[Event "Ronne Jubilaum"]
[Site "Ronne"]
[Date "2001.06.30"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Hauschild, Andreas"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D58"]
[WhiteElo "2290"]
[BlackElo "2288"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2001.06.24"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Qc2 h6 7. Bh4 b6 8. Rc1 ({RR} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. Rc1 c6 11. Nf3 Bb7 12. Qd2 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 Nd7 14. Be2 c5 15. Qa3 Rfc8 16. O-O Kf8 17. Ba6 Bxa6 18. Qxa6 Rc7 19. Rc2 Rac8 20. Rfc1 g6 21. h3 Nb8 22. Qa3 a5 {Predke,A (2662)-Aleksandrov,A (2525) Cheliabinsk 2021 1-0 (48)}) ({RR} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. Rc1 c5 11. dxc5 Qxc5 12. Nxd5 Qxd5 13. Be2 Na6 14. Bf3 Qa5+ 15. Qc3 Rb8 16. a3 Bd7 17. b4 Qf5 18. Qd2 Rbc8 19. Rxc8 Bxc8 20. Qc1 Bd7 21. Ne2 Rc8 22. Qd1 Nb8 {Agdestein,S (2563)-Laurent-Paoli,P (2560) Sestao ESP 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 8... Bb7 $146 ({RR} 8... c5 9. cxd5 cxd4 10. exd4 Nxd5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Nf3 Bb7 13. Be2 Nd7 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Qa4 Nf6 16. O-O Bxf3 17. Bxf3 Rac8 18. Rc3 Nd5 19. Bxd5 exd5 20. Qc2 Rxc3 21. Qxc3 Re8 22. Rc1 Qf6 23. Qd2 {Pudlo,E (2050)-Zeberski,J (2095) Augustow 1996 ½-½ (31)}) 9. Nf3 Nbd7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Bf5 cxd4 14. exd4 Ne4 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Ne5 Nxe5 17. Bxc8 Rxc8 18. Rfe1 Qg5 19. dxe5 Nxc3 20. bxc3 d4 21. f4 Qxf4 22. Qf2 Qxf2+ 23. Kxf2 dxc3 24. Re3 Bd5 25. Rexc3 Rxc3 26. Rxc3 Bxa2 27. Ra3 Be6 28. Rxa7 b5 29. Rb7 Bc4 30. Ke3 Kh7 31. h4 Kg6 32. g4 h5 33. Rb6+ Be6 34. g5 Kf5 35. Rxb5 g6 36. Kf3 Bc4 37. Rc5 Ba2 38. e6+ Kxe6 39. Kf4 Kd6 40. Ra5 Bb3 41. Ke4 Bc2+ 42. Kd4 Ke6 43. Ra2 Bb1 44. Rb2 Bf5 45. Rb6+ Ke7 46. Ke5 Bg4 47. Rb7+ 1-0

[Event "NOR Championship Group Elite"]
[Site "Roros"]
[Date "2002.07.08"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hansen, Torbjorn Ringdal"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2214"]
[BlackElo "2280"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2002.07.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Qe7 5. g3 Nc6 6. Nc3 d5 7. Bg2 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bg5 ({RR} 9. Qc2 Rb8 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Bxc3 Rd8 12. Rfc1 b5 13. b3 cxb3 14. Qxb3 a5 15. Bb2 Bb7 16. Rc5 Nxd4 17. Bxd4 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Rxd4 19. Rxb5 Rbd8 20. Rxa5 e5 21. h3 e4 22. Bg2 h5 23. e3 Rd2 {Rustemov,A (2525)-Caruana,F (2792) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1}) 9... Bxc3 10. bxc3 e5 ({RR} 10... Rb8 11. e4 h6 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. e5 Qe7 14. Nd2 Na5 15. f4 b6 16. Qe2 c5 17. f5 exf5 18. d5 Re8 19. Rae1 b5 20. Nf3 b4 21. Nh4 g6 22. Qe3 Kg7 23. e6 Qd6 24. Rxf5 fxe6 25. Re5 {Soza de la Carrera,J (2221)-Aalto,P (2316) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (38)}) 11. d5 $146 ({RR} 11. Qa4 exd4 12. cxd4 Qb4 13. Qxb4 Nxb4 14. Rfc1 b5 15. a4 c6 16. Ne5 Rb8 17. Bd2 bxa4 18. Rxa4 Nbd5 19. e4 Rb2 20. Nxc4 {1-0 (20) Petkov,V (2464)-Costa,P (2037) Vila Nova de Famalicao POR 2023}) ({RR} 11. Qa4 exd4 12. cxd4 Qb4 13. Qxb4 Nxb4 14. Rfc1 b5 15. a4 c6 16. Ne5 Rb8 17. Bd2 bxa4 18. Rxa4 Nbd5 19. e4 Rb2 20. Nxc4 {1-0 (20) Petkov,V (2464)-Costa,P (2037) Vila Nova de Famalicao POR 2023}) 11... Na5 12. Nd2 Bf5 13. Qa4 b6 14. d6 Qe8 15. Qa3 Rc8 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Ne4 Bxe4 18. Bxe4 cxd6 19. Qxd6 Qe6 20. Qd2 Rcd8 21. Qc2 h6 22. Bf5 Qc6 23. Be4 Qe6 24. Bf5 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR Championship Group Elite"]
[Site "Roros"]
[Date "2002.07.09"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Henriksen, Geir Ivar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2209"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "157"]
[EventDate "2002.07.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. e3 b5 6. b3 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. O-O Nbd7 9. h3 Bh5 10. Ne5 Bxe2 11. Nxe2 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Bb2 ({RR} 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Bb2 Bc5 15. Nf4 Qg5 16. Rc1 O-O 17. Rc2 Rfc8 18. Qe2 Bf8 19. Nd3 Nb6 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Rxc2 Rc8 22. Rxc8 Nxc8 23. Qc2 Ne7 24. Ba3 Qf5 25. Qc3 a5 26. Bd6 b4 27. Qc7 Qxd3 {Akopian,V (2660)-Vaganian,R (2640) Groningen 1997 ½-½ (42)}) 13... Be7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nf4 Bg5 $146 ({RR} 15... O-O 16. Qg4 Ra7 17. Rac1 Kh8 18. Rc6 Qb8 19. Nh5 g6 20. Nf4 Rc8 21. Rxc8+ Qxc8 22. Rc1 Qf8 23. Bd4 Rb7 24. Nxe6 fxe6 25. Qxe6 Kg7 26. Qxa6 Qb8 27. Qe6 Nf8 28. Qxd5 b4 29. Rc6 Rb5 30. Qc4 {Wells,P (2493)-Epishin,V (2633) Catalan Bay 2004 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 15... O-O 16. Qg4 Kh8 17. Rad1 Nc5 18. b4 Na4 19. Ba1 Qc7 20. Rd4 Rac8 21. Nh5 g6 22. Nf6 Bxf6 23. exf6 Qe5 24. e4 Nc3 25. Bxc3 Rxc3 26. exd5 exd5 27. Qh4 h5 28. Rfd1 Rc4 29. g3 Rd8 30. Kg2 {Borgo,G (2414)-Braun,A (2455) Zemplinska Sirava 2004 0-1 (51)}) 16. Nd3 Be7 17. Rc1 O-O 18. Bd4 Qa5 19. Qc2 Ba3 20. Qc7 Qxc7 21. Rxc7 Rfd8 22. b4 Rac8 23. Ra7 Nb8 24. Bc5 Rd7 25. Ra8 Rdc7 26. Rb1 Nd7 27. Rxa6 Nxc5 28. bxc5 Bxc5 29. Rxb5 Bf8 30. Rab6 Ra8 31. Rb8 Rca7 32. Rxa8 Rxa8 33. Nc5 g6 34. Nb7 Rxa2 35. Nd6 Ra1+ 36. Kh2 Ra2 37. Kg3 Ra3 38. Kf4 Ra2 39. Kf3 Ra7 40. Kf4 Ra2 41. Kf3 Ra7 42. g3 h5 43. g4 hxg4+ 44. hxg4 Kg7 45. g5 Bxd6 46. exd6 Rd7 47. Rb6 e5 48. Rc6 Rd8 49. Ke2 f6 50. f4 exf4 51. exf4 fxg5 52. fxg5 Kf7 53. Kd3 Rd7 54. Kd4 Ke6 55. Rc8 Rxd6 56. Rf8 Ke7 57. Rf2 Ra6 58. Kxd5 Ra5+ 59. Ke4 Rxg5 60. Rf3 Rg1 61. Ke3 Ke6 62. Kf2 Rg5 63. Rb3 Kf6 64. Kf3 Kg7 65. Rb8 Kh6 66. Kf4 Rg1 67. Ra8 Kg7 68. Rb8 Kf7 69. Rb7+ Kf6 70. Rb6+ Kg7 71. Rb8 Rg2 72. Ra8 Rb2 73. Kg5 Rb7 74. Ra5 Rf7 75. Rb5 Ra7 76. Rc5 Ra6 77. Rc7+ Kf8 78. Rc8+ Kf7 79. Rc7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR Championship Group Elite"]
[Site "Roros"]
[Date "2002.07.10"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ekeberg, Carl Fredrik"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D72"]
[WhiteElo "2214"]
[BlackElo "2213"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2002.07.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nb6 7. Ne2 e5 8. d5 O-O 9. O-O c6 10. Nbc3 cxd5 11. exd5 Nc4 ({RR} 11... Na6 12. b3 f5 ({RR} 12... Bf5 13. Be3 ({RR} 13. Ba3 Re8 14. d6 Qd7 15. Nd5 Nc8 16. Ne7+ Nxe7 17. dxe7 Rxe7 18. Bxe7 Qxe7 19. Qd5 Nb4 20. Qxb7 Qxb7 21. Bxb7 Rb8 22. Bg2 Bd3 23. Nc3 Bxf1 24. Rxf1 Rd8 25. Nd5 Nxd5 26. Rd1) 13... Qd7 14. a4 Bh3 15. Ra2 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Rfd8 17. Rd2 Nc8 18. Ne4 Nd6 19. Nxd6 Qxd6 20. Nc3 b6 21. Nb5 Qb4 22. d6) 13. Ba3 ({RR} 13. a4 f4 14. a5 f3 15. axb6 fxg2 16. Kxg2 e4 17. Nd4 h5 18. h3 Qxb6 19. Be3 Qd8 20. Qe2 Qd7 21. Rh1 Qf7 22. Rad1) 13... Rf7 ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Qd2 Bd7 15. Rad1 Qf6 16. d6 Rab8 17. Nd5 Nxd5 18. Bxd5+ Kh8 19. Qe3 b6 20. Bc4 Nc5 21. Bxc5 f4) 14. Nb5 ({RR} 14. Rc1 f4 15. f3 Bf8 16. d6 g5 17. Ne4 Be6 18. N2c3 h6 19. Rf2 Nb8 20. Rd2 Nc6 21. Nb5 Bf5) 14... Bf8 ({RR} 14... e4 15. Nec3 ({RR} 15. Rc1 Bh6 16. Rc2 Qxd5) 15... Nc7 16. Rc1 a6 17. Nxc7 Rxc7 18. Qd2 Be6 19. d6 Rc6) 15. Bb2 Nc7 ({RR} 15... Bd7 16. a4 e4 17. f3) ({RR} 15... Bg7 16. Qd2) 16. Nxc7 Qxc7 17. a4 Bd6 ({RR} 17... f4 18. Rc1 Qd8 19. gxf4 exf4 20. Nd4) 18. Nd4 a6 ({RR} 18... exd4 19. Qxd4 Kf8 20. Qh8+ Ke7 21. Rfe1+ Be6 22. Qd4) ({RR} 18... Bd7 19. Ne6 Qb8 20. a5 Nc8 21. f4) 19. Ne6 Qb8 ({RR} 19... Bxe6 20. dxe6 Re7 21. Rc1 Qb8 22. a5 Nc8 23. Bxe5 Bxe5 24. Qd8+ Kg7 25. Rxc8 Qxc8 26. Qxe7+ Kh8 27. Bxb7) 20. Rc1 {1-0 (20) Tkachiev,V (2648)-David,A (2544) Cannes 1999 CBM 074 [Ftacnik,Lubomir]} {RR} Re7 21. f4) ({RR} 11... f5 12. b3 Na6 13. Ba3 Rf7 14. Qd2 Nc7 15. Rad1 Rb8 16. d6 Ne6 17. Nb5 a6 18. Nc7 Bd7 19. Qa5 Na8 20. Rc1 e4 21. Rfd1 b6 22. Qxa6 Naxc7 23. dxc7 Nxc7 24. Qa7 Rc8 25. Nf4 Be5 26. Bf1 {Richardson,J (2292)-Thomas,A (2144) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11... Na6 12. a4 Bf5 13. b3 Qd7 14. Ba3 Rfd8 15. Re1 Bh3 16. Bh1 Qg4 17. a5 Nc8 18. Bc1 Qh5 19. Ra4 Bg4 20. Qc2 Nd6 21. Ne4 Rac8 22. Qd2 Bxe2 23. Nxd6 Rxd6 24. Rh4 Qf5 25. Rxe2 Qb1 26. Rc4 {Borchgrevink,H (2227)-Ekeberg,C (2298) Copenhagen 2004 1-0 (54)}) 12. b3 Nd6 13. Ba3 f5 $146 ({RR} 13... Bf5 14. Qd2 Na6 15. h3 h5 16. Rac1 Re8 17. Kh2 Rc8 18. Qe3 b6 19. Ne4 Nb5 20. Bb2 Bxe4 21. Qxe4 Nd4 22. Rxc8 Qxc8 23. Nxd4 exd4 24. Qd3 Nc5 25. Qd1 Qa6 26. Bxd4 Bxd4 27. Qxd4 Qxa2 28. b4 {Shestoperov,A-Goldberg,G Moscow 1955 0-1 (44)}) ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Rc1 Na6 15. Qd2 Bf5 16. h3 h5 17. Qe3 Nc7 18. Rfd1 Bf8 19. Bb2 Re7 20. Kh2 Nce8 21. f4 exf4 22. Qxf4 Bg7 23. Qd2 Nf6 24. Ba3 Kh7 25. Nf4 Rc8 26. Bxd6 Qxd6 27. Nb5 Qb6 28. Rxc8 {Gorse,G (2049)-Pribyl,J (2429) Triesen 2006 0-1 (55)}) 14. Rc1 Na6 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. Nb5 Qb6 17. a4 Bd7 18. d6 e4 19. Nf4 Nb4 20. Nc7 Rad8 21. Ncd5 Qxd6 22. Nxb4 Qxb4 23. Rc7 Bc8 24. Nd5 Qd4 25. Ne7+ Kh8 26. Qc1 Be6 27. Rxb7 Qd6 28. Rxa7 Rf7 29. Nc6 Rc8 30. Rxf7 Bxf7 31. Ne5 Qe6 32. Nxf7+ Kg8 33. Nh6+ Kh8 34. Nf7+ Kg8 35. Ng5 Qd7 36. Qd1 Qc6 37. b4 h6 38. Qb3+ Kh8 39. Ne6 Bf6 40. b5 Qb6 41. Nf4 Be5 42. a5 1-0

[Event "NOR Championship Group Elite"]
[Site "Roros"]
[Date "2002.07.11"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Fyllingen, Roy Harald"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2378"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2002.07.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. Nbd2 c5 7. c4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 ({RR} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd4 Nf4 10. gxf4 Qxd4 11. Nb3 Qf6 12. Na5 Nc6 13. Nxc6 bxc6 14. Qa4 a5 15. Qxc6 Ba6 16. Qf3 Rac8 17. Rd1 Rc2 18. Rd2 Rxd2 19. Bxd2 Qxb2 20. Bc3 Qa3 21. Bd4 Rc8 22. Qe4 Rc1+ {Adly,A (2583)-Bologan,V (2692) Khanty-Mansiysk 2009 ½-½ (41)}) 8... Nc6 ({RR} 8... e5 9. N4b3 d4 10. f4 Nc6 11. f5 Rb8 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Bd7 14. Bd2 a5 15. a4 b6 16. Qc2 f6 17. Rf3 Bb4 18. Raf1 Qe8 19. g4 Bxd2 20. Nxd2 Nb4 21. Qb1 Bxa4 22. g5 Bc6 23. Rh3 {Fyllingen,R (2390)-Kinsman,A (2355) Gausdal 1995 0-1 (48)}) 9. N2f3 ({RR} 9. Nxc6 bxc6 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. b3 Ba6 12. Bb2 Rc8 13. Re1 Qa5 14. Rc1 Qxa2 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. b4 Rxc1 17. Qxc1 Rc8 18. Qd1 Bc3 {0-1 (18) RAFAELGRACIANO (1537)-Cazenga111 (2068) lichess.org 2024}) 9... Nxd4 10. Qxd4 Bd7 $146 ({RR} 10... Ne4 11. Qd3 Bf6 12. Be3 Bxb2 13. Rad1 Bf6 14. Nd4 Qa5 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Qxe4 a6 17. Rd2 Qc7 18. Rc1 e5 19. Nb3 Bd7 20. Bc5 Bc6 21. Qe3 Rfe8 22. Bd6 Qc8 23. Na5 h6 24. Qc5 Bg5 25. e3 {Ajay,K (1980)-Karthikeyan,M (2443) Kolkata 2013 ½-½ (52)}) 11. Ne5 Bc6 12. Be3 Qa5 13. a3 Rfd8 14. Nxc6 bxc6 15. b4 Qa6 16. Rfc1 Nd7 17. Ra2 Bf6 18. Qf4 Nb6 19. cxd5 cxd5 20. h4 Rac8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. a4 Nc4 23. Bc5 h6 24. e4 d4 25. Bf1 d3 26. Bxd3 Rd8 27. Be2 Bd4 28. e5 Bxc5 29. bxc5 Rb8 30. Qxc4 Rb1+ 31. Kg2 Qa5 32. Qd4 Rc1 33. Bd3 Rxc5 34. Rb2 Rc8 35. Qe4 g6 36. Rb7 Rf8 37. Qf4 h5 38. Be2 Qc5 39. Bf3 Kg7 40. Qf6+ Kg8 41. Be4 1-0

[Event "Bergen Sommer op"]
[Site "Bergen"]
[Date "2002.07.25"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Christenson, Flemming"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2214"]
[BlackElo "2225"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2002.07.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 089 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 e6 4. Nbd2 Nf6 5. g3 Nbd7 6. Bg2 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. Qc2 Qe7 9. e4 dxe4 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Qxe4 e5 12. Qc2 ({RR} 12. c5 Bc7 13. Bf4 Nf6 14. Qe1 e4 15. Bxc7 Qxc7 16. Nd2 Re8 17. Nc4 b6 18. Qc1 Ba6 19. Re1 Bxc4 20. Qxc4 Qd7 21. cxb6 axb6 22. Rac1 h6 23. Qxc6 Qxd4 24. Qc3 Qxc3 25. Rxc3 Rxa2 26. Rb3 Re6 {Macieja,B (2601)-Zawadzka,J (2390) Wroclaw 2009 1-0 (98)}) 12... exd4 13. Nxd4 ({RR} 13. Re1 Qd8 14. Nxd4 Ne5 15. Be3 Ng4 16. Nf5 Nxe3 17. Rxe3 Bxf5 18. Qxf5 g6 19. Qc2 Bc5 20. Rd3 Qe7 21. Rad1 {½-½ (21) Koloditsova,R (1933)-Sosovickova,J (1855) Slovakia 2022}) 13... Qf6 14. Rd1 $146 ({RR} 14. Be3 Ne5 15. c5 Bc7 16. h3 Bd7 17. b4 Rad8 18. a4 Rfe8 19. b5 g5 20. f4 Ng6 21. Qf2 gxf4 22. gxf4 Rxe3 23. Qxe3 Bxf4 24. Qf2 Bxh3 25. Bxh3 Rxd4 26. Ra3 Qg5+ 27. Kh1 Rd2 28. Qg1 Rh2+ {Nalivajko,E (2349)-Kononenko,D (2457) Kiev 2004 0-1 (48)}) 14... Bc5 15. Be3 Ne5 16. Nxc6 Bxe3 17. Nxe5 Bxf2+ 18. Qxf2 Qxe5 19. Rd5 Qc7 20. Qc5 Qb8 21. Qd4 Be6 22. Rb5 Rd8 23. Qe4 Rd7 24. b3 Qd8 25. Re1 Rb8 26. Re5 b6 27. Qf4 Rd4 28. Be4 Qd6 29. Qe3 Rd1 30. Bd5 Rxe1+ 31. Qxe1 Bxd5 32. Rxd5 Qc7 33. Qd2 Re8 34. Rd7 Qc5+ 35. Qd4 Qa5 36. Re7 Kf8 37. Rxe8+ Kxe8 38. Qe4+ Kf8 39. Qa8+ Ke7 40. Qe4+ Kf6 41. Qc6+ Ke7 42. Qc7+ Ke6 43. Qc6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bergen Sommer op"]
[Site "Bergen"]
[Date "2002.07.26"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Lahlum, Hans Olav"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2217"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2002.07.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 089 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. b3 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. O-O Nbd7 9. h3 Bh5 10. Bb2 Be7 ({RR} 10... Qb8 11. c5 a5 12. Rc1 b4 13. Na4 Be7 14. Ne5 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Nd7 17. f4 O-O 18. Qg4 Kh8 19. Bd4 g6 20. Qe2 Qc7 21. g4 Rae8 22. g5 h6 23. h4 hxg5 24. hxg5 Kg7 25. Kg2 {Wang,H (2743)-Karjakin,S (2767) Stavanger 2013 0-1 (51)}) 11. Rc1 ({RR} 11. Nd2 Bxe2 12. Qxe2 Rb8 13. Rab1 O-O 14. e4 Bb4 15. e5 Ne8 16. a3 Ba5 17. b4 Bc7 18. c5 Qe7 19. Rbe1 a5 20. f4 g6 21. Nf3 Ng7 22. g4 f6 23. Bc1 f5 24. Bd2 Ra8 25. Ra1 Ra7 {Tologontegin,S (2337)-Janik,I (2502) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (60)}) 11... O-O 12. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 12. Ne5 Bxe2 13. Nxe2 Qb6 14. cxb5 cxb5 15. Rc6 Qb7 16. Qc2 Rac8 17. Rc1 Rxc6 18. Qxc6 Qxc6 19. Rxc6 Nb8 20. Rb6 Rc8 21. Nf4 Ne8 22. Rb7 Nc7 23. Bc3 g5 24. Ba5 {1-0 (24) Studnicka,T (2320)-Kulovana,E (2287) Czech Republic 2010}) ({RR} 12. Ne5 Bxe2 13. Nxe2 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Nd7 15. Nd4 Qb6 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Rc6 Qb7 18. Qc2 Ra7 19. Rc1 Nxe5 20. Nxe6 Qxc6 21. Nxf8 Qxc2 22. Rxc2 Nc4 23. Bd4 Rb7 24. bxc4 dxc4 25. Nxh7 Kxh7 26. f4 Ba3 {Wells,P (2530)-Gormally,D (2415) Torquay 1998 0-1 (41)}) 12... Rc8 13. c5 Qc7 14. b4 a5 15. a3 Ra8 16. Kh1 axb4 17. axb4 Ne4 18. Ng1 Bg6 19. Bd3 Nxc3 20. Qxc3 Bxd3 21. Qxd3 Ra4 22. Qc3 Nf6 23. f3 Rfa8 24. Ne2 Nd7 25. e4 Ra2 26. Qb3 R2a6 27. Nc3 Bg5 28. Rcd1 Bf4 29. Ne2 Bg5 30. f4 Be7 31. e5 Nf8 32. g4 f5 33. Rg1 Kh8 34. Qg3 Bd8 35. Nc3 Qf7 36. Rd2 Ng6 37. g5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bergen Sommer op"]
[Site "Bergen"]
[Date "2002.07.28"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Yakovich, Yuri"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2586"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "2002.07.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 089 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2002.09.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. a3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Qc2 Be7 8. e4 Nxc3 9. bxc3 c5 10. Bb5+ Bc6 11. Bd3 O-O 12. O-O ({RR} 12. Bf4 h6 13. O-O Nd7 14. d5 exd5 15. exd5 Bxd5 16. Rad1 Be6 17. Rfe1 Qc8 18. Bh7+ Kh8 19. Bf5 Nf6 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Ne5 Kg8 22. Bxh6 Qe8 23. Ng6 Rf7 24. Rxe6 gxh6 25. Rde1 {1-0 (25) Chen,Y (2163)-Chan,W (1933) Bengbu CHN 2025}) 12... cxd4 ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. d5 exd5 14. exd5 h6 15. Bf4 Bd6 16. Bxd6 Qxd6 17. c4 Nd7 18. Bh7+ Kh8 19. Bf5 Nf6 20. a4 Ba6 21. g3 Rac8 22. Rfe1 Kg8 23. Bd3 {½-½ (23) Milos,G (2596)-Mareco,S (2603) Buenos Aires 2010}) 13. cxd4 Bb7 14. Bf4 $146 ({RR} 14. Qe2 Nc6 15. Bb2 Bf6 16. Rad1 Na5 17. Rfe1 Re8 18. h4 Bxh4 19. Ne5 Bf6 20. Ng4 Bg5 21. g3 h5 22. Ne5 g6 23. Bb5 Rf8 24. d5 exd5 25. exd5 Qf6 26. f4 Bxf4 27. Nd7 {1-0 (27) Korobov,A (2661)-Simonian,H (2431) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 14. Bb2 Nd7 15. Qe2 Rc8 16. Rad1 Qc7 17. Qe3 Rfe8 18. Rc1 Qb8 19. Bb5 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Rd8 21. h3 Nf6 22. Bd3 Rc8 23. Re1 Qc7 24. Ne5 b5 25. Nf3 {½-½ (25) Cvitan,O (2520)-Zorko,J (2300) Nova Gorica 2005}) 14... Nc6 15. d5 exd5 16. exd5 Qxd5 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Be4 Qc5 19. Qe2 f5 20. Bxc6 Bxc6 21. Ne5 Be8 22. Nd3 Qd5 23. Qxe7 Bc6 24. Qh4+ Kg8 25. Qg3 1-0

[Event "Team match"]
[Site "INT"]
[Date "2002.08.21"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Wang, Rui"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2503"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2002.08.21"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "1"]
[EventCountry "NET"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 dxc4 4. a4 e5 5. dxe5 Qxd1+ 6. Nxd1 Na6 7. Ne3 Nc5 8. Bd2 Be6 9. Nf3 Nb3 10. Rd1 Bc5 11. Bc3 $146 ({RR} 11. Ng5 Nxd2 12. Kxd2 Nh6 13. Nxe6 fxe6 14. Kc3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Ng4 16. Rd4 Nxe3 17. g3 Ke7 18. Kd2 Nf5 19. Rxc4 Rad8+ 20. Ke1 Ne3 21. Re4 Nc2+ 22. Kf2 Rhf8+ 23. Rf4 Rf5 24. Rxf5 exf5 25. Bh3 Ke6 {Blahynka,M (2369)-Gabriel,A (2147) Czech Republic CZE 2023 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 11. Ng5 Nxd2 12. Kxd2 Nh6 13. Nxe6 fxe6 14. Kc3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Ng4 16. Rd4 Nxe3 17. g3 Ke7 18. Kd2 Nf5 19. Rxc4 Rad8+ 20. Ke1 Ne3 21. Re4 Nc2+ 22. Kf2 Rhf8+ 23. Rf4 Rf5 24. Rxf5 exf5 25. Bh3 Ke6 {Blahynka,M (2369)-Gabriel,A (2147) Czech Republic CZE 2023 0-1 (55)}) 11... Bxe3 12. fxe3 Ne7 13. Nd2 Nd5 14. Nxc4 Nxc3 15. Nd6+ Ke7 16. bxc3 Nc5 17. a5 b6 18. a6 Nd7 19. e4 Nxe5 20. e3 Rhd8 21. Nf5+ Bxf5 22. exf5 Rxd1+ 23. Kxd1 Rd8+ 24. Kc1 Nd3+ 25. Kc2 Nf2 26. Rg1 Rd1 27. g4 Ra1 28. Kb2 Re1 29. Kc2 Rxe3 30. Bg2 Ne4 31. Kb2 Re2+ 32. Kb3 Nc5+ 33. Ka3 Nxa6 34. Bxc6 Nc5 35. h3 Re3 36. Kb2 Nd3+ 37. Kc2 Ne5 38. Bd5 Rxh3 39. g5 Kd6 40. Rd1 Kc5 41. Be4 Rh2+ 42. Kb3 Ng4 43. Rd5+ Kc6 44. Bf3 Ne3 45. Rd2+ 1-0

[Event "OSS Club Ch Group Master"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2002.09.26"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2525"]
[BlackElo "2214"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2002.09.26"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 dxc4 4. e3 b5 5. a4 e6 6. axb5 cxb5 7. b3 Bb4+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nbxd2 cxb3 10. Bxb5+ Bd7 11. Qxb3 Nf6 12. Ne5 O-O 13. Nxd7 $146 ({RR} 13. O-O Bxb5 14. Qxb5 Qd5 15. Rfb1 a6 {½-½ (15) Erkan,M-Baterowicz,M (1808) Parramatta 2009}) 13... Nbxd7 14. Bc6 Rc8 15. Bf3 e5 16. O-O exd4 17. exd4 Nb6 18. Qb4 Nbd5 19. Qa5 Nc3 20. Nb3 Qb6 21. Qxb6 axb6 22. Ra6 Ncd5 23. Raa1 Rc3 24. Rab1 Rfc8 25. Rfc1 g6 26. Kf1 R8c4 27. Rxc3 Rxc3 28. Nd2 Rd3 29. Nc4 Rxd4 30. Nxb6 Nxb6 31. Rxb6 1/2-1/2

[Event "OSS Club Ch Group Master"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2002.10.31"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Andreas, Guenter"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2287"]
[BlackElo "2250"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2002.09.26"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. g3 dxc4 6. a4 g6 ({RR} 6... c5 7. d5 e6 8. e4 exd5 9. e5 Nfd7 10. Qxd5 Be7 11. Bxc4 O-O 12. O-O Nc6 13. Qe4 Kh8 14. Rd1 Qe8 15. Bf4 f5 16. Qe3 Nb6 17. Bb3 c4 18. Ba2 Bd8 19. h4 Be6 20. Ng5 Bg8 21. Bb1 {Grischuk,A (2795)-Morozevich,A (2724) Sochi 2014 1-0 (73)}) ({RR} 6... Nd5 7. Bg2 e6 8. Ne5 Bb4 9. Bd2 Bxc3 10. bxc3 b5 11. e4 Nb6 12. Qg4 O-O 13. Bh6 Qf6 14. Bg5 h5 15. Qh4 N8d7 16. Bxf6 Nxf6 17. a5 Na4 18. Nxc6 g6 19. Qxf6 {1-0 (19) George,K (2301)-Schuster,K (2266) chess.com INT 2025}) 7. e3 $146 ({RR} 7. a5 Bg7 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O Ne8 10. Qa4 Nd6 11. Rd1 Bf5 12. h3 Nd7 13. g4 Be4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Qxc4 Nd6 16. Qc2 e6 17. Bg5 Nf6 18. e3 Qc7 19. Ne5 Nd7 20. Nd3 Nb5 21. Bf4 Qd8 {Pashikian,A (2603)-Tomashevsky,E (2719) Legnica 2013 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 7. a5 Bg7 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O Ne8 10. Qa4 Nd6 11. Rd1 Nd7 12. Bf4 f6 13. Nd2 b5 14. axb6 Nxb6 15. Qb4 Be6 16. Bxd6 exd6 17. Bxc6 Rb8 18. Qa5 d5 19. e4 dxe4 20. Ndxe4 Bg4 21. Rd2 Bf3 {Sammalvuo,T (2453)-Tuominen,R (2294) Salo 2014 0-1}) 7... Be6 8. Ng5 Bd5 9. e4 h6 10. exd5 hxg5 11. dxc6 Nxc6 12. d5 Ne5 13. Bxg5 Qb6 14. Be2 Qxb2 15. Bd2 O-O-O 16. Rb1 Qa3 17. O-O Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Rxd5 19. Qc2 e6 20. f4 Qc5+ 21. Kg2 Qc6 22. Bf3 Nxf3 23. Rxf3 Rd3 24. Rbf1 Bc5 25. Be1 Rhd8 26. Qxc4 Re3 27. Bb4 Rxf3 28. Rxf3 Bxb4 29. Qxb4 Rd3 30. Qf8+ Kc7 31. Qxf7+ Kb6 32. Qxe6 0-1

[Event "OSS Club Ch Group Master"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2002.11.28"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Johansen, Oivind"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E43"]
[WhiteElo "2247"]
[BlackElo "2250"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2002.09.26"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 b6 5. Bd3 Bb7 6. f3 c5 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 d6 ({RR} 8... d5 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Ne2 O-O 11. O-O Nc6 12. Ng3 Rc8 13. Ra2 Ne8 14. Rd2 Na5 15. Bf5 Rc7 16. e4 cxd4 17. Rxd4 Rxc3 18. Bd2 Rc4 19. Bxa5 Rxd4 20. Qxd4 bxa5 21. Qxa7 Qa8 22. Qb6 dxe4 23. Rb1 {Landa,K (2641)-Michalik,P (2508) Germany 2013 ½-½ (106)}) 9. Nh3 ({RR} 9. Ne2 Nc6 10. O-O Na5 11. e4 Qd7 12. Ng3 O-O-O 13. Be3 Kb8 14. a4 Rc8 15. f4 cxd4 16. cxd4 Nxc4 17. Bf2 d5 18. a5 dxe4 19. Bxc4 Rxc4 20. axb6 axb6 21. d5 Qxd5 22. Qb1 e3 23. Ne4 exf2+ {Manukyan,S (2216)-Leschinsky,G (1992) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (56)}) 9... e5 $146 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. O-O Nc6 11. Bb2 cxd4 12. cxd4 e5 13. Rc1 Qe7 14. Nf2 Rac8 15. Qa4 Na5 16. Bc3 e4 17. Bxa5 bxa5 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4 20. Qxa5 Ba8 21. Rfe1 f5 22. d5 Rc5 23. Qd2 Qc7 24. Nd3 {Ganaus,H (2287)-Frank,E (1989) Linz 2011 1-0 (35)}) 10. d5 e4 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. f4 O-O 13. Qc2 b5 14. cxb5 Bxd5 15. c4 Be6 16. Nf2 Nb6 17. O-O a6 18. bxa6 Rxa6 19. a4 Qa8 20. Bb2 Ne8 21. a5 Nd7 22. Bc3 f5 23. h3 Nef6 24. Qd2 Qe8 25. Qd1 Qf7 26. Ra4 Rfa8 27. Qb3 Rb8 28. Qc2 Rba8 29. Qb3 R6a7 30. Rd1 d5 31. g4 fxg4 32. hxg4 Bxg4 33. Nxg4 Nxg4 34. Bxg4 Qg6 35. Rd2 h5 36. cxd5 hxg4 37. d6+ Qf7 38. Qxf7+ Kxf7 39. Rxe4 Nf6 40. Rc4 Re8 41. Bxf6 gxf6 42. Rxc5 Ke6 1-0

[Event "Hafjell Junior"]
[Site "Hafjell"]
[Date "2002.10.19"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Predojevic, Borki"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D01"]
[WhiteElo "2250"]
[BlackElo "2437"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2002.10.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bg5 Nbd7 4. Nf3 c6 5. Qd3 e6 ({RR} 5... b5 6. a3 e6 7. e4 dxe4 8. Nxe4 Be7 9. Nxf6+ Bxf6 10. h4 Bb7 11. Qe3 h6 12. Bf4 Nb6 13. Bd3 Nd5 14. Qd2 Nxf4 15. Qxf4 Qe7 16. O-O-O O-O-O 17. Qe3 a6 18. Be4 Kb8 19. Rd3 c5 20. Qf4+ {Mamedyarov,S (2743)-Safarli,E (2649) Dubai 2014 1-0 (60)}) 6. e4 ({RR} 6. h3 Bd6 7. e4 dxe4 8. Nxe4 Be7 9. Nxf6+ Bxf6 10. h4 c5 11. O-O-O cxd4 12. Nxd4 Qb6 13. Kb1 Nc5 14. Qb5+ Bd7 15. Qxb6 axb6 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Bb5 Ke7 18. Bxd7 Nxd7 19. Rhe1 Ne5 20. f4 Nc6 {Bobadilla Viera,J (2386)-Venkatesh,N (2033) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (48)}) 6... dxe4 7. Nxe4 Qc7 $146 ({RR} 7... Be7 8. Nxf6+ Nxf6 9. O-O-O O-O 10. Ne5 Nd5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Kb1 c5 13. Qh3 cxd4 14. Rxd4 Qf6 15. Bd3 h6 16. Qg3 Ne7 17. Rg4 Nf5 18. Qf4 h5 19. Rg5 Qh6 20. Bxf5 f6 21. Qc4 Qxg5 22. Bxe6+ {Kadziolka,A-Krysztofiak,M (2140) Warsaw 1997 1-0}) ({RR} 7... Be7 8. Nxf6+ Nxf6 9. g3 Qb6 10. O-O-O h6 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Kb1 O-O 13. Qe4 Be7 14. Ne5 f5 15. Qe3 Rd8 16. Bc4 Bf6 17. Rhe1 Re8 18. Qf3 Kh7 19. Qh5 Re7 20. Qg6+ Kh8 21. c3 Qc7 22. Qh5 {Schumacher,H (2022)-Smits,O (1714) Bad Woerishofen 2005 1-0 (57)}) 8. Bxf6 gxf6 9. O-O-O b6 10. Qc3 Bb7 11. Bc4 O-O-O 12. Rhe1 Rg8 13. g3 f5 14. Neg5 Bh6 15. h4 b5 16. Bd3 c5 17. Bxb5 cxd4 18. Qxc7+ Kxc7 19. Kb1 Nc5 20. b4 Bxf3 21. Nxf3 Ne4 22. Kb2 Nc3 23. Bd3 Nxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Bg7 25. Re1 Bf6 26. a4 Rb8 27. Kb3 Kd6 28. a5 Rbc8 29. b5 e5 30. Bxf5 Rc3+ 0-1

[Event "NOR-chT east 0203"]
[Site "Norway"]
[Date "2003.03.09"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gausel, Einar"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D03"]
[WhiteElo "2279"]
[BlackElo "2533"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2002.11.09"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Edouard,Romain} d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bg5 Ne4 ({RR} 3... e6 4. Nbd2 Be7 5. e3 O-O 6. Bd3 h6 7. Bh4 c5 8. c3 Nc6 9. O-O b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. f4 Nd7 12. Bg3 Rc8 13. a4 Ndb8 14. Qh5 Ba6 15. Bb5 Bb7 16. f5 Nxe5 17. Bxe5 Bg5 18. fxe6) ({RR} 3... c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. c3 Qb6 6. Qc1 Bf5 ({RR} 6... Ne4 7. Bf4 Bf5 8. Nbd2 e6 9. Be2 Be7) 7. Nbd2 e6 8. Be2 Be7 9. Nh4 Bg6 10. O-O Rc8 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Nf3 Bd6 13. dxc5 Qxc5 14. Bf4 Bxf4 15. exf4 O-O 16. Qd2 Rfd8 17. Bd3 b5 18. Rac1) 4. Bh4 Qd6 ({RR} 4... c5 5. e3 Nc6 6. c3 Qb6 7. Qc1 Bf5 8. Nbd2 e6 9. Be2 Rc8 10. O-O Be7 11. Bxe7 Nxe7 12. Nxe4 Bxe4 13. Nd2 Bg6 14. Nb3 cxd4 15. exd4 O-O) ({RR} 4... h5 5. Bg3 ({RR} 5. h3 f6 6. Nfd2 g5 7. Nxe4 dxe4 8. Bg3) 5... g5 6. h3 Nxg3 7. fxg3 Qd6 8. Kf2 g4 9. hxg4 Bxg4 10. Nc3 Nc6 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Qb4 13. c3 Qb6 ({RR} 13... Qxb2+ 14. Be2) 14. Qb3) 5. Nbd2 Qh6 6. Qc1 c5 ({RR} 6... g5 7. Nxe4 dxe4 8. Bxg5 Qh5 ({RR} 8... Qg7 9. Nh4 ({RR} 9. Ng1 Qxd4 10. Bd2 Qb6 11. Bc3 Rg8 12. e3 Nc6 13. Ne2 Bg4 14. h3 Bxe2 15. Bxe2 Bg7 16. Bxg7 Rxg7 17. O-O O-O-O) 9... Qxd4 10. c3 Qg7 11. g3 e5 12. Bg2 f6 13. Be3 f5 14. Bh3 Qf7 15. f3) 9. Ng1 Bg7 10. c3 c5 11. Bd2 ({RR} 11. dxc5 Na6 12. Qd2 Nxc5 13. Rd1 ({RR} 13. O-O-O Be6) 13... Be6 14. Nh3) 11... Nc6 ({RR} 11... cxd4 12. cxd4 Bxd4 13. Qxc8#) 12. e3 Bg4 13. Ne2 O-O-O ({RR} 13... O-O) ({RR} 13... Bxe2 14. Bxe2 Qg6 15. O-O) 14. b4 cxb4 ({RR} 14... c4 15. Nf4) 15. cxb4 Kb8 16. b5 ({RR} 16. Ng3) 16... Qxb5 17. Rb1 Qd5 18. Nc3 Qe6 ({RR} 18... Qd7 19. Nxe4) 19. Na4 Ka8 ({RR} 19... Qd6 20. Bc4) 20. Rxb7 Qd6 ({RR} 20... Nxd4 21. Qc7 Nc2+ 22. Qxc2 Rc8 23. Nc5 Rxc5 24. Rxa7+ Kxa7 25. Qxc5+) 21. Nc5 {Artemiev,V (2716)-Vidit,S (2726) Chess.com INT 2020 CBM 196 [Edouard,Romain] 1-0}) ({RR} 6... Qh5) ({RR} 6... Nc6 7. c3 Nxd2 8. Qxd2 Qxd2+ 9. Nxd2 e5 10. e3 a6 11. Be2 Be6 12. O-O Bd6 13. f4 exf4 14. exf4 f6 15. f5 Bf7 16. Bd3 O-O-O 17. b4 Nb8 18. Rae1 Rde8 19. g4 h6 20. Kg2 Nd7 21. Bg3 {Kazhgaleyev,M (2481)-Askanazyan,G (1955) Moscow RUS 2024 ½-½ (33)}) 7. c3 $146 ({RR} 7. dxc5 Nc6 8. Nxe4 Qxc1+ 9. Rxc1 dxe4 10. Nd2 Bf5 11. e3 e5 12. Bc4 f6 13. Bd5 h5 14. Bxe4 Be6 15. f3 Bxc5 16. Ke2 O-O-O 17. Rhd1 g5 18. Bf2 Ne7 19. c4 f5 20. Bd5 Bd7 21. e4 Bxf2 {Prie,E (2518)-Karpatchev,A (2466) Creon 2007 1-0}) 7... cxd4 8. Nxe4 Qxc1+ 9. Rxc1 dxe4 10. cxd4 Nc6 11. Ne5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Bd7 13. e3 e6 14. a3 Bc6 15. Bc4 Be7 16. Bxe7 Kxe7 17. Ke2 a5 18. Rhd1 a4 19. Rd4 Ra5 20. Kd2 Rxe5 21. Kc3 Rc8 22. Kb4 Be8 23. Rc3 Rc6 0-1

[Event "Wch U12"]
[Site "Heraklion"]
[Date "2002.11.21"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Berczes, David"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2232"]
[BlackElo "2250"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2002.11.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 091 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Rogozenco,Dorian} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Nb6 8. Ne5 a5 9. f3 Nfd7 10. e4 Nxe5 11. dxe5 ({RR} 11. exf5 Nec4 ({RR} 11... Ned7) 12. Qb3 Nd6 13. Bd3 g6 14. g4 Bg7 15. Be3 Nd7 16. O-O-O Qb6 17. Qxb6 Nxb6) 11... Qxd1+ 12. Kxd1 Be6 13. Kc2 Bc4 ({RR} 13... f6 14. Rb1 Nd7 ({RR} 14... fxe5 15. b4 Nc4 16. bxa5 ({RR} 16. Bxc4 Bxc4 17. bxa5 O-O-O 18. Rd1 Rxd1 19. Nxd1 e6 20. Ne3 Ba6 21. Ng4 Bd6 22. Bb2 Rd8 23. Rd1 h5 24. Nxe5 Bxe5 25. Bxe5 Rxd1 26. Kxd1 g6) 16... Nxa5 17. Be3 Bc4 18. Bb6 Bxf1 19. Rhxf1 Nc4 20. Kd3) 15. b4 ({RR} 15. exf6 exf6) 15... Nxe5 ({RR} 15... axb4 16. Rxb4 O-O-O 17. Be3 Nxe5 18. a5) 16. bxa5 Bc8 ({RR} 16... O-O-O 17. a6) 17. a6 bxa6 18. a5 Nd7 ({RR} 18... Be6 19. Rb6 Bc4 20. Bf4 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 Nc4 22. Rxc6 Nxa5 23. Rc7 e5 24. Bd2) 19. Na4 e5 ({RR} 19... Rb8 20. Rxb8 Nxb8 21. Nb6 Bb7 22. Bc4 e5 23. Be3) 20. Bc4 Bc5 ({RR} 20... Bd6 21. Be3 Ke7 22. Rhd1) 21. Rd1 ({RR} 21. Nxc5 Nxc5 22. Rb6) 21... Bd4 22. Ba3 c5 23. Rb3 h5 24. Rdb1 Ke7 25. Bd5 Ra7 26. Rb6 Rc7 ({RR} 26... Nxb6 27. axb6 Rd7 28. Bxc5+ Bxc5 29. Nxc5 Rxd5 30. exd5 Bf5+ 31. Ne4 Rb8) 27. Re6+ Kd8 28. Nb6 {Topalov,V (2812)-Wang,Y (2738) Sofia 2009 CBM 131 [Rogozenco,Dorian] 1-0 (33)} {RR} Ra7 29. Kd3 Bb7 30. Kc4) 14. Bxc4 ({RR} 14. Be3 Bxf1 15. Rhxf1) 14... Nxc4 15. e6 $146 ({RR} 15. f4 e6 16. b3 Nb6 17. Be3 Nd7 18. Rad1 Bb4 19. Na2 Be7 20. Rd2 O-O-O 21. Rhd1 Nc5 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxd8+ Kxd8 24. Nc3 h5 25. h3 Kc7 26. g4 hxg4 27. hxg4 Nd7 28. g5 Bb4 29. Na2 Bc5 {San Diego,M (2156)-Feng,E (1840) Hangzhou CHN 2023 0-1 (52)}) ({RR} 15. f4 e6 16. b3 Nb6 17. Be3 Nd7 18. Rad1 Bb4 19. Na2 Be7 20. Rd2 O-O-O 21. Rhd1 Nc5 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxd8+ Kxd8 24. Nc3 h5 25. h3 Kc7 26. g4 hxg4 27. hxg4 Nd7 28. g5 Bb4 29. Na2 Bc5 {San Diego,M (2156)-Feng,E (1840) Hangzhou CHN 2023 0-1 (52)}) 15... fxe6 16. b3 Nd6 17. e5 Nf7 18. Re1 g5 19. Ne4 b6 20. Nd2 Kd7 21. Nc4 Kc7 22. Ba3 c5 23. Rad1 Bg7 24. Bc1 Rad8 25. Rxd8 Rxd8 26. Bb2 Rg8 27. Kd3 Nd8 28. Ke4 Nc6 29. Rd1 Rf8 30. g3 h6 31. f4 Nb4 32. Ne3 gxf4 33. gxf4 h5 34. f5 Bh6 35. f6 exf6 36. exf6 Bxe3 37. Be5+ Kb7 38. Kxe3 Nd5+ 39. Ke2 Nxf6 40. Rd6 Nd5 41. Rxe6 Nf4+ 42. Bxf4 Rxf4 43. Re3 c4 44. bxc4 Rxc4 45. Ra3 Rc2+ 46. Kd3 Rxh2 47. Ke4 Rb2 48. Kf3 Rb4 49. Ra1 h4 50. Ra3 Kc6 51. Rc3+ Kd5 52. Ra3 Kc4 53. Ra1 Kb3 54. Kg2 Kb2 55. Rf1 Rxa4 56. Rf2+ Kb3 57. Rf3+ Kb4 0-1

[Event "Valle d'Aosta op 11th"]
[Site "Saint Vincent"]
[Date "2003.02.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Naumkin, Igor"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2412"]
[BlackElo "2279"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2003.02.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 a6 5. e3 b5 6. b3 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Bb2 Be7 10. Ne5 Bxe2 11. Qxe2 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. f4 $146 ({RR} 14. Rad1 b4 15. Na4 Nb6 16. e4 Nxa4 17. bxa4 Qa5 18. exd5 exd5 19. Qc2 O-O 20. Qb3 Rfd8 21. f4 Rac8 22. Kh1 Qc5 {½-½ (22) Deutsch,L (2210)-Gaertner,G (2380) Oberwart 1996}) 14... O-O 15. Qg4 Qb6 16. Nxd5 exd5 17. Qxd7 Qxe3+ 18. Kh1 Qd2 19. Qxe7 Qxb2 20. Rae1 d4 21. f5 d3 22. f6 Rae8 23. Qd7 gxf6 24. exf6 Qxf6 25. Qxd3 Rxe1 26. Qg3+ Qg6 27. Qxe1 Rc8 28. Rf3 Qc2 29. Qg3+ Qg6 30. Qf4 Qb1+ 31. Rf1 Qg6 32. h3 Rc2 33. Qb8+ Kg7 34. Qe5+ Kg8 35. Qe8+ Kg7 36. Qe5+ Kg8 37. Qd5 Qe6 38. Qd8+ Kg7 39. Qd4+ f6 40. Rf3 Qe5 41. Qg4+ Qg5 42. Rg3 Qxg4 43. Rxg4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Valle d'Aosta op 11th"]
[Site "Saint Vincent"]
[Date "2003.02.16"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stefanova, Antoaneta"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D13"]
[WhiteElo "2279"]
[BlackElo "2560"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2003.02.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 092 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.03.07"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.03.07"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. cxd5 cxd5 6. Bf4 Nc6 7. e3 Bg4 8. Be2 e6 9. Ne5 Bxe2 10. Qxe2 Rc8 11. O-O Be7 12. Rfc1 O-O 13. Na4 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 Nd7 15. Bg3 b5 ({RR} 15... Qa5 16. Qd1 b5 17. Nc3 Nb6 18. Ne2 Rxc1 19. Nxc1 Rc8 20. Nd3 b4 21. h3 Qb5 22. Rc1 Rxc1 23. Qxc1 Qc4 24. b3 Qxc1+ 25. Nxc1 Nc8 26. Bb8 Bd6 27. Bxd6 Nxd6 28. Nd3 a5 29. Kf1 Kf8 30. Ne1 {Kaganskiy,G (2316)-Stefanova,A (2473) Tel Aviv 2001 ½-½ (41)}) 16. Rxc8 $146 ({RR} 16. Nc3 Nb6 17. Rc2 Bd6 18. Bxd6 Qxd6 19. Rac1 h6 20. Nb1 Rxc2 21. Rxc2 Rc8 22. Rxc8+ Nxc8 23. Qc2 Ne7 24. Nd2 Qc6 25. Qxc6 Nxc6 26. Nb3 Kf8 27. Kf1 Ke7 28. Ke2 Kd6 29. a3 f6 30. Nc5 a5 {Lysenko,M (2019)-Butuc,M (2183) St Petersburg 2011 ½-½ (35)}) 16... Qxc8 17. Nc5 Nxc5 18. Rc1 b4 19. dxc5 Qc6 20. Qg4 a5 21. Be5 f6 22. Bd6 f5 23. Qg3 Bxd6 24. Qxd6 Qxd6 25. cxd6 Rd8 26. Rc6 Kf7 27. f4 Ke8 28. Ra6 Rc8 29. Rxa5 Kd7 30. b3 Kxd6 31. Rb5 Rc2 32. Rxb4 Rxa2 33. Kf1 Rb2 34. Rb6+ Kc5 35. Rxe6 Rxb3 36. Ke2 g6 37. Re8 Rb2+ 38. Kd3 Rb3+ 39. Ke2 Rb2+ 40. Kf3 Rb3 41. Ke2 Rb2+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2003.04.07"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Berg, Emanuel"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2315"]
[BlackElo "2514"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2003.04.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 093 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 Be7 6. Bg2 Bb7 7. O-O O-O 8. Nc3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Rd1 Qb6 11. Bf4 Rd8 12. Qb5 d6 13. Rd2 Qc7 14. Rad1 Nc6 ({RR} 14... a6 15. Qb3 Nc6 16. Na4 Ne4 17. Rc2 Rab8 18. Nc3 Na5 19. Qa4 Bc6 20. Qa3 Nxc4 21. Qxa6 Nxb2 22. Rb1 Ra8 23. Nb5 Qd7 24. Qb6 Na4 25. Qc7 Bxb5 {0-1 (25) Kaliakhmet,E (2000)-Zhigalko,S (2572) chess.com INT 2024}) 15. Qa4 a6 16. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 16. h3 h6 17. g4 Rac8 18. Bg3 Rd7 19. Qc2 Rcd8 20. b3 Qa5 21. Na4 Nb4 22. Qc1 Ne4 23. Rb2 Bf6 24. Bf4 Bxb2 25. Qxb2 Bc6 26. a3 Bxa4 27. bxa4 Qxa4 28. Rb1 Nc6 29. Nd2 Nxd2 30. Qxd2 Ne5 {Terry,R (2502)-Zhigalko,S (2572) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (54)}) ({RR} 16. h3 Rd7 17. g4 h6 18. e3 Rad8 19. Qc2 Qb6 20. Qb1 Nb4 21. b3 Qa7 22. Ne1 Bxg2 23. Nxg2 Qb7 24. e4 Nc6 25. Be3 Ne5 26. Ne1 Ne8 27. f4 Nc6 28. Ne2 Nf6 29. Ng3 Nd4 30. Bxd4 cxd4 {Terry,R (2507)-Zhigalko,S (2572) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (62)}) 16... h6 17. Qb1 Rab8 18. b3 g5 19. Be3 Ng4 20. Bh3 Nxe3 21. fxe3 Bf8 22. Bg2 f5 23. Ne1 Bg7 24. Qc2 Rd7 25. Nd3 Rbd8 26. Na4 Rf7 27. Rf1 Rdf8 28. Nc3 Kh8 29. Nd1 Qa5 30. N1f2 Bc3 31. Rdd1 Bg7 32. Qd2 Qb6 33. Nb2 Rd8 34. Nbd3 Kg8 35. Qc2 a5 36. Qd2 Rfd7 37. Qc2 Nb4 38. Nxb4 axb4 39. Bxb7 Qxb7 40. Rd2 Qc6 41. Rfd1 Bc3 42. Rd3 Be5 43. Rf1 Ra7 44. Rdd1 Rda8 45. Nd3 Qe4 0-1

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2003.04.10"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kristjansson, Stefan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2315"]
[BlackElo "2406"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2003.04.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 093 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 c6 8. O-O d5 9. Ne5 Nfd7 10. Nxd7 Qxd7 11. Bc3 dxc4 12. Nd2 cxb3 13. axb3 O-O 14. Nc4 Bb7 15. e4 Bf6 $146 ({RR} 15... Na6 16. Qg4 Bf6 17. Rfd1 Rfd8 18. e5 Be7 19. Nd2 Nc7 20. Ne4 Nd5 21. Bd2 f5 22. exf6 Nxf6 23. Nxf6+ Bxf6 24. Bg5 Bxg5 25. Qxg5 Rf8 26. Qe3 Rf6 27. b4 Qd6 28. Qc3 a6 29. Rac1 Rc8 30. Re1 {Esedov,E (2278)-Contin,D (2406) Chalkidiki 2000 ½-½ (51)}) 16. e5 Be7 17. Ne3 Na6 18. f4 Nc7 19. f5 Bg5 20. Nc4 Nb5 21. Bb4 Rfd8 22. Qh5 Bh6 23. f6 c5 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-chT"]
[Site "Asker"]
[Date "2003.05.30"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gullaksen, Eirik Tvedt"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2315"]
[BlackElo "2354"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2003.05.28"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 094 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.07.09"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.07.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 O-O 5. e4 d6 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nh5 8. Bg5 f6 9. Be3 Nf4 10. Bxf4 exf4 11. c5 dxc5 12. dxc5 c6 13. Bc4+ Kh8 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 15. Rfd1 Re8 16. e5 $146 ({RR} 16. Nd4 Bf8 17. b4 a5 18. a3 Nd7 19. Ne6 Rb8 20. Nxf8 Rxf8 21. Be6 Ne5 22. Bxc8 Rfxc8 23. Ne2 g5 24. Nd4 Rd8 25. Nf5 Kg8 26. Rd6 Rxd6 27. Nxd6 b6 28. cxb6 axb4 29. b7 bxa3 30. Rxa3 Kf8 {Ostmoe,G (2360)-Gullaksen,E (2376) Trondheim 2004 1-0 (66)}) 16... fxe5 17. Ng5 Bf6 18. Nf7+ Kg7 19. Nd6 Rf8 20. Nxc8 Rxc8 21. Ne4 b5 22. Be2 Be7 23. a4 Na6 24. Rd7 Rc7 25. Rad1 Kf8 26. axb5 cxb5 27. Rxc7 Nxc7 28. Rd7 Ne6 29. Rd5 Nc7 30. Rd7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Salongernas IM-tournament"]
[Site "Stockholm"]
[Date "2003.06.08"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Hjelm, Niclas"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2323"]
[BlackElo "2356"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[EventDate "2003.06.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. Nf3 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Qc2 Nxc3 10. Qxc3 c6 11. Bd3 Nd7 12. O-O dxc4 13. Bxc4 b6 14. Rfd1 Bb7 15. Be2 Rfd8 16. Rac1 c5 17. Qa3 a5 18. dxc5 $146 ({RR} 18. Nd2 e5 19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. Nc4 Qg5 21. g3 Qf6 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rd1 Rxd1+ 24. Bxd1 Ba6 25. Nd2 Qd6 26. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (26) Lundin,E-Raud,I Buenos Aires 1939}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Salongernas IM-tournament"]
[Site "Stockholm"]
[Date "2003.06.10"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Poley, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A42"]
[WhiteElo "2356"]
[BlackElo "2358"]
[PlyCount "145"]
[EventDate "2003.06.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. e4 e5 5. Nge2 Nc6 6. d5 Nce7 7. Ng3 h5 8. h4 ({RR} 8. Be2 h4 9. Nf1 Bh6 10. Bxh6 Rxh6 11. Ne3 Nf6 12. Qd2 Rh8 13. O-O a5 14. f4 exf4 15. Rxf4 Nd7 16. Ng4 f5 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Raf1 fxg4 19. Ne4 Ng6 20. Rf7 Nde5 21. Rg7 Rf8 22. Rxf8+ Nxf8 {Tang,A (2538)-Artemiev,V (2704) Lichess.org INT 2021 1-0}) 8... Nf6 ({RR} 8... Bg4 9. Be2 Bxe2 10. Qxe2 Bh6 11. Bg5 f6 12. Bxh6 Nxh6 13. O-O-O a6 14. Kb1 Qd7 15. Rdf1 Qg4 16. Qe3 b6 17. f4 O-O-O 18. b4 Kb7 19. c5 Nc8 20. f5 Rdg8 21. fxg6 Rxg6 22. Rf3 Kb8 23. Nce2 {Nakhbayeva,G (2326)-Stepanencu,N (2278) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (59)}) 9. Be2 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 9... c6 10. Be3 Ng4 11. Bxg4 Bxg4 12. f3 Bc8 13. Qd2 cxd5 14. cxd5 f5 15. Nge2 O-O 16. O-O-O Bd7 17. Bh6 b5 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. exf5 Bxf5 20. Ng3 b4 21. Nce4 b3 22. axb3 Rb8 23. Nxf5+ Nxf5 24. Ng5 {Velten,P (2515)-Martinez Duany,L (2535) San Sebastian 2019 ½-½}) ({RR} 9... a5 10. Bg5 Nd7 11. a3 Bf6 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. b4 axb4 14. axb4 Rxa1 15. Qxa1 Nd7 16. Nb5 Nb8 17. c5 O-O 18. O-O Na6 19. Qa3 dxc5 20. bxc5 c6 21. Nc3 cxd5 22. exd5 Nxd5 23. Rd1 Nxc3 24. Rxd8 {Miljkovic,M (2418)-Poley,V (2316) Kallithea 2008 1-0 (60)}) ({RR} 9... c6 10. a4 c5 11. Ra3 Nh7 12. Bd2 O-O 13. Qc1 f5 14. exf5 Nxf5 15. Nxf5 Bxf5 16. Nd1 Bf6 17. g3 Bg7 18. Bf3 Qd7 19. Bg2 Rf7 20. Ne3 Raf8 21. Nxf5 Qxf5 22. O-O Qg4 23. b4 Rc7 24. bxc5 {Stajner,S (2278)-Basagic,Z (2335) Rogaska Slatina 2009 0-1 (34)}) 10. Be3 a5 11. a3 Nc5 12. b4 axb4 13. axb4 Rxa1 14. Qxa1 Na6 15. c5 O-O 16. c6 Nxb4 17. Qb1 Nbxc6 18. dxc6 Nxc6 19. Nd5 Nd4 20. Bg5 f6 21. Be3 c6 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Nf4 Qa5+ 24. Kf1 Kh7 25. Bd3 Qe5 26. Nfe2 Bh6 27. Kg1 c5 28. Kh2 d5 29. exd5 f5 30. Qb6 Qxd5 31. Qc7+ Bd7 32. Nf4 Qf7 33. Re1 Rc8 34. Qd6 Bf8 35. Qb6 c4 36. Nh3 Qg7 37. Ng5+ Kh8 38. Bb1 d3 39. Qxb7 d2 40. Rd1 c3 41. Bc2 Rc4 42. Nf3 Ba4 43. Qxg7+ Kxg7 44. Bxa4 Rxa4 45. Ne2 Bb4 46. Ned4 Ra2 47. Kg1 c2 48. Nxc2 Rxc2 49. Kf1 Kf6 50. Ke2 f4 51. Nxd2 Kf5 52. f3 g5 53. Kd3 Rc3+ 54. Ke2 Re3+ 55. Kf2 g4 56. Ne4 Rb3 57. Rd5+ Ke6 58. Rxh5 Rb2+ 59. Kf1 Rb1+ 60. Ke2 g3 61. Rb5 Re1+ 62. Kd3 Be7 63. h5 Rg1 64. Rb2 Rh1 65. h6 Rh2 66. Ra2 Kf5 67. Kd4 Bd8 68. Ra8 Bb6+ 69. Kd5 Rh5 70. Rg8 Bc7 71. h7 Be5 72. Rg5+ Rxg5 73. Nxg5 1-0

[Event "Salongernas IM-tournament"]
[Site "Stockholm"]
[Date "2003.06.14"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Rylander, Dennis"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A89"]
[WhiteElo "2356"]
[BlackElo "2348"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2003.06.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 g6 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. O-O O-O 6. c4 d6 7. Nc3 Nc6 8. d5 Ne5 9. Nxe5 dxe5 10. e4 f4 11. gxf4 exf4 12. e5 Ng4 13. e6 Ne5 14. c5 ({RR} 14. Qa4 f3 15. Bh3 Nd3 16. Qd1 Nxc1 17. Qxc1 b6 18. Ne4 Ba6 19. Rd1 Be5 20. Qh6 Bg7 21. Qh4 h6 22. Kh1 Bxc4 23. Rg1 Qe8 24. Rg3 Bxd5 25. Rag1 Bxe4 26. Qxe4 g5 27. Bf5 Rd8 28. Bg6 Rf4 {Iniyan,P (2460)-Kobalia,M (2599) Moscow 2018 0-1 (48)}) 14... f3 ({RR} 14... c6 15. Bh3 b6 16. cxb6 axb6 17. dxc6 Ba6 18. Re1 Nd3 19. Re2 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Nxc1 21. Rd2 Ne2+ 22. Kh1 Qc7 23. Rxe2 Qxc6+ 24. Kg1 Qf3 25. Bf1 Bb7 26. Re4 Qxe4 27. f3 Qe3+ 28. Kg2 Rfd8 {0-1 (28) Moral Garcia,S (2258)-Barrenechea Bahamonde,G (2085) Granada ESP 2025}) 15. Bh3 g5 16. Kh1 g4 $146 ({RR} 16... Qe8 17. Rg1 Qh5 18. Rg3 g4 19. Qg1 Rf6 20. Bxg4 Nxg4 21. Rxg4 Rg6 22. Rg5 {½-½ (22) Kluss,K (2225)-Gietl,T (2220) Boeblingen 1995}) 17. Qd4 gxh3 18. Bh6 Bxh6 19. Qxe5 Rf6 20. Rg1+ Rg6 21. Qh5 Kg7 22. Rxg6+ hxg6 23. Rg1 Qe8 24. Ne4 c6 25. Qe5+ Kg8 26. Ng5 Bxg5 27. Qxg5 Kg7 28. Rg4 Bxe6 29. Qe5+ Kg8 30. Rh4 Bxd5 31. Rh8+ Kf7 32. Rh7+ Kf8 33. Qg7# 1-0

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Fredrikstad"]
[Date "2003.07.10"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hansen, Torbjorn Ringdal"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2305"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2003.07.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 O-O 5. Qd3 ({RR} 5. g3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 d6 7. Bg2 Nbd7 8. O-O Re8 9. Rb1 h6 10. Ba3 Rb8 11. c5 dxc5 12. dxc5 c6 13. Qa4 a6 14. Rfd1 Qc7 15. Rd6 e5 16. Nd2 Nf8 17. Bb4 Bf5 18. Ba5 Qe7 19. Rb2 Ne6 {Borg,G (2367)-Bischoff,K (2561) Playchess.com INT 2003 0-1}) ({RR} 5. g3 d5 6. Qb3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Bg5 Be6 10. Qc2 h6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Bg2 Nd7 13. O-O Rac8 14. Qd1 Nb6 15. Ne1 Bd4 16. Na4 Nc4 17. Rb1 b5 18. Nc3 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Qxc3 {Bockaj,I (1685)-Amon,N (2119) Krapina 2016 0-1}) 5... c5 $146 ({RR} 5... d5 6. c5 b6 7. h3 Ba6 8. Qe3 bxc5 9. dxc5 Nc6 10. a3 d4 11. Nxd4 Nxd4 12. g4 Nc2# {0-1 (12) Tarasova,E-Sherbakova,E (2012) Kimry 2003}) ({RR} 5... Nc6 6. e4 d6 7. Be2 e5 8. d5 Nb8 9. O-O Bxc3 10. bxc3 Na6 11. Ba3 b6 12. Rab1 Bg4 13. Rb2 Nd7 14. Qe3 Nac5 15. Ng5 Bxe2 16. Rxe2 f5 17. Nxh7 Kxh7 18. Qh3+ Kg8 19. exf5 Qg5 20. g4 {Esbensen,H (1441)-Malin,O (1471) Vadso 2005 0-1 (34)}) 6. Bg5 Nc6 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. Qxc3 h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. e3 d6 11. Be2 b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Rfd1 Rac8 14. d5 Qxc3 15. bxc3 exd5 16. Rxd5 Rfd8 17. Rad1 Kf8 18. Rxd6 Rxd6 19. Rxd6 Ke7 20. Rd1 Ba6 21. g4 Rc7 22. Nh4 g6 23. Nf3 Ke6 24. Kf1 Na5 25. Nd2 Rd7 26. Ke1 g5 27. Rb1 Ke5 28. Rb2 Rd8 29. f3 f5 30. gxf5 Kxf5 31. Kf2 h5 32. Kg3 h4+ 33. Kf2 Rd7 34. Bf1 Rd8 35. Bh3+ Ke5 36. Bf1 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Fredrikstad"]
[Date "2003.07.12"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Djurhuus, Rune"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2475"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2003.07.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 O-O 9. O-O Nc6 10. Be3 Bd7 11. Rb1 a6 12. d5 ({RR} 12. dxc5 Qc7 13. Qc2 Na5 14. Bd3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Be6 16. Nf4 Bc4 17. Bxc4 Nxc4 18. Nd5 Rxd5 19. exd5 Nxe3 20. fxe3 Qxc5 21. Rxb7 Qxe3+ 22. Qf2 Qxc3 23. d6 exd6 24. Qxf7+ Kh8 25. h3 Rf8 26. Qe7 h5 {Kramnik,V (2751)-Svidler,P (2713) ICC INT 1999 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 12. dxc5 Qc7 13. Nd4 e6 14. f4 Rfd8 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Qc2 Kh8 17. e5 Bf8 18. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Qa5 20. Rd6 Qa4 21. Bb3 Qe4 22. Qxe4 Bxe4 23. Rd7 Kg8 24. Rc7 Rd8 25. Bd4 h5 26. h4 Bc6 {Estremera Panos,S (2350)-Carlsen,M (2450) Taormina 2003 ½-½ (32)}) 12... Ne5 13. Bb3 Qc7 ({RR} 13... Qa5 14. f4 Ng4 15. Bc1 c4 16. Bc2 e5 17. dxe6 Bxe6 18. Nd4 Rad8 19. Qf3 Rxd4 20. cxd4 Bxd4+ 21. Kh1 Qxa2 22. Qe2 b5 23. f5 Bc8 24. Qxg4 Qxc2 25. Bh6 Re8 26. Rbd1 Be5 27. Rd5 Qc3 28. Rc5 {Mueller,F (2314)-Laubsch,B (2284) Germany 2011 1-0 (38)}) 14. h3 e6 $146 ({RR} 14... b5 15. f4 Nc4 16. Bxc4 bxc4 17. Qc1 Ba4 18. Qa3 Bc2 19. Rb2 Bxe4 20. Bxc5 Bxd5 21. Bxe7 Rfe8 22. Bd6 Qc6 23. Nd4 Bxd4+ 24. cxd4 Re6 25. Bc5 Rae8 26. Rb6 Qa8 27. Rxe6 Rxe6 28. Rf2 Qe8 29. Qg3 {Maier,P (2159)-Bensch,P (2262) Austria 2008 0-1 (35)}) 15. d6 Qc6 16. Ng3 f6 17. Qd2 Nf7 18. Bc2 e5 19. Qd5 Qxd5 20. exd5 b5 21. Ne4 Bf5 22. Bxc5 Rfd8 23. a4 Bxe4 24. Bxe4 f5 25. Bd3 e4 26. Be2 Nxd6 27. Bxd6 Rxd6 28. axb5 axb5 29. Bxb5 Bxc3 30. Rfc1 Be5 31. Bc6 Ra7 32. Rb8+ Kg7 33. Re8 Bd4 34. Rd1 Bc5 35. Rc1 Bd4 36. Rc2 Kf7 37. g3 Rxd5 38. Rxe4 Rc5 39. Rxc5 Bxc5 40. Re2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.17"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Olsson, Linus"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2244"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "44"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Rc1 cxd4 11. cxd4 Qa5+ 12. Kf1 Rd8 13. h4 Bd7 ({RR} 13... Qa3 14. Rc3 Qd6 15. Rd3 Na5 16. Bb3 Nxb3 17. Qxb3 b6 18. Rd2 Ba6 19. Qa4 b5 20. Qa5 Rac8 21. f3 b4 22. Kf2 Bxe2 23. Kxe2 Qg3 24. Qg5 Qc7 25. Kf2 h6 26. Qb5 Qc4 27. Qxc4 Rxc4 28. Rhd1 {Zilakauskis,S (1931)-Vasylius,K (2076) Lithuania LTU 2025 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 13... e6 14. h5 b5 15. Bb3 Bb7 16. hxg6 hxg6 17. Bh6 Nxd4 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Nxd4 Qb6 20. Qd2 Qxd4 21. Qh6+ Kf6 22. Qf4+ Kg7 23. Qh6+ Kf6 24. Rh3 Bxe4 25. Qh4+ Kg7 26. Qh6+ Kf6 27. Kg1 Qd2 28. Qh4+ {Olsson,L (2269)-Steel,H Dos Hermanas 2004 0-1 (69)}) 14. h5 Rac8 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Nf4 $146 ({RR} 16. f3 Nb4 17. Qe1 Bb5 18. Bxb5 Rxc1 19. Qxc1 Qxb5 20. Qc7 Qd7 21. Qh2 Qa4 22. Qh7+ Kf8 23. Bh6 Ke8 24. Bxg7 Nd3 25. Nc3 Qc2 26. Kg1 Qxc3 27. Qh3 Qe1+ 28. Kh2 Qxh1+ 29. Kxh1 Nf2+ 30. Kh2 Nxh3 {Mohota,N-Aginian,N Szeged 1994 0-1 (44)}) 16... Nxd4 17. Kg1 Bb5 18. Bxb5 Rxc1 19. Qxc1 Qxb5 20. Qa3 Ne2+ 21. Kh2 Nxf4 22. Bxf4 Rd3 0-1

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.18"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ward, Christopher"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E13"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2531"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 g5 7. Bg3 Ne4 8. Qc2 Bb7 9. e3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Nxg3 11. fxg3 g4 12. Nh4 Qg5 13. Qd2 Nc6 14. Bd3 Ne7 15. O-O f5 16. a4 O-O 17. a5 d5 18. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 18. Rfe1 Kg7 19. Re2 Rfd8 20. Qc2 c5 21. a6 Bc6 22. Qb2 dxc4 23. Bxc4 Rd6 24. Bd3 Rad8 25. Rae1 Qf6 26. Bb1 h5 27. Rf2 Qg5 28. e4 Bxe4 29. Bxe4 fxe4 30. Rxe4 cxd4 31. cxd4 Nd5 32. h3 Rc6 {Ionov,S (2530)-Gerchikov,A (2310) St Petersburg 1998 1-0 (38)}) 18... Kg7 19. Rae1 dxc4 20. Bxc4 Nd5 21. e4 Nxc3 22. Qc2 Bxe4 23. Qxc3 Rae8 24. axb6 axb6 25. Bb5 Re7 26. Bc6 Bxc6 27. Qxc6 Rf6 28. Qc3 Rff7 29. d5+ Qf6 30. Qe3 exd5 31. Nxf5+ Qxf5 32. Rxf5 Rxe3 33. Rxf7+ Kxf7 34. Rxe3 d4 35. Re4 c5 36. Kf2 Kf6 37. Ke2 b5 38. Kd3 h5 39. Re8 1-0

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.19"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Sasikiran, Krishnan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E61"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2654"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. Nf3 O-O 5. Bg5 d6 6. e3 c6 7. Be2 a6 8. O-O b5 9. cxb5 axb5 10. b4 Nbd7 11. a4 bxa4 12. Rxa4 Bb7 13. Rxa8 Qxa8 $146 ({RR} 13... Bxa8 14. Qa4 h6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Qa7 {½-½ (16) Landenbergue,C (2435)-Jenni,F (2544) Samnaun 2008}) 14. Qa1 h6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Qb2 Qb8 17. Qb3 e6 18. Rd1 Rc8 19. Bc4 Kg7 20. Ne4 Bd8 21. Bxe6 fxe6 22. Qxe6 Nf8 23. Qxd6 Qc7 24. Qc5 Ne6 25. Qc3 Kh7 26. Ne5 Qe7 27. f4 Rc7 28. Qc2 Nf8 29. f5 gxf5 30. Ng3 Bc8 31. Nxf5 Bxf5 32. Qxf5+ Kg8 33. Rf1 Qe8 34. Qc2 Qe6 35. Qf2 Nh7 36. Qg3+ Rg7 37. Qf3 Re7 38. Qg3+ Rg7 39. Qf3 Re7 40. Qg3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.20"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Jussupow, Artur"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D95"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 d5 5. e3 O-O 6. Qb3 e6 7. Bd2 b6 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Be2 Bb7 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Rfd1 c6 12. a4 a5 13. Rac1 Re8 14. Ne1 Bf8 ({RR} 14... Nf8 15. Nd3 Ne6 16. Bf1 h5 17. Ne2 Ne4 18. Nef4 N6g5 19. h4 Nh7 20. Be1 Nd6 21. g3 Nf8 22. Bg2 Rb8 23. Qa2 Nd7 24. b4 axb4 25. Nxb4 Rc8 26. Nxg6 fxg6 27. Nxc6 Qf6 28. Qxd5+ Kh7 29. Bb4 {Jussupow,A (2587)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2699) Germany 2014 ½-½}) 15. Nd3 Bd6 16. f4 Qe7 $146 ({RR} 16... Nf8 17. Ne5 Rc8 18. Bf3 Ne6 19. Be1 Kg7 20. Ne2 Qc7 21. Bh4 Qd8 22. Bxf6+ Kxf6 23. e4 dxe4 24. Bxe4 Kg7 25. Qf3 Qf6 26. g3 Nd8 27. Nc3 Qe7 28. h4 f5 29. Bb1 c5 30. Nd5 Qe6 31. dxc5 {Shen,Y (2435)-Lei,T (2374) Xinghua 2014 ½-½ (68)}) 17. Ne5 Bb4 18. Bf3 Rac8 19. Be1 Qe6 20. Bh4 c5 21. h3 c4 22. Qc2 Be7 23. Rf1 Bb4 24. g4 Bxc3 25. bxc3 Ne4 26. f5 Qd6 27. Bxe4 dxe4 28. fxg6 fxg6 29. Nf7 Qe6 30. Nh6+ Kh8 31. Rf7 Rf8 32. Rcf1 Rxf7 33. Nxf7+ Kg8 34. Nd8 Qd5 35. Qf2 Bc6 36. Qf4 b5 37. axb5 Bxb5 38. Qh6 Rxd8 39. Bxd8 Qd6 40. Kg2 a4 41. Ba5 1-0

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.24"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Speelman, Jonathan S"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2589"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 d5 4. Nd2 Bf5 5. e3 e6 6. Nxe4 ({RR} 6. f3 Nd6 7. Bd3 Be7 8. e4 Bg6 9. Ne2 Bg5 10. O-O Bxf4 11. Nxf4 O-O 12. Re1 Nd7 13. exd5 Bxd3 14. dxe6 Bf5 15. e7 Qc8 16. exf8=Q+ Nxf8 17. Ne4 Nc4 18. b3 Nb6 19. c4 Qd8 20. Ng3 Bg6 {Pragnya H G (1933)-Vedant,N (2167) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (60)}) 6... Bxe4 7. Ne2 ({RR} 7. Nf3 Bd6 8. Bxd6 Qxd6 9. Nd2 Bg6 10. c4 O-O 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Be2 Nd7 13. O-O c6 14. Qb3 Rab8 15. Rfc1 Rfe8 16. Bf3 Nf6 17. Qc3 Be4 18. Be2 Bf5 19. Qc5 Qxc5 20. Rxc5 Nd7 21. Rcc1 a5 {Speelman,J (2597)-Polgar,J (2671) Batumi 1999 ½-½}) 7... Bd6 8. Qd2 $146 ({RR} 8. Bg3 O-O 9. Nc3 Bb4 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 c5 12. f3 Bg6 13. Bd3 Qa5 14. Qd2 Bxd3 15. cxd3 Rc8 16. Ke2 Nd7 17. Rhb1 Nb6 18. dxc5 Qxc5 19. Rb3 e5 20. Rab1 e4 21. Be5 Qe7 22. f4 exd3+ {Vamos,V (2220)-Werle,J Cannes 1997 ½-½ (47)}) ({RR} 8. Ng3 Bg6 9. h4 Bxf4 10. exf4 h6 11. h5 Bh7 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Qd6 14. Qd2 Nd7 15. c3 {½-½ (15) Fressinet,L (2440)-Bauer,C (2480) Besancon 1999}) 8... Nc6 9. Bxd6 Qxd6 10. Nc3 Bg6 11. Be2 Ne7 12. Nb5 Qd7 13. O-O O-O 14. Rfd1 c6 15. Nc3 Qd6 16. Na4 e5 17. Nc5 b6 18. Nd3 Bxd3 19. dxe5 Qxe5 20. cxd3 Qd6 21. b4 a5 22. a3 g6 23. g3 Ra7 24. d4 axb4 25. axb4 Rfa8 26. Rxa7 Rxa7 27. b5 c5 28. dxc5 bxc5 29. Bc4 Qb6 30. Bxd5 Nxd5 31. Qxd5 Qxb5 32. h4 h5 33. Rc1 Rd7 34. Qe5 Qc6 35. Qe8+ Kg7 36. Qe5+ f6 37. Qc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Politiken Cup 25th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2003.07.25"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Koneru, Humpy"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2468"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2003.07.14"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 095 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 d5 6. Bg2 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. Nbd2 Qe7 9. Qc2 Bb7 $146 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. e4 dxe4 11. Ng5 c5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Ndxe4 Nfxe4 14. Nxe4 Rad8 15. Nxd6 Rxd6 16. Be3 Rfd8 17. Rfd1 Nd3 18. Be4 Qf6 19. Bxd3 Rxd3 20. Rac1 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Bb7 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Qd2 Qc8 24. Qd6 {Skjoldan,B (2024)-Romsdal,T (2205) Copenhagen 2002 0-1 (34)}) 10. Bb2 Na6 11. Nh4 Ba3 12. cxd5 Bxb2 13. Qxb2 exd5 14. e3 Ne4 15. Nhf3 c5 16. Ne5 Rac8 17. Rac1 Rfe8 18. Nd3 Nc7 19. Nf4 Qf6 20. Nh5 Qh6 21. Nf4 g5 22. Ne2 Ne6 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Rfd1 Qf6 25. Nc3 Nf8 26. d5 Ba6 27. Qc2 Rcd8 28. Nxe4 Qg6 29. b4 f5 30. Nd2 Nd7 31. Qa4 b5 32. Qa5 c4 33. d6 Nb8 34. a4 Qxd6 35. axb5 Re5 36. Qa1 Rxb5 37. Ne4 Qe7 38. Nf6+ Kf7 39. Nd5 1-0

[Event "Schwarzach op-A 18th"]
[Site "Salzburg"]
[Date "2003.08.27"]
[Round "5.4"]
[White "Krivoshey, Sergei"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2507"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2003.08.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. Be2 d6 6. h3 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Bh2 ({RR} 8. dxe5 Nh5 9. Bg5 f6 10. exf6 Nhxf6 11. c3 Kh8 12. Nbd2 h6 13. Bf4 Qe7 14. Bh2 b6 15. Nh4 Qf7 16. Qc2 Bb7 17. Nxg6+ Kg8 18. Nxf8 Rxf8 19. Bc4 d5 20. Bd3 c5 21. Bg6 Qe7 22. Rae1 Ne5 {Burmakin,V (2435)-Hernandez Bermudez,U (2042) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (62)}) 8... Qe7 ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Nbd2 Nxd2 10. Qxd2 b6 11. c4 Bb7 12. b4 Re8 13. a3 Qe7 14. Rac1 Rad8 15. a4 h6 16. a5 exd4 17. Nxd4 Be5 18. axb6 axb6 19. Bf3 Bxh2+ 20. Kxh2 Bxf3 21. Nxf3 Nf6 22. b5 d5 23. cxd5 {Budnikov,A (2520)-Epishin,V (2620) Moscow 1993 ½-½}) 9. c4 b6 $146 ({RR} 9... c6 10. Nc3 Rd8 11. Re1 b6 12. a4 Ba6 13. a5 e4 14. Nd2 d5 15. cxd5 Bxe2 16. Qxe2 cxd5 17. Qb5 bxa5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Qxd5 Qb4 20. Qxa5 Qxb2 21. Nxe4 Rdc8 22. Nd6 Rc6 23. Qd5 Qc2 24. Qxf7+ {Mezentsev,I (2354)-Gevorgyan,M (2228) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 9... c6 10. Nc3 Rd8 11. Re1 b6 12. a4 Ba6 13. a5 e4 14. Nd2 d5 15. cxd5 Bxe2 16. Qxe2 cxd5 17. Qb5 bxa5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Qxd5 Qb4 20. Qxa5 Qxb2 21. Nxe4 Rdc8 22. Nd6 Rc6 23. Qd5 Qc2 24. Qxf7+ {Mezentsev,I (2354)-Gevorgyan,M (2228) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (34)}) 10. Nc3 Bb7 11. Qc2 exd4 12. Nxd4 Ne5 13. Rad1 c5 14. Nb3 Rad8 15. e4 Qe6 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. cxd5 Qe7 18. f4 Nd7 19. Bf3 Qh4 20. Nd2 Ba6 21. Nc4 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Bxb2 23. Qa6 Qe7 24. Rfe1 Rfe8 25. a4 Rc8 26. Re2 Bg7 27. e5 dxe5 28. d6 Qd8 29. fxe5 Bxe5 30. Bxe5 Rxe5 31. Rde1 Rxe2 32. Rxe2 c4 33. Bd5 c3 34. Qd3 Nf6 35. Bb3 Rc6 36. Re7 Rxd6 37. Qe3 Rd3 38. Qe2 Rd2 39. Qe3 c2 40. Bxf7+ Kf8 0-1

[Event "Schwarzach op-A 18th"]
[Site "Salzburg"]
[Date "2003.08.29"]
[Round "7.4"]
[White "Zimmerman, Yuri"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2320"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2003.08.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Rogozenco,Dorian} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bd2 Bg7 6. e4 Nb6 7. Be3 O-O 8. Bb5 Be6 ({RR} 8... a6 9. Be2 Nc6 10. d5 Ne5 11. Bd4 c5 12. Bxc5 Nec4 13. Qb3 Nxb2 14. Bxb6 Bxc3+ 15. Kf1 Qd6 16. Rb1) 9. Nf3 ({RR} 9. Nge2 c6 ({RR} 9... Nc4 10. Bc1 c6 11. Ba4) ({RR} 9... Bc4 10. O-O Bxb5 11. Nxb5) 10. Bd3 Nc4 11. Bxc4 Bxc4 12. O-O Nd7 13. Qd2 Qa5 14. Rfd1 Rad8 15. Bh6 ({RR} 15. b3 Ba6 16. Bh6) 15... Bxe2 16. Nxe2 ({RR} 16. Bxg7 Bxd1 ({RR} 16... Kxg7 17. Qxe2) 17. Bxf8 Nxf8 18. Rxd1 Ne6 19. d5 Nc7 ({RR} 19... cxd5 20. Nxd5 Qxd2 21. Rxd2 Kg7 22. Rc2 Nf4 23. Ne3) 20. h4 cxd5 21. exd5 h5 22. Qg5) 16... Qxd2 17. Bxd2 Nb6 18. Bc3 Rd7 19. b3 f5 20. f3 Rfd8 21. Re1 fxe4 22. fxe4 e5 23. dxe5 Rd3 {Wang,Y (2752)-Carlsen,M (2813) Medias 2010 CBM 137 [Rogozenco,Dorian] 0-1 (47)} {RR} 24. Bb2 Rd2 ({RR} 24... g5) 25. Bc3 Rc2 26. Rac1 Rxa2 27. Ra1 Rxa1 28. Rxa1 Ra8 29. Bd4 Nd7 30. Rxa7 Rxa7 31. Bxa7) 9... Bc4 10. b3 $146 ({RR} 10. Rc1 Na6 11. b3 Bxb5 12. Nxb5 f5 13. Qd2 fxe4 14. Ng5 Qd7 15. Nc3 Rad8 16. O-O c5 17. dxc5 Qxd2 18. Bxd2 Rxd2 19. cxb6 Bxc3 20. Rxc3 axb6 21. a4 Re2 22. Ne6 Rf6 23. Rc8+ Kf7 24. Ng5+ Kg7 {Shaydullina,S (2158)-Artemiev,V (2401) Izhevsk 2011 0-1 (65)}) ({RR} 10. Bxc4 Nxc4 11. Qb3 Nxe3 12. fxe3 b6 13. h4 c5 14. O-O-O Qc8 15. h5 Nc6 16. hxg6 hxg6 17. e5 cxd4 18. exd4 Qf5 19. Qc2 Qxc2+ 20. Kxc2 f6 21. e6 f5 22. Ne2 Nb4+ 23. Kb3 Nd5 24. Ng5 Rfc8 {Roebers,E (2381)-Calvo Gonzalez,J (2218) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2025 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 10. Bxc4 Nxc4 11. Qb3 Nxe3 12. fxe3 b6 13. e5 e6 14. O-O {½-½ (14) Khalifman,A (2622)-Danin,A (2465) Moscow 2009}) 10... Bxb5 11. Nxb5 Qd7 12. Nc3 Nc6 13. Qd2 Rad8 14. Rd1 f5 15. e5 Nd5 16. Nxd5 Qxd5 17. O-O Qb5 18. Bh6 Rd5 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Qc3 h6 21. Rd2 Rfd8 22. Rfd1 Qb4 23. Qe3 e6 24. h4 Qe7 25. Qf4 Rh8 26. Qg3 Kf7 27. Qf4 Ke8 28. Rc2 Nb4 29. Rc4 Rd7 30. Qd2 Nd5 31. b4 g5 32. hxg5 hxg5 33. Qxg5 Qh7 34. Kf1 Rg7 35. Qc1 Rxg2 36. Ke2 Qg7 37. Rg1 Rh3 38. Rxg2 Qxg2 39. Ne1 Qe4+ 40. Kd2 Nf4 41. Qd1 Rd3+ 42. Nxd3 Qxd3+ 0-1

[Event "EU-ch U14"]
[Site "Budva"]
[Date "2003.09.21"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Andriasian, Zaven"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2311"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2003.09.13"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "YUG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 096 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.10.22"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.10.20"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Huebner,Robert} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 8. g4 Bg6 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. e3 e6 11. Bxc4 Bb4 12. Bd2 ({RR} 12. Qf3 Qa5 13. Bd2 Nbd7 14. h4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Rd8 16. g5 Nfd5 17. Rc1 c5 18. h5 cxd4 19. exd4 Rxh5 20. Rxh5 gxh5 21. Qxh5 g6) 12... Nbd7 13. g5 Nd5 14. e4 N5b6 15. Bb3 a5 16. Qe2 e5 $146 ({RR} 16... c5 17. d5 c4 ({RR} 17... e5 18. h4) ({RR} 17... exd5 18. Bxd5 ({RR} 18. exd5+ Kf8 19. O-O-O Bxc3 20. bxc3 c4 21. Bxc4 ({RR} 21. Bc2 Nc5) 21... Nxa4) ({RR} 18. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 19. Qxd2 c4 20. Bc2 Nxd5 21. Qxd5 Qc7 22. O-O-O Rd8) 18... Bxc3 19. Bxc3 ({RR} 19. bxc3 Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 21. Kf1 Nb6 22. c4 Nc8) 19... Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 21. Qe3 ({RR} 21. h4 Qc7) 21... Qc7 22. O-O-O Re8 23. Qf3 Qd6) 18. Bxc4 Nxc4 19. Qxc4 O-O 20. O-O-O ({RR} 20. dxe6 Ne5 21. Qd5 Qc7 22. exf7+ Rxf7 23. O-O-O Rd8 24. Qe6 Nd3+ ({RR} 24... Nf3) 25. Kb1 Nxf2 26. Nd5 Qc6 27. Qxc6 bxc6 28. Bxb4 cxd5 29. Bxa5 Ra8 30. Bb6 Nxh1 31. Rxh1 dxe4) 20... Rc8 21. Qe2 ({RR} 21. Qb5 Nc5 ({RR} 21... Rc5 22. Qxb7 exd5 23. Be3 Rc7 24. Qxd5 Bxc3 25. bxc3 Rxc3+ 26. Kd2 Qc7 27. Rc1) 22. Kb1 exd5 23. Nxd5 ({RR} 23. Be3 Qe7) ({RR} 23. exd5 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Qxg5) 23... Bxd2 24. Rxd2 Qxg5 25. f4 Qh4 26. e5) 21... exd5 22. Kb1 ({RR} 22. exd5 Nb6 23. Kb1 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Nxa4) 22... Bxc3 ({RR} 22... dxe4 23. Nxe4 Qc7 24. Bxb4 axb4 25. Nd6 Ra8 26. Qc4 ({RR} 26. Qb5 Nc5) ({RR} 26. Nb5 Qc6) 26... Qa5 27. b3 Qxg5) ({RR} 22... Qc7 23. exd5 ({RR} 23. Rc1 Qe5 24. f4 Qe6) 23... Nb6) 23. Bxc3 Nc5 24. Rxd5 Qe8 25. f3 b6 ({RR} 25... Qxa4 26. Qd1 Qxd1+ ({RR} 26... Nb3 27. Rxa5) 27. Rhxd1 b6) 26. Qe3 Nxa4 ({RR} 26... Qxa4 27. Qd4 Qxd4 28. Bxd4 Rc6 29. Rc1 Rfc8) 27. Bd4 Rc4 ({RR} 27... Qc6 28. Rc1 ({RR} 28. h4 Qc2+ 29. Ka1 Rc4) 28... Qe6) 28. h4 Qc6 29. h5 gxh5 30. Rxh5 Rc8 31. Rh1 {Carlsen,M (2552)-Nielsen,P (2628) Malmo/Copenhagen 2004 CBM 101 [Huebner,Robert] 1-0 (40)} {RR} Nc5 32. Bxg7 Kxg7 33. g6 Qxg6 ({RR} 33... fxg6 34. Qh6+ Kf7 35. Qh7+ Kf6 36. Rg1) 34. Rg5) 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O-O Nd3+ 19. Kb1 Nc5 20. Nb5 Nxb3 21. Bxb4 axb4 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Nc7+ Ke7 24. Qc2 Nc4 25. h4 Nba5 26. Rd1 b3 27. Qe2 Rxd1+ 28. Qxd1 Rd8 29. Nd5+ cxd5 30. exd5 Re8 31. Qd4 Kd8 32. Qd1 Re4 33. Kc1 Ne5 34. d6 Re1 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 19th"]
[Site "Rethymno"]
[Date "2003.10.01"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Winants, Luc"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2501"]
[BlackElo "2385"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2003.09.28"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 098"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.02.03"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.02.03"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Liege"]
[BlackTeam "Asker"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "BEL"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 d5 4. e3 c5 5. Bd3 Nf6 6. dxc5 Nc6 7. Bb5 e6 8. b4 Bd7 ({RR} 8... a5 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. c3 Ba6 11. Ne2 Nd7 12. Nd2 e5 13. Bg3 h5 14. Nf3 Qf6 15. h4 Be7 16. O-O Qf5 17. Re1 O-O 18. a4 Rfc8 19. b5 Bb7 20. Ned4 exd4 21. exd4 Bf6 22. Qd2 Nf8 23. Be5 {Aronian,L (2648)-Short,N (2702) Reykjavik 2004 0-1 (36)}) 9. c3 a5 10. Qb3 $146 ({RR} 10. a4 axb4 11. Bxc6 Bxc6 12. cxb4 b6 13. Nd2 bxc5 14. b5 Bb7 15. Ngf3 c4 16. O-O Bb4 17. Qc2 O-O 18. Rfb1 Ba5 19. h3 Re8 20. Rd1 Qe7 21. Be5 Nd7 22. Bd4 Rec8 23. Bc3 Nc5 24. Nb1 Nd3 {Gustafsson,J (2571)-Avrukh,B (2609) Plovdiv 2003 ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 10. Bxc6 Bxc6 11. Ne2 axb4 12. cxb4 b6 13. O-O bxc5 14. bxc5 Bxc5 15. Nbc3 {½-½ (15) Maiwald,J (2468)-Zwahr,P (2363) Dresden 2013}) 10... axb4 11. cxb4 Ne4 12. Nc3 Qf6 13. Nge2 Nxf2 14. O-O Ng4 15. h3 Nge5 16. Na4 Nc4 17. e4 Nd4 18. Bxd7+ Kxd7 19. Nxd4 Qxd4+ 20. Kh1 Qxe4 21. Rae1 Qg6 22. Rc1 Ke8 23. Rxc4 dxc4 24. Qxc4 e5 25. Nb6 Ra3 26. Bxe5 Qe6 27. Re1 Be7 28. Qb5+ Kf8 29. Bxg7+ Kxg7 30. Rxe6 fxe6 31. Qd7 Kf6 32. Qd4+ e5 33. Qh4+ Kf7 34. Qh5+ Kg7 35. Nd5 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 19th"]
[Site "Rethymno"]
[Date "2003.10.04"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gretarsson, Helgi Ass"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2385"]
[BlackElo "2513"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2003.09.28"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 098"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.02.03"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.02.03"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Asker"]
[BlackTeam "Reykjavik Hellir"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ISL"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. g4 Nxg4 8. Rg1 Qf6 9. Rxg4 Qxf3 10. Rxg7 Nf6 11. Bg2 Qh5 12. e4 dxe4 13. Bg5 Bf8 14. Bxf6 Bxg7 15. Bxg7 Rg8 16. Nxe4 Qa5+ 17. Kf1 Rxg7 18. Qc1 $146 ({RR} 18. Bf3 Qc7 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. Qh6 f5 21. Nf6+ Kd8 22. Nh5 Rg6 23. Qf4 Bd7 24. Re1 Qb4 25. b3 Ke7 26. Qh4+ Kf7 27. Ng3 Kg8 28. c5 Rf8 29. Qf4 b6 30. Re5 Qc3 31. h4 Qa1+ 32. Re1 Qxa2 {Reis,G (2144)-Kreuzer,M (2325) Bayern 2013 ½-½ (71)}) ({RR} 18. c5 Qd8 19. Re1 Qh4 20. Ng3 Kf8 21. Qe2 Qg5 22. h4 Qxh4 23. Nf5 Qg4 24. Nxg7 Qxe2+ 25. Kxe2 Kxg7 26. Ke3 Bd7 27. Rg1 Kh8 28. Be4 Rg8 29. Rh1 Rg7 30. Kf4 f6 31. Rh6 Rf7 32. b4 f5 {Mazalon,M (2158)-Gusarow,M (2155) Wysowa 2007 ½-½ (42)}) 18... Qd8 19. Qf4 Kf8 20. Qe5 Rg6 21. Qh8+ Ke7 22. Qxh7 Qg8 23. Qh4+ f6 24. Bf3 e5 25. b3 exd4 26. Ng3 Bg4 27. Re1+ Kf7 28. Be4 Rg7 29. h3 Bd7 30. Qh5+ Kf8 31. Qc5+ Kf7 32. Bg6+ 1-0

[Event "Wch U14"]
[Site "Chalkidiki"]
[Date "2003.10.25"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Lemos, Damian"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E68"]
[WhiteElo "2218"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2003.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d6 6. O-O Nbd7 7. Nc3 e5 8. h3 Re8 9. e4 exd4 10. Nxd4 a6 11. Re1 Rb8 12. b3 c5 13. Nc2 b5 14. Qxd6 ({RR} 14. cxb5 axb5 15. Qxd6 b4 ({RR} 15... Rb6 16. Qd1 b4 17. Na4 Rbe6 {RR} 18. Bb2 Qe7 19. Ne3 Bb7 20. f3 Nh5) 16. Na4 Bb7 17. Bg5 Bxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxd8 Nxd6 20. Bc7) 14... Rb6 ({RR} 14... Bb7 15. Qd1 Ne5 ({RR} 15... b4 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. cxd5 Bxa1 18. Nxa1) 16. Bf4 ({RR} 16. Qxd8 Rexd8 17. cxb5 axb5 18. Nxb5 Nd3) 16... Nh5 ({RR} 16... Nd3 17. Bxb8 Nxe1 18. Qxd8 Rxd8 19. Rxe1 Rxb8 20. e5) 17. Bxe5 Bxe5 18. Nd5 bxc4 19. bxc4 Bxd5 20. cxd5 Qf6 ({RR} 20... Bxa1 21. Qxa1 Qb6 22. Ne3 ({RR} 22. e5 Qb2 23. Qxb2 Rxb2) 22... Qb2 23. Nc4 Qxa1 24. Rxa1 Rb4 25. Rc1 Reb8 26. Nd2) 21. Rb1 Rxb1 22. Qxb1 Rb8 23. Qd1 Rb2 ({RR} 23... c4 24. f4 Nxf4 25. gxf4 Qxf4 26. Qf3 Qh2+ 27. Kf1 Rb2 28. Re2 Rxa2) 24. Rf1 c4 ({RR} 24... Rxa2 25. Qd3 ({RR} 25. f4 Nxf4 26. gxf4 Bxf4) 25... Rb2 26. f4) ({RR} 24... Qb6) 25. Ne3 Bd4 ({RR} 25... c3 26. Ng4 Qd6 27. Qa4 Bg7 28. e5) ({RR} 25... Rxa2 26. Ng4 Qd6 27. Nxe5 Qxe5 28. d6 Qe8 29. e5) 26. e5 ({RR} 26. Nxc4 Bxf2+ 27. Kh2 Bxg3+ 28. Kh1 Rf2) 26... Qb6 ({RR} 26... Bxe5 27. Nxc4 Rxa2 28. Nxe5 Qxe5 29. d6 Qe8 30. d7 Qd8 31. Re1) ({RR} 26... Qxe5 27. Nxc4 Qxg3 28. Qxd4) 27. Qf3 ({RR} 27. Nxc4 Bxf2+ 28. Kh2 Bxg3+ 29. Kh1 Qb4 30. Nxb2 Qxb2 31. Qf3 Bf4) 27... c3 ({RR} 27... Bxe3 28. fxe3) 28. d6 ({RR} 28. Nc4 Rxf2 ({RR} 28... Qb5 29. Nxb2 cxb2 30. Rb1 Bxe5) 29. Rxf2 Bxf2+ 30. Qxf2 Qxf2+ 31. Kxf2 c2) 28... c2 ({RR} 28... Bxe5 29. Nc4 Qd4 30. Qa8+ Kg7 31. Nxe5 Qxe5 32. d7) 29. Kh2 {Hansen,C (2620)-Gelfand,B (2665) Munich 1992 CBM 030 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 1-0 (38)} ({RR} 29. Qa8+ Kg7 30. d7 Bxe3 31. d8=Q Bxf2+ ({RR} 31... Qxd8 32. Qxd8 Rb1 33. fxe3 Rxf1+ 34. Bxf1 c1=Q) 32. Kh2 Bxg3+ 33. Kh1 Qxd8 34. Qxd8 Bf4) ({RR} 29. Nc4 Bxf2+ 30. Kh2 Rb1 31. Nxb6 Rxf1 32. Bxf1 Bxg3+ 33. Kg2 c1=Q) {RR} 29... Rb1 30. Nxc2 Rxf1 31. Nxd4 ({RR} 31. Bxf1 Bxf2 32. Qa8+ Kg7 33. d7 Bxg3+ 34. Kh1 Bh4) 31... Rb1 ({RR} 31... Qxd4 32. Bxf1 Qxe5 33. Qa8+ Kg7 34. d7) 32. Qa8+ Qb8 33. Qxb8+ Rxb8 34. Nc6) ({RR} 14... b4 15. Na4 ({RR} 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. cxd5 Be5 17. Qc6 Rb5) 15... Bb7) 15. Qd2 ({RR} 15. Qd1 b4 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. cxd5) 15... b4 16. Na4 ({RR} 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. cxd5 Bc3 18. Qd1 Nf6) 16... Rbe6 17. e5 $146 ({RR} 17. Rb1 Bb7 18. e5 Bxg2 19. exf6 Rxe1+ 20. Nxe1 Be4 21. fxg7 Bxb1 22. Nf3 Ne5 23. Nxe5 Qxd2 24. Bxd2 Rxe5 25. Be3 Bxa2 26. Nxc5 a5 27. Kg2 f6 28. Bd4 Re1 29. Nb7 Bxb3 30. Nxa5 Bxc4 31. Bxf6 Bd5+ {Valencia Jimenez,J (2112)-Garcia Castellote,O (2075) Barcelona 2018 0-1 (33)}) 17... Qe7 18. Bb2 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Rxe5 20. Rxe5 Qxe5 21. Re1 Qc7 22. Rxe8+ Nxe8 23. Qe3 Qd8 24. Nxc5 a5 25. Kh2 h5 26. Qd3 Qc7 27. Ne4 h4 28. Ne3 hxg3+ 29. fxg3 Be5 30. Nd5 Qd8 31. Qe3 Ng7 32. Ng5 Bd6 33. Ne4 Be5 34. Qb6 Qxb6 35. Nxb6 Be6 36. Bf3 Nf5 37. Bg4 Kf8 38. Bxf5 Bxf5 39. Nc5 Bd4 40. Nba4 Ke7 41. Nb7 Kd7 42. Nxa5 Kc7 43. c5 Bb1 44. Kg2 Bxa2 45. Kf3 Bb1 46. g4 g5 47. Kg3 Bd3 48. Kf3 f6 49. Kg3 Be4 50. h4 Be5+ 51. Kh3 Bd3 52. hxg5 fxg5 53. Kg2 Be2 54. Nb6 Bxg4 55. Nd5+ Kc8 56. Nc6 Bc3 57. Ncxb4 Bxb4 58. Nxb4 Be6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Wch U14"]
[Site "Chalkidiki"]
[Date "2003.10.28"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Potapov, Pavel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A87"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2267"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2003.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. g3 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. O-O O-O 6. c4 d6 7. Nc3 Qe8 8. Re1 Qf7 9. b3 Ne4 10. Bb2 Nc6 11. Rc1 h6 12. d5 Ne5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. f4 Bg7 15. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 15. Rc2 Nxc3 16. Bxc3 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Qf6 18. Qd3 e5 19. dxe6 c6 20. b4 Bxe6 21. b5 Rac8 22. bxc6 bxc6 23. Ra3 Qe7 24. e4 Bf7 25. Rd1 fxe4 26. Bxe4 d5 27. cxd5 cxd5 28. Bxg6 Rfd8 29. Ra6 d4 {Demina,J (2327)-Sterliagova,T (2223) Elista 2003 1-0 (39)}) 15... Nxc3 16. Bxc3 Bd7 17. e4 Bxc3 18. Qxc3 fxe4 19. Rxe4 Bf5 20. Re3 b6 21. Rce1 Rae8 22. Be4 Bd7 23. Bf3 Qf6 24. Qd3 Kg7 25. Qe2 Rf7 26. Bg4 Bf5 27. Bxf5 Qxf5 28. Kg2 h5 29. Re6 Kf8 30. h3 h4 31. Qg4 Qxg4 32. hxg4 hxg3 33. Kxg3 Kg7 34. g5 Rh8 35. Rxe7 a5 36. Re8 Rxe8 37. Rxe8 Kh7 38. Kg4 Kg7 39. Re6 Kh7 40. Rf6 Re7 41. f5 gxf5+ 42. Kxf5 Kg7 43. Rg6+ Kf7 44. Re6 Rd7 45. g6+ Kg7 46. Kg5 Kg8 47. Re8+ Kg7 48. Kf5 c5 49. Ke6 Ra7 50. Re7+ 1-0

[Event "Wch U14"]
[Site "Chalkidiki"]
[Date "2003.10.29"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Dourerassou, Jonathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D99"]
[WhiteElo "2250"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2003.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 Nc6 8. Be3 Bg4 9. Rd1 Nd7 10. Qb3 Nb6 11. d5 Ne5 12. Be2 Nxf3+ 13. gxf3 Bh5 14. Rg1 Qd6 ({RR} 14... c6 15. dxc6 Qc7 16. cxb7 Rab8 17. Rg3 Rxb7 18. Kf1 Rd8 19. Rxd8+ Qxd8 20. Nd5 Be5 21. Nf4 Bxf4 22. Bxf4 Qd4 23. Qb5 Rd7 24. Qxh5 Qxb2 25. Qe5 Qxa2 26. Bh6 {1-0 (25) Cheparinov,I (2666)-Zeng,C (2551) Changsha 2019}) 15. f4 Bxe2 16. Kxe2 c6 $146 ({RR} 16... Qf6 17. Rg5 Nd7 18. Rdg1 Qa6+ 19. Kf3 c6 20. h4 Nb6 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. h5 Nc4 23. hxg6 hxg6 24. Rc5 Nxe3 25. fxe3 Rab8 26. Qc2 Rfd8 27. e5 Qc8 28. Ne4 Rb5 29. Rxc6 Qh3+ 30. Ng3 Qd7 31. b3 {Schneider,A-Silva Morales,M Budapest 1981 1-0 (55)}) 17. e5 Qd7 18. Bxb6 axb6 19. Qxb6 Qf5 20. dxc6 bxc6 21. Qe3 Bh6 22. Rd4 c5 23. Rc4 Rfd8 24. Rd1 Rxd1 25. Kxd1 Rd8+ 26. Kc1 Qg4 27. Kc2 Qf5+ 28. Kc1 Rd4 29. Rxd4 cxd4 30. Qxd4 Bxf4+ 31. Kd1 Bxe5 32. Qd8+ Kg7 33. Qxe7 Bxh2 34. Qh4 Qd3+ 35. Kc1 Be5 36. Nd1 h5 37. a4 Bf6 38. Qf4 h4 39. Ne3 Qe2 40. b4 Bb2+ 41. Kb1 Bc3 42. Nf5+ gxf5 43. Qg5+ Kf8 44. Qh6+ Bg7 45. Qd6+ Qe7 46. Qb8+ Qe8 47. Qf4 Qe4+ 0-1

[Event "Wch U14"]
[Site "Chalkidiki"]
[Date "2003.10.30"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Andriasian, Zaven"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2311"]
[PlyCount "47"]
[EventDate "2003.10.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2004"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.11.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 e6 7. Nxf5 exf5 8. e3 Bd6 9. Bxc4 O-O 10. Qf3 g6 11. h3 h5 ({RR} 11... Bb4 12. O-O Nbd7 13. g4 fxg4 14. hxg4 h5 15. gxh5 Nxh5 16. Qg2 Kg7 17. Ne4 Qh4 18. b3 Rae8 19. Ng5 Be7 20. Nf3 Qe4 21. Ne5 Qxg2+ 22. Kxg2 Nb6 23. a5 Nxc4 24. bxc4 f6 25. Nd3 Rf7 26. Ba3 {Hodgson,J (2625)-Huebner,R (2605) Groningen 1993 ½-½ (51)}) 12. Bd2 Nbd7 13. O-O-O a6 $146 ({RR} 13... Qe7 14. g4 fxg4 15. hxg4 Nxg4 16. Qg2 Kg7 17. e4 Nb6 18. Be2 Bb4 19. Bxg4 Bxc3 20. Bxc3 Qg5+ 21. Bd2 Qxg4 22. Bh6+ Kf6 23. Qxg4 hxg4 24. Bxf8 Rxf8 25. b3 Kg5 26. Rhe1 Kf4 27. d5 f5 28. a5 {Minero Pineda,S (2429)-Hernandez Basante,F (2244) San Jose 2004 1-0 (37)}) 14. g4 fxg4 15. hxg4 hxg4 16. Qg2 b5 17. Ba2 c5 18. Ne4 Qe7 19. Nxd6 Qxd6 20. dxc5 Qe7 21. Bc3 Rac8 22. Rxd7 Qxc5 23. Kb1 b4 24. Qxg4 1-0

[Event "Claude Pecaut Memorial"]
[Site "Taormina"]
[Date "2003.11.20"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Estremera Panos, Sergio"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2350"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2003.11.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 O-O 9. O-O Nc6 10. Be3 Bd7 11. Rb1 a6 12. dxc5 Qc7 13. Nd4 ({RR} 13. Qc2 Na5 14. Bd3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Be6 16. Nf4 Bc4 17. Bxc4 Nxc4 18. Nd5 Rxd5 19. exd5 Nxe3 20. fxe3 Qxc5 21. Rxb7 Qxe3+ 22. Qf2 Qxc3 23. d6 exd6 24. Qxf7+ Kh8 25. h3 Rf8 26. Qe7 h5 27. Kh1 Rf2 {Kramnik,V (2751)-Svidler,P (2713) ICC INT 1999 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 13. f4) 13... e6 ({RR} 13... Rfd8 14. Qb3 Ne5 15. Be2 Rab8 16. Qb6 Rdc8 17. Qxc7 Rxc7 18. Nb3 Bb5 19. Bxb5 axb5 20. Na5 Nc4 21. Nxc4 bxc4 22. Bf4 e5 23. Be3 Bf8 24. Rb4 Bxc5 25. Rxc4 Rbc8 26. Bxc5 Rxc5 27. Rxc5 Rxc5 28. Rc1 {Assaubayeva,B (2472)-Mikhailova,I (2169) FIDE Online Arena INT 2024 1-0 (65)}) ({RR} 13... Na5 14. Bd3 Rfd8 15. Qe2) 14. f4 Rfd8 $146 ({RR} 14... Na5 15. Bb3 ({RR} 15. Bb3 e5 16. fxe5 Bxe5 17. Bh6 Bg7 ({RR} 17... Bxh2+ 18. Kh1 Be5) 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Qf3 Nxb3 20. Rxb3 Rae8 21. Rb6 ({RR} 21. Qf6+ Kg8 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. cxd6 b5 24. a4 Rxe4 25. axb5 axb5 26. Nxb5 Bxb5 27. Rxb5 Rc4) 21... Qxc5 ({RR} 21... Bc8 22. Rf6 Re5 23. c6) 22. Rxb7 Be6 23. Kh1 Qe5 24. Nc6 Qg5 25. Qf2) 15... e5 16. fxe5 Bxe5 17. Bh6 Bg7 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Qf3 Nxb3 20. Rxb3 Rae8 21. Rb6 Qxc5 22. Rxb7 Be6 23. Kh1 Qe5 24. Nc6 Qg5 25. Qf2 Kh8 26. h4 Qh6 27. Kg1 Qg7 28. Nd4 Bc4 29. Re1 {Zhukova,N (2439)-Matveeva,S (2478) Krasnoturinsk 2003 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 14... Na5 15. Bd3 e5 16. f5 exd4 17. cxd4 Rfe8 ({RR} 17... gxf5 18. exf5 Bf6 19. Rf3) 18. f6 Bf8 19. Qc1 ({RR} 19. Qd2 Bb5 20. Bxb5 ({RR} 20. Bh6 Bxc5 21. dxc5 Red8 22. Rf3 Qxc5+ 23. Kh1 Nc4 24. Qc3 Qd4) 20... axb5 21. Bh6 Bxc5 22. dxc5 Qxc5+ 23. Kh1 Nc4) 19... Nc6 ({RR} 19... Bb5 20. Bxb5 axb5 21. Bh6 Bxc5 ({RR} 21... Rxe4 22. Bxf8 Kxf8 23. Qh6+ Ke8 24. Rfe1 Qc6 25. Qh4 Rxe1+ 26. Rxe1+ Kd8 27. Qxh7) 22. Qxc5 ({RR} 22. dxc5 Rxe4 23. Rxb5 Nc4) 22... Qxc5 23. dxc5 Rxe4 24. Rxb5) 20. Kh1 ({RR} 20. Bh6 Nxd4 21. Bxf8 Rxf8 22. Qh6 Ne6 23. Bc4 Qxc5+) 20... h5 ({RR} 20... Bg4 21. h3 ({RR} 21. Bh6 Nxd4 22. Bxf8 Rxf8 23. Qh6 Ne6 24. Bc4 b5 25. Bd5 Ra7 26. Rbe1 Qxc5 27. h3 Bh5 28. g4 Bxg4 29. hxg4 Qc3) 21... Bc8 22. Bh6 Nxd4 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Qh6 Ne6 25. Rb6) 21. Bf4 Qd8 22. Bd6 Kh7 23. Qe3 Bxd6 ({RR} 23... Bh6 24. Qf2) 24. cxd6 Bc8 25. e5 Qxd6 26. Bxg6+ fxg6 27. f7 Qe7 28. fxe8=Q Qxe8 29. Rf6 {Sakaev,K (2655)-Belov,V (2553) Krasnoyarsk 2003 CBM 098 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (34)}) 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Qc2 Kh8 17. e5 Bf8 18. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 Qa5 20. Rd6 Qa4 21. Bb3 Qe4 22. Qxe4 Bxe4 23. Rd7 Kg8 24. Rc7 Rd8 25. Bd4 h5 26. h4 Bc6 27. Kf2 Re8 28. Bd1 Re7 29. Rc8 Re8 30. Rc7 Re7 31. Rc8 Re8 32. Rc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Claude Pecaut Memorial"]
[Site "Taormina"]
[Date "2003.11.21"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Movsziszian, Karen"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2475"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2003.11.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. e4 Nf6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bc1 Nh6 11. Be3 ({RR} 11. b3 Nf7 12. Bb2 Ng5 13. Nxg5 fxg5 14. Nd5 c6 15. Ne3 h5 16. c5 exd4 17. Bxd4 Nxc5 18. f3 Qe7 19. Rc1 g4 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Qd4+ Kh7 22. Nc4 gxf3 23. Bxf3 Ne6 24. Qxd6 Qxd6 25. Nxd6 Nd4 {Xiong,J (2646)-Bernadskiy,V (2530) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (57)}) 11... c6 ({RR} 11... Ng4) 12. c5 $146 ({RR} 12. h3 Qe7 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Qd2 Nf7 15. Rad1 Re8 16. Qc2 g5 17. Nd2 Nh8 18. Bg4 Ng6 19. g3 Ndf8 20. Bxc8 Rexc8 21. c5 Qf7 22. Qb3 Ne6 23. Nc4 Bf8 24. Nd6 Bxd6 25. Rxd6 Ngf8 26. Rfd1 Rd8 {Berberich,C (2118)-Schmid,M (2199) Germany 2003 ½-½}) ({RR} 12. d5 c5 13. Qc1 Nf7 14. Ne1 f5 15. exf5 gxf5 16. f4 e4 17. Rb1 Nf6 18. b4 b6 19. bxc5 dxc5 20. a4 Nd6 21. a5 Ba6 22. axb6 axb6 23. Na4 Nxd5 24. cxd5 Bxe2 25. Nxb6 {½-½ (25) Jenicek,E (2040)-Hadraba,V (2205) Volyne 2003}) 12... dxc5 13. dxe5 fxe5 14. Ng5 Qe7 15. Bc4+ Kh8 16. Ne6 Rg8 17. Nxg7 Qxg7 18. Bg5 Rf8 19. Qd6 Nf7 20. Bxf7 Rxf7 21. f4 exf4 22. Rxf4 Rxf4 23. Qxf4 Kg8 24. Bh6 Qe7 25. Rf1 b6 26. Qc7 Ba6 27. Qxc6 Re8 28. Rf2 Ne5 29. Qa4 Bb7 30. Qxa7 Ng4 31. Nd5 Qh4 32. Nf6+ Nxf6 33. Qxb7 Qxh6 34. Rxf6 Qe3+ 35. Rf2 Qxe4 36. Qxb6 Qe3 37. Qf6 Qe4 38. Rf1 Qe3+ 39. Kh1 Qe7 40. Qf3 Qe5 41. h3 Qe3 42. Qd5+ Kg7 43. a4 Re7 44. Qc4 Qd4 45. Qxd4+ cxd4 46. Rd1 Rb7 47. Rxd4 Rxb2 48. Rd7+ Kh6 49. a5 Ra2 50. Rd5 Kg7 51. Kh2 Kf6 52. Kg3 g5 53. Rb5 h5 54. Kf3 h4 55. Rb6+ Kf5 56. Rb5+ Kg6 57. Rc5 Kf6 58. Rc6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Claude Pecaut Memorial"]
[Site "Taormina"]
[Date "2003.11.22"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Calzetta Ruiz, Monica"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2274"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2003.11.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 Bxa6 6. Nc3 d6 7. g3 g6 8. Bg2 Bg7 9. Nf3 Nbd7 10. Rb1 Nb6 11. a4 O-O 12. O-O Ra7 13. b3 Qa8 14. Nh4 Ne8 15. Bb2 Nc7 16. Qd2 Rb8 17. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 17. Rfd1 Bc8 18. Qe3 Bf6 19. Ne4 Bxb2 20. Rxb2 Nbxd5 21. Qh6 Bb7 22. Rbd2 Bc6 23. Rxd5 Nxd5 24. Rxd5 Bxd5 25. Ng5 e5 26. Nxh7 {1-0 (26) Roktim,B (2365)-Zilverberg,J (2031) Vlissingen 2006}) 17... Bc8 18. e4 c4 19. e5 cxb3 20. exd6 exd6 21. Re7 Bd7 22. Ne4 Ncxd5 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24. Qd4+ Kf8 25. Rxd7 Nxd7 26. Nc3 Nxc3 27. Re1 Kg8 28. Bxa8 b2 29. Qxa7 1-0

[Event "Claude Pecaut Memorial"]
[Site "Taormina"]
[Date "2003.11.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Tomescu, Vlad"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2447"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2003.11.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[EventCategory "7"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. e3 c5 6. a3 cxd4 7. axb4 dxc3 8. bxc3 O-O 9. cxd5 Qc7 $146 ({RR} 9... exd5 10. Ne2 Nc6 11. Nd4 Bd7 12. Be2 a6 13. O-O Nxd4 14. Qxd4 Re8 15. c4 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Be6 17. Bxe6 Qxd4 18. Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. exd4 Rac8 20. b5 Rc2 21. bxa6 bxa6 22. Bf4 Ree2 23. Rxa6 Rxg2+ 24. Kh1 {Goldobin,M (2127)-Rutman,A (2272) St Petersburg 2009 ½-½}) 10. Bd2 Nxd5 11. e4 Nb6 12. Nh3 e5 13. Nf2 Be6 14. Be2 Rd8 15. O-O Nc6 16. Qc1 Bc4 17. Bxc4 Nxc4 18. Rd1 Qb6 19. Qc2 a5 20. Bg5 Rxd1+ 21. Qxd1 h6 22. Qd5 Ne3 23. Bxe3 Qxe3 24. Qd3 Qb6 25. bxa5 Rxa5 26. Rxa5 Nxa5 27. g3 Qc5 28. Kg2 Nc4 29. f4 Qc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Budapest FS12 GM"]
[Site "Budapest"]
[Date "2003.12.07"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Berczes, David"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E92"]
[WhiteElo "2323"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2003.12.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 O-O 5. Nf3 d6 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nh5 8. g3 Bg4 ({RR} 8... Bh3 9. Re1 exd4 10. Nxd4 Nf6 11. Bf1 Bxf1 12. Kxf1 Nc6 13. Nc2 Nd7 14. Ne3 Bxc3 15. bxc3 Nc5 16. f3 Ne5 17. Ba3 Qf6 18. Bxc5 dxc5 19. f4 Nc6 20. Nd5 Qd8 21. Qa4 Nb8 22. Rab1 c6 23. Nb6 {Van Wely,L (2655)-Jones,G (2554) London 2009 1-0 (31)}) 9. d5 ({RR} 9. Bg5 f6 10. Be3 Nc6 11. c5 Kh8 12. cxd6 cxd6 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Qxd8 Rfxd8 15. Rfd1 Bf8 16. Kf1 Ng7 17. Nd5 Bh3+ 18. Kg1 Ne8 19. Rac1 Kg7 20. a3 Nd6 21. Nd2 Rac8 22. f3 Be6 23. Nc4 Nb5 {Cosma,I (2368)-Dragomirescu,R (2337) Sebes ROU 2022 0-1 (61)}) ({RR} 9. Bg5 f6 10. Be3 Nc6 11. d5 Ne7 12. Qd2 Qd7 13. Ne1 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 f5 15. exf5 Nxf5 16. Ne4 Nxe3 17. Qxe3 Nf6 18. Nd3 c6 19. dxc6 Qxc6 20. Nxf6+ Rxf6 21. Rac1 Rf3 22. Qe2 Raf8 23. Nb4 Qc5 {Ekeberg,C (2227)-Carlsen,M (2315) Oslo 2003 0-1 (42)}) 9... Qe8 10. Ne1 $146 ({RR} 10. Bd2 Na6 11. Nh4 Bxe2 12. Qxe2 f5 13. f3 Bf6 14. Ng2 c6 15. g4 Ng7 16. Be3 Qe7 17. Bf2 h5 18. h4 fxg4 19. fxg4 Qd7 20. g5 Bd8 21. Kh2 Ba5 22. Rac1 Bxc3 23. Rxc3 c5 24. Rcc1 Rf7 {Johannessen,L (2452)-Gullaksen,E (2326) Oslo 2002 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 10. b4 f5 11. Ng5 Bxe2 12. Qxe2 Bf6 13. Ne6 Na6 14. Nxf8 Kxf8 15. Rb1 Kg8 16. f3 Be7 17. Kh1 f4 18. g4 Nf6 19. Bd2 Rd8 20. Kg2 Nd7 21. Be1 Kf7 22. h4 h6 23. Bf2 b6 24. Na4 Nxb4 {Kozul,Z (2541)-Ahn,M (2290) Rogaska Slatina 2011 1-0 (38)}) 10... Bxe2 11. Qxe2 f5 12. f3 Na6 13. Nd3 c5 14. Bd2 Qd7 15. a3 Nc7 16. b4 b6 17. Rab1 Nf6 18. Rb2 h5 19. bxc5 bxc5 20. Rfb1 Rf7 21. Rb7 Qe8 22. Qd1 h4 23. Nf2 Qc8 24. Kg2 Qf8 25. Nh3 Nh7 26. Ng5 Nxg5 27. Bxg5 hxg3 28. hxg3 f4 29. Nb5 Ne8 30. Rxf7 Qxf7 31. Nc3 fxg3 32. Qa4 Nf6 33. Bxf6 Qxf6 34. Ne2 Rf8 35. Qb3 Bh6 36. Rh1 Qg5 37. Qd3 Rb8 38. Rh3 Rb2 39. Rxg3 Qe3 40. Qxe3 Bxe3 41. Kf1 Kg7 42. Nc3 a6 43. Nd1 Rb1 44. Ke2 Bd4 45. Kd2 Rb3 46. Kc2 Rxa3 47. Rh3 a5 48. Rg3 a4 0-1

[Event "Budapest FS12 GM"]
[Site "Budapest"]
[Date "2003.12.08"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Drabke, Lorenz Maximilian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2450"]
[BlackElo "2449"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2003.12.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bd7 7. e3 b5 ({RR} 7... e6 8. Bxc4 c5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Nf3 Be7 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. e4 Qb8 13. Bg5 Ng4 14. Bh4 Bd6 15. Bg3 Bxg3 16. hxg3 O-O 17. Qe2 {½-½ (17) Moiseenko,A (2646)-Akopian,V (2713) Kemer 2007}) ({RR} 7... e6 8. Nf3 c5 9. Bxc4 cxd4 10. exd4 Bc6 11. O-O Be7 12. Ne5 O-O 13. Re1 Nbd7 14. Nxc6 bxc6 15. a5 Nd5 16. Ne4 Rb8 17. Qc2 Bb4 18. Bd2 N7f6 19. Bd3 Bxd2 20. Qxd2 Rb4 21. Nc5 Qb8 22. b3 {Skindzier,S (2199)-Drabke,L (2386) Berkshire 2006 0-1 (51)}) 8. Nf3 ({RR} 8. Be2 e6 9. O-O Be7 10. Nf3 O-O 11. Ne5 Be8 12. axb5 cxb5 13. b3 b4 14. bxc4 a5 15. Bf3 Ra7 16. Nb5 Bxb5 17. cxb5 Qb6 18. Qe2 Nfd7 19. Nc6 Nxc6 20. Bxc6 Nf6 21. Bd2 a4 22. Qc4 Nd5 {Vokhidov,S (2596)-Bressy,T (2190) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (39)}) 8... Qb6 $146 ({RR} 8... e6 9. Ne5 a6 10. Qf3 Ra7 11. g4 Bd6 12. g5 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Nd5 14. Ne4 O-O 15. Rg1 Nb4 16. Nf6+ Kh8 17. Qh5 h6 18. g6 Nc2+ 19. Ke2 Be8 20. Qxh6+ gxh6 21. g7# {1-0 (21) Kahn,V-Amateur Paris 1932}) ({RR} 8... e6 9. Ne5 a5 10. Qf3 Ra7 11. g4 h6 12. h4 b4 13. Ne4 Bc8 14. Bxc4 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Rc7 16. f4 c5 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. f5 Qd5 19. Qxd5 exd5 20. Bd2 Bd7 21. Ke2 Nc6 22. Nxd7 Kxd7 23. e4 {Dudin,D (2138)-Rodchenkov,S (2361) Ufa 2004 ½-½ (31)}) 9. Ne5 Bc8 10. axb5 cxb5 11. Nxb5 Qxb5 12. Bxc4 Qb7 13. Bxf7+ Kd8 14. Bd2 e6 15. Ba5+ Ke7 16. Qa4 Nd5 17. Qe8+ Kf6 18. Ng4+ Kg5 19. h4+ Kxg4 20. Bxe6+ 1-0

[Event "Budapest FS12 GM"]
[Site "Budapest"]
[Date "2003.12.13"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Horvath, Peter"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A88"]
[WhiteElo "2457"]
[BlackElo "2450"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2003.12.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "HUN"]
[EventCategory "8"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 097 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.01.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 2. g3 Nf6 3. c4 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Nc3 d6 7. d5 c6 8. O-O e5 9. dxe6 Bxe6 10. b3 Na6 11. Bb2 Qe7 12. Qc2 Rad8 ({RR} 12... d5 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Rfd1 Rad8 17. Ne1 Nc7 18. Qb2+ Qf6 19. Qxf6+ Kxf6 20. Nd3 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Ne6 22. Kf1 Rd5 23. Rdc1 Rfd8 24. h4 h6 25. Rc4 Rd4 26. Rc3 g5 27. hxg5+ {Esipenko,A (2686)-Gholami Orimi,M (2428) Tornelo INT 2020 0-1 (61)}) ({RR} 12... d5 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Na4 Nab4 15. Qc1 Bxb2 16. Qxb2 b5 17. Nc3 Qf6 18. Rfc1 Rac8 19. a3 Na6 20. Rab1 Nac7 21. e3 Ne7 22. h4 h6 23. Ne2 Ncd5 24. Qxf6 Rxf6 25. Ned4 Bd7 26. Ne5 Be8 27. Rc5 {Li,G (2355)-Felmery,M (2149) Budapest HUN 2025 1-0 (38)}) 13. Rad1 Nb4 $146 ({RR} 13... Nc5 14. Nd4 Bd7 15. b4 Nce4 16. b5 Rc8 17. bxc6 bxc6 18. Nb1 Ng4 19. e3 Nexf2 20. Rxf2 Qxe3 21. Bc1 Qxd4 22. Rxd4 Bxd4 23. h3 Nxf2 24. Kh2 Ne4 25. Qd3 c5 26. Na3 Bc6 27. Nc2 Be5 28. Bf4 {Fernandez Vazquez,J (1984)-Garcia Blanco,O (2314) Santa Cruz de Tenerife 2018 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13... Rfe8 14. Ng5 Bc8 15. e3 h6 16. Nf3 Be6 17. Ne2 Bf7 18. Nf4 g5 19. Ne2 Bg6 20. Bd4 Ne4 21. Qb2 Nac5 22. b4 Ne6 23. Bxg7 Qxg7 24. Qxg7+ Kxg7 25. Rc1 a5 26. b5 Bh5 27. Nfd4 Bxe2 28. Nxe2 {Esipenko,A (2682)-Stefansson,V (2301) Tornelo INT 2020 1-0 (43)}) 14. Qc1 Ng4 15. Nd4 Bf7 16. h3 Nf6 17. Rfe1 d5 18. a3 Na6 19. cxd5 Nxd5 20. e4 Nxc3 21. Bxc3 fxe4 22. Bxe4 Qc5 23. b4 Qh5 24. Bg2 Nc7 25. g4 Qh4 26. Nf3 Rxd1 27. Qxd1 Qd8 28. Qxd8 Rxd8 29. Bxg7 Kxg7 30. Re7 Rc8 31. Ng5 Kf6 32. Rxf7+ Kxg5 33. Rxh7 a5 34. Kh2 axb4 35. axb4 Ne6 36. Rxb7 c5 37. Rb6 Nd4 38. Rd6 Nb3 39. bxc5 Nxc5 40. Kg3 Kh6 41. h4 Kg7 42. g5 Rb8 43. Bd5 Rb4 44. Rc6 Nd3 45. Rc7+ Kh8 46. f3 Nf4 47. Be4 Ne2+ 48. Kh3 Ng1+ 49. Kg4 Ne2 50. Rc6 1-0

[Event "Norwegian Club Championship /05 Asker 1"]
[Site "Asker"]
[Date "2004.12.05"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tisdall, Jonathan D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2471"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2004.??.??"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Na6 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bxa6 Qa5+ 11. b4 ({RR} 11. Qd2 Qxa6 12. Bd6 Bxd6 13. cxd6 Bg4 14. Nd4 Rfd8 15. f3 Bh5 16. Kf2 Rxd6 17. Rhc1 Bg6 18. Rc7 Re8 19. a3 h5 20. Rac1 Rdd8 21. R1c3 Qd6 22. g3 Rb8 23. Nb5 Qb6 24. Nd4 Qd6 25. Qc1 a6 {Komov,R (2220)-Pinheiro,I (2270) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (59)}) 11... Qxa6 $146 ({RR} 11... Qxb4+ 12. Qd2 Qxd2+ 13. Kxd2 bxa6 14. Rhc1 a5 15. Nd4 Bf6 16. Rab1 Bxd4 17. exd4 Ba6 18. c6 Rac8 19. c7 Bc4 20. Re1 f6 21. Bd6 Rfe8 22. Rxe8+ Rxe8 23. Rb8 {1-0 (23) Junge,R (2335)-Donko,M (2230) Kecskemet 1991}) 12. Nd4 b6 13. Bd6 Bxd6 14. cxd6 Bd7 15. a4 Qc4 16. Qb3 Qxb3 17. Nxb3 Rfd8 18. Kd2 Be8 19. Rhc1 Rxd6 20. Nd4 Rh6 21. h3 Rg6 22. g3 Rf6 23. f3 h5 24. Rc7 Rg6 25. g4 hxg4 26. hxg4 Rh6 27. Kc3 a6 28. Kb3 Rd8 29. Rac1 Bd7 30. Ra7 b5 31. a5 Kh7 32. Rcc7 Be8 33. Re7 Rc8 34. Rac7 Rd8 35. Re5 Rh1 36. Rh5+ Rxh5 37. gxh5 Bd7 38. Ra7 Bc8 39. Kc3 Re8 40. Kd2 f6 41. Ra8 Rg8 42. Nb3 Bb7 43. Ra7 1-0

[Event "Corus-C"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2004.01.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Lanchava, Tea"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2323"]
[BlackElo "2484"]
[PlyCount "102"]
[EventDate "2004.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Qe7 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Nbxd2 d6 7. Qc2 c5 $146 ({RR} 7... e5 8. e4 Bg4 9. d5 O-O 10. Be2 c6 11. O-O Nh5 12. Rfe1 Nf4 13. h3 Bd7 14. Bf1 f5 15. dxc6 Nxc6 16. Qc3 Rae8 17. b4 Qf6 18. Qe3 g5 19. exf5 Bxf5 20. b5 Nd8 21. g3 Qh6 22. h4 {Gruenfeld,E-Johner,P Berlin 1926 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 7... O-O 8. e3 c5 9. Be2 b6 10. O-O Bb7 11. Rfd1 Nbd7 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. b4 Nce4 14. Nxe4 Bxe4 15. Qb2 Rac8 16. Rac1 Rfd8 17. Nd2 Bb7 18. Bf3 Bxf3 19. Nxf3 d5 20. cxd5 Nxd5 {½-½ (20) Dao,T (2510)-Paragua,M (2526) Singapore 2008}) ({RR} 7... e5 8. dxe5 dxe5 9. e3 {½-½ (9) Ubaldo Suarez,M (1958)-Angeles Mercado,A (2083) San Jose CA USA 2024}) ({RR} 7... O-O 8. e3 e5 9. Bd3 b6 10. O-O Bb7 11. e4 Nbd7 12. Rfe1 Nh5 13. g3 g6 14. b4 a5 15. Rac1 axb4 16. axb4 c5 17. bxc5 bxc5 18. d5 Nb8 19. Rb1 Na6 20. Rb2 Nb4 21. Qb3 Bc8 22. Be2 {Abramavicius,L-Ribera Arnal,A Hamburg 1930 0-1 (42)}) 8. dxc5 dxc5 9. Ne5 Nbd7 10. Ndf3 Nxe5 11. Nxe5 Qc7 12. Qa4+ Ke7 13. f4 Nd7 14. Nd3 b6 15. g3 Bb7 16. Rg1 Rhd8 17. Nf2 Nf6 18. Qc2 Rd7 19. Bg2 Bxg2 20. Rxg2 Rad8 21. Rd1 Rxd1+ 22. Nxd1 Qc6 23. Rg1 Qd6 24. Rf1 Qd4 25. e3 Qe4 26. Rf2 Qc6 27. Rg2 Ng4 28. Qe2 Rxd1+ 29. Kxd1 Nxe3+ 30. Qxe3 Qxg2 31. Qe5 Qh1+ 32. Kc2 Qxh2+ 33. Kb3 Qxg3+ 34. Ka2 Qd3 35. Qc7+ Qd7 36. Qe5 f6 37. Qh5 Qd3 38. b3 Qc2+ 39. Ka1 Qxb3 40. Qxh7 Qxa3+ 41. Kb1 Qb3+ 42. Ka1 Qd1+ 43. Kb2 Kf7 44. Ka3 Qf3+ 45. Ka4 a6 46. f5 Qxf5 47. Qh2 e5 48. Qg2 e4 49. Qh2 Qe5 50. Qh1 e3 51. Qb7+ Kf8 0-1

[Event "Corus-C"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2004.01.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Janssen, Ruud"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A61"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2489"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2004.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. d5 d6 5. Nf3 exd5 6. cxd5 g6 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 10. Nd2 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Bg7 12. Nc4 O-O 13. e4 ({RR} 13. e3 Na6 14. Be2 Nc7 15. a4 b6 16. e4 Qe7 17. Qd2 Bd7 18. e5 Bxe5 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. Rxh6 Qg7 21. Rh2 Qg6 22. g4 Kg7 23. Bd3 Rfe8+ 24. Kf1 Qf6 25. Rh7+ Kf8 26. Ne4 Rxe4 27. Bxe4 Bxg4 {Agdestein,S (2545)-Gurevich,D (2505) Jerusalem 1986 ½-½ (32)}) 13... a6 $146 ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Be2 a6 15. a4 Bxc3+ 16. bxc3 Qf6 17. Qd2 Nd7 18. Ne3 Ne5 19. O-O Qg6 20. f4 Qxe4 21. fxe5 Qxe5 22. Nc4 Qxe2 23. Rae1 Qxc4 24. Rxe8+ Kg7 25. Qf2 f5 26. Qe1 Qxd5 27. Qe7+ Kg6 28. Rd8 {Bluebaum,M (2672)-Dyachuk,A (2312) chess.com INT 2023 1-0}) ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Be2 a6 15. a4 Bxc3+ 16. bxc3 Qf6 17. Qd2 Nd7 18. Ne3 Ne5 19. O-O Qg6 20. f4 Qxe4 21. fxe5 Qxe5 22. Nc4 Qxe2 23. Rae1 Qxc4 24. Rxe8+ Kg7 25. Qf2 f5 26. Qe1 Qxd5 27. Qe7+ Kg6 28. Rd8 {Bluebaum,M (2672)-Dyachuk,A (2312) chess.com INT 2023 1-0}) 14. a4 Qe7 15. Ne3 f5 16. exf5 Bxf5 17. g4 Bh7 18. Bd3 Bxd3 19. Qxd3 Nd7 20. Qc2 Rae8 21. O-O-O Rxf2 22. Qxf2 Qxe3+ 23. Qxe3 Rxe3 24. Rhe1 Rxe1 25. Rxe1 Be5 26. Ne4 Nb6 27. Kb1 Nxa4 28. b3 Nb6 29. Nxc5 Nxd5 30. Nxb7 Kg7 31. Na5 Nf6 32. Nc4 Nxg4 33. Nxe5 dxe5 34. Kc2 h5 35. Kd3 h4 36. Ke4 Kf6 37. Ra1 Nf2+ 38. Ke3 Ng4+ 39. Ke2 Kf5 40. Rxa6 Nf6 41. Rd6 g4 42. b4 h3 43. gxh3 gxh3 44. Kf1 e4 45. Rd8 Ke5 46. b5 Nd5 47. Rh8 Kd4 48. Rxh3 Kc4 49. Rh5 Nb6 50. Kf2 Kb4 51. Ke3 Na4 52. Kd4 Nb6 53. Kxe4 Na4 54. Kd4 Nb6 55. Rg5 Na4 56. Rh5 Nb6 57. Rh7 Kxb5 58. Rc7 Na4 59. Rc1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus-C"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2004.01.18"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Gagunashvili, Merab"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2484"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2004.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "9"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. a4 e6 6. Bg5 Nbd7 7. a5 dxc4 8. e4 h6 9. Bh4 Bb4 10. Qa4 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 g5 12. Bg3 Nxe4 13. Qxc4 Nxg3 14. hxg3 c5 $146 ({RR} 14... g4 15. Nd2 Nf6 16. Qd3 Qc7 17. Nc4 Bd7 18. Rb1 Kf8 19. Qd2 Kg7 20. Bd3 c5 21. Ne5 cxd4 22. cxd4 Rac8 23. Rxh6 Rxh6 24. Qg5+ Kf8 25. Qxh6+ Ke7 26. Qg7 Be8 27. Ng6+ Kd7 28. Qxf6 Qxa5+ 29. Ke2 {Peek,M (2375)-Agrest,E (2591) Gibraltar 2006 ½-½ (40)}) 15. Be2 cxd4 16. Rd1 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qf6 18. Qb4 Qe7 19. Rd6 Nf6 20. Qd4 e5 21. Nxe5 Be6 22. f4 Rd8 23. Qa4+ Kf8 24. Rxd8+ Qxd8 25. fxg5 Nd5 26. gxh6 Qg5 27. Qa3+ Ke8 28. Rh5 Qf6 29. Bd1 Ne7 30. Qf3 Nf5 31. Ba4+ Kf8 32. Qa3+ Kg8 33. Ng4 Qd4 34. Bd1 Kh7 35. Be2 Re8 36. Qd3 Qg1+ 37. Kd2 Rc8 38. Bf1 Qc5 39. Ne3 Qc1+ 40. Ke2 Rc3 41. Qxc3 Qxc3 42. Nxf5 Bc4+ 43. Kf2 Qd2+ 44. Kg1 Bxf1 0-1

[Event "Moscow Aeroflot op-A"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2004.02.20"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Shaposhnikov, Evgeny"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E38"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2573"]
[Annotator "Golod,Vitali"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2004.02.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 100"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 c5 5. dxc5 Bxc5 6. Nf3 Qb6 7. e3 a6 8. b3 Qc7 {Same position with rearrangement of moves also it is possible to receive,after 7...c7 8.b3 a6.} 9. Bb2 (9. g4 $5 {You can see my annotations to game: Bareev,E-Sakaev,K/Moscow,2001/CBM 86(1-0)(26)}) 9... b6 10. Be2 Bb7 11. g4 $5 {Typical move in this pawn structure.Besides White has several options:} (11. Rd1 $5 {You can see comments to Kiriakov,P-Tiviakov,S/Port Erin,1999/CBM 74(1-0)(Golod,V)(34)}) (11. h3 $6) ({and} 11. O-O) 11... Nxg4 $6 $146 {Honestly,I have to confess that accepting the pawn sacrifice is a very brave decision.However the game has shown a clear estimate...} ({The games,which have reached this position were continued as follows:} 11... h6 $5 12. Rg1 Nc6 13. O-O-O $5 (13. a3 Rc8 14. h4 h5 $5 $132 {Foisor,S-Hernandez,R/Balaguer,2003(0-1)(31)}) ({It deserves serious attention:} 13. h4 $5 d5 $1 (13... O-O-O $140 14. g5 hxg5 15. hxg5 Ne8 16. a3 $14 {[%cal Gb3b4,Ge1c1,Ga1d1] White has a clear advantage because of a bad position of e8}) (13... d6 $2 14. a3 {[%csl Rc5][%cal Gb3b4]}) 14. g5 hxg5 15. hxg5 Nd7 $1 (15... Nh5 $143 {[%cal Gh5g7]} 16. cxd5 Nb4 17. Qc1 $1 Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. Ba3 {[%csl Rc7]} Bd6 20. Qxc7 Bxc7 21. Rc1 $14 {[%csl Rh5]}) 16. cxd5 Nb4 17. Qd1 $5 {[%csl Yd1,Ye2] Protecting the knight on f3.} (17. Qd2 Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. Bxg7 Rh3 20. Nd4 Qh2 21. Rg4 $13) 17... Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. Bxg7 Rg8 20. Bb2 Bb4+ 21. Kf1 Qb7 $44) 13... O-O-O 14. a3 (14. h4 $6 d5 $1 15. g5 (15. a3 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Rxd1+ 17. Nxd1 Na5 $15 {[%csl Rc2,Rf3][%cal Gb7e4]}) 15... hxg5 16. hxg5 Nb4 17. Qb1 Ne4 $15) 14... Be7 15. h4 d6 $13 {Margvelashvili,G-Zhumabaev,R/Halkidiki,2003(½-½)(81)}) 12. Rg1 {[%csl Rg4,Rg7]} Nxh2 (12... Ne5 $6 13. Nxe5 Qxe5 14. O-O-O $36 {[%csl Gb2,Re5,Gg1,Rg7][%cal Gc3d5]}) (12... f5 $5 {[%csl Rf2,Yf5][%cal Gg4f2,Yf5e4] The idea is to keep White's king in the center.} 13. h3 (13. Ng5 $4 Qxh2 $19) ({Not enough for equality is:} 13. a3 $2 O-O 14. Na4 Be7 15. Bd4 Nc6 $1 16. Bxb6 Qb8 $15 {[%csl Rb6]}) 13... Nh2 $6 (13... Ne5 $5) {[%tqu "En","Find the best continuation for White?","","","c3d5","",10,"f3h2","",0,"f3g5","Similar continuation was in the game,but here the pawn on h2 remained on the board.",0]} 14. Nd5 $3 (14. Nxh2 $143 Qxh2 15. Rxg7 Bf8 16. Rg3 (16. Rg5 Be7 17. Rg7 $11 (17. Na4 Bxg5 18. Bxh8 Qh1+ 19. Kd2 Qh2 $13)) 16... Bd6 17. Bh5+ Kd8 18. Rg7 Qh1+ 19. Kd2 Qxh3 $15) (14. Ng5 $143 {Similar continuation was in the game,but here the pawn on h2 remained on the board.} Nc6 15. Na4 Bb4+ 16. Bc3 Qe5 $1 17. Rh1 (17. O-O-O Bxc3 18. Qxc3 ({Dubious is:} 18. Nxc3 $2 {in view of:} Nb4 19. Qd2 Qxc3+ $1 20. Qxc3 Nxa2+ 21. Kb2 Nxc3 22. Kxc3 Bc6 $1 $17 (22... h6 $2 {Look's so trivial but also so bad...} 23. Nf7 $3 {[%csl Rb7,Rd7][%cal Gf7e5,Gd1d7]})) 18... Qxc3+ 19. Nxc3 Ne7 $15 {[%cal Yb7h1]}) 17... Bxc3+ (17... b5 $5) 18. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 19. Nxc3 Nd4 $1 20. Rxh2 Nc2+ 21. Kd2 Nxa1 22. Kc1 {[%csl Ra1] /}) 14... Bb4+ $5 {Calm reaction.} (14... Nxf3+ $143 15. Bxf3 Bb4+ {[%csl Rf3]} 16. Kf1 Bxd5 ({Also loses a game:} 16... exd5 17. Bxg7 Rf8 18. Bh5+ Kd8 19. Bxf8 Bxf8 20. Qxf5 $18 {[%csl Rd8,Rf8][%cal Gg1g8]}) 17. Bxd5 Nc6 (17... exd5 $2 18. Bxg7 Rg8 19. Qxf5 Qd6 20. Qxh7 Qe6 (20... Rxg7 21. Rxg7 Kd8 22. Rd1 $18) 21. cxd5 Qxd5 22. Rg5 $1 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Gh7g8]} Qf7 (22... Rxg7 23. Qxg7 $18) (22... Qxg5 23. Qxg8+ Ke7 24. Bf8+ Kf6 25. Qxg5+ Kxg5 26. Bxb4 $18) 23. Qe4+ Be7 24. Rc1 $1 {[%cal Gc1c8]} Nc6 25. Rxc6 Rxg7 26. Rxg7 Qxg7 27. Rg6 {[%csl Ra8,Rg7]} Qa1+ (27... d5 28. Qe6 {[%csl Re8,Rg7][%cal Ge6c6]} Qa1+ 29. Kg2 $18) 28. Kg2 Kf7 29. Rg4 $18 {[%csl Ra8,Rf7][%cal Ge4a8,Ge4g6,Gg6g8]}) 18. Rxg7 Be7 19. Bf3 O-O-O 20. Rd1 $16) ({Even worse is:} 14... exd5 15. Bxg7 Rg8 (15... dxc4 16. Bxh8 Nxf3+ 17. Bxf3 Bb4+ 18. Kf1 Bxf3 19. Qxf5 $18 {[%csl Re8,Rf3][%cal Gg1g8]}) 16. Qxf5 {[%csl Re8,Gg1][%cal Gf5h5,Gg7f6]} Qd6 (16... Bb4+ 17. Nd2 {[%cal Ge2h5]}) 17. Qxh7 Bb4+ 18. Nd2 {[%csl Re8,Rg8][%cal Ge2h5]} (18. Kd1 dxc4+ 19. Nd4 Rxg7 20. Rxg7 Kd8 $16) 18... Bxd2+ (18... Rxg7 19. Qxg7 Bxd2+ (19... Kd8 20. Rg6 Qe7 21. Qd4 $18 {[%csl Rd8,Rh2][%cal Gd4b6,Gg6b6]}) 20. Kxd2 dxc4+ 21. Kc3 Kd8 22. Rad1 $18) 19. Kxd2 dxc4+ 20. Kc3 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Ge2h5,Gh7g8]} Rf8 (20... Rxg7 21. Qh8+ $1 Qf8 22. Bh5+ {[%csl Re8,Rf8,Rg7][%cal Gg1g7,Gh8f8]} Rg6 23. Bxg6+ Ke7 24. Qe5+ Kd8 25. Qxh2 $18) 21. Qh5+ Kd8 22. Rg6 Qe7 23. Bxf8 Qxf8 24. Qg5+ {[%csl Rd8,Rf8][%cal Gg6g8]} Kc7 25. Qg3+ {[%csl Rc7,Rh2]} d6 26. Rd1 $18) 15. Nxb4 (15. Kd1 $2 exd5 16. Bxg7 (16. Qxf5 $2 Rf8 17. Qh5+ g6 18. Qxh7 Nxf3 19. Qxg6+ Kd8 $19) 16... dxc4 17. Bxh8 (17. Qxf5 $2 Nxf3 {[%csl Rd1][%cal Gc7d6]} 18. Bxf3 Bxf3+ 19. Qxf3 Qd6+ 20. Bd4 Nc6 $19) 17... Be4 18. Qxc4 Qxc4 19. Bxc4 Bxf3+ 20. Be2 Nc6 $15 21. Rg8+ $140 $6 Bf8 {[%cal Ge8f7]}) 15... Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Bxf3 17. Rxg7 {[%csl Rf6][%cal Gb2f6]} (17. Qc3 $143 Nc6 18. Rxg7 O-O-O 19. Nxa6 Qh2 {[%csl Re1]} 20. Rg3 Bh5 $13) 17... Nc6 (17... Rf8 18. Qc3 Qh2 (18... Nc6 $143 19. Ba3 $1 {[%csl Rf8][%cal Yb4c2,Yg7e7]} Ne5 20. Nc2 $18) 19. Qe5 Qxe5 20. Bxe5 $16) 18. Nxc6 Bxc6 (18... Qxc6 19. Bf6 {[%csl Re8][%cal Gc2c3,Gf6h4] /+-}) 19. Bf6 {[%csl Re8][%cal Gc2d1,Gd1h5] White has a very strong attack because Black's king didn't escape from the center.White threaten to transfer the queen to "f6" or to "h5". For example,if:} Rf8 {then:} 20. Qd1 $3 Rxf6 $140 21. Qh5+ Kd8 22. Rg8+ Ke7 23. Qxh7+ Rf7 (23... Kd6 24. Rd1+ Bd5 (24... Kc5 25. Qe7+ {[%csl Rc5,Rc7]}) 25. Rxa8 $18) 24. Qh4+ Kd6 25. O-O-O+ Bd5 26. Qf4+ Kc6 27. cxd5+ exd5 28. Qxc7+ Kxc7 29. Rxa8 $18) 13. Ng5 $1 {[%csl Rh2]} (13. Nxh2 $143 Qxh2 14. Rxg7 Nc6 15. Na4 (15. Ne4 $2 Bb4+ 16. Nd2 $15) 15... O-O-O (15... Bf8 $6 16. Rg3 {[%csl Rb6]} Bb4+ 17. Bc3 Bxc3+ 18. Qxc3 O-O-O 19. Nxb6+ Kc7 20. c5 $14) 16. Nxc5 bxc5 17. Bf3 $44 {[%cal Ge1c1,Ga1d1]}) 13... Nc6 ({Of course not:} 13... h6 $2 14. Nxf7 $1 {[%csl Re8][%cal Ge2h5] with decisive attack.}) (13... f5 14. O-O-O Nc6 15. Na4 {[%csl Re8,Rg7][%cal Ge2h5,Yb2g7]} Rg8 16. Nxc5 bxc5 17. Bh5+ g6 18. f4 {[%csl Rh2]} O-O-O (18... gxh5 $4 19. Nxe6 $18 {[%csl Rc7,Rg8]}) 19. Qxh2 gxh5 20. Bf6 Rde8 21. Qxh5 Kb8 22. Qxh7 $14) 14. O-O-O Ne5 $6 {[%cal Yh2f3] Black had a uneasy choice, and he did not manage to find the best continuation.} (14... f5 {transfers to 13...f5}) ({Deserves more attention:} 14... d5 $1 15. Bh5 {[%csl Rf7]} (15. cxd5 $143 Nb4 16. Qe4 O-O-O 17. Kb1 h6 18. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 19. Qxe6+ Qd7 20. Qxd7+ Rxd7 21. Rg2 {[%csl Rh2]} Nxd5 22. Nxd5 Bxd5 23. Rxh2 $13) 15... g6 {[%csl Rc1][%cal Gd5d4,Gc7f4]} 16. Nxd5 exd5 17. Bxh8 Nb4 $132) (14... Be7 $143 {[%tqu "En","White has a typical sacrifice that completely destroys Black's position?","","","g5f7","",10]} 15. Nxf7 $1 Nb4 (15... Kxf7 $2 16. Nd5 $1 {[%csl Gb2,Rc7,Ye2,Rg7][%cal Gc2f5,Gg1g7,Ye2h5]} exd5 17. Bh5+ g6 18. Bxg6+ $18) 16. Qb1 Kxf7 {[%tqu "En","and what now ?","","","g1g7","",10]} 17. Rxg7+ $3 {[%csl Gb2,Rc7]} Ke8 18. Rxh7 Rxh7 19. Qxh7 {[%csl Re8,Rh2][%cal Ge2h5]} d5 20. a3 Bd6 21. Qh6 $18 {[%csl Re6]}) (14... h6 $2 {is still losing because of:} 15. Nxf7 $1) 15. Nce4 $1 $16 {[%csl Gb2,Ye2,Ge4,Gg5,Rg7][%cal Gf2f4,Ye2h5] Black's position already very difficult.} O-O-O ({Not better is:} 15... h5 {[%cal Gh2g4]} 16. Nxc5 bxc5 17. f4 Nhg4 (17... Neg4 $144 18. Bxg7 Rg8 19. Qh7 {[%csl Rg8]}) 18. Bxg4 Nxg4 19. Bxg7 Rg8 20. Qh7 $16 {[%csl Rg8]}) ({or} 15... h6 $6 16. Nxc5 bxc5 17. Ne4 $16 {[%csl Rd6,Rg7][%cal Ge4d6,Gg1g7]} d5 $140 $2 18. Nxc5 {[%csl Re5][%cal Gc5b7]} Nhf3 (18... Qxc5 $2 19. Bxe5 dxc4 20. Bxh2 $18) 19. Bxf3 Nxf3 20. Nxe6 {[%csl Gb2,Gc2,Re8,Gg1][%cal Gg1g7]} fxe6 21. Rxg7 $18) 16. Nxc5 bxc5 (16... Qxc5 $2 17. Ne4 Bxe4 18. Qxe4 Nc6 19. Qh4 $18 {[%csl Rh2]}) 17. f4 $146 Nef3 (17... f6 $143 18. Ne4 Ng6 19. Rh1 {[%csl Ye2,Gh1,Rh2][%cal Gh1h2]} Nxf4 20. Nd6+ Kb8 21. Rxh2 $18) 18. Nxf7 Nxg1 (18... Rhg8 $2 {is refuted by:} 19. Nxd8 Nxg1 (19... Qxd8 20. Rg3 $18 {[%csl Rf3,Rh2]}) 20. Nxb7 Nxe2+ 21. Qxe2 Qxb7 22. Qxh2 $18) 19. Rxg1 Nf3 20. Rxg7 Rhg8 21. Nxd8 Qxd8 22. Bf6 $6 ({Looks more convincing:} 22. Qxh7 $142 {but Black still can defends with:} Rh8 $1 (22... Rxg7 $143 23. Qxg7 Bc6 24. Bc3 $16 {[%csl Rf3][%cal Ga2a3,Gb3b4,Gg7g4]}) 23. Qd3 {[%csl Rf3][%cal Gg7g3]} Rh1+ 24. Bd1 {[%csl Rc5][%cal Gd3d6]} Ne1 25. Qd6 Nd3+ $1 26. Qxd3 Bf3 27. Bf6 {[%csl Rd7,Yd8][%cal Gd3d7,Yd8d7,Gf6d8]} Qc7 28. Rg8+ Kb7 29. Be5 Qc6 30. Qg6 $1 {[%csl Rb7,Gg6,Gg8][%cal Gg6e8]} Rxd1+ 31. Kb2 Rd2+ 32. Ka3 Ka7 33. Qe8 {[%csl Ra7]} Qb7 34. Bc3 Rd3 35. Rg7 $1 Bc6 36. Ba5 $16 {[%csl Rc5][%cal Ge8f8]}) 22... Qf8 23. Qxh7 Rh8 $1 (23... Rxg7 $143 24. Bxg7 Qe8 25. Bc3 Kc7 {[%csl Yb7,Rf3][%cal Ye8a8]} 26. a3 {[%cal Gb3b4] /+-}) (23... Qxf6 $2 24. Rxg8+ Kc7 25. Qh8 $18) 24. Qg6 {[%csl Rc5][%cal Yf6e7]} Rh1+ 25. Kb2 Rg1 26. Bg5 Rxg5 $2 {Black throws the game just a few moves before it has been really started:} (26... Nh4 $1 27. Qh7 $140 Be4 $1 28. Rg8 Bxh7 29. Rxf8+ Kc7 {[%cal Gg1g2]} 30. Ka3 Bb1 $1 {[%csl Ra2][%cal Gg1g2]} 31. Bd8+ Kd6 32. Bxh4 Rg2 33. Re8 Rxe2 34. Be7+ Kc7 35. Bxc5 Rxa2+ 36. Kb4 {/}) 27. fxg5 $18 {The further resistance is senseless.} Ne5 28. Qf6 Qd6 29. Rg8+ Kc7 30. Kc3 1-0

[Event "Moscow Aeroflot op-A"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2004.02.21"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Berkes, Ferenc"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E61"]
[WhiteElo "2602"]
[BlackElo "2484"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2004.02.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 100"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.06.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.06.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 c6 6. e4 d6 7. Nge2 e5 8. d5 cxd5 9. cxd5 Bd7 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. h3 Nc5 11. Be3 Bd7 12. O-O Rc8 13. b4 Na6 14. a3 b6 15. Rc1 Nc7 16. Qd3 Qe8 17. Rfd1 Nb5 18. Nxb5 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Bxb5 20. Qd2 Qd7 21. Nc3 Bc4 22. a4 Rc8 23. b5 h5 24. f3 {Rojas Alarcon,J (2365)-Tang,T (2068) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (51)}) 10. O-O ({RR} 10. h3 b5 11. a3 a5 12. O-O Na6 13. Be3 Qb8 14. Qd2 Nc5 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Rfc1 a4 17. Nd1 Qb6 18. Qe3 Rfc8 19. Rc2 Bf8 20. Nc1 Qb8 21. Qg5 Ne8 22. Ne3 f6 23. Qh4 Qb6 24. Ne2 c4 {Stanojoski,Z (2455)-Nedev,T (2487) Gevgelija 2002 ½-½ (76)}) 10... b5 11. a3 $146 ({RR} 11. b4 Bg4 12. Nxb5 Qd7 13. Nbc3 Bh3 14. f3 a5 15. b5 Qa7+ 16. Kh1 Bxg2+ 17. Kxg2 Nbd7 18. a4 Rfc8 19. Qd3 Nc5 20. Qb1 Nfd7 21. Be3 Nb6 22. Rc1 Rc7 23. Nd1 Rac8 24. Nb2 f5 25. exf5 e4 {Stany,G (2522)-Ozdemir,S (2191) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (39)}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 Na6 12. a3 b4 13. axb4 Nxb4 14. Na2 Nxa2 15. Rxa2 Bb5 16. Re1 Qb6 17. Be3 Qb8 18. Nc1 Rc8 19. f3 Qc7 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 Nd7 22. Nd3 f5 23. Nf2 Nb6 24. Qd3 Qc4 25. Rfa1 Qxd3 {Neuman,P (2392)-Mladek,R (2266) Ricany 2019 ½-½ (59)}) 11... a5 12. Be3 Na6 13. b4 Ng4 14. Bd2 axb4 15. axb4 f5 16. h3 Nf6 17. Qb3 Nh5 18. f3 Qb6+ 19. Kh2 Nc7 20. Rfc1 Nf6 21. Nd1 Rxa1 22. Rxa1 Ra8 23. Be3 Qb7 24. Rc1 Rc8 25. Ndc3 Na8 26. exf5 gxf5 27. f4 e4 28. Nd4 Nb6 29. Nc6 Nc4 30. Nxb5 Qxb5 31. Bf1 Bxc6 32. Bxc4 Bxd5 33. Bxd5+ Nxd5 34. Rxc8+ Kf7 35. Rc2 Ke6 36. Rc4 Kd7 37. Bf2 e3 38. Be1 Nb6 39. Rc2 Nd5 40. Ra2 Bd4 41. Qc2 Nf6 42. Qa4 Qxa4 43. Rxa4 Bb6 44. Kg2 d5 45. Kf3 d4 46. Ke2 h5 47. Ra6 Kc6 48. Kd3 Kb5 49. Rxb6+ Kxb6 50. Kxd4 Kb5 51. Ke5 Ne4 52. Kxf5 Nd2 53. g4 Nf3 54. Bg3 h4 55. Ke4 Nd2+ 56. Kxe3 hxg3 57. h4 Kxb4 58. h5 Kc5 59. h6 Ne4 60. Kxe4 1-0

[Event "Moscow Aeroflot op-A"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2004.02.24"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stefansson, Hannes"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2572"]
[PlyCount "49"]
[EventDate "2004.02.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Ne4 6. Qd3 Qa5 7. Qxe4 Bxc3+ 8. Bd2 Bxd2+ 9. Nxd2 O-O 10. Bg2 ({RR} 10. dxc5 Nc6 11. Bg2 b6 12. Qe3 Bb7 13. O-O Qxc5 14. Qxc5 bxc5 15. Rfd1 Rab8 16. Nb3 Ne5 17. Nxc5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Rxb2 19. Nxd7 Nxd7 20. Rxd7 Rc2 21. Rxa7 g5 22. a4 Rxe2 23. Rd1 Rc2 24. Rd4 Kg7 {Onischuk,A (2659)-Van Wely,L (2662) Tromsoe 2014 1-0 (36)}) 10... d6 ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. dxc5 Qxc5 12. O-O b5 13. Rfc1 bxc4 14. Qxc4 Qxc4 15. Nxc4 d5 16. Nb6 axb6 17. Rxc6 b5 18. Rc7 Rd8 19. e4 dxe4 20. Bxe4 Rb8 21. b3 b4 22. Rac1 Kf8 23. h4 h6 24. Ra7 Bd7 25. Rc4 {Pechac,J (2600)-Petrov,N (2567) Austria AUT 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 11. dxc5 $146 ({RR} 11. Qe3 cxd4 12. Qxd4 Rd8 13. O-O Nc6 14. Qe3 Qe5 15. Qxe5 Nxe5 16. f4 Ng4 17. Rf3 Bd7 18. Rd3 Bc6 19. Rd1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 d5 21. Nf1 Nf6 22. Ne3 Re8 23. cxd5 exd5 24. Kf3 Re7 25. Nxd5 Nxd5 {Vassin,V-Ooi,C Moscow 1994 1-0 (55)}) ({RR} 11. Qe3 cxd4 12. Qxd4 Nc6 13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. O-O Rd8 15. Nb3 Qc7 16. c5 d5 17. f4 f6 18. Rf2 Re8 19. e4 e5 20. fxe5 Rxe5 21. exd5 Rxd5 22. Qf4 Qe7 23. Rd2 Re5 24. Rad1 Bh3 25. Qf3 Re8 {Salman,J (2240)-Antonio,R (2540) Hawaii 1998 0-1}) 11... dxc5 12. Qe3 Rd8 13. Rd1 Qc7 14. O-O Bd7 15. Qf4 e5 16. Qe3 Na6 17. Ne4 Bc6 18. Nc3 Rd4 19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. cxb5 Nb4 21. Qb3 a5 22. Rxd4 cxd4 23. a3 Qc2 24. Qxc2 Nxc2 25. Bxb7 1-0

[Event "Reykjavik op 21st"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2004.03.11"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Thorfinnsson, Bjorn"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D03"]
[WhiteElo "2340"]
[BlackElo "2484"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2004.03.07"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. c3 Nc6 7. Nbd2 d5 8. O-O Nd7 9. a3 ({RR} 9. Re1 Qb6 10. c4 e6 11. Nb3 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Na5 13. Nxa5 Qxa5 14. Qb3 cxd4 15. exd4 Nb6 16. Bb5 a6 17. Bd3 Nd5 18. Be4 Nf6 19. Bxf6 Bxf6 20. d5 Rd8 21. Rad1 Kg7 22. h4 Qb5 23. Qe3 exd5 {Narayanan,S (2649)-Andreikin,D (2729) Almaty KAZ 2024 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 9. h3 Re8 10. Bc2 Qb6 11. Rb1 e5 12. dxe5 Ndxe5 13. e4 Be6 14. Nxe5 Nxe5 15. f4 c4+ 16. Kh1 Nd3 17. Bxd3 cxd3 18. f5 Bd7 19. fxg6 Qxg6 20. Be3 dxe4 21. Qb3 Be5 22. g4 b6 23. Rf2 Bg3 {Mihopoulos,K (2080)-Midilesh,M (1973) Belgrade SRB 2025 0-1}) 9... h6 $146 ({RR} 9... Qc7 10. b4 cxd4 11. cxd4 e5 12. dxe5 Ncxe5 13. Rc1 Qb6 14. Be2 a5 15. b5 Re8 16. a4 Nc5 17. Nxe5 Bxe5 18. Nf3 Bg7 19. Nd4 Be6 20. Bf3 Rac8 21. h3 Ne4 22. Nxe6 Qxe6 23. Bf4 Nc3 24. Qb3 {Le Tuan Minh (2567)-Yeremyan,A (2279) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 9... Qc7 10. b4 cxd4 11. cxd4 e5 12. dxe5 Ncxe5 13. Rc1 Qb6 14. Be2 a5 15. b5 Re8 16. a4 Nc5 17. Nxe5 Bxe5 18. Nf3 Bg7 19. Nd4 Be6 20. Bf3 Rac8 21. h3 Ne4 22. Nxe6 Qxe6 23. Bf4 Nc3 24. Qb3 {Le Tuan Minh (2567)-Yeremyan,A (2279) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (34)}) 10. Bh4 g5 11. Bg3 e5 12. Nxe5 Ndxe5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 Bxe5 15. f4 Bg7 16. fxg5 Qxg5 17. Qf3 Bg4 18. Qf4 Rae8 19. Rae1 Qxf4 20. Rxf4 h5 21. Nf1 Bh6 22. Ra4 a6 23. h3 Bd7 24. Rh4 Re5 25. g4 Rfe8 26. Rxh5 Rxh5 27. gxh5 Re5 28. Kf2 Rxh5 29. Ng3 Re5 30. e4 c4 31. Bf1 Bf4 32. Kf3 Bh6 33. Bg2 f5 34. Kf2 dxe4 35. Rd1 Ba4 36. Rd6 Bf8 37. Rg6+ Kf7 38. Rg5 Kf6 39. h4 Bh6 40. Rh5 Kg6 41. Bh3 Bd7 42. Bf1 Rb5 43. Bxc4 Rxb2+ 44. Kg1 f4 45. Rd5 fxg3 46. h5+ Kf6 47. Rd6+ Kg5 48. Rxd7 Kh4 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik op 21st"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2004.03.12"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Sedlak, Nikola"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2539"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2004.03.07"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 g6 3. Bxf6 exf6 4. e3 d5 5. g3 Bd6 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nd2 O-O 8. Ne2 f5 ({RR} 8... Re8 9. c4 dxc4 10. Nxc4 Bb4+ 11. Nc3 Nd7 12. h4 Nf8 13. h5 Be6 14. Nd2 Nd7 15. a3 Bf8 16. g4 f5 17. gxf5 Bxf5 18. Bh3 Qh4 19. Qf3 Bxh3 20. Qxh3 Qxh3 21. Rxh3 Nf6 22. hxg6 fxg6 23. O-O-O {Fier,A (2534)-Bodnaruk,A (2334) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (41)}) 9. c4 dxc4 10. Nxc4 Bb4+ 11. Nd2 $146 ({RR} 11. Nc3 Be6 12. Nd2 Re8 13. O-O Nd7 14. a3 Bf8 15. b4 a6 16. Qc2 Rc8 17. Na4 b6 18. Rfc1 Nf6 19. Qd1 Bd5 20. Bf1 a5 21. bxa5 bxa5 22. Nc5 Bh6 23. Rc3 Ng4 24. Nc4 Bxc4 25. Bxc4 Nxe3 {Svicevic,R (2243)-Bjelic,B (1890) Zrenjanin 2018 1-0 (36)}) 11... Be6 12. O-O Bxd2 13. Qxd2 Bd5 14. Bxd5 Qxd5 15. Nc3 Qd8 16. d5 cxd5 17. Nxd5 Nc6 18. Rfd1 Re8 19. Rac1 f6 20. b4 Re6 21. b5 Ne5 22. Qb4 Qf8 23. Qb3 Kg7 24. Nc7 Re7 25. Ne6+ Rxe6 26. Qxe6 Rd8 27. Qb3 Rxd1+ 28. Rxd1 Qc8 29. Kg2 g5 30. f4 Nf7 31. Qd5 g4 32. Rd2 h5 33. a4 Kg6 34. Kf2 Qc3 35. Ke2 Qa1 36. Qxb7 Qxa4 37. Qd5 Qb4 38. Ra2 Qb1 39. Rxa7 Qb2+ 40. Kd3 Qb1+ 41. Kc4 Qc1+ 42. Kb4 Qe1+ 43. Kc5 Qxe3+ 44. Qd4 Qc1+ 45. Kb6 h4 46. Rc7 Qh1 47. Qd7 1-0

[Event "Reykjavik op 21st"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2004.03.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stefansson, Hannes"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2484"]
[BlackElo "2572"]
[PlyCount "158"]
[EventDate "2004.03.07"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 099 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.05.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 h6 4. Bxf6 Qxf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Qd2 c6 7. f4 e5 8. dxe5 dxe5 9. f5 Bb4 10. O-O-O Nd7 11. Nf3 Qe7 12. g4 $146 ({RR} 12. a3 Ba5 13. Kb1 Nf6 14. Bd3 Bd7 15. Rhe1 b5 16. g4 Bb6 17. h3 O-O-O 18. Na2 Kb8 19. Qc1 c5 20. c4 b4 21. Bf1 Bc6 22. Rd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 bxa3 24. bxa3 Ne8 25. Qb2 f6 26. a4 Qb7 {Thorhallsson,T (2459)-Stefansson,H (2572) Reykjavik 2004 ½-½ (56)}) ({RR} 12. Qe1 Nc5 13. a3 Bxc3 14. Qxc3 Nxe4 15. Qxe5 Qxe5 16. Nxe5 O-O 17. Rd4 Bxf5 18. Bd3 Rae8 19. Bxe4 Rxe5 20. Bxf5 Rxf5 21. Rd7 Re8 22. Rxb7 Re2 23. Rxa7 Rff2 24. Rb7 Rxc2+ 25. Kb1 Rxg2 26. h4 Rc4 {Bhat,V (2409)-Oms Pallisse,J (2511) Andorra 2006 0-1 (45)}) 12... Nf6 13. Bd3 Bd7 14. h3 O-O-O 15. Kb1 Kb8 16. Rhe1 Bc8 17. a3 Ba5 18. b4 Bc7 19. Na4 g6 20. Qc3 gxf5 21. exf5 Rhe8 22. Nc5 Nd5 23. Qb3 Nf4 24. Bc4 Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 Rf8 26. Qe3 h5 27. Ne4 f6 28. Nh4 Bb6 29. Qf3 hxg4 30. hxg4 Qg7 31. Ng3 Rh8 32. Rh1 Rh6 33. Rh2 Bg1 34. Rh1 Bd4 35. Ne4 Qh8 36. Qg3 Nd5 37. Rh2 Ne3 38. Bd3 Qg8 39. Nf3 Rxh2 40. Qxh2 Nxg4 41. Qg3 Bb6 42. Nxf6 Nxf6 43. Qxe5+ Bc7 44. Qxf6 Qd5 45. Nd2 Be5 46. Qh4 Bxf5 47. Qc4 Qh1+ 48. Nf1 Bd7 49. Qe4 Qh5 50. Ne3 Qg5 51. Ka2 Bh8 52. Qh1 Qe5 53. Qc1 Bf6 54. Bc4 Bg5 55. Qd1 Kc7 56. Nf1 Bf6 57. Qc1 Qc3 58. Bb3 Bd4 59. Qf4+ Be5 60. Qc1 Kc8 61. Bg8 Bg7 62. Bf7 Bf5 63. Ne3 Bh6 64. Qf1 Bd7 65. Nd1 Qxc2+ 66. Nb2 Bg7 67. Qb1 Qc3 68. Bb3 Kc7 69. Qc2 Qd4 70. Qe2 Be5 71. Bg8 Bg4 72. Qc2 Bf5 73. Qe2 b5 74. Bf7 Be4 75. Bg8 Kd6 76. Bf7 Bd5+ 77. Bxd5 cxd5 78. Nd3 Qa1+ 79. Kb3 Qb1+ 0-1

[Event "Dubai op 6th"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2004.04.23"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Harikrishna, Pentala"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2599"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2004.04.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. b3 Bg4 7. Be2 e6 8. h3 Bh5 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Bb2 Bd6 11. Ne5 Bxe2 12. Nxe2 dxc4 13. bxc4 c5 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Qxd7+ Kxd7 17. cxb5 axb5 18. Rfd1+ Ke7 19. Nd4 Bxd4 20. Bxd4 Rhc8 21. Rd2 $146 ({RR} 21. Rab1 Rxa2 22. Rxb5 Rac2 23. Bb2 R2c7 24. Be5 Rc1 25. Rb7+ Kf8 26. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 27. Kh2 Rc8 28. f3 Kg8 29. e4 h6 30. h4 Rd8 31. Bxf6 gxf6 32. g4 Kg7 33. Kg3 Rd3 34. Rb5 Ra3 35. Rc5 {½-½ (35) Pedersen,S (2427)-Lobzhanidze,D (2444) Gausdal 2000}) 21... g6 22. Rb2 Rcb8 23. f3 Nd7 24. e4 h5 25. Rd1 Rb7 26. Bc3 f6 27. Rbd2 Ne5 28. Bb4+ Kf7 29. a3 g5 30. Kf2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dubai op 6th"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2004.04.24"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2616"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2004.04.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 32]} 1. d4 {Leko,Peter} Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 d5 4. e3 {A solid continuation.} ({The alternatives are:} 4. f3) ({and} 4. Nd2) 4... c6 {That move has already tried by strong GM's. Black prevents c2-c4 and wants to get a ''Slav'' type of position.} ({The most common continuations are:} 4... Bf5) (4... e6) ({and} 4... c5) 5. Bd3 {The most natural and common move. White completes the development and intending to advance his ''c'' pawn.} ({After} 5. f3 Nf6 6. c4 e6 7. Nc3 Nbd7 {black has a good version of ''Meran'' variation due to white's pawn on f3, which takes an important square for g1.}) (5. Nd2 Nxd2 6. Qxd2 Bf5 7. f3 e6 8. g4 Bg6 9. h4 h6 (9... h5 $5) 10. Ne2 Bd6 11. O-O-O Qc7 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Nf4 Bh7 14. g5 $36 {1-0 Piket,J-Miles,R/Sremic Krsko 1998/EXT 99 (34)}) 5... Nf6 {In my opinion,after that move black cannot hope for an equalizing, since white has won a tempo for his development and can prepare a standard plan with c2-c4.} (5... Nd7 6. Bxe4 dxe4 7. Nc3 Nf6 8. Nge2 Bf5 9. Ng3 e6 10. Bg5 Bb4 11. O-O Bxc3 12. bxc3 h6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. f3 Qg5 15. f4 $14 {½-½ Zaichik,G-Anand,V/Coimbatore 1987/EXT 97 (55)}) (5... Qb6 6. Bxe4 ({RR} 6. Bxe4 Qxb2 7. Nd2 dxe4 8. Nxe4 Qb4+ 9. c3 Qa5 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. O-O g6) 6... Qxb2 7. Nd2 dxe4 8. Ne2 Nd7 9. Nxe4 g6 10. O-O Bg7 11. Qd3 Qb6 12. a4 O-O 13. a5 Qd8 14. Qc3 $14 {1-0 Hodgson,J-Smejkal,J/Germany 1996/GER-chT (34)}) ({comes to consideration:} 5... Nd6 $5 6. Nf3 (6. Nd2 Nd7 7. Ne2 g6 8. h4 h5 9. c3 Bg7 10. Nf3 Nf6 11. Ng5 Bf5 {½-½ Prie,E-Istratescu,A/Nantes FRA 2003 (11)}) 6... Bg4 7. Nbd2 e6 8. c3 Nd7 9. Qc2 Bh5 10. O-O Bg6 11. Rae1 Be7 12. Bxg6 hxg6 13. c4 Nxc4 14. Nxc4 dxc4 15. Qxc4 Nb6 16. Qc2 Bd6 17. Ne5 Qc7 18. Rc1 Nd7 $11 {½-½ Le Roux,J-Istratescu,A/Guingamp FRA 2004 (90)}) ({RR} 5... Qb6 6. Qc1 Qa5+ ({RR} 6... Nd7 7. Bxe4 dxe4 8. Nd2 Nf6 9. Ne2 Bf5 10. Ng3 Bg6 11. Be5) 7. c3 Bf5 8. f3 ({RR} 8. Qc2 Bg6 9. f3 Nf6 10. e4 e6) 8... Nd6 9. Bxf5 Nxf5 10. e4 Nh4 11. Bg3 Ng6 12. Ne2 e6 13. Nd2 Be7 14. O-O O-O 15. Qc2 Nd7 16. Rae1 Rac8 17. b4 Qd8 ({RR} 17... Qa6) ({RR} 17... Qb6 18. Nb3) 18. Qb3 b5 19. a4 a6 20. a5 {Adams,M (2660)-Leko,P (2605) Groningen 1995 CBM 051 [Leko,Peter] ½-½ (58)} ({RR} 20. Ra1 Ra8 21. Ra2 Nb6 22. axb5 axb5)) ({RR} 5... Bf5 6. f3 Nd6 7. Bxd6 Bxd3 8. Bxb8) 6. c4 ({RR} 6. Nf3 Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 8. O-O Nbd7 9. c4 Bg6 10. Nc3 e6 11. c5 Be7 12. b4 b6 13. a4 O-O 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. Bg3 bxc5 17. bxc5 e5 18. Bxg6 hxg6 19. Bxe5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Bxc5 {Perez Cruz,A (1984)-Devaev,A (2325) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (84)}) 6... Na6 $146 {A dubious method of development, because the knight hasn't good perspectives.} (6... e6 7. Nf3 Be7 8. Ne5 Nbd7 9. O-O O-O 10. Nd2 $14 {0-1 Heisel,G-Strizak,N/Germany 2000/EXT 2001 (46)}) (6... Be6 7. Nd2 dxc4 8. Nxc4 Bxc4 9. Bxc4 e6 10. Nf3 (10. a3 $5) 10... Bb4+ 11. Ke2 Bd6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Qb3 Nbd7 14. Rhd1 O-O 15. Kf1 $14 {½-½ Torre,E-Hort,V/Bad Homburg 1998/CBM 66 (26)}) ({RR} 6... e6 7. Nc3 Bd6 8. Bxd6 Qxd6 9. c5 Qe7 10. Nf3 Nbd7 11. Be2 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Qd4 Nxf3+ 14. Bxf3 Bf5 15. O-O O-O {½-½ (15) Haigh,T (1882)-Holland,R (1704) Wales 2008}) ({RR} 6... g6 7. Nc3 Bg7 8. Nf3 O-O 9. O-O dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nbd7 11. h3 Nb6 12. Bb3 Nbd5 13. Be5 b6 14. Qe2 Bb7 15. Rfd1 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Qc8 17. e4 e6 18. c4 a5 19. a3 a4 20. Ba2 c5 21. d5 {Reis,P (2380)-Galego,L (2451) Natal 2016 0-1}) 7. a3 {That move is not necessary at all,but it's quite useful.} (7. Nc3 $5 Nb4 (7... Qb6 8. a3 {[%csl Ra6,Rb6]}) 8. Be2 Bf5 9. Rc1 dxc4 10. Bxc4 e6 11. Bg5 (11. Nf3 $6 Nbd5 $1 {[%csl Rf4][%cal Gd5f4]} 12. Bg5 $140 $2 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Ba3 $17 {[%csl Rc1]}) 11... Be7 12. Nf3 $14) 7... Bg4 8. Nf3 {A quiet choice. White is trying to get a stable advantage without any ''risky'' decisions.} ({Deserved attention also} 8. f3 $5 Bh5 (8... Be6 9. c5 Nh5 10. Bg5 $14) 9. Nc3 e6 10. Nge2 Nc7 (10... dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nc7 12. e4 $14) 11. c5 $36 {[%csl Rc7][%cal Gb2b4,Gg2g4,Gh2h4] and black's position is unpleasant enough-the c7 is not placed well and that doesn't allows black to prepare e6-e5. On the other hand,white may seize a lot of space,advancing his pawns on both sides.}) 8... e6 9. Nc3 Nc7 (9... dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nc7 11. Qb3 $1 Rb8 12. Ne5 $36) 10. c5 $1 {A correct decision from strategical point of view - white has to prevent the activization of c7.} ({after} 10. O-O dxc4 11. Bxc4 Ncd5 12. Bg5 Be7 $14 {white could get a very solid position.}) 10... Be7 11. b4 {Too softy! White chooses a long plan of advancing a queenside pawns.} ({White could play more energetically:} 11. Qb3 $1 Rb8 ({there is no time for} 11... Bxf3 {in view of} 12. Qxb7 $1 $18 {[%csl Rc6,Rc7]}) 12. Ne5 Bf5 (12... Bh5 13. Qa4 $1 $16 {[%csl Rc6][%cal Ge5c6]}) 13. Bxf5 exf5 14. Qc2 Qc8 15. h3 O-O 16. g4 $36 {with a dangerous initiative.}) 11... O-O 12. h3 Bh5 $6 {That allows white to create an additional target for the kside attack-that makes black's position very dangerous.} (12... Bxf3 $142 13. gxf3 (13. Qxf3 Nd7 14. O-O Re8 $14 {[%cal Ge7f6,Ge6e5]}) 13... Nd7 14. Qc2 f5 $14) 13. g4 $1 ({After} 13. O-O Nd7 14. a4 Bf6 15. Bd6 Re8 $132 {black has a reasonable counterplay in the centre.}) 13... Bg6 14. Bxg6 hxg6 15. Ne5 {This knight can be easily exchanged by black's knight.} (15. Qd3 $142 Nd7 (15... a5 16. b5 Nxb5 17. Nxb5 cxb5 18. Qxb5 $16 {[%csl Ra5,Rb7]}) 16. h4 $16) 15... a5 {In order to get some counterplay on the queenside.} (15... Nd7 $5 16. h4 Nxe5 17. Bxe5 $14) 16. h4 Nd7 17. g5 $1 $16 {It's important to fix black's pawns around black's monarch - in that case h4-h5 would be stronger, since black couldn't remove his king from the danger zone so fast.} (17. h5 $143 g5 18. Bg3 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Bf6 $14) 17... Nxe5 18. Bxe5 axb4 19. axb4 Rxa1 {Black has to change as more pieces as he can in order to decrease white's attacking potential and to reach some space for his king by f7-f6.} (19... Qd7 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. h5 Bxg5 22. hxg6 fxg6 23. Qb1 $16) 20. Qxa1 f6 21. Bxc7 {White's knight is much stronger than black's bishop, but white has to play energetically in order to realize that advantage.} ({Correct was:} 21. gxf6 $142 $1 Bxf6 (21... gxf6 22. Qb1 Kf7 23. h5 gxh5 24. Bxc7 Qxc7 25. Qh7+ Ke8 26. Qxh5+ Kd7 27. Na4 $16) 22. Bg3 Qd7 23. Qb1 $16 {and black's weakneses are very vulnerable.}) 21... Qxc7 22. f4 {All white's pawns are placed ideally, so the dark-squared bishop has no perspectives.} (22. h5 gxh5 23. g6 f5 24. Qd1 (24. Rxh5 Rf6 25. Qa8+ Rf8 $11) 24... Bg5 25. Rxh5 Bh6 $132) (22. Qd1 fxg5 23. h5 (23. hxg5 Bxg5 24. Qg4 Qf7 $1 25. f4 (25. Qxg5 $2 Qxf2+ 26. Kd1 Qf3+ $19) 25... Bh6 $15) 23... gxh5 24. Qxh5 Bf6 $132) (22. Qb1 f5 (22... Kf7 $2 23. gxf6 gxf6 24. h5 gxh5 25. Qh7+ Ke8 26. Qxh5+ Kd7 27. Na4 $16) 23. f4 (23. Ne2 e5 24. dxe5 Qxe5 25. Nf4 Ra8 $132) 23... Kf7 24. h5 gxh5 25. Rxh5 Qb8 26. Qa2 Qa8 27. Rh2 $14) 22... b6 $6 {That attempt to get a counterplay on the queenside is too slowly.} ({badly was also:} 22... e5 $2 23. h5 $1 exd4 (23... exf4 24. hxg6 f5 {[%cal Ge7g5]} (24... fxe3 25. Ke2 $18) (24... fxg5) 25. Nxd5 $3 cxd5 26. Qa2 $18 {[%cal Ga2d5,Ga2h2,Gh1h8]}) 24. hxg6 dxc3 25. Qd1 $18) ({but after} 22... Kf7 $142 {black's positions seems to be defensible.}) 23. Ne2 $2 {Missing a nice attacking possibility.} (23. Qb1 $142 $1 bxc5 24. bxc5 Kf7 (24... f5 25. h5 gxh5 26. Rxh5 Rb8 27. Qa2 $36) 25. h5 gxh5 26. g6+ Ke8 27. Rxh5 Kd7 (27... f5 28. Rh7 (28. Rh2 $6 Rf6 $132) 28... Bf6 29. Rh2 $36 {[%cal Gh2b2]}) 28. Rh7 Rg8 29. Kf1 $36 {[%cal Gc3a4]} (29. Na4 $5 Qa5+ 30. Kf1 Qa6+ 31. Kf2)) 23... bxc5 24. bxc5 Qb7 {[%csl Rb1][%cal Yb7b1] Taking control on ''b1'' and threating 25...Qb4+. Now white cannot keep his monarch in the centre anymore.} 25. O-O (25. gxf6 Bxf6 26. Kf2 (26. h5 gxh5 27. Rxh5 Kf7 $11) 26... Qe7 27. Kg3 (27. Kg2 Bxh4 28. Qa6 g5 $132) 27... Kf7 $132 {[%cal Gf8h8]} 28. Ng1 $140 $2 Qxc5) 25... Kf7 $11 {[%cal Gf8h8] Now white has only a symbolic advantage, as he cannot make any progress.} 26. Kf2 (26. Rb1 $2 Qd7 $40 {[%cal Ge6e5,Gd7g4]}) 26... Rh8 27. Rb1 Qd7 ({After} 27... Qd7 28. Kg3 $11 {the draw is unavoidable, as any side cannot make progress.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dubai op 6th"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2004.04.25"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ganguly, Surya Shekhar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2582"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2004.04.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2048]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 c5 4. f3 Nf6 {Quite a rare move nowdays, although it was played by top players.} ({The most common line is:} 4... Qa5+ 5. c3 Nf6 6. Nd2 cxd4 7. Nb3 Qb6 ({or} 7... Qd8)) 5. dxc5 b6 {That original move is logical: black wants to reach a solid pawn centre. The drawback of it is some loss of time.} ({The alternatives are:} 5... Na6 6. e4 Nxc5 7. Nc3 d6 (7... g6 8. Be3 Ne6 9. e5 Nh5 10. Qd2 Qa5 11. g4 Nhg7 12. O-O-O Qxe5 13. Bb5 Qc7 14. Nd5 $36 {1-0 Beshukov,S-Shulman,Y/Gausdal 1994/EXT 97 (29)}) 8. Qd2 Be6 (8... e5 9. Bb5+ Ncd7 10. Bg5 a6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Nd5 $14 {½-½ Hodgson,J-Reinderman,D/Leeuwarden 1993/TD (22)}) 9. Nge2 a6 10. Nd4 Bd7 11. Nb3 Na4 12. Nxa4 Bxa4 13. Be2 g6 14. O-O Bg7 15. Bh6 $14 {1-0 Hauchard,A-Bacrot,E/France 1998/CBM 64 ext (66)}) (5... Qa5+ 6. Nc3 Qxc5 7. e4 d6 (7... g6 8. Qd2 d6 9. O-O-O Bg7 10. Bh6 O-O 11. h4 Be6 12. h5 Nxh5 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. g4 $40 {1-0 Adams,M-Leko,P/Cap d'Agde 1996/CBM 55 ext (24)}) 8. Qd2 a6 9. O-O-O Nbd7 10. g4 (10. Nh3 b5 11. Nf2 Bb7 12. Nd3 Qc7 13. g4 Rc8 14. h4 e5 15. Bh2 Nb6 16. g5 Nc4 17. Qe1 Nd7 $132 {½-½ Hodgson,J-Vyzmanavin,A/Zaragoza 1993/EXT 97 (23)}) 10... h6 11. Nge2 (11. h4 $5) 11... b5 12. Ng3 Bb7 13. Kb1 Ne5 $132 {0-1 Grigore,G-Marin,M/Eforie Nord 2002/EXT 2003 (56)}) 6. Nc3 {White has to play very energetically in order to exploit some slowly way of development-5...b6.} (6. e4 bxc5 7. e5 Qc7 8. Nc3 Nc6 9. exf6 Qxf4 10. fxe7 Bxe7 11. Nd5 Qe5+ 12. Kf2 O-O 13. c3 Rb8 14. Qd2 Re8 15. f4 Qe4 16. Nf3 c4 $132 {½-½ Puranen,J-Rytshagov,M/Helsinki 1995/EXT 98 (39)}) 6... bxc5 7. e4 d6 $6 $146 {An unsuccessful idea. Black doesn't prevent white from playing e4-e5. More than that, it becomes even more powerful.} (7... Nc6 8. Bc4 (8. Nd5 d6 9. Nxf6+ gxf6 10. Qd2 Qb6 11. b3 f5 12. c3 Bg7 13. Bc4 Ne5 14. Bxe5 Bxe5 15. exf5 Bxf5 16. Ne2 Rd8 $132 {1-0 Pomes Marcet,J-Oms Pallise,J/Linares 1998/EXT 99 (20)}) 8... d6 (8... Qa5 9. Nge2 g6 10. O-O d6 11. Nd5 Nd7 12. Bd2 Qd8 13. Bc3 Rg8 14. f4 $16 {0-1 Meszaros,G-Timoscenko,G/Slovakia 1997/EXT 99 (40)}) 9. e5 dxe5 10. Qxd8+ Kxd8 11. O-O-O+ Bd7 12. Bb5 exf4 13. Bxc6 Rc8 14. Bxd7 Nxd7 15. Nh3 $14 {1-0 Kasparov,G-Reinderman,D/Wijk aan Zee 1999/CBM 68 ext (47)}) 8. e5 $1 dxe5 (8... Nh5 $2 9. Qd5 Nxf4 10. Qxa8 $18) 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. O-O-O+ Nbd7 11. Bxe5 {White is ahead of black in development. Black's additional problem is a serious weakness on c5.} Bb7 $146 {It's not easy to find a safe place for black's monarch. Black is trying to keep it on he queen-side.} ({White has a great advantage after:} 11... a6 12. Nh3 Ke8 13. Bg3 e6 14. Nf2 Bb7 15. Nfe4 Nxe4 16. Nxe4 $16) ({RR} 11... e6 12. Nh3 h6 13. Nb5 a6 14. Nd6 Bxd6 15. Bxd6 Ke8 16. a4 Bb7 17. a5 Nd5 18. Nf4 Ne3 19. Rd2 Nf5 20. Bc4 g5 21. Nxe6 fxe6 22. Re1 Nxd6 23. Rxe6+ Kd8 24. Rexd6 Rh7 25. Be6 Bc8 26. g3 {Wirig,A (2499)-Heinemann,J (2281) Chess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (52)}) ({RR} 11... e6 12. Nh3 h6 13. Nb5 a6 14. Nd6 Bxd6 15. Bxd6 Ke8 16. a4 Bb7 17. a5 Nd5 18. Nf4 Ne3 19. Rd2 Nf5 20. Bc4 g5 21. Nxe6 fxe6 22. Re1 Nxd6 23. Rxe6+ Kd8 24. Rexd6 Rh7 25. Be6 Bc8 26. g3 {Wirig,A (2499)-Heinemann,J (2281) Chess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (52)}) 12. Nh3 Kc8 {In my opinion, better was to keep the monarch in the centre.} ({More to the point was:} 12... a6 13. Bc4 Ke8 14. Bg3 e6 (14... Nb6 15. Bd3 $14) 15. Rhe1 Be7 $14 {with a worse but solid position.}) 13. Bg3 {[%cal Gh3g5]} h6 ({After} 13... g6 {white has to exchange the main defender of the dark squares:} 14. Bc4 e6 15. Nb5 $1 $16 {with an obvious advantage.}) 14. Bc4 e6 15. Nf4 Be7 $6 {An additional inaccucy, which allows white to seize a strong and stable initiative.} ({Better was:} 15... Nb6 $142 16. Bd3 ({the sacrifice is not so clear:} 16. Nxe6 $6 fxe6 17. Bxe6+ Nfd7 $1 (17... Nbd7 $2 18. Ne4 Bc6 $8 19. Nxf6 gxf6 20. Bf5 $1 $16 {[%csl Rh7,Rh8][%cal Yf5h7,Gh1e1]}) 18. Rd2 g5 $1 19. Rhd1 Rh7 20. Ne4 Bxe4 21. fxe4 c4 $1 {[%cal Gf8c5] and although the pin is quite unpleasant,i don't see how white can make progress here.}) 16... Be7 $14) 16. Nb5 $1 {White's play is very energetical and concrete - he prevents black from consolidating.} g5 {That move weakens black's kside and will cause black very soon.} ({On the other side, I can hardly recommend something better:} 16... Nb6 $2 17. Bxe6+ $1 fxe6 18. Ng6 Re8 19. Nxe7+ Rxe7 20. Nd6+ Kb8 21. Nf5+ Rc7 22. Nxg7 $18) (16... Rd8 17. Bxe6 $1 fxe6 18. Nxe6 $16) 17. Nd3 Bd5 (17... Ne8 18. Ne5 (18. Rhe1 $5) (18. h3 $5 Nb6 19. Ne5) 18... Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Rg8 20. h3 a6 21. Nc3 $16 {[%cal Gc3a4]}) ({Black had no time to exchange a pair of kingside pawns:} 17... g4 18. Nc7 $1 gxf3 (18... Rb8 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Bxe6 $16 Ra8 $140 $2 21. Ne5 Rd8 22. Bh4 $18 {[%csl Re7][%cal Gh4e7,Ge5d7]}) 19. Nxa8 fxg2 20. Rhg1 Bxa8 21. Ba6+ Bb7 22. Bxb7+ Kxb7 23. Rxg2 $16) 18. Bxd5 Nxd5 19. Rhe1 a6 {Black is trying to simplify the position, but white's dark-squared bishop will be much stronger than black's knight.} ({An attempt to avoid a loss of ''c'' pawn fails to:} 19... c4 20. Ne5 Nxe5 21. Bxe5 Rd8 22. Re4 Nb6 23. Nc7 Rxd1+ 24. Kxd1 Rb8 25. Nxe6 $1 $16) ({More resistant was:} 19... Kb7 20. c4 (20. Nf2 $5 N7b6 21. Ne4) 20... N5b6 21. b3 $16 {[%csl Rb6,Rc5] although white has a winning position from strategical point of view.}) 20. Nd6+ Bxd6 21. Bxd6 c4 22. Ne5 (22. Nb4 N7b6 23. Nxd5 Nxd5 24. Re4 $6 (24. Be5 $142 {-22.Ne5}) 24... Kd7 25. Be5 Rhc8 $14) 22... Nxe5 $8 23. Bxe5 Rd8 ({After} 23... f6 24. Bd4 Re8 25. b3 $1 {black has too many weaknesses. For example:} cxb3 (25... c3 26. Rd3 Kb7 27. Bxc3 Nxc3 28. Rxc3 $18) 26. axb3 Kc7 27. c4 e5 28. Bxe5+ fxe5 29. Rxd5 $18) 24. Re4 Nb6 ({An attempt to reach some counterplay fails to} 24... Kb7 25. Rxc4 f6 (25... Ne3 26. Rc7+ Kb6 27. Rdd7 $1 Rxd7 28. Rxd7 $18) 26. Bg3 Ne3 27. Rb4+ Kc6 28. Re1 $18) 25. Rxd8+ Kxd8 26. Bg7 $1 {Suddenly the drawback of 16...g5 becomes very significant in the endgame! Black cannot avoid a loss of pawn.} Ke7 27. Bxh6 f6 (27... Rg8 28. Rg4 f6 29. h4 $18) 28. h4 gxh4 29. Rxh4 $18 {White has already an extra pawn, while the ''c4'' pawn is still very weak. White's only goal is preventing black from getting any counterplay.} Rh8 (29... Rg8 30. Be3 {-29...Rh8.}) 30. Bg5 Rg8 31. Be3 $1 {It's important to take control on ''e3'' spot.} ({Less convincing was:} 31. Rh7+ Kd6 32. Bxf6 Rxg2 33. Bd4 Nd5 {and black's pieces are quite active.}) 31... Nd5 32. Bc5+ Kd7 33. Rxc4 Rxg2 34. Rg4 Rh2 ({The endgame after} 34... Rxg4 35. fxg4 Kc6 36. Bf2 $18 {is completely hopeless for black.}) 35. c4 $1 {The knight has to leave an excellent central square.} Nc7 36. Rd4+ Kc6 37. Bb4 {[%cal Gd4d6] A decisive penetration of white's rook is unavoidable.} Rf2 (37... Ne8 38. Rd8 a5 39. Rxe8 (39. Be7 $6 Rf2 $1 40. Rxe8 Kd7) 39... axb4 40. Rxe6+ Kc5 41. Re4 $18 {[%cal Ge4f4]}) 38. Rd6+ Kb7 39. Ba5 {[%csl Rc7][%cal Gd6d7]} Rf1+ {There are no chances for black, so the rest is just an agony.} (39... Na8 40. Rxe6 Rxf3 41. c5 $18) 40. Kd2 Rf2+ 41. Ke3 Rc2 (41... Rxb2 42. Rd7 $18) 42. Kd3 Rc1 (42... Rc1 {As I know from tournament practice, after the game arbiters are usually put white's king on e4 if white wins. That's why it looks like black has resigned after 42...c1, as 43.e4?? is just a blunder.} 43. Ke4 ({Black has probably resigned in view of:} 43. Bxc7 Kxc7 44. Rxe6 $18) ({or} 43. Rb6+ Ka7 44. Rc6 $18) ({because after} 43. Ke4 $4 Rxc4+ {the resignation looks unbelievable.})) 1-0

[Event "Dubai op 6th"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2004.04.28"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Iordachescu, Viorel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "2004.04.19"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 Nc6 6. Bg2 Ne4 7. Bd2 Nxd2 8. Qxd2 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Ne5 10. Nc2 ({RR} 10. Nf3 Qc7 11. Nxe5 Qxe5 12. Rc1 O-O 13. O-O Rb8 14. a3 Be7 15. Rfd1 a6 16. Ne4 b5 17. c5 a5 18. b4 axb4 19. axb4 Bb7 20. Qxd7 Bxe4 21. Qxe7 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Qe4+ 23. Kg1 Qxb4 24. Qd7 h5 {Moiseenko,A (2568)-So,W (2745) London ENG 2025 ½-½ (59)}) 10... Be7 11. b3 O-O 12. Rd1 d6 $146 ({RR} 12... Qb6 13. Ne4 d6 14. O-O Rd8 15. Ne3 Bd7 16. Kh1 Bc6 17. Nc3 Rac8 18. h3 Nd7 19. Ne4 Nc5 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Qc2 g6 {½-½ (21) Ostojic,N (2475)-Kovacevic,A (2549) Banja Koviljaca 2002}) ({RR} 12... a6 13. Ne4 Rb8 14. Nd6 Qc7 15. a4 Qb6 16. Qb4 Qxb4+ 17. Nxb4 b5 18. axb5 Rb6 19. c5 Bxd6 20. cxd6 Rxb5 21. Nd3 Bb7 22. Bxb7 Nxd3+ 23. Rxd3 Rxb7 24. Kd2 Rc8 25. Rc3 Rxc3 26. Kxc3 Rb6 27. Rd1 {Alterman,B (2575)-Yudasin,L (2615) Israel 1995 0-1 (68)}) 13. Nb5 Qb6 14. O-O d5 15. Qe3 Qxe3 16. Nxe3 dxc4 17. Nxc4 Nxc4 18. bxc4 Bc5 19. Rd3 Rb8 20. Rb1 g6 21. a4 a5 22. Rbd1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"]
[Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.05.02"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Hillarp Persson, Tiger"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2513"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2004.04.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Leko,Peter} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 e5 4. dxe5 Nh5 5. Nh3 Nc6 6. Bg5 Be7 7. Bxe7 Qxe7 8. Nc3 Qxe5 9. g4 Ng7 10. f4 Qe7 11. Nd5 Qd8 12. Qd2 O-O 13. Qc3 Ne8 14. Nf2 $146 ({RR} 14. g5 Ne7 15. Nf6+ Nxf6 16. gxf6 Nf5 17. e4 Re8 18. Ng5 c5 19. O-O-O Nd4 20. e5 d6 21. Nf3 Bg4 22. Nxd4 Bxd1 23. Nb5 dxe5 24. fxe5 Ba4 25. Nd6 Re6 26. Bg2 Rxd6 27. exd6 Qxd6 28. Bxb7 Re8 {Kramnik,V (2780)-Leko,P (2665) Tilburg 1998 EXT 1999 [Leko,Peter] 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 14. O-O-O Ne7 15. Nf2 Nxd5 16. cxd5 d6 17. h4 c6 18. h5 cxd5 19. Kb1 Nf6 20. Bg2 Qe7 21. h6 Ne8 22. Bxd5 Be6 23. Qf3 Bxd5 24. Rxd5 Rc8 25. Rhd1 Rc6 26. R5d3 f5 27. g5 Nc7 28. Rb3 Ne6 {Votava,J (2530)-Jansa,V (2475) Germany 2006 1-0 (53)}) 14... Ne7 15. g5 Nxd5 16. cxd5 d6 17. h4 Ng7 18. h5 Qe7 19. Bg2 Bf5 20. h6 Ne8 21. e4 f6 22. gxf6 Nxf6 23. O-O-O Bd7 24. Bf3 c6 25. dxc6 Bxc6 26. Qd4 Nd7 27. Nh3 Nc5 28. Rhe1 Rae8 29. f5 Nxe4 30. Rxe4 Bxe4 31. Bxe4 Qe5 32. Qxe5 Rxe5 33. Ng5 Rc8+ 34. Kb1 gxf5 35. Bd5+ Kf8 36. Nxh7+ Ke7 37. Ng5 Rh8 38. h7 Kf6 39. Nf3 Re3 40. Rh1 Kg6 41. Rg1+ Kf6 42. Ng5 f4 43. Bxb7 Kf5 44. Bd5 Rg3 45. Nf3 Rxg1+ 46. Nxg1 Rxh7 47. Nf3 Rc7 48. b4 Rc3 49. Kb2 Rd3 50. Bc6 d5 51. Ne1 Rd1 52. Nf3 Rd3 53. Ne1 Rd1 54. Nf3 Ke4 55. Kc2 Rd3 56. Nd2+ Ke3 57. Nb3 d4 58. b5 f3 59. a4 Rxb3 60. Kxb3 d3 0-1

[Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"]
[Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.05.03"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2667"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2004.04.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bd7 7. e3 e6 8. Bxc4 c5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Nf3 Be7 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. e4 Qb8 13. h3 O-O 14. Qe2 Nd4 15. Nxd4 Bxd4 16. Rd1 Qe5 17. Bf4 Qxf4 18. Rxd4 Bc6 19. Bb5 Rfd8 20. Rad1 Rxd4 21. Rxd4 Bxb5 22. Qxb5 h5 23. g3 Qc7 24. Rc4 Qe7 25. Rd4 a6 26. Qb6 e5 27. Nd5 Nxd5 28. Rxd5 h4 29. g4 Rc8 30. Qd6 Qxd6 31. Rxd6 Rc4 32. Rd8+ Kh7 33. Rd7 f6 34. Rxb7 $146 Rxa4 35. b4 Kh6 36. Kg2 g6 37. Kf3 Kg5 38. b5 a5 39. b6 Rb4 40. Ra7 Rb3+ 41. Kg2 Rxb6 42. Rxa5 Kf4 43. Ra4 Rd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"]
[Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.05.06"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nielsen, Peter Heine"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2628"]
[Annotator "Huebner,Robert"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2004.04.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 1]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 8. g4 Bg6 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. e3 e6 11. Bxc4 Bb4 12. Bd2 (12. Qf3 Qa5 13. Bd2 Nbd7 14. h4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Rd8 16. g5 Nfd5 17. Rc1 c5 18. h5 cxd4 19. exd4 Rxh5 20. Rxh5 gxh5 21. Qxh5 g6 $11 {1-0 Sokolov,I-Hillarp Persson,T/Reykjavik 2000/CBM 75 ext (46). (45)}) 12... Nbd7 13. g5 Nd5 14. e4 N5b6 15. Bb3 a5 16. Qe2 c5 $146 (16... e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O-O {geschah in der Partie Carlsen-Andriasjan, U14-EM 2003, siehe "Schach" 6/2004, S.42.}) ({RR} 16... e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O-O Nd3+ 19. Kb1 Nc5 20. Nb5 Nxb3 21. Bxb4 axb4 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Nc7+ Ke7 24. Qc2 Nc4 25. h4 Nba5 26. Rd1 b3 27. Qe2 Rxd1+ 28. Qxd1 Rd8 29. Nd5+ cxd5 30. exd5 Re8 31. Qd4 {Carlsen,M (2385)-Andriasian,Z (2311) Budva 2003 0-1 (34)}) 17. d5 c4 {Schwarz rechnet damit, daß nach der Öffnung der Stellung, die dieses Bauernopfer bewirkt, der König des Weißen keinen sicheren Platz finden kann.} (17... e5 18. h4 {überläßt dem Weißen in der Tat ohne weiteres großen positionellen Vorteil.}) (17... exd5 {ist jedoch möglicherweise spielbar:} 18. Bxd5 (18. exd5+ Kf8 19. O-O-O Bxc3 20. bxc3 c4 21. Bxc4 (21. Bc2 Nc5 {ist nicht besser.}) 21... Nxa4 {mit unklarer Lage.}) (18. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 19. Qxd2 c4 20. Bc2 Nxd5 21. Qxd5 Qc7 22. O-O-O Rd8 {Weiß hat keinen Vorteil.}) 18... Bxc3 19. Bxc3 (19. bxc3 {kommt auch in Betracht:} Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 {Die Beurteilung dieser Stellung fällt mir schwer. Schwarz hat Löcher auf der b-Linie, und Weiß hat einen aktiven Läufer; andererseits ist es schwer für Weiß, seinem König einen sicheren Unterschlupf zu bauen, und seine Bauernstellung am Königsflügel ist verzogen. Vielleicht ist die Lage in etwa im Gleichgewicht, zum Beispiel} 21. Kf1 Nb6 22. c4 Nc8) 19... Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 21. Qe3 (21. h4 Qc7 {ist ähnlich.}) 21... Qc7 22. O-O-O Re8 23. Qf3 Qd6 {Das Spiel des Weißen sieht bequemer aus, aber klar ist die Lage nicht.}) 18. Bxc4 Nxc4 19. Qxc4 O-O 20. O-O-O (20. dxe6 Ne5 21. Qd5 Qc7 {(P. Nielsen, "Schach" 6/2004, S.43) überläßt dem Schwarzen eine gefährliche Initiative, zum Beispiel} 22. exf7+ Rxf7 23. O-O-O Rd8 24. Qe6 Nd3+ (24... Nf3 {ist ebenfalls eine sehr wirksame Fortsetzung.}) 25. Kb1 Nxf2 26. Nd5 Qc6 27. Qxc6 bxc6 28. Bxb4 cxd5 29. Bxa5 Ra8 30. Bb6 Nxh1 31. Rxh1 dxe4 {mit Vorteil für Schwarz.}) 20... Rc8 21. Qe2 (21. Qb5 {verspricht vielleicht etwas mehr:} Nc5 (21... Rc5 22. Qxb7 exd5 23. Be3 Rc7 24. Qxd5 Bxc3 25. bxc3 Rxc3+ 26. Kd2 Qc7 27. Rc1 {ergibt Vorteil für Weiß.}) 22. Kb1 exd5 23. Nxd5 ({Auf} 23. Be3 {folgt} Qe7) (23. exd5 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Qxg5 {ist befriedigend für Schwarz.}) 23... Bxd2 24. Rxd2 Qxg5 25. f4 Qh4 26. e5 {Weiß steht besser.}) 21... exd5 22. Kb1 $1 (22. exd5 Nb6 23. Kb1 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Nxa4 {ist unbefriedigend für Weiß.}) 22... Bxc3 $6 {Nach dieser Fortsetzung behält Weiß bedeutenden positionellen Vorteil: sein Läufer ist dem gegnerischen Springer weit überlegen. Es gab zwei bessere Fortsetzungen:} (22... dxe4 23. Nxe4 Qc7 24. Bxb4 axb4 25. Nd6 {(mit leichtem Vorteil für Weiß, Carlsen, siehe "Schach" 6/2004, S.43)} Ra8 {genügt meines Erachtens zum Ausgleich, zum Beispiel} 26. Qc4 (26. Qb5 Nc5 {ist angenehm für Schwarz.}) ({Nach} 26. Nb5 Qc6 {hängt der Turm auf h1, so daß Weiß nicht 27.Td6 spilen kann; Schwar kommt zu Sd7-c5 mit gutem Spiel.}) 26... Qa5 27. b3 Qxg5 {usw.}) (22... Qc7 23. exd5 (23. Rc1 Qe5 24. f4 Qe6 {ist gut für Schwarz.}) 23... Nb6 {(P. Nielsen, "Schach" 6/2004, S.43) nebst Sb6-c4 führt ebenfalls zu befriedigendem Spiel für Schwarz.}) 23. Bxc3 Nc5 24. Rxd5 Qe8 {Jetzt kann man den Unterschied zwischen den Zügen 22.Kb1 und 22.ed5: sehen: statt eines Bauern steht der Turm des Weißen auf d5 und entfaltet eine wirksame Aktivität.} 25. f3 b6 ({Ich hätte} 25... Qxa4 26. Qd1 Qxd1+ (26... Nb3 {wird mit} 27. Rxa5 {widerlegt.}) 27. Rhxd1 b6 {versucht. Im Endspiel hat Schwarz meines Erachtens die besten Rettungsaussichten. Mit den Damen auf dem Brett ist es schwierig, gegen die Folge h3-h4-h5 einen wirksamen Plan zu entwerfen. Der Läufer des weißen ist übermächtig und vereitelt auch alle Angriffsversuche des Schwarzen aufs gründlichste.}) 26. Qe3 Nxa4 ({Auch hier hätte Schwarz noch Damentausch anstreben können:} 26... Qxa4 27. Qd4 Qxd4 28. Bxd4 Rc6 29. Rc1 Rfc8 {mit Rettungsaussichten.}) 27. Bd4 Rc4 $2 {Damit erreicht Schwarz nichts; sein Turm verstopft nur die c-Linie. Nach} (27... Qc6 28. Rc1 (28. h4 Qc2+ 29. Ka1 Rc4 {ist nicht im Sinne des Weißen.}) 28... Qe6 {wäre der Turm des Weißen von der h-Linie abgelenkt, und Schwarz behielte Überlebensaussichten.}) 28. h4 Qc6 29. h5 gxh5 30. Rxh5 Rc8 31. Rh1 {Jetzt ist der Angriff des Weißen unwiderstehlich.} Rc2 (31... Nc5 32. Bxg7 Kxg7 33. g6 Qxg6 ({Nach} 33... fxg6 34. Qh6+ Kf7 35. Qh7+ Kf6 36. Rg1 {wird Weiß bald mattsetzen.}) 34. Rg5 {ist ebenfalls hoffnungslos für Schwarz.}) 32. g6 f6 {Schwarz hat keine Rettung.} (32... Rxb2+ {wird mit} 33. Ka1 {beantwortet.}) (32... Qxg6 33. Rg5 {ist ebenfalls hoffnungslos.}) (32... fxg6 33. Rh8+ Kf7 34. Qf4+ {gewährt dem Schwarzen ebenfalls keine Freude.}) 33. Rdh5 Kf8 34. Qa3+ (34. e5 fxe5 35. Rh8+ {gewinnt ebenfalls mühelos.}) 34... Ke8 35. Rh8+ Kd7 36. Rxc8 Kxc8 37. Qe7 Qc7 38. Qe8+ Kb7 39. Qxa4 Rc4 40. Qd1 1-0

[Event "Sigeman & Co 12th"]
[Site "Malmo/Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.05.09"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Agrest, Evgenij"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2601"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2004.04.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SWE"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. a4 g6 6. Bf4 Bg7 7. e3 O-O 8. Qb3 ({RR} 8. Be2 a5 9. Qb3 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nh5 11. Be5 Nd7 12. Ng5 e6 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. h4 Qe7 15. O-O-O Qb4 16. Qa2 Nb6 17. Be2 Nf6 18. e4 h6 19. e5 Nfd5 20. Nge4 c5 21. Nxc5 Nxc3 22. bxc3 Qxc3+ {Sandipan,C (2641)-Kamsky,G (2730) Moscow 2011 0-1 (49)}) ({RR} 8. Bd3 Be6 9. Ng5 Bg4 10. Qb3 Bc8 11. h3 Nh5 12. Bxb8 Rxb8 13. cxd5 e6 14. Nf3 exd5 15. g4 Nf6 16. Ne5 Nd7 17. Nxd7 Bxd7 18. f4 Re8 19. Kd2 b5 20. axb5 axb5 21. Ra7 Ra8 22. Rha1 Rxa7 {Kieu,B (1946)-Nguyen,H (1924) Hanoi 2020 0-1 (126)}) 8... Qa5 9. Qa3 Qd8 ({RR} 9... Re8 10. Be2 Bg4 11. O-O ({RR} 11. c5 Nbd7 12. O-O Ne4 13. Rfe1 Qd8 14. Qb4 b6 15. cxb6 a5 16. Qb3 Qxb6 17. Qxb6 Nxb6 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Ng5 Bxe2 20. Rxe2 Nd5) 11... Ne4 12. Qb3 Ra7 13. Rfd1 e6 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 f5 16. cxd5 ({RR} 16. Rac1) 16... cxd5 17. Bxe4 fxe4 18. Bxb8 Rxb8 19. Rac1 Raa8 20. Ne2 b5 21. axb5 Qxb5 22. Qxb5 Rxb5 23. Nf4 Rb6 24. Rc7 {Agrest,E (2591)-Roos,D (2410) France 2006 EXT 2007 [ChessBase II] ½-½ (47)}) 10. Be2 a5 $146 ({RR} 10... dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nbd7 12. a5 Nh5 13. Bg5 Nhf6 14. O-O h6 15. Bh4 g5 16. Bg3 Nh5 17. Rfd1 Nxg3 18. hxg3 g4 19. Ne1 e6 20. Nd3 h5 21. Ne4 h4 22. gxh4 Qxh4 23. g3 Qh7 24. Nd6 e5 25. dxe5 {Bukal,V (2423)-Paljusaj,E (2352) Zadar 2011 1-0}) 11. O-O Na6 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. Rfc1 Bg4 15. Qb3 Ra7 16. Rc3 b6 17. Bxa6 Rxa6 18. Ne5 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Ra7 20. Rac1 Qd7 21. h3 Be2 22. Qxb6 Rb7 23. Rc7 Rxb6 24. Rxd7 Bc4 25. Rxe7 Rxb2 26. Ra7 f6 27. Bd6 Rf7 28. Rxa5 Rfb7 29. Ra1 Kf7 30. Rc5 Ke6 31. Bg3 Kf5 32. a5 Rb1+ 33. Rxb1 Rxb1+ 34. Kh2 Rb5 35. Rc7 Rxa5 36. Rxh7 Ra2 37. Rf7 Ke6 38. Rg7 Bd3 39. Bh4 Be4 40. Rb7 g5 41. Bg3 f5 42. Rg7 f4 43. exf4 gxf4 44. Bxf4 Rxf2 45. Be5 Rf7 46. Rxf7 Kxf7 47. g4 Bf3 48. Kg3 Bd1 49. h4 Ke6 50. h5 Ba4 51. Kh4 Bb5 52. Kg5 Be2 53. Kg6 1-0

[Event "Stjernespretten Grand Prix"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2004.05.15"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lie, Kjetil A"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2004.05.15"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 c5 4. f3 Qa5+ 5. c3 Nf6 6. Nd2 cxd4 7. Nb3 Qb6 8. Qxd4 Nc6 9. Qxb6 axb6 10. Nd4 Ra5 11. b4 ({RR} 11. Bg3 e5 12. Nb3 Ra8 13. e4 d5 14. exd5 Nxd5 15. Bb5 Be6 16. Bxe5 Ne3 17. Nd4 Ra5 18. Kf2 Nf5 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Bxc6+ bxc6 21. Bd4 Nxd4 22. cxd4 c5 23. dxc5 Bxc5+ 24. Kg3 Bd4 25. Ne2 Bxb2 {Perhinig,R (2228)-Lie,K (2529) Pula 2007 ½-½ (57)}) 11... Ra4 $146 ({RR} 11... Nxd4 12. cxd4 Ra8 13. e4 e6 14. Bd2 Be7 15. Bb5 O-O 16. Ne2 d6 17. Kf2 Bd7 18. Bxd7 Nxd7 19. Rhc1 Rfc8 20. a4 Kf8 21. Nc3 Nf6 22. Nb5 d5 23. e5 Nd7 24. Nc7 Rab8 25. f4 Bd8 26. Nb5 {Korobkov,P (2516)-Turutin,A (2321) Zvenigorod 2008 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 11... Nxd4 12. cxd4 Ra4 13. Rc1 Ra8 14. e4 e5 15. dxe5 Bxb4+ 16. Kd1 Nh5 17. Be3 d6 18. g4 dxe5 19. gxh5 Be6 20. Bc4 Ke7 21. Bxe6 Kxe6 22. Rc2 Rhd8+ 23. Ke2 Ra3 24. Rb2 Rdd3 25. Rxb4 Rxe3+ 26. Kf2 {Schneider,I (2479)-Weller,M (2237) Magdeburg 2020 1-0}) ({RR} 11... Nxd4 12. cxd4 Ra8 13. e4 e6 14. Bd2 d6 15. Ne2 Be7 16. Nc3 O-O 17. Bd3 Bd7 18. a4 Rfc8 19. Ke2 d5 20. Rhb1 dxe4 21. fxe4 Bc6 22. h3 Rd8 23. Be3 Ne8 24. d5 exd5 25. exd5 Bxd5 26. Bxb6 {Offinger,R (2256)-Graf,R (2208) Germany 2008 ½-½ (43)}) 12. e4 ({RR} 12. Nb5 g6 13. e4 Bg7 14. Nc7+ Kf8 15. Bb5 Ra3 16. Ne2 Nh5 17. Bc1 Rxc3 18. Bb2 Rc2 19. Bxg7+ Kxg7 20. Nd5 e6 21. Ne3 Rb2 22. a3 d5 23. Nd1 Rxe2+ 24. Bxe2 Nd4 25. Ne3 Nf4 26. Bf1 dxe4 {Torre,E (2560)-Svidler,P (2690) Bad Homburg 1998 ½-½ (60)}) 12... g6 13. Bb5 Ra3 14. Nge2 Bg7 15. O-O O-O 16. Bc1 Ra8 17. Be3 e5 18. Nb3 d5 19. Ng3 d4 20. Bxc6 dxe3 21. Bb5 Be6 22. Rfe1 Rfc8 23. c4 Bxc4 24. Bxc4 Rxc4 25. Rxe3 Rxb4 26. Rd3 Bf8 27. Ne2 Ne8 28. Rdd1 Nc7 29. Nc3 Rc4 30. Rac1 Ba3 31. Rc2 Nb5 32. Rd3 Bb4 33. Nd5 Rxc2 34. Nxb4 Rc4 35. Nd5 Rxa2 36. h4 Rcc2 37. g4 Nd4 38. g5 Nxb3 39. Nf6+ Kg7 40. Rd8 Rc1+ 0-1

[Event "NOR-chTA final"]
[Site "Trondheim"]
[Date "2004.05.22"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Gausel, Einar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2520"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2004.05.19"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 100 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.06"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "03"]
[BlackTeam "06"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 c5 8. Bb5+ Nc6 9. O-O O-O 10. Be3 Bg4 11. d5 Ne5 12. Be2 Nxf3+ 13. Bxf3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 Bxc3 15. Rab1 Qd6 ({RR} 15... b6 16. Bxc5 Rc8 17. Ba3 Qd7 18. Rbc1 Be5 19. g3 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 f5 21. Rc6 fxe4 22. Qxe4 Bd6 23. Bxd6 exd6 24. h4 Re8 25. Rxd6 Rxe4 26. Rxd7 Rd4 27. Kg2 a5 28. Kf3 b5 29. Ke3 Rd1 30. Ke4 {Carlsen,M (2837)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2723) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (43)}) 16. Bh6 $146 ({RR} 16. Rfc1 Bd4 17. Rxb7 Rfb8 18. Rxb8+ Rxb8 19. g3 Rb4 20. Bf4 Be5 21. Bh6 Bd4 22. Rc2 Qa6 23. Kg2 Rb1 24. Qe2 Qb7 25. Qd3 a5 26. Bd2 Rd1 27. Rc1 Rxc1 28. Bxc1 Kf8 29. Qc2 Qa6 30. Bh6+ Ke8 {Pham,C (2313)-Nguyen,H (2156) Hue 2005 1-0 (34)}) 16... Bg7 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. Qc3+ Kg8 19. Rxb7 Rfb8 20. Qb3 a6 21. Rb1 Rxb7 22. Qxb7 Rd8 23. g3 Qe5 24. Qb6 Re8 25. Qc6 Rd8 26. Qb6 Re8 27. Qc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-chTA final"]
[Site "Trondheim"]
[Date "2004.05.23"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lie, Kjetil A"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2004.05.19"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 100 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.07.06"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.07.06"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "06"]
[BlackTeam "04"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bh4 d5 4. f3 Nd6 5. Nc3 Nf5 6. Bf2 e5 7. dxe5 d4 8. e4 dxc3 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. O-O-O+ Ke8 11. exf5 cxb2+ 12. Kxb2 Bxf5 13. Ne2 Nc6 14. Nc3 a6 $146 ({RR} 14... h5 15. f4 Rh6 16. Nd5 Rc8 17. Bh4 Bc5 18. Bg5 Rg6 19. Bd3 Bxd3 20. Rxd3 Nb4 21. Nxb4 Bxb4 22. Rb3 Rb6 23. f5 Be7 24. Be3 Rxb3+ 25. axb3 Rd8 26. Re1 a6 27. Bf4 Rd4 28. g3 Kf8 29. c3 {Danielian,O (2445)-Tkachiev,V (2510) Cappelle la Grande 1994 ½-½ (54)}) 15. f4 Rd8 16. Be2 h5 17. Bf3 Rh6 18. Nd5 Rd7 19. Ne3 Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Bd7 21. Nd5 Kd8 22. Bh4+ Kc8 23. h3 Bc5 24. c3 Rh8 25. Be4 Re8 26. Bf6 Bf8 27. Bh4 Bc5 28. Bf3 Rh8 29. Bg5 Bf5 30. Re1 Kb8 31. Be4 Bc8 32. Bd3 Re8 33. Be2 Nxe5 34. fxe5 Rxe5 35. Bf4 Rxd5 36. Bf3 Rf5 37. Bh2 Be6 38. Rd1 Be7 39. Bg1 Rb5+ 40. Ka1 Ra5 41. Rd2 Bf6 42. Bd4 Bxd4 43. cxd4 Bd5 44. Bxh5 Bxa2 0-1

[Event "FIDE-Wch k.o."]
[Site "Tripoli"]
[Date "2004.06.19"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[Annotator "Golod,Vitali"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2004.06.19"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "LBY"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 102"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. e4 d5 6. e5 ({After:} 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e5 Ne4 8. Bd3 c5 {with rearrangement of moves we receive a position from a game.}) 6... Ne4 7. Bd3 {In my opinion this line is better,than:} (7. Nf3) ({or} 7. a3) 7... c5 8. cxd5 $5 {Besides,White has several alternatives:} (8. Nge2 $5 {You can see my annotations to Hillarp Persson,T-Polgar,J/Sigeman & Co,2000/CBM 77(½-½)(29)}) (8. a3) ({and} 8. dxc5) 8... exd5 9. Nge2 cxd4 10. Nxd4 Nd7 11. f4 Qh4+ 12. g3 Qh3 ({Unexpectedly at once loses a game:} 12... Nxg3 $4 {because of:} 13. Qf2 {[%csl Gf2,Rg3,Rh4]} Nc5 14. Bc2 Nce4 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Qxg3 $18) 13. Bd2 $5 ({On:} 13. Bf1 $5 {You can find ten games in Mega DataBase 2004. For an example you can see my comments to Ahlander,B-Wedberg,T/Stockholm,1999/CBM 73(1-0)(43)}) ({It was badly:} 13. Bxe4 $2 dxe4 14. Qxe4 Nc5 {with strong initiative behind pawn.}) 13... Nxd2 ({Also in this position were checked the following moves:} 13... Bxc3) ({and} 13... Nxg3 $5) 14. Qxd2 Nc5 15. Bf1 (15. a3 $6 Bxc3 16. Qxc3 (16. bxc3 $142) 16... Qg2 17. O-O-O Bg4 18. Rdg1 Qf2 19. Bc2 (19. Kb1 $5 $15) 19... Rac8 20. Kb1 (20. Qd2 $4 Qxd4 21. Qxd4 Nb3+) 20... Ne4 21. Qd3 Rc4 22. Rd1 Rfc8 23. Rhf1 Rxd4 $1 24. Rxf2 Rxd3 $19 {Cramling,P-Xu Yuhua/Shenyang,2000(0-1)(35)}) 15... Qh6 $5 $146 {The queen passes to more convenient position.} ({The game,which have reached this position were continued as follows:} 15... Qh5 $5 16. Bg2 Ne4 17. Qe3 Bh3 18. O-O Bxc3 19. bxc3 Rfc8 20. Rac1 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Rc4 22. f5 $132 {Cramling,P-Xu Yuhua/Shenyang,2000(1-0)(77)}) 16. Bg2 ({A little prematurely:} 16. a3 $6 {in view of:} Ne4 $1 (16... Bxc3 $143 17. Qxc3 Ne4 18. Qb3 $13 (18. Qe3 $143 Re8 {[%csl Re3,Gh6][%cal Ge8e5]})) 17. Qd3 (17. Qe3 $143 Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Re8 {[%csl Re3,Gh6][%cal Ge8e5]}) 17... Bxc3+ (17... Ba5 $143 18. Bg2 {0-0}) 18. bxc3 Bh3 $15) 16... Qa6 $1 {a6-f1; ×d3,e1} 17. Qe2 ({It was weakly:} 17. Rd1 $2 {because of:} Bg4 18. Bf3 Bxf3 19. Nxf3 Ne4 $17) 17... b6 $146 {This move is the "harbinger" of active actions in this game.} ({Leads to benefit of the contender:} 17... Nd3+ $6 18. Kd2 $140 Nxb2 19. Qxa6 bxa6 20. Kc2 $1 (20. Bxd5 $6 Rd8 (20... Rb8 $2 21. Nc6 $16) 21. Bxa8 Rxd4+ 22. Kc2 Nc4 $44 23. Rac1 $140 Bf5+ 24. Kb3 Na5+ 25. Kb2 Rd2+ 26. Ka1 Ba3 $13) 20... Bxc3 (20... Nc4 $6 21. Nxd5 $16) 21. Kxc3 Na4+ 22. Kd2 {/}) ({RR} 17... Qc4 18. O-O-O Bxc3 19. Qxc4 dxc4 20. bxc3 Nd3+ 21. Rxd3 cxd3 22. Rd1 Rd8 23. Be4 g6 24. Rxd3 Be6 25. Rd2 Bd5 26. Bd3 Rac8 27. Kb2 Rc5 28. g4 Bc4 29. Bxc4 Rxc4 30. f5 Rc5 31. Re2 Re8 32. e6 {Nasri,A (2364)-Drozdovskij,Y (2581) Dubai 2008 0-1 (53)}) 18. Bxd5 $6 {After this inaccurate move White will have to fight for equality.} ({It deserves serious attention:} 18. Qxa6 $1 Bxa6 $140 19. Nc6 Bxc3+ (19... Nd3+ $143 20. Kd2 {/}) 20. bxc3 $14) 18... Nd3+ $36 19. Kf1 $5 ({Leads to favourable complications for Black:} 19. Kd2 $6 Rd8 $1 20. Bxa8 (20. Bxf7+ $143 Kxf7 21. Qxd3 Bc5 $36) 20... Rxd4 21. Ke3 Bc5 $36 22. Kf3 $140 {[%tqu "En","Please enter the best move for Black.","","","d3e5","",10]} Nxe5+ $1 23. Kg2 (23. Qxe5 $4 Rd3+ 24. Kg2 Rd2+ 25. Kf3 Qd3+) (23. fxe5 $4 Bg4+) 23... Bb7+ 24. Bxb7 Qxb7+ 25. Kh3 Qd7+ 26. f5 (26. g4 $2 Ng6 $19) 26... Qxf5+ 27. Kg2 Qf6 $1 (27... Rd2 $143 28. Qxd2 Qf3+ 29. Kh3 Qg4+ 30. Kg2 Qf3+ $11) 28. Rhd1 $140 Qc6+ 29. Kh3 Nd3 $1 $40 {[%csl Yc6,Yd7,Rh3][%cal Yc6d7]}) 19... Bh3+ 20. Bg2 Bxg2+ {For Black it's certainly favourable to exchange these bishops.} 21. Kxg2 $8 Rfd8 (21... Bxc3 $5 22. bxc3 Rac8 23. Qd2 Qb7+ $44 {c5}) 22. Ncb5 {Magnus Carlsen has chosen the necessary knight for a jump on a point "b5".} (22. Ndb5 $6 Rac8 23. a4 (23. Rhd1 $2 Rxc3 $1 (23... Bxc3 $143 24. Rxd3 $8 (24. Nxc3 $4 Rxc3 25. bxc3 $140 Nxf4+) 24... Rxd3 25. Qxd3 Bxb2 26. Rd1 $13) 24. Nxc3 (24. bxc3 $2 Qxb5 {[%csl Gb5,Re2,Rg2][%cal Gd3f4]}) 24... Bxc3 $17 25. Rxd3 $140 $2 Rxd3 {[%csl Ga6,Re2,Gg2][%cal Gd3g3]}) 23... Bxc3 24. bxc3 Qb7+ 25. Kg1 (25. Qf3 $4 Ne1+ 26. Rhxe1 Rd2+) 25... Qd5 $36) {[%tqu "En","Find the best continuation for Black?","","","d8d4","",10,"b4c5","",0]} 22... Rxd4 $1 (22... Bc5 $6 23. Rad1 Qb7+ (23... Bxd4 $143 24. Qxd3 Qb7+ 25. Qf3 $1 (25. Kh3 Qc8+ 26. Kh4 $14) 25... Qxf3+ 26. Kxf3 Bxb2 27. Nxa7 {[%csl Rg8]} h5 28. Rxd8+ Rxd8 29. Rb1 $16) 24. Nf3 Nf2 25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 26. Re1 Ng4 27. Qe4 Qd7 28. Nc3 {/}) 23. Nxd4 $140 Rd8 {[%csl Ga6,Gd3,Yd4,Gd8,Re2,Rg2][%cal Gd8d4,Yd4e2,Gd3f4]} 24. Qe4 {White had no other worthy alternative:} (24. e6 $2 Rxd4 25. exf7+ (25. e7 $4 Nxf4+) 25... Kxf7 26. Qh5+ Kg8 27. Qe8+ Bf8 28. Qe6+ Kh8 $17) 24... Qc4 25. b3 Qxd4 (25... Rxd4 $4 {is refuted by:} 26. Qa8+ Bf8 27. bxc4) 26. Qxd4 Rxd4 27. Rad1 {f3-e2} Bd2 $5 {Levon Aronian uses a beautiful tactical dodge.} (27... Bc5 $5 28. Kf3 Kf8 (28... a5 $143 29. Ke2 Nb4 30. Rxd4 Bxd4 31. Rd1 Nc6 32. Kd3 $14) 29. Ke2 Nb4 30. Rxd4 Bxd4 31. Rd1 Bc5 $11) 28. Rhf1 (28. Rxd2 $2 Nxf4+ 29. gxf4 Rxd2+ 30. Kf3 Rxa2 31. Rc1 h5 32. Rc8+ Kh7 $15) 28... g5 $1 {Black provokes a movements of pawn "f4" with the purpose to create of weakness in camp of the contender.} (28... Nb4 $6 29. Rf2 Be3 30. Rxd4 Bxd4 31. Rd2 Nc6 32. Kf3 {e4 }) 29. Kf3 ({Also leads to equality:} 29. Rxd2 Nxf4+ 30. gxf4 Rxd2+ 31. Rf2 $11) 29... Nb2 (29... gxf4 $2 30. Rxd2 Nxe5+ 31. Ke2 Re4+ 32. Kd1 f3 $16) 30. Rb1 Nd3 $11 31. Rbd1 {Drawn game is inevitable.} (31. Rfd1 $143 Nc5 32. fxg5 Ne4 {[%csl Rb1,Rd1,Rg5][%cal Ge4c3] =/}) 31... Nb2 {This game was very interesting and important for the theory of this variation.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE-Wch k.o."]
[Site "Tripoli"]
[Date "2004.06.20"]
[Round "1.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2645"]
[PlyCount "164"]
[EventDate "2004.06.19"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "LBY"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 102"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 h6 4. Bxf6 Qxf6 5. Nc3 Bb4 6. Qd2 d6 7. Nge2 Nc6 ({RR} 7... e5 8. O-O-O O-O 9. f3 Nc6 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 exd4 12. Nxd4 Nxd4 13. Rxd4 Be6 14. Qd2 Rad8 15. Be2 Qg5 16. g3 Qxd2+ 17. Rxd2 f5 18. exf5 Rxf5 19. f4 Rf6 20. Bf3 b6 21. Re1 Kf8 22. Rde2 {Nakamura,H (2768)-Jobava,B (2578) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (71)}) 8. a3 $146 ({RR} 8. f4 e5 9. d5 Nd4 10. a3 Nxe2 11. Bxe2 Bxc3 12. Qxc3 Qxf4 13. Qxc7 O-O 14. Bf3 Qe3+ 15. Kd1 Bh3 16. Re1 Qf2 17. Qxd6 Rac8 18. Rc1 Rc4 19. c3 Bxg2 20. Bxg2 Qxg2 21. Re2 Qf3 22. Qxe5 f5 {Purtseladze,M (2274)-Krysa,L (2527) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1}) ({RR} 8. f4 e5 9. d5 Nd4 10. a3 Nxe2 11. Bxe2 Bxc3 12. Qxc3 Qxf4 13. Qxc7 O-O 14. Bf3 Qe3+ 15. Kd1 Bh3 16. Re1 Qf2 17. Qxd6 Rac8 18. Rc1 Rc4 19. c3 Bxg2 20. Bxg2 Qxg2 21. Re2 Qf3 22. Qxe5 f5 {Purtseladze,M (2274)-Krysa,L (2527) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1}) 8... Bxc3 9. Qxc3 O-O 10. f4 e5 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. f5 g6 13. g4 h5 14. h3 Rd8 15. Qe3 b6 16. g5 Qd6 17. Nc3 Qd4 18. Qxd4 Nxd4 19. O-O-O gxf5 20. Bc4 Kg7 21. exf5 Bxf5 22. Rhf1 Rf8 23. h4 c6 24. Ne2 Nxe2+ 25. Bxe2 Bg6 26. Rd7 Rad8 27. Rxa7 Rd4 28. Rh1 Rfd8 29. Re7 R8d5 30. Bd3 Bxd3 31. cxd3 Rf4 32. Kd2 e4 33. Ke3 Rf3+ 34. Ke2 Rdxd3 35. Rxe4 Rb3 36. a4 c5 37. Re7 Rf4 38. Rb7 Rxb2+ 39. Ke3 Rbb4 40. Rg1 Rbe4+ 41. Kd3 Rd4+ 42. Ke3 Rde4+ 43. Kd3 Rg4 44. Rf1 Rgf4 45. Rxf4 Rxf4 46. Rxb6 Rxa4 47. Rc6 Rxh4 48. Rxc5 Rg4 49. Ke3 Kg6 50. Kf3 Rxg5 51. Rc6+ f6 52. Rc4 Rg1 53. Rc8 Rg4 54. Rg8+ Kf5 55. Rh8 Rg5 56. Rh6 Ke5 57. Rh8 Rf5+ 58. Ke3 Kd5 59. Ra8 Ke6 60. Ra7 Rb5 61. Kf4 Rb4+ 62. Kf3 Kf5 63. Ra5+ Kg6 64. Ra8 h4 65. Ra5 Rb3+ 66. Kg4 h3 67. Rg5+ Kf7 68. Rh5 Ke6 69. Rh8 Rc3 70. Kf4 Kf7 71. Kg4 Kg6 72. Kf4 Rc2 73. Kg3 h2 74. Kf3 Kf5 75. Rh5+ Ke6 76. Rh8 Ke5 77. Re8+ Kd4 78. Rd8+ Kc3 79. Rh8 Rd2 80. Kg3 Kd3 81. Kf3 Kc2 82. Kg3 Kd1 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Molde"]
[Date "2004.07.04"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Nordahl, Helge Andreas"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2359"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2004.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3 Bb7 5. Nc3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. e3 g6 8. Bb5+ c6 9. Bd3 Bg7 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. O-O O-O 12. b4 Nd7 13. Rb1 a5 $146 ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Qb3 a5 15. Bd2 a4 16. Qa2 Kh8 17. Rbc1 Re7 18. Rfe1 f5 19. Bc3 {½-½ (19) Jonsson,B-Bruk,O Groningen 1983}) ({RR} 13... b5 14. a4 a6 15. a5 Nf6 16. Nd2 Ne8 17. Nb3 Nd6 18. Rb2 Bc8 19. Rc2 Bd7 20. f3 Ra7 21. Kh1 Re8 22. Qe2 Qa8 23. Bb2 Bf5 24. Bxf5 gxf5 25. Qf2 Nc4 26. Bc1 Qd8 27. Nc5 Qf6 28. Nd3 {Hernandez Onna,R (2367)-Hernandez Carmenates,H (2446) Santa Clara 2005 1-0 (54)}) 14. Bd2 axb4 15. axb4 b5 16. Bc3 Nb6 17. Ne5 Nc4 18. Nxc4 dxc4 19. Be4 Qe7 20. Bf3 Ra3 21. Qd2 Rfa8 22. Ra1 Bf8 23. Rxa3 Rxa3 24. Rb1 Qf6 25. Ra1 Rxa1+ 26. Bxa1 Bg7 27. Qc2 Bc8 28. Qe4 Bd7 29. Bc3 h5 30. g3 Qd8 31. h4 Qa8 32. Qc2 Bf5 33. e4 Be6 34. Qb2 Qa4 35. Kh2 Bd7 36. Qa1 Qc2 37. Qe1 Bg4 38. Bxg4 hxg4 39. e5 Kf8 40. Qd2 Qxd2 41. Bxd2 f6 42. Bc3 fxe5 43. dxe5 Ke7 44. Kg2 Ke6 45. f4 gxf3+ 46. Kxf3 Bxe5 47. Be1 c3 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Molde"]
[Date "2004.07.06"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2521"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2004.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 a6 5. c5 Nbd7 6. Bf4 Nh5 7. e3 Nxf4 8. exf4 b6 9. b4 g6 10. Bd3 Bg7 11. Rc1 O-O 12. O-O a5 13. b5 Bb7 14. Na4 bxc5 $146 ({RR} 14... Rc8 15. Qb3 bxc5 16. dxc5 e5 17. fxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Nb6 Rb8 20. bxc6 Bxc6 21. Bb5 Bxb5 22. Qxb5 Bc7 23. Rb1 Re8 24. Qc6 Bxb6 25. cxb6 Re6 26. Qc7 Qd6 27. Qa7 Rxb6 28. Rxb6 Qxb6 29. Qa8+ {Babujian,L (2468)-Petrosyan,T (2244) Kajaran 2011 1-0 (67)}) 15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. Rxc5 cxb5 17. Bxb5 Rc8 18. Rxc8 Bxc8 19. Qd2 Qb6 20. a4 Bg4 21. Ne5 Bxe5 22. fxe5 Rc8 23. h3 Be6 24. Rd1 Kg7 25. Kh2 Bf5 26. Qg5 Qa7 27. Kg1 Rc3 28. Bf1 Qc7 29. Bb5 h6 30. Qf4 Bc2 31. Be8 Bf5 32. Bb5 Qc8 33. h4 Rc2 34. Kh2 Rb2 35. Kg1 Rb4 36. Qe3 Qc2 37. Qd2 Qe4 38. Bc6 Be6 39. Qc3 Qe2 40. Re1 Qc4 41. Rc1 Qxc3 42. Rxc3 Rxd4 43. Rc5 Rc4 44. Rxc4 dxc4 45. Kf1 c3 46. Ke2 c2 47. Kd2 Bb3 48. f4 f6 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Molde"]
[Date "2004.07.07"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ostenstad, Berge"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2492"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2004.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 O-O 9. Be3 Nc6 10. O-O Na5 11. Bd3 b6 12. Rc1 e6 ({RR} 12... e5 13. dxc5 ({RR} 13. d5 c4 14. Bc2 Bd7 15. Rb1 Nb7 16. Ba4 Bxa4 17. Qxa4 Nd6 18. f3 f5 19. Qc2 fxe4 20. fxe4 Qh4 21. Ng3 Bh6 22. Qd2 Bxe3+ 23. Qxe3 Rf4 24. Rfe1 Raf8) 13... Be6 ({RR} 13... Qc7 14. cxb6 axb6 15. c4 Nb7 16. Nc3) 14. c4 bxc5 15. Bxc5 Re8 16. Be3 Re7 17. Qc2 Rd7 18. Rfd1 Nc6 ({RR} 18... Rb8 19. c5) 19. a3 Qa5 20. Nc3 Qxa3 21. Nd5 Rc8 22. Ra1 Qf8 23. Ra6 Nb4 ({RR} 23... Bxd5 24. exd5 Nb4 25. Qa4) 24. Nxb4 Qxb4 25. Rb1 Qf8 26. c5 Bh6 27. Bxh6 {Topalov,V (2801)-Svidler,P (2765) Morelia/Linares 2006 CBM 112 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (44)}) 13. e5 $146 ({RR} 13. Qd2 Bb7 14. h4 e5 15. dxc5 Qxh4 16. cxb6 axb6 17. Qc2 b5 18. Rb1 Bc6 19. Rb4 Rfb8 20. Rfb1 Bf8 21. a4 Bxb4 22. cxb4 Nc4 23. Bxc4 bxc4 24. Nc3 Rd8 25. b5 Bb7 26. f3 Rd3 27. Bb6 Qg5 {Wagner,D (2287)-Jeitz,C (2165) Pardubice 2011 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 13. Qd2 Bb7 14. h4 Rc8 15. h5 Qe7 16. h6 Bh8 17. e5 f6 18. f4 Rfd8 19. Rfd1 f5 20. Qe1 c4 21. Bc2 b5 22. Rb1 a6 23. Bf2 Qf8 24. Bh4 Qxh6 25. Bxd8 Rxd8 26. a4 Bc6 27. axb5 axb5 {Agibileg,U (2411)-Mamedyarov,S (2733) Almaty KAZ 2024 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 13. dxc5 Qc7 14. cxb6 axb6 15. Nd4 Nc4 16. Bxc4 Qxc4 17. Qb3 Ba6 18. Rfd1 Rfc8 19. Qxb6 Rab8 20. Qd6 Rb2 21. a3 Bb7 22. Nf3 Qxe4 23. Qe7 Bf8 24. Rd8 Rxd8 25. Qxd8 Qd5 26. Qxd5 Bxd5 27. c4 Bxf3 {Svensson,S (2102)-Jansa,V (2478) Rijeka 2011 0-1 (88)}) 13... Bb7 14. Nf4 Nc6 15. Be4 Qd7 16. Qf3 Rab8 17. Rfd1 cxd4 18. cxd4 Ne7 19. d5 Nxd5 20. Bxd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Molde"]
[Date "2004.07.09"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Fyllingen, Roy Harald"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D77"]
[WhiteElo "2374"]
[BlackElo "2552"]
[PlyCount "40"]
[EventDate "2004.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. O-O d5 6. c4 dxc4 7. Na3 Nc6 8. Nxc4 Be6 9. b3 a5 10. Bb2 Bd5 11. Rc1 a4 12. bxa4 Ra6 13. a3 Qa8 14. Ne3 ({RR} 14. Qc2 Be4 15. Qb3 Bd5 {½-½ (15) Irzhanov,R (2535)-Dvoirys,S (2585) Krasnoyarsk 1998}) 14... Be4 ({RR} 14... Rxa4 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Ne5 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Nb6 18. Rxc7 Nc4 19. Bc3 Nxe5 20. Bb4 Nc6 21. Bxc6 bxc6 22. Rxe7 Rxa3 23. Bxa3 Qxa3 24. Rc7 h5 25. Rxc6 h4 26. Qd7 Qa2 27. e3 Qe2 28. Rc8 hxg3 29. hxg3 {Afanasiev,N (2543)-Petrov,A (1929) Alushta UKR 2023 1-0 (32)}) 15. d5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Bxb2 $146 ({RR} 16... Bxd5 17. Bxg7 Rd8 18. Qc2 Kxg7 19. e4 Be6 20. Qb2+ Kg8 21. Ng5 Rb6 22. Qa1 Bb3 23. e5 Qxa4 24. Ne4 Qd4 25. Qxd4 Rxd4 26. Nc5 Bd5 27. Nxb7 Bxg2 28. Kxg2 Ra4 29. e6 Rxb7 30. exf7+ Kxf7 31. Rxc6 {Skomorokhin,R-Banas,J (2395) Gyor 1990 ½-½ (55)}) 17. Nxc7 Qa7 18. Nxa6 Bxc1 19. Qxc1 Qxa6 20. Qh6 Bxf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Molde"]
[Date "2004.07.10"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lie, Kjetil A"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A67"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2430"]
[PlyCount "176"]
[EventDate "2004.07.03"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4 g6 7. f4 Bg7 8. Bb5+ Nfd7 9. a4 a6 10. Bd3 Qh4+ 11. g3 Qd8 12. Nf3 O-O 13. O-O Nf6 14. f5 ({RR} 14. Re1 Bg4 15. Bf1 Qc8 16. a5 Re8 17. Ra3 h5 18. Bg2 c4 19. e5 dxe5 20. fxe5 Nfd7 21. e6 fxe6 22. h3 Bf5 23. dxe6 Nf6 24. Nd4 Bd3 25. Qf3 Nc6 26. Nxc6 bxc6 27. Qxc6 Qb8 28. Qxa8 Qxa8 {Gauglitz,G (2397)-Fridman,D (2630) Germany 2009 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 14. Kg2 Bg4 15. h3 Bxf3+ 16. Qxf3 Nbd7 17. Bd2 Ne8 18. Nd1 Nc7 19. Bc3 b5 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Ne3 Qf6 22. Rf2 c4 23. Bb1 Nc5 24. axb5 Qd4 25. b6 Nb5 26. f5 Rae8 27. f6+ Kh8 28. Qf4 Nxe4 {Djurhuus,R (2458)-Lie,K (2560) Norway 2012 0-1 (46)}) 14... Ng4 ({RR} 14... Re8 15. Kg2 c4 16. Bc2 Nbd7 17. h3 Rb8 18. a5 b5 19. axb6 Qxb6 20. g4 Nc5 21. Nd2 Qc7 22. Qf3 g5 23. Re1 Bb7 24. Re2 Nfd7 25. Nxc4 Nxe4 26. Rxe4 Bxc3 27. Bxg5 Bxb2 28. Rd1 Rxe4 29. Qxe4 {Celik,H (2417)-Amundsen,A (2069) Fagernes NOR 2024 1-0 (39)}) 15. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 15. h3 Ne5 16. Nxe5 Bxe5 17. Qf3 Nd7 18. Bh6 Bd4+ 19. Kg2 Ne5 20. Qe2 Re8 21. Rae1 Bd7 22. Bc2 b5 23. axb5 axb5 24. Nxb5 Bxb5 25. Qxb5 Rb8 26. Qe2 Rxb2 27. Rb1 Ra2 28. Rb7 c4 29. h4 Qa8 {Andersen,O (2085)-Hansen,E (2180) Denmark 1995 0-1 (45)}) 15... Qb6 16. a5 Qxb2 17. Na4 Bd4+ 18. Kh1 Qxa1 19. Qb3 Nd7 20. Rxa1 Bxa1 21. Be7 Re8 22. Bxd6 Nf2+ 23. Kg2 Nxe4 24. Bxe4 Rxe4 25. Ng5 Re2+ 26. Kf1 Re8 27. Qf3 Ne5 28. Qd1 Bd4 29. Nb6 Bxf5 30. Nxa8 Ng4 31. Bf4 Rxa8 32. Qb3 Re8 33. d6 Nxh2+ 34. Kg2 Re2+ 35. Kh1 Be4+ 36. Nxe4 Ng4 37. Nf6+ Bxf6 38. d7 Nf2+ 39. Kg2 Nd3+ 40. Kf3 Nxf4 41. Qxb7 Ra2 42. Qb8+ Kg7 43. Qxf4 Ra3+ 44. Ke2 Ra2+ 45. Kd1 Bd8 46. Qe5+ f6 47. Qe8 Bxa5 48. Qe7+ Kh6 49. Qf8+ Kg5 50. Qxc5+ Kh6 51. Kc1 Ra1+ 52. Kc2 Ra2+ 53. Kb1 Ra4 54. Kb2 Kg7 55. Kb3 Ra1 56. Qe7+ Kg8 57. Qxf6 Rd1 58. Qe6+ Kf8 59. Qe8+ Kg7 60. Qe7+ Kg8 61. Kc4 Rf1 62. d8=Q+ Bxd8 63. Qxd8+ Kg7 64. Qe7+ Rf7 65. Qe5+ Rf6 66. g4 h6 67. Kd5 g5 68. Qc7+ Rf7 69. Qc3+ Kg8 70. Ke6 Rf4 71. Qe5 Kh7 72. Ke7 Kg8 73. Qe6+ Kg7 74. Qf5 a5 75. Qe5+ Kg8 76. Qxa5 Kh7 77. Qd5 Kh8 78. Qd6 Kg7 79. Qe6 Kh7 80. Qd7 Kg8 81. Qc8+ Kh7 82. Qe6 Kg7 83. Qf5 Ra4 84. Qf7+ Kh8 85. Qe8+ Kg7 86. Qf7+ Kh8 87. Qg6 Rb4 88. Kd8 Rb7 1-0

[Event "Politiken Cup 26th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.07.29"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lie, Kjetil A"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A77"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2459"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2004.07.24"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 c5 7. d5 e6 8. O-O exd5 9. cxd5 Re8 10. Nd2 Nbd7 11. Qc2 Ne5 12. h3 g5 13. f4 gxf4 14. Rxf4 Kh8 $146 ({RR} 14... a6 15. a4 Rb8 16. a5 b5 17. axb6 Rxb6 18. Nc4 Nxc4 19. Bxc4 Nh5 20. Rf3 Bd4+ 21. Be3 Be5 22. Qf2 f6 23. Rf1 Ng7 24. g4 Rf8 25. Bd3 Rb7 26. Bxa6 Rbf7 27. Bd3 Qb6 28. Kh1 Bd7 29. Rb1 {Rughani,M (1854)-Carroll,T (2124) Kenilworth ENG 2025 0-1 (65)}) 15. Nc4 Ng6 16. Rf1 b5 17. Nxb5 Nxe4 18. Bd3 a6 19. Bxe4 axb5 20. Rxf7 bxc4 21. Bxg6 Qh4 22. Rxg7 Re1+ 23. Kh2 Kxg7 24. Bxh7 Qxh7 25. Qc3+ Re5 26. Bf4 Qf5 27. Qg3+ Kh7 28. Rf1 Ra7 29. Bxe5 Qxf1 30. Qh4+ Kg6 31. Qg3+ Kh7 32. Qh4+ Kg6 33. Qg3+ Kf5 34. Bxd6 Qe2 35. Qf4+ Kg6 36. Qg3+ Kf5 37. Qf4+ Kg6 38. Qg3+ Kf7 39. Be5 Re7 40. Qg7+ Ke8 41. Qg6+ Rf7 42. Qg8+ Rf8 43. Qg6+ Rf7 44. Qg8+ Rf8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Politiken Cup 26th"]
[Site "Copenhagen"]
[Date "2004.07.30"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Schlecht, Daniel"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2363"]
[BlackElo "2567"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "2004.07.24"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 101 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2004.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nc3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. e4 b4 10. Na4 c5 11. e5 Nd5 12. O-O h6 13. Re1 Rc8 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Qe2 Qb6 17. Bd2 O-O $146 ({RR} 17... a5 18. Rac1 O-O 19. Rf1 Rfd8 20. Bb1 Ne7 21. Rfd1 Ba6 22. Qe1 Nf5 23. h3 Bb7 24. Qe2 Ng3 25. Qe1 Bxf3 26. gxf3 Nf5 27. Kg2 Bd4 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Bxf5 exf5 30. Be3 Qg6+ 31. Kf1 Bxe5 32. Rd5 {D'Costa,L (2370)-Tan,J (2512) London ENG 2025 0-1 (36)}) ({RR} 17... Ke7 18. Rad1 Rhd8 19. Bc1 a5 20. Rf1 Kf8 21. h3 a4 22. Nh2 Bd4 23. Nf3 Rxc1 {0-1 (23) Wallis,C (2359)-Tan,J (2407) Canberra 2015}) 18. a3 Rfd8 19. Rf1 a5 20. h3 b3 21. Rac1 Ne7 22. a4 Nf5 23. Kh2 Rxd3 24. Qxd3 Ba6 25. Qc3 Bxf1 26. Rxf1 Ra8 27. Be1 Nd4 28. Nd2 Bb4 29. Qe3 Rd8 30. Nxb3 Qa6 31. Bxb4 Qxf1 32. Nxd4 axb4 33. Nc6 Ra8 34. b3 Qd1 35. Ne7+ Kh8 36. Qf4 Qe1 37. g3 Ra7 38. Qxf7 Rxe7 39. Qxe7 Qxf2+ 40. Kh1 Qf1+ 41. Kh2 Qe2+ 42. Kg1 Qe3+ 43. Kf1 Qf3+ 44. Ke1 Qxg3+ 45. Kd2 Qc3+ 46. Ke2 Qxe5+ 47. Kd2 Qb2+ 48. Ke1 Qxb3 49. Qd8+ Kh7 50. a5 Qe3+ 51. Kd1 b3 52. Qd2 Qg1+ 53. Ke2 b2 54. Qc2+ Qg6 0-1

[Event "Outdoor Exhibition Match"]
[Site "Bergen"]
[Date "2004.08.06"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2614"]
[PlyCount "208"]
[EventDate "2004.08.06"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 O-O 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 c5 7. Rc1 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Qa5 $146 ({RR} 8... d5 9. cxd5 g5 10. Bg3 Qxd5 11. e3 Qxa2 12. Bd3 Qxb2 13. O-O Bxc3 14. Nb5 Ba5 15. Bd6 Nc6 16. Rc2 Qb3 17. Bc4 Qa4 18. Bxf8 Kxf8 19. f4 g4 20. Qd6+ Kg7 21. Rcc1 Qb4 22. Qd3 Qd2 23. Rfd1 {Sethuraman,S (2644)-Karjakin,S (2752) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1}) ({RR} 8... Nc6 9. e3 b6 10. Ndb5 a6 11. Nd6 Qe7 12. Nde4 g5 13. Nxf6+ Qxf6 14. Bg3 d5 15. h4 g4 16. Qxg4+ Kh8 17. Qg5 Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Qxf2+ 19. Kxf2 hxg5 20. hxg5+ Kg7 21. cxd5 exd5 22. c4 Be6 23. cxd5 {Aronian,L (2792)-Caruana,F (2804) Leuven 2016 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 8... Nc6 9. e3 d5 10. cxd5 Qxd5 11. Nxc6 Qxd1+ 12. Kxd1 bxc6 13. Bd3 Nd5 14. Na4 e5 15. Bg3 f6 16. Ke2 Be6 17. a3 Be7 18. e4 Nb6 19. Nxb6 axb6 20. Rxc6 Kf7 21. f3 Rfb8 22. Bf2 b5 23. Rc7 {Malek,J (2526)-Falkevall,A (2346) Dortmund GER 2025 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 8... d5 9. cxd5 g5 10. Bg3 Qxd5 11. e3 Qxa2 12. Qc2 Bxc3+ 13. Qxc3 Ne4 14. Qb4 a5 15. Qb5 Bd7 16. Qxb7 Nc6 17. Bd3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 Nxd4 19. exd4 Qd5 20. Qxd5 exd5 21. Rxh6 Rab8 22. Rh5 f6 23. Rc7 {Dragnev,V (2564)-Shengelia,D (2543) Austria 2021 ½-½ (52)}) 9. Bxf6 gxf6 10. a3 Be7 11. e3 Qg5 12. Be2 Kh8 13. O-O Rg8 14. Bf3 Nc6 15. Ne4 Qg7 16. Nxc6 dxc6 17. Nd6 Rd8 18. c5 e5 19. Qb3 Bxd6 20. cxd6 Rb8 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Qa4 f5 23. e4 fxe4 24. Qxe4 f5 25. Qe3 e4 26. Be2 Rd7 27. Bc4 Bxc4 28. Rxc4 Rbd8 29. Rcd4 Kh7 30. b4 Qe5 31. Qd2 Rg8 32. g3 Rg6 33. a4 h5 34. Rc1 Rgxd6 35. Rxd6 Qxd6 36. Qg5 Qg6 37. Qe3 a6 38. Rc5 Qg4 39. Kg2 Rd3 40. h3 Qf3+ 41. Qxf3 exf3+ 42. Kh2 Kg6 43. g4 hxg4 44. hxg4 f4 45. b5 axb5 46. axb5 Rd5 47. Rc4 Rxb5 48. Rxf4 Rb3 49. Kg3 b5 50. Rd4 Kg5 51. Rd6 Rc3 52. Rd4 c5 53. Rd5+ Kf6 54. g5+ Kg6 55. Kf4 Rc4+ 56. Kxf3 b4 57. Ke3 b3 58. Kd3 Rb4 59. Rd6+ Kxg5 60. f4+ Kf5 61. Rd5+ Kxf4 62. Rh5 c4+ 63. Kc3 b2 64. Kxb4 b1=Q+ 65. Kxc4 Qe4+ 66. Kc5 Qe7+ 67. Kb6 Qd8+ 68. Ka6 Qd6+ 69. Kb5 Qd3+ 70. Ka5 Qd2+ 71. Kb6 Qd6+ 72. Kb5 Qd7+ 73. Ka5 Qc7+ 74. Kb4 Ke4 75. Rc5 Qb6+ 76. Rb5 Qd4+ 77. Ka3 Kd3 78. Rb4 Qc5 79. Ka4 Qc6+ 80. Kb3 Qc7 81. Ka4 Qc6+ 82. Ka5 Kc3 83. Rb3+ Kc2 84. Rb6 Qa8+ 85. Kb4 Qd5 86. Rb5 Qd4+ 87. Ka5 Kc3 88. Rb6 Qc5+ 89. Ka6 Kc4 90. Kb7 Qe7+ 91. Ka6 Qa3+ 92. Kb7 Kc5 93. Rc6+ Kd5 94. Rb6 Qe7+ 95. Ka6 Qd7 96. Rb7 Qa4+ 97. Kb6 Kd6 98. Rb8 Qb4+ 99. Ka7 Qa5+ 100. Kb7 Kd7 101. Ra8 Qb5+ 102. Ka7 Kc7 103. Rc8+ Kxc8 104. Ka8 Qa6# 0-1

[Event "NOR Junior Team Championship"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2004.09.11"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Ostmoe, Geir S Tallaksen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2350"]
[BlackElo "2567"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2004.09.10"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. e4 b4 10. Na4 c5 11. e5 Nd5 12. O-O h6 13. Bd2 Rc8 14. Rc1 Qa5 15. Re1 Be7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 18. Re4 Qb6 19. Qe2 Ne7 20. Rg4 g6 21. a3 a5 22. axb4 axb4 23. Rh4 Nf5 24. Rhc4 Bd5 25. R4c2 b3 26. Rc3 Kd7 27. g4 Ne7 28. Bb5+ Kd8 29. Ba4 Qb4 30. Rc4 Qb6 31. Rf4 Ra8 32. Qd3 g5 {Agdestein,S (2565)-Kaasen,T (2469) Bergen NOR 2025 1-0 (36)}) 18... Qb6 19. Rc4 Ke7 20. Rg4 g5 21. h4 gxh4 22. Rxh4 Rcg8 23. Rxh6 Rxh6 24. Bxh6 Rh8 25. Bg5+ Kd7 26. Rf1 Rg8 27. Qe4 Ne7 28. Qh4 Bxf3 29. gxf3 Nd5 30. f4 Nxf4 31. Qxf4 Be7 32. Rc1 Rxg5+ 33. Kf1 Qb7 34. Qd4+ Ke8 35. Be4 Qb5+ 36. Bd3 Qb7 37. Be4 Qb5+ 38. Bd3 Qb8 39. Ba6 Qb6 40. Rc8+ Bd8 41. Rxd8+ Qxd8 42. Bb5+ 1-0

[Event "Lausanne YM 5th"]
[Site "Lausanne"]
[Date "2004.09.18"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Papa, Severin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D91"]
[WhiteElo "2397"]
[BlackElo "2567"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2004.09.15"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bg5 Ne4 6. Bh4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 c5 8. e3 Nc6 9. cxd5 Qxd5 10. Be2 cxd4 11. cxd4 Qa5+ 12. Qd2 Qxd2+ 13. Kxd2 O-O 14. Rab1 b6 15. Bb5 Bb7 16. Rhc1 Rfc8 17. Bxc6 Bxc6 18. Bxe7 Bd5 19. a3 f6 20. Rxc8+ Rxc8 21. Rc1 Rxc1 22. Kxc1 Kf7 23. Bd6 Ke6 24. Bb8 Bf8 25. Kb2 a6 26. Bc7 $146 ({RR} 26. Ba7 b5 27. Bb6 Bd6 28. h3 h5 29. Ne1 g5 30. f3 f5 31. Bc5 Bxc5 32. dxc5 Bc4 33. f4 gxf4 34. exf4 Kd5 35. Kc3 Kxc5 36. Nf3 a5 37. Ne5 b4+ 38. axb4+ axb4+ 39. Kb2 Bf1 40. g4 fxg4 {Filgueira,H (2283)-Kornev,A (2500) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (59)}) ({RR} 26. Ba7 b5 27. Bb6 Bd6 28. h3 h5 29. Ne1 g5 30. f3 f5 31. Bc5 Bxc5 32. dxc5 Bc4 33. f4 gxf4 34. exf4 Kd5 35. Kc3 Kxc5 36. Nf3 a5 37. Ne5 b4+ 38. axb4+ axb4+ 39. Kb2 Bf1 40. g4 fxg4 {Filgueira,H (2283)-Kornev,A (2500) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (59)}) 26... b5 27. Ne1 Bc4 28. Ba5 Bd6 29. h3 Kd5 30. Bb4 Bh2 31. Nf3 Bc7 32. Nd2 Be2 33. Kc3 a5 34. e4+ Kc6 35. Bf8 Kd7 36. Bc5 h5 37. g3 f5 38. d5 Be5+ 39. Kc2 fxe4 40. Nxe4 Bc4 41. f4 Bg7 42. Nc3 Bxc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Lausanne YM 5th"]
[Site "Lausanne"]
[Date "2004.09.20"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lagno, Kateryna"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2472"]
[PlyCount "21"]
[EventDate "2004.09.15"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qe3 b6 10. Bg2 Bb7 11. Ba3 $146 ({RR} 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Nf5 O-O 13. Nd4 Na6 14. Qe4 Nac5 15. Qg4 Qf6 16. h4 Qg6 17. Qf3 Qe4 18. Ba3 Qxf3 19. Nxf3 Rfc8 20. O-O-O Rc7 21. Nd4 a6 22. Nb3 Ne4 23. Rhf1 Nxc3 24. Rd3 Rxc4 25. Kd2 Ne4+ {Dorfman,J (2602)-Relange,E (2472) Marseille 2001 0-1}) ({RR} 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Ba3 Nc6 13. Nxc6 dxc6 14. Qe5 Qf6 15. Qc7 Qxc3+ 16. Kf1 Qxa3 17. Qxc6+ Ke7 18. Qc7+ Kf6 19. Qf4+ Ke7 20. Qc7+ Kf6 21. Qf4+ Ke7 22. Qc7+ Kf6 {½-½ (22) Socko,B (2654)-Wojtaszek,R (2721) Lublin 2011}) ({RR} 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Ba3 Nc6 13. Nb5 a6 14. Nd6+ Nxd6 15. Bxd6 Na5 16. c5 bxc5 17. Bxc5 d6 18. Rd1 Nb7 19. Bb4 Qc7 20. O-O O-O 21. Rd3 Rfc8 22. Qd2 Rd8 23. e4 a5 24. Ba3 Ra6 25. Rd1 Rc6 {Arnaudov,G (2472)-Kabatianski,A (2359) Germany GER 2023 ½-½ (63)}) ({RR} 11. Bxb7 Nxb7 12. Qe4 Nc6 13. Nxc6 {½-½ (13) Razuvaev,Y (2525)-Horvath,T Keszthely 1981}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Lausanne YM 5th"]
[Site "Lausanne"]
[Date "2004.09.20"]
[Round "3.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lagno, Kateryna"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E63"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2472"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2004.09.15"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Bologan,Viktor} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nf3 d6 6. O-O Nc6 7. Nc3 a6 8. h3 Bd7 9. e4 e5 10. dxe5 ({RR} 10. d5 Nd4 11. Be3 ({RR} 11. Nxd4 exd4 12. Qxd4 Qc8 13. Bg5 ({RR} 13. h4 Ng4 14. Qd1 b5 15. cxb5 axb5) 13... Nh5 14. Qd2 Bxh3 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 Qg4 17. Rae1 Rae8 18. Bxh3 Qxh3) 11... Nxf3+ 12. Qxf3 Qc8 13. Bg5 Nh5 14. g4 Nf4 15. Bxf4 exf4 16. Qxf4 b5) 10... Nxe5 ({RR} 10... dxe5 11. Be3 Be6 12. b3 ({RR} 12. Qa4 b5 ({RR} 12... Qc8 13. Kh2 Rd8 14. Rfd1 Rxd1 15. Rxd1 h6 16. c5 Qf8 17. Nd5) 13. cxb5 axb5 14. Qc2 Nd4 15. Bxd4 exd4 16. Rfd1 c5 17. Nxb5 Qd7 18. a4 Bxh3 19. e5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Nd5 21. Qxc5 Nf4+ 22. gxf4 Qg4+ 23. Kf1 Qxf3 24. Qxd4 Rad8 25. Nd6 Rxd6 26. Qxd6 Qh1+) 12... Nd7 ({RR} 12... Re8 13. Qxd8 ({RR} 13. Qb1 Nh5 14. Rd1 Nd4) 13... Rexd8 14. Rad1 ({RR} 14. Nd5) 14... Rxd1 15. Rxd1 Rc8 16. Ne1 Bf8 17. Nd3) 13. Qd2 f6 14. Rfd1 Rf7 15. c5 Qf8 16. Nd5 Rc8 17. b4) 11. c5 ({RR} 11. Nxe5 dxe5 12. Be3 Be6 13. Qe2 c6 14. Bc5 ({RR} 14. Rfd1 Qa5 15. a3 Rfd8 16. Rdc1 Re8 17. b4 Qd8 18. a4 a5) 14... Re8 15. Rfd1 Qc8 16. Kh2 b5 17. b3 h5 18. h4 Bf8 19. Bxf8 Kxf8 20. c5 a5 21. Rd6 Qc7 22. Rad1 Red8 23. Bh3 ({RR} 23. Qd2 Rxd6 24. cxd6 Qb6 25. Bh3 Bxh3 26. Kxh3 Kg7) 23... Bxh3 24. Kxh3 Ne8 25. R6d2 Ng7 {Roiz,M (2630)-Bologan,V (2657) Kemer 2007 CBM 121 [Bologan,Viktor] 0-1 (36)} ({RR} 25... Qe7 26. Qe3 Rxd2 27. Rxd2 Rd8 28. Rxd8 Qxd8)) ({RR} 11. Nxe5 dxe5 12. Be3 Be6 13. Qe2 Re8 14. Rfd1 Qc8 15. Kh2 a5 16. Rac1 a4 17. Nd5 Nd7 18. b4 axb3 19. axb3 h6 20. Ra1 Rxa1 21. Rxa1 c6 22. Nb6 Qc7 23. Nxd7 Bxd7 24. Qd2 h5 25. Qa5 Qxa5 {Montilla Carrillo,E (2187)-Sirera Bargallo,T (2102) Barcelona 2020 1-0 (47)}) 11... Nxf3+ 12. Qxf3 dxc5 13. e5 Ne8 $146 ({RR} 13... Bc6 14. Qd1 Nd7 15. Bxc6 bxc6 16. f4 Nb6 17. Be3 c4 18. Qf3 Qd7 19. Kg2 Nd5 20. Bc5 Rfd8 21. Rad1 Rab8 22. Rf2 Qe6 23. Rfd2 f6 24. g4 fxe5 25. f5 gxf5 26. gxf5 Qf6 27. Ne4 Nf4+ 28. Kg3 {Garcia Lemos,F (2221)-Sanhueza,C (2325) Buenos Aires 2019 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 13... Bc6 14. exf6 Bxf3 15. fxg7 Kxg7 16. Bxf3 Qf6 17. Bxb7 Rad8 18. Bg2 Rd4 19. Be3 Re8 20. Rac1 Qb6 21. Rc2 Rxe3 22. fxe3 Rd3 23. Re2 Qe6 24. Rfe1 Qe5 25. g4 h5 26. gxh5 Qxh5 27. Ne4 Rd1 28. Kf1 {Smith,A (2484)-Forsberg,V (2241) Sweden 2012 1-0 (61)}) 14. Rd1 Qc8 15. Qxb7 Rb8 16. Qxc8 Bxc8 17. Nd5 Be6 18. Be3 f6 19. Bxc5 Rf7 20. Ne7+ Kh8 21. Nc6 Rc8 22. Nd8 Bc4 23. Nxf7+ Bxf7 24. Rd7 Kg8 25. Rad1 Bxa2 26. Bc6 Bf8 27. Bxf8 Kxf8 28. Rd8 Rxd8 29. Rxd8 Bf7 30. e6 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Classic"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2004.09.23"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "L'Ami, Erwin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D89"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2486"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "2004.09.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 O-O 9. O-O Nc6 10. Be3 Bg4 11. f3 Na5 12. Bd3 cxd4 13. cxd4 Be6 14. d5 Bxa1 15. Qxa1 f6 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Kh1 Rc8 18. Nf4 Bd7 19. e5 Nc4 20. e6 Ba4 21. Nxg6 hxg6 22. Bxg6 Ne5 23. Be4 Bc2 24. Bxc2 Rxc2 25. Qd1 Qc7 26. f4 Rc1 27. Qxc1 Qxc1 28. Rxc1 Ng4 29. h3 Nxh6 30. g4 Rd8 31. Rc7 Kf8 32. Rd7 Nf7 33. h4 $146 ({RR} 33. Rxb7 Nd6 34. Rxa7 Nb5 35. Rb7 Nc3 36. Rd7 Ra8 37. d6 exd6 38. Rf7+ Ke8 39. g5 fxg5 40. fxg5 Ne4 41. g6 Ng3+ 42. Kg1 Nh5 43. Rh7 Ra4 44. h4 Re4 45. Rxh5 Rg4+ 46. Kf2 Rxg6 47. a4 Rxe6 {Harika,D (2358)-Alka,D (2019) Visakhapatnam 2006 1-0 (59)}) ({RR} 33. g5 Rxd7 34. exd7 Kg7 35. h4 Kg6 36. Kg2 f5 37. Kf2 Nd8 38. Ke3 b5 39. Kd4 Nb7 40. Kc3 a5 41. Kd4 Kh5 {½-½ (41) Aandal,K (1932)-Harstad,C (2109) Oslo 2005}) 33... b5 34. Kg2 a5 35. Kf3 a4 36. Ke3 b4 37. Ra7 Nh6 38. g5 Nf5+ 39. Ke4 Nd6+ 40. Kf3 fxg5 41. hxg5 b3 42. Rxa4 b2 43. Rb4 Nc4 44. Kg4 Rd6 45. Rb8+ Kg7 46. f5 Rb6 47. Rxb6 Nxb6 48. d6 exd6 49. f6+ Kf8 0-1

[Event "Gausdal Classic"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2004.09.25"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Ostmoe, Geir S Tallaksen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2350"]
[BlackElo "2567"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2004.09.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. Nc3 c5 7. e4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bc5 9. Nb3 Nc6 10. Bf4 e5 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 O-O ({RR} 12... g5 13. Bg3 Nh5 14. O-O-O a6 15. Kb1 Rc8 16. Be2 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Nd4 18. Nxd4 Bxd4 19. Nd5 b5 20. f4 Bxd5 21. exd5 Qf6 22. Qe4 Kd8 23. Rhf1 gxf4 24. gxf4 Qg6 25. Qxg6 fxg6 26. cxb5 axb5 27. Bxb5 {Ostmoe,G (2327)-Quinn,M (2411) Gausdal 2003 1-0 (39)}) 13. f3 ({RR} 13. Rd1 Nd4 14. Nxd4 exd4 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nd5 Bxd5 17. cxd5 Rac8 18. Qd3 Rfe8 19. Be2 Qe5 20. Rd2 f5 21. exf5 Bxa3 22. O-O Bb4 23. Bh5 Bxd2 24. Bxe8 Rxe8 25. Qxd2 Qxf5 26. Qxd4 Re2 27. h3 Qe4 {Sokolov,I (2641)-Efimenko,Z (2689) Vrnjacka Banja 2010 0-1 (43)}) ({RR} 13. Bd3 Rc8 14. O-O g5 15. Bg3 Nh5 16. Rad1 Qf6 17. Be2 Nxg3 18. hxg3 Qe6 19. Rd2 a6 20. Qd1 Nd4 21. Nd5 Nxb3 {½-½ (21) Kempinski,R (2566)-Petrov,M (2536) Hamburg GER 2025}) 13... Rc8 14. O-O-O a6 15. Qd2 $146 ({RR} 15. Kb1 Nd4 16. Nxd4 Bxd4 17. Bf2 Bxf2 18. Qxf2 b5 19. cxb5 axb5 20. Nxb5 d5 21. exd5 Nxd5 22. Bd3 Qe7 23. Rhe1 Rfd8 24. g3 Rb8 25. f4 Bc6 26. Rxe5 Qf8 27. Qe2 Qc5 28. Rc1 Qb6 29. a4 Nb4 {Kamsky,G (2720)-Friedel,J (2516) Philadelphia 2009 1-0 (34)}) 15... Nxe4 16. Nxe4 Qxh4 17. Nexc5 bxc5 18. Qxd7 Ba8 19. Qf5 Rfd8 20. g3 Rxd1+ 21. Kxd1 Qd8+ 22. Kc1 Rb8 23. Nd2 Nd4 24. Qd3 Nxf3 25. Nxf3 Qf6 26. Qc3 Bxf3 27. Rg1 Be4 28. Bd3 Bxd3 29. Qxd3 Qf2 0-1

[Event "Gausdal Classic"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2004.09.27"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Palo, Davor"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2513"]
[BlackElo "2567"]
[Annotator "Golod,Vitali"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2004.09.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8. Nf3 d6 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. f3 c5 $5 {Besides Black has two alternatives:} (10... d5 $5 {You can see my annotations to game: Kasparov,G-Karpov,A/Frankfurt,1999/CBM 72(½-½)(49)}) (10... h6 $5 {You can see my comments to Shchekachev,A-Bagheri,A/Paris,2003/CBM 99(1-0)(38)}) 11. e4 {White had no other worthy alternative.} Re8 ({After:} 11... cxd4 12. Qxd4 Qc7 {you can find three games in Mega DataBase 2004}) ({On:} 11... h6 $5 {I have found three games in my database.For an example we shall consider latest of them:} 12. Bh4 cxd4 13. Qxd4 Qe7 14. Be2 Rfd8 15. O-O Rac8 16. Rfd1 e5 17. Qf2 Nf8 18. Nf1 Ng6 19. Bg3 Nh5 20. Ne3 Nxg3 21. hxg3 {/= Gustafsson,J-Vescovi,G/playchess.com INT,2004(1-0)(64)}) 12. Bd3 ({Also four times were checked up in previous games:} 12. Be2 $5) 12... cxd4 $1 $146 {An interesting attempt of improvement black's play.} ({The games,which have reached this position were continued as follows:} 12... Qc7 $5 {For further details,you can see comments to Dautov,R-Epishin,V/Port Erin,2002/CBM 91(½-½)(Dautov,R)(67)}) ({and} 12... e5 13. d5 $2 (13. dxe5 $5 dxe5 14. O-O $14) 13... Nf8 $6 (13... Nxd5 $1 14. Bxd8 Nxc3 15. Bc7 Na4 $36) 14. Qc2 Bc8 15. Nb1 h6 16. Be3 Nh5 17. g3 $14 {Rogozenko,D-Wells,P/Germany,1998/GER-chT(½-½)(65)}) (12... h6 $6 {Dautov,R} 13. Bh4 Qc7 14. O-O cxd4 15. Qxd4 Qc5 16. Qf2 $14) 13. Qxd4 $140 Nc5 14. Bc2 ({It deserves more attention:} 14. O-O e5 15. Qe3 h6 16. Bxf6 (16. Bh4 $143 Ng4) 16... Qxf6 17. b4 Ne6 18. Nb3 Nf4 19. Rfd1 $11) 14... e5 $1 {The game of Black corresponds to the requirements of a position. I am sure, that Magnus expected for this move, when he made 12...cxd4.} 15. Qf2 (15. Qe3 h6 16. Bxf6 (16. Bh4 $2 Ng4 $1 $17) 16... Qxf6 17. O-O {but hardly the position of whie's bishop on a point " c2" is better than on point "d3" in the previous variation.}) 15... Ng4 $146 ({RR} 15... Ne6 16. Be3 Rc8 17. O-O Nd7 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. a4 a5 20. b3 Ndc5 21. Nb1 Bc6 22. Nc3 Red8 23. Rd2 Ra8 24. Rad1 Rac8 25. Qg3 Rc7 26. Qg4 Rcd7 27. h4 Kh8 28. Nd5 Bxd5 29. exd5 Nf8 30. h5 {Narciso Dublan,M (2544)-Kunte,A (2528) Barcelona 2011 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 15... a5 16. O-O a4 17. Rad1 h6 18. Bh4 g5 19. Bg3 Ba6 20. Rfe1 Qe7 21. Nf1 Bxc4 22. Ne3 Be6 23. Qd2 Red8 24. Qb4 Nh5 25. Bf2 Nf4 26. Rd2 Nb3 27. Bxb3 axb3 28. Red1 b5 29. Qxb5 Qc7 30. g3 {Nielsen,P (2662)-Rozentalis,E (2577) Sweden 2012 ½-½ (45)}) 16. Bxd8 {White has selected the most irresolute continuation.} (16. Qh4 $142 f6 17. Qxg4 fxg5 18. h4 gxh4 19. Qxh4 Qxh4+ 20. Rxh4) 16... Nxf2 17. Kxf2 Rexd8 $11 {The position has become simpler, and now with such structure of the pawns, White can not receive,even the minimal positional advantage.} 18. b4 Ne6 19. Rhc1 (19. Nb3 $5 {d3,fc1} Rac8 20. Bd3 Nf4 21. Bf1 $11 {g3}) 19... Kf8 {Black remember,that  is very important piece in the endgame!} 20. Nb3 Ke7 21. Bd3 {All the same white's bishop is transferred on a6-f1.} Bc6 22. a4 $6 {[%mdl 16384] It's very careless easing of point "b4". Now considerably wins in force the following move of Black.} a5 $1 23. bxa5 $140 Nc5 $1 {Probably, White have missed this beautiful resource,because only hoped on:} (23... bxa5 $2 24. c5 dxc5 25. Nxc5 Nxc5 (25... Nf4 26. Bf1 Rd2+ 27. Ke3 Rad8 28. g3 Ng2+ 29. Bxg2 Rxg2 30. Nb3 {[%csl Ra5,Rc6]}) 26. Rxc5 Rxd3 27. Rxc6 Rd2+ 28. Kg3 $11) 24. Bc2 ({I can not recommended in this position:} 24. Nxc5 $6 dxc5 (24... bxc5 $143 25. Bc2 Rxa5 26. Rcb1 Rda8 27. Ra3 $15) 25. Ke3 (25. axb6 $2 Rxd3 26. a5 Rd2+ 27. Kg3 Ra6 28. Rcb1 Bb7 $17) 25... Rxa5 {with obvious positional advantage of Black.}) 24... bxa5 $15 25. Rcb1 Kd7 $1 {With the idea c7,by covering of a point "b6".} 26. Nxc5+ dxc5 27. Rd1+ Kc7 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Ke3 ({It was badly:} 29. Rd1 $2 {in view of:} Rb8 {b (×b2; a4)}) 29... Rd4 30. Bd3 Bd7 31. Rb1 $6 {[%mdl 16384] Davor Palo made this move in the most improper moment.} (31. Ra2 $5) (31. g4 $5 {(×f5)}) (31. h4 $5) {[%tqu "En","Find the best continuation for Black?","It is necessary to use a weakness of the White's rook!","","f7f5","Magnus open the second front and begin to create to the contender of weakness on the king side.",10,"d7a4","",0]} 31... f5 $1 {Magnus opens the second front and begins to create to the contender of weakness on the king side.} (31... Bxa4 $2 32. Ra1 Bb3 33. Rxa5 Kd6 34. Ra6+ $11) 32. Rc1 (32. exf5 $4 Rxd3+ 33. Kxd3 Bxf5+) ({Hardly it was better:} 32. g3 {in view of:} g5 {f4.}) 32... f4+ 33. Ke2 Rd6 {Black's rook has finished the his mission on a point "d4".} 34. Rb1 Rh6 $1 35. h3 {Now White have lost a counterplay connected with progress "g3".} (35. Rh1 $143 Bxa4 36. Ra1 Bc6 37. Rxa5 Kb6 $17 {[%csl Ra5,Rh2][%cal Gh6h2,Gb6a5]}) 35... Rg6 36. Kf2 Rd6 37. Ke2 g5 $17 {Has come is time of pawns attack on the king side.} 38. Bc2 h5 39. Rd1 Rd4 40. Bd3 (40. Rxd4 $2 cxd4 {[%csl Ra4,Rc4,Rf3,Rg2,Rh3][%cal Gc7b6,Gb6c5,Gg5g4]}) 40... Rd6 41. Bc2 Rd4 {Sometimes it is desirable to repeat the moves.} 42. Bd3 Bc6 43. Rg1 Rd8 {Black provokes movements of g2 with the purpose to create of weakness in camp of the contender:} 44. g3 Rg8 $1 45. gxf4 (45. g4 hxg4 46. hxg4 Rb8 $1 {b ;קa4,f3}) 45... exf4 {[%cal Gc7d6,Gd6e5]} 46. e5 {It's necessary to open a b1-h7.} Bd7 47. Bh7 (47. h4 g4 $17) (47. Rh1 $2 Re8 $19) 47... Rg7 48. Be4 Bxh3 49. Rh1 g4 {g3 It's the most logical reaction to the previous move of White.} (49... Be6 $143 50. Rxh5 Bxc4+ 51. Kd2 Bb3 52. Rh6 Bxa4 53. Ra6 $44) 50. Rb1 Rg5 51. Rb7+ (51. e6 $143 g3 52. Rb7+ Kd6 53. e7 Bd7 $19) 51... Kd8 52. e6 Re5 53. Rf7 g3 $19 {g3 easily decide a game!} 54. Rxf4 Rg5 55. Bd5 Bxe6 $5 ({Immediately wins the game the following move:} 55... g2 $1 56. Rf8+ Ke7 (56... Kc7 $5) 57. Rf7+ Kd6 58. Rd7+ (58. f4 {d7#} Bxe6 $1 $19) 58... Ke5 59. f4+ Kxf4 60. Rf7+ Ke5 61. e7 Bd7 $19) 56. Kf1 (56. Bxe6 $2 g2 {[%cal Gg2g1]}) 56... Bxd5 57. cxd5 Rxd5 58. Kg2 Rd4 59. Rf5 h4 60. Kh3 (60. Rxc5 $143 Rd2+ 61. Kg1 (61. Kh3 Rh2+ 62. Kg4 g2 63. Rc1 Rh1) 61... h3 $19) 60... c4 (60... c4 {After this move White resigns, because of these variations:} 61. Rxa5 c3 62. Rc5 Rd2 63. Rxc3 (63. Kxh4 g2 64. Rg5 c2) 63... Rh2+ 64. Kg4 g2 65. Rc1 Rh1) 0-1

[Event "Gausdal Classic"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2004.09.30"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2567"]
[BlackElo "2538"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2004.09.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Qc7 8. g3 e5 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Bf4 Nfd7 11. Bg2 g5 12. Ne3 gxf4 13. Nxf5 O-O-O 14. Qc2 Nc5 15. O-O Ne6 16. Qe4 fxg3 17. hxg3 a5 18. Rfc1 Nc5 ({RR} 18... Bc5 19. Nb5 cxb5 20. axb5 b6 21. b4 axb4 22. Ra8+ Kd7 23. Rd1+ Ke8 24. Rdxd8+ Nxd8 25. Qxe5+ {1-0 (25) Johannessen,L (2519)-Isaev,J (2424) Mallorca 2004}) 19. Qh4 Ng6 $146 ({RR} 19... Nb3 20. Nd5 Rxd5 21. Bxd5 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 Qd8 23. Qd4 f6 24. Be6+ Kc7 25. Qxd8+ Kxd8 26. f4 Ng4 27. Rd1+ Kc7 28. Rd7+ Kb6 29. Nd4 Ne3 30. Kh2 Bc5 31. Nb3 Bb4 32. Kh3 Re8 33. f5 Re7 34. Rd3 {Palo,D (2513)-Bromberger,S (2440) Gausdal 2004 ½-½ (36)}) 20. Qh5 Kb8 21. Rd1 Rxd1+ 22. Rxd1 Ne6 23. Ne4 Bb4 24. e3 Ka7 25. Nd4 Rd8 26. Qxh7 Nxd4 27. exd4 Nf8 28. Qh5 Ne6 29. d5 Rxd5 30. Rxd5 cxd5 31. Qxd5 Qc1+ 32. Kh2 Qxb2 33. Bh3 Qc2 34. Bxe6 fxe6 35. Qd4+ Ka8 36. Qd8+ Ka7 37. Qd4+ Ka8 38. Qd8+ Ka7 39. Qd4+ Ka8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-36"]
[Site "Mallorca"]
[Date "2004.10.25"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ibrayev, Nurlan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E38"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2476"]
[Annotator "Golod,Vitali"]
[PlyCount "33"]
[EventDate "2004.10.15"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Kazakhstan"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "KAZ"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 c5 ({RR} 4... O-O) ({RR} 4... d5) 5. dxc5 Bxc5 6. Nf3 Qb6 7. e3 Qc7 8. b3 $5 {Also repeatedly were checked up in previous games:} (8. Bd3 {See comments to game: Miranda,M-Tiviakov,S/New York,1998/CBM 64(0-1)(Gershon,A)(27)}) (8. a3 $5 {See annotations to Arlandi,E-Gurevich,M/Linares,1995/CBM 51(½-½)(Gurevich,M)(41)}) (8. Bd2 $5 {You can see my comments to Bosboom,M-Tiviakov,S/Leeuwarden,2004/CBM 103(½-½)(42)}) (8. Be2) ({and} 8. g4 $5) 8... b6 ({After:} 8... a6 {it deserves serious attention:} 9. g4 {For further information,you can find my comments to game: Bareev,E-Sakaev,K/Moscow,2001/CBM 86(1-0)(26)}) ({RR} 8... a6 9. g4 h6 10. Bb2 b6 11. Rg1 Bb7 12. Be2 d5 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Rc1 Bb4+ 16. Kf1 Qxc2 17. Rxc2 O-O 18. g5 h5 19. Ne5 g6 20. e4 Bb7 21. Rc7 Ra7 22. Nxg6 Re8 23. Nf4) 9. Bb2 Bb7 10. Nb5 $5 $146 {Interestingly,that in this position,this move is applied for the first time. Three games,which have reached this position were continued as follows:} (10. Be2 $5 {You can see my annotations to game: Kiriakov,P-Tiviakov,S/Port Erin,1999/CBM 74(1-0)(34)}) (10. Rd1 Be7 (10... a6 $142) 11. Bd3 a6 (11... Na6 $143 12. Nb5 Qc6 13. Qd2 $5 $14 {Kozul,Z-Ionescu,C/Berga,1991/Inf 52/564(1-0)(Kozul,Z)(33)}) 12. O-O d6 13. Qe2 Nbd7 14. Bb1 O-O 15. Nd4 Qc5 $11 {Piket,J-Tiviakov,S/Netherlands,2000(1-0)(44)}) 10... Qd8 ({Hardly it was better:} 10... Qc8 11. O-O-O a6 $5 (11... O-O 12. Ng5 (12. Bd3 $6 a6 $132) 12... h6 $8 13. Bxf6 hxg5 14. Be5 $1 $14 {×d6} (14. Bxg5 $143 a6 15. Nc3 b5 $132)) 12. Nd6+ Bxd6 13. Rxd6 Qc7 {/=}) 11. O-O-O {×d6} O-O {The contenders have hidden the kings on different sides.This fact - "harbinger" of active actions in this game.} (11... a6 $143 12. Nd6+ (12. Bxf6 $143 gxf6 13. Nd6+ Bxd6 14. Rxd6 Qc7 $13) 12... Bxd6 13. Rxd6 Ne4 14. Rd1 O-O 15. Bd3 f5 {/=}) ({RR} 11... Na6) 12. Ng5 {[%csl Rh7][%cal Gb2f6,Yf6h7]} Re8 $1 {Black had no other worthy alternative.} (12... g6 $2 13. Qc3 Be7 14. Nd6 Qc7 (14... Bc6 $2 15. Nde4 Bxe4 16. Nxe4 Kg7 17. g4 $1 h6 18. f4 $18 {g5}) 15. Nge4 $16) (12... h6 $4 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 $140 14. Qh7#) 13. h4 ({It was very difficult to decide on Fritz's continuation:} 13. Bxf6 $5 Qxf6 14. Qxh7+ (14. Nc7 $2 Qxg5 15. Nxe8 Qe5 $1 {[%csl Re8]} 16. Qb2 $140 (16. Kb1 Nc6 $36) 16... Ba3 $1 17. Qxa3 Qc3+ 18. Kb1 Be4+ 19. Bd3 Bxd3+ 20. Rxd3 Qxd3+ 21. Kc1 Nc6 $15) 14... Kf8 {as it is impossible to estimate the following situation:} 15. Nc7 Na6 $5 $13) 13... e5 $146 {Black,in turn, prevent a threat 14.xf6} ({Leads to favourable complications for White:} 13... h6 $6 14. Bxf6 $1 Qxf6 $140 $8 15. Nc7 hxg5 (15... Qa1+ $2 16. Kd2 Bb4+ 17. Ke2 $18) 16. Nxe8 Qa1+ 17. Kd2 Qe5 18. Qc3 Nc6 19. Qxe5 Nxe5 20. Nc7 Rc8 21. Nb5 d5 $1 {/}) ({RR} 13... h6 14. Nc7 Na6 15. Nxe8 Nxe8 16. Qh7+ Kf8 17. Qh8+ Ke7 18. Nh7 Nd6 19. Qxg7 {1-0 (19) Nielsen,P (2644)-Alexieva,S (2358) Noyon 2005 CBM 105 Extra [ChessBase II]}) 14. Nd6 Bxd6 15. Rxd6 {White have created a threat: 16.xf6 xf6 17.xh7+ f8 18.a3+ and 19.h8# But now it's not real,because of: 18...d6 (black's  has a field "e7").} h6 16. Qf5 $5 {Well-hidden provocation.} Nc6 $140 $4 {Painful blunder leading to immediate loss.} ({Also loses a game the following move:} 16... hxg5 $4 17. hxg5 Ne4 (17... Be4 18. Qh3 Nh7 19. Bd3 Bxd3 20. Rxd3 $18) 18. Qh7+ Kf8 19. Ba3 Nc5 $8 20. Qf5 $1 {[%csl Rf8][%cal Gh1h8,Gf5e5]} Kg8 21. Rh7 $1 {dh6 (×f7) or h3} Be4 (21... Ne6 22. Qh3 f5 23. g6 {with checkmated in two moves.}) 22. Rdh6 $3 f6 (22... Bxf5 23. Rh8#) 23. gxf6 Qxf6 (23... Bxf5 24. Rxg7+ Kf8 25. Rh8#) 24. Rh8+ Kf7 25. Rxf6+ gxf6 26. Qh5+ Bg6 27. Rh7+) ({It was necessary:} 16... Qe7 $1 17. Rd2 (17. Ba3 $6 Na6 {c5 a3-f8} 18. Bd3 Nc5 19. Bxc5 bxc5 20. Rxf6 Qxf6 21. Qxf6 gxf6 22. Ne4 $15) 17... g6 18. Qh3 hxg5 19. hxg5 Nh5 20. Rh2 $44 {g4}) {[%tqu "En","White has a typical sacrifice that completely destroys Black's position?","","","d6f6","",10,"d6f6","",0]} 17. Rxf6 $3 (17. Rxf6 $3 Qxf6 (17... hxg5 $144 18. hxg5 gxf6 19. gxf6 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Gf5h7,Gh7h8]}) (17... gxf6 $2 18. Qh7+ Kf8 19. Qxf7#) 18. Qh7+ Kf8 19. Ne4 $1 $18 {[%csl Rf8][%cal Gb2a3,Gh7h8] Probably,Nurlan Ibraev missed a this obvious move.}) 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-36"]
[Site "Mallorca"]
[Date "2004.10.28"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kulaots, Kaido"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2597"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2004.10.15"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Estonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "EST"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Nb6 8. Ne5 a5 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 e6 11. e4 Bh7 12. f3 Be7 ({RR} 12... Bb4 13. Be2 Qc7 14. Bg3 Bd6 15. Rc1 Rd8 16. Nb5 Bb4+ 17. Kf1 Qe7 18. Rxc6 bxc6 19. Nxc6 Qd7 20. Nxd8 O-O 21. Kf2 Bxe4 22. fxe4 Nxe4+ 23. Kg1 Qxd8 24. Bd3 Nxg3 25. hxg3 Qg5 26. Kh2 Nd5 27. Qf3 {Fedoseev,V (2685)-Holt,C (2540) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (67)}) 13. Bf2 O-O ({RR} 13... Nfd7 14. Nd3 O-O 15. Be2 Rc8 16. O-O c5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Nxc5 Bxc5 19. Bxc5 Rxc5 20. Qxd8 Rxd8 {½-½ (20) Gelfand,B (2724)-Nakamura,H (2660) Biel 2005}) 14. Be2 Nbd7 $146 ({RR} 14... Nfd7 15. Nd3 Bd6 16. O-O Kh8 17. Qb3 Qe7 18. Rac1 Rfc8 19. Rfe1 f6 20. Bf1 Bc7 21. e5 Bxd3 22. Bxd3 fxe5 23. dxe5 Nxe5 24. Rxe5 Bxe5 25. Qxb6 Bxh2+ 26. Kxh2 Qd6+ 27. Bg3 Qxd3 28. Qxb7 Qg6 29. Ne4 {Khmelniker,I (2427)-Velcheva,M (2294) Sunny Beach 2007 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 14... Nfd7 15. Nd3 Bd6 16. Rc1 Qe7 17. Qb3 Bc7 18. O-O Rac8 19. Kh1 Kh8 20. Rfe1 Qg5 21. Bf1 Rfe8 22. Ne5 Nxe5 23. dxe5 Nd7 24. Qxb7 Nxe5 25. Bg3 Qe7 26. Nb5 Bb8 27. Qxe7 Rxe7 28. Red1 Rf8 29. Nd6 {Avrukh,B (2632)-Grigoriants,S (2573) Dagomys 2008 1-0 (38)}) 15. Nd3 Qb8 16. O-O Bd8 17. Qb3 Bb6 18. Rad1 Qa7 19. Ne5 Qb8 20. Nc4 Bc7 21. g3 Qc8 22. Rd2 Rb8 23. Rfd1 Qe8 24. Qa3 Ra8 25. Bf1 Qb8 26. Qb3 Re8 27. d5 exd5 28. exd5 Ne5 29. Kg2 cxd5 30. Nxe5 Bxe5 31. Nxd5 Nxd5 32. Rxd5 Bf5 33. Qb5 f6 34. Bb6 Qc8 35. Rd8 Qc6 36. Rxe8+ Qxe8 37. Qxe8+ Rxe8 38. Rd2 Rc8 39. Bxa5 Bc2 40. Bb5 Bxb2 41. Bd7 Rc5 42. Bb6 Bc1 43. Re2 Rc3 44. Ba5 Rc5 45. Bb4 Rc7 46. Re7 Kh8 47. Bd6 Rc4 48. Re1 Rd4 49. Rxc1 Rxd6 50. Rxc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-36"]
[Site "Mallorca"]
[Date "2004.10.29"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E54"]
[WhiteElo "2653"]
[BlackElo "2581"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2004.10.15"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "US of America"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "USA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5 7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 9. Qe2 b6 10. Rd1 cxd4 11. exd4 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 13. Bd2 Bb7 14. Bd3 ({RR} 14. Bb3 Rfe8 15. Re1 Rac8 16. Rac1 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 b5 18. Bf4 Qa5 19. Bd6 Qb6 20. Bf4 b4 21. Bd2 a5 22. cxb4 axb4 23. Qd3 Qb7 24. Rc4 Nd5 25. Rec1 Rxc4 26. Qxc4 Rb8 27. h3 h6 28. Kh2 Rf8 {Gray,E (2098)-James,D (2100) Lichess.org INT 2021 1-0 (48)}) 14... Rfe8 15. Re1 Rad8 ({RR} 15... Rac8 16. Rac1 Qd6 17. Ba6 Qd5 18. Bb5 {½-½ (18) Comas Fabrego,L (2516)-Dorfman,J (2600) Mondariz 2000}) 16. Ne5 $146 ({RR} 16. Rad1 h6 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. dxe5 Qc6 19. f3 Ng4 20. Be3 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Qa4 22. Rd2 Qa5 23. Bb1 Rxd2 24. Qxd2 Rc8 25. Re3 Bd5 26. Qe2 Kf8 27. Kf2 g6 28. Qd2 Rc4 29. Kg3 Kg7 30. Rd3 Qc5 {Knaak,R (2495)-Magerramov,E (2435) Trnava 1981 0-1 (56)}) ({RR} 16. Rac1 Qd6 17. Bg5 Rc8 18. Bh4 Qf4 19. Bg3 Qh6 20. Ne5 Nxe5 21. Bxe5 Nd5 22. Qb2 Nf4 23. Bxf4 Qxf4 24. Re3 Rc7 25. Rce1 Rd8 26. Be4 Bxe4 27. Rxe4 Qd6 28. h4 Rdc8 29. R4e3 h5 30. Rf3 Rc4 {Voiska,M (2335)-Melia,S (2432) Eforie Nord 2009 ½-½ (44)}) 16... Nxe5 17. Qxe5 Qxe5 18. Rxe5 Rc8 19. Rc1 Red8 20. Ree1 Rd5 21. a4 Ne8 22. Rb1 Bc6 23. Rb4 Nd6 24. Ra1 Bd7 25. f3 h6 26. Be1 e5 27. Ba6 Re8 28. Bg3 exd4 29. Rxd4 Rxd4 30. cxd4 Nf5 31. Bf2 Ne3 32. a5 Nc2 33. Rc1 Nb4 34. Rc7 Nxa6 35. Rxd7 Rc8 36. g4 bxa5 37. Rxa7 Nb4 38. Rxa5 Rc1+ 39. Kg2 Rd1 40. Rb5 Nd3 41. Bg3 Nc1 42. d5 Ne2 43. Kf2 Nxg3 44. Kxg3 {Here, too, White's advantage of space is dangerous for Black.} Kf8 45. h4 g6 46. Kf4 f6 $2 {But this is a terrible move. Black shouldn't weaken his position so badly.} 47. h5 Kf7 48. Rb7+ Kg8 49. Ke4 gxh5 50. gxh5 {White is easily winning now.} Kf8 51. Rh7 Re1+ 52. Kf5 Kg8 53. Rd7 Rf1 54. f4 Kf8 55. d6 Ke8 56. Rh7 Rd1 57. Ke6 1-0

[Event "Hoogeveen Essent Crown"]
[Site "Hoogeveen"]
[Date "2004.10.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Sokolov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2663"]
[BlackElo "2581"]
[Annotator "Dautov,Rustem"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2004.10.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 Nbd7 7. c5 c6 8. h3 b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 Ba6 11. Bxa6 Rxa6 12. O-O {I. Sokolov verzichtet auf die scharfe Variante 12.b5 und zieht das ruhige Fahrwasser vor.} (12. b5 cxb5 13. c6 Qc8 14. c7) 12... Qa8 13. Nd2 $146 {Sokolov weicht vom Plan mit der Überführung e1-d3, der in der letzten Zeit recht populär geworden ist.} (13. Rb1 Qb7 14. Qc2 axb4 15. axb4 Rfa8 16. Ne1 b5 17. Nd3 Bd8 18. f3 Bc7 19. g4 Qb8 20. Bxc7 Qxc7 21. Qh2 Qd8 $1 $11 {Ponomariov,R-Vallejo Pons,F/Leon 2003}) 13... Qb7 14. Rb1 axb4 15. axb4 Ra3 (15... Rfa8 16. Qc2 b5 $11) 16. Qc2 Rfa8 17. Rfc1 bxc5 $146 {Die Öffnung der b-Linie kommt nur Weiß zugute, der die Schwäche c6 angreifen kann. Ein typisches Vorgehen in solchen Stellungen ist die Schließung des Damenflügels mit 17...b5, gefolgt von der Überführung des Läufers nach c7, siehe z. B. Dautov-Kasimdzhanov/2002.} (17... b5 $1 18. Nb3 Bd8 $11) ({RR} 17... Bd8 18. Nb3 b5 19. Qb2 R3a6 20. Ra1 h6 21. Rxa6 Rxa6 22. Ra1 Ne8 23. g4 Qa8 24. Rxa6 Qxa6 25. Kg2 Kf8 26. Bg3 Kg8 27. f3 Bc7 28. Bxc7 Nxc7 29. Na5 Qa8 30. Ne2 Na6 31. Nf4 Qc8 32. Nd3 {Svane,R (2646)-Akobian,V (2582) Douglas IOM 2023 ½-½ (77)}) ({RR} 17... h6 18. Nb3 bxc5 19. bxc5 Bd8 20. Rb2 Qc8 21. Ra2 Rxa2 22. Nxa2 Bc7 23. Bxc7 Qxc7 24. Rb1 e5 25. Nb4 Ne4 26. Rb2 exd4 27. Nxd4 Ra5 28. Qb1 Ne5 29. f3 Nc3 30. Qe1 Nb5 31. Nxb5 Rxb5 32. Nxd5 {Nezad,H (2365)-Baramidze,D (2612) Tromsoe 2014 1-0 (49)}) 18. bxc5 Qa6 19. Nb3 Bd8 20. Qb2 Qc4 21. Nd2 Qa6 22. Nf3 $1 {[%cal Rf3e1,Re1c2,Rc2b4] Weiß findet den richtigen Plan - sein Springer strebt nach b4.} h6 $6 {Carlsen verliert nur die kostbare Zeit, energischer war das sofortige 22...e4. Carlsen verliert nur die kostbare Yeit.} (22... Ne4 $1 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Ne1 Ra2 25. Qb7 (25. Qb3 Nf6 $11 {d5}) 25... Qxb7 26. Rxb7 Nf6 27. Bc7 Nd5 28. Bxd8 Rxd8 $11) 23. Ne1 $1 $14 Ne4 24. Nxe4 dxe4 25. Nc2 Ra2 26. Qb3 $1 {Nun ist c2-b4 nicht zu vermeiden, und Schwarz muß sich auf eine lange Verteidigung einstellen...} (26. Qb7 Qxb7 27. Rxb7 Nf6 $11) 26... Qe2 $2 {Aber das will er nicht! Carlsen stürmt stattdessen nach vorn, aber sein Angriff misslingt. Besser war das passive 26...c8.} (26... Qc8 27. Nb4 R2a4 $14 {f6-d5}) 27. Bg3 $1 Nf6 ({Nach} 27... h5 {hat Weiß sogar zwei gute Möglichkeiten:} 28. Qb7 (28. Nb4 h4 29. Re1 Qd2 30. Red1 Qe2 31. Nxa2 hxg3 32. Nc3 $16) 28... h4 29. Bd6 Nf6 (29... Rxc2 30. Rxc2 Qxc2 31. Qxa8 Qxb1+ 32. Kh2 $18) 30. Qxc6 $16) 28. Nb4 R2a3 29. Qc4 $1 {Hat Schwarz diesen Zug übersehen? Weiß tauscht die Damen und gewinnt anschließend den Bauern c6. Die Partie ist entschieden.} Qxc4 30. Rxc4 $18 Ra1 (30... Rc8 31. Nxc6 $1 $18) 31. Rcc1 Rxb1 32. Rxb1 Rc8 33. Nxc6 $1 Rxc6 34. Rb8 Kh7 35. Rxd8 Nd5 36. Rd7 Kg6 37. Ra7 Rc8 38. Kf1 Nb4 39. f3 Nc6 40. Rb7 f5 41. Bd6 Na5 42. Rd7 Nc4 43. Kf2 Ra8 44. fxe4 fxe4 45. Bf4 Kf6 46. c6 g5 47. Bg3 Ra2+ 48. Kg1 Ra1+ 49. Kh2 Kg6 50. c7 Nxe3 51. c8=Q 1-0

[Event "Hoogeveen Essent Crown"]
[Site "Hoogeveen"]
[Date "2004.10.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Short, Nigel D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2687"]
[Annotator "Dautov,Rustem"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2004.10.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. a3 Nc6 11. Bd3 Bb6 12. O-O d4 13. e4 Bg4 14. h3 Bh5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nd2 {Der beste Plan, Weiß möchte seinen f-Bauern möglichst schnell aktivieren.} ({RR} 16. Rc1 Rc8 17. Re1 Kh8 18. Kg2 f6 19. Nh4 Bc7 20. Bxc7 Qxc7 21. Bb5 Qb6 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. Rxc6 bxc6 24. Nxg6+ hxg6 25. b4 c5 26. bxc5 Qxc5 27. Qd3 Qe5 28. Rb1 Re8 29. Rb7 Qxe4+ 30. Qxe4 Rxe4 {Karpov,A (2760)-Beliavsky,A (2635) Tilburg 1993 ½-½ (35)}) 16... f6 (16... Bc7 17. Bxc7 Qxc7 18. f4 f6 19. h4 Rae8 20. Qf3 h6 21. Rf2 Bh7 22. Raf1 Qe7 23. Qh3 g5 24. fxg5 fxg5 25. Bc4+ Kh8 26. Rf7 $14 {Krasenkow,M-Skalik,P/Polska 1999}) (16... Re8 17. Bg3 $14) 17. Rc1 $146 ({Mehr verbreitet ist die Zugreihenfolge} 17. Nc4 Bc7 (17... Re8 18. Nd6 $36) 18. Bxc7 Qxc7 19. f4 Bf7 $1 {Dies scheint das beste Vorgehen für Schwarz zu sein, der mobile c4 kann nun jeden Moment abgetauscht werden.} (19... Rac8 $6 20. Rc1 Rfe8 21. Qf3 $5 b5 22. Nd2 Qb6 23. h4 $5 Na5 24. b4 $16 {Gurevich,M-Lutz,C/Deutschland 2000}) 20. Rc1 Kh8 21. b4 Bxc4 22. Rxc4 Qd6 (22... Qb6 $1 $132 {a5}) 23. Bc2 Rfd8 24. Qd3 g6 25. Rc5 a5 $1 26. Rd5 Qc7 $132 {Pelletier,Y-Ubilava,E/Espana 2000}) ({RR} 17. Nc4 Bc7 18. Bxc7 Qxc7 19. f4 Bf7 20. Rc1 Kh8 21. b4 Bxc4 22. Rxc4 Qd6 23. Bc2 Rfd8 24. Qd3 g6 25. Rc5 a5 26. Rd5 Qc7 27. b5 Ne7 28. Rxd4 Qc5 29. Rd1 Rxd4 30. Qxd4 Qxc2 31. Qxf6+ Kg8 {Pelletier,Y (2474)-Ubilava,E (2532) Barcelona 2000 ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 17. Nc4 Bc7 18. Bxc7 Qxc7 19. f4 Rae8 20. Qf3 Bf7 21. Rac1 g5 22. e5 fxe5 23. Qe4 Bg6 24. f5 Bf7 25. Nd2 Qa5 26. Nf3 Bd5 27. Bc4 Bxc4 28. Rxc4 Qb5 29. Rc2 d3 30. Rd2 Rd8 31. Nxg5 Qb6+ {Bryakin,M (2462)-Sabuk,P (2391) Dimitrovgrad SRB 2023 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 17. Nc4 Bc7 18. Bxc7 Qxc7 19. f4 Kh8 20. Qf3 Na5 21. Nxa5 Qxa5 22. Rac1 Rac8 23. Qe2 h6 24. Rfe1 Rxc1 25. Rxc1 Re8 26. Qc2 Bh7 27. Rd1 Qd8 28. Rc1 Qd6 29. Qc7 Qxc7 30. Rxc7 Bxe4 31. Bxe4 Rxe4 {Tregubov,P (2628)-Georgiev,K (2676) Ohrid 2001 ½-½ (64)}) 17... Kh8 18. Nc4 Bc7 19. Bxc7 Qxc7 20. f4 Rae8 $146 {Der erste neue Zug, mit 20...f7 könnte Schwarz zu der Partie Pelletier-Ubilava wechseln.} (20... Bf7 $1) 21. Qf3 Qe7 22. Rce1 Bf7 23. Nd2 $1 {Weiß behält vernünftigerweise den Springer, den er auf f3 gut gebrauchen kann.} g5 $1 {Schwarz kann nicht passiv bleiben und das Aufrollen der gegnerischen Bauern h4, g5 kampflos erlauben. Der Plan der schwarzfeldrigen Blockade ist naheligend und richtig.} (23... a6 24. h4 $1 (24. Qg3 g5 $1 $132) 24... h6 25. g5 $1 fxg5 $2 26. hxg5 hxg5 27. Qh3+ Kg8 28. e5 g6 29. e6 Bxe6 30. Rxe6 $18) 24. Bb5 a6 $2 {Dieser Fehler kostet Schwarz die Partie. Wahrscheinlich hat Nigel die Gefahren des entstehenden Endspiel nicht rechtzeitig erkannt. Notwendig war 24...g6, wonach die Stellung im dynamischen Gleichgewicht geblieben wäre.} (24... Bg6 $1 25. Qd3 (25. Qg3 Qc5) (25. Bxc6 bxc6 26. f5 $2 Bf7 27. e5 $2 Bd5 $17) 25... Rd8 $11) 25. Bxc6 bxc6 26. fxg5 fxg5 27. Qf6+ $1 Kg8 $2 {Wohl oder übel mußte Schwarz die Damen tauschen. Selbst wenn das Endspiel nach 27...xf6 sehr schlecht für ihn ist, war es der Partiefortsetzung vorzuziehen.} (27... Qxf6 28. Rxf6 c5 29. e5 $1 (29. Ref1 Kg7 30. Rxa6 Rb8 31. Ra7 Kg8 32. e5 $1 $16) 29... Re7 (29... Bg6 30. Rxa6 Rb8 31. b3 $16) (29... Kg7 30. Rxa6 $16) 30. Nf3 Rfe8 31. Rd6 $1 a5 32. Rc1 $16) 28. Qxd4 c5 29. Qf6 Qxf6 30. Rxf6 $18 {Jetzt hat Weiß einen Mehrbauern und eine bessere Stellung dazu. Die Partie ist entschieden.} Rb8 31. Nf3 Rxb2 32. Nxg5 Ba2 33. Rxf8+ Kxf8 34. Nxh7+ Ke7 35. Ng5 c4 36. Rc1 Rb3 37. Kf2 c3 (37... Rxa3 38. Ra1 c3 39. Ke3 $18) 38. e5 Rxa3 39. Ne4 c2 40. Rxc2 Rxh3 41. Rc7+ Kd8 42. Ra7 Bc4 43. g5 Rh4 44. Nd6 Be6 45. g6 Rg4 46. g7 a5 47. Kf3 Rg1 48. Nb7+ Ke8 49. Nc5 Bf7 50. Ne4 Rxg7 51. Nd6+ Kf8 52. Ra8+ Ke7 53. Nf5+ Kd7 54. Ra7+ 1-0

[Event "Hoogeveen Essent Crown"]
[Site "Hoogeveen"]
[Date "2004.10.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Sokolov, Ivan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2663"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2004.10.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "15"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 104"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Nb6 8. Ne5 a5 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 e6 11. e4 Bh7 12. Be2 Be7 13. f3 Nfd7 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Nxd7 $146 ({RR} 15. Qb3 Qb4 16. Qxb4 axb4 17. Nxd7 Kxd7 18. Nd1 Rxa4 19. Rxa4 Nxa4 20. Kd2 f5 21. exf5 Bxf5 22. Ne3 Nb6 23. Ra1 Ra8 24. Rxa8 Nxa8 25. Nxf5 exf5 26. f4 Nc7 27. Bc4 Kd6 28. g3 b6 29. Bd3 Ke6 {Wigbout,R-Calvert,D (2069) Coulsdon 2009 0-1 (42)}) 15... Nxd7 16. O-O O-O 17. Qd2 Qb4 18. Nb1 Rfd8 19. Rd1 f5 20. Qxb4 axb4 21. Nd2 fxe4 22. fxe4 Nf6 23. e5 Ne8 24. Nc4 Bc2 25. Rd2 Rxa4 26. Rxa4 Bxa4 27. Bg4 Nc7 28. Nd6 b6 29. Rf2 Rf8 30. Rxf8+ Kxf8 31. Nc8 Bb3 32. Nxb6 Nb5 33. Nd7+ Ke7 34. Nc5 Nxd4 35. Kf2 Bd5 36. Ke3 Nc2+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "ESP-chT"]
[Site "Sanxenxo"]
[Date "2004.11.19"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Sokolov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D83"]
[WhiteElo "2663"]
[BlackElo "2581"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2004.11.18"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 Bg7 5. Rc1 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Na6 8. cxd5 Nxc5 9. Be5 ({RR} 9. f3 Qa5 10. e4 e6 11. d6 e5 12. Be3 Be6 13. Bb5 Rfd8 14. Bxc5 a6 15. b4 Qa3 16. Be2 Rac8 17. Qd2 Nh5 18. Nh3 Bxh3 19. gxh3 Nf4 20. O-O Rd7 21. Rfd1 b6 22. Nb1 Qa4 23. Bxb6 Rxc1 {Altini,N (2357)-Oksendal,M (2235) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (31)}) 9... Qa5 10. Nf3 Rd8 11. Qd2 $146 ({RR} 11. d6 Nce4 12. Qa4 Qxa4 13. Nxa4 exd6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd4 Bxd4 16. exd4 Bd7 17. Nc3 Re8 18. Ne2 a5 19. f3 Nf6 20. Kd2 Ra6 21. Nc3 Rb6 22. Nd1 Nd5 23. b3 a4 24. Bc4 Nf4 25. Nc3 axb3 {Oms Pallisse,J (2528)-Edouard,R (2636) Barcelona 2010 0-1 (62)}) 11... Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Qxd2+ 13. Nxd2 Rxd5 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. e4 Nd3+ 16. Bxd3 Rxd3 17. Ke2 Rd6 18. Rc7 b6 19. Rd1 Rd7 20. Rxd7 Bxd7 21. Nb1 Be6 22. Nc3 Rc8 23. Ke3 f6 24. f4 Kf7 25. Rd4 Ke8 26. a3 Rc5 27. Ra4 a5 28. Rd4 Bb3 29. h4 h5 30. g3 Be6 31. Na4 Rc6 32. b4 axb4 33. axb4 Bc4 34. Nxb6 Bb5 35. Nd5 Kf7 36. f5 gxf5 37. exf5 Rc1 38. Re4 Re1+ 39. Kd4 Rxe4+ 40. Kxe4 Be2 41. Nf4 Bd1 42. b5 Bc2+ 43. Ke3 Bxf5 44. b6 Bc8 45. Nxh5 Ke6 46. Ng7+ 1-0

[Event "ESP-chT"]
[Site "Sanxenxo"]
[Date "2004.11.25"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bologan, Viktor"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A33"]
[WhiteElo "2581"]
[BlackElo "2669"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2004.11.18"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. Nc3 b6 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Bf4 b6 10. O-O Ba6 11. Nb5 Rc8 12. Nd6 Rc7 13. Rc1 Nh5 14. Be3 Nf6 15. Bf4 Nh5 16. Be3 Nf6 17. Bf4 {½-½ (17) Gelfand,B (2695)-Mamedyarov,S (2809) Moscow 2018}) 9. O-O Bb7 10. Bf4 ({RR} 10. Nb5 d6 11. N3d4 Qd7 12. Bf4 e5 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. Bxc6 Qxc6 15. Bg5 Nd7 16. Bxe7 Kxe7 17. Rc1 a6 18. Nc3 Nf6 19. Nd5+ Ke6 20. Nxf6 gxf6 21. Qb3 Ke7 22. Rfd1 Rhc8 23. Qa3 a5 24. Rd5 Qxd5 {Murawski,J (2033)-Brunner,N (2413) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (40)}) 10... O-O 11. Nb5 $146 ({RR} 11. Qd2 Na5 12. Nxa5 Bxg2 13. Kxg2 bxa5 14. Rac1 Qb6 15. b3 d5 16. cxd5 Bb4 17. Be5 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Ne4 19. Qd4 Nxc3 20. Qxb6 axb6 21. Rxc3 exd5 22. Rd1 Rfd8 23. Rcd3 a4 24. Rxd5 Rxd5 25. Rxd5 axb3 {Carlsen,M (2693)-Moskow,E (2260) Gausdal 2007 1-0 (32)}) ({RR} 11. Rc1 Nh5 12. Bd6 Nf6 13. c5 Rc8 14. e4 Bxd6 15. Qxd6 Ne8 16. Qd2 d6 17. cxb6 Qxb6 18. Rfd1 Ne5 19. Na4 Qa6 20. Qa5 Nc4 21. Qxa6 Bxa6 22. Bf1 Nf6 23. f3 d5 24. Nac5 Bb5 25. a4 Bc6 {Sarana,A (2668)-Shimanov,A (2581) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (46)}) 11... Na5 12. Qd3 Bxg2 13. Kxg2 a6 14. Nc3 Nb7 15. Rfd1 d6 16. Qf3 Qc7 17. Rac1 Rac8 18. Nd2 Nd7 19. b4 Ne5 20. Bxe5 dxe5 21. a3 f5 22. Na4 Bg5 23. e3 Rcd8 24. b5 Na5 25. bxa6 Rd3 26. c5 b5 27. Nb6 Be7 28. a4 Bxc5 29. a7 Qxa7 30. Rxc5 Qxb6 31. Rxb5 Qd8 32. Qe2 Nc4 33. Nxc4 Rxd1 34. Nxe5 Qa8+ 35. Qf3 Qxa4 36. Rb6 Ra1 37. Rxe6 Qb5 38. Kh3 g5 39. g4 Rg1 0-1

[Event "Drammen Smartfish Masters"]
[Site "Drammen"]
[Date "2005.01.01"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E99"]
[WhiteElo "2519"]
[BlackElo "2581"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2004.12.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 O-O 5. Nf3 d6 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. Ne1 Nd7 10. Be3 f5 11. f3 f4 12. Bf2 g5 13. Rc1 Rf6 14. c5 a6 15. c6 ({RR} 15. cxd6 cxd6 16. Nd3 Rh6 17. Na4 Qe8 18. Kh1 b5 19. Nc3 Nf6 20. Nb4 Bd7 21. a3 Qh5 22. Bg1 Qf7 23. Bf2 Kh8 24. Nc6 Nxc6 25. dxc6 Bxc6 26. Na4 Be8 27. Nb6 Rd8 28. Rc8 Qe7 29. Nd5 Nxd5 {Miton,K (2586)-Socko,B (2643) Warsaw 2009 ½-½ (91)}) 15... bxc6 16. dxc6 Nf8 17. Nd3 Ne6 $146 ({RR} 17... Qe8 18. Nb4 Rh6 19. Kh1 Qh5 20. Bg1 Ne6 21. Ncd5 Nxd5 22. Nxd5 Qf7 23. Bc4 Rg6 24. Qa4 g4 25. fxg4 Rxg4 26. Qa5 Kh8 27. Ne3 Rg6 28. Nf5 Bf6 29. Bd5 Rb8 30. Rc2 Rb5 31. Qd2 Qf8 32. a4 {Johansen,T (2255)-Kovachev,D (2311) Norway 2011 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 17... Rh6 18. Nb4 Kh8 19. Re1 Qe8 20. Bf1 Rg6 21. Nbd5 Nxd5 22. exd5 g4 23. fxg4 Bxg4 24. Be2 Qc8 25. Bxg4 Qxg4 26. Qxg4 Rxg4 27. Re4 Ng6 28. Rb4 Bf6 29. h3 Rg5 30. Ne4 Rf5 31. Rb7 Bd8 32. Nxd6 {Landgren,A (2202)-Strom,L Sweden 2012 ½-½ (68)}) 18. Nb4 Rg6 19. Ncd5 Kh8 20. Nxe7 Qxe7 21. Nd5 Qf7 22. b4 Nd4 23. Bxd4 exd4 24. Rf2 Be6 25. h3 Be5 26. a4 Rh6 27. a5 Qh5 28. Bf1 Ra7 29. Rd2 Qf7 30. Rxd4 Rg6 31. Rd3 h5 32. Be2 Ra8 33. Rc2 Rag8 34. b5 axb5 35. a6 Qg7 36. a7 Ra8 37. Ra2 b4 38. Kf1 Rh6 39. Rb3 Bc3 40. Ra5 Rh7 41. Rb5 Qg8 42. Nxc3 Bxb3 43. Qd4+ Rg7 44. Qxb4 Re7 45. Qxb3 Qxb3 46. Rxb3 Rxa7 47. Nd5 Rf7 48. Rb7 Ra1+ 49. Kf2 Rc1 50. Bb5 Rc2+ 51. Kf1 Rf8 52. Nxc7 g4 53. Na6 Rc1+ 54. Ke2 Rc2+ 55. Kd3 Rxg2 56. hxg4 hxg4 57. c7 gxf3 58. Rb8 Rgg8 59. Rxf8 1-0

[Event "Drammen Smartfish Masters"]
[Site "Drammen"]
[Date "2005.01.02"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Stefanova, Antoaneta"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2523"]
[BlackElo "2581"]
[Annotator "Finkel,Alexander"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2004.12.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "14"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 d5 3. e3 {Antoanetta Stefanova is probably an only world champion in the history of ches who was too lazy to study openings! Nevertheless she suceeds to perform at the very high level time after time. The following game is not an exeption- white has got completely nothing after the opening and managed to outplay her opponent in the tricky middlegame struggle.} c5 4. Nd2 Nc6 5. Ngf3 cxd4 (5... Bg4 6. c3 e6 7. Qa4 Bxf3 8. Nxf3 Qb6 9. Bb5 a6 10. Bxc6+ Qxc6 11. Qxc6+ bxc6 $11 {Zimmermann,W-Juglard,E/France 1989}) (5... Qb6 6. dxc5 $6 Qxb2 7. c4 Nb4 8. Rb1 Nc2+ 9. Ke2 Qxa2 10. Bxf6 exf6 11. Nd4 Nxd4+ 12. exd4 dxc4 $15 {Berend,F-Schwartzman,G/Cannes 1992}) 6. exd4 Qb6 $5 7. Nb3 {It's quite unusual for the knight to be placed on b3, but it turns out to be not such a bad spot.} Ne4 8. Bf4 Bg4 9. Be2 a5 $146 ({RR} 9... e6 10. O-O Be7 11. c3 O-O 12. a4 a6 13. a5 Qd8 14. Nfd2 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 Rc8 17. Rfe1 Re8 18. Re3 Bd6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. Nc5 Rc7 21. b4 Ne7 22. Rae1 Nf5 23. Re5 Qd8 24. Qf4 {Carlsen,M (2861)-Wei,Y (2736) Abidjan 2019 1-0 (41)}) 10. a4 e6 11. O-O Bd6 ({Deserved attention} 11... Bxf3 12. Bxf3 Bd6 13. Be3 Nf6 (13... f5 14. Bxe4 fxe4 15. Qg4 $16 {[%csl Re6,Rg7]}) 14. c4 Qc7 $13 {with complicated struggle.}) 12. Ne5 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 Qc7 14. f3 Nf6 15. Rae1 O-O (15... Nd7 $2 16. Nxf7 {[%csl Re8]} Bxf4 17. Qxe6+ Kf8 18. Nxh8 $18) 16. Bg5 $1 $14 {[%cal Gf3f5,Gf1f3,Gf3h3] white's got a clear plan to improve his position, while it'not so easy fr black to come up with active counterplay.} Nd7 (16... Bxe5 $6 17. dxe5 Nd7 18. f4 Nb6 19. Qg4 Kh8 20. Re3 Nxa4 21. Rh3 $18 {[%csl Rh8]}) 17. f4 Rae8 {Threatening to push f6.} (17... Nb6) 18. Bh4 f6 $6 {[%csl Re6] Creating to himself a weakness on e6.} (18... Nb6) 19. Nxd7 Qxd7 20. Qb5 Qc7 21. Bg3 f5 (21... Na7 $6 22. Qxa5 Qxc2 23. Qb6 Nc8 24. Qxb7 Qxb2 25. Qb5 $14) 22. Rf3 Bb4 $6 (22... Na7 $6 23. Qxa5 Qxa5 24. Nxa5 Bb4 25. Nxb7 Bxe1 26. Bxe1 Rb8 27. Rb3 $16) 23. c3 Na7 24. Qe2 {[%csl Re6][%cal Gb3c1,Gc1d3,Gd3e5]} Bd6 25. Nc1 Nc8 26. Nd3 Nb6 27. Bh4 $1 {[%csl Gf6] Less convincing was} (27. Re3 Rf6 28. Bh4 Rg6 29. Ne5 Bxe5 30. Rxe5 Qc6 31. Rxf5 Nxa4 32. Re5 Rf8 $14) 27... Nd7 $6 (27... Nxa4 28. Re3 Qd7 29. Rxe6 Rxe6 30. Qxe6+ Qxe6 31. Rxe6 Bc7 32. Kf2 Rc8 33. h3 $14) 28. Re3 Nf6 29. Rxe6 Ne4 30. Rxe8 Rxe8 31. Ne5 Bxe5 32. dxe5 Qc6 33. Qb5 $6 {By trading the queens white loses major part of the advantage.} (33. Rd1 $5 Qxa4 34. Qd3 Nc5 35. Qxd5+ Ne6 36. Bf2 Qxf4 37. Qb5 Re7 38. Qxa5 $16) 33... Qxb5 34. axb5 Kf7 35. Bf2 (35. Ra1 b6 36. Bf2 Nxf2 (36... Rb8 $5) 37. Kxf2 Rc8 38. b4 $1 axb4 39. cxb4 Rc4 40. Ra7+ Kg6 41. g3 Rxb4 42. Ke3 Rxb5 43. Kd4 Rb2 44. Kxd5 Rxh2 $14) 35... a4 36. Ra1 Ra8 37. Be3 (37. Bd4 Ke6 38. Ra3 Nd2 $132 {[%cal Gd2c4,Ga8a5]}) 37... a3 $5 38. bxa3 (38. Rxa3 Rxa3 39. bxa3 Nxc3 40. b6 d4 41. Bd2 Nd5 $15) 38... Nxc3 39. Kf1 Ke6 (39... Nxb5 40. Rb1 Rxa3 41. Rxb5 Rxe3 42. Rxb7+ Kg6 $11) 40. b6 Ra4 {[%cal Gd5d4]} 41. Bd2 d4 42. Rc1 Nd5 $2 (42... Rxa3 43. Bxc3 dxc3 44. Ke2 Rb3 $11) 43. Rc8 $16 Nxb6 (43... Rxa3 44. Rd8 Ra2 45. Rd6+ Ke7 46. Rxd5 Rxd2 47. Rc5 $16) 44. Rd8 Nc4 45. Bb4 Ne3+ 46. Ke2 Ra6 47. g3 $1 (47. Rxd4 Nxg2 48. Kf2 Nh4 49. Rd8 Rc6 $14) 47... Rc6 48. Kd3 g5 49. Kxd4 gxf4 50. Re8+ $6 (50. gxf4 $1 Nc2+ (50... Ng2 51. Re8+ Kd7 52. Re7+ Kc8 53. e6 Nxf4 54. Re8+ Kc7 55. Ke5 $18) 51. Kd3 Nxb4+ 52. axb4 b5 53. Rf8 $18) 50... Kd7 51. Re7+ Kd8 52. Rxh7 Rc4+ 53. Kd3 b5 54. e6 Re4 55. e7+ Kd7 56. gxf4 (56. Rh8 f3 57. Rd8+ Kc7 58. Rd4 $1 (58. e8=Q Rxe8 59. Rxe8 f2 60. Kxe3 f1=Q $11) 58... Rxe7 (58... f2 59. Rxe4 f1=Q+ 60. Kxe3 Qg1+ 61. Kf4 Qf2+ 62. Kg5 $18) 59. Rf4 (59. Bxe7 f2 60. Rf4 f1=Q+ 61. Rxf1 Nxf1 62. h4 Nxg3 63. Ke3 Kd7 $11) 59... Re5 60. Rxf3 $16) 56... Nd5 57. Bc5 Nxf4+ 58. Kd2 Ne6 59. Bb4 Nd4 60. Rf7 Nc6 61. Bc3 (61. Rxf5 Nxb4 62. axb4 Rxb4 63. Re5 Ke8 $11) 61... Rxe7 62. Rxf5 Rh7 63. Rxb5 (63. Rf2 Rh3) 63... Rxh2+ $11 64. Kd3 Rh3+ 65. Kc2 Rh2+ 66. Kb3 Rh3 67. Rd5+ Kc7 68. a4 Kb6 69. Rg5 Na5+ 70. Kc2 Rh2+ 71. Kd3 Rh3+ 72. Kc2 Rh2+ 73. Kd3 Rh3+ 74. Kd4 Rh4+ 75. Kd5 Rxa4 76. Rg6+ Kb5 77. Bxa5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2005.01.16"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kosteniuk, Alexandra"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2553"]
[BlackElo "2490"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2005.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. g3 Nf6 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. O-O Bb4 8. Bg5 ({RR} 8. Qc2 O-O 9. Rd1 Qe7 10. Ne5 Nb6 11. Ne4 Nxe4 12. Bxe4 h6 13. Nxc4 Nxc4 14. Qxc4 Bd6 15. Be3 Bd7 16. a3 Rfd8 17. Rac1 Be8 18. Bb1 a5 19. Bd2 Bc7 20. Bc3 a4 21. e4 e5 22. dxe5 Rxd1+ {Khalifman,A (2649)-Dreev,A (2698) Plovdiv 2012 ½-½ (40)}) 8... Qa5 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Nd2 Nb6 10. e3 h6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Qe2 e5 13. Nxc4 exd4 14. Ne4 Qe7 15. exd4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 Be6 17. Qd3 Rad8 18. Rfd1 Bg4 19. Rdc1 Bf5 20. a3 Ba5 21. Qe3 Rfe8 22. Nc5 Qxe3 23. fxe3 {Makarian,R (2557)-Dreev,A (2606) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (41)}) 9. Qc2 Nd5 $146 ({RR} 9... Bxc3 10. bxc3 Ng4 11. Bd2 b5 12. e4 Ngf6 13. e5 Nd5 14. Ng5 Nf8 15. Ne4 Nd7 16. Nd6+ Kf8 17. Qd1 f5 18. Qh5 g6 19. Bh6+ Ke7 20. Qh4+ N7f6 21. Bxd5 {1-0 (21) Silveira,L (2200)-Leao,F Belem 2012}) 10. Ne4 b5 11. b3 h6 12. a3 Bc3 13. bxc4 bxc4 14. Bd2 Bxd2 15. Nfxd2 O-O 16. Nxc4 Qc7 17. Rfc1 Ba6 18. e3 Rab8 19. Ncd2 Bb5 20. Nc5 Nxc5 21. Qxc5 Ba4 22. Ne4 Rb3 23. Qc4 Nb6 24. Qe2 Bb5 25. Qc2 Ba4 26. Nc5 Rb4 27. Qd2 Rb5 28. Bf1 Qd6 29. Bxb5 cxb5 30. Qa5 e5 31. Nxa4 1-0

