Spanish Four Knights
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Bb4 5.0-0 0-0 6.d3 d6 7.Nce2
Overwhelmingly more popular is 7.Bg5, but the text is preferred by Stockfish10 and Komodo9, and has been played by strong players including Anand, Ivanchuk and Wei.
7...Qe7!?
The copycat 7...Ne7 and the aggressive 7...Bg4 are normal. The text, in conjunction with Black's next move, offers a pawn.
8.c3 Ba5 9.b4
White can win a pawn with 9.Bxc6 bxc6 10.Qa4 Bb6 11.Qxc6, but Black's bishop-pair and development-lead offer good compensation.
9...Bb6 10.a4 a6 11.Bc4 Be6 12.Bxe6 fxe6 13.Bxe3 Bxe3 14.fxe3 Ng4 15.Qd2 Qf6?
I thought I was getting a kingside initiative as 16.Nfd4?? loses to 16...Qh6, but White has a simple intermezzo.
16.h3 Nh6 17.Nfd4 Qg6 18.Nxc6 bxc6 19.Rxf8+
Simplification favours White, thanks to Black's queenside weaknesses; only Black has hopes of a kingside attack.
19...Rxf8 20.Rf1!?
The engines, especially Stockfish10, reckon this gives White a nice edge, but after the second pair of rooks is exchanged, White has to bear in mind that Black will be able to gain a tempo at will with a check on the f file.
20...Rxf1+ 21.Kxf1 d5
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| How should White meet Black's threat to capture on e4? |
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22.exd5
Obvious, but the engines give 22.a5! The point is that 22...dxe4 23.d4 leaves Black with SIX isolated pawns. Black can dissolve one with 23...exd4, but 24.Qxd4 gives Black a miserable position despite his pawn-plus.
22...exd5 23.d4
The engines suggest 23.e4!?, but after 23...dxe4 24.dxe4 Qxe4 25.Qd8+ Kf7 26.Qxc7+ Kg6, the vulnerability of White's king makes a draw very likely.
23...Qb1+ 24.Qc1 Qd3 25.Kf2 Nf5 26.dxe5 Nh4?!
26...Qe4 gives simple equality, but I was getting greedy.
27.Nd4 Qe4 28.Qf1
28.Nf3 Nxf3 29.gxf3 Qxe5 is dead-equal.
28...Nf5 29.Qe2 Qxe5 30.Qf3
30.Kg1! offers the e pawn, but accepting is dubious as 30...Qe3+ 31.Qxe3 Nxe3 32.Nxc6 exposes Black's queenside weaknesses. So instead the engines give 30...Nxd4 31.cxd4 with what they reckon is a slight advantage for White.
30...Nxd4
I rejected the engines' 30...Nd6 because of 31.Nxc6, but after 31...Ne4+ 32.Kg1 the engines point out 32...Qd6 or 32...Qxe8, in either case with 33...Nxc3 to follow.
31.exd4 Qg5 32.Qe2
Threatening 33.Qxa6 and, more to the point, 33.Qe8#
32...h6 33.g4!?
Not what one would expect in such a position, but the mutually exposed kings means a draw is inevitable (barring a blunder).
The remaining moves were:
33...Qf4+ 34.Kg2 Kh7 35.Qf3 Qd2+ 36.Kg3 Qe1+ 37.Kg2 Qd2+ 38.Kf1 Qc1+ 39.Kg2 Qd2+ 40.Kg3 Qe1+ 41.Kg2 Qd2+ ½–½
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