld lines, having
wasted a move with his queen. Salov­
Timman, Amsterdam 1989, contin­
ued 8 . . . WaS 9.ieS dxc4 10.hc4 bS
1l . .ie2 .ie6, and here 12 .'I'd1 preserves
an edge for White: 12 . . . ttJe4 (12 . . . b4? !
13.Wa4 ! leaves Black's queenside
squares seriously weakened) 13 . .ixg7
and now either 13 . . . @xg7 14.Wc1 or
13 . . . ttJxc3 14.'I'd2 @xg7 1S.bxc3 are
slight advantages. Black has piece ac­
tivity, but no concrete targets.
8 . . . c5
This move gained some atten­
tion when it was played by Kasparov
against Romanishin in 1981, but our
recommended line with 10.ttJxd4 gives
White a pleasant initiative. The alter­
native is 8 . . . dxc4 9.ixc4 ttJb4 10.'I'b3
ttJbdS 1l . .ieS ttJb6 12 . .ie2 .ie6 13.'I'c2 ,
when Black's development is satisfac­
tory:
White, whose main trump is his
solid d4-pawn, has only a slight edge
here. He will complete his develop-
293
 CHAPTER 13
ment and then decide whether to ex­
pand on the queenside (with b2-b4) or
the center (with e3-e4).
9. 0 - 0 cxd4 10.tLlxd4
1O.exd4 ! ? was Romanishin's try in
Romanishin-Kasparov, USSR Chp.
1981. Then 10. . . dxc4 1l.ixc4 ig4
12 .!%ad1 ! ? ttJh5 13.ig5 ixf3 14.gxf3
!%c8 15 . .ib3 .if6 16.ie3 ttJb4 17.�e4
ttJc6 18.!%fe1 was perhaps slightly bet­
ter for White, but accepting so many
pawn weaknesses is not much in the
style of Wojo's white repertoire. With
the text, White achieves a definite pull
with no risk.
10 ••• dxc4 1l.ixc4
We have now reached a position
similar to the Griinfeld that occurs af­
ter 1.d4 ttJf6 2 .c4 g6 3.ttJc3 d5 4.if4
ig7 5.e3 c5 6.dxc5 �a5 7.!%c1 dxc4
8.,ixc4 0-0 9.ttJf3 �xc5 10.ib3 :
294
Comparing the two positions,
White has gained at least one impor­
tant tempo in our version: his knight
is already on d4. The knight will soon
cross over to the queenside with ttJd4-
b5, giving White a definite pull against
Black's queenside pawns. Note that
White has also not been forced to play
i.c4-b3; this will allow him to expand
on the queenside with b2-b4 at a mo­
ment's notice.
1l ••• �a5
The most logical square for Black's
queen. Black now entertains ideas of
. . . e7-e5.
12.tLldb5 !
White cuts off Black's queen from
the center and puts pressure on a7 and
c7.
12 ••• id7 13.a3
Another good move, seizing fur­
ther control of the queenside.
13 ••• gac8
13 .. .l'Uc8 would leave the a7-pawn
defended, but now f7 is weak. Then
14.b4 �6 15.�3 .ixb5 16.ttJxb5 ttJhS
17.l'�ac1 tLlxf4 18.exf4 e6 19.!%fd1 Ieaves
White with a pleasant initiative.
14.'lfe2 'lfb6
How else to defend a7? Black lacks
a constructive plan here, and so his
pieces are falling into retreat.
 THE 4 .•c2 SLAV WITH 4 . . . g6
A peculiar rook placement. 15JUdl
or 15J3acl would have been more nat­
ural.
15 ••• •c5?!
Black's queen is misplaced here.
lS . . . ttJb8 ! with the idea of . . . a7-a6
would have been a better defensive
try.
16 .ia2 lUdS 17.e4
•
White now has a clear advantage,
as he will soon establish control of the
gl-a7 diagonal. Black heads for the
endgame.
17 ••• .ig4 1S.1hdS+ gxdS 19 •e3
•
"lb6
19 . . .•xe3 20.he3 would leave
Black unable to defend his a7-pawn,
but 19 . . . g5 ! ? was an interesting com­
puter defense. Then 20.•xc5 ttJxc5
21.ie3 preserves White's advan­
tage, but even better is 20.hg5 ttJxe4
21.i.xe7 (not 21.ttJxe4, when 2 1 . . .•xb5
22 .he7 .xf1+ ! 23.mxfl l'!dl+ 24 .• el
E1xel+ 25.mxel ixb2 is OK for Black)
21.. ..xe7 2 2 .ttJxe4, when White has
given up the bishop pair but is up a
pawn. After the text, Black's endgame
chances are miserable.
20 •xb6 axb6 21.fJ .icS 22 .ie3
• •
ttJc5 23.b4 gd3
After 23 . . . ttJe6 24.i.xb6 l'!d2 , Black's
rook on the second rank achieves noth­
ing. Either 2S.ie3 l'!b2 ? 26.ic1 or just
25.l'!f2 is sufficient to finish Black off.
24.mf2 ttJe6 25 .ic4 gdS 26.ttJd5
•
Even stronger than 26 . .ixb6 l'!d2+
27.ttJe2 .
26 .id7 27.�xb6 ,lxb5 2S.,lxb5
•••
ttJd4 29.gd1 e5 30 .10. �eS 31.gc1
•
�d6 32.a4 f5 33 .ic4+ mhS 34 .idS
• •
fxe4 35.fxe4 .if6 36 .lh6 g5 •
Black unsuccessfully tries to trap
White's dark-squared bishop.
37.gc7 geS 3S.gd7 .ie7 39.b5
�c2 40.me2 �d4+ 41.md3 �4f5
Managing, rather humorously, to
trap White's dark-squared bishop af­
ter all.
42.exfS �xf5 43 .ie4
• �xh6
44.�d5 �gS 1- 0
Black resigns, as after 45.l'!xb7,
there is no defense to the march of
White's queenside pawns.
295
 CHAPTER 13

Summary: Black isn't forced to play something combative against the

4. Y;![c2 Slav ifall he seeks is a playable game, but by using the "passive system, "
Black (whether he knows it or not) is essentially agreeing to be under pressure
throughout the middlegame. White doesn't have to do anything special to get
an advantage, so strong players generally avoid playing this way with Black.

Conclusion: When Black plays the move 4 . . . g6, he is usually looking to play
solidly in the opening. The queenless middlegame that occurs after 5.i.f4 i.f5
6.y;![b3 Y;![b6 7.cS Y;![xb3 8.axb3 favors White, but Black has fair chances of surviv­
ing to hold a draw, particularly with 8 . . . .txbl. The sacrificial treatment with 5 .. .
lLla6 and . . . lLla6-b4 is somewhat dubious, but for the time being appears playa-
ble with the move 13 . . . Y;![a5+. Finally, if Black avoids all complications and sim-
ply develops with 5 . . . i.g7, . . . 0-0, and so on, White can count on getting an edge.
If White is familiar with the types of positions covered in this chapter, he can
feel confident when facing 4 . . . g6 over the board.

296
Chapter 14

Sem i-Slav Hyb rids

1.1Of3 d5 2.d4 c6

So far, we have only examined the positions that occur after 1.1Of3 d5 2 . d4 IOf6
3.c4 c6 4.�c2 . On the way to this position, however, Black has a few independ­
ent tries with the move order l.ltlf3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4. The first, 3 . . . e6, was par­
ticularly effective against Wojo, who liked to play 4.�c2 against it anyway. The
second, 3 . . .dxc4 4.e3 b5, is weaker and gives White a good game.

Fighting Over the Queenside: Wojo's J.c1-g5xf6

When Black plays 1.ltlf3 d5 2 . d4 c6, in these complications. Wojo, howev­

it often means that he is aiming for
sharp play with a quick . . . d5xc4 af­
ter White's c2-c4 break. Unlike in the
Queen's Gambit Accepted, covered in
Chapter 15, Black is not content with
simply developing and trying to equal­
ize in the center with the break . . . c7-
c5. Instead, Black is trying to create
play on the queenside in an attempt
to "mix things up."
There certainly isn't any reason
why White can't take Black "head on"
er, was always trying to steer his oppo­
nents into positions that would make
them uncomfortable. For this reason,
he generally attempted to take the
"sting" out of Black's play early on. In
order to do this, he often had to make
some other concession. For instance,
in the positions that arise after 1.1Of3
d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 e6 4.%1fc2 dxc4 5.�xc4
ltlf6 6.g3 b5 7.%1fd3, Black gets space
on the queenside and can develop his
pieces with relative ease:

297
 CHAPTER 14

ever, doesn't necessarily mean that he

is ready for the full opening of lines on
the queenside. Thus, if White can ef­
fectively meet . . . c6-c5 with the move
a2-a4, probing the b5-pawn, he still
has chances for an edge. This is exactly
what happens in Vaganian-Nogly, giv­
en in the note to White's ninth move in
the following game.

In this case, White's 4.'�c2 avoided Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2570)

the complications of 4.g3 dxc4 at the Reefat, Bin Sattar (2350)
price of not setting Black any pressing
[D30] Calcutta 1999
opening problems.
So how did Wojo fight for an ad­ 1.lLlf3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 e6
vantage? White's one big trump from
the diagram is that Black has weak­ We dub this opening "the Trian­
ened the c5 square. In order to gain the gle." One advantage of playing this
upper hand, White would like to dom­ way before committing to . . . lLlg8-f6 is
inate that square and prevent the . . . c6- found in the note to the next move. Of
c5 break from Black. In order to fight course, another move order is 3 . . . lLlf6
for control of c5, Wojo would play the 4.�c2 e6, which leads to the same ba­
maneuver .icl-g5xf6. Giving up the sic position. There, White can choose
dark-squared bishop may seem like between 5.ig5 (considered best by
an odd way to fight for control of c5, theory) and Wojo's 5.g3.
but this maneuver has two key points.
First, it is likely to pull one of Black's 4.�c2
minor pieces away from controlling
the c5 square. Whether Black recap­ Wojo's move. Wojo avoided 4.g3,
tures on f6 with . . . .ie7xf6 or . . . lLld7xf6, when 4 . . .dxc4 5 . .ig2 b5 6.lLle5 .ib7
he will have less control over c5 than 7.a4 offers White compensation for
he had previously. Second, the move his pawn:
.ic1-g5 vacates the c1 square for one of
White's rooks.
Meanwhile, Black wants to devel­
op in such a fashion as to achieve the
. . . c6-c5 break. Normal moves along
the lines of . . . ic8-b7, . . . .if8-e7, . . . lLlb8-
d7, and .. .'�d8-b6 are designed to as­
sist him in this goal. If Black is will­
ing to play the move . . . c6-c5 quickly -
say, before castling - he should have
enough firepower on the queenside to
do so in spite of White's efforts with This position is related to the one
.ic1-g5xf6. Black's control of c5, how- that comes up after l.lLlf3 d5 2.d4 lLlf6

298
 SEMI-SLAV HYBRIDS

3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4 5.i.g2 c6 6.0-0 b5 again belongs on c3 - and his queen
7.liJe5 i.b7 B.a4, covered in Chapter 10. is misplaced on c2, as well. For all of
The only important difference, how­ these reasons, Wojo generally pre­
ever, is that Black has the move . . . 0- ferred the more flexible text move.
f6 at his disposal. This isn't a particu­
larly big deal since a weakening move 4 . . . dxc4 5. �xc4 liJf6 6.g3
like . . .0-f6 has plenty of minuses to
cancel out its potential plusses. For in­ 6.i.g5 immediately is considered
stance, the immediate 7. . . f6 ! ? can be best by theory, but the fianchetto of
met by B.liJf3 i.b4+ 9.liJc3 liJe7 10. 0-0 the king's bishop was Woj o's line.
a6 (10 ... ,bc3 1l.bxc3 liJd5 12 .�c2 0-0
13.e4 liJb6 14.e5 ! gave White ample 6 ••• b5 7.�d3
compensation in Dorfman-Prie, Brus­
sels Zonal 1993) 1l.i.h3, when White The only move that gives White
will be able to target Black's e6-pawn chances for an advantage. From here,
and aim for e2-e4 followed by a possi­ the queen keeps and eye on Black's
ble d4-d5 break. b5-pawn. 7.�c2 is more common,
What Black needs is a more sub­ but then 7 . . . i.b7 B.i.g2 liJbd7 9.0-0 c5
tle approach to using his . . .0-f6 re­ equalizes immediately for Black.
source. A good line is 7 . . . i.b4+ 8.liJc3
a6 9.0-0 liJe7, when Black does not 7 . . . .ib7 8 . .ig2 liJbd7
commit himself to making any weak­
nesses but keeps the option of . . . 0-f6
on the table. After White regains his
pawn with 10.axb5 axb5 1l.ElxaB ,baB
12.liJxb5 cxb5 13 .,baB, now is the
appropriate time for 13 .. .f6 ! 14.liJf3
lZlbc6 15.,bc6+ liJxc6, when Black was
equal in Gleizerov-Soloviov, 2004.
Wojo preferred the immediate 4.�c2 ,
though as we'll see, Black comes close
to equality here, too.
Finally, it should be noted that
4.liJbd2 was another move Wojo tried
here. His idea was simply to transpose 9 .ig5 ! ?
•

into a Closed Catalan with g2-g3, i.f1-

g2, 0-0, �d1-c2 , and so on. As we have
already noted, however, White gener­
ally wants to put his queen's knight on
c3 in that opening. And if White tries
following up 4.liJbd2 liJf6 with 5.�c2 ,
aiming for e2-e4 immediately, Black
can try going into a Tarrasch Defense
(see Chapter 16) with 5 . . . c5. In this
case, although Black has lost a move
by playing . . . c7-c6-c5, White's knight
Wojo played this move earlier
than most other White players. His
idea was to develop the queen's bish­
op as early as possible, but there is a
flaw with this move order. Better is
9.0-0, when 9 . . . �6 (the problem for
White after 9 . .ig5) can be met by 10.a4
a6 1l.liJc3 with pressure. Thus Black's
most common move is 9 . . . a6, prepar­
ing the . . . c6-c5 break. Now 1O.a4 is

299
 CHAPTER 14
the main line, but 1O. . . cS 11.axb5 �e4
12.1�'d1 axb5 13J�xa8 �xa8 is fine for
Black:
For instance, Wojo now tried
14.�g5 but got nothing after 14 . . . cxd4
15.hf6 ttlxf6 16.�xd4 �e7 17.ttlc3 �c6
18.ttlh4 hg2 19.ttlxg2 b4 20.ttlb5 0-0
21.�a7 �d5 2 2 .�xe7 �xb5 2 3 .ttlf4
e5 24.ttld3 e4 25.�xb4 �b8 2 6 .�xb5
�xb5 2 7.�c1 �f8 2 8 .ttlf4 1 2 _ 1 2 ,
Wojtkiewicz-Matlak, Wisla 1992 .
Wojo soon switched to playing �c1-
g5xf6 much earlier, playing it before
Black could get the . . . c6-c5 break in.
As we'll soon see, however, Wojo's
9.�g5 is actually too early. GM Ra­
fael Vaganian and others have revised
the Wojo move order slightly by sim­
ply substituting 1O.�g5 ! for the weak­
er 1O.a4. Now the "equalizing" 10. . .
c5? ! only helps White open lines for
his better-developed pieces : 11.a4 �e7
12.axb5 �e4 13 .�e3 axb5 14.ttlc3 �c6
15.hf6 ttlxf6 16.ttle5 ! gave White an
advantage in Vaganian-Nogly, Baden-
Oos 2005, after 16 . . . hg2 17. �xg2 cxd4
18.�f3 �c8 (18 . . . �xa1 19.�xa1 leaves
Black uncomfortable in view of threats
like �a1-a8 and ttle5-c6) 19.ttlxb5 �6
20.ttla7 �c5 21.ttlac6. White was clear­
ly dominating and went on to win in
convincing style. Meanwhile, 1O. . . �e7
would transpose back into the game.
9 �e7
•••
300
This is not Black's most accu­
rate move. 9 . . . a6 has been played the
most frequently, when here 10.a4 �e7
11.0-0 0-0 12 .ttlbd2 should give White
a moderate plus. White has hopes of
controlling the c5 square via �f1-c1,
�g5xf6, and ttld2-e4 or ttld2-b3 :
An example of how such a strategy
can be carried out is Benjamin-Bohm,
Dortmund 1985, which saw 12 . . . h6? !
(developing with 12 . . . �6 13.ttlb3
�fd8 14.hf6 gxf6 ! ? 15.�e3 c5, as in
Konopka-Petr, 2008, is better) 13.hf6
hf6 14.ttle4 �e7 15.�fc1 as 16.b3 �b4
17.�e3, when White soon took control
of the dark squares : 17 . . . �e7 18.ttle5
ttlxe5 19.dxe5 bxa4 20.bxa4 �fd8
21.�c2 c5 2 2 .ttld6 and so on.
But 9 . . . �b6 ! 10. 0-0 c5 should
equalize for Black - in fact, it's pos­
sible that Black is already better here.
The players agreed to a draw imme­
diately in Wojtkiewicz-Filippov, Car­
los Torre Memorial 2000, though the
game Andersson-Fressinet, French
Team Chp. 2001, saw White play on:
11.dxc5 ttlxc5 12 .�d4 (to lure Black
into a pin on the h4-d8 diagonal) 12 ...
�d8 13.�e3, and only now did the
players agree to a draw after 13 . . . �e7
1 2 _ 1 2. Black has no problems whatso­
ever. The text move isn't as good as 9 ...
�b6, but it isn't bad, either.
10. 0 - 0 a6 11 . .txf6 ! ?
 SEMI -SLAV HYBRIDS
1l.a4 first, as in Benjamin-Bohm
above, is better, but Wojo wastes no
time in making this key exchange. By
relieving the tension rather than in­
creasing it, White's chances for an ad­
vantage go down.
1l . . . .bf6 12.�c3 c5 13.�e4
The same maneuver seen in Ben­
jamin-Bohm.
13 . . . 0 - 0
Black avoids 13 . . ..ie7? ! 14.dxc5
tLlxc5 15.�xc5 hc5 16.�c3, when he
wishes he were already castled.
14. � xf6 +
Best. 14.dxc5 hb2 (14 . . . he4
15.�xe4 �xc5 16.�e3 gc8 17.gac1
Vf!e7 is a little better for White, but
not much) 15.gabl .if6 16.gfc1 gc8 is
sound for Black, as White's passed c­
pawn is not so dangerous here.
14 . . . �xf6 15.�e5
Occupying the center. Worse is
15.�g5 �xg5 16.hb7, when 16 . . . ga7
17 . .ie4 ! ? runs into 17 . . . c4 18.�c2 �f6
with counterplay.
15 . . . �xe5 16.dxe5 �e7
17. Vd6
Wojo makes use of the dark
squares. If not for this move, White
would be worse thanks to Black's bet­
ter queenside pawns.
17. . . gfe8? !
Black voluntarily goes down a
pawn. Instead, 17 . . . �xd6 was bet­
ter. Then 18.exd6 hg2 19.'itlxg2 gfd8
20.gfdl f6 gives Black fine chances
for a successful defense, for instance,
21.a4 �f7 22 .e4 c4 with adequate
counterplay. Black's fear of entering
this endgame was unjustified.
18 .hb7 YlYxb7 19.YlYxc5 Ve4
The point of Black's play. White
will have some problems defending
his e5-pawn.
20.e3 ged8?
Black is still fine after 20 .. J�ac8
2 1.�d4 �xd4 22.exd4 gc4 23.gfdl
(23.gfc1 gxd4 24.gc6 is still a little
better for White) 23 . . . gd8 24.gac1
gdxd4! , when Black overcomes his
back-rank difficulties for a successful
defense. After the text, Black does not
have enough for his pawn.
2U�fdl h5 22.gacl YlYb7 23.h4
gxdl + 24.gxdl l- 0
The game score ends here. White
is clearly better, but it is hard to be­
lieve that Black would have actually
resigned, so perhaps a fallen flag de­
cided the outcome. We can only spe­
culate.
301
 CHAPTER 14

Summary: A few minor inaccuracies by Black allowed White to imple­

ment his il.c1-g5xf6 strategy, but even then he wasn't really in trouble. His mis­
takes on moves 17 and 20, respectively, caused his later problems.

Conclusion: Wojo's treatment of the move 3 . . . e6 is not considered theo­

retically testing for Black. From a practical standpoint, however, it has the ad­
vantage of taking players aiming for complications into more peaceful waters.
This may give White a psychological advantage, as Black is forced to fight on
Wojo's "home turf." After tweaking Wojo's move order slightly to follow Vaga­
nian-Nogly, however, the Wojo plan with il.cl-gSxf6 begins to look more like a
valid try for an advantage. Considering how Black's attempt to play the . . . c6-c5
break turned out in that game, it is probably fair to say that White maintains a
small plus.

Black's Queenside Pawn Rush: 3 ... dxc4 4.e3 b5

Another "sharp" approach for Black is Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2595)

to take White's proffered c4-pawn im­
mediately with l.lLlf3 dS 2.c4 c6 3.c4
dxc4. This has always been consid­
ered a minor try and is not common
in tournament practice - in fact, most
players who don't play 3 . . . e6 will just
transpose back into the standard Slav
lines with 3 . . . lLlf6. The point of the im­
mediate 3 . . . dxc4 is to launch a massive
queenside pawn assault with . . . b7-bS
and . . . a7-aS. Black hopes that by shov­
ing these pawns down the board, he
can create a passed pawn or two, mak­
ing for unbalanced play.
Barria, Daniel (2305)
[Dll] Villa Martelli 1998
1 . lLlf3 d5 2.d4 c6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3
It is best to play this and regain the
pawn right away. Now, if Black plays
a normal developing move, White can
simply recapture on c4 with the bish­
op, with an edge. Play would be sim­
ilar to the Queen's Gambit Accepted
sidelines given in Chapter 15.
4 b5
.•.

After an initial loss to GM Atahk in Another option for Black is 4 . . . il.e6,

1994, however, Wojo quit playing into
the sharp main line of this variation.
Rather than allowing Black to ram his
queenside pawns down the board un­
opposed, Wojo started breaking them
up with an early b2-b3. White can
then look forward to having control of
the center after Black's queenside am­
bitions crumble. The following game
demonstrates this strategy in action.
which also makes White's task in re­
gaining the c4-pawn more difficult.
Those looking for a quiet approach for
White here should read Avrukh's anal­
ysis on S.'�c2 , but Wojo always played
right into the main line with S.a4. Now
S . . . lLlf6 was already agreed drawn in
Wojtkiewicz-Luther, Bad Zwesten
1999, and here best for White is 6.lLlc3
g6 (good for White is 6 . . . lLla6 7.lLlg5

302
 SEMI -SLAV HYBRIDS
�c8 8.aS! with the idea of l3al-a4 to
regain the pawn) 7.ltJgS .idS 8.e4 h6
9.exdS hxgS l0.dxc61tJxc6:
White has emerged from the tacti­
cal turmoil with the two bishops. Wojo
now favored 1l.dS ltJeS 12 . .ixgS, when
the Internet blitz game "Alexwojt"­
"cudyta," 200S, continued 12 .. ..ig7 13..if4
ltJeg4? 14 ..ixc4 W'b6 1S . .ibS+ mf8, with
an obvious advantage for White. In­
stead, "Alexwojt"-''Vagizovich,'' 200S,
saw 12 . . ..ih6 13 . .ixh6 l3xh6 14.W'd2
Elh8 1S.f41tJd3+ 16 . .ixd3 cxd3 17.W'xd3,
when White was just up a pawn.
1l ... ltJaS seems more solid, when the
game Vallejo Pons-Fontaine, French
Team Chp. 200S, saw 12 . .ixgS W'd6
13.g3. White's idea is to utilize his two
bishops without worrying too much
about possibly going down a pawn.
Black tried the forcing 13 . . . W'eS+
14 ..ie3 .ih6 IS.W'd4 W'xd4 16 . .ixd4
.id2 + (with the fork idea on b3)
17.';!;>dl .ixc3 18 . .ixc3 19.mc2 l3xdS,
but after 2 0 .l3el mf8 2 1..ig2 l3fS 2 2 .f4,
White had excellent compensation
for his pawn. Black's two knights are
sidelined by White's active bishops.
5.a4 e6 6.b3
White also scores well with 6.axbS
cxbS 7.b3 .ib4+ 8 . .id2 .ixd2 + 9.ltJbxd2
as 1O.bxc4 b4 1l.ltJeS ltJf6 12 . .ie2 0-0
13 . .if3 l3a7 14.0-0, but Wojo had an un­
pleasant experience in this line, losing
to Atahk in 1994 after playing the in­
ferior 1l.cS.
6 . . . .tb4+ 7 . .td2 hd2 + 8 .tLlfxd2
White scores about 6S% with this.
The point is to clear the way for White's
queen to come to the hl-a8 diagonal.
8 . . . cxb3
Now 8 . . . aS? ! 9.axbS (9.bxc4 b4
10.cS ltJf6 1l.ltJc4 0-0 12.ltJbd2 .ia6 is
still good for White but isn't as clear)
9 . . . cxbS 10.bxc4 b4 can be met by
1l.W'f3 l3a7 12 .W'g3 ! forking the pawn
on g7 and Black's knight on b8.
9.axb5 b2
Black forces White to capture the
b-pawn with his rook, which will be
slightly misplaced on the b-file.
10. l3a2 tLle7
10. . . cxbS? 1l . .ixbS+ would just give
White a huge initiative. Black must
keep the lines closed for a few moves
while he catches up in development.
11.�xb2 0 - 0 12 . .td3
Many other moves have been tried
here, but Wojo's choice - developing
the bishop to the bl-h7 diagonal - is
303
 CHAPTER 14

the most logical. White's advantages 21 ••• ttla6? !

here include more aggressive devel­
opment and better control of the cent­
er thanks to the d4-pawn.
12 exb5
.•.
Black has castled so he can safely
resolve the tension on the queenside.
13 .�b5
Black cracks. The text move is an
attempt to trade pieces, but releas­
ing the tension gives White the upper
hand tactically. White is still clear­
ly better after 2 1...lLlec6, but it made
more sense for Black to be stubborn.
If Black wanted to relieve the ten­
sion, however, 2 1...�a6 ! ? would have
at least partially done so while avoid­
ing the loss of material. For instance,
2 2 .�xa6? lLlxa6 23,l'l:xcB+ fu:cB gives
Black the initiative, while 22 . .id3 ! �xc4
23 . .ixc4 !l:xcS 24.lLlxcS .ieB 2SJl:al !l:aB
leaves White with an endgame bind,
but no clear route to victory.

22.gxeS + .!xeS

22 ... fu:cB 23.lLlc5 is not much better.

13 ttlbe6
23.YlYa4
•••

The knight turns out to be vulner­

able here. 13 . .. ttld7 instead seems like Black must guard against the threat
an improvement, but White is still of �a4-eB+. Now the a-pawn falls.
better after 14.�c2 . 23 �dS 24.ttlxa5 �bl + 25 .b:bl
••• •

14:�e2 h 6 1 5 .ie4 .id7 16. !lk5

•
ttlb4 17.�e4 gbS IS. 0 - 0 �b6
19.ttle3 gfeS 2 0 .gbl a5 21.ttlb3
�f8 26.ttle4 g6 27.h3 �g7 2S . .ie 4
�d7 29.�a3 �e7 3 0 .ttld6 �d8
31 .id3 ttlbS 32.ttlee4 ttld7 33.YlYa7
•

ttlf6 34.ttlxf6 �xf6 35. VlYbS �g7

White increases the pressure. The 36 .ib5 YlYa5 37.�h2 'ilYc3 3S.�a7
•

black a-pawn is more of a weakness. �f8 3 9 . VlYb6 1- 0

Summary: With 5.a4 and 6.b3, White succeeded in breaking up Black's

queenside pawn onslaught early on. Black was left with only his a-pawn on
the queenside, which proved to be a weakness. White's control of the center
and smooth development allowed him to increase the queenside pressure un­
til Blackfinally cracked.
Conclusion: White has little trouble getting an advantage against Black's
4 . . . bS. Not surprisingly, Black's queenside pawn pushes give White the upper
hand in the center. Black's 4 ....ie6 Ieads to more complicated play, but Wojo was
willing to enter it. White's bishop pair should give him good play, but play is cer­
tainly sharp. Both of these lines from Black are relatively rare, so most players
will not find it beneficial to expend too much time studying them.

304
 Part IV
H////////H////////H//H//H////H//H///#///H//Q//H//Q//#//H//H//Q//

Black's Other Defenses

305
Chapter 15
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Queen's Gambit Accepted

1.tLlf3 d5 2.d4 tLlf6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3

It is a common misconception among amateurs that those who play the Queen's
Gambit Accepted (or "QGA") are looking to draw quietly with Black. In reality,
the QGA leads to imbalances by its very nature: Black is conceding the center
early in order to gain time for development. Black intends to stage a counter­
attack against White's center with . . . c7-c5 early on, which even gives the open­
ing some "hypermodern" flair. The QGA is also a so-called "classical" defense,
however, and is firmly rooted in easy-to-grasp principles; for this reason, it is a
frequent guest in the games of weaker club players. It tends to desert the reper­
toires of players who progress to Class A level or above, who often become fas­
cinated by the King's Indian, Griinfeld, Dutch, Modern, and other complicated
defenses - but, unsurprisingly, it re-enters the repertoires of those who make it
to the upper echelons of the game, who appreciate its dependability.

An Introd uction to Playi ng Concretely

While Wojo was certainly prepared less middlegames found in Wojo's

to take Black on in the complicated repertoire, however, White's pressure
QGA main lines, he also had a favorite is not at all obvious here. The pawn
pet line leading to - you guessed it - structure is essentially symmetrical,
a queenless middlegame. After 1.tt:'lf3 so White's advantage consists of only a
d5 2.d4 tt:'lf6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3 e6 5.,bc4 slight lead in development. Black's po­
c5 6.0-0 a6, Wojo would often disap­ sition has no inherent weaknesses, ei­
point his opponents by draining the ther. So how can White possibly hope
life out of their positions with 7.dxc5 to make headway?
�xd1 8J!xdl. Unlike the other queen- In order to play for a win from this

306
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

particular queenless middlegame, This straightforward move is sig­

White must play a particular style of nificantly less popular than 6 . . . a6, as
chess: the style of playing so-called Black loses a great deal of flexibility in
"concrete" moves. Simply developing dealing with White's various options.
pieces in a mechanical fashion is not An even less flexible line is 6 . . . cxd4,
enough. White has to develop with when White gets excellent piece play
an eye toward forcing certain conces­ after 7.exd4 i.e7 B.tLlc3 0-0 9 .l'!e1:
sions from Black. The following game
demonstrates what is meant by play­
ing "concretely." At several junctures,
White has a choice between playing a
"natural" (that is, automatic) move or
finding a slightly more forceful one.
White invariably chooses the latter,
and, over the course of the middle­
game, is rewarded for it. Meanwhile,
his opponent - a master from the
Faroe Islands - is lured into a strict­
ly defensive mindset. He thus misses Black is actually down a tempo
his only real chances to hold the game. from a line of the Panov-Botvinnik At­
tack against the Caro-Kann that runs
Baburin, Alexander (2593) l.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.c4 tLlf6
Nas , Flovin Tor 5.tLlc3 e6 6.tLlf3 i.e7 7.i.d3 dxc4 B.i.xc4
0-0. Thus, White's lead in develop­
[D26] Copenhagen 1999
ment means that he will easily be able
1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3 to control the d5 square. From the di­
agram, play might continue 9 . . . tLlc6
A slightly different move order by 10.a3 a6 1l.i.a2 b5 12 .d5 exd5 13.tLlxd5
White, allowing the try 3 . . . e5 by Black. tLlxd5 14.�xd5, with extra activity for
3.tLlf3 would be more in the spirit of a White:
Wojo move order.

3 tLlf6 4.,txc4 e6 5.tLlf3 c5

.•.

6. 0 - 0 tLlc6

After 14 . . . i.b7 15.�h5 �d6 16.i.g5

l'!adB 17.i.xe7 tLlxe7 1B.tLlg5 �g6
19.�xh7+ �xh7 20.tLlxh7 'it>xh7 2 1.l'!xe7
i.d5 22 .i.xd5 l'!xd5 23.g3, Black man­
aged to eventually hold a draw in

307
 CHAPTER 15

Benjamin-DIugy, u.s. Chp. 1985, but
lost in Benjamin-Grant, European
Union Chp. 2005.
7.dxc5
7.'�e2 is the "critical" try, but 7 . . .
cxd4 8.l'!d1 fie7 9.exd4 0 - 0 10.'lJc3
'lJaS 1l.fid3 b6 12 .figS fib7 13.l'!ac1 l'!c8
is thought to be satisfactory for Black.
Avrukh's suggestion of 12 .'�·eS ! ? ,
transferring the White queen t o the
kingside, leads to complicated and
(for the time being) relatively unex­
plored territory. With the text, White
chooses to play the endgame line any­
way. The insertion of the move . . . 'lJb8-
c6 for Black proves more useful than
. . . a7-a6, although there is still no com­
pletely clear route to equality.
Those serious about playing the
endgame line against 6 . . . 'lJc6, howev­
er, should consider the possible im­
provement 7.a3 ! ?, which has scored
well in practice. Now 7 . . . cxd4 8.exd4
fie7 9.'lJc3 0-0 lO.l'!e1 gives White the
aforementioned Panov-Botvinnik line
up a tempo, while 7 . . . a6 8.dxcS is once
again good enough for a White end­
game advantage. Black has two prin­
cipal tries:
a) 8 . . . fixcS 9.b4 ! fia7 (9 . . . fid6
10.fib2 Wfc7 11.'lJbd2 and so on is good
for White) lO.Wfxd8+ �xd8 1l.'lJbd2
was slightly better for White in Zlo­
chevskij-Dobos, Postbauer 1997. The
insertion of the move 9.b4 prevents
the setup that Black might achieve af­
ter 9.Wfxd8+ �xd8 1O.l'!d1+ �e7 11.b4
fid6. Black is solid here, as it takes
White a long time to organize fic4-e2
and 'lJb1-d2-c4.
b) 8 .. .'�·xd1 9.l'!xd1 fixeS lO.b4 fie7
1l.fib2 0-0 12 .'lJbd2 l'!d8 13.fie2 fid7
14.'lJb3 fie8 lS.l'!dc1 'lJd7 16.'lJfd4 was
also slightly better for White in Ivkov­
Sygulski, Capablanca Memorial 1985.
7 ••• Wfxdl
7 . . . fixcS here should be met by
8.Wfxd8+ �xd8 9.a3, when Black's
best is 9 . . . fid6. Now lO.'lJbd2 �e7
has generally equalized for Black, as
he has not wasted a tempo on . . . a7 -
a6: 1l.b4 as ! 12 .bS 'lJeS 13.fib2 'lJxf3+
14.'lJxf3 fid7 was agreed drawn in
Nguyen Anh Dung-Vaulin, Budapest
1998 . The more subtle 10.fie2, how­
ever, might be flexible enough to keep
a slight edge. lO. . . �e7 1l.b4 as ! ? can
now be met with 12 .bS 'lJeS 13.'lJd4,
keeping the pieces on the board and
maintaining the pressure .
8 .1'�xdl fixe5 9.a3
Preparing b2-b4. With this move,
White is looking to force Black into
some sort of positional concession.
9 ••• a5? !
Black grossly weakens the bS
square. 9 . . . a6 here is the common
move, when 10.b4 is best. Then 10...
fie7 11.fib2 bS 12 .fid3 0-0 13.'lJbd2
l'!d8 14.'lJb3 fib7 lS.l'!ac1 gives White
a slight pull:

308
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

is not a particularly desirable goal

for Black, but White is going to play
tLlc3-a4, so Black has to take some
sort of action to defend b6. 12 . . . i.b7
13.tLla4 leaves Black paralyzed on the
queenside, while 12 . . . gb8 13.tLlg5,
with similar play to the game, is also
unpleasant for Black.

