Hi all! I have another fascinating blitz game to show you at the Super-GM level.
Mamedyarov was playing against Magnus Carlsen in the Grand Chess Tour Paris so
this is quite recent game. I'm not giving up totally for current events but
there are some interesting games on this one which we haven't seen yet
so d4 - Magnus plays d5 Knight f3 Knight f6 c4 c6 and now this move Queen c2
which if you've just started off the Slav you might just be wanting to set up
the triangle without further ado and play for things like Knight d7 Bishop d6
and later you know take and then e5 - that's the kind of routine but actually there
is justification to react here with the third most popular move (Chessbase) Live-Book - which
which is g6 - simple ideas - fianchetto and also a tempo gain with
Bishop f5 which helps in light-square control if the bishops on that diagonal
let's see g3 Bishop g7 Bishop d2 black castles and now we have this tempo again
so how useful is it ?! It doesn't neglect b7 that is pounced on but then Magnus just
plays Queen b6 here - he doesn't mind doubled pawns
if white really wants to double the pawns here - he didn't but this position is
activating a rook and so there's some compensation here for example it's okay
for black in fact technically blacks fine
more than fine - slight advantage even. So I don't think there's any point taking
there so we have a situation where white just castles here rook d8 and really
yeah this just this whole configuration doesn't seem entirely bad at all Queen a3
Na6 and all of a sudden the bishops actually useful for Nb4 to
to c2- we have c5 which is closing down the center but it means that later
e5 is going to be more painful for white this tension being resolved sometimes it
makes it e5 more effective - the Queen doesn't even go back actually
to c7 - she sticks around - not fearing you know potential
stuff which might trap the Queen later e3 - which kind of sets the scene that
you know maybe Bishop F1 is going to be a concern but now there's
Nb4 threatening Nc2 - simple stuff Queen c3 - the Queen is
wasting a bit of time here a5 - okay so that's a nice move because it
actually means Queen a6 potentially if a4 and in fact that's what happens a4
Qa6 where the knight is protected by the pawn and like still
threatening some stuff like to go into these two squares at some point and in
fact the knight uses d3 here on c2 I'm not sure it's doing anything there on c2
may be the rook just moves to a2 - let's have a quick look - just yeah just
Ra2 it but even this - it's fine for black it seems technically this is yeah
there's no harm in going to c2 - basically even if that was played but
maybe even better is to play for e5 with Knight d7 potentially or or b6 this
pawn chains a bit fragile to either b6 or e5 right now as pawn breaks
to try and expose White's underlying weaknesses Knight d3 though is played
Rd1 - now this does create weakness of the last move which is tapped into
may be safer would have been something like might Nh4 but it seems really
awkward just Bishop g4 and blacks fine. This e5 - it's supported a bit by
the knight and it kind of hopes to open up this diagonal so this is really an
unpleasant position for white anyway as it stands this just made it more
unpleasant I think after Ng4 The rook goes back. I know maybe Mamedyarov was err...
This is not his best ever
blitz game so Bishop h6 now threatens things like Knight take
that f2 Bishop takes e3. White now protects the e3 point but now this e5 comes and
it's very dangerous to take because it's really exposing this diagonal and
there's two knights which are supporting e5 here. But after Bishop d2 Bishop g7
anyway. Na3 maybe trying to reinforce d4 but Nf6 is now played
yeah this is a really unpleasant position Ne1 - and now Magnus plays
actually - a really interesting move can you guess if I give you 5 seconds
this is a bit of a killer blow it seems so what would you play with black here?!
It seems you know White's trying to chase away this advanced Knight does
knight want to retreat back ?! Well I know it's protected by the Bishop at the moment
but even so it doesn't even mind the interruption Knight e4 here hitting the
Queen so let's see what's going on here. Why can't Queen takes d3
because there is an interruption of its protection
I think Queen takes d3 let's have a look Knight takes d2 after hits the rook and
d3 and there's something like this this is just horrible
yeah doesn't even need to take on d3 maybe even better is just taking on d4 but
this is this is fine as well this is all very good for black
this position you can see that the structure has been weakened
at base when the bishop might be pointing at d4 this is a very unpleasant
position for white so Knight e4 seems really cool Bishop takes e4 but now
not the routine capture here even. Sorry he does play the routine capture
here but it's after Knight takes d3 it is
this position not the routine capture of taking the knight - but instead exd4
and white centers collapsing. Queen takes d3 and that's it
yeah White is in a really miserable position - his center has just being
destroyed by Magnus Carlsen 24 moves Magnus made it look really easy but
he is adapting his setup to whites Queen c2 in this game which is why I thought
this was a kind of notable game if you've just started out with the Slav
and you know you bear in mind exactly you know the flexibility requirements
and you know to get the more effective setups against whites play. So hope you
got something out of that. Comments, questions likes shares appreciated. Thanks
very much