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2005.01.17"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Nielsen, Peter Heine"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2648"]
[BlackElo "2553"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2005.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8. Rb1 O-O 9. Be2 Qa5 10. O-O Qxc3 {This (quite playable) move is less popular than} (10... Qxa2) 11. d5 {Logical. White sacrifices a pawn to create a strong pawn center. The other (perhaps more dangerous for Black) possibilities are:} (11. Bd2) (11. Rb3) 11... Qa5 12. Bg5 (12. Bb2 b6 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. Ne5 Ba6 15. Bxa6 Qxa6 16. Qd2 f6 17. Ng4 Nd7 18. Rb3 Qc4 19. Re1 Ne5 20. Nh6 Qd4 21. Qf4 Kh8 22. Rh3 Nd3 23. Qh4 g5 {0-1 Lobron,E-Sokolov,I/Garmisch Partenkirchen 1994/CBM 043 ext (23)}) (12. e5 Qc7 13. Bf4 e6 14. d6 Qd7 15. Qc1 b6 16. Bb5 Nc6 17. Bh6 Bb7 18. Re1 a6 19. Bf1 Nb4 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. a3 Nd5 22. Bc4 Rab8 23. Ng5 Qc6 24. Ne4 $40 {1-0 Hansen,S-Brettschneider,S/Lyngby 1991/EXT 2000 (41)}) 12... Qc7 (12... Re8 13. Bb5 $1 (13. Qc1 a6 14. Rd1 Nd7 {Raetsky,A-Konopka,M/USSR 1985/Inf 40 (14)}) 13... Nd7 14. e5 (14. d6 exd6 15. Qxd6 Re6 16. Qf4 Qxa2 17. Rbd1 Nf8 18. e5 $36 b6 19. Qe4 Rb8 20. Ra1 Qb2 21. Rfb1 Qc3 22. Bd2 Bxe5 23. Bxc3 Bxh2+ 24. Kxh2 Rxe4 25. Be5 Rxe5 26. Nxe5 a5 27. Bc4 Nd7 28. Nxd7 Bxd7 29. Rxa5 {1-0 Hansen,S-Konopka,M/Gistrup 1992/EXT 98 (29)}) 14... a6 (14... e6 15. dxe6 fxe6 16. Bxd7 Bxd7 17. Qxd7 {1-0 Becker,M-Heinrich,T/St Ingbert 1998/EXT 2002 (17)}) 15. Bxd7 Bxd7 16. Rxb7 Bb5 17. Re1 f6 18. Bh4 $5 (18. Bf4 $5) 18... g5 19. Bg3 Qxa2 20. d6 Bc6 21. Rc7 $1 Bxf3 22. gxf3 exd6 23. exd6 f5 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. d7 Rd8 26. Rc8 {1-0 Kopjonkin,G-Konopka,M/Zalakaros 1994/Inf 61/[Kopjonkin,G; Raetsky,A] (26)}) (12... f6 13. Bf4 (13. Be3 Nd7 14. Qc1 Kh8 15. Bb5 Qd8 16. Bxd7 Qxd7 17. Bxc5 b6 18. Bb4 Ba6 19. Re1 Bd3 20. Rb3 Rfc8 21. Rc3 {½-½ Tolnai,T-Sax,G/Lillafured 1999/CBM 070 (21)}) 13... Nd7 14. Qb3 Kh8 15. Rfd1 Qd8 16. h4 Ne5 17. h5 Nxf3+ 18. Qxf3 g5 19. Bg3 b6 20. d6 e5 21. d7 $36 {Vekshenkov,N-Elianov,V/USSR 1982/Inf 33 (21)}) 13. Qd2 (13. Qc1 b6 (13... Bg4 14. Bf4 Qc8 15. e5 $44 {Chiburdanidze,M-Malaniuk,V/USSR 1982/Inf 33 (15)}) 14. Bf4 Qd8 15. Rd1 Ba6 16. Bxa6 Nxa6 17. e5 Qd7 18. h4 Nb4 19. Qc4 Rad8 20. d6 exd6 21. Rxd6 Qg4 22. Re1 b5 23. Qe4 Rfe8 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. Ng5 Qf5 26. Qf3 Nd3 27. Re4 h5 $19 {0-1 Remon,A-Alzate,D/Havana 1983/MCL (40)}) (13. h3 b6 14. Qd2 Rd8 15. Rfd1 Nc6 16. Rbc1 Bb7 17. Qe3 Na5 18. h4 f6 19. Bf4 e5 20. dxe6 Qe7 21. Nd2 Rd4 22. Nb3 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Qxe6 24. Nxa5 bxa5 25. Qxc5 Qxe4 26. Bf3 Qxf4 27. Bxb7 Rf8 28. h5 gxh5 29. Qxa5 f5 30. Qxa7 h4 31. a4 Be5 32. a5 Bc7 33. Bd5+ Kh8 34. Bc6 Rf6 35. Qc5 Kg7 36. Rd7+ Rf7 37. Rd1 Rf6 38. Qc3 Qe5 39. Qb4 h3 40. gxh3 {½-½ Gurevich,M-Gavrikov,V/Sverdlovsk 1984/EXT 99 (40)}) 13... Bg4 {A logical move since White has not prevented it.} (13... b6 14. e5 Ba6 15. d6 exd6 16. exd6 Qd7 17. Bxa6 Nxa6 18. Be7 Rfe8 19. Rfe1 Nb4 20. Ng5 Bh6 21. Rbd1 Nc6 22. Qd5 Bxg5 23. Qxg5 c4 24. Qf6 Rac8 25. h4 Nxe7 26. dxe7 Qf5 27. Qc3 Qa5 28. Qf6 Qf5 29. Qc3 Qa5 30. Qf6 $11 {1-0 Mueller,K-Puth,D/Chessfriend.com 2003/Telechess CBM 101 (62)}) 14. e5 (14. Rfc1 $5 b6 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 e5 $6 (16... Be5) 17. d6 Qc6 18. Be7 Re8 19. Be2 Nd7 20. Bb5 Qb7 21. Qc2 Bf8 22. Qa4 $16 {½-½ Legky,N-Veingold,A/Sverdlovsk 1984/EXT 99 (56)}) 14... Bxf3 15. Bxf3 $146 (15. d6 exd6 16. exd6 Qd7 17. Bxf3 Nc6 18. Be7 (18. Bxc6 Qxc6 19. Be7 Rfe8 20. d7 Rxe7 21. d8=Q+ Rxd8 22. Qxd8+ Re8 $11) 18... Rfe8 19. Rfe1 Rac8 20. Bd5 Kh8 21. Qf4 $2 (21. Bxc6 Rxc6 22. Rxb7 Qxb7 23. d7 Rcc8 24. dxe8=Q+ Rxe8 25. Bxc5 $11) 21... Nxe7 22. Qxf7 Qxd6 23. Bxb7 Rb8 24. Bf3 Qf6 {0-1 Watanabe,A-De la Villa Garcia,J/Linares 2002/CBM 087 ext (24).}) ({RR} 15. d6 exd6 16. exd6 Qd7 17. Bxf3 Nc6 18. Be7 Rfe8 19. Rfe1 Rac8 20. Bd5 Kh8 21. Qf4 Nxe7 22. Qxf7 Qxd6 23. Bxb7 Rb8 24. Bf3 Qf6 {0-1 (24) Watanabe,A (2381)-De la Villa Garcia,J (2451) Linares 2002}) 15... Bxe5 16. d6 {This breakthrough is quite harmless. White wins an exchange but Black gets two pawns and a solid position.} Bxd6 (16... Qxd6 $5 17. Bxb7 Nd7 18. Bxa8 Rxa8 19. Rb7 $13) 17. Rxb7 Qc8 18. Rbb1 (18. Bh6 Nc6 $1 (18... Rd8 $2 19. Qc3 e5 20. Bd5 Nd7 21. Qf3 $18) 19. Bxc6 Qxc6 20. Qb2 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 $11) (18. Bxe7 Bxe7 19. Rxe7 Nc6) 18... Nc6 19. Qd5 Nd4 20. Qxa8 Qf5 (20... Qxa8 $5 21. Bxa8 Rxa8) 21. Qd5 Nxf3+ 22. Qxf3 Qxg5 $11 23. Qe4 (23. Rb7 Qh4 24. g3 Qa4 25. Qb3 Qa6 $11) 23... Rc8 24. Rfc1 Kg7 25. g3 h5 26. Rc4 Qf6 27. Kg2 Be5 28. Rd1 Bd6 29. Rb1 Be5 30. Rd1 Bd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2005.01.20"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ernst, Sipke"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2509"]
[BlackElo "2553"]
[Annotator "Avrukh,Boris"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2005.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. Nf3 O-O 5. e4 d6 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Na6 8. Re1 c6 9. Bf1 exd4 10. Nxd4 Qb6 {A rare continuation which seems to me not enough for equality.} ({The main theoretical line is} 10... Ng4 11. h3 Qb6) 11. Na4 {White has to drive away Black's , otherwise 11...g4 would be unpleasant.} ({RR} 11. h3 Re8 12. Nb3 Bf8 13. Bf4 Re6 14. Nd4 Re8 15. Nb3 Re6 16. Nd4 Re8 17. Nb3 {½-½ (17) Scarella,E (2302)-Perez,M (2429) Buenos Aires 2019}) 11... Qa5 12. f3 $1 $146 {A logical novelty, which clearly improves White's previous play. Black is unable to create sufficient counterplay, which could compensate White's space advantage.} ({The previous try was:} 12. Bd2 Qd8 13. Nb3 Ng4 14. h3 Ne5 15. Qc2 d5 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. f4 Bd7 18. fxe5 Bxa4 19. exd5 Qxd5 $11 {½-½ Gyimesi,Z-Smirin,I/Rabac 2004/CBM 102 ext (33)}) ({RR} 12. Bd2 Qd8 13. Nb3 Ng4 14. h3 Ne5 15. Qc2 d5 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. f4 Bd7 18. fxe5 Bxa4 19. exd5 Qxd5 20. Bc4 Qc6 21. Qe4 Qxe4 22. Rxe4 Bc6 23. Re2 Nc7 24. Bg5 Rfe8 25. Rae1 Ne6 26. Bxe6 fxe6 {Gyimesi,Z (2618)-Smirin,I (2671) Rabac 2004 ½-½ (33)}) 12... Re8 13. Nc3 $146 ({RR} 13. Bd2 Qd8 14. Be3 d5 15. exd5 cxd5 16. c5 Nc7 17. Qd2 Ne6 18. b4 Nd7 19. Nc3 Ne5 20. Ncb5 Nc6 21. Rad1 Nexd4 22. Nxd4 Be6 23. Bf2 a6 24. a4 Qd7 25. b5 axb5 26. axb5 Na5 27. Qb4 Qe7 {Dumitrache,D (2469)-Nemeth,F (2415) Bucharest 2005 1-0 (42)}) 13... Nc5 (13... Qb6 14. Be3 $1 Qxb2 $140 $2 15. Na4 Qa3 16. Bc1 Qb4 17. Bd2 Qa3 18. Re3 Ng4 $1 19. Rxa3 Bxd4+ 20. Be3 Bxe3+ 21. Rxe3 Nxe3 22. Qxd6 $16) 14. Nc2 {[%cal Gb2b4]} ({There was nothing wrong with the natural-looking} 14. Be3 {since Black cannot break through in the centre.} d5 $2 15. exd5 cxd5 16. cxd5 $16) 14... Qb6 15. Kh1 Nfd7 16. Qd2 $1 ({Not falling into Black's trap after} 16. Qxd6 Ne5 17. b4 Ncd3 $1 18. c5 (18. Bxd3 $2 Re6 $1 $17) 18... Qd8 {with fantastic compensation.}) 16... Ne5 (16... a5 17. b3 $14) 17. b4 Na6 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Ne3 ({It was premature to play} 19. c5 $2 dxc5 20. Na4 Qc7 21. Bxa6 Rad8 22. Qf2 bxa6 23. Nxc5 Nd3 24. Nxd3 Rxd3 $15 {[%csl Ga2]}) 19... Bh6 $2 {Black either overestimates his chances or simply misses White's 22.c5.} (19... Rad8 $142 20. Na4 Qc7 21. f4 Ng4 22. Nxg4 Bxg4 23. Bb2 $14 {and White has a very pleasant edge.}) 20. Qxd6 Bg7 ({Unfortunately neither} 20... Rad8 21. Qxe5 Bg7 22. Na4 Bxe5 23. Nxb6 axb6 24. Bb2 $16) ({nor} 20... Red8 21. Qxe5 Bg7 22. Na4 Bxe5 23. Nxb6 axb6 24. Bb2 Bxb2 25. Rxb2 Nc7 26. b5 cxb5 27. Nd5 $1 $16 {don't work, in both cases White retains clear advantage.}) 21. Qd2 Rad8 22. c5 $1 Rxd2 ({After} 22... Qc7 23. Qc2 {Black has no compensation at all.}) 23. cxb6 Rdd8 24. bxa7 Nd3 $6 ({More stubborn was} 24... Nxf3 $142 25. gxf3 Bxc3 26. Re2 Ra8 {though after} 27. b5 $1 cxb5 28. Nd5 $1 Bxd5 29. exd5 Rxe2 30. Bxe2 Rxa7 31. Be3 Ra8 32. d6 $16 {White's advantage is clear.}) 25. Bxd3 Rxd3 26. b5 cxb5 27. Ncd5 b4 28. Nb6 $2 {This move allows Black to escape, but the solution was far from obvious.} (28. Nxb4 $2 Nxb4 29. Rxb4 Bc3 30. Rxb7 Bxe1 31. Rb8 Rdd8 32. a8=Q Rxb8 $17) (28. Nf4 Bxa2 29. Nxd3 Bxb1 30. Nxb4 Nxb4 31. Bd2 Bd3 32. Bxb4 Bd4 $11) ({The right decision was:} 28. Nc2 $3 {[%csl Ge1] defending the e1.} Bxd5 29. exd5 Ra8 30. Be3 Rxd5 31. Red1 {[%csl Ga7] and White has almost decisive advantage due to his a7-pawn.}) 28... Bxa2 29. Rb2 Bxb2 30. Bxb2 Nc7 31. Ng4 Red8 32. Nf6+ Kf8 33. Nxh7+ Kg8 34. Nf6+ Kf8 35. Nh7+ ({A very bad decision would be:} 35. Bc1 Kg7 $1 36. Bg5 Rd1 37. Rg1 b3 {and Black is winning.}) 35... Kg8 36. Nf6+ Kf8 37. Nh7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2005.01.21"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stefanova, Antoaneta"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2553"]
[BlackElo "2491"]
[PlyCount "146"]
[EventDate "2005.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. c5 Nbd7 6. Bf4 Nh5 7. e3 b6 8. cxb6 Qxb6 9. Bd3 Nxf4 10. exf4 Qxb2 11. Rc1 g6 12. O-O Bh6 13. Qa4 ({RR} 13. g3 O-O 14. Na4 Qb4 15. Qc2 Bg7 16. Qxc6 Rb8 17. Rc3 Qa5 18. Rb3 Rxb3 19. axb3 Qb4 20. Qc3 Qxc3 21. Nxc3 Rd8 22. Na4 Nf8 23. Nc5 Ne6 24. Nxe6 Bxe6 25. Bxa6 Rb8 26. Rb1 Bf5 27. Rb2 Be4 {Avrukh,B (2629)-Stefanova,A (2491) Athens 2005 ½-½ (34)}) 13... Qb7 14. Rc2 Nb6 $146 ({RR} 14... Rb8 15. Ne2 Nb6 16. Qxc6+ Qxc6 17. Rxc6 Bd7 18. Rc7 Nc4 19. Ne5 Bb5 20. Nxc4 dxc4 21. Bxc4 Bxc4 22. Rxc4 O-O 23. Rfc1 f6 24. g3 e5 25. d5 Rfd8 26. Rd1 Rb2 27. Nc3 exf4 28. gxf4 f5 29. d6 {Bluvshtein,M (2462)-Charbonneau,P (2472) Montreal 2004 1-0 (35)}) 15. Qa5 Nc4 16. Bxc4 dxc4 17. Rb1 Qa7 18. Ne5 Bxf4 19. Nxc6 Qc7 20. Rb6 Bxh2+ 21. Kh1 Be6 22. d5 Bg4 23. Nb5 Qf4 24. Qb4 O-O 25. Nxe7+ Kg7 26. Nd6 f6 27. Rb7 Kh8 28. Qxc4 Rab8 29. g3 Bxg3 30. fxg3 Qxd6 31. Qc7 Bf3+ 32. Kg1 Qxc7 33. Rbxc7 Rbd8 34. R2c5 Rd6 35. Kf2 Be4 36. Ke3 Bb1 37. a3 Rf7 38. Rc1 Ba2 39. Nxg6+ Kg7 40. Rxf7+ Kxf7 41. Nf4 Rd7 42. Kd4 a5 43. Rc6 Rb7 44. Kc5 Rb3 45. Rc7+ Ke8 46. Kd6 Rb6+ 47. Rc6 Rb3 48. Ne6 Kf7 49. Nd8+ Ke8 50. Rc8 Rxa3 51. Ne6+ Kf7 52. Rf8+ Kg6 53. Rg8+ Kf5 54. Nd4+ Ke4 55. Rg4+ Ke3 56. Nf5+ Kd2 57. Rf4 Ke1 58. Rd4 Ke2 59. Ke7 Bxd5 60. Rxd5 a4 61. Kxf6 Rd3 62. Ra5 a3 63. Ke5 Kd2 64. Ke4 h5 65. Ra8 Rc3 66. Rd8+ Kc1 67. Ra8 Kb2 68. Ne3 Rc7 69. Rb8+ Kc1 70. Kd3 a2 71. Ra8 Kb1 72. Rb8+ Kc1 73. Ra8 Kb1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus-B"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2005.01.22"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D88"]
[WhiteElo "2652"]
[BlackElo "2553"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2005.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "13"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 105"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.04.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Bg4 11. f3 Na5 12. Bxf7+ Rxf7 13. fxg4 Rxf1+ 14. Kxf1 cxd4 15. cxd4 e5 16. Kg1 exd4 ({RR} 16... Rc8 17. d5 Nc4 18. Bf2 Nd6 19. Qd3 a6 20. h3 b5 21. a4 Qd7 22. axb5 Qxb5 23. Qe3 Qb4 24. Ng3 a5 25. Qa7 Nxe4 26. Nxe4 Qxe4 27. Qxa5 Qd3 28. Qa6 Qc3 29. Qe6+ Kh8 30. Rd1 e4 31. d6 {Sjugirov,S (2689)-Akesson,R (2372) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (36)}) 17. Bxd4 Rc8 $146 ({RR} 17... Bxd4+ 18. Nxd4 ({RR} 18. Qxd4 Qxd4+ 19. Nxd4 Rd8 20. Nf3 b5 21. Rc1 Nc4 22. a4 a6 23. axb5 axb5 24. Rb1 Rb8 25. Rb4 Re8 26. Rxb5 Nd6 27. Ra5 Nxe4) 18... Rc8 ({RR} 18... Rc8 19. Nf3 Qxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Rc2 21. Rd8+ Kg7 22. Rd7+ Kg8 23. Ng5 h6 24. Ne6) 19. Nf3 Qxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Rc2 21. Rd8+ Kg7 22. Rd7+ Kg8 23. Ng5 h6 24. Ne6 Rxa2 25. Rg7+ Kh8 26. Rxg6 Nc4 27. h3 a5 28. Rxh6+ Kg8 29. g5 Ne3 30. Rg6+ Kf7 31. Nf4 a4 32. Rb6 {Ivanchuk,V (2709)-Shirov,A (2751) Tallinn 2000 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 17... Bxd4+ 18. Nxd4 Qg5 19. Nf3 Qe3+ 20. Kh1 Qxe4 21. Rc1 Nc4 ({RR} 21... Qf4 22. Qd5+ Kh8 23. Rb1 Qc7 24. Ng5) 22. Qb3 b5 23. Qxb5 Nb6 ({RR} 23... Rc8 24. Qd7) 24. Rc7 Rd8 ({RR} 24... Qd5) 25. Qb3+ Qd5 26. Qxd5+ Rxd5 27. Rxa7 Rd1+ 28. Ng1 Nc4 29. Re7 ({RR} 29. a4 Ne3 30. g5) 29... Rd3 30. h3 Ra3 31. Re2 Ne3 32. Nf3 {Kaidanov,G (2607)-Peng,X (2648) Seattle 2001 CBM 082 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (51)}) ({RR} 17... Nc4 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Nf4 Qxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Ne5 21. g5 Re8 22. Rb1 b6 23. h4 Rc8 24. Rb5 Ng4 25. Rb1 Rc4 26. Re1 Kf7) 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Nf4 Qxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Kf6 21. g3 Ke7 22. h4 Nc4 23. Nd5+ Ke6 24. g5 Ne5 25. Rf1 Nd7 26. Kg2 Rc4 27. Nf6 Rc2+ 28. Kh3 Nxf6 29. gxf6 Kf7 30. Kg4 h5+ 31. Kg5 Rc5+ 32. Kh6 Re5 33. Rd1 Rxe4 34. Rd7+ Kxf6 35. Rxb7 Re3 36. Rxa7 Rxg3 37. a4 Rg4 38. a5 Rxh4 39. a6 Ra4 40. Ra8 Kf5 41. a7 Kg4 42. Kxg6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dos Hermanas Qualifier S16"]
[Site "ICC INT"]
[Date "2005.03.16"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Chiong Zacarias, Romero Luis"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E29"]
[WhiteElo "2462"]
[BlackElo "2553"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2005.03.16"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NET"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. Bd3 Nc6 8. Ne2 e5 9. e4 d6 10. f3 ({RR} 10. d5 Na5 11. Ng3 Nd7 12. Rb1 Re8 13. Nf5 Nb6 14. g4 a6 15. Qe2 Na4 16. Qc2 Nb6 17. Ne3 Bd7 18. O-O Ba4 19. Qa2 Nc8 20. f3 Ne7 21. Kh1 Qd7 22. Rg1 b5 23. cxb5 axb5 24. Nf5 c4 {LCZero0.31-dag-5350a2e-BT4-61 (3634)-Stockfishdev-20240513-e608eab (3662) tcec-chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (65)}) ({RR} 10. d5 Ne7 11. f3 Ne8 12. g4 Ng6 13. O-O Qh4 14. Qe1 Qe7 15. Be3 f6 16. h4 Nh8 17. Ng3 g6 18. Ra2 Ng7 19. Rg2 Nf7 20. Kh1 Kh8 21. Rfg1 Qc7 22. Qd2 Bd7 23. g5 f5 24. exf5 gxf5 {Chiong Zacarias,R (2390)-Ancheta,R Manila 1995 1-0 (33)}) 10... Nh5 $146 ({RR} 10... b6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 Ba6 13. g4 g5 14. Bg3 Kg7 15. h4 Rh8 16. Qd2 Ng8 17. Kf2 f6 18. Rh2 Nge7 19. Rah1 Ng6 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Rxh8 Nxh8 22. Bh2 Ng6 23. Ng3 Nce7 24. Nf5+ Nxf5 25. gxf5 {Gurevich,D (2347)-Saydaliev,S (2453) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 10... b6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bh4 Ba6 13. g4 g5 14. Bg3 Kg7 15. h4 Rh8 16. Qd2 Ng8 17. Kf2 f6 18. Rh2 Nge7 19. Rah1 Ng6 20. hxg5 hxg5 21. Rxh8 Nxh8 22. Bh2 Ng6 23. Ng3 Nce7 24. Nf5+ Nxf5 25. gxf5 {Gurevich,D (2347)-Saydaliev,S (2453) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) 11. d5 Ne7 12. g4 Nf6 13. h4 Nxg4 14. fxg4 Bxg4 15. Bg5 f6 16. Be3 f5 17. exf5 Nxf5 18. Bxf5 Rxf5 19. Qd2 Qd7 20. Rg1 h5 21. Rf1 Raf8 22. Rxf5 Qxf5 23. O-O-O Qe4 24. Re1 Qxc4 25. Ng3 Rf3 26. Nf1 Rxf1 0-1

[Event "Gausdal GM-A"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.04.15"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Korneev, Oleg"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2611"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "2005.04.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. g3 dxc4 6. Bg2 b5 7. O-O Bb7 8. Ne5 Nd5 9. a4 a6 10. e4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Nd7 12. f4 Be7 13. Ng4 ({RR} 13. Qh5 O-O 14. Ba3 c5 15. Nxd7 Qxd7 16. Bxc5 g6 17. Qe2 Bxc5 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. Qe3 Rac8 20. axb5 axb5 21. Ra7 Qb8 22. Rfa1 Rfd8 23. f5 exf5 24. exf5 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 Re8 26. Qf3 Rc7 27. Ra8 Qc8 {Buyankhishig,B (2015)-Uzuner,T (1909) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (54)}) 13... Qb6 $146 ({RR} 13... O-O 14. e5 Nb6 15. f5 exf5 16. Ne3 g6 17. Nxf5 gxf5 18. Rxf5 f6 19. Bh6 Kh8 20. Bxf8 Qxf8 21. exf6 Bxf6 22. Qf3 Nd5 23. Rf1 b4 24. cxb4 c3 25. Kh1 Re8 26. Qd3 Bc8 27. Re5 Be6 28. b5 {Shabalov,A (2523)-Erenburg,S (2616) Philadelphia 2012 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 13... O-O 14. e5 f5 15. exf6 Nxf6 16. Qe2 Qc8 17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Ba3 c5 19. Bxc5 Re8 20. Bxb7 Qxb7 21. Qg2 Qd5 22. axb5 axb5 23. Qxd5 exd5 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. Rb1 Rb8 26. Kf2 Kf7 27. Ra1 Rb7 28. Re1 {Miton,K (2588)-Tomashevsky,E (2705) St Petersburg 2018 ½-½ (62)}) ({RR} 13... O-O 14. f5 exf5 15. Rxf5 f6 16. Nh6+ gxh6 17. Bxh6 Kh8 18. Bxf8 Nxf8 19. e5 fxe5 20. Be4 Bc8 21. Rxe5 Bf6 22. Qh5 Qc7 23. Re8 Bg4 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Qxg4 c5 26. dxc5 Bxc3 27. Rd1 Qxc5+ 28. Kh1 {Di Caro,C (2340)-Palac,M (2584) Porto San Giorgio 2006 0-1 (32)}) 14. e5 h5 15. Ne3 g6 16. Qf3 O-O-O 17. Rf2 Qc7 18. Rfa2 Nb6 19. axb5 cxb5 20. Qe2 Kd7 21. Bxb7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gausdal GM-A"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.04.16"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Williams, Simon Kim"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2466"]
[BlackElo "2548"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2005.04.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. a3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd2 Nd7 8. Nxd5 exd5 9. b4 ({RR} 9. g3 Bd6 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Rc1 c6 13. Bh3 O-O 14. O-O Nf6 15. b4 a5 16. Ne5 axb4 17. axb4 Qxb4 18. Nxc6 Bxc6 19. Rxc6 Ne4 20. Qb1 Qxd4 21. Qxb6 Qxb6 22. Rxb6 {½-½ (22) Leko,P (2749)-Polgar,J (2728) Wijk aan Zee 2005}) ({RR} 9. e3 Bd6 10. Bd3 O-O 11. O-O Qe7 12. b4 Nf6 13. Bc3 Ne4 14. Bb2 a6 15. Qe2 Rfe8 16. Rfc1 Qe6 17. Qc2 Rac8 18. Qe2 Ra8 19. Qc2 Re7 20. Ne5 f6 21. Nf3 Rf8 22. Re1 g5 23. Nd2 f5 {Pert,M (2082)-Wells,P (2343) Cambridge ENG 2024 0-1 (31)}) 9... Bd6 10. Bg5 f6 11. Bh4 a5 $146 {Black doesn't seem to suffer too much in this line, undermining of the queenside with a pawn is a new idea here.} (11... c5 12. Bg3 Be7 (12... Bxg3 13. hxg3 c4 14. Qc2 g6 15. e3 b5 16. g4 a5 17. Rb1 axb4 18. axb4 Qe7 19. Nd2 Nb8 20. Be2 Nc6 {½-½ Dreev,A-Psakhis,L/playchess.com INT 2004/ (61)}) 13. dxc5 (13. bxc5 bxc5 14. e3 c4 15. Be2 Qa5+ 16. Qd2 Qxd2+ 17. Nxd2 Nb6 18. Bd1 Kd7 19. Nb1 Bd6 20. Nc3 Bxg3 21. hxg3 {1-0 Dreev,A-Psakhis,L/playchess.com INT 2004/ (63)}) 13... bxc5 14. e3 cxb4 15. Bd3 Nc5 16. Bb5+ Kf7 17. axb4 Ne4 {½-½ Eingorn,V-Van der Wiel,J/Manila 1992/ (17)}) ({RR} 11... c5 12. Bg3 Be7 13. bxc5 bxc5 14. e3 c4 15. Be2 Qa5+ 16. Qd2 Qxd2+ 17. Nxd2 Nb6 18. Bd1 Kd7 19. Nb1 Bd6 20. Nc3 Bxg3 21. hxg3 Bc6 22. Kd2 Kd6 23. Rb1 h6 24. g4 Rhb8 25. Bc2 Nc8 26. Ne2 {Dreev,A (2690)-Psakhis,L (2545) Playchess.com INT 2004 1-0 (63)}) ({RR} 11... c5 12. Bg3 Be7 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. e3 cxb4 15. Bd3 Nc5 16. Bb5+ Kf7 17. axb4 Ne4 {½-½ (17) Eingorn,V (2580)-Van der Wiel,J (2540) Manila 1992}) 12. Bg3 Qe7 (12... Bxg3 13. hxg3 axb4 14. axb4 c5 $11) 13. Bxd6 Qxd6 14. b5 c5 (14... O-O 15. e3 c5 16. bxc6 Bxc6 17. Bd3 g6 18. O-O $14) 15. bxc6 Bxc6 16. e3 b5 17. Bd3 {The f6 move has weakened the white square complex around h7, Carlsen has to play carefully.} g6 (17... O-O) 18. Qc2 Kf7 (18... Nb6 19. h4 Ra7 20. h5 g5 21. O-O $14) 19. h4 $1 Nb6 20. h5 Nc4 $2 {Black has an idea about his possible compensation for the pawn, but with best white's play it would have been slow in coming.} (20... Kg7 21. Nh4 Be8 22. Qd1 Qc6 $14) 21. hxg6+ (21. a4 Rac8 $14) 21... hxg6 22. Bxg6+ Ke7 (22... Kg7 23. Bh7 Kf8 24. Nh4 $18) 23. Nh4 Kd7 (23... Nxa3 $2 24. Rxa3 Qxa3 25. Qxc6 Qb4+ 26. Kd1 Qa4+ 27. Bc2 Qa1+ 28. Kd2 Qxh1 29. Qc7+ Kf8 30. Bg6 $18) 24. Qb3 (24. Bf5+ Kc7 25. Qa2 $16) 24... b4 (24... Nxe3 $5 25. Qxe3 (25. fxe3 Qg3+ 26. Kd2 Rxh4 27. Rxh4 Qxh4 28. Rf1 Qg3 $11) 25... Rae8 26. Bxe8+ Rxe8 27. Nf5 Rxe3+ 28. Nxe3 Qe7 $11) 25. a4 $6 (25. Rc1 Nxa3 26. Rc5 Nb5 $13) (25. Bf5+ $1 Kd8 26. axb4 Qxb4+ 27. Qxb4 axb4 28. Rxa8+ Bxa8 29. Rh3 b3 30. Nf3 $14) 25... Kc7 (25... Nxe3 $1 26. fxe3 (26. Qxe3 Rae8 27. Bxe8+ Rxe8 28. Nf5 Rxe3+ 29. fxe3 Qe6 $15) 26... Qg3+ 27. Kd2 Rxh4 28. Rxh4 Qxh4 29. Rf1 Rh8 $15) 26. Ke2 f5 $1 27. Bxf5 Qf6 28. g3 Raf8 $6 {Carlsen suddenly wants too much from the position, it was much better to take the two pieces for the rook immediatelly with better chances.} (28... Rxh4 $1 29. Rxh4 Qxf5 30. Rah1 Re8 $15) 29. Qd3 $1 Rxh4 $2 {[%mdl 64]} (29... Bd7 $1 30. e4 Re8 31. Kf1 Bxf5 32. exf5 Re4 33. Rd1 $11) 30. gxh4 Qxf5 31. Qxf5 Rxf5 32. h5 $1 {Williams must have been very happy about his luck, he has lost material but won the overall war.} b3 (32... Rf8 33. h6 Rh8 34. h7 Nd6 35. Rag1 Bxa4 36. Rg8 Nf7 37. Rxh8 Nxh8 38. Rg1 b3 39. Kd2 b2 40. Kc3 b1=Q 41. Rxb1 Be8 42. f3 $18) 33. h6 Rf8 34. h7 b2 35. Rag1 $1 Rh8 36. Rg8 b1=Q {Black's undoing is the location of his king, white can check him in suitable moment and win material.} (36... Rxh7 37. Rxh7+ Bd7 38. Rxd7+ Kxd7 39. Rb8 Kc7 40. Rb3 $18) 37. Rg7+ $1 Bd7 38. Rxb1 Kd6 39. Rh1 Bf5 (39... Nb2 40. Rh6+ (40. Rg8 $18) 40... Kc7 41. Ra6 $18) 40. Rh6+ 1-0

[Event "Gausdal GM-A"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.04.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lie, Kjetil A"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2495"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2005.04.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "10"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. O-O d6 6. c4 c6 7. Nc3 Qb6 8. h3 (8. Qc2) ({or} 8. e3 $5 {are better tries to fight for an edge.}) 8... Qa6 9. b3 b5 10. Bg5 $5 {[%mdl 512] A rare sacrificial alternative. White needs some new ideas to enliven the position, as currently the whole line is considered rather innocuous. The main moves are:} (10. cxb5 cxb5 11. Qd3 b4 12. Ne1 {runs into} Bxh3 $1 $11 {/ and Black is fine.}) (10. Nd2 bxc4 11. Nxc4 Be6 12. Ne3 (12. Nd2 Nd5 (12... d5 $6 13. Bb2 Nbd7 14. Na4 Ne8 15. Nf3 f6 16. Ne1 Bf7 17. Nd3 Nd6 18. Rc1 Rac8 19. Rc2 Rfe8 20. Qc1 $36 {Safin,S-Strikovic,A/Yerevan olm/1996/}) 13. Ndb1 Nxc3 14. Nxc3 Nd7 15. Bb2 Rab8 16. Qd2 Rfc8 17. Rac1 Nb6 18. Kh2 Qa5 19. Rfd1 Qb4 20. Ne4 Qxd2 21. Rxd2 a5 22. Ng5 Bh6 23. f4 {½,Gorelov,S-Titov,G/Moscow/1986/} Bxg5 24. fxg5 a4 $11) (12. Qd3 Nbd7 (12... Nd5 13. Bb2 Nb6 14. d5 Nxc4 15. bxc4 Bf5 16. e4 Bd7 17. Rab1 Qa5 18. Ne2 Na6 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Qd4+ f6 21. Rb2 Nc5 22. f4 Rab8 $132 {Szmetan,J-Tempone,M/Villa Ballester/1996/}) 13. Ne5 Qxd3 14. Nxd3 Nb6 15. Bb2 Rac8 16. Rfc1 a5 17. e3 g5 18. e4 Nfd7 19. Nd1 f5 20. Ne3 fxe4 21. Bxe4 c5 $11 {Dautov,R-Smirin,I/BLR-ch Minsk/1987/}) 12... Nbd7 13. Bb2 Rfc8 (13... Rac8 14. Nc2 Rc7 15. e4 Nb6 16. Kh2 Rb8 17. Rb1 Qc8 18. f4 c5 (18... a5 $5 $13) 19. d5 Bd7 20. Qd2 Ne8 21. Rfe1 a5 22. Na3 c4 23. Rec1 Rc5 24. Bf1 cxb3 25. axb3 {Fancsy,I-Wells,P/Budapest/1994/} Qb7 $132) 14. Rc1 Rab8 15. Qd2 Nb6 16. f4 c5 17. d5 Bd7 18. Ra1 Qa5 19. Kh2 Ne8 20. f5 Nf6 21. Qd3 Be8 22. fxg6 hxg6 23. Rac1 c4 $1 24. bxc4 Nbd7 $44 {,Agdestein,S-Bischoff,K/Dortmund/1987/}) 10... bxc4 11. bxc4 Qxc4 12. Rc1 Ba6 (12... Nbd7 13. e4 $44 {[%cal Re4e5,Rc3d5] d5,e5}) (12... h6 $5 13. Bd2 (13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Ne4 Qxa2 15. Nxf6+ exf6 16. Ra1 Qe6 17. Qd2 Kg7 $44 {/ White has some compensation, but it's barely enough for two .}) 13... Qe6 14. Re1 Ba6 (14... Nbd7 15. e4 Nb6 16. e5 Nfd5 17. Nxd5 cxd5 18. Bf4 $44) 15. e4 Bc4 $13) 13. Re1 $146 (13. e4 h6 14. Bd2 e5 (14... Qe6 $5 15. Re1 {-12...h6!?}) 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nd5 $5 cxd5 $6 (16... Qxa2 $1 {} 17. Ra1 Qb2 $8 18. Rb1 Qa2 $11) 17. Rxc4 Bxc4 18. Nxe5 $1 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Nxe4 $2 (19... dxe4 20. Qb3 $32 {}) 20. Bb4 Rd8 21. Nxf7 $1 Nc6 22. Nxd8 Rxd8 23. Ba5 {1-0,Berkes,F-Stokke,K/Stockholm/2003/}) ({RR} 13. e4 h6 14. Bd2 e5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nd5 cxd5 17. Rxc4 Bxc4 18. Nxe5 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Nxe4 20. Bb4 Rd8 21. Nxf7 Nc6 22. Nxd8 Rxd8 23. Ba5 {1-0 (23) Berkes,F (2616)-Stokke,K (2197) Stockholm 2003}) 13... Qb4 (13... Nbd7 $6 14. e4 $36 {[%cal Rg2f1,Ye4e5] f1,e5}) (13... h6 {still seems better.}) 14. e4 $32 {[%csl Gd4,Ge4] } e5 $6 {Returns the , but doesn't relieve the pressure - now White will have equal material and a positional advantage.} (14... Rd8 15. Bd2 (15. Qc2 $5 $44) 15... Qb7 16. e5 $36) 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nxe5 Qa5 (16... Re8 17. Nxc6 Nxc6 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Nd5 Qd6 20. Rxc6 $1 Qxc6 21. e5 Rxe5 22. Ne7+ (22. Rxe5 Kg7 $11) 22... Rxe7 23. Bxc6 $16) 17. Nxf7 $6 {Was this really necessary?} (17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Nxc6 $1 Nxc6 19. Nd5 Be5 20. Rxc6 $16 {gives White a healthy extra  and reasonable chances to convert his advantage.} Qxa2 $140 $2 21. Nb4 $18) 17... Rxf7 18. e5 Nbd7 $2 {[%mdl 8192] Black buckles under the pressure and returns the extra piece immediately. The only consistent move was} (18... Ne8 {I don't see anything concrete for White, who must still prove he has enough for a whole piece after, e.g.,} 19. Bd8 Qb4 20. e6 Rf5) 19. exf6 Nxf6 (19... Qxg5 20. fxg7 {[%cal Rc3e4] e4}) 20. Bxf6 (20. Be3 Rd8 21. Qa4 $36) 20... Bxf6 (20... Rxf6 21. Nd5 $1 $16) 21. Ne4 Be7 {Black is more or less forced to give the ×c6, as without his dark-squared  he is unable to defend his  properly.} (21... Bb5 22. Nxf6+ Rxf6 23. Re5 $1 $40 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Rg2c6] c6,ע}) (21... Qxa2 22. Rxc6 Bg7 23. Rc2 $18 {f6} (23. Nd6 Qxf2+ 24. Kh1 Rd8 25. Bd5 Bb7 26. Nxb7 Rxd5 27. Re8+ Bf8 28. Qxd5 Qf1+ 29. Kh2 Qf2+ 30. Qg2 Qxg2+ 31. Kxg2 Rxb7 $14)) 22. Rxc6 $16 Bb7 23. Re6 Rd8 (23... Qxa2 $2 24. Rxe7 $1 Rxe7 25. Nf6+ Kf7 (25... Kf8 26. Qd6 $18) 26. Rxe7+ Kxe7 27. Bxb7 Rd8 28. Bd5 $40 {} Qa6 29. Qe1+ $1 Kxf6 30. Qc3+ Ke7 31. Qg7+ Kd6 32. Qf6+ $18) 24. Qe2 {[%cal Re6e7]} Bxe4 {The best way to meet the threat e7.} (24... Qf5 25. Rxe7 Rxe7 26. Nf6+ Qxf6 27. Qxe7 Qxe7 28. Rxe7 Bxg2 29. Kxg2 a6 30. Re6 $18) (24... Bb4 25. Rc1 $40) 25. Qxe4 Bc5 26. Re2 Rdf8 27. Qd5 Qb4 (27... Kg7 28. Kh2 $16 {is similar to the game.} Rxf2 $140 29. Rxf2 Rxf2 30. Re7+ $1 Kh6 31. g4 Qd2 32. g5+ $1 Qxg5 33. Rxh7+ Kxh7 34. Qxg5 $18) 28. Kh2 Kg7 (28... Bxf2 $2 29. Rxf2 Rxf2 30. Rxg6+ Kh8 31. Qe5+ $18) 29. Qe5+ (29. f4 Qd4 $16) 29... Kg8 30. a3 {This allows Black to exchange , White could have played for the  with} (30. f4 $142 $1 $40 {as now Black can't simplify:} Qd4 $2 31. Qxd4 Bxd4 32. Bd5 Rf5 (32... Kg7 33. R6e4 $18) 33. Rxg6+ Kh8 34. Rd6 $18) (30. Rc6 $5 $40) 30... Qd4 $1 (30... Qxa3 $2 31. Rc6 {[%cal Rg2d5] d5+-}) 31. Qxd4 Bxd4 32. f4 Kg7 $14 {[%csl Gd4] /, Black has survived the worst and can fight on in the .} 33. Bd5 Bf6 34. h4 Rd7 35. Be4 Rfd8 36. Kh3 Rd6 37. Rxd6 Rxd6 38. Rc2 Rd7 39. Kg4 Be7 40. a4 Rd4 41. Bc6 h5+ $6 {[%csl Rg6] ×g6} (41... Kf6 $142) 42. Kh3 Bd6 43. Kg2 Bb4 44. Kh3 Bd6 (44... Kf6 $16) (44... a5 45. Be8 Rd6 $16) 45. Be8 $1 Rd3 46. Kg2 Re3 (46... a5 47. Rc6 {[%csl Ra5][%cal Rc6a6] a6+-}) 47. Rc6 $1 Re6 (47... Rxe8 48. Rxd6 Re7 49. Kf3 $18 {is a hopeless , White has an extra  and a more active .}) (47... Bxf4 48. Rxg6+ Kf8 49. gxf4 Rxe8 50. Ra6 {is similar:} Re4 51. Kf3 Re7 52. Ra5 $18) 48. Ra6 $18 {Now Black must either go for the  form the aobve note, or lose the a7.} Kf8 49. Bb5 Rf6 50. Bd3 $5 Kg7 51. Rxa7+ Kf8 52. a5 Bb4 53. a6 Rd6 54. Rc7 Rxd3 55. Rc8+ Kg7 56. a7 Rd2+ 57. Kf3 Rd3+ 58. Ke4 Ra3 59. a8=Q 1-0

[Event "NOR-chT"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2005.05.06"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Fyllingen, Roy Harald"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2386"]
[BlackElo "2543"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2005.05.04"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2007"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 a6 10. Rd1 ({RR} 10. Bd2 c5 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. Be2 b5 13. b4 Ncd7 14. Ne4 Be7 15. Nxf6+ Bxf6 16. Bc3 Bb7 17. Bxf6 Nxf6) 10... b5 ({RR} 10... Qc7 11. Ne4 Nxe4 12. Qxe4 b5 ({RR} 12... e5 13. Qh4 Nf6 14. e4 exd4 15. e5) 13. Bd3) 11. Be2 ({RR} 11. Bf1 c5 ({RR} 11... Qc7) 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Ng5 Bb7 14. Nce4 Nxe4 ({RR} 14... Rc8 15. Nxf6+) 15. Nxe4 Be7 ({RR} 15... Rc8 16. Nxc5 Rxc5 17. Qe2 Qc7 18. Bd2 Ne5 19. Bb4 Rc2 20. Qh5 Rxb2 21. Rac1 Rc2 22. Bd6 Nf3+ 23. gxf3 Rxc1 24. Bxc7 Rxd1 25. f4) 16. Nd6 Bd5 ({RR} 16... Bxd6 17. Rxd6 Bd5 18. e4 Rc8 19. Qd1 Bc6 20. Be3) 17. e4 Bxd6 18. exd5 Rc8 ({RR} 18... e5 19. a4) 19. Qe2 exd5 20. Rxd5 Nf6 21. Rd3 Qc7 22. g3 Bc5 23. Be3 Bxe3 24. Rxe3 Rfe8) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Bb7 12. e4 e5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bxe5 15. Bxb5 Bxh2+ 16. Kh1 Qe7 17. Be2 Be5 18. Bf3 c5 19. Be3 Rfe8 20. Kg1 Bxc3 21. bxc3 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Nxe4 23. Rab1 Qe5) 11... Qc7 ({RR} 11... c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 ({RR} 12... Nxc5 13. b4) 13. Ne4 Nxe4 ({RR} 13... Qb6 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. b3 Bb7 16. Bb2 Be4 17. Qc1 Ncd7 18. Bd4 Qb7 19. Qb2 Rfc8 20. Rac1) 14. Qxe4 Ra7 ({RR} 14... Qc7 15. b4 Bb6 16. Bb2 Bb7 17. Qg4) 15. b4 Bb7 16. Qf4 Bxf3 ({RR} 16... Be7 17. Ne5 Bd5 18. Rxd5 exd5 19. Nc6) 17. Bxf3 Be7 18. Bb2 Qb8 19. Rac1 ({RR} 19. a4 Qxf4 20. exf4 bxa4 21. Rxa4 Nb6) 19... Bf6 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 21. a3) 12. Ne4 ({RR} 12. e4 e5 13. g3 ({RR} 13. h3 Bb7 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Bg5 Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Be5 17. Bxf6 gxf6) 13... Re8 14. a3 Bb7 ({RR} 14... exd4 15. Nxd4 c5 16. Ndxb5 axb5 17. Nxb5) 15. Bg5 exd4 ({RR} 15... h6 16. dxe5 Bxe5 ({RR} 16... Nxe5 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qd2 Rad8 19. Qxh6) 17. Nxe5 hxg5 18. Nxd7 Nxd7 19. Qd2 Nf6 20. Qxg5 Nxe4 21. Nxe4 Rxe4 22. Bf3 Re5 ({RR} 22... Qe5 23. Qd2 Rc4 24. Qd7) 23. Rd7 Qxd7 ({RR} 23... Rxg5 24. Rxc7 Rb8 25. Re1) 24. Qxe5) 16. Nxd4 Be5) 12... Nxe4 ({RR} 12... Be7 13. Nxf6+ Nxf6 14. e4) 13. Qxe4 e5 14. Qh4 ({RR} 14. h3 Bb7 15. Qc2 c5 16. Ng5 Nf6 17. dxc5 Qxc5 18. Qxc5 Bxc5 19. Nf3 e4 20. Nd4 Rfd8 21. a4 b4 22. Nb3 Be7 23. Bd2 Bd5 24. Na5 h6 25. Rac1 Rac8 26. Bxa6 Ra8 27. Nc6 Bxc6 28. Rxc6 b3 {Wang,H (2435)-Tenuunbold,B (2119) Paracin SRB 2025 1-0 (49)}) 14... Re8 ({RR} 14... h6) 15. Bd3 h6 ({RR} 15... Nf6 16. dxe5 Bxe5) 16. Bc2 c5 $146 ({RR} 16... Bb7 17. e4 Rad8 18. Be3 exd4 19. Nxd4 Ne5 20. Nf5 Ng6 21. Qh5 Bf8 22. h4 c5 23. Qg4 h5 24. Qxh5 Bxe4 25. Rxd8 Qxd8 26. Bxe4 Rxe4 27. Rd1 Qf6 28. Qf3 Re6 29. h5 Ne5 30. Qh3 Nc4 31. b3 {Schlosser,P (2505)-Haimovich,T (2280) Herzliya 1998 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 16... exd4 17. Qxd4 ({RR} 17. Nxd4 Nf6 18. Nf5 Bxf5 19. Bxf5 Rad8 20. Bd2 Be5) ({RR} 17. exd4 Be7 18. Bg5 Bxg5 19. Nxg5 Nf6 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. Bxe4 Qd6 22. Re1 Be6) 17... Bf8 18. b3 Nf6 19. Qh4 ({RR} 19. Bb2 Bg4 20. Rac1 Rad8) 19... g5 ({RR} 19... Bg4 20. Bb2 Bxf3 21. gxf3 Be7 22. Kh1) 20. Qg3 ({RR} 20. Qd4 Bg7 21. Bb2 Nh5) 20... Qxg3 21. hxg3 c5 22. Bb2 Bg7 ({RR} 22... Be7) 23. Rd6 Be6 24. Rad1 Rec8 25. Bxf6 Bxf6 26. Be4 Ra7 27. Bd5 ({RR} 27. Bf5 Bxf5 28. Rxf6 Bc2 29. Rd2 Kg7 30. Rdd6) 27... Bxd5 ({RR} 27... Be7 28. Rxe6) 28. R1xd5 ({RR} 28. Rxf6 Kg7 29. Rd6 Bxf3 30. gxf3 c4) 28... Kg7 29. Rd2 Be7 ({RR} 29... c4 30. bxc4 Rxc4) 30. Rb6 Bd8 31. Rbd6 {Karpov,A (2735)-Anand,V (2770) Lausanne 1998 CBM 063 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] ½-½ (55)}) ({RR} 16... Bb7 17. e4 Rad8 18. Be3) 17. d5 c4 18. e4 Qd8 19. Qg3 Qf6 20. a4 Bb7 21. axb5 axb5 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. Nh4 Kh7 24. Nf5 Bc5 25. h4 b4 26. Qh3 Bc8 27. g4 b3 28. Bb1 Ra1 29. Bd2 Qg6 30. h5 Qb6 31. Qf3 Nf6 32. Kg2 Kg8 33. g5 hxg5 34. Bxg5 Nh7 35. Bh4 Bxf5 36. Qxf5 Qd6 37. Bg3 Nf6 38. Bxe5 Qd7 39. Qxd7 Nxd7 40. Bc3 Bd6 41. e5 Bxe5 42. Bxe5 Rxb1 43. Rxb1 Nxe5 44. Rc1 Kf8 45. f4 Nd3 46. Rxc4 Nxb2 47. Rc3 1-0

[Event "NOR-chT"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2005.05.07"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D42"]
[WhiteElo "2531"]
[BlackElo "2543"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2005.05.04"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2007"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.11.23"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Psakhis,Lev} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. e3 d5 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd3 cxd4 8. exd4 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. Re1 Nf6 11. a3 b6 12. Bg5 ({RR} 12. Bc2 Bb7 13. Qd3) 12... Bb7 13. Bc2 Ba6 ({RR} 13... h6 14. Bh4 ({RR} 14. Bf4 Bd6 15. Be5 Rc8 16. Qe2 Na5 17. Qd3 g6 18. Bxd6 Qxd6 19. Ne5 Rc7 20. Rad1 Rfc8) 14... Nh5 ({RR} 14... Nd5 15. Qd3 g6 16. Re4 Rc8 17. Rg4 Qe8 18. Nxd5 exd5 19. Re1 Rc7 20. Re6 Bc8 ({RR} 20... fxe6 21. Rxg6+ Kh7 22. Rg7+ Kxg7 23. Qh7#) 21. Rexg6+ fxg6 22. Rxg6+ Kf7 23. Bg3 Bd8 24. Rxh6) 15. d5 ({RR} 15. Qd3 g6 16. Re4) 15... Bxh4 ({RR} 15... exd5 16. Qd3 f5 17. Bxe7 ({RR} 17. Qxd5+ Qxd5 18. Nxd5 Bxh4 ({RR} 18... Bd6 19. Rad1) ({RR} 18... Bd8 19. Bxd8 Raxd8 20. Rad1) 19. Nxh4 Nd4 ({RR} 19... Rad8 20. Rad1) 20. Ne7+ Kf7 21. Bxf5 Nf4) 17... Nxe7 18. Nd4 Rf7 ({RR} 18... Re8 19. Ba4) 19. Ne6 ({RR} 19. Rad1)) 16. dxc6 Bxc6 17. Ne5 Bxf2+ ({RR} 17... Qf6 18. g3) ({RR} 17... Qxd1 18. Bxd1 Bxg2 19. Bxh5 Bb7 20. Rad1) 18. Kxf2 Qh4+ 19. Kg1 Rad8 20. Nxc6 ({RR} 20. Bh7+ Kxh7 ({RR} 20... Kh8 21. Qc2 Bb7 22. Be4) 21. Qc2+ g6 22. Nxc6 Rd6 23. Ne4 Rd5 24. Qf2 Qxf2+ 25. Nxf2) ({RR} 20. Qg4 Qxg4 21. Nxg4 Bxg2 ({RR} 21... Rd2 22. Re2 Rfd8 23. Rd1) 22. Kxg2 Rd2+ 23. Re2 Nf4+) 20... Rxd1 21. Raxd1 Nf6 22. Ne5 ({RR} 22. h3 Nh5) 22... Ng4 23. Nxg4 Qxg4 24. Rd7 Qg5 25. h3 ({RR} 25. Rxa7 Qd2 26. Re2 Qc1+ 27. Nd1 Rd8) 25... Qc5+ 26. Kh1 b5 27. Rb7 a6 ({RR} 27... Qf2 28. Re2 Qf1+ 29. Kh2 a6) 28. Rf1 {Polgar,J (2670)-Karpov,A (2735) Budapest 1998 CBM 065 [Psakhis,Lev] ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 13... Rc8 14. Qd3 g6 15. Rad1 ({RR} 15. Bh6 Re8 16. Rad1) 15... Nd5 ({RR} 15... Re8 16. h4 Nd5 ({RR} 16... a6 17. Bb3 Na5 18. Ba2 b5 19. Ne5 Nd5 20. Bxd5 Bxd5 21. Bxe7 Rxe7 22. Nxd5 Qxd5 23. Ng4) 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. b4 Bxg5 19. hxg5) 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Ba4 a6 18. Nxd5 Qxd5 19. Qe3 Bf6 20. b3 ({RR} 20. Bb3 Qd7 21. d5 exd5 22. Qxb6 Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 Bxb2 24. Bxd5 Bg7 25. Bxg7 Kxg7 26. h4) 20... Qh5 21. d5 Nd8 22. d6 Rc5 23. d7 Re7 24. Qf4 Bg7 25. Qb8 Qxh6 26. Qxd8+ Bf8 27. Re3 Bc6 28. Qxf8+) ({RR} 13... Nd5 14. Qd3 g6 15. h4 ({RR} 15. Bh6) 15... Bxg5 16. hxg5 Nxc3 17. Qxc3 Rc8 18. Qe3 Na5) ({RR} 13... Qd6 14. Qd3 g6 15. Rad1 Rad8 16. h4 Ng4 17. d5 Bxg5 18. hxg5 Qc5 19. Ne4 Qxd5 20. Qc3 Qb5 21. Nd6 Rxd6 22. Rxd6 Rc8 23. Red1 Qc5 24. Qxc5 bxc5 25. Be4 Kg7 26. Rc1 Na5 27. Bxb7 Nxb7 28. Rd7 {Soltanici,R (2339)-Norowitz,Y (2402) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (49)}) 14. Qd2 Rc8 15. Qf4 Nh5 $146 ({RR} 15... Re8 16. Rad1 h6 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. d5 exd5 19. Rxe8+ Qxe8 20. Qf5 Bxc3 21. Qh7+ Kf8 22. bxc3 Ne5 23. Nd4 Ng6 24. h4 h5 25. Bf5 Rxc3 26. Ne6+ fxe6 27. Bxg6 Qc6 28. Qh8+ Ke7 29. Qxg7+ Kd6 30. Re1 {Szabo,L-Unzicker,W Amsterdam 1954 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 15... Bc4 16. Qh4 a6 17. Rad1 Bd5 18. Ne5 Nd7 19. Bxe7 Nxe7 20. Re3 Nf5 21. Qxd8 Rfxd8 22. Bxf5 Nxe5 23. Bxe6 Nf3+ 24. gxf3 fxe6 25. Nxd5 exd5 26. Re7 Rc2 27. Rde1 Rf8 28. Ra7 Rxf3 29. Re8+ Rf8 30. Rxf8+ {Piccoli,L (2065)-Lage,P (2129) Timbo 2021 ½-½ (87)}) 16. Qg4 Bxg5 17. Qxh5 Bh6 18. d5 exd5 19. Bf5 Rb8 20. Nxd5 Bc8 21. Bxc8 Rxc8 22. Rad1 Re8 23. Ne7+ Rxe7 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Rxe7 Nxe7 26. g3 Ng6 27. Qf5 Ne7 28. Qe5 Nd5 29. Nd4 g6 30. Nc6 Bg7 31. Qe2 Rd6 32. Qe8+ Bf8 33. Ne5 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.19"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Volkov, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2634"]
[BlackElo "2548"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 h6 7. Bd2 Bb4 8. a3 Ba5 9. Bd3 O-O 10. O-O Re8 $146 ({RR} 10... Bc7 11. Rad1 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Qe7 13. Ne2 Rd8 14. Ng3 b6 15. e4 Nf8 16. e5 Nd5 17. Nh5 Ng6 18. Qc1 Kh7 19. Rfe1 Rh8 20. Re4 Bd7 21. Rg4 Bd8 22. Bd3 Qf8 23. h4 Be8 24. Ng3 f5 25. exf6 {Pedersen,S (2446)-Hansen,L (2565) Germany 2006 1-0 (61)}) 11. Rad1 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Rxe5 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Nxd5 Rxd5 16. Bxa5 Qxa5 17. Bc4 Rxd1 18. Rxd1 Bf5 19. e4 Bg6 20. Bf1 Rd8 21. Qc3 Qb6 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Qe3 b6 24. b4 Qe7 25. f3 Qe5 26. Qd3 c5 27. g3 Kh7 28. bxc5 Qxc5+ 29. Kg2 f5 30. exf5 Bxf5 31. Qb3 Qd4 32. g4 Qd2+ 33. Kg3 Qe1+ 34. Kg2 Qd2+ 35. Kg3 Qe1+ 36. Kg2 Qd2+ 37. Kg3 Qe1+ 38. Kg2 Qd2+ 39. Kg3 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.20"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Efimenko, Zahar"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2620"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Rc1 Bb7 9. Bg2 d5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxd5 Bxd5 12. Qc2 Nc6 $146 ({RR} 12... c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. O-O h6 15. Rfd1 Qe7 16. Bc3 Ba3 17. Bb2 {½-½ (17) Chytilek,R (2400)-Laznicka,V (2525) Czech Republic 2006}) 13. e4 Nb4 14. Qb1 Bb7 15. O-O c5 16. Bxb4 cxb4 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. Rxc8 Qxc8 19. Ne5 Qc7 20. Nc4 Rd8 21. Ne3 g6 22. e5 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qc6+ 24. Kg1 Qf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Movsesian, Sergei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2628"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O c6 8. Re1 Na6 9. Bf1 Bg4 10. d5 Ne8 ({RR} 10... cxd5 11. cxd5 Ne8 12. Be2 Bd7 13. a3 Nac7 14. Qb3 b5 15. Bg5 f6 16. Bd2 f5 17. Ng5 Qe7 18. Ne6 Nxe6 19. dxe6 Bxe6 20. Qxb5 Nf6 21. Qd3 fxe4 22. Nxe4 d5 23. Ng5 Bf5 24. Bb4 Qxb4 25. axb4 {Ftacnik,L (2608)-Shirov,A (2746) Germany 2001 ½-½ (34)}) 11. Be2 Bd7 12. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 12. dxc6 bxc6 13. a3 Nc5 14. Bg5 f6 15. Be3 Ne6 16. c5 Nxc5 17. Bxc5 dxc5 18. Na4 Nc7 19. Nxc5 Be8 20. Bc4+ Bf7 21. Qa4 Nb5 22. Rac1 Qe7 23. Nb3 Nd6 24. Bxf7+ Nxf7 25. Rxc6 Rab8 26. Rc2 f5 {Epishin,V (2583)-Reschke,S (2376) Baunatal 2001 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 12. Rb1 c5 13. a3 f5 14. b4 Nf6 15. Ng5 b6 16. Nb5 Qe7 17. Bf3 Rfc8 18. Qd3 Nc7 19. Nxc7 Rxc7 20. Bd2 h6 21. Ne6 Bxe6 22. dxe6 f4 23. Bxf4 {½-½ (23) Andersson,F (2286)-Namini,A (2180) Sweden 2017}) ({RR} 12. Rb1 c5 13. a3 f5 14. b4 Nf6 15. Nd2 Bh6 16. Bd3 Nh5 17. exf5 Nf4 18. Nde4 Nxd3 19. Bxh6 Nxe1 20. Bxf8 Qxf8 21. fxg6 Nxg2 22. Qh5 Qg7 23. Qxh7+ Kf8 24. Kxg2 Bf5 25. Qxg7+ Kxg7 26. bxc5 Nxc5 {Oms Pallisse,J (2150)-Brancaleoni,M (2195) Vejen 1993 1-0 (47)}) 12... f6 13. dxc6 Bxc6 14. Be3 f5 15. b4 f4 16. Bc1 Nxb4 17. Qb3 a5 18. c5+ Kh8 19. cxd6 Nxd6 20. Bb2 Qe7 21. Bf1 Qf7 22. Rad1 Qxb3 23. axb3 Rad8 24. Ba3 h6 25. Rd2 Nf7 26. Red1 Rxd2 27. Rxd2 Rd8 28. Rxd8+ Nxd8 29. Bc4 Bf6 30. Bxb4 axb4 31. Nd5 Kg7 32. Nd2 b5 33. Be2 Ne6 34. Nxb4 Be8 35. Nd5 Nd4 36. Bd1 Bd8 37. Nf3 Nxf3+ 38. Bxf3 Kf8 39. Be2 Bc6 40. b4 Be7 41. Nxe7 Kxe7 42. f3 g5 43. g4 fxg3 44. hxg3 h5 45. Kh2 Kd6 46. Kh3 Bd7+ 47. g4 Kc6 48. Kg3 h4+ 49. Kf2 Be6 50. Bf1 Bc4 51. Bh3 Kd6 52. Ke3 Ke6 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.06.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2637"]
[BlackElo "2548"]
[Annotator "Huebner,Robert"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Qc7 8. g3 e5 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Bf4 Nfd7 11. Bg2 g5 12. Bxe5 Nxe5 13. Qd4 f6 14. O-O-O {Mit diesem Abspiel hat Weiß recht gute Ergebnisse erzielt; vergleiche die folgende Auswahl an Beispielen.} Be6 (14... Be7 {ist öfter gespielt worden; es sollte zum Ausgleich genügen:} 15. Ne3 (15. Ne4 O-O (15... Rd8 16. Qc3 Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 Nxc4 18. Qxc4 Qe5 19. Qd4 Qxd4 $11 {1-0 Mikhalevski,V-Rodshtein,M/Ramat Aviv 2004/CBM 102 ext (49). (48)}) 16. Nxg5 b5 17. Nxe5 fxe5 18. Qe3 bxa4 19. Be4 a3 20. Bxf5 Rxf5 21. Ne4 Rb8 (21... axb2+ $17) 22. bxa3 Qa5 23. Rd3 Qb5 24. Kd2 Qa5+ 25. Kc1 Qb5 26. Kd2 {½-½ Erdos,V-Ronchetti,N/Heraklio 2004/EXT 2005 (26).}) (15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. Qxe5 fxe5 17. Be4 Be6 18. f3 Rd8 19. g4 O-O 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. Rd1 $11 Rd4 22. e3 Rxd1+ 23. Kxd1 a5 24. Bf5 Bb3+ 25. Bc2 {½-½ Rowson,J-Johannessen,L/Mallorca 2004/CBM 104 no vc (25).}) 15... Be6 16. Qe4 Bb3 17. Rd2 O-O (17... Rd8 $5) 18. h4 gxh4 $2 (18... Bc5) 19. Qxh4 Rf7 20. Nf5 Kh8 21. Be4 Raf8 22. f4 Nc4 23. Ng7 Rxg7 24. Bxh7 f5 25. Qh5 Bh4 26. Bxf5+ {1-0 Jobava,B-Grischuk,A/Mallorca 2004/CBM 104 no vc (26).}) (14... Nxc4 {genügt wohl auch zum Ausgleich:} 15. Qxc4 Bd6 16. Be4 Bh3 17. Qd3 Be5 18. Bf5 Bxf5 19. Qxf5 Qc8 20. Qe4 O-O 21. h4 g4 22. Rd2 Qe6 23. Rhd1 Rf7 $2 (23... Rae8 $11) 24. Rd6 Qxd6 25. Rxd6 Bxd6 26. Qxg4+ Kf8 27. Qf5 Be5 28. Ne4 Rd8 29. e3 Rd5 30. Qc8+ Kg7 31. g4 c5 32. f4 Bc7 33. g5 Bd8 34. gxf6+ Bxf6 35. Qe6 Rd3 36. Nd6 {1-0 Jobava,B-Kulaots,K/Instanbul 2004/CBM 102 ext (36).}) 15. f4 {Dies ist ein neuer, scharfer Versuch. Nach} (15. Ne3 Bg7 (15... Be7 {führt zur oben zitierten Partie Jobava-Grischuk.}) 16. f4 gxf4 17. gxf4 Nf7 (17... Ng4 $5) 18. Qe4 {hat Weiß das etwas bequemere Spiel.} Qe7 19. Nf5 Bxf5 20. Qxf5 {1-0 Gelfand,B-Kobalija,M/playchess.com INT 2004/EXT 2005 (30). (29)}) 15... gxf4 16. gxf4 Nxc4 {Schwarz versucht, die Idee des Weißen zu widerlegen.} (16... Bxc4 17. fxe5 Bb3 18. exf6 Bxd1 19. Qe4+ Kf7 20. Qc4+ {ist offensichtlich nicht gut für Schwarz.}) (16... Nd7 {ist eine solide Fortsetzung, die dem Schwarzen gleiches Spiel verspricht:} 17. Ne4 (17. Qe3 Kf7 18. Bf3 h5 {bringt dem Weißen nichts ein.}) 17... O-O-O 18. Nxf6 Bg7 19. Ne8 Rhxe8 20. Nd6+ Kb8 21. Nxe8 (21. Qxg7 Rg8 22. Qe7 Nc5 {kostet Weiß eine Figur.}) 21... Bxd4 22. Nxc7 Be3+ 23. Kc2 Kxc7 {ist ungünstig für Weiß.}) 17. Qxf6 Bf7 18. Qxh8 Qxf4+ 19. Kb1 Bg6+ (19... Nd2+ 20. Rxd2 Qxd2 21. Qxh7 {ist gut für Weiß.}) (19... Ne3 20. Rd4 {geht gar nicht für Schwarz.}) 20. Ka1 (20. Ka2 {ist schwächer:} Ne3 21. Rhf1 Nxf1 22. Rxf1 Qd6 {mit etwa gleichem Spiel.}) 20... Ne3 21. Rd2 (21. Rhf1 Nxf1 22. Rxf1 Qb4 (22... Qd6 23. Ne4 {ist nicht gewinnträchtig für Schwarz.}) 23. Qe5+ Be7 (23... Qe7 {scheitert an} 24. Rxf8+ Kxf8 25. Qh8+) 24. Qh8+ {mit remis.}) 21... Nc2+ $146 (21... Nxg2 {verdient natürlich Erwägung:} 22. Rd4 (22. e3 {ist ungenügend:} Nxe3 23. Re1 Rd8 (23... Kf7 24. Rd7+ Ke6 25. Qd4 Qxd4 26. Rxd4 Ke5 27. Rd2 Bc5 28. Nd1 Kf4 29. Rf2+ {ist befriedigend für Weiß.}) 24. Rxd8+ (24. Rde2 Rd3 {ist für Weiß ganz hoffnungslos.}) 24... Kxd8 25. Rxe3 Qxe3 26. Qxf8+ Kc7 {, und Schwarz gewinnt ziemlich mühelos.}) 22... Qf5 {Auf andere Damenzüge folgt 23.Se4 mit entscheidender Kraft.} 23. Ne4 Ke7 {Es gibt nichts anderes.} 24. Rhd1 Ne3 25. Rd7+ Ke6 (25... Qxd7 26. Qe5+ Kd8 (26... Qe6 27. Qc7+ Ke8 28. Nf6+ Qxf6 29. Qd7#) 27. Rxd7+ Kxd7 28. Nf6+ Kd8 29. Qxe3 {mit Gewinnstellung für Weiß.}) 26. R1d6+ (26. Qg8+ Ke5 27. Qh8+ Kf4 {ist keine Verbesserung für Weiß.}) 26... Bxd6 27. Rxd6+ Ke7 28. Qxa8 Qf1+ 29. Ka2 Bf7+ 30. b3 Bxb3+ 31. Kxb3 Qb1+ 32. Kc3 Qc2+ 33. Kd4 Nf5+ 34. Ke5 Nxd6 35. Nxd6 Qb2+ 36. Kf5 Kxd6 37. Qb8+ Kd7 38. Qxa7 {mit Ausgleich. Es ist zu verstehen, daß dem Schwarzen dieses Abspiel nicht geheuer war; aber er mußte sich darauf einlassen, denn nun kommt er in Nachteil.}) ({RR} 21... Nxg2 22. Rd4 Qf5 23. Rhd1 Qe6 24. Rd6 Qe7 25. Rd7 Qe6 26. R7d6 Qe7 27. Rd7 Qe6 28. e4 Qxd7 29. Rxd7 Kxd7 30. Qd4+ Kc7 31. Qf2 Re8 32. Qxg2 a5 33. Qg5 b6 34. h4 Bd6 35. Qh6 Re5 36. Qg7+ {Mamedyarov,S (2732)-Mamedov,R (2656) Baku AZE 2025 ½-½ (57)}) 22. Rxc2 Bxc2 23. Rf1 Qd6 ({Nach} 23... Qb4 24. Qf6 (24. Qe5+ Be7 25. Bh3 Rd8 {führt zu einer ungefähr ausgeglichenen Stellung.}) 24... Kd7 25. Qe5 {gerät der König des Schwarzen ebenfalls unter Beschuß.}) 24. Be4 Bb3 25. Nb5 $1 cxb5 26. Bxb7 Rb8 27. Bc6+ Kd8 28. Qxf8+ Kc7 29. Qg7+ (29. Qxd6+ Kxd6 30. axb5 Bc4 {ist nicht überzeugender.}) 29... Kxc6 (29... Kb6 30. Bxb5 {ist aussichtslos für Schwarz.}) 30. Qc3+ Kb6 31. Qxb3 Ka5 (31... a6 32. Qe3+ Ka5 33. axb5 {ist nicht besser; nach} Rxb5 34. Qc3+ {verliert Schwarz in wenigen Zügen die Dame.}) (31... Qe5 32. axb5 Rc8 33. Qa4 Qxb5 34. Rf6+ {ist auch nicht geeignet, Widerstand zu leisten.}) 32. Qc3+ Qb4 (32... Kxa4 33. b3+ Ka3 34. Rb1 {führt zum Matt.}) 33. Qc7+ $18 {Eine außerordentliche Partie.} Rb6 34. Qxa7+ Ra6 35. Qc7+ Rb6 36. Rf4 Qb3 37. Qa7+ Ra6 38. Qc5 Rg6 39. axb5 1-0

[Event "EU-ch 6th"]
[Site "Warsaw"]
[Date "2005.07.01"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Riazantsev, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2608"]
[BlackElo "2548"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2005.06.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "POL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Dautov,Rustem} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3 Bb7 5. Nc3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd2 Be7 8. Qc2 Nd7 9. e4 Nxc3 10. Bxc3 O-O 11. Rd1 ({RR} 11. O-O-O) 11... Rc8 ({RR} 11... Qc8 12. Bd3 Rd8 13. O-O) ({RR} 11... Qe8 12. Bd3 c5 13. d5 exd5 14. exd5) ({RR} 11... c5 12. dxc5 Qc7 ({RR} 12... Qc8 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Bb5 Nc5 15. Rd4) 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Bb5 Nc5 15. Be5 Qc8 16. O-O Bxe4 17. Qc3 f6 18. Bg3 Bd5 19. Rfe1) 12. Bc4 ({RR} 12. Bd3 c5 13. d5 c4 14. Be2 exd5 15. exd5 b5 ({RR} 15... Qc7 16. d6 Bxd6 17. Qd2) ({RR} 15... Nf6 16. Ng5 g6 17. h4 Nxd5 18. Nxh7 Kxh7 19. h5 Bf6 ({RR} 19... f5 20. hxg6+ Kxg6 21. Bh5+ Kg5 22. Qd2+ f4 23. Qe2 Qd7 24. Qe5+) 20. hxg6+ Kg8 21. g7 Bxc3+ 22. bxc3 Kxg7 23. Qh7+ Kf6 24. Rh6+ Ke7 25. Qe4+ Kd7 26. Bg4+) 16. d6 ({RR} 16. O-O Nc5) 16... Bf6 17. O-O Re8) 12... Nf6 13. Bd3 c5 14. dxc5 ({RR} 14. e5 Nd5 15. Bxh7+ Kh8 16. Be4 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Bxe4 18. Qxe4 cxd4 19. cxd4 Bxa3 20. O-O a5) ({RR} 14. e5 c4 15. Be2 Nd5 16. O-O Nf4 17. Ne1 Nxe2+ 18. Qxe2 Qd5 19. f4 Qe4 20. Qf2 b5 21. Nc2 f5 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Rde1 Bh4 24. Rxe4 Bxf2+ 25. Rxf2 Bxe4 26. Ne3 Rcd8 27. g3 a5 28. Rd2 Ra8 {Williams,S (2452)-Carlsen,M (2625) Reykjavik 2006 0-1 (39)}) 14... Rxc5 15. O-O Qa8 16. Rfe1 ({RR} 16. e5 Nd5 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Be4 Nxc3 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 20. bxc3 Rfc8) 16... Rfc8 $146 ({RR} 16... Rd8 17. e5 Nd5 18. Bxh7+ Kf8 19. Be4 g6 20. Qd2 Nxc3 21. Qh6+ Kg8 ({RR} 21... Ke8 22. Qh8+ Bf8 23. Bxb7) 22. Bxg6 ({RR} 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Bxg6 ({RR} 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. bxc3 Rxc3 25. Rd1 Be7 ({RR} 25... Rc8 26. h4) 26. Ng5 ({RR} 26. h4 Rxf3 27. gxf3 Qxf3 28. Rd7 Qg4+ 29. Kh2 Qf5) 26... Bxg5 27. Qxg5 Qe4 28. Qd8+ ({RR} 28. Rd8+ Kh7) ({RR} 28. h4 Qf5) 28... Kh7 29. Qe7 Qf4 30. Qxa7 Rc1 31. Qd7 Rxd1+ 32. Qxd1 Qxe5) 23... fxg6 24. Qxg6+ Kf8 25. Nd4 Ne2+ 26. Nxe2 Rxe5 27. Qh6+ Kg8 28. Qg6+ Kf8) 22... Ne2+ ({RR} 22... fxg6 23. Qxg6+ Kf8 24. Qh6+ Kf7 25. Rd4 Bxf3 26. Qh7+ Kf8 27. Qh6+ Kf7) 23. Kf1 fxg6 24. Qxg6+ Kf8 25. Qh6+ Kf7 26. Qh7+ Kf8 27. Qh8+ Kf7 28. Ng5+ Bxg5 29. Qh5+ Kf8 30. Qh8+ Kf7 {½-½ (30) Akopian,V (2630)-Ivanchuk,V (2730) Yerevan 1996 CBM 055 [Dautov,Rustem]}) ({RR} 16... h6) ({RR} 16... Rd8 17. Qe2 Rcc8 18. Nd2 Nd7 19. Nb3 Bf6 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 21. f3 Qb8 22. Ba6 Bxa6 23. Qxa6 g6 24. Rc1 Kg7 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Qd3 Qe5 27. Qd2 Rc7 28. Rc1 Rd7 29. Qc3 Qb5 30. Nd4 Qg5 31. Re1 {Kanter,E (2349)-Hakobyan,A (2283) Moscow 2015 ½-½ (67)}) 17. Qe2 R5c7 18. a4 a6 19. Ne5 Bf8 20. Nc4 Nd7 21. Qe3 Rc6 22. Bf1 Nc5 23. a5 bxa5 24. Nxa5 R6c7 25. Be5 Rd7 26. b4 Rxd1 27. Rxd1 f6 28. Bf4 Nxe4 29. Rd7 Rc3 30. Qe1 Bd5 31. f3 Bxb4 32. fxe4 Bxe4 33. Bd2 Bc5+ 34. Kh1 Rf3 35. Bc3 Rf2 36. Rd2 Bxg2+ 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Sandnes"]
[Date "2005.07.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hole, Oystein"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2528"]
[BlackElo "2336"]
[PlyCount "149"]
[EventDate "2005.07.02"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Huebner,Robert} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. Bd2 Nbd7 9. Rc1 ({RR} 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Be2 Be7 11. h3 g5 12. O-O-O Qxb3 13. axb3 O-O-O 14. f3 Nh5 15. Rhe1 Ng3 16. Kc2 f5 17. Bd3 Nf6 18. Ne2 Nge4 19. Rf1 Nxd2 20. Rxd2 Bb4 21. Rdd1 Bd6 22. Nc3 Rh4 23. cxd5 cxd5 {Sai Agni Jeevitesh,J (2300)-Shagbazyan,T (2429) Ostrava CZE 2025 0-1 (73)}) 9... Bd6 ({RR} 9... a6 10. Bd3 dxc4 11. Bxc4 b5 12. Be2 c5 13. Bf3 Rb8 14. Ne2 Bd6 15. g3 O-O 16. O-O e5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Bb4 Qb6 19. Nc3 Nb7 20. Bxd6 Nxd6 21. Nd5 Nxd5 22. Bxd5 Rbc8 23. Qg4 Nf5 24. Qe4 {Kasparov,G (2804)-Vallejo Pons,F (2686) Linares 2005 1-0 (54)}) 10. a3 ({RR} 10. Qf3 O-O 11. h4 Re8 12. Be2 dxc4 13. Bxc4 e5 14. h5 Nb6 15. Bb3 gxh5 16. Ne4 exd4 17. Ng5 Re7) 10... O-O $146 ({RR} 10... dxc4 11. Bxc4 O-O 12. O-O e5 13. dxe5 ({RR} 13. Qc2 exd4 14. exd4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Nfd5) 13... Nxe5 14. Be2 Qe7 15. Qa4 g5 16. Rcd1 ({RR} 16. Ne4) 16... g4 17. Kh1 ({RR} 17. Ne4 b5 ({RR} 17... Nxe4 18. Qxe4 f5 19. Qa4 Qh4 20. f4) 18. Qc2 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 f5 20. Qc2 ({RR} 20. Qd4 Rad8 21. Ba5 Rd7 22. Qc3 Rf6) 20... Qh4 ({RR} 20... Rf6 21. Bc3 Rh6 22. g3) 21. g3 Qh3 22. f4 gxf3 23. Bxf3 Nxf3+ 24. Rxf3) 17... b5 18. Qa6 ({RR} 18. Qc2 Nf3 19. gxf3 gxf3 20. Qf5 fxe2 21. Nxe2 Ne4 22. Be1 ({RR} 22. Ng3 Bxg3 23. hxg3 Qe6 24. Qxe6 fxe6 25. Kg1 Rad8 26. Bc3) 22... Rfd8 23. f3) 18... Nf3 19. Qxc6 ({RR} 19. Bxf3 Qe5 20. g3 gxf3 21. Qxc6 Qh5 22. Ne4 Ng4 23. h4 Be7 24. Kg1 Bxh4 25. gxh4 Ne5 26. Nf6+ gxf6 27. Qe4 Kh8) 19... Qe5 20. Qxd6 ({RR} 20. g3 Qh5) 20... Qxd6 21. gxf3 Qc6 ({RR} 21... b4 22. axb4 ({RR} 22. Nb5 Qe5 23. fxg4 Qxb2) 22... Qxb4 23. Bc1 Qb7) 22. e4 ({RR} 22. Nxb5) 22... gxf3 23. Bxf3 Rad8 24. Bg2 Qc4 25. h3 {Volkov,S (2634)-Akopian,V (2703) Sochi 2005 EXT 2020 [Huebner,Robert] 0-1 (46)}) ({RR} 10... a6 11. c5 Bc7 12. f4 g5 13. Bd3 gxf4 14. exf4 Ne4 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Bxe4 Nf6 17. Qf3 Nxe4 18. Qxe4 Qd5 19. Qxd5 exd5 20. Kf2 f5 21. Rc3 Kf7 22. h3 g6 23. Rb3 Rab8 24. Re1 Rhe8 25. Re5 {Ivanchuk,V (2748)-Cheparinov,I (2618) Khanty-Mansiysk 2005 ½-½ (71)}) 11. Qc2 Rc8 12. c5 Bb8 13. f4 Nh5 14. g3 f5 15. Be2 Nhf6 16. h4 Kf7 17. b4 a6 18. a4 Bc7 19. Kf2 Ra8 20. Kg2 Qe7 21. Bf3 Rfb8 22. Ra1 b6 23. Rhb1 a5 24. Na2 bxc5 25. bxc5 Qd8 26. Nc1 Ne4 27. Be1 Ndf6 28. Nd3 Nd7 29. Rxb8 Rxb8 30. Rb1 Rxb1 31. Qxb1 Qa8 32. Be2 Qa7 33. Qb3 Qa8 34. Nc1 Ke7 35. Bf3 Qa6 36. Qd3 Qa8 37. Nb3 Kf7 38. Be2 Nb8 39. g4 fxg4 40. Bxg4 Na6 41. Bf3 Nb4 42. Qe2 Qb7 43. Bxe4 dxe4 44. Nd2 Nd5 45. Nxe4 Qb3 46. Bd2 Ke7 47. Ng5 Qc2 48. Kf1 Nf6 49. e4 Qb1+ 50. Kf2 Qh1 51. Qf3 Qxh4+ 52. Kg2 Qh5 53. Be1 Nd7 54. e5 Qxf3+ 55. Kxf3 Nb8 56. Kg4 Na6 57. Ne4 Nb4 58. Bxb4 axb4 59. Nd2 Bd8 60. Kf3 Kd7 61. Ke4 g5 62. f5 exf5+ 63. Kxf5 g6+ 64. Kg4 Kc7 65. Nb3 Kb7 66. Kf3 Ka6 67. Ke4 Be7 68. e6 Bf6 69. a5 Kb5 70. d5 cxd5+ 71. Kxd5 g4 72. c6 g3 73. c7 g2 74. c8=Q g1=Q 75. Qc6# 1-0

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Sandnes"]
[Date "2005.07.09"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E34"]
[WhiteElo "2543"]
[BlackElo "2528"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2005.07.02"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 107 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 c5 6. Bg5 Qxd5 7. Bxf6 gxf6 8. dxc5 Qxc5 9. Rc1 Nc6 10. Nf3 Bd7 11. e3 $146 ({RR} 11. g3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 13. Rxc3 Ke7 14. Bg2 Rac8 15. O-O Nb4 16. Rb3 a5 17. a3 Ba4 18. Re3 Nd5 19. Re4 Bc2 20. Rh4 Rhd8 21. Ra1 Bg6 22. Ne1 b5 23. Bf1 Nb6 24. e3 Rd5 25. b4 a4 {Bareev,E (2709)-Topalov,V (2757) Monte Carlo 2005 0-1 (49)}) 11... Rc8 12. Be2 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 O-O 14. O-O Rfd8 15. Qe4 Be8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. c4 Ne5 18. Qg3+ Ng6 19. h4 Qh5 20. Rfd1 Bc6 21. c5 Rxd1+ 22. Bxd1 Rd8 23. Be2 Qh6 24. Qg4 Kh8 25. h5 Ne7 26. g3 Rg8 27. Qf4 Qxf4 28. exf4 Rd8 29. Rd1 Rd5 30. Rxd5 Nxd5 31. Nd4 Nc3 32. Bc4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2005.07.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2724"]
[BlackElo "2528"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2005.07.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. a3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Qc2 Nxc3 8. bxc3 Be7 9. e4 O-O 10. Bd3 c5 11. O-O Qc7 12. Qe2 Nd7 13. e5 Rfd8 14. h4 Nf8 15. Be3 Qc6 16. Rfd1 Rac8 17. h5 h6 18. Ne1 Nh7 19. Qg4 $146 ({RR} 19. f4 cxd4 20. cxd4 Qd5 21. Rdc1 Nf8 22. Bc4 Qe4 23. Bd3 Qd5 24. Bc4 Qe4 25. Bd3 Qd5 {½-½ (25) Golod,V (2575)-Socko,B (2631) Gibraltar 2009}) 19... Ng5 20. Kh2 Kh8 21. a4 Ne4 22. Rdc1 Bg5 23. f4 f5 24. Qe2 Bh4 25. Nf3 Be7 26. Bb5 Qc7 27. Bc4 Qd7 28. Bb5 Qc7 29. Bc4 Qd7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2005.07.24"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E34"]
[WhiteElo "2603"]
[BlackElo "2528"]
[Annotator "Pelletier,Yannick"]
[PlyCount "29"]
[EventDate "2005.07.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.09.26"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 c5 6. dxc5 $5 (6. dxc6 Qxd4 7. cxb7 Bxb7 $44) (6. Bg5 {- Bareev-Topalov, Monaco blind 2005}) 6... Nxd5 (6... Qxd5 7. a3 {kostet einen Bauern.}) (6... exd5 {könnte wohl in die Variante 5...ed5 6.g5 c5 7.dxc5 übergehen, außer Weiß findet nun etwas Klügeres als 7.g5.}) 7. Bd2 Bxc5 8. Nxd5 Qxd5 9. e4 $146 ({RR} 9. Rc1 Nd7 10. b4 Bb6 11. e4 Qh5 12. Nf3 O-O 13. Be2 Nf6 14. Ng5 Ng4 15. Rf1 h6 16. h3 hxg5 17. hxg4 Qh2 18. Bxg5 Bd7 19. Qd3 Bc6 20. Qh3 Qxh3 21. gxh3 Bxe4 22. f3 Bd5 23. Bc4 Bxc4 {L'Ami,E (2516)-Carlsen,M (2581) Schagen 2005 1-0 (78)}) 9... Qd4 $6 ({Die Dame ist hier exponiert. Besser sind} 9... Qd6 10. Rc1 (10. Nf3) 10... Nd7 11. Nf3 O-O 12. e5 Qb6 (12... Qe7 13. Bd3 h6 14. a3 a5 15. O-O $36) 13. Bc3 $14 {und}) (9... Qc6 10. Rc1 Be7 11. Qd3 (11. Bc3 O-O 12. Nf3 $14) 11... Qd7 12. Qg3 O-O 13. Nf3 $36 {, auch wenn Weiß in beiden Fällen besseres Spiel behält.}) 10. O-O-O (10. Bc3 Bb4 $11) 10... Nd7 (10... Qxf2 $2 11. Nh3 Qd4 12. Bg5) 11. Bb5 ({Auch} 11. f4 $5 {sieht interessant aus:} O-O (11... Be7 12. Nf3 $36) 12. Nf3 Qf2 $5 13. Kb1 $36) 11... O-O $4 {[%mdl 8192]} ({Ein böser Fehler. Die Alternativen zeigen aber, dass Schwarz bereits kein leichtes Leben hat:} 11... a6 12. Be3 Qe5 13. Bxc5 $1 (13. Bxd7+ Bxd7 14. Bxc5 Rc8 15. b4 b6) 13... Qg5+ 14. Kb1 axb5 15. Bb4 Qxg2 16. Ne2 Qxf2 17. Rd3 $16) (11... Qe5 12. Nf3 Qc7 13. Kb1 $5 (13. b4 Bd6 14. Qxc7 Bxc7) 13... a6 14. Bxd7+ Bxd7 15. Rc1 Rc8 16. Be3 Bd6 17. Qd3 Bc6 18. Nd4 O-O 19. Nxc6 bxc6 20. Qxa6 $16) (11... Qd6 $142 12. Bc3 (12. Nf3 Qb6) 12... Qe7 13. Nf3 (13. Qa4 a6 14. Nf3 Rb8) 13... O-O (13... a6 14. Bxd7+ Bxd7 15. Bxg7 Rg8 16. Bc3 $36) 14. e5 $36) 12. Bc3 Qxf2 13. Qxf2 Bxf2 14. Bxd7 Be3+ 15. Kc2 1-0

[Event "Lausanne YM 6th"]
[Site "Lausanne"]
[Date "2005.09.17"]
[Round "2.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Paehtz, Elisabeth"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2528"]
[BlackElo "2421"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[EventDate "2005.09.14"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Rogozenco,Dorian Fier,Alexander} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 a5 5. g3 d6 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. O-O e5 8. Be3 exd4 9. Bxd4 O-O 10. Nc3 ({RR} 10. a3 Bc5 11. Nc3 Re8 12. Qc2 c6 13. Rfd1 Qe7 14. h3 Ne5 ({RR} 14... Nb6 15. Bxc5 ({RR} 15. b3 a4 16. b4 Bxd4 17. Rxd4 Be6 18. Nd2 Nfd7) 15... dxc5 16. b3 a4) 15. Bxc5 Nxf3+ ({RR} 15... dxc5 16. Nxe5) 16. Bxf3 dxc5 17. Bg2 Qe5 ({RR} 17... Be6 18. Na4 ({RR} 18. b3)) 18. e4 g5 19. Qd2 g4 ({RR} 19... Be6 20. f4 gxf4 21. gxf4 Qh5 22. f5 Bxc4 23. Qf4 Kh8 24. Rd6 Ng8 25. Bf3 Qxh3 26. Kf2) 20. h4 ({RR} 20. hxg4 Bxg4 21. f3 Be6 22. f4 Qh5 23. e5 Ng4 24. Bf3 Bxc4 25. Ne4) 20... Nd7 ({RR} 20... Be6 21. b3) 21. Na4 Nf8 ({RR} 21... b5 22. cxb5 cxb5 23. Nc3 Rb8 ({RR} 23... b4 24. axb4 cxb4 25. Nd5) 24. Nd5) 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Ne6 24. e5 Kg7 {Van Wely,L (2679)-Nakamura,H (2769) Wijk aan Zee 2013 CBM 153 [Rogozenco,Dorian] ½-½ (67)}) 10... Bc5 ({RR} 10... Re8 11. Qc2 c6 12. a3 Bc5 13. Rad1 Qe7) 11. Qc2 Bxd4 ({RR} 11... Re8 12. Rad1 Qe7 13. Rfe1) 12. Nxd4 c6 $146 ({RR} 12... Ne5 13. b3 ({RR} 13. Rad1 Nxc4 ({RR} 13... c6 14. c5 d5 15. e4) 14. Ncb5 c6 15. Qxc4 cxb5 16. Nxb5) 13... c6 14. Rad1 Qc7 15. h3 ({RR} 15. f4 Ng6 ({RR} 15... Neg4 16. Qd2 Re8 17. e4) 16. Qd3 Re8 17. e4) 15... Bd7 16. Rd2 ({RR} 16. f4 Ng6 17. e4 h5) 16... Rad8 17. Rfd1 Rfe8 18. Qb2 Ng6 19. Nc2 ({RR} 19. Qa3 Ne7 20. e4 Nc8) 19... Bf5 20. Ne3 ({RR} 20. e3 Qc8 21. Kh2 Re5) 20... Rxe3 21. fxe3 d5 22. e4 ({RR} 22. Rf1 Bxh3 23. Bxh3 Qxg3+ 24. Bg2 Nh4 25. Rf2 Ng4) ({RR} 22. g4 Qg3) 22... Bxh3 ({RR} 22... Qxg3 23. Rd3 Qg5 24. exf5 Nf4 25. e3) 23. Rd3 ({RR} 23. e5 Bxg2 ({RR} 23... Qxe5 24. Nxd5 Rxd5 25. Qxe5 Rxe5 26. Rd8+ Nf8 27. Bxh3) 24. Kxg2 Ng4 25. Rd3 N6xe5) 23... Bxg2 ({RR} 23... Qb6+ 24. Rd4 Qc7 25. R1d3 Bxg2 26. Kxg2 Ne5) 24. Kxg2 Ne5 25. Rd4 Neg4 26. Qd2 Qe5 27. cxd5 {Fier,A (2634)-Ferreira,J (2511) Baku 2016 CBM 175 [Fier,Alexander] 1-0 (72)} {RR} Qh5 ({RR} 27... c5 28. Rd3 ({RR} 28. Rc4 Nh5 29. Qd3 Qg5) ({RR} 28. Ra4 Nh5 29. Qd3 Qg5) 28... Nxe4 29. Nxe4 ({RR} 29. Qf4 Qxf4 30. gxf4 Nef2 31. Kf3 f5 32. e4) 29... Qxe4+ 30. Kg1) 28. Rh1 Qe5 29. Rd3 cxd5 30. exd5 b5 31. d6) ({RR} 12... Ne5 13. b3 g6 14. Rad1 Qe7 15. Nd5 Qd8 16. Nb5 Nxd5 17. cxd5 Bd7 18. Nd4 Qb8 19. h3 Rc8 20. f4 c5 21. Ne6 fxe6 22. fxe5 dxe5 23. Rf6 Be8 24. d6 Bf7 25. Rdf1 Rf8 26. Qxc5 Ra7 27. Rxf7 {Swapnil,S (2501)-Kumar,G (2096) Udaipur 2019 1-0}) 13. Rad1 Nc5 14. Rd2 Qe7 15. Rfd1 g6 16. b3 Bd7 17. Qb2 Rfd8 18. Nc2 Be6 19. Ne3 h5 20. Rd4 Rd7 21. Qd2 Ne8 22. Bf3 Bh3 23. Rh4 Be6 24. Kg2 Ng7 25. Rd4 Ne8 26. h3 Qf6 27. g4 hxg4 28. hxg4 Qg5 29. Rh1 Rdd8 30. Rh2 Qe5 31. Kg1 Kf8 32. Bg2 g5 33. Ne4 Nxe4 34. Rxe4 Qa1+ 35. Nf1 d5 36. Rd4 Nf6 37. Bf3 Ke7 38. cxd5 cxd5 39. Kg2 Rh8 40. Rxh8 Rxh8 41. e3 Rc8 42. Qxa5 Rc2 43. a4 Rc1 44. Qb4+ Ke8 45. Be2 Nd7 46. Bb5 Qc3 47. Qd6 Qc7 48. Qxc7 Rxc7 49. Nd2 Ke7 50. Bxd7 Rxd7 51. Nf3 f6 52. Kg3 Rc7 53. Rb4 Kd6 54. Rb6+ Ke7 55. Nd4 Bd7 56. a5 Bc8 57. b4 Bd7 58. b5 Bc8 59. a6 Kf7 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Byggern Masters"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.10.02"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hole, Oystein"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2336"]
[Annotator "Prusikin,Michael"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2005.10.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 dxc4 4. e4 b5 5. a4 b4 6. Na2 Nf6 7. e5 Nd5 8. Bxc4 e6 9. Nf3 Be7 10. Bd2 a5 11. Nc1 Bb7 12. Nb3 Nd7 13. O-O Rc8 14. Rc1 O-O 15. Qe2 c5 $146 {Dieser natürliche Zug stellte eine Neuerung dar.} (15... Ra8 $6 {1-0 (47) Lawton,G (2402)-Shaw,J (2464) West Bromwich 2003}) ({RR} 15... Ra8 16. Bd3 N5b6 17. Nc5 Nxc5 18. dxc5 Nxa4 19. Be3 Nxb2 20. Bb1 Ba6 21. Qxb2 Bxf1 22. Kxf1 Qc7 23. Nd2 Rfb8 24. Nc4 Rd8 25. Qc2 g6 26. Qa4 Ra6 27. Nd6 Rb8 28. Ba2 Raa8 29. Bb3 Bf8 30. Ra1 {Lawton,G (2402)-Shaw,J (2464) West Bromwich 2003 1-0 (47)}) 16. Bb5 $1 {Der Beginn einer glorreichen Karriere. Dieser schöne Prophylaxezug verhindert sowohl 16...Db6 als auch 16...Lc6 und bindet damit die schwarzen Kräfte.} cxd4 17. Rxc8 Bxc8 18. Nfxd4 $1 {Eben mit diesem Springer! Damit wird der Damenschwenk zum Königsflügel eingeleitet, während der andere Springer auf b3, wo er Druck auf den Bauern a5 ausübt, ausgezeichnet postiert ist.} Nb8 {Die einzige Möglichkeit, 19.Sc6 zu verhindern:} (18... Bb7 $2 19. Nxa5 Qxa5 20. Bxd7 $16) 19. Qg4 $1 Kh8 20. Re1 Qb6 21. Bd3 $1 {Wieder Prophylaxe! Diuesmal gegen den drohenden Läufertausch.} (21. h4 Ba6 $1) 21... Ba6 22. Bb1 $1 Nc6 $6 {Der natürlichste Zug und zugleich der entscheidende Fehler, aber die weiße Idee war nicht leicht zu sehen.} 23. Bh6 $1 Rg8 ({Im Falle von} 23... gxh6 24. Qe4 f5 25. exf6 Nxf6 26. Qxc6 $18 {muss sich Weiß mit einem gewonnenen Endspiel "begnügen"}) 24. Bxh7 $1 {Dieser Läufer stirbt als Held!} Kxh7 25. Be3 $1 $18 {...und Aus! Gegen die Drohung 26.Dh5# hilft nur} Rc8 {...aber jetzt entscheidet der Springerabzug!} (25... Nxe3 26. Qh5# $1) (25... g6 26. Qh3+ Kg7 27. Qh6#) 26. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 (26... Nxe3 27. Qxg7#) 27. Qh3+ Kg8 28. Qxe6+ Kf8 29. Bxb6 Nxb6 30. Nxa5 Rc7 31. Nxc6 Bc8 32. Qb3 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Byggern Masters"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.10.03"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Brynell, Stellan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2496"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "106"]
[EventDate "2005.10.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Be2 Bb7 9. O-O Be7 10. e4 b4 11. e5 bxc3 12. exf6 Bxf6 13. bxc3 c5 14. dxc5 O-O 15. Ba3 Be7 16. Qd4 Qc7 17. Rab1 Bc6 18. Qe3 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Rab8 20. c6 Bxa3 21. cxd7 Qxd7 22. c4 Qe7 23. Rb5 Rxb5 24. cxb5 Rd8 25. Rd1 Rxd1+ 26. Bxd1 Qd6 $146 ({RR} 26... g6) 27. Bf3 Bc5 28. Qe2 Qd4 29. g3 g6 30. Kg2 Kg7 31. Bc6 Bb6 32. Qf3 f5 33. Qe2 e5 34. Bb7 e4 35. Bc6 Kf6 36. Bb7 Ke5 37. Bc6 g5 38. Bb7 g4 39. Bc6 h5 40. Be8 h4 41. Qe1 h3+ 42. Kg1 Qb2 43. Bc6 Qxa2 44. Bb7 Qb2 45. Bc6 Bd4 46. Be8 e3 47. Kf1 Kf6 48. Qe2 Qc1+ 49. Qe1 Qxe1+ 50. Kxe1 exf2+ 51. Kf1 f4 52. gxf4 Kf5 53. Bf7 Kxf4 0-1

[Event "Gausdal Byggern Masters"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.10.04"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Burmakin, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2508"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2005.10.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Radjabov,Teimour} c6 2. c4 d5 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. e3 b5 6. c5 g6 7. Ne5 Bg7 8. Be2 O-O 9. O-O Nfd7 10. f4 Nxe5 ({RR} 10... a5 11. a3 f6 12. Nf3 ({RR} 12. Nd3) ({RR} 12. Nxc6 Nxc6 13. Nxd5) 12... f5 13. Bd2 Nf6 14. Be1 Kh8 15. Bh4 Be6 16. Ne5 Qc7 17. Qe1 Nbd7 18. Bg5 Nxe5 19. fxe5 Ne4 20. Nxe4 fxe4 ({RR} 20... dxe4 21. Qh4 Ra7 22. g4 Qd7 23. gxf5 gxf5 24. Kh1) 21. Qh4 Rxf1+ ({RR} 21... Rae8 22. Rxf8+ Bxf8 23. Rf1 Kg8 24. Qg3 Bg7 25. h4 Rf8 26. Bf4) 22. Rxf1 Re8 23. Bg4 ({RR} 23. Qg3) 23... Qd7 ({RR} 23... Bxg4 24. Qxg4 e6 25. Bf6 Kg8 26. Bxg7 Qxg7 27. Rf6 ({RR} 27. Qh3) 27... Qh6 28. Kf2) ({RR} 23... Qc8 24. Rf7 Bxg4 25. Bh6 Qe6 ({RR} 25... Be6 26. Bxg7+ Kg8 27. Bf6 Bxf7 28. Qh6) ({RR} 25... Qd7 26. Rxg7 Be6 27. Qg5) ({RR} 25... Bxe5 26. Bf4 Bg7 27. Be5) 26. Rxg7) 24. Rf7 Bxg4 ({RR} 24... Kg8 25. Bxe6 Qxe6 26. Rxe7 Rxe7 27. Bxe7 a4 ({RR} 27... h5 28. b3 ({RR} 28. Bd6 Bh6) ({RR} 28. Bg5 a4 29. Bf4 Qd7 30. Kf1 Kf7 31. h3 Ke6 32. g4 Qe7 33. Qxe7+ Kxe7 34. gxh5 gxh5 35. Kf2)) 28. Bd6 h5 29. Qd8+ Kh7 30. Qc7) 25. Bf6 {Radjabov,T (2751)-Bu,X (2708) Sofia 2008 CBM 124 [Radjabov,Teimour] 1-0 (41)} {RR} Rg8 26. Rxe7 Qf5 ({RR} 26... Qc8 27. Bxg7+ Rxg7 28. Qf6 Qg8 29. e6 h5 30. Rxg7 Qxg7 31. Qd8+) 27. h3 ({RR} 27. Rf7 g5) 27... Be2 ({RR} 27... Bh5 28. Rf7 Bxf6 29. Rxf6 Qd7 30. g4 Qd8 31. Qf2) ({RR} 27... Bxh3 28. Qxh3) 28. Rxg7) 11. fxe5 f6 ({RR} 11... a5 12. e4 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Be6 14. a4 b4 15. Be3 Bd5 16. Nd2 Na6 17. Nc4 Nc7 18. Nb6 Ra7 19. Bf3 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 Nd5 21. Nxd5 Qxd5 22. Qxd5 cxd5 23. Rac1 Rc8 24. Kf2 Rc6 25. Ke2 f6 26. exf6 {Wojtaszek,R (2637)-Burmakin,V (2627) Barbera del Valles 2009 ½-½ (66)}) 12. exf6 Rxf6 $146 ({RR} 12... exf6 13. Bf3 f5 14. Bd2 a5 {½-½ (14) Dreev,A (2698)-Ni,H (2611) ICC INT 2004}) ({RR} 12... exf6 13. e4 b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. Bc4+ Kh8 16. Bf4 Nd7 17. Qe2 f5 18. Rad1 a5 19. Bd6 Re8 20. d5 Bb7 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Bb5 Qc8 23. Nb6 Nxb6 24. cxb6 Qb7 25. Bc7 Re7 26. Bxc6 Qxc6 27. Rc1 {Pedersen,S (2435)-Van Delft,M (2400) Germany 2006 1-0 (55)}) 13. Rxf6 Bxf6 14. e4 dxe4 15. Be3 Be6 16. Nxe4 Nd7 17. Nxf6+ Nxf6 18. Bf4 Qd7 19. Qd2 Rf8 20. Be5 Bg4 21. Bf1 Qd5 22. h3 Nd7 23. Bf4 Be6 24. a3 Rd8 25. Re1 Bf7 26. Qe3 e5 27. Bxe5 Nxe5 28. dxe5 Be6 29. b4 Qd4 30. Qxd4 Rxd4 31. Be2 Re4 32. Kf2 Rxe5 33. Bf3 Rxe1 34. Kxe1 Bd7 35. Kd2 Kf7 36. Ke3 Kf6 37. Kd4 h6 38. h4 g5 39. hxg5+ hxg5 40. Be4 Be8 41. g3 Bd7 42. Bg2 Be8 43. Bh3 Bf7 44. Bg2 Be8 45. Be4 Bd7 46. Bc2 Bf5 47. Bd1 Be6 48. Bf3 Bd7 49. Be4 Be8 50. Bc2 Bh5 51. a4 Bf3 52. a5 Bh1 53. Bd3 Bg2 54. g4 Bf3 55. Bf5 Ke7 56. Ke5 Be2 57. Bc8 Kd8 58. Bxa6 Bxg4 59. Kd6 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Byggern Masters"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2005.10.07"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Antic, Dejan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2519"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2005.10.01"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 108 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Qc2 d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. e3 Bxf1 12. Kxf1 c5 13. Kg2 Nc6 $146 ({RR} 13... Nd7 14. dxc5 bxc5 15. Rhd1 Nf6 16. Bc3 Ne4 17. Rac1 Qd6 18. Ba5 Qa6 19. Rxd5 Nxf2 20. Qxf2 Qxa5 21. e4 Qb6 22. Ne5 Qh6 23. Rf1 f6 24. Nd7 Rfe8 25. e5 Qh5 26. Qd2 Bf8 27. Rxf6 Qg4 28. Qd3 {Beliavsky,A (2650)-Wu,S (2544) Bled 2002 1-0}) 14. Bc3 Qd7 15. Rhe1 Rac8 16. Qb2 Qg4 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Rfd8 20. Rad1 Bf8 21. Bc3 Qe4+ 22. Kg1 h5 23. Qe2 h4 24. f3 Qg6 25. Ba5 Rd6 26. g4 Ra6 27. Qb5 d4 28. exd4 cxd4 29. b4 Re6 30. Qf5 Rxe1+ 31. Rxe1 Qc6 32. Kg2 g6 33. Qe4 Qc4 34. Kh3 Bd6 35. Re2 d3 36. Qxc4 Rxc4 37. Re8+ Kh7 38. Rd8 Rd4 39. b5 d2 40. Bxd2 Rxd2 41. g5 Rxh2+ 42. Kg4 Bc5 0-1

[Event "Samba Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Skanderborg"]
[Date "2005.10.16"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Miton, Kamil"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2636"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2005.10.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 110"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Qb3 dxc4 5. Qxc4 Bg7 6. e4 O-O 7. Be2 c6 8. Nf3 b5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 ({RR} 10. Nd2 Be6 11. Qc2 Rd8 12. e5 Nd5 13. Nxd5 Rxd5 14. Qc3 b4 15. Qe3 c5 16. Nc4 Qc7 17. dxc5 Rxc5 18. b3 Bxc4 19. bxc4 Rxe5 20. Qf3 Rxe2+ 21. Kxe2 Qxc4+ 22. Ke1 Qc3+ {0-1 (22) Krasenkow,M (2607)-Mamedyarov,S (2747) Jurmala 2012}) ({RR} 10. e5 Be6 11. Qc2 Bf5 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Nd5 14. h4 h5 15. O-O Nxc3 16. bxc3 e6 17. g4 hxg4 18. Ng5 Qd8 19. h5 Qe7 20. hxg6 f6 21. Nh7 Re8 22. Ba3 Qxa3 23. exf6 {1-0 (23) Wen,T (2306)-Yilmaz,B (2023) Belgrade SRB 2023}) 10... Be6 $146 ({RR} 10... Qb6 11. O-O Na6 12. Rfc1 Be6 13. Qd1 Rfd8 14. h3 Qb7 15. Be3 b4 16. Na4 Rac8 17. Bxa6 Qxa6 18. Nc5 Qb5 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Qb3 Kh8 {1-0 (20) Montes Orozco,M (2120)-Flores Ordaz,J (1498) Montevideo 2022}) ({RR} 10... Qb6 11. O-O Na6 12. Rfc1 Be6 13. Qd1 Rfd8 14. h3 Qb7 15. Be3 b4 16. Na4 Rac8 17. Bxa6 Qxa6 18. Nc5 Qb5 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. Qb3 Kh8 {1-0 (20) Montes Orozco,M (2120)-Flores Ordaz,J (1498) Montevideo 2022}) 11. Qc2 b4 12. Nb1 Qb6 13. O-O Nbd7 14. Be3 Bxa2 15. Nfd2 Bxb1 16. Rfxb1 a5 17. d5 c5 18. Nc4 Qc7 19. f4 Rfe8 20. Bf3 e5 21. dxe6 fxe6 22. Rd1 e5 23. Nd6 c4 24. Be2 Re7 25. Qxc4+ Qxc4 26. Bxc4+ Kf8 27. f5 Ng4 28. Bg5 Ndf6 29. h3 Bh6 30. Bxh6+ Nxh6 31. g4 g5 32. Bd5 Nxd5 33. Rxd5 a4 34. Nc4 Nf7 35. Rb5 Rd7 36. Nb6 Rb7 37. Nxa8 Rxb5 38. Rxa4 Rb7 39. Ra6 b3 40. Kf2 Rd7 41. Ke3 Rd1 42. Nb6 Re1+ 43. Kd3 Rd1+ 44. Kc3 Nd6 45. Nd7+ Ke7 46. Nxe5 Nxe4+ 47. Kxb3 Nc5+ 48. Kc2 Nxa6 49. Kxd1 Kf6 50. Nd3 h5 51. Kd2 Nc7 52. Ke3 hxg4 53. hxg4 Nb5 54. b4 Nd6 55. Kd4 Ke7 56. Kd5 Ne8 57. Kc6 1-0

[Event "Samba Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Skanderborg"]
[Date "2005.10.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hansen, Curt"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D61"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2607"]
[Annotator "Babula,Vlastimil"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2005.10.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "DEN"]
[EventCategory "16"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 110"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.01.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 Nbd7 7. Qc2 {White waits with the development of his f1 and makes useful move as he would like (after possible d5xc4) to capture on c4 in one step .} ({Other, more frequent option is} 7. Rc1 {with the same idea. By playing the text move White keeps the chance to put his a1 also on the d1 square.}) 7... h6 {Black forces White to show his intention with his g5,} ({possible is also direct} 7... c5) 8. Bh4 {A simple retreat,} ({other options are more interesting:} 8. cxd5 exd5 (8... hxg5 $6 9. dxe6 fxe6 10. Nxg5 $40 {is very risky}) 9. Bf4) ({or} 8. h4 {, what leads to sharp play.}) 8... c5 {The insertion of moves h7-h6 Bg5-h4 is probably more useful for Black, but it is not so significant.} 9. Rd1 Qa5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Bxe7 Nxe7 12. Be2 Nd5 $5 {[%mdl 8] A new attempt, Black will exchange his passive  and also change the pawn structure.} ({In the position with the symmetrical pawn structure White easily keeps an edge due to his better development, for example} 12... Nf6 13. O-O Bd7 14. Ne5 cxd4 15. Nxd7 Nxd7 16. Rxd4 $14 {1-0 Hansen,C-Jakobsen,O/Norresundby 1984/EXT 2000 (50)}) 13. O-O Nxc3 14. bxc3 b6 $5 {Black closes his queen on the queenside and believes that he will get here an effective counterplay and will not need the queen else-where.} (14... Qc7 {[%cal Yb7b6,Yc8b7] looks more natural.}) 15. Nd2 $5 {[%csl Ra5][%cal Yd2c4]} (15. e4 {gives no advantage:} cxd4 16. cxd4 Ba6 $11) 15... Ba6 16. Nc4 $146 ({RR} 16. Nb3 Qa4 17. c4 cxd4 18. Rxd4 Nc5 19. Qc3 Rac8 20. Rg4 f6 21. Nd4 e5 22. Nf5 Rc7 23. Nxh6+ Kh7 24. Nf5 Bc8 25. Bd3 Nxd3 26. Qxd3 Bxf5 27. Qxf5+ Kg8 28. Rh4 Rfc8 29. Qe6+ {1-0 (29) Artemiev,V (2716)-Hansch,K (2300) Chess.com INT 2020}) ({RR} 16. Nb3 Qa4 17. c4 cxd4 18. Rxd4 Nc5 19. Qc3 Rac8 20. Rg4 f6 21. Nd4 e5 22. Nf5 Rc7 23. Nxh6+ Kh7 24. Nf5 Bc8 25. Bd3 Nxd3 26. Qxd3 Bxf5 27. Qxf5+ Kg8 28. Rh4 Rfc8 29. Qe6+ {1-0 (29) Artemiev,V (2716)-Hansch,K (2300) Chess.com INT 2020}) 16... Bxc4 17. Bxc4 b5 $1 18. Be2 Rfc8 $132 {[%csl Rc3][%cal Yd7b6,Yb6a4] Black has successfully solved the opening problems, his position is OK as his counterplay on the queenside is getting real.} 19. d5 $5 exd5 20. Rxd5 Nb6 21. Rf5 {White tries to create threats against Black's monarch as most of Black's pieces are on the other side.} Rc7 22. Rd1 Na4 23. Bf3 Re8 24. Re5 {White exploits Black's weak basic rank.} Rf8 25. Rc1 a6 $11 {The position is balanced and till the end of game neither one player doesn't change it to his side.} 26. h4 Rd7 {[%cal Ya5d8] d} 27. h5 Qd8 28. c4 Rd2 29. Qf5 {[%cal Yf3e4,Yf5h7]} Qf6 30. cxb5 axb5 (30... Qxf5 31. Rxf5 axb5 32. Bc6 $11) 31. Qe4 b4 32. Re8 Qd6 33. Rxf8+ Qxf8 34. a3 Nc3 35. Qc4 Rb2 36. axb4 cxb4 37. Ra1 Rb1+ 38. Rxb1 Nxb1 39. Bd1 Qb8 40. Qd3 Nc3 41. Bb3 Qc7 42. f3 Qe7 43. Kf1 Qh4 44. Qd7 Qh1+ 45. Kf2 Qh4+ 46. Kf1 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch playoff"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2005.11.07"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2582"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2005.11.07"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2006"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2005.11.24"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2005.11.24"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Nf3 Bb7 8. e3 d5 9. b4 ({RR} 9. b3 Nbd7 10. Bb2 Rc8 11. Be2 c5 12. O-O dxc4 13. bxc4 cxd4 14. exd4 b5 15. c5 Nd5 16. Qd2 Bc6 17. Bd3 Rb8 18. Ng5 N7f6 19. f4 b4 20. Nf3 Bb5 21. Ne5 Bxd3 22. Qxd3 Qc7 23. f5 Rfe8 {Levin,G (2450)-Cheparinov,I (2646) Eforie Nord ROU 2025 0-1 (74)}) 9... Nbd7 ({RR} 9... c5 10. dxc5 bxc5 11. Bb2 Nbd7 12. Be2 Rc8 13. b5 Nb6 14. a4 Nxc4 15. Bxc4 dxc4 16. Qxc4 Ne4 17. O-O Bd5 18. Qc2 c4 19. Bd4 Qe7 20. Nd2 Nxd2 21. Qxd2 Rfd8 22. Qb2 Qg5 23. f4 Qg6 24. Rac1 {Wang,H (2763)-Topalov,V (2735) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (59)}) 10. cxd5 $146 ({RR} 10. Bb2 c5 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Be2 Nb6 13. cxd5 cxb4 14. axb4 Nbxd5 15. Qa3 a6 {½-½ (15) Gladyszev,O (2427)-Grigoriants,S (2550) Moscow 2006}) ({RR} 10. c5 Ne4 11. Qc2 Ndf6 12. Bd3 a5 13. c6 Bc8 14. b5 a4 15. O-O h6 16. Rb1 Nd6 17. Rb4 Nfe4 18. Nd2 f5 19. f3 Nf6 20. Rxa4 Rb8 21. Rf2 Qe7 22. Bb2 g5 23. Ra7 f4 24. e4 dxe4 {Feng,R (2305)-Colasurdo,J (2052) Vancouver 2014 1-0 (37)}) 10... Nxd5 11. Qb2 Qc8 12. Bd2 c5 13. Rc1 Ba6 14. dxc5 Bxf1 15. Rxf1 bxc5 16. bxc5 Rb8 17. Qc2 Qc6 18. e4 N5f6 19. Nd4 Qa6 20. f4 e5 21. Nf5 exf4 22. c6 Ne5 23. Rf3 Rbe8 24. Bb4 Nxe4 25. Ne7+ Rxe7 26. Bxe7 Re8 27. Qxe4 Rxe7 28. c7 Re8 29. Kd1 Qc8 30. Rd3 Kf8 31. Qb4+ Kg8 32. Qe4 Kf8 33. Rd4 Ng6 34. Qd5 Qg4+ 35. Kc2 Ne7 36. Qf3 Qg6+ 37. Kd2 Qb6 38. Qxf4 Qa5+ 39. Rc3 Nf5 40. Rdd3 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.11.27"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Azmaiparashvili, Zurab"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2658"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Qf3 Bg6 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. Qxf6 gxf6 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Nh4 ({In my annotations for CBM 106 I wrote that this might be a more precise move order than} 11. g3 {½-½ Volkov,S (2612)-Slobodjan,R (2544)/Mulhouse 2005/CBM 106/[Marin] (47) when} a5 $5 {looks to be better than 11...e7 12.h4.}) 11... Bb4 $5 {This rare move is an interesting attempt to deviate from the customary course of events.} ({Now, there is no time for} 11... a5 {because} 12. f4 {cannot be met by} f5 {in view of} 13. Bd3 {winning a pawn.}) (11... Be7 12. g3 {would just transpose to the aforementioned game, which looks favourable for White.}) 12. Rc1 $146 {White prevents the weakening of the c4-square in case of a further ...xc3.} ({The main idea behind Black's last move is revealed after} 12. f4 {when the bishop can get out of danger with} Be4 $1) ({Previously, White has been successful with} 12. a3 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 b5 14. Kd2 (14. a4 {1-0 Vaisser,A (2575)-Guigonis,D (2315)/Meribel 1998/CBM 067/[Tsesarsky] (50)}) 14... Nb6 15. Bd3 Rb8 16. g4 Nc4+ 17. Ke2 Ke7 18. Nxg6+ fxg6 19. h4 $14 {1-0 Milov,V (2653)-Bellini,F (2484)/Switzerland 2000/EXT 2001 (41)}) 12... Nb6 {[%csl Rc4,Re4][%cal Yb6c8,Yc8d6]} 13. a3 Bxc3+ 14. Rxc3 Nc8 15. f3 Nd6 {Black has achieved an optimal regroupment. However, the weakness of the king side emains a permanent source of worries.} 16. g3 a5 17. b3 ({White could have prevented the weakening of the c4-square with} 17. a4 {[%csl Yb4] but this would have provoked a complete lack of flexibility of his queen side.}) 17... a4 $146 ({RR} 17... O-O 18. Kd2 Rfe8 19. Be2 Kf8 20. Ng2 Kg7 21. Nf4 Re7 22. g4 h6 23. Rg1 Ne8 24. Rcc1 Nd6 25. Rc3 Ne8 26. Rcc1 Nd6 {½-½ (26) Milanovic,D (2500)-Miladinovic,I (2535) Ruma 2017}) 18. b4 Bb1 {[%cal Yb1a2,Ya2c4] White intended to complete his development with f2 and e2 and then prepare his minority's attack based on b5. Black hurries to prevent this plan before it even gets started, but his king side will remain hopelessly weak after the departure of the bishop.} 19. Kf2 Ba2 20. Rc1 Bc4 21. Bh3 Nb5 22. Ra1 O-O 23. Ng2 Rfd8 24. Nf4 Kf8 25. Bf5 $14 {Black's nice queen side position does not entirely compensate for the weaknesses of the other wing.} h6 26. Nh5 Ke7 27. g4 b6 28. Rhe1 Ra7 29. Ng3 Kf8 30. Bc2 c5 31. bxc5 bxc5 32. dxc5 Rc8 33. Nf5 Rxc5 34. Reb1 Rc8 35. Rb4 d4 36. exd4 Be6 37. Bxa4 Nc3 38. Bc2 h5 39. h3 hxg4 40. hxg4 Na2 41. Rb2 Rxa3 42. Rh1 Bxf5 43. Bxf5 Rca8 44. Rb7 Nc3 45. Rh8+ Kg7 46. Rh7+ Kg8 47. Rhxf7 Ra2+ 48. Ke3 Re8+ 49. Kd3 Nd1 50. Rg7+ Kh8 51. Rh7+ Kg8 52. Rhg7+ Kh8 53. Rh7+ Kg8 54. d5 Re3+ 55. Kd4 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.11.28"]
[Round "1.2"]
[White "Azmaiparashvili, Zurab"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2658"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Atalik,Suat} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 Na6 8. Bg5 c5 ({RR} 8... b5 9. Qxb5 c5 10. Rd1 Rb8 11. Qa4 Qb6 12. e5 cxd4 13. Qxd4 Qxb2 14. exf6 Nb4 15. Rd2 Qc1+ 16. Nd1 exf6 17. Be3 f5 18. Qc4 Qa1 19. Nd4 f4 20. Bxf4 Ba6 21. Qc3 Bxd4 22. Qxa1 Rbe8+ 23. Be3 {Dinh,N (2041)-Nguyen Duc Hoa (2357) Johor MAS 2022 0-1 (67)}) 9. d5 e6 ({RR} 9... h6 10. Bh4 g5 ({RR} 10... b5 11. Nxb5 Qa5+ 12. Nd2 Rb8 ({RR} 12... Nxe4 13. Qxe4 Bxb2 14. Rd1 Bf5 15. Qc4 Nb4 16. g4 ({RR} 16. Be2 a6 ({RR} 16... Bc2 17. O-O Bxd1 18. Rxd1 Rac8 19. Bxe7 Rfe8 20. Nd6 Rxe7 21. Nxc8 Rd7 22. d6 Kg7 23. Ne4) 17. Qb3 Bg7 18. Na3 Qxa3 19. Qxa3 Nc2+ 20. Kf1 Nxa3 21. Bxe7 Rfc8 22. Nc4 Nxc4 23. Bxc4) 16... Bc2 ({RR} 16... Nc2+ 17. Ke2 Bxg4+ 18. Qxg4 Qxb5+ 19. Kf3 Qb7 20. Bc4 e6 21. Ne4) 17. Bxe7 Rfe8 18. d6 a6 ({RR} 18... Rxe7+ 19. dxe7 Re8 20. Be2 Rxe7 21. O-O) 19. Nc3 ({RR} 19. Nc7 Rxe7+ 20. dxe7 Qxc7 21. Be2 Bxd1) 19... Bxc3 ({RR} 19... Rad8 20. Nce4) 20. Qxc3 Rad8 ({RR} 20... Nd3+ 21. Qxd3) 21. Nc4 Rxe7+ 22. Be2 Rxe2+ ({RR} 22... Bxd1 23. dxe7 Nd3+ 24. Kxd1 Nxf2+ 25. Kc2) 23. Kxe2 Bxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Qxa2+ 25. Kf1 Nc2 ({RR} 25... Qa4 26. Ne3 Qc6 27. Qf6 Rd7 28. Kg1) 26. Ne5 ({RR} 26. Nb2) 26... Nd4 27. Rxd4) 13. Bg3 ({RR} 13. a4 Bd7 ({RR} 13... Nb4 14. Nb3) 14. Ra3 Nb4 15. Bg3 Rb7) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Ng4 14. Qb3 c4 15. Bxc4 Bd7 16. a4 Rfc8 17. Kb1 Nc5 18. Qa3 Qxa4 19. b3 Bxb5) ({RR} 13. Rc1 e6 ({RR} 13... Bd7 14. Nc3) 14. dxe6 ({RR} 14. d6 e5 15. Bxf6 Bxf6) 14... Bxe6 15. Qc3 Rxb5 ({RR} 15... Qxc3 16. Nxc3 Nb4 17. b3 Nd7 18. a3 Nc6 19. Bg3) 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. Qxf6 Rb6 18. a3 Rfb8 19. Qc3 Qxc3 20. bxc3 Nc7 21. Bc4 Rb2 22. Bxe6 Nxe6 23. Nc4 Ra2 24. g3 Ng5 25. e5 Ne4 ({RR} 25... Re8 26. O-O) 26. O-O Rb3) ({RR} 13. Rd1 Nb4 14. a3 Rxb5 15. f3 Rb6 16. axb4 Rxb4 17. Qc2 Nxd5 18. Bf2 Rxb2 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Rc2 21. Bxa7 Nc3 22. Ra1 Nxe4 23. Bd3 Rxd2 24. Bxe4 Rxg2 25. Rc1 Ra2 26. Bc5 Ba6 27. Bxe7 Re8) 13... Bd7 ({RR} 13... Nxe4 14. Qxe4 Rxb5 15. Bxb5 Qxb5 16. Qc4 Qxb2 17. Rb1 Qd4 18. Qxd4 Bxd4 ({RR} 18... cxd4 19. Rb5) 19. Nb3 Bf5 ({RR} 19... Bf6 20. Ke2 Bb7 21. Rhd1 Rd8 22. Rbc1 ({RR} 22. Na5 Bxd5 23. Nc6 Rd7 24. Ne5 Rd6) 22... Bxd5 23. Nxc5) 20. Rd1 Bc3+ 21. Ke2 Rd8 22. d6) ({RR} 13... Rb6 14. a4 ({RR} 14. Rc1 Nh5) ({RR} 14. Be5 Nb4 15. Bc3 Ba6 ({RR} 15... Rxb5 16. Qxb5 Nc2+ 17. Kd1 Qxb5 18. Bxb5 Nxa1 19. f3 ({RR} 19. Bd3 Nh5 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Nc4 ({RR} 21. Ke2 f5 22. g3 fxe4 23. Nxe4 Bg4+) ({RR} 21. g3 f5 22. e5 f4) 21... f5 22. e5 Rd8 23. d6 Nf4 24. Kd2 Ba6 25. Rxa1 exd6 26. exd6 Nxd3 27. Kxd3 Rxd6+ 28. Kc3 Bxc4 29. Kxc4 Rd2) 19... Nh5 ({RR} 19... e6 20. d6 a6 21. Bd3 Nh5 ({RR} 21... Rd8 22. Ke2 Nh5 23. g3 Bxc3 24. bxc3 Rxd6 25. Rxa1) 22. Nc4) 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Kc1 a6 ({RR} 21... Rd8 22. Kb1 e6 23. Kxa1 exd5 24. exd5 Rxd5 25. Nb3 a6 26. Bc4 Re5 27. Rc1) 22. Bc4 Rd8 23. Kb1) 16. Qxc5 Rxb5 ({RR} 16... Nc2+ 17. Kd1 Qa4 18. b3 Nxe4 19. bxa4 Nxc5 20. Kxc2 Nxa4 21. Bxg7 Rc8+ 22. Kd1 Kxg7 23. Nxa7) 17. Bxb5 Nd3+ 18. Bxd3 Qxc5 19. Bxa6 Ng4) 14... Nh5 15. Rb1 Nxg3 16. hxg3 Nb4 17. Qb3) 14. Bxb8 Rxb8 15. Nc3 Rxb2 16. Rc1 Ng4 17. Nb3 Bxc3+ 18. Qxc3 Qxa2 19. Nd2 Nb4 20. Bc4 Nc2+ 21. Kf1 Qa3 22. Rxc2 Qxc3 23. Rxc3 Rxd2 24. Be2 Bb5 ({RR} 24... Rb2 25. Rc1 a5 26. Ke1 a4 27. Bxg4 Bxg4 28. f3 Bd7 29. Rf1 c4 30. Rf2) 25. Bxb5) 11. Bg3 e6 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. d6 e5 13. Bxe5 ({RR} 13. Nxe5 Nh5 14. Ng6 Be6 15. Ne7+ Kh8 16. Qd3 Qb6) 13... Nb4 14. Rd1 ({RR} 14. O-O-O Be6 15. Qb5 Nxa2+ 16. Nxa2 Bxa2) ({RR} 14. Rc1 b6) 14... Nc2+ 15. Kd2 Be6 16. Qxc5 Nd7 17. Qc7 Nxe5) 12... exd5 13. exd5 b6 14. O-O Nb4 15. Rad1 Ba6 16. Qb3 Bxe2 17. Nxe2 Nbxd5 18. Nc3 Nxc3 19. Rxd8 Ne2+ 20. Kh1 Nxg3+ 21. hxg3 Raxd8 22. Re1 Rfe8 23. Rxe8+ ({RR} 23. Ne5 Re6) 23... Rxe8 24. Kg1 {Dlugy,M (2531)-Atalik,S (2575) ICC INT 2000 EXT 2003 [Atalik,Suat] ½-½ (70)}) 10. O-O-O Qa5 $146 ({RR} 10... exd5 11. Nxd5 Be6 12. Nxf6+ Qxf6 13. Bxf6 Bxc4 14. Bxg7 Bxf1 15. Bxf8 Bxg2 16. Ng5 Bxh1 17. Be7 Re8 18. Bf6 h6 19. Rxh1 hxg5 20. h4 g4 21. e5 Nb4 22. h5 Nd3+ 23. Kc2 Nxf2 24. Rh4 g5 25. Bxg5 {Zimpfer,A (1909)-Rutsatz,M (1969) Frankfurt Sossenheim 2015 0-1}) 11. Qb5 Qxb5 12. Bxb5 Nc7 13. Be2 exd5 14. exd5 Rd8 15. d6 Nce8 16. Bb5 Bd7 17. Rhe1 a6 18. Bc4 Bf5 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. Bxd8 Rxd8 21. Rxd5 Bh6+ 22. Kd1 Nxd6 23. Ne5 Be6 24. Rd3 Bf5 25. Nxf7 Bxd3 26. Nxh6+ Kg7 27. Bxd3 Kxh6 28. Kc2 Re8 29. Rxe8 Nxe8 30. Kc3 Nc7 31. Kc4 b6 32. a4 a5 33. f4 Kg7 34. g4 Kf6 35. h4 h6 36. Be4 Kg7 37. Bc6 Kf6 38. Bf3 Ke6 39. Be4 Kf6 40. Bc6 Ke6 41. Kd3 Ke7 42. Ke3 Ke6 43. Be4 Kf6 44. g5+ Kg7 45. Bd3 Nd5+ 46. Ke4 Nb4 47. Bb1 hxg5 48. hxg5 Kf8 49. Ke5 Kf7 50. Be4 Kg7 51. Kd6 c4 52. Kc7 Na2 53. Kxb6 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.11.29"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Azmaiparashvili, Zurab"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2658"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Bg5 h6 5. Bh4 Be7 6. Nc3 Bb7 7. e3 c5 8. Be2 O-O 9. O-O cxd4 10. Nxd4 a6 11. Bf3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Ra7 13. Rac1 Rc7 14. b3 $146 ({RR} 14. Na4 Ra7 15. b3 Qc7 16. Rfd1 Rc8 17. Nc3 Qb7 18. Qxb7 Rxb7 19. Kf1 Kf8 20. Ke2 Nc6 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. Nxc6 Rxc6 23. a4 f5 24. Kf3 Rbc7 25. Ne2 Bf6 26. h3 h5 27. Rb1 h4 28. Rd2 Ke7 {Mollah Abdullah,A (2474)-Khatanbaatar,B (2427) Mallorca 2004 0-1 (75)}) 14... Nc6 15. Bg3 Nxd4 16. exd4 d6 17. d5 e5 18. Qe2 Nd7 19. f4 Re8 20. Qf2 Rf8 21. fxe5 dxe5 22. Qe2 f5 23. Rcd1 Bd6 24. Qh5 Qg5 25. Qxg5 hxg5 26. Be1 g4 27. a4 Nc5 28. b4 Nd7 29. c5 bxc5 30. b5 a5 31. Nb1 Ra7 32. Nd2 Nb6 33. Nb3 g6 34. Nxa5 Rfa8 35. Nc6 Rxa4 36. Bc3 e4 37. Be5 Bxe5 38. Nxe5 Kg7 39. d6 Kf6 40. Nxg4+ Ke6 41. Ne3 Rd4 42. g4 Rxd1 43. Rxd1 f4 44. Ng2 g5 45. h4 f3 46. Ne3 gxh4 47. Nf5 c4 48. d7 Nxd7 49. Rd6+ Ke5 50. Rxd7 c3 51. Rc7 Ra1+ 52. Kf2 Ra2+ 53. Kg1 c2 54. b6 Ra1+ 55. Kf2 c1=Q 56. Rxc1 Rxc1 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.11.29"]
[Round "1.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Azmaiparashvili, Zurab"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2658"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d6 2. e4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. f4 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. Be3 c5 8. dxc5 Nxc5 9. Bxc5 dxc5 10. e5 Ra7 $146 ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. Be4 Qxd1+ 12. Rxd1 Bxe4 13. Nxe4 Rc8 14. Rd5 c4 15. Ke2 Nh6 16. Rhd1 O-O 17. Rd7 Rfe8 18. Ra7 Rc6 19. Rdd7 Bf8 20. Nd4 Rb6 21. Nc3 Nf5 22. Nxf5 gxf5 23. Nd5 Rh6 24. h3 Rg6 25. Kf3 {Heberla,B (2569)-Kuraszkiewicz,M (2317) Warsaw 2006 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. Qe2 Nh6 12. O-O-O Qa5 13. Be4 Bxe4 14. Qxe4 O-O 15. Kb1 Nf5 16. g4 Nd4 17. Nxd4 cxd4 18. Nd5 e6 19. Ne7+ Kh8 20. Nc6 Qc7 21. Nxd4 Rfc8 22. h4 Qc4 23. h5 Kg8 24. hxg6 hxg6 25. f5 {Otero Marino,A (2250)-Krivenko,D (2254) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. Qe2 Nh6 12. a4 bxa4 13. Be4 Bxe4 14. Qxe4 O-O 15. Rxa4 Qb6 16. Nd5 Qxb2 17. Nxe7+ Kh8 18. O-O Rae8 19. Nd5 f6 20. c3 fxe5 21. Rb1 {1-0 (21) Bellin,R (2388)-Goater,K (2168) Guernsey 2009}) 11. Qe2 Nh6 12. a4 Qa5 13. O-O b4 14. Ne4 O-O 15. Qf2 Rc7 16. Nfd2 Be6 17. Nc4 Bxc4 18. Bxc4 Nf5 19. Rfd1 Qb6 20. c3 h5 21. a5 Qc6 22. Qe2 Rb8 23. Bd5 Qb5 24. Bc4 Qc6 25. Bd5 Qe8 26. Bc4 Bh6 27. g3 Rd8 28. Bxa6 Rxd1+ 29. Rxd1 Qa4 30. Bc4 Qxa5 31. e6 fxe6 32. Nf6+ Kh8 33. Rd8+ Kg7 34. Rg8+ 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.03"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2618"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "170"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 b5 6. Nbd2 Bb4 7. Bg2 bxc4 8. bxc4 Bxc4 9. Rb1 Nc6 10. Rxb4 Bxe2 11. Qxe2 Nxb4 12. Nc4 O-O $146 ({RR} 12... Nbd5 13. O-O d6 14. Ng5 Qd7 15. h4 O-O 16. Ne3 Rab8 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Qc2 h6 19. Nh3 Rb4 20. Nf4 c6 21. Bh3 Qb7 22. Be3 Rb8 23. Qf5 Rb1 24. Nh5 Nxh5 25. Qxh5 Qa6 26. Rxb1 Rxb1+ 27. Kh2 {Vasilev,M (2429)-Miroshnichenko,E (2616) Istanbul 2006 ½-½ (81)}) 13. O-O Rb8 14. Nfe5 d6 15. Nc6 Nxc6 16. Bxc6 Qc8 17. a4 Nd5 18. Ne3 Nb4 19. Bg2 Qa6 20. Qd1 Qd3 21. Bf3 d5 22. Ng4 Qxd1 23. Rxd1 Nc6 24. Ba3 Rfc8 25. Be2 Rb3 26. Bc5 a5 27. Bb5 Nb4 28. Bd7 Rd8 29. Ne5 Nd3 30. Rxd3 Rxd3 31. Nxd3 Rxd7 32. Kf1 Rd8 33. Ke2 f6 34. Kd2 Kf7 35. Kc2 h5 36. Ba3 h4 37. g4 h3 38. Bb2 Ke7 39. Nc5 Ra8 40. Bc3 Kd6 41. Bxa5 e5 42. Bb4 exd4 43. Kd3 Kc6 44. Kxd4 Re8 45. Kd3 g6 46. Nb3 Re4 47. Nd4+ Kb6 48. f3 Re8 49. Nb3 Ra8 50. Nc5 Kc6 51. Kd4 Re8 52. Kd3 d4 53. Nb3 Kd5 54. Nxd4 c5 55. Nb5 Kc6 56. Bd2 Ra8 57. Nc3 Rd8+ 58. Kc2 c4 59. Ne2 Rd3 60. Bc3 Kb7 61. Nd4 Ka6 62. a5 f5 63. g5 f4 64. Kb2 Rd1 65. Ka3 Rh1 66. Bd2 Rxh2 67. Bxf4 Rd2 68. Nc6 Rd3+ 69. Ka4 Rxf3 70. Nb4+ Ka7 71. Be5 Rf5 72. Bd6 Rxg5 73. Nc6+ Kb7 74. Nd8+ Ka6 75. Ne6 Rxa5+ 76. Kb4 Ra2 77. Kxc4 h2 78. Bxh2 Rxh2 79. Kd5 Rf2 80. Ke5 Rf1 81. Nf4 g5 82. Nh5 g4 83. Ke4 Kb5 84. Ng3 Rf2 85. Nh1 Rf3 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.04"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A43"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2618"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Alterman,Boris} Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 3. d5 b5 {This is an aggressive and risky line. Black is trying to grab space on the queenside from the very beginning at the price of delaying the natural development.} ({The next day on tiebreak Cheparinov chose more solid setup, but failed:} 3... d6 4. Nc3 g6 5. e4 Bg7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O Na6 8. Nd2 Nc7 9. a4 b6 10. Nc4 Ba6 11. Bf4 Bxc4 12. Bxc4 a6 13. Qe2 Nd7 14. Ra3 $14 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2570)-Cheparinov,I (2618)/Khanty Mansiysk 2005/CBM 111_01 (30)}) 4. Bg5 Ne4 5. Bh4 ({Not so promising for white:} 5. Qd3 $6 Nxg5 6. Nxg5 e6 7. Qd2 Be7 8. Nf3 exd5 9. Qxd5 Nc6 $132 {½-½ Ehlvest,J (2605)-Van Wely,L (2680)/Liepaya 2004/CBM 103_01 [Postny,E] (27)}) ({Another playable bishop's retreat I played by myself:} 5. Bf4 {1-0 Postny,E (2556)-Abergel,T (2456)/Warsaw 2005/CBM 108_01 (23)}) 5... Bb7 {This variation was played several times by Topalov few years ago. Obviously, Cheparinov was familiar with those games.} 6. e3 ({Very sharp and double-edged is:} 6. Qd3 f5 7. Nbd2 c4 8. Qd4 Na6 9. c3 ({RR} 9. Nxe4 fxe4 10. Qxe4 Nb4 11. Rd1 Nxd5 12. c3 ({RR} 12. Rxd5 Qa5+ 13. c3 Qxa2 ({RR} 13... e6 14. Qf4))) 9... Nxd2 10. Qxd2 Qb6 11. O-O-O ({RR} 11. g4 fxg4 12. Ne5 Qd6) 11... g6 12. Qd4 ({RR} 12. Bg3 Bg7) 12... Rg8 ({RR} 12... Qxd4 13. Nxd4 Nc7) 13. e4 Bg7 ({RR} 13... Bh6+ 14. Bg5 Qxd4 15. Rxd4 Bxg5+ ({RR} 15... fxe4 16. Bxh6 exf3 17. gxf3) 16. Nxg5 h6 17. Nh3 fxe4 18. b3) 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. exf5 gxf5 16. Re1 Nc5 17. Rxe7+ Kf8 18. Nd4 ({RR} 18. Ne5 Bh6+ 19. Kb1 Rg7 20. Rxg7 Bxg7 21. f4 Bxd5) 18... Rxa2 $13 {0-1 Kramnik,V (2758)-Topalov,V (2702)/Monte Carlo 2000/CBM 076 (33)} {RR} 19. Kb1 Ra5 ({RR} 19... Ra8) 20. Nxf5 Nb3 21. Be2 Ra1+ 22. Kc2 Rxh1 23. Re8+ Kxe8 24. Bh5+ Kf8 25. Be7#) ({RR} 6. Qd3 f5 7. Nbd2 c4 8. Qd4 Na6 9. c3 Nxd2 10. Qxd2 Qb6 11. O-O-O g6 12. Qd4 Rg8 13. e4 Bg7 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. exf5 gxf5 16. Re1 Nc5 17. Rxe7+ Kf8 18. Nd4 Rxa2 19. Nxf5 Bxd5 20. Nd6 ({RR} 20. Kb1 Ra8 21. Nd6 Nb3 22. Kc2 Be6 23. f4) 20... Ra1+ {Kramnik,V (2758)-Topalov,V (2702) Monte Carlo 2000 CBM 076 [Alterman,Boris] 0-1 (33)}) 6... g6 7. c4 {After this move the position is becoming similar to a Benko gambit.} ({More logical is} 7. c3 {building a barrier on the long diagonal against black's dark-squared bishop. For instanse:} Qa5 8. Nbd2 Nxd2 9. Qxd2 Bg7 10. e4 d6 11. Bd3 Nd7 12. O-O a6 13. Rfc1 Rc8 14. h3 Qb6 15. Bf1 Nf6 16. Re1 O-O $11 {1-0 Timman,J (2629)-Topalov,V (2718)/Wijk aan Zee 2001/CBM 081 [Tsesarsky] (38)}) ({RR} 7. c3 Qb6 8. Qd3 f5 9. Nbd2 Nd6 10. e4 Bg7 11. Be2 c4 12. Qc2 fxe4 13. Nxe4 Bxd5 14. Nxd6+ Qxd6 15. O-O Nc6 16. Rad1 Qc5 17. Ng5 Ne5 18. a4 O-O 19. axb5 Qxb5 20. Bg3 e6 21. h4 a5 {Webb,L (2171)-Shyam,N (2473) Escaldes AND 2023 0-1 (41)}) 7... Bg7 8. Nbd2 $146 (8. Qc2 Qa5+ 9. Nbd2 f5 10. Bd3 bxc4 11. Bxe4 fxe4 12. Qxe4 e6 13. Qf4 Bxd5 14. O-O Nc6 15. Nxc4 Bxc4 16. Qxc4 O-O $15 {0-1 Nalivajko,E (2400)-Zubarev,A (2460)/Simferopol 2003/CBM 097 ext (44)}) ({RR} 8. Qc2 Qa5+ 9. Nbd2 f5 10. Bd3 bxc4 11. Bxe4 fxe4 12. Qxe4 e6 13. Qf4 Bxd5 14. O-O Nc6 15. Nxc4 Bxc4 16. Qxc4 O-O 17. Rac1 Rab8 18. Rfd1 Rxf3 19. Rxd7 Rf7 20. Qxe6 Ne5 21. Rd5 Qa4 22. Rxe5 Qxh4 {Nalivajko,E (2400)-Zubarev,A (2460) Simferopol 2003 0-1 (44)}) 8... Qa5 $4 {[%mdl 8192] Looks normal, isn't it?} (8... Nxd2 9. Qxd2 bxc4 10. Bxc4 d6 {is a normal continuation.}) 9. Bd3 $4 {It's rather weird that two young bright tacticians missed the simple 9.b4 move.} (9. b4 $1 Qxb4 (9... cxb4 10. Nxe4 b3+ 11. Ned2 bxa2 (11... Bxa1 12. Qxa1 O-O 13. Bxe7 $18) 12. Nd4 $18) 10. Rb1 Qc3 11. Rb3 $1 Nxd2 (11... Qa5 12. Rxb5 $18) 12. Rxc3 Nxf3+ 13. Qxf3 Bxc3+ 14. Kd1 $18) 9... Nxd2 10. Nxd2 bxc4 11. Bxc4 d6 12. O-O Nd7 {Black avoided an immediate disaster, but still experiencing some problems due to his uncastled king.} 13. Qe2 a6 $6 {Covering the b5 square, but wasting an important tempo.} (13... Nf6 $2 14. Bb5+ $16) (13... Qd8 {looks safer.}) 14. e4 Qc7 15. Rab1 Nb6 {The e7 is now protected. Black is ready to castle.} 16. Bd3 $2 {Too passive.} ({Much more dynamic and troublesome for black would have been:} 16. b4 $1 cxb4 (16... Na4 17. Qe3 O-O 18. bxc5 Nxc5 19. Nb3 Nxb3 20. Rxb3 Qxc4 21. Rxb7 $16) 17. Rfc1 $16) 16... O-O {Now the position is approximately balanced.} 17. b3 e6 $1 {Opening up the centre is black's typical plan in this kind of pawn structure.} 18. dxe6 fxe6 19. f4 Rae8 20. Rbe1 a5 21. Bg3 Bc6 22. Kh1 a4 23. Nf3 {Magnus moves all his pieces towards the black king.} Qb7 $6 {A careless move.} (23... Qe7 $142 {preparing to meet} 24. Ng5 {with} Bf6) 24. Ng5 Bf6 25. Qg4 $1 Qe7 26. e5 ({Another promising continuation is:} 26. Nxh7 $1 Qxh7 27. e5 Bd8 (27... Bh8 28. Bxg6 Qg7 29. f5 exf5 30. Rxf5 Rxf5 31. Qxf5 Re7 32. Rf1 Nd7 33. exd6 Re2 34. Bf7+ $18) (27... Qh5 28. Qxh5 gxh5 29. exf6 axb3 30. axb3 Rxf6 31. Bh4 Rff8 32. Bg6 Ra8 33. Rxe6 Ra2 34. Rg1 $18) 28. Bxg6 Qg7 29. f5 $1 (29. Qh5 Nd5 (29... dxe5 30. fxe5 Rxf1+ 31. Rxf1 Rf8 32. Bh7+ $1 $18) (29... d5 30. f5 exf5 31. e6 d4 32. Be5 Bf6 33. Qxf5 Nd5 34. Rf3 $1 $40) 30. Bxe8 Bxe8 31. Qh3 Rf5 32. exd6 Bd7 $13) 29... exf5 30. Rxf5 Bd7 31. e6 Rxf5 32. Qxf5 Bxe6 33. Qb1 $1 (33. Rxe6 $4 Qa1+) (33. Bxd6 $2 Bh4 $1 34. g3 $140 $2 Qb7+ $19) 33... axb3 34. axb3 Re7 35. Bxd6 Bd5 36. Bxe7 Bxe7 37. Be4 $16) 26... Bxg5 27. fxg5 (27. Qxg5 $2 Qxg5 28. fxg5 Rxf1+ 29. Rxf1 d5) 27... Rxf1+ 28. Rxf1 Qb7 {[%csl Rg2]} 29. Qe2 $2 {The turning point of the game.} (29. Rf6 $1 Bxg2+ 30. Kg1 axb3 31. axb3 (31. Rxe6 $2 Qc8 32. Rxe8+ Qxe8 33. Kxg2 bxa2 34. Bc4+ Kg7 35. Bxa2 Qa8+ 36. Kh3 Qxa2 37. exd6 Qd5 $11) 31... Bh1 (31... Bd5 32. Bxg6 Ra8 33. Qh4 $1 Ra1+ (33... Bh1 34. Bxh7+ Qxh7 35. Qxh7+ Kxh7 36. Kxh1 $18) 34. Be1 Bh1 (34... Qg7 35. Bf7+ Kh8 36. Bxe6 Rxe1+ (36... dxe5 37. Rf7 Rxe1+ 38. Kf2 Qg8 39. g6 Qxg6 40. Rf8+ Kg7 41. Rg8#) (36... Nd7 37. Bxd5 Rxe1+ 38. Qxe1 Nxf6 39. exf6 Qxg5+ 40. Bg2 $18) 37. Qxe1 Qxg5+ 38. Qg3 Qxg3+ 39. hxg3 dxe5 40. Bf5 $18) 35. Bxh7+ Qxh7 36. Rf8+ Kxf8 37. Qxh7 Rxe1+ 38. Kf2 Rxe5 39. g6 $18) 32. Qh3 Be4 (32... Qd5 33. Bb5 Re7 34. exd6 $18) 33. Rxe6 Ra8 34. Rxd6 Bxd3 35. Qe6+ Qf7 36. Qxf7+ Kxf7 37. Rxd3 $16) (29. Kg1 axb3 30. axb3 Bxg2 31. Rf6 {leads to the same position as after 29.f6, but in this case black does not have to take on g2...}) 29... d5 30. h4 c4 $1 {Magnus missed his chance and after this breakthrough black is clearly in possession of an initiative.} 31. bxc4 dxc4 32. Bc2 Nd5 33. Kh2 (33. h5 Ne3 $1 34. Rf2 (34. Qxe3 $2 Bxg2+ 35. Kg1 Bxf1 36. Kxf1 Qh1+ 37. Ke2 Rf8 38. Be1 Qxh5+ 39. Kd2 Rf3 {and black is nearly winning.}) 34... Nxc2 35. Qxc2 Rc8 $1 36. hxg6 c3 $1 $17 {[%csl Gc3]}) ({Deserved attention} 33. Rf2) 33... c3 {[%cal Gc6b5,Gb5f1]} 34. Qf2 $6 {Another unsound manouevre.} (34. Rb1 Qe7 35. Qc4 Rc8 $15) 34... Qe7 35. Qd4 $2 ({Necessary was} 35. Rb1) 35... Rb8 36. Be4 $4 {Blundering a piece. On the other hand, white's position is bad anyway.} (36. Rf2 Rb2 $19) {[%tqu "En","How can Black win material?","","","b8b4","",5]} 36... Rb4 $19 37. Qd3 Bb5 {[%csl Rd3,Rf1]} 38. Qf3 Rxe4 39. Qxe4 Bxf1 40. Qxa4 Bd3 41. Qc6 Kf7 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.04"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2618"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[Annotator "Mueller,Karsten"]
[PlyCount "144"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ribli,Zoltan} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 c5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e3 O-O 8. Qc2 ({RR} 8. Bd3 c4 9. Bc2 Nbd7 10. O-O Qa5 11. Ne5 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Ne4 14. Be7 Re8 15. Bb4 Qc7 16. Qxd5 Rxe5 17. Qd4 Bf5 18. Rad1 Ree8 19. Qd5 Bg6 20. Bxe4 Bxe4 21. Qd6 Qc8 22. f3 Bd3 {Radjabov,T (2728)-Carlsen,M (2675) Rishon Le Ziyyon 2006 0-1 (52)}) ({RR} 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. Be2 h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. O-O Rd8 12. Nb1 {½-½ (12) Ostergaard,J (2264)-Csiszar,C (2366) Catez SLO 2024}) ({RR} 8. Bd3 c4 9. Bc2 Be6 10. O-O Bxc3 11. bxc3 Nbd7 12. Ne5 Qa5 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. Qd2 Nb6 15. a4 Bd7 16. Be7 Rfe8 17. Bb4 Qa6 18. a5 Nc8 19. f3 Qh6 20. Rfe1 Ne7 21. Qf2 Nc6 22. Bc5 f5 {Schandorff,L (2521)-Carlsen,M (2625) Aalborg 2006 ½-½ (37)}) 8... Be6 $146 ({RR} 8... cxd4 9. Nxd4 Nc6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. a3 ({RR} 11. Be2 h6 12. Bh4 g5 13. Bg3 Ne4 14. O-O Nxg3 ({RR} 14... Bxc3 15. bxc3 Bf5 16. Bd3) 15. hxg3 Qf6) 11... Bd6 12. Be2 Be5 13. Rc1 Rb8 14. Na4 h6 15. Bh4 ({RR} 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Qxc6 Be6) 15... Qa5+ 16. Kf1 ({RR} 16. b4 Rxb4 17. axb4 Qxb4+ 18. Kf1 Qxh4) 16... Bf5 17. Qxf5 Qxa4 18. Qxe5 ({RR} 18. Bxf6 Bxf6) 18... Qxh4 19. g3 ({RR} 19. Rxc6 Rbc8 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Bd1 Rc1 22. Ke1 Ne4 23. Rf1 Qd8) 19... Qh3+ 20. Kg1 Rfe8 21. Qd4 Qf5 22. g4 Qd7 23. Bf3 {Kempinski,R (2619)-Gajewski,G (2486) Krakow 2006 CBM 112 [Ribli,Zoltan] 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 8... b6 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Bd3 Ba6 11. Bxh7+ Kh8 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. Qxd3 Qd6 14. a3 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Nbd7 16. O-O c4 17. Qc2 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Rfd1 Rfd8 21. Rd4 Qe6 22. Rh4+ Kg8 23. Qh7+ {Schramm,S-Watkins,J Eisenberg 1993 1-0}) 9. Bd3 h6 10. Bh4 c4 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. O-O Qa5 13. Nd2 Rfe8 14. f3 b5 15. e4 Bf5 16. a4 Bxc3 17. bxc3 b4 18. cxb4 Qxb4 19. Rab1 Qa3 20. Bxc4 Bg6 21. Bb3 Rac8 22. Qd3 Kh7 23. Rfe1 Re6 24. Qe3 Rec6 25. Ra1 Qb4 26. e5 Rc3 27. Qf2 Nh5 28. Bxd5 Rd3 29. Ne4 Nf4 30. Rab1 Qxa4 31. Ra1 Qxd4 32. Qxd4 Rxd4 33. Bb3 Nxe5 34. Bg3 Ned3 35. Bxf4 Nxf4 36. Rxa7 Bxe4 37. fxe4 f6 38. Ra2 Rc3 39. Bd5 Nxd5 40. exd5 Rxd5 41. Rae2 h5 42. g3 Kh6 43. Kg2 Rcd3 44. Rf2 R3d4 45. Re7 h4 46. Re8 Kg6 47. Re3 hxg3 48. hxg3 Kg5 49. Re7 g6 50. Re6 f5 51. Re3 Kg4 52. Ra3 g5 53. Rb3 Re5 54. Ra3 Rde4 55. Rb3 $2 {[%mdl 4096] Die schwarzen Gewinnchancen sind zwar höher als im einfachen Turmendspiel, aber} (55. Kh2 {hätte den Laden noch zusammengehalten, z.B.} Re2 (55... Re8 56. Ra5 Rh8+ 57. Kg2 Rh3 58. Rfxf5 Rxg3+ 59. Kf2 Kh4 60. Rf3 $11) 56. Ra4+ R5e4 57. Rxe2 Rxa4 58. Rb2 Re4 59. Kg2 $11) 55... Re3 56. Rfb2 (56. Rb4+ R5e4 57. Rxe4+ fxe4 $19 {[%cal Ge3g3]}) 56... Rxb3 57. Rxb3 Re2+ 58. Kg1 Ra2 59. Rc3 Kh3 60. Rf3 Ra5 61. Kf1 g4 62. Rb3 Ra2 63. Rb5 (63. Rc3 Rg2 64. Rc5 Rxg3 65. Rxf5 Kh2 66. Rf2+ Kh1 67. Rf4 Rg2 68. Re4 g3 69. Rg4 Rf2+ 70. Ke1 Kh2 $19) 63... Kxg3 64. Rxf5 Ra1+ 65. Ke2 Kg2 66. Rf2+ Kh3 67. Rf8 g3 68. Rh8+ Kg2 69. Re8 Kg1 70. Rg8 g2 71. Rg7 Ra8 72. Rh7 Re8+ (72... Re8+ 73. Kd2 Re5 74. Rh8 Kf2 75. Rf8+ Kg3 76. Rg8+ Kf3 77. Rf8+ Kg4 78. Rg8+ Rg5 $19) 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.04"]
[Round "3.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A43"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2618"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 c5 3. d5 d6 4. Nc3 g6 5. e4 Bg7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O Na6 8. Nd2 Nc7 9. a4 b6 10. Nc4 Ba6 11. Bf4 Bxc4 ({RR} 11... Rb8 12. b3 Re8 13. Qd2 Bxc4 14. bxc4 e6 15. Bd3 Nh5 16. Bg5 Qd7 17. Ra3 exd5 18. exd5 f5 19. a5 bxa5 20. Rxa5 a6 21. Ne2 Rb6 22. Nc1 Be5 23. Ra3 Qg7 24. g3 Nf6 25. Bh6 Qe7 26. Re1 {Pelletier,Y (2659)-Hickl,J (2605) Switzerland 2003 1-0 (69)}) 12. Bxc4 a6 13. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 13. Re1 Nd7 14. Qd2 Rb8 15. Bh6 b5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Bf1 Ne5 18. f4 Nc4 19. Bxc4 bxc4 20. Nd1 e6 21. Qc3+ Qf6 22. Qxf6+ Kxf6 23. e5+ Kg7 24. dxe6 Nxe6 25. exd6 Rfd8 26. c3 Nxf4 27. Re4 Nd3 {Bukic,E-Janosevic,D Kraljevo 1967 ½-½ (77)}) ({RR} 13. e5 Nh5 14. exd6 exd6 15. Be3 Re8 16. Re1 Qh4 17. Qd3 Nf4 18. Bxf4 Qxf4 19. Re4 Rxe4 20. Qxe4 Qe5 21. Qxe5 Bxe5 22. Nd1 f5 23. c3 f4 24. f3 Rb8 25. Bd3 Kg7 26. Be4 c4 27. b3 cxb3 {Damjanovic,V (2208)-Ernst,S (2540) Senta 2020 ½-½ (67)}) ({RR} 13. Re1 Nd7 14. Qd2 Re8 15. Bh6 Bh8 16. Bf1 Rb8 17. Nd1 b5 18. axb5 axb5 19. c3 b4 20. Ne3 bxc3 21. bxc3 Rb3 22. Rec1 Qb8 23. Nc4 Ne5 24. Na5 Rb2 25. Qd1 Bg7 26. Bxg7 Kxg7 27. f4 Nd7 {Garcia Gonzales,G (2485)-Larsen,B (2570) New York 1988 1-0 (35)}) 13... Nd7 14. Ra3 Qc8 15. Rb3 Rb8 16. Nb1 Ne5 17. Na3 Re8 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. f5 Qd7 21. Bxa6 Qxa4 22. Bd3 Qd4+ 23. Kh1 gxf5 24. Rxf5 e6 25. dxe6 fxe6 26. Rf1 d5 27. exd5 Rf8 28. Rd1 Qh4 29. d6 Rf2 30. dxc7 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.06"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Bareev, Evgeny"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E35"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 c5 7. dxc5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Ne4 10. e3 Qa5 11. Nge2 Bf5 12. Be5 O-O 13. Nd4 Nxc3 14. Nxf5 Ne4+ 15. Kd1 Nc6 16. Bd6 Bxc5 17. Bxc5 Nxc5 18. Nxh6+ Kh8 19. h4 g4 20. f3 $146 ({RR} 20. Qf5 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Adar,I (1975)-Gorodetzky,D (2331) Jerusalem 2016}) 20... d4 21. Qf5 dxe3 22. Qf6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.08"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Bareev, Evgeny"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E37"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. Nf3 Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Qxc5 11. e3 Nxd2 12. Nxd2 d4 ({RR} 12... dxc4 13. Bxc4 O-O 14. Rc1 Rd8 15. O-O Bd7 16. Be2 Qxc2 17. Rxc2 Rac8 18. Rfc1 Ne7 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Rxc8+ Nxc8 21. Kf1 Kf8 22. Ke1 Ke7 23. f4 Bc6 24. g3 f6 25. Bd3 h6 26. Ke2 Nb6 27. Nc4 {So,W (2757)-Carlsen,M (2832) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 12... O-O 13. Bd3 h6 14. cxd5 Qxd5 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. Be4 Qd6 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Ne4 Qd5 19. O-O Rb8 20. b4 a5 21. Rfd1 Qf5 22. bxa5 Qxa5 23. Qc5 Qxc5 24. Nxc5 Rb5 25. Rdc1 e5 26. a4 Ra5 27. Nb3 {Bok,B (2591)-George,K (2301) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (44)}) 13. b4 Qe7 14. Nf3 dxe3 $146 ({RR} 14... e5 15. Be2 Bg4 16. O-O dxe3 17. fxe3 Rd8 18. h3 Bh5 19. b5 e4 20. bxc6 {½-½ (20) Schandorff,L (2537)-Hammer,J (2494) Borup 2008}) 15. fxe3 a5 16. b5 Nb8 17. c5 Nd7 18. Rc1 Nf6 19. Be2 O-O 20. O-O Bd7 21. a4 Rfc8 22. Ne5 Be8 23. Bf3 Nd5 24. Bxd5 exd5 25. Qc3 Rc7 26. Qd4 Rac8 27. Nd3 f6 28. Rc3 Bg6 29. Rfc1 Bxd3 30. Qxd5+ Kf8 31. Qxd3 Rxc5 32. Rxc5 Rxc5 33. Rxc5 Qxc5 34. Qd8+ Kf7 35. Qxa5 Qxe3+ 36. Kf1 Qf4+ 37. Kg1 h5 38. Qb6 Qe4 39. Kf2 Qh4+ 40. Ke2 Qe4+ 41. Kf2 Kg6 42. a5 Qc2+ 43. Kf1 Qd1+ 44. Kf2 Qd2+ 45. Kf1 Qf4+ 46. Kg1 h4 47. h3 Qe4 48. a6 bxa6 49. bxa6 Qe1+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup 9-10"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.17"]
[Round "7.3"]
[White "Kamsky, Gata"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D14"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[Annotator "Huebner,Robert"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. c3 cxd4 5. cxd4 Nc6 6. Nc3 Bf5 7. e3 e6 8. Bb5 Bb4 9. O-O O-O 10. Rc1 ({RR} 10. Bxc6 bxc6 11. Na4 Ne4 12. a3 Be7 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. Nd2 g5 15. Be5 f6 16. Bg3 Nxg3 17. hxg3 h5 18. Nc5 Kg7 19. e4 dxe4 20. Ndxe4 g4 21. Qe2 Qxd4 22. Rfd1 Qe5 23. Rd7 Rf7 24. Qa6 Re8 {Saidov,B (2309)-Makarian,R (2543) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (42)}) 10... Bxc3 $146 {Dies ist nicht nötig, aber spielbar. Es ist jedoch mit einer verfehlten Idee verbunden.} (10... Rc8 $11) ({RR} 10... Bg4 11. h3 Bh5 12. Be2 Qd7 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 a6 16. a3 Be7 17. Rc2 Rfc8 18. Rfc1 b5 19. Nb1 Ne8 20. Nd2 Nd6 21. Bxd6 Bxd6 22. Nb3 g6 23. Nc5 Qa7 24. Nd3 Qd7 25. Nc5 {De Rover,Y-Diepeveen,V (2300) Haarlem 1994 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 10... Rc8 11. Qb3 Bxc3 12. Rxc3 Ne4 13. Rcc1 g5 14. Bg3 g4 15. Bxc6 bxc6 16. Ne5 Nd2 17. Qa3 Nxf1 18. Kxf1 f6 19. Nxc6 Qd7 20. Ne7+ Qxe7 21. Qxe7 Rxc1+ 22. Ke2 Rc2+ 23. Ke1 Rxb2 24. Bd6 Rf7 25. Qd8+ {Andreikin,D (2729)-Firouzja,A (2777) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 10... Rc8 11. Qa4 Qb6 12. a3 Be7 13. Na2 Rfd8 14. b4 Nb8 15. Rxc8 Rxc8 16. Rc1 Rxc1+ 17. Nxc1 a6 18. Bf1 Nc6 19. Ne5 Nxe5 20. Bxe5 Qd8 {½-½ (20) Sokolsky,A-Byvshev,V Vilnius 1949}) 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. Rc1 g5 (12... Qb6 13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. b3 {ist unbequem für Schwarz, weil Weiß Sf3-h4 droht.}) 13. Bg3 h5 $2 {Dies ist nicht korrekt. Nach} (13... Qb6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. b3 {hat Weiß einen kleinen Vorteil, aber überwältigend ist der noch nicht.}) 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Ne5 h4 16. Nxc6 Qd7 17. Be5 f6 (17... Rac8 18. f3 Ng3 (18... Rxc6 19. Rxc6 Qxc6 20. fxe4 dxe4 21. Bf6 Bg6 22. Qg4 Qd5 23. Be5 {ist hoffnungslos für Schwarz:} Qd8 24. Rf6) 19. hxg3 Rxc6 20. e4 {wird Schwarz ebenfalls nicht aushalten.}) 18. f3 Nd6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. Qd2 Rf7 21. b4 Rg7 22. h3 Re8 23. Rfe1 Rc7 24. b5 a6 25. a4 axb5 26. axb5 Rb7 27. e4 dxe4 28. fxe4 Bh7 29. e5 Qf8 30. Rc5 Rg7 31. exf6 Qxf6 32. Ne5 Bf5 33. Rf1 Qd8 34. Qe3 g4 35. hxg4 Bxg4 36. Nc6 Qc7 37. Rg5 h3 38. gxh3 Bf5 39. Rfxf5 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup 9-12"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.13"]
[Round "6.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Malakhov, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2670"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 a6 5. e3 b5 6. c5 g6 7. Ne5 Bg7 8. Be2 O-O 9. O-O Nfd7 10. f4 f5 11. Nd3 a5 12. Bd2 Nf6 13. Be1 Be6 14. b4 $146 ({RR} 14. Ne5 Qc7 15. Bh4 Nbd7 16. Qe1 Nxe5 17. fxe5 Ne4 18. Nxe4 fxe4 19. Qg3 Rxf1+ 20. Rxf1 Rf8 21. Rxf8+ Bxf8 22. Bg5 Qd7 23. Qh4 Qe8 24. Bh6 Bxh6 25. Qxh6 Qf8 26. Qg5 Kg7 27. h4 h6 28. Qg3 Kh7 {Delchev,A (2635)-Pikula,D (2562) Novi Sad 2009 ½-½ (40)}) 14... a4 15. Ne5 Bd7 16. a3 Ne4 17. Ra2 Nxc3 18. Bxc3 Be8 19. g4 e6 20. Bd3 Ra7 21. Rg2 Kh8 22. Be1 Qc8 23. h4 Nd7 24. h5 gxh5 25. gxf5 exf5 26. Qc2 Nxe5 27. dxe5 Bg6 28. Bc3 Qe6 29. Kf2 Rg8 30. Rh1 Bf8 31. Be2 Rag7 32. Rgh2 h6 33. Kf1 Rf7 34. Bd4 Be7 35. Bxh5 Bxh5 36. Rxh5 Bf8 37. Qh2 Kh7 38. Qh3 Rg6 39. Ke2 Be7 40. Kd3 Bf8 41. Kc3 Rg4 42. Rh2 Qg6 43. Rg5 Qe6 44. Qh5 Rxg5 45. fxg5 Bg7 46. Rg2 Re7 47. Rh2 Kg8 48. Kc2 Bxe5 49. Bxe5 Qxe5 50. Qg6+ Rg7 51. Qxh6 f4 52. g6 Qf5+ 53. Kc1 Qxg6 54. Qxf4 Qg1+ 55. Kd2 Rg2+ 56. Rxg2+ Qxg2+ 57. Kd3 Qb2 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup 9-12"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.14"]
[Round "6.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Malakhov, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D94"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2670"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 a6 5. e3 g6 6. Be2 Bg7 7. O-O O-O 8. Qb3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. e4 Nb6 12. Bf4 Be6 13. Qc2 Bc4 $146 ({RR} 13... Nh5 14. Be3 Bc4 15. b3 Bxe2 16. Nxe2 Rc8 17. Rac1 e6 18. Rfd1 Nd7 19. Ne5 Nb8 20. Nd3 Nf6 21. Nc5 Qe7 22. Bg5 Qa7 23. Bxf6 Bxf6 24. e5 Bg5 25. f4 Be7 26. Rd3 Nd7 27. Nxd7 Qxd7 28. Kh1 {Mohr,S (2485)-Murey,J (2535) Palma de Mallorca 1989 1-0 (73)}) 14. Rfd1 Rc8 15. Rac1 Bxe2 16. Qxe2 Qd7 17. h3 Qb7 18. Bg5 Rfe8 19. e5 Nfd5 20. Ne4 Nd7 21. Qd2 Qb8 22. Bh6 Bh8 23. h4 Nf8 24. Nc5 Qa7 25. h5 Nc7 26. hxg6 hxg6 27. Bxf8 Rxf8 28. Qh6 Bg7 29. Qh4 f6 30. Qg4 Kh7 31. Nh4 g5 32. Qh5+ Kg8 33. Nf5 Ne8 34. Qg6 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup 9-16"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.09"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lautier, Joel"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2570"]
[BlackElo "2680"]
[Annotator "Ribli,Zoltan"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 {Diese Fortsetzung ist heutzutage wieder populär, die Alternative ist 8.a4.} b5 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Nbd7 {Das ist ein natürlicher Entwicklungszug, aber der prophylaktische Turmzug 10...a7 ist ebenfalls spielbar.} 11. Ba5 Rc8 12. Nbd2 Nb8 {Die Idee des Springermanövers ist 13...c6 zu ziehen und den a5-Läufer zu verjagen.} 13. Nb3 {Der Springerzug ist gegen c7-c5 gerichtet, aber nach meiner Meinung bietet 13.a3! Weiß mehr Chancen Eröffnungsvorteil zu erlangen.} (13. a3 $5 Nc6 14. Bc3 (14. Nb3 $2 Nxa5 15. Nxa5 Be4 { c5}) 14... b4 (14... Nd5 15. Nb3 { d2} (15. b4 Nxc3 16. Qxc3 Ra8 17. Nb3 $14) 15... Nxc3 16. Qxc3 $14) 15. axb4 Nxb4 16. Qb3 (16. Qa4 Nbd5) 16... Bd5 17. Qa4 Bc6 (17... Rb8 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 $14 {×a6}) 18. Qa5 Rb8 19. Ne5 $1 $14 {½-½ Almasi,I-Lauber,A/Gyula 1997/}) 13... Be4 {Jetzt sehen wir den Nachteil des Zuges 13.b3; der schwarze Läufer steht gut auf e4.} 14. Qc1 (14. Qd2 Nc6 15. Rfc1 b4 16. Ne5 (16. Rxc6 Bxc6 17. Bxb4 Bxb4 18. Qxb4 Qd6 19. Qa5 {[%csl Ra6][%cal Ra5a6]} Bd5 {[%csl Gd5]} 20. Rc1 {[%cal Gc1c7]} Qb6 $15 {. ½-½ Nielsen,P-Polgar,J/Las Vegas 1999/CBM 72/[Ribli] (58)}) 16... Nxa5 17. Nxa5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 c5 $15 {0-1 Koneru,H-Mahesh Chandran,P/Calcutta 2002/(41)}) 14... Nc6 {[%csl Gc6,Ge4][%cal Gc6a5,Gc6d4][%mdl 2048] Schwarz hat ausgezeichnetes Figurenspiel; der c6 kontrolliert das Feld d4, während der Läufer auf a5 unsicher steht.} 15. Bd2 (15. Rd1 Nxa5 16. Nxa5 c5 $17) 15... Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 Qxd4 $15 {Schwarz hat einen Bauern mehr. Da Weiß das Läuferpaar besitzt, erhält er positionelle Kompensation, jedoch muss er noch um das Remis kämpfen.} 18. Be3 (18. Bb7 {[%cal Rb7a6,Rb7c8]} Rcd8 $15) 18... Qd6 $146 ({RR} 18... Qd8 19. Bb7 Rb8 20. Rd1 Bd6 21. Qc6 Ng4 22. Bd4 Qg5 23. h3 Nh6 24. Be3 Qh5 25. Kg2 Nf5 26. Ba7 Qxe2 27. Qf3 Rbd8 28. Rac1 Qxf3+ 29. Bxf3 g6 30. Bb7 Be5 31. b3 Kg7 32. f4 Bb2 33. Rb1 {Perez Garcia,J (2022)-Fernandez Borrego,P (2302) Alicante 2011 0-1 (48)}) 19. Rd1 {[%csl Gd1,Ge3,Gf3]} Nd5 20. Bf4 Qb4 21. a3 {Weiß verteidigt sich gut und verjagt die aktive Dame von b4.} (21. Bxd5 exd5 22. Rxd5 Bf6 23. Rb1 (23. Be5 $2 Qe4 $19) 23... Qa4 24. a3 Rfe8 $15) 21... Qa4 22. Bxd5 exd5 23. Rxd5 c5 (23... Bf6 24. Rc5) 24. Bd6 Rfd8 (24... Bxd6 25. Rxd6) 25. Rxc5 Rxc5 26. Bxc5 Rc8 27. Qe3 $1 {[%mdl 256] Auf diese Weise kann Weiß Ausgleich erreichen.} (27. b4 Bxc5 28. bxc5 Qd4 29. e3 Qxc5 (29... Qd5 30. Qc2 Rxc5 31. Rd1 Rxc2 32. Rxd5 $11) 30. Qxc5 Rxc5 31. Rd1 $11) 27... Bxc5 28. Rc1 $11 {[%cal Gc1c8]} g6 29. Rxc5 Qd1+ 30. Kg2 Rxc5 31. Qxc5 Qxe2 32. Qd4 (32. Qc8+ Kg7 33. Qxa6 Qxb2 $11 (33... Qe4+ $11)) 32... h5 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup 9-16"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2005.12.10"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Lautier, Joel"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E55"]
[WhiteElo "2680"]
[BlackElo "2570"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "132"]
[EventDate "2005.11.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.04.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5 7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 9. Qe2 b6 10. Rd1 cxd4 11. exd4 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 13. Bb2 Bb7 14. Bd3 Nd5 15. Qe4 N7f6 $146 ({RR} 15... N5f6 16. Qh4 Bxf3 17. gxf3 e5 18. d5 Nc5 19. Bc2 Qd6 20. c4 g6 21. f4 Ncd7 22. fxe5 Nxe5 23. Qg3 Nfd7 24. Bf5 f6 25. Be6+ Kh8 26. Re1 Rae8 27. Re3 Re7 28. Bxd7 Qxd7 29. Ba3 Ref7 30. Bxf8 {Korobov,A (2565)-Hoffmann,M (2455) Pardubice 2004 1-0 (39)}) 16. Qe5 Rac8 17. c4 Nf4 18. Bf1 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Rfd8 20. Qxc7 Rxc7 21. a4 h6 22. a5 Nh7 23. axb6 axb6 24. Ra3 Nf8 25. Rda1 Rcc8 26. Rb3 N8g6 27. Rxb6 Nh4 28. Ra3 Nf5 29. c5 e5 30. Ba6 Nxd4 31. Rd6 (31. Bxc8 Nde2+ 32. Kf1 Rd1#) 31... Rxd6 32. cxd6 Rd8 33. Kf1 Rxd6 34. Bd3 g5 35. Be4 Kg7 36. Ra1 Rb6 37. Ba3 f5 38. Ba8 Kf6 (38... Nc2 $1 {wins because the white rook cannot leave the first rank (...Rb1# is threatened)} 39. Bc5 Rb5) 39. Bc5 Rb5 40. Bd6 Ke6 41. Bf8 Rb8 42. Bc5 Rb2 43. Re1 Kf6 44. Rd1 h5 45. Ke1 Re2+ 46. Kf1 Rb2 47. Ke1 Re2+ 48. Kf1 Rc2 49. Bb6 Kg6 50. Bb7 Rb2 51. Bxd4 exd4 52. Ba6 Kf6 53. Bc4 Ke5 54. Re1+ Kd6 55. Rd1 Kc5 56. Ba6 Kd5 57. Ke1 Ra2 58. Bb5 Kc5 59. Bd7 d3 60. Bxf5 Kd4 61. Rb1 Re2+ 62. Kf1 d2 63. Bc2 Re5 64. Rd1 Kc3 65. Be4 Rxe4 66. fxe4 Kc2 0-1

[Event "Reykjavik op 22nd"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2006.03.08"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Galego, Luis"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2625"]
[BlackElo "2538"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2006.03.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 c5 5. Bxb4 cxb4 6. g3 O-O 7. Bg2 Qe7 8. O-O d6 9. Qb3 a5 10. a3 Na6 11. axb4 Nxb4 12. Nc3 e5 $146 ({RR} 12... Bd7 13. Na2 Nxa2 14. Rxa2 Bc6 15. Rfa1 Qc7 16. Nd2 d5 17. Qc3 b6 18. cxd5 exd5 19. b4 axb4 20. Qxb4 Rxa2 21. Rxa2 Bd7 22. h3 Qc1+ 23. Nf1 b5 24. Qb2 Qh6 25. h4 Rb8 26. Ne3 g5 27. hxg5 {Marchand,F (2220)-Berend,F (2400) France 1997 1-0 (57)}) 13. c5 e4 14. cxd6 Qxd6 15. Ng5 Qxd4 16. Rfd1 Qe5 17. Ngxe4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Bf5 19. Qc3 Qe7 20. Nd6 Bg6 21. Rd2 Rfb8 22. h4 h6 23. Bf3 h5 24. Rad1 Kh7 25. Qc5 Rc8 26. Qb5 Rc2 27. Bxh5 Rxd2 28. Rxd2 Bxh5 29. Qxh5+ Kg8 30. Nf5 Qf6 31. Rd6 Qxb2 32. Rd7 Qb1+ 33. Kh2 1-0

[Event "Reykjavik op 22nd"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2006.03.09"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Tregubov, Pavel V"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2556"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2006.03.06"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 d5 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. g3 Nbd7 9. Bg2 dxc4 10. Qe2 Be7 11. Qxc4 e5 12. O-O Nb6 13. Qe2 exd4 14. Rd1 O-O 15. Rxd4 Qc7 16. e4 Qe5 $146 ({RR} 16... Bc5 17. Rd1 Qe5 18. Bf4 Qe7 19. e5 Rfe8 20. Qc2 Bxf2+ 21. Qxf2 Ng4 22. Qd4 Rad8 23. Qxd8 Rxd8 24. Rxd8+ Qxd8 25. Ne4 Nd5 26. Nd6 Nxf4 27. gxf4 Qh4 28. h3 Ne3 {0-1 (28) Urban,J (2272)-Postler,R (2313) Germany 2004}) ({RR} 16... Bc5 17. Bf4 Qe7 18. Rdd1 Nfd7 19. h4 Ne5 20. Bh3 f6 21. Be3 Rad8 22. Rac1 Bxe3 23. Qxe3 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Kg2 Qd3 27. Qxd3 Nxd3 28. b3 a5 29. f4 Kf7 30. Kf3 Ke7 31. Ke3 {Lunn,M (2069)-Pedersen,S (1794) Reykjavik 2018 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rd3 Rad8 18. Bf4 Qe6 19. Rad1 Rxd3 20. Rxd3 Re8 21. Kh1 Bb4 22. f3 Nfd7 23. Rd1 Ne5 24. Qc2 Qf6 25. h4 Nec4 26. Bc1 Rd8 27. Bg5 Rxd1+ 28. Nxd1 Qd4 29. b3 Bc5 30. Kh2 f6 31. Bc1 Qg1+ 32. Kh3 Ne5 33. f4 Nf7 34. Qd3 g5 35. hxg5 fxg5 36. fxg5 Ne5 37. Qf1 Qd4 38. Ne3 g6 39. Ng4 Nxg4 40. Kxg4 Nd7 41. Bf4 b5 42. Bf3 Qh8 43. Qh1 Ne5+ 44. Bxe5 Qxe5 45. Qe1 Bd6 46. Kh3 c5 47. Be2 a6 48. a4 Qe6+ 49. Bg4 Qe5 50. Be2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dos Hermanas Qualifier S17A"]
[Site "ICC INT"]
[Date "2006.03.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Torres, Javier"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2625"]
[BlackElo "2278"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2006.03.17"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NET"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Ne5 Nxe5 7. dxe5 Nd7 8. f4 b6 $146 ({RR} 8... Be7 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Bd3 Nc5 11. Bc2 a5 12. O-O g6 13. e4 d4 14. Na4 b6 ({RR} 14... d3) 15. Nxc5 bxc5 16. Bd3 a4 17. f5 Qb6 18. Bh6 exf5 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Qf3 Rb8 21. e6 Bxe6 22. Rae1 Kd8 23. Bxf5 {Tartakower,S-Maroczy,G Nice 1930 EXT 1999 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 8... Be7 9. Bd3 O-O 10. O-O f6 11. exf6 Bxf6 12. Qe2 Nc5 13. Bc2 a5 14. Bd2 Bd7 15. Rad1 Qb6 16. b3 Rae8 17. Kh1 Bc8 18. e4 d4 19. e5 dxc3 20. exf6 cxd2 21. Qh5 h6 22. fxg7 Rf7 23. Qg6 {Shimanov,A (2566)-Salinas Herrera,P (2464) chess.com INT 2023 1-0}) ({RR} 8... f6 9. exf6 Qxf6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Be2 Bc5 12. Na4 O-O 13. Nxc5 Nxc5 14. O-O Bf5 15. Bd2 Qg6 16. Bb4 Be4 17. Bf3 Nd3 18. Bxf8 Rxf8 19. Qe2 Re8 20. Rad1 c5 21. f5 Qa6 22. Bxe4 dxe4 23. f6 {Alavkin,A (2368)-Rodrigues,B (2033) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 8... Nb6 9. Qb3 Qe7 10. Bd2 f6 11. exf6 gxf6 12. O-O-O dxc4 13. Bxc4 Nxc4 14. Qxc4 Bd7 15. Ne4 b5 16. Qd3 f5 17. Nf6+ Qxf6 18. Bc3 Qe7 19. Bxh8 O-O-O 20. Be5 Qf7 21. Rd2 c5 22. Rhd1 Be7 {1-0 (22) Nimzowitsch,A-Mieses,J Frankfurt 1930}) 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Nc5 11. Bc2 Qh4+ 12. g3 Qh3 13. Qf3 Bg4 14. Qf1 O-O-O 15. Qxh3 Bxh3 16. Bd2 g6 17. O-O-O h5 18. Be1 Bh6 19. Bf2 Rhe8 20. Kb1 Bg2 21. Rhg1 Bf3 22. Rc1 Ne6 23. Rgf1 Bg2 24. Rfd1 Bf3 25. Rd2 c5 26. Ba4 Re7 27. Bd1 Bg2 28. Be1 Bh1 29. Be2 Kb7 30. Bf2 Bg2 31. Rg1 Be4+ 32. Nxe4 dxe4 33. Rxd8 Nxd8 34. Rd1 Nc6 35. Bc4 Kc7 36. a3 Bg7 37. Bd5 Nd8 38. Bxe4 f6 39. Bxg6 fxe5 40. Bxh5 exf4 41. exf4 Nc6 42. Bf3 Nd4 43. Bg4 Nb3 44. Re1 Nd2+ 45. Kc2 Rxe1 46. Bxe1 Nc4 47. Be2 Nxb2 48. Bc3 Bxc3 49. Kxc3 Na4+ 50. Kb3 b5 51. Bxb5 Nb6 52. h4 Kd6 53. h5 Nd5 54. h6 Nf6 55. g4 Kd5 56. g5 Nh7 57. g6 Nf6 58. h7 1-0

[Event "Dos Hermanas Qualifier S18A"]
[Site "ICC INT"]
[Date "2006.03.18"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2594"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2006.03.18"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NET"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 a6 5. c5 Nbd7 6. Bf4 Nh5 7. Bd2 g6 8. e3 Bg7 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. Ne1 Nhf6 $146 ({RR} 11... e5 12. Bxh5 gxh5 13. Qxh5 exd4 14. exd4 Bxd4 15. Nf3 Bg7 16. Ng5 Re7 17. Qxh7+ Kf8 18. Rae1 Ne5 19. Qh5 Bf5 20. Nh7+ Bxh7 21. Qxh7 Re6 22. Bf4 Qf6 23. Bxe5 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Qxe5 25. Qd3 Re8 26. g3 {Peregudov,N (2380)-Kirillov,A (2370) Tomsk 2006 1-0 (45)}) 12. f4 b6 13. b4 a5 14. a3 axb4 15. axb4 Rxa1 16. Qxa1 bxc5 17. bxc5 Nxc5 18. dxc5 d4 19. Nd1 Ne4 20. Ba5 d3 21. Bxd8 dxe2 22. Nb2 exf1=Q+ 23. Kxf1 Rxd8 24. Qa5 Re8 25. Nbd3 Be6 26. Ne5 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Bd5 28. Qa7 Kg7 29. Nf3 h6 30. Ke1 Ng5 31. Ke2 Ne6 32. g3 Bxf3+ 33. Kxf3 Rd8 34. Qxe7 Rd5 35. h4 h5 36. Qf6+ Kg8 37. g4 hxg4+ 38. Kxg4 Rxc5 39. Kf3 Rc4 40. Qe7 c5 41. Ke2 Re4 42. Kd3 Rxe5 43. Qd6 Rh5 44. Qe7 Ng7 45. Qd8+ Kh7 46. Qc7 Rd5+ 47. Ke2 Rf5 48. e4 Ne6 49. Qe7 Rf4 50. Ke3 c4 51. Qd7 c3 52. Qc6 Rxh4 53. Kf2 Rh2+ 54. Kg3 Rc2 55. Qd7 Kg7 56. e5 Rd2 57. Qc6 c2 58. Qc3 Rd3+ 59. Qxd3 c1=Q 60. Qf3 Qg5+ 0-1

[Event "Dos Hermanas Qualifier S20A"]
[Site "ICC INT"]
[Date "2006.03.20"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Plaskett, H James"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A46"]
[WhiteElo "2485"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2006.03.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventCountry "NET"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bg5 h6 4. Bh4 b6 5. e3 Bb7 6. Bd3 Be7 7. c4 ({RR} 7. O-O Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. c4 d6 10. Nfd2 Nxd2 11. Qxd2 Nd7 12. Nc3 O-O 13. b4 e5 14. a4 a5 15. b5 Nf6 16. f4 exd4 17. exd4 d5 18. Rae1 Qb4 19. Rb1 Qd6 20. cxd5 Rfe8 21. Bc4 Nxd5 {Bernadskiy,V (2612)-Petrosyan,M (2634) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (35)}) ({RR} 7. O-O c5 8. c3 cxd4 9. exd4 O-O 10. Nbd2 d6 11. Rc1 Nbd7 12. Bb1 b5 13. Re1 a5 14. Qb3 Rb8 15. Ne4 a4 16. Qd1 Nxe4 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Bxe4 Bxe4 19. Rxe4 Nf6 20. Re2 Rfc8 21. a3 Qb7 {Voitovich,V (2319)-Masruri,R (2327) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (37)}) 7... c5 $146 ({RR} 7... d6 8. Nc3 Nbd7 9. O-O O-O 10. h3 Re8 11. Bg3 Bf8 12. e4 e5 13. d5 a5 14. Bh2 Nc5 15. Bc2 Qd7 16. b3 g6 17. a3 Bg7 18. b4 axb4 19. axb4 Na6 20. Ba4 Qe7 21. Bxe8 Rxe8 22. Qb3 {Bykhovsky,A (2496)-Ser,D (2017) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 7... Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Nfd2 Nxd2 10. Nxd2 Qg5 11. Rg1 O-O 12. Qe2 c5 13. f4 Qe7 14. dxc5 Nc6 15. g4 Nb4 16. Bb1 Qh4+ 17. Rg3 bxc5 18. a3 Na6 19. Bc2 d5 20. Nf3 Qe7 21. g5 g6 22. Ne5 {Terzic,I (2224)-Nestorovic,L (2419) Sarajevo 2011 ½-½ (55)}) 8. Nc3 cxd4 9. Nxd4 a6 10. O-O Nc6 11. Rc1 O-O 12. Bb1 Rc8 13. Qe2 Nxd4 14. exd4 d5 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Bg3 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Qd5 18. f3 Rfd8 19. Rfe1 b5 20. Be5 Qd7 21. Qd3 f5 22. a4 bxa4 23. Ba2 Bd5 24. c4 Bb7 25. Rcd1 Bd6 26. Bxd6 Qxd6 27. c5 Qc7 28. Bxe6+ Kh8 29. Bxc8 Qxc8 30. Qc4 Bc6 31. d5 Bb5 32. Qd4 Qc7 33. d6 Qf7 34. Re7 Qg6 35. d7 a3 36. Rde1 Kh7 37. R1e6 Qg5 38. h4 Qg3 39. c6 a2 40. Re1 Bxc6 41. Qd3 Bxd7 42. Rxd7 Qxe1+ 43. Kh2 Qxh4+ 44. Kg1 a1=Q+ 0-1

[Event "Schagen m"]
[Site "Schagen"]
[Date "2006.04.28"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2655"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2006.04.28"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Rc1 c6 9. e4 d5 10. e5 Ne4 11. Bd3 Nxd2 12. Qxd2 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. O-O Na6 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Qb2 Nb4 16. Bb1 Ba6 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. a3 Nc6 19. b4 Bc4 20. Bd3 Bxd3 21. Rxd3 Qd7 22. Ne2 Rc7 23. Rdc3 Rfc8 24. Qc2 Bd8 25. Qd3 Nb8 26. b5 Rxc3 27. Rxc3 {Eingorn,V (2588)-Komarov,D (2540) France 2007 1-0 (55)}) 13. O-O Bb4 14. cxd5 Bxc3 15. Rxc3 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 cxd5 17. Rfc1 f6 18. Qe2 fxe5 19. dxe5 Nc5 20. Nd4 Qe8 21. f3 a5 22. a3 Qg6 23. b4 axb4 24. axb4 Nd7 25. Rc6 Rae8 26. Rd6 Rf7 27. Kg2 h5 28. h4 Nf8 29. Rxb6 Ra8 30. Qd2 Ra3 31. Rb8 Rd3 32. Qf2 Qh6 33. f4 Qg6 34. f5 Qh6 35. Rc2 Kh7 36. Re8 Rxd4 37. Qxd4 Rxf5 38. Rf2 Ng6 39. Rxf5 exf5 40. Rc8 f4 41. Qd3 1-0

[Event "Schagen m"]
[Site "Schagen"]
[Date "2006.04.30"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2655"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[PlyCount "173"]
[EventDate "2006.04.28"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 111 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.05.09"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 c6 8. e4 d5 9. Qc2 dxe4 10. Nxe4 c5 11. Bc3 Bb7 12. Bd3 cxd4 13. Nxd4 Na6 14. Nxf6+ Bxf6 15. Be4 Bxe4 16. Qxe4 O-O 17. Rd1 $146 ({RR} 17. O-O Nc5 18. Qe3 Qd7 19. Rad1 Rfd8 20. Qf3 Qb7 21. Qxb7 Nxb7 22. f4 Nc5 23. Nb5 Be7 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Nxa7 Ne4 26. Nb5 Bc5+ 27. Kh1 Nf2+ 28. Kg2 Nd1 29. Kh3 Rd3 30. b4 Nxc3 31. bxc5 bxc5 {Mikaelyan,A (2448)-Petrosyan,M (2466) Yerevan 2016 ½-½ (110)}) 17... Nc5 18. Qf3 Qc7 19. O-O Qb7 20. Qxb7 Nxb7 21. Bb4 Rfc8 22. Rd2 a5 23. Ba3 a4 24. Nb5 axb3 25. axb3 Nc5 26. Rb1 Ne4 27. Rd7 h5 28. Bc1 Rd8 29. Rxd8+ Rxd8 30. Be3 Nd2 31. Bxd2 Rxd2 32. h4 Kh7 33. Kf1 Kg6 34. Kg2 Be7 35. Nc3 Kf5 36. Na4 Bf6 37. Nxb6 Bd4 38. Nc8 Kg4 39. Rf1 Bc5 40. b4 Bxb4 41. Nb6 Bc5 42. Na4 Bd4 43. c5 Rc2 44. c6 e5 45. c7 e4 46. Rd1 Rxf2+ 47. Kh1 Kh3 48. c8=Q+ f5 49. Kg1 Rc2+ 50. Rxd4 Rxc8 51. Rd7 Kxg3 52. Rxg7+ Kf3 53. Nb6 Rc1+ 54. Kh2 e3 55. Nd5 f4 56. Rf7 Rc2+ 57. Kh3 Rc4 58. Nxe3 Kxe3 59. Ra7 Rc3 60. Ra2 Ke4+ 61. Kh2 Kf3 62. Kh3 Re3 63. Rb2 Re1 64. Rb3+ Kf2 65. Rb2+ Kf1 66. Rb5 Re3+ 67. Kh2 Re2+ 68. Kh3 Re3+ 69. Kh2 f3 70. Rxh5 f2 71. Rf5 Ke1 72. Kg2 Re2 73. Kg3 f1=Q 74. Rxf1+ Kxf1 75. Kg4 Kf2 76. h5 Ke3 77. Kf5 Rf2+ 78. Kg6 Rg2+ 79. Kf6 Rh2 80. Kg6 Ke4 81. h6 Ke5 82. h7 Ke6 83. Kg7 Ke7 84. h8=Q Rg2+ 85. Kh6 Rh2+ 86. Kg7 Rxh8 87. Kxh8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sarajevo Bosnia-A 36th"]
[Site "Sarajevo"]
[Date "2006.05.14"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Sasikiran, Krishnan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E37"]
[WhiteElo "2692"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[PlyCount "205"]
[EventDate "2006.05.07"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BIH"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Nf3 Bf5 11. b4 d4 12. g4 Bg6 13. Qc4 d3 14. Be3 Qf6 15. Rd1 O-O 16. Rxd3 b5 17. Qc1 $146 ({RR} 17. cxb6 axb6 18. Bg2 Rfc8 19. Qb3 Qa1+ 20. Qd1 Qxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Nc3 22. Rd2 Nxb4 23. O-O Nbd5 24. Ra1 Nxe3 25. fxe3 Ra5 26. Rb2 h5 27. gxh5 Rxh5 28. h4 b5 29. Bh3 Re8 30. Kf2 {½-½ (30) Kaidanov,G (2603)-Schandorff,L (2521) Turin 2006}) 17... a5 18. bxa5 Nxc5 19. Rc3 Nd3+ 20. exd3 Qxf3 21. Rg1 Ne5 22. d4 Nc4 23. Bg2 Qxg4 24. h3 Qe6 25. Bxa8 Rxa8 26. a4 Qa6 27. Rg5 f5 28. axb5 Qxa5 29. Kf1 Qxb5 30. Kg1 Bf7 31. Qf1 g6 32. Rg3 Qd5 33. Rc1 Re8 34. Rd1 Kg7 35. Bc1 Re4 36. Rgd3 f4 37. Qg2 h6 38. f3 Re3 39. Bxe3 Nxe3 40. Qf2 Nxd1 41. Rxd1 g5 42. Qe2 Be6 43. Kh2 Qf5 44. Qe5+ Qxe5 45. dxe5 Kg6 46. Rd8 Kf5 47. Rh8 Kxe5 48. Rxh6 Bf5 49. Kg2 Be6 50. Kf2 Bf5 51. h4 gxh4 52. Rxh4 Be6 53. Rh5+ Kf6 54. Rc5 Bb3 55. Ke2 Ke6 56. Kd3 Bd5 57. Ke2 Kd6 58. Ra5 Ke5 59. Kf2 Kd6 60. Kg2 Be6 61. Rh5 Bd7 62. Kf2 Be6 63. Ke2 Bc4+ 64. Ke1 Bd5 65. Kf2 Be6 66. Rg5 Bd7 67. Ke2 Be6 68. Ra5 Bd5 69. Ra3 Bc4+ 70. Kf2 Be6 71. Ra5 Bd5 72. Kg2 Be6 73. Rh5 Bd7 74. Rh7 Be6 75. Rh8 Bd7 76. Rd8 Ke7 77. Ra8 Kd6 78. Ra7 Be6 79. Kf2 Bd5 80. Rh7 Be6 81. Rh1 Ke5 82. Re1+ Kf5 83. Kg2 Bd5 84. Re8 Kf6 85. Kf2 Kf5 86. Rc8 Ke5 87. Ke2 Kf5 88. Rc3 Ke5 89. Kd2 Kd6 90. Rd3 Ke5 91. Kc3 Bb7 92. Kb4 Bd5 93. Ra3 Kd4 94. Rc3 Bb7 95. Kb3 Bd5+ 96. Kc2 Ke5 97. Kd2 Kd6 98. Ke2 Ke5 99. Kf2 Kd6 100. Kg2 Be6 101. Rc1 Ke5 102. Re1+ Kf6 103. Re4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-37"]
[Site "Turin"]
[Date "2006.05.29"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Macieja, Bartlomiej"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2584"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2006.05.21"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "ITA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Poland"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "POL"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 c6 8. Bc3 d5 9. Ne5 Nfd7 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. Nd2 O-O 12. O-O Rc8 13. e4 b5 14. Re1 dxe4 15. Nxe4 bxc4 16. Qe2 Rb8 ({RR} 16... Nf6 17. Nc5 Bxc5 18. dxc5 Qe7 19. b4 Rfd8 20. Qb2 Ne8 21. a3 Rd3 22. Rad1 Qd7 23. Qc2 Rd8 24. Bf3 Nc7 25. Be2 Rxd1 26. Rxd1 Nd5 27. Bd4 f6 28. Bxc4 Bxc4 29. Qxc4 e5 30. Be3 Qb7 31. Bc1 {Andrade,A (2100)-Lanzani,M (2423) Grosseto 2010 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 16... Nf6 17. Nc5 Bxc5 18. dxc5 Qe7 19. Qe5 cxb3 20. axb3 Bb5 21. Re4 Ne8 22. b4 Rd8 23. Rh4 f6 24. Qe4 g6 25. Qe1 Ng7 26. Re4 Rfe8 27. f4 Kf7 28. h3 h5 29. g4 hxg4 30. hxg4 f5 31. Re5 {Dziuba,M (2491)-Macieja,B (2585) Krakow 2006 ½-½ (50)}) 17. Bf1 Nb6 $146 ({RR} 17... Bb4 18. Qd2 Qa5 19. Bxb4 Qxb4 20. Qf4 Rbd8 21. Rab1 Qa3 22. bxc4 Nb6 23. Rbc1 Qa5 24. Nc5 Nd7 25. Nb3 Qxa2 26. Qe3 Rb8 27. Nd2 c5 28. Ra1 Qb2 29. Rxa6 cxd4 30. Qe2 d3 31. Qe3 Ne5 32. Qxe5 {Shirov,A (2699)-Karjakin,S (2661) Foros 2006 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 17... Qc8 18. bxc4 Nb6 19. Nd2 Na4 20. Ba5 c5 21. Qd1 Nb2 22. Qg4 Bd8 23. Nb3 cxd4 24. Qxd4 Bf6 25. Qxa7 Ra8 26. Qc5 Nxc4 27. Rac1 Nxa5 28. Qxa5 Qd8 29. Qxd8 Rfxd8 30. Bxa6 Rxa6 31. Re2 g6 32. Kf1 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Adams,M (2734) Sofia 2007 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 17... Nf6 18. Nc5 Nd5 19. Nxa6 Nxc3 20. Qxc4 Nb5 ({RR} 20... Rb6 21. Qxc3) 21. Nxb8 Qxb8 22. a4 Nd6 23. Qxc6 Nf5 24. Rad1 Bf6 25. Qe4 Qxb3 26. d5 Nd6 27. Qe3 Qxe3 28. Rxe3 e5 29. Rc3 Bd8 30. Rc6 Nf5 31. d6 Bb6 32. d7 {Sasikiran,K (2690)-Adams,M (2734) Sofia 2007 CBM 118 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (34)}) 18. Nc5 Bb5 19. a4 Nd5 20. Qf3 Bxc5 21. dxc5 Ba6 22. bxc4 Nxc3 23. Qxc3 Qf6 24. Qxf6 gxf6 25. Red1 Rfd8 26. Bg2 Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Rb4 28. h4 Rxc4 29. Rd7 Rxc5 30. Rxa7 Bc4 31. Rc7 Bd5 32. Bxd5 exd5 33. a5 Rxa5 34. Rxc6 Kg7 35. Kg2 h5 36. Rd6 Kg6 37. Rd7 Rb5 38. Kf3 Rb3+ 39. Ke2 Rb2+ 40. Ke3 Rb5 41. Kf3 f5 42. Rd6+ f6 43. Rd7 Rb3+ 44. Kf4 Rd3 45. Rd8 Rd4+ 46. Ke3 Re4+ 47. Kf3 d4 48. Rd7 Rg4 49. Rd5 f4 50. Rxd4 fxg3 51. Rxg4+ hxg4+ 52. Kxg3 Kh5 53. Kf4 Kxh4 54. Kf5 g3 55. fxg3+ Kxg3 56. Kxf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-chT2"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2006.06.09"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Leer Salvesen, Bjarte"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E09"]
[WhiteElo "2646"]
[BlackElo "2372"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2006.06.07"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 112 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 d5 3. Nf3 c6 4. Qc2 Nf6 5. Nbd2 Nbd7 6. g3 Be7 7. Bg2 O-O 8. O-O b6 9. e4 Bb7 10. e5 Ne8 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. Re1 Rc8 13. Qa4 a5 14. Nf1 Ba6 15. Qd1 ({RR} 15. Bd2 Rc4 16. Qd1 b5 17. Ne3 Rc8 18. h4 Qb6 19. h5 b4 20. h6 g6 21. Ng4 Qb5 22. a4 bxa3 23. bxa3 a4 24. Rb1 Qc6 25. Bb4 Bxb4 26. Rxb4 Bb5 27. Ng5 Qa6 28. Qd2 Bd3 29. Bf1 Bxf1 {Batsuren,D (2531)-Mohammadi,S (1971) Charlotte USA 2025 1-0 (47)}) 15... b5 ({RR} 15... Bb4 16. Bg5 Qc7 17. Rc1 Qb8 18. Rxc8 Qxc8 19. Re3 h6 20. a3 hxg5 21. axb4 g4 22. Ng5 axb4 23. Qxg4 Qc2 24. Qh5 Nef6 25. exf6 Nxf6 26. Qh4 Qxb2 27. g4 Re8 28. Rh3 Kf8 29. Qh8+ Ng8 30. Rf3 {Ulybin,M (2552)-Leer Salvesen,B (2360) Stockholm 2011 1-0 (31)}) 16. h4 b4 17. Ng5 $146 ({RR} 17. Bg5 Nb6 18. Bxe7 Qxe7 19. Ng5 h6 20. Nh3 Nc7 21. Nf4 Nb5 22. Nh5 Kh8 23. Qg4 g6 24. Nf6 Nd7 25. Qf4 Kg7 26. Nxd7 Qxd7 27. Ne3 Qe7 28. Bf1 g5 29. Qg4 f5 30. exf6+ Qxf6 31. f4 Rc6 {Karthikeyan,P (2481)-Mohannad,F (2219) Dubai 2018 ½-½ (37)}) 17... Qc7 18. Ne3 Bxg5 19. hxg5 Qb6 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Kxf1 f5 22. exf6 gxf6 23. Ng4 Rc4 24. Be3 fxg5 25. Kg2 e5 26. b3 Rc3 27. dxe5 d4 28. Bxd4 Qc6+ 29. Kg1 Rcf3 30. e6 Ndf6 31. Ne5 1-0

[Event "Tromsoe Midnight Sun"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2006.06.27"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2559"]
[BlackElo "2646"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2006.06.24"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 112 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.07.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.07.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. g3 d6 8. Bg2 Bg7 9. Nf3 Nbd7 10. Rb1 O-O 11. O-O Qa5 12. Qc2 Rfb8 13. Rd1 Ng4 14. Bd2 Nge5 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. b3 Bc8 17. Na4 Qa6 18. Bc3 Bf5 19. Be4 Bd7 20. f4 Ng4 21. Bxg7 Kxg7 22. Bf3 c4 23. e3 Qa7 24. Re1 cxb3 25. axb3 Nf6 26. Ra1 Rb4 27. Kh1 $146 ({RR} 27. Kg2 Rc8 28. Qd1 Qb7 29. e4 Rxb3 30. e5 Ng4 31. Bxg4 Bxg4 32. Qxg4 Qxd5+ 33. Kh3 Rc2 34. Re2 h5 {0-1 (34) Mosionzhik,I (2162)-Moiseenko,V (2403) Moscow 2009}) 27... Rc8 28. Qd1 Qb7 29. e4 Rxb3 30. e5 Ng4 31. Bxg4 Bxg4 32. Qxg4 Qxd5+ 33. Kg1 Rc2 34. Qh3 Qd4+ 35. Kh1 Re3 36. Qf1 Qd2 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2006.07.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stokke, Kjetil"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2673"]
[BlackElo "2303"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2006.07.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Na6 8. Re1 c6 9. Bf1 exd4 10. Nxd4 Ng4 11. h3 Qb6 12. hxg4 Qxd4 13. g5 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 Nc5 15. f3 Be5 16. Be3 a5 17. Rac1 ({RR} 17. Rd2 a4 18. Rc1 a3 19. b4 Na4 20. Nd1 Be6 21. Bd4 Bf4 22. Be3 Be5 23. Bd4 Rfd8 24. Kf2 c5 25. Bxe5 dxe5 26. Rxd8+ Rxd8 27. Ke1 cxb4 28. Rb1 Nc3 29. Nxc3 bxc3 30. Rd1 Rd4 31. Be2 Kf8 {Topalov,V (2801)-Svidler,P (2765) Monte Carlo 2006 0-1 (34)}) 17... a4 18. Rc2 ({RR} 18. Kf2 Be6 19. Bd4 Rfd8 20. g3 Kf8 21. f4 Bxd4+ 22. Rxd4 Ke7 23. Rcd1 Bg4 24. Be2 Bxe2 25. Kxe2 Rd7 26. Ke3 Rh8 27. R4d2 h5 28. f5 Rdd8 29. f6+ Ke8 30. e5 h4 31. Ne4 Nxe4 32. Kxe4 hxg3 {Torres Rosas,L (2313)-Gracia Alvarez,G (2271) Pachuca MEX 2024 0-1 (54)}) 18... Ne6 $146 ({RR} 18... f5 19. gxf6 Rxf6 20. Ne2 Ne6 21. Kf2 g5 22. g3 c5 23. Bg2 Bd7 24. Bd2 Bc6 25. Ke1 Nd4 26. Nxd4 Bxg3+ 27. Ke2 cxd4 28. Bxg5 Rg6 29. Bc1 Rf8 30. Kd3 Be5 31. Rf1 Rg3 32. Bh1 Rf6 33. Rg2 {Winants,L (2455)-Visser,Y (2340) Ostend 1990 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 18... Be6 19. f4 Bxc3 20. Bxc5 dxc5 21. Rxc3 Rfd8 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Bd3 Rd4 24. Kf2 b5 25. Ke3 Bxc4 26. Bxc4 bxc4 27. Ra3 Kg7 28. Rxa4 Rd3+ 29. Ke2 Rd4 30. b3 Rxe4+ 31. Kf3 Rd4 32. Rxc4 Rd3+ 33. Ke2 {Andersson,F (2249)-Nithander,V (2434) Sweden 2010 ½-½ (51)}) 19. Ne2 Nc5 20. Nc1 Re8 21. Nd3 Nxd3 22. Rxd3 f5 23. gxf6 Re6 24. Bg5 Kf7 25. Rcd2 Ra5 26. Be3 Rxf6 27. Bb6 Ra8 28. Bc7 Bf4 29. Rd1 Ke7 30. c5 dxc5 31. Bd8+ Kf7 32. Bxf6 Kxf6 33. g3 Be5 34. Rd8 Ke7 35. Bh3 Bxh3 36. Rxa8 Bxg3 37. Rh8 Be6 38. Rxh7+ Bf7 39. Rxf7+ 1-0

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2006.07.09"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Johannessen, Leif Erlend"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2555"]
[BlackElo "2673"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2006.07.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. Nf3 O-O 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qc2 Nbd7 11. e4 Bxf1 12. Rxf1 h6 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. O-O-O Qe7 $146 ({RR} 14... c5 15. Kb1 Qc7 16. Rfe1 Qb7 17. Qe2 Rac8 18. dxc5 Rxc5 19. Nd4 b5 20. Nb3 Rc7 21. Rd4 a6 22. f3 Nd7 23. Red1 Ne5 24. Na5 Qb8 25. Qd2 Rfc8 26. Rd8+ Kh7 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. Qd8 Rc1+ 29. Ka2 {Shemeakin,A (2314)-Shalimov,V (2415) Lubny 2011 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 14... Qe8 15. Kb1 Rd8 16. Rfe1 c5 17. dxc5 Rc8 18. Rd4 {½-½ (18) Medic,M (2314)-Franciskovic,B (2216) Krapina 2010}) 15. Ne5 c5 16. dxc5 Qc7 17. f4 bxc5 18. Nc4 Rad8 19. e5 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Nd5 21. Qe4 Rb8 22. f5 Qe7 23. Qg4 exf5 24. Qxf5 Qh4 25. g4 Ne7 26. Qd7 Qg5+ 27. Kb1 Qg6+ 28. Ka1 Qc2 29. Qd3 Qxh2 30. Qd6 Rb7 31. e6 Qxd6 32. Nxd6 Rb6 33. exf7+ Kf8 34. Kb1 Rc6 35. Kc2 Ng6 36. Rd5 Nf4 37. Rd2 Ne6 38. Kc3 Nd4 39. Ne4 Kxf7 40. b4 cxb4+ 41. Kxd4 bxa3 42. Ra2 Ra6 43. Nc5 Ra5 44. Kc4 a6 45. Kb4 Rb5+ 46. Kc4 Ra5 47. Kb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2006.07.10"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Ostmoe, Geir S Tallaksen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2356"]
[BlackElo "2673"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2006.07.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 Bb4 6. Qc2 Bb7 7. Bg2 c5 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. O-O Be7 10. b3 d6 11. Bb2 Nbd7 12. e4 ({RR} 12. Rac1 Qc7 13. Rfe1 O-O 14. e4 a6 15. Qb1 Rac8 16. Nd4 Qb8 17. f4 Qa8 18. Bf3 Rfd8 19. g4 e5 20. Nf5 Bf8 21. g5 Ne8 22. Qa1 Nc5 23. Qb1 Ne6 24. Nf1 Nxf4 25. h4 b5 26. N1e3 bxc4 {Radjabov,T (2747)-Carlsen,M (2693) Porto Vecchio 2007 1-0 (45)}) 12... Qc7 13. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 13. Nd4 O-O 14. Nb5 Qb8 15. Qd3 a6 16. Nd4 Qc7 17. Rae1 Rfe8 18. Qe2 Bf8 19. h3 g6 20. Rc1 Rac8 21. Rfe1 Qb8 22. Qe3 Ba8 23. a4 e5 24. Nc2 b5 25. axb5 axb5 26. Ba3 bxc4 27. bxc4 Rc7 {Tregubov,P (2598)-Chuchelov,V (2565) Germany 2011 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 13. Nd4 a6 14. f4 O-O 15. Rad1 Rac8 16. Qd3 Rfe8 17. Qe2 Bf8 18. g4 Nc5 19. g5 Nfd7 20. b4 Na4 21. Ba1 d5 22. Rf3 Bxb4 23. Rh3 Bxd2 24. Rxd2 dxe4 25. Nf5 exf5 26. Rxd7 Qxd7 27. Qh5 Rc6 {Akdag,D (2236)-Roser,K (2406) Helsingor 2014 0-1}) 13... O-O 14. e5 dxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qb7+ 17. Kg1 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rfd8 19. Bc3 Rd7 20. Rad1 Rad8 21. Ne4 Ne8 22. Rxd7 Rxd7 23. Re2 h6 24. Rd2 Rxd2 25. Nxd2 Qd7 26. Qe4 Nf6 27. Qa8+ Kh7 28. Qf3 Bd8 29. Kf1 Kg8 30. Ke2 Ne8 31. Qd3 Qc8 32. b4 Be7 33. a4 Nd6 34. Be5 Nb7 35. Bc3 Bf8 36. Ne4 Qc6 37. b5 Qc7 38. Kf1 Qe7 39. Bd4 Qb4 40. Qc2 Qa3 41. Kg2 Qe7 42. Qd3 Qd7 43. Qe3 Na5 44. Qc3 f5 45. Nd2 Bb4 46. Qxb4 Qxd4 47. Qe7 Qxd2 48. Qxe6+ Kf8 49. Qxf5+ Ke7 50. Qe5+ Kf8 51. Qf5+ Ke7 52. Qe5+ Kd7 53. Qxg7+ Kd6 54. Qf8+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "NOR-ch"]
[Site "Moss"]
[Date "2006.07.14"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Djurhuus, Rune"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2462"]
[BlackElo "2673"]
[PlyCount "138"]
[EventDate "2006.07.08"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 113 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 d5 3. Bxf6 exf6 4. e3 f5 5. c4 dxc4 6. Bxc4 Bd6 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Nf3 Nd7 9. O-O Nf6 ({RR} 9... c6 10. Qc2 Nf6 11. a3 Qe7 12. b4 Bd7 13. Bd3 g6 14. Na4 Rad8 15. Nc5 Bc8 16. Bc4 Kg7 17. Rab1 Ne4 18. Qb2 Qf6 19. Ne5 Qe7 20. Ned3 b6 21. Nxe4 fxe4 22. Nc1 Qh4 23. g3 Qf6 24. Re1 {Korobov,A (2715)-Leko,P (2737) Kiev 2013 ½-½ (50)}) 10. Qc2 a6 ({RR} 10... Qe7 11. a3 c6 12. Rfe1 Be6 13. Bd3 g6 14. h3 Rfe8 15. Ng5 Nd5 16. Nxe6 Qxe6 17. e4 Nxc3 18. Qxc3 fxe4 19. Rxe4 Qd7 20. Rae1 Rxe4 21. Rxe4 Rd8 22. Bc4 Kg7 23. d5+ Kg8 24. dxc6 Qxc6 25. Re3 {Modric,N (2088)-Turzo,A (2247) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (57)}) 11. Rfe1 g6 $146 ({RR} 11... Rb8 12. Rad1 g6 13. a3 Kg7 14. Ba2 Qe7 15. Nd2 b5 16. b4 a5 17. bxa5 Bxa3 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5 Bb4 20. Ra1 Qd6 21. Bf3 Bb7 22. Reb1 Bxd2 23. Qxd2 Bxf3 24. gxf3 Qd5 25. Qc3 Qd7 26. Kg2 {Alburt,L (2515)-Mednis,E (2485) New York 1980 1-0 (48)}) 12. a4 Kg7 13. Rad1 Rb8 14. g3 Qe8 15. Nd5 Qe4 16. Qxe4 Nxe4 17. Re2 Bd7 18. Ra1 b5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Bd3 Bc6 21. Nxc7 Rb7 22. d5 Bd7 23. Na6 Ra8 24. b4 Rba7 25. Rea2 Bc8 26. Bxb5 Nc3 27. Nc7 Rxa2 28. Rxa2 Rxa2 29. Ne8+ Kf8 30. Nxd6 Nxb5 31. Nxc8 Ra6 32. Ne5 Ke8 33. Nc4 Kd8 34. N8b6 Kc7 35. d6+ Nxd6 36. Nd5+ Kc6 37. Nxd6 Kxd6 38. Nc3 Rb6 39. b5 Rb8 40. Kg2 Kc5 41. h4 Kc4 42. Ne2 Rxb5 43. Nd4 Rd5 44. Nf3 h6 45. Kg1 Kd3 46. Kg2 Ke4 47. Ng1 Rd2 48. Nf3 Rd1 49. Nh2 f6 50. Nf3 g5 51. h5 Rd5 52. Ng1 Rd2 53. Nf3 Rd1 54. Ng1 Rxg1+ 55. Kxg1 Kf3 56. Kf1 Kg4 57. Kg2 Kxh5 58. Kf3 Kg6 59. e4 fxe4+ 60. Kxe4 h5 61. Kf3 Kf5 62. g4+ hxg4+ 63. Kg3 Ke5 64. Kxg4 Ke4 65. Kg3 f5 66. Kg2 f4 67. Kg1 Kf3 68. Kf1 g4 69. Kg1 Ke2 0-1

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2006.07.24"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2583"]
[BlackElo "2675"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2006.07.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 b6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 Ba6 7. Na3 O-O 8. Bg2 Bb7 9. O-O ({RR} 9. Nb5 a6 10. Nc3 Ne4 11. Qc2 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Nc6 13. O-O Na5 14. c5 d6 15. Qa4 dxc5 16. dxc5 Qe7 17. cxb6 cxb6 18. Rab1 {½-½ (18) Eljanov,P (2693)-Efimenko,Z (2689) Kiev 2012}) 9... d6 10. Rad1 $146 ({RR} 10. Nb5 Nbd7 11. Qc2 Qb8 12. Nc3 c6 13. e4 b5 14. e5 dxe5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. cxb5 Rac8 18. Qb3 Rb8 19. a4 cxb5 20. axb5 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Rb7 {½-½ (21) Lengyel,L-Portisch,L Kecskemet 1966}) ({RR} 10. Rfd1 Nbd7 11. Nb5 a6 12. Nc3 Ne4 13. Nxe4 Bxe4 14. d5 Nf6 15. Nd4 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qd7 17. Nc6 Rae8 18. Qc2 h5 19. f3 e5 20. b4 Nh7 21. a4 f5 22. e3 Ng5 23. f4 Ne4 24. fxe5 dxe5 {Kempinski,R (2566)-Bartel,M (2608) Walbrzych POL 2024 0-1 (56)}) ({RR} 10. Rac1 Nbd7 11. Nb5 Ne4 12. Qe3 a6 {½-½ (12) Olafsson,F-Szabo,L Reykjavik 1968}) 10... Nbd7 11. Rfe1 Qe7 12. Nh4 Bxg2 13. Nxg2 c5 14. Ne3 Rfd8 15. Nb5 cxd4 16. Qxd4 Nc5 17. Qf4 Nce4 18. Ng4 Nxg4 19. Qxe4 Nf6 20. Qf3 Ne8 21. a4 Rac8 22. b3 Nf6 23. Nc3 h6 24. Rd3 Nd7 25. Qb7 Qf8 26. Qxa7 Nc5 27. Rdd1 Rc6 28. a5 Ra8 29. axb6 Rxa7 30. bxa7 Qa8 31. Ra1 Nxb3 32. Ra4 Nd2 33. Nb5 Nxc4 34. Rb1 Kh7 35. f3 d5 0-1

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2006.07.25"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E97"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2731"]
[Annotator "Mikhalevski,Victor"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2006.07.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. a4 {This is a rare line of the Classical system. White starts an offensive on the queenside without weakening the a1-h8 diagonal, which seems to be logical comparing to the Bayonet attack. However the line also has a drawback - White weakens the b4-square, which Black exploits by means of} a5 10. b3 $5 {[%cal Gb3b4,Gc1a3] Preparing a3 followed by b4. Curiously this idea was almost never being tested before.} ({Earlier White played mostly} 10. Ne1 Nd7 11. Nd3 f5 12. exf5 gxf5 13. Ra3 Ng6 14. Kh1 Rf7 15. f4 b6 16. Nb5 Nf6 17. fxe5 dxe5 18. Nf2 Bf8 19. Rb3 Bd7 20. Bg5 Bc5 21. Qb1 e4 22. Nh3 Be7 23. Qc1 $16 {Larsen,B-Gabriel,C, Bad Homburg 1998/CBM 66[Huzman].}) ({One recent game saw the immediate} 10. Ra3 {, which doesn't look too promising.} Nd7 11. Nh4 Nc5 12. g3 f5 13. exf5 Nxf5 14. Nxf5 Bxf5 $15 {0-1 Gonzalez Zamora,J-Dominguez Aguilar,G/Mexico City MEX 2006(49). and Black obtained a good position.}) 10... Nd7 11. Ba3 {Magnus is consistent in his plans.} ({A mix of two plans in the following game doesn't look convincing.} 11. Ne1 Nc5 12. Ba3 b6 13. b4 axb4 14. Bxb4 f5 15. f3 Bd7 16. a5 Na6 17. Ba3 bxa5 18. c5 (18. Nd3 $5 {[%cal Gc4c5] preparing c5.}) 18... Nxc5 19. Bxc5 dxc5 20. d6 cxd6 21. Qxd6 Bc6 $17 {Lehikoinen,P-Virtanen,A/Finland 2003. and White doesn't have sufficient compensation for the sacrificed material.} (21... Rf6 $5)) 11... Bh6 {[%csl Rg5][%cal Gf7f5] This idea is also typical for the Bayonet attack. Black takes control of the g5-square, which White could exploit in case of the immediate f5 playing g5, like in the game below.} ({In a fresh game Black tested} 11... f5 $6 12. Ng5 $1 Nf6 (12... Nc5 $5) 13. c5 $1 h6 14. cxd6 cxd6 15. Ne6 Bxe6 16. dxe6 $16 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 fxe4 18. Qxd6 Nf5 19. Qxd8 Rfxd8 20. e7 Rd7 21. Bb5 $18 {1-0 Oosterom,E-Nijs,N/Vlissingen NED 2006.}) 12. b4 axb4 13. Bxb4 {It's interesting that the same position arises in the Bayonet attack (9.b4) with an extra tempo since here White played first b3 and only then b4. So either Carlsen is so sure in this position even a tempo down or he's unfamiliar with this line of the Bayonet attack. The latter seems to me less likely.} f5 14. Nd2 {White supports the centre and sometimes brings the knight to b3 to prepare c5.} Kh8 {A useful prophylactic move. Black takes his king away from the a2-g8 diagonal to a safer square in the corner of the board.} 15. a5 $146 ({RR} 15. Bd3 Ng8 16. Qe2 Rf7 17. Nb5 Ndf6 18. exf5 gxf5 19. Bc2 Ne7 20. g3 Ng6 21. Bc3 c6 22. dxc6 bxc6 23. Na3 Bg7 24. Rab1 Nd7 25. Qf3 e4 26. Bxg7+ Kxg7 27. Qe3 Ba6 28. Qd4+ Qf6 29. Qxf6+ Rxf6 {Pogosian,G (2174)-Tukhvatullin,V (2296) Voronezh 2010 0-1 (48)}) 15... Rf7 {For those who are familiar with the similar line of the Bayonet attack all these ideas are well known. Black makes another useful move and leaves the knight on d7 for one more move in order to prevent c5.} 16. Nb5 {White not only activates his knight and creates some pressure on the queenside, but also frees the c3-square for the dark-squared bishop.} Nf6 {Black finds no useful moves anymore and attacks the centre. The move however has a serious drawback - Black allows c5.} 17. c5 dxc5 18. Bc3 $5 {[%csl Re5] Trying to exploit the weakness of the e5-pawn.This retreat in the Bayonet attack is a speciality of Vladimir Kramnik. Carlsen shows that he's familiar with this idea and thus refutes my earlier assumption that he's unfamiliar with this line of the Bayonet attack.} ({In case of} 18. Bxc5 {White has to be ready to sacrifice a piece after} Bxd2 19. Qxd2 Nxe4 20. Qb2 $1 {[%csl Re5] It's very difficult to find this move.} Nxc5 21. Qxe5+ Kg8 22. Nxc7 {and it turns out that White is slightly better. I.e.} Rb8 ({or} 22... Nd7 23. Qc3 Ra7 24. Rfd1 Nf6 25. d6 Nc6 26. Bc4 $16) 23. d6 (23. Rfb1 $5) 23... Ne4 24. dxe7 Qxe7 25. Qxe7 Rxe7 26. Bc4+ Kg7 27. Nd5 $14) 18... c6 19. dxc6 bxc6 $6 {After this inaccurate move Black will be unable to protect the e5-pawn and thus White obtains a serious initiative.} (19... Nxc6 $1 {was necessary and after} 20. Nc4 Rd7 21. Qc2 {Black sacrifices an exchange and gets serious compensation.} Nxe4 22. Nb6 Rb8 23. Nxd7 Bxd7 {[%cal Gc6d4] with d4 to follow. The resulting position is very complicated and both sides have their chances.}) 20. Na3 {[%cal Ga3c4] From here the knight is ready to jump to c4.} fxe4 $6 {Black wants the d5-square for his knights. However, Black had to distract the white pieces from the e5-pawn.} (20... Bxd2 $1 {I understand that exchanging the dark-squared bishop looks bad, but in this case it seems to be playable and even necessary. Sometimes concrete approach prevails on positional aspects of the position and this seems to be the case.} 21. Nc4 {[%csl Rd8] Exploiting the pin along the d-file.} (21. Bxd2 Nxe4 22. Bc3 $1 Qxd1 23. Bxe5+ Kg8 24. Rfxd1 Rxa5 25. f3 Ng5 26. Nc4 Rxa1 27. Rxa1 Nd5 28. Nd6 Rf8 29. Ra7 Ne6 {and Black should be able to hold the position.}) 21... Nxe4 22. Bxe5+ Kg8 23. f3 Qd5 $1 24. fxe4 Be3+ 25. Nxe3 Qxe5 26. Ng4 $3 fxg4 27. Qd8+ Kg7 28. Rxf7+ Kxf7 29. Rf1+ Nf5 30. Bc4+ Kg7 31. Qg8+ Kh6 32. exf5 gxf5 (32... Ba6 $2 33. Qxa8 Bxc4 34. Qf8+ Kg5 35. fxg6 $1 $18) 33. Kh1 $14 (33. Qf8+ Kg5 34. Kh1 Ba6 $1 35. Qxa8 Bxc4 36. Rg1 Bd5 37. Qd8+ Kg6 38. a6 Bxg2+ $1 39. Rxg2 Qe1+ 40. Rg1 Qe4+ 41. Rg2 $11)) 21. Nac4 $1 Ned5 22. Bxe5 Bg7 (22... Kg8 $5) 23. Nd6 Re7 24. N2c4 {White is only a pawn down, but all his minor pieces are nicely situated.} Be6 $2 {This is already a serious mistake. The a-pawn shouldn't be left unattended.} 25. a6 $1 {[%csl Ga6] The a-pawn goes forward immediatly.} (25. Qb3 {[%cal Gb3b2] with the idea of b2 also looked strong.}) 25... Nb4 $5 (25... Rea7 $2 {would be strongly met by} 26. Na5 $1 {[%csl Rc6]}) 26. Qc1 Nd3 $6 ({White's idea behind 26.Qc1 can be seen in the following line.} 26... Rxa6 27. Rxa6 Nxa6 28. Qa1 $1 {with a double attack on a6 and f6.} Ra7 29. f3 $1 e3 30. Nxe3 $16 {and White is clearly better.}) ({Probably Morozevich should have tried} 26... Nxa6 27. Qf4 Rea7) 27. Bxd3 exd3 28. Qc3 $6 {This seems to be an inaccuracy.} (28. Rd1 $5 {would be more precise.}) 28... Bxc4 $1 29. Qxc4 Qg8 $1 {Covering the f7-square.} 30. Qxc5 d2 (30... Rxe5 {would probably lead to a position similar to the game.} 31. Qxe5 Nd5 {[%csl Ra1,Re5]} 32. Qe1 Bxa1 33. Qxa1+ Qg7 34. Qa4 Qc7 35. Qd4+ Kg8 36. Ne4 Rxa6 37. Qxd3 $14 {[%csl Rg8] and White is better thanks to the vulnerability of the black king.}) 31. Rad1 $6 (31. Nc4 $1 {deserved serious attention.}) 31... Rxa6 $6 {Returning the favour.} (31... Qd5 $1 {was much better. However it was very difficult to spot the following idea.} 32. Qc3 Rxe5 $1 33. Qxe5 Rxa6 $1 {and it turns out that White can't win the d2-pawn.} 34. Qxd5 cxd5 35. Nf7+ Kg8 36. Ng5 Ra2 $11 {[%csl Gd2][%cal Gg7h6] with the idea of h6 and Black looks ok.}) 32. Rxd2 $16 {Now the unsecure position of the black king and activity of white pieces yield White chances for a win.} Nd5 33. Bxg7+ Rxg7 $6 (33... Kxg7 34. Qd4+ Nf6 {was better.}) 34. h3 $6 {Now it's White's turn to return a favour.} ({After} 34. Re2 $1 {it would be very difficult for Black to defend his king.} Re7 (34... Nc7 $5 35. Qe5 Ra8 $16 {is the only defense.}) 35. Rxe7 Nxe7 36. Ne8 $3 {[%csl Rh8]} Qxe8 37. Qc3+ Kg8 38. Qc4+ $18) 34... Qe6 $1 35. Rb1 $1 h6 $1 {Black finds only moves to stay in the game.} 36. Qc4 $1 Rb6 ({After} 36... Rga7 $1 {White would have to find} 37. Rdb2 $3 {and eventually a position with ++1 extra pawn on the kingside arises as well as it could happen in the game.} Ra1 (37... Qxd6 38. Rb8+ Kg7 39. R1b7+ Kf6 (39... Ne7 40. Rg8+ $1 Kf6 41. Rf8+ $1 {and mate on the next move.}) 40. Qd4+ Kg5 41. Rxa7 Rxa7 42. Qxa7 $18) 38. Qxc6 Rc7 39. Qe8+ Qxe8 40. Nxe8 Rc1+ 41. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 42. Kh2 $16) 37. Rxb6 Qe1+ 38. Kh2 Nxb6 $2 {The decisive mistake.} (38... Qxd2 {was necessary.} 39. Rxc6 Qf4+ 40. Qxf4 Nxf4 $16 {and Black still maintains chances for a draw.}) 39. Qf4 $1 {[%cal Gf4f8]} Nd5 $2 {Loses on the spot, however Black's position was already hopeless.} (39... Qe7 {against f8 was Black's best defense. Still after} 40. Qxh6+ Kg8 41. Qf4 Nd5 42. Qg3 $18 {White should be able to convert his extra pawn in a win.}) 40. Rxd5 $1 cxd5 41. Qf8+ Kh7 (41... Rg8 42. Qxh6#) 42. Ne8 {[%cal Ge8f6] A nice mating construction. Black can't prevent huge material losses and so he resigned. The line introduced by Carlsen deserves further tests.} 1-0

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2006.07.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2728"]
[BlackElo "2675"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2006.07.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. Nf3 d6 8. g3 Bg7 9. Rb1 Nbd7 10. Bg2 O-O 11. b3 Qa5 12. Bd2 Bb7 13. O-O Qa6 14. e4 e6 15. dxe6 fxe6 16. Ng5 d5 17. exd5 $146 ({RR} 17. Re1 h6 18. Nh3 Nxe4 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Bxh6 Bxh6 21. Qxd7 Rf7 22. Qd1 e3 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. Qg4 Kh7 25. Rb2 Raf8 26. Rbe2 exf2+ 27. Rxf2 Rxf2 28. Nxf2 Bg7 29. Qh3+ Kg8 30. Qxe6+ Kh7 31. Re4 g5 {Milanovic,D (2464)-Pap,M (2399) Subotica 2005 1-0 (42)}) 17... exd5 18. Re1 Rae8 19. Rxe8 Rxe8 20. Qf1 h6 21. Qxa6 Bxa6 22. Nf3 d4 23. Na4 Ne4 24. Re1 Ndf6 25. Ba5 Bb5 26. Nb6 Nc3 27. Rxe8+ Bxe8 28. Bxc3 dxc3 29. Ne1 Ng4 30. h3 Ne5 31. Na4 Nd7 32. Kf1 Bd4 33. Bc6 Kf8 34. Ke2 g5 35. Nc2 Ke7 36. f3 Kd6 37. Bb5 Bg6 38. Bd3 Bf7 39. b4 Bxa2 40. bxc5+ Nxc5 41. Nxd4 Nxa4 42. Nf5+ Ke5 43. Nxh6 Nc5 44. Ke3 Bb3 45. Ng4+ Ke6 46. Nf2 Nxd3 47. Nxd3 Bd1 48. Nf2 c2 49. Nd3 Kf5 50. Nc1 Ke5 51. Nd3+ Kf5 52. g4+ Kf6 53. Nc1 Ke5 54. Na2 Kf6 55. f4 gxf4+ 56. Kxf4 Be2 57. h4 Kg6 58. Nc1 Bc4 59. Ke5 Ba6 60. Ke4 Bc8 61. Kf4 Ba6 62. Ke3 Bc8 63. g5 Kh5 64. Kd2 Bf5 65. Nb3 Kxh4 66. Nd4 Kxg5 67. Nxf5 Kxf5 68. Kxc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2006.08.01"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E97"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Mikhalevski,Victor"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2006.07.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "17"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. Kh1 {Earlier in the tournament Carlsen introduced a new idea in the side line with 9.a4 against Morozevich, this time he comes with an even more rare continuation, which was a speciality of Miles.} Nd7 {[%cal Gd7c5,Gf7f5] Black prepares f5 and brings the knight to c5. What else can be more typical for the KID?} (9... Kh8) 10. g4 $5 Kh8 {Black frees the g8-square for the knight and moves the king away from the g-file and thus prepares f5.} (10... Nc5 {usually leads to transposition after} 11. Rg1 a5 12. Be3 Kh8) ({RR} 10... f5 11. gxf5 gxf5 12. Rg1 Kh8 13. Ng5 Nf6 14. exf5 Nxf5 15. Bd3 Qe7 16. Nce4 Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Qe8 18. Qg4 Rf6 19. Nxh7 Qf7 20. Nxf6 Qxf6 21. Qh5+ Kg8 22. Bg5 Qf7 23. Qh3 Kf8 24. Qh7 Bd7 25. Rg2 {Sarana,A (2717)-Drozdowski,K (2450) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 10... a5 11. Rg1 Nc5 12. Rg2 Bd7 13. Rb1 c6 14. Be3 cxd5 15. cxd5 Qc8 16. Nd2 Kh8 17. f3 Qc7 18. Rc1 b6 19. Bb5 f5 20. gxf5 gxf5 21. Qg1 Rg8 22. Nc4 Rab8 23. Bxd7 Qxd7 24. Nb5 Nxd5 25. Nbxd6 {Hammari,V (2029)-Evenshaug,A (2239) Norway NOR 2025 1-0 (41)}) 11. Rg1 {White also prepares himself for opening of the g-file.} a5 {Securing the outpost of the knight on c5.} 12. Be3 Nc5 ({Black also tested} 12... b6 $6 {preparing c5.} 13. Qd2 (13. a3 $1 {with the idea to meet} Nc5 {by means of} 14. b4 {would be the most logical refutation of Black's slow play.}) 13... Nc5 14. Rg3 Bd7 15. Rag1 $14 {1-0 Lafuente,P-Fiorito,F/Mar del Plata 2001/CBM 081 ext (28)}) (12... Ng8 13. Qd2 Nc5 14. Ne1 f5 15. f3 fxg4 16. fxg4 $14 b6 $2 17. g5 $16 {1-0 Miles,A-Becerra Rivera,J, Capablanca mem 34th 1999/ CBM71 [Huzman].}) 13. Rc1 $146 {This turns out to be a novelty. Frankly speaking it's not easy to understand the idea behind this move. Probably White decided to keep all his plans open and made a useful move, taking his rook away from the a1-h8 diagonal.} ({Earlier White tested} 13. Qd2 Ng8 14. Rg3 b6 15. Rag1 {As you can see doubling of rooks along the g-file is a typical idea in this line, which is aimed against f5.} Nf6 16. Qc2 Bd7 17. Nd2 (17. Ne1 $5 {[%cal Ge1d3] Heading to d3.}) 17... c6 18. f3 (18. dxc6 $5 Bxc6 19. Rh3 $14) 18... Qc8 19. Qd1 Qb7 20. Qf1 Rab8 21. Qf2 Kg8 22. Rh3 Rfe8 23. Qh4 h5 24. dxc6 Qxc6 25. Nd5 $1 $16 {Tosic,M-Kolev,A/Vrnjacka Banja 1990. with a clear edge for White.}) (13. Ne1 f5 14. f3 fxe4 15. fxe4 c6 16. Nd3 cxd5 17. cxd5 b6 18. Nxc5 bxc5 19. Qd2 Rb8 20. Raf1 Bd7 21. Rxf8+ Qxf8 22. Rf1 Qc8 23. h3 $16 {Miles,A-Gheorghiu,F/Crans Montana 2001. and all Black's minor pieces are out of play.} (23. g5 $5 $16)) (13. a3 {[%cal Gb2b4] preparing b4 deserved serious attention. Now Black has either play} f5 {immediately.} ({or} 13... a4 {sacrificing a pawn and only after} 14. Bxc5 dxc5 15. Nxa4 b6 {[%cal Gf7f5] preparing f5.}) 14. gxf5 gxf5 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Bd3 $14 {with a slightly better position for White.}) ({RR} 13. Qd2 Ng8 14. Qc2 Bd7 15. Rg3 b6 16. Rag1 Nf6 17. Nd2 Qc8 18. Qd1 Kg8 19. Qf1 Ne8 20. f3 Qd8 21. b3 Bf6 22. g5 Bg7 23. Qc1 f6 24. h4 f5 25. exf5 Bxf5 26. Nde4 Qe7 27. Qd2 Bh8 {Raghunandan,K (2398)-Priyanka,K (2106) Abu Dhabi 2017 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 13. Qd2 Ng8 14. Rg3 b6 15. Rag1 Nf6 16. Qc2 Bd7 17. Nd2 c6 18. f3 Qc8 19. Qd1 Qb7 20. Qf1 Rab8 21. Qf2 Kg8 22. Rh3 Rfe8 23. Qh4 h5 24. dxc6 Qxc6 25. Nd5 Nxd5 26. cxd5 Qc7 27. Bg5 b5 {Tosic,M (2375)-Kolev,A (2425) Vrnjacka Banja 1990 1-0 (56)}) 13... Bd7 14. b3 {White is ready to meet a4 with b4. The plan with a3 and b4 is not very dangerous for Black right now as a3 will be always met by means of a4 b4 b3.} Ng8 15. Nd2 {[%csl Ye4][%cal Ga2a3,Gb3b4,Gd2e4] Getting ready for f5 and at the same time covering the b3-square and thus preparing a3 and b4.} (15. a3 a4 16. b4 Nb3 17. Rb1 {would have been a double-edged idea as the knight is close to the d4-square and Black may always try to open the position by means of f5.}) 15... f6 $1 {[%cal Gg7h6] Black prepares the exchange of the dark-squared bishops by means of h6 and so the text is made in order to prevent g5.} 16. h4 f5 {[%csl Rh4] The waste of a tempo is not essential as h4 weakened the king.} ({Now} 16... Bh6 {can be met by means of} 17. g5) 17. g5 {White has to close the position this way since the h4-pawn was hanging.} Nxe4 $5 {Otherwise White plays f3 and stabilizes the position in the centre.} 18. Ndxe4 fxe4 19. Nxe4 Ne7 {[%csl Re3,Rh4][%cal Ge7f5] The knight comes to f5.} 20. Bg4 {This move connected with the following exchange is a risky idea. Probably all of this was caused by White's somewhat bit careless play in the early stages of the game.} (20. h5 $5 Nf5 21. Bd3 {deserved attention.}) 20... Nf5 21. Bxf5 Bxf5 {This allows White to consolidate the position.} (21... gxf5 $5 {looks like an interesting attempt to play for a win.} 22. Qh5 $1 (22. Nc3 f4 23. Bd2 f3 $1 24. Rg3 h5 $1 25. Rxf3 (25. gxh6 $2 Qxh4+ 26. Kg1 Bxh6 $19) 25... Bg4 26. Rxf8+ Qxf8 $36 {with a strong initiative.}) (22. Nf6 $2 f4 $1 23. Bd2 Bxf6 24. gxf6 Qxf6 $19) 22... f4 $1 (22... fxe4 $4 23. g6 $18) (22... Be8 23. g6 Bxg6 24. Rxg6 fxe4 25. Rg2 (25. Rcg1 Qe8 $1) (25. Rg3 Rf3 $1) 25... Qf6 26. Rcg1 Rf7 27. Rg3 $1 {with the idea of g4 looks good for White.}) 23. Bd2 Bf5 24. Qf3 (24. Rce1 $5 Bg6 25. Qf3 Qe8) 24... Qe8 {[%cal Gf5g6,Ga5a4,Gb7b5] with a complicated position in which Black looks at least not worse.}) 22. f3 Qd7 23. Rg3 $1 {[%csl Rh3] Covering the h3-square.} Rf7 (23... Bxe4 24. fxe4 Rf4 {is hardly a good idea to play for a win.} 25. Bxf4 exf4 26. Qg4 Qe7 27. Rf3 Be5 28. Rcf1 $16 {and then h3 with h5 to follow.}) 24. Kg2 b6 25. Qe2 Raf8 26. Rh1 Kg8 27. a3 Rb8 {[%cal Gb6b5] Preparing b5. So} 28. a4 Rbf8 29. Qd1 Rb8 30. Qd3 {Neither side can make progress and so a draw was agreed. An interesting game, which however leaves many questions open. Hopefully we'll see more games on the subject.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Amsterdam NH Hotels 1st"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "2006.08.22"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Beliavsky, Alexander G"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E55"]
[WhiteElo "2625"]
[BlackElo "2675"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[EventDate "2006.08.19"]
[EventType "schev"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5 7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 9. a3 Ba5 10. Bd2 ({RR} 10. Nb5 cxd4 11. Qxd4 Bb6 12. Qh4 Ne8 13. Qxd8 Bxd8 14. Bd2 a6 15. Nbd4 Nd6 16. Ba2 Ne4 17. Bb4 Re8 18. Rfd1 b6 19. Rac1 Bf6 20. h3 Ndc5 21. Nh2 a5 22. Be1 Ba6 23. Ng4 Be7 24. Ne5 Bf6 {Aleksandrov,A (2659)-Adams,M (2740) Mallorca 2004 ½-½}) ({RR} 10. Qd3 a6 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. Qxd8 Bxd8 13. b4 Nce4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Bb2 b5 16. Bd3 Bb7 17. Rfc1 Bd5 18. Ne5 f6 19. Nc6 Nd2 20. Rc2 Nc4 21. Nxd8 Rfxd8 22. Bd4 e5 23. Bc5 e4 24. Be2 Ne5 {Beliavsky,A (2646)-Kotronias,V (2603) Gibraltar 2009 1-0 (53)}) 10... b6 ({RR} 10... cxd4 11. exd4 a6 12. b4 Bc7 13. Bb3 b5 14. Bg5 h6 15. Bh4 g5 16. Bg3 Bb7 17. d5 Bxd5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Bxd5 exd5 20. Qxd5 Ne5 21. Rfd1 Qxd5 22. Rxd5 Nxf3+ 23. gxf3 Rfd8 24. Rf5 Bb6 25. a4 {Shen,F (2153)-Xu,Y (2515) Daqing CHN 2025 ½-½ (40)}) 11. Qb1 $146 ({RR} 11. Qe2 Bb7 12. Rad1 a6 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Ba2 Qc7 15. Rc1 Bc6 16. Nb1 Rab8 17. b4 Ng4 18. Rfd1 Bxf3 19. Qxf3 Qxh2+ 20. Kf1 Qh4 21. g3 Qh5 22. Ke2 Nde5 23. Rxc5 Rb5 24. Rxe5 Rxe5 25. Rh1 Qg6 {Del Rio de Angelis,S (2517)-Guerrero Vargas,A (2303) Linares 2014 0-1 (41)}) 11... Bxc3 12. Bxc3 Bb7 13. Rd1 Qc7 14. dxc5 Qxc5 15. Be2 Rfd8 16. Qd3 Qf8 17. Qc4 Ne4 18. Bb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Amsterdam NH Hotels 1st"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "2006.08.25"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ljubojevic, Ljubomir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2551"]
[BlackElo "2675"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2006.08.19"]
[EventType "schev"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. Nf3 Bg7 8. g3 d6 9. Bg2 Nbd7 10. O-O Nb6 11. Ne1 O-O ({RR} 11... Nfd7 12. Nc2 O-O 13. Ne3 Ne5 14. Rb1 Nbc4 15. h4 Qa5 16. Qc2 Rfb8 17. h5 Nxe3 18. Bxe3 Nc4 19. Bg5 Ra7 20. Rfc1 h6 21. hxg6 hxg5 22. gxf7+ Kf8 23. Qh7 Kxf7 24. Ne4 Rxb2 25. Nxg5+ Kf6 26. Be4 {Rios Escobar,A (2276)-Flis,P (1936) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) 12. Nc2 Nc4 13. Ne3 Qb6 ({RR} 13... Ne8 14. Nxc4 Bxc4 15. Bd2 Nc7 16. b3 Nb5 17. Rc1 Nxc3 18. Bxc3 Bxc3 19. Rxc3 Bb5 20. a4 Ba6 21. Re3 Rb8 22. h4 Rb4 23. Qd2 Qd7 24. Rc1 Rfb8 25. Rcc3 Rd4 26. Qc2 Kf8 27. Rf3 Kg8 28. e4 {Riazantsev,A (2708)-Prizant,J (2515) Ekaterinburg 2013 ½-½ (40)}) 14. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 14. Rb1 Nd7 15. Qc2 Qa5 16. Nxc4 Bxc4 17. Bd2 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Qxa2 19. Qe4 Rfe8 20. Rbd1 Nb6 21. Qf3 Na4 22. Rfe1 Reb8 23. Ra1 Qb3 24. Ra3 Qb5 25. Qe3 Nxc3 26. Rxc3 Ra7 27. g4 Ba2 28. b3 Qb4 {Obukhov,A-Arbakov,V (2415) Cheliabinsk 1989 0-1 (34)}) 14... Rfb8 15. b3 Nxe3 16. Bxe3 Ng4 17. Bd2 c4 18. h3 cxb3 19. axb3 Ne5 20. Ra4 Nd7 21. b4 Qb7 22. Rb1 Qc8 23. b5 Bxc3 24. Qxc3 Rxb5 25. Rxb5 Bxb5 26. Qxc8+ Rxc8 27. Ra7 f6 28. Rb7 Rb8 29. Rxb8+ Nxb8 30. e4 Nd7 31. f3 f5 32. Kf2 fxe4 33. fxe4 Kf7 34. Ke3 Ne5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Amsterdam NH Hotels 1st"]
[Site "Amsterdam"]
[Date "2006.08.27"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Jussupow, Artur"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E55"]
[WhiteElo "2617"]
[BlackElo "2675"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2006.08.19"]
[EventType "schev"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 114"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 c5 7. O-O dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 9. a3 Ba5 10. Bd2 cxd4 11. exd4 Bxc3 12. bxc3 b6 13. Qe2 Bb7 14. Bd3 Qc7 15. Rfe1 Rfe8 16. c4 Rad8 17. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 17. Rad1 h6 18. h3 Qd6 19. Qe3 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 e5 21. Bb4 Qb8 22. d5 Nc5 23. Bb1 e4 24. Qe3 Qc7 25. Bc3 Qd6 26. Bc2 Nh5 27. Qd4 Qg6 28. Qe3 f5 29. f4 exf3 30. Qxf3 Ne4 31. Bd4 Nhg3 {Korobov,A (2605)-Almasi,Z (2663) Beijing 2008 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 17. Rad1 Qd6 18. Bb4 Qc6 19. Qd2 Nf8 20. Qg5 Ng6 21. Bc3 Qa4 22. d5 exd5 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Qxf6 Rxe1+ 25. Rxe1 Re8 26. Rxe8+ Qxe8 27. Bxg6 hxg6 28. cxd5 Bxd5 29. Ne5 Qe6 30. Qg5 Be4 31. Ng4 Bf5 {Kovalenko,I (2429)-Miroshnichenko,E (2651) Kharkov 2007 ½-½ (45)}) 17... Nf8 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Be4 Bxe4 20. Qxe4 Qxc4 21. Qg4+ Kh8 22. Qh4 Kg7 23. Qg4+ Ng6 24. h4 Kh8 25. h5 Ne7 26. Rac1 Qd5 27. Qh4 Qf5 28. Rc7 Rg8 29. Nh2 Nd5 30. Rxf7 a5 31. g3 b5 32. Qe4 Qxh5 33. Qxe6 b4 34. axb4 axb4 35. Re7 Qg6 36. Rd7 Nf4 37. Qd6 Nh3+ 38. Kg2 Rxd7 39. Qxd7 Nxf2 40. Nf1 Nd3 41. Re3 b3 42. Qd6 b2 43. Nd2 h6 44. Kg1 Qf5 45. Kh1 Nf2+ 46. Kg2 Ne4 47. Rxe4 b1=Q 48. Rf4 Qb7+ 0-1

[Event "NOR-ch playoff"]
[Site "Oslo"]
[Date "2006.09.19"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2675"]
[BlackElo "2575"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2006.09.19"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 115"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2006.11.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2006.11.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Bxc4 c5 6. O-O a6 7. Bb3 Be7 8. Nc3 O-O ({RR} 8... b5 9. a3 Bb7 10. Qe2 Nbd7 11. Rd1 Qc7 12. e4 b4 13. axb4 cxb4 14. e5 bxc3 15. exf6 Nxf6 16. bxc3 O-O 17. c4 Be4 18. Nd2 Bg6 19. c5 e5 20. dxe5 Nd7 21. Bb2 Nxc5 22. Bc4 a5 23. Rac1 {Heinzel,T (1735)-Reinartz,A (1986) Krefeld GER 2023 ½-½}) 9. Qe2 b5 ({RR} 9... cxd4 10. exd4 Nc6 11. Rd1 Na5 12. Bc2 b5 13. Bg5 Bb7 14. d5 exd5 15. Nd4 g6 16. Qf3 Ne4 17. Bh6 Re8 18. Nf5 Bf6 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Qf4 Qb8 21. Nd6 Re6 22. b3 Qc7 23. Rac1 Be5 24. Qg5 {Mamedyarov,S (2747)-Dominguez Perez,L (2732) Huaian 2016 1-0}) 10. dxc5 Bb7 11. e4 $146 ({RR} 11. Bc2 Bxc5 12. e4 Nbd7 13. e5 Bxf3 14. gxf3 Nh5 15. Rd1 g6 16. a4 b4 17. Ne4 Be7 18. Be3 Qc7 19. f4 Rfd8 20. Rac1 Qa5 21. Nd2 Nf8 22. Nc4 Rxd1+ 23. Bxd1 Qd8 24. Nb6 Rb8 25. a5 Ng7 {Babula,V (2584)-Grund,H (2432) Germany 2007 1-0 (40)}) 11... Nfd7 12. Bf4 Nxc5 13. Rfd1 Qa5 14. Bc2 b4 15. Nb1 b3 16. Bd3 bxa2 17. Nc3 Nxd3 18. Rxd3 Rd8 19. Rxa2 Qb6 20. Rxd8+ Qxd8 21. Ra1 Nc6 22. Rd1 Qe8 23. Bd6 Rd8 24. Bxe7 Qxe7 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Qc4 Qd6 27. h3 h6 28. Qe2 Nd4 29. Nxd4 Qxd4 30. Kf1 g5 31. f3 Kg7 32. Qf2 Qd6 33. Qa7 Bc8 34. Qe3 e5 35. Ne2 Qd1+ 36. Kf2 Qc2 37. b4 Be6 38. Qc3 Qxc3 39. Nxc3 h5 40. Ke3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 0607"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2006.12.08"]
[Round "7.2"]
[White "Stocek, Jiri"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2572"]
[BlackElo "2698"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2006.10.28"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Bann"]
[BlackTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 {Iotov,Valentin Dimitrov} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d5 5. cxd5 ({RR} 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. e3 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. dxc5 Qa5) ({RR} 5. Qa4+) 5... exd5 6. Bg5 O-O 7. e3 c5 8. dxc5 Nbd7 ({RR} 8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Be6) ({RR} 8... Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Be6 10. Be2 {½-½ (10) Lokander,M (2466)-Sumets,A (2504) Sweden SWE 2025}) 9. Rc1 ({RR} 9. Be2 Qa5 10. O-O Bxc3 11. bxc3 Ne4 12. Qd4 Ndxc5) 9... Qa5 ({RR} 9... Nxc5 10. Qd4 Bxc3+ ({RR} 10... a5 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Qxf6 gxf6 13. Be2 Na4 14. O-O Bxc3 15. bxc3 Be6 16. Bb5 ({RR} 16. Nd4 Rfc8 17. c4 dxc4 18. Nxe6 fxe6 19. Bxc4 Kf7 20. f4 Ke7) 16... Nc5 17. Nd4) 11. Qxc3 Nce4 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 13. Be2 Bg4 14. O-O Qb6 15. h3 ({RR} 15. Rfd1) 15... Rac8 16. Qa3 Bh5 17. Rfd1 a6 18. Nd4 Bxe2 19. Nxe2) 10. Nd2 ({RR} 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. b4 Nxc3 13. Qa1 Qa4 14. Qxc3 a5 ({RR} 14... Re8 15. Nd4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Bf4 Nc4 18. Bxc4 dxc4 19. O-O) 15. b5 Nxc5 ({RR} 15... Re8) 16. Qxc5 Bf5 ({RR} 16... Bd7 17. Be2 Rfc8 18. Qxd5 Rc1+ 19. Bd1 Qxb5 20. Qxb5 Bxb5 21. Nd4 Ba4 22. Ke2 Ra1 23. Rf1 Rxa3 24. Bxa4 Rxa4 25. Rb1) 17. Qc3 Rfc8 18. Qa1 Qc2 ({RR} 18... Rc5 19. Be2 Qc2 20. Nd4 Qc1+ 21. Qxc1 Rxc1+ 22. Bd1 Bg6 23. O-O) 19. Nd4 Qc1+ 20. Qxc1 Rxc1+ 21. Kd2 Rac8 22. Nxf5 R8c2+ 23. Kd3 Rxf2 24. Ne7+ ({RR} 24. Ng3) 24... Kh8 {Aronian,L (2792)-Nakamura,H (2787) Leuven 2016 CBM 173 [Iotov,Valentin Dimitrov] 1-0 (37)} ({RR} 24... Kf8 25. Nxd5 Rfxf1 26. Rxf1 Rxf1 27. Bf4) {RR} 25. e4 dxe4+ 26. Kxe4 Rcxf1 27. Rxf1 Rxf1 28. Be3) ({RR} 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. b4 Nxc3 13. Qa1 Qa4 14. Qxc3 a5 15. b5 Nxc5 16. Qxc5 Be6 17. Qc1 Rfc8 18. Qa1 Qc2 19. Be2 Qc1+ 20. Qxc1 Rxc1+ 21. Bd1 Ra1 22. a4 Rc8 23. Nd4 Rc4 24. O-O f6 {Topalov,V (2783)-Carlsen,M (2690) Wijk aan Zee 2007 1-0}) 10... Qxc5 ({RR} 10... b6 11. c6 d4 12. cxd7 dxc3 13. bxc3 Bxc3 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. dxc8=Q Raxc8 16. Bc4 Rfd8 17. O-O Bxd2 18. Rc2 Bxe3 19. Qf3 Bd4 20. Bxf7+ Kh8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Qh3) ({RR} 10... Ne4 11. Ndxe4 dxe4 12. a3 Qxc5 13. axb4 Qxg5 14. Nxe4 Qe7 15. Qd4 Nb6 16. Nc3) 11. a3 $146 ({RR} 11. Nb3 Qd6 12. Bd3 d4 13. Nxd4 Qd5 14. Nf3 Ne5 15. Ke2 Bxc3 16. Bxf6 Nxd3 17. Rxc3 Nf4+ 18. exf4 Qb5+ 19. Qd3 Qxb2+ 20. Qc2 Qb5+ 21. Qd3 Qb2+ 22. Qc2 Qb5+ 23. Qd3 {½-½ (23) Gozzoli,Y (2453)-Cornette,M (2482) France 2007}) ({RR} 11. Nb3 Qb6 12. Be2) 11... Bxc3 12. Rxc3 Qb6 13. Rb3 Qe6 14. Be2 Nc5 15. Rb4 Nfe4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. O-O Qg6 18. Qd5 Nd3 19. Rd4 Nxb2 20. Rb1 Nd3 21. h4 h6 22. Be7 Re8 23. Bh5 Be6 24. Bxg6 Bxd5 25. Rxd5 Rxe7 26. Bxe4 Nxf2 27. Kxf2 Rxe4 28. Rxb7 Rxh4 29. Rdd7 Ra4 30. Kg3 Rxa3 31. Rxf7 Rxe3+ 32. Kf2 Re6 33. Rxg7+ Kh8 34. Rh7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 0607"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2007.03.31"]
[Round "14.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Hracek, Zbynek"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D58"]
[WhiteElo "2698"]
[BlackElo "2614"]
[Annotator "Meyer,Claus Dieter"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2006.10.28"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[BlackTeam "Werder Bremen"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 b6 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. O-O dxc4 ({Eine Nebenvariante des Tartakower-Systems: Schwarz aktiviert den b7, strebt mittels ...e4 Leichtfigurentausch an und hofft, sich mit baldigem ...c5 befreien zu können.} 9... Nbd7 {ist die oft erprobte Hauptvariante. Hierzu kurz ein älteres, aufregendes Bundesliga-Gefecht des Tschechen} {sowie eine aktuelle, solide Partie:} 10. Qe2 c5 11. Rad1 (11. Bg3 Ne4 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Rad1 Qc8 14. Rc1 Rd8 15. Rfd1 Ndf6 16. Ne5 Qe6 17. Bh4 Rac8 18. f3 cxd4 19. exd4 Nxc3 20. Rxc3 Rxc3 21. bxc3 Nd7 22. Bxe7 Qxe7 23. Nxd7 Rxd7 24. Re1 Qxe2 25. Rxe2 Kf8 26. Re3 Re7 27. Kf2 Rxe3 28. Kxe3 Ke7 {½-½ Bacrot,E (2705)-Ivanchuk,V (2750)/Odessa 2007/CBM 116}) 11... Ne4 12. Bg3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 cxd4 14. exd4 dxc4 15. Bxc4 Nf6 16. Ne5 Bb4 17. f4 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Ne4 19. f5 exf5 20. Nxf7 Rxf7 21. Rxf5 Nf6 22. Rxf6 gxf6 23. Qh5 Qe7 24. Qg6+ Kf8 25. Rf1 Be4 26. Qxh6+ Ke8 27. Re1 f5 28. Rxe4 Qxe4 29. Qg6 Rc8 30. Qxf7+ Kd8 31. Be6 Qe3+ {½-½ Speelman,J (2603)-Hracek,Z (2610)/Germany 2001/CBM 87}) 10. Bxc4 Ne4 11. Nxe4 ({I} 11. Bg3 $5 Nxg3 12. hxg3 c5 (12... Nd7 {c5}) 13. d5 exd5 14. Bxd5 Nc6 15. Qa4 Qc7 16. Rfd1 a6 (16... Rad8) 17. Qf4 $5 $14 {1-0 Van Wely,L (2676)-Borriss,M (2455)/BL 0607 SF Berlin - SG Köln Porz 2007 (40)}) ({II} 11. Bxe7 $6 Qxe7 12. Rc1 (12. Nxe4 Bxe4 $11) 12... Nxc3 13. Rxc3 Rc8 14. Qe2 c5 15. Rfc1 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nc6 17. Nxc6 Rxc6 18. Ba6 {½-½ Unzicker,W (2437)-Spassky,B (2548)/Mainz 2005/CBM 107 ext}) 11... Bxe4 12. Bg3 Nd7 13. Qe2 ({Zu beachten ist} 13. Rc1 {} Bd6 14. Bb5 Bxg3 15. hxg3 c5 16. Qa4 $1 {S. Atalik/CBM} (16. Bxd7 $2 Qxd7 17. dxc5 Qb7 18. Qe2 Rfd8 $132)) 13... Bd6 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. Bb5 Rad8 16. Rac1 Bxg3 17. hxg3 c5 18. Nd2 $146 ({RR} 18. Bxd7 Rxd7 19. dxc5 Rxd1+ 20. Qxd1 bxc5 21. Nd2 Rd8 22. Qe1 Bd3 23. b3 Rd5 24. Nf3 Qb7 25. Qc3 Qa6 26. a4 Qd6 27. Ne1 Bg6 28. g4 Rd1 29. f3 Rxc1 30. Qxc1 e5 31. Qc3 f6 32. Kf2 e4 {Marovic,D-Rantanen,Y Tallinn 1975 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 18. Bxd7 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Rxd7 20. dxc5 Rxd1+ 21. Qxd1 bxc5 22. b3 Rc8 23. Kg2 Qc7 24. Rc4 a5 25. Qc2 Qb6 26. a3 Qb5 27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 Rb8 29. bxc5 Qc6 30. Qc3 Rc8 31. Rg4 g6 32. Rc4 Rc7 {Brynell,S (2436)-Friberg,H (2192) Lund 2015 1-0 (43)}) 18... Bd5 $6 ({Verfehlte Provokation, nach} 18... Ba8 $142 19. Bxd7 Rxd7 20. dxc5 bxc5 $13 {/= stünde Schwarz völlig okay.}) 19. e4 Ba8 20. Bxd7 Qxd7 (20... Rxd7 $142 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Nb3 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Rc8 24. Rc1 $14 {/=}) 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Nb3 Qa4 23. Rxd8 (23. Nxc5 $142 $14) 23... Rxd8 24. Nxc5 Qxa2 25. Qb5 Kh7 {Entlastet die Grundreihe und plant d2.} 26. f3 Rd2 27. Na4 Rd4 $6 ({Der taktisch äußerst versierte "Fritz" empfiehlt} 27... f5 $1 {, um den ausgesperrten a8 zurück ins Spiel zu holen:} 28. exf5 a6 $1 29. Qe8 (29. Qxa6 $4 Rxb2) (29. Qb4 Rc2 $1 30. Rxc2 (30. Rd1 exf5) 30... Qb1+ 31. Rc1 Qxc1+ 32. Kh2 exf5 $11) 29... exf5 $11) 28. Nc3 Qc4 29. Qxc4 Rxc4 30. Ra1 Rc7 31. Nb5 Rb7 32. Nd6 Rd7 33. Ra6 {In diesem für ihn unerquicklichen Endspiel wählt Schwarz unter Bauernopfer eine mutige Fortsetzung, welche die Leichtfiguren tauscht und ihm einen Turmendspiel-Typus mit besseren Remischancen verschafft.} Bb7 $5 ({Unter dem sofortigen Einschalten von} 33... h5 $5 {war das gleich thematische Endspiel auch gut zu erreichen:} 34. b4 (34. Kf2 Bb7 $5 35. Rxa7 Rxd6 36. Rxb7 Rd2+ 37. Kf1 Kg6 $14) 34... Kg6 35. Kf2 (35. Nc4 Rb7 36. Ne5+ (36. b5 Rxb5 37. Rxa7 Bc6 38. Re7 Kf6 39. Rc7 Rc5 40. Nd6 Rc2 41. Rxf7+ Ke5 42. Nb7 Bxb7 43. Rxb7 g6 $14) 36... Kf6 37. Nd3 Rd7 38. Nc5 Rc7 39. Kf2 Bc6 $14) 35... Bb7 $5 (35... f6 $2 36. Nb5 Rb7 37. Nd4 Rxb4 38. Nxe6 Rb7 39. Rd6 Re7 (39... Rb6 $2 40. Nf4+ Kh7 41. Rxb6 axb6 42. Nxh5) 40. Nf4+ Kf7 41. Nxh5 $16) 36. Rxa7 Rxd6 37. Rxb7 Rd2+ $14) 34. Rxa7 Rxd6 35. Rxb7 Rd1+ 36. Kf2 Rd2+ 37. Kf1 Kg6 (37... h5 $5 {war immer noch möglich, z.B.} 38. b4 (38. Rxf7 Rxb2 39. Re7 Rb6 40. Kf2 (40. Kg1 Kg6 41. e5 Kh7 42. Kh2 Kg8 43. Kh3 Kf8 44. Rd7 Rb5 45. f4 Rb2 $14) 40... Kg6 41. e5 Kh7 42. Kg1 (42. Ke3 Kg8 43. Rd7 (43. f4 Kf8 44. Rd7 Rb2 45. Rd2 Rb3+ 46. Rd3 Rb2 $14) (43. Kf4 $6 Kf8 44. Rd7 Rb2) 43... Rb2 44. Rd2 Rb4 $14)) 38... Kg6 39. b5 Rb2 40. b6 Kf6 41. Rb8 (41. Ke1 Rxg2 42. Rc7 Rb2 43. b7 g5 $11) (41. f4 Rb3 42. Kg1 Rb4 43. e5+ Kg6 44. Rb8 Kf5 45. Kh2 f6 46. b7 Rb1 $11) 41... Ke5 42. b7 g6 43. Ke1 f5 $5 44. f4+ Kxe4 45. Re8 Rxb7 46. Rxe6+ Kd4 47. Rxg6 h4 48. gxh4 Ke3 49. Kd1 Rd7+ 50. Kc1 Rc7+ 51. Kb1 Kxf4 $11) 38. g4 $1 {Verbessert die Mobilität der weißen Königsflügelbauern.} Kf6 (38... e5) 39. b4 Rb2 40. b5 Rb1+ 41. Kf2 Rb2+ 42. Kg3 $6 ({Chancenreich war der Marsch zum b-Bauern:} 42. Ke3 $5 Rxg2 43. Kd4 (43. b6 e5 44. Rd7 Rb2 45. b7 g6 46. Kd3 h5 47. Kc4 h4 48. Kc5 h3 49. Rd6+ Kg7 50. Rb6 Rxb6 51. Kxb6 h2 52. b8=Q h1=Q 53. Qxe5+ $14) (43. e5+ $6 Kxe5 44. Rxf7 Rb2 $11 (44... g5)) 43... e5+ $1 (43... g6 $2 44. e5+ Kg7 45. Ra7 Rb2 (45... h5 46. gxh5 gxh5 47. Ra1 (47. Ra4 h4) 47... Rb2 48. Kc5 h4 49. Rh1 Rc2+ 50. Kb6 Rc4 51. Ka5 Rc5 52. Rxh4 Rxe5 53. Ka6 $18) 46. Kc5 h5 47. gxh5 gxh5 48. Ra4 Rc2+ 49. Kd6 Rb2 50. Kc6 Rc2+ 51. Kb7 $18) (43... Rb2 $2 44. e5+ $1 Kg6 (44... Kg5 45. Kc5) 45. Kc5 $18) 44. Kc5 Rc2+ ({Jedoch nicht} 44... g6 $2 45. Rc7 $1 Rc2+ 46. Kb6 Rb2 (46... Rf2 47. Rc6+ Kg5 48. Kc7 Rxf3 49. b6 Rb3 50. b7 Rxb7+ 51. Kxb7 Kxg4 52. Rf6 $18) 47. Ka6 h5 48. b6 h4 49. b7 h3 50. Ka7 (50. Rc6+ $6 Ke7 51. Rb6 Rxb6+ 52. Kxb6 h2 53. b8=Q h1=Q 54. Qxe5+ Kf8 $14) 50... Ra2+ 51. Kb8 Kg5 52. Kc8 Rb2 53. b8=Q Rxb8+ 54. Kxb8 h2 55. Rc1 Kf4 56. Kc7 Kxf3 57. g5 $1 Kxe4 (57... Kg4 58. Kd6 $18) 58. Kd6 $18 Kf4 59. Rh1 e4 60. Rxh2 e3 61. Kd5) 45. Kd6 (45. Kb6 Rf2) 45... Rd2+ 46. Kc7 Rc2+ 47. Kb6 Rf2 (47... g6 $2 48. Rc7 $1 Rb2 49. Ka6 {wie vorher}) 48. Rc7 (48. Ra7 Rxf3 49. Ra5 Re3 50. Ka6 Rxe4 51. b6 Rb4 52. b7 Rxb7 53. Kxb7 Kg5 54. Kc6 Kxg4 55. Kd5 f6 $11) 48... Rxf3 49. Rc5 (49. Rc6+ Kg5 50. Kc7 Kxg4 {und ohne den Einschub von ...g6 ist Schwarz hier deutlich schneller als in der 44...g6?-Variante} 51. b6 Rb3 52. b7 Rxb7+ 53. Kxb7 Kf3 $11) 49... Kg5 50. Kc6 (50. Kc7 Kxg4 51. b6 Rb3 52. Kc6 Rxb6+ 53. Kxb6 Kf4 54. Kc6 Kxe4 55. Kd6 f6 56. Ke6 Kf4) (50. Rxe5+ Kxg4 51. Kc6 f6 (51... h5 52. b6 Rf6+ 53. Kc7 Rxb6 54. Kxb6 h4 55. Re7 Kf3 56. e5 Ke4 57. Kc5 h3 58. Re8 g5 59. Kd6 g4 60. Rh8 Kf4 61. Rh7 Ke3 62. Kd5 Ke2 63. Rxf7 g3 (63... h2 64. Rh7 g3 65. e6 $18) 64. e6 g2 65. e7 g1=Q 66. e8=Q+ $18) 52. Rc5 Rd3 (52... Re3) 53. b6 Rd8 54. b7 Kf4 55. Kc7 Re8 56. Kb6 Rb8 57. Rc8 Rxb7+ 58. Kxb7 Kxe4 $11) 50... Kxg4 51. b6 Rf6+ 52. Kc7 Rxb6 53. Kxb6 Kf4 54. Kc6 Kxe4 $11) 42... e5 $1 43. b6 ({Falls Weiß seinen König zum Damenflügel zurückbeordert, erhält Schwarz reichlich Zeit, um ein Gegenspiel mittels g5 plus g6 nebst f5 aufzuziehen:} 43. Kh2 g6 44. Kg1 Kg5 45. g3 f5 $5 46. gxf5 gxf5 47. exf5 Kxf5 48. b6 e4 49. Rb8 Rb1+ 50. Kf2 Rb2+ 51. Ke3 exf3 52. Kxf3 Rb3+ 53. Ke2 (53. Kg2 Kg4 54. b7 Rb2+ 55. Kf1 Kh3 $11) 53... Kg4 54. Rg8+ (54. b7 Kh3 $11) 54... Kf5 (54... Kh5 $4 55. g4+ Kh4 56. Rg6 $18) 55. g4+ Kf6 56. Rb8 Ke5 $1 (56... Kg5 $2 57. b7 Kh4 58. g5 $1 $18) 57. b7 Kd6 $11) 43... g6 44. Rb8 Kg7 ({Die eingekeilte Lage des weißen Königs war aktiv durch} 44... Kg5 $1 {auszunutzen:} 45. Kh2 (45. b7 Rb1 (45... f6 $2 46. Kh2 Rb1 (46... Kf4 $2 47. Rg8) 47. g3 Rb3 48. Kg2 Rb1 49. Kf2 Rb2+ 50. Ke3 Rb3+ 51. Kd2 Rb2+ 52. Kc3 Rb1 53. Kc4 Rc1+ 54. Kd5 Rd1+ 55. Ke6 Rb1 56. Kf7 Rb6 57. Kg7 Rb1 58. f4+ $1 $18 exf4 (58... Kxg4 59. Kxf6) 59. gxf4+ Kxf4 60. Kxg6 Rb6 61. Kxh6) (45... Kf6 46. Kh2 Kg5 47. Re8 Rxb7 48. Rxe5+ Kf6 $14) 46. Re8 (46. Kf2 Kh4 $11) 46... Rxb7 47. Rxe5+ Kf6 $14) 45... Kf4 46. Rf8 (46. Rb7 Kg5 (46... f6 $2 47. Rg7 Kg5 48. b7) 47. Rxf7 Rxb6 $14) (46. b7 $2 Rb1) 46... Rxb6 47. Rxf7+ Kg5 $14) 45. Kh2 Kf6 46. Kg1 Ke6 $2 ({Der entscheidende Fehler, die Knetmassage zeitigt endlich Erfolg! Alternativen: I Zu spät kommt jetzt} 46... Kg5 $2 {z.B.:} 47. g3 $1 (47. Kf1 $2 Kf4 $11) (47. b7 $2 Kf4 $14) (47. Rb7 $2 Kf4 48. Kh2 (48. Rxf7+ $2 Kg3 49. Kf1 Rxb6 $11) 48... Kg5 49. Rxf7 Rxb6 $14) 47... h5 $5 (47... Rb1+ 48. Kf2 Rb2+ 49. Ke3 Rb3+ 50. Ke2 Kf6 51. b7 $18) 48. gxh5 Kxh5 49. Kf1 (49. b7 $2 Kg5 50. Kf1 Kf6 51. Ke1 (51. f4 Rb4 52. Kf2 (52. fxe5+ Kg5) 52... Rb3 53. Ke2 exf4 54. gxf4 Kg7 55. e5 (55. f5 gxf5 56. exf5 Kf6 $11) 55... Kh7 56. Kd2 Kg7 57. Kc2 Rb6 58. Kc3 Rb1 59. Kc4 Rc1+ 60. Kb5 Rb1+ 61. Kc6 Rc1+ 62. Kd6 Rd1+ 63. Ke7 Rb1 $11) 51... Rb6 52. Kd2 Rb1 53. Kc3 Rb6 54. Kc4 Rb1 55. Kc5 Rc1+ 56. Kd6 Rd1+ 57. Kc7 Rc1+ 58. Kd8 Rb1 59. Ke8 Kg7 $14 60. f4 (60. Kd7 Kf6) 60... exf4 61. gxf4 Rb4 62. Kd7 Rb1 $11) (49. Rf8 $2 Rxb6 50. Rxf7 Rb1+ 51. Kf2 Rb2+ 52. Ke3 Rb3+ 53. Ke2 Ra3 54. f4 (54. Re7 Ra5 55. Kd3 (55. Kf2 Ra2+ 56. Kf1 Ra1+ 57. Kg2 Ra2+ 58. Kh3 Ra5 59. Rd7 Ra3 $11) 55... Ra3+ 56. Kc4 Rxf3 $11) (54. Rd7 Kg5 55. Rd3 Ra2+ 56. Ke3 Ra5 $14) (54. Rf6 Kg5 55. Re6 Ra2+ 56. Ke3 Ra3+ 57. Kf2 Ra2+ 58. Kg1 Ra1+ 59. Kh2 Ra2+ 60. Kh3 Ra5 $14) 54... exf4 55. gxf4 Ra5 $1 (55... Kg4 $2 56. e5) 56. Rf6 Kg4 57. Ke3 Ra3+ 58. Kd4 g5 59. f5 (59. fxg5 Kxg5 $11) 59... Kf4 $11) 49... Kg5 50. Ke1 (50. b7 $2 Kf6 $11) 50... Kf6 (50... f5 51. exf5 Kxf5 52. b7 Kg5 53. f4+ $1 $18 exf4 54. gxf4+ Kg4 55. f5) 51. Kd1 Ke7 52. Kc1 Rb5 53. Kc2 Kd6 54. Rb7 $1 (54. Kc3 $2 Kc5 55. g4 Rb1 (55... Rxb6 $2 56. Rxb6 Kxb6 57. Kc4 Kc6 58. g5 $18) (55... g5 $2 56. b7 Kc6 57. Re8) 56. Rc8+ Kd6 57. Rd8+ Kc5 58. g5 (58. b7 Rxb7 59. Rd5+ Kc6 60. Rxe5 Ra7 $14) 58... Rxb6 59. Rd5+ Kc6 60. Rxe5 Kd7 $14) 54... Kc5 (54... f6 55. Rb8 Kc5 56. b7 Kc6 57. Rf8 Rxb7 58. Rxf6+ Kc5 59. Kd3 $1 $18) 55. Rc7+ Kxb6 56. Rxf7 Kc5 57. Rd7 Kc4 58. Rd6 Ra5 59. Kd2 (59. Rxg6 $6 Ra2+ 60. Kc1 Rf2 61. Rf6 Kd4 62. g4 Ke3) 59... g5 60. g4 $18) ({II Allein richtig war die Verfolgung} 46... Rb1+ $8 {, und falls Weiß einen Fortschritt erzielen will, also} 47. Kf2 {, dann} Rb2+ 48. Kf1 {(Im Gegensatz zur Variante nach dem 46.Zug verfügt Weiß hier eben nicht über die Möglichkeit Ke3-d4 plus e5+.)} Rb1+ 49. Ke2 Rb2+ (49... Kg5 $2 50. g3) 50. Kd3 Rxg2 {(Analyse)  und nun:} 51. Kc4 (51. Rc8 Rb2 52. Rc6+ Kg5 53. Kc4 h5 54. gxh5 gxh5 55. Kc5 h4 56. Kd6 h3 57. Kc7 h2 58. Rc1 Rg2 $11 (58... Kf4 $11)) (51. Ra8 Rb2 52. Ra6 Kg5 53. Kc4 h5 54. gxh5 gxh5 55. Kd5 h4 $11) 51... h5 52. gxh5 gxh5 53. Rh8 Rb2 (53... Rc2+ 54. Kd5 $18 Rd2+ 55. Kc6 Rc2+ 56. Kd7 Rd2+ 57. Kc8 Rc2+ 58. Kb8 Kg5 59. b7 Rc3 60. Ka7 Ra3+ 61. Kb6 Rxf3 62. b8=Q Rb3+ 63. Kc6 Rxb8 64. Rxb8) 54. Kc5 (54. Rxh5 Kg6 55. Rxe5 Rxb6 $11) 54... Kg5 55. Kc6 Rc2+ 56. Kd7 Rd2+ 57. Kc8 Rc2+ 58. Kb8 f6 59. b7 Kf4 60. Rc8 Rb2 61. Kc7 Kxf3 62. b8=Q Rxb8 63. Rxb8 Kxe4 $11) 47. b7 $1 $18 {Im höheren Sinne ist Schwarz jetzt bereits verloren, da der weiße König zur entscheidenden Wanderung gen Damenflügel ansetzt.} Kf6 ({In ein verlorenes Bauernendspiel führt} 47... Kd7 {nach} 48. Rf8 Rxb7 49. Rxf7+ Kc8 50. Rxb7 Kxb7 51. Kf2 Kc6 52. g5 h5 (52... hxg5 53. Kg3 $18) 53. g3 Kc5 54. f4 $18) 48. g3 $1 g5 ({I} 48... Kg7 49. Kf1 {nebst Königsmarsch analog dem Text}) ({II} 48... h5 49. gxh5 gxh5 50. f4 exf4 51. e5+ Kg7 52. gxf4 $18 h4 53. f5 h3 54. f6+ Kh7 55. e6) 49. Kf1 Rb1+ 50. Ke2 Rb2+ (50... Ke7 51. Kd3 Kd7 (51... Kf6 52. Kc4 Rc1+ 53. Kd5 Rd1+ 54. Kc6 Rc1+ 55. Kd7 Rb1 56. Ke8 Kg7 57. Ke7 {ist Zugumstellung zur Partie}) 52. Rf8 Rxb7 53. Rxf7+ Kc6 54. Rxb7 Kxb7 55. f4 $18 {ergibt wieder ein für Weiß gewonnenes Bauernendspiel:} exf4 56. gxf4 gxf4 57. Ke2 {-f3-xf4 usw.}) 51. Kd3 Rb3+ 52. Kc4 Rb1 53. Kc5 Rc1+ 54. Kd6 Rd1+ 55. Kc6 Rc1+ 56. Kd7 Rb1 57. Ke8 Kg7 ({Als erstes, schönes Mattbild zeichnet sich nach} 57... Rb2 58. Kf8 Rb3 (58... Kg6 59. Ke7 Kg7 60. Kd6 {siehe Partie}) 59. Rc8 Rxb7 60. Rc6# {ab.}) 58. Ke7 Rb2 59. Kd6 Kf6 ({Nach} 59... f6 {gewinnt der Übergang ins Bauernendspiel auf beliebige Weise:} 60. Re8 (60. Rd8 Rxb7 61. Rd7+ Rxd7+ 62. Kxd7 Kh7 63. Kd6 $18) (60. Rc8 Rxb7 61. Rc7+ Rxc7 62. Kxc7 $18) 60... Rxb7 61. Re7+ Rxe7 62. Kxe7 $18) {Nun jedoch gewinnt Weiß auf spektakuläre Weise mittels Bauerndurchbruch und Mattangriff:} 60. f4 $1 exf4 ({Oder} 60... Rd2+ 61. Kc6 Rc2+ 62. Kd5 Rd2+ 63. Kc4 Rc2+ 64. Kd3 (64. Kb3) 64... Rb2 65. fxe5+ Kg7 66. Kc4 {und der König wandert nach e7 und unterstützt die Schaffung eines weiteren Freibauern mittels e6.}) 61. gxf4 gxf4 62. Rg8 $1 $18 {Die entscheidende Pointe: Der Turm kann sich aus seiner passiven Lage befreien, indem er dem schwarzen König die Fluchtfelder auf der g-Linie nimmt und Weiß gleichzeitig e5# droht.} Rb6+ 63. Kc7 Rxb7+ 64. Kxb7 f3 65. Kc6 {Das erwähnte Mattmotiv taucht wieder auf und zwingt den schwarzen König ins Freie.} Ke5 (65... f2 66. Kd6 f1=Q 67. e5#) 66. Re8+ Kf4 67. Kd5 f6 (67... Kxg4 68. Rf8 $18) 68. Rf8 1-0

[Event "Bundesliga 0607"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2007.04.01"]
[Round "15.4"]
[White "Kempinski, Robert"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2006.10.28"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Hamburger SK"]
[BlackTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 Ba6 7. b3 O-O ({RR} 7... c5 8. Bg2 d5 9. Nc3 Nc6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. O-O O-O 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. Rfd1 ({RR} 13. Rfe1 Re8 14. Nh4 Qa5 15. Rad1 Rad8 16. Nf5 ({RR} 16. Nxd5 Qxd2 17. Rxd2 Nxd5 18. Rxd5 Rxd5 19. Bxd5 Nb4) 16... Re5 17. Nxd5 Qxd2 18. Rxd2 Nxd5) ({RR} 13. Nh4 Rc8 14. Rac1 Re8 15. Rfe1 d4 16. Na4 c4 17. bxc4 Ne5 18. Nb2 ({RR} 18. c5 d3 19. e3 Nc4) 18... Nxc4 19. Nxc4 Rxc4 20. Rxc4 Bxc4 21. Nf5 d3 22. Ne3 Bb5 23. exd3 Qxd3) 13... d4 ({RR} 13... Re8) 14. Na4 Re8 ({RR} 14... Ne4 15. Qc2 Re8 16. Nxc5 Nb4) 15. Nxc5 Bxe2 16. Nxd4 Nxd4 17. Bxa8 Bxd1 18. Rxd1 Re2 19. Qd3 Qxa8 20. Qxd4) 8. Nc3 d5 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bg2 Re8 11. Ne5 c5 ({RR} 11... Bb7 12. Rc1 a6 13. O-O Nbd7 14. Nd3 Qe7 15. e3 Qd6 16. b4 g6 17. Qb2 Rad8 18. b5 a5 19. Ne2 Kg7 20. Rc2 Ne4 21. Rfc1 Rc8 22. Nef4 f6 23. Rc6 Bxc6 24. Rxc6 Qe7 25. Nxd5 Qd8 26. N3f4 {Girel,J (2500)-Krithik Muthukumar (1900) Granada ESP 2025 1-0 (31)}) 12. O-O Bb7 13. Qf4 $146 ({RR} 13. Rfd1 Na6 ({RR} 13... Qe7) 14. e3 Qe7 15. Qe2 Nc7 16. Rac1 Rad8 17. Qb2 cxd4 18. exd4 Ne6 19. f4 Ne4 20. Ng4 h5 21. Ne3 Qf6 22. Rc2 Rd7 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. d5 Qxb2 25. Rxb2 Nc5 26. Rd4 g6 27. Bf1 Red8 {Magerramov,E (2445)-King,D (2435) Baku 1986 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 13. Rfd1 Na6 14. Qf4 Nc7 ({RR} 14... Qc7 15. Nb5 ({RR} 15. Nc4 Rad8 16. Ne3 ({RR} 16. Qxc7 Nxc7 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Na5 Ba8 19. Na4 Rxe2 20. Nxc5) 16... Qxf4 17. gxf4 Nc7) 15... Qe7 16. e3 ({RR} 16. Ng4 Nxg4 17. Qxg4 Qxe2 18. Qxe2 Rxe2 19. Nd6 Bc6 20. Bf1 Re6 21. Nxf7) 16... Rec8 17. Bh3 Rd8 18. Rac1 Nb4 19. a4 ({RR} 19. Nc3) 19... a6 20. Nc3 a5) 15. Ng4 Nxg4 16. Qxg4 Qf6 17. e3 Rad8 18. Rac1 Qe7 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Qa4 Rd7 ({RR} 20... a6 21. Qa5) 21. Ne4 ({RR} 21. Qxa7 Ne6) 21... d4 ({RR} 21... Ne6 22. Nxc5 Nxc5 23. Rxc5) ({RR} 21... c4 22. Nc5) 22. exd4 Bxe4 23. Bxe4 Ne6 24. d5 ({RR} 24. dxc5 Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 Nxc5 26. Qa3 Nxe4 27. Qxe7 Rxe7 28. Rd8+) 24... Nd4 25. Re1 Qd8 26. Kf1 Rde7 27. Bd3 Qc8 {Leko,P (2749)-Carlsen,M (2690) Morelia/Linares 2007 CBM 117 [Marin,Mihail] 1-0 (53)} {RR} 28. Rxe7 Qh3+ 29. Ke1 Rxe7+) ({RR} 13. Rfd1 Na6 14. Qf4 Qc7 15. Nc4 Rad8 16. Ne3 Qxf4 17. gxf4 Nc7 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Na4 Ba6 20. Rd2 d4 21. Nc4 Ne6 22. f5 Nf4 23. Bf3 Bxc4 24. bxc4 Re5 25. Rb1 Rxf5 26. Rb7 g5 27. e3 Nh3+ {Tukmakov,V (2590)-Van der Wiel,J (2590) Rotterdam 1988 ½-½ (33)}) 13... Nbd7 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. e3 d4 17. Bxb7 Qxb7 18. exd4 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Rad8 20. Qf4 Rd3 21. Rac1 h5 22. Rfd1 Rf3 23. Qd4 Ng4 24. Qd5 Qxd5 25. Nxd5 Re2 26. Nc3 Rb2 27. Ne4 Rf5 28. Rf1 Rxa2 29. h3 Nh6 30. Ra1 Re2 31. Nc3 Rc2 32. Nd1 Rc7 33. Ne3 Rb5 34. Ra3 Nf5 35. Nxf5 Rxf5 36. h4 a5 37. Ra4 Rb7 38. Rfa1 Rbb5 39. Kg2 Kf8 40. Rb1 Rfe5 41. Rb2 g6 42. Rc4 Rec5 43. Rd4 Rc3 44. Rd8+ Ke7 45. Ra8 Rcxb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.06"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2698"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Huebner,Robert} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bg4 7. h3 Bh5 8. g4 Bg6 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. e3 e6 11. Bxc4 Bb4 ({RR} 11... Nbd7 12. Kf1 Qc7 13. Kg2 Rd8 14. Qf3 Be7 15. a5 a6 16. e4 O-O 17. e5 Nh7 18. Qe2 c5 19. dxc5 Nxe5 20. Bf4 Qc6+ 21. f3 Nxc4 22. Qxc4 Qxc5 23. Qxc5 Bxc5 24. Ne4 Bd4 25. Bd6 Rfe8 26. Rhd1 {Mattenberger,M (2239)-Benitah,Y (2338) Switzerland SUI 2024 ½-½ (60)}) 12. Bf1 $2 $146 {The strange thing about this bad novelty is that Carlsen has played the position twice before. Generally in my opinion this opening variation looks healthy for Black - a good development and White already has created weaknesses.} (12. Qf3 $13) (12. Bd2 Nbd7 13. g5 Nd5 14. e4 N5b6 15. Bb3 a5 16. Qe2 c5 (16... e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O-O Nd3+ 19. Kb1 Nc5 20. Nb5 $1 Nxb3 21. Bxb4 axb4 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Nc7+ $2 (23. Rd1 $1 O-O 24. Nd6 $16) 23... Ke7 24. Qc2 Nc4 $1 $132 {0-1 Carlsen,M (2385)-Andriasian,Z (2311)/Budva 2003 (34)}) ({RR} 16... e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. O-O-O) 17. d5 c4 ({RR} 17... e5 18. h4) ({RR} 17... exd5 18. Bxd5 ({RR} 18. exd5+ Kf8 19. O-O-O Bxc3 20. bxc3 c4 21. Bxc4 ({RR} 21. Bc2 Nc5) 21... Nxa4) ({RR} 18. Nxd5 Bxd2+ 19. Qxd2 c4 20. Bc2 Nxd5 21. Qxd5 Qc7 22. O-O-O Rd8) 18... Bxc3 19. Bxc3 ({RR} 19. bxc3 Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 21. Kf1 Nb6 22. c4 Nc8) 19... Nxd5 20. exd5+ Kf8 21. Qe3 ({RR} 21. h4 Qc7) 21... Qc7 22. O-O-O Re8 23. Qf3 Qd6) 18. Bxc4 Nxc4 19. Qxc4 O-O 20. O-O-O ({RR} 20. dxe6 Ne5 21. Qd5 Qc7 22. exf7+ Rxf7 23. O-O-O Rd8 24. Qe6 Nd3+ ({RR} 24... Nf3) 25. Kb1 Nxf2 26. Nd5 Qc6 27. Qxc6 bxc6 28. Bxb4 cxd5 29. Bxa5 Ra8 30. Bb6 Nxh1 31. Rxh1 dxe4) 20... Rc8 21. Qe2 ({RR} 21. Qb5 Nc5 ({RR} 21... Rc5 22. Qxb7 exd5 23. Be3 Rc7 24. Qxd5 Bxc3 25. bxc3 Rxc3+ 26. Kd2 Qc7 27. Rc1) 22. Kb1 exd5 23. Nxd5 ({RR} 23. Be3 Qe7) ({RR} 23. exd5 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Qxg5) 23... Bxd2 24. Rxd2 Qxg5 25. f4 Qh4 26. e5) 21... exd5 22. Kb1 ({RR} 22. exd5 Nb6 23. Kb1 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Nxa4) 22... Bxc3 $6 (22... dxe4 23. Nxe4 Qc7 24. Bxb4 axb4 25. Nd6 Ra8 $11 {RR} 26. Qb5 ({RR} 26. Nb5 Qc6) 26... Nc5) (22... Qc7 23. exd5 ({RR} 23. Rc1 Qe5 24. f4 Qe6) 23... Nb6 $11 {(P. Nielsen)}) ({RR} 22... dxe4 23. Nxe4 Qc7 24. Bxb4 axb4 25. Nd6 Ra8 26. Qc4 Qa5 27. b3 Qxg5) ({RR} 22... Qc7 23. exd5 Nb6) 23. Bxc3 Nc5 24. Rxd5 Qe8 25. f3 $14 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2552)-Nielsen,P (2628)/Malmo/Copenhagen 2004 (40)} {RR} Qxa4 26. Qd1 Qxd1+ ({RR} 26... Nb3 27. Rxa5) 27. Rhxd1 b6) ({RR} 12. Bd2 Nbd7 13. Qf3 Qa5 14. h4 O-O-O 15. Rc1 Ne8 16. Be2 Nd6 17. e4 f5 18. gxf5 gxf5 19. e5 Ne4 20. Nxe4 fxe4 21. Bxb4 Qxb4+ 22. Qc3 a5 23. Qxb4 axb4 24. Bc4 Rh6 25. Ke2 Nb6 26. a5 Nd5 {Sokolov,I (2641)-Akopian,V (2691) Vrnjacka Banja 2010 ½-½ (56)}) ({RR} 12. Bd2 Nbd7 13. g5 Nd5 14. e4 N5b6 15. Bb3 a5 16. Qe2 c5 17. d5 c4 18. Bxc4 Nxc4 19. Qxc4 O-O 20. O-O-O Rc8 21. Qe2 exd5 22. Kb1 Bxc3 23. Bxc3 Nc5 24. Rxd5 Qe8 25. f3 b6 26. Qe3 Nxa4 {Carlsen,M (2552)-Nielsen,P (2628) Malmo/Copenhagen 2004 CBM 101 [Huebner,Robert] 1-0 (40)} ({RR} 26... Qxa4 27. Qd4 Qxd4 28. Bxd4 Rc6 29. Rc1 Rfc8)) ({RR} 12. Qf3 Qa5 13. Bd2 Nbd7 14. h4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Rd8 16. g5 Nfd5 17. Rc1 c5 18. h5 cxd4 19. exd4 Rxh5 20. Rxh5 gxh5 21. Qxh5 g6) 12... Qd5 $146 {Taking advantage of Black's considerable lead in development. White is forced to create more weaknesses in his own camp.} ({RR} 12... a5 13. Bg2 Nbd7 14. O-O Qe7 15. e4 Rd8 16. Be3 e5 17. d5 Bc5 18. Qe2 Bxe3 19. Qxe3 Qc5 20. Qg3 O-O 21. Rac1 Qb4 22. Kh2 Rfe8 23. Rc2 Nc5 24. dxc6 bxc6 25. f4 Nfxe4 26. Nxe4 Nxe4 27. Qe3 {Iljin,T (2285)-Timerkhanov,A (2336) Sochi RUS 2023 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 12... a5 13. Bg2 Nbd7 14. O-O Qe7 15. e4 Rd8 16. Be3 e5 17. d5 Bc5 18. Qe2 Bxe3 19. Qxe3 Qc5 20. Qg3 O-O 21. Rac1 Qb4 22. Kh2 Rfe8 23. Rc2 Nc5 24. dxc6 bxc6 25. f4 Nfxe4 26. Nxe4 Nxe4 27. Qe3 {Iljin,T (2285)-Timerkhanov,A (2336) Sochi RUS 2023 0-1 (42)}) 13. f3 {Making such a move means that most likely White will have to advance soon the pawn further.} Qa5 14. Bg2 c5 $1 {Possibly Carlsen expected Black to take the pawn immediately, after which White will have compensation. But Gelfand first completes development and only then takes the pawn, when White won't be able to create anything in return.} (14... Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Qxc3+ 16. Bd2 Qc4 17. Rb1 b6 18. f4 $44) (14... Nd5 15. O-O Nxc3 16. bxc3 Bxc3 17. Rb1 Bb4 (17... b6 18. Ba3 (18. f4 O-O 19. Ba3 Rd8 20. Qc2 $44) 18... Bd2 19. Rb3 Qxa4 20. Qb1 $44) 18. Qb3 Na6 19. f4 $44) 15. dxc5 Nc6 16. O-O O-O 17. f4 ({White had to prevent other weaknesses by} 17. Bd2 Rfd8 18. Qe2 {with good chances to equalize later on.}) 17... Qxc5 18. g5 $2 {Certainly not Carlsen's best game. His move backwards 12.f1 was bad, now a move forwards is even worse, only helping Black to further improve the position.} ({He could still be in the game with} 18. Qe2 {For instance:} Bxc3 (18... Rfd8 19. Bd2 $15 {/=}) 19. bxc3 Qxc3 20. Bb2 Qa5 21. f5 {with activity for the pawn, probably enough to hold the balance thanks to very strong bishops.}) 18... Rfd8 19. Qe2 Bxc3 $1 20. bxc3 Nd5 {Now Black has a large advantage. White cannot prevent a loss of a pawn.} 21. Qb5 (21. Bd2 Na5 $17 {[%csl Rc3,Rd2,Re3][%cal Ga5c4,Ga5b3]}) (21. c4 Nc3 22. Qc2 Qxc4 {[%cal Gc3e2]} 23. Kh2 Nb4 $19) 21... Qxc3 22. Rb1 (22. Ra3 Qc2 $17 23. Qxb7 $140 $2 Rab8 24. Qa6 Ndb4 $19 {catching the queen.}) 22... Ndb4 23. Qe2 Rac8 24. Be4 Na5 25. Bb2 Qc4 $17 26. Qg2 Nb3 {The conversion of the huge advantage is a matter of style and possibly mood. Gelfand decides to return the extra pawn and activate all his pieces to their maximum.} (26... Nd5 $17) 27. Bxb7 Rd2 28. Qf3 ({Tougher is} 28. Qg3 {with some interesting tactical ideas:} Rcd8 (28... Rc7 $142 29. Bh1 Nd3 $17) 29. f5 Nd3 {(otherwise White could play 30.e7} 30. fxg6 Nxb2 (30... fxg6 31. Ba3 $13) 31. gxf7+ Kf8 32. g6 $44) 28... Rcd8 {With such active pieces and an exposed king on g1, Black's win is out of the question.} 29. Be5 Nc5 30. Rbc1 Nc2 31. Bc6 a6 {A very rare case when White has problems to find squares for his light-squared bishop on the long diagonal.} (31... Nb3 $1 32. Rb1 (32. Bb5 Qc5 $19) 32... Nxe3 $1 $19) 32. Rf2 Nb3 33. Rcf1 Nb4 ({Again} 33... Rxf2 34. Rxf2 Nd2 {[%csl Rc6,Re3] wins on the spot}) 34. Qe4 Qxc6 35. Qxb4 Rxf2 36. Rxf2 Qc1+ 37. Kg2 Qxe3 38. Qb7 Nd2 0-1

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.12"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2698"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Nc6 6. Nbd2 ({RR} 6. Bg2 Nb4 7. Qb3 Nc6 8. Nbd2 Na5 9. Qc2 Bb4 10. O-O O-O 11. a3 Bxd2 12. Nxd2 d5 13. b3 Rc8 14. Bb2 Re8 15. e4 c5 16. exd5 cxd4 17. Bxd4 exd5 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Bxd5 Re2 20. Qd3 Rxd2 {Aguilar,J (2254)-Adewumi,T (2262) chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (38)}) 6... d5 7. cxd5 $146 ({RR} 7. Qa4 Bb7 8. Bg2 Qd7 9. cxd5 exd5 10. O-O Bd6 11. Nb1 Ne4 12. Nfd2 Ne7 13. Qb3 Ng5 14. Nc3 Ne6 15. Nf3 c5 16. Rd1 Rc8 17. Bh3 f5 18. Nb5 c4 19. Nxd6+ Qxd6 20. Qa4+ Bc6 21. Qc2 O-O {Nielsen,P (2662)-Izoria,Z (2610) Dresden 2008 ½-½ (52)}) 7... Qxd5 8. e4 Nb4 9. Qa4+ Qd7 10. Qxd7+ Nxd7 11. Bxa6 Nxa6 12. O-O Nf6 13. a3 c5 14. Re1 Be7 15. Ne5 Rc8 16. b4 cxd4 17. Ndf3 Nb8 18. Nxd4 Nfd7 19. Nef3 O-O 20. Bf4 Nc6 21. Rac1 Nxd4 22. Nxd4 g5 23. Nc6 Rxc6 24. Rxc6 gxf4 25. Rc7 Ne5 26. Rxe7 Nf3+ 27. Kf1 Nxe1 28. Kxe1 a5 29. Rb7 axb4 30. axb4 Rd8 31. f3 Rd3 32. Ke2 Rb3 33. Rxb6 Rb2+ 34. Kd3 Rxh2 35. gxf4 h5 36. Rb5 h4 37. Rh5 h3 38. Kd4 Kf8 39. Ke5 Ke7 40. f5 exf5 41. Kxf5 Rb2 42. Rxh3 Rxb4 43. f4 Rb5+ 44. e5 Kf8 45. Rd3 Rb4 46. Kg5 Kg7 47. Rd7 Rb5 48. Kg4 Kf8 49. Kf5 Kg7 50. Ke4 Rb4+ 51. Rd4 Rb1 52. Rd7 Re1+ 53. Kd5 Rd1+ 54. Kc6 Rf1 55. Rd4 Kf8 56. Kd7 Rf2 57. Kd6 Rf1 58. Kd5 Ke7 59. Ra4 f6 60. Ra7+ Kf8 61. Kd6 fxe5 62. Ra8+ Kf7 63. Ra7+ Kf8 64. fxe5 Rd1+ 65. Ke6 Re1 66. Rf7+ Ke8 67. Rh7 Kf8 68. Rh8+ Kg7 69. Rd8 Ra1 70. Ke7 Ra5 71. e6 Ra7+ 72. Rd7 Ra8 73. Rd6 {[%mdl 4096]} Ra7+ $2 {[%mdl 8192]} (73... Kg6 $11) 74. Ke8 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.14"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2698"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 c5 5. Nf3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({RR} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Nf5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6 15. O-O-O Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 {This line was examined in CBM 106 by GM V.Gavrikov (annots to Bacrot-Grischuk).} 16. Qc2 $146 (16. Qa4 {is usually played. Here is the latest example:} Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 ({RR} 21... Bf3 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8 25. Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7) 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 24. a4 Ra8 25. Qd4 b5 26. Bxf3 Qxf3 27. Rd3) ({RR} 18. Bf4 c5 ({RR} 18... e5) ({RR} 18... Be2) 19. Qa5 e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 ({RR} 21... Rfc8) 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rd2) 27. Qxc5) 18... e5 $1 $146 19. Be3 Be2 20. Re1 Nc4 21. Qc5 Rfd8 22. Rab1 h6 23. h3 Nxe3 24. Qxe3 Bc4 25. a4 a5 26. Qc5 Be6 $11 {0-1 Najer,E-Jakovenko,D/Moscow RUS 2006/The Week in Chess 631 (50)}) ({RR} 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 c5 ({RR} 18... Be2 19. h3 Rfd8 ({RR} 19... c5 20. Qb3) 20. Bf4 Rac8 ({RR} 20... e5 21. g4 Qg6 22. Bxe5) 21. g4 Qb5 22. a4 Qa6 23. a5) 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 ({RR} 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Be6) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 ({RR} 21. h3 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Qe5) 21... e5 22. Be3 ({RR} 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Qa6 Qxe5 24. Rxe2 Qxc3) 22... Bg4 ({RR} 22... Nc4 23. Qa6 Nxe3 ({RR} 23... Bd3 24. Rad1) 24. Rxe2 Nxg2 25. Kxg2) ({RR} 22... f6 23. Bxc5 Nc4 24. Qb5 Rab8 25. Qd7 Rxc5 26. Rab1 Rb6 ({RR} 26... Rf8 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Rxe2) ({RR} 26... Rxb1 27. Rxb1 h6 ({RR} 27... Nb6 28. Qxa7) 28. Bh3) 27. Bh3 Kf8 28. Rxb6 axb6 29. Be6 Qe8 30. Qxe8+ Kxe8 31. Rxe2) ({RR} 22... h6 23. h3) 23. Qa6 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 ({RR} 26. a5 Bc4 27. Bxc4 Nxc4 ({RR} 27... Qxc4 28. axb6) 28. Rab1 Rc7) 26... c4 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... Bc4 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 ({RR} 27... Nxc4 28. Rb7) 28. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... f5 27. exf5) 27. a5 Na4 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Rb7) 28. Rb7 Qe8 29. Qd6 {1-0 (29) Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V (2783) Bonn 2008 CBM 127 [Marin,Mihail]} {RR} Bf7 30. Qb4 Rab8 31. a6) ({RR} 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Be3 Be2 19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Bc4 22. Qd4 Be2 23. Qd6 Rac8 24. h3 Rfd8 25. Qe7 a5 26. g4 Qb5 27. Rab1 Qc4 28. Rb7 Rf8 29. Qa3 c5 30. Qxa5 Ra8 {Chatalbashev,B (2466)-Hammer,J (2596) Hell NOR 2024 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 c5 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 Be2 21. Bf4 Bd3 22. Rad1 Be2 23. Rc1 Bg4 24. c4 Bh3 25. Bxh3 Qxh3 26. Qb5 f6 27. e5 f5 28. a4 Rc7 29. Red1 Rb8 30. Qa6 Kf7 {Mamedyarov,S (2763)-Leko,P (2735) Astrakhan 2010 1-0 (73)}) 16... Nb6 17. Bf4 $146 {White provokes ...e6-e5 to clarify the situation and open the h3-c8 diagonal for his bishop. However,} (17. Be3 $5 {was probably better. If} Qa5 (17... Qa3 18. Bf4 $5) {then} 18. Qb2 {[%cal Yb2b4]}) ({RR} 17. Be3 Qa5 18. Qb2 Rfd8 19. Qb4 Qa6 20. h4 h6 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. a4 Rd7 23. Kh2 Be2 24. Bd4 Bd3 25. Qc5 Qc8 26. a5 Nc4 27. Ra4 Nd6 28. Bxg7 Nxe4 29. Bxe4 Bxe4 30. Bxh6 f5 31. Qe5 Qe8 {Nechaeva,M (2431)-Voit,D (2387) Antalya 2017 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 17. Be3 Qa3 18. Qd2 Bb5 19. Qc1 Qa6 20. Bc5 Rfd8 21. Rd4 e5 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. h4 h6 24. Bh3 Na4 25. Qa3 Rd3 26. Be3 Qb7 27. Rc1 Nb6 28. Qc5 Qc7 29. Bf1 Rd7 30. c4 Ba6 31. Qa5 Bc8 {Karpov,A (2619)-Jakovenko,D (2736) Moscow 2009 0-1 (47)}) 17... e5 18. Be3 Qa3 19. Bh3 Rab8 20. Qc1 Qxc1 21. Rdxc1 Bd3 22. f3 Rb7 23. Rd1 Bc2 24. Rdc1 Bd3 25. Rd1 Bc2 26. Re1 $2 {White has absolutely no grounds to play for a win.} (26. Rdc1 $11) 26... Nc4 27. Bc5 Rd8 $15 {[%csl Gc4][%cal Gd8d2,Gb7b2]} 28. Bf1 Nd2 29. Bg2 a5 30. Re2 Bb1 31. Re1 Bc2 32. Re2 Bb1 33. Re1 h6 34. Ba3 {it is not easy to find a move for White!} (34. Be3 Rb2 $15) 34... Rd3 {Black has created a strong pressure but it is still difficult to break down White's position.} 35. Rc1 Rd8 (35... Rxf3 $5 36. Bxf3 Nxf3+ 37. Kf2 Bxe4 $15 {Kasparov}) 36. Re1 Bc2 37. Bc1 (37. Re2 Nb1 $1 $17) 37... Nb1 38. c4 Rd4 (38... Bd3 $1 39. Rd1 (39. c5 Nc3 $17) 39... Nc3 40. Rd2 Ne2+ 41. Kf2 Nxc1 42. Rxc1 Rd4 $17 {Jakovenko}) 39. c5 a4 40. Bf1 a3 41. Re3 Ra7 $6 {Too passive. After this move White gets a drawish endgame with opposite-coloured bishops.} (41... Rd1 $5 42. Bxa3 Ba4 {Dvoretzky} 43. Kf2 Rd2+ 44. Kg1 {Emelin} g5 $5 $36 {[%cal Yh6h5,Yh5h4]}) 42. Re2 Bd3 43. Re3 Bxf1 44. Rxb1 Rd1 45. Kf2 Bd3 46. Rb8+ Kh7 47. Re1 Rxe1 48. Kxe1 Bc4 49. Rd8 Ra5 50. Rd2 f6 51. Rc2 Be6 52. Kd2 g5 53. Rc3 Kg6 54. Rxa3 Rxa3 55. Bxa3 Bxa2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2698"]
[BlackElo "2703"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. Qa4 Bb4+ 7. Bd2 Bd6 8. O-O O-O 9. Bc3 Nd5 10. Qxc4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Na5 12. Qd3 c5 13. Nbd2 cxd4 14. cxd4 Bd7 15. Ne4 Be7 16. h4 $146 ({RR} 16. Rac1 Bc6 17. Ne5 Bd5 {½-½ (17) Amato,L (1973)-Lagar,V (2094) Villaguay 2016}) 16... h6 17. Rac1 Bc6 18. Ne5 Bd5 19. Nc3 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Rc8 21. Rfd1 Ba3 22. Rb1 Bd6 23. Nf3 Qe7 24. Ne4 Rfd8 25. Rb5 Nc6 26. g4 a6 27. Rb6 Bb8 28. e3 Ba7 29. Rbb1 Rc7 30. g5 Nb4 31. Qa3 Nd5 32. Qxe7 Rxe7 33. Rdc1 f6 34. Nc5 Bxc5 35. Rxc5 Kf7 36. Kg3 Red7 37. a4 Ne7 38. Kg4 Rc8 39. Rxc8 Nxc8 40. Ne1 b6 41. Rc1 Ne7 42. f4 Nd5 43. e4 Rc7 44. Rxc7+ Nxc7 45. Nc2 Ne8 46. gxh6 gxh6 47. f5 exf5+ 48. Kxf5 Nd6+ 49. Kf4 b5 50. a5 Nc4 51. Nb4 Nxa5 52. Nxa6 h5 53. e5 fxe5+ 54. dxe5 Nc6 55. Kg5 Nxe5 56. Kxh5 Kf6 57. Nc7 b4 58. Nd5+ Kf5 59. Nxb4 Ng6 60. Nd5 Nxh4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 1st"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2006.11.16"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2698"]
[PlyCount "33"]
[EventDate "2006.11.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 116"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 O-O 7. e3 c5 8. dxc5 Nbd7 9. Rc1 Qa5 10. Nd2 b6 11. Be2 bxc5 12. O-O Bxc3 13. Rxc3 Qxa2 14. Qc2 Rb8 15. Rb1 Qa5 $146 ({RR} 15... d4 16. exd4 cxd4 17. Rg3 Ba6 18. Bxf6 Nxf6 19. Ra3 d3 20. Bxd3 {½-½ (20) Pelletier,Y (2588)-Krivoshey,S (2484) Bad Wiessee 2006}) 16. Bxf6 Nxf6 17. Nb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2007.01.14"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Navara, David"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2719"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[EventDate "2007.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Van Wely,Loek Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Bd7 ({RR} 10... Bg4 11. f3 Na5 12. Bd3 cxd4 13. cxd4 Be6 14. d5 Bxa1 15. Qxa1 f6 16. Qd4 ({RR} 16. Bh6 Re8 17. Kh1 Bd7 18. e5 Rc8 19. Nf4 Nc4 20. e6 Ba4 21. Nxg6 hxg6 22. Bxg6 Ne5 23. Be4 Bc2 24. Bxc2 Rxc2 25. Qd1 Qc7 ({RR} 25... Rc5 26. f4 Qxd5 27. Qh5 Rc2 28. Rg1 Qxe6 29. Qxe8+ Kh7 30. Qf8 Qg4 31. fxe5 Rc8 32. Qxe7+ Kxh6 33. exf6 Qg5 34. Qxb7 Rc1 35. Qxa7 Rxg1+ 36. Qxg1 Qxf6 37. a4 Qc3 38. h3 Kg5 39. Qd1 Kh6 40. Qd6+) 26. f4 Rc1 27. Qxc1 Qxc1 28. Rxc1 Ng4 29. h3 Nxh6 30. g4 Rd8) 16... Bf7 ({RR} 16... Bd7) 17. Bh6 e5 18. Qf2 Re8 19. Bb5 Re7 20. f4 exf4 ({RR} 20... Rc8 21. fxe5 Rxe5 22. Ng3 Nc4 23. Qxf6 Qxf6 24. Rxf6 a6 25. Ba4 b5 26. Bd1 a5 27. Bg4 Rd8 28. Rc6 Ree8 29. Rc7 Ne5 30. Be2 Rc8 31. Rb7 ({RR} 31. Rxc8 Rxc8 32. Bxb5) 31... b4 32. Bf4 g5 33. Bxg5 Rb8 34. Rxb8 Rxb8 35. Bf4) 21. Qxf4 ({RR} 21. Qd4 Qb6 22. Qxb6 axb6 23. Rxf4 f5) 21... Qb6+ 22. Kh1 Bxd5 23. exd5 Qxb5 24. Qxf6 Qe8 25. Qd4 ({RR} 25. Nf4 Rf7 ({RR} 25... Nc4) 26. Qc3 Qd8 ({RR} 26... Qb5 27. Rc1 Re8 28. h3) 27. Rc1 b5 28. Qg3 ({RR} 28. Ne6 Qf6 ({RR} 28... Qxd5 29. Qc8+ Rf8 30. Qc7 Rf7) 29. Qc8+ Rf8 30. Qxf8+ Rxf8 31. Bxf8 Nc4 32. Bh6 ({RR} 32. Kg1 Qe5 33. Bh6 ({RR} 33. Rf1 Qe3+ 34. Kh1 Qd3) 33... Qh5) 32... Qf2 33. h3 Kf7) 28... Rc8 29. Re1 Re7 30. Rf1 Qd6 31. Bg5 Rf7 ({RR} 31... Rec7 32. Qe1 Nc4) 32. h4 ({RR} 32. Re1 Rcf8 33. Re6 Rxf4) 32... Nc4 ({RR} 32... Re8 33. h5 Nc4) 33. Re1 Rcf8 34. Re6 Qa3 ({RR} 34... Qc7 35. d6 Qd7 ({RR} 35... Nxd6 36. Nxg6) 36. Be7 Nxd6 37. Bxf8 ({RR} 37. Bxd6 Rxf4) 37... Nf5) 35. Qxa3 Nxa3 36. d6 ({RR} 36. g3) 36... Rd7 ({RR} 36... Nc4 37. Nd5) 37. Nd5 ({RR} 37. h5 Nc4 ({RR} 37... Rf5 38. Re8+ ({RR} 38. Bh6 Kf7) ({RR} 38. Re7 Rxe7 39. Bxe7 Kf7) 38... Kf7 39. Rh8 Kg7 ({RR} 39... Rxd6 40. Bh6 Kf6 41. g4 Rc5 42. Rf8+ Ke7 43. Rh8 Rd1+ 44. Kg2 Rc2+ 45. Kf3 Rf1+ 46. Kg3 gxh5 47. Rxh7+ Ke8 48. Nxh5) 40. Rc8 Rxd6 41. Rc7+ Rf7 42. Bh6+ Kxh6 43. Rxf7 a5) 38. hxg6 Nxd6 ({RR} 38... Rxd6 39. gxh7+ Kxh7 40. Re7+ Kg8 41. Rxa7) 39. Nh5 Rf1+ 40. Kh2 hxg6 41. Rxg6+ Kf8 42. Bh6+ Kf7 43. Rg7+ Ke8 44. Rg8+ Ke7) ({RR} 37. Bh6 Ra8 ({RR} 37... Rfd8 38. Bg5) ({RR} 37... Nc4 38. Bxf8 Kxf8) 38. Nd5 Nc4 39. Bf4 Kf7 40. Rf6+ Kg7) 37... Rf1+ 38. Kh2 Kf7 39. Nc7 Nc4) ({RR} 25. Bd2 Qf8 ({RR} 25... Nc4 26. Bc3 Ne5 27. Ng3) 26. Qa1 ({RR} 26. Qxf8+ Rxf8 27. Rxf8+ Kxf8 28. Bb4 Nc4) 26... Rxe2 ({RR} 26... Qg7 27. Bc3) 27. Rxf8+ Rxf8 28. Bxa5 Rxa2 29. Qe1 Rxa5 30. Qe6+)) ({RR} 10... Na5 11. Bd3 cxd4 12. cxd4 b6 13. Qd2 Bb7 14. Rad1 ({RR} 14. Rac1 e6 15. h4 Qe7 16. h5 Rfc8 17. e5 Rxc1 18. Rxc1 Rc8 19. Rxc8+ Bxc8 20. Bg5 Qc7 21. Bf6 Nc6 22. Qg5 h6 23. Qc1 g5 24. Bb5 Bd7 25. d5 exd5 26. Nd4 Bxf6 27. exf6 Qd6 28. Bxc6 Qxf6) 14... Rc8 ({RR} 14... e6) 15. d5 Nc4 16. Bxc4 Rxc4 17. Bd4 Qd6 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Nd4 Qb4 20. Qe3 Rfc8 21. h4 Kg8 22. h5 Qc3 23. Rd3 Qb2 24. h6 ({RR} 24. Rfd1 Rc3 25. Rxc3 Qxc3 26. Qg5) 24... Rc3 25. Nc6) 11. Rb1 Qc7 ({RR} 11... a6 12. d5 ({RR} 12. dxc5)) 12. Bf4 Qc8 ({RR} 12... e5 13. Bg3) 13. d5 ({RR} 13. Bb3 cxd4 14. cxd4 e5 ({RR} 14... Nxd4 15. Nxd4 e5 16. Bd5) 15. dxe5 Nxe5) ({RR} 13. dxc5 Na5 14. Bb5 Bg4 15. Be3 Rd8 16. Qc2) ({RR} 13. Qd3 Rd8 14. Rfc1 Na5 15. Bb5 a6 16. Bxd7 Qxd7 17. Qg3 Rac8 18. h3 Nc4 19. Be3 b5) ({RR} 13. Rc1 a6 ({RR} 13... Rd8 14. Qb3) 14. Qd2 ({RR} 14. a4 Na5 15. Ba2 Qe8) 14... b5 15. Bd3 Qb7 16. Bh6 Bxh6 ({RR} 16... cxd4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. cxd4) 17. Qxh6 cxd4 18. cxd4 Qb6 ({RR} 18... Qa7 19. Rfd1) 19. Rc5 ({RR} 19. d5 Ne5) ({RR} 19. Qe3 e5) ({RR} 19. Rfd1 Bg4) 19... Bg4 ({RR} 19... Nxd4 20. Rh5) ({RR} 19... f6 20. Rfc1) ({RR} 19... Rfd8 20. Rh5 gxh5 21. e5 f5 22. exf6 exf6 23. Qxh7+ Kf8 24. Nf4 Ne7 25. Bg6 Be8 26. Qh6+ Kg8 27. Nxh5) 20. Nf4 Nxd4 ({RR} 20... Rfd8 21. Rg5) 21. Rg5 Bf3 22. Rg3 {1-0 (22) Van Wely,L (2683)-Svidler,P (2728) Wijk aan Zee 2007 CBM 117 [Van Wely,Loek]}) 13... Na5 14. Bd3 e5 15. Bg3 f5 $146 ({RR} 15... c4 16. Bc2 b6 17. Qd2 Nb7 18. f4 f6 19. Kh1 Nd6 20. Ng1 Qd8 21. fxe5 fxe5 22. Nf3 Rc8 23. Rf2 h6 24. Rbf1 Qe7 25. h3 {½-½ (25) Sakaev,K (2669)-Avrukh,B (2614) Izmir 2004 CBM 104 [Krasenkow,Michal]}) ({RR} 15... c4 16. Bc2 b6 17. h3 Nb7 18. f4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Qc5+ 20. Kh1 Rae8 21. Nd4 Be5 22. Bh6 Bg7 23. Bf4 Be5 24. Bh6 Bg7 25. Bf4 {½-½ (25) Antic,D (2443)-Mikhalevski,V (2590) Parramatta 2007}) 16. f4 fxe4 17. Bxe4 Nc4 18. Qd3 Nd6 19. fxe5 Nxe4 20. Qxe4 Bf5 21. Qc4 Bxb1 22. d6+ Kh8 23. Rxb1 Qf5 24. Re1 Bxe5 25. Nd4 Bxd4+ 26. cxd4 Rae8 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. h3 Kg7 29. Qb5 Rd8 30. dxc5 Rd7 31. a4 g5 32. a5 a6 33. Qc4 h5 34. Be1 Rf7 35. c6 bxc6 36. Bc3+ Kh7 37. Qxc6 Qf2+ 38. Kh1 Qf1+ 39. Kh2 Qf4+ 40. Kh1 Qf1+ 41. Kh2 Qf4+ 42. Kh1 g4 43. hxg4 hxg4 44. Qc8 g3 45. Qh8+ Kg6 46. Qg8+ Kh5 47. Qh8+ Qh6 48. Qxh6+ Kxh6 49. Kg1 Kg5 50. Bd4 Rf5 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2007.01.15"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2723"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2007.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Nf3 Bf5 6. Ne5 ({Another critical test for Black's quite dubious opening set-up is} 6. Qb3 b5 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. a4 b4 9. Qxb4 Nc6 10. Qc5 Na5 11. Bxa6 Rxa6 12. Qb5+ Rc6 13. Ne5 Bd7 14. Nxd7 Nxd7 15. Bd2 Rc8 16. Nxd5 Nc4 17. Rc1 Nd6 18. Rxc8 Qxc8 19. Qa6 $1 Qxa6 20. Nc7+ Kd8 21. Nxa6 {The game 1-0 Radziewicz,I (2421)-Kononenko,T (2417)/Ekaterinburg 2006 (48) showed that Black is struggling in this endgame.}) 6... h6 (6... e6 {runs into} 7. g4 Bg6 8. h4 $16) ({Perhaps instead Black should develop a piece with} 6... Nbd7 {although his position looks pretty shaky anyway, in spite of the draw in the following game:} 7. Qb3 Qc7 8. cxd5 Nxe5 9. dxe5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 cxd5 11. Bd2 e6 12. Rc1 Qd7 13. Be2 (13. Qb6 Rc8 14. Rxc8+ Qxc8 15. Be2 Bc5 $1) 13... Be7 14. Qb6 Bd8 (14... Rc8 15. Rxc8+ Qxc8 16. O-O $36) 15. Qb4 Be7 16. Qa5 Rc8 (16... Bd8 17. Qa3 Be7 18. Bb4 Bxb4+ 19. Qxb4 $16) 17. Rxc8+ Qxc8 18. O-O Bd8 19. Qa3 f6 20. Rc1 Qd7 21. exf6 gxf6 $14 22. Ba5 Kf7 23. Bxd8 {½-½ Gelfand,B (2723)-Svidler,P (2765)/Monte Carlo (rapid) 2006}) 7. Qb3 Ra7 (7... b5 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. a4 $16) 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. Bd2 e6 10. Rc1 Nbd7 (10... Bd6 11. Qa4+ Nbd7 12. Nb5 $18) (10... Be7 11. Qa4+ Nbd7 12. Nb5 $18) 11. Bb5 (11. Nxd7 Nxd7 12. Ne2 Nb8 13. Nf4 Bd6 14. Bb4 Bxb4+ 15. Qxb4 Nc6 16. Qc5 Ra8 $11 {0-1 Radjabov,T (2610)-Morozevich,A (2716)/Moscow 2002 (34)}) (11. Na4 Be7 (11... Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Nb6 $1 Nxb6 (13... Qxb6 14. Rc8+ Ke7 15. Bb4+ $18) 14. Ba5 $16 {1-0 Kachiani Gersinska,K (2444)-Ionescu Brandis,I (2366)/Istanbul 2003 (36)}) (11... b5 12. Nc6 $1 bxa4 13. Qd1 Qb6 14. Nxa7 Qxa7 15. Rc8+ Ke7 16. Bb4+ $18)) (11. Qa4 Ra8 $1 {brings White nothing.}) 11... Bd6 (11... Be7 12. Bxd7+ Nxd7 13. Nxd7 Qxd7 14. Na4 Qb5 15. Nb6 Qxb3 16. axb3 a5 17. Nc8 Ra6 18. Nxe7 Kxe7 19. Rc7+ Kf6 20. Rxb7 a4 21. bxa4 Rxa4 22. Ke2 $16 {1-0 Pert,N (2503)-Tippleston,C (2203)/Swansea 2006 (50)}) 12. Nxd7 Nxd7 13. Bxd7+ Qxd7 $2 $146 {A bad novelty. It remains a mystery whether Carlsen tries to improve over the existing theory, or he simply didn't know the variation. Considering the fact that the theory of this line is based on a game of PH Nielsen, who is Carlsen's coach, it would be very surprising for Magnus to know nothing about it. In any case 12...xd7 is a result of a superficial homework, since now White achieves a large advantage by force.} (13... Kxd7 14. Na4 b5 15. Nc5+ Ke7 {should be better for White, but things aren't simple and this is definitely preferable to 12...xd7.} 16. f3 (16. a4 $5 Qb8 17. a5 $1 Rc8 18. Bb4 Kf8 19. Kd2 Kg8 20. Nd3 Bxb4+ 21. Nxb4 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Qxh2 23. e4 $1 Bxe4 24. Qg3 Qh5 25. f3 Bf5 26. Qf4 $44 {[%csl Ra6] 1-0 Vaganian,R (2653)-Frolov,D (2418)/Togliatti 2003 (36)}) 16... Re8 17. e4 dxe4 18. fxe4 Bg6 19. e5 Bxc5 20. Bb4 Kd7 21. Bxc5 Qh4+ 22. g3 Qe4+ 23. Kf2 Qf5+ 24. Qf3 {½-½ Nielsen,P (2625)-Hansen,S (2537)/Malmo 2003. It would have been interesting to see where Ponomariov would have improved White's play here.}) 14. Na4 $1 O-O (14... Bc7 15. Nb6 Qd8 16. Qa4+ Ke7 17. Ba5 Bxb6 18. Qb4+ Qd6 19. Qxb6 Qxb6 20. Bxb6 Raa8 21. Rc7+ Kf6 22. Kd2 {The endgame looks very difficult for Black:} Rhc8 23. Rhc1 Rxc7 24. Rxc7 Rb8 25. b4 (25. Ba7 Re8 $1 26. Rxb7 Re7 $11) (25. Kc3 $5 $16 {[%cal Gc3b4,Gb4a5,Yb6a7,Ra2a4,Ga5b6]}) 25... g5 26. a4 h5 27. Kc3 {leads to a probably lost endgame for Black:} (27. a5 g4 28. b5 axb5 29. Ba7 Ra8 $1 (29... Re8 $2 30. Rxb7 Re7 31. a6 $18) 30. Rxb7 b4) 27... Be4 28. f3 Bf5 29. b5 axb5 30. axb5 Ra8 31. Rxb7 {and White should be winning.}) (14... b5 15. Nb6 $18 {[%cal Gc1c8]}) 15. Nb6 Qd8 16. Nc8 $1 {Possibly Magnus simply missed this. White wins material.} ({After} 16. O-O a5 $1 (16... Bc7 17. Ba5 Qd6 18. g3 {still requires accuracy from Black} (18. Rc3 {would be a mistake due to the unexpected} Qxh2# {A very rare mate for the Slav Defense indeed...})) 17. Nc8 (17. Qb5 Bd3 $1 18. Qxd3 Qxb6 $11) (17. h3 Bc7 $15) 17... Ra8 18. Nxd6 Qxd6 {White's advantage disappears}) 16... Qxc8 $146 (16... Ra8 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Bb4 $18) ({RR} 16... Qg5 17. g3 Be4 18. Rf1 Rxc8 19. Rxc8+ Kh7 20. Qb6 Bf3 21. Qxd6 Qf5 22. Qc5 b6 23. Qc2 Be4 24. Qc1 e5 25. f3 Bd3 26. Rf2 exd4 27. exd4 Re7+ 28. Be3 Bc4 29. b3 Qd3 30. bxc4 Rxe3+ 31. Qxe3 {Balakrishnan,P (2511)-Le Tuan Minh (2567) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 16... Qg5 17. g3 Be4 18. Rf1 Bb8 19. Nxa7 Bxa7 20. f3 Bg6 21. Qxb7 Bb8 22. Rc8 Bd6 23. Rxf8+ Bxf8 24. Qb3 Qh5 25. Rf2 Qf5 26. Ke2 h5 27. a3 e5 28. dxe5 Qxe5 29. Bc3 Qf5 30. Bd4 Bh7 31. Qd1 {Arun Prasad,S (2519)-Ravi,T (2398) Bhubaneswar 2016 1-0 (36)}) 17. Rxc8 Rxc8 18. Qb6 $1 ({The quiet} 18. O-O Rc6 19. Rc1 Rxc1+ 20. Bxc1 b5 {[%cal Ga7c7] allows Black to activate the pieces and reach a perfectly playable position.}) 18... Bb8 19. O-O Kh7 20. Rc1 $18 {Ponomariov's precise play leaves Black with no hopes to survive.} Bc2 21. Ba5 Kg6 (21... Rc6 22. Qd8 Ra8 23. Qd7 $18 {[%csl Rb7,Rf7]}) 22. Qb4 Rc4 (22... b5 23. Qd2 $18) 23. Qd2 Bf5 24. Rxc4 dxc4 25. Bb6 Ra8 26. Qe2 e5 ({Black cannot even take his pieces out, since} 26... Bd6 27. e4 {loses the bishop.}) 27. Qxc4 exd4 (27... Bd6 28. Qd5 $18) 28. Qxd4 f6 29. f4 Bb1 30. Qd5 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2007.01.18"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2744"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2007.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. d5 exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. O-O Be7 10. Rd1 Qc8 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bxe7 Nxe7 13. e4 O-O 14. Nc3 Nbc6 15. Rd2 Ba6 16. Bh3 Ng6 17. Bxd7 Qb7 18. Bh3 $146 ({RR} 18. Rad1 Nge5 19. Nxe5 Nxe5 20. Kg2 Rad8 21. Qa4 c4 22. b4 cxb3 23. axb3 Kh8 24. Rd5 Qc7 25. Nb5 Bxb5 26. Bxb5 Rxd5 27. Rxd5 Qc3 28. Be2 a5 29. Qb5 f6 30. f4 Nc6 31. Qxb6 Rb8 32. Qc7 Qc2 {Sakaev,K (2634)-Zakhartsov,V (2559) Krasnoyarsk 2007 ½-½ (38)}) 18... Rad8 19. Rad1 Qb8 20. Bg2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2007.01.24"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2783"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2007.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 O-O 7. e3 c5 8. dxc5 Nbd7 9. Rc1 Qa5 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. b4 Nxc3 13. Qa1 Qa4 14. Qxc3 a5 15. b5 Nxc5 16. Qxc5 Be6 17. Qc1 Rfc8 18. Qa1 Qc2 19. Be2 Qc1+ 20. Qxc1 Rxc1+ 21. Bd1 Ra1 22. a4 Rc8 23. Nd4 Rc4 24. O-O f6 $146 ({RR} 24... Rb1 25. Bd8 Rcc1 26. Be2 Rxf1+ 27. Bxf1 Ra1 28. Bxa5 Rxa4 29. Bc7 Ra2 30. Nxe6 fxe6 31. f4 Kf7 32. Be5 g6 33. Bd4 Rc2 34. h3 Ke7 35. b6 Kd6 36. h4 Rd2 37. Kh2 Kc6 38. Kg3 Kd6 39. Kf3 {Reich,T (2404)-Kabatianski,A (2436) Germany 2008 1-0 (55)}) 25. Bf4 Bf7 26. h4 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.17"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E66"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nc3 d6 6. Nf3 c5 ({This move order presents a series of minor advantages over the more popular} 6... Nc6 7. O-O a6 8. d5 Na5 9. Nd2 c5 10. Qc2 e5 {. First of all, White's centre is submitted to less pressure after 6...Nc6, offering White a wider choice of systems on the 8th move. The second aspect will become clear later.}) 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 ({The main drawback of this variation is that White can retain a tiny edge without any risk by means of} 8. dxc5 {. However, the critical line against both 6...c6 and 6...c5 remains the advance of the d-pawn.}) 8... Na5 9. Nd2 e5 10. b3 Ng4 {This is Black's additional possibility compared to the 6...c6 lines. Black decides to start his kingside play without "wasting time" with ...a6, ...b8 and ...b5. Leaving the a5-knight out of play for such a long time is a very risky decision, but it seems to suit Morozevich' original and enterprising style of play.} 11. h3 ({Generally speaking, White should avoid such weakening moves, unless he has something concrete in mind. A classical brilliant game went} 11. e4 f5 12. exf5 e4 13. f6 Nxf6 14. Ndxe4 $1 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Bxa1 16. Bg5 Bf6 17. Nxf6+ Rxf6 18. Qa1 Kf7 {Now, after the quiet move} 19. Re1 $3 {Black found it difficult to defend against the threats e3-f3 or c3 and if ...b6 then e6! in Geller-Velimirovic, Havana 1971.}) 11... Nh6 12. Nde4 {This novelty is a logical consequence of the previous move. With the provocative knight jump to the centre, White aims to take advantage of Black's temporary lack of coordination by energetical means.} ({RR} 12. e4 f5 13. exf5 gxf5 14. Bb2 Bd7 15. Qe2 a6 16. Rae1 Rb8 17. Nd1 b5 18. Bc3 b4 19. Ba1 Qg5 20. f4 Qxg3 21. fxe5 Rbe8 22. Qf2 Qxf2+ 23. Nxf2 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 dxe5 25. Nd3 Nb7 26. Nxe5 Bc8 {Iordachescu,V (2584)-Stevic,H (2608) Baku 2016 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 12. e4 f5 13. exf5 gxf5 14. Bb2 f4 15. Nce4 b6 16. a3 Qe7 17. g4 Bd7 18. b4 Nb7 19. Re1 Nf7 20. Rb1 h5 21. f3 Nh8 22. Qc2 Be8 23. Bf1 Ng6 24. Bd3 Nh4 25. Bc3 Rc8 26. Qd1 Rf7 {Mishra,A (2550)-Tissir,M (2354) Dubai UAE 2023 1-0 (42)}) 12... f6 ({Black intends to consolidate with ...f7. The generally desirable} 12... f5 {is met by} 13. Ng5 {, taking advantage of the weakness of the light squares in Black's camp.}) 13. Nxd6 $146 {There was no way back already. If Black was allowed to carry out his planned regroupment (...f7 folowed by ...f5), White's previous play would simply become pointless.} ({RR} 13. Bd2 b6 14. f4 Nf7 15. Nf2 f5 16. e3 Bd7 17. Kh2 e4 18. Rg1 h5 19. Rc1 Qc8 20. g4 hxg4 21. hxg4 Re8 22. gxf5 Bxf5 23. Bh3 Nb7 24. Rxg6 Bxh3 25. Nxh3 Re7 26. Qh5 Qf8 27. Rcg1 {1-0 (27) Siuniakov,I (2316)-Alimov,A (1955) Novokuznetsk 2012}) 13... Qxd6 14. Ne4 Qd8 15. Nxc5 {White's compensation for the sacrificed piece is out of question. The a5-knight did not improve its situation any bit, while the white central pawns look threatening.} f5 $5 ({Morozevich chooses to return the material "with interest", for the sake of rapidly completing his development.} 15... Nf7 $2 {would have been bad because of} 16. Ne6 Bxe6 17. dxe6 Nd6 18. e7 Qxe7 19. Qd5+ {with a more advantageous position for White than in the game. However, 15...f5 or 15...c7 are worth investigating.}) ({In case of, say} 15... Qc7 {play would have a less concrete character than in the game, but the passive position of the a5-knight would have provided White with excellent compensation.} 16. Ba3 Rd8 {[%cal Gg7f8]} 17. Nd3 f5 18. Qc2 $44 {[%csl Ga5][%cal Ya1d1,Yg1h2,Ye2e4]} (18. Rc1 Nc6 $5 {[%cal Yd8d1]}) (18. e4 fxe4 {[%csl Gh3]}) 18... e4 19. Nf4 Bxa1 $6 20. Rxa1 $40 {[%csl Ga5][%cal Yb2h8,Ra3b2,Rc2c3]}) 16. d6 ({Actually, even here White could refrain from winning the piece back, in order to maintain his strong centre of pawns and keep the a5-knight out of play.} 16. Ba3 e4 17. Rc1 $44) 16... e4 17. d7 Nf7 18. Rb1 Qe7 19. dxc8=Q Raxc8 20. Na4 Rfd8 21. Qe1 Nc6 {Generally speaking, Black can be content with the outcome of the opening. He is much better developed and has considerable advantage of space. Besides, the g2-bishop will remain passive for a long time. However, White's position has no weaknesses, which gives him hope to repell the first wave of Black's initiative and retain the small material advantage. From this point of view, Carlsen's play in the next phase of the game deserves the highest praise.} 22. Nc3 Nd4 23. Bb2 ({The hurried activation of the knight with} 23. Nd5 {could have been met by} Rxd5 $5 24. cxd5 Rc2 $44 {with very active play for Black.}) 23... b5 24. Nd5 Qd6 $6 {There are several things to reproach to this move. The queen fails to increase the pressure against the c4-pawn and to support the central knight (or bishop after xd4, xd4) and will be slightly exposed.} (24... Qc5 $5 25. Bxd4 Bxd4 26. e3 Be5 27. Rc1 bxc4 28. bxc4 Rb8 $44 {Black cannot be worse here.}) 25. Bxd4 Bxd4 26. Rd1 Be5 27. Qa5 bxc4 28. Ne3 $1 Qc7 29. Qxc7 Bxc7 30. Nxc4 {White has activated his position a lot.} Ne5 31. Rxd8+ Rxd8 32. Rc1 Nxc4 33. Rxc4 {Only a dozen of moves have passed since the previous diagrammed position and we can see that White has fulfilled all the programmed tasks. He has provoked mass exchanges and retained the extra-pawn at the same time. Even so, it is highly questionable whether he has real winning chances, because of Black's persisting advantage of space and the presence of the opposite coloured bishops.} Rd1+ 34. Bf1 Bd6 35. e3 a5 36. Kg2 Kf7 37. Rc2 Ke7 38. Be2 Rd5 39. Bc4 Rd1 40. g4 f4 $2 {A blunder just before the first time control. Morozevich must have overlooked White's 43rd move.} ({Any neutral move such as} 40... Kf6 {would have maintained Black's drawing chances intact. His considerable advantage of space would have restricted White's active possibilities.}) 41. exf4 Bxf4 42. Re2 Rd4 43. Bd3 $3 {With this unexpected tactical resource, White wins a second pawn.} Kf6 (43... Rxd3 44. Rxe4+ {leads to a hopeless rook ending.}) 44. Bxe4 Rd2 45. Rxd2 Bxd2 46. Kg3 Be1 47. Kf3 Bb4 48. h4 h6 49. Ke2 Bd6 ({Morozevich' plan is hard to understand. The best chance for survival was blocking the white pawns on light squares with} 49... g5 {when White still needs to prove a winning plan. See the comment on the next move.}) 50. Kd3 Bc5 ({This was the last moment when Black could play} 50... g5 {It turns out that White is winning, but certain technical effort is needed still.} 51. h5 $1 {This is a dangerous candidate to promotion. Black faces severe problems defending both his wings. For instance, if the king guards the queenside majority (orpassed pawn), allowing the white king get to g6, the bishopcouldnot defend the h6-pawn for too long. (...f8 is met by g8 followed by g7). Black has to permanently count with a double pawn break on the kingside.} Ke5 52. f3 Bb4 53. Kc4 Ba3 (53... Kd6 54. f4 $1 gxf4 (54... Bd2 55. f5 $18 {is relatively easy. Black cannot fight against two remote passed pawns.}) 55. g5 hxg5 56. h6 Ba3 57. b4 $1 Bb2 (57... axb4 58. Kb3 $1 $18 {and the h-pawn promotes.}) 58. bxa5 Kc7 {It should be mentioned that in certain cases, if White would have only one passedpawn on the a-file and the black king could get to h8, the position would be a draw. Black would just give up his bishop for the a-pawn when needed.} 59. Bf3 Kb8 60. Kd5 Ka7 61. Ke6 Ka6 62. Kf5 Kxa5 63. Kxg5 Kb4 64. Kg4 (64. Kxf4 $2 Bc1+ 65. Kf5 Bxh6 $11) 64... Ka3 65. Bd5 Be5 66. h7 Kb4 67. Kf5 Bh8 68. Kxf4 $18) 54. Kb5 Bb4 55. Ka4 Bd2 56. a3 Kd6 57. Kb5 Be1 58. b4 axb4 59. axb4 Bd2 60. Kc4 Bc1 (60... Be1 61. f4 gxf4 62. g5 $18) 61. Bd5 $1 {d4-e4, קh6. A typical method of restricting the enemy king.} Bf4 (61... Bb2 62. b5 $18) (61... Be3 62. Kd3 $18 {[%cal Yd3e4] e4}) 62. Kd4 Bd2 63. b5 Ba5 64. Ke4 Bb6 65. Bc4 $18 {[%csl Gd6][%cal Ye4g6,Yg6h6,Rc4g8]}) 51. f4 h5 52. g5+ Kg7 53. Kc4 {This move marks the fiasco of Black's play in the endgame. Although he has managed to block the enemy pawns on dark squares and make them vulnerable, the white king has been given enough time to get activated. Black's counterplay will be too slow.} Bd6 54. Kb5 Bxf4 55. Kxa5 Bg3 56. Kb5 Bxh4 57. a4 Bxg5 58. a5 Kf6 59. a6 Be3 60. Kc6 g5 61. b4 Ke5 62. b5 Kxe4 63. b6 g4 64. a7 g3 65. a8=Q Kf3 66. b7 Bf4 67. Qf8 Ke4 68. Qe8+ 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2744"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 {Such important events as the World Championship match from Elista usually determine changes in the fashion. Aronian has included the Catalan in his repertoire recently; in Wijk aan Zee he obtained two important wins with it.} d5 4. Nf3 dxc4 5. Bg2 a6 6. O-O Nc6 7. e3 Bd7 8. Qe2 b5 9. Rd1 Be7 10. Nc3 ({RR} 10. e4 O-O 11. Bf4 Qc8 12. Nc3 b4 13. Nb1 Na5 14. Ne5 c5 15. d5 exd5 16. exd5 Bd6 17. Nxc4 Bxf4 18. Nxa5 Bg4 19. Bf3 Re8 20. Qd3 Bxf3 21. Qxf3 Be5 22. Nc4 Qg4 23. Nbd2 Bd4 24. d6 Qh3 {Buckels,V (2438)-Herbrig,A (2277) Schwaebisch Gmuend GER 2024 1-0 (55)}) 10... O-O {A courageous novelty. Black decides to ignore the pin along the Catalan diagonal.} 11. Ne5 Qe8 {Black has managed to prevent the immediate threats, but his coordination is rather poor, at least temporarily.} 12. b3 ({White decides to undermine Black's advantage of space on the queenside. A more natural continuation was} 12. e4 {, aiming to continue the development, for instance} Rd8 13. Be3 Bc8 14. f4) 12... Nd5 $146 ({Black considered the opening of the a-file with} 12... cxb3 13. axb3 {to be too dangerous. Instead, he prefers to return his small material advantage in order to activate his play.}) ({RR} 12... cxb3 13. axb3 b4 14. Ne4 Nxe5 15. Nxf6+ gxf6 16. dxe5 Bc6 17. Bb2 f5 18. e4 Bxe4 19. Bxe4 fxe4 20. Qxe4 Qb5 21. Bc1 Kh8 22. Bh6 Rg8 23. Qf4 Qe8 24. Rac1 c5 25. h4 a5 26. Kg2 a4 27. Rh1 {Thomas,A (2126)-Dauletova,G (2220) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 12... cxb3 13. axb3 b4 14. Ne4 Nxe5 15. Nxf6+ gxf6 16. dxe5 Bc6 17. Bb2 f5 18. e4 Bxe4 19. Bxe4 fxe4 20. Qxe4 Qb5 21. Bc1 Kh8 22. Bh6 Rg8 23. Qf4 Qe8 24. Rac1 c5 25. h4 a5 26. Kg2 a4 27. Rh1 {Thomas,A (2126)-Dauletova,G (2220) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (46)}) 13. Bxd5 {Giving up the Catalan bishop in order to install a second active knight in the centre.} exd5 14. Nxd5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Ra7 16. bxc4 {White is a pawn up already, but the weakness of the light squares offer Black good compensation.} c6 17. Nf4 Qc8 18. Bb2 g5 19. e4 $5 {An interesting decision. White could not find a stable square for his knight too easily and decides to sacrifice it in the hope of obtaining a direct attack against the king. The plan is logical from asbtract point of view, but probably unsound practically.} gxf4 20. gxf4 f5 21. Qe3 Rb7 22. Qg3+ Kf7 23. Qh3 Ke8 24. Qh5+ Rf7 25. Kh1 fxe4 26. Rg1 Bf5 27. Rad1 Rd7 ({Probably missing White's answer. After} 27... Bg6 {, the attack would have been difficult to carry out.}) 28. e6 $1 Bxe6 29. Rg8+ Bf8 30. Rxf8+ $1 {A draw by perpetual is inevitable now.} Kxf8 31. Qh6+ Ke7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2779"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bd6 $5 {This interesting move was introduced in practice by Zviaginsev in the early '90s, but has never been in the centre of the theoretical disputes. Adopting it for this specific game must have been an over-the-board decision of Anand, possibly based on the fact that Carlsen had never played the the Meran variation (6.d3) before.} 9. O-O ({The only game where Anand had played this line before went} 9. Bd2 O-O 10. Ne4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 Bb7 12. Rc1 Rc8 13. b4 {. White has delayed his castle, for the sake of rapid queenside developemnt, aimed to prevent the typical counterplay based on ...c5.} Qe7 14. Qb3 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Bxe5 17. Qb1 g6 {. It might seem that White's strategy has been dubious, because castling is connected with a loss of pawn now. However, after} 18. O-O $5 Qd6 19. Bc3 Bxh2+ 20. Kh1 Be5 21. Rfd1 {White had excellent compensation in view of the passive b7-bishop and the imobility of the black queenside, Sokolov-Anand, Wijk aan Zee 2005.}) 9... O-O 10. b3 ({Carlsen opts for a quiet way of developing. Several other moves have been tried here, with no definitive conclusion yet. It should be said that the most principled line} 10. e4 e5 11. Bg5 exd4 12. Nxd4 Ne5 13. Be2 {has yielded Black excelent results in practice.}) 10... Bb7 11. Bb2 a6 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Nf6 ({Curiously, this natural move is a novelty, which is quite suggestive for the unsettled character of theory in the Zviagintsev line.} 13... f5 {has been occasionally played before, but it is hard to understand why would Black weaken the a1-h8 diagonal so easily.}) 14. Bc2 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 {The position is almost symmetrical. By having adopted the modest method of development based on b3 (compared to Black's ...b5 and ...a6), White has spared a tempo, which offers him some chances of taking over the initiative. However, in the long run the light-squared bishop will face difficulties achieving stability, precisely because the b3-square is not available.} 16. Ng5 ({This knight jump might be premature. I would prefer continuing the development with} 16. Qe2 {followed by fd1 and g5 and/or a4.}) 16... Qxd1 17. Raxd1 $6 ({Quite illogical. The queen's rook is "designed" to occupy the c-file, eventually after provoking a weakening of the enemy queenside by means of a4.} 17. Rfxd1 Kh8 18. a4 {looks like a better continuation. Yet, this general aspects might seem irrelevant, since Black faces problems defending his kingside.}) 17... Kh8 $146 ({This elegant defence solves Black's problems.} 17... h6 $6 {would have lost apawn after} 18. Bxf6 gxf6 ({or} 18... hxg5 19. Bxg5 {with the same result.}) 19. Nh7 Rfd8 20. Be4 $5 Bxe4 21. Nxf6+ Kg7 22. Nxe4 {without any compensation for Black.}) ({RR} 17... Rfd8 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Bxh7+ Kg7 20. Be4 fxg5 21. Bxb7 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Ra7 23. Be4 f5 24. Bb1 Re7 25. g3 Ba3 26. Kg2 Kf6 27. Rd8 Rc7 28. Bd3 Rc6 29. Ra8 Rd6 30. Bxb5 Bc5 31. Rxa6 {1-0 (31) Gurvich,V (2129)-Kiremitciyan,A (1844) Golden Sands 2014}) 18. g3 ({It is hard to comment on this move. White spends a valuable tempo on... weakening the f3-square. Probably, Carlsen wanted to make the threat of winning a pawn with Bxf6, which would not work now. If} 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Nxh7 $2 {then} Rg8 20. g3 Kg7 {trapping the knight. Instead of 19.xh7, White has several ways of reaching a drawn opposite coloured bishop ending: 19.e4, 19.e4 or 19.d7. Curiously, the engines like 18.g3, too, in fierce competition with... 18.g4.}) 18... h6 19. Bxf6 hxg5 20. Bb2 ({Another drawback of 18.g3 can be seen in theline} 20. Bxg5 $2 f6 {, trapping the bishop.}) 20... Rac8 21. Rc1 {Practically admitting the inaccuracy of his 17th move.} Rfd8 22. Rfd1 Bf3 23. Rxd8+ Rxd8 {White's temporary initiative has been extinguished completely and now he has to endure the consequences of his superficial strategy. The f3-bishop is dominating the board, while his white colleague occupies a passive position on c2. In the long run, the massive advance of the kingside pawns is likely to increase Black's advantage. And yet, in symmetrical positions the drawish zone is quite wide and White should not be in too big danger of losing yet.} 24. a3 b4 {Of course! The c2-bishop will not be allowed to get to b3.} 25. a4 f5 26. Kf1 f4 ({This active move will be crowned by success after Black's mistaken answer. In case of the more static} 26... g4 {White would have activated his play with} 27. Ke1 Bd6 28. Bd1 Bb7 29. a5 {followed by Be2. Black's advantage after} Kg8 30. Be2 Kf7 31. Bc4 g5 {would be more of symbolic nature.}) 27. Be4 $2 ({Instead of panicking, White should have put the enemy king under pressure, too, with} 27. gxf4 gxf4 28. exf4 Rd2 29. Bg6 {when in view of the weaknes of the 8th rank Black seems to have nothing better than a perpetual.}) 27... Bxe4 28. Rxc5 Rd1+ 29. Ke2 Rb1 30. Bc1 f3+ 31. Kd1 Rxb3 {How much different is this rook and opposite coloured bishops ending from that from Carlsen's first round game against Morozevich... White has little hope of surviving.} 32. Rc4 Bd3 33. Rc8+ Kh7 34. e4 Rb1 35. Kd2 Bxe4 36. Ke3 Bd5 37. Bd2 Rb3+ 38. Kd4 Rb2 39. Be3 Re2 40. Rc1 Ba2 0-1

