Spanish Exchange
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d4 exd4 6.Qxd4 Qxd4 7.Nxd4 Bc5!?
This has been played by grandmasters, but trails 7...Nf6, 7...c5 and especially 7...Bd7 in popularity in ChessBase's 2025 Mega database.
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| How should White respond? |
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8.Be3
This beats 8.Nb3 for popularity, but Stockfish17 and Dragon1 reckon there is little to choose between the two moves.
8...Nf6
This was Capablanca's choice in a 1914 game, and it is the commonest continuation, but the engines suggest 8...Bd7 or 8...Ne7.
9.f3 Bb6!?
Capablanca preferred castling.
10.Nc3 Bd7 11.Kf2!? h6!?
Apparently a novelty. The engines suggest 11...h5, 11...0-0-0 or 11...Ba5.
12.Nb3!?
This allows White to force off Black's bishop-pair.
12...Be6!? 13.Bxb6 cxb6 14.Nd4 Ke7!?
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| Now both players have connected rooks, how would you assess the position? |
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White's superior pawn-majority gives the upper hand, according to the engines.
15.Nxe6 Kxe6 16.Rad1 Rhd8 17.Na4!?
This achieves nothing. The engines suggest starting to realise White's majority with 17.g4!?
17...Nd7 18.Rd2 b5 19.Nc3
Possible was 19.Rxd7!? as, whichever way Black captures, White regains the exchange with 20.Nb6(+).
19...Ne5 20.Rxd8 Rxd8 21.Rd1 Rxd1 22.Nxd1 b6
OG offered a draw.
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| How would you assess this knight-and-pawn ending? |
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White still has the superior pawn-majority, but the engines reckon it is not easy to make much of it. Dragon1 gives White a slight edge, but Stockfish17 is not even sure of that.
23.Ne3 Nc4?
Allowing a pawn ending is probably losing, and at any rate makes Black's defence very difficult.
24.Nxc4 bxc4 25.Ke3 c5 26.f4 h5 27.h3!?
This allows 27...h4, which Dragon1 reckons is good for Black, reducing White's advantage to a slight edge, but Stockfish17 agrees with me that 28.Kf3 wins, eg 28...f5!? (Dragon1's idea) can be met by both 29.g4 and 29.e5, which Dragon1 comes to realise win for White.
27...Kd6 28.Kf3 b5 29.g4 h4!?
This is Stockfish17's top choice. Dragon1 prefers 29...hxg4+, but both 30.hxg4 and my planned 30.Kxg4!? seem to win.
30.g5 b4 31.Kg4 a5
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| White to play and win ... or lose |
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32.Kxh4??
This allows Black a well-known breakthrough on the queenside, whereas that is prevented by 32.c3 (but not 32.a3?? c3).
32...a4
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| There is no defence against the threat of 33...b3 |
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33.Kg4
If 33.b3 then 33...cxb3 34.axb3 axb3 35.axb3 c4 etc, while 33.c3 loses to 33...a3, and 33.a3 loses to 33...c3.
The game finished:
33...b3 34.cxb3 axb3 34.axb3 cxb3 36.e5+ Kd5 37.g6 fxg6 38.Kg5 c4 39.Kxg6 c3 40.bxc3 b2 41.Kf7 b1=Q 42.e6 Qf5+ 0-1
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