Spanish Schliemann
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5 4.d4!?
The main continuations are 4.d3 and especially 4.Nc3.
4...fxe4 5.Bxc6
Giving up the bishop-pair, but not without compensation. The mainline in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database runs 5.Nxe5!? Nxe5 6.dxe5 c6, after which Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1 do not rate the most-popular move, 7.Bc4, as it loses a pawn to 7...Qa5+. Instead White should perhaps try 7.Nc3!? cxb5 8.Nxe4, when 8...d5!? 9.exd6 Nf6 scores 55% for Black in Mega23. Komodo14.1 reckons White has full compensation for the material sacrificed, but Stockfish16 gives Black a slight edge.
5...dxc6 6.Nxe5
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| How would you assess the position? |
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Black has the bishop-pair but White has a knight on a central outpost. Much may depend on whether the e pawn is a strength, thanks to the space it gives Black, or, thanks to being isolated, a weakness. The engines reckon the position is equal.
6...Nf6 7.0-0 Be7 8.Nc3 0-0 9.Bg5 Bf5 10.Re1 c5!?
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| How should White respond? |
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11.Be3
Reinhard Jaenig (2168) - Manfred Hermann (2341), Bad Wörishofen 2003, saw 11.Bxf6 Bxf6 12.Nxe4 cxd4 13.Nxf6+ Rxf6 14.Qe2 Qd5 with what the engines reckon is an equal game (but 0-1, 63 moves).
The engines give 11.d5, again with what they reckon is equality.
11...cxd4 12.Qxd4 Qxd4 13.Bxd4 e3!? 14.Bxe3 Bxc2 15.Rac1 Bf5
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| Now the e pawn has gone, who stands better? |
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Black still has the bishop-pair, and has a farside pawn-majority, but the engines reckon this is balanced by White's lead in development.
16.Nb5 c6 17.Nd4 Bc8 18.Bg5 Bb4 19.Re2 Re8 20.a3 Ba5
I now picked up my queen's rook, intending 21.Rce1?? but seeing in time that loses the exchange.
21.Rd1 Nd5 22.Nc4 Rxe2 23.Nxe2 Bc7 24.Ne3 Nxe3 25.Bxe3 Bf5 26.Rd2 Kf7
Black would have a slight edge, according to the engines, after 26...Re8, the a7 pawn being poisoned.
27.h3 a6 28.g4!? Be6 29.Nf4 Bc8 30.Nd3 b6 31.Nb4 c5 32.Nd5 Bd8 33.Bf4
The engines reckon 33.Nc3 is equal.
33...Bb7?
Better is 33...Ra7.
34.Nxb6!
Best, although 34.Nc7!? is also good.
34...Bxb6 35.Rd7+ Kg6 36.Rxb7 Bd8 37.Rb8!?
The engines are not keen on this, presumably because the white rook is much more active than its black counterpart.
37...Rxb8 38.Bxb8 c4!?
Probably hoping to follow up with ...Bf6, but the pawn is vulnerable on c4.
39.Be5 Kf7 40.Kg2 g6 41.Kf3 Bb6 42.Ke4!
A queenside majority will be easier to convert than the kingside one.
42...Bxf2
If 42...Ke6, then 43.f4.
43.Kd5 h5 44.Kxc4 hxg4 45.hxg4 Ke6 46.Bd4 Bg3 47.b4 Kd6 48.a4 Kc6 49.Bc5 Bf4 50.b5+ axb5+ 51.axb5+ Kc7 52.Kd5 g5!? 53.Ke6 Bd2 54.Kf5 Bc1 55.Ke4 Bb2 56.Bd4 Ba3 57.Be3 Be7 58.Kf5 1-0
I was slightly surprised at resignation coming here, especially considering the rating difference, but the Syzygy endgame tablebase has had White winning throughout once the game got down to seven 'pieces'.
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