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.21"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A46"]
[WhiteElo "2750"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 b5 {Well, there is no such perfect move order in chess. White has avoided the Queen's Indian with ...a6 and the Catalan with an early ...dxc4, but Black deviates now radically from the long main lines of the Catalan. Just a couple of hours later, I had the occasion to see the following opening in our national championship: 1.d4 f6 2.f3 g6 3.bd2!? d5 4.b4 and White soon obtained a promissing position in Nanu - Grigore. I had not the occasion to ask nanu whether he was inspired by Carlsen's play or if it was a mere coincidence.} 5. Nbd2 ({RR} 5. Ne5 Be7 6. Nd2 Bb7 7. c4 bxc4 8. Ndxc4 c6 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. b3 O-O 12. Bb2 a5 13. O-O Qb6 14. e4 Bf6 15. Kh1 Ba6 16. Re1 Rfd8 17. e5 Be7 18. f4 a4 19. Bc3 c5 {Mikhalevski,V (2632)-Almasi,Z (2667) Heviz 2008 0-1 (70)}) 5... Bb7 6. Nb3 a5 7. Bd2 $146 ({RR} 7. a4 b4 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Bg5 c5 10. c3 bxc3 11. bxc3 Qc7 12. Nfd2 cxd4 13. Nxd4 h6 14. Nb5 Qb6 15. Be3 Bc5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. c4 O-O 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Bxd5 Nxd5 20. Nc4 Qa6 21. Rc1 Rfd8 {Munoz Avila,J (2247)-Ajay,K (2442) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2023 0-1 (61)}) ({RR} 7. a4 b4 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Bg5 c5 10. c3 bxc3 11. bxc3 Qc7 12. Nfd2 cxd4 13. Nxd4 h6 14. Nb5 Qb6 15. Be3 Bc5 16. Bxc5 Nxc5 17. c4 O-O 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Bxd5 Nxd5 20. Nc4 Qa6 21. Rc1 Rfd8 {Munoz Avila,J (2247)-Ajay,K (2442) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2023 0-1 (61)}) 7... Nc6 8. Nc1 Bd6 9. Nd3 O-O 10. O-O Ne4 11. Be3 b4 12. Re1 Ba6 {White has regrouped his pieces harmoniously, but his central pawns are too passively placed. Black has no problems.} 13. Nfe5 Ne7 14. f3 Nf5 15. Bf4 Nf6 16. c3 Ne7 17. Qd2 bxc3 18. bxc3 Rc8 19. Bg5 Bxd3 20. Nxd3 Nd7 21. e4 c5 22. exd5 exd5 23. Bh3 cxd4 24. cxd4 h6 25. Bf4 Bxf4 26. Nxf4 Rc4 27. Bf1 Rc8 28. Bh3 Rc4 29. Bf1 Rc8 30. Rab1 Nf6 31. Rb5 Nc6 32. Rc5 Qb6 33. Rec1 g5 34. Ne2 Ne5 35. Qc3 Nc4 36. Kh1 Nd7 37. Rxc8 Rxc8 38. Qd3 Nf6 39. Nc3 Qb2 40. Rc2 Qa1 41. Qd1 Qxd1 42. Nxd1 Re8 43. Kg2 Ne3+ 44. Nxe3 Rxe3 45. Kf2 Ra3 46. Bb5 h5 47. Ke2 Kg7 48. Rb2 h4 49. Kf2 hxg3+ 50. hxg3 g4 51. Be2 gxf3 52. Bxf3 a4 53. Rb5 Rxa2+ 54. Ke3 a3 55. Ra5 Ra1 56. Kd2 a2 57. Kc2 Rf1 58. Bd1 Ne4 59. g4 Nf2 60. Rxa2 Rxd1 0-1

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2783"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "127"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. b3 O-O 8. Be2 b6 9. O-O Bb7 10. Bb2 Re8 11. Rad1 Qe7 12. Rfe1 Rac8 ({For some reasons, Topalov sticks to this continuation, that had led him to defeat in the second play-off game against Kramnik. From analytical point of view, the variation might be OK, but it will again prove as an "unlucky" choice. The main alternative is} 12... Rad8) 13. e4 (13. Bd3 $5 {Kramnik,V (2743)-Topalov,V (2813)/Elista 2006/CBM 115/[Marin,M] (1-0, 45)}) 13... Nxe4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Qxe4 Bb4 16. Rf1 Ba3 $146 ({Previously, Black played this generally desirable move only after forcing the white queen define its intentions.} 16... Nf6 17. Qh4 Ba3 18. Ba1 c5 19. Ne5 cxd4 20. Rxd4 Rcd8 21. Rf4 Nd7 22. Qg3 Nxe5 23. Bxe5 f5 24. Bh5 Rf8 $13 {Genov,P (2485)-Rmus,A (2310)/Sutomore 2004/CBM 102 ext (0-1, 33)}) ({RR} 16... Bd6 17. Bd3 Nf6 18. Qh4 h6 19. Rfe1 Qf8 20. Nd2 Be7 21. c5 Nd5 22. Qe4 g6 23. Nc4 bxc5 24. dxc5 Bxc5 25. Ne5 Nf6 26. Qf3 Be7 27. Bxg6 fxg6 28. Nxg6 Qg7 29. Nxe7+ Rxe7 30. Bxf6 c5 31. Qxb7 {Nesterov,A (2483)-Tsvetkov,A (2131) Tuapse 2021 1-0 (53)}) ({RR} 16... Bd6 17. Bd3 Nf6 18. Qh4 h6 19. Rfe1 Qf8 20. Nd2 Be7 21. c5 Nd5 22. Qe4 g6 23. Nc4 bxc5 24. dxc5 Bxc5 25. Ne5 Nf6 26. Qf3 Be7 27. Bxg6 fxg6 28. Nxg6 Qg7 29. Nxe7+ Rxe7 30. Bxf6 c5 31. Qxb7 {Nesterov,A (2483)-Tsvetkov,A (2131) Tuapse 2021 1-0 (53)}) 17. Bxa3 Qxa3 18. Qc2 Nf6 19. c5 $5 {This structure is typical for the Catalan opening, but with a very significant difference: by immediately exchanging his passive bishop, Black basically solves his opening problems.} Ba6 20. Bxa6 Qxa6 21. Ne5 Nd5 {Black's control of this central square entirely compensates for White's advantage of development.} 22. Nc4 Red8 23. a3 Rc7 24. Qc1 Ne7 25. Rd2 Nf5 26. Rfd1 b5 27. Ne5 Qc8 28. Rd3 f6 29. Nf3 Rcd7 30. Qf4 Rd5 31. Qe4 Qd7 32. R3d2 {The d4-pawn is not in real danger, but its relative weakness restricts White's possibilities. If the game was played between less ambitious opponents, the most probable result would have been a draw.} h5 33. h4 a5 34. Kf1 Re8 35. Re1 Kf7 36. Red1 Nh6 37. Re1 Re7 38. Qf4 Rf5 39. Qd6 Qc8 ({This looks like an attempt to play for a win, but also a bit like playing with fire.} 39... Qxd6 40. cxd6 Rd7 41. Rc1 Rxd6 42. Rdc2 {would have led to approximate equality.}) 40. Rde2 $6 ({Carlsen misses the possibility of a thematic pawn break:} 40. d5 $5 {followed by d4, when Black's army would have been rather poorly coordinated.} Rxd5 (40... cxd5 41. Nd4 Re5 42. Rxe5 fxe5 43. Nc6 Rc7 44. Nxe5+ Kg8 45. b4 $16) 41. Rxd5 cxd5 42. Nd4 {Black's whole queeside is in danger, while the central mass of pawns cannot be advanced easily. Another source of danger is the strong c-pawn, sustained by practically all White's pieces.} b4 43. axb4 (43. a4 $16) 43... axb4 44. c6 $16) 40... Rd5 41. Qf4 Nf5 42. Re4 Rd8 $11 43. g4 $6 {With light-squared bishops on board, this would have been a decissive attack already, because White's bishop would have largely contributed to creating decissive threats. The way it is, Black has reliable stability on light squares, ensuring him against immediate dangers. In the long run, White faces the risk of getting a ruined pawn structure, which makes his decision quite questionable.} hxg4 44. Qxg4 Qd7 $5 ({An ambitious approach. Instead of preventing White's planned attack, Black starts a powerful counterplay on light squares. He could have immediately taken the h-pawn under control with} 44... Rh8 {and if} 45. h5 {then} Qd7 (45... Rh6 $2 {unexpectedely offers White a crushing attack after} 46. Qxf5 $1 exf5 47. Rxe7+ Kf8 48. Nh4 $1 $18)) 45. h5 Kg8 ({Here, too,} 45... Rh8 {could have been played.}) 46. Kg2 Qd5 {The queen's planned incursion to b3 is very unpleasant for White, who's attack has not really started yet.} 47. Qg6 Rf8 ({As pointed out by Jacob Aagaard,} 47... Qxb3 {was entirely possible, not so much for the sake of the pawn, but with the intention of submitting White's arrierguard to some unpleasant pressure, for instance} 48. h6 (48. Rg4 Kf8 $1 {Aagaard}) 48... Qd3 49. Rg4 $2 Rxd4 $3 $19 {Aagaard. The point is that} 50. Nxd4 {loses the queen to} Nh4+) 48. h6 Qd8 $2 (48... Nxh6 $2 49. Rh4 Nf5 (49... Kh8 50. Reh1 $18) 50. Rh5 $1 $18 {followed by h1.}) (48... Qxb3 $5) 49. d5 $5 ({Better later than never! White intends to distract the enemy queen from the defence of the kingside. The immediate} 49. Rg4 $6 {would have been adequately met by} Qe8) ({At the same time,} 49. Rxe6 $6 Qd5 $1 {would have left White with problems of coordination because of the threat ...h4+.}) 49... Qxd5 50. Rg4 $40 Qd7 ({This regrouping will fail to absolve Black from problems, but} 50... Qxb3 {was bad, too.} 51. Rh1 Ref7 ({This move is more or less necesaary because in case of the more natural} 51... Qd5 $2 {White has a fantastic combination at his disposal:} 52. Qh7+ $3 Kxh7 53. hxg7+ {followed by mate.}) 52. Rh5 {White has put up enormous pressure against the enemy king's position. Black is lost, for instance} Qc2 (52... b4 53. hxg7 Rxg7 54. Qh7+ Kf7 55. Ne5+ $1 fxe5 56. Rxf5+ $18) 53. hxg7 Ne3+ (53... Rxg7 54. Qh7+ Kf7 55. Rxg7+ Nxg7 56. Qxc2 $18) 54. Kh3 Qxg6 55. gxf8=Q+ Kxf8 56. Rxg6 $18) 51. Rh1 Qe8 52. hxg7 Rxg7 53. Qh7+ Kf7 54. Rxg7+ Nxg7 55. Rh6 ({When attacking, the natural tendency is to move the pieces "forward". However, chess geometry is special. Here,} 55. Nd2 {would have been the start of the knights marching forward to d6. Black would have faced a difficult defensive task.}) 55... Qd8 56. Qg6+ Kg8 57. Qh7+ Kf7 58. Qg6+ Kg8 59. Rh7 Qd7 60. Nd2 {The same comment as after the 49th move applies here. It seems that the young Norvegian prodigee is able to learn from his own mistakes at breathtaking speed....} f5 61. Nf3 Rf6 62. Qxf6 Kxh7 63. Ng5+ Kg8 64. Qg6 ({The position looks so joyless for Black, that Topalov resigned. He probably saw that he has no perpetual after} 64. Qg6 Qd5+ 65. f3 {but obviously missed that after} e5 {the queen's access to g8 is opened. After} 66. Qh7+ Kf8 67. Qh8+ Qg8 {White has nothing better than take a draw by perpetual with} 68. Nh7+) 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.02.24"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2749"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "40"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. b3 O-O 8. Be2 b6 9. Bb2 ({RR} 9. O-O Bb7 {½-½ (20) Kanarek,M (2520)-Bukavshin,I (2657) Yerevan 2015}) ({RR} 9. O-O Bb7 {½-½ (19) Radjabov,T (2748)-Carlsen,M (2843) Shamkir 2018}) 9... Bb7 10. O-O Qe7 11. Rad1 Rad8 {This is the most natural way to develop the queen's rook. One round earlier, Topalov preferred to place it on c8.} 12. Rfe1 Rfe8 13. e4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Qxe4 Bb4 16. Rf1 Bd6 ({This position usually arises through a different move order, with 12.e4 instead of 12.fe1. In this concrete position, the last move clearly shows that Leko does not have the least intention of depose the surprising leader of the tournament. The more ambitious} 16... f5 {is not without drawbacks. After} 17. Qc2 Bd6 18. c5 bxc5 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Bc4 {White obtained excellent compensation for the sacrificed pawn, in view of the weakness of the dark squares from Black's camp, Rustemov-Gurevich, Copenhagen 2001.}) 17. Rfe1 {A brave decision dictated by the impetuosity of youth. Previously, 17.d3 and 17.e5 have been tried.} Bb4 18. Rf1 Bd6 19. Rfe1 Bb4 {Excellent fighting spirit! Black could have claimed a draw by repetition already, but he prefers to continue this fierce duel of nerves for a while.} 20. Rf1 Bd6 $146 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.03.03"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2744"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 c6 8. Bc3 d5 9. Ne5 Nfd7 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. Nd2 O-O 12. O-O Rc8 ({RR} 12... Nf6) 13. e4 c5 14. exd5 exd5 15. dxc5 dxc4 16. c6 cxb3 17. Re1 b2 18. Bxb2 Nc5 19. Nb3 ({RR} 19. Nc4 Bxc4 20. Qg4 Bg5 21. Qxc4 Nd3 22. Ba3 Nxe1 23. Rxe1 Re8 24. Rxe8+ Qxe8 25. Bd5) 19... Nd3 20. Re2 Nxb2 ({RR} 20... Bb4) 21. Rxb2 Qxd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rfd8 ({RR} 22... Bf6) 23. Rbd2 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Bxd8 26. Nd4 Bc4 27. Bf1 $146 ({Not really creative. In the game Topalov-Leko, played just days earlier in Morelia, White chose} 27. a4 Kf8 28. Nb5 {which left White with "the symbolically better side of a dead drawn position". Carlsen is not that ambitious and forces an immediate repetition of moves.}) ({RR} 27. a4 Kf8 28. Nb5 Bxb5 29. axb5 Ke7 30. f4 Bc7 31. Kf2 h6 32. h4 f5 33. h5 Kf6 34. Bf1 Bd6 35. Ke3 Bc7 36. Kd4 Bd6 37. Kd5 Bc7 38. Bd3 Bb8 39. Bc2 {½-½ (39) Topalov,V (2783)-Leko,P (2749) Morelia/Linares 2007 CBM 117 [Marin,Mihail]}) 27... Bd5 ({Not} 27... Bxa2 $2 {because of} 28. Nb5 {winning a piece after 29.c7.}) 28. Bg2 Bc4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.03.06"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D88"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{This game was played in the 11th round, right after I had lost the very important game against Anand. I played for a win, but as usual I did not expect very much.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Na5 11. Bd3 b6 {Ivanchuk chose this variation against Nielsen in Monaco, after which Nielsen replied:} 12. Rc1 (12. Qd2 $6 e5 {After which Nielsen was gradually outplayed (although he saved a draw in the end).}) 12... cxd4 {This move, opening the c-file right after White has played c1 doesn't look very good, but it is part of a setup.} 13. cxd4 e6 {Before developing the bishop on b7, Black wants to prevent d5. This move does, however, create some weaknesses on the dark squares around the black king.} 14. Qd2 Bb7 15. h4 {This move has long been considered the best move here. The h4 pawn is obviously immune.} Qe7 $6 {This is just a bit too indifferent in my opinion.} (15... Nc6 {Is the main continuation, after which} 16. e5 {Is quite interesting, and probably quite promising for White.}) ({RR} 15... Qd7 16. h5 Rfc8 17. h6 Bf8 18. Bg5 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Rc8 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. Ng3 Nc6 22. Bf6 Nb8 23. Bg5 Nc6 24. Bf6 Nb8 25. Bg5 Nc6 {½-½ (25) Giri,A (2769)-Wei,Y (2725) Jerusalem 2019}) ({RR} 15... Qd7 16. h5 Rfc8 17. h6 Bf8 18. Ng3 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Rc8 20. Rd1 Nc4 21. Bxc4 Rxc4 22. d5 e5 23. f3 Bd6 24. Nf1 Qa4 25. Bf2 Rc2 26. Qd3 Qxa2 27. Rd2 Rxd2 28. Nxd2 Qa1+ 29. Kh2 Qc1 30. Be3 {De Winter,A (2460)-Braun,C (2390) Maastricht NED 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 16. h5 Rfc8 17. e5 $1 {This is apparently a novelty, but quite a logical one, as to create play on the dark squares on the kingside is whites plan here.} Rxc1 $146 {This looks like a very bad plan to me.} (17... Nc6 {should probably have been tried, I think that Black's first priority here should be to bring the knight back into the game.}) ({RR} 17... Qd8 18. f3 Bd5 19. Bg5 f6 20. Bh6 Nc4 21. Bxc4 Bxc4 22. Bxg7 Kxg7 23. Nf4 fxe5 24. Rxc4 exf4 25. h6+ Kxh6 26. Qxf4+ Qg5 27. Qh2+ Qh5 28. Qf4+ Qg5 29. Qh2+ Kg7 30. Rc7+ Rxc7 31. Qxc7+ Kg8 32. Re1 {Andrews,S-Stone,R (2345) Lansing 1989 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 17... Nc6 18. Ng3 Na5 19. Bg5 Qd7 20. Qf4 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. Rxc8+ Qxc8 23. h6 Bf8 24. Nh5 Qc7 25. Nf6+ Kh8 26. Bb5 Bc6 27. a4 Qb7 28. Nd7 {0-1 (28) Krutko,A (2465)-Vokarev,S (2502) Ekaterinburg 2008}) 18. Rxc1 Rc8 19. Rxc8+ Bxc8 20. Bg5 Qc7 $6 (20... Qd7 {was more resistant, but after f6 it is in any case very hard to believe that Black can survive.}) (20... f6 21. exf6 Bxf6 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. hxg6 hxg6 24. Qc2 {Drops a pawn, but the black position is anyway so critical that it may have considered.}) 21. Bf6 Nc6 22. Qg5 h6 {This prevents immediate infiltration, but doesn't help, as after} (22... Nb4 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24. Qf6+ Kf8 25. Bxg6 $1 hxg6 26. h6 {and wins.}) 23. Qc1 {Black is completely defenceless.} g5 (23... Qd7 24. hxg6 {is clearly no better.}) 24. Bb5 Bd7 25. d5 $1 {By exploiting the pin on the c-file, White wins a piece and the game.} exd5 26. Nd4 Bxf6 27. exf6 Qd6 28. Bxc6 Qxf6 29. Bxd7 Qxd4 30. g3 Qc5 31. Qxc5 bxc5 32. Bc6 d4 33. Bb5 Kf8 34. f4 gxf4 35. gxf4 {After this game had finished I had a strange feeling, since I could not really understand what that had just happened: Without making any particularily spectacular moves I had just beaten one of best players in the world. It seems to me that Ivanchuk must have had an extremely bad day (as it seemed to me, for most of this tournament he played really well).} 1-0

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.03.09"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D78"]
[WhiteElo "2690"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 c6 5. Bg2 d5 6. Qa4 $5 {If White intends to avoid the symmetrical position arising after the exchange on d5, he usually defends his c-pawn with 6.b3 or 6.b3. However, the game move has also been played and could simply transpose to 6.b3 if Black captures on c4.} O-O 7. O-O Bf5 ({Black takes advantage of the lack of pressure against the b7-pawn to take the important e4-square under control. The attempt to take advantage of the queen's placement on a4 with} 7... Nbd7 {fails to equalize completely, for instance} 8. cxd5 Nb6 9. Qa3 cxd5 ({Now,} 9... Nfxd5 {would be met by} 10. e4 Nc7 11. Nc3 {, consolidating White's advantage of space.}) 10. Nc3 Nc4 11. Qb4 e6 12. Bf4 Re8 13. Ne5 Bf8 14. Qb3 Nd6 15. Bg5 Be7 16. Rfd1 Nf5 {Black has moved arond with thisknight quite a lot. Little wonder that White's development is superior, allowing him obtain a strong initiative with} 17. e4 {, Portisch-Ivkov, Petropolis Interzonal 1973.}) 8. Nc3 Nbd7 9. cxd5 Nb6 10. Qb3 Nfxd5 {Black has not managed to put White's central pawn under pressure, but his development is acceptable and the thematical advance e2-e4 quite difficult to carry out. A typcal position for the Grünfeld.} 11. Rd1 $146 ({RR} 11. Re1 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Be4 13. a4 Qd5 14. Qxd5 cxd5 15. a5 Nc4 16. Nd2 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Rfc8 18. Nxc4 Rxc4 19. Bd2 Rac8 20. Reb1 R8c7 21. Rb5 e6 22. Rab1 b6 23. axb6 axb6 24. Rxb6 h6 25. Rb7 g5 {Kezin,R (2472)-Drygalov,S (2542) St Petersburg RUS 2024 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 11. Re1 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Be4 13. Ba3 Re8 14. Bf1 Bxf3 15. exf3 e6 16. Rad1 Qc7 17. h4 h5 18. Bc1 Rac8 19. a4 c5 20. a5 Nd5 21. c4 Nb4 22. d5 exd5 23. cxd5 Rxe1 24. Rxe1 Bd4 25. Bf4 Qd7 {Lou Yiping (2444)-Hong,M (2171) Bengbu CHN 2025 1-0 (38)}) 11... Qd6 12. Bd2 Nxc3 13. Bxc3 Qe6 14. d5 {Under different circumstances (a better development for White), such a pawn break would be advantageous, but here it will just lead to simplifications.} cxd5 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Nd4 Qf6 17. Nxf5+ Qxf5 18. a4 Rfd8 19. a5 Nc4 20. Qxb7 e6 21. e4 dxe4 22. Bxe4 Qe5 23. Bg2 Nxa5 24. Qxa8 Rxa8 25. Bxa8 Qe2 26. Re1 Qd2 27. Red1 Qe2 28. Re1 Qd2 29. Red1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 24th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2007.03.10"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Leko, Peter"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2749"]
[BlackElo "2690"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2007.02.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 117"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.03.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 b6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 Ba6 7. b3 {This combination between ...a6 and ...b4+ is not very popular nowadays.} O-O ({Recently, there have been a couple of games with the rather ambitious continuation} 7... c5 8. Bg2 d5 9. Nc3 Nc6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. O-O O-O 12. dxc5 bxc5 {(This position can be reached via several move orders, of course). The placement of the knight on c6 is slightly unusual for positions with hanging pawns (...a6 or ...bd7 are more popular ways of developing this knight), but here it seems to make sense because of Black's general activity.} 13. Rfd1 (13. Rfe1 Re8 14. Nh4 Qa5 15. Rad1 Rad8 16. Nf5 $6 (16. Nxd5 Qxd2 17. Rxd2 Nxd5 18. Rxd5 Rxd5 19. Bxd5 Nb4 $132 {[%csl Ya2,Ye2]}) 16... Re5 $132 17. Nxd5 $2 Qxd2 18. Rxd2 Nxd5 {0-1 Zubarev,A (2074)-Kengis,E (2589)/Polanica Zdroj 2000/EXT 2001}) (13. Nh4 Rc8 14. Rac1 Re8 15. Rfe1 d4 16. Na4 c4 17. bxc4 Ne5 18. Nb2 (18. c5 d3 $132 19. e3 $2 Nc4 $17) 18... Nxc4 19. Nxc4 Rxc4 20. Rxc4 Bxc4 21. Nf5 d3 22. Ne3 Bb5 23. exd3 Qxd3 $11 {Gyimesi,Z (2614)-Pelletier,Y (2570)/Turin 2006/CBM 113 (½-½, 34)}) 13... d4 (13... Re8 $5) 14. Na4 Re8 (14... Ne4 $5 15. Qc2 Re8 16. Nxc5 $6 Nb4 $1 {[%csl Gc5]}) 15. Nxc5 Bxe2 16. Nxd4 $1 Nxd4 17. Bxa8 Bxd1 18. Rxd1 Re2 19. Qd3 Qxa8 20. Qxd4 $16 {Kempinski,R (2619)-Kengis,E (2528)/Hamburg 2005/CBM 108 ext (1-0, 40)}) 8. Nc3 d5 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bg2 Re8 11. Ne5 c5 12. O-O Bb7 13. Rfd1 ({RR} 13. Qf4 Nbd7 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. e3 d4 17. Bxb7 Qxb7 18. exd4 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Rad8 20. Qf4 Rd3 21. Rac1 h5 22. Rfd1 Rf3 23. Qd4 Ng4 24. Qd5 Qxd5 25. Nxd5 Re2 26. Nc3 Rb2 27. Ne4 Rf5 {Kempinski,R (2590)-Carlsen,M (2690) Germany 2007 ½-½ (45)}) 13... Na6 (13... Qe7 {CBM 36-5.b3 b4 6.d2 d2 7.d2/Opening 1993/CBM 036/[Dautov]}) 14. Qf4 Nc7 $146 {Black must have been just too happy to threaten ...e6 with gain of tempo, probably overloking White's answer.} (14... Qc7 15. Nb5 $5 (15. Nc4 Rad8 16. Ne3 (16. Qxc7 Nxc7 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Na5 Ba8 19. Na4 Rxe2 20. Nxc5 $14 {van der Wiel}) 16... Qxf4 17. gxf4 Nc7 $13 {Tukmakov,V (2590)-Van der Wiel,J (2540)/Rotterdam 1988/CBM 009 (½-½, 36)}) 15... Qe7 16. e3 (16. Ng4 Nxg4 17. Qxg4 Qxe2 18. Qxe2 Rxe2 19. Nd6 Bc6 20. Bf1 Re6 21. Nxf7 $1 $14 {Van der Wiel. Maybe too optimistic?!}) 16... Rec8 17. Bh3 Rd8 18. Rac1 Nb4 19. a4 $6 (19. Nc3 $14) 19... a6 20. Nc3 {Rovchakov,V-Arzumanyan,S/RUS corr 1991/Corr Nr. 1 (0-1, 34)} a5 $5 $13) ({RR} 14... Qc7 15. Nc4 Rad8 16. Ne3 Qxf4 17. gxf4 Nc7 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Na4 Ba6 20. Rd2 d4 21. Nc4 Ne6 22. f5 Nf4 23. Bf3 Bxc4 24. bxc4 Re5 25. Rb1 Rxf5 26. Rb7 g5 27. e3 Nh3+ 28. Kg2 g4 29. Bc6 {Tukmakov,V (2590)-Van der Wiel,J (2590) Rotterdam 1988 ½-½ (33)}) 15. Ng4 $1 Nxg4 16. Qxg4 {White has obtained strong pressure against Black's hanging pawns. The exchange of two pairs of minor pieces favours him, by restricting Black's possibilities of counterplay in the centre.} Qf6 17. e3 Rad8 18. Rac1 Qe7 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Qa4 Rd7 $5 ({An indirect way of defending the a7-pawn. However, placing the rook on d7 has a major drawback, as shown by Leko's next move.} 20... a6 21. Qa5 {, threatening Na4 would not have been much fun either.}) 21. Ne4 $1 ({Black would have obtained certain counterplay after} 21. Qxa7 Ne6 {, with the threat of d4.}) 21... d4 ({Black could not defend his centre anymore.} 21... Ne6 {loses the c5-pawn to} 22. Nxc5 $1 Nxc5 23. Rxc5) ({while} 21... c4 {drops an exchange to} 22. Nc5 $1) 22. exd4 Bxe4 23. Bxe4 {Since the d7-roo is hanging, White just won a pawn.} Ne6 24. d5 $5 {An ambitious move.} ({Leko might have feared that after} 24. dxc5 Rxd1+ 25. Rxd1 Nxc5 26. Qa3 $1 $16 {his winning chances would not be 100% sure. In case of 26...xe4 27.xc5. Of course,} Nxe4 $4 {is impossible because of} 27. Qxe7 Rxe7 28. Rd8+) 24... Nd4 {Black's counterplay should not be underestimated. The knight is very well placed, while the white queen is somewhat isolated from the rest of the army (notably, the king).} 25. Re1 Qd8 26. Kf1 Rde7 27. Bd3 {White has managed to avoid the knight forks on e2 and f3 and get out of the pin. However, Black has not exhausted his resources.} Qc8 28. g4 $3 ({This paradoxical move is the only way to prevent the deadly check on h3. Black cannot capture the pawn because of xe8!+ followed by mate; a curious way of coordinating White's queen with the other pieces. There was no time for the intermediate} 28. Rxe7 {because of} Qh3+ {when the king's return to g1 would be met by ...Nf3+ followed by mate, forcing him to go to the centre} 29. Ke1 Rxe7+ {with a powerful attack for Black.}) 28... Rxe1+ 29. Rxe1 Rf8 30. h3 {White has consolidates his position, maintaining his extra-pawn. However, the technical part is quite difficult, especially beacuse of the weaknesses induced by the move g4.} Qd8 31. Be4 Qb6 {Black should not have allowed the infiltration of the enemy queen to d7.} 32. Bg2 g6 33. Kg1 Kg7 34. Qd7 Rd8 35. Qe7 a5 36. Kh1 Nb5 37. Re6 Nd6 38. Qf6+ Kg8 39. Re7 {White has an extra-pawn and a strong attack. The game is practically decided, despite the mutual time trouble.} a4 $6 40. bxa4 $6 ({Just before the time control, Leko misses an immediate win with} 40. Rxf7 $1) 40... c4 41. Kh2 Qb8 42. f4 Qc8 43. Re3 Re8 44. Rxe8+ Nxe8 45. Qc6 Qxc6 46. dxc6 {Black has managed to exchange the intruders, but the ending is just as hopeless for him as the middlegame.} Kf8 47. Kg3 Ke7 48. Kf2 Kd6 49. Ke3 Kc5 50. g5 Nc7 51. a3 Ne6 52. Be4 c3 53. f5 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2007.04.20"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Moskow, Eric"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A33"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2260"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2007.04.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. Nc3 b6 9. Bf4 ({RR} 9. O-O Bb7 10. Nb5 d6 11. N3d4 Qd7 12. Bf4 e5 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. Bxc6 Qxc6 15. Bg5 Nd7 16. Bxe7 Kxe7 17. Rc1 a6 18. Nc3 Nf6 19. Nd5+ Ke6 20. Nxf6 gxf6 21. Qb3 Ke7 22. Rfd1 Rhc8 23. Qa3 a5 {Murawski,J (2033)-Brunner,N (2413) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (40)}) 9... Bb7 10. O-O O-O 11. Qd2 ({RR} 11. Nb5 Na5 12. Qd3 Bxg2 13. Kxg2 a6 14. Nc3 Nb7 15. Rfd1 d6 16. Qf3 Qc7 17. Rac1 Rac8 18. Nd2 Nd7 19. b4 Ne5 20. Bxe5 dxe5 21. a3 f5 22. Na4 Bg5 23. e3 Rcd8 24. b5 Na5 25. bxa6 Rd3 {Carlsen,M (2581)-Bologan,V (2669) Sanxenxo 2004 0-1 (39)}) 11... Na5 $146 ({RR} 11... Rc8 12. Rac1 Ba6 13. Nb5 d5 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Bxb5 16. Bc4 Qxd2 17. Bxd2 Bxc4 {½-½ (17) Favaloro,A (2370)-Shytaj,L (2460) Montesilvano 2022}) ({RR} 11... Rc8 12. Rac1 Ba6 13. Nb5 d5 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 Bxb5 16. Bc4 Qxd2 17. Bxd2 Bxc4 {½-½ (17) Favaloro,A (2370)-Shytaj,L (2460) Montesilvano 2022}) 12. Nxa5 Bxg2 13. Kxg2 bxa5 14. Rac1 Qb6 15. b3 d5 16. cxd5 Bb4 17. Be5 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Ne4 19. Qd4 Nxc3 20. Qxb6 axb6 21. Rxc3 exd5 22. Rd1 Rfd8 23. Rcd3 a4 24. Rxd5 Rxd5 25. Rxd5 axb3 26. axb3 Kf8 27. Rd6 Ra6 28. b4 Ke7 29. Rc6 Kd7 30. b5 f5 31. e3 g6 32. h4 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2007.04.24"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Portisch, Lajos"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2512"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2007.04.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Nbd7 6. O-O Rb8 7. Qc2 b5 8. b3 ({RR} 8. a4 a6 9. axb5 axb5 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd5 12. Rd1 Bd7 13. Nc3 c6 14. Ne4 Qc7 15. Nd6+ Bxd6 16. exd6 Qxd6 17. Bf4 e5 18. e4 exf4 19. exd5 c5 20. Re1+ Kf8 21. Ra7 fxg3 22. fxg3 h5 {Nielsen,P (2620)-Babula,V (2590) Germany 2002 0-1}) 8... cxb3 9. axb3 a6 10. Ne5 $146 ({RR} 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Rc1 Bb7 12. Qxc7 Qxc7 13. Rxc7 Nd5 14. Rc1 h6 15. Bxe7 Kxe7 16. Nbd2 Rhc8 17. Ne4 Nb4 18. Nc5 Nxc5 19. dxc5 Rc7 20. Ne5 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Rbc8 22. Rd1 Rxc5 23. f4 R8c7 24. Nd3 Nxd3 {Adrian,C (2315)-Lukov,V (2455) Agneaux 1999 ½-½ (46)}) ({RR} 10. Bf4 Bd6 11. Ne5 Bxe5 12. dxe5 Nd5 13. Bxd5 exd5 14. e6 {1-0 (14) Langrock,H (2356)-Garriga Cazorla,P (2478) Chess.com INT 2021}) 10... Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd5 12. Rd1 Qe7 13. Nc3 Qc5 14. Rxd5 exd5 15. b4 Qxb4 16. Ba3 Qg4 17. Bxf8 Kxf8 18. Nxd5 Qc4 19. Qd2 Be6 20. Rc1 Qb3 21. Nxc7 Kg8 22. Qd6 Rc8 23. Bb7 h6 24. Bxc8 Bxc8 25. Nxb5 axb5 26. Rxc8+ Kh7 27. Rc1 Re8 28. Kg2 Kg8 29. Rc5 Qa2 30. Qc6 1-0

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2007.04.25"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Krush, Irina"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E25"]
[WhiteElo "2464"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2007.04.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Edouard,Romain} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. dxc5 Qa5 ({RR} 8... f5) 9. e4 Nf6 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qb3 Nfd7 12. a4 Qc7 13. Qa3 Na6 ({RR} 13... b6 14. a5 Bb7 ({RR} 14... bxc5) 15. a6 Bc8 16. Bb5 Nxc5 17. Bxc5 bxc5 18. Ne2 Bd7 19. Bc4 Bc6 ({RR} 19... Be8) 20. Qxc5 Nd7 21. Qa5 Rfc8 22. Qxc7 ({RR} 22. O-O) 22... Rxc7 23. Nd4 Bxe4 24. Bxe6 fxe6 25. fxe4 Rxc3 26. O-O Nc5 27. e5 h6 28. Rfc1 {Shirov,A (2749)-Kramnik,V (2780) Bilbao 2010 CBM 139 [Edouard,Romain] ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 13... b6 14. a5 bxc5 15. a6 c4 16. Nh3 Bxa6 17. Be2 Bb5 18. Rb1 Qc6 19. Qa5 a6 20. O-O Ne5 21. Nf2 Nbd7 22. f4 Nd3 23. e5 Rac8 24. Bf3 Qc7 25. Qa3 N7c5 26. Nxd3 Nxd3 27. Be4 Nxe5 28. fxe5 {Subramanian,A (2033)-Richardson,J (2299) Hull ENG 2024 0-1 (60)}) 14. Bxa6 bxa6 15. Ne2 a5 $146 ({RR} 15... Ne5 16. O-O Nc4 17. Qc1 e5 18. f4 Bb7 19. fxe5 Nxe3 20. Qxe3 Rac8 21. Rab1 Ba8 22. e6 fxe6 23. Rxf8+ Rxf8 24. Rf1 Qc6 25. Rxf8+ Kxf8 26. Nd4 Qxe4 27. Nxe6+ Ke7 28. Qxe4 Bxe4 29. Nd4 a5 30. Kf2 {Moskalenko,V (2525)-Lawson,D (2315) St Martin 1991 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 15... Ne5 16. O-O Nc4 17. Qc1 e5 18. Bf2 Rb8 19. Rd1 Rb2 20. Ng3 Be6 21. Nf5 Rfb8 22. h4 f6 23. Rd3 Bxf5 24. exf5 e4 25. fxe4 Rxf2 26. Kxf2 Rb2+ 27. Kg1 Qxc5+ 28. Rd4 h6 29. Kh1 Re2 30. Qf1 {Urh,Z (2294)-Berke,A (2107) Petrovac MNE 2023 1-0 (31)}) 16. O-O Ba6 17. Rfe1 Rfc8 18. Nd4 Nxc5 19. Nb5 Bxb5 20. axb5 Nd3 21. Re2 Qc4 22. Rd2 h6 23. Qxa5 Nc5 24. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 25. Kh1 Rab8 26. Qxa7 Qxc3 27. Qd4 Qxd4 28. Rxd4 Rxb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gausdal Classics GM"]
[Site "Gausdal"]
[Date "2007.04.26"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Krasenkow, Michal"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2661"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2007.04.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "12"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c6 4. Nbd2 f5 5. g3 Nf6 6. Bg2 Bd6 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne5 b6 9. Ndf3 Ne4 10. Qc2 Bb7 11. b3 ({RR} 11. Nd3 Nd7 12. Bf4 Rc8 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qa4 Bc6 15. Qb3 Bxf4 16. Nxf4 Qe7 17. Rfc1 Bb7 18. h4 Rfe8 19. e3 Qd6 20. Bf1 a6 21. a3 Rc6 22. Qb4 Qc7 23. Rxc6 Qxc6 24. Ng5 Nxg5 25. hxg5 Nf8 {Mikhalevski,V (2488)-Krasenkow,M (2503) Porto Santo POR 2024 ½-½ (89)}) 11... a5 12. Bb2 $146 ({RR} 12. a3 Na6 13. Nd3 Qe7 14. Qb2 g5 15. Nfe5 Qg7 16. f3 Nf6 17. Bd2 c5 18. Bc3 Rac8 19. Rac1 Qe7 20. Qd2 Nh5 21. g4 Ng7 22. Rb1 Rfd8 23. h4 gxh4 24. Qh6 Bc7 25. Bd2 cxd4 26. Bg5 Qxa3 {Gosciniak,M (2188)-Kulon,K (2202) Warsaw 2010 0-1 (53)}) 12... Na6 13. a3 Qe7 14. Nd3 Rac8 15. e3 c5 16. Nde5 cxd4 17. exd4 a4 18. Qd3 Nb8 19. Rfc1 Nd7 20. cxd5 Bxd5 21. b4 Ndf6 22. Nc4 Qb7 23. Qe2 Ng4 24. Nfd2 Nxd2 25. Nxd6 Rxc1+ 26. Bxc1 Qc6 27. Qxe6+ Bxe6 28. Bxc6 Nb3 29. d5 Ne5 30. Rb1 Nd4 31. dxe6 Nexc6 32. b5 Ne7 33. Be3 Rd8 34. Nc4 Ne2+ 35. Kg2 Nc3 36. Re1 Nxb5 37. Bg5 Kf8 38. Re5 Nd6 39. Nxb6 h6 40. Be3 Ke8 41. Ra5 1-0

[Event "Porto Vecchio m of the Hopes"]
[Site "Porto Vecchio"]
[Date "2007.05.18"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2747"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2007.05.18"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 Bb4 6. Qc2 Bb7 7. Bg2 c5 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. O-O Be7 10. b3 d6 11. Bb2 Nbd7 12. Rac1 ({RR} 12. e4 Qc7 13. Rfe1 O-O 14. e5 dxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qb7+ 17. Kg1 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rfd8 19. Bc3 Rd7 20. Rad1 Rad8 21. Ne4 Ne8 22. Rxd7 Rxd7 23. Re2 h6 24. Rd2 Rxd2 25. Nxd2 Qd7 26. Qe4 Nf6 {Ostmoe,G (2356)-Carlsen,M (2673) Moss 2006 ½-½ (54)}) 12... Qc7 13. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 13. e4 O-O 14. Nd4 a6 15. Rfe1 Rfe8 16. Qd1 Rac8 17. Nb1 Qb8 18. Nc3 Bf8 19. h3 Ba8 20. a4 g6 21. Rb1 Bg7 22. Ba1 {½-½ (22) Sakaev,K (2647)-Chuchelov,V (2591) Kallithea 2002}) 13... O-O 14. e4 a6 15. Qb1 Rac8 16. Nd4 Qb8 17. f4 Qa8 18. Bf3 Rfd8 19. g4 e5 20. Nf5 Bf8 21. g5 Ne8 22. Qa1 Nc5 23. Qb1 Ne6 24. Nf1 Nxf4 25. h4 b5 26. N1e3 bxc4 27. bxc4 g6 28. Ng3 f5 29. Kh2 Rb8 30. Qc2 fxe4 31. Bg4 Bc8 32. Ba1 Nd3 33. Rf1 Ng7 34. Rcd1 Qa7 35. Nxe4 Qxe3 36. Nf6+ Kh8 37. Rxd3 Qc5 38. Rd5 Qc7 39. c5 Bxg4 40. Nxg4 Qc6 41. Qd1 Ne6 42. cxd6 Bxd6 43. Rxd6 Rxd6 44. Bxe5+ Kg8 45. Nh6# 1-0

[Event "Porto Vecchio m of the Hopes"]
[Site "Porto Vecchio"]
[Date "2007.05.18"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2747"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "173"]
[EventDate "2007.05.18"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Schussler,Harry} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 ({RR} 7. Nc3 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 ({RR} 8... exd5 9. Bg2 O-O 10. O-O c6 11. Qc2 Nbd7) 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O Nd7 12. Rc1 Re8 13. Re1 Bb7 14. Be3 a5 15. Qc2 Ba3 16. Rb1 Bd6) 7... c6 8. Bc3 ({RR} 8. Ne5 d5 9. a4 Nfd7 10. Nd3 dxc4 11. Nb4 cxb3 12. Nxa6 Nxa6 13. Qxb3 Rc8 14. O-O O-O 15. Nc3 Nf6) 8... d5 9. Ne5 Nfd7 ({RR} 9... Ne4 10. O-O Nxc3 11. Nxc3 O-O 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Re1 Bb7 14. Qd2 Nd7 15. Nd3 Nf6 16. Qb2 Rc8 17. e3 Ba6 18. Bf1) 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. Nd2 O-O 12. O-O f5 ({RR} 12... Nf6 13. e4 b5 14. Re1 ({RR} 14. e5 Nd7 15. c5 b4 16. Bxb4 Bxf1 17. Nxf1 f6 18. exf6 Bxf6 19. f4 g5) 14... dxe4 15. Qc2 Qc7 16. Bb2) 13. Re1 Rc8 14. e3 ({RR} 14. Rc1 Nf6 15. Nf3 dxc4 16. Ne5 Nd5 17. bxc4 Nxc3 18. Rxc3 Bb4 19. Qd3 c5 20. d5 Bb7 21. Rd1 Bxc3 22. Qxc3 exd5 23. cxd5 Qd6 24. f4 b5 25. e4 fxe4 26. Bxe4 c4 27. Qc2 g6 28. h4 Rce8 {Timman,J (2590)-Karpov,A (2710) Brussels 1987 0-1 (38)}) ({RR} 14. f3 h5 15. e4 Rf6 16. exf5 exf5 17. f4 Rh6 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Bxd5+ Kh8 20. Bb2 Nc5 21. Bc4 Nd3 22. Bxd3 Bxd3 23. Nf3 Be4 24. Ne5 Qd5 25. Rc1 Rxc1 26. Qxc1 h4 27. Re3 Kh7 28. Qc4 Qa8 {Yang,Y (2026)-Zhang,X (2070) Qiziwan CHN 2023 ½-½ (33)}) 14... Nf6 15. a3 Bd6 16. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 16. a4 Qe7 17. Bf1 Bb7 18. a5 c5 19. axb6 axb6 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Bxf6 Qxf6 22. Bg2 Rcd8 23. Qc1 Bb4 24. Rd1 dxc4 25. Bxb7 Rxd2 26. Qxc4 Rfd8 27. Rf1 Qe7 28. Bc8 Re8 29. Rad1 Rxd1 30. Rxd1 Bc5 {Portisch,L (2573)-Sax,G (2535) Zalaegerszeg 2004 ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 16. Bb4 Rf7 17. Bxd6 Qxd6 18. Nf3 Rfc7 19. Ne5 c5 20. cxd5 Nxd5 21. Qd2 Nf6 22. Red1 cxd4 23. Qxd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Rc1+ 25. Rd1 Rxa1 26. Rxa1 Rc3 27. b4 Bb5 28. a4 Be8 29. b5 Kf8 30. Nc6 Bxc6 {Murugan,K (2395)-Arkhipov,S (2510) Gausdal 1991 CBM 025 [Schussler,Harry] 0-1 (42)}) 16... g5 17. Nf3 g4 18. Nd2 Ne4 19. Bb4 h5 20. Rec1 h4 21. Nxe4 dxe4 22. Bxd6 Qxd6 23. b4 Qe7 24. Qc3 Qf6 25. a4 c5 26. dxc5 Qxc3 27. Rxc3 bxc5 28. b5 Bb7 29. Bf1 h3 30. a5 Rcd8 31. Rc2 Rd6 32. Be2 Rfd8 33. Kf1 Kg7 34. Ke1 e5 35. Rb2 Kf6 36. Rab1 a6 37. Bd1 Bc8 38. Ba4 Be6 39. Bb3 Rb8 40. Ba2 Ke7 41. bxa6 Rxb2 42. Rxb2 Rxa6 43. Rb5 Kd6 44. Bb3 Bd7 45. Rb6+ Rxb6 46. axb6 Be6 47. Kd2 Kc6 48. Kc3 Kxb6 49. Ba4 Ka5 50. Bb5 Kb6 51. Ba4 Kc7 52. Bc2 Bd7 53. Kb3 Kb6 54. Ka3 Ka5 55. Bd1 Bc6 56. Bc2 Bb7 57. Bd1 Bc8 58. Ba4 Ba6 59. Bd7 Bxc4 60. Bxf5 Be2 61. Kb3 Bf3 62. Kc4 Kb6 63. Bd7 Kc7 64. Bf5 Kd6 65. Kc3 Kd5 66. Bc8 Kc6 67. Be6 Kb5 68. Bd7+ Kb6 69. Bf5 Kc6 70. Kc4 Be2+ 71. Kb3 Kd5 72. Kc3 Bf3 73. Bc8 Kc6 74. Ba6 Kb6 75. Bc4 Ka5 76. Bd5 Ka4 77. Kc4 Ka3 78. Kc3 Ka4 79. Bb3+ Kb5 80. Bc4+ Kc6 81. Be6 Kd6 82. Bf5 Kd5 83. Bc8 Kd6 84. Bb7 Kc7 85. Bd5 Kd6 86. Bc4 Kc6 87. Be6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Porto Vecchio m of the Hopes"]
[Site "Porto Vecchio"]
[Date "2007.05.18"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A80"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2747"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2007.05.18"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "FRA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 118 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.07.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 2. Nc3 Nf6 3. Bg5 d5 4. Bxf6 exf6 5. e3 c6 6. Qf3 Be6 7. Bd3 g6 8. h3 Nd7 9. g4 fxg4 10. hxg4 Bf7 11. Nge2 ({RR} 11. O-O-O Qc7 12. e4 dxe4 13. Qxe4+ Be7 14. Re1 O-O 15. Qe3 Bd6 16. Nge2 Rfe8 17. Qh3 Nf8 18. Ne4 Be7 19. Qf3 Qa5 20. a3 Kg7 21. N2g3 Rad8 22. Nf5+ gxf5 23. gxf5 Rxd4 24. Reg1+ Ng6 25. Qh5 Rh8 {Kuzubov,Y (2597)-Blokhin,S (2019) Tallinn EST 2025 1-0 (31)}) 11... Qb6 ({RR} 11... b5 12. Nf4 b4 13. Nce2 Bg7 14. Ng3 Qa5 15. Kf1 O-O-O 16. Kg2 Qc7 17. a3 Ne5 18. dxe5 fxe5 19. Nh3 e4 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. Bxe4 Bxb2 22. axb4 Bxa1 23. Rxa1 Rhf8 24. Nf4 Bd5 25. Bxd5 cxd5 26. Ra5 {Carlsen,M (2567)-Agdestein,S (2614) Bergen 2004 1-0 (37)}) 12. O-O-O O-O-O 13. Nf4 $146 ({RR} 13. Rh3 h6 14. Rdh1 Rg8 15. Kb1 Kb8 16. Na4 Qc7 17. Nc1 b5 18. Nc3 a5 19. a4 b4 20. N3e2 Nb6 21. Qxf6 Bg7 22. Qf4 Nxa4 23. Nb3 g5 24. Qxc7+ Kxc7 25. Nxa5 c5 26. dxc5 Nxc5 27. Nd4 Nxd3 {Khomeriki,N (2319)-Neverov,V (2448) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 13. Rh3 h6 14. Rdh1 Rg8 15. Kb1 Kb8 16. Na4 Qc7 17. Nc1 b5 18. Nc3 a5 19. a4 b4 20. N3e2 Nb6 21. Qxf6 Bg7 22. Qf4 Nxa4 23. Nb3 g5 24. Qxc7+ Kxc7 25. Nxa5 c5 26. dxc5 Nxc5 27. Nd4 Nxd3 {Khomeriki,N (2319)-Neverov,V (2448) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (46)}) 13... Bb4 14. Nce2 Qa5 15. Kb1 Bd6 16. c3 b5 17. e4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Qxa2+ 19. Kc1 Kc7 20. Bxc6 Qa1+ 21. Kc2 Bb3+ 22. Kd2 Qxb2+ 23. Ke1 Bxd1 24. Kxd1 Qb3+ 25. Kd2 Qa2+ 26. Kd1 Qb3+ 27. Kd2 Qa2+ 28. Ke3 Rhe8+ 29. Be4 f5 30. gxf5 gxf5 31. Ra1 Qxa1 32. Nd5+ Kb8 33. Qxf5 Qa5 34. Kf3 Rf8 0-1

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.05.28"]
[Round "1.2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "41"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. g3 d6 8. Bg2 Bg7 9. Nf3 Nbd7 10. Rb1 Qa5 11. O-O Nb6 12. a3 Nc4 13. b4 Qc7 14. Qa4+ Nd7 15. Nb5 $146 ({RR} 15. Qc6 Qxc6 16. dxc6 Bxc3 17. cxd7+ Kxd7 18. bxc5 dxc5 19. Rd1+ Nd6 20. Rb3 Bg7 21. e4 f6 22. e5 fxe5 23. Re3 e4 24. Rxe4 Bb7 25. Re2 Rae8 26. Bf4 Bxf3 27. Bxf3 Bd4 28. Be5 Bxe5 29. Rxe5 c4 {Savage,B (2332)-Chytilek,R (2399) Brno 2007 ½-½ (35)}) 15... Qb8 16. bxc5 Bxb5 17. Qxb5 Qxb5 18. Rxb5 Nxc5 19. Nd2 Nxa3 20. Bxa3 Rxa3 21. Ne4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.05.31"]
[Round "1.4"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E14"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 b6 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 Bb7 7. e3 O-O 8. b4 d5 $6 {Quite illogical. Black opens up the position against White's bishop pair...} (8... d6 {is common.}) 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Bd3 dxc4 11. Bxc4 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Qe2 Qe7 $146 (13... Rc7 14. dxc5 bxc5 15. b5 Qe7 16. Rfd1 e5 17. Nd2 e4 18. Nf1 (18. Nb3 $5) 18... Ne5 19. Ng3 g6 20. Rd2 h5 21. h3 h4 22. Nf1 $14 {½-½ Huss,A-Karlsson,P/Graz 1972/MCD (42)}) ({RR} 13... Rc7 14. dxc5 bxc5 15. b5 Qe7 16. Rfd1 e5 17. Nd2 e4 18. Nf1 Ne5 19. Ng3 g6 20. Rd2 h5 21. h3 h4 22. Nf1 Nf3+ 23. gxf3 exf3 24. Qd3 Ne4 25. Nh2 Qg5+ 26. Ng4 Kh7 27. Kh2 f5 28. Qd7+ {Huss,A (2360)-Karlsson,P Graz 1972 ½-½ (43)}) 14. Rfc1 cxd4 15. Nxd4 h6 16. Ba6 {[%mdl 32] Trading one of the bishops but weakening light squares in Black's camp.} Bxa6 17. Qxa6 Rxc1+ 18. Rxc1 Nb8 19. Qc4 {[%csl Rb8][%cal Gc1c8]} Rd8 20. h3 Ne8 21. b5 Rd5 22. Qe2 Rc5 23. Rd1 Rc8 24. Qf3 Rd8 25. Rc1 Nd6 26. a4 e5 $6 {Black can't stand the pressure and tries to break through. As often happens, it leads to new weaknesses.} 27. Nf5 (27. Nc6 Nxc6 28. bxc6 Ne8 29. Qe4 f6 30. f4 $1 $16 {is another attractive option.}) 27... Nxf5 28. Qxf5 f6 29. Qe4 {Black can't defend all his weaknesses, from the a7 pawn to his weak kingside. White needn't hurry, his only concern is to prevent Black's b8 knight entering the game.} Qf7 30. Ba3 Kh8 31. Kh2 Kg8 32. Bd6 $1 Qd7 33. Bc7 Rf8 34. Rc2 (34. Qb7 $5) (34. Qa8 $5) 34... Re8 35. Rc4 (35. Qa8 $18) 35... Qf7 36. Bd6 Rd8 $6 (36... Qd7 $8 $16) 37. Rc7 Nd7 38. Qc6 Qe6 39. Rxa7 Kf7 40. Qxb6 {An instructive game!} 1-0

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.01"]
[Round "1.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2759"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{After losing the 4th game in a terrible way I was essentially in a must-win situation in this game.  Nachdem ich die 4. Partie auf schreckliche Weise verloren hatte, war ich in dieser Partie im Grunde zum Siegen verdonnert.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3 Bb7 5. Nc3 d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Qc2 Be7 8. e4 Nxc3 9. bxc3 {Since I fared so well with this structure in the 3rd game I felt that it might be an idea to try and get the same structure again. Da ich mit dieser Struktur in der 3. Partie so gut gefahren war, hatte ich das Gefühl, es wäre vielleicht eine Idee zu versuchen, selbige noch einmal zu bekommen.} O-O 10. Bd3 c5 11. O-O Qc7 (11... Qc8 {intending a6 is a more solid alternative. mit der Absicht a6 ist eine solidere Alternative.}) 12. Qe2 Nd7 13. Bb2 (13. e5 {is the main alternative and was played in Gelfand-Carlsen, Biel 05, but white didn't get much of an advantage there. ist die Hauptalternative und wurde in Gelfand-Carlsen, Biel 05, gespielt, allerdings holte Weiß dort keinen besonderen Vorteil heraus.}) 13... c4 ({RR} 13... Rac8 14. Nd2 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nf6 16. a4 cxd4 17. cxd4 Bb4 18. Nf3 Qe7 19. h3 h6 20. Qe3 a5 21. Rdc1 Ne8 22. Ne5 Nf6 23. Nf3 Ne8 24. Ne5 Nf6 25. Nc4 Rc6 26. Qg3 Nh5 27. Qe3 Nf6 28. Rc2 {Kasparov,G (2831)-Kramnik,V (2777) Linares 2004 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 13... Rac8 14. Nd2 Nf6 15. Rad1 c4 16. Bb1 e5 17. Nf3 Nd7 18. Bc1 Bf6 19. h3 Rfe8 20. d5 Be7 21. Ne1 Bd6 22. Nc2 Nc5 23. Ne3 Nb3 24. Bb2 g6 25. Bc2 Nc5 26. Ng4 Qe7 27. Bc1 h5 28. Nh2 {Sai Mahati Alapati (1953)-Vaibhav,J (2071) Sitges ESP 2024 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 13... Rfd8 14. Nd2 Ne5 15. Bb1 Ng6 16. g3 Rac8 17. Nf3 e5 18. d5 c4 19. a4 Bd6 20. Bc2 a6 21. Rfb1 Rb8 22. Bc1 Bc8 23. Be3 Bd7 24. Nd2 b5 25. h4 h6 26. axb5 axb5 27. Ra6 Bc5 28. Rba1 {Carlsen,M (2714)-Leko,P (2755) Moscow 2007 ½-½ (49)}) 14. Bc2 b5 15. Bc1 {I hadn't devoted so much time to c4 during my preparation, and this move was found over the board. The idea is however very logical. Der Fortsetzung ...c4 hatte ich während meiner Vorbereitung nicht so viel Zeit gewidmet, und dieser Zug wurde am Brett gefunden. Die Idee ist allerdings sehr logisch.} a5 $146 ({RR} 15... Rab8 16. Bg5 Nb6 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Rfb1 Bc6 19. Qe3 Rfc8 20. h3 a5 21. d5 exd5 22. Nd4 Be8 23. Nf5 Qe5 24. Qg5 Kh8 25. f4 Qf6 26. Qxf6 gxf6 27. Nd6 Rd8 28. Nxe8 Rxe8 29. Rxb5 dxe4 30. Rab1 {Ftacnik,L (2532)-Azarov,S (2612) Czech Republic 2010 ½-½ (34)}) 16. Rb1 Ba6 $6 (16... b4 $1 {was the logical follow-up. After war die logische Folge. Nach} 17. axb4 axb4 18. cxb4 Ra2 {Black has very reasonable compensation. White should probably play hat Schwarz sehr ordentliche Kompensation. Weiß sollte wahrscheinlich} 19. Bg5 {with a double-edged game. ziehen mit zweischneidigem Spiel.}) 17. e5 b4 $2 {This has to be considered a mistake, but even after e.g. Dies muss man als Fehler sehen, doch auch nach z.B.} (17... Rfe8 18. Ng5 Nf8 19. Qh5 Bxg5 20. Bxg5 {White is better, as Black has little counterplay. steht Weiß besser, da Schwarz wenig Gegenspiel hat.}) (17... Rfb8 18. d5 $5 $40) 18. axb4 axb4 19. Bg5 $6 (19. Rxb4 $1 {winning a clear pawn was better. , was einen klaren Bauern gewinnt, war besser.} Bxb4 20. Bxh7+ Kxh7 (20... Kh8 {is better but insufficient: ist besser, aber unzureichend:} 21. Ng5 g6 22. Qf3 $1 Kg7 23. Bxg6 $1 $18) 21. Ng5+ Kg8 (21... Kg6 22. Qe4+ f5 23. exf6+ Kxf6 (23... Kh5 24. Qh7+ Kg4 25. h3#) 24. Qxe6#) 22. Qh5 Rfe8 23. Qxf7+ {I saw this far, but after considering moves like cxb4 for a short while, I decided that there was no more than a perpetual. But White has the simple yet elegant So weit hatte ich gesehen, doch nach dem kurzen Erwägen von Zügen wie cxb4 beschloss ich, dass es nicht mehr als Dauerschach gibt. Doch Weiß hat das einfache, aber elegante} Kh8 24. Re1 $1 {when there is no other defence against e3-h3 than f8 or xe5, giving up the queen and leaving White with a completely winning position. wonach gegen e3-h3 keine andere Verteidigung vorhanden ist als f8 oder xe5, was die Dame gibt und Weiß eine komplette Gewinnstellung überlässt.}) 19... Nb6 20. Qe4 g6 21. Qh4 Ra7 {This is the kind of position where White must have something, but after considering moves like xb4 for a while, I got so confused that I decided to play it safe. Dies ist die Art von Stellung, wo Weiß etwas haben muss, doch nachdem ich eine Zeit lang an Zügen wie xb4 überlegt hatte, wurde ich so verwirrt, dass ich beschloss, auf Nummer sicher zu gehen.} 22. Bf6 $6 (22. Rxb4 Bxb4 (22... Nd5 {I thought that Black could probably defend here, but now I cannot really imagine how... Ich dachte, dass Schwarz sich hier wahrscheinlich verteidigen könnte, jetzt aber kann ich mir nicht wirklich vorstellen wie...} 23. Ra4 $16) 23. Bf6 Rb8 24. cxb4 {with a decisive-looking attack. mit entscheidend wirkendem Angriff.} (24. Ng5 h5 25. Bxg6 fxg6 26. Qe4 Qf7 27. Nxf7 Kxf7 28. cxb4 Nd5 {is less clear. ist weniger klar.})) 22... Bxf6 23. exf6 Nd5 24. Be4 Qf4 25. Bxd5 Qxh4 26. Nxh4 exd5 27. Rxb4 {Luckily, my advantage is still very big, and I was convinced that I would be able to convert it in the end. Zum Glück ist mein Vorteil noch immer sehr groß, und ich war überzeugt, ihn am Ende verwerten zu können.} Bc8 28. Rb6 {This move is nessecary in order to prevent a6. Dieser Zug ist nötig, um a6 zu verhindern.} Ra3 29. Rc1 Be6 30. Nf3 Rfa8 31. h4 h6 32. Ne5 Ra1 {The only chance. Die einzige Chance.} 33. Rxa1 $1 {I calculated for a while and came to the conclusion that White is winning, but my calculation wasn't entirely accurate. Ich rechnete eine Weile und kam zu dem Schluss, dass Weiß gewinnt, allerdings war meine Berechnung nicht ganz genau.} (33. Rbb1 {is a move I considered for a while, but I was a bit worried about ist ein Zug, an dem ich eine Weile überlegte, aber ich machte mir ein bisschen Sorgen wegen} R1a3 $1 (33... Rxb1 34. Rxb1 Ra3 35. Rc1 {is worse - White protects c3 and will have all the time in the world to improve his position. ist schlechter - Weiß deckt c3 und wird alle Zeit der Welt haben, seine Stellung zu verbessern.})) 33... Rxa1+ 34. Kh2 Ra3 35. Rb8+ Kh7 36. f4 $1 {A not very obvious move, but the only winning one. Nicht sehr offensichtlich, aber der einzige Gewinnzug.} (36. Rf8 {This obvious move doesn't give White a winning advantage: Dieser offensichtliche Zug gibt Weiß keinen Gewinnvorteil:} Rxc3 37. Nxf7 Bxf7 38. Rxf7+ Kg8 39. Rg7+ (39. Rd7 Rd3 40. Rxd5 Kf7 $14) 39... Kf8 40. Rxg6 Rd3 {is not better for White anymore. ist nicht mehr besser für Weiß.}) 36... Rxc3 37. h5 gxh5 38. Rf8 {Now the point of f4 is clear. White will get a passed pawn on f6, which is supported by a very strong knight and will lead to a decisive gain of material. Nun ist die Pointe von f4 klar. Weiß wird einen Freibauern auf f6 erhalten, der von einem bärenstarken Springer gestützt ist und zu entscheidendem Materialgewinn führen wird.} Ra3 39. f5 Bxf5 40. Rxf7+ Kg8 {I had seen this far when I went for xa1, but I had to stop and think here, as White at first doesn't seem to have anything better than perpetual check. However, I quickly found the winning idea.  So weit hatte ich bei 32.xa1 gesehen, doch hier musste ich einhalten und überlegen, da Weiß auf den ersten Blick nicht mehr als Dauerschach zu haben scheint. Doch schnell fand ich die Gewinnidee.} 41. Rg7+ Kf8 42. Rb7 Ra8 43. Kg3 $1 {The king is included in the game with lethal effect. The poor black bishop is forced away from f5, which is the only square where it protects the crucial squares d7 and g6. Der König wird mit tödlicher Wirkung ins Spiel eingeschaltet. Der arme schwarze Läufer wird von f5 vertrieben, welches das einzige Feld ist, wo er die kritischen Felder d7 und g6 schützt.} Rd8 (43... c3 {is one move too late: kommt einen Zug zu spät:} 44. Kf4 c2 45. Kxf5 c1=Q 46. Ng6+ Ke8 (46... Kg8 47. Rg7#) 47. f7+ Kd8 48. f8=Q#) 44. Kf4 Be4 45. g3 {The simplest for a human being. Für einen Menschen am einfachsten.} (45. Nf7 $1 {followed by xh6 and g7-g8 is better, but the text is much simpler. nebst xh6 und g7-g8 ist besser, doch der Text ist viel simpler.}) 45... c3 46. Rf7+ Kg8 47. Rg7+ Kf8 48. Nd7+ Rxd7 49. Rxd7 {The c-pawn is stopped and there is no stopping the f6-pawn. This was obviously a very important win for me, and actually achieved quite smoothly. It has to be said, however, that this wasn't Levon's best day. Der c-Bauer wird gestoppt, und der f6-Bauer ist nicht aufzuhalten. Dies war offensichtlich ein sehr wichtiger Sieg für mich, und er wurde eigentlich recht glatt errrungen. Allerdings muss gesagt werden, dass Levon nicht seinen besten Tag hatte.} 1-0

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.02"]
[Round "1.6"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Nb6 8. Ne5 a5 ({Exchanging a pair of knights is one of the main strategical ideas for Black in this system. However, trying to do so immediately is a mistake:} 8... Nfd7 9. e4 Nxe5 (9... Bg6 10. a5 (10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. a5 Nc8 12. Qb3 $16) 10... Nxe5 (10... Nc8 11. a6 $18) 11. axb6 Nd7 12. Rxa7 Nxb6 13. Rxb7 e6 14. Be3 $16) 10. exf5 Ned7 (10... Nec4 11. a5 $18) 11. a5 $16 Nc8 (11... Nd5 $142 12. Nxd5 cxd5 13. Qb3 $5 $16) 12. a6 $1 b6 (12... bxa6 $142 13. Bxa6 $16 {/+-}) 13. d5 $1 $18 {1-0 Fridman,D (2562)-Maze,S (2525)/Marseille 2006 (24)}) ({Also bad is} 8... Nbd7 $6 9. Qb3 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Ng4 11. Qxb7 Nxe5 12. f4 (12. Bf4 Rb8 13. Qxa7 Rxb2 14. Rd1 Nd7 15. e4 e5 16. Bc1 $1 Rc2 17. exf5 Rxc3 18. Qb7 $16) 12... Ng6 (12... Ng4 13. Qxc6+ Bd7 14. Qf3 $16) 13. e4 Bd7 $2 (13... Qc8 $8 14. Qxc8+ (14. Ba6 Bd7 15. a5 e5 $1 16. f5 Qxb7 17. Bxb7 Rb8 18. a6 Nf4 $132 {[%cal Gf4d3,Gf4g2,Gf8c5]}) 14... Bxc8 15. Be3 e6 (15... e5 16. f5 $14) 16. O-O-O $14) 14. f5 Ne5 15. Bf4 f6 16. Bxe5 fxe5 17. Rd1 $18 {1-0 Kasparov,G (2805)-Timman,J (2635)/Riga 1995 (22)}) 9. g3 ({Alternatives are} 9. f3) ({and lately the fashionable} 9. Bg5) 9... Nfd7 (9... e6 10. Bg2 Bb4 11. O-O O-O 12. e3 h6 13. Qe2 Bh7 14. Rd1 Nfd7 $14 {/=}) 10. Nxd7 (10. Nd3 e5 $5 (10... Bxd3 11. Qxd3 e6 (11... e5 $5) 12. Bg2 Be7 13. O-O O-O 14. Rd1 $14 {1-0 Cech,P (2404)-Holemar,D (2380)/Brno 2004 (30)}) (10... Nd5 11. Bg2 Nb4 12. e4 Bg4 13. f3 $16 {1-0 Blagojevic,D (2450)-Kirov,N (2435)/Cetinje 1996 (40)}) 11. dxe5 Nc5 12. e4 (12. Nxc5 Qxd1+ 13. Nxd1 Bxc5 $44) 12... Be6 13. Nxc5 Bxc5 14. Qxd8+ Rxd8 $44) (10. Nf3 e6 11. Bg2 Bb4 12. O-O O-O 13. e4 Bg4 $11 {½-½ Komarov,D (2566)-Berkes,F (2602)/France 2004 (22)}) 10... Qxd7 (10... Nxd7 11. Bg2 e6 12. O-O Bb4 13. e4 Bg6 14. f4 $5 h6 15. f5 $36 {1-0 Gyimesi,Z (2553)-Shaw,J (2465)/Cappelle la Grande 2004 (53)}) 11. e4 (11. h3 e6 (11... e5 $5) 12. e4 Bg6 13. Bg2 Bb4 14. O-O O-O $11) 11... Bh3 ({Worse is} 11... Bg4 12. f3 Bh3 13. Bxh3 Qxh3 14. Qb3 Ra6 (14... Qg2 15. Rf1 Ra6 16. d5 e5 17. dxe6 $18) 15. Be3 Qg2 $2 (15... e6 16. Kf2 $16) 16. O-O-O Qxf3 17. Rhe1 $18 {1-0 Nielsen,P (2636)-Timman,J (2616)/Malmo 2002 (23)}) 12. Bxh3 ({After} 12. Be2 {Black achieved excellent play in the game in which 11...h3 was played for the first time:} e6 13. Be3 Qc7 (13... Bb4 14. d5 Nc8 15. dxc6 Qxd1+ 16. Rxd1 bxc6 $11) 14. d5 exd5 15. Qd4 Nc4 16. exd5 (16. Bxc4 dxc4 17. Qxc4 O-O-O $17) 16... Nxe3 17. Qxe3+ Be7 {½-½ Bu Xiangzhi (2640)-Sokolov,I (2676)/Turin 2006 (48)}) 12... Qxh3 13. Qb3 Ra6 {This relatively new; the theoretical position is considered to offer Black reasonable chances. Aronian's next novelty is a good attempt to improve, but the position remains rather double-edged anyway.} 14. Bf4 $1 $146 ({Previously} 14. Be3 {was played:} e6 15. d5 Bb4 16. dxe6 Qxe6 17. Qxe6+ fxe6 18. Bxb6 Rxb6 19. O-O-O Bc5 20. f4 Ke7 {0-1 Gyimesi,Z (2611)-Bu Xiangzhi (2644)/Bundesliga 2007 (82), with an edge for Black.}) 14... e6 15. Be5 $5 {Before playing c7 White would like to provoke some weaknesses in opponent's pawn formation.} (15. Bc7 {brings nothing in view of} Bb4) 15... Bb4 ({After} 15... f6 16. Bc7 Bb4 17. O-O-O O-O {strong is} 18. Ne2 $1 {pointing out drawbacks of 15...f6.} (18. Kb1 Rf7) (18. Na2 c5 19. Nxb4 c4 $5 20. Qa3 axb4 21. Qxb4 Nxa4 $132 {[%csl Rc1]}) (18. d5 cxd5 19. exd5 Nxd5 (19... Nd7 $5) 20. Nxd5 exd5 21. Qxd5+ Qe6 $11 (21... Kh8 22. Kb1 $13))) 16. Bxg7 Rg8 17. Be5 Qg2 18. O-O-O Bxc3 19. Qxc3 $146 (19. bxc3 Qxe4 20. c4 Qe2 $11) ({RR} 19. bxc3 Qxe4 20. c4 Qe2 21. c5 Qc4+ 22. Qxc4 Nxc4 23. Kc2 b5 24. Kc3 Nxe5 25. dxe5 b4+ 26. Kc4 Ke7 27. Rd6 Rc8 28. Rhd1 Ra7 29. R1d3 Rb7 30. Kb3 Rbc7 {½-½ (30) Sharavdorj,D (2375)-Khatanbaatar,B (2329) Ulaanbaatar 2020}) ({RR} 19. bxc3 Qxe4 20. c4 Qe2 21. c5 Nd5 22. Rde1 Qh5 23. Qxb7 Nb4 24. Bd6 Qg5+ 25. f4 Qd8 26. Rxe6+ fxe6 27. Qxh7 {1-0 (27) Wang,H (2665)-Caruana,F (2598) Reykjavik 2008}) 19... Qxe4 20. Rhe1 Qd5 ({In case of} 20... Qf5 {White can consider} 21. d5 $5 {with initiative:} cxd5 (21... Nxd5 22. Rxd5 exd5 (22... cxd5 23. Qc8+ Ke7 24. Qxb7+ $18) 23. Qc5 $1 {and White wins}) 22. Qc7 (22. Rxd5 $5 Nxd5 (22... exd5 $2 23. Bd6+ $18) 23. Qc8+ Ke7 24. Qxb7+ Kf8 25. Qxa6 Qxf2 26. Qd6+ Ke8 27. Rd1 $13) 22... Qg5+ 23. Kb1 Qe7 (23... Qd8 24. Qc2 $44 {[%csl Rh7][%cal Gf2f4,Gf4f5]}) 24. Qb8+ Qd8 25. Qxb7 Qc8 26. Qxc8+ Nxc8 27. Rc1 $14) 21. b3 Qd7 22. Qc2 Qe7 {Continuing the same courageous strategy started with 15...b4. Carlsen sacrifices the pawn on h7.} ({More to the point looks to me} 22... Rg6 23. h4 h5 {with a complicated position:} 24. Qe2 (24. Kb2 $14 {/}) 24... Qe7 25. Kb2 Qb4 {[%cal Gb6a4]} 26. Ra1 Rg4 $13) 23. Qxh7 Rg6 (23... Qa3+ 24. Kd2 Rg6 (24... Qa2+ 25. Qc2 $16) 25. Re3 $1 Qb2+ $140 26. Ke1 $16) 24. Re3 $5 {It turns out that White can defend conveniently even with his queen on h7.} (24. Kb2 Qb4 $132) ({Aronian must have came to the conclusion that in spite of his extra pawn White's winning chances are not so high after} 24. Qh8+ Qf8 (24... Kd7 25. d5 $1 cxd5 ({or} 25... Nxd5 26. Qb8 $40) 26. Qb8 $40) 25. Qxf8+ Kxf8) 24... Nd5 (24... Qa3+ 25. Kb1 $16) 25. Rf3 Qf8 26. h4 ({Interesting was the unexpected blow} 26. Bd6 {although it is not clear if this is better than the game:} Rg7 (26... Qxd6 $2 27. Qxf7+ Kd8 28. Qxg6 $18) (26... Rh6 27. Rxf7 $1 Qxf7 28. Qxh6 Qf3 29. Qxe6+ Kd8 30. Qg6 Qxb3 31. Bc5 $16) 27. Qh6 (27. Bxf8 Rxh7 {[%csl Rf8,Rh2]}) 27... Qg8 {[%cal Gg7h7]} 28. h4 $14) 26... Rh6 (26... Rb6 27. Kb2 $14) 27. Qc2 Ra8 {So White won a pawn, but making progress is extremely difficult. Black has a powerful knight on d5 and always keeps counterplay possibilities against White's king. In my opinion the position is objectively just slightly better for White. In practice it might be even easier to play with Black, who must fight against White's ideas, whereas White still must search for those ideas.} 28. Qd2 Rh5 29. Kb2 Qg8 30. Re1 Qg6 31. Bd6 Rd8 32. Ba3 Qg4 {Both sides are maneuvering, trying to improve. Essentially there are no changes in the position.} 33. Rd3 Rf5 34. Re5 Kd7 35. Qe2 Rg8 {These moves must have been made when both opponents where short of time. It is not easy to figure out who will benefit from the exchange of queens.} 36. Qe1 {Aronian is trying to exploit his opponent's pawn on a5, but Carlsen succeeds in keeping counterplay without making the move ...b6.} ({Apparently more logical is to play the endgame after} 36. Qxg4 Rxg4 {but how to make progress still remains an open question. On the other hand here White at least won't have to worry about a possible attack against his king.} 37. Rxf5 exf5 $44 {[%cal Gf5f4]}) 36... Rg6 37. Re2 Rf3 38. Rxf3 Qxf3 39. Rc2 Qf6 40. Qxa5 Qxd4+ 41. Ka2 Rf6 42. f4 {[%csl Rg3] Unlike his opponent, Aronian doesn't have any problems advancing his pawns. But f2-f4 weakens the g3-pawn and this factor is immediately exploited by Carlsen.} ({Some chances for advantage were kept by} 42. Bc5 Qe4 43. Rd2 Rf3 44. Qa7 Kc7 45. Be3 $1 $14 {[%cal Ga7d4] and bad is} Nxe3 $4 46. Qa5+ b6 47. Qa7+ Kc8 48. Qa8+ Kc7 49. Qd8+ Kb7 50. Rd7+ Ka6 51. Qa8#) (42. Qa8 Nc3+ $11) 42... Rg6 $11 (42... Qd3 {also not bad, but the game continuation is convincing enough}) 43. Qa8 Nb4+ 44. Bxb4 Qxb4 45. Rg2 (45. Rc4 Qd2+ 46. Ka3 Kc7 $1 47. Qf8 Rxg3 48. Qxf7+ Qd7 49. Qxd7+ Kxd7 $11) 45... Rxg3 46. Rxg3 Qd2+ 47. Ka3 Qc1+ (47... Qc1+ 48. Kb4 Qxf4+ 49. Kc5 Qf2+ $11) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.03"]
[Round "1.7"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A62"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3 g6 7. g3 Bg7 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O a6 10. a4 Re8 11. Bf4 Ne4 {I had this early knight move in my opening notebook (paper notebook, I mean) about 20 years ago. I remember that I was attracted by the activity displayed by the black rook along the 4th rank, but did not bother about remaining underdeveloped. Nowadays I would think twice before playing this line.} 12. Nxe4 Rxe4 13. Nd2 Rb4 14. b3 $5 {A rare move. According to my old notebook, it was first suggested by Bozidar Ivanovic.} ({The main line continues} 14. Ne4 {Apparently threatening to win a crucial pawn.} h6 $1 {Black's whole play is based on this modest looking move.} 15. Ra2 $1 {Suddenly, it becomes clear that capturing the d6 pawn would lose material to echo variations:} (15. Nxd6 Rxf4 16. Nxc8 Rd4 {or}) (15. Bxd6 Rxe4 16. Bxb8 Rd4) ({These lines are a good illustration of the fourth rank activity of the black rook. My initial preparation relied on an older game by Tal:} 15. Bd2 Rxb2 16. Qc1 Rxd2 17. Qxd2 f5 18. Nc3 {and now I wanted to improve over Savon-Tal USSR 1970, where Black saved himself by a miracle, with the developing move} Nd7 {Black has a dangerous queenside majority and a strong bishop to compensate for the exchange; besides, White's rook don't have too many active possibilities yet. 15.a2 was the novelty prepared for use against me by Adorjan.}) 15... f5 16. Nc3 Qf6 {I only once repeated the line in recent times. The game went:} 17. Qc1 {Before retreating the bishop to d2 in order to bother the rook, White defends the b2 pawn without loss of tempo, causing at the same time a further weakening of the black kingside.} (17. e4 Nd7 18. exf5 gxf5 19. Bd2 Qf7 20. b3 Nf6 {I put maximum pressure on the central pawn, in order to prepare the spectacular escape of the rook.} 21. Ne2 Re4 $1 22. Bc3 ({After} 22. Bxe4 fxe4 {Black would get a strong centre after eliminating the d5-pawn, as well as excellent attacking chances on the weakened light squares around the white king.}) 22... Re7 23. Nf4 {White has regrouped his minor pieces in an optimal way, but he will still have to lose some time in order to nullify the pressure along the e-file, thus allowing Black to maintain the balance.} Bd7 24. Re1 Rae8 25. Rxe7 {and White offered a draw in the game Adorjan-Marin, Szirak Izt 1987/CBM 003. A logical continuation would have been} Rxe7 26. Re2 Rxe2 27. Qxe2 Nh5 {A key move, exchanging White's active knight.} 28. Bd2 Nxf4 29. Bxf4 Qf6 30. a5 {with even chances. When annotating the game for the New in Chess Yearbook 8, I became less convinced that Adorjan's 17.e4 was the best move. 17.c1, as played by Akesson, seemed much more dangerous, but in my notes I gave an apparently promising continuation for Black...}) 17... g5 18. Bd2 {The only thing I remembered during the game was that this was the critical continuation and that I had written something about it. White intends to retreat the knight to d1 and win the exchange in a reasonable form.} Bd7 $5 {One of the most paradoxical move I've ever played. As if it wasn't enough that Black is undeveloped, he seemed to volunturily block the access of the knight and rook to life. How can a player ever consider such a move? I had, of course, started with the natural continuations.} ({I saw rather quickly that} 18... b5 $2 {loses to} 19. Nxb5 $1 {because of the pin along the c-file. (I was rather confused when I found out that in 1987 I had missed this tactical blow and recommended 18...b5 as the best move with the continuation}) (18... Nd7 {looks like the most natural continuation, but after} 19. Nd1 {the main problem is that White will capture on b4 only after the black knight will move away from d7, thus failing to occupy the c5-square, made available by ...cxb4. At the same time, maintaining the knight on d7 would leave the rest of the queen side undeveloped. We shall soon see that the move actually played in the game is a much better way of coordinating the pieces.}) 19. Qc2 {One obvious aim of Black's last move was to delay d1 for a moment because of the hanging a4-pawn. However, the idea is much deeper than that, as will become clear after the next move.} a5 $1 {After having taken the b5 square under control, Black can safely play this move, preparing to develop the knight to a6.} 20. Nd1 ({My opponent avoids a small trap:} 20. Nb5 $6 Bxb5 21. Bxb4 $2 axb4 $1 {when Black wins material.}) 20... Na6 21. Bc3 Qf7 22. Ra1 {White has made all the preparatory moves and seems to be ready to capture the rook. On the other hand, Black has completed his development and is ready to recapture on b4 with the c-pawn, clearing the c5 square for the knight, an improved version of the idea behind the natural 18...d7 (instead of 18...d7). I considered my position to be slightly better already.} f4 {It is important to deny the access of the white knight to c4 via e3. For the first time in the game, my opponent sank into a prolonged thought. He gradually understood that "winning" the exchange wouldn't favor him and played the strong} 23. Be4 {taking under control the weakened light diagonal and preventing the annoying ...f5.} ({I had hoped for a variation such as} 23. Bxb4 cxb4 24. Rc1 Nc5 25. b3 Bf5 26. Qa2 Re8 {when White is completely paralyzed. For instance,} 27. Re1 $2 {with the idea of defending the e2 pawn and preparing b2-c4, would lose instantly to} Nd3 $1) 23... Rf8 24. Bg6 Qe7 25. Re1 Be5 $36 {Black prepares to drive the enemy bishop back with g7, f6, thus preparing a massive kingside attack, Akesson,J (2333)-Marin,M (2531)/Gothenburg 2004/CBM 099 (½-½, 93)}) 14... Rxf4 $146 {This move has never been played before, but was part of my preparation, too.} (14... Nd7 15. Ra2 (15. Bxd6 $1 $14) 15... Ne5 16. Bxe5 Bxe5 17. Nc4 Qe7 18. a5 Bd7 19. Qc2 Bb5 $11 {Hausner,I (2435)-Sikora Lerch,J (2415)/Frenstat 1982/MCD (1-0, 56)}) 15. gxf4 Bxa1 16. Qxa1 {Black has managed to somewhat simplify the position, but this does not solve the problem of his delay in development. Just look at the position! All his pieces (except for the king) find themselves on their initial squares, while White has brought all his pieces into play already (well, maybe with the exception of his rook). However, if Black manages to develop somehow, he would get a good position, mainly because of his more flexible pawn structure.} Nd7 17. Ne4 $1 {It is important to prevent Black from placing his knight on f6.} ({My old analysis goes} 17. Nc4 Nf6 18. a5 Qe7 {with a reasonable position for Black. My main argument was that a massive pawn attack in the centre, which generally is a logical consequence of installing a knight on c4, is not without risk because it would weaken the f4-square:} 19. e4 Nh5 $1 $132) 17... Qe7 18. Rc1 {Systematic improvement of piece placement.} b6 {A safe, but somewhat passive way to complete the development. The bishop will have nothing to do on b7.} (18... f5 $6 19. Ng5 Nf6 20. Rc3 $36 {[%csl Ye6]}) 19. Rc3 Nf6 20. Re3 $146 ({RR} 20. Ng3 Bb7 21. Re3 Qd8 22. Rd3 Rc8 23. e4 c4 24. bxc4 Rxc4 25. e5 dxe5 26. fxe5 Nxd5 27. Qe1 Qd7 28. Qd2 Rxa4 29. Bxd5 Bxd5 30. Rxd5 Qc6 31. h3 Qe6 32. Rd8+ Kg7 33. Qd6 Qxd6 34. Rxd6 Rb4 {Kaidanov,G (2596)-Lie,K (2558) Gausdal 2008 1-0 (60)}) 20... Nxe4 21. Bxe4 Qd8 22. Rg3 {White concentrates all his forces against the enemy kingside. However, the g6-square is solidly defended and Black gets some time to continue his development.} Qh4 $6 {The idea of this move was probably to force e3 and cut the rook off from the rest of the board.} ({I believe that Black should have hurried to neutralize White's pressure along the long dark diagonal with} 22... f5 23. Bd3 Ra7 {[%cal Ya7f7,Gd8f6] This manoeuvre might make the whole variation playable.}) 23. e3 Qe7 24. Bd3 {The bishop is well placed here. It inhibits ...b5 and prevents the natural development based on ...d7 and ...e8, by keeping the a6-pawn under observation.} Bb7 25. e4 Re8 26. f5 $14 {White has strong pressure now and it is not easy for Black to free himself.} Qh4 (26... Qe5 {would have led to similar positions as in the game.}) 27. h3 Bc8 28. Qc3 Qf4 29. Qf6 Qe5 30. Qxe5 Rxe5 ({Maybe} 30... dxe5 $14 {would have offered better chances to avoid being crushed by White's central pawns.}) 31. f4 Re8 32. f6 $1 $16 {Black is very passive. He cannot do anything against White's systematic strengthening of his position.} Bd7 33. Re3 b5 34. axb5 axb5 35. e5 Kf8 36. Kf2 Kg8 37. Be2 Kf8 38. h4 Kg8 39. Ke1 Kf8 40. Kd2 h6 41. Bd3 h5 42. e6 fxe6 43. Bxg6 exd5 44. Bxe8 Bxe8 45. Re6 c4 46. Rxd6 cxb3 47. Kc3 Kf7 48. Kxb3 Kg6 49. Kb4 Kf5 50. Kc5 Bf7 51. Kxb5 Be6 52. Kc5 Kxf6 53. Kd4 Kf5 54. Ke3 Bf7 55. Kf3 Be6 56. Ra6 Bf7 57. Ra8 Kf6 58. Ra6+ Kf5 59. Ra1 Bg6 60. Rg1 Kf6 61. Ke3 Bf7 62. Rg5 Ke6 63. Kd4 Kf6 64. Kc5 Ke7 65. Rg7 Kf6 66. Rxf7+ 1-0

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.03"]
[Round "1.9"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 d5 6. Bg2 e5 7. Nf3 d4 8. O-O Nc6 9. e3 Be7 10. exd4 exd4 11. Bf4 O-O 12. Ne5 Qb6 13. Qb3 Na5 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. Nd2 Nh5 16. Nef3 $146 ({RR} 16. Rfe1 Nxf4 17. gxf4 Bb4 18. Rad1 Be6 19. a3 Bxd2 20. Rxd2 Rfd8 21. f5 Bxf5 22. Bd5 Nb3 23. Rdd1 Bc2 24. Bxb7 Bxd1 25. Bxa8 Bc2 26. Be4 Bxe4 27. Rxe4 f5 28. Re1 d3 29. Rd1 d2 30. Kf1 g5 {Ivanchuk,V (2762)-Naiditsch,A (2652) Mainz 2007 1-0 (77)}) ({RR} 16. Nb3 Nxf4 17. gxf4 Rd8 18. Rfd1 f6 19. Bd5+ Rxd5 20. cxd5 fxe5 21. fxe5 Bg4 22. Nxd4 Bxd1 23. Rxd1 Nc4 24. d6 Bd8 25. Re1 Ra5 26. e6 Nxd6 27. e7 Bc7 28. Ne6 Bb8 29. Nd8 Ne8 30. Rd1 Re5 {Goksel,D (2221)-Guseynov,A (2390) Ankara TUR 2025 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 16. Nb3 Nxf4 17. gxf4 Be6 18. Nxd4 Bxc4 19. Rfc1 Be6 20. f5 Bc8 21. b4 Bxb4 22. Bd5 Bc5 23. Nb3 Nxb3 24. axb3 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bd4 26. Re1 Bxf5 27. Nxf7 Bg6 28. Ne5+ Kh8 29. Nxg6+ hxg6 30. Re2 Bf6 {Ozturk Orenli,K (2319)-Efroimski,M (2462) Shusha 2022 ½-½ (58)}) 16... Nxf4 17. gxf4 Bd6 18. Ne5 Be6 19. b3 f6 20. Nd3 Nc6 21. Ne4 Bc7 22. c5 Bf5 23. Rfd1 Rad8 24. cxb6 Bxb6 25. Nec5 Nb4 26. Nxb4 Bxc5 27. Nd3 Bxd3 28. Rxd3 Rf7 29. a3 Rc7 30. b4 Be7 31. Rad1 Ra8 32. Be4 g6 33. f5 g5 34. Kg2 Kf8 35. Rh3 Rd7 36. Rhd3 Rc7 37. Bd5 Kg7 38. h4 h6 39. h5 Ra7 40. Rf3 Rc3 41. Rxd4 Raxa3 42. Rxc3 Rxc3 43. Bxb7 Rb3 44. Rd7 Kf8 45. Rc7 Rxb4 46. Rc8+ Kg7 47. Bd5 Rg4+ 48. Kf1 Rd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.03"]
[Round "1.10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E13"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2759"]
[PlyCount "167"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 c5 8. Be2 ({RR} 8. Bd3 cxd4 9. exd4 O-O 10. Bc2 ({RR} 10. O-O d6 ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Re1 d5 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. cxd5 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Bxd4 15. dxe6 fxe6 16. Re2 Qf6 17. Qe1 Bxg2 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Qg6+ 20. Kh1 Rf4) 11. Re1 ({RR} 11. Rc1 Nbd7 12. Re1 Re8 13. b4 Rc8 14. h3 Nh5 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. d5 Nf4 17. Bf1 Ne5 18. Nxe5 dxe5 19. d6 Qg5 20. Qg4) 11... Nbd7 12. a3 Re8 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. Bf1 d5 15. Ne5 dxc4 16. Nxc4 a6) 10... d5 11. cxd5 ({RR} 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. cxd5 Bxd5 ({RR} 12... exd5 13. O-O Nc6 14. Re1 Qd6 15. Qd3 g6) 13. Qd3 g6 14. Nxd5 Qxd5 15. Qe3 Qa5+ 16. Qc3 Nc6 17. Be4 Rac8) 11... Nxd5 12. Qd3 ({RR} 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. O-O Nd7 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Qd3 Nf6 16. Ne5 Rfd8 17. Ng4 g6 18. Ne5) 12... g6 ({RR} 12... f5 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qd2 Nd7 15. O-O) 13. Nxd5 ({RR} 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qd2 Kh7 15. Be4 Nd7 16. O-O N7f6) 13... Bxd5 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Bb3 ({RR} 15. O-O Nc6 16. Bd1 ({RR} 16. Qe3 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Rad8 18. Rad1 Qf6) 16... Rad8) 15... Qb4+ 16. Qc3 ({RR} 16. Qd2 Qxd2+ 17. Kxd2 Bxf3 18. gxf3 Nc6) 16... Qxc3+ 17. bxc3 Bxf3 18. gxf3 Nc6 19. Kd2 ({RR} 19. h4 h5 20. O-O-O Rac8 21. Kb2 Rfd8) 19... Rfd8 20. Rhd1 Rac8 21. Rac1 Na5 22. Kd3 Rc5 {Azmaiparashvili,Z (2672)-Aronian,L (2724) Saint Vincent 2005 CBM 110 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 0-1 (57)} {RR} 23. Rg1 b5) 8... cxd4 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Qc2 Nc6 10. Rd1 cxd4 11. exd4 d5 12. O-O dxc4 13. Bxc4 Nh5 14. Bxe7 Nxe7 15. Ne5 Nf4 16. f3 Nf5 17. Qd2 Qg5 18. Ne4 Bxe4 19. fxe4 Ne3 20. Rxf4 Qxf4 21. Re1 Nd5 22. Qd3 Nf6 23. g3 {Yushko,O (2064)-Martin Duque,J (2421) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 8... O-O 9. O-O cxd4 10. Nxd4 a6 11. Bf3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Ra7 13. Rac1 Rc7 14. b3 Nc6 15. Bg3 Nxd4 16. exd4 d6 17. d5 e5 18. Qe2 Nd7 19. f4 Re8 20. Qf2 Rf8 21. fxe5 dxe5 22. Qe2 f5 23. Rcd1 {Azmaiparashvili,Z (2658)-Carlsen,M (2570) Khanty-Mansiysk 2005 0-1 (56)}) 9. Nxd4 a6 10. O-O $146 ({RR} 10. Bf3 Ra7 11. O-O O-O 12. Rc1 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Rc7 14. Na4 Ra7 15. b3 Qc7 16. Rfd1 Rc8 17. Nc3 Qb7 18. Qxb7 Rxb7 19. Kf1 Kf8 20. Ke2 Nc6 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. Nxc6 Rxc6 23. a4 f5 24. Kf3 Rbc7 {Mollah Abdullah,A (2474)-Khatanbaatar,B (2427) Mallorca 2004 0-1 (75)}) 10... Nc6 11. Nf3 O-O 12. Qd2 Qb8 13. Rfd1 Rd8 14. Rac1 d6 15. Qc2 Qa7 16. a3 Rac8 17. Qb1 Nb8 18. b4 Nbd7 19. Bg3 d5 20. cxd5 Nxd5 21. Nxd5 Bxd5 22. e4 Bc6 23. Nd4 Ba4 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rc1 Qa8 26. f3 Bg5 27. f4 Rxc1+ 28. Qxc1 Qxe4 29. fxg5 Qxd4+ 30. Bf2 Qe5 31. Qc8+ Nf8 32. Qxa6 b5 33. Bf1 hxg5 34. Qc8 f5 35. Bc5 Qf6 36. h3 e5 37. Bxf8 Qxf8 38. Qe6+ Qf7 39. Qxe5 Qd7 40. Be2 Kh7 41. Kf2 g6 42. Qe3 Qd8 43. Qe5 Qd2 44. Kg3 Qc1 45. Kh2 Qxa3 46. Qe7+ Kh6 47. Qf8+ Kh7 48. Qe7+ Kh6 49. Qe5 Kh7 50. Qe7+ Kh6 51. Bxb5 Bxb5 52. Qe5 Kh7 53. Qxb5 f4 54. Qd7+ Kh6 55. Qe8 Qb2 56. Qf8+ Kh7 57. Qe7+ Kh6 58. h4 f3 59. Qxg5+ Kh7 60. h5 gxh5 61. Qxh5+ Kg7 62. Qg4+ Kh7 63. Qd7+ Kh6 64. Qc6+ Kg7 65. Qc7+ Kh6 66. Qf4+ Kh7 67. Qf7+ Kh6 68. Qxf3 Qxb4 69. Kh3 Qb1 70. Qf6+ Kh7 71. Qf3 Kg7 72. Kh4 Kh7 73. Qf7+ Kh8 74. Qh5+ Kg7 75. Qg4+ Kh7 76. Qh5+ Kg7 77. Qe5+ Kh7 78. Qd5 Kg7 79. Qd4+ Kh7 80. Qd7+ Kh8 81. g4 Qh1+ 82. Kg5 Qc1+ 83. Kg6 Qb1+ 84. Qf5 1-0

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.03"]
[Round "1.11"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A32"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Bc5 7. Nb3 Be7 8. Bg2 Nc6 9. Nc3 b6 10. Bf4 Bb7 11. O-O O-O 12. Bd6 ({RR} 12. Nb5 Ne8 13. Rc1 d6 14. Qd2 a6 15. N5d4 Rc8 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Rfd1 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qc7 19. e4 Qb7 20. f3 h6 21. Be3 Nf6 22. Qf2 b5 23. c5 d5 24. c6 Qa8 25. e5 d4 26. Bxd4 Nd5 {Lei,T (2505)-Carlsen,M (2847) chess24.com INT 2021 0-1 (37)}) 12... Na5 $146 ({RR} 12... Bxd6 13. Qxd6 Qb8 14. Rfd1 Rd8 15. c5 Qxd6 16. cxd6 Rab8 17. Nb5 a6 18. Nc7 a5 19. Nd2 Na7 20. e4 Ne8 21. Nc4 Bc6 22. Rac1 f6 23. f4 Rb7 24. Nxe8 Rxe8 25. Kf2 Kf7 26. Ke3 Ra8 27. g4 {Barbosa,O (2506)-Ghaem Maghami,E (2606) Mashhad 2011 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 12... Ne8 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qd2 d6 15. Nd4 Nxd4 16. Qxd4 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Nf6 18. Rfd1 Rfd8 19. Rd2 d5 20. cxd5 Nxd5 21. Rad1 Rac8 22. Nxd5 Rxd5 23. Qe4 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 g6 25. h4 h5 26. a3 {½-½ (26) Nielsen,P (2649)-Akopian,V (2698) Lugo 2007}) 13. Nxa5 Bxg2 14. Kxg2 bxa5 15. e4 Rc8 16. b3 Bxd6 17. Qxd6 a4 18. e5 Ne8 19. Qd4 axb3 20. axb3 f6 21. Rxa7 Rc7 22. Rxc7 Qxc7 23. exf6 Nxf6 24. Nb5 Qc6+ 25. f3 h6 26. Ra1 Nh7 27. Qe4 d5 28. Qe2 dxc4 29. Nd4 Qd5 30. Qxc4 Qxc4 31. bxc4 Rc8 32. Rc1 e5 33. Nf5 Kf8 34. c5 Ng5 35. Nd6 Rc6 36. h4 Ne6 37. Ne4 Ke7 38. h5 Rc7 39. Kh3 Nd4 40. Kg4 Ne6 41. Rc2 Nd4 42. Rc3 Rc6 43. Ra3 Ne6 44. Kf5 Nxc5 45. Rc3 g6+ 46. hxg6 Ne6 47. Rxc6 Nd4+ 48. Kg4 Nxc6 49. Kh5 Kf8 50. Kxh6 Ne7 51. Kh7 1-0

[Event "Candidates sf"]
[Site "Elista"]
[Date "2007.06.03"]
[Round "1.12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E29"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2759"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2007.05.27"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. Bd3 Nc6 8. Ne2 b6 9. e4 Ne8 10. O-O Ba6 11. f4 f5 12. e5 d6 13. d5 exd5 14. cxd5 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 dxe5 16. Qd2 ({RR} 16. fxe5 Nxe5 17. Qd1 Qd7 18. Bf4 Ng6 19. Qd3 Nf6 20. Rad1 Rae8 21. Ng3 Nxf4 22. Rxf4 g6 23. h3 Re5 24. c4 Rfe8 25. Rf3 R8e7 26. Qc3 Ne8 27. d6 R7e6 28. Rfd3 Nf6 29. Qd2 Re8 30. a4 Qxa4 {Werle,J (2552)-Carlsen,M (2714) Netherlands 2008 0-1 (39)}) 16... Ne7 17. Rd1 $146 ({RR} 17. c4 Nd6 18. Qc3 Ne4 19. Qxe5 Qd7 20. a4 Rae8 21. Ra3 Nd6 22. Qc3 Nxd5 23. Qd3 Nb4 24. Qd2 Qe6 25. Nd4 Nxc4 26. Nxe6 Nxd2 27. Nxf8 Nxf1 28. Kxf1 Kxf8 29. a5 Nc2 {0-1 (29) Herrera,J (2285)-Garcia Pantoja,R (2481) Medellin 2017}) 17... Ng6 18. fxe5 Nxe5 19. Nf4 Rf7 20. Qe2 Ng6 21. Ne6 Qd7 22. c4 Nd6 23. Bb2 Re8 24. Qh5 Nf8 25. Ng5 Rfe7 26. Rac1 Re2 27. Bc3 R2e7 28. Rf1 h6 29. Nh3 Re4 30. Nf4 Qf7 31. Qh3 Rxc4 32. Nh5 Ne4 33. Bxg7 Ng5 34. Qb3 Rxc1 35. Nf6+ Kxg7 36. Nxe8+ Qxe8 37. Qb2+ Kg6 38. Qxc1 Qe5 39. Rd1 Ne4 40. Qe3 Nd7 41. d6 h5 42. Qb3 c4 43. Qxc4 Qc5+ 44. Qxc5 bxc5 45. Rb1 Kf6 46. Rb7 Ke6 47. Rxa7 Kxd6 48. Kf1 c4 49. Ke2 c3 50. Ra6+ Kd5 51. Kd1 Ne5 52. Ra5+ Kd4 53. Kc2 Nc4 54. Ra8 Ne3+ 55. Kb3 Nc5+ 56. Ka2 c2 57. Rd8+ Kc3 0-1

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2007.06.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2679"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[EventDate "2007.06.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Nxe4 Bxe4 9. Nh4 ({RR} 9. Ne1 Bxg2 {½-½ (14) Kovchan,A (2475)-Baklan,V (2578) Trieste 2022}) ({RR} 9. Ne1 Bxg2 {½-½ (14) De Souza,M (2370)-Van Riemsdijk,H (2405) Petropolis 1996}) 9... Bxg2 10. Nxg2 d5 11. Qa4 Qe8 12. Qxe8 Rxe8 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Be3 ({RR} 14. Rd1 Na6 15. Be3 Rad8 16. Rac1 g5 17. Bd2 c5 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Bc3 Ne6 20. e3 Bc5 21. Kf1 h6 22. Rd3 d4 23. exd4 Bxd4 24. Bxd4 Nxd4 25. Rdd1 {½-½ (25) Andersson,U (2600)-Karpov,A (2710) Bilbao 1987}) 14... c5 $146 ({RR} 14... Nd7 15. Rac1 Rac8 16. Rc2 {½-½ (16) Razuvaev,Y (2520)-Yudasin,L (2475) Minsk 1985}) 15. Nf4 Rd8 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Rac1 d4 18. Bd2 a5 19. Nd3 Nd7 20. e3 Nf6 21. Rfd1 Ne4 22. exd4 Nxd2 23. Rxd2 Bg5 24. f4 Rxd4 25. fxg5 c4 26. Rdc2 Rxd3 27. Rxc4 g6 28. R4c3 Rd2 29. R1c2 Rad8 30. Rxd2 Rxd2 31. Rb3 a4 32. Rb4 a3 33. bxa3 Rxa2 34. a4 Kg7 35. h4 h6 36. Kf1 hxg5 37. hxg5 Kf8 38. Re4 Rc2 39. Ke1 Rc5 40. Rg4 Ke7 41. Kd2 Ke6 42. Kd3 Rc1 43. Rc4 Rg1 44. g4 Rg3+ 45. Kc2 Kd5 46. Rf4 Kc5 47. Kd2 Ra3 48. Ke2 Kd5 49. Kf2 Ra2+ 50. Kg3 Ra3+ 51. Kf2 Ra2+ 52. Ke3 Ra3+ 53. Kd2 Kc5 54. Kc2 Rg3 55. Kb2 Rg2+ 56. Kc3 Rg3+ 57. Kc2 Ra3 58. Kb2 Rg3 59. a5 Kb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2007.06.29"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2007.06.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. h3 Bxf3 6. Qxf3 e6 7. Nc3 Nbd7 8. Bd3 Bb4 9. O-O O-O 10. Bd2 ({RR} 10. Qd1 dxc4 11. Bxc4 c5 12. Qb3 cxd4 13. exd4 Qa5 14. Rd1 Rac8 15. Bd2 Nb6 16. Bf1 Bxc3 17. Bxc3 Qa4 18. Bb4 Rfd8 19. Bc5 h6 20. Bb5 Qxb3 21. axb3 Rc7 22. Be2 Nc8 23. Bxa7 Rc2 24. Bc4 Rxb2 {Anand,V (2788)-Aronian,L (2768) Mainz 2009 0-1 (41)}) 10... dxc4 ({RR} 10... Nc5 11. Be2 Na4 12. Nxa4 Bxd2 13. Nc5 Rb8 14. a3 Ba5 15. Rfd1 Bc7 16. Rac1 Qe7 17. g3 Rfd8 18. b4 Bd6 19. Bd3 a5 20. cxd5 cxd5 21. bxa5 Ra8 22. a6 bxa6 23. a4 a5 24. Rc2 Rac8 25. Rdc1 {Wang,S (2436)-Chen,Y (2163) Bengbu CHN 2025 ½-½ (66)}) 11. Bxc4 e5 12. a3 $146 ({RR} 12. Rfd1 Qe7 13. Bb3 Rad8 14. Qf5 g6 15. Qc2 a6 16. dxe5 Qxe5 17. Ne4 Bxd2 18. Nxd2 Nc5 19. Nf3 Qc7 20. Bc4 Nce4 21. Bd3 Rfe8 22. a3 Rd5 23. Bc4 Rf5 24. Qe2 h5 25. Rf1 Nd5 26. Nd4 Rg5 {Shankland,S (2662)-Holt,C (2565) San Francisco 2017 ½-½}) ({RR} 12. Rad1 Qe7 13. Bb3 Rad8 14. a3 Bd6 15. Bc1 Rfe8 16. dxe5 Qxe5 17. g3 Nc5 18. Bc2 Nce4 19. Rd3 Nxc3 20. Rxc3 Bc7 21. Rd1 Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 Rd8 23. Rd3 Rxd3 24. Qxd3 Qd5 25. Qxd5 cxd5 26. g4 h6 {Dumitrache,D (2437)-Dobre,C (2360) Targu Mures 2014 ½-½ (59)}) 12... Bd6 13. Rad1 Qe7 14. Qf5 Rad8 15. dxe5 Bxe5 16. Qc2 Bc7 17. Be2 Nc5 18. Bc1 Qe5 19. g3 Qe6 20. Kg2 Nb3 21. Nb5 Bb8 22. Bc4 Na1 23. Bxe6 Nxc2 24. Bf5 Nxe3+ 25. Bxe3 cxb5 26. Bc5 Rfe8 27. Rxd8 Rxd8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2007.06.30"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2693"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2007.06.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qa4+ Nc6 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bxf6 Qxf6 8. e3 O-O 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Be2 Rd8 11. O-O a6 12. Rfc1 Rb8 ({RR} 12... Be6 13. Qd1 Bd6 14. Na4 Ne7 15. Nc5 Bc8 16. b4 b6 17. Nd3 g5 18. Nfe5 Ng6 19. Nxg6 fxg6 20. Bf3 Be6 21. g3 a5 22. b5 Rf8 23. Bg2 Rae8 24. a4 Kh8 25. Ra2 Re7 26. Qb3 Qf5 27. Rac2 {Horvath,P (2354)-Nordenbaek,J (2192) Prague CZE 2025 1-0 (48)}) 13. a3 Bf8 14. b4 Ne7 $146 ({RR} 14... Bg4 15. Qd1 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Ne7 17. Na4 c6 18. Nc5 Nf5 19. Bg4 Qg5 20. Bxf5 Qxf5 21. a4 Rd6 22. Qf3 Qg5 23. g3 Qd8 24. Rab1 Rf6 25. Qg4 Bxc5 26. bxc5 Rg6 27. Qd1 b5 28. cxb6 Rxb6 29. Qd2 {Bilobrk,F (2360)-Rade,M (2395) Biograd 2018 1-0 (89)}) 15. Qb3 Be6 16. a4 Nf5 17. b5 axb5 18. axb5 c5 19. bxc6 bxc6 20. Qa4 c5 21. dxc5 Bxc5 22. Nb5 Bb6 23. Nbd4 Nxd4 24. Nxd4 Bxd4 25. Qxd4 Qxd4 26. exd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 35th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2007.07.01"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2693"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2007.06.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.08.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. Bd2 Nbd7 9. a3 ({RR} 9. Qc2 Be7 10. Be2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 O-O 12. O-O c5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. Rfd1 Rc8 15. Be1 Qc7 16. Be2 Nce4 17. Qa4 Nxc3 18. Bxc3 Nd5 19. Bd4 a6 20. Bf3 Rfd8 21. Qb3 Bf6 22. g3 b6 23. Be2 Bxd4 {Leko,P (2741)-Carlsen,M (2765) Miskolc 2008 0-1 (53)}) ({RR} 9. Be2 Bd6 10. g3 Qe7 11. Qb3 Rb8 12. O-O Ne4 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Qc2 f5 15. Kg2 Nf6 16. f3 Rd8 17. a3 g5 18. Ba5 b6 19. c5 bxa5 20. cxd6 Qxd6 21. Rac1 Rc8 22. Qc5 Qxc5 23. Rxc5 a4 {Travesset Sagre,J (2334)-Peed,G (1820) chess.com INT 2025 1-0}) 9... Be7 10. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 10. Rc1 O-O 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Bd3 Re8 13. O-O Rc8 14. Bb1 Bf8 15. Na4 Ne4 16. Bb4 Bxb4 17. axb4 f5 18. Nc3 Nd6 19. b5 Nxb5 20. Nxb5 cxb5 21. Qb3 Nb6 22. Qxb5 Qd7 23. Qxd7 Nxd7 24. Ba2 Nf6 {Krush,I (2487)-Wang,R (2240) Toronto 2011 ½-½}) 10... O-O 11. Be2 dxc4 12. Bxc4 c5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. O-O Rc8 15. Rfd1 Qc7 16. Rac1 Rfd8 17. Be2 Nce4 18. Be1 Nxc3 19. Qxc3 Rxd1 20. Bxd1 Qxc3 21. Rxc3 Rxc3 22. Bxc3 Ne4 23. Be1 g5 24. Kf1 b6 25. Ke2 Bf6 26. Bc2 Nd6 27. b3 Kf8 28. Bd3 Ke7 29. g4 Bb2 30. a4 f6 31. b4 e5 32. f3 Bc1 33. Bc3 Kd8 34. b5 Ba3 35. Bd2 Ke7 36. f4 gxf4 37. exf4 exf4 38. Bxf4 g5 39. Bxd6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2007.07.23"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bu, Xiangzhi"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D94"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2685"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "167"]
[EventDate "2007.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 g6 5. Nf3 Bg7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O a6 {A useful move asking White to declare his intentions.} 8. b3 ({I myself preferred} 8. Bd2 {against S.Conquest.}) 8... Ne4 9. Bb2 Nxc3 10. Bxc3 Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Bxf3 e6 {Very solid. Black has got rid of two pairs of "less necessary" pieces, now he has a good bishop and no weaknesses.} 13. Qd2 $5 {An interesting plan. White puts his bishop on a5 in order to provoke the weakening ...b7-b6.} (13. Qc2 Nd7 14. e4 dxe4 15. Qxe4 Rc8 16. Rfd1 Nf6 17. Qe3 Re8 18. Rd3 Re7 19. Rad1 Ne8 $2 (19... Rd7 $142) 20. Bb4 Nd6 21. Qf4 Rd7 22. d5 $1 cxd5 (22... e5 23. dxc6 exf4 24. cxd7 Qxd7 25. Rxd6 $16) 23. Bxd5 $1 Nf5 24. Bxe6 $1 Rxd3 25. Rxd3 Qxd3 26. Bxc8 $18 {1-0 Riazantsev,A-Sergienko,S/Sochi 2005/CBM 107 (31)}) 13... Re8 $146 ({In case of} 13... a5 14. a4 {Black's a5 pawn will require permanent attention} (14. e4 $143 dxe4 15. Bxe4 a4)) ({RR} 13... Nd7 14. Ba5 Qf6 15. Bc7 Rfc8 16. Bg3 Qe7 17. Rac1 Bf8 18. Rc2 Qb4 19. Qc1 Re8 20. Rd1 Bd6 21. Bh4 Be7 22. Bg3 Bd6 23. Bxd6 Qxd6 24. Qb2 a5 25. a3 Nf6 26. Rb1 Ra7 27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 {Wang,H (2735)-Wang,Y (2723) Beijing 2013 ½-½ (63)}) ({RR} 13... Nd7 14. a4 f5 15. Bb4 Rf7 16. Bd6 Nf6 17. Be5 Ne4 18. Bxe4 fxe4 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Qe2 Qh4 21. Qg4 Qxg4 22. hxg4 Raf8 23. Ra2 h5 24. gxh5 gxh5 25. Rc2 Kg6 26. b4 Kf6 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 {Gloor,R (2321)-Sermier,G (2427) Switzerland 2013 ½-½ (66)}) 14. Ba5 $1 Qe7 15. Rac1 Nd7 16. Qb4 {The queen exchange looks logical to make use of White's bishop pair but Black finds a good reply.} Qxb4 17. Bxb4 a5 18. Bd2 (18. Bd6 Bf8 $5) 18... dxc4 $5 19. bxc4 e5 20. d5 $6 (20. Bc3 $1 {was the only way to fight for an edge.}) 20... e4 21. Be2 Red8 (21... cxd5 22. cxd5 Re5 {was a simpler way to equality, e.g.} 23. d6 (23. Bc4 Nb6 24. d6 Rd8) 23... Rd5 24. Rfd1 Rxd6 25. Bxa5 Rxd1+ (25... Bf8 $5) 26. Rxd1 Rxa5 (26... Ne5 $5) (26... Nf8 $5 27. Rd5 $140 b6 28. Bxb6 Rxa2) 27. Rxd7 Rxa2 28. Bc4 Ra1+ 29. Kh2 b5 30. Bxf7+ Kf8 31. Be6 Be5+ 32. g3 Ra6 33. Bd5 Rd6 $11) 22. Rfd1 cxd5 23. cxd5 Nf6 24. Be1 Nxd5 $6 {Starting a series of inaccuracies, which eventually lead to a lost endgame.} (24... Rxd5 25. Rxd5 Nxd5 26. Rc5 Nb4 27. Bxb4 axb4 28. Bc4 Rd8 $1 $11) 25. Rc5 Nb4 26. Rxa5 $1 $14 Nc2 27. Bd2 Rxa5 (27... Rac8 28. Rb5 Rc7 29. Ba5 Rxd1+ 30. Bxd1 Na3 31. Bxc7 Nxb5 32. Bb6 $14) 28. Bxa5 Ra8 29. Rd5 Bf8 $6 {It was absolutely crucial not to allow the white bishop to the a2-g8 diagonal.} (29... Na3 $1 30. Bb4 (30. Bd1 Nc4 31. Bb4 Bf8 $14) 30... Bf8 $14 31. Bxa3 Rxa3 32. Bc4 Rc3 33. Bb3 Kg7 $1 34. g3 (34. Rd7 Rc1+ 35. Kh2 Rc7 $1) 34... Rc7 35. Rb5 f5 $16 {with a better defense than he had in the game.}) 30. Bd1 Nb4 31. Bxb4 Bxb4 32. Bb3 {[%csl Gb3,Re4,Rf7][%mdl 4096] Despite the opposite-coloured bishops, Black's position is difficult because White's bishop is much stronger and the f7 pawn is under pressure. Material losses are inevitable.} b6 (32... Re8 33. Rb5 Bd6 34. Rxb7 {is hardly a lesser evil.}) 33. Rd7 {White is not hurrying to take the e4 pawn. It is more important to force the black rook to f8.} Rf8 34. g4 g5 35. Rb7 Bc5 36. Bd5 Kg7 37. Kf1 ({Again not} 37. Bxe4 Re8 {[%cal Ye8e7]}) 37... h6 38. Ke2 Kf6 39. a4 Kg7 40. Rc7 Bb4 41. Bxe4 {It's time now!} Rd8 (41... Re8 42. Bd5 Re7 43. Rc6 Ba5 (43... Bc5 $2 44. a5) 44. e4 {[%cal Ye2b5,Yc6b6]}) 42. Bd3 Kf8 43. Rb7 Rd6 44. Bc4 Rf6 {The rook is not much more active on f6 than on f8. White's winning plan is: f2-f4-f5 and then preparation of the exchange sacrifice on b6.} 45. Bd5 Be7 46. f3 Bb4 47. Kd3 Be1 48. Ke4 Bg3 49. Bc4 Be1 50. f4 gxf4 51. exf4 Bg3 52. f5 Be1 53. Bd5 Kg7 54. Kd4 h5 55. Kc4 hxg4 56. hxg4 Bf2 57. Be6 Be3 58. Kd5 Kf8 59. Ke5 Kg7 60. Ke4 Bd2 61. Kd3 Bf4 62. Kc4 Kf8 63. Bd5 Be3 64. Kb5 Kg7 65. Be6 Kf8 66. Bc4 Bf2 67. Bd5 Kg7 68. Bc6 Kh6 69. Rxb6 $1 {Such an exchange sacrifice, creating a passed pawn, is a typical winning method in + vs + engings, with opposite-coloured bishops.} Kg5 70. a5 $1 Rd6 (70... Kxg4 71. Bd7 $1 Kg5 (71... Rxb6+ 72. axb6 Bg3 73. Ka6 Kf3 74. Kb7 $1 $18) 72. Rxf6 Kxf6 73. Kc6 Ke7 74. a6 Kd8 (74... Be3 75. Kc7 $1) 75. f6 $1 Bg1 76. Bg4 Bf2 77. Kb7 Be3 78. Bh5 $18) 71. Rb7 Kxg4 72. Rxf7 Kg5 73. Rd7 {The bishop endgame is now absolutely winning for White.} Rh6 74. Be4 Rh8 75. a6 Rb8+ 76. Kc4 Kf4 77. Re7 Rc8+ 78. Kd3 Rd8+ 79. Ke2 Bd4 80. Bd3 Bc5 81. Re6 Rh8 82. f6 Rh2+ 83. Kd1 Rh6 84. f7 1-0

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2007.07.28"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2650"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2007.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Bg5 h6 5. Bxf6 {I figured that this might be a reasonable choice since Onischuk doesn't usually play the Moscow with Black, and avoids it by choosing the sharper h4 with White. Dies schien mir eine vernünftige Wahl zu sein, denn Onischuk spielt die Moskauer Variante gewöhnlich nicht mit Schwarz, und mit Weiß vermeidet er sie durch das schärfere 5.h4.} Qxf6 6. Nc3 c6 7. Qb3 dxc4 {I don't honestly believe that White has serious chances of obtaining an advantage in the lines starting with 7...d7 8.e4, but I felt that Onischuk probably wasn't ready for this challenge. Ich glaube nicht wirklich, dass Weiß in den Abspielen mit 7...d7 8.e4 ernste Chancen auf Vorteil hat, aber ich spürte, dass Onischuk für diese Herausforderung wahrscheinlich nicht bereit war.} 8. Qxc4 Nd7 9. e3 g6 10. Be2 (10. h4 {is sharper and probably stronger, and certainly the critical line. It wasn't such positions I was aiming for, though. ist schärfer und womöglich starker, und auf jeden Fall auch das kritische Abspiel. Dies war aber nicht der Stellungstyp, den ich anstrebte.}) 10... Bg7 11. O-O O-O 12. Rfd1 {I was quite happy with the outcome of the opening, but it is hard to believe that White has anything serious still. Ich war mit dem Ausgang der Eröffnung ganz zufrieden, doch es fällt trotzdem schwer zu glauben, dass Weiß etwas Ernsthaftes hat.} e5 {Perhaps not the most accurate, the waiting move Vielleicht nicht das Genaueste; der Wartezug} (12... Qe7 {was worth considering. The text should, however, be fine as well. kam in Betracht. Doch auch der Textzug sollte in Ordnung sein.}) 13. Ne4 {The only way to play for an advantage, after 13.d5 b6 or 13.dxe5 xe5 White could even have ended up worse. Der einzige Weg, auf Vorteil zu spielen; nach 13.d5 b6 oder 13.dxe5 xe5 könnte Weiß am Ende sogar schlechter stehen.} Qe7 $6 (13... Qf5 $1 {was actually quite interesting, and what I had considered best during the game. Even though White is allowed to put the knight on d6 he has nothing. On the other hand, 13...f5 is a difficult move to make, allowing the knight to jump to d6 with tempo. war tatsächlich ziemlich interessant und wurde von mir während der Partie auch als Bestes eingestuft. Obwohl Weiß erlaubt wird, den Springer nach d6 zu fahren, hat er nichts. Andererseits macht man einen Zug wie 13...f5 nicht ohne Weiteres, schließlich wird ja dem Springer gestattet, mit Tempo nach d6 zu hüpfen.}) 14. d5 cxd5 15. Qxd5 Nb6 (15... Nf6 16. Qd6 Qxd6 17. Nxd6 {is a small plus for White as well. ergibt ebenfalls ein leichtes Plus für Weiß.}) 16. Qc5 Qxc5 17. Nxc5 Bg4 $146 (17... Rb8 18. Rac1 {is quite difficult for Black since he cannot develop his bishop comfortably. 18...f5 is met by 19.h4 and 18...g4 with 19.h3. ist recht schwierig für Schwarz, da er seinen Läufer nicht bequem entwickeln kann: Auf 18...f5 folgt 19.h4 und auf 18...g4 19.h3.}) ({RR} 17... Re8 18. a4 e4 19. Nd2 Bxb2 20. Ra2 Be5 21. Ndxe4 Bf5 22. a5 Nc8 23. Ng3 Be6 24. Nxe6 Rxe6 25. Rd8+ Kg7 26. Rc2 Rc6 27. Rxc6 bxc6 28. Rd7 a6 29. Ne4 Ra7 30. Rd8 Ne7 31. Re8 Bb2 32. g4 {Barsov,A (2505)-Debashis,D (2352) Sort 2009 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 17... Re8 18. Nd2 Re7 19. Nde4 Bd7 20. Nxd7 Nxd7 21. Rac1 Nb6 22. g4 f5 23. Ng3 fxg4 24. Rd6 Kf7 25. Bd1 Bf8 26. Bxg4 e4 27. Bd1 Rae8 28. Rd4 Kg7 29. a4 Nd7 30. a5 Nf6 31. Ba4 Rb8 32. Ne2 {Harutyunyan,T (2526)-Zarubitski,V (2423) Astana KAZ 2023 1-0 (51)}) 18. h3 Rac8 {Here I actually thought for some time, but now I cannot understand why, 19.xb7 is the only way to seriously play for a win. Hier überlegte ich tatsächlich einige Zeit, aber jetzt verstehe ich nicht mehr warum; 19.xb7 ist der einzige Weg, ernsthaft auf Gewinn zu spielen.} 19. Nxb7 Be6 {White is a pawn up, but Black has some activity, and White has problems consolidating. Weiß besitzt einen Mehrbauern, doch Schwarz verfügt über einige Aktivität, und Weiß hat Probleme bei der Konsolidierung.} 20. b3 {I decided that this was the least of the evils, not being satisfied with lines like Ich beschloss, dass dies das geringste Übel war, denn andere Abspiele befriedigten mich nicht, zum Beispiel} (20. Rd2 Rc7 21. Nd6 (21. Na5 Rfc8 22. Rad1 Rc2 {with some activity, mit einiger Aktivität.}) 21... Rd8 {with compensation, mit Kompensation,}) (20. Nd6 Rc2 21. Rd2 Rxd2 22. Nxd2 Rd8 23. N2c4 e4 {with a likely draw. mit wahrscheinlichem Remis.}) 20... Rc2 21. Bf1 Nd5 22. Bc4 Nc3 23. Rd2 Rxd2 24. Nxd2 e4 25. Kf1 Rb8 (25... Bc8 {does not quite work: funktioniert nicht ganz:} 26. Nd6 Rd8 {and now, instead of xc8 xc8, when White has minimal winning chances, there follows some nice tactics: und nun, statt xc8 xc8, wonach Weiß nur minimale Gewinnchancen hat, folgt eine hübsche taktische Einlage:} (26... Nb5 27. Nxc8 Bxa1 (27... Rxc8 28. Rc1 Nc3 29. Nxe4 $1) 28. Ne7+) 27. Bxf7+ Kf8 28. Nxc8 Kxf7 29. Nc4 Nb5 30. Rc1 Rxc8 31. a4 $18) 26. Nc5 Bxc4+ $2 (26... Na4 {Objectively this gives the best drawing chances: Objektiv gibt dies die besten Remischancen:} 27. Nxe6 Bxa1 28. bxa4 fxe6 29. Bxe6+ Kg7 30. Nxe4 {It is on the other hand clear that defending this endgame would have been a long and probably impossible task. Andererseits ist klar, dass die Verteidigung dieses Endspiels eine lange und wahrscheinlich unmögliche Aufgabe wäre.}) 27. Nxc4 Rb5 (27... Na4 {leads absolutely nowhere: führt absolut zu nichts:} 28. Na6 Rd8 29. Rc1 Nc3 30. a3) 28. Na6 $1 {My opponent had probably underestimated this move, after which he has big problems. The knight looks a little awkward here, but together with the other knight it takes away important squares from the rook, while preparing b4, which will free the rook and lead to relatively easily won position. Diesen Zug, nach dem er große Probleme hat, hatte mein Gegner wahrscheinlich unterschätzt. Der Springer scheint hier ein wenig komisch zu stehen, doch gemeinsam mit seinem Kollegen nimmt er dem Turm wichtige Felder und bereitet gleichzeitig b4 vor, was den Turm befreit und zu einer relativ leicht gewonnenen Stellung führt.} Bf8 29. b4 $1 {This is the key. I very much liked the motifs that occured after this move. Das ist der Schlüssel. An den sich nach diesem Zug ergebenden Motiven fand ich großen Gefallen.} Bxb4 {This cannot really be called a mistake, as the alternatives were just depressing. Dies ist nicht wirklich als Fehler zu bezeichnen, denn die Alternativen waren einfach trübselig.} 30. a4 Rb7 31. Rc1 {Now the pin will be lethal. Nun wird die Fesselung tödlich sein.} Nd5 32. Rb1 f5 (32... Re7 33. Nxb4 Rb7 {could have been tried, but hätte man versuchen können, doch} 34. Nxd5 Rxb1+ 35. Ke2 Rc1 36. Nd6 f5 37. g4 {should win without much trouble. sollte ohne allzu große Schwierigkeiten gewinnen.}) 33. a5 {Taking away the b6 square, freeing the knight and finally sealing Black's fate. Nimmt ihm das Feld b6, befreit den Springer und besiegelt schließlich das Schicksal von Schwarz.} Kg7 ({Now Nun könnte auf} 33... Re7 {could be met by the funny little trick der witzige kleine Trick} 34. Nxb4 Rb7 35. Nb6 $1 {folgen.}) (33... Rb5 34. g3 $1 {The most precise, after which Black might as well resign. Am genauesten, wonach Schwarz ebenso gut aufgeben könnte.} (34. Nd6 {Here Black at least has some kind of counterplay: Hier hat Schwarz zumindest irgendeine Art von Gegenspiel:} Rxa5 35. Nxb4 Nxb4 36. Rxb4 Ra1+ 37. Ke2 Ra2+ 38. Ke1 Ra1+ 39. Kd2 Ra2+ 40. Kc3 Rxf2)) 34. Ne5 f4 {As well as being lost, Onischuk was running out of time, which explains his last moves, which were rather desperate. Onischuk stand nicht nur auf Verlust, sondern ihm ging auch die Zeit aus, was seine letzten Züge erklärt, die ziemlich verzweifelt waren.} 35. exf4 e3 36. fxe3 Nxe3+ 37. Kg1 Nd5 38. Kh1 {And here he lost on time. An important and pleasing win for me. Und hier verlor er auf Zeit. Ein wichtiger und erfreulicher Sieg für mich.} 1-0

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2007.07.29"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D30"]
[WhiteElo "2726"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2007.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Illingworth,Max} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. e3 d5 ({RR} 4... cxd4 5. exd4 d5 6. Nc3 ({RR} 6. a3 Be7 7. Nc3 O-O 8. c5 Ne4 9. Qc2 f5 10. b4 Bf6 11. Bd3 Nc6)) ({RR} 4... a6 5. a3 ({RR} 5. Nc3 d5) 5... d5 ({RR} 5... b6 6. d5 exd5 7. cxd5 b5 8. Nc3 d6 9. e4 g6 10. h3 Bg7 11. Bd3 O-O 12. O-O) 6. dxc5 Bxc5 7. b4 Be7 8. Bb2 O-O 9. Nbd2) 5. cxd5 ({RR} 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. a3 a6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. b4 Ba7 9. Bb2 O-O 10. Qc2 Qe7 11. Rd1 Rd8 12. Be2 d4 13. exd4 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Bxd4 15. O-O e5 16. Na4) 5... exd5 6. Bb5+ Bd7 ({RR} 6... Nbd7 7. Nc3 a6 8. Be2 Be7 9. O-O O-O 10. b3 b5 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. Bb2 Bb7) ({RR} 6... Nc6 7. O-O Bd6 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. b3 O-O 10. Bb2 Bg4 11. Bxc6 ({RR} 11. h3 Bh5) 11... bxc6 12. Nbd2 Rc8 13. Qc2 Nd7 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Qxc5 Nd3 16. Qd4 Nxb2 17. Qxg4 c5) 7. Bxd7+ Nbxd7 8. dxc5 Nxc5 ({RR} 8... Bxc5 9. O-O O-O 10. Nc3 Nb6 11. b3) 9. O-O Be7 ({RR} 9... Bd6 10. Bd2 ({RR} 10. b3 O-O 11. Bb2) 10... O-O 11. Bc3 Nfe4 12. Bd4 Rc8 13. Nc3 Ne6) 10. Nc3 ({RR} 10. Bd2 O-O 11. Bc3 ({RR} 11. Bb4 Nce4 12. Bxe7 Qxe7) 11... Nfe4 12. Bd4 Ne6 ({RR} 12... Rc8 13. Nc3 Nxc3 14. Bxc3 Ne4) 13. Nc3 Nxd4 14. Nxd4 Nxc3 15. bxc3 Qd7 16. Qb3 Rac8 17. Rfd1 Rc5 18. Rd3) 10... O-O 11. b3 Nce4 ({RR} 11... Qa5 12. Nxd5 Nxd5 13. Qxd5 Rfd8 14. Qc4 b5 15. Qc2 Rac8 16. Qb1) ({RR} 11... Rc8 12. Bb2 Re8 13. Ne2 Qa5 14. a3 Qb5 15. Nfd4 Qd7 16. Rc1 Bd6 17. Nf4 Bxf4 ({RR} 17... Be5) 18. exf4) 12. Ne2 ({RR} 12. Bb2 Qa5 ({RR} 12... Rc8)) 12... Rc8 ({RR} 12... Qa5 13. Bb2 Ba3 ({RR} 13... Rfe8 14. Nfd4 Bd6 15. f3 Nc5 16. Nf5 Be5 17. Ned4) ({RR} 13... Rac8 14. Nfd4 Ba3 15. Bxa3 Qxa3 16. f3 Ng5 17. Qd2 Ne6 18. Rac1 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 a6 20. Rc3 Rxc3 21. Qxc3) 14. Bxa3 Qxa3 15. Qc1 ({RR} 15. Nf4 Nc3 16. Qd2 Rfc8 17. Nd4) 15... Qa6 ({RR} 15... Qxc1 16. Raxc1 Rac8 17. Nfd4) ({RR} 15... Qd6 16. Qb2 Rac8 17. h3 ({RR} 17. Nf4) 17... Rc5 18. Rac1 Rfc8 19. Nfd4 Qd7 ({RR} 19... g6) 20. Rxc5 Rxc5 21. Rc1 Qc8 22. Rxc5 Qxc5 23. f3 Nd6 24. Kf2) 16. Qb2 Rac8 17. Nfd4 Rc7 ({RR} 17... Nc5 18. Rad1 g6 ({RR} 18... Nd3 19. Qd2) 19. Nf4) 18. Rac1 ({RR} 18. f3 Nc5 19. Qd2) ({RR} 18. a4) 18... Rfc8 ({RR} 18... Nc5 19. Qa1 Rfc8 20. h3 Nd3 21. Rxc7 Rxc7 22. Rd1) 19. a4 ({RR} 19. Rxc7 Rxc7 20. Rc1 Qb6 21. Rxc7 Qxc7 22. f3 Nd6 23. Nf4) 19... Qb6 20. Nb5 ({RR} 20. Rxc7 Rxc7 21. Rc1 Ng4) 20... Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 22. Qxc1 g6 23. f3 Nc5 24. Qc3 a6 25. Nbd4 Qd6 ({RR} 25... Qc7 26. Nf5 gxf5 27. Qxf6 Qa5) 26. h4 ({RR} 26. Nf4) 26... b6 27. g3 {Aronian,L (2780)-Caruana,F (2805) Stavanger 2015 CBM 167 [Illingworth,Max] 1-0 (60)} ({RR} 27. Nf4 a5 28. g4)) 13. Bb2 Qd7 ({RR} 13... Re8 14. Rc1 Qa5 15. a4 Bb4 16. h3) 14. Ne5 $146 ({RR} 14. h3 b5 15. Ne5 Qb7 16. f3 Nc5 17. Nd3 Rfe8 18. Nd4 Nfd7 19. Nf5 Bf8 20. Nf4 Nb6 21. Nh5 Ne6 22. f4 Kh8 23. Rf3 f6 24. Rg3 Qf7 25. Nh6 gxh6 26. Bxf6+ Bg7 27. Bxg7+ Nxg7 28. Rxg7 Qe6 {Ashwath Kaushik (2264)-Kovalskyi,R (2180) Hajduszoboszlo HUN 2025 1-0 (32)}) 14... Qd6 15. f3 Nc5 16. Qd2 Ne6 17. Rfd1 Rfd8 18. Nd3 Ne8 19. Ndf4 Nxf4 20. Nxf4 Bf6 21. Rac1 Rxc1 22. Qxc1 Bxb2 23. Qxb2 Nf6 24. Rd4 Qc5 25. Qd2 h6 26. h3 Rd7 27. Rd3 Rd8 28. Kh1 Re8 29. Nxd5 Nxd5 30. Rxd5 Qxe3 31. Qxe3 Rxe3 32. Rd8+ Kh7 33. Rd7 Re2 34. a4 b6 35. Rxf7 Rb2 36. Rxa7 Rxb3 37. Kh2 b5 38. axb5 Rxb5 39. g4 h5 40. Kg3 hxg4 41. hxg4 Kg8 42. f4 g6 43. Kf3 Rb4 44. Rd7 Kf8 45. g5 Ra4 46. Ke3 Rb4 47. Rd4 Rb1 48. Ke4 Re1+ 49. Kd5 Kf7 50. Kc6 Rc1+ 51. Kd7 Rc5 52. Kd6 Rf5 53. Rc4 Kg8 54. Ke7 Kg7 55. Ke6 Kg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2007.07.31"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2591"]
[Annotator "Pelletier,Yannick"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2007.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8. e3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Ne2 ({RR} 10. Nf3 a5 11. Bd3 d6 12. O-O {½-½ (12) Neverov,V (2583)-Aleksandrov,A (2650) Istanbul 2003}) ({RR} 10. Nf3 Nc6 11. Be2 Ne4 12. Bxd8 Nxc3 13. Bh4 Nxe2 14. Kxe2 Ba6 15. Nd2 Na5 16. Be7 Rfc8 17. Rac1 Rab8 18. b4 cxb4 19. axb4 Nxc4 20. Nxc4 Bxc4+ 21. Kf3 d5 22. Ra1 a6 23. Rhc1 f6 24. Kg3 Kf7 {Pesotskiy,M (2155)-Slade,T (2138) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (89)}) 10... a5 $146 ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Ng3 Qa5 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Qxa5 Nxa5 14. Nh5 Rfd8 15. O-O-O Kf8 16. Nxf6 Ke7 17. Nh5 Ba6 18. Nf4 Bxc4 19. Bxc4 Nxc4 20. Rhe1 Rab8 21. Re2 d5 22. Rc2 Na5 23. Kb1 c4 24. Ne2 Nb7 25. e4 {Kacheishvili,G (2583)-Carlsen,M (2072) Bad Wiessee 2001 1-0 (63)}) ({RR} 10... h6 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Qxf6 gxf6 13. O-O-O Rd8 14. Nc3 f5 15. Rg1 Kf8 16. Be2 Nc6 17. g4 fxg4 18. Rxg4 Ne5 19. Rh4 Ba6 20. b3 Rab8 21. Kc2 Ke7 22. f4 Ng6 23. Rh5 d6 24. f5 Ne5 25. Rxh6 {Chabanon,J (2445)-Bacrot,E (2300) Cannes 1995 1-0 (43)}) 11. Bxf6 $6 ({Dieser Tausch war später unter besseren Bedingungen möglich. Nach} 11. f3 d6 12. O-O-O {sollte Schwarz} Ra6 {ziehen. Dies war die Idee hinter meinem 10. Zug: d6 muss gedeckt werden, damit auf Lxf6 wie in der Partie Dxf6 geschehen kann. Denselben Turmzug hätte ich auch nach dem sofortigen 11. 0-0-0 gespielt.}) 11... Qxf6 12. Qxf6 gxf6 13. O-O-O Rd8 14. Nc3 d6 (14... Kf8 $2 15. Na4) 15. Bd3 Kf8 {Schwarz braucht seinen König auf e7, um die Drohung 16. e4 xe4 17. xe4 zu entschärfen.} 16. Bxh7 ({Dieser Zug ist die Ursache der weissen Schwierigkeiten. Carlsen dachte lange nach und schätzte die Stellung als ausgeglichen ein. Deshalb versuchte er dieses originelle Figurenopfer. Nach} 16. Be4 Bxe4 17. Nxe4 Ke7 $11 {und}) (16. Rd2 Ke7 17. Rhd1 Ra6 18. f3 h6 $11 {hat Schwarz in der Tat keine Probleme.}) 16... f5 17. e4 Kg7 18. exf5 Kxh7 19. fxe6 fxe6 20. Rhe1 {Weiss gewinnt den e-Bauern zwangsläufig (20. ... e5? 21. xe5), wonach er 3 Bauern für die Figur besitzt. Zum Glück kann Schwarz g2 erobern, sodass die weissen Bauern ungefährlich sind.} Bxg2 21. Ne4 $2 ({Carlsen übersah einfach meinen 22. Zug! Sonst hätte er sich wohl mit} 21. Rxe6 Nc6 22. Rdxd6 Rxd6 23. Rxd6 {zufrieden gegeben. Schwarz kann in diesem Endspiel mittels} Rf8 (23... Rd8 24. Rxd8 Nxd8 $11) 24. Na4 Rf5 $15 {/= auf einen leichten Vorteil hoffen, aber das natürliche Ergebnis sollte natürlich Remis sein.}) 21... Bxe4 22. Rxe4 {( 23.g1, 24.h4)} Ra7 $1 {[%cal Ga7g7]} 23. Rxe6 Rad7 {Schwarz behält hiermit seinen Materialvorteil.} 24. Rd3 Nc6 25. Rh3+ Kg8 26. Rhh6 Ne5 27. f4 ({Ein tückischer Versuch, die restlichen schwarzen Bauern zu eliminieren, sei es zum Preis aller weissen Bauern.} 27. b3 Kg7 {verliert auf die Distanz.}) 27... Nxc4 28. b3 Nxa3 29. Rhg6+ (29. Reg6+ Rg7 30. Rxd6 Rxd6 31. Rxd6 Nb5 $1 $19) 29... Kh8 30. Rh6+ Kg8 31. Rhg6+ Kh8 32. Rh6+ Rh7 33. Rxd6 Rxd6 34. Rxd6 Rxh2 35. Ra6 (35. Rc6 Rc2+ 36. Kd1 Rc3 $19) 35... Nb5 36. Rxa5 Nd4 {Knapp scheitert die weisse Absicht. Der Bauer c5 ist wegen der Gabel auf b3 tabu.} 37. Kb1 (37. Ra8+ Kg7 38. Rb8 Kf6 39. b4 c4 40. Rc8 Rc2+ 41. Kd1 c3 42. b5 Rd2+ 43. Ke1 Re2+ 44. Kf1 c2 $19) (37. Ra3 Kg7 38. Kb1 Kf6) 37... Nxb3 38. Rb5 c4 {Wieder ist die schwarze Aufstellung perfekt: xc4 kann wegen d2+ nie geschehen.} 39. f5 Kg7 40. f6+ (40. Rb6 Rf2 41. Rb7+ Kf6 42. Rb6+ Ke5 $19) 40... Kxf6 41. Rf5+ {Carlsen versucht es noch mit einem Patttrick, aber der schwarz König entschwindet auf die 2. Reihe.} Ke6 42. Re5+ Kd6 43. Rd5+ Kc6 44. Rd6+ Kc5 45. Rc6+ Kd5 46. Rd6+ Ke4 47. Re6+ Kd3 48. Re3+ Kd2 0-1

[Event "Biel GM"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2007.08.01"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2680"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[Annotator "Van Wely,Loek"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2007.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 120"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.10.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{I was a happy camper on 1,5 from 7, and Magnus was leading the tournament with +2, but just lost horribly against Pelletier, so any result possible. Ich zierte das Tabellenende mit 1,5 aus 7, und Magnus führte im Turnier mit +2, hatte allerdings gerade auf schreckliche Weise gegen Pelletier verloren, also jedes Resultat möglich.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Bd3 $5 {Today I was in a creative mood and over the board decided to play something new. A risky strategy when your tournament is not running well, but somehow this kept me sharp. Heute war ich in kreativer Stimmung und beschloss am Brett, etwas Neues zu spielen. Eine riskante Strategie, wenn das Turnier nicht gut für dich läuft, aber irgendwie hielt mich das unter Spannung.} (8. Rc1 {was Topalov's choice vs Carlsen. war Topalovs Wahl gegen Carlsen.} Nbd7 9. dxc5 Qa5 $6 (9... Nxc5 $142 10. Qd4 (10. Bd3 {Morozevich - Movsesian 0-1 Sarajevo 2007}) 10... Bxc3+ 11. Qxc3 Nce4 12. Bxf6 Nxf6 $14) 10. a3 (10. Nd2 b6 11. c6 $6 (11. Be2 bxc5 12. O-O Bxc3 13. Rxc3 Qxa2 14. Qc2 Rb8 $11 {Grischuk-Carlsen Moscow 2006}) 11... d4 12. cxd7 dxc3 13. bxc3 Bxc3 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. dxc8=Q (15. Bd3 Bxd7 16. Rc2 $11) (15. Rxc3 Qxc3 16. dxc8=Q Raxc8 $36) 15... Raxc8 $36) 10... Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 Ne4 12. b4 $1 Nxc3 13. Qa1 $16 {Topalov-Carlsen Wijk aan Zee 2007}) 8... c4 ({RR} 8... h6 9. Bh4 Nc6 10. O-O cxd4 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Nxd5 Qd6 13. Nxb4 Qxb4 14. exd4 Rd8 15. d5 Ne7 16. Re1 Nxd5 17. Ne5 Be6 18. Qf3 Qf4 19. Be4 Qxf3 20. Bxf3 Rac8 21. Rac1 Nb4 22. a3 Nd5 23. g3 {Salem,A (2640)-Dogan,U (2076) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (34)}) 9. Bc2 Nbd7 10. O-O Qa5 11. Rc1 $146 (11. Ne5 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Ne4 14. Be7 Re8 15. Bb4 Qc7 $11 {Radjabov-Carlsen blitz 2006}) ({RR} 11. Ne5 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Ne4 14. Be7 Re8 15. Bb4 Qd8 16. f3 a5 17. fxe4 axb4 18. Qf3 Be6 19. Rad1 dxe4 20. Qxe4 Qg5 21. Qxh7+ Kf8 22. Qe4 Rxa2 23. cxb4 b5 24. Rf2 Rea8 25. Rdf1 Ra1 {Salem,A (2476)-Khader,S (2400) Abu Dhabi 2008 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 11. Ne2 Re8 12. a3 Bf8 13. Bf4 b5 14. Ng3 Qb6 15. Ne5 Bb7 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Qg4 Nf6 18. Qh4 Ne4 19. f3 Qf6 20. Qh3 Bc8 21. Qh5 g6 22. Qxd5 Nxg3 23. hxg3 Be6 24. Qxb5 a6 25. Qa5 Rec8 {Arandjelovic,A (2077)-Gagic,M (1865) Nis 2011 1-0 (39)}) 11... Bxc3 12. bxc3 Ne4 13. Bb1 Re8 14. Bf4 Nb6 $6 {I suppose Magnus didn't expect some violent action to happen on his kingside, otherwise he might have gone for the solid Ich vermute, Magnus hatte keinen Ausbruch von Gewaltätigkeiten an seinem Königsflügel erwartet, ansonsten hätte er vielleicht das solide} (14... Nf8 {gewählt.}) (14... Qa3 {with clear intentions to take on c3 is not so great: mit klaren Intentionen, auf c3 zu schlagen, ist nicht so besonders:} 15. Ng5 $1 Ndf6 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 (16... dxe4 17. d5) {and now the positonal und jetzt sehen sowohl das positionelle} 17. Qe1 {and als auch} ({the more aggressive das aggressivere} 17. Qh5 {both look tempting verlockend aus.})) 15. Ne5 f6 16. Qh5 Be6 17. f3 $1 {That was White's idea. Das war die Idee von Weiß.} fxe5 18. Bxe5 Bf7 19. Qh3 $1 {Doesn't give Black a chance to bail out to an inferior endgame. Gibt Schwarz keine Chance, sich in ein schlechteres Endspiel zu verdrücken.} (19. Qh4 $6 Nd7 $1 20. fxe4 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Bg6 22. exd5 Bxb1 (22... Qxd5 $6 23. Bxg6 hxg6 24. Rcd1 Qc5 (24... Qxe5 25. Qxc4+ Re6 (25... Qe6 26. Qxe6+ Rxe6 27. Rd7 $16) 26. Rf3 $16) 25. Qd4 (25. Qf4 Re7) 25... Rxe5 26. Qxc5 Rxc5 27. Rd7 Rf8 28. Rxf8+ Kxf8 29. Rxb7 Rd5 30. Rxa7 Rd3 31. Kf2 Rxc3 $16) 23. Rxb1 Qxd5 24. Qd4 Qc6 $16 {Somehow White's compromised pawn structure gives Black good drawing chances. Irgendwie gibt die kompromittierte Bauernstruktur von Weiß Schwarz gute Remischancen.}) 19... Nf6 (19... Ng5 20. Qf5 h6 21. h4 Rxe5 22. dxe5 Ne6 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. f4 Bg8 25. Qh8 Qc5 26. Rce1 $40 {and during the game and also now I didn't see any way for Black to stop my attack. und während der Partie - und auch jetzt - sah ich keinen Weg für Schwarz, meinen Angriff aufzuhalten.}) (19... Be6 20. Qh4) 20. Bxf6 gxf6 21. Qh6 $1 ({I understood very well that after Ich war mir durchaus im klaren, dass nach} 21. Qxh7+ Kf8 22. e4 $40 {White has a nice attack going on, but the move played is even stronger. Weiß einen schönen Angriff hat, aber der gespielte Zug ist noch stärker.}) 21... Bg6 22. Bxg6 hxg6 23. Qxg6+ Kf8 24. Qxf6+ Kg8 25. Qg6+ Kf8 26. Qf6+ Kg8 27. e4 ({After a long think I finally rejected Nach einer langen Denkpause verwarf ich schließlich} 27. f4 $5 {because I prefered to win slowly but surely instead of winning quickly but running some risk of screwing it up. Later it happened that this "surely" was not to be 24 carats gold by the way. , weil ich lieber langsam, aber sicher gewinnen wollte, statt schnell zu siegen, dafür jedoch das Risiko einzugehen, die Sache zu vermasseln. Später sollte sich übrigens herausstellen, dass dieses "sicher" auch nicht auf die Goldwaage zu legen war.} Qa3 $1 (27... Nd7 28. Qg6+ Kf8 29. f5 Ke7 30. Rb1 $1 (30. f6+ Kd6 $1) 30... Qa6 31. f6+ Kd6 32. f7+ Re6 33. Qg3+ Kc6 34. e4 $1 dxe4 35. Rf5 Rd6 36. Qf4 $18) 28. Qg6+ Kf8 29. f5 Ke7 30. f6+ Kd7 31. Qh7+ Kc6 32. f7 Rf8 33. e4 $36) 27... Qb5 (27... Qxa2 $5 {Is this possible? During the game I even didn't notice this pawn was hanging, and right now I don't see a clear refutation. At least it would have forced White to speed up matters. Ist das möglich? Während der Partie bemerkte ich nicht einmal, dass dieser Bauer hing, und selbst jetzt sehe ich keine klare Widerlegung. Zumindest hätte es Weiß gezwungen, die Dinge zu beschleunigen.}) 28. Qg6+ Kf8 29. Qf6+ Kg8 30. Qg6+ Kf8 31. e5 Qc6 32. Qf5+ $2 (32. Qc2 $1) 32... Ke7 33. Qh7+ (33. f4 Qh6) 33... Kd8 34. f4 Qd7 35. Qxd7+ $2 {A big mistake, White still had a chance to better his life and to show some understanding, but unfortunately again this was not the case. The fact is that White's pawns are easier pushed with queens on, and apart from that, Black's king lacks shelter, so the more pieces on, the better. To make it even worse, with queens off, Black's king might become a very useful blockader of White's pawn phalanx. Ein grober Fehler. Weiß hatte noch immer eine Chance, sich das Leben zu erleichtern und etwas Stellungsverständnis zu zeigen, aber leider versäumte er es aufs Neue. Tatsache ist nämlich, dass die weißen Bauern mit Damen auf dem Brett leichter vorgestoßen werden können,  und außerdem mangelt es dem schwarzen König an Schutz; also je mehr Figuren auf dem Brett, desto besser. Was es noch schlimmer macht, bei getauschten Damen könnte der schwarze König ein sehr nützlicher Blockierer der weißen Bauernphalanx werden.} (35. Qh4+ Kc7 36. f5 {was the way to play. war die angesagte Fortsetzung.}) 35... Kxd7 $1 (35... Nxd7 36. Rb1 Rb8 37. Rb5) 36. g4 Rg8 $1 {Slowing White down.} (36... Na4 $2 37. Kg2 {and there will be no stopping g5-h4-f5-g6 etc.}) 37. h3 (37. g5 $2 Raf8 38. Kg2 Ke6) 37... Na4 38. Kg2 (38. f5 {to push the pawns was also an option, however, I was waiting till I had all my bases loaded. um die Bauern voranzutreiben, war ebenfalls eine Möglichkeit, doch ich wartete ab, bis ich all meine Tablebases geladen hatte.}) 38... b5 39. Kg3 a5 40. a3 b4 (40... Rab8 $5 41. f5 b4 42. cxb4 axb4 43. axb4 Rxb4 44. h4 c3 45. Rf4 Rc8 46. f6 c2 (46... Rb3 47. g5 $18) 47. Rf2 Rbc4 (47... Nc3 48. Rfxc2 Ne2+ 49. Rxe2 Rxc1 50. e6+ Ke8 51. Ra2 $18 {would have led to some kind of masochistic affair where Black's extra rook won't be very helpful. hätte zu einer Art Masochismusnummer geführt, wo der schwarze Mehrturm nicht besonders hilfreich sein wird.}) (47... Rxd4 48. Rfxc2 Rd3+ 49. Kg2 Nc3 50. g5 Ke6 (50... d4 51. g6 $18) (50... Rc4 51. f7 Ke7 (51... Rg4+ 52. Kf1 Rf3+ 53. Rf2 Rxf2+ 54. Kxf2 Ke7 55. Rxc3 $18) 52. Rf2 $18) 51. g6 $18) 48. f7 Nc3 49. Kg2 Na2 50. Rcxc2 Rxc2 51. f8=Q Rxf8 52. Rxc2 Nb4 53. Rd2 Nc6 54. h5 Nd8 $1 {and maybe Black can save himself. und vielleicht kann Schwarz sich retten.}) 41. cxb4 {Not allowing some fancy stuff, although probably bad: Lässt keine Spirenzchen zu, obwohl sie vermutlich nichts taugen:} (41. axb4 Nxc3 $5 42. Rxc3 axb4) 41... axb4 42. axb4 Nb2 (42... Rab8) 43. Rc3 Nd3 44. b5 Rgb8 45. Rb1 Ra5 46. f5 (46. b6 Ra6 47. b7 Ra7 48. g5 {I must confess that this was my first intention Ich muss gestehen, dass dies meine erste Absicht war} (48. Rb5 Kc6) (48. Rb6 $2 Raxb7 49. Rd6+ Ke8 50. Rxd5 Rb3 $1 $19) 48... Raxb7 (48... Ke6 $2 49. Rb6+ Kf5 50. Rxd3 cxd3 51. Kf3) 49. Rxb7+ Rxb7 50. g6 Ke6 51. Kg4 {but then I was unpleasantly surprised by the consequences of , doch dann wurde ich unangenehm überrascht von den Konsequenzen von} Nf2+) (46. g5 $2 Ke6 47. Kg4 Nf2+) 46... Raxb5 47. Rxb5 Rxb5 48. e6+ $6 {Laziness could have cost me the game, were it not that the position is winning anyway. A good player would have calculated the endgame after Faulheit hätte mich die Partie kosten können, wäre die Stellung nicht sowieso gewonnen.} (48. Ra3 $1 Nxe5 {til the end: bis zum Ende:} 49. Ra7+ Kd6 50. dxe5+ Kxe5 51. Re7+ Kd6 52. Re6+ Kd7 53. Kf4 {but I couldn't and I still can't. Just waiting for the tablebase of 9 pieces... , aber ich konnte es nicht, und ich kann es noch immer nicht. Warte nur auf die 9-Steiner-Tablebase...}) 48... Ke7 $2 ({During the game I was getting very much worried about Während der Partie bekam ich große Sorgen wegen} 48... Kd6 $1 {and I don't put my hands in the fire that I would have found the solution: , und ich lege meine Hand nicht dafür ins Feuer, dass ich die Lösung gefunden hätte.} 49. Ra3 Nb4 50. g5 Rb8 (50... Nc6 51. Kg4 Rb7 (51... Rb8 52. Re3 c3 53. Rxc3 Nxd4 54. Re3 Rb4 55. e7 Nc6+ 56. Kh5 Nxe7 57. f6 Rh4+ 58. Kxh4 Nf5+ 59. Kh5 Nxe3 60. g6 Ke6 61. g7 Kf7 62. Kh6 $18) 52. g6 Nxd4 53. Kg5 Rb3 54. e7 $1 (54. Ra8 Rxh3 55. g7 Nxe6+ 56. fxe6 Rg3+ 57. Kf6 Rf3+ 58. Kg6 Rg3+ 59. Kf7 Rxg7+ 60. Kxg7 Kxe6 $11) (54. Rxb3 cxb3 55. g7 Nxe6+ 56. fxe6 b2 $11) 54... Kxe7 55. f6+ {and it seems White is winning here.  und es sieht so aus, als ob Weiß hier gewinnt.}) 51. Kg4 Rc8 52. e7 $3 {To give up your pride like this, you need to be tough! Um seinen Stolz so aufzugeben, muss man schon ein ganz Harter sein!} Kxe7 53. f6+ Kf8 (53... Kf7 54. Ra7+ Ke6 55. Re7+ Kd6 56. g6) 54. Ra7 Nc6 55. Rh7) 49. Ra3 Rb7 50. g5 Nb4 (50... Nc5 {Also this last swindle doesn't work: Auch dieser letzte Schwindel funktioniert nicht:} 51. dxc5 Rb3+ 52. Rxb3 cxb3 53. c6 b2 54. c7 b1=Q 55. c8=Q Qe1+ 56. Kg4 Qe2+ 57. Kh4 Qc4+ 58. Qxc4 dxc4 59. Kh5 c3 60. Kg6 c2 61. f6+ Kxe6 62. f7 c1=Q 63. f8=Q $18) 51. Re3 $1 {Now there is no more stopping. Nun gibt es kein Halten mehr.} Nc6 52. f6+ Kd6 53. Kg4 c3 54. e7 c2 55. Rc3 Rb8 56. Rxc2 Nxd4 57. Rb2 Rc8 58. g6 Ne6 59. Rb6+ Kd7 60. Rb7+ 1-0

[Event "Arctic Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2007.08.05"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "De Firmian, Nick E"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A32"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2540"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2007.08.04"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nc6 6. Bg2 Bc5 7. Nb3 Bb4+ 8. Bd2 d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. O-O O-O 11. Bxb4 ({RR} 11. a3 Bxd2 12. Qxd2 Qb6 13. Qc2 Bd7 14. Nc3 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Rac8 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Nd4 Na5 18. Qb4 e5 19. Qxb6 axb6 20. Nf3 Nb3 21. Rab1 Bf5 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Re1 f6 24. Nh4 Be6 25. Bxb7 Rd2 {Muratet Casadevall,A (2018)-Enkhrii Enkh-Amgalan (2184) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (32)}) 11... Ncxb4 $146 ({RR} 11... Ndxb4 12. Qxd8 Rxd8 13. Nc3 e5 14. Nc5 Rb8 15. Rad1 Nd4 16. e3 Ne6 17. Rxd8+ Nxd8 18. Rd1 Nbc6 19. Nd7 Bxd7 20. Rxd7 Kf8 21. Nb5 a6 22. Nd6 f6 23. Nxb7 Nxb7 24. Bxc6 Nc5 25. Rd5 Ne6 26. b3 {Tukmakov,V (2570)-Meetei,A (2320) New Delhi 1986 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11... Ndxb4 12. Nc3 e5 13. a3 Na6 14. Ne4 Qb6 15. Nbd2 Qxb2 16. Nc4 Qd4 17. Ned6 Nc5 18. Qc2 Ne6 19. e3 Qc5 20. Rfc1 b5 21. Nxe5 Qxe5 22. Qxc6 Rb8 23. Nxc8 Rbxc8 24. Qxc8 Rxc8 25. Rxc8+ Nf8 26. Rd1 {Iskusnyh,S (2473)-Kovanova,B (2310) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (34)}) 12. Qd2 Qb6 13. Na3 Nxa2 14. Nd4 Ndb4 15. Nf3 Rd8 16. Qf4 Bd7 17. Nc4 Qa6 18. Rfd1 f6 19. Rd6 Nc3 20. Re1 Ncd5 21. Qe4 Qb5 22. b3 Nc3 23. Qd4 Ncd5 24. Qd2 Qc5 25. e4 b5 26. exd5 exd5 27. Rxd7 Rxd7 28. Nb2 Rc7 29. Nd3 Nxd3 30. Qxd3 Kh8 31. Nd4 a6 32. Qe2 Rcc8 33. Qg4 Re8 34. Ne6 Qe7 35. Bxd5 Rad8 36. Bc6 1-0

[Event "Arctic Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2007.08.07"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stubberud, Ornulf A"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2231"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2007.08.04"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4+ 5. Nbd2 O-O 6. Bg2 dxc4 7. Qc2 Nc6 8. Qxc4 Ne4 9. Qd3 Nxd2 10. Bxd2 Qe7 11. O-O Rd8 12. Bxb4 $146 ({RR} 12. Rfd1 Bxd2 13. Rxd2 Bd7 14. Qc3 Be8 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. a3 f6 17. e3 Bg6 18. Ne1 Rd6 19. Nd3 Bxd3 20. Qxd3 Nd8 21. b4 Qd7 22. Rdc2 Kh8 23. Rc5 b6 24. R5c3 e5 25. d5 f5 26. e4 g6 {Szabolcsi,J (2295)-Trajber,C (1966) Hungary 2019 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 12. Rfd1 Bxd2 13. Qxd2 e5 14. d5 Bg4 15. Qe3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Nb4 17. Qb3 e4 18. Bg2 c6 19. d6 Rxd6 20. Rxd6 Qxd6 21. a3 Nd5 22. Qxb7 Rb8 23. Qxa7 Qe5 24. Bxe4 Rxb2 25. Rd1 g6 26. Bf3 Nc3 {Birnboim,N (2465)-Segal,A (2370) Netanya 1987 1-0 (41)}) 12... Nxb4 13. Qc4 Nd5 14. Rac1 c6 15. Rfd1 Bd7 16. Ne5 Be8 17. Nd3 Nb6 18. Qc3 Nd7 19. Qa5 Qd6 20. e3 f6 21. b4 a6 22. Nc5 Nxc5 23. bxc5 Qe7 24. Rb1 Bg6 25. Rb4 Rd7 26. Rd2 Rc8 27. h4 Rcc7 28. Qa4 Bf7 29. Qd1 g6 30. Rbb2 Kg7 31. Rbc2 Rd8 32. Qa1 Rcd7 33. Bh3 Rd5 34. e4 R5d7 35. Qc3 Rc7 36. a3 Qf8 37. Rd3 Qe7 38. Re2 Rcd7 39. Ree3 Rc7 40. f4 Qf8 41. Re1 Kg8 42. Kh2 Re8 43. Rde3 Rce7 44. R1e2 e5 45. dxe5 fxe5 46. f5 Rd8 47. Rf3 Rd4 48. fxg6 hxg6 49. Ref2 Qe8 50. Qe3 Kg7 51. h5 1-0

[Event "Arctic Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2007.08.08"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2582"]
[BlackElo "2710"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2007.08.04"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 b5 6. cxb5 Bxb5 7. Nc3 ({RR} 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O Nbd7 {½-½ (13) Thiel,K (2340)-Rigo,J (2365) Wuppertal 1986}) ({RR} 7. Bg2 d5 8. O-O Nbd7 {½-½ (13) Cruz Lledo,P (2399)-Franco Alonso,A (2401) Linares ESP 2024}) 7... Ba6 8. Bg2 d5 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Na4 ({RR} 10. Ne5 Bd6 ({RR} 10... Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd7 ({RR} 11... Bb4 12. exf6 Bxc3 13. fxg7 Bxg7 14. Rb1 O-O 15. Ba3 Re8 16. Rc1) 12. Nxd5 exd5 ({RR} 12... Rc8 13. Nc3 Nxe5 14. Qc2) 13. Qxd5 Nb6 14. Qc6+ ({RR} 14. Qa5) 14... Qd7 15. Rd1 ({RR} 15. Bg5 Be7 16. Rfd1 Qxc6 17. Bxc6+ Kf8) 15... Qxc6 16. Bxc6+ Ke7 17. Bxa8 Nxa8 18. Bg5+ f6 19. exf6+ gxf6 20. Bf4) ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. Bf4) ({RR} 10... c5 11. Bf4 ({RR} 11. Bg5 Rc8 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rc1 c4 15. e4 cxb3 16. Qxb3 Bc4 17. Qb2 Bh6 18. Rcd1 Bxf1 19. Bxf1) 11... Rc8 12. Na4 Nxe5 ({RR} 12... Bb5 13. Nxc5 Nxc5 14. dxc5 Bxc5 15. b4 Bd6 16. a4) 13. Bxe5 Nd7 14. Bf4 c4 15. Qd2 Be7 16. Rfc1 O-O 17. b4 Bb5 18. Nc5) 11. Bf4 ({RR} 11. Nc6 Qc8 12. a3 O-O ({RR} 12... Qb7 13. Na5 Qb6 14. b4) ({RR} 12... Nb8 13. Nb4 Bb7 14. Bb2 O-O 15. Nd3 Nbd7 16. Rc1 Qb8 17. Na4 a5 18. Qc2) 13. Bg5 ({RR} 13. Bf4 Qe8 14. Nb4 Bb7 15. Nd3) 13... Qe8 ({RR} 13... Qb7 14. Na5 Qb6 15. b4 h6 16. Bxf6 Nxf6 17. Re1 Rad8 18. Na4 Qb5 19. e4) 14. Qd2 Nb6 15. Na5 ({RR} 15. Nb4) 15... c5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Rfc1) 11... O-O ({RR} 11... Bxe5 12. dxe5 Nh5 13. Be3 Nxe5 14. Qd4 Qd6 15. Qa4+ Qc6 16. Qb4) 12. Rc1 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Nh5 ({RR} 13... Ng4 14. Nxd5 exd5 15. Qxd5 Nb6 16. Qa5 Bxe2 17. Rfe1 Bd3 18. Red1 ({RR} 18. h3) 18... Qd4 19. Rd2 Rad8 20. h3 Nxf2 21. Rxf2 Be4 22. Qxa7 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe4+ 24. Kh2) 14. Na4 ({RR} 14. Be3 Nxe5 15. Na4) 14... Nxf4 15. gxf4 Bb5 16. Nc5 Nxc5 17. Rxc5 c6 18. Qd2 ({RR} 18. a4 Qb6 19. Qc2 Bc4) 18... Qb6 19. Rfc1 a5 20. e4 ({RR} 20. a4 Bc4) 20... a4 21. f5 axb3 22. f6 ({RR} 22. axb3 Kh8) 22... Qxc5 23. a4 ({RR} 23. Rxc5 bxa2 24. Qg5 a1=Q+ 25. Rc1 Qxc1+ 26. Qxc1 h6) 23... Qxc1+ 24. Qxc1 b2 {Aronian,L (2807)-Carlsen,M (2823) Moscow 2011 CBM 144 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (43)}) ({RR} 10. Re1) ({RR} 10. Bb2) ({RR} 10. a3) ({RR} 10. Rb1) 10... Bb5 11. Nc3 Ba6 12. Na4 Rc8 $146 ({RR} 12... Bd6 13. Bb2 O-O 14. Rc1 Rc8 15. Ne5 c5 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Qd4 Qf6 19. Nxc5 Bxc5 20. Qxf6 gxf6 21. Bxf6 Bxe2 22. Rfe1 Bd3 23. Bf1 Bxf1 24. Kxf1 Ba3 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Re5 h6 27. Re2 {Sachdev,T (2425)-Zhao,X (2518) Beijing 2008 0-1 (46)}) 13. Bd2 Be7 14. Ba5 O-O 15. Rc1 Ne4 16. Nd2 Nd6 17. Nc5 Nxc5 18. dxc5 Nb7 19. Bb4 Qe8 20. a4 Rb8 21. Ba3 Na5 22. b4 Nc4 23. Nxc4 Bxc4 24. b5 a6 25. Rxc4 dxc4 26. Bc6 Qd8 27. Qc2 Qd4 28. Rd1 Qe5 29. bxa6 Rb3 30. a7 Rxa3 31. Qxc4 Rc3 32. Qa6 g6 33. a8=Q Rxa8 34. Qxa8+ Kg7 35. Bf3 Bxc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Arctic Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2007.08.12"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Epishin, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E16"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2587"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2007.08.04"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 119 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.09.04"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 c5 6. Bxb4 cxb4 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Qd3 Qc7 ({RR} 9... a5 10. Nbd2 Na6 11. e4 d6 12. Rad1 Qe8 13. Ne1 e5 14. Nc2 Rd8 15. Rfe1 Qe6 16. b3 Rfe8 17. Nf1 Qc8 18. f3 g6 19. Nfe3 Kg7 20. h4 h5 21. Kh2 Qa8 22. Qd2 Nc7 23. Nf5+ Kg8 24. Qh6 {Ding,L (2702)-Aronian,L (2815) Beijing 2012 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 9... a5 10. Nbd2 Qc7 11. Rac1 d6 12. Rfd1 Re8 13. Ne1 Bxg2 14. Nxg2 Nc6 15. Nf4 Rac8 16. e4 Nxd4 17. Qxd4 e5 18. Qe3 exf4 19. Qxf4 Re6 20. Kg2 Nd7 21. Nb3 Qb7 22. f3 Ne5 23. Nd4 Rf6 24. Nf5 {Wagner,D (2614)-Durarbayli,V (2614) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (42)}) 10. Nbd2 d6 11. e4 Nbd7 12. Ne1 $146 ({RR} 12. Rfe1 e5 13. a3 bxa3 14. Rxa3 Rfe8 15. b4 a5 16. bxa5 Rxa5 17. Rxa5 bxa5 18. Qa3 Ra8 19. c5 dxc5 20. d5 h6 21. Rc1 Ba6 22. Ne1 Ne8 23. Nb3 c4 24. Qxa5 Qxa5 25. Nxa5 Nd6 26. f3 Bb5 {Sargsyan,A (2402)-Silva,K (2121) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 12. Rfe1 e5 13. a3 bxa3 14. Rxa3 Rfe8 15. b4 a5 16. bxa5 Rxa5 17. Rxa5 bxa5 18. Qa3 Ra8 19. c5 dxc5 20. d5 h6 21. Rc1 Ba6 22. Ne1 Ne8 23. Nb3 c4 24. Qxa5 Qxa5 25. Nxa5 Nd6 26. f3 Bb5 {Sargsyan,A (2402)-Silva,K (2121) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (43)}) 12... a5 13. Nc2 e5 14. Ne3 exd4 15. Qxd4 Rae8 16. f3 Re5 17. Rfd1 Nc5 18. Ndf1 Ne8 19. Rac1 g6 20. Ng4 Ne6 21. Qd2 Rc5 22. Nfe3 h5 23. Nf2 Qe7 24. a3 bxa3 25. bxa3 h4 26. Rb1 hxg3 27. hxg3 Rg5 28. Nf1 Qc7 29. f4 Rh5 30. Bf3 Rh7 31. Qb2 Nc5 32. Qxb6 f5 33. Qxc7 Rxc7 34. Nd2 Ng7 35. Rb6 g5 36. exf5 Bxf3 37. Nxf3 Nxf5 38. g4 Ne3 39. Rdxd6 Rxf4 40. Nxg5 Rxc4 41. Rg6+ Kf8 42. Rb8+ 1-0

[Event "NED-chT 0708"]
[Site "Netherlands"]
[Date "2008.05.17"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Werle, Jan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E29"]
[WhiteElo "2552"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2007.09.15"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2013"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.22"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Groningen Hotels"]
[BlackTeam "Hilversum HSG"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NED"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NED"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 b6 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. e4 Ne8 10. O-O Ba6 11. f4 f5 12. e5 d6 13. d5 exd5 14. cxd5 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 dxe5 16. fxe5 ({RR} 16. Qd2 Ne7 17. Rd1 Ng6 18. fxe5 Nxe5 19. Nf4 Rf7 20. Qe2 Ng6 21. Ne6 Qd7 22. c4 Nd6 23. Bb2 Re8 24. Qh5 Nf8 25. Ng5 Rfe7 26. Rac1 Re2 27. Bc3 R2e7 28. Rf1 h6 29. Nh3 Re4 30. Nf4 Qf7 {Carlsen,M (2693)-Aronian,L (2759) Elista 2007 0-1 (57)}) 16... Nxe5 17. Qd1 Qd7 $146 ({RR} 17... Ng6 18. Nf4 Nxf4 19. Bxf4 Nf6 20. c4 Ne4 21. a4 Qd7 22. Qd3 Rac8 23. Rfb1 {½-½ (23) Abdel Razik,K (2410)-Komarov,D (2567) Ismailia 2004}) 18. Bf4 Ng6 19. Qd3 Nf6 20. Rad1 Rae8 21. Ng3 Nxf4 22. Rxf4 g6 23. h3 Re5 24. c4 Rfe8 25. Rf3 R8e7 26. Qc3 Ne8 27. d6 R7e6 28. Rfd3 Nf6 29. Qd2 Re8 30. a4 Qxa4 31. d7 Rd8 32. Qg5 Kf7 33. Rd6 Re6 34. Kh2 Rxd7 35. Nxf5 gxf5 36. Rxd7+ Nxd7 37. Qh5+ Ke7 38. Qxh7+ Kd8 39. Qh8+ Re8 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 23rd"]
[Site "Kemer"]
[Date "2007.10.05"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Milov, Vadim"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A57"]
[WhiteElo "2680"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2007.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "TUR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Taldea Gros Xake"]
[BlackTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ESP"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. Nf3 g6 5. cxb5 a6 6. b6 d6 7. Nc3 Qxb6 8. e4 Bg7 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. a4 Qb4 ({RR} 10... O-O 11. Be2 Rb8 12. O-O Qa7 13. Nc4 Nb6 14. Na5 Bd7 15. Qc2 Qc7 16. Bd2 e6 17. dxe6 Bxe6 18. b3 d5 19. exd5 Nfxd5 20. Nxd5 Nxd5 21. Rac1 Bd4 22. Nc4 Nf4 23. Bxf4 Qxf4 24. Bd3 Kg7 25. Rce1 {Milov,V (2606)-Topalov,V (2745) Prague 2002 0-1 (41)}) 11. Be2 ({RR} 11. Bd3 O-O 12. Na2 Qa5 13. O-O Ne5 14. Be2 c4 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 Nxe4 17. Qe1 Qxe1 18. Rxe1 Nc5 19. Rxe7 Nxa4 20. Nc3 Nxc3 21. bxc3 Bxc3 22. Ra3 Bf6 23. Re1 a5 24. Bd2 Bd7 25. Rxa5 Rxa5 {Korchenkova,I (2103)-Agasieva,F (2039) Bolkhov 2017 ½-½}) 11... Ne5 12. O-O O-O $146 ({RR} 12... g5 13. Ra3 Bd7 14. Qc2 h6 15. Nd1 O-O 16. Ne3 e6 17. Ndc4 Nxc4 18. Nxc4 exd5 19. exd5 Nxd5 20. Nxd6 Nf4 21. Bc4 Ne6 22. Qf5 Nd4 23. Bxf7+ Kh8 24. Qxd7 Rad8 25. Qc7 Ne2+ 26. Kh1 Nxc1 27. Rf3 {Petkov,V (2511)-Polak,T (2543) Livigno 2011 1-0 (33)}) 13. Ra3 g5 14. Qc2 Bd7 15. b3 g4 16. Na2 Qb7 17. Nc4 Nxc4 18. Bxc4 Nh5 19. Bb2 Nf4 20. Bxg7 Kxg7 21. Nc1 Ng6 22. Nd3 f6 23. Raa1 a5 24. f4 gxf3 25. gxf3 Ne5 26. Kh1 Nxc4 27. bxc4 Kh8 28. Rab1 Qc7 29. Rg1 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 23rd"]
[Site "Kemer"]
[Date "2007.10.06"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Almasi, Zoltan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2691"]
[PlyCount "163"]
[EventDate "2007.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "TUR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[BlackTeam "Sarajevo Bosna"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "BIH"]

1. d4 {Golod,Vitali} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Nf3 Bb7 8. e3 d6 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 ({RR} 10... Ne4) 11. b4 a5 12. Bb2 Qe7 13. Rfd1 Rfc8 14. dxc5 ({RR} 14. Qb3 Ra7 15. Nd2 Rca8 16. f3 ({RR} 16. bxc5 bxc5) 16... axb4 17. axb4 Bc6 18. Rxa7 Rxa7 19. Ra1 ({RR} 19. b5 Bb7 20. e4 cxd4 21. Bxd4 e5 22. Bf2 Nc5 23. Qc3 Nh5) 19... Rxa1+ 20. Bxa1 Qd8 21. Qa3 ({RR} 21. e4 e5) 21... Ne8 ({RR} 21... Qa8 22. Qxa8+ Bxa8 23. Bc3) 22. e4 e5 23. b5 Qa8 24. Qxa8 Bxa8 25. d5 ({RR} 25. dxe5 dxe5 26. Nf1 Nc7 27. Ne3 Ne6 28. Nd5 Nd4 29. Bf1) 25... Bb7 26. g3 f6 27. f4 ({RR} 27. Bf1 Kf7 28. Bh3 Ke7) 27... Kf7 28. Bg4 Nf8 {Grischuk,A (2710)-Leko,P (2749) Wijk aan Zee 2005 CBM 105 [Golod,Vitali] ½-½ (63)}) 14... dxc5 ({RR} 14... bxc5 15. b5 a4 16. Nd2 e5 17. Qc2 Nb6 18. Rac1 Rd8 19. Bf1 Qe6 20. h3 Nbd7 21. Re1 e4) ({RR} 14... axb4 15. axb4 dxc5) 15. b5 Rd8 16. Rd3 $146 ({RR} 16. Rd2 Nf8 17. Rad1 Ne8 18. Rxd8 Rxd8 19. Rxd8 Qxd8 20. Nd2 {½-½ (20) Shipov,S (2582)-Kunte,A (2561) Guelph 2005}) 16... Be4 17. Rd2 Ne8 18. Rad1 f6 19. h3 Nf8 20. Nh2 Nd6 21. Nf1 Bb7 22. Ng3 Ne4 23. Nxe4 Bxe4 24. Bg4 Kf7 25. h4 Ke8 26. Bh5+ Ng6 27. f3 Bb7 28. Qc2 Kf7 29. Rd3 Qc7 30. Bc3 e5 31. Kf2 e4 32. fxe4 Ke7 33. Bxg6 hxg6 34. e5 fxe5 35. Rxd8 Rxd8 36. Rxd8 Qxd8 37. Qxg6 Qf8+ 38. Kg3 Qf6 39. Qh5 Kd6 40. Qe8 Be4 41. Qb8+ Kd7 42. Qxe5 Qxe5+ 43. Bxe5 g6 44. Bf6 a4 45. Be5 Bd3 46. Kf4 Bxc4 47. Kg5 Ke6 48. Bc7 Kf7 49. Bxb6 Bxb5 50. Bxc5 Bf1 51. g4 Bd3 52. Kf4 Ke6 53. e4 Be2 54. Bd4 Bd1 55. Bh8 Be2 56. Kg5 Kf7 57. h5 gxh5 58. gxh5 Bf3 59. e5 Ke6 60. Bf6 Be4 61. Kf4 Bc2 62. h6 Kd5 63. Ke3 Bg6 64. Kd2 Ke6 65. Kc3 Kd7 66. Kb4 Bc2 67. Kb5 Ke6 68. Kc6 Bg6 69. Kc7 Bf5 70. Kd8 Kf7 71. Bg7 Bg6 72. Kd7 Bf5+ 73. Kd6 Bg4 74. Bf6 Bf5 75. Bg5 Bg4 76. Bf4 Bf5 77. e6+ Bxe6 78. h7 Kg7 79. Kxe6 Kxh7 80. Kd5 Kg6 81. Kc6 Kf5 82. Kd5 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 23rd"]
[Site "Kemer"]
[Date "2007.10.07"]
[Round "5.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Cornette, Matthieu"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2494"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2007.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "TUR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[BlackTeam "Cannes"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "FRA"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. g3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 d5 6. Bg2 e5 7. Nf3 e4 8. Nd4 dxc4 9. Qa4+ Bd7 10. Qxc4 Na6 11. O-O Rc8 12. Qb3 Nc5 13. Qd1 Be7 14. Nc3 O-O 15. Be3 $146 ({RR} 15. b4 Na6 16. Nxe4 Nxb4 17. e3 b6 18. Bb2 Qe8 19. Nc3 Bg4 20. Qd2 Qd7 21. a3 Nc6 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. f3 Bh3 24. Rfd1 Rcc8 25. Qe2 Rfe8 26. Ndb5 Qf5 27. Nd6 Bxd6 28. Rxd6 Qc5 29. Rxf6 Rxe3 {Krasenkova,I (2076)-Daulyte-Cornette,D (2375) Augsburg GER 2024 0-1 (63)}) ({RR} 15. b4 Na6 16. Nxe4 Nxb4 17. e3 b6 18. Bb2 Qe8 19. Nc3 Bg4 20. Qd2 Qd7 21. a3 Nc6 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. f3 Bh3 24. Rfd1 Rcc8 25. Qe2 Rfe8 26. Ndb5 Qf5 27. Nd6 Bxd6 28. Rxd6 Qc5 29. Rxf6 Rxe3 {Krasenkova,I (2076)-Daulyte-Cornette,D (2375) Augsburg GER 2024 0-1 (63)}) 15... Ng4 16. Bf4 e3 17. Bxe3 Nxe3 18. fxe3 Bg5 19. Nf5 Bxf5 20. Rxf5 Bxe3+ 21. Kh1 g6 22. Rd5 Qf6 23. Rd6 Qe7 24. Qd5 Rfd8 25. Rd1 Rxd6 26. Qxd6 Qxd6 27. Rxd6 Bg5 28. Bf3 Be7 29. Rd1 Kg7 30. Nd5 Bf8 31. Rc1 Rd8 32. Kg2 Ne6 33. Nc7 Bd6 34. Nxe6+ fxe6 35. Bxb7 Rb8 36. Ba6 Rxb2 37. Bc4 Kf6 38. Kf3 a5 39. a4 h5 40. Bb5 Rb3+ 41. Kg2 Bb4 42. Rc7 Rc3 43. Ra7 Rc2 44. Ra6 g5 45. Ra7 h4 46. gxh4 gxh4 47. Rh7 Be1 48. Rh6+ Ke7 49. Rg6 Rc3 50. Bd3 Ra3 51. Rg4 Bb4 52. Rxh4 Rxa4 53. Re4 Kf6 54. h4 Ra1 55. h5 Bd2 56. Rg4 Be3 57. Kf3 Rg1 58. Ra4 Bh6 59. Rxa5 Rg5 60. Rxg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 0708"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2008.02.09"]
[Round "8.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Jussupow, Artur"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D61"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2583"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2007.10.20"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[BlackTeam "Solingen"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. Qc2 Nbd7 7. e3 ({RR} 7. Rd1 c5 {½-½ (8) Poluljahov,A (2554)-Tregubov,P (2609) Krasnodar 1999}) 7... c5 8. Rd1 cxd4 9. Rxd4 ({RR} 9. exd4 h6 10. Bd2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 Re8 12. O-O Nb6 13. Bb3 Bd7 14. Ne5 Rc8 15. Rfe1 Nbd5 16. Qd3 a6 17. Qg3 Kf8 18. Qf3 Nxc3 19. bxc3 Bc6 20. Qh3 Ba3 21. Bxh6 gxh6 22. Qxh6+ Ke7 23. Bxe6 Be4 {Matras,O (2068)-Melnikov,E (1841) Rhodes GRE 2024 1-0}) 9... h6 10. cxd5 $146 ({RR} 10. Bh4 Bc5 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. Nd2 Bb4 13. cxd5 Bxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3 15. bxc3 Nxd5 16. Ne4 g5 17. Bg3 f5 18. Nd6 Nxc3 19. Rd4 Nb6 20. h4 g4 21. Kd2 Ncd5 22. Bd3 Ne7 23. Bb5 a6 24. Bc4 Nc6 {Raja,R (2423)-Jaeel,A (2145) Sharjah 2019 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 10. Bf4 Bb4 11. a3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Ne4 13. Qb4 Ndf6 14. Be2 b6 15. cxd5 exd5 16. O-O a5 17. Qb3 Nc5 18. Qd1 Ne6 19. Rd2 Nxf4 20. exf4 Bb7 21. Ne5 {1-0 (21) Garcia Alarcon,A (2118)-Velasquez,A (1922) Pereira 2019}) 10... Nxd5 11. Bxe7 Nxe7 12. Be2 Qc7 13. O-O Nb6 14. Rfd1 Bd7 15. Qe4 Bc6 16. Qe5 Rac8 17. e4 Ng6 18. Qxc7 Rxc7 19. h4 a6 20. a4 Rfc8 21. g3 Be8 22. a5 Nc4 23. Rxc4 Rxc4 24. Bxc4 Rxc4 25. Rd8 Kf8 26. h5 Ne7 27. Ne5 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"]
[Site "Heraklion"]
[Date "2007.10.30"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Stefansson, Hannes"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2574"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "2007.10.28"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Iceland"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ISL"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 g6 10. O-O Bg7 11. b4 O-O 12. a4 e5 13. a5 exd4 14. exd4 Rd8 15. Re1 Nf8 16. Qb3 Be6 17. Rad1 Bxc4 $146 ({RR} 17... b5 18. axb6 axb6 19. b5 Bxc4 20. Qxc4 Rac8 21. Qb3 Re8 22. h3 Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 Ne6 24. bxc6 Rxc6 25. Ne4 Qd8 26. d5 Nc5 27. Qd1 Rc7 28. Nxc5 bxc5 29. d6 Rd7 30. Qd5 Rxd6 31. Qxc5 Rd1 {½-½ (31) Gyimesi,Z (2616)-Schlosser,P (2554) Austria 2006}) 18. Qxc4 Ne6 19. Ne5 Qf5 20. Nxf7 Kxf7 21. Re3 Bxd4 22. Rf3 Qxf3 23. gxf3 Bxc3 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. f4 Rd4 0-1

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"]
[Site "Heraklion"]
[Date "2007.11.03"]
[Round "6.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tiviakov, Sergei"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E17"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2643"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[EventDate "2007.10.28"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Netherlands"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NED"]

1. d4 {Dautov,Rustem} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 Na6 7. O-O O-O 8. Bf4 Ne4 9. Re1 d5 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Rc1 c5 12. dxc5 Bxc5 ({RR} 12... Naxc5 13. Nd4 ({RR} 13. Nb5 g5 14. Be5 ({RR} 14. Be3) 14... Qd7 15. Nc3 Qf5 16. Bd4 Ne6 17. Be3 Bc5 18. Bxc5 bxc5 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Qc2 Nd4 21. Nxd4 cxd4 22. Qc7 e3) ({RR} 13. Be5 Re8 14. Nb5 Bf8 15. Nbd4 a5) 13... Bf6 14. Bh3 ({RR} 14. b4 Nxc3 15. Rxc3 Ne6 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Rc7 Rf7) 14... Ng5 ({RR} 14... Re8 15. Ncb5 Ng5 ({RR} 15... Re7 16. b4 Ne6 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Nc7) 16. Bg2 Bxd4 ({RR} 16... Nge6 17. Nxe6 Nxe6 18. Nd6) 17. Nxd4 Nge6 18. Be3) ({RR} 14... Qe7 15. Nf5) 15. Bxg5 Bxg5 16. e3 Bf6 ({RR} 16... g6 17. Re2 Qe7 18. Nf3) 17. Re2 ({RR} 17. b4 Ne4) 17... g6 ({RR} 17... Re8 18. Rd2) 18. b4 Ne4 19. Nxe4 ({RR} 19. Rec2 Re8 ({RR} 19... Nd6 20. Bg2) 20. Ncb5 Re7 21. Nc6 Bxc6 22. Rxc6) 19... dxe4 20. Rd2 Qe7 21. b5 Bxd4 22. Rxd4 Bc8 ({RR} 22... Rfd8 23. Bd7 ({RR} 23. Rd7 Rxd7 24. Qxd7 Qxd7 25. Bxd7 Kf8 26. Rc7 Bd5) 23... Bc8 ({RR} 23... Qe5 24. Bc6 Rxd4 25. exd4 Qe7 26. d5) 24. Bc6 Bb7 25. Bxb7 Rxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxb7 27. Qe5) 23. Bd7 Bxd7 24. Rxd7 Qa3 25. Rc2 ({RR} 25. Qd2 a6 26. bxa6 Rxa6) 25... Qa4 ({RR} 25... a6 26. bxa6 Rxa6 27. Qd5) 26. Rd5 Rae8 ({RR} 26... Rac8 27. Rxc8 Qxd1+ 28. Rxd1 Rxc8 29. Rd7 Ra8 30. a4 a6 31. Rb7 axb5 32. axb5 h5 33. Rxb6 Ra1+ 34. Kg2 Rb1 35. h3 Kg7 36. g4 hxg4 37. hxg4 g5) ({RR} 26... a6 27. Qe2 ({RR} 27. bxa6 Qxa6 ({RR} 27... Rxa6 28. Rd4 Qe8 29. Qb1) 28. Qd4 Qa4) 27... axb5 28. Rd4 Qa5 29. Rxe4) 27. h4 {Anand,V (2725)-Adams,M (2660) Wijk aan Zee 1996 CBM 051 [Dautov,Rustem] 1-0 (45)}) 13. e3 ({RR} 13. Rf1 Re8 14. Be5 Nb4 15. a3 Nc6 16. Bf4 Nxc3 17. Rxc3 a5 18. Rd3 Ne7 19. Re1 Qc8 20. Be5 Qc6 21. e3 Rad8 22. Bc3 Qc8 23. Nd4 Ba6 24. Rd2 Bxa3 25. Bxa5 bxa5 26. bxa3 Qc3 27. Rc2 Qxa3 {Liu,Z (2286)-Stojanovic,M (2490) Belgrade SRB 2023 ½-½}) 13... Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qe7 $146 ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h4 Ba3 16. Rc2 Nc5 17. Nd4 Qd7 18. h5 h6 19. Kh2 Ne4 20. Bh3 Qa4 21. Nf5 Nf6 22. g4 Nh7 23. Qd4 Qxd4 24. cxd4 Rac8 25. Rxc8 Bxc8 26. Nd6 Bxd6 27. Bxd6 Be6 28. Rc1 Nf6 29. f3 {Svane,R (2637)-Kosteniuk,A (2516) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h4 Ba3 16. Rc2 Nc5 17. Nd4 Qd7 18. h5 h6 19. Kh2 Ne4 20. Bh3 Qa4 21. Nf5 Nf6 22. g4 Nh7 23. Qd4 Qxd4 24. cxd4 Rac8 25. Rxc8 Bxc8 26. Nd6 Bxd6 27. Bxd6 Be6 28. Rc1 Nf6 29. f3 {Svane,R (2637)-Kosteniuk,A (2516) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (50)}) 15. Nd4 Rad8 16. h4 Rfe8 17. Bf1 Ba3 18. Rc2 Nc5 19. Nb5 Ne6 20. Be5 Bc6 21. Nxa3 Qxa3 22. Qg4 Qa4 23. Qxa4 Bxa4 24. Rd2 Nc5 25. Bd4 Rc8 26. Rb2 Rc7 27. Rb4 Bc2 28. c4 Nd3 29. Bxd3 Bxd3 30. cxd5 Rd7 31. Rc1 Rxd5 32. Ra4 Rd7 33. g4 h6 34. f3 Kh7 35. Kf2 Ree7 36. Ra3 Bb5 37. Rac3 Rd8 38. Kg3 f6 39. f4 h5 40. g5 Kg6 41. Rb1 Rd5 42. Rc8 Be8 43. Rbc1 f5 44. Rb8 Rd6 45. Rcc8 Rde6 46. Be5 Kf7 47. Rd8 Kg6 48. Kf2 Kf7 49. e4 Kg6 50. Bd6 Rd7 51. Rxd7 Bxd7 52. e5 Bc6 53. Rc8 Be8 54. Ra8 Bf7 55. Rxa7 Re8 56. a3 Bd5 57. Ke3 b5 58. Kd4 Bg2 59. e6 Rxe6 60. Be5 Kh7 61. Rxg7+ Kh8 62. Re7+ 1-0

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 16th"]
[Site "Heraklion"]
[Date "2007.11.06"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanisevic, Ivan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2607"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2007.10.28"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 121"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2007.11.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Serbia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "YEM"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Nbd2 b5 7. a4 c6 8. Qc2 Bb7 9. O-O O-O 10. e4 ({RR} 10. b3 c5 11. bxc4 bxa4 12. dxc5 a5 13. Rd1 Nbd7 14. Bb2 Bxc5 15. e3 Qc7 16. Ng5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 a3 18. Bd4 Be7 19. Nge4 Rfc8 20. Bxf6 Nxf6 21. Nc3 Qc6+ 22. Kg1 Rab8 23. Rdb1 h5 24. Qc1 Bb4 {Assylkhan,A (1938)-Imomkuzieva,N (2126) Durres ALB 2025 0-1 (31)}) ({RR} 10. Rd1 Nbd7 11. b3 c3 12. Nb1 c5 13. Nxc3 bxa4 14. Nxa4 Be4 15. Qb2 Qe7 16. Bd2 Nd5 17. Rac1 Rfc8 18. dxc5 Bxd2 19. Qxd2 Nxc5 20. Nxc5 Rxc5 21. Rxc5 Qxc5 22. Qd4 Qxd4 23. Nxd4 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 Kf8 {Ivanisevic,I (2603)-Prusikin,M (2533) Switzerland 2007 1-0 (48)}) 10... Nbd7 11. e5 Nd5 12. Ne4 h6 $146 ({RR} 12... f5 13. exf6 N7xf6 14. Nfg5 Qd7 15. Bh3 Rae8 16. axb5 h6 17. Nxf6+ Nxf6 18. Nxe6 cxb5 19. Rxa7 Rf7 20. Bg2 Be4 21. Rxd7 Bxc2 22. Rxf7 Kxf7 23. Nc7 Re7 24. Bf4 Bd3 25. Rc1 Re2 26. Nxb5 Rxb2 27. h3 {Yakimova,M (2245)-Kleymenova,V (2057) Moscow RUS 2023 ½-½ (51)}) ({RR} 12... f5 13. exf6 N7xf6 14. Nfg5 Qd7 15. Bh3 Rae8 16. axb5 h6 17. Nxf6+ Nxf6 18. Nxe6 cxb5 19. Rxa7 Rf7 20. Bg2 Be4 21. Rxd7 Bxc2 22. Rxf7 Kxf7 23. Nc7 Re7 24. Bf4 Bd3 25. Rc1 Re2 26. Nxb5 Rxb2 27. h3 {Yakimova,M (2245)-Kleymenova,V (2057) Moscow RUS 2023 ½-½ (51)}) 13. Bd2 a5 14. b3 cxb3 15. Qxb3 bxa4 16. Rxa4 Ba6 17. Rc1 Bb5 18. Raa1 Be7 19. g4 Bb4 20. Bxb4 axb4 21. g5 Nf4 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rxa8 Qxa8 24. Qe3 Ne2+ 25. Kh1 Qa3 26. Re1 Qxe3 27. fxe3 Ra8 28. Bf1 Nc3 29. Nfd2 Ra2 30. Bxb5 cxb5 31. Kg1 Kf8 32. Kf1 Ke7 33. Rc1 f5 34. exf6+ Nxf6 35. Nxf6 Rxd2 36. Ng4 Nd5 37. Rb1 h5 38. Ne5 Nxe3+ 39. Ke1 Rxh2 40. Rb3 Nc2+ 41. Kd1 Kd6 42. Nf3 Rf2 0-1

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2007.11.11"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2007.11.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 Nbd7 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Nxd5 exd5 9. Be2 Bb4+ $1 {An important move, that lures the white knight on to the lesser square d2.} 10. Nd2 Nf6 11. O-O Bd6 12. Bg5 ({RR} 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Rc1 c6 14. Qb3 Re8 15. Rfe1 Re7 16. Qa3 Qd8 17. b4 Bg4 18. Bf1 a6 19. Qa5 Ne8 20. Qxd8 Rxd8 21. a4 Nd6 22. Nb3 Bd7 23. Nc5 Be8 24. f3 f6 25. e4 dxe4 26. fxe4 b6 {Niemann,H (2688)-Grischuk,A (2745) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (72)}) 12... h6 13. Bh4 c6 14. Qc2 Re8 $146 (14... g6 15. f3 Bf5 16. e4 g5 17. Bf2 Bg6 18. Bd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 Ng4 20. Nf3 Nxf2 21. Rxf2 Bf4 22. Kh1 Be3 23. Re2 Bxd4 24. e5 Bxd3 25. Qxd3 c5 26. e6 Bg7 27. Qc4 {1/2 Tregubov,P (2609)-Gonzalez Garcia,J (2541)/Merida 2007}) ({RR} 14... g6 15. f3 Bf5 16. e4 g5 17. Bf2 Bg6 18. Bd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 Ng4 20. Nf3 Nxf2 21. Rxf2 Bf4 22. Kh1 Be3 23. Re2 Bxd4 24. e5 Bxd3 25. Qxd3 c5 26. e6 Bg7 27. Qc4 {½-½ (27) Tregubov,P (2609)-Gonzalez Garcia,J (2541) Merida 2007}) 15. Rab1 g6 16. Bxf6 $6 {The eternal optimism of youth! The exchange of the bishop for the knight f6 is typical for this pawn structure, but usually White has more minor pieces left supporting the queenside attack.} (16. Bd3 Kg7 17. Bg3 Bxg3 18. hxg3 $11) 16... Qxf6 17. b4 a6 18. a4 h5 19. b5 (19. Bd3 Kg7 20. Qc3 h4 21. h3 Bc7 $15) 19... Bf5 20. Bd3 Bxd3 21. Qxd3 cxb5 $1 {Brave, but absolutely the correct solution. The passed pawn on the a-file is strong and the d5 weakness defendable.} (21... axb5 22. axb5 Ra3 23. Rb3 Rea8 24. Nf3 $11) 22. axb5 a5 23. Qb3 Qf5 (23... a4 $2 24. Qxd5 Qe7 25. Nc4 $14) 24. Qa4 Rec8 (24... Qd3 25. Nf3 (25. Rfd1 Rec8 26. b6 Qc2 27. Qd7 Qc6 28. Qxc6 Rxc6 29. e4 $15) 25... Qc4 26. Qxc4 dxc4 27. Rfc1 Rec8 28. e4 a4 $15) 25. b6 Qc2 26. Nb3 $1 {Carlsen deserves full praise for composing his mind enough for the difficult defensive task.} (26. Qxc2 Rxc2 27. Nb3 a4 $17) 26... Qc6 (26... Qc4 $5 27. Qa1 (27. Ra1 $6 Qxa4 28. Rxa4 Bb4 29. Rfa1 Rc4 30. g3 Bc3 31. R1a2 Rxa4 32. Rxa4 Ra6 $17) 27... Qa6 (27... a4 28. Rfc1 axb3 29. Rxc4 dxc4 30. Qc3 Ra2 31. g3 Bf8 $15) 28. Qa4 Rc6 29. g3 Bb4 (29... Qc4 30. Qa1 Rxb6 31. Rfc1 Qe2 32. Nc5 $13) 30. Rfc1 Rxb6 31. Nc5 Bxc5 32. dxc5 Rxb1 33. Rxb1 Qc6 $17) 27. Qa1 Bb4 (27... a4 28. Rfc1 Bxh2+ 29. Kxh2 Qd6+ 30. Kg1 axb3 31. Rxc8+ Rxc8 32. Rxb3 Rc2 $15) 28. Nc5 $5 Qxb6 (28... Bxc5 29. dxc5 a4 (29... Qxc5 30. Rfc1 Qd6 31. Rxc8+ Rxc8 32. Qxa5 $11) 30. Rfc1 Re8 31. Qa3 Re4 $17) 29. Nd3 Qd6 {Alekseev must have been satisfied with the progress he has made. A better position and an extra pawn promise him fair winning chances.} 30. Qa2 Ra6 31. g3 Rc3 32. Rb3 $1 (32. Nf4 Rc4 33. Qa4 Qc6 $17) 32... Rxb3 33. Qxb3 Rc6 34. Qa4 (34. Nf4 Rc4 35. Ra1 Qc6 $17) 34... Kg7 (34... Rc4 35. Nxb4 axb4 36. Qa8+ Kg7 37. Qxb7 $15) 35. Rb1 {[%mdl 256] Amazingly enough White has managed to organize his resistance on the queenside so flexibly, that Black will find it very challenging to make progress.} Rc4 (35... Rb6 36. Rc1 f6 37. Rc8 Rc6 38. Ra8 $15) 36. Ne5 Rc7 (36... Rc3 37. Qb5 Rc7 38. Qa4 $1 (38. Kg2 f6 39. Nd3 Qc6 40. Qxc6 bxc6 $17) 38... f6 39. Nd3 $14) 37. Nd3 Qc6 38. Qa2 {White's queen has to stay on the board to create tension against the black pawns.} (38. Qxc6 bxc6 $17) 38... Qb5 (38... Qc4 39. Nxb4 axb4 40. Qa5 $11) 39. Qb3 Rc6 (39... Rc4 40. Ne5 Rc7 41. Nd3) 40. Kg2 (40. Nxb4 axb4 41. Qxb4 $2 Rc1+ $19) 40... Qc4 41. Qd1 {White is not dreaming about activity, as his defensive set up is ideal.} (41. Nxb4 Qxb3 42. Rxb3 Rb6 43. Rc3 axb4 44. Rb3 Kf6 $17) 41... Qb5 (41... Rb6 42. Ne5 Qa2 43. Nd3 Rf6 44. Rb2) 42. Qb3 Rc4 43. Ne5 Rc7 44. Nd3 Rc4 45. Ne5 Rc7 {Frustrating for Alekseev, but ideas for improvement are simply lacking.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2007.11.12"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Jakovenko, Dmitrij"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2007.11.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 {I hadn't seen Jakovenko play this before, so I was somewhat surprised. I soon remembered that Grischuk played this way against Gelfand in the World championship, so Jakovenko had to be well prepared for the main lines with c5. Anyway I decided to follow my preparation. Dies hatte ich bei Jakovenko zuvor noch nicht gesehen, daher war ich etwas überrascht. Bald fiel mir ein, dass Grischuk bei der Weltmeisterschaft gegen Gelfand auch so gespielt hatte, also musste Jakovenko für die Hauptabspiele mit c5 gut gewappnet sein. Trotzdem beschloss ich, meiner Vorbereitung zu folgen.} c5 ({RR} 4... b6) 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({RR} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Nf5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6 15. O-O-O Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 (14... Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3 {and bzw.}) (14... Bxe2 15. c4 {are both known to give White relatively risk-free pressure. gibt Weiß bekanntlich relativ risikofreien Druck.}) 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 ({RR} 18. Re1 c5 ({RR} 18... Be2 19. h3 Rfd8 ({RR} 19... c5 20. Qb3) 20. Bf4 Rac8 ({RR} 20... e5 21. g4 Qg6 22. Bxe5) 21. g4 Qb5 22. a4 Qa6 23. a5) 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 ({RR} 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Be6) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 ({RR} 21. h3 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Qe5) 21... e5 22. Be3 ({RR} 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Qa6 Qxe5 24. Rxe2 Qxc3) 22... Bg4 ({RR} 22... Nc4 23. Qa6 Nxe3 ({RR} 23... Bd3 24. Rad1) 24. Rxe2 Nxg2 25. Kxg2) ({RR} 22... f6 23. Bxc5 Nc4 24. Qb5 Rab8 25. Qd7 Rxc5 26. Rab1 Rb6 ({RR} 26... Rf8 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Rxe2) ({RR} 26... Rxb1 27. Rxb1 h6 ({RR} 27... Nb6 28. Qxa7) 28. Bh3) 27. Bh3 Kf8 28. Rxb6 axb6 29. Be6 Qe8 30. Qxe8+ Kxe8 31. Rxe2) ({RR} 22... h6 23. h3) 23. Qa6 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 ({RR} 26. a5 Bc4 27. Bxc4 Nxc4 ({RR} 27... Qxc4 28. axb6) 28. Rab1 Rc7) 26... c4 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... Bc4 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 ({RR} 27... Nxc4 28. Rb7) 28. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... f5 27. exf5) 27. a5 Na4 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Rb7) 28. Rb7 Qe8 29. Qd6 {1-0 (29) Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V (2783) Bonn 2008 CBM 127 [Marin,Mihail]} {RR} Bf7 30. Qb4 Rab8 31. a6) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 ({RR} 21... Bf3 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8 25. Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7) 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 24. a4 Ra8 25. Qd4 b5 26. Bxf3 Qxf3 27. Rd3) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Bc4 22. Qd4 Be2 23. Qd6 Rac8 24. h3 Rfd8 25. Qe7 a5 26. g4 Qb5 27. Rab1 Qc4 28. Rb7 Rf8 29. Qa3 c5 30. Qxa5 Ra8 31. Ra7 Rxa7 32. Qxa7 h5 {Chatalbashev,B (2466)-Hammer,J (2596) Hell NOR 2024 ½-½ (35)}) 18... c5 (18... Be2 19. Re1 c5 20. Qb3 e5 21. Bc1 {was the Grischuk-Gelfand game, where White developed some pressure. war die Grischuk-Gelfand-Partie, wo Weiß einigen Druck entwickelte.}) ({RR} 18... e5) ({RR} 18... Be2) 19. Qb2 (19. Qa5 {was Cheparinov-Carlsen from the World cup. This game was played only a little more than 3 weeks later (but still in Russia!). After playing a few more moves relatively quickly I realised that there was an embarrassing flaw in my preparations, after which I had to defend an endgame a pawn down, which I luckily managed to do. The former game continued war Cheparinov-Carlsen aus dem World Cup. Diese Partie fand nur etwas mehr als 3 Wochen später statt (aber noch immer in Russland!). Nachdem ich relativ schnell ein paar Züge gemacht hatte, dämmerte mir, dass meine Vorbereitungen ein peinliches Loch hatten, wonach ich ein Endspiel mit Minusbauern verteidigen musste, was mir glücklicherweise gelang. Weiter ging es mit} e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 ({RR} 21... Rfc8) 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 {The position is quite symmetrical, but the black pawns are weaker than the white ones, and one of them is bound to fall fairly soon, which did indeed happen in the game. Die Stellung ist ziemlich symmetrisch, aber die schwarzen Bauern sind schwächer als die weißen, und einer von ihnen muss ziemlich bald fallen, was auch tatsächlich in der Partie geschah.}) ({RR} 19. Qa5 e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rd2) 27. Qxc5) 19... Rad8 {This appears to be a novelty. I had indeed prepared the move at home, but it's probably the most natural move anyway, so I guessed that Jakovenko had taken it into account Dies scheint eine Neuerung zu sein. Tatsächlich hatte ich den Zug zu Hause vorbereitet, aber es wahrscheinlich sowieso die natürlichste Fortsetzung, daher vermutete ich, dass Jakovenko ihn auf dem Zettel hatte.} 20. Re1 $146 {He spend some time for this move, which was a surprise for me. Anyway I couldn't remember what to do against it anyway, so I think we were both on our own from now on Für diesen Zug brauchte er einige Bedenkzeit, was mich überraschte. Wie dem auch sei, ich konnte mich sowieso nicht mehr daran erinnern, was dagegen zu tun war, also denke ich, von jetzt an waren wir beide auf uns allein gestellt.} (20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. h3 {and und}) (20. f3 {were two of the most important alternatives. waren zwei der wichtigsten Alternativen.}) ({RR} 20. Rd2 e5 21. Be3 Be6 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. f3 Nc4 24. Qf2 h6 25. Bxc5 Rd2 26. Qf1 a5 27. a4 Qg5 28. Qe1 Rd3 29. Rd1 Qd8 30. Rxd3 Qxd3 31. f4 Nd2 32. Be3 Nxe4 33. fxe5 Nxc3 34. Bf1 Qc2 {Feller,S (2523)-Sokolov,A (2561) Pau 2008 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. f3 f5 22. exf5 Qxf5 23. Re1 Qd5 24. Qa3 Qc6 25. Qxa7 Ra8 26. Qe7 Nd5 27. Qd6 Qxd6 28. Bxd6 Nxc3 29. Bxc5 Rxa2 30. Bf1 Bxf1 31. Kxf1 Kf7 {½-½ (31) Bacrot,E (2691)-Carlsen,M (2775) Biel 2008}) 20... Rd7 {I liked this move, which prepares the doubling of the rooks, while at the same time protecting the a-pawn, enabling me to meet a3 with c8. Apparently, Black has no problems here.  Dieser Zug gefiel mir - er bereitet die Turmverdopplung vor und deckt gleichzeitig den a-Bauern, was mir ermöglicht, a3 mit c8 zu begegnen. Offenbar hat Schwarz keine Probleme hier.} 21. h3 {A natural move, giving the king some air and preparing g4 in some lines. Ein natürlicher Zug, dem König wird etwas Luft verschafft und in manchen Abspielen g4 vorbereitet.} h6 {I decided to make a useful waiting move, since Ich beschloss, einen nützlichen Wartezug zu machen, denn} (21... Rfd8 22. Qa3 {isn't really desirable; the rook will have to go to c8 anyway. ist nicht wirklich wünschenswert; der Turm wird sowieso nach c8 gehen müssen.}) 22. a4 {My opponent probably felt that since he didn't have many useful moves he had to do something active. Da er nicht viele nützliche Züge hatte, glaubte mein Gegner vermutlich, etwas Aktives unternehmen zu müssen.} Ba6 $1 {I have to make space for the knight. I like this move better than d3, as the bishop seemed to be a little loose there in some lines.  Ich muss Platz für den Springer machen. Dieser Zug gefällt mir besser als d3, denn dort schien der Läufer in manchen Varianten etwas in der Luft zu hängen.} 23. Qa2 {The sharpest move, but probably not the best one, as Black seems to benefit from the coming complications. I think my opponent offered a draw here (or maybe on the next move), but since I was ahead on time and liked my position, I declined Der schärfste Zug, aber wahrscheinlich nicht der beste, da die kommenden Komplikationen Schwarz zu begünstigen scheinen. Ich glaube, hier (oder im nächsten Zug) bot mein Gegner Remis an, aber da ich in der Bedenkzeit vorn lag und mir meine Stellung gefiel, lehnte ich ab.} (23. g4 Qh4 24. Red1 {was safer and probably better, but Black is certainly not worse in any case. war sicherer und womöglich besser, aber so oder so steht Schwarz bestimmt nicht schlechter.}) 23... Rfd8 24. a5 Nc4 25. Bf1 (25. e5 {This move, preventing e5, was an important alternative, I would then have had to play the energetic Dieser Zug, der e5 verhindert, war eine wichtige Alternative; darauf hätte ich das energische} g5 $1 26. g4 (26. Bc1 $2 Rd1 27. Ba3 Rxe1+ 28. Rxe1 Rd1 29. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 30. Kh2 Qa4 $19) 26... Qg6 27. Be4 Qg7 28. Bg3 Nd2 {with very active play and probably the better chances. spielen müssen, mit sehr aktivem Spiel und wahrscheinlich den besseren Chancen.}) 25... e5 26. g4 {Practically forced as Praktisch erzwungen, denn} (26. Bc1 Rd1 27. g4 Rxe1 $1 28. gxh5 Rdd1 {is disastrous for White. ist katastrophal für Weiß.}) 26... Qg6 27. Bxc4 exf4 $1 (27... Bxc4 28. Qxc4 exf4 29. Qxc5 Rd3 {with good counterplay for the pawn was possible, but rather drawish-looking. I wanted more at this point. mit gutem Gegenspiel für den Bauern war möglich, sah aber ziemlich remislich aus. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt wollte ich mehr.}) 28. Bd5 {The logical follow-up. Die logische Folge.} f3 {The key move. Black is just in time to prevent White from playing c4 with the better position. h6-h5 is a big threat now.  Der Schlüsselzug. Schwarz kommt gerade rechtzeitig, um Weiß daran zu hindern, c4 mit besserer Stellung zu spielen. Jetzt ist h6-h5 eine schwere Drohung.} 29. c4 $2 {White simply doesn't have time for this. Dazu hat Weiß einfach keine Zeit.} (29. Re3 Be2 30. Rxe2 fxe2 31. Qxe2 Rb8 {is not very pleasant for White, but it does give him reasonable chances for survival due to his strong bishop. ist nicht sonderlich angenehm für Weiß, gibt ihm angesichts seines starken Läufers aber doch ordentliche Überlebenschancen.}) 29... h5 30. Kh2 Qf6 $1 {Threathening f4 in some lines, and quite importantly, attacking the apparently well protected a1-rook.  Droht in einigen Abspielen f4 und greift, ganz wichtig, den scheinbar gut gedeckten Turm a1 an.} 31. Rg1 hxg4 32. Rab1 $2 {The final mistake. White had to try Der letzte Fehler. Versuchen musste Weiß} (32. Rxg4 Bxc4 33. Qxc4 $1 (33. Bxc4 Rd2 34. Qa4 (34. Qa3 Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Qd4 $19) 34... Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Rfd2 $1 {with the lethal threats of d4+ and e5-h2. mit den tödlichen Drohungen d4+ und e5-h2.} (35... Qd4 $4 36. Bxf7+ $1 $18)) 33... Qxa1 34. Qxc5 {with some saving chances. mit einigen Rettungschancen.}) (32. Rac1 Qf4+ 33. Kh1 Qh6 $1 {was certainly not better than the game. war bestimmt nicht besser als die Partie.}) 32... Bxc4 $1 {I guess my opponent missed this stroke, which combines a couple of tactical motifs.  Ich schätze, diesen Schlag, der einige taktische Motive miteinander kombiniert, hatte mein Gegner übersehen.} 33. Qxc4 Qf4+ 34. Rg3 Rxd5 35. Qxd5 Rxd5 36. exd5 c4 {The simplest. White has such bad coordination that it's hard to stop the c-pawn.  Am einfachsten. Weiß hat eine derart schlechte Koordination, dass es schwer ist, den c-Bauern aufzuhalten.} 37. Rd1 {A desperate attempt. But White was lost anyway. Ein verzweifelter Versuch. Aber Weiß war sowieso verloren.} c3 38. d6 c2 39. Rd3 Qc4 (39... c1=Q 40. d7 Qc2 41. d8=Q+ Kh7 42. Qh4+ Qh6 {would also have won, but I tried to be precise till the end. hätte ebenfalls gewonnen, aber ich versuchte, bis zum Ende genau zu spielen.}) 40. Re3 Qc6 (40... c1=Q 41. d7 Qd2 {was quicker, but the text is more than sufficient. ging schneller, aber der Textzug ist mehr als ausreichend.}) 41. Rd3 Qc5 $1 {And since 42.d2 c1= would attack the white rook White has no sensible way to protect f2, so he resigned. My only victory in the Tal memorial so far, but a very pleasing one! Und da 42.d2 c1= den weißen Turm angreifen würde, hat Weiß keine vernünftige Möglichkeit, f2 zu decken, daher gab er auf. Mein einziger Sieg im Tal Memorial bislang, aber ein sehr angenehmer!} 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.11.24"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Zhao, Zong Yuan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E12"]
[WhiteElo "2491"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[PlyCount "144"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Stohl,Igor} Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 b6 4. Nc3 Bb7 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 O-O 8. Bd3 c5 9. O-O cxd4 10. exd4 d5 11. Bxf6 ({RR} 11. Qe2 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Nc6 13. Rad1 Nh5 14. Bg3 ({RR} 14. Bxe7 Nxe7) 14... Nxg3 15. hxg3 Na5 ({RR} 15... Nb4)) 11... Bxf6 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Re1 ({RR} 13. Ne5 Nc6) 13... Nc6 14. Bc2 Qd6 15. Qd3 ({RR} 15. a3 Rfe8 16. Qd2 Na5) 15... g6 16. Bb3 $146 ({RR} 16. a3 Rfe8 17. h3 Bg7 18. b4 ({RR} 18. Bb3 Na5 19. Ba2 Rac8 20. Re2) 18... a5 19. b5 Ne7 20. Ne5 Nf5 21. f4 ({RR} 21. Nf3 Rxe1+ 22. Rxe1 Qxa3) 21... h5 22. Qd2 ({RR} 22. g4) ({RR} 22. Qd1 Rac8) 22... Ng3 23. Re3 h4 24. Rae1 Re6 25. Nxf7 ({RR} 25. Qf2 Qxa3 26. Nxd5 Qd6 27. Nxf7 Qxd5 28. Rxe6 Bxd4) ({RR} 25. Ne2 Ne4) 25... Qxf4 26. Ne5 Bxe5 27. dxe5 Rf8 28. Nd1 ({RR} 28. Nxd5 Bxd5 29. Qxd5 Qxe3+ 30. Rxe3 Rf1+ 31. Kh2 Rh1#) ({RR} 28. Ne2 Qf2+ 29. Kh2 d4) 28... Nf1 29. Rxf1 Qxf1+ 30. Kh2 Kg7 {Sokolov,I (2645)-Rivas Pastor,M (2515) Leon 1995 CBM 048 [Stohl,Igor] 0-1 (45)} {RR} 31. Rc3 Rxe5 32. Qd4 Qf4+) ({RR} 16. a3 Rfe8 17. b4 a5 18. b5 Ne7 19. Qd2 Rac8 20. Bd3 Rc7 21. Ne2 Kg7 22. Nf4 Bc8 23. g3 Bg4 24. Ne5 Bf5 25. Re2 Rec8 26. a4 Bg5 27. h4 Bxd3 28. Nexd3 Bf6 29. Ne5 Rc3 30. Ng4 Rc2 {Gostisa,L (2410)-Orel,O (2320) Slovenia 1992 1-0 (31)}) 16... Na5 17. Ne5 Bg7 18. Re2 Nxb3 19. axb3 a6 20. Rae1 Rad8 21. h3 b5 22. Qd2 Bc8 23. Na2 Rde8 24. Qb4 Re6 25. Qxd6 Rxd6 26. Nb4 g5 27. Nbd3 Bf5 28. Nc5 b4 29. g4 Bc8 30. Ncd3 a5 31. Nc5 Kh7 32. f3 f6 33. Ned3 f5 34. Re7 fxg4 35. fxg4 h5 36. Ne5 hxg4 37. hxg4 Rf4 38. Ra1 Rxd4 39. Rxa5 Rd8 40. Raa7 Rg8 41. Kf2 Kh6 42. Ncd7 Bxd7 43. Ra6+ Kh7 44. Nxd7 Kh8 45. Ne5 Rf8+ 46. Rf7 Rf4+ 47. Rxf4 Rxf4+ 48. Nf3 Rxg4 49. Rg6 Bd4+ 50. Nxd4 Kh7 51. Rd6 Rxd4 52. Ke3 Re4+ 53. Kd3 Rf4 54. Rxd5 Kg6 55. Rb5 Rf3+ 56. Kc2 Rf4 57. Kd3 Kh5 58. Ke2 Kg4 59. Rc5 Kh4 60. Ke3 Rg4 61. Kf2 Kh3 62. Rc4 Rg2+ 63. Kf1 Rxb2 64. Rxb4 g4 65. Rb8 Rb1+ 66. Ke2 g3 67. b4 Rb3 68. Rh8+ Kg2 69. Rb8 Kh2 70. Rh8+ Kg1 71. Rh4 g2 72. Ke1 Rb2 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.11.27"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2639"]
[PlyCount "140"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 7. dxc5 d4 8. Qg3 Nc6 9. Nf3 e5 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. b4 Ne4 11. Qh4 Qxh4 12. Nxh4 b6 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Bb2 Bb7 15. Nf3 e5 16. Rd1 Rfd8 17. e3 dxe3 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 19. fxe3 f6 20. Be2 Ne7 21. O-O Nf5 22. Rd1 Rc8 23. Rd7 Bc6 24. Ra7 {Ernst,R (2334)-Zeng,C (2553) Kavala GRE 2025 0-1 (35)}) 10. Nxe5 ({RR} 10. b4 e4 11. Ne5 Nh5 12. Nxc6 Nxg3 13. Nxd8 Nxh1 14. Bb2 e3 15. fxe3 dxe3 16. Bxg7 Rg8 17. Bf6 Rg6 18. Bh4 Nf2 19. Rc1 f6 20. Nxb7 Bxb7 21. Rc3 O-O-O 22. Rxe3 Ng4 23. Re6 Kd7 24. Rd6+ Ke7 {Bok,B (2972)-Belli,G (2528) Chess.com 2024 0-1 (52)}) ({RR} 10. b4 e4 11. Nd2 O-O 12. e3 a5 13. b5 Ne7 14. Be2 Be6 15. Bb2 Nf5 16. Qf4 Rc8 17. Rd1 Re8 18. h4 Rxc5 19. Nb3 Rc8 20. g4 d3 21. gxf5 Bxc4 22. Rg1 Bxb3 23. Rxg7+ Kxg7 24. Qg5+ Kf8 {Ivanisevic,I (2643)-Naiditsch,A (2657) Bled 2016 ½-½ (36)}) 10... Qa5+ 11. Kd1 Nxe5 $146 ({RR} 11... Ne4 12. Qf4 Nxf2+ 13. Kc2 Nxe5 14. Qxe5+ Be6 15. Rg1 O-O 16. g4 Bxc4 17. Rg3 Qa4+ 18. Kb1 Qd1 19. Bg2 Rae8 20. Qf5 Rxe2 {0-1 (20) Machan,J (2322)-Smith,B (2453) Pardubice 2016}) ({RR} 11... Ne4 12. Qxg7 Nxf2+ 13. Kc2 Bf5+ 14. Kb3 O-O-O 15. Qf6 Be6 16. Nxc6 Qxc5 17. Ne7+ Kd7 18. Nd5 b5 19. e3 bxc4+ 20. Kc2 d3+ 21. Kb1 Ne4 22. Qd4 Qxd5 23. Qxa7+ Ke8 24. Qa4+ Bd7 25. Qb4 Qc5 26. Bd2 {Bluebaum,M (2091)-Gibicar,D (1965) Oberhof 2010 0-1 (37)}) 12. Qxe5+ Be6 13. Bd2 Qa4+ 14. Ke1 Rd8 15. c6 Qxc6 16. Qb5 Bxc4 17. Qxc6+ bxc6 18. Rc1 Bb5 19. Bb4 Kd7 20. Bc5 Ke6 21. f3 a5 22. Kf2 Rd5 23. e4 dxe3+ 24. Bxe3 Bxf1 25. Rhxf1 Kd7 26. Rc2 Rb8 27. Rfc1 Rd3 28. Ke2 Rd6 29. Bf4 Re6+ 30. Kf2 Rb3 31. Rd2+ Nd5 32. Rc5 Ke8 33. Bg3 f5 34. Kg1 f4 35. Bf2 Ne3 36. Rxa5 Nc4 37. Ra8+ Kf7 38. Rd4 Rxb2 39. Rxf4+ Kg6 40. Rxc4 Rb1+ 41. Be1 Rbxe1+ 42. Kf2 R6e2+ 43. Kg3 Rg1 44. Rg4+ Kf6 45. Kh3 g6 46. Rf8+ Kg7 47. Rc8 h5 48. Rg5 Rc1 49. a4 Kf6 50. f4 Rc3+ 51. Rg3 Rxg3+ 52. hxg3 Rc2 53. a5 Kf5 54. a6 Ra2 55. Rxc6 Ra1 56. Kh2 Ra5 57. Kg1 g5 58. fxg5 Kxg5 59. Kf2 Ra3 60. Ke1 Ra2 61. Kd1 Kg4 62. Kc1 Kxg3 63. Kb1 Ra5 64. Rg6+ Kf2 65. g3 Ke3 66. Kb2 Ke4 67. Kb3 Kf5 68. Kb4 Ra1 69. Rc6 Kg4 70. Rh6 Kxg3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.11.29"]
[Round "2.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2639"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 c5 7. dxc5 d4 8. Qg3 Nc6 9. b4 e5 10. e4 O-O 11. Bd3 b6 12. Nf3 Nh5 13. Qg5 Qxg5 14. Bxg5 bxc5 15. b5 Na5 16. Bd2 $146 ({RR} 16. Rb1 f6 17. Bd2 Nb7 18. h3 g5 19. Ke2 Nd6 20. g4 Ng7 21. a4 Bb7 22. h4 Nxe4 23. hxg5 Nc3+ 24. Bxc3 e4 25. Bxe4 Bxe4 26. Bd2 Rae8 {0-1 (26) Van Wely,L (2681)-Carlsen,M (2733) Nice 2008}) 16... Nb3 17. Rb1 Nxd2 18. Nxd2 a6 19. g3 axb5 20. cxb5 Rxa3 21. Ke2 Bb7 22. Rhc1 Rc8 23. Nc4 Ra2+ 24. Ke1 Rd8 25. Nxe5 Nf6 26. Bc4 d3 27. Nxd3 Raa8 28. f3 Nd7 29. Bb3 Rdc8 30. Rc3 Kf8 31. Rbc1 Ra3 32. Nb2 Nb6 33. Nc4 Nxc4 34. Bxc4 Rca8 35. Rxa3 Rxa3 36. Be2 f5 37. exf5 Bxf3 38. Bxf3 Rxf3 39. Rb1 Rd3 40. b6 Rd8 41. b7 Rb8 42. Kd2 Ke7 43. Kc3 Kd6 44. g4 h6 45. Kc4 Kc6 46. h4 Rxb7 47. Rxb7 Kxb7 48. g5 hxg5 49. hxg5 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.03"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2729"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 dxc4 ({Another variation that becomes more and more popular lately is} 6... c5) ({Adams usually prefered the main} 6... Ne4) 7. Qxc4 b6 {Nigel Short's idea. Black tries to use the exposed position of the white queen.} 8. Bf4 {The most principled answer.} (8. Nf3) 8... Ba6 ({Earlier this year Carlsen achieved advantage in a blitz game against Onischuk after} 8... Nd5 9. Bg3 Ba6 10. Qa4+ Qd7 11. Qc2 Qb5 12. Nf3 Nc6 13. Rc1 Nde7 14. b4 Qh5 15. Qa4 Bb5 16. Qb3 Qd5 17. Qxd5 exd5 18. e3 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Rc8 20. Ke2 {½-½ Carlsen,M (2710)-Onischuk,A (2650)/Biel (blitz) 2007 (54)}) 9. Qxc7 Qxc7 10. Bxc7 {Black has compensation for the pawn thanks to the lead in development. However, the present game reminds that the development advantage is a temporary factor and can easily disappear.} O-O {With this novelty Black keeps the possibility to develop the knight either on d7 or c6. However, Adams failed to show the advantages of the knight on d7.} ({Short played} 10... Nc6 11. Nf3 Rc8 12. Be5 ({The critical variation seems to be} 12. Bf4 Na5 13. b4) 12... Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. b4 Bb7 15. e3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe5 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. f4 Nd7 {and Black soon achieved a draw in Baburin,A (2590)-Short,N (2670)/Port Erin 1998.}) 11. Nf3 Rc8 12. Bf4 Nbd7 ({Another way to look for compensation is} 12... Nc6 13. e3 Bxf1 14. Rxf1 Na5) 13. Nd2 {The begin of an impressive maneuver.} Rc2 ({Deserves attention to chase away the bishop from the diagonal c1-h6:} 13... Nd5 14. Bg3 Rc2 15. Rb1 Rac8 16. Kd1 f5 {although after} 17. e3 Bxf1 18. Rxf1 {White will most likely find a way to coordinate his pieces and keep the extra pawn (appart from e2-d3, followed by b3 and fc1, White also has e1-e2, or in some cases even b3 and c1, using the pin on the c-file).}) 14. Rb1 Rac8 $146 {Adams achieved a visible activity, but Carlsen finds a strong defensive plan: the knight goes to a1 in order to control square c2.} ({RR} 14... Nd5 15. Bg3 Rac8 16. Kd1 f5 17. e3 Bxf1 18. Rxf1 N7f6 19. Re1 Kf7 20. f3 g5 21. Bf2 h5 22. Re2 Kg6 23. Nb3 Rxe2 24. Kxe2 Rc2+ 25. Nd2 Nd7 26. Kd3 Rc8 27. Nb3 e5 28. Rc1 Rd8 29. Ke2 {Neuman,P (2471)-Falout,L (2130) Czech Republic 2012 1-0 (33)}) 15. Nb3 $1 Bc4 (15... Nd5 16. Bd2 N7f6 17. f3 $16 {[%cal Gb3a1]}) 16. Na1 $1 Ba2 17. Nxc2 Bxb1 18. Na1 Nd5 19. Bd2 {A rare case when White can be proud having a knight in the corner. Indeed, it controls the vital square c2 and cannot be disturbed there. The bishop controls square c1, so in fact the yound Norvegian is just a healthy pawn up. White's position contains no weaknesses and he will soon complete development.} e5 20. e3 $1 ({Stronger than} 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. e3 Bd3 (21... Nd3+ 22. Bxd3 Bxd3 23. f3 $16)) 20... exd4 21. exd4 Nb8 (21... Re8+ 22. Kd1 $16) (21... Nf8 22. Ba6 Re8+ 23. Kd1 Ne6 24. Re1 Ndc7 $14 {/}) 22. f3 Nc6 23. Bc4 Rd8 24. Kf2 Bf5 25. Nb3 {White has everything protected and the game enters in the phase of converting the extra pawn. This is not a trivial task, though, since the isolated d-pawn is blockaded and it is difficult for White to find targets for attack.} Be6 26. Rc1 f6 27. a4 $1 {Now Black faces an unpleasant choice. Allowing the further advance of the a-pawn will open files for white pieces. Adams chooses to blockade it, but then the b-pawn remains weak.} a5 28. Bc3 Bf7 29. Nd2 Nde7 30. Bf1 $5 {Carlsen decides to give up the d4-pawn in order to open the position, where his bishop pair together with the weakness of pawn b6 will secure the advantage.} ({White could have kept the extra pawn with} 30. Rd1 $16 Nxd4 $140 $6 31. Bxf7+ Kxf7 32. Nc4 Nec6 33. Nxb6 $18) 30... Nxd4 31. Re1 Ndc6 32. Nc4 Nd5 33. Rb1 Kf8 (33... Nxc3 34. bxc3 $16 {[%csl Rb6]}) 34. Be1 Ke7 (34... Ncb4 35. Rd1 (35. Kg1 $5 Re8 36. Bf2 Re6 37. Rd1 $14) 35... Nc2 36. Bd2 $14 (36. Nxb6 $6 Nxe1 37. Nxd5 Nxg2 $11)) 35. Kg1 $1 {Again Carlsen finds a powerful way to improve the position.} Nb8 36. Bf2 Nd7 37. Re1+ Kf8 38. Rd1 Ke7 39. Re1+ Kf8 40. Nd6 Ne5 (40... Nc5 41. Nxf7 Kxf7 42. Bxc5 ({or} 42. Bb5 $14 {/}) 42... bxc5 43. Bc4 Rd7 44. Rd1 Ke6 45. f4 g5 46. g3 $16) 41. Nxf7 Kxf7 $16 42. Rd1 {The bishops are much stronger than the knights and in spite of material eqiality White has a clear advantage.} Ke7 43. f4 (43. Ba6 $16) 43... Ng4 (43... Nxf4 44. Rxd8 Kxd8 45. Bxb6+ $18) 44. Re1+ Kf8 45. Bd4 Rd6 ({Again taking on f4 loses:} 45... Nxf4 46. Bxb6 Rd5 47. b4 $1 axb4 48. a5 {and the knights can't fight against the marginal passed pawn.}) 46. h3 Nh6 ({Here} 46... Nxf4 {was worth a try, at the same time containing a trap.} 47. Re4 ({After} 47. Rd1 $2 {(threatening 48.c5) Black has a strong answer} Ke7 $1 {which is also the only defense} (47... Ne6 48. Bc5 $18) (47... Ke8 48. hxg4 Ne6 49. Re1 $18) 48. hxg4 Ne6 {and it is White who must look for escape}) 47... Ne6 48. Rxe6 Rxe6 49. hxg4 $16 {White is clearly better, but winning it might be a difficult task.}) 47. Rd1 $1 Nf5 (47... Nxf4 $2 48. Bc5 $18) 48. Bf2 Ke7 (48... Nxf4 49. Rxd6 Nxd6 50. Bxb6 $16) 49. g4 Nh6 50. f5 Nf7 51. Bg2 Nf4 52. Rxd6 Nxd6 53. Bxb6 {In spite of Adams' efforts the inevitable happened. Now the extra pawn secures a technical win.} Nc4 54. Bc5+ Kd7 55. Bf1 ({Even stronger is} 55. b3 Nxg2 (55... Nd2 56. Be3 Nxg2 57. Bxd2 $18) 56. Kxg2 Nd2 57. b4 $18) 55... Nxb2 56. Bb5+ Kd8 ({More stubborn is} 56... Kc7 {although after} 57. Bf8 ({or} 57. h4 {[%cal Gc5f8]}) 57... g6 58. fxg6 hxg6 59. h4 {Black's position is difficult anyway}) 57. Bb6+ Ke7 58. Kh2 $18 Nd5 59. Bxa5 Kd6 60. Bd2 Kc5 61. Kg3 Nc7 62. Be3+ Kb4 63. Bd2+ Kc5 64. Bc1 Nc4 65. Bxc4 Kxc4 66. Bd2 Na6 67. a5 Kb5 68. Kf3 Nc5 69. Bc3 h6 70. Ke3 Kc4 71. Bd4 Na6 72. Ke4 Nb4 73. h4 Kb5 74. Bc3 Na6 75. Kd5 Nc5 76. Bd4 Nd3 77. Ke6 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.06"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2670"]
[Annotator "Friedel,Frederic"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Carlsen and Cheparinov already met in the third round of the World Cup in Khanty-Mansiysk two years ago. The two regular games ended with the score 1-1 then, each of the opponents winning with the black pieces! After that in the rapid Magnus knocked out Ivan by winning both games. In the two years period both players constantly grew in strength and now belong to the strongest grandmasters in the world. High time for a new confrontation!} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 {The King's Indian is a dangerous weapon in hands of tactical players. It usually leads to sharp tactical battle, where White gains space advantage, but where Black often keeps good counterplay possibilities against the white king. It fits perfectly to Cheparinov's aggressive playing style.} 3. Bg5 {No, thank you. The young Norwegian, who, by the way plays the King's Indian himself from time to time, declines the invitation and chooses a solid and quiet set-up, without big ambitions to fight for the opening advantage. Earlier Carlsen used to play 3.g3 in this position.} Bg7 4. Nbd2 d6 5. e4 O-O 6. c3 c5 7. dxc5 dxc5 8. Bc4 Nc6 9. O-O Qc7 10. Qe2 h6 11. Bh4 Nh5 12. Rfe1 Bg4 13. Qe3 g5 {A novelty. Cheparinov gains the bishop pair for the price of weakening his kingside pawn structure.} 14. Bg3 Nxg3 15. hxg3 b6 $146 ({RR} 15... Na5 16. Bd3 c4 17. Bc2 e5 18. Nh2 Be6 19. g4 Rfd8 20. Ndf1 Bf8 21. Ng3 Bc5 22. Qe2 b5 23. a3 Nc6 24. Nhf1 a5 25. Qf3 b4 26. axb4 axb4 27. Nh5 Qe7 28. Nfg3 Kf8 29. Rxa8 Rxa8 30. Nf5 {Hamblok,R (2141)-Roos,A (2054) Namur 2009 1-0 (38)}) 16. Nh2 Bh5 17. g4 {So after all Carlsen couldn't resist the temptation and tries to exploit opponent's provokative play.} ({The more cautious} 17. Be2 {is answered with} Bg6 {and again in order to avoid passivity White must take some aggressive actions connected with f2-f4.}) 17... Bg6 18. g3 Rad8 19. f4 Nd4 {Who said anything about "a solid and quiet opening set-up"? Well, in reality the players' style and fighting spirit counts more than any other factors. It is curious that in spite of wild complications the position remains about equal. The only difference to the usual equality is that here any mistake can lead to immediate disaster for either side.} 20. Rac1 b5 21. Bf1 gxf4 22. gxf4 Ne6 ({I doubt that the cautious} 22... Bh7 {in order to keep the material balance did cross Cheparinov's mind.}) 23. e5 {Due to the large amount of variations to calculate, it is difficult to choose which pawn to advance. Carlsen's move is more cautious, opening fewerdiagonals for black pieces and trying to keep the queen away from the white king.} ({Advancing the other pawn looks possible too:} 23. f5 Be5 24. Ndf3 ({worse is} 24. Nhf3 Bf4) 24... Bf4 25. Qf2 Bxc1 26. Rxc1 Qf4 ({or} 26... Nf4 {after which White is not necessarily forced to take the bishop, but can choose between moves like 27.e5 or 27.Qh4, with compensation for the exchange.}) 27. Re1 Ng5 28. Nxg5 Qxg5 29. fxg6 fxg6 30. Qg3 a6 {with a double-edged position.}) 23... f5 24. exf6 Rxf6 25. f5 Ng5 26. fxg6 Re6 27. Qf2 Be5 28. Rxe5 (28. Nhf3 {is bad in view of} Bg3) 28... Qxe5 29. Ndf3 Nxf3+ 30. Nxf3 Qf4 31. Re1 Rxe1 {In such positions the side with the rook usually aims to exchange pieces, since in endgame the rook with a pawn has better chances to fight against two minor pieces.} ({Nevertheless it deserved attention} 31... Qxg4+ 32. Bg2 Rxe1+ 33. Qxe1 {and now interesting is} Rd6 {with complicated play. White can't activate his minor pieces due to his vulnerable king.}) 32. Nxe1 Qxf2+ 33. Kxf2 Rd2+ 34. Ke3 {Thanks to the pawn on g6 White's chances are preferable, but Black should be able to make a draw. However, Magnus showed a better technique and nicely used the small inaccuracies made by Cheparinov, achieving a winning position. Then in the end both players missed the right continuations. The last one to err was Cheparinov....} Rd1 (34... Rxb2 35. Nd3 Rxa2 36. Nxc5 Rb2 {is a possible alternative}) 35. Ke2 Ra1 (35... Rb1 36. b3 Rb2+ 37. Ke3 Rxa2 38. Bxb5 $16) 36. Bg2 c4 (36... Rxa2 $4 37. Bd5+) 37. a3 Rb1 38. Nc2 Rxb2 39. Be4 Kg7 40. Ke3 Rb3 41. Kd2 Kf6 (41... e5) 42. Nd4 Rxa3 43. Nxb5 Ra5 44. Nc7 Kg7 45. Ne6+ Kh8 46. Ke3 Ra1 47. Kd4 a5 48. Bc6 a4 49. Be8 Rg1 50. g5 a3 51. Bf7 Rxg5 52. Nxg5 hxg5 53. Bxc4 Kg7 54. Kd3 $2 (54. Ke5 Kxg6 55. Ba2 g4 56. Kf4 Kf6 57. Kxg4 Ke5 58. Kf3 $18) 54... Kxg6 55. Kc2 g4 56. Kb3 (56. Bd3+ Kg5 57. c4 e5 58. c5 g3 59. Bf1 ({or} 59. Be4 Kf4 60. Bg2 e4 61. c6 e3 62. c7 e2 63. Kd2 a2) 59... e4 60. c6 e3 61. c7 g2 62. Bxg2 e2 63. Kd2 a2 $11) 56... Kf5 57. Kxa3 {This endgame is easy to analyze thanks to the available so-called tablebases. Playing it with no time is a completely different thing, so I will just indicate the mistakes, without deep analysis.} g3 $2 (57... Ke4 58. Ba6 e5 $11 {Also 57...Kf4 and 57...e5 are sufficient for a draw.}) 58. Bf1 $2 ({Correct is} 58. Bd5 e5 59. Bg2 {(or 59.Bh1)} e4 60. Kb3 e3 61. Kc2 {winning}) 58... e5 $2 (58... Kf4 {(or immediately 58...Ke4)} 59. c4 Ke4 60. Kb4 e5 61. Kc3 (61. c5 Kd5 62. Kb5 e4 63. Bg2 Kd4 64. c6 e3 65. c7 e2 66. c8=Q e1=Q $11) 61... Kf3 62. c5 Kf2 63. Bh3 e4 64. c6 e3 65. c7 e2 66. c8=Q e1=Q+ $11) 59. Kb3 $2 {This move again allows Black to escape} ({White must start with} 59. Bg2 e4 (59... Kf4 60. c4 $18) 60. Kb3 Ke5 61. Kc4 $18) 59... Kf4 $2 {The last mistake.} (59... Ke4 $1 60. Bg2+ Kd3 $1 {still achieves a draw.}) 60. Bg2 Ke3 61. Kc4 Kf2 62. Be4 (62. Be4 g2 63. Bxg2 Kxg2 64. Kd5 $18) 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2007.12.07"]
[Round "5.2"]
[White "Cheparinov, Ivan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2670"]
[BlackElo "2714"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "159"]
[EventDate "2007.11.24"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The second match game between Carlsen and Cheparinov left a strange feeling. The Bulgarian grandmaster chose a deeply analyzed opening variation, very well known to his opponent - a rather surprising strategy, especially since this variation leads to simple positions with visible drawish tendencies. The game quickly entered a four-rooks endgame with an extra pawn for White, but without real winning chances for Cheparinov. His further efforts were in vain: such endgames can hardly be won, no matter of one's efforts and willingness to win. Thus Carlsen's draw with the black pieces was unexpectedly easy, and he won the match 1.5-0.5.} 1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 ({RR} 4... b6) 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({RR} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Nf5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6 15. O-O-O Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 (9. Bd2 Bxc3 10. bxc3 e5 11. Nb3 Nc6 12. O-O Nb6 13. Be3 Qc7 14. Qc2 Be6 15. Rfd1 Nc4 16. Bc5 Rfd8 17. Qe4 Rac8 18. f4 f5 19. Qf3 b6 20. Bf2 e4 $17 {Onischuk,A (2650)-Carlsen,M (2710)/Biel (blitz) 2007}) 9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 ({The position is well-known to Carlsen also from the white side:} 16. Qc2 Nb6 17. Bf4 e5 18. Be3 Qa3 19. Bh3 Rab8 20. Qc1 Qxc1 21. Rdxc1 Bd3 22. f3 Rb7 $11 {Carlsen,M (2698)-Leko,P (2741)/Moscow 2006}) 16... Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 ({RR} 18. Re1 c5 ({RR} 18... Be2 19. h3 Rfd8 ({RR} 19... c5 20. Qb3) 20. Bf4 Rac8 ({RR} 20... e5 21. g4 Qg6 22. Bxe5) 21. g4 Qb5 22. a4 Qa6 23. a5) 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 ({RR} 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Be6) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 ({RR} 21. h3 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Qe5) 21... e5 22. Be3 ({RR} 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Qa6 Qxe5 24. Rxe2 Qxc3) 22... Bg4 ({RR} 22... Nc4 23. Qa6 Nxe3 ({RR} 23... Bd3 24. Rad1) 24. Rxe2 Nxg2 25. Kxg2) ({RR} 22... f6 23. Bxc5 Nc4 24. Qb5 Rab8 25. Qd7 Rxc5 26. Rab1 Rb6 ({RR} 26... Rf8 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Rxe2) ({RR} 26... Rxb1 27. Rxb1 h6 ({RR} 27... Nb6 28. Qxa7) 28. Bh3) 27. Bh3 Kf8 28. Rxb6 axb6 29. Be6 Qe8 30. Qxe8+ Kxe8 31. Rxe2) ({RR} 22... h6 23. h3) 23. Qa6 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 ({RR} 26. a5 Bc4 27. Bxc4 Nxc4 ({RR} 27... Qxc4 28. axb6) 28. Rab1 Rc7) 26... c4 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... Bc4 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 ({RR} 27... Nxc4 28. Rb7) 28. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... f5 27. exf5) 27. a5 Na4 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Rb7) 28. Rb7 Qe8 29. Qd6 {1-0 (29) Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V (2783) Bonn 2008 CBM 127 [Marin,Mihail]} {RR} Bf7 30. Qb4 Rab8 31. a6) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 ({RR} 21... Bf3 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8 25. Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7) 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 24. a4 Ra8 25. Qd4 b5 26. Bxf3 Qxf3 27. Rd3) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Bc4 22. Qd4 Be2 23. Qd6 Rac8 24. h3 Rfd8 25. Qe7 a5 26. g4 Qb5 27. Rab1 Qc4 28. Rb7 Rf8 29. Qa3 c5 30. Qxa5 Ra8 31. Ra7 Rxa7 32. Qxa7 h5 {Chatalbashev,B (2466)-Hammer,J (2596) Hell NOR 2024 ½-½ (35)}) 18... c5 ({RR} 18... e5) ({RR} 18... Be2) 19. Qa5 ({The Norvegian has pleasant memories with this position. Less then a month ago he won a nice game against Jakovenko:} 19. Qb2 Rad8 20. Re1 Rd7 21. h3 h6 22. a4 Ba6 23. Qa2 Rfd8 24. a5 Nc4 25. Bf1 e5 26. g4 Qg6 27. Bxc4 exf4 28. Bd5 f3 29. c4 h5 30. Kh2 Qf6 31. Rg1 hxg4 32. Rab1 Bxc4 $1 33. Qxc4 Qf4+ 34. Rg3 Rxd5 $19 {Jakovenko,D (2710)-Carlsen,M (2714)/Moscow 2007}) ({RR} 19. Qb2 Rad8 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. f3 f5 22. exf5 Qxf5 23. Re1 Qd5 24. Qa3 Qc6 25. Qxa7 Ra8 26. Qe7 Nd5 27. Qd6 Qxd6 28. Bxd6 Nxc3 29. Bxc5 Rxa2 30. Bf1 Bxf1 31. Kxf1 Kf7 {½-½ (31) Bacrot,E (2691)-Carlsen,M (2775) Biel 2008}) 19... e5 $146 {Without waiting for some improvements from his opponent, Magnus is the first one to produce a new move.} (19... Rfc8 20. h3 f6 21. Be3 e5 22. Bxc5 Be6 23. Bxb6 axb6 24. Qxb6 {was slightly better for White in Van Wely,L (2683) -Karjakin,S (2678)/Wijk aan Zee 2007}) ({RR} 19... Be2 20. Re1 e5 21. Bxe5 Nc4 22. Qa6 Qxe5 23. Rxe2 Qxc3 24. Ree1 Ne5 25. Rec1 Qd2 26. Rd1 Qb4 27. Rdb1 {½-½ (27) Bacrot,E (2714)-Moiseenko,A (2715) San Sebastian 2012}) 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 ({RR} 21... Rfc8) 22. Qa6 (22. Qxc5 Rfc8 23. Qe7 Nxe3 24. fxe3 $17 {is of course not an option for White}) 22... Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rd2) 27. Qxc5 f6 28. Qc4+ Qf7 29. Qxf7+ Kxf7 {White's extra pawn on c3 is rather weak and his rooks are passive. Besides, with four rooks it is even more difficult for White to make progress than with two. Carlsen confidently handles the last part of the game.} 30. Rb1 Rc8 31. Rc2 Rc4 32. Rb4 Rc5 33. Kf1 a5 34. Ra4 g5 35. Ke2 g4 36. Ra3 Rdc7 37. Rc1 h5 38. Kd3 Rd7+ 39. Ke3 Rdc7 40. Rb3 Rc4 41. Kd3 Ra4 42. Rc2 Rd7+ 43. Ke3 Rc7 44. Rb5 Ke6 45. Rb6+ Kf7 46. Ra6 Kg6 47. Ra8 Kf7 48. Ra6 Kg6 49. Rd6 Kf7 50. Kd3 Ke7 51. Rd5 Ke6 52. Rd8 Kf7 53. c4 Ra3+ 54. Kd2 Ra4 55. Kd3 Ra3+ 56. Kd2 Ra4 57. c5 Rxe4 58. Kd3 Ra4 59. Rd6 Ke7 60. Ra6 Rd7+ 61. Kc3 Rdd4 62. Kb2 Rab4+ 63. Kc1 a4 64. Rc3 Rbc4 65. Kc2 Re4 66. Ra7+ Ke6 67. c6 Kd6 68. c7 Kd7 69. Rxc4 Rxc4+ 70. Kd3 Rd4+ 71. Ke3 f5 72. Ra6 Kxc7 73. Rf6 Re4+ 74. Kd3 Rd4+ 75. Ke3 Re4+ 76. Kd3 Rd4+ 77. Kc3 f4 78. Rf5 Re4 79. Kd3 Rd4+ 80. Kc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2008.01.13"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D91"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2692"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2008.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bg5 Ne4 6. Bh4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 dxc4 8. Qa4+ Qd7 9. Qxc4 b6 10. e3 Ba6 11. Qb3 Bxf1 12. Kxf1 O-O 13. Ke2 c5 14. dxc5 Na6 15. Rhd1 Qb7 16. c6 Qxc6 17. Bxe7 Rfe8 18. Ba3 Qxc3 $146 ({RR} 18... Rad8 19. Rac1 Nc7 20. c4 Ne6 21. Kf1 Qe4 22. Rd5 Rc8 23. Qd3 Qxd3+ 24. Rxd3 Rc7 25. Nd2 f5 26. Rb1 Bf8 27. Bxf8 Kxf8 28. h3 Nc5 29. Rd4 h5 30. h4 Ke7 31. g3 Rec8 32. Ke2 Rc6 33. Rb5 {Grivas,E (2465)-Leko,P (2385) Dortmund 1992 ½-½ (70)}) 19. Qxc3 Bxc3 20. Rac1 Bb4 21. Bb2 Bf8 22. Nd4 Nc5 23. g4 Re4 24. Kf3 Rae8 25. h3 f6 26. Ba3 Kf7 27. Rc2 Na6 28. Bxf8 Kxf8 29. Rc6 Kg7 30. Nb5 R4e7 31. Rdd6 Nc5 32. Nc7 Rf8 33. h4 Rff7 34. Nd5 Rd7 35. Rxd7 Nxd7 36. Kg3 Nc5 37. f3 h6 38. Nf4 g5 39. Nh5+ Kg6 40. f4 gxf4+ 41. exf4 Kh7 42. f5 Kg8 43. Kf3 Nd7 44. Ke4 Kf8 45. Rc8+ Ke7 46. Kd5 b5 47. Rh8 Nb6+ 48. Kc6 Nc4 49. Ra8 Ne5+ 50. Kc5 Nd7+ 51. Kxb5 Kd6 52. Rxa7 Rf8 53. Kb4 Nc5 54. Kc4 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2008.01.18"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Polgar, Judit"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E37"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2707"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2008.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. e3 Qf6 11. f3 Qh4+ 12. g3 Nxg3 13. Qf2 Nf5 14. Qxh4 Nxh4 15. b4 a6 $146 ({RR} 15... d4 16. b5 Na5 17. Rb1 dxe3 18. Bxe3 Be6 19. Kf2 Nf5 20. Bf4 Rc8 21. c6 bxc6 22. bxc6 Nxc6 23. Ba6 Rd8 24. Ne2 O-O 25. Rhc1 Nfd4 26. Nxd4 Nxd4 27. Rb4 Rd5 28. Bb7 a5 29. Rb6 Rd7 30. Rc7 {Shen,Y (2468)-Wang,J (2380) Hangzhou 2018 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 15... O-O 16. Kf2 Be6 17. Bb2 f5 18. Nh3 d4 19. exd4 f4 20. Rg1 g6 21. b5 Na5 22. Bc3 Nc4 23. Bxc4 Bxc4 24. Rg4 Nf5 25. Rxf4 Bxb5 26. Ng5 Bc4 27. Re1 h6 28. Ne6 Rf7 29. Rfe4 g5 30. Re5 {L'Ami,A (2446)-Sihite,C (2206) Tromsoe 2014 0-1 (37)}) 16. Kf2 Ne5 17. Bb2 f6 18. Rd1 Be6 19. Ne2 Bf7 20. Rg1 Nc4 21. Bc1 g5 22. Nc3 O-O-O 23. e4 dxe4 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Nxe4 Kc7 26. Nxf6 h6 27. f4 Nd2 28. Be2 Nb3 29. Be3 Nd4 30. Bxd4 Rxd4 31. fxg5 Rf4+ 32. Ke1 hxg5 33. Nh7 Bd5 34. Nxg5 Kc6 35. Rf1 Rxf1+ 36. Bxf1 a5 37. Kd2 axb4 38. axb4 b6 39. cxb6 Kxb6 40. Bd3 Bc6 41. Kc3 Bd7 42. Be4 Bg4 43. Nf7 Bf3 44. Bd3 Bc6 45. Ne5 Bd5 46. Ng6 Ng2 47. Kd4 Bb7 48. h4 Bf3 49. Bf1 Ne1 50. Ne5 Nc2+ 51. Kc3 Be4 52. h5 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2008.01.20"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2737"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2008.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 ({RR} 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 {½-½ (17) Maksimenko,A (2536)-Naumann,A (2518) Kallithea 2008}) 7... O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 a6 10. a4 c5 11. Rd1 cxd4 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Qxe4 Nf6 14. Qxd4 Bc7 15. Bd2 ({RR} 15. b3 Qxd4 16. Nxd4 Bd7 17. Ba3 Rfe8 18. h3 Rac8 19. Rac1 h6 20. g4 Bb8 21. Kg2 g6 22. Be2 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Bxc8 25. Bb2 Nd5 26. Bf3 Be5 27. Bxd5 exd5 28. Ba3 Bxd4 29. exd4 f6 {Banikas,H (2608)-Gelfand,B (2761) Bursa 2010 ½-½}) 15... Qxd4 16. Nxd4 Bd7 17. Be2 Rfd8 $146 ({RR} 17... Rac8 18. Bf3 e5 19. Nb3 e4 20. Be2 Be5 21. Bb4 Rfe8 22. Rd2 g6 23. Na5 b5 24. Nb7 bxa4 25. Nd6 Bxd6 26. Rxd6 Re6 27. Rxe6 Bxe6 28. Bxa6 Rc2 29. Bc3 Nd5 30. Bd4 Nb4 31. Bb5 Bb3 32. g4 {Antonsen,M (2409)-Rasmussen,K (2505) Silkeborg 2008 0-1 (48)}) 18. Bf3 e5 19. Nb3 e4 20. Be2 Be5 21. Ba5 Rdc8 22. Nd4 h6 23. h3 b5 24. axb5 axb5 25. Bf1 h5 26. Bc3 Rxa1 27. Rxa1 Nd5 28. Bxb5 Bxb5 29. Nxb5 Nxc3 30. Nxc3 f5 31. h4 Kf7 32. Kf1 Rb8 33. Ra2 Rb3 34. Nd1 Bf6 35. g3 g5 36. hxg5 Bxg5 37. Nc3 Bf6 38. Ra7+ Ke6 39. Ne2 Be5 40. Rh7 Rxb2 41. Rxh5 Kf6 42. Rh6+ Kf7 43. Ra6 Rb1+ 44. Kg2 Rb2 45. Ng1 Rd2 46. Nh3 Rd6 47. Ra5 Kf6 48. g4 fxg4 49. Ng5 Kxg5 50. Rxe5+ Kh4 51. Rxe4 Rd1 52. Rd4 Ra1 53. Rd8 Kg5 54. Rh8 Rb1 55. Rh1 Rb8 56. Kg3 Rf8 57. Ra1 Rf3+ 58. Kg2 Rf8 59. Ra4 Rf7 60. Ra8 Kg6 61. Ra2 Kg5 62. Ra5+ Kg6 63. Rd5 Rf8 64. Kf1 Rf7 65. Kg2 Rf8 66. Rd2 Kg5 67. Re2 Rf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2008.01.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A58"]
[WhiteElo "2681"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "2008.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Both players had suffered losses in the previous round, which usually generates a delicate psychological situation. Would they agree to a draw soon, in order to recover properly, or, on the contrary... Well, let's see.} 1. d4 {Shabalov,Alexander} Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 {Not really a peaceful opening.} 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 7. Nf3 d6 8. g3 Bg7 9. Bg2 Nbd7 10. Rb1 Qa5 {This early development of the queen is aimed to prevent White from regrouping properly.} 11. Bd2 $5 ({Actually, a logical move. The enemy queen is put under indirect pressure immediately. Carlsen had obtained good counterplay after} 11. O-O Nb6 {Now, the c4-square is impossible to defend with the pawn, because the c3-knight is hanging.} 12. a3 Nc4 {in his Candidate's match against Aronian, Elista 2007. The position soon simplified and a draw was agreed.} 13. b4 Qc7 14. Qa4+ Nd7 15. Nb5 Qb8 16. bxc5 Bxb5 17. Qxb5 Qxb5 18. Rxb5 Nxc5 19. Nd2 Nxa3 20. Bxa3 Rxa3 21. Ne4 {½-½ Aronian,L (2759)-Carlsen,M (2693)/Elista 2007/CBM 119}) ({RR} 11. O-O Nb6 12. a3 Nc4 13. b4 Qc7 14. Qa4+ Nd7 15. Nb5 Qb8 16. bxc5 Bxb5 17. Qxb5 Qxb5 18. Rxb5 Nxc5 19. Nd2 Nxa3 20. Bxa3 Rxa3 21. Ne4) 11... Nb6 {It does not look like a good idea to cut off the queen's retreat so soon.} ({It is possible that Carlsen mixed up the move order. The main line goes} 11... O-O 12. O-O Rfb8 13. b3 (13. Qc2 Nb6 14. b3 Qa3 {is just transposing. Note that in this line the queen has occupied the a3-square with the knight on b6, but after the c2-square had been occupied by the white queen.}) 13... Qa3 14. Qc2 ({Here,} 14. Ne1 {has not been tried, but it should be less efficient because the queen can retreat to c7 in case of emergency.}) 14... Nb6 {Avrukh,B (2588)-Ponomariov,R (2616)/Batumi 1999/CBM 074/[Stohl] (0-1, 39)}) 12. b3 Qa3 {Following what must have been a "familiar path".} (12... Bb7 13. O-O O-O 14. a4 Rad8 15. Qc2 Qa8 16. e4 $16 {Gladyszev,O (2443)-Kostin,A (2385)/Sochi 2004/CBM 100 ext (½-½, 36)}) (12... O-O 13. O-O Rfb8 14. a4 $14 {[%csl Ga5]}) 13. O-O ({The attempt to force a draw with} 13. Bc1 Qb4 14. Bd2 {led to active black play after} Ne4 $5 15. Nxe4 Qxe4 16. Nh4 Qd4 $44 {Brunner,N (2435)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2595)/Paris 2007/CBM 119 ext (0-1, 45)}) 13... O-O 14. Ne1 $1 {This move must have escaped Carlsen's attention. Indeed, it had been played only once before.} ({The transfer of the bishop to the other diagonal with} 14. Bc1 Qa5 15. Bb2 {is not too effective, because, far from neutralising the g7-bishop, it just places his own bishop on vulnerable squares, in view of the permanent threat of ...c4.} Rab8 16. Re1 Nfd7 17. Rc1 Ne5 18. Ba1 Nxf3+ 19. Bxf3 c4 $44 {[%csl Ga1] Taborov,B (2458)-Kostiuk,T (2232)/Kiev 2002/EXT 2003 (1-0, 58)}) 14... Bb7 $146 (14... Nfd7 15. Nc2 Qa5 16. Qe1 Bb7 17. a4 Qa6 18. Qd1 c4 19. Nb4 Qa5 20. Nc6 Bxc6 21. dxc6 Bxc3 22. b4 Qe5 23. cxd7 $16 {Malaniuk,V (2548)-Tirard,H (2399)/Krakow 2001/EXT 2005 (1-0, 41)}) 15. Nc2 Qa6 16. e4 Ne8 ({RR} 16... Nfd7 17. a4 c4 18. Nb4 Qa5 19. Nb5 c3 20. Nxc3 Qxb4 21. Nb5 Qc5 22. Rc1 Nxa4 23. Rxc5 Naxc5 24. b4 Na4 25. Nc7 Nb2 26. Qb3 Rac8 27. Rc1 Nb6 28. Be3 Na8 29. Nxa8 Rxa8 30. Bf1 Rfb8 31. Bb5) ({RR} 16... Nfd7 17. a4 Rac8 18. Bh3 Rcd8 19. Re1 Ne5 20. Bf1 Qa8 21. f4 Ned7 22. a5 Nc8 23. a6 Bxa6 24. Ra1 Nb8 25. Bxa6 Nxa6 26. Qe2 c4 27. Qxc4 Qa7+ 28. Re3 {1-0 (28) Van Wely,L (2685)-Castor,D (2126) Sydney 2014}) 17. a4 Nc7 18. Re1 {White has completed his development in an acceptable way, while Black's counterplay has not really started yet.} Rae8 $146 {Since 3 of Black's minor pieces are hitting on the well defended d5-pawn, it is just logical to prepare the opening of the centre with ...e6. However, the rook's departure from the queenside will allow White to get strong initiative on what is traditionally considered "Black's territory" in the Volga Gambit.} (18... e6 19. a5 (19. Ne3 $16 {[%csl Gd5]}) ({RR} 19. a5 Nd7 ({RR} 19... Qxa5 20. Ra1) 20. b4 cxb4 21. Nxb4 Qxa5 22. Nc6 Bxc6 ({RR} 22... Qa6 23. Bf1) 23. dxc6 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Qxc3 25. Rc1 Qe5 26. cxd7) 19... Nd7 (19... Qxa5 $2 20. Ra1 $18) 20. b4 $5 cxb4 21. Nxb4 Qxa5 22. Nc6 Bxc6 (22... Qa6 23. Bf1 $18) 23. dxc6 Bxc3 24. Bxc3 Qxc3 25. Rc1 Qe5 26. cxd7 $36 {[%csl Rc7,Gd7]}) ({RR} 18... e6 19. Ne3 exd5 20. Ncxd5 Ncxd5 21. exd5 Qd3 22. Rc1 Rfe8 ({RR} 22... Nxd5 23. Nc4) 23. Bc3 Qxd1 24. Rexd1 Bxc3 25. Rxc3 Ra5 26. Bf1 Ba6 27. Bxa6 Rxa6 28. f3 Rb8 29. Ra1 Kf8 30. Kf2 Ke7 31. g4 h6 32. h4 Kd7 33. f4 {Zhao,X (2544)-MacKinnon,K (2148) Edmonton 2009 CBM 132 Extra [Shabalov,Alexander] 1-0 (37)}) 19. b4 $1 {It is clear now that something has gone terribly wrong for Black.} Nd7 20. Nb5 $5 ({White had many ways to obtain a crushing advantage. Van Wely opts for a dynamic solution, which will yield him a winning position soon. A more static approach, but equally unpleasant for Black, would be} 20. b5 Qa5 21. Re3 $1 {After this rook lift, White threatens to push the enemy queen away with Ne2, for instance} Nb6 22. Ne2 $1 Qxa4 {(This loses immediately, but if the queen retreats the game would not last too long either after the gradual but unstoppable advance of the passed pawns)} 23. Ra3 Qc4 24. Ne3 $19) 20... Rc8 (20... Nxb5 21. axb5 Qxb5 $2 22. bxc5 Qa6 23. c6 $18) 21. Bh3 f5 22. Bg5 Ne5 23. bxc5 Qxa4 24. Nxc7 Rxc7 25. c6 {White has not only preserved his extra pawn, but has pushed it on to the 6th rank as well! Black's position is hopeless. In the next phase of the game, Carlsen will desperately try to fish in muddy waters.} Bc8 26. exf5 Rxf5 $5 {Hoping to get the d5-pawn some day... which will actually happen in the game...} 27. f4 Nc4 28. Rb4 Qa7+ 29. Kg2 Qc5 30. Rb8 Nb2 31. Qf3 Qxc2+ 32. Re2 Qb1 33. Bxf5 Qxf5 34. g4 Qf7 35. Bxe7 h5 36. Bxd6 hxg4 37. Qe4 Kh7 {On each move, White has a choice between several completely winning moves, his main concern being to avoid any form of black counterplay. This is quite tiring, especially since the position looks a bit unusual.} 38. Bxc7 $6 ({After this (also winning) move, White will lose the d5-pawn, allowing Black to activate his play in a still completely losing position. Froma practical point of view, it would have been better to play} 38. Rexb2 {in order to make the c4-square available for the queen (for the eventuality of ...f5). After} Bxb2 {White can play} 39. Bxc7 {already.}) 38... Bf5 {The situation has become slightly obscure. In order to retain his decisive advantage, White has to do some calculation.} 39. Qe3 $6 ({This move, probably dictated by the natural desire to keep his own king defended, throws away the biggest part of the advantage. From a practical point of view,} 39. Rh8+ $1 {would have been the simplest way to a win, because it would have led to the forced exchange of queens and the unstoppable advance of the far advanced passed pawns.}) ({In the heat of the fight and under time pressure it is not easy to spot the other winning move} 39. Qe7 {, creating the unpleasant threat of h4+. The point is that after} Qxd5+ 40. Kg1 ({But not} 40. Kg3 $4 {because of} Qf3+ {followed by mate. In fact, if you see this during the game, you do not feel like investigating the consequences of 39.e7 anymore)}) 40... Qd1+ 41. Kf2 Qd4+ 42. Kg3 Qg1+ 43. Kh4 {the king escapes from checks and is ready to participate in the creation of a mating net around his counterpart!}) 39... Qxd5+ 40. Kg3 $2 ({After this new inaccuracy, the game should end in a draw. The paradoxical} 40. Kg1 $5 {would have retained some advantage for White, because the apparently winning} Bd4 {(By the way, Black has nothing better)} 41. Rh8+ $1 {followed by e5(+) would again force favourable simplifications. It is true that after the elimination of the d5-pawn things are not the same as after 39.h8!+...}) 40... Nc4 41. Qf2 $2 ({The losing move. It must have been hard for van Wely to switch from choosing between several absolutely winning moves mode to finding the only saving move. Anyway, it was essential to keep the third rank defended with} 41. Qb3 {when after} Qh1 42. Be5 {the game should end in a draw by perpetual.}) 41... Qd3+ 42. Kg2 Be4+ {Black's attack is decisive now. Unlike his opponent, Carlsen adapted himself to the new circumstances perfectly.} 43. Rxe4 Qxe4+ 44. Kf1 Qd3+ 45. Qe2 Nd2+ 46. Ke1 Nf3+ 47. Kf1 Nxh2+ 48. Ke1 Bc3+ 49. Kf2 g3+ 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2008.01.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2735"]
[PlyCount "130"]
[EventDate "2008.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 122"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.01.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nbd2 d6 5. e4 O-O 6. c3 c5 7. dxc5 dxc5 8. Bc4 Nc6 9. O-O Na5 10. Be2 Be6 ({RR} 10... Qc7 11. e5 Ng4 12. Bf4 Nc6 13. Nc4 Be6 14. h3 Rad8 15. Qe1 Ngxe5 16. Ncxe5 Nxe5 17. Kh1 Bd5 18. Bd1 Nxf3 19. Bxc7 Nxe1 20. Rxe1 Rd7 21. Bf4 Rfd8 22. Bc2 b5 23. a3 e6 24. Rac1 a5 25. Kg1 {Fier,A (2556)-Naroditsky,D (2619) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (117)}) 11. Re1 ({RR} 11. Qc2 Qc7 12. Rfe1 Rad8 13. Bf1 b6 14. Bh4 Nh5 15. Rad1 Nc6 16. Bc4 Bxc4 17. Nxc4 Rxd1 18. Rxd1 Rd8 19. Bg3 Nxg3 20. hxg3 Rxd1+ 21. Qxd1 e6 22. a4 Ne5 23. Nfxe5 Bxe5 24. f4 Bg7 25. Qd6 Qb7 {Berkes,F (2659)-Vuckovic,B (2626) Rijeka 2010 1-0 (32)}) 11... a6 12. Qc2 h6 13. Be3 $146 ({RR} 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nf1 Qc7 15. h4 Bg4 16. N1h2 Bxf3 17. Nxf3 Nc6 18. Rad1 Ne5 19. h5 Nxf3+ 20. Bxf3 Be5 21. Bg4 Rad8 22. hxg6 fxg6 23. Rd5 Kg7 24. Qe2 Bh2+ 25. Kh1 Rxd5 26. exd5 Bd6 27. Rd1 Qa5 {Sundararajan,K (2526)-Matta,V (2283) Chennai 2010 ½-½}) 13... Qc7 14. h3 Bd7 15. Nf1 e5 16. N3h2 Be6 17. Ng4 Nxg4 18. hxg4 Nc4 19. b3 Nd6 20. Rad1 b5 21. Bc1 c4 22. Ne3 cxb3 23. axb3 Rfc8 24. Nd5 Bxd5 25. Rxd5 Ne8 26. Rd3 Nf6 27. Red1 g5 28. c4 bxc4 29. bxc4 Bf8 30. Rf3 Nd7 31. Rf5 Nc5 32. Rd5 Bg7 33. Be3 Qe7 34. Bxc5 Rxc5 35. Rf3 Bf8 36. Qa4 Ra7 37. g3 Qe6 38. Rb3 Qc6 39. Qa1 Qc7 40. Kg2 a5 41. Qa4 Rb7 42. Rxc5 Bxc5 43. Qe8+ Bf8 44. Rxb7 Qxb7 45. Qxe5 a4 46. c5 Qc6 47. Bc4 Qxc5 48. Qxc5 Bxc5 49. f4 Kg7 50. e5 f6 51. exf6+ Kxf6 52. Kf3 Ke7 53. Ke4 Bf2 54. Kf5 Be3 55. Ke4 Bd2 56. fxg5 hxg5 57. Bb5 a3 58. Bc4 Kd6 59. Ba2 Kc5 60. Kd3 Be1 61. Kc2 Kb4 62. Be6 Bxg3 63. Kb1 Bf4 64. Ka2 Bg3 65. Bf5 Bf4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2008.02.17"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2799"]
[Annotator "Anand,Viswanathan"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[EventDate "2008.02.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e4 g5 8. Bg3 b5 9. Ne5 h5 ({RR} 9... Bb7 10. h4 g4 11. Nxg4 Nxg4 12. Qxg4 Qxd4 13. Rd1 Qf6 14. a4 h5 15. Qg5 Qxg5 16. hxg5 a6 17. Be5 Rg8 18. Rxh5 Nd7 19. Bf4 b4 20. Nb1 c5 21. f3 Bg7 22. Rh7 Bd4 23. Bxc4 Nf8 24. Rh5 {Aronian,L (2786)-Leko,P (2752) Moscow 2009 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 9... Bb7 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O Bg7 12. Nxd7 Nxd7 13. Bd6 Bf8 14. Bxf8 Kxf8 15. f4 Kg7 16. e5 Qb6 17. Bh5 c5 18. d5 exd5 19. Nxd5 Qe6 20. Ne3 Rad8 21. Bg4 Qc6 22. Bf3 Qb6 23. Nf5+ Kf8 24. Bxb7 {Elsness,F (2425)-Grotnes,N (2149) Stavanger NOR 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 9... Bg7 10. h4 Nfd7 11. hxg5 hxg5 12. Rxh8+ Bxh8 13. Qh5 Bxe5 14. Bxe5 Nxe5 15. Qh8+ Kd7 16. Qxe5 Bb7 17. O-O-O Kc8 18. Qg7 Qe7 19. e5 Nd7 20. Ne4 Kc7 21. Nd6 Rf8 22. Be2 a6 23. Bf3 Ba8 24. Qh7 {Kasimdzhanov,R (2683)-Anand,V (2792) Mainz 2007 ½-½ (62)}) 10. f3 {A relatively rare move. Ein relative seltener Zug.} h4 11. Bf2 Bb7 12. Be2 $146 ({RR} 12. Be3 Nfd7 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. Qd2 Be7 15. Be2 Rg8 16. g3 Qc7 17. Bf2 a6 18. Rg1 O-O-O 19. O-O-O c5 20. gxh4 cxd4 21. Bxd4 Nc5 22. Qc2 gxh4 23. e5 {0-1 (23) Manninen,M (2420)-Hansen,L (2530) Ostersund 1992}) ({RR} 12. a4 a6 13. Be3 Nh5 14. Qd2 Rg8 15. Be2 f6 16. f4 Ng7 17. Ng4 b4 18. Nd1 gxf4 19. Bxf4 c5 20. d5 exd5 21. exd5 Nf5 22. O-O Bxd5 23. Qxd5 Qxd5 24. Nxf6+ Kd8 25. Nxd5 h3 26. Bc7+ {1-0 (26) Delemarre,J-Moran Reyes,J Bratislava 1993}) 12... Nbd7 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. O-O (14. e5 c5 15. Nxb5 Qa5+ {Possible since White hasn't castled. Möglich, da Weiß nicht rochiert hat.} 16. Nc3 h3 {looks rather unpleasant for White. sieht ziemlich unangenehm für Weiß aus.}) 14... e5 $1 {Now White was threatening e5 and e4. Black has equalized, so White should look for an improvement earlier. Nun drohte Weiß e5 und e4. Schwarz hat ausgeglichen, daher sollte der Anziehende vorher nach einer Verbesserung suchen.} 15. a4 a6 16. d5 Rh6 {Inspired by Paco Vallejo's rook against Topalov from Morelia 2006. Black is not really looking at castling kingside, and the rook is incredibly useful on the 6th rank. Inspiriert durch Paco Vallejos Turm gegen Topalov aus dem Turnier Morelia 2006. Die kurze Rochade hat Schwarz nicht wirklich auf dem Plan, und der Turm ist unglaublich nützlich auf der 6. Reihe.} 17. dxc6 Bxc6 18. axb5 axb5 19. Rxa8 Qxa8 {The problem for White is that Black has so much space especially in the kingside where White needs f4 to get things going. Das Problem für Weiß ist, dass Schwarz so viel Raum hat, vor allem am Königsflügel, wo Weiß f4 braucht, um die Dinge in Gang zu bekommen.} 20. Qc1 Rg6 21. Rd1 Bc5 22. Bxc5 Nxc5 23. Qe3 Nb3 $6 (23... Ne6 $1 {The other route to get to d4, but allows White the possibility of b3 which I hoped to avoid The other route to get to d4, but allows White the possibility of b3 which I hoped to avoid} 24. b3 (24. Nd5 Kf8 25. b3 cxb3 26. Qxb3 Nd4) 24... b4 $1 (24... cxb3 25. Nxb5 Qa2 {Not a very human move to make. Kein besonders menschlicher Zug.} 26. Nd6+ Kf8 27. Nf5 (27. Bc4 Nf4) 27... h3 28. gxh3 b2 29. Qb6 Be8 30. Qb4+ Kg8 31. Ne7+ Kh7 32. Nxg6 Kxg6) 25. Nd5 cxb3 26. Qxb3 Qb7 {and it seems White can't take the b4 pawn: und es scheint, als könnte Weiß den Bauern b4 nicht nehmen:} 27. Nxb4 (27. Bc4 Nd4 28. Qe3 Qa7 29. Kh1 Qa3 30. Qd2 h3 $1) 27... Nd4 $17) 24. Qb6 (24. f4 $1 {Shipov suggested this move and it does seem to hold. Shipov suggested this move and it does seem to hold.} gxf4 (24... exf4 25. Qb6 h3 26. Bh5 Rh6 27. Bxf7+ Kxf7 28. Qc7+ Ke8 29. Qe5+ Kf8 30. Qf5+ Kg7 31. Qxg5+ Rg6 32. Qe7+ $11) 25. Qh3 Qa7+ (25... Kf8 26. Qxh4 Kg7 $4 27. Rd8 $1) (25... b4 26. Bh5 (26. Nd5 Bxd5 27. exd5 Nd4) 26... Nd4 27. Bxg6 fxg6 28. Rxd4 exd4 29. Qe6+ {seems to be a draw. scheint remis zu sein.}) 26. Kh1 Nd4 27. Qxh4 Qc7 (27... Qe7 28. Qh8+ Kd7 29. Bh5 $1 (29. Ra1 Qg5 $1 30. Ra7+ Ke6 31. Qc8+ Kf6 32. Qh8+ Rg7 33. Qd8+ Kg6) 29... Qf6 30. Qb8 Rg5 31. Ra1 Rxh5 32. Ra7+ Ke6 33. Qc8+ Kd6 34. Qf8+ Ke6 $11) 28. Bh5 (28. Qh8+ Ke7 29. Qh4+ Rf6 (29... Kf8 30. Qh8+ Rg8 31. Qh6+ {with enough compensation. mit genug Kompensation.}) 30. Bg4) 28... Rg7 29. Bg4 {followed by a1 seems to give White enough play. nebst a1 scheint Weiß genug Spiel zu geben.}) (24. Nd5 Kf8) 24... Nd4 {Now White has little choice but to enter the endgame. Nun bleibt Weiß kaum etwas anderes, als ins Endspiel überzugehen.} 25. Rxd4 exd4 26. Nxb5 (26. Qxd4 Qd8 27. Qh8+ (27. Nxb5 Bxb5 28. Qe5+ Kf8 29. Qxb5 Qb6+ {transposes to the game. führt zur Partie.}) 27... Kd7) 26... Bxb5 27. Qxb5+ Qc6 28. Qe5+ Re6 (28... Qe6 29. Qb8+ Ke7 30. Qa7+ Kf8) 29. Qxd4 (29. Qb8+ Ke7 30. Qa7+ Kf8 31. Qxd4 Qb6 {comes to the same thing. läuft auf dasselbe hinaus.}) 29... Qb6 30. Qxb6 Rxb6 31. Bxc4 Rxb2 {Black needs to keep the king on the first rank. Schwarz muss den König auf der ersten Reihe halten.} 32. g3 (32. Kf1 Ke7 33. Be2 Kd6 34. Kf2 Kc5 35. Ke3 Rb1 36. g3 (36. Bd3 Rh1 37. Kf2 f6 38. Bf1 Kd4 $19) 36... Rh1 $17) 32... f6 (32... Ke7 33. gxh4 (33. e5 Rc2 34. Bb3 (34. Bd3 Rc3 35. Be2 Ke6) 34... Re2 $1) 33... gxh4 34. f4 f6 35. e5 Rd2 $1 {This excellent move takes away d5 and d3 from the white bishop. Dieser hervorragende Zug nimmt dem dem weißen Läufer d5 und d3.} (35... Rb4 36. exf6+ Kxf6 37. Ba6 Kf5 38. Kg2 $1 Kxf4 39. Bc8 $11) (35... f5 36. Bd3 $1 Ke6 37. Bc4+ $11) 36. Bg8 (36. Kh1 f5 37. Ba6 Rd4 38. Kg2 Rxf4 39. Bc8 Kf7 $19) 36... h3 $1) 33. Be6 Ke7 34. Bg4 (34. Bf5 Kd6 35. gxh4 gxh4 36. f4 Re2 $1 {again the key. wieder der Schlüssel.}) (34. Bh3 Kd6 35. gxh4 gxh4 36. f4 Re2 37. Bg2 Kc5 38. Kf1 Rb2 39. e5 f5 40. Bh3 Rb4 41. Ke2 Rxf4 42. Ke3 Re4+ 43. Kf3 Rxe5 44. Kf4 Re2 45. Kxf5 Kd5 46. Kg4 Ke4 47. Kxh4 Kf4 $1) 34... Re2 $3 (34... Kd6 35. gxh4 gxh4 36. f4 Rd2 37. Bh3 Kc5 38. e5 Rd4 39. exf6 Rxf4 40. Kg2 {Once the king escapes from the first rank, its a draw. Wenn der König einmal von der ersten Reihe wegkommt, ist es remis.} Rxf6 41. Bc8 $11) 35. gxh4 gxh4 36. h3 {Now a fortress is no longer possible, so Black wins. Nun ist eine Festung nicht länger möglich, also gewinnt Schwarz.} Kd6 37. Kf1 Rb2 38. f4 Kc5 39. e5 Rb4 40. exf6 Rxf4+ 41. Ke2 Kd4 42. Bf3 Rxf6 43. Bb7 Rb6 44. Bc8 (44. Bg2 Rb3) 44... Ke4 45. Bg4 Rb2+ 46. Ke1 Ke3 47. Kf1 Kf4 48. Ke1 Kg3 49. Kf1 Rf2+ 50. Ke1 (50. Kg1 Rf7 $1 {wins gewinnt.}) 50... Rf4 51. Bc8 Rf8 52. Bg4 Kg2 53. Ke2 Re8+ 54. Kd3 Kf2 55. Bf5 Re3+ 56. Kd4 Kf3 57. Bg4+ Kf4 58. Kd5 Re5+ 59. Kd4 Rg5 (59... Rg5 60. Be6 Rg6 61. Bc8 Rd6+ 62. Kc5 Rd2 {Now the king is far enough. Nun steht der König weit genug weg.} 63. Bg4 Kg3 64. Bf5 Rh2 65. Kd4 Rxh3 {wins. gewinnt.}) 0-1

[Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2008.02.19"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Leko, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2753"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2008.02.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 b6 7. Bg5 Bb7 8. e3 d6 9. Ne2 Nbd7 10. Qc2 c5 11. Rd1 cxd4 {Black demonstrates the most accurate order of moves.} (11... Qc7 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Rxd4 a6 {- see CBM 121, game Morozevich-Beliavsky.}) 12. Rxd4 h6 $1 13. Bh4 Qc7 14. Nc3 d5 {This is now more appropriate than without ...h7-h6 g5-h4.} 15. Bg3 (15. cxd5 Nxd5 $1 (15... Bxd5 $143 16. f3) {as now} 16. Bd3 {doesn't attack the h7-pawn.}) 15... e5 16. cxd5 Bxd5 $1 $146 {[%mdl 8] This is stronger than} (16... Nxd5 17. Rc4 Qb8 (17... Qd6 $5) 18. Be2 N7f6 19. O-O Ba6 20. Nxd5 Nxd5 21. Bf3 Rd8 22. Rd4 Bxf1 23. Rxd5 Ba6 24. Bxe5 Qc8 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Bxa8 Qxa8 {½-½ Bareev,E-Grischuk,A/Khanty-Mansiysk 2007/CBM 122 (72) - Black survived in this endgame.}) 17. Be2 $146 ({RR} 17. Rd2 Bb7 18. f3 Rac8 19. Qd1 a6 20. Bd3 b5 21. Bf5 Rcd8 22. Bh4 Nb6 23. O-O Nc4 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. Qc1 Qb6 26. Bf2 Qa5 27. Bc2 Kh8 28. Rd1 Rxd1+ 29. Bxd1 e4 30. f4 Nd7 31. Be2 Nc5 {Arcuti,D (2342)-De Seroux,C (2095) Graechen 2017 ½-½ (42)}) 17... Rac8 {Black plays safely but apparently it was quite possible to take the pawn:} (17... Bxg2 18. Rg1 Bd5 (18... Qb7 $5) 19. Rh4 $44 Rfd8 20. Rxh6 $140 Be4 $1) 18. e4 Bc6 19. f3 Nh5 20. Rd2 Nxg3 21. hxg3 Nf6 $11 22. O-O Qe7 23. Rfd1 Bd7 24. Ba6 Rc7 25. Qd3 Be6 26. Qd6 Bb3 27. Nb5 Qxd6 28. Rxd6 Bxd1 (28... Rc5 $5 29. R1d2 Rc1+ 30. Kh2 Bc4 $132) 29. Nxc7 Ba4 30. Rd3 Rb8 31. b3 Bd7 32. Nb5 Bxb5 33. Bxb5 Rc8 34. Ba6 Rc1+ 35. Kf2 Kf8 36. Rd8+ Ke7 37. Ra8 Rc7 38. g4 h5 39. gxh5 Nxh5 40. Bc4 Nf4 41. g3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Morelia/Linares 25th"]
[Site "Morelia/Linares"]
[Date "2008.03.06"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E17"]
[WhiteElo "2739"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2008.02.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 123"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.04.02"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 O-O 7. Qc2 c5 8. d5 exd5 9. cxd5 Bxd5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (9... Nxd5 $6 {Compared to the popular line (see Radjabov-Leko and Aronian-Anand in this issue), Black has a kind of an "extra tempo" (his bishop has come to b7 in one go) but that tempo has a negative value!} 10. Qe4 $1 (10. Ng5 $143 Bxg5 11. Nxd5 Bxd5 12. Bxd5 Nc6 13. a3 Bxc1 14. Rxc1 Qe7 15. e3 Qe5 16. Rd1 Rad8 17. O-O Ne7 18. e4 Nc6 19. f4 Nd4 20. Qc4 Qe7 $17 {0-1 Tomovic,V-Pirc,V/Zagreb 1949/EXT 2000 (48)}) 10... Nb4 (10... Nxc3 11. Qxb7 {- had White already castled, Black would have taken on e2 with check!}) (10... f5 11. Qc4 b5 12. Qb3 c4 13. Qxb5 $16 {Knaak}) 11. Qxb7 N8c6 12. Bf4 Nc2+ 13. Kd2 Nxa1 14. Rxa1 Bf6 15. Rd1 Bxc3+ 16. bxc3 Qf6 17. Bh3 d5 18. Bg5 Qg6 19. Ke1 $16 {1-0 Gajewski,G-Hernandez Carmenates,H/Calvia 2006/EXT 2007 (32)}) (9... Na6 $5 {but in the following game Black failed to equalize:} 10. Nh4 d6 11. Nf5 Re8 12. O-O Bf8 13. a3 Bc8 14. Rb1 Nc7 15. b4 $14 Bxf5 16. Qxf5 g6 17. Qc2 Nd7 18. Bf4 $14 {1-0 Tregubov,P-Hernandez Carmenates,H/Merida MEX 2007/The Week in Chess 685 (60)}) 10. Nxd5 Nxd5 11. Nh4 (11. O-O $5 {[%cal Yf1d1]}) 11... Nb4 12. Qd2 N8c6 13. Nf5 Nd4 $146 {[%mdl 512] This exchange sacrifice solves Black's problems. Although he gets doubled pawn with it, his pieces occupy strong squares in the centre.} ({RR} 13... Bf6 14. O-O Na6 15. Rd1 Nc7 16. g4 d5 17. g5 Nd4 18. Nxd4 {½-½ (18) Sargissian,G (2676)-Adams,M (2726) Merida 2008}) ({RR} 13... Bf6 14. O-O Na6 15. Rd1 Nc7 16. Qxd7 Nd4 17. Qxd8 Raxd8 18. Nxd4 Bxd4 19. Kf1 Be5 20. Ke1 Rxd1+ 21. Kxd1 Nb5 22. a4 Rd8+ 23. Ke1 Nd4 24. Be4 Nb3 25. Rb1 Nxc1 26. Rxc1 Bxb2 27. Rc2 Rd4 28. Bd3 {Melkumyan,H (2541)-Tomashevsky,E (2646) Kallithea 2008 ½-½ (66)}) 14. Nxd4 cxd4 15. Bxa8 Qxa8 16. O-O Qe4 17. a3 (17. f3 Qg6) 17... Nc2 18. Ra2 Rc8 {[%csl Gc2]} 19. b3 Rc3 20. Bb2 Rc6 21. Rd1 Bf6 22. Qd3 (22. Rc1 $145 $1 {(Aronian according to Schach 4/2008)}) 22... d5 {[%csl Ge4]} 23. Qf3 (23. Bc1 Rc3 24. Qb5 d3 $1 25. exd3 Qe6 $44 {[%cal Yc2d4]}) 23... h6 24. h4 g5 25. hxg5 hxg5 26. b4 Kg7 27. Qd3 b5 28. Bc1 (28. Bc1 Rc3 $1 29. Qxe4 (29. Qxb5 d3 $1 30. Rxc2 (30. exd3 Qf3 31. Rf1 Rc8 $19) 30... dxc2 31. Rxd5 a6 $1 32. Rxg5+ $8 Bxg5 33. Qxg5+ Qg6 $15) 29... dxe4 $44) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.04.23"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Inarkiev, Ernesto"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2684"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nbd2 O-O 5. c3 h6 6. Bh4 d6 7. e4 c5 8. dxc5 dxc5 9. Bc4 Nc6 10. O-O Nh5 11. Qe2 ({RR} 11. Re1 Qc7 12. Qc2 Bg4 13. h3 Bd7 14. Nf1 Na5 15. Be2 Be6 16. e5 Nf4 17. Bg3 Nxe2+ 18. Qxe2 Nc6 19. Qe4 Rad8 20. Ne3 Rd7 21. h4 Rfd8 22. h5 g5 23. Nf5 Bxf5 24. Qxf5 e6 25. Qg4 Ne7 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2775)-Safarli,E (2641) Chess.com INT 2015 0-1 (55)}) ({RR} 11. a4 Qc7 12. Qc2 e6 13. Rfe1 b6 14. Bf1 g5 15. Bg3 Nxg3 16. hxg3 g4 17. Nh4 Bb7 18. Nc4 Ne5 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. a5 Rfd8 21. axb6 axb6 22. Rad1 Bc6 23. Qb3 Rxd1 24. Qxd1 h5 25. Qb3 Rb8 {Girya,O (2386)-Injac,T (2457) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (51)}) 11... Qc7 12. Rfe1 Na5 13. Bb5 $146 ({RR} 13. e5 Nxc4 14. Nxc4 Be6 15. a4 Rad8 16. b3 Nf4 17. Qe4 Nd5 18. Rac1 Bf5 19. Qe2 Nf4 20. Qe3 Nd3 21. Bg3 Nxe1 22. Rxe1 e6 23. Nd6 Qc6 24. h4 Bg4 25. Nh2 Bf5 26. Bf4 g5 27. hxg5 hxg5 {Popovic,D (2518)-Sebenik,M (2549) Chess.com INT 2017 1-0 (103)}) ({RR} 13. Bd5 e6 14. Bb3 Nf4 15. Qf1 Nxb3 16. axb3 e5 17. Nc4 Be6 18. Nfd2 g5 19. Bg3 Rfd8 20. Red1 Rd7 21. Nf3 Rxd1 22. Qxd1 Bg4 23. Ne3 Be6 24. c4 a6 25. Qc2 Rd8 26. Nd5 Qd7 27. Re1 Bg4 {Sargissian,G (2514)-Ni,H (2568) Athens 2001 0-1 (48)}) 13... a6 14. Ba4 b5 15. Bc2 e5 16. Nf1 Nf4 17. Qd1 Nc4 18. Qb1 Bg4 19. Bd1 g5 20. Bg3 Rad8 21. h3 Bh5 22. Bxf4 exf4 23. Be2 Bxf3 24. Bxf3 Nd2 25. Nxd2 Rxd2 26. e5 Bxe5 27. Qf5 f6 28. Rad1 Rfd8 29. Qe6+ Kg7 30. Qxa6 b4 31. Rxd2 Rxd2 32. Rd1 bxc3 33. bxc3 Rxd1+ 34. Bxd1 c4 35. Be2 Bxc3 36. Bxc4 Be5 37. Qe6 Qd8 38. Qf7+ Kh8 39. f3 Bd6 40. a4 Bb4 41. Kh2 Qf8 42. Qg6 Be1 43. Bd3 f5 44. a5 Bg3+ 45. Kh1 Qg7 46. Qe8+ Qg8 47. Qe5+ Qg7 48. Qb8+ Qg8 49. Qb6 Qd5 50. Qxh6+ Kg8 51. Qxg5+ Kf7 52. Qxf5+ Qxf5 53. Bxf5 Bf2 54. g4 fxg3 55. f4 Kf6 56. Be4 Be3 57. a6 1-0

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.04.24"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E17"]
[WhiteElo "2752"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 Na6 8. Ne5 Bxg2 9. Kxg2 c6 {This move is apparently too slow.} (9... Qc8) 10. e4 ({Here is an example of Black taking the initiative:} 10. Nc3 Qc8 11. Bg5 h6 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. Ne4 Be7 14. Qb3 d6 15. Nd3 Nc7 16. Nc3 b5 17. c5 $6 dxc5 18. Nxc5 e5 19. e3 exd4 20. exd4 Bxc5 21. dxc5 Qf5 22. Ne4 Ne6 23. Qc3 Rad8 $15 {0-1 Molnar,P-Maiorov,N/Kharkov 2007/CBM 117 ext (63)}) 10... Qc7 11. Nc3 Qb7 12. Nd3 (12. Nf3 b5 13. c5 Ne8 14. Bf4 b4 15. Na4 f5 16. Nd2 fxe4 17. Nxe4 Nac7 18. Be5 Nd5 19. Rc1 Nef6 20. f3 Qc8 21. Nd6 Qa6 22. b3 Bxd6 23. Bxd6 Rf7 24. Qe2 Qa5 25. Qd2 Ne8 26. Be5 Nec7 27. a3 Nb5 28. axb4 Qxb4 29. Qxb4 Nxb4 30. Re3 Nd5 31. Rd3 Raf8 32. Nb2 Nb4 {½-½ Brodsky,M-Chernyshov,K/Dagomys RUS 2008/The Week in Chess 702}) (12. Qf3 Rad8 13. Bf4 d5 14. exd5 cxd5 15. Bg5 h6 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. cxd5 exd5 18. Rad1 Nc7 19. Ng4 Rd6 20. Qf5 Rfd8 21. Rd3 $14 {½-½ Greenfeld,A-Rozentalis,E/Panormo 2001/CBM 084 ext (45)}) 12... d5 13. e5 Nd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. h4 $146 ({RR} 15. Qg4 Rfe8 16. Bg5 Nb4 17. Bh6 g6 18. Nxb4 Bxb4 19. h4 Rac8 20. Re3 a6 21. h5 Bf8 22. Qf4 Bxh6 23. Qxh6 Nf8 24. Rh1 b5 25. Rf3 Qd7 26. Rh4 b4 27. Nd1 Rc7 28. Ne3 Qe7 29. Ng4 Nd7 {Bachmann,A (2589)-Chernyshov,K (2508) Zalakaros 2014 1-0 (47)}) 15... Nb4 16. Bg5 {A typical manoeuvre - the exchange of bishops in order to open up the h-file. Of course, Black avoids that.} Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Bb4 18. Rec1 a6 19. Ne2 Rfc8 20. h5 h6 21. a3 Bf8 22. Bd2 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rf1 {[%cal Yf2f4,Yf4f5]} b5 25. f4 Qc6 26. Rc1 Qb7 27. Rf1 Qc6 28. Qf3 Qb6 {Start of a wrong plan.} (28... Nb6 $142 29. f5 exf5 30. Qxf5 Qe6 31. Qf3 $14) 29. f5 exf5 30. Bc3 {[%cal Rf3d5]} a5 $2 {Overlooking a tactical blow.} (30... Qc6 31. g4 $16) 31. Bxa5 $1 {[%mdl 64]} (31. Qxd5 {was not bad either.}) 31... Qxa5 32. Qxf5 Qd2 (32... Qd8 33. Qxf7+ Kh7 34. Nf4 $18) 33. Qxf7+ Kh8 34. Rf2 Rd8 35. Qxd5 {[%cal Re5e6,Re2f4]} Qa5 36. Nf4 Qa8 37. Ng6+ (37. Ng6+ Kh7 38. Qxa8 Rxa8 39. Rf7 $18) 1-0

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.05.03"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2716"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Nb6 8. Ne5 a5 9. Bg5 g6 10. e3 Bg7 11. Bd3 Be6 12. Be2 Nbd5 13. Bh4 O-O 14. O-O c5 15. Nb5 Ne4 $146 ({RR} 15... Nb4 16. Bf3 cxd4 17. exd4 Bd5 18. Bxd5 Nfxd5 19. Rc1 Rc8 20. Qf3 Nc6 21. Rcd1 Ndb4 22. Qe4 Qd5 23. Qxd5 Nxd5 24. Rfe1 Ncb4 25. b3 Nc2 26. Re2 Nxd4 27. Nxd4 Nc3 28. Nd7 Rfd8 29. Rxe7 Nxd1 30. Nb5 {Maatman,N (2248)-Van Haastert,E (2429) Netherlands 2016 0-1 (39)}) 16. Bf3 cxd4 17. Bxe4 Bxe5 18. Nxd4 Bxd4 19. Qxd4 Nf6 20. Bxb7 Qxd4 21. exd4 Rab8 22. Bc6 Rfd8 23. Bb5 Bd7 24. Rfe1 Kf8 25. Bg3 Rb7 26. Re5 Bxb5 27. Rxb5 Rxb5 28. axb5 Rxd4 29. h3 a4 30. Be5 Rb4 31. Bc3 Rxb5 32. Rxa4 Ne8 33. Kf1 f6 34. Rb4 Rd5 35. Ke2 Nd6 36. Rd4 Rb5 37. Rb4 Rd5 38. Rd4 Rb5 39. Rb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.05.04"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E37"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2729"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 Ne4 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 Nc6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. e3 Qa5+ {Very modern opening with early imbalance. Black is ahead in development, but should he wait White would develop his pieces and use two mighty bishops.} (10... Bf5 11. Bd3 Ne5 (11... Qg5 12. f3 Qh4+ 13. Kf1 Ng3+ 14. hxg3 Bxd3+ 15. Qxd3 Qxh1 16. b4 O-O 17. Bb2 Rfe8 18. Kf2 Qh6 19. Ne2 Ne5 {1/2 Kasimdzhanov,R (2683)-Aronian,L (2750)/Mainz 2007 (35)}) 12. Nf3 Nxd3+ 13. Qxd3 Ng3 14. Qb5+ (14. e4 Nxe4 15. O-O O-O 16. Qd4 Qf6 17. Qxf6 Nxf6 18. Nd4 Bg6 19. Bf4 Rfe8 20. f3 Nd7 21. Bd6 $14 {1/2 Kasimdzhanov,R (2682)-Asrian,K (2634)/France 2007 (44)}) 14... Bd7 15. Qxb7 Nxh1 16. c6 Be6 17. c7 Qc8 18. Qc6+ Bd7 19. Qd6 a5 20. Bd2 Ra6 21. Qe5+ Kf8 22. Rc1 f6 23. Qxd5 $16 {1/2 Morozevich,A (2755)-Adams,M (2729)/Moscow 2007 (51)}) (10... Qf6 11. f3 Qh4+ 12. g3 Nxg3 13. Qf2 Nf5 14. Qxh4 Nxh4 15. b4 a6 16. Kf2 Ne5 17. Bb2 f6 18. Rd1 Be6 19. Ne2 Bf7 20. Rg1 Nc4 21. Bc1 $16 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2733)-Polgar,J (2707)/Wijk aan Zee 2008 (52)}) 11. b4 $5 Nxb4 12. axb4 Qxa1 13. Bb5+ Kf8 14. Ne2 a6 15. Bd3 Bd7 16. f3 Ba4 17. Qb2 Qxb2 18. Bxb2 Ng5 19. Nd4 {The very first move deviating from the games of Kasimdzhanov. White plays with compensation for the exchange, but no advantage.} (19. Kd2 Rc8 20. Ra1 Bd7 21. Nf4 Bc6 22. Bf5 Re8 23. Ne2 Ne6 24. h4 h5 25. Be5 Rh6 26. Bd6+ Kg8 27. Bd3 {1/2 Kasimdzhanov,R (2690)-Karpov,A (2670)/Moscow 2007 (31)}) 19... Bd7 $146 (19... Ne6 20. Nf5 Bb5 (20... a5 21. b5 Nxc5 22. Bxg7+ Ke8 23. Bxh8 Nxd3+ 24. Kd2 Kd7 $11) 21. Ke2 Bxd3+ 22. Kxd3 f6 $15) ({RR} 19... Ne6 20. Nf5 Bb5 21. Kd2 Bxd3 22. Kxd3 f6 23. Ra1 Nc7 24. g4 Nb5 25. g5 Kf7 26. gxf6 gxf6 27. Rg1 Ke6 28. Ng7+ Kf7 29. Nf5 Ke6 30. Ng7+ Kf7 31. Nf5 Ke6 {½-½ (31) Balazs,G (2352)-Ragger,A (2158) Pula 2010}) 20. Kf2 (20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. Bxf5 Ne6 22. Kf2 Ke7 $15) 20... f6 21. Ra1 Ke7 22. Bc2 $1 {Carlsen is a fighter and he hopes for more than just equalizing lines.} (22. h4 Nf7 23. e4 Ne5 24. Bc2 dxe4 25. Bxe4 Nc6) (22. Re1 $11) 22... Rhd8 (22... Nf7 23. Bb3 Bc6 24. Nf5+ Kf8 25. f4 $36) (22... g6 23. Re1 Ne6 24. e4 $14) 23. h4 Nf7 (23... Ne6 24. Nf5+ Kf8 25. Nd6 Rdb8 $13) 24. Bxh7 Rh8 25. Bc2 Rxh4 26. Bb3 (26. e4 dxe4 27. Bxe4 Rb8) (26. b5 Ne5 (26... Rxd4 27. exd4 Bxb5 28. Re1+ Kf8 $11) 27. Bc3 g5 $15) 26... Rh5 $2 {[%mdl 2048] Adams shows the ambition of his own, but it comes at the wrong moment and displaces the rook.} (26... Ne5 $1 27. Bc3 (27. Rd1 a5 $15) 27... Nc6 28. Bxd5 Nxd4 29. exd4 Bc6 30. Re1+ Kf8 31. Bb3 Rd8 32. d5 Bxd5 33. Rd1 Bxb3 34. Rxd8+ Ke7 $11) 27. Ne2 $1 Bc6 (27... Rah8 28. Nf4 R5h6 29. Nxd5+ Kf8 30. Nb6 Bc6 31. Rd1 Rh1 32. Rd2 $36) 28. Nf4 Rg5 29. b5 $1 Bxb5 30. Nxd5+ Kf8 (30... Kd8 31. Nb6 Rb8 32. Bxf7 $18) (30... Rxd5 31. Bxd5 Rd8 32. e4 Bc6 33. Ba3 $14) 31. Nc7 Rd8 32. Ne6+ Ke8 $2 {For a bit mysterious reasons Adams makes a big step in the wrong direction, the natural e7 was much better.} (32... Ke7 33. Nxd8 Nxd8 34. g4 $14) 33. Bd4 Bd7 34. Nxd8 Nxd8 35. Rh1 Ke7 {The defender admitts his mistake, but it is too late.} (35... Ne6 36. f4 Rf5 37. Bxe6 Bxe6 38. Rh8+ Kd7 39. g4 Rd5 40. f5 Bf7 41. Rf8 Be8 42. Rg8 $16) 36. e4 (36. f4 Rg6 37. Bd5 Rh6 $14) 36... Ne6 37. Be3 Re5 38. Rh7 (38. Bd5 Bc6 39. f4 Bxd5 40. fxe5 Bxe4 41. exf6+ gxf6 $16) 38... Kf8 39. Bc2 Bc6 (39... Nxc5 40. f4 Nxe4+ 41. Kf3 $16) 40. f4 Bxe4 $6 {The tempting move in the fight for the best survival chances, objectively better was to take with the rook.} (40... Rxe4 41. Bxe4 Bxe4 42. Rh8+ Kf7 43. g4 $16) 41. Rh8+ Ke7 42. Rb8 $1 (42. fxe5 Bxc2 43. exf6+ gxf6 44. Rb8 Be4 $16) 42... Nd8 43. fxe5 Bxc2 44. exf6+ gxf6 45. Bd4 f5 46. Be3 $1 {Carlsen plays with technique, that is truly exceptional for such a young player. White's position is already winning.} (46. Bf6+ Kxf6 47. Rxd8 Ke5 48. g3 Be4 $16) 46... Kd7 47. Bg5 Ne6 48. Rxb7+ Kc8 (48... Kc6 49. Rb6+ Kd5 50. Rd6+ Ke5 51. Rd2 $18) 49. Rb2 Be4 50. Be7 $1 (50. Be3 f4 51. Bd4 $16) 50... Nf4 51. Ra2 $1 Kd7 (51... Kb7 52. g3 $18) (51... Nd3+ 52. Kg3 Kb7 53. Bd6 $18) 52. Bd6 Nxg2 53. Rxa6 {With minimal number of pawns White will win due to the better coordination of his pieces.} f4 54. Ra4 Bc6 55. Ra7+ Ke6 56. Ra6 1-0

[Event "Baku FIDE GP"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2008.05.05"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E13"]
[WhiteElo "2705"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[EventDate "2008.04.21"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.05.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Bg5 Bb7 6. Nd2 h6 7. Bh4 Nc6 8. a3 Bxc3 9. bxc3 Qe7 {The knight from the square can be relocated later and Carlsen sees no need to lose time for d6-bd7.} 10. e3 g5 11. Bg3 d6 12. h4 $146 {The first independent move can not achieve much as the second player is already somewhat ahead in the development.} (12. Be2 O-O-O 13. Rb1 e5 14. d5 Na5 15. e4 Nd7 16. h4 Kb8 17. h5 Nc5 18. Qc2 Bc8 19. Nf1 Rhf8 20. Ne3 Nxe4 21. Qxe4 f5 22. Qc2 f4 23. O-O e4 24. Qd2 fxg3 25. fxg3 Qe5 $17 {1-0 Pelletier,Y (2607)-Perunovic,M (2420)/Plovdiv 2008 (49)}) ({RR} 12. Be2 O-O-O 13. Rb1 e5 14. d5 Na5 15. e4 Nd7 16. h4 Kb8 17. h5 Nc5 18. Qc2 Bc8 19. Nf1 Rhf8 20. Ne3 Nxe4 21. Qxe4 f5 22. Qc2 f4 23. O-O e4 24. Qd2 fxg3 25. fxg3 Qe5 26. g4 Qg3 {Pelletier,Y (2607)-Perunovic,M (2420) Plovdiv 2008 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 12. Qa4 O-O-O {½-½ (12) Henrichs,T (2503)-Stark,L (2415) Germany 2013}) 12... O-O-O 13. Be2 Nd7 (13... Na5 $5 14. f3 (14. Bf3 Nd7 15. Bxb7+ Kxb7 16. Qf3+ c6 $11) 14... g4 15. Qc2 Rdg8 16. Bf2 gxf3 17. gxf3 Ng4 18. Bg1 f5 $15) 14. Nb3 f5 15. Qc2 Rhf8 16. f3 (16. hxg5 hxg5 17. O-O-O Kb8 $13) 16... e5 17. hxg5 hxg5 18. O-O-O {The real start of the middle game in a fairly even position. White will try to control the open h-file, Black will hope for action on the queenside.} (18. d5 $5 Ncb8 19. e4 f4 20. Bf2 Na6 $11) 18... Rde8 19. Bd3 (19. d5 Ncb8 20. Bf2 $11) 19... Qf7 20. Rh6 Ba6 21. Nd2 (21. d5 Ne7 22. Rdh1 $11) 21... exd4 22. exd4 Na5 23. Rdh1 $1 Re7 (23... Nxc4 $2 24. Qa4 Nxd2 25. Qxa6+ Kb8 26. Kxd2 Qa2+ 27. Bc2 $18) (23... Bxc4 $6 24. Nxc4 Nxc4 25. Qa4 b5 (25... Re3 26. Rh7 $18) 26. Qxb5 Ncb6 27. c4 $16) 24. Qa4 {Bacrot is not finding courage to play the principal move h7, as he probably feared the strength of enemy's counterplay with two rooks.} (24. Rh7 Qxh7 (24... Qf6 25. Rxe7 Qxe7 26. Bxf5 Bxc4 27. Qe4 Qxe4 28. fxe4 $16) 25. Rxh7 Rxh7 26. Bxf5 Rh1+ 27. Kb2 Nxc4+ (27... Rg1 28. Bh3 g4 $5 29. fxg4 Re8 30. g5 Nxc4+ (30... Re2 31. Bf4 Nxc4+ 32. Kb3 Na5+ 33. Ka4 $16) 31. Nxc4 Bxc4 32. Bf2 Rf1 33. Bg4 b5 34. Bg3 Kb8 $13) 28. Nxc4 Bxc4 29. Qe4 Rxf5 $1 30. Qxf5 Rg1 31. Qh3 Bf1 32. Qg4 Rxg2+ 33. Kc1 Bc4 34. Qxg5 b5 $13) 24... Re3 25. Rh7 Qe8 26. Qc2 (26. Kc2 $2 Rxd3 27. Kxd3 Nc5+ $19) 26... Nf6 27. R7h6 (27. Bxf5+ $2 Kb8 28. R7h6 Nxc4 $17) 27... Kb7 28. Bf2 Rxd3 $5 {[%mdl 32] Carlsen is growing into a great follower of Tigran Petrosian in his love for positional exchange sacrifices.} (28... Re7 29. d5 $11) 29. Qxd3 Nd5 30. Re1 (30. g3 Qa4 $13) 30... Qa4 31. Qc2 Qxa3+ 32. Qb2 Qxb2+ 33. Kxb2 Nxc4+ 34. Nxc4 (34. Kc2 g4 $15) 34... Bxc4 {Black can be satisfied with two pawns and excellent control of many squares.} 35. Be3 (35. Rh7 Rg8 $15) 35... g4 36. fxg4 $6 (36. Bd2 gxf3 37. gxf3 Rg8 $15) 36... fxg4 37. Rg6 $2 a5 $2 {The upcoming time control has seriously influenced the quality of play of both players. The mutual blunder ignores the fact, that Bacrot could have lost the piece.} (37... Re8 $1 38. Bd2 Rxe1 39. Bxe1 Nf4 40. Rxg4 Nd3+ 41. Ka3 Nxe1 $19) 38. Rxg4 a4 39. Rg3 (39. Ka3 b5 40. g3 Nxc3 $17) 39... a3+ 40. Kxa3 $2 (40. Ka1 b5 41. Rf3 Rxf3 42. gxf3 Nxc3 $15) 40... Ra8+ 41. Kb2 Ra2+ 42. Kc1 Nxc3 {The excitement is over; White will lose the exchange and the ending should be winning for Black.} 43. Bd2 (43. Bf4 Ne2+ 44. Rxe2 Rxe2 45. Rg7 Kc6 $17) 43... Ne2+ 44. Rxe2 Bxe2 45. Rg7 Ra4 46. Bc3 (46. Be3 b5 47. g4 b4 $17) 46... b5 47. g4 Bf3 (47... b4 48. Bd2 Bc4 $17) 48. g5 b4 49. Bb2 (49. Bd2 Bd5 $17) 49... Ra5 {Magnus is able to stop the dangerous g-pawn and the white bishop b2 will remain a misserable piece.} 50. Kc2 (50. g6 Be4 51. Rg8 Rg5 $19) 50... Bd5 51. Re7 (51. g6 Bc4 52. Re7 Rg5 53. g7 Rg2+ 54. Kc1 Bd5 $19) 51... Bc4 52. Bc1 Rf5 53. Bd2 Rf2 54. g6 Rg2 55. g7 Kc6 56. Re8 (56. Kc1 b3 $19) 56... Bf7 57. Rb8 (57. Re7 Bg8 $19) 57... b3+ 58. Kc3 Rxg7 59. Kb2 Bc4 60. Kc3 Kd5 {Finally all black pieces can work together, White is lost.} 61. Rb7 Rg3+ 62. Kb2 Kxd4 (62... Kxd4 63. Rxc7 Rg2 64. Kc1 b2+ $19) 0-1

[Event "Madrid sim"]
[Site "Madrid"]
[Date "2008.05.24"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Rubio Mejia, Luis Ignacio"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E17"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2379"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2008.05.24"]
[EventType "simul"]
[EventRounds "1"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 124 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.03"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.03"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 Ne4 7. Bd2 f5 8. d5 Bf6 9. Qc2 exd5 $146 ({RR} 9... Na6 10. Nxe4 fxe4 11. Qxe4 Nc5 ({RR} 11... Bxb2 12. Rd1 ({RR} 12. Rb1)) 12. Qc2 exd5 13. O-O dxc4 14. Qxc4 d5 15. Qc2 O-O 16. Rac1 Rf7 17. b4 Ne4 18. Bf4 Qe8 19. Ne1 Nc3 20. Bf3 a5 21. bxa5 Rxa5 22. Qb3 Nxe2+ 23. Bxe2 Qxe2 24. Rc2 {Vukic,M-Sibarevic,M Yugoslavia 1968 ½-½ (54)}) ({RR} 9... Na6 10. Nxe4 fxe4 11. Qxe4 Nc5 12. Qe3 O-O ({RR} 12... Bxb2 13. Rb1 Qf6 14. O-O O-O 15. Bb4 d6 16. g4 g6 17. g5 Qg7 18. Rxb2 Qxb2 19. Bc3 Qa3 20. Qd4 e5 21. Nxe5 dxe5 22. Qxe5 Kf7 23. Qg7+ Ke8 24. d6 cxd6 25. Bxb7) 13. dxe6 ({RR} 13. Bb4 exd5 14. Bxc5 bxc5 15. cxd5 Bxd5 16. Qxc5 c6 17. O-O Qb6) 13... Re8 14. Qa3 Qe7 ({RR} 14... Rxe6 15. Be3) 15. Be3 ({RR} 15. O-O Qxe6) 15... Qxe6 16. Rc1 Ne4 17. O-O Nd6 18. Bd4 ({RR} 18. b3 Nf5 19. Bf4 Qxe2 20. Rce1 Qd3 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. Ne1) 18... Be7 ({RR} 18... Qxe2 19. Rfe1) ({RR} 18... Nxc4 19. Qd3 b5 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. b3 Nb6 22. Rxc7) 19. c5 ({RR} 19. Qc3) ({RR} 19. Qd3 Be4 20. Qc3) 19... Ne4 20. Nd2 Nxd2 ({RR} 20... bxc5) 21. Bxb7 Rab8 22. Rfd1 Rxb7 23. Rxd2 Reb8 24. Qe3 {Aronian,L (2750)-Morozevich,A (2758) Mexico City 2007 CBM 120 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½ (69)} ({RR} 24. b3)) ({RR} 9... Qe7) ({RR} 9... Nxd2 10. Nxd2 O-O 11. O-O g6 12. e4 Na6 13. exf5 exf5 14. Nb3 c5 15. dxc6 dxc6 16. c5 Nb4 17. Qe2 Qd3 18. Qe6+ Kg7 19. Rfd1 Rae8 20. Rxd3 Rxe6 21. Rd7+ Rf7 22. Rxf7+ Kxf7 23. Bf1 b5 24. Rd1 {Berczes,D (2441)-Ilincic,Z (2296) Budapest 2022 ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 9... Nxd2 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Rd1 a5 12. O-O Na6 13. Nd4 Nc5 14. f4 Bxd4+ 15. Qxd4 exd5 16. cxd5 d6 17. e4 fxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Qf6 20. Qxf6 Rxf6 21. Rc1 Rf7 22. Rc3 Re8 23. Bf3 Ree7 24. Rd1 {Cortes Jurado,R (2083)-Rubio Mejia,L (2373) Parla 2010 0-1 (56)}) ({RR} 9... Nxd2 10. Nxd2 O-O 11. O-O a5 12. Rad1 Na6 13. Nb3 Qc8 14. Nd4 Bxd4 15. Rxd4 e5 16. Rdd1 d6 17. f4 Qe8 18. e4 Bc8 19. Rde1 exf4 20. Rxf4 Nc5 21. Ref1 Qe5 22. exf5 Bd7 23. g4 g5 24. R4f2 {Tukmakov,V (2500)-Timman,J (2655) Las Palmas 1982 ½-½ (77)}) 10. Nxd5 Nc6 11. O-O O-O 12. Rad1 a5 13. Be3 Qc8 14. Nd4 Nxd4 15. Bxd4 Bxd5 16. cxd5 Bxd4 17. Rxd4 Nc5 18. d6 Ra7 19. dxc7 Rxc7 20. Rfd1 Kh8 21. Qd2 Qe8 22. Rd6 Ne4 23. Bxe4 Qxe4 24. Rxb6 Rc2 25. Qd6 Re8 26. Qd3 Rxe2 27. Qxe4 fxe4 28. Rxd7 e3 29. fxe3 R2xe3 30. Rbb7 Re1+ 31. Kg2 R1e2+ 32. Kh3 h6 33. Rxg7 Rxb2 34. Rh7+ Kg8 35. Rbg7+ Kf8 36. Ra7 Kg8 37. Rxh6 Rxa2 38. Rb6 Rf8 39. Rb5 a4 40. Rb4 Rff2 41. Kg4 Rfb2 42. Rxb2 Rxb2 43. h4 Rb4+ 44. Kh3 Rc4 45. h5 Rb4 46. g4 Rb3+ 47. Kh4 a3 48. h6 Rb6 49. Kh5 Rc6 50. g5 Rc5 51. Rxa3 Rb5 52. Ra8+ Kh7 53. Ra7+ Kg8 54. Re7 Ra5 55. Kg6 Ra6+ 56. Kf5 Ra5+ 57. Re5 1-0

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E97"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2740"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Huzman,Alexander Giri,Anish} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 {Predicting the opening choice of Ivanchuk is really difficult. Before the game I had tried to check everything he might play against d4, but somehow the KID still came as a surprise to me. Die Eröffnungswahl von Ivanchuk vorherzusagen, ist wirklich schwierig. Vor der Partie hatte ich versucht, alles, was er gegen d4 spielen könnte, zu checken, aber irgendwie kam KI trotzdem für mich überraschend.} 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4 {I have admittedly played a lot of silly sidelines against the KID, but this time I decided that enough was enough, and went for the main line. Zugegebenermaßen habe ich gegen KI eine Menge alberner Nebenvarianten gespielt, aber diesmal entschied ich, irgendwann reicht es, und wählte das Hauptabspiel.} Nh5 ({RR} 9... a5) 10. Re1 f5 11. Ng5 Nf6 12. f3 {This has become the main line after a lot of Van Wely-Radjabov games, in which both have had their successes. Dies ist zum Hauptabspiel avanciert nach vielen Wely-Radjabov-Partien, in denen beide ihre Erfolge gehabt haben.} ({RR} 12. Bf3) 12... Kh8 {Ivanchuk follows the main line, which came as a surprise to me, as I had expected him to come up with something original even earlier. Ivanchuk folgt dem Hauptabspiel, was für mich überraschend kam, denn ich hatte erwartet, dass er noch früher mit irgendwas Originallem aufwartet.} ({RR} 12... c6) ({RR} 12... Nh5) 13. b5 $6 {For some reason, I decided against playing the main line, with e6 and came up with this move instead, which clamps down on the black queenside. The move looked interesting to me during the game, but now I don't like it anymore; it's probably just too slow. Aus irgendeinem Grund entschied ich mich gegen das Hauptabspiel mit e6 und kam stattdessen auf diesen Zug, welcher den schwarzen Damenflügel einschnürt. Während der Partie sah mir der Zug interessant aus, aber jetzt gefällt er mir nicht mehr; wahrscheinlich ist er einfach zu langsam.} ({RR} 13. c5 h6 14. Ne6 Bxe6 15. dxe6 d5 16. exd5 Nfxd5 17. Nxd5 Qxd5 18. Qb3 ({RR} 18. Qxd5 Nxd5 19. Bc4 Nxb4 20. Rb1 Nc6) 18... Qxb3 19. axb3 Nc6 ({RR} 19... Nd5 20. b5 e4 21. Ra2 Bd4+ 22. Kf1 Bxc5 23. Bc4) 20. Ra4 ({RR} 20. Bd2 Nd4) ({RR} 20. b5 Nd4) ({RR} 20. Bb5 Rfe8 21. Bxc6 bxc6 22. b5 Rxe6 23. b6 cxb6 24. cxb6 c5 25. bxa7 Re7) 20... Rfe8 21. Bc4 ({RR} 21. Bb2 Rxe6 22. b5 Nd4 23. Bc4 Ree8 24. Bf7 Rf8 25. Bxg6 Nxb3 26. Bxe5 Nxc5) 21... a6 22. b5 ({RR} 22. Bb2 Rad8 23. Bc3 g5) 22... axb5 23. Rxa8 Rxa8 24. Bxb5 Re8 25. Rd1 Rxe6 26. Rd7 Bf8 27. Rxc7 Bxc5+ {Grischuk,A (2733)-Radjabov,T (2760) Linares 2009 CBM 129 [Giri,Anish] ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 13. Rb1) ({RR} 13. Ne6) ({RR} 13. Be3 {RR} Neg8 ({RR} 13... h6 14. Ne6 Bxe6 15. dxe6 Qc8 16. Nd5 Neg8 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Qd3 Ne8 19. c5 Qxe6 20. cxd6 cxd6 21. Qb3 Ngf6 22. Rad1) 14. c5 Bh6 15. exf5 Bxf5 ({RR} 15... gxf5 16. f4 Ng4 17. Bxg4 fxg4 18. Nce4) 16. Qd2 a5 17. a3 Nh5 18. g3 Qe7 19. cxd6 cxd6 20. bxa5 Rxa5 21. Nb5 Raa8 22. Rac1 Rac8 23. Rxc8 Rxc8 24. Nxd6 Bxg5 25. Nxc8 Bxe3+ 26. Qxe3 Bxc8 27. f4 Nhf6 28. d6) ({RR} 13. c5 a5 14. cxd6 cxd6 15. bxa5 Rxa5 16. a4 h6 17. Ne6 Bxe6 18. dxe6 d5 19. Ba3 Qb6+ 20. Kh1 Qxe6 21. Nxd5 Nfxd5 22. Bc4 fxe4 23. fxe4 Rc8 24. exd5 Nxd5 25. Bb3 Qd7 26. Bb4 Ra6 27. Qxd5 Qc7 {Duncan,C (2178)-Ermolaev,E (2282) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 13. Be3 Ne8 14. Rc1 c6 ({RR} 14... h6 15. Ne6 Bxe6 16. dxe6 Qc8 17. Nd5 ({RR} 17. c5 Qxe6 18. Nb5 ({RR} 18. cxd6 Nxd6) 18... d5) 17... Qxe6 18. Qd2) 15. c5 Ng8 ({RR} 15... h6 16. cxd6 ({RR} 16. Ne6 Bxe6 17. dxe6 ({RR} 17. cxd6 Qxd6 18. Bc5 Qd7 19. dxe6 Qxe6) 17... d5) 16... Nxd6 ({RR} 16... Qxd6 17. Bc5 Qf6 18. d6 hxg5 19. d7) 17. Ne6 Bxe6 18. dxe6 Rf6 19. Qd2 ({RR} 19. Qb3 Qg8 20. Bc5 Qxe6 21. Qxe6 Rxe6 22. Red1 Nec8 23. b5) 19... Rxe6 20. Red1) 16. exf5 gxf5 17. f4 ({RR} 17. dxc6 bxc6 18. cxd6 h6 19. Nh3 Nxd6 20. Bc5 Rf6 21. Qa4) 17... Ne7 18. cxd6 Nxd6 19. dxc6 ({RR} 19. fxe5 Bxe5 20. Bd4 Bf6 ({RR} 20... Ng6 21. Nf3 Bxd4+ 22. Qxd4+ Qf6 23. dxc6 bxc6 24. Na4) 21. Bf3) 19... Nxc6 20. Bc5 exf4 21. Bxd6 Qxg5 ({RR} 21... Bd4+ 22. Qxd4+ Nxd4 23. Be5+ Kg8 24. Bc4+ Ne6 25. Nxe6 Bxe6 26. Bxe6+ Rf7 27. Nd5) 22. Bxf8 Bxf8 23. Bf3 {1-0 (23) Kramnik,V (2758)-Ivanchuk,V (2709) Monte Carlo 2000 CBM 076 [Huzman,Alexander]}) 13... Ne8 {Ivanchuk came up with this interesting move after about half an hour. h5 was also possible, with the same plan of rounding up the e6 pawn with f6 and g7.  Nach etwa einer halben Stunde verfiel Ivanchuk auf diesen interessanten Zug. h5 war ebenfalls möglich, mit dem gleichen Plan, den e6-Bauern mit f6 und g7 einzukreisen.} 14. Be3 $146 (14. c5 $5 {was another option I considered quite seriously, but I didn't really believe that Black could not be doing fine after war eine andere Option, die ich recht ernst in Betracht zog, aber ich konnte nicht wirklich glauben, dass Schwarz nach} dxc5 15. Be3 Bh6 $1 (15... b6 16. Ne6 Bxe6 17. dxe6 {with excellent compensation mit ausgezeichneter Kompensation}) 16. Nf7+ Rxf7 17. Bxh6 $13 {nicht ordentlich stehen würde.}) (14. Ne6 Bxe6 15. dxe6 Qc8 16. Be3 Qxe6 17. c5 {could also be considered, with some compensation. war auch zu überlegen, mit einiger Kompensation.}) ({RR} 14. c5 dxc5 15. Be3 Bh6 16. Nf7+ Rxf7 17. Bxh6 {½-½ (17) Ponceleusz,B (1991)-Prus,M (1837) Warsaw 2008}) 14... Bf6 (14... f4 15. Bf2 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Qxg5 17. c5 {gives White the initiative and quite reasonable compensation. gibt Weiß die Initiative und ganz vernünftige Kompensation.}) 15. Ne6 Bxe6 16. dxe6 Ng7 $1 {I think that this is the strongest. Ich denke, das ist am stärksten.} (16... f4 17. Bf2 Ng7 18. c5 {was also possible of course, but here White has the initiative instead of Black, which is the most important factor here. war natürlich ebenfalls möglich, aber dann hat Weiß die Initiative und nicht Schwarz, was hier der wichtigste Faktor ist.}) 17. Bh6 {Clearly the best, as Black's prospect improves a lot when he doesn't have to play f4, closing the centre and burying the black bishop. Eindeutig am besten, den die schwarzen Aussichten verbessern sich deutlich, wenn er nicht f4 spielen muss, was das Zentrum schließt und den schwarzfeldrigen Läufer begräbt.} Nxe6 {The logical follow-up. Die logische Folge.} (17... Ng8 18. Bxg7+ Bxg7 19. c5 $1 dxc5 20. Qb3 {looks good for White, but sieht gut aus für Weiß, aber}) (17... b6 $5 {was an interesting option, even if hardly stronger than the text. war eine interessante Möglichkeit, wenngleich kaum stärker als der Text.}) 18. Bxf8 Qxf8 19. c5 $1 {I think this is basically the only move, as the highest priority is to activate the bishop. Meines Erachtens ist dies im Grunde der einzige Zug, denn die höchste Prioriät besteht darin, den Läufer zu aktivieren.} Nxc5 {After this the knight will be slightly sidelined. Nach wird der Springer leicht im Abseits stehen.} (19... dxc5 {was probably better. I intended to continue war womöglich besser. Ich wollte fortsetzen mit} 20. Qd7 (20. Bc4 Nd4 $13 {was also possible. was also possible.}) 20... Qc8 (20... Nd4 21. Qxc7 Nc2 22. Qxb7 {is somewhat better for White. ist etwas besser für Weiß.}) 21. Qxc8+ Rxc8 22. Bc4 {with an about equal ending. mit einem etwa ausgeglichenen Endspiel.}) 20. Bc4 {Now the bishop is activated, and the knight, even if quite nicely placed on c5, has few active prospects. Nun ist der Läufer aktiviert, und der Springer, auch wenn er auf c5 ganz nett steht, hat wenig aktive Aussichten.} Bg5 $1 21. Qe2 $1 Qh6 22. Rad1 {I am just in time the prevent the further activation of the black bishop. Now that everything has calmed down we can take stock and say that the position is about equal, as neither side can actually do much. The knight on c5 stops most of the plans White might have of attacking the c7-pawn, while it's hard to believe that Black could really think of mating White here, and advancing the centre with c6 and d5 doesn't seem very realistic either. Ich komme gerade rechtzeitig, um die weitere Aktivierung des schwarzen Läufers zu verhindern. Nun, da sich alles beruhigt hat, können wir Bilanz ziehen und sagen, dass die Stellung ungefähr gleich ist, da eigentlich keine Seite viel unternehmen kann. Der Springer auf c5 stoppt die meisten Pläne von Weiß für einen möglichen Angriff auf den Bauern c7, während es schwer zu glauben ist, dass Schwarz wirklich daran denken könnte, Weiß mattzusetzen; und das Zentrum mit c6 und d5 in Bewegung zu setzen, scheint auch nicht besonders realistisch.} Rf8 23. a4 {I was not quite sure if including a4 and b6 was a good idea, as the a4-pawn will require constant attention now, but it has to be said that b6 is also quite a concession here, as it gives up any dream of ever advancing the pawn centre, and therefore leaves Black with few active possibilities.  Ich war nicht ganz sicher, ob der Einschub von a4 und b6 eine gute Idee war, denn der a4-Bauer wird nun ständiger Aufmerksamkeit bedürfen; andererseits ist zu sagen, dass auch b6 ein ganz schönes Zugeständnis darstellt, da es jeden Traum aufgibt, jemals das Bauernzentrum vorzurücken und daher Schwarz nur wenige aktive Möglichkeiten belässt.} b6 24. g3 Qh3 {An annoying move, I am not allowed to play g2, which would improve the harmony in my position.  Ein lästiger Zug, ich komme nicht zu g2, was die Harmonie in meiner Stellung verbessern würde.} 25. Qg2 Qh6 26. Qe2 Qh3 {It could be that Ivanchuk wanted to just repeat moves to gain some time, but I actually think he was happy to repeat moves here since the position is equal and a draw would suit him well. Es könnte sein, dass Ivanchuk einfach die Züge wiederholen wollte, um etwas Zeit zu gewinnen, aber eigentlich glaube ich, dass er hier mit der Zugwiederholung zufrieden war, da die Stellung ausgeglichen ist und ihm ein Remis gut passen würde.} 27. Kh1 {Well, I didn't rate my chances all that highly, but I just didn't want to make a draw yet. Nun, ich schätzte meine Chancen keinesfalls so hoch ein, aber ich wollte einfach noch kein Remis machen.} Nd7 $6 {I don't really like this move. Better was probably just Dieser Zug gefällt mir eigentlich nicht. Besser war vermutlich einfach} (27... Qh6 28. Kg2 Kg7 {with equality. mit Ausgleich.}) 28. Ra1 $1 {I believe that the rook is a little better placed on a2 than on d1, as it can now support a5, and also go to c2 in some lines. Ich glaube, der Turm steht auf a2 einen Tick besser als auch d1, denn jetzt kann er a5 unterstützen und auch in manchen Abspielen nach c2 gehen.} Qh6 29. Ra2 (29. Nd5 Nxd5 30. Bxd5 Bd2 {is certainly not something I should allow. ist sicher nichts, was ich zulassen sollte.}) 29... Nf6 $6 {This is simply the wrong direction... There was still not much wrong with the black position after c5. Das ist einfach die falsche Richtung... Nach c5 war an der schwarzen Stellung noch immer nicht viel auszusetzen.} 30. Kg2 Nh5 $6 (30... Nd7) 31. Nd5 Nxd5 32. Bxd5 {Now White is definitely better. Nun steht Weiß definitiv besser.} Bf4 {This was his idea, but it's really hard to believe that this could ever work.  Das war seine Idee, aber es fällt schwer zu glauben, dass dies jemals funktionieren könnte.} 33. Qf2 fxe4 34. Bxe4 Qg5 35. Rc2 d5 $2 {Now the black position is completely ruined. Damit ist die schwarze Stellung komplett ruiniert.} (35... Rf7 36. Bb7 $1 {intending c8-g4 gives White a clear edge, but certainly nothing decisive. mit der Absicht c8-g4 gibt Weiß ein klares Plus, aber gewiss nichts Entscheidendes.}) 36. Bxd5 Bxg3 37. hxg3 Nf4+ 38. Kf1 Nxd5 39. Rce2 $1 {I really don't know what Ivanchuk missed, as all this seems forced. Anyway, the conclusion is clear: the black position is falling apart. Ich weiß wirklich nicht, was Ivanchuk übersehen hat, da all dies forciert erscheint. Jedenfalls, das Fazit ist klar. Die schwarze Stellung fällt auseinander.} Qf6 (39... Rf5 40. g4 {or oder}) (39... Re8 40. f4 {doesn't help either. hilft auch nicht.}) 40. Rxe5 Qxf3 {This loses quickly, but Black was lost anyway. Dies verliert schnell, doch Schwarz war sowieso verloren.} 41. Qxf3 Rxf3+ 42. Ke2 Rf5 43. Rxf5 gxf5 44. Kd3 c5 45. Re5 Nb4+ 46. Kd2 {Black resigned as his pawns are falling and the knight as cut off from the game. An interesting game, which unfortunately was marred by Ivanchuk's self-destruction after move 30. Interestingly, but maybe not too surprisingly, this game turned out to be the decisive one in the tournament, as I ended up winning one point ahead of Ivanchuk, who made a great comeback and ended up on +3. Schwarz gab auf, denn seine Bauern fallen, und der Springer ist vom Spiel abgeschnitten. Eine interessante Partie, die leider durch Ivanchuks Selbstzerstörung nach Zug 30 getrübt wurde. Vielleicht nicht allzu überraschend erwies sich diese Begegnung als die entscheidende des Turniers, denn ich gewann am Ende einen Punkt vor Ivanchuk, der ein großes Comeback startete und auf +3 landete.} 1-0

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.09"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Svidler, Peter"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2746"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. d5 exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. O-O Be7 10. Rd1 Qc8 11. Qf5 Nf6 12. Bg5 Nc6 13. Nc3 d5 14. Qf4 d4 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Nd5 Bd8 17. e3 Ne7 18. Nxe7 Bxe7 19. exd4 O-O 20. dxc5 bxc5 21. Rac1 a5 $146 ({RR} 21... Rb8 22. b3 Bxf3 23. Bxf3 Rb6 24. Rd5 g6 25. Kg2 Rd8 26. Rxd8+ Qxd8 27. Qa4 Qc7 28. Bd5 Kg7 29. Qe4 Qd6 30. a3 Bf6 31. Qf3 Qe7 32. Qe3 {½-½ (32) Sargissian,G (2676)-Hou,Y (2527) Merida 2008}) 22. b3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.11"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2687"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "164"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Bd6 11. Ng5 $5 $146 {By exchanging the light-squared bishops, White unblocks the e4-square, preparing to win space in the centre. On the other hand, White slightly neglects his development, but didn't Black do the same by moving with his dark-squared bishop twice?} Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Nbd7 13. e4 e5 {The logical reaction in the centre.} 14. dxe5 ({White is not prepared for the method employed by Volokitin against Onischuk in the same tournament:} 14. f4 $6 exd4 15. e5 Bxe5 16. fxe5 Nxe5 $15 17. Rxf6 $2 d3 $1 $17) 14... Nxe5 15. f4 Nc4 16. b3 $1 (16. e5 $6 h6 17. exf6 (17. Nf3 $2 Ng4) 17... hxg5 18. fxg7 Re8 $32) 16... Nxd2 {Exchanging a piece that has jumped around so many times helps White catch up with Black in development, but there was no other possibility.} (16... Nb6 $2 17. e5 $18) (16... h6 $2 17. bxc4 hxg5 18. e5 $16) 17. Nxd2 h6 18. Ngf3 Bb4 {So far, Carlsen played in blitz mode, which makes us think that the novelty did not come as a surprise to him. However, I am not sure that Black can be that happy with the outcome of the opening. White is better developed and enjoys an advantage of space in the right half of the board. He only has to work out some concrete details in order to avoid problems connected with the undefended squares behind the advanced pawns.} 19. Rfd1 $6 {Obviously, this is not the way to place rooks in this position, but Eljanov may have been concerned about the threat ...g4-e3.} ({Indeed,} 19. Rad1 $6 {was not better:} Qe7 (19... Ng4 20. Rfe1 Qe7 21. Re2 Rad8 22. e5 $5 $14) 20. Nd4 (20. Rfe1 Rad8 21. Ne5 Qe6 22. Re2) (20. Ne5 c5 21. Ndf3) 20... Bxd2 (20... Ng4 21. Qd3 Rad8 22. N2f3 $14 c5 $2 23. Nc6 $18) 21. e5 c5 $1 (21... Ng4 22. Qxd2 $16) (21... Bb4 22. Nc6 Qc5 23. Qxc5 Bxc5 24. exf6 $44) 22. exf6 Qxf6 23. Qxc5 Be3 $15) ({Since White's plan is to advance his kingside pawns, it would have made sense to concentrate rooks on this area of the board with} 19. Rae1 $5 c5 (19... Qe7 $6 {Playing as in the game makes little sense for Black now.} 20. Re2 Rad8 21. e5 Nd5 (21... Rfe8 22. Ne4 Nxe4 23. Qxe4 $14 {[%cal Gf4f5]}) 22. Ne4 $36 {[%cal Gf4f5,Gf3d4]}) 20. Re2 Qb6 {This is a better way to strive for counterplay.} 21. e5 Nd5 22. Ne4 {[%csl Rd6,Rf6,Rg7][%cal Gf3h4,Gh4f5]} c4 $5 23. bxc4 $1 Ne3+ 24. Rxe3 Qxe3 25. Rb1 Qa3 (25... Be7 26. c5 {[%csl Re3][%cal Gb1b3]} Rfc8 27. Rb3 Rxc5 28. Nxc5 Qxc5 29. Qxc5 Bxc5 30. Rc3 Bb6 31. Rc6 Rb8 32. Kf1 a5 33. Ke2 b4 34. Kd3 $14) 26. c5 Rac8 27. Rb3 Qa4 28. Kh3 $1 $44 {[%cal Gf4f5,Gc5c6,Ge4d6]} (28. c6 $2 Rxc6 $1) (28. f5 $2 Bxc5 $1)) 19... Qe7 20. e5 Nd5 21. Nf1 $11 {Quite sadly, the knight which seemed designed for the central e4-square has to occupy a defensive position.} Rad8 22. a3 $146 (22. Nd4 c5 23. Nf5 Qb7 $36) ({RR} 22. Nd4 c5 23. Nf5 Qb7 24. Kh3 Qc8 25. Kg2 Qb7 26. Kh3 Qc8 27. Kg2 Qb7 {½-½ (27) Miroshnichenko,E (2690)-Djukic,N (2503) Ohrid 2009}) 22... Bc5 (22... Bxa3 23. Nd4 c5 24. Nf5 Qb7 25. Kf2 Bb4 26. Qe4 $44) 23. b4 Bb6 24. Rd2 Qd7 25. f5 {This looks less threatening now without the support of all the pieces.} Rfe8 26. Rad1 c6 $11 {/ Black is well developed and enjoys stability in the centre. White's attacking prospects are not too realistic.} 27. Rc1 Be3 $5 {An interesting way of striving for active counterplay.} (27... Rc8 $11) 28. Rxd5 $8 cxd5 29. Nxe3 d4 30. Nf1 $6 {On general grounds, the player with two knights for a rook should avoid the exchange of the additional pair of rooks.} (30. Rd1 {should probably have been preferred.} Qb7 31. Nf1 Rxe5 32. Kf2 Red5 $13) 30... Rc8 31. Qd1 Rxc1 32. Qxc1 Qxf5 $44 {/ Black's play is easier now. White's display of activity will only bring him trouble.} 33. Qc6 Rc8 34. Qxa6 Rc2+ 35. N1d2 g5 36. Qxh6 g4 37. Nh4 Qxe5 38. Kf2 Ra2 39. h3 d3 40. Qe3 Qxe3+ 41. Kxe3 gxh3 42. Nhf3 Rxa3 43. Kf2 Ra4 44. Kg1 Rxb4 45. Kh2 Ra4 46. Kxh3 Ra8 47. Nd4 b4 48. Kg4 Re8 49. Kf5 Re2 50. N4b3 Kf8 51. Ne4 Ke7 52. Ke5 Rg2 53. Kf4 Ke6 54. Kf3 Re2 55. Nec5+ Kd5 56. Nxd3 Re8 57. Na5 Rb8 58. Nc1 Kc5 59. Nd3+ Kd5 60. Nc1 Rc8 61. Ncb3 Ke5 62. Ke2 Rc2+ 63. Kf3 Rc3+ 64. Kg4 Ke4 65. Nb7 Kd3 66. N3a5 Kd4 67. Kf4 Kd5 68. Nd8 Rc8 69. Ndb7 Rc3 70. Nd8 Ra3 71. Ndc6 b3 72. Nxb3 Rxb3 73. Ne5 Rb1 74. g4 Rf1+ 75. Nf3 Ke6 76. Kg3 Ra1 77. Kf4 Ra4+ 78. Kg3 Kd5 79. Nh4 Ke4 80. g5 Ke5 81. Kh3 Kf4 82. g6 Kg5 0-1

