We were delighted to receive the following excellent review from Danish GM Peter Heine Nielsen (FIDE 2680) of Attacking the Spanish by Sabino Brunello.
“Attacking the Spanish gives a repertoire for Black against the Spanish and uses the atypical concept of giving three lines instead of the usual one, a concept previously used with success in Beat the KID, (Quality Chess 2008). The three lines are: the Schliemann (3…f5), the Marshall Attack as well as the popular ‘Gajewski’ gambit with 9.h3 Na5 10.Bc2 d5!?. It is noticeable that all three lines lose a pawn, but the Marshall still has a reputation for solidity and is working quite well at the top level at the moment.
All the variations are well researched, and in the two more spectacular variations, the Schliemann and the Gajewski, the author is fully objective, pointing out why Black has had problems in these lines in the past.
The book has a lot of new analysis, but the lines are build firmly on modern grandmaster practice; for example, the Schliemann is built on Radjabov’s repertoire.
A good book by an author who tells you everything he knows about the openings. A great debut.”
Grandmaster Peter Heine Nielsen
Our authors have been playing great chess recently.
At the very strong Politiken Cup in Denmark, Boris Avrukh was first equal, while Tiger Hillarp Persson won the Best Game Prize. Lars Schandorff scored a respectable 7/10.
Mihail Marin played a couple of tournaments. He was first in Benasque (with 9/11) and second in Andorra. These fantastic results have pushed his rating up to a personal best of 2610.
John Shaw
Just a passing thought sparked by reading a comment on another chess site: how do you define what is the main line of an opening?
Is it the sharpest line? The most popular line over a number of years? The line currently favoured by the elite?
My approach seems to be a mixture of all three of the above, with added weight for the last point. Take, for example, the Queen’s Gambit Declined. Avrukh recommends the Catalan, Schandorff prefers the Exchange Variation. Both main lines, I think, but some disagree.
John Shaw
I recently spotted an extreme example of the popularity of the Slav and Semi-Slav variations. I was looking at Magnus Carlsen’s games with White after 1.d4 d5 2.c4. Now there are several solid moves (such as 2…e6 or 2…dxc4) and many off-beat lines (for example, 2…Nc6 or 2…e5) but between the start of 2008 and the 1st of June 2009 all of Carlsen’s opponents replied 2…c6. I make it about 18 2…c6’s in a row.
Elite chessplayers are dedicated followers of opening fashion.
John
Sabino Brunello’s first book, Attacking the Spanish, is getting ever nearer to ready. This started me thinking about the Schliemann variation (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 f5), one of three lines the book covers, with the Marshall and the Gajewski. For decades most GM’s believed that the Schliemann was unsound, but in the last few years Radjabov has single-handedly convinced the chess world that 3…f5 is a respectable move.
Has any other variation enjoyed such a sudden improvement in its reputation? The best alternative I can think of is the a6-Slav, but that was a gradual process, I think. Whereas overnight the Schliemann switched from ?! to !?
John Shaw
1.d4 d4 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.e3 Bf5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nh4 Be4 7.f3 Bg6 8.Qb3
This is a line recommended by Boris Avrukh in Grandmaster Repertoire 1: 1.d4. The usual replies are 8…Qb6 and 8…Qc7. In January this year Sweden’s No.1, Tiger Hillarp Persson, introduced a stunning new idea: 8…b5!!?
Last month, in a training session in Edinburgh, Tiger explained how he came up with the idea. Most new ideas are prepared in advance at home and computer-checked: Tiger’s was an over-the board inspiration. He had intended to play 8…Qb6, then he suddenly thought, “Was 8…b7-b6 so bad?” and then 8…b7-b5 popped into his head. He quickly checked that 9.cxb5 c5 offered some play, and that he had some ideas against 9.c5, and then Tiger was ready. He used less than 10 minutes before playing 8…b5: a new move in a position that had been played over 400 times.
So if you follow Avrukh’s repertoire, how should you reply to Tiger’s gambit? Playing 9.c5 with the idea of a2-a4 to follow is interesting, but my suggestion is to try to refute the gambit by accepting it: 9.cxb5 c5 10.Nxg6 hxg6 11.g3!? White’s king will often find a home on g2. For example if 11…Bd6 then 12.Kf2 (stopping …Bxg3) 12…Qc7 13.Kg2 (again stopping …Bxg3). The king looks safe and White is a pawn up.
So far 8…b5 has been played 4 times and no one has tried 9.cxb5. If you have the chance, give it a go.
John Shaw
It’s a continuing theme of Authors in Action. IM Sabino Brunello’s book Attacking the Spanish is nearly finished, so last week he played in the Italian Team Championship and scored 7/7. 100% is always impressive, but it’s incredible against a field that included two GMs and two IMs.
Sabino’s rating is well over 2500, so he just needs a third GM norm to claim the title. I am sure he will not have long to wait.
Jacob certainly deserves some of the credit as Sabino is one of his pupils. GM Lars Schandorff also contributed as the following game from Italy follows a line he recommended in Playing the Queen’s Gambit.
CIS 2009
White: S. Brunello
Black: Amato
John Shaw
Scottish GM Colin McNab won the recent Coulsdon GM tournament. His unbeaten score of 9/13 put him a point clear of his nearest rivals. Colin McNab is one of our regular proofreaders at Quality Chess, so we congratulate Colin while making the dubious claim that reading our books is entirely responsible for his success.
John Shaw
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