Vienna Game
1.e4 e5 2.Nc3 Nf6 3.Bc4!? Nxe4!?
This 'equalising' capture is well-known, but is a lot less common in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database than 3...Bc5 and especially 3...Nc6.
4.Qh5
After 4.Nxe4 d5 Black has the upper hand, according to Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1.
4...Nd6 5.Bb3 Be7!?
The famous sacrificial line 5...Nc6 6.Nb5 g6 7.Qf3 f5 8.Qd5 Qe7 9.Nxc7+ Kd8 10.Nxa8 b6 used to be considered good for Black, but modern engines much prefer White.
6.Nf3 Nc6 7.0-0?!
The engines are not keen on this, but agree it is an improvement on Litfin (1818) - Spanton (1912), Bad Wörishofen U2000 2022, when I met 7.Nb5?! with the novelty 7...g6!, immediately gaining a large advantage (0-1, 43 moves). All six games in Mega24 to reach the position after 7.Nb5?!, including Shakhriyar Mamedyarov (2801) - Anish Giri (2782), Chess.com Blitz 2018, saw Black castle.
White's most popular seventh move in Mega24 is 7.Nxe5, after which 7...g6 8.Nxc6 dxc6 9.Qf3 is equal, according to the engines.
7...g6!?
Preventing White from quickly regaining the sacrificed pawn, but weakening the kingside. The engines again prefer this over castling.
8.Qg4 Nf5 9.Nd5!?
Stockfish16 fluctuates between the text and 9.Qe4. Komodo14.1 also likes 9.Qe4, along with 9.d3.
9...d6 10.Nxe7 Qxe7
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| How would you assess this middlegame? |
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White has the bishop-pair and has castled, but Black is a pawn up and has a strong-looking centre. The engines reckon Black has a large advantage.
11.Qe4 Be6 12.Ba4 Bd7 13.d3 0-0-0!? 14.c3 Kb8
Not just a safety-first move, but preparing a sacrifice.
15.b4
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| How should Black continue? |
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15...d5!?
The engines prefer the solidifying 15...f6, or 15...h5.
16.Qe1?!
With 16.Qxd5 Nxb4 17.cxb4 (best, according to the engines) Bxa4 18.Qxe5, White restores material equality, although thoughts of a queenside attack are gone, and the engines reckon White's inferior pawn-structure gives Black the upper hand.
After the text, White has fallen well behind in development, and Black gets a central initiative.
16...e4 17.dxe4 dxe4 18.Bxc6?
Better is the engines' 18.Ng5. After the text White no longer has the bishop-pair, and still has to do something about the attacked knight.
18...Bxc6 19.Nd4!?
The engines fluctuate between this and 19.Nd2 (19.Ng5?! h6 20.Nh3 Bb5 is surely even worse), which only goes to show how bad White's position is.
19...Nxd4 20.cxd4 Bb5 21.Qc3 Bxf1 22.Kxf1 Qd6 23.Be3 Qxh2 24.Rc1
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| White has pressure against the black queenside, but Black's material advantage (an exchange and two pawns) should tell |
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24...Qd6 25.g3 Rd7 26.d5!?
This becomes the engines' top choice. If 26.Bf4, then 26...Qe7, and 26...Qa6+ followed by 27...Rc8, are plenty good enough. But not 26...Qxd4 as 27.Qxd4! (this is stronger than 27.Bxc7+) Rxd4 28.Be5 Rhd8 29.Bxc7+ Kx8 30.Bxd8 Rxd8 31.Rc7 gives drawing chances.
This becomes the engines' top choice. If 26.Bf4, then 26...Qe7, and 26...Qa6+ followed by 27...Rc8, are plenty good enough. But not 26...Qxd4 as 27.Qxd4! (this is stronger than 27.Bxc7+) Rxd4 28.Be5 Rhd8 29.Bxc7+ Kx8 30.Bxd8 Rxd8 31.Rc7 gives drawing chances.
26...Rc8 27.Qd4 b6 28.Rd1 f5 29.a4 Rcd8 30.Qc4 Qe7 31.a5 Rd6 32.axb6 cxb6
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| How should White proceed? |
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33.Bc5!?
Hoping for complications. On 33.Bf4 I intended 33...g5!? 34.Bxd6+ Qxd6, giving back the exchange but remaining two pawns up.
33...Qd7!?
The bishop can be taken, as, after 33...bxc5 34.bxc5 Qc7 the rook check 35.Rb1+ can be met by 35...Rb6, while queen checks, eg 35.Qb4+, can be met by 35...Qb7.
34.Be3?!
Black now goes three pawns up, as well as the exchange, so capturing on d6 is objectively much better.
34...Rxd5 35.Bf4+ Ka8 36.Rxd5 Qxd5 37.Qc7 Qd7 38.Qe5 Rc8
There is a much quicker finish after 38...Qd1+ or 38....Qd3+
39.Kg2 Qc6 40.Be3 Rd8 41.Qe7 Qd7 42.Qf6 Kb7 43.b5 Re8 44.Qh4!? Re5 45.Qf6 Rxb5 46.Qh8 a5 47.Bf4 Rc5 48.Be3 Rc8 49.Qa1 Qc6 50.Qg7+ Rc7 51.Qd4 h6 52.Kh2 Rd7 53.Qe5 Qd6 54.Qb5 h5!? 55.Bxb6!?
Winning two pawns, but the queens come off.
55...Qc6 56.Qxc6+ Kxc6 57.Bxa5 Kb5 58.Bc3 Kc4 59.Be5 Kd3 60.Bf4 Ke2 61.Kg2 Rd3 62.Bg5 Rf3 63.g4 Rxf2+ 64.Kg1 hxg4 65.Bh4 Rf3 66.Kg2 e3 67.Bg5 f4 68.Bh4 Rh3 0-1
Bizarrely, despite playing to the bitter end, BL did not try 69.Bf2, hoping for 69...exf2?? stalemate.
Congrets, very good game !
ReplyDeleteThanks very much. I missed a couple of things, and constantly feared making a hash of the game with a blunder as I was under pressure a lot of the time, but I generally felt I was in control (and the engines seem to confirm that).
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