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.12"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2740"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "126"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Rc1 Bd6 9. Bd3 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Qe7 11. O-O O-O 12. Ne4 Bc7 13. Bb3 {A quiet prophylactical move leading to a slight plus for White, due to his space advantage.} Rd8 (13... e5 14. d5 cxd5 15. Qxd5 Bb8 (15... Nb6 $2 16. Qc5 $1) 16. Rfd1 Nf6 17. Nxf6+ Qxf6 18. Nd2 a5 19. Ne4 Qg6 20. Nc5 Ra7 21. Nd7 Bxd7 22. Qxd7 b6 23. Qb5 $16 {1-0 Cebalo,M-Mazuran,M/Pula 1993/EXT 1999 (35)}) 14. Qc2 (14. Qe2 $5 Rb8 (14... Nf8 15. Ne5 Rb8 (15... Bd7 16. f4 Be8 17. Nc5 $14) 16. f4 f6 17. Nd3 Kh8 18. Ndc5 a5 19. a3 Ra8 20. Qc2 b6 21. Nd3 Bd7 22. Qc4 (22. Ba4 $1 $14) 22... Rac8 23. Ba2 Be8 24. b4 Bg6 25. Nef2 Bd6 26. Rfd1 axb4 27. axb4 Ra8 $132 {1-0 Cebalo,M-Kuczynski,R/Polanica Zdroj 1992/CBM 031 (50)}) (14... a5 15. a3 Nf6 16. Nxf6+ Qxf6 17. Rfd1 Bd7 18. Rc5 Be8 19. Qc2 $1 Qe7 20. Ba2 Bd6 21. Rc3 Rac8 22. h4 g6 23. e4 $14 {½-½ Bareev,E-Anand,V/Linares 1992/CBM 028/[Dautov] (46)}) 15. h3 Kh8 16. Rfd1 Nf8 17. Ne5 Bd7 18. f4 Be8 19. a3 a5 20. Qc4 f6 21. Nd3 Bf7 22. Nec5 Kg8 23. Rf1 Bd6 24. Qc3 Ra8 25. Rce1 Kh8 26. Rf3 Bg6 27. Rg3 $14 {0-1 Ribli,Z-Kuczynski,R/Tilburg 1992/CBM 032 (29)}) 14... a5 $146 {Other moves seen in practice:} (14... Nf8 15. Rfd1 (15. Ne5 f6 16. Nf3 Bd7 17. Nc5 Bc8 {½-½ Sandstrom,L-Beikert,G/Baden-Baden 1993/TD (17)}) 15... Rb8 16. a3 (16. Ne5 Bd7 17. a3 Be8 18. Ba2 f6 19. Nd3 Bg6 20. Nec5 Kh8 21. Qc4 Bh7 22. b4 Rd5 23. g3 Qf7 24. Qc2 Rh5 25. Qe2 $14 {1-0 Kumaran,D-Berezin,O/Halle 1995/CBM 048 ext (35)}) 16... Bd7 17. Nc5 Be8 18. Qe4 (18. Ba2 Kh8 19. Nd3 b6 20. b4 Rdc8 21. Rd2 Ra8 22. Qb2 a5 23. Rdc2 axb4 24. axb4 f6 25. Rc3 Ra7 26. Ra3 Rxa3 27. Qxa3 Bg6 28. Nfe1 Bd6 $132 {½-½ Cramling,P-Galliamova,A/Groningen 1997/CBM 062 ext (41)}) 18... Nh7 (18... Bd6 19. Ne5 Kh8 20. Ned3 $14 {½-½ Schmidt,W-Kuczynski,R/Cetniewo 1991/CBM 022 ext}) 19. Nd3 (19. Ne5 $5) 19... Ng5 20. Nxg5 Qxg5 21. f4 Qf6 22. Qf3 Kh8 23. Rc3 Rbc8 24. Ba2 Qe7 25. Bb3 Ba5 26. Rc2 Bc7 27. Qe4 Qf6 28. Ne5 Qe7 29. Nd3 Qf6 30. Ba4 (30. Nc5 $142 $14) 30... Qf5 31. Qxf5 (31. Qf3 Qd5) 31... exf5 32. Nc5 Rb8 33. Kf2 Bd6 34. Rdc1 g6 35. b4 Rdc8 36. Bb3 Rc7 37. Bc4 Re7 38. a4 Kg8 {½-½ Petrosian,T-Dorfman,J/Moscow 1976/URS-ch (44)}) (14... Rb8 15. a3 Nf8 16. Ne5 Bd7 17. Nc5 Be8 18. Ba2 (18. f4 $5) (18. Qe4 $5) 18... b6 (18... Kh8 19. Qe4 f6 20. Qh4 Bd6 21. Nf3 b6 22. Ne4 c5 23. Nxd6 Qxd6 24. Rfd1 Rbc8 25. Bb3 cxd4 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Nxd4 $14 {1-0 Zarubin,O-Filipenko,A/Severodonetsk 1982/EXT 1999 (48)}) 19. Ncd3 c5 $1 20. dxc5 Bxe5 21. Nxe5 Qxc5 22. Qxc5 bxc5 23. Nc4 {½-½ Bareev,E-Dreev,A/Elista 1998/CBM 065}) (14... Nf6 15. Rfd1 (15. Nc5 b6 16. Nd3 Bb7 17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. Qe2 Bb8 19. Rc2 Ne4 20. Rdc1 Bd6 21. a3 c5 22. dxc5 Nxc5 23. Nxc5 Bxc5 24. Bc4 {½-½ Haap,J-Remmler,H/Schwaebisch Gmuend 2001/CBM 080 ext}) (15. Nxf6+ $5 Qxf6 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Qe4 Re8 18. Ne5 Rad8 19. f4 Bd6 20. Rd2 Bc8 21. g4 g6 22. Rf1 Re7 23. h4 Qg7 24. h5 $36 {1-0 Van Seben,E-Budra,Z/IECG 2001/R1-2001-0-00006 (39)}) 15... Bd7 16. Nc5 Rab8 17. a3 Be8 18. Ba2 e5 19. Bb1 exd4 20. exd4 g6 21. Re1 Qf8 22. Ba2 Kh7 23. Qd2 Bd6 24. Nd3 Rbc8 25. Nfe5 Bb8 26. Qf4 Qg7 27. Qe3 Nd5 28. Qh3 Rc7 29. Nc5 Re7 30. Qh4 $36 {1-0 Alekseev,E-Burmakin,V/Sochi 2005/CBM 107 (44)}) 15. a3 Rb8 {This move (you have already seen it in some games above) is also prophylactical. The idea is that after ...d7-f8(f6) and ...c8-d7 e4-c5 doesn't attack the b7 pawn. The drawback is that after the insertion of ...a7-a5 a2-a3 the a5 pawn can be hanging at some point.} 16. Rfd1 Nf8 17. Ne5 $146 ({RR} 17. Nc5 Bd7 18. Nxd7 Rxd7 19. Qe4 Nh7 20. Bc2 Nf6 21. Qh4 Rbd8 22. Nd2 e5 23. Nb3 Rd5 24. dxe5 Bxe5 25. Rxd5 Rxd5 26. Rb1 Qd8 27. g3 b5 28. a4 Qb6 29. Bd1 c5 30. Bf3 Rd8 31. Nc1 Rd2 {Salomon,J (2340)-Roiz,M (2591) Yerevan 2014 0-1 (33)}) 17... Bd7 18. Nxd7 $6 {A paradoxical decision, which no-one but Magnus can explain. White exchanges his powerful knight for Black's passive bishop. He takes into account that the bishop can be activated by means of ...d7-e8, ...f7-f6 and ...e8-g6; however, that would weaken Black's pawn structure.} Nxd7 19. g3 Nf6 20. Qc5 Qxc5 21. Nxf6+ gxf6 22. Rxc5 {[%mdl 4096] Equal pawns, opposite-coloured bishops... and now Magnus Carlsen outplays an outstanding endgame specialist!} Ra8 23. Kg2 Bd6 24. Rc2 f5 25. Bc4 a4 $6 {A tentative but in my opinion - a wrong move! This pawn will be weak on a light square and need major pieces to defend it!} 26. Be2 Be7 27. Bf3 Ra5 28. Rc4 Bf6 29. Rdc1 {[%cal Yf3d1] White's plan is to put his bishop to d1 or c2 (forcing ...d8-a8) and then, according to the principle of two weaknesses, after necessary preparation, open a second front on the kingside (g3-g4). To prevent such course of events, Black opens up the centre. That creates the second weakness at once (the f5 pawn) but Black obtains some counterplay against the white b2 pawn.} e5 30. dxe5 Bxe5 31. Rb4 Rd7 32. Rc2 Kg7 33. Kf1 Bf6 34. Rcc4 Ra8 35. Rf4 Ra5 36. Ke2 $6 (36. Rxa4 Rxa4 37. Rxa4 Bxb2 38. Ra7 c5 39. Be2 $14 {[%cal Ye2c4] was probably more appropriate.}) 36... Rc5 $1 37. Rfc4 Rxc4 38. Rxc4 Bxb2 39. Rxa4 c5 (39... Bc3 $142 $1 40. Ra7 $140 Rd2+ 41. Kf1 Rb2 {activating the rook and Black is probably out of danger,}) 40. Kf1 b6 41. Be2 {Correcting the inaccuracy on the 36th move but now the white rook is far less active.} Bc3 42. Bb5 Rd1+ 43. Kg2 Ba5 44. Rf4 Kg6 45. a4 (45. Bc4 $142 $1 {[%cal Yg3g4]} Rd7 46. Ba2 $1 $36 {[%cal Ra2b1]}) 45... Bc3 {[%cal Rc3e5]} 46. g4 {what else?} fxg4 47. Be8 Be5 (47... h5 48. Bxf7+ Kg5 49. h3 $1) 48. Bxf7+ Kg5 49. Re4 Kf5 50. Rc4 Rd7 51. Bh5 Rg7 52. a5 (52. h3 $5 gxh3+ 53. Kxh3 {creating connected passed pawns}) 52... bxa5 53. Rxc5 Ra7 54. Rc4 Rg7 55. Rc5 Ra7 56. Rc4 Rg7 57. Rc6 Ra7 58. Bg6+ Kg5 59. Bc2 a4 {[%csl Ga4]} ({Black is out of danger after} 59... h5 {, too}) 60. Rg6+ Kh5 $2 (60... Kh4 $1 61. Rxh6+ Kg5 62. Re6 Bb8 {and White can't make exploit the dangerous position of the black king.}) 61. Re6 $2 (61. h3 $1 a3 (61... gxh3+ 62. Kxh3 a3 63. Rg2 $18 {- the h6 pawn harms Black!}) 62. hxg4+ (62. Rxg4 Rg7 63. Rxg7 Bxg7 64. Bb3 {is hardly winning}) 62... Kh4 63. Bf5 Bg7 (63... a2 64. Rxh6+ Kg5 65. Rg6+ Kh4 66. f4 Rh7 $8 67. Ra6 a1=Q 68. Rxa1 Bxa1 69. Bxh7 Kxg4 {is a tablebase win for White - Black can't reach a drawish setup f6, d6}) 64. Be6 {and White keeps good winning chances}) 61... Bg7 $4 {[%mdl 8192] A terrible mistake - nothing unusual after a long defence. Black overlooks a mating idea.} ({After} 61... Bb8 {White can't win}) 62. Kg3 Ra5 63. Bg6+ Kg5 (63... Kg5 {and Black resigned, noticing} 64. h4+ (64. f4+ gxf3 65. h4#) 64... gxh3 65. f4#) 1-0

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.13"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2711"]
[PlyCount "36"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 Ne4 7. Bd2 d5 8. cxd5 exd5 9. O-O O-O 10. Rc1 Nd7 11. Bf4 Nxc3 ({RR} 11... Rc8 12. Nb5 a6 13. Bxc7 Qe8 14. Na3 Bxa3 15. bxa3 Qe6 16. Qb3 g5 17. g4 Qxg4 18. Bg3 h5 19. Qe3 h4 20. h3 Qf5 21. Bh2 Rfe8 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. Rc1 Re8 24. Rc7 Ba8 25. Qd3 Ndf6 26. e3 {Caruana,F (2803)-Miszler,L (2264) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (38)}) 12. Rxc3 c5 13. dxc5 ({RR} 13. Qa4 Re8 14. Rd1 Bf6 15. Re3 a6 16. dxc5 Nxc5 17. Rxe8+ Qxe8 18. Qc2 Qe4 19. Qd2 Re8 20. Be3 Qa4 21. b3 Qa3 22. Qc2 Rc8 23. Bh3 Ne6 24. Qb1 b5 25. Nd4 Qe7 26. Nf5 Qd7 27. Bg2 g6 {Grischuk,A (2728)-Alekseev,E (2708) Moscow 2008 1-0 (53)}) 13... bxc5 14. b4 $146 ({RR} 14. Rc1 Qb6 15. Qa4 Nf6 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Qc2 h6 18. Ne5 Qe6 19. Nd3 c4 20. Ne1 Bc5 21. Nf3 Ng4 22. e3 g5 23. Bc7 Bxe3 24. Nd4 Bxd4 25. Rxd4 Re8 26. Ba5 Nf6 27. h4 Ne4 28. hxg5 hxg5 {Stachowiak,K (2470)-Klekowski,M (2510) Bydgoszcz 2021 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 14. Rc1 Nf6 15. Bg5 Qb6 16. Qc2 Rfe8 17. Nd2 h6 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. e4 dxe4 20. Bxe4 Rad8 21. Bxb7 Qxb7 22. Nb3 Bd4 23. Nxc5 Bxc5 24. Qxc5 Qxb2 25. Qxa7 {½-½ (25) Aronian,L (2805)-Korobov,A (2652) Riadh 2017}) ({RR} 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Qd7 16. Rc2 d4 17. Bxb7 Qxb7 18. Bf4 Qd5 19. b3 {½-½ (19) Magalashvili,D (2500)-Simantsev,M (2371) Ankara 2019}) 14... cxb4 15. Rc7 Nc5 16. Nd4 Rc8 17. Rxc8 Qxc8 18. Qb1 a5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.16"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2664"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Bd6 11. Be3 $146 ({RR} 11. Bg5 Nbd7 12. Rd1 Qb8 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. Nbd2 Rc8 15. Ng5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qb7+ 17. Kg1 c5 18. Nde4 Nxe4 19. Nxe4 Qb6 20. d5 exd5 21. Rxd5 Be7 22. Rad1 Qe6 23. a4 h6 24. e3 bxa4 25. Qxa4 Rab8 {Speelman,J (2570)-Browne,W (2540) Wijk aan Zee 1983 ½-½ (63)}) ({RR} 11. a3 Nbd7 12. b4 ({RR} 12. Ba5) 12... Ra7 ({RR} 12... Nb6 13. Nc3 Nbd5 ({RR} 13... Nc4 14. e4) 14. Na2 Nb6 15. Nc3 Nbd5 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 ({RR} 16... Bxd5) 17. Qe4 ({RR} 17. Ng5 g6 18. Ne4) 17... h6 18. Ne5 Rb8 19. Qc2 Bxe5 20. dxe5 Qe7 21. e4 Nb6 22. Be3) ({RR} 12... Be4 13. Qb2 Bd5 14. Bg5 Qb8 15. Bxf6 Nxf6 16. Nc3 a5 ({RR} 16... Bb7 17. Nd2 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 a5 19. Nde4 Nxe4 20. Nxe4 axb4 21. axb4 Ra4) 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Ne5 axb4 19. axb4 Ra4 20. Nc6 Qa8 ({RR} 20... Qb7 21. Rfc1 Rfa8) 21. Rfc1 Rxa1 22. Qxa1 Qa4 23. Qc3) 13. Nc3 ({RR} 13. a4 bxa4 14. Rxa4 Qa8 15. Na3 Ne4 16. Rb1 Nxd2 17. Qxd2 Rb8 18. Nc4 Nb6 19. Nxb6 cxb6 20. Rba1 Rc8 21. Ne1) 13... Qa8 14. Nh4 Bxg2 15. Nxg2 c6 ({RR} 15... e5 16. Be3 Rb7 17. Rfd1) 16. Rac1 ({RR} 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Qxe4 Rc8 18. Rfc1 a5 19. bxa5) 16... a5 17. Ne4 Nxe4 18. Qxe4 Rc8 19. Nf4 axb4 20. Bxb4 ({RR} 20. axb4 Nf6 21. Qb1 Ra3 22. Nd3 Qa7 23. e3 Ne4 24. Rfd1) 20... c5 21. Qxa8 Raxa8 22. dxc5 Bxc5 23. Nd3 Bf8 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rb1 Ra8 {Carlsen,M (2872)-Aronian,L (2809) London 2013 CBM 154 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11. Bg5 Nbd7 12. Nbd2 Rc8 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. e4 Be7 15. e5 Nd5 16. Nb3 Nb4 17. Qc3 Nd5 18. Qc2 Nb4 19. Qc3 Nd5 20. Qc2 Nb4 {½-½ (20) Krishna,C (2327)-Thejkumar,M (2435) Dindigul 2014}) ({RR} 11. Re1 Be4 12. Qc1 Bb7 13. Qc2 Be4 14. Qc1 Bb7 15. Qc2 Be4 {½-½ (15) Swinkels,R (2478)-Zhigalko,S (2640) Plovdiv 2010}) 11... Nbd7 12. Nbd2 Qe7 13. Nb3 Be4 14. Qc1 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Bxg2 17. Nc6 Bxc6 18. Qxc6 Ng4 19. Bd4 Qxe2 20. Rfe1 Qd3 21. h3 Nh6 22. Be5 Bxe5 23. Rxe5 Nf5 24. Rae1 g6 25. Rd5 Qc4 26. Rc5 Qd3 27. Rd5 Qc4 28. Rc5 Qd3 29. Rd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.18"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Volokitin, Andrei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2765"]
[BlackElo "2684"]
[PlyCount "158"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 c6 10. Bd3 Nxc3 11. Rxc3 Nd7 12. Qc2 dxc4 ({RR} 12... Qd6 13. O-O dxc4 14. Bxc4 e5 15. Rd1 exd4 16. Rxd4 Qc7 17. Qe4 c5 18. Rd1 Nf6 19. Qe5 Qb6 20. Bb3 Qa6 21. Rd6 b6 22. Rxc5 Nd7 23. Qc3 Nxc5 24. Rg6 {1-0 (24) Ivanisevic,I (2536)-Muratovic,A (2513) Senta SRB 2024}) 13. Bxc4 e5 ({RR} 13... b6 14. Bd3 c5 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. Be4 Rb8 17. O-O a5 18. Rd1 Bb7 19. Bxb7 Rxb7 20. a3 Rc8 21. b4 axb4 22. axb4 Rbc7 23. Rc1 c4 24. Qa4 Nf6 25. Ne5 Ra7 26. Qb5 Qe8 27. Qxb6 Qa4 28. Rxc4 {Van Wely,L (2677)-Volokitin,A (2684) Foros 2008 1-0 (41)}) 14. Qe4 $146 ({RR} 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. f4 Qe7 17. O-O Be6 18. Qe4 Rfe8 19. Bxe6 Qxe6 20. Qxe6 Rxe6 21. Rd1 Kf8 22. Kf2 Rc8 23. Rd7 Re7 24. Rcd3 Ke8 25. R7d6 c5 26. b3 Rec7 27. Kf3 c4 28. Rc3 Ke7 {Van Wely,L (2681)-Azmaiparashvili,Z (2672) chessassistantclub.com INT 2004 0-1 (78)}) ({RR} 14. O-O exd4 15. exd4 Qd6 16. Re1 Nb6 17. Bb3 Nd5 18. Ne5 Be6 19. Rg3 Nc7 20. Re4 Rad8 21. h3 Bxb3 22. Qxb3 Ne6 23. Qxb7 Nxd4 24. Rd3 c5 25. b4 Qb6 26. Qxb6 axb6 27. bxc5 bxc5 28. Kf1 Rfe8 {Grischuk,A (2736)-Jakovenko,D (2736) Khanty-Mansiysk 2009 ½-½}) ({RR} 14. O-O exd4 15. exd4 Qd6 16. Qe4 Nf6 17. Qh4 Be6 18. Bxe6 Qxe6 19. Ne5 Rfd8 20. Re1 Nd7 21. Nf3 Qf6 22. Qg4 Nf8 23. h4 Ne6 24. Re4 Rd5 25. Ne5 Nxd4 26. Rce3 Nf5 27. Re1 Rad8 28. Qf4 Rd1 {Dumitrache,D (2454)-Berry,N (2327) Rogaska Slatina 2011 1-0 (59)}) 14... Re8 15. O-O exd4 16. Qxe7 Rxe7 17. Nxd4 g6 18. Rd1 a6 19. f3 c5 20. Ne2 b5 21. Bd5 Ra7 22. Nf4 Kg7 23. b3 b4 24. Rcd3 a5 25. e4 a4 26. R3d2 axb3 27. Bxb3 Nb6 28. Rc1 Rec7 29. Rdc2 g5 30. Nd5 Nxd5 31. exd5 Ra5 32. Rc4 Ba6 33. d6 Rd7 34. Rxc5 Rxc5 35. Rxc5 Rxd6 36. Rc7 Rf6 37. Kf2 g4 38. Ke3 Bf1 39. Rc2 gxf3 40. gxf3 Bh3 41. Rc7 Bg2 42. f4 Rf5 43. Rd7 Bc6 44. Rd6 Bh1 45. Rd4 Rh5 46. Rd2 Rh3+ 47. Kd4 Rf3 48. Rd1 Bg2 49. Ke5 Re3+ 50. Kd6 Bh3 51. Kc5 Re2 52. Kxb4 Rxh2 53. a4 Rf2 54. Rd4 h5 55. a5 Bf1 56. Bc4 h4 57. Bxf1 Rxf1 58. f5 h3 59. Rh4 Rh1 60. a6 h2 61. a7 Ra1 62. Rxh2 Rxa7 63. Kc5 Rd7 64. Kc6 Rd3 65. Ra2 Kf6 66. Ra7 Rd8 67. Kc5 Rd1 68. Kc4 Rd2 69. Kc5 Rf2 70. Kd4 Rxf5 71. Ke3 Rf1 72. Ra5 Kg6 73. Ra8 Kf5 74. Ke2 Rf4 75. Ke3 f6 76. Rb8 Ra4 77. Kf3 Ra3+ 78. Kf2 Kg5 79. Rb4 f5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Foros Aerosvit 3rd"]
[Site "Foros"]
[Date "2008.06.19"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2732"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2008.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 125"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.07.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {L'Ami,Erwin} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Na5 ({RR} 10... b6 11. dxc5 Qc7) 11. Bd3 b6 12. Qd2 e5 13. Bh6 exd4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. cxd4 cxd4 16. Rac1 ({RR} 16. f4 f6 17. e5 Bd7 18. Nxd4 Nc6) ({RR} 16. f4 f6 17. f5 Nc6 18. Bc4 gxf5 19. Bd5 Bd7 20. Nxd4 Nxd4 21. Bxa8 Bb5 22. Bd5 Bxf1 23. Rxf1 Ne6 24. Rxf5 Nc7 25. Rh5 Qe7 26. Rh3 Kh8 27. Rd3 Rd8 28. h3 f5 29. Qc3+ Qg7 30. Qc6 Qa1+ {Kim,S (2295)-Mamedyarov,S (2733) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (39)}) 16... Bb7 ({RR} 16... Qd6 17. f4 f6 18. f5 Qe5 19. Nf4 g5 20. Nh5+ Kg8 ({RR} 20... Kh8 21. h4 Rg8 22. Nxf6 ({RR} 22. Qe1) 22... Qxf6 23. e5 Qxe5 24. f6 Be6 ({RR} 24... Qe3+ 25. Qxe3 dxe3 26. Rc7) 25. f7 Rgf8 26. Rce1 Qd5 ({RR} 26... Qd6 27. Rf6) 27. Be4 Nc4 28. Qf2 Rxf7 ({RR} 28... Qd8 29. Bd5) 29. Bxd5 Rxf2 30. Bxa8 Rxf1+ 31. Rxf1 ({RR} 31. Kxf1 Ne3+ 32. Kf2 gxh4 33. Re2 Kg7 34. Rd2 Nf5) 31... d3 32. Rf8+ Kg7 33. Rd8) 21. h4 h6 22. hxg5 hxg5 23. Rf3 Kf7 ({RR} 23... Bd7 24. Rg3 Rac8 25. Nxf6+ Qxf6 26. Re1 Rc3 27. Rxg5+ Kf7 28. e5 Rxd3 29. Qf4) 24. Nxf6 Kxf6 ({RR} 24... Qxf6 25. Rh3 Bd7 ({RR} 25... Ke8 26. e5) ({RR} 25... Kg8 26. Rh5) ({RR} 25... Bb7 26. e5 Qxe5 27. Rh7+ Kf6 28. Re1) 26. Rh7+ Ke8 27. e5) 25. Rh3 Rg8 ({RR} 25... Qf4 26. e5+ Kxe5 27. Qe2+ Kd5 28. Rf1) 26. Rh6+ Kf7 27. Rh7+ Ke8 28. Rcc7 Kd8 29. Bb5 Qxe4 ({RR} 29... a6 30. Rce7 Qc5 31. Qxg5) 30. Rxc8+ {1-0 (30) Topalov,V (2805)-Anand,V (2787) Sofia 2010 CBM 136 [L'Ami,Erwin]} {RR} Kxc8 31. Qc1+ Nc6 32. Bxc6 Qe3+ 33. Qxe3 dxe3 34. Bxa8) 17. f4 Rc8 18. Rxc8 Qxc8 $146 ({RR} 18... Bxc8 19. f5 Nc6 20. Nf4 Ne5 21. Nd5 {½-½ (21) Peralta,F (2558)-Alonso,S (2437) La Plata 2008}) ({RR} 18... Bxc8 19. f5 Nb7 20. f6+ Kh8 21. e5 Nc5 22. Nf4 g5 23. Bxh7 Kxh7 24. Nh3 Rh8 25. Qxg5 Ne6 26. Qg4 Qf8 27. Rf5 Nf4 28. Ng5+ Kh6 29. Qxf4 Kg6 30. Ne6 {1-0 (30) Ganguly,S (2644)-So,W (2669) Guangzhou 2010}) 19. f5 Nc6 20. Rf3 Ne5 21. Rh3 Rh8 22. f6+ Kg8 23. Qh6 Qf8 24. Qxf8+ Kxf8 25. Nxd4 Ke8 26. Bb5+ Kd8 27. Rc3 a6 28. Ba4 b5 29. Bb3 Re8 30. Nf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.20"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2569"]
[PlyCount "127"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. d5 exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. O-O Be7 10. Rd1 Nc6 11. Qf5 Nf6 12. e4 d6 13. e5 Qd7 14. Qxd7+ Nxd7 15. exd6 Bf6 16. Re1+ Kf8 17. Nc3 Nb4 18. Bg5 $146 ({RR} 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Bxb7 Rd8 20. Rd1 Nc4 21. d7 Nc2 22. Rb1 Nd4 23. b4 Rxd7 24. Bd5 Nd6 25. bxc5 bxc5 26. Ba3 Ke7 27. Bxc5 Ne6 28. Bb4 a5 29. Bxa5 Rc8 30. Na4 Nc4 31. Rbc1 Be5 32. Bb4+ Kf6 {Giri,A (2764)-Carlsen,M (2859) Wijk aan Zee NED 2023 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Bxb7 Rd8 20. Rd1 Nc4 21. d7 Nc2 22. Rb1 Nd4 23. b4 Rxd7 24. Bd5 Nd6 25. bxc5 bxc5 26. Ba3 Ke7 27. Bxc5 Ne6 28. Bb4 a5 29. Bxa5 Rc8 30. Na4 Nc4 31. Rbc1 Be5 32. Bb4+ Kf6 {Giri,A (2764)-Carlsen,M (2859) Wijk aan Zee NED 2023 1-0 (35)}) 18... Nc2 19. Re7 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Bxg5 21. Rxd7 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Rd1 Nd4 24. Bg2 h5 25. a4 a6 26. Bb7 Rh6 27. d7 Rd6 28. Bc8 Nf3+ 29. Kg2 Rxd1 30. Nxd1 Ne1+ 31. Kf1 Nf3 32. h4 Ke7 33. Ne3 g6 34. Bxa6 Kxd7 35. Ke2 Ne5 36. f4 Ng4 37. Bb5+ Ke7 38. Nd5+ Kd6 39. Bc4 Nh6 40. Ne3 Bf6 41. Bd3 Bd8 42. Kf3 Ng4 43. Nxg4 hxg4+ 44. Kxg4 Ke6 45. Bc4+ Ke7 46. Kf3 f5 47. Ke2 Kf8 48. Kd3 Bf6 49. b3 Bb2 50. Bd5 Ba3 51. Kc4 Bb4 52. Kb5 Ba5 53. Bc4 Ke7 54. Kc6 Kf6 55. Bd3 Kf7 56. h5 gxh5 57. Bxf5 Kf6 58. Be4 Kg7 59. Bf3 Kh6 60. Kb5 Kg6 61. Bd1 Kh6 62. Be2 Kg6 63. Bf3 Kh6 64. Bc6 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.21"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Alekseev, Evgeny V"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2708"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. dxc5 bxc5 8. O-O Be7 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Rd1 Qb6 11. Bf4 Rd8 12. Rd2 d6 ({RR} 12... d5) 13. Rad1 a6 ({RR} 13... Ne8 14. e4 ({RR} 14. Nb5 Na6 15. Qc2 ({RR} 15. a3 h6 16. Ne1 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Nac7 18. Nxc7 Qxc7 19. Qa6) 15... h6 16. h3 ({RR} 16. Nc3) 16... d5 17. g4 Nb4 18. Qb1 dxc4 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Rxd8 Bxd8 21. Na3 Bf6 22. Nxc4 Qa6 23. Nfd2 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 Qxa2 ({RR} 24... Nxa2 25. Qe4 Qc8) 25. Qxa2 Nxa2 26. Nb3 Be7 27. Bb8 a6 28. Ba7) ({RR} 14. Bg5 Bxg5 ({RR} 14... Nc6) 15. Nxg5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2) ({RR} 14. Ng5 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 h6 16. Nge4 f5) 14... Bc6 15. Qc2 Nd7 ({RR} 15... Qb7) 16. e5 dxe5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Nf6 20. Ne4 Rxd2 ({RR} 20... Qc6 21. f3 Nxe4 22. Qxe4 Qxe4 23. fxe4 Kf8 24. Kf3 f6 25. Bc7 Rxd2 26. Rxd2 Ke8 27. g4 a5 28. Rd3 ({RR} 28. e5) 28... e5 29. Ke3 Ra6 30. Kd2 a4 31. Kc2 Kf7 32. a3 Ke6 33. h3 Ra7 34. Bb6 Ra6 35. Bc7) 21. Rxd2 Rd8 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. g4 h5 24. h3 ({RR} 24. gxh5 f5 25. Ng3 Bf6) 24... hxg4 25. hxg4 Rxd2 26. Qxd2 Qc6 27. f3 f5 28. gxf5 {Mamedyarov,S (2752)-Kramnik,V (2788) Dortmund 2008 CBM 125 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 13... h6) 14. Qc2 ({RR} 14. Ng5) ({RR} 14. h3 h6 15. g4 Ne8 16. Qc2 Nd7 17. b3 Ndf6 18. Bg3 Bc6 19. e4 Qb7 20. Re1 Bf8 21. Qd3 g6 22. Qe3 Bg7 23. e5 dxe5 24. Rxd8 Rxd8 25. Bxe5 Bf8 26. Nh4 Nd7 27. Bxc6 Qxc6 28. Bg3 Ndf6 {Khismatullin,D (2540)-Esipenko,A (2677) Sochi RUS 2024 0-1 (44)}) 14... Qc7 15. e4 $146 ({RR} 15. Ng5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 h6 17. Nge4 Ne8 18. g4 Ra7 19. f3 Rb7 20. h4 Qc6 21. Qa4 Qb6 22. a3 Rbd7 23. b4 cxb4 24. axb4 Qb7 25. h5 Qc8 26. Qa2 Nc6 27. b5 axb5 28. Nxb5 Nb4 29. Qb3 d5 {Arat,U (2361)-Sanal,V (2487) Nakhchivan 2015 ½-½ (69)}) 15... Nh5 16. Be3 Nc6 17. h3 h6 18. Nh2 Rac8 19. Nf1 Nf6 20. f4 d5 21. cxd5 Nd4 22. Qb1 exd5 23. e5 Ne4 24. Nxe4 dxe4 25. Kf2 Nf3 26. Rxd8+ Rxd8 27. Rxd8+ Qxd8 28. Qc1 g5 29. Bxf3 exf3 30. fxg5 hxg5 31. Qd2 Qb6 32. Nh2 Qg6 33. Ng4 c4 34. Nf6+ Kg7 35. g4 Qd3 36. Ne8+ Kg6 37. Nd6 Ba8 38. b3 Qxd2+ 39. Bxd2 cxb3 40. axb3 f6 41. Bc3 fxe5 42. Bxe5 a5 43. Nf5 Bd8 44. Bc3 Bb7 45. Nd4 Bf6 46. Ke3 Be5 47. Be1 Bxd4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.22"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D36"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2691"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. cxd5 exd5 7. e3 Be7 8. Qc2 Nh5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. O-O-O Nb6 11. h3 Be6 12. Bd3 O-O-O 13. Kb1 Kb8 14. Nd2 ({RR} 14. Ka1 g6 15. g4 Nf6 16. Ne5 h5 17. f3 Nfd7 18. Qh2 Ka8 19. Nxd7 Bxd7 20. Qf2 Rde8 21. Rhe1 hxg4 22. hxg4 Qh4 23. Rd2 Qxf2 24. Rxf2 Rh3 25. Kb1 Kb8 26. Kc2 Nc8 27. Kd2 Nd6 28. Ne2 g5 {Ashraf,A (2399)-Sarana,A (2695) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (75)}) 14... g6 15. Nb3 Ng7 16. f3 $146 ({RR} 16. Nc5 Bf5 17. Ka1 Bxd3 18. Nxd3 Nf5 19. Rc1 Nd6 20. Qb3 Rhe8 21. Rc2 Qg5 22. g3 Qf5 23. Nc5 Ka8 24. h4 h6 25. Rhc1 g5 26. hxg5 hxg5 27. Qb4 Rh8 28. a4 Rh1 29. Rxh1 Qxc2 30. a5 Nbc4 {Vidit,S (2554)-Hracek,Z (2625) Golden Sands 2013 ½-½ (38)}) 16... Bf5 17. Bxf5 Nxf5 18. Rhe1 Nc4 19. Qc1 Qg5 20. g4 Ng7 21. f4 Qh4 22. e4 Qxh3 23. exd5 cxd5 24. Nc5 Ne6 25. b3 Nxc5 26. dxc5 Na5 27. b4 Nc4 28. Nxd5 Na3+ 29. Ka1 Rhe8 30. c6 bxc6 31. Qxc6 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.24"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Onischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D19"]
[WhiteElo "2670"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. e3 e6 7. Bxc4 Bb4 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Qe2 Bg4 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 O-O 12. Rd1 e5 13. d5 Bxc3 14. dxc6 e4 15. Qe2 Be5 16. cxd7 Qe7 17. Ra2 Rfd8 18. b3 Rxd7 19. Rxd7 Qxd7 20. Rd2 Qe7 21. Rd1 h6 22. Qa2 $146 ({RR} 22. Bd2 Rc8 23. Qe1 Rd8 24. Bc1 Rc8 25. Qa5 Re8 26. Qxa7 Rd8 27. Rxd8+ Qxd8 28. Bf1 Qd1 29. Qc5 Nd7 30. Qc8+ Kh7 31. Qxb7 f5 32. Qc6 Bf6 33. Ba3 Ne5 34. Qe6 Kg6 35. Bb2 Nd7 36. a5 Kg5 {L'Ami,E (2617)-Hector,J (2537) Malmo 2007 1-0 (40)}) 22... Rd8 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 24. Qd2 Qe7 25. Qa5 b6 26. Qd2 a5 27. Bb2 Bxb2 28. Qxb2 Kf8 29. Qd4 Qc7 30. Kf1 Ke7 31. Ke2 g5 32. g3 Qc5 33. Qxc5+ bxc5 34. f4 Ne8 35. g4 Nd6 36. Bd5 Kf6 37. Kf2 Kg6 38. Kg3 f6 39. Be6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.26"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2569"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Postny,Evgeny Aronian,Levon} Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 d5 {I wanted to play for a win. I don't know about Yannick's intentions, but anyway 7...c6 wasn't satisfactory. Ich wollte auf Gewinn spielen. Ich weiß nicht, wie es um Yannicks Absichten bestellt war, aber so oder so war 7...c6 jedenfalls nicht zufriedenstellend.} ({RR} 7... c6 8. Bc3 d5) 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Nc3 O-O 10. O-O Bb7 11. Rc1 Nbd7 {The normal way to treat these positions is to put the knight on a6, from where it can be transferred to e6 via c7 after having played ...c5. The text move was played by Leko against van Wely in Dortmund. The knight will still usually go to e6, in this case via f8.  Die normale Behandlungsweise dieser Stellungen besteht darin, den Springer nach a6 zu stellen, von wo er nach ...c5 über c7 nach e6 überführt werden kann. Der Textzug wurde von Leko gegen van Wely in Dortmund gespielt. Der Springer wird meist trotzdem nach e6 gehen, in diesem Fall über f8.} 12. Bf4 {With the knight on d7 it is better to put the pawn on c6, because d5 would be weaker than with the knight on a6, and in addition the c7-square would not be covered in case of an eventual b5. Mit dem Springer auf d7 ist es besser, den Bauern nach c6 zu stellen, denn ohne den Springer auf a6 wäre d5 schwächer, und außerdem wäre im Fall eines eventuellen b5 das Feld c7 nicht gedeckt.} ({RR} 12. Qc2 Re8 13. Rfd1 c6 14. Ne1 Nf8 15. Bg5 ({RR} 15. e4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Ne6) 15... Ne6 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. e3 a5 18. Nd3 Be7 19. Rb1 Ba3 ({RR} 19... Bd6) 20. b4 axb4 21. Nxb4 Qe7 22. Qb3 Ra7 ({RR} 22... b5 23. e4 ({RR} 23. Nc2 Reb8) 23... dxe4 24. Bxe4 Bxb4 25. Qxb4 Qxb4 26. Rxb4 Red8 27. Nxb5 Rxa2 28. Nc3 Ra3 29. Rxb7 Rxc3) 23. Nc2 b5 ({RR} 23... Bd6 24. Qxb6 Ba8) 24. Bxd5 cxd5 25. Nxb5 Ra6 26. Nbxa3 Bc8 {Grischuk,A (2719)-Leko,P (2747) Elista 2008 CBM 128 [Postny,Evgeny] 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 12. Nh4 Re8 13. Nf5 Ba3 14. Rc2 c6 15. Bf4 Nf8 16. Bc1 Bxc1 17. Qxc1 g6 18. Nh4 Ne6 19. Nf3 Qe7 20. e3 Rad8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Na4 c4 23. Nc3 a6 24. a4 Qb4 25. Nd2 cxb3 26. Rb2 Rc8 {Gu,X (2218)-Yu,S (1973) Ji'an CHN 2025 1-0 (46)}) 12... c6 13. Qc2 Re8 14. Rcd1 {The idea of this slightly weird-looking move is to play e5, when the rook would be well placed on d1. However, after Black's response, e5 will not really have the desired effect, and White will have to change plans. Still the move cannot really be called a mistake, as nothing much is happening here anyway, and a tempo loss isn't that serious. Die Idee dieses etwas seltsam wirkenden Zuges ist, e5 zu spielen, wonach der Turm auf d1 gut stände. Doch nach der schwarzen Erwiderung wird e5 eindeutig nicht den gewünschten Effekt haben, und Weiß wird umdenken müssen. Trotzdem ist der Zug nicht wirklich als Fehler zu bezeichnen, da sowieso nicht viel los ist und ein Tempoverlust nicht so tragisch ausfällt.} ({RR} 14. Qb2 Nf8 15. b4 Ne6 16. Be3 Bd6 17. a4 Qe7 18. Rb1 a6 19. Bd2 Rab8 20. e3 c5 21. bxc5 bxc5 22. Qa2 g6 23. dxc5 Bxc5 24. Ne2 Ne4) 14... Bb4 $146 ({RR} 14... Nh5 15. Kh1 ({RR} 15. Bc1 Bb4 16. e3 Nhf6) 15... Bb4 16. e3 Qe7 ({RR} 16... h6 17. Ne2 g5 18. g4 Nxf4 ({RR} 18... Nhf6 19. Bg3 Nxg4 20. h3 Ngf6 21. Ne5) ({RR} 18... gxf4 19. gxh5 fxe3 20. Bh3) 19. exf4 Ba6 20. Ng3 Bxf1 21. Bxf1 gxf4 22. Nf5) 17. Ne2 h6 ({RR} 17... Ba6 18. Rg1 Qe4 19. Qb2 Qe6 ({RR} 19... Bxe2 20. Qxe2 Nxf4 21. gxf4 Qxf4 22. Ne5 Rxe5 23. dxe5 Qxe5 24. Bxd5 cxd5 25. Qg4 Bd6 26. Qg2) 20. Ne5 Nhf6) 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. dxe5 g5 ({RR} 19... f6 20. Bf3 Nxf4 21. exf6 Qxf6 22. gxf4) 20. Nd4 gxf4 ({RR} 20... Ng7 21. Nxc6 Qc5 22. Qxc5 Bxc5 23. Bxd5 a5) 21. gxf4 Ng7 22. Rg1 Kh8 23. Bf3 ({RR} 23. Bxd5 cxd5 24. Rxg7 Kxg7 25. Nf5+ Kh8 26. Nxe7 Rxe7) 23... Rg8 24. Rg3 Ne6 ({RR} 24... Qd7 25. Rdg1 Ne6 26. Qf5 Rxg3 27. Rxg3 Qe7 28. Rh3) 25. Rh3 ({RR} 25. Nf5 Rxg3 26. Nxe7 Rxf3 27. Ng6+) 25... Rg6 26. Nf5 ({RR} 26. f5 Ng5 27. Rh4 c5 28. fxg6 cxd4) ({RR} 26. Nxe6 Rxe6 27. f5) 26... Qf8 ({RR} 26... Qc5 27. Qb1) 27. Bh5 Kh7 28. Nxh6 Qxh6 29. Rg1 {Aronian,L (2693)-Huzman,A (2577) Warsaw 2005 CBM 108 [Aronian,Levon] 1-0 (61)}) ({RR} 14... Nf8 15. e4 Nxe4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Qxe4 Bb4 18. Qf5) 15. Bd2 (15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 (16. dxe5 Ng4) 16... Nd7 {fails to impress. vermag nicht zu beeindrucken.}) ({RR} 15. Rfe1) 15... Rc8 16. Qb2 Qe7 17. Rfe1 Qf8 {A totally unnecessary move, as e4 xc3 exd5 will probably never really be an issue. However, since my opponent had already consumed a lot of time, and didn't seem to have found a plan, I thought it might be a good idea to just wait and see. Ein total unnötiger Zug, da e4 xc3 exd5 wahrscheinlich nie wirklich ein Thema sein wird. Aber da mein Gegner bereits eine Menge Zeit verbraucht hatte und keinen Plan gefunden zu haben schien, hielt ich es für eine gute Idee, einfach abzuwarten.} 18. Bh3 Rcd8 19. Qc2 h6 $5 ({The normal Das normale} 19... Ne4 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. Bxd7 Rxd7 22. Bxb4 Qxb4 23. Ne5 Rxd4 24. Nxc6 Bxc6 25. Qxc6 Red8 26. Rxd4 $1 {is obviously fine for Black, but not especially interesting. I wanted to keep the pieces on the board! ist offensichtlich in Ordnung für Schwarz, aber nicht sonderlich interessant. Ich wollte die Figuren auf dem Brett behalten!}) 20. Nh4 {Probably a good move, even if this is what I wanted to provoke with my previous move. The knight looks nice on f5, but it is also a bit loose. Wahrscheinlich ein guter Zug, auch wenn ich genau dies mit meinem vorigen Zug provozieren wollte. Der Springer sieht gut aus auf f5, hängt aber auch ein bisschen in der Luft.} c5 21. Nf5 a6 {I felt that I had to cover the b5-square, and this certainly felt more natural than the computer suggestion of a6. Ich spürte, dass ich das Feld b5 decken musste, und dies fühlte sich gewiss natürlicher an als der Computervorschlag a6.} 22. Qb2 Bxc3 {I decided that it was time to ease the pressure. Ich beschloss, dass es Zeit war, den Druck zu lindern.} ({Rybka's suggestion of Rybkas Vorschlag} 22... cxd4 23. Nxd4 Ne5 {with nice piece play as compensation for the isolated pawn is probably also fine. mit schönem Figurenspiel als Kompensation für den isolierten Bauern ist wahrscheinlich auch gut.}) 23. Bxc3 Ne4 24. dxc5 Nxc3 25. Qxc3 bxc5 26. Qa5 Nf6 27. Qb6 $2 {The critical moment in the game. Pelletier got too excited and missed a simple tactic, after which the white pieces are suddenly loose, and soon everything falls apart. Der kritische Moment in der Partie. Pelletier wurde zu aufgeregt und übersah eine einfache taktische Wendung, wonach die weißen Figuren plötzlich in der Luft hängen, und bald fällt alles auseinander.} (27. Rc1 Ne4 28. Bg2 Bc8 {or oder}) (27. Bg2 {would have led to a normal position, where Black has a weak pawn pair in the centre, but should have sufficient dynamic counterplay, often connected with the ideas of d4 and e4. hätte zu einer normalen Stellung geführt, wo Schwarz ein schwaches Bauernpaar im Zentrum verfügt, aber genügend dynamisches Gegenspiel haben sollte, oft verbunden mit den Ideen d4 und e4.}) 27... Bc8 $1 28. Kg2 (28. Nxh6+ gxh6 29. Bxc8 Rd6 $1 {is what Pelletier had missed. ist, was Pelletier übersehen hatte.}) (28. f3 Be6 29. e4 g6 30. g4 {is a slightly better chance according to Rybka, but I will refrain from taking this varation any further, as I guess neither of us calculated this, and the position really confuses me. Anyway, Black must be winning here. ist eine etwas bessere Chance laut Rybka, aber ich werde darauf verzichten, diese Variante weiter auszuführen, da m.E. keiner von uns dies berechnet hatte und mich außerdem die Stellung wirklich verwirrt. So oder so, Schwarz muss hier auf Gewinn stehen.}) 28... Ne4 29. f3 Ng5 (29... Nc3 {was another interesting possibilty, which I in the end rejected because after war eine weitere interssante Möglichkeit, welche ich am Ende verwarf, weil ich nach} 30. Rd3 (30. Rd2 d4 {with ...d5 to come is deadly. nebst ...d5 ist tödlich.}) 30... Nxe2 31. Re3 Bxf5 32. R3xe2 Rxe2+ 33. Rxe2 Bd3 {I would "only" be a pawn up. "nur" einen Bauer mehr hätte.}) 30. g4 h5 {The most effective. Am effektivsten.} 31. Rc1 g6 $6 (31... Nxh3 {was more accurate. My choice in the game was based on an oversight. war genauer. Meine Wahl in der Partie fusst auf einem Versehen..} 32. Kxh3 hxg4+ 33. fxg4 g6 34. Ng3 Qh6+ 35. Kg2 Bxg4 {would transpose to the game. würde zur Partie führen.}) 32. Ng3 Nxh3 (32... Qh6 {was my intention, but this fails to war meine Absicht, dies scheitert aber an} 33. Nxh5 (33. Nf5 {is also reasonable. ist ebenfalls vernünftig.}) 33... Nxh3 34. Nf6+) 33. Kxh3 hxg4+ 34. fxg4 $6 (34. Kg2 {was a better chance, even if Black is nearly winning anyway. war eine bessere Chance, auch wenn Schwarz trotzdem nahezu auf Gewinn steht.}) 34... Qh6+ 35. Kg2 Bxg4 36. Qxc5 {Losing immediately, but it was hard to suggest anything reasonable anyway. Verliert auf der Stelle, aber es war auch schwer, etwas Vernünftiges vorzuschlagen.} Re3 $2 (36... Rc8 {is the most obvious move, and I tried for a while to find a forced win after it. Unfortunately the right solution ist der offensichtlichste Zug, und ich versuchte eine Weile, danach einen forcierten Gewinn zu finden. Leider kam mir die richtige Lösung} 37. Qa3 Rxe2+ $1 38. Nxe2 (38. Rxe2 Rxc1 $19) 38... Qh3+ 39. Kf2 Qf3+ 40. Kg1 Qe3+ 41. Kg2 Bh3+ {with mate never crossed my mind. nebst Matt niemals in den Sinn.}) 37. Qd4 {In serious time-trouble Pelletier allows a combination. It has to be said that White was in serious trouble anyway though. In ernster Zeitnot lässt Pelletier eine Kombination zu. Dazu ist zu sagen, dass Weiß sowieso in großen Schwierigkeiten steckte.} (37. Kg1 {is what I considered the best defence, after which I planned hielt ich für die beste Verteidigung, wonach ich} Rc8 38. Qa3 Rce8 {which should still give Black a practically winning advantage. plante, was Schwarz noch immer einen praktisch gewinnbringenden Vorteil geben sollte.}) 37... Qh3+ 38. Kg1 Rxg3+ 39. hxg3 Qxg3+ 40. Kh1 Bf5 {Pelletier resigned because of Pelletier gab auf wegen} (40... Bf5 41. Red1 Qg5 $1 {protecting d8 in case of xe4. The decisive e4 will now follow. , was d8 deckt für den Fall von xe4. Das entscheidende e4 wird nun folgen.}) 0-1

[Event "Biel GM 41st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2008.07.29"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2691"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2008.07.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail Carlsen,Magnus} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 ({RR} 4... b6) 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O ({RR} 6... Ne4 7. Qd3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Nc5 9. Qf3 d6 10. Bg2 e5 11. Nf5 Qf6 12. Ne3 Qxf3 13. Bxf3 Be6 14. Ba3 Nba6 15. O-O-O Ke7 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. f4 f6 18. Rhf1 b6 19. g4 Nc7 20. h4) 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 ({RR} 14... Rab8 15. c4 Qc5 16. cxd5 Rxb3 17. axb3) ({RR} 14... Bxe2 15. c4) 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Bf4 ({RR} 18. Re1 c5 ({RR} 18... Be2 19. h3 Rfd8 ({RR} 19... c5 20. Qb3) 20. Bf4 Rac8 ({RR} 20... e5 21. g4 Qg6 22. Bxe5) 21. g4 Qb5 22. a4 Qa6 23. a5) 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 ({RR} 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Be6) 20... Be2 21. Bf4 ({RR} 21. h3 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Qe5) 21... e5 22. Be3 ({RR} 22. Bxe5 Nc4 23. Qa6 Qxe5 24. Rxe2 Qxc3) 22... Bg4 ({RR} 22... Nc4 23. Qa6 Nxe3 ({RR} 23... Bd3 24. Rad1) 24. Rxe2 Nxg2 25. Kxg2) ({RR} 22... f6 23. Bxc5 Nc4 24. Qb5 Rab8 25. Qd7 Rxc5 26. Rab1 Rb6 ({RR} 26... Rf8 27. Rb7 Qf7 28. Rxe2) ({RR} 26... Rxb1 27. Rxb1 h6 ({RR} 27... Nb6 28. Qxa7) 28. Bh3) 27. Bh3 Kf8 28. Rxb6 axb6 29. Be6 Qe8 30. Qxe8+ Kxe8 31. Rxe2) ({RR} 22... h6 23. h3) 23. Qa6 f6 24. a4 Qf7 25. Bf1 Be6 26. Rab1 ({RR} 26. a5 Bc4 27. Bxc4 Nxc4 ({RR} 27... Qxc4 28. axb6) 28. Rab1 Rc7) 26... c4 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... Bc4 27. Bxc4 Qxc4 ({RR} 27... Nxc4 28. Rb7) 28. Rxb6) ({RR} 26... f5 27. exf5) 27. a5 Na4 ({RR} 27... Nd7 28. Rb7) 28. Rb7 Qe8 29. Qd6 {1-0 (29) Kramnik,V (2772)-Anand,V (2783) Bonn 2008 CBM 127 [Marin,Mihail]} {RR} Bf7 30. Qb4 Rab8 31. a6) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Rd2 Rab8 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qd6 Rfc8 ({RR} 21... Bf3 22. Qxc6 Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Qe5 24. Qc4 Rfc8 25. Qd4 Qa5 26. Rb1 h6 27. Rb4 Qc5 28. Rd3 Qc7) 22. Rb1 h6 23. e5 Bf3 24. a4 Ra8 25. Qd4 b5 26. Bxf3 Qxf3 27. Rd3) ({RR} 18. Be3 Be2 19. Re1 Nc4 20. Qc5 Nxe3 21. Qxe3 Bc4 22. Qd4 Be2 23. Qd6 Rac8 24. h3 Rfd8 25. Qe7 a5 26. g4 Qb5 27. Rab1 Qc4 28. Rb7 Rf8 29. Qa3 c5 30. Qxa5 Ra8 31. Ra7 Rxa7 32. Qxa7 h5 {Chatalbashev,B (2466)-Hammer,J (2596) Hell NOR 2024 ½-½ (35)}) 18... c5 ({RR} 18... Be2 19. Re1 c5 20. Qb3 e5 21. Bc1) ({RR} 18... e5) ({RR} 18... Be2) 19. Qb2 ({RR} 19. Qa5 e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 ({RR} 21... Rfc8) 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2) ({RR} 19. Qa5 e5 20. Be3 Be2 21. Re1 Nc4 22. Qa6 Nxe3 23. Rxe2 Nxg2 24. Kxg2 Rad8 25. Rae1 Rd7 26. Qb5 Rfd8 ({RR} 26... Rc7 27. Rd2) 27. Qxc5) ({RR} 19. Qa5 Be2 20. Re1 e5 21. Bxe5 Nc4 22. Qa6 Qxe5 23. Rxe2 Qxc3 24. Ree1 Ne5 25. Rec1 Qd2 26. Rd1 Qb4 27. Rdb1 {½-½ (27) Bacrot,E (2714)-Moiseenko,A (2715) San Sebastian 2012}) 19... Rad8 20. Rxd8 $146 ({RR} 20. Re1 Rd7 21. h3 h6 ({RR} 21... Rfd8 22. Qa3) 22. a4 Ba6 23. Qa2 ({RR} 23. g4 Qh4 24. Red1) 23... Rfd8 24. a5 Nc4 25. Bf1 ({RR} 25. e5 g5 26. g4 ({RR} 26. Bc1 Rd1 27. Ba3 Rxe1+ 28. Rxe1 Rd1 29. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 30. Kh2 Qa4) 26... Qg6 27. Be4 Qg7 28. Bg3 Nd2) 25... e5 26. g4 ({RR} 26. Bc1 Rd1 27. g4 Rxe1 28. gxh5 Rdd1) 26... Qg6 27. Bxc4 exf4 ({RR} 27... Bxc4 28. Qxc4 exf4 29. Qxc5 Rd3) 28. Bd5 f3 29. c4 ({RR} 29. Re3 Be2 30. Rxe2 fxe2 31. Qxe2 Rb8) 29... h5 30. Kh2 Qf6 31. Rg1 hxg4 32. Rab1 ({RR} 32. Rxg4 Bxc4 33. Qxc4 ({RR} 33. Bxc4 Rd2 34. Qa4 ({RR} 34. Qa3 Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Qd4) 34... Rxf2+ 35. Kg1 Rfd2 ({RR} 35... Qd4 36. Bxf7+)) 33... Qxa1 34. Qxc5) ({RR} 32. Rac1 Qf4+ 33. Kh1 Qh6) 32... Bxc4 33. Qxc4 Qf4+ 34. Rg3 Rxd5 {Jakovenko,D (2710)-Carlsen,M (2714) Moscow 2007 CBM 122 [Carlsen,Magnus] 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 20. f3) ({RR} 20. Rd2 e5 21. Be3 Be6 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. f3 Nc4 24. Qf2 h6 25. Bxc5 Rd2 26. Qf1 a5 27. a4 Qg5 28. Qe1 Rd3 29. Rd1 Qd8 30. Rxd3 Qxd3 31. f4 Nd2 32. Be3 Nxe4 33. fxe5 Nxc3 34. Bf1 Qc2 {Feller,S (2523)-Sokolov,A (2561) Pau 2008 ½-½ (36)}) 20... Rxd8 21. f3 ({RR} 21. h3) 21... f5 22. exf5 Qxf5 23. Re1 Qd5 24. Qa3 Qc6 25. Qxa7 Ra8 26. Qe7 Nd5 27. Qd6 Qxd6 28. Bxd6 Nxc3 29. Bxc5 Rxa2 30. Bf1 Bxf1 31. Kxf1 Kf7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2008.09.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D58"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2777"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2008.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Bg3 c5 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. e4 (13. Rc1 {- see Gelashvili-Lputian in CBM 104.}) (13. Qe2) ({RR} 13. Qe2 cxd4 14. Nxd4 Bf6 15. Rfd1 Bxd4 16. exd4 Nb8 17. Rac1 Nc6 18. Bb5 Rc8 19. Rc3 Ne7 20. Ba6 Rxc3 21. bxc3 Nf5 22. Bf4 Qh4 23. Bc1 Rd8 24. f3 Rd7 25. Bd3 Rc7 26. Bd2 Qd8 27. Rc1 Qf6 {Nakamura,H (2798)-So,W (2788) Saint Louis 2015 ½-½ (56)}) 13... Bb7 14. Rc1 a6 $5 $146 {[%cal Rb6b5][%mdl 8] Veselin Topalov deviates from his own game against Kasimdzhanov.} (14... Nf6 {is usually played, with quite a decent position for Black:} 15. Qe2 (15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Qe2 Nh5 17. Be5 a5 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. a3 Rfd8 20. h3 Nf6 21. Nd2 a4 22. Bb1 Rac8 23. Nf3 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Rd8 {1/2 Kasimdzhanov,R (2690)-Topalov,V (2769)/Vitoria Gasteiz 2007/CBM 121 (46)}) 15... Nh5 (15... Rc8 16. dxc5 Rxc5 17. Rxc5 Bxc5 18. Bh4 Qc7 19. Bxf6 gxf6 $13 {0-1 Simeonidis,I (2261)-Kosintseva,N (2480)/Kusadasi 2006/CBM 111 ext (28)}) 16. Rfd1 Nxg3 17. hxg3 cxd4 18. Ba6 Bxa6 19. Qxa6 Rc8 $11 ({but not} 19... e5 $2 20. Nxe5 Bf6 21. Nc6 Qe8 22. e5 $16 {1-0 Danner,G (2408)-Upton,T (2250)/Gothenburg 2005/CBM 109 (48)})) (14... cxd4 $143 15. Bc7 Qe8 16. Nxd4 Nc5 17. Bb5 Qc8 18. Be5 f6 19. Bf4 $14 {1-0 Banikas,H (2571)-Tassopoulos,M (2271)/Kallithea Halkidiki GRE 2008/The Week in Chess 714 (24)}) ({RR} 14... Nf6 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Qe2 Nh5 17. Be5 a5 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. a3 Rfd8 20. h3 Nf6 21. Nd2 a4 22. Bb1 Rac8 23. Nf3 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Rd8 25. Re1 Bc6 26. Bc3 Qe8 27. Ne5 Bb5 28. Qf3 Qe7 29. Rc1 {Kasimdzhanov,R (2690)-Topalov,V (2769) Vitoria Gasteiz 2007 ½-½ (46)}) 15. b4 $146 {Hardly a successful attempt to refute Black's last move.} (15. Re1 b5 16. d5 exd5 (16... c4 $5 $13) 17. exd5 Bxd5 18. Bh7+ Kxh7 19. Qxd5 Nf6 20. Qxd8 Bxd8 21. Rxc5 Bb6 22. Rc6 Nd5 $11) ({RR} 15. Bb1 Nf6 16. Qe2 Rc8 17. Rfd1 Qe8 18. d5 exd5 19. exd5 Bxd5 20. Re1 Be6 21. Qxa6 b5 22. Rxe6 fxe6 23. Ne5 g5 24. Qxe6+ Kg7 25. Re1 Ng8 26. Nd7 Bf6 27. Nxf8 Qxf8 28. Qf5 Qd8 29. Bd6 {1-0 (29) Arutinian,D (2566)-Morchiashvili,B (2370) Tbilisi 2010}) ({RR} 15. Bb1 Nf6 16. Qe2 Rc8 17. Rcd1 c4 18. d5 exd5 19. e5 Nh5 20. Nd4 Nxg3 21. hxg3 Bc5 22. f4 b5 23. Kh2 Qb6 24. Nf5 g6 25. Qg4 Qe6 26. Nxh6+ Kg7 27. f5 Qxe5 28. fxg6 f5 29. Rxf5 Rxf5 {Romanishin,O (2570)-Georgiev,K (2590) Leningrad 1987 1-0 (42)}) 15... cxb4 16. Bc7 $6 {White's compensation for the pawn will now be insufficient.} (16. Rc7 $142 Ra7 $1 {[%cal Yd7f6,Yf6e8]} (16... Rb8 $143 17. Qe2 Nf6 18. Rfc1 $44) 17. Bxa6 (17. Qe2 $143 Nf6 18. Be5 Ne8 19. Rc2 Nd6 20. Rfc1 Nb5 $1 $15) 17... Rxa6 18. Rxb7 Rxa2 19. Qb1 Ra8 20. Rc1 $44) 16... Qe8 17. Qe2 b5 18. Ba5 Rc8 19. Qb2 Nf6 {[%mdl 32] This game perfectly illustrates the situation when a "strong pawn centre" is rather weak!} 20. Rxc8 Qxc8 21. Nd2 $2 {After this mistake Black keeps his material advantage but White had no equality after the best} (21. Re1 Qc3 $1 (21... Qa8 $143 22. Nd2) 22. Qxc3 bxc3 23. Bxc3 Rc8 24. Bd2 b4 $15 {[%csl Gb4,Re4]}) 21... Qc3 $1 22. Qxc3 bxc3 23. Bxc3 Rc8 24. Ba5 (24. Bb2 Bb4 25. Rd1 Bxd2 26. Rxd2 Bxe4 $19) (24. Rc1 Bb4 25. Nb1 Bxe4 $19) 24... Bd8 $1 25. Bxd8 (25. Bb4 Bb6 {[%csl Rd4]}) 25... Rxd8 26. Rd1 Rxd4 {and Black gradually brings home his extra pawn:} 27. Nb3 Rd8 28. f3 Kf8 29. Kf2 Nd7 30. Be2 Ke7 31. Na5 Ba8 32. Rc1 Kd6 33. Ke3 Nb6 34. f4 Rc8 35. Rxc8 Nxc8 36. Kd4 Ne7 37. Bf3 Kc7 38. Nb3 Kb6 39. Ke5 $6 {desperation} Ng6+ 40. Kd6 Nxf4 41. Nc5 (41. Ke7 f5 $1 42. exf5 Bxf3 43. gxf3 exf5 $19) 41... b4 42. h4 a5 43. g3 Nh3 44. Nd7+ Ka7 45. Kc5 f5 46. Kb5 fxe4 47. Bh5 e3 48. Kxa5 g6 49. Bg4 h5 50. Be2 Ng1 51. Bf1 e2 52. Bxe2 Nxe2 53. Nf8 Be4 54. Nxe6 Nxg3 55. Nf4 Kb7 56. Kxb4 Kc6 0-1

[Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2008.09.08"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2737"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2008.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 {This second main continuation has lately been somewhat neglected in the light of all the excitement after} (5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 ({In Foros 2008, Carlsen was twice successful with} 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 {, but his wins had little to do with the opening battle.}) 6... dxc4 7. e4 g5 8. Bg3 b5 {After his loss to Anand in Morelia 2008 (see CBM 123), Carlsen has avoided this sacrificial line with White (the exception being one rapid game against Van Wely).}) 5... Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bb7 9. a3 {Currently a topical sideline.} ({The main moves are 9.e4 and especially} 9. O-O {and now:} {The older} a6 {still seems a safer choice:} (9... b4 10. Ne4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 Bd6 12. a3 bxa3 13. b3 Nf6 14. Nd2 Qc7 15. Bf3 Bxh2+ 16. Kh1 Bd6 17. Nc4 Be7 18. Bxa3 O-O 19. Bc5 $5 $146 (19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Ra5 Rfd8 21. Kg1 c5 $1 22. Rxc5 Ne4 23. Bxe4 Bxe4 24. Qg4 Bd3 25. Ra1 Rac8 26. Raa5 Rb8 27. Qd1 Be4 28. Qa1 Rb7 $11 {/, Topalov,V (2813)-Kramnik,V (2743)/WCh Elista/2006/}) 19... Rfd8 (19... Bxc5 $142 20. dxc5 Rfd8 {} 21. Nd6 Nd7 $132) 20. b4 Bxc5 21. bxc5 a5 22. Re1 Ba6 23. Nb6 Rab8 24. Rxa5 Bb5 25. Qa1 Nd5 (25... Bd3 $5 $14) 26. Ra7 Rb7 27. Rxb7 Qxb7 28. Qa5 {Aronian,L (2737)-Grischuk,A (2728)/Sochi/2008/} Rb8 $1 $14 (28... Nxb6 29. Qxb5 $16)) 10. e4 c5 11. d5 c4 12. Bc2 Qc7 13. dxe6 fxe6 14. Nd4 Nc5 15. Be3 e5 16. Nf5 (16. Nf3 Be7 17. Ng5 O-O $1 $44 {0-1 Kasimdzhanov,R (2678)-Kasparov,G (2804) Linares 22nd 2005 (9) is one of Kasparov's last contributions to opening theory - see}) {Another option is} 16... g6 $5 (16... Ncxe4 17. Nxe4 Nxe4 18. Qg4 $5 Nf6 19. Qh3 g6 20. Bg5 gxf5 21. Bxf6 Rg8 22. Rfe1 $1 Rxg2+ (22... Qc6 23. Rxe5+ Kf7 24. Be4 Qxf6 25. Rxf5 Bxe4 26. Rxf6+ Kxf6 27. Qh4+ Kf5 28. Qxh7+ Rg6 29. Re1 Rd8 30. Qh5+ Rg5 31. Qf7+ {1-0, Akopian,V (2700)-Ippolito,D (2397)/Gibraltar op/2007/}) 23. Kf1 Rxf2+ $1 (23... Rg6 $2 24. Rxe5+ Kf7 25. Qxh7+ {1-0, Grigoryan,A (2509)-Soozankar,A (2253)/Urmia/2008/}) 24. Kxf2 Qb6+ 25. Ke2 Qxf6 26. Bxf5 $13 {is risky, but probably playable for Black.}) 17. Nh6 (17. Bg5 Ncxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4 20. Bf6 gxf5 21. Bxh8 Bd6 $44 {}) 17... Bg7 18. Qf3 Ne6 19. Qh3 Bc8 20. Qh4 (20. Qg3 $142) 20... Qe7 21. Rfe1 Nd5 22. Qxe7+ Nxe7 23. Nd5 Bb7 24. Ng4 Nd4 25. Bd1 Nxd5 26. exd5 O-O-O 27. Bg5 Rxd5 $17 {Morozevich,A (2758)-Anand,V (2792)/WCh Mexico City/2007/}) 9... b4 (9... Bd6 10. O-O O-O 11. Qc2 h6 12. e4 e5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bxe5 15. h3 a6 16. Be3 c5 17. Bxc5 Re8 18. Rad1 Qc7 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. exd5 Bxb2 21. d6 Qc6 22. f3 Rec8 23. Bh7+ Kh8 24. Be4 Qxc5+ 25. Qxc5 Rxc5 26. Bxb7 Rd8 27. Rfe1 Be5 28. d7 $16 {[%csl Gd7] d7, Topalov,V (2777)-Ivanchuk,V (2781)/Bilbao/2008/}) (9... a6 10. b4 a5 11. Rb1 axb4 12. axb4 Nd5 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. O-O ({or even} 14. e4 $5) 14... Bd6 15. Qc2 $14 {is somewhat better for White, therefore the text move is the most usual reaction, considered to be the main line.} (15. e4 $14)) 10. Ne4 {This continuation brought new life into the whole line.} (10. axb4 Bxb4 11. O-O c5 12. Na2 a5 13. Nxb4 axb4 14. Rxa8 Qxa8 15. dxc5 O-O $11 {is equal and sterile.}) 10... Nxe4 ({The text move is a more solid alternative, than} 10... c5 11. Nxf6+ gxf6 12. O-O Qb6 13. axb4 cxd4 14. Nxd4 Bxb4 15. Qa4 $5 (15. Bd2 Rg8 16. f3 Rg5 17. Bxb4 Qxb4 18. Rf2 Rc5 19. Qd2 Qb6 20. b4 Rc7 21. Nb5 Rcc8 22. Bf1 Ke7 23. Qd4 a6 24. Rd2 Bd5 25. Qxb6 Nxb6 26. Nd4 Bc4 $11 {Moskalenko,V (2520)-Dreev,A (2650)/Alushta/1994/}) 15... a5 16. Bb5 O-O-O 17. Bc6 Nc5 18. Bxb7+ Kxb7 19. Qc2 e5 20. Nf3 Rc8 21. Bd2 Rhg8 22. Bxb4 Qxb4 23. Qf5 Rg6 24. Rfc1 a4 25. Rc3 Qg4 26. Qxg4 Rxg4 27. Rac1 $14 {Mammen,H-Stuart,A/corr/1996/}) 11. Bxe4 bxa3 {Now Black hardly plays anything else.} ({The popularity of 10.e4 started with the following game:} 11... Qc7 12. axb4 $1 Bxb4+ 13. Bd2 Bxd2+ 14. Nxd2 c5 15. Qc2 Qb6 16. dxc5 Qxc5 17. Qa4 Rb8 18. O-O O-O 19. Qxd7 Rfd8 20. Bxh7+ Kxh7 $2 (20... Kf8 $1 21. Qa4 Rxd2 $44) 21. Qxf7 Rxd2 22. Ra4 Qg5 23. g3 e5 24. Rh4+ Qxh4 25. gxh4 Rd6 26. h5 Be4 27. Qe7 Rbb6 28. Qxe5 Re6 29. Qf4 {1-0, Gelfand,B (2670)-Anand,V (2725)/Biel izt/1993/}) 12. O-O {This  sacrifice in the interests of development replaced the former alternative} (12. bxa3 Bd6 {Even the attempt to breathe life into the position with} 13. Nd2 $5 {is hardly sufficient after} (13. O-O O-O 14. Bb2 Rb8 15. Qc2 c5 16. Bxb7 Rxb7 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. a4 {1/2, Karpov,A (2735)-Anand,V (2770)/WCh Lausanne/1998/CBM 063}) (13. Bd2 Rb8 14. O-O (14. Qa4 c5 15. Bxb7 Rxb7 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Ba5 Qb8 18. Rd1 O-O {1/2, Karpov,A (2775)-Kramnik,V (2730)/Dortmund/1995/}) 14... O-O 15. Bb4 c5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Bxb7 Rxb7 18. Nd4 Qb6 19. Bxc5 Qxc5 20. Qd2 Qd5 21. Qc3 h6 22. Rac1 Ne5 23. h3 Rfb8 24. Qc5 Qe4 25. Qc2 Qd5 26. Qa4 Qe4 27. Qc2 Qd5 {1/2, Karpov,A (2770)-Kramnik,V (2775)/Monte Carlo rpd/1996/}) 13... Qc7 14. Nc4 Be7 15. O-O O-O 16. Rb1 Rab8 $5 (16... Nf6 17. Bf3 Ba6 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. e4 Nd7 20. Be2 c5 21. d5 exd5 22. exd5 Bxc4 23. Bxc4 Nb6 24. Rb3 Bf6 25. Be3 Be5 26. g3 $14 {Beliavsky,A (2654)-Galkin,A (2587)/FIDE WCh New Delhi/2000/}) 17. Qa4 Nb6 18. Qa5 Ba8 19. Nxb6 axb6 $11 {Beliavsky}) 12... Nf6 (12... Bd6 13. b3 (13. b4 Nf6 14. Bd3 a5 $5 15. bxa5 Qxa5 16. Ne5 O-O 17. Nc4 Qc3 18. Bxa3 Bxa3 19. Rb1 Ba6 20. Rb3 Qxc4 21. Rxa3 Qd5 22. Rxa6 Rxa6 23. Bxa6 c5 24. dxc5 {1/2, Tomashevsky,E (2646)-Jakovenko,D (2710)/RUS-ch Moscow/2007/}) 13... Nf6 {transposes into the 9.0-0 b4 line above.} (13... Qe7 14. Qc2 $14)) (12... axb2 13. Bxb2 Nf6 (13... Be7 $143 14. Qc2 h6 15. Bxc6 Rc8 16. d5 exd5 17. Bxd7+ Qxd7 18. Qb3 d4 19. Rxa7 Bd5 20. Qb6 $16 {Najer,E (2616)-Potkin,V (2470)/Ubeda/2001/}) 14. Bd3 {-12...f6.}) ({RR} 12... Bd6 13. b3 Nf6 14. Nd2) ({RR} 12... Be7 13. b3 ({RR} 13. Qc2) 13... Nf6 14. Bd3 Qa5 ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bxa3 Bxa3 16. Rxa3 c5 17. dxc5 Qxc5 18. b4 Qb6 19. Qa4+ Bc6 20. Qa5 O-O 21. Nd4 Bd5 22. Rfa1) 15. b4 Bxb4 16. Bxa3 Bxa3 17. Qb3 O-O 18. Rxa3 Qc7 19. Qc2 Rfc8 20. Rfa1 a5 21. Rc3 g6 22. Ne5 Nd7 23. Nxd7 Qxd7 24. Rc5 Ba6 25. Bxa6 Rxa6 26. Raxa5 Rb6 27. g3) ({RR} 12... Bd6 13. Nd2 Qc7 14. Nc4 Be7 15. b4 Ba6 16. Bd3 Bxb4 17. Ne5 Bb5 18. Qc2 Rc8 19. Nxd7 Qxd7 20. Bxa3 Bxa3 21. Rxa3 Bxd3 22. Rxd3 O-O 23. Ra1 c5 24. dxc5 Rxc5 25. Rxd7 Rxc2 26. g3 Rcc8 27. Raxa7 {Aronian,L (2803)-Mamedyarov,S (2757) Beijing 2013 ½-½}) 13. Bd3 axb2 ({RR} 13... Be7) 14. Bxb2 a5 {Introduced into practice by Kramnik, the alternatives were:} (14... Be7 15. Qb1 Rb8 (15... O-O 16. Ba3 $44) 16. Rxa7 Qb6 17. Qa2 O-O 18. Rb1 Ra8 19. Rxa8 Rxa8 20. Qc4 Ba6 21. Qc2 Bxd3 22. Qxd3 Qb5 23. Ne5 Rb8 24. Qxb5 Rxb5 25. Nc4 c5 {1/2, Ivanchuk,V (2695)-Kramnik,V (2725)/New York rpd/1994/ Black gradually overcame his problems and fully equalized, nevertheless in Mexico 2007 he sought a safer alternative.}) (14... Bb4 15. Qb3 $1 ({RR} 15. Qa4 Qe7 16. Ba3 Bxa3 17. Qxa3 Qxa3 18. Rxa3 Ke7 19. Rb1) 15... a5 16. Ba3 Qb6 (16... Qe7 17. Rfb1 $14) 17. Ne5 O-O 18. Nc4 Qc7 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. Qxb4 Rfd8 21. Ne5 g6 22. Rxa8 Rxa8 23. Rc1 Nd5 24. Qb2 Ra4 25. h3 Rb4 26. Qa3 Qb6 27. Be4 Rb3 28. Qd6 Qc7 29. Qc5 $16 {1-0 Moiseenko,A (2632)-Huzman,A (2589)/Montreal/2008/}) ({RR} 14... Be7 15. Qb1 Rb8 16. Rxa7 Qb6 17. Qa2 O-O 18. Rb1 Ra8 19. Rxa8 Rxa8 20. Qc4 Ba6 21. Qc2 Bxd3 22. Qxd3 Qb5 23. Ne5 Rb8 24. Qxb5 Rxb5 25. Nc4 c5) ({RR} 14... Bb4 15. Ba6 Qb6 16. Qa4 Bxa6 17. Qxa6 O-O 18. Ne5 c5 19. Nd3 Rfb8 20. Qc4 Qb5 21. Rfc1 cxd4 22. Qxb5 Rxb5 23. Nxb4 Rxb4 24. Rxa7 Rbb8 25. Rxa8 Rxa8 26. Bxd4) 15. d5 $146 {[%csl Re8][%cal Ga1h8][%mdl 640] A stunning novelty, White sacrifices another  to open the  a1-h8 and create more space for a direct  against the  in the . A blow against a heavily protected point is usually very effective - if not otherwise, than at the very least psychologically. In the following course of the game Aronian initially defends quite well, but later practically inexplicably falls to pieces.} (15. Qa4 Bb4 16. Ba3 ({RR} 16. Ne5 O-O 17. Nxc6 Qd5 18. Rfc1 ({RR} 18. Qxb4 Qxc6) 18... Rfc8 19. Bb5) 16... Nd5 ({RR} 16... Bxa3 17. Qxa3 Qe7 18. Rfb1 Ra7 19. Ne5 Qxa3 20. Rxa3 Ke7 ({RR} 20... O-O 21. Rba1 Rfa8 22. Nc4 a4 23. Nb6) 21. Ba6 Ba8 22. Rxa5) 17. e4 (17. Be4 $5 {Marin} {RR} Bxa3 18. Bxd5 Qxd5 19. Qxa3 c5 20. Rfc1 c4 21. e4 Qxe4 22. Rxc4) ({RR} 17. Be4 O-O 18. Bxd5 Bxa3 ({RR} 18... cxd5 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. Qxb4 Ba6 21. Rfc1) 19. Bxc6 ({RR} 19. Bxe6) 19... Bxc6 20. Qxc6 Bb4 21. Ne5) 17... Nb6 18. Qb3 Qe7 19. Rab1 ({RR} 19. Rfb1 Nd7 20. Bxb4 axb4 21. Rxa8+ Bxa8 22. Qxb4 Qxb4 23. Rxb4 Ke7) 19... Bxa3 ({RR} 19... Nd7 20. Bxb4 axb4 21. Qxb4 Qxb4 22. Rxb4 Ra7 23. Rfb1) 20. Qxb6 Bb4 21. Ne1 ({RR} 21. d5 exd5 ({RR} 21... cxd5 22. Rfc1 Rc8 23. Bb5+) 22. exd5 O-O 23. dxc6 Bc8) 21... O-O 22. Nc2 Rfd8 {is too tame - White regains the , but his  evaporates.} 23. Nxb4 axb4 24. Qxb4 Qxb4 25. Rxb4 Ba6 26. Bxa6 $11 {1/2, Gelfand,B (2733)-Kramnik,V (2769)/WCh Mexico City/2007/}) ({Interesting, but not quite clear is} 15. e4 $5 Bb4 16. Qc2 Nd7 17. Rfd1 (17. d5 cxd5 18. Bxg7 Rg8 19. Bd4 Rc8 $132) 17... Rc8 18. Qb1 O-O 19. d5 cxd5 20. exd5 Nf6 $2 (20... Bxd5 $1 21. Bxh7+ Kh8 $13) 21. dxe6 Qe7 22. Ng5 h6 23. Bh7+ Kh8 24. Bxf6 Qxf6 25. Nxf7+ Rxf7 26. exf7 Qxf7 27. Be4 $18 {Moiseenko,A (2632)-Illescas Cordoba,M (2603)/ESP-chT Cala Mayor/2008/ This game was played only a few days earlier, than ours.}) ({As yet untested, but plausible altrnatives are} 15. Qb3 $5 Rb8 (15... Bb4 16. Ba3 {transposes into Moiseenko-Huzman above.}) 16. Bc3 Ba6 17. Qd1 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 $32) ({or} 15. Ne5 $44) ({RR} 15. Qa4 Bb4 16. Ba3 Nd5 17. e4 Nb6 18. Qb3 Qe7 19. Rab1 Bxa3 20. Qxb6 Bb4 21. Ne1 O-O 22. Nc2 Rfd8 23. Nxb4 axb4 24. Qxb4 Qxb4 25. Rxb4 Ba6 26. Bxa6 {½-½ (26) Gelfand,B (2733)-Kramnik,V (2769) Mexico City 2007 CBM 120 [Marin,Mihail]}) ({RR} 15. e4 Bb4 16. Qc2 Nd7 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. Qb1 O-O 19. d5 cxd5 20. exd5 Nf6 21. dxe6 Qe7 22. Ng5 h6 23. Bh7+ Kh8 24. Bxf6 Qxf6 25. Nxf7+ Rxf7 26. exf7 Qxf7 27. Be4 Bxe4 28. Qxe4 Re8 29. Qc2 Qe6 {Moiseenko,A (2632)-Illescas Cordoba,M (2603) Cala Mayor 2008 1-0 (40)}) 15... Nxd5 {Black must take the .} (15... cxd5 $143 $2 16. Bb5+ Nd7 17. Ne5 Bc8 18. Rc1 (18. Qh5 g6 19. Qf3 $18) 18... Bd6 19. Rxc8 $18) (15... Qxd5 16. Qc2 (16. Qb1 $44) (16. Ne5 $44) 16... Qc5 17. Qe2 Be7 (17... Qh5 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Qb2 $36) 18. Bd4 Qd5 19. Rfd1 $32) (15... exd5 16. Nd4 $5 {[%csl Rc6][%cal Yd4f5,Yd1a4] f5,a4,×c6} Bb4 (16... Be7 17. Nf5 {} O-O $2 18. Nxg7 $1 Kxg7 19. Qg4+ Kh8 20. Bxf6+ Bxf6 21. Qf5 $18) 17. Nf5 g6 18. Nh6 $44) 16. Ne5 Nf6 {Aronian prevents a  sortie to h5, but invests another tempo.} (16... Bb4 17. Qh5 Qc7 18. Rfc1 $44 (18. Nf3 $5 Bc3 19. Bxc3 Nxc3 20. Qc5 Nd5 21. Rfb1 $44)) (16... Nb4 17. Qh5 Qc7 18. Rfd1 $44) (16... Qc7 $5 $13) 17. Qa4 $32 Bb4 (17... Bd6 $5 {is an attempt to stabilize the position by returning both extra s:} 18. Ng4 $5 $13 (18. Nxc6 Qd7 19. Nxa5 (19. Bb5 O-O 20. Rfc1 Rfc8 $11) 19... Qxa4 20. Rxa4 Bd5 (20... Ke7 21. Bxf6+ Kxf6 (21... gxf6 22. Rb1 Bd5 23. e4 Bc7 24. exd5 Rxa5 25. Rxa5 Bxa5 26. Rb7+ $36) 22. Nxb7 Bxh2+ 23. Kxh2 Rxa4 $14 {/=}) {} 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. e4 Bc6 $11)) 18. Nxc6 Bxc6 $8 (18... Qxd3 $2 19. Ne5+ $18) (18... Qd7 $2 19. Bb5 Ba6 20. Bxa6 Rxa6 21. Nxb4 $18) 19. Qxc6+ Ke7 20. Rfd1 {White has regained one  and Black's  has remained in the . However, Black's  are finally connected and this should suffice to gradually contain White's .} Rc8 21. Qf3 (21. Qa6 Qd6 22. Qb7+ (22. Qxd6+ Bxd6 23. Rxa5 Ra8 $11) 22... Qc7 {[%cal Yh8d8] hd8= only helps Black.}) 21... Qb6 (21... Qc7 22. Ba6 Rcd8 23. Rdc1 Qb8 24. Rc6 $36) 22. Bd4 Qb8 (22... Qc6 $5 23. Qg3 Rhd8 {f8=} 24. Qxg7 $2 Rxd4 $1 25. exd4 Rg8 $19) 23. Ba6 Rcd8 24. Bb7 $5 {Carlsen wants to keep maximum tension in the position and spurns immediately simplifying alternatives. However, objectively even his choice doesn't promise that much.} (24. Rdc1 e5 25. Bc5+ Bxc5 26. Rxc5 Rhe8 27. Rcxa5 Kf8 $11) (24. Rab1 Rd6 $5 {} 25. Bc5 Bxc5 26. Rb7+ Nd7 27. Rxb8 Rxb8 $11) 24... h5 {[%csl Gb7,Gd4,Re7,Gg1] Black starts to crack up. Perhaps Aronian cherished higher ambitions with his extra , but White has suffcient long-term compensation with his  and safer .} ({Definitely safer was} 24... e5 $142 $5 25. Bb6 (25. Bb2 Rxd1+ 26. Rxd1 Rd8 27. Rxd8 Kxd8 $11) 25... Rd6 $1 26. Rxd6 Qxd6 27. Bxa5 Bxa5 (27... Rb8 $11) 28. Rxa5 Qb4 29. Rxe5+ $8 (29. Ra1 $2 e4 $17) 29... Kd6 30. Rd5+ Nxd5 31. Qxd5+ Ke7 (31... Kc7 32. Ba6 $11) 32. Qe5+ Kf8 33. Qb8+ Ke7 34. Qe5+ $11) 25. h3 ({The luft is useful, but more forceful was} 25. Rab1 $5 Ng4 26. g3 f6 27. h3 Ne5 28. Qg2 $44 {/}) 25... h4 $6 {Pointless, as the  still can't be activated via h5. Black still had} (25... e5 $142 $11 {This is similar to 24...e5 and although h3 is more useful than h5, he should be able to hold the balance.}) 26. Rab1 $36 e5 (26... Rd6 27. Rdc1 $1 {[%cal Rd4e5] e5}) 27. Rxb4 $1 {[%mdl 64] Time has come for tactical solutions.} axb4 $2 {This loses by force.} (27... exd4 28. Rbxd4 $16 {or}) (27... Rxd4 28. Rbxd4 exd4 29. exd4 $16 {[%csl Re7] ע leads to a difficult position due to Black's exposed , but it was definitely more resilient.}) 28. Bc5+ Ke6 $8 (28... Ke8 29. Bc6+ Rd7 (29... Nd7 30. Qf5 Qc7 31. Qg5 $18) 30. Rxd7 $1 Nxd7 31. Qf5 Qc7 32. Qg5 f6 33. Qxg7 $18) 29. Ra1 $1 $18 Rd6 (29... Rd2 30. Ra6+ (30. Ra8 $18) 30... Kd7 31. Bxb4 $1 {} e4 32. Qf5+ Kd8 (32... Ke8 33. Re6+ $1) 33. Qa5+ Ke8 34. Qb5+ Rd7 35. Bc6 $18) 30. Bxd6 Kxd6 (30... Qxd6 31. Ra6 $18) 31. Qc6+ Ke7 32. Ra8 {This nets White a decisive material advantage.} Qd6 33. Qxd6+ (33. Rxh8 $18) 33... Kxd6 34. Rxh8 b3 35. Ba6 Nd7 (35... e4 36. Rb8) 36. Rxh4 Nc5 (36... Nc5 37. Bc4 $18 (37. Be2 $18)) 1-0

[Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2008.09.09"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2008.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Qc2 Nc6 9. a3 Qa5 10. O-O-O Be7 11. h4 Rd8 12. Nd2 ({RR} 12. g4) ({RR} 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Ng5 d4 14. Qb3 dxc3 15. Qxf7+ Kh8 16. Rxd8+ Qxd8 17. Bc4 Qd2+ {0-1 (17) Stanojevic,I (2193)-Zou,C (2449) chess.com INT 2024}) 12... a6 $6 {[%cal Yb7b5] An interesting idea but still it appears too slow.} (12... dxc4 {- see CBM 117, annotations to Topalov-Kramnik.} {RR} 13. Bxc4 Ne5 14. Nb3 Qc7 15. Rxd8+ Bxd8 16. Rd1 Bd7) ({RR} 12... dxc4 13. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 14. Qxd1 Qd8 15. Qxd8+ Nxd8 ({RR} 15... Bxd8 16. Be2 Nd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Nd6 Bc7 19. Rd1 Bxd6 20. Bxd6 Be6 21. b4 f6 22. Kb2 Rd8 23. Bc5 b6 24. Bd4 Ne5) 16. Be2 Bd7 17. e4 Bc6 18. f3 Nh5 19. Bc7 Rc8 20. Be5 ({RR} 20. Bd6) 20... Bf6 ({RR} 20... f5 21. exf5 Nf7 22. fxe6 Nxe5 23. Nxe5 Bd5 24. Kb1 Bxe6) 21. Nd6 Ra8 ({RR} 21... Rc7) 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. Rd1 Kf8 ({RR} 23... Ne8 24. Nc4 Nc7) 24. Kd2 ({RR} 24. b4) 24... Ne8 25. Nc4 f6 26. Ke3 b6 27. f4 {Topalov,V (2783)-Kramnik,V (2766) Wijk aan Zee 2007 CBM 117 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (49)}) 13. Be2 $146 {Too passive. Two other moves seen in practice are more logical:} (13. Nb3 $5 Qb6 14. c5 Qa7 15. Bc7 {and Black didn't manage to consolidate his position in the following game:} Rf8 (15... Rd7 $5 16. Bb6 Qb8 {[%cal Ye7d8,Ye6e5]}) 16. Na4 Ne8 17. Bh2 Bd8 18. Bd3 h6 19. g4 e5 20. g5 h5 21. g6 (21. Bh7+ $1 Kh8 22. Bf5 {[%csl Rd5]} Be6 23. Bxe6 fxe6 24. Qg6 $18) 21... f5 22. Be2 Nf6 23. Rhg1 $6 Be6 24. Rg5 $2 Ng4 {0-1 Arnold,J (2320)-Ganaus,H (2340)/Austria 2000/EXT 2001 (53)}) (13. g4 $5 dxc4 (13... b5 14. g5 $1 Nh5 $140 15. cxd5) (13... Nxg4 $5 $13) 14. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 15. Qxd1 Qd8 16. Qxd8+ Bxd8 17. Bg2 e5 (17... Nxg4 18. Rd1 $1 Bxh4 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Nb6) 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Nxg4 20. Bg3 $16 {1-0 Nielsen,P (2625)-Glud,J (2486)/Silkeborg 2008/CBM 123 Extra (40)}) ({RR} 13. Nb3 Qb6 14. c5 Qa7 15. Bc7 Rf8 16. Na4 Ne8 17. Bh2 Bd8 18. Bd3 h6 19. g4 e5 20. g5 h5 21. g6 f5 22. Be2 Nf6 23. Rhg1 Be6 24. Rg5 Ng4 25. Bxg4 Bxg5 26. Bxh5 Bf6 27. Be2 Rfe8 {Arnold,J (2321)-Ganaus,H (2344) Austria 2000 0-1 (53)}) ({RR} 13. g4 dxc4 14. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 15. Qxd1 Qd8 16. Qxd8+ Bxd8 17. Bg2 e5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Nxg4 20. Bg3 Kf8 21. Rd1 Ke8 22. Na4 a5 23. Nc5 Ra7 24. Bf1 Be7 25. Bb5+ Kf8 26. Na4 Be6 27. Nb6 Bc5 {Nielsen,P (2625)-Glud,J (2486) Silkeborg 2008 1-0 (40)}) 13... b5 $1 {[%mdl 128] Black now seizes the initiative.} 14. cxd5 (14. cxb5 axb5 15. Bxb5 (15. Nxb5 e5) 15... Bd7 $40) 14... exd5 15. g4 Be6 16. Nb3 Qb6 17. g5 Ne4 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Rxd8+ Nxd8 20. Kb1 Rc8 21. Qd1 Nc6 22. h5 a5 {Black's attack comes first.} 23. g6 $6 (23. h6 $142 a4 24. Nd4 Rd8 (24... Nxd4 25. Qxd4) 25. hxg7 Nxd4 (25... b4 26. axb4 Qxb4 27. Nxc6 Rxd1+ 28. Bxd1 {may be difficult to win}) 26. exd4 Rxd4 27. Qc1 {keeping chances for counterplay.}) 23... a4 24. Nd2 (24. Nd4 Nxd4 25. Qxd4 (25. exd4 Bb3) 25... Qc6 26. Qd2 Rd8 27. Qc2 Qd5 $19) 24... b4 {White's king is helpless.} 25. gxf7+ Bxf7 26. Nc4 Qb7 27. Qxa4 (27. Nd6 Bxd6 28. Qxd6 (28. Bxd6 Rd8 $19) 28... bxa3 29. Qxa3 Nb4 $19) 27... bxa3 28. Nxa3 Bxa3 29. Qxa3 Nb4 30. b3 Nd3 31. Bxd3 exd3 32. Rc1 d2 0-1

[Event "Grand Slam Final 1st"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2008.09.13"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D13"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2798"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2008.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 126"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.10.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. cxd5 cxd5 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bf4 a6 7. Rc1 Bf5 8. Ne5 Rc8 9. f3 ({RR} 9. e3 e6 10. Qb3 Nxe5 11. Bxe5 Qd7 12. Be2 Be7 13. O-O O-O 14. Na4 Rxc1 15. Rxc1 Rc8 16. Rxc8+ Qxc8 17. Nc5 Bxc5 18. dxc5 Nd7 19. Bd6 Qc6 20. Qc3 f6 21. h3 e5 22. b4 Be6 23. Qb3 b5 {Jakovenko,D (2736)-Karjakin,S (2723) Moscow 2009 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 9. Qa4 Bd7 10. Nxd7 Qxd7 11. e3 e6 12. Be2 Bd6 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Bb4+ 17. Nc3 Qxd4 18. Qb3 O-O 19. O-O Qe5 20. Bf3 Bxc3 21. Rxc3 Na5 22. Qb4 Rxc3 23. bxc3 f5 {Zhao Xue (2442)-Shen Yang (2389) Shenzhen CHN 2025 ½-½ (85)}) 9... g6 10. g4 Be6 11. e3 $146 ({RR} 11. h4 h6 12. e3 Bg7 13. Bd3 Nd7 14. Nxc6 Rxc6 15. Ne2 Qa5+ 16. Kf2 O-O 17. Rxc6 bxc6 18. a3 c5 19. b4 cxb4 20. axb4 Qxb4 21. Qc2 Qa3 22. Rb1 Nf6 23. Rb6 Qa1 24. Kg2 Rc8 25. Qd2 Qa4 {Sargissian,G (2667)-Bacrot,E (2705) Germany 2006 0-1 (64)}) ({RR} 11. h4 h6 12. e3 Bg7 13. Nd3 Nd7 14. Na4 O-O 15. a3 Na5 16. Ndc5 Nxc5 17. Nxc5 Qb6 18. b3 Rfd8 19. Bd3 Rc6 20. O-O Bc8 21. Qc2 e5 22. dxe5 Qa7 23. b4 b6 24. Qa4 Qa8 25. e4 d4 {Melkumyan,H (2519)-Volkov,S (2627) Moscow 2009 1-0 (70)}) 11... Bg7 12. h4 h5 13. g5 Nd7 14. Nxc6 Rxc6 15. Bd3 O-O 16. Kf2 Nb6 17. b3 Qd7 18. Qd2 Bf5 19. Bxf5 Qxf5 20. Ne2 Rfc8 21. Rxc6 Rxc6 22. Rc1 Nd7 23. Kg2 e5 24. Rxc6 bxc6 25. dxe5 Nxe5 26. Nd4 Qc8 27. Ne2 Qf5 28. Nd4 Qc8 29. Ne2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bundesliga 0809"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2008.12.13"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Maiwald, Jens Uwe"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2508"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "2008.10.03"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.08"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Dresden"]
[BlackTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 {Postny,Evgeny Marin,Mihail} e6 2. c4 Bb4+ 3. Bd2 Bxd2+ 4. Qxd2 f5 ({RR} 4... Nf6) 5. g3 Nf6 6. Bg2 O-O 7. Nf3 d6 8. O-O Qe7 9. Nc3 c6 ({RR} 9... Nc6 10. Rfe1 e5 11. Nd5 Qd8 12. dxe5 dxe5 13. Rad1 e4 14. Ng5) ({RR} 9... e5 10. dxe5 dxe5 11. Nd5 Qd6 12. Nxf6+ Rxf6 13. Qxd6 cxd6 14. Rfd1) 10. Rad1 ({RR} 10. Rfe1 d5 11. e3 ({RR} 11. Qc2 Ne4 ({RR} 11... Nbd7) 12. Rab1 ({RR} 12. e3 Bd7 13. Ne2 Be8 14. Nf4 Nd7 15. Nd3 Ndf6 16. Nfe5) 12... Nd7 13. b4 Nd6 14. cxd5 ({RR} 14. c5) 14... cxd5 15. Ne5 Kh8 ({RR} 15... Nxe5 16. dxe5 Nc4 17. Nxd5) 16. f4 ({RR} 16. Bxd5 exd5 17. Nxd5 Qd8 18. Nc7 Nb6 19. Nxa8 Nxa8) 16... Nxe5 17. dxe5 Nc4 18. Qd3 Bd7 19. e4 fxe4 20. Nxe4 Be8 21. Nc5 Bg6 22. Be4 b6 ({RR} 22... Nxe5 23. fxe5 dxe4) 23. Bxg6 bxc5 24. Bxh7 g5) 11... Nbd7 12. b3 ({RR} 12. Qc2 dxc4 ({RR} 12... b6 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Rac1 Bb7 15. Qa4 a6 16. Ne2 Rfc8 17. Nf4 Ne4 18. Nd3 g5 19. Nfe5 Ndf6 20. Qb3 Qd6 21. Red1 g4 22. Nf4) 13. e4 ({RR} 13. Nd2 Nb6 14. Bf1 e5 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4+ Be6 17. Bxe6+ Qxe6 18. dxe5 Qxe5 19. Qb3+ Rf7 20. Rad1 Re8) 13... f4 14. Ne2 ({RR} 14. gxf4 Nh5) 14... fxg3 15. hxg3 b5 16. b3 Ba6 17. bxc4 bxc4 18. Nf4 e5 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Bf1 Kh8 22. Bxc4 Bxc4 23. Qxc4 Ng4 24. Qxc6 Nxf2 25. Kxf2 g5 26. Qd5 Qg7) ({RR} 12. Qe2 Ne4) 12... b6 13. Ne2 Bb7 14. Nf4 dxc4 ({RR} 14... Ne4 15. Qb2 c5) 15. bxc4 c5 16. Ng5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 e5 18. Nfe6 ({RR} 18. dxe5 Nxe5) 18... Ne4 19. Nxe4 Qxe6 20. Ng5 ({RR} 20. d5 Qh6 21. Nc3 e4 22. Ne2 Ne5 23. Qc3 Rae8 24. Nf4 g5 25. Ne6 Rxe6 26. dxe6 Qxe6) 20... Qxc4 21. dxc5 ({RR} 21. dxe5 Nxe5 22. Rac1 Rad8) 21... Nxc5 22. Rec1 Qd3 23. Qxd3 Nxd3 24. Rc7 h6 {Giri,A (2690)-Carlsen,M (2815) Monte Carlo 2011 CBM 142 [Marin,Mihail] 0-1 (70)}) ({RR} 10. Rae1 d5 11. Ne5 Nbd7 12. f4 Ne4 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Nxd7 Bxd7 15. c5 Be8 16. e3 Bh5 17. h3 Rad8 18. Qf2 g5 19. fxg5 Qxg5 ({RR} 19... e5 20. dxe5 Qxc5) 20. Qf4 Qg7 21. Rf2 Bg6 22. Ref1 Rfe8 23. Qg5 Qe7 24. Qxe7 Rxe7) ({RR} 10. Rfe1 e5 11. c5 e4 12. cxd6 Qxd6 13. Ne5 Be6 14. f4 c5 15. e3 Rd8 16. Red1 Nc6 17. Qe1 Qe7 18. Ne2 Nb4 19. Qc3 c4 20. Qd2 Rac8 21. Nc3 a6 22. Qe2 Nd3 23. g4 b5 24. a3 Nxe5 {Karthik,A (2124)-Cordova,E (2563) Charlotte USA 2024 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 10. Rfe1 d5 11. e3 Nbd7 12. b3 b6 13. Ne2 Bb7 14. Nf4 dxc4 15. bxc4 c5 16. Ng5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 e5) 10... d5 11. Qc2 Nbd7 12. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 12. b3 b6 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb2 Ba6 15. Rd2 Rac8 16. Rc1 Rc7 17. Rdc2 Rfc8 18. Nd1 Qd6 19. e3 h6 20. h3 Ne4 21. Rxc7 Rxc7 22. Rxc7 Qxc7 23. Nd2 Ndf6 24. Nxe4 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 fxe4 26. Nc3 Bd3 {Haik,A (2475)-Ivkov,B (2525) Cannes 1986 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 12. b3 b6 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb2 Ba6 15. Rd2 Rac8 16. Rc1 Rc7 17. Rdc2 Rfc8 18. Nd1 Qd6) ({RR} 12. cxd5 cxd5 ({RR} 12... exd5 13. Qxf5 ({RR} 13. e3) 13... Ne4 14. Qh5 ({RR} 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Qxd5+ Kh8) 14... Ndf6 15. Qe5 Qb4 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. Ng5 Rf5 18. Qe8+ Rf8) 13. Rc1 Ne4 ({RR} 13... Nb6 14. b3 Bd7) 14. Qb3 a6 ({RR} 14... Rb8) 15. e3 ({RR} 15. Nxe4 fxe4 16. Nd2 Nb8 17. f3 exf3 18. Rxf3) 15... Rb8 16. Ne2 Ndf6 17. Qb6 Bd7 18. Nf4 ({RR} 18. Ne5 Bb5 19. Rfe1 Rfe8) ({RR} 18. Rc7 Qd6 19. Qxd6 Nxd6 20. Rfc1 Kf7 21. Ne5+ Ke7) 18... g5 ({RR} 18... Bb5 19. Rfd1 Rfc8 20. Qxe6+ ({RR} 20. Ne5) 20... Qxe6 21. Nxe6 Ng4 22. Nf4 Nexf2 23. Re1 Nd3 24. Nxd3 Bxd3 25. h3 Nf6 26. Ne5 Be4) 19. Nd3 Bb5 20. Nfe5 Qd6 ({RR} 20... Rbc8) 21. Qc7 Bc4 22. Qa5 b6 23. Qe1 ({RR} 23. Qa4 Bb5 24. Qd1) 23... Bxd3 24. Nxd3 g4 25. Ne5 ({RR} 25. Rc2) 25... Rfc8 26. Qe2 b5 {Postny,E (2601)-McShane,L (2688) Netanya 2019 CBM 191 [Postny,Evgeny] 1-0 (88)} ({RR} 26... a5 27. h3 h5 28. hxg4 hxg4 29. Bxe4 Nxe4 30. Kg2)) 12... Ne4 ({RR} 12... dxc4 13. e4 f4 14. Ne2) 13. e3 Nd6 14. c5 Nf7 15. b4 e5 16. dxe5 Nfxe5 17. Nd4 Nf6 18. Na4 Kh8 19. Qb3 Bd7 20. a3 Rae8 21. Nb2 g5 22. f4 Ng6 23. Nd3 gxf4 24. exf4 Ne4 25. Nf3 Qf6 26. Nde5 Nxe5 27. Nxe5 Bc8 28. Qe3 h5 29. Qd4 Kh7 30. Re3 h4 31. gxh4 Rg8 32. Nf3 Qxd4 33. Rxd4 Rg4 34. Ng5+ Kg6 35. Nh3 Kf6 36. Rf3 Reg8 37. Ng5 Rxh4 38. h3 Rh5 0-1

[Event "Bundesliga 0809"]
[Site "Germany"]
[Date "2008.12.14"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Socko, Bartosz"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E97"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2631"]
[PlyCount "182"]
[EventDate "2008.10.03"]
[EventType "team-tourn"]
[EventRounds "15"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.08"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Baden-Baden"]
[BlackTeam "Kreuzberg"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GER"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. b4 a5 10. bxa5 Rxa5 11. a4 b6 12. Bd2 ({RR} 12. Nd2 Ra8 13. Nb3 Kh8 14. Be3 Nfg8 15. a5 bxa5 16. c5 f5 17. f3 f4 18. Bf2 g5 19. Nxa5 Nf6 20. cxd6 cxd6 21. Nc6 Rxa1 22. Qxa1 Qe8 23. Qa8 g4 24. Rb1 g3 25. hxg3 fxg3 26. Bxg3 Qg6 {Drygalov,S (2547)-Firouzja,A (2759) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (46)}) 12... Ra8 13. Ne1 Ne8 $146 ({RR} 13... Nd7 14. Nd3 f5 15. f3 Nf6 16. Nf2 Re8 17. Nb5 Bf8 18. a5 c6 19. dxc6 Nxc6 20. Bg5 Kg7 21. exf5 gxf5 22. Bxf6+ Kxf6 23. Qd5 Bd7 24. Qg8 Bg7 25. Qxh7 Re6 26. Ne4+ Kf7 27. Nbxd6+ Kf8 28. Nxf5 {Mikhalevski,V (2552)-Kraus,O (2363) Jerusalem 2021 1-0}) ({RR} 13... c5 14. dxc6 Nxc6 15. Be3 Nd4 16. Nc2 Nb3 17. Rb1 Nc5 18. f3 Be6 19. Nb4 Ne8 20. Nbd5 Ra6 21. Rb4 f5 22. Qc2 fxe4 23. fxe4 Rxf1+ 24. Bxf1 Bxd5 25. cxd5 Ra5 26. Qb1 Qe7 27. Rxb6 Qc7 28. Rc6 {Rahman,S (2113)-Liyanage,P (2039) Colombo SRI 2025 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 13... Nd7 14. Nb5 Nc5 15. f3 f5 16. Qc2 f4 17. Nd3 Nb7 18. Ra2 Na5 19. Bxa5 Rxa5 20. Nc1 Rf7 21. Nb3 Ra8 22. Rd1 Bd7 23. a5 bxa5 24. Rxa5 Rxa5 25. Nxa5 Bf8 26. c5 Bxb5 27. Bxb5 dxc5 28. Qxc5 {Anandajeyarajah,S (1707)-Hall,D (2069) Swansea 2006 ½-½ (37)}) 14. Nd3 f5 15. f3 f4 16. Nb5 g5 17. a5 c6 18. dxc6 Nxc6 19. axb6 Rxa1 20. Qxa1 Qxb6+ 21. Kh1 Rf7 22. Nb4 Nd4 23. Nd5 Qa6 24. Bd3 Nb3 25. Qb2 Nxd2 26. Ra1 Qc6 27. Qxd2 Be6 28. Qa5 Rd7 29. Bc2 Qxc4 30. Ba4 Bxd5 31. exd5 e4 32. Na3 Qc7 33. Qxc7 Rxc7 34. Re1 Ra7 35. Bxe8 Rxa3 36. fxe4 g4 37. Bh5 g3 38. hxg3 fxg3 39. Kg1 Ra2 40. Rd1 Be5 41. Kf1 Rf2+ 42. Kg1 Kg7 43. Rf1 Kh6 44. Bg4 Rb2 45. Bf5 Bd4+ 46. Kh1 Rf2 47. Rd1 Rf4 48. Re1 Be3 49. Bh3 Rxe4 50. Rd1 Bd4 51. Rf1 Bf2 52. Rd1 Kg5 53. Be6 Kf6 54. Bh3 Ke5 55. Be6 Kf4 56. Rb1 Rd4 57. Ra1 Ke3 58. Ra3+ Kd2 59. Bf5 Rh4+ 60. Bh3 Re4 61. Ra1 Rd4 62. Bg4 Kc3 63. Rc1+ Kb2 64. Rd1 Rf4 65. Be6 Bd4 66. Bh3 Kc2 67. Re1 Bc3 68. Rg1 Rf6 69. Be6 Rh6+ 70. Bh3 Rh5 71. Rf1 Rxd5 72. Bf5+ Kd2 73. Bg4 Bd4 74. Rd1+ Kc2 75. Re1 Bf2 76. Bd1+ Kc3 77. Bf3 Ra5 78. Rc1+ Kb2 79. Rd1 Ra4 80. Rd2+ Kc3 81. Rc2+ Kxc2 82. Bd1+ Kd2 83. Bxa4 d5 84. Bc2 h6 85. Be4 d4 86. Bg6 Ke1 87. Bf5 h5 88. Bg4 h4 89. Bf5 Be3 90. Bg6 Kf2 91. Bf5 Bh6 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 24th"]
[Site "Kallithea"]
[Date "2008.10.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mastrovasilis, Dimitrios"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2572"]
[PlyCount "155"]
[EventDate "2008.10.17"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Erevan MIKA"]
[BlackTeam "Thessaloniki ES"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ARM"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GRE"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Be2 O-O 8. O-O e5 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. dxe5 Nxe5 11. Rd1 Qc7 12. h3 Nxf3+ 13. Bxf3 Bh2+ 14. Kh1 Be5 15. Bd2 Be6 16. Qa4 $146 ({RR} 16. Be1 Rfd8 17. Rac1 d4 18. exd4 Rxd4 19. Rxd4 {½-½ (19) Soppe,G (2440)-Toth,C (2350) Sao Paulo 1992}) ({RR} 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. Qb1 Qd7 18. Be1 Rfd8 19. Kg1 d4 20. exd4 Bxd4 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. Rxc8 Qxc8 23. Qxe4 Bxb2 24. Rxd8+ Qxd8 25. Qxb7 Bd4 {½-½ (25) Kalantaryan,N (2381)-Kelleher,W (2387) Stratton Mountain 1999}) 16... Qb6 17. Ne2 Rfc8 18. Bc3 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Rc4 20. Qb3 Qc7 21. Rd4 Rc5 22. Rad1 Rc8 23. Kg1 b6 24. Qb1 g6 25. Qb2 Qe5 26. Qb4 Kg7 27. Qa3 Ra5 28. Ra4 Rcc5 29. Rdd4 Bd7 30. Rxa5 Rxa5 31. Qb2 Rb5 32. Rb4 Rc5 33. Qd2 Bf5 34. Nd4 Ne4 35. Qb2 Nd6 36. Be2 Bd7 37. Bd3 Kg8 38. Qd2 Qg5 39. h4 Qe5 40. Ne2 Bf5 41. Rd4 Bxd3 42. Qxd3 Ne4 43. f3 Ng3 44. Nf4 Nf5 45. Rxd5 Qxe3+ 46. Qxe3 Nxe3 47. Rxc5 bxc5 48. Nd3 c4 49. Nb2 f5 50. Kf2 f4 51. g3 Nd5 52. gxf4 Nxc3 53. a3 Nd5 54. Nxc4 Kf7 55. Kg3 Ke6 56. Kg4 Kf6 57. a4 h5+ 58. Kg3 a6 59. a5 Ke6 60. Ne5 Kf5 61. Nd3 Ne7 62. Nb4 Kf6 63. Kf2 Kf5 64. Ke3 Ke6 65. Nxa6 Kd6 66. Nb4 Kc5 67. Nc2 Nf5+ 68. Kf2 Kb5 69. Ne3 Ne7 70. f5 gxf5 71. Kg3 Kxa5 72. Kf4 Kb5 73. Nxf5 Nd5+ 74. Kg5 Kc4 75. Kxh5 Kd3 76. Kg5 Ke2 77. h5 Kxf3 78. h6 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 24th"]
[Site "Kallithea"]
[Date "2008.10.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Movsesian, Sergei"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D26"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2732"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "152"]
[EventDate "2008.10.17"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Erevan MIKA"]
[BlackTeam "Sarajevo Bosna"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ARM"]
[BlackTeamCountry "BIH"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 a6 5. a4 e6 6. Bf4 {This move is rare, harmless, but quite playable, of course.} c5 {Other options seen in practice:} (6... Be7) (6... Bb4) (6... a5) (6... dxc4) 7. e3 Nc6 8. Be2 dxc4 (8... Be7 $143 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. O-O O-O 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Rc1 Bd6 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Qb3 Rb8 16. Qb6 $14 {1/2 Arbutina,S (2320)-Guzsvany,A (2049)/Senta 2007/CBM 119 ext (54)}) 9. Bxc4 cxd4 10. exd4 Be7 11. O-O {With a transposition of moves a well-known QGA position has arisen.} O-O 12. Re1 (12. Qd2 {is another popular option.}) 12... Nb4 (12... b6 $6 13. d5) (12... Nd5 13. Bg3 Ncb4 14. Ne5 b6 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Bb3 Bf5 17. Qf3 Be6 18. Rac1 Rc8 19. Rc3 Bg5 20. Bf4 Qf6 21. Bxg5 Qxg5 22. Qe2 Qf4 23. Qd1 Qh6 24. h3 $14 {1-0 Sokolov,I (2690)-Simutowe,A (2442)/Tripoli 2004/CBM 102 (82)}) (12... Qb6 $5) 13. Ne5 (13. Qb3 Nc6 $1 {[%cal Rc6d4,Rc6a5]} 14. Qd1 Nb4) ({RR} 13. Qb3 Nc6 {½-½ (15) Kuzmin,G (2470)-Gelfand,B (2510) Norilsk 1987}) 13... Bd7 $146 ({RR} 13... b6 14. Qf3 Ra7 15. Rad1 Bb7 16. Qh3 Nfd5 17. Bc1 Bc8 18. Qg3 Bh4 19. Qf3 Rc7 20. Bb3 Bb7 21. Qh3 Bg5 22. Bxg5 Qxg5 23. Ne4 Qd8 24. Qg3 Nc2 25. Re2 Nxd4 26. Rxd4 Rc1+ 27. Bd1 Nf4 28. Nf6+ {Ngo,B (2060)-Peng,D (2287) ICC INT 2020 0-1 (82)}) ({RR} 13... Nbd5 14. Bg5 Qc7 15. Bxd5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 exd5 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Ng6 Qxe1+ 19. Qxe1 hxg6 20. Rc1 Be6 21. h3 Rfc8 22. Rxc8+ Rxc8 23. Qb4 Rc4 24. Qxb7 Rxa4 25. b4 Kh7 26. g4 Ra1+ 27. Kg2 Rb1 28. f3 {Mujumdar,S (2029)-Munoz Ramos,C (2133) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (97)}) ({RR} 13... b6 14. Bg3 Kh8 15. Qd2 Bb7 16. Rad1 Nfd5 17. f4 Rc8 18. Bb3 g6 19. Ne4 f6 20. f5 gxf5 21. Ng6+ Kg7 22. Nxe7 Qxe7 23. Nd6 Qd7 24. Nxb7 Qxb7 25. Bd6 a5 26. Bxf8+ Rxf8 27. Rxe6 f4 28. Rde1 {Jubin,J (2193)-Eraschenkov,D (2370) Chennai 2020 1-0 (40)}) 14. d5 {Leads to simplifications.} (14. Re3 $5 Rc8 15. Rg3 Re8 16. h4 Bc6 17. h5 Bf8 18. Bh6 Be4 19. Be2 (19. Bg5 $5 Bf5 20. Qe2) 19... Nc2 20. Bg5 Bf5 21. Ng4 Bxg4 22. Qxc2 Bxe2 23. Qxe2 Be7 $2 (23... Bd6 $1) 24. h6 g6 25. Qe5 Rf8 26. Re1 Ne8 27. Bxe7 Qxe7 28. d5 $16 {1-0 Epishin,V (2599)-Velicka,P (2445)/Werther 2002/CBM 087 ext (32)}) 14... exd5 15. Nxd5 Nbxd5 16. Bxd5 Bg4 $1 17. Nxg4 (17. Bxf7+ Rxf7 18. Nxg4 Qxd1 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Raxd1 Bxb2 $11) 17... Nxd5 18. Nh6+ $5 Kh8 (18... gxh6 $143 19. Bxh6 Kh8 (19... Bf6 $2 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Bxf8 Qxf8 22. Qf3 $18) (19... Nf6 20. Qf3 Ne8 21. Qxb7 $16) 20. Bxf8 Bxf8 21. Qb3 {[%cal Ra1d1]} Nf6 22. Qxf7 $16) 19. Nf5 Nxf4 20. Rxe7 g6 21. Qxd8 Raxd8 22. Ne3 $14 {[%mdl 4096] /= White's advantage in this endgame is largely symbolic but he continues fighting.} b5 23. axb5 (23. a5 $6 Nd3) 23... axb5 24. Rb7 Rb8 (24... Nd3 $5 25. Rxb5 $140 Rb8) 25. Rd7 Kg7 (25... Rbd8 $5 26. Rad1 Rxd7 27. Rxd7 Rc8 28. h4 Kg7 29. Kh2 Ne6 30. Rd5 Rc5 $11) 26. g3 Ne6 27. Raa7 h5 28. h4 Rbd8 29. Rdb7 Nd4 30. Kg2 Rb8 31. Nd5 Nc6 32. Rxb8 Rxb8 33. Rc7 Nd4 34. Rd7 Ne6 35. Nc3 Nc5 36. Rd5 Na4 37. Nd1 Kf6 38. Kf3 Ke6 39. Ke4 f5+ 40. Kd4 Rc8 41. Re5+ Kf6 42. Ne3 b4 43. Nd5+ Kf7 44. Re7+ Kf8 45. Rb7 Nxb2 46. Rxb4 {The draw is not yet guaranteed as Black needs to consolidate his position.} Nd1 47. f3 Rd8 48. Ke5 Nf2 49. Rb3 Kg7 50. Nf4 Re8+ 51. Kd4 (51. Ne6+ Kf7 52. Rb7+ Re7 $11) 51... Re7 52. Rb6 {Looks formidable but...} Rd7+ 53. Kc4 Kh7 $1 54. Ne6 (54. Rxg6 Nh3 55. Rf6 Nxf4 56. gxf4 Rd1 57. Rxf5 Kh6 $11 {[%cal Rd1h1]}) (54. Nxg6 Rg7 55. Nf8+ Kg8 56. Ne6 Rxg3 {and Black should not lose.}) 54... Kh6 55. Nf8 Rg7 56. Kd4 Nh1 57. Ke5 Nxg3 {White has given up a pawn but continues pushing for a win!} 58. Ne6 Rg8 $2 (58... Ra7 $11) 59. Kf6 $2 {Missing an excellent chance:} (59. Ng5 $1 Re8+ (59... f4 60. Rb7 Rg7 $4 61. Rb8 Re7+ 62. Kf6 $18) 60. Kf6 Rf8+ 61. Ke6 $1 f4 (61... Re8+ $2 62. Kf7 $18) (61... Kg7 62. Rb7+ Kh8 (62... Kg8 63. Nh7 Re8+ 64. Kf6) 63. Nh7 $1 Re8+ 64. Kd5 {[%cal Rh7f6]} Rd8+ 65. Ke5 Re8+ (65... Kg8 66. Nf6+ Kf8 67. Ke6) 66. Kf4 Ne2+ 67. Kg5 $18) 62. Rb7 Re8+ 63. Kd5 Rd8+ 64. Kc4 Rc8+ 65. Kb3 Rh8 66. Nf7+ Kg7 67. Nxh8+ Kxh8 68. Rb4 {and White should win this ending.}) 59... f4 $1 {Bringing the knight to defense.} 60. Ng5 Nf5 61. Nf7+ Kh7 62. Ng5+ Kh6 63. Rb7 Rf8+ 64. Nf7+ Kh7 65. Kg5 Ng7 66. Nd6 Rd8 67. Ne4 Rd5+ 68. Kf6 (68. Kxf4 $11) 68... Rf5+ 69. Ke7 Ra5 70. Kf7 Nf5 71. Nf6+ Kh6 72. Ng8+ Kh7 73. Nf6+ Kh6 74. Ng8+ Kh7 75. Kf8+ $4 {[%mdl 8192] Overconfidence is sometimes self-killing!} (75. Nf6+ $11) 75... Kh8 76. Nf6 $2 {A blunder but White is already lost:} (76. Rb8 Ra7 $19) 76... Ra8+ {with decisive material gains.} 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 24th"]
[Site "Kallithea"]
[Date "2008.10.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D94"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2008.10.17"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Saransk"]
[BlackTeam "Erevan MIKA"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "RUS"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ARM"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 g6 5. Nf3 Bg7 6. Bd3 O-O 7. O-O Bg4 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 e6 10. Rd1 Nbd7 11. Bd2 Re8 12. Rac1 {This system was examined in CBM 91, annotations to Hebden - Meenakshi by GM L.Ftacnik.} (12. Be1 {is also played.}) 12... Rc8 (12... Qe7 13. Qe2 (13. cxd5 exd5 14. Qg3 Rac8 15. Be1 Nf8 16. b4 Ne6 17. Na4 b6 18. Qf3 Qd7 19. Nc3 b5 20. Nb1 Qd6 $11 {1-0 Veresov,G-Ragozin,V/Moscow 1944/URS-ch (57)}) (13. Qg3 dxc4 14. Bxc4 e5 15. Bb3 Rad8 16. Qh4 Nb6 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. Qb4 Bf8 19. Qf4 Qxf4 20. exf4 Nfd5 $11 {1/2 Kuzubov,Y (2582)-Zugic,I (2477)/Calvia 2007/CBM 120 ext (56)}) 13... dxc4 (13... Rad8 14. Bb1 (14. Be1 a6 15. a3 e5 16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. cxd5 Nxd3 18. Rxd3 Nxd5 19. Nxd5 Rxd5 20. Rxd5 cxd5 21. Qc2 d4 {½-½ Simagin,V-Ignatiev,F/Moscow 1962/ (29)}) 14... Nf8 15. Be1 Rd7 16. a3 dxc4 17. Qxc4 Nd5 18. Qf1 Bh6 19. Rd3 f5 20. Rcd1 Red8 21. Bd2 Rc7 22. Qe2 {1-0 Lisitsin,G-Ragozin,V/Moscow 1948/ (57)}) 14. Bxc4 e5 15. d5 cxd5 16. Bxd5 e4 $6 (16... Nb6) 17. Bxb7 Rab8 18. Bc6 $6 (18. Nd5 $14) 18... Rxb2 $11 {1/2 Hebden,M (2534)-Meenakshi,S (2266)/Torquay 2002/CBM 091/[Ftacnik] (43)}) (12... dxc4 13. Bxc4 e5 14. Bb3 exd4 15. exd4 Nb6 16. Bg5 Qd6 17. Bf4 Qd7 18. Be5 $14 {1-0 Ivanov,S (2528)-Hasangatin,R (2458)/St Petersburg 1999/CBM 071/[Ftacnik] (44)}) (12... a6 13. Qe2 $6 (13. Be1) 13... e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Qxd5 17. Bb1 Qb5 18. Qxb5 axb5 19. b3 Red8 20. Bb4 Bf8 21. Bc3 Bg7 22. Bb4 Bf8 23. Bc3 Bg7 24. Bb4 {1/2 Lushenkov,M (2368)-Chuprikov,D (2377)/Sochi 2006/EXT 2007}) 13. Be1 Qe7 14. Qe2 a6 $1 {[%mdl 32]} (14... e5 {is a typical advance in such positions but now it was not so good due to} 15. dxe5 Nxe5 (15... Qxe5 16. cxd5 cxd5 (16... Nxd5 17. Nxd5 cxd5 18. Bb5) 17. Bb5 $14) 16. cxd5 Nxd5 (16... Nxd3 17. Rxd3 cxd5 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Rxd5) (16... cxd5 17. Bc2 $1 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Yc2b3,Ye2b5]}) 17. Nxd5 cxd5 18. Bb5 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 $14) 15. b3 $146 ({RR} 15. a4 h5 16. Bb1 a5 17. Bd3 Ra8 18. Qc2 Nb6 19. Ne2 dxc4 20. Bxc4 Nfd5 21. Bb3 Nb4 22. Qb1 N6d5 23. e4 Nb6 24. Nf4 Rad8 25. Bc3 Rd7 26. Ne2 Red8 27. Rf1 Kh7 28. e5 Kg8 29. Kh1 Qh4 {Sokolov,I (2653)-Gopal,G (2572) Dubai 2012 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 15. a3 Nh5 16. Rc2 f5 17. cxd5 exd5 18. Bxf5 Ng3 19. fxg3 gxf5 20. Qf3 Qxe3+ 21. Qxe3 Rxe3 22. Nxd5 Ree8 23. Nc3 Bxd4+ 24. Bf2 Bxf2+ 25. Rxf2 Nb6 26. Rxf5 Rcd8 27. Rxd8 Rxd8 28. b3 Rd2 29. Rf2 Rd4 {Brodsky,M (2554)-Fargere,F (2512) Cappelle la Grande 2011 1-0 (37)}) 15... Rcd8 {Black decides to wait.} (15... e5 $5 {was now quite appropriate:} 16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. cxd5 cxd5 $11 {Black's acive pieces compensate for his isolated pawn.}) 16. Qc2 Rc8 17. Bf1 Bf8 18. Qb1 Rcd8 19. g3 {The transfer of this bishop to g2 (to control the d5 square and therefore prevent ...e6-e5) is quite typical in this structure.} Bg7 20. Bg2 h5 21. Ne2 h4 $6 {It was probably better to continue waiting:} (21... Bh6) 22. g4 e5 23. Ba5 $1 Rc8 24. dxe5 Nxe5 25. Bc3 (25. cxd5 $1 Nxd5 (25... cxd5 26. Nf4) 26. e4 Nc7 27. f4 $14 {[%csl Ge4,Gf4,Gg4]}) 25... dxc4 $6 (25... Red8 $1 26. Ba5 $1 Re8 27. cxd5) 26. bxc4 Qc7 ({After} 26... b5 27. cxb5 cxb5 28. Bb4 {the position opens up and White's bishop pair become very strong but the text move allows him to fix Black's weakness on b7.}) 27. c5 $16 {[%csl Rb7,Gc5]} Rcd8 $2 {Loses material without enough counterplay.} (27... Nd5 28. Bd4 $16) 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Bxe5 Qxe5 30. Qxb7 Rd2 31. Nd4 Ne4 32. Nxc6 Qb2 33. Ne7+ Kf8 (33... Kh7 34. Qxb2 Bxb2 35. Bxe4 Bxc1 36. c6 $18) 34. Qa8+ Kxe7 35. Qxe4+ Qe5 36. c6 Rd8 37. c7 Rc8 38. Qb7 Qe6 39. Qxc8 (39. Qxc8 Qxc8 40. Bb7 $18) 1-0

[Event "EU-Cup 24th"]
[Site "Kallithea"]
[Date "2008.10.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Huzman, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2008.10.17"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 127"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2008.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Beer Sheva"]
[BlackTeam "Erevan MIKA"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ISR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ARM"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb4+ ({RR} 5... c5) 6. Bd2 Be7 7. e4 d5 8. cxd5 ({RR} 8. Nc3 Bxc4 9. Bxc4 dxc4 10. O-O-O c6 11. Bf4 Na6 12. a3 b5 13. Ne5 Qc8 14. Bg5 O-O 15. h4 Rb8 16. Qe2 Qb7 17. h5 h6 18. Bf4 c5 19. d5 b4) ({RR} 8. e5 Ne4 9. Bd3 ({RR} 9. cxd5 Bxf1 10. Qxe4 exd5 11. Qg4 Bg2 12. Rg1 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Nc6 14. Bc3 O-O 15. Nd2 f6 16. Qg4 f5 17. Qe2 Qd7 18. f4 Nd8 19. Nf3 Ne6) 9... O-O 10. O-O ({RR} 10. Bxe4 dxe4 11. Qxe4 Bxc4 12. Qxa8 Bd5) 10... c5 11. Bxe4 dxe4 12. Qxe4 Qd7 13. d5 ({RR} 13. Qxa8 Nc6) 13... exd5 14. cxd5 f5 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Re1 Qf7 ({RR} 16... Bxb2) 17. Nc3 Nd7 18. Qe6 Rae8 19. Qxf7+ Kxf7) 8... Bxf1 9. Kxf1 exd5 10. e5 Ne4 11. Nc3 Nxc3 12. bxc3 ({RR} 12. Bxc3 Qd7 13. Kg2 Nc6 14. h4 Nd8 15. Nh2 O-O 16. f4 f5 17. exf6 gxf6 18. Rhe1 Nf7 19. Qe2 Rae8 20. Qh5 Bd8 ({RR} 20... Kh8) 21. Bb4 Be7 22. Qg4+ Qxg4 23. Nxg4) 12... Qd7 ({RR} 12... O-O 13. h4 f6 14. e6 c5 15. h5 Nc6 16. Qf5) ({RR} 12... c5 13. Kg2 Nc6 14. h4 Qd7 15. Rae1 Qe6 16. Ng5 Bxg5 17. hxg5 cxd4 18. f4 g6 ({RR} 18... dxc3 19. f5 Nd4 20. Qa4+ Qd7 21. Qxd4 cxd2) 19. cxd4 Rc8 20. Qd3 Ne7 21. Rc1 O-O 22. Bb4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Nxc8 25. Qe2 Qc6 26. g4) 13. Kg2 Nc6 14. c4 Nd8 {This line was examined in CBM 120, annotations to Ni Hua - Tomashevsky. Since then several important games have been played. Some of them saw other plans for Black:} (14... Rd8 15. Rhd1 O-O 16. Rac1 dxc4 17. Qxc4 Nxd4 18. Be3 c5 19. Bxd4 cxd4 20. Rxd4 Qe8 21. Rcd1 Rxd4 22. Qxd4 Bc5 23. Qe4 h6 24. Nh4 Qe6 25. Rd2 Re8 26. f4 a5 (26... f6 27. Rd5 Qc6 28. Nf3 f5 29. Qd3 $14 {1-0 Vescovi,G (2609)-Fier,A (2499)/Sao Paulo 2007/CBM 118 ext (77)}) 27. Nf3 g6 28. h4 Bb4 29. Rd5 Qg4 30. Nh2 Qe6 31. h5 f5 32. Qc4 gxh5 33. Nf3 $36 {1/2 Romanov,E (2515)-Wang Hao (2643)/Yerevan 2007/CBM 120 ext (41)}) (14... O-O-O 15. Rac1 (15. Rhc1 Kb7 16. Qb3 g5 $5 17. h3 h5 18. cxd5 Qxd5 19. Qxd5 Rxd5 20. Bxg5 Bxg5 21. Nxg5 f6 22. Nf3 fxe5 23. dxe5 Nxe5 24. Nxe5 Rxe5 25. f4 Re3 26. Rf1 Rg8 27. Rf3 Re2+ 28. Rf2 Re3 29. Rf3 {1/2 Miton,K (2580)-Socko,B (2627)/Karpacz POL 2008/The Week in Chess 724 (29)}) 15... Kb7 16. Qb3 h5 (16... dxc4 17. Rxc4 Nb8 18. Rhc1 c6 19. Ne1 (19. Ra4 $5 $36) (19. Bb4 $5 $36) 19... Ka8 20. Be3 h5 21. h3 Qd5+ 22. Kh2 h4 23. g4 f6 $132 {0-1 Miton,K (2609)-Socko,B (2635)/Lublin 2008/CBM 123 (65)}) (16... g5 $5 {-cf. 17.hc1}) 17. h3 (17. h4 $142) 17... f6 $6 (17... g5 $1) 18. Rhe1 (18. e6 $1 Qxe6 $140 19. Rhe1 Qf7 20. cxd5 Qxd5 21. Qxd5 Rxd5 22. Rxc6 Kxc6 23. Rxe7 $16) 18... fxe5 19. dxe5 Qe6 20. c5 Rhf8 $14 {1-0 Jankovic,A (2532)-Lenic,L (2584)/Sibenik CRO 2008/The Week in Chess 726 (32)}) ({RR} 14... Rd8 15. Rhd1 O-O 16. Rac1 dxc4 17. Qxc4 Nxd4 18. Be3 c5 19. Bxd4 cxd4 20. Rxd4 Qe8 21. Rcd1 Rxd4 22. Qxd4 Bc5 23. Qe4 h6 24. Nh4 Qe6 25. Rd2 Re8 26. f4 f6 27. Rd5 Qc6 28. Nf3 f5 29. Qd3) 15. cxd5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (15. Qb3 $5 c6 16. Rhc1 (16. a4 O-O 17. cxd5 cxd5 18. Qb5 Qxb5 19. axb5 Ne6 20. Rhc1 Rfd8 21. Rc6 Kf8 22. Be3 $14 {1/2 Parligras,M (2588)-Grigorov,G (2465)/Bucharest ROU 2008/The Week in Chess 723}) 16... Ne6 17. Rab1 O-O 18. cxd5 Qxd5 19. Qxd5 cxd5 20. Rb5 Rfd8 21. a4 Rd7 22. Kf1 f6 23. Be3 Kf7 24. Ke2 Rb8 25. Ne1 (25. a5 $1) 25... a6 26. Rb3 fxe5 27. Nd3 exd4 28. Ne5+ Ke8 29. Nxd7 Kxd7 $13 {1/2 Sakaev,K (2634)-Tomashevsky,E (2646)/Serpukhov 2007/EXT 2008 (37)}) (15. Be3 c6 16. a4 Ne6 17. Rhc1 O-O 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Qb3 Rfc8 20. Ne1 f5 21. Nd3 g5 22. Qb5 Qxb5 23. axb5 Rc7 24. h3 Kf7 $11 {1/2 Atalik,E (2432)-Zhao Xue (2518)/Kallithea GRE 2008/The Week in Chess 729 (64)}) (15. e6 $5 {The most principled reply.} fxe6 ({RR} 15... Nxe6 16. Ne5 Qd6 17. Qa4+ Kf8 ({RR} 17... c6 18. Bb4) 18. Nd7+ Kg8 19. c5 bxc5 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Qxc5 22. Rac1) 16. Ne5 Qd6 $1 (16... Qc8 $2 17. Qa4+ b5 18. cxb5 O-O 19. Rhc1 Qb7 20. Qa6 Bd6 21. Ba5 Rc8 22. Nd3 Rf7 23. Rc3 Kf8 24. Rac1 $16 {1-0 Ni Hua (2681)-Tomashevsky,E (2654)/Nizhniy Novgorod 2007/CBM 120/[Krasenkow] (35)}) ({RR} 16... Qd6 17. Qa4+ ({RR} 17. Bf4 dxc4) 17... c6 18. c5 bxc5 19. Bf4 O-O) 17. Qa4+ c6 18. c5 bxc5 19. Bf4 O-O 20. dxc5 Qxc5 21. Nd7 Rxf4 $1 22. Qxf4 Qd6 23. Qxd6 Bxd6 24. Rhc1 Kf7 25. f4 Ke7 $11 {0-1 Kourousis,E (2191)-Tomashevsky,E (2658)/Plovdiv 2008/CBM 124 (32)}) ({RR} 15. e6 fxe6 16. Ne5 Qc8 17. Qa4+ b5 ({RR} 17... c6 18. cxd5 exd5 19. Bb4) ({RR} 17... Kf8 18. Rhe1) 18. cxb5 O-O 19. Rhc1 Qb7 20. Qa6 ({RR} 20. Rab1) 20... Bd6 21. Ba5 Rc8 22. Nd3 Rf7 23. Rc3 Kf8 24. Rac1 Qxa6 25. bxa6 Ke8 26. f4 Rd7 27. Kf3 Nf7 28. Ne5 Bxe5 29. dxe5 Nd8 {Ni,H (2681)-Tomashevsky,E (2654) Nizhnij Novgorod 2007 CBM 120 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (35)}) {The text move is a fresh attempt to prevent Black's consolidation.} 15... Qxd5 16. Qa4+ $146 (16. Qxc7 Ne6 (16... Nc6 $143 17. Be3 O-O 18. Rhc1 Rac8 19. Qb7) 17. Qc3 Rd8 18. Be3 g5 19. h3 f5 $44) ({RR} 16. Qxc7 Nc6 17. Be3 O-O 18. Rhc1 Rac8 19. Qb7 g5 20. h3 h5 21. g4 f6 22. Rxc6 Rxc6 23. Rc1 Rc5 24. Qxe7 Rxc1 25. Bxc1 hxg4 26. hxg4 fxe5 27. Qxg5+ Kh7 28. Qe3 exd4 29. Qd3+ Kg8 30. Bb2 Rf7 {Akobian,V (2612)-Benjamin,J (2583) Saint Louis 2009 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 16. Qxc7 Ne6 17. Qc3 Rd8 18. Be3 O-O 19. Qb3 Qb7 20. Rhd1 Rd5 21. Qc2 Rd7 22. Rac1 Ba3 23. Rb1 Rfd8 24. h4 Be7 25. Qc4 Qe4 26. Qd3 Qb7 27. Rd2 Bc5 28. Rbd1 Bxd4 29. Bg5 Rc8 30. Kh2 h6 {Pham,M (2479)-Grover,S (2300) Paris 2008 1-0 (41)}) 16... c6 (16... b5 $6 17. Qb3 {serious weakens Black's queenside.}) 17. Rhc1 Kd7 $5 {Very bold. Black wants to play ...d8-e6 at any cost.} (17... O-O 18. Qc4 $14) 18. Bb4 (18. Rc3 $5 Ne6 19. Rac1 Rhc8 20. Be3 g5 $140 21. Kg1 $1 {[%cal Yf3d2]} Qxf3 $2 22. d5 $1 $40) 18... b5 19. Qa3 Bxb4 20. Qxb4 a5 21. Qb3 Ne6 $11 22. Rxc6 $5 {[%mdl 512] An interesting exchange sacrifice.} Qxc6 23. d5 Qc4 24. dxe6+ Kxe6 $5 (24... fxe6 $6 25. Rd1+ Ke7 26. Qe3 $44 {[%cal Re3g5,Rd1c1]}) 25. Nd4+ $6 (25. Qe3 $5 $44) 25... Kd5 $1 {Steinitz would be delighted! White can't mate this centralized king and will be glad if he finds a perpetual.} 26. Qf3+ (26. Qa3 $144 $5 Kxd4 (26... Qxd4 $4 27. Qd6+) (26... b4 27. Qf3+ Kxd4 28. Qf4+ {- the black queen is not protected now!}) 27. Rc1 $1 (27. Rd1+ $143 Ke4 $1) 27... Rac8 (27... Qb4 $6 28. Qe3+ Kd5 29. Qd3+) (27... Rhc8 28. Rxc4+ bxc4 29. Qe3+ Kd5 30. Qf3+ Ke6 31. Qg4+ Ke7 32. Qxg7 $11) 28. Rxc4+ bxc4 {and Black can hardly avoid a perpetual:} 29. Qd6+ (29. Qe3+ Kd5 30. Qf3+ {is possible, too}) 29... Kc3 (29... Ke4 30. e6 $1) 30. Qa3+ Kc2 31. Qa4+ Kb2 32. Qxa5 c3 33. Qb4+ Ka1 34. a4 c2 35. Qa3+ Kb1 36. Qb3+ {etc.}) 26... Kxd4 27. Qe3+ $2 {This obvious check is the decisive mistake.} (27. Re1 $1 {[%cal Re1e4]} Kc5 ({White should survive after} 27... Rac8 28. Re4+ Kc5 29. Rxc4+ bxc4 30. Qa3+ {, too}) 28. Qe3+ Kd5 (28... Kc6 29. Rc1) (28... Kb4 29. Qd2+ Ka4 30. Qd1+) (28... Qd4 29. Rc1+ Kd5 30. Qb3+ Kxe5 31. Re1+ Kf6 32. Qf3+ Kg6 (32... Kg5 33. Rd1 $1) 33. Re4 Qf6 34. Rf4 $11) 29. e6 $1 {and White's attack should be sufficient for a draw.}) 27... Kd5 28. Rd1+ ({Of course, not} 28. e6 $4 Qe4+) 28... Ke6 29. Rd6+ Ke7 30. Qg5+ Ke8 {The black king has come back home.} 31. e6 Rc8 $1 (31... fxe6 32. Qxg7) 32. exf7+ $2 (32. h4 $1 {, creating a safeheaven for the king, was more stubborn. Black had the only, absolutely phantastic, way to win (indicated by GM A.Huzman):} fxe6 $1 (32... Qe4+ 33. Kh2 Qe2 34. Kg2 {gives nothing}) 33. Qxg7 Rg8 $3 34. Qxh7 {[%cal Yg2h2,Yd6d7]} (34. Qd7+ Kf8 35. Rxe6 Rg7) (34. Qxg8+ Ke7) 34... Rg4 $3 {[%cal Rc4e4]} 35. Kh3 Rf4 $3 (35... Rc7 36. Qh8+ Kf7 $3 37. Rd8 Qc5 $3 {also wins}) 36. gxf4 Qf1+ 37. Kg4 Qg2+ 38. Kh5 Qf3+ 39. Kg5 Rc5+ $19) {After the text move Black wins without brilliancies although he must play accurately.} 32... Qxf7 33. Rd3 (33. Qxb5+ Kf8 34. Rd7 Qe6 $19) 33... Qb7+ 34. Kh3 Rf8 35. Qh5+ Ke7 36. Re3+ Kd8 37. Rd3+ Kc7 38. Rd5 Rce8 39. Rc5+ (39. Rxb5 Qc8+ 40. g4 Rf6 $19) 39... Kd6 40. Rxb5 Qc8+ 41. Kh4 Qc4+ 42. g4 Qd4 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-38"]
[Site "Dresden"]
[Date "2008.11.15"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E35"]
[WhiteElo "2736"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2008.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 128"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "China"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "CHN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bxf6 Qxf6 8. Nf3 O-O 9. e3 Bf5 (9... Re8 10. a3 Bxc3+ 11. Qxc3 c6 12. Be2 Bg4 13. O-O Nd7 14. b4 a6 15. a4 Rac8 16. Rfc1 Qd6 17. Qb2 Nb6 18. b5 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Nc4 20. Qb1 Nd2 21. Qd3 Nxf3+ 22. gxf3 axb5 23. axb5 c5 $11 {1/2 Rychagov,A (2532)-Belozerov,A (2549)/chessassistantclub.com INT 2004/EXT 2006 (70)}) 10. Bd3 (10. Qb3 Qb6 11. Be2 c6 12. O-O Bd6 13. Na4 Qxb3 14. axb3 Nd7 15. Rfc1 Rfe8 16. Nc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 Bc7 18. Nd4 Bd7 19. b4 a6 $11 {1/2 Petran,P (2485)-Ravia,M/Ajka 1992/TD (28)}) 10... Bxd3 11. Qxd3 c6 (11... Nd7 12. O-O c6 {may be a more accurate order of moves.}) 12. O-O (12. Ne5 $5 Re8 (12... Qe6 $1 {[%cal Yb8d7]}) 13. O-O Bd6 14. f4 Na6 15. a3 Nc7 16. Rf3 a5 17. Kh1 Rad8 18. Rg1 c5 19. Qf1 c4 20. g4 Qe7 21. g5 $40 {1-0 Papadakis,M (2045)-Dobrev,N (2374)/Dos Hermanas 2003/EXT 2004 (57)}) 12... Nd7 13. a3 (13. Rfc1 a5 14. Na4 Rfb8 15. Rab1 Bd6 16. Qc2 Qe7 17. Ne1 Rf8 18. Nd3 f5 19. a3 f4 20. exf4 Bxf4 21. Re1 Qg5 22. Nac5 Nxc5 23. Nxc5 Rf7 24. Re2 Bd6 25. Rbe1 Bxc5 26. Qxc5 Qf4 27. g3 Qf6 28. f4 Raf8 29. Re5 Qg6 30. Kh1 Qg4 $14 {1/2 Haik,A (2425)-Pomar Salamanca,A (2430)/Buenos Aires 1978/EXT 2000}) 13... Bxc3 (13... Bd6 $5 14. e4 Qg6 15. Rad1 (15. Nh4 {[%cal Yh4f5]} Qg4 (15... Qh5 16. Qh3) 16. Nf5 dxe4 17. Qxe4 Qxe4 18. Nxe4 Bc7 $11) 15... dxe4 16. Nxe4 Rfe8 17. Rfe1 Nb6 18. Nc5 Qxd3 19. Nxd3 Rad8 20. Kf1 Rxe1+ 21. Rxe1 Kf8 22. h3 f6 23. Nd2 Kf7 24. Nb3 Bf8 25. Rc1 {1/2 Donner,J (2470)-Smyslov,V (2620)/Amsterdam 1954/EXT 2001}) 14. Qxc3 Nb6 {[%cal Yb6c8,Yc8d6,Yb6c4,Yc4d6] The Karlsbad structure with only knights on the board is considered comfortable for Black. The present game doesn't change that evaluation but sheds light on some niceties.} 15. Ne5 Qf5 16. Rfc1 $146 ({RR} 16. a4 f6 17. Nd3 a5 18. Nc5 Rf7 19. b4 Nc4 20. bxa5 Rxa5 21. Nb3 Ra7 22. a5 Rf8 23. Nd2 Nxd2 24. Qxd2 Rfa8 25. Qc3 Qd7 26. h3 Qc7 27. Rfb1 Rxa5 28. Rxa5 Qxa5 29. Qxa5 Rxa5 30. Rxb7 Ra1+ {Volkov,S (2594)-Ashwin,J (2476) Rethymno 2012 ½-½ (61)}) 16... f6 17. Nd3 Nc4 18. Nc5 Nd6 {[%csl Gd6]} 19. Qc2 Qxc2 20. Rxc2 Rae8 21. g3 g5 {This move creates an object of attack for White (h2-h4).} (21... h5 $5 $11) 22. Kg2 Kg7 23. a4 Re7 24. Rh1 Kg6 25. Rc3 h5 26. h4 Rh8 (26... g4 $5 $11 {The transfer of White's knight to f4 is harmless.}) 27. Rcc1 (27. hxg5 $5 fxg5 28. Nd3) 27... Rhh7 28. Rh2 Nf5 $6 (28... g4 {was still possible, with a completely dead position.}) 29. hxg5 fxg5 30. Nd3 g4 {Now the situation is completely different: the white knight has got the e5-square, and Black's h5-pawn is weak.} 31. Rch1 Kg5 32. Nf4 Ng7 33. b4 $1 a6 34. b5 axb5 35. axb5 Rh6 36. Ra1 Nf5 37. Ra8 h4 $5 (37... Rg7 $14 {is possible but the text move gives White a seemingly attractive possibility.}) 38. gxh4+ (38. Rg8+ Rg7 39. Rxg7+ Nxg7 40. Rxh4 Rxh4 41. gxh4+ Kxh4 42. bxc6 bxc6 43. Ng6+ Kg5 44. Ne5 {is hardly enough for a victory, e.g. after} Nh5 45. Nxc6 Kf5) 38... Nxh4+ 39. Rxh4 $5 {A "brilliant move" but Black miraculously holds his ground. Therefore} (39. Kf1 $142 $14) 39... Kxh4 $1 (39... Rxh4 40. Rg8+ Kf5 41. Ng6 Rhh7 42. Nxe7+ Rxe7 43. bxc6 bxc6 44. Kg3 $16) 40. Rg8 {[%cal Rf2f3]} (40. bxc6 bxc6 41. Rg8 Ra7) 40... Rf7 41. f3 (41. bxc6 Rxc6 $1 (41... bxc6 $2 42. f3 $18) 42. Ng6+ Kh5 43. Ne5 Rf5 44. Nxc6 bxc6 $11) 41... Rxf4 42. exf4 {[%mdl 4096]} cxb5 $1 (42... gxf3+ 43. Kxf3 {[%csl Rh4] should be lost for Black.}) 43. Rxg4+ (43. fxg4 Ra6 $1 44. f5 (44. Kf3 Ra3+ 45. Ke2 b4) 44... b4 45. Kf3 Ra1 $1 46. Rh8+ Kg5 47. Rh5+ Kf6 48. Rh6+ Kg5 49. Rg6+ Kh4 50. Kf4 Rf1+ 51. Ke5 b5 $1 52. Rb6 Kxg4 53. f6 Kg5 $11) 43... Kh5 44. Rg5+ Kh4 45. Rg7 $1 (45. Rxd5 $6 Rb6 $1) 45... Kh5 46. Rxb7 Ra6 47. Rxb5 Kh4 $1 48. Rb2 (48. Rxd5 Ra2+ 49. Kf1 Kg3 50. f5 Kxf3 51. Ke1 Ke4 $11) (48. Kf2 Ra2+ 49. Ke3 Ra3+ 50. Ke2 Ra2+ 51. Kd3 Ra3+ 52. Kc2 (52. Kd2 Kg3 53. f5 Kxf3 $11) 52... Rxf3 53. Rxd5 Kg4 54. Rd8 Kf5 $1 55. d5 Ke4 56. d6 Kd5 $11) 48... Ra4 49. Rd2 Kh5 {Despite two extra pawns, White can't strengthen his position.} 50. Kg3 Rb4 51. Rd1 Ra4 52. Kh3 Ra3 53. Rh1 Rd3 54. Kg3+ Kg6 55. Rh4 Rd2 56. Rg4+ Kf6 57. f5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-38"]
[Site "Dresden"]
[Date "2008.11.16"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2786"]
[BlackElo "2734"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2008.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 128"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "England"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. Nc3 O-O 7. Bf4 d5 8. Ne5 Na6 9. O-O c5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxd5 exd5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Rc1 Bf6 14. Nd3 Ne6 $146 ({RR} 14... Rc8 15. Nxc5 bxc5 16. Qa4 Qb6 17. Qc2 c4 18. Rfd1 Bxb2 19. Rb1 c3 20. Bxd5 Bxd5 21. Rxd5 Rfd8 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Bc1 Bxc1 24. Rxc1 Qb6 25. Qd3 g6 26. Kg2 Qc6+ 27. Qf3 Qc4 28. Rc2 Kg7 29. Qf4 {Kerkmeester,H-De Ruyter,L Dieren 1983 ½-½ (46)}) 15. Qd2 Qe7 16. Be5 Bxe5 17. Nxe5 Rac8 18. e3 Rc7 19. Nf3 Rfc8 20. Rfd1 h6 21. Rxc7 Rxc7 22. Ne1 Qf6 23. Qe2 Rd7 24. Qb5 Nc5 25. Qb4 a5 26. Qd2 Ne6 27. Nf3 Rc7 28. Qe2 Rc5 29. h3 g6 30. a3 Bc6 31. Rd2 Ba4 32. Kh2 Bb3 33. Qa6 Qd8 34. Qd3 Bc4 35. Qc3 Ba2 36. Qd3 Bc4 37. Qc2 Bf1 38. Qd1 Bxg2 39. Kxg2 Qa8 40. Kh2 Qc6 41. Ne5 Qd6 42. b4 axb4 43. axb4 Rc8 44. Rxd5 Qxb4 45. h4 h5 46. Rd7 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-38"]
[Site "Dresden"]
[Date "2008.11.20"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Rahman, Ziaur"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2510"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2008.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 128"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Bangladesh"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "BAN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 e6 3. e4 h6 4. Bxf6 Qxf6 5. c3 d5 6. Nd2 c5 7. Ngf3 Nc6 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. Bd3 ({RR} 9. Bb5 O-O 10. O-O Rd8 11. Qe2 Ne7 12. e5 Qg6 13. Bd3 Qh5 14. Kh1 Bd7 15. Nb3 Bb6 16. a4 Ng6 17. g3 d4 18. cxd4 Bc6 19. Be4 Qg4 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. a5 Bc7 22. Nbd2 Rab8 23. b3 Rb5 {Barrionuevo,P (2215)-Noroozi,O (2266) chess.com INT 2025 1-0}) 9... O-O 10. O-O Bb6 11. Qe2 Qf4 $146 ({RR} 11... Bd7 12. Rad1 Rad8 13. Rfe1 Rfe8 14. Bc2 Bc8 15. h3 g6 16. exd5 Ne7 17. Ne4 Qg7 18. d6 Nf5 19. g4 Bd7 20. Qf1 Bc6 21. Qg2 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Nxd6 23. Bc2 Nc4 24. Bb3 Nxb2 25. Rxd8 Rxd8 26. Ne5 {Di Nicolantonio,L (2382)-Srbis,J (2455) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (35)}) ({RR} 11... Bd7 12. Rad1 Rfe8 13. e5 Qe7 14. Bc2 Bc7 15. Qd3 g6 16. Rfe1 b5 17. Nf1 Kg7 18. Ng3 Rh8 19. Qe3 b4 20. Ne2 bxc3 21. bxc3 Bb6 22. Nfd4 Rhc8 23. Bd3 Nxd4 24. cxd4 Rc7 25. Rc1 Rac8 26. Rxc7 {Kazik,O (1771)-Kiray,T (1556) Antalya 2019 0-1 (65)}) 12. Rad1 Bd7 13. Bc2 Rfd8 14. exd5 exd5 15. Qd3 Be6 16. Qh7+ Kf8 17. Nb3 Qf6 18. Nbd4 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 Rac8 20. Rd3 Bxd4 21. Rxd4 Rc4 22. Rfd1 Rxd4 23. Rxd4 Qe5 24. Rd1 d4 25. Qd3 Bxa2 26. cxd4 Qa5 27. h3 Be6 28. Bb3 Bxb3 29. Qxb3 Rxd4 30. Rxd4 Qe1+ 31. Kh2 Qe5+ 32. Kg1 Qe1+ 33. Kh2 Qe5+ 34. Kg1 Qxd4 35. Qxb7 g5 36. g3 Kg7 37. Kg2 a5 38. b3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-38"]
[Site "Dresden"]
[Date "2008.11.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Rowson, Jonathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A84"]
[WhiteElo "2596"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2008.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 128"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Scotland"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "SCO"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 e6 4. e3 Bd6 5. b3 f5 6. Be2 Nf6 7. O-O Qe7 8. Bb2 b6 ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Qc1 g5 10. Ba3 g4 11. Ne5 Nd7 12. Nxd7 Bxd7 13. Bxd6 Qxd6 14. Nc3 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 h5 16. f4 h4 17. b4 dxc4 18. Bxc4 h3 19. g3 b5 20. Bb3 a5 21. bxa5 b4 22. Qb2 Rxa5 23. d5 {Khlebovich,A (2423)-Colville,J (2166) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (47)}) 9. Qc1 Bb7 10. Ba3 Nbd7 11. Qb2 $146 ({RR} 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. Qa3 Qxa3 13. Nxa3 Ke7 14. Rac1 Rac8 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Nc4 c5 17. Rfd1 Rhd8 18. Kf1 N7f6 19. dxc5 Rxc5 20. Nce5 Rdc8 21. Rxc5 Rxc5 22. Nd3 Rc2 23. Rd2 Rxd2 24. Nxd2 Nc3 25. Nc1 e5 {Shevchenko,K (2545)-Ivanchuk,V (2713) Batumi 2018 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. Qb2 Ne4 13. Ne5 O-O 14. f3 Ng5 15. Nxd7 Qxd7 16. Nd2 Qe7 17. f4 Nf7 18. Rac1 c5 19. Nf3 dxc4 20. dxc5 Qxc5 21. Nd4 Nd6 22. Bxc4 Nxc4 23. Rxc4 Qd5 24. Rc7 Rf7 25. Rfc1 Rd8 {Votava,J (2521)-Kopylov,M (2409) Germany 2016 ½-½ (41)}) 11... c5 12. Nc3 a6 13. Rfd1 O-O 14. cxd5 exd5 15. g3 Rac8 16. Rac1 Kh8 17. Qb1 Ne4 18. dxc5 Nxc3 19. Rxc3 bxc5 20. Bf1 Nf6 21. Bg2 Ne4 22. Rc2 a5 23. Bb2 Rf7 24. Ba1 Re8 25. Qc1 h6 26. Ne1 Kh7 27. Nd3 Rc8 28. Nf4 Bxf4 29. exf4 Qf8 30. Qa3 d4 31. Qxa5 Rd7 32. Qb5 Qd6 33. Qd3 Ba6 34. Qf3 d3 35. Rcc1 d2 36. Rc2 Qg6 37. Bf1 Bb7 38. Qe3 Re8 39. Be5 Rxe5 40. fxe5 f4 41. Qe2 Ng5 42. Rc3 Qc6 43. f3 Nxf3+ 44. Kf2 Ng5 45. e6 Ne4+ 46. Qxe4+ Qxe4 47. exd7 Qd4+ 48. Ke2 Ba6+ 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-38"]
[Site "Dresden"]
[Date "2008.11.25"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Adly, Ahmed"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E52"]
[WhiteElo "2586"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2008.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 128"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.01.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Egypt"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "EGY"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. Nf3 b6 7. O-O Bb7 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Bd2 Nbd7 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd7 ({RR} 11... Bxc3 12. Bxc3 Ne4 13. Be1 Re8 14. f4 c5 15. Qg4 Qc8 16. Qh5 Re6 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. f5 Rh6 19. Qg4 b5 20. Rd1 Qe8 21. Bg3 Kh8 22. Rd2 Rd8 23. Rfd1 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 Rc6 25. e6 g6 26. exf7 {Szczotka,K (2105)-Bukala,W (1884) Chotowa POL 2025 1-0}) 12. Qc2 ({RR} 12. f4 Nc5 13. Bc2 d4 14. Na4 a5 15. Bxb4 axb4 16. Nxc5 bxc5 17. exd4 cxd4 18. Bd3 g6 19. Qd2 Qd5 20. Rae1 Rfe8 21. Be4 Qb5 22. Bxb7 Qxb7 23. f5 Qd5 24. f6 d3 25. Kh1 Qc5 26. e6 Rxe6 {Erigaisi,A (2627)-Le,Q (2709) Kolkata 2021 1-0 (32)}) 12... g6 $146 ({RR} 12... h6 13. f4 Nc5 14. Bh7+ Kh8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 Ne4 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. f5 Ba6 19. Rf4 Qd3 20. Qf2 Qe2 21. Qg3 Rad8 22. h3 Rd1+ 23. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 24. Kh2 Qh5 25. e6 Rg8 26. Rh4 {1-0 (26) Iniyan,P (2515)-Degenhard,S (2278) Bad Woerishofen GER 2023}) ({RR} 12... h6 13. f4 Nc5 14. Bh7+ Kh8 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Bxc3 Ne4 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. f5 Ba6 19. Rf4 Qd3 20. Qf2 Qe2 21. Qg3 Rad8 22. h3 Rd1+ 23. Rxd1 Qxd1+ 24. Kh2 Qh5 25. e6 Rg8 26. Rh4 {1-0 (26) Iniyan,P (2515)-Degenhard,S (2278) Bad Woerishofen GER 2023}) 13. f4 Nc5 14. Ne2 Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Nxd3 16. Qxd3 c5 17. Nc3 d4 18. Ne4 Bxe4 19. Qxe4 dxe3 20. Qxe3 Qh4 21. Rad1 Rad8 22. Qf3 Qe7 23. Rf2 Rxd1+ 24. Qxd1 Rd8 25. Rd2 Rxd2 26. Qxd2 Qe6 27. Kf2 Kg7 28. a3 h5 29. Qd3 Qg4 30. g3 Qh3 31. Kg1 Qf5 32. Qe2 a6 33. Kf2 b5 34. Ke3 Qb1 35. Qd2 a5 36. e6 fxe6 37. Qd7+ Kh6 38. Qxb5 Qg1+ 39. Kf3 Qh1+ 40. Ke3 Qxh2 41. Kf3 Qh1+ 42. Kf2 h4 43. gxh4 Qxh4+ 44. Kf3 Qh3+ 45. Ke4 Qg2+ 46. Ke3 a4 47. Qxa4 Qxb2 48. Qa8 Qd4+ 49. Kf3 c4 50. Kg4 c3 51. Qf8+ Qg7 52. Qd8 Kh7 53. Qc8 Qf6 54. a4 g5 55. Qd7+ Kg6 56. fxg5 Qf5+ 57. Kh4 c2 58. Qd2 Qe4+ 59. Kg3 Qc4 60. Qd8 Kh5 61. Qh8+ Kxg5 62. Qg7+ Kf5 63. Qf7+ Ke5 64. Qg7+ Kd5 65. Qd7+ Ke4 66. Qb7+ Kd3 67. Qf3+ Kd2 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.01.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Movsesian, Sergei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2751"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. Qb3 Qb6 6. Nc3 e6 7. Nh4 Bh5 8. h3 Nbd7 9. g4 Bg6 10. g5 Ng8 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Qc2 Ne7 13. Bd2 Nf5 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nb5 Bd6 16. Qa4 a6 17. Rc1 Ke7 18. Nxd6 Nxd6 19. Bd3 Rhc8 20. Ke2 e5 $146 ({RR} 20... Ke8 21. b3 Ne4 22. Bxe4 dxe4 23. Rc4 Qb5 24. Rhc1 Nb6 25. Qxb5+ axb5 26. Rxc8+ Rxc8 27. Rxc8+ Nxc8 28. f3 f5 29. f4 Nb6 30. Kd1 Nd5 31. Kc2 b4 {½-½ (31) Javakhadze,Z (2365)-Bukavshin,I (2417) Akhisar Manisa 2009}) 21. Qb4 e4 22. Bc2 Qxb4 23. Bxb4 a5 24. Bxd6+ Kxd6 25. f3 exf3+ 26. Kxf3 Nf8 27. Bd3 Ne6 28. h4 Rxc1 29. Rxc1 Rh8 30. Kg4 Re8 31. Bb5 Rg8 32. Rc3 f5+ 33. Kg3 Rf8 34. Bd3 f4+ 35. exf4 Nxf4 36. Kg4 Nxd3 37. Rxd3 Rf2 38. Rb3 Kc6 39. Rc3+ Kd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.01.20"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[PlyCount "129"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Quintiliano,Renato} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. b3 O-O 8. Be2 b6 9. Bb2 Qe7 10. O-O Bb7 11. Rfe1 ({RR} 11. Rad1 Rac8 12. e4 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Qxe4 Nf6 15. Qh4 c5 16. Rfe1 cxd4 ({RR} 16... Ne4 17. d5) 17. Nxd4 Bb4 ({RR} 17... Ba3) 18. Bd3 Bxe1 19. Bxh7+ Kh8 20. Bc2+ Kg8 21. Rxe1) 11... Rfe8 12. Rad1 Rad8 ({RR} 12... Rac8 13. Bd3 e5 ({RR} 13... c5 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Bf5) 14. e4 dxc4 ({RR} 14... exd4 15. exd5) 15. Bxc4 b5 16. Bf1 g6 ({RR} 16... a6 17. h3 g6 18. Qd2 Rcd8 19. Qh6 exd4 20. Nxd4 Qf8) 17. Qd2 Rcd8 18. Qg5 a6 19. h3 exd4 20. Nxd4 Qe5 21. Qxe5 Nxe5 22. Nc2 g5 23. Bc1 h6 24. Be3 c5 25. f3 Bf8 26. Bf2) 13. Bf1 ({RR} 13. e4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Qxe4 Bb4 16. Rf1 Bd6 17. Rfe1 Bb4 18. Rf1 Bd6 19. Rfe1 Bb4) ({RR} 13. Bd3 e5 14. cxd5 ({RR} 14. e4 dxc4 15. Bxc4 b5 16. Bf1 a6) 14... cxd5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nd4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Ne4) ({RR} 13. h3 c5 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Ba1 a6 16. Qb2 Qe6 17. Bd3 h6 18. e4 dxe4 19. d5 Qe7 20. Nxe4 Qf8 21. Qd2 Bb8 22. Nxf6+ Nxf6 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rxe8 Rxe8 25. Bb1 Rd8 26. Qc2 Qg7 27. Qe4 Kf8 {Lupulescu,C (2577)-Finek,V (2518) Batumi GEO 2025 1-0 (89)}) 13... Bb4 $146 ({RR} 13... e5 14. dxe5 ({RR} 14. cxd5 e4 15. Nh4 Bxh2+ 16. Kxh2 Ng4+ 17. Kh3 Ndf6) ({RR} 14. g3 e4 15. Nh4 Qe6 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Nb5 Rc8 18. Qd2 Bb8 19. Rc1 g5 20. Ng2 Qh3) 14... Nxe5 15. Nd4 ({RR} 15. Nd4 dxc4 16. Nf5 Qe6 17. Nxd6 Rxd6 18. bxc4 Rxd1 19. Nxd1 c5) 15... g6 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Bb5 Rf8 18. f4 Neg4 19. h3 a6 20. hxg4 axb5 21. g5 Nh5 22. g4 Ng3 23. Qh2 b4 24. Qxg3 bxc3 25. Bxc3 Qxg5 26. Qh3 Qe7 27. g5 Rc8 28. Nf5 {Nakada,A (2226)-Homa,S (2269) Clayton 2021 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 13... c5 14. cxd5 exd5 15. g3 a6 ({RR} 15... Rc8 16. Qb1 ({RR} 16. Bh3 c4) 16... cxd4 ({RR} 16... c4 17. bxc4 Bb4 18. Nd2 dxc4 19. e4) 17. Nxd4 Bb4 18. Rc1 Ne5 ({RR} 18... Ne4 19. Nf5 Qe6 20. Nxe4 Qxe4 21. Qxe4 dxe4 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23. Rd1) 19. Bh3 Rcd8 20. Red1 Bc5 21. Bg2) 16. Bg2 Rc8 17. Qb1 ({RR} 17. dxc5 Bxc5 ({RR} 17... bxc5 18. Nh4 Qe6 19. Qd2 Nb6 20. e4 d4 21. e5 Bxg2 22. exf6 Be5 23. Nxg2 dxc3 24. Bxc3 Bxc3 25. Rxe6 Bxd2 26. Rxb6) 18. Rc1 Ne4 19. Qd3 Ndf6) 17... h6 ({RR} 17... Rcd8 18. Nh4 cxd4 ({RR} 18... g6) 19. Nf5 Qf8 20. Nxd6 Qxd6 21. Rxd4) ({RR} 17... c4 18. bxc4 dxc4 19. e4) 18. Nh4 ({RR} 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Nh4 Qe6 20. Ne2 Rcd8 21. Nf4 Bxf4 22. exf4 Qb6) 18... c4 19. Nf5 Qf8 20. Nxd6 ({RR} 20. bxc4 Rxc4 21. e4 dxe4 ({RR} 21... Bb4 22. e5 Bxc3 23. Bxc3 Rxc3 24. exf6 Nxf6 25. Qxb6 Bc8 26. Rxe8 Qxe8 27. Qa5) 22. Nxe4 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Bxe4 24. Rxe4 Rxe4 25. Qxe4 g6 ({RR} 25... Nf6 26. Qd3 b5 27. d5) 26. Nxd6 Qxd6 27. Qe8+ Nf8 28. d5) 20... Qxd6 21. bxc4 Rxc4 22. a4 Rec8 23. Rc1 h5 24. h3 Nf8 25. Qa2 Ne6 ({RR} 25... h4) 26. Qb3 Qd8 27. Re2 ({RR} 27. h4) 27... Bc6 28. Rec2 {Ding,L (2778)-Topalov,V (2749) Shamkir 2018 CBM 184 [Quintiliano,Renato] ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 13... e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Nb5 Rc8 18. Qb1 d4 19. h3 ({RR} 19. exd4 Bxh2+ 20. Kxh2 Ng4+ 21. Kg3 Qg5 22. f4 Qh5) 19... Ng4 20. hxg4 Qh4 21. f4 dxe3 22. Rxe3 Bxf4 23. Rh3 Qxh3 24. gxh3 Be3+ 25. Kh2 Bf4+ 26. Kg1) ({RR} 13... e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. h3 dxc4 17. Bxc4 c5 18. Rxd8 Rxd8 19. Rd1 Rxd1+ 20. Qxd1 h6 21. Qd3 Ne4 22. Nxe4 Bxe4 23. Qd2 Bxb2 24. Qxb2 Qg5 25. f4 Qe7 26. Qd2 Bc6 27. a4 Qd7 28. Qxd7 {Neverov,V (2423)-Mohammad Fahad,R (2431) Budapest HUN 2024 ½-½}) 14. a3 Bxa3 15. Bxa3 Qxa3 16. cxd5 exd5 17. Ra1 Qd6 18. Rxa7 Qb8 19. Rea1 c5 20. b4 cxd4 21. Nxd4 Rc8 22. Qb3 Ne5 23. h3 g6 24. Be2 Re7 25. R7a2 Nc4 26. Rd1 Nxe3 27. fxe3 Rxe3 28. Rd3 Qg3 29. Nd1 Qe1+ 30. Bf1 Rxd3 31. Qxd3 Qxb4 32. Qd2 Qd6 33. Nf3 Ne4 34. Qd4 Rc1 35. Rb2 Qc5 36. Ne3 Ba6 37. Rxb6 Qxd4 38. Nxd4 Bxf1 39. Nxf1 Nd2 40. Rf6 Rd1 41. Ne2 d4 42. Neg3 h5 43. Rf2 Nb1 44. Rb2 f5 45. Nh1 Nc3 46. Rd2 Ra1 47. h4 Kg7 48. Nhg3 Ra4 49. Nh2 Ne4 50. Rd3 Nxg3 51. Rxg3 d3 52. Rxd3 Rxh4 53. Rd7+ Kh6 54. Nf3 Re4 55. Rd6 Kg7 56. Kh2 Kh6 57. Nd4 Rh4+ 58. Kg3 Rg4+ 59. Kh3 Kg7 60. g3 Kf7 61. Nf3 Ke7 62. Ra6 f4 63. gxf4 Rxf4 64. Ne5 Re4 65. Nxg6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.01.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2706"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "158"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Bd3 Bg4 6. Nbd2 Nbd7 7. Qc2 e6 8. O-O dxc4 ({RR} 8... Be7 9. b3 c5 10. Bb2 Rc8 11. Rac1 O-O 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Qb1 Bh5 14. Ne5 Bg6 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. Nf3 Bd6 17. Rfd1 Qe7 18. Qa1 cxd4 19. Bxd4 Bc5 20. Bxc5 Nxc5 21. Qb2 Nce4 22. h3 Rfe8 23. a3 {Roiz,M (2677)-Karjakin,S (2730) Dresden 2008 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 8... Bh5 9. b3 Bg6 10. Bxg6 hxg6 11. e4 Nxe4 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. Qxe4 Nf6 14. Qe2 Be7 15. Bf4 O-O 16. Rad1 Re8 17. Rd3 Qb6 18. Ne5 Bf8 19. Bg5 Nh7 20. Bh4 g5 21. Bg3 Qc7 22. f4 f6 23. fxg5 {Testor,S (2325)-Sandhoefner,F (2275) Austria AUT 2022 1-0 (78)}) 9. Bxc4 Be7 10. e4 O-O 11. Bd3 $146 (11. Ne5 Bh5 (11... Nxe5 $5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. h3 Bh5 14. f4 b5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Be2 f6 $132) 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. Nb3 a5 14. a4 Bg6 15. f3 Nd5 16. Qe2 Nb4 17. Rd1 b6 $11 {1-0 Bacrot,E (2709)-Drozdovskij,Y (2558)/Odessa 2007 (rapid)/ (56)}) ({RR} 11. Ne5 Bh5 12. Nxd7 Qxd7 13. Nb3 a5 14. a4 Bg6 15. f3 Nd5 16. Qe2 Nb4 17. Rd1 b6 18. Be3 Kh8 19. Bf2 f5 20. exf5 exf5 21. d5 cxd5 22. Bb5 Qb7 23. Nd4 Bf6 24. Rac1 Be8 25. Ne6 Rf7 {Bacrot,E (2709)-Drozdovskij,Y (2558) Odessa 2007 1-0 (56)}) 11... h6 12. h3 Bh5 $11 13. e5 $6 {White starts doubtful complications.} Nd5 14. g4 Nb4 (14... Bg6 15. Bxg6 fxg6 16. Qxg6 Nf4 17. Qe4 Nxh3+ 18. Kh2 Nf4 19. Nc4 Nd5 20. Kg2 $13 {[%cal Gf1h1,Gg4g5]}) 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. Qb1 f5 $1 17. exf6 Nxf6 18. gxh5 (18. Bg6 Bxg6 19. Qxg6 Nfd5 $17) 18... Nxh7 19. Ne5 Kg8 (19... Bd6 {was an attractive alternative:} 20. Ng6+ Kg8 21. Nxf8 Qg5+ $1 (21... Qxf8 22. Nc4 Bc7 23. Ne5 $16) 22. Kh1 Rxf8 $44 23. Ne4 $140 $2 Qxh5 $19) 20. Qg6 Rf6 21. Qg4 Ng5 22. Ndc4 (22. h4 $2 Rf4 $1 23. Qg3 (23. Qxf4 Nh3+ $19) 23... Rxh4 $19) 22... Nd5 23. h4 (23. Bxg5 hxg5 24. Qxg5 $2 Rf5 $17) 23... Nf7 24. Kh1 Bf8 25. Be3 Ne7 $4 {Missing White's reply.} (25... Qe8 $1 $15 {[%csl Rh5][%cal Ga8d8,Gf6f5]}) 26. Nb6 $1 {A nice and unexpected blow.} Ra7 (26... Qxb6 27. Nd7 $16) 27. Ned7 Rf5 28. Rg1 Nd5 29. Nxd5 (29. Nxf8 {wins quicker:} Qxf8 (29... Kxf8 30. Qxg7+ Ke7 31. Bxh6 $1 Nxb6 (31... Qxb6 32. Qf8+ Kd7 33. Rg7 $18) 32. Bg5+ Rxg5 33. hxg5 $18) 30. Nd7 $18) 29... Rxd5 (29... cxd5 30. Nxf8 Qxf8 31. Rac1 Ra8 32. Rc7 $18) 30. Nxf8 Qxf8 31. Rg3 Ra8 32. Rag1 Kh8 33. Qxe6 $1 (33. Qxg7+ Qxg7 34. Rxg7 Rf8 35. Kh2 Rxh5 36. Kh3 $16) 33... Rxh5 34. Qg4 g6 (34... Rd5 35. Qxg7+ Qxg7 36. Rxg7 $18) 35. d5 $2 {Throwing it all away.} (35. Qxg6 Rxh4+ 36. Kg2 {[%cal Gg6f6]} Nd6 37. d5 cxd5 38. Bc5 Rd8 39. Kf1 $18) 35... Ne5 36. Bd4 Qf6 $1 {[%csl Rh4]} 37. Bxe5 Qxe5 38. dxc6 bxc6 39. Rd1 Rg8 40. Qd4 Qxd4 41. Rxd4 g5 42. Rc3 Rf8 43. Kg1 ({After} 43. Rxc6 Rxf2 44. Rxa6 {a safe method to make a draw is the following:} Rxh4+ ({but not} 44... Rxb2 $4 45. Rd8+ $1 Kg7 46. Rd7+ Kg8 47. Ra8+ {and mate}) 45. Rxh4 gxh4 46. Rxh6+ (46. b4 Rb2 47. a3 Kg7 $11) 46... Kg7 47. Rb6 Kf7 48. a4 Ke7 49. a5 Kd7 50. a6 Kc7 51. Rb7+ (51. a7 Rf1+ 52. Kg2 Ra1 $11) 51... Kc8 52. b4 Ra2 53. b5 h3 54. Rh7 Kb8 55. Rxh3 {with a theoretical draw. For instance:} Ka7 56. Rh7+ (56. Kg1 Kb6) 56... Ka8 57. Kg1 Rb2 58. Rh5 Ka7 59. Kf1 Kb6 $11) 43... Rf6 44. hxg5 Rxg5+ 45. Kf1 Kg7 $11 46. Rdc4 Ra5 47. a3 Rb5 48. Rc2 Rd6 49. a4 Rb6 50. b4 a5 51. bxa5 Ra6 52. Rg4+ Kf7 53. Rc5 Rd5 54. Rgc4 Rxa5 55. Rxc6 Rd1+ 56. Ke2 Ra1 57. Rf4+ Ke7 58. Rcc4 h5 59. Rb4 Ra2+ 60. Kf3 Ra3+ 61. Kg2 Ke6 62. Rbe4+ Kd6 63. f3 Ra2+ 64. Kh3 Ra1 65. Rd4+ Ke6 66. Rb4 Rg5 67. Rfe4+ Kf6 68. Rf4+ Ke6 69. Rb6+ Ke7 70. Rb2 Rh1+ 71. Rh2 Ra1 72. Kh4 Rg8 73. Rd4 Kf6 74. Rf4+ Ke5 75. Rb4 Kf5 76. Kh3 Ra3 77. Rf2 Ra8 78. Rb5+ Kf4 79. Rxh5 Rxf3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.01.28"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D81"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2717"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Qb3 dxc4 5. Qxc4 Bg7 6. e4 O-O 7. Be2 Nfd7 8. Be3 Nb6 9. Qd3 {A relatively new move, first applied by Kramnik against Dominguez several months ago - see CBM 128.} f5 (9... Nc6 10. Rd1 f5 11. Nf3 f4 12. Bc1 Bg4 13. e5 Qd7 14. Ne4 Rad8 15. Nc5 Qc8 16. Qc3 e6 $6 (16... Nd5 17. Qb3 b6 18. Ba6 Qb8 19. Ne4 Na5 20. Qa4 c5 $13) 17. h3 Bh5 $6 (17... Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Nxd4 $1 19. Bxb7 Qb8 20. Be4 Bxe5 21. Nxe6 $13) 18. O-O Nd5 19. Qb3 Na5 20. Qc2 Nc6 21. Ng5 $1 $14 {[%csl Re6] 1/2 Kramnik,V (2772)-Dominguez Perez,L (2719)/Dresden 2008/CBM 128/[Krasenkow] (45)}) 10. Rd1 f4 11. Bc1 e5 12. d5 c6 13. Nf3 cxd5 14. Nxd5 Nxd5 15. Qb3 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (15. Qxd5+ Qxd5 16. exd5 Bf5 17. O-O Nd7 18. Rfe1 a6 19. Bd2 Rac8 20. Ng5 Rc2 21. Ne6 Rfc8 22. Nxg7 Kxg7 23. Bc3 Kf6 24. Bf3 b5 $13 {1/2 Jakovenko,D (2737)-Mamedyarov,S (2731)/Elista RUS 2008/The Week in Chess 737 (57)}) 15... Kh8 (15... Be6 $5 16. exd5 Bf7 17. Qxb7 Nd7 $44 {S.Zagrebelny Of course, this line needs further analysis.}) 16. Bc4 Nc6 17. Bxd5 Qe7 (17... Qb6 {doesn't change much:} 18. h3 Nd4 19. Nxd4 exd4 {[%cal Yg7e5]} 20. Bd2 $14 {The black bishop will be strong on e5 but White's d5 bishop is even stronger!}) 18. h3 $146 (18. Bd2 Bg4 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Bb4 c5 21. Bc3 Rae8 22. h3 Bc8 23. Kd2 Rd8+ 24. Kc1 Rd4 $5 25. Bxd4 exd4 26. Rhe1 Be6 27. Qa3 Rd8 28. Re2 Qc7 29. e5 Qb6 30. Ng5 Bd5 31. e6 Re8 $44 {1/2 Aleksandrov,A (2636)-Zinchenko,Y (2527)/Moscow RUS 2009/The Week in Chess 744 (44)}) ({RR} 18. Bd2 Bg4 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Bb4 c5 21. Bc3 Rae8 22. h3 Bc8 23. Kd2 Rd8+ 24. Kc1 Rd4 25. Bxd4 exd4 26. Rhe1 Be6 27. Qa3 Rd8 28. Re2 Qc7 29. e5 Qb6 30. Ng5 Bd5 31. e6 Re8 32. Rc2 Bf8 {Aleksandrov,A (2636)-Zinchenko,Y (2527) Moscow 2009 ½-½ (44)}) 18... Nb4 (18... Nd4 19. Nxd4 exd4 20. Bd2 a5 21. Rc1 $14 {[%csl Gb3,Gd5][%cal Gc1c7]}) 19. Bc4 $6 {A tempo was more important than this bishop!} (19. O-O $142 $1 Nxd5 $140 20. exd5 {[%csl Gd5,Re5]} e4 21. Rfe1 Re8 22. d6 Qd8 23. Nh2 $18 {[%cal Rc1f4,Rd6d7]}) 19... b5 $5 20. Bxb5 $6 (20. Bd2 $1 a5 (20... bxc4 21. Qxb4 Qxb4 22. Bxb4 Re8 23. O-O $16 {[%csl Re5]}) 21. Bxb4 Qxb4+ 22. Qxb4 axb4 23. Bd5 $14) 20... Nxa2 (20... Be6 $5 21. Bc4 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Rac8 $44) 21. Bd2 (21. Qxa2 Qb4+) 21... Rb8 22. Qa4 Qb7 23. O-O Qxb5 24. Qxa2 Qxb2 25. Qxa7 Qb7 $11 {Black has solved all his opening problems. But equal doesn't quite mean drawn! Several minor inaccuracies - and the Cuban GM loses this game...} 26. Qc5 Be6 27. Qd6 Bb3 28. Rb1 Qxe4 29. Bc3 Rbd8 (29... Qd5 $11 {R.Sherbakov}) 30. Qa3 Bc2 $6 {This bishop will be out of play and hanging.} (30... Bd5 $11) 31. Rb5 Qa4 $6 (31... Qc6 $142 32. Rxe5 $1 (32. Qb2 Rc8 33. Bxe5 Bxe5 34. Rxe5 Qc3 $1) (32. Rc5 Qa4 33. Qb2 Rb8) 32... Ra8 33. Qb2 Be4 34. Nd4 Qb7 35. Rb5 $36 {- analysis by IM M.Notkin.}) 32. Qb2 Bd3 $2 (32... Be4 33. Bxe5 Qa7 $1 34. Ra1 Qe7 35. Bxg7+ Qxg7 36. Ne5 $16) 33. Rb7 $1 $18 {[%mdl 128] Suddenly White obtains a killing attack.} Qc2 (33... Bxf1 34. Bxe5 Rd7 35. Bxg7+ Kg8 36. Rxd7 Qxd7 37. Bxf8 $18 {M.Notkin}) (33... Rd7 34. Nxe5 Rxb7 (34... Bxe5 35. Bxe5+ Kg8 36. Rxd7 Qxd7 37. Rc1 $18) 35. Qxb7 Qa6 36. Qe7 {[%cal Re5g6]} Kg8 37. Nd7 Rf7 38. Qd8+ Bf8 39. Nxf8 Rxf8 40. Qd5+ Rf7 41. Ra1 $18) 34. Qb4 Rfe8 35. Re1 (35. Bxe5 $1 Bxe5 36. Nxe5 Rxe5 37. Qxf4 Rf5 38. Qh6 $18) 35... Be2 36. Nxe5 Bxe5 37. Bxe5+ Rxe5 38. Qxf4 Qf5 39. Qh6 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.01.30"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E37"]
[WhiteElo "2771"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 {This move was first used at the top levelnby Alekhine. The idea is to force the exchange on c3, without incurring doubled pawns. The drawback of the move is White's slight deficit in development. The particular interest of this game is that both players have used the line successfully in the past, and have contributed to the theory of the line. So a couple of world experts are meeting!} d5 {The most straightforwa rd answer. Black tries to open the centre and create complications, as soon as possible. His king is ready to escape to the kingside, whereas the white monarch will have to remain uncastled for some time.} 5. a3 {White carries out the classical idea.} Bxc3+ ({If} 5... Be7 $6 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bg5 {we reach an Exchange QGD, with White having the extremely useful extra move a2-a3.}) 6. Qxc3 Ne4 ({A no less sharp struggle arises after} 6... c5 7. dxc5 d4 {and now the world's grandmasters are unable to agree on the best retreat forthe queen - c2 or g3.}) 7. Qc2 c5 {The consistent follow-up.} 8. dxc5 Nc6 {The only way! The number of pawns does not yet play a great role. The important thing is to bring the pieces into play as quickly as possible. Now is an important moment - should White exchange pawns on d5 or not? The further character of the battle will depend on this decision.} 9. cxd5 {The most aggressive, and also riskiest continuation! White opens the path of the c8 bishop, but strengthens his extra pawn.} ({Heavy simplifications result from} 9. e3 Qa5+ 10. Bd2 Nxd2 11. Qxd2 dxc4 12. Qxa5 Nxa5 13. Rc1 b5 14. cxb6 Bb7 {and Black has enough initiative for the pawn. The analyses of the leading specialists in the line lead to a draw, on practically an empty board.}) 9... exd5 ({Not} 9... Qxd5 $2 10. Be3 $1) 10. e3 {As can be seen, White has so far developed only his queen. Black has both knights on good central squares, he is ready to castle, and his bishop will soon come to f5.His development lead threatens to assume alarming proportions. But in modern chess, such general considerations and fierce words do not play a great role. Concrete analysis determines everything.} Bf5 (10... Qa5+ {is now out of fashion, thanks to the exchange sacrifice seen inKazimdzhanov-Kar pov, Spain 2007:} 11. b4 $1 Nxb4 12. axb4 Qxa1 13. Bb5+ Kf8 14. Ne2 {and whatev er the computer might say, humans know that White's position is much easier to play.}) (10... Qf6 {was tried in a game Carlsen-Polgar, from Wijk aan Zee 2008, but without success:} 11. f3 $1 Qh4+ 12. g3 Nxg3 13. Qf2 Nf5 14. Qxh4 Nxh4 15. b4 a6 16. Kf2 Ne5 17. Bb2 f6 18. Rd1 Be6 19. Ne2 Bf7 20. Rg1 Nc4 21. Bc1 g5 22. Nc3 O-O-O 23. e4 $1 {and the white bishops destroyed Black.}) 11. Bd3 O-O ({As on the previous move,} 11... Qa5+ {is again met by} 12. b4 Nxb4 13. axb4 Qxa1 14. Ne2 {For example,} Bd7 15. f3 Ba4 16. Qb2 Qxb2 17. Bxb2 Nf6 18. Nd4 Bd7 19. b5 Rc8 20. Ba3 a6 21. bxa6 bxa6 22. Kd2 Bb5 23. Bxb5+ axb5 24. c6 Kd8 25. Rc1 {and Black could not contain his opponent's initiative. Drozdovskij-Brodsky Poltava 2008}) 12. Nf3 Qa5+ 13. Nd2 ({Necessary. Now after} 13. b4 Nxb4 14. axb4 Qxa1 15. Nd4 {(which nobody has played), there follows a nice exchange of tactical blows:} Ng3 $1 16. Nb3 $1 Qa6 $1 {with, as they say, "a complicated struggle"!}) 13... Nxd2 14. Bxd2 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 Qxc5 16. Rc1 ({Novelty. Sasha improves on his own play. In an earlier round at Wijk an Zee, the game Morozevich-Adams went} 16. Bc3 d4 17. Bxd4 Nxd4 18. Qxd4 Qb5 19. O-O-O Qf5 20. e4 Qg5+ 21. Kb1 Rad8 22. f4 Rxd4 23. fxg5 Rxe4 24. Rd7 Rg4 25. g3 Rxg5 26. Rxb7 a5 {and Black equalized.}) 16... Qb6 17. O-O $146 {I like Morozevich's idea. There is harmony in his ranks. Taking on b2 is clearly not good, since the white rook gets to b7.} ({RR} 17. Bc3 Rad8 18. Bd4 Nxd4 19. Qxd4 Qxd4 20. exd4 Rfe8+ 21. Kd2 Re7 22. Rc2 f6 23. Rhc1 Kf7 24. Rc7 Rde8 25. a4 Ke6 26. Re1+ Kd6 27. Rexe7 Rxe7 28. Rxe7 Kxe7 29. Kc3 a5 {½-½ (29) Ivanisevic,I (2643)-Lenic,L (2624) Bled 2016}) 17... Rad8 (17... d4 {does not equalize. I would then suggest} 18. b4 {After exchanges in the centre, White retains some initiative.}) 18. f4 {But what is this? The move looks antipositional, weakening the square e4 and the pawn on e3. But how can Black exploit this? maybe he can't! Meanwhile, the advance of the pawn to f4 has a concrete idea, namely to eprive the black knight on the e5 square, via which it can get to c4 after b2-b4. So maybe my first reaction was too emotional. Probably Sasha doid not invent this idea over the board, but found it at home, so it needs to be taken seriously.} Rfe8 ({After} 18... d4 19. e4 $1 {the f4-pawn would be doubly useful.}) 19. b4 {Correct. The black knight is restricted on all sides. White's play looks a bit od, but I have already said that general cosndierations nowadays play less of a role than specifics. We will see what transpires... Magnus is thinking hard. He has made all the obvious moves and now needs to find a plan. One idea for White is Rf3-h3.} h6 ({My previous note explains this move. I also looked at the direct attempt to bring the knight to f5:} 19... Ne7 20. Rf3 Qe6 21. f5 (21. Rc7 Qb6 22. Rc1 Qe6) 21... Qe4 22. Qf1 {an then the rook will go to f4, the queen to d3, and a complicate struggle ensues, which is hard to judge.}) ({The prospect of the white bishop coming to c3 makes me think alos about} 19... f6 {followed by Nc6-e7 and Qb6-e6.}) 20. h3 {Giving up on Rh3 as an idea, but making luft and waiting to see what Black will do.} a6 ({Black also waits. Less beliigerant grandmasters might play} 20... Ne7 21. Bc3 Nc6 $1 22. Bd2 Ne7 23. Bc3 Nc6 {and shake hands.}) 21. Rc5 {White returns to the strategy of pressure in the centre. Black must be tied down to the d5 pawn, reducing his conyrol over d4, and only then will White seek a target on one flank or other.} a5 {A logical response. The rook on c5 prevents the natural reply b4-b5, so the b4 pawn becomes a target for Black.} 22. Rfc1 ({The centre of the battle shifts to the queenside. Winning a pawn by} 22. Rb5 Qa6 23. bxa5 {allows the counterblow} d4 24. e4 Na7 25. Rb3 (25. a4 Nxb5 26. axb5 Qe6 {hardly offers sufficient compensation.}) 25... Qxd3 26. Rxd3 Rxe4 27. Rb1 Rd7 {and Black has nothing to complain about.}) 22... axb4 23. axb4 Re4 {Carlsen counterattacks decisively. The b4 pawns can not escape the attention it has attracted from the black pieces. Magnus ignores the threat to the d5 pawn, because he sees the counter-threat against e3.} 24. Kh2 (24. Rxd5 Rxd5 25. Qxd5 Rxe3 $1 (25... Rxb4 {is also not bad, eg.} 26. Kh2 (26. Bxb4 $4 Qxe3+) 26... Rb1 27. Rc4 Qb3 {again forcing exchanges.}) 26. Rc5 (26. Bxe3 $4 Qxe3+ 27. Kh1 Qxc1+) 26... Re8 27. Bc3 Rd8 28. Qe4 Qc7 29. b5 Qd6 {equalizes completely.}) 24... Rc4 $1 ({Yet another cunning move by the Norwegian. This time, the target is the bishop on d2, which is being x-rayed by the rook on d8. Unfortunately, barring something remarkable, the next few moves are likely to see a total simplification of the position. The only hope is Morozevich's unquenchable fighting spirit! Less convincing is} 24... Nxb4 {because White does not have to exchange minor pieces. He can play} 25. Qb3 {with an unpleasant pin.} ({or} 25. Qb1 {I am not sure which is better.})) 25. R1xc4 ({What else can one play, if all other moves favour Black? For example, after} 25. R5xc4 dxc4 26. Qe2 Qa6 {Black defends the c4 pawn, because of} 27. Rxc4 $2 Rxd2 $1) 25... dxc4 26. Qe2 Nxb4 27. Rxc4 ({Sasha avoids exchanges. And not without reason. After} 27. Bxb4 Qxb4 28. Rxc4 (28. Qxc4 Qxc4 29. Rxc4 b5 $1) 28... Qe7 {the outside passed b-pawn gives Black grounds to play for a win.}) 27... Nd3 {However, now the knight will be very strong. With its support, the passed pawn can reach b4 or b2. For the moment, this is still something of a dream, but grandmasters make a living by dreaming of the distant future...} 28. Rd4 {Realising the danger, Sasha hurries to restore the game to drawish channels. The clock times are now 0.19 - 0.49} Rxd4 ({Trying to transfer the knight to e6 can also bring problems to Black, as White activates his pieces by} 28... Nc5 29. Bc3 {whilst he can eliminate the e6 outpost at any moment by f4-f5.}) 29. exd4 Qxd4 ({A white-square blockade by} 29... Qb5 {fails because of the bad position of the knight:} 30. Qe4 $1 {and it cannot be brought to d5.}) 30. Qe8+ Kh7 31. Qxf7 Qe4 ({A last attempt to impose some control. Pushing the b-pawn results in its loss:} 31... b5 $2 32. Qf5+) 32. f5 {This counterattack saves White.} Qe5+ ({Now} 32... b5 {is met by} 33. Bc3 {and winning the bishop leads to perpetual:} Qf4+ 34. Kh1 Qc1+ 35. Kh2 Qxc3 36. Qg6+ Kg8 37. Qe8+ {etc.}) ({whilst the variation} 32... Nf4 33. Bxf4 Qxf4+ 34. Kg1 Qc1+ 35. Kh2 Qc6 {gets nowehere because of the blow} 36. f6 $1 Qxf6 37. Qxb7) 33. Kh1 {The only remaining question is who will give the perpetual check.} Nf2+ 34. Kg1 Ne4 (34... Nxh3+ 35. gxh3 Qd4+ 36. Kf1 Qxd2 37. Qg6+ Kg8 38. Qe8+ {ends in the same perpetual.}) 35. Bf4 ({The same idea - deflecting the queen from covering e8. But it was not yet time for the flashy} 35. Bxh6 $2 {because of} Qd4+ 36. Kh1 Qd1+ 37. Kh2 Qd6+) 35... Qd4+ 36. Kh2 Nf6 37. Bxh6 Qe5+ 38. Kh1 Qe1+ 39. Kh2 Ng4+ 40. hxg4 Qh4+ 41. Kg1 Qe1+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2009.02.01"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2739"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "133"]
[EventDate "2009.01.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 b6 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. Rd1 Qc8 11. d5 exd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. Bxd5 Nxd5 14. Rxd5 Be7 15. e4 O-O 16. Bg5 Re8 17. Rad1 Nf8 18. Qc4 $146 ({RR} 18. Bxe7 Rxe7 19. e5 Ne6 20. Qe4 h6 21. Rd6 Qb7 22. Qxb7 Rxb7 23. g3 Kf8 24. Rd7 Rab8 25. Kf1 Ke8 26. Rxb7 Rxb7 27. Ke2 Re7 28. Ke3 Nd8 29. Ke4 Nc6 30. Rd6 Na5 31. b3 Nb7 32. Rd5 Nd8 {Parligras,M (2591)-Hera,I (2610) Tornelo INT 2021 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 18. Bxe7 Rxe7 19. e5 Ne6 20. Qe4 h6 21. Rd6 Qb7 22. Qxb7 Rxb7 23. g3 Kf8 24. Rd7 Rab8 25. Kf1 Ke8 26. Rxb7 Rxb7 27. Ke2 Re7 28. Ke3 Nd8 29. Ke4 Nc6 30. Rd6 Na5 31. b3 Nb7 32. Rd5 Nd8 {Parligras,M (2591)-Hera,I (2610) Tornelo INT 2021 ½-½ (49)}) 18... Qe6 19. b3 h6 20. Bf4 Ng6 21. Bg3 Bf8 22. Nd2 Ne7 23. Rd3 Nc6 24. Qxe6 Rxe6 25. a4 a6 26. f3 b5 27. Bf2 Rc8 28. axb5 axb5 29. Nf1 Nb4 30. Rc3 Ra6 31. Ne3 Ra3 32. Be1 Nc6 33. Rb1 Rca8 34. Kf1 Nd4 35. Rd3 Ra2 36. b4 R8a3 37. Rbd1 Ne6 38. bxc5 Bxc5 39. Rxa3 Rxa3 40. Nd5 Rb3 41. h4 b4 42. f4 Rb2 43. f5 Nd4 44. Bxb4 Bxb4 45. Rxd4 Rb1+ 46. Ke2 Rb2+ 47. Kf3 Be1 48. h5 Rf2+ 49. Ke3 Rxg2 50. Ra4 Bh4 51. Ra8+ Kh7 52. Rf8 Bg5+ 53. Kf3 Rh2 54. Rxf7 Kg8 55. Ra7 Rxh5 56. e5 Rh3+ 57. Ke4 Rh1 58. e6 Re1+ 59. Kd4 h5 60. Kc5 Re5 $2 (60... h4 $11) 61. f6 $1 Bxf6 62. Kd6 Rf5 63. Nxf6+ Rxf6 64. Kd7 h4 65. e7 Rf7 66. Kd8 Kh7 67. Ra6 1-0

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.19"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2750"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qc2 Bb7 10. Bd2 Be4 11. Qc1 Bb7 {#} 12. a3 {A rare continuation in a well-known theoretical position. Aronian, who by the way played this variation before with both colours, is preparing b2-b4, which fights against Black's main idea in this system: the advance c7-c5.} ({The most frequent continuation here is} 12. Bf4 {a move played in the past also by Kasparov, or... Aronian himself.}) 12... Qc8 ({RR} 12... Nbd7 13. Ba5 Rc8 14. Nbd2 Nb6 15. Nb3 Bd5 16. Qc2 Be4 17. Qc1 Bd5 18. Qc2 Be4 19. Qc1 {½-½ (19) Giri,A (2727)-Radjabov,T (2793) Zug 2013}) ({RR} 12... Nbd7 13. Ba5 Bd6 14. Nbd2 Rc8 15. Re1 Qe7 16. e4 e5 17. b4 Rfe8 18. Ra2 Qf8 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21. Rc2 Qe7 22. Nb3 c6 23. Nc5 Bd4 24. Rd2 Bxc5 25. bxc5 Nd7 26. e5 Nf6 27. Rd6 {Chu Wei Chao (2406)-Yang,Z (2337) Zhangjiakou CHN 2025 1-0 (50)}) 13. b4 Nbd7 14. Bc3 {A new move.} (14. Bf4) 14... Ne4 15. Nbd2 $146 ({RR} 15. Qc2 a5 16. Nbd2 Nxc3 17. Qxc3 Nb6 18. Ne5 axb4 19. axb4 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Nd5 21. Qc6 Bxb4 22. Ndf3 Bc3 23. Rxa8 Qxa8 24. Qxb5 Bxd4 25. Nc6 Bb6 26. Rc1 Qa3 27. Rc4 Ra8 28. Nce5 h6 29. Nd3 Qa6 {Rodshtein,M (2664)-Karpov,A (2619) Germany 2014 0-1 (69)}) 15... Bd5 16. Qc2 Nxd2 17. Bxd2 Qb7 18. Rac1 Rac8 {# White achieved his goal, but Carlsen reasonably considers that one single weakness (pawn c7) in his camp is easy to protect and therefore doesn't represent a real problem.} 19. e4 ({After} 19. Rfe1 {Black can prevent e2-e4 with the radical} f5 ({or 19...Nf6, but not} 19... Be4 $2 {in view of} 20. Ng5 Bxc2 21. Bxb7 {and in opposite to the game White has kept the e-pawn.})) 19... Bxe4 20. Ng5 Bxc2 21. Bxb7 Bd3 22. Rfe1 {Aronian offers his opponent the possibility to change his mind and instead of giving up the exchange to return the extra pawn.} (22. Bxc8 Rxc8 23. Rfe1 Bc4 {leads to the position from the game.}) 22... Bc4 $1 {Carlsen follows his initial plan.} ({Weaker is} 22... Rb8 23. Rxc7 {with advantage for White}) 23. Bxc8 Bxg5 $1 {Just like on move 16, for Black is important to exchange enemy's knights.} 24. Bxg5 Rxc8 {# White won an exchange, but Black has a pawn for it and a very good control over light squares. In fact from the practical point of view the position is even easier to play with Black, since White doesn't even have targets for attack. After several more moves the players repeated the position and agreed to a draw:} 25. f3 f6 26. Bf4 Nb6 27. h4 Kf7 28. Kf2 c6 29. Bd6 Bd5 30. Bc5 Na4 31. g4 Ra8 32. Re2 a5 33. Bd6 axb4 34. Bxb4 Nb6 35. Bc5 Na4 36. Bb4 Nb6 37. Bc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.21"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D53"]
[WhiteElo "2739"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Kortschnoj,Viktor Lvovich} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Bxf6 7. Qc2 ({RR} 7. g3 O-O 8. Qb3 Nc6 9. cxd5 Nxd4 10. Nxd4 Bxd4 11. Bg2 exd5 12. Nxd5 c6 13. Rd1 Qa5+ 14. Kf1 Bc5) ({RR} 7. Qd3 Nc6 8. O-O-O Nb4 9. Qb1 c5 10. e3 O-O 11. a3 cxd4 12. exd4 Bg5+ 13. Nxg5 Qxg5+ 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. h4 Qf4 16. g3 Qf6) ({RR} 7. Qb3 c6 8. O-O-O dxc4 9. Qxc4 b5 10. Qb3 a5 11. e4 a4 12. Qc2 Nd7) 7... dxc4 ({RR} 7... Nc6 8. Rd1 O-O 9. e4 ({RR} 9. e3) 9... dxe4 ({RR} 9... dxc4 10. e5 Nb4 11. Qe4 Be7 12. Bxc4 Bd7 13. a3 ({RR} 13. Qxb7 Bc6) ({RR} 13. d5 exd5 14. Nxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 c6 16. Bb3 Qa5+) 13... Bc6 14. d5 exd5 ({RR} 14... Nxd5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Bxd5 exd5) 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Bxd5 Bxd5 17. Rxd5 Qe8 18. O-O c6 19. Rd3 Rd8 20. Rfd1 Rxd3 21. Rxd3 ({RR} 21. Qxd3 Qc8 22. Qd7 Qxd7 23. Rxd7 Rd8)) 10. Qxe4 g6 11. Ne5 ({RR} 11. h4 Bg7 12. g3 Qd6 ({RR} 12... f5 13. Qe3 Nb4 14. Rd2 c5 15. dxc5 Qa5 16. a3 Na6 17. Nb5 f4 18. gxf4 Bxb2 19. Rg1 Rf6 ({RR} 19... Bc1 20. Rxg6+ Kf7 21. Bd3) 20. Ke2)) 11... Ne7 12. f4 c5 ({RR} 12... Qd6) 13. dxc5 Qa5 14. Qe3 Nf5 15. Qf2 b6) ({RR} 7... c6 8. e4 dxe4 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. e5 Be7 10. Rd1 b6 11. Be2 ({RR} 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. Bd3 Ba6) ({RR} 11. b3 Bb7 12. Bd3 Na6) 11... dxc4 12. Bxc4 Ba6 13. Bxa6 Nxa6 14. Qe4 Nb4 15. O-O) 9. Qxe4 c5 10. O-O-O Nc6 ({RR} 10... cxd4 11. Nxd4 Nd7 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. h4) 12... O-O 13. h4) 11. d5 Nd4 12. Nxd4 ({RR} 12. dxe6 Bxe6 13. Qxb7 O-O 14. Ne4 Rb8 15. Qa6 Qe7) 12... cxd4 13. Nb5 O-O 14. Bd3 g6) 8. e3 ({RR} 8. O-O-O a6 9. e4 b5 10. e5 Bg5+ 11. Kb1 Bb7 12. h4 Be7 13. Rh3 O-O ({RR} 13... Nc6) 14. Ne4 Nc6 ({RR} 14... Qd5 15. Neg5 hxg5 16. Nxg5 Bxg5 17. hxg5 Qe4) 15. a3 ({RR} 15. Neg5 hxg5 16. Nxg5 Bxg5 17. hxg5 g6 18. Bxc4 Kg7 19. Rdh1 Rg8) 15... b4 16. Bxc4 bxa3 17. Neg5 Bxg5 18. Nxg5 hxg5 19. hxg5 Re8 20. Rdh1 Kf8 21. Bxa6 ({RR} 21. Qb3 Ke7 22. Rd1 ({RR} 22. Qxb7) 22... a5 ({RR} 22... Rb8)) 21... Qxd4 22. Bxb7 Reb8 {RR} 23. Rxa3 Rxa3 24. Rh8+ Ke7 25. Rxb8 Qb4 26. Ra8 Qe1+ 27. Qc1 Qe4+ 28. Qc2 Qe1+) 8... c5 9. dxc5 Qa5 10. Bxc4 ({RR} 10. Nd2 Nd7) 10... Qxc5 11. Ne4 Qa5+ 12. Ke2 ({RR} 12. Nfd2 Be7 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Nxf6+ Nxf6 14. O-O O-O) 13. Bb5+ Nd7 14. Rc1 O-O 15. Bxd7 ({RR} 15. Qa4) 15... Bxd7 16. Qc7 Bb4) 12... Be7 13. Rhc1 $146 ({RR} 13. Rhd1 O-O ({RR} 13... O-O 14. Rac1 Nd7) 14. a3 Bd7 15. b4 Ba4 16. Bb3 Qb5+ 17. Ke1 Bxb3 18. Qxb3 a5 19. Nc3 Qb6 20. b5 a4 21. Qc4 Bf6 22. Rac1 Be7 23. Ke2 Bxa3 24. Ra1 Qc5 25. Qxc5 Bxc5 26. Rxa4 Rxa4 27. Nxa4 Be7 {Zhao,X (2549)-Mkrtchian,L (2449) Batumi 2012 1-0 (63)}) ({RR} 13. g4 Nd7 ({RR} 13... Bd7 14. Rad1 ({RR} 14. g5 hxg5 15. Rhg1 Bb5 16. Nexg5 Bxc4+ 17. Qxc4 Nc6 18. Rad1 Rd8) ({RR} 14. a3 Bc6 15. b4 Qb6 16. Ne5 ({RR} 16. Rhd1 a5) 16... Nd7 ({RR} 16... O-O 17. h4 a5 18. g5 axb4 19. gxh6 b3 20. Qb2 Bxe4 21. Nd7) 17. Nxc6 ({RR} 17. Nxf7 Bxe4 18. Qxe4 Kxf7) 17... Qxc6) 14... Bc6) 14. a3 Nf6 ({RR} 14... O-O 15. b4 ({RR} 15. g5 hxg5 16. Rag1 Qf5 17. Nfxg5 Ne5) ({RR} 15. h4 b5 16. Ba2 ({RR} 16. Nd4 Ne5 17. Bxb5 Ba6) 16... b4 17. axb4 Qxb4) 15... Qc7 16. Qb3 ({RR} 16. h4 b5 17. Bd3 Qxc2+ 18. Bxc2 a5) ({RR} 16. Rac1 a5 17. g5 hxg5 18. Nexg5 Nf6) 16... a5 17. Rac1 axb4 18. axb4 ({RR} 18. Bxe6 Qd8) 18... Qb6 19. g5 hxg5 20. Nexg5 Qxb4 ({RR} 20... Nf6 21. b5 Ra3 22. Qb1 Bd7) 21. Bxe6 Qxb3 22. Bxb3 b6 23. Rhd1 ({RR} 23. Rc7 Bd8) 23... Ba6+ 24. Bc4 Nc5 25. Bxa6 Rxa6 26. h4) 15. Ned2 ({RR} 15. b4 Qb6 16. Ne5 Bd7 ({RR} 16... Nd7 17. Qc3 Qc7 18. Nxf7) 17. Qd3 Bc6 ({RR} 17... Ba4 18. Nc3 Bc6 19. Bxe6 fxe6 20. Qg6+) 18. Nxc6 bxc6) ({RR} 15. Nxf6+ Bxf6 16. b4 Qb6 17. Rac1 Bd7 18. Rhd1 ({RR} 18. h4 Rc8 19. Nd2 ({RR} 19. g5 Rxc4) 19... Bb5) 18... Rc8) 15... Bd7 ({RR} 15... O-O 16. Nb3 ({RR} 16. Rhg1 b5 17. Bb3 Bb7) 16... Qc7) ({RR} 15... Nxg4 16. Rag1 ({RR} 16. Rhg1 Qh5) 16... Qh5 17. h3 Ne5 18. Rxg7 Bd7 19. Qc3 Nxc4 20. Nxc4 Bc6 21. Rg3 O-O-O 22. Qe5 Qxe5 23. Ncxe5 Bb5+ 24. Ke1 Rh7) 16. Rhg1 ({RR} 16. h3 Rc8 17. b4) 16... Rc8 ({RR} 16... Nd5) 17. Qb3 ({RR} 17. Qd3) ({RR} 17. g5 hxg5 18. Rxg5 b5 19. Qd3 Nd5 ({RR} 19... bxc4 20. Qxd7+ Nxd7 21. Rxa5 Rc7) 20. Rxd5 exd5 21. Qxd5 Be6 22. Qxb5+ ({RR} 22. Bxb5+ Kf8 23. Qb7 Bd6 24. Ng5 Rb8 25. Nxe6+ fxe6 26. Qf3+ Ke7) 22... Qxb5 23. Bxb5+ Kf8) 17... Qb6 ({RR} 17... Ne4 18. Rac1 ({RR} 18. Nxe4 Rxc4) 18... Nd6 19. Bd3 O-O) ({RR} 17... Qa4 18. Qxa4 Bxa4 19. Rac1) 18. Qxb6 ({RR} 18. Qd3) 18... axb6 19. Ne5 Ba4 ({RR} 19... Bd6 20. Nxd7 Kxd7) 20. Rac1 ({RR} 20. b3 Bd6 21. Ndf3 ({RR} 21. Nxf7 Kxf7 22. bxa4 Bxh2 23. Rg2 Bd6) 21... b5 22. Bxe6 fxe6 23. bxa4 bxa4 24. Rab1 O-O ({RR} 24... Bxa3 25. Rxb7) 25. g5 hxg5 ({RR} 25... Ne4 26. gxh6 Nc3+ 27. Ke1 Rc7 28. Rc1) 26. Rxb7) 20... Bd6 21. Ndf3 ({RR} 21. Bxe6 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 ({RR} 22. Bxf7+ Kd8 23. Rxc1 Bxe5) 22... Bxe5 23. Rc8+ Ke7 24. Rxh8 Kxe6) 21... Ke7 22. h4 ({RR} 22. h3) 22... Rhd8 ({RR} 22... h5 23. g5 Ng4) 23. g5 ({RR} 23. b3 Bc6 24. a4) 23... Nd7 ({RR} 23... hxg5 24. Nxf7 ({RR} 24. hxg5 Ne4 25. b3 ({RR} 25. g6 Bxe5 26. Nxe5 Rd2+ 27. Ke1 ({RR} 27. Kf3 f5) 27... Rd5 28. Nxf7 b5) 25... Be8 26. a4 Ba3 27. Rc2 b5 28. axb5 Bxb5 29. Rg4 Nd6) ({RR} 24. Rxg5 g6) 24... Kxf7 25. Nxg5+ Ke7 26. Nxe6 Rxc4 27. Rxc4 Bb5 28. Nxd8 Bxc4+ 29. Kd1 Kxd8 30. Rxg7 Bd5) 24. Nxd7 Rxd7 25. Bd3 ({RR} 25. gxh6 gxh6 26. Bd3) 25... Rdc7 26. Rxc7+ Rxc7 27. Nd4 ({RR} 27. gxh6 gxh6 28. Rg7 Rc1 29. Rh7 Rh1 30. Bg6 Bb5+ 31. Kd2 Be8) 27... Be5 {Bacrot,E (2545)-Kortschnoj,V (2610) Albert 1997 CBM 061 [Kortschnoj,Viktor Lvovich] 0-1 (54)} ({RR} 27... hxg5 28. hxg5 Be5 29. Rg4 ({RR} 29. Rh1) 29... Bc6) ({RR} 27... Bc6 28. gxh6 gxh6 29. Rg7)) ({RR} 13. Rhd1) 13... Bd7 14. Qc3 Qxc3 15. Rxc3 Nc6 16. a3 f5 17. Ned2 Bf6 18. Rc2 Ke7 19. Nb3 Rhd8 20. Nc5 Bc8 21. Rac1 Na5 22. Bb5 a6 23. Bd3 b6 24. b4 bxc5 25. bxa5 e5 26. Nd2 e4 27. Bc4 Bd7 28. f3 exf3+ 29. Nxf3 Bc6 30. Bd3 Rxd3 31. Kxd3 Be4+ 32. Kc4 Bxc2 33. Rxc2 Ke6 34. Ne1 Bd8 35. Nd3 Bxa5 36. Nxc5+ Ke5 37. Kd3 Ra7 38. Na4 Rd7+ 39. Ke2 Rc7 40. Rc5+ Rxc5 41. Nxc5 Bc7 42. Nxa6 Bd6 43. Nb4 Ke4 44. h3 Bc5 45. Nc2 g6 46. a4 Bb6 47. Nb4 g5 48. Nc6 Bxe3 49. a5 Bc5 50. a6 Kf4 51. Kd3 Kg3 52. Kc4 Bb6 53. Kb5 Be3 54. Kc4 Bb6 55. Kb5 Be3 56. Kc4 Bb6 57. Kb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.22"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D81"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2779"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Qb3 dxc4 5. Qxc4 Be6 6. Qb5+ Bd7 7. Qb3 c5 8. dxc5 Bg7 9. e4 Nc6 10. Nf3 Qa5 11. Bc4 O-O 12. O-O Qxc5 13. Be3 Qh5 14. Be2 Qa5 15. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 15. h3 Rac8 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Nd2 Qc7 18. Qa3 a6 19. Na4 Re8 20. Rac1 Bf8 21. Nb6 Rcd8 22. Nd5 Qb8 23. Bb6 Rc8 24. Nxf6+ exf6 25. Qf3 f5 26. exf5 Bxf5 27. g4 Ne5 28. Qf4 Bd3 29. Bxd3 Nxd3 {Okcular,A-Apro,A (2135) Szeged 1994 ½-½ (58)}) 15... Rfd8 {#} 16. Nd5 {Perhaps a little too aggressive.} ({After} 16. h3 Rac8 17. Rac1 {White keeps a plus.}) 16... Nxd5 (16... Nxe4 17. Qxb7 Rab8 18. Nxe7+ $1 Nxe7 19. Qxe4 {is slightly better for White}) 17. exd5 Ne5 18. a4 Ng4 19. Bd4 Bxd4 20. Rxd4 Qb6 21. Qc3 (21. Qxb6 axb6 22. Nd2 Nf6 23. Ne4 Nxe4 24. Rxe4 Kf8 25. Rb4 Ra5 26. Rxb6 Rxa4 27. Rxa4 Bxa4 28. Rxb7 Rxd5 $11) 21... Rac8 22. Bc4 e5 $1 23. dxe6 Bxe6 24. a5 {#} (24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Bxe6 Qxf2+ 26. Kh1 fxe6 {favours Black}) 24... Qxd4 25. Nxd4 Rxc4 26. Nxe6 {The only move} Rxc3 27. Nxd8 Rb3 (27... Rc7 $5) 28. h3 Ne5 29. Re1 Nc6 30. Nxc6 bxc6 31. Re7 Rxb2 32. Rxa7 Ra2 33. Rc7 Rxa5 34. Rxc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.25"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2791"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. g4 Nxg4 8. Rg1 Qf6 9. Rxg4 Qxf3 10. Rxg7 Nf6 11. h3 {This move (keeping the h2 pawn and preventing ...f6-g4) was played by Aronian against Morozevich (see CBM 117, with GM M.Marin's annotations). Below you will see other practical examples.} (11. Rg5 {is the main theoretical line - see my survey in CBM 127.}) ({RR} 11. Bg2 Qh5 12. e4 dxe4 13. Bg5 Bf8 14. Bxf6 Bxg7 15. Bxg7 Rg8 16. Nxe4 Qa5+ 17. Kf1 Rxg7 18. Qc1 Qd8 19. Qf4 Kf8 20. Qe5 Rg6 21. Qh8+ Ke7 22. Qxh7 Qg8 23. Qh4+ f6 24. Bf3 e5 25. b3 exd4 {Carlsen,M (2385)-Gretarsson,H (2513) Rethymno 2003 1-0 (32)}) 11... Qf5 $6 $146 {Hardly a good novelty. In the endgame White keeps a small but clear edge due to his better pawn structure.} (11... e5 $6 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Rg5 $1 {[%cal Rg5e5,Rf1g2]} Nd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Rf5 (15. Bd2 d4 16. Bg2 Qf6 17. exd4 Bxd4 18. O-O-O $16 {1-0 Chytilek,R (2320)-Franta,J/Litomysl 1996/EXT 1998 (25)}) 15... Qh1 16. Bd2 d4 17. exd4 Bxd4 18. O-O-O O-O 19. Bh6 Re8 20. Rg5+ Kh8 21. Rxd4 Qxf1+ 22. Rd1 Re1 23. Bg7+ Kg8 24. Be5+ {1-0 Tisdall,J (2492)-Sidselrud,S (2150)/Norway 2002/EXT 2003}) (11... h6 $5 {, preventing g7-g5, looks quite good for Black:} 12. Bd2 (12. Qe2 $5 Qxe2+ (12... Qf5 $5) 13. Bxe2 Kf8 14. Rg1 dxc4 15. e4 Bb4 16. f3 b5 17. Kf2 a6 18. Bf4 Bb7 19. Rac1 Nd7 20. b3 cxb3 21. axb3 $44 {1-0 Le Quang,L (2542)-Neelotpal,D (2485)/Cebu City 2007/CBM 120 ext (38)}) 12... e5 (12... Bd7 13. Qb3 Ke7 14. c5 Bc7 15. Qxb7 $14 {1-0 Le Quang,L (2583)-Garnelis,J (2188)/Vung Tau 2008/EXT 2009 (37)}) 13. Rg3 (13. cxd5 exd4 14. exd4 Kf8 15. Rg1 Bf5 16. Qb3 Re8+ 17. Be3 Rg8 $132 {1/2 Siebrecht,S (2451)-Haba,P (2546)/Kallithea 2008/CBM 127 (37)}) 13... Qh5 14. cxd5 exd4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. Qxe4+ Qe5 17. Qxe5+ Bxe5 18. Rf3 cxd5 19. Bb5+ Ke7 20. exd4 Bd6 ({RR} 20... Bxd4 21. Bb4+ Ke6 22. O-O-O) 21. Kf1 Be6 $11 {1/2 Aronian,L (2744)-Morozevich,A (2741)/Morelia/Linares 2007/CBM 117/[Marin,M] (29)}) (11... Kf8 $5 12. Rg5 (12. Rg1 $143 Rg8 13. Rxg8+ Kxg8 14. Bd2 dxc4 15. Bxc4 e5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Bf1 Bf5 $17 {0-1 Splichal,S (2167)-Michenka,J (2351)/Karvina 2003/EXT 2005 (41)}) 12... Qh1 {needs testing}) ({RR} 11... h6 12. Bd2 e5 13. Rg3 Qh5 14. cxd5 exd4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. Qxe4+ Qe5 17. Qxe5+ Bxe5 18. Rf3 cxd5 19. Bb5+ Ke7 20. exd4 Bd6 21. Kf1 Be6 22. Re1 Rac8 23. Bd3 Rc6 24. Rf5 Rb6 25. b3 Bb4 26. Bxb4+ {Aronian,L (2744)-Morozevich,A (2741) Morelia/Linares 2007 CBM 117 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½}) ({RR} 11... e5 12. dxe5 Bxe5 13. Rg5 Nd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Rf5) ({RR} 11... Bd7 12. Bd2 Ne4 13. Nxe4 Qxe4 14. Qxe4 dxe4 15. Bg2 f5 16. f3 exf3 17. Bxf3 O-O-O 18. Ke2 e5 19. c5 Bc7 20. Rag1 Be6 21. Re7 Bc4+ 22. Kf2 exd4 23. exd4 Rhg8 24. Rgg7 Rxg7 25. Rxg7 Rxd4 26. Be3 {Salonen,A (2233)-Li Xueyi (2236) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (41)}) 12. Qxf5 exf5 13. cxd5 cxd5 $146 (13... Nxd5 $5 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bd2 $14) ({RR} 13... Nxd5 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bd2 Ke7 16. Rc1 Be6 17. h4 h6 18. Bd3 Rag8 19. Rxg8 Rxg8 20. Ke2 Rg4 21. Rh1 Rg8 22. Kf1 Kf6 23. Be2 Rc8 24. Bc3 f4 25. Bf3 b5 26. Ke2 b4 27. Bd2 Rc2 28. e4 {Sadhwani,R (2555)-Nihal,S (2620) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1 (32)}) ({RR} 13... Nxd5 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bd2 Ke7 16. Rc1 Be6 17. h4 h6 18. Bd3 Rag8 19. Rxg8 Rxg8 20. Ke2 Rg4 21. Rh1 Rg8 22. Kf1 Kf6 23. Be2 Rc8 24. Bc3 f4 25. Bf3 b5 26. Ke2 b4 27. Bd2 Rc2 28. e4 {Sadhwani,R (2555)-Nihal,S (2620) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1 (32)}) 14. Nb5 Bb4+ 15. Bd2 Bxd2+ 16. Kxd2 Ke7 17. Bd3 Be6 (17... Bd7 $5) 18. Nc7 $5 {A good idea - to exchange the theoretically "bad" e6 bishop, in fact, the main defender of the black pawns, using the opportunity that Black can't recapture with his f7 pawn.} Rag8 19. Nxe6 Kxe6 20. Rxg8 Nxg8 $6 {[%mdl 4096] Too "subtle".} ({Any beginner would play the simple} 20... Rxg8 {, and he would be right:} 21. Rc1 Rg2 22. Ke2 Rh2 23. Kf3 $1 (23. Rc7 Rxh3 24. Rxb7 Rh2 {[%cal Rf6g4]}) 23... Rxh3+ 24. Kg2 Rh5 25. Rc7 Rg5+ 26. Kf3 Ng4 {[%cal Rg4h2] - Black's counterplay must be strong enough to survive.}) 21. Ke2 (21. Rc1 Ne7 22. Rc7 Rb8 {[%cal Ye6d6]}) 21... Ne7 22. Kf3 $1 (22. Rc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8 Nxc8 24. Kf3 {was probably insufficient for the victory. GM M.Carlsen decides to keep rooks on the board.}) 22... Rc8 23. a4 $1 Rc7 24. a5 h6 25. h4 Kf6 26. h5 Nc8 27. Kf4 Nd6 28. Rg1 Rc8 29. f3 Ke6 {Black is completely passive.} 30. Rg7 Rh8 31. Bc2 $1 {The "two weaknesses", attacked by the stronger side, should be as far from each other as possible, then it is more difficult for the defender to hold both; therefore - h6 and d5, rather than f5.} Rc8 32. Bb3 Rh8 33. Rg1 Rc8 34. Rg7 Rh8 35. Rg2 Rc8 36. Rg1 $22 {The black knight must prevent e3-e4, the rook can't leave the 8th rank in view of g8-h8, and if it leaves the c-file, White plays c1 threatening c5 and c7; finally, pawn moves create new weaknesses.} Ne8 $1 {The lesser evil.} (36... Rb8 37. Rc1 Rc8 38. Rc5 $1 Rxc5 39. dxc5 Nc4 40. e4 fxe4 41. Bxc4 dxc4 42. Kxe4 $18) (36... Nc4 37. Bxc4 dxc4 (37... Rxc4 38. Rg7) 38. Ra1 {[%cal Ya1a4,Ya4b4]}) (36... b6 37. axb6 axb6 38. Ra1 $16) 37. e4 fxe4 38. fxe4 Nf6 39. e5 $1 Ne4 $1 (39... Nxh5+ 40. Ke3 {[%cal Rg1h1]}) ({The endgame after} 39... Rg8 40. Rxg8 Nxg8 {is very difficult for Black:} 41. Bd1 Ne7 42. Bg4+ f5 43. Bh3 $22 b6 (43... Nc6 44. Bxf5+ Ke7 45. Bc8 Nxa5 46. Kf5) 44. a6 b5 45. Bf1 b4 (45... Nc6 46. Bxb5 Nxd4 47. Bd3 $22 $16) 46. Bd3 Nc6 47. Bxf5+ Ke7 48. Ke3 {and White should gradually win.}) 40. Ke3 b6 $6 {Black unnecessarily opens up the a-file for his opponent. "Don't move pawns on the side where you are weaker!"} (40... Ng5 $142 $14 41. Rf1 $140 Ne4) 41. axb6 axb6 42. Kd3 (42. Bd1 $5 Rc4 (42... Ra8 43. Bc2 Ng5 44. Rf1) 43. Bg4+ $1 (43. Rg8 Rb4 $132) 43... f5 (43... Ke7 44. Bf3 Rb4 45. Bxe4 dxe4 46. Rg2 $16) 44. exf6+ Kxf6 45. Bf3 {[%cal Rg1g6]} Kf5 46. Bxe4+ dxe4 47. Rf1+ Ke6 48. Kxe4 Rc2 49. d5+ Ke7 50. b4 {with a promising rook ending.}) 42... Nf2+ 43. Ke2 Ne4 44. Ke3 f6 $6 (44... Ng5 $5 {was still possible although White could now invade along the a-file:} 45. Ra1 f6 $1 46. exf6 Ne4 47. f7 $1 Rf8 48. Ra6 Rxf7 49. Rxb6+ Nd6 {with good drawing chances (S.Zagrebelny).}) 45. Rg6 Rc1 46. Rxh6 $2 (46. exf6 $1 Re1+ 47. Kd3 Nxf6 48. Bxd5+ Kf5 (48... Kxd5 49. Rxf6 b5 50. Rb6 $18) 49. Bf3 {(I.Ganiev)} Rb1 50. Kc3 (50. Kc2 $143 Rf1 51. Be2 Rf2) 50... Re1 51. Kc4 {and White should gradually win}) 46... Rh1 47. Bc2 Rh3+ $2 {Obvious but wrong!} (47... Re1+ $1 48. Kd3 (48. Kf4 Rf1+ 49. Kg4 Rg1+) 48... Rh1 {and White can't make any progress (S.Zagrebelny).}) 48. Kf4 $1 Rh4+ 49. Kf3 {When a rook and a knight are jumping around your king, you must sometimes display real acrobacy!} Nd2+ 50. Ke2 $2 {This move seriously complicates White's task.} (50. Kg3 $142 $1 Rxd4 51. Rxf6+ Kxe5 52. Rf5+ Ke6 53. h6 Rc4 (53... Ne4+ 54. Bxe4 dxe4 55. h7 Rd8 56. Rh5 Rh8 57. Kf4 $18) 54. h7 Rxc2 55. Re5+ $1 (55. Rf8 $143 Ne4+ 56. Kg4 Rh2 57. h8=Q Rxh8 58. Rxh8 Kd6) (55. h8=Q $143 Ne4+ $1 56. Kf4 Rf2+ 57. Ke3 Kxf5) 55... Kxe5 56. h8=Q+ Kd6 57. Qf8+ Kc7 58. Qf7+ Kb8 59. Qxd5 Nf1+ 60. Kh4 {- with his pieces scattered all over the board, Black can't organize successful defence.}) 50... Rh2+ 51. Kd1 Nc4 52. Rxf6+ Ke7 53. Bg6 Rd2+ 54. Kc1 (54. Ke1 $5 Rxd4 55. h6 Rh4 (55... Nxe5 $143 56. Rxb6 Rh4 (56... Nxg6 57. Rxg6 Rh4 58. Rb6) 57. Bf5) 56. Bf5 d4 57. Re6+ (57. Rc6 d3 $1) 57... Kf7 58. b3 Ne3 59. Rf6+ Ke7 60. Bc8 Rh2 61. Rd6 $16) 54... Rxd4 55. b3 $1 (55. h6 Rh4 56. Bf5 {is now impossible due to} Rh1+ 57. Kc2 Ne3+ 58. Kd3 Nxf5 59. Rxf5 Rxh6 $11) 55... Nxe5 56. Rxb6 Rh4 ({The rook endgame after} 56... Nxg6 57. hxg6 {should be winning for White.}) 57. Bf5 $1 Nf3 $2 (57... Rh1+ 58. Kc2 (58. Kd2 Nc4+ $3 59. bxc4 Rxh5 $11 {S.Zagrebelny}) 58... Nf3 {[%cal Rf3d4]} 59. Bg4 ({or} 59. Rb7+ Kf6 60. Bg6 Ne5) 59... Rh2+ 60. Kc3 Ng5 {and White can hardly win.}) 58. h6 $1 {The pawn finally moves forward!} Nd4 59. h7 $1 Nxf5 60. Rb8 Nd4 61. Kb2 $1 Kd6 62. h8=Q Rxh8 63. Rxh8 {This is a technically winning endgame but some work still has to be done.} Kc5 64. Rh5 Nc6 65. Rh4 Nb4 66. Ka3 {White must disorganise Black's defence. First, he forces the advance of the black d-pawn, then he must try to push his own pawn at an appropriate moment.} d4 (66... Nc2+ 67. Ka4 d4 68. Rh5+) 67. Rh5+ Nd5 68. Kb2 Kc6 69. Ka3 Kc5 70. Rh4 Nb4 71. Rh8 Nc6 $2 {This makes White's task much easier.} (71... Nd5 72. Rd8 $1 $18 {[%cal Ya3b2]}) (71... Nc2+ $142 72. Kb2 Nb4 73. Rc8+ Nc6 ({or} 73... Kd5 74. Ka3) 74. Ka3 Kd5 {It is still difficult for White to reach victory; e.g.} 75. b4 $2 ({first he must play} 75. Rc7 Kd6 76. Rh7 {etc.}) {is premature and leads to a draw after} 75... d3 76. Rh8 d2 77. Rh1 Kc4) 72. Rh5+ Kd6 73. b4 {Now, with the black king cut off, everything is over.} d3 (73... Ne5 74. Kb3 Kd5 75. b5 $18) 74. Rh3 Ne5 75. Kb3 d2 76. Kc2 Nc6 77. Rh4 1-0

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.02.28"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "186"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. g4 h6 8. Bd2 dxc4 $1 {GM Lars Schandorff extensively deals with this system in his survey (CBM 125). And indeed, Black obtains a good position here.} 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Be2 Bb7 11. e4 Be7 12. g5 hxg5 13. Nxg5 b4 {Or else:} (13... Rc8 14. Rg1 Nf8 15. e5 b4 16. Na4 N6d7 17. Ne4 c5 18. Nexc5 Bxc5 19. Nxc5 Nxc5 20. dxc5 Qd4 21. Be3 Qxe5 22. Bb5+ Ke7 23. O-O-O $36 {1-0 Harika,D (2455)-Van den Bersselaar,J (2164)/Gibraltar 2008/CBM 122 Extra (26)}) (13... Kf8 14. Rg1 b4 15. Na4 c5 16. e5 Ne8 17. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 18. Qg6+ Kf8 19. Qxe6 cxd4 20. Qf5+ Ndf6 21. exf6 Nxf6 22. Nc5 Bd5 23. Rc1 $36 {1-0 Petrosian,T (2616)-Pruess,D (2425)/Las Vegas 2008/CBM 124 Extra (33)}) (13... Qb6 14. O-O-O Qxd4 15. Be3 Qb4 (15... Qe5 16. f4 Qb8 17. Rhg1 (17. Kb1 $1 $36) 17... Bc5 18. Qd2 Qc7 19. Bxc5 Nxc5 20. e5 b4 $2 (20... Nd5) 21. exf6 bxc3 22. Qd4 $1 gxf6 23. Nh7 cxb2+ 24. Kb1 Nd7 25. Qxd7+ Qxd7 26. Nxf6+ Ke7 27. Nxd7 $18 {1-0 Miedema,R (2208)-Ris,R (2377)/Venlo 2007/EXT 2009 (39)}) 16. f4 a6 (16... Qa5 17. f5 e5 18. Rhg1 Bc5 19. Bxc5 Nxc5 20. Kb1 $36 Ncd7 $2 21. Qb3 Rf8 22. Ne6 $1 fxe6 23. Bh5+ Kd8 24. fxe6 Nxh5 25. Rxd7+ Kc8 26. Qd1 Rh8 27. Qd6 $18 {1-0 Nielsen,P (2653)-Smeets,J (2518)/Warsaw 2005/CBM 108 (33)}) 17. f5 exf5 18. e5 Nxe5 19. Qxf5 Neg4 20. Bxg4 Qxg4 21. Qe5 Nd7 22. Rxd7 Qxd7 23. Rd1 Qg4 24. Qxg7 Rf8 25. Nce4 $44 {1/2 Nyback,T (2575)-Smeets,J (2525)/Germany 2007/CBM 118 (67)}) (13... c5 $5 {deserves serious attention:} 14. dxc5 (14. d5 $142 $5 {, which needs practical tests}) 14... b4 $1 {better than} (14... Nxc5 15. Bxb5+ Nfd7 (15... Kf8 16. O-O-O $36) 16. Rg1 a6 17. Be2 (17. e5 axb5 $1 (17... Bxg5 18. Bxg5 Qc7 19. Bxd7+ Qxd7 20. Rd1 Qc7 21. Rd6 Rxh2 {1-0 Czakon,J (2484)-Savchenko,S (2508)/Montpellier 2006/CBM 113 ext (40)}) 18. Nxf7 Qb8 $1 19. Nxh8 Nxe5 $1 $36 {[%csl Re1]} 20. O-O-O $140 Rxa2 $3 21. Nxa2 Be4 22. Qc3 Ned3+ 23. Kb1 Nb4+ 24. Ka1 Nc2+ 25. Kb1 Nd4+ $19) 17... Ne5 18. Rd1 Ncd3+ $6 (18... Qc7 $13) 19. Kf1 Nxf2 $2 (19... Rxh2 20. Be3 Bxg5 21. Rxg5 Qxg5 22. Bxg5 Rxf2+ 23. Kg1 Nf3+ 24. Bxf3 Rxc2 25. Rxd3 Rxb2 $14) 20. Kxf2 Bc5+ 21. Kg2 Qf6 22. Rgf1 Qh6 23. Bf4 Be3 24. Bxe5 Qxg5+ 25. Bg3 {1-0 Nyback,T (2634)-Kojima,S (2272)/Beijing 2008/CBM 126 Extra}) 15. Na4 Rh4 $1 16. c6 Rc8 $1 17. Bb5 (17. cxd7+ Nxd7) 17... a6 18. cxd7+ Nxd7 19. Bxd7+ Qxd7 20. Qb3 Qb5 21. Nc3 bxc3 22. bxc3 f6 23. Qxb5+ axb5 24. Nf3 Rxe4+ $19 {0-1 Epiney,F (2382)-Bubir,S (2398)/IECG 2007/CBM 125/[Schandorff] (41)}) 14. Na4 c5 $1 {Even now this move is correct. Before the present encounter it had only been played in a computer-assisted game in a Freestyle event.} (14... Qa5 15. Rg1 c5 16. e5 cxd4 17. exf6 Bxf6 18. Rc1 (18. a3 $1) 18... Rxh2 $2 (18... Rc8 $1 $13) 19. Qc7 Qxc7 20. Rxc7 Bc8 21. Bxb4 $18 {1-0 Watson,J (2400)-Pozarek,S (2185)/Philadelphia 1993/EXT 1999 (43)}) (14... Rc8 15. e5 Nd5 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Qg6+ Kf8 18. Rg1 Bf6 19. exf6 Qxf6 20. Qg3 $16 e5 21. dxe5 Qxe5 $2 22. Nc5 $1 Qxg3 23. Nxd7+ Ke8 24. Rxg3 Kxd7 25. Rxg7+ $18 {1-0 Jankovic,A (2525)-Sriram,J (2408)/Kavala 2006/CBM 113 ext (31)}) (14... Qc7 15. e5 (15. O-O-O $5) 15... Nd5 16. Rg1 Bxg5 17. Bxg5 Rxh2 18. Bg4 c5 19. Rc1 Kf8 (19... c4 20. Bxe6 $1) 20. Nxc5 Nxc5 21. Qxc5+ Qxc5 22. Rxc5 $14 {1-0 Nyback,T (2585)-Jaracz,P (2490)/Dresden 2007/CBM 118 (48)}) 15. Nxc5 (15. dxc5 $6 Rh4 $1 {- see above 13...c5.}) 15... Nxc5 16. dxc5 Rc8 17. Qa4+ $146 (17. Bxb4 Nd7 18. Bb5 O-O 19. Bxd7 Qxd7 20. h4 f6 21. Nf3 Qb5 22. Bc3 Rxc5 23. O-O-O e5 24. Rde1 Rc7 $44 {1/2 "Rybusia"-"Badbishop1"/playchess.com 2007 (64)}) ({RR} 17. Bxb4 Nd7 18. Bb5 O-O 19. Bxd7 Qxd7 20. h4 f6 21. Nf3 Qb5 22. Bc3 Rxc5 23. O-O-O e5 24. Rde1 Rc7 25. Nd2 Bc5 26. f3 Ba6 27. Kb1 Bd4 28. Ka1 Bxc3 29. bxc3 Rd8 30. Nb1 Qd3 31. Qxd3 Rxd3 {Rybusia-Badbishop1 Playchess.com INT 2007 ½-½ (64)}) 17... Bc6 18. Bb5 Bxb5 19. Qxb5+ Qd7 20. Qxd7+ Nxd7 21. Ke2 Rh4 22. Rac1 Rxc5 23. Rxc5 Bxc5 $15 {[%mdl 4096] So, Black has recaptured the sacrificed pawn and obtained a slightly better endgame due to the weakness of White's h- and a-pawns.} 24. f4 $6 (24. f3 {was probably more accurate (I.Ganiev).}) 24... e5 $1 25. h3 exf4 26. Nf3 Rh6 $17 {[%csl Ra2,Re4,Rh3]} 27. Bxf4 Re6 (27... Rg6 $5) 28. Nd2 Bd4 29. Rb1 (29. a3 Bxb2 30. axb4 Bc3 {loses a pawn anyway}) 29... Ra6 30. a3 $5 (30. Kd3 $5 Bf6) 30... bxa3 31. bxa3 Rxa3 32. Nc4 Ra2+ 33. Kd3 Bf2 34. Bd6 {White has given up a pawn but activated his pieces, and it is not easy for Black to convert his material advantage.} Nb6 (34... a5 35. Rb7 Nc5+ 36. Bxc5 Bxc5 37. Ne5 $132) 35. Bb4 Nxc4 36. Kxc4 Bb6 37. Kd5 Rg2 38. Rb3 Rg5+ 39. e5 Bc7 $2 {Exchanging the bishops is a wrong decision. Rook endgames are famous for their drawish tendencies, and this one is no exception.} (39... Rg1 $142 $17 {I.Ganiev}) 40. Bd6 Bxd6 41. Kxd6 Rg6+ 42. Kd5 Rb6 43. Rc3 Kd7 44. Rf3 Ke7 45. Rc3 Rb7 (45... Rb5+ 46. Kd4 Kd7 47. Rg3 $1 g6 48. Rf3 Ke7 49. Rc3 {doesn't change much}) 46. Rc6 g6 47. Ra6 {[%csl Ga6]} Kf8 (47... Rc7 48. Ra1 Kd7 49. Ra6 Kc8 {is senseless due to} 50. e6 fxe6+ 51. Rxe6 Rg7 52. Ke5 {winning the g6 pawn with a draw.}) 48. Ke4 Kg7 49. Kf4 Re7 50. Ra5 Kh6 51. Kg4 a6 {Black has no other way to make progress but the resulting ending is theoretically drawn.} 52. Rxa6 {There is no need for an engine-driver to look for new ways like} (52. Kf4 {Amazingly, Magnus Carlsen's train finally derails anyway!}) 52... Rxe5 53. Rb6 Re3 54. Ra6 f5+ 55. Kh4 Re4+ 56. Kg3 Kg5 57. Ra3 Re2 58. Kf3 Rh2 59. Kg3 Rb2 60. Ra8 (60. Rc3 {was good enough, e.g.} f4+ 61. Kf3 Rh2 62. Rc5+ Kh4 63. Kxf4 Rf2+ (63... Rxh3 64. Rg5 $1) 64. Ke3 Rf6 (64... Rb2 65. Rc6) 65. Ra5 Kxh3 66. Rg5 Kh4 67. Rg1 g5 68. Rh1+ $11) 60... Rb3+ 61. Kg2 Kf4 62. Ra4+ Ke3 63. h4 (63. Kg3 $5) 63... Rb6 (63... f4 64. Ra6 $11) 64. Kg3 Rd6 65. Rf4 Rd1 66. Rf3+ Ke4 67. Rf4+ Ke5 68. Ra4 f4+ 69. Kg2 Rd2+ 70. Kf3 Rd3+ 71. Kg2 Rg3+ 72. Kh2 (72. Kf2 $2 Rh3 73. Ra5+ Kf6 74. Ra6+ Kg7) 72... Kf5 73. Ra6 Re3 74. Ra5+ Re5 75. Ra2 $1 {This is the so-called Vaisser system of defence (applied by GM Anatoly Vaisser in one of his games).} Kg4 (75... Re6 76. Rg2 f3 77. Rg5+ Kf4 78. Kg1 Ra6 79. Kf2 {and Black can't make progress.}) 76. Rg2+ $1 Kh5 77. Kh3 {Black can't attack the h4 pawn and protect his g6 pawn at the same time!} Ra5 78. Rg1 Ra3+ 79. Kh2 Ra6 80. Kh3 Ra5 81. Rg2 Rc5 82. Rg1 f3 {The last attempt.} 83. Kg3 $6 (83. Rf1 $1 Rf5 (83... Rc3 {doesn't change anything}) 84. Rf2 Rf4 85. Kg3 Rf8 86. Kh3 {was much simpler}) 83... Rf5 84. Rf1 $4 {[%mdl 8192] A terrible mistake. Losing concentration at the end of the game is the main problem for Magnus (see also his game vs Radjabov).} (84. Kf2 $1 {was now the only way to a draw:} Rf6 85. Rh1 Kg4 86. Rg1+ Kxh4 87. Rh1+ Kg4 (87... Kg5 88. Rg1+ Kh6 89. Rh1+ Kg7 90. Rh3) 88. Rg1+ Kf4 89. Rg3 Ke4 90. Rg4+ Ke5 91. Rg5+ Ke6 92. Rg3 $11) 84... f2 $22 {and White must let the black king forward.} 85. Kh3 Rf3+ 86. Kg2 Kg4 87. h5 {Desperation.} Rg3+ $1 88. Kh2 (88. Kxf2 Rf3+ 89. Kg2 Rxf1 90. Kxf1 Kxh5 $19) 88... Kf3 $1 89. Ra1 Rg2+ $1 90. Kh1 (90. Kh3 Rg1) 90... Rg5 91. Ra3+ Kf4 92. Ra4+ Kg3 93. Ra3+ Kh4 (93... Kh4 94. Ra1 Rg1+ 95. Rxg1 fxg1=Q+ 96. Kxg1 Kxh5 $19) 0-1

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.03.02"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wang, Yue"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2739"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "128"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Roiz,Michael} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. b3 Bg4 7. Bd2 {A rare move, which was played by Morozevich against Ivanchuk in Corus this year. White wants to play h3-g4 chasing the bishop or exchanging it after h3 xf3.} Nbd7 {Considering the speed Wang Yue made this move we can conclude that he was ready for this rare line.} (7... e6 {is more usual.} 8. h3 Bh5 (8... Bxf3 9. Qxf3 {with the bishop pair, though Black is very solid and not without plusses.}) 9. g4 Bg6 10. Ne5 {with some initiative.}) ({RR} 7... e6 8. h3 Bf5 9. g4 Be4 10. g5 b4 11. Nxe4 Nxe4) 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 b4 10. Na4 e5 $1 {The idea behind all of Wang's previous play. He strikes in the centre and wants to use his lead in development and the white knight on the edge of the board, which is a bad piece according to a certain Dr.Tarrasch (with whom I fully agree!).} 11. Rc1 ({RR} 11. Qd1 Bd6 ({RR} 11... Ne4 12. Bd3 Nxd2 13. Qxd2 exd4 14. O-O ({RR} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. O-O Bd6 16. Bf5 Nf6 17. Qxd4 O-O 18. Rac1 g6 19. Bd3) 14... Be7 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Bf5 Rb8 17. Qxd4 Nf6 18. Rac1 O-O 19. Rc6) 12. Bd3 ({RR} 12. c5 Bc7 13. Bxb4 ({RR} 13. Bd3 O-O 14. O-O a5 15. a3 Qb8) 13... O-O 14. Be2 Ne4 15. O-O exd4 16. exd4 Qh4 17. Qd3 Rfe8 18. Be1 Nf8) 12... O-O 13. O-O a5 14. cxd5 ({RR} 14. Qc2 Qe7 15. Rfc1 Rfe8 16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Qc6 Ra7) 14... cxd5 15. dxe5 Bxe5 ({RR} 15... Nxe5 16. Bb5 Qe7 17. Qe2 Ne4 ({RR} 17... Ng6) 18. Rfd1 Ng6 19. Be1 Rad8 20. Rac1 Qe5 21. f4 Qe6) 16. Rc1 Qe7 17. Rc2 ({RR} 17. Rc6 Bb8 18. Bb1 Ne5) ({RR} 17. Qc2 Rad8 18. Rfd1 Bd6 19. Bf1 Ne4 20. Be1) 17... Rad8 ({RR} 17... Ne4 18. Bc1 Qe6 19. Bb2 Bxb2 20. Rxb2 Ndf6) 18. Bc1 h5 ({RR} 18... Qe6 19. Bb2 Bxb2 20. Rxb2 Ne5 21. Rc2 Rc8) 19. Bb2 ({RR} 19. Bb5 Bb8 20. Bb2 Qd6 21. f4 Ba7 22. Bd4 Bxd4 23. Qxd4 Rc8 24. Rfc1 Rxc2 25. Rxc2 Rb8 26. Be2 h4 27. Bf3 Re8) 19... Bxb2 20. Rxb2 Nc5 ({RR} 20... Ne5 21. Rc2 Rc8 22. Be2 g6 23. Qc1 Rxc2 24. Qxc2 Rd8 25. Rc1 Ne4) 21. Nxc5 Qxc5 22. Rd2 ({RR} 22. Rc2 Qe7 23. Qc1 d4 24. e4 ({RR} 24. Rc7 Qd6 25. e4 Rfe8 26. Qc4)) 22... Qe7 23. Qe2 ({RR} 23. Rc2 Rc8 24. Qc1 Qb7 25. Rc5 g6 26. Rd1 Nd7) 23... g6 24. Rfd1 ({RR} 24. Rc1 Ne4 25. Bxe4 dxe4) 24... Rc8 ({RR} 24... Ne4 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. Rd5 Rxd5 27. Rxd5 Rc8 28. Qd1 Qf6) 25. Rc2 Ne4 {Roiz,M (2669)-Wang,Y (2709) Ningbo 2011 CBM 144 [Roiz,Michael] ½-½ (32)} ({RR} 25... Rc3 26. Rxc3 bxc3 27. Qc2 Rc8 28. Be2 Kg7 29. Rd3 Qc5 30. Bf3 Ne4)) ({RR} 11. O-O-O Be7 12. c5 a5 13. g4 Ne4) ({RR} 11. c5 a5 12. Qd1 g6 13. Bd3 Bg7 14. O-O O-O) ({RR} 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Qd1 Bd6 14. Be2 O-O 15. O-O Qe7 16. Rc1 a5 17. Qc2 Rad8 18. Rfd1 Ng6 19. Be1 Qe5 20. g3 h5) 11... Bd6 $146 ({RR} 11... Ne4 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Bd3 Ndf6 14. dxe5 Nxd2 15. Kxd2 Ne4+ 16. Ke2 Ng5 17. Qg4 Ne6 18. Rc6 Be7 19. Rxe6 fxe6 20. Qxe6 Ra7 21. Nb6 Rb7 22. Qc6+ {1-0 (22) Hawkins,J (2546)-Ghasi,A (2475) Leeds 2014}) 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Qd1 O-O $1 15. Be2 {the last five moves were very logical, but now Wang played} a5 {A strong and not very obvious (for me at least) move. Black protects the b4 and a6 pawns for the future.} 16. Rc2 {An interesting plan by Magnus. He wants to improve his bishop before castling.} Qe7 17. Bc1 Rad8 18. Bb2 Ng6 19. O-O {Finally when all the white pieces are more less well developed (I am not talking about Tarrasch's knight!) White castles.} Ne4 20. Bd4 Nh4 $1 {Black has an isolated pawn, but now he shows that he is also not without play.} 21. Bd3 (21. Bb6 {a computer-like move. White just wants to take everything, but Black has his own play against White's king.} Qg5 22. Bg4 (22. g4 Rc8 23. Rxc8 {and now there are a lot of ways to equalise for Black, but I will just give the nicest.} Nf3+ $5 24. Kg2 (24. Bxf3 Qe5 {with mate, even though Black is a rook and piece down!}) 24... Nh4+ {A nice perpetual.}) 22... h5 $1 23. Bxd8 Rxd8 24. f4 Qe7 25. Bxh5 Ng3 26. Re1 Nxh5 27. Qxh5 Bxf4 28. Qe2 Bg5 {With compensation for the exchange. I would prefer to play with Black here, though the position is far from clear. Those knights on h4 and a4 are not of the same value!}) 21... Nf5 22. Bb6 Rb8 {By this point White is already not fighting for the advantage.} 23. Bxe4 {It is not very good to give up your "good" bishop, but it was a very understandable decision, as the knight on e4 was really scary.} (23. Qe2 $5 {Black's threats look scary, but White can defend. And after all an isolated pawn is still there. On the other hand Black has some initiative. I would say the position is equal, but I like Black more, as some players, like me for example, prefer the initiative. Anyway, it is just a matter of taste.} Qe5 24. g3 Rfc8 25. Rxc8+ Rxc8 26. Rd1 g6 27. Qf3 h5 {Something like this could happen after 23.e2!? Black's initiative at least fully compensates for his weaknesses.}) 23... Qxe4 24. Rd2 (24. Qe2 {was safer.} Nh4 25. f3 Qg6 26. Rd2 Rfe8 {The position is approximately equal, but still Black keeps some sort of pressure, which compensates for weaknesses on d5 and a5. Only Black can be better here.}) 24... Rxb6 $1 {The bishop must be killed! Reason: He was protecting the e3 square. Poor guy...} 25. Nxb6 Qe5 (25... Nxe3 $5 {Would probably not be so great as it looks.} 26. fxe3 Qxe3+ 27. Rdf2 Qxb6 {an attempt at winning.} (27... Qg3 28. Re2 Qh2+ 29. Kf2 Qg3+ {draw.}) 28. Kh1 Qe3 29. Qf3 Qe5 30. g3 {and I think White has no problems at all.}) 26. Re1 $2 {was the first and the last mistake, though White probably made some inaccurate moves earlier.} (26. g3 $1 {holds the position.} Nxg3 27. Re1 Ne4 {Trying to play for a win.} (27... Ne2+ $5 28. Kf1 $1 {Black has nothing but a draw here.} Qh5 29. Kg2 Qg6+ 30. Kf1 Qh5 $11) 28. f4 Qe6 29. Rg2 Bc5 30. Na4 Ba7 31. Qg4 g6 32. Qxe6 fxe6 {with something like equality in this strange sharp ending.}) 26... Qh2+ 27. Kf1 Qh1+ 28. Ke2 Qxg2 29. Rxd5 Ng3+ 30. Kd3 Bc7 $1 {Wang Yue is precise!} 31. fxg3 Bxb6 32. Kc4 {Even such a brilliant move cannot help White. His king will be in trouble everywhere.} Rb8 $1 {A very strong and nice move - the b5-square is taken away from White's king!} 33. Kb5 {Everything will lose here, but this move is a blunder. It is understandable - Magnus was in time trouble and his position was very difficult.} Bd4+ $6 {Here Wang missed an opportunity to mate Magnus immediately.} (33... Bd8+ $1 {just mates.} 34. Ka6 {other moves do not help either.} Bc7 35. Qd4 Qxh3 {The queen is coming back to c8 and mate is inevitable.}) 34. Kc4 Bf6 35. Qd3 Qxg3 36. Rd1 Qc7+ 37. Rc5 Qb7 38. Qd6 $2 {Magnus had less than a minute and not surprisingly he did not find the best chance, which was given to him by Wang on move 33...} (38. Qd7 $1 {To threaten c8 with mate at some point later on.} Qe4+ 39. Rd4 Qc2+ 40. Kd5 Qg2+ 41. e4 g6 {mate on c8 was threatened.} 42. Rc8+ Rxc8 43. Qxc8+ Kg7 44. Rd3 {and it is still better for Black, but not that much anymore.}) 38... Qe4+ 39. Rd4 Qc2+ 40. Kd5 Qg2+ 41. e4 Rd8 42. Qxd8+ Bxd8 43. Rc8 g6 {The ending is easy for Black, and Wang finishes the game off nicely.} 44. Rxd8+ Kg7 45. Rd3 Qc2 46. Kd4 a4 47. bxa4 Qxa2 48. Kc5 b3 49. Rb8 b2 50. Rdb3 Qxa4 51. Rxb2 Qxe4 52. R8b3 Kh6 53. Rc3 f5 54. Rbb3 Qe5+ 55. Kc4 Kh5 56. Kd3 Kh4 57. Kd2 f4 58. Rf3 g5 59. Rfd3 Qc5 60. Rbc3 Qf2+ 61. Kd1 Qf1+ 62. Kd2 Qg2+ 63. Kd1 Qe4 64. Kd2 h5 0-1

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.03.03"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2779"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[PlyCount "44"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 c6 10. Be2 Nxc3 11. Rxc3 dxc4 12. Rxc4 Nd7 13. O-O e5 14. Qc2 exd4 15. Nxd4 Nb6 16. Rc5 Nd7 17. Ra5 Nf6 18. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 18. h3 Bd7 19. Rd1 Rfe8 20. Qc5 Qxc5 21. Rxc5 Rad8 22. Ra1 {½-½ (22) Martinovic,S (2524)-Saric,A (2541) Hum na Sutli 2013}) 18... Bg4 19. Bf1 Bd7 20. Nf3 Bg4 21. Nd4 Bd7 22. Nf3 Bg4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Linares 26th"]
[Site "Linares"]
[Date "2009.03.07"]
[Round "14"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2791"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2009.02.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 129"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.03.25"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 Nc6 4. Nc3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 e5 8. Bb5 Bd7 9. Ne2 Bg7 10. Be3 O-O 11. d5 Na5 12. Bd3 b6 $146 ({RR} 12... Qe7 13. O-O c5 14. c4 b6 15. Nc3 f5 16. exf5 gxf5 17. Qd2 Nb7 18. a4 Rae8 19. Rae1 Nd6 20. f4 e4 21. Be2 Bf6 22. a5 Qg7 23. Rc1 Kh8 24. Rfd1 Rg8 25. Bf1 Rb8 26. Rc2 Rb7 27. axb6 {Nikolov,M (2585)-Mchedlishvili,M (2609) Baku 2016 0-1 (47)}) 13. O-O Nb7 14. c4 c5 15. dxc6 Bxc6 16. Nc3 Bd7 17. Nd5 Be6 18. Qd2 Rc8 19. Rfc1 f6 20. Kh1 Kh8 21. Rab1 Rf7 22. Qe2 Bf8 23. Bd2 Bd6 24. Bc3 Kg8 25. Qd2 Qf8 26. Be2 Rd8 27. Rd1 Rc8 28. Rdc1 Rd8 29. Rd1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.13"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2812"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 g6 10. O-O Bg7 11. e4 O-O ({Another option is Eine andere Möglichkeit ist} 11... e5 12. d5 Nb6 {as Karjakin played against me in Nice. The text usually leads to more complicated play, and therefore it's not surprising that Topalov chose it. wie Karjakin gegen mich in Nizza spielte. Der Textzug führt meist zu komplizierterem Spiel, daher ist es nicht überraschend, dass Topalov ihn wählte.}) 12. e5 Qe7 13. Qe2 b5 {Not the most usual, Black usually takes a more restrained approach by playing b6 here or on the next move. The text is probably not bad either however.  Nicht das Übliche, normalerweise schlägt Schwarz mit b6 hier oder im nächsten Zug eine zurückhaltendere Gangart ein. Der Text ist aber wahrscheinlich auch nicht schlecht.} 14. Bd3 Bb7 (14... b4 15. Na4 c5 {was an interesting, but risky alternative. White should probably continue war eine interessante, aber riskante Alternative. Weiß sollte darauf wahrscheinlich mit} 16. Rac1 (16. Be4 Rb8 17. Nxc5 Nxc5 18. dxc5 Qxc5 19. Rfc1 Qa5 {is absolutely fine for Black. ist absolut in Ordnung für Schwarz.}) 16... cxd4 17. Qe4 Rb8 (17... Nb6 18. Nxb6 Bb7 19. Nxa8 Bxe4 20. Bxe4 {must be better for White, as the knight can escape via c7. muss besser für Weiß sein, denn der Springer kann über c7 entkommen.}) 18. Rc7 {with the initiative. fortsetzen, mit Initiative.}) 15. Be4 Rfd8 $6 {I don't think he should have commited the rook this early, as it might be needed on c8 soon. The immediate ...ab8 was better. Ich glaube nicht, dass er den Turm so früh hätte festlegen sollen, da dieser bald auf c8 gebraucht werden könnte. Das sofortige ...ab8 war besser.} ({RR} 15... Nb6 16. h4 Rfd8 17. Rac1 a5 18. Rfd1 Rac8 19. b3 b4 20. Nb1 c5 21. Bxb7 Qxb7 22. dxc5 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 Nd5 24. Qd4 Qc6 25. a3 Bf8 26. axb4 Nxb4 27. Nbd2 Bxc5 28. Qc4 Bxf2+ 29. Kh2 Be3 30. Qxc6 {Khatoev,E (2409)-Yoo,C (2588) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (45)}) 16. Rac1 (16. Nxb5 Nxe5 $11 {is the tactical justification of Black's last move. ist die taktische Rechtfertigung des letzten schwarzen Zuges.}) 16... Rab8 17. Rfd1 a6 18. h4 $146 (18. Nb1 $5 {with the obvious idea of d2-b3 is a common plan in this structure. There could follow mit der offensichtlichen Idee d2-b3 ist ein geläufiger Plan in dieser Struktur. Es könnte folgen} Rdc8 19. Nbd2 Ba8 20. Qe3 $1 {A great preparatory move, shown by the engines. Ein großartiger Vorbereitungszug, angezeigt von den Engines.} (20. Nb3 c5 21. Bxa8 Rxa8 {with equality is what discouraged me from playing 18.b1. mit Ausgleich ist das, was mich von 18.b1 abhielt.}) 20... c5 21. Bxa8 Rxa8 22. Ne4 {and since 22...cxd4 can now be met by xd4, White has a clear initative. und da 22...cxd4 jetzt mit xd4 begegnet werden kann, hat Weiß eine klare Initative.}) ({RR} 18. Nb1 Rdc8 19. Nbd2 Ba8 20. Rc2 c5 21. Bxa8 Rxa8 22. Rdc1 Qf8 23. dxc5 Rxc5 24. Rxc5 Nxc5 25. Ne4 Nd7 26. Ng3 Qb8 27. Re1 Qb7 28. Ne4 Qc7 29. Nd6 Rd8 30. Kf1 Qb6 31. a4 bxa4 32. Nc4 Qb5 {Popov,M (2378)-Smirnov,P (2589) Kazan 2017 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 18. a3 c5 19. Bxb7 Rxb7 20. Qe4 Rbb8 21. d5 exd5 22. Nxd5 Qe6 23. Nf4 Qe7 24. Nd5 Qe6 25. Nf4 Qe7 26. Nd5 {½-½ (26) Lenic,L (2662)-Van Wely,L (2656) Chess.com INT 2018}) 18... Ba8 19. Rc2 $6 {Probably a little too slow. Vermutlich ein bisschen zu langsam.} (19. h5 g5 20. Nh2 {with the idea of putting the knight on the excellent square g4, was more consistent. mit der Idee, den Springer auf das ausgezeichnete Feld g4 zu stellen, war konsequenter.}) 19... Rdc8 20. Rdc1 Qf8 $1 {A good prophylactic move, which Topalov made immediately. The idea can clearly be seen in the line Ein guter prophylaktischer Zug, den Topalov sofort spielte. Die Idee wird deutlich in dem Abspiel} (20... c5 21. Bxa8 Rxa8 22. Ne4 {when the pin on the c-file causes Black problems. , wonach die Fesselung auf der c-Linie Schwarz Probleme bereitet.}) 21. a4 $6 {I was not sure of what to do here, and decided to try and disturb his queenside play a little. However, Ich war nicht sicher, was ich hier tun sollte, und beschloss zu versuchen, sein Spiel am Damenflügel ein bisschen zu stören.} c5 $6 ({after the simple Doch nach dem einfachen} 21... b4 22. Nb1 c5 23. Bxa8 Rxa8 24. dxc5 Rxc5 (24... Nxc5 25. Qc4 $1) 25. Nbd2 Rxc2 26. Rxc2 Rc8 {Black even has a slight initiative, thanks to the weaknesses on e5 and a4. It's hard to explain why both players missed this. hat Schwarz sogar eine leichte Initiative dank der Schwächen auf e5 und a4. Es ist schwer zu erklären, warum beide Spieler dies übersahen.}) 22. axb5 {Now White is better again. Jetzt steht Weiß wieder besser.} cxd4 23. Nxd4 Bxe4 $2 {A huge mistake, probably based on a tactical oversight. Ein Riesenfehler, vermutlich basierend auf einem taktischen Versehen.} (23... axb5 24. Bxa8 Rxa8 {would have kept White out of c6 for the time being, and retained decent chances of counterplay after hätte Weiß zunächst einmal von c6 ferngehalten und ordentliche Gegenspielchancen gewahrt nach} 25. f4 Qd8 $1 {with ideas of ...xe5 and g5. mit Ideen wie ...xe5 und g5.}) 24. Nxe4 Rxc2 25. Rxc2 axb5 (25... Bxe5 {would be desirable, and was probably my opponent's intention, but it loses material to wäre wünschenswert und war vermutlich auch die Absicht meines Gegners, doch dies verliert Material nach} 26. Nc6 (26. Rd2 {is actually even better. ist sogar noch besser.}) 26... Rxb5 27. Rd2 Qa8 (27... Qe8 {gives White a choice between lässt Weiß die Wahl zwischen} 28. Nxe5 (28. f4 Bxf4 29. Rxd7 {and even und sogar}) (28. Qxb5 axb5 29. Nxe5 {also winning material. , ebenfalls mit Materialgewinn.}) 28... Rxe5 29. Nf6+)) 26. Nc6 Rb6 (26... Nxe5 27. Nxb8 Qxb8 {loses in the long run. verliert auf lange Sicht.}) 27. f4 {Now Black can hardly move. Nun kann Schwarz kaum ziehen.} Qa8 (27... Nb8 28. Na7 $1 {is aesthetically pleasing and more or less decisive. ist etwas fürs Auge und mehr oder weniger entscheidend.}) 28. Ne7+ Kh7 29. h5 Ra6 {The only active move Black has. Der einzige aktive Zug, den Schwarz hat.} 30. hxg6+ fxg6 31. Rc7 $1 {A very pleasing move, after which Black is finished. Ein sehr angenehmer Zug, nach dem Schwarz erledigt ist.} Ra1+ 32. Kf2 $2 {But now there is some excitement again. Aber nun gibt es wieder ein bisschen Aufregung.} ({I thought the most natural Ich dachte, das sehr natürliche} 32. Kh2 {would give Black some unnecessary counterplay after gäbe Schwarz unnötiges Gegenspiel nach} Nxe5 {, but this fails to the simple , aber dies scheitert an dem einfachen} (32... Qd8 33. Qd3 Qxe7 34. Nf6+ $1) 33. Nf6+ Bxf6 34. Nd5+ Bg7 35. Qxe5 Qf8 36. Rxg7+ Qxg7 37. Nf6+ {when Black is mated or loses the queen. wonach Schwarz mattgesetzt wird oder die Dame verliert.}) 32... Qd8 33. Qd3 $1 {This is the trick. Das ist der Trick.} Qxe7 (33... Qxc7 {The rook is taboo due to Der Turm ist tabu wegen} 34. Ng5+ hxg5 (34... Kh8 35. Nf7+ Kh7 36. Qxg6#) 35. Qxg6+ Kh8 36. Qh5+ {and mates. und Matt.}) 34. Rxd7 (34. Nf6+ {was easily winning as well. gewann ebenfalls leicht.}) 34... Qh4+ 35. Kf3 Qh5+ (35... Kh8 36. Rxg7 Kxg7 {Otherwise g8+ or h7+ might follow. Ansonsten könnte g8+ oder h7+ folgen.} 37. Nf6 Ra7 38. Qd8 {is also completely over. ist ebenfalls komplett gelaufen.}) 36. Kg3 {Black has no more checks, and his king has no protection. A great way to start the tournament! Schwarz hat keine Schachs mehr, und sein König keinen Schutz. Ein toller Einstieg in das Turnier!} 1-0

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.15"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D30"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2746"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 e6 4. Qc2 Nf6 5. Nbd2 dxc4 6. Nxc4 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. g3 b5 9. Nce5 Qc7 10. Qb3 a6 11. Bg2 Bb7 12. O-O $146 ({RR} 12. Nd3 Bd6 13. Bf4 Bxf4 14. gxf4 Nd5 15. Rc1 Qa5+ 16. Nd2 O-O 17. Qa3 Qb6 18. Qc5 Qa5 19. Qa3 Qb6 20. Qc5 Qa5 21. Qa3 {½-½ (21) Heinatz,G (2205)-Zimina,O (2338) Porto Carras 2011}) 12... Bd5 13. Qc3 Ne4 14. Qe1 O-O 15. Nd3 Bb6 16. Bf4 Qe7 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. e4 Bb7 19. Be3 Nbd7 20. Nb3 Rac8 21. f3 Rfd8 22. Rd1 Ne8 23. Bxb6 Nxb6 24. Qb4 Qc7 25. Qc5 Nc4 26. Qf2 Nf6 27. Nbc5 Nd7 28. b3 Nce5 29. Rc1 Nxd3 30. Nxd3 Qd6 31. Qe3 b4 32. Rfd1 Rxc1 33. Rxc1 a5 34. Bf1 Ba6 35. Nc5 Nxc5 36. Qxc5 h6 37. Qxd6 Rxd6 38. Bxa6 Rxa6 39. Kf2 a4 40. Rc4 axb3 41. axb3 Ra2+ 42. Kg1 Ra1+ 43. Kg2 Ra2+ 44. Kh3 Rf2 45. f4 f5 46. Rxb4 g5 47. fxg5 hxg5 48. exf5 exf5 49. g4 Rf3+ 50. Kg2 fxg4 51. h4 Kh7 52. hxg5 Kg6 53. Rxg4 Rxb3 54. Rg3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.16"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Shirov, Alexei"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D44"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2745"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 dxc4 6. e4 b5 7. e5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Nxg5 hxg5 10. Bxg5 Nbd7 11. exf6 Bb7 12. g3 c5 13. d5 Qb6 14. Bg2 O-O-O 15. O-O b4 16. Na4 Qb5 17. a3 exd5 18. axb4 cxb4 19. Qg4 {An old move in this well-known position. Other options:} (19. Qd4) (19. Re1 {- see Topalov-Shirov in this issue}) (19. Be3 {(the most popular move)}) (19. Bf4 {(introduced recently, with excellent results for White)}) (19. h4) 19... d4 {Positions arising in the Botvinnik system are usually crazy and hard to assess. Black tries to clarify the position a little bit. Otherwise White would eventually create a strong attack on the black king:} (19... Bd6 20. Be3 Kc7 21. Bd4 (21. Rfd1 $6 Rdg8 22. Qf5 Rg6 23. Bd4 Rhh6 {0-1 Lhost,G-Roussel,C/Bethune 2005/CBM 107 ext (39)}) 21... Rhe8 (21... Ne5 $5) 22. b3 Nc5 23. Nxc5 Bxc5 24. Qf4+ Kb6 25. Be5 (25. Ra4 $1 a5 26. Rfa1 $16) 25... Rxe5 26. Qxe5 c3 27. Rfe1 Rd6 28. g4 d4 29. Bxb7 Kxb7 30. Qf5 $16 {½-½ Zhou Jianchao-Zhang Pengxiang/Wuxi 2006/CBM 113 ext (35)}) (19... Bh6 20. Rfd1 (20. Rfe1 Rdg8 21. h4 Bxg5 22. hxg5 d4 23. Qxd4 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 Rxg5 25. Re4 Qf5 26. Qxc4+ Kd8 27. Re8+ {0-1 Babula,V-Kanovsky,D/Luhacovice 2003/CBM 094}) 20... Rhg8 (20... Rde8 21. b3 c3 22. Bxh6 Rxh6 23. Rd4 a5 24. Bxd5 Re6 25. Bxe6 fxe6 26. Rxd7 Kxd7 27. Rd1+ {1-0 Badjarani,I-Peyrou Olya,M/Iran 1997/EXT 2003}) 21. h4 Bxg5 22. hxg5 Bc6 23. Rd4 Kb7 24. b3 $16 {0-1 Dias,A-Pelletier,Y/Matinhos 1994/EXT 1997 (52)}) (19... Rg8 20. h4 Bd6 21. Qd4 Be5 22. Qxa7 Kc7 23. Bh3 Nxf6 24. Rfe1 Ra8 25. Qe3 Ne4 26. Bf4 f6 27. Bxe5+ fxe5 28. Qh6 $36 {1-0 Burgess,G-Adnoy,H/Gausdal 2002/CBM 086 ext (36)}) 20. Bxb7+ Kxb7 (20... Qxb7 21. Qxd4 Bd6 22. Qxd6 Rxh2 23. Kxh2 Rh8+ 24. Bh4 $18 {1-0 Ortiz,E-Stein,J/Monterey Park 2004/EXT 2009 (27)}) 21. Qe4+ Qc6 22. Qxd4 Bd6 23. Rfe1 Rde8 24. Re3 $146 {[%mdl 8] An attempt at an improvement. Previous games saw:} (24. Rxe8 Rxe8 25. Be3 Bb8 (25... Nb6 26. Nxb6 axb6 27. Rd1 Be5 28. Qd2 c3 29. bxc3 bxc3 30. Qa2 Re6 31. Rb1 Qe8 32. Qd5+ Kc7 33. Ra1 Qc6 34. Ra7+ Kb8 35. Qxc6 Rxc6 36. Rxf7 Bxf6 $44 {½-½ Williams,L-Wilson,J/Hastings 1995/EXT 1998 (40)}) 26. Qxd7+ Qxd7 27. Nc5+ Kc8 28. Nxd7 Kxd7 29. Ra4 (29. Bd2 $5) 29... Bd6 $5 (29... a5 30. Rxa5 Be5 31. Bc5 b3 32. Ba3 Ke6 33. f4 Bd4+ 34. Kf1 Rb8 $44 {0-1 Zarubin,O-Andrianov,N/Severodonetsk 1982/EXT 1999 (42)}) 30. Rxa7+ Kc6 31. Ra6+ Kd5 32. Kf1 b3 33. Ra5+ Kc6 34. Ra6+ {½-½ Beliavsky,A-Smeets,J/Amsterdam 2007/CBM 120 (35)} (34. Bd4 Bb4 35. Ra1 Rd8 36. Be5 Rd2 $44)) ({RR} 24. Rxe8 Rxe8 25. Be3 Nb6 26. Nxb6 axb6 27. Rd1 Be5 28. Qd2 c3 29. bxc3 bxc3 30. Qa2 Re6 31. Rb1 Qe8 32. Qd5+ Kc7 33. Ra1 Qc6 34. Ra7+ Kb8 35. Qxc6 Rxc6 36. Rxf7 Bxf6 37. g4 c2 38. Bc1 b5 {Williams,L (2110)-Wilson,J (2245) Hastings 1995 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 24. Rxe8 Rxe8 25. Be3 Bb8 26. Qxd7+ Qxd7 27. Nc5+ Kc8 28. Nxd7 Kxd7 29. Ra4 a5 30. Rxa5 Be5 31. Bc5 b3 32. Ba3 Ke6 33. f4 Bd4+ 34. Kf1 Rb8 35. Ra6+ Kd5 36. Ke2 Re8+ 37. Kd2 Rh8 38. h4 Rg8 {Zarubin,O-Andrianov,N (2435) Severodonetsk 1982 0-1 (42)}) 24... Ne5 $1 (24... Rxe3 $6 25. Bxe3 {is poor for Black as his rook is on h8 and not on e8 as in the previous variation.}) 25. h4 (25. Rc1 $5) 25... Re6 {Sometimes chess is very easy: if you don't know what to do - centralize your pieces! For White it is more difficult to find a guiding light.} 26. Bf4 (26. Qd1 $5 Rhe8 $140 27. Qh5) 26... Rhe8 27. Bxe5 Rxe5 28. Rxe5 $6 (28. Rae1 $5 Rxe3 29. Rxe3 Rxe3 30. fxe3 Bf8 31. Qd8 Qxa4 32. Qxf8 Qd1+ $11) 28... Rxe5 29. Qg4 $6 {White decides to advance his h-pawn at any cost.} (29. Rd1 $142 Bc7 {[%csl Ra4]} 30. b3 cxb3 31. Qxb4+ Rb5 $15) 29... Ra5 30. h5 Rxa4 31. Rxa4 Qxa4 32. h6 Qc6 $1 {Consolidation.} 33. Qh5 $6 (33. h7 $2 c3 34. bxc3 bxc3 35. h8=Q c2 $19) (33. Qg8 $142 $1 {[%cal Rh6h7]} Be5 $1 34. Qxf7+ Ka6 35. Qe7 Bxf6 36. Qxb4 Qb5 37. Qd6+ Qb6 $17) 33... c3 $6 {Of course, something like} (33... a5 $3 34. Qxf7+ Ka6 $17 {(with the idea of preventing f7-a2+ after ...c4-c3) can hardly be found by a human. White had little chances to survive in that case, e.g.} 35. h7 (35. Qg6 c3 36. bxc3 bxc3 37. Qc2 Bf8 38. h7 Qxf6) 35... c3 36. bxc3 bxc3 37. h8=Q c2 38. Qh6 c1=Q+ 39. Qxc1 Qxc1+ 40. Kh2 $1 (40. Kg2 Qc6+ 41. Kg1 Be5) 40... Qc2 41. Kg1 Qb1+ 42. Kh2 Qe4 $1 $17) 34. bxc3 bxc3 35. Qxf7+ Bc7 $6 {This leads to a draw. Black could have kept winning chances after} (35... Ka6 36. Qa2+ Kb5 37. h7 (37. Qc2 Bb4 $1) 37... c2 38. Qb2+ Bb4 39. Qc1 Ba3 40. Qf1+ Ka4 41. h8=Q c1=Q {etc.}) ({or} 35... Kb6 36. Qb3+ Ka5 {etc.}) 36. Qb3+ Bb6 37. Qf7+ {Black now can't escape checks.} Bc7 (37... Qc7 38. Qd5+ Ka6 (38... Kb8 $4 39. f7 Qxg3+ 40. Qg2 Bxf2+ 41. Kh1 $18) 39. Qa2+ Ba5 40. Qe6+ $11) (37... Ka6 38. Qa2+ Ba5 39. Qe2+ Kb6 40. Qe3+ Kb7 41. Qe7+ Bc7 42. Qb4+ $11) 38. Qb3+ Bb6 39. Qf7+ Bc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.17"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D82"]
[WhiteElo "2738"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 Bg7 5. e3 c5 6. dxc5 Qa5 7. Rc1 dxc4 8. Bxc4 O-O 9. Nge2 Qxc5 10. Qb3 Qa5 11. O-O Nbd7 ({RR} 11... Nc6 12. Nd5 Nxd5 13. Bxd5 e6 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Rfd1 e5 16. Bg3 Be6 17. Qc3 Qxa2 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. Qxe5 Rfd8 20. h4 h5 21. Nf4 Bb3 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxc6 Qb1+ 24. Kh2 Qe1 25. Nxh5 Kf8 26. Rc7 {Makarian,R (2543)-Ebrahimi Herab,H (2418) chess.com INT 2025 1-0}) 12. a3 ({RR} 12. Nb5 Ne4 13. Bc7 b6 14. Bxf7+ Rxf7 15. Qd5 Nec5 16. Qxa8 Qxb5 17. Nd4 Qa6 18. b4 Nd3 19. Rcd1 Nb2 20. Rb1 Bxd4 21. exd4 Nc4 22. Rbc1 b5 23. a4 Qb7 24. Qxb7 Bxb7 25. axb5 Na3 26. f4 Nxb5 {Wojtaszek,R (2724)-Mamedyarov,S (2781) Moscow 2019 1-0 (67)}) 12... Nb6 13. Bc7 Bd7 $146 ({RR} 13... Qc5 14. Na4 Nxa4 15. Qxa4 Qg5 16. Ng3 Ne8 17. Bf4 Qf6 18. Ne4 Qb6 19. b4 Bf5 20. Nc5 Nd6 21. Bd5 Bb2 22. Rcd1 Rad8 23. Qb3 Bg7 24. Bxd6 Rxd6 25. Bxb7 Rfd8 26. Be4 Bc8 27. h3 h5 28. Bf3 {Piket,J (2632)-Leko,P (2745) Monte Carlo 2001 1-0 (58)}) 14. Nd4 Rac8 15. Bxb6 Qxb6 16. Qxb6 axb6 17. Be2 Rc7 18. Ndb5 Rc6 19. Nd4 Rc7 20. Ndb5 Rc6 21. Rfd1 Rb8 22. Nd4 Rc7 23. Ndb5 Rc6 24. Nd4 Rc7 25. Ndb5 Rc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.19"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2812"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Jussupow,Artur} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 Nxc3 10. Rxc3 c6 11. Be2 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Nd7 13. O-O e5 14. Bb3 Rd8 ({RR} 14... exd4 15. exd4 Nf6 16. Re1 Qd6 17. Ne5 Nd5 18. Rg3 Bf5 19. Qh5 Bh7 20. Qg4 g5 21. h4 f6 22. hxg5 hxg5 23. f4 ({RR} 23. Qh5 Qe7 24. Nd3 Qf7) 23... Rae8 ({RR} 23... Kh8 24. fxg5 fxe5 25. g6 Qxg6 26. Qxg6 Bxg6 27. Rxg6) 24. fxg5 fxe5 25. g6 Bxg6 26. dxe5 Qe6 27. Bxd5 cxd5 28. Qxg6+ Qxg6 29. Rxg6+ {Karpov,A (2755)-Jussupow,A (2610) London 1989 Candidates [Jussupow,Artur] 1-0 (53)}) ({RR} 14... exd4 15. Qxd4 Nf6 16. Rc5 Be6 17. Bxe6 Qxe6 18. Qc4 Qxc4 19. Rxc4 Rfd8 20. Rfc1 Rd6 21. Kf1 Nd7 22. Rb4 Rb8 23. Ke2 c5 24. Rb3 b6 25. Ra3 Rb7 26. Rd3 Rxd3 27. Kxd3 Nf6 28. Rc2 Kf8 29. Kc4 {Sammed Jaykumar,S (2391)-Aarav Sinha (2187) Bengaluru IND 2025 ½-½ (53)}) 15. Re1 exd4 16. exd4 Qd6 17. Rd3 $146 ({RR} 17. d5 cxd5 18. Qxd5 Qxd5 19. Bxd5 Nf8 20. Bb3 {½-½ (20) Zakharevich,I (2505)-Bezgodov,A (2570) Perm 1997}) ({RR} 17. Rce3 Nf8 18. Ne5 Be6 19. Qh5 Bxb3 20. Rxb3 Qc7 21. Qg4 Re8 22. Rd1 Rad8 23. Rg3 f6 24. Nf3 Rd5 25. Nh4 Qd7 26. Qxd7 Nxd7 27. Re3 Rxe3 28. fxe3 g5 29. Nf3 Nc5 30. Nd2 Na4 31. Ne4 Kf7 {Ortmann,D (2322)-Bottema,M (2062) Vlissingen 2011 ½-½ (77)}) 17... Nf8 18. d5 Bf5 19. Rd2 cxd5 20. Rxd5 Qf6 21. Qd4 Be6 22. Qxf6 gxf6 23. Rh5 Bxb3 24. axb3 Ng6 25. Rxh6 Rd3 26. h4 Rad8 27. Rh5 Rxb3 28. Rf5 Kg7 29. h5 Nf8 30. Re4 Nh7 31. Rg4+ Kh6 32. Rc4 Rxb2 33. g4 b5 34. Rd4 Rxd4 35. Nxd4 Rb4 36. Rd5 Ng5 37. Kg2 Ne6 38. Nf5+ Kh7 39. Kg3 Rb3+ 40. Kh2 Rf3 41. Rd7 Ng5 42. Kg2 Rf4 43. Kg3 Rf3+ 44. Kg2 Rf4 45. Kg3 Rf3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sofia MTel Masters 5th"]
[Site "Sofia"]
[Date "2009.05.20"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2717"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2009.05.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BUL"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 Nc6 8. Be2 e5 9. d5 Nd4 10. Nxd4 exd4 11. Qxd4 c6 12. d6 ({RR} 12. Qc4 b5 13. Qxc6 Bd7 14. Qd6 Re8 15. e5 Ng4 16. e6 fxe6 17. h3 Ne5 18. O-O Nf7 19. Qa3 exd5 20. Bf3 d4 21. Ne4 Bc6 22. Ng5 Bxf3 23. Nxf3 Qd5 24. Rd1 Nd6 25. Qd3 Rac8 26. a4 b4 {Duda,J (2743)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2784) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (65)}) ({RR} 12. Qc4 b5 13. Qxc6 Bd7 14. Qd6 Re8 15. f3 Nh5 16. O-O Bf8 17. Qa6 Bc5+ 18. Kh1 Qh4 19. g4 Ng3+ 20. Kg2 Nxf1 21. Bxf1 Qf2+ 22. Kh3 Qxf1+ 23. Kh4 Re5 24. Bg5 Bf2# {0-1 (24) Van Kooten,L (2213)-Shuvalov,E (2079) chess.com INT 2024}) 12... Nd5 13. Qd3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qf6 $146 ({RR} 14... f5 15. O-O fxe4 16. Qxe4 Qxd6 17. Rb1 Bf5 18. Qc4+ Be6 19. Qa4 b5 20. Qa5 Bd5 21. Ba3 Qe5 22. Bxf8 Rxf8 23. Rfe1 Qxc3 24. Qxc3 Bxc3 25. Rec1 Bd4 26. Bf3 Bxf3 27. gxf3 Rxf3 28. Rc2 a5 29. Kg2 {Papasimakopoulos,A (2312)-Drost,P (2158) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 14... f5 15. O-O fxe4 16. Qxe4 Qxd6 17. Rb1 Bf5 18. Qc4+ Be6 19. Qa4 b5 20. Qa5 Bd5 21. Ba3 Qe5 22. Bxf8 Rxf8 23. Rfe1 Qxc3 24. Qxc3 Bxc3 25. Rec1 Bd4 26. Bf3 Bxf3 27. gxf3 Rxf3 28. Rc2 a5 29. Kg2 {Papasimakopoulos,A (2312)-Drost,P (2158) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (47)}) 15. Bb2 Rd8 16. Rd1 Qe6 17. f4 Qxa2 18. Rd2 Qa5 19. Qe3 Bd7 20. Kf2 Re8 21. Ra1 Qd8 22. c4 Bxb2 23. Rxb2 b6 24. Bf3 Qh4+ 25. Kg1 Qf6 26. Qd2 g5 27. g3 gxf4 28. gxf4 Kh8 29. Kh1 Rg8 30. e5 Qh4 31. Qd4 Rg7 32. Rg2 Rag8 33. e6 Bxe6 34. Rxg7 Rxg7 35. Bxc6 f6 36. d7 Bxd7 37. Bxd7 Re7 38. Be6 Rxe6 39. Qd8+ Kg7 40. Rg1+ Kf7 41. Qg8+ Ke7 42. Rg7+ Kd6 43. Qf8+ 1-0

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2009.07.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2759"]
[PlyCount "37"]
[EventDate "2009.07.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 Ba6 10. Qa4 c5 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Rd1 Qb6 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Rd2 Nc6 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Qg4+ Kh8 18. Qh4 Kg7 19. Qg4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2009.07.05"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D44"]
[WhiteElo "2721"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2009.07.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Lutz,Christopher} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e4 b5 8. e5 g5 9. Nxg5 hxg5 10. Bxg5 Nbd7 11. g3 Bb7 12. Bg2 Qb6 13. exf6 c5 14. d5 O-O-O 15. O-O b4 16. Na4 Qb5 17. a3 exd5 18. axb4 cxb4 19. Be3 Nc5 20. Qg4+ Rd7 21. Qg7 Bxg7 22. fxg7 Rg8 23. Nxc5 Rxg7 ({RR} 23... d4 24. Bxb7+ Rxb7 25. Nxb7 Qb6 26. Bxd4 Qxd4 27. Rfd1) 24. Bd4 ({RR} 24. Nxd7 Qxd7 25. Rxa7 Rg6 26. Rfa1 Re6 27. Bd4 ({RR} 27. Bh3 d4) ({RR} 27. R1a5 Rxe3 28. fxe3 Qe7) 27... Re2 28. h4 Rd2 29. Be3 Rxb2 30. R1a5 b3 31. Rc5+ Kd8 ({RR} 31... Kb8 32. Raa5) 32. Rxb7 Qxb7 33. Rxd5+ Qxd5 34. Bxd5 Rb1+ 35. Kg2 b2 36. Be4 ({RR} 36. Bxc4 Rd1 ({RR} 36... Rg1+ 37. Kxg1 b1=Q+ 38. Kh2) 37. Ba2 Ra1) 36... Rd1 37. Bg5+ Ke8 38. Bf6 b1=Q {Ponomariov,R (2734)-Shirov,A (2723) Wijk aan Zee 2003 CBM 093 [Lutz,Christopher] 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 24. Bh3 f5 25. Bxf5 Rgf7 26. Bh3 Rh7 27. Be6 Rhe7 28. Rxa7 Rxe6 29. Nxe6 d4 30. Nxd4 Qd5 31. Rxb7 Rxb7 32. Ra1 c3 33. bxc3 b3 34. Nxb3 Rxb3) ({RR} 24. Rxa7 d4 25. Bxb7+ Rxb7 26. Nxb7 Qb6) 24... Rc7 $146 ({RR} 24... f5 25. Bh3 Rgf7 26. Rxa7 Rc7 27. Ne6 Rce7 28. Ng5 Qe8 29. Nxf7 Qxf7 30. Rfa1 Qh5 31. Bg2 f4 32. R7a5 f3 33. Bf1 Rh7 34. h4 Qf5 35. Be3 Qc2 36. Bf4 Rf7 37. Bh3+ Kd8 38. Bd6 Rf5 39. Ra7 {Lalic,B (2575)-Wilson,J (2320) London 1996 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 24... f5 25. Bh3 Rgf7 26. Rxa7 Rc7 27. Ne6 Rce7 28. Ng5 Qe8 29. Nxf7 Qxf7) ({RR} 24... f5 25. Nxd7 Rxd7 26. Rxa7 c3 27. bxc3 Qd3 28. Raa1 bxc3 29. Bxc3 d4 30. Bb4 Bxg2 31. Kxg2 Qe4+ 32. Kg1 f4 33. f3 Qe3+ 34. Kg2 d3 35. Rf2 fxg3 36. hxg3 Rh7 37. Rd2 Qd4 38. Rb1 Qd7 39. Rh1 {Barber,G (1974)-Leblanc,R Kapuskasing 2004 0-1 (45)}) 25. Nxb7 Rg6 26. Ra5 Qxb7 27. Bxd5 Qb8 28. Be5 Qb6 29. Bxc7 Qxc7 30. Rfa1 a6 31. Rxa6 Rxa6 32. Rxa6 c3 33. bxc3 bxc3 34. Be4 Qc4 35. Bf5+ Kd8 36. Ra1 Qe2 37. Kg2 Qe5 38. Rd1+ Ke7 39. Bb1 f5 40. h3 Kf6 41. Rd3 Qe4+ 42. Kh2 Qe1 43. Rf3 Qxb1 44. Rxc3 Qf1 45. Rf3 Ke5 46. Rf4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2009.07.10"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2009.07.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Atalik,Suat Atalik,Suat} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 {Again no Catalan from Kramnik, just as in the previous rounds.} Be7 5. Bf4 {Kramnik plays this slightly more often than the other bishop move, Carlsen with White also alternates between the two main lines.} ({Currently the theoretical reputation of the solid line} 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 {remains intact. Although in a recent high-level game White was successful, this was not due to the opening itself:} 8. Be2 Bb7 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. b4 c5 12. bxc5 bxc5 13. Rb1 Bc6 14. O-O Nd7 15. Bb5 Qc7 16. Qd3 Rfc8 17. Rfd1 Rab8 18. a4 cxd4 19. exd4 Ba8 $6 (19... Bxb5 $142 $11 {Gelfand} 20. Nxb5 $140 Qa5 $1 21. Qf5 Qxa4 22. Qxd7 a6 23. Ne5 Bxe5 24. dxe5 Rd8 25. Qc6 Rxb5 26. e6 $1 $11) 20. Qf5 Qxc3 (20... Rd8 $5 21. Rbc1 $14) 21. Qxd7 Qc7 22. Qf5 Rb6 23. Ne5 $36 {Grischuk,A (2748)-Gelfand,B (2733)/Nalchik/2009/ Krasenkow's notes in CBM 130 show that White's minor pieces are stronger than Black's bishop pair, especially the ץa8.}) 5... O-O 6. e3 c5 ({The last time Kramnik had to face this line with Black, he opted for} 6... Nbd7 7. a3 ({More ambitious is} 7. c5 {, but even here Black can hold his own:} Nh5 (7... c6 8. Bd3 b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 Ba6 11. O-O Qc8 12. h3 Qb7 13. Rb1 Bxd3 (13... axb4 14. axb4 Rfc8 15. Bxa6 Qxa6 16. Qc2 Bd8 17. Rb2 Qb7 18. Ne1 Bc7 19. Nd3 Ne8 20. Rc1 b5 21. Nb1 f6 22. Bxc7 Nxc7 23. Nd2 Ra6 24. e4 Nf8 25. e5 f5 26. Nb3 Ne8 27. Na5 Qf7 28. Qd2 h6 29. h4 $14 {,Cheparinov,I (2679)-L'Ami,E (2603)/EU-ch Budva/2009/}) 14. Qxd3 axb4 15. axb4 Ra3 16. Qc2 Rfa8 17. Rfc1 b5 18. Nd2 Bd8 19. Nb3 Ne4 $1 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. Qxe4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Nd5 $132 {/,Lysyj,I (2593)-Zvjaginsev,V (2677)/Moscow op/2008/}) 8. Bd3 Nxf4 9. exf4 b6 (9... c6 10. O-O b6 11. b4 bxc5 12. bxc5 Qa5 13. Qc2 h6 14. Rfb1 Ba6 15. Bxa6 Qxa6 16. Ne2 Rfb8 17. Ne1 Bf6 18. Nd3 Qa5 19. g3 Bd8 20. Kg2 Bc7 21. Ng1 Rxb1 22. Rxb1 Rb8 23. Rxb8+ Nxb8 24. Nf3 Nd7 25. h4 Qb5 26. Nde5 {Sargissian,G (2678)-Ehlvest,J (2595)/Moscow Aeroflot op/2009/} Bxe5 $11) 10. b4 a5 11. a3 c6 12. O-O Qc7 13. g3 Ba6 14. Re1 Bf6 15. Ne5 Bxe5 16. fxe5 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Ra7 18. Reb1 b5 19. a4 axb4 20. Rxb4 f6 21. exf6 Nxf6 22. Qe2 Re8 23. Re1 bxa4 24. Rxa4 Rxa4 25. Nxa4 Qa5 26. Nb6 e5 $1 $11 {Krasenkow,M (2620)-Riazantsev,A (2634)/Metz op/2009/}) 7... c5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. dxc5 Nxc5 11. Be5 Bf5 $5 (11... Bf6 {is played more often, but Kramnik's choice is no less natural.}) 12. Be2 Bf6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Nd4 Ne6 15. Nxf5 Qxf5 16. O-O Rfd8 17. Bg4 Qe5 18. Qb3 Nc5 19. Qb5 b6 20. Rfd1 Rd6 21. Rd4 a6 22. Qb4 h5 23. Bh3 Rad8 24. g3 g5 $5 25. Rad1 g4 26. Bg2 Ne6 27. R4d3 d4 28. exd4 Rxd4 29. Rxd4 Rxd4 $11 {1/2,Anand,V (2783)-Kramnik,V (2772)/WCh Bonn/ 2008/}) ({RR} 6... Nbd7) 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Qc2 {Aims for a more complex struggle.} ({The other topical continuation is} 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Bb6 12. O-O {, here Black has to make an important choice:} {More enterprising is} d4 (12... Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. b4 Re8 15. Rc1 a6 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. b5 Rxa3 18. bxc6 bxc6 19. Rxc6 Ra7 20. Rd6 Rd7 21. Qxd5 Rxd6 22. Qxd6 Qxd6 23. Bxd6 $11 {/ leads to an , in which White has at best only practical winning chances. Although he can push on without risk, ultimately he was successful only in the Leko-Kramnik game from WCh 2004.} Rd8 $5 (23... Bxf3 24. gxf3 Bd8 25. Rb1 Bf6 26. Kg2 g6 27. f4 Kg7 28. Rb7 Re6 29. Rd7 Re8 30. Ra7 Re6 31. Bc5 Rc6 32. Ra5 $14 {Leko,P (2741)-Kramnik,V (2770)/WCh Brissago/2004/}) 24. Bg3 Bc5 25. Rc1 Bf8 26. Nd4 Bg6 27. Rc7 h6 28. h4 Re8 29. Nb5 Rb8 30. Nc3 Re8 31. Kh2 Bf5 32. Nb5 Rc8 33. Ra7 Bc5 34. Ra1 Rd8 {,Karpov,A (2687)-Anand,V (2755)/Moscow rpd/2002/}) 13. e4 Bg4 14. h3 Qf6 (14... Bh5 $5 15. g4 Bg6 16. Nd2 f6 $13 {is also playable}) 15. Bh2 (15. Bg3 Bh5 $1 16. Re1 Rfe8 17. Rc1 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Ne5 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Bxe5 fxe5 21. g3 Rac8 22. Kg2 Kg7 23. Kf3 Kf6 24. h4 Rg8 25. Ke2 Ke7 $11 {Christiansen,L (2524)-Onischuk,A (2638)/Minneapolis/2005/}) (15. hxg4 Qxf4 16. g5 Nd8 17. g3 Qg4 18. Kg2 Ne6 19. Rh1 Nf4+ 20. Kf1 Nh3 21. Qd2 Bd8 22. e5 g6 23. Be2 {Beliavsky,A (2641)-Meier,G (2560)/EU-ch Plovdiv/2008/} Nxg5 24. Kg2 Qe4 25. Rae1 Rc8 26. Bd1 Qc6 27. Qxd4 Ne6 28. Qg4 $13 {Beliavsky}) 15... Bxf3 {Here the swap is more justified, as the  on h2 is placed worse, than on g3.} 16. Qxf3 Qxf3 17. gxf3 Na5 18. Rac1 Nb3 19. Rc2 Rac8 20. Rd1 Nc5 21. Bb5 Rfd8 22. Kg2 Ne6 23. Rxc8 Rxc8 24. f4 Rc2 25. f5 Nc5 26. Rxd4 g6 27. Be5 Rxb2 28. Bc4 Rc2 29. Bd5 Kf8 30. Bg3 Ke7 31. Bh4+ f6 32. fxg6 hxg6 33. e5 g5 34. exf6+ Kxf6 35. Bg3 Ne6 36. Rc4 Nf4+ $11 {1/2,Portisch,L (2512)-Beliavsky,A (2648)/Bazna/2007/}) ({Too sterile is} 9. Be2 dxc4 10. Bxc4 {due to} Nh5 $1 11. Qxd8 (11. Bg5 Be7 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. O-O Rd8 14. Qe2 Bd7 15. e4 Nf4 16. Qe3 Ng6 17. e5 Nh4 $1 18. Nxh4 Qxh4 $11 {Nikolic,P (2600)-Georgiev,K (2535)/Dubai olm/1986/}) 11... Rxd8 12. Bc7 Rd7 13. Be5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Rd8 15. O-O Nf6 16. Rfd1 Bd7 17. Nxd7 Rxd7 18. Rxd7 Nxd7 19. Rd1 Nf6 20. Kf1 $11 {1/2,Topalov,V (2750)-Gelfand,B (2665)/Vienna/1996/}) ({After} 9. b4 {White must reckon with the sharp sacrifice} Nxb4 $5 (9... Be7 $132 {is fully playable as well.}) 10. axb4 Bxb4 11. Qb3 a5 12. O-O-O Bd7 13. Ne5 (13. Rd4 $2 Qe7 14. Be5 Rfc8 15. Kb1 b5 16. Nxb5 a4 17. Qa2 Bxb5 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. cxb5 Rc3 20. Rd3 Rac8 $19 {,Epishin,V (2606)-Short,N (2673)/Malmo/2002/}) (13. Kb1 $5 $13) 13... Rc8 14. Nxd7 (14. Kb1 $5) 14... Qxd7 15. Qc2 Bxc3 16. Qxc3 Ne4 17. Qb2 b5 18. f3 Nd6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. Qxb5 Qa3+ 21. Qb2 Qxe3+ $44 {, Denayer,W (2255)-Shishkin,V (2135)/corr/2007/}) 9... Qa5 ({RR} 9... Be7) ({RR} 9... Bd7) 10. Rd1 {The attention has again focused upon this older move.} ({Black has found means to disarm the sharp attempt} 10. O-O-O Be7 11. h4 (11. g4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 e5 13. g5 exf4 14. gxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd5 Ne7 $1 $132 {and the defence holds.}) 11... Rd8 12. Nd2 dxc4 (12... a6 $6 13. g4 $1 dxc4 14. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 15. Qxd1 Qd8 16. Qxd8+ Bxd8 17. Bg2 e5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. Bxe5 Nxg4 20. Bg3 Kf8 21. Rd1 Ke8 22. Na4 $16 {1-0 Nielsen,P (2625)-Glud,J (2486)/Silkeborg 2008/CBM 123 Extra (40)}) 13. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 14. Qxd1 Qd8 15. Qxd8+ Nxd8 (15... Bxd8 16. Be2 Nd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Nd6 Bc7 19. Rd1 Bxd6 20. Bxd6 $14 {Peng,Z (2400)-Maric,A (2460)/Groningen/1997/}) 16. Be2 Bd7 17. e4 Bc6 18. f3 Nh5 19. Bc7 Rc8 20. Be5 Bf6 21. Nd6 Ra8 (21... Rc7 $5 {Kramnik}) 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. Rd1 Kf8 24. Kd2 Ne8 25. Nc4 f6 26. Ke3 b6 27. f4 Nf7 28. g4 h6 $14 {/=,Topalov,V (2783)-Kramnik,V (2766)/Wijk aan Zee/2007/ In the resulting  White has slight edge due to his space advantage, but the position is symmetrical and in the course of the game Black neutralized any winning attempts with careful defence.}) ({Some years ago Black faced a few problems after} 10. Nd2 {However, then Anand and Nielsen came up with the convincing} Bb4 (10... Be7 11. Bg3 Bd7 12. Be2 Rfc8 13. O-O (13. Rd1 Qd8 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Qb1 d4 17. O-O $5 $36 {is Agrest's untested suggestion, which also deserves attention.}) 13... Qd8 14. b4 $14 {}) 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Bd3 Nh5 $1 13. Bg3 (13. Nb3 Bxc3+ 14. bxc3 Qd8 $11) (13. Bxh7+ Kh8 14. Bd3 Nxf4 15. exf4 Re8+ $36) 13... h6 (13... d4 $5 14. Nb3 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Qxc3+ 16. Qxc3 dxc3 17. Rc1 Nxg3 18. hxg3 h6 19. Rxc3 Be6 20. Nc5 Ne5 {Jankovic,A (2532)-Saravanan,V (2405)/Kalamaria/2008/ is also good enough, here White should have played the modest} 21. Nxe6 Nxd3+ 22. Rxd3 fxe6 23. Ke2 $11) 14. O-O Bxc3 15. Nb3 Qb6 16. Qxc3 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Rd8 18. Nc5 d4 19. exd4 Nxd4 20. Rfe1 Be6 21. Nxe6 Nxe6 22. Rac1 Rd6 23. b4 Rad8 24. Be4 Ng5 25. Bb1 Rc6 26. Qb2 Rxc1 27. Qxc1 g6 28. Qc3 Qd4 29. Qxd4 $11 {1/2,Gelfand,B (2727)-Nielsen,P (2646)/Turin olm/2006/}) 10... Be7 {The standard reaction, tested already in the Karpov-Korchnoi matches.} (10... Re8 $6 11. Nd2 e5 12. Bg5 Nd4 13. Qb1 Bf5 14. Bd3 e4 15. Bc2 (15. Bf1 $5 {is risky, but objectively even stronger.}) 15... Nxc2+ 16. Qxc2 Qa6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Nb3 Bd6 19. Rxd5 $16 {Kortschnoj,V (2665)-Karpov,A (2725)/WCh Baguio City/1978/}) ({RR} 10... Ne4 11. cxd5 Nxc3 12. bxc3 ({RR} 12. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 13. bxc3 exd5 14. Rxd5) 12... exd5 13. Rxd5 Qxa3 14. Ng5 g6 15. Bc4) 11. Be2 {Currently White's main try.} ({The older continuation} 11. Nd2 e5 12. Bg5 d4 13. Nb3 {doesn't promise too much and Black even has a choice:} Qd8 (13... Qb6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd5 Qd8 16. Bd3 g6 17. exd4 Nxd4 18. Nxd4 exd4 19. Nxf6+ (19. O-O Bg7 $1 20. Rde1 Be6 21. Nf4 Bd7 22. Be4 Rb8 23. Nd3 Qc7 24. b3 Rfe8 25. Qd2 a5 $132 {Gelfand,B (2691)-Kramnik,V (2751)/Dos Hermanas/1999/}) 19... Qxf6 20. O-O Bg4 21. f3 Be6 22. f4 Bd7 23. Be4 Bc6 24. Bd5 Rfe8 25. Qd3 Bxd5 26. cxd5 Rac8 27. g3 Kf8 28. Rf2 Re3 29. Qxd4 Qxd4 30. Rxd4 Ke7 $44 {Hansen,C (2505)-Jussupow,A (2590)/Reykjavik/1985/}) 14. Be2 a5 15. Na4 g6 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. O-O (17. c5 Be6 18. e4 Qe8 19. Nb6 a4 20. Nd2 Ra5 21. Bd3 Be7 22. Nxa4 $2 (22. Ndc4 $142) 22... Nb8 23. b3 Bxb3 24. Nxb3 Rxa4 25. Ra1 Qc6 26. O-O Nd7 27. Qe2 Nxc5 28. Rfc1 Ra7 29. Nxc5 Bxc5 $17 {Alterman,B (2615)-Kasparov,G (2825)/Tel Aviv sim/1998/}) 17... Qc7 (17... Bg7 $5 18. c5 Qh4 19. e4 Be6 20. Bd3 f5 $13 {Shneider,A (2495)-Kruppa,Y (2440)/Podolsk/1989/}) 18. c5 Be6 19. e4 Ne7 20. Nd2 Bg5 21. Nf3 Bh6 22. Bc4 Bg4 23. Rd3 Kh8 24. h3 f5 25. Rb3 d3 $1 26. Qxd3 Rad8 $44 {Ftacnik,L (2590)-Kotronias,V (2550)/Thessaloniki olm/1988/}) 11... dxc4 ({Inferior is} 11... Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 $5 (13. bxc3 exd5 14. O-O Be6 15. a4 Rac8 16. Rb1 Bf6 17. Rxb7 d4 18. exd4 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 Bxd4 20. Rb5 Qxc3 21. Qxc3 Rxc3 22. Rd1 Rc2 23. Rxd4 Rxe2 $11 {Vorobiov,E (2572)-Mikhalevski,A (2441)/Pardubice/2007/}) ({RR} 13. bxc3 exd5) 13... Qxc3+ 14. bxc3 exd5 15. Rxd5 Bxa3 16. Nd4 a5 (16... Be7 17. Kd2 Rd8 18. Bf3 $14 Nxd4 $2 19. cxd4 Bb4+ 20. Kd3 Rxd5 21. Bxd5 Kf8 22. Rc1 Ba5 23. e4 Ke7 24. Bc7 $18 {Nyback,T (2655)-Dobrev,N (2366)/FRA-chT Chalons en Champagne/2009/}) 17. Rb5 a4 18. Kd2 Be7 19. Ra1 Ra7 20. Bg5 f6 21. Bf4 Rd8 22. Bc7 Re8 23. Bb6 Ra8 24. Bc4+ Kf8 25. Ne6+ Bxe6 26. Bxe6 Bd6 27. Bd5 Re7 28. Kc2 Rd7 29. Be6 Re7 30. Bd5 Rd7 31. f4 $36 {[%csl Gb6,Gd5] ,Sokolov,I (2657)-Meier,G (2608)/EU-ch Budva/2009/}) ({However, a possibly viable idea is} 11... e5 $5 12. Nxe5 (12. Bxe5 $5 dxc4 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bxc4 Bf5 15. Qb3 $14) 12... Nxe5 13. Bxe5 dxc4 14. Bd4 Bf5 15. Qc1 Rac8 16. O-O Rfd8 17. Rd2 Ne4 18. Nxe4 Bxe4 19. f3 Bf5 20. Rfd1 b5 21. Bc3 Qc7 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 24. Bd4 a6 25. Qc3 Bf8 26. e4 Be6 27. f4 f6 $11 {Mamedyarov,S (2646)-Nielsen,P (2668)/ESP-chT Sant Lluis/2005/}) ({RR} 11... e5 12. Bg3 Be6 13. O-O dxc4 14. Ng5) ({RR} 11... Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14. bxc3 exd5 15. Rxd5 Bxa3 16. Nd4 Nxd4 17. exd4 b6 18. Kd2 a6 19. Ra1) ({RR} 11... Bd7 12. O-O) 12. Bxc4 $32 {White had to invest a tempo with his , but Black still has some problems with his  development.} Nh5 {A rare move.} ({However, even the more usual reaction isn't quite ideal:} 12... e5 13. Bg3 Bg4 14. O-O Rac8 15. Nd5 (15. Rc1 $5 a6 16. Ng5 Bh5 17. Nd5 Bg6 18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 19. Qb3 b5 20. Be6 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Ne4 22. Nxe4 Bxe4 23. f3 Bb7 24. Bh3 Bd5 25. Qc3 Qxc3 26. Rxc3 f6 27. e4 $16 {Rychagov,A (2575)-Aveskulov,V (2495)/Saratov/2006/}) ({RR} 15. Nd5 b5) 15... b5 (15... Nxd5 16. Rxd5 (16. Bxd5 $142 $1 $14) 16... Qc7 17. Qe4 Be6 18. Rd2 Bxc4 19. Qxc4 Bf6 20. Rfd1 Rfd8 21. h3 {Werner,D (2376)-Porat,D (2199)/Budapest/2005/} Qe7 $11) 16. Ba2 Nxd5 17. Bxd5 Nd4 18. Qb1 b4 19. Qe4 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Ne2+ 21. Kg2 Nxg3 $2 (21... bxa3 22. Qxe5 $14) 22. hxg3 bxa3 23. Rh1 g6 24. Rxh7 $1 Kxh7 25. Qxe5 Kg8 26. Rh1 {1-0,Mamedyarov,S (2646)-Moradiabadi,E (2485)/Abu Dhabi op/2005/}) ({RR} 12... e5 13. Bg3 Bg4 14. O-O Rac8 15. Rc1) ({RR} 12... e5 13. Bg3 Bg4 14. O-O Rac8 15. Rc1) 13. O-O (13. Bd3 g6 14. Bh6 Rd8 15. O-O Bd7 16. Be2 a6 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. Bf4 e5 19. Bg5 Be6 20. h3 Rac8 21. Bxf6 Bxf6 22. Bg4 {Vallejo Pons,F (2702)-Short,N (2663)/Wijk aan Zee/2009/} Nd4 $5 $132 {} 23. exd4 Bxg4 24. hxg4 exd4 25. Nde4 Bg7 26. Qa4 Qe5 27. f4 Qe7 28. f5 dxc3 29. f6 Qc7 $1 30. fxg7 c2 31. Rxd8+ Qxd8 32. Nc3 Qd2 $17) ({White can aspire for a minimal advantage with} 13. Bd6 Bxd6 14. Rxd6 Nf6 15. Qd2 $5 (15. Rd2 Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Qxd8 17. O-O Bd7 18. Rd1 Qe7 19. h3 Rd8 20. Rd2 Be8 21. Rxd8 Qxd8 22. Qd2 Qxd2 23. Nxd2 Kf8 24. f4 Ke7 $11 {Mecking,H (2567)-Short,N (2663)/Wijk aan Zee/2009/}) 15... Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Qxd8 17. Qxd8+ Nxd8 18. Ke2 Kf8 19. e4 Bd7 20. e5 Ne8 21. Rd1 Ke7 22. Ng5 Rc8 23. Ba2 h6 24. Nge4 b6 25. f4 Nb7 26. Nd2 Nc5 27. Nc4 Bc6 28. g3 $14 {,Eljanov,P (2693)-Chadaev,N (2557)/RUS-chT Dagomys/2009/}) ({RR} 13. Bd6 Bxd6 14. Rxd6 Nf6 15. Qd2) ({RR} 13. Bd6 Bxd6 14. Rxd6 Nf6) ({RR} 13. Bg3 Rd8) 13... Nxf4 14. exf4 g6 {Frees g7 for the e7.} ({Another purpose for the text-move can be seen from the following example:} 14... Rd8 $6 15. Rxd8+ Qxd8 16. Rd1 Bd7 17. f5 $1 Qc8 (17... exf5 18. Qb3 $40) 18. Qd3 Be8 19. fxe6 fxe6 20. Nd5 Qd8 21. Qe2 $18 {Gupta,A (2569)-Kjartansson,G (2365)/Reykjavik/2009/}) ({RR} 14... Rd8 15. Rxd8+ Qxd8 16. Rd1 Qc7 17. Qe4 a6 18. Ng5 Bxg5 19. fxg5 Bd7 20. Bd3 g6 21. Qh4 Ne7 22. Ne4 Nd5 23. Bc4 Bc6 24. Qh6 f5 25. gxf6 Rf8 26. h4 Rf7 27. h5 Nf4 28. Rd6 Bxe4 29. Qxf4 {Gunina,V (2439)-Ovod,E (2248) Sochi RUS 2024 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 14... Rd8 15. Rxd8+ Bxd8 16. Rd1) 15. g3 {White makes a useful move and waits to see, how Black intends to unravel his forces.} Rd8 $146 {[%mdl 8] A reasonable novelty.} (15... Bf6 16. Rd3 ({RR} 16. Ne4 Bg7 17. Nd6 Qb6 18. Rd2 Bd7 19. Rfd1 Rad8 20. b4 Bc8) 16... Qf5 (16... Bg7 $142 {RR} 17. Qe2 Qh5 18. Re1 Na5 19. Ba2 b6) ({RR} 16... Rd8 17. Ne4 Bg7 18. b4 Qc7 19. Rfd1 Rxd3 20. Qxd3 a6 21. Qd6 Qxd6 22. Nxd6 h6 23. h4 Kf8 24. Bd3 Ke7 25. Be4) ({RR} 16... Bg7 17. Rfd1 Qh5 18. Rd6 e5) ({RR} 16... Bxc3 17. Rxc3 ({RR} 17. Qxc3 Qxc3 18. Rxc3 Rd8) 17... Bd7 18. b4 Qb6 19. Rd1 Rfd8 20. Rcd3 Be8 21. Qc3) 17. Re1 (17. Nb5 $1) ({RR} 17. Nb5 Qh5 18. Nd6 Rd8 19. Ne4 Bg7 20. Rxd8+ Nxd8 21. Be2) 17... Na5 ({RR} 17... Nd4 18. Nxd4 Bxd4 19. Ne4 Bg7 20. b4 ({RR} 20. Nd6 Qf6 21. b4) 20... a6) ({RR} 17... Bxc3 18. Qxc3 b5 19. Ne5 Nxe5 ({RR} 19... bxc4 20. Nxc6 Qc5 21. Ne5 Rb8 22. b4 Qc7 23. Rd4) 20. Rxe5 Qh3 21. Rxb5 Ba6 22. Rc5) ({RR} 17... e5 18. Nd5 ({RR} 18. fxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 Bxe5 20. Nd5 Kh8 21. Qe2 Bg7 22. Nc7 Rb8 23. Ne8) 18... exf4 19. Nxf4 Bg7 20. b4) 18. Ba2 Bd7 $2 (18... b6 19. Ne4 Ba6 $14 ({RR} 19... Bb7 20. Nd6 Qc5 ({RR} 20... Qh3 21. b4) 21. Qxc5 bxc5 22. Ne5 c4 23. Nxb7 Nxb7 24. Bxc4)) ({RR} 18... b6 19. Ne4 Ba6 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Rc3 Rac8 ({RR} 21... Rfc8 22. Ree3 Bb7 ({RR} 22... Rxc3 23. Rxc3) 23. Ne5 Rxc3 24. Rxc3 Rd8 25. b4 Qf5 26. f3 Qxc2 27. Rxc2 Nc6 28. Nxc6 Bxc6 29. Bxe6 Bxf3 30. Kf2 Be4) 22. Ree3 Bb7 23. Ne5 Qf5 ({RR} 23... Rfd8 24. b4 Qf5 25. Red3 Qe4 26. Rxd8+ Rxd8 27. Qxe4 Rd1+ 28. Kg2 Bxe4+ 29. f3 Rd2+ 30. Kh3 Nc6 31. fxe4 Nxe5 32. Bxe6 fxe6 33. fxe5 Re2 34. Rc8+ Kf7 35. Rc7+ Kf8 36. Rxa7 Rxe4 37. Rb7) 24. Qxf5 gxf5 25. f3 ({RR} 25. b4 Nc6) 25... Rfd8 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Kf2 Ba6) 19. Nh4 $1 ({RR} 19. Ne4 Bc6 20. Nxf6+ Qxf6 21. Ne5 Be8 22. Qc7 Nc6 23. Qxb7 Rb8 24. Qc7 Rxb2) 19... Bxh4 20. Re5 Qg4 21. Rxd7 ({RR} 21. f3 Qh3 22. gxh4 Nc6 23. Rxd7 Nxe5 ({RR} 23... Rad8) 24. fxe5 Rad8 25. Rxd8 Rxd8 26. Qe2 Qxh4 27. Qe3 Qd4) ({RR} 21. h3 Qxh3 22. gxh4 Qg4+ 23. Rg3 Qxh4 24. Rxa5 Bc6 25. Ne4 Rfd8) 21... Nc6 ({RR} 21... Bd8 22. Kg2) 22. Rb5 ({RR} 22. Kg2 Nxe5 23. fxe5 Bd8) 22... Bf6 ({RR} 22... Rad8 23. Rbxb7 Nd4 24. Qe4 Bf6 25. Kg2 a5 26. Bc4) 23. Kg2 $1 $18 {Epishin,V (2600)-Atalik,S (2561)/Bratto /2005/} {RR} Nd4 24. Rxd4 Bxd4 25. h3) ({Atalik suggests the interesting} 15... a6 $5 16. Be2 $5 (16. Ne4 b5 17. Be2 Bb7 18. Rd7 Qb6 19. Qc3 Rac8 20. Nf6+ Bxf6 21. Qxf6 Nb8 22. Rd2 Qc6 23. Rfd1 Qe4 $132 {Atalik}) (16. Bd3 Rd8 $11) (16. Ba2 Rd8 $132 {and compared with the game, the extra a6 move is useful for Black.} (16... b5 $6 17. f5 $1 gxf5 18. Nd5 exd5 19. Bxd5 $36)) ({RR} 16. Be2 Rd8 ({RR} 16... b5 17. Nxb5 axb5 18. Qxc6 b4 19. axb4) 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. Rd1 Bd7 19. f5 exf5) ({RR} 16. Be2 Bf6 17. Ne4 Bg7 18. Rd6) ({RR} 16. Bd3) 16... Rd8 (16... b5 17. Nxb5 axb5 18. Qxc6 b4 19. axb4 $14) (16... Bf6 17. Ne4 Bg7 18. Nd6 $36) 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. Rd1 Bd7 {is similar to the game - White has a slight initiative, but Black retains chances to eventually achieve full equality.} (18... Qc7 19. Ne4 Bd7 20. Ne5 $36)) ({RR} 15... a6 16. Rfe1 Rd8 ({RR} 16... b5 17. Bd5 ({RR} 17. Bf1 Bb7 18. Rd7 Qb6 19. Bg2 Rfd8 20. Red1 Rxd7 21. Rxd7 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Ne5 Qa8 24. Nxc6 Bxc6 25. Bxc6 Qxc6 26. Qe4 Qxe4 27. Nxe4) ({RR} 17. Ba2 Qb6) 17... exd5 ({RR} 17... Bb7 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Bxb7 Rab8 20. fxe5 Rxb7 21. Ne4) 18. Nxd5 Bb7 19. Ne5 Nxe5 20. Nxe7+ Kg7 21. fxe5 Bf3 ({RR} 21... Rad8 22. e6) ({RR} 21... Rfe8 22. Qc5) 22. Rc1 Qd8 23. Qc3) 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. h4 ({RR} 18. Rd1 Bd7 19. f5 gxf5 20. Qd2) 18... b5 ({RR} 18... Bd7 19. Rd1 ({RR} 19. h5 Be8 20. Bd3 Nd4 21. Nxd4 Qxd4 22. hxg6 hxg6 23. f5 Rd8) 19... Qc7 20. Bf1 ({RR} 20. f5 gxf5 21. Qd2 Be8) ({RR} 20. Bd3 Be8 21. h5 Rd8) 20... Be8 21. Ne4) 19. Bf1 Bb7 20. Bg2 Rc8 21. Qe2 Rc7 22. h5 Nd4 ({RR} 22... Rd7 23. Rd1 ({RR} 23. Ne4 Nd4 24. Nxd4 Rxd4 25. Qe3) 23... Rxd1+ 24. Nxd1) 23. Nxd4 Qxd4 24. Bxb7 Rxb7 25. Qf3 Rb8 26. Rd1 Qc5 ({RR} 26... Qc4 27. Kg2) ({RR} 26... Qa7 27. Ne4) 27. h6 f5 ({RR} 27... b4 28. Ne4) 28. b4 Qc7 ({RR} 28... Qc4 29. Qe3) 29. Nd5 exd5 ({RR} 29... Qb7 30. Nxe7+ Qxe7 31. Qc6 Rd8 32. Rxd8+ Qxd8 33. Qxe6+ Kf8 34. Qe5) ({RR} 29... Qd8 30. Nf6+ Bxf6 31. Rxd8+ Rxd8 32. Qc6) ({RR} 29... Qa7 30. Nxe7+) 30. Qxd5+ {Atalik,S (2619)-Jojua,D (2505) Vrachati 2011 CBM 144 Extra [Atalik,Suat] 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 15... Bf6 16. Rd3) ({RR} 15... a6 16. Ne4 b5 17. Be2 Qb6 18. Qc3 f6 19. b4 a5 20. Rc1 Ra6 21. Nc5 axb4 22. axb4 Ra7 23. Qb3 Kf7 24. Rfe1 Rc7 25. Bf1 Nd8 26. Nd2 Bxc5 27. bxc5 Rxc5 28. Qe3 Nb7 29. Ne4 Rc6 30. Rxc6 {Jakovenko,D (2724)-Onischuk,A (2672) Poikovsky 2012 1-0 (32)}) ({RR} 15... Bf6 16. Rd3 Qf5 17. Re1 Na5 18. Ba2 Bd7 19. Nh4 Bxh4 20. Re5 Qg4 21. Rxd7 Nc6 22. Rb5 Bf6 23. Kg2 e5 24. Rbxb7 Nd8 ({RR} 24... Nd4 25. Qe4) 25. Nd5 Bg7 26. Rxa7 Rxa7 27. Rxa7 exf4 ({RR} 27... e4 28. Ne7+ Kh8 29. Qxe4 Bxb2 30. Qf3 Qxf3+ 31. Kxf3) 28. Nxf4 Bh6 ({RR} 28... Be5 29. h3 Qg5 30. Nd5 Ne6 31. b4 ({RR} 31. Ne7+ Kh8 32. Bxe6 fxe6 33. Nc6 Bg7 34. b4 Qd5+ 35. Kg1 Rc8 36. Ra5 Rxc6 37. Rxd5 Rxc2 38. Rd8+ Bf8 39. Rxf8+ Kg7 40. Ra8) 31... Rd8 32. Ne7+) 29. h3 Qg5 30. b4 {Epishin,V (2600)-Atalik,S (2561) Bratto 2005 CBM 108 Extra [Atalik,Suat] 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 15... Rb8 16. Bb5 Bf6 17. Ne4 Bg7 18. Nd6 Bd7) ({RR} 15... a6 16. Ne4 b5 17. Be2 Bb7 18. Rd7 Qb6 19. Qc3 Rac8 20. Nf6+ Bxf6 21. Qxf6 Nb8 22. Rd2 Qc6 23. Rfd1 Qe4) 16. Rxd8+ Qxd8 (16... Bxd8 $6 17. Rd1 Bf6 18. Ne4 Bg7 19. Nd6 $16 {Atalik}) ({RR} 16... Bxd8 17. Rd1 Bf6 18. Ne4 Bg7 19. Nd6) 17. Rd1 Bd7 {Seemingly risky, but White has no immediate forcing way to exploit the pin on the d.} 18. f5 {[%mdl 512] An interesting pawn sacrifice, but for the time being Carlsen finds the way to hold the balance.} ({Possibly more promising was Shipov's suggestion} 18. Ng5 $5 Qc8 $142 (18... Rc8 $2 19. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 20. f5 gxf5 21. Qxf5+ Kg7 22. Qg4+ Kf7 23. Qe4 $1 Kg7 24. Rxd7 Qxd7 25. Bxe6 {g4+-}) (18... Qe8 19. Nb5 Rd8 20. Nc7 (20. Nd6 Bxd6 21. Rxd6 Qe7 $14) 20... Qf8 21. Rxd7 $1 Rxd7 22. Ncxe6 Qh6 23. Kg2 $1 $40) 19. h4 $36) 18... gxf5 (18... exf5 $6 19. Qb3 Rb8 (19... Qe8 20. Bxf7+ Qxf7 21. Qxb7 Rb8 22. Qxd7 $18) 20. Bxf7+ Kg7 21. Kg2 $5 (21. Be6 Bxe6 22. Qxe6 Qg8 $14) 21... Qc8 22. Ne2 {[%csl Re6][%cal Ye2f4] f4,×e6}) 19. Qd2 Qb6 $5 {This tricky move is not forced.} (19... Be8 20. Qh6 Qa5 (20... Qb6 {-19...b6!?}) 21. Nd5 $5 (21. Ng5 Qe5 $1 22. Qxh7+ Kf8 23. Nf3 Qg7 $11) 21... exd5 22. Rxd5 Qa4 $1 (22... Qc7 23. Rxf5 $40 Qd7 24. Rf4 Bd6 25. Qg5+ Kf8 $8 26. Re4 $1 {[%cal Rg5h6,Rh2h3] h6,h3+-}) {and it seems that White doesn't have more than a perpetual with} 23. Ng5 Bxg5 24. Qxg5+ Kf8 $8 (24... Kh8 $2 25. Qxf5 $18 Qxc4 26. Qf6+ Kg8 27. Rg5+ Kf8 28. Qd6+ Ne7 29. Qh6#) 25. Qh6+ Kg8 26. Qg5+ $11) (19... Bc8 20. Qf4 $5 (20. Qh6 Qf8) 20... Bd7 (20... Qf8 21. Bb5 $32) 21. Qd2 (21. Qh6 a6 $5 {[%cal Ya8c8,Yc8c7,Yd8f8] c8-c7, f8}) 21... Bc8 $11) 20. Qh6 {White avoids the traps.} (20. Qxd7 $2 Rd8 $19) (20. Na4 $6 Ne5 $1 (20... Nd4 $1 {can lead to the same position}) 21. Nxb6 (21. Nxe5 Bxa4 $17) 21... Nxf3+ 22. Kf1 (22. Kg2 $2 Nxd2 23. Nxa8 Bc6+ $19) 22... Nxd2+ 23. Rxd2 axb6 24. Rxd7 Bf6 $15 {/=}) 20... Be8 (20... Rd8 21. Ng5 (21. Rxd7 $6 Rxd7 22. Bxe6 Nd4 $1 23. Bxf7+ Kh8 $15) 21... Bxg5 $8 22. Qxg5+ Kf8 23. Qf6 Bc8 (23... Qxb2 $4 24. Qh8+ Ke7 25. Nd5+ $18) 24. Rxd8+ Qxd8 25. Qh8+ Ke7 26. Qxh7 Qd4 $132 {is also possible, but the text-move is more solid.}) 21. Ng5 Bxg5 $8 22. Qxg5+ Kf8 (22... Kh8 $2 23. Rd6 {[%cal Rd6e6,Rg5f6] ,f6,e6} Qc7 24. Qf6+ Kg8 25. Rxe6 Qd8 $8 26. Qxf5 (26. Rd6 $16) 26... fxe6 27. Qxe6+ Bf7 (27... Kg7 28. Qg8+ Kh6 29. Qf8+ Kg6 30. Nd5 $18) 28. Qxf7+ Kh8 29. Qxb7 Na5 30. Qb5 $16) 23. Qh6+ {White repeats moves to gain time before the control.} (23. Rd6 {-25.d6}) 23... Kg8 24. Qg5+ Kf8 25. Rd6 Qc7 $2 {[%mdl 8256] A serious error, which White exploits with a decisive piece of tactics.} (25... Rd8 26. Rxe6 $5 Qd4 $142 $1 (26... fxe6 $2 27. Qh6+ Kg8 (27... Ke7 $2 28. Qxe6+ Kf8 29. Qf6+) 28. Qxe6+ Kg7 29. Qg8+ Kf6 30. Qf8+ Ke5 (30... Kg6 31. Ne2 $1 $18) (30... Kg5 31. Ne4+ fxe4 32. h4+ Kg6 33. Qg8+ Kf5 34. Qg5#) 31. Nb5 $1 {[%cal Rf8g7] g7+-}) 27. Rf6 (27. Qh6+ Kg8 28. Rf6 Qxc4 29. Qg5+ {-27.f6}) 27... Qxc4 28. Rxc6 Qd4 29. Rc4 Qd2 30. Qxf5 Bc6 31. Rxc6 $5 (31. Ne4 Qd1+ 32. Kg2 Qd5 33. Qxd5 Bxd5 34. Rd4 f5 35. f3 fxe4 36. fxe4 Bxe4+ 37. Rxe4 Rd2+ $11) 31... bxc6 32. Qxh7 Rd6 $14 {White is somewhat better (safer ), but the result of the game is far from decided.}) (25... Qc5 $5 {is safer and holds the balance:} 26. Ne4 $5 (26. Qh6+ Kg8 (26... Ke7 $2 27. Nd5+ $1 exd5 (27... Kxd6 28. Qf8+ $18) 28. Rxd5 $18 {} Qxc4 29. Qd6#) 27. Rxe6 fxe6 (27... Qxc4 28. Qg5+ $11) 28. Bxe6+ Bf7 29. Nd5 Bxe6 30. Qxe6+ Kg7 $11) 26... Qxc4 27. Nf6 Ke7 $8 28. Rd1 (28. Ne4+ Kf8 $11) 28... Nd4 $8 29. Nxe8+ Kxe8 $1 (29... Kf8 30. Qg7+ Kxe8 31. Rxd4 Qc1+ 32. Kg2 Rc8 33. Rh4 $36) 30. Qg8+ Ke7 31. Qxa8 Ne2+ $5 (31... Qd5 32. Rxd4 Qxd4 33. Qxb7+ Kf6 34. Kg2 $11 {/}) 32. Kg2 Qe4+ 33. f3 Nf4+ 34. gxf4 Qe2+ 35. Kg3 Qxd1 36. Qxb7+ Qd7 $11) (25... Qxb2 $2 26. Qf6 Qc1+ (26... Kg8 27. Rxe6 $18) 27. Rd1 Qxa3 28. Bxe6 Kg8 29. Bxf5 Qf8 30. Ne4 $18 {}) 26. Qh6+ Ke7 $8 (26... Kg8 27. Rxe6 $1 fxe6 28. Bxe6+ Bf7 29. Nd5 $18 {[%cal Rd5f6] f6}) 27. Qh4+ {White again repeats moves, here he wants to accurately calculate the winning line.} (27. Nb5 $1 {-29.b5!}) 27... Kf8 (27... Kxd6 28. Nb5+ Kd7 29. Nxc7 $18 (29. Bxe6+ $5 fxe6 30. Qxh7+ $18)) 28. Qh6+ Ke7 29. Nb5 $1 Qa5 (29... Qxd6 30. Nxd6 Kxd6 31. Qxh7 Ne5 {was more resilient, but equally hopeless in the long run - the h2 will decide after} 32. Be2 $18 {[%csl Gh2]}) (29... Qc8 30. Qxh7 Nd8 (30... Kf8 31. Qh6+ Ke7 32. Qg5+ Kf8 33. Nd4 $1 Nxd4 34. Rxd4 $18) 31. Qh4+ f6 32. Rd1 Qc5 33. Nd4 $1 Bf7 34. Re1 {and White's  will eventually break thorugh. A nice sample line is} Kd7 35. Bb5+ Ke7 $2 36. Nxf5+ $1 Qxf5 37. Qb4+ Qc5 38. Qxc5#) 30. b4 ({Similar is} 30. Rxe6+ $1 fxe6 31. Qxe6+ Kd8 32. b4 $18) 30... Nxb4 {The only reasonable way to postpone mate, but even now the  breaks through.} (30... Qb6 31. Rxe6+ $1 fxe6 32. Qxe6+ Kd8 (32... Kf8 33. Qh6+ Ke7 34. Qd6#) 33. Qd6+ Bd7 34. Be6 Nb8 35. Qf8+ Be8 36. Qf6#) 31. Rxe6+ $1 (31. axb4 $2 Qa1+ 32. Kg2 Bxb5 33. Rxe6+ fxe6 34. Qxe6+ Kd8 35. Bxb5 Qd4 36. Qe8+ Kc7 37. Qxa8 Qd5+ $13) 31... fxe6 32. Qxe6+ Kd8 33. Qf6+ {An important move, protecting the a1-square.} Kc8 34. Qxf5+ $5 {Before taking the , White grabs a .} (34. axb4 $18) 34... Kd8 (34... Bd7 35. Nd6+ $18) (34... Kb8 35. Qe5+ $18) 35. Qf6+ Kc8 36. axb4 $1 {Now Black faces a quick mate, or immense material losses.} (36. axb4 Qd8 (36... Qxb4 37. Be6+ Bd7 38. Qh8+ {mates immediately.}) 37. Be6+ Bd7 38. Qc3+ Kb8 39. Qe5+ Kc8 40. Qc5+ Kb8 41. Bxd7 b6 42. Qd6+ Kb7 43. Bc6+ $18) 1-0

[Event "Dortmund SuperGM 37th"]
[Site "Dortmund"]
[Date "2009.07.12"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2721"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2009.07.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 131"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. e3 b6 8. Nf3 Bb7 9. b3 Nbd7 10. Be2 c5 11. O-O Rc8 12. a4 ({RR} 12. Rd1 dxc4 13. bxc4 cxd4 14. exd4 b5 15. c5 Bc6 16. Rb1 ({RR} 16. Qb3 Qc7 17. Bg5 Ne4 18. Bh4 a6 19. Qb2 h6 20. Ne1 Qf4 21. Bg3 Nxg3 22. hxg3 Qc7 23. Nc2 Qb7 24. Bf1 a5 25. Rab1 Rb8 26. Qc3 Qc7 27. Ne3 Nf6 28. Be2 Rb7 29. Bf3 Bxf3 30. gxf3 Rfb8) 16... a6 17. Ne1 Be4 18. Ra1 Nb6 19. Bg5 Bg6 20. Bf3 Nbd5 21. Qb3 Qc7 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. a4 Rb8 24. axb5 axb5 25. Nd3 Bxd3 26. Qxd3 Rfd8 {So,W (2756)-Sevian,S (2698) Saint Louis, US 2025 ½-½ (63)}) 12... dxc4 13. bxc4 Qc7 14. Rd1 $146 ({RR} 14. Ba3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 cxd4 17. Rxd4 e5 18. Rd6 e4 19. Be2 Nc5 20. Rxd8+ Rxd8 21. a5 bxa5 22. h3 Rb8 23. Bxc5 Qxc5 24. Rxa5 Qc7 25. Ra1 Nd7 26. Qa3 Rb7 27. Rd1 h6 28. Qe7 Nf6 {Pultorak,J (2310)-Punin,A (2259) Lvov 2016 ½-½}) ({RR} 14. Bb2 Bxf3 15. gxf3 cxd4 16. Qxd4 ({RR} 16. exd4 Nd5) 16... e5 17. Qh4 Rfe8 18. Kh1 Nf8 19. Qh3 a5 20. Rfd1 Rcd8 21. Qf5 Rxd1+ 22. Rxd1 N8d7 23. c5 Nxc5 24. Bb5 Re6 25. Kg1 g6 26. Qc2 Rd6 27. Rc1 Qe7 28. Ba3 Nfd7 {Vitiugov,N (2694)-Karjakin,S (2723) Khanty-Mansiysk 2009 CBM 134 [Marin,Mihail] 0-1 (47)}) 14... Rfd8 ({RR} 14... Bxf3 15. gxf3 cxd4 16. exd4 Nd5 17. Qd2) 15. Bb2 cxd4 ({RR} 15... Bxf3 16. Bxf3 cxd4 17. Rxd4 e5 18. Rd2 Qxc4 19. Qxc4 Rxc4 20. Rad1 Rdc8 21. g4) 16. exd4 Qf4 17. Qe3 Qxe3 18. fxe3 a5 19. Nd2 Ne4 20. Nxe4 Bxe4 21. Rdc1 Nc5 22. Ra3 Bc6 23. Bc3 Nxa4 24. Be1 Be8 25. Rb1 e5 26. Bh4 f6 27. dxe5 b5 28. cxb5 Nc3 29. Rb2 Nxe2+ 30. Rxe2 Rd1+ 31. Re1 Rcc1 32. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 33. Kf2 g5 34. Bg3 Bxb5 35. e4 fxe5 36. Rxa5 Rb1 37. Bxe5 Bc6 38. Bc3 Rb5 39. Rxb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.09.29"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E90"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2813"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. h3 Na6 7. Be3 {In my opinion, this move is less accurate than} (7. Bg5) 7... e5 8. d5 c6 9. g4 Nc5 10. Nd2 a5 11. a3 ({RR} 11. Qc2 a4 12. a3 Qa5 13. O-O-O Bd7 14. Be2 Rfc8 15. Kb1 Rab8 16. Rdg1 Be8 17. g5 Nh5 18. Bxh5 gxh5 19. Rc1 Kh8 20. h4 f6 21. f3 Bg6 22. Ka2 Rf8 23. Rh2 f5 24. Bxc5 Qxc5 25. Qxa4 fxe4 {Tan,Z (2511)-Amin,B (2707) Changsha 2019 ½-½ (74)}) 11... Nfd7 (11... a4 {was possible right now as it was hardly favourable for White to capture this pawn at the price of exchanging his dark-squared bishop and weakening the dark squares in his camp (especially after g2-g4):} 12. Bxc5 dxc5 13. dxc6 $6 (13. Nxa4 $142 Qa5 14. Nc3 Bh6 $44) 13... bxc6 14. Nxa4 Bh6 15. Nc3 Rb8 16. Rb1 Qa5 17. Bd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Be6 19. Nf3 Bf4 $17 {0-1 Muse,M (2474)-Levacic,P (2336)/Medulin 2002/CBM 090 ext (42)}) ({RR} 11... a4 12. Qc2 Qa5 13. Be2 Bd7 14. Kf1 Rfc8 15. Kg2 Ne8 16. h4 cxd5 17. cxd5 b5 18. h5 Rab8 19. hxg6 fxg6 20. Rh4 b4 21. axb4 Qxb4 22. Nc4 Nb3 23. Rah1 Rxc4 24. Bxc4 Qxc4 25. Bh6 Nf6 26. Bxg7 {Quinonez Garcia,S (2248)-Sargsyan,S (2630) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) 12. Rg1 $146 {A surprising decision. White allows ...a5-a4.} ({In the event of} 12. b4 axb4 13. axb4 Rxa1 14. Qxa1 Na6 15. Qa3 c5 16. bxc5 Naxc5 {breaking up Black's queenside defence is not an easy task.}) ({RR} 12. h4 a4 13. h5 Bf6 14. Nf3 Nb3 15. Rb1 Nd4 16. Be2 c5 17. Rg1 Nb6 18. g5 Bg7 19. Nh4 Bd7 20. Qd3 Qe8 21. hxg6 fxg6 22. Bg4 Bxg4 23. Rxg4 Qd7 24. Rg3 Rf7 25. Kf1 Raf8 26. Kg2 Rf4 {Begmuratov,A (2398)-Esenov,A (2325) Tashkent 2017 0-1 (48)}) 12... a4 {White's queenside is now paralysed but he's got a plan: long castling followed by a kingside pawn attack.} 13. Qc2 Nb6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Kb1 cxd5 $2 {What looks like a small inaccuracy turns out to be a grave positional error.} (15... Rc8 $142) 16. cxd5 (16. exd5 f5 $132) 16... Rc8 17. Bb5 $1 {[%mdl 32] That's the point. White trades bishops, weakening the light squares in Black's camp and his a4-pawn.} Bxb5 18. Nxb5 Qd7 19. Nc3 Bf6 (19... Rc7 20. h4 Rfc8 21. h5 {, and Black can't make further progress.}) 20. g5 Bd8 {This bishop is aiming for a5 but where can the b6-knight be moved to?} 21. h4 Na8 (21... Nb3 22. Nxb3 axb3 23. Qxb3 Nc4 {(S.Zagrebelny)} 24. Nb5 Nxe3 25. fxe3 {hardly gives Black any real compensation for the missing pawn.}) 22. Bxc5 Rxc5 23. Qxa4 $16 {/+- White has won a pawn and his pieces are also better positioned. The rest is a matter of technique.} Qc8 24. Rc1 Nb6 25. Qd1 Qh3 26. Qf3 Qd7 (26... Qxh4 $4 27. Rg4 $18 {[%cal Rc1h1]}) (26... Qxf3 27. Nxf3 f5 {was relatively better.}) 27. Qd3 Kg7 28. Rc2 f6 {The last attempt to create counterplay.} 29. gxf6+ Rxf6 30. h5 $1 {White has accurately calculated the consequences of this move.} Rxf2 31. hxg6 h6 (31... hxg6 32. Rxg6+ Kxg6 33. Qg3+ Bg5 34. Qxf2 $18) 32. Nd1 $1 {It is essential for White to swap his passive c2 rook for Black's most active piece - the f2.} (32. Nf3 $1 {was equally good, with the same idea.}) 32... Rxc2 (32... Rf8 33. Ne3 $18) (32... Rf6 33. Rxc5 dxc5 34. Ne3 Rxg6 35. Nf5+ Kh7 36. Rxg6 Kxg6 37. Nf3 $18 {}) 33. Nxf2 $1 (33. Qxc2 $143 Rh2 34. Ne3 $140 Bg5) 33... Rc8 34. Ng4 Bg5 35. Nf3 Nc4 36. Nxg5 hxg5 37. Ne3 (37. Qh3 $1 {(pointed out by many commentators) was winning on the spot:} Rh8 38. Qxh8+ Kxh8 39. Rh1+ $18) 37... Nxe3 38. Qxe3 Qa4 39. Qxg5 Qxe4+ 40. Ka1 Re8 (40... Rc7 41. Qd8 $18) 41. Rc1 $1 (41. Rc1 Qf4 42. Rc7+ Kg8 43. Qh5 $18) 1-0