13.ha6 �xa6
White has managed to coax Black
into partially ceding control over a5,
c5, and even e5 without giving up his
lead in development. The game Gul­
brandsen-Velikov, Politiken Cup 1982,
saw the Bulgarian (who was awarded
his GM title that same year) blunder
with 15 . . . gd7??, which loses immedi­
ately to 16.i.xf6, removing the guard
of the rook on d7. 16 . . . ixf6 17.ixh7+
@xh7 18.gxd7 just loses the rook, so
Black played 16 . . . gxd3 and then re­
signed in view of I7.gxd3 ixf6 18.tLlc5.
After 10.b4, Black can also try pull­ 14. ti)g5 !
ing the bishop back in the other di­
rection with 10. . . i.a7. Play continues The exclamation point is not just
along similar lines: 11.i.b2 @e7 (or for the move, but also for the crisp se­
1l.. .b5 12 .i.d3 followed by tLlbl-d2- quence that follows it. 14.gacl was also
b3) 12.tLlbd2 i.d7 13.tLlb3 and so on. possible, but White's move - prepar­
The game P.H.Nielsen-S.B.Hansen, ing to put a knight on e4 - is the most
Danish Chp. 1999, saw 13 . . . ghc8, and concrete approach. White's moves
here 14.i.d3, rather than 14.i.f1, would continue to be direct throughout this
have better maintained White's slight transitional stage of the struggle.
initiative. The bishop isn't vulnerable
on d3, so it makes sense to put it where
it controls e4.
15.tLlge4 should lead to the same
10.b3 @e7 1l.i.b2 b6 12 . ti)c3 thing, but White chooses the more di­
rect of the two options. A little aggres­
The development of the knight to sion can go a long way over the course
c3 is correct here given the weakness of several moves.
of b5.
15 . . . ti)xe4 16. ti)xe4 f6
12 . . . J.a6
This is Black's most natural move,
Trading light-squared bishops but unfortunately for him, White

309
 CHAPTER 15
now takes control of the stage. 16 . . .
�xd1+ 17.�xd1 f5 ! ? might have been
a worthwhile try to mix things up.
Here 18.ttlc3 �a8 would relieve much
of the pressure on Black's position, so
it would be tempting for White to "go
for it" with 18.ttlxc5 bxc5 19.,ixg7 �b6
20.@f1 �xb3 21.�c1 �xa3 22.�xc5 ttlb4,
with sharper play than in the game:
Now 23.e4 fxe4 24.�h5 still leaves
a lot up in the air, though White's
bishop will likely prove a stronger mi­
nor piece than Black's knight here.
17.�xd8 lbxd8 18.�cl
18 . . . .td6
This has the downside of unlock­
ing the back rank for White's rook.
Although this submissive retreat ap­
pears forced, 18 . . . ttlb7 was actual­
ly possible here, as 19.b4 ! ? (trying to
310
break through to the seventh rank)
19 . . . axb4 20.axb4 .td6 21.�c6 @d7
22 .b5 �a2 23.�xb6 �xb2 24.�xb7+
.tc7 leaves White miraculously una­
ble to defend his b5-pawn. After de­
fending against back-rank mate with
25.g3, White must either jettison the
b5-pawn after 25 . . . @c8 or try 26.ttlc5
�c2 27.�xc7+ @xc7 28.ttlxe6+ @d7
29.ttlxg7 �b2, which should also lead
to a draw. Thus, rather than enter
this line, White should switch to the
kingside and try to expand with a
move like 19.94 or 19.h4.
19.�c8 b5
Defending the bishop on d6.
20.a4
Another concrete followup. White
is forcing Black to make unpleasant
choices.
20 . . . b4
Black cannot play 20. . . bxa4? in
view of 21.ttlxd6 �xd6 22 . .ta3 @d7
23.�xd8+ @xd8 24.,ixd6 axb3 25 . .ta3,
with a winning ending for White.
21.f4 @d7
It was also possible to seek a trade
of rooks with 21.. .�c6, though this
happens eventually anyway. It is like­
ly Black overlooked or underestimat­
ed White's reply to the text move.
22.�c5 !
White resourcefully exploits the
awkward positioning of Black's piec­
es. The rook on a6 is now tied down to
the defense of the a-pawn.
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

22 ••• c!t:)b 7 23.gb5 rlle7 24.g4

While Black sorts out his messy

queenside situation, White takes the
opportunity to expand on the kingside.

24 . . . gb6 25.gxb6 rllxb6 26.g5

White has achieved his first set of

goals. Now, he sets about trying to pro­
voke a further weakening of Black's
kingside pawns. White is threatening
to play f4-fS, creating a passed pawn,
so Black's next move appears to be an
obligatory concession.

More concrete than the equally
plausible 26.rllf2 . White is preparing
to exchange into a good-knight­
versus-bad-bishop endgame.
37 . . . g6 3 8 . c!t:)e3
Heading to g4. Again Black is pro­
voked into weakening his kingside
pawns.

26 . . .fxg5 27. c!t:)xg5 c!t:)c5 38 . . .h5 39. c!t:)e2

Allowing White to exchange his Heading to h4. Black's bishop is

bishop for Black's knight, but given forced to the passive dB square.
the many pawns under attack on the
kingside, there was not much else to 39 . . . .1b6 40. c!t:)el .id8 41. c!t:)f3
be done. rlle 6 42. c!t:)d4+ rlld7 43. rlld3

28 .id4 rlle6 29 .!xe5

• • .!xe5
30. rllf2 rlld5 31. rllf3

White is in no rush to play 31.c!t:)xh7.

He is trying to establish positional
dominance. His first step is to control
the center; his second step will be to
play ltJgS-f7-eS-c4, tying Black's bish­
op to the defense of the as-pawn.

31 . . . h6 32 .e4+ rlld6 33. c!t:)t7+

ile7 34. c!t:)e5 .ib6 35. c!t:)e4 .ie7 36.e5 The king packs its bags and heads
ild7 37. rlle4 to the queenside. The white knight on

311
 CHAPTER 15

d4 and pawn on e5 work to prevent to trade off one of his weak kingside
Black's king from holding off White's. pawns.

43 •••.tb6?!

Black misses an important oppor­

tunity. The break 43 . . . g5 would have
significantly increased Black's chances
of survival. For instance, if the tempt­
ing 44.f5, Black has 44 . . . exfS 45.tDxf5
g4 46.'it>e4 h4 47.tDe3 (neither 47.'it>f4
'it>e6 nor 47. 'it>d5 g3 4S.e6+ 'it>c7 lead to
anything for White, e.g. 49.hxg3? h3
50.g4 .th4 and Black promotes) 47 . . .
g 3 4S.hxg3 hxg3 49.'it>f3 'it>e6 50.tDc4
1i.c7 51.'it>xg3 he5+ 52.'it>f3 'it>d5
53.tDxa5 (or 53.tDxe5 'it>xe5 54.'it>e3
'it>d5 55.'it>d3 'it>c5 56.'it>e4 'it>c6, hold­
ing comfortably) 53 ... ic7 54.tDc4 'it>d4
55.a5 'it>cS, winning the a-pawn and
holding a draw:
(See next diagram)
Returning to the position after 43 . . .
g5, White might instead try something
along the lines of 44. 'it>e4 gxf4 45. 'it>xf4
ie7 46.tDf3 'it>c6 47.'it>e4, when he still
has pressure, but Black has managed
44.tDf3 c;t>c6
Preventing White's king from pen­
etrating to b5. 44 . . . 1i.f2, with the idea
of 45.'it>e2 ib6 46.tDh4 idS 47.tDxg6
'it>eS followed by . . . 'it>eS-t7, would run
into 45.'it>c4 1i.e3 46.'it>b5 1i.xf4 47.h4,
fixing Black's kingside pawns while
mopping up the queenside ones. After
the text move, the g-pawn drops off.
The rest is easy.
45.ti:J h4 .tg1 46.h3 c;t>d5 47. tDxg6
.tc5 48. tbh4 .te7 49.tbg2 .td8
50.tbe3+ c;t>c5 51.c;t>e4 ib6 52 .tbc4
id8 53.f5 exf5 + 54.c;t>xf51- 0

Summary: White's concrete play allowed him to capitalize on the mis­

takes made by Black in this game. When choosing between two moves of ap­
parently equal worth, GM Baburin went with the more forceful or aggressive
option - in a strictly positional sense, he played an "attacking" game. In terms
of actual opening theory, White players might want to consider the line 6... tbc6
7.a3!?, since the immediate 7.dxc5 is less challenging. After either move, how­
ever, no clear route to equality is apparentfor Black.

Orga n izi ng a Powerful Setup

I n addition t o playing concretely,
White also needs to organize a power­
ful piece setup. In the previous game,
White was helped out considerably by
Black's opening error, 9 . . . a5. When
Black makes no obvious weakness­
es on the queenside - for instance, by
playing . . . a7-a6 and . . .b7-b6 - White
has to develop his pieces with the goal
of putting pressure on Black's posi­
tion.
The next two games illustrate what
is meant by a "powerful setup" and
how White can achieve one.

312
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
Wojtkiewicz , Aleksander (2572)
Lazarev, Vladimir (2505)
[D27] Geneva 2001
1.tOf3 d5 2.d4 tOf6 3.c4 dxc4
4.e3 e6 5.,ixc4 c5 6. 0 - 0 a6
The main line. Black stays flexible
and prepares . . . b7-bS.
7.dxc5 �xd1
7 . . . .ixcS, with an eye toward keep­
ing the Black king in the center, is cov­
ered in the game Hilton-June below.
9 .te2 !
•
It took decades of grandmaster
practice in this line before this sub­
tle move was fully appreciated. White
keeps all his options open in terms of
queenside development: his knight
can go to d2 or c3, his dark-squared
bishop can go to d2 or b2, and his
queenside pawns are not committed to
any particular formation. Meanwhile,
the purposes of 9 .�e2 are to clear the
clutter along the c-file, open c4 for a
white knight, and even to play �e2-f3
at a later point. In this way, White is
ready to reorganize his pieces.
9 •.• tObd7
With the text move, Black signals
that he is most likely going to develop
his light-squared bishop to b7. White
immediately anticipates the weakness
of the c6 square. 9 . 0-0, also common
..
played, is examined in the next game.
10.tObd2 b6 1l.tOb3
11.tOc4 is also commonly played,
but with less success. The text leads to
a stronger setup for White.
1l ••• .te7 12.tOfd4
The "soft" c6 square is now partially
under White's control. White is bring­
ing his pieces toward the queenside
and playing with the idea of a2-a4-aS.
12 . . . .tb7 13.f3
White blunts the hl-a8 diagonal
and prepares for e3-e4 and �c1-e3.
White's bishops will target Black's a6-
and b6-pawns, putting Black under
pressure.
13 ••• g5 ! ?
Black i s looking for counterplay
on the kingside. This move isn't as
313
 CHAPTER 15
bad as it looks, but it hasn't been re­
peated since this game. 13 . . . 0-0 is the
main line. Then, after 14.e4, a major
branching point is reached:
In the variations that follow, watch
for examples of how White organizes
his minor pieces in a powerful fashion.
The important lines are in bold text.
a) Exchanging knights immediate­
ly with 14 . . . tt'lc5 15.tt'lxc5 hc5 16 . .ie3
gfd8 17.@f2 @f8 18.tt'lb3 he3+
19.@xe3 @e7 20.tt'ld2 ! with the idea of
tt'ld2-c4 gave White a nagging edge in
Sasikiran-Krush, Hastings 2001/02.
The weakness of b6 is annoying for
Black, and if she plays . . . tt'lf6-d7 to cov­
er it, White has the d6-square as well.
The game continued 20. . . gac8 21.tt'lc4
gxdl 22.gxdl gc6 23.b4 tt'ld7 24.f4 b5
25.tt'la5 gc7 26.tt'lxb7 gxb7 27.gel, and
White went on to win an instructive
bishop versus knight endgame.
b) Putting the king's rook on the c­
file with 14 . . . gfc8 15 ..ie3 @f8 16.tt'ld2 !
(freeing b3 for the other knight) 16 . . .
tt'le5 17.tt'l4b3 was seen i n the World
Championship match game Kram­
nik-Kasparov (4), 2000. Although
Kasparov eventually got a draw, the
game was known as "The London
Miracle," as his position had been de­
clared hopeless by the spectators. In­
deed, Black was under heavy pressure
after 17 . . . gc6 18.gael gac8 19.9xc6
gxc6 20.g4 h6 21.h4, when White was
314
pushing on the kingside. After 21 . . . .ic8
22 .g5 hxg5 23.hxg5 tt'lfd7 24.f4 tt'lg6
25.tt'lf3 gc2 2 6.ha6 ha6 27.gxd7
gxb2 28.ga7 .ib5 29.f5, White's ad­
vantage was indisputable.
c) Placing rooks on both the c- and
d-files has been more successful for
Black in practice. For instance, 14 ...
gfd8 15 . .ie3 @f8 16.gacl gac8 17.@f2
tt'lc5 18.tt'lxc5 hc5 19.a3 @e7 was
Roussel Roozmon-Krush, Montreal
2005. White is a little better, but af­
ter 20.b4 hd4 21.gxd4 gxel 22.gxd8
@xd8 23 . .ixel tt'ld7 (or 23 . . . b5 24 . .ih2
followed by expanding on the kingside
with g2-g4), a draw was the most like­
ly outcome. In order to avoid such a
sterile outcome, White should have
played less automatically: 16.tt'ld2 !
gac8 17.tt'lc4, with a true pull, was bet­
ter. Even on the next move, 17.tt'ld2
gxcI 18.gxel .ic5 19.tt'l2b3 was a more
realistic chance for an advantage.
d) 14 . . . gac8 usually transposes into
14 . . . gfd8, for instance, 15 . .ie3 gfd8
and so on. 16.tt'ld2 also comes recom­
mended here, for instance, 16 . . . .ic5
17.tt'lc4 b5? ! 18.tt'la5 .ia8 19.a4, with a
positional advantage.
e) 14 . . . a5? ! prematurely weakens
the b5 square. 15.a4 tt'lc5 16 . .ie3 gfd8
17.tt'ld2 e5 18.tt'lf5 .if8 19 . .ib5 was a
nice advantage for White in Xu Jun­
Ganguly, Asian Chp. 2001.
Now, with that theoretical ground­
work out of the way, let's return to the
game.
l4.e4 �g8 l5 . .ie3 g4 l6.@f2
gxf3 l7. gxf3 ge8 l8.gael gxcl
19.hc1 tLlh5
Black has managed to get some
counterplay on the kingside, though
the price he has paid is that his
kingside pawns have been weakened.
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

Meanwhile, he is also short of defend­ 23.hg5 Elxg5 24.Elc1 'it>d8 25.a5 bxa5
ers for a6 and b6 on the queenside. 26.Elal. After the text move, Black's
hopes of counterplay are quickly
snuffed out.

23.gcl lLlhf6 24. lLlc6

20 .te3 .th4+
•

This is most likely Black's best try.

20... .id6, targeting kingside squares, is
logical, but White maintains an advan­ The invasion of Black's weak
tage with 21.lLlxe6 hh2 2 2 .lLled4 lLlf4 squares begins.
23J::1h l .tg3+ 24.'it>f1 lLlxe2 25.lLlxe2
ie5 26.lLlbd4 or 22 .Elhl .ig3+ 23.'it>f1 24 ••• lLlh5 25.lLlxd8 <!>xd8 26.a5
ttldf6 24.lLled4. In both cases, the
weakness of Black's kingside pawns Gaining access to the b6 square,
shows, so his position isn't pleasant. and from there, the seventh rank. Also
strong was 26.lLld2, as 26 .. .f5 ? ! 27.lLlc4
2 V�f1 .ie7? ! fxe4 28.lLld6 ! wins a piece in view of
Elc8 + . Thus, Black would have to de­
Black's biggest problem in this po­ fend with 26 .. J::1g 6 27.lLlc4 e5, when
sition is his inability to transfer his White can win a pawn by force with
king's rook to the queenside. There­ 28.Eldl 'it>e7 29J::1x d7+ 'it>xd7 30.lLlxe5+ .
fore, best was 21.. . .tg5, hoping to re­
take some control of the dark squares. 26 ••• b5 27. <!>f2
Then 22 .hg5 (not 22.'it>f2? ! lLlf4, with
fine play for Black) 22 . . . Elxg5 23.Elc1
�d8 would allow Black to hold the
queenside. His rook is active, so he is
still very much in the game. After the
text, Black reveals that he is without
a plan.

22.a4 .id8?!

Again, 22 . . . .ig5 was necessary.

White's advantage is still slight after

315
 CHAPTER 15

27 . .ib6+ <J;; e 7 28J''k 7 immediately

was also possible.

27 ••• �hf6

Defending along the sixth rank with

27 ... l'l:g6 was somewhat better. White
could continue with either 28 . .ib6+
�xb6 29.axb6 e5 30.l'l:c7 l'l:xb6 31.l'l:xf7,
or 28.�c5 lLlxc5 29.l'l:xc5, among oth­
er things.
28.ib6+ <J;;e 7
28 ... lLlxb6 29.axb6, when White
penetrates to c7, does not help mat­
ters.
29.lk7 .ic8 30 . .ic5 +
30.lLld4 with the idea of lLlc6-a7,
winning the bishop on c8, was even
faster.
31.. .lLlh5 32 . .ib6+ <J;;e 8 33.l'l:c7 (in
order to force the black king to e7, the
white rook must be lured away from
the a6-pawn for a move) 33 . . . <J;;e 7
34.lLlc5 lLlf4 35.if1 and Black is com­
pletely tied down. The white rook can
simply return to a7 next move, win­
ning the a-pawn and the game. 31.. .e5
was probably Black's best chance, but
White is still just a stone's throw away
from victory.
32 .tb6 + <J;;e 7 33.�c5
•

30 . . . <J;;d8 31. l'l:a7

Threatening to win the a6-pawn
(See next diagram) with 34.lLlxd7 hd7 35.l'l:xa6.

33 ... <J;;d6 34.�xd7 hd7 35.e5+

Taking away the e8 square from
the king is a bad idea. Of course, pick­
ing another square for the knight isn't
inspiring, either:
<J;;c6 36.f4 1- 0
Black's only defense against im­
mediate mate is to abandon his d7-bi­
shop.

Summa'Y: White should avoid playing "mechanically" in this endgame.

Going in, his only real advantage is a slight lead in development; to set Black
problems, he must arrange his pieces in a strong fashion. White's 16.l'l:ac1 in
Roussel Roozmon-Krush (see note "c" to Black's move 13) is an example of White
not posing Black serious challenges. The maneuver lLl b3-d2-c4 was much more
promising! From a theoretical standpoint, White appears to get some advan­
tagefrom the position after 13:13.

316
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
Georgiev, Kiril (26 26)
Rublevsky, Sergei (2686)
[D27] Budva 2004
1.d4 d5 2.� £l e6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3
c5 5 .ixc4 a6 6. 0 - 0 �f6 7.dxc5
• 1O.�e5 is 1O. . . b6. Black is not worried
'ixdl 8.gxdl .ixc5 9.�bd2
A slightly different move order.
White gives up the possibility men­
tioned in the next note by playing this
way.
9 . . . 0 - 0 10.i.e2
Transposing back into 9.i.e2,
which would have seen the move or­
der 9 . . . 0-0 1O.�bd2 gd8. The advan­
tage of 9.i.e2, however, is that White
has an additional possibility after
9 ... 0-0, namely 1O.�e5:
The difference here is that 10... gd8
is of course not possible from Black.
This approach has yielded White ex­
cellent results in practice, for instance,
Dydyshko-Kveinys, Polish Team Chp.
2005, saw Black in trouble after 10. . .
liJbd7 1l.�c4 �b6?! 12 .b4 ! �xc4
13.bxc5. White has the bishop pair,
and his control of the dark squares is
key: 13 . . . �a5 14.i.b2 ge8 ? ! (it is point­
less to think Black will achieve . . . e6-
e5 under favorable circumstances)
15.i.c3 �c6 16 . .ixf6 ! (ruining Black's
kingside) 16 . . . gxf6 17.�c3 @f8 18.�e4
@e7 19.�d6 gd8 20.gab1 ga7 2 l.f4 a5
22 .i.f3 a4 23.hc6 bxc6 24.gb8 i.d7
25.gxd8 @xd8 26.�xf7+ and White
went on to win.
A better approach for Black after
about 1l.i.f3 ga7, as this will allow his
rook to become active along the sev­
enth rank. In fact, the game Feller­
Michiels, Belgian Team Chp. 2007, has
dealt the move 1O.�e5 a slight blow, as
White failed to achieve a strong setup
after 11.�d2 gd8 ! (11 . . . �bd7 12.�ec4
i.b7 13.�b3 i.e7 14.f3 followed by
e3-e4 would be a strong enough set­
up for some advantage) 12.�d3 i.e7
13.�b3. The lackluster deployment
of White's knights meant he had no
advantage, and Black drew handily.
White doesn't improve with 12.�ec4,
as Black would have the resource 12 . . .
b5 ! . Here the usuaI 13.�a5 just runs
headfirst into 13 . . . i.b4, so play con­
tinues 13.�b3 gxd1+ 14.hd1 �bd7
15.�xc5 �xc5 and Black has almost
managed to equalize. For now, White
has the bishop pair, but Black's pieces
are well placed. For this reason, we are
recommending 10.�bd2 .
By far Black's most popular move.
11.�e5 i.e7
A few other moves have been tried,
but this is without a doubt the main
continuation. 1l . . . b6 12.�b3 gxd1+
13.hd1 i.d6 14.�c4 i.c7 15.i.f3 ga7
16.i.d2 i.b7 17.hb7 was agreed drawn
in Alekseev-Ivanchuk, Russian Team
Chp. 2007. White would have been
slightly better after 17 . . . gxb7 18.gc1
with either e3-e4 or i.d2-b4 to follow,
but he was not feeling ambitious.
317
 CHAPTER 15
12. lLlec4
White is preparing a strong setup
on the queenside involving lDc4-b6
and !e2-f3.
12 •.• lLlc6 ! ?
Black's most common move, but
probably not his best one. Black leaves
the b6 square vulnerable. Instead, the
alternative is 12 . . . lDbd7 13.lDb3 b6
14.f3. Here 14 ... a5 ! ? is critical (Black
can get away with weakening the b5
square since White's knight is on c4,
not d4) and play continues 15.e4 !a6
16.!e3 �ac8 17.�ac1 a4 18.lDd4:
White is planning on playing
@gl-f2 followed by expanding on the
kingside, so Black must eventually
take some action to simplify. 18 . . . ixc4
19.�xc4 �xc4 20.ixc4 lDe5 21.!e2 !c5
22.@f2 left White just a tad better in
318
Chuchelov-Rublevsky, European Chp.
2003.
13. !f3 !d7
13 . . . lDd5, trying to cover the b6
square, is also plausible. Then 14.lDb3
b5 15.lDca5 lDe5 16.!e2 !d7 17.e4 lDb6
18 . .tf4 !f6 19.1Dc5 �dc8 20.�acl .te8
21.b3 left White with a slight initia­
tive in Chuchelov-Gabriel, Bundesli­
ga 2003.
14. lLlb3 !e8 15 .td2 gac8
•
16.lLlb6 gc7 17.gac1
White has achieved an optimal
piece arrangement, but Black's piec­
es are huddled in a defensive cluster.
17 . . . lLld7
Understandably, Black seeks to
trade pieces. White obliges, but only
because he is able to damage Black's
queenside pawn structure.
18.,ixc6
18.!a5, a darling of computer en­
gines, is not as good. Wholesale piece
swaps with 18 . . . lDxb6 19.�xd8 ixd8
20.ixb6 �c8 2 1.ixd8 �xd8 leaves
White with little to play for.
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
White correctly avoids piece swaps.
After regrouping and expanding in the
center, he will return to put pressure
on Black's isolated queenside pawns.
Black activates his light-squared
bishop, which is boxed in on eB. The c­
pawn will still be weak on c5, however,
and Black will be forced to defend it.
2 2 . £3 .ib5 23.e4 �d7 24 . .te3 h6
25.�ba5 'u6 26.b3
White's arrangement of pieces and
pawns is most aesthetic. Threats of
iLla5-b7 are in the air, so if Black wants
to avoid passive defense with a move
like 26 . . J�bB, his reply makes sense.
26 . . . .td4
If 26 .. J!:bB then 27J!:d1, preparing
to invade on d6, is painful for Black.
27.hd4 !
The less ambitious 27.mf2 is also
possible, but White correctly smells
blood.
27.•. cxd4
After this recapture, Black will
have a "strong" passed pawn on d4.
White will simply blockade the pawn
with ltJc4-d2 and invade along the c­
file, picking up the a6-pawn.
28.�d2 �e5 29.a4
Mobilizing the queenside. White is
dislodging the defense of the a-pawn.
29 ..•.te2 30.gc7 .tdl? !
Black mysteriously deserts the a6-
pawn. White would still have had the
upper hand after 30 .. J!:d7 3UkB+
mh7 32 .b4 and so on. White will follow
up with ltJa5-b3 and create a strong
passed pawn on the queenside.
The a-pawn can run, but it can't
hide.
33.mf2 g5
Black cements the knight on e5,
but it is unclear what he is doing.
34.mel .tc2 35.�b7
319
 CHAPTER 15

Smothering Black's rook and pick­ 41" . tLlb4

ing up the a5-pawn. White is on the
verge of victory. Allowing the following transition
into a winning endgame, but there
35 .•• d3 36.tLlxa5 f5 was not much else.

The counterattack is not particu­ 42.gb5 gxb5 43.axb5 tLld5

larly effective, but Black is desperate.
37.gc5 tLlg6 38.e5 tLlf4 39.�f2
tLld5 40.tLlc6 gb6 41.tLld4
White is taking his time before send­
ing his passed pawns up the board.
44.tLlxe6 �f7 45.tLld4 f4 46.�el
�e7 47.tLlc4 tLle3 48 .b6 1- 0
White has carefully guarded
against the advance of the d-pawn,
and now his own b-pawn is unstop­
pable.

Summary: In this game, White managed to organize his pieces in a pow­

erful fashion once again. As he was developing his pieces, White put serious
thought and effort into determining where they should go, and it paid offhand­
somely in the form of concrete weaknesses to attack on the queenside. Against
Black's immediate 9 . . . 0 - 0 , both 1 0 Ji'.lbd2 and 1 0 .0.e5 are interesting, but
1 0 .0.e5 may be somewhat too committal. This game is an excellent illustra­
tion of how to handle White's position after 1 0 . tLlbd2.

Exploiting Positional Mistakes Made at Club Level

So far, we have only been looking at
games between masters or grand­
masters. What mistakes are common
by Black at the club level? For start­
ers, non-masters are far more likely to
make weakening pawn moves in or­
der to develop their pieces. As we have
seen, it is not unusual for strong play­
ers to make a single weakening pawn
move with Black - in other words, one
weakening pawn move is a "normal"
mal course of such a game and wraps
up our discussion of the QGA endgame
lines by covering 6 ... a6 7.dxeS heS, an
important theoretical possibility.
Hilton, Jonathan (2243 USCF)
June, Peter (1981 USCF)
[D27] Columbus (Ohio) 2009
1.tLlf3 d5 2.d4 tLlf6 3.c4 dxc4
4.e3 e6 5 .b:c4 c5 6. 0 - 0 a6 7.dxc5
•

concession. Weaker players, however, .b:c5

often accrue two or even three pawn
weaknesses voluntarily. Punishment is
often swift, with White attacking weak
pawns and weak squares by making
logical developing moves. The follow­
ing example demonstrates the nor-
Black aims to keep his king in the
center. This move has become more
popular in recent times and many
players, including Topalov, prefer it
to the submissive 7 . . . Wfxdl.

320
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
8 . 'fHxd8 + �xd8 9.ttlbd2
This move has been played twice
as frequently as any other move in the
database, but once again, White has
more flexible move-order options to
choose from. 9 . .ie2 ! immediately is
the "topical" line, and after 9 . . . �e7
White has a couple of decent ways to
proceed:
a) 1O.b3 is the less ambitious ap­
proach. Here 10. . . b6 l1.tLleS .ib7
12 .tLld2 tLle4 13.tLlxe4 he4 14 . .ib2
f6 lS.tLld3 hd3 (or lS . . . .id6 16.f3)
16.hd3 gave White the bishop pair
and a slight edge in the blitz game
Kramnik-Karjakin, Dortmund 2004.
Thus Black usually plays first 10 . . .
iLlbd7, controlling eS, when 1 l . .ib2 b 6
12.tLlel was an interesting try for the ad­
vantage in Kozul-Kveinys, Nova Gori­
ca 2004. White did get a bit of an edge
after 12 . . . .ib7 13.tLld3 .id6 14.iLld2 bS
(played to prevent iLld2-c4; otherwise,
14 . . . tLlcS lS.iLlc4 tLlxd3 16.hd3 .icS
17.gfd1 is also a slight edge to White)
lS.gfc1 ghc8 16 . .if3 hf3 17.tLlxf3 tLlcS
18.tLlxcS gxcS 19.9xcS hcS 20.gc1
.id6 21.h3 tLle8 2 2 .e4 ! f6 23.eS fxeS
24.tLlxeS tLlf6 2S.tLlf3. The slight struc­
tural damage inflicted upon Black's
kingside pawns proved enough for a
White win in this particular game.
b) 10.tLleS tLlbd7 1l.tLlc4 is White's
best shot at a true advantage, as he is
well on his way to achieving a strong
setup focusing on the queenside. Black
has two main tries here. The lesser is
1l . . . gd8 12.tLlbd2 �f8 ! ? 13.tLlb3 .ie7,
when White has an advantage after
14.gd1. (Tratar-J.lvanov, Campillos
2007, and D6ttling-Scholz, Bundesliga
2007, both resulted in wins for White
here. Black might just have well played
8 . . .'�xd1 and 9 . . . 0-0.) So slightly better
is 1l . . . tLle4 12.tLlbd2 tLldf6 (12 . . . tLlxd2
13.hd2 would give White a tremen­
dous lead in time) 13.tLlb3 .ia7 14.gd1
.id7 lS'f3 tLlcS 16.tLld4 with a pull for
White, as in Laznicka-Ganguly, Dres­
den Olympiad 2008. In fact, those who
like playing this way with White of­
ten play the more forcing 9.tLleS @e7
1O. .ie2 to transpose into this line.
9 ••• ttlc6 ! ?
The development o f the knight
to c6 so early is somewhat commit­
tal. 9 . . . @e7 is the traditional "main
line." Now 1O. .ie2 .id7 11.tLlb3 is "crit­
ical," even though White gets only a
slight advantage at best after 1l . . . .ia7
(1l . . . .ib6 ! ? 12 . .id2 tLlc6 13 . .ic3 ghd8
14.tLlfd2 .ie8 lS.tLlc4 .ic7 16.gac1 left
White with a pleasant game in Gel­
fand-Shirov, Monaco (blindfold) 2001.
In this bout of blindfold play, White
infamously hung a rook and lost from
up two pawns in a rook-and-pawn
ending.) 12 . .id2 iLlc6 13.tLlaS and so
on. 13 . . . ghc8 14.tLlxc6+ hc6 lS.tLleS
with a tiny edge was seen in Shirov­
Motylev, FIDE World Chp. 2001.
10.a3
Even better here is 1O . .ie2, as usual.
10 . . . �e7 1l . .ie2 e5?
321
 CHAPTER 15
Although there are undoubtedly
some circumstances in this variation
where the move ... e6-e5 by Black might
come under consideration, this is not
one of them. With this move, Black
cedes the d5 square and voluntarily
weakens his e-pawn. To make matters
worse, the c8-bishop, newly liberated,
will not find much to do on the h3-c8
diagonal. 1l . . . .td7 or even 1l . . .b5 were
better tries. After the latter, 12.M .td6
13 . .tb2 .tb7 14.Ei:ac1 Ei:ac8 15.tt:lb3 would
keep a slight advantage for White.
12 .b4 .ta7
12 . . . .td6, safeguarding e5, was
probably better. After the text, Black's
e-pawn falls under siege.
13 .tb2 tt:ld7 14.1Udl b5? !
•
With this move, things go from bad
to worse. Black is too far behind in de­
velopment to support all these pawn
moves - not to mention his king is in
the center of the board.
Played to prevent tt:ld6.
16. Ei:acl .tb7 17. tt:lfd2
Moving the knight allows White to
play .te2-f3 or .te2-g4. White is also
sending more pieces to the queenside.
322
17 ••. Ei:d8 18 . .ig4
After this, Black is objectively lost.
18 . . . g6, threatening ... V-fS, was per­
haps Black's last chance to offer re­
sistance. Then 19 . .txd7 'ii>xd7 20.tt:lc4+
'ii>e7 (20 ... 'ii>e 6 21.tt:lc5+ 'ii> e7 22 .tt:lb6
Ei:a7 23.tt:ld5+ or 20 ... 'ii> c8 21.tt:lb6+ are
devastating) 21.tt:lb6 Ei:a7 22 .tt:lc5 1eaves
White with an overwhelming advan­
tage.
19 . . . 'ii>xf6 20. .tf3 Ei:c8 21.tt:le4+ 'ii>e7
2 2 .tt:lc5 tt:ld8 23 . .txb7 tt:lxb7 24.Ei:d7+
just loses a piece for Black.
20 .if3
•
Black's pawn structure on the
kingside has been damaged beyond
repair. White now takes control of e4
and f5, winning the game.
20 �d6 21.tt:le4 �xdl + 22.�xdl
.•.
�a7 23.tt:lg3 .ia8 24 .te4 a5 25.bxa5
•
tt:lxa5 26 .txh7 c!lJc4 27 .tc3 c!lJxa3
• •
28 .tb4+ 'ii>e 8 29.c!lJf5 1- 0
•
The only defense against mate,
29 . . . Ei:d7, drops a piece after 30.Ei:xd7
'ii>xd7 31..txa3.
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

Summary: Non-masters oftenfall apart whenfaced with this Wojo end­

game line. They do not have the experience or the patience to lookfor gradu­
al equality, and, in their rush to equalize, often commit serious positional er­
rors. The move 7. . . i.cS is certainly a viable alternativefor Black, and the theo­
ry behind this line is still being worked out. For now, it is widely believed that
White's plan of 9.i.e2 and 1O.lDe5 (or 9.lDe5 and lO.i.e2), placing his knights
on c4 and b3, and taking control of the dark squares with i.c1-d2 is danger­
ous for Black.

