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| Long view of one of Mallorca's 13 lighthouses |
Spanton (1861) - Sergio Romero Calduch (2219)
Caro-Kann Tartakower
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Nf6 5.Nxf6+ exf6
Stockfish15 and Komodo13.02 strongly prefer this over 5...gxf6.
6.c3
This solidifying move is easily the most popular in ChessBase's 2022 Mega database.
6...Bd6 7.Bd3 0-0 8.Ne2!?
The main move is 8.Qc2 but the text has been played by Magnus Carlsen.
8...Re8 9.0-0 Qc7
This may have first been played by Alexander Alekhine at Caracas (Venezuela) 1939, but has since been overtaken in popularity by 9...Nd7.
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| How should White respond? |
*****
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10.g3!?
Preparing Bf4.
The mainline in Mega22 runs 10.Ng3 Nd7 11.Nf5!?, when 11...Bxh2+ 12.Kh1 Bd6 13.Qg4 g6 14.Nh6+ Kg7 is dead-equal, according to the engines. Mergen Kakabayaev (2350) - Yusup Atabayev (2455), Asian Continental (Chengdu, China) 2017, continued 15.Nf5+ Kg8 16.Nh6+ Kg7 17.Nf5+ Kh8 18.Qh4 gxf5 19.Bxf5 Nf8 20.Qxf6+ Kg8 21.Bh6 Ne6 22.Bxe6 fxe6 23.Qg5+ Kh8 24.Qf6 and the game was quickly drawn by repetition. Instead of 11...Bxh2+, Black usually plays 11...Nf8!?, but the engines reckon White is at least slightly better after 12.Nxd6.
Also more popular than the text is 10.h3.
10...Bg4 11.Qc2 h5 12.f3 Bh3 13.Re1 h4!?
The engines prefer 13...c5 or 13...Nd7.
14.Bf4
Possibly stronger is the engines' 14.Bd2!?, the point being 14...hxg3 15.hxg3 Bxg3 fails to 16.Bf4!! Bxf4 17.Nxf4, when the threat of back-rank mate means Black is lost, eg 17...Nd7 18.Qh2! (not 18.Nxh3? Qg3+, double-hitting the e1 rook as well as hitting the h3 knight). Instead the engines reckon Black should play 14...Na6, when 15.Nf4 Bxf4 (15...Bd7 16.Bc4 is very good for White, according to the engines) 16.Bxf4 gives White an edge.
14...hxg3?
The engines reckon Black should develop with 14...Nd7, when White may have a slight edge.
15.Bxd6 Qxd6
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| How should White continue? |
*****
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16.hxg3
This is good enough for an advantage, but even stronger is the engines' 16.Nf4!, when 16...gxh2+? 17.Qh2 wins easily for White. So the engines give 16...Bd7, but they reckon 17.hxg3 is positionally winning for White.
16...c5?
According to the engines, Black had to sacrifice the exchange with 16...Rxe2!?, but after 17.Qxe2 Qxg3+ 18.Kh1 Nd7 (White threatened mate in one) I planned 19.Rg1, when White is clearly better.
17.Kh2?
White seems to have an easy win after 17.Nf4, eg 17...Bd7 18.Bh7+ Kf8 19.Be4.
17...Bd7 18.Bf5?
White is at least slightly better, according to the engines, after 18.Bh7+ Kf8 19.Be4.
18...Nc6 19.Bxd7 Qxd7 20.dxc5 Qd5 21.Kg2 Qxc5 22.Rad1 Rad8 23.Rxd8 Rxd8 24.Rd1 Re8 25.Nd4!?
The engines prefer 25.Nf4.
25...Qc4
The engines give Black a slight edge after 25...Nxd4!? 26.Rxd4 g6, presumably based on Black's safer king.
26.Qb3 Qxb3 27.Nxb3?
The position after 27.axb3 Nxd4 28.Rxd4 Re2+ 29.Kh3 Rxb2 30.b4 is dead-equal, according to Stockfish15, although Komodo13.02's verdict of a slight edge for Black seems nearer the truth to me.
27...Re2+ 28.Kf1
In playing 27.Nxb3? I somehow thought that here I could swop rooks with 28.Rd2.
28...Rxb2 29.Rd2!? Rb1+?!
The engines much prefer 29...Rxd2 30.Nxd2 Kf8 etc.
30.Ke2 b6
Best is developing the king, according to the engines.
31.Rd1?
The engines reckon Black has at best a slight edge after 31.f4.
31...Rxd1 32.Kxd1 Kf8
White's queenside weaknesses make this ending much easier for Black than it otherwise would be.
33.Kd2 Ke7 34.Kd3 Kd6 35.f4 Kd5 36.a3?
This makes matters worse, although White faces a very tough defensive task after 36.c4+ Ke6.
36...b5 37.Na1 Na5 38.Nc2 Nc4 39.Nb4+ Kc5 40.Nc2 a5
Zugzwang.
41.Ke2 Kd5 42.Kd3 g6 43.Ke2 Ke4 0-1
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