Botvinnik English
1.c4 e5 2.g3 Nc6 3.Bg2 g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.d3 Nge7 6.e4
The most popular move in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database, setting up a Botvinnik formation, assuming the king's knight goes to e2 (if it goes to f3 we have an earlier, similar formation pioneered by Nimzowitsch). An excellent source for understanding the Botvinnik set-up is Tony Kosten's The Dynamic English.
6...0-0 7.Nge2 d6 8.0-0 f5 9.Rb1 Be6 10.b3?
A novelty, and not a good one. This move is bad positionally and tactically (I only managed to spot the former drawback).
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| Black to make his 10th move |
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10...Qd7
The positional problem with White's move is that Rb1 and b3 do not go well together. The former, in this type of position, is normally a prelude to queenside expansion with b4.
The second problem is that Black can reply with the positionally desirable 10...f4! thanks to the tactical point 11.gxf4 exf4 12.Nxf4?! Rxf4 13.Bxf4, dropping the queen's knight to 13...Bxc3. Black ends up with two knights and the less-exposed king for rook and pawn.
Note that 10.b4? can be met in a similar way, although it was not the three times 10.b4? appears in Mega19. Most strong players who have reached this position as White have preferred 10.Nd5.
11.Nd5 Rf7 12.f4 Raf8 13.Be3 a6 14.Qd2 Kh8 15.Kh1
KdK offered a draw.
15...Ng8 16.Rbd1 fxe4 17.Bxe4?!
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer 17.dxe4.
17...exf4?!
I somehow missed White's reply. Stockfish10 reckons Black has the upper hand after 17...Nd4!? Komodo10 also likes the move, but is not so enthusiastic about it.
18.Rxf4 Rxf4 19.Ndxf4 Bf5 20.Bg2 Nf6 21.Nd4 Nxd4 22.Bxd4 c6 23.Re1 Re8 24.Rxe8+ Qxe8 25.Kg1 Ng4!
At first glance it might seem strange to allow an exchange of bishops with check, but White has to find a fairly precise defence.
26.Bxg7+ Kxg7 27.Bf3!
Best, according to the engines, as the 'obvious' 27.Qc3+ can be simply sidestepped with, for example 27...Kf7, when Black gets a bit of an initiative.
27...Qe5 28.h3?!
Almost certainly better was 28.Bxg4, hoping to take advantage of the fact that a knight and queen often work well together, although here the knight does not have an unchallengeable outpost (=, according to the engines), or 28.d4, when I planned 28...Qe3+ 29.Qxe3 Nxe3, but the engines give 30.Kf2 as also =.
28...Qd4+ 29.Kg2??
Correct was 29.Kf1, when 29...Ne5 30.Be4 Qa1+ is a little better for Black as White will get an isolated e pawn.
29...Ne3+ 30.Kg1
Forced as 30.Kh1?? loses a piece to 30...Qa1+. Note that the white king cannot go to h2, either immediately or on move 31, because of the fork ...Nf1+.
30...Nxc4+ 31.Qf2 Qxf2+ 32.Kxf2 Ne5 33.d4 Nxf3 34.Kxf3 a5 35.a3 Kf6 36.b4 axb4 37.axb4 g5 38.Nh5+ Ke7 39.h4
The only realistic way to keep the game going was 39.g4 Bg6 40.Ng3, but the position is hopeless for White.
39...Bg6 40.Ng7 Kf7 41.h5 Kxg7 42.hxg6 Kxg6 0-1
My final score of +1=4-2 saw me gain 1.6 Fide elo.
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