Conclusion: White enjoys good play in the "endgame line" that occurs af­
ter 6 . . . a6 7.dxcS. He can look forward to finding strong squares for his pieces
and obtaining a nagging edge, and opponents at all levels often find it frustrat­
ing to play against this system.

Black's QGA Sidel ines

Black has any number of minor side­
lines within the Queen's Gambit Ac­
cepted. The main attraction of these
sidelines from Black's perspective is
that they are usually easy to learn,
based on natural developing moves,
and are still relatively unexplored.
Most don't require much theoretical
knowledge on White's part. In gen­
eral, White can rely on his structural
superiority to bring about a slight ad­
vantage; there is rarely much cause to
5.a4
play anything "radical." In the follow­
ing game, for instance, White converts Of course White should challenge
an endgame advantage without doing Black's shaky setup immediately.
anything particularly memorable.
5 . . b4
.

Savchenko, Stanislav (2583)

Rabinovich, Alexander (2413)
[D2S] Antwerp 1999
l.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.tOf3 tOf6
4.e3 b5
This move is often seen in amateur
games. At the lower levels, however,
Black usually has a very different fol­
lowup planned.
Black's best try. Instead, 5 . . . c6,
temporarily preserving the pawn, is
the move frequented by many club
players. Then 6.axbS cxbS 7.b3 wins
back the pawn for White. No matter
how Black chooses to return the pawn,
he will be saddled with a weak a-pawn,
made even weaker by the opening of
the queenside. The Internet blitz game
"Alexwojt" - "Soporifico," 2005, saw

323
 CHAPTER 1S
Wojo reach a winning position after
7 ... cxb3 B.ixbS+ ,td7 9.�xb3 ixbS? !
( 9. . .e 6 10. 0-0 a 6 1l.,te2 'Dc6 12 .,ta3
ixa3 13.ttlxa3, with better position
for White, was preferable) lO.�xbS+
�d7 11.ttlc3 e6? 12 .'DeS �xbS 13.'DxbS
,tb4+ 14.@e2 (14.,td2 is even strong­
er) 14 ... 'DdS 1S.,td2 ixd2 16.@xd2 :
Now Black played 16 ... 'Dd7,
and here 17.e4 ! 'DxeS 1B.dxeS 'Db6
19.ttlc7+, rather than 17.'Dd6+, would
have been decisive.
6 .he4 e6 7. 0 - 0 ,tb7 8 . tt:lbd2
•
ie7
Avrukh points out that the move
order B ... 'Dbd7? ! is inaccurate in
view of 9.e4 ! , when the pawn should
not be captured in view of 9 ... 'Dxe4
10.ttlxe4 ixe4 1U�e1 ixf3 12.�xf3
,te7 13.dS 0-0 14.dxe6 fxe6 1S.ixe6+
@hB 16.�h3, when White's bishops
will dominate the board. Instead, 9 ...
ttlb6 1O.,tbS+ c6 1l.,td3 as 12 .'Db3 Ieft
White with an ideal setup in Taima­
nov-Benedictsson, Reykjavik 196B.
With the superior B ... ,te7, Black is
ready to castle immediately.
9.b3
Logical development. Avrukh's
suggestion of 9.aS ! here looks even
324
stronger, however, as the text has the
disadvantage of taking the b3 square
from White's knight. The march of
White's a-pawn presents Black with
additional problems, as both the lines
9 ... a6 1O.�a4+ �d7 1l.�c2 cS 12.dxc5
�c7 13.'Db3 'Dbd7 14.,td2 and 9 ... 0-0
10.a6 ,tdS ll.,td3 cS 12.e4 ,tc6 13.�e2
cxd4 14.'Db3, as analyzed by Avrukh,
seem to give White a clear advantage.
For those interested in putting a little
effort into this variation, 9.aS comes
highly recommended; the text move,
however, is certainly sufficient for a
sizable edge.
9 0 - 0 10.,tb2 tt:lbd7 11.�e2 e5
•••
12.gfdl �a5 13.gael
So far, White's opening setup has
been self-explanatory. All of his piec­
es are on good squares, and Black's
pawns on the queenside are simply
overextended. White's control of the
c4 square is one of his main trumps
here.
13 . . . gfd8
13 ... cxd4 immediately would
have been more accurate. Then after
14.'Dxd4 'DcS, Black prevents White
from retreating his bishop to the d3
square as in the game. Perhaps White
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
would attempt to play Wle2-el, i.c4-e2,
and lDd2-c4 in order to get his knight
to the c4 square.
14 . .tbS !
A nice "probing" move. White's
bishop on b5 is strong, so Black must
kick it out with . . . a7-a6, further weak­
ening his queenside.
14 . . . a6 lS . .td3
White's knight now comes to the c4
square.
lS . . . cxd4 16.hd4
16.lDxd4 is not nearly so strong, as
White's knight on d4 isn't particular­
ly useful. The text move gives White
dominance of two key diagonals, gl­
a7 and al-h8.
16 . . . �ac8
16 . . . e5 ! ? would have been a good
try to mix things up. Black is threaten­
ing . . . e5-e4, so 17.lDc4 Wld5 18.lDcxe5
ttJxe5 19.he5 Wlxb3 20.�c7 hf3
2l.Wlxf3 now leads to complicated
play. White's bishop pair gives him the
better chances, for instance 21...@f8
22 .i.c2 Wla2 23.i.d4 ! followed by �dl­
al. After the text move, White's slight
advantage goes uncontested.
17.tLlc4 WlhS 18.tLlfeS �xe2
19.he2 tLlxeS 20.heS tLl d7? !
Both 20. . . lDe4 2U§:xd8 + l§:xd8
22.lDa5 i.d5 23.lDc6 hc6 24.l§:xc6
and 20. . . l§:xdl+ 2 1.l§:xdl l§:d8 2 2 .l§:xd8+
hd8 23.f3 leave White with a bet­
ter endgame, but now Black seriously
compromises his d6 square.
21.i.d6 @f8 2 2 . tLl aS
White's pressure on the queenside
is mounting.
2 2 . . . .tdS?
A further inaccuracy. 22 . . . l§:xcl
23.l§:xc1 l§:c8 (not 23 . . . hd6? 24.lDxb7,
winning immediately) was prefera­
ble, though Black was already in seri­
ous trouble. Now 24.i.c7 lDc5 25.lDxb7
l§:xc7 26.lDxc5 l§:xc5 27.l§:xc5 hc5
28.ha6 gives Black fine chances of
drawing the opposite-colored-bishop
ending, so White should instead go for
the line 24.l§:xc8+ hc8 25.he7 + @xe7
26.lDc6+ @d6 27.lDxb4 lDc5 28.i.c4
as. Black's king is active enough to
325
 CHAPTER 15

give him some drawing chances, and

White's extra pawn is backward and
may eventually be attacked by . . . �d6-
c5-b4.
That said, 29.lik 2 !a6 ? ! 30.ttJa3 !
is still a tremendous advantage for
White.

23 .tc7
•

After this move, White is close to

winning.
29 . . . .ia2

29 . . . ha4 30.!d6 hd6 3l.gxd6

It is not a good sign for Black that
the computer prefers losing an ex­
change with 23 . . . ttJc5 24.hd8 gxd8
25.!c4 !e4 to the text move.
24 .b:a6 ga8 25.!b5 ! ?
•
Simplifying with 25.!b7 hb7
26.ttJxb7 was even stronger. Black now
manages to create some counterplay,
but White still has the win in hand.
25 . . . tOc5
A forced exchange sacrifice, but
not a bad one considering Black's cir­
cumstances.
gb8 32.gd4, pinning the b-pawn to
Black's bishop, should be winning for
White. No better is 29 . . . gxa4, when
30.!d6 hd6 3l.gxd6 e5 32.gc5 !e6
(32 .. .f6 33.gc7 leaves Black likely to
get checkmated) 33.gxe5 b3 34.gb6,
with ge5-b5 to follow also does the
trick.
30. . . b3 was also possible here, as
3l.a5? gc8 ! with the threat of . . . !e7-
a3 and . . . b3-b2 would turn the ta­
bles. 3l.!e5 !b4 32 .ge2 f6 33.!b2 or
33 .!c3 is still good for White, how­
ever.

26.he8 �xe8 27. £1! ? 31 .td6

•

White's minor pieces are severely
tangled, so he jettisons the b3-pawn.
Chess engines, apparently caught up
in Black's "strong" passed b-pawn, fail
to appreciate the simplicity of White's
win from the ensuing endgame. His
technique is impeccable.
27 . . . tOxb3 28.tOxb3 .b:b3
29.�d4
The correct plan. With the dark­
squared bishops off the board, Black
has no hope of advancing his b-pawn
to b2.
3 1 . . . hd6
The exchange of bishops can hard­
ly be avoided, as 31.. .!f6 drops a pawn
to 32 .hb4.

326
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
32.�xd6 b3 33.�b6 �e7 34.�f2
ga735.�e2 �d736.�c5 �e737.�cb5
White now has a complete lock­
down on the b-file. With his next few
moves, he shifts his focus to the sev­
enth rank.
37 . . . �f6 38.�b7 �a8
An exchange of rooks would have
allowed the game to drag on for long­
er, but White would have little diffi­
culty gaining space on the kingside
and converting his extra exchange.
39.�c5 �g6 40.g4 h6 41.h4 �h7
41...�f8, defending t7, would leave
Black close to Zugzwang after 42 .e4.
Black is quickly running out of useful
moves.
The rest is desperation.
42.�cc7 e5 43.�d2 e4 44.f4 h5
45.g5 1- 0
Summary: The reasonable setup
demonstrated in this game is enough
to give White a nice edge against the
line 4...b5 5.a4 b4. Meanwhile, 5...c6
is not a serious try by Black, as White
is, again, significantly better.
The following game deals with an­
other sideline, 4 . . . �g4. Black does not
create any weaknesses in his position
with this move, so White has to play
with somewhat more energy to secure
a slight edge. Wojo does so in an in­
structive manner.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2535)
Krush, Irina (2455)
[D22] World Open 2005
1.c�f3 d5 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 dxc4
4.e3 ,tg4
This pin is particularly popular at
the club level, where Black seeks to
just develop his pieces quickly and is
not concerned with nuances such as
preserving the bishop pair.
5 .ixc4 e6
•
The traditional main line. 6.h3 .thS
7.g4 immediately is also common,
with the same ideas as in the game.
After 7 . . . �g6 8.1Z1eS, White succeeds
in getting the bishop pair, as 8 . . . .te4?!
9.f3 is considered good for White:
a) 9 . . . .tdS 1O.WI'a4+ lZlbd7 1l . .te2
.td6 12.1Z1c3 heS 13.dxeS �c6 14.WI'd4
lZldS lS.h4 lZlxc3 16.WI'xc3 as 17.e4
327
 CHAPTER 15

gave White a nice initiative in Panno­ i.g4 variation with the straightfor­
Schweber, Argentinian Chp. 19BO. ward B.O-O i.d6 (or B . . . i.e7 9.e4) 9.e4
b) 9 ... .bbl lOJ'!xbl ttJfd7 1l.�b3 e5 1O.i.e2 0-0 1l.dxe5 ttJxe5 12.ttJd4
gave White good prospects in Bocha­ i.c5 13.lLlb3 '%YxdI 14 . .bdl i.b6, when
rov-Fominyh, Russia Cup 2001. The White gets a slight endgame pull after
game ended swiftly after 1l . . . ttJb6 15.a4 .bdI 16J'!xdl a5 17.i.g5:
12 .i.d3 h5? 13.i.g6 ! �h4+ (or 13 . . .
fxg6 14.'%Yxe6+ '%Ye7 15.'%Yxg6+ «t>dB
16.ttJf7+) 14.«t>f1 '%Yg3 15.'%Yxe6+ i.e7
16 ..bf7+ «t>dB 17.i.d2 i.h4 1-0. Black
resigned without waiting for White's
reply IB.i.el, winning the queen.
Thus, going back to the position
after B.ttJe5, play continues B . . . ttJbd7
9.ttJxg6 hxg6 10.ttJc3 c6:

White has pressure both on the

queenside and in the center.

7.h3 .tIt5 8.g4 !

Now this i s the correct plan, as

Black's move . . . a7-a6 serves less pur­
pose than . . . ttJbB-d7 would have.

8" .i.g6 9. �e5 �bd7 10.�xg6

Now White plays either 1l.i.f1 (as
bxg6
in the game) or 1l.i.d2 i.e7 12.'%Yf3,
with a slight edge in either case thanks
to his bishop pair.

6 . . . a6 ! ?

Black guards the b 5 square, but

this move order is inaccurate. 6 . . .
lLlbd7, grappling for control o f the e5
square, is more common. After 7.h3
i.h5, the try B.g4 ! ? is inadvisable, as
B ... i.g6 9.ttJh4 i.e4 ! now sets White
considerable problems. 1O.ttJxe4 ttJxe4
l1.lLlf3 h5 ! ? led to complications fa­ H.i.fl. !
vorable for Black in Ftacnik-Rogers,
4NCL 2000. An odd-looking move, but one
Thus, it is likely that Wojo planned firmly rooted in the spirit of this var­
to play into the "main line" of the 4 . . . iation for White. White shores up his

32B
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED
kingside pawns and puts his bishop
on the Catalan diagonal. He can af­
ford the loss of time because of his (for
now) uncontested central control.
1l.•. c6
Black feels compelled to close the
h1-a8 diagonal, and rightly so. The
move . . . a7-a6 now looks out of place,
however.
12 .tg2 �e7 13 .i.d2 e5
• •
Black fights for the center, but
White's reply is powerful.
14.d5
A strong idea from Wojo! White's
main strength is his Catalan bishop,
so it makes sense to hammer open the
h1-a8 diagonal. With this move, White
is seeking to make the d5 square an
outpost.
14 ••• c!lJxd5
14 . . . cxd5 15.lLlxd5 lLlc5 16.lLlxf6+
ixf6 17. 0-0 is more or less similar to
the game.
15. c!lJxd5 cxd5 16.hd5 c!lJc5
17.�c3 YNc7 18.YNfJ
White cements his control of the
h1-a8 diagonal.
18 •.• J.f6 19. 0 - 0 0 - 0
Black had no opportunities to "mix
things up" so to speak. 19 . . . e4 20.,i,xe4
,i,xc3 2 1.bxc3 lLlxe4 22 .YNxe4+ @f8
23.13ab1 13xh3 24.YNg2 is miserable for
Black.
20.13acl gad8 21.gfdl YNe7
22 .i.a5 gd7 23 .YNe2
•
Another good move. 23 ..i.b4 b6
24.,i,xc5 bxc5 25.e4 and so on was also
possible, but White is trying to lure
Black into overextending her pawns.
23 ••• e4
Black takes the bait, but out of ne­
cessity more than desire. Alternatives
were far less appealing, as White was
ratcheting up the pressure.
24 .i.b4 b6 25.hc5 bxc5 26 .i.c4
• •
White may not appear to have a
significant advantage here, but Black
now encounters serious difficulty de­
fending her three weak pawns.
26••• a5 27.gxd7 YNxd7 28.YNc2
329
 CHAPTER 15

Black has saved her a-pawn, so

White switches to attacking the e­
pawn.

2S . . . Yfl>7

One of the targets falls, leaving

White a pawn to the good. More than
anything else, White's four-to-three
29 .ib3 !
pawn majority on the kingside gives
•

him a more secure king position.

This is stronger (and more crea­
tive) than the routine 29.b3. White
37 g6 3S.l:!cS c.t>g7 39.a4 �h7
now brings the queen into the game
•••

40.l:!c6 c.t>g7 41.l:!c5 YHd6 42 . .if3

to good effect.
YHd7 43.l:!d5 YHe7 44.l:!c5 ti'dS
45. Yfl>5 YHd6 46.l:!c6
29 ••• l:!cS 30.ti'c4 .hb2
White's shuffling is intended to
30. . . 'lWe7 31.l:!c2 would also leave
wear down his opponent. 46.l:!c8 im­
Black with problems, for instance,
mediately is also strong.
3l.. .!e5 32 .'lWa6, hitting the a5- and
g6- pawns.

31.l:!bl M6 32 .ic2 'lWe7 33 . .ixe4

•

�h7 34 .id5 •

White has cleared some of the clut­

ter on the board and is now focus­
ing his energy on the a5-, c5-, and fl­
pawns.

Eventually, the weaknesses around

Black's king prove telling. Black is run­
ning out of useful moves, however, so 47 . . . 'lWxb5? 48.axb5 and White's b­
it is hard to criticize this pawn push. pawn is unstoppable.

330
 THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT ACCEPTED

4S .tb7
•

Boxing in Black's rook on a7. Black

will soon be in a sort of Zugzwang. In­
stead, 48.'W'e8 was winning by force,
but White has to see such varia­
tions as 48 .. .'�h6 (or 48 .. .'�h7 49.h4)
49.h4 ! gxh4 50.'W'f8+ :JI.g7 51.g5+ @xg5
52 .'\Wxg7 h3+ 53.@g3 'W'd6+ 54.@xh3
vge6+ 55.@g3 'W'xc8 :

52 .J.c6?!

A product of fatigue. White botches

56.:JI.h5 ! (threatening f2-f4) 56 . . .
�xh5 57.'W'h7+ @g5 58.'W'h4+ @f5
59.'W'g4+ @f6 60.'W'xc8 and so on.
Rather than this, the text move forces
Black to simplify, carrying White's ad­
vantage into the endgame.
4S :i'b2 49.gc7 'W'xb5
•.
The exchange of queens was nec­
essary, as after 49 . . . :JI.e5 50J�d7, Black
is out of moves. White threatens 'W'b5-
d5, piling up on fl.
50.axb5 a4 51.b6 ga5
the win: best was 52 .gd7 followed by
:JI.b7-d5, for instance, 52 . . . gb5 53.:JI.d5
gxb6 54.gxfl + @h6 55.ga7 gb4 56.:JI.c6
and White will be two pawns up. That
said, White still has some difficulties
creating a passed pawn, so Black could
easily fight on.
52 ••• a3?
52 . . . :JI.d8 instead saves the game
easily. Black likely missed either
53.l:!b7 54.:JI.e8 hb6 ! 55.hfl l:!a7
or 53.l:!d7 hb6 54.:JI.d5 l:!a7, both of
which draw. White also has nothing af­
ter 53.l:!a7 hb6 54.l:!xa5 haS 55.ha4,
with an opposite-colored-bishop draw.
After the text, both pawns queen, lead­
ing to an abrupt win for White.
53 .b7 a2 54.bS'W' al'W' 55.'W'b3 !
1- 0

Summa'1l: White has at least two pleasant options against the 4 . . . :JI.g4
line. He can either go after the bishop pair immediately with 6.h3 :JI.h5 7.g4 :JI.g6
8.tiJe5, or he can aim for expansion in the center with 6.h3 :JI.h5 7. ltJ c3 ltJbd7
8. 0 - 0 :JI.d6 9.e4. In both cases, White's bishop on c4 will likely retreat to a bet­
ter square early on. Theory maintains that White should have a slight edge.
Conclusion: Most of Black's QGA sidelines are fully playable, but none is
particularly dangerous from White's point of view. White does need to know
how to react against them, but there certainly isn't any point in "booking up"
on theory.

331
Chapter 16
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Tarrasch

l.tOf3 d5 2.d4 e 6 3.c4 c 5 4.cxd5

exd5 5.tOc3 tO c6 6.g3 tOf6 7 .ig2 •

�e7 8. 0 - 0 0 - 0 9.b3

The Tarrasch Defense, named after the German master Siegbert Tarrasch (1862-
1934), is traditionally reached after the move order l.d4 d5 2 .c4 e6 3.tOc3 c5. It
can arise in a number of ways from a "Wojo" move order: l.lDf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4
e6, l.lDf3 lDf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 c5 4.i.g2 d5 5.cxd5 exd5 6.d4, and l.lDf3 d5 2.d4 lDf6
3.c4 e6 4.g3 c5 are just a few of the many possibilities. While the defense is less
common for Black at the grandmaster level - a well-prepared White player has
his pick of strong systems against it - it is often considered an annoyance at the
club level. In this chapter, we'll examine how Wojo dealt with the Tarrasch us­
ing his favorite "double fianchetto" system.

A Positiona l Strategy for Wh ite

When Wojo played against the Tar­ sion by examining these ideas in the
rasch Defense, one of his favorite ide­ following example.
as was to fianchetto both bishops. This
plan seems innocuous at first, but as
it turns out, Black must initiate tacti­ Andersson, utf (2640)
cal complications to avoid falling into Handoko, Edhi (2420)
a passive position. At the club level, [D33] Indonesia 1983
Tarrasch players are unlikely to know
the precise sequences needed to cre­ I.tOf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4 e6 4.cxd5
ate this wild, tactical play, and will exd5 5.g3 tOc6 6.�g2 tOf6 7. 0 - 0
probably exit known theory quickly. i.e6 8.tOc3 h6
White will then need to know the ideas
and themes necessary to "grind Black A perfectly playable line, but ar­
down" in a positional struggle greatly guably less flexible than the main line
favoring him. We'll begin our discus- with 7 . . . i.e7 and 8 . . . 0-0.

332
 THE TARRAS CH
9.b3
9 . .tf4 is a promising alternative,
but we recommend simply playing the
queenside fianchetto anyway. Odd­
ly enough, one of the main ideas of
9 . .tf4 is to play lDf3-e5, trade knights,
and plant the bishop on the e5 square.
Thus, it makes sense to put the bishop
on the long diagonal right away.
9 . . . l:k8 10.i.b2 i.e7
With his next few moves, White
executes a standard maneuver for this
system.
1l.dxcS !
White soon gains time on Black's
dark-squared bishop, which is ex­
posed on c5.
1l hcS 12.!kl 0 - 0
..•
White is of course not worried
about 12 . . . d4? 13.tt:la4.
Whenever White plays this move,
he must be careful that he is not se­
riously weakening the light squares
around his king. In this case, Black
is in no position to exploit the slight
weaknesses created by this move, as
we will see over the next few moves.
14.e3 Wd7
Targeting the light squares.
IS.�d4
Textbook occupation of the d4
square.
IS .tg4
•.•
Surprisingly, Black is probably
better off playing 15 . . . tt:lxd4 16.Wxd4
b6. White is then deprived of the c5
square for his queenside knight, and
will probably seek to reroute the piece
via the maneuver tt:la4-c3-e2-f4. This
takes time, however, and Black can re­
spond . . . .te7-c5 when White moves his
knight away from a4. Andersson may
well have planned to play the less am­
bitious recapture 16.hd4, which re­
tains much of White's original pres­
sure.
16.f3 !
White's central pawn formation
- e3, f3, g3 - has been slightly com­
promised. In exchange, however, he
333
 CHAPTER 16

gains valuable central space with gain 21.g4! :B:c2 22.:B:c1 :B:xc1 + 23 .bcl
•

of tempo. �c6 24.�d2 ttld7 25.,tb2 �c7

Note that there is always a slight 26.�c3
risk in playing this move. White must
be careful that his e3-pawn does not
become increasingly weak as the piec­
es are traded; for instance, the trade
of dark-squared bishops might al­
low Black to pile up along the e-file.
A queen trade, however, would allow
White to put his king comfortably on
f2 .

16 .te6?!
.•.

16 . . . ih3 would be more in keeping

with Black's strategy. Black should no Heading for a superior endgame.
longer fear the exchange of minor piec­
es, as White's weakness on e3 should 26 �xc3 27.hc3 ttlc5 2S.mfl
•.•

at least partially balance Black's ttld3 29 .id2

weakness on dS. Play might continue
17.tt:'lcS (17.ixh3 'lWxh3 18.'lWd3, seiz­
ing the light squares, is also possible)
17 . . .ixcS 18.:B:xcS ixg2 19.mxg2 'lWd6 !
(19 . . . 'lWe7 is pleasant for White 20.'lWc1)
20.:B:c1 (Now 20.'lWc1 could be met with
20 . . . tt:'ld7) 20 . . . :B:fe8 21.�d2, when
White's advantage is notably less pro­
nounced than in the game.
Black's defensive task here is bur­
densome, as the White bishops pre­
vent the black knight from gain­
ing much activity. White's next task
is simply to secure a bind on the d4
square and start pushing his kingside
pawn majority up the board.
29 icS 30.me2 ia6 31.<;!;ldl
•••

17. ttlc5 ttle5 32 .ic3 f6 33 .h3 ib7 34.md2

mf7 35.f4 ttld7 36.b4 me6 37.md3
Carrying out White's plan. Black �d6 3S.�d4 b5
now trades several pieces, but White
retains the bishop pair, giving him a
lasting advantage.

17 hc5..• lS.:B:xc5 ttlxd4

19.�xd4 b6 20J��xcS :B:xcS

It is now time for White to gain

space on the kingside. His pawn for­
mation there is more than adequately
secure thanks to his dark-square con­
trol.

334
 THE TARRASCH
White has made blockading the d4
square look easy. He now prepares for
further play on the kingside.
39 . .tel! tDbS 40 . .tg3 tDc6+
41.'it>c3 a6 42.f5+ tDe5
Forced, as otherwise the d5-pawn
falls. The pin along the h2-b8 diago­
nal will now be highly uncomfortable
for Black.
43.�d4 .tc6 44 .tf3 g5?
•
This loses immediately, though
understandably Black did not want to
continue waiting for defeat with 44 . . .
i.b7 45.i.f4 i.c6 46.h4 i.b7 47.e4 dxe4
48.he4 i.c8 (48 . . . he4 49.@xe4 will
lose a pawn, and the game) 49.h5 !
(fixing Black's pawns in place) 49 . . .
i.d7 SO.i.d5 i.e8 51.�e4 i.d7 52 .g5 !
hxg5 (52 . . . hf5+ 53.�xf5 �xd5
54.gxf6 gxf6 55.hh6 should also win
for White) 53.i.xe5+ fxe5 54.f6 gxf6
55.h6 f5+ 56.�d3 �xd5 57.h7 and the
pawn cannot be stopped.
45.fxg6 i.eS 46.g7 i.n 47.a3
1- 0
White will simply continue by tar­
geting the doomed h6-pawn.
Summary: White executed a se­
ries of thematic maneuvers in this
game. First, he played combined b2-
b3 and i.cl-b2 with the maneuver
d4xc5, 'Sal-c1 and 0.c3-a4. Then he
played e2-e3 and 0..f3-d4 to blockade
Black's isolated d-pawn. Finally, he
took advantage of the opportunity he
was given to play f2-f3 and combine
it with a later g3-g4, gaining space
on the kingside. This led to a pleasant
endgame advantage.
Let's take a look at another exam­
ple of how White can go about grind­
ing Black down from a passive isolat­
ed queen's pawn position. This time,
we'll focus on the more commonly
seen Tarrasch main line with Wojo's
pet move 9.b3.
Hilton, Jonathan (2230)
Marshall, Abby (2154)
[D34] Philadelphia 2009
1.tDf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4 e6 4.cxd5
exd5 5.g3 tDc6 6 . .ig2 tDf6 7. 0 - 0
.ie7 S.tDc3 0 - 0 9 .b3 .tg4
This is the move recommended by
Aagaard and Lund. The critical varia­
tion, explored in the next game, is 9 . . .
0.e4.
Other moves for Black tend to be
alike in that they all give White the kind
of positional advantage he is seeking.
For instance, 9 . . . i.e6 is fairly common
here. After 10.i.b2 'Sc8 1l.dxc5 (anoth­
er interpretation of this position was
shown in Uhlmann-Dietze, East Ger­
man Chp. 1976, when White played
the more complicated 1l.'Sc1 b6 12 .e3
0.e4 13.0.e2 �d7 14.0.f4 'Sfd8 15.0.e5
0.xe5 16.dxe5) 1l . . . hc5 12.0.a4 i.e7
13.'Sc1, White had the normal advan­
tage in Teske-Sander, Dresden 1996.
Black can also try various ways of
335
 CHAPTER 16
preventing White from controlling
the c5 square, such as (after 9 . . . i.e6
1O.i.b2) 10. . . a6 1l.dxc5 .ixc5 12.liJa4
i.d6 13J'kl Wie7. This is certainly play­
able for Black, but White still got an
edge in Flumbort-Vajda, Budapest
2002, after 14.ttJb6 �adB 15.ttJd4 ttJe5
16.Wic2 i.bB 17.�c3.
The immediate 9 . . . cxd4 is an at­
tempt to play this variation like the
standard Tarrasch that would occur
after 9.i.g5 cxd4 1O.ttJxd4 h6.
Again, this is a playable line, but
nothing special for Black. Only with
accurate play can Black avoid fall­
ing into a passive position quickly:
1O.ttJxd4 i.c5 ! (wrestling for d4 is im­
portant here) 1l.ttJxc6 bxc6 12.ttJa4
i.b6 ! (otherwise, White might be able
to post his own dark-squared bishop
on e3) 13.Wic2 i.d7 14.ttJc5 �eB :
Here White can choose between
winning the bishop pair with 15.ttJxd7
Wixd7 16.i.b2 or playing 15.�el i.g4!
16.i.b2 Wie7. In both cases, Black has
achieved a reasonable position, but
White is slightly preferable.
9 . . . b6 ! ? is aimed at "preventing"
White's maneuver d4xc5 and ttJc3-
a4. White should simply continue
developing on the queenside any­
way. For instance, he gained the ad­
vantage in Ruck-Golubovic, Mitropa
Cup 2002 after 1O .i.b2 i.b7 11.�c1
ttJe4 12.ttJa4:
336
This is better here than the idea
of e2-e3 and ttJc3-e2-f4 since Black's
bishop is not on e6, where it would
be a target. Play continued 12 . . . cxd4
(12 . . . i.f6 13.dxc5 .ixb2 14.ttJxb2 ttJxc5
15.ttJd4 was a typical advantage for
White in Wojtaszek-Krzesaj , Krakow
2004) 13.ttJxd4 ttJxd4 14 . .ixd4 i.a3
15.�c2 �cB 16.�xcB (16.ttJc3 ! ? was a
stubborn alternative for White) 16 . . .
WixcB 17.Wial f6 IB.ttJc3 ttJxc3 ( I B . . . i.c5
19.ttJxe4 dxe4 20. .ixc5 Wixc5 2 1.�c1
Wie7 22 .�d4 �dB 23.Wie3 would have
left White with a minute advantage
at best) 19 . .ixc3 Wif5 20.i.b2 .ixb2
2 1.Wixb2 �cB 22 .Wia3 a6 23.Wid6 b5
24.�dl, when White had play against
the isolated black queen's pawn.
10.dxc5 hc5 11.lOa4
Aagaard and Lund cover only the
more frequently played 1l.i.b2, af­
ter which they recommend 1l . . . a6
12.�cl i.a7. Black is now fighting for
the d4 square. If White wants to avoid
this possibility, the move order with
1l.ttJa4 does the job. It does have one
downside, however, given in the note
to Black's next move. For this reason,
we recommend playing 1l.i.b2 in any
case. After the continuation 1l . . . a6, it
is possible to avoid the sharp analysis
of Aagaard and Lund by playing 12 .h3,
as in Wojtkiewicz-Bykhovsky, New
 THE TARRASCH
York 1990. Play continued along fair­
ly normal lines with 12 . . .i.fS 13.e3 �c8
14.ltJe2 ltJb4 IS.ltJf4 i.e4 16.ltJd4 hd4
17.hd4 ltJc2 18.�c1 ltJxd4 19.V9xd4
§'as 20.a4 h6, when here White could
have maintained his advantage with
21.�xc8 �xc8 2 2 .�dl:
Instead, Wojo played 2 1.V9b2 ! ? ,
)"lfd8 22.�fdl and a draw was agreed.
H i.e7
•.•
A computer idea is 1l . . . hf3 !
12 .M3 i.d4. Although this has nev­
er been tried in practice, it is certain­
ly interesting and poses White prob­
lems. For instance, after 13.�bl (13.
ib2 hb2 14.ltJxb2 �e8 IS.e3 ltJe4
gives Black plenty of play) 13 ltJe4. • .
14.i.b2 hb2 IS.�xb2 �e8, Black has
a fair amount of pressure on White's
position. This is the downside of the
1l.ltJa4 move order, and for this reason,
we recommend sticking with 1l.i.b2.
12 . .!b2 V9d7 13 .�c1 �ad8 14.�c5
14 'i'c8 ! ?
.•.
An interesting attempt t o keep
pieces on the board. After 14 . . . hcS
IS.�xcS, Black should not play 15 . . .
ltJe4? because of I6.�xc6 ! V9xc6 17.�eS
Vge6 18.�xg4 V9xg4 19.f3, with a clear
advantage for White.
15.�d4
IS.�d3 ! ? , keeping more pieces on
the board, was another idea.
15 . . . �xd4 16.V9xd4 b6!
The only move to come close to
equality for Black. 16 . . . he2? ! 17.�fel
hcS 18.�xcS V9g4 19.V9xg4 hg4
20.hf6 gxf6 21.�xdS �xdS 2 2 .hdS
would have given her an unpleasant
endgame.
17. �a4
Instead 17.ltJd3 V9a6 gives Black
some counterplay.
17 Vge6
.••
Now if 17 . . . V9a6, White maintains a
simple edge after 18.e3.
18.e3 J.h3
White does not fear the exchange
of light-squared bishops; he has a firm
grip on the position in the center.
19.9c7 i,xg2 20.�xg2 gd7
21.gfc1 gfd8 22.gxd7 '§xd7 23.h3
The beginning of the typical "king­
side expansion" plan. White ever so
cautiously begins to stake out terri­
tory on the kingside, relying on the
337
 CHAPTER 16

strength of his pawn majority there. Black discovers there is no way to de­
It is difficult for either side to make fend the d5-pawn.
progress, but White is able to slowly
turn up the pressure.

27 d4 2S.YAlxd4 YAlc6+ 29.�d5

•••

�e6 30.'I'e4 YAlb5 31.�c3

23 ••• h6 24.gdl .tfS 25. YAld3
A faster finish was 31.lLlc7! YAla5
A useful move, giving White addi­
32J�xd8 lLlxd8 33.hg7 ! , taking ad­
tional light-square control now that
vantage of tactical tricks to destroy
the light-squared bishops have been
Black's kingside shelter.
traded. Black must now decide how to
defend her knight on f6.
31 YAleS 32.gxdS YAlxdS 33.YAlf3
•••

YAld2 34.'I'e2 'I'd7 35.YAldl YAle7

25 �e4
36.�d5 YAlb7 37.f3 .ic5 3S .ie5 f6
•••

39 .tg3 'I'f7 40.b4

25 YAle6 2 6.hf6 YAlxf6 27.lLlc3
•

• . .

would not have been good for Black.

25 . . . i.e7 26.i.xf6 i.xf6 27.lLlc3 hc3
28.YAlxc3 would have allowed White
to continue steering his advantage to­
wards the endgame.

26.�c3 �g5? !

