D James (189 BCF) - Spanton (151 BCF)
British Major (Eastbourne) 1990
Queen's Pawn Game
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.g3 c6 4.Bg2 Nbd7 5.0-0 e6
 |
| This position is not as obscure as might be thought, occurring 1,090 times in ChessBase's 2026 Mega database |
*****
*****
*****
*****
6.b3 Bd6 7.Bb2 Qc7 8.Nbd2 0-0
 |
| Now both sides have castled, how would you assess the position? |
*****
*****
*****
*****
White's game has a slightly freer look to it, at least to me, and gives White a slight edge, according to Stockfish17.1 and Dragon1.
9.c4 Re8 10.Qc2 b6 11.e4 Nxe4 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Qxe4 Bb7 14.Qc2 e5?!
9.c4 Re8 10.Qc2 b6 11.e4 Nxe4 12.Nxe4 dxe4 13.Qxe4 Bb7 14.Qc2 e5?!
This is probably too ambitious. The engines recommend 14...Be7!? or 14...h6.
15.Rad1 Re7??
The engines give 15...exd4 16.Nxd4 Bf8, but reckon White has the upper hand.
16.Ng5 Nf6 17.c5 1-0
LESSON: pieces need breathing room.
Apart from the deferred c4, White's structure is very normal for a Catalan as is the idea of preparing and playing e4. Black's plan of playing .. e5 can be over ambitious. Defending Catalans requires patience, you perhaps hope to provoke an overreach by White.
ReplyDeleteRdC
Impatience is one of my (many) sins - probably why I feel uncomfortable against slow-burn openings like the Catalan
Delete