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.09.30"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D83"]
[WhiteElo "2736"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 Bg7 5. e3 O-O 6. Rc1 Be6 $5 {A rare but playable move, instead of the normal continuations} (6... c5) (6... c6) (6... dxc4) 7. c5 $6 {This is probably too ambitious. White will hardly be able to hold this structure.} (7. Nf3 dxc4 {leads to a popular D92 line}) (7. Qb3 {is the main alternative to the text move:} b6 8. Nf3 c5 $5 (8... c6 $143 9. Ng5 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Bxc4 11. Qxc4 Nd5 12. Nxd5 cxd5 13. Qb3 e6 14. O-O Nd7 15. Nf3 Nf6 16. Qa4 $14 {1-0 Farago,I (2510)-Groszpeter,A (2375)/Budapest 1979/MCD (58)}) (8... Nc6 $6 9. Qa4 $1 (9. cxd5 $143 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 Bxd5 11. Qa4 e5 $1 12. Bg5 f6 $13 {0-1 Soln,P (2280)-Jelen,I (2400)/Vrhnika 1995/EXT 1998 (33)}) 9... Na5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxd5 Qxd5 12. b4 Bd7 13. Qa3 Nc6 14. Bc4 $16) 9. dxc5 (9. Rd1 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Bxc4 11. Qxc4 cxd4 12. Nxd4 Qc8 13. Qe2 Nc6 $11 {1/2 Bhat,V (2481)-Kudrin,S (2566)/Tulsa 2008/CBM 123 Extra (19)}) (9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 Bxd5 11. Bc4 Bxf3 $1 12. gxf3 Nc6 $132) 9... Nbd7 $5 10. c6 (10. cxb6 Nc5 11. Qb4 axb6 $44) 10... Nc5 11. Qd1 (11. c7 Qc8 12. Qb4 dxc4 13. Bxc4 Nh5 $132) (11. Qb4 Rc8 $132) 11... dxc4 12. Qxd8 Rfxd8 13. Nd4 Nd5 14. Nxe6 Nxe6 15. Nxd5 Rxd5 16. Rxc4 Bxb2 $10 {Vainerman,I (2385)-Serebro,A/USSR 1987/Inf 45}) 7... c6 (7... Nh5 $5 8. Bg5 b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 axb4 11. axb4 bxc5 12. bxc5 h6 13. Bh4 f5 14. Bd3 Nf6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. f4 c6 17. Nf3 Nd7 $13 {1/2 Van der Werf,M (2389)-Negi,P (2526)/Wijk aan Zee 2008/CBM 122 (56)}) 8. Bd3 (8. h3 b6 9. b4 Ne4 10. Nf3 a5 11. Na4 Nd7 $2 (11... b5 $142 12. Nb6 Ra7 $13) 12. b5 $1 bxc5 $2 (12... cxb5 13. Bxb5 bxc5 14. dxc5 $16) 13. bxc6 g5 14. Nxg5 Nxg5 15. Bxg5 Nf6 16. Nxc5 Qd6 17. Bb5 {1-0 Timoscenko,G (2494)-Michalik,P (2330)/Banska Stiavnica 2006/CBM 113 ext}) 8... Bg4 $5 {Black starts preparing ...e7-e5.} (8... b6 9. b4 a5 {is another plan.}) 9. Qc2 (9. Nge2 {looks more logical.}) 9... Nfd7 $5 10. Bxb8 $6 (10. h3 e5 $1 11. Bxe5 (11. dxe5 Be6 12. Nf3 Nxc5 $11) 11... Nxe5 12. hxg4 (12. dxe5 Be6 13. f4 Nd7 14. Nce2 f6 15. f5 $1 gxf5 16. Nd4 Re8 $44) 12... Nxg4 13. Be2 $11 {S.Zagrebelny}) 10... Nxb8 $1 (10... Rxb8 11. h3 Be6 $11) 11. h3 Bc8 12. f4 (12. Nf3 Nd7 {[%cal Ye7e5]}) 12... b6 13. Na4 (13. b4 a5 14. a3 axb4 15. axb4 Na6 $1 16. Bxa6 (16. Rb1 bxc5 17. bxc5 Qa5 $17 {[%cal Ra6c5,Ra6b4]}) (16. Qb2 bxc5 17. bxc5 Qa5 18. Ra1 Nxc5 $1 19. Rxa5 Nxd3+ 20. Kd2 Nxb2 21. Rxa8 Nc4+ $17) 16... Bxa6 17. Nf3 bxc5 18. bxc5 f6 $15 {[%cal Ye7e5]}) 13... e5 $1 {[%mdl 512] In Kasparov's style! Black opens up the position against the opponent's uncastled king.} 14. dxe5 (14. fxe5 f6 15. e6 Re8 $15 {[%csl Re3]}) 14... f6 15. exf6 Qxf6 $146 ({RR} 15... Bxf6 16. Ne2 b5 17. Nac3 Na6 18. O-O Nxc5 19. Bxg6 Qe7 20. Nd1 hxg6 21. Qxc5 Qxc5 22. Rxc5 Bd7 23. Nd4 Rae8 24. Nxc6 Bxc6 25. Rxc6 Kg7 26. Rd6 Rd8 27. Rxd8 Rxd8 28. Rf2 Kf7 29. Rd2 Ke6 30. Kf2 {Berg,M (2263)-Holtel,J (2344) Germany GER 2024 1-0 (52)}) ({RR} 15... Bxf6 16. Ne2 b5 17. Nac3 Na6 18. O-O Nxc5 19. Bxg6 Qe7 20. Nd1 hxg6 21. Qxc5 Qxc5 22. Rxc5 Bd7 23. Nd4 Rae8 24. Nxc6 Bxc6 25. Rxc6 Kg7 26. Rd6 Rd8 27. Rxd8 Rxd8 28. Rf2 Kf7 29. Rd2 Ke6 30. Kf2 {Berg,M (2263)-Holtel,J (2344) Germany GER 2024 1-0 (52)}) 16. Nf3 (16. cxb6 $5 axb6 17. a3 (17. Nxb6 Rxa2) (17. Nf3 b5 18. Nc3 Qe7 19. Kf2 Na6 $36) 17... b5 18. Nb6 Ra7 19. Nxc8 Rxc8 $36 {[%cal Ya7e7,Yc8e8]}) 16... Qe7 17. Kf2 b5 18. Nc3 Na6 19. Qd2 (19. Nd1 Nb4 20. Qd2 Nxd3+ 21. Qxd3 Bf5 22. Qd2 Be4 {[%cal Rg6g5]} 23. h4 Rae8 $17) (19. Bxb5 Bf5 $1 $17) 19... Nxc5 $17 {Black has recaptured the pawn and has a lot of advantages: a bishop pair, weakness of the white king and the e3-pawn.} 20. Bb1 Kh8 (20... Bb7 {[%cal Ya8e8]}) (20... Bd7) 21. b4 $6 {[%csl Rc4] Additionally weakening the c4-square.} (21. Ne2 $5 {[%cal Ye2d4]}) 21... Nb7 22. Ne2 Nd6 $1 23. Ned4 (23. Rxc6 Nc4 24. Qd3 a5 $1 $17 {[%csl Rc6]}) 23... Nc4 24. Qd3 Bd7 25. h4 {This counterattack is White's only chance.} Rae8 26. Rce1 (26. h5 Nxe3 27. hxg6 Rxf4 28. Rxh7+ Kg8 $17 {S.Zagrebelny}) 26... Qxb4 27. h5 Nd6 (27... Bf5 $5 28. Qb3 Qd6 $17) 28. hxg6 Ne4+ 29. Kg1 h6 30. Rc1 Qb2 31. Qc2 Qa3 ({Simpler is} 31... Qxc2 32. Bxc2 Ng3 33. Rh4 c5 {with an overwhelming position.}) 32. Nb3 c5 33. Re1 Bf5 34. Nh4 c4 35. Nxf5 Rxf5 36. Nd2 Rxf4 $1 37. Qd1 $1 (37. exf4 $4 Bd4+ $19) 37... Rf6 (37... Rff8 $5 {was probably a bit more accurate:} 38. Nxe4 dxe4 39. Qd7 (39. Rh5 a6) 39... Re7 40. Qxb5 Qc3 41. Re2 Qf6 $19) 38. Nxe4 dxe4 39. Qd7 {The white queen (not exchanged by Black on move 31) becomes extremely active.} Qe7 $6 (39... Re7 $1 40. Qxb5 Qc3 41. Qb8+ Rf8 42. Qg3 Qd2 {S.Zagrebelny} 43. Rf1 Rxf1+ 44. Kxf1 Re8 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 45. Kg1 Be5 $1 $19) 40. Qxb5 Qe6 $2 {The 40th move!} (40... Rxg6 {was still winning a pawn and eventually the game as} 41. Qxc4 $2 {led to a mating attack for Black:} Rxg2+ 42. Kxg2 Qg5+ 43. Kf2 (43. Kh3 Be5 44. Rhg1 Qh5+ 45. Kg2 Qf3#) 43... Rf8+ 44. Ke2 Qg2+ 45. Kd1 Rd8+ $19 {S.Zagrebelny}) 41. Rh4 {White now keeps the material balance and equalizes.} Rf5 42. Qa4 {[%cal Rh4e4,Ra4a7]} Ref8 43. Rxe4 Qxg6 44. Re8 Rxe8 45. Bxf5 Qf7 46. Qd7 Qxd7 47. Bxd7 Rd8 48. Rd1 c3 49. Ba4 Rxd1+ 50. Bxd1 Be5 51. Kf1 Kg7 52. Ke2 h5 53. Kd3 h4 54. Bf3 Kf6 55. Kc2 Ke6 56. Kd3 Kf6 57. Kc2 Ke6 58. Kd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.10.04"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Leko, Peter"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D72"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[PlyCount "128"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nb6 7. Ne2 c5 8. d5 e6 9. O-O O-O 10. Nbc3 Na6 11. Nf4 ({RR} 11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bf4 Nb4 13. Bd6 Re8 14. Bxc5 Nd3 15. Bxb6 axb6 16. Qd2 Nb4 17. Rfd1 Qxd2 18. Rxd2 Nxa2 19. Nxa2 Bxa2 20. f4 Bf8 21. e5 Bc5+ 22. Kh1 Bc4 23. Rxa8 Rxa8 24. Bxb7 Ra1+ 25. Kg2 Kg7 {Dive,R (2197)-Steele,H (1789) Wellington NZL 2025 1-0 (54)}) 11... e5 ({RR} 11... exd5 12. Nfxd5) 12. Nd3 Nc4 ({RR} 12... c4 13. Ne1 {RR} f5 14. Be3 Bd7 15. Qd2 Rc8 16. Rd1 Nc5 17. d6 Qf6 18. Bg5 Qe6 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Nd5 Kh8 21. Ne7 ({RR} 21. Be7 e4 22. Bxf8 Rxf8 23. Nf4 Qe5) 21... Rcd8 22. Nd5 e4 23. Nf4 Qe5 24. Nh5 Qxb2 25. Qe3 Nd3 26. Nxg7 Qxg7 27. Bxd8 Rxd8) ({RR} 12... c4 13. Ne1 Bd7 14. Qe2 ({RR} 14. f4 Nc5 ({RR} 14... exf4 15. Bxf4 Nc5 16. Qd2 Nba4 17. Rc1 Nxc3 18. bxc3 Re8 19. e5 Bxe5 20. Bxe5 Rxe5 21. Nf3 Re8 22. Qd4) 15. fxe5 Bxe5 16. Bh6 ({RR} 16. Nf3 Bg4) 16... Re8 17. Qd2 Nba4 18. Nxa4 Nxa4 19. Rb1 f6 20. b3 cxb3 21. Rxb3 Nc5 22. Rb1 Rc8) ({RR} 14. Be3 Nc8 ({RR} 14... Rc8 15. a4) 15. f4 Nd6 16. Qd2 ({RR} 16. fxe5 Bxe5 17. Bd4 f6 18. Qd2 Bxd4+ 19. Qxd4 Qb6 20. Qxb6 axb6 21. Nf3 Rfe8 22. Rae1 Nf7 23. b3 Rac8 24. Rb1 b5) 16... f6 ({RR} 16... Nb4 17. a3 Nd3 18. Nxd3 cxd3 19. Qxd3 Rc8 20. Rf2 Re8 21. fxe5 Bxe5 22. Bd4) 17. fxe5 fxe5 18. Nf3 ({RR} 18. Rxf8+ Qxf8 19. Nf3) 18... b5 ({RR} 18... Qc7 19. Qf2 b6) 19. a3 Qc7 20. Qf2 h6 21. Kh1 Kh7 22. h3 Kg8 23. g4) 14... Nc5 15. Be3 Rc8 16. Nf3 Qe8 ({RR} 16... Nba4 17. Qxc4 Nxc3 18. bxc3 Na4 19. Qb4 a5) 17. Nd2 f5 18. exf5 gxf5 19. Nxc4 Nxc4 20. Qxc4 Ne4 ({RR} 20... b5 21. Qh4) 21. Qb4 Nxc3 22. bxc3 f4 23. Bc5 ({RR} 23. Bxa7 f3 24. Bh1 b5) 23... f3 24. Bxf8 ({RR} 24. Bh1 Rf4 25. c4 b6 26. Be3 Rfxc4 27. Qa3 e4) 24... Bxf8 25. Qxb7 fxg2 26. Kxg2 Qf7 27. Rab1 {Leko,P (2762)-Topalov,V (2813) Nanjing 2009 CBM 133 [Krasenkow,Michal] 0-1 (40)} ({RR} 27. Qb3 e4 28. c4 Rxc4 29. Qxc4 Qf3+ 30. Kg1 Bh3) {RR} 27... Rxc3 28. Kg1 e4) 13. Qe2 Qa5 $146 ({RR} 13... Nd6 14. f4 f6 ({RR} 14... exf4 15. gxf4) 15. fxe5 fxe5 16. Rxf8+ Qxf8 17. Be3 b6 18. Rf1 Qe8 19. Rd1 h5 ({RR} 19... Bd7) 20. Nf2 Nc7 21. g4 Ba6 ({RR} 21... h4 22. Bg5) ({RR} 21... hxg4 22. Nxg4 Bxg4 23. Qxg4) 22. Qf3 Qf7 23. gxh5 gxh5 ({RR} 23... Qxf3 24. Bxf3 gxh5 25. Bxh5) 24. Qg3 Rf8 25. Nh3 Qd7 26. Qg6 Nc4 27. Ng5 Rf6 28. Qh7+ {Petrosian,A (2460)-Lin,W (2495) Shenzhen 1992 CBM 031 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 13... Bd7 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. Qxc4) 14. a3 Bd7 15. Bg5 Rfc8 16. Be7 Qb6 17. d6 Be6 18. Nd5 Bxd5 19. d7 Be6 20. dxc8=Q+ Rxc8 21. b4 cxb4 22. axb4 Bf8 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Rfc1 Rd8 25. Bf1 Rd4 26. Rd1 Nxb4 27. Nxb4 Rxd1 28. Qxd1 Qxb4 29. Qa4 Qxa4 30. Rxa4 Nd6 31. Rxa7 Nxe4 32. Rxb7 Kg7 33. Rb5 Kf6 34. f3 Nd6 35. Rb6 Ke7 36. Kf2 h5 37. Bd3 Nf5 38. Ra6 Nd6 39. Ke3 Nc4+ 40. Kf2 Nd6 41. Bb1 Nf5 42. Ba2 Bxa2 43. Rxa2 g5 44. Ra4 h4 45. g4 Nd6 46. Ke3 Ke6 47. Ra6 Kd5 48. Kd3 f6 49. Ra5+ Ke6 50. h3 Nb7 51. Ra6+ Nd6 52. Kc3 Kd5 53. Ra5+ Ke6 54. Kb4 e4 55. fxe4 Nxe4 56. Rf5 Nd6 57. Rf1 f5 58. Kc3 fxg4 59. hxg4 Ne4+ 60. Kd4 Nf6 61. Re1+ Kf7 62. Rg1 h3 63. Rh1 Nxg4 64. Rxh3 Kg6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.10.06"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wang, Yue"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2736"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Reeh,Oliver} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Ne5 Nbd7 7. Nxc4 Qc7 8. g3 e5 9. dxe5 Nxe5 10. Bf4 Nfd7 11. Bg2 g5 12. Ne3 gxf4 13. Nxf5 O-O-O 14. Qc2 Ng6 {A fashionable theoretical variation, where lately Black was facing troubles. However, the Chinese GM had prepared an important novelty for this game.} 15. O-O Kb8 (15... fxg3 16. hxg3 h5 17. Rfc1 Kb8 (17... h4 18. Nb5 Qb6 19. Nbd6+ Bxd6 20. Nxd6+ Kb8 21. a5 Qc7 22. Nxb7 $1 Qxb7 23. Bxc6 Rc8 (23... Qb4 24. Ra4 $18) (23... Qc7 24. Qb3+ $18) 24. Bxb7 Rxc2 25. Rxc2 Kxb7 26. Rac1 $16) 18. b4 h4 (18... Bxb4 $2 19. Nd5 $18) 19. Nb5 $1 $16 {1-0 Kasimdzhanov,R (2690)-Predojevic,B (2645)/Germany 2007 (29)}) 16. Rfc1 a5 17. b4 $5 {The critical move, introduced in practice by the Vietnamese GM Nguyen. Quiet continuations didn't set problems for Black.} (17. Nd5 Qe5 18. Nxf4 Nxf4 19. gxf4 Qxf4 20. e3 Qc7 21. Rd1 Bb4 22. Rd4 Ne5 23. h3 Rhe8 24. Kh1 Rxd4 25. Nxd4 Ng6 26. Nf5 Rd8 27. Rd1 Rxd1+ 28. Qxd1 $11 {½-½ Banikas,H (2600)-Bratanov,Z (2440)/Plovdiv 2008 (39)}) (17. Rab1 Qb6 18. Ne4 Nde5 19. Rd1 Bb4 20. Rxd8+ Rxd8 21. Rd1 $11 {½-½ Gladyszev,O (2473)-Bratanov,Z (2446)/Val Thorens 2008 (63)}) 17... axb4 (17... Bxb4 {proved to be not enough:} 18. Nd5 $1 Qe5 19. Nxb4 axb4 20. Rab1 Qa5 (20... c5 21. e3 fxg3 (21... fxe3 22. f4 $1 $16) 22. hxg3 Rc8 (22... h5 23. f4 Qe6 24. Rxb4 $18) 23. Rd1 $16) (20... Ne7 21. Qc4 (21. Rxb4 Qxf5 22. Qb2 Nc5 23. Rxf4 Qe6 24. Rfc4 $40) 21... Nxf5 (21... Qxf5 22. Qxb4 $18) 22. Qxb4 $18) 21. Nd6 Nde5 22. Nc4 Nxc4 23. Qxc4 $14 {1-0 Caruana,F (2649)-Ni Hua (2724)/Dagomys 2009 (52)}) 18. Nb5 Qe5 19. Nbd4 Bc5 20. Nb3 h5 $146 {[%mdl 8]} (20... fxg3 21. hxg3 h5 22. Rab1 ({RR} 22. Nxc5 Nxc5 23. Qxc5 Rd1+) 22... Ba7 23. e3 {was met in Nguyen,N (2551)-Predojevic,B (2641)/Moscow 2008. Wang Yue discovered that without the exchange of pawns on g3 White won't have the move e2-e3, which makes a big difference - the bishop remains powerful on the diagonal a7-g1. The aforementioned game continued:} h4 (23... Ne7 $142 {was more careful.}) ({RR} 23... Ne7) 24. Nbd4 Bxd4 25. Nxd4 c5 26. Rxb4 $1 cxb4 27. Nc6+ $18 {and White won.} {RR} bxc6 28. Qxc6 Nc5 29. Qb6+ Kc8 30. Qb7#) ({RR} 20... fxg3 21. hxg3 h5 22. Rab1 Ba7 23. e3 h4 24. Nbd4 Bxd4 25. Nxd4 c5 26. Rxb4 cxb4 27. Nc6+ Ka8 28. Nxe5 Ndxe5 29. a5 h3 30. a6 hxg2 31. axb7+ Ka7 32. Qc5+ {1-0 (32) Nguyen,N (2551)-Predojevic,B (2641) Moscow 2008 CBM 123 [Reeh,Oliver]}) 21. Rab1 {Carlsen plays similarly to the aforementioned game; however, things are different now.} ({Correct is} 21. a5 {but it must have been very difficult to accept that objectively already at this point White should be looking for salvation.} {After} fxg3 ({or} 21... h4 22. g4 Bxf2+ (22... f3 23. Bxf3 Bxf2+ 24. Kh1 $1) 23. Kxf2 ({Even here} 23. Kh1 $5 {deserves attention}) 23... f3 24. Bxf3 (24. exf3 h3 $40) 24... Qxh2+ 25. Kf1 Nde5 26. a6 Nxf3 27. exf3 Qh1+ 28. Kf2 Qh2+ 29. Kf1 $11) 22. hxg3 h4 ({No time for} 22... Ba7 23. a6 $18) 23. Nxc5 Nxc5 24. f4 (24. Qxc5 $4 Rd1+ $19) 24... b3 (24... Qc3 $2 25. Qb1) 25. fxe5 bxc2 26. Rxc2 Nb3 27. Rb1 {a sharp endgames arises, with equal chances.}) ({Weaker is} 21. Nxc5 Nxc5 $17 22. Qxc5 $2 Rd1+ $19) 21... Ba7 {Here we are. White can't close the diagonal a7-g1 by playing 22.e3, as in the game Nguyen-Predojevic. In a position with opposite castled kings such an apparently small detail can completely change the evaluation: now Black is better!} 22. Bxc6 {The best practical decision, which fully paid off.} ({After} 22. a5 fxg3 23. hxg3 h4 {Black's attack is faster:} 24. a6 hxg3 25. axb7 gxf2+ 26. Kf1 Qh2 $19 {Notice the huge role of the a7 in Black's attack.}) 22... fxg3 23. hxg3 Rc8 $2 ({Black achieves a large advantage with} 23... Ne7 $1 24. Nbd4 (24. Nxe7 Qxg3+ 25. Bg2 Qxf2+ 26. Kh2 Qh4+ 27. Bh3 Qxe7 $19) 24... Bxd4 25. Rxb4 Nxc6 26. Qxc6 Bb6 $1 {and White has a difficult choice between} 27. Qd6+ ({or} 27. Qf3 Rhe8) (27. Rxb6 {loses:} Nxb6 28. Qxb6 Qxf5 29. Qc7+ Ka7 30. Rc5 Rd1+ 31. Kg2 Qe4+ $19) 27... Qxd6 28. Nxd6 Rhg8 {in both cases keeping only some practical chances to escape.}) 24. Qd3 {Now it is already time for Black to play accurately in order to keep the balance.} bxc6 $6 {After this inaccuracy White seizes the initiative.} (24... Nc5 $142 25. Nxc5 Bxc5 26. Bxb7 (26. Bg2 h4 27. Qb5 Rc7 28. Bxb7 Bxf2+ 29. Kxf2 hxg3+ 30. Nxg3 Qxb5 31. axb5 Rxc1 32. Rxc1 Kxb7 $11) 26... Kxb7 27. Qb5+ Ka8 (27... Bb6 $2 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 (28... Qxb5 $2 29. Nd6+) 29. Qxe5 Nxe5 30. Nd6+ Kb8 31. Nxc8 Kxc8 32. Rxb4 $18) 28. Qa6+ Kb8 29. Qb5+ Ka8 $11) 25. Qxd7 Rc7 (25... Rhd8 26. Qxf7 Rf8 27. Qxg6 Rxf5 28. Nd4 $1 $18) 26. Qd3 h4 27. Nbd4 hxg3 $6 (27... c5 $142 28. Nf3 Qe8 29. N3xh4 Qxa4 $14) 28. Rxb4+ Ka8 29. Nxg3 {Black must struggle hard in order to save such a position. He is a pawn down and the attack on the kingside is illusory. His only chance to escape is connected with reduced material. Notice that the advance of the c-pawn almost never works due to the check with the queen on the long diagonal.} Rd8 (29... Nf4 30. Qf3 Nh3+ 31. Kg2 Ng5 32. Qg4 $16) (29... Ne7 $142 30. e3 Nd5 31. Rbc4 Rg8 $14 {/}) 30. e3 $16 Nh4 (30... c5 31. Rbb1 $16 cxd4 $2 32. Rxc7 Qxc7 33. Qe4+) 31. Kf1 $1 Qa5 $2 {Both opponents were in time-trouble and are missing tactics.} 32. Rcb1 (32. Rxc6 {wins an important pawn:} Rxd4 (32... Rxc6 33. Nxc6 Rxd3 34. Nxa5 $18) 33. Rxd4 Rxc6 34. Rxh4 $18) 32... Nf3 33. Nb3 Qd5 34. Qxd5 cxd5 35. Rd1 Rc2 36. Rf4 Ne5 37. Nd4 Rc4 38. Nde2 Rxf4 39. Nxf4 d4 40. Nge2 Nc6 41. e4 {The mutual time-trouble is over. White is a pawn up and his chances to win are about equal to Black's chances to draw.} Rb8 42. Nd5 Rb2 (42... Rb3 $142) 43. Nef4 Kb7 44. Nd3 Rb3 45. Ke2 Ra3 46. f4 $5 {Again an impressive practical decison: Carlsen returns the extra pawn in order to activate all his forces.} (46. Rb1+ Kc8 47. Rc1 Kb7 48. Rc4 {protects the pawn, but after} Ra2+ 49. Kd1 Ra3 {it is difficult for White to make further progress:} 50. Kc2 (50. N3f4 d3 $132 {[%cal Gc6e5,Ga7f2] /=}) (50. N5f4 $5) (50. Nc1 $5) 50... Rxd3 $1 51. Rxc6 (51. Kxd3 $2 Ne5+) 51... Rf3 52. Rf6 d3+ 53. Kd2 Rxf6 54. Nxf6 Bxf2 {and Black escapes.}) 46... Rxa4 47. Rb1+ Kc8 48. Rc1 Kb7 49. e5 Ra3 50. Rh1 Ra5 51. Nf6 Bb8 52. Rb1+ Kc8 53. Rc1 Kb7 54. Ne4 Ra3 55. Rh1 Bxe5 56. fxe5 Nxe5 57. Nd6+ Ka6 {This endgame is a draw, but two knights and the rook can create a lot of threats. The next variations are based on Karsten Müller's analysis in the online edition of ChessBase Magazine.} 58. Nb4+ (58. Nxe5 $2 Re3+ 59. Kd2 Rxe5 60. Ra1+ Ra5 $11) 58... Kb6 59. Rc1 Re3+ $2 (59... Ra5 60. Rb1 Kc7 $11) 60. Kd1 Rb3 $6 ({Karsten Müller: From a practical point of view} 60... Ka5 $1 61. Nd5 Re1+ 62. Kxe1 Nd3+ 63. Kd2 Nxc1 64. Kxc1 f5 65. Nf4 {really had to be preferred. However the position is lost, although White himself does not have a pawn and two knights on their own are not enough to deliver mate, because the pawn on f5 is safely blockaded behind or on the so-called Troitzky Line a4-b6-c5-d4-e4-f5. This does not actually take into account the 50 move rule, but the present position can be won within the 50 moves. Nor does the d-pawn which is still there affect this evaluation, because Black may be able to cross the Troitzky Line with it, but he cannot hang on to it in the long run.}) 61. Nd5+ Ka7 62. Ra1+ Kb8 63. Kc2 Rh3 64. Rb1+ Ka7 65. Rb7+ Ka6 66. Rb6+ Ka5 67. Rb5+ Ka4 (67... Ka6 $6 68. Nc7+ Ka7 69. Rb7#) 68. Nb6+ Ka3 69. Rxe5 {The presence of rooks make makes White's position rather easily winning.} 1-0

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.10.08"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O Qc7 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. h3 {A relatively rare move, Did White want to avoid} (12. Bf4 Be5 $5 {?}) 12... a6 (12... b6 {is usually played. Other options are}) (12... e6 {and}) (12... Na5) ({RR} 12... e6 13. Qd2 Qa5 14. Rfd1 cxd4 15. cxd4 Qxd2 16. Rxd2 Na5 17. Bd3 Bd7 18. d5 exd5 19. exd5 b6 20. Ba6 Bc8 21. Bb5 Bb7 22. d6 Bf8 23. d7 Be7 24. Rc7 Be4 25. Nc3 Bf5 26. Nd5 Bc5 27. Bxc5 {Vasilevich,T (2293)-Akhayan,R (2260) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (41)}) 13. Bf4 $146 {Or else:} (13. f4 b5 14. Bb3 (14. Bd3 e6 15. f5 exf5 16. exf5 c4 17. Bb1 Re8 18. Bf4 Qd8 19. fxg6 hxg6 20. Ng3 Bb7 21. Qg4 b4 $132 {0-1 Gontcharov,V (2359)-Valdes,L (2365)/Dos Hermanas 2004/CBM 099 ext (45)}) 14... Na5 15. f5 Nxb3 16. Qxb3 gxf5 17. exf5 Bb7 18. Rf4 Bd5 19. Qc2 Kh8 $13 {1-0 Alexandrova,O (2400)-Sulypa,A (2449)/Alushta 2000/CBM 075 ext (39)}) (13. Bb3 b5 (13... Na5 $143 14. Bf4 Qd7 15. dxc5 Nxb3 16. axb3 a5 17. Qc2 Qb5 18. Be3 a4 19. bxa4 Rxa4 20. Rfd1 Re8 21. Nd4 $14 {1/2 Gligoric,S (2575)-Hort,V (2600)/Siegen 1970/EXT 2002 (25)}) 14. Qe1 e6 15. f4 c4 16. Bc2 f5 $1 17. g4 Ne7 18. Ng3 a5 $132 {0-1 Berta,K (2205)-Feher,G (2445)/Budapest 1998/EXT 2002 (49)}) 13... Qa5 $1 ({Now} 13... Be5 {is rather senseless due to} 14. Bxe5 Nxe5 15. Bb3 Bxh3 $6 (15... Ng4 {is impossible!}) 16. f4) (13... Qd7 14. dxc5 $5) 14. Qb3 e6 15. a4 $146 {White finds nothing better than this pawn sacrifice, with the hope of being able to use his development advantage. However, Black equalizes without any problems.} (15. d5 b5 $1 {(without 12.h3 a6 this would be impossible)} 16. dxc6 bxc4 17. Qxc4 e5 {[%cal Rc8e6]} 18. Be3 Be6 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Rdc8 $44) ({RR} 15. d5 b5 16. dxc6 bxc4 17. Qxc4 e5 18. Be3 Be6 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Rdc8 21. Rc2 Rxc6 22. Be3 Rac8 23. Rd1 Bf8 24. f3 Kg7 25. Kf2 Bc4 26. f4 Bc5 27. fxe5 Bxe3+ 28. Kxe3 Bxe2 29. Rxe2 Rxc3+ {Korobov,A (2663)-Boskovic,D (2434) Rijeka 2010 ½-½ (44)}) 15... cxd4 16. cxd4 Nxd4 17. Nxd4 Rxd4 18. Be3 $5 Rd6 {Black doesn't dare to take the second pawn:} (18... Rxe4 19. Qd3 (19. Rfd1 Bf6) (19. Bb6 Qg5) 19... Rh4 (19... Re5 $6 20. Rfd1 Bf6 21. Bd4) 20. Rfd1 ({White can force a draw by means of} 20. Bd2 Qb6 21. Be3 Qa5 ({but not} 21... Bd4 $6 22. a5 Qa7 $2 23. g3 $1 Bxe3 24. fxe3 $18 {[%cal Rd3d8,Rd8f6,Rg3h4]})) 20... Bf6 21. Bb3 $44 {[%csl Ra8,Gc1,Rc8,Gd1,Rh4]}) 19. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 b5 $1 {The simplest. Black gives the pawn back liquidating into a drawish endgame.} 21. axb5 axb5 22. Qxb5 Qxb5 23. Rd8+ Bf8 24. Bxb5 Bb7 25. Rxa8 Bxa8 26. f3 f5 27. Bd3 fxe4 28. Bxe4 Bxe4 29. fxe4 Kf7 30. Kf1 h5 31. Kg1 Bd6 32. Kf1 Bf8 33. Kg1 Bd6 34. Kf1 Bf8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 2nd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2009.10.09"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Jakovenko, Dmitrij"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2742"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2009.09.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bf4 c6 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bxd6 Qxd6 8. e3 Ne7 {A detailed review of this line is given in annotations to Onischuk - Kovacs in this issue.} 9. Bd3 b6 10. Nf3 Ba6 11. O-O Bxd3 12. Qxd3 Nd7 (12... O-O $142 13. e4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Qd5) 13. e4 $1 {[%mdl 32] This is now extremely effective.} O-O ({The point is that after} 13... dxe4 14. Nxe4 Qd5 {(or elswhere)} (14... Qe6 15. Qa3 O-O $2 16. Nfg5 $18) 15. Qa3 $1 {Black will not be able to castle! Therefore Dmitry Jakovenko decides to let the e4-pawn move forward.}) 14. e5 $14 {White now has an edge due to his space advantage.} ({RR} 14. Rfe1 Rfe8 15. Rac1 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Qd5 17. Nc3 Qd6 18. Qc4 Nf6 19. Ne5 Rf8 20. g4 Rac8 21. h3 Nfd5 22. Ne4 Qh6 23. Qb3 Nf4 24. Kh2 Ned5 25. Qg3 f6 26. Rxc6 Rxc6 27. Nxc6 f5 {0-1 (27) Nakamura,H (2780)-Topalov,V (2749) Saint Louis 2017}) ({RR} 14. Rfe1 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Qd5 16. Re3 Ng6 17. Nc3 Qd6 18. Rae1 Nf6 19. Ne4 Nxe4 20. Qxe4 c5 21. g3 Rad8 22. dxc5 Qxc5 23. h4 h6 24. Qg4 Rd5 25. b4 Qb5 26. a3 Rfd8 27. Qe4 a5 28. bxa5 bxa5 {Iljiushenok,I (2491)-Jakovenko,D (2748) Baku 2015 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Qe6 $146 ({RR} 14... Qh6 15. Rae1 Rfd8 16. g3 Nf8 17. Nh4 g5 18. Ng2 Qg6 19. Qd1 c5 20. f4 cxd4 21. Nb5 Ne6 22. Nd6 Rxd6 23. exd6 Nf5 24. g4 {1-0 (24) Vazquez,G (2446)-Giannatos,P (2290) Philadelphia 2017}) 15. Rae1 Rfe8 (15... f6 $5) 16. Nh4 $1 {[%cal Yf2f4,Yf4f5]} Ng6 (16... f5 $5 {It would take White a lot of time to prepare g2-g4.}) 17. Nxg6 Qxg6 18. Qd2 Nf8 (18... f5 {[%cal Yd7f8]}) 19. f4 Qf5 $2 (19... f5 {was possible here, too. Instead, Black blocks White's f-pawn with his queen, which proves ineffective.}) 20. Nd1 f6 21. Ne3 Qd7 22. Qd3 {[%cal Re3f5,Rf5d6]} fxe5 {Black finds a way to parry White's threat but White now obtains a crushing pawn avalanche. One of Philidor's model games had a similar course.} 23. dxe5 Ne6 24. f5 Nc5 25. Qd4 {[%cal Ye5e6,Ye3g4,Yf5f6]} Ne4 {Desperation, rather than a blunder. White now wins a pawn and then converts his material advantage.} 26. Nxd5 $1 {[%mdl 64]} Qxd5 (26... cxd5 27. Rxe4 $18) 27. Qxe4 Rad8 28. e6 (28. f6 $5) 28... Qxe4 29. Rxe4 Rd6 (29... Rd2 30. b4 $1 (30. g4 $143 Rxb2 31. g5 Rb5 32. h4 Kf8 33. f6 Rd5) 30... Rxa2 31. Rc1 Rc8 32. Rec4 $18) 30. g4 Kf8 31. g5 Ke7 32. Kg2 Rd5 33. Kg3 Kd6 34. h4 c5 35. f6 gxf6 36. gxf6 Rd3+ 37. Kh2 Rd2+ 38. Kh1 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.05"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. cxd5 Ne4 8. Qc2 exd5 9. Bf4 {This line was examined in CBM 132, annotations to Morozevich - Alekseev.} Nc6 ({Everyone (apparently except Vladimir Kramnik) would like to see what Magnus Carlsen had prepared against} 9... Bf5 10. Qxc7 Qxc7 11. Bxc7 Rc8 12. Bf4 Nc6 $1 (12... Rc2 $143 $6 13. f3 Nf6 14. g4 Bg6 15. h4 Rxb2 16. h5 Bc2 17. e3 Ba4 18. Rh2 $1 $16 {1-0 Morozevich,A (2751)-Alekseev,E (2714)/Biel 2009/CBM 132/[Krasenkow] (34)}) {Was it an improvement on the following game between two top female players? :} 13. f3 (13. Rd1 $143 Na5 14. g4 Bd7 15. f3 Nf6 16. Nh3 Ba4 17. Rd3 Rc2 $36 {0-1 Wiley,T (2287)-Balogh,C (2595)/Arinsal 2009/CBM 131 Extra (21)}) 13... Nf6 14. g4 Bc2 (14... Bd7 $6 15. e3 Na5 16. Bd3 $16) (14... Nxd4 $5 15. Rd1 $1 Ne6 16. gxf5 Nxf4 17. e3 N4h5 18. Ne2 Rc2 19. Rd2 Rac8 20. Nc3 $1 {consolidating his position and keeping some positional advantage.}) (14... Bg6 $5 {[%cal Yc6a5,Ya5b3] looks, however, very strong}) 15. e3 Na5 16. b4 (16. Kf2 $5 Bg6 17. Re1 Rc2+ 18. Re2 Rac8 19. Kg3 $5) 16... Nb3 17. Ra2 Nc1 18. Rb2 Nxg4 $1 19. e4 $5 (19. h4 Nf6 $36) 19... Nd3+ 20. Bxd3 Bxd3 21. Kd2 $4 (21. e5 Rc4 $1 $36) 21... Nf2 22. Be3 Bf1 $1 23. Bxf2 Bg2 $19 {0-1 Zhu Chen (2488)-Xu Yuhua (2485)/Nanjing CHN 2009/The Week in Chess 779 (40)}) 10. e3 Re8 $146 {[%mdl 8]} ({Kramnik doesn't repeat a promising line played by Vishy Anand:} 10... g5 $5 11. Bg3 f5 12. O-O-O (12. Nf3 $5 f4 13. exf4 g4 14. Ne5 Nxd4 $13) 12... f4 13. f3 Nd6 $6 (13... fxg3 $1 14. fxe4 Rf2 $36) 14. exf4 gxf4 15. Bf2 Bf5 16. Qc5 Ne7 17. Ne2 Bg6 $13 {0-1 Karpov,A (2619)-Anand,V (2788)/Corsica FRA 2009/The Week in Chess 782 (32)}) {In the game Black gets a good position, too; it is unclear why Carlsen played such a line, which looks rather risky for White.} 11. Nf3 g5 $1 12. Bg3 g4 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 (14. dxe5 $5 Bf5 15. Bd3 Bg6 (15... c5 16. f3 gxf3 17. gxf3 c4 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Rg1 $13) 16. Bxe4 (16. Bf4 c5 $1) 16... Bxe4 17. Qe2 Qg5 $11) 14... c5 15. Bd3 Bf5 (15... Qa5+ $2 {is premature as after} 16. b4 $1 cxb4 17. O-O bxa3 18. f3 {White completes his development and obtains a strong attack.}) 16. Qe2 $146 (16. O-O c4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 {[%cal Ye8e6,Ye6b6,Ye6h6] is favourable for Black (M.Notkin).}) ({Or} 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Qxc5 Bxg2 18. Rg1 Bf3 $17 {[%csl Re1]}) ({RR} 16. O-O c4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Qd1 Qg5 19. Qd2 h5 20. Qb4 h4 21. Bf4 Qg6 22. Rfc1 h3 23. g3 Bf3 24. Qd2 Qe4 25. Qc2 Qe6 26. a4 Be4 27. Qd1 Qf5 28. Ra3 Re6 29. Rac3 Rae8 30. b3 Bd3 {Batkovskyte,D (2006)-Soylemez,C (1913) Kemer 2009 0-1 (36)}) ({RR} 16. O-O c4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Qd2 Qg5 19. Bf4 Qh5 20. Qd1 Bd3 21. Re1 Re6 22. Qa4 Rb6 23. Ra2 Qf5 24. Qd1 h5 25. f3 gxf3 26. gxf3 Kh7 27. Kf2 Rg8 28. Rg1 Rbg6 29. Rxg6 Qxg6 30. Ra1 Qg2+ {Collado Barbas,L (2051)-Coll Ortega,J (2248) Linares 2010 0-1 (33)}) 16... f6 17. Bxe4 (17. Bf4 $2 Qa5+ 18. Kf1 cxd4 $19) (17. f3 {leads to a bad endgame for White:} gxf3 18. Qxf3 c4 $1 19. Bxe4 (19. Qxf5 cxd3 $19 {[%csl Gd3,Ge4]}) 19... Bxe4 20. Qxf6 Qxf6 21. Bxf6 Re6 $17 {[%csl Rb2][%cal Ye6b6] according to IM Maxim Notkin.}) 17... Bxe4 18. Bg3 Qa5+ 19. Qd2 Qxd2+ {A disputable decision. White's drawing chances are more realistic in the endgame, due to the opposite-coloured bishops, but Kramnik rejected} (19... Qa6 {in view of} 20. f3 (20. Qe2 $2 Qxe2+ 21. Kxe2 cxd4) 20... gxf3 21. gxf3 Bxf3 22. Rf1 {e.g.} Bh5 (22... Bg4 23. Rf4 Bh5 24. Kf2) 23. Rf5 $5 (23. Rf4 cxd4 24. Rxd4 Rac8 $5 $40) 23... Rxe3+ $5 (23... Bg6 24. Rxd5) 24. Qxe3 Re8 25. Be5 $1 (25. Qxe8+ Bxe8 {[%cal Ra6e6]} 26. Rf2 cxd4 {looks very bad for White}) 25... cxd4 26. Qg3+ Bg6 27. O-O-O $1 fxe5 ({or} 27... Qe2 28. Bxd4 Qe4 29. Qd3 $1 Bxf5 30. Qxe4 Bxe4 31. Kd2) 28. Rxe5 Rc8+ 29. Kd2 {, and White holds on, keeping chances to survive.}) 20. Kxd2 {[%mdl 4096]} c4 {[%cal Ye8e6,Ye6b6]} ({After} 20... cxd4 21. exd4 Bxg2 22. Rhe1 {M.Notkin} Be4 23. Rac1 {White activates his rooks and creates sufficient counterplay; of course, the exchange of all rooks will lead to a dead draw.}) 21. f3 $1 {White must urgently create counterplay; otherwise Black's queenside pawn advantage will decide the game.} gxf3 22. gxf3 Bg6 (22... Bxf3 $6 23. Rhf1 $11) 23. h4 {[%cal Yh4h5]} Bh5 24. Ke2 Re6 25. Be1 Kf7 26. Kf2 Rae8 27. Bd2 Rb6 28. Bc3 Rb3 {[%cal Yb7b5,Ya7a5,Yb5b4] Black's plan is double-edged as his rook can find itself out of play.} 29. a4 $1 {Preventing 29...b5} b6 {[%cal Ya7a6,Yb6b5]} 30. Rhe1 {[%cal Ye3e4]} Bg6 (30... a6 31. e4 b5 32. axb5 axb5 33. Ra7+ Re7 34. Ra3 Rxa3 35. bxa3 $11) 31. e4 $1 {Still!} dxe4 32. d5 a6 $2 (32... exf3 $142 33. Rxe8 Kxe8 34. Kxf3 $11) 33. fxe4 $2 {Missing an excellent chance:} (33. h5 $142 $1 Bxh5 ({or} 33... Bf5 34. Re3 $1 {[%cal Ya1e1,Yf3e4]}) 34. Rxe4 Rxe4 35. fxe4 {[%csl Rb3] and the initiative passes to White - see annotation to move 28!}) 33... Bxe4 34. d6 f5 35. Rg1 Ke6 36. Rg7 Kxd6 37. Rxh7 {White's passed h5 pawn should guarantee him a draw.} Bd3 38. Kf3 Re4 39. h5 Rh4 40. Rg1 Be4+ 41. Ke3 Rh3+ 42. Kf4 Rf3+ 43. Kg5 b5 44. axb5 axb5 45. Kf6 (45. Ra1 $5 Rfxc3 46. bxc3 Rxc3 {doesn't change much.}) 45... Rbxc3 46. bxc3 Rxc3 47. Rg8 Rh3 48. Rc8 c3 49. Rhc7 (49. Rhh8 $5 Bc6 50. Rh6 $1 {[%cal Rf6f5] was simpler, with a forced draw::} Kd7 51. Rhh8 Kd6 52. Rh6 {as} Bd7 $2 {doesn't work due to} 53. Kf7+ Ke5 54. Rc5+ Kd4 55. Rc7 {, and White wins a piece (M.Notkin).}) 49... c2 50. Kg5 Rh2 (50... Rh1 51. Rxc2 Bxc2 52. Rxc2 $11) 51. Rc3 $6 (51. Rc5 $1 b4 52. Rc4 b3 53. Kf6 Kd5 54. R8c5+ Kd6 55. Rc8 $11 {M.Notkin}) 51... Ke6 (51... Ke5 $142 {but White apparently has a draw anyway. In many variations he achieves the endgame  vs. +:} 52. R3c5+ Kd4 53. Rxb5 Rg2+ (53... Bd3 54. Rb4+ Ke3 55. Rb3 Rg2+ 56. Kf6 f4 {is just a transposition of moves}) 54. Kf6 (54. Kf4 $4 Rg4#) 54... f4 55. Rb4+ Ke3 56. Rb3+ Bd3 (56... Kd2 $143 57. Ke5) 57. Rcc3 Rd2 (57... Ke2 58. Rb2 Kd2 59. Rbxc2+ Bxc2 60. Rf3 Rg4 61. Ke5 $11) 58. h6 Ke2 $1 (58... f3 59. h7 f2 60. h8=Q f1=Q+ 61. Ke7 $11) 59. Kg5 $1 f3 60. h7 f2 (60... Bxh7 61. Re3+ Kd1 62. Rxf3 $1 $11) 61. h8=Q f1=Q 62. Qe5+ Kd1 63. Rxc2 $3 {Parrying mating threats!} Qg2+ 64. Kh4 $1 Qh1+ (64... Qf2+ 65. Qg3 $5 {forcing the exchange of queens}) 65. Kg5 $1 Qg2+ 66. Kh4 Bxc2 67. Qa1+ Ke2 68. Qe5+ Be4 (68... Kf1 69. Qf4+ Kg1 70. Rg3) 69. Rg3 $11) 52. Re8+ Kf7 53. Rb8 Rg2+ (53... Rh1 54. Rc7+ Ke6 55. Rb6+ Kd5 56. Rxb5+ Kd4 57. Rbc5 $11 {M.Notkin}) 54. Kf4 Ke6 55. Re8+ Kd7 56. Rb8 Ke6 (56... Rf2+ $5 {is very hard to assess but apparently White holds his ground after} 57. Kg5 $5 (57. Ke5 $143 Rf3 58. Rc5 Re3 59. Kf4 Re2) 57... Rf3 58. Rc5 Rf1 59. Rbc8 {etc.}) 57. Re8+ Kf6 58. Rf8+ Ke6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.06"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E25"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. dxc5 Qa5 9. e4 Nf6 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qb3 Na6 12. Nh3 Nd7 13. Bxa6 Qxa6 14. c4 Ne5 15. Rc1 Bd7 16. Qc3 f6 17. O-O $146 ({RR} 17. Nf2 Ba4 18. f4 Nf7 19. g4 Qc6 20. h4 b6 21. Rg1 e5 22. g5 exf4 23. Bxf4 fxg5 24. Bxg5 Nxg5 25. Rxg5 Rf7 26. Qe5 Re8 27. Qd5 Qf6 28. Ng4 Qf1+ 29. Kd2 Qf4+ 30. Kd3 Kh8 31. Ne5 Rxe5 {Goudriaan,E (2223)-Zoler,D (2474) Dieren 2010 0-1 (33)}) 17... Ba4 18. Nf4 Rfd8 19. Bd4 Ng6 20. Nxg6 hxg6 21. e5 f5 22. h4 Rd7 23. Rf2 Rad8 24. Rd2 Qc6 25. Kh2 Qc7 26. Qe3 Kf7 27. Kg3 Rh8 28. Qf4 Qd8 29. Rb1 Bc6 30. Rbb2 Qa5 31. Be3 Rxd2 32. Rxd2 Qxa3 33. Qd4 Rc8 34. Rd1 Qa5 35. Ra1 Qd8 36. Qxd8 Rxd8 37. Rxa7 Rd3 38. Bg5 Rd4 39. Be3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.07"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D91"]
[WhiteElo "2758"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bg5 Ne4 5. Bh4 c5 6. cxd5 Nxc3 7. bxc3 Qxd5 8. e3 Bg7 9. Nf3 cxd4 10. cxd4 Nc6 11. Be2 O-O 12. O-O Bf5 13. Nd2 e5 14. Bf3 Qd6 15. Nc4 Qb4 16. Bxc6 Qxc4 17. Bxb7 Rab8 18. Qf3 exd4 19. Bd5 Qb4 20. e4 Be6 21. Rad1 Qc3 22. Qf4 Bxd5 23. exd5 Qc5 24. Bf6 Bxf6 25. Qxf6 Qxd5 26. Qxd4 Qxa2 $146 ({RR} 26... Qxd4 27. Rxd4 Rb7 28. Ra4 {½-½ (28) Darai,T (1773)-Zilahi,T (1872) Budapest 2010}) 27. Ra1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.08"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D47"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Bd3 Bd6 9. Nd2 $5 {This had been played only once before.} Bb7 10. Nce4 $146 (10. O-O {Volkov,S (2633)-Romanov,E (2547)/Dagomys 2008/CBM 124 (0-1, 46)}) 10... Be7 11. Nxf6+ Nxf6 12. O-O O-O 13. Nb3 {White seems to have established some control over the c5-square, but is underdeveloped, justifying Black's next move.} c5 $1 14. dxc5 Qd5 15. f3 Rfd8 $146 ({RR} 15... Bxc5 16. Bxh7+ Nxh7 17. Qxd5 Bxe3+ 18. Bxe3 Bxd5 19. Rfc1 Nf6 20. Nd4 a6 21. Nc6 Bxc6 22. Rxc6 Nd5 23. Bd2 a5 24. a3 b4 25. Kf2 {½-½ (25) Blagojevic,D (2483)-Draganic,V (2354) Bijelo Polje 2016}) 16. Be2 Qe5 17. Qe1 Bd5 18. Qc3 Qxc3 19. bxc3 Bxb3 20. axb3 Nd5 21. b4 Nxc3 22. Kf2 a5 {Black has retrieved the pawn and even has some initiative.} 23. Rxa5 Rxa5 24. bxa5 Bxc5 25. Bb2 Nxe2 26. Kxe2 Bb4 27. Ra1 $1 {An elegant way to stay out of troubles.} Rd2+ 28. Kf1 Rxb2 29. a6 Bc5 30. Rc1 g6 31. Rxc5 Ra2 32. Rxb5 Rxa6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.10"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2739"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 d6 5. h3 O-O 6. Be2 b6 7. a4 ({RR} 7. Bh2 Bb7 8. O-O Nbd7 9. c3 Re8 10. a4 a5 11. Na3 Ne4 12. Nc4 e6 13. Nfd2 Nxd2 14. Nxd2 e5 15. Bf3 Bxf3 16. Qxf3 Qe7 17. Qc6 Rac8 18. Rad1 Nb8 19. Qb7 Qd7 20. Ra1 Qc6 21. Qxc6 Nxc6 {Grachev,B (2628)-Rakhmanov,A (2662) Sochi 2016 ½-½ (68)}) 7... c5 8. c3 Ba6 9. O-O $146 ({RR} 9. Bxa6 Nxa6 10. O-O Qc8 11. Nbd2 Nc7 12. e4 cxd4 13. cxd4 Ne6 14. Be3 Qb7 15. Qb1 d5 16. e5 Ne4 17. a5 Rac8 18. axb6 axb6 19. Ra4 Nxd2 20. Nxd2 Ra8 21. Rb4 Rfc8 22. Rc1 Rxc1+ 23. Qxc1 Rc8 {Pakleza,Z (2485)-Fishbein,A (2376) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (32)}) 9... Qc8 10. Re1 Qb7 11. Bb5 Bxb5 12. axb5 a6 13. Qe2 axb5 14. Rxa8 Qxa8 15. Qxb5 Na6 16. Bh2 Qb7 17. Nbd2 Nc7 18. Qb3 Ne6 19. Ra1 Rb8 20. Ra3 b5 21. Qa2 Qd5 22. Qa1 Ne4 23. Qa2 Qxa2 24. Rxa2 Nxd2 25. Nxd2 b4 26. Kf1 bxc3 27. bxc3 cxd4 28. cxd4 Nc7 29. Ra5 f5 30. g4 Rb5 31. Rxb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 4th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2009.11.11"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2788"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2009.11.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 133"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2009.11.19"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. Bg5 Bb4 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 h6 ({RR} 7... c5 8. e3 cxd4 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. cxd4 O-O 11. Bxc4 b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Qe2 Nd7 14. a4 Rfd8 15. Ba6 Bxa6 16. Qxa6 e5 17. a5 exd4 18. Nxd4 Nc5 19. Qb5 Rac8 20. axb6 axb6 21. Rab1 Rd6 22. Rfc1 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Aronian,L (2782) Chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (56)}) 8. Bxf6 ({RR} 8. Bh4 c5 9. e3 cxd4 10. cxd4 b5 11. a4 Bd7 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. axb5 Bxb5 14. Bxc4 Bxc4 15. Qa4+ Nd7 16. Qxc4 O-O 17. O-O Rfc8 18. Qa6 Rc7 19. Rfc1 Qd8 20. Rxc7 Qxc7 21. g3 Nb8 22. Qa4 Nd7 {Carlsen,M (2832)-Nihal,S (2668) Almaty KAZ 2024 ½-½ (53)}) 8... Qxf6 9. e3 b5 $146 ({RR} 9... c5 10. Bxc4 O-O 11. O-O Nd7 12. e4 b6 13. d5 Qxc3 14. Rc1 Qf6 15. dxe6 fxe6 16. Qd6 Re8 17. Bb5 Qe7 18. Rfd1 Qxd6 19. Rxd6 Re7 20. Bc6 Rb8 21. Rcd1 Nf8 22. Rd8 g5 23. Ne5 Kg7 24. f3 {Luzhinsky,V (2372)-Tukhaev,A (2534) Alushta 2010 ½-½}) ({RR} 9... O-O 10. Bxc4 Nc6 11. O-O e5 12. Nd2 Rd8 13. Qh5 Be6 14. Ne4 Qf5 15. Qxf5 Bxf5 16. Nc5 Na5 17. Be2 exd4 18. cxd4 b6 19. Na6 Rac8 20. Rac1 c5 21. dxc5 Nb3 22. Rc3 Nxc5 23. Nxc5 Rxc5 24. Rxc5 {Swapnil,S (2545)-Doshi,M (1974) Sonipat 2017 ½-½ (43)}) 10. a4 c6 11. Ne5 a6 12. g4 Bb7 13. Bg2 Qe7 14. O-O O-O 15. f4 Nd7 16. Nxc6 Qd6 17. Ne7+ Qxe7 18. Bxb7 Ra7 19. Bg2 Nb6 20. axb5 axb5 21. Rxa7 Qxa7 22. Qa1 Qe7 23. e4 Ra8 24. Qb2 Ra5 25. e5 Qh4 26. Qe2 Ra3 27. f5 Rxc3 28. fxe6 fxe6 29. Qe4 Qd8 30. Qg6 Qxd4+ 31. Kh1 Re3 32. Qxe6+ Kh7 33. Qf5+ Kh8 34. Qf8+ Kh7 35. Qf5+ Kh8 36. Qf8+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2009.12.11"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "McShane, Luke J"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E94"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2615"]
[Annotator "McShane,Luke"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2009.12.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 134"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. O-O Na6 8. Re1 Qe8 9. Bf1 c6 10. Rb1 ({RR} 10. h3 Nh5 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Be3 Nf4 13. c5 Nc7 14. Nd2 Nce6 15. Nc4 Nd4 16. Nd6 Qe7 17. Ne2 Nfxe2+ 18. Bxe2 f5 19. Bxd4 exd4 20. exf5 Qg5 21. Bc4+ Kh8 22. Re8 {1-0 (22) Povshednyi,I (2291)-Meissner,F (2358) chess.com INT 2025}) ({RR} 10. d5 Qe7 11. Rb1 Bd7 12. b4 cxd5 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. exd5 Nc7 15. Be3 Rfc8 16. c5 Ne8 17. Qb3 h6 18. Rbc1 Kh7 19. Nd2 f5 20. Nc4 Qf6 21. Na5 f4 22. Bd2 b6 23. c6 Bf5 24. Nc4 Qf7 {Carlsen,M (2127)-Tjomsland,S (2274) Gausdal 2002 1-0 (50)}) 10... Bg4 11. d5 c5 {The pawn structure produces a complicated positional battle. The pawn on c5 makes White's queenside attack less 'automatic' than in the main lines of the King's Indian, but Black's counterplay on the kingside is necessarily slower.} 12. Be2 Kh8 $146 ({RR} 12... Nh5 13. g3 h6 14. Nd2 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 f5 16. Nb5 Rf6 17. f3 Qf7 18. a3 b6 19. b4 Re8 20. Rb3 Qd7 21. Kg2 Rff8 22. Nc3 Nf6 23. Nd1 Rf7 24. b5 Nc7 25. Nf1 Ref8 26. Nf2 Nce8 27. exf5 {Matthiesen,M (2291)-Mikkelsen,N (2384) Helsingor 2012 0-1 (54)}) 13. a3 Bd7 14. b4 b6 15. Bg5 Ng8 16. Nb5 f6 17. Bh4 (17. Nxd6 $2 {just blunders a piece to} Qe7) 17... Qe7 18. Nd2 ({Over the next few moves} 18. Qa4 {can be met by} Nc7) 18... Nh6 {[%cal Yh6g4] Preventing the positional threat of e2-g4, and f7 is a useful square to cover d6.} 19. Nf1 Rfc8 20. Ne3 Nc7 21. bxc5 Nxb5 {In hindsight, I wonder whether this was a bad decision. I thought Black's rooks would be quite strong on the c-file. However, they lack entry points and White can continue preparing an assault on the queenside pawns.} (21... bxc5 {was a solid alternative, with a tense position.}) 22. cxb5 Rxc5 23. f3 (23. a4 {would allow Black an interesting possibility:} g5 24. Bg3 f5 25. exf5 Nxf5 {and with the e3 about to be exchanged, the rook on c5 becomes much more useful than it was in the game.}) 23... Rac8 24. Bd3 $1 {A strong move, after which I understood that Black is going to face difficulties. There are three ideas behind this move. Firstly, it is harder to achieve .. 6-g5 and ...f6-f5. Secondly (although it never materialised in the game) the maneouvre e3-c2-b4-c6 becomes possible. Finally the rooks are restricted on the c-file.} Qf8 25. Bf2 f5 26. a4 R5c7 27. h3 ({If I remember correctly, I wanted to maintain the tension on f5/e4 to keep the possibility of answering} 27. Nc2 {with} g5 28. Nb4 g4 {with counterplay.}) 27... Bf6 28. Qd2 $1 {The knight is still useful on e3.} (28. Nc2 fxe4 29. fxe4 g5 30. Ne3 (30. Be3 g4 31. Qd2 Nf7 32. Rf1 Bh4 33. hxg4 Bxg4 {looks unclear}) 30... g4 $5 31. hxg4 Qg7 32. Nf5 Bxf5 33. gxf5 Ng4 {is a pawn sacrifice I considered during the game. All Black's pieces are active and White has no pressure left on the queenside.}) 28... Bg5 (28... f4 29. Nc2 g5 30. Nb4 Ng8 31. Nc6 (31. a5 $5) 31... h5 32. a5 {isn't totally clear, but White's attack seems to be ahead.}) 29. a5 fxe4 30. fxe4 Nf7 {It wasn't easy to decide whether to leave a weakness on a7 or b6.} (30... bxa5 31. Qxa5 {is also unpleasant as the a7-pawn is very weak.} Qe7 {aims to exchange the dangerous bishop with ...g5-h4 but White maintains a little pressure. Still, maybe this was better than the way I played.}) 31. axb6 axb6 32. Qe2 Rb7 33. Nc4 Qd8 {Naturally, I wasn't delighted by this grim defence of the b-pawn, but there is nothing better.} 34. Rf1 Kg7 35. Kh1 (35. Bxb6 {would be too eager} Rxb6 36. Qf2 ({Or} 36. Rxf7+ Kxf7 37. Qf2+ Kg7 38. Nxb6 Bh4 (38... Rc3 {[%cal Yg5e3]} 39. Nxd7 Rxd3 40. Qf8+ Qxf8 41. Nxf8 Kxf8 42. b6 {looks drawn too}) 39. Qe3 Bg5 {promises at least a draw}) 36... Rxb5 37. Qxf7+ Kh6 38. Nxd6 Qb6+ 39. Kh1 Rxb1 40. Nxc8 (40. Qxd7 Rxf1+ 41. Bxf1 Rf8 42. Nf7+ Rxf7 43. Qxf7 Qf6 (43... Bf4 $5) 44. Qxf6 Bxf6 {is very similar}) 40... Rxf1+ 41. Bxf1 Bxc8 42. Qf8+ Kh5 43. Qxc8 Qf2 {must be drawn.}) 35... Be8 36. Qb2 Nh6 37. Bxb6 $1 {I must admit that I hadn't seen this move was possible right here. Under time pressure my last few moves had to be made rather quickly.} Qe7 $1 {A good fighting decision. Clearly with an extra pawn White is doing very well, but the bishop is rather awkward to extricate from b6 so Black will continue to have fighting chances.} (37... Rxb6 38. Qf2 Bxb5 39. Nxb6 $1 (39. Qxb6 Bxc4 40. Qxd8 Bxd8 41. Rb7+ Kg8 42. Rc1 Bxd3 43. Rxc8 Nf7 44. Rd7 {looked decisive to me during the game, but Black can keep the game going with} Kf8 $1 45. Rdxd8+ Nxd8 46. Rxd8+ Ke7 {and it is not at all obvious that White will be able to win.}) 39... Bxd3 40. Nxc8 Bxf1 41. Qa7+ Kh8 42. Rb7 Qf8 (42... Qg8 43. Nxd6 {[%cal Yb7b8] is also hopeless}) 43. Nxd6 {[%cal Yd6f7,Yb7b8,Ya7g1] and Black's position is hopeless.}) 38. Qf2 Rcb8 {[%csl Rb5][%cal Yb8b5] Somehow these miserable rooks are pulling their weight much more on the b-file than they ever were on the c-file!} 39. Rb3 Ng8 40. Be2 $6 {Black's potential counterplay with ...f6-h5 was the reason for this maneouvre, but the bishop was already doing a useful job supporting the b5-pawn.} (40. Ra1 {was probably stronger.} Nf6 41. Ra6 (41. Ba7 Rc8 {a reasonable defence} (41... Ra8 $5 {leads to similar lines to those with 41...c8} 42. b6 Nd7 43. Rbb1 (43. Na5 Rbxa7 44. bxa7 Nc5 45. Rba3 Rxa7 46. Nc6 Rxa3 47. Rxa3 Qf6) 43... Nc5) (41... Rxb5 $2 42. Bxb8 Rxb3 43. Bxd6 $18) 42. Ne3 {[%csl Rg7][%cal Ye3f5,Yf2a7,Ya1a7] intends b6 and d3-a6 but it's not so easy, e.g.} Ra8 43. b6 Nd7 44. Rbb1 (44. Ba6 Rbxa7 45. bxa7 Nc5 46. Rba3 Rxa7 {with clear compensation for the exchange}) 44... Nc5 45. Bc2 Rbxa7 46. bxa7 Rxa7 47. Rxa7 Qxa7 {and again it will certainly be hard for White to win despite the extra exchange.}) 41... Rc8 $5 {[%csl Rc4][%cal Yf6e4]} (41... Nh5 {is another way to fish for counterplay but I don't entirely trust it}) 42. Qe1 {[%cal Ye1e4]} Rcb8 {and it still isn't totally obvious how White should improve his position.}) 40... Nf6 41. Bf3 {Now we had passed move 40 I had a while to try to figure out how to defend.} Rxb6 $5 {This was certainly a good practical try, but since I can't see any real improvement for Black in the game, it might have been better to keep grovelling.} (41... Nd7 42. Ba7 Ra8 43. b6 {this looks very bad but the bishop is still quite awkward on a7 so Black has good chances to sacrifice an exchange, for example.} Nc5 44. Rbb1 (44. Ra3 $6 Bb5 45. Qc2 (45. Rc3 Na4 $1 46. Rc2 Qd8 {and the b6-pawn seems to drop off in a couple of moves}) 45... Bxc4 46. Qxc4 Rxb6 47. Rfa1 {and now Black has a few different approaches to try to save the position, although it isn't an easy choice.} Rb7 (47... Rxa7 48. Rxa7 Rb1+ $5 (48... Rb7) 49. Rxb1 (49. Kh2 Rxa1 50. Rxe7+ Bxe7 {yet again gives good drawing chances}) 49... Qxa7 {etc.}) 48. Bxc5 Rc8 49. Bxd6 Rxc4 50. Bxe7 Bxe7 51. Ra7 Rxa7 52. Rxa7 Kf6 {with some chances to hold}) 44... h5 {and it still isn't obvious how White should move forward.} (44... Rbxa7 $2 45. bxa7 Rxa7 46. Rb6 {causes a big problem just here, because} Rd7 47. Nxd6 Rxd6 48. Qxc5 {wins}) 45. Na5 {it might be better to delay this} Rbxa7 46. bxa7 Qxa7 47. Nc4 Qc7 {with a resilient position.}) 42. Nxb6 Qc7 43. h4 $1 {Undermining the defence of f6.} (43. Na4 Rxb5 44. Rxb5 Bxb5 45. Ra1 {is exactly what I was hoping for. Black's active minor pieces offer good compensation. In practice it would be extremely difficult for White to win.}) 43... Bh6 $1 (43... Bf4 44. g3 Rxb6 (44... Bxg3 {I didn't consider, but} 45. Qxg3 Qxb6 46. Be2 {and White's b-pawn combined with pressure on the f-file is likely to be decisive.}) 45. gxf4 exf4 46. Be2 {should win quite easily for White}) 44. Na4 $1 {Keeping the e2-b5 diagonal open...} (44. Be2 Bf4 $1 {is the nice point of g5-h6. Opening the f-file removes the e-pawn's defence, so Black is threatening f6xe4.}) (44. Nc4 Rxb5 $1 {offers Black nice compensation again.} (44... Qxc4 $2 45. Be2 $1 Qxb3 46. Qxf6+ Kg8 47. Qe6+ Kg7 48. Qxd6 Bf4 49. Qc7+ $1 $16)) 44... Rxb5 45. Be2 $1 (45. Rxb5 Bxb5 46. Be2 Bf4 $1 {is a key resource as usual. I saw that after} 47. Bxb5 Nxe4 48. Qe1 (48. Qb6 $2 {loses material} Ng3+ 49. Kg1 Qxb6+ 50. Nxb6 Be3+ 51. Kh2 Nxf1+ 52. Bxf1 Bxb6 $11) 48... Ng3+ (48... Qe7 $5 {isn't a bad idea either}) 49. Kg1 Nxf1 (49... Qa7+ $5 50. Rf2 Be3 {also gives practical chances}) 50. Kxf1 {and Black has reasonable compensation for the piece. White's king is never going to be safe. In fact} Qf7 $5 {[%csl Rd5][%cal Yf4g3] wins a second pawn immediately, though White can try to win the endgame after} 51. Qe4 Bg3+ 52. Qf3 Qxf3+ 53. gxf3 Bxh4) 45... Rxb3 46. Qxf6+ Kg8 47. Nc5 $1 {A crucial (and very pretty) tactical shot. It didn't quite knock me off my chair as I had seen it somewhere betwen playing 41...xb6 and here (I forget exactly where) but my moves had been forced up to here. Now I faced a difficult decision about where to place the rook.} (47. Bg4 Bg7 48. Qe6+ Bf7 {and the defence holds. White must play} 49. Qxf7+ Qxf7 50. Be6 Qxe6 51. dxe6 Rb8 {with a probable draw}) 47... Rg3 $5 {I arrived at this odd looking move by the need to prevent the e2-g4-e6 idea, as well as the ideas with f6-d8-g5.} (47... Rc3 {is the obvious candidate, hitting the knight, but it's not good enough.} 48. Ne6 (48. Bg4 {also seems to be good enough as after} Bg7 49. Ne6 Bxf6 50. Nxc7 Rxc7 51. Rxf6 {the d-pawn is falling.} g5 $5 (51... h5 52. Be2 $1 Rd7 53. Bb5 Rf7 54. Rxg6+ Kh7 55. Bxe8 Kxg6 56. Bxf7+ Kxf7 {is a hopeless pawn ending for Black}) (51... Bd7 52. Bf3 Ra7 53. Rxd6 Kf7 $16 {may be toughest}) 52. Rxd6 Bg6 53. Rc6 $18) 48... Qf7 49. Qd8 Qd7 50. Qg5 $1 Bg7 (50... Qxe6 51. Qxh6 Qe7 52. Bg4 Bf7 53. Be6 $1 Bxe6 54. dxe6 {[%cal Yf1f7] and Black can resign}) 51. Nxg7 Qxg7 (51... Kxg7 52. Qf6+ $18) 52. Qd8 (52. Bg4 Rc7 53. Qd8 Qe7 54. Qxe7 Rxe7 55. Rf6 {should also win.}) 52... Qd7 53. Qf6 Bf7 (53... h5 54. Qf8+ Kh7 55. Rf6 {should also win}) 54. Bg4 Qe8 55. Qxd6 {White wins.}) (47... Rb2 {was interesting but also insufficient.} 48. Bg4 $1 (48. Ne6 Qf7 49. Qd8 Qd7 50. Qg5 Bg7 51. Nxg7 (51. Bg4 h6 $1 {is OK for Black}) 51... Qxg7 52. Bg4 (52. Qd8 $6 Qd7 53. Qf6 h5 {seems to be fine.}) 52... Rb8 {and with d8 covered, nothing disastrous is happening immediately. After} 53. Be6+ Kh8 {White still has a positional advantage and practical chances but there's no concrete follow-up. Black will continue with h6 and h7.}) 48... Bg7 49. Ne6 Qf7 50. Nxg7 Qxf6 (50... Qxg7 $2 51. Be6+ Kh8 52. Qd8 {wins}) 51. Rxf6 Kxg7 52. Rxd6 $16 {and White should probably win this endgame.}) ({Hopeless is} 47... Qxc5 $4 48. Qe6+ Kg7 49. Qe7+ Kg8 50. Qxe8+ Kg7 51. Rf7#) (47... dxc5 $4 {is no better} 48. Bc4 $1 {[%cal Yd5d6] with too many threats.}) 48. Ne6 (48. h5 $5 {is a odd looking move pointed out by the engines but it clears the h4-square for the queen.} Bf4 49. Ne6 Qf7 50. Qd8 Qd7 51. Qh4 g5 {other moves just lose a bit more slowly} 52. Qxg3 $1 Bxg3 53. Rf8#) 48... Qf7 49. Qxf7+ (49. Qd8 Qd7 {leads nowhere.}) 49... Bxf7 50. Rb1 $1 {Even without queens, the attack goes on.} Be8 (50... Bxe6 51. dxe6 {and the pawn cannot actually be stopped.} Kf8 52. Rb7 $18 {[%cal Ye2b5,Ye6e7]}) 51. Bf3 {This is the downside to the rook being on g3. It's immobilised by the bishop and can't contribute to the defence.} Kf7 52. Rb7+ Kf6 53. Rxh7 Bf4 {This position was likely to arise after 47...g3 and I retained hopes of saving the game here. The rook is trapped on g3 but ...g6-g5 may extricate it at some point and White's winning plan isn't totally obvious. Unfortunately Magnus found an elegant way to finish things off.} (53... Be3 54. Kh2 Bf2 55. Rb7 {also wins.}) 54. Nxf4 (54. Ng5 Rxg5 $1 (54... Bxg5 55. hxg5+ Rxg5 56. g4) 55. hxg5+ Bxg5) 54... exf4 55. e5+ $1 dxe5 (55... Kxe5 56. Re7+ $18) 56. d6 {There's no way to stop this pawn.} e4 (56... g5 57. hxg5+ Kxg5 58. d7 Bxd7 59. Rxd7 Kf5 {If Black could achieve ...e5-e4 here it might be difficult for White to win the game. But after} 60. Rf7+ Ke6 61. Rf8 {[%cal Yf8e8] as Magnus pointed out, Black will never get e5-e4 in, so White will gradually bring up his king and win the pawns.}) (56... Kf5 $5 {is tricky} 57. Rf7+ $1 {is the way to win.} (57. d7 $2 Bxd7 58. Rxd7 e4 59. Rd5+ Ke6 60. Bxe4 Re3 61. Rg5 Rxe4 62. Rxg6+ Kf5 {and Black should hold}) 57... Bxf7 (57... Ke6 58. Re7+ $18) 58. d7 e4 59. Be2 f3 (59... Re3 60. d8=Q Rxe2 61. Qg5+ Ke6 62. Qg4+ $18) 60. gxf3 exf3 61. Bd3+ Ke5 62. d8=Q $18) (56... Ke6 $2 57. Re7+ $18) 57. Bxe4 Re3 58. Bd5 $1 Kf5 (58... Re5 59. d7 $1 Bxd7 60. Rf7# {would have been a pretty finale.}) 59. Kh2 (59. d7 Bxd7 60. Rxd7 Kg4 61. Rd6 {was also sufficient.}) 59... Re5 60. Bf3 Kf6 61. d7 1-0

[Event "London Classic"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2009.12.12"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D17"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2715"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2009.12.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 134"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Bf5 6. Nh4 Bc8 7. e3 e5 8. Bxc4 exd4 9. exd4 Be7 10. O-O O-O 11. Re1 Nd5 12. Nf3 Be6 13. Qb3 Na6 14. Bd2 Nab4 15. Ne4 Bf5 $146 ({RR} 15... a5 16. Nc5 Bxc5 17. dxc5 Bf5 18. Rac1 Qc7 19. Ne5 Rfe8 20. Bxb4 Rxe5 21. Rxe5 Qxe5 22. Re1 Qc7 23. Bc3 Qd7 24. Bxa5 Nf4 25. Qg3 Rxa5 26. Qxf4 h6 27. h3 Kh7 28. g4 Bg6 29. Qd6 Qc8 30. b3 {Kuzubov,Y (2667)-Vidit,S (2602) Abu Dhabi 2014 1-0 (33)}) 16. Ne5 a5 17. Nc5 Bxc5 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. Bxb4 Nxb4 20. Qf3 Be6 21. Bxe6 fxe6 22. Qb3 Qe7 23. Nf3 Nd5 24. Rac1 Rf4 25. Ne5 Raf8 26. Nd3 Rd4 27. Rc4 Rxc4 28. Qxc4 Qf6 29. g3 Rd8 30. Kg2 Qf5 31. Nc1 Rf8 32. Qe2 Nc7 33. Nd3 Rd8 34. Ne5 Rd5 35. Kg1 Rxc5 36. Nc4 Qf8 37. Rd1 Rd5 38. Rxd5 exd5 39. Qe5 dxc4 40. Qxc7 Qb4 41. Qc8+ Kf7 42. Qf5+ Ke7 43. Qe5+ Kf7 44. Qf5+ Ke7 45. Qe5+ Kf7 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2009.12.14"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E46"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2698"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "122"]
[EventDate "2009.12.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "18"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 134"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. g3 Re8 8. Bg2 Bf8 ({The immediate} 8... c6 {is more popular here.}) ({RR} 8... a5 9. O-O Na6 10. Nf4 c6 11. f3 Nc7 12. g4 Ne6 13. Nce2 Bd6 14. Nxe6 Bxe6 15. Nf4 c5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. g5 Nd7 18. Nxd5 Nb6 19. Nxb6 Qxb6 20. f4 Bc4 21. Rf2 Rad8 22. Qc2 Ba6 23. Bd2 {Romanov,E (2616)-Naiditsch,A (2708) Warsaw 2012 0-1}) ({RR} 8... Na6 9. O-O c6 10. Qc2 Bf8 11. a3 h5 12. f3 c5 13. Kh1 Bd7 14. Bd2 Rc8 15. Rad1 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nc5 17. Qb1 a5 18. b4 axb4 19. axb4 Ne6 20. Nce2 Rc4 21. Rc1 Nxd4 22. Nxd4 Qb6 23. Qb3 {Lysenko,M (2207)-Shuvalova,P (2484) Sochi 2021 0-1 (35)}) 9. O-O Na6 $5 {A curious concept.} (9... c6) 10. a3 $146 (10. h3 $5 c6 11. g4 h6 12. Ng3 Nc7 13. f4 g6 14. Qf3 b5 15. a3 a5 16. g5 Nh7 17. h4 hxg5 18. fxg5 Be6 19. Nce2 Qd7 20. Qf2 Bg7 21. Bd2 Bg4 22. Nf4 Ne6 $132 {1-0 Kohlweyer,B (2443)-Chuchelov,V (2539)/Belgium 2001/CBM 081 ext (55)}) ({RR} 10. h3 c6 11. g4 h6 12. Ng3 Nc7 13. f4 g6 14. Qf3 b5 15. a3 a5 16. g5 Nh7 17. h4 hxg5 18. fxg5 Be6 19. Nce2 Qd7 20. Qf2 Bg7 21. Bd2 Bg4 22. Nf4 Ne6 23. Nd3 f6 24. gxf6 Bxf6 {Kohlweyer,B (2443)-Chuchelov,V (2539) Belgium 2001 1-0 (55)}) ({RR} 10. Nf4 c6 11. f3 Nc7 12. g4 h6 13. h3 c5 14. Nd3 Ne6 15. Ne5 Qb6 16. f4 cxd4 17. Na4 Qc7 18. exd4 Bd7 19. Be3 Rac8 20. Nc3 Bc6 21. g5 Nd7 22. Nxd5 Qd6 23. Nc4 {½-½ (23) Lopez,J (2202)-Roser,K (2422) Cappelle la Grande 2014}) 10... c6 11. f3 (11. b3 $6 Bf5 (11... Nc7 12. Ra2 Bf5 13. f3 h6 14. Nf4 c5 $1 15. Nce2 b6 16. g4 Bh7 17. Ng3 Nb5 $36 {0-1 Lerner,K (2525)-Garcia Gonzales,G (2515)/Jurmala 1983/MCD (40)}) 12. Ra2 Qd7 13. f3 h5 14. Nf4 Bd6 15. Nxh5 Nxh5 16. g4 Bg6 17. gxh5 Bxh5 $17 {1/2 Panczyk,K (2365)-Volzhin,A (2530)/Wisla 1998/EXT 2000 (22)}) (11. h3 Nc7 12. g4 Bd6 13. f4 Bxg4 $6 (13... h6 $15) 14. hxg4 Nxg4 15. Rf3 Qh4 16. Bh3 Re6 17. Bxg4 Rg6 18. Rg3 Rxg4 19. Kg2 $14 {1-0 Tatai,S (2435)-Ivkov,B (2475)/Torremolinos 1983/MCD (60)}) (11. Nf4 Nc7 12. b4 a6 13. Ra2 (13. f3 $6 Nb5 $1 14. Nxb5 axb5 15. Bd2 Nd7 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 Nf6 18. Bc3 Nxe4 $19 {1-0 Straeter,T (2345)-Ernst,S (2512)/Germany 2006/EXT 2007 (58)}) 13... Bf5 14. f3 Nb5 15. Nxb5 axb5 $15 {0-1 Maksimovic,S (2225)-Prudnikova,S (2405)/Belgrade 1995/EXT 1997 (48)}) 11... c5 $5 {A standard reaction to f2-f3.} 12. g4 h6 (12... Nc7 $5 13. b3 $6 (13. g5 $142 Nd7 14. f4 Nb6 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Qd3 Nc4 17. Nd4 $13) 13... a5 14. Ng3 h6 15. Ra2 b5 16. Kh1 c4 $17 {0-1 Moutousis,K (2475)-Mastrovasilis,A (2315)/Panormo 1998/CBM 067 ext (46)}) 13. h3 b6 14. Ng3 Bb7 15. f4 Rc8 $15 {Black has good development; White's attacking chances are slim.} 16. g5 hxg5 $1 (16... Ne4 17. Ncxe4 dxe4 18. gxh6 g6 (18... cxd4 19. exd4 gxh6 20. f5 $36) 19. h7+ $5 (19. f5 Bxh6) 19... Kxh7 20. f5 Bg7 $13) 17. fxg5 Ne4 $1 (17... cxd4 $2 18. exd4 Ne4 19. Ncxe4 dxe4 20. Rxf7 $1 Kxf7 21. g6+ $1 $18 {}) 18. Ncxe4 dxe4 19. Qg4 (19. Rxf7 {now doesn't work as the c1 bishop is not in the attack.}) 19... g6 20. Nxe4 (20. Bxe4 $5 Bd5 $5 $36) 20... Bxe4 21. Bxe4 cxd4 $1 {[%cal Ra6c5][%mdl 512]} 22. Bb7 {Obvious but probably wrong!} (22. Qf3 $142 $5 Qd7 (22... Qxg5+ 23. Kh1 Rxe4 $1 24. Qxe4 d3 $1 25. Qxd3 Nc5 $15) 23. b4 $15 {[%cal Yc1b2]} (23. Bd5 $143 Re7 24. exd4 Bg7 $17)) 22... Rc2 $1 23. Bxa6 (23. Qf4 Qd7 $1 24. Bxa6 dxe3 (24... Qxh3 $2 25. Qxf7+ Kh8 26. Rf2 Qg4+ 27. Kf1 Qd1+ $11) 25. Qg4 $5 {(recommended by IM Ivan Smikovsky)} (25. Bc4 Rxc4 26. Qxc4 e2 27. Re1 Qxh3 $19) {doesn't help due to} 25... Qd5 $1 26. Be2 (26. Qf3 Qxf3 27. Rxf3 e2 28. Be3 Bc5 $1 $19) 26... Bc5 $19 {[%cal Ye8e5,Ye5f5] White is nearly in zugzwang!}) 23... Qc7 $17 {Despite White's extra piece, Black is dominating the board.} 24. Qf4 Bd6 25. Qf3 (25. Qg4 $142 dxe3 26. Be2 Bg3 $1 $17 {I.Smikovsky} (26... Re5 $143 27. h4)) 25... Bc5 (25... dxe3 $1 26. Be2 Re5 27. h4 (27. Qg4 Rxe2 $1) 27... Rf5 28. Qa8+ Bf8 29. Rxf5 Rxe2 $1 30. Bxe3 gxf5 $19 {I.Smikovsky}) 26. Qf4 Bd6 27. Qf3 Bc5 $2 (27... dxe3) 28. Qf4 Qxf4 29. Rxf4 dxe3 30. Kf1 e2+ 31. Ke1 Rd8 32. Bxe2 Re8 33. Bd2 Rxd2 34. Kxd2 Be3+ 35. Kc2 Bxf4 36. Bc4 Bxg5 {Black finally has won a pawn but the opposite-coloured bishops eventually enable White to save the game.} 37. Rg1 Re5 38. h4 $1 Bxh4 39. Rxg6+ Kf8 40. Rd6 Re7 41. Bb5 Rc7+ 42. Rc6 Re7 43. Rd6 Re5 44. Bc4 Rf5 45. b4 Ke7 46. Rd5 Rf2+ 47. Rd2 Rf4 48. Bb5 Ke6 49. Re2+ Kf6 50. Rd2 Ke6 51. Re2+ Kf6 52. Rd2 Bf2 53. Rd7 a5 54. bxa5 bxa5 55. a4 Bc5 56. Rd5 Bb4 57. Kd3 Ke6 58. Rd4 Rf3+ 59. Ke2 Ra3 60. Bc4+ Ke5 61. Rd3 Rxd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2010.01.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2810"]
[BlackElo "2749"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2010.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 135"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{As was true of another young player yesterday, Carlsen opted to take a rest against his opponent - World Champion Anand. Reinvigorated today, the Norwegian brought his A-game to the A section, in a demolition worthy of the world's top-ranked, A-grade player.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 5. Qc2 g6 6. Bd3 ({RR} 6. Nf3 Bg7 7. Bd2 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 11. Be2 b6 12. Rfd1 Bb7 13. Be1 cxd4 14. Nxd4 e6 15. Bf3 Bxf3 16. Nxf3 Qb8 17. Ne4 Rc8 18. Qxc8+ Qxc8 19. Rxc8+ Rxc8 20. Nxf6+ Nxf6 {Aleksandrov,A (2659)-Rublevsky,S (2649) chessassistantclub.com INT 2004 0-1 (40)}) 6... Be6 $146 {leaving well-tested lines early.} ({RR} 6... Bg7 7. b3 O-O 8. Nf3 Bg4 9. Ne5 Be6 10. O-O ({RR} 10. f4 c5 11. dxc5 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Bxc4 13. Nxc4 Nbd7 14. c6 bxc6 15. O-O Nd5 16. Bb2 Qc7 17. Rac1 Qa7 18. Nxd5 cxd5 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Qc3+ Nf6 21. Nd2 Rac8 22. Qd3 Qb7 23. Rfe1 Rc6 24. Rxc6 Qxc6) 10... Nbd7 11. Nxd7 Qxd7 12. Bb2 b5 13. Ne2 Rab8 14. Rab1 Rfc8 15. Nf4 Bf5 16. Bxf5 Qxf5 17. Qxf5 gxf5 18. Ba3 b4 19. Bb2 e6 20. Rbc1 Ne4 21. f3 {Agibileg,U (2448)-Andreikin,D (2710) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (42)}) 7. b3 $146 ({RR} 7. c5 Bg7 8. Nge2 O-O 9. Bd2 Bc8 10. Na4 Nbd7 11. f4 Ne8 12. h3 f5 13. g4 e6 14. g5 h5 15. gxh6 Qh4+ 16. Kf1 Qxh6 17. Kg2 Nef6 18. Rag1 Ne4 19. Bxe4 fxe4 20. h4 Nf6 21. Nb6 Rb8 {Lipinsky,M (2042)-Pitschka,C (2193) Bayern 2015 1-0 (55)}) 7... Bg7 8. Nge2 c5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 Bxd5 11. e4 Be6 12. Qxc5 Nc6 13. Be3 Rc8 14. Qa3 O-O 15. Rd1 Nxd4 (15... a5 {with the idea of providing an outpost for the knight, facilitating an exchange for White's light-squared bishop, may have been better.}) 16. Bxd4 Bxd4 17. Bb1 Bc5 18. b4 Qxd1+ {with this move, things go from bad to worse.} (18... Bxf2+ {was to be much preferred.}) 19. Kxd1 Bxf2 20. Nf4 Bc4 21. Bd3 Rfd8 22. Ke2 Bxd3+ 23. Kxf2 Rc2+ 24. Kf3 Bc4 25. Rc1 Rxa2 26. Qc3 b5 27. Ra1 Rdd2 28. Rxa2 Rxa2 29. h4 h5 30. g4 hxg4+ 31. Kxg4 f6 32. e5 Kf7 33. exf6 exf6 34. Qe3 Rc2 35. Qa7+ {With Black's position in tatters, Ivanchuk mericfully put himself out of his own misery.} 1-0

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2010.01.26"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2810"]
[BlackElo "2788"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2010.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 135"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 {In the end of the press conference after his win over Nakamura, just the day before, Kramnik complained that he had been Black in his last three games against Carlsen and the situation would repeat itself in Wijk aan Zee. As if this were enough, Carlsen decides to force the former World Champion to fight against one of his trademark openings, the Catalan.} dxc4 {There is not much to be said about this move, but I would like to insert here two games that bear some similarity with two types of structures featured in the main game.} (4... dxc4 5. Bg2 c5 6. O-O Nc6 7. Ne5 Bd7 8. Na3 cxd4 9. Naxc4 Bc5 10. Qb3 O-O 11. Qxb7 Nxe5 12. Nxe5 Rb8 13. Qf3 Bd6 14. Nc6 Bxc6 15. Qxc6 e5 16. Rb1 Rb6 17. Qa4 Qb8 18. Bg5 Be7 19. b4 Bxb4 20. Bxf6 gxf6 21. Qd7 Qc8 22. Qxa7 Rb8 23. Qa4 Bc3 24. Rxb8 Qxb8 25. Be4 Qc7 26. Qa6 Kg7 27. Qd3 Rb8 28. Bxh7 Rb2 29. Be4 Rxa2 30. h4 {Kasparov,G (2795)-Comp Deep Blue/Philadelphia 1996/CBM 050 ext (1-0, 73). Carlsen may have been inspired by this game when heading for the position after, say 25 moves. However, there is an important difference: Carlsen's knight will be passive on a4, failing to contribute to the fight for the critical squares in any way.}) (4... Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 Nbd7 9. Bf4 Nh5 10. Bc1 Nhf6 11. b3 b6 12. Rd1 Ba6 13. Nbd2 Rc8 14. e4 Bb7 15. Bb2 Qc7 16. Rac1 Qb8 17. e5 Ne8 18. h4 h6 19. Nf1 c5 20. Qe2 dxc4 21. d5 $1 {The same type of sacrificial break as Carlsen's 17.d5!! True, in this game Black's kingside has not been weakened previously, but after the inevitable structural modifications White will be left with a dangerous majority on this wing.} Bxd5 22. Rxd5 exd5 23. Bh3 Rd8 24. Ne3 Nc7 25. Nf5 Rfe8 26. Nxg7 $40 {Marin,M (2515)-Horvath,J (2535)/Odorheiu Secuiesc 1993/CBM 036 (1-0, 53)}) 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 a5 7. Nc3 $5 {This natural developing move was first met in a top level game during the Tal Memorial 2009.} (7. Qc2 Bxd2+ (7... Ra6 $5 {Marin,M (2551)-Kortschnoj,V (2611)/Reggio Emilia 2008/CBM 122/[Marin,M] (1/2, 58)}) 8. Qxd2 $5 {Kramnik,V (2743)-Topalov,V (2813)/Elista 2006/CBM 115/[Marin,M] (1-0, 75)}) (7. O-O $5 O-O 8. Bg5 {Ivanchuk,V (2740)-Alekseev,E (2711)/Foros 2008/CBM 125/[Marin,M] (1-0, 53)}) 7... O-O 8. a3 ({Deviating from} 8. Bg5 {Gelfand,B (2758)-Kramnik,V (2772)/Moscow 2009/CBM 133/[Marin,M] (1/2, 81)}) 8... Be7 $146 {White is allowed to retrieve the pawn, in the hope that the time spent by the queen moving around will allow adequate queenside counterplay.} ({After} 8... Bxc3 {Black can keep his extra pawn, for a while at least, but White's centre would be strengthened. It is hard to draw any conclusion from the only game played so far:} 9. bxc3 b5 10. Ne5 Ra6 11. O-O Nfd7 12. a4 c6 13. Nxc6 Rxc6 14. Bxc6 Nxc6 15. axb5 Ne7 16. Qa4 $16 {Scarella,E (2348)-Del Cuadro,N (2186)/Villa Ballester 2004/CBM 101 ext (1-0, 29)}) 9. Qa4 ({We can see the fruits of the apparent loss of time ...b4+ and ...e7: with the bishop on d2,} 9. Ne5 {leaves the d4-pawn hanging.}) 9... c6 10. Qxc4 b5 11. Qb3 $146 {A slightly strange move. The queen is rather passive on this square.} ({I believe that} 11. Qd3 $1 {is crucial for the evaluation of the whole variation. White keeps an eye on the h7-square and enables e4, which would clear the c-file for the rook and the e1-a5 diagonal for the bishop.} Nbd7 ({Carlsen may have been worried about} 11... Ba6 {, but after} 12. Ne4 b4 13. Nxf6+ Bxf6 14. Qe4 $14 {the queen is quite active in the centre, defending the e2-pawn at the same time (thus allowing castling).}) 12. Ne4 Bb7 ({In the event of} 12... Ba6 13. b4 $1 $16 {[%csl Ga6,Gc6] we can notice that d2 may be useful. In this line, the manoeuvre of the black dark-squared bishop can be considered a mere loss of time.}) (12... Nd5 13. Rc1 Bb7 14. O-O {[%cal Ge4c5]} Qb6 15. Nfg5 $16 {[%csl Gd3]}) 13. Nxf6+ Bxf6 {Apart from castling, with just a more pleasant position for White, he can try the sharp attack} 14. h4 $5 e5 (14... h6 $6 15. g4 $40) 15. Ng5 g6 16. Nxh7 Kxh7 17. h5 $40) ({RR} 11. Qd3 Ba6 12. Ne4 b4 13. Nxf6+ Bxf6 14. Qc2 bxa3 15. Rxa3 Bb5 16. Bc3 Be7 17. Ra1 Na6 18. O-O Nb4 19. Bxb4 Bxb4 20. Rfd1 f6 21. e4 Kh8 22. h4 Qe8 23. Bf1 Qh5 24. Kg2 e5 25. Bxb5 cxb5 {Grischuk,A (2756)-Aronian,L (2782) Nice 2010 ½-½ (35)}) 11... Ba6 12. Bg5 {We can feel the effects of the uninspired queen retreat to b3. White has to spend some time to defend the e2-pawn before castling.} Nbd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 $6 {In certain lines of the Catalan, this way of capturing is necessary in order to avoid the minor pieces being diverted from the control of the c5-square, in order to keep the threat of ...c5 alive. In our game, Carlsen will find a brilliant way to take advantage of the kingside weaknesses.} ({Besides, there would be nothing wrong with the natural} 13... Bxf6 14. Ne4 Be7 15. O-O b4 $132) 14. Qc2 b4 15. Na4 Rc8 16. O-O c5 {When playing his 13th move, Kramnik may have evaluated this position as being in his favour. Indeed, the white queen will be in some trouble after the apparently inevitable opening of the c-file, while the e2-pawn would be hanging.} 17. d5 $3 {This brilliant pawn sacrifice changes the course of the game radically. White provokes the weakening of the f5-square and ensures a safe life for his queen. Suddenly, it appears that several black pieces (his knight and a6-bishop, for instance) are far from optimally placed.} exd5 18. Bh3 $6 {This is too slow and offers Black the few tempi he needs in order to organise his position. When both sides' regroupings will have come to an end, the passivity of the a4-knight will become an important factor.} ({Several commentators gave recommended} 18. Rfd1 $1 {In fact, it is quite logical. Black completes his development (the a1-rook is developed in view of the permanent threat of axb4) and starts fighting for the light squares in the centre.} d4 (18... Bb7 19. Nh4 $16 {retrieves the pawn with huge strategic advantage.}) 19. Qf5 $40 {Black faces the strong (and, apparently, inevitable) threat of xd4, followed by either e4 with a mating attack, or xd4 with a deadly pin along the d-file.}) 18... Bb5 19. axb4 axb4 20. Rfd1 d4 21. Bf5 Ne5 $1 {Black activates his position without hanging on to his material advantage.} 22. Bxh7+ (22. Bxc8 Qxc8 {would lead to a similar position as in the game, with the difference that the h7-pawn is still on board, defending the black king.}) 22... Kg7 23. Nxe5 fxe5 24. Bf5 {With the knight on c4, White would have a dream position, but the way it is the situation remains very complicated. In the next phase of the game, Kramnik will keep activating his pieces, even if this will cost him a significant amount of material.} Rc6 25. Qe4 Rh8 26. Qxe5+ Bf6 27. Qe4 Re8 28. Qg4+ Kf8 29. Be4 c4 $1 $44 {Finally shattering any dreams of blockade with b3 and b2-c4.} 30. Bxc6 Bxc6 {Black's bishops and his mobile mass of pawns offer Black excellent compensation. In mutual time trouble, Carlsen will go down relatively quickly.} 31. Qh5 Re5 32. Qh6+ Ke7 33. e4 $5 {An attempt to get some counterplay.} (33. Qd2 {is ineffective because of} c3 34. bxc3 Qd5 35. f3 dxc3 $36) 33... d3 $1 {Not letting himself be distracted from the main plan, consisting of advancing the pawns.} (33... Rxe4 34. Nc5 $16) (33... Bxe4 34. Qd2 $16) 34. Qe3 Bxe4 35. Nb6 $2 {A blunder in an unpleasant position.} Bb7 $19 {winning the knight. The centralisation of the e5-rook is impressive.} 36. Qf4 Qxb6 37. Qxc4 Re2 38. Rf1 0-1

[Event "Corus"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2010.01.29"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Dominguez Perez, Leinier"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2810"]
[BlackElo "2712"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2010.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 135"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 a6 8. e5 b5 9. Qb3 Nfd7 10. Ng5 $5 {A very rare move. However, in the hands of Magnus almost every sensible continuation is strong.} Nb6 11. Be3 Nc6 12. Rd1 Bf5 {Other options are still to be explored.} (12... h6 13. Nge4 $5) (12... Na5 13. Qb4 Nac4 14. Bc1 Bf5 15. Bxc4 Nxc4 16. O-O $2 (16. Nge4 $5) 16... Bc2 17. e6 Bxd1 18. exf7+ Kh8 19. Rxd1 Qd7 $17 {0-1 Hanley,C (2429)-Poobalasingam,P (2312)/Hinckley Island ENG 2010/The Week in Chess 798 (26)}) 13. Be2 (13. e6 $6 f6 14. Nf7 Qc8 15. d5 Na5 16. Qb4 Nac4 17. Bxc4 Nxc4 18. Qxe7 Nxe3 19. fxe3 Re8 20. Qc5 Bxe6 $1 21. dxe6 Qxe6 $17) 13... Na5 14. Qb4 Nac4 15. O-O f6 $146 (15... Nxe3 16. fxe3 Bh6 17. e4 $1) (15... c6 $5) ({RR} 15... e6 16. Bxc4 Nxc4 17. Nce4 Bxe4 18. Nxe4 Qd5 19. Nc3 Qb7 20. a4 c5 21. dxc5 Bxe5 22. Bd4 Rfd8 23. Bxe5 Nxe5 24. axb5 axb5 25. Qxb5 Qxb5 26. Rxd8+ Rxd8 27. Nxb5 Rb8 28. Nd4 Rxb2 29. f4 Nd3 30. c6 {Scripcaru,G (2229)-Padurean,D (2011) Slanic Moldova 2017 ½-½ (65)}) 16. Nf3 (16. Nge4 $5 Qe8 $5 $13) 16... Nxe3 17. fxe3 fxe5 $6 (17... Nd5 18. Nxd5 Qxd5 19. Qxe7 Qxa2 $13) 18. dxe5 Qe8 19. Qc5 Rc8 20. a4 (20. Nd4 $5 $36) 20... Nxa4 (20... Bc2 $6 21. Rde1 Nxa4 22. Nxa4 Bxa4 23. Nd4 {[%csl Ra4]}) 21. Nxa4 bxa4 22. Nd4 (22. Bxa6 Rb8 23. Bc4+ e6 24. Ng5 $5 h6 25. Rxf5 Rxf5 26. Bxe6+ Kh8 27. Bxf5 hxg5 28. Be4 Qxe5 $11) (22. g4 $1 Be6 23. Nd4 Rxf1+ 24. Rxf1 Bd7 25. Bxa6 Rb8 26. Rf2 $14) 22... Rb8 23. g4 (23. Rd2 Bh6 24. Nxf5 Rxf5 25. Rxf5 gxf5 26. Bxa6 e6 $11) 23... Be4 (23... Bd7 $6 24. Rxf8+ Bxf8 $8 25. e6) 24. Ne6 Rxf1+ 25. Bxf1 c6 26. Ng5 (26. Bc4 $142 Bd5 $1 27. Bxd5 cxd5 28. Rxd5 h6 $11) 26... Bd5 27. e4 Bb3 28. Bc4+ e6 $1 29. Nxe6 (29. Rf1 Bxc4 30. Qxc4 Bxe5) 29... Bxc4 30. Qxc4 Kh8 $4 $138 {Black finally succumbs to pressure.} (30... Bxe5 $1 {, and the discovered check proves harmless:} 31. Ng5+ (31. Nc5+ Qf7 32. Qxf7+ Kxf7 33. Nd7 Re8) (31. Rf1 Qe7 $1 32. Nd8+ Kh8 33. Nxc6 (33. Nf7+ Kg7 34. Nxe5 Qxe5) 33... Bxh2+ $1 34. Kxh2 Qh4+) 31... Kh8 32. Nf7+ Kg7 {, and it is now Black who will play for a win.}) 31. Nxg7 Kxg7 32. e6 $18 {[%csl Ge6]} Rb7 33. Qc3+ Kg8 34. Rd6 Re7 35. Rxc6 Qf8 36. Rc8 Re8 37. Rxe8 Qxe8 38. Qf6 Qc8 39. Kg2 Qc2+ 40. Kh3 Qc5 41. Kh4 Qb4 42. Qf7+ Kh8 43. e7 Qe1+ 44. Kg5 Qe3+ 45. Qf4 1-0

[Event "Bazna Kings 4th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2010.06.14"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2813"]
[BlackElo "2733"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2010.06.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {When asked to make few comments about the present game, Ponomariov started with the following: "It was very difficult to concentrate on chess in this game because it was very hot in the playing hall". Indeed, the Ukrainian was visibly disturbed by the high temperature and looked really happy that he got out of the playing area to reach some cooler places.} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bxf6 Bxf6 12. Nc3 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 c6 14. Rad1 a5 15. e4 Nd7 16. e5 Be7 17. Be4 Qb6 $146 ({RR} 17... Nb6 18. Qe2 Nd5 19. Bc2 Qd7 20. Qd3 f5 21. exf6 Nxf6 22. Ne4 Rad8 23. Rfe1 Bb4 24. Nxf6+ Rxf6 25. Qh7+ Kf8 26. Re2 Qf7 27. h4 c5 28. d5 exd5 29. Qh8+ Qg8 30. Rxd5 Rc8 31. Qxg8+ Kxg8 32. Bf5 {Guichard,P (2338)-Rudolf,A (2341) Reykjavik 2015 1-0 (92)}) ({RR} 17... Nb6 18. Qb3 Bb4 19. Bb1 Nd5 20. Qc2 g6 21. h4 h5 22. Ne4 Kg7 23. Kg2 Be7 24. Qe2 Rh8 25. Qf3 Qb6 26. b3 Rad8 27. Rd2 Rd7 28. Rfd1 Bb4 29. Rd3 Qd8 30. Bc2 Be7 31. R3d2 Nb4 32. Bb1 {Ponomariov,R (2739)-Leko,P (2752) Moscow 2009 ½-½ (36)}) 18. f4 {White's aggressive plan looks strong, but it is far from simple to break through. His main problem is the weak pawn on d4. Notice that due to the pin on the a7-g1 diagonal White does not threat to advance f4-f5 yet. Actually a closer look will reveal some weak dark squares in White's position.} Rad8 19. Qe2 {Carlsen: "I was very happy with my position here". However, after Ponomariov's strong answer it seems that Black faces no particular problems.} (19. f5 $2 {runs into} Nxe5) 19... Nb8 $1 {Opens the d-file for the rook and transfers the knight to a better position. Actually with this move backwards the knight is heading for square d5.} 20. Qf2 (20. f5 {The mentioned by Carlsen 20.f5 is an interesting, but of course risky pawn sacrifice.}) 20... Na6 21. Kh1 ({Again} 21. f5 {is premature due to the very strong answer} f6 $1 {and Black's pieces are better placed for the opening of the position.}) 21... f5 $1 22. Bb1 ({Both players agreed that better was} 22. Bf3 {preventing 22...h5 and preparing 23.g4.}) 22... h5 $1 23. h3 g6 24. Ba2 Nc7 {Right in time to protect everything.} 25. g4 {Black is very solid and has no troubles at all to face this advance.} hxg4 26. hxg4 Kf7 27. Kg2 Rh8 28. g5 $1 {A common quality for many strong players is to feel the danger and switch from their initial aggressive intentions to a more realistic approach. The position started to become dangerous for White and Carlsen rightly leaves aside his ambitions, trying to keep the balance now.} Rh7 29. Rh1 Rxh1 30. Kxh1 Rh8+ 31. Kg2 Qa6 {"I was happy that we passed the limit of 30 moves and I could finally offer a draw" said Ponomariov immediately after the game.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bazna Kings 4th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2010.06.16"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2813"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2010.06.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 (6. Bh4 {leads to the very sharp Moscow Variation, where these days the home preparation and good memory are much more important than anything else. Carlsen's move is more quiet, leading to a strategical battle.}) 6... Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Bd6 ({A much more popular continuation is} 9... g6 {- a move which Gelfand played many times before.}) 10. Ne4 ({In case of} 10. O-O {with the idea 11.e4 Black plays} Qe7) 10... Bb4+ 11. Nfd2 ({RR} 11. Ke2 Qf5 12. Bd3 Qa5 13. a3 Be7 14. b4 Qd8 15. h4 Nf6 16. Ne5 O-O 17. g4 Qd5 18. Nxf6+ Bxf6 19. g5 Bxe5 20. dxe5 Qxe5 21. gxh6 Qh5+ 22. Kd2 Qxh6 23. Qf3 e5 24. Rag1 Be6 25. Qe4 Rad8 {Mesa Cruz,J (2139)-Clawitter,C (2050) chess.com INT 2023 0-1}) 11... Qe7 12. O-O O-O {Black has the bishop pair, but he still must complete development and find good squares for his bishops. The position is typical for the Moscow Variation, where in order to fight for advantage White must try to make use of his lead in development. But this is a difficult task, since Black is very solid and has no weaknesses.} 13. f4 $146 {Like in the first round, Carlsen shows aggression by advancing the f-pawn. On the other hand in the present situation f2-f4 is mainly designed to prevent e6-e5.} ({RR} 13. a3 Bxd2 14. Qxd2 e5 15. Rad1 exd4 16. Qxd4 c5 {½-½ (16) Ragger,M (2628)-Erdos,V (2576) Sibenik 2010}) ({RR} 13. a3 Ba5 14. Rc1 Bc7 15. Ba2 Rd8 16. f4 Nf8 17. Nf3 Bd7 18. Ne5 Be8 19. Qf3 f6 20. Nd3 Kh8 21. Ndc5 Rab8 22. Kh1 Bg6 23. Ng3 Bb6 24. b4 a5 25. Qg4 f5 26. Qe2 axb4 27. axb4 Ra8 {Gvanceladze,A (2172)-Strutinskaya,G (2298) Moscow 2012 1-0 (34)}) 13... c5 $1 {Rightly starting to open the files as soon as possible.} 14. Nf3 ({After} 14. a3 {Black equalizes with} Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Rd8 16. Rad1 Nb6) 14... Nb6 15. Bb3 cxd4 ({Much more logical than} 15... c4 {which is suggested by computer engines. With the bishop pair Black should aim for opening of the position.}) 16. Nxd4 Bd7 17. Qh5 {Aggressive, but as mentioned before Black is very solid and a direct attack can hardly succeed against a good defence.} ({Some chances to get an opening advantage remained after} 17. a3 Bc5 18. Nxc5 Qxc5 19. Rc1 Qd6 20. Qf3) 17... Rac8 $1 {Gelfand's moves are very accurate and destroy White's attacking dreams.} 18. Rf3 Nc4 $1 19. Rg3 Kh8 {A cool answer, showing that White gets nowhere with his attacking intentions.} 20. Rf1 {Clearly overestimating White's position.} ({Also after} 20. a3 Bc5 {it is Black who fights for advantage.}) 20... Nd6 $1 {Again the best move, at least from the practical point of view.} (20... Nxb2 {is a kind of move White was hoping for. Even if there is no refutation, White gets time to try developing his attack.}) 21. Nxd6 Bxd6 22. Nf3 Rc5 $1 23. Rg5 (23. Qg4 {is answered with} f5 24. Qg6 Rf6 25. Qh5 Be8 {with advantage for Black.}) 23... Rfc8 24. Rxc5 Rxc5 25. Qh4 Qxh4 26. Nxh4 {Something went clearly wrong for White. Thanks to his bishop pair Black has an obvious advantage in endgame.} Be7 27. Nf3 a5 28. Rd1 Be8 29. Nd4 a4 30. Bc2 g6 31. Kf2 e5 {A tempting move.} ({However, as a possible improvement Gelfand suggested to bring first his king with} 31... Kg7) 32. fxe5 Rxe5 33. Rd3 Rc5 34. Rc3 Rxc3 35. bxc3 {Gelfand: "With my king in the center Black would have been winning". The problem for Black is that he cannot prevent White from playing e4 and attack immediately opponent's pawn weaknesses on the queenside.} Kg7 (35... f5 36. e4 {also allows White to escape.}) (35... Bd7 36. Be4 Bc8 37. Bc2 a3 38. Kf3 {doesn't look particularly attractive for Black wither. The white king comes first to the center via e4 and d5.}) 36. Be4 f5 37. Bxb7 Bf7 38. a3 $1 {This important resource allows White to achieve the draw.} Bxa3 39. Bc6 Bb2 (39... Bb3 40. Nxb3 axb3 41. Ba4 b2 42. Bc2 $11) 40. Bxa4 Bxc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bazna Kings 4th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2010.06.20"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ponomariov, Ruslan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E81"]
[WhiteElo "2733"]
[BlackElo "2813"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "100"]
[EventDate "2010.06.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 {Ruslan had no reasons to avoid the Samisch Variation.} O-O 6. Nge2 Nbd7 ({In the third round against Ponomariov Radjabov played} 6... e5 {but failed to equalize.}) 7. Be3 c5 8. d5 Ne5 9. Ng3 h5 10. Be2 h4 11. Nf1 e6 12. Nd2 exd5 13. cxd5 Bd7 ({RR} 13... a6 14. a4 Bd7 ({RR} 14... Rb8 15. O-O Bd7 ({RR} 15... Qe8 16. a5 Bd7 17. h3 Nh7 18. f4 Bh6 19. Qe1 Qd8 20. Nd1) 16. Bg5 c4 17. Bxh4 b5 18. axb5 axb5 19. b4) ({RR} 14... Nh7 15. f4 Nd7 16. O-O Re8 17. Bd3 Nhf6 18. Qf3 Nb6 19. f5 gxf5 20. Bg5) 15. O-O ({RR} 15. Bg5 h3 16. g3 b5) ({RR} 15. O-O b5 ({RR} 15... Qc8 16. Qc2 Nh5 17. Rfe1 f5 18. exf5 Bxf5 19. Nde4 Qd7 20. Rf1 Rae8 21. Qd2 c4 22. Kh1 Rf7 23. a5 Nf6) 16. axb5 ({RR} 16. h3 c4 17. Qe1 Rc8 18. Qxh4 b4 19. Nd1) 16... axb5 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 18. Bxb5 ({RR} 18. h3 b4 19. Ncb1 Bc8) ({RR} 18. Nxb5 Bxb5 19. Bxb5 Rb8) 18... Bxb5 19. Nxb5 Qa6 20. Nc3 Rb8 21. Qc2 Nh5 ({RR} 21... Nd3 22. Nd1 Nd7) 22. b3 Rb4 23. Na2 Qe2) 15... b5 16. axb5 axb5 17. Rxa8 Qxa8 18. Bxb5 Bxb5 19. Nxb5 Qa6 20. Na3 Rb8 21. Qc2 Rb4 22. Rb1 h3 23. Qd1 hxg2 24. Kxg2 Qd3 25. Nc2 Rb8 26. b3 Nh5 27. Nc4 Qxd1 28. Rxd1 {So,W (2753)-Firouzja,A (2777) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (60)}) ({RR} 13... h3 14. g3 a6 15. a4 Bd7 16. O-O b5 17. Qc2 Rb8 18. axb5 axb5 19. Kh1 b4 20. Nd1 Bb5 21. Bxb5 Rxb5 22. b3 Ne8 23. Rb1 Ra5 24. Nf2 Qa8 25. Nxh3 Ra2 26. Qd1 Qa6 27. Nf2 Nc7 28. f4 {Vitak,J (2267)-Mikes,J (2349) Czech Republic CZE 2025 0-1 (63)}) ({RR} 13... a6 14. a4 Bd7 15. a5 b5 16. axb6 Qxb6 17. Ra2 Qb4 18. O-O Bb5 19. Kh1 ({RR} 19. f4) 19... Rfb8 ({RR} 19... Rfe8) 20. f4 Nc4 21. Bxc4 Bxc4 22. Ra4 Bxf1 23. Rxb4 cxb4 24. Na4 Bd3 25. Nb6 Rxb6 ({RR} 25... Ra7 26. e5) 26. Bxb6 Bxe4 ({RR} 26... Rc8) 27. Nxe4 Nxe4 28. Qe1 {Ponomariov,R (2744)-Grischuk,A (2773) Wijk aan Zee 2011 CBM 141 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 13... h3 14. g3 Bd7 15. a4 a6 16. a5 b5 17. axb6 Qxb6 18. Ra2 a5 19. g4 Bc8 20. g5 Ne8 21. f4 Nd7 22. f5 Bd4 23. Nc4) ({RR} 13... Nh7 14. f4 Nd7 15. O-O Re8 16. h3 f5 17. Bf2 fxe4 18. Ndxe4 Nb6 19. Bd3 Rf8 20. Be3 Bf5 21. Qd2 Kh8 22. Rae1 Bxe4 23. Bxe4 Nc4 24. Qf2 Nxe3) 14. O-O b5 $146 {Otherwise it is not easy for Black to get counterplay. However, after this pawn sac Black does not get sufficient compensation.} ({RR} 14... h3 15. g4 b5 16. g5 Ne8 17. f4 Nc4 18. Bxc4 bxc4 19. Qe2 f5 20. gxf6 Nxf6 21. Kh1 Re8 22. Rg1 Kh7 23. Qf3 Qe7 24. Rg3 Nh5 25. Rxg6 Kxg6 26. Rg1+ Kf7 27. Qxh5+ Kf8 28. f5 Qf7 29. Qxh3 {Murtazin,B (2384)-Kathmale,S (2294) Palic 2016 1-0 (36)}) 15. Nxb5 Bxb5 16. Bxb5 Rb8 17. a4 Nh5 ({After} 17... a6 18. Bxa6 Rxb2 19. Rb1 {White exchanges Black's most active piece and remains with a a healthy extra pawn.}) 18. f4 $1 Nd7 19. Qg4 a6 {The first critical moment of the game.} 20. Bxa6 ({The simplest practical solution was} 20. Bxd7 Nf6 21. Qxh4 Qxd7 22. f5 Rxb2 23. Bg5 {with large advantage for White.}) ({Also good is} 20. Bc6) 20... Rxb2 21. Rab1 Rxd2 $1 {Magnus felt that this exchange sac is Black's only chance to complicate matters.} 22. Bxd2 Bd4+ {The second critical position.} 23. Rf2 $2 {This is actually just a blunder.} ({After} 23. Kh1 {Black has many tricks, but White is able to defend and keep the advantage. Few variations are:} Ndf6 24. Qf3 {It is also possible to take the pawn.} (24. Qxh4 Nxe4 25. Be1 $1 {and White is better. If} Kg7 {then} 26. g4) 24... Ng3+ ({doesn't work:} 24... Nxe4 25. Qxe4 Ng3+ 26. hxg3 hxg3 27. f5 $18) 25. hxg3 hxg3 26. Be1 Nxe4 27. Bxg3 Nxg3+ 28. Qxg3 Kg7 29. Rf2 $1 {and although Black still keeps the initiative, it is hardly sufficient to compensate for the missing material.}) 23... Bxf2+ 24. Kxf2 Ndf6 25. Qf3 Qe8 $1 {As Ponomariov admitted after the game, he missed this double attack. Black wins back the pawn and remains with a better position.} 26. e5 Qxa4 27. exf6 Qxa6 28. Bc3 Qc8 ({Black had a tactical solution to win White's weak pawns:} 28... Qc4 29. f5 Nxf6 $1 30. Kg1 (30. Bxf6 {runs into} Qc2+) 30... Ne4 {and White is in troubles.}) 29. Kg1 ({The last chance for White was} 29. f5 $1 Qxf5 30. Qxf5 gxf5 31. Rb6 Rd8 32. Kf3 Rd7 33. Rb8+ Kh7 34. g4 hxg3 35. hxg3 {and the activity of white pieces would have secured good chances to escape with a draw.}) 29... Qf5 30. Rf1 Re8 31. Ba1 Ra8 32. Qe3 Kh7 33. Bb2 Rb8 34. Bc1 Rb1 {After Black activated the rook he is winning.} 35. Qe8 Qxd5 36. f5 gxf5 37. Qe3 Qd4 38. Qxd4 cxd4 39. Bg5 Rxf1+ 40. Kxf1 h3 $1 41. gxh3 (41. g3 Kg6 {changes nothing, of course.}) 41... Kg6 42. Bh4 Nf4 43. Bg3 Kg5 44. Bf2 Ne6 45. Ke2 f4 46. Kf3 d3 47. h4+ Kf5 48. Bb6 Nc5 49. h5 d2 50. Ke2 Ne4 0-1

[Event "Bazna Kings 4th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2010.06.22"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2813"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2010.06.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 {Magnus shows a mature approach: considering the tournament situation, the Norwegian chooses the solid Queen's Gambit Accepted.} 4. Bf4 Nf6 5. e3 O-O 6. Nf3 Nbd7 {One of the main moves. Nevertheless the main theoretical direction is 6...c5.} 7. c5 c6 8. Bd3 b6 9. b4 a5 10. b5 ({RR} 10. a3 Ba6 11. Bxa6 Rxa6 12. O-O Qa8 13. Rb1 Qb7 14. Ne1 axb4 15. axb4 Rfa8 16. Qc2 b5 17. h3 h6 18. Nd3 Bd8 19. f3 Bc7 20. Rfe1 Ra3 21. Qd2 Qb8 22. Ne2 e5 23. dxe5 Nxe5 24. Bxe5 Bxe5 {Nakamura,H (2788)-Lazavik,D (2566) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (44)}) 10... Bb7 ({After} 10... cxb5 11. c6 {White gets a strong passed pawn. In this concrete situation Black can use the fact that the white king is on e1 and continue} Bb4 12. Rc1 Ne4 {but still the strong c-pawn should secure White better chances after} 13. Bxe4 dxe4 14. Nd2) 11. cxb6 ({RR} 11. bxc6 Bxc6 12. cxb6 Qxb6 13. Rb1 Bb4 14. O-O Qa7 15. Nb5 Bxb5 16. Bxb5 Ne4 17. Qd3 Rfc8 18. Rbc1 Bd6 19. Bxd6 {½-½ (19) Gelfand,B (2751)-Ivanchuk,V (2754) Khanty-Mansiysk 2010}) 11... Qxb6 $146 ({RR} 11... Nxb6 12. bxc6 Bxc6 13. O-O Bb4 14. Rc1 Qe8 15. Ne5 Na4 16. Nxc6 Nxc3 17. Qb3 Qxc6 18. a3 Qd7 19. axb4 axb4 20. Ra1 Qe7 21. h3 h6 22. f3 Nd7 23. Bc7 Rfc8 24. Ra5 e5 25. Bf5 exd4 26. Rxa8 {Manish,A (2236)-Utsab,C (2324) Gurugram 2022 0-1 (36)}) ({RR} 11... Nxb6 12. bxc6 Bxc6 13. O-O Bb4 14. Rc1 Qe8 15. Ne5 Na4 16. Nxc6 Nxc3 17. Qb3 Qxc6 18. a3 Qd7 19. axb4 axb4 20. Ra1 Qe7 21. h3 h6 22. f3 Nd7 23. Bc7 Rfc8 24. Ra5 e5 25. Bf5 exd4 26. Rxa8 {Manish,A (2236)-Utsab,C (2324) Gurugram 2022 0-1 (36)}) 12. O-O Rfc8 13. bxc6 Bxc6 14. Rb1 Qd8 15. Qe2 Ne4 16. Rfc1 {It seems that the game will reach a draw without any complications.} Ndf6 {This move invites Gelfand to start a forced play.} (16... Bb4 {was objectively better, with equality.}) 17. Ba6 Ba3 (17... Bb7 18. Bxb7 Nxc3 19. Qc2 {favours White.}) ({A possible alternative to the game was} 17... Nxc3 18. Rxc3 Bb7 19. Rxc8 Bxc8 20. Bd3 Bd7 {and Black is only slightly worse.}) 18. Rc2 Rxa6 19. Qxa6 Ba4 20. Nxa4 Rxc2 {After a more or less forced sequence of moves we reach the critical position where in spite of multiple attractive possibilities, there is no clear way for White to achieve advantage.} 21. h3 ({The alternatives were:} 21. Qd3 Rc1+ 22. Rxc1 Bxc1 {with a small plus for White}) ({Or} 21. Ne1 Rc8 22. Nb6 Rc3 23. Qxa5 Bf8 {and Black has compensation due to the lack of coordination between white pieces.}) 21... Bf8 22. Nc5 h6 (22... Rxf2 {loses due to} 23. Nxe6 fxe6 24. Qxe6+ Kh8 25. Rb8) 23. Qa7 (23. a4 Qe7 24. Qxa5 Nxc5 25. dxc5 Qxc5 26. Qxc5 Bxc5 {is also not problematic for Black.}) 23... Bxc5 $1 ({Both players came to the conclusion that after} 23... Nxc5 24. Rb8 Qd7 25. Qa8 Qe7 ({Not} 25... Nce4 $2 26. Rxf8+ Kh7 27. Ne5) 26. dxc5 Qxc5 27. Ne5 {White's initiative is worth more than a pawn.}) 24. dxc5 Rxc5 25. Rb8 Rc8 26. Bc7 ({Here White had a nice way to make a draw, which was objectively the best continuation:} 26. Ne5 Rxb8 27. Qxf7+ Kh8 ({or} 27... Kh7 28. Qg6+) 28. Ng6+ Kh7 29. Bxb8 Qxb8 30. Nf8+ Kh8 31. Ng6+ Kh7 $11) 26... Qe8 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. Bxa5 (28. Qxa5 Ne8 {is also slightly better for Black}) 28... Qc1+ 29. Be1 Nd2 $1 ({Gelfand considered only} 29... Ng5 {which is equal after} 30. Qb8+ Kh7 31. Nxg5+ hxg5 32. Qb4) 30. Nxd2 Qxe1+ 31. Nf1 Ne4 32. Qb8+ Kh7 33. Qb2 ({In fact Carlsen could have continued the game with} 33. Qb2 Qd1 {and White still must play accurately before reaching the draw. But Carlsen didn't think that Black has any advantage and therefore after a relatively long thought he accepted the draw offer.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bazna Kings 4th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2010.06.25"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2752"]
[BlackElo "2813"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2010.06.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 137"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bd2 Bg7 6. e4 Nb6 7. Be3 O-O 8. Bb5 {The chess of 21st century. The classic masters of the past would have hardly thought to place the bishop to b5 like this. Indeed, the move 8.b5 appeared in practice only in 2001 and since then it became amazingly popular. White's idea is to prevent Black from placing the knight to c6. A move like 8.. .a6 weakens a bit the knight from b6. However, fashion comes and goes: in my opinion this sortie of the bishop looks somewhat artificial. Wang Yue certainly has a different opinion though, as he played 8.b5 before.} Be6 ({Here is a possible variation where White is using the drawbacks of the advance 8...a6:} 8... a6 9. Be2 Nc6 10. d5 Ne5 11. Bd4 c5 12. Bxc5 Nec4 13. Qb3 {and with the pawn on a7 Black would have taken on b2 followed by Na4. Here is doesn't work:} Nxb2 14. Bxb6 Bxc3+ 15. Kf1 $1 Qd6 16. Rb1 {and Black is in troubles.}) 9. Nge2 c6 {A logical novelty. Before placing the knight to c4 Black tries to win a tempo.} ({After the immediate} 9... Nc4 {White can either take on c4, which is a slightly more favorable version for White than the game (since the black pawn is on c7 instead of c6), or another possibility is} 10. Bc1 c6 11. Ba4 {as in the game Bosch,J (2444)-Nijboer,F (2556)/Leeuwarden 2002.}) ({In case of} 9... Bc4 {White can continue} 10. O-O Bxb5 11. Nxb5 {with some edge.}) 10. Bd3 Nc4 11. Bxc4 Bxc4 12. O-O $146 ({RR} 12. Qd2 e5 13. d5 Qa5 14. O-O f5 15. f3 cxd5 16. exd5 Nd7 17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. b4 Qxb4 19. Rab1 Qa5 20. Rxb7 Nc5 21. Rxg7+ Kxg7 22. Bh6+ Kg8 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. Qe3 Bxe2 25. Nxe2 e4 26. Nf4 exf3 {Kavutskiy,K (2301)-Larson,M Saint Louis 2012 1-0 (35)}) 12... Nd7 13. Qd2 Qa5 14. Rfd1 Rad8 {Black has two bishops and can create pressure on d4. The position is close to equal, but it is rather White who should play accurately. The Chinese Grandmaster failed to do so.} 15. Bh6 {An obvious desire to exchange "the monster" from g7, especially because Black enjoys the bishop pair.} (15. b3 Ba6 16. Bh6 {was a possible alternative: with the white pawn on b3 the entire plan with b6 (which happened in the game) loses its attractiveness.}) 15... Bxe2 16. Nxe2 $6 {The start of all White's problems.} ({Why not the simple} 16. Bxg7 {exchanging the dark-squared bishops? White has little to fear after that. Here are few sample variations:} Bxd1 (16... Kxg7 17. Qxe2 $11) 17. Bxf8 Nxf8 18. Rxd1 Ne6 19. d5 Nc7 (19... cxd5 20. Nxd5 Qxd2 21. Rxd2 Kg7 22. Rc2 Nf4 23. Ne3 $11) 20. h4 cxd5 21. exd5 h5 22. Qg5 $11) 16... Qxd2 17. Bxd2 Nb6 18. Bc3 Rd7 {The endgame is quite unpleasant for White. Black's plan is to double rooks on the d-file and then use the pin of the d4-pawn by playing e7-e5. Apart from that Black can also disturb opponent's pawn center with f7-f5.} 19. b3 f5 20. f3 Rfd8 {The threat is 21...e5.} 21. Re1 fxe4 22. fxe4 e5 $1 {Still! A very energetic play by Carlsen.} 23. dxe5 Rd3 {Black plans d7xe5.} 24. g3 $6 {It only weakens further White's position.} ({White can try a move like} 24. Bb2 {in order to meet 24...d7 with 25.f4. If} Rd2 (24... g5 $5) 25. Bc3 Rc2 26. Rac1 Rxa2 27. Ra1 Rxa1 28. Rxa1 Ra8 29. Bd4 Nd7 30. Rxa7 Rxa7 31. Bxa7 {White should be able to escape, since Black cannot lock the bishop yet with 31. ..b6 or 31...c5 in view of 32.e6.}) 24... Nd7 25. e6 Bxc3 26. Nxc3 Ne5 27. Red1 Kf8 {Now the position is already difficult for White. At least from the practical point of view Black's chances to win are probably higher than White's chances to draw.} 28. Rac1 Ke7 29. Rxd3 Rxd3 30. Rc2 Nf3+ 31. Kf1 Nd4 32. Rc1 Kxe6 33. Rd1 Rxc3 34. Rxd4 Rc2 35. a4 (35. Ra4 a6 36. h4 Ke5 {is a zugzwang for White: the rook must protect both a2 and e4, the king must control g2 and e2. The outcome is clear, Black wins.}) 35... Rxh2 36. a5 Rh5 37. b4 Rh2 38. a6 b5 39. e5 Ra2 40. Rd6+ Kxe5 41. Rxc6 Kf5 42. Rc7 Rxa6 43. Rxh7 Kg4 44. Kf2 Ra2+ 45. Ke3 g5 46. Rg7 Rb2 47. Rxa7 Kxg3 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-39"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2010.09.22"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Galego, Luis"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2500"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2010.09.21"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Portugal"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "POR"]
[TimeControl "40/5400+30:1800+30"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 6. g3 O-O 7. Bg2 Nbd7 8. Qc2 c6 9. Nbd2 Qe7 10. O-O e5 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. e4 {White's plan is to play his center majority against black's queenside majority.} N5f6 $6 ({The usual move is} 12... N5b6) 13. Rfe1 exd4 $146 ({RR} 13... Rd8 14. Rad1 exd4 15. Nxd4 Nb6 16. N2b3 Bg4 17. f3 Be6 18. Qc5 Qe8 19. e5 Nfd7 20. Qc1 Nf8 21. f4 Bxb3 22. Nxb3 Ne6 23. Rd6 Nc8 24. Rxc6 {1-0 (24) Karpov,A (2730)-Andersson,U (2625) Reykjavik 1991}) 14. e5 Nd5 15. Nxd4 N7b6 16. f4 $1 Nb4 17. Qe4 {White has achieved what he wanted and is clearly to be favored.} Rd8 18. N2f3 Bg4 19. Rad1 Bxf3 $2 {Why play this without being forced to?} 20. Bxf3 Qc5 {#} ({Black would still be in big trouble after} 20... Nxa2 21. f5 $1 Nd5 22. f6 $1 {and his position would collapse after} gxf6 $6 23. Nf5 $1 Qf8 24. Qh4 b6 25. Bxd5 Rxd5 26. Nh6+ Kh8 (26... Kg7 27. Qxf6#) 27. Qxf6+ Qg7 28. Nxf7+ Kg8 29. Qxc6) 21. e6 $1 fxe6 22. Kh1 Qd5 23. Qe3 Qxa2 24. Nxe6 Rxd1 25. Rxd1 {The threat of Qe5 is very tough to meet.} Qxb2 $2 26. Nd8 $1 {This lovely move wins by force.} Qf6 27. Qe8+ Qf8 28. Qe6+ Kh8 29. Nf7+ Kg8 {#} 30. Rd8 $1 Rxd8 31. Nxd8+ Kh8 32. Nf7+ Kg8 33. Ng5+ Kh8 34. Qe4 g6 35. Qd4+ Qg7 36. Qxb4 $2 {Winning a piece and no doubt the game, but he had a stronger continuation all the same.} (36. Qd8+ Qg8 37. Qf6+ Qg7 38. Nf7+ Kg8 39. Nh6+ $1 {Undoubtedly the move that Carlsen missed.} Qxh6 40. Bg4 $1 {and the threat of Be6 is unstoppable.}) 36... h6 37. Ne4 Nd5 38. Qa3 b5 39. Qc5 b4 40. Qxc6 Qa1+ 41. Kg2 Ne3+ 42. Kf2 Qd4 43. Qe8+ Kg7 44. Qe7+ 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-39"]
[Site "Khanty-Mansiysk"]
[Date "2010.09.24"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Jobava, Baadur"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E24"]
[WhiteElo "2710"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "127"]
[EventDate "2010.09.21"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Georgia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "GEO"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. a3 Bxc3+ 5. bxc3 Nc6 {A rare continuation (with the idea of ...e6-e5), to which White replies with a genuine novelty on move 6!} 6. e4 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8] Practice had seen:} (6. Bg5 e5 $5 7. e3 h6 8. Bh4 Qe7 9. Nf3 d6 10. Be2 g5 11. Bg3 Ne4 12. Rc1 f5 {(..) 1/2 Stahlberg,G-Porat,Y/Warsaw 1935/EXT 2004}) (6. Nf3 d6 $5 7. Nd2 e5 8. e4 $6 exd4 9. cxd4 Nxd4 10. Bb2 Ne6 11. Bd3 b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Re1 O-O $15 {1/2 Kuzminykh,E-Bronstein,D/Leningrad 1970/EXT 2001 (25)}) (6. e3 $5 e5 7. Bd3 O-O {leads to a position from the 5...0-0 system}) (6. f3 e5 (6... d6 7. e4 O-O {leads to the 5...0-0 system}) (6... b6 7. e4 Ba6 {leads to a popular position from the 5...b6 system (6.f3 Ba6 7.e4 Nc6).}) 7. e4 d6 8. Be3 b6 9. Bd3 Na5 10. Ne2 Ba6 11. Ng3 h6 (11... O-O $142 {- 5...0-0}) 12. O-O Qd7 13. Qe2 O-O-O $6 14. Nf5 $1 Rh7 15. c5 $1 $16 {1-0 Lazarev,E-Romantchouk,J/Ternopol 1964/EXT 1999 (22)}) 6... Nxe4 7. Qg4 f5 (7... Nf6 8. Qxg7 Rg8 9. Qh6 e5 $5 {needs testing.}) 8. Qxg7 Qf6 9. Qxf6 Nxf6 {This position presents a typical positional conflict: White has a bishop pair with an asymmetrical pawn structure (which should favour him) but his own pawn chain is damaged (doubled pawns). Such positions are very hard to evaluate; usually the better player prevails.} 10. Nf3 $146 ({RR} 10. Be2 Rg8 11. Nf3 d6 12. O-O Bd7 13. d5 Ne5 14. Nd4 exd5 15. cxd5 Nxd5 16. Bh5+ Ng6 17. Re1+ Kf7 18. Bf3 Nxc3 19. Bxb7 Rab8 20. Bf3 Rge8 21. Bd2 Ne4 22. Bh6 c5 23. Ne2 d5 24. Nf4 d4 {Meessen,R (2214)-Vernacki,S (2283) Germany GER 2025 0-1 (33)}) 10... b6 11. d5 $5 {A curious pawn sacrifice, which Black, however, rejects.} Na5 (11... exd5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Bd3 $5 (13. Bc4 Nce7) 13... O-O 14. Bc4 Nce7 15. Bg5 Kg7 16. O-O-O $44) 12. Nd4 Kf7 13. dxe6+ dxe6 14. Bf4 Ba6 {Black keeps the tension. He had a good chance to simplify the game:} (14... e5 $1 15. Bxe5 Re8 16. f4 Ng4 17. O-O-O (17. Be2 Nxe5 18. fxe5 Rxe5 19. O-O c5 $1 20. Bf3 Rb8 21. Nb5 Kf6 22. Nxa7 Bb7 $15) (17. Nf3 Nc6 $15) 17... Nf2 $1 (17... Nxe5 18. fxe5 Rxe5 19. Bd3 $36 {[%csl Rf7]}) 18. Be2 Nxh1 19. Bh5+ Kf8 20. Rxh1 Bd7 $1 (20... Re7 $143 21. Bf3 Bb7 22. Bxb7 Nxb7 23. Nxf5 $44) 21. Bxe8 Rxe8 $15 {/=}) 15. Nf3 Ne4 16. Ne5+ Kf6 17. f3 (17. h4 $5 Nxc3 18. Rh3 Ne4 19. Re3 $44 {[%cal Yg2g4]}) 17... Nd6 18. O-O-O Rhd8 $6 {Again avoiding drawish lines like} (18... Naxc4 19. Nxc4 (19. Rxd6 Nxe5 $1 20. Bxe5+ Kxe5 21. Rc6 Bxf1 22. Rxf1 Kf6 23. Re1 Rae8 24. Rxc7 Re7 25. Rc6 h5 $11) 19... Bxc4 (19... Nxc4 20. Rd4 e5 21. Bxc4 Bxc4 22. Rxc4 exf4 $11) 20. Rxd6 $1 Bxf1 21. Rd7 Bb5 22. Rxc7 Rac8 $11) (18... Ndxc4 $6 19. Bxc4 Nxc4 20. Rhe1 Nd6 21. Nc6 $44) (18... Bxc4 $6 19. Rxd6 cxd6 20. Nxc4 Nxc4 21. Bxc4 Rac8 22. Bb3 Rxc3+ 23. Kb2 Rd3 24. Rc1 $132) ({To complicate the game,} 18... Rhg8 $5 {was probably more appropriate; if} 19. h4 {then} Bxc4 {gains in strength.}) ({Or the mysterious} 18... Rac8 $5 19. c5 Bxf1 20. Rhxf1 Nb3+ 21. Kc2 Nxc5 22. Rfe1 $44) 19. h4 $1 {[%mdl 160] Now White obtains pressure on the kingside.} Nf7 20. Nd7+ Kg7 (20... Ke7 $2 21. Bg5+ $1 Nxg5 22. hxg5 $16) 21. Rh3 $1 (21. g4 $5 Bxc4 22. Bh3 $36) 21... Kh8 $1 22. Bg5 $6 (22. Bxc7 $142 Rdc8 23. Bf4 Nxc4 24. Rd4 $1 $16 {[%cal Yh3g3]} (24. Rg3 e5 $1 25. Nxe5 Nfxe5 26. Bxe5+ Nxe5 27. Bxa6 Rxc3+ $11) 24... e5 $140 $2 25. Bxc4 $1 Bxc4 26. Nxe5 $18) 22... Nxg5 23. hxg5 Kg7 (23... Bxc4 24. g6 (24. Nf6 Rxd1+ 25. Kxd1 Kg7 26. Rxh7+ Kg6) (24. Bxc4 $5 Nxc4 25. f4 Kg7 26. Rh6 $16 {-23...Kg7}) 24... h6 $1 25. Bxc4 Nxc4 26. Rxh6+ Kg7 27. Rh7+ Kxg6 28. Rdh1 $40) 24. Rh6 $1 Bxc4 25. Bxc4 Nxc4 26. Rdh1 (26. f4 $5) 26... Rh8 27. f4 $6 (27. Rxe6 Rae8 28. Rc6 Re7 (28... Nxa3 29. Nf6 $16 Re7 $140 30. Nd5 Rd7 31. Nxc7 $18 {[%cal Rc1b2]}) 29. Nf6 Ne5 30. Nh5+ Kf8 31. Rf6+ $1 Rf7 32. Rh6 $16 {[%cal Yh5f4]}) 27... c5 $6 (27... Rad8 $142 28. Nf6 c5 (28... Rd3 $2 29. Rxh7+ Rxh7 30. Rxh7+ Kg6 31. Rh6+ Kf7 32. Nh5 {[%cal Rg5g6]} Rxc3+ 33. Kb1 Rb3+ 34. Kc2 $18) 29. Rxh7+ $140 ({maybe it is better not to hurry:} 29. a4) 29... Rxh7 30. Rxh7+ Kg6 31. Rh6+ Kf7 32. Nh5 Rg8 $1 {- Black holds on.}) 28. Rxe6 Rae8 29. Rxh7+ (29. Rxe8 $5 {was also good:} Rxe8 30. Nf6 Re3 (30... Rh8 31. Rh6 {etc.}) 31. Rxh7+ Kg6 32. Rh6+ Kf7 33. Nh5 Kg8 34. Rg6+ (34. g6 Re1+ 35. Kc2 Re6 $1 {-that's the point!}) 34... Kf8 35. Rf6+ Kg8 (35... Ke7 36. g6) 36. g6 {[%cal Rg6g7]} Re1+ $8 37. Kc2 Rh1 38. Ng3 Ne3+ 39. Kd3 Nd5 40. Rc6 $1 Rd1+ 41. Kc4 Ne3+ 42. Kb5 $18) 29... Rxh7 30. Rxe8 {[%mdl 4096]} Kf7 (30... Nxa3 31. Ne5 {[%cal Yg2g4]}) (30... Rh1+ 31. Kc2 Nxa3+ 32. Kb3 Nb1 33. Re7+ $18) 31. Ra8 Rh1+ 32. Kc2 a5 (32... Nxa3+ 33. Kb3 Nb5 34. Ne5+ Kg7 (34... Ke7 35. g6 Kf6 36. Rf8+ Kg7 37. Rf7+ Kh8 38. g4 $1 $18) 35. g4 $1 fxg4 36. f5 {, and White's connected passed pawns decide the game.}) (32... Ke6 33. Ne5 $1 Nxe5 34. Re8+ $18 {e.g.} Kd5 35. Rxe5+ Kc4 36. g4 $1 fxg4 37. g6 Rh8 38. g7 Rg8 39. Rg5 b5 40. Kd2 a5 41. Rxg4 Kd5 42. Kd3 $18 {}) 33. Ra7 (33. Kd3 $142 $1 b5 (33... Nb2+ 34. Ke2 Nc4 35. Rf8+ Ke7 36. g6 $18) 34. Ra7) 33... Nxa3+ 34. Kd2 $1 Rh2 $2 (34... Nb5 35. Rb7 Nd6 {was the last chance. A possible line:} 36. Ne5+ Kg8 37. Rxb6 Ne4+ 38. Kd3 Rd1+ (38... Rc1 39. Kc4 {[%cal Yc4d5,Yd5e6]} a4 40. Rb8+ Kg7 41. Rb7+ Kg8 42. Ra7 Nxc3 43. g3 $22 Kf8 (43... a3 44. Nd3 Rc2 45. Kb3) 44. Ng6+ Ke8 45. Nh4 Ne4+ 46. Kd5 Nxg3 47. Rxa4 $18) (38... a4 39. Kc4) 39. Kc4 Nd6+ 40. Kxc5 Ne4+ 41. Kb5 Nxc3+ (41... Rb1+ 42. Kxa5 Rxb6 43. Kxb6 Nxc3 44. Kc6 $18) 42. Kc6 Ne2 43. Rb8+ Kg7 44. Rb7+ Kg8 45. Ng6 Rd4 46. Ne7+ Kf8 47. g6 Rb4 48. Ra7 Nxf4 49. g3 $1 Ne6 50. Nd5 {, and White should win.}) 35. Nxb6+ Kg6 36. Rxa5 Rxg2+ 37. Kd1 Nb1 (37... Nc2 38. Nd5) 38. Rxc5 {, and White converted his material advantage without major problems:} Nd2 39. Nd5 Ne4 40. Rc6+ Kf7 41. Ne3 Rg3 42. Ke2 Ke8 43. Re6+ Kf7 44. Re5 Nxc3+ 45. Kf2 Rh3 46. Rxf5+ Kg6 47. Rf6+ Kg7 48. Nf5+ Kg8 49. Kg2 Rd3 50. Rd6 Ne2 51. Rg6+ Kh8 52. Rh6+ Kg8 53. Ne7+ Kf7 54. Ng6 Kg7 55. Kf2 Nc3 56. Ne7 Ne4+ 57. Ke2 Ra3 58. Nf5+ Kg8 59. Re6 Nc3+ 60. Kf3 Nd5+ 61. Kg4 Ra1 62. Re5 Rg1+ 63. Kf3 Rf1+ 64. Kg2 1-0

[Event "Grand Slam Final 3rd"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2010.10.09"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2010.10.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 {About 40 years ago, when Black's 4-th move was still regarded as only an experiment, this -sortie was considered to be the strongest reaction and almost refutation of 4...a6. Nowadays things have changed a lot, White tries to build up some pressure without too much risk.} ({The main move is} 5. b3 {, with heavily analysed theory after} Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Nc3 ({and especially} 7. Bg2 {often going on far beyond the opening and even middlegame.})) ({The sharp alternative, connected with a -sacrifice, is} 5. Qc2 $5 Bb7 6. Bg2 c5 7. d5 exd5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. O-O {This line has quickly developed in the past 5 years and is still highly topical. However, it hardly suits Kramnik's style, so the ex-champion adopts the more restrained old move. Lately it has become fasionable again and it occurred in quite a few high-level games.}) 5... Bb7 (5... c5 6. Bg2 ({The usual reaction, as} 6. d5 exd5 7. cxd5 Bb7 {is a rather inferior version of the aforementioned -sacrifice.}) 6... Bb7 {is only a transposition.}) ({Interesting and less explored is} 5... c6 6. Nc3 (6. Bg2 {is too soft due to} b5 $1 7. cxb5 cxb5 8. Qd1 Nc6 9. O-O Rc8 10. Nbd2 Be7 11. Nb3 b4 12. Re1 d5 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. e3 O-O 16. Nc5 Bb5 17. Bf1 Bxf1 18. Rxf1 e5 (18... Be7 $11) 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxc5 21. Nd3 Rc4 $132 {Smejkal,J-Kavalek,L/CS-ch Luhacovice/1968/}) 6... b5 $5 ({This positional sacrifice in the spirit of the Volga/Benko gambit is the main point, otherwise Black risks getting under positional pressure. An old example is} 6... d5 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Ne5 Bb7 9. Bg5 Be7 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O h6 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. f4 a5 14. Rad1 Qc8 15. e4 b5 16. Qc2 Na6 17. Rc1 Nc7 18. Rfd1 Qe6 19. Nxd5 $1 Nxd5 20. exd5 cxd5 21. Qc7 Ra7 22. Qc5 $16 {Furman,S-Keres,P/URS-ch Moscow/1948/}) 7. cxb5 cxb5 8. Nxb5 Qb6 9. Nc3 Bb4 10. Bg2 O-O 11. O-O Bxc3 (11... Rc8 12. Bd2 Nc6 13. Qd1 d5 14. Na4 Qb5 15. Bxb4 Qxb4 16. Nc5 Qa5 17. Rc1 Rab8 18. b3 Ne4 19. Qe1 Nxc5 20. Qxa5 Nxa5 21. Rxc5 Nb7 $1 $11 {1/2 Appolonov,S-Berzinsh,R/Alma-Ata 1991/TD (35)}) 12. bxc3 Bxe2 13. Re1 Bb5 14. Qb3 d5 (14... Bc6 15. c4 Na6 16. Bf4 Be4 17. Be5 d5 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Qe3 Nb4 20. Qh6 $40 Qd8 21. Nh4 Bxg2 22. Nxg2 Kh8 23. Nf4 Rg8 24. Rab1 Nc2 $2 25. Nxe6 $1 {1-0,Skembris,S (2545)-Timman,J (2620)/Corfu m/1993/}) 15. Ne5 Nbd7 16. Be3 Rab8 17. Rab1 $6 (17. a4 Ba6 18. Qa3 $13) 17... Qa6 18. Qd1 Nxe5 19. dxe5 Nd7 20. Bd4 Bc4 21. Qd2 h6 $15 {Leriche,E (2319)-Gervasio,R (2310)/FRA-chT2/2004/}) 6. Bg2 c5 7. dxc5 {White tries to keep more tension in the position. Nikolic's favourite is} (7. O-O cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxg2 9. Kxg2 Qc7 10. Rd1 a6 11. Nc3 Qb7+ (11... Be7 12. f3 O-O 13. Bf4 Qb7 14. e4 d6 15. Nde2 Rd8 16. Rd2 Nc6 17. Rad1 Ne8 18. a3 Rdc8 19. h4 h6 20. h5 Na5 21. b3 Qc7 22. e5 Rd8 23. exd6 Bxd6 24. Ne4 Bxf4 25. Nxf4 Rxd2+ 26. Rxd2 Nc6 27. b4 Ne5 28. c5 Nf6 $5 $132 {Browne,W-Andersson,U/Buenos Aires/1978/}) 12. f3 Be7 13. Bg5 h6 (13... Nc6 14. Bxf6 $142 $5 (14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Qxc6 dxc6 17. Ne4 Ke7 18. Nxf6 Kxf6 19. Rd6 Rhd8 20. Rad1 (20. Rxc6 Rd2 $44 {}) 20... Ke7 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Rxd8 Kxd8 {1/2,Nikolic,P (2630)-Psakhis,L (2565)/ECC Eupen/1997/}) 14... gxf6 (14... Bxf6 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Qxc6 dxc6 18. Nd6+ $36) 15. Nxc6 Qxc6 (15... dxc6 16. Ne4 $1 $36 (16. Rd3 O-O 17. Rad1 Rfd8 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 19. Rxd8+ Bxd8 20. Qd1 Be7 21. Qd4 Qc7 22. Ne4 Qd8 23. Qxd8+ Bxd8 24. g4 Be7 25. f4 Kf8 26. f5 $14 {Molina,R (2322)-Bittencourt,J (2448)/BRA-ch Rio de Janeiro/2007/})) 16. Rd3 (16. Qxc6 dxc6 17. Rd3 $14) 16... Qxa4 17. Nxa4 b5 18. cxb5 axb5 19. Nb6 Ra7 {Chetverik,M (2289)-Gerstner,B (2144)/Bad Wiessee/2006/} 20. Rb3 $14) 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Rd3 (16. Qb3 Qc7 17. Rac1 O-O 18. f4 Nc6 19. Nf3 Rfd8 20. Qe3 Rac8 21. g4 d5 22. cxd5 exd5 23. Ng3 (23. Nd4 Qb7 $11) 23... Bc5 24. Qd2 a5 25. a3 Qe7 26. Qd3 Qf6 27. Qd2 Qe6 28. f5 Qe7 $15 {Nikolic,P (2659)-Karpov,A (2696)/Monte Carlo blindfold rpd/2000/}) 16... O-O 17. Rad1 Rc8 18. Qb3 Ra7 19. e3 Qc7 20. a3 {Hoefer,H (1960)-Skrzynski,I (1713)/corr/2000/} Nc6 $11 {}) 7... bxc5 {An important moment, which defines the character of the ensuing struggle. Taking towards the  is natural, but equally logical is the even more often played developing move} (7... Bxc5 8. Nc3 O-O 9. O-O Be7 (9... Ne4 10. Qc2 Nxc3 11. Qxc3 d5 12. Rd1 Nd7 13. Bg5 {Die korrekte Verteidigung bestand in} Be7 $5 (13... Qe8 14. cxd5 Bxd5 15. b4 Be7 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. Nd4 Nf6 19. b5 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Rd5 21. Nc6 Qd7 22. Qc2 Qb7 23. a4 h6 24. e4 Rc5 25. Qd3 $36 {Dautov,R (2606)-Polgar,J (2656)/Istanbul olm/2000/}) 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. cxd5 Bxd5 16. Rac1 Nc5 17. Ne5 $1 (17. b4 Na4 $1 18. Qc2 b5 19. a3 a5 $11 {Dautov}) 17... Bxg2 18. Kxg2 a5 19. Qf3 Rac8 20. h4 (20. Nc4 $5 Qc7 21. Qf4 $14) 20... f6 21. Nc4 Qc7 22. Nd6 Rcd8 23. Nb5 Qe5 24. Nc3 f5 25. Qc6 Qb8 26. Rxd8 Rxd8 27. Rd1 Rxd1 28. Nxd1 Qb7 29. Qxb7 Nxb7 30. Kf3 Nd6 31. Kf4 Kf7 32. Ke5 Ke7 33. Ne3 {Nikolic,P (2652)-Istratescu,A (2561)/EU-ch Ohrid/2001/} b5 $5 {f7,d6=}) 10. Rd1 Na6 11. Bf4 Nc5 12. Qc2 Qc8 {A more recent attempt is} 13. Rd4 $5 (13. Rac1 Nce4 14. Nd4 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 a6 (15... Bxg2 16. Kxg2 a6 17. Qf3 Ra7 18. a4 Qb7 19. Qxb7 Rxb7 20. f3 Rc8 21. e4 d6 22. Ne2 Ne8 23. h4 Kf8 24. b3 Rc6 25. Rd3 Bf6 26. Rcd1 Be7 27. h5 $14 {,Ftacnik,L (2596)-Sax,G (2568)/ECC Saint Vincent/2005/}) 16. Qb3 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Qb7+ 18. Qf3 Ne4 $5 ({More enterprising than} 18... Ra7 19. Qxb7 Rxb7 20. f3 Rc8 21. e4 d6 22. Ne2 Ne8 23. b3 h5 24. h4 g6 25. Rd2 Rbc7 26. Rd3 Rc5 27. a4 R5c6 28. Rcd1 Rc5 29. Kf1 Bf8 30. Nc3 Rb8 31. R1d2 Rb7 32. Ke2 $14 {Piket,J (2633)-Chuchelov,V (2518)/NED-chT/2000/ Similar to Ftacnik-Sax above, Black must patiently defend a slightly worse .}) 19. Nb3 f5 20. Nd2 (20. Kg1 Bf6 $132) 20... g5 $1 21. Nxe4 fxe4 22. Qg4 h5 23. Qxh5 gxf4 24. Qg6+ Kh8 25. Qh6+ Kg8 {1/2,Van Wely,L (2654)-Chuchelov,V (2603)/Bundesliga 2003/}) 13... d5 14. cxd5 (14. Rc1 Nce4 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Ne5 g5 $5 (16... Rd8 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. Rd1 Qe8 19. Be3 h6 20. a3 Rc8 21. b4 Rc7 22. h4 Qc8 23. Qb3 Ba6 24. Rd4 Ne8 25. Bxe4 Bf6 {Timman,J (2591)-Jackova,J (2388)/Marianske Lazne /2009/} 26. Qd3 $5 Bxc4 27. Rxc4 Bxe5 $11 {/}) 17. Be3 $5 (17. Bxg5 Qc5 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Rd7 Bc8 20. Ng4 Bg5 21. b4 $5 (21. Rdd1 f5 22. b4 Qxb4 23. Rb1 Qc5 24. Rb5 Qc7 25. h4 (25. f4 $2 exf3 26. Bxf3 Ba6 27. Re5 Rad8 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Kg2 Bc8 30. h4 Be7 $19 {Koneru,H (2600)-Zhao Xue (2462)/Ulan Bator/2010/}) 25... Be7 26. Bxe4 Rb8 27. Bxf5 exf5 28. Nh6+ Kh8 29. Nxf5 Bf6 $15 {/}) 21... Qf5 22. Bxe4 Qxg4 23. Rd4 f5 24. h3 Qxe4 25. Rxe4 Bxc1 26. Qxc1 (26. Rd4 Bg5 $13) 26... fxe4 27. Qg5+ Kh8 $11) 17... Qc7 18. f4 exf3 (18... Bc5 19. Qc3 gxf4 20. gxf4 Bxd4 21. Bxd4 $44 {,Turov,M (2628)-Filip,L (2470)/Rethymnon/2010/}) 19. Nxf3 h6 $5 $13 {/} (19... e5 20. Qf5 $1 exd4 21. Qxg5+ Kh8 22. Bxd4 Qd8 23. Rd1 $44) (19... Bc5 $5)) 14... Nxd5 15. Bg5 Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Nf6 17. Bxb7 Qxb7 18. b4 h6 19. Nf3 (19. Nxf7 Qxf7 20. bxc5 Rac8 $132) 19... Ncd7 20. Nb5 Rfc8 21. Qd2 Rc6 22. Rd1 a6 23. Nd6 Qc7 24. e4 e5 25. Rd3 Rc2 26. Qe1 a5 $132 {Aronian,L (2752)-Leko,P (2740)/Wijk aan Zee/2006/}) 8. O-O Be7 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Rd1 Qb6 ({After the main alternative} 10... d6 11. Bf4 Qb6 {White faces a choice:} 12. Rab1 $5 {is a more recent idea, here Black is still searching for a reliable road to equality:} ({The older move} 12. Rd2 {is more or less harmless and even gives Black more satisfactory options:} h6 (12... Nc6 13. Bxd6 Bxd6 14. Rxd6 Qxb2 15. Rb1 Qxc3 16. Rxb7 Nd4 17. Qd1 Nxf3+ 18. Bxf3 Qxc4 19. a4 $44 {gives White compensation, but no advantage.}) 13. Rad1 e5 14. Be3 Nc6 15. Qb5 Qc7 16. Qb3 a6 17. Nh4 Rfb8 18. Bxc6 Qxc6 19. f3 e4 {Onischuk,A (2664)-Eljanov,P (2687)/Foros/2008/} 20. Nf5 Bf8 21. Rxd6 $44) (12. Qb3 Rd8 13. Qxb6 axb6 14. Nb5 Ne8 15. a3 h6 16. Rac1 Nc6 17. Ne1 Na5 18. Bd2 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Nc6 $11 {Vallejo Pons,F (2686)-Anand,V (2786)/Linares/2005/}) 12... Bc6 (12... Na6 13. a3 (13. Nb5 Rfd8 $5 (13... d5 14. Ne5 d4 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. e3 dxe3 17. Bxe3 $14 {Pelletier,Y (2525)-Alterman,B (2600)/Elista olm/1998/}) (13... Ne8 14. a3 Be4 15. Rbc1 Rd8 16. b4 Bc6 17. bxc5 Nxc5 18. Qxa7 Qxa7 19. Nxa7 Ba4 20. Re1 Nf6 21. Nd4 Rd7 22. Nac6 $16 {Zhigalko,S (2640)-Franco Alonso,A (2490)/ECC Plovdiv/2010/}) 14. Bd2 Nb4 15. a3 Bc6 16. Bxb4 (16. axb4 a6 17. Qa5 Qxa5 18. bxa5 axb5 19. b4 $13) 16... cxb4 17. Qxb4 Be4 18. Rbc1 Rab8 $11) 13... Rac8 14. Qc2 Rfd8 15. e4 Nd7 (15... Bc6 16. Qe2 h6 17. Nd5 $1 Nxd5 (17... exd5 18. exd5 Ba4 19. b3 Bxb3 20. Rdc1 $16 {[%cal Rf3d2,Re2e7] d2}) 18. exd5 Bd7 19. dxe6 Bxe6 20. Nd2 Bf8 21. Qd3 Qc7 (21... Nc7 $142) 22. Ne4 Bg4 23. f3 Bh5 24. Bh3 $16 {Giri,A (2677)-Infante,M (2276)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/}) (15... h6 16. Qe2 Nb8 {Nikolic,P (2629)-Volke,K (2455)/Bundesliga/1999/} 17. b4 $14) 16. Qe2 h6 17. h4 (17. Nb5 Nf8 18. Qe1 Rd7 19. Rd3 Nc7 20. Nc3 Ng6 21. Be3 Qa6 22. Bf1 Ne8 23. Rdd1 Bf6 $11 {Ikonnikov,V (2527)-Volke,K (2450)/Vlissingen/2002/}) 17... Ba8 18. g4 $5 Nf8 19. g5 h5 20. Bg3 g6 21. Rd2 Nb8 22. Qd1 a6 23. Rd3 e5 24. Nd5 Qa7 25. Qd2 Nc6 26. Rd1 Nd4 27. Nxd4 cxd4 28. f4 $14 {Van Wely,L (2668)-Leko,P (2736)/Monte Carlo blindfold rpd/2003/}) (12... Nbd7 13. b4 cxb4 14. Qxb4 $1 $36 (14. Rxb4 Bc6 15. Qa3 Qc5 16. Be3 Qh5 17. h3 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Qxh3 19. Bg2 Qh5 20. Bf3 Qh3 21. Bg2 Qh5 22. Bf3 {1/2,Lautier,J (2666)-Gelfand,B (2700)/Enghien les Bains/2003/})) 13. Qa3 (13. Qc2 Rd8 14. e4 Qb7 $132) 13... Rd8 14. b4 cxb4 15. Rxb4 Qa6 16. Rb3 $5 (16. Qb2 Qc8 17. Nb5 Na6 18. Ra4 Qb7 19. Qb1 Nc5 20. Rb4 Be4 $36 {Lysyj,I (2638)-Carron,J (2394)/Zürich /2010/}) 16... Qxa3 17. Rxa3 h6 18. h4 Nh5 19. Be3 a6 20. g4 Nf6 21. g5 hxg5 22. hxg5 Ne8 23. g6 Rc8 24. gxf7+ Kxf7 25. c5 Nd7 26. cxd6 Bxd6 27. Rb3 $14 {Dronov,A (2617)-Mikeshin,S (2591)/corr/2007/}) 11. Bf4 Rd8 {Carlsen keeps his  on d7 and makes a useful move.} (11... d6 {-10...d6 transposes into the lines from the previous note.}) (11... Qxb2 $4 12. Rab1 Qxc3 13. Rxb7 $18 {[%csl Rc3][%cal Rd1c1,Rf4d2,Rf4e5] c1,e5,d2}) 12. Rab1 {Kramnik doesn't insist on occupying the d with his  and adopts a similar set-up, as we have already mentioned above. His  supports the future b4 advance.} (12. Rd2 d6 (12... d5 $6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Ne5 Na6 15. Rad1 Nc7 16. e4 Ne6 17. Nxd5 Bxd5 18. exd5 Nxf4 19. Qxf4 Bd6 20. Qf5 $16 {Lautier,J (2672)-Macieja,B (2593)/ECC Saint Vincent/2005/}) ({RR} 12... d5) 13. Rad1 h6 $142 (13... Ne8 14. Nb5 (14. e4 Bc6 15. Qc2 Qb7 16. Qb3 $6 Qxb3 17. axb3 f6 $1 18. Ne1 Nd7 19. Ra1 Rdb8 20. Ra3 Rb7 21. e5 Nxe5 22. Bxe5 Bxg2 23. Bxd6 Nxd6 24. Kxg2 Nf5 $15 {Gustafsson,J (2603)-Leko,P (2741)/Dortmund/2008/}) 14... Na6 15. Bg5 $1 $146 ({RR} 15. a3 h6 16. Ne1 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Nac7 18. Nxc7 Qxc7 19. Qa6) 15... Bxg5 16. Nxg5 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Nac7 18. Qc2 g6 19. Nc3 Nf6 20. Qd3 Nce8 21. Qf3 Rab8 22. Nce4 Qb7 23. b3 Nxe4 24. Nxe4 Qc7 25. Qf4 e5 26. Qh4 $16 {Kramnik,V (2790)-Karjakin,S (2725)/Nice blindfold rpd/2010/}) (13... a6 14. Ng5 $5 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 e5 16. Be3 Qb7+ 17. f3 $1 (17. Kg1 h6 18. Nf3 Nc6 19. Nd5 Nxd5 20. Rxd5 Nb4 21. R5d2 Nc6 22. Rd5 Nb4 23. R5d2 Nc6 {1/2,Leko,P (2751)-Bacrot,E (2728)/Nalchik/2009/}) 17... Ng4 18. Bxc5 Nd7 19. Bg1 Bxg5 20. Rxd6 Ngf6 21. h4 Bh6 22. b3 $16 {Sargissian,G (2675)-Zhigalko,A (2587)/EU-ch Rijeka/2010/}) ({RR} 13... h6) ({RR} 13... a6 14. Ng5) 14. Qb5 Ne8 15. e4 g5 16. Be3 Nd7 17. h4 g4 18. Ne1 Kg7 $5 (18... Qxb5 19. cxb5 $5 (19. Nxb5 Ne5 20. b3 a6 $11) 19... Bf8 20. Nc2 Ne5 21. Na3 Rdc8 22. Bf4 Bg7 23. Bxe5 Bxe5 24. Nc4 Bd4 25. Ne2 e5 26. a4 Kf8 27. Rc2 {Navara,D (2722)-Leko,P (2724)/Khanty-Mansiysk olm/2010/} Rab8 {Navara,} 28. Na5 Ba8 $13 {/}) 19. Bf4 Bc6 20. Qxb6 axb6 21. Nc2 (21. e5 Bxg2 22. exd6 Bf6 23. Nxg2 Bxc3 24. bxc3 e5 25. Be3 Ra4 $36) 21... Ne5 22. Ne3 Nf3+ 23. Bxf3 gxf3 24. h5 Bf6 25. Ng4 Bxc3 26. bxc3 Bxe4 27. Bxh6+ Kh7 28. Bg5 Rd7 29. Bf4 f6 {Wang Yue (2732)-Bacrot,E (2716)/Nanjing/2010/} 30. Bxd6 Rad8 31. Bf4 Rxd2 32. Rxd2 Rxd2 33. Bxd2 Bd3 $11) ({RR} 12. Rd2 d6 13. Rad1 Ne8 14. e4 ({RR} 14. Nb5 Na6 15. Qc2 h6 16. h3 ({RR} 16. Nc3) 16... d5 17. g4 Nb4 18. Qb1 dxc4 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Rxd8 Bxd8 21. Na3 Bf6 22. Nxc4 Qa6 23. Nfd2 Bxg2 24. Kxg2 Qxa2 ({RR} 24... Nxa2 25. Qe4 Qc8) 25. Qxa2 Nxa2 26. Nb3 Be7 27. Bb8 a6 28. Ba7) ({RR} 14. Bg5 Bxg5 ({RR} 14... Nc6) 15. Nxg5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2) ({RR} 14. Ng5 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 h6 16. Nge4 f5) 14... Bc6 15. Qc2 Nd7 ({RR} 15... Qb7) 16. e5 dxe5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Nf6 20. Ne4 Rxd2 ({RR} 20... Qc6 21. f3 Nxe4 22. Qxe4 Qxe4 23. fxe4 Kf8 24. Kf3 f6 25. Bc7 Rxd2 26. Rxd2 Ke8 27. g4 a5 28. Rd3 ({RR} 28. e5) 28... e5 29. Ke3 Ra6 30. Kd2 a4 31. Kc2 Kf7 32. a3 Ke6 33. h3 Ra7 34. Bb6 Ra6 35. Bc7) 21. Rxd2 Rd8 22. Bxf6 gxf6 23. g4 h5 24. h3 ({RR} 24. gxh5 f5 25. Ng3 Bf6) 24... hxg4 25. hxg4 Rxd2 26. Qxd2 Qc6 {Mamedyarov,S (2752)-Kramnik,V (2788) Dortmund 2008 CBM 125 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 12. Rd2 d6 13. Rad1 Ne8 14. g4 Nc6 15. Bg3 Rab8 16. b3 Nb4 17. h3 h6 18. Qa3 Nf6 19. Ne1 Bxg2 20. Nxg2 Rb7 21. Qa4 {½-½ (21) Kramnik,V (2788)-Karjakin,S (2720) Wijk aan Zee 2010}) 12... h6 (12... Na6 13. a3 (13. e4 $14 {} Nxe4 $2 14. Ne5 $36) 13... Bc6 14. Qc2 Qb7 15. e4 (15. Bd6 $5) 15... d6 16. Ne1 Rac8 17. e5 dxe5 18. Bxe5 Nb8 $11 {Kantorik,M (2390)-Stefansson,H (2588)/Sarajevo/2010/}) (12... d5 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Ne5 $14 {is still risky for Black, although here it's more justified than with White's  on d2.}) 13. Qb5 $146 {[%mdl 8] This novelty doesn't seem too enterprising.} ({More logical seems to be} 13. a3 {[%cal Yb2b4] b4 , but Kramnik already played this earlier and Carlsen was undoubtedly prepared. However, we can only guess what exactly he had on his mind.} a5 (13... Nc6 14. Nb5 a6 15. Nd6 $14) ({A probably playable alternative is} 13... Bc6 $5 14. Qc2 a5 15. e4 d6 $132) 14. Qb5 Qxb5 15. cxb5 (15. Nxb5 $5 {seems more promising.}) 15... d5 16. Ne5 g5 17. Be3 Nbd7 $132 18. Nc6 Bxc6 19. bxc6 Ne5 20. Na4 Nxc6 21. Bxc5 Bxc5 22. Nxc5 Rab8 23. e4 dxe4 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. Bxe4 Nd4 27. Kg2 Nb3 $11 {Kramnik,V (2759)-Bacrot,E (2721)/Dortmund/2009/}) ({RR} 13. a3 a5 14. Qb5 Qa7 15. Qa4 Qb6 16. Qb5 Qa7 17. Qa4 Qb6 {½-½ (17) Nguyen Van Huy (2352)-Kushagra,M (2432) Kuala Lumpur MAS 2025}) 13... Bc6 $146 {Contrary to the previous note, here Black can force his opponent to swap the L. However, he had other plausible and possibly stronger moves at his disposal:} (13... d5 $5 {seems more to the point now,} 14. cxd5 (14. Nd2 Qxb5 15. Nxb5 Nc6 16. cxd5 Nxd5 $11) 14... Nxd5 (14... exd5 15. Nh4 $1 {[%csl Rd5] ×d5}) 15. Ne5 (15. Qc4 Nd7 $5 $11) 15... g5 16. Bd2 Nc6 $13 {leads to a complex position, in which Black's piece-play compensates his shaky -structure.}) (13... Nc6 14. Ne5 (14. Qxb6 axb6 15. Bc7 Rdc8 16. Bxb6 $2 Ra6 $17) 14... g5 $5 (14... d5 15. cxd5 Qxb5 16. Nxb5 Nxd5 17. Nc7 $1 Nxf4 18. gxf4 $14) 15. Qxb6 (15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Bxc6 dxc6 17. Qxb6 axb6 18. Bc7 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 b5 $11) 15... axb6 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Bc7 Rdc8 18. Bd6 Kf8 {and Black should gradually equalize.}) ({RR} 13... Ne8 14. Rd2 d6 15. Rbd1 Nc6 16. Qxb6 axb6 17. b3 g5 18. Be3 Ng7 19. Ne1 Nf5 20. Nc2 Rab8 21. Be4 Nxe3 22. Nxe3 Nd4 23. Bxb7 Rxb7 24. Nc2 Nxc2 25. Rxc2 f5 26. Rcd2 Kf7 27. Kg2 g4 28. h3 {Chadaev,N (2554)-Zakhartsov,V (2602) Belgorod 2010 0-1 (70)}) 14. Qxb6 (14. Qb3 d6 $11) 14... axb6 15. b3 (15. Bc7 $5 Rc8 16. Bxb8 (16. Bxb6 $2 Ra6 17. Bxc5 Bxc5 18. b4 Ra3 $19) 16... Rcxb8 (16... Raxb8 17. Ne5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 d6 19. Nf3 {can be very similar to the game.}) 17. Ne5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 d5 19. a3 {[%csl Rb6,Rc5] is an interesting try to stabilize Black's  on the dark squares. Black should probably refrain from} dxc4 (19... d4 $5 20. Nb5 $13 {/}) 20. Nb5 c3 (20... Ra4 21. Rbc1) 21. bxc3 $36 (21. Nxc3 Rb7 22. Nb5 Ra5 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Rxd6 b5 {and Black gradually consolidates.})) (15. Bxb8 Rdxb8 {-15.c7 leads to the same position as the line above with one move less.}) 15... g5 $6 {Provocative and positionally risky.} ({Carlsen was probably getting ambitious, as much simpler is} 15... Ne4 $142 $1 16. Nxe4 Bxe4 17. Rb2 Nc6 $11 (17... d5 $11 {and Black has no problems whatsoever.})) ({Even} 15... d6 {is a more solid choice.}) 16. Bxb8 $5 {[%mdl 32]} ({Even here Kramnik could play} 16. Bc7 Rc8 17. Bxb8 {, but he prefers the direct swap. In the long run White's main strategic aim is to achieve a position with a strong  against a passive .} (17. Bd6 Kf8 18. a4 Bxd6 19. Rxd6 Ke7 20. Rbd1 Ne8 21. R6d3 d6 $11)) 16... Raxb8 (16... Rdxb8 $5 17. Ne5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 d5 {deserves attention, leading to a position from the note to White's 15-th move, only with the extra moves b3 and g5. It's not so easy to exploit this with White, as} 19. cxd5 (19. a4 Bd6 20. Nf3 g4 { e5}) 19... Nxd5 (19... exd5 20. a4 $1 d4 21. Nb5 $36) 20. Nxd5 exd5 21. a4 (21. Rxd5 Rxa2 22. e4 Re8 $11) 21... d4 22. e3 dxe3 23. fxe3 b5 24. Rd7 Bf8 $132 {is not too impressive.}) 17. Ne5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Rbc8 {[%cal Yd7d6,Yd7d5] d6,d5} 19. e4 {Black had to loses a tempo to cover the c6-square, enabling White to prevent the immediate d5.} ({He needn't worry unduly about} 19. Na4 d6 20. Nxb6 Rb8 $5 (20... dxe5 21. Nxc8 Rxc8 $11) 21. Nc6 (21. Nd5 Nxd5 22. Nc6 Nb4 $15) 21... Rxb6 22. Nxd8 Bxd8 23. b4 cxb4 24. c5 Rb8 25. cxd6 Nd5 $11) 19... d6 20. Nd3 ({More accurate is} 20. Nf3 $1 g4 21. Ne1 h5 22. Rd2 $14 ({or} 22. f4 $5 $14 {and White retains some pressure.})) 20... Kf8 $6 ({Black should have used his chance to play the active} 20... d5 $142 21. e5 Ne8 22. Nb5 $5 $13) 21. h3 (21. Nb2 $5 $14 {ba4,b5}) 21... Nd7 ({Black still could have gained space with} 21... d5 $142 $5) 22. f4 $1 {[%csl Rg5,Rh6] Another drawback of Black's 15-th move is he loosened his .} Nb8 {[%cal Yb8c6,Yc6d4,Ye7f6] c6-d4,f6 This plan is too slow and doesn't achieve the desired result.} (22... Ra8 $142 23. Rd2 $14) 23. Na4 {Forces the  back.} (23. Nb5 Na6 $5 {c7} (23... Nc6 24. Nb2 {[%csl Rb6,Rd6] a4,d2,bd1,×b6,d6}) (23... d5 24. exd5 exd5 25. Ne5 $36)) 23... Nd7 $8 24. Nf2 $36 Ra8 25. Rd2 Ra5 {[%cal Yb6b5] b5 Black finds a way to chase away the nagging a4} (25... Rxa4 $2 26. bxa4 {[%cal Rf2d1,Rd1c3] d1-c3} Ra8 27. e5 $18) 26. Nc3 Nb8 (26... Bf6 27. Nb5 d5 28. exd5 exd5 29. Rxd5 $5 Rxa2 30. Rbd1 $16) 27. Rbd1 (27. a4 Nc6 28. Nb5 {stops Black's idea from the game, but allows} Na7 $14) 27... Nc6 28. Nb5 gxf4 (28... Nd4 29. Nxd4 cxd4 30. a4 $1 (30. Rxd4 gxf4 31. gxf4 Rxa2 32. e5 Bh4 $11) 30... Bf6 31. Ng4 Bg7 32. Nh2 $14 {[%cal Yh2f3,Yf3e1,Ye1d3,Yd3b4] /,f3 will force Black to play e5, killing his . White can then proceed to transfer his  to the dominant square d5 (e1-d3-b4) and prepare either b4, or opening the .}) 29. gxf4 d5 $5 {Although this doesn't solve Black's problems, one can understand Carlsen's liberating attempt.} (29... Nd4 {is similar to 28...d4 and might be safer , but it offers little or no active .}) 30. exd5 exd5 31. cxd5 Rxb5 (31... Nd4 $5 32. Nxd4 cxd4 33. Rxd4 Rxa2 34. R4d2 Rxd2 35. Rxd2 f5 $1 36. Nd1 Bc5 37. Kf3 Kf7 $16 {/}) 32. dxc6 Rc8 33. Ng4 Rxc6 (33... c4 34. bxc4 Ra5 35. Ne5 $16) 34. Ne5 $36 {[%csl Rb5,Ge5] White has achieved his strategic aim and his  dominates in the . This together with the misplaced b5 and vulnerable  makes the defence very difficult.} Re6 35. Kf3 (35. Nd7+ Ke8 36. f5 Re4 (36... Rc6 37. Ne5 Rc7 (37... Rf6 38. Nc4 $1 {[%cal Rd1e1] e1+-}) 38. Re2 $40) 37. f6 Rd4 $1 38. Rxd4 cxd4 39. Rxd4 Bd8 $14 {[%csl Rd7,Rf6] ×f6,d7}) 35... Ra5 $2 $138 (35... Rb4 $142 36. Rd5 $5 {} (36. Rd7 b5 $5 $14 {c4}) (36. Rg2 $6 Bf6 $11 {} 37. Nd7+ Ke7 38. f5 Ree4) 36... Bf6 37. Nc4 $16) 36. Rg2 {[%cal Gg1g8,Re5d7] g,d7} (36. Rg1 f5 (36... f6 37. Rg6 $18) 37. a4 $1 $18) 36... f6 (36... Bf6 37. Nd7+ Ke7 38. f5 $18 {wins an exchange, as here the  can't go to e4.}) (36... f5 37. Rd7 {[%cal Rd7b7] b7+-}) 37. Nc4 $1 {Again the strategic approach, Kramnik is in no hurry to win material and tightens the screws.} (37. Rg6 Rxa2 38. Rdg1 Rxe5 39. fxe5 fxe5 40. Rxb6 $18) 37... Ra7 (37... Ra8 38. f5 Rc6 39. a4 $1 $18 {is similar.}) 38. f5 Rc6 39. a4 $1 $18 {[%csl Rb6,Rc5,Re7,Rf6,Rh6] All Black's  are vulnerable and his miserable  has no moves.} Rb7 (39... Ke8 40. Rg7 Rac7 41. Rh7 Bf8 42. Re1+ (42. Rxc7 Rxc7 43. Nxb6 $18) 42... Kd8 43. Rxc7 Kxc7 44. Re8 Bd6 45. Ke4 $18) 40. Rg6 h5 (40... b5 41. Na5 $18) 41. Rdg1 {[%cal Rg6g8,Rg1g7]} Ke8 (41... Kf7 42. Ne5+ $18) 42. Ne5 $1 {The  joins the  and wraps up the game.} Rc8 43. Rg8+ Bf8 44. Ng6 Rf7 45. Rd1 $22 {The most clinical solution.} ({After} 45. Rd1 Ra8 46. Rd6 Rb8 47. Rh8 {Black is fully paralysed and can't avoid heavy material losses.}) 1-0

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2010.10.26"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2716"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Moradiabadi,Elshan"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2010.10.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{This was the most exciting game of the day. The battle between the leader and his closest rival was on its way to being Bacrot's 4th consecutive win, but Carlsen, in spite of early mistakes, remained tough. This may have discouraged Bacrot, whose inaccuracies made his task more difficult and in the end he prematurely accepted the draw.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 {An odd choice by Bacrot, but he has proved he knows what he is doing in this event. His games against Anand and Wang Yue are testimony of this.} d5 6. Bg2 Bd6 {A risky decision by Carlsen. The upcoming e4 would cause the bishop on d6 some discomfort due to the fork threat of e5.} 7. b3 O-O 8. O-O c5 9. e4 dxe4 {The retreat of the bishop to e7 has been played quite a few times which may be considered one reason why ...d6 is inaccurate. Carlsen wants to prove that he stands on solid ground!} 10. Ng5 Nc6 11. dxc5 $1 {Accurate play by Bacrot. He does not fall into such traps.} (11. Ndxe4 {is a mistake due to} Nxd4 {and black is ready to offer his rook for white's light-squared bishop.}) 11... Bxc5 12. Ndxe4 Qxd1 $146 ({RR} 12... Bd4 13. Rb1 e5 14. Ba3 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Ne7 16. Qc2 Rb8 17. Rbd1 h6 18. Bd6 Qe8 19. Bxb8 Qxb8 20. Kh1 Bc8 21. Qe2 Rd8 22. f4 f5 23. fxe5 Qxe5 24. Nc3 Rf8 25. Rxd4 {1-0 (25) Savon,V (2429)-Kalugin,S (2455) Kharkov 2000}) ({RR} 12... Rc8 13. Bb2 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Bd4 15. Qe2 f5 16. Rad1 e5 17. Nc3 Qd6 18. Nb5 Bxb5 19. cxb5 Nb4 20. Rd2 Rfd8 21. Rfd1 Qf6 22. Bxd4 exd4 23. Rxd4 Rxd4 24. Rxd4 Qxd4 25. Qe6+ Kf8 26. Qxc8+ Ke7 27. Qxf5 {Rogers,J (2338)-Greet,A (2451) England 2011 1-0 (48)}) 13. Rxd1 {White has achieved a lot of advantages within just 13 moves. From now on, the world number one has to defend a worse position with no hopes to win.} Rad8 14. Rxd8 Rxd8 15. Nxc5 Rd1+ 16. Bf1 bxc5 17. Bb2 Rxa1 18. Bxa1 {The bishop pair seems to be the main theme in today's game. We should add that although the better pawn structure also offers Bacrot good winning chances, one should not forget that the c5-a7 set up is the best way to stop White's threats and is Black's main hope to hold.} Nd7 19. f4 Bb7 20. Kf2 Nd8 21. Bd3 f5 22. Nf3 Nf7 23. a3 g6 24. Be2 Kf8 25. b4 Ke7 26. Ke3 Bxf3 $1 27. Bxf3 {A paradoxical but correct decision. Though the position is still much better for White, his light squared bishop has few targets to attack now. As a result this should provoke White to push his pawns on both sides which would favor the bishops but in the meantime it would also reduce the material on the board.} Kd6 28. Bg7 Kc7 29. Kd2 Nd6 30. Kd3 Nc8 31. Kc3 Ncb6 32. Bd1 Nc8 33. Bf3 Nd6 34. Kd3 Nc8 35. h4 Nd6 36. Bc3 Nf7 37. h5 Kd6 {White is much better here, however I personally cannot see a direct plan for white to penetrate in black's fortress. I would like to leave the rest to ChessBase's endgame expert GM Karsten Muller.} 38. Ke3 Kc7 39. Bg7 Nd6 40. hxg6 hxg6 41. Kd3 Nf7 42. Bc3 Kd6 43. Ke3 g5 44. Bh5 gxf4+ 45. gxf4 Nd8 46. Be2 Kc7 47. Kd3 Kd6 48. Ke3 Kc7 {Though White's advantage has shrunk, he could still push with no risk of losing.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2010.10.28"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Wang, Yue"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E00"]
[WhiteElo "2732"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2010.10.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:20/3600:900+30"]

1. d4 {Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 {This line is secondary but known as very solid for Black.} 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nf3 Nbd7 8. O-O b6 9. Rc1 O-O ({RR} 9... Bb7 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd7 12. f4 O-O 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Na3 a5 15. Nb5 Nc5 16. Rc2 f6 17. Qe3 fxe5 18. Qxe5 Rf5 19. Qd6) 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Nc3 ({RR} 11. Na3 Bb7 12. Nb5 a6 13. Nd6 Qb8 ({RR} 13... Ne4 14. Nxb7 Nxd2 ({RR} 14... Qb8 15. Qf4) 15. Nxd8 Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Rfxd8 17. Rc7 Nf6 18. Rac1) 14. Qb4 a5 15. Qa3 Ba6 16. Ne5 b5 17. Qxa5 ({RR} 17. Rc6 b4 18. Qe3 Bb7 19. Nxd7 Nxd7 20. Nxb7 Qxb7 21. Rac1 Rfc8 22. R6c2 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 Rc8) 17... Qxd6 18. Rc6 Qb8 19. Rxa6 Rxa6 20. Qxa6 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Qxe5 22. Qxb5 Rb8 23. Qd3 Rxb2 24. Qe3 Qxe3 25. fxe3 Rxe2 {Kramnik,V (2784)-Carlsen,M (2814) Wijk aan Zee 2011 CBM 141 [Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar] 0-1 (85)}) 11... Ba6 12. a4 Rc8 (12... Bc4 13. Nb5 Qe7 14. Na3 Ne4 15. Qd1 Ba6 16. Nb5 Bxb5 17. axb5 Qb4 18. Qa4 Qxa4 19. Rxa4 Nd6 20. Rc7 Rfd8 21. Raxa7 Rxa7 22. Rxa7 Nxb5 23. Ra1 Kf8 24. e3 Rc8 25. Bf1 Nd6 26. Bd3 {½-½ Portisch,L (2635)-Spassky,B (2560)/Reykjavik 1988}) 13. Nb5 Ne4 $146 ({RR} 13... Rxc1+ 14. Rxc1 Bxb5 15. axb5 Ne4 16. Qf4 Ndf6 17. Ne5 Nd6 18. Nc6 Qd7 19. Nxa7 Nxb5 20. Nxb5 Qxb5 21. Qd2 Qa6 22. Bf1 Rc8 23. e4 Rxc1 24. Qxc1 Qb7 25. e5 Nd7 26. Bb5 Nf8 27. h4 Qa7 28. Qc3 {Chadaev,N (2577)-Grigoriants,S (2562) Moscow 2011 ½-½ (54)}) 14. Qf4 Qe7 15. Rc7 Bxb5 16. axb5 Nd6 17. Qc1 Rxc7 18. Qxc7 Rc8 19. Qxa7 Qd8 20. Qa4 h6 21. Qb4 Qf8 {White is up a pawn but it is very hard to improve something. Still, the next moves seems not to be accurate, giving Black a chance to draw at once.} 22. b3 $6 ({Something like} 22. e3 $5 {followed by b3 should be normal, though we trust Magnus should draw this! Probably Wang Yue was also not eagering to go desperately for a win, as he suffered a little bit in his last games.}) 22... Ne4 23. Qxf8+ Kxf8 24. Ne5 Nxe5 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. dxe5 Rc5 27. Ra8+ Ke7 28. Ra7+ Kf8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Nanjing Pearl Spring 3rd"]
[Site "Nanjing"]
[Date "2010.10.29"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E00"]
[WhiteElo "2803"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2010.10.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "CHN"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 139"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2010.11.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:20/3600:900+30"]

1. d4 {Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nf3 Nbd7 8. O-O ({RR} 8. Qc2 Qe7 9. Nbd2 e5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Qxe5 13. Nc4 Qe7 14. Bxd5 cxd5 15. Ne3 Qe4 16. O-O O-O 17. Rfd1 Be6 18. Qxe4 dxe4 19. g4 f5 20. gxf5 Bxf5 21. Rd4 Rae8 22. Rc1 Re7 {Vergara Anton,D (2442)-Voloshin,L (2379) Legnica POL 2025 ½-½}) 8... b6 9. Rc1 O-O ({RR} 9... Bb7 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd7 12. f4 O-O 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Na3 a5 15. Nb5 Nc5 16. Rc2 f6 17. Qe3 fxe5 18. Qxe5 Rf5 19. Qd6) 10. b4 $146 (10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Nc3 Ba6 12. a4 Rc8 13. Nb5 Ne4 14. Qf4 Qe7 15. Rc7 Bxb5 16. axb5 Nd6 17. Qc1 Rxc7 18. Qxc7 Rc8 19. Qxa7 Qd8 20. Qa4 h6 21. Qb4 Qf8 22. b3 Ne4 23. Qxf8+ Kxf8 24. Ne5 Nxe5 25. Bxe4 dxe4 26. dxe5 Rc5 27. Ra8+ Ke7 28. Ra7+ Kf8 {½-½ Wang,Y (2732)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Nanjing/China 2010}) ({RR} 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Na3 Bb7 12. Nb5 a6 13. Nd6 Qb8 ({RR} 13... Ne4 14. Nxb7 Nxd2 ({RR} 14... Qb8 15. Qf4) 15. Nxd8 Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Rfxd8 17. Rc7 Nf6 18. Rac1) 14. Qb4 a5 15. Qa3 Ba6 16. Ne5 b5 17. Qxa5 ({RR} 17. Rc6 b4 18. Qe3 Bb7 19. Nxd7 Nxd7 20. Nxb7 Qxb7 21. Rac1 Rfc8 22. R6c2 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 Rc8) 17... Qxd6 18. Rc6 Qb8 19. Rxa6 Rxa6 20. Qxa6 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Qxe5 22. Qxb5 Rb8 23. Qd3 Rxb2 24. Qe3 Qxe3 {Kramnik,V (2784)-Carlsen,M (2814) Wijk aan Zee 2011 CBM 141 [Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar] 0-1 (85)}) ({RR} 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Na3 Ba6 12. Ne5 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. f4 Rc8 15. Rxc8 Qxc8 16. Rc1 Qd8 17. Nc2 Nb8 18. Nd4 Qe7 19. f5 exf5 20. e6 Bb7 21. Nxf5 Qxe6 22. Qg5 g6 23. Bh3 Qxe2 24. Nh6+ {½-½ (24) Nogueiras Santiago,J (2545)-Andersson,U (2575) Sarajevo 1985}) 10... Bb7 11. Qb2 Rb8 $146 12. Nbd2 Qe7 13. e3 Rfc8 14. Rc2 c5 15. bxc5 bxc5 16. Qa3 Rc6 17. Rac1 Ra6 18. Qd3 h6 19. Qe2 dxc4 20. Qxc4 cxd4 (20... Rc8 $5 {might be a better try to equalize.}) 21. Nxd4 Rb6 22. Bxb7 R8xb7 {Things have been going fine for Topalov who enjoys a small plus. But suddenly the situation will change hardly!} 23. Kg2 (23. Qf1 $5 {is given best by several engines, with ideas line:} Rb2 24. Rc8+ Kh7 $2 25. Qd3+ (25. Nc4 Rxa2 26. Rb1 $1 $18) 25... g6 26. Nc6 $18) (23. N2b3 $5 {would also be quite logical.}) 23... Ne5 24. Qc5 $2 {The real mistake, although White's avdantage are more or less disappeared with 23.Kg2. It is clear that Topalov is out of form and is playing much under his real level.} Qxc5 25. Rxc5 Rb2 {Now Black is better.} 26. R1c2 Nd3 $1 27. Rc8+ Kh7 28. N4f3 a5 {This pawn is supposed to bring the victory later, so it's quite logical to push it! Still, this doesn't look like a real winning plan, while it looks like Black had a much stronger possibility right now.} (28... Ng4 $1 29. Nb3 Rxc2 (29... Rb8 $5 {is a funny possibility, probably about equivalent to 29...Rxc2, but I quote it simply because I love this move!}) 30. Rxc2 Rb4 $5 31. h3 Ngxf2 32. Rxf2 Nxf2 33. Kxf2 Ra4 {is another idea - more direct let's say. This should be winning for Black. Very often, two knights "alone" are a bad sign for the endgame.}) 29. h3 a4 30. a3 g5 31. Rxb2 $6 ({After} 31. g4 {I feel like Black should be slightly better, but all engines insist with a 0.00 evaluation. After playing a match against Rybka and not winning a single game (no, I'm joking, I didn't play but just guessed the result), I believe White should be able to draw...}) 31... Rxb2 32. Rc3 $4 {Woah! An hallucination, I guess.} Nxf2 33. Rc7 (33. Kxf2 Ne4+ $19) 33... N2e4 0-1

[Event "London Classic 2nd"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2010.12.14"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2791"]
[BlackElo "2802"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "171"]
[EventDate "2010.12.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 140"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 Nc6 3. Nf3 Bg4 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bf4 {Quite a harmless continuation.} (5. cxd5 exd5 6. Qb3 $1 {is more aggressive.}) 5... Bd6 (5... Bb4 {is more in the spirit of the Chigorin Defence - see e.g. Graf-Rabiega in CBM 129 (annotations by GM R.Dautov)}) (5... Nf6) (5... Bxf3) (5... dxc4 {have been seen in grandmaster practice, too.}) 6. Bg3 (6. Bxd6 Qxd6 7. cxd5 exd5 8. e3 Nf6 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O Bxf3 11. Bxf3 Ne7 12. Qc2 c6 13. g3 g6 14. Bg2 h5 15. Na4 b6 16. b3 Rac8 17. Rac1 h4 $132 {1/2 Abramovic,B (2516)-Miladinovic,I (2605)/Herceg Novi 2007/CBM 120 ext (40)}) ({RR} 6. Bxd6 Qxd6 7. e3 Nf6 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O Ne7 11. a3 Nf5 12. b4 c6 13. Ne5 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Rae8 15. Rfc1 g6 16. Qf3 Kg7 17. Rab1 a6 18. a4 h5 19. h3 Re6 20. Qf4 Nd7 {Tomashevsky,E (2718)-Aravindh,C (2609) Khanty-Mansiysk 2019 ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 6. Bxd6 Qxd6 7. c5 Qe7 8. e3 Nf6 9. Bb5 O-O 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 e5 12. Bxc6 bxc6 13. O-O Rab8 14. dxe5 Nd7 15. Na4 Nxe5 16. Qf5 Rb4 17. Qc2 f5 18. b3 f4 19. exf4 Rbxf4 20. Nb2 Qg5 {Medic,M (2069)-Malada,V (2286) Zagreb CRO 2025 0-1}) 6... Nf6 (6... Bxg3 7. hxg3 Nf6 8. e3 Qe7 9. Qb3 Qb4 10. Qxb4 Nxb4 11. Rc1 Bxf3 12. gxf3 O-O-O 13. c5 e5 14. dxe5 Nd7 15. a3 Nc6 16. Bh3 Ncxe5 17. Ke2 $14 {1/2 Janowski,D-Taubenhaus,J/Paris 1905/HCL (49)}) (6... Nge7 7. e3 a6 8. Rc1 Qd7 9. a3 Rd8 10. Bd3 Bxg3 11. hxg3 e5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Be4 Nf6 14. Bxc6 Qxc6 15. Ne2 Qe4 16. Nxe5 Qxg2 17. Rf1 Bxe2 18. Qxe2 c6 19. Qf3 Qxf3 20. Nxf3 Ke7 {1/2 Baumbach,F (2315)-Marszalek,R (2310)/Warsaw 1988/EXT 1997}) (6... Bxf3 7. gxf3 dxc4 8. e3 Nge7 9. Bxc4 O-O 10. Qc2 Nb4 11. Qb3 Nec6 12. Be2 Qd7 13. Rc1 Na5 14. Qd1 f5 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. a3 Nd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Qc2 Qe6 $11 {1/2 Ftacnik,L (2559)-Markos,J (2571)/Prievidza 2009/CBM 130 (33)}) 7. e3 O-O 8. a3 $146 (8. cxd5 Nxd5 $5 (8... exd5 9. Bh4 Be7 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 $14 Ne4 $2 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. Nxd5 Qd6 14. Bd3 f5 15. Nc3 $16 {1-0 Sokolov,I (2663)-Mann,C (2455)/Germany 2005/CBM 107 (23)}) 9. Be2 Nce7 10. O-O Nxc3 11. bxc3 c5 12. Qa4 Nd5 13. Rac1 Bxg3 14. hxg3 Qc7 15. Bd3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe3 17. fxe3 Qxg3+ 18. Kh1 Qh3+ {1/2 Shchekachev,A (2539)-Bosiocic,M (2571)/Sibenik 2009/EXT 2010}) ({RR} 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Be2 Nce7 10. O-O Nxc3 11. bxc3 c5 12. Qa4 Nd5 13. Rac1 Bxg3 14. hxg3 Qc7 15. Bd3 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Nxe3 17. fxe3 Qxg3+ 18. Kh1 Qh3+ {½-½ (18) Shchekachev,A (2539)-Bosiocic,M (2571) Sibenik 2009}) ({RR} 8. cxd5 exd5 9. Be2 Re8 10. Bh4 Be7 11. O-O Ne4 12. Bxe7 Nxe7 13. Ne5 Bf5 14. Rc1 c6 15. Bh5 g6 16. Be2 Kg7 17. g4 Be6 18. f4 f6 19. Nd3 Qd6 20. Qe1 h6 21. Nxe4 dxe4 22. Nc5 b6 {Huber,H (1704)-Spanton,T (1912) Rottach Egern 2022 1-0 (36)}) 8... Ne7 $146 {A second-rate novelty.} (8... Ne4 9. Rc1 f5 10. cxd5 Nxc3 11. Rxc3 exd5 12. Qb3 Bxf3 13. Bxd6 Qxd6 14. gxf3 Rae8 15. Kd2 Nd8 16. f4 c6 17. Kc1 Qe7 18. h4 Nf7 {1/2 Legemaat,G (2390)-De Waard,J (2380)/ICCF Email Master Norm 0/ICCF CBM 120}) 9. Qb3 b6 10. Ne5 c5 $5 {White is behind in development (f1, h1) so Black opens up the position, however, rather unsuccessfully.} 11. Nxg4 Nxg4 12. Rd1 $1 Bxg3 13. hxg3 Nf6 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Be2 Qd6 16. Qc2 h6 17. O-O $14 {A position with potential "hanging pawns" on c5 and d5 has arisen. Since two pairs of pieces have been exchanged, it is rather favorable for the opponent, i.e. White.} c4 {And this structure is not so good either as White undermines it at once.} 18. b3 $1 Qxa3 (18... cxb3 19. Qxb3 $14 {[%csl Rd5]}) 19. bxc4 dxc4 $6 (19... Qd6 $142 20. Ra1 $36 {[%cal Yf1b1]}) 20. Bf3 $1 Rab8 21. Ra1 Qd6 22. Nb5 Qd7 23. Qxc4 a5 24. e4 $16 {[%csl Gd4,Ge4] Black's queenside pawns are blocked, and White's central pawns are mobile and strong.} Rfc8 25. Qe2 Rc6 26. Rab1 Rd8 27. Rfd1 Rdc8 28. d5 Rc2 29. Qe3 R2c5 30. Nd4 Re8 (30... b5 $2 31. Nc6) 31. Qd3 Qd6 32. Qa6 Rb8 33. Nb3 Rc2 34. Nd4 Rc5 35. Nb3 Rc2 36. Qd3 $5 {White continues manoeuvring in order to exhaust his opponent.} (36. Nxa5 {was possible, too:} Qc5 37. Rf1 Ra2 {, and now the simplest course is} 38. Nb3 $1 Qxf2+ 39. Rxf2 Rxa6 40. Nd4 $16) 36... Rcc8 37. Nd2 Ng6 38. Be2 $1 {[%cal Yf2f4]} Qc5 39. Rb5 Qc3 40. f4 a4 41. e5 Nd7 42. Qxc3 Rxc3 43. Ne4 {[%csl Gd5,Ge4,Ge5]} Rc7 44. Ra1 Ra7 45. d6 Ngf8 46. Nc3 Nc5 47. Nd5 Ra5 48. Rxb6 Rxb6 49. Nxb6 $18 {[%mdl 4096]} Nfe6 50. Bc4 Kf8 51. f5 Nd8 52. Rf1 Ncb7 53. Re1 a3 54. e6 {Just grabbing a piece, although it is not so easy to convert it.} (54. d7 $6 a2 55. Bxa2 Rxa2 56. e6 Nc6 57. e7+ Nxe7 58. Nc8 Rd2 59. Rxe7 f6 {leads to a curious positional draw}) (54. Ba2 $1 {(A.Korotylev) was the simplest way to get a decisive advantage.}) 54... fxe6 55. fxe6 Nxd6 56. e7+ Ke8 57. exd8=R+ Kxd8 58. Rd1 Kc7 59. Ba2 Rg5 60. Nd5+ Kc6 61. Nc3 Rc5 $5 {A curious psychological decision. Black offers White the chance to further simplify the game. White gladly accepts the offer and then fails to overcome unexpected technical problems!} 62. Rxd6+ ({White should, of course, win after} 62. Rd3 Ra5 63. Kf2 {etc. but why not "shorten the journey"?}) 62... Kxd6 63. Ne4+ Kc6 64. Nxc5 Kxc5 65. Kf2 Kd4 66. Kf3 Kd3 67. g4 Kd2 (67... g5 68. Bf7 Kd4 69. Ke2 Ke4 70. g3 Kd4 71. Kd2 Ke4 72. Kc3 Kf3 73. Bh5 $18) 68. Be6 Kd3 (68... Ke1 $144 69. Bc4 Kd2 70. g5) 69. Kg3 $4 {A strange move, after which, apparently, White can't win anymore!} (69. g5 $1 hxg5 (69... Kd4 70. Kf4 $18) (69... Kd2 70. g6 $18) 70. Kg4 Ke3 71. g3 $1 {indicated by GM A.Khalifman} ({but not} 71. Kxg5 Kf2 72. g4 Kg3 73. Bd5 Kh3 74. Kf5 g6+ $1 {- with his pawn on g4 and Black's on g6 White can't win, e.g.} 75. Kf4 (75. Kg5 Kg3 76. Be6 Kf3 $1) 75... Kh4 76. g5 Kh5 $1 {not allowing the white king to f6}) 71... Ke4 (71... Kf2 72. Bd5 Ke3 73. Kxg5 Kf2 74. Kf4 $1 Ke2 75. g4 $18) 72. Kxg5 Kf3 73. Kh4 $1 {White manages to keep his pawn on g3 and wins, e.g.} Kf2 74. Kg4 Ke3 (74... Kg2 75. Kf4 Kh2 76. g4 Kh3 77. g5+ Kh4 78. Kf5 Kh5 79. Ba2 Kh4 80. Bb3 Kh5 81. Be6 Kh4 82. Kg6 $22 $18) 75. Bf7 Ke4 76. Ba2 Ke3 77. Bb1 $22 g6 (77... Kf2 78. Kf4 {[%cal Yg3g4]} Kg2 79. g4 Kh3 80. g5 Kh4 81. Kf5 Kh5 82. Ba2 Kh4 83. Bb3 Kh5 84. Be6 $18) 78. Ba2 Ke4 79. Bb3 $1 Ke3 80. Bf7 $22 Kf2 (80... Kd4 81. Kf4) 81. Kf4 Kg2 82. Be6 $1 (82. g4 $4 Kh3 $11) 82... Kh2 (82... Kf2 83. g4) 83. Kf3 Kh1 (83... g5 84. Ba2 Kh3 85. Bd5 Kh2 86. Kg4 $18) 84. g4 Kh2 85. g5 $18 {[%cal Yf3f4,Yf4e5,Ye5f6] - the white pawn can only move forward if this king manoeuvre is guaranteed or if the black pawn can't move to g6. It is far from easy to find all this over the board!}) 69... Ke3 70. Kh4 $2 (70. g5 {was the last chance but Black can probably survive in a study-like manner:} Ke4 (70... Ke2 71. Ba2 Kf1 $2 72. g6) (70... hxg5 $2 71. Kg4 {- see the above annotation}) 71. Kg4 Ke3 72. Ba2 $5 (72. Bf7 Ke4 73. Ba2 Ke3 74. Bb1 Kf2 75. g3 Ke3 76. g6 h5+ $1 {doesn't change much}) 72... Ke4 73. g3 (73. Bb1+ Ke3 74. g6 Kf2 $1 75. Kf5 Kxg2 76. Ke6 h5 $11) 73... Ke3 $1 (73... Ke5 74. Bb1 Kd4 75. Kf5 hxg5 76. Kxg5 Ke3 77. Kg4 $1 {etc. - see above}) 74. Bb1 Kf2 $1 75. g6 (75. Kf4 h5 $1 76. Ba2 Kg2 77. Bd5+ Kh3 78. Kf3 Kh2 79. g4 h4 $1 80. Kf2 Kh3 81. Be6 g6 82. Kf3 Kh2 $11) 75... h5+ $1 76. Kxh5 Ke3 $3 77. Kg5 Kd4 78. Kf5 Kd5 $11 {[%cal Yd5d6,Yd6e7,Ye7f8] - Black reaches a well-known theoretical fortress.}) 70... Kf2 71. Bd5 g6 72. Kh3 g5 $1 {This move is now timely. The white king can't come out, and the position is drawn.} 73. Kh2 Kf1 74. Be6 Kf2 75. Bc4 Ke3 76. Kg3 Kd4 77. Be6 Ke3 78. Kh2 Kf2 79. Bc4 Ke3 80. Kg1 Kf4 81. Be6 Ke5 82. Bb3 Kf4 83. Be6 Ke5 84. Bb3 Kf4 85. Be6 Ke5 86. Bb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2011.01.17"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D76"]
[WhiteElo "2814"]
[BlackElo "2686"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "44"]
[EventDate "2011.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 141"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Nf3 Nb6 7. Nc3 Nc6 8. e3 O-O 9. O-O Re8 10. Re1 a5 11. Qd2 $6 {A very strange move. I still believe that it was a "lapsus manus": Carlsen intended to play the theoretical} (11. Qe2) ({RR} 11. d5 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qxd5 13. Nd4 Qc5 14. Rb1 Rd8 15. Qb3 a4 16. Qa3 Qxa3 17. Bxa3 Bd7 18. Bc5 Ra6 19. Bf1 Ra5 20. Bxb6 cxb6 21. Rxb6 Rc5 22. Rxb7 Rxc3 23. Nxc6 Bxc6 24. Rc7 Rc2 25. Bg2 Be4 {Gelfand,B (2758)-Grischuk,A (2736) Moscow 2009 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 11. Rb1 e5 12. d5 Nb4 13. e4 c6 14. a3 Na6 15. dxc6 bxc6 16. Qc2 Be6 17. Ng5 Bg4 18. h3 Bc8 19. Qb3 Rf8 20. Rd1 Qc7 21. Be3 Rb8 22. Rbc1 Bf6 23. Nb5 Qe7 24. Rxc6 Nd7 25. h4 Nac5 {Khusenkhojaev,M (2366)-Aadithya Pradeep (1644) Chennai IND 2024 1-0 (60)}) 11... e5 $146 ({RR} 11... a4 12. Rb1 e5 13. d5 Nb4 14. e4 f5 15. a3 Na6 16. Rd1 Nc4 17. Qe2 Nd6 18. Bg5 Bf6 19. Bxf6 Qxf6 20. Nd2 Nc5 21. Nb5 Qd8 {½-½ (21) Torday,B (2140)-Horvath,C (2183) Hungary 2014}) ({RR} 11... Be6 12. Rd1 Bc4 13. Qc2 Nb4 14. Qb1 a4 15. a3 N4d5 16. Nd2 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Be2 18. Re1 Ba6 19. Qc2 e5 20. Bb2 Qe7 21. Rac1 Rad8 22. Ne4 Nc4 23. Nc5 exd4 24. cxd4 Nxb2 25. Nxa6 bxa6 26. Qxb2 {Kachar,V (2328)-Raum,S (2112) Pardubice 2011 ½-½ (47)}) 12. d5 Nb4 13. e4 c6 14. a3 cxd5 $1 {Quite an obvious refutation of White's play.} 15. axb4 axb4 16. Rxa8 bxc3 17. bxc3 Nxa8 18. exd5 $6 (18. Qxd5 $142 Nb6 (18... Qxd5 19. exd5 Nb6 20. Nd2 {[%cal Yc3c4]}) 19. Qa5 {although Black, controlling the crucial c4-square, keeps a small edge after} Qf6 20. Bg5 Qc6 {[%csl Gc4]}) 18... Nb6 {[%csl Rd5]} 19. Rd1 $6 (19. d6 Re6 (19... Nc4 $5)) (19. c4 $5 Nxc4 20. Qb4 Nd6 21. Be3 {getting some activity for the missing pawn although Black is obviously better.}) 19... e4 20. Ng5 $4 {[%mdl 8192] Just blundering a piece in a poor position.} (20. Ne1 Bg4 21. f3 e3 22. Qe2 Bd7 23. Bxe3 (23. c4 Nxc4 $1 24. Qxc4 e2 25. Rd2 Qb6+ 26. Kh1 Qf2 $19) 23... Ba4 {[%cal Yb6d5]} 24. Rd2 Bxc3 $19) (20. Nh4 h6 $19 {[%cal Rg6g5]}) ({It was relatively better (but hopeless enough) just to give up the d5-pawn:} 20. Nd4 Qxd5 $19) 20... e3 21. Qb2 Qxg5 22. Bxe3 (22. Qxb6 e2 23. Re1 Qxc1 24. Rxc1 e1=Q+ 25. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 26. Bf1 Bh3 $19) 22... Qg4 (22... Qg4 23. f3 Nc4) 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2011.01.28"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E00"]
[WhiteElo "2784"]
[BlackElo "2814"]
[Annotator "Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar"]
[PlyCount "170"]
[EventDate "2011.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 141"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Müller,Karsten} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ {Carlsen stays faithful to his game against Topalov, in which this line brought him a fine victory.} 5. Qxd2 d5 6. Bg2 Nbd7 7. Nf3 c6 8. O-O b6 9. Rc1 O-O (9... Bb7 10. Ne5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Nd7 12. f4 O-O 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Na3 a5 15. Nb5 Nc5 16. Rc2 f6 17. Qe3 fxe5 18. Qxe5 Rf5 19. Qd6 $1 $14 {1-0 Grischuk,A (2760)-Eljanov,P (2755)/Moscow 2010/CBM 139 (60)}) 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Na3 Bb7 $146 12. Nb5 a6 13. Nd6 Qb8 (13... Ne4 14. Nxb7 Nxd2 (14... Qb8 $2 15. Qf4 $16) 15. Nxd8 Nxf3+ 16. Bxf3 Rfxd8 17. Rc7 Nf6 18. Rac1 $14) 14. Qb4 a5 15. Qa3 Ba6 16. Ne5 b5 17. Qxa5 $146 {Probably a miscalculation which turns the tables in Black's favour.} (17. Rc6 b4 18. Qe3 Bb7 19. Nxd7 Nxd7 20. Nxb7 Qxb7 21. Rac1 Rfc8 22. R6c2 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 Rc8 $11) ({RR} 17. Nexf7 Rxf7 18. Nxf7 Kxf7 19. Qxa5 b4 20. a3 b3 21. Qc3 Bxe2 22. Re1 Bc4 23. Bf1 Bxf1 24. Kxf1 Qb6 25. Rac1 Ra4 26. Red1 Rc4 27. Qd3 Qc6 28. Qe3 Ne4 29. f3 Nef6 30. Rxc4 dxc4 31. Rc1 Nd5 {Gibicar,D (2050)-Weidel,A (2157) Lauffen am Neckar 2011 0-1 (38)}) 17... Qxd6 18. Rc6 Qb8 19. Rxa6 Rxa6 20. Qxa6 Nxe5 21. dxe5 Qxe5 22. Qxb5 Rb8 23. Qd3 Rxb2 {Since White's 17th move the moves have been more or less forced.} 24. Qe3 {A good practical choice.} Qxe3 25. fxe3 Rxe2 26. a4 Rc2 27. a5 Rc7 28. a6 Ra7 29. Bf1 Kf8 30. Rb1 Ke7 31. Rb7+ Rxb7 32. axb7 Nd7 33. Kf2 Kd6 34. Bb5 Nb8 35. Be8 Ke7 36. Bb5 f6 37. Kf3 Kd6 38. Be8 Kc7 39. Bf7 Kxb7 40. Bxe6 Kc6 41. Bg8 h6 {Kramnik has managed to increases his chances in this ending where he is a pawn down.} 42. Kg4 $6 {But he goes astray now} (42. h4 Nd7 43. Kf4 Ne5 44. h5 {And it is more or less a fortress!}) 42... Nd7 43. Kf5 Ne5 44. h3 $6 {Müller,Karsten: 'In what follows Kramnik places both kingside pawns on light squares." "Kramnik stellt seine Bauern im folgenden ungünstig auf."} ({Müller,Karsten: By means of Mittels} 44. h4 $1 Kd6 45. h5 {Kramnik could have drawn relatively easily. konnte Kramnik recht leicht remisieren.}) 44... Kc5 45. g4 $6 {Pawns should not have been placed on white squares.} Kd6 $1 {A nice retreat!} 46. Bh7 Ke7 47. Bg8 g6+ 48. Kf4 Nf7 49. Bh7 g5+ {'!?' Müller,Karsten.} (49... Nh8 {Müller,Karsten} 50. Bg8 Kd6 51. h4 $11) 50. Kg3 ({Müller,Karsten: Unfortunately active defence with Unglücklicherweise ist aktive Verteidigung mittels} 50. Kf5 $4 {'is impossible due to' wegen} Nd6+ 51. Kg6 Nc4 $19 52. Kxh6 Nxe3 $19 {nicht spielbar.}) 50... Nd6 51. Bg8 Ne4+ {Just in time!} 52. Kg2 Kd6 {Müller,Karsten: 'Magnus starts his long march.'  Magnus schickt seinen König auf eine lange Reise.'} 53. Kf3 Kc5 54. Bh7 Nc3 55. Bd3 Kb4 $17 56. Ba6 Kb3 57. Bb7 {'?' Müller,Karsten: 'Now the king will reach d2 which seals White's fate.' 'Nun gelangt der König nach d2, was das weiße Schicksal besiegelt.'} (57. Bd3 {Müller,Karsten:} Kb2 58. Kf2 Kc1 59. Ke1 {was Kramnik's last chance to fight. It looks as if White can still defend. war Kramniks letzte Chance. Es sieht so aus, als könne sich Weiß noch halten.}) 57... Kc2 58. Ba6 (58. e4 $6 {Müller,Karsten} d4 $19) 58... Kd1 {Müller,Karsten: 'Magnus' mighty king.  In the duel knight against bishop the knight usually wants to have control. But even then it is often quite difficult to win. Magnus Carlsen had to use all his creativity to beat Kramnik. After looking at my original analysis, which starts at this point, Kramnik remarked: "I had made two childish blunders and was totally lost already."  Magnus mächtiger König Im Duell Springer gegen Läufer will die Springerpartei in aller Regel die Kontrolle erlangen. Doch selbst dann ist der Gewinn oft nicht leicht. So musste Magnus Carlsen all seine Kreativität und seinen König einsetzen, um sich durchzusetzen. Nachdem Kramnik meine ursprüngliche Analyse gesehen hatte, die im diesem Moment einsetzte, bemerkte er:"Ich hatte schon zwei riesige Böcke geschossen und war bereits völlig verloren".} 59. Bb7 {'?!' Müller,Karsten.} (59. Bc8 {(Müller,Karsten) was more tenacious as now no direct zugzwang can be forced. But Black will win in any case: war viel zäher, weil nun kein direkter Zugzwang hergestellt werden kann. Aber Schwarz kann dennoch gewinnen:} Kd2 60. Bb7 Kc1 {A triangulation to break this setup. Ein Dreicksmanöver, um diese Aufstellung zu durchbrechen.} 61. Bc8 Kd1 62. Bf5 (62. Ba6 Ke1 {Zugzwang} 63. Bd3 Kd2 64. Ba6 Nd1 65. e4 d4 $19) 62... Ke1 63. Be6 Kf1 64. Bg8 Kg1 65. Kg3 Ne4+ 66. Kf3 Kh2 67. Bxd5 Nc3 $1 {Black must win a tempo. Schwarz muss ein Tempo gewinnen.} ({After Denn nach} 67... Nd6 $2 68. h4 gxh4 69. Kf2) ({or after bzw nach} 67... Nc5 $2 68. Bc4 Kxh3 69. Bf1+ Kh4 70. Be2 h5 71. gxh5 Kxh5 {Black has good drawing chances. hat Schwarz gute Remischancen.}) 68. Bc4 Nb1 $3 {The point. The knight will either sacrifice itself on d2 or return with gain of time. Die Pointe. Der Springer wird sich entweder auf d2 opfern oder mit Tempo zurückkehren.} (68... Kxh3 $2 {is met by wird mit} 69. Bf1+ Kh4 70. Bd3 {beantwortet..}) 69. Ke2 Kxh3 70. Bd3 (70. Be6 Nc3+ 71. Kf3 Na4 72. Bc4 Kh4 73. Bf1 Nb6 74. Be2 Nd5 75. Bd1 Nc3 76. Bc2 Nb5 77. Ba4 Nd6 78. Bb3 f5 $19) 70... Nc3+ 71. Kf3 Kh4 72. Bf1 ({If White stays on the b1-h7 diagonal with Wenn Weiß mit} 72. Bc2 {(Knaak) then the following knight manovers win. Black's king also has to move from time to time to bring White in zugzwang: auf der Diagonale b1-h7 bleibt, dann gewinnt der folgende Springertanz, wobei der König sich immer mal wieder einschalten muss, um Zugzwänge herbeizuführen:} Nb5 73. Bf5 (73. Bh7 Nd6 74. Bg6 Nc4 $19) 73... Nd6 74. Be6 Kh3 75. Bb3 (75. Ba2 Nc8 76. Bc4 Ne7 77. Be6 Nc6 78. Ke4 Ne5 79. Kf5 Nxg4 80. Kg6 Kh4 81. e4 Ne3 $19) 75... Nb7 76. Bd1 Nc5 77. Be2 Kh4 78. Bb5 Nb3 79. Be2 Nd2+ 80. Kf2 Ne4+ 81. Kg2 Nc3 82. Bf3 Na2 83. Be2 Nc1 84. Bd1 Nd3 85. Kf3 Ne5+ $19) 72... Nb1 73. Bd3 Nd2+ 74. Ke2 Kxg4 75. Kxd2 Kh3 76. Be2 g4 77. Ke1 h5 78. Kf1 Kh2 $19) 59... Kd2 {'!!' Müller,Karsten: 'Magnus Carlsen puts Kramnik in zugzwang. Now his king will reach the white kingside pawns.'  'Magnus Carlsen bringt Kramnik in tödlichen Zugzwang. Nun wird der schwarze König seinen langen Marsch in Richtung des Bauern h3 fortsetzen können.'} 60. Bc6 (60. Ba6 $6 {(Müller,Karsten): is refuted by läuft in} Nd1 61. e4 d4 $19) 60... Ke1 61. Bb7 Kf1 62. Ba8 Kg1 63. Kg3 Ne4+ 64. Kf3 Nd2+ 65. Kg3 (65. Ke2 {Müller,Karsten} Nc4 66. Bxd5 Ne5 67. Be4 Kh2 68. Kf2 Kxh3 69. Bf5 Kh4 $19) 65... Nf1+ 66. Kf3 Nd2+ 67. Kg3 Nc4 68. Bxd5 Nxe3 69. Bb7 Nf1+ 70. Kf3 Kh2 71. Kf2 (71. h4 {Müller,Karsten} Kh3 72. hxg5 fxg5 73. Bc8 Nh2+ 74. Kf2 Nxg4+ 75. Kf3 h5 $19) 71... Nd2 72. Bg2 Nc4 73. Bf1 Ne5 74. Ke3 Kg1 75. Be2 (75. Ke2 {Müller,Karsten} Nd3 76. Kxd3 Kxf1 $19) 75... Kg2 76. Ke4 Kxh3 77. Kf5 Kh4 78. Bd1 Nc4 {'!' Müller,Karsten.} 79. Ke4 ({After Nach} 79. Kxf6 {Müller,Karsten} Ne3 80. Be2 Nxg4+ 81. Kg6 h5 82. Bd1 Ne3 83. Bxh5 Ng4 $19 {White is in zugzwang. A tragicomical picture. ist Weiß in tödlichem Zugzwang.}) 79... Nd6+ 80. Kd5 (80. Kf3 {Müller,Karsten} h5 81. gxh5 Kxh5 82. Kg3+ Kg6 $19) 80... f5 {'!' Müller,Karsten: : 'The final point. A very impressive endgame performance by Magnus Carlsen!'  'Die letzte Pointe. Ein von Magnus Carlsen sehr beeindruckend geführtes Endspiel!'} 81. Kxd6 {Müller,Karsten} fxg4 82. Ke5 g3 83. Bf3 Kh3 84. Kf5 g2 85. Bxg2+ Kxg2 $19 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 73rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2011.01.30"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D07"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2814"]
[PlyCount "37"]
[EventDate "2011.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 141"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. c4 Bg4 4. cxd5 Bxf3 5. gxf3 Qxd5 6. e3 e5 7. Nc3 Bb4 8. Bd2 Bxc3 9. bxc3 Nge7 10. c4 Qd6 11. d5 Nb8 12. Rb1 b6 13. Bb4 c5 14. dxc6 Qxc6 $146 ({RR} 14... Qxd1+ 15. Rxd1 Nexc6 16. Ba3 Nd7 17. Bh3 O-O-O 18. Ke2 g6 19. Rd5 f5 20. Rhd1 Rhe8 21. Bg2 Re6 22. Rd6 Rxd6 23. Rxd6 Kc7 24. f4 e4 25. f3 Na5 26. fxe4 Nxc4 27. Rd3 fxe4 28. Bxe4 Nf6 29. Be7 {Bruk,O (2451)-Porat,I (2431) Israel 2011 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 14... Qxd1+ 15. Rxd1 Nbxc6 16. Bd6 O-O-O 17. Rg1 g6 18. c5 Kb7 19. Bc4 Nf5 20. Bxf7 Nxd6 21. cxd6 Rhf8 22. Bd5 Rxd6 23. Rg5 Rf5 24. Rg4 b5 25. Rh4 h5 26. Be4 Rxd1+ 27. Kxd1 Rf6 28. Rh3 Kb6 29. Rg3 {Grinev,V (2360)-Vlasenko,M (2422) Kirov 2013 ½-½ (42)}) 15. Bd3 Qe6 16. c5 Nbc6 17. cxb6 Nxb4 18. Rxb4 axb6 19. Qb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bazna Kings 5th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2011.06.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2815"]
[BlackElo "2774"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "76"]
[EventDate "2011.06.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 143"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 {The Queen's Gambit Declined became fashionable again on the very top level thanks to the Candidates matches in Kazan, where Black was able to neutralise White's opening advantage. Carlsen was happy that he found a way to break through this rock solid classical opening.} 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bf4 c6 6. Qc2 {This is a popular move order: White prevents his opponent from developing the bishop on f5. Recently Nakamura himself played this move against Ponomariov.} Bg4 {[%cal Gg4h5,Gh5g6] A rare move. Black insists on transferring the bishop to the diagonal b1-h7. Magnus Carlsen admitted after the game that the move was new to him.} (6... Bd6 7. Bxd6 Qxd6 8. e3 Qg6 9. Qxg6 hxg6 10. b4 a6 11. f3 Nd7 12. Bd3 Ne7 13. Nge2 g5 14. Kf2 Nf6 15. g4 Kd8 16. Kg3 Bd7 17. a4 Nc8 18. h3 Re8 19. Kf2 Nd6 20. a5 Re7 21. Rac1 Nfe8 22. Ng3 g6 23. h4 {and the American converted his advantage into a full point in the game Nakamura,H (2774)-Ponomariov,R (2754)/Saint Louis 2011}) 7. e3 Bh5 8. Bd3 Bg6 9. Bxg6 $1 {An important change of structure for the strategy of White, who will be able to open the h-file later on. From this point of view the similarity with the aforementioned game is amazing.} hxg6 10. O-O-O Nf6 11. f3 $1 {[%cal Ge3e4] #} Nbd7 12. Nge2 ({The immediate} 12. e4 {runs into} Nh5 {and White can't keep the bishop} 13. Be3 {due to} Ng3 $1) ({RR} 12. g4 Nb6 13. Nge2 Bd6 14. h3 Bxf4 15. Nxf4 Qe7 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 O-O-O 18. b3 Kb8 19. Kb1 Ne8 20. Qh2 Nc7 21. Nfe2 Ka8 22. Rd3 Rd7 23. Rhd1 Rhd8 24. Qg3 g5 25. Qf3 f6 26. Kc2 Na6 {Salgado Lopez,I (2623)-Berkes,F (2693) Paks 2011 0-1 (118)}) 12... b5 $146 {Nakamura's desire to postpone short castling is understandable, since then at some moment White will start advancing the h-pawn. However, Black's problem is that sooner or later he will have to hide the king anyway, since White's play in the centre is simple and clear.} ({RR} 12... Nh5 13. Be5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Bc5 15. Nd4 Bxd4 16. exd4 Qg5+ 17. Kb1 Nf4 18. g3 Ne6 19. Ka1 Qf5 20. Qe2 O-O-O 21. b4 Kb8 22. b5 c5 23. dxc5 d4 24. Ne4 Qxe5 25. Qb2 Nxc5 26. Nxc5 Qxc5 27. Rd3 {Luukkonen,T (2348)-Keinanen,T (2297) Finland 2017 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 12... Nb6 13. Kb1 Nh5 14. e4 Nxf4 15. Nxf4 Qc7 16. Ncxd5 Nxd5 17. Nxd5 Qd6 18. Ne3 Qf4 19. Qb3 Qc7 20. e5 Qb6 21. Qd3 Rd8 22. f4 Bc5 23. Nc2 Be7 24. g4 a6 25. f5 Qb5 26. Qg3 Qd5 27. Rhf1 {Zhao,X (2556)-Mkrtchian,L (2450) Jermuk 2012 1-0 (35)}) 13. e4 b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Qa5 16. Kb1 ({Carlsen wasn't satisfied with the alternative} 16. e5 Nd5 17. e6 fxe6 18. Qxc6 Kf7 19. Qxd7 Rhd8 {where} 20. Qc6 {runs into} Rac8) 16... O-O {So finally Black could not avoid the inevitable castling..} 17. h4 $1 {And the reaction is very natural: White plans e4-e5 followed by h4-h5.} Rfe8 18. e5 Nd5 19. h5 g5 {The position is highly complicated, but Carlsen rightly felt that White's attacking prospetcs should be higher.} 20. h6 g6 21. Bc1 {[%csl Ra4,Gc5] Black has a much weaker king and a worse pawn structure. White's only problem is his badly placed knight on a4.} ({The variation preferred by the computer} 21. e6 gxf4 22. exd7 Red8 23. Qxc6 Ne3 24. Nc5 Nxd1 25. Rxd1 {with advantage for White would always appear unclear for a human in a practical game.}) 21... N7b6 {A bad decision, allowing White to place the knight on c5.} (21... N5b6 {was preferable, after which Black can still fight on, although his position remains worse anyway.}) 22. Nc5 Bxc5 23. dxc5 b3 (23... Nd7 24. e6 $1 Rxe6 25. Nd4 {with the idea} Ree8 26. Nxc6 Qxc5 27. Qxc5 Nxc5 28. Rxd5 {wins a piece for White.}) 24. Qxb3 Qxc5 25. Nd4 Rxe5 26. Nf3 Re2 $2 {The second mistake, after which it is hardly possible to save Black's position any longer. The rook is seemingly active, but in many variations it is unstable and it needs protection on e2.} (26... Rf5 {was the right way to put up resistance. It must be said that Nakamura was already starting to experience problems with time.}) 27. Nxg5 Qe7 28. Qd3 $1 {[%csl Rg6][%cal Gg5f7,Gd1f1]} Rf8 29. Rdf1 f5 (29... f6 30. Re1 $1 Rxe1 31. Rxe1 Qxe1 32. Qxg6+ {and mate}) 30. g4 Na4 31. Qd4 (31. gxf5 {wins quicker, but Magnus admitted that he missed something after Black's answer.}) 31... Qe5 $1 {Being short of time Nakamura finds interesting tactical ideas. Unfortunately for him Black's position is just too bad and White still has ways to keep the decisive advantage.} 32. Qxe5 $1 (32. Qxa4 {suddently runs into} Nc3+ $1 33. bxc3 Rb8+ {and White must give up his queen:} 34. Qb4 Rxb4+ 35. cxb4 Qd5 $1 {The move missed by Carlsen when he played 31.Qd4. Black is not worse.}) 32... Rxe5 33. gxf5 gxf5 34. Nf3 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Gf1g1,Gg1g7,Gf3g5] Even in an endgame the vulnerability of his king is fatal for Black.} Re7 ({Or} 34... Re6 35. h7+ Kh8 36. Bh6 Rb8 37. Rfg1 {winning}) 35. Rfg1+ Kh7 (35... Kh8 36. Nh4) 36. Rg7+ $1 Kh8 (36... Rxg7 37. hxg7+ Kxg7 38. Bh6+) 37. Rhg1 Rfe8 38. Nh4 Rxg7 {and without awaiting the opponent's answer Nakamura resigned. Both 39.hxg7+ and 39.xg7 win easily for White.} 1-0

[Event "Bazna Kings 5th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2011.06.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nisipeanu, Liviu Dieter"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2815"]
[BlackElo "2659"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2011.06.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 143"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e3 Nf6 4. Bxc4 e6 5. Nf3 c5 6. O-O a6 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 {Magnus Carlsen has played this line before and it shouldn't have come as a surprise for Nisipeanu. Even if White's next move is out of fashion, it soon transposed to the main line.} 9. Be2 ({Usually White starts with} 9. Nbd2 {then after} Ke7 10. Be2 {we have a transposition to the game.}) 9... Ke7 10. Nbd2 Bd7 11. Nb3 {Possibly the critical position of the game.} Bd6 $6 (11... Bb6 {or even 11...a7 must be played.}) ({RR} 11... Bb6 12. Bd2 Nc6 13. Rfc1 Rhc8 14. Be1 Be8 15. Nfd2 Ne5 16. Nf3 Nc6 17. Nfd2 Ne5 18. Nf3 {½-½ (18) Buhmann,R (2580)-Nisipeanu,L (2683) Dresden 2017}) 12. Na5 $1 {A nasty surprise for Black. Although Nisipeanu spent a lot of time here, Black is not able to avoid the exchange of one of his bishops for a knight, which will secure White a pleasant, long-lasting advantage.} Ra7 ({The main alternative was} 12... b5 13. Nb7 Bb4 {with the idea 14.a3 c6. But perhaps White can play} 14. Bd2 Bxd2 15. Nxd2 {when the weakened square c5 and the exposed queenside pawns should secure White somewhat better chances. And there is an additional way. Instead of 13.b7 the simple 13.d2 preparing next b7 might be even more unpleasant for Black.}) 13. Nc4 Bb5 (13... Bc7 14. b3 {followed by a check from a3 looks horrible for Black.}) 14. b3 $146 ({RR} 14. Nd4 Bxc4 15. Bxc4 Rc8 16. Bd3 b6 17. Bd2 Rd7 18. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 19. Rxc1 Bc5 20. Bc3 Nd5 21. Bd2 Nf6 22. Bc3 Nd5 23. Bd2 g6 24. Be2 e5 25. Nb3 Bb4 26. Rc8 Bd6 27. e4 Nf4 28. Bg4 Rd8 {Yankelevich,L (2445)-Studer,N (2494) Bad Ragaz 2019 0-1 (51)}) ({RR} 14. Rd1 Bxc4 15. Bxc4 Rc8 16. Bb3 Ne4 17. Bd2 Nxd2 18. Rxd2 b5 19. Rad1 Rd7 20. g3 Bb4 21. Rxd7+ Nxd7 22. Ng5 Nf6 23. a3 Ba5 24. Kg2 Bb6 25. Kf3 Rc5 26. h4 h6 27. Nh3 g5 28. hxg5 hxg5 {Moksh,A (2344)-Paravyan,D (2582) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 14. Nd4 Bxc4 15. Bxc4 Rc8 16. Be2 Nc6 17. Nxc6+ Rxc6 18. Rd1 a5 19. Bd2 Bb4 20. Rac1 Bxd2 21. Rxc6 bxc6 22. Rxd2 Nd5 23. Kf1 g5 24. Ke1 f5 25. Bd1 Rb7 26. Bb3 Nb6 27. a3 Nd7 28. Ba4 Rb6 {Goryachkina,A (2576)-Koneru,H (2576) New Delhi IND 2023 ½-½ (32)}) 14... Rd8 15. Bb2 Bxc4 ({After} 15... Nc6 16. Rfd1 Raa8 17. Rxd6 Rxd6 18. Nxd6 Kxd6 {Magnus was going to keep the bishop pair with} 19. Bd1 $1) 16. Bxc4 Nc6 17. Rfd1 Raa8 18. h3 {Black's position is worse than it looks. White's bishop pair together with the lack of any counterplay makes it difficult to defend it especially in a practical game and especially with little time. White's plan is to advance the kingside pawns, gaining more space and trying to create a weakness in Black's pawn formation. Possibly disappointed by the course of the game Nisipeanu fails to put up his usual tough resistance.} g6 {This somewhat strange-looking move is meant to prepare f6-d5. But on d5 the knight won't be doing much anyway, while the weaknesses created by 18...g6 will soon be fatal.} (18... h5 {was preferable, stopping at least for a while g2-g4.}) 19. g4 h6 (19... h5 {is answered by} 20. g5) 20. Bf1 Rac8 21. Rac1 Nd5 22. h4 Ke8 ({Something like} 22... Ncb4 {was called for, trying some counterplay as quickly as possible.}) 23. g5 hxg5 {After this inaccuracy the position becomes really difficult.} ({Black must try to keep the kingside closed and} 23... h5 {was necessary.}) 24. hxg5 Be7 25. Kg2 Nb6 26. Bd3 $1 Nb4 27. Be4 Nxa2 28. Rxd8+ Kxd8 29. Rh1 {Black is temporarily a pawn up, but his position is lost. The bishop pair dominates the board, the rook is going to come to h7 and the knight to e5. Black just can't stand such pressure.} Nd5 30. Ne5 f5 31. Bxd5 ({Black resigned due to} 31. Bxd5 exd5 32. Rh8+ Kc7 33. Rh7 Kd8 34. Bd4 {and big material losses are unavoidable.}) 1-0

[Event "Bazna Kings 5th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2011.06.18"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2815"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "143"]
[EventDate "2011.06.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 143"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Qc2 c5 8. dxc5 h6 9. Bd2 {This variation is naturally not especially dangerous for Black. However, as the game shows, White has some chances for a small, stable edge.} O-O 10. e3 Bxc5 ({RR} 10... Qe7 11. Be2 Bxc5 12. O-O a6 13. Qb3 Nb6 14. Rac1 Be6 15. Nd4 Rac8 16. Rfd1 Bxd4 17. exd4 Nc4 18. Be1 b5 19. h3 Rfe8 20. Bf3 Qd7 21. Ne2 Bf5 22. Ng3 Bg6 23. a3 Ne4 24. Bg4 f5 25. Bh5 {Ivanchuk,V (2739)-Mamedyarov,S (2719) Moscow 2009 0-1 (39)}) 11. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 11. Be2 Re8 12. O-O Ne5 13. Rfd1 Bg4 14. Nxe5 Rxe5 15. Be1 Rc8 16. Bxg4 Nxg4 17. h3 Nf6 18. Qb3 Qd7 19. Ne2 Rg5 20. Nf4 Bd6 21. Bc3 Bxf4 22. exf4 Rf5 23. Be5 h5 24. Rd4 Rc5 25. Rad1 Qc6 {Stohl,I (2530)-Jirovsky,M (2425) Czech Republic 1995 0-1 (71)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 a6 12. Ne2 b5 13. Rc1 Bb7 14. O-O Rc8 15. Qb1 Ne4 16. Bc3 Bd6 17. Bd4 Ndc5 18. Ng3 Qd7 19. Rfd1 Qe6 20. Nh5 g6 21. Nf4 Qe7 22. Bf1 Rfd8 23. g3 Ng5 24. Nxg5 Qxg5 25. h4 Qg4 {Aronian,L (2786)-Grischuk,A (2736) Moscow 2009 0-1 (35)}) ({RR} 11. Be2 Qe7 12. O-O a6 13. Qb3 Nb6 14. Rac1 Be6 15. Nd4 Nc4 16. Nxd5 Nxd5 17. Nxe6 Nxd2 18. Qxd5 fxe6 19. Qxd2 Rad8 20. Qc2 Bd6 21. Qe4 Rf6 22. Bf3 b5 23. Rc6 Rdf8 24. Rxa6 Rf5 25. Rd1 Be5 {Cruz,C (2478)-Eckert,D (2139) Las Vegas USA 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 11. Be2 a6 12. O-O b5 13. Rfd1 Bb7 14. Be1 Rc8 15. Qf5 Re8 16. Bd3 Bd6 17. Ne2 d4 18. exd4 Bd5 19. Qh3 Nf8 20. Ne5 Bxe5 21. dxe5 Rxe5 22. Bc3 Rg5 23. Nf4 Ne6 24. Nxd5 Nxd5 25. Bf1 Qf8 {Dzagnidze,N (2479)-Hou,Y (2570) Nalchik 2010 1-0 (69)}) 11... Qe7 12. Be2 a6 13. Qd3 {An important move; Black should not be allowed to play ...b5 and ...b7 with easy play. b3 with the same idea was also possible, but I felt that the queen would be better on d3.} Nb6 14. O-O Bg4 {Frankly, I didn't understand why he wanted to provoke d4, as in general exchanges favour White here.} (14... Be6 {was perfectly sensible.}) 15. Nd4 Bd7 {I don't think it was necessary to withdraw the bishop immediately as after} (15... Rac8 16. Bxg4 (16. b3 {is probably more accurate, but should hardly trouble Black much either}) 16... Nxg4 17. Nf3 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Qxe5 {Black is fine:} 19. b3 d4 20. f4 dxe3 $1 21. fxe5 exd2+ 22. Kh1 dxc1=Q 23. Rxc1 Rfd8 24. Qf3 Bd4 25. Ne2 Rxc1+ 26. Nxc1 Bxe5 $11) 16. Bf3 Rfe8 17. b3 Ba3 (17... Ne4 18. Nxd5 {just loses a pawn.}) 18. Rc2 Rac8 (18... Ne4 19. Nce2 {does not change too much.}) 19. Nce2 {Now White is definitely better. However, it is still difficult to make any substantial progress.} Rxc2 20. Qxc2 Be6 {Very sensible, as a5 was an annoying threat. The text gives the knight a square on d7.} 21. Bc1 Rc8 (21... Bd6 {would be desirable, but gives White some time to regroup:} 22. Bb2 Rc8 23. Qb1 Nbd7 24. Nf4 Ne5 25. Be2 {with a very pleasant position.}) 22. Bxa3 Qxa3 23. Qd2 Bg4 $1 {An important move. After the bishops are gone, White will not have too many resources left, and the temporary lack of coordination in the black camp (the knights on b6 and g4 are loose, and even the rook might be hanging in some lines) cannot be exploited.} (23... Nbd7 24. Nf4 Qe7 25. Rc1 Rxc1+ 26. Qxc1 Ne5 27. Be2 {would give White the kind of position he's aiming for.}) 24. Bxg4 Nxg4 25. Nf5 Nf6 26. h3 {I spent a lot of time on this and the next few moves, looking for a way to increase my advantage, but everywhere Black defends easily enough.} Kh7 27. Qd4 Nbd7 28. Qf4 Nf8 {The most natural.} (28... Qxa2 29. Ned4 Qa3 {looks risky, but is probably also playable:} 30. g4 (30. Nd6 Rc1 31. Rxc1 Qxc1+ 32. Kh2 Qc7 $11) (30. Nxg7 Kxg7 31. Nf5+ Kg6 32. b4 Qc3 {leads nowhere}) 30... Rc1 31. Rxc1 Qxc1+ 32. Kg2 g5 33. Qd6 Qc5 {and Black is ok.}) 29. Neg3 (29. Nxh6 $2 {was tempting, but doesn't quite work:} Ne6 30. Qf5+ (30. Qh4 g5 31. Qg3 Ne4 $1 (31... Kxh6 32. f4 {is actually quite dangerous}) 32. Qf3 Kxh6 33. Qxf7 Qd6 34. Ng3 Ng7 35. Nxe4 dxe4 36. Qxb7 Rc6 {and only Black can be better}) 30... Kxh6 31. g4 Qb2 32. Ng3 g5 $1 (32... g6 {is what I calculated, and is also quite sufficient:} 33. g5+ Kg7 (33... Nxg5 34. Qxc8) 34. gxf6+ Qxf6 35. Qxd5 Rc2 $11) 33. f4 Rc1 {and White is busted} (33... gxf4 34. g5+ Nxg5 35. Qxf4 Rc1 36. h4 Rxf1+ 37. Kxf1 {might be enough for a draw})) (29. Ned4 Ng6 30. Qd6 Qxd6 31. Nxd6 Rc7 {and it's unclear what the knight is doing on d6.}) 29... Ng6 (29... Ne6 {was possibly even more precise. It looks weird to give the white queen such a nice post on e5 for free, but after the cool} 30. Qe5 Rc6 $1 {White has nothing} 31. Nxg7 Nxg7 {shows the point of ...c6.}) 30. Qd4 Qc5 {The only move (the threath of xg7 was very unpleasant). Now White has to exchange queens.} 31. f3 Qxd4 32. Nxd4 Ne5 33. Rd1 g6 34. Kf2 Kg7 35. Nge2 Kf8 36. g4 {White is still a little better here, but since the only black weakness is well defended and Black is active enough, there are no real winning chances.} Nc6 37. Rc1 Ke7 (37... Ne7 {was quite possible. Short on time, I was intending to repeat moves once, and then think about whether to exchange rooks or knights. I would probably have chosen the first option.}) 38. h4 Kd6 39. h5 {There is not really anything else. In order to have any chances for a win, I need to create a weakness on the kingside, and there h6 is the target.} Ne7 (39... gxh5 40. Nf5+ $1 (40. gxh5 Nxh5 41. Rh1 Nxd4 42. Nxd4 Ng7 43. Rxh6+ Ne6 $11) 40... Kd7 41. gxh5 Nxh5 42. Rh1 Nf6 43. Rxh6 {would be unpleasant for Black.}) 40. Rh1 gxh5 41. gxh5 Rg8 {Since the exchange of queens Ivanchuk had been playing more or less at blitz speed, and I was wondering whether he considered the position an easy draw, or was simply not in the mood for a painstaking defence. Anyway, White certainly has something to play for here, even though there is no doubt that Black should hold with sensible play.} 42. Ng3 Rg5 43. b4 (43. f4 Rg8 44. Kf3 Kd7 {leads nowhere. I thought it would be useful to postpone f4, as one of my knights or even the rook might want to use that square.}) 43... Kd7 44. Rh4 Ne8 45. Rf4 Nd6 46. a4 b6 {This was not necessary.} (46... Re5 {was quite ok. I don't see any serious was to play for a win here} 47. Rg4 Nef5 $1) 47. a5 {Naturally, I should not let the opportunity to create a potential weakness on a6 go, even though my own pawn on a5 might also be weak in some lines.} bxa5 48. bxa5 f5 $6 {I thought this was a serious inaccuracy during the game. There is no real need to leave this pawn as a target for both my knights. Staying put with ...e5 was probably still fine.} 49. Rh4 Nc4 $2 (49... Rg8 50. Nge2 Rb8 51. Rh1 Rb2 52. Kg3 Ra2 53. Nf4 Rxa5 54. Ng6 {gives White a serious initative, as the king suddenly has a square on f4, and the black king might start to feel uncomfortable after a timely e5.}) 50. f4 Rg4 51. Rh3 {An ugly move, but I didn't want to allow} (51. Rh1 Nxe3 52. Kf3 Rg8 53. Rb1 Nc4 {which did not look clear to me at the board. Probably though, the position after} 54. Rb7+ Kd6 55. Ndxf5+ Nxf5 56. Nxf5+ Kc5 57. Rc7+ $1 Kb4 58. Ne7 {still offers winning chances, but it looked really messy.}) 51... Nd6 52. Rh1 Rg8 (52... Ne4+ 53. Nxe4 dxe4 54. Rb1 {just helps White, who is dominating.}) 53. Rb1 Ra8 54. Kf3 Kc7 55. Ne6+ {Once again, I was a little short of time, and wanted to repeat moves before going for b6.} (55. Rb6 {wins, as the following instructive variation shows:} Kd7 (55... Nec8 56. Ne6+ Kd7 57. Nc5+ Kc7 58. Rxa6 Rb8 59. Ne2 $18) 56. Nb3 Kc7 57. Nc5 Nc6 58. Nxa6+ Kd7 59. Nc5+ Kc7 60. Ne6+ Kd7 61. a6 $1 Kxe6 62. Rxc6 Kd7 63. Rc5 Rxa6 64. Ne2 $1 {and with d4 and xd5 to come, White should win.}) 55... Kc8 {I was a little upset that I allowed him this extra option, but White is still winning.} 56. Nc5 Rb8 (56... Nc6 57. Rb6 Kc7 {would transpose to the variations after 55.b6, and}) (56... Nc4 57. Rb7 {loses trivially.}) 57. Rxb8+ Kxb8 58. Nxa6+ Kb7 59. Nb4 {White is winning here, as Black doesn't have enough time to gobble up the a-pawn.} Nc4 60. a6+ Kb6 61. Ke2 Nd6 62. Kd3 Nb5 63. Ne2 Ka5 (63... Nc7 64. Nd4 Nxa6 65. Nxa6 Kxa6 66. Ne2 {with d4 and an easy win to come.}) 64. Nc3 Nc7 65. Nbxd5 $1 {A nice finishing touch. The king invasion is completely decisive, even a knight down!} Nexd5 66. Nxd5 Nxd5 67. a7 Nc7 68. Kd4 Kb6 69. Ke5 Kxa7 70. Kxf5 Nd5 71. Kg6 Nxe3 72. Kxh6 {Black is several tempi short here, so he resigned. I am happy with the way I conducted this endgame, although some of Ivanchuk's decisions and especially his time management left something to be desired.} 1-0

[Event "Bazna Kings 5th"]
[Site "Medias"]
[Date "2011.06.21"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E43"]
[WhiteElo "2815"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Rogozenco,Dorian"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2011.06.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ROU"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 143"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.07.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Sagar,Shah/CB Website Bologan,Viktor} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. e3 {This transposes to the classical Rubinstein Variation.} ({Somewhat more active, but also more risky is} 5. Bg5) 5... Bb7 6. Bd3 O-O 7. O-O c5 8. Na4 {The knight goes on the rim in order to underline the exposed position of the bishop on b4 and threaten a2-a3.} ({RR} 8. a3 Bxc3 9. bxc3 Ne4 10. Nd2 f5 11. f3 Nxd2 12. Bxd2 Nc6 13. Qc2 Qf6 14. Rf2 Rac8 15. dxc5 bxc5) 8... cxd4 9. exd4 Re8 10. a3 Bf8 11. Bf4 ({RR} 11. b4 d6 12. Bb2 Nbd7 13. Re1 g6 14. Nc3 Bg7 15. Bf1 a6) 11... d6 ({RR} 11... Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nc6 13. d5 ({RR} 13. Qh3 Nxd4 14. Be5) 13... exd5 14. cxd5 Ne5 15. Qd1 ({RR} 15. Bxe5 Rxe5 16. Nc3) 15... Nxd3 16. Qxd3 Re4 {0-1 (16) Yu,Y (2736)-Carlsen,M (2834) Doha 2015 CBM 170 [Sagar,Shah/CB Website]}) ({RR} 11... Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nc6 13. Qh3 h6 14. Be3 d5 15. Rfd1 Rc8 16. Nc3 Ne7 17. b3 Nf5 18. Bxf5 exf5 19. Qxf5 dxc4 20. bxc4 Rxc4 21. Qd3 Rc8 22. d5 Ng4 23. Bd4 Bc5 24. Qg3 h5 25. Bxc5 Rxc5 26. d6 {Zaja,I (2421)-Culum,S (2450) Grohote CRO 2025 1-0 (69)}) 12. Re1 Nbd7 13. Rc1 e5 $146 {A strong novelty, that helps Black to equalise.} ({After} 13... g6 {White is slightly better by bringing back the knight} 14. Nc3 ({RR} 14. Nc3 Rc8 15. b4 e5 16. dxe5 Nh5 17. Be3 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Nxe5 19. Qe2 Qh4 20. g3 Qh3 21. Nd5 Ng4 22. f3 Nxe3 23. Nxe3 Bh6 24. Qf2 Nf6)) ({RR} 13... g6 14. h3 e5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Nxe5 ({RR} 16. Bg5 e4) 16... Nh5 17. Bf1 ({RR} 17. Nxd7 Rxe1+ 18. Qxe1 Nxf4 19. Be4 Qxd7) 17... Nxf4 ({RR} 17... Bxg2 18. Qxd7 Qxd7 19. Nxd7 Rxe1 20. Rxe1 Bxf1 21. Nxf8 Nxf4 22. Nxg6 hxg6 23. Kxf1 Rd8) ({RR} 17... Bg7 18. Qxd7 Qxd7 19. Nxd7 Nxf4 20. g3 Bc6 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. gxf4 Bxa4 23. Ne5) 18. Qxd7 Qxd7 19. Nxd7 Rxe1 20. Rxe1 Bc6 21. Nxf8 Bxa4 22. g3 Nh5 23. Nxh7 ({RR} 23. b3 Bc6) 23... Kxh7 24. Re7 ({RR} 24. Bg2 Re8) 24... Be8 ({RR} 24... Kg8 25. Bg2 Rc8 26. Bd5 Be8 27. Rxa7 Nf6 28. Ra8 Rxa8 29. Bxa8 Ba4 30. b4 Kf8 31. f3 Ke7 32. Kf2 Bb3 33. c5 bxc5 34. bxc5 Nd7 35. c6 Nb6 36. Bb7 Kd6 ({RR} 36... Nd5 37. h4 Kd6 38. g4 Ne7 39. Ke3 f6 40. Kd2 Bf7 41. a4 Nxc6 42. Bxc6 Kxc6 43. Ke3 Kd6 44. Kd4 Be8 45. a5 Bb5 46. h5 gxh5 47. gxh5 Ke6 48. f4) 37. h4) ({RR} 24... Kg7 25. Bg2 Rc8 26. Bd5 Be8 27. Rxa7 Nf6 28. Ra8 Rc7 29. Rb8 ({RR} 29. b3 Bd7 30. Bg2 Bf5) 29... Nxd5 30. cxd5 Bd7 31. Rxb6 Bxh3 32. a4 Rc5 33. b4 Rxd5) 25. Bg2 Rd8 26. Bd5 ({RR} 26. b4 a5 ({RR} 26... Nf6 27. Rxa7 Rd1+ 28. Kh2 Rd2 29. Kg1 Kg7 30. Rb7 Rc2 31. Rxb6 Rxc4 32. b5 Bd7 33. g4 g5 34. Rb7 Be6 35. b6 Nd7 36. Kh2 Rc2 37. Rc7 Rxf2 38. Kg1 Rb2 39. b7) 27. c5 axb4 28. cxb6 b3 29. b7 Nf6 30. a4 Rd1+ 31. Kh2 b2 32. b8=Q b1=Q 33. Qxb1 Rxb1 34. g4 Kg7 35. g5) 26... Kg7 27. Rxa7 Nf6 28. Ra8 {Potkin,V (2653)-Bologan,V (2671) Olginka 2011 EXT 2020 [Bologan,Viktor] 0-1 (40)}) ({RR} 13... g6 14. Nc3 e5 15. dxe5 dxe5 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bxf6 Nxf6 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4 20. Rxe4 Qc7 21. b4 Rad8 22. Qb3 f5 23. c5+ Kh7 24. Ree1 e4 25. Nh4 bxc5 26. bxc5 Qc6 27. Qf7+ Bg7 28. Qxa7 {Aharonovich,I (2299)-Kobo,O (2485) Israel 2019 0-1 (50)}) 14. dxe5 Bxf3 (14... dxe5 15. Nxe5) 15. Qxf3 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 ({After} 16. Qh3 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rxe1+ 18. Rxe1 d5 19. Rd1 {Black exploits the unprotected position of the knight on a4 and frees himself from the pin along the d-file with} Qe8 $1 {with complete equality.}) 16... dxe5 17. Nc3 g6 ({After} 17... Qc7 {Carlsen intended to fight for the d5-square by means of} 18. g4 $5) 18. Be4 {This brings White nowhere and soon he will even have to play carefully to keep the balance.} (18. Rcd1 {was better, although after} Qe7 {Black hardly has any problems.}) 18... Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Rc8 $1 (19... Qc8 {allows White to keep some pressure after} 20. Nd5) ({Black would like to play} 19... f5 {but then after} 20. Qd5+ Qxd5 21. Nxd5 {he would suddenly have problems with defending against forks on c7 and f6 without giving up his e5-pawn.}) 20. b4 (20. Nd5 f5 $11) 20... Qd4 $1 {Now it is White who must play accurately, since potentially his pawns are weaker and in an endgame the bishop can be stronger than the knight.} 21. Qxd4 (21. Nd5 Qxe4 22. Rxe4 f5 23. Re2 Kf7 24. f3 Rc6 25. Kf2 Rec8 26. Rxe5 Rxc4 {is the kind of position White would like to avoid.}) 21... exd4 22. Rxe8 Rxe8 23. Nd5 Re2 24. Kf1 Ra2 25. Rd1 (25. c5 {leads to unpleasant defence after} bxc5 26. bxc5 d3 27. c6 (27. Ne3 $2 Bxc5) 27... Rc2 28. Rd1 Rxc6 29. Rxd3 Rc1+ 30. Ke2 Rc2+) 25... Rxa3 26. Rxd4 Ra4 (26... Kg7 $5 {deserved attention, without fearing} 27. g4 a5 28. bxa5 bxa5 29. g5 {due to} a4 30. Nf6 Ra1+ 31. Ke2 Rg1 32. Ne8+ Kh8 {and White is in trouble.}) 27. Nf6+ Kg7 28. Ne8+ Kg8 ({Black could try to play for more with} 28... Kh8 {although after} 29. b5 ({but not} 29. Rd7 Bxb4 {threatening a1-e1, ×e8}) 29... Bc5 30. Rd7 $1 Ra1+ 31. Ke2 Ra2+ 32. Kd3 Rxf2 33. Rxa7 {White's counterplay should not be underestimated:} Kg8 (33... Rxg2 34. Rxf7 Rxh2 35. Nf6 $1 {with a sort of domination}) 34. Ra6 h5 35. Nc7 Rxg2 36. Nd5 Rxh2 37. Nxb6 h4 38. Nd7 {and Black is risking as much as White.}) 29. Nf6+ Kg7 30. Ne8+ Kg8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel Accentus"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2011.07.18"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Pelletier, Yannick"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2590"]
[BlackElo "2821"]
[PlyCount "175"]
[EventDate "2011.07.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Nf3 c5 8. Rb1 O-O 9. Be2 b6 10. O-O Bb7 11. d5 Bxc3 12. Bc4 Bg7 13. Qd3 Qc8 14. Bg5 Re8 15. e5 e6 16. dxe6 fxe6 17. Rbd1 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Nc6 19. Bb5 Nxe5 $146 ({RR} 19... Nd4 20. Rxd4 cxd4 21. Bxe8 Qxe8 22. Qe4 h6 23. Bh4 g5 24. Bg3 Rd8 25. f4 d3 26. Rd1 d2 27. Qe2 Qd7 28. fxg5 hxg5 29. Kh1 Qd3 30. Qg4 Qf5 31. Qe2 g4 32. Kg1 Bh6 33. Qf2 Qxf2+ 34. Kxf2 {Kistrup,N (2066)-Tryggestad,A (2316) Drammen 2017 0-1 (39)}) 20. Qe4 Nf7 21. Bh4 Bd4 22. Rxd4 cxd4 23. Bxe8 Qxe8 24. Qxd4 Rc8 25. Re1 e5 26. Qg4 Rc2 27. h3 Qc6 28. Bg3 Rxa2 29. Bxe5 Nxe5 30. Rxe5 Ra4 31. Qd1 Rf4 32. Qb3+ Rf7 33. Re7 Qc1+ 34. Kh2 Qf4+ 35. Kh1 Kf8 36. Re2 Kg7 37. Qd5 a5 38. f3 Rc7 39. Re1 Rc1 40. Rxc1 Qxc1+ 41. Kh2 Qc7+ 42. Kh1 Kf6 43. Qd4+ Ke6 44. Qg4+ Kd6 45. Qd4+ Kc6 46. Qe4+ Kb5 47. Qe2+ Qc4 48. Qe8+ Qc6 49. Qe2+ Kc5 50. Qe3+ Kb4 51. Qe1+ Kc4 52. Qe2+ Kc3 53. Qe3+ Kb2 54. Qd2+ Kb1 55. Qd3+ Qc2 56. Qb5+ Ka1 57. Kh2 Qc7+ 58. Kh1 Qc1+ 59. Kh2 Qf4+ 60. Kh1 Qd4 61. Qf1+ Kb2 62. Qe2+ Kc1 63. Qe4 Qc3 64. f4 b5 65. Qe5 Qc4 66. Qa1+ Kc2 67. Qxa5 b4 68. Qa4+ Kb2 69. f5 gxf5 70. Kh2 h5 71. Qd7 Qf4+ 72. Kh1 b3 73. Qd3 Qf2 74. Qd5 h4 75. Kh2 Qf4+ 76. Kh1 Kc2 77. Qc5+ Kb1 78. Qb5 b2 79. Qd3+ Ka2 80. Qa6+ Kb3 81. Qb5+ Ka3 82. Qa5+ Qa4 83. Qc5+ Ka2 84. Qd5+ Ka1 85. Qe5 Qe4 86. Qa5+ Kb1 87. Qc3 f4 88. Qd2 0-1

[Event "Biel Accentus"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2011.07.20"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D80"]
[WhiteElo "2694"]
[BlackElo "2821"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2011.07.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bg5 Ne4 5. Nxe4 dxe4 6. Qd2 Bg7 7. e3 c5 8. d5 Nd7 9. Ne2 Ne5 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. Nc3 Nf6 11. Bxf6 exf6 12. Nxe4 b6 13. Bd3 Re8 14. O-O f5 15. Nc3 Bd7 16. Rfe1 Qf6 17. Rac1 h6 18. b3 g5 19. Ne2 Bf8 20. Ng3 Bd6 21. Qc2 Re5 22. Nh5 Qe7 23. Re2 Re8 24. Rce1 {Pesotskiy,M (2184)-Lima,S (2212) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (50)}) 10. Nc3 f5 11. Be2 Nf7 12. Bh4 $146 ({RR} 12. Bf4 e5 13. Bg3 Nd6 14. f3 exf3 15. gxf3 O-O 16. O-O-O Qf6 17. e4 Bd7 18. h4 a6 19. Rdg1 b5 20. h5 b4 21. Nd1 fxe4 22. Bh4 Qf7 23. hxg6 hxg6 24. fxe4 Nxe4 25. Qc2 Qf4+ 26. Kb1 Bf5 {Meiling,H-Sielaff,R Potsdam 1997 1-0 (40)}) 12... O-O 13. f3 exf3 14. gxf3 Qd6 15. Bg3 e5 16. O-O-O Bd7 17. Kb1 a6 18. e4 f4 19. Bf2 Rab8 20. h4 b5 21. Rc1 Rfc8 22. Ka1 Bf8 23. Nd1 a5 24. cxb5 Bxb5 25. Bxb5 Rxb5 26. Nc3 Rb4 27. Rc2 c4 28. Rhc1 a4 29. a3 Rb3 30. Qe2 Qa6 31. Nb1 Nd6 32. Nd2 Nb5 33. d6 Nxd6 34. Qf1 Rb7 35. Qh3 Re8 36. h5 g5 37. Bc5 Rc7 38. Bxd6 Qxd6 39. Rxc4 Rxc4 40. Nxc4 Qe6 41. Qg2 Be7 42. Nd2 Kg7 43. Nb1 Kh6 44. Rc7 Rc8 45. Rxc8 Qxc8 46. Qg4 Qc4 47. Qf5 Bc5 48. Qxe5 Bd4 49. Qd6+ Kxh5 50. Qd7 Kg6 51. Qf5+ Kh6 52. Qh3+ Kg7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel Accentus"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2011.07.28"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D79"]
[WhiteElo "2821"]
[BlackElo "2722"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2011.07.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 144"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.09.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Gupta,Abhijeet Illescas Cordoba,M} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nf3 c6 6. Nc3 d5 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. Ne5 e6 9. O-O Nfd7 10. f4 Nc6 11. Be3 Nb6 12. Bf2 Bd7 ({RR} 12... Ne7) 13. e4 Ne7 14. Nxd7 Qxd7 15. e5 Rac8 ({RR} 15... Rfc8) ({RR} 15... Rfc8 16. Rc1 Bf8 17. Bf3 Rc7 18. b3 Rac8 19. Qd2 Nc6 20. Qb2 a6 21. Be2 Qe7 22. Nb1 Nb4 23. Nc3 Nc6 24. Nb1 Nb4 25. Rc5 Nd7 26. Rxc7 Rxc7 27. Nc3 Nc6 28. Nb1 Nb4 29. Nc3 Nc6 30. Nb1 {Karpov,A (2700)-Kasparov,G (2740) Seville 1987 ½-½}) ({RR} 15... Rfc8 16. Qe2 Rc7 17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. Rd3 Na4 19. Be1 Nxc3 ({RR} 19... b5 20. Nxa4 bxa4 21. Bf1 Rc2 22. Rd2) 20. bxc3 ({RR} 20. Bxc3 Qa4 ({RR} 20... b5 21. a3 Nc6) 21. Bf1 b5) 20... b5 21. g4 Rc4 22. Rb1 a5 ({RR} 22... Nc6 23. Bf1 ({RR} 23. Qf2 b4 24. cxb4 Bf8 25. b5 ({RR} 25. a3 a5) 25... Nxd4) 23... b4 24. Qf2 bxc3 25. Rc1 Bf8 26. Rdxc3 Rxc3 27. Rxc3 a5 28. Bd2 Bb4 29. Rh3 Bxd2 ({RR} 29... Qa7 30. Be3 Bc3 31. Qh4 f5 32. exf6 Bxd4 33. Qf2) 30. Qxd2 a4 ({RR} 30... Qa7 31. Rc3)) 23. Qf2 Bf8 ({RR} 23... b4 24. cxb4 axb4 25. Rxb4 Nc6 26. Rxc4 dxc4 27. Rd1 Ne7) 24. Bf1 b4 25. cxb4 ({RR} 25. Rh3 R4c7 26. cxb4 Rc2 27. Qh4 h6 28. b5 Rxa2 29. Rc3 Rxc3 30. Bxc3 a4 31. Bd3 Qb7 32. Qe1) 25... axb4 26. Bxb4 Qa4 27. a3 ({RR} 27. Ra3 Rxb4 28. Rxa4 Rxb1 29. Kg2 Rcb8 30. Kg3 R8b2 31. Qf3 Ra1) 27... Rc2 28. Qh4 Rc1 29. Rxc1 Rxc1 30. Bxe7 {Esen,B (2563)-Gupta,A (2603) Iasi 2015 CBM 167 [Gupta,Abhijeet] ½-½ (34)}) 16. Qe2 ({RR} 16. Qd3 Nc4 17. b3 Na3) 16... Rc4 $146 ({RR} 16... a6 17. Rae1 ({RR} 17. Rad1 Na4) 17... Rc7 ({RR} 17... Na4 18. Nd1) 18. g4 Rfc8 19. f5 ({RR} 19. Bh3 Na4) 19... gxf5 ({RR} 19... exf5 20. e6) 20. gxf5 Nxf5 ({RR} 20... exf5 21. e6 fxe6 22. Qxe6+ Qxe6 23. Rxe6) 21. Qh5 Nc4 ({RR} 21... f6) 22. Nxd5 Nd2 ({RR} 22... exd5 23. Bh3) 23. Qg5 ({RR} 23. Nxc7 Rxc7 24. Be4 Nxf1 25. Rxf1 Qc8 26. Bxf5 exf5 27. Be3 Rc2) ({RR} 23. Nb6 Qd8 24. Nxc8 Qxc8) ({RR} 23. Nf6+ Bxf6 24. exf6 Nxf1 25. Be4 Kh8) 23... exd5 24. Qxd2 Ne7 ({RR} 24... Rc2 25. Qd3) 25. Qd3 Qg4 26. Kh1 Qg6 27. Qf3 ({RR} 27. Qb3 Qc2) 27... Qb6 ({RR} 27... Rc2 28. Bh3) 28. Bh3 ({RR} 28. Bg3 Rf8 29. e6) 28... Rf8 29. Rg1 Ng6 ({RR} 29... Qxb2 30. Rxg7+ Kxg7 31. Qf6+ Kg8 32. Be3 Rc2 33. Bh6 Rxh2+ 34. Kg1) 30. Re2 Kh8 31. Bf5 {Illescas Cordoba,M (2605)-Xie,J (2510) Pamplona 1998 CBM 069 [Illescas Cordoba,M] ½-½ (60)} ({RR} 31. Be3 f5 32. Qxd5 f4 33. Bf2 f3)) ({RR} 16... Nc4 17. Rad1) ({RR} 16... Rc7 17. Nb5) ({RR} 16... Na4 17. Nb5) 17. Rfc1 Rfc8 18. Bf1 R4c7 19. Qe1 a6 20. b3 Bf8 21. Qd2 Nc6 22. a3 f5 23. Kg2 Qg7 24. Be3 Be7 25. Bd3 Na5 26. Qb2 g5 27. Ne2 g4 28. Rh1 h5 29. h3 Kf7 30. Rh2 h4 31. Bd2 Nc6 32. Rah1 Rh8 33. hxg4 Qxg4 34. Rh3 Rcc8 35. Ng1 Qg7 36. Nf3 hxg3 37. b4 Rxh3 38. Rxh3 Rh8 39. Rxh8 Qxh8 40. b5 axb5 41. Bxb5 Qc8 42. a4 Nc4 43. Bxc4 dxc4 44. Qc1 Nb4 45. Bxb4 Bxb4 46. d5 Qc5 47. dxe6+ Kxe6 48. Kxg3 Qd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2011.09.30"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D55"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2753"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2011.09.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 145"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Be7 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Bxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 c6 9. Bd3 Nd7 10. O-O dxc4 11. Bxc4 e5 12. Bb3 exd4 13. exd4 Nb6 14. h3 Re8 15. Re1 Rxe1+ 16. Qxe1 Bf5 17. Ne5 ({RR} 17. g4 Bd3 18. Ne5 Bxe5 19. dxe5 c5 20. Qe3 c4 21. Bd1 Qe7 22. Be2 Bxe2 23. Qxe2 Re8 24. Re1 {½-½ (24) Bacrot,E (2565)-Siegel,G (2540) France 1998}) ({RR} 17. Ne4 Qe7 18. Nc5 Re8 19. Qa5 Ra8 20. Re1 Qc7 21. Ne5 Bxe5 22. Rxe5 Bg6 23. Qe1 Nd5 24. Bxd5 cxd5 25. Re8+ Rxe8 26. Qxe8+ Kh7 27. Nd7 Qc6 28. Nf8+ Kg8 29. Qb8 Be4 30. Ng6+ Kh7 31. Ne7 Qc1+ {Citak,S (2374)-Dziewonski,D (2225) Senta SRB 2025 1-0 (72)}) 17... Nd5 18. Nxd5 cxd5 19. g4 $146 ({RR} 19. Rc5 Be6 20. f4 b6 21. Rc3 Bf5 22. Qe3 Be4 23. Nxf7 Qe7 24. Ne5 Kh7 25. Bc2 Bxc2 26. Rxc2 Qe6 27. Qd3+ Kg8 28. Rc7 Qd6 29. Qc3 Rd8 30. Rxa7 Bxe5 31. dxe5 Qg6 32. Kh2 Rf8 33. Qg3 {1-0 (33) Kovalov,S (2351)-Krivko,Y (2273) St Petersburg 2002}) ({RR} 19. Rc5 Be6 20. Qe3 Rc8 21. Nd3 b6 22. Rxc8 Qxc8 23. Nb4 Qb7 24. Qc3 a5 25. Nc2 Qc8 26. Qxc8+ Bxc8 27. Bxd5 Bf5 28. Bb3 Bxc2 29. Bxc2 Bxd4 30. b3 {½-½ (30) Sviridonov,S (2358)-Malinichev,K (2290) Volodarskij 2007}) 19... Be6 20. f4 Qb6 21. Rd1 Bxe5 22. Qxe5 Re8 23. f5 f6 24. Qf4 Bf7 25. Qf2 Qb4 26. Kg2 Re4 27. Rd2 Qd6 28. Bd1 Kf8 29. Bf3 Re7 30. Re2 Rxe2 31. Qxe2 Be8 32. Qe3 Bc6 33. a3 Qe7 34. Qc3 a6 35. b4 Ke8 36. a4 Qd7 37. a5 Qd6 38. Qc5 Qf4 39. Bxd5 Qd2+ 40. Kf3 Qd3+ 41. Kf2 Qd2+ 42. Kf3 Qd3+ 43. Kf2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2011.10.06"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2817"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "2011.09.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 145"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {RR Kostakiev,Dimitar} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 O-O 8. Bg5 d6 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. f3 h6 11. Bh4 Rc8 12. e4 c5 13. Bd3 d5 ({RR} 13... cxd4 14. Qxd4 Ne5 15. Be2 ({RR} 15. O-O Ng6 16. Bf2 Qe7 17. Rfe1 Rfd8 18. Bf1 Nd7 19. a4 a5) 15... Ng6 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. g3 d5 19. exd5 exd5 20. Kf2 Ne5 ({RR} 20... Rfd8 {RR} 21. Rhd1 Ne5 22. b3 dxc4 23. Nxc4 Bd5 24. Nd2 Be6 25. Ne4 Bxb3 26. Nxf6+ Kg7 27. Nh5+ Kf8) 21. cxd5 {RR} Bxd5 22. Rac1 Rfd8 23. Rhd1 Be6 24. Ne4 Kg7) ({RR} 13... Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Qxh4+ 15. g3) ({RR} 13... cxd4 14. Qxd4 Nc5 15. Be2 e5 16. Qf2 Ne6 17. O-O g5 18. Bg3 Nd4 19. Rfd1 Nh5 20. Bd3 Nf4 21. Qf1 Qf6 22. Bf2 Nde6 23. Bc2 Qg6 24. g3 Nh5 25. Qe2 g4 26. fxg4 Nf6 27. h3 Ng5 28. Kh2 {Carlsen,M (2826)-Karjakin,S (2763) Moscow 2011 CBM 146 [RR] ½-½ (67)}) 14. exd5 ({RR} 14. e5 g5 ({RR} 14... Ne4 15. Bxd8 ({RR} 15. Nxe4 Qxh4+ 16. g3 Qh5 17. Nd6 cxd4 18. Qxd4 Qxe5+ 19. Qxe5 Nxe5) 15... Nxc3 16. Be7 Rfe8 17. bxc3 ({RR} 17. Bd6 dxc4 18. Nxc4 Nd5) 17... Rxe7 18. cxd5 Bxd5) 15. Bf2 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Nd5) ({RR} 14. Bg3 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Nxe4 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. fxe4 Nf6) ({RR} 14. dxc5 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 Qxh4+ 16. g3 Qe7 17. Nd6 Rxc5 18. Nxb7 Rc7) 14... exd5 15. O-O ({RR} 15. cxd5 Re8+ 16. Kf1 g5 17. Bf2 Nxd5) 15... dxc4 ({RR} 15... cxd4 16. Qxd4 Nc5 17. Bxf6 ({RR} 17. Bf5 Ne6 ({RR} 17... dxc4 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Bxc8) 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. Rad1 ({RR} 19. Rfe1) 19... Qc7) 17... Qxf6 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Bf5 Rcd8 20. Rfe1 ({RR} 20. b4 dxc4 21. Nxc4 Nb3 22. Rae1 Ba6) 20... Ba6 ({RR} 20... d4 21. Re7) 21. Rac1 ({RR} 21. Re7 dxc4 22. Ne4 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 Rfe8 24. Rxa7 Bc8 25. Rc7 f5 26. Bc2 b5) 21... dxc4 22. Nxc4 Nb3 ({RR} 22... Rd5 23. Bb1 Rfd8) 23. Rc3 Nd4 24. Bh3 ({RR} 24. Bb1 Rfe8 25. Kf2 Rxe1 26. Kxe1 Re8+) ({RR} 24. Bd3 Nb5 ({RR} 24... b5 25. Ne3 b4 26. Bxa6 bxc3 27. bxc3) 25. Rb3 Nd4 26. Rc3 Nb5) 24... Rfe8 25. Kf2 Rxe1 26. Kxe1 Re8+ 27. Kd2 Ne2 ({RR} 27... Rd8 28. Ke3) ({RR} 27... f5 28. Ne3 f4 29. Nc2) 28. Re3 ({RR} 28. Rc2 Nf4) 28... Rd8+ 29. Kxe2 Bxc4+ 30. Ke1 {Kasparov,G (2825)-Kramnik,V (2790) Linares 1998 CBM 064 [Kostakiev,Dimitar] ½-½ (52)}) ({RR} 15... Qc7 16. Bg3 Qc6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. Bf5 g6 19. Bh3 Nh5 20. Rfd1 f5 21. Qe3 Qf6 22. dxc5 Kh7 23. cxd5 Nxg3 24. hxg3 Nxc5 25. b4 Na4 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Re1 Bxd5 28. g4 f4 29. Qe7+ Qxe7 30. Rxe7+ {Aliyev,R (2341)-Iniyan,P (2509) Mumbai 2019 0-1 (40)}) 16. Bxc4 $146 {Both a novelty and the computer's first choice!} (16. Nxc4 cxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 {was just equal in Van Wely-Leko (2008).}) ({RR} 16. Nxc4 cxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Bxf6 Qxd4+ 19. Bxd4 Nxd3 20. Rfd1 Rxc4 21. Rxd3 Rd8 {½-½ (21) Hoang,T (2420)-Chiburdanidze,M (2497) Bled 2002}) ({RR} 16. Nxc4 cxd4) ({RR} 16. Nxc4 cxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Qxd8 Rcxd8 19. Be2 Rfe8 20. Rfe1 g5 21. Bg3 Nh5 22. Bf2 Nf4 23. Bf1 Ncd3 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. Rd1 Nxf2 26. Kxf2 Bc8 27. g3 {½-½ (27) Van Wely,L (2681)-Leko,P (2753) Wijk aan Zee 2008}) 16... cxd4 17. Qxd4 Nc5 ({RR} 17... Re8) 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. Rfd1 (20. Rfe1 {is no improvement after} Rfd8 21. Nf1 Na4 22. b3 Nb2 23. Re7 Nxc4 24. Rxb7 Nd2) 20... Na4 $1 21. Rab1 Rfd8 22. Bb5 Bc6 23. Be2 Bd5 24. Nf1 Be6 25. Ne3 f5 (25... Bb3 {is a different route with the same destination.} 26. Rd3 (26. Rxd8+ Rxd8) 26... Rxd3 27. Bxd3 Ba2 28. Ra1 Be6) 26. g3 Kg7 27. Kf2 Kf6 28. Ba6 Rb8 29. b4 Nc3 30. Rxd8 Rxd8 31. Rc1 Nd5 32. Ng2 (32. Rd1 Ke7 33. Nxd5+ Rxd5 34. Rxd5 Bxd5 {should just be a draw, as Black has not enough weaknesses.}) (32. Nxd5+ Rxd5 33. Ke3 Rd7 {should also be nothing special, though White stands a little bit better.}) 32... Rd7 33. Rc2 Rc7 34. Ne3 Rxc2+ 35. Nxc2 f4 36. Nd4 Bd7 37. Ke2 fxg3 38. hxg3 Ne7 39. Ke3 Nf5+ 40. Nxf5 Kxf5 41. Kd4 Ke6 42. Bc4+ Ke7 43. f4 f6 44. Bd5 Kd6 45. Bf3 Be6 46. Ba8 Bf5 47. Bf3 Be6 48. Ba8 Bf5 49. Bf3 Be6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2011.10.08"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vallejo Pons, Francisco"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "91"]
[EventDate "2011.09.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 145"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Be4 7. f3 Bg6 8. Qb3 Qb6 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. Bd2 Bd6 11. h3 Nbd7 12. O-O-O Qxb3 13. axb3 a6 14. Kc2 Nh5 15. Bd3 Ng3 16. Rhe1 O-O-O 17. e4 $146 {Some other moves were played before without achieving anything.} dxe4 18. fxe4 c5 $146 ({RR} 18... e5 19. d5 Nc5 20. Bg5 f6 21. Be3 cxd5 22. exd5 Nxd3 23. Rxd3 e4 24. Rdd1 Be5 25. Bb6 Bxc3 26. bxc3 Rde8 27. c5 Kd7 28. c4 f5 29. b4 f4 30. b5 axb5 31. cxb5 e3 32. c6+ Kd6 33. Ba5 {Levin,E (2516)-Sharma,D (2295) St Petersburg 2018 1-0 (40)}) 19. d5 Rde8 20. Na2 $1 {An important idea. White wants to play b4, exchange the b3 pawn for c5, and push b4 again. Of course it is not easy to manage in good conditions. According to the engine, White never succeeds if Black plays correctly, but from a human point of view, I believe it should be definitely easier to play for White.} exd5 {I'm not sure whether not taking could bring Black something or not!} ({However, after} 20... Ne5 21. b4 f5 {the engine found an impressive draw:} 22. bxc5 Bxc5 (22... Nxd3 23. Kxd3 fxe4+ 24. Kc2 Bxc5 25. Bf4 Nh5 26. d6 Kd7 27. Be5 {followed by b4 is bad for Black.}) 23. exf5 $8 exd5 24. Rxe5 {The rest is simply fine for Black.} Rxe5 25. Bf4 dxc4 $1 26. Bxe5 (26. Bxc4 $6 Nxf5 $1) 26... cxd3+ 27. Rxd3 Nxf5 28. Rc3 b6 29. b4 Re8 30. Bh2 Nd4+ 31. Kd3 (31. Kb1 Re1+ 32. Kb2 Re2+ 33. Ka1 Rxg2 34. Be5 Rg1+ 35. Kb2 Rg2+ $11) 31... Rd8 {and Black simply gets a draw by a miracle.}) 21. exd5 Nf5 (21... Ne5 22. b4 f6 $1 {might be enough for equality:} 23. bxc5 {(of course White has no obligation to take so fast, but what else?)} (23. Re3 $6 Nf5 {is very good for Black.}) 23... Bxc5 24. Bf4 (24. b4 $2 Bf2 $15) 24... Bf2 25. Bxg3 Bxg3 26. Re2 Nxd3 27. Rxe8+ Rxe8 28. Rxd3 Bd6 {followed by ...d7, ...b6.}) 22. b4 Nd4+ (22... Nh4 23. bxc5 (23. Bf1 Nf5 24. bxc5 Nxc5 25. b4 Ne4 {is very good for Black.}) 23... Nxc5 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. Rf1 Nxd3 26. Kxd3 f6 27. g4 g5 {and Black is just fine: White's pawn are not bringing anything special. Black will just put his king on d7, bishop on e5, some ...h8 move or whatever, and I think White cannot make progress at all. Once again, it is very tough, over the board, to leave White two beautiful central pawns like this.}) 23. Kb1 Nb3 {Maybe not the most accurate, but still fine.} (23... cxb4 $5 24. Nxb4 (24. Bxb4 Bxb4 25. Nxb4 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Kc7 $11) 24... Nc5 25. Bc3 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Rh4 $1 {and, since Black seems to manage to keep control over the dark squares, I believe the position is equal again.}) 24. Bc3 cxb4 25. Nxb4 Be5 26. Na2 Bxc3 27. Nxc3 (27. Rxe8+ {to try to be clever (check comments of the further moves) would not make sense because of} Rxe8 28. Nxc3 Re3 {and the initiative goes to the black side.}) 27... Ndc5 $6 {Problems started from here. Actually, while analysing the game, I noticed that taking the opponent's rook first very frequently made a great difference.} (27... Rxe1 $1 28. Rxe1 Ndc5 {might have been even more precise, since} 29. Bc2 $2 {is bad due to} Nd2+ $17) 28. Rxe8+ Rxe8 29. Bc2 Re3 30. Ka2 $6 (30. Bxb3 $1 Nxb3 31. Kc2 Nc5 32. b4 Nd7 33. Rd3 {and, though Black should hold, the position is very unpleasant to play.}) 30... Na5 31. Rd4 Rg3 32. Ne4 Rxg2 $4 {After having so many possible options each move, Black entered time trouble and eventually blundered. Maybe a bit of luck for Magnus, but I would say he also chose the position well: unusual enough to make his opponent spend a lot of time.} (32... Nxe4 33. Bxe4 Nb3 $1 34. Rd1 Re3 $1 35. Bc2 Nc5 36. b4 Nd7 {is simply fine for Black: White doesn't have enough pieces for central pawns to achieve anything big.} (36... Ne4 $5)) 33. Rd2 $1 $18 {Nice trick! Maybe some unconcious payback for their first game? :)} Rxd2 34. Nxd2 {Black loses a piece!} b5 35. b4 Nab7 36. bxc5 Nxc5 37. Ne4 Nb7 38. c5 f5 39. c6 fxe4 40. cxb7+ Kxb7 41. Bxe4 Kc7 42. Kb3 a5 43. Kc3 a4 44. Bc2 g5 45. Kd4 Kd6 46. Bd1 1-0

[Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2011.10.10"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2011.09.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 145"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Qc2 {This apparently came as a suprise to Ivanchuk, even though I played it against Anand in round 6. It might have something to do with the fact that I achieved very little in that game.} Bb7 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 {All of the three main moves here, d6, 0-0 and e4, were tried against me in Bilbao. Regrettably, I did not show the same versatility, only employing two of the three possible setups from this position (no e3, e2 and so on).} Ne4 8. Qc2 f5 9. g3 ({RR} 9. e3 O-O 10. Be2 Ng5 11. d5 Nxf3+ 12. Bxf3 d6 13. b4 Qe7 14. Bb2 Nd7 15. dxe6 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Qxe6 17. f4 a5 18. Rg1 Nf6 19. b5 Rf7 20. Qc3 h6 21. Qd4 Kh7 22. Ke2 Rg8 23. Rg2 Ne4 {Belov,V (2608)-Lysyj,I (2523) Playchess.com INT 2006 ½-½ (46)}) ({RR} 9. b4 d6 10. Bb2 Nd7 11. d5 e5 12. Nd2 Ndf6 13. g3 O-O 14. Bg2 Ng5 15. h4 Nf7 16. Qxf5 Bc8 17. Qc2 a5 18. O-O axb4 19. axb4 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Bg4 21. e4 Bh5 22. f3 Qd7 23. Qa4 Qe7 {Papayan,O (2253)-Yedidia,D (2041) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (31)}) 9... Nf6 {A case could be made for including 9... 0-0 10.g2 before making this move, which will anyway be necessary because of g5 or d2.} 10. Bh3 {Suddenly experiencing a burst of creativity, I decided to try and exploit the extra opportunity. The main idea behind this move is to be able to drive away the black bishop from e4 after ...e4  somewhere, without exchanging bishops.} O-O 11. O-O a5 $146 {A far from obvious move, which Ivanchuk made immediately.} (11... Qe8 12. d5 {is similar to the game.}) (11... Be4 12. Qc3 Qe8 {was quite interesting however. Now d2 is bad due to ...h5, so I was going to continue playing creatively with} 13. Rd1 Qh5 14. Bf1 {with good chances of fighting for an advantage.}) ({RR} 11... Qe8 12. Rd1 Qh5 13. Bf1 a5 14. d5 Na6 15. dxe6 d6 16. Nh4 Nc5 17. Qxf5 Nb3 18. Qxh5 Nxh5 19. Ra2 Rae8 20. a4 Rxe6 21. Ra3 Nc5 22. Be3 Nf6 23. Nf3 Ng4 24. Bd4 Bc6 25. Rda1 Re4 26. Bxc5 {Babujian,L (2471)-Parligras,M (2580) Al Ain 2014 ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 11... Qe8 12. d5 Qh5 13. Bg2 exd5 14. Nd4 Nc6 15. Nxf5 dxc4 16. Qxc4+ Kh8 17. Ne3 Rae8 18. b4 Ne5 19. Qc2 Neg4 20. Nxg4 Nxg4 21. h3 Nxf2 22. Rxf2 Rxf2 23. Kxf2 Bxg2 24. Bf4 Qxh3 25. Qxc7 Bc6 {0-1 (25) Balokas,D (2080)-Stefansson,H (2531) Plovdiv 2012}) 12. Rd1 Qe8 13. d5 Na6 14. Bf4 (14. dxe6 dxe6 15. Bf4 {looks a little bit better for White, but I was looking for something more interesting.}) 14... exd5 $2 {After this move Black is in serious trouble.} (14... d6 {looked much more logical to me} 15. dxe6 (15. Ng5 Nc5 16. b4 h6 17. bxc5 hxg5 18. Bxg5 Ne4 {Is not that clear}) 15... Be4 16. Qc3 Nc5 (16... Qh5 17. Bf1 Nc5 18. Nd4 {just transposes}) 17. Nd4 Qh5 (17... Nxe6 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. f3 Bb7 20. e4 $16) 18. Bf1 Rfe8 19. f3 Bb7 20. b4 Nxe6 21. Nxe6 Rxe6 22. c5 dxc5 23. bxc5 Qf7 {and Black is more or less ok.}) (14... Qh5 15. Bg2 exd5 16. Nd4 g5 {was given as interesting by online commentators. My decision to not delve deeper into it should be attributed to laziness, not arrogance.}) 15. Bxf5 dxc4 (15... Ne4 16. Bh3 {looks pretty cool for White too.}) 16. Ng5 $1 {The point. Now all kinds of tricks are possible.} Qh5 {More or less forced. Black can hardly afford to give up the h7-pawn, and} (16... h6 17. Bxd7 Qe7 (17... Qh5 18. g4 Qh4 19. Qxc4+ Kh8 20. Nf7+ Rxf7 21. Qxf7 $18) 18. Qxc4+ Kh8 19. Qe6 $1 {is pretty straightforward.}) 17. Rxd7 {This move was so tempting that I hardly looked at others.} ({With a slightly cooler head, I might have come close to considering} 17. Rd4 $1 Rae8 18. Bd2 {when h4 next will be hard to meet.}) 17... Kh8 {I quickly realised that this was the only move, but I thought there should still be some relatively easy way to win here.} (17... Nxd7 18. Bxh7+ Kh8 19. Bg6 Qg4 (19... Qh6 20. Nf7+ Rxf7 21. Bxh6) 20. h3 {loses trivially.}) 18. Re7 $6 {Objetively speaking, a mistake. Unfortunately, I was not able to coolly give up the exchange without finding a forced win.} (18. Rad1 $1 Nxd7 19. Rxd7 Nc5 {What else?} 20. Rxc7 Rad8 21. f3 {and White is dominating.}) 18... Nd5 19. Bg4 $6 {Another step in the wrong direction.} (19. Re5 Nxf4 20. gxf4 {would still retain a clear advantage.}) 19... Qg6 20. Nf7+ Kg8 21. Bf5 Qxf5 $1 {A nasty suprise.} (21... Qh5 $145 22. g4 Qh4 23. Bg3 $1 Qxe7 24. Bxh7+ Kxf7 25. Qg6#) 22. Qxf5 Nxe7 23. Nh6+ gxh6 24. Qg4+ Ng6 25. Bxh6 {Fortunately, White can still fight for an advantage here, and with the open black king White certainly has the easier game.} Rf7 26. Rd1 Re8 (26... c3 {would have been an interesting try, but it's probably no better than the game continuation} 27. h4 $1 (27. bxc3 Nc5 {is fine for Black}) 27... c2 28. Rd7 Nc5 29. Rxf7 Kxf7 30. Qc4+ Ke7 31. Qxc2 {and White is clearly on top.}) 27. h4 Nc5 28. h5 Bc8 29. Qxc4 Ne5 30. Qh4 {By now Ivanchuk had got really short on time, which was not making his job any easier.} Nc6 $2 {After this Black can hardly defend.} ({The best chance was} 30... Ne6 31. f4 (31. Rd5 Rf5 $1 {is the key}) 31... Nd7 32. e4 Kh8 {when there is still all to play for.}) 31. Rd5 Ne6 32. Qc4 (32. Qa4 {would have been even stronger, but for some reason I did not consider this move at all. My idea with the text was to win the e5-square for my rook.}) 32... Ncd8 $2 (32... Ne7 {would have held out much longer, but after} 33. Re5 Nf5 34. Qg4+ Nfg7 35. Qe4 {Black is pretty tied up, and White should win gradually.}) 33. Qg4+ {Surprisingly the fact that the c8-bishop is unprotected becomes the decisive factor.} Ng7 {Ivanchuk was visibly shocked when I captured his bishop, but} (33... Kh8 34. Bd2 $1 {would have been equally bad.}) 34. Qxc8 1-0

[Event "Grand Slam Final 4th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2011.10.11"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D59"]
[WhiteElo "2753"]
[BlackElo "2823"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2011.09.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 145"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2011.11.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Qb3 Be6 12. Rc1 Rc8 ({RR} 12... c5 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Qa3 Rc8 15. Be2 Nd7 16. O-O Nf6 17. Nd2 Rc7 18. b3 Rac8 19. Rfd1 c4 20. Qxe7 Rxe7 21. bxc4 dxc4 22. Bxc4 Rec7 23. Rc3 Rxc4 24. Nxc4 Rxc4 25. Rxc4 Bxc4 26. Rd8+ Kh7 27. a3 {San Thit Lwin (2242)-Toktomushev,T (2279) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (72)}) 13. Bd3 ({RR} 13. Be2 a5 14. O-O a4 15. Qc3 c5 16. Qa3 Qa7 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Ne5 Qb6 19. f4 Nd7 20. Nxd7 Bxd7 21. Bf3 Rab8 22. Bxd5 Qxb2 23. Qxb2 Rxb2 24. Rf2 Rxf2 25. Kxf2 Kf8 26. e4 f6 27. Ke3 Ke7 {Marinelli,T (2370)-Arlandi,E (2430) Filettino 1994 1-0 (57)}) 13... c5 14. Qa3 Kf8 15. dxc5 $146 ({RR} 15. b3 a5 16. Ne5 Nd7 17. Nxd7+ Bxd7 18. O-O cxd4 19. Qxe7+ Kxe7 20. exd4 {½-½ (20) Magerramov,E-Kasparov,G Leningrad 1977}) ({RR} 15. b3 a5 16. Ne5 Nd7 17. Nxd7+ Bxd7 18. O-O cxd4 19. Qxe7+ Kxe7 20. exd4 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. Rxc8 Bxc8 23. Kf1 Bd7 24. a3 Kf6 25. Ke2 Ke7 26. Ke3 b5 27. b4 axb4 28. axb4 g5 29. f4 f6 {Browne,W-Grefe,J Oberlin 1975 1-0 (61)}) 15... bxc5 16. Bb5 Nd7 17. Bxd7 Bxd7 18. O-O a5 19. Rfd1 Be6 20. Rc3 a4 21. h3 Rab8 22. Rd2 Rb4 23. Rdc2 c4 24. b3 axb3 25. axb3 Rbb8 26. Qxe7+ Kxe7 27. bxc4 Rxc4 28. Nd2 Rxc3 29. Rxc3 d4 30. exd4 Rb4 31. Rd3 Kd6 32. Nf3 Bd5 33. Kh2 Be4 34. Ra3 f6 35. Ra6+ Ke7 36. Ra7+ Kf8 37. Rd7 Bc6 38. Rd6 Bxf3 39. gxf3 Ke7 40. Rd5 Ke6 41. Rd8 Ke7 42. Rd5 Ke6 43. Rd8 Ke7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qa4 Be7 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nc3 O-O 8. O-O d5 9. Ne5 Qe8 {This line was examined in CBM 93, annotations to Kalinitschew - Graf by GM A.Finkel. As that game was played many years ago, a lot of new material has appeared since then.} 10. b3 (10. cxd5 {is White's most popular option but Black has no problems after the exchange of queens. Here is a relatively recent example:} cxd5 11. Qxe8 Rxe8 12. Bf4 Nbd7 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. Rfc1 Rac8 15. a4 g5 16. Bd2 Bb4 17. e4 dxe4 18. Bxg5 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Bd3 20. a5 f6 21. Bf4 Nf8 22. f3 exf3 23. Bxf3 Ng6 24. Bd6 Red8 25. Bb4 Rc7 26. Ra3 Ne7 27. c4 Bg6 28. axb6 axb6 29. Ra6 Nc8 30. d5 exd5 31. c5 Rdd7 32. Ra8 bxc5 33. Rxc5 Rxc5 34. Bxc5 Rc7 35. Bd4 Be4 $11 {1/2 Socko,B (2641)-Markus,R (2567)/Dresden 2007/CBM 118 (50)}) (10. Qb3 {was played by GM Sh.Mamedyarov in a rapid game. He won with the help of his opponent:} Nfd7 11. cxd5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 cxd5 13. Rd1 Nd7 (13... Nc6 $1 $36) 14. e4 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Nxe5 16. Bf4 Nc4 17. Nd6 Nxd6 18. Bxa8 Nb7 19. Bxb7 Bxb7 20. Rac1 Qa8 21. Rd7 Bf6 22. Qd3 $13 {1-0 Mamedyarov,S (2742)-Ibanez Aullana,J (2301)/Villarrobledo 2008/CBM 126 Extra (29)}) ({RR} 10. Re1 b5 11. cxb5 cxb5 12. Qd1 b4 13. Nb1 Nc6 14. Nxc6 Qxc6 15. Nd2 Qb6 16. e3 Rac8 17. Bf1 Rc6 18. Bxa6 Qxa6 19. Nf3 Rfc8 20. Qb3 Ne4 21. Nd2 Rc2 22. Nxe4 dxe4 23. a3 h5 24. d5 R8c4) 10... b5 (10... Ne4 $5 11. Nxe4 Bb5 12. cxb5 cxb5 13. Qa3 Bxa3 14. Bxa3 f6 $1 15. Nd6 Qd8 16. Bh3 $5 fxe5 17. Bxe6+ Kh8 18. dxe5 $44) 11. Qa5 Bd8 (11... bxc4 $5 12. bxc4 Qd8 13. Qa4 Nfd7 $1) 12. Qa3 Be7 13. c5 {In this structure White keeps some pressure. His c5-pawn can't be undermined as Black's pawn is already on b5, and preparing ...e6-e5 is not easy for Black either.} Bb7 14. Qb2 a5 15. Nd3 b4 16. Na4 Nbd7 17. a3 $146 (17. Bf4 Ba6 18. Rfd1 Qd8 (18... Nh5 $5) 19. a3 bxa3 20. Qxa3 Nh5 21. Bd6 Bxd6 22. cxd6 Bxd3 23. Rxd3 Nhf6 24. Rc1 Nb8 25. Rdc3 Ne8 26. Rxc6 $6 Nxc6 27. Rxc6 Nf6 28. Nc5 Rb8 29. d7 Ra8 $13 {1-0 Beliavsky,A-Antoshin,V/Soviet Union 1978/EXT 2010 (42)}) ({RR} 17. Bf4 Ba6 18. Rfd1 Qd8 19. a3 bxa3 20. Qxa3 Nh5 21. Bd6 Bxd6 22. cxd6 Bxd3 23. Rxd3 Nhf6 24. Rc1 Nb8 25. Rdc3 Ne8 26. Rxc6 Nxc6 27. Rxc6 Nf6 28. Nc5 Rb8 29. d7 Ra8 30. e4 dxe4 31. Bf1 Nd5 {Beliavsky,A (2545)-Antoshin,V (2440) Ordzhonikidze 1978 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (42)}) 17... Ba6 18. Rd1 Bxd3 19. Rxd3 Ne4 {[%cal Yf7f5]} (19... bxa3 $5 20. Rxa3 (20. Qxa3 e5) 20... e5 21. dxe5 Ng4) 20. f3 (20. Bxe4 dxe4 21. Rd1 f5 22. Qc2 bxa3 23. Rxa3 Qh5 $132) 20... Nef6 {After provoking the weakening f2-f3, ...e6-e5 can be more effective.} 21. Rd1 e5 22. e3 (22. dxe5 Nxc5 $1 23. exf6 $2 Bxf6 24. Qb1 Nxa4 25. bxa4 Qxe2) 22... bxa3 23. Qc2 Bd8 {[%cal Yd8c7] A standard manoeuvre. The bishop protects the crucial a5-pawn and b6-square, as well as aiming at White's kingside.} 24. Bxa3 Rb8 25. Re1 Qe6 26. Nb2 Re8 27. Nd3 Bc7 28. Bb2 e4 29. Nf2 exf3 30. Bxf3 Ne4 31. Nxe4 dxe4 32. Bd1 Nf6 {[%csl Gd5]} 33. Bc3 Nd5 34. Bxa5 {This pawn is not important anymore as Black has an excellent kingside counterplay, and White's b3 pawn can't move forward.} Ra8 35. Qd2 Qg6 {[%cal Yh7h5]} 36. Kh1 $6 (36. Ra4 $142 Rxa5 37. Rxa5 h5 $1 $44) 36... Qh6 37. b4 $6 (37. Kg1 Rxa5 38. Rxa5 Bxa5 39. Qxa5 Nxe3 40. Qd2 Nf5 41. Qxh6 gxh6 (41... Nxh6 42. b4 $13 {[%cal Yd4d5]}) 42. Bc2 Nxd4 43. Rxe4 Rxe4 44. Bxe4 Nxb3 45. Bxc6 Nxc5 $11) 37... Bxg3 38. Rg1 Bh4 39. Bb3 Bg5 $6 (39... Qxe3 $142 {although the position after} 40. Qxe3 Nxe3 41. b5 (41. d5 Nxd5 42. b5 Bf6 43. Ra2 Reb8 44. b6 Bd4) 41... Bf6 $1 (41... cxb5 42. d5 $44 {[%csl Gc5,Gd5]}) 42. bxc6 Bxd4 43. Ra2 {[%csl Gc6] was not easy to evaluate. GM Magnus Carlsen prefers a simpler course but White obtains passed pawns anyway, with parity of material.}) 40. Bxd5 Bxe3 41. Bxf7+ Kxf7 42. Qa2+ Qe6 43. Rgf1+ Kg8 44. Qxe6+ Rxe6 45. Rad1 Bg5 46. d5 cxd5 47. Rxd5 Bf6 48. Rd6 Rxd6 $2 (48... Kf7 $142 {Still, White keeps winning chances after} 49. Rxe6 Kxe6 50. Rc1 Bg5 51. Rc2) 49. cxd6 {[%mdl 4096]} Bd8 (49... e3 50. Re1 ({but not} 50. Rxf6 gxf6 51. Kg2 Kf7 52. d7 Ke7 53. d8=Q+ Rxd8 54. Bxd8+ Kxd8 55. Kf3 Kc7 56. Kxe3 Kc6 57. Ke4 Kb5 58. Kf5 Kxb4 59. Kxf6 Kc5 60. Kg7 h5 $11) 50... Kf7 51. Rxe3 {, and White should win.}) 50. Rf5 $2 {Missing the victorious} (50. Bc7 $1 e3 51. b5 Bh4 52. d7 e2 53. Rg1 $1 (53. Rc1 $2 Rf8 $1 54. Kg2 Kf7 55. Kf3 (55. b6 Ke6 56. b7 Kxd7) 55... Ke6+ 56. Kxe2 Kxd7 $11) 53... e1=Q (53... Bf2 54. Rc1) (53... Rf8 54. b6 Rf1 55. Bg3) 54. Rxe1 Bxe1 55. d8=Q+ Rxd8 56. Bxd8 Kf7 57. b6 Bc3 58. b7 Be5 59. Bh4 Bb8 60. Bg3 Ba7 61. b8=Q Bxb8 62. Bxb8 $18 {Not an easy line to find!}) 50... Bxa5 51. bxa5 Rd8 $1 52. Rd5 (52. a6 Rxd6 53. Ra5 Rd8 54. a7 Ra8 55. Kg2 Kf7 56. Kf2 Ke6 57. Ke3 Kd6 58. Kxe4 Kc6 59. Ke5 Kb6 60. Ra1 Rxa7 61. Rxa7 Kxa7 62. Ke6 Kb6 63. Kf7 g5 $11) 52... Kf7 53. a6 Ke6 54. Rd4 Kd7 55. Rb4 e3 56. Kg2 Rf8 57. a7 e2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.17"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2744"]
[Annotator "Carlsen,Magnus"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 {No QGD today. Kein Abgelehntes Damengambit heute.} 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 {But admittedly, this line is pretty solid too. Doch auch dieses Abspiel ist zugegebenermaßen ziemlich solide.} 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. Bd3 Nbd7 9. O-O Bd6 10. h3 {All very logical, but seldom played. Probably because most sensible people don't want to come under the kind of onslaught that happened in the game. Alles sehr logisch, aber selten gespielt. Vermutlich, weil sich die meisten vernünftigen Menschen nicht der Art von Überfall aussetzen wollen, zu dem es in der Partie kam.} dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nb6 12. Bb3 {I thought about this one for a while. Just a waste of time really, as I realised pretty early on that I wanted to put my bishop on b3 here, and that I most likely was not going to change my mind. Darüber dachte ich eine Weile nach. Eigentlich reine Zeitverschwendung, da mir ziemlich früh klar wurde, dass ich hier meinen Läufer auf b3 stellen wollte und ich es mir höchstwahrscheinlich nicht anders überlegen würde.} e5 13. Qc2 {Now Black will not be able to castle kingside, and he's more or less forced to either castle queenside and play for an attack, or put the king on f8, and accept a passive position. Nun wird Schwarz nicht kurz rochieren können, und er ist mehr oder minder gezwungen, entweder lang zu rochieren und auf Angriff zu spielen, oder den König nach f8 zu stellen und eine passive Stellung in Kauf zu nehmen.} (13. dxe5 Bxe5 14. Qf3 {is a more solid option. ist eine solidere Möglichkeit.} O-O 15. Rd1 Qe7 16. Bd2 {with a more or less typical position, where White has the bishop pair, which would be enough for some people to claim a slight advantage. mit einer mehr oder minder typischen Stellung, wo Weiß das Läuferpaar hat, was manchen Leuten genügen würde, auf leichten Vorteil zu pochen.}) (13. Qf3 {is no good due to ist nicht gut wegen} Qe7 {mit nachfolgendem ...e4. with e4 to come.}) 13... Qe7 (13... exd4 14. exd4 Bc7 15. Bg5 $1 Kf8 (15... Qd6 16. f4 Qxd4+ 17. Rf2 {looks promising for White wirkt vielversprechend für Weiß.}) 16. Qd3 Qd6 17. f4 Nbd5 18. Rae1 {and White must be better. und Weiß muss besser stehen.}) 14. Bd2 {Not an impressive move by any means, but it was not easy to find something more useful here. Keineswegs ein beeindruckender Zug, aber es war nicht einfach, hier etwas Nützlicheres zu finden.} (14. f4 exd4 15. exd4 O-O-O 16. f5 Bc7 17. fxg6 fxg6 18. Qxg6 Rxd4 {did not impress me at all; now White will have to bail out with beeindruckte mich keineswegs; nun wird Weiß die Reißleine ziehen müssen mit} 19. Qf7 Qxf7 (19... Qe5 20. Qe6+) 20. Bxf7 {and hope for equality. und auf Ausgleich hoffen.}) 14... O-O-O $1 15. d5 {To me, this seemed like the only logical move. Für mich schien dies der einzig logische Zug zu sein.} (15. Nb5 Bb8 16. a4 {Too difficult. Zu schwierig.}) 15... e4 {Clearly the only decent move. Eindeutig der einzig vernünftige Zug.} (15... c5 16. e4 {is positional capitulation. ist positionelle Kapitulation.}) 16. dxc6 Qe5 (16... Rxh3 17. gxh3 Qe5 18. f4 exf3 19. Rxf3 Qh2+ 20. Kf1 {does not by any means lead to mate. führt keineswegs zum Matt.}) 17. f4 exf3 18. Rxf3 Ng4 {I had missed this elegant little move when I played 14.d2. Diesen eleganten kleinen Zug hatte ich bei 14.d2 übersehen.} (18... Qh2+ 19. Kf2 Bb4 {is what I was considering at first. One amusing continuation would be ist, woran ich zuerst überlegte. Eine amüsante Fortsetzung wäre} 20. Bxf7 (20. Be1 Rhe8 21. Rxf6 gxf6 22. Bxf7 Re5 23. Bxg6 Bc5 $13) 20... Rxd2+ 21. Qxd2 Bxc3 $1 {I had only looked at ...e4 Ich hatte nur ...e4 betrachtet.} (21... Ne4+ 22. Nxe4 Bxd2 23. cxb7+ Kb8 24. Nxd2 Qd6 25. Nc4 Nxc4 26. Bxc4 {and White can play for a win without risk und Weiß kann ohne Risiko auf Gewinn spielen.}) 22. Qd3 Rd8 $1 23. cxb7+ Kxb7 24. Qxd8 Ne4+ 25. Ke2 Qxg2+ 26. Kd3 Nc5+ 27. Kxc3 Nba4+ 28. Kb4 Qxb2+ 29. Bb3 Qc3+ 30. Ka3 Qb2+ {with a draw by perpetual check. mit Remis durch Dauerschach.}) 19. cxb7+ Kb8 20. hxg4 Rh1+ 21. Kf2 Rxa1 22. Ne2 {I was pretty sure that I did not have an advantage here, objectively speaking, but I was fascinated by unusual nature of the position, so I was nevertheless pretty excited. Ich war ziemlich sicher, dass ich hier objektiv gesehen keinen Vorteil hatte, doch mich faszinierte die ungewöhnlich Natur der Stellung, daher war ich trotzdem ziemlich aufgeregt.} Bc5 {Clearly the most natural move. Eindeutig der natürlichste Zug.} (22... Rd7 {was also possible, with the point that the tempting war ebenfalls möglich, mit der Pointe, dass das verlockende} 23. Nd4 {is well met by gut mit} Qh2 {beantwortet wird.}) 23. Bc3 {I thought for a long time here, trying to figure out how to arrange my pieces. Actually I considered just about every move; both captures on f7, d4 and even c1, shutting out the rook on a1. Hier dachte ich lange nach und versuchte zu ergründen, wie ich meine Figuren aufstellen sollte. Tatsächlich erwog ich so ungefähr jeden Zug; beide Schlagweisen auf f7, d4 und sogar c1, um den Turm auf a1 auszuschließen.} (23. Rxf7 Rxd2 24. Qxd2 Bxe3+ 25. Qxe3 Rf1+ 26. Kxf1 Qxe3 {should be a draw, the white king is too exposed sollte remis sein, der weiße König ist zu exponiert}) (23. Nd4 Rxd4 {More or less forced, Mehr oder minder erzwungen,} (23... Bxd4 24. exd4 Qxd4+ 25. Be3 Qb4 26. Rxf7 Qe1+ 27. Kf3 Qf1+ 28. Ke4 $1 Re8+ 29. Kd4 Rd1+ (29... Rd8+ 30. Kc5 Nd7+ 31. Kb4 Qe1+ 32. Bd2 $18) 30. Qxd1 Qxf7 $1 31. Bxf7 Rd8+ 32. Kc5 Rxd1 33. Kc6 {and White is winning und Weiß gewinnt}) 24. exd4 Bxd4+ 25. Be3 Bxe3+ 26. Rxe3 Qf4+ 27. Rf3 Qd4+ 28. Re3 $11 {I saw thus far, but I didn't want to settle for a draw like this So weit sah ich, wollte mich aber nicht auf diese Weise mit einem Remis begnügen}) (23. Bxf7 Qe7 {and here I just could not find a decent move for White. und hier konnte ich einfach keinen ordentlichen Zug für Weiß finden.}) 23... Qe7 24. g5 $1 {The point of my previous move. Die Pointe meines vorigen Zuges.} Rdd1 ({For Bei} 24... Qxg5 25. Qe4 {White is perfectly centralised. Here I looked at ist Weiß perfekt zentralisiert. Hier betrachtete ich} f5 26. Qf4+ $1 Qxf4 27. Nxf4 Kxb7 28. Ne6 Rc8 29. Rg3 {and even though Black is currently a full exchange up, it is clear that only White can play for a win , und obwohl Schwarz aktuell eine volle Qualität mehr hat, ist klar, dass nur Weiß auf Gewinn spielen kann}) (24... Rd7 {was once again interesting. war wiederum interessant.} 25. Bxf7 (25. Bxg7 Qxg5 26. Qe4 f5 {is no good, since there is no f4 due to the fact that the bishop is hanging taugt nichts, da es wegen der Tatsache, dass der Läufer hängt, kein f4 gibt.}) 25... Bxe3+ 26. Rxe3 Qxf7+ 27. Rf3 Qe7 28. Qxg6 Na4 $1 {and Black is doing quite well according to the comp. und laut dem Computer fährt Schwarz ganz gut.}) 25. Ng3 {The only move. Der einzige Zug.} Bd6 26. Qe2 {Once again, the only move, but I spent some time around here, just to make sure that I was not walking into something really embarrassing. Wiederum der einzige Zug, aber an dieser Stelle verbrauchte ich etwas Zeit, nur um sicherzugehen, dass ich nicht in etwas wirklich Peinliches hineinlief.} (26. Ne4 {would have been an excellent move, were it not for wäre ein ausgezeichneter Zug gewesen, gäbe es da nicht} Rac1 27. Qe2 Rf1+ {and Black wins. und Schwarz gewinnt.}) 26... Rg1 $146 {This is too optimistic. Das ist zu optimistisch.} ({Gelfand should have been content with Gelfand hätte sich begnügen sollen mit} 26... Bxg3+ 27. Rxg3 Rf1+ 28. Qxf1 Rxf1+ 29. Kxf1 Nd7 $1 {and now, with the knight coming to e5 or c5, Black should be ok. , und jetzt, wo der Springer nach e5 oder c5 kommt, sollte Schwarz ordentlich stehen.} 30. Bxg7 (30. Rf3 Ne5 31. Bd5 Nxf3 32. Bxf3 Qxe3 33. Bxg7 Qxg5 {keeps the b7-pawn, but is most probably playing for a loss rather than a win hält den b7-Bauern, ist aber wahrscheinlich eher Spiel auf Verlust als auf Gewinn.}) 30... Nc5 31. Bc2 Ne4 32. Bxe4 Qxe4 33. a3 $11) ({RR} 26... Bxg3+ 27. Rxg3 Rf1+ 28. Qxf1 Rxf1+ 29. Kxf1 Nd7 30. Bxg7 Nc5 {½-½ (30) Hajnal,Z (2401)-Galyas,M (2403) Kecskemet 2012}) 27. Qd3 $2 {Very logical, preparing e4, but there was the much stronger Sehr logisch, bereitet e4 vor, doch es gab das wesentlich stärkere} (27. Qb5 {I rejected this move mainly because I could not see what my next move would be. However, looking at the position once more, it seems even harder to find a move for Black. Ich verwarf diesen Zug hauptsächlich, weil ich nicht sehen konnte, was mein nächster Zug sein würde. Doch wenn man die Stellung erneut betrachtet, scheint es sogar noch schwerer zu sein, einen Zug für Schwarz zu finden.}) 27... Bc7 28. Ne4 Raf1+ $6 {Gelfand, who was in slight time-trouble, wanted to clarify the situation a bit, but exchanging rooks does not help Black. Gelfand, der in leichter Zeitnot war, wollte die Situation ein wenig klären, doch der Turmtausch hilft Schwarz nicht.} 29. Ke2 Rxf3 30. gxf3 {With two very powerful bishops, and a strong knight on e4, White is really controlling a lot of squares now. Mit zwei sehr mächtigen Läufern und einem starken Springer auf e4 kontrolliert Weiß jetzt wirklich eine Menge Felder.} f5 (30... Be5 31. Bxf7 $1 Bxc3 32. bxc3 {keeps an edge for White, as the bishop obviously cannot be captured. wahrt ein Plus für Weiß, da der Läufer offensichtlich nicht zu schlagen ist.}) (30... Rg2+ 31. Kf1 (31. Kd1 Rg1+ 32. Kc2 Rg2+ {and White is getting nowhere und Weiß erreicht nichts}) 31... Rh2 {was a very logical option, as the white king is now stuck on the first rank. war eine sehr logische Option, da der weiße König jetzt auf der ersten Reihe festhängt.} 32. f4 f5 (32... Qf8 33. Nf2 Qh8 34. Bxf7 Qh4 35. Be1 {is a much more comfortable version for White. ist eine wesentlich bequemere Version für Weiß.}) 33. gxf6 gxf6 34. Bxf6 (34. Nxf6 Rh3 {with xe3 or xf4 to come nebst xe3 oder xf4.}) 34... Qh7 35. Nf2 Nd7 36. Bd4 Qh4 {and Black obtains counterplay, which White can nevertheless contain with a few precise moves und Schwarz erlangt Gegenspiel, welches Weiß nichtsdestotrotz mit ein paar präzisen Zügen im Zaum halten kann.} 37. Qe2 Qg3 38. Bd5 Nb6 39. Bc6 Nc4 40. b3 Na5 (40... Nd6 41. Qf3 Qh4 42. Kg1 {and White is clearly on top. und Weiß ist klar obenauf.}) 41. Bd5 Nxb7 42. Qf3 Qxf3 43. Bxf3 {and White should have some winning chances. und Weiß sollte einige Gewinnchancen haben.}) 31. gxf6 gxf6 32. Bxf6 Qh7 33. Qb5 $1 {By now, I had got quite used to playing with an exposed king, so making the decision to make room for the king on d3 was an easy one. Mittlerweile hatte ich mich ziemlich daran gewöhnt, mit exponiertem König zu spielen, daher fiel die Entscheidung, dem König auf d3 Platz zu machen, leicht.} Rg2+ $2 (33... Nd7 34. Bd4 Qh3 35. Kd2 $1 Qg2+ 36. Kc3 Rc1+ 37. Kb4 {and White is comfortably running away und Weiß läuft bequem davon}) (33... a6 {with the idea of 34.xa6 h1 with counterplay, was probably the best chance. mit der Idee 34.xa6 h1 mit Gegenspiel war vermutlich die beste Chance.} 34. Qe8+ Kxb7 35. Nc5+ Ka7 36. Qc6 Qh2+ 37. Kd3 Qd6+ 38. Qxd6 Bxd6 {and Black fights on in a difficult endgame. und Schwarz kämpft in einem schwierigen Endspiel weiter.}) 34. Kd3 Qd7+ (34... Nd7 35. Be6 $1 {wins on the spot. gewinnt auf der Stelle.}) 35. Qxd7 Nxd7 36. Bd5 {Surprisingly, the "doomed" pawn on b7 is now the decisive factor. Überraschenderweise ist der "todgeweihte" Bauer auf b7 jetzt der entscheidende Faktor.} Be5 (36... Nxf6 37. Nxf6 a5 38. Nd7+ Ka7 39. e4 Rxb2 40. e5 {and White should win without any trouble. und Weiß sollte ohne jede Mühe gewinnen.}) 37. f4 {A blunder, which won the game immediately. Ein Übersehen, welches die Partie sofort gewann.} (37. Bxe5+ Nxe5+ 38. Kd4 $1 Nd7 (38... Nxf3+ 39. Kc3 {and c5 next will decide , und c5 als nächstes entscheidet.}) 39. Bc6 Rg1 40. Nf2 {and White should win easily. und Weiß sollte leicht gewinnen.}) 37... Bc7 $2 (37... Bxf6 38. Nxf6 Nc5+ 39. Kd4 Rc2 {would have enabled Black to fight on. I saw thus far, but thought that b4 would win easily, as I simply did not realise that Black could capture on b7 hätte Schwarz ermöglicht weiterzukämpfen. Ich sah so weit, dachte aber, dass b4 leicht gewinnen würde, da ich einfach nicht begriff, dass Schwarz auf b7 nehmen kann.} 40. b4 Nxb7 41. Nd7+ Kc7 42. Nf8 {and White keeps a huge edge. Whether it's enough to win or not, is not clear, though. und Weiß behält ein riesiges Plus. Ob es zum Gewinn reicht oder nicht, ist allerdings nicht klar.}) 38. Bc6 {And Boris resigned, as the white knight is inevitably going ro reach either d7 or a6 via c5 or f6. Certainly one of the most interesting games I have played in recent times! Und Boris gab auf, denn der weiße Springer erreicht unweigerlich entweder d7 oder a6 über c5 bzw. f6. Sicher eine der interessantesten Partien, die ich in letzter Zeit gespielt habe!} 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.19"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Golod,Vitali} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 O-O 8. Bg5 d6 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. f3 Rc8 11. e4 h6 12. Bh4 c5 ({RR} 12... Nxe4 13. Bxd8 Nxc3 14. Bh4 Na4 15. b3 Nc3 16. Rc1 Na2 17. Rc2) 13. Bd3 ({RR} 13. dxc5 Nxc5 ({RR} 13... Rxc5 14. Qd4 Qb8 15. Be2) 14. Qd4 e5 15. Qg1 ({RR} 15. Qf2) 15... Ne6 16. O-O-O Qe7 17. Kb1 Rc7 18. Bf2 Rfc8 19. Be3 b5) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Qe7 14. Be2 Nh5 15. g3 f5) ({RR} 13. d5 exd5 14. cxd5 ({RR} 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 15. cxd5 Re8) 14... Nxe4 15. Bxd8 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Rcxd8) 13... cxd4 ({RR} 13... Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Qxh4+ 15. g3) ({RR} 13... d5) 14. Qxd4 Nc5 ({RR} 14... Ne5 15. Be2 ({RR} 15. O-O Ng6 16. Bf2 Qe7 17. Rfe1 Rfd8 18. Bf1 Nd7 19. a4 a5) 15... Ng6 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. g3 d5 19. exd5 exd5 20. Kf2 Rfd8 ({RR} 20... Ne5 21. cxd5 Bxd5 22. Rac1 Rfd8 23. Rhd1 Be6 24. Ne4) 21. Rhd1 Ne5 22. b3 ({RR} 22. cxd5) 22... dxc4 23. Nxc4 Bd5 24. Nd2 Be6) 15. Be2 e5 16. Qf2 Ne6 17. O-O g5 ({RR} 17... Nf4 18. Rfd1 Ng6 19. Bg3 Nh5 20. Nf1) 18. Bg3 Nd4 $146 ({RR} 18... Nh5 19. Rfd1 Nhf4 20. Bf1 Bc6 ({RR} 20... Nd4) 21. Rac1 Qd7 ({RR} 21... f5 22. exf5 Nd4 23. Ne4 Nxf5) 22. Qe3 ({RR} 22. Bxf4 Nxf4 23. Qe3 ({RR} 23. c5 dxc5 24. Nc4 Qc7 ({RR} 24... Qe6 25. Rd6) 25. g3 Ne6 26. Nd6 Rcd8 27. Nf5 Kh7 28. Qg2 g4 29. fxg4 Ng5)) 22... Nd4 23. Nb1 b5 ({RR} 23... f5) 24. Nc3 bxc4 25. Bxc4 Ba4 ({RR} 25... a5 26. Rxd4 exd4 27. Qxd4 Qe7) 26. Rxd4 ({RR} 26. Nxa4 Qxa4) 26... exd4 27. Qxd4 Bb3 ({RR} 27... Ne6 28. Bxe6 ({RR} 28. Qd3) 28... fxe6 29. Bxd6) 28. Bf1 ({RR} 28. Bxb3 Rxc3 29. Bxf7+ ({RR} 29. Rxc3 Ne2+) ({RR} 29. Bxf4 Rxb3 30. Bxd6 Rd8) 29... Rxf7 30. Bxf4 Rxc1+ 31. Bxc1 g4 32. f4 Qc6) 28... Qe7 ({RR} 28... f5 29. Re1) 29. Re1 ({RR} 29. Qd2 Qe5 30. Bf2) 29... Rfe8 30. Bb5 Red8 31. Nd5 Bxd5 ({RR} 31... Nxd5 32. exd5 Qb7 33. Bc6 Qb6 34. Qxb6 axb6 35. Re4 b5 36. Re3 Ba2 37. b3) ({RR} 31... Qe5 32. Qxe5 dxe5 33. Ne7+ Kg7 34. Nxc8 Rxc8) 32. exd5 Qb7 33. Bc6 {Gustafsson,J (2535)-Pelletier,Y (2531) Germany 2001 CBM 087 [Golod,Vitali] 1-0 (46)}) 19. Rfd1 Nh5 20. Bd3 Nf4 21. Qf1 Qf6 22. Bf2 Nde6 23. Bc2 Qg6 24. g3 Nh5 25. Qe2 g4 26. fxg4 Nf6 27. h3 Ng5 28. Kh2 d5 29. Be3 d4 30. Bxg5 hxg5 31. Rf1 Kg7 32. Rf5 Rh8 33. Kg2 Nd7 34. Nf3 f6 35. h4 Qh6 36. Rf1 Rh7 37. b4 Kh8 38. Rh1 gxh4 39. Rxh4 $2 (39. Nxh4 Qe3 40. Qxe3 $18) 39... Qe3 $16 40. Qxe3 dxe3 41. Bd3 Ba6 42. Rxh7+ Kxh7 43. g5 Bxc4 44. Bxc4 Rxc4 45. gxf6 e2 46. Kf2 Rxe4 47. f7 Kg7 48. Ke1 Kf8 49. Ng5 Rg4 50. Nh7+ Ke7 51. Rg5 Rxg5 52. Nxg5 a5 53. b5 Kf6 54. Ne4+ Kxf7 55. Kxe2 Ke6 56. g4 Kd5 57. Kd3 Nf8 58. g5 Ne6 59. Ke3 Kc4 60. g6 a4 61. Nd2+ Kd5 62. Nb1 Nd4 63. Kd3 Ke6 64. Nc3 Kf6 65. Ke4 Nc2 66. Nb1 Nd4 67. Nc3 Nc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.20"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D82"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "6000+30"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 Bg7 5. e3 c5 6. dxc5 Qa5 7. Qb3 {Following Ivanchuk's success with the strange 4.e3 followed by 5.b3 against Svidler, he decides to take on another sideline. 7.c1 is by far the main choice.} Na6 {Attempting to take back on c5 with the  is very logical. This gives White the option to retain one of his pawns, but at a great cost.} 8. cxd5 Nxc5 9. Qb5+ Qxb5 10. Bxb5+ Bd7 $44 {White now has his extra pawn on d5, which isn't going to fall any time soon. However you can't stop evaluating there. The pawn IS weak is Black holds e4 under control, which means it can't be reinforced easily. Furthermore Black is ahead on development, and his  on g7 can easily begin pounding on the queenside with the help of a b5 push.} 11. Rd1 Nh5 12. Bxd7+ Kxd7 13. Bg3 $146 (13. Nf3 {doesn't look pleasant but maybe it was more important to develop than to keep the pawn structure.} Nxf4 14. exf4 {[%cal Gf3e5]} Bxc3+ $5 15. bxc3 f6 16. O-O Ne4 $44 {and Black is down a pawn but not worse.}) (13. Nge2 Nxf4 14. exf4 (14. Nxf4 b5 $1 15. Rd2 (15. Nxb5 Rhb8 16. Nd4 Rxb2 $15) 15... b4 16. Nd1 b3 {with plentiful compensation.})) ({RR} 13. Nge2 Nxf4 14. exf4 b5 15. b4 Nb7 16. Nxb5 a5 17. Rc1 Rhc8 18. Rxc8 Kxc8 19. bxa5 Rxa5 20. Nbc3 Nd6 21. Kd2 Kd7 22. Rb1 f5 23. f3 Bf6 24. a4 Rc5 25. Kd3 Ra5 26. Rb4 Rc5 27. Rb6 Ra5 {Vallin,G (2419)-Taddei,B (2340) France 2004 1-0 (37)}) 13... b5 {White's pieces on the kingside are too far away from the queenside action, and it's hard to believe that White can keep all his pawns alive. White should be thinking about equality.} 14. d6 e6 {Black's superior development, awesome blockade of the weak d6-pawn and queenside adctivity give him more than enough compensation for the pawn.} 15. Nf3 b4 16. Nb5 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Rab8 18. Nbd4 h5 19. Rh4 f5 {Black is using his structure to try to push the white pieces back. He is in no hurry to regain material as he knows that the d6-pawn is just doomed.} 20. Ne2 e5 21. Rc4 Rhc8 22. Kf1 Ne4 23. Rc7+ {The pawn was going to fall anyway, at least this way Ivanchuk gets rid of some active pieces.} Rxc7 24. dxc7+ Kxc7 25. Nd2 Nxd2+ 26. Rxd2 {Black has finally regained his material, and it is obvious that he has emerged on top. The  is considerably better than the , which at the moment lacks any good squares. Not to mention, the structure favors Black and White's  will be out of play for a few more moves at the very least. White is forced to be passive.} a5 27. b3 a4 28. bxa4 Ra8 29. Nc1 e4 30. Ne2 Rxa4 31. Nf4 {The  has gained f4, since the e-pawn was pushed to increase the s scope. This isn't a particular big gain, though, since g5 is still in the fray.} (31. Nd4 Kb6 32. Ke1 Be5 $15 {poses the strong threat of ...c5 and ...xd4.}) 31... Bc3 32. Rc2 Kd6 33. Ke2 (33. Nxg6 $4 b3 34. Rxc3 bxa2 35. Rc1 Rb4 $1 $19) 33... g5 34. Nxh5 Kd5 {Black finds himself down a pawn again, but again the compensation is very obvious. The  on h5 is out of play and he has pressure on the weak a2, not to mention that White can't make use of his majority. The only rub in the position is that it isn't clear how to break through.} 35. f3 g4 (35... Kc4 36. g4 {creates very unnecessary complications, it is much better to lock down the pawn structure at once.}) 36. Nf4+ Kc4 37. Ne6 Ra6 38. Nf4 (38. Nd4 exf3+ 39. gxf3 Rh6 {looked very troubling for White, as now he doesn't control h3, which means his g3-pawn is a prime target.} 40. fxg4 (40. Nxf5 $2 Rh2+ 41. Kd1 Rh1+ 42. Ke2 Re1+ 43. Kf2 Kd3 {and the rook is history.}) 40... fxg4 41. Kf1 Kd3 $17 {with a strong initiative against the dangerously corralled king.}) 38... Rh6 39. fxg4 fxg4 40. Rc1 (40. Kf2 {was the best way of holding the fortress, but it still seems like Black can create dangerous threats.} Rd6 41. Kf1 Kb5 42. a3 bxa3 43. Rxc3 a2 44. Rc1 Kb4 {Black will soon pick up the rook. All that is left to be seen is if Black can penetrate the  and  defense.} 45. Ra1 Kb3 46. Rxa2 Kxa2 47. Nh5 Kb2 48. Nf4 Kc2 49. Ke2 Rd2+ 50. Ke1 {However I personally don't see how.}) 40... Ra6 (40... Rd6 41. Rc2 Kb5 42. a3 bxa3 43. Rxc3 a2 44. Ra3 Ra6 45. Rxa2 Rxa2+ {leads to the same kind of ending as before. Which I think is a draw.}) 41. Rc2 Rh6 42. Rc1 Rd6 43. Rc2 Ra6 44. Kf2 Rh6 45. Ke2 Rh1 46. Ng6 Re1+ (46... b3 47. Ne5+ Kd5 48. Rxc3 bxa2 49. Ra3 a1=Q 50. Rxa1 Rxa1 51. Nxg4 {is quite definitely drawn.}) 47. Kf2 Ra1 48. Nf4 Rb1 49. Ne6 Rd1 50. Nf4 Rd6 51. Ke2 Rc6 $2 {After much shuffling, I think this is where Magnus missed some serious winning chances.} (51... Kb5 52. a3 (52. Kf2 Ka4 53. Kf1 $1 (53. Ne2 $2 Rd2 $19) 53... Rd2 $6 (53... Ka3 54. Ke2 Bb2 55. Rc4 Bc3 56. Rxe4 Rd2+ 57. Kf1 Kxa2 {And it may be that this is still a draw after c4! but it is not easy. White has had to find a lot of exact moves.}) 54. Rxd2 Bxd2 55. Ke2 Bc3 56. Kd1 Ka3 57. Kc2 Kxa2 58. Nd5 $11) 52... bxa3 53. Rxc3 a2 54. Rc1 Kb4 {We simply get to the same endgame we have seen previously. However at this point Black had to try to enter this endgame.}) 52. Rc1 Kb5 53. Nd5 Rc5 54. Nf4 Rc6 55. Nd5 Rc5 56. Nf4 Ka4 57. Ne6 {As opposed to the other line, the  comes back quickly into the game, and Black doesn't even win the exchange.} Rd5 58. Rc2 Ka3 59. Nd4 Rc5 60. Nb3 Rd5 61. Nd4 Bxd4 62. Rd2 {Black must surrender the exchange or he will stand much worse if not just lost after exd4.} Bc3 $11 63. Rxd5 Kxa2 64. Kd1 b3 65. Rb5 Kb2 66. Rb8 Bf6 67. Kd2 Bc3+ 68. Kd1 Bf6 69. Rf8 Bc3 70. Re8 Ka2 71. Ra8+ Kb1 72. Ra4 b2 73. Ra6 Ba5 {Because Black is Magnus. He plays cool moves.} 74. Rxa5 {Obviously Black had run out of ways to try to make progress, and there was no way that White was going to have time to pick up any pawns. Magnus had been pushing for the entire game, and he might have had chances, but was unable to finish it off at the end.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Svidler, Peter"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2755"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "106"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. O-O b6 $5 {Usually this move is played after} (10... Na5 11. Bd3) {However, the knight does not have go to a5!} 11. dxc5 (11. Rb1 {[%csl Rb1]} cxd4 12. cxd4 Bb7 13. Qd2 Rc8 14. Rfc1 Qd6 15. Bb5 Rfd8 16. d5 Ne5 17. Nd4 Ng4 18. Bf4 Be5 $11 {1/2 Erdos,V (2592)-Przezdziecka,M (2278)/Warsaw 2010/CBM 137 Extra (35)}) (11. Rc1 Bb7 12. d5 (12. f3 Rc8 13. Qd2 Na5 14. Bb5 a6 15. Bd3 b5 16. d5 e6 17. dxe6 fxe6 18. Rfd1 Qe7 19. Bg5 Bf6 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Qe3 e5 22. Bc2 Rf7 23. Bb3 c4 24. Bc2 Rd8 25. Rxd8+ Qxd8 26. Rd1 Rd7 27. Rxd7 Qxd7 28. Qb6 {1/2 Lalic,B (2495)-Romanishin,O (2570)/Sarajevo 1988/CBM 008}) (12. Bb5 Na5 13. d5 e6 14. c4 Qe7 15. Nf4 exd5 16. exd5 Rad8 17. Re1 Qf6 18. Qd2 Qf5 $1 19. Qe2 Bc8 $1 $11 {[%cal Yc8d7] 1-0 Knaak,R (2490)-Jansa,V (2445)/Bratislava 1983/MCD (26)}) 12... Ne5 13. Bb3 (13. Bb5 a6 $1 (13... e6 14. c4 Ng4 15. Bf4 e5 16. Bd2 Qh4 17. h3 Nf6 18. f3 Bh6 19. Rc3 Ne8 20. Bxh6 Qxh6 21. Bxe8 Rfxe8 22. a4 $16 {1-0 Portisch,L (2600)-Schmidt,W (2450)/Indonesia 1983/MCD (44)}) 14. Ba4 Nc4 15. Bf4 Nb2 16. Qc2 Nxa4 17. Qxa4 e6 $132 18. dxe6 $140 Qd3 $1) 13... c4 14. Bc2 e6 $1 15. dxe6 Nd3 $1 (15... fxe6 16. Nd4 Qe7 17. f4 Nc6 18. e5 Nxd4 19. Bxd4 b5 20. Rb1 Bc6 21. Qg4 Rad8 22. h4 $14 {1/2 Zilka,S (2479)-Petr,M (2462)/Czechia 2010/CBM 139 Extra (68)}) 16. Bxd3 Qxd3 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Ng3 Bxe4 19. Qa4 Qd5 20. Nxe4 Qxe4 21. Rfe1 Qd5 $11 {1/2 Polugaevsky,L (2625)-Miles,A (2560)/Wijk aan Zee 1979/MCD (28)}) (11. Qd2 Bb7 12. Rac1 Rc8 (12... Qd7 13. Rfd1 Rfd8 {1/2 Despotovic,M (2355)-Simic,R (2485)/Belgrade 1988/TD (39)} 14. Bh6 $5) (12... e6 13. Rfd1 Rc8 14. Bb5 cxd4 15. cxd4 Ne7 16. Rxc8 Nxc8 $11 {[%cal Yc8d6] 0-1 Vakhidov,J (2392)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2678)/Tashkent UZB 2011/The Week in Chess 888 (57)}) 13. Rfd1 (13. h4 Qd7 (13... Na5 14. Bd3 e5 $1 15. Bg5 Qd7 $11) 14. h5 Na5 15. Bd3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Rxc1 17. Rxc1 Rc8 18. h6 Rxc1+ 19. Qxc1 Bf8 20. Nc3 Qc8 21. d5 Nc4 22. Bd4 Nd6 23. Qf4 f6 24. e5 fxe5 25. Bxe5 Nf7 26. Bxg6 Nxe5 27. Bf5 Ng6 28. Bxc8 Nxf4 29. Bxb7 Bxh6 $11 {1/2 Lputian Smbat G (2540)-Romanishin Oleg M (2555)/Lvov 1987 (31)}) 13... cxd4 14. cxd4 Qd6 (14... e6 15. Bh6 Qh4 $5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qe3 (17. d5 Ne5 18. Qd4 Qf6 19. Bb3 exd5 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. exd5 Ba6 22. Nc3 Nd7 23. Ne4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Rc1+ 25. Rd1 Rxd1+ 26. Bxd1 Bc4 $17 {0-1 Enchev,I (2435)-Grigorov,G (2497)/Albena BUL 2011/The Week in Chess 867 (33)}) 17... Rfd8 18. Bb5 Qf6 19. Bxc6 Rxc6 20. Rxc6 Bxc6 $11 21. d5 $6 exd5 22. e5 Qe7 23. Nd4 Bd7 24. f4 Rc8 {0-1 Meyer,M (2348)-Petr,M (2468)/Munich GER 2010/The Week in Chess 840 (52)}) 15. d5 (15. Bf4 {1-0 Zhukova,N (2499)-Nebolsina,V (2310)/Moscow 2010/CBM 138 Extra (39)} e5 $11) (15. Bh6 Qb4 $1 16. Qxb4 Nxb4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. a3 Nc6 19. d5 Ne5 20. Bb5 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. Rxc8 Bxc8 23. Nd4 g5 24. f3 {1/2 Stella,A (2310)-Codenotti,M (2169)/Bratto 2010/CBM 138 Extra}) (15. e5 $5 Qd7 16. e6 $5 fxe6 17. Nf4 {1-0 Noori,A (2135)-Aghamohammadi,M/Iran 2000/EXT 2003 (28)} Nd8 $13 {A.Giri}) 15... Na5 16. Bb5 Rxc1 17. Rxc1 Rc8 (17... e6 $1 18. Bf4 Be5 19. Bxe5 Qxe5 20. Nc3 Rc8 $1 $132 {A.Giri}) (17... f5 $5 {A.Giri}) 18. h3 (18. Rxc8+ Bxc8 19. Nd4 $1 $14 {A.Giri}) 18... Rxc1+ 19. Qxc1 e6 20. Nf4 exd5 21. Nxd5 f5 22. f3 fxe4 23. fxe4 Qe5 $11 {1/2 Topalov,V (2805)-Anand,V (2787)/Sofia 2010/CBM 136/[Giri,Anish] (60)}) 11... Qc7 {A typical idea. After cxb6 axb6 White's queenside pawn majority will be nearly useless.} (11... Ne5 12. Qxd8 Rxd8 13. Bd5 Rb8 (13... Ba6 $142) 14. c6 $16 {1-0 Kanep,M (2523)-Novik,M (2468)/Finland 2008/EXT 2009 (26)}) 12. f4 $146 {This move doesn't look dangerous before Black has played ...e7-e6.} (12. cxb6 axb6 13. Rb1 Rb8 14. Bb5 Ne5 15. f4 Ng4 16. Qc1 Bb7 17. h3 Nxe3 18. Qxe3 Rfc8 19. e5 Bd5 20. c4 Ba8 21. Nc3 Qb7 22. Qe2 e6 23. Rbd1 Rd8 24. Ba4 Rbc8 $44 {0-1 Ju,W (2500)-Gao Rui (2464)/Hefei 2010/CBM 136 Extra (38)}) (12. Qd2 $6 Rd8 13. Qb2 bxc5 14. Qa3 Ne5 15. Bd5 Rb8 16. Qxc5 Qxc5 17. Bxc5 Ba6 18. c4 e6 $19 {1/2 Zhukova,N (2499)-Nebolsina,V (2310)/Moscow 2010/CBM 138 Extra (54)}) (12. Nd4 Ne5 (12... Bb7 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Nb5 Qe5 15. Bd5 e6 16. Bd4 Qf4 17. g3 Qh6 18. Bxc6 Bxc6 19. Qe2 $16 {1-0 Christiansen,L (2485)-Jansa,V (2480)/Luzern 1982/EXT 1997 (40)}) 13. Nb5 (13. Be2 Bb7 14. cxb6 axb6 15. Nb5 Qc6 16. f3 Nc4 $6 (16... Rfc8 17. Qb3 Nd7 {[%cal Yd7c5,Yc5a4] R.Simic}) 17. Bxc4 Qxc4 18. Qb3 $14 {1-0 Portisch,L (2635)-Ftacnik,L (2545)/Wijk aan Zee 1985/MCL (72)}) 13... Qb8 ({RR} 13... Qc6 14. Bd5 Qxb5 15. Bxa8 ({RR} 15. Rb1 Qa5 16. Bxa8 Ba6 17. cxb6 axb6 18. Bxb6 Qxc3 19. Bd5 Bxf1 20. Qxf1 e6 21. Rc1 Qd3 22. Bb7 Qd2 23. a4 Rb8 24. Rc7 Qd6 25. a5 Nd7 26. Rc8+ Rxc8 27. Bxc8 Nxb6 28. axb6 Qxb6) 15... Ba6 16. Bd5 e6 17. Bb3 Qxf1+ 18. Qxf1 Bxf1 19. Kxf1 Ng4 20. Bd2 bxc5 21. h3 Rd8 22. Rd1 Ne5 23. Ke2) 14. Be2 (14. Bf4 bxc5 15. Rb1 a6 ({RR} 15... Bb7 16. Qe2 Qc8 17. Bd5 Bc6 18. Rfd1 a6 19. Na3 e6 20. Bxc6 Qxc6 21. Nc4 Nxc4 22. Qxc4 Rfd8 23. a4) 16. Nd4 ({RR} 16. Na3 Qc7 17. Bd5 Rb8) 16... Qd6 17. Bd5 Ra7 ({RR} 17... Rb8) 18. Nc6 Rc7 19. Na5 Rd7 20. Nc4 Qc7 21. Nb6 Rd6 $13 {0-1 Paunovic,D (2320)-Jansa,V (2440)/Vrnjacka Banja 1983/MCD (83)}) ({RR} 14. Bf4 bxc5 15. Rb1 a6 16. Nd4 Qd6 17. Bd5 Ra7 18. Nc6 Rc7 19. Na5 Rd7 20. Nc4 Qc7 21. Nb6 Rd6) ({RR} 14. Bd5 Ng4 15. g3 Nxe3 ({RR} 15... a6) 16. fxe3 a6 ({RR} 16... Bh3 17. Rf2 bxc5 18. Rb1 Bh6 19. Qf3 Qe5 20. Bxa8 Rxa8 21. Qxf7+ Kh8 22. Qd5 Qxd5 23. exd5 Bxe3 24. Re1 Bxf2+ 25. Kxf2 Rf8+ 26. Ke3) 17. Nd4 ({RR} 17. Bxa8 axb5 18. Bd5 Qc7 19. cxb6 Qxb6 20. Qe2 e6 21. Bb3 b4) ({RR} 17. Bxf7+ Kh8 18. Nd4 bxc5 19. Bd5 Rxf1+ 20. Qxf1 cxd4 21. Rb1 Qa7 22. Qf7 Be6 23. Qxe6 dxc3 24. Bxa8 Qxe3+ 25. Kg2 Qe2+ 26. Kh3 Qh5+ 27. Kg2 Qe2+) 17... bxc5 ({RR} 17... Bh3 18. Nc6) 18. Rb1 Qc7 19. Bxa8 cxd4 20. cxd4 Bh3 21. Bd5 Bxf1 22. Qxf1 ({RR} 22. Kxf1) 22... e6 23. Bc4 Bh6 24. Rb3 a5 25. Kg2 Rc8 26. Rc3 Qb7 27. Qd3 Qb4 28. a3) 14... bxc5 ({RR} 14... a6 15. Na3 b5 ({RR} 15... bxc5 16. f4 ({RR} 16. Bxc5 Qc7 17. Bd4 Rd8 18. Qc1 Ng4 19. Bxg4 Bxg4 20. Qe3 Rab8) 16... Nd7 17. e5) 16. Nc2 ({RR} 16. Rb1 Bb7 17. Qc2 Nc6 18. Rfd1 Qc7) 16... Nc6 17. Nd4 Bb7 18. Qc2 ({RR} 18. f3 Rd8 19. Qc1 Nxd4 20. cxd4 Bxd4 21. Bxd4 Rxd4 22. c6 Bc8 23. Qc5 Qa7)) 15. f4 ({RR} 15. f4 Ng4 16. Bxc5 a6 17. Na3 Qc7 18. Bd4 e5 19. fxe5 Nxe5) ({RR} 15. Bxc5 a6 16. Nd4 Qc7 17. Bb4 a5 18. Nb5 Qb7 19. Bc5 Qxe4) 15... Ng4 16. Bxc5 a6 17. Na3 Qc7 18. Bd4 e5 19. fxe5 Nxe5 $44 {1/2 Aronian,L (2808)-Grischuk,A (2747)/Kazan 2011/CBM 143/[Caruana] (70)}) ({RR} 12. Nd4 Ne5 13. Nb5 Qb8 14. Be2 bxc5 15. Rb1 a6 ({RR} 15... Bb7 16. Bxc5 ({RR} 16. Qc2) 16... a6 17. Nd4 Qc7 ({RR} 17... Qc8) 18. Bb6 Qxc3 19. Rb3 Qc8 20. Qb1 Nd7 21. Rc1 Bxe4 22. Rxc8 Bxb1 23. Rxa8 Rxa8 24. Rxb1 Nxb6 25. Nc6 Na4 26. Nxe7+ Kf8) 16. Na3 ({RR} 16. Nd4 Qc7 17. Nb3 Rd8 18. Qc2 c4 19. Nc5 Nd3 20. Nxd3 cxd3 21. Bxd3 Qxc3 22. Qxc3 Bxc3 23. Bc4 Bd7 24. Rfc1 Bf6 25. Kf1 Bb5) 16... Qc7 17. f4 Rd8 18. Qc2 Ng4 19. Bxg4 Bxg4 20. f5 gxf5 21. Nc4 ({RR} 21. exf5 Qe5) 21... e6 ({RR} 21... fxe4 22. Qxe4) ({RR} 21... Rab8) 22. h3 Bh5 23. exf5 exf5 24. Bg5 f4 ({RR} 24... Re8 25. Nb6 Ra7 26. Nd5) ({RR} 24... Rf8 25. Ne3 Qe5 26. Nxf5 Bg6 ({RR} 26... Qxc3 27. Qf2)) 25. Qf2 ({RR} 25. Bxd8 Rxd8 26. Qf2 Bxc3 27. Qxf4 Qxf4 28. Rxf4 Bg6) 25... f3 ({RR} 25... Re8 26. Nb6 ({RR} 26. Bxf4 Qc6 27. Nd6 Re6 28. Nf5) 26... Ra7 27. Nd5) 26. Bxd8 Rxd8 {Karjakin,S (2782)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) Stavanger 2018 CBM 185 [Krasenkow,Michal] 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 12. cxb6 axb6 13. Rb1 Rb8 14. a4 Ne5 15. Bb5 Rd8 16. Qb3 Be6 17. Qb4 Bc4 18. Rfd1 Bxb5 19. Rxd8+ Rxd8 20. Qxb5 Nc4 21. Bf4 e5 22. Bg5 f6 23. Bh4 Nd2 24. Ra1 Nxe4 25. f3 Nd2 26. Bf2 Nc4 {Shepelev,I (2035)-Stachanczyk,J (2123) Vrnjacka Banja SRB 2025 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 12. Nd4 Ne5 13. Nb5 Qb8 14. Be2 bxc5 15. f4 Ng4 16. Bxc5 a6 17. Na3 Qc7 18. Bd4 e5 19. fxe5 Nxe5 20. Qc1 Bg4 21. Bxg4 Nxg4 22. Qf4 Qxf4 23. Rxf4 Ne5 24. Rb1 Rad8 25. Nc2 Nc4 26. Rb4 Rc8 {Jakovenko,D (2733)-Svidler,P (2739) Tbilisi 2015 ½-½ (31)}) 12... bxc5 13. Rb1 $146 ({RR} 13. e5 Na5 14. Bd5 Rb8 15. Qa4 Ba6 16. Rf2 Rfd8 17. Bf3 Rd3 18. Qe4 Rbd8 19. f5 Bb7 20. Qf4 Bxe5 21. Qh6 Rd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 23. Rf1 Rxf1+ 24. Kxf1 Bxf3 25. gxf3 Nc4 26. Bf2 Qd6 27. Kg2 Qd3 {Dragun,K (2553)-Preotu,R (2461) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (35)}) ({RR} 13. e5 Na5 14. Bd5 Rb8 15. Qa4 Ba6 16. Rf2 Rfd8 17. Bf3 Rd3 18. Qe4 Rbd8 19. f5 Bb7 20. Qf4 Bxe5 21. Qh6 Rd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 23. Rf1 Rxf1+ 24. Kxf1 Bxf3 25. gxf3 Nc4 26. Bf2 Qd6 27. Kg2 Qd3 {Dragun,K (2553)-Preotu,R (2461) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (35)}) 13... Rd8 (13... Bg4 $6 14. h3 Bxe2 15. Qxe2 Bxc3 16. f5 $44) 14. Qa4 (14. Qe1 Bb7 {[%cal Rc6a5]} 15. Rb5 Na5 16. Rxc5 Qb6 17. Bxf7+ $5 Kxf7 18. Rf5+ gxf5 19. Bxb6 axb6 $13) (14. Qc2 $5) 14... Na5 15. Bd5 Bd7 $1 16. Qa3 Rac8 17. f5 e6 $1 18. Bf4 Be5 19. fxe6 fxe6 20. Bb3 Nxb3 21. axb3 Rf8 {Black has comfortably consolidated his position and has no problems.} 22. Qc1 (22. Bxe5 Qxe5 23. Qxa7 Bc6 $44) 22... c4 23. b4 Qb6+ 24. Kh1 Bg7 25. e5 (25. Ra1 $142 $132) 25... Bc6 26. Nd4 Bd5 {[%csl Gd5]} 27. Ra1 Qb7 28. Qc2 Rc7 29. Bg3 Rcf7 30. Rxf7 Qxf7 31. Qe2 g5 32. h3 h5 33. Kg1 h4 34. Bh2 Qg6 35. Rd1 $11 g4 $5 {[%mdl 512] Black is playing for a win but it is a double-edged sacrifice.} 36. hxg4 Qg5 {[%cal Yg7h6]} 37. Nf5 $1 exf5 $6 (37... h3 $1 {was correct. White had to find the best defense} 38. Rd4 $1 {[%cal Rh2f4]} (38. gxh3 $4 Rxf5) {with a logical draw after} 38... Qc1+ 39. Rd1 Qg5 $11) 38. Rxd5 fxg4 39. Kh1 h3 40. gxh3 gxh3 41. Rd4 $6 (41. Rd1 $142 $1 {[%cal Yd1g1,Ye2e4] , and White seizes the initiative.}) 41... Qc1+ 42. Rd1 Qxc3 43. e6 Qb2 $1 44. Qe4 Qg2+ 45. Qxg2 hxg2+ 46. Kxg2 Re8 47. Rd6 Bf8 48. Rc6 Bxb4 49. Rxc4 a5 50. Rc6 Kg7 51. Kf3 Kf6 52. Ke4 Rxe6+ 53. Be5+ Kf7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2811"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Qd2 cxd4 9. cxd4 Nc6 10. Rd1 O-O 11. Nf3 Bg4 12. Be2 Rc8 13. O-O Qa5 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Qxd2 16. Rxd2 Na5 17. e5 Nc4 18. Rd3 Nxe3 19. fxe3 Rc7 20. Be4 Rfc8 21. Rb3 b6 22. Kf2 f6 23. exf6 Bxf6 24. Ke2 Kg7 25. Rd1 Rc3 26. Rd3 $146 ({RR} 26. Rxc3 Rxc3 27. Rd3 Rc2+ 28. Rd2 Rc3 29. Rd3 {½-½ (29) Sadorra,J (2561)-Gomez,J (2511) Manila 2013}) 26... Rc2+ 27. Rd2 R2c3 28. Rd3 Rc2+ 29. Rd2 R2c3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2011.11.25"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2758"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2011.11.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb4+ $5 {An interesting transposition to the Catalan, avoiding the dangerous lines with ...c5 and d4-d5.} 6. Bd2 Be7 7. Bg2 c6 8. O-O (8. c5 $5 {has scored quite well in practice and is logical, too, from the structural point of view.} O-O 9. Na3 Bb7 (9... d5 10. cxd6 Qxd6 11. O-O {[%cal Ga6e2,Gd2f4]} Rc8 12. Rfe1 Bb7 13. Nc4 $16 {Shulman,Y (2632)-Friedel,J (2516)/Ledyard 2009/CBM 129 Extra (1-0, 31)}) 10. b4 a5 11. Nc4 Nd5 12. Rb1 axb4 13. Nxb6 Nxb6 14. Rxb4 Ra6 15. Qb3 d5 16. Rxb6 Rxb6 17. cxb6 c5 18. O-O c4 19. Qb2 Nc6 20. a4 $16 {Topalov,V (2791)-Zhigalko,S (2592)/Dresden 2008/CBM 128 (1-0, 40)}) 8... d5 9. Ne5 Nfd7 ({Delaying this knight retreat offers White additional possibilities:} 9... O-O 10. Rd1 Nfd7 (10... Qc8 11. Nc3 Nbd7 12. Rac1 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Bf4 g5 16. Bxd5 $1 {Ponomariov,R (2734)-Kramnik,V (2790) Dortmund 2010 CBM 138 [Ponomariov] (1-0, 36)}) 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. e4 $1 {This is the difference! The e-pawn is not pinned any more.} (12. Bf4 Nxe5 13. dxe5 {transposes}) 12... Nf6 (12... Nxe5 13. exd5 $1 $36 {Dzagnidze,N (2551)-Skripchenko,A (2460) Antakya 2010 CBM 140 [Marin,M] (0-1, 29)}) 13. Nc3 Bb7 14. exd5 Nxd5 15. Rac1 (15. Qb3 Nd7 16. Nxd5 exd5 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. Qxd5 Nxe5 19. Qxe5 Bf6 20. Qf5 Qxd4 21. Bc3 Qc5 22. Qxc5 bxc5 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rac1 Rab8 25. b3 $16 {Llanes Hurtado,M (2446)-Guliev,L (2454) Santa Cruz de la Palma 2007 (1-0, 45)}) 15... a6 16. Qb3 Nxc3 17. Bxc3 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qd5+ 19. Qxd5 exd5 20. Bd2 $16 {Gupta,A (2590)-Zeng,C (2377) Chennai 2011 (1-0, 45)}) ({RR} 9... O-O 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Nc3 Nfd7 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Bxd5 Nxe5 14. Bxa8 Qxd4 15. Bc3 Qc5 16. Be4 Ng6 17. Rad1 Bf6 18. Bxf6 Qxc2 19. Bxc2 gxf6 20. Bd3 Ne5 21. Bxa6 Nxa6 22. Rd2 Nc5 23. Rfd1 Ne6 24. Rc2 {Inarkiev,E (2650)-Karjakin,S (2750) Moscow RUS 2024 ½-½ (55)}) 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Bf4 Nxe5 12. dxe5 $146 ({RR} 12. Bxe5 O-O 13. Nc3 Nd7 14. Bf4 Nf6 15. Qa4 Bc8 16. Rfc1 Bd7 17. Qa6 Nh5 18. Bd2 Bc8 19. Qd3 f5 20. Bf3 Nf6 21. Bf4 Bd7 22. Nb5 Bxb5 23. Qxb5 Ne4 24. Bxe4 fxe4 25. Qc6 Qc8 26. Qa4 Qe8 {Alizada,E (1997)-Barwick,C (1901) England ENG 2025 ½-½ (42)}) 12... O-O 13. Rd1 {This position has proven quite viable for Black. It is quite possible that Nakamura did not expect this course of events at all, since the novelty he produced one move later hardly changes the evaluation.} Bb7 (13... Qd7 {is also playable.} 14. Nc3 Rc8 (14... Nc6 $2 15. Bxd5 $1 exd5 16. Nxd5 $16 {Bogdanovski,V (2435)-Mitkov,N (2492)/Gevgelija 2002/CBM 087 ext (1-0, 41)}) 15. Rac1 Bb7 (15... Nc6 16. Qa4 Bb7 17. h4 a6 18. Nxd5 exd5 19. Bxd5 {Banusz,T (2517)-Bokros,A (2479)/Szentgotthard 2010/CBM 135 (1/2, 62)} Bf8 $5) 16. h4 Nc6 17. Qd2 Rd8 18. e3 Rac8 19. Qe2 Qe8 20. h5 h6 21. Qg4 Kh8 $11 {Prudnikova,S (2407)-Ioseliani,N (2491)/Bled 2002/EXT 2003 (1/2, 43)}) ({But} 13... g5 $6 {is obviously premature, since the e5-pawn is not attacked yet.} 14. Be3 Nd7 15. Bd4 Rc8 16. Nc3 Qc7 17. e4 $36 {Koneru,H (2603)-Thejkumar,M (2414)/Mumbai 2008/CBM 124 Extra (1-0, 27)}) 14. Nd2 $146 {Not that great a square for the knight.} ({Black did not face big problems after} 14. Nc3 {either:} Nc6 15. h4 (15. Nxd5 $6 exd5 16. Bxd5 Qe8 17. Qe4 Rd8 18. Rac1 Ba8 $17 {Feller,S (2424)-Palac,M (2582)/Cap d'Agde 2006/EXT 2007 (0-1, 45)}) 15... Rc8 {The most logical developing move.} (15... h6 {An unnecessary weakening.} 16. e4 d4 17. Qe2 Qb8 18. Nb5 Rd8 19. Qg4 Kf8 $6 (19... g6 20. Rac1 Nxe5 $13) 20. Rac1 a6 (20... Nxe5 $6 21. Qh5 $1 Bf6 22. Nc7 $16) 21. Nd6 $16 {Razuvaev,Y (2560)-Nikolenko,O (2475)/Pardubice 1993/TD (1-0, 34)}) 16. Rac1 (16. e4 d4 17. Qe2 Qe8 18. Nb5 Bc5 19. a3 Rd8 20. b4 Be7 21. Qb2 d3 22. Bg5 $13 {Rahman,Z (2538)-Roktim,B (2389)/Dhaka 2005/CBM 105 ext (1/2, 64)}) 16... a6 17. Qb1 Qe8 18. Rc2 (18. Na4 Bd8 19. b3 Bc7 20. Be3 Nxe5 21. Bxb6 Bxb6 {1/2 Damljanovic,B (2585)-Roiz,M (2605)/Valjevo 2007/CBM 119}) 18... b5 19. a3 b4 20. axb4 Nxb4 21. Rcc1 Bc5 22. Na2 Nxa2 23. Qxa2 Qb5 24. e3 a5 $36 {Lastin,A (2590)-Tkachiev,V (2605)/Sochi 2005/CBM 107 (1/2, 42)}) 14... Nc6 (14... Na6 $5 15. e4 Rc8 16. Qb1 Nb4 17. exd5 Bxd5 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Qe8 20. Nc3 (20. Nd6 $13) 20... Qc6 21. a3 Na6 22. Ne4 Nc5 23. Nxc5 Bxc5 $11 {Iskusnyh,S (2455)-Lastin,A (2611)/Samara 2011/ (1/2, 35)}) 15. Nf3 $6 {Underestimating the force of the next move.} (15. h4 $142 {Carlsen} Rc8 $36) 15... g5 $1 {I cannot help remembering another occasion in which a plan based on ...g7-g5 yielded Carlsen a great win. It was the Hedgehog from Kramnik,V (2799)-Carlsen,M (2733) Wijk aan Zee 2008 CBM 122 [Marin,M] (0-1, 57)} 16. Be3 g4 {Well, here everything is simpler: Black wins a pawn. However, one should also pay attention to his stability in the centre, ensured precisely by the far advanced pawn.} 17. Nd4 Nxe5 $15 18. Bh6 Re8 19. e4 Bc5 20. Nb3 Rc8 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Qa4 Bc6 23. Qd4 Qf6 $17 24. Bf4 dxe4 25. Bxe4 Nf3+ $3 {If my endgame analysis is correct, this is a brilliant move, leading almost by force to a won position, despite the presence of opposite-coloured bishops..} (25... Bxe4 26. Qxe4 Nf3+ 27. Kg2 h5 $17 {would have been a reasonable alternative.}) 26. Bxf3 Qxd4 27. Rxd4 Bxf3 28. Rd7 Rd5 29. Rxd5 (29. Rxa7 Red8 $19) 29... exd5 30. Be3 Re4 31. Re1 d4 32. Bd2 Rxe1+ {(!) The same comment applies to this move.} (32... Be2 $17) 33. Bxe1 Be2 $1 {Caging the enemy king.} 34. f4 {White cannot do without this freeing move, which allows Black to create a second far advanced passed pawn.} (34. Bd2 Kg7 35. Kg2 Kg6 36. h3 h5 37. hxg4 hxg4 38. Bf4 (38. f4 gxf3+ 39. Kf2 Kf5 40. Bf4 Ke4 41. Bb8 a6 42. Ba7 b5 43. Bb8 Bc4 44. a3 Bd5 45. Bf4 Kd3 46. Be5 Kc4 47. Bf6 d3 48. Ke3 Be4 $19) 38... Kf5 39. Bh6 Ke4 40. Bg7 b5 41. Bf6 a6 42. Bg7 Bc4 {Just as in the game, it is important to clear the way for the king. With the actual structure, the space for invasion is too narrow.} 43. a3 (43. b3 Bd3 44. Bf6 Bb1 45. a3 Bc2 46. b4 Bd3 47. Bg7 Be2 48. Bf6 Kd3 49. Bg7 Kc4 $19) 43... Be2 44. Bf6 Kd3 45. Be5 Kc4 46. Bf6 d3 47. Bc3 Kb3 $19) 34... gxf3 35. Bf2 d3 36. Be1 Kg7 37. Kf2 Kf6 38. Ke3 Kf5 39. h3 {Another important decision.} ({Keeping the pawn on h2 would not save him, either:} 39. Bc3 Kg4 40. Kf2 Kh3 41. Kg1 Bd1 42. Bd2 ({The attempt to keep the bishop prisoner with} 42. b3 {fails to} Bc2 43. Kf2 Bb1 44. a3 Ba2 45. b4 Bd5 {The bishop is right in time to defend f3.} 46. Kg1 b5 47. Bd2 Be4 {We will see a lot of this setup, with two pawns close to the promotion square and defended by the bishop.} 48. Bc3 Kg4 $19) 42... Ba4 (42... Bc2 {is less effective now:} 43. Kf2 Bb1 $6 44. a3 Kxh2 45. Kxf3 {White cannot be sure of a draw at all, but Black's winning plan is less obvious here.}) 43. Bc3 Bc6 44. Bd2 Bd5 45. b3 a5 46. Be1 (46. Be3 b5 47. Bd2 b4 48. Be3 Bxb3 $1) 46... Bc6 (46... a4 $6 47. bxa4 Bxa2 48. a5 b5 49. a6 Bd5 50. a7 Kg4 51. Kf2 {White can hold all the enemy pawns, while the black bishop is partly restricted.}) 47. Bd2 a4 $1 {Weakening the light squares in order to prepare the king's invasion.} 48. bxa4 Bxa4 49. Kf2 Bc6 50. Kg1 b5 51. Be3 Bd5 52. a3 Be4 53. Bd2 Kg4 54. Kf2 Kf5 55. h3 Ke6 56. Be3 Kd5 57. Ke1 Kc4 58. Kd2 Kb3 59. Bc5 h5 $22 $19 60. Kd1 b4 $1 {×b4} 61. axb4 Kc3 $19) 39... h5 40. Bd2 Bf1 41. Be1 ({Here is another possible ending with the same familiar winning method:} 41. h4 Kg4 42. Kf2 (42. Be1 Be2 {...f5-f4}) 42... Be2 43. Bf4 Bd1 44. Ke3 Bc2 45. Kf2 Bb1 46. a3 Ba2 47. Bc1 Bd5 48. Bf4 b5 49. Bd2 a6 50. Bc3 Be4 51. Bd2 Kf5 52. Ke3 Ke6 53. b3 {Hoping to create a barrier, but it will not last for long.} Kf5 54. a4 Kg4 55. axb5 axb5 56. Kf2 Bd5 57. b4 Be4 {A familiar setup.} 58. Be3 Kf5 {Now, everything is ready for the invasion.} 59. Bf4 Ke6 60. Bd2 Kd5 61. Ke3 Kc4 62. Kf2 Kb3 63. Ke3 Kc2 64. Be1 f2 $19) 41... Bxh3 42. Kxd3 ({The most fantastic win arises after} 42. Kxf3 Bg4+ 43. Ke3 Be2 44. Bc3 Kg4 45. Be1 f6 {Playing for zugzwang.} 46. Bf2 f5 47. b3 (47. Be1 f4+ 48. gxf4 h4 49. f5 h3 50. f6 h2 51. f7 h1=Q 52. f8=Q Qxe1 $19) 47... b5 (47... f4+ 48. gxf4 h4 49. f5 $1) 48. a3 a6 49. b4 {The tempi have been exhausted, but now the queenside configuration is lethal for the white king.} f4+ $1 50. gxf4 h4 51. f5 h3 52. f6 d2 $1 53. Kxd2 (53. Kxe2 h2 54. f7 d1=Q+ $1) 53... h2 (53... Bc4 54. Bg1 Kg3 55. Bb6 h2 56. Bc7+ Kg2 57. Bxh2 Kxh2 58. Kc3 $11) 54. f7 h1=Q 55. f8=Q Qd1+ 56. Kc3 Qd3+ 57. Kb2 Qd2+ $19 {with mate to follow soon. Quite an unexpected finish!!}) 42... Bf1+ 43. Ke3 Kg4 44. Kf2 Bb5 45. Bc3 Bc6 46. Be5 b5 47. Bb8 a6 48. Bc7 f5 49. b3 Bd5 50. Bd6 f4 51. gxf4 (51. Bxf4 h4 $19) 51... h4 52. f5 Kxf5 53. Ke3 Kg4 54. Kf2 h3 55. Ke3 Be4 56. Kf2 Bb1 {The already known plan of widening the area for infiltration.} 57. a3 Ba2 58. b4 Bf7 $1 ({Black's plan is familiar to us: with two pawns close to promoting and sustained by the bishop, Black keeps both white pieces busy and can quietly march in with the king.} 58... Bf7 59. Bc7 Bh5 60. Bb8 Kf5 61. Bc7 Ke4 62. Bd6 Kd3 63. Bb8 (63. Kg3 $2 h2) ({The black bishop's placement is explained by the following variation:} 63. Bh2 Kc2 64. Kg3 Bg4 65. Bg1 Kb3 {Once again this setup. Black's kingside group remains untouchable. The bishop on g2 would be less effective, because Black could not re-activate it if necessary. Besides, Nakamura has kept the f1-square defended, so there was no way to get it there.}) 63... Kc3 64. Kg1 Kb3 65. Bc7 Kxa3 66. Ba5 Bg4 $22 $19) 0-1