26 . . . lLlxc3 27.YAlxc3 was necessary,

though White's advantage increas­
es with every trade. On 26 . . . lLlf6 ? !
White plays 27.lLle2 and the knight
heads for f4.
27.g4
After this typical kingside thrust,
Perhaps it was preferable to sim­
ply increase the pressure with YAld3-fS.
White's extra pawn should be enough
for a win, so at this point it is a matter
of technique.

338
 THE TARRASCH

40 .tfS 41.YNd3 h5 42.a3 hxg4

•••

43.hxg4 r!LldS 44.r!Llc3 r!Llb7 45.e4

a5 46.r!Lld5 axb4 47.axb4 r!Lld6
4S.r!Llxb6 YNa2 + 49 .if2 r!Llf7 50.YNd5
•

'M>2

On the more threatening-looking

50.. .'�e2, White has 51.g5 fxg5 52.iDd7.

51.b5 .tb4 52.r!Llc4 YNa2

The alternative was 52 . . . YNe2
53.iDe3 .tel 54.iDdl i>f8 (54 . . . i>h8
55.YNxfl YNxdl 56.YNh5+ i>g8 57.'�d5+
wins) 55.b6! iDe5 56.b7:
(see next diagram)
White escapes, as 58 . . .'\Wf3 +
59.i>xel iDd3+ 60.i>d2 (or 60.'Wxd3
'Wxd3 61.b8'W+) and so on leads to
nothing for Black.
53. r!Ll e3 YNa5 54.r!Lld1 .td6 55.YNb3
.ibS 56. r!Lle3

56 . . . YNxf3+ 57.i>f1 'i:Nhl+ 58.i>e2, Black soon resigned. 1- 0

Summa11/: In the lines where White plays d4xc5 and Black recaptures on
c5 with a piece, a pleasant game of playing against Black's resulting isolated
d-pawn often develops. In this game, White maintained his positional pressure
and was eventually able to play the thematic kingside advance g3-g4 to push
Black over the edge.

Wh ite's Queenside Pressure: 11.�xe4

After 9.b3 in the mainline Tarrasch,
Black's strongest option is thought to
be 9 . . . iDe4. After 1O . .ib2 .if6, a branch­
ing point is reached, and White has
two different plans to choose from:
one begins with 1l.iDxe4, and the oth­
er begins with 1l.iDa4. Wojo used both
options with success, though the lat­
ter option is richer and provides White
more chances to gain a large advan­
tage. The goal of 1l.iDxe4 is to simpli­
fy the position and steer the game to­
wards uncomplicated waters. White's
goal is simple: obtain a structure with
an isolated black pawn on d4 and ap-
ply pressure down the c-file. White's
bishop on g2 targets Black's knight on
c6 and pawn on b7, and White often
plants a knight on c5 as well. If Black
plays accurately, however, he can of­
ten hold his own: he is afforded both
space and activity by his d4-pawn.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2563)
Bonin, Jay R. (2419)
[D34] New York 2000
1. r!Llf3 r!Llf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4.
d4 c5 5. cxd5 exd5 6 . J.g2 r!Llc6 7.
0 - 0 .te7 S . r!Llc3 0 - 0 9 .b3 r!Lle4

339
 CHAPTER 16
This is by far the most common
move at the master level. There are
good reasons for this: Black should
seek to take advantage of the slight
weakening of the c3 square caused by
White's last move. Wojo didn't mind
heading into the complications, how­
ever: he had a sharp eye for tactics and
knew how to control the chaos.
10 .tb2 .tf6 11.<�:Jxe4 ! ?
•
I n the next game, we'll examine
the more powerful 11.tt:la4 ! , which was
another one of Wojo's weapons.
1l ••. dxe4 12.tOd2
12 •.• hd4
This is certainly considered the
main line, but Black has a stronger
option available. Here 12 . . . .tg4 ! is a
strong move, targeting the e2-pawn.
This pressure along the e-file is un­
pleasant for White and complicates
his attempts to gain the advantage.
The Armenian-American star Varu­
zhan Akobian once specially prepared
this move for Wojo and scored what
was at the time considered an upset
victory. Akobian's special handling
of this position is one of the reasons
340
we recommend 11.tt'la4 as our main
repertoire option. Let's take a look at
Wojtkiewicz-Akobian, San Francis­
co 2002, and see how Black present­
ed White with problems. Play contin­
ued 13.h3 .thS 14.tt:lxe4 .txd4 lS . .txd4
cxd4 16J��c1 Wfe7 (16 .. J�c8 is an alter­
native according to Akobian) 17J'!el
1'!ac8 18.Wfd2 1'!fd8 19.tt:lcS .tg6 ! :
A critical moment in the game.
White can now play a passive idea
such as 20.tt:ld3 .te4 and admit that
Black has equalized, or he can try to
play something active. After 20.b4!?
b6 21.tt:la6? ! , Ftacnik says: "The true
reason for Wojtkiewicz's defeat is . . .
in this anti-positional jump . . . Black
will now get a chance to get strong
counterplay." (Better was 21.tt:lb7! ?
Wfxb7 22 .bS Wfe7 23.bxc6 .te4 with
equality; 21.tt:ld3 .te4 is equal ac­
cording to Akobian.) After 21.. .tt:leS!
(21.. ..te4 2 2 .bS .txg2 23.@xg2 tt:le5
24.1'!xc8 1'!xc8 2S.Wfxd4 is good for
White) 22.1'!xc8 1'!xc8, Black's activity
gave him the edge. Let's see quickly at
how the game turned out: 23.f4 tt'lc4
24.Wfxd4 tt'le3 2S ..tf3 f6 26.Wfb2 tt'lc2
27.1'!d1 Wfe3+ 28.@h1 Wff2 29.Wfb3+
.tf! 30.Wfd3 tt:le3 31.Wfd7 1'!f8 32.1'!gl
tt:lf1 33.Wfg4 Wfh2 # 0-1. White's knight
never accomplished anything during
its stay on a6.
Of course, White had plenty of
 THE TARRASCH
alternatives throughout this game.
Instead of 20.b4 ! ? , White could have
tried 20.�f4 ! ?, when Black could eas­
ily find himself in a slightly worse po­
sition: for instance, 20. . . b6 21.lLld3
hd3 2 2 .exd3 lLle5 23.'We4 (23Jl:xc8?
ttlf3+ ! 24.i.xf3 'Wxe1+ 25.@g2 E1xc8
26.'Wxd4 clearly favors Black) 23 . . .
E1xc1 24.E1xc1 would have given White
a small pull. Black should respond
to 20.�f4 ! ? with 20. . . E1e8 ! , equaliz­
ing after 21..ixc6 E1xc6 22 .'Wxd4 E1d8
23.'Wh4 'Wxh4 24.gxh4 E1dc8 25.lLld3
E1c2 26.E1xc2 E1xc2 .
Finally, those who wish to play
the variation with 1l.lLlxe4 should not
feel pressured to copy Wojo's open­
ing play against Akobian's 12 . . . .ig4.
White is certainly not worse after
13.lLlxe4 lLlxd4 ! ? (13 . . . .ixd4 14 . .ixd4
cxd4 leads to a fairly normal position)
14.lLlxf6+ 'Wxf6 15 ..ixd4 cxd4 16 . .ixb7
Eiae8. Here White has two fairly risk­
free options: 17 . .if3 .ixf3 18.exf3 E1c8,
when Black has full compensation for
his "lost" pawn, as White's doubled f­
pawns are not helpful for much except
king safety; and 17.E1e1! ? E1xe2 18.E1xe2
d3 ! 19.E1d2 .ixd1 20.E1axd1 with equal­
ity. In both cases, a draw is the most
likely outcome, though some players
might wish to try the White side of
these positions.
13 .hd4 cxd4
Worse is 13 . . . lLlxd4 14.lLlxe4 (14.
e3 lLlf3+ 15.lLlxf3 exf3 16.'Wxf3 E1b8
17.E1fdl 'We7 18.E1d2 .ie6 is equal) 14 .. .
ig4 15.f3, as mentioned before: 15 . . .
ifS 16.e3 .ixe4 17.exd4 .ig6 (or 17 . . .
ic6 ) 18.dxc5 is pleasant for White.
14.tbxe4
14 . . .b6!?
An uncommon idea for Black, and
not a particularly effective one. The
weakening of the h1-a8 diagonal pro­
vides White with many opportunities
for active play. Normal is 14 . . . 'We7, af­
ter which White's plan is simply to put
pressure on Black's queenside.
Wojo was often able to apply pres­
sure without allowing Black much in
the way of counterplay, causing his
opponents to crack. After 15.E1c1 .if5
16.tbc5 E1ac8 17.'Wd2 b6 18.tbd3 .ie4
19 . .ixe4 'Wxe4 20.E1c4 lLla5 2 1.E1c2
E1xc2 22 .'Wxc2 E1e8 23.E1c1 h6 24.b4
lLlb7 25.'Wc7 E1e7? (White had plans of
piling up along the seventh rank, but
almost anything is better than ced­
ing the eighth rank instead! ) 2 6.'Wb8+
@h7 27.E1c8 lLld6?? 28.E1h8+ was 1-0
in Wojtkiewicz-Dokutchaev, World
Open 2002 .
Black does not have to settle for
putting his bishop on f5, however. 15 . . .
.ig4 ! ? may well b e the smarter option.
White must play ambitiously here to
keep Black's initiative at bay: after
16.E1el E1ad8 17.'Wd2 lLle5 18.f4 ! (18.
lLlc5b6 19.lLld3 E1fe8 2 0 .h3 .if5 2 1. lLl xeS
'Wxe5 2 2 . E1cd1 h6 was 1 2 - 1 2 in Skem­
bris-Halkias, Antalya 2 0 0 1 , though
Black is already preferable here)
341
 CHAPTER 16

18 . . . ltlc6 19.1tlc5 left White in the

driver's seat in Baron Isanta-Cuadras
Avellana, Catalonian Team Chp. 1999.
Black eventually won the game af­
ter White got tactically careless, but
the first player certainly had a pull
throughout: 19 .. J'!:d6 20.b4 !'!:e8 21.h3
i.c8 (21...he2? 22 .ltle4 or 22 .b5 ltld8
23.i.e4 would not have been good for
Black) 2 2 .b5 ltlb8 23.ltlb3 i.f5 24.ltlxd4
�d7 25.e3 hh3 2 6.hh3 �xh3 27.�g2
�d7 28.!'!:cd1 g6 29.�f3 (White has a 19 ••• 1Ud8? !
pleasant space advantage) 29 . . . �c7
30.'itfg2 �b6 31.!'!:e2 ltld7 32.!'!:ed2 ltlf6 19 . . . h6 was probably necessary
33.g4 !'!:ed8 (33 . . . ltle4 34.!'!:c2) 34.a4 here, although White can simply con­
ltld5 35.ltlc2?? (35.g5 would have al­ tinue his queenside pressure with
lowed White to maintain his space ad­ 20.!'!:fc1 hxg5 2 1.hc6 hc6 22 .!'!:xc6
vantage) and here 35 . . . ltlxf4+ would !'!:xc6 23.!'!:xc6 !'!:d8 24.!'!:c7 and so on.
have ended the game immediately.
Finally, it should be noted that 20.!'!:fcl h6
Black is fairly flexible in his choice of
move orders. He can also play 14 . . . i.f5 20. . . !'!:d6 allows White to sim­
15.�d2 !'!:e8 16.ltlc5 �e7 17.!'!:ac1 !'!:ac8 ply continue applying pressure with
18.!'!:fe1 b6 19.1tld3 i.e4, as in Mestel­ 21.b4.
Nunn, London 1984, when play is sim­
ilar to Wojtkiewicz-Dokutchaev. From 21.tLlxf7!
a theoretical sense, at least, Black
should have few problems; in practice, White wins a pawn outright.
of course, facing Wojo in one of his pet
positions was never simple. 21 ••• 'itlxf7 22 .hc6 .ia6 23 .ib5
•

15.!'!:cl .ib7 16.�d2 VNe7 17.�g5 !?
Wojo heads straight for the end­
game, banking on the weakness of
Black's solid-looking d4-pawn.
17 �xg5
•••
Of course, 17 . . . �e6 would run into
18.ltlf6 + ! VNxf6 19.VNxf6 gxf6 20.hc6
with a clear structural advantage for
White.
A tricky move by Wojo, forcing his
way to the seventh rank.
23 .•. .ib7
23 . . . !'!:xc4 24.hc4+ hc4 25.!'!:xc4
!'!:d7 26.'itlf1 and so on would be un­
pleasant for Black, who is down a
pawn and suffering. After the game
continuation, however, Wojo simply
brings his king to the center, eventu­
ally mopping up the d4-pawn.

18.tLlxg5 !'!:ac8 19 .!'!:c4 24.gc7+ 'itlf6 25.'itlfl a5 26.'itle1

342
 THE TARRASCH

gxc7 27.l:i:xc7 .i.d5 28.<.t>d2 l:i:d6 32.l:i:h7 <.t>g6 33.l:i:e7 l:i:f6 34.l:i:e4
29 .ic4 .ixc4 30.bxc4
• l:i:xf2 35.l:i:xg4+ <.t>h5 36.l:i:h4+ <.t>g5
37.a4 h5 38. <.t>d2 ! ?
30.l:i:xc4 was also effective, though
with the text move White aims to keep White hopes t o play <.t>d2-el, forc­
his rook as active as possible along the ing the Black rook off the second rank,
seventh rank. before taking the d4-pawn.

30 . . . g5 31. <.t>d3 g4

The best defense. Now 39. 'it>el l:i:gl +

would make little sense for White, so
he repeats moves.

39.<.t>d3 l:i:f2 40.<.t>xd4 l:i:xe2

41.<.t>d5 l:i:b2 42.<.t>c6 l:i:b4 43 .<.t>b7
<.t>g6 44.<.t>a6 l:i:xa4?!

44 ... 'it>gS would have been more te­

nacious.

White now executes a maneuver to 45.<.t>xb6 l:i:a1 46.<.t>b5 a4 47.<.t>b4

pull Black's king away from the cent­ a3 48.'it>b3 <.t>g5 49.l:i:f4 <.t>g6 50.l:i:f2
er; the Black pawns along the fourth <.t>g5 51.c5 l:i:c1 52.l:i:c2 l:i:xc2 53 . <.t>xc2
rank soon fall. 'it>f5 54. 'it>b3 1- 0

Summary: Wojo outplayed his opponent mainly from a tactical stand­

point in this game. Black's i4 ...b6!? weakened his position along the hi-aB di­
agonal, and this - combined with a slightly weak d-pawn - made Black's sit­
uation unenviable. Once Wojo had won a pawn with 21. t::D xp, he headedfor a
rook endgame and converted his advantage.

Black's Ha ngi ng Pawns: 11.lLl a41

Although Wojo's idea with 11.t::D xe4
proves straightforward - and thus
possibly easy to emulate - he had
another, more complicated weapon
he used to create sharper play. Wo­
jo's 1l.t::D a4 is a more pugnacious try
and, from a theoretical standpoint, is
a stronger attempt at an opening ad­
vantage for White. The line is complex
and requires more study and prepara­
tion to play, but the ground is fertile
for innovation, too, so the rewards are
potentially greater.
After 1l.t::D a 4, Black has to decide
how he will deal with the pressure on
his cS-pawn. If he "caves in" and plays
. . . cxd4 at any point, White will have
play against Black's isolated queen's

343
 CHAPTER 16
pawn similar to the first two games in
this chapter. If he reinforces c5 with
... b7-b6, he weakens his position along
the hI-aS diagonal and risks saddling
himself with hanging pawns on cS and
dS after White exchanges on cS. When
this happens, White is almost always
able to force Black to advance his c­
pawn forward to the fourth rank, fur­
ther compromising Black's central po­
sition. The typical maneuvers for both
sides are illustrated well by the follow­
ing games by Wojo.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2669)
Bonin, Jay R. (2401)
[D34] Nassau 1999
1.c�)f3 tl)f6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.d4
c5 5.cxd5 exd5 6 .i.g2 tl)c6 7. 0 - 0
•
i.e7 8.tl)c3 0 - 0 9.b3 tl)e4 10 .tb2
•
.tf6 1l.tl)a4 !
With this move, White avoids
trades and encourages tactical skir­
mishes on the queenside. Black has a
rich berth of options to choose from,
but the tactics generally prove much
more difficult for Black to navigate
than for White.
The move of choice for strong tacti­
cians, having been played by Kasparov
344
himself. There is no obvious way for
Black to fully equalize after this move,
however, so a number of alternatives
have been tried here. We'll take them
one at a time.
1l . . . bS? ! looks tempting, but White
has the tactical solution 12.tl)xcS !
tl)xcS 13J�cl, winning back the piece:
Black has several options, but
White is better after each of them:
a) Of course, 13 . . . lZlxb3 14.'Wxb3
gives White a clear advantage due to
Black's loose pawn structure.
b) 13 . . . lZlxd4 generally drops a full
pawn or more for Black in practice. A
typical idea for White is 14.lZlxd4 ltJe4
IS.lZlc6 'Wd7 16.hf6 lZlxf6 17.hdS,
snapping off a pawn. White was near­
ly winning in Plachetka-Reutsky, Par­
dubice 2002 , after 17 . . . .tb7 IS . .tf3.
c) White gets a more modest advan­
tage after 13 . . . ltJe4 14J'lxc6 .td7 (14 . . .
.tb7 IS.:t:k2 'WaS 16.'Wal Ei:acS 17.Ei:fc1
was a slight edge for White in .tjelo­
brk-Broekhuyse, Austria 2006) ISJkl
'WaS 16.a3 b4 (16 ... Ei:acS 17.'Wd3 .tfS
IS.b4 was once again a structural edge
for White in Figueiras-Thomson, COIT.
1991) 17.Ei:al Ei:fcS IS.lZleS, as in Gallo­
Neidhardt, Germany 1990. White has
plenty of play against Black's position
and is a pawn to the good.
d) Cute is 13 . . . ltJa6 14.Ei:xc6 ltJb4
IS.Ei:cl ltJxa2 , winning back the pawn.
White still has a significant advantage
 THE TARRASCH
after 16J'l:a1 tLlb4 17 ..ia3 .ie7 1S.tLleS
ib7 19.�d2, as in Jirovsky--Civin, Kla­
tovy 1999.
e) After 13 ... tLlb4 14J'l:xcS ie7,
White has the strong exchange sacri­
fice 1S.tLleS ! (1S.a3 hcS 16.dxcS is a
clear advantage for White according
to Kasparov, though Black can hold
on with 16 . . . tLla6! 17.�d4 f6 and the
black knight comes to c7.) 1S . . . hcs
16.dxcS f6 (after 16 . . . tLlxa2, 17.hdS
or 17.�d4 leaves White winning)
17.tLld3 (17.tLlc6 tLlxc6 18.�xdS+ �hS
19.�xc6 l::!b S is also good according to
Groenn) 17 . . . tLlxd3 (17 . . . tLlxa2 1S.�a1,
17. . . tLlc6 1S.tLlf4, and 17 . . . tLla6 1S.tLlf4
I1':,c7 19.tLlxdS l::!b S 20.e4 are all win­
ning for White) 1S.�xd3 ie6 19.�xbS
'f:1c7 20.l::! d 1 was powerful for White
in Groenn-Tisdall, Oslo 1992. Mean­
while, 14 . . . tLlxa2 1S.tLleS ie6 16.l::!xbS
is simply an extra pawn for White.
So much for that try. Meanwhile,
11. .. cxd4 steers the game towards the
kinds of positions seen in the first
segment of this chapter. White gen­
erally gets a pleasant positional edge,
though it may be possible for Black to
come very near equality with accurate
play. Only after 12.tLlxd4 hd4 ! does it
appear that Black approaches equali­
ty, as after 13.hd4 ifS (worse is 13 . . .
ie6 14.l::! e l l::! cS 1S.e3 b 6 16.ib2 �e7
17.tLlc3 with the typical edge in Weyer­
strass-Abrahamse, Netherlands 19S4)
14.l::! el l::! c S, neither the direct 1S.tLlcS
b6 16.tLlxe4 dxe4 17.ib2 �gS 1S.l::! c4
'f:1g6 (as in Pytel-Pinkas, Polish Chp.
1973) nor the more subtle 1S.ib2 d4 !
16.tLlcS �e7 seems to give White more
than a miniscule pull.
Most Tarrasch players are reluc­
tant to make this exchange on d4,
however. Far more common is 12 . . .
id7 13.l::! e l, when White has his typ­
ical positional advantage:
For instance, White was hap­
py with his position in Serper-Graf,
Tashkent 1992, after 13 . . . �e7 14.tLlxc6
hc6 1S.id4 l::!fcS 16.�d3 h6 17.l::!fd1
hd4 18.�xd4. The only particularly
noteworthy option available to Black
from the diagram is 13 . . . tLlxd4 14.hd4
ha4 ! ? (14 . . . ic6 1S.tLlc3 l::! e S 16.e3 �e7
17.hf6 tLlxf6 1S.�d4 was good for
White in Uhlmann-Tringov, Amster­
dam 1970), though after 1S.bxa4, Uhl­
mann assigns White a clear advan­
tage. This position has been played
several times before, and Black usu­
ally loses his dS-pawn and has to de­
fend a long, drawn-out endgame. For
instance, in Kinsman-Poulton, Shef­
field 1996, Black did eventually man­
age to draw the ending that ensued
after 1S . . . l::! e S 16.e3 h6 17 . .ixf6 tLlxf6
1S.Y9d4 Y9b6 19.1::!fd1 l::! e cS 20.�xb6
axb6 21.l::!xcS+ l::!xcS 22 .hdS tLlxdS
23.l::!xdS l::! c 2 . That said, it certainly
wasn't any fun for the second player.
In the stem game Sturua-Gokha­
Ie later in this chapter, we'll exam­
ine a move-order trick that may fully
equalize for Black with best play: 11 . . .
b 6 . Meanwhile, most normal-look­
ing developing moves can be met with
12 .l::! e l, increasing the pressure and try­
ing to force Black to make the conces­
sion . . . cxd4. For instance, on 11 . . . .ie6,
White should simply play 12.l::! c l. (It's
possible to play 12.dxcS, but releasing
the tension so early goes against the
34S
 CHAPTER 16
grain of White's strategy.) After 12 . . .
c4 (12 ... 1WaS accomplishes nothing af­
ter 13.a3) 13.bxc4 dxc4 14.ltJeS heS
lS.dxeS, White was preferable in Py­
tel-Manasterski, Polanica Zdroj 1971.
The same is true on ll . . . .ifS : White
should play 12.E1c1, not 12.dxcS hb2
13.ltJxb2 ltJxcS 14.E1c1 ltJe6 lS.ltJh4
.ie4, when Black was doing well in
Davies-Messa, Albena 1986. 12 . . . cxd4
13.ltJxd4 was agreed drawn without
further play in Gauglitz-Espig, East
German Chp. 1981, though White (the
lower-rated player) was of course do­
ing quite well.
Finally, 11.. . .ig4?! can be met ef­
fectively with either 12.ltJeS or 12.E1c1.
It would again be premature to re­
lease the tension with 12.dxcS hb2
13.ltJxb2 ltJxcS 14.h3, when White's
advantage is comparatively tiny af­
ter 14 . . . .ihS (14 . . . .ifS was more ac­
curate) lS.ltJd3 as in B.Lalie-S.Lalie,
Toulouse 1990. The strong 12.ltJeS is
given as a clear advantage for White
according to Bukie, and this is prob­
ably the most direct approach to a big
edge - for instance, 12 . . . heS (12 . . .
.ihS 13.ltJxc6 bxc6 14.f3 ltJ d 6 lS.g4
.ig6 16.ltJxcS left White up a pawn in
Jadoul-Torre, Brussels SWIFT 1986)
13.dxeS bS 14.ltJxcS ! ltJxcS lS.E1c1
1Wb6 16.1WxdS was winning for White
in Cordes-Niedermaier, Bundesli­
ga 1986. The thematic 12.E1c1 also led
to a tremendous White advantage in
Fridman-Shaposhnikov, Russia Cup
Qualifier 2004, after 12 . . . b6 13.h3 .ihS
14.dxcS hb2 lS.ltJxb2 bxcS 16.ltJd3
1We7 17.ltJf4 hf3 18.ltJxdS 1WeS 19.exf3.
The text move is considered by
theory to be the critical test of White's
double-fianchetto system. Let's see
how Wojo handled it.
12.E1c1 b6
346
The concession 12 . . . cxd4 has prov­
en fairly popular here, though White
generally gets his usual positional
edge after 13.ltJxd4. There has been a
tremendous amount of practice in this
line, but knowledge of specific theory
isn't important for playing these kinds
of positions; a good feel for isolated
queen's pawn structures is sufficient:
We'll quickly examine the most im­
portant continuations, namely, 13 ...
hd4 ! ? and 13 . . . .id7.
a) First off, 13 . . . hd4 looks like a
further concession from Black, but
he obtains a playable position none­
theless. After 14.hd4 .if5 (14 . . . .id7
lS . .ib2 .if5 16.ltJcS ltJxcS 17.E1xcS and
so on is good for White) lS.e3, Black
has any number of reasonable moves .
The logical lS . . . 1We7 is the most fre­
quent continuation, though White is
slightly better after Kasparov's sug­
gestion 16.E1e1 h6 17.ltJb2 with the idea
of ltJb2-d3-f4. Also common is 15 ...
E1c8. Here 16 . .ib2 1Wd6 was Nogueiras­
Vera, La Habana 1978 1978, when
17.f3 ltJf6 18.e4 ! would have given
White the initiative. Perhaps the most
interesting fifteenth move for Black
is lS . . . 1Wd7, eyeing the idea of trading
light-squared bishops and invading
with the queen along the light squares.
After 16 . .ib2 E1ad8 (16 . . . 1We6 17.ltJc5
ltJxcS 18.E1xcS .ie4 19.1WhS was a slight
edge for White in Uhlmann-Spassky,
 THE TARRASCH

Siegen Olympiad 1970) 17.ttJcS ttJxcS any serious challenges: 12 . . . �aS ! ?

18J�xcS i.e4 19.�d2 !?, White's ad­ 13.ttJxcS ttJxcS 14.E:xcS �xa2 lS.�c2
vantage evaporated after 19 . . . �e6 i.fS 16.�xfS �xb2 17.e3 gave White
20J!d1 hg2 21.@xg2 �e4+ 22.@gl a significant advantage in Rastenis­
d4 ! 23.hd4 ttJeS. White managed to Pavlenko, USSR Spartakiad 1979, and
save himself with the clever 24.�c2 12 . . . c4! ? 13.bxc4 dxc4 14.ttJeS heS
�g4 2S.h3 ! and the game was agreed lS.dxeS i.fS 16.g4 ! i.g6 17. �xd8 E:axd8
drawn in Hess- Breutigam, Bundes­ 18.f4 gives White a strong initiative.
liga 1989. The active 19.�hS might
have been an improvement for White, 13 .dxc5
though: for instance, if 19 . . .b6, White
has 20.he4 E:xe4 (20. . . dxe4? 21.E:gS The point. White usually proceeds
g6 22 .�h6 is winning) 21.E:c2 with a with the exchange d4xcS after hav­
pleasant edge. ing provoked the weakening . . .b7-b6
b) Instead, the response 13 . . . i.d7 along the long h1-a8 diagonal.
is less compromising for Black. White
13 . . . ,ixb2
gets the edge with 14.ttJcS (14.e3 is
equally possible) 14 . . . ttJxd4 lS.hd4.
Here lS . . . i.c6 16.e3 was the typical Essentially forced. 13 . . . d4?
White edge in Panno-Parma, Palma 14.cxb6 i.b7 lS.ttJd2 was winning for
de Mallorca 1969, so Black has tried White in Gordenko-Romanov, Kiev
lS . . . i.bS ! ? in an attempt to gain ac­ 2002 . Meanwhile, 13 . . . bS? 14.ttJc3 b4
tivity. The idea is that after 16.ttJxb7, lS.ttJxe4 hb2 16.ttJd6 is also winning
Black has 16 . . . �b8 ! , with the idea of for White: 16 . . . hc1 17.�xdS ! i.e6
... i.bSxe2 and . . . ttJe4xg3. But White is 18.�xc6 and so on .
better off avoiding the complications
14.ttJxb2
with the simple 16.E:e1, safeguarding
e2 . White is well on his way to estab­
lishing his typical advantage, so here
the only noteworthy move is 16 . . .b6,
when White has to play accurately to
get anything. After 17.ttJxe4 dxe4 (a
mistake, according to Larsen: instead,
17 . . . hd4 18.�xd4 dxe4 19.�b4 ! �dS
20.f3 ! leaves White with a slight ini­
tiative) 18.hf6 �xf6 19.he4 ! E:xe4
20.�dS E:ae8 2 1.�xbS �b2 ? ! (21.. .E:4eS
22 .�d7, as in Stork-Weyerstrass, i.SG
Group 1979, would give Black more
hope) 22 .E:c7! �xa2? 23.�fS was win­ 14 .•.�f6?!
ning for White in Larsen-Amado, Bue­
nos Aires 1983, due to Black's back­ Black's best move is undoubtedly
rank and seventh-rank difficulties. 14 . . .bxcS, as played by Kasparov. This
Black has tried a few other twelfth is examined in the next game. Mean­
moves besides 12 . . . b6 and 12 . . . cxd4, while, other minor alternatives for
but none of them has ever posed White Black are:

347
 CHAPTER 16

a) 14 . . . tLlb4 ! ? 1S.a3 tLla2 16.l'k2 .ia6, in Rodshtein-Velchev, European U18

when after 17.tLla4! bS 18.�a1! bxa4 Chp. 20OS.
19.�xa2 axb3 20.�xb3 .ic4 2 1.'lMfb2
tLlxcS 22 .tLleS ! l"lb8 23.�d4, White gets 17.tLld6 tOxd6 18.cxd6 gxe2!?
just a slight pull.
b) 14 . . . tLlxc5 1S.tLld3 ! (better than
1S.tLle1 .ig4 with counterplay, Pan­
no-Leskovar, Mar del Plata 1972, or
1S.l"le1 .ia6, again with counterplay)
1S . . . .ia6 16.tLlf4 with an advantage
for White. Here the surprising 16 . . .
gS ! ? i s the critical move, but i n Aro­
nian-Halkias, World U20 Chp. 1999,
Aronian shows us how White probes
for weaknesses: 17.tLld3 tLlxd3 18.l"lxc6
tLlb4 19.1"lh6 *g7 (19 . . . .ixe2 20.�d2
.ixf1 21..ixfl as 2 2 .tLlxgS gives White
18. . . gxd6 19.�bS allows White to
plenty of compensation) 20.l"lhS h6
maintain his extra pawn, though Black
2 1.tLld4 �f6 2 2 .f4 tLld3 23.�a1 *g8
does keep an active position after 19 ...
24.fxgS �g6 2S.tLlfS tLleS 26.tLlxh6+
l"led8.
1-0. Rather than playing the rather
rash-looking 16 . . . gS ! ?, Black can also
19.tOg5 !
try 16 . . . l"lc8, just maintaining the po­
sition. Here we recommend 17.tLld4
Very much a "Wojo-esque" move,
(17.l"le1 d4 gives Black counterplay)
creating strong tactical chances for the
17 . . . tLlxd4 18.�xd4 tLle6 19.tLlxe6 fxe6
first player.
20..if3 with a tiny edge for White.

15.�xd5 .tb7 16.tLlc4

Wojo wastes no time and heads On the obvious 19 . . . l"lxa2, White

straight for d6. 16.tLld3 ! ? tLlc3 17.l"lxc3
�xc3 18.tLlgS gave White a strong at­
tack in Jiirgens-Hanel, Hallein 1988.
16 ... bxcS has been played before,
but White can neutralize Black's activ­
ity with 17.tLlfd2 tLlxd2 18.tLlxd2 l"lad8
19.�xcS tLld4 (19 . . . l"lxd2 20..ixc6 .ixc6
21.�xc6 �xc6 22.l"lxc6 l"ldxe2 23.l"la6
leaves Black with a miserable defen­
sive task) 20. .ixb7 tLlxe2 + 21.*h1 l"lxd2
22 .l"lc2 . Meanwhile, 16 . . . tLlaS? ! 17.�d4
tLlxc4 18.l"lxc4 Ieft Black down material
can (among other things) win a pawn
with 20.�xt7+ �xt7 21.tLlxt7 *xt7
22 . .ixc6 .ixc6 23.l"lxc6. Clearly, Black
was more worried White had some­
thing else, however. The aggressive
20.d7!? is more tempting, though: if
20. . . h6, 21.l"lce1! hxgS 22 .l"le8+ *h7
23.�d3+ g6 24.g4! wins. If 20. . . tLlaS,
the same theme comes up: 21.l"lce1
l"lf8 2 2 .tLlxh7! *xh7 23.�d3+ �g6
24.l"le4 ! .ixe4 2S ..ixe4 fS 26 . .ixfS �xf5
27.�xfS+ l"lxfS 28.d8�, winning.
20.�xf7+ �xf7 21.tOxf7 *xf7
22 .hc6 hc6 23.l"lxc6

348
 THE TARRAS C H

As mentioned before, this is con­

sidered Black's best move.

15.tOa4

White is now two pawns up; noth­

ing can stop Wojo's endgame tech­
nique at this point.

23 1:!e2 24.1:!c7+ <it>f6 25.1:!xa7

•••

!::!xd6 26.1:!c1 h5 White returns to place pressure on

the c5-pawn. Black is essentially forced
Landing "two pigs on the seventh" to play his following move, which sets
with 26 . . . 1:!dd2 gets Black nowhere af­ up the defensive . . . c5-c4 push. Ideally,
ter 27J�c6+ <it>e5 28.1:!e7+ <it>d5 29.1:!xe2 Black would like to keep his "hanging
Elxe2 30.1:!xb6 1:!xa2 31.1:!b7, with a win pawns" on their respective c5 and d5
for White. squares, where they control key cen­
tral points. The c5-pawn is so weak,
27.h4 1:!dd2 28.1:!c6+ <it>f5 however, that Black knows he must
29.1:!xg7 1:!xa2 prepare to push it.

Walking into mate, but there was 15 . . . ,ia6 16.1:!el

little Black could do in any case.
Of course, it is necessary to de­
30.1:!g5 + 1- 0 fend the e2-pawn. Black's bishop on
a6 and rook on e8 were beginning to
30. . . <it>e4 3l.1:!c4+ <it>f3 32.1:!f5 would bear down ominously.
be mate.

Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2550)

Yegiazarian, Arsen (2455)
[D34] Yerevan 1996

1.c!ljf3 tOf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 d5 4.,ig2

ie7 5.b3 0 - 0 6. 0 - 0 c5 7.cxd5
exd5 8.d4 tOc6 9.,ib2 tOe4 10.tOc3
1f6 1l.tOa4 b6 12.1:!cl 1:!e8 13 .dxc5
hb2 14.tOxb2 bxc5

349
 CHAPTER 16
16 ... c4
Theory considers this pawn push
more or less forced. In fact, this is
considered the "key" starting position
for the entire 9.b3 variation - though,
obviously, both sides can deviate ear­
lier. As the notes to this game show,
Black does not have any simple route
to equality. Before delving into the
complexities of the main line, there
are some minor moves that have been
tried here - generally not with much
success:
a) First, 16 ... �a5?! is given as a
mistake by Alterman. 17.�xd5 (17.
ltlxc5 ltlc3 18.b4 !) 17 ... ltlb4 (17 .. Jiad8
18.�xc6 E:e6 19.E:xc5 is winning for
White) 18.�f5 ! g6 19.�f4 was a com­
fortable advantage for White in Ivacic­
Rodman, Slovenian Team Chp. 1996.
b) Second, 16 ... �f6 may be play­
able, but White has scored very well
with 17.ltlxc5, for instance 17 . . . ltlb4
18.�d4 �xd4 19.1tlxd4 ltlxc5 20.a3 !
was a slight endgame pull for White
in Uhlmann-Cherepkov, Leningrad
1984. Worse is 17 . . . ltlc3 ? ! 18.ltld7
ltlxd1 (18 . . . �d6 19J�xc3 �xd7 20.ltlg5
ltle7 2 1.�c2 and White was already
just about winning in Manakova­
Mitkov, Skopje 1993) 19.1tlxf6+ gxf6
20.E:exd1 .be2 2 U�xd5 ltlb4 22.E:d2,
with an extra pawn in Shneider-Kilpi,
Kuopio 1992.
c) Third, 16 . . . �d6 is given as du­
bious by Kasparov. 17.ltld2 has been
played twice, but 17.ltlh4 ! is stronger.
There is simply too much pressure on
Black's c5- and d5-pawns.
d) On 16 ... �e7, White has the tactic
17.ltlxcS ! ltlxc5 18.�xd5 ltlb4 (18 . . . ltle4
19.�xc6 ltlxf2 ! 20JWc5 ! ltlg4? 21.�xe7
E:xe7 22 .ltle5 was winning for White
in Issing-Wagner, Germany 2005)
19.�xc5, which resulted in White sim-
350
ply having an extra pawn in Oll-Pulk­
kinen, Helsinki 1990, after 19 . . . ltlxa2
20.�xe7 E:xe7 2 1.E:a1 ltlb4 22.E:a4 E:b8
23.ltld4.
e) Finally, 16 ... ib5? ! runs into the
(by nowfamiliar) tactic of17.ltlxc5 �b6
18.ltld4! ltlxc5 19.1tlxb5, when Black's
knights on c5 and c6 are a tactical li­
ability. After 19 . . . ltle4 20. .be4 dxe4
21.ltld6 e3 22 .f4 ltld4 23.ltlxe8 E:xe8
24.�d3, White was completely win­
ning in Tadic-Maksimovic, Vrnjacka
Banja2005.
A principled move, challenging
the tactical stability of Black's light­
squared piece configuration. Black's
c4- and d5-pawns look ripe for a fall.
17•.•�a5
This was a new move at the time
of this game. 17 . . . cxb3 is not very dan­
gerous, and White gets a slight advan­
tage after most reasonable captures.
One example is 18.E:xc6 ib5 19.E:c1!
.ba4 20.axb3 ib5 21.ltlf3 E:c8 22 .ltld4
and so on. The rare knight sortie 17 ...
ltlb4 falls short after 18.a3 ltla2 19.E:c2
cxb3 20.ltlxb3 ib5 21.ltlbc5 ! , Tadic­
Lundin, Belgrade 2002 .
For this reason, most players of
Black have sought to pursue tacti-
 THE TARRAS C H
cal skirmishes involving queen sor­
ties. White actually scores even bet­
ter against these moves than he does
against the more cooperative 17 .. .
cxb3, however. For instance, on 17. . .
%Vg5, White has the idea of 18.lDxe4
dxe4 19.�d6:
In the tactical chaos, Black's posi­
tion seems to be on the verge of falling
apart. White has a definite initiative,
but some additional analysis from this
point is required to demonstrate this :
a) 19 . . . gacS is common, and here
20.lDc5 has been played many times
and scores well for White. Howev­
er, we recommend a move that forc­
es an ending where White gets a risk­
free "squeeze." 20. .ih3 was played in
Griinberg-Espig, East German Chp.
19S7, and the endgame that resulted
after 20. . . gedS 21.�f4 �xf4 2 2 .gxf4
was great for White. The game itself
is instructive: 22 . . . gc7 23.lDc5 lDb4
24.lDxa6 lDxa6 25.gxc4 gxc4 26.bxc4
Eld2 27.gb1 mfS 2S.gb7 gxe2 29.gxa7
1iJb4 30.a4 gc2 31.a5 gxc4 32 .a6 gc1+
33 ..ifl gal 34.gb7 lDxa6 35.ga7 gxfl+
36.mxf1 lDc5 37.f5 lDb3 3S.gd7 meS
39.gd5 me7 4O.me2 g6 41.me3 1-0.
b) On 19 ... ge6, the logical 20.�c5
is the strongest idea, putting the max­
imum number of Black pieces under
fire. The thematic 20. �f4 is, of course,
also possible. After 20. . . �h6 (20. . . �f6
21.lDc3 gaeS 22 .bxc4 e3 23.f4, Kohl-
weyer-Milller, Groningen 1995, was
a clear advantage for White), there is
2 1.�a3 ! (21.bxc4 is certainly possible,
but this is stronger) 21.. .lDe5 (21 . . . cxb3
22.lDc5 lDd4 23.lDxe6 �xe6 24.�b2
and so on) 22 .lDc5 e3 23.f4 lDg4 24.h3
lDf2 25.lDxe6, leaving White complete­
ly winning in Serper-Fogarasi, Euro­
pean U20 Chp. 19S9.
c) 19 ... .ib5 20.lDc3 gadS 21.�f4
�xf4 2 2 .gxf4 .ia6 23.lDxe4 was a clear
endgame advantage for White in Sol­
datov-Iakimov, Kiev 1999.
d) Similar was 19 ... .ib7 20.gxc4
gadS 21.�f4 �xf4 2 2 .gxf4 f5 23.e3
with an extra pawn for White in the
correspondence game G.Berg Hans­
sen-Johansen, corr. 1992 .
Going back t o the diagram i n the
main game, on Black's other major
queen sortie -namely, 17 ... �f6 - sim­
plest is lS.lDxe4 dxe4 19.bxc4. Here,
although Black has plenty of compen­
sation for his pawn, White scores well.
For instance, after 19 . . . e3 ! ?, given by
Levin, 20.fxe3 �h6 gave Black some
counterplay in Espig-Bosch, Bundes­
liga 2001. That didn't stop White from
winning the game, however: 2 1.�d5
lDe5 22 .�d4 gadS 23 . .id5 g6 24.lDc5
and White was in control.
More standard than the . . . e4-e3
push is 19 . . . gadS. Here 20.�c2? e3
21.f3 gd2 is bad for White, obviously,
so the line continues with 20.�b3 :
351
 CHAPTER 16
Now Black has a number of al­
ternatives, but, according to current
practice, White can successfully navi­
gate his way through all of them.
a) 20. . . e3 is given an exclama­
tion point by Sturua, but the re­
sponse 2l.f4 ! is given one by Tyom­
kin as well! The struggle seems favo­
rable to White, for instance, 21.. J%d2
22 .ttlc3 ttld4 23.�a4 Eld8 24.ttldS �h6
2S.ttle7+ @h8 26.ttlc6 ttlxc6 27.ixc6
was a clear advantage in Levin-Jelen,
Ljubljana 1993.
b) 20 ... ttld4 seems a more effec­
tive try. It is probably best met with
21.�e3, stopping Black's . . . e4-e3
push. After 21...�c6 (21.. .�eS 22 ..tfl
�aS 23.Eled1 ttlxe2 + 24.�xe2 �xa4
25.Elxd8 Elxd8 26.�xe4 was good for
White in Speelman-Luther, Bundesli­
ga 2002) 2 2 .ttlb2, White is somewhat
passive but still up a full pawn. For in­
stance, 22 . . . �b6 23.�c3 �f6 (23 . . . �c6
24.ttld1 �a4 2S.ttle3 was a slight edge
in Movsziszian-Barrenechea Baha­
monde, Dos Hermanas 2004) 24 . .tf1
.tb7 2S.ttld1 �eS 26.ttle3 fS 27.Eled1,
and White was a bit better in Rivas
Pastor-Nogueiras, Capablanca Me­
moria1 1988.
c) 20. . . ttleS? is given as a mis­
take by Tyomkin. Here 21.ixe4 ttlxc4
22.ttlcS ttld2 23.�a4 ttlxe4 24.ttlxe4
�6 2S.Elc6 Eld4 2 6.�xa6 was winning
for White in Guseinov-Magomedov,
Kherson 1990.
d) 20. . . �eS?! is dubious according
to Tyomkin: 21.ttlc3 ! is already a clear
advantage. 21.. .fS (21.. .Eld4 22.ttlbS
ttlaS 23.�a3 ! ) 22 .�a4! was Tyomkin­
Pecot, Le Havre 1998.
e) 20 ... �gS 21.ttlc3 f5 22 .�a4 .tb7
23.ttldS was a clear advantage for
White in Myc-Grobelny, Polish Team
Chp. 2000.
Finally, on the weakest of the queen
3S2
sorties, 17 . . . �e7 - given as dubious by
Ftacnik - White has simply 18.bxc4,
for instance, 18 . . . ttlxd2 19.�xd2 EladS
20.cxdS �b4 2 1.�c3 was winning for
White in Dizdar-Vrkljan, 1994.
18 . .he4
18.ttlxe4, with the same idea as af­
ter 18 . . . �gS, is also possible but not
quite as strong here. 18 . . . dxe4 19.�d6
Elac8 20. .th3 Eled8 (20. . . Elc7? ! 21.Eled1
gave White a huge initiative in Pevz­
ner-Nadanian, Moscow 1987) 21.�c5
Elc7 22 .�xaS ! ttlxaS 23.b4 ttlc6 24.a3
would still leave White with a small
edge.
18 . . . dxe4 19.�xc4
19 . . .hc4
The white knight was threatening
to come in to d6, so Black had to re­
move it. Worse is 19 . . . �hS in view of
20.ttld6, when 20. . . ttleS 21.ttlxe8 ixe2
2 2 .�xe2 ttlf3+ 23.�xf3 exf3 24.h4 �g4
2S.Elc3 fS 26.ttlc7 Elc8 (26 . . .f4 doesn't
quite work: 27.ttlxa8 fxg3 28.Ele8+ @t7
29.EleS gxf2 + 30.@xf2 and, unfortu­
nately for Black, there is no perpetual
check) 27.ttldS Eld8 28.ttlf4 hS 29.Elc6
left White winning in M6hring-Wom­
acka, East Berlin 1985.
 THE TARRASCH
White has emerged from the com­
plications a pawn to the good. Black's
pawn on e4 gives him a small spatial
pull on the kingside, but this is coun­
terbalanced by White's open lines on
the queenside.
White keeps the momentum going.
Too slow is 2 1.�b1, targeting e4, af­
ter 21.. .lLld4 2 2 .lLlc5 '%!fd2 23.�f1 �h6
24.�g2 e3 25.f3 lLlxf3 ! , given by Na­
danian.
21 •.• �d4 22 .'fgc3
Again, it is important that Black
not be given time to make use of his
kingside initiative!
22 .•. '%!fe5
Black, of course, is stuck avoid­
ing the exchange of queens. Another
route, 22 . . . '%!fd5 23J:k5 '%!fe6 24.'%!fc4 !
'%!fg4 ( 2 4. . . '%!fh3? 25J�d5 ! allows White
useful trades; 24 . . . e3 ! ? looks more
challenging, though Black has to prove
a pawn's worth of compensation after
the exchange of queens), is thought to
offer Black some compensation for his
pawn. Now White should play 25.lLlc3
(25J''!c7 '%!fh5 ! with the idea of... � d8-
d6-h6 leaves White uncomfortable)
25 . . . �d6 2 6.�d5 ! Nadanian mentions
this move in Informant 71, but only as
a mistake.
It turns out that White is now near­
ly winning, according to Dean's im­
proved analysis: 26 . . . �h6 2 7.�xd4
'%!fh3 28.e3 ! . Now there is nothing to
fear after 28 . . . '%!fxh2+ 29.�f1 '%!fh1+
30.�e2 �f3+ 31.�d2 '%!fxf2 + 32.�e2
'%!fxg3 33.lLlxe4, when White is just up
a piece.
23.�e3 �f5 24.'fgc3 �d4 25.�c5
After repeating moves, Wojo goes
in for the kill.
25 h5
.••
26.�g2? !
Oddly enough, going back with
26.'%!fe3 ! is probably better since the
text move allows . . . h5-h4-h3 from
Black with gain of time. In fact, after
2 6.'%!fe3 '%!fd5 (26 . . . lLlf5 is of course no
longer possible because of 27.'%!fxe4)
27.lLla6 ! ? �a5 (27 . . . lLlf5 should proba­
bly now be tried again) 28.lLlb4 White
had the advantage in Meister-Enigl,
Abensberg 1987.
353
 CHAPTER 16
26 h4 27.gdl h3 +
•.•
This pawn now becomes a major
frustration for White, whose winning
chances are complicated by his now
jeopardized king safety.
Forgoing the proffered pawn is
likely the best practical decision.
2B.�xh3 ! ? is actually possible, though
White is required to find a series of
very precise moves after 2B . . . WI'h5+
29.�g2 ttJxe2 to hang on: 30.:B:xdB
:B:xdB 31.WI'e3 :B:dl 32 .h4. Even here,
though, it is not so clear that White
can come anywhere near to pulling off
a win. 32 . . . :B:gl+ 33.�h2 Wl'f3 34.WI'xf3
exf3 is still uncomfortable.
2S ••• c!LJb5 29 .WI'c1
Of course not 29.WI'xe5?? :B:xdl
mate.
29 ••• c!LJd6? !
It was more prudent to play 29 . . .
ttJd4, maintaining the delicate equilib­
rium that exists in the position.
30.gcd4 e3 31.13 Wl'f6 32.g1d3
c!LJf5 33.gxdS gxdS 34.c!LJe4 Wl'b6
354
35.�dS + Wl'xdS 36.g4 c!LJh4
37.Ybe3
One can sense that White is closing
in on the win. He has managed to make
favorable exchanges and is round­
ing up the wayward enemy kingside
pawns. Amazingly, it is Black's pawn
on h3 which saves the day - but only
after a catastrophic blunder by White.
37 WI'dl+ 3S.�f2 c!LJg2 39 .WI'd2
•••
YUhl
40.�g3?
It is likely that time pressure was
a factor here, because it is hard to
believe otherwise that Wojo could
have missed the straightforward se­
quence that begins with 4O.WI'dB+ �h7
41.ttJg5+. Every move is now a check:
41. ..�h6 42 .WI'hB+ �g6 43.WI'h5+ �f6
44.WI'xt7+ �e5 (or 44 . . . �xg5 45.WI'xg7+
�f4 46.WI'f6#) 45.WI'e6+ �d4 46.WI'c4+
�e5 47.WI'c5+ �f6 4B.WI'd6+ �xg5
49.WI'e5+ �g6 50.WI'f5+ �h6 51.WI'h5#.
40 ••• c!LJeI 41.Y;VdS + �h7 42 .YUh4+
The computer-spun variation
42 .ttJg5+ �g6 43.WI'd6+ f6 44.�f2 ! ,
protecting the weak h2-pawn, allows
White to round up the black pawn on
 THE TARRAS CH

h3 with tLlg5xh3 next move. Then 44 . . . saps much of the life out of the posi­
@xg5?? 45.Wfd5+ @g6 46.Wff5+ @h6 tion, leading to what would normal­
47.Wfh5 is, of course, checkmate. ly be thought of as "dead" equality.
White maintains a symbolic advan­
42 • • • @g8 tage that is probably meaningless at
the grandmaster level - but even at
the master level, he still manages to
win from time to time, though, as per
the game Cmiel-Bock included in the
notes. In general, most Tarrasch play­
ers are not going to be at all thrilled
with this kind of stale equality.

Sturua, Zurab (260 0)

Gokhale, C. S. (2306)
[D34] Dubai 2001

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3 .!Llf3 c5 4.cxd5

43.Ybh3??
•

exd5 5 .!Llc3 .!Llc6 6.g3 .!Llf6 7 .ig2

• •

.ie7 8 . 0 - 0 0 - 0 9.b3 .!Lle4 10 .ib2

43.WfdS+ @h7 44.tLlg5+ is again the
•

.if6 1l .!Lla4 b6
cleanest way to proceed.
•

As mentioned previously, this par­

43 ti'gl+ 44. @f4 .!Llg2 + 45. @e5
ticular move order may actually pro­
• • •

Wfal+ ! 46. @d6 Wfd4+

vide Black a clear route to equality.
Black wastes no time playing the nor­
It is now White, not Black, who will
mal ll .. .1'l:eS.
be in check every move.
12.l:'kl
47. @c6 ti'b6+ 48.wd7 Wfb7+
49. @d6 Wfb6 + 50.@d7 1f2-l/2

Summary: The position after

16 . . . c4 17. tLl d2 is considered the crit­
ical starting point of this wild and
woolly variation. The amount of theo­
ry is simply incredible, but those who
are willing to brave it - as Wojo of­
ten did - mayfind themselves a pawn
to the good. This is what happened in
this game, though a nasty mistake by
White spoiled the hard-earned win.
12 • . • .ta6
Finally, it is time to look at Black's
only "sure" route to equality. This lit­ 12 . . . l:l:eS would, of course, trans­
tle-known move-order trick actually pose back to the main lines. Mean-

355
 CHAPTER 16
while, 12 . . .i.e6 is far inferior to the text
move, since 13.dxc5 hb2 14.lZlxb2
lZlxc5 (14 ... bxc5 15.lZld2 'lWa5 16.lZlxe4
dxe4 17.he4 :gad8 18.lZld3 was a clear
edge for White in Teske-Kleeschaetz­
ky, Regensburg 1998) 15.lZld4 lZlxd4
16.'lWxd4 :gc8 17.e3 'lWg5 18.:gfd1 gives
White his normal advantage without
having put up any resistance.
None of Black's other moves with
his light-squared bishop come to an­
ything special, either: 12 . . .i.b7 13.dxc5
hb2 14.lZlxb2 lZlxc5 15.lZld3 lZle6
16.'�d2 'lWd6 17.:gfd1 was a little better
for White in Klostermann-Bundrock,
Bundesliga 1993. And 12 ... i.f5 may take
away the d3 square, but it doesn't stop
White from making effective trades:
13.dxc5 hb2 14.lZlxb2 lZlxc5 15.lZla4!
lZlxa4 16.:gxc6 lZlc5 17.lZld4 i.e4 18.f3
i.g6 19.i.h3 'lWg5 2 0.'�c1 was a definite
pull for White in Kohlweyer-Fliicki­
ger, Bern 1994. Finally, 12 . . . lZlxd4 isn't
very challenging after 13.lZlxd4 cxd4
14.hd4, for instance, 14 . . . i.a6 15.hf6
lZlxf6 16.lZlc3 with the edge in Sperber­
Olsson, Swedish Chp. 1971.
13.dxc5 hb2
Bad is 13 . . . b5? ! 14.,hf6 'lWxf6
15.'lWxd5 :gfe8 16.lZlg5 lZlxg5 17.'lWxc6
with a nice edge in Nikolaev-Vys­
ochin, Kiev 2002 .
14.tOxb2 tOxc5
356
The point for Black here is that
he is, quite usefully, targeting both
the d3 and e2 squares with his light­
squared bishop. Inconsistent with this
idea would be 14 . . . bxc5? ! , which gives
Black hanging pawns he simply is not
prepared to defend. 15.lZla4 c4 16.lZld2
is like the main line, except White has
not been forced to play 1:U1-el. He isn't
a full tempo up, but this is certainly fa­
vorable for White when compared to
the main variations.
15. tOe1? !
Perhaps the only theoretically in­
teresting idea for White in this posi­
tion. White is seeking to compete for
control of the d3 square, and if he is
allowed to simply play lZlb2-d3-f4 and
so on, he will gain the advantage. Un­
fortunately, there is a flaw in White's
strategy, as given in the note to Black's
next move.
Bad for White is 15.:ge1? ! , which
is altogether too slow to give him a
good position: 15 . . . 'lWf6 16.lZld3 hd3
17.exd3 lZlb4 was fine for Black in
Mihajlovic-Todorovic, Belgrade 2004.
Thus, White's most accurate move
here is probably 15.lZld4, acceding
to eventual equality after 15 . . . lZlxd4
16.'lWxd4 he2 17.:gfe1 :ge8 18.b4 lZle6
19.'lWxd5 'lWxd5 20.hd5 :gad8 2 1.i.c6
lZld4 22 .,he8 lZlf3+ 23.@g2 lZlxe1+
24.:gxe1 :gxe8, as in Cmiel-Bock, Meer­
busch 1996:
 THE TARRAS CH
Surprisingly, White did eventually
win the ending after 25.f4 'it>f8 26. 'it>f2
!b5 27J�xe8+ 'it>xe8 28.'it>e3 'it>e7
29.lDd1 'it>e6 30.'it>d4 h5 31.lDe3 :
White does have some practical
chances in this sort of endgame, and
the reader might find the continuation
instructive: 31.. .h4? ! 32.gxh4 ! (strong­
er than 32.g4 g6, when it is more diffi­
cult for White to make progress) 32 . . .
!e2 33.'it>e4 !b5 34.f5+ 'it>d6 35.h5
f6 36.h6 gxh6 37.lDg4 .tc6+ 38.'it>d4
rJ';; e 7 39.lDxh6 !f3 4O.'it>e3 .th5 41.'it>f4
(Black's position is growing increas­
ingly hopeless) 41...'it>f8 42.lDg4 'it>g7
43.lDf2 .tfl 44.a3 !e8 45.lDe4 !d7
46.lDd6 'it>f8 47.h4 'it>g7 48.h5 'it>h6
49.lDe4 'it>g7:
SO.h6+ 'it>xh6 51.lDxf6 !c8
52.lDg4+ 'it>g7 53.'it>g5 'it>fl 54.'it>f4 'it>e7
55.'it>e5 .td7 56.lDe3 as 57.lDd5+ 'it>fl
58.lDxb6 axb4 59.axb4 .tb5 6O.lDc8
!d3 61.lDd6+ 1-0.
If Black wants to avoid heading
into the knight-versus-bishop end-
ing, he can also play the equally good
17 . . . .ta6. Here White should play
18.�xd5, as the less accurate 18.b4
lDe6 19.�xd5 l:k8 gave full equality
for Black in Hammes-Treppner, Ger­
many 1995. Returning to 18.�xd5,
play might continue 18 . . J:k8 19.�xd8
l:'!:fxd8 20.l:'!:e7 l:'!:d7 (or 20. . . lDxb3
21.l:'!:xc8 l:'!:xc8 22.l:'!:xa7! ) 21.l:'!:xd7 lDxd7
22.l:'!:xc8+ !xc8 23.lDc4:
Although White is the tiniest frac­
tion of a hair better, Black really
shouldn't have much in the way of los­
ing chances.
15 �f6? !
••.
This gives White the free hand he
wants to establish a positional edge.
The critical move is the energy-packed
15 . . . lDb4 ! , which makes White's idea
of 15.lDe1 appear sluggish by compar­
ison. The point is that on 16.a3 lDa2
17.l:'!:c2 Black has the exchange sacri­
fice 17 . . . d4 ! , as in Gobauer-Schafrani­
etz, Germany 1998:
357
 CHAPTER 16

White declined the exchange sac­

rifice, but was clearly worse after
18.lLled3 lLlc3 19.�e1 hd3 20.lLlxd3
lLlxd3 21.exd3 l"1e8. If White accepts
the sacrifice with 18.ha8, then he has
to immediately give the exchange back
after 18 . . . lLlc3 19.1"1xc3.
Black's position is actually pref­
erable after 19 . . . dxc3 20.lLlbd3 lLlxd3
21.lLlxd3 �xa8, for instance 22.lLlb4
ib7 23.�d3 l"1c8 24.l"1c1 ie4 25.�e3
c2 26.f3 as 27.lLld3 hd3 28.�xd3 �c6 17 ••• �b4?
and so on. Either way, White is going
to be worse. Too little, too late. The d5-pawn
now falls and the game is over.

18.a3 �a2 19.�xd5 �d8 20J�lc2

�ac3 21.�xc3 �xc3 22.�xd8
16 . . . l"1fe8 17.lLlxc5 bxc5 18.lLld3 was �axd8 23.�xc3 .be2 24.�c7 ixf.L
a slight edge for White in Teske-Bach, 25 . .bf1 l:!dl 26.�f3 l:!bl 27.l:!xa7
Chemnitz 1997. l:!xb3 28.<i.>g2 1- 0

The winning plan for White here

is simple: lLlf3-e5 with the idea of ifl­
White is happy with his position c4 is a good start. If Black tries to pre­
here, and Black is struggling under vent this with . . .b6-b5, the weakened
the pressure. b-pawn will fall swiftly.

Summary: Black nearly equalized in this game, but after White's 15.lLl el?!,
hefailed tofind the right move. White was immediately back on top again and,
after further errorsfrom Black, the d5-pawnfell.

Conclusion: Wojo's "double fianchetto" system with 9.b3 is a promising

sideline for White. Most of Black's various tries hand White the kind of posi­
tion he is looking for: solid, positional play against Black's isolated d-pawn. Any
player who has familiarized himself with the two illustrative games Andersson­
Handoko and Hilton-Marshall should feel comfortable handling these types of
positions in his own games.
Meanwhile, Black's most critical attempts against 9.b3 involve using . . .b7-b6
to bolster his c5-pawn. One of Wojo's pet lines for White, 9.b3 lLle4 10.ib2 if6
11.lLlxe4!?, is fairly easy to learn and offers the first player decent chances, par­
ticularly if Black hasn't prepared something against it. Objectively, though, Ako­
bian's super-accurate idea of 12 . . . ig4 should equalize. White must be careful not
to get too ambitious against this move and will likely need to settle for equality.

358
 THE TARRAS C H

The line 9.b3 tLle4 10.!b2 !f6 1l.tLla4 ! , on the other hand, gives White eve­
rything to play for. Its theoretical nature will undoubtedly not appeal to every­
one, but Wojo certainly wanted it in his repertoire. Since the line is not com­
monly played at amateur level, it is likely that non-master opponents will have
little idea what to do against it. Black's options are to either head for sacrificial
complications with 1l . . . b6 12 .l'kl ge8 13.dxc5 hb2 14.tLlxb2 bxc5 15.tLla4 !a6
16.gel c4 17.tLld2, when we believe all lines favor White; or to try for dull equal­
ity with 1l . . .b6 12.gc1 !a6 immediately. If Black manages to execute his next
several moves correctly, he will get an endgame that should be drawn. Even so,
however, White can still play to win the ending.

359
Chapter 17
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Systems with 2 . . . ,if5

l..!Of3 d5 2.d4 if5 3.c4 e6 4.'Ml3

Technically, the "normal" move order for reaching the Catalan is l.d4 dS 2.c4
e6 3.g3. As we know, however, Wojo, preferred starting with l..!Of3 dS 2 .d4.
This gives Black at least one interesting option not open to him otherwise: 2 . . .
ifS ! ? I n this chapter, we'll examine Wojo's pet line against this system - rapidly
putting pressure on Black's "loose" b7-pawn with 3.c4 e6 4.�b3.

Bishops Before Knights?

The old adage regarding opening de­ Queen's Gambit Declined. Already,
velopment states that each side should we have seen numerous examples of
develop "knights before bishops." Of Wojo's "Catalan bishop" outshining
course, no one really pays much at­ its passive light-squared counterpart;
tention to this maxim - few would ar­ why not take the opportunity to acti­
gue that the Four Knights' Game (l.e4 vate this bishop early?
eS 2 . .!Of3 llJc6 3 .llJc3 llJf6) offers White In this case, however, there is
better prospects for an advantage than something to be said for postpon­
do the Ruy Lopez (l.e4 eS 2 .llJf3 llJc6 ing the development of Black's light­
3.ibS) or the Italian Game (l.e4 eS squared bishop. Moving the bishop
2 .llJf3 llJc6 3.ic4) . With 2 . . . ifS, Black so early weakens the b7-pawn, some­
is attempting to place his bishop out­ thing Wojo would exploit by play­
side the pawn chain he will create af­ ing a quick �b3. Moreover, the move
ter 3 . . . e6. 2 . . .ifS is not nearly as effective a way
At first glance, this looks like a good to fight for the center as is 2 . . . llJf6.
idea. After all, the bishop on c8 is of­ Black's control of the bl-h7 diagonal
ten the "problem child" in the regular seems irrelevant, as the real struggle

360
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . i.fS
here is for control of the dS square,
not the e4 square. In many of the lines
we'll examine, the weakness of Black's
dS-pawn forces him to make unpleas­
ant concessions. Finally, Black's bish­
op on fS - which must often retreat to
g6 - is a target for the maneuver lLlf3-
h4xg6 from White. So although 2 . . .
i.fS i s perfectly playable, it's n o mira­
cle cure: using Wojo's pet line, White
is generally able to both secure a slight
advantage in the center and win the
bishop pair.
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2530)
Landenbergue, Claude (2430)
[D06] Geneva 1995
1.tOf3 d5 2.d4 i.f5 3.c4 e6 4. Y«b3
This was Wojo's system, rather
than the more straightforward (and
more popular) 4.lLlc3. Then 4 . . . c6
S.Y«b3 Y«b6 is the main line. The im­
mediate 4.Y«b3 has the advantage of
not giving Black time to achieve this
setup.
4 ••• tOc6
4 . . . dxc4?! doesn't work out well for
Black: S.Y«xb7 lLld7 6.lLlc3 E1b8 7.Y«xa7
cS 8.e4 cxd4 9.Y«xd4 i.g6 1O.hc4 left
White up two pawns in the corre­
spondence game Morihama-Nowicki,
1997. Meanwhile, 4 . . .b6? ! gives Black
more light -square weaknesses on the
queenside than he can handle, consid­
ering that his bishop on fS has prema­
turely deserted the queenside. S.lLlc3
c6 6.g3 h6 7.i.g2 lLlf6 8.lLleS gave White
pressure in Tukmakov-Elfert, Biel
2000. The game was a miniature: 8 . . .
tOe4? ! 9.cxdS lLlxc3 ( 9 . . . cxdS 10.Y«bS+
lLld7 11.lLlxdS ! exdS 12.Y«xdS wins ma­
terial for White) 10.dxe6 he6 11. Y«xc3
i.dS 12.e4 as 13.0-0 i.b4 14.Y«f3 i.e6
1S.dS Y«f6 16.dxe6 Y«xeS 17.Y«xf7+ 1-0.
5.i.d2
S.cS is a common idea which ham­
pers Black's development and strives
to make the knight on c6 look mis­
placed. Wojo, however, preferred to
keep the central tension.
5 . . . E1b8
S . . .dxc4, Black's other main possi­
bility, is covered in the next game.
S . . . aS ! ? was an interesting move
played in Carl-Michailow, Ratzeburg
1997. Black has ideas of . . . as-a4 and
. . . lLlc6-b4. White now felt the need to
play 6.a3, but he should instead have
kept developing with 6.lLlc3 lLlb4 7.E1c1
when 7 . . . dxc4 8.Y«xc4 lLlc2 + ? ! 9.'tf:ld1
lLlb4 10.e4 gives White a big edge due
to Black's lost time.
On S . . . lLlge7, White should simply
continue 6.e3 as in the main game.
Then 6 . . . h6 7.cxdS exdS 8 .i.e2 E1b8
9.0-0 was an edge for White in Suhl­
Schiittig, Germany 1996, and 6 . . . E1b8
would simply transpose into the game.
Finally, S . . . VNd7 potentially expos­
es Black to lLlf3-eS tactics but allows
him to castle queenside. This varia­
tion continues with 6.e3 0-0-0 (not
361
 CHAPTER 17
6 . . . ltJf6?! 7.ltJeS ! ltJxeS 8.dxeS ltJe4
9. �xb7 l"!c8 10.cxdS ltJcS 11. �xa7 �xdS
12.ltJc3 �xeS with an edge for White
in M.Ivanov-Storland, Gausdal 199S)
7.cxdS exdS 8 ..ibS f6 9.0-0 a6 1O..ie2
.id6 11.l"!c1, played in B.Lalic-Ward,
Jersey 1997:
Although castling queenside may
look appealing at first glance, Black's
position after 11.. .hbl (to stop ltJbl­
c3, putting further pressure on dS)
12.l"!axbl ltJge7 13.�dl ltJa7 14.b4 bS
IS.a4 �b7 16.ltJel c6 17.ltJd3 was unat­
tractive at best. The text move, simply
defending the loose b7-pawn, is con­
sidered best.
6.e3
More popular is 6.cxdS exdS 7.ltJc3,
but Wojo wants to keep the central
tension until it is clearly favorable to
make this exchange. White's plan in
this position is simple: he wants to get
the bishop pair. He is waiting for Black
to develop the king's knight, allowing
him to play ltJf3-h4. If Black wants to
avoid having his light-squared bishop
traded off, he has to waste time with
something slow like . . . h7-h6.
6 . . . a6
Wojo frequently faced this move,
which anticipates the .ifl-bS pin after
362
either c4-cS or c4xdS from White.
Black is under no obligation to play so
slowly, however. After 6 . . . ltJf6, "nor­
mal" play would be 7.cS a6, etc. Again,
Wojo prefers to play with a different
idea in mind and keeps the central
tension: he continues with 7.ltJc3 fle7
(7 . . . flb4 was played in E.Andersen­
Grau, Warsaw Olympiad 1935, when
the same plan of 8.ltJh4 applies)
8.ltJh4 and here Black has two obvi­
ous choices:
a) 8 ... .ig4 is met with the kick 9.h3
fiS 10.g4. Then the normal-looking
10. . . .ig6?! is a mistake after 11.ltJxg6
bxg6 (1l . . . dxc4 12 .�xc4 bxg6 13 . .ig2
is unpleasant for Black) 12.cxdS exdS
13 . .ig2 ltJaS I4.�a4+ c6 1S.ltJxdS ltJxdS
16.�xaS, when White won a pawn in
Guimard-Luckis, Mar del Plata 1942 .
So Black plays 10. . . dxc4 11. �xc4 (White
will put his light-squared bishop on
g2) 1l . . . ltJdS 12.gxhS hh4 13.flg2 .
White's bishop pair and pawn center
gave him the initiative in Arkhipov­
Shukan, Prokojevsk 1998: 13 . . . ltJcb4
14.0-0 c6 IS.e4 ltJxc3 16.hc3 ltJa6
17.dS was simply overwhelming.
b) 8 . . . .ie4! , the move that occurred
in Wojtkiewicz-Gulko, Las Vegas 1993.
GM Boris Gulko has experience play­
ing both sides of this variation, so his
instincts may well represent Black's
best play. Here Wojo correctly decided
to make the central exchange 9.cxdS
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . i.f5
exd5, but after 10.i.e2 h6! a draw was
agreed. Because Black's move allows
him to retreat his bishop to h7 at will,
White would probably have played
11.ttlxe4 ttlxe4 (not 1l . . . dxe4?! 12 . .tc4
0-0 13.ttlg6) 12.ttlf5, when Black is fine
after 12 . . . .tf6 (or 12 . . . ttlxd2 13.<;t.xd2 g6
14.ttlxe7 ttlxe7 15.�a4+ ttlc6 16.E1ac1)
13 . .tf3 0-0 14.,txe4 dxe4 15.0-0 �d7
16.ttlg3 E1feB. White's position is only
slightly preferable after 17.E1ac1 since
he can try for the break f2-f3. Thus,
we recommend the continuation 10.f3
.tg6 1l.ttlxg6 hxg6 12.0-0-0 for White.
This is similar to I.Ivanov-Ponomar­
ev, given in the notes to Black's eighth
move in the main game. Black has
some problems to solve here since the
position is dynamic and White has the
bishop pair.
Note that 6 . . . .te7 has little inde­
pendent value after 7.ttlc3 ttlf6, trans­
posing into the above.
Black can also try putting the
knight on a different square with 6 . . .
ttlge7, however, a s mentioned i n the
note to Black's fifth move. Play then
continues routinely with 7.ttlc3 a6
B.cxd5 (or B.ttlh4 ! ? immediately) B . . .
exd5 9 . .te2, a s i n Maric-Prudnikova,
Tivat 1995. An independent possibili­
ty for Black is 7 .. .f6 ! ? B . .te2 .tg6 9.0-0
.tf7 10.E1fd1, as in Schmidt-Kubien,
Polish Chp. 1979. In all of these cases,
White is a little better.
7.tOe3
Many other moves have been
played from this position, but we're
going to stick with Wojo's idea - he
clearly believed in White's chances
here since he always played this move.
7••• tOf6 8 .tOh4
Black has finally committed his
king's knight, so it is time for Wojo to
win the bishop pair.
8 J.g6
•.•
The reader should familiarize him­
self with the move B . . . .te4 ! ?, when
9.cxd5 exd5 10.f3 .tg6 1l.ttlxg6 hxg6
12.0-0-0 was LIvanov-Ponomarev,
American Open 2001:
White's play is instructive: he is
simply planning to gain space on the
kingside, so Black cannot easily cas­
tle there. Since Black cannot castle
queenside either, however, his king
is more or less trapped in the cent­
er. This makes his position difficult to
play. After 12 . . . .te7 13.h4 g5? ! 14.h5 !
g4 15 . .te2 E1xh5 16.fxg4 E1xh1 17.E1xh1
�d6 1B.E1hB+ .tfB 19.J.f3 E1dB 20.g5
was just winning for White .
Ceding the center with B . . . dxc4
9.,txc4 b5 10. .te2 ttle4 1l.ttlxf5 ttJxd2
led to complications in Wojtkie­
wicz-Kopec, Manchester 2000, after
12.ttlxg7+ ,txg7 13.<;t.xd2 ,txd4 ! 14.exd4
�g5+ 15.<;t.e1 �xg2 16.E1f1 ttJxd4. Al­
though Wojo did go on to win, we rec­
ommend the simpler 12 .<;t.xd2, which
leaves White with a pleasant advan­
tage after 12 . . . exf5 13.E1hcl. White can
initiate castling "by hand" with <;t.d2-
e1 while Black is preoccupied meeting
the threat of ttJc3xb5.
363
 CHAPTER 17
9.�xg6 bxg6 10.g3 !
Wojo finds the best place for his
light-squared bishop: the Catalan di­
agonal. White now has a pleasant
positional advantage due to his bish­
op pair and mounting pressure on d5.
Playing g2-g3 also has the advantage
of playing "against" Black's remaining
bishop, as White's pawns now have a
firm grip on the dark squares.
10 . . . �d7
1O. . . dxc4 prevents White from in­
creasing the pressure on d5, but such
a move also concedes the center after
11.�xc4 and .if1-g2 .
1l.cxd5
This is the correct moment for
White to make this exchange. Black
will find himself struggling to organ­
ize a defense of his d5-pawn.
1l . . . exd5 12 . .ig2 �a5
12 . . . �e7 guarantees Black's de­
fense of d5 but hampers the develop­
ment of his bishop.
13.�c2 .ib4?!
364
13 . . . c6 14.�xd5 cxd5 15.,ixa5 also
would drop a pawn, so simply going
back with 13 . . . lLlc6 was necessary.
White would then not be able to make
further headway with 14.�b3 again, so
he would have to try something else,
perhaps even 14. 0-0-0.
A simple tactic that wins a pawn.
The variations work out so per­
fectly for White that it is almost hu­
morous: 14 . . . ,ixd2 + 15.�xd2 lLlxd5
16.�xa5 is possible due to the "loose"
knight on a5. Now Wojo steers the
game into a favorable ending.
15.�e4+ �e7 16.�xe7+ �xe7
17 . .txd5 .hd2 + 18.�xd2 ghd8
19 . .tg2 c5 20.b4 !
Giving the pawn back in order to
gain control of the center. This ap­
pears stronger than holding on to the
extra pawn with 20.d5, which should
also be good for White.
20 . . . cxb4 21.gabl �c6 22.ghc1
gd6 23.gc5
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . if5

Black feels he must try to change the

nature of the position. Unfortunate­
ly for him, his chances of holding the
ensuing rook and pawn ending aren't
good.

