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13 captures 17 f 🐦
10 Nov 2001 - 25 Feb 2013 2001 2002 2003 ▾ About this capture
by

IM. ATTILA SCHNEIDER

PHILIDOR DEFENSE

PART TWO

„Pawns are the soul of the game, both attack and defense are
based on them, success or defeat depend on their movements.”

Philidor: Analysis of chess (1784)

Anand–Costa,
Biel 1988

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6

Black keeps his opponent busy by attacking the

square e4 trying to get time for development .

4. Nc3!? ...

4. Bc4?! Nxe4 5. dxe5 c6! 6. Nbd2 Nxd2 7. Bxd2 d5 8. Bb3 Be7

9. 0-0 Na6! and Black has no difficulties. Nc5-Nxb3 intends to
remove a Bishop. Russel–Shaw, Scotland 1993.

4. dxe5! Maybe the best. 4. ... Nxe4:

A) 5. Nbd2 Nxd2 (5. ... Nc5 also came into consideration. 6. Nc4 d5
7. Ne3 Be6 8. c4 dxc4 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. Bxc4 Bxc4 11. Nxc4 Nc6 =.
Analysis of Karpov .) 6. Bxd2 Be7 [6. ... dxe5? 7. Bc4 Be7 (7. ... f6?
8. Nxe5 fxe5 9. Qh5+ g6 10. Qxe5+ Qe7 11. Bc3 and Black loses a Rook.
Analysis of Szokolszkij. Does not help 8. ... Qe7? either, because after
9. Bxf7+ Kd8 10. Fb4+ Black may say good bye to the Queen with teas in
the eyes.) 8. Nxe5 0-0 9. Qh5 +-. Analysis of Szokolszkij. I just have to add
that 9. ... g6?? loses immediately because of 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. Qxg6+ Kh8
12. Bc3+ .] 7. Bf4 (7. Bc3 d5 8. Bd3 0-0 9. Nd4 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. f4 f5! =.
The threat is Be6, c5. Esztrin–Antosin, Moscow 1955 .) 7. ... d5 8. Bd3 c5
9. c3 Nc6 10. h3 Be6 11. 0-0 g5!? 12. Bh2 h5 13. Ne1 Qb6 14. Be2 0-0-0
15. Bxh5 Qxb2 with a complex position providing mutual chances.
Geller–Campora, Moscow 1989.

B) 5. Qd5! Nc5 6. Bg5:

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B1) 6. ... f6? 7. exf6 gxf6 8. Be3 æ Be6 9. Qh5+ Bf7 10. Qh4 Nbd7Go
http://chessclinic.kalandor.hu/Philidor2angol.htm 11. Nc3
MAY c6
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12. 0-0-0 16. Bg4 +-. Black bleeds slowly on this deadly pin. Maróczy–Bogoljubow,
13 captures
Bled 1931.
17 f 🐦
10 Nov 2001 - 25 Feb 2013 2001 2002 2003 ▾ About this capture

B2) 6. ... Be7 7. exd6 Qxd6 8. Nc3 0-0 (8. ... Qxd5 9. Nxd5 Bd6 10. 0-0-0 +-.)
9. 0-0-0 Nc6 10. Bxe7 Qxe7 11. Bb5! White threats with 12. Rhe1, bringing all
his pieces into play. Baljon–Borm, Eerbeek, 1978.

B3) 6. ... Qd7 7. exd6 Bxd6 8. Nc3 0-0 9. 0-0-0 Nc6

10. Nb5! (10. Be3 Ne7 11. Qc4 b6 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Qxe4 Qc6 14. Bd3 Qxe4
15. Bxe4 Rb8 16. Nd4 Bd7 17. Rhe1 +-. Byrne–Petroszján, Biel (interzonal ) 1976.)
10. ... Qg4 (10. ... Be7 11. Qxd7 Bxd7 12. Nxc7 Bxg5+ 13. Nxg5 Rac8 14. Nd5 +-.
Analysis of Tivjakov .) 11. Nxd6 cxd6 12. Be3! +-. There is no compensation for the
feebleness of the d6 pawn. Tivjakov–Barbero, Imperia 1993.

4. ... Nbd7

4. ... exd4 5. Nxd4:

A) 5. ... Be7 6. Bf4 0-0 7. Qd2 c6 8. 0-0-0 d5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 Qxd5 11. Kb1
a5?! Neglects advance of pieces. 12. Be2 a4 13. Bf3 Qc5 14. Rhe1 æ. White achieved
a great advantage concerning development. Lékó–Barbero, Budapest 1994.

B) 5. ... g6 6. Bg5 Bg7 7. Qd2 h6 8. Bf4 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 10. Bb5+! Provokes weaknesses.
10. ... c6 11. Be2 Nxg3 12. hxg3 Qf6 (12. ... 0-0 13. 0-0 b5 14. a3 Re8 15. g4 Qc7 16. g3
Analysis of Adorján .) 13. Rd1 Qxd4 14. Qxd4 Bxd4 15. Rxd4 Ke7 16. 0-0. Menace is
17. Rfd1, keeping pressure on the d-file. Adorján– Radulov, Sofia 1970.

Let's turn Rack to the main line.