[Event "London Classic 3rd"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2011.12.06"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2800"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2011.12.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 cxd4 6. Nxd4 O-O 7. Bg2 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Qb6 10. Bxd5 exd5 11. Be3 Bxc3+ 12. Qxc3 Qa6 13. Qd3 Qxd3 14. exd3 Bd7 15. Kd2 Nc6 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Bd4 Rfe8 $146 ({RR} 17... a6 18. g4 Bd7 19. f3 Rac8 20. h4 h5 21. Rhg1 Kh7 22. Rg2 Rfe8 23. Rag1 Re7 24. Rf2 Rc6 25. Rgg2 Be8 26. Re2 Rce6 27. Rxe6 Rxe6 28. Rg1 Rg6 29. Re1 Re6 30. Rxe6 fxe6 31. Ke3 a5 32. Be5 {Khalifman,A (2614)-Macieja,B (2608) Nakhchivan 2013 ½-½ (43)}) ({RR} 17... a6 18. g4 Bd7 19. Rhg1 Rac8 20. Rae1 Rfe8 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. h4 f6 23. g5 Kf7 24. h5 Rg8 25. f4 Bf5 26. a4 Rc8 27. gxf6 gxf6 28. h6 Rg8 29. Rxg8 Kxg8 30. Bxf6 Kf7 31. Bg7 Bd7 32. b3 {Berkes,F (2659)-Zelcic,R (2501) Schwarzach 2015 ½-½ (36)}) 18. g4 Re6 19. Rae1 Bd7 20. Rxe6 Bxe6 21. g5 a6 22. h4 Re8 23. h5 Bg4 24. h6 gxh6 25. gxh6 Re6 26. Be3 Kf8 27. Kc3 Rg6 28. Kd4 Bd7 29. Re1 Bc6 30. Kc5 Ke8 31. f4 Bd7 32. Bd4+ Re6 33. Rxe6+ Bxe6 34. Kb6 Bf5 35. Kxb7 Bxd3 36. Kc6 Ke7 37. Kxd5 Bb1 38. a3 Ba2+ 39. Ke4 Bb3 40. Kf5 Be6+ 41. Ke5 f6+ 42. Ke4 Bb3 43. Bc5+ Ke6 44. Kd4 a5 45. a4 Bxa4 46. Bb6 Kf5 47. Bxa5 Kxf4 48. Bd2+ Kg4 49. b4 f5 50. Ke5 Bb5 51. Bf4 Bd3 52. Be3 Bb5 53. Bf4 Bd3 54. Be3 Bb5 55. Bf4 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 3rd"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2011.12.10"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Adams, Michael"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2826"]
[BlackElo "2734"]
[Annotator "RR"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2011.12.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Qc2 Bb7 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. Qxc3 d5 ({RR} 7... O-O 8. Bg5 d6 9. Nd2 Nbd7 10. e3 c5 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. b4 Ncd7 13. f3 Rc8 14. Be2 Ne5 15. Qb2 Ng6 16. Rc1 h6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Kf2 Rfd8 20. Rhd1 Bc6 21. Nb1 Kf8 22. Nc3) 8. cxd5 ({RR} 8. e3 O-O 9. b4 c5 10. dxc5 Ne4 11. Qc2 bxc5 12. cxd5 exd5 13. bxc5 Nd7 14. Be2 Rc8 15. O-O Rxc5 16. Qb2 Qc7 17. Qd4 Nc3 18. Bd3 Re8 19. Bb2 Re4 20. Bxc3 Rxd4 21. Bxd4 Ra5 22. Rfc1 Qd6 {Wojtaszek,R (2700)-Shirov,A (2700) Loo 2013 ½-½ (71)}) ({RR} 8. g3 dxc4 9. Qxc4 O-O 10. Bg2 a5 11. O-O a4 12. Bf4 Bd5 13. Qxc7 Nc6 14. Qxd8 Rfxd8 15. Bc7 Rdc8 16. Bxb6 Rab8 17. Bc5 Rxb2 18. e3 Rcb8 19. Ne1 Bxg2 20. Kxg2 Nd5 21. Kf3 R8b3 22. Rc1 f5 {Kim,S (2295)-Purtseladze,M (2261) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (49)}) 8... Qxd5 9. e3 $146 ({RR} 9. Qxc7 Nbd7 10. Qc2 O-O ({RR} 10... O-O 11. e3 e5 12. Be2 exd4 13. exd4 Rac8 14. Qd3 Qd6 15. O-O Rfe8 16. h3 Be4 17. Qb5 Bc6 18. Qd3 Be4 19. Qb5 Bc6 20. Qd3 Be4) 11. e3 e5 12. Be2 exd4 13. exd4 Rac8 14. Qd3 Qd6 15. O-O Rfe8 16. h3 Be4 17. Qb5 Bc6 18. Qd3 Be4 19. Qb5 Bc6 20. Qd3 Be4 {½-½ (20) Kacheishvili,G (2598)-Adams,M (2728) Wheeling 2012}) ({RR} 9. Qxc7 Nbd7 10. Qc2 Rc8 11. Qd3 Qh5 12. g3 O-O 13. Bg2 e5 14. Qd1 e4 15. Nd2 Ba6 ({RR} 15... e3 16. Bxb7 exd2+ 17. Bxd2) 16. Nxe4 Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Rfe8 18. Bd3 Nf6 19. Bxa6 Qa5+ 20. Bd2 Qxa6 21. e3 Qb5 22. Rb1 Ne4 23. Qe2 Qb3 {Maiorov,N (2531)-Gedajlovic,M (2324) Vaujany 2017 EXT 2020 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (44)}) 9... Nbd7 10. b4 O-O 11. Bb2 a5 12. Bd3 axb4 13. axb4 Rxa1+ 14. Bxa1 Qa2 15. O-O Nd5 16. Qe1 c5 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. b5 Ra8 19. Qc1 h6 20. h3 Qa3 21. Qd2 Qb4 22. Qc2 Qa4 23. Qb2 f6 24. Rc1 Nb4 25. Be2 Bxf3 26. gxf3 Nd5 27. f4 N7b6 28. Bg4 Kf7 29. Qb1 Qa3 30. Rd1 f5 31. Bf3 Ra4 32. Be5 Qb4 33. Qd3 Ra3 34. Qf1 g6 35. h4 Nc4 $2 (35... Rb3 36. h5 g5 $16) 36. Rxd5 $18 Nxe5 37. Rxe5 Qc3 38. Kg2 1-0

[Event "London Classic 3rd"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2011.12.11"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D58"]
[WhiteElo "2811"]
[BlackElo "2826"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2011.12.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 146"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.01.18"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 b6 8. Be2 Bb7 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. cxd5 exd5 11. b4 c5 12. bxc5 bxc5 13. Rb1 Bc6 14. O-O Nd7 15. Bb5 Qc7 16. Qc2 Rab8 17. Rfc1 ({RR} 17. dxc5 Bxc3 18. Bxc6 Qxc6 19. Qxc3 Qxc5 20. Qxc5 Nxc5 21. Nd4 Rfc8 22. Rfc1 Rxb1 23. Rxb1 Ne6 24. Nf5 Rc2 25. a3 Ra2 26. Ne7+ Kh7 27. Nxd5 Rxa3 28. h4 Ra5 29. e4 f5 30. exf5 Nd4 31. Ne3 Nxf5 {Karpov,A (2693)-Topalov,V (2739) Dubai 2002 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 17. a4 Rfc8 18. Rfc1 Qd6 19. Ne2 c4 20. Nc3 g6 21. h3 h5 22. Rb2 Ba8 23. Rcb1 Nf8 24. a5 Bd8 25. a6 Bf6 26. Qa4 Be7 27. Ne5 f6 28. Nf3 Kg7 29. g3 Bd8 30. Qc2 Ba5 31. Na4 Bb6 {Suleymenov,A (2373)-Grinev,V (2441) Dnipro 2019 1-0 (47)}) 17... Bxb5 $146 ({RR} 17... Rfc8 18. a4 Qd6 19. Qd2 c4 20. Bxc6 Qxc6 21. Qc2 g6 22. Rb5 Rxb5 23. axb5 Qb7 24. Ra1 Nb6 25. h3 Re8 26. Ra6 Re6 27. Qb1 Nc8 28. Rxe6 fxe6 29. Qxg6+ Qg7 30. Qe8+ Qf8 31. Qxe6+ Kg7 32. Nxd5 {Desmarais,C (2187)-Orsher,I (2095) Boston 2000 1-0 (34)}) 18. Nxb5 Qc6 19. Nc3 cxd4 20. Nxd4 Bxd4 21. exd4 Rxb1 22. Nxb1 Qxc2 23. Rxc2 Rb8 24. Nd2 Nf8 25. g3 Ne6 26. Nb3 Rb4 27. Rc6 Ra4 28. Nc5 Rc4 29. Rd6 Nxc5 30. dxc5 Rxc5 31. Ra6 Rc7 32. Rd6 Rc5 33. Ra6 Rc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 74th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2012.01.20"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Navara, David"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2712"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[PlyCount "162"]
[EventDate "2012.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 147"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ponomariov,Ruslan} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 b5 10. Bd3 Bb7 11. Rd1 ({RR} 11. e4 e5 12. h3 Re8 ({RR} 12... exd4 13. Nxd4 Nc5 14. Rd1) 13. Rd1 Qc7 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. Be3 a6 17. a4 Rac8 18. Rac1 Qe7 19. f3 Bb8 20. Qf2 g6 21. Ne2 Nd7 22. f4 ({RR} 22. b3)) 11... b4 ({RR} 11... a6) ({RR} 11... Qe7) ({RR} 11... Qc7) ({RR} 11... Qb8) ({RR} 11... Rc8) 12. Na4 ({RR} 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Nf6 ({RR} 13... f5 14. Bd3 ({RR} 14. Bxc6 Rc8) 14... c5 15. e4 Rc8 ({RR} 15... Qe8 16. Ng5) 16. Qe2 cxd4 17. Bc4 ({RR} 17. exf5 Bxf3 18. Qxf3 Ne5) 17... Bxe4 18. Bxe6+ Kh8 19. Nxd4 Qe7 20. f3 Bc5 21. Bb3 Qe5 22. Be3 Bb7 23. Qd2) 14. Bd3 c5 15. dxc5 Rc8 16. Qe2) ({RR} 12. e4 bxc3 13. e5 cxb2 14. Bxb2 ({RR} 14. Qxb2 Rb8 15. exd6 c5) 14... Be7 15. exf6 Nxf6) 12... c5 13. dxc5 Rc8 14. Qe2 ({RR} 14. Ng5 Bxh2+ ({RR} 14... Kh8) 15. Kxh2 Ng4+ 16. Kg1 Qxg5 17. Bxh7+ Kh8 18. Rxd7 Bc6 19. Rd4 Qh4) ({RR} 14. Bxh7+ Nxh7 15. Rxd6 Bxf3 16. gxf3 Qg5+ 17. Kf1 ({RR} 17. Kh1 Nxc5 18. Nxc5 Rxc5 19. Qe2 Rfc8 20. Bd2 Qh5) 17... Nxc5 18. Nxc5 Rxc5) 14... Nxc5 15. Nxc5 Rxc5 16. e4 ({RR} 16. Bd2 a5 ({RR} 16... Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Rd5 18. Be1 Rxd3 19. Rxd3 Bxh2+ 20. Kxh2 Qxd3 21. Bxb4) ({RR} 16... Qa8 17. e4 ({RR} 17. Bxb4 Bxf3) 17... Rh5 18. Re1 a5) 17. e4 Qb8 ({RR} 17... Rh5 18. h3 Qa8 19. Be3 g6 ({RR} 19... Bxe4 20. Bxe4 Nxe4 21. Ng5) 20. Nd2 Be5 21. f3 Bxb2 22. Rab1 Be5 23. Nc4) 18. h3 Bf4 ({RR} 18... Rd8 19. a3 Rcc8) 19. a3 Bxd2 20. Nxd2 Ba8 ({RR} 20... bxa3 21. Rxa3 Rd8 ({RR} 21... Ba8 22. Nb3 Re5 23. Rxa5) 22. Nb3 Rcc8 23. Rda1 ({RR} 23. Nxa5 Bxe4) 23... Qf4 24. g3 Qe5 25. Nxa5 Bxe4 26. Re1 Rxd3 27. Qxd3 Qxb2 28. Nc4 Bxd3 29. Nxb2 Bb5) ({RR} 20... h6) ({RR} 20... Qf4) 21. Qe3 Rc7 22. a4 Bc6 ({RR} 22... Rd8 23. f3 Rcd7 24. Nc4 Qc7 25. Rac1) 23. Nb3 Qa7 ({RR} 23... Qa8 24. Rdc1 Rfc8 25. Rc5) 24. Qxa7 Rxa7 25. f3 Rd8 ({RR} 25... Rb8 26. Rdc1 Be8 27. Rc5 Nd7) 26. Bb5 Rxd1+ ({RR} 26... Bd7 27. Rd4 Kf8 28. Rad1 Ke7 29. Nc5 e5 30. Rd6 Rc7 31. Nxd7 Nxd7 32. R1d5 f6 33. Kf2) 27. Rxd1 Bxb5 28. axb5 Kf8 29. Nc5 Ra8 ({RR} 29... Rc7 30. b6 Rxc5 31. b7 Rb5 32. Rd8+ Ke7 33. b8=Q Rxb8 34. Rxb8 Kd6 35. Rb5 Nd7 36. Rxa5) 30. b6 Ke7 {Ponomariov,R (2764)-Giri,A (2701) Dortmund 2011 CBM 144 [Ponomariov,Ruslan] 1-0 (34)}) 16... Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Rxd6 $146 ({RR} 18. Qxe4 Bxh2+ 19. Kxh2 Qxd1 20. Qd4 Qxd4 21. Nxd4 e5 22. Nf3 f6 23. Be3 Rc7 24. b3 Rd8 25. Nd2 h5 26. Nc4 Rd5 27. Re1 h4 28. Bc1 e4 29. Re2 a5 30. Bf4 Rc6 31. Ne3 Rb5 32. Nc4 g5 {Vihaan Karthikeya N (1936)-Piyush,K (1795) Gandhinagar IND 2024 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 18. Qxe4 Bxh2+ 19. Kxh2 Qxd1) ({RR} 18. Qxe4 Bxh2+ 19. Kxh2 Qxd1 20. Qd4 Qxd4 21. Nxd4 e5 22. Nf3 f6 23. Be3 Rc7 24. b3 Rd8 25. Nd2 h5 26. Nc4 Rd5 27. Re1 h4 28. Bc1 e4 29. Re2 a5 30. Bf4 Rc6 31. Ne3 Rb5 32. Nc4 g5 {Vihaan Karthikeya N (1936)-Piyush,K (1795) Gandhinagar IND 2024 1-0 (36)}) 18... Bxf3 19. Qd2 Rd5 20. Rxd8 ({RR} 20. Rxd5 Bxd5 21. Qxb4) 20... Rfxd8 21. Qe1 Rd1 22. Bg5 Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 Rd5 24. Be7 Bg4 25. Bxb4 h5 26. Bc3 f6 27. f3 Bf5 28. Re2 e5 29. Rd2 Rc5 30. Kf2 Kf7 31. h4 Be6 32. Rd6 Bc8 33. Rd8 Rc4 34. Kg3 Be6 35. a3 Rc7 36. Ba5 Rc2 37. Ra8 Rxb2 38. Rxa7+ Kg8 39. Bb4 Bc4 40. Rd7 Bf1 41. Rd2 Rb3 42. Kf2 Bd3 43. Ke3 Bb5+ 44. Kf2 Kf7 45. Rd5 Bd3 46. Rd7+ Kg8 47. Rd8+ Kh7 48. Rd7 Bf5 49. Ra7 Kg8 50. Ra8+ Kh7 51. Ra7 Rb2+ 52. Kg1 e4 53. Bf8 Kg8 54. Bxg7 e3 55. Bxf6 Rb1+ 56. Kh2 e2 57. Bc3 e1=Q 58. Bxe1 Rxe1 59. Kg3 Bg6 60. a4 Re2 61. Ra5 Ra2 62. Kf4 Kg7 63. g4 Bf7 64. Ra7 Rc2 65. gxh5 Rc6 66. Kg4 Rf6 67. Rc7 Ra6 68. h6+ Kf6 69. h7 Rxa4+ 70. f4 Ra8 71. f5 Rh8 72. h5 Rxh7 73. Rc6+ Kg7 74. h6+ Kh8 75. Rc8+ Bg8 76. f6 Ra7 77. Re8 Kh7 78. Re7+ Rxe7 79. fxe7 Bf7 80. Kf5 Kxh6 81. e8=B Bxe8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 74th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2012.01.21"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2739"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2012.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 147"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Bg6 (6... Be4) ({and} 6... Bg4 {are also playable, but the move in the text considered as the most solid one.}) 7. Nxg6 hxg6 8. Bd3 {In this position White can play almost every legal move, the choice of Magnus is just one of the options.} (8. Bd2 Nbd7 9. a3 Be7 10. Qc2 O-O 11. Be2 dxc4 12. Bxc4 c5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. O-O Rc8 15. Rfd1 Qc7 16. Rac1 Rfd8 17. Be2 Nce4 18. Be1 Nxc3 19. Qxc3 Rxd1 20. Bxd1 Qxc3 21. Rxc3 Rxc3 22. Bxc3 {/= ½-½ Carlsen,M (2693)-Anand,V (2786)/Dortmund 2007/CBM 119 (39)}) 8... Nbd7 (8... c5 9. Qb3 Qd7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. Qb5 (12. O-O $5 Nc6 (12... Bd6 13. f4 $14) 13. Rd1 $14) 12... Qxb5 13. Nxb5 Kd7 14. O-O Nc6 15. Rd1 Ke7 16. Bd2 Bb4 17. Nc3 Rac8 18. Rac1 Rhd8 19. a3 Bd6 20. Ne2 Ne5 {½-½ Kramnik,V (2744)-Gelfand,B (2724)/Saint Vincent 2005/CBM 110}) 9. O-O Bd6 10. h3 {So far the players have been following their previous exciting encounter from the Tal Memorial.} dxc4 11. Bxc4 O-O {Boris is the first to deviate.} (11... Nb6 12. Bb3 e5 13. Qc2 Qe7 14. Bd2 O-O-O 15. d5 (15. Nb5 {might be an improvement for White trying to eliminate the dangerous bishop.}) 15... e4 $1 16. dxc6 Qe5 17. f4 exf3 18. Rxf3 Ng4 $1 19. cxb7+ Kb8 20. hxg4 Rh1+ 21. Kf2 Rxa1 22. Ne2 $13 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2826)-Gelfand,B (2744)/Moscow 2011/EXT 2012 (38)}) 12. Qc2 Qe7 {In general, the position is very close to equal. In the long term White hopes to benefit from the pair of bishops. Since none of Black's forces have advanced beyond the sixth rank, the second player needs more space. For this purpose he may choose between two main ideas: ..e6-e5 or ...c6-c5 to be carried out at an appropriate moment.} 13. Rd1 Rac8 14. Bd2 (14. e4 $6 {is met by} e5 {and Black gets good play on the dark squares.}) 14... Nb6 15. Bf1 (15. Bb3 c5 (15... e5 $4 16. Qxg6 $18) 16. dxc5 Rxc5 17. Rac1 Rd8 18. Be1 g5 19. Qe2 a6 {Black has a satisfactory position.}) 15... e5 (15... c5 16. dxc5 Rxc5 17. Qb3 {keeping slight, but stable pressure.}) 16. dxe5 Bxe5 (16... Qxe5 {is less accurate.} {After} 17. g3 {later on the queen might get kicked away by f2-f4.}) 17. Rac1 $146 ({RR} 17. a4 Nbd5 18. a5 a6 19. Be1 Rcd8 20. g3 Bc7 21. Qb3 Nxc3 22. Bxc3 Ne4 23. Bb4 Bd6 24. Bxd6 Rxd6 25. Rxd6 Nxd6 26. Qb4 Re8 27. Rd1 Ne4 28. Qxe7 Rxe7 29. Rd8+ Kh7 30. h4 g5 31. Bd3 f5 {Lupulescu,C (2630)-Jones,R (2435) Warsaw 2013 1-0 (40)}) 17... Rcd8 18. Be1 {Now massive exchanges along the d-file will follow. Both sides have no grounds to avoid them, otherwise the opponent will seize the central line for free.} Rxd1 19. Rxd1 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Qxd8 21. g3 (21. Na4 Nxa4 22. Qxa4 a6 (22... Bxb2 23. Qxa7 Qd7 24. Qa8+ Kh7 25. Qa4 Kg8 26. Qb3 Be5 27. a4 $14 {[%cal Gf1c4]}) 23. Be2 Qd7 {Black is slightly worse, but has a solid position.}) 21... Qe7 22. Bg2 Bd6 23. Bd2 Qe6 24. b3 Nbd5 25. Ne2 $1 (25. Nxd5 cxd5 $1 26. Bc3 Ne4 27. Bd4 a6 {Black doesn't have any problems. His pieces are active enough and he covers all the squares on the c-file against White's queen invasion.}) 25... Nb4 26. Qb1 Qf5 $1 27. e4 Qc5 28. Nf4 $6 {I don't think that this is a good provocation.} (28. Be3 Qa5 29. Qd1 Bf8 30. Nc1 (30. a4 Bc5 $11) 30... Nxa2 31. Nxa2 Qxa2 32. e5 Nd5 $1 33. Bxd5 cxd5 34. Qxd5 b6 35. e6 Qb1+ 36. Kg2 Qf5 37. exf7+ Qxf7 $11) 28... g5 $1 {Why not?} 29. Ne2 g4 {This pawn is annoying.} 30. h4 (30. Be3 Qa5 31. Qd1 Bf8 $132) 30... Nd7 $2 {It's logical to transfer the knight to e5, but White can now exploit the moment when Black has two pieces on the d-file. So far Boris has played well, but this mistake ruins all his efforts.} (30... Be5 $1 31. Be3 Qa5 32. Nc1 Qd8 {[%cal Gd8d1]} 33. Ne2 Qa5 {The position is equal. If White pushes too hard, then after} 34. a4 Qd8 35. Bxa7 $6 Qd2 36. Bf1 Nc2 {[%csl Re4] Black seizes the initiative.}) 31. Be3 Qc2 (31... Qa5 32. Qd1 {[%csl Rd6,Rd7] is the point.} Qc7 33. a3 Na6 34. b4 {This position is extremely unpleasant for Black, perhaps just bad. The knight on a6 is misplaced, the g4 is a target and the manoeuvre e2-d4-f5 is in the air.}) 32. Qxc2 Nxc2 33. Bxa7 {It's a free pawn!} Ba3 (33... Bc5 34. Bxc5 Nxc5 {was an interesting practical chance. Black's knights are very active, though after} 35. Nc1 {The extra pawn will tell sooner or later.}) (33... b6 34. e5 $18 {[%csl Rc6]}) 34. Nc3 Bb2 35. Nd1 (35. Na4 $6 {is less accurate:} Bd4 36. Bxd4 Nxd4) 35... Bc1 36. Bf1 Nb4 (36... Ne5 37. Be2 f6 38. Bb8 Nf3+ (38... Nd4 $2 39. Bxe5 Nxe2+ 40. Kf1 fxe5 41. Kxe2 $18) 39. Kg2 Ncd4 40. Bc4+ Kf8 41. Ne3 b5 42. Bd6+ Ke8 43. Bg8 $18) 37. a4 Nf6 38. e5 Nd7 39. Bd4 Nc2 40. Bc3 Nc5 41. Be2 {[%csl Rg4]} Ne4 (41... Nxb3 42. Bxg4 $18) 42. Bxg4 Nxc3 43. Nxc3 Bb2 44. e6 $1 fxe6 45. Bxe6+ Kf8 46. Ne4 {Two extra pawns promise White an easy win.} Nd4 47. Ng5 Ke7 48. Bg8 Kf8 49. Bc4 Ke7 50. Kg2 b5 51. Bg8 Kf8 52. a5 $1 {[%csl Ga5]} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 74th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2012.01.29"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2692"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2012.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 147"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. Nf3 f5 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 d5 5. O-O Bd6 6. c4 c6 7. b3 Qe7 8. Ne5 b6 9. cxd5 cxd5 ({RR} 9... exd5 10. Bb2 O-O 11. Nd3 Bb7 12. Nd2 a5 13. Nf3 Na6 14. a3 Ne4 15. e3 Rac8 16. Qe2 c5 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Nf4 Nc7 19. Rfd1 g5 20. Nd3 c4 21. bxc4 dxc4 22. Nde1 c3 23. Bc1 Ba6 24. Qa2+ {Trippold,D (2152)-Medic,M (2181) Mali Losinj CRO 2023 0-1 (75)}) 10. Nc4 Nc6 11. Nxd6+ Qxd6 12. a4 $146 ({RR} 12. Na3 Ba6 13. Nc2 Kf7 14. Ba3 Qd7 15. Qd2 Rac8 16. Rfc1 Rc7 17. Ne1 Rhc8 18. Nf3 Kg8 19. Bf1 Ne7 20. Ne5 Qd8 21. Qb4 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rxc1 23. Bxc1 Ng6 24. Bg5 Qc7 25. Qa4 Qc8 26. Bxf6 gxf6 {Cramling,P (2530)-Ansner,B Stockholm 1992 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 12. Ba3 Qd7 13. Nc3 Ba6 14. Qd2 Kf7 15. Rac1 Rac8 16. Rc2 Rhd8 17. Rfc1 h6 18. f3 Qe8 19. Nd1 Kg8 20. Nf2 Bb5 21. Bb2 a5 22. a4 Ba6 23. Ba3 Qd7 24. e3 Ne8 25. Nd3 Nd6 26. Bf1 Bxd3 {Thorn,E (2324)-Sagit,R (2407) Uppsala 2016 1-0 (61)}) 12... Qd7 13. Ba3 Kf7 14. Nc3 Ba6 15. f3 Rhe8 16. Qd2 Kg8 17. Rfc1 Rac8 18. Ra2 h6 19. Rac2 Na5 20. Rb1 Rc7 21. Na2 Rxc2 22. Qxc2 Nc6 23. Qd2 e5 24. dxe5 Rxe5 25. Re1 Qe6 26. f4 Rxe2 27. Rxe2 Bxe2 28. Nc3 Bh5 29. Bxd5 Nxd5 30. Qxd5 Qxd5 31. Nxd5 Bf7 32. Ne7+ Nxe7 33. Bxe7 Bxb3 34. a5 bxa5 35. Kf2 a4 36. Ke3 Kf7 37. Ba3 g5 38. h4 Kg6 39. hxg5 hxg5 40. Kd2 Kh5 41. fxg5 Kxg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2012.06.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2012.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 149"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 {The newest trend in the 4.c2 variation.} 7. e3 {The practice of the last years has shown that White risks falling behind in development if he spends a tempo on g5. The game move saves an important tempo, but faces White with the risk of remaining with a passive dark-squared bishop, especially after the exchange of the light-squared bishops.} (7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 Bb7 (10... Qd7 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2711)-Amin,B (2609)/Ningbo 2011/CBM 144/[Marin,M] (1-0, 46)}) 11. f3 Nbd7 {Dreev,A (2697)-L'Ami,E (2623)/Aix-les-Bains 2011/CBM 142/[Marin,M] (1/2, 43)}) (7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 {Golod,V (2590)-Almasi,Z (2720)/Rijeka 2010/CBM 136/[Marin,M] (1/2, 18)}) 7... b6 8. cxd5 {White decides to play against the hanging pawns. His slight delay in development makes this approach rather risky.} (8. Nf3 Ba6 (8... Bb7 {Vitiugov,N (2694)-Karjakin,S (2723)/Khanty Mansiysk 2009/CBM 134/[Marin] (0-1, 47)}) 9. b4 {Grachev,B (2652)-Bartel,M (2618)/Khanty Mansiysk 2009/CBM 134/[Marin] (1/2, 21)}) 8... exd5 ({The dynamic} 8... Qxd5 {is also playable:} 9. f3 (9. Be2 c5 10. Bf3 Ne4 11. Qc2 f5 12. Ne2 cxd4 13. exd4 Nc6 14. Be3 Ba6 $132 {Narciso Dublan,M (2551)-Fedorchuk,S (2650)/Salou 2011/CBM 142 Extra (1/2, 36)}) 9... Ba6 (9... Rd8 $5 {would prevent or at least delay e3-e4.}) 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. e4 Qb7 12. Bg5 Nd7 13. Ne2 $14 {Michiels,B (2501)-Winants,L (2540)/Belgium 2012 (1/2, 60)}) ({A previous game between the same opponents went:} 8... Nxd5 9. Qc2 Ba6 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. e4 Ne7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Qc6 e5 15. Qb5 exd4 16. Qxa6 Qxe4+ 17. Kf1 Rfe8 $44 {Carlsen,M (2823)-Kramnik,V (2791)/Moscow 2011/CBM 144 (1/2, 35)}) 9. Bd3 $146 {White takes measures against the occupation of the e4-square.} (9. Nf3 Ne4 10. Qc2 Bf5 $132 {Vasilevich,T (2399)-Galojan,L (2373)/Plovdiv 2010/CBM 138 Extra (1/2, 36)}) 9... Ba6 $1 {As a general rule, it is the side playing against the hanging pawns who is interested in exchanging these bishops. Here, we have enough elements to justify Black's last move. Strategically, it is always a good idea to spoil the enemy's bishop pair. Dynamically, the white bishop has moved already, which transforms the next move into a loss of time.} (9... Ne4 10. Qc2 Bf5 $6 11. Ne2 $14) 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. Qd3 (11. Nf3 c5 $36) 11... Qc8 12. Ne2 ({With such poor development, White cannot afford to play} 12. b4 c5 {. General exchanges on c5 would leave the light squares desperately weak.}) 12... c5 13. b3 {Taking measures against the threatened ...c5-c4.} cxd4 $5 {This seems to be the best moment to release the tension.} ({After just a few neutral moves, such as} 13... Qb7 14. O-O Rac8 15. Bb2 {Black would face some small problems already.}) 14. Qxd4 $146 {Too ambitious. White wants to play against the Isolani, but underestimates the significance of his delay in development.} (14. Nxd4 $2 {is almost as bad:} Nc5 15. Qb5 (15. Qe2 Nxb3 16. Nxb3 Qc3+ $17) (15. Qb1 Qa6) (15. Qc2 Qa6) 15... a6 16. Qxb6 Rb8 17. Qc6 Nxb3 18. Qxc8 Rfxc8 $32) (14. exd4 $11 {would have led to plain equality.}) ({RR} 14. exd4 Nc7 15. Bf4 Ne6 16. Be5 Ne4 17. h4 Qd7 18. f3 f6 19. Bh2 Nd6 20. h5 Rfe8 21. Kf2 Qb5 22. Rhd1 Qd7 23. a4 Rac8 24. a5 b5 25. Rac1 a6 26. Bxd6 Qxd6 27. Qf5 Rxc1 28. Rxc1 h6 {Nikolov,M (2538)-Bellia,F (2415) Barcelona 2013 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 14. exd4 Nc7 15. O-O Ne6 16. Bd2 Qd7 17. f3 Rac8 18. a4 Rc6 19. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 20. Rxc1 Rc8 21. Ra1 Ne8 22. Nc3 Rc6 23. a5 N8c7 24. f4 g6 25. axb6 axb6 26. Ra7 Ng7 27. Na2 Nge8 28. f5 Qxf5 {Nakamura,H (2802)-Anand,V (2804) Stavanger 2015 ½-½ (45)}) ({RR} 14. exd4 Nc7 15. f3 Ne6 16. Kf2 Qd7 17. a4 Rfc8 18. Bd2 Rc6 19. Rhc1 Rac8 20. Rxc6 Rxc6 21. Rc1 Rxc1 22. Bxc1 h6 23. Qf5 Qc7 24. Bxh6 Qxh2 25. Bf4 Nxf4 26. Qxf4 Qxf4 27. Nxf4 Kf8 28. g4 g5 {Indjic,A (2610)-Kantor,G (2525) Timisoara ROU 2024 ½-½ (56)}) 14... Nc5 {White has problems defending the b3- and d3-squares. Castling becomes a remote dream.} 15. Qd1 (15. Rb1 Qf5 $36) 15... Qa6 16. Nf4 (16. O-O Nxb3 $17) 16... d4 {Strong enough, but maybe a bit premature.} (16... g5 $6 17. Bb2 $132) ({Black could have prepared the central break with:} 16... Rad8 $5 17. b4 (17. Bb2 d4 $1 18. Bxd4 Rxd4 19. Qxd4 Nxb3 20. Qb2 Nxa1 21. Qxa1 Qa5+ 22. Ke2 Qb5+ $40 {[%cal Gf8d8]}) 17... g5 18. bxc5 (18. Bb2 d4) 18... gxf4 $36) 17. b4 {The only chance to stay in the game.} (17. exd4 $2 Rfe8+ 18. Be3 g5 19. Ne2 Nd3+ 20. Kf1 Nd5 $40) 17... dxe3 ({The unexpected resource} 17... Nd5 $5 {would have offered better chances for retaining an attack:} 18. Nxd5 (18. bxc5 Nxf4 19. exf4 Rfe8+ 20. Kd2 bxc5 $19) 18... Nd3+ 19. Kd2 Nxf2 20. Qf1 Ne4+ 21. Ke1 d3 $40) 18. bxc5 Qa5+ 19. Kf1 Rad8 20. Qc2 Qb5+ {Resigning himself to a draw by perpetual.} 21. Ke1 (21. Kg1 $2 Qxc5 $19) 21... Qa5+ 22. Kf1 Qb5+ 23. Ke1 Qa5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2012.06.09"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Morozevich, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E35"]
[WhiteElo "2769"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2012.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 149"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 c5 8. dxc5 g5 9. Bg3 Ne4 10. e3 Qa5 11. Rc1 {A rare continuation, which recently became popular.} (11. Nge2 {or}) (11. Be5 {is usually played.}) 11... Nd7 $6 {This leads to an endgame, clearly better for White. More appropriate alternatives:} (11... Bf5 12. Bxb8 $1 (12. Bd3 Nd7 13. f3 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 Bxc5 $13) 12... Rxb8 13. Bd3 O-O 14. Nge2 Rfc8 15. O-O Rxc5 16. f3 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 Ba3 19. Rb1 Qa4 20. Nd4 Rcc8 21. f4 $1 $40 {1-0 Gupta,A (2644)-Yu Yangyi (2626)/Zaozhuang CHN 2012/The Week in Chess 915 (73)}) (11... Nc6 $5 12. Bd3 $1 Bxc3+ (12... Nxg3 13. hxg3 d4 14. exd4 Nxd4 15. Qd2 Be6 16. a3 Bxc5 17. b4 Qxa3 18. bxc5 O-O-O 19. Nb1 Qa4 $44 {0-1 Tozer,R (2380)-Lalic,S (2405)/London 1997/CBM 058 ext (33)}) 13. bxc3 Nxc5 14. Nf3 b6 15. h4 g4 16. Ne5 Nxe5 17. Bxe5 Nxd3+ 18. Qxd3 Ba6 19. Qf5 Rg8 $13 {1/2 Lomineishvili,M (2437)-Zaiatz,E (2364)/St Petersburg 2009/CBM 129 Extra (48)}) ({There is also nothing wrong with} 11... Qxa2 {, e.g.} 12. Bb5+ Bd7 13. Bxd7+ Nxd7 14. Nge2 Nxc3 15. Nxc3 Qc4 16. Rd1 (16. h4 O-O-O) 16... Nxc5 17. f3 Bxc3+ 18. bxc3 Ne6 19. Kf2 Rc8 20. Be5 Rg8 $13 {1/2 Finegold,B (2563)-Perelshteyn,E (2522)/Chicago 2006/EXT 2007 (46)}) ({RR} 11... Nc6 12. Bd3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 d4 14. exd4 Nxd4 15. Qd2 Bxc5 16. Nf3 Nxf3+ 17. gxf3 Be6 18. O-O O-O-O 19. Qe2 Kb8 20. Qe5+ Ka8 21. Nb5 Bd6 22. Qe3 Rhe8 23. Nxd6 Rxd6 24. Bc4 Qb6 25. Bxe6 Qxe3 26. fxe3 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Aronian,L (2759) Saint Louis 2022 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 11... Qxa2 12. Bb5+ Bd7 13. Bxd7+ Nxd7 14. Nge2 Nxc3 15. Nxc3 Qc4 16. Bd6 O-O-O 17. b3 Qa6 18. Qe2 Bxc3+ 19. Rxc3 Qa1+ 20. Kd2 Qxh1 21. c6 Nf6 22. Be5 Ne4+ 23. Kc2 Nd6 24. Qg4+ f5 25. Qa4 Qxg2 26. cxb7+ {Lupor,A (2263)-Atoyan,A (2120) Bamberg GER 2024 1-0 (31)}) 12. Nge2 Ndxc5 $146 (12... Qxa2 13. Kd1 {1/2 Priborsky,J (2344)-Gordon,S (2508)/Liverpool 2008/CBM 126 Extra} Nxc3+ 14. Nxc3 Bxc3 15. Qxc3 O-O 16. h4 $16) ({RR} 12... Qxa2 13. Kd1 {½-½ (13) Priborsky,J (2344)-Gordon,S (2508) Liverpool 2008}) 13. a3 Bxc3+ 14. Nxc3 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16. Rxc3 Ne4 17. Rc7 $16 {[%csl Gc7,Rd5]} Nxg3 (17... O-O 18. Be2 $16 (18. Be5 $143 f6 19. Bd4 Rf7)) 18. hxg3 Rb8 19. Bb5+ Kf8 20. Kd2 (20. f4 $5 {may be more energetic.}) 20... Kg7 21. Rhc1 Rd8 $6 {This move is rather senseless.} (21... Be6 $142 {[%cal Yg7f6,Yf6e5,Ye5d6]} 22. Re7 Kf6 23. Rcc7 a6 24. Be2 b5 {Of course, Black's position remains very bad.}) 22. Re7 Kf6 23. Rcc7 Rf8 24. b4 $6 {There was no need to move queenside pawns at the moment.} (24. Be2 $142 $1 {[%cal Ye2f3,Yf3d5,Re2h5]} g4 25. Bd1 {winning the d5-pawn.}) 24... a6 25. Bd3 a5 26. bxa5 ({Why not} 26. b5 {? There was no reason to break the well-known rule that pawn exchanges are favourable for the defender.}) 26... Ra8 27. Bb5 Rxa5 28. a4 Ra8 29. Kc3 h5 $1 {Trying to create at least some counterplay.} 30. Kb4 h4 31. Re8 $2 {[%mdl 16384] A strange decision letting Black's pieces out.} (31. Kc5 hxg3 32. fxg3 $16 {although Black now obtains some counterplay by means of} Be6 33. Rxb7 Ke5) 31... Rxe8 32. Bxe8 {[%mdl 4096]} Be6 33. Bb5 d4 $5 (33... hxg3 34. fxg3 Rb8 {[%cal Yf6f5,Yf5e4,Yf5g4] was possible, too.}) 34. gxh4 gxh4 35. exd4 Bd5 36. f3 Rg8 {Black's position is straightening up like a spring.} 37. Rc2 (37. Bf1 $142 {The rook should remain active. However, White can hardly convert his extra pawn in that case, too.}) 37... Ke7 38. a5 Kd6 39. Bc4 Bxc4 40. Rxc4 $2 (40. Kxc4 Rg5 $1 {must lead to a draw but White has nothing better in any case} ({GM A.Morozevich fancied under time pressure that the pawn ending after} 40... Rc8+ $6 41. Kd3 Rxc2 $6 42. Kxc2 Kc6 {was dangerous for him due to Black's outside passed b-pawn; that was not the case; on the contrary,} 43. Kd3 Kb5 44. Ke4 Kxa5 45. Kd5 $1 {gave him winning chances})) 40... Rxg2 41. Rc5 h3 42. Rh5 h2 {[%csl Gh2] Black is simply better in this rook endgame; fortunately for White, the limited number of pawns enables him to hold his ground.} 43. Kc4 Rc2+ 44. Kd3 Ra2 45. Ke4 f5+ 46. Kf4 Kd5 47. Rxf5+ Kxd4 48. Rh5 Rg2 49. Rh7 Kd3 50. Ke5 Ke2 51. f4 Kf1 (51... Kf3 $144) 52. f5 Ra2 53. f6 Rxa5+ 54. Ke6 Ra6+ 55. Ke7 Rxf6 56. Kxf6 Kg1 57. Ke5 h1=Q 58. Rxh1+ Kxh1 59. Kd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2012.06.10"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2012.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 149"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Qa4+ Nd7 8. Nf3 O-O 9. Be3 (9. Bg5 {was the original idea of the Janjghava system but it doesn't force} h6 {. Therefore White prefers a simpler way of development.}) 9... c5 10. Rc1 (10. Rd1 Qc7 11. Bd3 b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Rfe1 a6 14. Qa3 e6 15. Qb2 b5 16. a4 Nf6 17. Bg5 bxa4 18. Qa3 h6 19. Bd2 cxd4 20. cxd4 Bc6 21. Rc1 Qb7 22. Rb1 Bb5 23. Ne5 Rfd8 {1/2 Schandorff,L (2534)-Khalifman,A (2622)/Fuegen 2006/CBM 115}) (10. Be2 Nf6 (10... Qc7 $5) (10... e5 $5) 11. Bd3 (11. Nd2 Ng4 12. Bxg4 Bxg4 13. f3 Bd7 14. Qb3 cxd4 15. cxd4 b5 $15 {1-0 Korobov,A (2511)-Obodchuk,A (2438)/Moscow 2002/CBM 088/[Krasenkow] (39)}) 11... a6 12. O-O Qc7 $11 {[%cal Yb7b5]}) 10... Nb6 (10... Nf6 11. Bd3 Ng4 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 cxd4 14. cxd4 Ne5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. d5 Qd6 17. Bg3 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Bd7 19. Qd4 $14 {1-0 Tunik,G (2435)-Gutman,L (2535)/Moscow 1989/TD (45)}) (10... b6 11. Be2 Bb7 12. e5 Qc7 13. h4 Bd5 14. h5 c4 15. Qc2 Qc6 16. Qd2 f6 17. hxg6 hxg6 18. Bh6 $36 {0-1 Gurevich,M (2644)-L'Ami,E (2516)/Belgium 2005/EXT 2006 (44)}) (10... e6 {is unnecessary but also possible:} 11. Be2 a6 12. Qa3 b6 13. Qb3 cxd4 14. cxd4 Bb7 15. Bg5 Bf6 16. Bh6 Bg7 17. Bg5 Qb8 18. Qe3 Rc8 19. O-O Qd6 $11 {1-0 Lenic,L (2637)-Gabrielian,A (2554)/Plovdiv BUL 2012/The Week in Chess 907 (40)}) (10... a6 $5 11. Qa3 (11. Be2 b5 $1) 11... b6 12. e5 Bb7 13. h4 b5 14. h5 e6 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Ng5 Rc8 17. f4 cxd4 18. cxd4 Rxc1+ 19. Bxc1 {1-0 Twardon,M (2355)-Jasnikowski,Z (2460)/Katowice 1993/EXT 1998 (21)} Re8 $13) (10... cxd4 11. cxd4 Nb6 12. Qa5 (12. Qb4 Qd6 13. Qxd6 exd6 14. Bd3 f5 15. O-O fxe4 16. Bxe4 d5 $11 {1/2 Karner,H (2365)-Rytshagov,M (2425)/Tallinn 1989/EXT 1997 (26)}) 12... f5 13. e5 Be6 14. Be2 Qd5 15. Qb4 Qxa2 16. Qxe7 Rfc8 $13 {0-1 Pisulinski,J (2400)-Malisauskas,V (2500)/Warsaw 1989/EXT 1997 (23)}) (10... Qc7 {The main move, quite sufficient for equality.} 11. Be2 (11. Bd3 a6 (11... b6 12. e5 Bb7 13. h4 Rad8 14. Bb1 Bc6 15. Qc2 {1-0 Twardon,M (2340)-Murawski,G (2260)/Lubniewice 1994/CBM 045 ext (48)} b5 16. h5 Nb6 $13) 12. Qa3 c4 13. Bb1 e5 14. O-O b5 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. f4 Bd6 18. Qb2 Bb7 19. Qf2 Rae8 20. e5 Ba3 21. Rce1 f6 $132 {1-0 Comas Fabrego,L (2435)-Fernandez Garcia,J (2445)/Spain 1993/TD (32)}) 11... a6 (11... e5 12. O-O b6 13. Rfd1 Bb7 14. d5 a6 15. Qb3 Nf6 16. Nd2 Bc8 17. a4 $14 {0-1 Ortiz Suarez,I (2556)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2711)/Khanty-Mansiysk 2011/CBM 145 (59)}) 12. O-O b5 13. Qa3 Bb7 14. d5 Rac8 15. c4 b4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qc2 a5 18. Qd2 e5 19. Ne1 Qd6 20. a3 f5 21. f3 Nd7 $13 {1-0 Litinskaya,M (2370)-Veroci,Z (2320)/Subotica 1991/TD (34)}) 11. Qd1 Bg4 (11... Qc7 {is less logical now:} 12. Bd3 Rd8 13. h3 e5 14. O-O Be6 15. Qe2 $14 {[%csl Rb6] 1/2 Hughes,T (2161)-Dragicevic,D (2302)/Gaziantep 2008/CBM 125 Extra (24)}) 12. Be2 Bxf3 13. gxf3 cxd4 {The simplest course. Black opens up the c-file and trades all the rooks along it, reaching full equality.} 14. cxd4 Qd7 15. O-O Rac8 16. Qd2 Rfd8 17. Rfd1 Rxc1 18. Qxc1 Rc8 19. Qa3 Na4 $146 20. Bf1 b5 21. Rc1 Rxc1 22. Qxc1 Bxd4 23. Bxb5 Bxe3 24. Bxd7 Bxc1 25. Bxa4 Bf4 26. h3 Be5 27. Kg2 Bf4 28. Kg1 Be5 29. Kg2 Bf4 30. Kg1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 7th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2012.06.16"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E08"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "86"]
[EventDate "2012.06.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 149"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.07.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. Qc2 c6 8. O-O b6 9. Bf4 Bb7 10. Rd1 Nbd7 11. Nc3 dxc4 12. Nd2 Nd5 13. Nxc4 Nxf4 14. gxf4 {The structure is reminiscent of the Cambridge Springs Queen's Gambit, with one important difference: the white kingside structure has been spoiled. This will increase the danger of a perpetual check, but also face White with certain dangers in the endgame, when the h2-pawn may become a target for the king.} Qc7 15. e3 Rad8 16. Rd2 $5 {"Almost" a novelty, played only once before. White prepares to keep the tension on d5 after the inevitable pawn break ...c5.} (16. Rac1 c5 17. d5 exd5 18. Nxd5 ({If} 18. Bxd5 Nf6 {White cannot maintain his outpost, as in Grischuk,A (2771)-Kramnik,V (2791)/Moscow (blitz) 2010 (1/2, 44)}) 18... Bxd5 19. Rxd5 b5 $132 {Drenchev,P (2499)-Mastrovasilis,D (2631)/Skopje 2012/CBM 147 Extra (1/2, 25)}) 16... Nf6 ({The idea behind White's previous move is revealed after} 16... c5 17. d5 exd5 18. Bxd5 Nf6 19. Rad1 {, although it is far from clear whether this offers an advantage:} Nxd5 20. Nxd5 Bxd5 21. Rxd5 Rxd5 22. Rxd5 Rd8 23. Qd3 Rxd5 24. Qxd5 Qd8 25. Qb7 Qd1+ {1/2 Berkes,F (2693)-Wojtaszek,R (2721)/Paks 2011/CBM 143}) 17. Rad1 c5 18. d5 exd5 19. Nxd5 Nxd5 $146 ({RR} 19... Bxd5 20. Bxd5 Rxd5 21. Rxd5 Nxd5 22. Rxd5 Rd8 23. Qd3 Rxd5 24. Qxd5 g6 25. a4 Kg7 26. b3 Bf6 27. Kf1 Qe7 28. Ke2 Kf8 29. h3 Qc7 30. Nd2 Kg7 31. Ne4 Qe7 32. Ng5 Bxg5 33. fxg5 h6 34. h4 {Matlakov,M (2700)-Shimanov,A (2650) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013 ½-½ (40)}) 20. Bxd5 g6 21. Ne5 Bxd5 22. Rxd5 Rxd5 23. Rxd5 Rd8 24. Qc4 Rxd5 25. Qxd5 Bf6 26. Nd7 Kg7 27. b3 Bc3 28. a4 {White has some domination, but, as mentioned above, the weakness of the white kingside offers Black a clear plan for counterplay.} Qd8 29. Qd6 Bf6 30. Kf1 Qe7 31. Qd5 Bc3 32. Ke2 Qh4 33. Kd3 Ba1 34. Ne5 Bxe5 35. Qxe5+ Kh6 36. Qc7 Qxf2 37. Qxf7 Qf1+ 38. Ke4 Qb1+ 39. Kf3 Qh1+ 40. Kg3 Qg1+ 41. Kf3 Qh1+ 42. Kg3 Qg1+ 43. Kf3 Qh1+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.07.24"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wang, Hao"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2739"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. Nf3 b6 6. e4 c5 $6 {A second-rate move.} (6... d5 {and}) (6... Bb7 {are more common continuations.}) 7. e5 (7. dxc5 Bxc5 (7... Bxc3+ $5 8. bxc3 e5) 8. e5 Ng4 9. Qe4 $6 {leads to big complications, quite satisfactory for Black:} (9. Bd3 $142 Nc6 $1 $13) 9... Nxf2 10. Qxa8 Nc6 11. Rg1 Qe7 {[%cal Rc8a6]} 12. Bg5 f6 13. exf6 gxf6 14. Bh4 Ng4 15. h3 {0-1 Toth,B (2405)-Olafsson,H (2370)/Thessaloniki 1984/EXT 1997 (36)} Bxg1 16. hxg4 Be3 $17) (7. a3 {is not dangerous either:} Bxc3+ $1 (7... cxd4 8. axb4 dxc3 9. e5 $36) (7... Ba5 8. e5) 8. bxc3 Bb7 9. Bd3 d5 10. cxd5 exd5 11. e5 Ne4 {, and Black is more or less OK}) ({RR} 7. Bd3 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Nc6 9. Nxc6 dxc6 10. e5 Ng4 11. Bf4 Qd4 12. Bg3 Nxe5 13. Bxh7+ Kh8 14. Rd1 Qc5 15. O-O Nxc4 16. Ne4 Ne3 17. Qb3 Qa5 18. Qxe3 Kxh7 19. a3 Be7 20. Bd6 Bxd6 21. Rxd6 Qf5 {Sarana,A (2685)-Vaibhav,S (2588) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 7. d5 exd5 8. exd5 Re8+ 9. Be2 Ba6 10. Be3 d6 11. Rd1 Nbd7 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 h6 14. h3 Nf8 15. Bd3 g5 16. Rde1 Kg7 17. Nd2 Ng6 18. a4 Re7 19. Nf3 Qd7 20. Bd2 Rae8 21. Rxe7 Rxe7 {Sinha,S (2299)-Mandiza,F (2380) New York USA 2024 ½-½}) 7... Ne8 (7... cxd4 8. a3 $1 (8. Nxd4 Ne8 9. Bd3 (9. Qe4 Nc6 10. Nxc6 dxc6 11. Bd3 f5 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Qe2 e5 $132 {1/2 Kouatly,B (2460)-Miralles,G (2365)/Montpellier 1985/EXT 1999 (35)}) 9... f5 10. exf6 Nxf6 11. Bg5 (11. O-O Bb7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bh4 Nc6 14. Nxc6 Bxc6 15. Rad1 Rc8 {1/2 Brglez,R (2285)-Horvath,S (2320)/Austria 1995/EXT 1998 (25)} 16. a3 Be7 17. Bg3 $14 {/=}) 11... h6 12. Bh4 Bb7 13. O-O-O {1-0 Gausel,E (2490)-Bern,I (2360)/Gausdal 1995/EXT 1998 (62)} Qc8 14. Kb1 $14) 8... Bxc3+ $142 (8... dxc3 9. axb4 cxb2 (9... Ne8 10. Qxc3 (10. Bd3 $1) 10... f6 11. Be2 Bb7 12. O-O fxe5 13. Nxe5 d6 14. Nf3 Qf6 15. Qxf6 gxf6 16. Nd4 $16 Nc7 17. Bh6 Re8 18. Ra3 Kh8 19. Rfa1 Rg8 20. f3 a6 21. b5 a5 22. b4 axb4 23. Rxa8 Bxa8 24. Ra7 Rc8 25. Bg7+ Kg8 26. Bxf6 Kf7 27. Bg5 e5 28. Nf5 {1-0 Erdos,V (2597)-Bruedigam,M (2317)/Deizisau 2011/CBM 141 Extra}) 10. Bxb2 Ne8 11. Bd3 f5 12. exf6 Nxf6 13. Ng5 (13. b5 $5 {[%csl Ra8,Rb8]} Bb7 14. Ng5) 13... h6 14. Nh7 Nc6 $1 (14... Nxh7 15. Bxh7+ Kh8 16. Bxg7+ $1 Kxg7 17. Qg6+ Kh8 18. Qxh6 Rf6 19. Bg6+ Kg8 20. Ra3 $18) 15. Nxf8 Nxb4 16. Qd2 Qxf8 17. O-O Bb7 18. Ba3 a5 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. Rxa8 Qxa8 21. f3 $16 {1-0 Sakalauskas,V (2437)-Sulskis,S (2570)/Vilnius 2004/CBM 100 ext (62)}) 9. bxc3 Ne8 10. Bd3 (10. cxd4 $5 Bb7 11. Be2 $14) 10... h6 11. Bh7+ (11. a4 $5) 11... Kh8 12. Be4 Nc6 13. cxd4 Bb7 14. Be3 d6 $132 {1/2 Corke,A (2216)-Pokorna,R (2338)/Rijeka 2006/CBM 111 ext (58)}) 8. d5 (8. Bg5 f6 9. exf6 Nxf6 10. dxc5 {1-0 Tomaszewski,R (2405)-Szymczak,Z (2335)/Gdynia 1985/EXT 2001 (41)} Bxc3+ $1 11. bxc3 Bb7 12. Bd3 h6 $44) (8. Bd3 {may be the most accurate:} f5 (8... h6 $5) 9. Bg5 (9. exf6 Nxf6 10. O-O cxd4 11. Ne4 h6 12. Nxd4 Na6 13. a3 Be7 14. b4 Bb7 15. Bb2 Nc7 16. Rfe1 $14 {1/2 Panno,O (2485)-Galliamova,A (2400)/Aruba 1992/CBM 033 (49)}) (9. d5 $5) 9... Qc7 10. d5 d6 11. O-O-O (11. O-O $142 $16) 11... Bxc3 (11... dxe5 $142 12. Nb5 Qb7 13. Nxe5 a6 14. Nc3 b5) 12. Qxc3 exd5 13. cxd5 $16 {1-0 Vera Gonzalez Quevedo,R (2535)-Aleksic,N (2445)/Porto San Giorgio 1998/EXT 2000 (23)}) 8... exd5 $146 ({RR} 8... d6 9. Bg5 f6 10. exf6 Nxf6 11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bd3 h6 13. Bh4 Nc6 14. O-O-O Bxc3 15. Qxc3 Qc8 16. Rhe1 d5 17. Bxf6 Rxf6 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Kb1 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Nd4 21. Be4 Rb8 22. Qc4+ Kh8 23. Re3 {Easton,J (2175)-Gago Padreny,I (2289) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (48)}) ({RR} 8... d6 9. Bg5 f6 10. exf6 Nxf6 11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Bd3 h6 13. Bh4 Nc6 14. O-O-O Bxc3 15. Qxc3 Qc8 16. Rhe1 d5 17. Bxf6 Rxf6 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Kb1 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Nd4 21. Be4 Rb8 22. Qc4+ Kh8 23. Re3 {Easton,J (2175)-Gago Padreny,I (2289) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (48)}) 9. cxd5 d6 10. Bg5 (10. Bd3 $5 dxe5 11. Bxh7+ Kh8 12. Bd3 Nd6 13. O-O $14 {[%csl Rh8]}) 10... f6 11. exf6 Nxf6 12. O-O-O $5 (12. Be2 $14 {[%cal Ye1g1]}) 12... Bxc3 13. bxc3 Bg4 {Black has survived the most difficult times and obtained a decent position. However, he now once again plays inaccurately.} (13... Na6 $142 {[%cal Ya6c7] to cover the e6-square.}) 14. Re1 Bxf3 (14... Nbd7 15. Nh4 $1 Bh5 16. Nf5 Bg6 17. Ne7+ Qxe7 18. Rxe7 Bxc2 19. Kxc2 Rae8 20. Re6 $1 Ne4 21. Be3 $14) 15. gxf3 Nbd7 16. Bd3 h6 17. Bf4 c4 $1 {Black correctly looks for queenside counterplay but has he got enough time?} 18. Bf5 Nc5 (18... Nxd5 19. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 20. Rhg1+ Kh8 21. Qd2 Qh4 22. Qxd5 $16 Qf4+ $140 23. Kb2 Qxf5 24. Re6 Qf4 25. Qd4+ $1 $18) 19. Rhg1 {[%mdl 128]} Kh8 20. Rg6 Rf7 21. Reg1 $6 (21. Bxh6 gxh6 22. Rxh6+ Nh7 23. Rxh7+ Rxh7 24. Bxh7 Qf6 {, and Black consolidates his position.}) (21. Qd2 $142 $1 Qf8 $1 22. Qd4 $16 (22. Bxh6 $143 Nd3+ 23. Bxd3 cxd3)) 21... Qf8 22. Be3 Nxd5 $2 {Greediness is punished! Black could have successfully defended by means of} (22... Nh5 $1 23. Be4 (23. Be6 Rf6) 23... Nf4 (23... Nd7 $5)) 23. Bd4 (23. Bxc5 dxc5 (23... Rxf5 24. Bd4) 24. Be6 {, winning an exchange, was also possible, e.g.} Nf4 25. Bxf7 Qxf7 26. Rxg7 Nd3+ 27. Kb1 Qxg7 28. Rxg7 Kxg7 29. Qa4 $1 {, and Black's fortress can hardly be held.}) 23... Nf6 24. Qd2 Re8 25. Rxg7 Qxg7 26. Rxg7 Kxg7 27. Qf4 Nd3+ 28. Bxd3 cxd3 29. Kd2 Kg6 30. Kxd3 Re6 31. h4 Rfe7 $2 {[%mdl 8192]} (31... Rh7 $1 {was the only way to avoid further material losses although White should win in the long run.}) 32. h5+ $1 Kf7 33. Qf5 {[%cal Rf5g6]} Re5 34. Qg6+ Ke6 35. f4 {The capitulation was a bit premature. Black probably didn't see the only defence} (35. f4 Rd7 $8 (35... Rf5 $2 36. Bxf6 Rxf6 37. f5+ Ke5 38. f4+) {although his position after} 36. fxe5 (36. Qxh6 $5 Rf5 37. Qg6 Rxf4 38. h6) 36... dxe5 37. Qxh6 exd4 38. cxd4 Rd5 39. Qe3+ Kf7 40. h6 {is surely lost.}) 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.07.26"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2713"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Bb4+ 3. Bd2 Bxd2+ 4. Qxd2 d5 5. Nc3 Nf6 6. Nf3 O-O 7. e3 Qe7 8. Rc1 Rd8 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Bb5 Rd6 12. Bxc6 Rxc6 13. Ne5 Re6 14. f3 b6 15. O-O Bb7 $146 ({RR} 15... Ba6 16. Rfe1 Re8 17. a3 c5 18. b4 cxd4 19. exd4 Bc4 20. f4 Qd6 21. Re3 Ba6 22. Rce1 R6e7 23. f5 h6 24. Qf2 Ne4 25. Nxe4 dxe4 26. Rg3 f6 27. Rg6 h5 28. Kh1 Qd5 29. Qg3 Rf8 30. Rh6 {Zakhartsov,V (2547)-Artemiev,V (2701) Sochi RUS 2023 0-1 (40)}) ({RR} 15... Ba6 16. Rfe1 Re8 17. a3 c5 18. b4 cxd4 19. exd4 Bc4 20. f4 Qd6 21. Re3 Ba6 22. Rce1 R6e7 23. f5 h6 24. Qf2 Ne4 25. Nxe4 dxe4 26. Rg3 f6 27. Rg6 h5 28. Kh1 Qd5 29. Qg3 Rf8 30. Rh6 {Zakhartsov,V (2547)-Artemiev,V (2701) Sochi RUS 2023 0-1 (40)}) 16. Rfe1 h6 17. Ne2 c5 18. Nf4 Rd6 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Ned3 c4 21. Nb4 Rad8 22. Nc2 Nd7 23. Nd4 Ne5 24. Rc3 Ra6 25. b3 Rb6 26. Rd1 Re8 27. Nc2 Qf6 28. Ne1 a5 29. Qd4 Rb5 30. Nh5 Qg5 31. Ng3 Nc6 32. Qf4 Qxf4 33. exf4 Nb4 34. bxc4 dxc4 35. Rxc4 Nxa2 36. Ne4 Bd5 37. Rc5 Rxc5 38. Nxc5 Nc3 39. Ra1 a4 40. Ned3 Bb3 41. Ra3 Nb5 42. Ra1 Nd4 43. Nb2 a3 44. Nbd3 Ra8 45. Nxb3 Nxb3 46. Ra2 Rd8 47. Ne1 Rd1 48. Kf2 Ra1 49. Rxa1 Nxa1 50. Ke2 a2 51. Kd3 Nb3 52. Nc2 f5 53. Kc3 Nc1 54. Kd2 Nb3+ 55. Kc3 Nc1 56. Kd2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.07.28"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D91"]
[WhiteElo "2778"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bg5 Ne4 6. Bf4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 c6 {A rare, rather passive continuation but in the hands of GM Magnus Carlsen it becomes quite playable!} (7... c5 {and}) (7... O-O {are usually played}) ({RR} 7... c5) ({RR} 7... O-O) 8. e3 O-O 9. cxd5 $6 {This move, giving the c6-square back to Black's knight, is rather harmless. Practice has seen other options posing more problems to Black:} (9. Bd3 $5 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nd7 11. O-O Nb6 12. Bb3 Nd5 13. Ne5 Nxf4 14. exf4 Qd6 15. Re1 e6 16. Qf3 Re8 17. h4 $1 $40 {1-0 Spassky,B-Byvshev,V/Leningrad 1955/EXT 1999 (30)}) (9. Be2 dxc4 (9... Qa5 10. Qb3 Nd7 11. O-O e5 ({RR} 11... Re8 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. c4 dxc4 14. Bxc4 e6 15. Rac1 Nb6 16. Bb5 Bd7 17. Bxd7 Nxd7 18. Qxb7 e5 19. Qxd7 exf4 20. exf4 Red8 21. Qb7 Qxa2 22. Rc7 Qd5 23. Rb1 Bxd4) 12. Bg3 dxc4 13. Bxc4 e4 14. Nd2 b5 15. Be2 Nf6 16. a4 $16 {1-0 Malaniuk,V (2615)-Markowski,D (2305)/Koszalin 1997/CBM 059 ext (28)}) (9... Nd7 10. O-O Nb6 11. c5 Nd7 12. c4 dxc4 13. Bxc4 b5 14. Be2 a5 15. Rc1 Nf6 16. Ne5 Bb7 17. Bf3 Nd5 18. Bg3 $14 {1-0 Movsziszian,K (2525)-Kuehn,P (2230)/Hamburg 1994/EXT 1997 (35)}) ({RR} 9... Qa5 10. Qb3 Nd7 11. O-O e5 12. Bg3 dxc4 13. Bxc4 e4 14. Nd2 b5 15. Be2 Nf6 16. a4) ({RR} 9... Nd7 10. O-O Nb6 11. c5 Nd7 12. c4 dxc4 13. Bxc4 b5 14. Be2 a5 15. Rc1 Nf6 16. Ne5 Bb7 17. Bf3 Nd5 18. Bg3) 10. Bxc4 {- 9.d3}) (9. h3 $5 Qa5 10. Qb3 Nd7 11. a4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 b5 13. Bd3 Nb6 14. O-O Nxa4 15. c4 a6 16. Rfc1 Ra7 17. Ne5 Bxe5 18. Bxe5 Qd8 19. Qc2 Bd7 20. h4 $40 {1-0 Gabriel,C (2555)-Gauglitz,G (2400)/Germany 1998/GER-chT (27)}) ({RR} 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Be2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nd7 12. Bg5 b5 13. Be2 Re8 14. O-O Nb6 15. e4 Be6 16. Qc2 c5 17. d5 Bg4 18. Bd2 e6 19. Rab1 c4 20. dxe6 Rxe6 21. Nd4 Bxe2 22. Nxe2 a6 23. Nd4 Ree8 {Keymer,V (2696)-Carlsen,M (2859) Wijk aan Zee NED 2023 0-1 (65)}) ({RR} 9. Qb3 b6 10. Bd3 ({RR} 10. Qa3 Be6 11. Ng5 Qd7 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. Rd1 c5 14. Bg3 Qc6 15. Qb3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Nd7 17. cxd5 exd5 18. Bb5 Qe6 19. O-O Nf6 20. Rc1 Rac8 21. Qa4 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Ne4 23. Bd7 Qf7 24. Rc6 Kh8) ({RR} 10. Be2 Bb7 11. h4 h6 12. O-O Nd7 13. a4 dxc4 14. Bxc4 c5 15. Be2 Qc8 16. a5 e6 17. Rfd1 Ba6 18. Bxa6 Qxa6 19. axb6 Qxb6 20. Qa4 Qb7 21. Rdb1 Qc8 22. Qb5 Rd8 23. Qb7 cxd4 24. cxd4 a5) ({RR} 10. a4 Bg4 11. Be2 dxc4 12. Qxc4 Be6 13. Qd3 c5 14. O-O Nc6 15. Rfd1 Bb3 16. Rdb1 Na5 17. Nd2 Bd5 18. Bg3 Rc8 19. Rc1 Qd7 20. h4 Rfd8 21. h5 Be6 22. Bf3 Bg4 23. Qe2 Bxf3 24. Nxf3 Nb3) 10... Ba6 11. h4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Bxc4 13. Qxc4 Qd5 14. Qb3 Nd7 15. h5 Rfc8 16. h6 Bh8 17. O-O b5 18. Qc2 c5 19. e4 Qc4 20. Nd2 Qe2 21. Qb3 cxd4 22. cxd4 Bxd4 23. Rab1 Qg4 {Maikenov,B (1927)-Zabeib,M (2014) Astana KAZ 2025 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 9. Bd3 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nd7 11. O-O Nb6 12. Bb3 Nd5 13. Ne5 Nxf4 14. exf4 Qd6 15. Re1 e6 16. Qf3 Re8 17. h4) ({RR} 9. Be2 dxc4) ({RR} 9. h3 Qa5 10. Qb3 Nd7 11. a4 dxc4 12. Bxc4 b5 13. Bd3 Nb6 14. O-O Nxa4 15. c4 a6 16. Rfc1 Ra7 17. Ne5 Bxe5 18. Bxe5 Qd8 19. Qc2 Bd7 20. h4) 9... cxd5 10. c4 (10. Bd3 {is safer.}) ({RR} 10. Bd3) 10... Nc6 11. c5 $146 ({RR} 11. cxd5 Qxd5 12. Be2 Qa5+ 13. Qd2 Qxd2+ 14. Nxd2 Bd7 15. O-O e5 16. dxe5 Nxe5 17. Rac1 Bc6 18. Nc4 Nxc4 19. Bxc4 Rfd8 20. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 h6 22. h3 g5 23. Bg3 Bf6 24. Rd6 Kg7 25. f3 Rd8 {Estoyanoff,G-Nakle,G (1774) Punta del Este 2014 0-1 (41)}) 11... Bg4 (11... f6 $5 {[%cal Ye7e5] , and Black can even fight for the initiative.}) ({RR} 11... f6) 12. Be2 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 e5 {A classic equalising plan. The position quickly simplifies.} 14. dxe5 Bxe5 15. Bxe5 Nxe5 16. O-O Nxf3+ 17. Qxf3 Rc8 18. Rac1 Qd7 19. Rfd1 Rfd8 20. Qe2 Rc6 21. Qb2 Rdc8 22. Qa3 b6 23. cxb6 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 25. Qxc1 axb6 26. Qb2 Qc6 27. h3 h5 28. a4 Qxa4 29. Qxb6 Qa1+ 30. Kh2 Qe5+ 31. Kg1 Qa1+ 32. Kh2 Qe5+ 33. Kg1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.07.30"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Wang, Hao"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2739"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 Bb7 6. Bg2 Bb4+ 7. Bd2 c5 8. O-O O-O 9. Bc3 Na6 10. a3 (10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. e3 Be7 12. Nbd2 Nc5 13. Rc1 Qc7 14. Qe2 Rac8 15. Rfd1 Rfd8 16. Be5 d6 17. Bb2 a6 18. Nd4 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Qb7+ 20. f3 d5 $11 {1-0 Ponomariov,R (2705)-Grischuk,A (2715)/Moscow 2007/EXT 2008 (33)}) (10. Bb2 {is played more often, e.g.} cxd4 11. Qxd4 (11. a3 Be7 12. b4 Rc8 13. Qxd4 Nb8 14. Nbd2 d6 15. Rfd1 Nbd7 16. Rac1 Rc7 17. Ne1 Qa8 18. e4 Rfc8 19. Nd3 a6 20. Qe3 h6 21. h3 b5 $132 {1/2 Pankratov,A (2530)-Olofson,D (2515)/ICCF 2002/ICCF Telechess CBM 112 (43)}) (11. Nxd4 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Qc7 13. Nf3 Be7 14. Nc3 Nc5 15. Qd4 Qb7 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Rac1 Rac8 18. Kg1 d6 19. Qe3 a6 20. Nd4 Bf8 $11 {1/2 Aronian,L (2808)-Carlsen,M (2815)/Monte Carlo 2011/CBM 142 (37)}) 11... Be7 (11... Bc5 $5 12. Qf4 d5) 12. Nc3 Nc5 13. Rfd1 d6 14. Rac1 a6 15. Qe3 Qc7 16. b4 Ncd7 $132 {0-1 Olafsson,H (2535)-Hjartarson,J (2595)/Vestmannaeyjar 1994/EXT 1997 (65)}) 10... Bxc3 11. Nxc3 cxd4 12. Nxd4 (12. Qxd4 Nc5 13. Nd2 Bxg2 14. Kxg2 d5 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Rfd1 Re8 17. Rac1 Qd7 18. b4 Ne6 19. Qd3 d4 $132 {1-0 Neverov,V (2535)-Kiselev,S (2470)/Pardubice 1993/TD (48)}) 12... Bxg2 13. Kxg2 Nc5 $146 14. Rc1 Qc7 15. b4 Nb7 16. Ncb5 Qb8 17. Qd3 Rc8 18. Rfd1 h6 19. f3 a6 20. Nc3 Nd6 21. Nb1 Nde8 22. Nd2 Qb7 23. c5 {Black's position is very solid and can resist such attempts to break it up.} (23. N2b3 d6 {leads to a normal hedgehog.}) 23... bxc5 $6 (23... a5 $5 {, immediately opening up the a-file and activating the rook, may be more accurate.}) 24. bxc5 Qa7 (24... Rab8 $142) 25. N2b3 {[%csl Rd4] The wrong arrangement of the knights!} (25. N4b3 $142 $1 a5 26. a4 Nd5 27. Nc4 $1 {, and Black faces some problems}) 25... Nd5 26. c6 dxc6 $6 {Obvious but not good. Black had a chance to trade his passive rook:} (26... Rxc6 $1 27. Rxc6 (27. Nxc6 Ne3+ 28. Kg1 (28. Kh1 Nxd1 {[%cal Rd1f2]}) 28... dxc6 {regaining material with a good position}) 27... dxc6 28. Nxc6 Ne3+ 29. Kg1 Qb6 30. Rc1 Nf5+ {with sufficient counterplay.}) 27. e4 {Of course, after this pawn sacrifice White will have compensation due to his more active pieces but it is not enough for any advantage.} (27. Nxc6 Ne3+ 28. Kh1 Nxd1 29. Nxa7 Rxc1 $1 30. Kg2 Rc3 31. Qxd1 Rxa7 32. Qd8 Rxb3 33. Qxe8+ Kh7 $15) (27. Na5 $142 {setting up the knight on c6 and creating a kind of domination:} c5 (27... Ne7 28. Naxc6 Nxc6 29. Nxc6 $14 {[%csl Gc6]}) 28. Ndc6 c4 (28... Qb6 29. e4) 29. Rxc4 Ne3+ 30. Kg1 Rd8 $1 31. Qxd8 Nxd1+ 32. Qd4 $1 Qxd4+ 33. Rxd4 Nc3 34. Kf2 $14) {However, Black's inaccurate play enables White to create a similar domination later on.} 27... Ne7 28. Nc5 Nf6 29. Ndb3 Ng6 30. Qc3 Nf8 (30... a5 $142 31. a4 Qc7) 31. Na5 Rab8 32. a4 Kh8 33. Rb1 $6 {Why exchange Black's crumpled pieces?!} (33. Rd6 $1 $36) 33... Rb6 34. Rxb6 Qxb6 35. Nab7 (35. Nab3 $5 Rb8 36. Rd6) 35... Rb8 36. Nd6 Kg8 37. Rd2 a5 38. Nd3 N8d7 39. Nc4 Qa6 40. Rc2 (40. Nxa5 Ra8 41. Nxc6 Qxa4) 40... c5 41. Rb2 Rb7 42. Rxb7 Qxb7 43. Qb2 Qa6 44. Qb5 Qxb5 45. axb5 {[%mdl 4096]} a4 {The exchanges have been favourable for Black, who must now reach a draw without problems.} 46. Ndb2 $2 {[%mdl 8192] White loses his sense of danger and misses a strong tactical blow!} ({A logical outcome of the game could be something like} 46. b6 a3 47. Nc1 (47. Nxa3 Nxb6 48. Nxc5 $11) 47... Kf8 48. b7 Ke7 49. e5 Nd5 50. Nxa3 Nb4 51. Nb5 Nc6 52. f4 Kd8 53. Kf3 Nd4+ 54. Nxd4 cxd4 55. Ke4 Kc7 56. Kxd4 Kxb7 $11) 46... Nb6 $1 47. Kf2 (47. Nxb6 $2 {is impossible due to} a3 {, and Black's pawn queens, which means that Black now blockades White's passed pawn and keeps his strong extra pawn.}) 47... Nfd7 48. Ke3 Kf8 49. f4 f5 50. exf5 exf5 51. Kd3 Ke7 52. Na3 Nf6 $1 53. Nbc4 Nxc4 54. Nxc4 Ne4 55. Ne5 $6 {Totally upset, White doesn't offer serious resistance.} (55. Kc2 Nd6 $1 56. b6 Kd7 57. Na5 {, setting up a barrier, was much more stubborn.}) 55... Kd8 56. g4 fxg4 57. Nxg4 Nd6 58. b6 Kc8 59. Ne3 Kb7 60. Nd5 Kc6 0-1

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.07.31"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bologan, Viktor"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A59"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2732"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 {After Adams and Topalov stopped playing the Benko almost a decade ago, the gambit went into a decline and became a very rare guest at the higher level. Therefore Bologan using it in Biel no less than 3 times came as a surprise. Although it brought the out-of-form Moldavian GM only grief, the positions were perhaps not so clear as the results indicate.} 7. e4 ({Another important line is} 7. g3 d6 8. Nf3 Bg7 9. Bg2 O-O 10. Rb1 {and now:} Nbd7 (10... Bc8 11. Nd2 $5 Bf5 12. e4 Bc8 $6 (12... Bg4 13. Qc2 Na6 14. a3 Qc8 15. Nc4 Rb8 16. Na5 Bd7 17. O-O c4 18. Nc6 Bxc6 19. dxc6 e6 20. Rd1 Ng4 21. Bg5 Qc7 {Happel,H (2254)-Kohler,A (2298)/Amsterdam/2002/} 22. a4 $5 $36 {[%cal Rc3b5]}) {was an unusual novelty, but White quickly returned the pawn for a powerful initiative after} 13. O-O Ba6 14. Re1 Nfd7 15. Nf3 Bc4 16. Bf4 $1 Nb6 17. e5 Bxa2 18. Ra1 Bxd5 19. Nxd5 Rxa1 20. Nxe7+ Qxe7 21. Qxa1 d5 22. e6 $1 fxe6 23. Bh3 e5 24. Nxe5 Qf6 25. Qa7 $18 {,Wang,H (2739)-Bologan,V (2732)/Biel/2012/}) 11. O-O Qa5 {is the more customary choice:} 12. Bd2 (12. Qc2 Nb6 13. Rd1 Nfd7 14. Bd2 Nc4 15. Be1 Rfb8 16. Qc1 Nde5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. h3 Bc8 19. b3 c4 20. f4 Nd7 21. Qe3 cxb3 22. axb3 Qd8 23. Na4 Nf6 24. Bf2 Bf5 25. Rbc1 Rb4 26. g4 Bd7 27. Rc6 Rab8 28. Rd3 {Korobov,A (2660)-Caruana,F (2736)/Moscow/2012/} h5 $5 $13) 12... Bb7 (12... Rfb8 13. Qc2 {Kramnik,V (2807)-Topalov,V (2743)/Wijk aan Zee/2003/ This game seriously affected the popularity of the whole Benko Gambit. See the more detailed notes in CBM 93}) 13. Qc2 Qa7 $5 14. e4 Ba6 15. Rfd1 Ng4 16. Be1 Rfb8 17. b3 Nge5 18. Nxe5 Nxe5 19. h3 $6 (19. a4 $1 $13 {/}) 19... c4 $36 20. b4 Nd3 21. a3 $6 (21. b5 $142 $132) 21... Bc8 22. Ra1 Bd7 23. Ra2 Qd4 24. Ne2 Nxe1 25. Nxd4 $2 (25. Rxe1 Qd3 $36) 25... Nxc2 26. Nxc2 Ba4 $19 {[%cal Ra4b3] Le Quang,L (2693)-Bologan,V (2732)/Astana blitz/2012/}) 7... Bxf1 8. Kxf1 d6 9. Nf3 Bg7 10. g3 O-O 11. Kg2 Nbd7 12. Qe2 {A rare idea, which Carlsen connects with the plan of building an outpost on b5. It also stops the a6, a8, e6 plan, which Black employed after the more usual moves.} ({These are} 12. Re1) ({or} 12. h3 {The two continuations occurred in an absolute majority of the games which feature our position. As White mostly plays both moves in quick succession, the lines often transpose into each other.}) 12... Qb6 ({The typical Benko move is} 12... Qa5 {, but perhaps it's not ideal:} 13. Bd2 $5 (13. a4 Rfb8 {prevents b5 for the time being...} 14. Bd2 $6 (14. Ra3 $142 $5) 14... Rxb2 $1 15. Nd1 Rxd2 16. Nxd2 Nxe4 (16... Nxd5 $5 $36) 17. Nc4 Qb4 18. Ndb2 $2 (18. Rc1 $13) 18... Nc3 19. Qxe7 Ne5 $1 20. Qxd6 Nxc4 21. Qc6 Ne3+ 22. fxe3 Qe4+ 23. Kh3 Qf5+ 24. Kg2 Rb8 $19 {Ramirez,A (2559)-Leon Hoyos,M (2579)/Vancouver/2012/}) (13. e5 dxe5 14. Nxe5 Nxe5 15. Qxe5 Ra7 (15... Rfd8 $1 $44 {[%cal Rf6d5] shows up White's 13th move as rather premature.}) 16. Rd1 Rd8 17. Qe2 Rad7 18. Qf3 c4 19. Be3 Nxd5 20. Nxd5 Rxd5 21. Rxd5 (21. Bb6 $1 $14) 21... Qxd5 22. Qxd5 Rxd5 23. Rc1 Bxb2 24. Rxc4 Ba3 25. Rc3 Ra5 $11 {Carlsen,M (2837)-Andreikin,D (2700)/Astana blitz/2012/}) (13. Bf4 Ng4 14. Nd2 Nge5 15. Bxe5 (15. Be3 Rfb8 16. f4 $2 Ng4 17. Qxg4 Rxb2 18. Ne2 Rxd2 19. Bxd2 Qxd2 20. Rad1 Qc2 $17 {Gerusel,M-Pedersen,K/Grossenbrode 1971/}) 15... Bxe5 $5 (15... Nxe5 16. f4 Nd7 17. Nc4 $14) 16. Nc4 Qa6 17. Nxe5 Qxe2 18. Nxe2 Nxe5 19. b3 Rfb8 (19... Ra3 $44) 20. Rhc1 Nd3 $6 21. Rc3 Nb4 22. a3 Ra7 23. Kf1 Rba8 24. a4 Rb8 25. f3 Rab7 26. Ke1 $14 {Yarmonov,I (2324)-Matijasevic,I (2104)/Split/2012/ The Ukrainian IM Yarmonov often plays the 12.e2 line.}) 13... Rab8 (13... Qb4 14. Rab1 Rfb8 15. Rhc1 Ng4 16. b3 Qa3 17. Ne1 $1 Ngf6 18. Nc2 Qa6 19. Qxa6 Rxa6 20. f3 Ne8 21. a4 Nc7 22. Na3 Ne5 23. Ncb5 Nxb5 24. Nxb5 $16 {Yarmonov,I (2277)-Cocogne,L (1965)/Turin/2006/ In this game White achieved his strategic ideal.}) 14. b3 Qa8 15. Rac1 $14 e6 $6 16. dxe6 fxe6 17. Bf4 Rb6 18. Rhd1 d5 19. Ne5 Ra6 20. a4 Nxe4 21. Nxe4 Bxe5 22. Bxe5 Nxe5 23. Nxc5 d4+ 24. Qe4 $18 {Horvath,C (2505)-Gibicar,D (2085)/Vienna/2012/}) (12... Ng4 $5 13. Nd2 Ngf6 14. Nc4 Nb6 15. a4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 Qa5 17. Bd2 (17. Nb5 Rfb8 {[%cal Rb8b5] } 18. Ra3 Qb4 $1 $132) 17... Rfb8 18. Ra2 Nd7 19. Qe2 Qa6 20. Qxa6 Rxa6 21. Rb1 Rb4 (21... c4 $5 $44 {[%cal Yd7c5]}) 22. b3 c4 23. Rab2 (23. bxc4 $142 Rxc4 24. Rb7 $14) 23... cxb3 $2 (23... h5 24. bxc4 Rxc4 $11) 24. Rxb3 Rxb3 25. Rxb3 Kf8 26. Rb4 $14 {Yarmonov,I (2340)-Tocklin,T (1885)/Bialystok/2010/}) (12... Qc7 13. Bf4 Rfb8 14. Rab1 Rb6 15. Rhc1 Qb7 16. Rc2 e6 (16... Nh5 17. Bd2 Bxc3 18. Bxc3 Rxa2 $132) 17. Rd1 (17. dxe6 fxe6 18. Bxd6 $5 Rxd6 19. e5 $14) 17... exd5 18. exd5 Re8 19. Qd2 Ne4 20. Nxe4 Rxe4 21. b3 Nf6 22. Qd3 Qe7 23. Bg5 h6 24. Bxf6 Bxf6 25. Rc4 $14 {Yarmonov,I (2340)-Matijasevic,I (2101)/Bialystok/2010/}) 13. a4 $5 (13. h3 e6 $5 14. Rd1 exd5 15. exd5 Rfe8 16. Qb5 (16. Qd3 $142 $14 {/}) 16... Qa7 17. Qc6 $2 Rac8 18. Qxd6 Nh5 19. g4 Ne5 $1 {[%csl Rd6][%cal Rc8d8]} 20. gxh5 Nxf3 $2 (20... Rcd8 $17) 21. Qg3 Nd4 22. Bf4 Qb7 23. Rab1 Rcd8 24. Kh2 $14 {Tregubov,P (2545)-Barkhagen,J (2400)/Gausdal/1994/}) (13. Re1 Rfb8 14. e5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 dxe5 16. Qxe5 Rb7 17. Qe2 Ne8 18. Bd2 Nd6 19. b3 Qa6 $1 20. Rac1 Qxe2 21. Rxe2 c4 $44 {½,Sosonko,G (2525)-Topalov,V (2670)/Polanica Zdroj/1995/}) (13. Rd1 Qa6 $5 {A typical Benko motif - the queen swap limits White's attacking potential without reducing Black's queenside chances.} (13... Rfb8 14. Rb1 Ne8 15. Bd2 Qa6 $5 16. Qe3 Nc7 17. b3 Rb7 18. Qg5 Bf6 19. Qh6 Nb5 20. Nxb5 Qxb5 21. a4 Qd3 22. Qe3 Qxe3 (22... Qc2 $5) 23. Bxe3 Rab8 24. Nd2 Bc3 $132 {Muse,D (2230)-Boehle,L/Bundesliga/1991/}) 14. Qc2 (14. Qxa6 Rxa6 15. Nd2 Rb8 16. a3 Nb6 17. Ra2 Ng4 18. Ne2 f5 $1 19. h3 Ne5 20. Nf4 Na4 21. exf5 gxf5 22. Re1 c4 23. Nf1 Bh6 $1 $15 {Ivanov,I (2515)-Alburt,L (2570)/Hastings/1983/}) 14... Ng4 15. h3 Nge5 16. Nxe5 Nxe5 17. b3 (17. Be3 Nc4 18. Rac1 Rfb8 19. b3 Na3 20. Qd2 c4 21. Qe2 h6 22. bxc4 Nxc4 23. Rc2 Na3 24. Qxa6 Rxa6 25. Rcc1 Rb4 $11 {Gerusel,M (2425)-Giorgadze,T (2535)/Dortmund/1979/}) 17... Rab8 18. Rb1 Rfc8 19. Be3 Qa5 (19... Rb4 $5 $44 {[%cal Yc5c4]}) 20. Ne2 Qb4 $6 21. Bd2 Qb5 22. Bc3 $36 {Kristiansen,E (2220)-Finnlaugsson,G (2072)/Reykjavik/2011/}) 13... Rfb8 (13... Ng4 $6 14. Nd2 Ngf6 15. Nc4 Qb4 16. Bd2 Nb6 17. Nxb6 Qxb6 18. Nb5 e6 19. Bc3 exd5 20. exd5 Rfe8 21. Qf3 Nd7 22. Rhe1 Ne5 23. Bxe5 (23. Qd1 $5 $16) 23... Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Bxe5 25. Qe2 $14 {Thorfinnsson,B (2421)-Rodriguez Guerrero,E (2454)/England/2012/}) 14. Nb5 ({In the last round we saw} 14. Bd2 Ne8 (14... Qb3 15. Rhb1 $14 e6 $2 16. Ra3 Qb7 17. dxe6 fxe6 18. Bf4 Qc6 19. Rd1 e5 20. Qc4+ Kh8 21. Ng5 $18 {Bhat,V (2549)-Tirard,H (2451)/Metz/2010/}) 15. Rhb1 Nc7 16. Nd1 $146 (16. Ra3 Qa6 17. Qd1 Ne5 $5 (17... Nb6 18. b3 $14) 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Qc2 Rb6 20. Nd1 Rab8 21. Bc3 Bxc3 22. Rxc3 (22. Nxc3 $142 Qa5 23. b3 Rb4 $44) 22... Rb4 23. b3 Qb7 24. Rb2 f5 25. f3 fxe4 26. fxe4 e6 $36 {½,Elsness,F (2499)-Byklum,B (2251)/NOR-chT/2012/}) 16... Qa6 17. Qxa6 Rxa6 18. a5 f5 19. exf5 Nxd5 (19... gxf5 $142 20. Nh4 (20. Ne3 f4 21. gxf4 Nf6 $13) 20... f4 $5 21. Bxf4 Nxd5 22. Bd2 e6 $14 {/}) 20. fxg6 hxg6 21. Ra4 Nb4 22. Ne3 Rb5 23. b3 e6 24. Bxb4 Rxb4 25. Rxb4 cxb4 26. Rc1 $1 $14 {,Nakamura,H (2778)-Bologan,V (2732)/Biel/2012/}) 14... Ne8 15. Bg5 $146 ({The developing text move seems more to the point than} 15. Nd2 Qa6 16. Ra3 Nc7 17. Re1 Nxb5 18. axb5 Qb7 (18... Qb6 $5 {} 19. Nb1 Ra5 20. Rxa5 Qxa5 21. Na3 Qb4 $44) 19. Nb1 $1 $14 Rxa3 20. Nxa3 Nb6 21. Rd1 Re8 22. f3 Qa8 23. Qc2 Bd4 24. Rd3 e6 $6 25. dxe6 fxe6 26. Be3 $16 {Aliavdin,N (2382)-Licznerski,L (2269)/Lazy/2012/}) ({RR} 15. Nd2 Qa6 16. Ra3 Nc7 17. Nc3 Qxe2 18. Nxe2 Bxb2 19. Ra2 Bg7 20. a5 Rb5 21. Re1 Raxa5 22. Rxa5 Rxa5 23. Nf4 Ra4 24. Nf3 Nb5 25. Bd2 Na3 26. h4 h6 27. Rc1 Rxe4 28. Be3 Rc4 29. Rd1 Rc2 {Melkumyan,H (2663)-Xiong,J (2709) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (44)}) ({RR} 15. Ra3 Nc7 16. Nxc7 Qxc7 17. b3 Rb7 18. Qc2 Nb8 19. Nd2 Na6 20. Nc4 Nb4 21. Qe2 Rab8 22. Bb2 Bxb2 23. Qxb2 Qd7 24. Qe2 e6 25. dxe6 Qxe6 26. Raa1 Nc6 27. Rhd1 Nd4 28. Rxd4 cxd4 29. Nd2 d5 {Bluebaum,M (2660)-Kopylov,M (2333) Munich GER 2025 0-1 (69)}) 15... Qd8 (15... h6 $6 16. Bxe7 Rb7 (16... f6 $2 17. Nh4 Kf7 18. Nxg6 $1 Kxg6 19. Qg4+ $18) 17. Nd2 Ne5 18. f4 Rxe7 19. fxe5 Bxe5 20. Nc4 Qd8 21. Rhf1 Nc7 22. Nxc7 Qxc7 23. a5 Rae8 24. a6 Bg7 25. a7 Ra8 26. Ra6 $16 {Shaw,P (2168)-Ledger,S (2089)/GBR-ch North Shields/2012/ Curiously enough, this game was played on the same day!}) (15... Kf8 16. Qc2 {[%cal Yf3d2,Yd2c4]} Nc7 17. Nxc7 Qxc7 18. Rab1 $14 {[%cal Yb2b3,Yg5d2,Yd2c3]}) 16. Ra3 $146 (16. Ra2 h6 (16... Nc7 $5 {} 17. Bxe7 Qxe7 18. Nxc7 Ra5 {[%cal Rb8b7]} 19. Rha1 Nf6 20. Nb5 Qxe4 $13) 17. Bd2 Nc7 18. Nxc7 (18. Rha1 Nxb5 19. axb5 Rxa2 20. Rxa2 Qb6 21. Bc3 Nf6 22. Nd2 Nd7 $5 $132) 18... Qxc7 19. Rb1 Rb3 $44) ({RR} 16. Ra2 Nc7 17. Nc3 Na6 18. h4 h6 19. Bc1 c4 20. Nd2 Nb4 21. Ra1 Nc2 22. Ra2 Nb4 23. Ra1 Nc2 24. Ra2 Nb4 25. Ra1 {½-½ (25) Li,Y (2175)-Lomasov,S (2350) Moscow 2016}) 16... Nb6 {Black ignores play on the b-file and starts a more complex plan of undermining White's centre.} ({However, this backfires in the end, so} 16... h6 17. Bf4 Nc7 18. Rha1 (18. Nc3 $5) 18... Ra5 $14 {[%cal Gb8b2] / possibly promises better counterchances.}) 17. b3 (17. a5 $5 Nd7 18. Rha1 $14) 17... Qd7 18. Ra2 (18. Rd1 Nxd5 $5 19. exd5 Rxb5 20. Qxe7 Qxe7 21. Bxe7 Rb7 $44) 18... f6 {Bologan follows his idea.} (18... h6 19. Bc1 Nc7 {now favours White after} 20. Nxc7 Qxc7 21. Bb2 $36) 19. Bc1 f5 20. exf5 (20. Re1 fxe4 (20... Rb7 $5) 21. Qxe4 Nf6 22. Qxe7 Qxe7 23. Rxe7 Nbxd5 {[%cal Rd5e7,Rb8b5]} 24. Ree2 Nb4 $14 {/}) 20... gxf5 (20... Qxf5 21. Rd1 {also doesn't solve Black's problems:} Nf6 (21... Nxd5 22. Qc4 Rxb5 (22... e6 23. g4 Qf6 24. Ng5 Rxb5 25. Qxb5 Nf4+ (25... Nc3 26. Qb7 Nc7 27. Qxc7 Nxa2 28. Be3 $18) 26. Kg3 Nc7 27. Qc4 $16) 23. axb5 Rxa2 24. Rxd5 Qf7 (24... Qc2 25. Qxc2 Rxc2 26. b6 Nf6 27. Bg5 $1 Nd7 $8 28. Bxe7 Nxb6 29. Rxd6 $18 {[%csl Rb6]}) 25. b6 e6 26. Rd3 $16 {[%cal Rb3b4,Yf3g5]}) (21... Bf6 22. h3 $16 {[%cal Yg3g4,Yc1b2] } Nxd5 23. Qc4 Rxb5 (23... e6 24. g4 Qb1 25. Re2 $18) 24. axb5 Rxa2 25. Rxd5 Qe6 26. b6 $40) 22. Qxe7 (22. Nc7 $5 $36) 22... Nfxd5 23. Qe1 $16 {[%csl Rd6]}) 21. Rd1 Nf6 22. Qe6+ Qxe6 23. dxe6 $16 {[%csl Ge6,Re7,Rf5] Although Black's pieces are active, he can't effectively attack the advanced e6-pawn and this in connection with the weakness on f5 (both pawn and square) and consequently e7 give White a sizeable advantage.} Ne4 (23... f4 24. Bxf4 Nbd5 {[%cal Rb8b5]} 25. Rc2 Nxf4+ 26. gxf4 Nh5 27. Rc4 Rf8 28. Nc7 $16) 24. Nh4 $1 {[%mdl 64] In the following short skirmish the tactics work in White's favour.} c4 ({The passive} 24... Rf8 25. a5 $1 {[%csl Ga5]} Ra6 {gives White a pleasant choice:} 26. Ra3 (26. Be3 Nc3 27. Nxc3 Bxc3 28. Bh6 Bg7 29. Bg5 Bf6 30. Bxf6 Rxf6 31. axb6 Rxa2 32. b7 Rf8 33. Nxf5 $18) 26... Na8 27. Ra4 {[%cal Rg3g4]} Nc3 28. Nxc3 Bxc3 29. Rd3 Bd4 30. Rf3 $18) 25. bxc4 Nxc4 {[%cal Rb8b5]} 26. Nc7 $1 Nc3 $8 (26... Ra7 27. Nd5 $18 {[%cal Rh4f5]}) (26... Ra5 27. Nd5 Rxd5 (27... Rb7 28. Nxf5 $18 (28. Rc2 $5)) 28. Rxd5 Nc3 29. Rc2 Nxd5 30. Rxc4 $18 {[%csl Ga4][%cal Rh4f5]}) 27. Nxa8 Nxa2 (27... Rxa8 28. Rc2 Nxd1 29. Rxc4 $18) (27... Nxd1 28. Nc7 Nc3 29. Rc2 Rc8 30. Na6 Nxa4 (30... Ra8 31. Nb4 Rxa4 32. Nc6 $18) 31. Nxf5 $16) 28. Nc7 Nc3 ({A more testing move was} 28... Rb1 29. Nxf5 Bf8 (29... Rxc1 30. Rxc1 Nxc1 31. Nxe7+ Kf8 (31... Kh8 32. Ng6+) 32. Ned5 $18) (29... Nxc1 30. Nxe7+ Kh8 31. Ng6+ hxg6 32. e7 Rb8 33. Rxc1 $18) 30. Nd5 Rxc1 31. Rd4 $16 Ne5 32. a5 Rc5 33. a6 Ra5 34. Nfxe7+ Bxe7 35. Nxe7+ Kf8 36. Nd5 $40 {[%csl Ga6,Ge6]}) 29. Rd3 Rc8 (29... Rf8 30. Bg5 $18) 30. Nb5 (30. Nd5 $5 Nxd5 31. Rxd5 Nb6 32. Rb5 Nxa4 33. Bg5 $18) 30... Nxb5 (30... Nxa4 31. Nxf5 Bf6 32. g4 $16 {/+-}) 31. axb5 Rc5 (31... Ne5 32. Rd1 Bf6 (32... Rc5 33. Bg5 $18 {[%csl Re7]}) 33. Nxf5 (33. Bh6 $5 {[%csl Rg8]}) 33... Rc5 34. b6 Rb5 35. Ne3 $5 Rxb6 36. Nd5 $18) 32. Rb3 $18 {Black has managed to save the f5-pawn for the time being, but now he can't cope with the passed b-pawn.} Na5 33. Rb1 Bd4 (33... Bf6 34. b6 Nb7 35. Bh6 {[%cal Yb1b3,Yb3f3]} Bxh4 36. Ra1 $1 Ra5 37. Rxa5 Nxa5 38. gxh4 $18 {[%csl Rg8][%cal Yg2b5]}) 34. b6 Nb7 35. Rb4 Bxf2 (35... Bf6 36. Bh6 Bxh4 37. Ra4 $18 {and White wins as in the previous note.}) (35... Be5 36. Be3 $18) 36. Kxf2 Rc2+ 37. Kf3 Rxc1 38. Nxf5 Rf1+ (38... Kf8 39. Ra4 Rc8 40. Rf4 $18) 39. Kg4 Nc5 (39... Re1 40. Rc4 Rxe6 41. Rc7 $18) 40. b7 (40. b7 h5+ 41. Kg5 Nxe6+ 42. Kh6 $18) 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 45th"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2012.08.01"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2012.07.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 150"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Qc2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 Bxd2+ 7. Nbxd2 d5 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O Nbd7 10. Ne5 ({RR} 10. b3 c5 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. Rfd1 Qe7 13. Ne5 Rac8 14. Qb2 Bb7 15. cxd5 Bxd5 16. Bxd5 Nxd5 17. Ndf3 Rfd8 18. Nd3 Nxd3 19. Rxd3 Nb4 20. Rxd8+ Qxd8 21. Rc1 Rxc1+ 22. Qxc1 Nxa2 23. Qa1 Nb4 24. Qxa7 h6 {Golubovic,E (2183)-Bashirov,K (2320) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (55)}) 10... c5 $146 ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. Nxd7 Qxd7 12. c5 bxc5 13. Qxc5 Ba6 14. Rfe1 Rab8 15. b3 Rb5 16. Qa3 Bb7 17. Rac1 Ne4 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Rc5 Rxc5 20. Qxc5 Bd5 21. e3 c6 22. Rc1 Rb8 23. Bf1 Rb6 24. h4 g6 25. Rc2 {De Francesco,K (2246)-Feher,A (2367) Austria 2013 ½-½}) ({RR} 10... Bb7 11. f4 c5 12. e3 Qe7 13. h3 Rac8 14. Qd1 Rfd8 15. g4 cxd4 16. exd4 Nxe5 17. fxe5 Ne4 18. cxd5 Nxd2 19. d6 Qg5 20. Bxb7 Nxf1 21. Bxc8 Ne3 22. Qd2 Qf4 23. Qf2 Qxd4 24. Re1 Nc2 25. Qxd4 {Nguyen,V (1852)-Ton,N (1946) Bac Giang 2016 0-1 (53)}) 11. Nxd7 Qxd7 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. dxc5 Rac8 14. Nb3 bxc5 15. Rfd1 c4 16. Nd4 c3 17. Nf5 Qb5 18. bxc3 Rxc3 19. Ne7+ Kh8 20. Qd2 Qxe2 21. Nxd5 Qxd2 22. Rxd2 exd5 23. Bxd5 g6 24. Bb3 Bc4 25. Rd7 Bxb3 26. axb3 Rxb3 27. Raxa7 Kg7 28. Kg2 h5 29. h4 Rb6 30. Rd3 Rf6 31. Rf3 Rxf3 32. Kxf3 Rb8 33. Ra3 Kf6 34. Ra6+ Kg7 35. Ra3 Kf6 36. Ra6+ Kg7 37. Ra3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 5th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2012.09.26"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2843"]
[BlackElo "2778"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2012.09.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 151"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 d5 6. Bg2 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne5 c5 9. dxc5 ({RR} 9. Nb3 Bb7 10. dxc5 bxc5 11. Bg5 ({RR} 11. cxd5 Bxd5 12. Bf4 Qb6 13. Qc2 Bxg2 ({RR} 13... Na6 14. e4 Nb4 15. Qe2 Bb7 16. Nc4 Qb5 17. Nba5 ({RR} 17. a4 Qa6 18. Nba5 Bc6 19. Be5 Rad8 20. Bc3 Ba8 21. Rfd1 Ne8 22. b3 Nd6 23. Rac1 Nxc4 24. Nxc4 Nc6 25. Qb2 f6 26. Rxd8) 17... Ba6 18. a3 Qxa5 19. axb4 Qb5 ({RR} 19... Bxc4 20. Qxc4 Qxb4 21. Qxb4 cxb4 22. Rfd1) 20. Rfc1 cxb4 21. Qe1) 14. Kxg2 Nc6 15. Nxc6 Qxc6+ 16. Kg1 Nd5 17. Na5 Qa6 18. Nc4 Nxf4 19. gxf4 Rad8) 11... Na6 ({RR} 11... Qc7 12. cxd5 Rd8 ({RR} 12... Qxe5 13. d6 Bxg2 14. dxe7 Re8 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Kxg2 Qxe7 17. Qc2) 13. Bf4 Nxd5 14. Nxf7 Nxf4 15. Nxd8 Bxg2 16. Nxe6 Nxe6 17. Kxg2 Qc6+ 18. Kg1 a5) 12. Qd2 Rc8 13. Rac1 Qc7 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Ng4 Be7 16. cxd5 exd5 17. Qa5 ({RR} 17. Bxd5 Rfd8 18. e4 Nb4 19. Ne3 Ba6 20. Rfd1 Nxa2) 17... Qd7 ({RR} 17... Qb6) 18. Ne3 d4 ({RR} 18... c4 19. Nd4 Bg5) 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 20. Nf5 Rfe8 21. Nxe7+ Rxe7 22. Nxc5 Nxc5 23. Rxc5 h6 {Nakamura,H (2769)-Karjakin,S (2780) Wijk aan Zee 2013 CBM 153 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (50)} ({RR} 23... Rce8 24. Rc2 ({RR} 24. Qb5 Qxb5 25. Rxb5 Rxe2 26. Rd1 Re1+ 27. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 28. Kg2 Kf8) 24... h6 25. Qd2 ({RR} 25. Rb1 Re5 26. Qd2 Rxe2 27. Qxe2 Rxe2 28. Rxe2 Qa6) 25... Rxe2 26. Qxe2 Rxe2 27. Rxe2 Qa6 28. Rd2 Qxa2 29. Rfd1 Qb3 30. Rxd4 Qxb2 31. Ra4)) ({RR} 9. cxd5) 9... Qc7 ({RR} 9... bxc5 10. b3 Nfd7 11. cxd5 Nxe5 12. dxe6 Nec6 13. exf7+ Rxf7 14. Nc4 Bxc4 15. bxc4 Rf6 16. Qd5+ Kh8 17. Bb2 Rd6 18. Qf7 Bf6 19. Bxf6 Rxf6 20. Qb7 Qb6 21. Qxa8 h6 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. Rab1 {1-0 (23) Milare,T (2217)-Mora Munoz,A (2147) chess.com INT 2025}) 10. Ndf3 bxc5 11. cxd5 $146 ({RR} 11. b3 Nc6 12. Nxc6 Qxc6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Qc2 Qb6 15. Bb2 Rfd8 16. Rfd1 d4 17. Ne5 Rac8 {½-½ (17) Baikov,V (2418)-Grigoriants,S (2560) Moscow 2010}) 11... Nxd5 12. Qc2 Nc6 13. Nxc6 Qxc6 14. Bg5 f6 15. Bd2 Qb6 16. Rfe1 Rfd8 17. a3 Rab8 18. Rab1 Bf8 19. h4 Qb3 20. Qe4 Nb6 21. Bc3 Bb7 22. Qg4 e5 23. Nd2 Qf7 24. Bxb7 Rxb7 25. Nf1 Nc4 26. Red1 Rdb8 27. Qe4 Nd6 28. Qc2 Qg6 29. Qxg6 hxg6 30. Nd2 Kf7 31. e3 Nb5 32. Ba5 Nd6 33. Rbc1 Rb5 34. Bc7 R8b7 35. Bxd6 Bxd6 36. Nc4 Be7 37. e4 Ke6 38. Kg2 Rb8 39. Rd2 Rd8 40. Rxd8 Bxd8 41. Rd1 Be7 42. Rd3 Rb8 43. Kf3 Rb7 44. Ke2 Rb8 45. Kd2 f5 46. Rd5 Rd8 47. Rxd8 Bxd8 48. Kd3 f4 49. Ke2 g5 50. gxf4 exf4 51. hxg5 Bxg5 52. Kf3 Bh4 53. a4 a6 54. b3 g5 55. Na5 Ke5 56. Nc6+ Kd6 57. Na5 Ke5 58. Nc4+ Kd4 59. a5 Bxf2 60. Kxf2 Kxe4 61. Nd6+ Kd5 62. Ne8 Kc6 63. Nf6 Kb5 64. Ne4 g4 65. Ke2 Kxa5 66. Nxc5 Kb4 67. Nxa6+ Kxb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 5th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2012.09.29"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "115"]
[EventDate "2012.09.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 151"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Bd2 Bf6 9. Qc2 Nxd2 10. Qxd2 d6 11. e4 Nd7 12. Rad1 g6 ({RR} 12... a6 13. Rfe1 Re8 14. h4 Rb8 15. b4 c5 16. dxc5 dxc5 17. bxc5 bxc5 18. Qe3 Qc7 19. e5 Be7 20. Qf4 h6 21. Ne4 Bxe4 22. Qxe4 Rb2 23. Re2 {½-½ (23) Ragger,M (2695)-Fridman,D (2642) Germany 2016}) 13. h4 Qe7 ({RR} 13... Bg7 14. Ng5 e5 15. d5 a5 16. f4 exf4 17. gxf4 Nc5 18. Rde1 h6 19. Nf3 Qd7 20. f5 Kh7 21. e5 dxe5 22. Nxe5 Bxe5 23. Rxe5 Rae8 24. Rxe8 Rxe8 25. fxg6+ fxg6 26. Qf4 Re7 27. Ne4 Nxe4 28. Bxe4 {Avetisyan,M (2067)-Bodiroga,P (2249) Belgrade SRB 2025 ½-½ (50)}) 14. Rfe1 Bg7 $146 ({RR} 14... Rad8 15. b3 Bg7 16. Qc2 c5 17. d5 Ne5 18. Nh2 h5 19. f4 Ng4 20. Nxg4 hxg4 21. e5 g5 22. exd6 Rxd6 23. hxg5 Bd4+ 24. Rxd4 cxd4 25. Ne4 Kg7 26. Qd2 e5 27. Nxd6 Qxd6 28. Rxe5 {1-0 (28) Brenninkmeijer,J (2485)-Pliester,L (2345) Groningen 1992}) 15. Qc2 c5 16. b3 cxd4 17. Nxd4 a6 18. Qd2 Rfd8 19. Qe3 Rab8 20. Rd2 Nf6 21. Bf3 Qc7 22. Red1 Nd7 23. Bg2 Rbc8 24. Bh3 Re8 25. Nde2 Bf8 26. h5 Nf6 27. hxg6 hxg6 28. Bg2 Ba8 29. Bf3 Qc5 30. Qxc5 Rxc5 31. Na4 Rc7 32. Nxb6 Bxe4 33. Kg2 Rb8 34. Na4 d5 35. cxd5 Bxf3+ 36. Kxf3 Nxd5 37. Nf4 Nxf4 38. gxf4 Rb5 39. Nb2 Rf5 40. Nc4 g5 41. Rd4 Kg7 42. Rg1 Bc5 43. Re4 Kf6 44. Rxg5 Rxg5 45. fxg5+ Kxg5 46. Ne3 Ba7 47. Rc4 Rxc4 48. Nxc4 Kf6 49. b4 e5 50. a4 Ke6 51. b5 e4+ 52. Kxe4 axb5 53. axb5 Bxf2 54. b6 f5+ 55. Kf3 Bxb6 56. Nxb6 f4 57. Nd5 Kxd5 58. Kxf4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grand Slam Final 5th"]
[Site "Sao Paulo/Bilbao"]
[Date "2012.10.13"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2816"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2012.09.24"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "BRA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 151"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2012.11.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Bd2 Bf6 9. Ne5 Nxc3 10. Bxc3 Bxg2 11. Kxg2 d5 12. Ng4 Nd7 13. Qa4 Be7 14. Rfd1 Nf6 15. Ne5 $146 ({RR} 15. Nxf6+ Bxf6 16. Qc6 Qd6 17. Qxd6 cxd6 18. cxd5 exd5 19. Bb4 Rfd8 20. Rac1 a5 21. Ba3 b5 22. b3 b4 23. Bb2 Rdc8 24. e3 Kf8 25. Kf3 Ke7 26. Ke2 h5 27. h3 Kd7 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Kd3 Be7 {Oms Pallisse,J (2506)-Fluvia Poyatos,J (2490) Barcelona 2012 ½-½ (48)}) 15... Qe8 16. Nc6 Kh8 17. f3 a6 18. Be1 Bd6 19. Rac1 b5 20. cxb5 axb5 21. Qxb5 Rxa2 22. Ba5 Qa8 23. Rd3 Nd7 24. Rdc3 Nb8 25. b4 Nxc6 26. Rxc6 Rb2 27. R6c2 Rxc2 28. Rxc2 Qa7 29. e3 h6 30. Qc6 Kg8 31. Kf2 Qa8 32. Kg2 Qxc6 33. Rxc6 Rb8 34. Bxc7 Bxc7 35. Rxc7 Rxb4 36. g4 Rb2+ 37. Kg3 g5 38. Rc3 Re2 39. h4 Kg7 40. Ra3 Kg6 41. h5+ Kf6 42. Rb3 Kg7 43. Ra3 Kf6 44. Rb3 Kg7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 75th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2013.01.13"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E90"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2861"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "2013.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 153"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. h3 Nc6 $6 {Does Magnus Carlsen laugh at his rivals? He can play anything at all and then outplay them!} 7. d5 {The most logical reply. Otherwise Black has the idea ...e7-e5 d4-d5 c6-d4!:} (7. Be2 e5 8. d5 Nd4 9. Nxd4 exd4 10. Qxd4 Re8 11. Qd3 Qe7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 $132 {[%csl Re4]}) (7. Be3 e5 8. d5 Nd4 $1 9. Nxd4 exd4 10. Bxd4 (10. Qxd4 Ng4 11. Qd2 Nxe3 12. Qxe3 f5 $1 $44) 10... Nxe4 11. Nxe4 Qh4 12. g4 Re8 13. Bg2 Bf5 14. O-O Bxe4 15. Bxg7 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Kxg7 17. Qd4+ Qf6 18. Qxf6+ Kxf6 19. Rfe1 {1/2 (19) Lutz,C (2580)-Finkel,A (2465) Leeuwarden 1994}) (7. Bg5 h6 8. Be3 e5 9. d5 Nd4 $1 (9... Ne7 10. Qc1 Kh7 11. Bd3 $14 {1-0 (28) Chernin,A (2600)-Uhlmann,W (2500) Austria 1993}) 10. Nxd4 exd4 11. Qxd4 (11. Bxd4 Nxe4 $1 12. Nxe4 (12. Bxg7 Re8 $1) 12... Qh4 $1 13. g4 Re8 14. Bg2 Bf5 $1 $11) 11... Ng4 12. Qd2 Nxe3 13. Qxe3 {Here Black's compensation for the pawn is less impressive than in the 7.e3 line as his position is weakened by ...h7-h6. Still, after} f5 14. Bd3 Bd7 {he can't complain.}) 7... Nb4 (7... Nb8 8. Be2 c6 9. O-O a6 10. Bg5 b5 11. dxc6 b4 12. Bxf6 exf6 13. c7 Qxc7 14. Nd5 Qb7 15. Nd4 Nd7 16. Qd2 Re8 17. Rfe1 $16 {1-0 (42) Zubarev,A (2583)-Lagarde,M (2501) Sautron FRA 2012}) 8. Be2 (8. Bg5 e6 9. a3 Na6 10. dxe6 Bxe6 11. Be2 Nc5 12. Qc2 Qe8 13. Nd2 Bd7 14. O-O Bc6 15. Bd3 Nfd7 16. Rfe1 {1/2 (16) Bagirov,V (2500)-Zaitsev,I (2445) Podolsk 1992}) (8. a3 $5 {A logical idea: to push Black's knight away to a6 before he has played ...a7-a5; besides, White's bishop can now go to d3-c2, where it is placed better than on e2.} Na6 9. Bd3 Nc5 10. Bc2 e6 (10... a5 11. Be3) 11. O-O exd5 12. cxd5 Re8 13. Re1 a5 14. Bf4 a4 15. Rc1 $14 {1-0 (36) Berkovich,D (2445)-Zaitsev,I (2445) Podolsk 1992}) 8... e6 9. Be3 (9. O-O Re8 10. Bg5 exd5 11. exd5 h6 12. Be3 Na6 13. Qd2 Kh7 14. Rfe1 Nc5 15. Bxc5 dxc5 16. Bd3 Bd7 17. Ne5 Re7 18. Re3 Ne8 19. Rae1 $14 {1/2 (26) Iotov,V (2569)-Libiszewski,F (2478) Marrakesh 2010}) 9... Re8 10. Nd2 a5 ({RR} 10... Nd7 11. O-O Nc5 12. a3 Nbd3 13. Qc2 Nxb2 14. Bxc5 Bxc3 15. Bb4 Bg7 16. a4 Bd7 17. a5 exd5 18. cxd5 c5 19. dxc6 Rc8 20. Ra2 Bxc6 21. Qb3 Bxe4 22. Nxe4 Rxe4 23. Bf3 Rf4 24. Rxb2 Rxf3 25. gxf3 {Le,Q (2709)-Aronian,L (2785) Chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (34)}) 11. O-O Bd7 $146 ({RR} 11... c6 12. a3 Na6 13. dxc6 bxc6 14. Qc2 e5 15. Rfd1 Be6 16. Na4 c5 17. Nb3 Qc7 18. Nc3 Bf8 19. Bg5 Kg7 20. f4 a4 21. Nxa4 exf4 22. Nc3 Nd7 23. Nb5 Qb6 24. Bxf4 Ne5 25. Nd2 Nc7 26. Kh2 {Lei,T (2474)-Grigoryan,K (2602) Roquetas de Mar 2016 1-0 (54)}) 12. Re1 b6 13. Rc1 Kh8 14. a3 Na6 15. Qc2 e5 16. Rb1 Ng8 {Finally we have a normal King's Indian, and Black's position is quite decent as he will now play ...f7-f5.} 17. b4 f5 18. Nb5 $5 (18. Nf3 $5 Nf6 $1 (18... Bh6 19. Bxh6 Nxh6 20. Bd3 {[%cal Yc2e2,Yc4c5]}) 19. Bd3 f4 20. Bc1 Rg8 21. Qe2 {[%cal Rc4c5]} Bc8 $13) 18... Bh6 (18... f4 19. Bxb6 $1 cxb6 20. Nxd6 Rf8 21. c5 $16 {[%csl Gc5,Gd5]}) 19. Bxh6 Nxh6 20. exf5 (20. Qc3 $5 f4 21. Nb3 {[%cal Yc4c5]}) 20... gxf5 (20... Nxf5 $5 21. Ne4 axb4 22. axb4 Bxb5 23. cxb5 Nb8 24. Bg4 Nd7 $14 {/=}) 21. f4 $5 exf4 22. Qc3+ Kg8 23. Bh5 Nf7 24. Rxe8+ Qxe8 25. Qf6 Qf8 26. Bxf7+ Qxf7 27. Qg5+ Qg7 28. Qxf4 $14 {The position has clarified. Black's kingside attack is now out of the question, and his misplaced a6 knight guarantees White an edge.} axb4 29. axb4 Re8 30. Nd4 (30. Rb3 {[%cal Rb3g3]} Qe5) 30... Qe5 31. Qg5+ Qg7 32. N2f3 $1 Qxg5 33. Nxg5 Kg7 34. Nge6+ Kf6 35. Rf1 Bxe6 36. Nxe6 {[%cal Rg2g4]} h5 $6 (36... Kg6 $1 $14) 37. g4 (37. b5 $5 Nc5 38. Rxf5+ Kxf5 39. Ng7+ Kf4 40. Nxe8 Nd3 41. Nxc7 Ne5 {Black recaptures one of the missing pawns but the other one remains - and good winning chances for White.}) 37... hxg4 38. hxg4 Nxb4 39. Rxf5+ Kg6 40. Nf4+ Kg7 41. g5 {White still pushes on but the number of pawns is dramatically decreasing.} c6 $1 42. Kf2 (42. Rf6 cxd5 43. cxd5 Nxd5 $1 44. Nxd5 Re5 45. Rxd6 Rxg5+ $11) 42... cxd5 43. cxd5 Re5 44. Ne6+ Kg6 45. Rf6+ Kh5 46. Kf3 Re3+ $1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 75th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2013.01.27"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E87"]
[WhiteElo "2720"]
[BlackElo "2861"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2013.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 153"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{I had a mediocre to bad tournament in Wijk, as I lost two games (to Harikrishna and Hou Yifan) and managed to win just one (though against Fabiano). Obviously I had enough reasons to be ambitious. Ich hatte ein mittelmäßiges bis schlechtes Turnier in Wijk, denn ich verlor zwei Partien (gegen Harikrishna und Hou Yifan) und konnte nur eine gewinnen (allerdings gegen Fabiano). Offenkundig hatte ich allen Grund, ehrgeizig zu sein.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 {I was very happy with this move as I knew that now it will be a rough fight. I was eager to (at least try) finish the tournament on a high note especially since I felt pretty confident towards the end. Über diesen Zug freute ich mich sehr, denn ich wusste, dass es jetzt ein rauer Kampf werden würde. Ich brannte darauf, das Turnier mit einem Höhepunkt abzuschließen (oder es zumindest zu versuchen), vor allem, da ich gegen Ende ziemlich viel Selbstvertrauen hatte.} 3. f3 $1 {Securing that abovementioned rough fight. Sichert den oben erwähnen rauen Kampf.} d6 4. e4 e5 {A strategically risky line, a surprising choice by Magnus. I was thinking during the game that he might have followed some old notes of Kasparov, who had this variaiton in his World Championship match with Karpov, but maybe I am overfantasising. Ein strategisch riskantes Abspiel, eine überraschende Wahl von Magnus. Während der Partie dachte ich, dass er würde womöglich irgendwelchen alten Anmerkungen von Kasparov folgen, der diese Variante ja in seinem Weltmeisterschaftsmatch mit Karpov hatte, aber vielleicht geht auch meine Phantasie mit mir durch.} 5. d5 Nh5 6. Be3 Bg7 {I was expecting some creative idea like ...e7!? going for ...g5, but Magnus decided to just transpose to the above mentioned old line. Ich erwartete irgendeine kreative Idee wie ...e7!? mit der Absicht ...g5, aber Magnus beschloss, einfach zu dem oben erwähnten alten Abspiel überzuleiten.} 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Qd2 f5 {I don't believe in this line. Black doesn't have the usual attack on the king and then somehow this f5 push loses its strength. On the other hand he intends to close the whole board and build some sort of a fortress. Ich glaube nicht an dieses Abspiel. Schwarz hat nicht en üblichen Angriff auf den König, und dann verliert dieser f5-Vorstoß irgendwie seine Kraft. Andererseits beabsichtigt er, das ganze Brett zu schließen und eine Art Festung zu errichten.} (8... Qh4+ $5 {is the move I have studied a little, as after the semi-forced sequence ist der Zug, den ich ein wenig studiert habe, denn nach der halb-forcierten Folge} 9. g3 (9. Bf2 Qf4) 9... Nxg3 $1 10. Qf2 Nxf1 11. Qxh4 Nxe3 {the position is very fascinating and unclear. ist die Stellung sehr faszinierend und unklar.}) 9. O-O-O (9. exf5 $5 {is also very challenging, now after ist ebenfalls recht anspruchsvoll; jetzt kann nach} gxf5 10. O-O-O {White can prepare g4 one day. The play is somewhat more dynamic here. Weiß eines Tages g4 vorbereiten. Hier ist das Spiel etwas dynamischer.}) 9... f4 $5 {I was surprised to see that Magnus would decide on this move so fast and indeed it's a rare one. However his concept isn't as bad as I thought at first. He intends to close the queenside with eventual ...c5 and then it will be hard for White to break through with his usual b4 plan. Ich war überrascht zu sehen, dass Magnus sich so schnell für diesen Zug entschied, und in der Tat ist er auch ungewöhnlich. Allerdings ist sein Konzept nicht so schlecht, wie ich zunächst dachte. Er beabsichtigt, den Damenflügel mit späterem ...c5 zu schließen, und dann wird es für Weiß schwer sein, mit seinem üblichen b4-Plan durchzubrechen.} 10. Bf2 Bf6 11. Qe1 {Preventing ...h4. Verhindert ...h4.} Nd7 ({RR} 11... Qe7 12. Kb1 b6 13. g4 fxg3 14. hxg3 Bg5 15. Qe2 Na6 16. Bh3 Bxh3 17. Nxh3 Rf7 18. Rhg1 Bh6 19. Be3 Bxe3 20. Qxe3 Nc5 21. Ng5 Rg7 22. b4 Nd7 23. f4 Nf8 24. fxe5 Qxe5 25. Nf3 Qe7 26. g4 {RubiChess20240420 (3531)-Ethereal14.35 (3523) tcec-chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (71)}) ({RR} 11... b6 12. Kb1 a5 13. g4 Ng7 14. h4 h6 15. g5 hxg5 16. hxg5 Bxg5 17. Bh3 Bd7 18. Bxd7 Nxd7 19. Nh3 Bf6 20. Qg1 Kf7 21. Qg4 Rg8 22. Rdg1 Nf8 23. Nb5 Ne8 24. Qg2 Qd7 25. Ng5+ Ke7 26. Rh6 {Sahidi,S (2500)-Goroshkov,M (2350) Eforie Nord ROU 2025 1-0 (66)}) 12. Kb1 Be7 13. g3 $146 {From now on I was playing in the modern spirit. While earlier players might have played g4! g7 h4! and would have written +/- due to the long term queenside plan, I feel that nowadays such a dogmatic view is not a guarantee of victory. Instead I was aiming for some more concrete action, now for example I want h3 and once the h5-knight goes I may think of even some action like gxf and xd7. Von jetzt an spielte ich im modernen Geist. Während frühere Spieler vielleicht g4! g7 h4! gespielt und +/- geschrieben hätten aufgrund des langfristigen Damenflügelplans, meine ich, dass heutzutage so eine dogmatische Sicht keine Siegesgarantie mehr ist. Stattdessen strebte ich konkretere Handlungen an, zum Beispiel will ich h3, und wenn der h5-Springer einmal weggeht, kann ich sogar an eine Aktion wie gxf und xd7 denken.} ({RR} 13. Nge2 b6 14. b4 a5 15. a3 Bb7 16. Nc1 Nb8 17. Nb3 axb4 18. axb4 Na6 19. Na2 Qd7 20. Kb2 Kh8 21. Ra1 h6 22. Nac1 Nb8 23. Nd3 c5 24. Rxa8 Bxa8 25. Qa1 Qb7 26. Be2 Nd7 27. Rb1 Qc7 {Gheorghiu,F (2525)-Angantysson,H (2305) Reykjavik 1986 1-0 (49)}) 13... c5 $2 {Too early. Magnus assumed that he would be able to take advantage of my undeveloped kingside in the complications but in fact his pieces lack coordination. Zu früh. Magnus nahm an, dass er in den Komplikationen Vorteil aus meinem unterentwickelten Königsflügel würde ziehen können, tatsächlich aber mangelt es seinen Figuren an Koordination.} (13... a6 {followed by some waiting moves, like ...h8 and ...b8 would prepare ...c5 and would make my task much more difficult. , gefolgt von ein paar Wartezügen wie ...h8 und ...b8, würde ...c5 vorbereiten und meine Aufgabe deutlich erschweren.}) 14. dxc6 $1 bxc6 15. c5 $1 {From now on I started to really like my position and Carlsen started to dislike his. Von jetzt an begann ich, meine Stellung richtig zu mögen, und Carlsen begann, seine zu verabscheuen.} dxc5 16. Na4 Qc7 17. Qc3 Rb8 {Rooks belongs on open files, so why not? Türme gehören auf offene Linien, also warum nicht?} 18. Bh3 $1 {Simple and strong, now I threatened to take on d7 and get control of the key c5-square. From now on the black position looks busted but after burning a lot of time Magnus found some way to get practical chances. Einfach und stark; jetzt drohte ich, auf d7 zu nehmen und das Schlüsselfeld c5 in den Griff zu bekommen. Von jetzt an sieht die schwarze Stellung pleite aus, aber nachdem er eine Menge Zeit verbraten hatte, fand Magnus einen Weg, praktische Chancen zu bekommen.} (18. Ne2 {was another option, but the text move is better. war eine andere Option, aber der Textzug ist besser.} Nb6 (18... Ba6 19. Nxf4 $1) (18... Ng7 19. Nc1 Ne6 20. Nb3) 19. Nxc5 Rf7 {and Black has a better version of the game, as my knight on e2 is causing some lack of harmony. und Schwarz hat eine bessere Version der Partie, da mein Springer auf e2 gewissen Harmoniemangel verursacht.}) 18... Nb6 19. Nxc5 Rf7 $2 (19... Rd8 $1 {was strong now after the natural War stark. Nun wirkt die Stellung nach} 20. Rxd8+ Qxd8 21. Bxc8 Qd1+ 22. Qc1 Qxc1+ 23. Kxc1 Rxc8 {the position looks disastrous for Black, but unbelievably White is unable to untangle his pieces as e2 can be met by fxg hxg f8. So instead of that I would have had to look for something more sophisticated. katastrophal für Schwarz, aber unglaublicherweise ist Weiß nicht in der Lage, seine Figuren zu entwirren, da e2 mit fxg hxg f8 begegnet werden kann. Daher würde ich stattdessen etwas Anspruchsvolleres suchen müssen.}) 20. b3 $1 {Another simple and strong move. Now nothing works for Black. Noch ein einfacher und starker Zug. Jetzt funktioniert nichts für Schwarz.} fxg3 21. hxg3 Bxc5 22. Qxc5 Ng7 $1 {Black has no better move than that. Here I have many options and perhaps I made a wrong choice practically speaking. Schwarz hat keinen bessern Zug als diesen. Hier habe ich viele Möglichkeiten, und ich traf, praktisch gesehen, vielleicht die falsche Wahl.} 23. Rc1 $6 (23. f4 $5 {was suggested by computers and then many people found it suddenly very natural. In fact it's not so easy: wurde von Computern vorgeschlagen, und danach fanden es viele Leute plötzlich sehr natürlich. Tatsächlich ist die Sache nicht so einfach:} exf4 24. gxf4 $1 {Frankly I didn't really consider this one, trying to make f3!? or d4!? work. Offen gesagt hatte ich das nicht wirklich auf der Rechnung, da ich versuchte, f3!? oder d4!? zum Funktionieren zu bringen.} Qxf4 {Now it's forced Nun ist es forciert.} 25. Rd8+ Rf8 26. Rxf8+ Qxf8 27. Qxf8+ Kxf8 28. Bxc8 Rxc8 29. Rxh7 {and White has a fantastic endgame, but Black has some drawing chances. und Weiß hat ein fantastisches Endspiel, allerdings besitzt Schwarz einige Remischancen.} Kg8 $1 30. Rh6 Rf8 $1) (23. Qd6 $5 {is not much, even though it's much easier to play for White than the game. bietet nicht viel, obwohl es für Weiß viel einfacher zu spielen ist als die Partie.} Qxd6 24. Rxd6 Bxh3 25. Rxh3 (25. Nxh3 Rxf3 26. Bxb6 axb6 27. Ng5 Rxg3 28. Nxh7 Nh5 $1) 25... Rc7 {intending c5-c4. Shouldn't be much but White is still better. mit der Absicht c5-c4. Sollte nicht viel sein, aber Weiß steht trotzdem besser.} 26. Rh1 $1) 23... Be6 $3 {I missed this very powerful resource. Now Black gets some counterplay out of absolutely nowhere and my task becomes much more difficult. This is a rare case when the best move is not actually the first line of the engine. Diese sehr kraftvolle Ressource hatte ich übersehen. Nun erhält Schwarz aus dem absoluten Nichts heraus einiges Gegenspiel, und meine Aufgabe wird deutlich schwerer. Dies ist ein seltener Fall, wo der beste Zug tatsächlich nicht das erste Abspiel der Engine ist.} 24. Qxc6 Qe7 {Here objectively speaking I probably have a huge advantage but in the practical game things aren't as simple with a slightly dubious king and no development. I feel I started losing some control. Objektiv gesehen habe ich hier vermutlich riesigen Vorteil, aber in der praktischen Partie sind, bei leicht heiklem König und keiner Entwicklung, die Dinge nicht so einfach. Ich bekam das Gefühl, etwas die Kontrolle zu verlieren.} 25. Qc5 Qf6 26. Bg2 $2 {A machine-move, but once I had made it I started to regret it a lot. Somehow it feels too slow. Ein Maschienenzug, aber sobald ich ihn gemacht hatte, begann ich, ihn sehr zu bereuen. Irgendwie fühlt es sich zu langsam an.} (26. Bf1 $1 {is an even more machine-move as now I don't even threaten to develop my knight. For example ist sogar noch maschinenmäßiger, denn jetzt drohe ich nicht einmal, meinen Springer zu entwickeln. Zum Beispiel} Rfb7 {now I have , und jetzt habe ich} 27. Ba6 $1 Na4 28. Qa5 $1 Rxb3+ 29. axb3 Rxb3+ 30. Kc2 Rb2+ 31. Kd1 Rxf2 32. Be2 $1 {and Black runs out of resources. und Schwarz gehen die Mittel aus.}) 26... Rfb7 $1 {Now I started to feel pretty uncomfortable and disappointed about the course of the game and I decided to try to keep control of the situation. My feeling was right indeed as after my absolutely awkward last move all my advantage is gone and the game is becoming pretty random. Jetzt begann ich, mich ziemlich unwohl zu fühlen und enttäuscht über den Lauf der Partie, und ich beschloss zu versuchen, die Situation unter Kontrolle zu behalten. Mein Gefühl war in der Tat berechtigt, denn nach meinem absolut scheußlichen letzten Zug ist mein fanzer Vorteil futsch, und die Partie wird ziemlich zufällig.} 27. Ka1 Nd7 $2 {A mistake objectively, but Magnus managed to bluff me (though himself he probably missed my defence as well). Objektiv ein Fehler, aber Magnus schaffte es, mich zu bluffen (wobei er selbst meine Verteidigung wahrscheinlich ebenfalls übersehen hatte).} (27... a5 $1 {would have been a painful blow. I would have most likely tried to chicken out with wäre ein unangenehmer Schlag gewesen. Höchstwahrscheinlich hätte ich versucht, mit} 28. Ne2 $1 a4 29. b4 $1 Nd7 30. Qc2 Rxb4 31. Rb1 {and that would probably be quite smart. Here the position is balanced. den Schwanz einzuziehen, und das wäre wahrscheinlich ziemlich clever gewesen. Hier ist die Stellung ausgeglichen.}) 28. Qd6 $2 (28. Qa3 $1 {seemed too risky, but in fact everywhere I seem to have a defence - wirkte zu riskant, tatsächlich aber scheine ich überall eine Verteidigung zu haben -} a5 $5 {It's almost in time. Ist fast rechtzeitig.} (28... Bxb3 29. axb3 Rxb3 30. Qa2 $1 {I missed this detail. Though I wasn't really looking for it as I was happy with the idea of pinning his bishop with my queen on the sixth rank. Dieses Detail übersah ich. Allerdings suchte ich auch nicht direkt danach, denn ich war zufrieden mit der Idee, seinen Läufer mit meiner Dame auf der sechsten Reihe zu fesseln.}) 29. Ne2 a4 30. Qxa4 Qd8 $1 {but now I have an incredible resource - , aber jetzt habe ich eine unglaubliche Ressource -} 31. Rc6 $1 Rb5 32. Rhc1 Ra5 33. Rc8 $1 {and somehow White ends up on top again. und irgendwie ist Weiß am Ende wieder obenauf.}) 28... Ne8 $2 {Magnus could have already taken on b3, or have played a5, but we still didn't see this a3-a2 idea so the blindness continued.  Magnus hätte bereits auf b3 schlagen oder a5 spielen können, aber wir beide sahen noch immer nicht diese a3-a2-Idee; die Blindheit hielt also an.} 29. Qa6 $6 (29. Qa3 $1 a5 (29... Bxb3 30. axb3 Rxb3 31. Qa2) 30. Ne2 a4 31. Qxa4 Nb6 {Black has compensation but it shouldn't be enough. Schwarz hat Kompensation, sie sollte allerdings nicht ausreichen.} 32. Bxb6 Rxb6 33. Rc6 Bxb3 34. Rxf6 Bxa4 35. Rxb6 Rxb6 36. Nc3) 29... Bxb3 $5 {I wasn't too upset about it, as I was actually already seeing some sort of draw arising in other lines. Das regte mich nicht sonderlich auf, denn ich sah bereits eine Art von Remis, wie es in anderen Abspielen entsteht.} (29... Nc7 $5 {was my main fear. And actually my intuition is being supported by my computer which still needs a lot of time to realise what is what. war meine größte Befürchtung. Und tatsächlich wird meine Intuition von meinem Computer gestützt, der nach wie vor eine Menge Zeit braucht, um zu begreifen, was Sache ist.} 30. Qd6 {I was trying to see whether this one forces a draw and it seems that it does. Ich versuchte zu sehen, ob dies ein Remis forciert, und offenbar ist es so.} (30. Qa5 Bxb3) (30. Qa4 Rb4 31. Qc6 Qe7) 30... Nb5 (30... Bxb3 $1 31. Qxd7 Qf7 $3) 31. Qa6 Nd4 {to avoid repetition but now I get a tempo um die Wiederholung zu vermeiden, aber nun bekomme ich ein Tempo.} 32. Bh3 $1 Rb6 33. Bxe6+ Qxe6 34. Qc4 Nxb3+ 35. axb3 Qxc4 36. Rxc4 Rxb3 37. Rc2 {with the same drawish motif. mit demselben Remismotiv.}) 30. Qxf6 Nexf6 {Initially I was thinking I am better in this endgame due to my two bishops but after a long think I realised that it's not really the case and so I decided that it has been enough fun. Anfänglich meinte ich, in diesem Endspiel aufgrund meiner zwei Läufer besser zu stehen, aber nach langem Nachdenken begriff ich, dass dies nicht wirklich der Fall ist, und daher beschloss ich, dass es genug Spaß gewesen war.} 31. axb3 (31. Nh3 Be6 32. Rb1 Rxb1+ 33. Rxb1 Rc8 $1) (31. Rb1 Be6 32. Ne2 Kg7 33. Rxb7 Rxb7 34. Rb1 Nb6 {and I will have problems to answer ...c7 and ...d7 kind of moves, threatening to enter the second rank. und ich werde Probleme haben, Züge wie ...c7 und ...d7 zu beantworten, die drohen, die zweite Reihe zu besetzen.}) 31... Rxb3 32. Rc2 Rb1+ 33. Ka2 R1b4 34. Ka1 Rb1+ {Neither of us can really deviate. Keiner von uns kann wirklich abweichen.} 35. Ka2 R1b4 36. Ka1 {It's always fun with Magnus. :) Mit Magnus macht es immer Spaß. :)} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.15"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2809"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 {This apparently simplistic way of playing used to be a specialty of Ulf Andersson, a completely different kind of player from Carlsen.} 6. Nc3 ({The typical way of meeting any Bogo-Indian setup is based on the kingside fianchetto; Carlsen had some recent experience against it, though.} 6. g3 O-O 7. Bg2 Nbd7 8. O-O c6 9. Rc1 b6 10. cxd5 (10. b4 {Topalov,V (2803)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Nanjing 2010/CBM 139/[Edouard,R] (0-1, 33)}) 10... cxd5 11. Nc3 (11. Na3 {Kramnik,V (2784)-Carlsen,M (2814)/Wijk aan Zee 2011/CBM 141/[Moradiabadi/Karsten Mueller] (0-1, 85)}) 11... Ba6 {Wang Yue (2732)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Nanjing 2010/CBM 139/[Edouard,R] (1/2, 28)}) 6... O-O 7. e3 {Before moving forward, I find it useful to relate the position to some refefrence points from well settled theory. In the Orthodox lines of the Queen's Gambit, Black frequently aims to exchange the dark-squared bishops, in order to get some space for the queen and release the pressure against the f6-knight. Two classical ways of achieving that are the Capablanca System (...dxc4 followed by ...d5) and he Lasker System (...e4).. From this point of view, I find some positive aspects in the Bogo setup: Black exchanges the bishops without the need to give up the tension in the centre with ...dxc4 or moving for the second time with an already developed knight.} Qe7 {The perfect square for the queen in many Bogo-Indian lines.} 8. Rc1 Rd8 {This way of putting pressure on the white centre is reminsicent to some extent of one of the plans in the Lasker System.} 9. Qc2 ({Deviating from an earlier Carlsen game:} 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Nc6 {An useful preparation for ...e4.} (10... Ne4 11. Qc2 $14) 11. Bb5 (11. O-O Ne4 12. Qe2 Bg4) (11. a3 {is too slow: after having taken the e5-square under control, Black can develop his initiative with} Bg4) 11... Rd6 {Somewhat similar to one of the Lasker System variations, successfully used by Yusupov during his candidates match against Karpov, ages ago.} 12. Bxc6 Rxc6 13. Ne5 Re6 14. f3 b6 15. O-O Bb7 16. Rfe1 h6 17. Ne2 c5 18. Nf4 Rd6 19. dxc5 bxc5 20. Ned3 c4 21. Nb4 Rad8 22. Nc2 Nd7 23. Nd4 Ne5 $132 {Bacrot,E (2713)-Carlsen,M (2837)/Biel 2012/CBM 150 (1/2, 56)}) 9... a6 $5 {Resorting to a basic idea from other Queen's Gambit setups than those mentioned above. Black prepares the queenside expansion with ...b5 and ...c5, waiting with ...dxc4 until White has spent a tempo on developing his bishop.} (9... Nbd7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 Nf8 12. O-O {The position is typical for the Karlsbad/Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit. The previous exchange of the bishops ensures Black some freedom of action for his major pieces. It is interesting to follow the harmonious regrouping of two great modern/classic players of completely different style.} Ng6 (12... c6 13. a3 Ng6 14. h3 Rd6 15. Rfe1 Bd7 16. Nd2 Re8 $11 {Van der Sterren,P (2470)-Andersson,U (2605)/Wijk aan Zee 1988/CBM 005 (0-1, 40)}) 13. Ne2 c6 14. Ng3 Re8 15. Qc5 Qd8 16. Nd2 Nh4 17. b4 a6 18. a4 Bd7 19. Rb1 Ng4 20. Qc2 g6 21. b5 axb5 22. axb5 h5 23. bxc6 bxc6 24. Rfe1 Qf6 {One can feel the kingside pressure already.} 25. Ndf1 {Ironically, this knight does not only fail to defend the king, but it also takes away an important square from the king and bishop.} (25. Nb3 Nxg2 $1 26. Kxg2 h4 27. Nc5 Bc8 {Retreating with the knight leads to disaster after ...h3!+, but} 28. Qe2 Kg7 {...h8 does not spare White problems, either. Once again, stepping back is bad:} 29. Nf1 h3+ 30. Kg1 Ra2 $1 31. Nd2 Qd6 $19) 25... Ra3 26. Re2 c5 $1 {Excellent! White cannot defend both wings properly.} 27. dxc5 Ne5 28. Bb5 $2 Qf3 $3 {0-1 Andruet,G (2450)-Spassky,B (2565)/Germany 1988/GER-chT} 29. gxf3 Nexf3+ 30. Kh1 Bh3 $1 {...g2# What a shock! The f1-knight is Black's best friend. One move earlier, it prevented f1, now it does not allow the defence f1.}) ({In practice, White has failed to prove anything convincing after the simplistic} 9... dxc4 10. Bxc4 c5 {, but the general feeling is that Black has not equalised completely at this stage.} 11. O-O Nc6 (11... cxd4 12. Nxd4 Bd7 13. Rfd1 Nc6 14. Bb5 Rac8 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Bxc6 Rxc6 17. Rxd8+ Qxd8 18. Rd1 {1/2 Andersson,U (2640)-Spassky,B (2605)/Tilburg 1983/MCD} Qb8 19. Qd3 Rc8 20. h3 {1/2 Chernin,A (2565)-Spassky,B (2620)/Reggio Emilia 1986/CBM 004}) (11... Nbd7 12. Rfd1 cxd4 13. Rxd4 Nb6 14. Rxd8+ Qxd8 15. Bb5 Bd7 $11 {Akobian,V (2622)-Ghaem Maghami,E (2572)/Al Ain 2012/CBM 152 (1/2, 30)}) 12. dxc5 Qxc5 13. Ne4 Qe7 14. a3 Bd7 15. Bd3 (15. Rfd1 Be8 {1/2 Vaganian,R (2630)-Karpov,A (2700)/London 1984/MCL}) 15... h6 16. b4 Rac8 {Nikolic,P (2540)-Andersson,U (2640)/Niksic 1983/MCD (0-1, 39)}) 10. a3 (10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 {can again be met with} Nc6 $5 12. Be2 Bg4 (12... g6 $5) 13. O-O Ne4 14. h3 Bh5 15. Ne5 Nb4 16. Qd1 Bxe2 17. Qxe2 f6 18. Nf3 Rd7 19. a3 Nc6 20. b4 Nxc3 21. Rxc3 Na7 22. Rc5 Nc8 23. Rfc1 c6 24. a4 Nd6 {Akobian,V (2621)-Krush,I (2461)/Philadelphia 2012/CBM 147 Extra (1/2, 44). After the knight has reached d6, only Black can be better. Compare with the famous Portisch-Kasparov Skelleftea 1989 and Bobotsov-Petrosian Lugano (ol) 1968 games.}) 10... Nbd7 11. Be2 $6 $146 {This does not make any effort to cross Black's plans.} (11. h3 {is only a little bit better, because h2-h3 does not change anything essentially.} dxc4 12. Bxc4 c5 13. O-O b5 14. Ba2 (14. Be2 {would almost transpose to the main game.}) 14... Bb7 15. Qe2 cxd4 16. exd4 Nb6 $11 {Mukhaev,A (2315)-Kholmov,R (2465)/Moscow 1997/EXT 2000 (1/2, 50)}) ({Probably this is a good moment to exchange on d5, since the insertion of ...a6 and a3 may favour White strategically.} 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Na4 $5 (12. Bd3 c5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. O-O Bg4 15. Nd4 Rac8 {may offer Black some dynamic compensation for the isolani with a supposedly bad bishop.}) 12... c6 13. Bd3 Ne4 14. O-O Re8 15. b4 {[%csl Rb6][%cal Ga4c5,Gf3d2]}) 11... dxc4 12. Bxc4 c5 13. Be2 b5 14. dxc5 Qxc5 15. b4 Qe7 16. O-O Bb7 {Black has equalised completely; in fact, White's position has somewhat lost flexibility, which explains why Aronian decides to force drawish exchanges.} 17. a4 $11 (17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. Qb3 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Ne5 {[%csl Gc4] is the typical neutral course which could favour only Black.}) 17... Qxb4 18. axb5 axb5 19. Qb1 Qxb1 20. Rxb1 Bxf3 21. Bxf3 Rab8 22. Nxb5 Ne5 23. Nd4 Nxf3+ 24. Nxf3 Rxb1 25. Rxb1 h6 26. h3 g5 27. g4 Kg7 28. Kg2 Rd7 29. Rb2 $146 ({RR} 29. Rb4 Nd5 30. Rd4 Nf6 31. Rxd7 Nxd7 {½-½ (31) Dobrovoljc,V (2383)-Markoja,B (2447) Slovenia 2019}) 29... Rc7 30. Nd4 Nd5 31. Rc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.17"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D52"]
[WhiteElo "2740"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Qa5 7. cxd5 (7. Nd2 {used to be the main line, but recently Black has been doing well after} Bb4 8. Qc2 O-O 9. Be2 c5) 7... Nxd5 (7... exd5 {leads to Carlsbad structure where the queen on a5 is doing nothing.}) 8. Rc1 {This move is relatively rare.} (8. Qd2 {is the main continuation.} Bb4 9. Rc1 h6 10. Bh4 {This position has been defended mainly by grandmasters Alexei Shirov and Alexey Dreev. Here is one recent example:} b6 11. a3 Bxc3 12. bxc3 c5 13. c4 Qxd2+ 14. Nxd2 Ne7 15. f3 Ba6 16. Be2 cxd4 17. exd4 Rc8 18. O-O Nf5 19. Bf2 O-O 20. Rfd1 Rfd8 21. g4 Ne7 $11 {½-½ (31) Potkin,V (2663)-Dreev,A (2677) Eilat 2012}) 8... Nxc3 9. bxc3 Ba3 (9... Qxa2 10. Bd3 Bd6 11. O-O Qa5 ({Black must be careful:} 11... O-O $2 12. Ra1 Qb2 13. Bxh7+ $1 Kxh7 14. Qd3+ Kg8 15. Rfb1 $18 {[%csl Rb2]}) 12. c4 {with good compensation for the pawn.}) 10. Rc2 b6 {Preparing the favourable exchange of the light-squared bishops.} 11. Bd3 Ba6 12. O-O Bxd3 13. Qxd3 O-O (13... h6 14. Bh4 O-O 15. c4 Rfe8 16. e4 (16. Rd1 $5) 16... e5 17. d5 Nc5 18. Qe2 Qa4 $11 {½-½ (38) Malakhatko,V (2548)-Michiels,B (2489) Antwerp 2011}) 14. e4 {I think the plan adopted by Boris is not the best.} (14. c4 h6 15. Bf4 (15. Bh4 Rfe8 16. Rd1 {is another option. Then White can put his bishop on g3, preventing the advance e6-e5.}) 15... Rad8 16. Rb1 Rfe8 17. Bc7 (17. c5 $2 e5) 17... Rc8 18. Bg3 Rcd8 19. c5 $1 Nxc5 20. Qc3 Ne4 21. Qxa5 bxa5 22. Rxc6 $14) ({RR} 14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Bh4 Rac8 16. c4 Bd6 17. Ng5 Qf5 18. Qxf5 exf5 19. Bg3 Bxg3 20. hxg3 c5 21. Nf3 Nf6 22. Kf1 Ne4 23. d5 Nd6 24. Ke2 f6 25. Nd2 Kf7 26. a4 Rb8 27. Rcb2 Rb7 28. Kd3 Ke7 {Moiseenko,A (2703)-Dreev,A (2679) Jakarta 2013 ½-½ (85)}) ({RR} 14. c4 Rfe8 15. Bf4 Bf8 16. Rd1 Rad8 17. Ng5 Qf5 18. Qxf5 exf5 19. Nf3 f6 20. h4 Nc5 21. Rcd2 Ne4 22. Rd3 Bd6 23. Bxd6 Rxd6 24. g3 Red8 25. Ra3 R6d7 26. Kg2 g6 27. Nd2 c5 28. d5 Nd6 {Bochenek,P (1930)-Kaminski,P (2012) Jastrzebia Gora POL 2025 ½-½ (44)}) 14... Rfe8 15. e5 $6 {This is a committal decision. White doesn't really have chances for an attack on the kingside. Meanwhile, the move in the text weakens the light squares.} ({In the event of} 15. c4 $6 e5 16. d5 Nc5 {Black will get a nice square for his knight.}) (15. Bf4 {would be preferable.}) 15... h6 $146 ({RR} 15... Be7 16. Bxe7 Rxe7 17. Ng5 Nf8 18. Ne4 c5 19. f4 Rd8 20. Nd6 Red7 21. f5 cxd4 22. cxd4 exf5 23. Qxf5 Qd5 24. Rcf2 f6 25. Ne4 Re7 26. Qxf6 Ng6 27. Qf3 Qxd4 28. Kh1 Qxe5 29. Qb3+ Qe6 30. Qxe6+ {Lee,A (1967)-Liang,J (2345) Lichess.org INT 2021 0-1 (78)}) ({RR} 15... Be7 16. Bxe7 Rxe7 17. Ng5 Nf8 18. Ne4 c5 19. f4 Rd8 20. Nd6 Red7 21. f5 cxd4 22. cxd4 exf5 23. Qxf5 Qd5 24. Rcf2 f6 25. Ne4 Re7 26. Qxf6 Ng6 27. Qf3 Qxd4 28. Kh1 Qxe5 29. Qb3+ Qe6 30. Qxe6+ {Lee,A (1967)-Liang,J (2345) Lichess.org INT 2021 0-1 (78)}) 16. Bh4 c5 17. Nd2 cxd4 18. cxd4 Rac8 $1 {The structure is now favourable for Black. So, it's up to White to prove something.} 19. Nc4 Qb5 {Black doesn't lose a piece.} ({Of course, not} 19... Qa6 $4 20. Qxa3 $18 {[%csl Ra6]}) 20. f4 Rc7 21. Qxa3 {White has to release the pressure before Black doubles the rooks along the c-file.} (21. f5 Rec8 22. fxe6 fxe6 23. Qxa3 Rxc4 24. Rxc4 Qxc4 $15) 21... Rxc4 22. Rxc4 Qxc4 23. Bf2 {[%csl Ra7]} Qc7 {Black has to spend a move on protecting the a7, so White seizes the c-file.} 24. Rc1 Qb7 25. Qd6 {White's position looks very active, but he has no objects to attack.} ({From the practical point of view it was preferable to swap queens:} 25. Qf3 $5 Qxf3 26. gxf3 {White's pawn structure has been spoiled, but the rook is going to penetrate to c7. The position is balanced. For instance:} Nf8 27. Rc7 Ng6 28. f5 exf5 29. Rxa7) 25... Nf8 26. g3 ({After} 26. Qc7 Qa6 {the black queen becomes active.}) 26... Rc8 27. Rxc8 Qxc8 28. d5 {White should get rid of this pawn.} exd5 29. Qxd5 g6 30. Kg2 Ne6 {The position is very close to equality, but White is the one who has to play accurately. The well-known duo queen + knight might cause the white king some troubles.} 31. Qf3 Kg7 32. a3 h5 33. h4 $1 {Seemingly illogical, placing the pawns on the same colour as the bishop, but preventing the possibility of h5-h4 which could weaken the f4.} Qc2 34. Qb7 Qa4 35. Qf3 b5 {Sooner or later Black is going to organise a passed pawn on the queenside.} 36. f5 {With must hurry up with his counterplay against the black monarch.} gxf5 37. Qxf5 Qxa3 38. Qxh5 a5 39. Qg4+ Kf8 40. h5 $2 {The decisive mistake.} (40. Qh5 Qc3 41. Qh8+ Ke7 42. Qf6+ Ke8 43. Qh8+ Kd7 {Otherwise it's a perpetual check.} 44. Qf6 Qc6+ 45. Kg1 Nd8 46. e6+ $1 Qxe6 47. Qg5 {[%csl Gh4] White is not worse as his h-pawn is also very dangerous.}) 40... Qc1 $1 {Preventing the further advance of White's h-pawn.} 41. Qe4 b4 42. Be3 Qc7 (42... Qc8 {was also strong} 43. h6 b3 $19 {[%cal Gc8c2]}) 43. Qa8+ Kg7 44. h6+ Kh7 45. Qe4+ Kg8 46. Qa8+ Qd8 {No perpetual check.} 47. Qxd8+ (47. Qf3 Qd3 48. Qg4+ Kh7 {is also hopeless for White.}) 47... Nxd8 48. Kf3 a4 49. Ke4 Nc6 50. Bc1 Na5 $1 51. Bd2 b3 52. Kd3 Nc4 $1 {The knight assists the passed pawns very effectively.} 53. Bc3 a3 54. g4 Kh7 55. g5 Kg6 56. Bd4 b2 57. Kc2 Nd2 {White has to give up a piece, so he resigned.} 0-1

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.20"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D93"]
[WhiteElo "2757"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Bf4 ({Easily the most sensational try to dent the Grünfeld in London was} 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. h4 $5 {by Grischuk. Morozevich played this flank sortie in blitz last year, but Carlsen could have hardly expected it and reacted cautiously with} c6 ({In a later game Black already played the more active and straightforward} 5... c5 6. dxc5 Na6 $5 $146 7. h5 O-O 8. hxg6 fxg6 9. Bh6 Bxh6 10. Rxh6 dxc4 11. Rh4 Nxc5 12. Rxc4 b6 13. b4 Qxd1+ 14. Rxd1 Ba6 15. e3 Ncd7 16. Rcd4 Bxf1 17. Kxf1 Rfc8 18. Ne2 Nf8 19. Nf4 Rc2 20. a4 Rac8 21. b5 Ra2 $11 {Morozevich,A (2758)-Mamedyarov,S (2766)/Zug/2013/}) 6. Bg5 O-O 7. Bxf6 Bxf6 8. h5 Bf5 9. e3 e6 10. hxg6 Bxg6 11. Bd3 Nd7 12. Qe2 e5 13. Bxg6 hxg6 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Rd1 Qa5 17. Kf1 Rad8 18. Nd4 Qc5 19. Nb3 Qc6 20. Na5 Qc7 21. Nb3 Qc6 22. Na5 $11 {½, Grischuk,A (2764)-Carlsen,M (2872)/London Candidates/2013/}) 4... Bg7 5. Nf3 ({Carlsen would undoubtedly welcome a repetition of his previous Grünfeld encounter with Ivanchuk, when Black easily solved his opening problems and even got a slight edge after} 5. e3 c5 6. dxc5 Qa5 7. Qb3 Na6 $5 8. cxd5 Nxc5 9. Qb5+ Qxb5 10. Bxb5+ Bd7 11. Rd1 Nh5 12. Bxd7+ Kxd7 13. Bg3 b5 14. d6 e6 15. Nf3 b4 16. Nb5 Nxg3 17. hxg3 Rab8 18. Nbd4 h5 19. Rh4 f5 20. Ne2 e5 21. Rc4 Rhc8 22. Kf1 Ne4 23. Rc7+ Rxc7 24. dxc7+ Kxc7 25. Nd2 Nxd2+ 26. Rxd2 a5 $11 {/, Ivanchuk,V (2775)-Carlsen,M (2826)/Moscow/2011/ For more details see the notes to this game in CBM 146 by Ramirez Alvarez.}) 5... O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Qa5 {The text move is the main continuation.} ({In round 11 we had the less usual} 7... Ne4 8. Rc1 {with the recent twist} Nd7 $5 ({The older move is} 8... Nxc3) 9. cxd5 Qa5 10. Nd4 Nxc3 $5 (10... Ndxc5 11. Bc4 (11. Qc2 Bf5 $5 12. Nxf5 gxf5 $44) 11... Nxc3 12. bxc3 e5 13. dxe6 Bxe6 14. Bxe6 Nxe6 15. Nxe6 Bxc3+ 16. Kf1 fxe6 17. Qb3 Qa6+ 18. Kg1 Bf6 19. h3 Rad8 20. Kh2 Rd2 21. Rc2 Rxc2 22. Qxc2 Qc6 23. Qxc6 bxc6 24. Rc1 Rc8 25. Bd6 Kf7 $11 {/, Gustafsson,J (2633)-Safarli,E (2630)/Porto Carras/2011/ The endgame is somewhat unpleasant for Black due to his split pawns, but he managed to hold it rather easily.}) 11. bxc3 Qxa2 12. c6 (12. Qb3 Qxb3 13. Nxb3 a5 14. c6 Nf6 15. d6 bxc6 16. dxe7 Re8 17. Nd4 Bd7 18. Bd6 Ne4 19. Ba3 c5 20. Bd3 Rxe7 21. Bxe4 Rxe4 22. Bxc5 Rc8 23. Ba3 f5 $44 {Fridman,D (2655)-Kramnik,V (2799)/Dortmund/2012/ Black drew with ease, his bishops give him full compensation.}) 12... Nc5 13. Be2 (13. c4 $6 {Somogyi,I (2290)-Kun,S (2295)/HUN-chT/1992/} e5 $1 14. dxe6 fxe6 $32 {} (14... Qa5+ $5 $40)) 13... Qxd5 14. Bf3 Qc4 15. Be2 Qd5 (15... Qa2 $5 $13 {is an interesting attempt to avoid an immediate draw}) 16. Bf3 Qc4 17. Be2 Qd5 {½, Ivanchuk,V (2757)-Gelfand,B (2740)/London Candidates/2013/}) 8. Rc1 Rd8 {Carlsen chooses a rare line, spoiling for a fight. Possibly he wanted to surprise his opponent, who had problems with time management in London. However, Black will soon come under pressure.} ({There has been some recent development in another sideline} 8... Ne4 {Perhaps more testing is} 9. cxd5 (9. Be5 Bxe5 (9... Nxc3 $143 $6 10. Bxc3 Bxc3+ 11. Rxc3 $16 Qxa2 12. Qc1 Qa5 13. cxd5 Nd7 14. Nd2 Rd8 15. Be2 f5 16. f3 Nf6 17. e4 fxe4 18. fxe4 $18 {Korotylev,A (2574)-Tilicheev,V (2366)/Moscow/2012/}) 10. Nxe5 Nc6 $1 ({This is the new twist.} 10... Nxc3 $2 {is hopeless:} 11. Rxc3 Qxa2 12. Qc1 {[%cal Rc3a3]} Qa4 13. b3 Qa5 14. cxd5 Nd7 15. Nxd7 Bxd7 16. f3 Rfc8 17. Kf2 Qb4 18. Be2 $16 {Novikov,I (2490)-Epishin,V (2350)/Minsk/1986/}) 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. cxd5 {is critical:} (12. a3 Rb8 13. Qa4 Qxc5 14. b4 Nxc3 (14... Qd6 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Be2 c5 17. O-O cxb4 18. c5 Qe5 19. axb4 Qb2 20. Rfe1 Rxb4 {Simantsev,M (2549)-Misailovic,N (2301)/Kraljevo/2011/} 21. Qa5 $1 $36 {[%csl Gc5]}) 15. Rxc3 Qb6 16. c5 $6 (16. cxd5 cxd5 17. Rc6 Qb7 18. Ba6 Qa8 19. Rc7 d4 $132) 16... Qc7 17. Bd3 Qe5 18. Rc1 d4 19. O-O dxe3 $15 {Docx,S (2426)-Kanep,M (2512)/Caleta/2013/}) 12... Nxc3 13. Qd2 {, but Black has} Rb8 $1 14. Qxc3 (14. Rxc3 Rd8 15. d6 (15. Bc4 cxd5 16. Bb3 Ba6 $44) 15... Qxa2 16. dxe7 Re8 $44) 14... Qxa2 (14... Qxc3+ 15. bxc3 cxd5 16. c4 Be6 $11) 15. Bc4 Qxb2 16. Qxb2 Rxb2 17. dxc6 Be6 $11) 9... Nxc3 10. Qd2 Qxa2 11. bxc3 (11. Rxc3 $5 Bxc3 12. Qxc3 Nd7 $5 $13) 11... Qa5 $13 {, but even this position is not quite clear.}) ({Definitely the main alternative is} 8... dxc4 {but this has a drawish reputation after} 9. Bxc4 Qxc5 10. Bb3 Nc6 11. O-O Qa5 12. h3 Bf5 13. Qe2 Ne4 {After} 14. Nd5 (14. Nxe4 Bxe4 15. Rfd1 h6 $5 (15... Qh5 {Aronian,L (2802)-Svidler,P (2755)/Moscow/2011/ For more details about the whole line see my notes to this game in CBM 146}) 16. Rd7 Rac8 17. Rcd1 Qb4 18. R7d2 (18. Nd2 Bf5 19. Rd5 Rfd8 20. a3 Qb6 $36 21. Rxf5 gxf5 22. Qh5 {Bulatov,R (2208)-Nevostrujev,V (2449)/Pavlodar/2012/} e6 23. Bxh6 Ne5 $17) 18... a6 19. Bc2 Bxc2 20. Rxc2 e5 21. Bg3 Rcd8 (21... e4 $5) 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Nd2 f5 24. f3 Qd6 25. a3 Kh7 26. Be1 h5 27. Nc4 Qe6 28. Na5 $11 {Shimanov,A (2599)-Areshchenko,A (2710)/St Petersburg/2012/}) 14... e5 {White has lately tried} 15. Bg5 (15. Bh2 Be6 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Qc4 Nf6 18. e4 Rac8 19. Ng5 Nd4 $11 {is a more or less forced draw}) 15... Nxg5 16. Nxg5 Qd8 17. h4 $5 (17. Nf3 e4 18. Nh2 Ne5 19. Rfd1 Nd3 20. Rc2 a5 $36 {Dzagnidze,N (2559)-Lahno,K (2546)/Gaziantep rpd/2012/}) {, but even here the excitement peters out into perpetuals after} 17... h6 18. g4 Bd7 19. Ne4 Qxh4 20. f3 Kh8 21. Rf2 f5 22. Rh2 Qd8 23. Rxh6+ $1 Bxh6 24. Qh2 Kg7 25. Rxc6 $1 fxe4 (25... Bxc6 26. Qxe5+ Kh7 27. Ndf6+ Rxf6 28. Nxf6+ Kh8 29. Ng8+ Kh7 30. Nf6+ Kh8 31. Ng8+ {½, Cmilyte,V (2503)-Lahno,K (2557)/Tbilisi rpd/2012/}) 26. Qxe5+ Kh7 27. Nf6+ Rxf6 28. Rxf6 Be8 29. g5 Rc8 (29... Qd2 30. gxh6 Qxe3+ 31. Kf1 Kxh6 32. Qh2+ Kg7 33. Rxg6+ Kxg6 34. Qd6+ Kh7 35. Qe7+ Kg6 36. Qd6+ Kh7 37. Qe7+ Kg6 38. Qd6+ {½, Jobava,B (2734)-Areshchenko,A (2702)/Burgas/2012/}) 30. Bd5 $2 (30. fxe4 Bxg5 31. Qxg5 Kg7 32. Rf5 $11) 30... Bxg5 $2 (30... Rc1+ 31. Kg2 Qc8 $1 $19) 31. Qxg5 Kg7 32. Rf5 exf3 33. Qg3 Qe7 34. Rxf3 $11 {Nielsen,P (2687)-Nyback,T (2627)/Bundesliga/2012/}) 9. Qa4 {The best way to fight for an advantage. After other moves Black has more than one way to achieve a satisfactory position:} (9. Nd2 dxc4 10. Bxc4 Nc6 (10... Na6 $5 11. a3 Qxc5 12. b4 Qh5 13. Qxh5 Nxh5 14. Bg5 Nf6 15. Ke2 Nc7 16. Rhd1 Be6 17. Bxe6 Nxe6 18. Bh4 {½, Vallifuoco,G (2285)-Stone,R (2305)/Dubai olm/1986/}) 11. Bb3 $6 (11. Qb3 $142 $5 $14) 11... Bf5 12. O-O Nb4 13. Bc4 Nd3 14. Bxd3 Bxd3 15. Nb3 {Bykhovsky,A (2405)-Manor,I (2510)/Tel Aviv/1996/} Qa6 16. Re1 Ne4 $17) (9. Qb3 Na6 (9... Ne4 10. cxd5 Nd7 11. Nd4 Ndxc5 12. Qb5 Qxb5 13. Ncxb5 e5 14. dxe6 Nxe6 15. Nxe6 (15. Nc7 $5 $14) 15... Bxe6 16. f3 Nd2 $6 (16... Nf6 $44) 17. b3 a5 18. Nc7 Rac8 19. Bb5 g5 20. Bxg5 $6 (20. Bg3 $1 $16) 20... Rd5 21. Bf4 Nxb3 22. Rb1 Rxc7 23. Bxc7 Rxb5 24. axb3 a4 $36 {Farago,I (2475)-Rajna,G (2405)/HUN-ch/1974/}) (9... Qxc5 10. Be2 (10. Rd1 Qa5 11. Be2 Na6 (11... Ne4 $1 $11 {/}) 12. O-O Nc5 13. Qb5 Qxb5 14. Nxb5 Bf5 15. Nfd4 dxc4 16. Nxf5 gxf5 17. Bxc4 Nfe4 18. b4 {Tukmakov,V-Dueball,J/Kiev/1970/} Na4 $132) 10... Nc6 11. O-O dxc4 12. Qxc4 (12. Bxc4 $142 $1 {} Na5 13. Bxf7+ Kf8 14. Qa4 {[%cal Rb2b4]}) 12... Qb6 13. Qb5 Qxb5 14. Bxb5 Bd7 15. h3 a6 16. Be2 Bf5 17. Rcd1 Ne4 18. Rxd8+ Rxd8 19. Na4 e5 20. Bh2 Be6 21. b3 Nb4 $36 {De Greif,B-Uhlmann,W/Havana/1963/}) 10. Qb5 Qxb5 11. Nxb5 Bd7 12. Nc7 $6 (12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Be5 f6 $11) 12... Nxc7 13. Bxc7 Rdc8 14. Be5 Rxc5 15. b4 Rcc8 16. c5 a5 17. b5 Ne4 18. Bd4 f6 19. Nd2 Nxd2 20. Kxd2 e5 21. Bb2 Bf8 22. Ba3 b6 $17 {Portisch,F (2425)-Sax,G (2530)/Budapest/1976/}) 9... Qxc5 {Natural enough.} ({However, White also has to reckon with} 9... Qxa4 10. Nxa4 Nc6 11. Ne5 $5 (11. Nc3 Ne4 $1 12. Be2 $6 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 dxc4 14. Bxc4 Nxc5 15. O-O Be6 16. Bxe6 Nxe6 17. Bg3 Rac8 18. Nd4 Nc5 19. Rfd1 f6 $15 {Portisch,L (2600)-Adorjan,A (2490)/Frankfurt rpd/1998/}) (11. Bc7 $5 Rd7 12. Bg3) 11... Be6 (11... Nxe5 12. Bxe5 Be6 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Nc3 a5 $44) 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Bc7 Rd7 14. Be5 (14. Ba5 $5 d4 15. exd4 Rxd4 16. b3 $14) 14... Rad8 15. Be2 dxc4 16. O-O Ne4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 19. Rxd1 {1-0 Mac Kenzie,G-Mondaca,O (2160)/Buenos Aires 1993/EXT 1999 (30)} Rb8 $1 {[%cal Rb8b4]} 20. Rd4 c3 $36) 10. b4 (10. Qb5 Qxb5 (10... Na6 $5) 11. Nxb5 Na6 12. Nc7 Nxc7 13. Bxc7 Re8 14. Be5 Bd7 15. Be2 Bc6 16. O-O Nd7 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. cxd5 Bxd5 19. Bb5 Red8 20. Rc7 Nb6 21. Rfc1 Kf6 22. h4 Rd6 23. b3 a6 24. Bc4 Bc6 25. Nd4 Nd5 {Orndahl,M (2170)-Li,C (2529)/Taby/2007/} 26. Bxd5 $11) ({RR} 10. Qb5 Na6 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Be5 Nxc3 13. Qxc5 Nxc5 14. Bxc3 Bxc3+ 15. Rxc3 Na4 16. Rb3 b6 17. Bb5 Bd7 18. Ke2 Nc5 19. Bxd7 Nxb3 20. axb3 Rxd7 21. Rc1 Rad8 22. Rc2 f6 23. Nd4 Kf7 24. f4 Rd6 {Rustemov,A (2525)-Kovalev,V (2637) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1}) 10... Qc6 11. Qa3 $1 $146 {[%cal Yb4b5,Ga3e7][%mdl 8] An interesting novelty, judging by the consumption of time Ivanchuk invented it over the board.} (11. Qb3 Ne4 $1 (11... a5 12. b5 Qc5 13. a3 a4 14. Nxa4 Qa7 15. Bc7 $1 Rd7 16. Bb6 Qxa4 17. Qxa4 Rxa4 18. cxd5 $18 {[%csl Rc8] Farago,I (2500)-Vadasz,L (2495)/Budapest/1977/}) 12. Be5 (12. Nb5 Na6 13. Bd3 Nac5 (13... dxc4 $1 14. Bxc4 Be6 $15) 14. bxc5 Nxc5 15. Qa3 $4 (15. Qc2 Nxd3+ 16. Qxd3 Bf5 17. Qb3 $14) 15... Bb2 {0-1, Mikhalchishin,A-Vaganian,R/Valencia/1974/}) 12... Bxe5 13. Nxe5 Qf6 (13... Qd6 $2 14. Nxf7 Kxf7 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. c5+ Be6 17. cxd6 Bxb3 18. dxe7 Kxe7 19. axb3 Nd7 20. Bb5 $14 {Urday Caceres,H (2470)-Yermolinsky,A (2590)/Moscow olm/1994/}) 14. Nf3 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 16. Rxc3 Nc6 17. b5 Na5 18. cxd5 Rxd5 19. Bd3 Bd7 20. e4 Rd6 21. Ke2 Rd8 22. Ke3 Be6 $11 {Karsa,L (2200)-Sax,G (2530)/Budapest/1976/}) ({It's not so simple for Black even after other moves:} 11. b5 Qc5 12. Qb3 (12. Be5 Nbd7 (12... Ne4 13. Bd4 Nxc3 14. Rxc3 {Roeder,M (2365)-Pusch,H/Porz/1989/} Nd7 15. Be2 $5 $14) 13. Bd4 Qc7 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Qa3 Nxc3 17. Rxc3 Qd6 18. Qxd6 exd6 19. Be2 Nc5 20. O-O a6 21. bxa6 Nxa6 22. Nd4 Nc5 $11 {Laux,T-Wild,H/Porz/1989/}) 12... Bg4 13. Na4 (13. Ne5 $5 Be6 14. Na4 Qc8 15. Qa3 d4 16. Be2 $14) 13... Qc8 {Here White would have profited from having his queen already on a3!} 14. Be2 (14. Qa3 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Qf5 16. Nb6 e5 $36) 14... Ne4 15. Rc2 Nd7 (15... e5 16. cxd5 Qf5 17. Bg3 Nxg3 18. hxg3 e4 19. Nd4 Bxd4 20. Bxg4 Qxg4 21. exd4 Nd7 {Lukacs,P (2450)-Sax,G (2565)/Budapest/1977/} 22. Rh4 $1 Qg5 23. d6 $16) 16. cxd5 Ndc5 17. Nxc5 Nxc5 18. Qb4 (18. Qa3 $5 b6 19. e4 $14) 18... b6 19. O-O Qf5 20. Rc4 Qxd5 21. h3 Bf5 $11 {Farago,I (2500)-Gulko,B (2585)/Polanica Zdroj/1977/}) (11. Qxc6 bxc6 (11... Nxc6 12. b5 Nb4 $2 (12... d4 $1 13. Nd1 e5 $13) 13. a3 Ne4 14. Be5 Nxc3 15. Rxc3 a5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 {Petrov,I (2190)-Petkov,V (2375)/Sofia/2004/} 17. Rc1 $1 $16 {[%csl Rb4]}) 12. cxd5 (12. Nd4 Ne4 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Bxb8 Bxd4 15. Bc7 Bb2 16. Rc2 Rd7 17. Rxb2 Rxc7 18. Be2 a5 19. bxa5 Be6 20. O-O Rxa5 21. Rc1 Rca7 22. Rcc2 Kg7 $15 {Urday Caceres,H (2480)-Olafsson,H (2525)/Manila olm/1992/}) (12. Bc7 Rd7 (12... Re8 $5) 13. Ba5 Rb7 (13... Ne4 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Ng5 c5 16. Nxe4 cxb4 17. Bxb4 Na6 18. Bc3 Bb7 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Nc3 Rad8 $44 {Kortschnoj,V-Stein,L/Moscow/1964/}) 14. cxd5 Bd7 {Sorensen,T (2480)-Loeffler,B (2340)/corr/1991/} 15. Na4 $5 $36) 12... Nxd5 13. Nxd5 cxd5 14. Bc7 Re8 15. Nd4 e5 16. Nb5 Na6 17. Ba5 Bf8 {½, Ruchlin,V (2304)-Stern,W (2551)/corr/1980/} 18. a3 $14) ({RR} 11. Qb3 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Qe8 13. Bc7 Rd7 14. Ne5 e6 15. Nxd7 Bxd7 16. b5 Qe7 17. O-O Be8 18. Bg3 Nbd7 19. Rfd1 Qc5 20. Be2 Qg5 21. h4 Qf5 22. e4 Nxe4 23. Nxe4 Qxe4 24. Bf3 Qf5 25. Bxb7 Rd8 {Agdestein,S (2559)-Gjestemoen-VonHirsch,A (2309) Oslo NOR 2024 1-0}) 11... dxc4 {Carlsen senses the danger and resolves the tension.} (11... Be6 12. Nd4 Qe8 (12... Qd7 13. Na4 $36) 13. Ncb5 Na6 14. Nxe6 fxe6 15. Be2 $36) (11... Bf5 12. b5 (12. Nd4 Qd7 13. b5 $14 {[%csl Rb8]}) 12... Qe8 13. cxd5 {} Nxd5 (13... Nbd7 $142 $5 $14) 14. Nxd5 Rxd5 15. Bc4 Rd7 (15... Rd8 16. Ng5 e6 17. e4 Bg4 18. h3 h6 19. hxg4 hxg5 20. Bxg5 Rd4 21. Qh3 Rxe4+ 22. Kf1 Nd7 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. Bh6 Bxh6 25. Qxh6+ Ke7 26. Qg5+ $18) 16. Ne5 Bxe5 17. Bxe5 $40) 12. b5 $146 ({RR} 12. Ne5 Qa6 13. Qxa6 Nxa6 14. Bxc4 e6 15. a3 Bd7 16. Ke2 Rac8 17. Rhd1 Nb8 18. Nxd7 Rxd7 19. Nb5 Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Ne4 21. Bd3 Nc3+ 22. Nxc3 Bxc3 23. Rc1 Nd7 24. Be4 e5 25. Bg3 Nb6 26. Bxb7 Rc7 {Chatalbashev,B (2563)-Deues,E (2019) Bad Woerishofen 2016 1-0}) 12... Qb6 (12... Qe8 $2 13. Bc7 $1 Nd5 (13... Rd7 14. Bxb8 $18) 14. Nxd5 Rxd5 15. Bxc4 Rh5 16. O-O $32 {[%csl Ra8,Rb8,Rc8,Rh5]}) 13. Bxc4 (13. Qxe7 $6 Bf8 14. Qc7 Ba3 $132) (13. Ne5 Qd6 $5 (13... Nbd7 14. Bxc4 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Bf5 (15... Be6 $2 16. Na4 Qa5+ 17. Bc3 Qc7 18. Bxe6 $18) 16. O-O $14) 14. Qb2 Qb6 15. Nxc4 (15. Bxc4 Be6 16. Qb3 Nbd7 $11) 15... Qc5 16. Be5 Be6 17. Na4 Qd5 $13) 13... Be6 $1 (13... e6 14. O-O $16 {is ideal for White, he has a lead in development, while Black's can't get his queenside pieces out.}) 14. Bxe6 (14. Be2 Nbd7 15. Nd4 Qc5 $11 (15... Bxa2 $5 16. Qxa2 e5 $11)) 14... Qxe6 15. O-O (15. Ng5 Qc4 $1 16. Nce4 Qxb5 17. Qxe7 Qa5+ 18. Kf1 Qb5+ 19. Kg1 Qd7 $1 $11 {} 20. Nxf6+ Bxf6 21. Qxf6 $4 Qd1+ 22. Rxd1 Rxd1#) 15... Nbd7 {Black decides to sacrifice a pawn just to get out his forces and swap a few pieces.} ({The resulting endgame will be admittedly difficult to win, but} 15... Bf8 $5 {seems to be objectively better. White must still prove he has anything tangible, in other words Black has chances to gradually neutralise the pressure:} 16. Ng5 (16. Ne2 Nbd7 17. Rfd1 Rdc8 $5 18. Bc7 (18. Rxc8 $6 Rxc8 19. Qxa7 Qc4 20. Ned4 Qd5 {[%cal Re7e5]}) 18... Nd5 $11) (16. e4 Nbd7 (16... Nxe4 17. Rfe1 Qf5 18. Rxe4 e5 19. Qa4 exf4 20. Rxf4 $40 {[%csl Rf7]}) 17. Rfd1 Nb6 $1 $132) 16... Qf5 $5 (16... Qc4 17. e4 $5 {[%cal Rc3d5]} (17. Qb2 Nbd7 $11) 17... e6 18. Qb2 Qb4 $8 19. Qxb4 Bxb4 20. e5 Bxc3 21. exf6 Bxf6 22. Ne4 Be7 23. Rc7 Nd7 24. Rxb7 Nc5 $14) 17. Qb3 e6 18. f3 {[%csl Rf5]} Nbd7 19. g4 Qc5 20. Nge4 Qa3 $11) 16. Ng5 (16. Nd4 Qb6 $11 17. Qxe7 $4 Bf8) 16... Qf5 17. Qxe7 Nh5 18. Rfd1 (18. Qe4 Nxf4 19. exf4 h6 20. Qxf5 gxf5 21. Nf3 Nc5 22. Nd1 $5 $14) 18... Nxf4 19. exf4 Bf8 20. Qe4 (20. Qe3 Nc5 $14 {/}) 20... Qxe4 21. Ncxe4 Nb6 $14 {[%mdl 4352] This is the endgame position Carlsen was aiming for. White has an extra pawn, but it's doubled and his queenside is vulnerable. Converting the small advantage requires superlative technique and maybe even some extra luck, Black proceeds to defend tenaciously and finally saves the game.} 22. g3 (22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. g3 Kg7 $14 {is similar to the game.}) 22... Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Be7 24. Nf3 (24. Rc1 $5 Rd8 25. Kg2 $14) 24... Rc8 25. Ne5 Rc7 ({Safe, but engines indicate the direct} 25... f5 $1 26. Ng5 (26. Nd2 Rd8 $11) 26... Rc5 27. Ne6 Rxb5 28. Rc1 Bd6 $11) 26. Kg2 f6 27. Nf3 Kf7 28. h4 Rc2 29. a4 (29. Rd2 Rxd2 30. Nfxd2 Ke6 $132) 29... Ra2 30. Nc3 Ra3 31. Rc1 Nxa4 {Here Carlsen got too optimistic and even declined a draw, later criticising his decision. There was no need to hurry with this capture, now White retains winning chances.} (31... a5 $142 $5 32. bxa6 bxa6 $11) (31... h5 32. Rc2 Ke8 33. Ne2 (33. f5 gxf5 34. Ne2 Rxa4 {} 35. Rc7 Kd8 36. Rxb7 $6 Nd7 {[%csl Rb7]} 37. Nfd4 Kc8 38. Rxa7 Rxa7 39. Nc6 Ra2 40. Nxe7+ Kd8 $15) 33... Bd6 34. f5 $5 Kf7 $132 (34... gxf5 35. Ned4 f4 36. Nf5 $14)) 32. Ne4 Rd3 33. Rc7 Ke6 (33... Ke8 $5 34. Rxb7 Rd7 35. Rb8+ Rd8 36. Rxd8+ Bxd8 (36... Kxd8 37. Nd4 {[%cal Rd4c6,Yf4f5]}) 37. g4 $14 (37. h5 $5 $14)) 34. Rxb7 (34. g4 $142 $1 Nb6 35. f5+ gxf5 36. gxf5+ Kf7 37. Rxb7 Rd7 38. Rxd7 Nxd7 39. Nd4 $36 {gives White more winning chances.}) 34... Rd7 35. Rb8 Rd8 36. Rb7 Rd7 37. Rxd7 Kxd7 {Contrary to the line above, Black has forced a rook swap, while his king remains active.} 38. Nd4 f5 $1 39. Ng5 (39. Nd2 $6 Nc3 {[%csl Rb5][%cal Ye7c5,Yd7d5]}) 39... Bxg5 (39... h6 $2 40. Nf7 {[%csl Rg6][%cal Yf7e5]}) (39... h5 $2 40. Nc6 $16 {[%cal Yc6a7,Yc6e5]}) 40. fxg5 Nc3 41. h5 (41. f4 Kd6 42. h5 gxh5 43. Nxf5+ Kc5 $132) 41... gxh5 $1 (41... Kd6 $6 42. Nxf5+ $1 {} gxf5 $2 43. g6 hxg6 44. h6 $18) 42. Kh3 Kd6 43. Kh4 Kd5 {Black will use his king to mount a counter-attack on White's pawns.} ({However, supporting his own passed pawn seems to hold as well after} 43... Kc5 44. Nxf5 Kxb5 45. Ne3 a5 46. f4 a4 47. f5 Ne4 48. f6 (48. g6 hxg6 49. fxg6 a3 50. g7 Nf6 51. Kg5 Ng8 52. Nc2 a2 53. Kxh5 Kc4 54. Kg6 Kc3 55. Na1 Kb2 56. Kf7 Nh6+ 57. Kg6 Ng8 $11) 48... Nd6 49. Nc2 Kc4 50. Kxh5 Kb3 $11) 44. Nxf5 Nxb5 45. Kxh5 Ke4 46. Ne3 (46. Ne7 a5 47. Kh6 a4 48. Nc6 a3 49. Nb4 Kf5 50. f4 Nc3 51. Kxh7 Ne4 52. g6 Nxg3 53. g7 Nh5 $11) 46... Nd6 $1 (46... a5 $2 47. Kh6 a4 48. Nc4 $18) 47. Kh6 Nf7+ {The defence finally triumphs, now the draw is unavoidable.} 48. Kxh7 (48. Kh5 Kf3 49. g6 hxg6+ 50. Kxg6 Kxf2 $11) 48... Nxg5+ 49. Kg6 Nh3 50. Nd1 Kf3 (50... a5 51. f4 Nxf4+ $11) ({Even} 50... Nxf2 $6 51. Nxf2+ Kd4 $1 {} (51... Kf3 $2 52. g4 Kxf2 53. Kf5 $1 a5 54. Ke4 Ke2 55. g5 a4 56. g6 $5 a3 57. g7 a2 58. g8=Q a1=Q 59. Qg2+ $18) 52. g4 (52. Nd1 a5 53. Nb2 Kc3 54. Na4+ Kb4 $11) 52... a5 53. g5 a4 $11 {is still a draw.}) 51. Kf5 Nxf2 52. Nxf2 Kxg3 53. Nd1 a5 54. Ke4 a4 55. Kd4 a3 56. Nc3 a2 57. Nxa2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.25"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2810"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Ne5 Nc6 8. Bxc6 bxc6 9. Nxc6 Qe8 10. Nxe7+ Qxe7 11. Qc2 e5 12. Rd1 Rb8 $146 ({RR} 12... exd4 13. Rxd4 Be6 14. Nc3 Rfd8 15. Rxd8+ Rxd8 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Rd1 Rb8 19. Rd2 Qe5 20. Kg2 Re8 21. Qa4 Ra8 22. Qc6 Rb8 23. f4 Qa5 24. e4 Kh7 25. f5 Bc8 26. Qxc4 Bb7 27. Qxf7 {Horvath,C (2546)-Lagumina,G (2326) Forni di Sopra 2015 1-0}) ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Nc3 Rad8 14. dxe5 Rxd1+ 15. Qxd1 Qxe5 16. Bf4 Qe6 17. f3 Qb6+ 18. Kg2 Qxb2 19. Qc1 Qb6 20. Rb1 Qc6 21. Qd2 a6 22. e4 h6 23. Qd4 Bc8 24. Be5 Be6 25. Rb2 Ne8 26. Rd2 f6 27. Bf4 {Cheparinov,I (2682)-Radjabov,T (2724) Dubai 2014 1-0 (77)}) ({RR} 12... Rd8 13. dxe5 Rxd1+ 14. Qxd1 Qxe5 15. Bf4 Qe7 16. Nc3 Bb7 17. Qd4 Qe6 18. Rd1 h5 19. f3 h4 20. g4 Qb6 21. Qxb6 cxb6 22. Bg5 h3 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rd7 Bc8 25. Rd8+ Kg7 26. Nb5 Bb7 27. Rxa8 {Xiu Deshun (2518)-Ho,I (1833) Shenzhen CHN 2025 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 12... exd4 13. Rxd4 Be6 14. Nc3 Rad8 15. Rxd8 Rxd8 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Rd1 Rxd1+ 19. Qxd1 Qe5 20. Kg2 g6 21. Qd2 Kg7 22. Qf4 Qc5 23. f3 Bf5 24. h4 h5 25. Qd2 Qe5 26. Kf2 Kh7 27. Qe3 {Kovalev,D (2487)-Koval,A (2196) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (50)}) 13. Nc3 h6 14. dxe5 Qxe5 15. Bf4 Qe7 16. Rd4 Be6 17. Rad1 Rb6 18. Qd2 Kh7 19. f3 Rfb8 20. Qe3 Rxb2 21. Rxc4 R2b7 22. Ra4 Re8 23. Rxa7 Rxa7 24. Qxa7 Qb4 25. Be5 $2 (25. Qd4 $14) 25... Nd5 26. Nxd5 Bxd5 27. Qxc7 Qc4 28. a3 f6 29. Qxc4 Bxc4 30. Bc3 Rxe2 31. Rd4 Bb5 32. Bb4 Re3 33. Kf2 Re2+ 34. Kg1 Re3 35. f4 Re2 36. Rd6 Rc2 37. g4 Bc6 38. Bd2 Bf3 39. h3 Ra2 40. Bb4 Rg2+ 41. Kf1 Rh2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.28"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D90"]
[WhiteElo "2764"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. h4 $5 {This extravagant move has some abstract justification. Black's position in the centre is not too stable, quite typically for the Grünfeld, so he might be not that well prepared against the brutal advance of the h-pawn.} c6 {Adding some stability to the centre, so as to parry h4-h5, at least for the time being.} ({If} 5... h5 6. Bg5 {the insertion of the moves h4 and ...h5 ensures that the g5-bishop is defended, rendering the typical ...f6-e4 ineffective.} c6 7. e3 $14 {Kadas,G (2224)-Bakos,B (2234)/Hungary 2006/EXT 2009 (0-1, 39)}) 6. Bg5 ({In the few games played with this line,} 6. cxd5 cxd5 7. Bf4 {In principle, the move h2-h4 does not seem to fit into what would otherwise be a marginally better position for White. Still, in the long run the threat h4-h5 may become real and if Black prevents it with ...h7-h5, things would already look coherent from White's point of view.} Nc6 8. e3 O-O 9. Ne5 (9. Be2 Bg4 10. O-O e6 11. Rc1 Rc8 {Melkumyan,H (2649)-Erdos,V (2637)/Germany 2013/CBM 153 (1/2, 58)}) 9... Qb6 (9... Be6 10. Nd3 b6 11. Be2 h5 12. Rc1 Bg4 13. f3 Bd7 14. b4 e6 15. Qb3 $14 {Nenezic,M (2400)-Maric,D (2207)/Belgrade 2013/CBM 152 Extra (1-0, 36)}) 10. Qb3 Qxb3 (10... Bf5 11. Be2 h5 {Sadorra,J (2431)-Gopal,G (2548)/Beijing 2008/CBM 126 Extra (1-0, 29)} 12. Qxb6 axb6 13. f3 $14) 11. axb3 Nb4 12. Kd2 h5 13. Nd3 Nc6 (13... Nxd3 14. Bxd3 {[%cal Gc3b5]} Bd7 15. Ra5 $14) 14. f3 Bf5 15. Ne5 $14 {Morozevich,A (2748)-Giri,A (2720)/Beijing 2012/ (1-0, 49). In all these games, White's better control in the centre and the king's centralisation make his position more pleasant.}) 6... O-O $146 {This flexible developing move invites White to display his cards.} (6... Ne4 7. cxd5 (7. e3 $5 $14) 7... cxd5 8. Qb3 Nxc3 {1/2 Wocke,R-Chandler,P/Wiesbaden 1988/GER}) 7. Bxf6 ({One possible problem is that the natural} 7. e3 {cuts off the bishop's retreat, allowing} Nh5 $5 {[%cal Gh7h6]}) 7... Bxf6 (7... exf6 $5 {might also be playable.} 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. e3 Nc6 {[%cal Gf6f5] There is no clear plan of attacking the d5-pawn, while Black enjoys free development.}) 8. h5 Bf5 {The bishop hurries to the defence of the kingside.} (8... dxc4 9. e4 b5 ({If} 9... Be6 {then White gains time to cut the dark-squared bishop out of the play completely:} 10. e5 Bg7 11. h6 Bh8 12. Ng5 Bd5 13. Qg4 Qb6 14. O-O-O Na6 15. f4 {Black will have to play the rest of the game with his bishop immobile on h8. Besides, his king is under constant pressure. Would the extra pawn and activity of the remaining pieces compensate for these important drawbacks? With Black, I would be afraid they would not.}) 10. e5 Bg7 {Now, the same plan is more difficult to carry out; Black would react with ...f6 if needed. White may play} 11. a4 $44 {, hoping that the queenside diversion would create favourable circumstances on the opposite wing.}) 9. e3 (9. Qb3 $5 dxc4 10. Qxb7 Qb6 11. Qxb6 (11. Qxa8 Qxb2 $19) 11... axb6 12. e4 Be6 13. e5 Bg7 (13... Bh8 {anticipates the white plan, but the bishop does not stand nicely on h8.}) 14. h6 $5 Bh8 15. Ng5 Bd5 16. f4 {The h8-bishop has been cut off play mechanically. On the other hand, Black has an advantage on the queenside and in some cases he could free his bishop with a knight sacrifice on e5 (following to ...f7-f6xe5). The final evaluation is not clear to me, since the computers do not always understand the notion of a trapped piece.}) 9... e6 10. hxg6 Bxg6 $1 (10... hxg6 11. Ne5 {exposes the bishop to the threat g2-g4 and forces Black to make some concession.} c5 (11... Bxe5 12. dxe5 Qg5 13. Qd4 Nd7 14. cxd5 exd5 15. O-O-O $36) 12. g4 cxd4 13. exd4 Be4 14. f3 Bh4+ 15. Ke2 f6 16. Nd7 $5 Qxd7 17. Rxh4 g5 18. Rh1 Bg6 19. cxd5 exd5 20. Kf2 $14) 11. Bd3 Nd7 12. Qe2 $146 (12. cxd5 cxd5 {[%cal Ge6e5] does not change things essentially.}) ({RR} 12. Qd2 Qa5 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Nh4 Rac8 15. f4 Bxh4+ 16. Rxh4 Nf6 17. Ke2 b5 18. f5 exf5 19. Nxb5 Qd8 20. Rh3 Re8 21. Rf1 Qd7 22. Nc3 Re7 23. Kd1 Qe6 24. Rff3 Rec7 25. Ke1 Rb8 26. Kf1 Qb6 {Salem,A (2594)-Lorparizangeneh,S (2277) Baku 2014 1-0 (56)}) 12... e5 $132 {Black clears the path for his Grünfeld bishop, which will compensate for the relative weakness of the Isolani.} 13. Bxg6 hxg6 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Rd1 Qa5 17. Kf1 {Grischuk keeps his rook on h1, in order to inhibit ...xc3.} (17. O-O Nxf3+ 18. Qxf3 Bxc3 19. Rxd5 Qxa2 20. bxc3 a5 $11) (17. Rxd5 Nxf3+ 18. Kf1 {looks trickier, but Black has some tricks as well:} Nd2+ $3 (18... Qc7 19. Qxf3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Qxc3 21. Qh3 $36) 19. Qxd2 (19. Rxd2 Bxc3 20. bxc3 Qxc3 $11) 19... Rad8 $1 $44) 17... Rad8 18. Nd4 Qc5 $11 (18... Rfe8 $2 19. Nb3 $16 {wins the d5-pawn.}) 19. Nb3 {White has no advantage at all and, fearing the pressure of the enemy minor pieces, immediately started peace negotiations. In view of the weakness of his central pawn, Black cannot avoid the repetition.} Qc6 20. Na5 Qc7 21. Nb3 Qc6 22. Na5 Qc7 23. Nb3 Qc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Candidates Tournament"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2013.03.31"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E32"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "178"]
[EventDate "2013.03.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 154"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. g3 {A rare plan in the 4.c2 system.} O-O 7. Bg2 e5 8. O-O (8. dxe5 Nxe5 9. Nxe5 dxe5 10. O-O c6 11. Rd1 Qe7 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. Ne4 Qe7 15. c5 Bf5 16. Rd6 Bxe4 17. Bxe4 Rfd8 18. Rad1 $14 {1-0 (59) Rajlich,I (2399)-Lomineishvili,M (2437) St Petersburg 2009}) 8... c6 (8... exd4 9. Nxd4 c6 10. a3 Bc5 11. Rd1 Ne5 12. Na4 Qe7 13. Nxc5 dxc5 {1/2 (46) Foisor,O (2495)-Hergott,D (2320) Saint John 1988} 14. Nf3 $14) 9. Rd1 Re8 (9... Qe7 $5 {is probably more accurate} 10. dxe5 $140 Nxe5) 10. dxe5 $1 {Otherwise 10...e4.} (10. Bg5 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 e4 12. Ne1 h6 13. Bf4 Nf8 14. Nc2 Ng6 15. Be3 d5 16. b3 Be6 17. h3 Qd7 18. Kh2 h5 $36 {0-1 (43) Vitiugov,N (2594)-Tomashevsky,E (2646) Moscow 2007}) 10... dxe5 11. a3 (11. Ng5 h6 12. Nge4 {is positionally wrong: White should not trade knights as Black's minor pieces get in each other's way.} Qc7 13. a3 Bf8 14. b4 Nxe4 15. Nxe4 f5 16. Nd2 Nf6 17. e4 a5 18. Rb1 axb4 19. axb4 Qf7 $132 {0-1 (46) Paulsen,D (2240)-Kuzmin,G (2545) Dortmund 1981}) 11... Bxc3 (11... Bf8 {deprives Black's d7-knight of a comfortable square.} 12. b4 a5 13. Rb1 $14) 12. Qxc3 Qe7 13. b4 $146 {A courageous move, active but weakening the c4-pawn (square).} ({RR} 13. Nh4 Nb6 14. b3 Bg4 15. h3 Bxe2 16. Re1 Bh5 17. f4 Nfd7 18. Bb2 f6 19. Kh1 Qc5 20. g4 Bf7 21. f5 Qf2 22. Nf3 Nc5 23. Nxe5 Nca4 24. bxa4 Nxa4 25. Nd3 Qg3 26. Qb4 Qxd3 27. Qxa4 Bxc4 {Shishkin,V (2509)-Franzen,J (2299) Police 2013 1-0 (35)}) 13... Nb6 14. Be3 $6 (14. a4 $5 e4 $140 15. Ng5 h6 16. a5 Nbd7 17. Nh3 $14) 14... Ng4 15. Nd2 ({It is hard to say whether White missed} 15. Bc5 $2 Na4 $1 {or simply made a mistake in evaluation but after the exchange of his important dark-squared bishop the position roughly equalises.}) 15... f5 16. h3 Nxe3 17. Qxe3 e4 (17... Qf7 $5 18. Rac1 Be6) 18. Rac1 $6 (18. c5 Nd5 19. Qd4 {[%cal Yd2c4,Yc4d6]} b5 $5 {leads to complex play. After the passive text move Black seizes the initiative.}) 18... Be6 19. Qc3 (19. c5 Nd5 20. Qd4 Rad8 21. Qe5 Nc7 $1 {, and White's knight can't get to c4 anymore.}) (19. f3 exf3 20. exf3 {(S.Zagrebelny) is hardly enough: after} Qf6 21. Bf1 Bf7 22. Qf2 Na4 {White's position is very unpleasant.}) 19... Rad8 20. Bf1 (20. c5 Nd5 21. Qe5 {was relatively better after all.}) 20... c5 $6 {Black fails to demonstrate prophylactic thinking (how to anticipate White's idea 21.e3 ?) and misses a strong resource:} (20... Bf7 $1 21. e3 {(what else?)} Bh5 22. Re1 Nd7 $17 {[%cal Yd7e5] (indicated by S.Zagrebelny and other commentators)}) 21. bxc5 Na4 22. Qb4 Nxc5 23. Nb3 {After this the position nearly equalises.} Rxd1 24. Rxd1 Na6 (24... Nxb3 25. Qxb3 Rc8 26. e3 {is hardly enough, too.}) 25. Qxe7 Rxe7 26. e3 Kf7 27. Be2 b6 28. Rd8 Nc5 29. Nd4 (29. Nxc5 bxc5 30. Rb8 {was good enough. But after the text move White obtains a strong outpost on d4, compensating for Black's c5 stronghold.}) 29... Kf6 30. Kf1 Rd7 31. Rf8+ Bf7 32. Ke1 g6 33. h4 h6 34. Rc8 Be6 35. Rf8+ Rf7 36. Rh8 Rc7 37. Nb5 Rd7 38. Nd4 h5 {Otherwise h4-h5 could be an issue.} 39. Rf8+ Bf7 40. Rc8 Ke5 41. Ra8 a6 42. Rc8 Rd6 43. Nc6+ Kf6 44. Nd4 Be6 45. Rf8+ Ke7 46. Ra8 Rd7 47. Rb8 (47. Kd2 {was simpler.}) 47... Rb7 48. Rxb7+ {Why? White's rook was more active, and Black couldn't make any progress. The minor piece endgame should also be drawn but it requires accuracy from White as Black has ways to improve his position.} Nxb7 {[%mdl 4096]} 49. Kd2 Kd6 50. Kc3 Bf7 51. Nb3 Ke5 52. Bf1 a5 53. Be2 Be6 54. Bf1 Bd7 55. Be2 Ba4 56. Nd4 Nc5 57. Kb2 Be8 58. Kc3 Bf7 59. Nc6+ Kd6 60. Nd4 Nd7 {Black finds a plan: ...e5, c5 and ...a4 with a semblance of zugzwang.} 61. Nb5+ Kc5 62. Nd4 Ne5 63. Nb3+ Kc6 64. a4 $6 {A move, which amazed spectators and commentators. In normal circumstances a strong GM would never make such a move (creating a new serious weakness in his camp) even at gunpoint. GM Teimour Radjabov was probably in extremely bad shape. Meanwhile, the zugzwang was just an illusion; White simply needs to realise that he can play f2-f3 at some point:} (64. Nd4+ Kd6 65. Nb3 a4 66. Nd2 Kc5 {Zugzwang?} 67. f3 $1 (67. Bd1 Ng4 68. Bxa4 Nxf2 {is indeed risky}) 67... exf3 68. Nxf3 Nxf3 (68... Nxc4 69. Bxc4 Bxc4 70. Ne5) 69. Bxf3 Bxc4 {- White loses a pawn but after} 70. e4 Be6 71. exf5 Bxf5 72. Bg2 {Black can never break through.}) (64. Kd4 Kd6 65. Nd2 Nc6+ 66. Kc3 {[%cal Yf2f3] was possible, too.}) 64... Kd7 65. Nd4 Kd6 66. Nb5+ Kc5 67. Nd4 Be8 68. Nb3+ (68. Kb3 Bd7 {This is indeed zugzwang!} 69. f3 (69. Bf1 Ng4) (69. Nc2 Nd3) 69... exf3 70. Nxf3 Ng4 $19 {is now a completely different story!}) 68... Kd6 69. c5+ Kc7 $1 (69... bxc5 70. Nxa5 Bxa4 71. Nc4+ {is a draw.}) 70. Kd4 Nc6+ 71. Kc3 Ne7 $1 72. cxb6+ Kxb6 73. Nd2 Bxa4 74. Nc4+ Ka6 $1 75. Na3+ Kb7 76. Nc4 Ka6 77. Na3+ Ka7 $1 {Black holds his extra pawn and gets fair winning chances.} 78. Kd4 (78. Nc4 Bb5) 78... Nc6+ 79. Kc5 Ne5 (79... Nb4 $5 80. Nb5+ Kb7 81. Nc3 Bb3) 80. Nc4 $2 {Probably the decisive mistake.} (80. Kd4 $1 {was the right way although even after} Nd3 {(recommended by Alexey Dreev during a live broadcast)} (80... Nc6+ 81. Kc5 Nb4 {is possible, too}) 81. Bxd3 exd3 82. Kxd3 Bb3 {we can't assume it is a clear draw.}) 80... Nd3+ 81. Kd4 ({Now} 81. Bxd3 exd3 82. Kd4 Bc2 83. Kc3 a4 {is hardly enough for a draw - both White's pieces are paralysed, and Black's king goes forward.}) 81... Nc1 $1 ({White probably expected something like} 81... Nxf2 82. Nxa5 Nh1 83. Ke5 Nxg3 84. Bc4 Kb6 85. Nb3 {with good chances to recapture one of Black's pawns and survive}) 82. Bf1 Bb5 83. Nxa5 $2 {Desperation under time pressure.} (83. Kc3 a4 84. Kb2 Nd3+ (84... Nb3 $5) 85. Bxd3 exd3 86. Nd2 Kb6 {leads to a setup mentioned in the comment to White's 81st move.}) 83... Bxf1 84. Nc6+ Kb6 85. Ne7 Nd3 86. Nxg6 Kc7 87. Ne7 Bh3 88. Nd5+ Kd6 89. Nf6 Bg4 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 1st"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2013.05.15"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2608"]
[BlackElo "2868"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2013.05.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 a5 7. Qc2 Bxd2+ 8. Qxd2 c6 9. a4 Ne4 $5 {A relatively unexplored continuation. Rather than sticking to his extra pawn, Black intends to return it and get a solid position with comfortable development and prospects for counterplay.} ({The main line goes} 9... b5 {, the last top level example being} 10. Na3 {Anand,V (2787)-Topalov,V (2805)/Sofia 2010/CBM 136/[Marin,M] (1-0, 32)}) 10. Qc2 {The most frequent and at the same time most natural answer. The queen attacks the knight and the pawn, allowing the rapid connection between the rooks. The only drawback of this move is placing the queen on a vulnerable square, causing White to spend another tempo after the predictable ...a6-b4.} (10. Qc1 {avoids this deffect, but is not without some hidden deffects.} Nd6 11. Ne5 Na6 {After this mechanical move, White has chances to retain an edge.} (11... Qb6 $5 {is based on the fact that with the queen on c1 White may not be so well prepared to sacrifice the d4-pawn.} 12. e3 f6 13. Nxc4 Nxc4 14. Qxc4 Qxb2 $44 {Black's extra pawn should compensate for White's space advantage and active bishop.}) 12. O-O O-O 13. Nd2 Nb4 14. Ndxc4 f6 15. Rd1 Nxc4 16. Nxc4 Bd7 17. e4 Be8 18. Qc3 $14 {Yevseev,D (2520)-Makarov,M (2518)/St Petersburg 2010/CBM 137 (1-0, 45)}) (10. Qe3 Nd6 (10... Qb6 11. O-O Qxb2 12. Na3 Nc3 13. Nd2 $16) 11. Nbd2 O-O 12. O-O b5 (12... Na6 {looks like an important alternative.} 13. Rfc1 Nb4 14. Nxc4 Nxc4 15. Rxc4 Qd6 {In view of the threat e5, Black has to delay ...b6 for a while.} 16. Rac1 Rd8 17. Ne5 $6 f6 18. Nd3 Nd5 19. Qd2 Nb6 {[%csl Ga4,Gd4]}) 13. Qf4 Bb7 14. e4 Na6 15. e5 Nf5 16. g4 Ne7 17. Ne4 Ng6 18. Qg3 Nb4 $13 {Ju Wenjun (2528)-Kosteniuk,A (2489)/Istanbul 2012 (1/2, 64)}) (10. Qf4 Nd6 ({With the queen on f4,} 10... Qb6 {looks more playable than after d2-e3, since the e2-pawn is hanging.} 11. O-O Qxb2 12. Nbd2 Nc3 13. Qe3 Nd5 $13) 11. Na3 Na6 12. Ne5 O-O 13. O-O Nb4 14. Naxc4 Nxc4 15. Nxc4 b6 16. Rfd1 Ba6 17. Rac1 Rb8 18. b3 Qe7 19. Rd2 f6 {Black has a flexible position and launched his counterplay a few moves later in Cioara,A (2483)-Landa,K (2641)/Germany 2012/CBM 152 (0-1, 40)}) 10... Nd6 11. Nbd2 (11. O-O Na6 12. Na3 Nb4 13. Qc1 b5 (13... O-O {is in the spirit of our main game.}) 14. Ne5 Ra6 15. Rd1 Bd7 16. e4 O-O 17. d5 cxd5 {1/2 Brunello,S (2475)-Korneev,O (2651)/Porto Mannu 2008/CBM 124 Extra. Massive simplifications are to be expected.}) (11. Ne5 Na6 (11... Qb6 {could be met with} 12. Na3 Qxd4 13. Naxc4 Nxc4 14. Nxc4 {, since the queen does not prevent the rapid rook activation in the centre.}) 12. Na3 (12. e3 Nb4 13. Qc3 O-O 14. O-O Qc7 15. Na3 b6 16. Naxc4 Nxc4 {1/2 Melkumyan,H (2593)-Nielsen,P (2670)/Aix-les-Bains 2011/CBM 142}) 12... Nb4 13. Qc3 Nd5 14. Qc2 Qb6 15. O-O-O {Quite an unusual plan. The king is not that exposed and could become active in the endgame.} Qb4 16. Naxc4 Nxc4 17. Qxc4 f6 18. Qxb4 axb4 19. Nd3 Rxa4 20. Kc2 Ke7 21. Kb3 Ra8 22. Ra1 Rxa1 23. Rxa1 Rd8 24. Ra7 Kd6 25. Nxb4 Nc7 $11 {(0-1, 57) Zablotsky,S (2518)-Maletin,P (2556)/Novokuznetsk 2007/EXT 2009. The reduced material on board and the excellent king centralisation allows Black to have confidence in his chances.}) (11. Na3 b5 (11... Na6 12. Nxc4 Nb4) 12. Ne5 (12. O-O Ra7 13. e4) 12... Ra6 13. O-O Rb6 {0-1 (40) Chapman,T (2279)-Shirov,A (2708)/Hinckley ENG 2013/TWC 965}) 11... Na6 12. Nxc4 Nb4 13. Nxd6+ Qxd6 14. Qd2 O-O 15. O-O Rd8 $146 {A new move which does not change the essence of the position, though.} (15... b6 16. Rac1 Ba6 17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. Bf1 Rfd8 19. Qf4 Qxf4 20. gxf4 f6 21. e3 {1/2 Ragger,M (2662)-Wojtaszek,R (2705)/Porto Carras 2011/CBM 146}) 16. Rfd1 b6 17. Qc3 $146 ({RR} 17. Rac1 Ba6 18. Ne5 Rac8 19. Nc4 Bxc4 20. Rxc4 b5 21. Rc5 Qxc5 22. dxc5 Rxd2 23. Rxd2 bxa4 24. Rd7 Na6 25. Ra7 Nxc5 26. Rxa5 Nd7 27. Rxa4 Kf8 28. Kf1 Ke7 29. Ke1 Rb8 30. Bxc6 Ne5 31. Ra7+ Kf6 {Unuk,L (2240)-Khomeriki,N (2338) Prague 2016 ½-½ (48)}) 17... Ba6 18. Rd2 Rac8 $11 {This is the kind of position Black has been aiming for. After the exchange of two minor pieces, Black's relative lack of space does not cause him any problems of coordination. The b4-knight is very strong and the thematic break ...c6-c5 is in the air.} 19. Rad1 Qe7 20. h4 c5 {Black could still have prepared this pawn break.} (20... Rc7 {[%cal Gf7f6,Ge7f7,Gc7d7] In the meanwhile, it would not be easy to suggest an active plan for White.}) 21. dxc5 Rd5 {This was probably meant to confuse the opponent and it eventually did.} (21... Rxd2 22. Qxd2 Qxc5 $11 {looks safe enough.}) 22. Rxd5 (22. Ne5 $5 {may have retained some initiative for White:} Bxe2 $1 (22... Rcxc5 23. Qe3 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 Nd5 25. Qb3 $14 {[%csl Gb6,Gd7][%cal Ge2e4]}) 23. Bxd5 Bxd1 24. Bc4 Bxa4 25. cxb6 {[%cal Gc3a3] This pawn will not be easy to eliminate, which keeps Black under some prolonged pressure.} Be8 (25... Qc5 26. Bxe6 $1 Qxc3 27. bxc3 fxe6 28. cxb4 axb4 29. Ra2 Bb5 30. b7 $18) 26. Qd4 (26. Qa3 Qc5) 26... Rb8 27. Bf1 Nd5 28. Nc4 Bb5 29. Qe5 Qf8 30. b3 $5 $14 {/=}) 22... Nxd5 23. Qe5 Qxc5 24. Bh3 Re8 25. Nd4 Kf8 26. Bf1 ({In for a penny...} 26. Bxe6 Nf6 (26... fxe6 $2 27. Nxe6+ Rxe6 28. Qxe6 $18) 27. Qf5 Qxf5 28. Bxf5 Bxe2 $11) 26... Rc8 {White did not play with a clear plan, but the position remains... safe for both sides. The next move is simply asking for trouble.} 27. Nb5 $2 (27. Nf5 Nf6 28. Qxc5+ Rxc5 29. Rd8+ Ne8 30. Nd6 (30. Nxg7 Kxg7 31. Rxe8 Rc2 32. b3 Rc1 33. Kg2 Bb7+ 34. f3 Bd5 35. Rb8 Bxb3 36. Rxb6 Bxa4 37. Ra6 Rc5 $15 {[%cal Ga4b3,Ga5a4]}) 30... Ke7 31. Rxe8+ Kxd6 32. Rd8+ Ke7 (32... Kc7 33. Rg8) 33. Rb8 $11) 27... Bxb5 28. axb5 Nf6 {The b5-pawn is very weak. Besides, the absence of the knight prevents White from creating any counterplay.} 29. Qd6+ Ke8 30. Qd3 Qd5 31. Qxd5 exd5 32. e4 (32. Rd2 Rc4 33. e3 Rb4 $17 {[%cal Ge8e7,Ge7d6]}) (32. e3 Rc2 33. b4 axb4 34. Rb1 Ng4 $17) 32... Rc2 $1 (32... dxe4 33. Rd6 Nd7 34. Bh3 Rc1+ 35. Kg2 Nc5 36. Rxb6 Rc2 $17 {This is not too easy to evaluate in advance, so Carlsen's choice must be regarded as more technical.}) 33. e5 (33. exd5 Rxb2 34. d6 Kd8) 33... Ne4 34. Rxd5 Rxb2 35. Rd4 Rb4 36. Rd1 (36. Rxb4 axb4 37. Bc4 Nd2 $19) 36... a4 $19 37. Bg2 Nc3 38. Bc6+ Ke7 39. Rd7+ Ke6 40. Ra7 Kxe5 (40... Kxe5 41. Kf1 (41. Rxf7 a3 42. Ra7 Ra4 $19) 41... Rb3 42. Be8 f6 {[%csl Rb5][%cal Ge5d4,Gd4c5,Gc5b4]}) 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 1st"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2013.05.18"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D63"]
[WhiteElo "2813"]
[BlackElo "2868"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2013.05.08"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Rc1 a6 8. Qc2 {This move is hardly dangerous for Black, as well as} (8. cxd5) (8. c5 {is crucial.}) 8... dxc4 {I don't like this move allowing White's bishop to come to c4 at once. Other popular options:} (8... h6) (8... c6) (8... Re8) 9. Bxc4 c5 {The most accurate move order.} (9... b5 10. Bd3 Bb7 (10... c5 11. Bxf6 Nxf6 12. Ne4 $1 Qa5+ 13. Ke2 Bb7 14. Nxf6+ Bxf6 {1/2 (24) Lisanti,A (2330)-Zude,A (2465) Bruchkoebel 1993} 15. dxc5 $14) 11. Bxf6 $5 Nxf6 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Bxe4 14. Qxe4 c5 15. dxc5 Qa5+ 16. b4 Qxa2 17. O-O a5 {0-1 (25) Boudiba,M (2373)-Triger,F (2196) Noisy le Grand 2003} 18. Ra1 $1 Qc4 19. Qxc4 bxc4 20. Rxa5 Rxa5 21. bxa5 Bxc5 22. Ra1 c3 23. Kf1 $14 {}) 10. Be2 (10. a4 cxd4 11. exd4 h6 12. Bd2 Nb6 13. Ba2 Bd7 14. O-O Rc8 $36 {0-1 (44) Tartakower,S-Kmoch,H Vienna 1928}) (10. O-O b5 11. Bd3 (11. Be2 cxd4 $1 12. Nxd4 Bb7 $11) 11... cxd4 (11... c4 $5 12. Be2 Bb7 13. a3 h6 14. Bh4 Rc8 15. e4 Nh5 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Qd2 Rfd8 18. Qe3 Nhf6 $11 {1/2 (57) Schmidt,W (2505)-Ardiansyah,H (2330) Dubai 1986}) 12. Nxd4 Bb7 13. Rfd1 h6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Be4 Bxe4 16. Nxe4 Bxd4 17. Rxd4 Rc8 18. Qxc8 {1/2 (18) Parmentier,X (2348)-Roos,J (2307) Germany 2003}) (10. dxc5 {is the most principled continuation:} Nxc5 11. O-O b5 12. Rfd1 (12. Be2 Bb7 (12... b4 13. Na4 Nxa4 14. Qxa4 Bd7 15. Qc2 h6 16. Bh4 Rc8 17. Qd2 a5 18. Qd4 Nd5 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Ne5 $14 {1-0 (43) Piket,J (2540)-Hjartarson,J (2555) Tilburg 1989}) 13. Rfd1 Qa5 $1 (13... Qb6 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. b4 $16 {1-0 (23) Piket,J (2500)-Ioseliani,N (2480) Spijkenisse 1989}) 14. a3 Rac8 $1 15. Nd2 (15. b4 Qxa3 16. bxc5 Rxc5 {[%cal Rb7f3,Rb5b4]}) 15... Na4 $15 {1/2 (30) Yanvarjov,I (2425)-Ubilava,E (2525) Villalba 1995}) 12... Qe8 $1 (12... Qb6 13. Be2 Bb7 $140 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. b4) 13. Be2 Bb7 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nxb5 axb5 16. Qxc5 Rxa2 17. Bxb5 Qa8 18. Bc6 Bxc6 19. Qxc6 {1/2 (19) Panelo Munoz,M (2418)-Gonzalez Garcia,J (2503) Barcelona 2006}) 10... b5 11. a4 b4 12. Ne4 cxd4 $146 {A minor improvement on the previous game. Pay attention to the fact that in this structure it is generally better for Black to trade the central pawns himself (...c5xd4) than to wait for White's d4xc5. Of course, Black should make sure that the invasion of White's knight (d4-c6) will not be dangerous:} (12... Bb7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. dxc5 Rc8 16. Qb3 Rxc5 17. O-O Qb6 18. Rc4 Rxc4 19. Qxc4 Rd8 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Qh5 Kg8 {1/2 (24) Tallaksen,G (2402)-Kveinys,A (2540) Oslo 2006 , and now, had White wished, he could have continued fighting for an edge by means of} 22. Rc1) ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Nxc5 Nxc5 15. dxc5 Rc8 16. Qb3 Rxc5 17. O-O Qb6 18. Rc4 Rxc4 19. Qxc4 Rd8 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Qh5 Kg8 22. Qg4+ Kh8 23. Qh5 Kg7 24. Qg4+ {½-½ (24) Ostmoe,G (2402)-Kveinys,A (2540) Oslo 2006}) 13. Nxf6+ (13. Nxd4 $144 Bb7) 13... Nxf6 14. Nxd4 Bb7 15. Nc6 {White decided to simplify the game.} (15. Bf3 $6 Rc8 16. Qb1 Rxc1+ 17. Qxc1 Bxf3 18. Nxf3 Qd3 {K.Landa}) (15. O-O Rc8 16. Qb3 Qa5 17. Bf3 Bxf3 18. Nxf3 h6 19. Bxf6 Bxf6 20. Rfd1 (20. Nd2 Qd5 21. Nc4 Bc3 $1 {K.Landa}) 20... Rc5 $36) 15... Bxc6 16. Qxc6 Rc8 (16... Qa5 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. b3 Bc3+ 19. Kf1 $11 {[%cal Yg2g3,Yf1g2]}) 17. Qxc8 Qxc8 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 19. O-O a5 (19... Rc2 20. Bxa6 Rxb2 21. Bc4 Rc2 22. Bb3 $11 {K.Landa}) 20. b3 Kf8 21. Bxf6 Bxf6 22. Rd1 Rc3 23. Bc4 h5 24. Kf1 Ke7 25. Ke2 Be5 26. h3 h4 27. Rd3 Rc2+ 28. Rd2 Rc3 29. Rd3 Rc2+ 30. Rd2 Rc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 8th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2013.06.13"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2803"]
[Annotator "Sumets,Andrey"]
[PlyCount "143"]
[EventDate "2013.06.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 d5 3. e3 c5 4. Bxf6 gxf6 5. dxc5 {White may opt for other possibilities.} (5. Bb5+ Bd7 6. Bxd7+ Qxd7 7. Qf3 (7. Nf3 Nc6 8. Nc3 cxd4 9. exd4 $6 (9. Nxd4 f5 10. O-O e6 11. Qh5 Bg7 12. Rad1 O-O $11) 9... O-O-O 10. Ne2 e5 11. O-O h5 12. Nh4 Rg8 $15 {Maslak,K-Bukavshin,I Ch-RUS Higher League Irkutsk 2010 0-1 (56)}) 7... cxd4 8. exd4 Nc6 9. Ne2 f5 10. O-O e6 11. Rd1 O-O-O 12. b3 Rg8 13. c4 dxc4 14. Nbc3 Bg7 (14... cxb3 $6 15. axb3 a6 16. d5 Ne5 17. Qe3 $44) 15. bxc4 Bxd4 16. Rab1 Ne5 17. Qh3 Qc6 $15 {Morozevich,A-Ponomariov,R Macedonia Palace GP Thessaloniki GRE 2013 1/2-1/2 (55)}) (5. c3 Nc6 (5... Qb6 $5 6. Qc2 Nc6 7. Nf3 cxd4 8. exd4 (8. Nxd4 e5 9. Nxc6 bxc6 10. Nd2 Rb8 11. b3 Bd6 12. Be2 O-O $15) 8... e5 9. Be2 e4 10. Nh4 f5 11. g3 f4 12. gxf4 Bh3 13. Rg1 Qd8 $17 {0-1 Alarcon Casellas,R-Peralta,F/Barbera del Valles ESP 2012 (36)}) 6. Nd2 e5 7. Ngf3 Be6 (7... e4 $5 8. Ng1 Qb6) 8. Bb5 Bd6 9. O-O Qc7 (9... e4 10. dxc5 exf3 11. cxd6 fxg2 12. Kxg2 Qxd6 13. Ne4 Qe7 14. Ng3 Rg8 $13) 10. dxe5 fxe5 11. e4 O-O-O 12. exd5 Bxd5 13. Qc2 Ne7 14. Bc4 Bxc4 15. Nxc4 Rhg8 16. Rfe1 (16. Rad1 $5) 16... f6 17. Qxh7 Ng6 18. Qxc7+ Bxc7 19. Rad1 $16 {Chernyshov,K-Movsesian,S Pardubice Rapid 2009 1-0 (57)}) (5. Nc3 Nc6 (5... e6 6. Qh5 Nc6 7. O-O-O cxd4 8. exd4 Bb4 9. Nge2 Bd7 10. Rd3 Qb6 11. g3 Na5 12. Bh3 f5 13. g4 (13. Bxf5 $1 exf5 $2 (13... Nc4 14. b3 O-O-O 15. Bh3 Nd6 $44) 14. Nxd5 Qc6 15. Nef4) 13... Nc4 14. b3 Ba3+ 15. Kb1 fxg4 16. Bxg4 O-O-O 17. Nd1 Nd6 $17 {Duong The Anh-Erdos,V Harkany 2008 0-1 (44)}) 6. Bb5 e6 7. Nf3 Bd7 8. O-O a6 9. Bxc6 Bxc6 10. dxc5 e5 11. Qe2 Qd7 12. b4 (12. Rfd1 $5 O-O-O 13. e4 d4 14. b4 Rg8 15. Nd5 Bxd5 16. exd5 Qxd5 17. Rab1 $13) 12... O-O-O 13. Rfd1 Rg8 14. g3 Qg4 15. e4 dxe4 16. Rxd8+ Kxd8 17. Rd1+ Kc8 18. Nd2 Qxe2 19. Nxe2 b6 $15 {Zhang Pengxiang-Naiditsch,A EU-Cup 22nd Fuegen 2006 1/2-1/2 (52)}) (5. c4 dxc4 6. Bxc4 cxd4 7. exd4 Bg7 8. Nc3 O-O 9. Nge2 Nc6 10. O-O f5 11. d5 Ne5 12. Bb3 Qd6 13. h3 Bd7 14. Ba4 Nc4 15. Bxd7 Qxd7 16. b3 Nb6 17. Qd3 Rac8 18. Rad1 Rc5 19. Qf3 Rfc8 20. Rd3 Kh8 {1/2-1/2 Miladinovic,I-Georgiev,K Bar 2008}) 5... e6 6. Nf3 (6. c4 dxc4 7. Qxd8+ Kxd8 8. Bxc4 Bxc5 9. Nc3 Ke7 10. a3 a6 11. Nf3 Nc6 {1/2-1/2 Miladinovic,I-Popovic,D/Vrnjacka Banja SRB 2012}) 6... Nd7 $146 {Black's plan is to regain the pawn with ...xc5 and put his bishop on the a1-h8 diagonal (...g7 and ...f5).} 7. c4 {It seems to me that this is the only way to fight for an advantage.} dxc4 8. c6 $1 (8. Bxc4 Nxc5 9. Nc3 Bg7 10. O-O O-O 11. Qe2 f5 {Black might have the better position.}) 8... Nb6 (8... Ne5 $5 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. Nxe5 fxe5 11. Bxc4 (11. cxb7 Bxb7) 11... bxc6 12. Nd2 Rb8 13. b3 Bb4 {Black's bishops compensate for the damaged pawn structure. I think that the position is equal.}) 9. Nbd2 {White needs to keep queens on the board. Otherwise he could find himself in a worse position.} (9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. Nbd2 (10. cxb7 $6 Bxb7 11. Nbd2 Rg8 12. O-O-O Ke7 $17) 10... c3 11. bxc3 bxc6 12. Be2 Kc7 13. O-O Rg8 {Black has better chances.}) 9... c3 10. bxc3 bxc6 11. Qc2 Bg7 12. Bd3 f5 (12... h6 {Who except a computer engine wants to make such moves if he has another choice?} 13. O-O O-O 14. Rfd1 Qc7 15. e4 Rd8 16. a4 $14) 13. e4 Qf6 (13... fxe4 $1 {I think it was the best move and Black even had some chances to seize the initiative.} 14. Bxe4 (14. Nxe4 Nd5 15. O-O O-O 16. Rab1 f5 17. Ng3 Qd6 (17... Bxc3 18. Ne2 Bf6 19. Qxc6 Bd7 20. Qd6 Bc8 21. Qc6 Bd7 $11) 18. Ne2) 14... Nd5 15. O-O f5 $1 {It is not easy to make a move like ...f5 before castling short but I believe that only Black could fight for an advantage after 15...f5} 16. Bxd5 (16. Bd3 O-O 17. Rfe1 Bxc3 18. Rab1 Qc7 19. Rb3 Bg7 20. Nc4 Rb8) 16... cxd5 {I don't see how White should play} 17. Rac1 (17. Rfe1 O-O 18. Nb3 Qc7 19. Rac1 e5 {White's strategy failed}) 17... O-O 18. c4 $6 e5 19. cxd5 e4 20. Ne1 Ba6 $19) 14. Rc1 {White should keep the tension in the centre.} (14. e5 $6 Qe7) (14. exf5 exf5 15. O-O O-O 16. Rac1 c5 17. Rfe1 Bd7 $11) 14... O-O 15. O-O c5 16. Rfe1 $146 {Magnus Carlsen didn't want to take the c4-pawn so he prepares the f1-square for his bishop.} (16. a4 c4 {now White must capture on c4} 17. Nxc4 (17. Bxc4 $2 Nxc4 18. Nxc4 Ba6 19. Qa2 Rac8 $17) 17... Nxc4 18. Bxc4 Bb7 19. Bd3 Rac8 20. c4 Rfd8 $44 {Black has some compensation for the pawn.}) ({RR} 16. a4 Bb7 17. Rfe1 c4 18. Bf1 fxe4 19. Nxe4 Qg6 20. a5 Na4 21. Re3 Bxe4 22. Rxe4 Nxc3 23. Rxc4 Qxc2 24. Rxc2 Rfc8 25. Rxc8+ Rxc8 26. g3 Rc5 27. a6 Ne4 28. Rxc5 Nxc5 {½-½ (28) Rasulov,V (2504)-Abasov,N (2587) Mersin 2017}) 16... Rd8 17. a4 (17. exf5 $5 exf5 18. Nc4 $1 (18. Nf1 $6 c4 (18... Nd5 $5 19. Ng3 Nf4 20. Bf1 Be6) 19. Be2 f4 20. Nd4 Bb7 21. Nd2 Qg6 22. Bf3 Bxf3 23. N2xf3 Qxc2 24. Rxc2 Nd5 $11) 18... Be6 19. Ne3 f4 20. Bxh7+ Kh8 21. Nf1 Nd5 22. Be4 Rab8 23. Bxd5 Bxd5 24. N1d2 {Black has the two bishops and some compensation for the sacrificed pawn but the position should be assessed in White's favour.}) 17... c4 ({At the press conference M. Carlsen suggested} 17... Nxa4 18. e5 (18. exf5 $5 exf5 19. Qxa4 Rxd3 20. Ne4 $1 Qe7 21. Neg5 Be6 22. Nxe6 fxe6 23. Qc4 Rd6 24. h4 h6 25. Qxc5 $14) 18... Qe7 19. Bxf5 exf5 20. Qxa4 Bb7 21. Qf4 Qe6 $13) 18. Bf1 fxe4 19. Nxe4 Qf5 $6 (19... Qg6 20. a5 Nd5 21. Bxc4 Nf4 22. g3 Bb7 23. a6 Bc6 {(Carlsen)}) 20. Nd4 Bxd4 21. cxd4 Bb7 (21... Rxd4 $2 {To take this pawn means to lose immediately.} 22. Rcd1 e5 (22... Rxd1 23. Qxd1 Nd5 (23... Ba6 24. Re3 Nd5 25. Rg3+ Kf8 26. Qd4 $18) 24. Bxc4 Bb7 25. Qd4 e5 26. Qc5 Rc8 27. Qxa7 Rxc4 28. Nd6 $18) 23. a5 Nd7 24. Rxd4 exd4 25. Qxc4 Qe5 26. f4 $18) 22. Nc5 $8 Qxc2 23. Rxc2 Bc6 $1 {Black found an amazing opportunity. However it is not easy to see how White wins after the simple ...d5.} (23... Bd5 24. a5 Nc8 25. Bxc4 Ne7 26. g4 $1 (26. h3 Nf5 $1 27. Bxd5 Rxd5 28. Re5 Nxd4 29. Rxd5 exd5 30. Rd2 Rc8 31. Nd7 Rc4 32. Nf6+ Kg7 33. Nxd5 Nb3 $11) 26... Bxc4 27. Rxc4 Rac8 28. Rec1 h5 $1 29. h3 hxg4 30. hxg4 Kg7 {White is a pawn up but Black has good chances to make a draw.}) 24. a5 Rxd4 25. axb6 axb6 {White' knight is trapped.} 26. Nxe6 $1 {The only way to avoid a draw.} (26. Nb3 cxb3 27. Rxc6 b2 28. Rb1 Ra1 29. Rxb2 Rdd1 30. g3 $11) (26. Nd3 Ba4 27. Nb4 Bxc2 28. Nxc2 Rd2 $17 {(Carlsen)}) 26... fxe6 27. Bxc4 Bd7 28. h3 Kf7 29. Bb3 $14 {It is obvious that White has an advantage in the endgame. It is obvious as well that Black could make a draw if he plays precisely. The material is very reduced.} Ke7 (29... b5 30. Rce2 Ra6 {Probably this was the best setup for Black.} 31. Re5 (31. Rc1 Ke7 32. Re3 b4) 31... Rd3 32. Bc2 Rd2 33. Bxh7 Raa2 34. Rf1 b4 $44) 30. Rce2 Rd6 31. Re4 Ra3 32. R1e3 h5 (32... Rd2 33. Rh4 Ra1+ 34. Kh2 Rxf2 35. Rxh7+ Rf7 36. Rh8 {All the white pieces are very active but I believe that Black would find the way to draw.}) 33. Rh4 Be8 34. Kh2 Bg6 35. Rb4 Kf6 36. Kg3 e5 37. Kh4 Rd4+ (37... Ra1 $6 38. f4 exf4 39. Rxf4+ Kg7 40. Re7+ Kh6 41. Rf8 Bd3 42. Rh8+ Kg6 43. Rxh5 $16) (37... Ra5 {Black could wait. It is difficult to find a reasonable plan for White.} 38. g4 hxg4 39. hxg4 e4 40. f4 exf3 41. Rf4+ Kg7 42. Re7+ Kh6 43. Rf8 {(Carlsen)} Bd3 $8 44. Rxf3 Rc5 45. Rf8 Kg6 46. Ref7 Bc4 47. Bc2+ Bd3 48. Bxd3+ Rxd3 $11) 38. Rxd4 exd4 39. Re6+ Kg7 40. Rxb6 d3 41. Bd1 (41. Kg5 Be4 $5 (41... Ra5+ 42. Kf4 Rf5+ 43. Ke3 Re5+ 44. Kd4 Re2 $11 {(Carlsen)}) 42. Bd1 (42. f3 $4 Rxb3 43. Rxb3 d2 $19) 42... Bxg2 43. Kxh5 Bxh3 $11) 41... Ra2 $1 42. Kg3 {The only chance to continue the game.} (42. Kg5 Be4 43. Kxh5 Rxf2 44. g4 Rd2 45. Ba4 Ra2 46. Rb4 Bf3 47. Rf4 Rxa4 48. Rxa4 d2 49. Rd4 d1=Q 50. Rxd1 Bxd1 $11) (42. Bxh5 Bxh5 43. Kxh5 Rxf2 44. g4 (44. Rb7+ Kf6 45. g4 Ke6 46. g5 d2 47. Rb1 Rf8 48. g6 Rd8 49. Rd1 Kf6 $11) 44... Rf6 45. Rb1 Rd6 46. Rd1 d2 $11) 42... h4+ $6 (42... Ra1 43. Bf3 Ra4 44. h4 (44. Rd6 h4+ 45. Kh2 Ra2 (45... Rb4 46. g4 hxg3+ 47. Kxg3 Ra4) 46. Rd4 Rxf2 47. Rxh4 d2 48. Rd4 Bc2 49. Bg4 $18 {(Carlsen)} (49. Kg3 $2 Rxf3+ $11)) 44... Rc4 {White's advantage is probably insufficient for a win after all.} 45. Rc6 Rb4 46. Bd1 Rb1 47. Ba4 Rb4 48. Bd1 ({If White wants to continue the game so much he could show us how to make a draw without the bishop.} 48. Ra6 $2 d2 49. Bd1 Rb1 50. Bf3 d1=Q 51. Bxd1 Rxd1) 48... Rb1 $11) 43. Kxh4 Rxf2 44. Kg3 Rf6 $4 {Such a move can only be explained by Vladimir Kramnik's fatigue. Perhaps he confused something and thought that the position is drawish.} 45. Rxf6 Kxf6 46. Kf4 $18 d2 47. Ke3 Ke5 48. g3 $1 (48. Kxd2 $4 Kf4 49. g4 (49. Ke1 Kg3 50. Kf1 Be4 $11) 49... Be4 50. h4 Bf5 51. g5 Kg3 52. Ke3 Kxh4 53. Kf4 Be4 $11) 48... Bf5 49. h4 Be6 50. Kxd2 Ke4 51. Ke2 Bg4+ 52. Ke1 Be6 53. Kf2 Ke5 54. Ke3 Bd7 55. Bc2 Bg4 56. Bg6 Bd7 57. h5 Kf6 (57... Bc8 58. Be4 Bd7 59. h6 Kf6 60. Kf4 Bc8 61. g4 Bxg4 62. Kxg4 Kf7 63. Bh7 $1 {The only move. Black's king doesn't get into the corner.} Kf6 64. Kh5 Kf7 65. Kg5 Kf8 66. Kg6) 58. Kf4 Be6 59. Be4 ({Of course Carlsen doesn't play} 59. g4 $4 Bxg4 60. Kxg4 Kg7 61. Kg5 Kh8 $11) 59... Kg7 60. Kg5 Bd7 61. h6+ Kh8 62. Kf4 Be6 63. Bf5 Bf7 64. g4 Bh5 65. g5 Kg8 66. Be6+ Kh7 67. Kf5 Bg6+ 68. Kf6 Kh8 69. Bd7 Bh5 70. Bc6 Kh7 71. Bd5 Bg6 72. Bg8+ 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 8th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2013.06.18"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E46"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2786"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2013.06.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir Milov,Vadim} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Nge2 d5 6. a3 Be7 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Bd2 Nd7 9. g3 b6 {Alternatives seen in practice:} (9... N7f6) (9... N5f6) (9... N5b6) (9... Nxc3) 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Bg2 Bb7 {[%csl Rb7] The bishop will be passive here.} (11... Nf6 12. O-O Bf5 {This is a better square for the bishop.} (12... Bb7 13. Bb4 {was probably the best of all} (13. Qc2 Bd6 (13... a5 $5) 14. Bb4 a5 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. Rac1 c6 17. Rfd1 Rac8 18. Nc3 g6 {1/2 (25) Bischoff,K (2561)-Tischbierek,R (2507) Austria 2004} 19. Qb3 $14) (13. Rc1 Qd7 (13... a5 {again was appropriate}) 14. Qc2 Bd6 15. Bb4 Bxb4 16. axb4 c6 17. Nf4 a6 18. Qc3 Qd6 19. f3 Rfe8 20. Rfe1 Rad8 21. Rcd1 Nd7 22. e4 $14 {0-1 (44) Janssen,R (2484)-Tiviakov,S (2601) Dieren 2004})) (12... Ne4 13. Rc1 Bb7 (13... Bf5 $5) 14. Qc2 Rc8 15. Rfd1 Bd6 16. Bb4 $5 Qf6 17. Nc3 Nxc3 18. Qxc3 c6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. b4 Rc7 21. a4 Bc8 22. a5 Ba6 23. Ra1 $14 {1-0 (38) Ponomariov,R (2734)-Kramnik,V (2807) Wijk aan Zee 2003 CBM 093 [Ftacnik,L]}) 13. Bb4 (13. Nf4 Qd7 14. Qb3 Rfd8 15. Rac1 Rac8 16. Rfd1 a5 17. Be1 a4 18. Qc3 c6 19. Qd2 Bd6 20. Qe2 Bxf4 21. exf4 Bh3 $11 {1/2 (26) Grigoriants,S (2594)-Wells,P (2499) Dresden 2007}) 13... a5 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Rc1 h6 16. Nc3 Qd7 17. Re1 Rfe8 18. Qb3 Rad8 19. Qb5 Qd6 20. Qb3 Qd7 21. Qb5 Qd6 22. Qe2 Qd7 23. Qb5 {1/2 (23) Martinovic,S (2515)-Papp,G (2534) Chur 2010}) ({RR} 11... Nf6 12. O-O Ne4 13. Rc1 Bb7 ({RR} 13... Bf5 14. Nf4 Re8 15. Bb4) 14. Qc2 Rc8 ({RR} 14... Nxd2 15. Qxd2 Re8 16. Nf4 c6) 15. Rfd1 Bd6 16. Bb4 Qf6 ({RR} 16... c5 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Be1 Qe7 19. Nc3) ({RR} 16... Bxb4 17. axb4 Qd6 18. b5 a5 19. bxa6 Bxa6 20. Nf4) 17. Nc3 Nxc3 ({RR} 17... Bxb4 18. axb4) ({RR} 17... c5 18. dxc5 Bxc5 ({RR} 18... bxc5 19. Ba5 ({RR} 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Bc3 Qe6) 19... Qe6 20. Qb3) 19. Bh3 Rc7 20. Qe2 Rd8) 18. Qxc3 ({RR} 18. bxc3 Ba8 19. Bxd6 Qxd6) 18... c6 ({RR} 18... c5 19. dxc5 Be5 ({RR} 19... Qxc3 20. Bxc3 Rxc5 21. e4 Rfc8 22. exd5) 20. Qb3 Rfd8 21. Bc3) 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. b4 Rc7 21. a4 ({RR} 21. b5 Rfc8 ({RR} 21... c5 22. dxc5 Rxc5 ({RR} 22... bxc5 23. Bxd5 Bxd5 24. e4) 23. Qd3 Rd8) 22. Bh3 Re8 23. bxc6 Rxc6 24. Qb4) 21... Bc8 22. a5 ({RR} 22. b5 Bg4 23. Re1 Rfc8) 22... Ba6 23. Ra1 Bb5 ({RR} 23... Bc4 24. axb6 axb6 25. Bf1 ({RR} 25. e4 Re8 26. Re1 Rce7) 25... b5 26. Ra6) 24. Rdc1 Re8 25. axb6 axb6 26. Bf1 {Ponomariov,R (2734)-Kramnik,V (2807) Wijk aan Zee 2003 CBM 093 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 1-0 (38)} ({RR} 26. Ra3 h6 27. Rca1 Rce7 28. Bf1)) ({RR} 11... c6 12. Rc1 Bb7 13. O-O Nf6 14. Bb4) 12. Bb4 $146 {[%mdl 32] White decides to get rid of his passive bishop at once, not giving Black a chance to prevent this exchange by means of ...a7-a5.} (12. O-O Re8 (12... a5 $5 13. Qc2 Nf6) ({RR} 12... Nf6 13. Rc1 Ne4) 13. Qc2 Bd6 14. Rac1 Qe7 15. Nc3 Nf6 ({RR} 15... c6 16. e4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Bc7 18. Rfe1) 16. Nb5 c6 ({RR} 16... Ne4 17. Rfd1) 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. f3 Nd7 19. Rfe1 c5 20. Bc3 $14 {1-0 (45) Milov,V (2632)-Cheparinov,I (2550) Dos Hermanas 2004 CBM 099 ext [Milov,V]}) ({RR} 12. O-O Re8 13. Qc2 Bd6 14. Rac1 Qe7 15. Nc3 Nf6 16. Nb5 c6 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. f3 Nd7 19. Rfe1 c5 20. Bc3 Re7 21. b4 cxd4 22. Bxd4 Ne5 23. Qc3 f6 24. f4 Nf7 ({RR} 24... Nc4 25. e4) 25. Qb3 ({RR} 25. a4 Rc8 26. Qb3 Rec7 27. Rxc7 Rxc7 28. a5 Rc4 29. Rb1 Nd8 30. axb6 axb6 31. Qa4) 25... Qe6 26. a4 Nd6 {Milov,V (2632)-Cheparinov,I (2550) Dos Hermanas 2004 CBM 099 Extra [Milov,Vadim] 1-0 (45)}) 12... Nf6 (12... c5 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Bc3 Nf6 15. O-O {[%cal Yb2b4]} Ne4 16. Nf4 $5 $14) 13. O-O Re8 14. Rc1 c6 (14... Bxb4 $5 15. axb4 c6 {makes sense after White has removed his rook from a1}) 15. Bxe7 Rxe7 16. Re1 Qd6 17. Nf4 $14 Bc8 $6 {This idea to improve the position of the bishop simply doesn't work. Alas, Black shouls defend passively, e.g.} (17... Rc7) 18. Qa4 Rc7 {It was probably better for Black to admit his mistake and play} (18... Bb7) 19. f3 $1 Be6 20. e4 dxe4 $6 ({The position after} 20... Qd7 21. Nxe6 Qxe6 22. e5 Ne8 23. f4 {[%csl Ge5,Gf4] is difficult for Black, according to GM A.Korotylev, but the text move is even worse.}) 21. fxe4 Qd7 (21... b5 22. Qd1 Qd7 23. e5 Nd5 24. Nd3 $16 {[%cal Yd3c5] A.Korotylev}) 22. d5 $1 cxd5 23. Qxd7 Rxd7 24. Nxe6 $1 fxe6 25. Bh3 $1 Kh8 26. e5 Ng8 27. Bxe6 Rdd8 ({After} 27... Re7 28. Bxd5 Rd8 {White should convert his extra pawn but it was more stubborn than allowing White's rook to invade the 7th rank.}) 28. Rc7 d4 29. Bd7 $1 {Black decided that further resistance was senseless.} ({In the event of} 29. Bd7 Ne7 30. Rd1 Nd5 31. Rb7 Rdb8 32. Rxb8+ Rxb8 33. Rxd4 Ne7 34. Bb5 {White wins a pawn, and his rook again breaks to the 7nd rank.}) 1-0

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 8th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2013.06.19"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Gelfand, Boris"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2755"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2013.06.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bf4 dxc4 6. e3 ({RR} 6. e4 Bb4 7. Qc2 ({RR} 7. e5 Nd5 8. Bd2 Bxc3 9. bxc3 b5) ({RR} 7. Bxc4 Nxe4 8. O-O Nxc3 9. bxc3 Bd6 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Bd2 O-O 12. Qe2 c5 13. Rfd1 cxd4 14. cxd4 Nf6 15. Ne5 Nd5 16. Qh5 Bd7 17. Rdb1 Bc6) 7... b5 ({RR} 7... Nb6 8. Be2 ({RR} 8. Bxc4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Nxc4 10. Qa4+ c6 11. Qxc4 Nxe4)) 8. e5 ({RR} 8. a4 Bb7 9. e5 Bxf3) ({RR} 8. Nd2 c6 9. a3 Ba5 10. Bd6 Bc7 11. Bxc7 Qxc7 12. b3 e5 13. d5 cxd5 14. Nxb5 Qc6 15. a4 a6 16. exd5 Nxd5 17. Qxc4 Bb7 18. Qxc6 Bxc6 19. Nd6+ Ke7 20. Nf5+ Kf6 21. Rc1 Nb4) 8... Nd5 9. Bg5 f6 10. exf6 N7xf6 ({RR} 10... gxf6 11. Bh6 Bb7 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. Bg7 Rg8 13. Qxh7 Rxg7 14. Qxg7 Nxc3) 12... Qe7 13. O-O Bxc3 14. bxc3) 11. a4 Bb7 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. axb5 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Bxf3 14. gxf3 Qxd4) 12... a6 13. O-O c6 14. Ne5 O-O 15. Bg4 Qd6 16. Bh3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 c5 18. axb5 axb5 19. Nf3 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Nf4 ({RR} 20... cxd4 21. Nxd4)) 6... a6 ({RR} 6... Nd5 7. Bxc4 Nxf4 ({RR} 7... Bb4 8. O-O Nxf4 9. exf4 Bxc3 10. bxc3 O-O 11. Qc2 Nf6 12. Ne5 b6 13. Rfe1 g6 14. Re3 Bb7 15. Rae1 Kg7 16. Rh3 c5 17. Qd2 Bd5 18. Ba6 Qc7 19. c4 Bb7 20. Bxb7 Qxb7 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Rb3) 8. exf4 Bd6 ({RR} 8... Nb6 9. Bb3 Bd6 10. g3 Bd7 11. O-O ({RR} 11. Qd3 Bc6 12. O-O-O Bxf3 ({RR} 12... O-O 13. Ng5 g6 14. d5) 13. Qxf3 c6 14. Kb1 ({RR} 14. f5 Qg5+) 14... g6 ({RR} 14... O-O 15. f5 exf5 16. Qxf5) 15. f5 exf5 16. Rhe1+ Kf8 17. g4) 11... O-O 12. Qd3 Bc6 13. Rad1 Qf6 14. Ng5 g6 15. Nge4 Qf5 ({RR} 15... Bxe4 16. Nxe4 Qe7 17. Rfe1 ({RR} 17. d5 e5 18. f5 ({RR} 18. Rfe1 exf4 19. Qc3 Nd7 20. Nxd6 Qxd6 21. Re6 Qc5) 18... Nd7) 17... c6 18. h4 a5 19. a3 a4 20. Ba2 Nd5 21. h5) 16. d5 exd5 17. Nxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxd5 Bxd5 19. Qxd5 Qxd5 20. Rxd5) 9. Qd2 ({RR} 9. g3 O-O 10. O-O Nf6 11. Qe2 b6 12. Rfd1 Bb7 13. Rac1 Qe7 14. a3 Rfd8 15. Ne5 c5 16. Nb5 cxd4 17. Nxd4 Bxe5 18. Qxe5 Qd6 19. Bb3 Qxe5 20. fxe5) ({RR} 9. Ne5 O-O 10. O-O Nb6 11. Bb3 Bd7 12. Qg4 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Bc6 14. f5 exf5 15. Qxf5 Qe7 16. Rfe1 Rad8 17. Rad1 g6 18. Qf4 Kg7)) ({RR} 6... Nb6 7. Bxc4 Nxc4 ({RR} 7... Nfd5 8. O-O Nxf4 9. exf4 Bd6 10. Ne5 Bxe5 11. fxe5 Bd7 12. Bb3 Bc6 13. Qg4 g6 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. Rac1 h5 16. Qh3 Rd8 17. Qe3 Bd5 18. Nb5 Rd7 19. Qc3 O-O) 8. Qa4+ Bd7 ({RR} 8... c6 9. Qxc4 Nd5 10. Be5 f6 11. Bg3 Qb6 12. O-O Qxb2 13. Ne4 Nb6 14. Qd3 Qb5 15. Qc2 Qa4 16. Qd3 Qb5 17. Qc2 Qa4 18. Qd3 Qb5) 9. Qxc4 Bd6 10. Bg5 ({RR} 10. O-O Bc6 11. Ne5 Bxe5 12. Bxe5 Nd7 ({RR} 12... O-O 13. Bxf6 ({RR} 13. Rac1 a6 14. Rfd1 Nd5 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Qe2 f6 17. Bg3 Re8 18. Rc3 Re7 19. Rdc1 Qe8) 13... Qxf6 14. e4 Rac8) 13. Bg3 Nb6 ({RR} 13... O-O 14. e4 Nb6 15. Qc5) 14. Qc5 Nd7 15. Qa5 b6 16. Qa3) ({RR} 10. Bxd6 cxd6 11. d5 e5 12. Qb4 Qb6 13. Qxb6 axb6 14. Ke2 Ke7 15. Nd2 Rhc8 16. Rhc1 Rc5 17. e4 g6 18. f3 Nh5 19. Ke3 f5) ({RR} 10. Bg3 Bc6 11. O-O Bxf3 12. gxf3 O-O 13. Nb5 Qd7 14. Rfc1 Rfc8)) ({RR} 6... b5 7. Nxb5 Nd5 8. Bxc4 ({RR} 8. Bg3 Bb4+ 9. Nd2 N7b6 10. Qc2 O-O 11. Be2 Ba6 12. Nc3 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. a3 Rc8 15. Nde4 Be7 16. Be5 f5 17. Nd2 Bf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Rc1 Nxc3 20. Qxc3 Qxc3 21. Rxc3) 8... Bb4+ 9. Kf1 Nxf4 10. exf4 O-O 11. g3 a6 12. Nc3 Bb7 13. Be2 Qe7 14. Kg2 c5 15. a3 Bxc3 16. bxc3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nf6 18. Re1 Rfc8 19. Kg1 Ne4) 7. a4 ({RR} 7. Bxc4 b5 8. Be2 ({RR} 8. Bb3) 8... Bb7 9. O-O c5 10. a4 b4 11. Nb1 Rc8 12. Nbd2 cxd4 13. exd4 Nb6 14. a5 Nbd5 15. Bg3 Bd6) 7... Bd6 ({RR} 7... Nb6 8. a5 Nbd5 9. Bxc4 Nxf4 10. exf4 Be7 ({RR} 10... Bd6 11. Ne5 O-O 12. O-O Nd7 13. Qf3 Qe7 14. Rfe1 Nxe5 15. fxe5 Bb4 16. Re3 Bxc3 17. bxc3) 11. O-O O-O 12. Ne5 Qd6 ({RR} 12... c6 13. f5 exf5 14. Qb3 Qxd4 ({RR} 14... Qe8 15. Rfe1) 15. Nxf7 Qh4 16. g3 Qh5 17. Rae1) 13. Re1 c6 ({RR} 13... g6 14. Re3 Rd8 15. Rd3 c6 16. Qf3) 14. f5 exf5 ({RR} 14... Nd5 15. Qb3 Qb4 16. Qc2 Re8 17. Ne4) 15. Nxf7 ({RR} 15. Qb3 Be6 16. Qxb7 Ng4 17. Bxe6 fxe6 18. Qxc6 Nxe5 19. Qxd6 Bxd6 20. dxe5 Bb4) 15... Rxf7 16. Qb3 Nd5 17. Nxd5 cxd5 18. Bxd5 Qf6 19. Rac1 Bd7 20. Rc7 ({RR} 20. Bxf7+ Qxf7 21. Qxb7 Rd8 22. Qxa6) 20... Rd8 21. Rxb7 Kf8 22. Rb6) ({RR} 7... c5 8. Bxc4 cxd4 9. exd4 Nb6 10. Bb3 Nbd5 11. Be5 Be7 ({RR} 11... Bb4 12. Qd3) 12. Nxd5 Nxd5 13. Bxg7 Rg8 14. Be5 Rxg2 15. Bg3) 8. Bxd6 ({RR} 8. Bg3 b6 ({RR} 8... Bxg3 9. hxg3 c5 10. Bxc4 Nb6 11. Bb3 cxd4 12. exd4 Bd7 ({RR} 12... Qd6 13. a5 Nbd5 14. Ne5 Bd7 15. Bxd5 Nxd5 16. Qh5 g6 17. Qf3 Qe7 18. Nxd5 exd5 19. O-O) 13. a5 Nbd5 14. Bxd5 ({RR} 14. Ne5 Bc6 15. g4 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Bxg2 17. Rh2 Bc6) 14... Nxd5 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Qe2+ Be6 ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. Rh5 Qxe2+ 18. Kxe2 Be6 19. Kd2)) 9. Bxc4 Bb7 10. Bh4 ({RR} 10. O-O Bxg3 11. hxg3 c5 12. d5 exd5 13. Nxd5 O-O 14. Nf4 Qe7 15. Qc2 Ne5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. Rfd1 Bc6 18. Qe2 g5 19. Nd3 Qe4 20. Ne1) 10... O-O 11. O-O Qb8 12. d5 exd5 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. Bxd5 Ne5 15. Rc1 Bxd5 16. Qxd5 c6 17. Qe4 Nxf3+ 18. Qxf3 Bxh2+ 19. Kh1 Be5 20. Rxc6 b5 21. axb5 Qxb5) ({RR} 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bh4 c5 ({RR} 9... b6 10. Bxc4 ({RR} 10. e4 Be7 11. Bxc4 Bb7 12. e5 Ne4 13. Nxe4 Bxe4 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. O-O O-O 16. Re1 Bb7 17. Bd3 Rfd8 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. Rxe4 c5 20. Qe2 cxd4 21. Rxd4) 10... Bb7 11. O-O Qe7 12. d5 e5 13. Qe2 g5 14. Bg3 Nf8 15. Nd2 Ng6 16. f3 h5 17. Nde4 Nxe4 18. fxe4 Bc8 19. Be1 g4 20. Qd3 Qg5) 10. Bxc4 O-O 11. O-O cxd4 12. exd4 Qc7 13. Bb3 b6 14. Rc1 Qb8 ({RR} 14... Bf4 15. Rc2 Qd6 ({RR} 15... Qb8 16. d5) 16. Ne2 ({RR} 16. d5 Nc5 17. Bxf6 Nxb3 18. Bh4 Bb7 19. g3 exd5 20. gxf4 d4) 16... Bb7 17. Nxf4 Qxf4 18. Bg3 Qf5 19. Rc7 Be4) 15. d5 e5 16. Nd2 e4 ({RR} 16... Bb7 17. Nde4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Kh8 ({RR} 18... Nc5 19. Rxc5 bxc5 20. Nf6+ Kh8 21. Qd3 e4 ({RR} 21... g6 22. Qe3 Kg7 23. Ng4) 22. Qxe4 g6 23. Bg3) 19. Rc6 Bxc6 20. dxc6 Nc5 21. Nxd6 Nxb3 22. Be7 Nd4 23. f4 Qc7 24. Bxf8 Rxf8 25. fxe5 Nxc6) 17. Ncxe4 Nxe4 18. Nxe4 Bxh2+ 19. Kh1 Qf4 20. Be7 Qxe4 21. Re1 Qf4 22. Rc4 Qxf2) 8... cxd6 9. Bxc4 O-O ({RR} 9... Qa5 10. O-O O-O 11. Qd2 b6 12. Rab1 Qb4 13. Be2 Bb7 14. Ne1 Qa5) 10. O-O d5 11. Bd3 b6 12. Qb3 Qe7 ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Qb4 Rc8 14. Rfc1 h6 15. Rc2 Rc6 16. Rac1 Qb8 17. Na2 Rxc2 18. Rxc2 Rc8 19. Qb3 Rxc2 20. Qxc2 Qc8 21. Qxc8+ Bxc8 22. Nb4 Nb8) 13. Rfc1 Bb7 14. Rc2 Rfc8 15. Rac1 Qd6 16. Na2 $146 ({RR} 16. Ne5 Nxe5 ({RR} 16... Rc7 17. Nxd7 ({RR} 17. f4 Rac8) 17... Rxd7 ({RR} 17... Nxd7 18. Bxh7+ Kxh7 19. Nb5 axb5 20. Rxc7 Nc5 21. R7xc5 bxc5 22. dxc5 Qb8 23. axb5) 18. Na2) 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. Qxb6 Rcb8 ({RR} 18... Ng4 19. Qxb7 Qxh2+ 20. Kf1 Qh1+ 21. Ke2 Qxg2 22. Nd1) ({RR} 18... Rab8 19. Ne4 ({RR} 19. f4 Qh5 ({RR} 19... Nd7 20. Qd4 ({RR} 20. Qa7 Qd6 21. Qd4 f6) 20... Qf6 21. b4 e5 22. fxe5 Qe6 23. Qf4 g6 24. b5 Nxe5) 20. h3) 19... Rxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 d4 22. Qxd4 Qxd4 23. exd4 Rd8 24. Rc7 Rxd4 25. Rxb7 Rxd3 26. g3) ({RR} 18... Qb8 19. Nxd5 Rxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2) 19. Ne2 Nd7 ({RR} 19... Ng4 20. Qxb7 Qxh2+ 21. Kf1 Qh1+ 22. Ng1 g6 23. Qc7 Nh2+ 24. Ke2 Qxg2 25. Qg3) ({RR} 19... d4 20. Qxd4 Qg5 21. Ng3 Rd8 22. Qb4 Rab8 ({RR} 22... Bxg2 23. Kxg2 Rxd3 24. Rc5 Qg4 25. Rc8+ Rd8 26. Qb7 Raxc8 27. Rxc8 Rf8 28. Qxa6) 23. Be2 Nd5 24. Qa5 f5 25. Rd2) ({RR} 19... Ne8 20. b4 Bc8 21. Qd8 Bb7 22. Qe7 Qd6 23. Qxd6 Nxd6 24. Nd4) 20. Qd4 ({RR} 20. Qb4 Bc8 21. Qa3 Nf8 22. Nd4) 20... Qd6 ({RR} 20... Qxd4 21. Nxd4 Rc8 22. Rc7 Rab8 23. Nf3 Nb6 24. a5 Na8 25. R7c3 Rxc3 26. Rxc3 Rc8 27. Rb3 Rc7 28. Nd4 h6 29. f4) 21. f4 ({RR} 21. Rc7 e5 22. Qh4 e4 23. Bb1 Nf6 24. Qg3 Qb4 25. Qe5 a5) 21... e5 ({RR} 21... Rc8 22. b4 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 g6) ({RR} 21... f6 22. Rc7 g6 ({RR} 22... e5 23. fxe5 Nxe5 24. Ng3 Bc8 25. Be4 Be6 26. Nf5 Bxf5 27. Bxd5+ Kh8 28. Bxa8) 23. a5 e5 24. Qa4) 22. fxe5 Nxe5 23. Qf4 Qe7 ({RR} 23... Rc8 24. Qf5 g6 ({RR} 24... Nxd3 25. Rxc8+ Rxc8 26. Rxc8+ Bxc8 27. Qxc8+ Qf8 28. Qxa6 Nxb2 29. Qb5 Nc4 30. Qxd5 Qc8 ({RR} 30... Nxe3 31. Qe4 Nd1 32. Qd4) 31. Kf2) 25. Rxc8+ Bxc8 26. Rxc8+ Kg7 27. Ng3 Rxc8 28. Qxc8 Nxd3 29. Qc3+ Ne5 30. Qd4 f6 31. e4 Kf7 32. exd5 Nc6) 24. Rc7 Qe8 ({RR} 24... Nxd3 25. Rxe7 Nxf4 26. Nxf4) ({RR} 24... Qe6 25. Bf5 Qf6 26. Nd4 h6 ({RR} 26... g6 27. Be6) 27. b3) 25. Bf5 Nc4 ({RR} 25... g6 26. Nd4 gxf5 27. Nxf5 Rc8 28. Qg5+ Ng6 29. Qf6 Qf8 30. Rxf7 Rxc1+ 31. Kf2 Rc2+ 32. Kf1 Rc1+ 33. Ke2 Nf4+ 34. exf4 Re8+ 35. Kf2 Rc2+ 36. Kg3 Rxg2+ 37. Kxg2 d4+ 38. Kf2) ({RR} 25... Bc6 26. R1xc6 Nxc6 27. Bd7 Qe5 28. Bxc6 Qxf4 29. Nxf4 Rc8 30. Bxa8 Rxc7 31. b4) ({RR} 25... Ng6 26. Bxg6 hxg6 27. Rf1 f6 28. Nd4) 26. Bd7 Qf8 ({RR} 26... Qxe3+ 27. Qxe3 Nxe3 28. Nd4 h5 ({RR} 28... a5 29. b3 h5 30. h3 f5 31. Be6+ Kh7 32. Kf2 f4 33. g3) 29. b3 g6 30. Re1 Ng4 31. Bxg4 hxg4 32. Ree7 Bc8 33. Rxf7) 27. b3 Nb6 ({RR} 27... Nd6 28. Nd4) 28. Bf5 d4 ({RR} 28... Bc8 29. Rxf7 ({RR} 29. a5 Bxf5 30. axb6 Bd3 31. Nc3 Rxb6 32. Qd4 Rxb3 33. Qxd3) 29... Kxf7 30. Bxh7+ Ke7 31. Qb4+ Ke8 32. Bg6+) 29. Rxf7 Kxf7 ({RR} 29... Qxf7 30. Bxh7+ Kxh7 ({RR} 30... Kf8 31. Qd6+ Ke8 32. Bg6) 31. Qxf7 Bd5 32. Qf5+ Kg8 33. a5 Rf8 34. Qe5) 30. Bxh7+ {1-0 (30) Kasimdzhanov,R (2700)-Kramnik,V (2760) Tromsoe 2014 CBM 162 [Ftacnik,Lubomir]} {RR} Ke8 ({RR} 30... Ke6 31. Nxd4+ Kd5 32. Be4#) ({RR} 30... Ke7 31. Qe5+ Kd7 32. Bf5+ Kd8 ({RR} 32... Qxf5 33. Rc7+ Kd8 34. Qe7#) 33. Qc7+ Ke8 34. Bg6+) 31. Bg6+ Kd7 32. Qc7+ Ke6 33. Qxb6+ Qd6 34. Nf4+ Ke7 35. Rc7+ Qxc7 36. Qxc7+) 16... Rxc2 17. Rxc2 Rc8 18. Rxc8+ Bxc8 19. Qc3 Bb7 20. b4 Ne4 21. Qc1 h6 22. h3 Kf8 23. b5 a5 24. Nc3 Qc7 25. Qa3+ Qd6 26. Qc1 Qc7 27. Qa3+ Ke8 28. Ne2 g5 29. Qb2 Ke7 30. Nd2 Ndf6 31. Nf1 Nd6 32. f3 Nd7 33. g4 f6 34. Nfg3 Nf8 35. Kf2 Bc8 36. Qc2 Qxc2 37. Bxc2 Bd7 38. Nc3 Be8 39. f4 Bf7 40. Bb3 gxf4 41. exf4 Ng6 42. f5 Nf4 43. fxe6 Nxh3+ 44. Ke3 Bxe6 45. Nxd5+ Kd8 46. Nh5 f5 47. gxf5 Nxf5+ 48. Ke4 Ng5+ 49. Ke5 Ne7 50. Nhf4 Bg8 51. Bd1 Bxd5 52. Nxd5 Nf7+ 53. Ke6 Ng5+ 54. Ke5 Nf7+ 55. Ke6 Ng5+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Moscow Tal Memorial 8th"]
[Site "Moscow"]
[Date "2013.06.23"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "2753"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2013.06.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 155"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 c6 6. Bg2 Bf5 7. O-O Ne4 8. Re1 O-O 9. Qb3 Nxc3 10. bxc3 Qc8 ({RR} 10... Bc8 11. e4 Qc7 12. e5 Bg4 13. Bf4 Qd7 14. exd6 exd6 15. Ng5 Bf5 16. Ne4 Bxe4 17. Rxe4 Na6 18. Rae1 Bf6 19. h4 Nc7 20. Bg5 Bxg5 21. hxg5 Rab8 22. d5 c5 23. Re7 Qd8 24. Qa4 Re8 25. Rxe8+ {Mamedyarov,S (2734)-Caruana,F (2786) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (51)}) 11. e4 Bg4 12. e5 $146 ({RR} 12. Rb1 b6 13. Ba3 c5 14. e5 Nc6 15. Nd2 Rb8 16. Qa4 Bd7 17. Qd1 dxe5 18. dxc5 Bh3 19. Bxh3 Qxh3 20. Qf3 Qc8 21. cxb6 axb6 22. Rb5 f5 23. c5 e4 24. Qe3 Qa6 25. Rb3 b5 26. f3 exf3 {Drnovsek,N (2125)-Mihevc,I (2207) Graz 2009 ½-½ (53)}) ({RR} 12. Ba3 Rd8 13. Rab1 b6 14. e5 Qc7 15. exd6 exd6 16. Ng5 Bf5 17. Rb2 Nd7 18. Qa4 Rac8 19. Rbe2 Bf8 20. h3 Bd3 21. Re3 b5 22. cxb5 Bxb5 23. Qb3 Nb6 24. Re7 Qxe7 25. Rxe7 Bc4 26. Qc2 Bxe7 {Gabrielian,A (2407)-Karamsetty,J (2244) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (60)}) ({RR} 12. Bg5 Re8 13. Rab1 b6 14. e5 Qf5 15. Bf4 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 dxe5 17. Be4 Qh3 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. dxe5 Qe6 20. c5 Rc8 21. cxb6 axb6 22. Qxe6 fxe6 23. Rxb6 Rxa2 24. Rd1 Kf7 25. Kf1 Ra7 26. f4 Rac7 {Gislason,G (2266)-Borgaonkar,A (2372) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (51)}) 12... Bxf3 13. Bxf3 dxe5 14. Rb1 exd4 15. cxd4 Bxd4 16. Qxb7 Qf5 17. Kg2 Na6 18. Bh6 Nc5 19. Qxe7 Nd3 20. Re4 Bg7 21. Rd1 Bxh6 22. Rxd3 Bg5 23. Qe5 Qxe5 24. Rxe5 Bf6 25. Ra5 Rfd8 26. Rxd8+ Rxd8 27. Bxc6 Rd2 28. Rxa7 Bd4 29. Rd7 Rxf2+ 30. Kh3 Be5 31. Rd5 Bc7 32. Rd7 Be5 33. Rd5 Bc7 34. Rd7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 1st"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2013.09.10"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A85"]
[WhiteElo "2813"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2013.09.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 157"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.11.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.11.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 {Already something to talk about. The Dutch is not a common guest in top level chess, but two other players in this tournament are known to use it: Kamsky and Nakamura!} 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 g6 4. Nc3 {The setups with a quick g3 and b3 are more common, but Aronian has a specific idea in mind.} Bg7 5. Bf4 $5 {A favorite of Hrant Melkumyan, an Armenian that lives in Berlin like Aronian. It is possible that Aronian got the idea from him.} d6 6. e3 Nc6 {Basically new, but since Black's only plan is to play e5 anyways the move makes sense.} 7. Be2 (7. d5 e5 $1 {is the typical response against d5 when there is a bishop on f4.} 8. dxc6 exf4 9. cxb7 Bxb7 10. exf4 Qe7+ {gives Black a superior position despite being a pawn down.}) 7... O-O 8. O-O Ne4 $1 {The point of this move is to allow Black to push e5. There are other ways of doing this, like ...e8, but they are far more awkward while this is natural and direct.} 9. h3 e5 {Black has achieved e5 while it is unclear exactly what White has achieved. Carlsen has already equalized.} 10. Bh2 exd4 $146 ({RR} 10... Nxc3 11. bxc3 Qe7 12. c5 dxc5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Qd5+ Nf7 16. Qb3 c6 17. Bc4 b5 18. Bxf7+ Rxf7 19. Rfd1 Be6 20. Qa3 Bd5 21. c4 bxc4 22. f3 Re8 23. Re1 Qg5 24. Bf4 Qh4 25. Qxc5 {Levin,F (2483)-Ootes,L (2384) Netherlands 2018 ½-½ (57)}) 11. exd4 Ng5 $1 {Taking away the protection of the d4-pawn will force this diagonal open: a nice strategical advantage as the bishop on h2 will not be able to oppose the one on g7.} 12. Nxg5 Qxg5 13. f4 {A strange move as White is at least temporarily burrying his bishop. He hopes to maneouver it soon to g1 for it to regain its power.} Qf6 14. d5 Nd4 15. Kh1 c5 $1 {Securing the diagonal and giving b5 ideas a sharper edge.} 16. Bd3 Bd7 17. Bg1 Rae8 18. Qd2 a6 19. Rad1 {Already Black's position is more comfortable. By induction from the Benoni, it is clear that if Black achieves the b5 break and achieves a powerful bishop on g7 he will be in the driver's seat.} Rb8 20. a4 Qd8 $1 {A smart regrouping of the queen. Black only needs one piece to control the long diagonal.} 21. Rb1 Qa5 22. Qd1 Qb4 23. Bf2 Rbe8 24. Be1 Qb3 {The queen finishes her long journey to b3, and with it she exerts so much power that White has no choice but to trade her off. The problem is that this is a bad trade for White, as the queen is his best defender. Without the queen White is both planless and in a difficult situation, Black will slowly set up b5 and when that break happens Black's pieces will crash through.} 25. Qxb3 Nxb3 26. Bc2 {Aronian was down to less than ten minutes at this point. He started pacing a lot around this point, while Carlsen stayed at his board constantly thinking.} Na5 {It was tempting to put the knight on d4 again, but both moves are about as problematic for White as now the c4-pawn is not easily defended.} 27. Bd3 $1 Re3 28. Rd1 Rb8 $6 {Black continues with this plan of breaking on b5. Magnus has shuffled his rooks a lot, but they now find themselves in strong positions which is why Aronian takes care of that immediately. However it might have been better to immediately place the knight on a5 back to d4 before anything else.} (28... Rxd3 $5 {was his original idea, but Carlsen didn't see anything clear at the end and decided not to go for the complications.} 29. Rxd3 Nxc4 $13) 29. Bf2 Ree8 30. Ra1 $1 {Aronian is an excellent player, and sometimes it is most important to shine when you are in difficult positions. This important move allows the rook to diminish the effects of a possible b5, as the a-file will be open in its favor.} Bd4 31. Kg1 {Aronian took the opportunity where he felt Black's advantage had slip and the fact that Carlsen had dropped significantly in the clock to offer a draw in this position.} Be3 32. Bxe3 Rxe3 33. Rad1 Rbe8 34. Kf2 Nb3 35. Rfe1 $1 {With the trade of all the rooks, White has nothing to worry about.} Rxe1 36. Rxe1 Rxe1 37. Kxe1 Nd4 38. Kd2 Kf7 39. Be2 Kf6 40. Bd1 a5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 1st"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2013.09.11"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2013.09.09"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "6"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 157"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2013.11.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2013.11.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d6 {Nakamura comes to the game in fighting spirits. This slugfest was expected, and the American's step-father, FM Sunil Weeramantry, had predicted that this would be a game full of fighting chess.} 6. Nc3 Nc6 7. O-O Rb8 8. Bf4 {In a very common position Carlsen decides to play in a slightly unusual way. h3 and b3 are by more common ideas, but this move coupled with c1 has been seen more and more in the recent past. The f4, like in the game that Carlsen played yesterday with Black, has the problem that it might be bothered by the e5 break.} a6 9. Rc1 h6 $5 {This move allows Black to sometimes play g5 if the time is right.} 10. b3 (10. Qd3 Ng4 $5 11. Bd2 e5 {was the game between Vachier-Lagrave and Ding Liren from 2012 which ended in a draw.}) (10. h3 {is also interesting, to avoid g4 after g5.}) 10... g5 $1 {Of course, Nakamura wouldn't back down from such an opportunity. White is forced to go for the line that was played in the game} 11. d5 (11. Bd2 g4 12. Nh4 Nxd4 {does not give White enough compensation for the pawn.}) 11... gxf4 12. dxc6 fxg3 ({RR} 12... e5 13. cxb7 Bxb7 14. Nh4 Bc8 15. c5 Rb4 16. cxd6 cxd6 17. Qc2 fxg3 18. hxg3 Rxh4 19. gxh4 d5 20. Nxd5 Nxd5 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Bxd5 Bxd5 23. Qd3 Qxh4 24. Qxd5 Qg4+ 25. Qg2 Qxe2 26. Re1 Qxa2 27. Re3 {Giri,A (2734)-Aronian,L (2803) Beijing 2013 1-0 (56)}) 13. hxg3 {Black cannot win a pawn here after...} b5 $146 (13... bxc6 $6 14. Nd4 Bd7 (14... c5 $2 15. Nc6 {and Black loses}) 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Bxc6 {is certainly more pleasant for White.}) ({RR} 13... b6 14. Nd4 e5 15. Nc2 h5 16. Ne3 Ng4 17. Nxg4 Bxg4 18. Bf3 Bh3 19. Bxh5 Bxf1 20. Kxf1 f5 21. Kg2 e4 22. Nd5 Be5 23. f4 exf3+ 24. exf3 Bxg3 25. Qd2 f4 26. Qe2 Qg5 27. Qe6+ Kh8 28. Rh1 {Raznikov,D (2514)-Patel,A (2377) Fort Worth 2017 ½-½ (49)}) 14. cxb5 axb5 15. b4 {White fixes the weakness on b5, but at the same time his pawn on b4 is somewhat lose. He has to worry about Black's pair of bishops and the potential pawns on the center rolling down. On the other hand he has pressure on b5 and a majority on the queenside that might be problematic for Black.} d5 16. Qd3 Qd6 17. Nd4 Qxb4 18. a4 {Both players are happy with this exchange. b4 is lost, and the bishops gain a little more scope in the open game, but for the other hand White will obtain a passed pawn on the a-file.} Ne4 $5 {Nakamura spent 17 minutes in this move, a difficult position not only because of the many variations, but because none of them are necessarily clearly evaluated.} (18... bxa4 19. Rb1 Ba6 $1 20. Rxb4 Bxd3 21. Rxb8 Rxb8 22. exd3 {leaves Black down a piece, and although he has a powerful passed pawn on the a-file and a strong bishop supporting it from g7, it seems unlikely that there is quite enough.}) 19. Ndxb5 $5 (19. Nxd5 Nxf2 $1 (19... Qxd4 20. Qxd4 $1 Bxd4 21. Bxe4 {gives chances to retain the advantage with pressure on e7 and c7}) 20. Rxf2 Qxd4 21. Qxd4 Bxd4 {is nearly equal.}) 19... Nxc3 20. Nxc3 Bxc3 21. Rxc3 (21. Qxc3 Qxc3 22. Rxc3 e6 {gives Black some chances to win as White's a-pawn is weaker than it is dangerous.}) 21... Bf5 22. Qxd5 Qxc3 23. Qxf5 {A strange position. Neither side will be able to make much progress as Black has more material but his king is permanently weak and the white bishop will hold down the position comfortably.} Rfd8 24. Bf3 Ra8 25. Qe4 Qf6 26. Qb4 Ra7 27. Kg2 Rda8 28. Qg4+ Kf8 29. Qd7 e6 30. Rd1 Qe5 31. Rh1 Kg7 32. Rb1 Rxa4 33. Rb7 {Black has managed to round up the a pawn but now has to deal with the weakness on c7. He in reality has made no progress.} R4a7 34. Qe7 Rxb7 {The only way to continue, but allowing a pawn that is protected on b7 is sad.} 35. cxb7 {White on the other hand can also make no progress as b8 will be permanently defended.} Rb8 36. Qd7 c5 37. Qc6 Kf6 38. Kh2 Ke7 39. Kg2 f5 40. Qc8 Qd6 41. e3 Kf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-0=7"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2013.11.21"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E25"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2870"]
[Annotator "Gutman,Lev"]
[PlyCount "56"]
[EventDate "2013.11.09"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 158"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.01.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 $1 {"I should have played 1.d4 from the start. That was one of my greatest mistakes in my preparation", Viswanathan Anand after the match. "Ich hätte von Anfang an 1.d4 spielen müssen. Dies war einer meiner größten Fehler bei der Vorbereitung", Viswanathan Anand nach dem Wettkampf.} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 exd5 ({In the match Anand-Kramnik, Bonn 2008 Im Wettkampf Anand-Kramnik, Bonn 2008, kam} 7... Nxd5 {was played. aufs Brett.}) 8. e3 c4 $5 {In any case the choice of opening by Carlsen should have ben no surprise, since his previous trainer and confidant GM Simen Agdestein had already played this at the start of the year and even revealed after the game, "that the Norwegian national team had recently been lookng into this variation", Ian Rogers.  Allerdings sollte die Eröffnungswahl von Carlsen keine Überraschung sein, da sein früherer Trainer und Vertrauter GM Simen Agdestein bereits Anfang des Jahres so gespielt hat und nach der Partie sogar verriet, "dass die norwegische Nationalmannschaft sich kürzlich gerade mit dieser Variante beschäftigte", Ian Rogers.} 9. Ne2 (9. g4 Nc6 10. Ne2 {leads to the game by transposition. führt durch Zugumstellung zur Partie}) ({For Bezüglich} 9. g3 Nc6 10. Nh3 {see Biolek-Agdestein, Prag 2013 siehe Biolek-Agdestein, Prag 2013}) ({Once can hardly recommend Kaum zu empfehlen ist} 9. e4 $6 dxe4 10. Bxc4 (10. Bg5 Qa5 11. Qc1 (11. Qd2 $5 Nbd7 12. Bxc4 O-O 13. Ne2 b5 14. Ba2 exf3 15. gxf3 Bb7 16. O-O Bd5 $15) 11... Nbd7 12. Bxc4 O-O 13. Ne2 Re8 (13... b5 $5 14. Ba2 exf3 15. gxf3 Bb7) 14. Rb1 Qc7 15. Bb3 $6 (15. Bb5 a6 16. Bxd7 Nxd7 $15) 15... exf3 16. gxf3 b6 17. Kf2 Ba6 $17 {Grover-Zhou Weigi, Dubai 2012}) 10... O-O 11. fxe4 (11. Ne2 exf3 12. gxf3 Bf5 13. O-O Nbd7 14. Bb3 Rc8 15. c4 Re8 16. Rf2 Nh5 17. Ng3 Bg6 18. Ne4 Ndf6 19. Nc3 h6 $15 {Jambrich-Nemchenko, email 2010}) 11... Nxe4 12. Nf3 Qc7 13. Qb3 Nd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Bd3 Be6 (15... Qxc3 16. Qb1) 16. Qc2 f5 17. Ng5 Bc4 18. Bd2 Bxd3 19. Qxd3 Qc4 20. Qh3 Nxg5 21. Bxg5 Nd5 22. Bd2 g6 23. Rae1 Nf6 24. Bh6 Rfe8 25. Qf3 Re4 $15 {Gerola-Kunzelmann, corr 2012}) 9... Nc6 (9... O-O 10. g4 (10. Qc2 $6 Nc6 11. e4 dxe4 12. fxe4 Qa5 13. e5 Re8 $17) 10... Nc6 {is a transposition of moves. ist Zugumstellung.}) 10. g4 ({Abzuraten ist von} 10. Ng3 {cannot be advised:} h5 $5 {(Michail Krasenkow, chesspro.ru). (Michail Krasenkow, chesspro.ru).} 11. h4 ({Compare: Man sehe:} 11. Qc2 h4 12. Ne2 Qe7 13. Kf2 g6 (13... b5 $5 $17) 14. g4 hxg3+ 15. Nxg3 Be6 16. a4 Na5 17. Ba3 Qc7 18. Bg2 Nb3 19. Rae1 O-O-O $17 {Joergensen-Sadowski, email 2006}) (11. e4 h4 12. exd5 hxg3 13. dxc6 Rxh2 14. Rg1 Kf8 $17) 11... Qc7 $5 (11... Na5 12. e4 Nb3 13. Rb1 Qa5 $15 {Marusenko-Pavlov, Kiev 2010}) 12. Kf2 Na5 13. Qe1 (13. e4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Nd5 $15) 13... Nb3 $15) 10... O-O (10... Na5 $5 {is perhaps somewhat more flexible (Krasenkow), see Kortschnoj-O'Kelly and Aghasuryan-Mekumyan. ist vielleicht etwas flexibler (Krasenkow), siehe Kortschnoj-O'Kelly und Aghasuryan-Mekumyan.}) (10... h6 {leads to Kasparov-Polgar. führt zu Kasparov-Polgar.}) 11. Bg2 Na5 ({Zeitverlust wäre} 11... Qe7 $6 {would be a waste of time:} 12. Nf4 (12. O-O $5) 12... b5 (12... Na5 13. O-O Nb3 14. Ra2) 13. O-O h6 14. h4 (14. e4 $5 dxe4 15. fxe4 Bxg4 16. Qe1 $14) 14... Rd8 $6 (14... Qd8 $5 15. e4 Ne7 {would be more solid wäre solider}) 15. g5 hxg5 16. hxg5 Ne8 17. e4 Nc7 18. Nxd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Na5 20. f4 Nb3 21. Ra2 Bb7 22. Re2 Qd7 23. Re5 $16 {Nikitin-Belinkov, Moskau 1966}) 12. O-O Nb3 {Anand must have been satisfied with his choice of opening; he obtained exactly the sort of position he needed since he was trailing in the match - complicated and sharp.  Mit seiner Eröffnungswahl dürfte Anand zufrieden gewesen sein, er bekam genau den Typ Stellung, den er bei seinem Rückstand im Wettkampf gebraucht hatte - kompliziert und scharf.} 13. Ra2 {In contrast to the Botvinnik Variation White does not need a rook on e2 in order to get in e3-e4. Im Unterschied zur Botwinnik-Variante braucht Weiß keinen Turm auf e2 um e3-e4 durchzusetzen.} ({The move Der Zug} 13. Rb1 $5 {has been less explored, but in view of the counterplay for Black on the b-file it looks to make more sense and would perhaps have been less pleasant for Carlsen to face. ist weniger untersucht, erscheint in Anbetracht des schwarzen Gegenspiels auf der b-Linie sinnvoller und wäre für Carlsen vielleicht unangenehmer gewesen.}) 13... b5 (13... h6 {see Kasparov-Polgar siehe Kasparov-Polgar}) (13... Qa5 14. g5 Nd7 (14... Nh5 {(Krasenkow)} 15. Qe1 Bd7 16. Qh4 g6 17. e4 Rae8 18. Bf4 Nxf4 19. Qxf4 Bc6 20. h4 $14) 15. e4 Nb6 16. Qe1 $5 (16. h3 Na4 $5 (16... Nxc1 17. Qxc1 Bd7 18. Ng3 Nc8 19. Re2 Ne7 {Bernasek-Hera, Österreischische Liga 2012/13} 20. f4 dxe4 21. Nxe4 Nd5 22. Nc5 Bc6 23. Bxd5 Bxd5 24. Rfe1 $11) 17. Qe1 f6 18. gxf6 Nxc1 19. Qxc1 Rxf6 $15) 16... f6 (16... Nxc1 17. Qxc1 Bd7 18. Ng3) (16... Na4 17. Rc2 Bd7 18. Ng3) 17. gxf6 Nxc1 18. Qxc1 Rxf6 19. Ng3 Na4 20. Rc2 Be6 21. e5 Rf7 22. f4 Raf8 23. Qe3 $14) 14. Ng3 (14. a4 {hardly fits in here ist kaum am Platze} bxa4 15. Ng3 (15. Rxa4 a5 16. g5 Ne8 17. e4 Nc7 18. Ng3 Bd7 19. Ra2 Nxc1 20. Qxc1 a4 21. e5 Rb8 22. f4 Rb3 $15 {(Pavel Maletin, ruchess)}) (15. Nf4 Bb7 16. Rxa4 Re8 17. g5 Nd7 18. h4 a5 $15) 15... Nxc1 16. Qxc1 Qa5 17. e4 Rb8 18. g5 Ne8 $15) ({Etwas sinnvoller erscheint} 14. g5 {seems to make more sense:} Nd7 (14... Nh5 15. e4 f6 16. gxf6 Qxf6 17. Be3 a5 18. Nc1 Nxc1 19. Qxc1 Rb8 20. Rb2 Qe7 21. Qd2 Rb6 22. e5 Bf5 23. Kh1 Bd3 24. Rg1 Rf7 25. Bg5 $11 {Fessler-Vozda, corr 2012}) 15. e4 Nb6 16. Bf4 (16. e5 $2 Bf5 $17 {Gardner-Shabalov, Calgary 2012}) 16... a5 (16... f6 17. gxf6 Qxf6 18. Qe1 $11) 17. Qe1 Ra7 18. Qg3 $11) 14... a5 15. g5 ({Kaum besser wäre} 15. e4 {would hardly be any better, see Volkov-Smirnov, Khanty Mansiysk 2013. siehe Volkov-Smirnov, Khanty Mansiysk 2013.}) 15... Ne8 16. e4 Nxc1 ({After Nach} 16... Nc7 {then ist} 17. Be3 Rb8 18. Qe1 b4 19. axb4 axb4 20. Ne2 bxc3 21. Nxc3 Bb7 22. Qg3 Ra8 23. Rxa8 Bxa8 24. Rd1 Bc6 $11 {is possible (Maletin). möglich (Maletin).}) 17. Qxc1 Ra6 (17... Rb8 18. Qd2 Nc7 19. e5 Qe7 20. Rb1 $11) 18. e5 Nc7 $6 {Carlsen is too optimistic. He wants to maintain the tension and over-estimates his position. Carlsen ist zu optimistisch. Er will die Spannung aufrechterhalten und überschätzt seine Stellung.} ({Two alternatives appear more prudent: Vorsichtiger erscheinen zwei weitere Alternativen:} 18... b4 19. axb4 axb4 20. Rxa6 Bxa6 21. cxb4 Qb6 22. Qc3 Nc7 23. f4 Nb5 (23... Rb8 24. Ra1) 24. Qe3 Qxd4 25. Qxd4 Nxd4 26. Bxd5 c3 {(Krasenkow)} 27. Rc1 c2 28. Be4 Rc8 29. Kf2 g6 30. Ke3 Rc4 31. Bd3 Rc3 32. Kxd4 Rxd3+ 33. Kc5 Rc3+ $11) (18... g6 19. f4 Ng7 20. Rb2 Rb6 21. Qb1 {(Krasenkow)} Qd7 $1 22. f5 Nxf5 23. Nxf5 (23. Rxf5 gxf5 24. Nh5 Qe7 25. Nf6+ Rxf6 26. gxf6 Qxa3 {(Maletin)} 27. Qc2 b4 28. Bxd5 Kh8 29. Ra2 b3 30. Rxa3 bxc2 31. Ra1 Be6 32. Bxe6 fxe6 33. Rc1 Ra8 34. Rxc2 Kg8 35. Ra2 $16) 23... gxf5 24. h4 h6 25. Bh3 Qe7 26. Bxf5 Qxa3 {(Maletin)} 27. Rg2 Qxc3 28. Bxc8 Qxd4+ 29. Rff2 Qxe5 30. Bf5 Kh8 31. Qc1 Re8 32. g6 $11) 19. f4 $2 ({The critical moment! Black had more difficulties after Der kritischer Moment! Mehr Schwierigkeiten hatte Schwarz nach} 19. Rb2 $5 Qe7 20. Rb1 {(Krasenkow) , so as to finally bring this rook to b1: , um diesen Turm endlich auf b1 zu bringen:} Rb6 21. f4 b4 22. axb4 axb4 23. cxb4 Rxb4 (23... g6 24. Qe3 $5 Bd7 25. f5 Bxf5 26. Nxf5 gxf5 27. Rxf5 Rxb4 28. Rbf1 $14 {(Maletin)}) 24. Qa3 Na6 25. Bxd5 $5 (25. Rb2 Qb7 26. Rfb1 Rxb2 27. Qxb2 Qd7 28. Qb6 $14 {(Maletin)}) 25... Qd8 26. Rxb4 Nxb4 27. Qxb4 Qxd5 28. Qc5 $14) 19... b4 20. axb4 $146 ({For equality Zum Ausgleich reichte} 20. a4 {was sufficient, to deprive Black of the b5-square for his knight: um Schwarz das Feld b5 für den Springer wegzunehmen:} b3 (20... Rb6 21. f5 bxc3 22. Raf2 Na6 (22... Rb3 23. e6 fxe6 24. f6 Rb2 25. Rf3 {(Maletin)} e5 26. Rxc3 exd4 27. Qxb2 dxc3 28. Qxc3 Ne6 29. Nf5 gxf6 30. Bxd5 Kh8 31. gxf6 Qxd5 32. f7+ Nd4 33. Qxd4+ Qxd4+ 34. Nxd4 Kg7 35. Nf5+ Bxf5 36. Rxf5 Rxf7 37. Rxa5 Rc7 38. Kf2 c3 39. Rg5+ Kf6 40. Rg1 $11) 23. f6 Nb4 24. fxg7 Kxg7 25. Nh5+ Kh8 26. Rxf7 {(Maletin)} Rxf7 27. Rxf7 Be6 28. Rf6 Nd3 29. Qxc3 Rb1+ 30. Bf1 Bh3 31. Qxa5 Rxf1+ 32. Rxf1 Qxg5+ 33. Ng3 Bxf1 34. Qa8+ Kg7 35. Qa7+ $11) 21. Raf2 Bd7 22. f5 Bxa4 23. f6 Bd7 $1 (23... g6 $2 24. Qf4 Re8 (24... Ne6 $2 25. Qh4 Kh8 26. Bh3) 25. Qh4 Ree6 26. Nf5 gxf5 (26... Qf8 27. Ne7+ Kh8 28. Rf3 h5 29. Bh3 Be8 30. Bg4 $18) 27. Bh3 Kh8 28. Bxf5 Qg8 29. Rf3 Ne8 30. Rh3 Nxf6 31. exf6 Rxf6 32. Qxh7+ Qxh7 33. Rxh7+ Kg8 34. gxf6 $18 {(Maletin)}) 24. fxg7 Kxg7 25. Nh5+ Kh8 26. Rxf7 (26. Nf6 Ne8 27. Nxd5 Be6 28. Nf6 Nxf6 29. Rxf6 Rg8 $11 {(Maletin)}) 26... Rxf7 27. Rxf7 Be6 28. Rf6 Qg8 {(Maletin)} 29. g6 hxg6 30. Nf4 (30. Qh6+ Qh7 31. Qf8+ Qg8 32. Qh6+ Qh7 $11) 30... Bf7 31. Nxd5 Rxf6 32. Nxf6 Qf8 33. Qg5 Kg7 34. Nh5+ Kh8 35. Nf6 Kg7 $11) ({A more energetic move seems to be Energischer erscheint} 20. f5 $5 {(Boris Gelfand, chesspro)} bxc3 $5 (20... b3 21. Raf2 $40) (20... Nb5 21. axb4 axb4 22. Rxa6 Bxa6 23. f6 g6 24. Qf4 $1 (24. e6 fxe6 25. Qe3 Bc8 26. cxb4 Nd6 $11 {(Krasenkow)}) 24... Qb6 25. Qh4 h5 26. Nxh5 bxc3 27. Kh1 $1 Nxd4 28. Ng3 Ne6 29. Nf5 $1 gxf5 30. Qh5 $1 Qb7 31. Bh3 d4+ 32. Bg2 $18) 21. f6 g6 22. Qxc3 (22. Qf4 Ne6 23. Qh4 Qb6 24. Ne2 Qb3 25. Nc1 Qb6 26. Ne2 $11) 22... Rb6 23. Qxa5 Rb3 $11 {(Maletin)}) ({And Auch} 20. Raf2 $5 {is also interesting, so as to mobilise all his resources: ist interessant, um alle Resourcen zu mobilisieren:} Nb5 (20... bxc3 21. Qxc3 a4 22. Qe3 Rb6 23. f5 Rb3 24. Qf4 Rd3 (24... c3 25. f6 Ne6 26. Qh4 Ba6 27. Bh3 $16) 25. Nh5 Nb5 26. e6 Rxd4 27. Qe5 Qxg5 28. Nf4 $16) (20... b3 21. f5 Kh8 22. Nh5 Rb6 23. Qe3 $16) 21. axb4 axb4 22. cxb4 Nxd4 23. f5 Bb7 (23... Nb3 24. Qd1 Bb7 25. Qh5) 24. Nh5 {(Maletin)} Qb6 25. Qe3 Qa7 26. e6 fxe6 27. Qe5 Bc8 28. b5 Nxb5 29. f6 Ra2 (29... Qd4 30. fxg7 Rf5 31. Qb8 Qc5 32. Kh1 $18) 30. Bxd5 Qb6 31. Bxc4 Rxf2 32. Rxf2 Nd4 $11) ({RR} 20. f5 bxc3 21. a4 Rb6 22. Qf4 Rb2 23. Ra3 c2 24. Nh5 Ne8 25. Rc3 Rb1 26. Rxc2 Rxf1+ 27. Bxf1 Qb6 28. Bg2 Bxf5 29. Qxf5 Qb1+ 30. Bf1 g6 31. Qf2 gxh5 32. Rb2 Qc1 33. Rb5 Nc7 34. Rxa5 Ne6 {Timofeev,A (2542)-Anand,N (2025) Abu Dhabi 2015 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 20. f5 bxc3 21. a4 Rb6 22. Raf2 g6 23. Qf4 Rb2 24. Qh4 Rxf2 25. Rxf2 Bxf5 26. Rxf5 gxf5 27. Nh5 c2 28. Qf4 Ne6 29. Qc1 Qxg5 30. Nf6+ Kg7 31. Qxc2 Qe3+ 32. Kf1 Nxd4 33. Qd1 Qxe5 34. Nh5+ Kh8 {Harshavardhan,G (2397)-Akobian,V (2614) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (38)}) 20... axb4 21. Rxa6 Nxa6 22. f5 (22. cxb4 Nxb4 23. f5 g6 24. Qd2 Nc6 $11) 22... b3 (22... bxc3 23. Qxc3 g6 24. Qe3 (24. f6 Nc7 25. Rb1 Ne6 26. Qd2 Qc7 27. Ne2 $11 {(Maletin)}) 24... Nc7 25. h4 Bxf5 26. Nxf5 gxf5 27. Rxf5 Ne6 28. Rf6 Qa5 29. Kh2 $11) 23. Qf4 (23. f6 g6 24. Qf4 Kh8 $5 25. Qh4 b2 26. Qh6 Rg8 27. Rf4 b1=Q+ 28. Bf1 Qd1 $1 29. Rh4 Qh5 30. Nxh5 gxh5 31. Qxh5 Bf5 32. Qxf7 Nc7 $15) (23. Nh5 Nc7 24. Qe3 Kh8 25. h4 $11) (23. h4 $5 {(Alexej Dreev, chessnews.ru)} Nc7 24. h5 Ne8 (24... Nb5 $6 25. f6 Be6 26. g6 hxg6 27. hxg6 fxg6 28. Qg5 Nxc3 29. Qxg6 Qc7 30. Nh5 $18) 25. Qf4 (25. f6 gxf6 26. gxf6 Kh8 27. Ne2 Rg8 28. Nf4 Nc7 $15) 25... Qa5 26. h6 g6 27. fxg6 hxg6 28. Nh5 Bf5 29. Bh3 Bxh3 30. Nf6+ Kh8 31. Nxe8 f6 32. e6 Qa2 33. Rf2 Qb1+ 34. Kh2 Qe1 35. Nxf6 Bxe6 $11 {(Maletin)}) 23... Nc7 (23... Kh8 $6 24. Nh5 Nc7 25. e6 Ne8 (25... fxe6 26. Nxg7 Kxg7 27. f6+ Kg8 28. f7+) 26. exf7 Rxf7 27. f6 g6 28. Re1 Nc7 29. Ng7 Kg8 30. h4 $14) 24. f6 $5 (24. Qh4 Kh8 25. Nh5 Nb5 (25... b2 26. f6 g6 27. Ng7 Nb5 {(Mikhail Golubev, chess today)} 28. Qf2 Nxc3 29. Qxb2 Ne4 30. h4 Kg8 31. Qb4 Qc7 $11) 26. e6 fxe6 27. f6 gxf6 28. Nxf6 Qe7 29. Rf2 Rf7 30. g6 Rg7 31. Nh5 Kg8 $11) 24... g6 (24... gxf6 25. Qh4 f5 (25... Kh8 26. Rxf6 Ne6 27. Bxd5 Qxd5 28. Rh6 Nxg5 29. Qxg5 Qf3 30. Rf6 Qg4 31. Qh6 Kg8 32. Rb6 Be6 33. Kf2 Qg6 34. Qxg6+ hxg6 35. Ke3 Kg7 36. Rb5 $11) 26. Nh5 Ne8 27. Nf4 Be6 28. Rf3 Ng7 29. Rh3 Re8 30. Nxd5 Bxd5 31. Qxh7+ Kf8 32. Qh8+ Ke7 33. Qxg7 b2 34. Qf6+ Kd7 35. Qd6+ Kc8 36. Qa6+ Kc7 $11) 25. Qh4 Ne8 {Magnus Carlsen has defended more or less accurately and is hoping for the best.  Magnus Carlsen hat sich mehr oder weniger akkurat verteidigt, und hofft auf das Beste.} 26. Qh6 (26. Ne2 Be6 27. Nf4 Qa5 28. Nxe6 ({Maletin gives Maletin gibt} 28. Bh3 Bxh3 29. Qxh3 b2 30. e6 (30. Ne6 Qa1 31. Nxf8 Kxf8 32. e6 Nd6 33. Qh6+ Ke8 34. exf7+ Nxf7 35. Qh3 Kd8 36. Qg2 b1=Q 37. Qxd5+ $11) (30. Nxg6 hxg6 31. e6 Qa1 32. e7 Nxf6 33. exf8=Q+ Kxf8 34. gxf6 Kg8 $11) 30... Nd6 (30... Qa1 31. e7 b1=Q 32. exf8=Q+ Kxf8 33. Nxd5) 31. Nxg6 hxg6 32. Qh6 Nf5 33. Rxf5 b1=Q+ 34. Rf1 Qxf1+ 35. Kxf1 $11 {with equality in each case. jeweils mit Ausgleich an}) 28... fxe6 29. Bh3 Nc7 (29... Qa6 30. Qf2 Rf7 31. Qb2 Ra7 32. Bg4 Kf8 33. Qf2 Qb6 34. Qh4 b2 35. Qh6+ Kg8 36. Qh3 Kf8 $11) 30. f7+ Rxf7 31. Rxf7 Kxf7 32. Qxh7+ Kf8 33. Qh8+ Ke7 34. Qf6+ Kd7 35. Bxe6+ Nxe6 36. Qf7+ Kd8 37. Qf6+ Kc7 38. Qe7+ Kb8 39. Qxe6 $11) 26... b2 27. Rf4 $5 (27. Ne2 Be6 28. Nf4 Qa5 29. Nxe6 fxe6 30. Bh3 Qa6 31. Bg4 Rf7 32. Qh3 Nc7 33. Qg2 Qa2 34. Qc2 Rf8 35. f7+ Kg7 36. Qf2 $11) 27... b1=Q+ 28. Nf1 $4 ({Anand overlooks Black's reply. Anand übersieht die schwarze Antwort. Zum Ausgleich reichte} 28. Bf1 {was enough for equality:} Qd1 $1 29. Rh4 Qh5 30. Nxh5 gxh5 31. Rxh5 Bf5 32. g6 $1 (32. Bh3 Bg6 33. e6 Nxf6 34. gxf6 Qxf6 $15) 32... Bxg6 33. Rg5 Nxf6 (33... Qa5 34. Rg3 Qa3 35. h4) 34. exf6 Qxf6 35. Rxd5 Qf3 36. Rc5 Qxc3 37. Rxc4 $11 {(Krasenkow)}) 28... Qe1 $1 ({But not Aber nicht} 28... Qd1 $4 29. Rh4 Qh5 30. Rxh5 gxh5 31. Ne3 Be6 32. Bxd5 $18) 0-1

[Event "Zuerich Chess Challenge"]
[Site "Zuerich"]
[Date "2014.02.01"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2789"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "122"]
[EventDate "2014.01.30"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "5"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 159"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.03.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.03.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 d5 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 Bc5 9. Bg5 (9. Nf3 {is more common.}) 9... O-O (9... h6 {is usually played here. An old example:} 10. Bh4 Bd4 11. Nf3 Bxc3+ 12. bxc3 Qd6 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14. O-O O-O 15. Kh1 Nc5 16. Qe2 Bg4 17. Qe3 Nfd7 18. Bg3 Bxf3 {1/2 (18) Moskalenko,V (2500)-Chekhov,V (2480) Leningrad 1989}) 10. Nf3 Bg4 {Black has a different concept. Anticipating White's long castling, he doesn't want to weaken his queenside by means of ...h7-h6. However, the present game shows that it is not easy to equalise in any case.} (10... h6 11. Bh4 Bg4 12. Bd3 (12. h3 $5) 12... Nbd7 13. h3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 c6 15. O-O-O Bd4 16. Ne2 Qb6 17. Nxd4 exd4 18. Bxf6 Nxf6 19. e5 cxd5 20. exf6 dxc4 21. fxg7 Rfc8 22. Bf5 c3 23. Qf2 cxb2+ 24. Kb1 Rc3 25. Rd3 $18 {1-0 (47) Yakimenko,A (2178)-Stojcevski,Z (2352) Sunny Beach 2011}) (10... a5 $5 11. Qd2 Qd6 12. Be3 $6 (12. O-O-O) 12... Na6 13. Bd3 Bd7 14. O-O Qb6 15. Rae1 Ng4 $36 {0-1 (57) Kantorik,M (2289)-Solodovnichenko,Y (2430) Zvolen 2000}) 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nbd7 (12... Bd4 13. Ne2 $1 Bxb2 $140 $6 14. Ra2 Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 $16) 13. O-O-O Bd4 14. Ne2 $1 {[%mdl 4]} c5 (14... Nc5 $4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 h6 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. exf6 {1-0 (18) Petrosian,K (2340)-Suess,M Budapest 1990}) ({But perhaps it was better to refrain from the text move keeping a possibility to play ...c7-c6 later on:} 14... Re8 {Black even sacrifices a pawn but obtains the e5-square if White takes on d4:} 15. Nxd4 (15. Kb1 c6 $1) 15... exd4 16. Rxd4 Qe7 17. Bd3 $140 Ne5 18. Qe3 c5 19. dxc6 bxc6) 15. g4 a5 $2 (15... a6 $1 {[%cal Yb7b5,Ya8b8] was now a must.}) 16. Kb1 $146 ({RR} 16. h4 a4 17. Bd2 Qb6 18. Nc3 Qb3 19. Bd3 Nb6 20. g5 Ne8 21. Bc2 Qxc4 22. h5 Nc8 23. Rdf1 b5 24. g6 Ncd6 25. h6 hxg6 26. hxg7 Nxg7 27. Qf6 b4 28. Rh6 Ndf5 29. Rfh1 Nxh6 30. Bxh6 Ne8 {Leenhouts,K (2476)-Le Quang,K (2271) Bruges BEL 2025 ½-½ (33)}) 16... Ra6 17. Ng3 {[%mdl 128] Suddenly it turns out that Black can hardly develop his attack since he can't push ...b7-b5. Meanwhile, White's assault goes slowly but smoothly.} g6 $6 {This weakening move makes White's attack unstoppable. It was better to refrain from it, even allowing White's knight will a powerful position on f5:} (17... Rb6 {is useless, e.g.} 18. Rh2 a4 19. h4 Rb3 20. Rd3) (17... a4 $142 18. Nf5 Qa5 19. Rh2 Rb6 {[%cal Rb6b3]} 20. Bc1 $140 Ne8 $1 {[%cal Ye8d6]}) 18. h4 a4 19. Rh2 (19. Bh6 Ne8 (19... Re8 $2 20. g5 Nh5 21. Nxh5 gxh5 22. Bh3) 20. Bxf8 Rf6 21. Qd3 Kxf8 {wins an exchange but White wants more.}) 19... Qa5 20. Bd2 Qc7 21. g5 Ne8 22. h5 Rb6 23. Bc1 Rb3 24. Qg4 Nb6 25. Be2 Nd6 26. Rdh1 Bxb2 {Desperation.} (26... Nbxc4 27. Bxc4 Nxc4 28. hxg6 fxg6 29. Qe6+ Qf7 30. Rxh7 $1 Qxe6 31. dxe6 $18) 27. Bxb2 Nbxc4 28. Bxc4 Nxc4 29. hxg6 Qb6 $1 {[%mdl 256] Magnus Carlsen finds the most stubborn defence. It is not easy for White to find the decisive blow over the board.} 30. g7 (30. gxf7+ $142 $1 Rxf7 31. Nh5 $1 Rxb2+ 32. Ka1 Rxh2 33. Nf6+ Kg7 34. Rxh2 $18 {(K.Landa)}) 30... Rd8 31. Qh4 Rxb2+ 32. Ka1 Rxh2 33. Rxh2 Qg6 34. Nf5 Re8 35. Qg4 {[%mdl 64] White fails to find the winning idea:} (35. Qf2 b6 (35... Nd6 36. Rh6) 36. Rxh7 $1 Qxh7 37. Nh6+ $18) 35... Qb6 36. Qh3 (36. g6 $1 Qxg6 (36... fxg6 37. Nh6+ Kxg7 38. Qd7+) 37. Qh3 $18 {[%cal Rh2g2]}) 36... Qg6 37. d6 $2 {Wrong!} (37. Qf3 $1 {[%cal Rh2h7] was still good enough.}) 37... Nxd6 $8 38. Nxd6 Rd8 $1 39. Nc4 $2 (39. Nc8 $3 Kxg7 40. Ne7 Rd1+ 41. Ka2 Qe6+ (41... Qb6 42. Qxh7+ Kf8 43. Qh6+) (41... Qxg5 42. Nf5+ Kf8 43. Ne3) 42. Qxe6 fxe6 43. Rh6 {still gave White some winning chances but Hikaru Nakamura had no chances to find such niceties that day.}) 39... Qxe4 40. Qh5 $4 (40. Ne3 $13) 40... Rd3 $1 {Black starts a decisive counter-attack.} 41. Rh4 Qf5 42. Qe2 b5 43. Nd2 Qxg5 (43... Rxa3+ 44. Kb2 Rg3 {was even stronger but the World Champion correctly judges that his pawn avalanche will be much stronger than White's knight anyway.}) 44. Qxd3 Qxh4 45. Ne4 Kxg7 46. Qf3 (46. Qd5 Qf4 47. Nxc5 Qd4+ $19 {}) 46... Qf4 47. Qg2+ Kf8 48. Kb2 h5 49. Nd2 h4 50. Kc2 b4 51. axb4 cxb4 52. Qa8+ Kg7 53. Qxa4 h3 54. Qb3 h2 55. Qd5 e4 56. Qh5 e3 57. Nf3 e2 58. Kb3 f6 59. Ne1 Qg3+ 60. Ka4 Qg1 61. Qxe2 Qa7+ 0-1