25 .ixc6+ gxc6 26.gxc6 �xc6

•

27.gxb4 b5 28.gbl

White only has one rook now, but

it, too, belongs on c5.
White's invasion is coming togeth­
er nicely. 28 ge8 29 .gcl+ �b6 30.�d3
••.

gd8 31.e4 1- 0
23 ••. �d7 24.h4 b6
Black saw no point in testing
White is dominating the board, so White's technique.

Summary: With 8.tiJh4, White won the bishop pair. He then used his un­
matched Catalan bishop to control the hJ-a8 diagonal. His pawns went to dark
squares to limit the scope of Black's remaining bishop, too. Black soon found
his position tactically weak on the light squares, made a minor blunder, and
lost a pawn.

Black Sacrifices on b7

Of course, Black doesn't have to take Botvinnik, Mikhail

time out to defend his b7-pawn with
a move like . . . ga8-b8. Some play­
ers prefer to go the "poisoned pawn"
route and simply allow White to play
'Wb3xb7. The problem with this ap­
proach is that Black is not able to de­
velop his kingside rapidly enough to
gain sufficient counterplay. The best
he can do is force a series of trades,
heading for a slightly worse endgame.
In the following sample game, then­
defending World Champion Vassily
Smyslov manages to hold a draw by
the skin of his teeth.
Smys}ov, Vassily
[D06] 20th World Championship,
Moscow 1954 (Game 8)
l.d4 d5 2 . c!ilf3 .tt'S 3.c4 e6 4. 'Wb3
c!ilc6 5.id2 dxc4 !?
This is playable, but at best it leads
to a tough endgame for Black. Black's
surge in activity dissolves quickly
since his kingside pieces aren't devel­
oped yet.
6.'Wxb7

365
 CHAPTER 17
White takes up the "challenge."
6.�xc4 instead isn't as good as it
might appear at first glance. After 6 ...
lLlf6, Black has a firm grip on the e4
square, and White's bishop looks mis­
placed on d2.
6 ••• �ge7
6 ... .te4 is a poorer attempt to de­
fend the knight on c6. 7.lLlc3, attack­
ing Black's bishop on e4, already
leaves White with the better game: 7 ...
!'i:bS 8.�a6 lLlb4 (S ... !'i:b6 9.�xc4 !'i:b4
1O.�a6 lLlbS 11.�xa7 lLlc6 12 .�a6 lLlbS
13.�a5 lLlc6 14.�g5 and Black didn't
have enough compensation in the cor­
respondence game Elwert-Hassler,
1994) 9.�a4+ .tc6 1O.�dl .txf3 11.exf3
�xd4 12 .�a4+ �d7 13.�xd7+ <;!{xd7
14.0-0-0 with a tremendous lead in
development in Todorov-Brochet,
Cannes 1996.
Now that White has taken the b7-
pawn, he retreats the queen and tar­
gets Black's c4-pawn. 7.lLla3 !'i:bS
S.�a6 !'i:xb2 9.�a4, given by Dorfman
as "plus-over-equal," transposes to the
game. White has one independent op­
tion in this move order, 9.lLlxc4, when
9 ... !'i:bS 10.e3 �cS should be okay for
366
Black. Botvinnik's way of playing is
more ambitious.
White's knight hops to safety and
heads directly into the struggle to
round up Black's c4-pawn.
9 �d7
•••
Black's most logical move, un­
pinning his knight on c6. 9 ... !'i:xd2 !?
should be met by 10.lLlxd2, not 10. <;!{xd2
e5 ! when Black has good play for his
material. (This position has occurred
several times, but it looks unpleasant
for White, who will need to play accu­
rately to defend his open king.) After
the safer 10.lLlxd2, play continues 10...
�xd4 ll.!'i:dl c3 12.lLldc4 �c5, when
Black has compensation according to
Botvinnik:
Here we recommend 13.f3 with the
idea of e2-e4; this wrestles the initi­
ative away from Black, leaving White
with the better chances.
10. �xc4 gb8 11.e3 lLlb4
Black uses the last of his dwin­
dling activity to force the following
endgame. 1l . . . lLld5 12.a3 ! leaves Black
with little counterplay. White would
then be able to complete his develop-
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . i.f5

ment and focus on increasing his pres­ 19 .!Dd2

•

sure on the queenside.

White is threatening to hop to c4,
so Black's next move feels compulso­
ry.

19 ••• .!Dd6

Computers recommend 19 . . . .id6

20.tLlc4 Eib8, but Black's defense is dif­
ficult in either case. Smyslov's idea is
to put the knight on c8 to defend his
weak a7-pawn.

20.ghbl .!De8
12.Ybd7+ �xd7 13 .txb4 gxb4
•

14 .!Dee5+ �e8
•

White should be better in this

endgame due to his control of the eS
square, his better pawn structure, and
his slight lead in development. Black's
main trump here is the bishop pair, so
naturally White's next step is to trade
off Black's prized light-squared bishop.

15 .td3 f6 16 .txf5 .!DxfS 17 .!Dd3

• • •

gb6 18.�e2
18.a4 ! ?, preventing Black's next
move, was certainly an alternative.
White weakens the b4 square, but af­
ter 18 . . . i.b4+ 19.';!;1e2 as 20.Eihc1 �d7
21.tLlcS+ ixc5 22.EixcS Eib2 + 23 . .!Dd2
Eia8 24.Eiac1 Eia7, White would still
have a sizable advantage. Botvinnik's
approach is solid and systematic -
and sets Black far more difficult prob­
lems.
From here, the knight defends a7.
21 .!De4 gxbl 22.gxbl
• .te7
23.gb8 �d8 24.a4
White will soon be "putting the
squeeze" on Black, so to speak. Smys­
lov's patient defense, shifting back
and forth without losing hope, is noth­
ing short of incredible.
24 ge8 25.a5 �d7 26.a6 .if8
•••

18 .ia3 ! ?
••• 27.gb7 .te7 28 .!Da5 .td6 29.e4 .if8
•

I t was difficult for Black t o find a
good square for his dark-squared bish­
op. Placing it on d6 would take away
that same square from his knight.
30.f3
White has achieved much in the
past five moves. Now, however, Black
senses a slight "looseness" in White's

367
 CHAPTER 17
position and makes a bold attempt to
activate his pieces.
30 •.• �b6 ! ?
Black abandons his weak a7-pawn,
trusting that he will be able to gener­
ate counterplay while White's rook is
sidelined on the a-file.
3U�xa7 gbS 32.�b3
White had plenty of alternatives
to this move, but it is hard to know
if any would have yielded a better re­
sult. White has a crystal-clear advan­
tage, but there does not appear to be a
forced win.
32 �a4 33.gb7 gaS 34.a7 j"e7
••.
35.�e3 �cS 36.�a5 �d7
37.g3 ? !
This is perhaps too quiet. 37.f4,
seeking to grab more control over the
eS square, might have proved a more
useful move. 37 . . . tt'lb6 could then be
met by 38.tt'lc5+ hcS 39.dxcS tt'lc8
40.c6+ �d6 (not 40. . . �d8?? 41.gb8
gxa7 42.�b7+) 41.eS+ fxeS 42 .fxeS+
�xeS 43.gxc7 �d6 44.gd7+ �cS
4S.gd8, when White has good win­
ning chances. Black's king will need
368
to head all the way to a7 to capture
both of White's pawns, when 4S . . . �b6
46.tt'lb3 �xc6 47.�d4+ �b6 48.�f4
�xa7 49.tt'lxe6 Ieaves Black's kingside
in dire straits.
Now 38.tt'lcS+ hcS 39.dxcS tt'lc8
4O.c6+ �d6 leaves White without the
resource e4-eS+ .
What else? White's advantage
melts away.
39 gxbS 40.axbS\W+ �xbS
. • .
41.�bc5 e5 42.dxe5 fxe5 43.f4
�c4+ 44.�f3 exf4 45.gxf4 g6
Now Black has excellent chances of
pulling off a successful defense.
46.e5 c6 47.�b3 �c7 4S.�e4
�b6 49.f5 gxf5+ 50. �xf5 �e3+
112-1f2
Here the players agreed to a draw.
Even if White managed to win Black's
remaining bishop and knight for his
two pawns, he would likely just be
stuck fruitlessly trying to mate a lone
king with a pair of knights.
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . .ifS

Summary: Going after the initiative with 5 . . . dxc4!? didn't get Black much
in this game. His "initiative" was entirely on the queenside, where White was
already well developed. He managed to steer for a worse endgame and, with
the perseverance of a World Champion, proceeded to hold it. That said, White
was very close to winning, particularly around move 37.

Black's Other Pawn Cha i n : Pushing . . . c7-c6

Obviously, when Black plays . . . .icB­ Alternatively, 3 . . . lLlf6, transposing

fS followed by . . . e7-e6, he gives White into the Marshall Defense, is still tre­
every reason to go after the bish­ mendously popular among club play­
op pair with lLlf3-h4. So what about ers. White's best here is 4.lLlc3 c6? !
reinforcing the dS-pawn with . . . c7- (better i s 4 . . . e 6 S.V9b3 lLlc6 6 . .igS,
c6 instead? Unfortunately for Black, which is a little uncomfortable for
this simply leads to a markedly infe­ Black) S.cxdS cxdS (S . . . lLlxdS is better
rior version of the Slav Defense. Of­ but 6.lLld2 ig6 7.e4 gives White a nice
ten, Black winds up trying to defend edge) 6.V9b3 :
an "Exchange Variation" of the Slav
(1.d4 dS 2.c4 c6 3.cxdS cxdS) several
tempi down. That said, some lines are
playable - if not ideal - for Black. In
the following game, we sum up every­
thing one needs to know to effectively
exploit the downsides of a combined
2 . . . .ifS and 3 . . . c6.

Andersson, lnf (2630)

Renman, Nils Gustaf (2375)
[Dll] Sweden 1996
V!i:Jf3 d5 2.d4 .U5 3.c4 c6? !
This move gives White an easy ad­
vantage, as we have simply reached a
Slav Defense (l.lLlf3 dS 2.d4 c6 3.c4)
where Black has played 3 ...MS? ! instead
of 3 . . . lLlf6. The weakness of Black's b7-
and dS- pawns is now telling.
Also poor is 3 . . . dxc4, which is just
a better version of the Queen's Gambit
Accepted for White. 4.lLlc3 lLlf6 S.e3 e6
6.ixc4 .ie7 7.0-0 0-0 B.Vge2 lLle4 9.Eidl
was an advantage for White in Wojt­
kiewicz-Westerinen, JyvaskyHi. l994.
This has been known to be good
for White for nearly a century. A quick
demonstration:
a) 6 . . . V9b6 7.lLlxdS lLlxdS (7 ... V9xb3
B.lLlxf6+ exf6 9 .axb3 .ic2 1O. .id2 ! ixb3
1l.e4 is just bad for Black, for instance
1l....id6 12 .dS! ic2? 13.Eic1 1-0, was
Pytel-F.Roder, 19B1) 8.V9xdS e6! (B ...
V9b4+ 9.id2 V9xb2 1O.Eic1 ie6 11.V9c5
with e2-e4 to follow is a clear advan­
tage for White) 9.V9b3 V9xb3 10.axb3
ic2 1l.id2 ! ? ixb3 12 .e4 f6 13.ic3 ic2
14.lLld2 lLld7 IS.ibS a6 16.me2 and
White was winning in Torre-Gothilf,
Moscow 1925, since Black's bishop on
c2 is trapped.

369
 CHAPTER 17

b) 6 . . . b6? weakens Black on the In a way, this is almost forced.

light squares. There are many good
moves here for White, but Yusupov's
suggestion 7.e4 ! seems right to the
point: 7 . . . dxe4 S.lLle5 e6 9.i.b5 + lLlfd7
10.g4 i.g6 1l.h4 is winning for White.
c) 6 .. .'�d7 7.lLle5 �dS S.�xb7 was
already clearly winning for White in
the simultaneous game Kasparov­
Rey, Galicia 1991.
d) 6 ... !cS ! is actually Black's best
move. Now White is up two tempi over
a regular Slav Exchange. After 7.M4,
there are a surprising number of
games from this position, but White
has gained both �d1-b3 and i.c1-f4
for free, so it's clear that he will have
a big edge.
Of course 4 . . . �xd5 5.lLlc3 �a5 gives
White an obvious edge after 6.�b3,
6.lLle5, or even just 6.i.d2 . Things
aren't any better for Black after 4 ...
cxd5 5.�b3 �cS 6.lLlc3 e6 7.i.f4 lLlc6
S.lLlb5 ! , either. Here both sides wound
up having to move their kings to odd
squares in Szymczak-Czajka, Polish
Chp. 1976, after S . . . i.b4+ 9.�d1 �fS,
but White simply has a tremendous
initiative:

4.cxd5 !

There is a famous trap that goes

4.�b3 �b6 5.cxd5 �xb3 6.axb3 hb1?
7.dxc6 ! i.e4? 8.!'i:xa7! !'i:xa7 9.c7 and
Black's light-squared bishop may
White wins. The appeal of this trap has be more active than White's, but every
led the move 4.�b3 to be mentioned
other piece in Black's army is suffer­
(or even recommended) far more of­
ing for it: the game continued 1O.!'i:c1
ten in openings books than it actual­ lLlge7 1l.a3 i.a5 12 .lLld6, which left
ly deserves. Black has any number of White winning.
improvements. For starters, 5 . . . hb1
6.!'i:xb1 �xb3 7.axb3 cxd5 is equal ac­
5 .!'i:xbl �xd5 6.a3
cording to ECO. (White has the bishop
pair, so we believe he should still stand
marginally better.) But then it turns
out that 6 . . . cxd5, which is supposed to
run into 7.lLlc3 e6 S.lLlb5 lLla6 9.!'i:xa6,
may be playable for Black. There isn't
any evidence that White is better after
9 . . .bxa6 10.lLlc7+ �d7 1l.lLlxaS i.d6,
and in fact, after 12 .e3 lLle7 13.ha6
!'i:xaS, Black may even be on the verge
of having an advantage due to his bet­
ter-placed pieces. No matter how one
argues it, the forcing 4.cxd5 is clearly
the stronger move. Surprisingly, this position has aris­
en a number of times in practice. It's
4,. .hbl obvious that White, with his bishop

370
 SYSTEMS WITH 2 . . . .if5
pair, lead in development, and control
of the center, has a comfortable edge.
6 ••• tOf6 7.e3 e6 8 .YHc2 .te7 9 .td3
• tion remains playable after 16 . . . a6
White's pieces are developing to
their most natural squares. He has a
number of possible continuations to
choose from, from advancing in the
center with e3-e4 to pushing on the
queenside with b2-b4.
9" .YHd8 !
By retreating his queen, Black
manages to get his pieces out in a log­
ical fashion with . . . lLlb8-d7 to follow.
Instead, 9 . . . h6 10. 0-0 0-0 1l.YHe2 oc­
curred in Wojtkiewicz-A. Gonzalez,
Carlos Torre Memorial 2001, when
Black (a player of about FIDE 2 100
strength) inexplicably blundered a
pawn with 1l . . . e5? and apparently re­
signed without waiting for a reply.
10.e4 h6 1l.YHe2 tObd7 12. 0 - 0
c5 13 .gdl YHc7
14.d5
It was also possible to open the
position for White's bishops with
14.dxc5 lLlxc5 (14 .. .'�xc5 15 . .ie3 and
14 . . . ,ixc5 15.b4 both lose time for
Black) 15 . .ib5+ , for instance 15 . . . lLlcd7
16 . .ie3 and here Black cannot castle
with 16 . . . 0-0? because 17.gbcl wins
a piece for White. Yet Black's posi­
17.l''! b c1 �a5 18 . .id3 0-0 19 ..id4 l'!fd8
20.e5 lLld5 21.�e4 lLlf8, when although
White has an advantage, he is still a
long way from actually cracking open
Black's kingside. The game continu­
ation gives White a passed d-pawn -
a very tangible advantage - and thus
appears to be stronger.
14" .eS lS.b4 cxb4 16.axb4 0 - 0
17.tOh4 gfc8 18.tOfS .if8 1 9 .td2 •
c;,th7 20.�f3 g6 21.tOe3 hS 22 .tbS?!•
White sets up the trick 23.,ixd7
lLlxd7 24.�xf7+. Tempting though
this may be, it makes more sense for
White to continue building his posi­
tion with 22 .lLlc4. Black would then
have no logical way to improve his po­
sition, since 22 . . . i.h6 loses a pawn to
23.,ixh6 c;,txh6 24.d6 �d8 25.lLlxe5 !
lLlxe5 26.�f4+ .
2 2 " . c;,tg8
Black easily defends the f7-pawn,
so one assumes that White had actu­
ally planned to give up his bishop pair
by swapping on d7. Surrendering this
trump was unnecessary, and White's
advantage melts quickly afterwards.
371
 CHAPTER 17

23.h3 a6 24.hd7 �d6 31.�xf5

Otherwise, 22 . .ib5 was rath­
er pointless. Considering the game,
though, it is possible White should
have sought to preserve his bishop pair
even here with 24 . .id3, when he has
the better position, but the loss of time
has cost him the initiative. Attempts to
regain it such as 24 . . . .ih6 25.d6? ! are
probably too ambitious, for instance
25 . . . �d8 (25 . . . �xd6 is sufficiently
messy for White's bishop pair to dom­
inate: 26.ttlf5 gxf5 27.hh6 f4 28.g3
ttlg4 29 . .ib5 ! is strong) 26.ttlf5 .if8
and although White's position looks
good, there does not appear to be any­
thing decisive. 27.ttlh6+ is met by 27 . . .
@g7, and rash attacking moves such
as 27.g4? fall short: 27 . . . gxf5 28.exf5
31.�g3 ! ? sets the trap 31.. .�g6??
32.exf5 �xf5 33 . .ih6+ ! @f6 (33 . . . @xh6
34J':1h1+ leads to mate) 34.�h4+ @g6
35.l'!b3 and White is winning. Howev­
er, after 31...l'!g8, it is White, not Black,
who is suffering down the g-file. Play
must continue 32 . .ie7+ �g6 33.exf5
�xg3+ , when after 34.fxg3, White
seems to have a slightly more impos­
ing version of the endgame that occurs
after the text. On the other hand, his
actual winning chances would likely
not have improved. Adequate defense,
such as 34 . . . l'!gc8 35.l'!bc1 f6, holds
everything together for Black.
31 �g6
••• 32 .�xg6+ @xg6
33 .ie3 f5 34.exf5+ @xf5 35.�bc1
•

hxg4 29.hxg4 e4 30.he4 ttle5 31.�g2 e4

ttlxe4 32.�xe4 hd6 just leaves Black
a piece up. With the text move, White
gives up an important positional ad­
vantage - the two bishops - to keep
his initiative rolling.
Even stronger would have been
35 . . . �xc1 36.�xc1 (or 36.hc1 �g8+
37.@f3 l'!g4 38 . .ia3 l'!c4) 36 . . . ttlf6!,
with an advantage for Black.

24 ttlxd7 25.g4 hxg4 26.hxg4

••• 36.d6 �xc1 37.�xc1 �d8 38.�c7
.ih6 27. @g2 @g7 28.g5 ttle5 39 .tc5 b6 40.,txb6 �xd6
•

41 .tc5 lJ2-l/2
•

For the time being, it can still be

said that White has the initiative. Both sides have adequately de­
fended their remaining pawns, so a
28 hg5 29.ttlf5+ gxf5 3 0 .hg5
•.• draw is a fair result.

Summary: White got a large edge against Black's 3 . . . c6?! in this game but
unnecessarily surrendered one of his big trumps, the bishop pair. Black man­
aged tofight his way back to equality, and he even had chances to seize the ad­
vantage in the endgame. White's first 20 moves or so, however, should still
serve as a good model for how to play the position that occurs after 3 . . . c6?!
4. cxd5! hb1 5. l'!xbl �xd5 6 . a3 .

Conclusion: Although 2 . . ..if5 is certainly playable, White can count on get­

ting a stable edge with Wojo's 3.c4 e6 4.�b3. He should be looking for some sort
of tangible advantage, such as winning Black's light-squared bishop for a knight
or getting a better ending. In general, Black is just fighting for a draw.

372
Chapter 18
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Ch igori n Defense

1.�f3 d5 2.d4 �c6 3 .g3

The Chigorin Defense, named after the famous Russian Mikhail Chigorin, is
somewhat unorthodox. Black blocks his c-pawn for no apparent reason, and in
the main lines after 3.c4, he often cedes the bishop pair early. The defense is by
no means bad, however. Its employment by GM Alexander Morozevich, a Top-
10 player, has helped it to gain some credibility with theoreticians. In this chap­
ter, we'll take a close look at one of the two systems Wojo used against the Chig­
orin: the so-called Fianchetto Variation with 3.g3.

Opposite-5ide Castl i ng: Wh ite Attacks the Queenside

The quiet 3.g3 may seem unambi­ plan or the other. In this first section,
tious at first glance, but in reality it we'll examine what happens when
is much sharper than White's oth­ Black plays . . . .!c8-g4, . . . 'lWd8-d7, and
er third-move Chigorin sidelines. M­ - if he is smart enough not to leave his
ter Black responds with 3 . . . .!g4, the king in the center - hurries to castle
most popular move, White has two queenside. In this case, the plan with
basic plans available to him. The first c2-c3 and b2-b4 makes sense and was
is to play for an eventual c2-c4, steer­ Wojo's preference.
ing the game towards a kind of Cata­ The following game is one of Wo­
lan with Black's light-squared bishop jo's best wins against the Chigorin.
outside the f7-e6-d5 pawn chain. The True to form, he showed up for the
other is to play the caveman-like c2-c3 game twenty minutes late and banged
and b2-b4. White usually has a choice out his moves at an average rate of
as to which plan to he will play, but less than two minutes per move, nev­
in other cases the circumstances on er once slipping into deep thought.
the board dictate that he choose one He had the Fianchetto Variation of

373
 CHAPTER 18

the Chigorin worked out to a "formu­
la," just like any of his other openings
with White - all of his pieces went to
good squares, and Black was soon lost.
Note that Black in this game was not
Bill Wall (as it appears in most data­
bases) but chess master Brian Doug­
las Wall of Colorado.
with S.llJeS. Then S . . ..tfS 6.c4 e6 7.0-0
,ixb1?, giving up the bishop pair with­
out a fight, was seen in Wojtkiewicz­
Shtern, Dallas 2001. Black was slaugh­
tered after 8J'lxb1 .td6 9.VNa4 ,ixeS
1O.dxeS llJd7 1l.cxdS exdS 12 . .tf4:

Wojtkiewicz, AI. (USCF 2653)

Wall, Brian (USCF 2203)
[D02] Sioux Falls 2002

1.�f3 � c6

One of Brian Wall's pet moves. He

once even successfully played 1 ... llJc6
against Dean's 1.d4, to which Dean, af­
ter a moment of reflection, proceeded
with 2.llJf3. Ippolito-Wall, 2005, was
eventually drawn.
2.d4 d5 3 .g3
3 ..tf4 was the other line Wojo
played. White scores well with both
moves in practice, though 3.g3 leads
to sharper play.
12 . . . 'kt>f8? (12 . . . llJb6 was better)
13.,ixdS llJdxeS 14.VNe4 VNe7 lS . .te3
'kt>g8 16.b4 hS 17 . .tcS VNf6 18.bS llJe7
19.,ixb7 Ele8 20.,ixa7 h4 2 1.g4 h3
22 ..td4 1-0. It's hard to say what
Black should play rather than 7 . . . ,ixb1,
however. 7 . . . llJxeS 8.dxeS llJe4 9.cxdS
exdS 10. VNb3 gives White pressure, as
does 7 . . . .td6 8 .VNa4.
5.h3

3 . . .ig4

This is considered the move most

in the "spirit" of the Chigorin. Black
is planning to play . . . VNd8-d7 and cas­
tle queenside. The more solid 3 . . . .tfS,
favored by Morozevich, is covered in
the next two games. Development
with something like 3 . . . llJf6 4 . .tg2 e6
5.0-0 .te7 leads to a less flexible Cata­
lan for Black after 6.c4, though White
also scores well with 6.c3 ! ? and 6.b3,
It is important for White to kick the
among others.
bishop on g4 before Black has a chance
4.ig2 Wd7 to play . . . .tg4-h3 advantageously.

The main line. Wojo met 4 . . . llJf6 5 . . ..th5

374
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE

The other retreat, 5 . . . .if5, is slight­ Masters 2002, continued 9 . . . h5 10J�e1

ly more popular. Now 6.c4, with a bi­
zarre Catalan-like position, has re­
sulted in a handful of lopsided victo­
ries for White. 6 . . . dxc4 (6 . . . e6 7.0-0
lLlf6 8.lLlc3 dxc4 9.lLle5 was better for
White in Chuchelov-Capone, Four­
mies 1998) 7.lLlc3 e6 8.e4 .ig6 9.0-0
gives White a good game, for in­
stance, Kaidanov-Khmelnitsky, U.S.
Chp. 1996, continued 9 ....id6 1O.�e2
lLla5 ! ? 1l . .ie3 b5 12.a3 c6 13.lLlh4 .ie7
14.lLlxg6 hxg6 15.d5 e5 16J�ad1 and so
forth:
�h7! ? 1l.e4 ! dxe4 12.lLlxe4 0-0-0 (not
12 . . . .ixe4? ! 13.lLlxg5 fxg5 14 ..ixe4 �f7
15.�a4 lLlge7 16 . .ixg5, with full com­
pensation for the piece) 13.b5 lLla5
14.�a4 b6 15.lLlfd2 (clearing the h1-
a8 diagonal and bringing pieces to
the queenside) 15 . . . �b8 16.lLlb3 lLlb7
17.�a6 c6? ! 18.bxc6 lLld6 :

Here 19.1Llbc5 ! , throwing every­

thing into the fray, would have won
for White. Instead, Wojo accidental­
ly dropped a rook after 19.c7+ �xc7
20.lLlxd6 .ixd6 21.lLla5 lLle7 22 .Eib1??
White will take on c6 and play f2- .ixb1, and Black went on to win. Be­
f4, opening up the position for his two fore the blunder, however, White was
bishops. He has more than enough doing well. The simple 22 .lLlb7 Eid7
compensation for a pawn. 23.lLlxd6 Eixd6 24.a4 was strong.
The caveman-like 6.c3, however,
is the Wojo interpretation. Both sides 6.lLlbd2 0 - 0 - 0 7.c3
continue to play for opposite-side
castling with 6 .. .f6 7.b4 e6 8.lLlbd2 g5.
Black must expand on the kingside
quickly, since the sluggish 8 . . . .id6?!
left Black positionally worse after
9.lLlh4 ! lLlge7 10.lLlxf5 lLlxf5 1l.e4 dxe4
12 .lLlxe4 0-0 13.0-0 Winsnes-Hector,
Swedish Team Chp. 1999. Black has
ceded the bishop pair and the center.
Returning to 8 . . . g5, White fearless­
ly castles into the storm with 9.0-0,
trusting in his ability to break with
e2-e4 in the center. The rapid game
Wojtkiewicz-Gonzales, New York 7.•. �b8? !

375
 CHAPTER 18
Black is playing the creative (but
bad) plan of . . . 'kt>c8-b8-a8 and It'lc6-
b8. Instead, 7 .. .f6 is Black's best
move. After 8 .b4, Black obviously
needs to do something to anticipate
b4-bS from White. The passive 8 . . . e6
9.bS &i:Jce7 1O.�b3 gS 1l . .ib2 followed
by c3-c4 gives White an edge, while
8 . . . �e8 (seen in Korotylev-Raetsky,
Swiss Chp. 2003) could be met with
9.bS &i:Jb8 1O.c4. Then 10. . . dxc4 1l.�c2
would have allowed White to count
on full compensation for his pawn,
e.g., 1l . . . c3 12 .�xc3 �xbS 13J''!b 1 �a6
14 . .ia3 It'lc6 1S.0-0 followed by �m-c1
and so on.
Thus, the pugnacious 8 . . . eS is the
critical line. After 9.bS It'lb8 (worse
is 9 . . . &i:Jce7 1O.�a4 e4 11.�xa7 �xbS
12.gb1 �c6 13.&i:Jh2 with the idea of c3-
c4 and &i:Jh2-fl-e3) 1O.dxeS �xbS, the
novelty 1l.�b3 ! makes Black uncom­
fortable:
a) 1l . . .'�xb3? ! 12 .axb3 It'lc6 13.e6
gives White open lines and better de­
velopment. Meanwhile, Black has
trouble rounding up the annoying e6-
pawn. Most of his tries simply fail; for
instance, 13 . . . 'kt>b8 14.b4 hf3 1S.lt'lxf3
ge8 16.bS It'ld8 17 . .ie3 is a clear ad­
vantage for White. Or if 13 . . . a6 14.b4,
Black is again unable to organize any
kind of siege against the e-pawn: 14 . . .
ge8 1S.bS ! axbS 16.ga8+ It'lb8 17.lt'ld4
c6 18.&i:J2b3 with .ic1-f4 to follow is
376
powerful, and if 18 . . . .id6? 19.1t'lfS .if8
20 . .if4 is winning. No better is 14 .. .
.id6 1S.bS ! axbS 16.lt'ld4 'kt>b8 (or 16 .. .
It'lb8 17.&i:JxbS c6 18.lt'lxd6+ gxd6 19.g4
.ie8 20.ga8 gxe6 21.lt'lf3) 17.&i:JxbS
.icS 18.&i:Jb3 .ib6 19 . .ia3 It'lge7 20.ga2,
when White will castle and double on
the a-file. Black is in trouble.
b) 1l . . . �a6 is Black's best. Then af­
ter 12.0-0 &i:Jc6 (12 . . . fxeS 13.&i:JxeS &i:Jf6
14.c4 is an edge for White, but 12 ...
�xe2? 13.&i:Jd4! �xeS 14.lt'lc4 ! �e7
1S.lt'laS cS 16.lt'le6! is nearly decisive)
13.c4 dxc4 (13 . . . d4 14.e6 ! ? is messy,
but it is difficult for Black to develop
his pieces) 14.&i:Jxc4, White's pieces are
well placed in an open position:
The most logical continuation
is 14 . . . i.xf3 1S.hf3 (1S.exf3 &i:Jd4
is less clear) 1S . . . &i:Jd4 (1S . . . lt'lxeS?
16.lt'lxeS fxeS 17.gb1 is winning for
White) 16.�c3 &i:Jxf3 + 17. exf3 , when
White's king is safer and his develop­
ment is smoother. 14 . . . .if7? ! is met by
1S.lt'lb6+ and 16.�xf7, but Black can
also try 14 . . . 'kt>b8 !?, which is essen­
tially a "pass" move. If nothing else,
White can certainly play 1S.exf6 .iV
16.�b2 (threatening f6xg7) 16 . . . gxf6!?
17.lt'le3, again with some pressure.
8 .b4 'kt>a8
Black gives his knight on c6 a
square, but now his king will be op-
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE

posite the fearsome "Wojo warrior" on "visual horror show" for Black, though
g2. According to Wall, 8 . . . e6 with the the authors note that they are not cer­
idea of . . . ltJc6-e7 is better. tain as to what other kinds of horror
shows there are.
9.b5 tLlb8 10.a4
16 • . • i.g6 17.cxd5 hd3 18.exd3
It is instructive that White wastes exd5
no time with queen moves such as
10.'M>3 or 1O:�a4. The pawn move is
better because White is looking to gain
queenside space.

