TL Chess Match 4 - Page 85

Generally speaking, I think the problem we are having on deciding between Nxe4 and 0-0 is that greggy and I think, based on principle, that 0-0 should be better. Now, of course that is a dangerous way to play, especially in correspondence games, but sometimes you just can't analyze everything. I think in every line we look at after Nxe4, the deeper I go, the more I like black and the more I see that white remains in an awkward bind. This makes me think my initial feel was accurate. However, I just don't think we will have enough time to exhaust every line so we are not likely to change your mind at this point.

Also, I have been analyzing a lot of 14.0-0 lines and if I'm perfectly honest it does not look much better there. The d5 pawn constricts us nearly as much as the e4 pawn does. However, I think the lines are a bit better for white because black's powerful light squared bishop is significantly less active with his pawn on d5.

I must disagree vehemently. Your 23rd for black is no good and the reason you think white is OK in this line. Please see my analysis after 23...Bc4, also 23...Rb3 or even 23...Ke6 are both much better than 23...Bb5?

I haven't analyzed too much of this position, but I followed Qrs's line through and I don't see something better for black (I read greggy's analysis as well). So I'm gonna stick with this and see where it goes because I like the end results.

The more I look at this move, the more I like it. 14.0-0 lack initiative and would feel as though we are playing black and on the back foot. Going with qrs with this one.

18. Nc4 or 19. f3

e.g. 19. f3 exf3 20. e6+!?

e.g. 18. Nf1

14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Nd2 f5 16. O-O Rd8 17. Rd1 a5 18. Nc4 a4 19. d5

I think this actually can lead us to trading a knight for the the strikes the colour our King will be castled to, leaving us with off-colour bishops and a castled king against his exposed one.

Hmm, counter-intuitive, but an interesting idea. I'm assuming your plan is to post the Knight on e2, where it can defend the d-pawn.

I'm not sure we can afford to waste much time castling in the 14. Nxe4 line, though. How do you plan to respond to 15... Ba6, preventing castling, and targeting e2 in case we post the Knight there (and where else would we want to post it?)?
He was on g1, as he'd been since castling.

Incidentally, I don't know what you're using to move the pieces around when you analyze, but I've been using http://apronus.com/chess/wbeditor.php. If you have a well-formatted (PGN notation) move list starting at move 1, you can just paste it into the right-hand text box and click "Absorb FEN/PGN" and the game will load for you automatically. That's why I've been using notation like "O-O" instead of "0-0" and "exf3" instead of your more condensed "ef".

following qrs's line through 19,

19...Ke8 (I think that is black's by far best move) 20. Be3 Ba6 21. Rac1 Rb3 22. e6 looks good for white.

Other black alternatives:
19...Ba6 20. Na5 Bb5 21. e6+ Ke8 22. Bf4 Bd6 23. Bxd6 cxd6 24. Rd2 Rdc8 and maybe 25. b4 for white? Either way I think white has an advantage.

If we play 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Nd2. Here, if black plays f5, I think the position is probably good for us. We can play Nc4 as was already mentioned, and if black plays Ba6, after Na5 our position is helped quite a bit. This would restrain his a-pawn and allow us to eventually play the liberating move b4! that we've been wanting to play in this position.

The problem as I see it, is if black doesn't play f5, and instead plays Bb7. Here I don't think Nc4 is viable, because black can play Bd5, clamping down on the position. We can't really play b4 instead here, because black can break the position open for his bishops with either a5, or c5, or both. I really don't see any good move or plan for us in this position.

I think in the O-O line, black is going to be forced to move or trade off his knight anyway after the natural move Re1. It is critical that we control the third row in this position with our rook. qrs has already illustrated how critical the square b3 is. In this position, I think we can eventually play b3. If black tries a4 to prevent that, we can play b4!

Playing Re3 will also guard the d3 square, preventing a bishop invasion of that square if we want to play Rb1 in the future. It also allows us to shuffle over to the king-side and attack or weaken black's pawn structure there.

I've reached the conclusion that castling is the more solid move here, because bringing our rook to e3 to increase our control of the third row will help us to liberate our position.

I'd probably castle if I was playing it over the board, but after looking at it for an extensive period of time, I think whites best move is b4, with ideas of developing his knight on the queenside, and further weakening of blacks control over the dark squares with his already poor bishop on e7. I was thinking a continuation that gives white more space in the center to manuever his knights. Black probably has a winning endgame, even if hes down a pawn or two. gogo gadget bishop pair.

14. b4 a5!? 15. bxa5 c5 16. dxc5 Nxc5 17. 0-0 Ba6 18. Rd1 ...

I think b4 probably wins a pawn for white, and will clear out blacks center pawns and knight well enough to get our pieces back into that area.

I vote 14. b4

OK, I went back to the drawing board and I think that 14.Nxe4 dxe4 15.Nd2 f5 16.0-0 Rd8 17.Rd1 loses a pawn to 17...Ke6 (immediately!). Now white plays 18.Nc4 (or 18.Nf1 c5) 18...Ba6 19.Ne3 c5 wins back the pawn. I don't think 19.Na5 works out well for white - 19...Rd5 20.Nc6 (20.b4 c5) 20...Rb3 21.Nxe7 (if 21.Nxa7 Bb7 and the knight is trapped and will be won with Ra5 or Bc5, or a slower method, also black is threatening Bc5) 21...Kxe7 and I don't see how white prevents black from winning his d pawn either by playing c5 or Bd3.