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.20"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D52"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2760"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. e3 Qa5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Rc1 {This rare continuation has recently become quite popular.} Nxc3 ({White meets} 8... Bb4 {with} 9. a3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 {sacrificing his a3-pawn but getting good compensation: the bishop pair and a strong centre.}) 9. bxc3 Ba3 (9... Qxa2 10. Bd3 Bd6 11. O-O Qa5 12. c4 $44 {E.Postny}) 10. Rc2 b6 (10... O-O 11. Bd3 e5 {is another way to activate the c8-bishop. In the following game Black obtained a decent position:} 12. O-O Re8 13. e4 Be7 14. Be3 Qc7 15. h3 b5 16. Nh2 Bb7 17. f4 c5 $1 18. fxe5 c4 19. Be2 Bxe4 20. Rb2 Qc6 $13 {1/2 (51) Vovk,Y (2608)-Antipov,M (2488) Riga 2013}) 11. Be2 (11. Bd3 {is more common but a way to pose any problems to Black is yet to be found:} Ba6 12. O-O Bxd3 13. Qxd3 O-O 14. c4 (14. e4 Rfe8 15. e5 $6 (15. Bf4 $142 {E.Postny}) 15... h6 16. Bh4 c5 17. Nd2 cxd4 18. cxd4 Rac8 $1 19. Nc4 Qb5 20. f4 Rc7 21. Qxa3 Rxc4 22. Rxc4 Qxc4 23. Bf2 Qc7 24. Rc1 Qb7 25. Qd6 Nf8 $11 {0-1 (57) Gelfand,B (2740)-Carlsen,M (2872) London 2013 CBM 154 [Postny,E]}) (14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Bh4 Rac8 16. c4 Bd6 17. Ng5 Qf5 18. Qxf5 exf5 19. Bg3 Bxg3 20. hxg3 c5 21. Nf3 Nf6 22. Kf1 Ne4 $11 {1/2 (85) Moiseenko,A (2703)-Dreev,A (2679) Jakarta 2013}) 14... h6 15. Bh4 (15. Bf4 $5 {E.Postny}) 15... Rfe8 16. Nd2 (16. e4 e5 17. d5 Nc5 18. Qe2 Qa4 $11 {1/2 (38) Malakhatko,V (2548)-Michiels,B (2489) Antwerp 2011}) (16. Rd1 $5 {E.Postny}) 16... Be7 17. Bxe7 Rxe7 18. c5 bxc5 19. Nb3 Qa4 {1/2 (19) Cmilyte,V (2525)-Gurevich,M (2596) Konya 2012} 20. Nxc5 Nxc5 21. Rxc5 Qxa2 22. Rxc6 a5 $11) 11... Ba6 12. O-O Bxe2 13. Qxe2 ({RR} 13. Rxe2 O-O 14. e4 c5 15. d5 Qb5 16. Be7 Rfe8 17. d6 e5 18. Nh4 g6 19. f4 exf4 20. Rxf4 c4 21. Kh1 Ne5 22. Nf3 Nd3 23. Rh4 Rxe7 24. dxe7 Bxe7 25. Rg4 Rd8 26. Qf1 Bf6 27. e5 Bxe5 {Ter Sahakyan,S (2611)-Aswath,S (2469) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (44)}) 13... O-O {White has a pawn advantage in the centre but it should not worry Black too much as he has good development and prospects of counterplay with ...e6-e5 or ...c6-c5.} 14. e4 $146 (14. Rd1 Rfe8 (14... e5 $5) 15. Bf4 (15. e4 Rac8 16. Bf4 {preventing ...e6-e5} c5 17. Nd2 b5 (17... cxd4 $142 18. Nc4 Qa6 $11) 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Nb1 e5 20. Bg3 a6 21. c4 b4 22. Rd5 Qa4 23. f3 b3 24. axb3 Qxb3 25. Nxa3 Qxa3 26. Bf2 Ne6 27. g3 $14 {1/2 (61) Cmilyte,V (2515)-Dreev,A (2673) Caleta ENG 2014}) 15... Rac8 16. c4 Be7 17. e4 {looks formidable but Black finds a way to create counterplay:} Qa4 18. h3 Nf8 19. Be3 Ng6 20. g3 c5 21. d5 exd5 22. Rxd5 Bf6 23. Qd3 Ne7 24. Rd6 Nc6 25. a3 Be5 26. Rd5 Bc7 27. Kg2 Ne7 28. Rd7 Nc6 29. Rd5 Ne7 30. Rd7 Nc6 {1/2 (30) Tomashevsky,E (2697)-Dreev,A (2670) Loo RUS 2014}) (14. Bf4 $5 {- this move order is yet to be tried.}) 14... Rac8 $146 {I don't like this standard move. What's its idea? After ...c6-c5 White plays d4-d5 anyway, and the c-file remains closed.} (14... c5 15. d5 $36) (14... Rfe8 $5 {[%cal Ge8e2,Yc6c5]}) ({RR} 14... Rfe8 15. e5 Bf8 16. Rd1 Rac8 17. c4 h6 18. Bh4 Qa4 19. Rc3 c5 20. d5 exd5 21. Rxd5 Nb8 22. Re3 Re6 23. Ne1 Nc6 24. f4 Nd4 25. Qd3 Qxa2 26. Rd7 Rce8 27. Nf3 Nxf3+ 28. Rxf3 b5 29. cxb5 {Reimanis,R (2361)-Jogstad,D (2137) Gothenburg SWE 2023 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 14... e5 15. Rd1 Rfe8 16. h3 Bf8 17. Bh4 g6 18. Nh2 exd4 19. Rxd4 Be7 20. Rxd7 Bxh4 21. g3 Rad8 22. Rcd2 Rxd7 23. Rxd7 Be7 24. Qd3 Qb5 25. c4 Qe5 26. Kg2 Qe6 27. Rxa7 Bf8 28. e5 Qxe5 29. Ng4 {Salem,A (2677)-Murzin,V (2604) Dubai UAE 2023 ½-½ (32)}) 15. e5 {[%mdl 32] The same plan as in Gelfand - Carlsen (see above) but White's queen is placed on e2 better than on d3.} Qa4 {Black prevents f3-d2 (-c4 or e4).} (15... c5 $2 16. d5 $1 exd5 17. e6 fxe6 18. Qxe6+ Rf7 19. Ne5 $18 {E.Gleizerov}) 16. c4 Rfe8 ({Perhaps it was slightly more accurate to play} 16... h6 {first:} 17. Bh4 (17. Be3 Rfd8 {[%cal Yd7f8]}) 17... Rfe8 {[%cal Yd7f8,Yf8g6]}) 17. Rd1 c5 ({Probably it was better to wait:} 17... Nf8 {But that means that the initiative belongs to White.}) 18. d5 {[%csl Ra3]} exd5 19. Rxd5 (19. cxd5 $1 {was more energetic:} Nxe5 20. Nxe5 Rxe5 21. Qxe5 Qxc2 22. Re1 $44 {[%csl Gd5] E.Gleizerov}) 19... Nf8 (19... Nb8 $142 {[%cal Yb8c6] to keep the e5-pawn under fire (recommended by E.Gleizerov). The position remains unclear in that case.}) 20. h4 h6 21. Be3 Ng6 $6 {This position of the knight is unsafe in view of h4-h5.} (21... Rc7 $142 {[%cal Yc7e7] The knight can pick its way out later on.}) 22. Qd3 $1 {Preventing ...g6-e7-f5.} Re6 (22... Nf8 {(admitting his mistake)} 23. h5 $36 {[%cal Yf3h4,Yh4f5]} Rcd8 $5 {was probably a better possibility.}) 23. h5 Ne7 24. Rd6 {Carlsen plays in a positional manner. The rook exchange on e6 weakens Black's pawn structure.} (24. Rd8+ {was better but required accurate calculation:} Rxd8 25. Qxd8+ Kh7 26. Rd2 Bc1 (26... Qxc4 $2 27. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 28. Qf8 {[%cal Rf8f7,Rd2d8]}) 27. Rd7 Bxe3 28. fxe3 Qxa2 29. Rxe7 Rxe7 30. Qxe7 Qxc4 31. Qxa7 b5 32. Qa6 {, and White should win as} Qc1+ 33. Kh2 b4 {doesn't work due to} 34. Qd3+ Kg8 35. e6 $1 fxe6 36. Qd8+ Kh7 37. Ne5 {[%cal Re5g6]}) 24... Bb4 25. Rc1 Re8 26. Rxe6 fxe6 27. Nh4 {[%cal Yg2g4,Yg4g5,Yh4g6]} Qc6 (27... Qxa2 $2 28. Qd7 Kf7 29. Ng6 {[%cal Rg6f4]} Qa6 30. Rd1 {[%cal Yd1d3,Ye3h6,Yd3f3]} Qc8 31. Qxa7 $18 {[%cal Yd1d7] E.Gleizerov}) 28. a3 Ba5 29. Rd1 Qc7 30. Ng6 Nxg6 31. Qxg6 Qf7 32. Rd3 $1 {Preventing ...a5-c3. White is practically a piece up.} a6 (32... Qxg6 33. hxg6 Kf8 34. Kf1 Ke7 35. Bf4 $1 {[%cal Yf4g3,Yg3h4] , and Black is completely helpless}) 33. a4 Rf8 34. g4 {The advance of the kingside pawns decides the game.} Qe8 $6 35. Rd6 Qxa4 (35... Qxg6 36. hxg6 Re8 37. f4 $18) 36. Qxe6+ Kh8 37. Bxh6 $1 {White accurately calculates that Black's subsequent rook sacrifice doesn't give him a perpetual.} Qa1+ 38. Kg2 Rxf2+ 39. Kxf2 Qe1+ 40. Kg2 Qe4+ 41. Kh3 Qh1+ 42. Kg3 Qe1+ (42... Be1+ 43. Kf4 Qh2+ 44. Kg5 Bh4+ 45. Kg6 Qc2+ 46. Qf5 $18) 43. Kf4 Bd2+ 44. Rxd2 Qxd2+ 45. Kf5 gxh6 46. Qe8+ Kg7 47. Qe7+ (47. Qe7+ Kg8 48. Kg6 Qd3+ 49. Kxh6 Qe3+ 50. g5 $18) 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.21"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "121"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bf5 5. Nc3 a6 6. Be2 h6 7. Bd3 $146 {This novelty can hardly pose Black new problems. The inclusion of h7-h6 does not affect the position much, so the resulting positions should be compared with the known 6.d3 line.} ({In his previous rapid game, Magnus went for the most ambitious:} 7. Qb3 Ra7 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. Ne5 e6 10. Bd2 {Black should have played:} Be7 ({and here instead of:} 10... Bd6 $2 11. Qa4+ Nc6 (11... Nbd7 12. Nb5 $18) ({RR} 11... Nbd7 12. Nb5) 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Qxc6+ $16 {1-0 Carlsen,M (2837)-Bologan,V (2732)/Astana KAZ 2012 (54)}) ({RR} 10... Bd6 11. Qa4+ Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Qxc6+) 11. Rc1 O-O 12. O-O Nfd7 {with a solid position. For instance,} 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. a4 Nb8 15. e4 dxe4 16. d5 Nd7 17. Be3 Nc5 $1 (17... Bc5 $6 18. Nxe4 Bxe3 19. Qxe3 Qb6 20. Ng3 $36 {½-½ Aronian,L (2802)-Carlsen,M (2826)/London 2011/CBM 146 (39)}) ({RR} 17... Bc5 18. Nxe4 Bxe3 19. Qxe3 Qb6 20. Ng3) 18. Qc4 ({Black is clearly no longer at risk in the event of:} 18. Qc2 Ra8 19. dxe6 fxe6 20. Bxc5 Bxc5 21. Nxe4 Bd4 $11) ({RR} 18. Qc2 Ra8 19. dxe6 fxe6 20. Bxc5 Bxc5 21. Nxe4 Bd4) 18... b6 19. g4 exd5 (19... Bh7 $5 20. dxe6 Nxe6 21. Rfd1 Qb8 {is also fine for Black}) ({RR} 19... Bh7 20. dxe6 Nxe6 21. Rfd1 Qb8) 20. Qxd5 Qxd5 21. Nxd5 Be6 22. Nxe7+ Rxe7 $11) ({RR} 7. Qb3 Ra7 8. cxd5 cxd5 9. Ne5 e6 10. Bd2 Be7 11. Rc1 O-O 12. O-O Nfd7 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. a4 Nb8 15. e4 dxe4 16. d5 Nd7 17. Be3 Nc5 18. Qc4 b6 19. g4 exd5 20. Qxd5 Qxd5 21. Nxd5 Be6) 7... Bxd3 (7... e6 8. Bxf5 exf5 9. Qc2 g6 10. O-O Bd6 $11) ({RR} 7... e6 8. Bxf5 exf5 9. Qc2 g6 10. O-O Bd6) 8. Qxd3 e6 9. O-O Bb4 10. Bd2 ({RR} 10. b3 O-O 11. Bb2 Nbd7 12. Nd2 b5 13. a3 Ba5 14. a4 bxc4 15. bxc4 c5 16. Ba3 Bb4 17. Rfb1 Bxa3 18. Rxa3 cxd4 19. Qxd4 e5 20. Qh4) 10... O-O 11. Rfd1 {This position is quite topical with the pawn on h7. Black has to solve a problem of b4 now - 11...bd7? is a tactical blunder (12.xd5!)} ({RR} 11. a3 Bxc3 12. Bxc3 dxc4 ({RR} 12... Nbd7 13. Rfd1 a5 14. a4 Ne4 15. Nd2 Nxc3 16. bxc3 Qc7 17. cxd5 cxd5 18. c4 dxc4 19. Nxc4 Rfc8 20. Nd2 Ra6 21. Ne4) 13. Qxc4 Qd5 14. Qb4 b5 15. Qa5 Rc8 16. a4 Ne4 17. Nd2 Nd6 18. Rfe1 f5 19. f3 c5 20. e4 fxe4 21. fxe4 Qb7 22. axb5 Nxb5 23. d5 exd5 24. exd5 Qxd5 25. Re5 Qd7 {Giri,A (2790)-Mamedyarov,S (2756) Shamkir 2015 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11. a3 Bxc3 12. Bxc3 dxc4 13. Qxc4 Qd5 14. Qb4 b5 15. Qa5 Rc8 16. a4 Ne4 17. Nd2 Nd6 18. Rfe1 f5 19. f3 c5 20. e4 fxe4 21. fxe4 Qb7 22. axb5 Nxb5) ({RR} 11. b3 a5 12. a3 Bxc3 13. Bxc3 Ne4 14. Bb2 Re8 15. Ne5 Nd7 16. Nxd7 Qxd7 17. f3 Ng5 18. a4 f6 19. Bc3 Nf7 20. Rad1) 11... Bxc3 {The simplest way to complete the developement.} ({Protecting the bishop has its drawbacks:} 11... a5 12. a3 Bxc3 (12... Be7 13. e4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Nd7 16. Bf4 $14) ({RR} 12... Be7 13. e4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Nd7 16. Bf4) 13. bxc3 Nbd7 (13... dxc4 14. Qxc4 Qd5 15. Qe2 $14) ({RR} 13... dxc4 14. Qxc4 Qd5 15. Qe2) 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. c4 $14) ({It was possible to keep the bishop on the board by means of} 11... Ba5 $5 12. Rab1 ({RR} 12. Rab1 Nbd7 13. b4 Bc7 14. e4 Nb6 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. e5 Nfd7) 12... Nbd7 13. b4 Bc7 14. e4 Nb6 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. e5 Nfd7 $132) ({RR} 11... Ba5 12. a4 Nbd7 13. b4 ({RR} 13. Ne2 Re8 14. Qb3 Rb8) 13... Bxb4 ({RR} 13... Bc7 14. a5 Re8 15. e4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 e5 17. dxe5 Nxe4 18. Qxe4 Nxe5) 14. Nxd5 exd5 ({RR} 14... cxd5 15. Bxb4 dxc4 16. Qxc4 Rc8 17. Qb3 Re8 18. a5) ({RR} 14... Bxd2 15. Nxf6+ Nxf6 16. Rxd2 c5 17. Rb1 Qc7) 15. Bxb4 Re8 ({RR} 15... dxc4 16. Qxc4 Re8) 16. a5 dxc4 17. Qxc4 Nd5 18. h3 ({RR} 18. Rab1 Rb8 19. Rb2) 18... Qc7 19. Be1 N7f6 20. Ne5 Ne4 21. Rac1 Qe7 ({RR} 21... Rad8 22. Qb3 Qe7 23. Rc2) 22. Qd3 Nd6 23. Qa3 f6 ({RR} 23... Nb5 24. Qb2 Rad8 25. Nd3 Nd6) 24. Nd3 Rad8 25. Bb4 ({RR} 25. Nc5 Ne4) 25... Nxb4 26. Qxb4 {Carlsen,M (2863)-Mamedov,R (2658) Shamkir 2015 CBM 166 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 11... a5 12. a3 Bxc3 13. bxc3 Nbd7 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. c4) 12. Bxc3 Nbd7 ({RR} 12... Ne4 13. Be1 Nd7 14. Rac1 Re8 15. Qb3 ({RR} 15. a4 Qf6 16. Qc2 Nd6 17. b3 Rac8 18. Bb4 Ne4 19. Qe2 Qf5 20. h3 Qh5 21. Rc2) 15... Qb6 16. Qxb6 Nxb6 17. b3 f6 18. Kf1 a5 19. Ng1 a4 20. c5 Nd7 21. b4) 13. b3 $146 {White is marginally better due to a space advantage, but it would be difficult to make progress.} ({RR} 13. Rac1 Qe7 14. a3 Rfd8 15. Ba5 Rdc8 16. Bb4 Qd8 17. h3 Ne4 18. Nd2 Nxd2 19. Bxd2 Qh4 20. Be1 Qg5 21. f3 b5 22. c5 a5 23. e4 a4 24. Qe2 Re8 25. e5 f6 26. Bd2 Qg6 27. exf6 Qxf6 {Chigaev,M (2599)-Bocharov,I (2563) Sochi 2018 0-1 (65)}) 13... Qe7 {At this stage of the game Hikaru correctly avoids any active actions.} (13... Ne4 14. Bb2 a5 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Qe7 17. Qc2 $14) ({RR} 13... Ne4 14. Bb2 a5 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Qe7 17. Qc2) 14. Rac1 Rac8 (14... a5 15. Nd2 Rfd8 (15... a4 16. b4 Nb6 17. c5 Nbd7 18. b5 $14) ({RR} 15... a4 16. b4 Nb6 17. c5 Nbd7 18. b5) 16. h3 Nf8 17. e4 dxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Ng6 20. a4 Qg5 21. g3 Rd7 22. h4 Qh5 23. Rd3 Ne7 24. Rcd1 $14) ({RR} 14... a5 15. Nd2 Rfd8 16. h3 Nf8 17. e4 dxe4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Ng6 20. a4 Qg5 21. g3 Rd7 22. h4 Qh5 23. Rd3 Ne7 24. Rcd1) 15. Qe2 Ne4 $6 {This move looks natural, but the knight does not have much of a job to do there. Moreover, now White's plan of seizing the centre by means of f2-f3 and e3-e4 becomes more realistic.} ({A solid alternative was} 15... Rfd8 {completing the flexible setup. The play may continue:} 16. Ne1 dxc4 17. bxc4 c5 18. Qb2 b6 19. f3 (19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Qxb6 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Qc3 $11) ({RR} 19. dxc5 Nxc5 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Qxb6 Rxd1 22. Rxd1 Qc3) 19... cxd4 20. Bxd4 Rc6 $11) ({RR} 15... Rfd8 16. Ne1 dxc4 17. bxc4 c5 18. Qb2 b6 19. f3 cxd4 20. Bxd4 Rc6) 16. Bb2 Rfd8 17. Ne1 Nd6 {Allowing the unpleasant pin, but Black's position lacks any constructive ideas.} (17... Qg5 18. f3 Nd6 19. c5 (19. e4 $6 dxc4 20. bxc4 b5 $132) 19... Nf5 20. e4 Nh4 21. g3 $14) (17... dxc4 18. Qxc4 Nef6 19. Nd3 $14) (17... Nef6 18. Nd3 $14) ({RR} 17... Qg5 18. f3 Nd6 19. c5 Nf5 20. e4 Nh4 21. g3) ({RR} 17... dxc4 18. Qxc4 Nef6 19. Nd3) ({RR} 17... Nef6 18. Nd3) 18. Ba3 $14 f5 {Hikaru is trying to stop e3-e5 at any cost, but the weakness of the dark squares in his camp is obvious now.} (18... Nf6 19. Nd3 Qc7 20. f3 $14) 19. Nd3 Nf6 20. Bb4 Qc7 21. Qf3 {Magnus decides to activate the queen and is ready to enter the endgame.} ({Black is definitely also under pressure after} 21. f3 $5 Nf7 22. Be1 Qe7 23. Bh4 $14) 21... dxc4 {This exchange can hardly suit Black - the pawn structure is better for White now. However, Hikaru was trying to push e6-e5.} (21... Nf7 22. h4 Re8 $14) 22. bxc4 Nf7 23. a4 {A positional threat of fixing the pawn structure is unpleasant, so Black is forced to take a decision now.} a5 {Creating one more potential weakness.} ({I would prefer} 23... b6 24. Qf4 Qxf4 25. Nxf4 Re8 (25... c5 26. Ba3 $14) 26. a5 bxa5 27. Bxa5 e5 28. dxe5 Nxe5 $14 {in the resulting position White has a stable positional advantage, but the material is reduced.}) 24. Be1 b6 25. Qg3 {Black cannot avoid an inferior endgame.} (25. Qf4 $5) 25... Qxg3 26. hxg3 {[%csl Ra5,Rb6][%cal Gc4c5]} Ra8 {A sad necessity. There was no other way to save losing a pawn.} (26... c5 27. dxc5 bxc5 28. Bxa5 Rd6 29. Be1 Rcd8 30. Nb2 $16) 27. f3 Rdb8 {A correct idea. Pushing b6-b5 may simplify the position and ease Black's task.} 28. Rc2 (28. Rb1 Nd7 29. c5 (29. Kf2 Nd6 30. Rdc1 c5 $14) 29... bxc5 30. Nxc5 Nxc5 31. dxc5 Rxb1 32. Rxb1 Ne5 $14) 28... b5 (28... Nd7 $5 29. Rb1 e5 $14) 29. Nc5 $1 {The most ambitious continuation. Magnus is not ready to swap the queenside pawns.} ({Things could be much easier for Hikaru after} 29. cxb5 cxb5 30. axb5 Rxb5 31. Ra1 e5 $14) 29... bxc4 ({After} 29... b4 30. Nxe6 Ra7 31. Nc5 Nd7 32. Nb3 $14 {the strong b4 doesn't fully compensate for the loss of a pawn.}) 30. Rxc4 Nd5 (30... e5 31. Kf2 Nd5 32. Rdc1 Rb2+ (32... exd4 33. Rxd4 Rb2+ 34. Rd2 Rb4 35. Re2 Rb6 36. e4 fxe4 37. Rxe4 $14) 33. R4c2 Rxc2+ 34. Rxc2 exd4 35. exd4 $14) 31. Bd2 e5 32. e4 {A double-edged decision. Magnus gets an excellent square for his knight, but now there are not many pawns left on the board.} (32. Ne6 $5 Rb6 33. dxe5 (33. Rdc1 exd4 34. Rxd4 $14) 33... Nxe5 34. Rc5 Nd7 35. Rc2 $14) 32... fxe4 33. Nxe4 (33. fxe4 $6 Nf6 $11) 33... Nb6 $6 {This natural decision is wrong. Nakamura liquidates the last queenside pawn, but his pieces lose harmony.} (33... exd4 $142 34. Rxd4 Rb2 35. Rc1 Nd8 36. Nc5 Ra2 $14) 34. Rxc6 Nd8 ({I would prefer} 34... Nxa4 35. Ra1 Nb6 ({after} 35... Nb2 36. d5 a4 37. d6 a3 38. d7 Nd8 39. Rc3 $16 {White's passed pawn is very strong}) 36. Rxa5 Rxa5 37. Bxa5 Na4 $1 38. dxe5 (38. d5 $2 Rb5 $11) 38... Nxe5 39. Rc7 Rf8 40. g4 $16 {and Black has a very difficult position, but drawing chances cannot be understimated.}) 35. Rg6 $1 {A good practical decision - now Black has an unpleasant choice, so there are more chances for an additional mistake!} (35. Rd6 Nf7 (35... Nc4 36. Rd5 exd4 37. Rxd4 $16) 36. Re6 Nxa4 37. dxe5 Nb2 38. Ra1 a4 39. Bc3 Nc4 40. f4 $16) 35... Nc4 36. dxe5 Kh7 $2 {A decisive mistake.} ({It was necessary to exchange the strong bishop:} 36... Nxe5 37. Rd6 Nc4 38. Rd7 Nb6 39. Bf4 Nxd7 40. Bxb8 Rxb8 41. Rxd7 $16) 37. Rg4 Nxe5 38. Rh4 Ndf7 (38... Ndc6 39. g4 Kg8 40. Bc3 $18) 39. Bc3 {Combining play on the both sides of the board.} Rb3 (39... Rd8 40. Rb1 Rd3 41. Rb5 Nd7 42. Bxa5 $18) 40. Rd5 Re8 41. Rf4 $1 {Brilliant technique by the World Champion. Now Black just loses a second pawn.} (41. Rxa5 Ng6 42. Rg4 Rxe4 43. Rxe4 Rxc3 $16 {deserves much more efforts.}) 41... Re7 42. Bxa5 $18 {The rest is a matter of accuracy, since Black is unable to create any threats.} Ng6 43. Rff5 Nfe5 44. Rd1 {The rook is going to support the passed a4.} Nc4 (44... Ra3 45. Bb4 $18) 45. Rc1 Nxa5 46. Rxa5 Ra3 47. Rcc5 {Restricting the knight. White is not in a hurry.} Ra2 48. Kh2 Rd7 ({The following illustrative line shows, that Black is helpless:} 48... Rb7 49. Ra8 Rbb2 50. Nf6+ $1 gxf6 51. Rc7+ Ne7 52. Rxe7+ Kg6 53. Rg8+ Kf5 54. g4+ Kf4 55. Re4#) 49. Ra6 Ne7 50. g4 Rb7 ({Or} 50... Nd5 51. Rxd5 Rxd5 52. Nc3 Rdd2 53. Nxa2 Rxa2 54. a5 $18) 51. Rb5 Rc7 52. Nc5 Rc6 (52... Ng6 53. Kg3 $18) 53. Rxc6 Nxc6 54. Rb7 {Reminding Black about the king.} Nd4 55. Kh3 Kg8 56. Rb4 Ne2 57. g5 Ng1+ (57... hxg5 58. Kg4 Ng1 59. g3 Ne2 60. Ne4 $18) 58. Kg3 Ne2+ (58... hxg5 59. Ne4 g4 60. f4 g6 61. Nf6+ Kg7 62. Nxg4 $18) 59. Kg4 hxg5 60. Kxg5 Ng1 61. Rg4 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.22"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E27"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "125"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nh5 7. Nh3 f5 {An aggressive continuation. Instead of trying to equalise, Black wants to obtain a double-edged position.} 8. e3 (8. Bg5 {is the main alternative - see Khairullin-Adams with annotations by GM A.Mikhalchishin in CBM 136.}) 8... d6 (8... Nc6 9. Bd3 d6 {is hardly good as White pushes c4-c5 at an appropriate moment:} 10. O-O (10. g3 $6 e5 11. Nf2 Qe8 12. O-O Na5 13. Qe2 b6 14. Rb1 Ba6 15. c5 Bxd3 16. Nxd3 Nf6 17. dxe5 dxe5 18. f4 exf4 19. Qa2+ Kh8 20. exf4 Rd8 $17 {1/2 (39) Abergel,T (2499)-Adams,M (2735) Liverpool 2008}) 10... Qe8 11. a4 e5 $6 (11... b6 $5) 12. c5 $1 dxc5 13. Ba3 b6 14. dxc5 Rf6 15. f4 e4 16. Be2 g6 17. c4 Ng7 18. Bb2 Rf7 19. cxb6 cxb6 20. c5 $16 {1-0 (30) Golizadeh,A (2472)-Bacallao Alonso,Y (2583) Istanbul 2012}) (8... c5 $5 9. Bd3 Nc6 10. O-O Nf6 11. d5 $6 Ne5 12. e4 fxe4 13. fxe4 d6 14. Ng5 h6 15. Nf3 Nxd3 16. Qxd3 Qe8 17. Ra2 exd5 18. exd5 Qe4 $15 {1/2 (33) Abdalla,L (2322)-Leitao,R (2620) Sao Paulo 2011}) 9. Be2 (9. f4 Nf6 10. Bd3 e5 11. O-O e4 12. Be2 Kh8 13. Nf2 Nc6 14. h3 b6 15. g4 Na5 $132 {0-1 (27) Swapnil,S (2336)-Komarov,D (2540) Calicut 2007}) (9. Nf2 {is too passive:} Nc6 $5 (9... e5 {(a bit too early)} 10. Bd3 $1 {- 9.Bd3} (10. f4 Nf6 11. fxe5 dxe5 12. c5 Nc6 13. Bc4+ Kh8 14. O-O b6 15. Bb5 Bb7 16. Rb1 Ne7 17. Be2 Ne4 $15 {1/2 (54) Volkov,S (2622)-Izoria,Z (2606) Saint Vincent 2005}) (10. Be2 Qe7 11. c5 Nc6 12. cxd6 cxd6 13. a4 {1/2 (13) Mensch,E (2336)-Nikolaidis,I (2525) Nancy 2006})) 10. a4 (10. Bd3 e5 11. O-O Qh4 12. Qe1 Bd7 13. g3 Qe7 14. Qd1 Rae8 15. Ra2 Nf6 16. f4 e4 17. Be2 Qf7 18. a4 Na5 $15 {1/2 (31) Cebalo,M (2505)-Komarov,D (2530) Bratto 2006}) 10... b6 11. Bd3 Na5 12. O-O Ba6 13. Qe2 Qh4 14. Bd2 Rae8 15. e4 e5 16. c5 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 fxe4 18. fxe4 dxc5 19. dxc5 Rd8 20. Qe2 Nb3 21. Qc4+ Kh8 22. Qxb3 Rxd2 {0-1 (57) Kozakov,M (2457)-Fedorchuk,S (2633) France 2009} 23. Ra2 $15) (9. Bd3 Qh4+ (9... e5 10. Nf2 (10. O-O Nc6 11. f4 Qe8 12. fxe5 dxe5 13. Ra2 e4 14. Be2 Nf6 15. a4 Kh8 16. a5 Rg8 17. Nf4 Ne7 18. Qb3 c6 19. Qb4 $14 {0-1 (40) Geller,E-Pogats,J Szczawno Zdroj 1950}) 10... Qe8 11. O-O Nf6 12. Qc2 Qh5 13. c5 Nc6 14. Bb5 Nd8 15. cxd6 cxd6 16. a4 $36 {1-0 (73) Koberl,F-Pogats,J Budapest 1951}) (9... c5 $5) 10. Nf2 Nc6 11. Qc2 (11. Ra2 e5 12. g3 Qe7 13. d5 Nd8 14. g4 e4 $132 {0-1 (42) Sagalchik,G-Dautov,R (2515) Minsk 1988}) 11... e5 12. g3 Qe7 13. O-O Bd7 14. Bd2 Kh8 15. Kg2 Rae8 16. Rae1 Qd8 $11 {0-1 (56) Wiersma,E (2419)-Swinkels,R (2459) Netherlands 2009}) ({RR} 9. Bd3 e5 10. O-O Nc6 11. Nf2 Qe8 12. Bb2 Na5 13. e4 f4 14. c5 dxc5 15. d5 c4 16. Bc2 Bd7 17. a4 b6 18. Ba3 Rf6 19. Bb4 Nb7 20. a5 Rh6 21. Qe2 b5 22. a6 Nd6 23. Bc5 Qg6 {Fernandez,M (2091)-Kleiman,J (2399) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (41)}) 9... c5 $1 $146 {[%mdl 40] A good plan. Black fixes the c4-pawn, therefore eliminating the c4-c5 idea altogether.} (9... Nc6 {deserves more attention here than with d3:} 10. O-O Qe8 $5 (10... e5 11. c5 $5) 11. Nf2 b6 12. g4 $6 fxg4 13. fxg4 Nf6 14. Qc2 Bb7 15. g5 Nd7 16. e4 e5 $132 {1-0 (34) Posedaru,B (2318)-Soltanici,R (2373) Bucharest 2011}) 10. O-O Nc6 11. g4 $146 {Here, too, this advance is bad.} (11. f4 Nf6 12. Bf3 Na5 {[%csl Rc4]}) (11. d5 Na5 {[%cal Ye6e5]}) (11. e4 fxe4 12. fxe4 Rxf1+ 13. Bxf1 Nf6 14. Nf2 e5 $11) (11. Nf2 $5 {[%cal Ye3e4] was probably the most flexible keeping both ideas: e3-e4 and f3-f4.}) ({RR} 11. Rb1 Na5 12. Qc2 b6 13. Qa2 Qe8 14. Nf2 Ba6 15. a4 g5 16. g4 Nf6 17. h3 h6 18. e4 f4 19. Bd3 Nd7 20. Ba3 e5 21. d5 Rc8 22. Kg2 Nf6 23. Bc1 h5 24. Rh1 Rc7 25. Bd2 Rh7 {Andries,A (1482)-Liavonava,Y (1623) Mamaia 2022 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 11. Rb1 Na5 12. Qc2 b6 13. Qa2 Qe8 14. Nf2 Ba6 15. a4 g5 16. g4 Nf6 17. h3 h6 18. e4 f4 19. Bd3 Nd7 20. Ba3 e5 21. d5 Rc8 22. Kg2 Nf6 23. Bc1 h5 24. Rh1 Rc7 25. Bd2 Rh7 {Andries,A (1482)-Liavonava,Y (1623) Mamaia 2022 0-1 (37)}) 11... fxg4 (11... Qh4 $1 {, recommended by GM E.Gleizerov, was very strong:} 12. Nf4 (12. gxh5 Qxh3 13. f4 b6 14. Bf3 Bb7 $17 {[%csl Rc1,Rc4,Rh5]} 15. dxc5 dxc5 16. Qd7 Rf7 $1 17. Qxe6 Nd8 18. Qe8+ Rf8 $19) (12. Kg2 fxg4 13. fxg4 Rxf1 14. Qxf1 Nf6 15. Qf2 Qh6 $17) 12... Nxf4 13. exf4 Na5 $17 {[%cal Yb7b6]} (13... cxd4 $143 14. cxd4 e5 15. Be3 $1 exd4 16. Bxd4 Nxd4 17. Qxd4 fxg4 18. fxg4 Bxg4 19. f5 h5 20. Rf4 {, and White should survive})) {However, after the simple text move Black keeps an advantage, too.} 12. fxg4 Nf6 13. Nf2 h6 14. e4 {This move weakens White's position but it is very difficult for him to find a good plan anyway.} e5 15. d5 Ne7 (15... Na5 $5 {pressurising the c4 pawn.}) 16. g5 hxg5 17. Bxg5 Qe8 18. Qd3 Qg6 19. Qg3 Bd7 20. Kh1 Rf7 (20... Nxe4 $2 21. Nxe4 Qxe4+ 22. Bf3 {[%cal Rg5e7]} Rxf3 $8) 21. Qh4 Raf8 22. Rae1 Qh7 23. Qxh7+ Nxh7 $17 {In this ending Black's knights are stronger than White's bishops.} 24. Be3 Ng6 25. Nd3 Rxf1+ 26. Rxf1 Rxf1+ (26... Nf6 $5 27. Nf2 Nf4 {is quite good but the minor piece ending is also difficult for White.}) 27. Bxf1 {[%mdl 4096]} Nf6 28. Nf2 Nf4 29. h4 (29. Bxf4 exf4 30. e5 dxe5 31. Nd3 Ng4 $1 32. h3 (32. Nxc5 Bf5) 32... e4 $1 33. Nxf4 (33. Nxc5 Nf6 {[%csl Ge4,Gf4]}) 33... Ne3 {[%cal Re3d1]} 34. Be2 g5 $17) 29... Ng6 (29... Ng4 30. Nxg4 Bxg4 {[%cal Rg4f3,Yg4d1] was very strong, probably enough for a win.}) 30. Bg5 Nh7 31. Bd8 Kf7 32. Kh2 Nf6 (32... Ke8 33. Bg5) 33. Kg3 Nf4 34. Kf3 Ba4 35. Nh3 Bd1+ 36. Ke3 Ng6 (36... Ng4+ 37. Kd2 Nh2 {is probably insufficient for a victory due to} 38. Nxf4 Nxf1+ 39. Kxd1 exf4 40. Ke2 Ne3 41. Bg5 Nxc4 42. Bxf4 b5 (42... g6 43. Kd3 b5 44. a4) 43. h5 {[%csl Rg7]}) 37. Ng5+ Ke8 38. Ne6 Nxh4 39. Bc7 Kd7 40. Bb8 {White has created some counterplay.} Bg4 (40... a6 $5 41. Nxg7 Bc2 $5 42. Bh3+ Ke7 43. Nf5+ (43. Bc8 b5 44. Bxa6 bxc4 45. Bxc4 Bxe4 46. Kf2 $1 Ng4+ 47. Kg3 Ne3 $17) 43... Nxf5+ 44. Bxf5 Bb3 {keeping winning chances}) 41. Nxg7 a6 42. Bd3 (42. a4 a5 43. Ne6 Ne8 {[%csl Ra4]}) 42... Ng2+ 43. Kd2 Ke7 (43... b5 $5 44. cxb5 axb5 45. Bc2 (45. Bxb5+ $2 Kc8 46. Bxd6 Nxe4+) (45. Ne6 $5 c4 46. Bc2) 45... c4 46. Ne6 Bxe6 47. dxe6+ Kxe6 48. Ba7 Nf4 $17) 44. a4 Kf7 45. Bxd6 (45. Nf5 Bxf5 46. exf5 Ke7 {is very unpleasant for White but the piece sacrifice is hardly sufficient either.}) 45... Kxg7 46. Bxe5 Nh4 $2 ({Black could have stopped White's pawns by means of} 46... Bf3 $1 {[%cal Rg7f7]} 47. d6 Bg4 $1 {(recommended by E.Gleizerov)} (47... Kf7 $2 48. Bxf6 Kxf6 49. e5+ Ke6 50. Bf5+ Kf7 51. Bg6+ $1 $11) {e.g.} 48. Bg3 Nh5 49. Bf2 Nhf4 50. Bxc5 Nxd3 51. Kxd3 Kf6 {, and he should win in a long term.}) 47. Bg3 Ng6 (47... Nf3+ 48. Ke3 Nd7 49. Be2 Nfe5 50. Bxe5+ Nxe5 51. Kf4 $1 Bxe2 52. Kxe5 Bxc4 53. a5 {(E.Gleizerov), and White is not worse.}) 48. e5 {White's connected passed pawns guarantee him a draw.} Nd7 (48... Nh5 49. Bh2 Nh4 50. Ke3 Nf3 51. Bf4) 49. e6 Nde5 50. Bxg6 Nxg6 51. Bd6 Kf6 52. Bxc5 Ke5 53. Ke3 Bd1 54. Bb6 Bxa4 55. Bc7+ Kf6 56. Kd4 Ke7 57. c5 Nh4 58. c4 Nf3+ 59. Kc3 Ng5 60. Kb4 Bd1 61. Bg3 Nxe6 62. dxe6 Bf3 63. Bh4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.24"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E70"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2713"]
[Annotator "Radjabov,Teimour"]
[PlyCount "102"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{5th round of the Shamkir Chess 2014, Vugar Gashimov's memorial. We were in different tournament situations, I was on 50 percent, Magnus was at +1 after he lost to Caruana before this game with Black. Certainly an interesting fight was ahead! It's always interesting to play against the World Champion and I have enjoyed this fight.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 {King's Indian Defence. No comments.} 5. Nge2 O-O 6. Ng3 {There are so many moves and plans in the opening phase, but annotating the game and working on chess ECO is quite different. I will not get far in theoretical debris but will show few most recent examples here:} e5 (6... h5 7. Be2 a6 (7... Nbd7 8. Be3 e5 9. d5 a5 10. a3 Nc5 11. h4 Ng4 {which is a bit similiar to our game in Nabaty-Smirin Skopje 2013, which ended in a draw.}) 8. O-O c5 9. d5 e5 {with a real mix of all the possible plans in Bologan-Mamedov, 2014 Euro Cup Rhodes, ended in a draw.}) 7. d5 a5 8. Be2 Na6 9. h4 {It's not as agressive as it looks, only if Black allows h5 it becomes a kind of tactical and offensive approach, in general it's more a positional move to play g5 after h5 and get d2-0-0-0 faster.} h5 (9... c6 10. h5 cxd5 11. cxd5 Nc5 12. Be3 Qb6 {It was played in Lutz-Gelfand, Horgen 1994. Gelfand won this game. Lutz never castled and tried a f1-d2 plan, which is going nowhere as after c4 Black may just go back to c7 threatening ...b5 later on. The Computer suggests to change directions here and go for 0-0 h6-d2 and playing on the queenside. Claims White is better but it's far from obvious for a practical game.} 13. O-O Bd7 14. h6 Bh8 15. Qd2 a4 16. f3 Rfc8 {with mutual chances!}) 10. Bg5 Qe8 (10... Nc5 $6 11. Bxh5 gxh5 12. Nxh5 Ncd7 {To be honest I didn't even consider this. Too beautiful.} 13. Nxg7 Kxg7 14. f4 $36) 11. Qd2 Nc5 (11... Nh7 $5 12. Be3 Qe7 (12... f5 $2 13. exf5 gxf5 14. Bxh5 Qd7 15. f4 {and there is no way to have counterplay here, White is too solid}) 13. Nf1 f5 14. exf5 gxf5 15. Bg5 Nxg5 16. Qxg5 Qxg5 17. hxg5 a4 {and I am sure Black has strong compensation for the pawn on the h-file.}) 12. O-O-O (12. Nb5 {Computer's suggestion that I saw during the game, as if the queen goes to d8 there are some xh5 in the air. Black can just defend the pawn with some ...d7 or other move. But...} Ncxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Qe3 Nxg5 15. Nxc7 Qa4 16. Nxa8 Qb4+ 17. Qd2 Qxd2+ 18. Kxd2 Ne4+ 19. Ke1 Nc5 $44 {and I would prefer to play with Black here.}) (12. f3 {is probably the most natural instead of 0-0-0, not to allow ...g4 move.} Nh7 $5 13. Be3 b6 14. Bd3 f5 $132) 12... Ng4 $1 {Important move, now White has to change his e2-bishop for the knight.} 13. Bxg4 (13. Rdf1 f6 {and White will eventually play xg4 anyway. Even though after xg4 for White here, Black has ...fxg5!? besides taking on g4 with the c8-bishop.}) (13. Qe1 f6 14. Bd2 Bh6 {is quite OK for Black.}) 13... Bxg4 14. f3 (14. Rdf1 Bd7 {and the rook is far from defending its monarch! ...b5 is coming!}) 14... Bd7 15. Be3 b6 (15... b5 16. cxb5 Bxb5 17. Bxc5 dxc5 18. Nf1 {I didnt like this position that much, g4 is coming somewhere and I am not sure how to organize direct threats on the b-line.}) 16. Kb1 Kh7 (16... f5 {was already possible here, I wanted to wait for ge2 first as it looked to me that White doesn't have any improving ideas} 17. exf5 gxf5) 17. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 17. Rhf1 a4 18. f4 exf4 19. Rxf4 Be5 20. Bd4 Nd3 21. Bxe5 dxe5 22. Rf6 Nf4 23. Rf1 Qe7 24. R1xf4 exf4 25. Qxf4 Bg4 26. a3 Kg7 27. Rc6 Rac8 28. Nb5 Bd7 29. Nd4 f6 30. Re6 Bxe6 31. Nxe6+ Kh7 {Pulvett Marin,D (2455)-Mai,A (2033) Sanxenxo 2018 ½-½ (49)}) 17... a4 (17... Bh6 {this is ok, but I didn't want to allow any xc5-a4 ideas} 18. Bxc5 bxc5 19. a4 {and even though I was sure that Black is ok, I didn't like to allow a4-b5 here with pressure on a5 later on.}) 18. Nge2 f5 19. exf5 gxf5 (19... Bxf5 {I thought it's about equal and gxf5 is more fighting} 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. fxe4 Bg4 22. Rdf1 a3 {Black is even slightly better here, but draw is the most normal outcome.}) 20. Rh3 {The rook looks a bit naive on this square with f3-e3 standing, nevertheless the threat is clear g3-g5, sometimes with ideas of eleminating the g7-bishop.} Kh8 $1 {Fighting against the g3-move, ...f4 is threatening now with ...f5 idea, White had to do something, otherwise hh1 is the only option.} 21. f4 {The most logical reaction, playing hh1 looked awful, now the rook is heading to g5 again after g3 if Black is not taking measures!} Ne4 $5 {Good move, preventing g3, now ...g6 is coming next and the bad position of White's pieces starts to tell, but including ...a3 was even better.} (21... a3 $1 22. b3 Ne4 {All the ensuing complications like in the game, are better with the a3-pawn creating new threats to White's king.}) 22. Nxe4 {Carlsen is not going to passively wait here, he prepares an exchange sacrifice with great complications where Black's weak king may become an important factor as I was already running short on time.} (22. Rf3 a3 23. b3 Qg6 24. g3 {was possible to try some kind of fortress, even though Black may slighly improve the position of his pieces and it's not sure what White wil do next.}) 22... fxe4 23. Rg3 Bg4 24. Rxg4 $8 hxg4 25. f5 Rxf5 26. Ng3 Rf8 27. Qxe4 {White has blocked all the center, h5-h6 is coming, I considered ...f4 somewhere to open up the g7-bishop, but it didn't seem to offer winning chances.} Qd7 (27... a3 {This is always good, there was no need to wait with this move, mating ideas are always there around White's king after a3.} 28. b3 Rf7 $1 {I have tried to figure out how to bring my queen to h7, I was mostly considering f7-f6 or f7-g8-h7, but this neat way is also very nice especially having ...a3 already played!} 29. Qxg4 Qg8 30. Ne4 Qh7 {Now ...f4 is in the air, Black is just winning.} 31. Re1 (31. Kc1 Rf4 $3 32. Bxf4 Qxe4 33. Qh5+ Kg8 34. Bg5 Rf8 $19) 31... Bf6 $19 {and when the a-rook joins the party, White is helpless.}) 28. a3 {White is trying to hide his king on a2 and profit from Black's king position with h5-h6.} (28. h5 a3 {then ...f6, we saw it above.}) 28... b5 $1 {Very strong move, Magnus said on the press conference that he thought that the compensation is very strong for White, but after this move the position started to be really shaky for White.} 29. c5 (29. cxb5 Qxb5 30. Qg6 Rab8 31. Rd2 e4 32. Qh5+ Kg8 33. Qg6 Rf6 {and bf8 or ...b3, White's king is too weak now!}) 29... dxc5 $1 {Two very important moves starting from b5!, now lines are open for Black's rooks and they developing a strong play against White's king.} 30. h5 c4 (30... Ra6 {I thought about this, but ...c4 looks much stronger to me now too after checking it back home.}) 31. h6 (31. Ka2 {This was interesting, finally revealing the idea of a3!, but White is still in trouble after} Rae8 32. h6 Bf6 {even though White have had to choose this option, his position falls apart anyway as ...h7 and ...c3 is a real threat.} 33. Nh5 Qh7 34. Qxg4 c3 35. Bc1 Qg8 $17) 31... Bf6 32. Bc5 Rf7 (32... Qh7 $6 {Trying to release the tension and White's pressure on Black's king wouldn't work due to} 33. Bxf8 Qxe4+ 34. Nxe4 Rxf8 35. Rf1 $11) 33. Rf1 (33. Nh5 Rg8 $19) 33... Re8 $1 {This simple move is very important, otherwise h5 could be really dangerous, e5 is protected and Black can regroup with g5-f4 or d8.} 34. Bb4 {There is no good advice for White here, the position is already lost.} (34. Qg6 Qxd5 35. Rxf6 Qd1+ 36. Ka2 Qb3+ 37. Kb1 c3 $3 {It wins according to the computer, but I didn't see the exact path after} (37... Rd8 38. Rd6 Rdf8 {I saw only this idea} 39. Rf6 c3 40. Rf2 Qd1+ 41. Ka2 cxb2 {and Black is winning}) 38. Rf2 Rd8 (38... Qd1+ 39. Ka2 b4 $3 {This is even simplier according to the engine. As now if the bishop takes on b4, White is unable to defend against ...d8 with e3-c1!} (39... cxb2 $4 40. Rxb2 Qd5+ 41. Ka1 $11 {and compared to the line with df8, the rook on f7 is hanging}) 40. Bxb4 Qb3+ 41. Kb1 Rd8 $19) 39. Be3 Rd1+ 40. Bc1 b4 $19) 34... Bg5 {I had around 1 minute here, but I was able to calculate all of my next moves and Magnus's ideas. ...c6 is a very important finesse.} 35. Nf5 {Otherwise Black plays f4 anyway.} c6 $1 {Killing move,black is completely winning} (35... Bf4 36. Nh4 {and things are very complicated again!}) 36. Bd6 (36. d6 Ref8 $19 {the diagonal a3-f8 is blocked, Black is a rook up now.}) 36... Bf4 37. Ng7 (37. Rxf4 exf4 38. Be5+ Rxe5 39. Qxe5+ Kh7 40. Nd6 cxd5 $19) 37... Qxd6 38. Nxe8 Qxd5 {Everything is forced here.} 39. Qxd5 cxd5 40. g3 Kh7 $1 {My first intention having few seconds, was to play ...e7 here, which was also good, but ...h7 seemed to be a more clear cut win.} (40... Re7 41. Nf6 {with few more tricks in the air as after} Bxh6 42. Rh1 (42. Nxd5 Rd7 {and I wasn't sure if it's that easy to win as b5 is too weak, even though Black is objectively winning here too}) 42... Kg7 43. Rxh6 Re6 $1 {You have to see this move from far.}) 41. gxf4 (41. Nd6 Rd7 42. Nxb5 Bxg3 {Black has too many pawns, the d-pawn is promoted very fast.}) 41... exf4 42. Nd6 {Otherwise pawns are going forward without any obstacles.} Rf6 43. Nxb5 {It took me some time here, to understand which pawn push is better, finally it seems to make no real difference, which pawn moves leading to a win.} f3 (43... g3 44. Nd4 Kxh6 45. Kc2 Kh5 46. Nf3 Kg4 47. Ne5+ Kh3 $19) 44. Nd4 Kxh6 (44... Rf4 45. Ne6 Re4 $2 46. Ng5+ Kxh6 47. Nxf3 gxf3 48. Rxf3 {and I don't see how Black can win this endgame.} Kg5 49. Rf8 d4 50. Kc1 d3 51. Kd1 Re2 52. Rg8+ $11) 45. Kc2 Kg5 {The king helps to march with f- and g-pawns, White can do nothing here.} 46. Kd2 f2 47. Ne2 Rf3 48. Kc2 Kh4 49. Rh1+ (49. Nd4 Rf6 $19) 49... Rh3 50. Rf1 g3 51. Kd2 Kg4 {Carlsen resigned as the black king comes to f3 and g2. I am happy about my play in the zeitnot part and in the middlegame around move 30-40 in time scramble I was able to find all the best moves. I hope that this tournament becomes traditional and I'm very thankful to both players and organisers for the perfect tournament.} 0-1

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.26"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. Nf3 dxc4 6. Bg5 b5 {Carlsen needs to look for positions, that are full of life even with the black pieces. His title as champion and fantastic rating oblige him to win many games even against very strong opponents.} 7. a4 c6 8. g3 {Mamedyarov keeps his cool and develops the bishop in style of the Catalan Opening. His choice is certainly sensible, since there is no direct refutation of the daring idea used by Black.} (8. axb5 cxb5 9. Bxf6 gxf6 10. Qe4 (10. e3 Bb7 11. b3 Nd7 12. bxc4 bxc4 13. Nd2 a5 14. Bxc4 Rg8 15. d5 Nb6 16. Qxh7 Rf8 17. Bb5+ Ke7 18. Qd3 Nxd5 19. Na2 Bxd2+ 20. Qxd2 Qb6 21. Rb1 $11 {0-1 (33) Ballesteros Perez,F-Hernandez Onna,R (2445) Las Palmas 1991}) 10... Qd5 11. Qg4 Nd7 12. g3 Bb7 13. Bg2 Qd6 14. O-O Bxc3 15. bxc3 a6 16. e4 h5 17. Qh4 O-O-O 18. Rfd1 Kb8 19. Ne1 f5 20. e5 Qc7 $11 {0-1 (68) Postl,A (2315)-Lerner,K (2605) Graz 1995}) 8... Bb7 9. Bg2 Nbd7 10. O-O Qb6 {Black is playing with fire as the opponent has excellent pieces and a slight development advantage. On the other hand Black's advantage of an extrae pawn can play a significant role later in the game.} 11. e4 $146 ({RR} 11. Rfd1 O-O 12. e4 a6 13. Bxf6 Nxf6 14. e5 Nd5 15. Ng5 g6 16. h4 Be7 17. Nce4 Rad8 18. Qe2 h6 19. Nh3 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Qg4 Be7 22. h5 g5 23. axb5 axb5 24. Kh2 Kh7 25. Qe2 Qc7 {Puzko,D (2154)-Potkin,V (2610) St Petersburg 2014 0-1 (35)}) 11... a6 (11... Bxc3 12. bxc3 O-O 13. a5 Qc7 14. Bf4 Qc8 15. Bd6 c5 16. e5 Nd5 17. Ng5 g6 18. a6 Bxa6 19. dxc5 Bb7 20. Ne4 Re8 21. Qd2 f5 22. exf6 N5xf6 $11 {1/2 (50) Wilhelmi,C (2325)-Arnold,J (2190) Budapest 1996}) (11... O-O 12. Be3 Bxc3 13. bxc3 c5 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Nd2 a6 16. Rab1 Qc6 17. Nxc4 bxc4 18. Bxc5 Qxc5 19. Rxb7 Rab8 20. Rfb1 Rxb7 21. Rxb7 Ng4 $11 {0-1 (32) Costello,C (2070)-Petersen,S (2165) Copenhagen 1996}) 12. Rfd1 {White deserves credit for playing very sensibly in the virtually unknown line. The pieces are taking the optimal squares and their activity should promise compensation for the missing material.} (12. Be3 O-O 13. Ne5 Rad8 14. Rad1 c5 15. axb5 axb5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Nxd7 Nxd7 18. Bg5 f6 19. Bf4 Ne5 20. Bxe5 fxe5 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 $17 {0-1 (28) Sajn,S (1896)-Kozamernik,J (2172) Bled 2001}) 12... h6 13. Be3 (13. Bf4 O-O 14. Na2 Be7 15. Nc3 Rad8 $15) 13... O-O 14. d5 {When all the forces are mobilised all good players know that waiting can only help the adversary. Mamedyarov is opening the direct fight with a logical shot in the centre.} (14. Ne5 c5 15. Na2 Ba5 16. dxc5 Nxc5 17. axb5 axb5 18. Nxc4 (18. b4 $2 cxb3 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Rfd8 $19) 18... bxc4 19. Qxc4 Bxe4 20. Bxc5 Qc6 $15) 14... c5 {World champions are also only human and have to tread carefully in questions of risk. The more ambitious move 14...c5!? was probably deemed to be too messy, even though Black would keep somewhat better chances.} (14... Bc5 $5 15. dxe6 fxe6 16. e5 Nd5 17. Bf4 Bc8 18. Qd2 b4 19. Ne4 c3 $15) 15. a5 (15. dxe6 Qxe6 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. exd5 Qf6 $15) 15... Qd8 {Mamedyarov is well known as a player who always carries a sharp knife in his bag. It makes no sense to provoke the tiger with the unseemly move 15...xa5.} (15... Bxa5 16. dxe6 fxe6 17. e5 Nd5 18. Bxh6 $1 Bxc3 19. Qg6 Rf7 20. Ng5 Nxe5 21. Qh7+ Kf8 22. bxc3 Nf6 23. Bxg7+ Rxg7 24. Qh8+ Ng8 25. Bxb7 $11) 16. dxe6 (16. Nh4 exd5 17. exd5 Ne5 $17) 16... fxe6 17. Nh4 Bxc3 {The knight on c3 is eliminated as it might possibly head to the centre and join the forces heading towards black king.} (17... Qc7 18. Bf4 e5 19. Bd2 Bxc3 20. Bxc3 $11) 18. bxc3 Qe8 (18... Qc7 19. Bf4 e5 20. Bc1 Rfe8 21. Nf5 Nf8 $13) 19. f4 Rd8 {Carlsen is not worried about the seeming passivity of his army, it is more important to defend the critical squares like g6.} (19... Ng4 20. Bc1 Qf7 21. Rd6 Rad8 22. h3 Ngf6 23. Be3 $11) 20. h3 (20. Rd6 e5 21. Re1 $11) 20... Rf7 21. Rd6 (21. g4 e5 22. f5 Nf8 23. Bxc5 Rfd7 24. Rxd7 Qxd7 $15) 21... e5 22. f5 $6 {With his faulty decision Mamedyarov chooses the road to perdition. It was not necessary to tempt the collapse, but White was probaby not suspecting the level of danger.} (22. Re1 $1 Nh5 23. Qd2 Rc8 (23... Nxg3 24. fxe5 Qxe5 25. Ng6 Qe8 26. e5 Bxg2 27. Qxg2 Nf5 28. Bf2 $11) 24. Kh2 $11) 22... Nf8 $1 23. Bxc5 $2 {[%mdl 2048] White could not resist the temptation to restore material equality on the board. Unfortunately this strategy helps to improve the black pieces and they will spring to life with astonishing force. It was necessary to look for ways to limit the damage.} (23. Rad1 Rxd6 24. Rxd6 Qc8 25. Ng6 Nxg6 26. fxg6 Rd7 27. Qd2 Qc7 28. Rxd7 Qxd7 29. Qxd7 Nxd7 30. h4 Kf8 31. Bh3 Ke8 32. Bxd7+ Kxd7 33. Bxc5 (33. Bxh6 $2 b4 $17) 33... Ke6 34. Kf2 Bxe4 $15) 23... Rxd6 24. Bxd6 Rd7 25. Bxf8 {If every step leads in the wrong direction the result may be somewhat depressing. The last chance for White to put up resistance was tied to the move 25.b4.} (25. Bb4 N8h7 (25... Rd3 26. Re1 Rxg3 27. Qf2 Rd3 $17) 26. Ng6 Ng5 27. Qf2 Rd3 28. h4 Ngxe4 29. Qb6 Bd5 $17) 25... Qxf8 26. Rd1 (26. Qf2 Bxe4 27. Ng6 Qe8 28. Bf1 Nd5 29. Rc1 Qb8 $17) 26... Qc5+ 27. Kh2 (27. Kh1 Qe3 $1 (27... Bxe4 28. Bxe4 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Nxe4 30. Qd8+ Kf7 31. Qd7+ Qe7 32. Qd5+ $18) 28. Rxd7 Nxd7 29. Qd1 Qd3 $19) (27. Kf1 Bxe4 28. Bxe4 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Nxe4 30. Qd8+ Kh7 31. Qb6 Qc8 32. Kg2 Qd7 $17) 27... Bxe4 $1 {Black would at any time gladly pay top dollar for the ideal coordination of his forces as in this position. The only problem that has to be dealt with is the counterplay against his own king.} (27... Bxe4 28. Bxe4 Rxd1 29. Qxd1 Nxe4 30. Ng2 (30. Qd8+ Kh7 31. Ng6 Qf2+ $19) 30... Kh7 31. Qc2 Qd5 32. Ne1 Nf6 $19) 0-1

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.27"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 {This time Carlsen leaves the main lines even earlier than in his previous games.} (4... d5 5. a3 Bxc3+ (5... Be7 6. e4 dxe4 7. fxe4 e5 8. d5 Bc5 9. Bg5 (9. Nf3 {is the more usual move order:} Bg4 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Nbd7 12. Bg5 h6 (12... Bd4 13. Ne2 $1 Bxb2 14. Ra2 Bd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. e5 $1 O-O $2 17. exf6 Re8+ 18. Kf2 Ne5 19. Qf5 h6 20. Bc1 $18 {Ganguly,S (2654)-Filippov,A (2607)/Khanty-Mansiysk WCup/2009/ For more details see the notes to this game by Krasenkow in CBM 134.}) (12... O-O 13. O-O-O Bd4 14. Ne2 {transposes back to Nakamura-Carlsen}) 13. Bh4 Bd4 14. Ne2 O-O 15. Nxd4 (15. O-O-O $142 $1 $14) 15... exd4 16. O-O-O Re8 17. Rxd4 Qe7 18. Kc2 a5 19. Bd3 Ne5 20. Qf5 Qc5 21. Rd1 Qxd4 22. Bf2 Qxd3+ 23. Rxd3 Nxd3 24. Kxd3 Nxe4 $11 {Almarza Mato,C (1995)-Belanoff,S (2066)/email/2011/}) 9... O-O (9... Bd4 $5 {was suggested by PH Nielsen. White's best reaction is probably} 10. Qd2 (10. Nf3 Bxc3+ 11. bxc3 Qd6 12. Bd3 Na6 13. O-O Nc5 14. Qc2 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Kh1 Qe7 17. Nd2 Bd7 18. Qb1 b6 19. Nb3 Nb7 20. Bc2 O-O $15 {Formanek,E (2330)-McCambridge,V (2465)/Chicago/1985/}) 10... O-O (10... Bxc3 11. Qxc3 Qe7 {[%cal Rf6e4,Rf6d5]} 12. Qf3 $14 (12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Nf3 $32)) (10... Bg4 $5 11. Be2 (11. Nb5 Nxe4 12. Bxd8 Nxd2 13. Bxc7 Nb3 $5 (13... Nxf1 14. Nxd4 exd4 15. Kxf1 $14) 14. Rb1 Bxg1 15. Rxg1 Kd7 16. Kf2 a6 17. Bxb8 Raxb8 18. Nc3 Bf5 19. Re1 Kd6 $13) 11... h6 12. Bxf6 (12. Bxg4 $2 hxg5 13. Qxg5 Nxg4 14. Qxg4 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Qh4+ 16. Qxh4 Rxh4 $15) 12... Qxf6 13. Bxg4 Qh4+ 14. g3 Qxg4 15. Nge2 c5 $14 {/}) 11. Nf3 c5 12. Nb5 Nbd7 13. Bd3 Qb6 14. a4 a5 15. O-O-O h6 16. Bh4 Re8 17. Rhf1 Nh5 18. Kb1 Nf4 19. Rc1 f6 20. h3 Ra6 21. Bc2 Ng6 22. Be1 Qd8 23. g4 Nh8 24. Bg3 Nf7 25. Bd3 Nf8 26. Nfxd4 exd4 27. Nc7 $16 {Dolya,A-Orekhov,V/email/2010/}) 10. Nf3 Bg4 11. h3 Bxf3 12. Qxf3 Nbd7 13. O-O-O Bd4 14. Ne2 c5 15. g4 a5 16. Kb1 Ra6 17. Ng3 g6 18. h4 a4 19. Rh2 Qa5 20. Bd2 Qc7 21. g5 Ne8 22. h5 Rb6 23. Bc1 $40 {Nakamura,H (2789)-Carlsen,M (2872)/Zuerich/2014/ In the end in a heavy tactical struggle Black turned the tables - for more details about this game see the notes by Krasenkow in CBM 159.}) 6. bxc3 c5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 ({The double-edged} 7... exd5 8. e3 c4 $5 {was played in the 9th game of the World Championship match Anand-Carlsen in 2013. Lev Gutman annotated the game in detail and devoted a whole article to this line in CBM 158.}) 8. dxc5 Qa5 9. e4 {is the standard continuation, even more recently Black seems to be doing OK after} Nf6 {This was the topic of another theoretical article by Gutman in CBM 159. After} 10. Be3 O-O 11. Qb3 Nfd7 12. a4 (12. Bb5 Qc7 13. Ne2 (13. Qb4 Nc6 14. Bxc6 (14. Qa4 Nce5 $11 (14... Na5 15. Rd1 $1 Nxc5 16. Bxc5 Qxc5 17. Qxa5 a6 18. c4 Rb8 19. Ne2 axb5 20. cxb5 e5 21. Rd5 Qe7 22. Qb4 $14 {Ulibin,M (2506)-Nyback,T (2575)/Stockholm/2007/})) 14... bxc6 15. Nh3 Ba6 16. Qa4 Bb5 17. Qc2 Qa5 18. Kf2 Nxc5 19. Bxc5 Ba4 20. Qd2 Qxc5+ 21. Qd4 Qa5 22. Rhb1 {Pacher,M (2446)-Haba,P (2503)/CZE-chT2/2014/} Bc2 23. Rb7 Rad8 $36) 13... Nxc5 14. Qc4 b6 15. Bxc5 bxc5 16. O-O a6 17. Ba4 Nd7 18. Bxd7 Bxd7 19. a4 e5 20. Ng3 Be6 21. Qe2 g6 22. a5 Rfd8 $15 {Richter,M (2473)-Michalik,P (2584)/Bundesliga/2014/}) (12. Qb4 Qc7 13. Rd1 Nc6 14. Qa4 Nce5 15. Qd4 Nc6 16. Qa4 (16. Qd2 Nce5 17. Qd6 Qa5 $132) 16... Nce5 17. Qd4 Nc6 {½, Timman,J (2630)-Karpov,A (2730)/Tilburg/1991/}) 12... Qc7 13. Qa3 b6 14. a5 bxc5 15. a6 c4 16. Qa5 Qxa5 17. Rxa5 Nc6 18. Ra2 Nde5 19. f4 Ng4 20. Bc1 Rb8 21. Nh3 Rb1 22. Kd2 Rb6 23. Bxc4 Nb8 24. Be2 Nf6 25. Nf2 Bxa6 $11 {Wang,H (2743)-Radjabov,T (2745)/Stavanger/2013/}) ({Another new direction in which the 4.f3 system is developing is} 4... O-O $5 5. e4 (5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Nh5 $5 7. Nh3 f5 8. e3 d6 9. Be2 c5 10. O-O Nc6 11. g4 fxg4 12. fxg4 Nf6 13. Nf2 h6 14. e4 e5 15. d5 Ne7 16. g5 hxg5 17. Bxg5 Qe8 18. Qd3 Qg6 19. Qg3 Bd7 20. Kh1 Rf7 21. Qh4 Raf8 $15 {Karjakin,S (2772)-Carlsen,M (2881)/Shamkir/2014/}) 5... d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 f6 10. exf6 Qe8+ (10... Qxf6 11. Bd3 Nb6 12. Ra2 Bf5 13. Bxf5 Qxf5 14. Nh3 N8d7 15. O-O Rae8 16. Nf4 c6 17. Re1 Nf6 18. g4 Qd7 19. Nd3 Rxe1+ 20. Qxe1 Nc4 21. Re2 Re8 $11 {Millstone,M (2473)-Hertel,P (2641)/email/2009/}) 11. Qe2 Qf7 $5 $146 (11... Nxf6 12. Qxe8 Nxe8 13. Ne2 Nd6 14. Bf4 Rd8 15. Ng3 Nc6 16. Bd3 Be6 17. Kf2 Bf7 18. Nf5 Bg6 {½, Shmeliov,D (2270)-Kraai,J (2505)/Las Vegas/2007/} 19. Nxd6 $14) 12. fxg7 Re8 13. Be3 Nc6 14. Qd2 Na5 15. Rb1 $1 Nb6 16. Rb4 Nac4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 $6 (17... Nxc4 $142 18. Rxc4 dxc4 19. Ne2 Bf5 20. Kf2 $44) 18. Rb5 Bf5 19. Kf2 (19. Re5 $5) 19... Nd5 20. Rxd5 Qxd5 21. Ne2 a5 22. h4 b5 23. h5 b4 24. cxb4 axb4 25. axb4 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Aronian,L (2830)/Khanty-Mansiysk Candidates/2014/} {Now Giri's suggestion} Bd3 $1 {would have still given Black chances to save the game.}) 5. d5 O-O {[%mdl 32] A restrained approach, this Nakamura-Carlsen encounter will be more strategic than their tussle in Zuerich.} (5... b5 6. e4 O-O 7. e5 Ne8 8. f4 exd5 9. cxd5 d6 10. Nf3 c4 11. a4 Nd7 ({Black started to avoid the rather unpleasant} 11... Bg4 12. axb5 Nd7 13. e6 $14 {Shirov,A (2749)-Kramnik,V (2780)/Shanghai/2010/ See the notes to this game in CBM 138.}) 12. Be2 Qb6 13. axb5 (13. Bd2 Nc7 14. Nxb5 Bxd2+ 15. Nxd2 Nxd5 16. Nxc4 Qc5 17. Qd2 dxe5 18. fxe5 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 {½, Nenciulescu,S (2179)-Antonov,V (2283)/email/2011/} Ne3 20. Nd3 Nc2+ 21. Kd1 Ne3+ $11) 13... Nc7 $5 $146 (13... dxe5 14. fxe5 Bb7 15. Qd4 Nc7 16. Qxb6 Nxb6 17. d6 Nxb5 18. Bd2 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Rae8 20. Nxb5 Rxe5+ 21. Kd1 Bxd2 22. Nxa7 Bf4 23. Ra6 {Ding,L (2714)-Bacrot,E (2714)/Biel/2013/} Nd7 $132) 14. Qd4 (14. Ra4 $5 Qc5 $132) 14... Bb7 15. Bd2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 dxe5 17. fxe5 Bxd5 18. Be3 Qxb5 19. O-O Ne6 20. Qh4 Ndc5 (20... a5 $5 $15) 21. Rab1 Nb3 22. Bd1 Qa5 23. Bc2 g6 24. Ng5 Nxg5 25. Bxg5 Qxc3 26. Rf2 (26. Rbd1 $1 $44) 26... Nd4 27. Bh6 (27. Bf6 Qe3 28. Bg5 $11) 27... Nc6 $1 28. Rd1 Qxe5 $15 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Karjakin,S (2766)/Khanty-Mansiysk Candidates/2014/}) 6. e4 d6 7. Bd2 (7. Nge2 {gives Black's counterplay a faster start with} b5 8. Nf4 (8. Ng3 bxc4 (8... exd5 9. cxd5 a6 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O c4 12. Be3 Re8 13. Kh1 Bc5 14. Bxc5 Nxc5 15. b4 cxb3 16. axb3 b4 17. Nb5 Qb6 18. Nd4 Bd7 19. Qd2 a5 20. Bc4 h6 21. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 22. dxc6 Qxc6 23. Nf5 $16 {Milov,V (2570)-De Firmian,N (2605)/Biel/1995/}) 9. Bxc4 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Qa5 $132 {[%cal Yc8a6]}) 8... a6 $5 (8... e5 9. Nfe2 Nh5 $5 (9... bxc4 10. Ng3 Ba6 11. Bg5 h6 12. Be3 Bc8 13. Bxc4 Nbd7 14. O-O Nb6 15. Be2 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Bd7 17. a4 Rb8 18. a5 Na8 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. f4 $36 {Shirov,A (2610)-Savon,V (2460)/Moscow/1991/}) 10. g4 Qh4+ 11. Kd2 Nf4 12. Nxf4 exf4 13. Kc2 Bxc3 (13... bxc4 14. Bxc4 (14. Bxf4 $142 Qf6 15. Qd2) 14... Ba6 15. Bxa6 Nxa6 16. Bxf4 c4 17. Qd4 Rfc8 18. a3 Bc5 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. h4 Rab8 21. g5 Rb3 $40 {Cheng,B (2440)-Papin,V (2514)/Melbourne/2013/}) 14. bxc3 b4 15. Bxf4 Bd7 16. Qd2 $5 (16. Qd3 $6 Ba4+ 17. Kd2 Nd7 18. Be2 f5 $1 19. exf5 Rae8 20. Rae1 Ne5 21. Bxe5 Rxe5 22. f4 Rfe8 $1 $19 {Berkes,F (2702)-Yemelin,V (2574)/Skopje/2013/} {} 23. fxe5 Qg5+ 24. Qe3 bxc3+ 25. Kd3 Bc2+) 16... Ba4+ (16... Qe7 $5) 17. Kd3 bxc3 18. Qxc3 (18. Qe3 Qe7 19. Ke2 c2 20. Kf2 Nd7 $13 {Miton,K (2638)-Charbonneau,P (2501)/Montreal/2006/}) 18... f5 19. exf5 Qf2 (19... Na6 20. Bg3 $16) 20. Be3 Qxf3 21. Be2 Qh3 22. Qe1 $1 {[%cal Re1g3]} Bc2+ 23. Kd2 Be4 24. Rg1 Qxh2 25. Qg3 $16) 9. Be2 (9. Bd2 exd5 10. cxd5 Ba5 11. Be2 Nbd7 12. O-O Ne5 13. Kh1 c4 $132 {is similar to our game, Black was on top after} 14. b3 $6 b4 15. Na4 c3 16. Be3 Bc7 17. a3 a5 18. Bb5 Rb8 19. Qe2 h6 20. Rfd1 Qe7 21. axb4 axb4 $15 {Timofeev,A (2631)-Topalov,V (2751)/EU Cup Eilat/2012/}) 9... exd5 (9... e5 10. Nd3 Nbd7 11. Nxb4 cxb4 12. Nb1 Qb6 13. g4 bxc4 14. Nd2 c3 15. bxc3 a5 16. Nc4 Qc7 17. cxb4 axb4 18. Be3 Ba6 19. Rc1 Bxc4 20. Rxc4 Nc5 21. Qd2 Rfb8 22. O-O b3 $11 {Tritt,M (1896)-Kolanek,R (2098)/email/2008/}) 10. cxd5 Nbd7 11. O-O Ne5 12. Kh1 Bd7 13. Nd3 Nxd3 14. Qxd3 h6 15. g4 Nh7 16. Nd1 Re8 17. Ne3 c4 18. Qd1 Bc5 19. Qe1 Qb6 20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. gxf5 Be3 22. Qg3 Kh8 23. Bxe3 Qxe3 24. Rg1 Rg8 $13 {/, Richter,M (2470)-Babula,V (2583)/Pardubice/2013/}) 7... Nbd7 ({Nakamura himself preferred} 7... Re8 8. Nge2 a6 (8... Na6 9. Ng3 Nc7 10. Be2 a6 11. a4 Bd7 12. O-O Qe7 13. Re1 exd5 14. cxd5 b5 15. Kh1 bxa4 16. Nxa4 Bxd2 17. Qxd2 Reb8 18. Nxc5 dxc5 19. d6 Qe5 20. f4 Qxb2 21. Qxb2 Rxb2 22. dxc7 Rc8 $11 {Volkov,S (2620)-Cekro,E (2441)/EU Cup Rethymnon/2003/}) 9. a4 (9. Ng3 b5 10. dxe6 Bxe6 11. cxb5 d5 12. bxa6 c4 (12... Nxa6 $5) 13. exd5 Bh3+ $2 (13... Nxd5 14. Be2 Nxc3 15. Bxc3 Qb6 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) 14. Nce4 Nxd5 15. Bxb4 Nxb4 16. gxh3 Qa5 17. Kf2 $18 {Steadman,M (2217)-Hansen,S (2603)/Sydney/2011/}) 9... exd5 10. cxd5 Nh5 11. g3 f5 12. Bg2 fxe4 13. Nxe4 Nf6 14. Bxb4 cxb4 15. Qd2 Nxe4 16. fxe4 a5 17. Nd4 Na6 18. O-O Nc5 19. Qf4 Nd3 20. Qd2 Nc5 21. Qf4 Nd3 22. Qd2 Nc5 {½, Le Quang,L (2715)-Nakamura,H (2770)/Dortmund/2011/}) ({Carlsen once again simply continues his development and spurns more direct attempts, such as} 7... exd5 8. cxd5 Nh5 $5 (8... a6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 b5 11. Be2 (11. a4 $1 $14) 11... c4 12. Be3 Bc5 13. Bxc5 Nxc5 14. b4 cxb3 15. axb3 b4 16. Nb5 Qb6 17. Nd4 a5 18. Ngf5 Re8 $15 19. g4 $2 {Khenkin,I (2600)-Dgebuadze,A (2505)/El Sauzal rpd/2007/} Nfxe4 20. fxe4 Nxe4 $40) 9. g3 ({I doubt Nakamura would have repeated Aronian's aggressive reaction} 9. g4 Qh4+ 10. Ke2 Ng3+ 11. hxg3 Qxh1 12. Kf2 Nd7 (12... c4 $5 $17) 13. Bg2 Qh2 14. a3 Bxc3 15. Bxc3 Qh6 16. f4 Qg6 17. Bf3 Re8 18. Kg2 f6 19. Qc2 b5 20. Nh3 Nb6 21. f5 Qf7 22. b3 Nd7 23. Nf4 Ne5 24. Rh1 h6 25. Ne6 $44 {1-0 Aronian,L (2693)-Efimenko,Z (2620)/Warsaw 2005/CBM 108 (49)}) (9. Nge2 f5 10. Qc2 b5 11. O-O-O Bxc3 12. bxc3 fxe4 13. fxe4 $6 (13. Ng3 $132) 13... Bg4 14. Re1 Nd7 15. Ng3 Nxg3 16. hxg3 Ne5 17. Bxb5 c4 $40 {0-1 Gomez Esteban,J (2425)-Supatashvili,K (2450)/Debrecen 1992/EU-chT (26)}) 9... f5 10. Bg2 $142 (10. f4 $6 Qe8 11. Be2 Bxc3 12. Bxc3 Qxe4 13. Nf3 Re8 14. Kf1 b6 15. Rg1 Qxe2+ 16. Qxe2 Ba6 17. Qxa6 Nxa6 18. Kf2 Nc7 $17 {Bilobrk,F (2390)-Zelcic,R (2519)/Zadar/2013/}) 10... Bxc3 (10... Nf6 $142 $1 {seems promising for Black}) 11. Bxc3 fxe4 12. fxe4 Qe8 13. Ne2 Bg4 14. Rf1 Rxf1+ 15. Kxf1 Nd7 16. Qc2 Ne5 17. Kg1 Nf3+ 18. Kh1 Qg6 19. Rf1 Nxh2 20. Kxh2 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 Nxg3 22. Qe3 Nxf1+ 23. Bxf1 Re8 24. Bg2 $13 {Van Osmael,A-Huybrecht,F/corr/2002/}) 8. Nge2 Ne5 $146 (8... exd5 9. Nxd5 $6 ({Nakamura would have almost certainly played} 9. cxd5 $142 a6 10. Ng3) 9... Nxd5 10. cxd5 f5 11. Bxb4 cxb4 12. Nd4 Nc5 13. Be2 fxe4 14. O-O Qg5 15. Qc1 Qe5 16. Qe3 exf3 17. Qxe5 dxe5 18. Nxf3 e4 19. Nd4 Bd7 20. Bc4 $132 {Akshat,K (2354)-L'Ami,E (2640)/Dieren/2013/}) (8... Re8 9. Ng3 a6 10. Be2 exd5 11. cxd5 b5 (11... Qc7 12. O-O Ne5 13. Bg5 Nfd7 14. f4 Ng6 15. f5 $1 Nge5 16. f6 h6 17. Bxh6 Nxf6 18. Rxf6 gxf6 19. Nh5 Qd8 20. Qd2 Ng6 21. Bg7 {1-0, Bobykin,K (2000)-Pilipchuk,A (2172)/email/2008/}) 12. a4 bxa4 13. Nxa4 (13. Qxa4 $142 Rb8 14. O-O $13 {/}) 13... Rb8 14. O-O Bxd2 15. Qxd2 Rb4 16. Ra2 Ne5 17. Rfa1 h5 18. Qg5 Ng6 19. Nc3 h4 20. Nf5 Bxf5 21. Qxf5 Re5 22. Qh3 Rh5 $1 {[%cal Rg6f4]} 23. g4 hxg3 24. Qxg3 Re5 25. Kh1 Nh5 $36 {Landgren,A (2220)-Bjork,C (2473)/SWE-chT/2004/}) (8... Nh5 9. Be3 $2 (9. Nf4 $142) 9... Ne5 10. b3 Qh4+ 11. Bf2 Qf6 12. Qc2 b5 $1 $32 13. cxb5 exd5 14. O-O-O Nxf3 $5 15. Rxd5 Ne5 16. Be3 Bb7 17. Rd1 Ng4 18. Bg1 Rfe8 $17 {Skula,E-Krcmar,J/corr/1997/}) 9. Ng3 exd5 10. cxd5 {[%mdl 16] The pawn-structure originates from the Benoni, but the dark-squared bishop is on the queenside instead of the long diagonal. In the Snake Benoni Black plays d6-c7-a5; here it's similar, but he didn't allow White to get in the d5-d6 advance (the main problem of most Snake Benoni versions). All in all the position seems very unclear to me.} Bd7 {Carlsen wants to get in a quick b5, but without allowing White to reach a positon such as the one seen in Milov-De Firmian above. However, d7 is an important square also for Black's knights and a few moves later he will feel the bishop should retreat.} (10... a6 11. Be2 b5 12. a4 $5 $14) (10... c4 $5 11. Be3 (11. f4 Nd3+ (11... Ng6 12. Bxc4 Re8 13. Bb5 Bd7 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) 12. Bxd3 cxd3 13. Qf3 Re8 14. O-O (14. Qxd3 Bxc3 15. Bxc3 Nxe4 16. Nxe4 Bf5 $11) 14... Bd7 $13 15. Qxd3 $2 Ng4 $17) 11... Qc7 12. Be2 Bc5 $132) 11. a3 $146 {Nakamura first of all wants to slow down the advancing pawns.} ({Perhaps he didn't like} 11. Be2 {due to} c4 $5 (11... b5 12. Nxb5 Bxb5 13. Bxb5 Qa5 14. Be2 Rab8 15. b3 $14) 12. Be3 Qa5 13. O-O Bc5 14. Qd2 $13) ({RR} 11. Be2 c4 12. Be3 Re8 13. O-O b5 14. Kh1 Ba5 15. a4 a6 16. axb5 axb5 17. Bd4 b4 18. Nb1 Qc7 19. Nd2 c3 20. Rc1 Rec8 21. f4 c2 22. Qe1 Ng6 23. b3 Bb6 24. Bxf6 gxf6 25. Nc4 Ra2 {Gutman,G (2473)-Grigorian,S (2340) Pardubice 2016 1-0}) 11... Ba5 12. Be2 b5 13. O-O (13. Nxb5 Bxb5 14. Bxb5 c4 {[%csl Rb5]} (14... Rb8 15. b4 Rxb5 16. bxa5 Nd3+ 17. Ke2 c4 $13) 15. b4 cxb3 16. Rb1 Rb8 17. Rxb3 Qc7 $44 {[%csl Re1]}) (13. b4 cxb4 (13... Bb6 $5 14. Nxb5 Bxb5 15. Bxb5 c4 $44) 14. axb4 Bxb4 15. Nxb5 Bc5 16. Ba5 Qe7 17. Nd4 Ng6 $132) 13... c4 14. Be3 Bb6 15. Qd2 Rb8 (15... a5 16. a4 $5 {and the c4-pawn will be vulnerable:} b4 17. Nb5 Bxb5 18. axb5 g6 19. Rfc1 Rc8 20. Kh1 Bxe3 (20... Re8 21. Bg5 $36) 21. Qxe3 Rc5 22. f4 $14) 16. Nd1 Bc8 $6 {Preparing the knight transfer is rather slow.} (16... h5 $5) (16... Re8 $13) 17. Kh1 ({White gradually improves his position,} 17. a4 a6 $13 {achieves nothing tangible.}) 17... Nfd7 {[%cal Yd7c5,Yc5b3,Yc5d3]} 18. f4 $1 {At the right moment - now Black won't control d3 with both knights.} Ng6 19. Bxb6 (19. a4 a6 20. Nc3 {Zagrebelny} Bc5 $5 {doesn't look too impressive.}) 19... Rxb6 20. Ne3 Nc5 21. Bd1 Nd3 (21... Re8 22. f5 Nf8 23. f6 Nxe4 24. Nxe4 Rxe4 25. Bc2 $44) 22. f5 $1 ({Houdini prefers} 22. a4 a6 23. b3 $14 {, but Nakamura decides to act.}) 22... Ngf4 $8 {More or less forced.} (22... Nge5 $2 23. f6 $40 g6 $2 24. Nxc4 {[%cal Rd2h6]}) 23. a4 (23. Bc2 Qh4 24. f6 $5 g6 25. a4 $36) 23... a6 24. Ng4 {[%cal Rf1f4]} (24. Bc2 $5 {deserves attention even here.}) 24... h5 (24... Qg5 $2 25. Nh5 $1 $18) 25. Nf2 $5 ({This is at least as good as the more energetic} 25. Rxf4 Nxf4 (25... hxg4 $5 26. Rxg4 Ne5 {is a safer choice, although White is better after} 27. a5 (27. Rf4 Qg5 $14)) 26. Nh6+ gxh6 (26... Kh8 27. Qxf4 Qf6 28. Nxf7+ Rxf7 29. Bxh5 Rf8 (29... Qxb2 30. Rd1 $18) 30. Bg6 Qxg6 (30... Kg8 31. Qg4 {[%cal Rg4h5]} Rd8 32. e5 $1 dxe5 33. Qh5 $18 {[%cal Rg3e4]}) 31. Qe3 Qf6 32. Qxb6 Qxb2 33. Rf1 $16) 27. Qxf4 Qg5 28. Qf2 $16 {[%cal Rf2b6,Rg3h5] }) 25... Qf6 (25... Nxf2+ 26. Qxf2 Nd3 27. Qe3 {[%cal Rf5f6]} f6 (27... h4 28. f6 $1) 28. a5 Rb7 29. Bxh5 $18 {[%cal Rh5g6,Re3f3,Rf3h5]}) (25... bxa4 26. Nxd3 Nxd3 27. f6 $18) 26. Nxd3 $2 (26. Nxh5 $142 $1 Nxh5 (26... Nxf2+ 27. Qxf2 Nxh5 28. Qxb6 $18) 27. Nxd3 cxd3 28. a5 Rb8 29. Bxh5 $16 {[%cal Yb2b4,Ya1a3,Ya3d3]}) 26... Nxd3 27. Qe3 (27. Nxh5 Qxb2 $13) 27... Rb7 28. Nxh5 ({This looks like a good moment to flick in} 28. axb5 axb5 29. Nxh5 Qh6 30. Qd4 $5 $36) 28... Qh6 $1 (28... Qxb2 $2 29. f6 Qxa1 30. Qg5 (30. fxg7 {[%cal Re3h6]} f5 31. gxf8=Q+ Kxf8 32. Be2 $18) 30... Nf2+ 31. Kg1 Nh3+ 32. gxh3 Qd4+ 33. Rf2 $1 g6 34. Ng3 $1 Qxd1+ 35. Kg2 $18) 29. Qxh6 {Nakamura simplifies the position.} ({After} 29. Qd4 {White has to reckon also with} bxa4 $5 $132) 29... gxh6 $44 {/} 30. axb5 axb5 {[%csl Gb5,Gc4] Black has survived the onslaught, without queens his dangerous pawns give him reasonable compensation. In the following phase Nakamura's time trouble plays a crucial role.} (30... Rxb5 $2 31. b3 $16 {} cxb3 32. Be2) 31. Bc2 (31. Rb1 $142 $5 Nc5 (31... Ra7 32. Bc2 Nb4 33. Rf2) 32. Re1 $14) 31... Ne5 $6 {Objectively this isn't ideal, but Carlsen is already ambitious.} (31... Nxb2 $142 $5 32. Nf6+ Kg7 33. Nh5+ Kh8 34. Ra6 Rd8 35. Rfa1 b4 36. Rc6 b3 37. Bxb3 cxb3 38. Ra8 Nd3 39. Rcxc8 Rxc8 40. Rxc8+ Kh7 41. Nf6+ Kg7 42. Nh5+ $11 {is an unforced, but plausible sample line.}) 32. Ra6 (32. Ra8 b4 33. Rb1 $14) (32. b4 $5 cxb3 33. Bxb3 $14 {/}) 32... Rd8 33. Ng3 $6 $138 (33. Rb1 b4 34. Ra8 $14) 33... Rb8 34. Ra7 b4 35. Ne2 (35. Rb1 $13 {was still playable, the knight transfer doesn't improve White's coordination.}) 35... Bd7 36. Rfa1 $6 (36. Nd4 Ra8 $44 37. Rfa1 (37. Rb7 $142 $5) 37... Rxa7 38. Rxa7 b3 39. Bb1 Rc8 40. Ne2 Be8 41. Nc3 (41. Ra1 Nd3 42. Bxd3 cxd3 43. Nc3 Rxc3 44. bxc3 b2 45. Rb1 d2 $19 {[%cal Re8a4]}) 41... Nd3 $15) 36... Bb5 37. h3 (37. Nd4 b3 38. Bd1 (38. Bb1 c3 39. Nxb5 c2 40. Bxc2 bxc2 $19) 38... c3 39. bxc3 (39. Nxb5 Rxb5 40. bxc3 b2 41. Rb1 Rc8 $19) 39... b2 40. Rb1 Bd3 41. Bc2 Bxc2 42. Nxc2 Rdc8 43. Ra2 Nd3 $5 $19 (43... Rxc3 44. Raxb2 Rxb2 45. Rxb2 Nd3 46. Ra2 Nb4 $17)) 37... Rdc8 $1 $36 {All is ready for the pawn break.} 38. Kh2 $2 (38. Rb1 c3 39. Nd4 b3 40. Nxb3 Bd3 41. Bxd3 Nxd3 42. bxc3 Rxc3 $17) 38... c3 $19 39. Nd4 cxb2 40. Rb1 Rc4 $1 41. Nxb5 Rxc2 42. Nd4 (42. Nxd6 Rd8 43. Re7 (43. Nxf7 Nxf7 44. Rb7 Kh8 $1 {[%cal Rd8g8]} (44... Nd6 45. Rxb4 Nc4 46. Kg3 $17) 45. Kg3 (45. Rxf7 Rg8 $19) 45... Ne5 46. Rxb4 Rg8+ 47. Kh4 Rgxg2 $19) 43... Rxd6 44. Rxe5 Ra6 45. d6 Rxd6 46. Rd5 Rxd5 47. exd5 Kf8 48. f6 Ke8 $19) 42... Rd2 $6 (42... b3 $1 {[%cal Re5c4]} 43. Ra3 (43. Nc6 Nf3+ 44. Kg3 Nd2 45. Rxb2 Rxb2 46. Nxb8 Ra2 $19) 43... Nc4 44. Rxb3 Rxb3 45. Nxb3 Na3 46. Nd4 Rd2 $19) 43. Nc6 Re8 44. Ra4 (44. Rb7 Nd3 45. e5 Nxe5 46. Nxe5 Rxe5 47. Rxb4 Ree2 $17 {/-+}) ({A more resilient try, but hardly sufficient, was} 44. Nxe5 Rxe5 45. Ra2 Rxe4 46. Raxb2 Rxb2 47. Rxb2 Kg7 48. g4 Kf6 $17 {/-+}) 44... Nd3 45. Nxb4 Nf2 $1 $19 {[%cal Re8e4,Rf2d1,Rd1c3]} (45... Rxe4 $2 46. Ra8+ Kg7 47. Nxd3 $11) 46. Ra2 Nd1 47. Rxd1 Rxd1 48. Rxb2 Rxe4 {The rest is a matter of technique, White's pieces are uncoordinated and his pawns are vulnerable.} 49. Nc6 (49. f6 Rf4 $19) 49... Kg7 50. f6+ Kxf6 51. Rf2+ Kg6 52. Nd8 Re8 (52... Re8 53. Nxf7 Rxd5 {[%csl Rf7][%cal Rg6g7,Re8f8] traps the knight.}) 0-1

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.28"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 Bb7 6. Bg2 Be7 7. O-O O-O 8. b3 c5 9. Bb2 cxd4 10. Nxd4 Bxg2 11. Kxg2 Nc6 12. Nxc6 dxc6 13. e4 ({RR} 13. Nf3 Qc7 14. Qc2 Rfd8 15. Rad1 h6 16. Rxd8+ Rxd8 17. Rd1 Rxd1 {½-½ (17) Tomashevsky,E (2681)-Karjakin,S (2750) Moscow RUS 2023}) 13... Qd3 14. e5 Ne4 15. Nf3 $146 ({RR} 15. Nxe4 Qxe4+ 16. Qf3 Qc2 17. Qc3 Qe4+ 18. Qf3 Qc2 19. Qc3 {½-½ (19) Yildiz Kadioglu,B (2296)-Ozturk Orenli,K (2291) Kocaeli 2014}) 15... Rfd8 16. Re1 Nc5 17. Nd4 Rac8 18. Re3 Qxd1 19. Rxd1 Nxb3 20. axb3 c5 21. Red3 cxd4 22. Rxd4 Kf8 23. Kf3 Ke8 24. Ke4 Bc5 25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 26. Rxd8+ Kxd8 27. f3 Kc7 28. Bc3 Kc6 29. Kd3 b5 30. b4 Bg1 31. h3 Bf2 32. g4 Bg3 33. Kd4 a6 34. Kd3 Bf2 35. Bd2 Bg3 36. Bc3 Bf2 37. Bd2 Bg3 38. Bc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial-A 1st"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2014.04.30"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2783"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2014.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 160"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.05.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 c5 5. c3 d5 {[%mdl 512] It was not a good decision for Fabiano Caruana to sac the c5-pawn, taking into consideration that Magnus Carlsen is especially strong in this kind of position.} 6. dxc5 O-O 7. O-O {This line was examined in CBM 129, annotations to Kamsky-Karjakin.} a5 {This attempt to encircle the c5-pawn proves fruitless.} (7... Nc6 8. Qb3 Qa5 9. Qa3 Qc7 10. Bg5 Ne4 11. Be3 e5 12. Nbd2 f5 13. Rad1 Nf6 14. b4 Re8 15. Nb3 Ne4 16. b5 Ne7 17. Qc1 $16 {1-0 (41) Kamsky,G (2725)-Karjakin,S (2706) Wijk aan Zee 2009}) (7... Qc7 $5 8. b4 e5 {deserves attention. In the following game Black obtained decent compensation for the pawn:} 9. Bb2 Rd8 10. Nbd2 Bf5 11. Qb3 (11. c4 $5) 11... Nc6 12. a3 b6 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Rfd1 h6 15. e3 Be6 16. Qc2 {1/2 (16) L'Ami,E (2626)-Bok,B (2527) Haarlem 2013}) 8. Be3 (8. Nd4 $5 e5 9. Nb5 Na6 10. Bg5 e4 11. Bf4 Bd7 12. N1a3 b6 13. cxb6 Qxb6 14. c4 dxc4 $6 15. Nd6 $16 {1/2 (90) Harika,D (2525)-Muzychuk,M (2462) Antakya 2010}) (8. c4 $5 Na6 9. Nc3 dxc4 10. Ne5 $5 Nxc5 11. Be3 Nfe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Nxc4 Nd6 14. Nxd6 Qxd6 15. Qxd6 exd6 16. Rad1 $14) ({RR} 8. c4 Na6 9. Nc3 dxc4 10. Be3 Qc7 11. Qa4 Ng4 12. Nd5 Qd8 13. Qxc4 Nxe3 14. Nxe3 Be6 15. Qh4 Nxc5 16. Ng5 h6 17. Nxe6 Nxe6 18. Nd5 Nd4 19. Nxe7+ Kh8 20. e3 Re8 21. Nd5 Qxh4 22. gxh4 Ne6 {Nihal,S (2652)-Van Foreest,J (2691) Malmo 2021 ½-½ (59)}) 8... Nc6 (8... Ng4 9. Qd2 {, and Black can't recapture the pawn anyway.}) 9. Na3 ({RR} 9. Nd4 e5 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. h3 Rb8 12. Qd2 Ba6 13. Re1 Qc7 14. b3 Nd7 15. Na3 f5 16. Nc2 f4 17. gxf4 exf4 18. Bd4 Ne5 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Nd4 Qd7 21. Nf3 Bg7 22. Rad1 Qa7 23. Nd4 Qd7 {Golubova,A (2135)-Chernyshova,A (1801) Sochi RUS 2025 1-0 (34)}) 9... a4 $146 ({RR} 9... e5 10. h3 h6 11. Nb5 Be6 12. a4 Nd7 13. Qc1 Kh7 14. Rd1 f5 15. Ne1 Ne7 16. f4 Rc8 17. b4 axb4 18. cxb4 exf4 19. Bxf4 Bxa1 20. Qxa1 b6 21. Bd6 bxc5 22. bxc5 Rf7 23. Nd4 Rf6 24. Nd3 {Tran,K-Huynh,L (1341) Tornelo INT 2021 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 9... e5 10. Nb5 h6 11. Nd6 Qe7 12. a4 Be6 13. h3 Ne8 14. Nxe8 Rfxe8 15. Kh2 Rad8 16. Qc2 f5 17. Rab1 g5 18. b4 axb4 19. cxb4 e4 20. Ng1 d4 21. Bc1 Ne5 22. Bb2 Qf7 23. Ba1 Bc4 24. Rfd1 {Soto Hernandez,H (2481)-Khodko,Y (2249) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (55)}) 10. Qc1 $1 e5 {Black's pawn centre doesn't fully compensate for his missing pawn.} 11. Rd1 Qe7 12. Nb5 {[%csl Rd6]} Be6 13. Ng5 (13. Nd6 {was less clear in view of} b6) 13... Bg4 $1 14. Nd6 $1 (14. f3 $6 Bc8 15. Nd6 h6 16. Nh3 Bxh3 17. Bxh3 b6 $13) 14... h6 $1 (14... Bxe2 15. Rxd5 $1 Nxd5 16. Bxd5 Nd8 17. Qc2 Bg4 18. Qe4 $16 {[%csl Gd5,Gd6,Ge4]}) 15. Nf3 Kh7 {An unnecessary loss of a tempo.} (15... b6 $142 $1 {- a typical undermining although White keeps the better prospects after} 16. Ne1 $1 (16. Bxh6 $2 bxc5) 16... e4 $1 (16... Bxe2 17. Rxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxd5 bxc5 19. Bxc5 {[%csl Gc5,Gd5,Gd6]} Ra5 20. Qe3) 17. f3 exf3 18. exf3 Be6 19. Nd3) 16. h3 Be6 17. b4 {This move unexpectedly gives Black good counterplay.} (17. Ne1 $142 {[%cal Ye1d3]}) 17... axb3 18. axb3 Rxa1 19. Qxa1 Ne4 20. Nd2 f5 $6 (20... Nxd6 21. cxd6 Qxd6 22. Nc4 Qd8 23. Bc5 Rg8 (23... Re8 24. Nd6 Bf8 25. Nxb7 Qb8 26. Qa6) 24. Bxd5 Bxd5 25. e4 Nd4 26. exd5 Nxb3 27. Qa3 Qc8 28. Qxb3 Qxc5 29. d6 $16 {[%csl Gd6]}) (20... d4 $1 21. Bxe4 (21. N2xe4 dxe3 22. fxe3 f5 23. Nd2 e4 $44 {[%csl Rg2]}) 21... dxe3 22. fxe3 Bxh3 $44 {White's king is unsafe, and Black's attacking chances should not be underestimated.}) 21. N2xe4 dxe4 (21... fxe4 22. Qb1 {[%cal Yc3c4] e.g.} h5 23. c4 d4 24. Bc1) 22. Qb1 $1 f4 23. Bd2 e3 {This is now harmless.} 24. Be1 {Safely protecting White's king while his other pieces are very active. Black has no compensation for the pawn whatsoever.} Bf5 25. Qc1 h5 26. fxe3 fxg3 27. Bxg3 Qg5 28. e4 $1 Qxg3 29. Rd3 Qh4 30. exf5 gxf5 31. e4 $1 {White seizes the light squares.} fxe4 (31... f4 32. Nf5) (31... Bh6 32. Qd1) 32. Bxe4+ Kh8 33. Qe3 Rf4 34. Bg2 Qe7 35. Qe2 Qh4 36. b4 {The rest is clear. Black has no real counterplay anymore, and the advance of White's queenside pawns decides the game.} e4 37. Nxe4 Ne5 38. Rd5 Kg8 39. b5 Rf5 40. c6 bxc6 41. bxc6 Qe7 42. Nd6 Rg5 43. Nb5 Qe6 44. Rd8+ Kh7 45. Qe4+ Rg6 46. c7 Qa6 47. c8=Q Qa1+ 48. Kf2 Qb2+ 49. Ke1 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.04"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2783"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase Website} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nf3 Nbd7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rc1 b6 10. cxd5 ({RR} 10. b4 a5 11. b5 cxb5 12. cxb5 Bb7 13. Qb2 Qe7 14. Nbd2 ({RR} 14. Rc7 Rab8 15. Qa3 Qxa3 16. Nxa3 Rfc8 17. Rac1 Ne8 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 19. Rxc8 Bxc8 20. Nd2 Bb7 21. f4 Nd6 22. Ndb1 Kf8 23. Nc3 Ke7 24. Kf2 Nf6 25. h3 Nfe8 26. e3 Nc7 27. g4 Bc8 28. Bf1 Bd7) 14... Rfc8 15. e3 h6 16. Rxc8+ Rxc8 17. Rc1 Qf8 18. Rc3 Ne4 19. Rxc8 Qxc8 20. Nb1 Ndf6 21. Nfd2 Nxd2 22. Nxd2 Ne4 23. Nb1 h5 24. Bf1 h4 {Bacrot,E (2723)-Wang,H (2747) Elancourt 2013 CBM 157 [ChessBase Website] ½-½ (40)}) 10... cxd5 11. Na3 ({RR} 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. Nc3 a6 13. Rc2 Qb8 14. f4 Qd6 15. Rac1 Rfd8 16. a3 Ne8 17. Na4 Rac8 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 19. Rxc8 Bxc8 20. Qc3 Nc7 21. g4 Nb8 22. g5 Bd7 23. Nxd7 Nxd7 24. e3 Kf8 25. Bf1 Ke7 {Karthik,V (2571)-Sanal,V (2547) Eforie Nord ROU 2025 ½-½ (53)}) 11... Ne4 $146 {Quite typical for Carlsen. He changes his lines regularly in order to avoid specific preparation. With his last move he deviates from an earlier game between the same players, despite the favourable result.} (11... Bb7 12. Nb5 a6 13. Nd6 {Kramnik,V (2784)-Carlsen,M (2814) Wijk aan Zee 2011 CBM 141 [Moradiabadi/Mueller,Kar] (0-1, 85)}) ({RR} 11... Ba6 12. Nc2 Ne4 13. Qe1 Bb7 14. Nb4 Qb8 15. e3 Qd6 16. Bf1 Rac8 17. Bb5 h6 18. a3 Ng5 19. Qe2 Nxf3+ 20. Qxf3 a5 21. Nd3 Bc6 22. Bxc6 Rxc6 23. Rxc6 Qxc6 24. Rc1 Qb7 25. Qf4 Rc8 26. Qd6 {Kursova,M (2338)-Ghader Pour,S (2218) Istanbul 2012 1-0 (61)}) ({RR} 11... Ba6 12. Ne5 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. f4 Rc8 15. Nc2 Nb8 16. Nd4 Qd7 17. f5 exf5 18. Qf4 g6 19. Bh3 Qe7 20. Bxf5 Rc4 21. Bd3 Nd7 22. Bxc4 dxc4 23. Rc3 Nxe5 24. Re3 f6 25. Nc6 Qc5 26. Nxe5 {Balog,I (2594)-Lutz,C (2532) Germany GER 2023 1-0 (39)}) 12. Qe3 Ba6 13. Ne5 Nd6 14. Nc2 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Nc4 16. Qd4 {In principle, if White wishes to prove an advantage, this square should be the reserved for the knight.} ({In fact, the pawn sacrifice} 16. Qf4 {looks promising:} Nxb2 17. Rab1 Nc4 18. Nb4 g5 (18... Bb7 19. Rxc4 $16) 19. Qf6 Qxf6 20. exf6 Nd2 21. Nxa6 Nxb1 22. Rxb1 Rac8 23. Bf3 $14 {[%cal Gf3h5] Given the delicate situation of the black king, the minor pieces sustained by the rook may be stronger than the two black rooks.}) 16... Qe7 17. b3 Na5 18. e4 dxe4 19. Bxe4 Rac8 20. Ne3 Bb7 {The game simplifies now to a dull ending, in which Carlsen will surprisingly (or perhaps not?!) gets the upper hand at a later stage.} 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rd1 Bxe4 23. Qxe4 h6 24. b4 Nc6 25. a3 b5 26. Kg2 a5 27. Rc1 Qd7 28. bxa5 Nxa5 29. Rxc8+ Qxc8 30. a4 bxa4 31. Qxa4 Qb7+ 32. Kh3 Nb3 33. Nc4 Nd4 34. Nd6 Qd5 35. f4 Ne2 36. Ne4 Qd3 37. Kg2 Nd4 38. Qa8+ Kh7 39. Nf2 Qd2 40. Qe4+ g6 41. Qd3 Qb2 42. Kf1 Kg7 43. Ng4 h5 44. Ne3 Nf3 45. Nf5+ exf5 46. Qxf3 Qxh2 47. e6 fxe6 48. Qc3+ Kh7 49. Qc7+ Kh6 50. Qe7 Qb2 51. Qg5+ Kh7 52. Qe7+ Qg7 53. Qxe6 Kh6 54. Qe8 Qa1+ 55. Kg2 Qb2+ 56. Kh3 Qf6 57. Qc8 h4 58. g4 fxg4+ 59. Qxg4 g5 60. fxg5+ Qxg5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.05"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D70"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2791"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "134"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. O-O-O Qd6 10. Nb5 Qd7 11. Kb1 Rd8 12. d5 a6 13. Nc3 Qe8 14. Qc1 (14. Qe1 {was played in Gelfand-Caruana (see CBM 153, where you can learn more about this line). After} Na7 $1 {some new games have been played since then:} 15. h4 (15. Nge2 Nb5 $1 (15... Nc4 16. Bd4 e5 17. dxe6 Bxe6 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. Nd4 Nb6 20. Qe3 Nc6 21. Be2 Nxd4 22. Rxd4 Qe7 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. h4 {1/2 (42) Jarmula,L (2213)-Wagner,D (2467) Al-Ain UAE 2013} h6 $11) 16. Nxb5 axb5 17. Bd4 {1-0 (28) Yang,D (2486)-Schut,L (2289) Philadelphia 2013} Rxd5 $3 18. exd5 Bf5+ 19. Kc1 (19. Ka1 Rxa2+ 20. Kxa2 Qa8+ 21. Kb3 Qa4+ 22. Kc3 Nxd5+ 23. Kd2 Qc2#) 19... Rxa2 $40 20. Bxg7 $140 $2 Nc4 $1 $19) 15... Nb5 16. Nxb5 (16. Nge2 Nc4 $15 {1/2 (40) Gelfand,B (2740)-Caruana,F (2757) Zuerich 2013 CBM 153 [Krasenkow,M]}) 16... axb5 17. h5 $2 Nc4 ({Black misses} 17... Nxd5 $1 18. exd5 (18. Rxd5 $2 Rxd5 19. exd5 Bf5+ 20. Kc1 Rxa2) 18... Bf5+ 19. Bd3 b4 $1 20. Bxf5 (20. Ne2 Rxa2 $1 21. Kxa2 Qa4+ 22. Kb1 Qb3 $19) 20... Qa4 21. Bd4 Qxa2+ 22. Kc2 Qc4+ 23. Kb1 Bxd4 24. Rxd4 Qxd4 25. hxg6 hxg6 26. Be4 Rxd5 $1 27. Ne2 Qc4 $19) 18. Bc1 f5 19. Bd3 Qf7 20. hxg6 hxg6 21. Qh4 Qf6 22. Qxf6 Bxf6 23. Ne2 $13 {1-0 (40) Thorfinnsson,B (2484)-Gordon,S (2533) England 2013}) 14... Na5 15. Bh6 $146 {A new move order although not a new plan, of course. White will play h2-h4 at a later stage.} (15. h4 e6 16. Bg5 $5 f6 17. Bd2 Nbc4 18. Bh6 Bxh6 19. Qxh6 exd5 20. h5 d4 21. hxg6 Qxg6 22. Bxc4+ Nxc4 23. Qxg6+ hxg6 24. Nge2 d3 25. Nf4 d2 26. Nxg6 Kg7 27. Nf4 Ne3 $13 {1/2 (45) Berczes,D (2497)-Sarkar,J (2452) Dallas USA 2014}) 15... Bxh6 (15... Bh8 16. Bf4 Rd7 17. h4 {and here the position of Black's bishop on h8 is worse than on g7.}) 16. Qxh6 e6 17. Nh3 {[%cal Rh3g5]} (17. h4 exd5 18. h5 {is harmless due to} Qf8 {.}) 17... Qe7 $146 (17... Qf8 $5 {- the position after the queen exchange is nearly equal but I understand Caruana avoiding it against Carlsen.}) ({RR} 17... Qf8 18. Qf4 Qe7 19. g4 e5 20. Qh6 c6 21. Be2 f6 22. Nf2 Nac4 23. Bxc4 Nxc4 24. Nd3 Nd6 25. h4 Bd7 26. Qe3 Be8 27. g5 Bf7 28. gxf6 Qxf6 29. Qg5 Qxg5 30. hxg5 Nc4 31. b3 Ne3 32. Rd2 {Cheparinov,I (2677)-Piorun,K (2681) Monzon 2016 1-0 (92)}) ({RR} 17... Qf8 18. Qf4 Qe7 19. g4 Nac4 20. Bxc4 Nxc4 21. e5 Qb4 22. Qc1 exd5 23. Nxd5 Rxd5 24. Rxd5 Be6 25. Rdd1 Qa5 26. b3 Nxe5 27. Nf4 Re8 28. Nxe6 Rxe6 29. Rd8+ Kg7 30. Qb2 f6 31. Rhd1 Nxf3 32. R8d7+ {Sadler,M (2684)-Leenhouts,K (2475) Maastricht 2017 1-0 (33)}) 18. Bd3 $5 {White goes for sharp play...} (18. Nf4 $5 e5 19. Nd3 c6 $132 {e.g.} 20. Qe3 Nac4 21. Qc5 Qxc5 22. Nxc5 Ne3 23. Rd3 Nxf1 24. Rxf1 cxd5 25. Nxd5 Nxd5 26. Rfd1 Be6 27. Nxe6 fxe6 28. exd5 Rxd5 29. Rxd5 exd5 30. Rxd5 Re8 31. Rd7 (31. Kc2 Kf7 32. Rd7+ Re7 33. Rxe7+ Kxe7 34. Kd3 Ke6 35. Ke4 a5 {is not enough either}) 31... e4 32. fxe4 Rxe4 33. Rxb7 Re2 {and the endgame should be drawn.}) 18... e5 {... and Black prefers a solid continuation. However, the resulting position is quite passive and slightly inferior for him.} (18... exd5 19. Nf4 {[%cal Rf4h5,Rf4d5] looks dangerous but Black holds on by means of} Be6 20. Nh5 $1 f6 $1 (20... gxh5 $2 21. exd5) 21. exd5 Nxd5 22. Nxd5 Rxd5 23. Bxg6 $1 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 hxg6 25. Qxg6+ Kh8 26. Nxf6 Bg8 $1 27. Rd5 Qe1+ 28. Kc2 Qe2+ $11) 19. Nf2 Nbc4 (19... c6 {can now be met with} 20. h4 $1 cxd5 21. Nxd5 Nxd5 22. exd5 Rxd5 23. h5 Bf5 24. Bxf5 Rxd1+ 25. Nxd1 gxf5 26. Ne3 $16 {[%csl Ra5]} Nc6) (19... Qc5 $5 20. Qh4 $14 {A.Korotylev}) 20. h4 Rd6 21. Bxc4 (21. Qc1 $5) 21... Nxc4 22. Qc1 {[%cal Yh4h5]} b5 (22... Rb6 23. Nd3 $14) (22... c6 23. b3 Nb6 24. Qe3 cxd5 25. exd5 $14 {[%csl Re5][%cal Rf2e4,Yh1e1]}) 23. Nd3 $14 {[%csl Rc5]} Bd7 24. b3 Nb6 25. h5 g5 26. g3 $6 {[%cal Yf3f4]} (26. Qe3 $142 {preventing ...c7-c6.}) 26... c6 $1 27. f4 $6 {White continues his plan despite Black's counterplay.} ({It was probably better to reduce ambitions and play} 27. dxc6 Rxc6 28. Qe3 Rxc3 29. Qxb6 $13) 27... cxd5 28. Nxe5 $6 (28. fxe5 Rc6 29. Qd2 Be6 $36) 28... d4 $1 29. Qa3 a5 $1 30. Nxb5 $6 {Panic. White doesn't get sufficient compensation for the piece.} (30. Nd5 Nxd5 31. exd5 Bf5+ 32. Ka1 a4 $36 {A.Korotylev}) 30... Bxb5 31. Rxd4 Re6 32. Qxe7 Rxe7 33. Rc1 Nd7 34. Rc7 Nxe5 $6 (34... gxf4 $1 35. gxf4 (35. Nxd7 f3 36. Nf6+ Kg7 37. Rxe7 f2 38. Rd1 Kxf6 $19) 35... Nxe5 36. Rxe7 Nc6 37. Rd5 Nxe7 38. Rxb5 Kg7 {and Black should gradually win.}) 35. Rxe7 Nc6 36. Rd5 Bd3+ 37. Rxd3 Nxe7 38. fxg5 {[%mdl 4096] White has got a third pawn for the piece and now has good drawing chances.} Rb8 39. Rd7 $6 {It was more essential to bring the king into the game.} (39. Kb2 $142 {A.Korotylev}) 39... Kf8 40. Ra7 Rb5 41. Ra8+ Kg7 42. Re8 (42. Ra6 {[%cal Rh5h6]} Rc5 $1 $17 (42... Rxg5 43. h6+ Kh8 44. Kb2)) 42... Re5 (42... Nc6 $142 $1 43. h6+ Kg6 44. Rg8+ Kh5 45. Rg7 Ne5 46. Rxh7 Kxg5 {and Black should win, according to GM A.Korotylev.}) 43. g4 Rxe4 44. Kc2 Re5 45. Kd3 f6 46. gxf6+ Kxf6 47. Rh8 Kg7 48. Re8 (48. Ra8 $142 Rg5 49. a3) 48... Kh6 (48... Nc6 $142 {Caruana was probably tired and couldn't evaluate the position after the exchange of rooks:} 49. Rxe5 Nxe5+ 50. Kc3 (50. Kd4 Nxg4 51. a4 Kf7 52. Kc4 Nf6 53. b4 Ke6 $19) 50... Nxg4 51. b4 axb4+ 52. Kxb4 Kf6 53. Kb5 Ke7 54. Kc6 Kd8 55. Kb7 Nf6 56. h6 (56. a4 Nxh5 57. a5 Nf4 58. a6 Ne6 59. a7 Nc7) 56... Ng4 57. a4 Nxh6 58. a5 Nf5 59. a6 Nd6+ 60. Kc6 Nc8 $19) 49. a3 Kg5 50. Rh8 $5 (50. b4 axb4 51. axb4 Kxg4 52. b5 Kxh5 {should be winning for Black.}) 50... h6 51. Rh7 Re6 52. Rg7+ Kf6 53. Rh7 Ke5 54. Rg7 Kf4 55. b4 axb4 56. axb4 {This passed pawn is White's main trump. The position is very hard to evaluate and calculate; White's drawing chances are realistic.} Nc6 57. b5 Ne5+ 58. Kd4 Nxg4 59. Kc5 Re5+ 60. Kc6 (60. Kb4 $1 Rxh5 (60... Ne3 61. Rg6 Rxh5 62. b6 Nd5+ 63. Kc4 Nxb6+ 64. Rxb6 {is a draw.}) 61. b6 Ne5 62. Rh7 Nc6+ 63. Kc4 {, keeping White's king closer to Black's pawn, was probably more appropriate.}) 60... Rxh5 $2 ({A.Korotylev recommends} 60... Ne3 $142 $1 {as the rook endgame after} 61. b6 Nc4 {will now be winning for Black: White's king is too far away. Meanwhile it is unclear whether White can reach a draw by refraining from b5-b6.}) 61. b6 Ne5+ 62. Kc7 Nc4 $6 (62... Nd3 $142 $1 {, but} 63. Rh7 $1 ({but not} 63. Rf7+ Rf5 64. Rxf5+ $2 Kxf5 65. b7 Nc5 66. b8=N $8 h5 $19) 63... Nc5 64. Kd6 {looks like a positional draw.}) 63. b7 Rc5+ 64. Kd8 Rb5 65. Kc7 Rc5+ 66. Kd8 Rb5 67. Kc7 Ke5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.07"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2881"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d5 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 c5 8. dxc5 Nbd7 9. e3 (9. Qa4 {would transpose to the second round game Agdestein-Giri}) 9... Qa5 10. Nd2 Bxc3 11. bxc3 Qxc5 $146 (11... O-O 12. Be2 Qxc3 13. O-O Qxc5 14. Rc1 Qb4 15. Bg3 Nb6 16. Be5 Qe7 17. Bd4 $44 {Kasimdzhanov,R (2700)-Aleksandrov,A (2554) Dubai 2014 (1-0, 48)}) 12. Rc1 O-O 13. Be2 Qa3 14. O-O $146 ({RR} 14. Qc2 b6 15. O-O Ba6 16. c4 Rac8 17. Qb3 Qa5 18. Qb2 Rfe8 19. Rfd1 Qa4 20. Qb3 Qa5 21. Qb2 Qa4 22. Qb3 Qa5 23. Bf1 Rc5 24. Qb2 dxc4 25. Nxc4 Bxc4 26. Rxc4 Rxc4 27. Bxc4 Re4 28. Rd4 Qe1+ {Vrolijk,L (2435)-Roos,A (2304) Netherlands 2019 1-0 (45)}) 14... Qxa2 15. c4 Ne4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Be7 Re8 18. Bd6 Nf6 19. Ra1 Qb2 20. c5 a5 21. Rb1 Qa2 22. Bb5 Rd8 23. Qc1 Qe6 24. Bc7 Rf8 25. Bd6 (25. Bc4 Qg4 (25... Qf5 26. Rb5) 26. Rd1 a4 27. Qa3) 25... Rd8 26. Bc7 Rf8 27. Bd6 Rd8 28. Bc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.08"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2815"]
[Annotator "Sumets,Andrey"]
[PlyCount "185"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 Nbd7 8. e3 g5 (8... c5 {including the moves ...h6 and h4, the line is considered as a risky one. However some players disagree with this.} 9. Bd3 Qa5 (9... c4 10. Bf5 Nb6 11. Bc2 Qe7 12. Nd2 $6 (12. O-O O-O 13. Ne5 $14) 12... O-O 13. O-O Re8 14. a3 Bxc3 15. bxc3 Qe6 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. a4 Bf5 18. Bxf5 Qxf5 19. Qb1 Qd7 $11 {Chiburdanidze,M (2502)-Zhao,X (2474) 1/2 (25) Antakya 2010}) 10. Qc2 g5 11. Bg3 c4 12. Bf5 O-O 13. O-O Re8 14. h4 Bxc3 15. bxc3 Ne4 16. hxg5 hxg5 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. Nd2 $16 {Sargissian,G (2683)-Hanley,C (2421) 1-0 (49) Caleta 2012 CBM 147 [Let's Check]}) 9. Bg3 Ne4 10. Nd2 (10. Qc2 Nb6 11. Bd3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 Be6 13. Ne5 (13. a3 $5 Bd6 14. Nb5 $14) 13... Qe7 14. f4 O-O-O 15. O-O Kb8 16. a3 Bd6 17. a4 gxf4 18. gxf4 Rhg8 $13 {Lysyj,I (2648)-Aronian,L (2813) 0-1 (50) Tromso 2013}) 10... Nxg3 (10... Nxc3 {is too bold:} 11. bxc3 Bxc3 12. Rc1 Ba5 13. h4 {and Black is in danger.}) 11. fxg3 $146 {With a very unusual pawn structure. In this game Black can't complain about the result of the opening but I wouldn't be in any hurry to claim that 11.fxg3 is a dubious move. We need more games to establish the objective value of this move.} (11. hxg3 Nb6 (11... c6 12. Bd3 Nb6 13. Qc2 Be6 14. O-O-O Qf6 15. f4 O-O-O 16. Nf3 Kb8 17. Kb1 Qg7 18. Rhe1 $6 (18. f5 Bc8 19. g4 Rhe8 20. e4 $13) 18... Rhe8 19. Re2 Bg4 $15 {Kryakvin,D (2588)-Khismatullin, D (2674) 1/2 (141) Taganrog RUS 2014} (19... f6 $5)) 12. a3 Bd6 (12... Bf8 13. Bd3 c6 14. Qc2 Be6 15. O-O-O Qe7 16. Nb3 O-O-O 17. Nc5 Kb8 18. Kb1 Bg7 19. Rc1 h5 $11 {L'Ami,E (2646)-Panjwani,R (2440) 1-0 (38) Reykjavik ISL 2014}) 13. Qc2 c6 14. e4 dxe4 15. Ndxe4 Be6 16. O-O-O Qe7 17. Nxd6+ Qxd6 18. Ne4 Qe7 19. Qc5 Qxc5+ 20. dxc5 Nd7 21. Nxg5 (21. Nd6+ Ke7 22. Nxb7 a5 $11) 21... Bd5 22. Nh3 (22. b4 $5 a5 23. Bd3 axb4 24. axb4 $14 Bxg2 $6 25. Rhe1+ Kf8 26. Bc4 $40) 22... Nxc5 23. Nf4 Bb3 24. Re1+ {1/2 (24) Ragger,M (2680)-Vitiugov,N (2719) Tromso 2013}) ({RR} 11. hxg3 c6 12. Qc2 Kf8 13. Bd3 Kg7 14. O-O-O Nf6 15. Nf3 Ng4 16. Kb1 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qe7 18. Rhe1 f5 19. Re2 Rf8 20. Qb2 a5 21. Ne1 b5 22. Bc2 b4 23. cxb4 axb4 24. Bb3 Nf6 25. Rc2 Ne4 {Carlsen,M (2855)-Anand,V (2770) Leuven 2016 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 11. hxg3 c6 12. a3 Bf8 13. Bd3 Bg7 14. Qc2 Nb6 15. O-O-O Be6 16. Kb1 Qe7 17. f3 O-O-O 18. g4 Kb8 19. Nf1 Rc8 20. b4 Nd7 21. Ng3 c5 22. Nf5 Bxf5 23. Bxf5 cxd4 24. Nxd5 Qe5 25. Qe4 Qd6 {Rohith,K (2500)-Grebnev,A (2595) Abu Dhabi UAE 2025 ½-½ (79)}) 11... Nb6 12. Bd3 Qe7 $146 ({RR} 12... Be6 13. O-O c6 14. a3 Bd6 15. Bf5 Qd7 16. e4 O-O-O 17. Qc2 Kb8 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. e5 Be7 20. b4 Rdf8 21. Qg6 Rfg8 22. Qd3 Qe8 23. Ne2 Rf8 24. h3 Rxf1+ 25. Rxf1 Rf8 26. Rxf8 Bxf8 27. Qh7 {Sebenik,M (2557)-Schwabeneder,F (2403) Graz 2018 1-0 (48)}) 13. Qf3 Be6 14. a3 {Magnus hurries to exchange the bishop. His king might be well-placed on f2, where it protects the e3-pawn.} (14. O-O O-O-O 15. Rac1 Kb8 16. a3 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Na4 18. Rc2 Bg4 19. Qf2 Rhe8 20. Re1 Nb6 $15) 14... Bxc3 15. bxc3 O-O-O ({It was not bad to play} 15... O-O $5 16. O-O f5 17. h4 Rae8 18. Rae1 Kg7 $11 {then Black can play ...c8, ...d6.}) 16. a4 Bd7 (16... Kb8 17. a5 Nc8 18. Nb3 Nd6 19. Nc5 $14) ({But} 16... a5 $6 {is too risky:} 17. O-O ({Black is counting on} 17. Nb3 Rhe8 18. Nxa5 Kb8 19. O-O Bg4 $15) 17... Kb8 18. Nb3 Bc8 19. Qf2 $1 (19. Nxa5 Rhe8 20. Rfe1 (20. Rae1 Qa3) 20... Rd6 21. Nb3 Rf6 22. Qe2 Re6 23. Nc5 Rxe3 24. Qxe3 Qxe3+ 25. Rxe3 Rxe3 26. Kf2 Re7 27. Rb1 Ka7 $11) 19... Rhe8 20. Rae1 Nxa4 (20... Qa3 $4 21. Nc5 $18 {with following a1}) 21. Nxa5 Rd6 (21... Nxc3 $4 22. Qb2) 22. c4 $40) 17. a5 ({It is worth considering the sacrifice of the a-pawn:} 17. O-O $5 Nxa4 $6 ({I would prefer} 17... Kb8 $1 18. a5 Na4 19. c4 $6 Nb2 20. Qe2 Rhe8 $15) 18. c4 $44 Qb4 19. Qf2 Kb8 20. cxd5 f5 21. Nf3 $16) 17... Na4 18. a6 Rhe8 ({He could have played} 18... b5 $5 19. O-O Rhe8 {The position is very complicated. White has several options.} 20. Rfe1 $1 (20. e4 Nxc3 21. e5 Qb4 22. Qe3 c5 23. dxc5 Be6 24. Rac1 d4 25. Qf3 Bd5 26. Be4 Nxe4 27. Nxe4 Rxe5 28. Nd6+ Kc7 29. Qd3 Rxd6 30. cxd6+ Kxd6 $13 {with a very messy position.}) 20... Nxc3 21. Rac1 Ne4 22. Nb3 $44) 19. Kf2 Kb8 {Threatening ...g4.} 20. Rhe1 $8 (20. axb7 $4 Bg4 $19) 20... Nxc3 21. axb7 Qb4 $1 $132 22. Kg1 (22. Nf1 {allows Black to play} c5 $1 23. Kg1 (23. dxc5 $4 Bg4 $19) 23... cxd4 24. Kh1 Re6 $15 25. Qxf7 Qf8 26. Qxf8 Rxf8 27. exd4 Rxe1 28. Rxe1 a5 $17 {The a-pawn is very dangerous.}) 22... Qb2 23. Nf1 ({There is no relief after} 23. Qf2 Re6 24. Rac1 Rde8 25. Nf3 Qxf2+ 26. Kxf2 Ne4+ 27. Bxe4 dxe4 28. Ne5 Bb5 29. Rc5 a6 $15) 23... f5 24. Ra5 $6 (24. Rac1 $1 {intending c2 and ec1} Ba4 (24... Ne4 $6 25. Rc2 Qb3 26. Qe2 Re6 27. Rec1 $14) 25. Bxf5 Rf8 26. g4 Rd6 27. Ng3 $13) 24... Ba4 {Black should not be afraid of ea1.} (24... Rf8 25. Qf2 (25. Rea1 $6 Ba4 26. Re1 f4 27. gxf4 gxf4 28. exf4 Qb4 $17) 25... Qxf2+ 26. Kxf2 f4 27. gxf4 gxf4 28. Kg1 Bf5 29. Bxf5 Rxf5 30. Rea1 Rd6 31. Rxa7 Nb5 $11) 25. Rc5 $6 ({I think he should have preferred} 25. Qf2 Qb4 26. Ra6 f4 27. gxf4 gxf4 28. Qxf4 Bb5 29. Bxb5 Qxb5 30. Qxh6 Ne2+ 31. Kh1 Nxd4 {A complex position with approximately equal chances.}) (25. Bxf5 Rf8 26. g4 Rd6) 25... Rf8 26. h3 Rf6 27. Nh2 Rdf8 $15 28. Qf1 Ne4 29. Re2 $2 (29. Rxd5 Nxg3 30. Qf2 Qc3 31. Qxg3 Qxd3 $15) 29... Qa3 $1 30. Bxe4 fxe4 $17 {Magnus' position is very difficult, after ...xb7 his opponent gets a material advantage, the knight on h2 will be out of play after ...h5.} 31. Qe1 c6 32. Ra5 Qb3 $6 (32... h5 $1 33. g4 h4 {and White has no useful moves. Black's position is winning.}) 33. Qa1 Qd1+ $2 {Now White is on top.} (33... Bb5 34. Ra3 Qxa3 35. Qxa3 Bxe2 36. Qb2 Bd3 $17 37. Ng4 (37. Qa3 h5) 37... Rf1+ 38. Kh2 Rb1 $19) 34. Qxd1 Bxd1 35. Re1 Bh5 $8 (35... Bb3 36. Ng4 $16) 36. g4 Be8 37. Rea1 Rf2 $6 (37... Kxb7 38. Rxa7+ Kb6 39. R7a6+ Kc7 40. Nf1 $14 {Black needs to play precisely to draw.}) 38. Rxa7 Rb2 39. Nf1 $16 Kc7 (39... Rxb7 40. Ra8+ Kc7 41. Ng3 {Due to the deadly pin, White is winning.}) 40. Ra8 Kxb7 41. R1a7+ Kb6 42. Re7 Rbf2 43. Rb8+ $1 (43. Ng3 $6 {is much weaker:} Bg6 44. Rxf8 Rxf8 45. Re6 Rg8 {Black has good chances to make a draw. For example} 46. Nf5 Bxf5 47. gxf5 Rf8 48. g4 Rh8 49. Kf2 Kb5 $14) 43... Ka6 44. Ng3 Bg6 45. Rxf8 Rxf8 46. Re6 Be8 (46... Rg8 47. Rxc6+ $18) 47. Rxh6 Kb5 {The king is the most active black piece.} 48. Rh7 {It seems that Magnus could win immediately after 48.d6:} (48. Rd6 $1 Kc4 (48... Kb6 49. Nf5 Kc7 50. Rh6 Bd7 51. Rh7 Kd8 52. Nd6 $18) 49. Nf5 Kd3 50. Rd8 Ke2 51. h4 gxh4 52. Kh2 Kf2 53. Kh3 Rh8 54. g5 $18) 48... Kc4 49. Ra7 Bg6 50. Ra6 Rf6 51. Ra3 $1 Kb4 52. Ra1 Kc3 53. Rf1 Re6 54. Rf8 Kd2 {This gives White a tempo.} (54... Kd3 $1 55. Nf1 c5 56. dxc5 Rc6 $16 57. Rf2 (57. Ra8 Rxc5 58. Ra3+ Rc3 59. Rxc3+ $2 Kxc3 $11) 57... Rxc5 58. Rd2+ Kc3 59. Rd4 $16) 55. Nf1+ Kd3 (55... Ke2 $1 56. Rf2+ Kd3 57. Rf8 c5 58. dxc5 Rc6 59. Rf2 Rxc5 60. Rd2+ Kc3 61. Rd4 $16 {leads to the above mentioned position.}) 56. Kf2 Re7 57. Rg8 Re6 (57... Bh7 58. Ra8 $1 $16 ({With a little trap} 58. Rxg5 $2 Rf7+ 59. Ke1 Ra7 60. h4 Ra2 61. Rg7 Re2+ 62. Kd1 Rf2 $11)) 58. Ke1 Rf6 59. Rg7 Re6 60. Ra7 Re8 61. Ra3+ $1 Kc2 62. Ra6 Rc8 63. Ke2 Be8 64. Ra5 Kc3 $6 (64... c5 65. Rxc5+ $2 {leads to a draw} (65. dxc5 Kc3 66. Ng3 Kb4 67. Ra7 Rxc5 68. Nf5 $16) 65... Rxc5 66. dxc5 Bb5+ 67. Ke1 Bxf1 68. Kxf1 d4 69. c6 Kd2 $1 $11) ({The best chance was} 64... Rb8 $1 65. Rc5+ Kb3 66. Ng3 (66. Nd2+ $1 Kb4 67. Kd1 Ra8 68. Nb1 Ra1 69. Kc1 $16) 66... Ra8 67. Nh5 Ra2+ 68. Kf1 Ra7 69. Kg1 Ra1+ 70. Kf2 Ra2+ 71. Kg3 Rc2 $1 72. Ra5 (72. Rxc2 $2 Kxc2 73. Nf6 c5 $3 74. dxc5 (74. Nxe8 cxd4 $19) 74... Bc6 75. Kf2 d4 76. exd4 Kd2 77. Nxe4+ Bxe4 78. g3 Kd3 $11) 72... c5 73. Nf6 Bc6 74. dxc5 Kb4 $14) 65. Ng3 Rb8 66. Rc5+ $1 Kb2 67. Nh5 $18 {Black's position is hopeless.} Bxh5 68. gxh5 Rh8 69. g4 Rh6 70. Kf2 Re6 71. Kg3 Rf6 72. h4 $1 Rf3+ 73. Kg2 gxh4 74. h6 Rxe3 75. h7 h3+ 76. Kh2 Re2+ 77. Kxh3 Re1 78. Kg2 Re2+ 79. Kg3 Re3+ 80. Kh4 Re1 81. Kg5 Rh1 82. Kg6 Rh4 83. Rxc6 e3 84. Re6 Rxg4+ 85. Kh5 Rg1 86. Rxe3 Rh1+ 87. Kg6 Rg1+ 88. Kf7 Rh1 89. Kg8 Rg1+ 90. Kh8 Rg4 91. Re5 Rxd4 92. Kg7 Rg4+ 93. Kh6 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.10"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D80"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "148"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bg5 Ne4 6. Bf4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 c5 8. cxd5 cxd4 9. cxd4 Qxd5 10. e3 O-O 11. Be2 Nc6 12. O-O Bf5 13. Qa4 Qa5 14. Qxa5 Nxa5 15. Rfc1 Rfc8 16. Nd2 Rxc1+ 17. Rxc1 Rc8 18. Rxc8+ Bxc8 19. Bf3 Nc6 $146 {Preventing the bishop's access to b8, which would force the weakening of the queenside pawns.} (19... Bd7 20. Bb8 a6 21. Bc7 Nc6 22. Nb3 $14 {Sumets,A (2477)-Prasad,D (2359) Pardubice 2005 (½-½, 36)}) 20. Bc7 ({RR} 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Bb8 a6 22. Ne4 f6 23. f3 Kf7 24. Kf2 Bf8 25. Ba7 f5 26. Ng5+ Ke8 27. f4 Bh6 28. Nxh7 Be6 29. a3 a5 30. Ke2 Bg8 31. Ng5 Bxg5 32. fxg5 a4 33. Kd3 Bb3 34. Kc3 Kf7 {Aronian,L (2758)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2774) Khanty-Mansiysk 2019 ½-½ (44)}) 20... Kf8 21. Nb3 Ke8 22. Nc5 $146 ({RR} 22. Bxc6+ bxc6 23. Bb8 a6 24. Nc5 Bf8 25. Kf1 e5 26. Bxe5 Bxc5 27. dxc5 Be6 28. a3 Bc4+ 29. Ke1 Kd7 30. f3 Ke6 31. Bd6 {½-½ (31) Levin,F (2476)-Von Bahr,O (2404) Fagernes 2019}) 22... e6 23. Bxc6+ bxc6 $14 {With such a black weakness on c6, the position surely looks pleasant for White, but the bishop pair offers good chances for defending.} 24. Bb8 a6 25. Bd6 Bf6 26. Kf1 Bd8 27. Ke2 Bb6 28. Na4 Bd8 29. Nc5 Bb6 30. Ne4 Kd7 31. Be5 Bd8 32. Bf6 Bb6 33. Ng5 c5 34. Nxh7 Bb7 35. g4 Bd5 36. a3 Bc4+ 37. Kd1 Bd5 38. Ng5 cxd4 39. Bxd4 Bxd4 40. exd4 f6 41. Nh7 Ke7 42. g5 fxg5 43. Kd2 e5 44. Ke3 Ke6 45. Nf8+ Kf5 46. dxe5 Kxe5 47. Nxg6+ Kf6 48. Kd4 Bg2 49. Ne5 Kf5 50. Nd3 Kg4 51. Ke3 Kh3 52. Nc5 a5 53. f3 g4 54. fxg4 Kxg4 55. Nb3 a4 56. Nc5 Bc6 57. Kf2 Kh3 58. Kg1 Kg4 59. Nd3 Bb5 60. Nb4 Kh3 61. Na2 Be8 62. Nc3 Kg4 63. Nd1 Bb5 64. Nf2+ Kf3 65. h4 Be8 66. Nd1 Kg3 67. Nc3 Kxh4 68. Kf2 Kg4 69. Ke3 Kf5 70. Kd4 Ke6 71. Kc5 Ke7 72. Nxa4 Bxa4 73. Kb4 Be8 74. a4 Bxa4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2nd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2014.06.13"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Agdestein, Simen"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2881"]
[BlackElo "2628"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2014.06.03"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 161"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.07.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. b3 d5 6. Bg2 Bb4+ 7. Bd2 Bd6 {Quite a rare system. Black doesn't want to lock the e-file by playing 7...e7. However, White is not obliged to release the pressure.} 8. Nc3 $1 {8. cxd5 is much more popular, but the text move poses more problems.} (8. cxd5 exd5 9. O-O O-O 10. Nc3 Nbd7 {leads to a long strategic fight. This position can also arise after 6.cxd5 and gives Black satisfactory results.}) 8... O-O ({In the preceding game Vishy was able to secure a stable edge:} 8... c6 9. O-O O-O 10. e4 Nxe4 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Ng5 Be7 13. Nxe4 Nd7 14. Bf4 Nf6 15. Qc2 Rc8 16. Rfd1 $14 {1-0 Anand,V (2770)-Granda Zuniga,J (2630)/Madrid 1998/CBM 065/[Avrukh,B] (39)}) ({RR} 8... Nbd7 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Nh4 Bb7 11. Nb5 O-O 12. Nxd6 cxd6 13. Bb4 Ne8 14. O-O a5 15. Ba3 Ndf6 16. Qd2 b5 17. Nf5 b4 18. Bb2 Nc7 19. a3 Ne4 20. Bxe4 dxe4 21. axb4 Qd7 22. Qf4 Rad8 23. d5 {Vidit,S (2673)-Agdestein,S (2603) Chess.com INT 2017 1-0 (34)}) 9. O-O dxc4 $146 {A novelty in a rather rare position. This new approach is not successful, since White's pressure along the h1-a8 diagonal is too strong.} ({Black cannot avoid an inferior position after} 9... Nbd7 {either:} 10. e4 Nxe4 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Ng5 Nf6 (12... Be7 13. Nxe4 Bb7 14. Qc2 $14 {½-½ Pinheiro,J (2288)-Spraggett,K (2501)/Lisbon 2000/CBM 079 ext (14)}) 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Rb8 15. Qc2 $14) (9... c6 {leads to the above mentioned game of Anand.}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bf4 Bxf4 12. gxf4 c5 13. Re1 Rc8 14. Rc1 Re8 15. e3 Bb7 16. Ne5 Nf8 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Na4 Qe7 19. Qc2 Ne6 20. f5 Ng5 21. f4 Nge4 22. Nc3 Nxc3 23. Qxc3 Rc7 24. b4 {Korobov,A (2663)-Kovalenko,I (2674) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (54)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. e4 Nxe4 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Ng5 Bb7 13. Nxe4 f5 14. Ng5 Bxg2 15. Kxg2 Qf6 16. Nf3 f4 17. Qe2 e5 18. dxe5 Nxe5 19. Bc3 Rae8 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Rae1 fxg3 22. fxg3 Qc6 23. Qe4 Qxe4 24. Rxe4 {Keymer,V (2733)-Aronian,L (2747) Oslo NOR 2024 ½-½ (76)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Nh4 Re8 12. Re1 Nf8 13. e4 dxe4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Bxe4 Rxe4 16. Rxe4 Bb7 17. Re1 Be7 18. Nf5 Bf6 19. Qg4 Qd5 20. f3 Ne6 21. Be3 g6 22. Nh6+ Kg7 23. Qe4 Qxe4 24. fxe4 {Smirnov,P (2471)-Aronian,L (2747) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (73)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. e4 Nxe4 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Ng5 Be7 13. Nxe4 Bb7 14. Qc2 f5 {½-½ (14) Pinheiro,J (2288)-Spraggett,K (2501) Lisbon 2000}) 10. Ne5 c6 (10... Bxe5 {didn't work in view of:} 11. dxe5 Nd5 12. Nxd5 $1 exd5 13. Bb4 c5 14. Bxc5 bxc5 15. Bxd5 Nc6 16. Bxc6 $16 {and White is just a pawn up.}) 11. bxc4 $1 {The most ambitious way: White keeps the knight on e5, and it delays Black's development.} ({The quiet alternative} 11. Nxc4 Be7 12. e3 Qc7 13. Rc1 Nbd7 14. Re1 Rad8 15. a4 $14 {also leads to a safe advantage.}) 11... Qc7 ({Grabbing a pawn by means of:} 11... Bxe5 12. dxe5 Ng4 13. Bf4 Qxd1 14. Rfxd1 Bxc4 15. h3 Nh6 16. g4 $16 {is not recommended, since almost all Black's pieces are out of play.}) 12. Bf4 {This natural move seems inaccurate, since Black may exploit the vulnerable position of White's bishop and ease the pressure.} ({A stronger move was:} 12. f4 $1 Bb7 13. e4 Rd8 14. Qc2 $16 {with a clear advantage due to a strong pawn centre.}) 12... Bb7 ({Correctly avoiding} 12... Nbd7 13. Nxc6 Bxf4 14. gxf4 Qxf4 15. e3 Qd6 16. Nb5 Bxb5 17. cxb5 $16) ({But the immediate} 12... Nh5 $5 {comes into consideration, since after} 13. Be3 Bxe5 14. dxe5 Qxe5 15. Qb3 Nd7 16. Bxc6 Rad8 $14 {Black's position is not that bad.}) 13. Rc1 Nh5 ({Again avoiding a nice tactical trap:} 13... Nbd7 14. Nb5 $1 cxb5 15. cxb5 Nc5 (15... Qb8 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Bxd6 Qxd6 18. Bxb7 $18) 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Bxb7 Rad8 18. Bc6 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Qxe5 20. Qa4 $16) 14. Ne4 $6 {Exchanging the strong f4 would definitely ease Simen's task.} ({Much stronger was} 14. Be3 Bxe5 15. dxe5 Qxe5 16. c5 $36 {with a powerful initiative for the sacrificed pawn.}) 14... Nxf4 {The most natural response.} ({However, it was possible to delay it by means of} 14... c5 $5 15. d5 (15. Nxd6 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Nxf4+ 17. gxf4 Qxd6 $11) (15. Qd3 f6 16. dxc5 Nxf4 $1 (16... Bxe5 $6 17. Bxe5 Qxe5 (17... fxe5 18. Ng5 Nf6 19. Nxe6 Qe7 20. Nxf8 Kxf8 21. Bxb7 Qxb7 22. Rfd1 $36) 18. Ng5 fxg5 19. Bxb7 $14) 17. gxf4 Be7 18. Nf3 bxc5 $11) 15... Nxf4 16. gxf4 Bxe5 17. fxe5 Qxe5 18. f4 Qc7 $132) 15. gxf4 c5 16. Qd3 {Now Magnus has an unpleasant threat, so Black has to simplify.} Bxe5 ({Of course, not} 16... cxd4 $2 17. Ng5 g6 18. Qh3 h5 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 20. Nxg6 fxg6 21. Qxe6+ $18) 17. Ng5 (17. dxe5 Nc6 18. Rfd1 Rad8 19. Nd6 Nb4 20. Qa3 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 f6 $132) 17... g6 18. Qh3 h5 19. dxe5 Nc6 $1 {Simen is on top!} ({Correctly refusing} 19... Bxg2 $6 20. Qxg2 Nc6 21. Ne4 Rfd8 22. Qg5 $40 {and White develops a strong attack.}) 20. Ne4 (20. e3 Na5 21. Bf3 Kg7 22. Qg2 Rad8 $11) 20... Nd4 21. Nf6+ Kg7 {The king is somewhat exposed, but White's attacking potential is not great.} 22. Rfe1 Nf5 {Freeing a a way for the rooks.} ({After} 22... Rh8 23. e3 Nf5 24. Rc3 Rad8 25. e4 Nd4 26. Bf1 Kf8 27. Qh4 $14 {Black's position is solid, but rather passive.}) 23. Rc3 Rh8 (23... Rfd8 $5 24. e4 Nd4 25. Rg3 Rh8 26. Qh4 $14) 24. Rd1 Rad8 25. Rcd3 Rd4 $6 {A serious inaccuracy. Provoking e2-e3 is not a good idea, since that is an important prophylactic move.} ({Instead, Simen should have opted for:} 25... Nd4 26. e3 (26. Kf1 Ba6 27. Rc1 Bb7) 26... Ne2+ 27. Kf1 Nc3 28. Rxd8 (28. R1d2 Nb1 $1 29. Rxd8 Rxd8 30. Rxd8 Bxg2+ 31. Qxg2 Qxd8 $11) 28... Rxd8 29. Rxd8 Bxg2+ 30. Kxg2 Qxd8 31. Qf3 Nxa2 32. Qb7 Nb4 33. Qxa7 Nc2 $132) ({Or} 25... Rxd3 26. Qxd3 Bxg2 27. Kxg2 Qc6+ 28. Kg1 Qa4 $132) 26. e3 Rxd3 27. Rxd3 Bxg2 ({Too passive is} 27... Bc8 28. Be4 b5 29. cxb5 Qa5 30. Bc6 $36) 28. Qxg2 Rd8 29. Kf1 ({It was possible to grab a pawn:} 29. Nxh5+ $5 Kf8 30. Rxd8+ Qxd8 31. Nf6 a6 32. Qf3 b5 $14 {In the resulting position Black doesn't have sufficient compensation for the pawn, but it would be very difficult for White to make any progress.}) 29... Kf8 (29... Rxd3 $4 30. Ne8+) 30. Rxd8+ Qxd8 31. Ke2 {Just in time! White is covering all the squares along the d-file, so Black is doomed to a passive defence.} Qc8 $1 (31... Ne7 32. Qb7 $16) 32. a3 {A useful prophylactic move - the pawn is somewhat less vulnerable now.} Ke7 (32... Ne7 33. Qg5 Ng8 34. Ne4 Kg7 35. Nd6 Qa6 36. Qd8 Qxa3 37. h3 $36) 33. h3 Kd8 34. Qe4 Kc7 {Simen decides to keep the king on the q-side.} ({A waiting strategy was possible as well:} 34... Ke7 $5 35. Qd3 Qc6 36. Kd2 Qb7 {and Black has good drawish chances.}) 35. Nh7 Qe8 36. Ng5 {Keeping an eye on the weak f7.} b5 $6 {The first step in a wrong direction - there was no need to change the character of the position.} ({After the correct} 36... Qd7 $1 37. Ke1 (37. Qa8 Qa4 $132) 37... a6 38. Ke2 Kb8 {Black's position seems very solid.}) 37. Qd3 (37. cxb5 $5 Qxb5+ 38. Qd3 Qb2+ 39. Kf3 Qb7+ 40. Ne4 $14) 37... a6 38. Kd2 {White has all the time in the world, since Black has no active possibilities.} Kb6 39. Kc3 Qe7 40. Ne4 {Now the b5 is a new target for White.} Qc7 (40... Qe8 41. Kb3 Qc8 42. Nc3 $14) 41. Kb3 Kc6 (41... Qe7 42. Nc3 Qe8 $14) 42. Nc3 bxc4+ $2 {This leads to a very difficult position.} ({Simen's task was tough, but it looks like after} 42... Qa5 $1 43. Qe4+ Kb6 {Black's position is still tenable. For instance,} 44. Qa8 bxc4+ 45. Kb2 Kc7 $1 46. Qa7+ Kd8 $11 47. Qxf7 $140 $4 Qb6+ 48. Kc1 Qb3 $19) 43. Qxc4 Qb6+ 44. Kc2 {Now Black cannot avoid an unpleasant penetration of White's queen.} Qa5 45. Qe4+ Kc7 46. Qa8 $1 $16 c4 $2 {The decisive mistake, which leads to loss of material.} ({The last chance was} 46... Kd7 47. Qb7+ Ke8 48. Qb8+ Kd7 49. Kb2 Qc7 50. Qxc7+ Kxc7 51. Ne4 Kc6 52. Kb3 Kd5 53. Ng5 Nh6 54. Kc3 $16) 47. Qf8 $1 Kd7 ({It was possible to provide more resistance, but after} 47... Nh6 $1 48. Qd6+ $1 (48. Qxh6 Qxa3 49. Qg7 Qb3+ 50. Kd2 Qb2+ 51. Kd1 Qxc3 52. Qxf7+ Kd8 $16) 48... Kc8 49. Ne4 Qa4+ 50. Kd2 Qa5+ 51. Ke2 Nf5 52. Qc6+ Kd8 53. Nd6 Nxd6 54. exd6 c3 55. Qb7 Qb5+ 56. Qxb5 axb5 57. e4 $18 {White wins anyway.}) 48. Ne4 Qa4+ 49. Kc1 $18 {The f5 is restricted, so Black lacks any counterplay.} Qc6 50. Qxf7+ Kc8 51. Nd6+ (51. Ng5 $18 {was also good enough.}) 51... Kd8 ({The move} 51... Nxd6 {offers no hope:} 52. Qxe6+ Kb7 53. Qe7+ Ka8 54. exd6 $18) 52. Qf8+ Kc7 53. Qc8+ Kb6 54. Qb8+ {One more technical achievement of World Champion!} ({Black resigns in view of} 54. Qb8+ Kc5 55. Qb4+ Kd5 56. Qd2+ Kc5 57. Qa5+ $18) 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-41"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2014.08.03"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Nyback, Tomi"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D23"]
[WhiteElo "2594"]
[BlackElo "2877"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2014.08.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Finland"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FIN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

{I will not hide that I waited with impatience and curiosity for the moment when Carlsen would step in. Fortunately, the reigning World Champion does not seem to have lost any single bit of his interest for the game after reaching unprecedented rating heights and conquering the supreme title at all the official time rates (classical, rapid and blitz). Maintaining the flame of enthusiasm alive when there is no higher level to aim at is a task not many World Champions have dealt with sucessfully. Anyway, since his presence in the team surely makes a big difference, Carlsen was ready for the fight as soon as round two.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 {An interesting choice of the opening. Carlsen has played the Slav in the past, but it is by far not his main weapon. The puzzling thing is that in a game where the big rating difference strongly required him to play for a win, he exposes himself to a transposition to the symmetrical structure resulting after 4.cxd5 cxd5. The Exchange Variation is not as dull as it seems and players like Botvinnik or Portisch have made good use of it with white, but Black has his reasons for being content, too. Objectively, he should be close to equalising, which actually is just one preliminary step on the way towards taking over the initiative.} 4. Qc2 {(!) Played almost without hesitation. I assume that Tomi was not really bothered by the idea of a draw (although I may be wrong), but even though the exchange variation makes up part of his repertoire, he does not show himself ready for such early relasing of the tension.} dxc4 5. Qxc4 Bg4 {This has always been a reasonable alternative to 5...f5. Now, it seems to be acquiring some higher popularity.} ({For quite a few years, the main theoretical disputes took place in the variation} 5... Bf5 6. g3 e6 7. Bg2 Nbd7 8. O-O Be7 9. Nc3 O-O 10. Re1 Ne4 11. Qb3 Qb6 12. Nh4 {as, for instance, in Mamedyarov,S (2729)-Wang,Y (2685) Istanbul 2012 CBM 151 [Ftacnik,L] (1-0, 39)}) 6. Nc3 {The most active continuation.} (6. Nbd2 {avoids getting the doubled pawns and keeps the possibility of developing the bishop by fianchetto, but the knight is not too active on d2.} Nbd7 7. g3 e6 8. Bg2 Be7 9. Ne5 Bh5 10. Nxd7 Nxd7 11. O-O O-O 12. Nb3 a5 13. a4 Bb4 14. e4 e5 $132 {Mamedyarov,S (2757)-Anand,V (2770) Khanty-Mansiysk 2014 CBM 160 [Krasenkow,M] (0-1, 31)}) (6. Ne5 {only apparently gains time.} Be6 7. Qd3 Nbd7 8. Nxd7 ({This speeds up Black's development, but} 8. Nf3 Bg4 9. Nc3 e6 {transposes below.}) 8... Qxd7 9. e4 Rd8 10. Be3 Ng4 11. Nc3 Nxe3 12. fxe3 {Black should have no problems at all, to say the least. White's centre lacks dynamism, while the dark-squared bishop could become very threatening.} Bg4 (12... Qc7 13. Be2 g6 14. O-O Bg7 {Schandorff,L (2563)-Nielsen,P (2625) Horsens 2003 CBM 095 [Huzman] (½-½, 25)}) 13. Be2 e5 14. O-O-O Bb4 15. Bf3 O-O 16. h3 Be6 $15 {Nenezic,M (2393)-Solak,D (2592) Kragujevac 2013 (½-½, 72)}) 6... Nbd7 ({If Black wishes to exchange on f3, he could do it now since after} 6... Bxf3 7. gxf3 Nbd7 {there is no obvious way of avoiding a transposition below with 8.e4. For instance:} 8. f4 e6 9. Bd2 Rc8 10. Bg2 Be7 {and Black is doing OK, Mandiza,F (2406)-Black,J (2201) Wheeling 2012 (0-1, 32)}) 7. e4 ({In view of the previous comment,} 7. Qd3 {is more relevant for the move order starting with 6.e5 above.} e6 8. e4 ({If} 8. g3 {the simplest seems to be the spectacular} Nc5 {taking advantage that the f3-knight is hanging.} 9. Qe3 Bxf3 10. exf3 Ncd7 11. Bg2 Be7 {The control over the d5-square ensures Black simple play, Borg,A (2151)-Atalik,E (2399) Antalya 2006 (0-1, 63)}) 8... c5 $5 {The latest trend.} 9. d5 {This yields Black easy play.} ({The critical continuation is} 9. e5 Nd5 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Be2 c4 12. Qc2 $13 {with mutual attacks on the wings.}) 9... exd5 10. exd5 Bd6 11. Be2 $6 {This allows Black to consolidate.} (11. Qe3+ Qe7 12. Qxe7+ {would have caused some delay in Black's regrouping. The bishop should stay on d6 to prevent f4, so the natural line goes} Kxe7 13. Be2 Rhe8 14. O-O Ne5 15. Re1 Kf8 16. Nb5 $13) 11... O-O 12. O-O ({With the queen exposed on d3, rather than exchanged on e7, and the king in the centre,} 12. Nb5 {runs into} Ne5 $17) 12... a6 13. a4 Re8 14. Be3 Qc7 15. h3 Bh5 16. Rfe1 Rad8 $15 {Thejkumar,M (2452)-Sasikiran,K (2666) Jalgaon 2013 (½-½, 52). White does not have active plans and the d5-pawn is more of a weakness than strength.}) 7... e5 $5 {Quite typical for Carlsen. He takes the game into almost unexplored territory as soon as on move seven! He had been doing that during the match against Anand quite a lot, depriving the then reigning champion of the opportunity to display his massive preparation. By breaking the centre without previously taking on f3, Black aims for higher flexibility.} (7... Bxf3 {is played almost unanimously, with 7...e6 a minor alternative.} 8. gxf3 e5 9. Be3 {The main question is whether White can put his central pawns into motion or, on the contrary, Black will be able to keep the blockade on f4.} exd4 ({Black should not delay this exchange too much.} 9... Bd6 10. O-O-O Qe7 {Zhou,W (2616)-Robson,R (2628) Ningbo 2013 (0-1, 57)} 11. Ne2 $1 {[%csl Rf5][%cal Ge5d4,Ge2d4,Ye2g3]}) 10. Bxd4 Bd6 11. O-O-O Qe7 ({An attempt to improve over} 11... Qc7 12. Ne2 O-O 13. Qc2 Rfe8 14. h4 {Mamedyarov,S (2746)-Inarkiev,E (2692) Rogaska Slatina 2011 CBM 145 [Krasenkow] (1-0, 54) which also contains a comprehensive survey of the position after 7...xf3 8.gxf3 e5.}) 12. Qb3 Nc5 13. Qc2 Bf4+ 14. Be3 Bxe3+ 15. fxe3 {White has improved his structure, but the next exchanges will reduce the importance of his space advantage.} O-O 16. Bg2 Rad8 17. Kb1 Rxd1+ 18. Rxd1 Rd8 19. Rxd8+ Qxd8 20. e5 Nfd7 21. Qd2 $6 (21. f4 Qh4 22. Bf3 Qe1+ 23. Nd1 $13) 21... Qh4 $36 {Reinderman,D (2604)-Van Wely,L (2657) Amsterdam 2014 (0-1, 39)}) 8. Nxe5 (8. dxe5 Bxf3 9. gxf3 Nxe5 {transposes back into a line considered to be OK for Black, for instance} 10. Qe2 Bc5 11. Rg1 Qb6 12. Rg5 Ng6 13. Bd2 Rd8 {Krasenkow,M (2620)-Harikrishna,P (2673) Nancy 2009 (0-1, 53)}) ({Or if} 8. Be3 Bd6 9. O-O-O O-O {Griffiths,R (2362)-Van Kampen,R (2565) Athens 2012 (0-1, 27). The e4-pawn is hanging with respect to the game Zhou,W (2616)-Robson,R (2628) above, preventing e2. In this line, delaying ...xf3 is good for Black.}) 8... Nxe5 9. dxe5 Be6 10. Qd3 $146 {Usually, a queenside majority is more useful in the middlegame than in the endgame. This is what Steinitz said and what has been proven in many games. But in this concrete position it seems that White loses too much time if he wants to keep queens on board. besides, he would also neglect the fight for the d-file.} (10. Qa4 Ng4 11. Be2 ({With queens on the board, White cannot play in the same way as in the game:} 11. Bf4 $2 Bc5 12. Bg3 Nxf2 13. Bxf2 Bxf2+ 14. Kxf2 Qb6+ 15. Ke1 Qxb2 $19 {[%csl Ga1,Gc3]}) 11... Nxe5 12. O-O Bc5 13. Qc2 Qe7 14. Bf4 {Grigoryan,K (2473)-Grover,S (2514) Kocaeli 2011 (1-0, 41)} Ng6 15. Bg3 O-O 16. Rad1 Rad8 17. Kh1 Rxd1 18. Rxd1 f5 19. Na4 Bb4 20. a3 f4) 10... Ng4 11. Qxd8+ Rxd8 12. Bf4 $1 {White prefers returning the pawn in the near future for the sake of completing his development} ({If} 12. f4 Bc5 {Black's initative becomes threatening.} 13. Be2 Ne3 14. Bxe3 Bxe3 15. g3 (15. f5 Bc8 {[%cal Ge3d4]}) 15... g5 $5 ({Black could also try playing for piece pressure with, say,} 15... Ke7 {, but personally I would prefer to make sure of weakening the e5-pawn as soon as possible.}) 16. f5 (16. Rf1 $2 gxf4 17. gxf4 Bd2+ $1 18. Kf2 Bxf4 $19) 16... Bc8 17. Bh5 O-O 18. h4 gxh4 19. Rxh4 Bd4 $13) 12... Bc5 13. Bg3 Bd4 14. Rd1 Bxe5 15. Rxd8+ Kxd8 16. Bxe5 Nxe5 17. f4 Ng4 {The merits of Nyback's novelty are obvious. He has exchanged the active black bishop and put his majority into motion. Still, White's advantage is rather symbolic .} 18. Be2 Nh6 19. Kf2 f6 20. h3 Nf7 21. Bg4 $146 ({RR} 21. h4 Kc7 22. Ke3 a6 23. a3 Nd6 24. Rc1 Re8 25. Kf3 Bc4 26. Bxc4 Nxc4 27. Rc2 b5 28. a4 Kb6 29. axb5 axb5 30. b3 Na5 31. Rb2 b4 32. Nb1 c5 33. Nd2 Kb5 34. Ke3 Re7 35. Rc2 Nc6 {Enkhbat,T (2417)-Ringoir,T (2511) Burlingame 2015 ½-½ (55)}) 21... Ke7 22. Bxe6 Kxe6 23. Rd1 Rd8 24. Rxd8 Nxd8 {The structure is quite similar to that from the last match game against Anand. Even though in Chennai Carlsen was Black, in both cases, he had two groups of three pawns each, against his opponent's two plus four. But in the current game, White's position is a bit more active.} 25. b4 Kd6 26. Ke3 a6 {A somewhat mysterious move. The threat of b4-b5 was not real, as it would allow . ..c5, but Carlsen might have intended to set his queenside majority into motion with ...b5 and ...c5, or even ...c5 right away.} 27. Na4 Ne6 {Renewing the threat ...b5..} 28. f5 $1 {A committal decision after only five minutes of thinking. White gives away the e5-square, but gets some queenside pressure in exchange.} Nd8 29. Kd4 Nf7 30. Nc5 {It may seem that the weakening move ... a7-a6 is about to cause some major problems. But Carlsen is not that easy to catch on the wrong foot in the endgame.} b6 $1 {Played instantly.} ({If} 30... Nd8 31. a4 {threatening a4-a5, Black would soon be in zugzwang. Actually, even now the best saving chance would be giving up the pawn with} b6 {under lesss favourable circumstances.}) 31. Nxa6 Ne5 {The black knight has occupied the fantastic central square, while its rival has no obvious way back into the game.} 32. a4 Nd7 {Threatening ...c5, which would open the king's way towards the knight. The final move repetition took place rather quickly, although White twice took a minute for reflection.} 33. Kc4 Ne5+ 34. Kd4 Nd7 35. Kc4 Ne5+ 36. Kd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-41"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2014.08.06"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D16"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2877"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2014.08.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Armenia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ARM"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. a4 Na6 6. e3 Bg4 7. Bxc4 e6 8. h3 Bxf3 9. Qxf3 Nb4 10. O-O Be7 11. a5 O-O 12. Rd1 b6 13. axb6 axb6 14. Rxa8 Qxa8 15. Bd2 $146 ({RR} 15. e4 c5 16. dxc5 Rc8 17. Qe2 bxc5 18. Bg5 h6 19. Bh4 Qb7 20. e5 Nh7 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. Ne4 Nf8 23. Nd6 Rb8 24. Qe4 Ng6 25. f4 Nd5 26. Rxd5 exd5 27. Bxd5 Nh8 28. Nf5 Qe8 29. e6 fxe6 {Mochalov,E (2455)-Taimanov,M (2505) Minsk 1995 1-0 (36)}) 15... Rd8 16. Rc1 Nbd5 17. Qd1 h6 18. Ra1 Qb7 19. Qb3 Ra8 20. Rc1 Nxc3 21. Bxc3 Qc7 22. Be2 c5 23. Bf3 Rd8 24. Rd1 Nd5 25. dxc5 Nxc3 26. cxb6 Rxd1+ 27. Bxd1 Qb7 28. bxc3 Bc5 29. h4 Qxb6 30. Qc2 Qd6 31. h5 Kf8 32. Bf3 Ke7 33. g3 Qe5 34. Kg2 Qd6 35. Qe4 Qc7 36. Be2 Qd6 37. Bc4 Qc7 38. Bb5 Bd6 39. c4 Bc5 40. g4 Bb6 41. Qa8 Qd8 42. Qa1 Kf8 43. Qa3+ Kg8 44. Bc6 Qc8 45. Qa4 Bc5 46. Qb5 Be7 47. Kf3 Qd8 48. Ke2 Qd6 49. Qb7 Qb4 50. Qc8+ Bf8 51. Be4 Qc5 52. Qa6 Qg5 53. Bf3 g6 54. hxg6 Qxg6 55. Qa4 Qb1 56. Bg2 Qb2+ 57. Kf1 Qb1+ 58. Ke2 Qb2+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-41"]
[Site "Tromsoe"]
[Date "2014.08.09"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2877"]
[BlackElo "2709"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[EventDate "2014.08.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Germany"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 c5 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 cxd4 7. Nxd4 d5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Qb3 Nc6 ({In his preceding game Arkadiy went for a more popular order of moves:} 9... Qa5 10. Bd2 Nc6 11. Nxc6 ({A rare alternative here is} 11. Nc2 {but after} Bxc3 12. bxc3 Qc7 {Black has comfortable play:} 13. e4 (13. Qa3 Ne5 14. Bxd5 exd5 $15 {0-1 Beliavsky,A (2650)-Ivanchuk,V (2740)/Belgrade 1995/CBM 051/[Dautov] (29)}) 13... Nb6 14. O-O Na5 15. Qb4 Nbc4 $11 {½-½ Georgiev,V (2559)-Draskovic,L (2135)/Sunny Beach 2011/CBM 144 Extra (55)}) 11... bxc6 12. O-O Bxc3 13. bxc3 Ba6 14. Rfd1 Qc5 15. e4 Bc4 16. Qa4 Nb6 17. Qb4 Qh5 18. Re1 c5 19. Qa5 Rfc8 20. Be3 Be2 21. Bf4 Bd3 22. Rad1 Be2 23. Rc1 Bd3 24. Bd6 e5 25. Bxc5 Nc4 26. Qb5 a6 27. Qd7 Be2 $44 {½-½ Efimenko,Z (2689)-Naiditsch,A (2684)/Mukachevo 2010/CBM 138 (34)}) 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. O-O Qa5 {Black is trying to switch to the main lines, but here White has an extra resource.} ({Some top players have gone for} 11... Rb8 $5 12. Na4 (12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Qc2 Be7 14. a3 Qb6 15. b4 Rfc8 $11 {1-0 Ponomariov,R (2705)-Kramnik,V (2785)/Moscow 2007/EXT 2008 (79)}) 12... Ba6 13. Qc2 Qa5 14. a3 Be7 15. Bf3 (15. b4 $5 Qb5 16. Re1 Qc4 17. Qxc4 Bxc4 18. Bd2 Bb3 19. Nc5 $14) 15... c5 16. Bd2 Qb5 17. Rfc1 Rfc8 $11 {½-½ Edouard,R (2692)-Wojtaszek,R (2724)/Saint-Quentin FRA 2014 (21)}) 12. Ne4 $5 {Magnus is happy to deviate from the known paths. Black has a weak c6, so he has to search for active piece play.} (12. Bd2 {will just transpose us to the above-mentioned game against Efimenko.}) 12... Ba6 13. Qc2 {Black's pieces are a bit far away from the king, so Arkadij has to parry a threat of 14.g5.} h6 {This prophylactic move is a bit slow.} ({However, in other cases White is able to fight some edge as well:} 13... Rab8 14. Ng5 $1 (14. a3 Be7 15. Bf3 c5 16. Bg5 Bxg5 17. Nxg5 Nf6 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 g6 $11 {½-½ Miroshnichenko,E (2670)-Ismagambetov,A (2496)/Tashkent 2011/CBM 141 Extra (30)}) 14... g6 15. Ne4 Be7 16. Bh6 Rfd8 17. b3 $14) (13... Be7 14. Ng5 (14. Bd2 Qb5 15. Rfc1 Rab8 16. Qxc6 Qxc6 17. Rxc6 Bxe2 $11 {½-½ Sulava,N (2405)-Grosar,A (2370)/Kladovo 1991/TD (46)}) 14... g6 15. Ne4 Rfd8 16. Bh6 $14) 14. a3 Be7 15. b4 $146 {White comes up with an important tactical resource. This novelty definitely poses Black some problems.} (15. Bd2 Qb5 16. Rfc1 c5 17. Nxc5 (17. e3 $5) 17... Bxc5 18. Qxc5 Qxb2 $11 {½-½ Von Herman,U (2400)-Schulz,J (2255)/Germany 2003/CBM 100 ext (68)}) ({RR} 15. Bd2 Qb5 16. Rfc1 c5 17. Nxc5 Bxc5 18. Qxc5 Qxb2 19. Qa5 Bxe2 20. Rab1 Qd4 21. Bb4 Rfb8 22. Rc5 a6 23. Rbc1 Rb5 24. Rxb5 Bxb5 25. Bc5 Qb2 26. Qe1 Rd8 27. Qd1 Ba4 28. Rb1 Bxd1 29. Rxb2 Rc8 {Von Herman,U (2400)-Schulz,J (2255) Germany 2003 ½-½ (68)}) ({RR} 15. Bd2 Qb6 16. Rfc1 c5 17. Nxc5 Bxc5 18. Qxc5 Qxb2 19. Qc2 Qxc2 20. Rxc2 Rac8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. e4 Rc2 23. Bxh6 gxh6 24. exd5 exd5 25. Bxd5 Rd2 26. Be4 Bc4 27. Kg2 a5 28. a4 Bd5 29. Re1 Bb3 {Donchenko,A (2667)-Svane,R (2616) Dortmund GER 2023 ½-½ (60)}) 15... Qb5 ({White's idea is based on the following line:} 15... Bxb4 16. axb4 $1 (16. Bxh6 Bc3 17. Rac1 gxh6 18. Nxc3 Qxc3 19. Qxc3 Nxc3 20. Rxc3 Bxe2 $11) 16... Qxa1 17. Bb2 Qa2 18. Nd2 $1 {[%csl Ra2][%cal Gf1a1]} Nxb4 19. Qc3 e5 20. Ra1 Qe6 21. Qxb4 Bxe2 22. Re1 $14 {and White should be better in this position, although it would be not easy to achieve a victory.}) 16. Re1 Qc4 ({An attempt to get rid of the c6 leads to a slighty inferior position:} 16... c5 17. bxc5 Rac8 18. Rb1 Qc6 19. Qd2 Bxc5 20. Nxc5 Qxc5 21. Bb2 $14) 17. Qb2 c5 (17... Rfd8 18. Bd2 Rab8 19. Rac1 Qb5 20. Qc2 $14) 18. Nxc5 {The most natural response. Magnus is ready to simplify the position in order to exchange the opponent's dark-squared bishop.} ({The alternative wasn't obvious:} 18. Qe5 $5 Qd4 (18... cxb4 19. Bb2 Nf6 20. Nd2 $16) 19. Qxd4 cxd4 20. Bb2 d3 21. exd3 Bxd3 22. Nc5 $14) 18... Bf6 {This move was probably connected with some tactical blunder.} ({Black could have opted for} 18... Bxc5 19. bxc5 Qxc5 20. Bd2 Rab8 21. Qe5 Qc2 22. Red1 Qb2 $14 {with a holdable endgame.}) 19. Qa2 Rac8 $6 {A serious mistake - now Black is going to lose a pawn without getting any compensation.} ({The point is that after} 19... Bxa1 $2 20. Qxa1 {[%csl Ra6,Rc4] Black's pieces are in trouble:} Rac8 21. Bb2 Rxc5 22. bxc5 f6 23. e4 Nc7 24. e5 f5 25. c6 $18) ({Black's task wasn't easy, but} 19... Nc3 $1 {was called for:} 20. Qxc4 Bxc4 21. Bxa8 (21. Bb2 Nxe2+ 22. Rxe2 Bxe2 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Re1 Bc4 25. Bxa8 Rxa8 $14) 21... Rxa8 {Black wins the material back and gets excellent drawish chances.} 22. e4 Ne2+ 23. Rxe2 Bxe2 24. Rb1 Rd8 $14) 20. e4 Nc3 21. Qxc4 Bxc4 22. e5 Be7 {Black has some activity, but White can prevent any reasonable counterplay now.} 23. Bd2 {This bishop is somewhat misplaced there.} (23. Be3 $5 {would be simpler:} Rfd8 24. Ne4 $16) 23... Ne2+ 24. Kh1 Nd4 25. Rac1 Bd5 (25... Bb5 26. Be3 Nf5 27. Nb7 Nxe3 28. fxe3 $16) 26. Bxd5 exd5 {The knight on d4 is quite tricky, so White should be careful.} 27. Nd7 $1 {Magnus correctly avoids the exchange of his knight.} ({In the following lines Black could get some compensation for a pawn:} 27. Kg2 Bxc5 28. Rxc5 Rxc5 29. bxc5 Nc2 30. Rd1 Rc8 31. Bb4 a5 32. Bxa5 Rxc5 $14) (27. Be3 Bxc5 28. bxc5 Nc6 29. Red1 Rfd8 30. f4 d4 31. Bf2 f6 32. exf6 gxf6 33. Kg2 Kf7 $14) 27... Rxc1 (27... Rfd8 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Rc1 Rc4 30. Rxc4 dxc4 31. Kg2 Nb5 32. Bc1 $16) 28. Rxc1 Rd8 29. Nc5 {The first step in the wrong direction - there was no reason to come back.} (29. Rc7 $1 {did require precise calculating, but after} Nb3 (29... Nb5 30. Rb7 Nxa3 31. Rxa7 $16) 30. Be1 d4 31. Rxa7 d3 32. Kg2 d2 33. Bxd2 Nxd2 34. b5 Nb3 35. Rc7 Bxa3 36. b6 $16 {White's winning chances shouldn't be understimated.}) 29... Bxc5 30. Rxc5 (30. bxc5 Nc6 31. f4 Rb8 $44) 30... Nf3 $1 {Arkadij has managed to activate his forces, while the d-pawn may be dangerous.} (30... Nb3 31. Rc2 Re8 32. f4 f6 33. Rb2 Nxd2 34. Rxd2 fxe5 35. Rxd5 exf4 36. gxf4 $16) 31. Bc3 $2 {This natural move is a serious mistake - White spoils the advantage.} ({Carlsen's task wasn't easy, but after the correct} 31. Bf4 $1 g5 32. Kg2 Ne1+ 33. Kf1 Nf3 (33... Nd3 34. Rc3 Nxb4 35. Bxg5 hxg5 36. axb4 $16) 34. Bc1 d4 (34... Nxe5 35. Ke2 Nc4 36. f4 $16) 35. Ke2 Nxh2 36. Kd3 $16 {it was still possible to win this game.}) 31... g5 $1 $132 {After securing the f3 Black gets sufficient counterplay.} (31... d4 $2 32. Kg2 Ng5 33. Bd2 Ne4 34. Rc2 $16) 32. h3 h5 33. Kg2 g4 34. b5 Rd7 (34... d4 $5 35. Ba5 Rd7 36. hxg4 hxg4 37. Rc7 Rd5 $132) 35. Rc8+ Kh7 36. Ba5 d4 {The passed d-pawn is very strong, but White is still OK.} (36... Nxe5 $2 37. hxg4 hxg4 38. Rc7 $16) 37. hxg4 hxg4 38. e6 $2 {A very strange decision by the World Champion. White just gives the pawn back.} ({After} 38. Rc7 Rxc7 39. Bxc7 d3 40. Kf1 {Black would still have to find some precise moves in order to avoid a loss:} Nd4 $1 41. Ke1 Nxb5 42. Bd6 Kg6 43. Kd2 Kf5 44. Kxd3 Ke6 $1 45. Kc4 (45. Ke4 f5+ 46. Kf4 a6 $11) (45. Bf8 Kd5 $11) 45... Nxd6+ 46. exd6 Kxd6 47. Kd4 f5 48. a4 a5 $11) 38... fxe6 39. Rc7 Rxc7 40. Bxc7 d3 {Suddenly White is in a real danger.} 41. Kf1 Nd4 42. Ke1 Nxb5 {Black is a pawn up now!} 43. Bb8 (43. Bd8 e5 $1 44. a4 Nd4 45. Kd2 e4 $19) 43... Nxa3 44. Kd2 {The position looks very bad now for Magnus, but most probably a draw is still attainable at this moment.} a5 (44... Nb5 45. Kxd3 Kg6 46. Ke4 a5 47. Be5 a4 48. Kf4 Kh5 49. f3 gxf3 50. g4+ Kg6 (50... Kh4 51. Bf6+ Kh3 52. Kxf3 $11) 51. Kxf3 a3 52. Ke2 Na7 53. Kd3 Nc6 54. Bc3 e5 55. Kc4 Kg5 56. Bd2+ Kxg4 57. Kb3 $11) 45. Kxd3 Kg6 46. Ke4 $1 {White chooses the right route for his king!} ({After} 46. Bd6 $2 Nb5 47. Bf4 Kf5 $1 (47... a4 48. Kc4 e5 49. Bxe5 Kf5 50. Ba1 Nd6+ 51. Kb4 $11) 48. Kc4 Na7 49. Bc7 a4 50. Bb6 Nc8 $1 (50... Nc6 51. Kb5 Ne5 52. Kxa4 Ke4 53. Kb3 Kf3 54. Kc3 Ke2 55. Ba7 Nd3 56. Kd4 Nxf2 57. Ke5 Kf3 58. Kxe6 $11) 51. Bc5 Ke4 52. Kb4 Kd5 53. Be3 e5 54. Kxa4 Kc4 $19 {Black should win here quite easily.}) 46... a4 47. Be5 (47. f3 Nc4 48. Ba7 Nd6+ 49. Ke3 a3 50. fxg4 e5 $19) 47... Nc4 48. Bc3 a3 49. Kf4 Kh5 {Obviously, White's chances are connected only with exchanging the k-side pawns, but this time Magnus fails to find a correct version of that plan!} 50. f3 $2 (50. Ke4 $2 {was also bad:} Kg5 51. Ba1 a2 52. Kd3 Nd6 53. Bb2 Kf5 54. Ba1 Ne4 $19) ({But} 50. Bb4 $1 a2 51. Bc3 {could save the day:} Na5 (51... Nb6 52. Ba1 Nd7 53. f3 e5+ 54. Ke4 Kg5 55. fxg4 Kxg4 56. Kd5 Kxg3 57. Kc4 e4 58. Kb3 e3 59. Kxa2 e2 60. Bc3 Kf2 61. Kb3 Ne5 62. Kc2 $11) 52. f3 gxf3 53. Kxf3 Kg5 54. Ke4 Kg4 55. Ke5 Kxg3 56. Kxe6 Kf3 57. Kd5 Ke2 58. Kc5 Kd3 59. Kb4 Kc2 60. Bh8 Nc6+ 61. Ka3 Kb1 62. Bg7 $11) 50... e5+ 51. Ke4 Nd6+ $1 {That is the point! Black is not obliged to take on f3.} (51... gxf3 $2 52. Kxf3 Kg5 53. g4 Kf6 54. Ke2 Ke6 55. g5 Kf5 56. g6 Kxg6 57. Kd3 $11) 52. Ke3 Kg5 $19 {Now Black's king is back in the game, so 2 passed pawns will decide the game.} 53. fxg4 e4 (53... Kxg4 54. Kd3 e4+ 55. Kc2 e3 56. Kb3 e2 57. Be1 Nb5 $19) 54. Kd2 Nb5 55. Be5 Kxg4 56. Ke3 Kf5 57. Ba1 Nd6 {Protecting the pawn. White is completely helpless.} 58. Kd2 Kg4 59. Ke3 ({Or} 59. Kc3 e3 60. Kb3 Ne4 61. Kxa3 e2 $19) 59... a2 60. Bc3 (60. Kf2 Nc4 61. Bc3 e3+ 62. Kg2 Na3 63. Kf1 Kf3 64. g4 Nc2 $19) 60... Kxg3 61. Ba1 Kg4 62. Kd2 Kf3 0-1

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2014.08.30"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2877"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Finegold,Benjamin"]
[PlyCount "126"]
[EventDate "2014.08.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "23"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 b6 5. Bd2 $5 {An unusual way to fight for an advantage.} Bb7 6. g3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Bg2 O-O 9. O-O Be7 10. Bf4 Na6 11. Nb5 d5 12. Ne5 Nc5 13. Rc1 a6 14. Nc3 dxc4 $146 {Diagram # White has nothing from the opening and the game is completely equal. Normally, this is where Magnus outplays his opponents, but, thus far, not in this event.} ({RR} 14... Rc8 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Nf3 Ne6 17. Be5 Ne4 18. Nd4 Nxc3 19. bxc3 Nxd4 20. Bxd4 b5 21. a4 Bc6 22. axb5 Bxb5 23. Ra1 Bc5 24. Re1 Re8 25. e3 Qd6 26. Bxc5 Qxc5 27. Qxd5 Qxd5 28. Bxd5 Rxc3 29. Bb7 {Wojtaszek,R (2727)-Navara,D (2734) Huaian 2016 ½-½ (79)}) 15. Bxb7 Nxb7 16. Qxd8 Raxd8 17. Nc6 $5 {Magnus does not want the equality offered by 17.Nxc4} Rde8 $5 (17... Rd7 18. Ne5 Rdd8 $11) 18. Rfd1 {Both sides decide to play for a win. Now Topalov is ahead a pawn, but his Rf8 is out of play and white may want to play Be5xf6 and penetrate with Rd7.} h6 19. e4 Bc5 $1 20. e5 {Diagram #} Nd5 $1 {Topalov plays very accurately and maintains equality by giving back the pawn.} 21. Nxd5 exd5 22. Rxd5 b5 $5 (22... Re6 23. Nd4 Bxd4 24. Rxd4 b5 $11) 23. Be3 $1 Bxe3 24. fxe3 Re6 25. Nd4 Rb6 26. b3 Rc8 27. Kg2 {Diagram #} Rc5 $1 {This temporary pawn sacrifice ensures black has no difficulties.} 28. Rxc5 Nxc5 29. bxc4 bxc4 30. Rxc4 Nd3 31. Rc8+ Kh7 32. e6 fxe6 33. Kf3 Kg6 {Now the game is just a draw. But Magnus goes a little too far and things get interesting!} 34. a4 e5 35. Nc6 Kf5 36. g4+ (36. e4+ Ke6 37. Nb8 a5 38. Rc6+ Rxc6 39. Nxc6 Nb2 40. Nxa5 Nxa4 $11) 36... Ke6 37. a5 Rb5 38. Rd8 $2 (38. Rg8 Kd6 39. Nd8 Ke7 40. Nc6+ Kd6 $11) 38... Nc5 39. h4 Rb1 40. Rg8 Kd6 {Time control was reached and only Topalov can play for a win now!} 41. Nb8 e4+ 42. Kg2 Rb2+ 43. Kf1 Rb5 44. Kf2 $6 (44. Ke2 Kc7 (44... Ne6 45. Nxa6 Rxa5 46. Nb4 Rb5 47. Nc2 $11 {And the Ke2 makes all the difference (with the Kf2, as played in the game, now 47...Rb2 wins)}) 45. Nxa6+ Nxa6 46. Rxg7+ Kc8 47. g5 $11) 44... Ne6 45. Rc8 Rxa5 (45... Rc5 {People got excited when they saw the computer evals, but this is also a draw...} 46. Rxc5 Nxc5 47. h5 Kc7 48. Nxa6+ Nxa6 49. Kg3 $11) 46. Rc6+ Kd5 47. Rxa6 Rxa6 48. Nxa6 Kc6 49. Nb4+ Kc5 50. Nc2 Kc4 51. Ke2 g5 52. hxg5 hxg5 53. Kd2 {White needs to be careful, but this is an easy draw for Magnus.} Nc5 54. Na3+ Kb4 55. Nc2+ Kc4 56. Na3+ Kd5 57. Nb5 Nd7 58. Nc3+ Ke5 59. Nd1 Nf6 60. Nf2 Kd5 61. Nh3 Nxg4 62. Nxg5 Nxe3 63. Nxe4 Ke5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2014.08.31"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A50"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2877"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "140"]
[EventDate "2014.08.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "23"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 b6 3. g3 Bb7 4. c4 g6 {As usual, Magnus Carlsen doesn't mind deviating from the main paths.} 5. Bg2 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. Re1 {The latest attempt to fight for the opening advantage. White is delaying a development of the b1 in order to take control of the key e4-square.} ({Black's position looks quite solid after} 7. d5 Ne4 (7... Na6 8. Nc3 Nc5 9. Nd4 (9. Be3 $5) 9... e5 10. Nb3 d6 11. e4 Nfd7 12. Be3 a5 13. Nd2 f5 $132 {1-0 Giri,A (2734)-Grischuk,A (2783)/Beijing CHN 2013 (43)}) 8. Qc2 f5 9. Nbd2 Nd6 10. e4 Na6 11. exf5 Nxf5 12. Ne4 c6 $132 {½-½ Sargissian,G (2686)-Anton Guijarro,D (2631)/Dubai UAE 2014 (82)}) ({Or} 7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Nxe4 Bxe4 9. Be3 c5 10. Qd2 d6 11. Bh6 Nd7 12. Bxg7 Kxg7 13. Rfd1 Nf6 $11 {1-0 Istratescu,A (2651)-Edouard,R (2680)/Nancy FRA 2013 (56)}) 7... e6 8. Nc3 {Exchanging one pair of knights would definitely suit Black.} ({After} 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Nc3 d6 $11 {White seizes a lot of space, but Black's position remains flexible, while the dark-squared bishop is becoming very strong.}) ({At the same time,} 8. Bf4 $5 d6 9. Qc2 {may be a possible improvement.}) 8... Ne4 9. Nxe4 (9. Bd2 {seems quite comfortable for Black:} d6 10. Rc1 Nd7 11. d5 Nxc3 (11... Nxd2 $5 12. Nxd2 Qe7 $11) 12. Bxc3 Bxc3 13. Rxc3 e5 14. Qd2 Kg7 15. e4 a5 16. h4 Nc5 $11 {1-0 Svidler,P (2753)-Ipatov,A (2613)/Dubai UAE 2014 (41)}) 9... Bxe4 10. Bg5 Qe8 $1 $146 {Magnus comes up with an important novelty in a rare theoretical position.} ({In the previous game Black had failed to solve all the problems after bringing the queen to b7:} 10... Qc8 11. Qd2 d6 12. Bh6 Qb7 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. Rad1 (14. Bh3 $5 Bxf3 15. exf3 c5 16. f4 $14) 14... Nd7 15. d5 Bxf3 16. exf3 e5 17. f4 $14 {0-1 Efimenko,Z (2648)-Maletin,P (2588)/Dubai UAE 2014 (56)}) ({RR} 10... Bf6 11. Qd2 Bxg5 12. Nxg5 Bxg2 13. Kxg2 d6 14. Rad1 Nd7 15. h4 Qe7 16. Qf4 f6 17. Nf3 a5 18. Qe4 Rae8 19. Qb7 Qd8 20. a3 Rf7 21. b4 Qa8 22. Qxc7 Ne5 23. Qxd6 Nxc4 24. Qf4 Nxa3 25. bxa5 {Cina',V (2343)-Zamengo,F (2359) Darfo Boario Terme ITA 2025 ½-½ (37)}) 11. Qd2 d6 {It looks like Black has no problems now.} 12. Bh6 ({Nor does} 12. Qe3 {promise anything special:} Bb7 13. Bh6 (13. Qd3 e5 14. e4 Nd7 $11) 13... Nd7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. Qd3 Rd8 16. e4 e5 17. Rad1 Qe7 $11) 12... Nd7 13. Rac1 $146 (13. Qf4 f5 14. Qh4 Nf6 15. Ng5 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Qe7 $11) ({RR} 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. Qc3 Qe7 15. d5+ Kg8 16. Rad1 Rae8 17. Nd4 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 a5 19. b3 e5 20. Nc6 Qg5 21. h4 Qg4 22. Qf3 Qxf3+ 23. exf3 Ra8 24. f4 f6 25. h5 Nb8 26. fxe5 fxe5 27. hxg6 hxg6 {Sonis,F (2558)-Iermito,S (2517) Turin ITA 2024 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. Qc3 Nf6 15. d5 Qe7 16. Rad1 Kg8 17. Nh4 Bxg2 18. Nxg2 e5 19. e4 a5 20. b3 Qd7 21. a3 Qh3 22. Nf4 Qh6 23. Kg2 Ng4 24. Nh3 f5 25. f3 f4 26. Rd3 Nf6 27. gxf4 Nd7 {Mareco,S (2583)-Svane,R (2496) Caleta 2015 1-0 (54)}) 13... Qe7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 $11 {Magnus has comfortably equalised.} 15. Bh3 {An ambitious attempt to avoid the further simplifications.} (15. Ng5 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 e5 17. Ne4 Nf6 18. Nc3 c6 $11) 15... Nf6 (15... c5 16. Red1 Rad8 17. dxc5 dxc5 18. Qc3+ Qf6 $11) 16. Nh4 {The knight has nothing much it can achieve there, but Levon just wanted to seize space in the centre as soon as it was possible.} (16. Qc3 c5 17. Nd2 Bb7 18. e4 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Qc7 $11) 16... Bb7 17. f3 (17. Bg2 Bxg2 18. Nxg2 $11) 17... c5 18. e4 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Rfd8 {White's space advantage is just symbolic here, since there are not many minor pieces on the board.} 20. Ng2 Qc7 21. Ne3 Qc5 22. Qc3 {I guess, Levon was quite ambitious at this moment.} (22. Red1 h5 23. Rd3 Rd7 24. Rcd1 Rad8 $11) 22... a5 23. Red1 h5 {A useful prophylactic move.} 24. Rd3 b5 $1 {Just in time! Magnus doesn't hesitate and avoids a passive position.} ({After} 24... Rd7 25. Rcd1 Rad8 26. Bg2 $14 {Black would be forced to sit and wait, while White may try to make progress on both sides of the board.}) 25. b3 $6 {A strange decision.} ({There was no reason to deviate from} 25. cxb5 Qxb5 26. Qd2 Ba6 27. Bf1 (27. Rb3 $5) 27... Qb4 28. Rd4 Qxd2 29. Rxd2 Bxf1 30. Kxf1 {and White's position is even slightly better, although Black should be able to equalise.}) 25... bxc4 26. bxc4 {The position is still more or less equal, but White may face some problems in the long run - the pawns on c4 and a2 are quite vulnerable, while the d6 is not under any pressure.} ({I would prefer} 26. Qxc4 Qa3 27. Rdc3 d5 (27... Rac8 28. Qd4 Rxc3 29. Rxc3 $11 Qxa2 $140 $2 30. Bxe6 $16) 28. Qc7 Rd7 29. Qe5 dxe4 30. fxe4 {and White has enough counterplay to achieve a draw:} Bxe4 31. Rf1 Qe7 32. Rf4 Bf5 33. Bxf5 exf5 34. Rxf5 $11) 26... Bc6 27. Rcd1 Rd7 28. Bg2 Rb8 29. Qd4 {A correct decision - the queen exerts unpleasant pressure along the a7-g1 diagonal.} Qe5 $5 {Magnus is trying to complicate the matters.} ({Deviating from the simple endgame which arises after} 29... e5 30. Qxc5 dxc5 31. Rd6 Ba4 32. R1d2 Rxd6 33. Rxd6 Rb1+ 34. Bf1 $11) 30. f4 $6 {This impatient advance leads to some troubles.} ({It was necessary to swap one pair of rooks in order to equalise:} 30. Rb3 $1 Rxb3 31. axb3 Rb7 32. Nc2 Be8 (32... Rxb3 $2 33. f4 $1 Qxd4+ 34. Nxd4 Rb6 35. Nxc6 Rxc6 36. e5 $16) 33. Qxe5 dxe5 34. Ra1 Rxb3 35. Rxa5 Rc3 36. Ne1 $11) 30... Qxd4 31. Rxd4 Rc7 {Now Black has a small but stable advantage, since White has a couple of weaknesses.} (31... e5 32. Rxd6 (32. fxe5 dxe5 33. Rxd7 Bxd7 $15) 32... Rxd6 33. Rxd6 exf4 34. gxf4 Bxe4 35. Rd2 a4 $15) 32. R1d2 Ne8 $1 {As usual, Magnus is playing precisely in such positions.} ({Black didn't get anything special in the event of} 32... e5 33. Rxd6 exf4 34. gxf4 Nxe4 35. Bxe4 (35. Rxc6 $2 Rxc6 36. Bxe4 Re6 $19 {[%csl Re3,Re4]}) 35... Bxe4 36. Kf2 $11) 33. Kf2 (33. e5 {didn't solve all the problems either:} dxe5 34. fxe5 Bxg2 35. Kxg2 Rc5 36. Re4 Nc7 $15) 33... Kf8 34. c5 {As is his style, Levon is searching for active play at the cost of material.} (34. R4d3 Rb4 35. Rb3 $15) 34... dxc5 35. Rc4 (35. R4d3 $5 Nf6 36. e5 Ne4+ 37. Bxe4 Bxe4 38. Rc3 $15) 35... Bb5 $6 ({The only way to fix the advantage was} 35... Rd7 $1 {exchanging Levon's most active piece} 36. Rxd7 (36. Rdc2 Nd6 37. Rxc5 Bxe4 $17) 36... Rb2+ 37. Rc2 $1 (37. Ke1 Bxd7 38. a4 Ra2 $17) 37... Rxc2+ 38. Nxc2 Bxd7 39. e5 $15 {Still, White has excellent drawing chances here.}) 36. Rc3 (36. Rb2 $5 Rbb7 (36... Bxc4 37. Rxb8 Bd3 (37... Bxa2 $4 38. Rb2 $18) 38. Ke1 Ke7 39. e5 $44) 37. Rc3 Bc6 38. Rxb7 Bxb7 39. e5 Bxg2 40. Kxg2 Ng7 41. Kf3 $11) 36... c4 37. e5 $6 {This natural move is inaccurate.} ({Equality was reachable:} 37. Rb2 $142 Rcc8 38. e5 Ng7 39. Be4 Nf5 40. Nxc4 Bxc4 41. Rxb8 Rxb8 42. Rxc4 $11) 37... Rc5 $1 38. Nc2 $6 {After this move White's position could become very difficult.} (38. Bf1 $142 f6 $1 39. Nxc4 fxe5 40. fxe5 Bxc4 41. Rxc4 Rxe5 $15) 38... Nc7 39. Nd4 Nd5 $6 {There was no reason to hurry with clarifying the character of the position.} ({A much stronger move was} 39... Ba6 $1 40. Ke3 Rb1 41. Be4 Nd5+ 42. Bxd5 Rxd5 $17) 40. Bxd5 Rxd5 41. Nf3 $1 {After exchanging one pair of rooks White gets sufficient compensation for a pawn, since the knight is more useful than the bishop here.} Rc5 (41... Ba6 42. Rxd5 exd5 43. Ra3 Rb1 44. Ke3 $44) 42. Rb2 Rd8 (42... Rcc8 43. Nd2 Ba6 44. Rbc2 Rc5 45. Ke3 Rb4 46. Ne4 $44) 43. Nd2 Bc6 44. Nb3 $6 {Tired after some tough defence, Levon commits another serious mistake.} ({After} 44. Ke3 Bd5 45. Rbc2 Rdc8 46. h4 {Black couldn't make any progress.}) 44... Rb8 $1 {That's the point! Now White cannot set up a blockade any more.} 45. Rcc2 c3 46. Rb1 Rcb5 47. Rxc3 Bd5 {White has managed to win the c-pawn, but there is no way to avoid the loss of another pawn.} 48. Rbc1 Bxb3 49. Rxb3 Rxb3 50. axb3 Rxb3 {This rook endgame is still drawn, but White's practical task is not that easy.} 51. Rc8+ $1 {Correctly keeping the took active.} (51. Ra1 Rb5 52. Ra2 Ke7 53. Ke3 g5 $17) 51... Ke7 ({After} 51... Kg7 52. Ra8 Ra3 53. h4 a4 54. Kg2 {it would be very difficult to activate the g7, so White should be able to save a half point.}) 52. Kg2 $1 {An excellent defensive resource! The king may attack Black's kingside pawns now.} (52. Ra8 $2 Rb2+ 53. Ke3 Ra2 54. Kd4 a4 55. Ke3 a3 56. Kd4 Kd7 57. Ra7+ Kc6 58. h4 Kb6 59. Ra8 Kb5 60. Rb8+ Ka4 61. Ra8+ Kb3 62. Rb8+ Kc2 63. Ra8 Ra1 $19) 52... a4 53. Kh3 g5 $1 {Magnus finds the only resource in this drawish position.} ({After} 53... a3 54. Ra8 Kd7 55. Kh4 Kc6 56. Kg5 $11 {White would be out of danger.}) 54. fxg5 Rb4 55. Ra8 Rg4 56. Ra7+ Kf8 57. g6 ({There was nothing wrong with} 57. Kg2 Rxg5 (57... h4 58. Kf3 hxg3 59. hxg3 Rb4 60. g6 fxg6 61. Kf2 $15) 58. Rxa4 Rxe5 59. h3 $15) 57... fxg6 58. Kg2 g5 59. Kf3 Rb4 60. Ke3 Ke8 61. Kd3 h4 ({After} 61... Rb2 $5 62. Rxa4 (62. h4 $2 gxh4 63. gxh4 Rb4 $19) 62... Rxh2 63. g4 {White should be able to escape, but the task is not easy:} Rh3+ 64. Ke2 h4 65. Ra8+ Kf7 66. Ra7+ Kg6 67. Re7 Rg3 68. Rxe6+ Kf7 69. Rf6+ Ke7 70. Rh6 Rxg4 71. Kf3 Rf4+ 72. Kg2 Re4 73. Kh3 Rxe5 74. Kg4 {and Black cannot make progress.}) 62. Kc3 hxg3 63. hxg3 (63. Kxb4 g2 $19) 63... Rg4 64. Kd3 $2 {The decisive mistake. Levon allows Black to keep the a-pawn on the board.} ({After the correct} 64. Kd2 $1 Rxg3 65. Rxa4 Kf7 66. Ra8 Rb3 67. Ke2 Rb5 68. Kf3 Rxe5 69. Kg4 {the activity of White's pieces saves the day. Still, precise play is required.}) 64... a3 65. Ke3 Rxg3+ 66. Kd4 g4 $19 {Now the game is over - 2 passed pawns are unstoppable.} 67. Ra8+ Kd7 68. Kc5 Rd3 69. Kc4 Rf3 70. Kc5 g3 0-1

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2014.09.03"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2877"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2014.08.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "23"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Roiz,Michael} d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 dxc4 {Hikaru tried this line recently against Mamedyarov in the Olympiad.} 4. e3 ({RR} 4. e4) 4... b5 5. a4 b4 6. Ne4 Qd5 7. Nd2 c3 8. bxc3 {Mamedyarov played 8.Ndf3. For some reason, Hikaru was either unfamiliar with this line (the main line) or forgot his analysis.} bxc3 9. Nb1 Qa5 10. Qc2 {This is a common position. Black usually plays 10...Na6. Hikaru went into a long think, and played an interesting move.} e5 $5 ({RR} 10... Na6 11. Qxc3 ({RR} 11. Ba3 e5 12. Bxf8 Kxf8 13. Bxa6 Bxa6 14. dxe5 Rb8 15. Nxc3 Qxe5 16. Nge2 Bxe2 17. Kxe2 Nf6) 11... Qxc3+ ({RR} 11... Nb4 12. Bd2 e6 13. Nf3 Nf6 14. Bc4 Be7 15. O-O O-O 16. Ne5 c5 17. dxc5 ({RR} 17. Qb3 Qc7 18. Rc1 cxd4 19. exd4 Qb6 20. Na3 a5 21. Nb5 Bb7) 17... Qxc5 18. Bb5 Qxc3 19. Nxc3 Rd8 20. Rfd1 Bb7) 12. Nxc3 Nb4 13. Rb1 a5 14. Nf3 Nf6 15. Ne5 ({RR} 15. Be2 Bf5 16. Rb2 g6 17. O-O Bg7 18. Na2 Nfd5 19. Bd2) 15... Bf5 16. Rb2 Nd7 ({RR} 16... e6 17. Be2 Nfd5 18. Bd2 f6 19. Nc4) 17. e4 ({RR} 17. Nxd7 Bxd7 18. Bc4 e6 19. Ke2 c5 20. d5) 17... Nxe5 18. dxe5 Bc8 ({RR} 18... Be6 19. Be2 f6 ({RR} 19... g6 20. O-O Bg7 21. f4) 20. O-O fxe5 21. Be3) 19. Bc4 e6 20. Be3 Be7 21. Ke2 O-O 22. Rd1 Rd8 ({RR} 22... Rb8 23. Nb1 h6) 23. Rxd8+ Bxd8 24. Bc5 Ba6 ({RR} 24... f6 25. exf6 Bxf6 26. Rb3 Kf7 27. Bd6 Bd4 28. Nb1) 25. Bxa6 {Wojtaszek,R (2750)-Bartel,M (2604) Warsaw 2018 CBM 185 [Roiz,Michael] 1-0 (79)}) ({RR} 10... Na6 11. Qxc3 Nb4 12. Bd2 e6 13. Nf3 Nf6 14. Bc4 Ne4 15. Qc1 Nxd2 16. Nbxd2 Be7 17. O-O O-O 18. Ne5 Bb7 19. Be2 Rac8 20. Nb3 Qc7 21. Nc5 Bd6 22. Rb1 a5 23. Qc4 Bxc5 24. Qxc5 Rfd8 25. Nc4 {Steen,P (2027)-Kantekin,B (1828) Brasschaat BEL 2025 ½-½ (53)}) 11. Nf3 {And now Hikaru thought for a long time, and made the losing move.} Na6 $146 (11... exd4 12. Nxd4 Nf6 {is better for white, but the game goes on. Perhaps Hikaru thought this was too simple and played for complications, but they were not in his favor.}) ({RR} 11... exd4 12. Nxd4 Nf6 13. Be2 Bb4 14. Ba3 c5 15. Bxb4 Qxb4 16. Nb5 Na6 17. Nd6+ Kf8 18. Nxc8 Qb2 19. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 20. Nxc3 Nb4 21. Nd6 Nc2+ 22. Kd2 Nxa1 23. Nc4 Rd8+ 24. Bd3 {1-0 (24) Munkhgal,G (2413)-Zhang,Z (2236) Shijiazhuang 2015}) ({RR} 11... exd4 12. Nxd4 Nf6 13. Nxc3 Bb4 14. Bd2 O-O 15. Bd3 Bb7 16. O-O Nbd7 17. Nb3 Qh5 18. Ne4 c5 19. a5 Nxe4 20. Bxe4 Bxe4 21. Qxe4 Nf6 22. Qc4 Rab8 23. Rfd1 Bxd2 24. Rxd2 Rb4 25. Qc2 c4 26. Nd4 {Didiliuc,D (1846)-Terbe,J (2171) Calimanesti Caciulata 2016 0-1 (57)}) 12. Nxe5 {Black is simply lost. He will be 1-2 pawns in the ending with no compensation.} Nb4 {Played after long thought, but there is nothing else.} 13. Qb3 $1 Be6 14. Bc4 c2 $6 (14... Bxc4 15. Qxc4 Qd5 (15... Nc2+ $2 16. Kd1 Nxa1 17. Qxf7+ Kd8 18. Qd7#) 16. O-O {is best, but white should be winning.}) 15. Bxe6 Nd3+ 16. Ke2 Nxe5 17. dxe5 fxe6 18. Qxe6+ Ne7 19. Nd2 Qd5 {The computer says this is best, but black has little chance of survival in the ending.} 20. Qxd5 Nxd5 21. Ne4 Rb8 22. Bd2 Bb4 23. Rhc1 Bxd2 24. Nxd2 Nb4 25. Nf3 Ke7 26. Ne1 Rhd8 27. f4 $1 (27. Nxc2 $6 Nd3 28. Rcb1 Nxe5 {is great for white, but not completely winning.}) 27... c5 28. Nxc2 Nd3 29. Rcb1 Nb2 30. Ra2 Nxa4 {A bit tricky, but unfortunately, not tricky enough.} 31. Rxb8 Nc3+ 32. Kf3 Nxa2 33. Rb5 Nb4 34. Nxb4 cxb4 35. Rxb4 Ra8 36. Ke4 a5 37. Ra4 Kf7 38. g4 Ke7 39. f5 h6 40. h4 Kf7 41. e6+ Kf6 42. Rd4 Ke7 (42... Ra7 43. g5+ hxg5 44. Rd7 Rxd7 45. exd7 Ke7 46. f6+ gxf6 47. h5 {is a funny computer line.}) 43. Rd7+ Kf8 44. e7+ Ke8 45. Rd8+ Rxd8 46. exd8=Q+ Kxd8 47. Kd5 Ke7 48. g5 a4 49. Kc4 hxg5 50. hxg5 Kd6 51. e4 Ke5 52. Kb4 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 2nd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2014.09.05"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2877"]
[BlackElo "2805"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "168"]
[EventDate "2014.08.27"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "23"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 162"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2014.09.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 c6 10. Qc2 Nxc3 11. Qxc3 Nd7 12. Be2 (12. Bd3 dxc4 13. Bxc4 {is more common but White wants to recapture with his queen.}) 12... dxc4 13. Qxc4 {An unusual decision allowing e6-e5. On the other hand, White prevents ...b7-b6 followed by ...c8-b7 and ...c6-c5 so the position remains asymmetrical.} e5 14. O-O exd4 15. Nxd4 {We have a typical quiet position with the open d-file. It is approximately equal but not yet drawn - just made for Magnus Carlsen!} Nf6 (15... Ne5 16. Qc5 Re8 17. Qxe7 Rxe7 18. Rfd1 Bd7 19. b4 Kf8 20. Rc3 Be8 21. Nb3 Rd7 22. f4 Rxd1+ 23. Bxd1 Rd8 24. Be2 Ng6 25. Kf2 Ne7 26. e4 b6 27. Bf3 f6 28. Ke3 $14 {/= 1/2 (55) Nanu,C (2515)-Nikolov,S (2409) Sunny Beach 2010}) (15... Nb6 16. Qc5 (16. Qb3 $5) 16... Re8 17. Qxe7 Rxe7 18. Rfd1 Be6 19. a3 g6 20. Nxe6 Rxe6 21. Rd4 Kf8 22. Rcd1 Ree8 23. Kf1 Ke7 24. Re4+ {1/2 (24) Del Rio de Angelis,S (2484)-San Segundo Carrillo,P (2509) Leon 2012}) 16. b4 ({White obtained a tiny plus in the following game:} 16. Bf3 Re8 17. Rfd1 Bd7 18. a4 a5 19. Qb3 Bg4 20. Bxg4 Nxg4 21. h3 Nf6 22. Nf5 Qe6 23. Qxe6 Rxe6 24. Nd6 Re7 25. Nc4 $14 {1-0 (83) Melkumyan,H (2628)-Esen,B (2555) Plovdiv 2012}) 16... Bd7 $146 (16... Be6 $5 17. Nxe6 Qxe6 18. Qxe6 fxe6 {was recommended by IM Maxim Notkin but White can still fight on, say, after} 19. a4 {with a minority attack.}) ({RR} 16... Be6 17. Nxe6 Qxe6 18. Qxe6 fxe6 19. a4 Rac8 20. Rc2 Nd5 21. Rb1 Kf7 22. h4 Ke7 23. Bf3 Rc7 24. Rc4 Rfc8 25. Rd1 Nf6 26. Rdc1 Nd5 27. Kf1 b5 28. Rg4 Kf7 29. Ra1 Rb8 30. Rd4 Kf6 31. e4 {Kuljasevic,D (2555)-Mons,L (2504) Austria 2017 0-1 (60)}) 17. Rfd1 Rfe8 18. Qc5 g6 19. a4 Qxc5 20. bxc5 a5 21. Nb3 (21. Rd2 $5 {[%cal Yd2b2] M.Notkin}) 21... Re5 22. Rd4 Kf8 23. Kf1 Ke7 24. Bc4 g5 25. h3 b5 $6 {Hardly a good idea. Black trades White's only weakness and remains with pawn ruins on the queenside.} (25... h5 $5 26. Ke2 g4) 26. cxb6 Rb8 27. f4 $5 {A nice pawn sacrifice.} Rxe3 28. Nc5 {[%csl Gc5]} (28. Nxa5 Rxb6 29. fxg5 c5 30. Rd3 Rxd3 31. Bxd3 hxg5 32. Rxc5 g4 33. hxg4 Bxa4 $11) (28. fxg5 $5 hxg5 29. Nxa5 Re5 (29... Rxb6 30. Bd3 $1 {[%cal Ra5c4]}) 30. Nb3 c5 31. Rxd7+ Nxd7 32. a5 $14) 28... Rxb6 29. Kf2 gxf4 30. Rxf4 Re5 31. Rxf6 Be8 {An unnecessary tactical trick.} (31... Rb2+ 32. Kf3 Rxc5 33. Rxf7+ Kd8 (33... Kd6 34. Rd1+ Ke5 35. Re7+ Kf6 36. Re4 $14) 34. Rd1 Rxc4 35. Rdxd7+ Kc8 {looks very dangerous for Black but, surprisingly, there is no decisive blow, e.g.} 36. Rc7+ Kb8 $1 (36... Kd8 $2 37. Ra7 Ke8 38. Rh7) 37. Rce7 Ka8) 32. Rf4 $1 Rxc5 33. Re4+ Kf8 34. Rxe8+ Kxe8 35. Bxf7+ Kxf7 36. Rxc5 {[%mdl 4096] This rook endgame is very subtle; the line between a draw and White's win is very thin.} Rb4 {It looked more logical to give a couple of checks to force White's king out of the centre:} (36... Rb2+ 37. Kg3 Rb3+ {; however, the king goes forward:} 38. Kh4 $1 Rb4+ 39. g4 Rxa4 40. Rxc6 Kg7 41. Kh5 $18 {M.Notkin}) 37. Rxa5 c5 38. Ke3 Rd4 39. Ra6 Kg7 $6 (39... h5 $5 40. Rh6 (40. a5 Ra4) 40... Rxa4 41. Rxh5 Ra3+ 42. Kf4 c4 43. Rc5 c3 44. h4 Ra2 45. g4 c2 46. g5 (46. h5 Ra4+ 47. Kg3 Ra3+ 48. Kh4 Ra2 {is a theoretical draw}) 46... Ke6 47. Kg4 Kd6 48. Rc8 Ra4+ 49. Kh5 Ra2 {, and White apparently can't make progress}) 40. a5 Ra4 41. g4 h5 (41... Ra3+ 42. Ke4 Rxh3 43. Kd5 c4 (43... h5 44. gxh5 Rxh5+ 45. Kc4 Rh4+ 46. Kb5) 44. Kxc4 h5 45. gxh5 Rh4+ 46. Kc5 Rxh5+ 47. Kb6 Rh6+ 48. Kb7 Rh5 49. Ra7 $1 $18 {M.Notkin}) 42. gxh5 Ra3+ 43. Ke4 c4 44. Kd4 c3 (44... Rf3 45. h6+ Kh7 46. Rc6) 45. Kd3 Kh7 46. h6 $2 (46. Kc2 $1 {was necessary. It is essential for White not to allow Black's rook to control the a-pawn from the side.} Kg7 47. h6+ Kh7 48. h4 Kh8 49. Ra7 Kg8 50. a6 Kh8 51. h5 $22 Kg8 52. Rg7+ Kh8 53. a7 Ra2+ 54. Kb3 $18) 46... Rb3 $3 {Miraculously, this move now saves the game.} 47. Kc2 (47. Rc6 {(b6, d6 etc.)} Ra3 48. a6 Kg8 {No zugzwang is possible now, and White can't make progress.}) 47... Rb5 48. Kxc3 Rf5 {The so-called Vancsura setup. Despite 3 extra pawns, the position is drawn.} 49. Ra8 Rb5 50. Kc4 Rf5 {The f-file is the most appropriate position for Black's rook.} 51. Kb4 Rf4+ 52. Kc5 Rf5+ 53. Kd4 Rb5 54. Ke4 Rc5 55. Ra6 Rb5 56. h4 Rc5 57. Kd4 Rb5 58. Kc4 Rf5 59. Kb4 Rf4+ 60. Kc5 Rf5+ 61. Kb6 Rf6+ {Black pushes White's king away as it is approaching the a-pawn.} 62. Kb7 Rf7+ 63. Kc8 Rf8+ 64. Kd7 Rf5 65. Ra8 Rd5+ 66. Ke6 Rb5 67. Kf6 Rc5 68. Ra7+ Kxh6 69. Kf7 Rb5 70. a6 Rb6 71. Kg8 Rb8+ 72. Kf7 Rb6 73. Ke7 Kg6 74. Kd7 Rf6 75. Ra8 Kg7 76. Kc7 Rf7+ 77. Kd6 Rf6+ 78. Ke5 Rb6 79. Ra7+ (79. a7 Ra6 $11) 79... Kg6 80. h5+ Kh6 81. Kf5 Rc6 82. Re7 Rxa6 83. Re6+ Rxe6 84. Kxe6 Kxh5 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.08"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2014.11.08"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bd2 {The opening could not have come as a complete surprise to either one of the players, even though it does not belong to their main lines. Carlsen has played the Grünfeld over the past years only occasionally and did not try it in 2014 at all! At the same time, Anand has tried a wide range of systems against the Grünfeld, the most popular being the Russian Variation (as in game 10) and the normal (5.e4) Exchange Variation.} Bg7 6. e4 Nxc3 7. Bxc3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 $5 {Even in such a heavily analysed opening as the Grünfeld, Carlsen finds a way of deviating from the main theoretical discussion. But this is not really such a miracle, since this is a very flexible opening with practically unlimited possibilities for improvising.} ({It would have made little sense checking Anand's preparation after, say,} 8... c5 9. d5 Bxc3 10. bxc3 e6 11. d6 e5 12. h4 Be6 {when the former World Champion had delivered a very powerful novelty in a game against Carlsen's countryman:} 13. Nh3 $1 $146 {Anand,V (2783)-Hammer,J (2608) Stavanger 2013 CBM 155 [Krasenkow,M] (1-0, 45)}) 9. Nf3 {The most natural way of defending the central pawn, even though it allows Black to develop freely on the next move.} (9. Ne2 {as tried in Hambleton,A (2583)-Berson,J (2021) Portugal Cove 2013 (1-0, 26) avoids ...g4 but places the knight on a not very active square. Black could obtain good counterplay with} e5 {(not the only move, most surely)} 10. d5 Nd4 $1 11. Nxd4 exd4 12. Bxd4 Qh4 13. Bxg7 (13. Qe3 Re8 14. Bd3 Bf5 $11) 13... Qxe4+ 14. Qe2 Qxe2+ 15. Bxe2 Kxg7 16. Rc1 {The backward pawn should not offer Black too many problems since White is behind in development.} Bf5 17. Rxc7 Rac8 18. Rxc8 Rxc8 {[%cal Gf5e4,Gc8c1]}) ({Without kingside development, the radical advance} 9. d5 {is not likely to yield too much:} Ne5 10. Be2 (10. f4 Ng4 11. Bxg7 Kxg7 12. Nf3 c6 $32 {Ushenina,A (2501)-Lagno,K (2543) Beijing 2013 (0-1, 37)}) 10... c6 11. Nf3 Nxf3+ 12. Bxf3 Bxc3 13. Qxc3 cxd5 14. exd5 e6 $11 {Gleizerov,E (2536)-Ulibin,M (2498) Las Palmas 2014 (½-½, 18)}) 9... Bg4 10. d5 {The only reasonable continuation.} (10. O-O-O $6 e5 11. d5 Nd4 $15) 10... Bxf3 11. Bxg7 $5 $146 {Strictly speaking, this looks like a concession since White would be interested in provoking ...xc3, bxc3 with a strengthening of his centre. But Anand had a concrete idea in mind, which worked reasonably well, at least from the opening point of view.} ({If} 11. gxf3 Ne5 12. O-O-O ({Defending the pawn is not necessary.} 12. Be2 {wastes an important tempo and has led to comfortable play for Black in a few games, the latest being:} c6 13. f4 Nd7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. dxc6 bxc6 {Moiseenko,A (2707)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2714) Yaroslavl 2014 (0-1, 38)}) 12... c6 ({Even with bishops on the board, the pawn is taboo:} 12... Nxf3 $2 13. Qf4 $18) 13. f4 Ng4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 $11 {[%cal Gg4f6]}) 11... Kxg7 12. gxf3 Ne5 13. O-O-O c6 {This hurried undermining of the centre offers White the possibility of setting up some pressure.} (13... Nxf3 $2 14. Qc3+) ({Black could have avoided the weakening of his kingside with} 13... Qd6 $5 14. Be2 (14. Qc3 $6 Qf6 15. Be2 c6 $15 {leaves the white centre immobile and vulnerable.}) 14... c6 $132) 14. Qc3 $1 f6 {[%csl Ge6]} 15. Bh3 $14 {This bishops cuts like a blade, preventing Black from obtaining rapid counterplay. In the long run, the kingside weaknesses may tell. On the other hand, the position remains double-edged strategically. Should White allow some exchanges, he would risk landing into a bad ending, due to his numerous pawn weaknesses.} (15. dxc6 $6 Qb6 16. cxb7 $6 Rab8 $15 17. f4 $2 Rxb7 $19 {[%cal Gf8c8,Rb7c7]}) 15... cxd5 {True to his style, Carlsen clears up matters in the centre at the first given occasion.} ({The long plan of transfering the knight to d4 (!) is interesting but probably not entirely sound:} 15... Qb6 $5 16. f4 (16. d6 exd6 17. Rxd6 Rad8 18. Rhd1 Rxd6 19. Rxd6 Qxf2 $19) 16... Nf7 {[%csl Gf2]} 17. f3 $1 (17. Rd2 Nd6 {[%csl Ge4] gains an important tempo for developing the counterplay.} 18. Qd3 cxd5 19. exd5 f5) (17. dxc6 bxc6 18. Rd7 Qxf2 19. Rf1 Qe2 20. Rxe7 Rae8 $132) 17... Nd6 (17... cxd5 18. exd5 Nd6 19. Kb1) (17... Rad8 18. Kb1 Nd6 19. a4 $1 {[%csl Gb5]} cxd5 20. Rxd5 Nf7 21. Bd7 Nd6 22. a5 Qf2 23. Be6 $14) 18. Kb1 (18. a4 $2 cxd5 $17) 18... Nb5 19. Qb3 c5 20. Rc1 Nd4 21. Qe3 (21. Qd3 Qd6 22. Qe3 f5 23. exf5 gxf5 24. Rhe1 Rf7) (21. Qc4 Nxf3 22. Qc3 Nd4 23. Qxc5 Ne2 24. Qxb6 axb6 25. Rc7 Nxf4 26. Bd7 f5 27. Rxb7 fxe4 $132) 21... Qd6 22. f5 g5 23. Rhg1 Qxh2 (23... Kh8 24. Bg4 $36 {[%cal Gh2h4,Gg4h5,Gh5g6]}) 24. Bf1 b6 25. f4 h6 26. Bd3 $44) 16. exd5 Nf7 $2 {But this is too straightforward an attempt to stabilise the position. True, the d6-square is important, but does not justify abandoning the central e5-square.} (16... Qd6 $5 17. Kb1 Rad8 18. f4 (18. Rhe1 Rfe8 19. f4 Nf7 20. Rd4 e5 21. fxe5 Rxe5 22. Rxe5 fxe5 $11) 18... Nf7 19. Rd4 e5 20. fxe5 fxe5 21. Rd2 {may offer White some chances for the initiative. If compared with the similar subline above, all major pieces are on the board, making Black's position less stable.}) (16... a5 17. f4 Nf7 18. Kb1 a4 {would transpose below.}) ({RR} 16... Qd6 17. Rhe1 g5 18. Kb1 b5 19. Bf5 b4 20. Qe3 Kh8 21. h4 b3 22. axb3 gxh4 23. f4 Ng6 24. Bxg6 hxg6 25. Rd4 Rf7 26. Qh3 Rh7 27. Re6 Qc5 28. Rd2 Rc8 29. Re1 Rc7 30. d6 exd6 31. Qe6 {Aditya,M (2570)-Vlachos,A (2459) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (43)}) 17. f4 $2 {This wastes a tempo, exposes the f-pawn and obstructs the c1-h6 diagonal. On top, after the knight has retreated, it does not achieve anything constructive.} (17. Kb1 $5 Qd6 (17... a5 18. Be6 a4 19. h4 a3 20. b3 Qd6 21. Qd2 $36 {[%cal Gh4h5,Gd2h6]}) 18. Be6 Nd8 (18... Ng5 19. Bg4 { h4}) (18... Rad8 19. h4 $36) 19. Rhe1 $5 Re8 (19... Qxh2 20. Rh1 Qf4 21. Qa3 Qd6 22. Qe3 $16) 20. Bc8 $1 $36 {[%cal Gh2h4,Gh4h5] A nice move paralysing the black queenside and clearing the path of the h-pawn for the attack.}) 17... Qd6 {It is not clear yet which piece is best suited for the occupation of this square.} ({Since the black rooks do not have any future on the open c-file, it would have made sense to get some space on the queenside:} 17... a5 $5 18. Kb1 a4 19. Be6 (19. a3 b5 $1 {[%cal Ga8b8,Gd8d6,Gb5b4]}) 19... Qd6 20. Rd4 a3 21. b3 Nd8 22. Bg4 b6 {[%csl Ra5][%cal Ga8a5,Ga5c5]} 23. h4 Ra5 {[%csl Gd5]} 24. Qd2 f5 25. Bf3 h5 (25... Nf7 26. Re1 {[%csl Ge6]}) 26. Rg1 {Black is under certain pressure but since White does not have any pawn breaks it looks like the position is statically equal. One more detail is that the white king is not entirely safe either.} Kh7 (26... Kh6 {is also possible:} 27. Qd1 Rc5 28. Bxh5 gxh5 29. Rg5 {Things look dangerous but} Kh7 $8 {saves the day.} 30. Rxh5+ Kg7 31. Rg5+ Kh7 $11) 27. Re1 Ra7 28. Rc4 Qf6 $13) 18. Qd4 (18. Rd4 {can be met with the paradoxical} f5 $3 {[%csl Rh3]} (18... Rad8 19. Be6 $14) 19. Re1 (19. Re4+ $2 Kg8 $19 {[%csl Gd5][%cal Ga8c8]}) 19... Kg8 20. Kb1 Rac8 21. Rc4 Rxc4 22. Qxc4 Qf6 { ...d6 with excellent play for Black.}) 18... Rad8 $146 ({RR} 18... Rfd8 19. Rhe1 Kf8 20. Be6 Qb6 21. Qd2 Rd6 22. f5 Ng5 23. fxg6 hxg6 24. h4 Nxe6 25. Rxe6 Rc8+ 26. Kb1 Rxe6 27. Qh6+ Kf7 28. Qh7+ Kf8 29. Qxg6 Qd6 30. Qh6+ Kf7 31. Qh5+ Kf8 32. Qh8+ Kf7 33. Qxc8 {Nyzhnyk,I (2612)-Hilby,C (2380) Philadelphia 2017 1-0 (37)}) 19. Be6 {It is important to block the e7-pawn.} (19. Rhe1 e5 $1 20. fxe5 Nxe5 21. Re3 (21. f4 Nf3) 21... Nc6 22. dxc6 (22. Qa4 Nb4 23. Be6 Rfe8 24. Kb1 Qf4 $1 $11 25. a3 $140 $2 Nxd5 $17) 22... Qxd4 23. Rxd4 Rxd4 24. cxb7 f5 25. Re7+ Kf6 26. Rxh7 Rfd8 $132) 19... Qb6 20. Qd2 $6 {This allows Black to solve all his problems.} ({Anand might have avoided the queen exchange for psychological reasons, since the endgame is supposed to be Carlsen's chosenterritory, but the only way to keep the pressure was:} 20. Qxb6 axb6 21. Kb1 Nd6 22. Rc1 f5 23. Rc7 Kf6 24. Bd7 {[%cal Gh1e1]} Ne4 25. Rxb7 (25. Re1 $6 Nc5 26. Be6 Rd6 $15 {[%csl Ge6]}) 25... Rb8 26. Rc7 Nxf2 27. Re1 Ne4 28. b4 Rfd8 29. Kb2 h6 30. h4 $14 {[%cal Ga2a4,Gb2b3] White's queenside initiative is rather threatening. For Black, creating a kingside passed pawn with ...g5 would imply big risks for his king.}) 20... Rd6 21. Rhe1 Nd8 {Everything fits well in Black's position and suddenly, White loses his stability in the centre.} 22. f5 (22. Bh3 e6) 22... Nxe6 23. Rxe6 Qc7+ $6 {A bit too timid at a favourable moment.} ({It might have been better to use the c-file for a well-timed check with the rook while eliminating completely White's pressure along the e-file:} 23... Rxe6 $5 24. fxe6 (24. dxe6 Rc8+ 25. Kb1 Qc5 26. fxg6 hxg6 {[%cal Gc8c6]}) 24... Rc8+ 25. Kb1 Qd6 {with chances for reaching a better ending due to White-s weakened structure.}) 24. Kb1 Rc8 (24... Rxe6 25. dxe6 Qc5 26. Qc2 $11) 25. Rde1 Rxe6 26. Rxe6 Rd8 27. Qe3 Rd7 $11 {White's pressure along the e-file should now compensate for the structural defects. But as in an earlier comment, it is worth keeping in mind that the endings could be unpleasant for White.} 28. d6 exd6 29. Qd4 Rf7 30. fxg6 hxg6 31. Rxd6 a6 32. a3 Qa5 33. f4 Qh5 34. Qd2 Qc5 35. Rd5 Qc4 36. Rd7 Qc6 ({If} 36... Rxd7 37. Qxd7+ Qf7 38. Qd6 {the activity of the white queen compensates for the structural problems.}) 37. Rd6 (37. Rxf7+ Kxf7 {would leave the white pawns exposed to a possible king invasion on the light squares.}) 37... Qe4+ 38. Ka2 Re7 {So far Anand has kept things level, but his next two moves give up the centralising, offering Black some chances to take over the initiative.} 39. Qc1 $6 (39. Rd4) 39... a5 40. Qf1 $6 a4 $15 41. Rd1 Qc2 42. Rd4 (42. Qf3 $5 {[%csl Ge3]}) 42... Re2 $6 {Missing the last chance.} (42... Re3 $1 {[%cal Ge3a3,Ga2a3,Rc2b3] with the brutal threat of 43...xa3!+ 44.xa3 b3 mate!} 43. Qd1 (43. Ka1 Rxa3+ 44. bxa3 Qc3+ {[%csl Rd4]}) (43. Rd7+ Kh6 {[%cal Gb7b5]} 44. Rxb7 Rb3 45. Rxb3 axb3+ 46. Ka1 Qxh2 $17 {[%csl Ra1][%cal Gg6g1]}) 43... Qxd1 44. Rxd1 Kh6 $15 {Black is better on both wings and White would face an unpleasant defensive task... even though all rook endings are drawn! Actually the first match proved not all of them are...}) 43. Rb4 {White has finally reached absolute stability and is out of any danger.} b5 44. Qh1 $1 Re7 45. Qd5 Re1 46. Qd7+ Kh6 47. Qh3+ Kg7 48. Qd7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.11"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2014.11.08"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 4. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 5. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:18]} 6. e3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Nbd7 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 7. c5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:48]} 8. Bd3 {[%emt 0:00:27]} (8. h3 {has gone out of fashion recently as after} b6 9. b4 a5 10. a3 {Black can play} Bb7 ({or even} 10... h6) ({instead of the direct} 10... Ba6 {, which allows White to save a tempo by taking on a6 in one go}) 11. Bd3 Qc8 {- see Kasimdzhanov-Jakovenko in CBM 132 and Grischuk-Wang Hao in CBM 139.}) 8... b6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 9. b4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} a5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 10. a3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:03:31]} 11. Bxa6 {[%emt 0:00:41] A principled continuation although the quiet} (11. O-O {is more common.}) 11... Rxa6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 12. b5 $1 {[%emt 0:00:34]} cxb5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 13. c6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Qc8 $1 {[%emt 0:00:05]} (13... b4 $2 14. Nb5 bxa3 15. cxd7 Bb4+ 16. Ke2 Qxd7 17. Qd3 $16 {1-0 (33) Olafsson,H (2521)-Al Tamimi,H (2290) Turin 2006}) 14. c7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} (14. Nxb5 Qxc6 15. Nc7 Ra7 16. Rc1 Qb7 17. Qa4 (17. a4 Bb4+ 18. Ke2 Rc8 19. Qd3 Nh5 20. Nb5 Nxf4+ 21. exf4 Raa8 $17 {1-0 (47) Efimov,I (2520)-Costantini,R (2233) Reggio Emilia 2000}) 17... b5 (17... Rc8 $5 18. O-O Nf8 {[%cal Yf8g6]}) 18. Nxb5 Nb6 19. Qb3 Nc4 20. a4 Bb4+ 21. Ke2 Raa8 22. Ne5 Rfc8 23. f3 Nxe5 24. Bxe5 Ne8 $11 {1/2 (29) Rojas Keim,L (2408)-Ryan,J (2263) Montcada i Reixac ESP 2014}) 14... b4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 15. Nb5 {[%emt 0:00:28] This sequence of moves has been analysed more deeply with White's pawn on h3 (8.h3 instead of 8.d3), which is considered more favourable for White as his bishop can retreat to h2, avoiding an exchange if necessary. However, Vishy Anand and his team have proven that this version is not so harmless either.} a4 {[%emt 0:02:57]} (15... bxa3 16. O-O Nh5 (16... a4 17. Qc2 Ra5 $6 {1/2 (26) Kveinys,A (2510)-Halkias,S (2548) Gothenburg 2005} 18. Bd6 $1 Rxb5 19. Bxe7 Re8 20. Bxa3 $36 {[%csl Gc7]}) 17. Qc2 Nxf4 18. exf4 Qb7 19. Ne5 $36 Nc5 20. dxc5 bxc5 21. Rfb1 (21. Nd7 $5 Re8 22. Qa4 $16) 21... c4 22. Nd7 Rfa8 23. Qa4 h6 24. h3 Qc8 25. Nb8 Rb6 $13 {1/2 (32) Sedlak,N (2557)-Pavlovic,M (2534) Vrnjacka Banja 2010}) (15... Ne4 16. O-O (16. a4 Nc3 17. Qd3 Ra8 18. Nxc3 bxc3 19. O-O Bb4 20. Qb5 Ra7 21. Ne1 Nf6 22. Nd3 Nh5 $13 {1/2 (48) Rusev,K (2543)-Stoinev,M (2295) Albena 2010}) 16... bxa3 17. Qa4 (17. Qc2 $44 a4 $5 {a5, R.Dautov}) 17... g5 18. Bg3 g4 $1 19. Ne1 Nd2 20. Qd1 Nxf1 21. Qxg4+ Kh8 22. Kxf1 Ra8 (22... a4 {[%cal Ya6a5] R.Dautov} 23. Qe2 Ra5 24. Nd6 Bxd6 25. Bxd6 Rg8 26. Nd3 $44) 23. Nc2 Qa6 24. Qe2 Rg8 25. Ncxa3 $44 {1-0 (50) Karpov,A (2693)-Georgiev,K (2655) Dubai 2002 CBM 089 [Dautov]}) 16. Rc1 {[%emt 0:06:00]} Ne4 {[%emt 0:02:02]} 17. Ng5 $5 {[%emt 0:01:47] This tactical trick restricts Black's possibilities compared to} (17. Nd2 e5 (17... Nc3 18. Nxc3 bxc3 19. Rxc3 b5 20. O-O Nb6 {1/2 (67) Villuendas Valero,A (2176)-Labena Bernal,A (2003) Pamplona 2006} 21. Qg4 $5 $36) 18. Nxe4 (18. dxe5 Ndc5 {[%cal Rc5d3]}) 18... dxe4 19. Bxe5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Bc5 21. Qd5 bxa3 22. O-O {0-1 (36) Jendrichovsky,P (2147)-Goumas,G (2315) Fermo 2009} Ra5 $13) 17... Ndf6 {[%emt 0:32:33]} ({Here} 17... e5 18. dxe5 {is obviously senseless}) (17... Nxg5 $6 18. Bd6 $1 Ra5 $8 19. Bxe7 Rxb5 20. axb4 Re8 21. Qxa4 Rxe7 22. Qxb5 $16 {[%csl Gc7]}) (17... Bxg5 18. Bxg5 Ra5 {is a better version of the previous line for Black but White keeps the initiative anyway:} 19. Be7 Rxb5 20. Bxf8 Kxf8 21. Qxa4 Ra5 22. Qxb4+ Ke8 23. O-O Ra7 24. f3 Nef6 25. Qd6 $14 {[%csl Gc7] A.Korotylev}) 18. Nxe4 {[%emt 0:06:58]} Nxe4 {[%emt 0:00:45]} (18... dxe4 $142 $1 19. Nd6 Bxd6 20. Bxd6 b3 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 $44 {(A.Korotylev) , which is about to be the subject of further research.}) 19. f3 {[%emt 0:05:40]} Ra5 {[%emt 0:12:38]} ({RR} 19... Nc5 20. dxc5 bxc5 21. axb4 Qb7 22. Nc3 Qxb4 23. O-O a3 24. Rf2 Bf6 25. Rfc2 Bxc3 26. Rxc3 a2 27. Be5 c4 28. R3c2 f6 29. Bd4 Rc8 30. Qe2 e5 31. Ba1 Qc5 32. Kf1 Rxc7 33. e4 Ra3 34. exd5 {Babujian,L (2332)-Georgakopoulos,N (2153) Paleochora GRE 2025 1-0 (52)}) 20. fxe4 $146 {[%emt 0:02:08][%mdl 8] This improvement on the following game is quite obvious, especially as it had been already played in the similar position of the 8.h3 line (with White's pawn on h3), e.g. in Gyimesi-Vaganian (Germany 2006).} (20. Qe2 $6 Qd7 21. fxe4 Rc8 22. exd5 exd5 23. axb4 Rxb5 24. O-O Rxb4 25. Qa6 h6 26. Rc6 Bg5 27. Bxg5 hxg5 28. Rfc1 Rc4 29. R1xc4 dxc4 30. Qxb6 a3 31. Rxc4 a2 32. Qa5 Qe6 33. Qxa2 Rxc7 34. Qa8+ Kh7 35. Rxc7 Qxe3+ 36. Kf1 Qf4+ 37. Qf3 Qxc7 $11 {1/2 (40) Aronian,L (2795)-Adams,M (2753) Bilbao 2013}) ({RR} 20. Qe2 Qd7 21. fxe4 Rc8 22. exd5 exd5 23. axb4 Rxb5 24. O-O Rxb4 25. Qa6 h6 26. Rc6 Bg5 27. Bxg5 hxg5 28. Rfc1 Rc4 29. R1xc4 dxc4 30. Qxb6 a3 31. Rxc4 a2 32. Qa5 Qe6 33. Qxa2 Rxc7 34. Qa8+ Kh7 {Aronian,L (2795)-Adams,M (2753) Bilbao 2013 ½-½ (40)}) 20... Rxb5 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 21. Qxa4 {[%emt 0:00:56]} Ra5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 22. Qc6 {[%emt 0:00:12]} bxa3 {[%emt 0:09:32] Black's a3-pawn looks formidable but it is far less dangerous than White's c7-pawn.} (22... dxe4 23. a4 $16 {[%csl Gc7]}) 23. exd5 {[%emt 0:03:43]} Rxd5 {[%emt 0:10:57]} (23... exd5 24. O-O {is hardly better. In some situations White can break in the centre by means of e3-e4.}) 24. Qxb6 {[%emt 0:08:48]} Qd7 {[%emt 0:06:37]} 25. O-O {[%emt 0:15:23]} (25. Qa6 $5 Qc8 (25... Rc8 26. Rb1 Rxc7 $8 27. Rb8+ Bd8 28. Bxc7 Qxc7 29. Rc8 Qe7 30. O-O $16) 26. Qc4 {A.Korotylev}) 25... Rc8 {[%emt 0:05:01] Black has blockaded White's passed pawn with a more appropriate piece but eliminating the "nail" is impossible.} 26. Rc6 $1 {[%emt 0:08:36]} g5 {[%emt 0:09:41] Perhaps it was better to do without this move:} (26... Bb4 27. Ra1 h6) 27. Bg3 {[%emt 0:00:42]} (27. Be5 $5 {A.Korotylev} {e.g.} Bb4 28. Qxb4 $5 Qxc6 29. Qe7 Rxe5 30. Qxf7+ Kh8 31. Qf6+ Kg8 32. dxe5 (32. Qxe5 $5 h6 33. Qf6 Rxc7 34. Qf8+ Kh7 35. Qxa3 {, and White should gradually win}) 32... Qxc7 33. Qxe6+ Kh8 34. Qf6+ Qg7 35. Qa6 Rg8 (35... Re8 36. Qxa3 Qxe5 37. Rf8+ Kg7 38. Rxe8 Qxe8) 36. Qxa3 Qxe5 37. h3 {, and Black is helpless as the queen endgame after the eventual exchange of rooks is winning for White.}) 27... Bb4 {[%emt 0:06:25]} 28. Ra1 {[%emt 0:13:45]} Ba5 $2 {[%emt 0:07:45] Black tries to get rid of the c7-pawn after all but this attempt fails. It was better to wait:} (28... g4 {In that case White could have continued weakening Black's position exploiting the e3-e4 threat, e.g.} 29. Be5 {etc. but his victory was still far away.}) 29. Qa6 {[%emt 0:01:23]} Bxc7 {[%emt 0:01:22]} (29... Bb4 $2 {was now hopeless due to} 30. Rb6 {[%cal Rb6b4,Ra6c8] , and otherwise Black just loses his a3-pawn.}) 30. Qc4 $1 {[%emt 0:04:21] A decisive pin.} e5 {[%emt 0:01:59]} 31. Bxe5 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Rxe5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 32. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Qe7 {[%emt 0:00:39]} 33. e6 {[%emt 0:06:09]} Kf8 {[%emt 0:01:12]} 34. Rc1 {[%emt 0:00:46]} 1-0

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.14"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E16"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Wojtaszek,Radoslaw"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2014.11.08"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} b6 {[%emt 0:00:08] The Queen's Indian Defence didn't really come as a surprise to us. It was one of the openings we thought Magnus might be attracted to.} 4. g3 {[%emt 0:00:11]} Bb4+ {[%emt 0:00:09]} 5. Bd2 {[%emt 0:00:18]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:12] This on the other hand is a very rare sideline. We didn't really pay too much attention to this line but still we made sure that Vishy knew some important details here.} 6. Nc3 {[%emt 0:01:19]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 7. Bg2 {[%emt 0:00:13]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 8. e4 $5 {[%emt 0:06:07] Probably the critical test for the whole line} (8. O-O d5 {would lead to positions which are mostly seen in the Catalan. It has to be said that Black is very solid here, so Vishy decided to choose a more active option.} 9. Ne5 O-O 10. Bf4 Nbd7 {is the mainline here but it's not easy to prove anything as White. Many games played by GM Tiviakov can be found here.}) 8... d5 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 9. exd5 $1 {[%emt 0:01:26]} (9. Qe2 dxc4 $1 (9... O-O $6 10. e5 $1) 10. O-O O-O 11. Rfd1 b5 {and I don't think White has enough compensation for the pawn here}) (9. e5 Ne4 $1 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. O-O O-O 12. Re1 Nxd2 13. Qxd2 Ba6 {and Black looks fine to me.}) 9... cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 10. Ne5 {[%emt 0:00:22]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:33]} 11. O-O {[%emt 0:00:48]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:22]} (11... Nbd7 $6 12. Re1 Rc8 13. Rc1 $14 {It's slightly better for White and also it's not easy to suggest a good move for Black here} Ba8 14. Bg5 $5 (14. cxd5 Nxe5 15. Rxe5 exd5 16. Bg5 $14) 14... h6 15. Bxf6 Nxf6 16. cxd5 Nxd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Qa4 $14) 12. cxd5 $1 {[%emt 0:06:22] Only this one can pose any problems for Black.} (12. Bf4 Na5 13. Rc1 Rb8 $1 {the most precise} (13... dxc4 {this would be a natural reaction but I'm not entirely convinced it would be enough for equality} 14. Bxb7 Nxb7 15. Nxc4 Rc8 $1 (15... Na5 $6 16. Ne3 $1 (16. Nxa5 bxa5 17. Be5 Rc8 {with a balanced position}) 16... Rc8 17. d5 Bc5 18. dxe6 fxe6 19. Ng4 $1 {A very important resource, White is better thanks to his pawn structure}) 16. Nb5 (16. Ne3 Bb4) 16... Na5 $1 (16... a6 $4 17. Na7 Ra8 18. Nc6 $18) 17. Nxa5 Rxc1 18. Qxc1 bxa5 19. Nxa7 Qxd4 20. Nc6 Qd7 21. Rd1 Nd5 22. Rd4 {and despite the fact that probably Black is solid enough, White's position looks a bit more pleasant}) 14. Nd3 (14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 $11) 14... Rc8 (14... dxc4 $5 15. Bxb8 Bxg2 16. Kxg2 Qxb8 17. Ne5 Rd8 {and Black has decent compensation}) 15. cxd5 (15. c5 Nc6 $1) 15... Nxd5 16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Rxc8 Qxc8 18. Bxd5 exd5 19. Re1 Nc6 $11) 12... Nxe5 {[%emt 0:01:44]} 13. d6 $1 {[%emt 0:02:20] Of course that's the point of White's idea.} (13. dxe5 Nxd5 $11) 13... Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:24]} (13... Bxg2 $2 14. dxe7 Qxe7 15. dxe5 Bxf1 16. exf6 Qxf6 17. Qxf1 $14) 14. dxe7 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Qxe7 {[%emt 0:01:39]} 15. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:18]} h6 {[%emt 0:01:05]} 16. d5 $1 {[%emt 0:03:20]} Na5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} (16... Rad8 $2 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. dxc6 Rxd1 19. Rfxd1 Bc8 20. Rac1 {and despite what engines are showing, practically speaking Black's position is very bad.}) 17. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:11:29]} Qxf6 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 18. dxe6 {[%emt 0:07:03]} Qxe6 $6 {[%emt 0:04:23]} (18... Bxg2 $5 {sacrificing a pawn was quite an interesting option but it has to be said that it works mainly thanks to tactical reasons} 19. exf7+ (19. Kxg2 Qxe6 20. Qf3 Rad8 {and the position is just equal}) 19... Qxf7 20. Kxg2 Nc4 21. Qb3 $5 (21. Qc2 Rad8 22. Rfd1 (22. Rad1 $6 Rd2 $3 23. Rxd2 Ne3+ 24. Kg1 Nxc2 25. Rxc2) 22... Qf3+ 23. Kg1 Rde8 {and Black's initiative is quite obvious}) (21. Qe2 Rae8 22. Ne4 Nxb2 $1 $11) 21... Rad8 22. Rae1 (22. Rad1 Rxd1 23. Nxd1 Rd8 24. Re1 Rd2 {and I believe here Black has enough compensation to make a comfortable draw}) 22... Rd2 23. Re2 Kh8 $1 24. Kg1 $1 (24. Rxd2 $2 Qf3+ $1 $19) 24... Rxe2 25. Nxe2 Nd2 26. Qxf7 Rxf7 27. Rc1 Nf3+ 28. Kg2 Nxh2 $1 {was the final point of Black's play.}) 19. Re1 {[%emt 0:01:48]} (19. Bxb7 $5 Nxb7 20. Qf3 Nc5 21. Rfe1 Qg6 22. Nd5 $14 {was also an interesting option. White's position is slightly better but it wouldn't be easy to increase the advantage. Vishy decided that a more complex continuation would give him more chances.}) 19... Qf6 {[%emt 0:01:08]} 20. Nd5 $1 {[%emt 0:17:18]} Bxd5 {[%emt 0:12:23]} (20... Qxb2 $6 21. Re2 $1 Qa3 22. Re3 Qb2 23. Rb1 $1 {and Black's position would be already quite difficult} Qxa2 24. Ra1 $1 Qc4 25. Rxa5 bxa5 26. Ne7+ Kh8 27. Bxb7 Rad8 28. Qf3 {and White has a very strong initiative.}) 21. Bxd5 {[%emt 0:01:00]} Rad8 {[%emt 0:02:09]} 22. Qf3 {[%emt 0:02:26]} Qxb2 {[%emt 0:11:06]} (22... Qxf3 23. Bxf3 $14 {is a typical position where the bishop is simply better than the knight.}) 23. Rad1 {[%emt 0:01:03]} Qf6 $1 {[%emt 0:13:01] A very practical decision. White has a very strong initiative which will be easier to handle in the endgame.} (23... Rd6 $2 24. Bxf7+ $1 Rxf7 25. Re8+ Kh7 26. Qxf7 Rxd1+ 27. Kg2 {and there is no good defence} Qf6 (27... Rd6 28. Qf5+ Rg6 29. Re6 $18) 28. Qg8+ Kg6 29. Re6 $18) 24. Qxf6 {[%emt 0:01:29]} gxf6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 25. Re7 {[%emt 0:01:19]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:03:27] Till this point I think Vishy had played an excellent game but here he missed his chance to pose more problems for Black.} 26. Rxa7 $146 {[%emt 0:07:46]} (26. Rc7 $1 {stopping ...c6 was neccessary at first} a6 27. Kg2 $1 {another very important detail, now White has a xf7 threat} Kh8 $1 {is the best way to play for Black} (27... b5 $2 28. Bxf7 Rxd1 29. Bh5+ Kg8 30. Bxd1 {it's already very difficult}) 28. Bf3 Rxd1 29. Bxd1 Kg7 30. Ra7 $16 {and White eventually will take the pawn back without exchanging anything on the queenside. I don't know how big exactly are White's winning chances but it's clear that it would be very difficult for Black to defend it successfully.}) ({RR} 26. Kg2 a6 27. Bxf7 Nc6 28. Rxd8 Nxe7 29. Be8 b5 30. f4 Kg8 31. Kf3 a5 32. Ke4 a4 33. Ra8 b4 34. Kd3 b3 35. a3 f5 36. Kd2 Kg7 37. Kc1 Kg8 38. Kb2 {½-½ (38) Jarmula,L (2504)-Petrosyan,M (2581) Manavgat 2018}) 26... Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:55]} 27. Rb7 $6 {[%emt 0:09:28] This allows Black to exchange the last pawns on the queenside, so the weakness of the kingside doesn't matter any more.} (27. Ra4 {was the last chance to continue the game a bit} Rd7 $1 28. Bb3 Rxd1+ 29. Bxd1 Rd8 {and Black should hold this position fairly simply thanks to his active pieces.}) 27... Nb4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 28. Bb3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Rxd1+ {[%emt 0:00:05]} 29. Bxd1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Nxa2 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 30. Rxb6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 31. Bf3 {[%emt 0:00:10]} f5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 32. Kg2 {[%emt 0:00:41]} Rd8 {[%emt 0:01:22]} 33. Rc6 {[%emt 0:01:35]} Ne4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 34. Bxe4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} fxe4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 35. Rc4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} f5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 36. g4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Rd2 {[%emt 0:00:34]} 37. gxf5 {[%emt 0:00:15]} e3 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 38. Re4 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Rxf2+ {[%emt 0:00:07]} 39. Kg3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Rxf5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.18"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2014.11.08"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 4. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:39]} 5. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:13] Anand doesn't mind to repeat the same line that brought him success in game three.} O-O {[%emt 0:00:14]} 6. e3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:13] This used to be the main line years ago, but nowadays is out of fashion.} ({In game three there followed} 6... Nbd7 7. c5 {which is the main line nowadays.}) 7. dxc5 {[%emt 0:00:28]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 8. a3 {[%emt 0:00:27]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 9. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:54]} Re8 $5 {[%emt 0:00:12] Here is what Magnus and his team unleashed. Black's idea is to prepare e6-e5. However, as long as Black's queen stays on d8, this gives White numerous options to press on the d5. The quiet rook move is very rare and has never really appeared on the top level so far. During and after the game there were speculations as to whether the idea 9...e8 was a one-shot affair, or whether it may find followers and even become a new trend in the Queen's Gambit!? Hard to say. After a certain analysis I can conclude that White definitely can't refute Black's setup by force, but does have chances for a slight advantage.} (9... Qa5 {is the main move.}) 10. Bg5 $6 {[%emt 0:11:18] White has many logical options to consider. Anand's choice is one of them, but unfortunately for him, is not the most challenging. In future games White needs to seek for an advantage after 10.0-0-0 or 10.b4.} (10. b4 Bd6 ({A real mess may arise after} 10... e5 $6 11. Bg5 d4 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Nd5 e4 14. bxc5 exf3 15. O-O-O {which seems to be in White's favour.}) 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. c5 (12. Be2 dxc4 13. Bxc4 $140 Ne5 $1 $11) 12... Qe7 13. Rd1 Rd8 14. Be2 e5 15. O-O Bg4 16. Rfe1 {This position is slightly easier to handle as White.}) (10. O-O-O e5 (10... h6 $5 {This prophylaxics deserves more atttention. Before developing his counterplay on the queenside, Black covers the g5-square.} 11. Bg3 (11. Kb1 e5 12. cxd5 exf4 13. dxc6 Qc7 14. Nd5 Nxd5 15. Qxc5 Nf6 16. exf4 Bg4 $132) (11. Nb5 e5 12. Bg3 a6 13. cxd5 Na5 $1 14. Nc3 Bg4 $44 {and now} 15. b4 $2 Bd6 16. bxa5 $2 Qxa5 {[%csl Rc1] leads to a disaster for White.}) 11... a6 $1 {Another useful prophylactic move.} ({After} 11... Qa5 $6 12. Nb5 {is unpleasant.}) 12. Kb1 Be7 13. Bh4 Bd7 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. cxd5 Na5 $1 16. dxe6 Rxe6 17. Rd5 Rc8 18. Nd4 Re5 19. Rxe5 Bxe5 {with decent compensation.}) 11. Bg5 (11. cxd5 $6 exf4 12. dxc6 Qc7 {is fine for Black.}) 11... d4 12. Nd5 Be7 13. Nxe7+ Qxe7 14. exd4 Nxd4 (14... Bg4 15. dxe5 (15. d5 $6 Nd4 16. Qd3 Bxf3 17. gxf3 b5 $1 $44) 15... Nxe5 16. Be2 b5 $5 (16... h6 17. Be3 $14) 17. Rhe1 bxc4 18. Bxc4 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Qc7 20. Be2 $14) 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Rxd4 (16. Kb1 h6 17. Bh4 $14) 16... Qe5 17. Be3 b5 18. c5 Bf5 19. Bd3 Rac8 20. b4 Bxd3 21. Rxd3 $14 {1-0 (39) Lalith,B (2569)-Thejkumar,M (2452) Jalgaon 2013}) (10. Rd1 e5 11. Bg5 d4 12. Nd5 Be7 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bd3 g6 15. Nxf6+ Qxf6 16. O-O Bg4 $11 {½-½ (30) Romanov,S (2535)-Dibley,E (2463) ICCF email 2010}) ({In case of} 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Be2 {Black can equalise by} d4 12. Rd1 Bg4 13. O-O Qe7 14. Na4 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 dxe3 $1 16. Nxc5 e2 17. Bxe2 Qxe2 $11) 10... Be7 $1 {[%emt 0:02:07] Magnus answered quickly, clearly showing that Anand's reply had also been under thorough investigation.} (10... d4 11. O-O-O e5 {would transpose to the line 10.0-0-0 e5 11.g5 d4 mentioned above.}) 11. Rd1 {[%emt 0:07:43]} (11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 $11) (11. O-O-O Bd7 {is also perfectly playable for Black.} (11... Qa5 $6 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. cxd5 {Here White's knight is not pinned, so White wins a pawn.}) {It is now very risky for White to grab the pawn:} 12. Bxf6 $6 Bxf6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Rxd5 Rc8 $36) 11... Qa5 {[%emt 0:01:00] Pinning the knight, so now the d5 is protected.} 12. Bd3 {[%emt 0:06:50] Officially, only this is a novelty. At first sight it looks like an improvement, but Carlsen proves that Black has good grounds for keeping the balance.} (12. Be2 Ne4 13. cxd5 Nxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 15. bxc3 exd5 16. Bxe7 Nxe7 17. Nd4 Bd7 $11 {0-1 (66) Correa de Almeida,C (1742)-Manheimer,G (1967) Lechenicher SchachServer 2010}) 12... h6 {[%emt 0:00:34]} 13. Bh4 {[%emt 0:00:24]} dxc4 {[%emt 0:02:23]} (13... a6 {was also possible and after} 14. O-O (14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxe7 Ncxe7 $11) 14... dxc4 15. Bxc4 {could lead to the same position by a different order of moves.}) 14. Bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} a6 {[%emt 0:02:32]} 15. O-O {[%emt 0:07:30]} b5 {[%emt 0:01:40]} 16. Ba2 {[%emt 0:07:59]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:53]} 17. Bb1 {[%emt 0:03:35]} (17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Ne4 (18. Rd7 Re7 $11) 18... Be7 19. Rd7 (19. Nc5 Bxc5 20. Qxc5 Red8 $11) 19... Qb6 20. Bb1 g6 {White doesn't have enough resources to create serious threats, his activity is temporary. For instance: after} 21. h4 Rac8 {Black has no problems.}) 17... Rad8 $1 {[%emt 0:01:09] A cold-blooded reply, showing that White's battery along the diagonal b1-h7 is not so frightening.} 18. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:09:36]} Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 19. Ne4 $146 {[%emt 0:04:31]} (19. Qh7+ $6 {is just a single check.} Kf8 {Black's king has a safe shelter on e7. Meanwhile, White's queenside is under pressure.}) ({RR} 19. Qh7+ Kf8 20. Ne4 Rxd1 21. Rxd1 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Qh8+ Ke7 24. Qxd8+ Nxd8 25. Nxf6 Kxf6 26. Nd2 Ke5 27. f4+ Kd6 28. Kf2 a5 29. Bd3 Bc6 30. e4 f6 31. Nb3 Nb7 32. Nd4 Nc5 33. Bxb5 Bxe4 {Spalir,J (2305)-Acimovic,V (1728) Otocec 2016 ½-½ (62)}) 19... Be7 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 20. Nc5 {[%emt 0:08:02]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:40]} 21. Qxc5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} b4 $1 {[%emt 0:05:00] After the exchange of queens the game peters out.} 22. Rc1 {[%emt 0:05:11]} (22. Qxa5 Nxa5 23. axb4 Nc4 24. b3 Bxf3 25. Rxd8 (25. gxf3 $4 Nd2 $19) 25... Rxd8 26. bxc4 Be2 27. Rc1 Bxc4 $11) 22... bxa3 {[%emt 0:03:27]} 23. bxa3 {[%emt 0:00:19]} Qxc5 {[%emt 0:01:36]} 24. Rxc5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Ne7 {[%emt 0:01:56]} 25. Rfc1 {[%emt 0:03:42]} Rc8 {[%emt 0:00:28]} (25... Bxf3 {is possible, but I wouldn't recommend it.} {After} 26. gxf3 {White's bishop is slightly superior to the knight and the a6 may become a target.}) 26. Bd3 {[%emt 0:01:57]} Red8 {[%emt 0:01:15]} 27. Rxc8 {[%emt 0:02:28]} Rxc8 {[%emt 0:01:53]} 28. Rxc8+ {[%emt 0:04:58]} Nxc8 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 29. Nd2 {[%emt 0:01:41]} Nb6 {[%emt 0:01:06]} 30. Nb3 {[%emt 0:02:03]} Nd7 {[%emt 0:00:14] Covering the c5-square and parrying White's last attempt to squeeze something out of nothing.} 31. Na5 {[%emt 0:02:28]} Bc8 {[%emt 0:00:35]} 32. Kf1 {[%emt 0:01:27]} Kf8 {[%emt 0:01:11]} 33. Ke1 {[%emt 0:00:22]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:06:03]} 34. Kd2 {[%emt 0:01:31]} Kd6 {[%emt 0:03:16]} 35. Kc3 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Ne5 {[%emt 0:00:26]} 36. Be2 {[%emt 0:00:32]} Kc5 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 37. f4 {[%emt 0:02:25]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:01:17]} 38. Nxc6 {[%emt 0:01:41]} Kxc6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 39. Kd4 {[%emt 0:00:39]} f6 {[%emt 0:00:37] Black has a safe fortress.} 40. e4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Kd6 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. e5+ {[%emt 0:01:07] A success for Magnus neutralising one of Anand's last games as White in the match.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Anand +3-1=7"]
[Site "Sochi"]
[Date "2014.11.21"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D97"]
[WhiteElo "2792"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2014.11.08"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 164"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 4. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 5. Qb3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} dxc4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 6. Qxc4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:14]} 7. e4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Na6 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 8. Be2 {[%emt 0:00:35]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 9. d5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 10. O-O {[%emt 0:00:16]} exd5 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 11. exd5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Re8 {[%emt 0:00:35]} 12. Bg5 {[%emt 0:11:40] A relatively rare but promising idea posing new problems to the adherents of the 7...a6 system. White provokes ...h7-h6, which will later allow him to gain a tempo when his queen will be forced to retreat to c1.} h6 {[%emt 0:03:02]} (12... Qb6 13. Qh4 Bf5 14. Bb5 Bd7 15. Bc4 Nb4 16. Rad1 $16 {[%cal Yd5d6] 1-0 (21) Limp,E (2440)-Rosa,C (2223) Rio de Janeiro 2006}) 13. Be3 {[%emt 0:01:35]} (13. Bxf6 $6 {makes no sense:} Qxf6 14. Rad1 Bd7 15. Rfe1 (15. Rd2 Rab8 16. a4 Qb6 17. d6 Nb4 18. Qb3 Rbd8 19. Bc4 Be6 20. Rfd1 Rd7 $132 {[%csl Rd6] 0-1 (37) Jakobsen,O (2410)-Welin,T (2215) Copenhagen 1980}) 15... Qb6 16. Rd2 Rad8 17. a3 Qa5 18. Bf1 Rxe1 19. Nxe1 b5 $36 {1/2 (38) Oll,L (2405)-Gavrikov,V (2550) Tallinn 1985}) (13. Bh4 Qb6 (13... g5 $5) 14. a3 (14. Rfd1 Bf5) 14... Bf5 15. Bd3 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Qxb2 17. Ra2 Qb6 18. Rb1 c4 19. Qxc4 Rac8 20. Qf1 Qc5 $36 {1/2 (41) Szczechowicz,B (2275)-Miton,K (2375) Trzebinia 1998}) (13. Bf4 $5 Bf5 (13... g5 $5 14. Bg3 Nh5 {is probably better}) 14. Ne5 (14. Rad1 Ne4 15. Bd3 Nd6 16. Bxd6 Bxd3 17. Rxd3 Qxd6 18. a3 Nc7 19. Rfd1 b6 20. Ne4 Qd7 21. Nc3 Rad8 22. h3 Qd6 23. a4 {1/2 (23) Bolbochan,J-Pilnik,H Mar del Plata 1950}) 14... Qb6 (14... Nd7 $5 15. Nxd7 Qxd7) 15. d6 Be6 16. Qd3 Qb4 17. Qd2 g5 18. Bg3 c4 19. f4 $16 {1-0 (28) Antoshin,V-Kozma,J Sochi 1963}) 13... Bf5 {[%emt 0:02:29]} 14. Rad1 {[%emt 0:07:06]} Ne4 {[%emt 0:02:40]} (14... Qb6 {didn't solve Black's problems in the following correspondence game:} 15. Rd2 ({but not} 15. b3 Rad8 16. Rd2 $6 Ng4 17. Bf4 Qa5 18. Rc1 {0-1 (67) Wojtaszek,R (2713)-Ponomariov,R (2729) Poikovsky 2012} b5 $1 19. Qxb5 Bxc3 20. Qxa6 g5 $1 $17) 15... Rac8 16. h3 Ne4 17. Nxe4 Rxe4 18. Qc1 Ree8 19. Bc4 Qd6 20. Re2 g5 21. h4 f6 22. Rfe1 Nc7 23. Bb3 b6 24. Nd2 Kh8 25. Nc4 Qd7 26. hxg5 hxg5 27. d6 $16 {1-0 (46) Langeveld,R (2696)-Schuster,P (2451) ICCF email 2010}) ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. b3 Rad8 16. Rd2 Ng4 17. Bf4 Qa5 18. Rc1 g5 19. Bg3 Bxc3 20. Qxc3 Qxc3 21. Rxc3 Nf6 22. Bb5 Ne4 23. Re3 Nxd2 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. Bxe8 Ne4 26. Ne5 f6 27. Nc4 Kf8 28. Bb5 Nxg3 29. Bxa6 {Wojtaszek,R (2713)-Ponomariov,R (2729) Poikovsky 2012 0-1 (67)}) 15. Nxe4 {[%emt 0:02:11]} Bxe4 $146 {[%emt 0:10:55]} (15... Rxe4 16. Qc1 {[%cal Re3h6,Yd5d6]}) ({RR} 15... Rxe4 16. Qc1 Kh7 17. a3 Qd7 18. d6 Rae8 19. Bd3 Rg4 20. Bxf5 Qxf5 21. h3 {1-0 (21) Ebrahimi Herab,H (2385)-Mattenberger,M (2236) chess.com INT 2025}) ({RR} 15... Rxe4 16. Qc1 Kh7 17. Bd3 Nb4 18. Bxe4 Bxe4 19. a3 Nd3 20. Qd2 Nxb2 21. Rc1 Nd3 22. Rb1 Qxd5 23. Ne1 c4 24. f3 c3 25. Qc2 Bf5 26. Rd1 Nxe1 27. Rfxe1 Qc4 28. Qf2 b5 29. g4 Bd3 30. Kh1 {Ebrahimi Herab,H (2386)-Yang Kaiqi (2481) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (36)}) 16. Qc1 {[%emt 0:12:38] This retreat is now unnecessary as the queen is not attacked.} (16. d6 $142 $1 $36 {[%csl Gd6]}) 16... Qf6 {[%emt 0:05:49] Black immediately exploits White's inaccuracy. Still, he can't reach full equality.} (16... Kh7 $143 17. d6 $1) 17. Bxh6 {[%emt 0:09:45]} Qxb2 {[%emt 0:00:30]} (17... Bxd5 {(recommended by GM M.Golubev)} 18. Rxd5 Rxe2 19. Rd7 $5 (19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Rd7 Re7 $11) 19... Qxb2 20. Bxg7 Qxc1 21. Rxc1 Kxg7 22. Rxb7 {[%cal Rf3g5]} Rae8 $1 $14) 18. Qxb2 {[%emt 0:13:47]} Bxb2 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 19. Ng5 $1 {[%emt 0:08:07]} Bd4 $1 {[%emt 0:33:49][%csl Gd4]} 20. Nxe4 {[%emt 0:14:02]} Rxe4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 21. Bf3 {[%emt 0:00:18]} Re7 {[%emt 0:01:52]} 22. d6 {[%emt 0:08:08]} Rd7 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 23. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:42][%csl Gd6]} Nb4 {[%emt 0:05:55]} 24. Rd2 $6 {[%emt 0:01:14][%mdl 32] By ceding the e-file to Black White loses winning chances.} (24. Rfe1 $142 Rad8 {[%cal Yd7d6]} (24... Nxa2 $143 25. Re7 Rxe7 26. dxe7 Re8 27. Re1 {[%csl Ge7]}) 25. a3 (25. Re7 Kf8 $1) 25... Nc6 26. h4 $14) 24... Re8 {[%emt 0:02:32]} 25. Rc1 {[%emt 0:05:57]} Re6 {[%emt 0:08:43]} 26. h4 {[%emt 0:01:25]} Be5 {[%emt 0:04:58]} 27. Bxe5 {[%emt 0:01:45]} Rxe5 $11 {[%emt 0:00:02] Now White's d6-pawn can become weak. Vishy Anand decides to force a draw.} 28. Bxb7 {[%emt 0:03:39]} Rxb7 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 29. d7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 30. d8=Q+ {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nxd8 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 31. Rxd8+ {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 32. Rd2 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.10"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A42"]
[WhiteElo "2784"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. e4 d6 4. Nf3 e5 5. Nc3 ({It's too early to swap queens:} 5. dxe5 dxe5 6. Qxd8+ Kxd8 7. Nc3 c6 {Later on Black puts the king on c7 and has no problems. Don't believe your engine that shows an advantage for White here, this position is equal.}) 5... Nc6 (5... exd4 6. Nxd4 Nc6 {is another story.} ({or} 6... Ne7)) 6. Bg5 {Provoking some sort of a concession.} (6. d5 Nce7 7. Be2 f5 8. exf5 Nxf5 (8... gxf5 $2 {is over optimistic. After} 9. Ng5 {I managed to win against a strong opponent rather quickly:} Nf6 10. Bh5+ Kf8 $2 11. Bf7 $1 h6 12. Ne6+ Bxe6 13. Bxe6 $18 {1-0 (27) Postny,E (2637)-Delchev,A (2622) Haguenau 2013}) 9. O-O Nf6 {leads to one of the typical structures. I believe that White should be slightly better, though it won't be easy to establish a blockade on e4 without letting black's knight get to d4.}) 6... f6 (6... Nf6 $2 {loses material by force after} 7. dxe5 dxe5 8. Qxd8+ Nxd8 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. Nd5 $18 {[%csl Rc7,Rf6]}) 7. Be3 Nh6 {The knight goes to f7, which is in harmony with Black's previous move.} 8. h3 (8. dxe5 dxe5 9. Qxd8+ Kxd8 10. O-O-O+ Bd7 11. h3 Kc8 12. c5 Nf7 13. Bc4 Ncd8 14. b4 c6 15. Nd2 Be6 16. Be2 Bh6 17. Bxh6 Nxh6 18. Nc4 Ndf7 19. a4 Kc7 $11 {0-1 (60) Karpov,A (2725)-Seirawan,Y (2600) Roquebrune 1992}) 8... Nf7 9. c5 $6 {A standad break, but too early in this case.} ({The simple} 9. Be2 {looks like a better try for an opening advantage.} O-O 10. O-O f5 (10... Bd7 11. c5 $1 exd4 12. Nxd4 dxc5 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. Bxc5 Nd6 15. Qb3+ Kh8 16. Bb5 $1 $14 {½-½ (56) Keres,P-Spassky,B Moscow 1965}) 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Qxd8 Ncxd8 (12... Rxd8 13. Nd5 fxe4 14. Nd2 $14) 13. Nd5 fxe4 14. Nd2 Ne6 15. Nxe4 Nf4 16. Bf3 Nxd5 17. cxd5 $14 {½-½ (70) Bhat,V (2483)-Nakamura,H (2697) Mainz 2008}) (9. d5 {is always an option, of course. However, it seems that White can benefit more if keeps the centre flexible, at least for a while.}) 9... dxc5 10. dxe5 (10. dxc5 Qxd1+ 11. Rxd1 Be6 $11) 10... Nfxe5 11. Nxe5 ({RR} 11. Qxd8+ Nxd8 12. Nxe5 fxe5 13. Bxc5 Ne6 14. Be3 Nd4 15. O-O-O Be6 16. f4 O-O-O 17. g3 h5 18. h4 c6 19. Bh3 Bxh3 20. Rxh3 Ne6 21. Rhh1 Rhf8 22. Rhf1 Bh6 23. Ne2 b6 24. Rxd8+ Kxd8 25. Kc2 Ke7 {Wojtaszek,R (2696)-Carlsen,M (2861) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (36)}) 11... fxe5 {Massive simplifications to follow. Black has very little to worry about. All this has already appeared before.} 12. Bb5 (12. Bxc5 Qxd1+ 13. Rxd1 Bd7 14. Bc4 O-O-O $11 {½-½ (17) Petkov,V (2480)-Jovanovic,Z (2543) Sibenik 2006}) 12... Bd7 $146 (12... Qxd1+ 13. Rxd1 Bd7 14. Bxc5 O-O-O 15. O-O Nd4 $11 {1-0 (36) Kortschnoj,V (2665)-Kagan,S (2465) Beersheba 1978}) ({RR} 12... Qxd1+ 13. Rxd1 Bd7 14. Bxc5 O-O-O 15. O-O Nd4 16. Bc4 Kb8 17. f4 Be6 18. Bxe6 Nxe6 19. Rxd8+ Rxd8 20. Be7 Re8 21. f5 Rxe7 22. Nd5 Rf7 23. fxe6 Rxf1+ 24. Kxf1 Kc8 25. e7 Kd7 26. Nxc7 Kxe7 27. Ke2 {Kortschnoj,V (2665)-Kagan,S (2465) Beersheba 1978 1-0 (36)}) 13. Bxc6 {Anish decided to play it safe, not allowing the knight togo to d4 by simply eliminating it.} (13. Qd5 Nd4 14. Bxd7+ Qxd7 15. Qxb7 O-O (15... Nc2+ $2 {is just a waste of time, as the knight will have to go back to d4 soon.} 16. Ke2 Rd8 17. Rhd1 Nd4+ 18. Kf1 $16) 16. O-O Rfb8 17. Qa6 Rxb2 18. Rab1 Rb6 19. Qc4+ Qe6 20. Qxc5 Rab8 {with a balanced position.}) 13... Bxc6 14. Bxc5 Bf8 {The bishop could achieve nothing from g7.} 15. Bxf8 (15. Be3 Qxd1+ 16. Rxd1 Bd6 {followed by castling to the queenside is also equal.}) 15... Rxf8 16. O-O (16. Qg4 Qf6 (16... Qe7 {is also fairly safe.}) 17. O-O-O Rd8 18. Rxd8+ Kxd8 19. Rd1+ Ke7 {White doesn't have enough resources to harass black's king. It's important that White's knight is restricted.}) 16... Qxd1 17. Rfxd1 Rd8 {The game quickly simplified into an equal endgame.} 18. Rxd8+ Kxd8 19. Rd1+ Ke7 20. Nd5+ Bxd5 21. Rxd5 Ke6 22. f3 c6 23. Rd3 Rf7 24. Kf2 Rd7 {The exchange of rooks doesn't change the evaluation of the position as drawish.} 25. Rxd7 Kxd7 26. h4 c5 27. g3 b5 28. b3 Ke6 29. Ke3 h6 30. f4 h5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.12"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A41"]
[WhiteElo "2744"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 f5 {A delayed dutch.} 4. b4 Bg7 5. Bb2 a5 ({RR} 5... Nh6 6. e3 Nf7 7. c5 a5 8. a3 O-O 9. Qb3 e6 10. Be2 Qe7 11. O-O g5 12. Nc3 d5 13. h3 Nd7 14. Nb5 g4 15. hxg4 fxg4 16. Nd2 c6 17. Nd6 Nxd6 18. cxd6 Qxd6 19. Bxg4 e5 20. e4 {Volkov,S (2618)-Petrosian,T (2663) Moscow 2015 0-1 (43)}) 6. b5 a4 $146 {This brave pawn will be weak, but it does restrict White a little. Carlsen has to be very careful not to lose it though.} ({RR} 6... c5 7. e3 Nd7 8. Be2 e5 9. O-O e4 10. Ne1 Ngf6 11. f4 O-O 12. d5 h6 13. Nc2 Nb6 14. Nd2 Na4 15. Ba3 Nh7 16. Nb1 g5 17. Bc1 Bxa1 18. Nxa1 Qf6 19. Qxa4 Qxa1 20. Qc2 Qg7 21. Bb2 {Villavicencio Martinez,C (2131)-Hidalgo Santana,F (2130) Tenerife 2009 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 6... Nd7 7. e3 e5 8. a4 e4 9. Nfd2 Nh6 10. Be2 O-O 11. Nc3 Kh8 12. Qc2 Nf6 13. O-O Nh5 14. Bxh5 gxh5 15. Nd5 Ng4 16. h3 Nf6 17. Nf4 Bh6 18. d5 Qe8 19. c5 Kg8 20. cxd6 Bxf4 21. exf4 {von Mettenheim,J (2345)-Jakobeit,D (2243) Verden an der Aller GER 2025 1-0 (36)}) 7. e3 Nf6 8. Be2 c6 9. bxc6 bxc6 10. O-O O-O 11. Qc2 Qc7 12. Nc3 a3 13. Bc1 {White has a nice edge. His central control and possibility to attack a3 makes Black's position very shaky. The best he can do is sacrifice the a3 pawn and try to gain counterplay using the open a-file, but that seems to be easier said than done.} Nbd7 14. Rb1 Ne4 {This uses a nifty tactical resource, but Wojtaszek smartly sidesteps the complications.} 15. Nxe4 fxe4 16. Nd2 (16. Qxe4 Nc5 $1 17. dxc5 (17. Qh4 Bf5 $132) 17... Bf5 {skewers the queen to the rook on b1.}) 16... Nf6 17. Rb3 {White is now going to win the b3 pawn and in some lines e4 is under attack. Black really has no compensation.} Bf5 18. Rxa3 h5 19. Rxa8 Rxa8 20. a3 h4 {Initiating operations on the kingside is the only way to go, but it is insufficient.} 21. Bb2 h3 22. g3 {Ignoring the pawn pushes is fine for White as there is no way to force the trade of the bishops, the knight on d2 AND get a queen to f3.} Qc8 23. Re1 (23. Ra1 Bg4 $1) 23... Rb8 (23... Bg4 24. Nxe4 {is no good. Re1 is prophylaxis against Bg4.}) 24. Bc3 Nh7 25. a4 Ng5 26. Rb1 Ra8 27. Qd1 (27. Rb6 $16) 27... c5 28. Rb6 Qe6 $2 {This leads to a forced win for White.} (28... Kh7 {still keeps Black's chances alive, though there is no doubt that White is better.}) 29. g4 $1 {Simply put the bishop on f5 is trapped. Black has some tricks, but that's it.} cxd4 30. Bxd4 {There is no rush in capturing on f5, so this is more precise.} Bxd4 31. exd4 e3 32. gxf5 gxf5 (32... exf2+ 33. Kf1 $1 Qxf5 34. Qb1 {is kaput.}) 33. Nf1 exf2+ 34. Kxf2 Ne4+ 35. Ke1 {White's king is a little exposed, and with time trouble looming the situation is tricky, but Wojtaszek handles it very well.} Qf6 36. Qd3 Rxa4 37. Rb1 $1 {Covering the first rank removes counterplay.} Qh4+ 38. Ng3 Kf7 (38... Nxg3 39. Qxg3+ Qxg3+ 40. hxg3 h2 41. Kf2 $18) 39. Qf3 $1 Kg7 40. Qf4 $1 {A very human reaction. The computers will tell you there are better moves out there, but simplifying into an endgame up a piece is the simplest.} Qxf4 41. Nh5+ Kf7 42. Nxf4 Ng5 43. d5 {The rest is relatively easy. White just needs to untangle and put his pieces in the correct spots. f5 and h3 will eventually work by themselves.} Kf6 44. Kf2 Ra3 45. Bd3 Ra2+ 46. Kg3 Ra3 47. Re1 Ne4+ 48. Kf3 Ng5+ 49. Ke3 Ra2 50. Re2 Ra3 51. Rf2 Ne4 52. Rf3 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.13"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D76"]
[WhiteElo "2667"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "88"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. Bg2 Nb6 7. Nc3 Nc6 8. O-O O-O 9. d5 Na5 10. Qc2 c6 11. dxc6 Nxc6 12. Rd1 Bd7 13. Bf4 Qc8 ({RR} 13... Rc8 14. Rac1 e5 15. Bg5 f6 16. Qb3+ Kh8 17. Be3 Na5 18. Qb4 Nc6 19. Qb3 Na5 20. Bxb6 axb6 21. Qb4 Qc7 22. h4 Bf5 23. Nd5 Qxc1 24. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 25. Kh2 Be6 26. e4 Nc6 27. Qxb6 Rc2 28. h5 {Van Wely,L (2609)-Hellers,F (2592) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (42)}) ({RR} 13... Rc8 14. Rac1 e5 15. Bg5 Qe8 16. Ne4 Bf5 17. Nh4 Nd4 18. Qd3 Bg4 19. f3 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Bd7 21. Bf1 f6 22. Be3 Bc6 23. Qa3 a6 24. Bf2 Kh8 25. e3 Nxf3+ 26. Nxf3 Bxe4 27. Nd2 Bc6 28. Bg2 {Khusenkhojaev,M (2366)-Wei Yi (2729) Qingdao CHN 2023 0-1 (52)}) 14. Rac1 Bf5 15. e4 Bg4 16. Qb3 $146 ({RR} 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. exd5 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Nd4 19. Qe4 Nxf3+ 20. Qxf3 Qf5 21. Qd3 {½-½ (21) Pliester,L (2350)-Pribyl,J (2460) Pardubice 1996}) ({RR} 16. Nb5 e5 17. Be3 Rd8 18. Rxd8+ Qxd8 19. Rd1 Qc8 20. Nd6 Qc7 21. h3 Bxf3 22. Bxf3 Rd8 23. Nb5 Qb8 24. Qc5 Rxd1+ 25. Bxd1 Bf8 26. Qc1 Qd8 27. Qd2 Qxd2 28. Bxd2 a6 29. Nc3 Nc4 30. Bc1 Bb4 {Naumann,A (2544)-Tuncer,U (2289) Austria 2011 ½-½ (74)}) 16... Qe6 17. Qxe6 fxe6 18. e5 Nd5 19. Nxd5 exd5 20. Ng5 e6 21. f3 h6 22. fxg4 hxg5 23. Bxg5 Nxe5 24. Bf4 Nc6 25. g5 Bxb2 26. Rc2 Bd4+ 27. Kh1 Rad8 28. Rb1 Rf7 29. Bh3 Re8 30. Re2 e5 31. Rb5 Ref8 32. Be6 exf4 33. Rxb7 f3 34. Rd2 Kg7 35. Bxf7 Rxf7 36. Rxf7+ Kxf7 37. Rd3 f2 38. Kg2 Ke6 39. h4 Bb6 40. Rf3 Ne5 41. Rf6+ Ke7 42. a4 Bd4 43. g4 Nxg4 44. Rf4 Nh2 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.15"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2797"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bxf6 Qxf6 8. Qa4+ Nc6 9. e3 O-O 10. Be2 Be6 11. O-O a6 12. Rfc1 Bd6 13. Qd1 Ne7 {A popular system of the Ragozin Defence has been played. As usual in this structure, White must start active play on the queenside while Black must create kingside counterplay.} 14. a3 ({In the event of} 14. Na4 {there is nothing wrong with} b6 {, e.g.} 15. b4 (15. Nc3 g5 $5 16. g3 Qg7 17. Qf1 f5 18. Bxa6 f4 19. exf4 Rxa6 $5 20. Qxa6 gxf4 21. Qd3 Bf5 22. Qd2 Be4 $36 {0-1 (29) Khairullin,I (2604)-Khismatullin,D (2614) Ulan Ude 2009}) 15... g5 16. Nb2 Ng6 17. Nd3 Kg7 18. a4 a5 19. b5 h5 20. Rc3 Rad8 21. Rac1 Rd7 22. Nfe5 Nxe5 23. Nxe5 Bxe5 24. dxe5 Qxe5 25. Qd4 Qxd4 26. exd4 h4 27. Rxc7 Rxc7 28. Rxc7 {White has broken through but Black easily holds his ground in this simple ending:} Rc8 29. Rxc8 Bxc8 30. Bd3 Kf6 31. Kf1 Bg4 32. Ke1 Bf5 33. Kd2 Bxd3 34. Kxd3 g4 35. Ke3 Kg5 36. f4+ Kf5 {1/2 (36) Huzman,A (2605)-Jakovenko,D (2726) Plovdiv 2010}) ({To} 14. Rab1 {(which may look a better way to prepare b2-b4) Black can reply} Bf5 {and then make use of the exchange of light-squared bishops by transferring his knight to b6 and possibly c4:} 15. Bd3 c6 16. b4 Nc8 $1 17. a4 Nb6 18. a5 Nc4 19. Na4 Rfe8 20. Nc5 {1/2 (20) Babula,V (2583)-Dizdar,G (2541) Turin 2006}) ({RR} 14. Na4 b6 15. Nc3 Rfc8 16. Qf1 b5 17. a4 c6 18. Nb1 bxa4 19. Nc3 Bg4 20. Nxa4 Bxf3 21. Bxf3 Rcb8 22. Qe2 a5 23. Qd2 Bb4 24. Qd3 g6 25. b3 Qd6 26. Rc2 Rb5 27. h4 h5 28. g3 Rab8 {Mamedyarov,S (2763)-Eljanov,P (2751) Astrakhan 2010 ½-½ (36)}) 14... Rfd8 {This move is slightly mysterious; it is not clear what Black's rook will do here. Practice has seen a lot of alternatives; here are some examples, in which Black mostly obtained good play:} (14... Rad8 15. Na4 Bc8 16. Nc5 c6 17. b4 g5 18. g3 Nf5 19. Ne1 Kg7 20. Bh5 Bc7 21. a4 Nd6 22. Bg4 Bxg4 23. Qxg4 Qe7 24. Ned3 Bb8 25. Qh3 Rfe8 26. Ra2 f6 27. Rac2 Qf7 28. Nxa6 $5 bxa6 29. Rxc6 {1-0 (38) Gurevich,D (2499)-Zilberstein,D (2379) San Diego 2004} a5 $13) (14... Rfe8 15. b4 c6 16. Na4 Ng6 17. Nc5 Re7 18. a4 Bg4 19. Ra2 (19. b5 {is premature due to} axb5 20. axb5 Rxa1 21. Rxa1 Bxc5 {forcing} 22. dxc5) 19... Rae8 (19... a5 $5 20. b5 b6) 20. Ne1 (20. b5 $5) 20... Bxe2 21. Rxe2 Nf4 22. Rb2 {1-0 (40) Jobava,B (2678)-David,A (2597) Milan 2011} Qg5 $11) (14... c5 $5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Na4 (16. Nxd5 Bxd5 17. Rxc5 Qxb2 $11) 16... Ba7 17. b4 d4 18. Nxd4 Rad8 19. Qf1 Bxd4 20. exd4 Nf5 21. Nc5 {1/2 (21) Jobava,B (2695)-Efimenko,Z (2640) Rijeka 2010}) (14... b6 15. Qf1 Bg4 16. b4 c6 17. Na4 Rfb8 18. h3 Bf5 19. Qe1 g5 20. Nb2 h5 21. Nd3 g4 22. hxg4 Bxd3 $1 23. Bxd3 hxg4 24. Nd2 a5 25. bxa5 Rxa5 26. a4 Rba8 $132 {0-1 (74) Maiorov,N (2516)-Aleksandrov,A (2601) Minsk 2007}) (14... Rfb8 15. Na4 b6 16. b4 c6 17. Ne1 Bf5 18. Bd3 Bd7 19. Rab1 Ra7 20. g3 g6 21. Be2 h5 22. Bf3 Bf5 23. Rb3 a5 24. Nc3 axb4 25. axb4 b5 26. e4 dxe4 27. Bxe4 $6 Be6 $15 {0-1 (56) Laurusas,T (2222)-Swiercz,D (2501) Wroclaw 2010}) (14... g5 $5 15. g3 Qg7 16. e4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Bd5 18. Nxd6 cxd6 19. Bc4 Bc6 20. d5 Bd7 21. Qd2 Qf6 22. Rc3 Rac8 23. Rac1 b5 24. Bb3 Rxc3 25. Rxc3 Rc8 $11 {0-1 (54) Aghasaryan,R (2235)-Lintchevski,D (2502) Kirishi 2008}) ({RR} 14... Rfe8 15. b4 Nf5 16. Na4 b6 17. Nb2 h5 18. Nd3 Qh6 {½-½ (18) Jakovljevic,V (2353)-Mijatovic,D (2158) Belgrade SRB 2024}) 15. b4 Nc8 $146 ({RR} 15... Bg4 16. Na4 Nf5 17. Nc5 Rab8 18. a4 Qg6 19. Ra2 Bh3 20. Qf1 Bg4 21. Ne1 Bxe2 22. Qxe2 Re8 23. Nf3 Qh5 24. g3 Qh3 25. b5 axb5 26. axb5 Qg4 27. Ne5 Qg5 28. Qf3 Bxe5 29. dxe5 d4 30. Nd3 {Parligras,M (2587)-Bokros,A (2472) Kragujevac 2015 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 15... c6 16. Na4 Bf5 17. Nc5 Ra7 18. a4 Rda8 19. Qb3 g5 20. Nd3 Ng6 21. Qb2 g4 22. Nfe5 Bxd3 23. Nxd3 h5 24. b5 axb5 25. axb5 Ba3 26. Rxa3 Rxa3 27. Nb4 Ne7 28. Na6 Qd6 29. bxc6 bxa6 30. c7 {Surendran,N (2184)-Podolchenko,E (2376) Chennai IND 2023 ½-½ (47)}) 16. Na4 {[%mdl 36]} b6 $6 {Too cautious.} (16... b5 $5 17. Nc5 Nb6 18. a4 Nc4 $132) 17. Nb2 Ne7 18. Nd3 Ng6 {This manoeuvre is slightly illogical but it was necessary to cover the e5-square. It looks like Black has not done anything terribly wrong so far but in fact, his position is now very passive.} 19. a4 {[%cal Ya4a5]} a5 20. b5 {Compare this position to the above-mentioned game Huzman-Jakovenko: Black has not managed to push ...g7-g5 so he has no counterplay. White gradually mounts pressure along the c-file.} Re8 (20... Bf5 21. Rc3 Rd7 22. Rac1 Re8 {may be a better arrangement of the rooks but it doesn't solve the general problems.}) 21. Rc3 Bf5 22. Rac1 Rad8 23. Nd2 Rd7 (23... Qe6 $142 {preventing the exchange of bishops. Still, White can gradually prepare it:} 24. Bh5 $1 Rd7 25. h3 {as} Bxh3 26. gxh3 Qxh3 {doesn't work due to} 27. Qg4) 24. g3 (24. Bg4 $1 {was possible at once as} Bxh2+ {obviously didn't work.}) 24... Nf8 ({Again} 24... Qe6 {was called for. Still, after} 25. Bf3 {[%cal Yd1b3] Black's defence was very difficult.}) 25. Bg4 $1 {A typical exchange of a defender. Black's d5-pawn becomes more vulnerable, the c6-square in White's full possession; besides, White can now activate his queen and even his kingside pawns.} Nh7 26. Bxf5 (26. Ne5 $5 Bxe5 27. dxe5 Rxe5 28. Rxc7 {E.Gleizerov}) 26... Qxf5 27. Qf3 $1 {Both endgame and middlegame are now bad for Black.} Qg5 (27... Qe6 28. Nf4 (28. h4 $143 Nf6 {[%cal Yf6e4,Ye6h3]}) 28... Bxf4 29. gxf4 {, and the c7-pawn gets even weaker.}) 28. h4 Qe7 29. Rc6 Nf6 30. Nf4 g6 $6 {Black weakens his kingside, and his position collapses. Now it was better to defend passively:} (30... Ba3 31. R1c2 Bb4) 31. h5 $1 Kg7 (31... g5 32. Nxd5 Nxd5 33. Qxd5 Bxg3 (33... Ba3 34. Qf5 Bxc1 35. Rxh6 f6 36. Qg6+ Qg7 37. Qxe8+ $18) 34. Qf5 {[%cal Rc6h6]} Bd6 35. Nc4 $18 {[%cal Rc4d6]}) 32. hxg6 fxg6 33. Nxd5 $1 Nxd5 34. Qxd5 Bxg3 35. Qg2 Bd6 36. Nc4 {[%cal Rc4d6]} Rf8 $2 (36... Qd8 {was relatively better but after} 37. f4 $1 {[%cal Yc4e5] Black's position could not be defended anyway} (37. Nxd6 $143 cxd6)) 37. Ne5 $1 Bxe5 ({In the event of} 37... g5 38. Nxd7 Qxd7 {White's simplest way to convert his material advantage was} 39. e4 Rf4 40. Kf1 {[%cal Re4e5]} Rg4 41. Qf3 Rf4 42. Qg3 $1 Rxe4 43. Rxc7 $1) 38. Qxg6+ Kh8 39. Qxh6+ Kg8 40. dxe5 $18 Qxe5 41. Rg6+ Kf7 42. Rc4 Qa1+ 43. Kg2 Rh8 44. Rf4+ Ke8 45. Re6+ Re7 46. Rxe7+ Kxe7 47. Re4+ 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.21"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2715"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "35"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. O-O cxd4 11. Nxd4 Bd7 12. Qb3 Nc6 13. Nxc6 Bxc3 14. Rxc3 Bxc6 15. Bb5 Bd5 16. Bc4 Bc6 17. Bb5 Bd5 18. Bc4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.23"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 O-O 9. Nf3 Bg4 10. Be2 Qa5 11. O-O Qxa2 12. Rb1 cxd4 13. cxd4 Nc6 14. Rxb7 Rab8 15. Rxb8 ({RR} 15. Rc7 Rfc8 16. Rxc8+ Rxc8 17. h3 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 Rd8 19. d5 Ne5 20. Bg5 Qa3 21. Be2 h6 22. Bd2 Qa2 23. Bb4 Bf6 24. Qd2 Qa4 25. f4 Nc6 26. Bc3 Qxe4 27. Bxf6 exf6 28. Rd1 Ne7 29. Bf3 Qa4 {So,W (2760)-Firouzja,A (2785) Stavanger NOR 2023 ½-½ (55)}) ({RR} 15. Rc7 Rfc8 16. Rxc8+ Rxc8 17. h3 Bd7 18. Bb5 a6 19. Qa4 Qxa4 20. Bxa4 Ne5 21. Bxd7 Nxd7 22. Ra1 Ra8 23. Nd2 a5 24. Ra4 Nb6 25. Ra2 a4 26. d5 Nd7 27. Nc4 f5 28. f3 fxe4 29. fxe4 Ra6 {Fressinet,L (2687)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2789) Paris 2016 ½-½ (44)}) 15... Rxb8 16. h3 Bd7 17. d5 $146 ({RR} 17. Bd3 a5 18. Qc1 Qb2 19. Qc5 Qb4 20. Qd5 Qd6 21. Qxd6 exd6 22. Bc4 a4 23. Ng5 Nxd4 24. Bxf7+ Kf8 25. Bd5 h6 26. Nf7 Be6 27. Bxd4 Bxf7 28. Bxg7+ Kxg7 29. Bxf7 Kxf7 30. Ra1 Ra8 31. Ra3 Ke6 {Gromovs,S (2094)-Iwanczuk,K (1896) Krakow 2021 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 17. Bd3 a5 18. Qc1 Qb2 19. Qc5 Qb4 20. Qd5 Qd6 21. Qxd6 exd6 22. Bc4 a4 23. Ng5 Nxd4 24. Bxf7+ Kf8 25. Bd5 h6 26. Nf7 Be6 27. Bxd4 Bxf7 28. Bxg7+ Kxg7 29. Bxf7 Kxf7 30. Ra1 Ra8 31. Ra3 Ke6 {Gromovs,S (2094)-Iwanczuk,K (1896) Krakow 2021 ½-½ (49)}) 17... Ne5 18. Bf4 Nxf3+ 19. Bxf3 Rb4 20. Qc1 Rc4 21. Qb1 Qb2 22. Qxb2 Bxb2 23. Rb1 Rb4 24. Be3 a5 25. Bc5 Rb5 26. Bxe7 Be5 27. Rxb5 Bxb5 28. Bg4 Bb2 29. Bc5 a4 30. Bd1 f5 31. exf5 gxf5 32. f4 Kf7 33. g4 Bc1 34. Bd6 fxg4 35. hxg4 a3 36. Bb3 Bd7 37. g5 h6 38. gxh6 Kg6 39. Kf2 Kxh6 40. Kf3 Kg6 41. Ba2 Bb2 42. Be5 Bf5 43. d6 Bd7 44. Bb1+ Kf7 45. Ke4 Bc6+ 46. Kf5 Bd7+ 47. Ke4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 77th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2015.01.24"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Ding, Liren"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2732"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2015.01.10"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Nielsen,Peter Heine} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 b6 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 Ba6 9. Qe2 Qc8 ({RR} 9... Bxc4 10. Qxc4 c5 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. O-O Nc6 13. Rac1 Rc8 14. Ne5 Qb6 15. Nxc6 ({RR} 15. Na4 Qb7 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Bg5) 15... Rxc6 16. b3 h6 17. Rfd1 Qb7 ({RR} 17... Qa6) 18. h3 Rfc8 19. Na4 Nd7 20. Rd2 Nb6 21. Nxb6 Rxb6 22. Rcd1 Bf6 23. Rd7 Qa6 24. Qe4 {Carlsen,M (2842)-Nakamura,H (2777) Saint Louis 2018 CBM 186 [Nielsen,Peter Heine] 1-0 (97)} ({RR} 24. Qc2 c4) {RR} 24... Qxa2 25. Be5 Rb4 26. Qf3 Bxe5 27. Qxf7+ Kh7 28. Qxe6 Rf8 29. Qxe5 Qxf2+) 10. O-O c5 11. Nb5 ({RR} 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. Rac1 Qb7 13. Rfd1 h6 14. Ne5 Rc8 15. Bxa6 Nxa6 16. a3 Bf8 17. b4 Nc7 18. b5 Ncd5 19. Nxd5 Nxd5 20. Qb2 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rc8 22. Nc6 Ne7 23. Qc2 Nd5 24. Qb2 Bc5 25. Be5 f6 {Lopusiewicz,P (2301)-Toktomushev,T (2418) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (33)}) 11... Nbd7 $146 ({RR} 11... Bxb5 12. Bxb5 a6 13. Bd3 Nbd7 14. Rfc1 Qb7 15. a4 Rfc8 16. h3 cxd4 17. Rxc8+ Qxc8 18. exd4 Nd5 19. Rc1 Qb7 20. Bg3 N7f6 21. Bc4 h6 22. Ne5 Bd6 23. Re1 b5 24. axb5 axb5 25. Bb3 Re8 26. Qf3 {Urkedal,F (2545)-Wallis,C (2349) Melbourne 2019 1-0 (52)}) 12. Rac1 Qb7 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. b4 Nce4 15. Nfd4 Rac8 16. a3 Nd5 17. Bd3 Bxb5 18. Nxb5 Nxf4 19. exf4 Nf6 20. f5 exf5 21. Bxf5 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 a5 23. Rc7 Qd5 24. Bd3 Bd8 25. Bc4 Qg5 26. Rxf7 Qc1+ 27. Qf1 Qxf1+ 28. Kxf1 Rxf7 29. Nd6 axb4 30. Nxf7 Be7 31. Nd8+ Kf8 32. Ne6+ Kf7 33. Nc7+ Kg6 34. axb4 Bxb4 35. Nd5 Nxd5 36. Bxd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 3rd"]
[Site "Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2015.02.06"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2797"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2015.02.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 f5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. c4 c6 5. Nf3 d5 {The Stonewall system must have come as a surprise for Vishy. Magnus prefers to deviate from the main theoretical lines as soon as possible.} 6. O-O Bd6 7. b3 Qe7 {Avoiding the exchange of the dark-squared bishops.} 8. Ne5 O-O 9. Nd2 {White goes for a classical plan of occupying the central square with both of his knights.} ({RR} 9. Bf4 Nbd7 10. Nxd7 Bxd7 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. Nd2 f4 13. Nf3 fxg3 14. hxg3 dxc4 15. bxc4 c5 16. Qb3 Bc6 17. Rad1 Rad8 18. Qa3 cxd4 19. c5 Qe7 20. Rxd4 Rxd4 21. Nxd4 Bxg2 22. Kxg2 Ne4 23. Qxa7 Nxc5 {Van Wely,L (2648)-Moiseenko,A (2663) Khanty-Mansiysk 2005 0-1 (113)}) ({RR} 9. Bf4 b6 10. Nd2 Bb7 11. Rc1 Na6 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Nd3 Rac8 14. Nf3 Ne4 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. Nfe5 Nb4 17. a3 Nxd3 18. Qxd3 Rxc1 19. Rxc1 Qxa3 20. Qe3 Qd6 21. f3 Nf6 22. Qc3 Nd7 23. Nd3 Rc8 {Brunello,S (2499)-Gnojek,P (2414) Trencin SVK 2025 0-1 (68)}) 9... a5 {A typical useful move for such a structure - Black is getting some space for his q-side pieces and preventing White from advancing the b-pawn.} (9... c5 10. e3 Nc6 11. Bb2 cxd4 12. exd4 $14) (9... Nbd7 10. Ndf3 Ne4 11. Bf4 $14) (9... b6 10. cxd5 exd5 (10... cxd5 11. Ndc4 $1 $14) 11. Bb2 Bb7 12. Rc1 $14) 10. Bb2 {This natural developing move seems most promising.} ({Black doesn't experience any problems after} 10. Ndf3 b6 11. Qc2 Bb7 12. Bf4 Ne4 13. Nd3 Bxf4 14. Nxf4 Nd7 $11) 10... Nbd7 $146 (10... b6 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Rc1 Bb7 13. e3 $14) ({RR} 10... Ra7 11. Qc2 b6 12. Rfc1 Bb7 13. c5 bxc5 14. dxc5 Bc7 15. a3 Nbd7 16. Ndf3 Nxe5 17. Nxe5 Nd7 18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. e3 Ba6 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 e5 22. b4 f4 23. exf4 exf4 24. Rfe1 Bd8 25. Qe2 {Ruban,V (2590)-Agdestein,S (2610) Groningen 1993 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 10... Na6 11. Ndf3 Nd7 12. Qd2 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. dxe5 b6 15. Qe3 Rb8 16. Rac1 Bd7 17. Rfd1 Rfc8 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Rxc8+ Bxc8 20. Rc1 Bd7 21. Bd4 Qd8 22. h3 Nb4 23. a3 Nc6 24. Bb2 a4 25. b4 {Ruban,V (2575)-Sorokin,M (2510) Moscow 1991 1-0 (49)}) 11. Qc2 a4 12. Ndf3 {Vishy decides not to react to the aggressive advance of Black's a-pawn.} ({The previously played} 12. bxa4 $5 {also comes to consideration:} Ne4 13. Nxe4 (13. Ndf3 Bxe5 14. dxe5 $6 Nb6 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Rab1 Nc4 $15 {0-1 (29) Goganov,A (2550)-Sandipan,C (2590)/Moscow RUS 2013}) 13... fxe4 14. f4 exf3 15. Nxf3 $14) 12... Ne4 13. e3 $146 {This innovation doesn't really change the evaluation - White is slightly better due to a space advantage, but Black's position is very solid.} ({Also worth considering is} 13. Rab1 $5 {freeing the a1-square for the bishop is more promising. For instance,} a3 (13... Bxe5 14. dxe5 Qb4 15. Rfd1 $14 {1-0 (24) Cifuentes Parada,R (2508)-Salamero Pelay,F (2130)/Spain 2011/EXT 2013}) 14. Ba1 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bd7 16. f3 Nf6 17. Nd3 {with a long strategic battle, where White's chances are preferable due to a space advantage.}) 13... a3 14. Bc3 ({After} 14. Bc1 g5 (14... c5 $5 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Nxd7 Bxd7 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Qd3 Rad8 $11 {is another solid way to equalise}) 15. Nxd7 Bxd7 16. c5 Bc7 17. b4 Be8 $132 {White lacks harmony, so Black has no reasons for complaint.}) 14... Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bd7 ({The following simplification hardly promises Black equality:} 15... Bxe5 16. dxe5 Nxc3 17. Qxc3 Bd7 18. c5 Be8 19. Rad1 Bh5 20. f3 $14) 16. Nxd7 {The exchange of the passive bishop definitely makes Black's play easier.} ({It looks like} 16. Be1 $142 $1 Be8 17. f3 Nf6 18. Nd3 e5 19. c5 (19. dxe5 Bxe5 20. Nxe5 Qxe5 21. Qc1 Qe7 $11) 19... Bc7 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21. dxe5 Qxe5 22. Qc3 Qe7 23. Qd4 {would allow White to keep a small, but risk-free edge.}) 16... Qxd7 17. c5 {This ambitious advance is double-edged: White seizes a lot of space on the queenside, but releasing the pressure in the centre offer Black decent counterplay on the opposite side.} (17. Be1 b5 18. f3 Nf6 19. c5 Bc7 20. Bc3 h5 $11) 17... Bc7 ({Magnus deviates from a boring equalising line:} 17... Nxc3 18. Qxc3 Be7 19. b4 b5 20. Rab1 Ra4 21. Rb3 Rfa8 $11) 18. b4 h5 {Black has no real threats yet, but White's king is under pressure now.} 19. Be1 e5 20. dxe5 (20. f3 $5 {also deserved some attention:} Nf6 21. Rb1 exd4 22. exd4 h4 23. b5 hxg3 24. hxg3 Nh5 25. bxc6 bxc6 26. f4 Nf6 27. Rf3 $11) 20... Bxe5 21. Rd1 Qe6 {Keeping an eye on the vulnerable a2. The position is still equal, but White has to play precisely.} 22. f3 ({After} 22. Rd3 h4 (22... Bb2 23. f3 Nf6 24. Bc3 $11) 23. gxh4 $1 f4 24. f3 Nf6 {White's position doesn't look good, though} 25. Bf2 Qf5 26. e4 dxe4 27. fxe4 Qg6 28. Kh1 {enables him to keep the balance.}) 22... Nf6 23. Bh3 $1 {White correctly opens up the position - the bishops need more space! However, the king is getting exposed now.} (23. Qb3 {was too passive:} Rfe8 24. Bf2 Bb2 $15) 23... g6 24. e4 dxe4 25. fxe4 Bb2 $1 {This brave attempt to play for a win was fully justified.} ({After} 25... Ng4 26. exf5 Rxf5 27. Rxf5 gxf5 28. Bf2 Bb2 29. Re1 $11 {Black wouldn't be able to win the a2, so White should be OK.}) 26. exf5 Qxa2 27. Bf2 {Anand's move is natural - White is connecting the rooks, so the pieces are located more harmoniously. However, this loss of tempi allows Magnus to stabilise the situation on the kingside.} (27. Rf2 $1 {[%cal Ge1c3] was safer:} Rad8 28. Rxd8 Rxd8 29. Bc3 {and White neutralises the dangerous passer:} Nd5 30. f6 Kf7 31. Bxb2 axb2 32. Qxb2 Qxb2 33. Rxb2 {with a drawish endgame.}) 27... g5 $1 28. Rfe1 $2 {White doesn't have time for a slow improvement - the a2 is simply too strong!} ({The correct approach would be} 28. Bg2 Qf7 29. Bd4 $1 Bxd4+ 30. Rxd4 {Now, when the dark-squared bishop is gone, White is able to stop the pawn:} Ng4 31. Qd2 a2 32. Qxg5+ Qg7 33. Qxg7+ Kxg7 34. Ra1 Ra4 35. Rd2 Rfa8 36. b5 Rb4 (36... Ne5 37. bxc6 bxc6 38. f6+ $1 Kxf6 39. Rf2+ Ke6 40. Re2 {and Black cannot make any progress.}) 37. Rdxa2 Rxa2 38. Rxa2 Rb1+ 39. Bf1 cxb5 (39... Ne3 40. Rf2 cxb5 41. Rf3 $11) 40. Re2 Kf6 41. h3 Ne5 42. Kf2 {White should be able to achieve a draw quite easily.}) 28... Qf7 $1 29. Re6 $1 {Vishy manages to find the best way to develop his counterplay.} (29. Rd6 {was much worse:} Rfe8 30. Rde6 Ng4 31. Bxg4 hxg4 32. Qb3 Rxe6 33. fxe6 Qf3 34. Qc4 Qd5 35. Qc2 Kg7 36. e7 Re8 37. Re3 Bd4 38. Rxa3 Rxe7 $19) 29... Ng4 $2 {This natural move is not the best from an objective point of view, though White's task is becoming extremely tough.} ({After the correct} 29... Rfe8 $1 30. b5 cxb5 31. Bg2 b4 32. Bf1 Kh8 33. Bc4 Rxe6 34. fxe6 Qe7 $17 {White still would have some counter-chances, but Black's advantage is indisputable there.}) 30. Bxg4 hxg4 31. Rg6+ Kh7 32. Rd7 $4 {That desperate move leads to a quick loss.} ({At the same time, Vishy could have escaped by means of} 32. Re6 $1 {[%cal Ge6e7]} Rfe8 (32... Qxf5 33. Rd7+ Kg8 34. Rg6+ Kh8 35. Rh6+ $11) 33. Be3 $1 {It turns out, that White has enormous attacking resources everywhere:} Be5 $1 (33... Rxe6 34. fxe6+ Qg6 35. Rd7+ Kh6 (35... Bg7 36. Qa2 {leads nowhere}) 36. Bxg5+ $1 Kxg5 37. h4+ gxh3 38. Qd2+ Kh5 39. Qe2+ Qg4 40. Rh7+ Kg5 41. Qe3+ Kf5 42. Rf7+ Bf6 43. Qf2+ Ke4 44. Rxf6 h2+ 45. Kxh2 Rh8+ 46. Kg1 Qd1+ 47. Qf1 Qxf1+ 48. Rxf1 Kd5 49. Ra1 $11) 34. h4 $3 gxh3 35. Rg6 {[%cal Gc2e2]} Bg7 36. Rd7 $3 Qxd7 37. f6 Qd1+ 38. Qxd1 Kxg6 39. Qd3+ Kxf6 40. Bd4+ Kf7 41. Qf5+ Kg8 42. Bxg7 Kxg7 43. Qxg5+ {with perpetual.}) 32... Qxd7 $19 {Unfortunately, there are not many pieces left. Black easily wins now.} 33. f6 Qd1+ (33... Rxf6 {was also good enough:} 34. Rxf6+ Kg8 35. Rg6+ Bg7 36. Qa2+ Qf7 $19) 34. Qxd1 Kxg6 35. Qd3+ Kh6 36. h4 gxh3 0-1

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 3rd"]
[Site "Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2015.02.09"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Bacrot, Etienne"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2865"]
[BlackElo "2711"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "2015.02.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 165"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.03.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 Bg7 4. Nbd2 O-O 5. e3 d6 6. Bc4 Nbd7 7. O-O Qe8 8. a4 e5 9. a5 e4 10. Ne1 h6 11. Bh4 c6 12. Bb3 Nh5 $146 ({RR} 12... Kh8 13. c3 Nh7 14. f3 {½-½ (14) Hug,W (2465)-Apicella,M (2506) Istanbul 2000}) 13. f3 exf3 14. Qxf3 Ndf6 15. Nd3 Bg4 16. Qf2 Be6 17. Bxe6 Qxe6 18. Qf3 g5 19. Bf2 g4 20. Qe2 Rae8 21. a6 b6 22. Rae1 Nd5 23. e4 f5 24. Qd1 fxe4 25. Rxe4 Qf5 26. Qxg4 Qxg4 27. Rxg4 Re2 28. Rd1 Nhf6 29. Rg3 Nh5 30. Rf3 Rxf3 31. gxf3 Ne3 32. Bxe3 Rxe3 33. Nc4 Rxf3 34. Nb4 b5 35. Na5 (35. Na3 $1 {Even though this move looks rather awkward, it is actually very powerful. Once c6 falls so does b5, and then a7.} c5 36. Nc6 Rf7 37. Nxb5 $18) 35... c5 36. Nbc6 Rf7 37. Nb7 (37. dxc5 dxc5 38. Rd8+ Bf8 39. Ra8 $18 c4 40. b4 $1 {This key move locks out the bishop and gives White a winning position.}) 37... Nf4 38. dxc5 dxc5 39. Nxa7 $2 {Too hasty! This gives Black unexpected counterplay!} Bd4+ 40. Kh1 (40. Rxd4 Ne2+ $1 (40... cxd4 41. Nxb5 $18) 41. Kg2 Nxd4 42. c3 Rf6 $1 {And a6 falls, with White's winning chances really.}) 40... Nh3 $1 {A miracle perpetual! White cannot escape the threats, for now Nf2+ would win the rook.} 41. Kg2 (41. Ra1 Rg7 {gets White mated, nearly, and is way too risky. The a-pawn is not that fast.}) 41... Nf4+ 42. Kg3 Ne2+ 43. Kg4 Rf4+ 44. Kh3 (44. Kh5 Rf5+ 45. Kxh6 $4 (45. Kg6 Rf6+ 46. Kh5 $11) 45... Nf4 $19) 44... Rf3+ 45. Kg4 Rf4+ 46. Kh3 Rf3+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2015.04.18"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D94"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2756"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2015.04.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 166"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 g6 5. Nc3 Bg7 6. Be2 O-O 7. O-O b6 {Quite a passive system leading to a small plus for White. However, Black's position is solid and difficult to break.} 8. a4 {Among other options seen in practice:} (8. b4) (8. b3) (8. cxd5) (8. Bd2) (8. Qc2) (8. Ne5) (8. Qb3) 8... a5 (8... Bf5 9. a5 Nbd7 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. a6 $1 Nb8 12. Ne5 Nfd7 13. Bf3 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Nc6 15. Bxd5 Rc8 16. e4 Bd7 17. f4 $16 {1-0 (35) Golod,V (2576)-Meenakshi,S (2310) Port Erin 2006}) (8... Nbd7 9. cxd5 $1 cxd5 10. b3 Bb7 11. Ba3 Ne4 12. Rc1 Rc8 13. Nxe4 dxe4 14. Rxc8 Qxc8 15. Nd2 Re8 16. Qb1 e5 17. Nc4 Qa8 18. Nd6 $14 {1/2 (47) Zhou,J (2574)-Yu,R (2548) China 2014}) (8... Ba6 9. b3 (9. a5 dxc4 10. axb6 axb6 11. Bxc4 b5 12. Be2 b4 13. Na4 c5 $1 $11 {1/2 (41) Szoen,D (2452)-Orzech,D (2394) Rewal 2007}) 9... c5 10. Ba3 $36 cxd4 $6 11. Nxd4 Bb7 12. Bf3 Re8 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Ndb5 e6 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Nd6 $18 {1-0 (26) Koziak,V (2489)-Orzech,D (2472) Rewal 2008}) (8... Bb7 9. a5 e6 10. b4 dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nd5 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Bd3 b5 14. Nd2 a6 15. Nb3 Nd7 16. Qf3 f5 17. Qg3 Rf7 18. Bd2 $14 {1/2 (39) Bukavshin,I (2517)-Bu,X (2670) Moscow 2012}) 9. cxd5 (9. Qb3 $5 e6 10. Bd2 Nbd7 (10... Na6 {[%csl Yb4] looks more logical}) 11. Rfd1 Qc7 12. Rac1 Qb8 13. Bd3 Bb7 14. cxd5 exd5 15. e4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Nd5 17. Bc4 Re8 18. Nc3 N7f6 19. Ne5 $16 {1-0 (32) Arutinian,D (2561)-Petrosyan,T (2315) Jermuk 2012}) 9... cxd5 (9... Nxd5 {makes some sense here since the knight can take the comfortable b4-square; however, White can comfortably bypass it:} 10. e4 Nb4 11. Be3 ({or} 11. h3 Nd7 12. Bg5 Ba6 13. Rc1 Re8 14. Bxa6 Rxa6 15. Qe2 Ra8 16. Rfd1 Qb8 17. Qc4 Qb7 18. e5 Nf8 19. d5 $14 {1/2 (33) Roeder,M (2440)-Sapis,W (2440) Cappelle la Grande 1995}) 11... Bg4 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 N8a6 14. d5 Nc5 15. Qe2 Qe8 $5 16. Rfd1 Rc8 17. dxc6 Qxc6 18. e5 $14 {1/2 (32) Anand,V (2800)-Wang,Y (2732) Nanjing 2010 CBM 139 [Edouard,R]}) 10. b3 Ne4 $6 {[%mdl 32] Black doesn't just neglect development but also trades White's "excess piece", i.e. his c3-knight, which only blocks his activity on the c-file. Additionally, Black obtains a vulnerable e4-pawn. Not surprisingly, he gets into trouble.} (10... Bb7 11. Ba3 Nc6 12. Rc1 Rc8 {looks more appropriate.}) 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Nd2 Bb7 13. Ba3 f5 (13... Nc6 $142 {but still after} 14. Rc1 Rc8 15. Bb5 {[%cal Yd1e2] White is clearly on top.}) 14. Rc1 Kh8 $146 ({RR} 14... Nd7 15. b4 Nf6 16. bxa5 bxa5 17. Nc4 Nd5 18. Ne5 f4 19. Qb3 Rb8 20. Bb5 Bxe5 21. dxe5 fxe3 22. fxe3 Rxf1+ 23. Rxf1 Rc8 24. Bc4 Qd7 25. e6 Qc6 26. Rc1 Nb6 27. Ba6 Bxa6 28. Rxc6 Rxc6 29. Bxe7 {Vachier Lagrave,M (2758)-Li,C (2750) Skopje 2015 1-0 (32)}) 15. Nc4 Nd7 16. d5 $1 Rc8 17. d6 e6 $8 {[%csl Gd6]} 18. b4 $1 {White must open up the queenside to reach Black's blockading d7-knight.} axb4 19. Bxb4 Bd5 20. a5 $1 bxa5 21. Bxa5 Qe8 22. Qa4 Bc6 23. Qb4 Rb8 24. Nb6 $1 Ne5 $2 (24... Nxb6 $142 25. Bxb6 Qd7 {- although the queen is not the best blockader, White still had to work hard to make use of his passed pawn.}) 25. Qc5 Ba8 $2 {This loses instantly but gymnastics like} (25... Rf7 26. Bc3 Rfb7 $1 27. Bxe5 Rxb6 {would have hardly rescued Black either.}) 26. Bc3 $1 Nd7 (26... Qc6 27. Qxe5 $1 $18) (26... Nf7 27. Bb5 Qd8 28. Nd7) (26... Bd5 27. Nxd5 exd5 28. Qxd5 $18) 27. Bxg7+ Kxg7 28. Nxd7 Qxd7 29. Qe5+ {[%cal Rc1c7]} 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2015.04.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2802"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2015.04.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 166"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Caruana had reasonable results against the World Champion in the last 2 years, but in 2015 the tide started to change. Despite having Black, Carlsen won a nice attacking game in Wijk (see CBM 165) and easily drew in Baden.} 1. d4 {Fabiano avoids the Sicilian, or Berlin...} f5 $5 {Magnus is in a fighting mood! However, this could have hardly surprised Caruana, as his opponent has already played the Dutch more than once this year.} 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 e6 4. c4 c6 {Still following his win against Anand in Baden. The flexible text move waits for White to declare his intentions with the g1 before committing the d7.} ({After the immediate} 4... d5 {White scored well with the} 5. Nh3 $5 {system, an impressive example was} c6 6. O-O Bd6 7. Qc2 O-O 8. Nd2 Bd7 9. Nf3 Be8 10. Bf4 h6 11. Qb3 b6 12. Rfc1 Be7 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Bd2 g5 15. Ne5 a5 16. e4 fxe4 17. Bxe4 Ra7 18. f4 gxf4 19. Kh1 Bf6 20. Nxf4 $16 {Anand,V (2769)-Nikolic,P (2659) Wijk aan Zee 2000 See the notes to this game by Tyomkin in CBM 75.}) 5. Nf3 ({Now} 5. Nh3 {allows} d6 $5 {[%cal Ye6e5]} 6. Nc3 e5 (6... Be7 7. e4 e5 $132) 7. dxe5 dxe5 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Ng5 Ke8 10. e4 Bd6 11. exf5 Bxf5 12. O-O h6 13. Rd1 Bc5 14. Nge4 Bxe4 15. Bxe4 Kf7 16. Bf5 Na6 17. Re1 g6 18. Bh3 Nb4 19. Re2 Rad8 20. Rb1 Bd4 21. Kg2 Nd3 22. Be3 b6 $11 {[%csl Gd3,Gd4] Wojtaszek,R (2721)-Vaisser,A (2533) FRA-chT Mulhouse 2011}) 5... d5 {[%mdl 32] The Stonewall leads to a complex strategic fight with almost no long forcing lines - all in all an opening suiting Carlsen's style. Moreover it belonged to the repertoire of his trainer Agdestein.} 6. O-O Bd6 7. b3 Qe7 8. Bb2 {Allows Black to fianchetto his c8.} ({He was fine also after} 8. Ne5 O-O (8... b6 {now runs into} 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Nc4 $1 Nc6 11. Nxd6+ Qxd6 12. Ba3 Nb4 13. Nd2 $14) 9. Nd2 a5 10. Bb2 Nbd7 11. Qc2 a4 (11... Ne4 12. Ndf3 a4) 12. Ndf3 ({Possibly critical is the greedy} 12. bxa4 Ne4 (12... Bxe5 13. dxe5 Ng4 14. Nf3 Nb6 15. cxd5 exd5 16. h3 Nh6 17. Nd4 Nc4 (17... f4 $5 $13) 18. f4 Ne3 19. Qb3 Nxf1 20. Ba3 Qd8 21. Bxf8 Nxg3 22. Bxg7 Nxe2+ 23. Nxe2 Kxg7 24. Nd4 Ng8 25. Re1 $36 {Visloguzov,V (2036)-Jardi Talarn,J (2054) email 2011}) 13. Nxe4 $1 (13. Ndf3 Bxe5 (13... Qd8 14. Nd3 Qa5 15. Nf4 Bxf4 16. gxf4 Qxa4 17. Qxa4 Rxa4 18. cxd5 exd5 19. e3 Nb6 20. Ne5 {Kiriakov,P (2555)-Moskalenko,V (2540) playchess.com blitz 2006} Nc4 $15) 14. dxe5 (14. Nxe5 $142 $5) 14... Nb6 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Rab1 Nc4 17. Rfd1 Qb4 18. Nd4 Qxa4 $36 {Goganov,A (2550)-Sandipan,C (2590) Moscow 2013}) 13... fxe4 14. f4 exf3 15. Nxf3 $14 {Roiz}) 12... Ne4 13. e3 a3 14. Bc3 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bd7 16. Nxd7 (16. Be1 $142 $1 $14) 16... Qxd7 17. c5 Bc7 18. b4 h5 19. Be1 e5 20. dxe5 Bxe5 21. Rd1 Qe6 $11 {Anand,V (2797)-Carlsen,M (2865) Baden-Baden 2015 For more details see the notes to this game by Roiz in CBM 165.}) 8... b6 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. Nd2 ({White will later redirect his  to c3, but here the immediate} 10. Nc3 {is not too effective due to} Nbd7 $11 {forcing White to make a decision about his e5.}) 10... O-O 11. Rc1 ({My own experience with this line was rather bleak, after} 11. e3 a5 12. Nd3 Na6 13. a3 Rac8 14. Qe2 Ne4 15. Rfc1 c5 16. dxc5 Naxc5 17. Nxc5 bxc5 18. Rd1 a4 19. bxa4 Ra8 20. f3 Nxd2 21. Qxd2 Rxa4 22. cxd5 exd5 23. f4 $11 {Stohl,I (2465)-Glek,I (2430) Tallinn 1986 White just barely managed to hold the balance (and lost due to a miscalculation later on).}) 11... a5 12. e3 {The most usual move, but it's not easy for White to get anything tangible from the opening.} (12. Nd3 Na6 13. Nf3 {avoids ideas with xe5; White intends to put the other  on e5, but this manoeuvring costs time and Black gets counterplay after} Ne4 14. Nfe5 Rac8 (14... c5 15. f3 Nf6 16. cxd5 exd5 17. Re1 Nb4 18. a3 Nc6 19. e3 Nd8 20. Bh3 g6 21. Nf4 Qe8 22. Ned3 Rc8 23. dxc5 bxc5 24. Qd2 a4 25. e4 $5 dxe4 26. fxe4 Bxe4 27. b4 $36 {Martin Clemente,J (2638)-Timmerman,G (2694) email 2009}) 15. e3 c5 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Nf4 Nb4 18. a3 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Nc6 {½ Avrukh,B (2425)-Gleizerov,E (2535) St Petersburg 1994} 20. Bb2 d4 $1 $132) (12. Nb1 Nbd7 (12... Ne4 13. f3 Nf6 14. Nc3 Nbd7 15. Nxd7 Nxd7 16. e4 dxc4 17. bxc4 e5 18. exf5 exd4 19. Re1 Ne5 20. Ne4 Ba3 21. Bxa3 Qxa3 22. Qxd4 Nxf3+ 23. Bxf3 Qxf3 24. c5 $16 {Gordon,S (2556)-Djurhuus,R (2436) Oslo 2012}) 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Nc4 b5 15. Nxd6 Qxd6 16. Nc3 Ba6 {[%csl Ga6,Rg2] Black's bad a6 is more effective, than the "good"one on g2.} 17. Qd2 Rfc8 18. f3 b4 19. Nd1 a4 20. Ne3 a3 21. Rxc8+ Rxc8 22. Bc1 f4 23. gxf4 Qxf4 $11 {, Tukmakov,V (2575)-Agdestein,S (2560) Dortmund 1987}) 12... Na6 13. Nb1 $146 {A novelty, but judging by the time-consumption an over the board idea. The  heads for c3 and possibly for a4 (or e2-f4).} ({Until now White mostly connected his rooks with} 13. Qe2 Ne4 (13... Nc7 14. Ndf3 Ne4 15. Rfd1 a4 16. Nd3 a3 17. Ba1 Na6 18. Nfe5 c5 19. f3 Nf6 20. Bh3 g6 21. Rd2 Rac8 22. Rdc2 Rc7 23. Rd1 Rfc8 24. Rcd2 cxd4 25. Bxd4 Nc5 26. Nxc5 Bxc5 27. Bg2 Ba6 28. Bf1 Nd7 29. Nxd7 Rxd7 30. Bxc5 Qxc5 31. Qf2 Rcd8 32. e4 d4 $132 {Hansen,O (2499)-Timmerman,G (2694) email 2009}) (13... a4 14. bxa4 Bxe5 15. dxe5 Nd7 16. a5 Nac5 17. Bc3 bxa5 18. Nb3 Nxb3 19. axb3 Nc5 20. Qc2 Ne4 21. Bb2 a4 22. bxa4 Ba6 23. f3 Ng5 24. cxd5 Bxf1 25. d6 $16 {So,W (2656)-Reinderman,D (2573) Wijk aan Zee 2010}) (13... Bxe5 14. dxe5 Ne4 15. Rfd1 a4 $5 16. Nb1 Nb4 (16... axb3 17. axb3 Nac5 18. Qc2 Ra2 $132 {} 19. f3 $6 Qg5 $1 20. fxe4 fxe4 $44) 17. Ba3 axb3 18. axb3 c5 19. f3 Ng5 20. h4 Nf7 21. Bxb4 cxb4 22. f4 dxc4 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. Rxc4 Rfd8 25. Rxd8+ Nxd8 {Alekseev,E (2640)-Moiseenko,A (2662) Sochi 2006} 26. Rxb4 $14) 14. Rfd1 c5 15. Nb1 Nb4 16. f3 Nxa2 17. fxe4 Nxc1 18. Bxc1 fxe4 19. Nc3 Rad8 20. Nb5 cxd4 21. exd4 Bxe5 22. dxe5 dxc4 {Van Wely,L (2668)-Ulibin,M (2581) Moscow 2003} 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. bxc4 Qc5+ 25. Be3 Qxe5 26. Bxb6 $13) ({RR} 13. Qe2 Bxe5 14. dxe5 Ne4 15. Rfd1 a4 16. Nb1 Nb4 17. Ba3 axb3 18. axb3 c5 19. f3 Ng5 20. h4 Nf7 21. Bxb4 cxb4 22. f4 dxc4 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 24. Rxc4 Rfd8 25. Rxd8+ Nxd8 26. Nd2 Nc6 27. Qg2 Rc8 {Alekseev,E (2640)-Moiseenko,A (2662) Sochi 2006 ½-½ (60)}) ({RR} 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Nb1 Nb4 15. a3 Na6 16. f3 Rfc8 17. Rf2 Nd7 18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. Bf1 Rxc1 20. Qxc1 Rc8 21. Rc2 Rxc2 22. Qxc2 Nc7 23. Nc3 Qc6 24. Qc1 b5 25. a4 b4 26. Nb5 Nxb5 27. Bxb5 Qc7 {Lamza,Z (2220)-Panas,P (2159) Poronin 2020 ½-½}) 13... Bxe5 $5 {A very straightforward solution.} ({Black can also redirect his  with} 13... Nb8 14. Nc3 Nbd7 {Carlsen maybe didn't relish the possibility} 15. f4 $5 (15. Na4 b5 $11 {is harmless}) 15... Rac8 $13 {with a complex double Stonewall.}) 14. dxe5 Ne4 15. Qe2 (15. cxd5 exd5 $5 16. Nc3 Nac5 $132) ({It was worth considering} 15. Nc3 $5 {} Nac5 (15... Rac8 $142 $5) 16. Ba3 $14) 15... a4 $146 ({RR} 15... Nc7 16. f3 Ng5 17. h4 Nf7 18. e4 fxe4 19. fxe4 dxc4 20. Qxc4 c5 21. Rfd1 {½-½ (21) Komarov,D (2575)-Gleizerov,E (2540) Leeuwarden 1995}) 16. Nc3 $6 {A mediocre reaction, after which already White will have to tread with care.} ({The principled continuation was} 16. Ba3 $142 c5 17. f3 Ng5 18. cxd5 Bxd5 (18... exd5 $5 19. bxa4 $13) 19. bxa4 (19. Nc3 Nc7 $13 {can transpose}) 19... Nc7 20. e4 fxe4 21. fxe4 Rxf1+ 22. Rxf1 Bc6 23. h4 Nf7 24. Qb2 $13) (16. Rfd1 {transposes to Alekseev-Moiseenko above.}) 16... axb3 (16... a3 $5 17. Ba1 Nb4 $13 {[%csl Ra1] / also deserves attention, but true to himself, Carlsen chooses a simple technical solution.}) 17. axb3 Qb4 18. Nxe4 (18. cxd5 exd5 {is also pleasant for Black.}) 18... dxe4 {Black continues in the spirit of his 16th move and chooses the simpler symmetrical recapture.} ({More complex is} 18... fxe4 19. Bh3 (19. Bc3 $5 Qxb3 20. cxd5 exd5 21. Bh3 $44) 19... Rfe8 20. f4 $1 $13 {[%cal Yf4f5]}) 19. Qc2 Nc5 20. Bc3 Qxb3 21. Qxb3 Nxb3 22. Rb1 Nc5 23. Rxb6 Na4 24. Rxb7 Nxc3 {[%csl Gc3,Rg2][%mdl 4096] A series of natural moves has led to an endgame in which White must still solve the problem of his passive g2. It would seem that this is simple enough, but in such technical positions Carlsen is incomparable.} 25. Re7 {Voluntarily exchanges the  on the 7th rank.} ({A more active way is} 25. f3 $5 {White intends to reanimate his bishop either on the long diagonal, or by hitting e6 from h3 after a pawn swap on e4. All this should be sufficient to hold the balance.}) 25... Rfe8 26. Rxe8+ Rxe8 27. Ra1 $6 (27. f3 $1 $132 {still seems preferable.}) 27... Rd8 28. Bf1 {White must already change plans and start calculating.} (28. Ra6 $5 Ne2+ 29. Kf1 Nc1 30. Kg1 Rd1+ (30... Rc8 31. Bf1 $132 {and Black's  is too passive}) 31. Bf1 Nb3 32. Kg2 Nd2 33. Ra8+ Kf7 34. Ra7+ {} Kg6 35. Rd7 Rxf1 36. Rxd2 Rc1 37. Rd6 $11) (28. f3 Rd1+ $1 29. Rxd1 Nxd1 30. fxe4 Nxe3 $15 31. exf5 $2 Nxg2 32. Kxg2 exf5 33. Kf3 Kf7 34. Ke3 c5 $1 35. Kf3 Ke6 36. Kf4 h6 $19) 28... c5 29. Ra3 (29. Ra5 $5) 29... Nb1 $5 30. Ra1 (30. Ra5 {or}) (30. Ra6 $142 {seems preferable:} Rd1 31. Ra8+ Kf7 32. Ra7+ Kg6 33. Ra1 {and it's still not clear, how Black should make progress.} (33. Kg2 Rd2 (33... Nd2 34. Rd7 Rxf1 35. Rxd2 Rc1 36. Rd7 Rxc4 37. Re7 $11) 34. Re7 Nc3 35. Kg1 Nd1 36. Rxe6+ Kf7 37. Rd6 Rxd6 38. exd6 g6 $11 {/})) 30... Nd2 $1 31. Be2 $2 ({This is already a serious error, more or less necessary was} 31. Kg2 $8 Nf3 32. Ra6 Kf7 33. Ra7+ Kf8 34. Rc7 Rd1 35. Rc8+ (35. Rxc5 Nd2 36. Be2 Re1 {[%csl Re2]}) 35... Kf7 36. Rc7+ Kg6 37. Rc6 $1 $132) 31... Nf3+ 32. Bxf3 (32. Kg2 Nxe5 $17 {gives Black a healthy extra pawn.}) 32... exf3 33. h3 h5 $17 {White had a slightly unpleasant position, some nine moves later he is on the verge of losing.} 34. g4 (34. Ra6 Rd1+ 35. Kh2 Rf1 36. Rxe6 Rxf2+ 37. Kg1 (37. Kh1 $2 Rf1+ 38. Kh2 Rc1) 37... Rg2+ 38. Kf1 Kf7 $17) ({With the passive} 34. Ra5 Rd1+ 35. Kh2 Rf1 36. Ra2 (36. Rxc5 Rxf2+ 37. Kg1 Rg2+ 38. Kf1 Rxg3 $17) {, White pins his hopes to stalemate tricks after} 36... g5 (36... Rc1 $5) 37. h4 g4 38. e4 $17 {However, it's difficult to believe this would save the game, moreover in time trouble one naturally strives for activity.}) 34... fxg4 35. hxg4 h4 $1 {[%csl Rg1]} 36. Kh2 (36. g5 Kh7 37. Ra6 Rd1+ 38. Kh2 Rf1 39. Rxe6 Rxf2+ 40. Kh3 Rc2 $19) 36... Rd2 37. Kh3 $6 (37. g5 $1 Rxf2+ 38. Kh3 Kh7 39. Kxh4 Rg2 40. Rf1 $17 {was the last chance to fight on. Black will have an extra pawn, but converting it still presents technical problems.}) 37... g5 {Keeps the king boxed in.} 38. e4 Rd4 $1 (38... Rxf2 $2 39. Ra8+ Kf7 40. Ra7+ Ke8 41. Ra8+ Kd7 42. Ra7+ Kc6 43. Ra6+ Kb7 44. Ra7+ $11 {is too obvious, Carlsen easily avoids the stalemate trap.}) 39. Ra8+ Kf7 40. Ra3 Rxc4 41. Rxf3+ Ke7 42. Re3 Rd4 43. f3 c4 $19 {[%csl Gc4,Gh4] Material is still equal, but Black's positional superiority with 2 strong passed pawns is decisive.} 44. Ra3 ({After} 44. Rc3 {Black already has a choice:} Kd7 $19 (44... Rd3 $5 45. Rxc4 Rxf3+ $19)) 44... Rd3 45. Ra7+ Kd8 46. Kg2 c3 47. Ra4 c2 48. Rc4 Rd2+ 49. Kh3 Kd7 50. Rc5 (50. Rc3 Rf2 $19 {[%cal Rf2f3]}) 50... Rf2 51. f4 Rf3+ (51... gxf4 52. g5 f3 53. g6 Rd2 54. g7 f2 $19 {is more forcing, but Black can already win without any calculation.}) 52. Kh2 Rxf4 ({White has had enough, the endgame after} 52... Rxf4 53. Rxc2 Rxe4 $19 ({or} 53... Rxg4 $5 $19 {is completely hopeless.})) 0-1

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 2nd"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2015.04.23"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2790"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2015.04.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 166"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.05.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. dxc5 Nd7 11. c6 Ne5 12. Nxe5 Qxe5 13. O-O bxc6 14. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 14. Qc2 Rb8 15. Rfd1 Be7 16. b3 Bb7 17. Bf1 Rfd8 18. g3 c5 19. Bg2 Ba6 20. h4 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Bf1 Bf6 24. Bxa6 Qxc3 25. Qe4 g6 26. Qa8+ Kg7 27. Qxa7 Qa5 28. a4 c4 {Kuzubov,Y (2625)-Sevian,S (2698) Douglas IOM 2023 ½-½ (61)}) ({RR} 14. Qc2 Bb7 15. Be2 c5 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Bf1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Be4 19. Qa4 Rxd1 20. Rxd1 Bd5 21. c4 Be4 22. Qa5 Bc2 23. Rc1 Qb2 24. Qd2 Qxa2 25. Qxc2 Qxc2 26. Rxc2 {1-0 (26) Zou,C (2443)-Casadio,N (2268) chess.com INT 2025}) 14... Rd8 15. Rfd1 Bb7 16. Rxd8+ Rxd8 17. Rd1 Rxd1+ 18. Qxd1 Qc7 19. h3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 c5 21. Qa4 Qc6 22. Qxc6 Bxc6 23. Bd3 e5 24. f4 f6 25. Kf2 Kf7 26. h4 Ke6 27. g3 g5 28. hxg5 hxg5 29. fxg5 fxg5 30. Ke1 Bd5 31. a3 e4 32. Be2 Ke5 33. Kd2 Be6 34. Ke1 Kd6 35. Kd2 Ke5 36. Ke1 Kd6 37. Kd2 Ke5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 3rd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2015.06.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2876"]
[BlackElo "2798"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 167"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 Nd7 8. Rc1 g6 9. Be2 (9. Bd3 {is more common, with a usual continuation being} dxc4 10. Bxc4) 9... Bg7 (9... dxc4 10. Bxc4 {was possible here, too.}) 10. cxd5 {[%mdl 32] White goes for the classic Karlsbad structure, for which his rook is not placed properly on c1 but neither is Black's bishop on g7.} ({He can include mutual castling first:} 10. O-O O-O (10... dxc4 11. Bxc4 {again leads to a common position}) 11. cxd5 (11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Qf4 13. Qc2 f5 14. Nc3 Qc7 15. Rfd1 e5 16. d5 {0-1 (31) Kanep,M (2505)-Fridman,D (2653) Riga 2012} e4 $132) (11. Qc2 Qe7 12. Rfd1 a6 $5 13. a3 Rb8 14. h3 Kh8 15. Nd2 Rd8 16. b4 b5 17. c5 e5 18. Nb3 Nf8 19. dxe5 Qxe5 20. Nd4 Qc7 21. h4 Ne6 $132 {1/2 (48) Aronian,L (2816)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2684) Istanbul 2012}) 11... exd5 12. b4 a6 (12... Nb6 {1/2 (17) Tosic,M (2440)-Kosic,D (2455) Kladovo 1993} 13. b5 $1) 13. a4 Qd6 14. Qb3 (14. b5 $5) 14... b5 15. axb5 axb5 16. e4 {1/2 (42) Devereaux,M (2329)-Horton,J Port Erin 2003} Nb6 $1 $11 17. exd5 $140 Nxd5 18. Nxd5 Be6 $1) ({If} 10. b4 a6 11. a4 {then} dxc4 12. Bxc4 O-O 13. O-O Qe7 $11 14. b5 $6 axb5 15. axb5 c5 16. Be2 cxd4 17. Nxd4 Nb6 18. Ra1 Rxa1 19. Qxa1 e5 20. Nf3 Be6 $36 {0-1 (60) Kolbus,D (2416)-Malakhatko,V (2556) Port Erin 2005}) 10... exd5 11. b4 {[%cal Yb4b5]} a6 (11... Qd6 {is less accurate:} 12. b5 O-O 13. O-O Nb6 14. bxc6 bxc6 (14... Qxc6 15. Ne5 Qe8 16. Nd3 Bd7 17. Nc5 Bc6 18. Qb3 Qe7 19. a4 Qg5 20. Rfd1 Rad8 21. Nb5 Nc8 22. Bf3 a6 23. Nc3 $16 {1/2 (61) Shchekachev,A (2537)-Bajarani,U (2424) Paris 2011}) 15. Na4 Re8 16. Nc5 Rb8 17. Re1 Nd7 18. Nd3 Ba6 19. Nf4 Bb7 20. Qa4 a6 21. Nd3 Rec8 22. Qa5 $14 {1-0 (46) Shchekachev,A (2528)-Lamorelle,J (2277) Paris 2012}) 12. a4 O-O 13. b5 ({RR} 13. O-O Qd6 14. Qb3 Nf6 15. Ne5 Be6 16. Nd3 h5 17. Nc5 Rab8 18. b5 axb5 19. axb5 h4 20. h3 Rfe8 21. Ra1 Nd7 22. Nxe6 Qxe6 23. Bf3 f5 24. Rfb1 Bf8 25. Nxd5 Kh8 26. Nc7 Qxb3 27. Rxb3 Rec8 {Beydullayeva,G (2400)-Aydin,G (2265) Baku AZE 2025 1-0 (47)}) 13... axb5 14. axb5 {The classic minority attack leads to a typical position with the weak c6-pawn (in the event of b5xc6 b7xc6) or weak b- and d-pawns in Black's camp (in the event of ...c6xb5 or b5xc6 xc6). Usually Black opts for the former setup as it is difficult for White to convert such a small advantage. Often (in the present game, too) White refrains from the early capture on c6 so that the b-file remains closed, and he can sometimes attack the b7-pawn.} Qd6 $146 ({RR} 14... Ra3 15. O-O Qd6 16. Qc2 Nb8 17. bxc6 bxc6 18. Na4 Bf5 19. Qc5 {½-½ (19) Garcia,J (2429)-Goganov,A (2605) Bangkok 2017}) 15. O-O Nb6 16. Qb3 Rb8 17. Nd1 {The knight goes to d3 and then possibly to c5 or e5.} Bf5 18. Nb2 Rfc8 19. Nd3 Bxd3 {A simple way to disrupt White's plan. However, the exchange of Black's light-squared bishop has a drawback as it is a good defender of his position.} 20. Qxd3 c5 {Another typical transformation. Black prefers to have an isolated central pawn, safely protected by the perfectly placed b6 knight. In many cases (including this one) it is quite enough for equality.} 21. dxc5 Rxc5 $11 {However, the World Champion is famous for regularly outplaying his rivals in quiet equal positions.} 22. h4 Na4 (22... h5 {was quite possible (and would have been probably played against any other opponent):} 23. Ng5 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Ra8 $11) 23. h5 Rbc8 $6 {Another timorous move.} (23... Nc3 $142 24. hxg6 Qxg6 $11) 24. Rxc5 Nxc5 {The knight is hardly placed better on c5 than on b6.} 25. Qc2 {Now the destruction of Black's queenside is inevitable. He must switch to defence.} gxh5 (25... Qe6 26. Rc1 $1 $36) 26. Nd4 Qg6 27. Nf5 $14 {[%csl Gf5]} Bf8 28. Rd1 Qe6 29. Rc1 Nb3 $1 {[%mdl 256] A correct simplification.} 30. Qxc8 Nxc1 31. Qxc1 Qxf5 {The opposite-coloured bishops should secure Black a draw.} 32. Qc7 Qb1+ 33. Bf1 d4 $1 34. exd4 (34. Qxb7 dxe3 35. fxe3 Qe1 {[%cal Yf8d6,Ye1g3]}) 34... Qd1 (34... Qe4 $142 $1 $11 35. Bc4 $140 Qe1+ 36. Kh2 Qxf2) 35. Qe5 $1 (35. Qxb7 Qxd4 $11 {[%cal Yf8c5]}) 35... Bg7 36. Qe8+ Bf8 37. Qd8 Kg7 (37... Qd2 $142 $5 38. d5 Kg7) 38. Qd5 $1 {White is trying all possible chances.} b6 39. Qe5+ Kg8 40. Qf6 Bg7 (40... Bb4 $142 $1 41. Qxb6 (41. Qxh6 Qxd4 {[%cal Yb4c5]}) 41... Kg7 {[%cal Yb4c3,Yc3d4]} 42. Qd8 Bc5 $1 {, which is not easy to find, though.}) 41. Qxb6 Bxd4 42. Qxh6 Qg4 43. Qd6 Qd1 44. Qd8+ Kh7 $6 {A serious inaccuracy.} (44... Kg7 $1 45. Qg5+ Kh7 {was still a clear draw.}) 45. Qc7 $1 {White's passed pawn now moves forward.} Kg7 46. b6 Qg4 $1 {The only way to create counterplay.} (46... Qd2 $4 47. Qg3+ Kh7 48. b7) 47. b7 Qh4 $1 48. g3 Qf6 49. Qc2 Qe5 {Black has stopped White's pawn at the last moment. The draw is still highly probable.} 50. Qd3 Ba7 51. Qf3 Qf6 52. Qe2 {The queen exchange leads to a draw, e.g.} (52. Be2 Qxf3 53. Bxf3 Kg6 54. Kg2 f5 55. Be2 Bb8 (55... f4 56. gxf4 Bb8 {is good enough}) 56. Kh3 Be5 57. f4 Bc7 58. Kg2 (58. Kh4 Bd8+) 58... h4 $1 $11) 52... Qc3 53. Kh2 Qd4 54. Qf3 Bb8 $2 {Surprisingly, this is a big mistake.} (54... h4 $1 {was correct as} 55. g4 Qe5+ 56. Kg2 Bb8 {lead to a dead draw.}) 55. Kh3 Bc7 (55... Qf6 56. Qxf6+ Kxf6 57. Kh4 Kg6 58. Be2 {- Black's bishop is placed wrongly, unable to give a check, therefore he loses the h5-pawn and the game.}) 56. Be2 Bb8 57. Bd1 {[%cal Rf3h5] White doesn't want to calculate the queen endgame after} (57. Qxh5 Qxf2 58. Qg5+ Kf8 59. Qd8+ Kg7 60. Qxb8 Qxe2) 57... f5 {Desperation.} 58. Be2 f4 (58... Qg4+ 59. Qxg4+ hxg4+ 60. Bxg4 fxg4+ 61. Kxg4 $18 {White's pawns easily prevail as his king goes to the queenside at the decisive moment.}) 59. Qxh5 Qxf2 $5 60. Qg5+ Kf7 $138 {White lost on time unaware of the time rate. He still needed several accurate checks to construct the mating net:} (60... Kf7 61. Bc4+ Ke8 62. Bb5+ $1 {Only this; if Black's king escapes to the queenside, it will be safe!} Kf7 63. Qf5+ Kg7 64. Qd7+ $1 Kf6 65. Qd8+ $1 Kg7 (65... Kf7 66. Bc4+ Kg6 67. Qg8+ Kf6 68. Qf8+ Kg5 69. Qg7+ {leads to the same}) 66. Qe7+ Kh6 67. Qf6+ Kh7 68. Bd3+ Kg8 69. Bc4+ Kh7 70. Qf7+ Kh6 71. Qf8+ $1 Kg5 72. Qg7+ Kf5 73. g4+ Ke4 74. Qg6+ Kd4 75. Qb6+ $18) 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 3rd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2015.06.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D56"]
[WhiteElo "2876"]
[BlackElo "2802"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "190"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 167"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Ne4 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. Rc1 c6 10. Qc2 Nxc3 11. Qxc3 dxc4 {A dubious decision: Black allows White's bishop to get to c4 in one go.} (11... Nd7 {is more accurate and common.}) 12. Bxc4 b6 (12... Nd7 13. Be2 $5 Re8 14. O-O e5 15. Rfe1 exd4 16. exd4 Nf8 17. d5 Bg4 18. h3 Bh5 19. dxc6 bxc6 20. Bf1 Qb7 21. Rxe8 Rxe8 22. Nd4 $16 {1-0 (68) Bischoff,K (2533)-Senff,M (2449) Germany 2006}) 13. O-O {Too conventional.} (13. Be2 $5 Bb7 14. Ne5 Rc8 15. O-O $142 {as it is not easy for Black to push ...c6-c5 without concessions:} (15. Bh5 {(Hort) is not very promising due to} g6 16. Bf3 c5 {as} 17. Bxb7 Qxb7 {[%cal Yb8d7]} 18. Ng4 {doesn't work:} Qxg2 19. Nf6+ Kg7 20. dxc5 Qxh1+ 21. Ke2 Qxc1 22. Qxc1 Rxc5 $1 ({but not} 22... Kxf6 $2 23. cxb6 $1 Rxc1 24. b7)) 15... Nd7 (15... c5 16. b4 $5) 16. Nxd7 Qxd7 17. Qb3 (17. b4 $5) 17... Qe7 (17... c5 {leads to an isolated pawn}) 18. Bf3 {etc.}) 13... Nd7 {More accurate than} (13... Bb7 14. Ne5 $5 (14. e4 c5 15. d5 exd5 16. exd5 Nd7 17. Rfe1 Qd6 (17... Qf6 $5 18. Bb5 (18. Ne5 $5) 18... Qxc3 19. bxc3 Nf6 {Hort} 20. c4 a6 21. Bc6 $14) 18. Nh4 $5 g6 $1 (18... Qf6 19. Qxf6 Nxf6 20. d6 $14 {1-0 (29) Hort,V-Donner,J Wijk aan Zee 1970}) 19. Qe3 Rfe8 $1 20. Qxh6 Ne5 $132) 14... Nd7 15. Nxd7 Qxd7 16. Be2 $1 Rfc8 (16... Qe7 17. Bf3 Rac8 18. Qb3 Rc7 19. Qa4 c5 20. Bxb7 Rxb7 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. b3 $14 {1-0 (41) Frydman,P-Gershman,J Buenos Aires 1939}) 17. b4 (17. Rfd1 Qe7 18. Bf3 c5 19. Bxb7 Qxb7 $11 {1/2 (27) Kieninger,G-Schmidt,P Heidelberg 1949}) 17... a5 18. a3 axb4 19. axb4 Qd5 20. Bf3 Qb5 21. Rb1 Ra2 22. Rfc1 $14 {1-0 (40) Huzman,A (2570)-Ravia,M (2330) Israel 1996}) 14. Rfd1 (14. b4 Bb7 15. Be2 Rfc8 16. Rfd1 {1/2 (16) Kantsler,B (2455)-Ravia,M (2370) Petah Tiqwa 1996} a5 $132) 14... Bb7 15. h3 (15. e4 Rfd8 16. Qe3 c5 17. h3 cxd4 18. Nxd4 Rac8 19. f3 Ne5 $11 {1-0 (36) Sanikidze,T (2426)-Becker,M (2330) Dresden 2007}) 15... c5 $146 {Black has solved his opening problems.} ({RR} 15... Rfd8 16. b4 c5 17. bxc5 Bxf3 18. gxf3 bxc5 19. d5 Nb6 20. dxe6 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 fxe6 22. Bb3 Rc8 23. Bc2 c4 24. f4 Rd8 25. Rb1 Qd6 26. Rd1 Qe7 27. Rxd8+ Qxd8 28. Qe5 Kf7 29. Qa5 Qd7 30. Qc5 {Pultinevicius,P (2517)-Korneev,O (2474) Parnu EST 2023 1-0 (58)}) ({RR} 15... Rfd8 16. b4 c5 17. bxc5 Bxf3 18. gxf3 bxc5 19. d5 Nb6 20. dxe6 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 fxe6 22. Bb3 Rc8 23. Bc2 c4 24. f4 Rd8 25. Rb1 Qd6 26. Rd1 Qe7 27. Rxd8+ Qxd8 28. Qe5 Kf7 29. Qa5 Qd7 30. Qc5 {Pultinevicius,P (2517)-Korneev,O (2474) Parnu EST 2023 1-0 (58)}) 16. d5 {A harmless attempt. Black's queenside pawns will not be less strong than White's central pawns, which are not too advanced.} exd5 17. Bxd5 Bxd5 18. Rxd5 Nf6 19. Rd3 Rad8 20. Rcd1 Rxd3 21. Qxd3 Rc8 22. a4 c4 23. Qc2 Qe4 24. Nd4 c3 25. Qb3 Qd5 26. Qc2 Qe4 27. Qxe4 Nxe4 {[%mdl 4096]} 28. b3 Nd2 $6 {A risky adventure. It was better to take another route:} (28... Nc5 $5 {(K.Sakaev)} 29. Kf1 Na6 (29... a5 30. Ke2 Na6 {[%cal Ya6b4]}) 30. Nc2 Nc5 $11) 29. Rc1 a5 (29... c2 $6 30. b4) 30. Rc2 (30. f3 c2 {[%cal Yc8c3]}) 30... Nb1 31. Rc1 (31. f3 Na3 32. Rc1 c2 33. Kf2 Rc3 {, and White can't make progress.}) 31... Nd2 32. Rc2 Nb1 33. Nb5 Kf8 (33... Rd8 34. Rc1 Rd3 (34... c2 35. Rxc2 Rd1+ 36. Kh2 Nd2 37. Kg3 Nxb3 38. Rc6 {is risky for Black}) 35. g4 c2 36. Rxc2 Rxb3 37. Rc8+ Kh7 38. Rc6 Rb4 39. Nd6 {, and White fights on.}) 34. f3 Rd8 35. Nd4 {White could have kept winning chances by means of} (35. Kf2 $1 Rd2+ 36. Rxd2 cxd2 37. Ke2 Ke7 38. g4) 35... Rc8 36. Rc1 Na3 37. Nc2 Nxc2 38. Rxc2 {White eventually wins the c3-pawn in this rook ending but Black manages to trade all the queenside pawns, after which a theoretically drawn endgame arises.} Rc5 39. Kf2 b5 40. axb5 Rxb5 41. Rxc3 g6 42. f4 (42. g4 h5 $1) 42... h5 {It is useful for Black to put his rook pawn here as it makes his task easier. White's further attempts are absolutely fruitless.} 43. Rc8+ Kg7 44. Ra8 Rxb3 45. Rxa5 Rb2+ 46. Kf3 Rb3 47. Ra7 Rc3 48. Re7 Rb3 49. Kg3 Rb2 50. Kf3 Rb3 51. g4 hxg4+ 52. hxg4 Rb1 53. Rd7 Rf1+ 54. Ke4 Rg1 55. g5 Ra1 56. Ke5 Ra3 57. e4 Ra5+ 58. Kd6 Ra6+ 59. Ke5 Ra5+ 60. Rd5 Ra4 61. Rc5 Ra1 62. Rc2 Rf1 63. Rc7 Re1 64. Ra7 Rg1 65. Ra4 Rf1 66. Ra6 Re1 67. Kd4 Rd1+ 68. Ke3 Re1+ 69. Kf3 Rf1+ 70. Kg3 Re1 71. e5 Re3+ 72. Kf2 Rb3 73. Rd6 Ra3 74. Rd8 Rc3 75. Ke2 Ra3 76. Rd3 Ra1 77. Ke3 Re1+ 78. Kd4 Rf1 79. Ke4 Ra1 80. Rd7 Ra4+ 81. Rd4 Ra5 82. Rc4 Kf8 83. Rc8+ Kg7 84. Rc7 Kf8 85. Kd4 Ra4+ 86. Rc4 Ra5 87. Rc8+ Kg7 88. e6 fxe6 89. Rc5 Ra7 90. Ke5 Rf7 91. Rc4 Rf5+ 92. Kxe6 Kg8 93. Rc8+ Kg7 94. Rc7+ Kg8 95. Rc8+ Kg7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 3rd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2015.06.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D43"]
[WhiteElo "2723"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[Annotator "Ramirez Alvarez,Alejandro"]
[PlyCount "34"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 167"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 g5 7. Bg3 Ne4 $6 {This move simply cannot be good, but it is clear that Carlsen had at least looked at the situation. MVL thought for a few minutes and decided to go for the sacrificial route.} 8. Nxe4 (8. Nd2 Nxg3 9. hxg3 Bg7 10. e3 a6 {was a blitz game between Grischuk-Kramnik from 2008. White obtained the better position and won the game.}) (8. e3 {might be the simple move and the true refutation of Black's intentions. He might have to start attacking with Bb4, but it should be insufficient} Bb4 9. Qb3 Qa5 10. Rc1 Nd7 11. Bd3 $14) 8... dxe4 9. Nd2 Qxd4 10. e3 {This is the point. The threat on the queen and on the e4 pawn is strong, so Black must keep munching pawns to stay in the game.} Qxb2 11. Rb1 Qc3 $1 {The only move} 12. Be2 Nd7 (12... Bb4 13. Rxb4 Qxb4 14. O-O {is already extremely dangerous for Black. For example:} f5 $2 15. Nxe4 $1 fxe4 16. Bh5+ Ke7 17. Qd4 {with a decisive advantage: the attack is too strong.}) 13. O-O Nc5 {Incredibly Black is holding. There are still many interesting possibilities in this position, but the situation is very unclear. Carlsen had blitzed up to this point and it was clear that he had seen this position in his analysis, so MVL took the practical decision to force the draw.} 14. Nb3 Nd3 $146 (14... Be7 15. Nxc5 Bxc5 16. Bd6 {looks uncomfortable for Black.}) ({RR} 14... Qf6 15. Qc2 Nxb3 16. Rxb3 Bg7 17. Bd6 Qf5 18. c5 Be5 19. Rd1 Bxd6 20. cxd6 Kd7 21. Qb2 e5 22. Rxb7+ Kd8 23. Re7 Re8 24. Rxa7 {1-0 (24) Obsivac,J (2264)-Cagasik,T (2166) Czech Republic 2019}) 15. Nd2 Nc5 {Black must defend the e4 pawn.} 16. Nb3 Nd3 17. Nd2 (17. f3 $5 {would have been a completely different story.}) 17... Nc5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 3rd"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2015.06.25"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Hammer, Jon Ludvig"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D30"]
[WhiteElo "2677"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[Annotator "Prathamesh,Sunil Mokal"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2015.06.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 167"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 a6 $5 {An out of form (and out of luck) Carlsen playing Black against his own second and good friend, Jon Ludwig Hammer in the last round. An unenviable situation for the Champion. It is therefore not a surprise that Carlsen chooses to play something slightly different...} 4. Bg5 f6 $6 {[%csl Re6][%cal Rg8f6,Ga2g8] ...but this is a real surprise. Whatever the engines say, this move would be criticised by any book on openng fundamentals. It weakens the a2-g8, takes away an important square from the g8- and also creates a target on e6.} (4... Be7 {is normal.}) 5. Bd2 dxc4 6. e3 ({RR} 6. a4 c5 7. e3 Nc6 8. Bxc4 cxd4 9. O-O dxe3 10. Bxe3 Qxd1 11. Rxd1 Nge7 {½-½ (11) Giri,A (2772)-Mamedyarov,S (2767) Warsaw 2021}) ({RR} 6. a4 e5 7. dxe5 Nc6 8. e3 Be6 9. Be2 fxe5 10. O-O e4 11. Nd4 Nxd4 12. exd4 Nf6 13. Qc2 Bd6 14. Bxc4 Qe7 15. Qb3 Bxc4 16. Qxc4 O-O-O 17. Nc3 e3 18. Bxe3 Ng4 19. g3 Nxe3 20. fxe3 Qxe3+ {Michalik,P (2562)-Lavrencic,M (2465) Pardubice CZE 2025 ½-½}) 6... Nc6 $146 (6... b5 7. a4 Bb7 8. axb5 axb5 9. Rxa8 Bxa8 10. b3 $14 {[%csl Rb5,Re6,Re8,Rf6][%cal Gf7f6] White will win back the pawn. The weakening move ...f6 will matter sooner or later.}) ({RR} 6... b5 7. a4 Bb7 8. axb5 axb5 9. Rxa8 Bxa8 10. b3 c5 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. Nc3 Bd5 13. bxc4 Bxc4 14. Bxc4 bxc4 15. Qa4+ Nd7 16. Ne4 Kf7 17. Ba5 Bb6 18. Nd6+ Kf8 19. Bb4 Ne7 20. Nxc4 Bc5 21. O-O {Filip,L (2391)-Gavrilescu,D (2512) Eforie Nord 2022 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 6... b5 7. a4 Bb7 8. axb5 axb5 9. Rxa8 Bxa8 10. b3 c5 11. bxc4 b4 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Nd4 Bxd4 14. exd4 Qxd4 15. Bxb4 Qe4+ 16. Be2 Qxg2 17. Rf1 Nc6 18. Bd6 Qe4 19. Nc3 Qd4 20. Nb5 Qxd1+ 21. Kxd1 {Barp,A (2369)-Savchenko,B (2573) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (32)}) 7. Bxc4 {[%csl Re6]} Bd6 8. e4 (8. Nc3 $5 Nge7 9. O-O O-O 10. Ne4 $14) 8... Nge7 9. O-O O-O 10. Qb3 Kh8 (10... Qd7 11. a4 $14 {[%csl Rc8,Re6,Rg8] White has the space. Black has the weakness and awkwardly placed pieces.}) 11. Bxe6 Bxh2+ 12. Kxh2 (12. Nxh2 $2 Nxd4 $17) 12... Qd6+ 13. Kh1 ({Hammer was probably worried about some intermediate checks that could spoil his calculations somewhere after} 13. Kg1 {[%cal Gc6d4,Gd4f3,Gc6e5,Ge5f3,Gf3g1] but concrete variations do not show anything to worry about, for example} Bxe6 14. d5 Bg8 (14... Nxd5 15. exd5 Bxd5 16. Bf4 $16) 15. Qa3 $14) 13... Bxe6 14. d5 Bg8 (14... Nxd5 15. exd5 Bxd5 16. Bf4 $16) 15. Qa3 $1 {Forcing a pleasant endgame.} Qxa3 16. Nxa3 Na7 (16... Nb8 {[%csl Ra8][%cal Gb8d7,Gc7c6] controls the d7-square and therefore makes ...c6 a viable option to consider. But it holds up the  on a8, giving us the pros and cons.} 17. Bb4 Re8 18. Rac1 c6 19. Rfe1 $14 ({The point of ...b8 is that} 19. d6 {[%csl Rd7][%cal Gb8d7] is a move that Black need not worry about.} Nc8 $15) (19. Nc4 Nc8)) (16... Ne5 $2 17. Nxe5 fxe5 18. f3 $16 {[%csl Rc7,Re5]}) 17. Bb4 Rfe8 18. Rac1 Rac8 (18... c6 $6 19. d6 $14 {[%csl Ra7][%cal Rb8d7]}) (18... Ng6 $5 19. Rxc7 (19. Rfe1 c6 20. Nc4 Nf4 21. d6 (21. Nb6 $2 Rad8 $132) 21... Nd3 $132) 19... Rxe4 20. Bc5 (20. Rxb7 $2 Bxd5 $17) 20... Bxd5 21. Rd1 Bg8 (21... Bxa2 22. Bxa7 Rxa7 23. Rd8+ Bg8 24. Nc4 {[%cal Gc4d6]} h5 (24... h6 25. Nd6 Re7 26. Rcc8 $16) 25. Nd6 $18 {[%cal Gc7c5,Gc5h5,Gc7c8,Gd8g8]}) 22. Bxa7 Rxa7 23. Rd8 $36 {[%csl Ra7,Rg8][%cal Gc7a7,Gc7h7,Gd8a8,Gd8h8]}) 19. Nd4 $1 f5 20. f3 (20. Bxe7 $6 Rxe7 21. exf5 (21. Nxf5 Rxe4 $15) 21... Rd8 $15 {[%csl Rd5]}) 20... fxe4 21. fxe4 $14 {[%csl Rc7,Gd5,Ge4] The central pawns take away a lot of important squares from Black pieces and White has annoying pressure on c7.} Ng6 22. Nf5 $6 (22. Rfe1 $142 {[%csl Gd5,Ge4] maintaining the strong central control.} Nf4 {[%cal Gf4d3]} 23. Nf5 $1 {[%csl Rg7][%cal Gb4c3,Gc3g7]} Nd3 24. Bc3 Bf7 25. Nxg7 Kg8 26. Nxe8 Rxe8 27. Bd4 {[%csl Ra7]} Nxe1 28. Rxe1 $14 {[%csl Ra7,Rc7,Gd5,Ge4]}) 22... Rxe4 23. Bc3 Bxd5 $6 ({On any other day and in any other tournament Carlsen would have found} 23... h6 $142 24. Bxg7+ Kh7 25. Bd4 (25. Bxh6 Bxd5 $132) 25... b6 26. d6 c5 $13) (23... Ne5 $2 24. Rce1 $18) 24. Bxg7+ Kg8 25. Bd4 $1 {[%csl Ra7][%cal Gf5h6,Gd4a7] Carlsen admitted to having missed this move. That is real bad form.} Rxd4 26. Nxd4 Bxa2 27. b3 Rd8 ({Black's best chance was to try and fight after} 27... c5 28. Rf2 cxd4 29. Rxc8+ Nxc8 30. Rxa2 {and it is not that easy for White to convert this position into a win.} Nf8 31. Nc4 $14 {and a long battle awaits.} ({White cannot really take the  on d4. For example} 31. Rd2 Ne6 32. Nc2 $6 Nd6 $1 33. Nxd4 $2 Ne4 $17 {[%csl Rd1,Rd3,Re2][%cal Ge4g3,Ge4f2]})) 28. Ne6 Rd2 ({Black should have pushed the  away with} 28... Rd6 $142 $16) 29. Rc3 (29. Rxc7 Bxb3 30. Rg7+ Kh8 31. Rff7 Bxe6 32. Rxh7+ Kg8 33. Rhg7+ Kh8 34. Rxb7 Bd5 (34... Nb5 35. Nxb5 axb5 36. Rxg6 $16) 35. Rh7+ Kg8 36. Rbg7+ Kf8 37. Rxg6 $18) 29... Re2 (29... Nc6 30. Rcf3 {[%cal Gf3f8]} h5 31. Rf7 Nce5 32. Rg7+ Kh8 33. Nc4 $18) 30. Nf4 (30. Rf6 $18 {[%cal Gc3f3,Gf6f8] was simpler, forcing Black to give up another exchange to avoid the threatened mate with cf3 followed by f8.}) 30... Rb2 31. Nxg6 hxg6 32. Rxc7 Rxb3 $2 (32... Bxb3 33. Rf6 $18 (33. Rxb7 Nb5 34. Rb1 Rxb1+ 35. Nxb1 $16)) ({A better fighting chance was} 32... Nc6 33. Re1 (33. Rf6 $5 Rxb3 34. Rxg6+ Kf8 35. Nc2 $16 {[%csl Gg2]}) (33. Rxb7 Rxb3 34. Rxb3 Bxb3 35. Rf6 Ne5 36. Rxa6 $16) 33... Kf8 34. Nc4 Rxb3 35. Nd6 {[%cal Ge1e8]} Rb1 36. Rxb1 Bxb1 37. Nxb7 $16 {[%cal Gb7c5,Gc5a6,Gc5e6]}) 33. Rd1 {[%cal Gd1d8]} Nc6 34. Rdd7 {[%cal Gc7c8] A fine victory for Jon Ludwig Hammer who kept up the pressure all through the game. From Carlsen's viewpoint, bad luck, bad form, the pressure of the home crowd and a final round against his own Second, everything went wrong for the Champion in this tournament. He is mortal, after all. The next event will be a test of his character and it will be no surprise if he comes out fighting with a vengeance.} 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 3rd"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2015.08.31"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2853"]
[BlackElo "2814"]
[Annotator "Wagner,Dennis"]
[PlyCount "190"]
[EventDate "2015.08.23"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 168"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2015.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:3600+30"]