10 • • • e6 11. 0 - 0

On 18 . . . ltJxd5, Black feared the

loss of his g-pawn with 19.hg7 l:%g8
20.ib2 and so on.

11 • • • c5 White's advantage is tremendous.

Black is fighting back, but on the
wrong side of the board! In all fair­
ness, there was not much Black could
have done to start a kingside attack
at this point. He is already too far be­
All White need do is to continue to
build his position. Writes Wall, "I felt
like a rag doll in a cage with a gorilla
- after a while 1 kind of went numb."
19 �d7 20.tLl£J id6 21.�3
• • •

hind, for instance, 1l .. .f6 12 .i.b2 g5 ghe8 22.gxe8 �xe8 23.a5 tLlbd7
13.c4 and the center is opened. 24.a6

12.tLle5 �e8 13.dxc5

Taking a concrete hold of the ini­

tiative.

13 .hc5 14.tLld3 �e7 15.c4 tLlf6

. • •

16.�b2

Wall remarks that White's bishops

crisscrossing the center constitute a

377
 CHAPTER 1B

The h1-aB diagonal is finally 27.�c4

cracked open. Black's king on aB will
suffer. Of course not 27.tDc6+? �xc6
2B.bxc6 tDxb3 29 . .ixb3 when White's
24 b6
.••
win is needlessly difficult. Black is
about to be checkmated, so Wojo has
24 ... .ic5 25.axb7+ 'it>xb7 26.tDd4 no interest in grinding out an ending.
leaves Black unable to defend against
27 �c8 28. c!Llc6+ �xc6
the dual threats of .ixd5+ and tDc6.
• . •

2B . . . 'it>c7 29.tDxa7 doesn't help

2S.c!Lld4 c!LlcS 26.,ixdS+ 'it>b8 matters, either.

26 . . . tDxd5 27.�xd5+ 'it>bB 2B.tDc6+ 29.,ixc6 �e2 30 .ixf6

• gxf6
loses immediately. 31.�xf7 1- 0

Summary: When Black plays 3 . . .ig4 and intends to castle queenside,

.

White does well with Wojo's c2-c3 and b2-b4. The opening analysis given in
the notes to this game help to demonstrate why 3 . . . .ig4 is not seen frequent­
ly in the games of strong players, though at the club level, it is by far the most
popular approach.

Black Plays Solidly with 3 .tfS . . .

The modern approach for Black is to
eschew the primitive plan of castling
queenside and instead play 3 . . . .if5. In
the first game, we demonstrate a sys­
tem White can play if Black simply
continues developing with . . . e7-e6,
. . . .ifB-e7, ... 0-0, and so on. This is an
old approach for Black that has never
scored well, but seems sound enough.
In the second game, we'll look at the
the distaste of Chigorin players, who
generally want to fight for the initia­
tive right from the opening.
Korchnoi, Viktor (262S)
Wirthensohn, Heinz (2410)
[D02] Nuremberg 1990
l.d4 dS 2.c!Llf3 c!Llc6 3.g3 .US
4 .i.g2 e6 S. 0 - 0 c!Llf6 6.c4 .i.e7
•

approach for Black used by strong

players nowadays. Black is looking to
reach a solid position similar to one
that might arise from a Semi-Slav. In
order to reinforce his center with . . . c7-
c6, he often executes the maneuver
. . . tDc6-b4-a6, interfering slightly with
White's development along the way.
Although Black's position is undenia­
bly solid here, the resulting positions
are very much to the taste of those
who play the Catalan - and much to

37B
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE
The only move occasionally
chanced by grandmasters. Black is
trying to play a Catalan with his light­
squared bishop outside the pawn
chain. This is not at all an unsound
idea, and its top advocate has been
none other than GM Yuri Balashov.
Instead, 6 . . . tLlb4 ! ? 7.tLle1 is more than
okay for White, for instance, 7 . . . cS ! ?
8.cxdS exdS 9.tLlc3 fie7 10.dxcS fixcS
1l.a3 tLlc6 12 .figS d4 13.fJ.xf6 �xf6
14.tLldS with a very good form of the
Tarrasch for White in Kiss-Peneder,
St. Veit 2000.
Another try from Black is 6 . . . dxc4,
switching to a sort of Open Catalan.
Here White scores well with 7.�a4,
regaining the pawn and threatening
tLlf3-eS. The only challenging line is
7 . . . tLld7 8.�xc4 tLlb6 9.�b3 :
White's advantage here is simi­
lar to that seen in the positions after
l.tLlf3 dS 2.d4 tLlf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4
S.fig2 tLlc6 6.�a4 tLld7 7.�xc4 tLlb6
8.�d3, which we discussed in Chap­
ter 6 (p. 121). The difference is that
Black's light-squared bishop is devel­
oped. One might think that this would
favor Black, but - just as in the 2 . . .
fifS systems covered i n the previous
chapter - the bishop's development
also has its downsides. There is little
existing theory here, so we provide a
brief overview of Black's possibilities.
In the lines that follow, note how the
development of Black's light-squared
bishop often proves problematic.
a) 9 . . . fie4 should be met with
1O.tLlbd2 fidS 11.�c2, preparing e2-e4.
White has a normal Catalan-style ad­
vantage in the center.
b) 9 . . . tLlb4?! is tricky, but Black
loses too much time. Now the quiet
10.tLla3 is possible, but 1O.tLleS, pre­
paring e2-e4, foils Black's plans. On
10 . . . tLlc2, 11.fixb7 tLlxa1? 12 .'1WbS + ! is
strong, so Black's critical try is to play
into the line 10. . . �xd4 1l.fixb7 �xeS
(1l . . . l:!b8? 12 .fic6+ @e7 13.l:!d1 wins)
12 .fixa8 tLlxa8 13.�a4+ @d8 14.�xa7
tLlb6. After lS.l:!d1+, White has a clear
advantage: Black's king is in the open
and White will play tLlb1-c3 and fic1-f4
for a lead in development.
c) 9 . . . aS threatens . . . as-a4, but
lO.�bS ! neatly tucks White's queen
back on the a4-e8 diagonal. Then
play might continue 10. . . �d7 (10. . .
a4? 1l.tLleS wins, and 1 0. . . �dS 1l.tLlc3
�xbS 12.tLlxbS is a slight advantage to
White) 1l.tLlc3 a4, when either 12.tLlh4
or 12.tLleS tLlxeS 13.dxeS �xbS 14.tLlxbS
0-0-0 lS.figS l:!d7 16.l:!ac1 gives White
the upper hand.
d) 9 . . . fie7 (best) 1O.tLlc3 0-0 and
here White should play the flexi­
ble 11.l:!d1 rather than the immedi­
ate 1l.e4, which would lose much of
White's advantage after 1l . . . fig4. There
is no sense in pushing in the center
too early here, as it would simply give
Black something to target. Then 11 . . .
tLlaS 12.�bS tLlac4 was Black's bid for
activity in the correspondence game
Kramer-Gunnlaugsson, 2000, but
now White was indeed ready to play
13.e4 fig4 14.h3. Play continued 14 . . .
c6 1S. �b3 fihS, when White played the
thematic knight maneuver 16.tLle2 !
and had a nice edge after 16 . . . aS 17.a4
�d6 18.�c2 . White's center is secure
379
 CHAPTER 18
and he is ready to kick out Black's
knight with b2-b3.
In conclusion, this is certainly not
an improvement for Black over the
l.llJf3 d5 2.d4 llJf6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 dxc4
5.ig2 llJc6 6.1Mfa4 llJd7 7.1Mfxc4 llJb6
8.1Mfd3 line from Chapter 6. In note "b,"
Black lacked coverage of his b7-pawn,
and this proved disastrous. In notes
"a" and "d," the light-squared bishop
itself became a target for White. This
is why 6 . . . dxc4, although playable, is
not considered a serious bid for equal­
ity.
7.cxd5
This is White's simplest option.
7.llJc3 is also possible.
7 • • . exd5 S)l)c3 tl)e4
Black's best. Otherwise, 8 . . . 0-0
9.tUe5 is good for White after 9 ... llJe4
10.tUxc6 bxc6 1l.1Mfa4 llJxc3 12 .bxc3
1Mfd7 13.c4, as in Wells-Small, Edin­
burgh 1985.
9.tl)d2!
A move very much in Korchnoi's
style. White's d-pawn is poisoned: 9 . . .
llJxd4?! 1O.1Mfa4+ llJc6 1l.llJdxe4 dxe4
12 J"!:d1 1Mfc8 13.if4 0-0 14.llJxe4 gave
380
White a strong initiative in the cor­
respondence game Graziani-Magrin,
1960.
Without the text move, Black
would have no problems. For in­
stance, 9.1Mfb3?! has been played fre­
quently here, but 9 . . . tUxc3 1O.1Mfxc3
0-0 11.if4 E1e8 actually leaves Black
slightly better. He is ready to play
. . . a7-a5 and expand on the queenside,
an area over which White has no
minor-piece control.
9 • • • tl)xc3
Going back with 9 . . . llJf6 ! ? is an at­
tempt to repeat the position. Now
1O.tUb3 h6 11.if4 0-0 was seen in Bron­
stein-Balashov, USSR Chp. 1972 . In
that game, White's plan was to expand
on the kingside. After 12 .E1c1 1Mfd7 13.f3
E1adB 14.g4 ih7 15.ig3 id6 16.1Mfd2
llJe7 17.ixd6 cxd6 18.e3, White was
perhaps a little better, but he wound
up hitting his head against a stone
wall after 18 . . . llJe8 19.1Mfe2 f5 20.h3
tUf6, when Black was solid. Therefore,
White should consider 12.llJc5, with
play on the queenside. After 12 . . . E1b8
(not 12 . . . b6 13.tUa6 E1cB 14.tUb5, with
pressure) 13.a3 E1e8 14.b4 a6 15.E1e1,
White has a good game.
10.bxc3
This recapture brings White's b­
pawn toward the center. White does
not mind that his c4 square is some­
what weak as he hopes to break with
c3-c4 soon.
10 • • • ,ie6
Black defends d5 and targets the c4
square. The bishop will actually find
itself somewhat uncomfortable on
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE

e6, but 10. . . 0-0 11.�b3 instead would
have been a headache for Black.
11.l'�b1 gb8 12.e4
as White's pawn center is strong. He
will undoubtedly round up Black's c3-
pawn, leaving Black under pressure.
14.cxd5 i.d7 15.c!Oc4

12 ••• 0-0
White has a clear advantage due
This allows White to carry out his to his strong center and well-placed
plan of c3-c4, but ceding the center pieces.
with 12 . . . dxe4 wasn't promising, ei­
ther. 13.he4 0-0 (13 . . . ha2? 14.gxb7! 15 ••• c!Ob5 16 .tb2 ,tc5 17.e5
•

is a problem: 14 ... gxb7 IS.hc6+ wf8

16.hb7 and White is up a piece)
14.gel �d7 (or 14 . . . ha2 IS.hh7+
Wxh7 16.�c2 + Wg8 17.�xa2) IS.�f3
with the threat of gxb7 gives White
strong play. His queen can be trans­
ferred to the centralized d3 square.
White's pawn center has a "lust to
expand," and White is willing to risk
pushing it because his pieces are al­
ready on their best squares.
17 •.• c6 18 .d6 i.e6 19.9c1 a6

13.c4

13.gel and so forth was also good

for White, but Korchnoi takes the op­
portunity to establish an even greater
pawn center.

13 ••• c!Oxd4

Black can get away with 13 . . . dxc4 ! ?

14.dS if h e finds 1 4. . . c3 ! The idea is
that after IS.ttJc4 i.c8, White cannot
play after 16.dxc6 �xdl 17.gxdl in
view of 17 . . . c2 , forking his rooks. This
doesn't mean Black's play after 15 . . .
i.c8 i s b y any means easy, however,
Black had to give his knight a
square, as a2-a4 was coming. White
now sets up a most impressive pawn
chain.

381
 CHAPTER 18
20.c.!?h1 c!l)a7 21.f4 b5 2 2 .c!l)d2
.te3 23. YlYe2 Wb6 24.lU3 .id4
24 . . . hd2 2S.YlYxd2 .idS doesn't
help Black after 26J%f2 hg2 + 27. c.!?xg2
cS 28.fS c!l)c6 29.e6 (on 29.f6, 29 . . . tt'ld8 !
30.fxg7 ge8 might hold White off for a
while) 29 . . . fxe6 30.fxe6, when White is
winning, e.g., 30. . . tt'ld4 31.hd4 cxd4
32.gxf8+ gxf8 33.e7 ge8 34.YlYf4 fol­
lowed by gel-f1. After the text move,
White continues to gain time as he
moves his assault forward.
25.,hd4 YlYxd4 26.c!l)b3 YlYb6
27.f5 .ic4 28.YlYd2 1Ue8 29.e6
White decides it is time to play a
breakthrough and go for checkmate.
29.ge1 was also possible, particular­
ly since White has ideas of fS-f6 and
YlYd2-gS.
29 . . . fxe6 30.f6
382
The best defense. 30. . . ged8 31.f7 +
c.!?f8 runs into 32 .YlYc2 ! , hitting h7 and
forcing 32 . . . g6 33.YlYb2 with mate to
follow, whereas on 31...c.!?h8 32 .YlYgS,
the attack continues.
31.. .g6 32.tt'lcS was also bleak.
32 .fxg7 gxg7 33.YlYe5 gd8
33 . . . cS ! ? 34.tt'lxcS c!l)c6 3S.YlYe3
might have held out a little longer for
Black, as it would get his knight back
in the game. White is still winning (or
close to it), as his d-pawn is beastly.
34.c!l)c5 c!l)c8
Black's position is falling apart.
34 . . . ha2 3S.gcf1 followed by tt'lcS-e4-
f6 also lost for Black.
35.c!l)xe6 he6 36.YlYxe6+ c.!?h8
37.gcf1 gdg8 38.gfS 1- 0
Black resigns, as White threatens
39.gxg8+ gxg8 40.WeS+ gf6 41.gf8
mate, 39.d7, and 39.�xc8.
Summary: The system with
. . . .icB-j5, . . . e7-e6, . . . tt'lgB-j6, . . . .ifB­
e7, . . . 0 - 0 , and so on is solidfor Black,
but White should get an advantage in
all lines. Korchnoi's solid, expansive
play in the center makes for an excel­
lent model game in this system. More
critical is 6 . . . dxc4 7. �a4 tt'l d7 B. �xc4
tt'l b6 by Black, but for some reason
this is not seen frequently. If this sys­
tem increases in popularity, White
may want to look into alternatives to
the obvious 7. �a4.
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE

Aronian, Levon (2518) larly good square. Having played c2-

Pinski, Jan (2444) c3, however, has the benefit for White
[D02] Yerevan 1999 of opening up the possibility of his
next move, which puts a consider­
v!LJf3 tDc6 2.d4 d5 3.g3 i.f5 able amount of pressure on Black's
4.i.g2 e6 queenside.

4 ... tDb4 5.tDa3 e6 6.0-0 is a com­

mon route to the same position.
A move that would very much have
5. 0 - 0 tDb4 appealed to Wojo, who, as we have
seen, was often fond of putting his
With this move, Black unblocks his queen on b3.
c-pawn.

6.tDa3
8 . . . gb8 is plausible, but Black is
hoping to play . . . c7-c6 to reinforce
his center. Since ic1-f4 from White
would then be a concern, Black uses
the queen to defend b7 instead.

9.c4

White's most dynamic option.

9.ge1 c6 1O.ig5, seen in Bareev-Moro­
zevich, Russian Chp. 1995, is pleasant
for White but less ambitious.
6 .te7
9 c6 10.ig5 ! ?
•.•

•••

For some reason, the unambitious

6 . . . l!Jf6 7.c3 l!Jc6 has also been played
a number of times. 8.'�fb3 gb8 and
here 9.ig5 ie7 10.hf6 hf6 11.l!Jd2
0-0 12 .e4 dxe4 13.tDxe4 ie7 14.l!Jc4
is an edge for White, though NikoliC's
9.l!Jh4 ig4 1O.f3 ih5 11.e4 seen in
P.Nikolic-Arencibia, Yerevan Olym­
piad 1996, is a more serious try for the
advantage.

7.c3 tDa6
1O.if4 i s more standard here,
Neither White's knight on a3 nor but Aronian's move is meant to help
Black's knight on a6 is on a particu- White achieve the e2 -e4 break. Black's

383
 CHAPTER 18
entire setup is based around the light
squares, so the trade of dark-squared
bishops will leave him vulnerable on
cS, d6, and eS.
10•.•h6
Black wrestles with White for time.
Less pugnacious is lO. . . hgS, which
just helps White. 11.ttlxgS ttlf6 12.cxdS
exdS (12 . . . cxdS 13'!'!:ac1 gives White a
slight pull) 13.'We3+ ie6 14.b4 ! ? was
seen in Volke-Howell, Calvia Olympi­
ad 2004:
Black cannot play 14 . . . ttlxb4 1S.ih3
O-O?? in view of 16.ttlxe6, so the game
continued 14 . . . h6 lS.ttlxe6 'Wxe6
16.'Wxe6+ fxe6 17.bS ttlb8 18'!'!:ab1 with
a better structure for White.
Meanwhile, Nigel Davies's sugges­
tion of 1O. . . ttlf6 can be met by 11.ttlh4,
with good prospects for an advantage:
The calm 1l . . . ig6 12.ttlxg6 bxg6 is
solid for Black, but not much fun. The
queenside is too open for Black to con-
384
sider castling there, so Black is play­
ing defense. Other bishop moves are
worse, however:
a) 1l . . . ig4 12 .f3 ihS 13.cxdS ttlxdS
(13 . . . exdS? ! 14.e4 h6 lS.ie3 followed
by ttlh4-fS gives White a dangerous
attack, while 13 . . . cxdS 14.E1ac1 'Wd7
lS.if4 0-0 16.g4 ig6 17.ttlxg6 hxg6
is just a slight edge) 14.he7 ttlxe7
lS.'We3 (to prevent . . . g7-gS) looks bet­
ter for White.
b) 1l . . . ie4 looks critical, and
here 12 .f3 dxc4 13.'Wc3 ! , rather than
13.ttlxc4 idS 14.e4 hc4 lS.'Wxc4 h6
16.hf6 hf6, does the trick. 13 . . . ttldS
is met handily by 14.'Wc1, when the po­
sition is slightly messy, but it is Black's
pieces that are hanging, not White's.
White is ready to win the bishop pair
and regain his pawn on c4.
1l.he7 tOxe7 12.tOd2
White is preparing for e2-e4. Note
that he is close to achieving an ideal
Catalan setup, and the dark-squared
bishop will be sorely missed by the
second player.
12 0 - 0 13.e4 dxe4 14.tOxe4
. • .
E1d8 15.E1ad1 'Wc7 16.'Wc3
White sees no need to play for c4-
cS and ttle4-d6 here. Surrendering
control of dS is too risky. For now,
 THE CHIGORIN DEFENSE
White can just focus on building up
his position.
Something along the lines of 16 . . .
he4 17.he4 lLlb8 18.lLlc2 lLld7 19JUe1
lLlf6 20..ig2 might have relieved some
of the pressure on Black's position,
but giving up the bishop for the knight
would certainly have been a conces­
sion.
17.lO c2 lOb8
Both knights finally leave the edge
of the board. White's is headed to a
more useful square than Black's is.
A good move, softening Black up
on the queenside.
18 . . . b6 19. 1O e3 .ih7 20. lOc3 lOfS
21. lOxfS .b.f5 22 .�;re1 a6
A further weakening of the
queenside. Black was probably con­
cerned about 22 . . . lLld7 23.d5, open­
ing up the position for White's Cata­
lan bishop.
23 .h3 gd7 24.d5
Black's pieces are somewhat jum­
bled, so this is a good time for White
to make the d4-d5 break.
24 .•. exd5
24 . . J�kd8 25.dxc6 leaves Black
with some problems defending his a6-
pawn.
25.cxd5 c5
Thematic, but bad. Black's piec­
es are in no position to blockade the
strong d5-pawn, so White pushes it.
26.d6 �a7
26 .. .!:1xd6 27.lLld5 �d8 28.lLle7+
�xe7 29.1::1xe7 1::1x d1+ 30.c;!;>h2 gives
Black enough material for his queen,
but White is much more active here,
giving him a clear advantage.
27.�a4 c4?
Black does nothing to address
lOc3-d5, White's threat, but his posi­
tion was starting to fall apart in any
case.
28.lOd5
Black can do nothing to stop lLl d5-
e7 with check.
28 . . . b5 29.lOe7+ 1- 0
If 29 . . . 1::1xe7, White wins with
30.1::1xe7 �xe7 31.dxe7 bxa4 3 2 .1::1 d 8+ .
Black i s going down a substantial
amount of material, so he picks a good
time to resign.
385
 CHAPTER 18

Summary: When Black plays for ... tDc6-b4-a6, White should look to get
a position resembling that of a Closed Catalan. Black's light-squared bishop
is outside his central pawn chain, but that also makes it a target for tD.f3-h4
from White. From a theoretical standpoint, White can count on a slight edge
after Aronian's idea of 1 0 . :1g5. Black is solid, but his position isn't "dynamic, "
as most Chigorin players would prefer it to be.

Conclusion: The Fianchetto Variation against the Chigorin has all the
characteristics of a true "Wojo Weapon." Most club players will soon be "out of
book," and Black's more primitive approaches starting with 3 .. :1g4 aren't rec­
.

ommended by theory. Black's best options lead to solid positions that don't feel
very much in the spirit of the Chigorin.

386
Chapter 19
////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The Austri a n Defense

1.c!Llf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4

The "Austrian Defense" proper occurs after 1.d4 d5 2 .c4 c5 ! ? However, using a
Wojo move order, we transpose into the Austrian after l.ltJf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4. In
general, this opening is thought to be nothing but a drawing weapon for Black.
Black seeks to liquidate the center as rapidly as possible and trade off into an
endgame, all the while hoping he won't be left with a bad position.

Keeping the Queens on the Boa rd

Since Wojo enjoyed playing queenless (and achieve a nice edge in the process)
middlegames anyway, it may come as will find what they need to know in the
a shock that he sometimes avoided notes. (Ed. note: As this was a private
the early queen swaps that can arise game, Wojo's opponent is not identi­
from the Austrian. This was a practi­ fied, but we have given a rating range
cal decision more than anything else. as a measure of his or her strength.)
Wojo was always trying to steer his op­
ponents into positions in which they Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander
would feel uncomfortable. Obvious­ N.N. (240 0+)
ly, those who play the Austrian with [D06] New York 2002
Black are apt to be more comforta­
ble with queenless middlegames than 1.c!Llf3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4
those who play, say, the Slav. In the
following encounter, Wojo decides This is by far White's best move,
to keep the queens on the board and opening up the center. Trying to play
build an initiative in the center. See­ a Queen's Gambit Declined a tempo
ing Wojo avoid the queen swap is re­ up is too unambitious to be an effec­
freshing, but those who wish to play it tive Wojo Weapon.

387
 CHAPTER 19

3 . . . cxd4 White is planning to play ixf6 and

tt'le3, with full control of the dS square.
3 . . . dxc4 is less common and is cov­
ered in the next game, while 3 . . . tt'lf6 5 • • • tt'lxd5 6.e4
4.cxdS cxd4 is just a transposition.
Meanwhile, 3 . . . e6 transposes into a
Tarrasch Defense.

4.cxd5 tt'lf6

An amusingly symmetrical posi­

tion has been reached. 4 . . . �xdS ! ? is
somewhat worse in view of S.tt'lc3 !
'!WaS 6.tt'lxd4 tt'lf6 7.g3, which promises
White an advantage in development.
For instance, 7 . . . tt'le4 8.id2 tt'lxd2
9.'!Wxd2 or 7 . . . eS 8.tt'lb3 '!Wc7 9.igS are
6 . . .tl::J b4 ! ?
both given by Avrukh, who analyzes
this line in depth.
With the text, Black now threatens
7 . . . '!Wxd4 8.'!Wxd4 tt'lc2 + . White gets
rapid development here, however, so
it is worth exploring Black's alterna­
According to Wojo, he elected this
tives.
move for this particular game because
Perhaps somewhat more sound is
he needed a win. The simpler S.'!Wxd4
6 . . . tt'lf6 7.tt'lc3 eS, though here 8.ibS+
leads to an advantage for White in the
id7 9.tt'lf3 (better than 9.ixd7+ !?
queenless middlegame that ensues af­
'!Wxd7 1O.tt'ldbS a6 11.'!Wxd7+ mxd7
ter S . . . '!WxdS 6.tt'lc3 �xd4 7.tt'lxd4 a6
12.tt'la3 ixa3 13.bxa3 E1c8 14.ib2
(7 . . . eS? ! 8.tt'ldbS tt'la6 9.g3 id7 10.ig2 1 2 - 1 2 , Wojtkiewicz-Prasad, Calcutta
ic6 11.0-0 icS 12 .igS tt'ld7 13.E1ad1
1991) 9 . . . '!WaS 10.ixd7+ tt'lbxd7 11. 0-0
f6 14.ic1 followed by a2-a3 and b2-
gives White a slight lead in develop­
b4 was uncomfortable for Black in
ment:
Jurka-Hrabe, 2000) 8.g3 eS 9.tt'lc2
id7 1O.ig2 ic6 11.0-0 ixg2 12.mxg2
tt'lbd7 13.igS:

White can hope to organize some

control over the dS square, but neither

388
 THE AUSTRIAN DEFENSE
of Black's knights is in any position to
take advantage of d4.
Another possible retreat is 6 . . . 4Jc7,
but here 7 . .if4 ! stops Black from play­
ing . . . e7-eS. Black has two reasona­
ble tries. 7 . . . 4Je6 8 . .ibS+ 4Jc6 9.4Jxe6
'!Wxdl + 10. 'i!.>xdl he6 1l . .ixc6+ bxc6
12.4Jd2 g6 13 . .ieS f6 14 . .ic3 Ieft Black's
queenside pawns weak in Timman­
Miles, Bugojno 1986, while 7 . . . 4Jd7
8.'!Wa4 (stopping . . .e7-eS) 8 . . . e6 9.4Jc3
.icS is best met by 10.4Jb3 0-0 1l.4JxcS
4JxcS 12.'!Wa3 with a big edge in Soln­
Kukovec, Nova Gorica 2000.
7.1Wa4+
White's most ambitious move. The
more modest 7 . .ibS+ .id7 8.4Jc3 eS
9.4JfS 4J 8c6 10.4Je3 has been played
by Krasenkow and also offers White
some chances for an edge.
7••• tQ 8c6 8 .te3 .td7
•
Solid. 8 . . . eS 9.4Jxc6 4Jxc6 1O.4Jc3
offers White a small pull.
9.tQxc6 tQxc6 10.tQc3
10 . . . e5 ! ?
Wojo told his students that h e felt
his two extra moves here should offer
him good chances for an advantage.
The main problem was his queen's
awkward placement on a4, which he
decided to rectify via '!Wa4-dl-hS ! .
Instead of the text, Wojo indicat­
ed that 1O . . . e6 was the correct way
to play. "Because of this bishop on
d7, White is getting a slight advan­
tage. He should just develop. " Wojo
thought White's best plan was to play
.ifl-bS and exchange on c6 if Black
kicked with . . . a6. Then, White would
retreat his queen to b3 to put pressure
on the newly weakened b6 square.
The ultimate goal was to reach a
good -knight -versus-bad-bishop end­
game, possibly posting the knight on
the cS square.
Thus the novelty 1l ..ibS would
have been Wojo's move, rather than
the old 11..ie2 .
1l . .ic4
White focuses on the dS square. In
this case, Wojo rejected 1l . .ibS in view
of 1l . . . a6 12 .hc6 .ixc6 13.'!Wb3 '!WaS !
with the idea of . . . .if8-b4 or . . . '!WaS-b4.
1l . . . tQd4 12.'!Wdl .ic5 13 . 0 - 0
0 - 0 14.'!Wh5 !
Attacking the eS-pawn and con­
verging on f7. According to Wojo, this
389
 CHAPTER 19

is the only way for White to use his

slight lead in time. White will now be
looking for tactical resources on both
sides of the board. Worse is 14.f4 .ie6
15.he6 tt:lxe6 16.hc5 tt:lxc5, when
Black has no problems.

14 ••. fff6 lS.tlJdS ffd6

On 15 . . . ffg6, White cannot play

16.ffxe5?? in view of 16 . . . tt:lf3 + , but
16.ffxg6 hxg6 17.b4 keeps White's ini-
tiative rolling into the endgame. 18 . . . ffcS

16.b4 ! On 18 . . . ffc6, best is 19J�fc1! ' Wojo

admitted that he was unsure until af­
ter the game as to which rook was bet­
ter to put on c1, but the king's rook is
convincing: 19 . . . .ic5 20. .id3 g6 2 1.�f3
f5 (not 21...'it>g7? 22 .�f6+ or 21...b6?
22 .tt:le7+) 22 .l'!abl! and White's attack
on the queenside is overwhelming:

White strikes before Black can fin­

ish organizing his pieces.

16 . . . .ixb4

Forced. Wojo gave the line 16 . . .

.ib6? 17.f4 ! , when Black cannot play
17 ...exf4 in view of 18.e5. After 17 . . .
l'!ae8, White has 18.tt:lxb6 �xb6 (18 . . .
axb6 19.ht7+ l'!xt7 20.�xt7+ 'it>xt7
2l.fxe5+ wins back the queen with
interest) 19.fxe5 .ie6 20.he6 fxe6
All of White's pieces are taking part
in the action. 22 . . . a6 (to stop .id3-b5)
23.l'!xb7 l'!ac8 24.tt:lf6+ l'!xf6 25.exf6
and Black's position crumbles.
19 .id3 h6 20.tlJf6 + !
•

21.l'!xf8+ l'!xf8 22 .l'!dl g6 23.�g4 l'!d8

24.l'!d2 ! followed by �g4-dl, winning A powerful knight sacrifice to rip
the pinned knight on d4. open Black's kingside.

17 .ixd4 exd4 18.eS

• 20 . . . gxf6 21.�xh6 f5

390
 THE AUSTRIAN DEFENSE

White threatened 22 .i.h7+ c;:t>g8

23.i.g6 c;:t>g8 24.�h7 mate, so this is
forced.

22.�g5+ c;:t>h7

26 ••• �g8

Losing quickly. Also not good was

22 . . . c;:t>h8? 23.f4 with the idea of
Eif1-f3-h3 is crushing.
23 .hf5+
•
White has no interest in taking a
draw by repetition with 23.�h5+ c;:t>g7
24.�g5+.
23 hf5 24. �xf5+ c;:t>g7 25. �g4+
•••
26 . . . �xe5, when 27.Eixd4 i.e7 28.Eie4
�g5 29.�h3+ �h6 30.�xh6+ c;:t>xh6
31. Eixe7 should be a winning rook end­
game for White.
26 .. .f5 might have held out longer,
for instance, 27.exf6 Eixf6 28.Eixd4 Eie8 !
when 29.Eixb4?? leads to mate after
29 . . . �xf2 + 30.Eixf2 Eie1+ . Thus, sim­
plest for White is probably 27.�h4+
c;:t>g8 28.Eixd4, when Black cannot save
his bishop in view of 2 8 . . . i.a3 29.�g5+
c;:t>f7 30.'lWxf5+ c;:t>g7 31.Eig4+ and mate.

c;:t>h7 26.Eiadl ! 27.�h4+ c;:t>g7 28.�xd4 i.c3

29.�f6 + c;:t>f8 30.�d7 �c4
(see next diagram)
30. . . Eig7 31.Eid8+ is mate in two.
Black's extra bishop on b4 is not
participating in the defense of his
king. White has a free hand to bring Black's queen must stay on the a2-
his rook into the attack. g8 diagonal, so the bishop is lost.

Summary: In this game, Wojo passed on the opportunity to play a queen­

less middlegame and decided to keep the queens on the board. He achieved a
tremendous initiative in the center with creative play, and won infine style.

Conclusion: White does well against Black's opening line with either
5.�xd4 or 5.tt:lxd4. The latter is more ambitious and requires more tactical ef­
fort on White's part to win. The former fits well with a Wojo repertoire and gen­
erally requires good technique from White. In both cases, White is playing for a
win without taking on much risk.