5. Bc4 Be7 6. 0-0 ...

6. Bxf7+? This motif was always winning in the alterations of the previous game,
but this time it is losing! 6. ... Kxf7 7. Ng5+ Kg8 8. Ne6 Qe8 9. Nxc7 Qg6
10. Nxa8 Qxg2 11. Rf1 exd4! 12. Qe2 (12. Qxd4 Ne5! -+)

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13 captures 17 f 🐦
10 Nov 2001 - 25 Feb 2013 2001 2002 2003 ▾ About this capture

12. ... dxc3! 13. Qc4+ d5 14. Qxc8+ Kf7:

A) 15. Qxb7 Qxe4+ 16. Be3 Rb8 17. Qxa7 cxb2 18. Kd2 Qb4+ 19. c3 Ne4+ 20. Ke2 Nxc3+ 21. Kf3 (or 21.
Kd2 bxa1Q 22. Rxa1 Qb2+ 23. Kd3 Ne5+ 24. Kd4 Ne4+ 25. Kxd5 Nf6 mate.) 21. ... Qe4+ 22. Kg3 Ne2+
23. Kh3 Qf3 mate. Rabinovics–Iljin-Zsenyevszkij, Moscow 1922.

B) 15. Qxc3 Qxe4+ 16. Kd1 Rxa8 17. Qe3 Bc5 18. Qxe4 Nxe4 -+. And the material advantage will end the
fight in some moves. Dovzik–Sutorokin, Gyöngyös 1994.

6. dxe5:

A) 6. ... dxe5?! 7. Ng5 0-0:

8. Bxf7+!? Rxf7 9. Ne6 Qe8 10. Nxc7 Qd8 11. Nxa8 b5 12. Nd5 Bd6
(12. ... Nxd5? 13. Qxd5 Nf6 14. Qxd8+ Bxd8 15. Be3 +-. The threat is
16. 0-0-0. Csehov–Durao, Portimac.) 13. Bg5 Bb7 14. Nxf6+ Nxf6
15. Qe2 Bxa8 16. 0-0-0 Bc6 with mutual chances. Treppner–Miltner,
Bamberg 1985.

B) 6. ... Nxe5 7. Nxe5 dxe5 8. Qxd8+ Bxd8 9. Be3 c6 10. f3 Bb6 with
a pleasant play for Black. Tringov–Ree, Amsterdam 1970.

6. ... c6 7. a4! 0-0 8. Re1 ...

Another possibility was 8. Qe2 exd4 9. Nxd4 Ne5 10. Bb3 Be8 11. Rd1 +- is.
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8. http://chessclinic.kalandor.hu/Philidor2angol.htm
... a5 9. h3 exd4 Go MAY SEP NOV 👤 ⍰❎
9.13...captures
17
Re8!? 10. Be3 (10. Ba2 h6 11. Be3 is only a change of move order.) 10. ... h6 f 🐦
10 Nov 2001 - 25 Feb 2013 2001 2002 2003 ▾ About this capture
11. Ba2 Bf8 (or 11. ... Nh7!? 12. Ne2! Ng5 13. Ng3 À. Malanjuk–Maljutin, Beskidy
1992.) 12. d5 Nb6 13. Qd3 Bd7 14. Nd2! (White has obtained more space, and threats
with 15. Nc4 gaining further space.) 14. ... Be7 15. Nc4 Nc8 16. f4! exf4 17. Bxf4 cxd5
18. exd5 Qc7 (Black would like to get rid of being a piece of – tied-ham – , but now it is
late.) 19. Rf1 +- Nh5? (A decisive mistake. Now Black is going to be aware of the real
meaning of a saying „Always the first flap is the strongest”.)

20. Bxh6! gxh6 21. Qf3 Bxa4 22. Nxa4 b5 23. Qxh5 bxc4 24. Bxc4 +-. Black's
King-side is in ruins . Cejtlin–Nevednicki, Tiraspol 1994.

9. ... exd4 10. Nxd4 Nc5 11. Bf1 ...

11. Bf4 Qb6 12. Nb3 Be6 13. Bxe6 Nxe6 14. Be3 Qc7 15. Nd4 Nxd4 16. Bxd4 Rad8
Black has only one weakness on d6 and by the opinion of Nimzovics a good position can
bear „a sound weakness”. 17. Qf3 Nd7 18. Rad1 Rfe8 19. Qg3 Bf6 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 = 21.
e5 dxe5 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Qxe5 Qxe5 24. Rxe5 b6 25. Kf1 Kf8 26. Ke2 Nd7 draw.
Ivkov–Planinc, Amsterdam 1974.

11. ... Re8 12. Qf3 Qb6 13. b3 Qb4 14. Bc4 Ncd7 15. Qe3 ...

15. Ba3!? Ne5 16. Qg3 Nh5! 17. Bxb4 Nxg3

18. Ba3 Nh5 19. Bf1. With a slight advantage of White.

15. Qe3 d5! 16. exd5 Bf8 17. Qd2 Rxe1 18. Qxe1 cxd5 19. Ndb5 ...

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13 captures 17 f 🐦
10 Nov 2001 - 25 Feb 2013 2001 2002 2003 ▾ About this capture

19. ... dxc4! 20. Ba3 cxb3 21. Bxb4 axb4 22. Ne2 bxc2

Black has come up with an interesting Q-sacrifice. There are two Bishops and
two pawns for the Queen which would be enough if he is able to keep his pawns
on board . Black has activated all his pieces.

23. Ned4 Nc5 24. Nxc2 Nd3 25. Qd2 Bf5

Now all Black pieces are in offensive. Black trusts in his b-pawn from the very beginning.

26. Ne1 Nxe1 27. Rxe1 ...

After 27. Qe1 27. ... Ne4 may come connected with the threat of 28. ... Bc5 .

27. ... Rxa4 28. Qd8 b3 29. Nd4 Bc2 30. Nxc2 bxc2
31. Rc1 Rc4 32. Qd3 b5 33. Rxc2 Rxc2 34. Qxc2

This endgame went draw in 99 moves.

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