Spanton (1831) - Arne Herter (1613)
English Botvinnik
1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 g6 3.e4 d6 4.Nge2 Bg7 5.g3 Nc6 6.Bg2 0-0 7.0-0 e5 8.f4!?
Much more popular is 8.d3, but the text was recommended by Tony Kosten in The Dynamic English (Gambit 1999), although it is not liked by the analysis engines Stockfish11 and Komodo11.01.
8...Nh5!?
The main line in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database goes 8...exf4 9.gxf4 Bg4 10.h3 with a position in which the engines' evaluations fluctuate quite a bit.
9.f5
Getting in this move is the point of omitting d3.
9...gxf5!?
The engines prefer 9...Nd4 but reckon White is better.
10.exf5 Bd7 11.g4 Nf4!
The best move, after which the game becomes very sharp.
12.Nxf4 exf4 13.Ne2?!
I rejected 13.Rxf4 because of 13...Be5 14.Rf2 Qh4, but the engines reckon White is much better after sacing the exchange with 14.d4! Bxd4 15.Bxf4, when Black's kingside dark squares are very weak. Also probably better than the text is the simple 13.d3 - I think I rejected it because I over-feared 13...Bd4+.
13...Qh4 14.Rxf4!?
Sacing the exchange. Stockfish11 comes to quite like the move, but both engines prefer 14.d3.
14...Be5 15.d4 Bxf4 16.Nxf4 Rae8
Black threatens 17...Re1+.
17.Bd2 Nxd4 18.Be1 Qf6
The engines reckon Black should return the exchange with 18...Rxe1+! 19.Qxe1 Qxg4, which leaves Black a pawn up and with a second pawn certain to fall.
19.Nd5 Qe5 20.Nxc7?
Black is up the exchange but White has some counterplay after the engines' 20.Bh4 or 20.Kh1.
20...Rc8?
20...Ne2+ 21.Kh1 Qc5+ wins the white knight thanks to the threat of 22...Qg1#.
21.Nd5 Rxc4
The engines prefer Black after 21...Ne2+ 22.Kf1 Nf4.
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| How should White proceed? |
*****
*****
*****
*****
*****
22.Bh4!
Now Black's king is the more vulnerable - so much so that Black has to jettison material.
22...f6
This is best, according to the engines, as 22...Ne2+?! 23.Kh1 Rd4 runs into 24.Bf6 Rxd5 25.Bxe5 Rxd1+ 26.Rxd1 dxe5 27.Rxd7, when material is level but White's pieces are much more active than Black's.
23.Bxf6 Rxf6 24.Nxf6+ Qxf6 25.Bd5+ Be6!?
This should probably hold but the engines give 25...Kg8! 26.Bxc4 Bc6, when White is the exchange and a pawn up but the exposed white king means the position is apparently drawn, eg 27.Kf1 (if 27.Rc1 then 27...Nf3+ 28.Kf1 Nxh2+, when White has to play carefully to avoid mate or at least decisive material loss) Qe5 28.Qd2 Qe4 29.Qh6 Qg2+ 30.Ke1 Qe4+ 31.Kf2, and Black has to carry on checking as otherwise he gets mated.
26.fxe6 Rc8
This looks, certainly at first sight, as the best way to stop the passer, but Black can draw by giving up the rook with 26...Qe5!, the point being White cannot escape perpetual check after 27.e7+ Kg7 28.Bxc4?! Qe3+. However the engines point out the superior 28.Qd3! Ne2+ 29.Kh1 Rf4 30.Bf3 Bd4 31.Bxb7 Qxe7 32.Bg2 Rxg4, an intricate line - to say the least! - at the end of which material is level but the engines reckon White has slightly better chances.
27.Qf1 Qg6 28.Re1!?
Possible because 28...Qxg4+ 29.Kh1 leaves the black queen badly out of position. Indeed, best seems to be to return to g6 with 29...Qg6, after which 30.Qf4 threatens 31.Rg1 and 31.Qxd4.
28...Re8 29.Qf7+ Kh8 30.Qxg6
Even stronger is 30.e7 as ...Qxg4+ still does not work for Black.
The game finished:
30...hxg6 31.Re4 Nf3+ 32.Kg2 Ng5 33.Re2 b6 34.h4 Ng7 35.g5 Re7 36.Kf3 Kg7 37.Kg4 Kf8 38.Re4 Rg7 39.Rc4 Ke7 40.Kf4 b5 41.Rc7+ Kf8 42.Rxg7 Kxg7 43.e7 1-0
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