391
 CHAPTER 19
Black Plays 3 dxc4: A Type of Queen 's Gam bit Accepted
. . .
Recall how in Chapter IS we discov­
ered that the line 1..!Llf3 dS 2.d4 .!Llf6
3.c4 dxc4 4.e3 e6 S.hc4 cS 6.0-0 cxd4
7.exd4 .!Llc6 leads to a favorable isolat­
ed queen's pawn position for White:
The simplest plan for White is to
control the dS square and work toward
making the d4-dS break as quickly and
effectively as possible. When Black
plays 1..!Llf3 dS 2.d4 cS 3.c4 dxc4 in
the Austrian, he is headed into a rath­
er similar line. Wojo played 4.e3 here,
an attempt to transpose back into the
Queen's Gambit Accepted after 4 . . . e6
S.hc4 or something to that effect.
Essentially, 3 . . . dxc4 in the Austri­
an is just a transposition into an un­
favorable form of the Queen's Gam­
bit Accepted for Black. White's plan is
the same: look to play a timely d4-dS
break.
The only difference is that there is
a move-order subtlety on move S that
Black can use to bring White's queen
to b3 early. This doesn't make the line
particularly more effective for Black,
but we will discuss it in the following
game nonetheless.
392
Wojtkiewicz, Aleksander (2543)
Cramling, Pia (2488)
[D21] Canadian Open 2003
1.c!t)f3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3
4.dS, 4 . .!Llc3, and 4.e4 are all in­
teresting tries for White here, though
Wojo preferred the text for its sim­
plicity. White is headed for a favora­
ble isolated queen's pawn position.
4,..cxd4 5 . .b:c4
5,. .'�c7
The aforementioned move-order
subtlety. Black attacks White's bish­
op on c4, an option that is not avail­
able in the Queen's Gambit Accepted
move order.
Of course S . . . dxe3?? loses the
queen to 6.hf7+, but S . . . d3 ! ? is pos­
sible here, when White can count on
a big lead in development no matter
what. A good way for White to han­
dle this position is 6.0-0 .!Llc6 7.b4 ! e6
(7 . . . .ifS could be met with 8.e4 he4
9.hf7+ 'itixf7 1O. .!LlgS+ 'itig6 11..!Llxe4
 THE AUSTRIAN DEFENSE
when Black's king is open) S.a3 ie7
9.ib2 if6 1O.lLlc3 lLlge7 1l.hd3 as in
Lukacs-Afek, Budapest 1994.
Defending the bishop with tem­
po. If Black can organize . . . lLlbS-c6-aS
to harass the white queen and bishop
duo, then White's sixth move becomes
a slight loss of time.
6 . . . e6 7.exd4
7.lLlxd4 a6 gives Black fewer prob­
lems.
7 .•• �f6
Another idea for Black is 7 . . . a6
S.O-O lLlc6, when here Wojo anticipat­
ed . . . lLlc6-aS with 9.'I1Nd1 lLlf6 1O.lLlc3
ie7 11.'I1Ne2 in Wojtkiewicz-Yermolin­
sky, San Francisco 2002 . The game re­
sulted in a quick draw after 11. . . 0-0
12 .gd1 lLlb4 13.igS bS 14.ib3 ib7
lS.gac1 1 2 _ 1 2, but this had more to
do with the disposition of the players
than the position on the board, which
appears promising for White thanks
to his activity. Even better for White,
however, is 9.id3 ! . This was agreed
drawn immediately in Wojtkiewicz­
Baburin, San Francisco 1997, but Ya­
kovich-Sarakauskas, Port Erin 2006,
continued 9 . . . lLlf6 1O.igS ie7 1l.lLlc3
0-0 12.gac1 'I1NaS 13.lLle4 with a strong
initiative for White.
s. o - o
In an earlier game against Yer­
molinsky, Wojo had played S.lLlc3 a6
9.igS effectively. After 9 . . . ie7 10.dS !
exdS ll.lLlxdS lLlxdS 12 .hdS 0-0 (12 . . .
hgS?! 13.lLlxgS 'I1Ne7+ 14.'I1Ne3 �xe3+
lS.fxe3 allows White to pile up on f7)
13.0-0 lLlc6 14.hc6 bxc6 1S.ixe7 '11Nxe7
16.'I1Nc3 cS 17.gfc1 gbS lS.b3, White
had the advantage but Black eventu­
ally drew in Wojtkiewicz-Yermolin­
sky, Keres Memorial 1993. Castling
immediately is somewhat more fash­
ionable at the moment.
S . . . i.e7? !
S . . . lLlc6 9.lLlc3 a6 1O.id3 transpos­
es back into Yakovich-Sarakauskas.
The game continuation does nothing
to exploit the placement of White's
queen and light-squared bishop, and
this allows White to rip open the center
before Black can finish development.
9.�c3 0 - 0
9 . . . lLlc6 1O.dS ! is also effective.
10.d5 exd5 11. �xd5 �xd5
12.hd5 � c6 13 .�e3
393
 CHAPTER 19
White has a pleasant initiative
here. Black's position is difficult to
play from a tactical standpoint: he is
under pressure along the a2-g8 diag­
onal, the hl-a8 diagonal, and (soon)
the c-file.
Black tries to resolve her prob­
lems tactically. Two years later, Black
tried 13 . . . .ig4 14J:�ac1 '!WaS in Kozul­
Stojanovic, Bosnian Team Chp. 2005.
After IS.h3 lDb4!? 16 ..txf7+ l:M'7 17.hxg4
'!Wxa2 18.'!Wxa2 lDxa2 19J:k7, White
had a tremendous initiative thanks to
Black's misplaced knight on a2 .
14 .ic4 b5
• 19 . . . �d5 20 .id4
Deflecting White's bishop from the
a2-g8 diagonal in order to pave the
way for Black's development.
15.hb5 .te6 16.'!Wa4
16 . . . a6
Amazingly, this is the first new
move of the game. 16 . . . '!Wc2 10st in Cvi­
tan-Erdelyi, Lenk 1989, after 17.lDd4
'!Wxa4 18.ha4 ha2 19.lDfS .if6 20. .icS
1-0. Black might have played on with
394
20. . . .ie6 21.hb4 hfS 22 .M8 �xf8,
but White is still up a clear exchange.
Keeping the queens on the board
doesn't allow Black much in the way
of counterplay, however, so the text
can hardly be considered an improve­
ment.
17.gacl '!Wb7 lS .tc4
• hc4
19.9xc4
White has maintained his initia­
tive, won an extra pawn, and emerged
with a potentially useful queenside
majority. Black has no compensation
whatsoever and is simply trying to
survive.
•
Taking control of the al-h8 diag­
onal. All of White's pieces are well
placed. Note how White is occupying
the open lines in the center with his
pieces to generate a strong pull.
20 . . . gfdS 21.'!Wc2 h6
21.. .:gac8 might have proved slight­
ly more useful, but of course Black,
down a pawn, is reluctant to trade
pieces. In the game, White has exclu­
sive ownership of the c-file.
 THE AUSTRIAN DEFENSE

22 .a3 .ifS 23.lkl �f4 24 . .ie3 2 6 . . . �acB 27.�xcB 'lWxcB 2B.'lWxcB

�d3 25.�bl a5
Black is trying to prevent White's
b2-b4 advance, but not surprisingly,
this kind of activity backfires.
�xcB would have lasted longer, but
White should be able to convert his ex­
tra pawn after something like 29.@fl
�c2 30.i.d4 i.e7 31.tt'lel tt'lxe1 32.@xel
with the possible followup @el-dl.

26.h3 27.�c3

The knight on d3 is now trapped.

27•.•'iNa6 28.�d4

The most accurate finish. 2B.�dl ! ?

allows 2B . . . tt'lxb2 29.�xdB �xdB, when
30.'iNxb2?? (30.i.d4 ! is still winning)
30 .. J'!:dl+ 31.@h2 i.d6+ 32 .g3 'lWfl
winds up with White getting mated.

28 . . . � c5 29 .b4 1- 0

The White knight is coming to c6,

26 ••. �ab8? winning the exchange.

SummU11l: Black failed to organize ...a7-a6 and ... tt'l b8-c6-a5, which
would have cost White some time in the opening. This allowed White to play
an effective d4-dS break and achieve dynamic play.

Conclusion: The 3 . . . dxc4 Austrian does not lead to anything special for
Black, even with the 5 . . . 'lWc7 6.'lWb3 move order. At best, Black can follow the
game Yakovich-Sarakauskas (with 9.i.d3 !) as in the notes to Black's moves 7
and B. White can count on having ample piece play, and these kinds of isolated
queen's pawn positions - where White has a healthy lead in development - are
very easy for White to play.

395
I ndex of Recom mended Li nes

The Closed Cata lan

1 .tl�f3 dS 2.d4 lLlf6 3.c4 e 6 4.g3 Ae7 ( 4 . . . �b4+ S .�d2 �e7 6.�g2 0-0 7 . 0-0 c6
8 .�c2 lt'lbd7 9 .�f4 - see main line) S.Ag2 0-0 (S . . . c6 6.�c2 and S . . . dxc4 71) 6.0-0
(6 .�c2 71) 6 . . . c6 (6 . . . lt'lbd7 7 .�c2 cS ! ? 72) 7 .'i;Yc2 :

7 . . lLl bd7
.

7 . . . b6 8 J:'i d l
8 . . . �a6 9 . lt'leS It'l fd7 1 0 .cxdS cxdS I I .e4 73
. 8 . . �b7 9 .�f4 72
8.Af4!
8.Eldl 74
8 . . . lLl h S
8 . . . b6 9 . Eld l
9 . . . �b7 1 0 .lt'lc3
1O . . . Elc8 1 1 .lt'leS It'lhS 1 2 .�c l 60
1 0 . . . d x c 4 1 1 . lt'l d 2 It'l d S 1 2 . lt'l x c 4 It'l x f4 1 3 . g x f4 64
9 . . . �a6
1 O .lt'leS It'lxeS 1 l .dxeS It'ld7 1 2 . cxdS cxdS 1 3 .e4 48
1 O . . . �c8 1 1 . lt'lc3 6 7
8 . . . lt'l e 4 9 . lt'l fd2 51
. 8 . . aS 9.Eld l lt'lhS 1 O .�c l bS 1 1 . lt'leS ! 56
9.Ac1 fS
9 . . . aS 74
9 . . . �d6 52
9 . . . lt'lhf6 1 O. Eld l - see 8 . El d l
1 0. b3 52

396
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

The Delayed Open Cata lan

1 .�f3 d 5 2 . d4 �f6 3.c4 e6 4.g3 J.e7 5.J.g2 0-0 6.0-0 dxc4 7 . � e 5 (7.'Wc2 a6
8.'Wxc4 b5 1 1 0) :

7 . . . �c6
7 . . . c5 8 . dxc5
8 . . . .ixc5 9.tt'lc3
9 . . . 'We7 1 1 2
9 . . . 'Wc7 1 O.tt'lxc4
1 O . . . gd8 1 1 4
l O . . . .ixf2+? ! 1 1 3
9 . . . tt'lc6 ! ? 1 1 4
9 . . . .id4? ! 1 1 2
8 . . . 'Wc7
9.tt'lxc4
9 . . . 'Wxc5 l O .b3
l O . . . gd8 1 1 .'Wc2
l 1 . . .'Wh5 l 2 . .ia3 ! 1 1 8
l 1 . . .tt'la6 1 1 7
1 1 . . . tt'lc6 1 1 9
1 O . . . 'Wh5 1 1 7
9 . . . gd8 1 1 6
9 . . . .ixc5 1 O .tt'lc3 - see 8 . . . .ixc5 9 . tt'l c3 'Wc7
8 . . . 'Wxd l 9 . gxd l .ixc5 1 O .tt'lc3
1 O . . . tt'lbd7 1 1 .tt'lxc4
l 1 . . .e5 ! ? l 2 . .ig5 120
l 1 . . . tt'lb6 1 1 9
1 O . . . tt'lc6 ! ? 1 1 9
7 . . . tt'lbd7 8 . tt'l xc4
8 . . . tt'lb6 1 1 1
8 . . . gb8 ! ? 1 1 1
8 . . . c5 1 1 1
8 . . . tt'ld5 1 1 2
7 . . . tt'ld5 1 1 1

397
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

7 . . . e6 1 1 2
7 . . . t[}a6 1 12
7 . . . Wid6 1 1 2
8.hc6
8.t[}xe6 79
8 . . . bxc6 9.tLlxc6 We8
9 . Wid6 79
. .

1 0.tLlxe7+ Wxe7 1 1 .Wa4 c5

1 l . . . a5 80
1 l . . .Wid6 1 2 J �d l
1 2 . . . t[}d5 1 3 .Wixe4 i.a6 1 4.Wie2 82
1 2 . . . !a6 81
1 2 . . . Wia6 82
1 l . . .e5 1 2 .dxe5 Wixe5 1 3 .Wixe4 !e6 1 4.Wid3 ( 1 4.Wie2 1 04)
1 4 . . . :1!ad8 1 5 .Wie3 V!ih5 ( 1 5 . . . Wia5 1 05) 1 6 . f3 1 06
1 4 . . . :1!ab8 1 05
1 4 . . . t[}d5 1 05
1 4 . . . :1!fe8 1 05
1 2.Wa3
1 2 .Wixe4 8 7
1 2 . . . Wb7 !
1 2 . . . e5 ! 93
1 2 . . . !b7 1 3 .!g5 :1!fe8 1 4.t[}e3
14 ... Wif8 1 5 .!xf6 gxf6 1 6 .:1!fd l 88
14 . . . 'it>f8 8 7
1 4 . . . Wid7 88
1 3.Wxc5
1 3 . dxe5 94
1 3 . . . e5 1 4. :1! d 1 .ih3
1 4 . . . exd4 95
1 5.d5 9 7

The Early Open Cata lan

1 .t[}f3 d5 2 . d 4 tLlf6 3.c4 e6 4 . g 3 dxc4 5 . .1g2 (5.Wia4+ 1 22) :

398
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

5 �c6
. . .

5 . . . c5 6.0-0
6 . . . ttJc6 7 . dxc5
7 . . . �xd 1 8 J �xd l i.xc5 9.ttJbd2
9 . . . c3 1 0 .bxc3
1 0 . . . 0-0 1 1 .ttJb3
1 1 . . .i.e7 1 2 . ttJ fd4
1 2 . . . gfd8 1 3 .i.g5 i.d7 1 4.i.xf6
1 4 . . . i.xf6 1 5 .ttJc5
1 5 . . . ttJxd4 1 72
1 5 . . J':iab8? 1 71
1 4 . . . gxf6 ! ? 1 71
1 2 . . . gd8
1 2 . . . i.d7 1 3 .i.g5 1 70
1 1 . . .i.b6 1 69
1 0 . . . i.d7 1 68
9 . . . 0-0 1 0 .ttJxc4 1 65
9 . . . gb8 1 6 7
9 . . . '�e7 1 6 7
9 . . . i.d7 1 68
9 . . . i.xf2+? ! 1 68
9 . . . e5 ? ! 1 68
9 . . . ttJ a5 ? ! 1 68
9 . . . ttJ g4 ! ? 1 0 .ttJe4
l O . . . i.e7 1 1 . ttJ fd2 ! 1 78
1 0 . . . i.b6? ! 1 77
l O . . . i.b4 ! ? 1 77
7 . . . i.xc5 1 64
7 . . . �a5 8 .ttJ a3
8 . . . c3 ! ? 9.ttJd4 ! 180
8 . . . �xc5 180
6 . . . i.d7 1 63
6 . . . cxd4 1 63
6 . . . a6? ! 1 64
6 . . . ttJbd7 - see 5 . . . ttJbd7

5 . . . a6 6 . ttJ e5
6 . . . i.h4+ 7 .ttJc3 ttJ d5 8 .0-0 !
8 . . . 0-0 9 .�c2 b5 1 0.ttJxd5 1 90
8 . . . ttJxc3 1 89
8 . . . i.xc3? ! 1 89
6 . . . ttJbd7 1 86
6 . . . ga7 ! ? 1 86
6 . . . c5 7 . ttJ a3
7 . . . cxd4 8 . ttJ axc4
8 . . . ga7 9 .i.d2 b6 1 0 .m3 ( 1 0.0-0 2 1 4)

399
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

1 0 . . . ib7 l 1 .ixb7 �xb7 1 2 . lLl a5

1 2 . . . �e7 ! ? 1 3 .�c l
l 3 . . . �c7 2 1 1
l 3 . . . bxa5 ? 2 1 1
l 3 . . . lLle4 2 1 1
1 2 . . . �c7 208
1 2 . . . �a7 1 3 .0-0
l 3 . . . lLle4 ! 209
l 3 . . . bxa5 ? ! 209
1 O . . . b5? 208
1 O . . . ic5 208
8 . . . ic5 9.id2
9 . . . lLld5 l O .�c l 0-0 1 1 . 0-0
l 1 . . .lLld7 1 2 .lLld3
1 2 . . . b6 l 3 .lLl a5 !
1 3 . . . �e8 1 4.lLlc6 ! ? 205
l 3 . . . bxa5 204
l 3 . . . �f6 204
1 2 . . . ia7 ! ? 203
1 1 . . . b6 202
9 . . . �e7 202
9 . . . 0-0 202
8 . . . ie7? ! 201
7 . . . �a7 1 95
7 . . . �xd4 8.�xd4 cxd4 9.lLlaxc4
9 . . . lLlbd7 1 0 .0-0
1 0 . . . lLlxe5 l 1 .lLlxe5
l 1 . . .id6 1 2 .lLl c4 ic7 1 3 .if4 1 98
l 1 . . .lLld7 1 9 7
1 0 . . . ic5 1 9 7
9 . . . lLl fd7 196

S ... bS 6.a4 c6 7 . lLl e5

7 . . . lLl d5 8 .0-0
8 . . . ib7 9.b3
9 . . . cxb3 l O. axb5 cxb5 1 1 .V9xb3 a6 1 2 . e4
1 2 . . . lLl f6 l 3 . dS !
l 3 . . . ic5 ! 222
l 3 . . . lLlbd7? ! 222
l 3 . . . exd5 ? ! 222
1 3 . . . V9b6? ! 1 4.lLlc4 223
1 2 . . . lLlb6 222
9 . . . c3 ? ! 221
8 . . . a6 9.b3 cxb3 l O.ib2 ib7 see - S . . . c6
7 . . . ib4+ ! ? 221

400
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

S . . . c6 6 . 0-0 bS 7.0,eS ib7 8 . a4 a6 9.b3 cxb3 1 O .ib2

l O . . . 0,dS 1 1 .�xb3 0,d7 1 2 .0,d3 226
1 O . . . ie7 226
1 O . . . �6 226
1 O . . . 0, fd7 ! ? 226

s . . . ib4+ 6.id2
6 . . . aS 7 .�c2
7 . . . ixd2+ 8 .�xd2
8 . . . b6 9.0,eS ga7 233
8 . . . id7 233
8 . . . c6 9 . a4
9 . . . bS 1 0 . axbS cxbS 1 1 .ygrgS
1 1 . . .0-0 1 2 .�xbS
1 2 . . . ia6 1 3 .ygra4 236
1 2 . . . 0, a6 236
1 1 . . .b4 ! ? 236
9 . . . 0,e4 ! ? 235
7 . . . b6 233
7 . . . 0,c6 233
6 . . . cS ! ? 7.ixb4 cxb4 8 . 0,eS 0-0 9 . 0, xc4 0,c6 1 0 .e3
lO . . . . eS 1 1 .dS 241
1 0 . . . �e7 241
6 . . . ixd2+ 232
6 . . . ie7 232

S . . . 0,bd7 6.0-0
6 . . . c6 7 . a4
7 . . . ie7 8 . aS ! ?
8 . . . ib4 9.�a4 247
8 . . . bS 24 7
7 . . . bS 246
7 . . . aS 24 7
6 . . . cS 7 . 0,a3 246
6 . . . 0,b6 246

S . . .id7 6.0,eS
6 ... ic6 7 . 0, xc6 0,xc6 8 . 0-0
8 . . . �d7 9.e3
9 ... gb8 1 0 .�e2 bS 1 1 . gd l ! ?
l l . . .ib4 1 2 .b3 cxb3 1 3 .axb3 a s 1 4 .�c2 251
1 l . . .ie7 251
9 . . . 0-0-0? ! 250
9 . . . ie7 250
8 . . . 0,xd4? ! 250
8 . . . ie7 250
6 . . . 0,c6 250

401
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

6:i!Ya4
6 . 0-0 1 23
6 . . . i.b4+
6 . . . lLld7 ! ? 7.\!;Yxc4 lLlb6 8 .\!;Yd3 (8 .\!;Yb5 123)
8 . . . e5 9 . lLlxe5
9 . . . lLlb4 1 O .\!;Yc3 'Wxd4 1 1 .0-0
1 l . . .\!;Yxc3 1 2 .lLlxc3
1 2 . . .i.d6 1 3 . lLlf3
13 ... c6 ! ? 1 4J'1d l ( 1 4.a3 1 28)
1 4 . . . i.e7 1 28
1 4 . . . 'it>e7? 128
1 4 . . . i.c7 128
1 3 . . . i.d7 1 2 7
1 2 . . . f6 126
12 . . . g6? ! 127
1 l . . .\!;Yd8 125
9 . . . lLlxd4? ! 125
8 . . . i.e7 124
8 . . . lLlb4 124
6 . . . i.d7 7 .\!;Yxc4 lLl a5
8 .\!;Yc2
8 . . . l'!c8 9.0-0 c5 1 0.lLlc3
10 . . . lLlc6 ! ? 1 1 .\!;Yd3 1 5 6
1 0 . . . b5 1 55
1 0 . . . cxd4 1 55
8 . . . c 5 ? ! 155
8 . . . i.c6 1 55
8.\!;Yc3 ! ?
8 . . . c5 ! 9 .i.d2
9 . . . lLlc6 1 0 .dxc5 lLle4 1 1 .\!;Yc2 lLlxc5 1 60
9 . . . b6 ! ? 1 60
8 . . . lLld5 ! ? 9.\!;Yd3 c5 1 0 .0-0
1 0 . . . lLlb4 ! ? 159
1 O . . . cxd4 1 58
1 O . . . l'!c8 1 59
1 O . . . lLlc6 1 58
1 O . . . \!;Yb6 1 59
1 O . . . c4 ! ? 1 59
1 0 . . . i.c6 159
6 . . . i.d6 132
7 . .td2
7 . . .i.d6 8 .i.c3 ! ? 0-0 9.\!;Yxc4
9 . . . \!;Ye7 l O .lLl e5 i.xe5 l 1 .dxe5 lLld5 1 2 .0-0
1 2 . . . l'!d8 1 3 . l'!d l ! i.d7 1 4.lLld2
1 4 . . . lLlxc3 1 5 .\!;Yxc3 135
1 4 . . . i.e8 135

402
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

1 4 . . . a5 ! ? 135
1 2 . . . tLlxc3 134
1 2 . . . id7 135
9 . . . tLle4 134
9 . . . tLl d5 134
7 . . . ixd2+ 8 . tLlbxd2
8 . . . 0-0 9 . V�lI'xc4
9 . . :�e7 1 32
9 . . :�d6 ! ? 1 3 3
9 . . :�'d5 1 33
8 . . . c3 ! ? 132
7 .... tLld5 8.,bb4 tLl dxb4 9 .0-0
9 . . J �b8
9 . . . a6 140
9 . . . id7 1 O.tLle5
1 0 . . . 0-0 141
1 O . . . tLld5 ? ! 141
1 O . . . a5 1 4 1
1 0. tLl a3 ! ? a6
1 O . . . id7 ! ? 1 43
1 0 . . . 0-0 1 1 :�b5
1 l . . .b6 1 2 :�xc4
1 2 . . . ia6 1 3 .tLlb5 �d5 1 4:�xd5
1 4 . . . tLlxd5 1 5 . a4
1 5 . . . tLla5 1 6 .tLle5
1 6 . . . :gbd8 1 48
1 6 . . . :gfd8? ! 1 52
1 5 . . . :gfd8 1 48
1 5 . . . ib7 148
1 4 . . . exd5 ! ? 1 4 7
1 2 . . . a5 146
1 l . . .a6 146
1 1 .tLle5 0-0
1 l . . .�xd4 ! ? 1 43
1 2. tLlxc6 1 43

The Slav

1 .tLlf3 d5 2.d4 tLlf6

2 . . . c6 3 . c4
3 . . . dxc4 4.e3
4 . . . ie6 3 02
4 . . . b5 5 . a4 e6 6.b3 3 03
3 . . . e6 4.�c2 dxc4 5.�xc4 tLlf6 6.g3 b5 7 .�d3 ib7 8 .ig2 tLlbd7 9.0-0 299

403
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

3.c4 c6 4.YlYc2 dxc4

4 . . . g6 5 .i.f4
5 . . .i.f5 6.YlYb3
6 . . . YlYb6 7 . c5 �xb3 8 . axb3
8 . . . i.xb l 9. Elxb l ttJbd7 282
8 . . . ttJbd7 9 . ttJc3 285
8 . . . ttJa6 9.ttJc3 ttJb4 l O .Ela4 ! 284
6 . . . ttJ a6 289
5 . . . i.g7 282, 292
5 . . . ttJ a6 6.e3
6 ... i.f5 7.YlYb3 ttJb4 ! ? 289
6 . . . i.g7 7 .ttJc3 293
5. YlYxc4 .if5
5 . . . i.g4
6.ttJbd2
6 . . . ttJbd7 7.g3
7 . . . e6 8 .i.g2 i.e7 2 74
7 . . . �c7 8 .i.g2 e 5 ? ! 2 74
7 . . . �a5 2 74
6 . . . e6 2 74
6 . . . g6 2 74
6 . ttJc3 2 77
5 . . . �d5 2 72
5 . . . ttJbd7 2 72
5 . . . i.e6 2 73
5 . . . b5 ! ? 2 73
5 . . . g6 2 73
6.g3 e6 7 . .ig2 c!£J bd7 8.0-0 .ie7
8 . . . ttJb6 9.YlYb3 �d5 1 O . ttJbd2
l O . . . �xb3 1 1 .ttJxb3 256
1O . . . ttJe4 1 1 .�e3 25 7
9.e3 ! ?
9.ttJc3 258
9 . . . 0-0 1 0.YlYe2 c!£Je4
1 O . . . c5 ! 1 1 . ttJbd2 269
1 O . . .'IWb6 1 1 . ttJ bd2 ! 268
l O . . . Elc8 260
l O . . . �c7 260
l O . . . a5 260
l O . . . h6 261
1 O . . . i.d6 261
1 O . . . Ele8 ! ? 261
1 O . . . �a5 261
1 1 El d 1 262
.

404
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

Queen's Gam bit Accepted

1 .�f3 d S 2.d4 �f6 3.c4 dxc4 4.e3 e6

4 . . . b5 323
4 . . . .tg4 32 7
S.,txc4 cS 6.0-0 a6
6 . . . ltJc6
7 . a3 ! ? 308
7 . dxc5 308
6 . . . cxd4 7 . exd4 .te7 8 . ltJc3 3 0 7
7.dxcS Y!lIxd 1
7 . . . ,txc5 8.V9xd8+ 'it>xd8 9 . .te2 ! 'it>e7 1 0 .ltJe5 321
8 J �xd 1 J.xcS 9 .J.e2 !
9.ltJbd2 3 1 7
9 . . . � bd7
9 . . . 0-0
1 O. ltJbd2 E:d8 1 1 .ltJe5 3 1 7
1 O .ltJe5 3 1 7
1 0. � bd2 b 6 1 1 . � b3 J.e7 1 2.�fd4 .tb7 1 3.f3 3 1 3

Ta rrasch

1 .�f3 dS 2.d4 e6 3.c4 cS 4.cxdS exdS S.ti�c3 �c6 6.g3 �f6 7 . .tg2 .te7
(7 . . . .te6 8 .0-0 h6 332) 8.0-0 0-0 9.b 3:

9 . . . �e4
9 . . ..tg4 1 O .dxc5 .txc5 1 1 ..tb2 a6 336
9 . . . .te6 335
9 . . . cxd4 336
9 . . . b6 ! ? 355
1 0 ..tb2 .tf6 1 1 .�a4!
1 1 .ltJxe4 dxe4 1 2 .ltJd2
1 2 . . . .txd4 1 3 . .txd4 cxd4 1 4.ltJxe4 341
1 2 . . . .tg4 ! 340

405
 WOJO'S WEAPONS

1 1 . . J�e8
1 1 . . .b6 355
1 1 . . . cxd4 345
1 1 . . . �e6 345
1 1 . . . �fS 346
1 1 . . .�g4? ! 346
l 1 . . .b S ? ! 1 2 .lt:lxcS ! 344
1 2J:�c1 b6
1 2 . . . cxd4 346
1 3.dxcS .ixb2 1 4.�xb2 bxcS
1 4 . . . lt:lb4 ! ? 348
1 4 . . . lt:lxcs 348
14 . . . �f6 ? ! l S .�xdS �b7 1 6 .lt:lc4 348
1 S.�a4 J.a6 1 6J:�e1 c4
1 6 . . . �aS ? ! 350
1 6 . . . �f6 350
1 6 . . . �d6 350
1 6 . . . �e7 350
1 6 . . . �bS ? ! 350
1 7.�d2 YNf6
1 7 . . . cxb3 350
1 7 . . . �gS 351
17 . . . �aS 1 8 .�xe4 dxe4 1 9 .1t:lxc4 352
1 8.�xe4 dxe4 1 9. bxc4 351

Systems with 2 . . . J.fS

1 .�f3 dS 2.d4 J.fS 3.c4 e6

3 . . . c6? ! 4. cxdS ! 3 70
3 . . . lt:l f6 4.lt:lc3 3 69
4.YNb3 �c6
4 . . . dxc4 S .�xb7 lt:ld7 6.lt:lc3 361
S.J.d2 �b8
S . . . dxc4 6.�xb7
6 . . . lt:l ge7 7 .mS l'!b8 8 . �a4 l'!xb2 9 . lt:l a3
9 . . . �d7 1 O . lt:lxc4 l'!b8 1 1 . e3 3 66
9 . . . l'!xd2 ! ? 3 66
6 . . . �e4 3 66
S . . . aS ! ? 361
S . . . lt:l ge7 361
S . . . �d7 361
6.e3 a6
6 . . . lt:lf6 7 .lt:lc3 �e7 8 . lt:l M 362
6 . . . �e7 - see 6 . . . lt:l f6

406
 INDEX OF RECOMMENDED LINES

7.�c3 �f6 8 . � h4 �g6

8 . . . .ie4 3 63
9 .�xg6 hxg6 1 0 .g3! 3 64

Ch igorin Defense

1 .�f3 d5
l . . . ltJc6 2 . d4 dS - see l . . .dS
2.d4 �c6 3.g3 �f5
3 . . . .ig4 4 . .ig2
4 . . . �d7 S .h3
S . . . .ihS 6 . ltJbd2 0-0-0 7.c3 f6 8 .b4 3 76
S . . . .ifS 6.c3 f6 7 .b4 3 75
4 . . . ltJ f6 3 74
4.�g2 e6
4 . . . ltJb4 S . ltJ a3 e6 6. 0-0 - see 4 . . . e6 S . O-O Nb4
5.0-0 � b4
S . . . ltJ f6 6 . c4
6 . . . .ie7 7.cxdS exdS 8 .ltJc3
8 . . . ltJe4 9 . ltJ d2 ! 380
8 . . . 0-0 9 . ltJ eS 380
6 . . . ltJb4 ! ? 7 . ltJ e l 3 79
6 . . . dxc4 7.�a4 ltJ d7 8 .�xc4 ltJb6 9.�b3 3 79
6.�a3 �e7
6 . . . ltJ f6 7.c3 ltJc6 383
7 .c3 �a6 8 .Wb3 Wc8
8 . . . E:b8 383
9.c4 c6 1 0 .�g5 ! ? 383

Austrian Defense

1 .�f3 d5 2.d4 c5 3.c4 cxd4

3 . . . dxc4 4.e3 cxd4 S . .ixc4
S . . . �c7 6.�b3 e6 7 .exd4 393
S . . . d3 ! ? 392
4.cxd5 �f6
4 . . . �xdS ! ? S . ltJc3 ! 388
5.�xd4
S .�xd4 388
5 . . . �xd5 6.e4 � b4 ! ?
6 . . . ltJf6 7 . ltJc3 e S 8 . .ibS+ .id7 9 . ltJ f3 388
7 .Wa4+ �8c6 8 . .te3 �d7 9 . �xc6 �xc6 1 0 .�c3 389

407
I ndex of Players
Agzamov, Georgy 220
Andersson, Vlf 3 3 2 , 369
Anka, Emil 2 1 4
Aronian, Levon 3 83
Atahk, Suat 1 3 8
Baburin, Alexander 307
Barria, Daniel 302
Beliavsky, Alexander 200
Bhat, Vinay 1 5
Bonin, Jay 3 3 9 , 344
Botvinnik, Mikhail 365
Deichev, Aleksander 1 3 8
Dobrov, Vladimir 272
Drasko, Milan 292
Dreev, Alexey 272
Dzindzichashvili, R. 1 1 6
Ehlvest, Jaan 97
Filipovich, David 289
Foisor, Ovidiu Doru 220
Frankie, Jonathan 1 1 9
Fressinet, Laurent 277
Fritz 2.0 1 77
Galkin, Alexander 225
Galliamova, Alisa 1 23
Gelfand, Boris 56, 1 52, 277
Georgiev, Kiril 3 1 7
Gleizerov, Evgeny 235
Gokhale, C . S . 355
Goldin, Alexander 1 3 2
Gulko, Boris 232
Hamann, Svend I I I
Handoko, Edhi 3 3 2
Hidding, Markus 3 3
Hilton, Jonathan 25, 320,
335
Hort, Vlastimil I I I
408
Ippolito, Dean 86, 92, 97,
1 1 6, 1 1 9, 1 5 8, 1 80
June, Peter 320
Kaenel, Hansjiirg 245
Kagan, Frederick 1 62
Kaidanov, Gregory 225
Kamsky, Gata 56
Karpov, Anatoly 1 94
Kasparov, Garry 1 77
Kaufman, Raymond 86
Khalifman, Alexander 5 1
Kiss, Pal 200
Klein, Erez 1 80
Kluger, Alan 25
Korchnoi, Viktor 42, 378
Kosic, Dragan 292
Kramnik, Vladimir 1 86
Krush, Irina 327
Kustar, Sandor 48
Landenbergue, Claude 3 6 1
Langdon, Peter 1 2
Lau, Ralf 5 1
Lazarev, Vladimir 3 1 3
Luther, Thomas 235
Marshall, Abby 3 3 5
Miton, Kamil 1 67
Morozevich, Alexander 1 86
Morrison, William 1 9
Mulyar, Michael 3 9
N as, Flovin Tor 307
Neubauer, Martin 1 5 2
N.N. 79, 28 1 , 3 87
Olafsson, Helgi 1 5 8
Papp, Gabor 1 67
Pialan, Femandito 22
Pinski, Jan 383
Portisch, Lajos 3 1
Privman, Boris 36
Rabiega, Robert 1 5 5
Rabinovich, Alexander 323
Radulov, Ivan 3 1
Rasmussen, Allan 240
Reefat, Bin Sattar 298
Renman, Nils 369
Robson, Ray 240
Rublevsky, Sergei 3 1 7
Savchenko, Stanislav 323
Shapiro, Daniel 1 04
Smyslov, Vassily 365
Stripunsky, Alexander 255
Sturua, Zurab 3 5 5
Van Wely, Loek 1 94
Wall, Brian 3 74
Wirthensohn, Heinz 378
Woj tkiewicz 1 2, 1 5 , 1 9, 22,
3 3 , 36, 39, 42, 48, 60,
63 , 67, 79, 92, 1 04, 1 32,
1 46, 1 5 5 , 1 62, 2 1 4, 232,
245, 250, 255, 268, 28 1 ,
289, 298, 302, 3 1 3 , 327,
339, 344, 349, 36 1 , 3 74,
3 87, 392
Wolff, Patrick 63
Yegiazarian, Arsen 349
Yevseev, Denis 1 23
Yuneev, Alexey 1 46
Zatonskih, Anna 268
Zhang Zhong 60
Zhao Xue 207
Zhu Chen 207
Ziatdinov, Raset 250
Zubarev, Alexander 67