Brașov Round Eight

DOWNFLOATED today against another Romanian junior (born 2005).

Spanton (1889) - Stephanie Matasaru (1885) 

Sicilian Bb5(+)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Nd7 4.0-0 a6 5.Bd3!?

A relatively new move - the first example in ChessBase's 2022 Mega database is from 1984 - but it has taken over from 5.Bxd7+ as the mainline.

5...Ngf6 6.Re1 g6!?

The mainline in Mega22 continues 6...e6 7.c3 b5 8.Bc2 c4!? with an equal position, according to Stockfish15, although Komodo13.02 prefers White.

7.c3 Bg7 8.Bc2 0-0 9.d4 cxd4 10.cxd4 b5

How should White continue?

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11.e5!?

Trying to seize the initiative, but, although it might not be immediately apparent, the threat of being back-rank mated proves a major problem.

11...dxe5

11...Nd5 and 11...Ne8 have also been played, but the text is probably best.

12.dxe5 Ng4 13.e6 fxe6 14.Rxe6

Antony* Rode (2020) - Anton Demchenko (2628), Skopje Karposh ('Macedonia') 2017, saw 14.h3 Nge5 15.Ng5 Nc5, when Black had the upper hand, according to the engines (0-1, 27 moves).

What should Black play?

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14...Nde5

The engines reckon best is 14...Bb7!?, when Black's activity and lead in development more than compensate for the isolated king's pawn.

15.Qxd8 Rxd8 16.Rxe7 Bf6 17.Bb3+ Kh8 18.Nxe5!? Nxe5

Not 18...Bxe7? 19.Nf7+ Kg7 20.Nxd8 Bxd8 as White emerges a pawn up.

19.Rc7 Be6

How should White respond?

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20.f4??

Best seems to be 20.Nd2 Bxb3 21.axb3, when I feared 21...Nd3, missing that 22.Nf3 gives what the engines reckon is a dead-equal position. Komodo13.02 also likes 20.Bd2? but Stockfish15's 20...Bg8! causes White problems, for example Komodo13.02's suggestion of 21.h3 runs into 21...b4!, when White has major difficulties developing the queenside.

20...Bxb3 21.fxe5 Bxe5 22.Rc6 Bd4+ 23.Kh1

23.Kf1 is not much of an improvement - the white king is doomed either way.

23...Bd5 24.Rc2 Rf8 25.Nd2

The engines reckon best is 25.Bf4!?, which shows the position is well resignable.

25...Rae8

25...Rf2 also wins, but then so do many other moves.

26.h4 Re1+ 27.Kh2 Be5+ 28.Kh3 Rh1+ 0-1

*The player's name is more commonly spelt Anthony on the internet but Antony seems correct.