{The day before Carlsen had lost an unbelievable game against Grischuk. After losing his objectivity in a completely equal position he had to suffer for a long time in an ending a pawn down. Nakamura on the other hand was outplayed by Aronian after unconvincing preparation in a Spanish line.} 1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:10] I was following the live commentary where former World Champion Garry Kasparov joined Yasser Seirawan and Jennifer Shahade in the commentary room. When asked which opening he would have recommended Nakamura against Carlsen he immediately responded: King's Indian, of course!} (1... Nf6 $1 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 $1) 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:04] But instead Nakamura goes for the solid Queen's Gambit, a decent opening of course, but in the specific tournament situation I would tend to agree with Kasparov. After his loss on the previous day it would have been more unpleasant for Carlsen to face concrete problems in a sharp line, where on top of that it's easier for Nakamura to unfold his full potential.} 4. Bf4 {[%emt 0:01:23]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 5. e3 {[%emt 0:00:10]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:29]} 6. a3 $5 {[%emt 0:00:22] The main point of this line is to prevent 6...bd7, so 6...b6 is considered the right reply now, because a3 is not that useful in the b6-setup.} c5 {[%emt 0:08:20] A risky choice, because Carlsen has lots of experience in this line with both colours.} (6... b6 $1) (6... Nbd7 $6 7. Nb5 $1) 7. dxc5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 8. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:56]} 9. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:37]} Qa5 {[%emt 0:21:02]} (9... Re8 {was played by Carlsen himself in his last World Championship match with Anand.} 10. Bg5 Be7 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. Bd3 h6 13. Bh4 dxc4 14. Bxc4 a6 15. O-O b5 16. Ba2 Bb7 17. Bb1 Rad8 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Ne4 Be7 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Qxc5 b4 $11 {1/2 (41)-1/2 (41) Anand, V (2792)-Carlsen,M (2863) Sochi 2014}) 10. Rd1 {[%emt 0:00:13]} Be7 {[%emt 0:01:43]} 11. Be2 {[%emt 0:00:22]} Ne4 {[%emt 0:02:11] I wonder what went wrong with Nakamura's preparation, because this line is considered dubious already for quite a long time.} (11... dxc4 12. Bxc4 Nh5 {is another line, where White gets a small plus.}) 12. cxd5 {[%emt 0:01:39]} Nxc3 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 13. Qxc3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} (13. bxc3 $5 {seems also pleasant for White.} exd5 14. O-O Bf6 15. c4 Be6 16. Bg5 dxc4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Bxc4 Qc5 19. Rc1 Qxc4 20. Qxc4 Bxc4 21. Rxc4 $16 {1-0 (37) Giri,A (2752)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2700) Rosmalen 2014}) 13... Qxc3+ {[%emt 0:00:15]} 14. bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} exd5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 15. Rxd5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Bxa3 {[%emt 0:04:29]} 16. Nd4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:52] A strong centralization move} Nxd4 {[%emt 0:03:50]} (16... a5 {is the other move that has been played here.} 17. Rb5 (17. Kd2 $5 a4 18. Kc2 Be7 19. Bf3 $14) 17... a4 18. Kd2 Be7 19. Ra1 Ra7 20. Bg5 f6 21. Bf4 Rd8 22. Bc7 Re8 23. Bb6 Ra8 24. Bc4+ Kf8 25. Ne6+ Bxe6 26. Bxe6 Bd6 27. Bd5 $16 {1-0 (41) Sokolov,I (2657)-Meier,G (2608) Budva 2009}) 17. exd4 {[%emt 0:00:13]} b6 {[%emt 0:05:32]} 18. Kd2 $14 {[%emt 0:03:18] It's time to make a cut and evaluate the position that has arisen. White has a protected passed pawn in the centre, while Black has one on the a-file. The White king is centralized and his other pieces are also active. Black on the other hand has an awkward piece placement. Especially his bishops are struggling to find good spots, as will also be demonstrated by the game later on. All in all White has a pretty decent and riskfree advantage, normally a dream position for our World Champion.} Be6 {[%emt 0:10:29]} 19. Rb5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 20. Rb3 {[%emt 0:03:19]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 21. Bf3 {[%emt 0:05:04]} Ba4 {[%emt 0:06:33] The other bishop has emerged to the edge of the board.} (21... Rac8 22. Ra1 $18 {loses already a pawn!}) 22. Rb2 {[%emt 0:00:49]} Rad8 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 23. Ra1 $146 {[%emt 0:07:42]} ({RR} 23. Re1 Bc5 24. Ra1 b5 25. Bc7 Rc8 26. Ba5 Bd6 27. g3 Rb8 28. c4 Be7 29. c5 Bf6 30. Kd3 Rbc8 31. c6 Bd8 32. Bb4 Bc7 33. Bxf8 Kxf8 34. Bd1 Bxd1 35. Rxd1 Rb8 36. Rdb1 a6 37. Re2 a5 {Kubik,M (2178)-Jaworski,M (2288) Ostrava 2015 ½-½ (66)}) 23... b5 {[%emt 0:00:06] The only way to prevent losing material, but now Black has built a cage for his own bishop.} 24. Bc6 {[%emt 0:12:46]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 25. Bb7 {[%emt 0:09:42]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 26. Be3 {[%emt 0:00:23]} a5 {[%emt 0:01:30]} 27. Bc6 {[%emt 0:00:37] logical and efficient play so far. The weak pawns are attacked and become even weaker by advancing.} Rb8 {[%emt 0:01:07]} 28. d5 $18 {[%emt 0:00:44]} Rfd8 {[%emt 0:07:30]} (28... Be5 {[%cal Gb5b4]} 29. f4 Bf6 30. Kd3 $18 {is no better.}) 29. Kd3 {[%emt 0:00:34] White is in full control!} Bf8 {[%emt 0:03:41]} 30. Bd4 {[%emt 0:01:35]} f6 {[%emt 0:01:47]} 31. Ke4 {[%emt 0:07:14]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:09:18]} 32. c4 $6 {[%emt 0:01:49] This is not the kind of technical play to which we are accustomed from Magnus. Although this is winning there was no need to hurry.} ({Instead the position could have been improved slowly but surely with e.g.} 32. g3 $5 $18 {[%cal Gf2f4] intending to improve the position to the maximum, before c4 is carried out. Black can't do anything.}) 32... Bb4 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 33. Ba7 {[%emt 0:04:40]} f5+ $1 {[%emt 0:06:37] Nakamura is always capable of finding some tricks to create problems for his opponent.} 34. Kf3 {[%emt 0:01:41]} Rbc8 {[%emt 0:02:42]} 35. cxb5 {[%emt 0:05:04]} Bxb5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 36. Bxb5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bc3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 37. Rab1 {[%emt 0:01:20]} (37. Rba2 Bxa1 38. Rxa1 Rxd5 39. Rxa5 $1 Kf8 40. Bb6 Rb8 41. Bc4 Rxa5 42. Bxa5 $18 {should be winning for White, but there is still some technical work ahead of him. I give a sample line to illustrate how play may continue. White has to display some accuracy to break down Black's defence.} g6 43. Bd2 Kg7 44. Bc3+ Kf8 45. Ke3 Rc8 46. Kd4 Re8 47. g3 Kg7 48. h4 Kh6 49. Bb5 Re6 50. Kd5 Re7 51. Kd6 Rb7 (51... Re4 52. f3 $1 $18 {pretty domination!}) 52. Be2 Ra7 53. Bd4 Ra4 54. Be3+ Kg7 55. Bb5 Re4 56. Bc6 Rb4 57. Ke7 Rc4 58. Bd5 Ra4 59. Bd2 Ra3 60. Bb4 Ra7+ 61. Ke8 h5 (61... Ra6 62. Bc3+ Kh6 63. Kf8 $18) 62. Bc3+ Kh6 63. Kf8 Rc7 64. Bd4 Rc8+ 65. Kf7 Kh7 66. Be3 Rc3 67. Kf6 Ra3 68. Kg5 Ra6 69. Bf4 Rb6 70. Bf7 Kg7 71. Bc4 Kh7 72. Be5 Rb7 73. f3 Ra7 74. Kf6 Kh6 (74... Rb7 75. Bf7 Rb6+ 76. Kg5 $18) 75. Bc3 Rc7 76. Bd2+ Kh7 77. Bf7 Rc6+ 78. Kg5 Kg7 (78... f4 79. Bxf4 (79. g4 $5 $18) 79... Kg7 80. Bxg6 Rxg6+ 81. Kxh5 $18) 79. Be8 $18 Ra6 80. Bc3+ Kh7 81. Bf6 $18) 37... Bxb2 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 38. Rxb2 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Rxd5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 39. Be3 $2 {[%emt 0:00:40] This doesn't make any sense. Maybe Magnus just blundered 39...b8, because afterwards I saw him shaking his head in frustration on the livestream.} (39. Ba4 $1 $18 {It's obvious that White should prevent a rook exchange.} Rc3+ 40. Ke2 Re5+ 41. Kd2 Rc8 42. Rb7 Kf8 43. Be3 Rc4 44. Bb3 Rb4 45. Rxb4 axb4 46. Kd3 $18) 39... Rb8 {[%emt 0:01:21]} 40. Bc4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Rxb2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 41. Bxd5+ {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kh8 {[%emt 0:00:00] White could have achieved the same position without the black a-pawn! Although he has still winning chances this makes quite a huge difference. Especially from a psychological point of view White's chances of success have dramatically decreased.} 42. Bd4 {[%emt 0:05:06]} Rb1 {[%emt 0:05:54]} 43. Ke2 {[%emt 0:12:22]} a4 {[%emt 0:02:20]} 44. g3 {[%emt 0:00:56]} a3 {[%emt 0:08:56]} 45. Kd2 {[%emt 0:01:21]} h5 {[%emt 0:02:29]} 46. h4 {[%emt 0:06:57]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:01:18]} 47. Bc4 {[%emt 0:09:31]} g6 {[%emt 0:09:32]} 48. Kc2 {[%emt 0:04:30]} Re1 {[%emt 0:05:08]} (48... Rb8 $5 {It's not clear how White makes progress against this setup either. The rook cuts the king from the a-pawn.}) 49. Be3 {[%emt 0:02:43]} (49. Kb3 $2 a2 $19) (49. Bc5 f4 $1 50. Bxa3 (50. gxf4 Re4) 50... fxg3 51. fxg3 Re8 {is like the game.}) 49... f4 $1 {[%emt 0:00:33] a good pawn exchange!} 50. Bxf4 {[%emt 0:07:23]} (50. gxf4 Rh1 $132) 50... a2 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 51. Bxa2 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Re2+ {[%emt 0:00:02]} 52. Kb3 {[%emt 0:00:26]} Rxf2 {[%emt 0:00:04] This is already a convincing fortress! A major problem for White is that Black sometimes has the possibility to sacfrice his rook for the dark-squared bishop if he manages to exchange g-pawns afterwards.} 53. Bb1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Re2 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 54. Kc4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:27]} 55. Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Re1 {[%emt 0:04:59]} 56. Bc2 {[%emt 0:01:14]} Re2 {[%emt 0:01:53]} 57. Bd3 {[%emt 0:00:46]} Re1 {[%emt 0:00:47]} 58. Be4 {[%emt 0:02:03]} (58. Be5+ Kh7 59. Ke6 {White cannot make progress this way, because Black can solve his problems radically:} Kh6 $1 60. Kf6 Rxe5 $1 61. Kxe5 g5 $1 $11 62. hxg5+ Kxg5 63. Be2 h4 64. g4 h3 $11) 58... Rd1+ {[%emt 0:01:31]} 59. Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:37]} Re1 {[%emt 0:00:35]} 60. Bd2 {[%emt 0:01:04]} Re2 {[%emt 0:02:01]} 61. Bc3 {[%emt 0:01:04]} Kh6 {[%emt 0:01:01]} 62. Bb4 {[%emt 0:01:57]} Rf2 {[%emt 0:01:25] White is unable to cross the f-file.} 63. Bc5 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Rf1 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 64. Bb4 {[%emt 0:01:29]} Rf2 {[%emt 0:01:16]} 65. Be7 {[%emt 0:02:02]} Rf1 {[%emt 0:01:21]} 66. Bf6 {[%emt 0:04:15]} Rg1 {[%emt 0:01:52]} 67. Bg5+ {[%emt 0:02:29]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 68. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:45]} Re1 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 69. Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Rd1+ {[%emt 0:01:22]} 70. Ke6 {[%emt 0:00:44]} Re1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 71. Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:07] I think about here Nakamura claimed a draw on a three-fold-repetition. The position has indeed been reached for a third time, but while now it's Black´s turn to move, in the earlier versions it was White to move. So after adding some extra time to Magnus' clock the game continued.} Re2 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 72. Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Re1 {[%emt 0:01:02]} 73. Bd3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:02:41]} 74. Kd4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 75. Be3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Ra1 {[%emt 0:03:14]} 76. Ke4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Ra4+ {[%emt 0:03:16]} 77. Kf3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Ra3 {[%emt 0:00:34]} 78. Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:24]} Rb3 {[%emt 0:00:23]} 79. Be8 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:36]} 80. Bc6 {[%emt 0:02:12]} Rb4 {[%emt 0:01:10]} 81. Bd2 {[%emt 0:02:24]} Rb6 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 82. Bc3+ {[%emt 0:00:20]} Kh6 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 83. Bd5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:58]} 84. Kf4 {[%emt 0:01:26]} Rf1+ {[%emt 0:02:44]} 85. Ke5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Rg1 {[%emt 0:04:57]} 86. Bd2+ {[%emt 0:04:47]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 87. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:13]} Re1+ {[%emt 0:00:23]} 88. Kd6 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Kf6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 89. Bf3 {[%emt 0:04:34] This allows Black to end his suffering:} (89. Bc6 Rd1+ $11) 89... Kf5 $1 {[%emt 0:00:55]} 90. Kd5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Rf1 {[%emt 0:00:31]} 91. Be4+ {[%emt 0:01:04]} Kg4 {[%emt 0:00:50]} 92. Bxg6 {[%emt 0:00:35]} Rxf4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 93. gxf4 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Kxf4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 94. Bxh5 {[%emt 0:00:17]} Kg3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 95. Bd1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Kxh4 {Very tenacious defence by Nakamura and another disappointment for Carlsen. In my opinion it's only a matter of time, till Carlsen finds back his form. In an interview during this game Garry Kasparov was asked whom he saw as the biggest threat to Carlsen recently. His answer was telling: Magnus Carlsen!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2015.11.16"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Hansen, Sune Berg"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2566"]
[BlackElo "2850"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2015.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Denmark"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "DEN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:32:56"]
[BlackClock "0:44:33"]

1. d4 {Marin,Mihail} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bd6 ({RR} 5... Be7) 6. Bg2 c6 7. O-O Nbd7 ({RR} 7... O-O 8. Nc3 dxc4 9. e4) 8. Nc3 dxc4 9. Bg5 ({RR} 9. e4 e5) 9... O-O ({RR} 9... h6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Ne4 Qe7 12. Nfd2 ({RR} 12. Qc2 O-O ({RR} 12... Nb6 13. Ne5) 13. Nxd6 Qxd6 14. Qxc4 e5 15. Rad1 exd4 16. Nxd4 Qc5 17. Qxc5 Nxc5 18. Rd2 a5 19. Rc1 Na6 20. Rcd1 Nc7 21. a3 a4 22. f4 g6 23. Kf2 Ne6 24. e4) 12... Nb6 13. f4 ({RR} 13. Rc1 O-O ({RR} 13... e5) 14. Nxc4 Bc7 15. Qc2 Qd8 16. Rfd1 Nd5 17. a3) ({RR} 13. Qc2 e5) 13... O-O 14. Qc2 c5 15. Nxc4 Nxc4 16. Qxc4 cxd4 17. Nxd6 Qxd6 18. Rad1 e5 19. fxe5 Qxe5 20. Qxd4 Qxd4+ 21. Rxd4 Be6 22. Bxb7 Rab8 23. Bd5 Bxd5 24. Rxd5 {Gelfand,B (2758)-Ponomariov,R (2739) Moscow 2009 CBM 133 [Marin,Mihail] ½-½}) 10. Qc2 ({RR} 10. Nd2 Nb6 11. Qc2 Be7 12. e3 Re8 13. Rfd1 Nfd5 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Nce4 e5 16. Nxc4 exd4 17. Ncd6 dxe3 18. Nxe8 Qxe8 19. Nd6 Qe6 20. Nxc8 Rxc8 21. Re1 Nb4 22. Qe4 exf2+ 23. Kxf2 Qxe4 24. Bxe4 g6 {Serban,C (2332)-Materia,M (2489) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (44)}) 10... b5 11. a4 Qb6 $146 ({RR} 11... Ba6 12. axb5 Bxb5 13. e4 Be7 14. Nd2 a6 15. Rfd1 h6 16. Bxf6 Nxf6 17. e5 Nd5 18. Bxd5 cxd5 19. f4 Qb6 20. Nf3 Rfb8 21. Rab1 Bd7 22. f5 Qb3 23. Qf2 Ra7 24. f6 Bf8 25. fxg7 Bxg7 26. Rf1 {Zhou,A (2081)-Gueci,T (2184) Stockholm 2018 0-1 (41)}) 12. e4 b4 13. a5 Qc7 14. e5 bxc3 15. exd6 Qxd6 16. bxc3 Ba6 17. Rfe1 Nd5 18. Bc1 Rfb8 19. Ba3 Qc7 20. Ng5 N7f6 21. Bh3 Bc8 22. Bf1 Rb3 23. Bxc4 Rxc3 24. Qe2 Rb8 25. Nf3 Nb4 26. Rec1 Rxc1+ 27. Bxc1 Nbd5 28. Qc2 c5 29. Bf1 cxd4 30. Qxc7 Nxc7 31. Nxd4 Ba6 32. Nc6 Rb7 33. Bg2 Ncd5 34. Ba3 Rc7 35. Rc1 Bb5 36. Bxd5 Nxd5 37. Nxa7 Rxc1+ 38. Bxc1 Bd7 39. Kf1 Kf8 40. Ke2 Ke8 41. Kd3 Nb4+ 42. Kc4 Nc6 43. Nxc6 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2015.11.20"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Papaioannou, Ioannis"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2850"]
[BlackElo "2638"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2015.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Greece"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GRE"]
[WhiteClock "1:22:32"]
[BlackClock "1:15:31"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Qe7 5. g3 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 Nc6 7. e3 d5 8. Bg2 dxc4 9. O-O e5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Qxe5 12. Na3 O-O 13. Nxc4 Qe7 14. Rac1 $146 ({RR} 14. Qc2 c6 15. e4 Rd8 16. Ne3 Ng4 17. Nxg4 Bxg4 18. f4 Rd4 19. h3 Be6 20. Rad1 Rad8 21. Rxd4 Rxd4 22. Rd1 Qd8 23. Rxd4 Qxd4+ 24. Kh2 f6 25. a3 c5 26. Qe2 b6 27. Qb5 Qd7 28. Qxd7 Bxd7 {Horcajuelo Rocamora,M (2295)-Alfaya Marcelo,R (2259) Linares ESP 2024 ½-½ (55)}) ({RR} 14. Qc3 c6 15. a4 Be6 16. e4 Qc5 17. Na5 Qb6 18. b4 Rad8 19. Rad1 h6 20. h3 Rfe8 21. Qc5 Qa6 22. Qc2 Qb6 {½-½ (22) Lekic,D (2357)-Chernov,V (2393) Baden 2017}) 14... Rd8 15. Qa5 c6 16. b4 Be6 17. Qc5 Qxc5 18. bxc5 Nd7 19. Na5 Rab8 20. a4 g6 21. h3 Nxc5 22. Rxc5 b6 23. Rxc6 bxa5 24. Rc5 Rd2 25. Rxa5 Rbb2 26. Rc5 Ra2 27. a5 Ra3 28. g4 Rda2 29. Bd5 Bxd5 30. Rxd5 Rxa5 31. Rfd1 Rxd5 32. Rxd5 h6 33. Kg2 a5 34. h4 Kg7 35. h5 g5 36. Kf3 Ra4 37. Rc5 Kf6 38. Rc6+ Kg7 39. Ra6 Kh7 40. Kg3 Ra3 41. Kg2 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-chT (Men) 20th"]
[Site "Reykjavik"]
[Date "2015.11.22"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2850"]
[BlackElo "2748"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2015.11.13"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ISL"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Poland"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "POL"]

1. d4 (1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. exd5 cxd5 4. Bd3 Nc6 5. c3 Nf6 6. Bf4 Bg4 7. Qb3 {- B13 is a line resembling our game. Later we will compare the resulting positions, here} Qd7 8. Nd2 e6 9. Ngf3 Bxf3 10. Nxf3 Bd6 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 $11 {has a reliable reputation.}) 1... Nf6 2. Bf4 {This bishop sortie was once the domain of Kamsky, recently more top players have resorted to it in a quest to reach original positions (the foremost being Kramnik, Grischuk and Carlsen). The following notes will concentrate mostly on their recent efforts.} (2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 d6 5. h3 O-O 6. Be2 Nfd7 (6... Nc6 7. Bh2 Nd7 8. a4 e5 9. a5 exd4 10. exd4 a6 11. O-O Re8 12. Nc3 Nf6 13. Re1 h6 14. d5 Ne7 15. Bf1 Nf5 16. Rxe8+ Qxe8 17. Qd2 Bd7 18. Re1 Qf8 19. b4 Re8 20. Rb1 Bc8 21. b5 axb5 22. Nxb5 Nxd5 23. Qxd5 c6 24. Qd2 cxb5 25. Bxb5 Rd8 26. Bd3 Qe7 27. Qb4 Qc7 28. g4 Ne7 29. Qb6 Qxb6 30. Rxb6 Bc3 $11 {Carlsen,M (2850)-Aronian,L (2784) Berlin blitz 2015}) 7. Bh2 e5 8. Nc3 Nc6 9. O-O Re8 10. Re1 a6 11. a4 b6 12. Bc4 Bb7 13. Bd5 Rb8 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Qe2 Qe7 16. Rad1 Nc5 17. Qc4 a5 18. Nb5 Nd8 19. Bxb7 Ndxb7 20. Na7 Qe6 21. Qxe6 Rxe6 22. b3 f6 23. Nb5 c6 24. Nc3 Nd6 25. Nd2 Bf8 26. f3 Ree8 27. Bg3 Kf7 28. Bf2 Red8 29. Kf1 Na6 30. Ke2 Be7 31. e4 $14 {Carlsen,M (2850)-Radjabov,T (2738) Berlin rpd 2015 White has finally reactivated his bishop and is slightly better.}) 2... d5 {Black's reaction is still a matter of choice.} ({Another solid option is} 2... e6 3. e3 c5 4. Nd2 (4. c3 cxd4 (4... b6 5. Nf3 Bb7 6. h3 Be7 7. Nbd2 cxd4 8. cxd4 O-O 9. a3 d6 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O Rc8 12. Bh2 Ne4 13. Nxe4 Bxe4 14. Ba6 Rc7 15. Nd2 Bc6 16. Qe2 Qa8 17. e4 Bb7 18. Bd3 e5 19. Nc4 b5 20. Na5 exd4 21. Bxb5 Ne5 22. Nxb7 Qxb7 23. Rac1 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Rc8 25. Rd1 Qb6 26. a4 h6 27. Bg3 Qc5 28. Kh2 Bf6 29. f4 Ng6 30. Bd3 $14 {Kamsky,G (2741)-Onischuk,A (2660) Saint Louis 2012}) 5. exd4 Be7 6. Nf3 b6 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Re1 (9. h3 d6 10. Nbd2 {-4.d2}) 9... d6 10. c4 d5 11. Nc3 dxc4 12. Bxc4 Nc6 13. a3 Na5 14. Ba2 Rc8 15. Qd3 Nd5 16. Bd2 Nxc3 17. Bxc3 Bf6 18. Rad1 Bd5 19. Bb1 g6 20. Ne5 Nc4 21. Ng4 {½, Pakleza,Z (2498)-Stohl,I (2498) CZE 2015} Bg7 22. Ne3 Nxe3 23. fxe3 f5 $11 {/}) 4... b6 5. Ngf3 Be7 6. h3 Bb7 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O cxd4 9. exd4 Ba6 $5 (9... d6 10. c3 (10. Bh2 Nbd7 11. Re1 Re8 12. c3 a6 13. Rc1 Bf8 14. a4 g6 15. Bf1 Rc8 16. Nc4 Qc7 17. Ne3 Qb8 (17... Ne4 $5 18. Bd3 Ndf6 $132) 18. Nd2 Red8 19. b4 Qa7 20. Qb3 d5 21. Rc2 Nb8 22. b5 axb5 23. axb5 Qa3 24. Qxa3 Bxa3 25. Ra1 Bd6 26. Bxd6 Rxd6 27. Ra7 Rd7 {Grischuk,A (2810)-Aronian,L (2797) Beijing rpd 2014} 28. c4 $14) 10... Nbd7 11. Re1 a6 12. a4 Re8 13. Bh2 Nf8 (13... Qc7 14. c4 a5 15. Nb1 Qd8 16. Nc3 d5 17. b3 Bb4 18. Rc1 Rc8 19. Re3 Nf8 20. Nb5 Ne4 21. Rc2 Re7 22. Qc1 Nd7 23. Na7 Ra8 24. cxd5 exd5 25. Nc6 Bxc6 26. Rxc6 $16 {Kamsky,G (2718)-Tiviakov,S (2648) Montreal 2007}) 14. Nc4 Ng6 (14... Nd5 $5 $11) 15. a5 b5 16. Nb6 Ra7 (16... Rb8 $142) 17. b3 Nd5 18. Nxd5 Bxd5 19. c4 bxc4 20. bxc4 Ba8 21. d5 $1 Bf6 22. Ra3 exd5 23. Rxe8+ Qxe8 24. cxd5 Bxd5 25. Bxg6 Bxf3 26. Bxh7+ Kxh7 27. Rxf3 $14 {Kramnik,V (2777)-Duda,J (2658) Berlin blitz 2015}) 10. Nc4 Qc8 11. Ne3 Bxd3 12. Qxd3 Nc6 13. c3 d5 14. Rae1 Qb7 15. Ne5 Rac8 16. a3 Rfe8 17. N3g4 Ne4 18. f3 Nf6 19. Nxc6 Qxc6 20. Ne5 Qb7 21. Bg5 Nd7 22. Bxe7 Rxe7 23. f4 Rce8 24. Nxd7 Qxd7 25. Re3 Qd6 26. Qe2 f6 $11 {Kramnik,V (2777)-Leko,P (2707) Skopje 2015}) 3. e3 c5 (3... e6 4. Nf3 c5 5. c3 Nc6 6. Nbd2 Bd6 (6... Be7 7. Bd3 Nh5 8. Be5 Nxe5 9. Nxe5 Nf6 10. O-O O-O 11. f4 g6 12. Rf3 Ne8 13. Rh3 f5 14. g4 Nf6 15. g5 Ne4 16. Qe1 Nxd2 17. Qh4 Nf3+ 18. Rxf3 Bd6 19. Rh3 Qc7 20. Nxg6 hxg6 {Fridman,D (2616)-Naiditsch,A (2706) Poznan blitz 2014} 21. dxc5 $1 $18) 7. Bg3 O-O 8. Bd3 (8. Bb5 a6 9. Bxc6 bxc6 10. Ne5 Qc7 11. Nd3 c4 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Nc5 e5 14. b3 cxb3 15. axb3 Re8 16. O-O Ng4 17. g3 Qh6 18. h4 Ra7 19. Kg2 Rae7 20. Nf3 e4 21. Nh2 Nxh2 22. Kxh2 g5 23. Rh1 gxh4 24. Kg1 h3 25. Nxa6 Ra7 26. Nc5 Rxa1 27. Qxa1 Bg4 $36 {Carlsen,M (2850)-Karjakin,S (2762) Berlin blitz 2015}) 8... b6 9. e4 (9. Ne5 Bb7 10. f4 Ne7 11. Qb1 (11. Qc2 c4 12. Be2 Nf5 13. Bf2 Be7 14. Ng4 Nxg4 15. Bxg4 Nd6 16. f5 $6 exf5 17. Bxf5 Nxf5 18. Qxf5 Qc8 19. Qf3 b5 20. h4 a5 21. h5 h6 22. Bh4 Re8 23. Nf1 Qe6 24. Kf2 Bf8 $17 {Andreikin,D (2720)-Karjakin,S (2762) Baku 2015}) 11... g6 12. Bf2 cxd4 13. exd4 Nh5 14. g3 f6 15. Nef3 Qc8 16. O-O Ba6 17. Re1 Ng7 18. Kg2 Rb8 19. a3 Re8 20. Qc2 Bxd3 21. Qxd3 Qd7 22. Re2 a5 23. Rae1 a4 24. h3 b5 $11 {Grischuk,A (2810)-Wang,H (2710) Beijing rpd 2014}) 9... dxe4 $5 (9... Be7 10. e5 Nh5 11. a3 a5 12. Qe2 Ra7 (12... c4 13. Bc2 b5 14. Ng5 Bxg5 15. Qxh5 g6 16. Qe2 f5 17. exf6 Qxf6 18. h4 Bf4 19. Bxf4 Qxf4 20. g3 Qf6 21. f4 Ra7 22. Nf3 h6 23. Ne5 Nxe5 24. dxe5 Qg7 25. Qg4 Rd8 26. O-O-O b4 27. Qxg6 Qxg6 28. Bxg6 Rg7 29. h5 $16 {Kramnik,V (2777)-Zhigalko,S (2656) Berlin rpd 2015}) 13. O-O c4 14. Bc2 b5 15. h4 g6 16. Bh2 Bxh4 17. g4 Ng7 18. Nxh4 Qxh4 19. Kg2 f5 20. exf6 Qxf6 21. Bd6 Rff7 22. f4 e5 23. dxe5 Qh4 24. f5 gxf5 25. Rh1 Qd8 26. Qe3 d4 $1 $132 {Grischuk,A (2774)-Nakamura,H (2816) Skopje 2015}) 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 Bb7 12. Qa4 Qc7 13. dxc5 bxc5 14. Qc4 (14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Rd1 Qc7 16. O-O Rfd8 17. Qb5 Na5 18. Bxb7 {½, Burmakin,V (2565)-Iturrizaga Bonelli,E (2660) Barcelona 2013}) 14... Rad8 15. Qxc5 f5 16. Bc2 f4 17. Bxh7+ Kxh7 18. Qh5+ Kg8 19. Ng5 g6 20. Qxg6+ Qg7 21. Qxe6+ Kh8 22. Qh3+ Kg8 23. Qe6+ Kh8 {½, Baklanov,V (2354)-Aleksandrov,A email 2003}) 4. c3 {In keeping with his style Carlsen opts for the more restrained continuation.} ({After the more concrete and sharper} 4. dxc5 {Black should be able to hold his own in the resulting complications:} Nc6 (4... e6 5. b4 Nc6 6. Bb5 Bd7 7. c3 a5 8. Qb3 (8. Qe2 axb4 9. Bxc6 Bxc6 10. cxb4 d4 11. Nf3 Nd5 12. O-O dxe3 13. Bg5 $6 Be7 14. Bxe7 Qxe7 15. Qc4 Qf6 16. Nd4 e2 17. Re1 Nxb4 (17... Nf4 $1 $19) 18. Nd2 O-O 19. Nxc6 Nxc6 20. Ne4 Qb2 21. Qxe2 Qxe2 22. Rxe2 Ra4 23. Rb1 Rfa8 24. Rxb7 Rxa2 $11 {Savchenko,B (2583)-Motylev,A (2645) Khanty-Mansiysk 2007/ For more details see the notes to this game in CBM 122 by Krasenkow.}) 8... Ne4 9. Ne2 (9. f3 e5 10. fxe4 exf4 11. Ne2 (11. exd5 Qh4+ 12. Kd1 Qf2 13. Ne2 O-O-O 14. exf4 Bg4 15. Re1 Ne7 16. d6 Nf5 17. d7+ Kb8 18. Kd2 Ne3 19. Qxf7 Bxd7 $1 20. Bxd7 Kc7 $19 {Rumyantsev,V (1812)-Bohak,J (2185) email 2010}) 11... Qh4+ 12. g3 fxg3 13. Nxg3 dxe4 14. O-O Be6 15. Qa4 Rc8 16. Nd2 Be7 17. Bc4 O-O 18. Bxe6 fxe6 19. Ndxe4 Ne5 20. Qd1 axb4 21. cxb4 Rxf1+ 22. Qxf1 Ra8 23. Qe2 Bg5 $132 {Sanchez Riera,X-Franco Rincon,D (2142) email 2011}) 9... g5 10. Bxc6 Bxc6 (10... bxc6 $5 11. Be5 f6 12. Bg3 Bg7 $44) 11. Be5 f6 12. Bg3 (12. Bd4 $5) 12... h5 (12... axb4 13. cxb4 b6 $1 $13) 13. f3 h4 14. fxe4 (14. Bf2 $14) 14... hxg3 15. Nxg3 Qc7 16. O-O O-O-O (16... Qh7 $5) 17. Nd2 Be7 18. Nf3 g4 $2 (18... Rxh2 19. Nxh2 Qxg3 20. Rf3 $16) 19. Nd4 Rxh2 20. Rf4 Rdh8 21. Nxe6 Qe5 22. Nd4 $18 {Karjakin,S (2762)-Gajewski,G (2654) Berlin rpd 2015}) (4... Qa5+ 5. Nc3 Qxc5 6. Nb5 Na6 7. Nf3 Bd7 8. a4 g6 9. Be5 Bg7 10. Bd4 Qb4+ 11. c3 Qa5 12. Nxa7 O-O 13. Nb5 Bg4 14. Be2 Nb8 15. Bxf6 Bxf6 16. Qxd5 Nc6 17. O-O Rad8 18. Qa2 Qb6 19. b4 $18 {Stefanova,A (2551)-Harika,D (2515) Khanty-Mansiysk olw 2010}) 5. Bb5 Qa5+ 6. Nc3 a6 7. Bxc6+ bxc6 8. Nf3 (8. Qd4 e6 9. b4 Qa3 10. Nge2 a5 11. Rb1 axb4 12. Rxb4 Ba6 13. O-O Bxe2 14. Nxe2 Be7 15. Bd6 Bxd6 16. cxd6 O-O 17. Ng3 Rfc8 18. Qd2 Rd8 19. e4 dxe4 20. c4 Qxa2 21. Qxa2 Rxa2 22. Rb6 h5 23. Rxc6 h4 $17 {Grischuk,A (2781)-Anand,V (2804) Stavanger blitz 2015}) 8... Ne4 $5 (8... e6 9. O-O Bd7 10. a3 Qxc5 11. Na4 Qa7 12. c4 Be7 13. Rc1 Rc8 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Rxc8+ Bxc8 16. Qd4 Qxd4 17. exd4 Bd7 18. Nb6 Bd8 19. Nxd7 Nxd7 20. Rc1 f6 21. Rc6 Kf7 22. Rxa6 $16 {Grischuk,A (2771)-Anand,V (2816) Saint Louis 2015 For more details about this game see the notes in CBM 168 by Wagner.}) 9. Qd4 Nxc3 10. bxc3 f6 11. O-O e5 12. Bxe5 fxe5 13. Qxe5+ Kf7 14. Ng5+ Kg8 15. Qe8 (15. Ne6 Bd7 16. Nxf8 Rxf8 $11) 15... Qc7 16. Ne6 Bxe6 17. Qxe6+ Qf7 18. Qxc6 Ra7 19. Rfd1 h5 20. Qxd5 Rc7 21. Rab1 Rxc5 22. Qa8 Rh6 23. Rb8 Rb5 24. Rxb5 axb5 25. a4 {½, Beecham,C (2499)-Mahling,T (2467) email 2008}) 4... Nc6 5. Nd2 cxd4 {By resolving the central tension Black won't have to worry about dxc5 anymore. Also Wojtaszek has played this line in the recent past.} ({However, the more usual} 5... Bf5 {is also fully playable:} 6. Qb3 (6. Ngf3 Qb6 7. Qb3 c4 8. Qxb6 axb6 $11 9. a3 h6 10. Be2 b5 11. O-O e6 12. Ne5 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. Nf3 Bg4 15. Nd4 Bxe2 16. Nxe2 Nc5 17. Nd4 Ra5 18. Bg3 Be7 19. f3 O-O 20. Rad1 Nd3 21. Rd2 Bc5 22. Bh4 Ra6 23. f4 f6 24. exf6 gxf6 25. Re2 e5 26. fxe5 fxe5 27. Rxf8+ Bxf8 28. Nxb5 Rb6 29. a4 Ra6 30. h3 Rxa4 $17 {Eljanov,P (2717)-Bluebaum,M (2588) Berlin blitz 2015}) 6... Qd7 7. Ngf3 c4 8. Qd1 e6 9. Be2 (9. h3 h6 10. Be2 Bd6 11. O-O O-O 12. b3 b5 13. a4 a6 14. b4 Qc7 15. Bxd6 Qxd6 16. Qc1 Nd7 17. Qb2 Nb6 18. Bd1 Rfb8 19. a5 Nd7 20. Bc2 Bxc2 21. Qxc2 e5 22. dxe5 Ndxe5 23. Rad1 Nd3 24. Ne1 Nce5 25. Ndf3 Nxf3+ 26. Nxf3 Rd8 27. Rd2 Rd7 28. Rfd1 Rad8 29. Ne1 Ne5 $11 {Grachev,B (2654)-Eljanov,P (2742) Moscow blitz 2010}) 9... h6 10. O-O Bd6 (10... Be7 11. Ne5 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 O-O 13. Bf3 b5 14. a3 a5 15. Re1 Ne4 16. Bxe4 dxe4 17. a4 Rfc8 18. axb5 Qxb5 19. Qa4 Qd5 20. Bg3 h5 21. h3 h4 22. Bh2 f6 23. f3 Qb7 24. Qc2 exf3 25. e4 $5 $13 {Kamsky,G (2741)-Potkin,V (2647) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013}) 11. b3 (11. Bxd6 Qxd6 $11) 11... Bxf4 12. exf4 cxb3 13. axb3 O-O 14. Ne5 Qc7 15. Qc1 Rfc8 16. Qb2 a6 17. h3 Qb6 18. Rfc1 Rc7 19. Bf1 Rac8 20. Nd3 Nd7 21. Qa3 $2 (21. b4 $5 $13) 21... Na7 $1 22. Qb2 Nb5 $17 {Grachev,B (2673)-Najer,E (2646) Moscow blitz 2014}) 6. exd4 Bf5 7. Qb3 Qc8 8. Ngf3 e6 (8... h6 9. Ne5 g5 10. Bg3 Bg7 11. Be2 O-O 12. O-O e6 13. Rae1 Ne4 14. Nxe4 Bxe4 15. Nd3 Bh7 16. Qd1 Ne7 17. Be5 f6 18. Bd6 Re8 19. Bh5 Bg6 20. Bxe7 Bxh5 21. Qxh5 Rxe7 22. f4 Qe8 23. Qf3 f5 24. fxg5 hxg5 25. g4 $16 {Carlsen,M (2850)-Wagner,D (2575) Berlin rpd 2015}) 9. Nh4 {White wants to at least net himself the bishop pair. Other moves lead to rather sedate play.} (9. Ne5 Be7 10. Be2 O-O 11. O-O Nxe5 12. Bxe5 Nd7 13. Bg3 Nb8 14. a4 Nc6 15. a5 a6 16. Qa4 Qd7 17. b4 {Eljanov,P (2717)-Motylev,A (2649) Berlin blitz 2015} e5 $1 $132 {} 18. dxe5 d4) (9. Be2 h6 10. h3 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. Rfe1 Bd8 (12... a6 13. a4 Nd7 14. Bf1 Re8 15. Rac1 Na5 16. Qa2 Nb6 17. b4 Nac4 18. a5 Nxd2 19. Nxd2 Nd7 20. Nb3 Nb8 21. Nc5 $14 {Grachev,B (2666)-Motylev,A (2648) Sochi rpd 2015}) 13. a4 Bc7 $11 {½, Grachev,B (2666)-Motylev,A (2648) St Petersburg rpd 2015}) 9... Be4 (9... Bg6 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. h3 Be7 12. Bd3 Bd8 13. Nf3 Bc7 14. Be3 O-O 15. Qc2 a6 16. h4 e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. O-O-O Re8 20. Kb1 b5 21. Bg5 Ne4 22. Bc1 b4 23. Bxe4 dxe4 24. cxb4 Qg4 25. Rhe1 Bf6 26. g3 Rac8 27. Qb3 $14 {Grischuk,A (2774)-Motylev,A (2649) Berlin rpd 2015}) 10. Nxe4 Nxe4 11. Nf3 Bd6 12. Bxd6 ({Radek's previous experience went} 12. Bg3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 Qc7 14. Bd3 h6 15. g4 O-O-O 16. Kf1 Kb8 17. a4 Rhe8 18. a5 Nxa5 19. Qa4 Nc6 20. b4 Qb6 21. g3 e5 22. b5 Nxd4 23. cxd4 e4 $15 {Kamsky,G (2683)-Wojtaszek,R (2737) Sochi 2015/ Black had no problems whatsoever, therefore he was willing to repeat the line even against Carlsen.}) 12... Nxd6 13. Bd3 Qc7 (13... O-O 14. Qc2 h6 {can transpose into games from the following note. I somehow doubt Carlsen would go in for something wild like} 15. g4 (15. O-O-O b5 $15 {[%cal Yb5b4]}) 15... Re8 16. O-O-O b5 $13 {/}) 14. Qc2 $5 $146 {[%mdl 32] A tricky move order; for the time being Carlsen leaves his king on e1 and wants his opponent to disclose his castling intentions first.} (14. O-O O-O 15. Qc2 h6 (15... g6 16. Rfe1 b5 17. Qd2 Kg7 18. Ne5 Nxe5 19. Rxe5 Rab8 20. h4 Qd8 21. h5 Qf6 22. Rae1 Nc4 23. Bxc4 bxc4 24. R1e3 Rb6 25. Rf3 Qe7 26. Rh3 Rh8 27. Qe2 Rhb8 28. Qe3 Qf6 29. Rf3 Qh4 30. Rh3 Qf6 31. Rf3 $11 {Sandipan,C (2594)-Kasimdzhanov,R (2700) Dubai rpd 2014}) 16. Qe2 Rab8 17. a4 (17. b4 $6 Ne7 18. Rac1 Nec8 19. Bb1 Nc4 20. Qd3 g6 21. Qe2 N8d6 22. h4 Rfe8 23. Ne5 Nxe5 24. dxe5 Nc4 25. Rfe1 h5 $15 {Karlik,V (2248)-Vrana,J (2298) Novy Bor 2010}) 17... Rbe8 18. Ne5 Nxe5 {½, Sedlak,N (2538)-Prohaszka,P (2573) Hungary 2012} 19. Qxe5 (19. dxe5 Nc4 $11) 19... Re7 $11 {We have already mentioned a position like this in the very first note, here the strategy is very similar. In the reversed Carlsbad structure White's chances for a successful kingside attack with only one pair of minor pieces are minimal; moreover Black has reasonable queenside counterplay.}) ({RR} 14. a4 h6 15. O-O g5 16. Rfe1 O-O-O 17. a5 Kb8 18. a6 b6 19. Ne5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 Nc8 21. c4 dxc4 22. Bxc4 Ne7 23. Rac1 Rc8 24. Qf3 Ng6 25. Qe4 Qe7 26. g3 Rc5 27. b4 Rxe5 28. Qd4 Rxe1+ {Hambleton,A (2420)-Timerkhanov,A (2311) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (85)}) 14... O-O-O $146 {Radek repeats queenside castling from Kamsky-Wojtaszek above, but here the situation is different. While the text move is probably objectively playable, a more circumspect one was} (14... h6 {and we will probably get a position from the previous note. And if Black is too worried, his king can still copy White's castling...}) ({RR} 14... h6 15. O-O O-O 16. Qe2 Ne8 17. Nd2 Nd6 18. Rfe1 b5 19. Nb3 b4 20. Bc2 bxc3 21. Qd3 Ne4 22. bxc3 Rfc8 23. Nc5 Nxc5 24. Qh7+ Kf8 25. dxc5 Ne5 26. Re3 Ng4 27. Rg3 f5 28. h3 Nf6 29. Qh8+ {Rychagov,A (2558)-Malikentzos,S (2423) Anogia 2016 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 14... h6 15. O-O O-O 16. Kh1 Rae8 17. Rae1 f5 18. Ne5 Ne4 19. Nxc6 bxc6 20. f3 Nf6 21. b4 g6 22. Qf2 g5 23. Re3 Re7 24. Bb1 Qd6 25. Qc2 Nd7 26. Rfe1 Rfe8 27. g4 Nf8 28. Re5 fxg4 29. fxg4 {Stefanova,A (2481)-Tsvetkov,A (2252) Batumi 2018 1-0 (45)}) 15. O-O $13 {Contrary to Kamsky, White can simply castle and a sharp and complex struggle with kings on opposite sides of the board is on.} h6 16. a4 Kb8 17. Rfe1 {A sound positional move. White is in no hurry to push b4 and give Black play against c3.} ({Carlsen is also not interested in the typical, but unclear pawn sacrifice} 17. a5 Nxa5 $5 18. Qa4 (18. Ra4 $5 Nc6 19. Rfa1 $44) 18... b6 $13) 17... Rc8 {[%cal Yc6b4]} 18. Qd1 (18. Qe2 {seems more natural, but White maybe already anticipated using this square for a different piece later on.} g5 $13 (18... Rhe8 $5 $132 {[%cal Yf7f6,Ye6e5]})) 18... Rhe8 {Starting from this moment onwards kingside expansion would seem natural.} ({However, after} 18... g5 {Black must reckon with} 19. Ne5 $5 {[%cal Yd1h5]} h5 20. Qf3 Nxe5 21. dxe5 (21. Rxe5 Qd8 $13) 21... Nc4 22. Bxc4 dxc4 23. Rad1 $14 {- here his 18th move has only weakened his setup.}) 19. Bf1 Re7 (19... f6 $5 {[%cal Yg7g5,Yh6h5]}) 20. Rc1 Rd8 {Restrained manoeuvring.} ({Although it's difficult to evaluate the position unequivocally, the time already seems ripe for} 20... g5 $5 $13) 21. Re2 {This frees e1 for the knight. Although this will work nicely in the game, right now it's not too impressive.} (21. b4 $5 g5 22. Nd2 $13 {[%cal Yd2b3,Yb3c5]}) 21... Ne4 $6 {This doesn't seem ideal anymore.} (21... g5 $132) 22. b4 $1 Ng5 (22... g5 23. b5 g4 (23... Na5 24. c4 $1 $36) 24. Nd2 Nxd2 25. Qxd2 Na5 26. Qxh6 $14) (22... f5 $142 $5 23. b5 Na5 {is maybe better, but I can understand Black was unwilling to make such a committal move.}) 23. Ne1 e5 {seeking quick central counterplay.} ({White already has a lead in his attack after} 23... f6 24. a5 $5 (24. Nd3 e5 25. a5 e4 26. Nc5 f5 27. Ra2 $36 {[%cal Yb4b5,Ya5a6] is a line, given by Danny King - also here White's play is more straightforward and dangerous.}) 24... e5 25. a6 b6 26. Nc2 $14 {[%cal Yc2e3,Yb4b5,Yc2b4] /}) 24. b5 Na5 25. Rxe5 Rxe5 26. dxe5 Qxe5 27. c4 $36 {[%csl Gc1,Gd1,Ge1,Gf1] Despite all his pieces on the basic rank, Magnus is pushing! The main reason is Black's forces are uncoordinated, once the game has opened up especially the decentralised knights are a problem.} Ne6 28. Nf3 (28. c5 $5 Rc8 (28... Qd4 29. Nd3 {is similar}) 29. Nd3 $36 {} Qd4 30. c6 bxc6 31. Qe1 $40) 28... Qf4 $2 {Gives White's initiative a further boost.} (28... Qe4 29. c5 $36) ({However, even after the better} 28... Qd6 $142 29. cxd5 Qxd5 30. Qe1 b6 31. Rc3 ({or} 31. g3 $5 $14 {[%cal Yf1g2] Black's king is more vulnerable and he is worse.})) 29. cxd5 Rxd5 (29... Nc7 30. g3 Qd6 31. Rc2 $16) 30. Qxd5 Qxc1 31. g3 $1 $16 {[%csl Yf4][%cal Rf3e5][%mdl 128] A strong multi-purpose move. It gives the king luft, limits the e6, prepares e5 and frees g2 or h3 for the bishop. Carlsen winds up the attack impeccably.} (31. Ne5 Qc7 32. g3 Qd8 33. Qe4 Qc7 34. Qe3 $36 {is less convincing.}) 31... Qc5 (31... Qc7 32. Bh3 Nc5 33. Ne5 $40) ({A more resilient try was} 31... Qc8 $142 $5 32. Bh3 Nc4 $16) 32. Qd7 Qf8 (32... Qc7 33. Qe8+ Qd8 (33... Nd8 34. Ne5 {[%cal Re5f7]}) 34. Qxf7 $18) (32... Qf5 33. Nd4 $1 {and Black's kingside collapses:} Nxd4 34. Qd6+ (34. Qd8+ Qc8 35. Qxd4 f6 (35... Qf8 36. Qf4+ Ka8 37. Qc7 Nb3 38. Bg2 Qb8 39. Qc3 $18) 36. Qd6+ Ka8 37. Qe7 $18 {[%csl Ra5,Rb7,Rg7]}) 34... Kc8 35. Qxd4 $18 {[%cal Rd4a7,Rd4g7]}) 33. Ne5 $18 Nc5 34. Qd5 {[%cal Rd5c5]} Kc7 35. Nxf7 Nxa4 {Trying to keep at least material equal, but this won't last for long.} (35... Qe7 36. Ne5 Nxa4 37. Ng6 Qd6 (37... Qd7 38. Qe5+ Kb6 39. Nf8 $18) 38. Qf7+ $18 {} Qd7 39. Qf4+) 36. Qe5+ Kb6 $8 (36... Kc8 37. Bh3#) 37. Nd6 Nc5 (37... a6 38. Bh3 $5 (38. Qe6 Kc7 (38... Ka7 39. bxa6 $18) 39. Ne8+ Kb8 40. bxa6 $18) 38... Nc5 39. Nc8+ Kxb5 40. Bf1+ Kb4 41. Qe1+ $18) 38. Ne8 {[%cal Re5c7]} (38. Ne8 Qf7 39. Qd6+ $18) 1-0

[Event "London Classic 7th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2015.12.11"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2834"]
[BlackElo "2793"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "155"]
[EventDate "2015.12.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{3 rounds to go, and not much positive could be said of the World Champion's experiences in the Grand Chess Tour as of yet. But when, despite a total minus score, you still have a chance in the overall standings it's hard not to be motivated, especially when facing the leader, Nakamura.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 $5 {An interesting surprise by Nakamura, who has recently, at least result-wise, done quite well with 2...e6 against Magnus. But having suffered in the opening in St. Louis, as well as trying to be the first to surprise in this crucial game, Hikaru goes back to the Slav.} 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 {Magnus' preferred line, giving Naka his chance to spring his surprise:} Bg4 $5 {Against Magnus, Naka has played only 4...a6.} 5. h3 Bh5 6. cxd5 $5 {Played after prolonged thought. It's a rare move at the top level these days, but serves the purpose of not having to face Nakamuras preparation in the main lines.} cxd5 7. Nc3 e6 8. g4 Bg6 9. Ne5 Nfd7 $1 {Due to the exchange of c-pawns the c6-square is available for the b8-knight, and like this then Black gets a very harmonious position.} 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. Bg2 ({RR} 11. Bd3 Nc6 12. Bd2 a6 13. Kf1 Bd6 14. Rc1 Bc7 15. Kg2 f5 16. f4 Nf6 17. Na4 Nd7 18. b4 Bd6 19. Nc5 Nxc5 20. dxc5 Bc7 21. a4 Rc8 22. b5 axb5 23. axb5 Ne7 24. b6 Bb8 25. g5 Nc6 {Tong Thai Hoang An (1869)-Illes-Nagy,N (1803) Montesilvano ITA 2024 1-0 (51)}) 11... Nc6 12. e4 $5 {An interesting way to change the structure, as Black was completely fine after} (12. O-O f5 {in Tregubov- Anand from Corsica 2014. Maybe 11...f5!? would be Black's most exact move-order, but as Black is fine in the game, it is of minor importance.}) 12... dxe4 13. Nxe4 $146 ({RR} 13. Bxe4 Nf6 14. Bg2 Bb4 15. O-O O-O 16. g5 Nd5 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Be3 Qd7 19. Rc1 Bd6 20. Qg4 Qxg4 21. hxg4 Ne7 22. f4 Rfe8 23. Rc3 Rac8 24. Rfc1 Rc6 25. Kf2 Rec8 26. Ke2 Kf8 27. Kd3 Bb4 {Vakhidov,J (2568)-Taylor,A (2250) Crawley 2016 1-0 (52)}) 13... Bb4+ 14. Nc3 Nb6 15. O-O O-O (15... Nxd4 {was interesting, as} 16. Bxb7 Rxh3 {would give Black an overwhelming attack, should White take the exchange. However by playing less materialistically with} 17. Bg2 Rh8 18. Bf4 {White keeps decent compensation for the sacrificed pawn. But Nakamura seems reluctant to play his normal aggressive style in this game, bearing in mind that a draw would keep his tournament lead, and effectively eliminate Magnus from the fight for overall 1st place.}) 16. d5 exd5 17. Nxd5 Bc5 18. Nc3 Bd4 19. Qf3 Qf6 $6 {Again, sticking to his drawing strategy.} 20. Qxf6 Bxf6 21. Bf4 Rad8 22. Rad1 {After a not too impressive opening, White has gained some advantage, with basically a free pair of bishops. Even so in a symmetrical structure without queens Black's position should be drawable, even if unpleasant. But now Nakamura plays more according to his instincts and unbalances the position instead of the more obvious rook-swaps in the d-file.} Bxc3 23. bxc3 Na4 24. c4 Nc3 25. Rd2 $1 {A small, but important move. Like this White keeps opposing in the d-file, while simultaneously covering the e2-square.} Rxd2 26. Bxd2 Ne2+ {As the bishop has vacated f4, this check is no longer dangerous, but} (26... Nxa2 27. Bxc6 $1 bxc6 28. Ra1 {would just trap the knight, so Black has no choice.}) 27. Kh2 Rd8 28. Be3 Nc3 29. a3 Rd3 30. Rc1 Nd1 31. Be4 Rd7 32. Bc5 Nb2 33. Rc2 Na4 34. Be3 {The position has stabilised, White keeps his pair of bishops, and Black had to withdraw his knight.} Nb6 35. c5 $5 {To some extent limiting the black-squared bishop, but even if} (35. Bxb6 axb6 36. Rb2 {also is promising, the risk is that some sort drawn rook-ending a pawn up, could easily end up being the result of White's effort. So Magnus wisely retains the tension.}) 35... Nd5 36. Rd2 Nf6 37. Rxd7 $5 {It would seem to me, there was logic in keeping the rooks, having more pieces to try and complicate matters, but Magnus believed the black fortress was in no way impregnable.} Nxd7 38. Kg3 Kf8 39. f4 Nf6 40. Bf3 Ke7 {The time-control has been reached, without too much having happened in the game so far. White does of course have the bishop pair, but Black's position is solid, without obvious weaknesses, and White's structure is somewhat shattered, and the knights have strongholds on c6 and f6. It is easy to understand if Nakamura felt reasonably confident he woud draw this position without too much trouble. For a start it's hard to see how White can improve his position, and the next move in many ways looks like worsening it!} 41. f5 $1 gxf5 42. gxf5 {What has White achieved by this exchange? For a start all his pawns are now isolated, as well as the f6-stronghold having become even more solid. Even so there has been considerable progress for White. His king can proceed further up the board, combined with pushing the h-pawn, and one advantage of the bishops over the knights, is that it is the bishop who at any moment can choose to exchange itself. Right now xc6 followed by g5 is not a threat, as after ...f8 xf6 gxf6 the pawn ending is drawn as the black king is in time with counterplay on the h-file while the white kings walks to a5, but Black constantly has to be on his guard.} Kd7 43. Kf4 Ne8 {.} 44. Kg5 $1 {As so often, the king becomes a powerful piece in the endgame, and is here excellently placed on g5. After 44...f6 45.xc6+ followed by 46.d4 comes close to forcing a winning pawn ending, but Black seems to draw by a tempo, meaning just 45.h4! being the right response keeping the tension and further improving the white position. And after the tempting 44...f6+ White just plays 45.h5! when xc6+ followed by g6 becomes a decisive threat so Black has no choice, but just has to keep biding his time.} Ke7 (44... Nf6 45. h4 $1) (44... f6+ 45. Kh5 $1) 45. Bf4 a6 46. h4 Kf8 47. Bg3 Nf6 48. Bd6+ Ke8 49. Kf4 Nd7 50. Bg2 Kd8 51. Kg5 Ke8 52. h5 Nf6 53. h6 $1 {After patiently making slight improvements to his position, White now plays the very essential swap of pawns on the kingside. It does reduce the material left on the board, but much more importantly undermines the f6-square and as well manages to break through even further with the king.} Nh7+ 54. Kh5 Nf6+ 55. Kg5 Nh7+ 56. Kh4 $1 {Stepping out of the reach of the black knights, leaving Black no choice but to take and allow the white king in.} gxh6 {.} 57. Kh5 Nf6+ 58. Kxh6 Ng4+ 59. Kg7 $1 {White has made huge progress, and almost made it look like the position after move 40 was a forced win. But Black's resistance is in no way broken, as the downside of the white king having reached g7, is that the f5-pawn is much harder to defend and Nakamura instantly tries to maximise his counterplay against it.} Nd4 60. Be4 Nf2 61. Bb1 $1 {The chessboard is just big enough for the bishop to hide from the black knights while keeping f5 protected.} Ng4 {.} 62. Bf4 f6 {Fixing the f-pawn and basing his counterplay on attacking it.} ({Harassing the bishops will not really work, e.g.} 62... Ne2 63. Bc7 Nc3 64. Bc2 Ne3 65. Bd3 {illustrates that Black would just be making 1-move threats with no purpose.}) 63. Be4 Nf2 64. Bb1 Ng4 65. Be4 Nf2 {Black's counterplay makes a lot of sense. In order to proceed, White has to give up the f-pawn further reducing material.} 66. Bxb7 Nd3 {The first 40 moves indeed were nothing special, while the next 25 constitute a very instructive ending, where White breaks through a very solid looking fortress. But the brilliancy and tactical complications are here very unusually kept for the last stage of the game, happening after even 6 hours of play.} 67. Kxf6 $3 {A stunning piece sacrifice, and the only way to win!} ({It looks like} 67. Bd6 $2 Nxf5+ 68. Kxf6 Nxd6 69. Bc6+ $1 Kd8 70. cxd6 {would lead to an easily winning ending for White, but surprisingly this position is a draw! White simply has no way to get to the queenside with his king, without allowing the knight to harass the white pawns:} Nb2 71. Ke6 Nc4 72. a4 a5 73. Kd5 Ne3+ 74. Kc5 Ng4 {being the principal line. After} 75. Kb6 Ne5 76. Bb5 Nf7 {Black is just in time, as} 77. d7 Ne5 78. Kxa5 Nxd7 {is a draw, as Black's king reaches the crucial c8-square in the pawn ending.}) 67... Nxf4 68. Ke5 $1 {This is the point. The king attacks both knights, which are forced into a purposeless existence, simply defending each other.} Nfe2 ({After} 68... Nde2 69. Bxa6 {the knights are completely stuck,}) ({and} 68... Nxf5 69. Kxf5 Nd3 70. c6 Kd8 71. Bxa6 {leaves White two pawns up, with no fortress in sight, so Nakamuras plays his best chance.}) 69. f6 $2 {A mistake that could have ruined an otherwise great game and tournament comeback.} (69. c6 $1 {would have crowned his efforts, as Black has no other choice than to give up a knight straightaway, as 69...d8 70 f6! will lead to the promotion of a white pawn, but after} Nxc6+ 70. Bxc6+ Kf8 71. Bd5 $1 {it makes a huge difference compared to the game, that the white pawns are still on a3 as well as on f5. The difference is clearly seen after} Nc3 72. Bc4 a5 {as White now doesn't have to defend the a4-pawn and can just simply play} 73. Kd4 Nd1 74. a4 Ke7 (74... Nb2 {would have been relevant were the white pawn on f6, but here after} 75. Bb3 Ke7 76. Kc3 Nxa4+ 77. Bxa4 Kf6 {the bishop can defend the pawn, due to it still being on a white square.}) 75. Bb3 Nf2 76. Kc5 Kf6 77. Be6 {and again it helps that the pawn is on f5 and White wins by just collecting a5 and then queening the advancing a-pawn while his pawn and bishop securely defend each other.}) 69... a5 70. a4 {Looks winning, as it puts Black in a kind of zugzwang, and, as 70.c6 b5 leads nowhere, the logical continuation.} Kf7 71. Bd5+ Kf8 $4 {looks like the solid and obvious move, keeping the promotion square under control, however it leaves the f6-pawn unattacked, which proves fatal.} (71... Kg6 $1 {would have seen Black just escape, as after} 72. c6 Nxc6+ 73. Bxc6 Kf7 74. Bd5+ Kf8 {it makes a deciding difference that the white pawns are now on a4 and f6, and thus much easier to attack. After} 75. Bc4 Nc3 76. Bb3 {Black just bides his time with} Ke8 {and} 77. Kd4 Ne2+ {almost by magic draws. The crucial point is} 78. Kc4 ({and as well} 78. Kc5 Nc3 $1 {threatening to take on a4, and after the bishop takes back, then ...f7 clearing off the last pawn. It still feels very counter-intuitive to me, that this, as well as the ending analysed above both are drawn for Black, but the computer does verify that there is no way, White can exploit his seemingly big superiority.}) 78... Nc1 $1 {attacking the bishop, and then having ...f7 next winning the f6-pawn,}) {Even so, the drama was not over, as in the commentary room, the computers indicated that White had only one way to exploit the favour, and Magnus took almost all of his remaining 2 minutes on the clock, before calmly retreating his king.} 72. Ke4 $1 {The point is that is the king reaches e3, the knihts are doomed, as the king attacks both, and c4 next will just pick one up for free, so Nakamura tries:} Nc2 73. c6 Nc3+ 74. Ke5 $1 {The king has done its job and now returns to its more natural place, helping the passd pawns. The threat, is c7 queening, so taking on a4 is forced, but fails as...} Nxa4 75. Bb3 {...is a simple fork, picking up one of the knights, while still keeping the 2 passed pawns, leaving Black in a hopeless position.} Nb6 76. Bxc2 a4 77. c7 Kf7 78. Bxa4 ({And seeing that} 78. Bxa4 Nc4+ 79. Kd5 Nb6+ 80. Kc5 $1 {is hopeless and that after} Nc8 (80... Nxa4+ 81. Kc6 $1) 81. Bd7 Na7 82. Kb6 {White soon queens, Nakamura resigned. A lot was still to come, before Magnus had pulled of a spectacular last minute comeback, to take both the tournament and the tour, but without this win, the possibility would not have been there.}) 1-0

[Event "London Classic 7th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2015.12.12"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2803"]
[BlackElo "2834"]
[Annotator "Bronznik,Valerij"]
[PlyCount "193"]
[EventDate "2015.12.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Bc4 Nd7 12. O-O b6 13. a4 {Die Idee von Petrosian, deren Sinn im weiteren a4-a5 mit dem nachfolgenden Bauerntausch auf b6 besteht, wonach Schwarz am Damenflügel einen vereinzelten anfälligen Bauern bekommt, auch wenn dieser gleichzeitig ein Freibauer ist (manchmal kann übrigens anstatt des Tausches auf b6 der Vorstoß a5-a6 geschehen). Tauscht Schwarz auf a5 selbst, wird sein a-Bauer schwach. Stoppt der Nachziehende den weißen Bauer mit a7-a5, schwächt er das Feld b5 und bekommt einen schwachen Bauern auf b6. Spielt er nicht a7-a5, sondern a7-a6, bleibt das Feld b5 unter seiner Kontrolle, dafür aber wird nicht nur sein Bauer b6, sondern auch der Bauer a6 schutzbedürftig.} ({Als Hauptvariante gilt} 13. Rfe1 Bb7 14. Rad1 ({stattdessen kann man hier mit} 14. a4 {immer noch zu Petrosians Plan greifen, was dann nur eine kleine Zugumstellung bedeuten wird.})) 13... Bb7 14. Rfe1 Nf6 {Eine sehr seltene Fortsetzung. Schwarz greift den Bauern e4 ein weiteres Mal an und erhöht wesentlich seine Kontrolle über das Feld d5, andererseits aber wirkt er am Damenflügel nicht mehr mit; außerdem sollte sich Weiß für e4-e5 entscheiden, würde es jetzt mit Tempo passieren.} ({"Normal" ist} 14... Rc8 15. Bd3 {und nun sind die verbreitetsten Optionen} Qc7 (15... a5 $5) ({und} 15... e5 $5)) 15. Bd3 h6 {Eine sehr wichtige Prophylaxe gegen den Plan e4-e5, f3-g5-e4. Was passieren kann, wenn Schwarz darauf verzichtet, zeigt folgendes klassisches Beispiel:} (15... Rc8 $6 16. a5 (16. e5 $6 Bxf3 17. exf6 Bh5 {scheint für Schwarz durchaus akzeptabel zu sein}) 16... Qc7 17. axb6 axb6 18. Rac1 Qb8 19. Rb1 Qa8 20. Ra1 Qb8 21. e5 $1 Nd5 (21... Bxf3 22. exf6 Bh5 23. fxg7 Kxg7 24. d5 $5 exd5 25. Qg5+ Bg6 26. h4 Rc3 27. Rad1 Qd8 28. Re7 $16) 22. Ng5 h6 23. Ne4 Qc7 24. Nd6 Ra8 25. Rab1 $16 {Jussupow,A (2575) - Eslon,J (2440)/Can Picafort 1981.}) 16. a5 a6 $146 {Eine Neuerung, die aber am Charakter der Stellung und ihrer Bewertung nicht viel ändert.} (16... b5 $6 {ist zweifelhaft wegen} 17. a6 $1 Bc6 18. Ne5 {, z.B.} Qb6 (18... Be8 19. Qb4 $16) 19. Qb4 {mit klarem weißem Vorteil.}) (16... bxa5 17. Rxa5 Qc7 $14 {Rotstein,A (2540) - Remling,C(2345)/BL-2 2004}) 17. axb6 Qxb6 18. Rab1 {Eine natürliche, aber nicht die einzige gute Fortsetzung. In Frage kam auch die Idee, diesen Turm auf der a-Linie zu belassen, um den Druck auf den schwarzen a-Bauern aufrechtzuerhalten - aus dieser Sicht waren z.B. die Optionen} (18. Reb1 $5 Qa7 19. Qe3) ({und} 18. Ra4 {beachtenswert.}) 18... Qc7 ({Eine Alternative zum Textzug war die Fortsetzung} 18... Qa7 {[%cal Ga7d4] , um den Bauern d4 nicht aus den Augen zu verlieren. Dabei aber entfernt sich die schwarze Dame zu weit weg vom Königsflügel, was den Anziehenden berechtigt, dort einen Angriff zu starten -} 19. g4 $5 (19. e5 Nd5 20. Re4 Rfc8 $13 {[%cal Yg8f8]}) (19. Qa5 $5 $14 {[%csl Ra6]}) 19... Nxg4 (19... Rfc8 20. g5 hxg5 21. Qxg5 Bc6 22. Kh1 $40 {[%cal Re1g1]}) (19... Rab8 20. g5 hxg5 21. Qxg5 $40) 20. Qf4 Nf6 21. Kh1 {[%cal Re1g1] mit brandgefährlicher Kompensation für den geopferten Bauern.}) 19. Rbc1 $6 {Schwer zu sagen, mit welchem Plan Topalov diesen Zug verband. In jedem Fall wirkt sein Spiel auf mich ab diesem Moment recht kraftlos.} ({Viel stärker war} 19. Ne5 $1 {- Weiß aktiviert seinen Springer , ermöglicht f2-f3, lässt seinen Damenturm bei dem b7 weiterhin bleiben und lässt sich die Option e1-c1 offen. Folgende Varianten wären dann möglich:} Rfb8 $5 (19... Rfd8 20. Rec1 Qe7 21. f3 Ne8 (21... Rxd4 $4 22. Qb2 $18) (21... a5 22. Qb2 Qd6 23. Nxf7 $1 Qxd4+ 24. Qxd4 Rxd4 25. Ne5 Bc8 26. Bb5 $16) 22. Bf1 Nd6 23. Qa5 {mit starker Initiative am Damenflügel}) (19... a5 $6 {(hier wird der Bauer noch anfälliger)} 20. Rec1 Qe7 21. f3 Rfc8 22. Nc4 a4 23. Rb4 a3 24. Ra1 $16 {[%csl Ra3]}) 20. Qf4 $5 {[%csl Rf7][%cal Rg2g5,Rh2h4]} (20. f3 $14 {ec1}) 20... a5 21. g4 {mit sehr gefährlicher Initiative am Königsflügel.}) ({Das aggressive} 19. g4 $6 {führt zu einem spannenden Kampf, ist aber an dieser Stelle bestimmt nicht die stärkste Fortsetzung, z. B.} Nxg4 (19... a5 $5) 20. Rec1 Qe7 21. Qf4 f5 22. exf5 (22. Rc7 fxe4 23. Rxe7 Rxf4 24. Rbxb7 exd3 25. Rxg7+ Kh8 26. Nh4 Ne5 $1 27. dxe5 Rxh4 28. Rh7+ Kg8 $11) 22... Bxf3 23. Qxf3 Qg5 24. Qg3 exf5 25. h3 Nf6 26. Qxg5 hxg5 27. Bxf5 Rad8 {- nach Komplikationen entstand ein remisliches Endspiel.}) 19... Qe7 20. Qa5 Rfc8 $1 $11 {Hat Topalov früher übersehen, dass dieser Zug mit keinem Bauernverlust verbunden ist? Wie dem auch sei, hat ihm die Aktion 19.fc1, 20.a5 gar nichts gebracht, während der ganze schwarze Aufbau jetzt ganz harmonisch aussieht.} 21. Rxc8+ ({Auch nach} 21. Rb1 Qc7 {hat Schwarz keine Schwierigkeiten, z.B.} 22. Qa1 a5 23. Ne5 Ba6 24. Bxa6 Rxa6 $11) 21... Rxc8 22. Nd2 $6 ({Den Vorzug verdiente das viel aktivere} 22. Ne5 $1 {, z. B.} Qd6 23. Qa1 a5 (23... Rd8 24. d5 $1 exd5 25. Nxf7 Kxf7 26. e5 Qe7 27. exf6 Qxf6 28. Qb1 Bc8 (28... Rd7 $4 29. Re3 d4 30. Bc4+ Kf8 31. Re6 Qg5 32. Qb4+ Re7 33. Bf1 {[%cal Rf2f4]} Bxg2 34. f4 $1 $18) (28... Ba8 29. Qa2 Kg8 30. Bxa6 $11) (28... Bc6 29. Bxa6 Kg8 $11) 29. Bh7 $1 $44 {30.e3} (29. Re3 Kg8)) 24. d5 (24. f3 Rd8 25. Bf1 Qxd4+ 26. Qxd4 Rxd4 27. Ra1 $11) 24... exd5 25. Nxf7 Qe6 26. e5 Ne8 (26... Qxf7 27. exf6 Qxf6 28. Qxa5 Qc3 29. Qxc3 Rxc3 $11) 27. Nd6 Nxd6 28. exd6 Qxd6 29. Qxa5 $11) 22... Qd7 {Ab jetzt und bis zum Schluss wird Initiative voll und ganz dem Schwarzen gehören.} 23. Qb6 $146 (23. Qa1 a5 $1 {[%cal Ra5a4]}) ({RR} 23. Nb3 Rb8 24. Qb6 Qe8 25. Nc5 Bxe4 26. Qxa6 Bxd3 27. Qxd3 Qc6 28. h3 Rd8 29. Ne4 Nd5 30. Nd2 Nf4 31. Qe4 Qxe4 32. Rxe4 Rxd4 33. Rxd4 Ne2+ 34. Kf1 Nxd4 35. f3 f6 36. Kf2 Kf7 37. Nc4 e5 {Khurtsidze,N (2383)-Batsiashvili,N (2492) Teheran 2017 0-1 (66)}) 23... Rc3 24. Bxa6 {Topalov lässt sich auf eine Stellung mit allen Bauern am gleichen Flügel ein, in der aber der Gegner dank Aktivität seiner Figuren am Drücker sein wird.} ({Als Alternative gab es z.B. die Variante} 24. Bb1 Qb5 25. Qd8+ Ne8 26. Nf3 Rc8 27. Qe7 Rc7 28. Qd8 Qd7 29. Qxd7 Rxd7 30. Bd3 Nf6 31. Kf1 a5 $15) 24... Bxa6 25. Qxa6 Qxd4 26. Nf3 Qc5 27. e5 (27. h3 Rc1 28. Qf1 Rc2 $36) 27... Nd5 28. Qa8+ Kh7 29. Qb7 Rc1 30. Qb2 $6 ({Stärker ist} 30. h4 $1 {, um Raum zu gewinnen und später eventuell auch h4-h5 folgen zu lassen, z.B.} Rxe1+ (30... Rc2 31. Rf1 Qc7 32. Rb1 Rc1+ 33. Kh2 Rc4 34. Qxc7 Rxc7 35. g3 Kg6 36. Kg2 {, und dieses Endspiel kann man leicht halten} {(} Kf5 37. Rb8 g5 38. hxg5 hxg5 39. Rg8) 31. Nxe1 Qc1 32. Kf1 Qf4 33. Qb1+ g6 34. h5 $5 (34. Nf3 {soll auch reichen}) 34... Qxe5 35. hxg6+ fxg6 36. Nf3 {, und wegen der offenen Lage seines Königs hat Schwarz hier kaum Chancen, seinen Mehrbauern zu verwerten.}) 30... Rc2 31. Qd4 g5 $1 {Carlsen beginnt, den Gegner am Königsflügel einzuengen - gerade dieses Spielmuster hätte Topalov früher mit 30.h4! verhindern können.} 32. g3 Kg7 33. Qxc5 Rxc5 34. Re4 Kg6 35. h3 Ne7 {Schwarz fängt an zu manövrieren. Er plant, seinen Springer nach c6 und den König nach f5 zu bringen, um den Bauern e5 mit allen Kräften anzugreifen und den das Feld f4 schwächenden Zug g3-g4 zu provozieren.} 36. h4 Kf5 37. Ra4 ({Das Turmendspiel mit einem weißen Minusbauern, welches nach} 37. Re1 Nc6 38. hxg5 hxg5 39. Kg2 Nxe5 40. Nxe5 Rxe5 41. Ra1 (41. g4+ $2 Kf4) 41... g4 {entstehen könnte, ist trotz des weit vorgerückten und den Gegner hemmenden Bauern g4 objektiv gesehen Remis, aber es ist nicht ganz einfach, dieses Ergebnis in einer praktischen Partie zu erreichen - besonders gegen Carlsen!}) 37... Nc6 38. hxg5 hxg5 39. g4+ {Topalov trifft die Entscheidung, sich an den Bauern e5 weiterhin zu halten, und ist bereit, die Schwäche des Feldes f4, die dabei entsteht, in Kauf zu nehmen.} ({Eine würdige Alternative dazu war die Möglichkeit, diesen Bauern zu opfern, und zwar unter günstigeren Umständen, als in der vorherigen Anmerkung, z.B,.} 39. Kg2 {, und wenn} Nxe5 (39... g4 $2 40. Rf4+) 40. Nxe5 Rxe5 {, dann} 41. g4+ $1 Kf6 42. Kg3 {- bei dieser Bauernstruktur erreicht Weiß Remis ziemlich leicht.}) 39... Kg6 40. Re4 Ne7 41. Kg2 Nd5 {Ein schönes Feld für den Springer - hier ist er sowohl gedeckt und zentralisiert, als auch bereit, sofort auf f4 zu erscheinen, falls es sich dafür eine passende Möglichkeit ergibt. Objektiv gesehen ist die weiße Stellung zweifellos haltbar, aber am Brett ist es für den Anziehenden alles andere als leicht, das gewünschte Ergebnis zu erreichen, weil der Gegner immer wieder neue Drohungen aufstellt.} 42. Kg3 Rc3 (42... Nf4 $2 43. Nxg5 $1) 43. Re1 Ra3 (43... Nf4 {hätte hier noch nichts gebracht -} 44. Re3 (44. Re4)) 44. Re4 Ra8 45. Rc4 Rh8 {Mit dem Turm auf der h-Linie entsteht in einigen Varianten die Mattkonstruktion g3/f4+h3.} 46. Re4 Nc3 (46... Nf4 $2 47. Nxg5) 47. Re3 ({Nach} 47. Rc4 Ne2+ 48. Kg2 Nf4+ 49. Kg1 (49. Kg3 $4 Rh3#) 49... Ra8 {würde sich der weiße König sehr unwohl fühlen.}) 47... Rc8 48. Re1 Rc4 49. Re3 Ne4+ {Schwarz hat die Kontrolle über die vierte Reihe übernommen und beginnt jetzt mit der Überführung seines Springers nach d3 - von dort aus wird er nicht nur das Feld f4 im Auge behalten, sondern auch die Bauren e5 und f2 attackieren.} 50. Kg2 Ra4 51. Re1 Nc5 52. Kg3 Rf4 53. Nd2 Nd3 54. Re2 Ra4 55. Nf3 Ra8 56. Re3 Rd8 57. Re4 ({Es gab auch andere spielbare Möglichkeiten, z. B.} 57. Ne1 Nf4 58. Kf3 Rd2 59. Kg3) ({oder} 57. Ng1 Nf4 58. Nh3 Rd4 59. f3 {, aber natürlich hätte Carlsen auch dann seine Gewinnversuche nicht aufgegeben.}) 57... Rh8 58. Rc4 Ra8 (58... Nf4 $2 59. Nxg5) 59. Rc3 (59. Rd4 $2 Ra3 $1 60. Re4 (60. Kg2 $4 Nf4+ $19) 60... Ra2) (59. Re4 $2 Ra2 {- diese Varianten zeigen uns die Vorteile der Position des schwarzen Springers auf d3.}) 59... Nf4 60. Rc4 Ne2+ 61. Kg2 Rh8 62. Re4 $6 {Früher hat sich Topalov gut verteidigt, aber mit seinem letzten Zug erlaubt er dem Gegner, den weißen König in eine gefärdete Lage zu bringen.} ({Stärker ist} 62. Ne1 {(der Springer räumt das Feld f3 für seinen König), z.B.} Nf4+ 63. Kf3 Rh1 64. Rc1 Rh3+ 65. Ke4 Rb3 (65... Ra3 66. Rc4 Ra2 67. Nc2) 66. Rc4 Rb2 67. Nc2 Nh3 68. f3 Rb3 69. Ne1 {, und Schwarz hat nichts greifbares erreicht.}) 62... Nf4+ 63. Kg1 Ra8 64. Nh4+ Kh6 65. Ng2 (65. Nf3 $2 Ra2 {[%csl Rf2][%cal Rf4h3] kostet den Bauern f2.}) 65... Nd3 66. Ne1 Ra1 67. Kf1 {Passiver geht gar nicht - dem Weißen stehen nur die Züge mit dem Turm nach e3 und zurück nach e4 zur Verfügung. Verloren ist seine Stellung aber immer noch nicht!} Kg6 68. Re3 Nf4 69. Re4 Kg7 70. Kg1 Nd3 71. Kf1 Kf8 72. Re3 Nf4 73. Kg1 Ra4 $1 {Mit diesem Zug nimmt Carlsen den Bauern g4 ins Visier und verbietet gleichzeitig dem gegnerischen Turm den Zugang zur vierten Reihe.} 74. Kh2 (74. f3 Ra1 75. Kf1 Rd1 {(Carlsen)} 76. Kf2 Rd2+ 77. Kf1 {sieht natürlich unschön aus, aber kann Schwarz in dieser Stellung wirklich etwas erreichen? Z.B. die Idee, hier den König zu aktivieren, erweist sich als nicht ausreichend:} Ke7 78. Rb3 Kd7 79. Rc3 Rd1 80. Re3 Kc6 81. Rc3+ Kd5 82. Rc7 Kxe5 83. Rxf7 Rd2 84. Rf8 Kd4 85. Rc8 $1 {mit Remis} {(} Ke3 86. Rc3+ Nd3 $140 87. f4 $1 {)}) 74... Nd5 75. Rg3 Kg7 76. Nd3 Rd4 77. Kg1 Nb6 $1 {[%csl Re5][%cal Rb6c4] Jetzt wendet Schwarz seine Aufmerksamkeit wieder dem Bauern e5.} 78. Kf1 Re4 79. Kg2 Nc4 80. Kh3 Rd4 ({Leider kann Weiß im Turmendspeil nach} 80... Nxe5 81. Nxe5 Rxe5 {leicht Remis halten. Deshalb entscheidet sich Carlsen dafür, erst seinen König zu aktivieren - in der Hoffnung, sich später in einem günstigeren Moment des Bauern e5 zu bedienen. Übrigens musste er gleichzeitig auch weiteres, extrem unangenehmes Problem beachten: nach dem 39. Zug von Weiß gab es in dieser Partie weder Schläge noch weitere Bauernzüge - das hieß, er wurde gezwungen, wohl oder übel demnächst auf e5 zu schlagen, um der 50-Züge-Regel aus dem Weg zu gehen. Wozu er zuerst seinen Turm nach d4 brachte, kann wahrscheinlich nur er selbst erklären.}) (80... Kf8) 81. Kg2 Kf8 82. Kf1 Ke7 (82... Re4 83. Nc5 Nd2+ 84. Kg2 Rd4 {(so weit Carlsen)} 85. Nb3 $1 $11) 83. Ke2 Re4+ 84. Kd1 ({Auf} 84. Kf1 {plante Carlsen} Nd2+ ({wie es bereits erwähnt wurde, kann der Anziehende das Endspiel nach} 84... Nxe5 85. Nxe5 Rxe5 {trotz des schwarzen Mehrbauern ziemlich problemlos halten}) 85. Kg2 Re2 {, aber nach} 86. Rh3 {kommt Schwarz nicht weiter.}) 84... Nxe5 {Schwarz hatte bis zum Eintritt der besagten Regel nur fünf Züge, deshalb sah Carlsen keinen Sinn mehr, mit diesem Schalg zu warten - vielleicht hoffte er auch, die abgeschnittene Lage des weißen Königs doch irgendwie auszunützen.} ({Die Idee, vor dem Nehmen auf e5 seinen König wieder auf g6 zu bringen, um später nach f7-f5, g4xf5 mit dem Bauern zurückschzuschlagen, konnte leider nicht ausreichen:} 84... Kf8 85. Kc2 Kg7 86. Kc3 Nxe5 87. Nxe5 Rxe5 88. Kd3 Kg6 89. Rg1 f5 90. gxf5+ exf5 (90... Kxf5 91. Rg3 {mit Remis}) 91. f4 $1 {(Notkin)}) 85. Nxe5 Rxe5 86. Kd2 Kf6 87. Ra3 Kg6 88. Ra6 $1 {(damit Schwarz nach f7-f5, g4xf5 nicht mit dem Bauern zurücknehmen kann)} f5 89. gxf5+ Kxf5 90. Ra3 Kf4 91. Rb3 g4 92. Ra3 Re4 93. Rb3 e5 94. Ra3 Rb4 95. Ke2 Rb1 96. Ra4+ e4 97. Ra3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Qatar Masters op"]
[Site "Doha"]
[Date "2015.12.24"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Li, Chao B"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D70"]
[WhiteElo "2834"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "QAT"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The world champion's return to open tournaments indeed had a rough start, but by round 5 he certainly had found his pace, and on Christmas Eve he created excellent entertainment for all those kids waiting for the evening to come. And for all other chess-lovers:} 1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 $5 {A move that has been very much in the limelight over the last couple of years, but somehow the interest seems to have faded a bit, for no apparent reason except fashion.} d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nb6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Be3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. O-O-O f5 (9... Qd6 {has been established as the main line, and is what Caruana played against Magnus in Norway Chess 2014. But Li, stays true to his favourite choice.}) 10. e5 ({RR} 10. h4) 10... Nb4 11. Nh3 ({RR} 11. Kb1 N4d5 12. Nxd5 Nxd5 13. Bh6 f4 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. g3 c5 16. dxc5 Bf5+ 17. Ka1 Ne3) ({RR} 11. h4 Be6 ({RR} 11... N4d5 12. Nh3 Nxe3 13. Qxe3 Be6 14. h5) 12. h5 ({RR} 12. b3 a5 13. Nh3 a4 14. Nf4 Qc8 15. d5 Bxe5 16. Bd4 Bxf4 17. Qxf4 N6xd5) ({RR} 12. Kb1 N4d5 13. Nh3 Nxc3+ 14. Qxc3 Nd5) 12... Nxa2+ 13. Nxa2 Bxa2 14. hxg6 hxg6 15. Bh6 Qe8 ({RR} 15... Qd5 16. Ne2 Nc4 17. Qc3) 16. Ne2 f4 17. Bxf4 Bb3 18. Bh6 Nc4 19. Qb4 Bxh6+ 20. Rxh6 Bxd1 21. Qxc4+ Kg7 22. Rh4) 11... Qe8 $5 {Here however Li springs his surprise, just before Magnus would had a chance to show how he thought to proceed after Li's usual move 11..a5. The text move has the queen not only the keeping an eye on the f7-square, attacking a2, but also ideas like ...a4 exchanging of an important defender of both the queenside and the d5-square. Magnus, almost in Grischuk like fashion, here had a very long think, trying to grasp the subleties of Li's novelty.} ({RR} 11... Be6 12. Kb1 ({RR} 12. a3 N4d5 13. Ng5 Qd7 14. f4 Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Bd5 16. h4 h5 17. Rh3 a5 18. Kd2 a4 19. Ke1 Bb3 20. Rc1 Nd5) 12... Qd7 ({RR} 12... Nc4 13. Qc1 Nxe3 14. Qxe3 Nd5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Qc3 e6) 13. Nf4 Bf7 14. a3 a5 15. d5 ({RR} 15. h4) 15... Bxe5 16. axb4 axb4 17. Nb5 Ra5 ({RR} 17... Ra4) 18. Bxb6 ({RR} 18. Qxb4 Rfa8 19. Na3 Bd6) 18... cxb6 19. Qxb4 Rfa8 20. Rd4 ({RR} 20. Na3 Bd6 21. Qd4 Ra4) 20... Bxd4 21. Qxd4 Ra1+ 22. Kc2 Rxf1 23. Rxf1 Qxb5 24. Rc1 Rd8 25. Qe5 Bxd5 26. Nxd5 {Motylev,A (2647)-Svidler,P (2728) Wijk aan Zee 2007 CBM 117 [Krasenkow,Michal] 0-1}) ({RR} 11... a5 12. Nf4 a4 13. a3 N4d5 14. Ncxd5 Nxd5 15. Bc4 c6 16. h4 b5 17. Bxd5+ cxd5 18. Kb1 b4 19. Qxb4 Qa5 20. Qxa5 Rxa5 21. Rc1 Ba6 22. Bd2 Rb5 23. Rc7 Rfb8 24. Bb4 Bh6 25. Ne6 Bd2 26. Nc5 {Tang,A (2502)-Matta,N (2286) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (46)}) 12. Kb1 a5 {Black switches back to this move, the point of 12.b1 being that 12...f7 could now just be answered by 13.g5! and 13...xa2 no longer is check.  In a way this position is a "mini zugzwang", in the sense that White would love to play f4 and h4 with a complete grip, but Black's concept with ...e8 is, that f4 can be answered strongly by ...g5! as h5 is protected. Thus Black do not want to play ...e6, as this exactly allows f4 and h4, so both players try to bide their time, while making small improvements to their position.} 13. Be2 $146 ({RR} 13. Rc1 Kh8 14. Be2 N6d5 15. Nxd5 Nxd5 16. Nf4 Nxe3 17. Qxe3 c6 18. h4 Bh6 19. Rhf1 Be6 20. Bc4 Bxc4 21. Rxc4 Rd8 22. Rc2 Rd5 23. Rc5 Rd7 24. g3 e6 25. Rc2 Bxf4 26. Qxf4 Qe7 27. Rd1 Rfd8 {Fallowfield,J (2109)-Brown,M (2252) Bournemouth 2016 0-1 (79)}) 13... c6 14. Rc1 Kh8 $6 {A logical move, seen often in the Leningrad Dutch freeing the g8-square for the black bishop, but with hindsight it is easy to see that the king is very vulnerable in the h-file.} (14... Be6 {seems preferable straight away, even if} 15. Ng5 $5 {still seems to give White a promising position.}) 15. Ka1 $1 {One could make the same argument here in reverse, that the white king is vulnerable due to the attack in the a-file, but there is a major difference. Partly in that there is no white pawn on b3, and thus the direct ...a4 is harmless, but especially as it becomes relevant in the game that ...xa2 is no longer check.} Be6 16. Nf4 ({Without the inclusion of ...h8 a1} 16. Ng5 {was the move, here however it leads to} Nc4 $1 {as} 17. Qe1 $4 {now fails to} Nxe3 {when} 18. Nxe6 {is met by a deadly fork on c2, due to the king now being on a1.}) 16... Qf7 17. h4 $1 {Exploiting the situation to the maximum attacking the black king and not caring about an unimportant pawn.} Bxa2 $6 {A very principled move.} (17... Rfd8 {still seemed very decent, as the threat of 18...xe5 slows White down somewhat.} {Probably} 18. Nh3 $5 {is the correct way forward, preparing 19.h5, and if} ({, and} 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. f4 (19. h5 g5) 19... h5 $1 {leaves the position too blocked for White's liking.}) ({The straightforward} 18. h5 g5 19. Ng6+ Kg8 {leads nowhere}) 18... h5 {by Black, then} ({and if} 18... Bxe5 {then} 19. Ng5 $1 {followed by 20.h5 gives a very dangerous attack for the sacrificed pawn.}) 19. g4 $1) 18. h5 Kg8 {Of course it can be seen as admitting that move 14 was wrong, but Black will claim he won the a2-pawn, and that White has to play energetically to prove Black's plan wrong:} 19. hxg6 hxg6 20. g4 Bb3 $1 {Neccesary,} ({as} 20... a4 {is answered by the simple} 21. gxf5 a3 22. b3 $1 {when Black's attack comes much too late, despite winning the white queenside pawns. But now however should the black pawn reach a3, his threats are deadly, so Magnus has to act decisively.}) 21. Bd1 $1 {White wants to get his queen to h2 as soon as possible, creating mating threats against the black king, but in this way he maximises the pressure on Black's position, exploiting the fact that the bishop on b3 is vulnerable, which is more than Black's position can bear. Another move actually has a lot of logic too:} ({As White wants to get his queen to h2, and also slow down Black's attack,} 21. Ba6 $5 {comes to mind, and indeed the computers after some time shows White is completely winning!}) 21... a4 22. Qh2 Rfd8 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. d5 {A good move, attacking the knight on b6, and if a knight takes on d5, allowing e6.} ({However} 24. gxf5 $5 {might be a simpler win, allthough "simple" might not be very accurate, the point is that after} gxf5 (24... a3 {also does not work, as} 25. Bxb3 Qxb3 26. Ne6+ $1 {is just in time, due to} Ke8 27. Qg8+ $1 Kd7 28. Nc5+ {winning the queen on b3.}) {the counter-intuitive} 25. Bxb3 $1 axb3+ 26. Kb1 {is completely winning for White, as his attack comes first. The main point is} Ra5 27. Rcg1 Rda8 {and now} 28. Qh8+ $1 {exploits the g-file which has been opened, and wins on the spot.}) 24... Nc4 $5 {Setting up an unstoppable threat of ...a3. White's only chance it getting to the black king first, which requires very accurate calculation.} 25. Nxg6+ $1 {Reversing the order would be fatal.} ({After} 25. e6 $4 a3 $1 {Black gives mate.}) 25... Ke8 26. e6 a3 $5 {Very close to being brilliant.} 27. exf7+ Kd7 {It looks like the black king has escaped, and being a queen down seems less important, than the speed of the mating attack. But:} 28. Ne5+ $3 {Destabilising the knight on c4 is the key, as without it, Black has no forced mate.} ({That White is in grave danger is illustrated by} 28. bxa3 $4 Rxa3+ 29. Kb1 Bc2+ $3 {which forces mate.} 30. Bxc2 (30. Rxc2 Rb3+ $1 31. Kc1 Nd3# {being the point.}) 30... Ra1+ $3 31. Kxa1 Bxc3+ 32. Kb1 Na3#) 28... Bxe5 ({As} 28... Kc7 29. Nxc4 {puts an end to the black attack,}) ({or} 28... Nxe5 29. Bxb3 {as well, Black has no choice.}) 29. Qxf5+ Kc7 30. Qxe5+ $3 {Forcing the c4 to leave its post. As 30...c8 31.e6+ is curtains, Black has to take.} Nxe5 31. Bxb3 {The bishop on b3, did end up hanging! Materially Black is not in a hopeless situation, as he now wins an exchange, but the passed pawn on f7 makes White's edge decisive.} axb2+ 32. Kxb2 Nbd3+ 33. Kb1 Nxc1 34. Rxc1 Kc8 ({If} 34... Nxf7 {then} 35. dxc6 {threatening on f7, as well as b5+ wins.}) 35. dxc6 bxc6 36. f4 {And Black resigned. Magnus' trademark indeed is unique technical performances making him compared to Capablance, but in this game he shows he also has the ability to play like Tal.} 1-0

[Event "Qatar Masters op"]
[Site "Doha"]
[Date "2015.12.28"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2748"]
[BlackElo "2834"]
[Annotator "Sagar,Shah/CB Website"]
[PlyCount "50"]
[EventDate "2015.12.20"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "QAT"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 170"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.01.15"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. O-O cxd4 11. Ne4 Qe7 12. exd4 {This is much more combative than taking on d4 with the knight. The isolated pawn means that there is an imbalance and an imbalance means that both sides have to play actively to make use of their imbalances.} (12. a3 {is the new move with which Dubov beat Anand in the World Rapid.}) 12... Rd8 13. Qe2 Nc6 14. Rfd1 Ba5 15. Ng3 Bb6 16. Qe4 Bd7 17. h4 $5 {Typical Mamedyarov. Until here everything had been seen in the game Shimanov-Matlakov 2014. But this is a new move.} Be8 18. a3 Rd6 $146 ({RR} 18... Rd7 19. Rd2 Rad8 20. Rcd1 Rd6 21. Ba2 Kh8 22. Bb1 f5 23. Qf4 Rd5 24. Qe3 Qf6 25. Re1 R5d6 26. Qb3 Nxd4 27. Nxd4 Bxd4 28. Qxb7 Bc6 29. Qb3 Qxh4 30. Rxe6 Bd5 31. Rxd6 Bxb3 32. Nxf5 Qg5 33. Rxd8+ {Szabo,B (2336)-Kojima,S (2290) Budapest 2012 ½-½ (44)}) 19. Qg4 $6 ({It was a good time to think about equalising and getting rid of the isolated pawn.} 19. d5 exd5 (19... Rad8 20. Qc2 $1 Rxd5 (20... exd5 21. Nf5 $16) 21. Bxd5 exd5 $14) 20. Rxd5 Qxe4 21. Nxe4 Rxd5 22. Bxd5 Rd8 23. Nc3 $11) 19... Rad8 {Now the d4-pawn is just a weakness.} 20. d5 Qf8 $1 {You are not going to be able to fool Magnus. He takes his queen away from the f5 fork tricks and gets ready to take on d5.} 21. Qe4 Ne7 {Thanks to the pin on the d-file the pawn cannot really move.} 22. Bd3 f5 $1 23. Qe5 Nxd5 24. Bxf5 $2 exf5 25. Nxf5 {Did Mamedyarov stir up some complications once again?} Rc6 $1 {Not really! The rook on c1 would be left hanging if the d-rook moved and if xc6 then bxc6 would solidify the position of the knight on d5.} 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.16"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Navara, David"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2730"]
[BlackElo "2844"]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 c6 8. e3 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 10. Bd3 Nxg3 11. hxg3 Bg7 12. O-O ({RR} 12. Qc2 Nb6 13. Ne5 Bxe5 14. dxe5 Qe7 15. f4 Bg4 {½-½ (15) Rogozenco,D (2415)-Hess,M (2385) Germany GER 2025}) 12... a5 $146 ({RR} 12... Nb6 13. Qc2 O-O 14. b4 Qe7 15. Rab1 Be6 16. a4 Nd7 17. a5 a6 18. Na4 Rad8 19. Nc5 Nxc5 20. bxc5 f5 21. Qc3 Rf7 22. Rb4 Qc7 23. Rb2 Re8 24. Ne5 Bxe5 25. dxe5 h5 26. f4 Qd8 27. fxg5 {Gukesh,D (2743)-Caruana,F (2803) Toronto CAN 2024 ½-½ (40)}) ({RR} 12... Nb6 13. Qc2 Be6 14. b4 a6 15. a4 O-O 16. a5 Nc8 17. Na4 Nd6 18. Nc5 Bc8 19. Rad1 Qe7 20. Rfe1 Bg4 21. e4 dxe4 22. Bxe4 Qc7 23. d5 Rae8 24. dxc6 Nxe4 25. Nxe4 bxc6 26. Nc5 Rxe1+ 27. Rxe1 {Beydullayeva,G (2404)-Sukandar,I (2330) New York USA 2024 1-0 (36)}) 13. a3 O-O 14. Qc2 Re8 15. b4 b5 16. Na2 Bb7 17. bxa5 Rxa5 18. Nb4 Qa8 19. Bh7+ Kh8 20. Bf5 Nb6 21. Ne5 Bxe5 22. dxe5 Nc4 23. Qc3 Rxa3 24. Qd4 c5 25. Rxa3 cxd4 26. Rxa8 Rxa8 27. exd4 Ra4 28. Rb1 Nd2 29. Rb2 Nc4 30. Rb1 Nd2 31. Rb2 Nc4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.19"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D71"]
[WhiteElo "2844"]
[BlackElo "2747"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 c6 4. Bg2 d5 5. Qa4 a6 6. cxd5 b5 7. Qd1 cxd5 8. Nf3 Bg7 9. Bf4 O-O 10. O-O Nc6 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. Nxc6 Bxc6 13. Be5 e6 14. Nd2 Bh6 15. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 15. e3 Qe7 16. h4 b4 17. Qc2 Rfc8 18. Rfc1 Bd7 19. Qd1 Bb5 20. Rxc8+ Rxc8 21. Rc1 Rxc1 22. Qxc1 Ng4 23. Bf4 Bxf4 24. exf4 Nf6 25. Nb3 Bc4 26. Nc5 a5 27. b3 Bb5 28. Qe3 Ng4 29. Qd2 Qf6 {Eljanov,P (2760)-Wei,Y (2706) Wijk aan Zee 2016 ½-½ (36)}) 15... Rc8 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. e3 b4 18. Re1 Qd8 19. Bf1 Qb6 20. Nf3 Rc7 21. Qd3 Ra8 22. Rc2 Bf8 23. Rec1 Bd6 24. Ne5 Bb5 25. Qd1 Bxe5 26. dxe5 Rac8 27. Rxc7 Rxc7 28. Rxc7 Qxc7 29. Bxb5 axb5 30. Qd4 Qa5 31. Kg2 Kg7 32. b3 Qxa2 33. Qxb4 Qc2 34. Qxb5 Qe4+ 35. Kg1 Qb1+ 36. Kg2 Qe4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.21"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Van Wely, Loek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D83"]
[WhiteElo "2640"]
[BlackElo "2844"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 {At the moment our game was played, Carlsen hasn't yet scored a full point. Going for the complex Grünfeld indicates his ambitions.} 4. Bf4 {On the other hand, van Wely responds with a solid system to minimise the risk.} ({After the analogous} 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. Bg5 ({For} 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxc4 O-O 7. e4 a6 8. Be2 {see Navara's notes to Navara-Giri, Wijk 2016.}) 5... Ne4 6. Bf4 {Black recently came up with a novel sacrificial idea} O-O $5 ({The standard continuation is} 6... Nxc3 7. bxc3 dxc4 $11 ({or} 7... c5 $132)) 7. Nxd5 (7. e3 c5 8. cxd5 Bf5 $5 $146 (8... Nxc3 {- 6...xc3} 9. bxc3 Qxd5 {leads back to the main line.}) 9. Bc4 (9. Qb3 $142 $5 cxd4 10. Nxd4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be4 12. Bc4 $13 {/}) 9... cxd4 10. exd4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Be4 12. O-O Bxd5 13. Bxd5 Qxd5 14. Qb3 Qd7 15. Rab1 b6 16. Ne5 Bxe5 17. Bxe5 Nc6 18. Bf4 Na5 19. Qd1 Rac8 20. Qf3 Qc6 $15 {Gelfand,B (2743)-Grischuk,A (2810) Beijing blitz 2014}) (7. cxd5 Nxc3 8. bxc3 Qxd5 9. e3 Qa5 10. Qd2 Nd7 11. Bd3 e5 12. Bg3 Re8 13. e4 b6 14. Rd1 Ba6 15. O-O exd4 16. cxd4 Qxd2 17. Rxd2 Bxd3 18. Rxd3 Rxe4 19. Bxc7 Rc8 20. Bg3 Re2 21. a3 Bf8 22. d5 Bc5 $15 {Wang,Y (2720)-Grischuk,A (2810) Beijing blitz 2014}) 7... c5 8. Bc7 $5 (8. Nc3 $6 Qa5 9. e3 Nc6 10. Rc1 g5 $1 (10... Rd8 11. d5 Nxc3 12. bxc3 Bxc3+ 13. Nd2 e6 14. e4 Nd4 15. Bd3 Bb2 16. Rb1 Qxa2 17. O-O a5 {Gelfand,B (2759)-Grischuk,A (2795) Sochi blitz 2014} 18. Bg5 Re8 19. e5 $1 $36) (10... cxd4 $5 11. exd4 Rd8 $36 {[%csl Rd4]}) 11. Be5 (11. Nxg5 Nxg5 12. d5 Ne4 $40) 11... Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nxc3 13. Rxc3 g4 $17) 8... Qd7 9. Be5 (9. Ne5 Qe8 10. Qc2 e6 11. Qxe4 exd5 $36 {} 12. Qxd5 Na6 {[%cal Ra6c7,Ra6b4]}) 9... f6 10. Bf4 e6 $5 (10... cxd4 11. Qxd4 f5 $44) 11. Nc3 (11. Nc7 g5 $15) 11... f5 $32) 4... Bg7 5. e3 (5. Nf3 O-O 6. Rc1 {Black can play} Be6 $5 {here as well, trying to limit his opponent's options.} ({After the (once) main move} 6... dxc4 {Black must reckon with both} 7. e3 ({and} 7. e4)) {The sortie} 7. Ng5 $6 ({We will deal with the more circumspect} 7. e3 {below.}) {is risky due to White's lag in development:} 7... c5 $1 8. dxc5 (8. Nxe6 fxe6 9. e3 (9. dxc5 d4 10. Na4 Ne4 11. e3 Qa5+ 12. Ke2 Nc6 13. f3 d3+ 14. Qxd3 Rad8 15. b4 Qxb4 {0-1, Lomakin,V (2148)-Kovalev,D (2484) Mukachevo 2012}) 9... Nh5 $5 (9... Qa5 10. Be2 Ne4 11. O-O cxd4 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. Bg4 $1 $13 (13. Bxb8 $2 Raxb8 14. exd4 Qxa2 15. Qc2 Bxd4 16. Qxe4 Qxb2 17. Rb1 Qc3 18. Qxe6+ Kh8 19. Bf3 Rxf3 20. gxf3 Qxf3 $40 {Stocek,J (2569)-Howell,D (2635) Istanbul olm 2012})) 10. Bxb8 Rxb8 11. Be2 cxd4 12. exd4 dxc4 (12... Nf4 $5) 13. Bxc4 Bxd4 14. O-O {Faghirnavaz,A (2284)-Darini,P (2540) Tabriz 2013} Qb6 $15) 8... d4 9. Nb5 Nc6 10. Nc7 Bf5 $1 11. Nxa8 e5 12. Bd2 e4 13. e3 (13. Qb3 Qe7 14. e3 d3 15. Nh3 Rxa8 16. Nf4 Rd8 17. h3 Ne5 18. Nd5 Qd7 19. Qb5 Nxd5 20. Qxd7 Rxd7 21. cxd5 Rxd5 $44 {, Socko,B (2629)-Negi,P (2661) Leiden 2012}) (13. b4 Qe7 14. Bf4 Rxa8 15. Bd6 Qd8 16. b5 e3 17. fxe3 dxe3 18. Qa4 Nd4 19. g3 Ne4 20. Nf3 Nxc5 $1 $19 {Perez Garcia,A (2273)-Csonka,B (2415) Gibraltar 2016}) 13... h6 (13... d3 $5) 14. Nh3 $6 (14. exd4 $5 hxg5 15. d5 $15 {/}) 14... Bxh3 15. gxh3 Ne5 $1 16. Bg2 Nd3+ 17. Kf1 Nxc1 18. Qxc1 d3 19. Bc3 Qe7 $2 (19... Re8 $1 $17 {[%csl Gd3,Ge4]}) 20. Nc7 $1 Qxc7 21. Bxf6 Bxf6 22. Bxe4 Rd8 23. Bd5 Qxc5 24. Qd1 $11 {Grischuk,A (2761)-Caruana,F (2770) Moscow 2012 For more details see the notes to this game in CBM 149 by Krasenkow.}) 5... O-O ({A solid alternative is} 5... c5 6. dxc5 Qa5 7. Rc1 dxc4 8. Bxc4 O-O 9. Nge2 ({The more usual} 9. Nf3 Qxc5 10. Bb3 Nc6 11. O-O Qa5 12. h3 Bf5 13. Qe2 Ne4 $11 {doesn't promise White an advantage, most of the lines here are analysed much deeper to almost forced draws. For more details see the notes to Aronian,L (2802)-Svidler,P (2755) Moscow 2011 in CBM 146.}) {Black can avoid the murky sacrificial line with} 9... Nc6 $5 (9... Qxc5 10. Qb3 Nc6 11. Nb5 Qh5 12. Ng3 Qh4 13. Nc7 e5 $13 (13... g5 $5)) 10. O-O (10. Qb3 Nd7 $11 (10... Ne4 $5)) 10... Qxc5 11. Nb5 Be6 12. Bd3 (12. Nc7 $2 Bxc4 13. Nxa8 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Qa5 15. Nc7 e5 $17) 12... Qb4 13. Nc7 (13. a3 Qb3 14. Ned4 Nxd4 15. Nxd4 Qxd1 16. Rfxd1 Nd5 17. Nxe6 fxe6 18. Rc2 Rac8 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Rb1 Nxf4 21. exf4 Rd8 22. Bc4 Kf7 23. b3 Rd2 24. Re1 Bd4 $11 {Lysyj,I (2686)-Svidler,P (2743) Kazan 2014}) 13... Bxa2 14. Nxa8 Rxa8 15. Ra1 Be6 16. Qa4 Nd5 17. Bb5 Nxf4 18. Nxf4 Bb3 19. Qxb4 Nxb4 20. Rac1 a5 21. Rc7 a4 22. Rxb7 Bxb2 23. Be2 Na2 24. Bf3 Rd8 25. Nd5 e6 26. Rb1 a3 27. Rxb3 exd5 28. R3xb2 axb2 29. Rxb2 Nc3 $11 {Tomashevsky,E (2747)-Svidler,P (2739) Chita 2015/ However, we have already indicated Carlsen was not interested in symmetry and equality...}) 6. Rc1 (6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Nxd5 Qxd5 8. Bxc7 Na6 $1 9. Bxa6 Qxg2 10. Qf3 Qxf3 11. Nxf3 bxa6 {is considered innocuous:} 12. Rc1 f6 13. Rg1 Rf7 (13... Bb7 14. Ke2 Rf7 15. Rgd1 e6 16. Ne1 Rc8 17. Bg3 Rxc1 18. Rxc1 e5 19. dxe5 fxe5 20. Nd3 e4 21. Ne5 Bxe5 22. Bxe5 $14 {/=, Lysyj,I (2691)-Rodshtein,M (2654) Sochi 2015}) 14. Ke2 Bd7 15. Nd2 e5 16. d5 Bb5+ 17. Kf3 f5 18. b3 e4+ 19. Kg2 Bb2 20. Rc2 Bd3 21. Rc6 Bb5 22. Rc2 Bd3 23. Rc6 {½, Radjabov,T (2700)-Ivanchuk,V (2729) Morelia/Linares 2006. See the notes to this game in CBM 112 by Krasenkow.}) ({The natural developing move is} 6. Nf3 {and now:} {After the common} c5 ({Even here Black can consider} 6... Be6 $5 {, but the knight move is more useful than c1 and he must reckon with} 7. Ng5 (7. Qb3 c5 8. Qxb7 Qb6 9. Qxb6 axb6 10. dxc5 bxc5 11. Ng5 Nc6 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. Be2 d4 14. Nb5 e5 15. Bg3 e4 16. Nc7 Rab8 17. Nb5 Rb7 18. O-O d3 19. Bd1 Nh5 20. Bxh5 gxh5 $44 {Sakaev,K (2594)-Gelfand,B (2747) Jurmala 2015}) 7... Bf5 8. Qb3 c5 9. cxd5 (9. Qxb7 Nbd7 10. Be2 cxd4 11. exd4 dxc4 12. O-O Qb6 13. Qxb6 Nxb6 14. Be5 Rac8 15. Nb5 Bd7 16. a4 a6 17. Nc3 {Sanikidze,T (2549)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2682) Nancy rpd 2012} Nfd5 $11) 9... cxd4 10. exd4 Nbd7 11. Qxb7 Nb6 12. Bc7 Qc8 13. Qxc8 Raxc8 14. Bxb6 axb6 15. Ba6 Rcd8 16. Bc4 Bc8 17. Nf3 Bb7 18. Ke2 Nxd5 19. Nxd5 Bxd5 20. Bxd5 Rxd5 21. Rhd1 Rfd8 22. Rac1 g5 23. h3 h5 $44 {Simantsev,M (2454)-Rausis,I (2532) Teplice 2013}) 7. dxc5 {Black has a choice:} Ne4 $142 (7... Qa5 8. Rc1 Rd8 9. Qa4 Qxc5 10. b4 Qc6 11. Qa3 $5 dxc4 12. b5 Qb6 13. Bxc4 Be6 14. Bxe6 Qxe6 15. O-O $14 {Ivanchuk,V (2757)-Carlsen,M (2872) London ct 2013. See the notes to this game in CBM 154.}) (7... dxc4 8. Qxd8 $1 (8. Bxc4 Qa5 $11 {- 5...c5}) 8... Rxd8 9. Bxc4 $14) 8. Rc1 Nd7 $5 9. cxd5 Qa5 10. Nd4 (10. Qc2 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Nxc5 12. e4 Bd7 13. Bd2 Qa4 (13... Rac8 $5 {is the main choice in email games, Black scores well here:} 14. c4 Qb6 15. Be3 Ba4 16. Qxa4 Nxa4 17. Bxb6 axb6 18. Rc2 b5 19. Nd2 bxc4 20. Bxc4 b5 21. Bb3 Rxc2 22. Bxc2 Nc3 23. Bb3 Ra8 24. g3 Nxa2 $11 {Sciarretta,R (2141)-Rodriguez,K (2341) email 2013}) 14. Qxa4 Bxa4 15. e5 Bd7 16. Bf4 Bg4 17. Nd4 Rad8 18. f3 Bc8 19. d6 exd6 20. exd6 Rfe8+ 21. Kf2 Be5 22. Bxe5 Rxe5 23. Bc4 Rxd6 $11 {Prohaszka,P (2554)-Bok,B (2532) Stroebeck 2013}) 10... Nxc3 11. bxc3 Qxa2 12. c6 (12. Qb3 Qxb3 13. Nxb3 a5 14. c6 Nb6 $32 {}) 12... Nc5 13. Be2 (13. c4 e5 $1 $40 {[%csl Re1]}) 13... Qxd5 14. Bf3 Qc4 15. Be2 Qd5 (15... Qa2 $5) 16. Bf3 Qc4 17. Be2 Qd5 {½, Ivanchuk,V (2757)-Gelfand,B (2740) London ct 2013}) 6... Be6 7. cxd5 {Van Wely chooses the simplest continuation.} ({An ambitious alternative is} 7. c5 {and now:} {Possibly the best is the strategic retreat} Bc8 $5 (7... c6 8. Bd3 (8. b4 Nbd7 9. Bd3 Nh5 10. Nge2 (10. Bg5 $142 $5) 10... f6 $1 11. h4 Bf7 12. Bh2 {[%cal Rg2g4]} f5 $1 {[%cal Ye7e5]} 13. f4 $6 Nhf6 14. Bg3 Ng4 15. Qd2 Ndf6 16. Nd1 Ne4 17. Bxe4 dxe4 18. a4 b6 19. h5 gxh5 20. Bh4 Bf6 21. Bxf6 Nxf6 22. Nf2 Kh8 23. O-O Rg8 $40 {Ivanchuk,V (2731)-Grischuk,A (2785) Elancourt 2013}) (8. h3 {[%cal Yg1f3] frees a square for the f4 and prepares f3 without allowing g4:} {Black seems fine after} Ne4 (8... b6 9. b4 Ne4 10. Bd3 a5 11. Na4 (11. b5 $142 $5 Nxc3 12. Rxc3 bxc5 13. Rxc5 $11 {/}) 11... Nd7 12. f3 b5 $5 13. fxe4 bxa4 14. b5 dxe4 15. Bxe4 cxb5 16. Nf3 Bxa2 17. Qe2 Bc4 18. Rxc4 bxc4 19. Qxc4 Ra7 20. O-O e5 21. Bg5 Bf6 {Jumabayev,R (2525)-So,W (2652) Istanbul olm 2012} 22. Bh6 Bg7 23. Bg5 Bf6 $11) 9. Bd3 Bf5 $5 $13) 8... Bg4 9. Nge2 (9. f3 Bc8 10. Nge2 Nbd7 11. O-O e5 12. Bg5 Qc7 13. b4 Re8 14. Qd2 Nf8 15. Bh4 Nh5 16. g4 Nf6 17. Bg3 N8d7 18. Kg2 Qd8 19. h3 h5 $13 {Kovalenko,I (2637)-Kulaots,K (2568) Vilnius 2014}) (9. Qc2 Nfd7 10. Bxb8 $6 Nxb8 $1 11. h3 Bc8 12. f4 b6 13. Na4 e5 $1 14. dxe5 f6 15. exf6 Qxf6 16. Nf3 Qe7 17. Kf2 b5 18. Nc3 Na6 19. Qd2 Nxc5 20. Bb1 Kh8 21. b4 Nb7 22. Ne2 Nd6 $17 {Wang,Y (2736)-Carlsen,M (2772) Nanjing 2009}) 9... Re8 (9... Bxe2 10. Bxe2 Nbd7 {Spalir,J (2325)-Rogulj,B (2402) Hum na Sutli 2015} 11. Bg3 Re8 12. f4 $1 { Wojtaszek}) 10. f3 Bc8 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Bg5 e5 13. b4 Nf8 14. Bh4 Bh6 $2 (14... exd4 15. exd4 Bd7 16. b5 Qa5 $132 {Wojtaszek}) 15. f4 e4 16. Bc2 Bg7 17. b5 Bd7 18. Ba4 Qc8 19. h3 Nh5 20. Rb1 f5 21. Qb3 Bf6 22. Bxf6 Nxf6 23. bxc6 bxc6 24. Qb7 $16 {Wojtaszek,R (2733)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2731) Biel 2015. See the notes to this game by Wojtaszek in CBM 168.}) (7... Nh5 8. Bg5 b6 9. b4 a5 10. b5 bxc5 11. dxc5 h6 12. Bh4 c6 13. Nf3 a4 14. Nd4 Bd7 15. Be2 g5 16. Bxh5 gxh4 17. Bf3 e6 18. O-O cxb5 19. Ncxb5 Ra5 20. Be2 Bxb5 21. Nxb5 Nc6 $13 {Buhmann,R (2613)-Rambaldi,F (2517) Vienna 2015}) 8. Bd3 c6 9. Bg5 (9. h3 Nfd7 $1 10. Nf3 e5 11. dxe5 ({White still wants to fight for an edge, but a more circumspect try was} 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 Bxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. O-O Nxe5 $11) 11... Nxc5 12. Bb1 (12. O-O Nxd3 (12... Nbd7 $5) 13. Qxd3 Bf5 14. Qe2 Nd7 $11) (12. Be2 $5) 12... Nbd7 13. b4 (13. O-O Qb6 14. Qc2 Re8 15. Rfd1 a5 $5 {[%csl Re5]}) 13... Ne6 14. O-O (14. Bg3 Ng5 $15) 14... Nxf4 15. exf4 Nb6 16. Qd4 (16. Re1 a5 $5 $13 {/}) 16... f6 17. b5 Nc4 (17... fxe5 $142 $1 18. Nxe5 (18. fxe5 $2 Rxf3 19. gxf3 Qg5+) 18... Nc4 $36) 18. bxc6 bxc6 19. Bd3 fxe5 20. Nxe5 $6 (20. fxe5 Rxf3 21. Bxc4 $13 {} Bxh3 22. Nxd5 Qg5 23. Nf4+ $11) 20... Bxe5 $1 21. fxe5 Nd2 22. Rfd1 Qg5 23. Qe3 $1 (23. Kh2 $2 Bxh3 $1 24. Kxh3 Nf3 $1 25. gxf3 Rxf3+ 26. Kh2 Raf8 $19) 23... Nf3+ 24. Kh1 Qxe3 25. fxe3 Nxe5 $15 {Gelfand,B (2759)-Grischuk,A (2795) Moscow 2014/ See the notes to this important game in CBM 164 by Krasenkow.}) (9. Nf3 Bg4 $11) (9. b4 $5 b6 (9... Nfd7 10. Nf3 e5 $5 11. dxe5 Re8 $11) 10. Nge2 Nfd7 11. O-O e5 12. Bg3 a5 13. b5 bxc5 14. bxc6 Nxc6 15. Nxd5 Nb4 16. Be4 $36 {Karner,C (2339)-Kreisl,R (2408) Austria 2014}) 9... Re8 (9... Nfd7 10. f4 {Kovalenko,I (2653)-Grigoriants,S (2570) Wroclaw blitz 2014} (10. Nge2 $142 {Wojtaszek}) 10... f6 11. Bh4 e5 $1 12. fxe5 Qe8 $36) (9... b6 10. b4 a5 11. b5 bxc5 12. dxc5 Nbd7 13. bxc6 Nxc5 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Be2 Bxc3+ 16. Rxc3 Ne4 17. Rc2 a4 18. f3 Qa5+ 19. Kf1 Nf6 20. g4 Ba6 21. Kf2 Rfc8 22. Qd4 Rab8 23. Qa7 Rb6 24. g5 Ne8 25. Nh3 Rc7 26. Qa8 Rc8 {½, Duda,J (2663)-Bok,B (2594) Doha 2015}) 10. f4 Bf5 11. Bxf5 gxf5 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. Qh5 e6 14. Nf3 Nd7 15. g4 fxg4 16. Rg1 Kh8 17. Rxg4 Rg8 18. Rg3 Qe7 19. Ke2 $6 (19. e4 $5) 19... Rg6 20. Rxg6 fxg6 21. Qg4 b6 22. b4 a5 $132 {Wojtaszek,R (2734)-Vovk,Y (2617) Berlin blitz 2015}) (7. Nf3 c5 ({Another good way is} 7... dxc4 8. Ng5 Bd5 9. e4 h6 10. exd5 hxg5 11. Bxg5 Nxd5 12. Bxc4 Nb6 13. Bb3 Nc6 14. Ne2 a5 $1 $11 {, this line has already been known for about 15 years.}) 8. dxc5 (8. cxd5 $5 {is rare, but the engines seem to like it:} Nxd5 9. Nxd5 Qxd5 10. Bc4 Qd7 11. Bxe6 Qxe6 12. Rxc5 Qxa2 13. Bxb8 (13. O-O $142 $5 Qxb2 14. Qd3 $36) 13... Rfxb8 14. Qc2 b6 15. Rc4 b5 16. Rc7 a5 17. O-O a4 18. Ne5 Bxe5 19. dxe5 b4 20. Rxe7 Re8 $44 {Lefebvre,H (2286)-Wirig,A (2490) Cappelle-la-Grande 2013}) 8... Nc6 9. Be2 (9. Ng5 Bg4 10. f3 e5 $5 11. cxd5 exf4 12. dxc6 Qe7 {and Black holds his own in the complications:} 13. fxg4 Qxe3+ 14. Be2 Nxg4 15. Nh3 Rad8 16. Qc2 Qe7 $1 17. O-O Qxc5+ 18. Kh1 Ne3 $132) 9... Ne4 10. Nd4 (10. O-O Bxc3 $1 (10... Nxc3 11. bxc3 dxc4 12. Ng5 $14) 11. bxc3 dxc4 12. Nd4 Qd7 $1 (12... Nxc5 $143 13. Bh6 Re8 14. Nxe6 Nxe6 15. Bxc4 Qxd1 16. Rfxd1 $14 {Keres,P-Kavalek,L Marianske Lazne 1965}) 13. Nxe6 Qxe6 14. Qa4 Ne5 15. Qb5 (15. c6 $5 $11) 15... Nd3 $1 ({This is more concrete than} 15... a6 $5) 16. Bxd3 cxd3 17. Qxd3 $6 (17. f3 d2 18. Rc2 Rad8 19. Rd1 g5 $1 $15) 17... Nxc5 18. Qd4 Rfc8 19. c4 f6 20. Rfd1 Rc6 21. h3 Rac8 22. Qd5 Kf7 $15 {[%csl Rc4] /, Miralles,G (2472)-Dominguez Perez,L (2753) Rhodes 2013}) 10... Nxd4 11. exd4 Nxc3 12. bxc3 dxc4 13. O-O Bd5 14. Bf3 Qd7 15. Re1 Rfe8 16. Rb1 b6 17. cxb6 axb6 18. Rxb6 Rxa2 19. Bxd5 Qxd5 20. Qf3 Qa5 $5 21. Rbb1 Bf6 22. Qc6 Qa4 23. Qxa4 Rxa4 24. g4 Ra5 25. Rb7 Rc8 26. Kg2 h5 27. h3 Kg7 28. Re3 Rc6 29. Bg3 hxg4 30. hxg4 g5 $11 {L'Ami,E (2606)-Mamedyarov,S (2721) Novi Sad 2009}) (7. Qb3 c5 $1 8. Qxb7 Qb6 9. Qxb6 axb6 $32 {It's practically impossible to finish development and retain the extra material:} 10. Nf3 Nc6 (10... dxc4 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. Ng5 Bd5 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. Bxc4 Nxf4 15. exf4 Bxb2 16. Rc2 Bf6 17. O-O Nc6 18. Bd5 Nb4 19. Rxc5 Nxd5 20. Rxd5 Rxa2 {Ding,L (2574)-Le,Q (2681) Manila 2010}) 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Nxd5 Bxd5 14. Rxc5 e6 15. Bc4 Bxc4 16. Rxc4 Rxa2 17. O-O Na5 18. Rc5 Nb7 19. Rc7 Rxb2 20. g4 Rb5 21. Kg2 h6 $11 {Malakhov,V (2714)-Svidler,P (2730) Olginka 2011 White's more active pieces give him only a symbolic edge, a draw was agreed shortly.}) 7... Nxd5 8. Nxd5 Bxd5 (8... Qxd5 {is played more often, but leads to a rather boring position Magnus definitely wanted to avoid:} 9. b3 (9. a3 Qa5+ 10. Qd2 Qxd2+ 11. Kxd2 c6 12. Bc4 Bxc4 13. Rxc4 Nd7 14. Nf3 Rfd8 15. Ke2 Nb6 16. Rc2 Rd5 17. g4 Rb5 18. Be5 Nd7 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. h3 Re8 {½, Pelletier,Y (2577)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2758) Saint-Quentin 2014}) 9... Qa5+ (9... c6 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Qd2 Nb6 12. Be2 Rfc8 13. Ng5 Rd8 14. O-O Bf5 15. Bc7 Rf8 16. Bg3 Rfd8 17. Bc7 Rf8 18. Rfd1 Qd7 19. Bg3 Rfd8 20. Qa5 Bg4 21. Nf3 Qe8 22. h3 Be6 {Dominguez Perez,L (2746)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2720) Havana 2015} 23. e4 $36) (9... Nd7 $5 {[%cal Yc7c5]} 10. Bxc7 Rac8 11. Ne2 Rxc7 12. Rxc7 Qa5+ 13. Rc3 Nf6 14. b4 Qxb4 15. Qc1 Bxa2 16. Qa3 Nd5 17. Qxb4 Nxb4 18. Kd2 Bd5 19. f4 Rd8 20. Rg1 e6 21. g4 a5 $13 {Basso,P (2428)-Boruchovsky,A (2536) Douglas 2015}) 10. Qd2 Qxd2+ 11. Kxd2 c6 12. Nf3 Nd7 (12... Bd5 $5 13. Bd3 (13. Bc4 Bxf3 14. gxf3 e6 15. Ke2 Nd7 16. Bd6 Rfe8 17. f4 Bf8 18. Bxf8 Kxf8 19. Bd3 Ke7 20. Rc2 Nb6 21. a3 Red8 $11 {Basso,P (2438)-Li,D (2389) Doha 2015}) 13... Bxf3 14. gxf3 Nd7 15. Bg5 Rfe8 16. Ke2 Nb6 17. f4 e6 18. Rhd1 a5 19. a4 Nd5 20. f3 Bf8 21. Bh4 Bb4 22. Be1 Bxe1 23. Rxe1 Red8 $11 {Ju,W (2547)-Ding,Y (2435) Taizhou 2015}) 13. Bd3 Nf6 14. Be5 Bd5 15. Ke2 Rfd8 16. Rhd1 a5 17. Bc4 $11 {/} a4 18. b4 Ne4 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Ne5 e6 21. Bd3 Nd6 22. Bb1 Bxg2 23. f3 Bh3 24. Rg1 f6 25. Nd3 e5 26. dxe5 fxe5 27. Nxe5 Be6 28. h4 Kf6 29. Nd3 Nc4 30. Rc3 {Dreev,A (2644)-Bok,B (2607) Wijk aan Zee-B 2016} a3 $5 $132) ({RR} 8... Qxd5 9. b3 c6 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Qd2 Nb6 12. Be2 Rfc8 13. Ng5 Rd8 14. O-O Bf5 15. Bc7 Rf8 16. Bg3 Rfd8 17. Bc7 Rf8 18. Rfd1 Qd7 19. Bg3 Rfd8 20. Qa5 Bg4 21. Nf3 Qe8 22. h3 Be6 23. Bc7 {Dominguez Perez,L (2746)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2720) Havana 2015 0-1 (61)}) ({RR} 8... Qxd5 9. b3 c6 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Bc4 Qf5 12. Bd3 Qh5 13. Ng5 Qxd1+ 14. Kxd1 Bf5 15. Bxf5 gxf5 16. Nf3 Nf6 17. Ke2 Nd5 18. Bg3 Rad8 19. Bh4 Rd6 20. h3 Re6 21. Ng5 Rg6 22. Rhg1 Re8 23. Nf3 {Timofeev,A (2594)-Van Wely,L (2620) Tornelo INT 2021 ½-½ (56)}) 9. Bxc7 {Consistent.} (9. Nf3 $143 c6 10. a3 Bxf3 $5 11. gxf3 Nd7 12. Bc4 c5 $1 13. dxc5 Bxb2 14. Rc2 Be5 15. Bxe5 Nxe5 16. Qxd8 Rfxd8 17. Ke2 Rac8 18. Rhc1 Rc7 19. f4 Nc6 20. h4 e6 21. h5 Na5 22. hxg6 hxg6 $15 {Mahmud,S (2315)-Li,C (2710) Jakarta 2011/ While objectively this endgame is probably tenable for White, his inferior pawn structure forces him to tread with care.}) ({RR} 9. a3 c6 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Bg3 Qb6 12. Qd2 Bxf3 13. gxf3 e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Be2 Rfd8 16. Qc2 Qa5+ 17. b4 Qxa3 18. O-O Qxb4 19. Rfd1 Qe7 20. f4 Nd7 21. Rb1 Nb6 22. f5 Rxd1+ 23. Bxd1 Nd5 {Akobian,V (2564)-Horvath,D (2542) New York USA 2024 0-1}) 9... Qd7 10. Bg3 Bxa2 $146 {[%mdl 8] A novelty. While the text move seems to give White a slight pull (in the middlegame a central pawn is worth more, than the a2) , it leads to a double-edged fight, which is exactly what Black was trying to achieve.} ({Carlsen immediately regains the sacrificed pawn rather than seek compensation after} 10... Nc6 11. Ne2 e5 (11... Rac8 12. Nc3 Rfd8 13. a3 Qe6 14. Nxd5 Qxd5 15. Be2 Qxg2 16. Bf3 Qh3 17. Bg4 Qg2 18. Bf3 Qh3 {½, Aupi Royo,J (2378)-Mercadal Benejam,J (2359) email 2013}) 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nc3 Rac8 14. e4 Be6 15. Qxd7 Nxd7 16. Be2 Nc5 17. O-O Bxc3 18. Rxc3 Nxe4 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Bf4 Bxa2 21. Ra1 Bc4 22. Bxc4 Rxc4 23. Rxa7 Nc5 24. Be3 Kg7 25. h3 h5 26. Ra5 Ne6 27. Rb5 Rc7 $11 {Sjugirov,S (2678)-Navara,D (2735) Jerusalem 2015}) ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Ne2 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nc3 Rac8 14. e4 Be6 15. Qxd7 Nxd7 16. Be2 Nc5 17. O-O Bxc3 18. Rxc3 Nxe4 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Bf4 Bxa2 21. Ra1 Bc4 22. Bxc4 Rxc4 23. Rxa7 Nc5 24. Be3 Kg7 25. h3 {Sjugirov,S (2678)-Navara,D (2735) Jerusalem 2015 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Nf3 Rac8 12. Bb5 Qe6 13. Bxc6 Bxc6 14. O-O Qxa2 15. Ra1 Qd5 16. Rxa7 Bb5 17. Re1 Ba6 18. Qa4 Rc4 19. Qa3 Rfc8 20. Qb3 e6 21. h3 Bf8 22. Kh2 Bd6 23. e4 Bxg3+ 24. fxg3 Qd6 25. Rxb7 {Ilandzis,S (2119)-Zylka,S (2334) Krakow 2019 0-1 (38)}) 11. Ne2 {The best, White simply continues his development.} ({The offside a2 can't be trapped:} 11. b3 Qd5 {[%csl Rb3]} 12. Bc4 Qxg2 13. Qf3 Qxf3 14. Nxf3 Nc6 $15 {} 15. Ra1 Nb4) 11... Bd5 {Black retains the bishop, but loses time.} ({An interesting try was} 11... Nc6 12. Nc3 Qe6 $5 (12... Be6 13. Bd3 Rac8 14. O-O $14) 13. Be2 (13. Nxa2 Qxa2 $132) 13... Bb3 14. Qd3 Rfd8 15. O-O a6 $132 {/}) 12. Nc3 Bc6 13. h4 $5 {Van Wely got ambitious, but he started spending a lot a time, which backfires later on. Carlsen was suprised by White's choice, although the text move is fine, a more modest alternative is} (13. f3 a5 14. Bc4 b5 15. Be2 $13 {/}) 13... Rd8 ({Komodo prefers} 13... a5 $5 14. h5 Na6 $13) 14. Qb3 Qf5 ({After} 14... Na6 {[%cal Ye7e5] White could change his mind with} 15. Bc4 e6 16. O-O $14) 15. h5 e6 ({After} 15... Na6 {the  has nowhere to go, but the engine prefers}) (15... a5 $142 $5 {[%cal Yb8a6,Ya6b4]}) 16. hxg6 hxg6 17. Qd1 {Rather slow.} ({A more energetic way was} 17. Nb5 $5 Na6 (17... Nd7 18. Bd3 $5 (18. Bc7 Rf8 19. Nd6 Qg5 20. Nxb7 Bxg2 21. Rg1 Qd5 (21... Bd5 22. Rxg5 Bxb3 23. Ra5 $16) 22. Qxd5 Bxd5 23. Nd6 $14 {[%csl Gc7,Gd6]}) 18... Qg5 19. Nc7 Bxg2 (19... Rac8 20. Nxe6 Qa5+ 21. Ke2 Bd5 22. Nxd8 Rxc1 23. Nxb7 Bxb3 24. Nxa5 Rxh1 25. Nxb3 $36) 20. Rh2 Bd5 21. Nxd5 Qxd5 22. Qxd5 exd5 23. Rc7 $36) (17... Bd5 18. Qa3 Nc6 19. Nd6 Qg4 20. Nxb7 Nxd4 21. Nxd8 Bxg2 22. exd4 Bxh1 23. Qe7 $16) 18. Nd6 Qa5+ 19. Qc3 Nb4 20. Nc4 $14) 17... Nd7 $6 {This natural reaction could have led to problems.} (17... Qa5 $142 {White can proceed with his kingside play and this results in some very complex computer lines:} 18. Qg4 Nd7 19. Qh4 (19. Qh3 e5 $5 $13) 19... e5 $5 (19... Nf6 20. Be5 Nh5 21. f4 Qb4 22. Rc2 f6 23. Bd3 Be8 24. Qg4 fxe5 25. fxe5 Rd5 26. Be4 (26. Bxg6 Rxe5 27. O-O Ng3 $132) 26... Rxd4 27. exd4 Qxd4 28. Ne2 Qxe5 29. Bxg6 Nf6 30. Qf4 $14) 20. dxe5 Qb6 $5 (20... Nxe5 21. Bf4 $1 Nd3+ 22. Bxd3 Rxd3 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. Bh6 Bxh6 25. Qxh6+ Ke7 $14 {/}) 21. e6 (21. Qh7+ Kf8 22. Bf4 Qxb2 23. e4 Bxe5 24. Rh3 {[%cal Rf1c4]} b5 25. Qh6+ Ke7 26. Qg5+ Bf6 27. Nd5+ Bxd5 28. Qxd5 Rac8 $132) 21... fxe6 22. b4 (22. Bc4 Bxg2 23. Qh7+ Kf8 24. Qxg6 {[%cal Rc4e6]} Nf6 $1 25. b4 Bxh1 26. Be5 Rd7 27. Bxf6 Bf3 28. Bxg7+ Rxg7 29. Qf6+ Rf7 30. Qh8+ Ke7 31. Qh4+ (31. Qxa8 $2 Rf8) 31... Rf6 32. Qh7+ $11) 22... Rac8 23. Qh7+ Kf8 (23... Kf7 $2 24. Rh4 $1) 24. Bd6+ Kf7 25. Bd3 Nf8 $13) 18. Bd3 $6 (18. b4 $1 {[%csl Ra5][%cal Yb4b5] takes away a5 from the queen and also threatens b5:} a6 19. Bd3 Qg5 20. Ne4 Qd5 21. f3 Qa2 22. O-O $36 {} e5 23. Bc4 Qa3 24. Nd6) 18... Qa5 19. Kf1 Nf6 (19... e5 20. d5 $1 Nc5 $8 (20... Bxd5 $2 21. b4 $18) 21. Be2 $14) 20. Be5 Rac8 ({Carlsen avoids the trap - the natural} 20... Nd5 $2 {runs into} 21. Bxg6 $1 fxg6 22. Qg4 Rd7 (22... Nxc3 23. Qxe6+ Kf8 24. Bxg7+ Kxg7 25. Qe7+ Kg8 26. bxc3 $18) (22... Be8 23. Bxg7 Kxg7 24. Qg5 $18) 23. Qxg6 Nxc3 24. bxc3 $16 {White risks nothing here and has a strong attack.}) 21. Qd2 {Now Black fully consolidates his setup.} ({A more useful move was} 21. Kg1 $142 Qb4 $5 (21... Nd5 $2 {still fails to} 22. Bxg6 (22. Ne4 Bxe5 23. dxe5 Nxe3 $1 24. fxe3 Qxe5 $44) 22... fxg6 23. Qg4 Be8 24. Qh4 $1 (24. Bxg7 Nxc3 25. Rh8+ (25. Be5 $2 Ne2+) 25... Kxg7 26. Qh4 Ne2+ 27. Kh2 Bc6 28. Rh7+ Kg8 29. Rh8+ $11) 24... Rd7 25. Rh3 $18) 22. Rc2 Qe7 $13) 21... Ng4 (21... Ne4 22. Bxe4 (22. Nxe4 Qxd2 23. Nxd2 Bxe5 $11) 22... Bxe5 23. Bxc6 bxc6 $5 $11) (21... Nh5 $5 22. Bxg7 Kxg7 $11 {[%cal Yd8h8,Ya5g5] / was even more accurate.}) 22. Bxg7 Kxg7 23. f3 Qg5 $6 {[%mdl 512] Carlsen fully realised that this sacrifice is not quite correct, but it's difficult to handle with time running out.} (23... Nf6 24. e4 (24. Kf2 Rh8 25. Ra1 Qg5 $1) 24... Rh8 (24... Nh5 25. d5 Ng3+ (25... exd5 $2 26. Rxh5 gxh5 27. Qg5+ Kf8 28. exd5 Bxd5 29. Re1 $1 $18) 26. Kf2 Nxh1+ 27. Rxh1 Qc5+ 28. Kg3 Qd6+ 29. Kf2 exd5 30. Qh6+ Kf6 31. Qh4+ Kg7 $11) 25. Kf2 Qb4 26. Be2 Rcd8 $11 {leads to a roughly equal position, in which Black's chances to trick his opponent are minimal.}) 24. fxg4 $8 (24. Ke2 Nf6 25. Rcg1 e5 $36) 24... Rxd4 25. Ke1 ({Also after} 25. Rc2 $5 Rxg4 26. e4 Qf6+ (26... Qxd2 27. Rxd2 Rd8 28. Ke1 Rg3 29. Rh3) 27. Ke1 $16 {Black doesn't have full compensation.}) 25... Qe5 {An attempt to keep more tension.} (25... Rxg4 $5 26. Ne4 Qe7 27. Rc4 Rd8 28. Qc3+ e5 29. Rh2 $14 {/}) 26. Ne2 (26. Kd1 $5 Rxg4 27. e4 $16 {[%cal Yd1c2,Yc2b1,Rd2h6]}) 26... Rxg4 27. e4 $1 Rxg2 $2 (27... g5 28. Qb4 Rxg2 29. Rc5 Qf6 30. Rf1 Qh6 31. Qd4+ (31. Rxc6 bxc6 32. Rxf7+ Kxf7 33. Qb7+ Kf6 34. Qxc8 Qh4+ 35. Kd1 Qf2 $14) 31... Kg8 32. Qe3 $36) (27... Rg5 $5 $14) 28. Qh6+ Kf6 29. Rc3 $2 $138 {[%mdl 8192] He misses an outright win. Unfortunately for Loek, this won't be his last blunder...} (29. Qh4+ g5 (29... Qg5 30. e5+ Kg7 (30... Kxe5 31. Qd4#) 31. Qh7+ Kf8 32. Qh8+ Ke7 33. Qxc8 $18) (29... Rg5 30. Rg1 $18 {[%cal Rg1g5,Re4e5]}) 30. Qh3 {[%csl Rg2]} Rxe2+ (30... Rd8 31. Qxg2 Rxd3 32. Qf2+ Kg7 33. Rc5 $18) 31. Bxe2 $18 {and White should gradually convert his extra rook.}) 29... Rd8 30. Qh3 {The moment and the advantage are gone and White has to fight on in a very unclear position with almost no time left.} (30. Qh7 Ke7 $13) (30. Qh4+ Qg5 $5 (30... g5 31. Qh3 Bxe4 32. Bxe4 Rxe2+ (32... Qxe4 $2 33. Rf3+ $18) 33. Kxe2 Qxe4+ 34. Re3 Qc4+ 35. Ke1 Qc1+ 36. Kf2 Rd2+ 37. Re2 Rxe2+ 38. Kxe2 Qxb2+ 39. Kf3 Ke7 $14 {/=}) 31. e5+ (31. Qxg5+ Kxg5 $13) 31... Kxe5 (31... Ke7 $4 32. Qb4+ $18) 32. Rc5+ Bd5 33. Qd4+ Kd6 34. Rh7 b6 35. Rc2 e5 $13) 30... Qg5 $13 (30... Rg5 $6 31. Qh4) 31. Rf1+ Kg7 32. Qf3 Rd7 33. Rf2 Rg4 (33... Rxf2 34. Qxf2 Qa5 $11 {is playable, but Black naturally wants to keep pieces on the board.}) 34. Nf4 $6 {White had better moves:} (34. Nd4 {} e5 (34... Qh4 35. Nxc6 bxc6 36. e5 $132) 35. Ne6+ fxe6 36. Qf8+ Kh7 37. Rf7+ Rxf7 38. Qxf7+ Kh6 39. Qf8+ Kh7 (39... Kh5 $4 40. Be2 $18) 40. Qf7+ $11) (34. Rh2 Rh4 35. Rxh4 Qxh4+ 36. Qg3 $11) 34... Qh4 $36 {[%csl Re4][%cal Ye6e5]} 35. Be2 $2 (35. Ng2 Qh1+ 36. Ke2 Rxe4+ $1 (36... f5 37. Ne3 Qxf3+ 38. Rxf3 Rh4 39. Ng2 Rh2 40. Rf2 $132) 37. Bxe4 Qd1+ 38. Ke3 Qd4+ 39. Kf4 Bxe4 40. Qe3 Bxg2+ 41. Qxd4+ Rxd4+ 42. Ke3 Re4+ 43. Kd2 Rg4 44. Rc7 Bd5 45. Rfxf7+ Kh6 $15 {/}) 35... Rg1+ 36. Bf1 Kg8 $6 (36... e5 $142 37. Nd5 (37. Nh3 Rg4 $19 {[%csl Re4]}) 37... f5 $1 $19) 37. Ne2 $2 ({The final error; he had to play} 37. Ng2 Qxe4+ 38. Qxe4 Bxe4 39. Ne3 $17 {Although Black has excellent winning chances, he must still work for the full point.}) 37... Rxf1+ $1 38. Kxf1 Rd1+ 39. Kg2 Bxe4 $19 {[%csl Rf3]} 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.22"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tomashevsky, Evgeny"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2844"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "59"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{Like in 2015, Magnus had a rather slow start in Wijk, and again had to wander along some dangerous paths to beat Loek van Wely. But like last year, that triggered an excellent streak, both in the number of points, as well as in quality of play.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bf4 $5 {The London System. A few years back almost looked at with disgust, and in no way treated as a serious opening, but with Grischuk's and Kramnik's efforts recently the verdict has changed. Even so not to the extent that every professional has a ready-made solution planned against it, and Tomashevsky did spend quite some time on the upcoming moves.} b6 ({Maybe inspired by Magnus' success in this game, both Karjakin and Giri decided also to give the London a try, but now Black seemed tipped off, and we actually saw a theoretical debate in the London System(!). After} 3... d5 4. e3 c5 5. c3 Nc6 6. Nbd2 Bd6 $5 {Against Karjakin, but eventually lost.} 7. Bg3 O-O 8. Bb5 $5 {Against Karjakin, but eventually lost.}) 4. e3 Bb7 5. h3 {For those caring about the finer points of the move orders, its worth mentioning that Kramnik here seems to have preferred to play 5.bd2 first on a couple of outings. It's hard coming up with a strong reason for either move, but maybe Kramnik wanted to avoid Alekhine's idea against Rubinstein? With the knight on d2, instead of the pawn on e3, Alekhine played 5...d6!? and went on to win an instructive game, covered in his game collection. So maybe only playing h3, when Black has committed ...e7 is the point.} Be7 6. Bd3 O-O 7. O-O c5 8. c3 Nc6 9. Nbd2 d5 {Both players have developed sensibly, and one could argue that the fact that neither side has obvious plans, but just have to make small common-sense additions to their positions, should be a small success for Black.} 10. Qe2 $5 Bd6 {Tomashevsky blinks first, and tries to force concrete action. Waiting with e.g. ...ac8 would make sense, but White could still improve his position by bringing the rooks to d1 and e1, making it hard for Black to come up with similar useful moves which makes Black's decision easily understandable.} 11. Rfe1 $5 {Even so, Magnus do not take the bait, but puts the ball back in Tomashevsky's court. White has many plans, but it is much harder to see positive options for Black, so instead Black tries forcing White to take on d6.} ({RR} 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. e4 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Qxe4 f5 15. Qh4 cxd4 16. Rfe1 h6 17. Rad1 e5 18. cxd4 e4 19. Bc4+ Kh8 20. d5 Na5 21. Nd2 Rac8 22. b3 a6 23. Bf1 Rc2 24. a3 Qxa3 25. d6 Qxd6 {Tristan,L (2500)-Wael Sabry,M (2185) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (33)}) 11... Ne7 $146 ({Taking on f4 looks strategically risky, as after} 11... Bxf4 12. exf4 cxd4 13. Nxd4 $1 Nxd4 14. cxd4 {White by swapping knights, removed the option of ...b4 based counterplay, and despite having doubled pawns, gets a lot in return. f5 might be an option, transferring the knight to e5 too, or maybe e3-g3-h4 followed by e3 and ae1.}) ({RR} 11... Bxf4 12. exf4 Ne7 13. Rad1 a5 14. Ne5 c4 15. Bc2 b5 16. Ndf3 Qd6 17. g3 Ba6 18. Ng4 Nxg4 19. hxg4 Rae8 20. Kg2 Ng6 21. Rh1 f5 22. Rh5 Bb7 23. Rdh1 h6 24. g5 hxg5 25. Nxg5 Rf6 26. Rh7 {Mis,M (2245)-Ozenir,E (2422) Mamaia 2017 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 11... Re8 12. Bb5 a6 13. Bxc6 Bxc6 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Ne5 Nd7 {½-½ (15) Inarkiev,E (2658)-Artemiev,V (2714) Moscow RUS 2023}) ({RR} 11... h6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. e4 Qc7 14. e5 Nd7 15. Nf1 Rac8 16. a3 Na5 17. Ne3 Nc4 18. a4 a6 19. Ng4 Rfe8 20. Red1 Rf8 21. Rdc1 {½-½ (21) Macedo,M (2310)-Rodi,L (2364) Recife 2009}) 12. Rad1 Ng6 13. Bxg6 $1 hxg6 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Ne5 $1 {Yes, White has given a bishop for a knight, and even allowed Black to capture towards the centre. But the black pawn-structure, while looking healthy, actually is a major drawback. Due to the weakness of g6, Black can never realistically push the knight away from e5, meaning White will have a powerful knight, and Black a rather limited bishop. Tomashevsky keeps playing logical and sensible moves, heading for ...d7 exchanging the powerful knight, but not wanting 15...d7 16 f4! and instead tries to stop White from advancing the f-pawn.} g5 16. f4 $5 {Played quickly, almost like saying: did you miss this? But while of course White could still probably be slightly better with like e.g. 16.f3, sending an invitation to the following fascinating complications is not only tempting, but also objectively good.} gxf4 {.} 17. Rf1 $1 {This is the point. White wants the f-line open, to sacrifice the rook on f6, and deliver mate.} Nd7 (17... fxe3 $5 {would be the logical way of trying to prove White's concept flawed. After} 18. Rxf6 exd2 $1 (18... gxf6 $2 {loses immediately as} 19. Qg4+ Kh7 20. Rf1 $3 {just mates. The threat is to bring the rook into the attack on f4, as a response to 20...exd2 and if 20...fxe5 then the simple 21.h5+ g7 22.g5+ h7 23.f6 mates.}) {Does all this mean that Black's position is actually objectively fine? Not really, as the less imaginative, but simply strong} 19. Rf4 $1 {does keep an edge. The threat is h5 and h4 with a mating attack, and Black's only chance is to fight with} (19. Qh5 {An obvious try, forcing Black to take on f6, but after} gxf6 20. Qg4+ Kh8 21. Qh4+ Kg7 $1 {however there is no good follow-up as} 22. Ng4 ({and after} 22. Qg3+ {Black just goes to h7 with the king, not falling for 22...h8?? 23.g6+ winning the queen.}) 22... Qf4 $1 {protects both f6 and h6,}) (19. Rdf1 $5 {comes much closer to breaking Black's defences. f7 cannot be defended, and taking on f6 allows a decessive attack along usual patterns. But Black has the fantastic} Ba6 $3 {which exploits the fact that the white queen needs to be on the kingside for the attack to succeed, meaning that 20.xa6 gxf6 works, or even better, first 20...d1! as pointed out by the computers. After:} 20. Qh5 {or the more sophisticated} d1=Q $5 ({The obvious} 20... gxf6 $6 21. Qg4+ Kh8 22. Rf4 Bd3 23. Nxd3 d1=Q+ 24. Qxd1 Rg8 25. Ne5 $1 Kg7 26. Rxf6 $1 {is still very promising for White}) ({but either the simple} 20... Bxf1 21. Nxf7 Rxf7 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 $1 (22... Kh7 $2 23. Qg6+ {followed by f7})) 21. Rxd1 gxf6 22. Qg4+ Kh7 23. Qh4+ Kg7 {just leads to a draw.}) 19... f6 20. Ng6 {but it obviously does not look very appealing.}) 18. Qh5 $1 {Not a neccessity, as also} (18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. Rxf4 {gives White a promising attack, but somehow keeps the spirit of the 2 previous moves, and continues the direct attack.}) 18... Nf6 19. Qh4 Qd8 $6 {Again quite logical, trying to swap off queens, in order to stop the white attack.} (19... Nh7 $5 {probably was a better chance, even if White has a promising position after} 20. Rxf4 ({or even just} 20. exf4)) 20. Rxf4 Ne4 $2 {A blunder, and a decisive one.} ({The same idea would be much better, but with} 20... cxd4 21. exd4 {interpolated. Then after} Ne4 {White can not play like in the game, as there is now no dxc5! but instead has} 22. Qg4 $5 {when Black has no choice but to play the weakening} f5 {, where after} 23. Qg6 Rf6 24. Qh5 Qe8 {does avoid immediate disaster, but after} 25. Qxe8+ Rxe8 26. Nxe4 {it makes a huge difference having forced ...f5, as the white knight now dominates on e5, leaving him excellent winning chances in the ensuing ending.}) 21. Nxe4 Qxh4 22. Rxh4 dxe4 23. dxc5 $1 bxc5 24. Rd7 Rab8 25. b3 $1 {Black is basically in a zugzwang. playing...f6 allows g6 and mate on h8. The f-rook defends f7, the other, the bishop on b7, which can't move, as then a7 would fall. So what is left, is to move the a-pawn.} a5 26. Rc7 a4 27. bxa4 Ba8 28. a5 Rb7 29. Rxc5 Ra7 30. Nc4 {Here Tomashevsky resigned. Maybe a bit premature, but there is no doubt that White's position is clearly winning with the 2 extra pawns, and while Black certainly could prolong the game for a while, the result is not really in doubt.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.23"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E08"]
[WhiteElo "2760"]
[BlackElo "2844"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Qc2 Ne4 9. Bf4 c6 10. Nc3 g5 11. Be3 Nd6 12. b3 ({RR} 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Rad1 b5 14. Ne5 Bb7 15. f4 Rc8 16. Qd3 b4 17. Nb1 f5 18. Nxd7 Qxd7 19. fxg5 Qa4 20. Bf4 Ne4 21. Nd2 Rc2 22. g4 Rxb2 23. gxf5 exf5 24. Nxe4 dxe4 25. Qc4+ Rf7 26. Rd2 Rxd2 {Shafigullina,Z (2153)-Karmanova,O (2323) Lipetsk RUS 2025 0-1 (49)}) 12... Nf5 13. g4 $146 ({RR} 13. Bd2 g4 14. Ne1 Nxd4 15. Qd1 Bf6 16. e3 Nf3+ 17. Nxf3 gxf3 18. Qxf3 dxc4 19. Qg4+ Bg7 20. Qxc4 Ne5 21. Qe2 Qd3 22. Qe1 Rd8 23. Rd1 Bd7 24. f4 Ng4 25. Be4 Qa6 26. Bf3 Nf6 27. e4 Be8 {Van Foreest,L (2563)-Ochsner,B (2496) Kragero 2022 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 13. Bd2 g4 14. Ne1 Nxd4 15. Qd1 Bf6 16. e3 Nf3+ 17. Nxf3 gxf3 18. Qxf3 Bg7 19. Qe2 b6 20. e4 Ba6 21. exd5 cxd5 22. Rac1 Rc8 23. Rfd1 Qf6 24. Qh5 Nc5 25. cxd5 Bd3 26. Bg5 Qe5 27. Qh4 Bg6 {Grischuk,A (2766)-Nakamura,H (2754) Paris 2019 1-0 (81)}) ({RR} 13. Bd2 g4 14. Ne1 Nxd4 15. Qd1 Bf6 16. e3 Nf5 17. Qxg4+ Bg7 18. cxd5 Nf6 19. Qd1 exd5 20. Rc1 Re8 21. Nf3 Nd6 22. Ne2 Nfe4 23. Be1 a5 24. Nfd4 a4 25. Nf4 axb3 26. axb3 Nf5 27. Nxf5 Bxf5 {Khusenkhojaev,M (2293)-Mosadeghpour,M (2484) Korumdu KGZ 2023 0-1 (45)}) 13... Nxe3 14. fxe3 b5 15. e4 b4 16. exd5 bxc3 17. dxc6 Nb8 18. Qe4 f5 19. gxf5 exf5 20. Qd5+ Qxd5 21. cxd5 Na6 22. Rac1 Nc7 23. Ne5 f4 24. Nc4 Rd8 25. Rxc3 Nxd5 26. c7 Nxc7 27. Bxa8 Nxa8 28. e3 Bb4 29. Rc2 Bb7 30. h4 Be4 31. Rh2 Nb6 32. Ne5 fxe3 33. hxg5 Rxd4 34. Ng4 Nd5 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 78th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2016.01.27"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2798"]
[BlackElo "2844"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2016.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 171"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "2"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. Qb3 Bxc3+ 8. Qxc3 c6 9. e3 Nd7 10. Bd3 ({RR} 10. b4 O-O 11. b5 Re8 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. a4 e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Rxe5 16. Be2 Bf5 17. O-O Bh3 18. Rfc1 Qg6 19. g3 Qe4 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Rxf1 Re7 22. Rad1 Qxa4 23. Rxd5 Qe4 24. Rfd1 Rae8 {Mikhaletz,L (2256)-Zhukovskyi,M (2156) Kyiv UKR 2025 ½-½ (32)}) 10... dxc4 11. Bxc4 O-O 12. Bd3 $146 ({RR} 12. O-O Re8 13. Ne5 Qe7 14. f4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Nd5 16. Qd2 c5 17. e4 Nf6 18. Rae1 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Bd7 20. f5 Bb5 21. Rf2 Red8 22. Qe3 Qc7 23. Nxf7 Kxf7 24. Bxe6+ Kf8 25. Qa3+ Qe7 26. Qb3 Ng4 {Barath,K (2086)-Moreira,R (2088) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (73)}) ({RR} 12. O-O Re8 13. Ne5 Qe7 14. f4 Nb6 15. Bb3 Nd5 16. Qd2 c5 17. e4 Nf6 18. Rae1 cxd4 19. Qxd4 Bd7 20. f5 Bb5 21. Rf2 Red8 22. Qe3 Qc7 23. Nxf7 Kxf7 24. Bxe6+ Kf8 25. Qa3+ Qe7 26. Qb3 Ng4 {Barath,K (2086)-Moreira,R (2088) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (73)}) 12... c5 13. O-O b6 14. Be4 Rb8 15. b4 Bb7 16. Bxb7 Rxb7 17. Rac1 Rc8 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. a3 Rcc7 21. g3 cxb4 22. Rxc7 Rxc7 23. axb4 Rb7 24. Ra1 Rxb4 25. Rxa7 Nc5 26. Ra2 Kg7 27. Kg2 Rb7 28. Rc2 Ne4 29. Nd4 f5 30. Ne2 Rd7 31. Nd4 Rb7 32. h3 Rd7 33. Kf3 Ng5+ 34. Kg2 Ne4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.19"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Harikrishna, Pentala"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E15"]
[WhiteElo "2851"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Ba6 5. Nbd2 Bb4 6. Qa4 c5 7. a3 {[%mdl 4] A very logical line: White provokes ...c7-c5 so that the position opens up, and then obtains the advantage of the bishop pair.} Bxd2+ 8. Bxd2 O-O (8... cxd4 {, seen in a number of games, is another possibility.}) ({RR} 8... cxd4 9. Bg2 Bb7 10. O-O Bc6 11. Qd1 Bxf3 12. Bxf3 Nc6 13. Bf4 O-O 14. Bd6 Re8 15. Bxc6 dxc6 16. Qxd4 e5 17. Bxe5 Qxd4 18. Bxd4 Rxe2 19. Rfe1 Rae8 20. Kf1 Rc2 21. Rxe8+ Nxe8 22. Bc3 Kf8 23. Rd1 {Mamedyarov,S (2709)-Naiditsch,A (2657) Moscow 2006 ½-½}) 9. dxc5 {An unusual move order.} (9. Bf4 Qc8 (9... Bb7 10. dxc5 e5 $5 {is a curious idea}) 10. Bd6 Re8 11. dxc5 Ne4 12. Bg2 Bb7 $11 (12... bxc5 $143 {1/2 (18) Portisch,L (2650)-Seirawan,Y (2555) Mar del Plata 1981} 13. Ne5 $1 Bb7 14. Bxe4 Bxe4 15. f3 $16)) (9. Bg2 {is common but then, besides} {Black can also play} d5 $5 {:} (9... Bb7 {e.g.} 10. dxc5 (10. O-O cxd4 11. Nxd4 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Nc6 13. Nxc6 dxc6 {1/2 (13) Portisch,L (2630)-Keres,P (2615) Amsterdam 1971}) 10... bxc5 11. Be3 (11. O-O d6 12. b4 $5) 11... d6 12. O-O a5 13. Qb3 Qc7 14. Rfd1 Ra6 15. Bf4 a4 16. Qc2 Nbd7 $11 {0-1 (34) Sebenik,M (2552)-Iordachescu,V (2645) Istanbul 2012}) 10. dxc5 (10. Bf4 Qd7 11. Qxd7 Nbxd7 12. Ne5 cxd4 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Nxd7 Nxd7 15. O-O-O Nc5 $15 {1/2 (29) Toth,C (2420)-Sunye Neto,J (2545) Merida 1993}) (10. cxd5 exd5 11. Be3 (11. O-O Bxe2 12. Rfe1 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 Qd7 $1 $15 {0-1 (40) Sorin,A (2460)-Zarnicki,P (2515) Villa Gesell 1998 CBM 064 [Avrukh,B]}) (11. Bg5 Qe8 $1) 11... Qe8 $11) 10... bxc5 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. O-O Qe7 {[%cal Yd5d4] - Black should equalise.}) ({RR} 9. Bg2 d5 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Ne5 Ne4 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. dxc5 Qd5 14. Bc3 e3 15. f3 bxc5 16. Rd1 Qb7 17. Qg4 f5 18. Qg5 Bb5 19. Nd7 {1-0 (19) Khlebovich,A (2423)-Hansen,E (2609) chess.com INT 2025}) 9... bxc5 10. Bg2 Qb6 $146 (10... Bb7 {transposes to Sebenik-Iordachescu (see above). Black tries to make use of White's early d4xc5 but the position of his queen on b6 is a serious drawback.}) ({RR} 10... d5 11. b3 Ne4 12. O-O Qd7 13. Qa5 Qb7 14. Rfc1 Nc6 15. Qa4 Nxd2 16. Nxd2 Nd4 17. Bf1 dxc4 18. bxc4 Rad8 19. Rab1 {½-½ (19) Heinz,T (2346)-Sokolov,A (2523) Germany 2016}) 11. O-O Nc6 (11... d5 12. Ne5 $1 Qxb2 13. Bf4 $36) (11... Bb7 12. b4 $1) 12. Be3 $1 {[%cal Ge3b6,Rb2b4,Re3c5] A very unpleasant pin, with a permanent threat of b2-b4.} Rfc8 (12... Qa5 $6 13. Qc2 $1 Ng4 14. b4 cxb4 15. axb4 Qh5 16. Bc5 $18 {1-0 (35) Belotti,B (2405)-Boog,A (2375) Biel 1992}) (12... Rab8 $5 13. b4 Bxc4 14. Bxc5 Bb3 $1 15. Bxb6 Bxa4 16. Bc5 Rfc8 17. Bd6 $14) 13. Rfd1 $1 (13. Bxc5 $143 Qxc5 14. Qxa6 Qa5 $1 15. Qxa5 Nxa5 {- Black regains the c4-pawn and almost equalises.}) 13... d5 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Bxc5 {Now in time!} Qa5 $1 {A tactical trick enabling Black to regain the pawn but White keeps a positional advantage.} 16. Qc2 (16. Qxa5 Nxa5 17. Nd4 Rxc5 18. b4 {was possible too, but the game continuation is more clear.}) 16... Bxe2 17. Qxe2 Qxc5 18. Rac1 Qb6 19. b4 $16 {[%csl Rd5,Gg2] White has a queenside pawn advantage, his bishop is strong, and Black's d5-pawn is weak. Black gradually succumbs to White's pressure.} h6 20. Qe3 $1 {A good idea. White's queenside pawns will be especially strong in the endgame.} Qb7 {Too passive.} (20... Qxe3 21. fxe3 Ne7 {was relatively better after all.}) 21. Bh3 Re8 22. Qc3 Ne7 23. Nd4 {[%csl Gc1,Gc3,Gd1,Gd4,Gh3]} Ne4 24. Qc7 Qa6 25. f3 Ng5 26. Bd7 Red8 27. h4 Nxf3+ $6 {Desperation.} (27... Nh7 28. Re1 Qf6 29. Rcd1 {and Black is in a kind of stalemate.}) 28. Nxf3 Qxa3 29. Kg2 Qb2+ {An unnecessary check.} (29... Qxb4 {may be more stubborn.}) 30. Rd2 Qxb4 31. Re1 {White may have technical problems after the queen exchange but he avoids it, using his extra piece for a decisive attack.} a5 32. Rde2 Ng6 33. h5 Nh8 34. Bf5 a4 35. Ne5 Qd6 36. Qc2 $1 Re8 37. Bh7+ Kf8 38. Qf5 Re7 39. Bg6 Kg8 40. Nxf7 $1 Rxf7 41. Bxf7+ 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.20"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2754"]
[BlackElo "2851"]
[PlyCount "58"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Qc2 c6 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Bf4 Nh5 8. g3 ({RR} 8. Bg5 Be7 9. h4 Nb6 10. O-O-O h6 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Ne5 Nf6 13. e3 Ng4 14. Nf3 Be6 15. Bd3 O-O-O 16. Kb1 Kb8 17. h5 Rc8 18. Qe2 Nf6 19. Ne5 c5 20. Bc2 Rhe8 21. f4 Ne4 22. Bxe4 dxe4 {Le,Q (2728)-Aronian,L (2775) Miami 2022 ½-½ (109)}) ({RR} 8. Bd2 Be7 9. g4 Nhf6 10. g5 Nh5 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Nb6 13. Be2 g6 14. O-O-O Bf5 15. Nh4 Bxe4 16. Qxe4 Qd5 17. Qxd5 Nxd5 18. Bxh5 gxh5 19. Nf5 Kd7 20. h4 f6 21. Ng3 fxg5 22. hxg5 Raf8 {Dudin,G (2516)-Caruana,F (2803) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (46)}) 8... Nxf4 9. gxf4 Nb6 $146 ({RR} 9... g6 10. e3 Bg7 11. h4 Nb6 12. Bh3 Bxh3 13. Rxh3 Qe7 14. h5 O-O-O 15. O-O-O Kb8 16. Ne5 g5 17. Qf5 Bxe5 18. fxe5 Qb4 19. a3 Qb3 20. Rf3 h6 21. Qd3 Rdf8 22. Rf6 Kc7 23. Rd2 Qc4 24. Qf5 {Medvegy,Z (2540)-Kiss,A (2371) Hungary 2016 1-0}) 10. e3 g6 11. h4 Bb4 12. Bd3 Bg4 13. Ne5 Bh5 14. Be2 Bxe2 15. Kxe2 f6 16. Nd3 Bxc3 17. Qxc3 Qe7 18. Qc5 Nc4 19. Qxe7+ Kxe7 20. h5 Rag8 21. hxg6 hxg6 22. a4 a5 23. b3 Nd6 24. Rag1 Kf7 25. Rc1 Rh5 26. Rhg1 Rh2 27. Rh1 Rh5 28. Rhg1 Rh2 29. Rh1 Rh5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.23"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Li, Chao B"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D14"]
[WhiteElo "2755"]
[BlackElo "2851"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 c6 4. cxd5 cxd5 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Bf4 Bf5 7. e3 e6 8. Bd3 Bxd3 9. Qxd3 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. O-O O-O 12. Rac1 Rfc8 13. h3 h6 ({RR} 13... Ne7 14. Rc2 Qd8 15. Rfc1 h6 16. Ne2 Rxc2 17. Rxc2 Rc8 18. Nc1 Rxc2 19. Qxc2 Qc8 20. Qxc8+ Nxc8 21. Nd3 Nd6 22. Kf1 Kf8 23. Ke2 Ke7 24. g4 g5 25. Nd2 Nd7 26. f3 Nb8 27. Nb1 Nd7 28. Nd2 {Leko,P (2674)-Rapport,R (2736) Hengshui 2019 ½-½}) 14. Nd2 Nd7 15. a3 ({RR} 15. Ne2 Ne7 16. a3 Rxc1 17. Rxc1 Rc8 18. Rxc8+ Nxc8 19. Qc2 Ne7 20. Nc1 Qc6 21. Qxc6 Nxc6 22. Nd3 Kf8 23. Kf1 Ke7 24. Ke2 Kd6 25. h4 h5 26. g3 g6 27. b3 b6 28. a4 a5 29. Nb1 Ne7 {Petrosyan,M (2544)-Pantsulaia,L (2532) Bengaluru IND 2025 ½-½ (35)}) 15... Nb6 $146 ({RR} 15... Ne7 16. Ne2 Rxc1 17. Rxc1 Rc8 18. Rxc8+ Nxc8 19. Qc2 Ne7 20. Nf4 Qc6 21. Qxc6 Nxc6 22. Kf1 Kf8 23. Ke2 Ke7 24. Nd3 b6 25. g4 g5 26. Kd1 Kd6 27. Kc2 Kc7 28. Kc3 Kd6 29. Kc2 Kc7 30. Kc3 {Qiu,M (2242)-Nie,X (2233) Tagaytay City 2018 ½-½ (31)}) 16. Qb5 Qd8 17. Na4 Nxa4 18. Qxa4 Qa5 19. Qd1 Ne7 20. Qe2 Qa4 21. Qd3 Nf5 22. Qb3 Qa6 23. Qb4 Nd6 24. a4 Qb6 25. Qa3 a5 26. Rc5 Qb4 27. Qxb4 axb4 28. Rfc1 Rxc5 29. dxc5 Rc8 30. Kf1 Nc4 31. Nxc4 Rxc5 32. b3 dxc4 33. bxc4 Ra5 34. Ra1 Rc5 35. Rc1 Ra5 36. Ra1 Rc5 37. Rc1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.27"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kramnik, Vladimir"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2851"]
[BlackElo "2801"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "99"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Qf3 Bg6 8. Bxf6 Qxf6 9. Qxf6 gxf6 {Kramnik had played this strategically slightly risky variation before. Since the Berlin Ruy Lopez is his main weapon against 1.e4, it is no great wonder that against 1.d4 he does not have doubled pawns either. But on the other hand the pawns are less compact here and secondly accepting weaknesses against a subtle positional player like Carlsen looks a bit like waving a red flag in the front of a bull.} 10. Nf3 Nd7 11. Nh4 Be7 {This is the main line, preparing to meet f2-f4 with ...f7-f5.} (11... Nb6 12. f4 f5 13. Bd3 Nc4 14. Bxc4 dxc4 15. a4 $14 {½-½ (31) Williams,S (2439)-Hawkins,J (2563) London 2015}) (11... O-O-O $6 12. f4 h5 13. Kf2 Re8 14. f5 Bh6 15. fxg6 Bxe3+ 16. Kf3 Bxd4 17. g7 Rhg8 18. Nf5 $18 {Bareev,E (2636)-Gorman,D (2289) Philadelphia 2009 (1-0, 40)}) 12. Ne2 $5 $146 {An early novelty connected with a deep regrouping plan. Actually the last move is logical since it prepares to invade f5 before Black carries out the standard knight manoeuvre to d6.} ({Kramnik's previous games went} 12. g3 Nb6 13. O-O-O (13. Kd2 Nc8 14. Bd3 Nd6 15. b3 O-O-O 16. f3 Rhe8 17. Rac1 Kb8 18. Ne2 Nc8 19. Nf4 Bb4+ 20. Ke2 Nd6 21. g4 Re7 $11 {Ivanisevic,I (2653)-Kramnik,V (2777) Berlin 2015 (0-1, 53)}) 13... Nc8 14. Bd3 Nd6 15. Kc2 Kd7 16. f3 Bxd3+ 17. Kxd3 f5 18. Ng2 h5 19. h4 Rag8 20. Rh3 Ne8 21. Ke2 Bd6 22. Kf2 Nf6 23. Ne2 a5 $11 {Ding,L (2730)-Kramnik,V (2760) Moscow 2014 (½-½, 41)}) 12... Nb6 {Since the knight will not reach d6 in time, this move is now connected woth a queenside plan which will prove illusory, though.} (12... f5 13. g3 Nb6 14. Nf4 Nc8 15. f3 Nd6 16. Bd3 $14 {[%cal Ge1f2,Gh1c1,Gb2b4,Ga2a4]  f2, b4}) ({I have tried making work the break ...c6-c5 by transferring the knight to e6, but this does not seem to be entirely satisfactory either:} 12... Bb4+ 13. Kd1 O-O-O 14. Ng3 Nf8 15. Ngf5 Ne6 16. Bd3 Ba5 17. Ke2 (17. Kc2 c5 {[%cal Gg6c2]}) 17... Rhe8 18. g3 Bb6 19. Rad1 Kb8 {[%cal Ge6d4]} (19... Bh5+ 20. f3 Nxd4+ 21. Nxd4 Bxd4 22. Bf5+ $1 $18) 20. Kf1 (20. b4 Bh5+ 21. f3 Nxd4+) 20... c5 21. dxc5 Nxc5 (21... Bxc5 22. Kg2 d4 23. e4 $14) 22. Kg2 (22. Bc2 Ne6 23. Kg2 d4 24. e4 $6 Nc5 $36) 22... Nxd3 23. Rxd3 Re5 24. g4 (24. Nxg6 hxg6 25. Nd4 Re4) 24... h5 25. h3 $14) 13. Ng3 $14 Bb4+ (13... Nc8 14. f4 $16 h6 15. f5 {leaves the light-squared bishop out of play for the rest of the game.}) 14. Kd1 Na4 15. Ngf5 $1 {During the game I was not sure about the meaning of this regrouping. At first sight, the knights are clumsily placed, being neutralised by one bishop. Everything became clear a few moves later.} Kd7 $146 (15... Nxb2+ 16. Kc2 Nc4 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18. Rhb1 $16) ({RR} 15... b5 16. Rb1 a5 17. Bd3 Kd7 18. Ke2 Rhe8 19. g4 Nb6 20. Ng2 Nc4 21. Nf4 Kc7 22. Nh5 Bxh5 23. gxh5 Bf8 24. h6 Nd6 25. Ng7 Bxg7 26. hxg7 f5 27. Rhg1 Rg8 28. Rg5 h6 29. Rh5 Rxg7 30. Rxh6 {Koustav,C (2508)-Mitrabha,G (2487) New Delhi IND 2022 ½-½ (59)}) ({RR} 15... O-O-O 16. Rb1 Kb8 17. Bd3 Rhg8 18. Ke2 Bh5+ 19. f3 Ba5 20. Bc2 Bg6 21. g4 b5 22. Bxa4 bxa4 23. Nxg6 fxg6 24. Ne7 Kb7 25. Rhc1 Bc7 26. Nxg8 Rxg8 27. b3 a3 28. b4 a6 29. Rb3 Bxh2 30. Rh1 {Karavade,E (2409)-Nandhidhaa,P (2151) Chennai 2016 1-0 (43)}) 16. Rb1 Ke6 $6 {As it turns out in the game, the king is exposed on e6.} (16... Rhc8 $5 17. Bd3 Bf8 (17... Bd6 18. Ke2 a6 19. g4 c5 20. Nxd6 Kxd6 21. Nf5+ $16) 18. Ke2 a6 19. g4 c5 20. Ng2 Bd6 21. h4 (21. Nxd6 Kxd6 22. Nh4 {would practically lose a tempo over the previous line.} cxd4 23. exd4 Rc6) 21... h5 22. f3 Rc6 23. gxh5 Bxh5 24. Nxd6 Kxd6 25. Nf4 Rh8 26. Bc2 Nb6 27. dxc5+ Rxc5 28. Bb3 $14) 17. Bd3 Rhc8 18. Ke2 Bf8 19. g4 c5 $6 {This only creates new weaknesses and no counterplay at all.} (19... Kd7 $5) 20. Ng2 $3 $16 {[%cal Gh2h4,Gg2f4] The core of Carlsen's whole opening plan. Suddenly Black loses stability in several sectors of the board.} cxd4 21. exd4 Bd6 {[%csl Gf4]} 22. h4 h5 $2 {This loses a pawn leading to a hopeless position.} ({But it is virtually impossible to decide upon a passive move like} 22... Rh8 $8 {[%csl Gh7] defending the h7-pawn.} 23. h5 Bxf5 24. Bxf5+ Ke7 25. Ne3 Nb6 26. Kf3 h6 27. Rhe1 Kd8 28. Rbc1 $16 {Black's position looks awful, but White still needs to prove he has a winning plan.}) 23. Ng7+ Ke7 24. gxh5 Bxd3+ 25. Kxd3 $18 {The control over the f5-square and the threatening h-pawns make Black's position hopeless.} Kd7 26. Ne3 Nb6 27. Ng4 $5 {Even though one of the knights belongs to f5, Carlsen's "rodeos" are impressive at least optically.} Rh8 28. Rhe1 {Playing cat and mouse a bit.} ({There was nothing wrong with} 28. Nxf6+ Ke7 29. Ng4) 28... Be7 29. Nf5 Bd8 30. h6 Rc8 31. b3 {[%csl Gb6]} Rc6 32. Nge3 Bc7 33. Rbc1 Rxc1 34. Rxc1 Bf4 35. Rc5 Ke6 36. Ng7+ Kd6 37. Ng4 Nd7 38. Rc2 f5 {A desperate move, which loses a pawn for nothing.} (38... a6 39. Re2 {[%cal Ge2e8]}) (38... Ke7 39. Re2+ Kd8 40. Re8+ $5 (40. Nf5 $18) 40... Rxe8 41. Nxe8 Bxh6 42. Nexf6 Nxf6 43. Nxf6 $18 {[%csl Gd5]}) 39. Nxf5+ Ke6 40. Ng7+ {[%csl Gf5,Gf6] As we see, 38...f5 did not clear space for the black king at all.} Kd6 41. Re2 Kc6 42. Re8 Rxe8 (42... Rh7 43. Nf5 {[%csl Gh7]}) 43. Nxe8 Nf8 44. Ne5+ Bxe5 45. dxe5 Kd7 46. Nf6+ Ke6 47. h5 Kxe5 48. Nd7+ Nxd7 49. h7 Nc5+ 50. Ke2 {A fantastic game by Carlsen and the ugliest defeat of Kramnik I can remember.} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 4th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2016.04.29"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2851"]
[BlackElo "2765"]
[Annotator "Marin,Mihail"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2016.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 172"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.05.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 Nbd7 9. a4 $5 {A highly original and virtually unexplored plan, typical for Carlsen. The structure resulting after Black's natural anwer is supposed to be completely inoffensive, but Magnus had his own views about it.} a5 {.} 10. Rc1 {Another mysterious move. White increases his pressure on a file which is not likely to open soon, as with the actual structure cxd5 can always be answered with ...exd5. Carlsen's strategic vision goes as usual much deeper than the obvious. He reckons with the fact that in order to complete his development Black will have to play ...b7-b6 and then cxd5 would force ...cxd5, opening the c-file, which he occupies in advance. His queen's knight will then be transferred to b5, a square which has become available after the unusual insertion of a2-a4 and ...a7-a5. The only question remaining open is whether Black has to rush to completie his development at all, as White does not have a clear plan in the actual structure. Other moves have been tried in practice, offering White a slight edge.} (10. Na3 Ne4 11. Be3 f5 12. Ne1 g5 13. f3 Nd6 14. Nd3 $14 {Hertneck,G (2572)-Bareev,E (2719) Germany 2002 (½-½, 61)}) (10. Rd1 {is not without a point either:} Ne4 11. Be1 f5 12. Nfd2 Ndf6 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Nd2 Bd6 15. Nxe4 {½-½ Ljubojevic,L (2580)-Jussupow,A (2610) Linares 1989} fxe4 16. f3 exf3 17. exf3 $14 {[%cal Gf3f4] The usefulness of the d1-rook becomes obvious after} e5 $2 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. dxe5 Bxe5 20. f4 $18 {[%csl Gd5]}) 10... Ne4 $146 {An active but also committal move. After allowing the knight contact Black allows his opponent to open the centre which can be dangerous due to his undeveloped queenside.} ({In a previous game Black kept a neutral policy inviting White to show his cards.} 10... h6 11. Be1 b6 (11... Re8 12. Nbd2 {[%cal Ge2e4]}) 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Nc3 Bb7 14. Nb5 {White has an optical advantage but Black will gradually manage to equalise due to the almost symmetrical structure:} Rc8 15. Qd1 Rxc1 16. Rxc1 Qb8 17. Bd2 Rc8 18. Bf4 Rxc1 19. Qxc1 Qc8 20. Qxc8+ Bxc8 21. Ne5 Nxe5 22. Bxe5 Ne8 23. e3 Bd7 {Sandipan,C (2608)-Meier,G (2668) Dresden 2012 (½-½, 23)}) 11. Be1 {In the similar games above White preferred transferring the bishop to e3, which looks more active. Carlsen has his own views: he intends to use his bishops on the e1-a5 and f1-a6 diagonals, putting pressure on the enemy queenside, a plan which will work miracles in the game.} ({RR} 11. Ne1 Nd6 12. Na3 b6 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. b4 axb4 15. Bxb4 Ba6 16. e3 Nc4 17. Qb3 Ra7 18. Nb5 Bxb5 19. axb5 Rxa1 20. Rxa1 Bxb4 21. Qxb4 Na5 22. Nd3 Qb8 23. Qe7 Qd8 24. Qb4 Qb8 25. Qe7 Qd8 {So,W (2812)-Karjakin,S (2781) Paris 2017 0-1 (54)}) 11... f5 12. Nbd2 ({RR} 12. Nc3 g5 13. e3 Bd6 14. Na2 g4 15. Nh4 Qe7 16. Rab1 Ndf6 17. b4 axb4 18. Nxb4 Bd7 19. Nd3 Ra7 20. Bb4 Rfa8 21. Bxd6 Nxd6 22. c5 Nf7 23. Rb4 e5 24. dxe5 Nxe5 25. Nxe5 Qxe5 26. Bf1 Ne4 {Xie,F (2364)-Damjanovic,V (2377) Budapest HUN 2025 ½-½}) ({RR} 12. Nc3 Bd6 13. Na2 g5 14. b4 g4 15. Nd2 axb4 16. Nxe4 dxe4 17. Nxb4 c5 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. Rd1 Qe7 20. Qb2 Nb6 21. Qb3 Bd7 22. a5 Nc8 23. Nc2 Bc6 24. Bb4 Bxb4 25. Nxb4 Qc5 26. Nxc6 bxc6 {Jumabayev,R (2630)-Eljanov,P (2663) Douglas 2019 ½-½ (93)}) 12... Bd6 13. e3 Ra7 $146 {Preparing ...b7-b6.} (13... b6 $2 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Qc6 Ba6 16. Nxe4 fxe4 17. Qxd6 exf3 18. Bh3 $18) ({The main alternative was ignoring the queenside development and launching the typical kingside attack with} 13... g5 14. Nb3 {[%csl Ga5]} ({Black may have feared the opening of the centre with} 14. Nxe4 fxe4 15. Nd2 {[%cal Gf2f3] followed by f2-f3, but} g4 16. Nb3 {[%csl Ga5]} Bc7 {[%cal Gd8f6] keeps the position more or less blocked.}) 14... g4 (14... b6 $2 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Nxg5 $3 Qxg5 17. Bxe4 fxe4 18. Qc6) (14... f4 15. exf4 gxf4 16. Qe2 {[%cal Gb3d2]}) (14... Bc7 15. Nfd2 Qf6 16. f4 Kh8) 15. Nfd2 Ng5 {and Black has nothing to complain about.}) ({RR} 13... g5 14. Nxe4 fxe4 15. Nd2 g4 16. Nb1 Nf6 17. Nc3 h5 18. Ne2 Nh7 19. Nf4 Ng5 20. b4 Nf3+ 21. Bxf3 gxf3 22. h4 Qd7 23. Bd2 Bxf4 24. exf4 e5 25. Qd1 exf4 26. cxd5 fxg3 27. Be3 Qh3 {0-1 (27) Saulin,D (2369)-Makarian,R (2361) Moscow 2018}) ({RR} 13... Qe7 14. Nb3 Bc7 15. Nfd2 Ndf6 16. Nf3 Nd7 17. Rab1 g5 18. Nfd2 g4 19. Nf1 Ndf6 20. cxd5 exd5 21. Nc5 Nxc5 22. Qxc5 Qxc5 23. Rxc5 Be6 24. Nd2 Bd6 25. Rcc1 Ra7 26. Nb3 Rfa8 27. Rc2 f4 28. gxf4 {Dobrov,V (2478)-Hansen,E (2606) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1 (56)}) 14. Qd1 b6 15. cxd5 cxd5 16. Nb1 $1 {[%csl Gb5] After having provoked the weakening of the e5-square, the knight switches to the newly created path.} Ba6 ({Black has no time to carry out a similar regrouping:} 16... Nb8 17. Na3 Na6 $2 18. Nb5 Ra8 19. Nxd6 Qxd6 20. Ne5 $16) 17. Na3 Qa8 {Black anticipates the exchange on b5 by defending the c6-square against the invasion of the white rooks.} ({Even though} 17... Bxa3 18. Rxa3 Rc7 {0-1 Gheorghiu,F (2530)-Jussupow,A (2590) WchT 1st Luzern 1985 (1) looks very committal, the following classical example (true, White played very passively) shows that White's dark-squared bishop can easily turn into a bad one.}) ({The problem with the game move is that after the general exchange of rooks the queen could be left hanging.} 17... Qb8 {would solve this problem but White could use the c6-square for gaining time:} 18. Nb5 Bxb5 19. axb5 Rc8 20. Qa4 $1 (20. Bf1 {is neutralised by} Rac7) 20... Rac7 21. Rc6 Qb7 22. Bf1 Nb8 ({A necessary passive move since} 22... Rxc6 23. bxc6 Rxc6 {loses material to} 24. Ba6 $1 Qc7 25. Bb5 $18 {[%csl Rd7]}) 23. Rxc7 Qxc7 24. b4 axb4 25. Bxb4 Nd7 26. Ne1 $14 {[%cal Ge1d3,Rd3b4,Rd3f4,Yf2f3] With hindsight, this might have been a lesser evil than in the game, though.}) 18. Nb5 Bxb5 19. axb5 Rc8 20. Bf1 {Completing a regrouping probably planned by Carlsen when he retreated with his other bishop to e1. The bishops are only apparently biting on granit as will soon be revealed.} (20. Rxc8+ Qxc8 21. b4 {is premature due to} a4 22. Rxa4 (22. Ra3 Qa8 23. Qa1 g5 $15) 22... Rxa4 23. Qxa4 Qc1 $132 {The extra pawn does not count yet and Black's activity is annoying.}) 20... Rxc1 ({With the queen on a8} 20... Rac7 {does not work due to} 21. Rxc7 Rxc7 22. b4) 21. Rxc1 Rc7 22. Rxc7 Bxc7 {Black has exchanged all the rooks under less favourable circumstances than he would have wished to. The bishop's absence from the a3-f8 diagonal allows White to play b2-b4 without exchanging bishops at once. Black will have to lose additional time to achieve that.} 23. Qa4 Qb8 (23... g5 24. b4 g4 25. Nd2 Nxd2 26. Bxd2 Qd8 27. bxa5 bxa5 28. Bd3 $14) 24. b4 axb4 25. Bxb4 {The bishop pair together with the weaknesses on e6, c6 and b6, ensure White a long term advantage.} h6 {Black eliminates the potential threat g5 (as he might wish to play ...d6 followed by ...xd6) and ensures himself against back rank problems.} (25... g5 $6 {weakens the position too much.} 26. Qc2 Bd6 27. Qc6 {[%csl Ge6,Gg5] The hanging g5-pawn creates irreparable problems for Black.} Ndf6 28. Bxd6 Qxd6 29. Nxg5 $3 $18 Qxc6 30. bxc6 {[%cal Gg5e6,Gf1a6,Gc6c8]} Nxg5 31. c7 $18) (25... Bd6 26. Bxd6 Qxd6 (26... Nxd6 27. Qc2 $16 {[%cal Gc2c6]}) 27. Qa8+ Kf7 28. Qc6 $16) 26. Qc2 Bd6 27. Qc6 $6 {This apparently deadly blow allows Black some surprising counterplay which Eljanov will fail to find.} (27. Bxd6 $1 Qxd6 28. Qc6 Kf7 (28... Qxc6 29. bxc6 Ndf6 30. c7 Nd6 31. Ba6 $18) 29. Qb7 $16) 27... Ndf6 ({Missing the far from obvious} 27... Qa7 $1 {[%csl Gf2]} 28. Bxd6 (28. Be1 Kf7 29. Nd2 $14 {may be a better try, but this obviously is playable for Black while in the game he was just lost.}) 28... Qa2 $1 $11 29. Bg2 Qa1+ 30. Bf1 Qb2 31. Kh1 Nxf2+ (31... Qxf2 $2 32. Bg2 $18 {[%csl Ge1,Gf1,Gg1]}) 32. Kg2 Ne4+ 33. Kh3 $6 Ng5+ 34. Nxg5 hxg5 35. g4 (35. Qxd7 g4+ 36. Kh4 Qxh2+ 37. Kg5 Qh6#) 35... Qf2 $36) 28. Bxd6 Qxd6 (28... Nxd6 29. Ne5 $16) 29. Qc8+ Kh7 30. Ne5 Qe7 ({Black needs to controll f7 as after} 30... Nd2 31. Bd3 Nde4 {White gets a decisive attack with} 32. Nf7 Qe7 33. Qh8+ Kg6 34. Ne5+ Kh5 35. Be2+ $18) 31. Qc6 Ng4 $6 {Speeding up the defeat.} ({If} 31... Qd6 {White can create an original zugzwang with} 32. Kg2 $3 Qxc6 (32... Kg8 33. Qc8+ Kh7 34. Nf7 $18 {[%csl Rd6][%cal Gc8h8,Gf7e5]}) (32... Ng8 33. Nd7 $18 {[%csl Gb6]}) 33. bxc6 Ne8 34. Nd7 $18 {[%csl Gb6]}) 32. Nxg4 fxg4 33. Bd3 g6 34. Bxe4 dxe4 35. Qxb6 1-0

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.14"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Wei, Yi"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. e4 Bg7 3. Nc3 d6 4. Be3 a6 {The Swedish GM Tiger Hillarp-Persson wrote a voluminous book on this opening which recently appeared in a new, revised edition.} 5. f4 b5 6. Nf3 Nd7 (6... Bb7 7. Bd3 Nf6 8. e5 Ng4 9. Bd2 c5 10. dxc5 dxe5 11. h3 Nf6 12. fxe5 Nfd7 13. e6 fxe6 14. Ng5 Nxc5 15. Qe2 Nc6 16. Nxe6 Nxe6 17. Qxe6 Ne5 18. O-O Qd7 $11 {0-1 (50) Zelbel,P (2450)-Hillarp Persson,T (2541) Gothenburg 2015}) 7. e5 Bb7 8. Bd3 c5 (8... Nh6 9. Qe2 Nb6 10. O-O-O Qd7 11. h3 Nf5 12. Bf2 e6 13. Kb1 Ne7 14. Be3 Ned5 15. Nxd5 Bxd5 16. Rhf1 b4 17. g4 O-O 18. f5 Na4 {0-1 (36) Byklum, B (2275)-Hillarp Persson,T (2557) Stockholm 2006} 19. f6 $5 $16) 9. Be4 Bxe4 (9... Qc8 10. Bxb7 Qxb7 11. dxc5 dxe5 12. Qd5 Qxd5 13. Nxd5 Rc8 14. Nb6 Nxb6 15. cxb6 Nf6 16. O-O-O Ng4 17. Rhe1 Nxe3 18. Rxe3 Bh6 $11 {0-1 (53) Mortensen,E (2450)-Hillarp Persson,T (2461) Denmark 2003}) 10. Nxe4 Nh6 11. dxc5 dxe5 (11... Ng4) 12. c6 Nf6 13. Qxd8+ Rxd8 14. Nxf6+ exf6 15. c7 Rc8 16. Bb6 Kd7 {This kind of position should suit Carlsen. After an early exchange of queens White's far advanced pawn on c7 is vulnerable.} 17. Ba5 Nf5 18. O-O-O+ Kc6 {All this has been played before.} 19. Rd8 (19. Rd3 Nd6 {and now 1/2-1/2 (19) in Tan,J (2322)-Buchal,S (2296) Haarlem 2013 - a bit premature.}) 19... Nd6 20. fxe5 fxe5 21. Rd1 Nc4 22. Bc3 Rxc7 (22... b4 23. Bxb4 e4 24. Nd4+ Kxc7 25. Rxh8 Bxh8 26. Bc3 Be5 $11) 23. b3 Ne3 24. Bxe5 (24. R1d6+ Kb7 25. R8d7 Kc8 26. Rxc7+ Kxc7 27. Rxa6 Rc8 28. Ba5+ Kb7 29. Rb6+ Ka7 30. Rd6 Nxc2 $15) 24... Nxd1 $146 ({RR} 24... Rxd8 25. Rxd8 Bxe5 26. Nxe5+ Kb7 27. Rd2 f5 28. g3 Re7 29. Nd3 a5 30. c3 Kc6 31. Re2 g5 32. Re1 Nd5 33. Rxe7 Nxe7 34. c4 bxc4 35. bxc4 Kd6 36. Kd2 Nc6 37. h4 h6 38. hxg5 hxg5 39. Kc3 {Vokhidov,S (2364)-Bodnaruk,A (2465) Baku 2016 ½-½ (54)}) 25. Rd6+ (25. Bxc7 Nc3 26. Rxh8 Nxa2+ 27. Kd2 Bc3+ 28. Kd3 Bxh8 29. Ba5 {and Black is a pawn up.}) 25... Kb7 26. Bxg7 Rg8 27. Bd4 Nc3 {At the moment Black is an exchange up - however, he has to part with some material.} 28. Rb6+ Kc8 29. Be5 {Now White regains the exchange.} Rd8 30. Kb2 ({But not} 30. Bxc7 $2 Kxc7 31. Rxa6 Rd1+ 32. Kb2 b4 {and White is caught in a mating net.}) 30... Nd5 31. Bxc7 Kxc7 32. Rxa6 {Now White is a pawn up but his rook is awkwardly placed and White has to return the pawn.} Kb7 33. Ra3 {White wants to keep his extra-pawn.} (33. Ra5 Kb6 34. b4 Nxb4 35. Ra3 $11 {leads to an equal position.}) 33... Ne3 {Typical Carlsen. Only a few pieces remain on the board but he manages to exert enormous pressure.} 34. c4 ({After} 34. g3 {follows} Nd1+ 35. Kc1 Nc3 {and Black again threatens} 36. Z0 Rd1+ 37. Kb2 b4 38. Ra5 Rb1#) 34... bxc4 35. Ne5 $2 {Not the best. The World Champion will now advance his c-pawn to reach the first rank for a touchdown.} (35. bxc4 $4 Nxc4+) (35. b4 Nd5 36. Ra5 Ne3 37. a4 Nxg2 38. Ne5 Ne3 39. Rc5 $11) (35. Ra4 cxb3 36. Rb4+ Kc6 37. Rxb3 Nc4+ (37... Nxg2 38. Ne5+) 38. Kc2 Ra8 39. Rc3 Kb5 40. Rb3+ Kc5 41. Rc3 $11) 35... Rd2+ 36. Kc3 (36. Kc1 c3 37. Z0 {und} Rd1#) 36... Rc2+ 37. Kd4 Nf5+ 38. Kd5 c3 39. Kc5 Nd6 $1 40. Nc6 {White is still in the game. He threatens to win a piece with Ra7+.} (40. Kxd6 $2 Rd2+ 41. Ke7 c2 {and the pawn queens.}) 40... Ne4+ ({After} 40... Kc7 41. Nb4 (41. Ra7+ Nb7+ $19) 41... Rd2 (41... Rc1 42. Ra7+ Nb7+ 43. Kc4 c2 44. Kb5 $11) 42. Ra6 c2 43. Rc6+ {the position is objectively (engine) won for Black but subjectively (human) rather double-edged.} Kb7 (43... Kd7 $2 44. Kb6 {and White stopped the pawn.}) 44. Rb6+ Ka8 (44... Ka7 $4 45. Nc6+ Ka8 46. Rb8#) 45. Nc6 c1=Q+ {and Black queens with check.}) 41. Kb5 Kc7 42. Ra7+ Kd6 43. Ra4 $2 ({Besser} 43. Nb4 Rxg2 44. Rxf7 Rxh2 {and White can still fight for the draw.}) 43... f5 $19 44. Kb6 Rxg2 ({White threatened} 44... Z0 45. Rd4+ Ke6 46. Rxe4+ fxe4 47. Nd4+) 45. Rd4+ Ke6 46. a4 Ra2 ({Maybe it was better to play} 46... Rb2 {immediately.}) 47. a5 Rb2 48. Kc7 $5 (48. a6 c2 49. Rc4 Rxb3+ 50. Ka7 Nc3 $19) (48. b4 Nd6 $17 (48... c2 $2 49. Rc4)) 48... Nc5 $1 (48... c2 $2 49. Rc4 $11) (48... Rxb3 $4 49. Rxe4+ fxe4 50. Nd4+ $16) 49. Rc4 {[#]} Na6+ 50. Kb6 Rxb3+ 51. Kxa6 Kd5 {The point. The white rook is once again in trouble.} 52. Rb4 c2 53. Ne7+ Kc5 54. Rxb3 c1=Q 55. Rb6 Qc4+ 56. Kb7 Qe4+ 57. Nc6 Qd5 58. Kc7 Qd6+ 59. Kb7 Qd7+ 60. Kb8 f4 0-1

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.17"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Giri, Anish"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D22"]
[WhiteElo "2785"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[Annotator "Postny,Evgeny"]
[PlyCount "123"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. Nf3 a6 4. e3 Bg4 {Magnus, as usual, stays away from the main theoretical lines.} 5. Bxc4 e6 6. h3 Bh5 7. Nc3 Nc6 (7... Nf6 8. g4 Bg6 9. Ne5 Nbd7 10. Nxg6 hxg6 11. Bf1 $1 {is a typical idea. The bishop is going to g2 and White normally has slight, but stable advantage.}) 8. O-O Nf6 9. b3 (9. a3 Bd6 10. b4 {is a bit more active way to handle this position.}) ({Another option is} 9. Qe2 Bd6 10. Rd1) 9... Bd6 10. Bb2 O-O 11. Be2 Qe7 12. Rc1 (12. Ne5 Bxe2 13. Nxc6 Bxd1 14. Nxe7+ Bxe7 15. Rfxd1 $11) (12. Nh4 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 Rad8 14. Nf3 Nd5 15. e4 Nf4 16. Qe3 e5 17. dxe5 Bxe5 18. Rad1 Bxc3 19. Bxc3 Ne6 $11 {½-½ (30) Stojanovic,M (2509)-Edouard,R (2620) Switzerland 2016}) (12. Nd2 {is also an option, but Black doesn't have problems to equalize.}) 12... Rad8 ({RR} 12... Bg6 13. Nh4 Rad8 14. Nxg6 hxg6 15. Bf3 e5 16. Bxc6 bxc6 17. Na4 exd4 18. Bxd4 Nd5 19. Qg4 Nb4 20. h4 c5 21. Nxc5 Nxa2 22. Rc4 a5 23. h5 gxh5 24. Qxg7# {1-0 (24) Bjerre,J (2602)-Prohaszka,P (2585) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 12... Rfd8 13. Qc2 Rac8 14. Rfd1 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nh4 Bxe2 17. Nxe2 Qe8 18. Nf5 Bf8 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Qxc7 Nd3 21. Bxf6 Nxc1 22. Bxd8 Nxe2+ 23. Kf1 Qe4 24. Ne7+ Kh8 25. Kxe2 Qb1 26. Nd5 Qxa2+ 27. Kf3 {Brodsky,D (2539)-Kurchenko,E (2255) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) 13. Ne5 (13. Na4 Ne4 14. Ne5 Bxe2 15. Nxc6 Bxd1 16. Nxe7+ Bxe7 17. Rfxd1 {is extremely safe for White, though it's objectively equal.}) 13... Nxe5 (13... Bxe2 14. Nxc6 Bxd1 15. Nxe7+ Bxe7 16. Rfxd1 {is again equal, but Magnus wants to keep more pieces on the board.}) 14. Bxh5 Ng6 15. Bxg6 $146 {It's not a mistake, but I wouldn't give my bishop for no reason.} (15. Bf3 c6 16. Ne4 Bb8 17. Nxf6+ Qxf6 18. Be4 Ne7 19. Qf3 (19. g3 $142 {[%cal Ge4g2]}) 19... Qh6 20. Rc4 Bd6 21. Bb1 f5 $11 {1-0 (64) Guichard,P (2342)-Velten,P (2422) Condom 2013}) ({RR} 15. Bf3 c6 16. Ne4 Bb8 17. Nxf6+ Qxf6 18. Be4 Ne7 19. Qf3 Qh6 20. Rc4 Bd6 21. Bb1 f5 22. Bc1 g5 23. e4 Qg6 24. e5 Bb8 25. Ba3 Rf7 26. Bxe7 Rxe7 27. g4 Rf7 28. Qe3 Ba7 29. Re1 Qg7 {Guichard,P (2342)-Velten,P (2422) Condom 2013 1-0 (64)}) 15... hxg6 16. Qf3 {An inaccuracy.} (16. Qc2 c6 (16... e5 $6 17. Ne4 {and White is suddenly better.}) 17. Rfd1 Bb8 ({In case of} 17... e5 $6 18. d5 {the white queen doesn't get into the e5-e4 kick, as after 16.f3.}) 18. e4 Ba7 $11) 16... c6 17. Rfd1 (17. e4 $6 e5 18. d5 cxd5 19. Nxd5 Nxd5 20. exd5 e4 {followed by 21...f5 with pleasant prospects for Black.}) (17. Na4 {makes sense.} e5 18. dxe5 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Qxe5 20. Nc5 {I wouldn't say that White is pressing, but at least it's a constructive idea for him.}) 17... e5 18. dxe5 (18. Ne4 $6 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 f5 20. Qc2 e4 {is better for Black thanks to space advantage and superior bishop.}) 18... Bxe5 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Rd1 b5 $1 {After a series of slight inaccuracies Giri found himself in a position where he has to be cautious.} 21. g3 $6 {There were more useful moves than this.} ({The pawn is taboo:} 21. Qxc6 $4 b4 {and Black is winning material.}) ({For instance} 21. Qe2 {would be accurate enough.}) 21... Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 (22. Nxd1 $2 Bxb2 23. Nxb2 Qd7 {[%cal Gd7d2,Gd7h3] underlines the drawback of 21.g3.}) 22... c5 {Black's pawn majority on the queenside is now a factor.} 23. Qd3 Kh7 $1 {Hiding the king away from possible check on d8.} ({The following line gives a clear hint why 23...Kh7 is useful:} 23... Qe6 $6 24. Qd8+ Kh7 {[%tqu "En","How should White continue?","","","c3e4","",5]} 25. Ne4 $1 Nxe4 26. Qh4+ Kg8 27. Qd8+ {and White delivers a perpetual check.}) 24. Nd1 Bxb2 25. Nxb2 Qe6 26. g4 Qc6 {[%cal Gc6f3]} 27. Qe2 Ne4 28. Qc2 (28. f3 {looks safer.}) 28... Ng5 29. f4 Ne6 ({The knight will not come out after} 29... Nxh3+ $2 30. Kh2 Qf3 $2 31. Qg2 $1) 30. Qg2 Qd6 31. Qe2 Qd5 (31... g5 32. Qd3+ Qxd3 33. Nxd3 c4 34. bxc4 bxc4 35. Nb4 gxf4 36. Nxa6 fxe3 37. Nb4 {White will not have problems to hold, as his a-pawn will distract the black knight, while White's king is close to Black's passed pawns.}) 32. Qg2 Qd6 33. h4 {I am surprised that Anish didn't repeat moves by 33.e2. Perhaps, he got concerned about 33...g5.} Nc7 34. h5 gxh5 35. gxh5 Qe7 (35... Qd5 36. Qxd5 Nxd5 37. Kf2 Nc3 38. Nd3 Nxa2 39. Nxc5 a5 40. Ke2 Kh6 41. Kd2 Nb4 42. Nb7 a4 43. bxa4 bxa4 44. Nd6 Kxh5 45. Nxf7 {Very few material left, so White holds.} Nd5 46. e4 (46. Ne5 $2 Nxe3 $1) 46... Nxf4 47. Kc3 Kg4 ({Black can't win also after} 47... Kg6 48. Nd6) 48. Kb4 Nd3+ 49. Kxa4 $11) 36. Qf3 Qd7 37. Nd1 Qd5 38. Qe2 ({After} 38. Qxd5 $2 Nxd5 39. Kf2 Kh6 {White will lose a pawn and his knight is still passive.}) 38... Qf5 39. Nf2 Nd5 40. Kg2 (40. e4 $2 Nxf4 $19 {[%csl Re2]}) 40... c4 41. bxc4 bxc4 42. Kg3 $1 c3 43. Qxa6 c2 (43... Nb4 44. Qc4 c2 45. a3 Nd5 46. Qd3 Ne7 {The same position arose in the game, just with White's pawn on a2. This makes no difference.}) 44. Qd3 Ne7 (44... Qxd3 45. Nxd3 Nxe3 46. Kf3 Nd5 47. Nc1 Kh6 48. Ke4 Nb6 49. Kd3 Kxh5 50. Kxc2 Kg4 51. Nd3 $11) 45. Qc4 Qxh5 46. Qxc2+ Nf5+ 47. Kg2 Qg6+ 48. Kh2 Qg3+ 49. Kh1 g6 50. Qe2 Nxe3 51. Ne4 $1 Qxf4 52. Qh2+ {A queen exchange is a huge relief for Giri.} Qxh2+ 53. Kxh2 Nc4 54. Kg3 Kg7 55. a4 f5 56. Ng5 Kf6 57. Kh4 {Black's knight has to guard the a-pawn and therefore can't help to break the blockade on the kingside.} Na5 58. Nh7+ Kg7 59. Ng5 Nc6 60. Ne6+ Kf6 61. Ng5 Ke5 62. Nh3 {Anish played for a draw since the opening, got himself into trouble, but defended tenaciously and eventually got away with half a point.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.19"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E08"]
[WhiteElo "2787"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. Qc2 c6 7. O-O b6 8. Rd1 Bb7 9. b3 Nbd7 10. Nc3 Rc8 11. e4 c5 12. dxc5 dxc4 13. b4 a5 14. a3 axb4 15. axb4 bxc5 16. b5 Qc7 17. Bf4 $146 ({RR} 17. h3 Rfd8 18. Be3 Ra8 19. Rxa8 Bxa8 20. Bf4 e5 21. Be3 Nb6 22. Rxd8+ Bxd8 23. Nd2 Ne8 24. Qa2 Nd6 25. Qa3 Be7 26. Bf1 h6 27. Bxc4 Bg5 28. Bxg5 hxg5 29. Bf1 c4 30. Qb4 g6 31. f3 Kg7 {Nyzhnyk,I (2499)-Aghasaryan,R (2249) Moscow 2009 ½-½ (32)}) 17... e5 18. Bg5 Nb6 19. Nd2 Rfd8 20. Bxf6 Bxf6 21. Nd5 Bxd5 22. exd5 e4 23. Rab1 Rxd5 24. Nxc4 Rd4 25. Nxb6 Qxb6 26. Bxe4 Rxd1+ 27. Rxd1 Qxb5 28. Bxh7+ Kf8 29. Bf5 Rd8 30. Rxd8+ Bxd8 31. Qd3 Qxd3 32. Bxd3 Bf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.21"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[PlyCount "38"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qa4+ Nc6 6. e3 O-O 7. Qc2 Re8 8. Bd2 a6 9. a3 Bd6 10. h3 Bd7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Bd3 Na7 13. Qb3 c6 14. Qxb7 Nb5 15. Nxb5 axb5 16. Ne5 Rb8 17. Qa6 Ra8 18. Qb7 Rb8 19. Qa6 $146 ({RR} 19. Qa7 Ra8 {½-½ (20) Goormachtigh,J (2164)-De Waele,W (2225) Roux 2019}) 19... Ra8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.22"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2855"]
[BlackElo "2785"]
[Annotator "Pavlovic,Milos"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 {This system, a combination of London, Colle and similar ideas, is getting popular nowadays.} Bf5 {I will give here one recent example:} (2... c5 3. e3 Nc6 4. Nf3 e6 5. c3 Bd6 6. Bg3 Nf6 7. Nbd2 O-O 8. Bb5 {Recently this move replaced the usual 8.d3.} Ne7 9. Bd3 Qb6 10. Rb1 Ng6 11. Bxg6 hxg6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Ne5 b6 14. Qf3 Ba6 15. h4 Nd7 16. Nxd7 Qxd7 17. h5 g5 18. h6 f6 19. Qh5 Bd3 $132 {0-1 (38) Gelfand,B (2734)-Inarkiev,E (2730) Magas (rapid) 2016}) 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 {The world champion is playing cautios.} (4. c4 Bxb1 5. Qxb1 Bb4+ 6. Kd1 dxc4 7. Bxc4 Bd6 8. Bg3 c5 9. Bb5+ Kf8 10. Nf3 Bxg3 11. hxg3 Nf6 12. Qc2 cxd4 13. Nxd4 g6 14. Ke2 Kg7 15. Rac1 $14 {1-0 (70) Georgiev,K (2628)-Godena,M (2495) Padova 2014. This is just one example how the game may continue.}) 4... Bxd3 5. Qxd3 c6 6. Nd2 Nf6 7. Ngf3 Be7 8. O-O ({RR} 8. Ne5 Nbd7 9. c3 O-O 10. Bg3 c5 11. f4 a6 12. O-O b5 13. f5 Nxe5 14. dxe5 Ne4 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Qxe4 exf5 17. Qxf5 Qd5 18. e4 Qd2 19. Rf2 Qe3 20. Bf4 Qd3 21. Rf3 Qe2 22. Rf2 Qd3 {Aaradhya Das (1722)-Jahnz,L (2157) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (51)}) 8... O-O 9. h3 Nbd7 10. a4 c5 $146 (10... a5 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Qxe4 Qb6 14. c4 {with similar play to the Slav Defence where White is doing the same thing with Bd3 and early exchange of the bishops.}) ({RR} 10... a5 11. Qb3 Qb6 12. Qxb6 Nxb6 13. Ne5 Ne4 14. Nb3 Nc4 15. Nd3 b6 16. Nbc1 Rfc8 17. Ne2 g5 18. Bh2 Ra7 19. Rfc1 Bd6 20. Bxd6 Ncxd6 21. f3 Nf6 22. Ne5 Nd7 23. b3 Nxe5 24. dxe5 Nf5 25. Kf2 {Salomon,J (2498)-Blomqvist,E (2541) Sastamala 2016 ½-½ (43)}) 11. a5 c4 {I am not so sure about this move, after that White knows exactly what to do.} (11... Rc8 12. c3 Rc6 {with balanced play.}) 12. Qe2 b5 13. axb6 axb6 14. Ne5 $1 {Of course, White's play is straingtforward in a way.} Nxe5 (14... Qc8 15. e4 Rd8 16. c3 b5 17. Bg5 Qb7 {looks solid for Black, but so is White's position.}) 15. dxe5 Nd7 16. Qg4 Re8 (16... Qc7 17. Nf3 Kh8 18. h4 Ra5 19. h5 h6 20. Nd4 Rfa8 21. Rxa5 Rxa5 22. Bg3 Ra2 23. f4 {Such type of play I guess Carlsen would do. The position is interesting, perhaps easier to play with White.}) 17. h4 f5 (17... Rxa1 18. Rxa1 Bxh4 19. Bh6 g6 20. Nf3 Be7 21. Ra7 $44) 18. Qh3 {With the idea to play g4.} Rxa1 19. Rxa1 c3 $6 20. bxc3 Qc7 21. c4 Nxe5 $2 (21... dxc4 $13) 22. Qg3 $1 Bd6 (22... Bf6 23. Kh1 $1 { f3}) 23. cxd5 (23. c5 $1 bxc5 24. Ra6 Rd8 25. Rxd6 Qxd6 26. Bxe5 $16) 23... exd5 24. Nb3 {It is clear now that Black misplayed the position somehow. White is better.} Qxc2 25. Nd4 Qc8 26. h5 Qd7 27. Rb1 Bc7 28. f3 Qf7 29. Ra1 Bd6 30. Ra6 Qxh5 31. Rxb6 Nc4 32. Rxd6 Nxd6 33. Bxd6 $16 {White managed to take control of a game and result is two pieces against rook where pieces are really at good places.} Rxe3 34. Be5 Qg6 35. Qf4 Re1+ 36. Kf2 Ra1 37. Qd2 Ra8 $2 (37... Qa6 $142) 38. Nxf5 $1 $18 Qe6 39. Qg5 g6 40. Nh6+ Kf8 41. Ng4 Ke8 42. Nf6+ Kf7 43. Nxh7 Ra4 44. Qd8 Ra2+ 45. Kg1 1-0

[Event "Bilbao Masters 9th"]
[Site "Bilbao"]
[Date "2016.07.23"]
[Round "10"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2770"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[Annotator "ChessBase"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2016.07.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 174"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/5400:3600+10"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. O-O cxd4 11. Nxd4 Bd7 12. Qb3 {danach verflacht die Partie sehr schnell} (12. Ne4 {ist ein ambitionierterer Versuch} Qe7 13. Qh5 Nc6 14. Nb3 Be8 15. a3 f5 16. Qe2 Bxa3 17. bxa3 fxe4 18. Nc5 Ne5 19. Ba2 Nf3+ 20. Kh1 Qh4 21. gxf3 Bh5 22. Bxe6+ Kh8 23. Bg4 exf3 24. Qb2 Bxg4 25. Rg1 Rf7 26. Qd4 h5 27. Nd3 Rd8 28. Qe4 Qe7 29. Qxe7 Rxe7 30. Nf4 Kh7 31. Rc5 g6 32. h3 Bf5 33. Nxh5 Bxh3 34. Kh2 Bf5 35. Nf6+ Kh6 36. e4 Rf8 37. e5 b6 38. Rd5 Kg7 39. Kg3 Be6 40. Rh1 Bg8 41. Kf4 Rc8 42. Rd4 b5 43. Re1 a5 44. Kxf3 Rc3+ 45. Kf4 Rxa3 46. Nxg8 Kxg8 47. e6 Ra4 48. Rxa4 bxa4 49. Ke5 Kg7 50. Kd6 Kf8 51. Rc1 Re8 52. Ke5 a3 53. Kf6 a2 54. Ra1 Rb8 55. f4 Rb4 56. f5 gxf5 57. Rxa2 Rh4 58. Rd2 Rh6+ 59. Ke5 Rh1 60. Kd6 Ke8 61. Rg2 Rd1+ 62. Ke5 Rh1 63. Rg6 Ke7 64. Rg7+ Ke8 65. Kf6 Rh6+ 66. Ke5 Rh1 {1/2-1/2 (66) So,W (2762)-Hou,Y (2673) Wijk aan Zee 2015 CBM 165 [Ftacnik,L]}) 12... Nc6 13. Nxc6 Bxc3 14. Qxb7 (14. Rxc3 Bxc6 15. Bb5 Bd5 16. Bc4 Bc6 17. Bb5 Bd5 18. Bc4 {1/2-1/2 (18) Ivanchuk,V (2715)-Carlsen,M (2862) Wijk aan Zee 2015}) 14... Bxc6 15. Qxc6 Bxb2 16. Rc2 Rac8 17. Qa4 Rc7 {Diagramm [#] Weiß hat aufgrund der etwas besser platzierten Figuren "symbolischen Vorteil", doch die Stellung gibt freilich zu wenig her um den Weltmeister unter Druck zu setzen} 18. Bd3 Rxc2 19. Bxc2 ({RR} 19. Qxc2 Qc3 20. Qxc3 Bxc3 21. a4 Rb8 22. Rb1 Rxb1+ 23. Bxb1 Kf8 24. Kf1 Ke7 25. Bd3 a5 26. Ke2 Bb4 27. g4 g5 28. h3 Bc3 29. Bb5 Bb4 30. Bd3 Bc3 {½-½ (30) Kozul,Z (2507)-Brkic,A (2586) Austria AUT 2025}) 19... Rc8 $146 ({RR} 19... Qe7 20. h4 Rc8 21. Qe4 Qc5 22. Rd1 g6 23. Bb3 Qc6 24. Qxc6 {½-½ (24) Kempinski,R (2568)-Gavrilescu,D (2512) Germany 2022}) ({RR} 19... Qe7 20. h4 Rc8 21. Qe4 Qc5 22. Rd1 g6 23. Bb3 Qc6 24. Qxc6 {½-½ (24) Kempinski,R (2568)-Gavrilescu,D (2512) Germany 2022}) 20. Rd1 Qc3 21. Bb3 Qc5 22. g3 Bf6 23. Rd7 Rc7 24. Rxc7 Qxc7 25. Qe8+ Kh7 26. h4 g6 27. Qa8 Kg7 28. Kg2 h5 29. Qe4 a5 30. Ba4 Qc5 31. Qb7 Qb4 32. Qxb4 axb4 33. Kf3 Bc3 34. Kg2 Be1 35. Kf1 Bc3 36. Kg2 Be1 37. Kf1 Bc3 38. Kg2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-42"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2016.09.04"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Lupulescu, Constantin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2618"]
[BlackElo "2857"]
[PlyCount "153"]
[EventDate "2016.09.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 175"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Romania"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ROU"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. h3 Bxf3 6. Qxf3 e6 7. Nc3 Nbd7 8. Bd3 Bd6 9. cxd5 exd5 10. g4 Nf8 11. h4 Ne6 12. g5 Nd7 13. Bd2 Qe7 14. O-O-O O-O-O 15. Qg4 g6 16. f4 $146 ({RR} 16. Rhe1 f5 17. gxf6 Nxf6 18. Qh3 Kb8 19. Kb1 Rhe8 20. Rg1 Ka8 21. Bc1 Rf8 22. Rg2 c5 23. dxc5 Nxc5 24. Bc2 Be5 25. Ne2 Rc8 26. Nd4 Nfe4 27. f3 Nd6 28. h5 g5 29. h6 Bf6 30. Nf5 Qe6 {Gelfand,B (2764)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2719) Tromsoe 2013 ½-½ (72)}) 16... f5 17. Qf3 Kb8 18. h5 Nb6 19. Kb1 a6 20. Bc1 Rc8 21. hxg6 hxg6 22. Rxh8 Rxh8 23. Rh1 Qe8 24. Rh3 Ka7 25. a3 Rg8 26. Qh1 Bf8 27. Rh8 Bg7 28. Rxg8 Qxg8 29. Bf1 Nc8 30. Bd3 Nd6 31. Bf1 Bf8 32. Be2 Be7 33. Bd3 Nf8 34. Qh2 Nd7 35. Ne2 c5 36. dxc5 Nxc5 37. Bc2 Nce4 38. Ng3 Nxg3 39. Qxg3 Qe6 40. Qe1 Nc4 41. Qc3 Bc5 42. Bd3 Bb6 43. Qf6 Qe8 44. Bxc4 dxc4 45. Bd2 Bxe3 46. Bxe3+ Qxe3 47. Qxg6 Qe4+ 48. Ka1 Qh1+ 49. Ka2 Qd5 50. Ka1 Qd1+ 51. Ka2 Qb3+ 52. Ka1 c3 53. bxc3 Qxa3+ 54. Kb1 Qb3+ 55. Kc1 Qxc3+ 56. Kd1 Qf3+ 57. Kc2 Qxf4 58. Qf6 Qe4+ 59. Kd2 f4 60. g6 Qe3+ 61. Kc2 Qe2+ 62. Kc3 Qe1+ 63. Kc2 Qf2+ 64. Kd3 Qe3+ 65. Kc2 f3 66. g7 Qg1 67. Qf8 Qg2+ 68. Kd3 f2 69. Qc5+ Kb8 70. Qe5+ Kc8 71. Qe6+ Kc7 72. Qe7+ Kc6 73. Qe6+ Kc5 74. Qe5+ Kb4 75. Qd4+ Kb5 76. Qe5+ Kc6 77. Qe6+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-42"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2016.09.06"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Winants, Luc"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2857"]
[BlackElo "2558"]
[PlyCount "77"]
[EventDate "2016.09.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 175"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Belgium"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "BEL"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 O-O 5. a3 Be7 6. e4 d6 7. Be2 c5 8. d5 exd5 9. cxd5 Re8 10. O-O Bf8 11. Re1 a6 12. Qc2 Bg4 13. b3 $146 ({RR} 13. Bf1 Nbd7 14. b3 g6 15. Bb2 Bg7 16. h3 Bxf3 17. Nxf3 Nh5 18. Bxg7 Nxg7 19. a4 Qf6 20. Rab1 Rac8 21. Re3 g5 22. Be2 h5 23. Rf1 Re7 24. Nd2 Rce8 25. Kh1 Qh6 26. Nc4 Ne5 27. a5 Rf8 {Rohith,K (2474)-Munkhdalai,A (2388) Tagaytay City PHI 2024 ½-½ (47)}) ({RR} 13. Bf1 Nbd7 14. b3 g6 15. Bb2 Bg7 16. a4 Re7 17. h3 Bxf3 18. Nxf3 Qf8 19. Bc4 Nxe4 20. Bxg7 Qxg7 21. Bd3 Rae8 22. Bxe4 Rxe4 23. Rxe4 Qxa1+ 24. Kh2 Rxe4 25. Qxe4 Ne5 26. Nd2 Qc3 27. f4 f5 {Percivaldi,M (2391)-Rios,C (2530) Barcelona 2019 ½-½ (72)}) 13... Nbd7 14. Bb2 b5 15. a4 Qb6 16. Bf1 Bxf3 17. Nxf3 g6 18. g3 Bg7 19. Kg2 Rac8 20. h3 Rb8 21. axb5 axb5 22. Nd2 Ra8 23. Bc3 h5 24. Qd3 Rxa1 25. Bxa1 Rb8 26. Bc3 Qd8 27. f4 Nb6 28. Nf3 c4 29. bxc4 bxc4 30. Qc2 Ra8 31. Bd4 Nfd7 32. e5 dxe5 33. fxe5 Nxd5 34. Bxc4 N7b6 35. Bxb6 Nxb6 36. e6 Nxc4 37. exf7+ Kxf7 38. Qxc4+ Kf8 39. Rf1 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-42"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2016.09.10"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Cordova, Emilio"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "2857"]
[BlackElo "2638"]
[Annotator "Roiz,Michael"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2016.09.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 175"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Peru"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "PER"]

1. d4 {Ftacnik,Lubomir} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. g3 Bb7 5. Bg2 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Nc3 Ne4 8. Bd2 Bf6 9. Rc1 c5 {The most common. Provoking the d4-d5 advance would make the f6 more powerful, but it would also lock in the other bishop for a while.} ({In the following important encounter White was able to get some advantage after:} 9... Nxd2 10. Qxd2 d6 11. d5 e5 12. e4 Nd7 13. h4 a5 14. Bh3 Nc5 15. Kg2 Bc8 16. Bxc8 Qxc8 17. Qe2 Be7 18. Nd2 $14 {Tomashevsky,E (2731)-Ponomariov,R (2709) Baku AZE 2016}) 10. d5 exd5 11. cxd5 Nxd2 12. Nxd2 d6 13. Nde4 Be7 {This retreat looks somewhat passive, but Black wants to keep both bishops on the board.} ({The more ambitious} 13... Be5 $5 {looks perfectly playable too:} 14. f4 (14. e3 Ba6 15. Re1 g6 16. f4 Bg7 17. g4 b5 $132 {Marin,M (2549)-Brunello,S (2468) Edinburgh 2007}) 14... Bd4+ 15. Kh1 Ba6 16. Qd2 Qe7 17. g4 Nd7 18. Rfe1 g6 19. g5 Bg7 $132 {Gelfand,B (2703)-Almasi,Z (2644) Monte Carlo 2002}) ({RR} 13... Be5) 14. f4 f5 {This move is very committal - the e6-spot is permanently exposed now.} ({There was also the interesting} 14... Nd7 $5 15. g4 a6 16. a4 Nf6 $1 (16... Re8 $6 17. g5 Bf8 18. Kh1 $14 {Karpov,A (2725)-Salov,V (2660) Linares 1993}) ({RR} 16... Nf6 17. Nf2 h6 18. h4 g5 19. hxg5 hxg5 20. e3) 17. Nf2 b5 $132) ({RR} 14... Nd7 15. g4 a6 16. a4 Re8 17. g5 Bf8 18. Kh1 b5 ({RR} 18... g6 19. Bh3) ({RR} 18... Rb8 19. b3) 19. axb5 axb5 20. Nxb5 Qb6 ({RR} 20... Nb6 21. Nbc3 Nc4 22. Qd3 Ba6 ({RR} 22... Nxb2 23. Qb5) 23. Qg3) 21. Nbc3 ({RR} 21. Na3 Ba6) 21... Qb4 ({RR} 21... Ba6 22. Rf3) 22. Qd3 Nb6 23. Qg3 Kh8 ({RR} 23... Nxd5 24. Nxd5 Bxd5 25. Nf6+ gxf6 26. gxf6+ Kh8 27. Bxd5) 24. Rcd1 Nc4 ({RR} 24... Na4 25. Rb1) ({RR} 24... Bc8 25. f5 Re5 26. g6 Bxf5 27. Ng5) 25. b3 ({RR} 25. f5 Ne5) 25... Nb6 26. g6 ({RR} 26. f5 Ra3 27. g6 f6) 26... fxg6 ({RR} 26... hxg6 27. Qh4+ Kg8 28. Ng5) ({RR} 26... f6 27. gxh7) 27. f5 gxf5 28. Rxf5 Nd7 29. Rdf1 {Karpov,A (2725)-Salov,V (2660) Linares 1993 CBM 034 [Ftacnik,Lubomir] 1-0 (33)} ({RR} 29. Nxd6 Bxd6 30. Qxd6 Qxc3 ({RR} 30... Nf8 31. Qg3 Ng6 32. e4) 31. Qxd7 Ba6 32. Rdf1 Rg8 33. d6 Bxe2)) ({RR} 14... Bc8 15. Nf2 a6 16. g4 b5 17. g5 Nd7) ({RR} 14... a6 15. a4 Nd7 16. g4 Rb8 17. g5 Bc8 18. Kh1 b5 19. axb5 axb5 20. h4 b4 21. Nb1 Re8 22. Nbd2 Nb6 23. Ng3 f6 24. Nf3 Bf8 25. Qd2 Rb7 26. e4 Rf7 27. Rg1 g6 28. f5 Bg7 29. Bh3 {Dragnev,V (2535)-Henderson de la Fuente,L (2487) Spilimbergo 2019 1-0 (64)}) 15. Nf2 Ba6 $146 {This innovation hardly can be considered successful.} ({The previously played} 15... Na6 {looks more natural and offers Black adequate counterplay:} 16. Re1 Nc7 17. e4 (17. a3 $6 Bf6 18. Qd2 Qd7 $15 {Malakhatko,V (2546)-Lutz,B (2292) Basel 2011}) 17... fxe4 18. Nfxe4 Bc8 $132) ({RR} 15... Na6 16. Re1 Nc7 17. a3 Bf6 18. Qd2 Qd7 19. e4 fxe4 20. Nfxe4 Bd4+ 21. Kh1 h6 22. Ne2 Bf6 23. Nxf6+ Rxf6 24. Nc3 Rff8 25. h4 Rae8 26. Kh2 Bc8 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. Re1 Kf8 29. Kg1 Rxe1+ 30. Qxe1 {Malakhatko,V (2546)-Lutz,B (2292) Basel 2011 ½-½ (42)}) 16. a4 {This natural restricting move yields Black an important tempo for consolidating.} ({A more energetic approach would be} 16. Re1 $1 b5 17. Qc2 Nd7 18. e4 b4 19. Ncd1 fxe4 20. Bxe4 Nf6 21. Bf5 $36 {and Black would suffer from the vulnerablity of his light squares.}) 16... Bf6 17. Re1 Nd7 18. e3 ({For some reasons, Magnus deviates from the tempting} 18. e4 $5 Bd4 19. exf5 Rxf5 20. Bh3 Rf8 21. Nce4 Nf6 22. Ng5 $14) 18... Rb8 ({After} 18... g6 19. e4 Bd4 20. exf5 gxf5 21. Qc2 $14 {the weakness of the e6-spot starts to tell.}) 19. Qc2 (19. Bh3 $5) 19... g6 20. Nb5 ({Now Black is better prepared to meet} 20. e4 Bd4 21. Kh1 (21. exf5 g5 $1 $132) 21... Bxf2 22. Qxf2 fxe4 23. Nxe4 Ne5 $132) 20... Bxb5 21. axb5 Bg7 $1 {An excellent prophylactic move - now the f5 is over-protected.} (21... Re8 22. Ra1 Qc7 23. e4 fxe4 24. Nxe4 Bd4+ 25. Kh1 Nf6 26. Ng5 $36) 22. Bh3 ({The immediate} 22. e4 Bd4 23. exf5 {also can be met with the same approach as in the game:} g5 $1 (23... Rxf5 24. Bh3 Rf8 25. Kh1 $14) 24. Re4 gxf4 25. Rxf4 Qe8 26. Kh1 Nf6 $132 {with double-edged play.}) ({However,} 22. Ra1 $5 {deserved serious attention:} Rb7 23. e4 {Now, when Black's rook is tied down to protecting the a7, this advance becomes more effective.} Bd4 24. Kh1 Bxf2 25. Qxf2 fxe4 26. Rxe4 Nf6 27. Ree1 $14) 22... Kh8 23. e4 g5 $1 {GM Cordova manages to make use of having the dark-squared bishop - now neither king is safe.} 24. fxg5 ({Black's tactical idea was based on the following line:} 24. Bxf5 gxf4 25. gxf4 Qh4 $1 26. Bxd7 Bd4 27. Bf5 Rxf5 28. exf5 Bxf2+ 29. Qxf2 Rg8+ 30. Kf1 Qh3+ 31. Ke2 Rg2 $11) 24... f4 ({Another possibility was} 24... Ne5 25. Qe2 fxe4 26. Nxe4 Nf3+ 27. Kg2 Nxg5 $1 ({The ''greedy''} 27... Nxe1+ $6 28. Rxe1 Qe7 29. Be6 $14 {leads to a passive position.}) 28. Nxg5 Qxg5 $11) 25. Bf5 fxg3 26. Nh3 {White was able to keep the g5, so the position remains quite sharp.} gxh2+ 27. Kh1 {As often happens, the h2 only makes White's monarch safer!} ({Correctly refuting} 27. Qxh2 $6 Be5 28. Qg2 Rg8 29. Kh1 Nf8 $15 {and White's king is in a real danger.}) 27... Be5 28. Qe2 Rf7 (28... Qe7 29. Qg4 Rf7 30. g6 Rg7 31. Ng5 Nf6 32. Qh4 $13) 29. Rc2 Rg7 (29... Nf8 30. Qh5 Rg7 31. Rf1 Qe8 32. Qh6 $13) 30. Rf1 {Both sides have time for mobilising their forces now.} Qe8 31. Qd3 Nf8 32. Rg2 Ng6 33. Bxg6 Qxg6 {Keeping the pawn on h7 looks safest for a human eye.} ({However, there was nothing wrong with} 33... hxg6 {either:} 34. Nf2 Qe7 35. Ng4 Qxg5 36. Rf3 Qc1+ 37. Rf1 Qg5 $11) 34. Nf4 Bxf4 35. Rxf4 Qh5 ({Black would also obtain sufficient counterplay after} 35... Rf7 36. Rxf7 Qxf7 37. e5 Qf4 38. e6 Rf8 $11) 36. Qc3 Kg8 {This move isn't that bad,} ({but} 36... Qd1+ 37. Kxh2 Qh5+ 38. Kg1 Qd1+ {was a more convincing way of securing a draw:} 39. Rf1 Qd4+ 40. Qxd4 cxd4 41. Rd1 Rf8 42. Rxd4 Rf4 43. Rc4 Re7 $11) 37. Qf6 Rf7 $2 {Letting White pin the f7 is a bad decision.} ({The correct move was} 37... Qg6 38. Kxh2 Qxf6 39. Rxf6 Re8 40. Rg4 h5 41. Rgf4 Rxg5 42. Rxd6 Rge5 $11) 38. Qe6 ({Another winning way is less obvious:} 38. Qh6 Qd1+ 39. Kxh2 Rxf4 40. g6 $18) 38... Rbf8 39. Rgf2 $2 {Such mistakes in the winning positions are untypical for Magnus!} ({The correct} 39. Rf5 {would have put Black in a hopeless situation:} Qd1+ 40. Kxh2 Qh5+ 41. Kg3 Qg6 42. Rgf2 Qxe6 43. dxe6 Rxf5 44. exf5 $18) 39... c4 $2 {GM Cordova doesn't stand the pressure till the end and loses on the spot.} ({At the same time, after} 39... Kg7 40. Qh6+ (40. Qxd6 Rxf4 41. Rxf4 Qd1+ 42. Kxh2 Qd2+ 43. Kg3 Qe3+ $11) 40... Qxh6 41. gxh6+ Kg6 42. Rxf7 Rxf7 43. Rxf7 Kxf7 44. Kxh2 Kf6 45. Kg3 Kg5 46. b3 Kxh6 47. e5 Kg7 48. e6 Kf6 {the resulting endgame seems drawish. For instance,} 49. Kg4 Kg6 50. Kf3 h5 51. Kf2 Kf6 52. Kg3 Kg7 53. Kh3 Kf6 $11) 40. g6 $1 Qd1+ (40... Qxg6 41. Rg2 $18) 41. Rf1 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-42"]
[Site "Baku"]
[Date "2016.09.12"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ghaem Maghami, Ehsan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2857"]
[BlackElo "2566"]
[Annotator "Mekhitarian,Krikor Sevag"]
[PlyCount "57"]
[EventDate "2016.09.02"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 175"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2016.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Iran"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "IRI"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 {The old and good London System, quite common these days.} e6 4. e3 Bd6 5. Bg3 c5 6. c3 Nc6 7. Nbd2 Bxg3 $6 {Honestly it is hard to understand why Black would play this move over the simple 7...O-O:} (7... O-O 8. Bd3 b6 {with many recent games in this position. More ambitious moves like e2, e4, e5 and the standard O-O have been played, generally with satisfactory results for White. For example:} 9. Qe2 Bb7 10. Rd1 Re8 $1 (10... Qe7 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 cxd4 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. Nxd4 $14 {1-0 (30) Artemiev,V (2663)-Savchenko,B (2613) Sochi 2016; with a comfortable advantage.}) 11. e4 Be7 $1 {the typical reaction against e5. Black is ready to play ...h5 if White goes for e5:} 12. e5 Nh5 13. a3 g6 14. Nf1 f5 $1 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Ne3 e5 $1 {Wesley So is a player who shows tremendous energy in every game; I can guess it feels like you are playing against a computer} 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Nxe5 Nxg3 19. hxg3 Rxe5 {with the bishop pair and the initiative, Black's position is already preferable} 20. Bc4 b5 $5 21. Bxb5 Qb6 22. O-O Kg7 $1 $44 {0-1 (34) Sedlak,N (2537)-So,W (2782) Baku 2016; threatening ...d4 and preparing strong pressure on the e-file, as soon as the bishop leaves b5.}) 8. hxg3 Qd6 9. Bb5 {White guarantees access to e5.} Bd7 10. Bxc6 ({RR} 10. O-O O-O 11. a4 a6 12. Bxc6 Bxc6 13. a5 Bb5 14. Re1 Rac8 15. Qb3 Rc7 16. Qa3 Rd8 17. Ne5 Nd7 18. Nxd7 Rdxd7 19. Nb3 c4 20. Qxd6 Rxd6 21. Nc5 f6 22. e4 e5 23. Rad1 Kf7 24. exd5 Rxd5 {Eljanov,P (2742)-Grachev,B (2654) Moscow 2010 ½-½ (37)}) 10... Bxc6 11. Ne5 Qc7 (11... Nd7 {doesn't change the evaluation of the weird 7...xg3:} 12. f4 $6 {I didn't like this approach} (12. Ndf3 $5 Nxe5 (12... f6 $2 13. Ng6 Rg8 14. Rxh7 O-O-O 15. Qc2 $16 {0-1 (41) Umetsubo,C (2374)-Matsuura,E (2486) Blumenau 2015. White is a pawn up, but the knight on g6 is somewhat awkward.}) 13. Nxe5 {and White is simply better} O-O $2 14. Qh5 $1 h6 15. Ng4 $1 $16 e5 16. Qxe5 (16. dxc5 $5 Qe6 17. Nxe5 Rae8 18. Nf3 $16) 16... Qg6 17. Qh5 Qc2 $2 (17... Qe6 $5) 18. Nf6+ Kh8 19. Qg5 $1 Qxb2 $4 20. Rxh6+ {1-0 (20) Bosque Ortega,X (2197)-Acebal Muniz,A (2140) Benidorm 2013}) 12... Nxe5 13. fxe5 Qe7 {I guess the main reason to prefer 12.df3 or even 12.xd7 is that now the d2-knight lacks a good square:} 14. Qg4 f5 15. Qh5+ Kd7 16. a4 Kc7 17. dxc5 Qxc5 18. Qg5 Qf8 (18... h6 $5 {was more precise} 19. Qxg7+ Bd7 20. Kf2 Rag8 21. Qf7 Rf8 22. Qg7 Rfg8 $11 {already guaranteeing the draw} 23. Qf6 Rxg3 24. Kxg3 Qxe3+ 25. Kh2) 19. Nf3 h6 20. Qg6 $11 {1-0 (42) Kamsky,G (2741)-Potkin,V (2647) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013; but this too looks acceptable. White ended up winning this blitz game.}) ({RR} 11... cxd4 12. exd4 Qc7 13. g4 Nd7 14. Nxd7 Kxd7 15. Qf3 Raf8 16. O-O-O Qd8 17. Qe3 h6 18. Nf3 Kc8 19. Rh5 Rhg8 20. Rdh1 Qd6 21. Qe5 Kd7 22. Re1 f6 23. Qe3 Re8 24. Nh4 Kc7 25. Ng6 Bd7 26. Rhh1 {Shyam,S (2497)-Sobh,A (2117) Bangalore IND 2024 ½-½ (84)}) 12. Qf3 $146 {Now White has easy play, and a clear plan with g4.} ({RR} 12. Qc2 cxd4 13. cxd4 Rc8 14. O-O Nd7 15. Ndf3 f6 16. Nxd7 Bxd7 17. Qd2 O-O 18. Rfc1 Qb6 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Rc1 Rxc1+ 21. Qxc1 {½-½ (21) Tillyaev,U (2304)-Khusenkhojaev,M (2441) Tashkent 2019}) ({RR} 12. g4 Nd7 13. Ndf3 cxd4 14. exd4 Nf8 15. g5 f6 16. Nd3 Ng6 17. gxf6 gxf6 18. Qe2 Qd6 19. Qe3 O-O-O 20. O-O-O Bb5 21. Rhe1 Rde8 22. g3 Kb8 23. Kb1 Re7 24. Nd2 e5 25. Nb3 Rhe8 26. dxe5 fxe5 {Kreutzmann,D (2049)-Song,Y (2178) Konya 2018 0-1 (61)}) 12... h6 13. Qf4 Qe7 14. g4 {It looks bad for Black already. Naturally White takes advantage of the fact that he hasn't castled yet and makes full use of his h1-rook in the play.} Nh7 15. Qg3 Rg8 $2 (15... cxd4 $1 {was the last chance for an acceptable position} 16. exd4 (16. cxd4 Rc8 17. O-O O-O $11) 16... O-O-O {looks dangerous, but maybe Black will survive after ...c7 and ...b8 (of course being careful not to run into xf7! taking advantage of the g3-queen pinning the c7-queen). Perhaps for that matter, ...e8 could be useful, if White isn't in time to open up the position with c1-c4.} 17. Rc1 (17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Nb3 Qc7 19. Qd3 Nf6 20. Nc5 Nd7 $1 {looks playable, after all}) 17... Qc7 {threatening f6} 18. c4 (18. O-O f6 (18... Be8 $2 19. c4 $1 $16) 19. Nxc6 Qxg3 20. Nxa7+ Kb8 21. fxg3 Kxa7 $14 {and I would be very happy to play this after such a dangerous position from the opening}) 18... f6 19. Nxc6 (19. cxd5 Rxd5 20. Nxc6 Qxg3 21. fxg3 (21. Nxa7+ Kb8 22. fxg3 Kxa7 $14 {with excellent defensive chances for Black}) 21... bxc6 22. Rxc6+ Kb8 23. Nf3 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Kxc8 25. Ke2 $14 {and Black is definitely in the game.}) 19... Qxg3 20. Nxa7+ Kb8 21. fxg3 Kxa7 $14 {similar to the lines mentioned above.}) 16. O-O $16 {Now Black will be defenceless against the further opening of the centre. It is important to notice that the h1-rook has already performed its duty from there, and can now join the central action. Also, the king finds a safe shelter on g1.} Nf6 17. Rac1 Rc8 18. c4 $1 {Choosing a nice moment to open up the position. Nobody said it was easy to play against the world champion with the black pieces!} dxc4 (18... cxd4 {isolating d4 doesn't help} 19. exd4 dxc4 20. Ndxc4 Nd5 21. Rfe1 $16) 19. dxc5 Qxc5 20. Ndxc4 Ke7 21. b4 $1 Qxb4 22. Nd3 {Now the queen can't move because of the deadly d6+.} Ne4 {Forced.} (22... Qb5 23. Qd6+ Ke8 24. Qa3 $1 {threatening d6+.} Rd8 25. Nd6+ Rxd6 26. Qxd6 $18) 23. Nxb4 Nxg3 24. fxg3 Bb5 $2 {The position was already difficult, but this loses right away.} (24... Bd7 {White's pawn structure is horrible, but a piece up should be enough to win the game without difficulties} 25. Ne5 $18) 25. Rxf7+ $1 Kxf7 26. Nd6+ Ke7 27. Nxc8+ Kd7 28. Nxa7 $18 Ba4 29. Nd3 1-0

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"]
[Site "New York"]
[Date "2016.11.11"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2857"]
[BlackElo "2769"]
[Annotator "Ponomariov,Ruslan"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2016.11.11"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 176"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The first game of the World Championship match in New York is over. Personally I hope to learn something from the match and to see how modern chess is developing.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 {In an interview with Norwegian TV before the match I had predicted that both players will play 1.d4. In my opinion nowadays 1.d4 gives White more options to reach complicated positions and to create tension. But I didn't expect the Trompovsky though Carlsen had played it before. Maybe Carlsen wants to force the team of Karjakin to study each and every game he has ever played? At any rate, the next games will reveal his strategy for the match.} d5 {Black's most solid response.} ({If you want to complicate things you can go for} 2... g6) ({or} 2... e6 3. e4 h6 4. Bxf6 Qxf6 {which leads to asymmetrical positions. But in World Championship matches the players usually play solidly with Black while trying to press with White. Therefore 2.. . d5 is an understandable decision.}) 3. e3 c5 4. Bxf6 gxf6 5. dxc5 ({If White wants to keep more tension he can play} 5. Nc3 {leading to a Chigorin Defence with colours reversed. The text move gives Black more options to resolve the tension in the centre.}) 5... Nc6 {There is nothing wrong with this natural development move. It seems as if Karjakin - like everyone else - was a bit by surprised by his opponent's opening choice and decided to calm down and to spend some time to find out where danger might be lurking in his position.} ({I don't think that anything is wrong with} 5... e6 {either.} 6. Nf3 (6. b4 a5) 6... Nd7 ({Here I once played} 6... Bxc5 7. c4 dxc4 8. Nbd2 Bd7 9. Bxc4 Bc6 10. O-O Nd7 {and I think in this position Black has solved all of his problems.} 11. Qe2 Qe7 12. Rac1 O-O 13. Nb3 Bb6 14. Nfd4 Rac8 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Ne5 17. Nxc6 Rxc6 18. Be2 Rfc8 19. Qe4 Kg7 20. g3 Rxc1 21. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 22. Nxc1 Qc7 23. Nb3 f5 24. Qb1 a5 25. Qd1 Qc6 26. Nd4 Qe4 27. Nb5 Bc5 28. Nc3 Qc6 29. Bb5 Qc7 30. Bf1 Be7 {1/2 (30) Andreikin,D-Ponomariov,R Moscow blitz 2015}) 7. c4 dxc4 8. c6 Nb6 9. Nbd2 c3 10. bxc3 bxc6 11. Qc2 Bg7 12. Bd3 f5 13. e4 {1-0 (72) Carlsen,M (2864)-Kramnik,V (2803) Moscow RUS 2013, and in this position Magnus somehow managed to complicate things and to outplay Vladimir Kramnik. But I think this was not due to the opening. Kramnik was in bad shape in that tournament, he played badly and finished last. It is interesting that Karjakin also took part in this tournament and with his good memory he probably remembered the Carlsen-Kramnik game.}) 6. Bb5 e6 7. c4 dxc4 8. Nd2 Bxc5 9. Ngf3 O-O ({RR} 9... c3 10. bxc3 O-O 11. O-O f5 12. Nd4 Bd7 13. Rb1 Rc8 14. Qh5 Qf6 15. Rfd1 Qg6 16. Qe2 Rfd8 17. N2f3 Qf6 18. e4 Bb6 19. exf5 Nxd4 20. cxd4 Qxf5 21. Bd3 Qf6 22. Qe4 h6 23. Qg4+ Qg7 24. Qh4 {Firouzja,A (2759)-So,W (2770) Paris 2021 0-1 (32)}) 10. O-O Na5 ({It's interesting to consider} 10... c3 {to change the pawn structure. Yes, Black's kingside is shattered as well, but Black has the two bishops which might give some chances to play for an advantage. Instead, Karjakin decided to play simpler and more solid chess. But after the game move White has less to worry about.}) 11. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 11. Nxc4 a6 12. Nxa5 axb5 13. Nb3 Bb6 14. Nfd4 Qd5 15. Qg4+ Kh8 16. Qh4 Kg7 17. Rfd1 Ra4 18. h3 h6 19. Rd2 Rc4 20. Rad1 Qg5 21. Qxg5+ hxg5 22. Nxb5 Rb4 23. Nd6 f5 24. Rc2 Bd7 25. Nxf5+ exf5 {Quesada Perez,Y (2598)-Triapishko,A (2506) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 11. Qc2 Bd7 12. Bxd7 Qxd7 13. Nxc4 Nxc4 14. Qxc4 Rac8 15. Qf4 Qe7 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. h4 Kh8 18. a3 Rg8 19. Rd2 Rgd8 20. Rad1 Rxd2 21. Rxd2 Rd8 22. Rxd8+ Qxd8 23. Ne5 Qd1+ 24. Kh2 Be7 25. Nc4 b5 {Kumala,A (2206)-Jarmula,L (2464) Katowice 2020 ½-½}) 11... Be7 ({Black also had the option to play} 11... a6 12. Bxc4 Nxc4 13. Rxc4 Be7 {and now White needs to play actively, otherwise Black will just finish his development and the two bishops will be very strong on the long diagonals.}) 12. Qc2 Bd7 13. Bxd7 Qxd7 14. Qc3 Qd5 {Solid again! But sometimes solid play and giving the initiative to your opponent backfires.} ({A more principled try was} 14... b6 15. Ne4 (15. Nxc4 Rac8) 15... e5 16. Rfd1 Qe6 17. Ng3 {Obviously, White has some compensation but Black still has a healthy extra pawn. One wonders what Carlsen would have done with Black in such a position.}) 15. Nxc4 {Unfortunately White does not have much choice and can hardly avoid mass exchanges. Therefore I think that 5.dxc5 was a really committal move.} Nxc4 16. Qxc4 {A slight inaccuracy by the World Champion.} ({There was the possible intermezzo} 16. Rfd1 Qb5 17. Qxc4 Qxc4 (17... Qxb2 18. Rb1) 18. Rxc4 {and the white rook is already on d1 instead of f1. However, after} Rfc8 {White probably has nothing better than} 19. Rdc1 Rxc4 20. Rxc4 {which leads to the same position we reached in the game. But sometimes such small nuances can be important.}) 16... Qxc4 17. Rxc4 Rfc8 18. Rfc1 Rxc4 19. Rxc4 Rd8 20. g3 ({Again I think it's more accurate to play the king to the centre first.} 20. Kf1 Rd7 21. Ke2 {is of course very similar to the game, but maybe White can eventually grab some space with g2-g4, taking two steps at once with g-pawn.}) 20... Rd7 21. Kf1 f5 22. Ke2 (22. Ne5 Rd5) 22... Bf6 23. b3 Kf8 {For the first time it may seem as if White has some advantage because Black's pieces are so passive. White's pieces are indeed slightly more active and Black's pawn structure on the kingside is a bit vulnerable. You can also try to find some analogy with the famous game Ribli-Karpov, Amsterdam 1980, which White managed to win. But it seems that these small advantages are simply not enough to win the game for White unless he gets a lot of help from Black.} 24. h3 h6 {This move is still a little bit of a mystery for me.} ({Why not} 24... Ke7 {? Probably Karjakin wanted to nip active play from White in the bud.}) 25. Ne1 Ke7 26. Nd3 Kd8 27. f4 ({In the event of} 27. g4 fxg4 28. hxg4 Rc7 29. Rxc7 Kxc7 30. Kf3 Kd6 31. Ke4 Bc3 {It's difficult to see how White can make progress.}) 27... h5 ({Now Black didn't like} 27... Rc7 28. Rxc7 Kxc7 {probably because of} 29. Kf3 Kd6 30. e4 fxe4+ 31. Kxe4 {and in this position he might hit on some ideas to pose Black problems.}) 28. a4 {White really has difficulties to make progress. But as always Carlsen tries till the end.} (28. Ne5 Bxe5 29. fxe5 Rd5 30. Rh4 Rxe5 31. Rxh5 Rc5 $132) 28... Rd5 29. Nc5 b6 30. Na6 Be7 (30... b5 $5) 31. Nb8 a5 32. Nc6+ Ke8 33. Ne5 (33. Nxe7 Kxe7 34. Rc7+ Rd7) 33... Bc5 34. Rc3 Ke7 35. Rd3 Rxd3 36. Kxd3 f6 37. Nc6+ Kd6 38. Nd4 Kd5 39. Nb5 Kc6 40. Nd4+ Kd6 41. Nb5+ Kd7 42. Nd4 Kd6 {So, to be honest, the first game of the match was not particularly exciting. I don't think we will see this variation again. Even for Magnus it is difficult to squeeze blood out of a stone. I expect that the Queen's Indian will be tested in the next games unless Karjakin has prepared something else. But before that we will see what Sergey will play with White.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"]
[Site "New York"]
[Date "2016.11.20"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2769"]
[BlackElo "2857"]
[Annotator "Hillarp Persson,Tiger"]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2016.11.11"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 176"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 $5 {I had decided not to watch any of the news on the game, in order to avoid reproducing what others had thought. Still, I couldn't keep away during the first few moves and I felt a breeze of cautious optimism when I saw Karjakin's first move. Could it be that he had deviated from his usual 1.e4 in order to be more ambitious?} d5 $5 2. c4 c6 {Already the last move was a bit of a surprise, but this is doubly surprising. Normally, both Carlsen and Karjakin favour 1.d4 f6 2.c4 e6 as Black, but then they diverge. Carlsen usually meets 3.f3 with 3...d5, whereas Karjakin slightly prefers 3...b6 over 3...d5. Considering how close their main repertoires are after 1.d4, it is not that much of a surprise that Carlsen decides to spring a surprise.} 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 a6 {This variation, named after the Moldovan master Chebanenko, was very unusual before the early nineties. Although it looks weird to move both the c- and the a-pawn to the sixth rank at such an early stage, it stands on a solid strategical basis. We see a similar strategy in the Najdorf, the Modern Benoni and the Modern, where Black plays a6 in order to disturb a knight on c3. However, it is interesting to notice that this is one of the few instances where a6 is a decent option even if the knight is not on c3. Suppose White has played f3 instead of c3, then Black can still play a6. The point is that White's knight really needs to go to c3, sooner or later, if White is to claim any sort of advantage. In such a case one might say that a6 disturbs White's natural development.} (4... e6 {leads to the Semi Slav, which has been seen in numerous earlier WCh matches. Carlsen's choice of line is more solid and also leads to lines that are slightly less analysed.}) 5. Bd3 {No! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw this. Now Black is able to enter a line from the Queen's Gambit Accepted (QGA), that I thought was completely toothless. Still, after checking the facts I have come to the conclusion that my instincts are, at least, dated. Since the main lines have become so heavily analysed, the players try some of the old things anew and as will soon become obvious, Karjakin is far from alone in seeking something new in the these lines.} ({The main lines start with} 5. Nf3 b5 {and then White has a choice between the very ambitious} 6. c5 {and the less ambitious 6.b3. It says a lot about Karjakin's attitude that he chooses neither of these. He is either a) happy to draw his way to the tie-breaks, or he b) expects Carlsen to become over-ambitious, or c) has great belief in his technical abilities, or d) this line is far more dangerous for Black than I thought (and still think).}) 5... dxc4 $1 6. Bxc4 e6 7. Nf3 c5 {So, we arrive at a line from the QGA, via a roundabout move order. This position used to be the main line, but then players started to realise that the knight lacked flexibility on c3. Since then White's main ideas in these positions all have one thing in common; avoiding putting the knight on c3. After 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.f3 f6 4.e3 e6 5.xc4 c5 5.0-0 a6, both 6.b3, 6.e2 and 6.dxc5 are more common than 6.c3. Then again, "common" is not always a sign of quality.} 8. O-O ({Here White has the option of playing} 8. a4 {, which is fairly dull, especially for Black. After} Nc6 9. O-O Be7 10. Qe2 cxd4 11. Rd1 e5 12. exd4 exd4 13. Nxd4 Nxd4 14. Qe5 Qd6 {White is marginally better, although the results tend towards draws, aplenty.}) 8... b5 9. Be2 {And here, when I put my hands to my face in similar fashion to Munch's famous "peanut-face", I'm clearly out of line. This line turns out to be as haute couture as anything chess related can be. It has been played by Aronian, Wang Yue, Vitiugov and others. White is doing well. My prejudices need to be updated.} (9. Bb3 Bb7 10. Qe2 ({I was hoping for} 10. e4 $5) 10... Nbd7 11. Rd1 Qb8 {has a solid reputation for Black and is the reason why White started experimenting with not putting the knight on c3.}) 9... Bb7 (9... Nbd7 10. d5 exd5 11. Nxd5 Bb7 12. Nxf6+ Qxf6 13. a4 b4 {seems to be about balanced, but White can set Black some problems with} 14. e4 {Aronian,L (2795)-Ponomariov,R (2710) SportAccord Blitz 2014, continued:} Be7 15. Bc4 Rd8 $6 16. Qe2 Qg6 17. Bf4 O-O 18. Bc7 (18. Rfe1 $5) 18... Rc8 19. Bg3 a5 20. Rfe1 {with some initiative for White.}) 10. dxc5 $1 {Other moves make no sense. Black would prefer to take back on c5 with a knight, but here 10...bd7 can be met with 11.b4!} Nc6 $5 {Not exactly a novelty, but played at a 2700+ level for the first time.} (10... Bxc5 11. Qxd8+ Kxd8 12. Nd2 {has been scoring well for White among engines.}) ({Karjakin had to suffer this position himself once as Black. That game went:} 10... Qxd1 11. Rxd1 Bxc5 12. Nd2 $1 {If we compare this position to the "early" dxc5-lines in the QGA, Black has already committed to b7-b5, which leaves the dark squares somewhat weaker and also gives White something to chew on with the a-pawn.} Nbd7 (12... Nc6 13. Nce4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Be7 {would be similar to the game if the queens were still on. But since they aren't White can play} 15. Nd6+ Bxd6 16. Rxd6 Ke7 17. Rd1 $14) 13. Nb3 Bb6 (13... Bb4) 14. a4 b4 15. a5 $1 Bd8 16. Na4 Be7 17. f3 g5 18. e4 g4 19. Be3 {Fressinet,L (2700)-Karjakin,S (2775) Beijing (blitz) 2012, when White had a big advantage and eventually won.}) 11. Nd2 $146 {As seen on the last move, this is the standard reaction when the queens disappear from the board. However, here it doesn't work as well.} ({Although I haven't seen what anyone else says about the game, I have allowed myself the luxury of turning the engine on now and then. I know I shouldn't, but the hour is late in Sweden and what would happen if I got it all wrong? The prospect it frightful. So, the most critical line seems to be} 11. Qxd8+ Rxd8 12. b4 $5 {It's very likely that Karjakin tried to calculate the consequences of this move over the board while sensing that it was surely part of his opponent's preparation. Not finding a clear road to an advantage he then proceeded to play a "normal" move. I'm just guessing though.} Nxb4 13. a4 $1 {One immediately spots that the queenside pawns will disappear and then the question is: how much activity does White have?} Bxc5 ({With some silicon-based help, it is possible to find that} 13... Nc2 14. Ra2 Nb4 15. Rd2 (15. Ra3 Bxc5 16. axb5 Nd3 $1 17. Rb3 O-O $132) 15... Bxc5 16. Rxd8+ Kxd8 17. axb5 axb5 18. Nxb5 Ke7 19. Ba3 Ra8 20. Rc1 Nd7 {is a long line that just holds, although one sure wouldn't like to calculate and play it over the board.}) 14. axb5 axb5 15. Bxb5+ Bc6 (15... Ke7 16. Na4 Bd6 17. Nb6 {and White develops some quite nasty pressure.}) 16. Ba3 Bxb5 17. Nxb5 O-O 18. Rfc1 Be7 {and Black should be within drawing distance since} 19. Rc7 {can be met with} Rd7 $11) (11. Qc2) ({RR} 11. a3 Bxc5 12. b4 Bd6 13. Bb2 O-O 14. Rc1 Rc8 15. Qb3 Qc7 16. h3 Qe7 17. Nd2 Bb8 18. Bf3 Qc7 19. Rfd1 Qh2+ 20. Kf1 Rfd8 21. Ne2 Nd5 22. Ne4 Ne5 23. Bxe5 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qxe5 25. Nc5 Bc8 {Colle,E-Tartakower,S Paris 1925 ½-½ (76)}) ({RR} 11. Qc2 Nb4 12. Qb3 Bxc5 13. Rd1 Qb8 14. a4 bxa4 15. Qxa4+ Bc6 16. Qa5 Be7 17. Ra3 Nc2 18. Ne5 Bb4 19. Rb3 O-O 20. Nxc6 Bxa5 21. Rxb8 Raxb8 22. Nxa5 Nb4 23. f3 Rfd8 24. e4 Rxd1+ 25. Nxd1 Nd7 {Wei,Y (2743)-Navara,D (2740) Yancheng 2018 1-0 (46)}) ({RR} 11. Qxd8+ Rxd8 12. Bd2 Bxc5 13. Rfc1 Bd6 14. Be1 Ke7 15. Nd2 Ne5 16. Nb3 Rb8 17. Na5 Ba8 18. a4 bxa4 19. Nxa4 h5 20. Bxa6 h4 21. h3 g5 22. f3 Nd5 23. Bd2 Bb4 24. Bxb4+ Rxb4 25. Kf2 f5 {Yilmaz,M (2665)-Dardha,D (2602) Wijk aan Zee NED 2024 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 11. a3 Bxc5 12. b4 Bd6 13. Bb2 O-O 14. Qb3 Qe7 15. Rfd1 Rfd8 16. Rac1 e5 17. Nb1 Rac8 18. Nbd2 Nb8 19. Rxc8 Rxc8 20. Rc1 Rxc1+ 21. Bxc1 e4 22. Nd4 Qc7 23. Qc2 Bxh2+ 24. Kf1 Qxc2 25. Nxc2 Be5 {Tomilin,A (2343)-Ponomariov,V (2353) Vitebsk 2006 0-1 (36)}) 11... Bxc5 {It's not only the Giuoco Piano that can lead to an asymmetrical pawn structure. ;)} 12. Nde4 ({Here the idea from Fressinet-Karjakin (above) doesn't work:} 12. Nb3 Bd6 $1 {and White is stuck with a passive bishop, a cramped position and with no way to use the c5-square.} 13. e4 $2 b4 $1) 12... Nxe4 13. Nxe4 Be7 {Something has gone wrong for White and Black's position is very comfortable. The pressure to equalise is already on White.} 14. b3 Nb4 $1 15. Bf3 $1 O-O ({Perhaps Carlsen was too happy with the draw, because here he wastes a chance to put more pressure on Karjakin:} 15... f5 $1 {The point is to get the bishop to the f6-a1-diagonal, when protecting a2 becomes very hard.} 16. Nd2 (16. Nd6+ Qxd6 17. Bxb7 Qxd1 18. Rxd1 Ra7 19. Bf3 Bf6 20. Rb1 Nxa2) 16... Bxf3 17. Nxf3 Qxd1 18. Rxd1 Bf6 19. Nd4 {Not a happy move for White to play, but there is nothing else.} Kf7 {and Black has some pressure.}) 16. Ba3 $1 {Karjakin pulls the brake just in time. With more exchanges Black has nothing more than a little extra space, which is a very nominal advantage indeed.} Rc8 $6 (16... Rb8 {or any other move that protects the bishop, would give Carlsen the kind of position where he could have played on for some while. Instead he ends up at a slight disadvantage.}) 17. Nf6+ Bxf6 18. Bxb7 Bxa1 19. Bxb4 Bf6 20. Bxf8 Qxd1 21. Rxd1 Rxf8 22. Bxa6 {Karjakin has won a pawn but needs one more move to make it count (a2-a4).} b4 $1 {This pawn is easily protected and keeps White's pawn majority in check. White's advantage is that there is one tactical trick which Black can fall for, but that's it.} 23. Rc1 g6 24. Rc2 Ra8 ({The tactical blunder I was referring to is} 24... Bc3 $6 25. Bc4 Kg7 $2 26. a4 $1 {, when White's winning chances become very real.}) 25. Bd3 Rd8 26. Be2 Kf8 27. Kf1 Ra8 28. Bc4 Rc8 29. Ke2 Ke7 30. f4 h6 31. Kf3 Rc7 32. g4 g5 33. Ke4 Rc8 {White cannot make progress, so the draw was agreed.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Karjakin +1-1=10"]
[Site "New York"]
[Date "2016.11.21"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E14"]
[WhiteElo "2853"]
[BlackElo "2769"]
[Annotator "Caruana,Fabiano"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2016.11.11"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 176"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{So the eighth game of the match; now we all know how the story goes, but I think many people already had the feeling that this game would go down as a big one, before it happened. After seven draws and several missed chances, Carlsen was eager to make his move in the match. The last time a World Championship happened in New York, in 1995, the match also started with a string of draws. In the eighth game, the champion then, Garry Kasparov, chose a Scotch and was neutralized with accurate opening play in long theoretical lines by his challenger, Vishy Anand. Fast forward 21 years and the current World Champion chose an entirely different opening strategy to try to win.} 1. d4 {This was definitely not unexpected, and even the move I predicted before the game. Carlsen had had enough of trying to break down Karjakin's e4 e5 and decided to venture into the thick complex of closed systems. It was natural to assume he might try something involving an early f4 or g5, but instead something unexpected, or at least unexpected to me, happened:} Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 $5 {After this surprise it became clear that we were unlikely to see any big theory or novel ideas in the opening. Magnus often plays slightly unusual but strategically based variations where his opponent has a wide choice of options and where there is a good chance of getting a playable position with chances to outplay the opposing side.} e6 {.} 4. Bd3 c5 5. b3 Be7 6. O-O O-O 7. Bb2 b6 8. dxc5 {While the last few moves have all been pretty standard, this strikes me as unusual. The normal tried and tested plan is to post a knight on e5 and continue with moves like f4, f3, aiming to gain space and start an attack on the kingside. Carlsen's choice is certainly not bad, however, and leads to play where he can count on a slight, perhaps very slight, edge.} (8. Nbd2 Bb7 9. Ne5 {is what I would normlly expect, to be followed up by f4 or perhaps f3 and then h3. This also doesn't guarantee an advantage, but would lead to a totally different type of position than what occurred in the game.}) 8... Bxc5 (8... bxc5 9. c4 {would play into White's hands, most likely eventually leading to a hanging pawns position after White captures on d5 and Black recaptures with the e-pawn. Karjakin's choice is more circumspect.}) 9. Nbd2 Bb7 {Black continues with standard development. Karjakin took his decisions in the opening stage of the game with speed and ease, while Carlsen seemed less sure of his position.} 10. Qe2 Nbd7 11. c4 {One of the two plausible pawn breaks. The other one, e4, I saw was recommended for White, but it seems completely harmless to me, and would likely end in complete equality in a few moves.} (11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Be7 {The position remains very complicated here, but I believe in the inherent soundness of Black's structure and position.} (12... Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Bxe4 14. Qxe4 Nf6 {is safe and probably enough for equality.}) 13. Rad1 (13. Neg5 {looks threatening, but after} Nc5 14. Rad1 Nxd3 15. Rxd3 Qc7 {White's play appears to go nowhere.}) 13... Qc7 (13... Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Bxe4 15. Qxe4 Qc7 {bails out but is also enough for rough equality.}) 14. Neg5 {, and here it looks scary, but Black can bite the bullet and come out ahead:} Nc5 $1 15. Be5 Qc6 16. Bxf6 gxf6 $1 17. Bxh7+ Kg7 18. Be4 Nxe4 19. Nd4 fxg5 20. Nxc6 Bxc6 $17) (11. a3 $5 {is a flexible move, but it also gives Black a lot of flexibility in his piece placement. Even the unusual looking} Re8 $5 {, planning ...e5 next, makes sense.}) 11... dxc4 {I think this an example of good judgement. If Karjakin had allowed cxd5, he might have had to deal with a knight coming to e4. It's hard to prove that dxc4 is the correct move, but I suspect the knight is only superficially good-looking on c4 and would rather be more flexibly placed on d2.} ({For example:} 11... Qe7 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. a3 a5 14. Ne4 N5f6 15. Nfd2 {, and White can perhaps count on some slight pressure.}) 12. Nxc4 Qe7 13. a3 a5 {Obviously the only move, as White shouldn't be allowed to win the bishop pair with b4. Now Magnus had to come up with a plan, but I don't think he successfully dealt with his task. His next few moves suggest he wasn't sure how to approach the position, and instead he mixed up inconsistent plans and ended up only putting himself at risk.} 14. Nd4 (14. e4 {is of course a very direct way of playing it, aiming to attack with e5 and e4, but after} Rfd8 15. e5 Nd5 16. g3 Nf8 {the black king looks very safe with a knight on f8.}) 14... Rfd8 {I like this move, and the plan associated with it - to maneuver the knight from the awkward d7-square to the comfy g6-square, where it also disturbs White with schemes of attacking his bare king.} 15. Rfd1 Rac8 (15... Nf8 {immediately would run into} 16. Ne5 {, and that is understandably not what Black is looking for.}) ({RR} 15... Nf8 16. Nb5 Ng6 17. Bd4 Nh4 18. f3 Bxd4 19. Nxd4 e5 20. Nf5 Nxf5 21. Bxf5 g6 22. Bh3 Nd5 23. Qb2 f6 24. e4 Nf4 25. Nxb6 Rxd1+ 26. Rxd1 Rd8 27. Nd5 Bxd5 28. exd5 Qc5+ 29. Qf2 Qxa3 30. Qb6 {Anton Guijarro,D (2693)-Karjakin,S (2743) Warsaw 2021 0-1 (32)}) 16. Rac1 $146 {This strikes me as a lazy move, after which Black obtains a completely comfortable position. The rook might look well-placed on c1, but it does nothing to bother Black and loosens the defense of the a3-pawn. In general this decision demonstrates to me that Carlsen is far from being at his best in this match so far.} (16. Nb5 Nf8 17. b4 axb4 18. axb4 Bxb4 19. Nxb6 {grants White a very temporary initiative, which will be neutralized after a couple of accurate moves.}) (16. Nc2 $5 {feels like the right move to me, even if not objectively, then at least practically; it makes it difficult for Black to complete his plan of ...f8-g6, and anything which cuts across the opponent's plan must be seriously considered. I'm surprised Magnus didn't choose to play this way.} e5 (16... Nf8 $2 17. b4 axb4 18. axb4 {would hand White a serious initiative.}) 17. e4 {, and because of the constant threat of b4 White can perhaps count on a slight pull here.}) ({RR} 16. h3 Nf8 17. Nc2 Nd5 18. Ne1 Ng6 19. Qh5 f5 20. g3 Qc7 21. Nf3 b5 22. Nce5 Nf6 23. Qg5 Rxd3 24. Rxd3 Ne4 25. Qh5 Nf6 26. Qg5 Ne4 27. Qh5 Nf6 28. Qg5 {½-½ (28) Anton Guijarro,D (2694)-Duda,J (2750) chess24.com INT 2022}) ({RR} 16. h3 Nf8 17. Nc2 Nd5 18. Ne1 Ng6 19. Qh5 f5 20. g3 Qc7 21. Nf3 b5 22. Nce5 Nf6 23. Qg5 Rxd3 24. Rxd3 Ne4 25. Qh5 Nf6 26. Qg5 Ne4 27. Qh5 Nf6 28. Qg5 {½-½ (28) Anton Guijarro,D (2694)-Duda,J (2750) chess24.com INT 2022}) 16... Nf8 17. Qe1 {This idea, to bring the bishop to f1, is I think an admission things have not gone according to plan. White regroups in order to defend an underprotected king, but clearly he cannot hope for an advantage in this way,} Ng6 18. Bf1 Ng4 $1 {An excellent move, and already White seems slightly on the back foot.} 19. Nb5 $6 {And this careless move allows Black to develop a strong initiative.} ({However, even after} 19. h3 N4e5 20. Nxe5 Nxe5 {I would already slightly prefer to play Black. The bishop on b7 is mighty and unopposed, the knight on e5 is itching to jump places and a3 is under attack.}) 19... Bc6 $2 {Just strange - a completely useless move, putting the bishop on a bad square. It's like Karjakin, who has played excellently thus far, can't believe he has outplayed Magnus and is already just better.} (19... Qg5 $1 {is crying out to be played. Just attack! Let White worry about how to hold his shaky kingside together. He would probably have to settle for the sad} 20. h3 (20. Nbd6 Bxd6 21. Nxd6 {is met by many strong moves, for example} N4e5 {, and ...f3 is difficult to prevent.}) 20... N4e5 21. Nxe5 Nxe5 22. Bxe5 (22. Kh1 $2 Nd3 $1 23. Rxd3 Rxd3 24. b4 axb4 25. axb4 Rb3 $1 26. bxc5 Rxb5 {wins an exchange and most likely the game as well.}) 22... Qxe5 {It might not be so awful for White, but he is definitely worse and will have to defend for a long time.}) 20. a4 Bd5 {Correcting his mistake on the previous move is a good idea. Black still has a decent position, but no longer a better one.} (20... Qg5 {just doesn't work now because of} 21. h3 N4e5 22. Nxe5 Nxe5 23. Bxe5 Qxe5 24. Na7 {, and we can see why the bishop is horribly misplaced on c6.}) 21. Bd4 {Logical. Trading dark-squared bishops leaves b6 unprotected.} Bxc4 (21... Bxd4 22. Rxd4 (22. Nxd4 Qc7 {and h2 is awkward to defend.}) 22... N6e5 {might have been an even more accurate way of equalizing, because} 23. Nxb6 $4 Rxc1 24. Qxc1 Qh4 {is basically mate and game over.}) 22. Rxc4 Bxd4 23. Rdxd4 ({In the press conference Judit mentioned} 23. exd4 $5 {as an option. Anti-positional as it looks, I started to appreciate the benefits of the move - taking control of the e5-square - and even thought it might offer White an edge. However, after} Nf6 24. g3 Qd7 25. Bg2 Ne7 {Black is way too solid to be worse.}) 23... Rxc4 24. bxc4 $6 {This move reminds me of Magnus' play in the fifth game of the match. The position is equal, but he refuses to accept the fact and starts playing risky, anti-positional moves to try to keep the game going. Why does he need to play this way? The match is equal and there's no need to overpress for a win. In this game his stubborn refusal to accept a draw finally backfired.} (24. Rxc4 {might not offer much, or nothing at all, but White doesn't risk losing and can perhaps press on for a little bit. I can't imagine Magnus opting out of this, and instead going for a strategically risky position, if he was in his usual frame of mind.}) 24... Nf6 (24... N4e5 {was my suggeston during the game, with the idea of playing ...c6 and trading rooks. Black should also be fine here, but Karjakin's way also worked out and led to far, far more interesting play.}) 25. Qd2 (25. c5 $2 {is "almost" a trick:} bxc5 26. Rxd8+ Qxd8 {, and the a5-pawn is protected.}) 25... Rb8 (25... Rd7 $2 26. c5 $1 {would be very bad for Black, so he had to surrender the d-file, but White has a hard time making use of his control of the d-file.}) 26. g3 Ne5 {The knight is heading for c5 via d7. The a4-pawn is a serious weakness and White will have to compensate for that with piece activity.} 27. Bg2 h6 28. f4 Ned7 29. Na7 Qa3 {If it weren't for the weakness of e3, Black would actually be in serious trouble. But that was the cost for White of playing f4 to get the knight to c6.} 30. Nc6 Rf8 31. h3 $6 {Again, Magnus refuses to accept a safe position and keeps pushing his luck, even though it is obviously very risky to play this way, especially with approaching time trouble.} (31. Rxd7 Nxd7 32. Qxd7 Qxe3+ 33. Kf1 Qc1+ 34. Kf2 {, and most likely the position will end in a draw due to White's exposed king, but he risks absolutely nothing and perhaps can hope for some initiative in mutual time trouble.}) 31... Nc5 32. Kh2 Nxa4 {The next few moves could easily be criticized, but the position is massively complex and very difficult to understand and play, especially in time trouble.} (32... g6 $5 {could be considered and might even transpose to the game after} 33. Rd8 Nxa4) 33. Rd8 (33. e4 {makes a lot of sense to me. The knight on f6 is going to have to move to a very awkward square after the upcoming e5.} Nc5 34. e5 Nh5 ({The machine suggests the astonishing} 34... Nfe4 $5 {, which would never happen in a real, human game.}) 35. Qf2 {This position is irrational and very difficult to assess. Black has the extra passed a-pawn and a dominant c5-knight and active queen. The knight on h5 is trapped on the edge of the board, but it also serves a purpose in creating counterplay against White's king. What would have happened in a game from this position is impossible to predict - the game could have gone either side's way.}) 33... g6 34. Qd4 Kg7 35. c5 $2 {Objectively a losing move, but I find it difficult to criticize the players for making mistakes in such a complex position, with so many options and limited time. White's situation was already difficult and this move practically worked out for Magnus.} (35. Rd7 {keeping the rooks on the board, was probably the best option for White.}) 35... Rxd8 (35... bxc5 $4 36. Qd6 Rxd8 37. Nxd8 {with the unstoppable threat of e7 and xf7, was Carlsen's ingenious point.}) 36. Nxd8 Nxc5 37. Qd6 Qd3 $2 {Obviously Karjakin didn't miss White's next move, but in time trouble he probably didn't anticipate White's 41st.} (37... Qa4 $1 {was the way to go, as many pointed out. It's natural Karjakin didn't want to give up b6 so easily, but after} 38. Qxb6 Ncd7 {the main point is the passed a-pawn. That will be enough for victory.}) 38. Nxe6+ fxe6 39. Qe7+ Kg8 40. Qxf6 a4 {This pawn is a monster, but White creates quick counterplay against Black's king:} 41. e4 {At this point I started to believe Magnus might win! Black's king quickly becomes very vulnerable.} Qd7 $1 {But this important defensive move made me realize Karjakin wasn't risking much.} (41... a3 42. Qxg6+ Kf8 43. f5 {would only be risky for Black, because his king is just so weak, and the threats of fxe6 and f6 are extremely dangerous.}) 42. Qxg6+ Qg7 43. Qe8+ Qf8 44. Qc6 (44. Qg6+ {doesn't necessarily lead to a draw, because Black can try} Kh8 {, and White still has to prove he is okay, which might not be so simple over the board.}) 44... Qd8 45. f5 {White absolutely has to create counterplay, as otherwise the a-pawn will decide the game. I think special attention should be given to the beautiful knight on c5, which holds together Black's entire position: e6 and a4, as well as controlling the crucial e4-square in many lines.} a3 46. fxe6 Kg7 (46... Kh7 {would force White to find a tough sequence of moves to draw:} 47. e5 $1 a2 48. Be4+ $1 Nxe4 49. Qxe4+ Kg7 (49... Kh8 50. e7 Qxe7 51. Qa8+ Kg7 52. Qxa2 {is drawn.}) 50. Qb7+ Kg8 51. Qf7+ Kh8 52. Qf4 {, and next xh6 leads to perpetual check.}) 47. e7 Qxe7 48. Qxb6 Nd3 49. Qa5 $2 {I think this is practically the decisive mistake from Magnus.} ({As Alejandro Ramirez and I discussed during the game,} 49. e5 $1 {should give White a relatively easy draw. The pawn is worthless - more important is for White to free the bishop on g2 from its cage.} Nxe5 (49... a2 50. Qd4 $1 Nxe5 51. Bd5 {wins the pawn.}) 50. Bd5 {, and with the bishop actively controlling a2 I can't see how Black can ever win this position.}) 49... Qc5 50. Qa6 Ne5 {This position looks horribly difficult for White to defend. It might even be objectively lost, but I don't think it matters over the board if there is a miracle draw somewhere. Practically, White's defensive task is impossible and I wasn't surprised to see the game end soon.} 51. Qe6 h5 {Now it's mathematically dead lost, and Carlsen's next move just sped up his inevitable demise.} 52. h4 a2 {A huge win for Karjakin, to pull ahead in the match with Black and so close to the finish line. Carlsen's unimpressive play throughout the match might give added confidence to Karjakin, but as we've seen time and again, Carlsen has the unique ability to pull himelf together and bring tournaments and matches back in the eleventh hour, even when the odds are stacked against him. Perhaps this painful loss and the rest day before the ninth game will be enough of a wake-up call for Carlsen to get his play together for the last four games.} (52... a2 53. Qxa2 Ng4+ 54. Kh3 Qg1 55. Qb2+ Kg6 $1 {and the checks run out. White is mated or loses the queen after} 56. Bf3 Nf2+) 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 79th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2017.01.14"]
[Round "1"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2808"]
[BlackElo "2840"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "65"]
[EventDate "2017.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 4. e3 {[%emt 0:00:40]} Bf5 {[%emt 0:02:24]} 5. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:19]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 6. Ne5 {[%emt 0:09:36]} Nbd7 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 7. Qb3 {[%emt 0:01:43]} Qc7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 8. cxd5 {[%emt 0:03:51]} Nxe5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nxd5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 10. Nxd5 {[%emt 0:00:34]} cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 11. Bd2 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Qxe5 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 12. Bc3 {[%emt 0:01:21]} Qc7 {[%emt 0:01:18]} 13. Qxd5 {[%emt 0:01:16]} e6 {[%emt 0:07:10]} 14. Qc4 $146 {[%emt 0:17:54]} (14. Qd4 Rd8 15. Qa4+ Qd7 16. Qxd7+ Rxd7 17. f3 f6 18. e4 Bg6 19. Bc4 Bf7 20. e5 Be7 21. Ke2 fxe5 22. Bxe5 Bf6 23. Bxf6 gxf6 24. Rhd1 Rg8 25. g3 Rg5 26. Rxd7 Kxd7 27. Rd1+ Ke7 28. b4 Rg8 29. Rd4 Rc8 30. Rh4 Bg6 31. a4 e5 32. Bd3 b5 33. axb5 axb5 34. Bxb5 Rc2+ 35. Kd1 Rb2 36. Ba4 e4 37. fxe4 Rxb4 38. Bc2 f5 39. Kd2 fxe4 40. Kc3 Rb6 41. Bxe4 Bxe4 42. Rxe4+ Kf6 43. Rh4 Kg6 {Kovalenko,I (2667)-Andreikin,D (2733) Poikovsky 2016 ½-½}) 14... Qxc4 {[%emt 0:02:49]} 15. Bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rc8 {[%emt 0:00:30]} 16. Bb3 {[%emt 0:07:53]} Be7 {[%emt 0:11:51]} 17. Ke2 {[%emt 0:04:54]} Be4 {[%emt 0:02:58]} 18. Bxg7 $146 {[%emt 0:14:53]} ({RR} 18. f3 Bc6 19. Rac1 O-O 20. Rhd1 Rfd8 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Ba5 Rc8 23. Rc2 Bb5+ 24. Kf2 Rxc2+ 25. Bxc2 Bc6 {½-½ (25) Huber,M (2356)-Kreisl,R (2448) Austria 2017}) 18... Rg8 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 19. Be5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rxg2 {[%emt 0:01:16]} 20. Rac1 {[%emt 0:06:33]} Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 21. Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Rg5 {[%emt 0:00:30]} 22. Bf4 {[%emt 0:01:32]} Rc5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 23. Rxc5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Bxc5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 24. Bc4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b5 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 25. Bd3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bxd3+ {[%emt 0:00:08]} 26. Kxd3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} f5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 27. f3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Kd7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 28. e4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Kc6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 29. h3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} h5 {[%emt 0:00:23]} 30. b3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Bb6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 31. Be5 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Bc5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 32. Bf4 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bb6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 33. Be5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 79th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2017.01.16"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Andreikin, Dmitry"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2736"]
[BlackElo "2840"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2017.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:01:15]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:18]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 3. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:22]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 4. g3 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Bb4+ {[%emt 0:00:17]} 5. Bd2 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 6. Bg2 {[%emt 0:01:14]} O-O {[%emt 0:02:27]} 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:29]} Nbd7 {[%emt 0:01:16]} 8. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:58]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 9. Bf4 {[%emt 0:02:39]} Bxf4 {[%emt 0:01:19]} 10. gxf4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} b6 {[%emt 0:04:12]} 11. Ne5 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Nxe5 $146 {[%emt 0:13:40]} (11... c5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Nc3 Bb7 14. Rfd1 Rc8 15. Rd4 Qe7 16. Rad1 dxc4 17. Bxb7 Nxb7 18. Rd7 Nxd7 19. Rxd7 Qh4 20. Rxb7 Qxf4 21. Nf3 Rc7 22. Rxc7 Qxc7 23. Ng5 g6 24. Qe4 h6 25. Nf3 a6 26. Qe3 Kg7 27. Ne5 b5 28. Ng4 g5 29. Ne4 Qf4 30. Qh3 h5 31. Ngf6 Rh8 32. Qc3 e5 33. Qb4 Rh6 34. Ne8+ Kg8 35. N8d6 h4 36. h3 g4 37. e3 Qf3 38. Qc5 Rg6 39. Qc8+ Kh7 40. Kh2 g3+ {0-1 (40) Bacrot,E (2709)-Adams,M (2682) England 2010}) ({RR} 11... c5 12. dxc5 Nxc5 13. Nc3 Bb7 14. Rfd1 Rc8 15. Rd4 Qe7 16. Rad1 dxc4 17. Bxb7 Nxb7 18. Rd7 Nxd7 19. Rxd7 Qh4 20. Rxb7 Qxf4 21. Nf3 Rc7 22. Rxc7 Qxc7 23. Ng5 g6 24. Qe4 h6 25. Nf3 a6 26. Qe3 {Bacrot,E (2709)-Adams,M (2704) England 2010 0-1 (40)}) 12. fxe5 {[%emt 0:01:19]} ({RR} 12. dxe5 Ng4 13. e3 a5 14. Rd1 Ba6 15. Nd2 Rc8 16. Rac1 Qh4 17. Nf3 Qh5 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Qd2 Nh6 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Rc1 Rb8 22. Rc7 Qf5 23. Qc1 g6 24. Nd4 Qd3 25. Rc3 {1-0 (25) Ferreira,E (1810)-Serarols Mabras,B (2313) Silves POR 2025}) 12... Ng4 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 13. Nd2 {[%emt 0:08:50]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:02:51]} 14. cxd5 $146 {[%emt 0:10:39]} ({RR} 14. Rac1 Rc8 15. Qc3 Bxc4 16. Nxc4 dxc4 17. Qxc4 c5 18. h3 Nh6 19. Rfd1 cxd4 20. Qxc8 Qxc8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rxd4 f6 23. exf6 gxf6 24. Rd6 Rc1+ 25. Kh2 Rc2 26. Rxe6 Rxb2 27. Rxf6 Kg7 28. Re6 Rxa2 {Gunina,V (2499)-Gaponenko,I (2428) Khanty-Mansiysk 2017 1-0 (58)}) 14... cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:55]} 15. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:16]} Nh6 {[%emt 0:13:56]} 16. Bh3 {[%emt 0:08:15]} f5 {[%emt 0:01:54]} 17. Kh1 {[%emt 0:27:57]} Kh8 {[%emt 0:14:41]} 18. Rg1 {[%emt 0:00:22]} Nf7 {[%emt 0:01:12]} 19. Rg3 {[%emt 0:14:37]} Rc8 {[%emt 0:08:55]} 20. Qd2 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Qc7 {[%emt 0:02:37]} 21. Ne1 {[%emt 0:01:34]} Qe7 {[%emt 0:01:38]} 22. f4 {[%emt 0:03:39]} Rc7 {[%emt 0:01:36]} 23. Ra3 {[%emt 0:03:00]} Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:28]} 24. Rb3 {[%emt 0:00:15]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:01:03]} 25. Ra3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Bb5 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 26. Rb3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Ba6 {[%emt 0:05:50]} 27. Ra3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 79th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2017.01.20"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2780"]
[BlackElo "2840"]
[Annotator "ChessBase II"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2017.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:17]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 4. e3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 5. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Bf5 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 6. Be2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 7. Qb3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Ra7 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 8. cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:04]} cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 9. Ne5 {[%emt 0:01:01]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 10. Bd2 {[%emt 0:01:49]} Be7 {[%emt 0:01:34]} 11. O-O {[%emt 0:00:15]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:07]} 12. Rfc1 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Nfd7 {[%emt 0:10:26]} 13. Nxd7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Qxd7 {[%emt 0:00:08]} ({RR} 13... Nxd7 14. Na4 Bd6 15. Nc5 Nxc5 16. dxc5 Bc7 17. Bf3 Qd7 18. Qc3 Rc8 19. b4 e5 20. g3 f6 21. a4 Be6 22. Qb2 Rca8 23. Bc3 Qf7 24. Rab1 b6 25. Bd2 Rb8 26. cxb6 Bxb6 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 {Tan,J (2414)-Molina,R (2381) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (47)}) 14. Na4 {[%emt 0:00:50]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:01:20]} 15. Qb6 $146 {[%emt 0:00:37]} (15. Nc5 Qc7 16. h3 Rc8 17. a4 Bd6 18. a5 Qe7 19. Bd3 Bxd3 20. Nxd3 Raa8 21. Rc2 Na7 22. Rac1 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 {½-½ (23) Le,Q (2702)-Vallejo Pons,F (2706) Tromsoe 2013}) ({RR} 15. Nc5 Qc7 16. h3 Rc8 17. a4 Bd6 18. a5 Qe7 19. Bd3 Bxd3 20. Nxd3 Raa8 21. Rc2 Na7 22. Rac1 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 {½-½ (23) Le,Q (2702)-Vallejo Pons,F (2706) Tromsoe 2013}) 15... Rfa8 {[%emt 0:11:04]} 16. Nc5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Qc8 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 17. a3 {[%emt 0:01:55]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:08:40]} 18. g3 {[%emt 0:01:30]} Bc7 {[%emt 0:11:47]} 19. Qb3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Qe8 {[%emt 0:01:50]} 20. Bf1 {[%emt 0:18:02]} Rb8 {[%emt 0:12:14]} 21. Qc3 {[%emt 0:06:21]} Bd8 {[%emt 0:06:53]} 22. Nxa6 {[%emt 0:05:34]} bxa6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 23. Qxc6 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Qxc6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 24. Rxc6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rxb2 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 25. Be1 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Be7 {[%emt 0:01:58]} 26. Rxa6 {[%emt 0:10:32]} Rab7 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 27. Rc6 {[%emt 0:00:17]} Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 28. Rc1 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 29. Rxc1 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Bxa3 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 30. Ra1 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:24]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 79th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2017.01.21"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E14"]
[WhiteElo "2840"]
[BlackElo "2773"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "245"]
[EventDate "2017.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 e6 4. Bd3 c5 5. c3 b6 6. O-O Bb7 7. Nbd2 Be7 8. b3 {White plays a kind of "Anti-Meran 6.c2 d6 7.b3" with reversed colours. Of course, it is not too dangerous for Black.} ({RR} 8. Re1 O-O 9. e4 c4 10. Bc2 dxe4 11. Ng5 Qc7 12. Ndxe4 Nbd7 13. Nxf6+ Nxf6 14. Re3 g6 15. Rh3 Rad8 16. Nf3 b5 17. Ne5 Bd5 18. Bh6 Rfe8 19. Qc1 Qb7 20. f3 Nd7 21. Bg7 Bf8 22. Bxf8 Nxf8 {Nogueiras Santiago,J (2580)-Hjartarson,J (2605) Biel 1993 0-1 (45)}) 8... O-O 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Qe2 ({RR} 10. Qb1 Qc7 11. h3 Rad8 12. c4 cxd4 13. Nxd4 Nc5 14. Bc2 dxc4 15. Nxc4 Ba8 16. Qe1 b5 17. Nd2 Qb7 18. N2f3 Rd5 19. Rc1 Rh5 20. Qe2 Nce4 21. Bd3 Bc5 22. Bxb5 Qb6 {½-½ (22) Levin,G (2442)-Gorshtein,I (2565) Eilat ISR 2025}) 10... Bd6 $146 {A strange idea. This loss of a tempo was not forced at all.} (10... Qc7 {[%cal Ye6e5]} 11. c4 Rad8 12. Rac1 Rfe8 13. Rfd1 Bd6 {(now timely)} 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Ba6 Qc8 16. Bxb7 Qxb7 17. Qb5 a6 18. Qf1 h6 19. h3 Bb8 $11 {1/2 (33) Kaszowski,D (2283)-Barglowski,F (2335) Ustron 2004}) (10... Ne4 11. Rfd1 f5 (11... cxd4 12. exd4 Nxd2 13. Rxd2 Rc8 $11) 12. c4 a6 13. Nf1 Qe8 14. Ne5 Bh4 15. Ng3 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Bxg3 17. hxg3 Qg6 $13 {1-0 (43) Eliskases,E-Engels,L Bad Oeynhausen 1938}) ({RR} 10... Qc7 11. Rac1 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Qxe5 14. Nf3 Qh5 15. h3 Rad8 16. Nh2 Qh4 17. Nf3 Qh6 18. Nh2 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Rfd1 Qe6 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Rd1 Rxd1+ 23. Qxd1 Qd5 24. Qxd5 Bxd5 25. c4 {Canizares Cuadra,P (2007)-Del Rio de Angelis,S (2502) Albacete 2004 0-1 (51)}) 11. c4 {This position arose in a number of games in which White's c4-pawn and Black's d6-bishop reached their positions in one go.} cxd4 (11... Ne4 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Ba6 Bxa6 14. Qxa6 Ndf6 (14... cxd4 15. Bxd4 Ndc5 16. Qe2 Re8 17. Rfd1 Qe7 18. Bb2 Ne6 19. Nf1 Rad8 20. Ng3 g6 21. Rac1 Ba3 22. Qc2 $14 {1/2 (60) Doettling,F (2360)-Vatter,H (2385) Karlsbad Auerbach 1998}) 15. h3 Re8 16. Rad1 Qe7 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Nd4 Qe5 20. Rd2 Bd6 {1/2 (24) Koneru,H (2575)-Ushenina,A (2458) Hancheng 2016} 21. g3 $5) 12. exd4 Qe7 13. Ne5 (13. a3 Bf4 14. Rfe1 Rfd8 15. a4 Bd6 $5 {[%csl Rb4]} 16. a5 Bb4 17. axb6 axb6 18. Rxa8 Rxa8 19. Ra1 Rxa1+ 20. Bxa1 Qd8 21. Qd1 Qa8 22. Bf1 h6 23. Qc1 {1/2 (22) Bruno,F (2436)-Godena,M (2495) Boscotrecase 2014}) 13... Ba3 {The exchange of bishops is desirable for Black: it weakens White's d4-pawn and generally, simplifications are favourable for the side fighting against hanging pawns.} 14. Bxa3 (14. Bc3 Bb4 15. Bb2 Ba3 {1/2 Minev,N-Tolush,A Warsaw 1961}) 14... Qxa3 15. f4 Qb2 $1 16. Nef3 (16. Qe3 Nxe5 17. fxe5 Ng4 $1 18. Qf4 Qc3 $132) 16... dxc4 17. bxc4 Bxf3 {Too straightforward.} (17... Rad8 $5 18. a4 Nb8 19. a5 Nc6) 18. Nxf3 Qxe2 19. Bxe2 Rac8 20. a4 Rc7 $6 {Just a loss of an important tempo.} (20... Nb8 $142 $1 21. a5 Nc6 22. axb6 axb6 23. Ra6 Rfd8 24. Rd1 Ne4 {[%cal Re4c3]} 25. Bf1 Rb8 $11) 21. a5 Rd8 22. axb6 Nxb6 (22... axb6 23. Ra6 {- Black has no time to transfer his passive d7-knight to c6 anymore.}) 23. Rfc1 (23. Ra3 $142 $1 {[%cal Yf1a1]} Nxc4 $4 24. Rc3) 23... Nc8 {This knight finds some good squares now.} 24. g3 Ne7 25. Ra4 Nc6 (25... Kf8 $142 26. c5 Nfd5) 26. c5 {[%cal Ye2b5]} Nd5 27. Ne5 $1 {[%mdl 32] The exchange of knights is favourable for White, whose knight is less active.} Nde7 (27... Nxe5 28. fxe5 $14) 28. Rcc4 (28. Rd1 {was quite possible. If} Nb8 {then} 29. Bf3 f6 30. Nc4) 28... Nxe5 (28... Nb8 $5 {[%cal Yf7f6]} 29. Rc1 f6 30. Nf3 Nbc6) 29. fxe5 f6 30. exf6 gxf6 31. Bf3 e5 32. dxe5 fxe5 {[%csl Re5] Black has got another weakness in his camp, and White has a chance to outmanoeuvre him.} 33. c6 Nf5 (33... Rdc8 34. Ra5 $1 Nxc6 $2 35. Rac5) 34. Ra5 Re8 35. Rcc5 Nd4 36. Be4 Kf7 37. Kg2 Kf6 38. Ra2 Ke6 $6 {Black´s king will now be in danger, too.} (38... Rec8 $142) 39. Rca5 Ree7 (39... Rec8 40. Rxa7 Nxc6 41. R7a6 Ke7 42. Rf2 $18 {[%cal Re4h7]} Ke8 43. h4 $22) (39... Ra8 $5) 40. Rf2 Rg7 (40... Nxc6 41. Ra6 Kd7 42. Bxc6+ Rxc6 43. Rd2+ Kc7 44. Rxa7+ $18) (40... Kd6 41. Rd5+ Ke6 42. Rd8 Rg7 43. Bd5+ Ke7 44. Rff8 $18) 41. h4 h5 42. Kh2 $22 a6 (42... Rce7 43. Bd5+ Kd6 44. Rf6+ Ne6 45. c7 $18) (42... Rge7 43. Bd5+ Kd6 44. Rf6+ Ne6 45. g4 hxg4 46. Kg3 $18 {[%cal Yh4h5,Yh5h6]}) 43. Bd5+ Ke7 44. Rxa6 Kd6 45. Bg2 $1 {White has won a pawn, the rest should be a matter of technique.} (45. Be4 $143 Rg4 $1) 45... Rge7 (45... Rg6 46. Rf8) 46. Ra5 (46. Be4 $1 {was now appropriate, e.g.} Re6 47. Rf8 Nxc6 48. Rf2 $1 Rh6 49. Rc2 Kd7 {Black is totally tied up and loses after} 50. g4 $1 hxg4 51. Kg3 {etc.}) 46... Nxc6 47. Rf6+ Re6 48. Rd5+ Ke7 49. Rf5 e4 $6 {Desperation.} (49... Rh6 {was more stubborn although after} 50. Be4 {Black's position remained poor.}) 50. Rxh5 e3 51. Rh7+ Ke8 (51... Kf8 52. Rxc7 e2 53. Rf5+ Ke8 54. Bxc6+ Kd8 55. Ra7 $18) 52. Rxc7 e2 53. Bf3 $1 {The refutation of Black's idea.} e1=Q 54. Bh5+ Kf8 55. Rf5+ Kg8 56. Bf7+ $2 {[%mdl 8192] White played this move without thinking, missing a simple mate:} (56. Rc8+ Kg7 57. Rf7+ Kh6 58. Rh8#) 56... Kh8 $1 57. Rh5+ Kg7 58. Bxe6+ Kf6 {Suddenly it is not easy for White to consolidate his pieces.} 59. Rh6+ $2 (59. Bc4 $1 {was the right way but it was not easy to calculate the following variations:} Ne5 60. Rh6+ $1 Kf5 61. Bd3+ $1 Nxd3 (61... Kg4 62. Rg7+ Kf3 63. Rf6+ Ke3 64. Bf1 Nf3+ 65. Rxf3+ Kxf3 66. Bg2+ Kf2 67. Rf7+ $18) 62. Rf7+ Kg4 (62... Ke4 63. Re6+ Ne5 64. Rxe5+ Kxe5 65. Re7+ $18) 63. Rg7+ Kf3 (63... Kf5 64. Rg5+ Ke4 65. Re6+) 64. Rf6+ Ke4 65. Re6+ Ne5 66. Rxe5+ Kxe5 67. Re7+ $18) 59... Ke5 60. Bh3 (60. Rh5+ $142 Kd6 (60... Kf6 61. Bc4 $1) 61. Rxc6+ Kxc6 62. Bd5+ Kd6 63. Rf5 {cutting off Black's king.}) 60... Qd2+ 61. Bg2 Qxh6 62. Rxc6 {[%mdl 4096] This endgame is theoretically drawn.} Qh7 $6 (62... Qe3 $142) 63. Rc4 {White misses another chance to cut off Black's king and keep more winning chances:} (63. Bh3 {[%cal Yc6e6]}) 63... Kf6 64. Rg4 $6 {This cut-off is insufficient.} (64. Rc6+ Ke5 65. Bh3) 64... Qd7 {, and Black successfully held his ground:} 65. Rg5 Qc7 66. Rb5 Qc2 67. Rb6+ Kg7 68. Re6 Qa2 69. Re7+ Kf6 70. Re4 Kg7 71. Kh3 Qf7 72. Re2 Qf5+ 73. Kh2 Qf6 74. Be4 Qf1 75. Rc2 Qe1 76. Bf3 Qf1 77. Bg2 Qe1 78. Rc7+ Kh8 79. Rc4 Qe2 80. Re4 Qd2 81. Re6 Qa2 82. Re8+ Kg7 83. Re7+ Kh8 84. Re3 Qd2 85. Rf3 Qd7 86. Rb3 Qe6 87. Rb2 Qe5 88. Rf2 Qe6 89. Bf3 Qe5 90. Kg2 Qf6 91. Re2 Qd8 92. Ra2 Qf6 93. Rc2 Qe7 94. Rc6 Qd8 95. Rc2 Qe7 96. Rc8+ Kg7 97. Rc6 Kh8 98. Rh6+ Kg7 99. Rh5 Qe1 100. Rd5 Qe7 101. Rb5 Qe1 102. Rb7+ Kh8 103. Rd7 Qe8 104. Rd1 Qc8 105. Re1 Qc3 106. Rf1 Qd2+ 107. Kh3 Qd7+ 108. g4 {White finally starts moving his kingside pawns but exposes his king.} Qd3 109. Kg2 Qd2+ 110. Rf2 Qe1 111. h5 Kg7 112. Re2 Qa5 113. Re4 Kf6 114. Rf4+ Kg5 115. Rf5+ Qxf5 116. gxf5 Kxf5 117. Kg3 Kg5 118. Bg4 Kh6 119. Kh4 Kg7 120. Kg5 Kh8 121. h6 Kh7 122. Be6 Kh8 123. Kg6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 79th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2017.01.28"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Eljanov, Pavel"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A90"]
[WhiteElo "2755"]
[BlackElo "2840"]
[Annotator "Sadorra,Julio"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2017.01.14"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 177"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.03.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. c4 f5 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 d5 5. Nf3 Bd6 6. Nc3 c6 {For a must-win game, it is interesting that the Magnus chooses the Dutch Stonewall which is also part of the repertoire of other World Champions such as Steinitz, Alekhine, Botvinnik, Petrosian etc!} 7. Bf4 ({The most common way to continue here is} 7. O-O O-O 8. Bf4 (8. Qc2) 8... Bxf4 9. gxf4 Nbd7 {leading to similar paths as in the game.}) 7... Bxf4 8. gxf4 O-O 9. e3 Bd7 {This is one of the typical ways to develop the famous or infamous, depending on your perspective and experience, Stonewall bishop.} ({Another way to bring it out is} 9... b6 10. O-O Bb7 (10... Ba6 $6 11. Ne5 {now Black cannot develop the b8-knight.} Nfd7 12. b3 $1 $14 Nxe5 13. dxe5 dxc4 14. Qxd8 Rxd8 15. b4 $1 {shutting out the black bishop followed by exploiting the development advantage and weak a8-h1 diagonal is the idea behind b2-b3.}) 11. Ne5 Nbd7 12. Rc1 Qe7 {with a solid position.} (12... Ne4 $5 {is also playable.})) ({RR} 9... b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. Rc1 Nbd7 12. Qa4 Nxe5 13. fxe5 Ne4 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Ne2 Rc8 16. Rxc8 Qxc8 17. f3 Bc6 18. Qb4 Ng5 19. Kd2 Qd7 20. Rc1 Rc8 21. Nf4 Nf7 22. Bf1 Nd8 23. Ba6 Bb7 24. Bb5 {Ding,L (2801)-Carlsen,M (2870) Kolkata 2019 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. Qc2 Qe7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. O-O-O Ne4 13. Kb1 Ndf6 14. Ne5 Be6 15. f3 Nxc3+ 16. Qxc3 Nd7 17. h4 Nxe5 18. fxe5 f4 19. e4 Qf7 20. a3 dxe4 21. fxe4 f3 22. Bf1 Rad8 23. Bd3 f2 24. Ka1 {Krush,I (2367)-Sandipan,C (2482) Abu Dhabi UAE 2025 0-1}) 10. Qb3 Qc7 $146 ({RR} 10... Qb6 11. Ne5 Be8 12. Qxb6 axb6 13. b3 Nbd7 14. Nxd7 Nxd7 15. Kd2 Kf7 16. a4 Nf6 17. Rhg1 Rg8 18. Ne2 Ne4+ 19. Bxe4 fxe4 20. c5 bxc5 21. dxc5 Bd7 22. Rg2 Kf6 23. Kc3 Rae8 24. a5 Bc8 25. Nd4 {Pert,R (2430)-Cox,J (2423) Birmingham 2006 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 10... Qb6 11. Qa3 Na6 12. Ne5 Qb4 13. Qxb4 Nxb4 14. Rb1 Be8 15. Kd2 Nd7 16. Nxd7 Bxd7 17. a3 Na6 18. cxd5 cxd5 19. Nxd5 Rab8 20. Nc3 Rfc8 21. Rhc1 Nc7 22. Na2 Ne8 23. Rxc8 Bxc8 24. Nb4 Kf7 25. Nd3 {Markus,R (2477)-Boguszlavszkij,J (2285) Balatonlelle 2002 1-0 (51)}) 11. O-O Be8 12. Rfc1 {White now starts to make threats before Black finishes development which can bring him closer to equality.} Qe7 (12... Bh5 $4 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Nxd5 $18) 13. Qa3 $1 {One of the well-known ideas in the Stonewall for White is to trade off Black's good dark-squares bishop in order to weaken the dark squares and sometimes even leave Black with the "worse minor piece." Eljanov rightfully extends this idea by trading off Black's queen which was serving the same function of the aforementioned bishop.} ({Another good way to increase the advantage is to simply keep improving his pieces and prepare the a3 idea or a queenside expansion.} 13. Ne5 Bh5 14. Rab1 Na6 (14... Kh8 15. Qa3 $1) 15. cxd5 $5 (15. Qa3 Nb4) 15... exd5 (15... cxd5 16. Qa3 Nb4 17. Nb5 $16 {with a clear plan of invasion.}) 16. Qc2 Ne4 17. b4 $36 {with an easy plan of using the minority attack.}) (13. Rab1 $5 $14) 13... Qxa3 14. bxa3 Nbd7 15. Rab1 {White has successfully transformed a slightly better middlegame into superior endgame position.} Rb8 16. a4 $1 {a nice prophylactic move - it both prepares to meet ...b6 and plans to further weaken the queenside pawns in the future.} a5 (16... Nb6 17. c5 (17. Bf1 $5) 17... Nc4 {now the a-pawn is not under attack!} 18. Bf1 $1 (18. Ne5 Na5 19. Rb4 Nd7) 18... Na5 19. Rb4 $14 {and Black will have to be very careful and alert in this complex ending as White has a dangerous plan of doubling on the b-file and then bringing his knight to b3!}) 17. Rb2 Ne4 $6 ({It was objectively better to do "trench warfare" with} 17... Bh5 18. Ne5 (18. Rcb1 $2 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 b6 {and there's no way to break through Black's fortress.}) 18... Rfc8 19. Rcb1 b6 20. Bf1 Be8 {but it's probably too deressing for Carlsen's taste.}) 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Ng5 $1 {The right square and plan.} (19. Ne5 Nxe5 20. dxe5 (20. fxe5 c5 $1 $132 {and things start to look complicated for White. Just look at Black's famous/infamous bishop!} 21. d5 Bxa4 22. Rcb1 $2 b5 $1 $15) 20... c5) 19... Rf6 20. f3 $1 {this pawn break is all part of the plan. Because if not, then what is the future of his knight after h7-h6??} h6 21. Nh3 exf3 22. Bxf3 Rf7 23. Nf2 c5 24. Nd3 $1 {Eljanov has been playing excellently, exercising good control on the board and on his clock. He has 30 min left to Magnus's 39 min in a great position that he knows he's fully capable of winning.} cxd4 25. exd4 Nf6 26. Nc5 ({Another way to step up the pressure is to prepare the march of the future passed c-pawn:} 26. Ne5 Rc7 27. c5 $1 (27. Rcb1 Rd8 {gives Black some counterplay}) 27... Bxa4 (27... Rd8 28. Rxb7 Rxb7 29. Bxb7 Rxd4 30. c6 $18) 28. Rcb1 $16) 26... Ne4 27. Nxe6 Bxa4 28. d5 Bd7 29. Bxe4 $6 {A misjudged exchange. It's not disastrous, but it already allows Black counterplay in the form of piece activity.} fxe4 30. Nc5 Bg4 31. Re1 {All part of Eljanov's plan connected to his decision to trade on move 29, at least according to the quick pace at which he played the moves.} Rc8 $1 {This is most probably what he missed in his analysis as he now stopped for 10 minutes before making his next move.} 32. Nxe4 Rxf4 {Just look at Black's pieces now compared to when they were living under the Stonewall bridge, say around move 22.} 33. Nd6 Rcf8 $1 {Magnus now starts playing quickly and more confidently.} 34. Rb3 {Eljanov now starts to switch to more solid play.} (34. Rxb7 $4 Bh3 35. Rbb1 Rg4+ 36. Kh1 Bg2+ 37. Kg1 Be4# {is one line that shows the dynamic power of Black's pieces, thus the game move.}) 34... R8f6 35. Ne4 Rg6 36. Rg3 b6 $1 {a nice little move that makes a big impact as it makes it difficult for White to push his passed pawn in the future.} 37. d6 $6 {a risky decision.} ({I think it's best to go for waiting tactics especially as the time control is approaching:} 37. Nd2 Bf5 {and White at least has a sure way to keep the balance.} (37... Rgf6 38. Ne4) (37... Kh7 38. Re4 $1) 38. Rxg6 Bxg6 39. Re6 $11) 37... Kh7 38. Nf2 $2 {Panic sets in as Eljanov tries to make the time control with 2 minutes left.} (38. Ree3 $142) ({or} 38. h4 $5 Bf5 39. h5 $1 Rxg3+ 40. Nxg3 $13) 38... Rxc4 39. Nxg4 Rgxg4 40. Rxg4 Rxg4+ 41. Kf2 Rd4 42. Re6 Kg8 {Suddenly, it is White that must play for a draw.} 43. Ke3 Rd1 44. d7 {The best chance to obtain drawing chances as holding on to the pawn only makes things worse for White.} ({E.g.} 44. Ke4 Kf7 ({Not} 44... Re1+ $4 45. Kd5 Rxe6 46. Kxe6 Kf8 47. d7 $4) 45. Re7+ Kf6 46. Rd7 h5 47. Rd8 (47. h4 g6 $1 48. Rd8 Ke6 49. Rg8 (49. Re8+ Kd7 $19) 49... Rg1 50. Rd8 Rg4+ {netting another pawn.}) 47... Ke6 48. Rg8 (48. Re8+ Kd7 49. Re7+ Kxd6 50. Rxg7 Rd2 {similar to the mainline}) 48... Rd2 $1 {the enemy passed pawn isn't going anywhere!} (48... Rxd6 49. Rxg7 Rd2 50. Rg6+ {is a big difference}) 49. Rxg7 Kxd6 $19) 44... Rxd7 45. Rxb6 Rd5 {At this point of the game, one can't help but stop and wonder at how Magnus was able to turn the game around against a strong strategic player!} 46. Rb2 Kh7 47. Ke4 Rh5 48. Kf4 Rh4+ 49. Kg3 g5 50. Rb7+ Kg6 51. Rb6+ Kh5 52. h3 Ra4 53. Rc6 ({Defending the a-pawn doesn't help either.} 53. Rb2 Ra3+ 54. Kg2 Kh4 $19) 53... Ra3+ 54. Kg2 Rxa2+ 55. Kg3 a4 56. Ra6 a3 57. Kf3 Rb2 58. Kg3 (58. Rxa3 Kh4 $19 {and the h-pawn falls.}) 58... a2 59. Kf3 a1=Q 60. Rxa1 Kh4 {And because there's nothing White can do to hold on to his h-pawn, Black resigns. An very important win for the current World Champion, setting up a tense and dramatic finale in the last round!} 0-1

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 4th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2017.04.15"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Bluebaum, Matthias"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E90"]
[WhiteElo "2634"]
[BlackElo "2838"]
[Annotator "Szabo,Krisztian"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2017.04.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 178"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {ChessBase II} d6 2. Nf3 g6 3. c4 Bg7 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. e4 O-O 6. h3 Na6 (6... e5 {is the most popular main line.}) 7. Be3 c5 (7... e5 {is the other variation.}) 8. Be2 (8. d5 {is more common. However 8.e2 must not be worse.}) ({RR} 8. d5) 8... cxd4 9. Nxd4 Nc5 10. Qc2 b6 11. O-O (11. b4 $5 {is an interesting choice. White doesn't want to allow ...b7 to attack the e4-pawn.} Ne6 12. Nb3 (12. Rd1 $5) ({The careless} 12. O-O $6 {could have been met by} Ng4 $1 13. hxg4 ({or} 13. Nxe6 Nxe3 $15) 13... Nxd4 $36 {and Black looks nicely placed.}) 12... a5 13. bxa5 bxa5 14. a4 Nd7 15. Rd1 Ba6 16. O-O Rc8 17. Nd5 Nec5 $132 {Granda Zuniga-Maze, Sitges 2015, and Black looks fine.}) 11... Bb7 12. Bf3 Rc8 13. Rad1 {The natural developing move.} (13. b4 $5 {was a good alternative again,} Na6 (13... Ncd7 $6 14. e5 $1) (13... Ne6 14. Nxe6 fxe6 15. Qb3 {and White's structure is better, his position looks more tempting.}) 14. Qb3 Qc7 {Now the c4-pawn is indefensible, so White has to find tactical counterplay.} 15. Rac1 $1 Qxc4 ({If Black doesn't capture the pawn with} 15... Qb8 16. Nd5 $36 {and White has gained some space, his position is powerful.}) 16. e5 Qxb3 17. axb3 $1 Bxf3 18. exf6 Bxf6 19. gxf3 Nxb4 {and Black has three pawns for the knight, but after} 20. Rfd1 $14 {White is slightly better.}) ({RR} 13. b4 Ncd7 14. e5) 13... Qc7 14. b3 Qb8 15. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 15. Qb1 Rfe8 16. Rfe1 a6 17. a4 e6 18. Nde2 Bc6 19. Bf4 Red8 20. Nd4 Bb7 21. Bg3 ({RR} 21. Nde2) 21... Ncd7 22. Be2 Qa8 23. Bf1 Ne5 {½-½ (23) Cramling,P (2454)-Gukesh,D (2533) Brest 2019 CBM 190 Extra [ChessBase II]}) 15... Rfe8 16. Bc1 a6 17. Qe2 e6 {Black has followed a natural plan and he wants to play ...d5 at a good moment.} 18. Bb2 Rcd8 (18... d5 $5 {was an interesting option to break in the centre,} 19. exd5 exd5 20. Qc2 dxc4 21. bxc4 $11 {with an equal position. Probably Carlsen wanted to keep the tension.}) 19. Qc2 Qa8 20. Qe2 {White doesn't find any plans, he is trying to hold the position.} h5 (20... d5 $5 {was possible again,} 21. exd5 exd5 22. Qf1 (22. Qc2 $2 {is bad now, as} Rxe1+ 23. Rxe1 dxc4 $17 {and the d4-knight is hanging.}) 22... dxc4 23. Qxc4 $11 {and they exchanged the central pawns.}) 21. Ba1 Ncd7 (21... d5 {is similar to the analysis of the 18th and 20th moves.}) 22. g3 (22. Nc2 {was more solid, however} Ne5 {and Black takes the f3-bishop.}) 22... d5 $1 {The typical break-through in the hedgehog structure.} 23. Bg2 {It is a cool-blooded reply, now Black has a lot of tempting possibilities.} e5 ({Probably} 23... dxe4 $5 {was the most precise,} 24. Nxe4 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 Bxe4 26. Qxe4 Qxe4 27. Rxe4 Ne5 28. Re3 Rd6 $15 {Black has a comfortable endgame.}) 24. Nc2 dxe4 (24... d4 25. Nd5 {gives good counterplay for White.}) 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. Bxe4 Bxe4 27. Qxe4 Qxe4 28. Rxe4 Nc5 29. Ree1 Nd3 30. Re3 e4 31. Bxg7 Kxg7 32. Ne1 {White would like to exchange for a  endgame, which gives the best chance of a draw.} ({In case of} 32. f3 Nc5 33. Rxd8 Rxd8 34. b4 Ne6 35. fxe4 Ng5 36. h4 Rd2 $1 $15 {and White has to fight to equalise.}) 32... Nc5 $15 {Black's position is more tempting, but with White's accurate play he will hold the endgame.} 33. Rxd8 Rxd8 34. b4 $1 {The best practical chance.} Nd3 35. Rxe4 Nxb4 36. a3 Nc6 37. Nc2 Rd1+ 38. Kg2 a5 39. Ne3 Ra1 40. Nd5 Rxa3 41. Nxb6 {It is good to simplify the position for White, because he has more chance to equalise.} Rc3 42. Re8 Rb3 43. c5 Rc3 44. Na4 Rc4 45. Rc8 $1 Ne5 46. Nb6 Rc2 47. Nd5 {White is active, so probably Black can't avoid the exchange of the a- and c-pawns.} a4 48. Ne3 Rc3 49. Nd5 Rc1 50. Ra8 Rxc5 51. Ne3 {Black can't protect the a4-pawn.} Nc4 52. Rxa4 Nxe3+ 53. fxe3 Rc2+ 54. Kf3 g5 55. Ra5 f6 56. e4 Rc3+ 57. Kf2 Rc2+ 58. Kf3 Rc3+ 59. Kf2 {Nice defending technique by White!} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 4th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2017.04.20"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Meier, Georg"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D90"]
[WhiteElo "2621"]
[BlackElo "2838"]
[Annotator "Moradiabadi,Elshan"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2017.04.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 178"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 {Not sure whether I should consider this a surprise or not. However, when I first saw the first three moves I thought the world champion was actually opting for a King's Indian Defence!} 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. g3 $5 {An interesting line!} (5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. g3 {is also very interesting!}) 5... dxc4 6. Qa4+ Nfd7 $1 {The best move but very well-known!} 7. Qxc4 Nb6 8. Qd3 O-O ({RR} 8... Nc6 9. Be3 O-O 10. Bg2 Nb4 11. Qd1 Bf5 12. O-O Nc2 13. Rc1 Nxe3 14. fxe3 Bh6 15. e4 Bxc1 16. Qxc1 Bg4 17. e3 Bxf3 18. Bxf3 e5 19. Rd1 Qf6 20. Kg2 Rad8 21. d5 a6 22. b3 h5 23. Rf1 {Kashefi,A (2188)-Mekhitarian,K (2560) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (60)}) 9. Bf4 (9. Bg2 Nc6 $15) 9... Nc6 10. Rd1 $146 {I'm not a fan of this move. I understand that White is trying to protect d4 with d1 but that costs him too many tempi. Instead, I think White should have tried to get his king to safety as soon as possible.} (10. Bg2 Nxd4 11. Nxd4 e5 $1 (11... Qxd4 12. Qxd4 Bxd4 13. Nb5 Bxb2 14. Rb1 a6 15. Rxb2 axb5 16. Rxb5 Bd7 17. Re5 Bc6 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Rxe7 Nd5 20. Re4 Rfe8 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. Kd2 Nxf4 23. gxf4 Re4 24. e3 Ra4 25. Ra1 Kf8 26. Kc3 Ke7 27. Kb3 Ra5 28. Rc1 Rb5+ 29. Kc3 Rc5+ 30. Kd2 Rxc1 31. Kxc1 Kf6 32. Kd2 g5 33. fxg5+ Kxg5 34. f4+ Kg4 35. Kd3 Kf3 36. f5 f6 37. a4 h5 38. a5 h4 39. a6 h3 40. e4 Kg2 41. Ke2 Kxh2 42. Kf2 c5 43. e5 c4 44. exf6 c3 45. f7 c2 46. f8=Q c1=Q {1/2-1/2 (46) Bruedigam,M (2312)-Lagunow,A (2441) Germany 2013}) 12. Bxe5 (12. Ndb5 Qxd3 13. exd3 exf4 14. Nxc7 Rb8 15. O-O fxg3 16. hxg3 Rd8 $17 {1/2-1/2 (59) Huebner, R (2595)-Topalov,V (2750) Dortmund 1996}) 12... Bxe5 13. Rd1 Qe7 14. O-O c6 $15) ({RR} 10. Bg2 Nxd4 11. Nxd4 Qxd4 12. Qxd4 Bxd4 13. Nb5 Bxb2 14. Rb1 a6 15. Rxb2 axb5 16. Rxb5 Bd7 17. Re5 Bc6 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Rxe7 Nd5 20. Re4 Rfe8 21. Rxe8+ Rxe8 22. Kd2 Nxf4 23. gxf4 Re4 24. e3 Ra4 {Bruedigam,M (2312)-Lagunow,A (2441) Germany 2013 ½-½ (46)}) 10... Bf5 11. Qd2 Bg4 12. Bg2 $2 {This is too much.} (12. Ne5 Nxe5 13. Bxe5 Bxe5 14. dxe5 Qxd2+ 15. Rxd2 Nc4 16. Rd4 Nxe5 17. Re4 f6 18. Bg2 {may give White some chances.}) 12... Bxf3 13. Bxf3 Nxd4 14. Bxb7 Nc4 15. Qc1 Rb8 16. b3 Rxb7 17. bxc4 c5 18. O-O Rb4 {You know things are going really bad when every natural move for Black poses serious problems for White.} 19. Bh6 Bxh6 20. Qxh6 Rxc4 21. Ne4 Nxe2+ 22. Kg2 Qa8 23. f3 Rxe4 $1 {Strong and forced otherwise g5 was a threat.} 24. fxe4 Qxe4+ 25. Kf2 Nd4 26. Qe3 Qd5 27. Rd2 e5 {The game is over. The rest is just an agony.} 28. Re1 Re8 29. Qe4 Qe6 {No exchange this time.} 30. Re3 Kg7 31. Rb2 c4 32. g4 Qf6+ 33. Ke1 Qg5 34. Kf2 Re6 35. Ke1 h5 36. h3 Rf6 37. Kd2 Rf4 38. Qxe5+ {I am sure Meier had seen the end but decided to give the joy of geometry to the spectators.} Qxe5 39. Rxe5 Nf3+ {Fork number 1.} 40. Ke3 Nxe5 41. Kxf4 Nd3+ {And fork number 2 decides the game!} 0-1

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 4th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2017.04.21"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Naiditsch, Arkadij"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2702"]
[BlackElo "2838"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2017.04.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 178"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.05.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 h5 6. Be2 O-O 7. Nf3 c5 8. dxc5 Qa5 9. O-O Qxc5 10. Nb5 a6 11. Nc7 Ra7 12. Nb5 axb5 13. Bxb8 Ra8 14. Be5 b4 $146 ({RR} 14... Bd7 15. c3 Ne4 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qd4+ Qxd4 18. Nxd4 Nd6 19. a3 Rfd8 20. Rad1 Bc6 21. g3 e6 22. Nf3 Nc4 23. Bxc4 dxc4 24. Nd4 e5 25. Nxc6 bxc6 26. e4 Kf8 27. Kg2 Kg7 28. Kg1 Kf8 29. Kg2 {Prashanth J Naik (1962)-Mummana Venkata Ruthvik (2201) Ahmedabad IND 2025 ½-½}) 15. Bd4 Qa5 16. c3 Bg4 17. Qb3 bxc3 18. Bxc3 Qc7 19. Rac1 Qd8 20. Rfd1 e6 21. Bb4 Re8 22. Bb5 Nd7 23. e4 Bxf3 24. Qxf3 Ne5 25. Qh3 Nc6 26. exd5 exd5 27. Rxc6 bxc6 28. Bxc6 Rxa2 29. Bxd5 Kh7 30. Qf3 Rxb2 31. Bxf7 Rxb4 32. Rxd8 Rxd8 33. g3 Rb6 34. Bxg6+ Rxg6 35. Qxh5+ Rh6 36. Qf5+ Kh8 37. Kg2 Rf6 38. Qh5+ Kg8 39. Qe2 Rdf8 40. Qc2 Rxf2+ 41. Qxf2 Rxf2+ 42. Kxf2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 5th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2017.06.10"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2793"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[Annotator "Aronian,Levon"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2017.06.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 179"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 a6 {This move was not what I was expecting, but of late my opponent has been playing the Slav Defence frequently, so that it is easy to explain his choice. The ratio of predicting the opening choices of my opponents is in my case one in three. Dieser Zug kam für mich unerwartet, aber mein Gegner spielt in der letzten Zeit oft die Slawische Verteidigung, sodass sich seine Wahl leicht erklären lässt. Die Quote bei der Voraussage der Eröffnungswahl meiner Gegner ist bei mir etwa eins zu drei.} 6. b3 {In 2013 I played four games with this variation (none since then), but on every occasion I had the black pieces.. 2013 spielte ich vier Partien mit dieser Variante (und seitdem nicht mehr), hatte dabei aber immer Schwarz.} ({On those occasions Gelfand, Nakamura and Ding Liren preferred the continuation with Gelfand, Nakamura und Ding Liren haben gegen mich damals die Fortsetzung} 6. c5 {which leads to a murky strategic battle. The move in the game is considered less "hard", but I wanted to obtain a lively game. bevorzugt, die zu einem zähflüssigen strategischen Kampf führt. Der Partiezug gilt als weniger "hart", aber ich wollte ein lebendiges Spiel bekommen.}) ({RR} 6. c5) 6... Bb4 ({I have never been able to understand the popularity of Die Popularität von} 6... c5 {, Black has developed only one knight and yet he makes another pawn move. A really Romantic way of playing... konnte ich nie verstehen. Schwarz hat nur einen Springer entwickelt und trotzdem macht er einen weiteren Bauernzug. Eine echt romantische Spielweise...}) ({RR} 6... c5) 7. Bd2 Nbd7 8. Bd3 O-O 9. O-O Qe7 {The second most frequently played continuation, which offers more room for creativity. Die zweithäufigste Fortsetzung, die mehr Raum für Kreativität bietet.} ({In the 2012 world championship the move Anand chose against Gelfand was In der Weltmeisterschaft 2012 spielte Anand gegen Gelfand} 9... Bd6) ({RR} 9... Bd6) 10. Bc2 ({I found this in 2005 or 2006. The idea is actually typical. Even in the variation with Das fand ich 2005 oder 2006. Eigentlich ist diese Idee typisch, sogar in der Variante} 10. Qe1 a5 {the move ist} 11. Bc2 {is a good option.  The move 10.c2 is useful for e3-e4, and in addition it is aimed against e6-e5 (see below). eine gute Möglichkeit.  Der Zug 10.c2 ist für e3-e4 nützlich, außerdem ist er gegen e6-e5 gerichtet (s. weiter unten).}) ({RR} 10. h3 h6 11. Bc2 Rd8 12. a3 Bxa3 13. Rxa3 Qxa3 14. c5 b6 15. b4 Qxb4 16. Nxd5 Qc4 17. Ne7+ Kh8 18. Bb3 Qd3 19. Nxc6 Rf8 20. Bc2 Qb5 21. Ba4 Qb2 22. Bc1 Qc3 23. Qe2 a5 24. Bb2 Ba6 {Nepomniachtchi,I (2767)-Nakamura,H (2802) Saint Louis USA 2024 0-1 (44)}) ({RR} 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Qc2 Re8 12. h3 ({RR} 12. Rfe1 Qf8 13. Ne2 Bd6 14. Ng3 c5 15. Bc3 b6 16. Ng5 g6 17. e4 Bb7 18. dxc5 Bxc5 19. exd5 Bb4 20. Qb2 Bxc3 21. Qxc3 Qc5 22. Qxc5 Nxc5 23. Bf1 h6 24. Nf3 Nxd5 25. Nd2 Nb4 26. a3 Nc2) 12... Bd6 13. Bc1 Nf8 14. Bb2 Ng6 15. Na4 Rb8 16. Rfc1 Ne4 17. Nc5 f5 18. Bf1 Ng5 19. Nxg5 Qxg5 20. f4 Qg3 {0-1 (20) Okamura,M (2009)-Miltner,A (2215) Gallipoli ITA 2025}) ({RR} 10. Qe1 a5 11. Bc2) ({RR} 10. Qc2 h6 11. Rad1 Rd8 12. Ne2 Bxd2 13. Rxd2 e5 14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. cxd5 Nxd5 17. Nf4 Qf6 18. Nxd5 Rxd5 19. Bh7+ Kh8 20. Rxd5 cxd5 21. Bd3 Bd7 22. Rc1 g6 23. Qc3 Qxc3 24. Rxc3 Rc8) 10... Rd8 $146 {This logical contiuation has a hidden but important disadvantage. Black has available to him other sound moves such as 10...b6 or 10...e8. Then White's play would be linked either to the pawn sacrifice 11.a3 xa3 12.e4 or to the preparation of the advance e3-e4 by means of 11.e1. Diese logische Fortsetzung hat einen versteckten, aber wesentlichen Nachteil. Schwarz verfügte über andere gesunde Züge wie 10...b6 oder 10...e8 - dann wäre das weiße Spiel entweder mit dem Bauernopfer 11.a3 xa3 12.e4 oder mit der Vorbereitung des Vorstoßes e3-e4 mittels 11.e1 verbunden.} (10... b6 11. a3 (11. Re1 {[%cal Ye3e4]}) ({RR} 11. Re1) 11... Bxa3 12. e4) (10... Re8 11. a3 (11. Re1 {[%cal Ye3e4]}) ({RR} 11. Re1) 11... Bxa3 12. e4) ({But Auf} 10... e5 {is met by the strong reply folgt die starke Erwiderung} 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. Bxb4 Qxb4 13. dxe5 {with the advantage. mit Vorteil.}) ({RR} 10... e5 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. Bxb4 Qxb4 13. dxe5 Ng4 14. Qd4 Ndxe5 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. Qxe5 dxc4 17. a3 Qb5 18. Qe4 g6 19. bxc4 Qa5 20. Qe7 Be6 21. Rfc1 Rac8 22. Bd3 b5 23. c5 Qd8 24. Qxd8 Rfxd8 25. Rc3 {Yilmaz,M (2630)-Nisipeanu,L (2655) Playchess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (80)}) ({RR} 10... b6 11. a3 Bxa3 12. e4) ({RR} 10... Re8 11. a3 Bxa3 12. e4) ({RR} 10... e5 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. Bxb4 Qxb4 13. dxe5) ({RR} 10... e5 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. Bxb4 Qxb4 13. dxe5 Ng4 14. Qd4 Ndxe5 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. Qxe5 dxc4 17. a3 Qb5 18. Qe4 g6 19. bxc4 Qa5 20. Qe7 Be6 21. Rfc1 Rac8 22. Bd3 b5 23. c5 Qd8 24. Qxd8 Rfxd8 25. Rc3 {Yilmaz,M (2630)-Nisipeanu,L (2655) Playchess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (80)}) 11. a3 {After thinking things over for 17 minutes I came to the conclusion that apart from 11.a3 there are few good moves here. In doing so I assumed that it is very dangeous for Black to take on a3. Nach 17 Minuten Nachdenken kam ich zum Schluss, dass es hier außer 11.a3 wenige gute Züge gibt. Dabei vermutete ich, dass es für Schwarz sehr gefährlich ist, auf a3 zu nehmen.} Bxa3 ({The lesser evil was probably Das kleinere Übel war wahrscheinlich} 11... Bd6 12. e4 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Nf6 15. Bg5 {, after which Black gets a passive but solid position. But this variation would mean that 10...d8 was not a good idea. , wonach Schwarz eine passive, aber feste Stellung bekäme. Diese Variante würde aber bedeuten, dass 10...d8 keine gute Idee war.}) ({RR} 11... Bd6 12. e4 dxe4 13. Nxe4 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 Nf6 15. Bg5) 12. Rxa3 (12. e4 {would lead to a position in which White would have compensation for the pawn he has sacrificed, but one should not miss the chance to raise the stakes führte zu einer Stellung, in der Weiß Kompensation für den geopferten Bauern hätte, aber man darf nicht die Chance verpassen, den Einsatz zu erhöhen.}) ({RR} 12. e4) 12... Qxa3 13. c5 b6 ({Whilst my opponent was pondering the position, I turned my attention to the continuation Während mein Gegner über die Stellung sinnierte, widmete ich mich der Fortsetzung} 13... e5 {, which I considered to be the strngest. , die ich für die stärkste hielt.} {After the further moves Nach den weiteren Zügen} 14. Nb1 Qa2 15. Bb4 a5 16. Nc3 Qxc2 17. Qxc2 axb4 18. Na2 {it is White who has the advantage. gehört der Vorteil dem Weißen.}) ({RR} 13... e5 14. Nb1 Qa2 15. Bb4 a5 16. Nc3 Qxc2 17. Qxc2 axb4 18. Na2) 14. b4 {A mistake. Ein Fehler.} ({Instead of that White had at his disposal a way to gain the upper hand, but which simply did not occur to me: Stattdessen verfügte Weiß über einen Weg, die Oberhand zu gewinnen, der mir aber gar nicht in den Sinn kam:} 14. Nb1 Qa2 15. Qc1 ({I overlooked the fact that I had this option and considered only ich habe übersehen, dass ich diese Option besitze und habe nur} 15. Bb4 {which would lead to sharp play. in Betracht gezogen, was zu scharfem Spiel führen würde}) ({RR} 15. Bb4) 15... bxc5 16. Nc3 Qa5 17. Nxd5 Qb5 18. Nc7 Qb8 19. Nxa8 Qxa8 20. Ba5 Re8 21. dxc5 {and there is no way to heal the wounds in the black position. und die Wunden in der schwarzen Stellung sind unheilbar.}) ({RR} 14. Nb1 Qa2 15. Qc1 bxc5 16. Nc3 Qa5 17. Nxd5 Qb5 18. Nc7 Qb8 19. Nxa8 Qxa8 20. Ba5 Re8 21. dxc5) 14... Ne4 ({The only possibility of maintaining the tension was the amazing Die einzige Möglichkeit, die Spannung aufrechtzuerhalten, war das verblüffende} 14... Qb2 $1 {This is actually logical - in order to save yourself from wild animals you have to get closer to them and show that you are not afraid of them. Easier said than done. Eigentlich ist es logisch - um sich vor wilden Tieren zu retten, muss man ihnen näherkommen und zeigen, dass man sie nicht fürchtet. Leichter gesagt, als getan...}) ({RR} 14... Qb2) 15. Nxe4 dxe4 16. Bxe4 Rb8 {This came after a long period of thought. Simpler moves led to unpleasant endgames in which the white pawns d4-c5 represent important trump cards.  Das folgte nach langem Nachdenken. Einfachere Züge führten zu unangenehmen Endspielen, in denen die weißen Bauern d4-c5 wichtige Trümpfe darstellen.} 17. Bxh7+ ({The consequences of Die Folgen von} 17. Bxc6 a5 {were not really clear to me. waren mir nicht ganz klar.}) ({I also considered (the stronger) Ich habe auch (das stärkere)} 17. Qc2 {but what worried me about it was the possibility of betrachtet, aber dabei störte mich die Möglichkeit} Nf6 {; If the continuation in the game had not been so tempting, I would perhaps have taken a closer look and found the reply ; wäre die Partiefortsetzung nicht so verlockend gewesen, hätte ich vielleicht genauer hingeschaut und die Erwiderung} 18. Bxh7+ Nxh7 19. Ne5 {with the terrible threat of c4. mit der schrecklichen Drohung c4 gefunden.}) ({RR} 17. Bxc6 a5) ({RR} 17. Qc2 Nf6 18. Bxh7+ Nxh7 19. Ne5) 17... Kxh7 ({In the event of Im Falle von} 17... Kf8 {there is the very strong ist} 18. Qc2 bxc5 19. Ne5 {when White's attack brings in material dividends. sehr stark - der weiße Angriff bringt materielle Dividenden.}) ({RR} 17... Kf8 18. Qc2 bxc5 19. Ne5) 18. Ng5+ Kg8 {The only move, after which the moves are forced for a while. Der einzige Zug, nach dem sich das Spiel eine Zeit lang forciert entwickelt.} ({In the event of Im Falle von} 18... Kg6 19. Qg4 f5 20. Qg3 Kf6 (20... f4 21. Qxf4 Rf8 22. Qh4 {with a decisive attack. mit entscheidendem Angriff}) ({RR} 20... f4 21. Qxf4 Rf8 22. Qh4) 21. d5 {the black pieces are too passive to be able to completely defend their king. sind die schwarzen Figuren zu passiv, um ihren König vollwertig verteidigen zu können.}) ({RR} 18... Kg6 19. Qg4 f5 20. Qg3 Kf6 21. d5) 19. Qh5 Nf6 20. Qxf7+ Kh8 21. Qc7 Bd7 22. Nf7+ Kh7 {I too thought that the king was worse placed on g8 than on h7. Auch ich dachte, dass der König auf g8 schlechter steht, als auf h7.} 23. Nxd8 Rc8 24. Qxb6 ({When the situation of the opposing king on h7 is taken into account, White has the interesting option of In Anbetracht der Lage des gegnerischen Königs auf h7 verfügte Weiß über die interessante Möglichkeit} 24. Qf4 Rxd8 25. e4 {with the threat of 26.e5, but I steered a course towards the position which I had calcualted in advance. mit der Drohung 26.e5, aber ich steuerte auf die Stellung aus meiner Vorausberechnung los.}) ({RR} 24. Qf4 Rxd8 25. e4) 24... Nd5 25. Qa7 Rxd8 26. e4 Qd3 {We both considered this move to be the strongest continuation; but in reality it is a mistake. Diesen Zug hielten wir beide für die stärkste Fortsetzung, in Wirklichkeit aber ist es ein Fehler.} ({When calculating 17.xh7+ I reached the position which would now appear after Beim Berechnen von 17.xh7+ kam ich zur Position, die nun nach} 26... Nf6 27. Bg5 Qxb4 (27... Kg6 {is bad on account of ist schlecht wegen} 28. Bxf6 Kxf6 29. Qc7 Ke7 30. d5) 28. e5 Qxd4 29. exf6 gxf6 {and I thought I would be able to find something in it for White. To my amazement I am obliged to admit that in this case after aufs Brett kommen würde, und dachte, dass sich dort für Weiß etwas finden ließe. Zu meiner Verwunderung muss ich zugeben, dass der Anziehende in diesem Fall nach} 30. Qc7 Rf8 31. Be3 {White is only slightly better. nur etwas besser steht.}) 27. exd5 Qxd2 28. Qc7 Qg5 29. dxc6 {It is astonishing, but this natural move turns out to be a blunder which costs White all of his advantage. Erstaunlich, aber dieser natürliche Zug erweist sich als ein grober Fehler, der den Weißen seinen ganzen Vorteil kostet.} ({After the best move Nach dem besten} 29. d6 {Black has only a few possibilities for counterplay, so that White would be able to gradually activate his rook and decide the game in his favour. hat Schwarz nur wenige Gegenspielmöglichkeiten, sodass der Anziehende imstande sein würde, seinen Turm allmählich zu aktivieren und die Partie für sich zu entscheiden.} {As he does so, however, he must see that Dabei muss man übrigens sehen, dass} e5 30. dxe5 Bh3 {does not work on account of wegen} 31. Qxc6 {. In the final position the white queen has everything under control. nicht funktioniert - in der Endstellung hält die weiße Dame alles unter Kontrolle.}) 29... Bc8 (29... Be8 {loses material after verliert Material nach} 30. Qb7) 30. h3 Qd5 ({After Auf} 30... e5 {then gewinnt} 31. f4 exf4 32. Qxf4 {wins, because the white queen and rook get into the game. , weil die weißen Dame und Turm ins Spiel kommen.}) 31. Rd1 e5 {This delay costs Black the game. Diese Verzögerung kostet den Schwarzen die Partie.} ({He could save himself by attacking the f2-square by means of Die Rettung bestand im Angriff auf den Punkt f2 mittels} 31... Rf8 {- after - nach} 32. Qd6 ({or oder} 32. Rd3 Qe4) 32... Qb3 33. Qxf8 Qxd1+ 34. Kh2 Qxd4 {The struggle would end in a draw. würde der Kampf unentschieden enden.}) 32. Rd3 {The rook disrupts the black position. Der Turm bringt Dissonanz in die schwarze Stellung.} exd4 33. Qe7 Bf5 ({There was the more resilient Zäher wäre} 33... Rg8) 34. Rg3 Bg6 35. Qh4+ {Of course, there are several mistakes in this game but the content is worthy of study. Natürlich gibt es in dieser Partie mehrere Fehler, dafür aber einen würdigen Inhalt.} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 5th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2017.06.12"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2795"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2017.06.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 179"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. Be2 d6 6. h3 c5 7. O-O Qb6 8. Nbd2 cxd4 9. Nc4 Qc7 10. exd4 Nd5 11. Bg3 b5 ({RR} 11... Bf5 12. c3 Nd7 13. Qd2 N7f6 14. Ne3 Nxe3 15. Qxe3 Qb6 16. Nh4 Be6 17. f4 Rac8 18. f5 Bd5 19. b3 Ne4 20. Be1 Nxc3 21. Kh1 Bxd4 22. Qxe7 Rce8 23. Qg5 Nxe2 24. Rd1 f6 25. Qg4 Re4 26. Qf3 {Ozsayin,E (1827)-Mutlu,E (2024) Ankara TUR 2025 0-1 (31)}) 12. Ncd2 $146 ({RR} 12. Ne3 Nxe3 13. fxe3 a6 14. e4 Bb7 15. Bd3 e5 16. c3 Nd7 17. Qd2 Rae8 18. Rae1 Nf6 19. d5 Nd7 20. Bf2 h6 21. Be3 Kh7 22. Qf2 Rc8 23. Qh4 Qd8 24. Bg5 f6 25. Be3 Nc5 26. Bb1 a5 {Ehrke,M (2242)-Doeppner,T (2190) Germany 2000 1-0 (59)}) 12... a6 13. c3 Nc6 14. a4 Rb8 15. axb5 axb5 16. Re1 Na5 17. Qb1 Nc4 18. Qa2 Ndb6 19. b3 Nxd2 20. Qxd2 Be6 21. Bxb5 Bxb3 22. Qe2 Bd5 23. Ra3 Bf6 24. Nd2 Rfc8 25. Rea1 Ra8 26. Ba6 Nc4 27. Bxc4 Rxa3 28. Rxa3 Bxc4 29. Qxc4 Qxc4 30. Nxc4 Rxc4 31. Kf1 e5 32. Ra6 exd4 33. cxd4 Rxd4 34. Rxd6 Rxd6 35. Bxd6 h5 36. g4 hxg4 37. hxg4 Bd8 38. Ke2 f5 39. Kf3 fxg4+ 40. Kxg4 Kf7 41. f4 Be7 42. Bxe7 Kxe7 43. f5 gxf5+ 44. Kxf5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 5th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2017.06.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E48"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,Alex "]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2017.06.06"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 179"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.07.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 d5 6. cxd5 exd5 7. Nge2 {A modest system, but not without venom. White plans a classic Botvinnik Pawn Roller, made famous by his win over Capablanca, AVRO 1938.} Re8 8. Bd2 Bf8 {The most solid choice.} ({Unlike in similar lines of the QGD, where the white bishop goes to g5, here White's K-side seems a bit vulnerable, so} 8... Bd6 {has been tried on numerous occasions.} 9. O-O c6 10. Rc1 {Khismatullin-Anand, World Rapid 2015.} {Vishy chose} Ng4 $5 ({The tempting} 10... Bxh2+ {doesn't quite work here:} 11. Kxh2 Ng4+ 12. Kg3 $1 Qd6+ 13. f4 ({White can also contemplate} 13. Nf4 $5 g5 14. Rh1 f5 15. f3 $1 Nxe3 16. Bxe3 Rxe3 17. Ncxd5 $1 gxf4+ 18. Nxf4 {where he will soon get his turn to take potshots at the enemy king.}) 13... Rxe3+ 14. Bxe3 Nxe3 15. Qd2 $18) 11. h3 $2 (11. g3 {is normal}) 11... Nh2 12. Re1 Nf3+ 13. gxf3 Qg5+ 14. Kh1 {and should have won the game, but for some reason he rejected the obvious} Bxh3 ({The game went} 14... Qh4 15. Nf4 Bxh3 16. Ng2 Qxf2 17. Bf1 Re6 18. e4 Qg3 $2 19. e5 Bxg2+ 20. Bxg2 Qh4+ 21. Kg1 Qxd4+ 22. Be3 {and White eventually won})) 9. O-O b6 (9... c6 10. Rc1 a5 11. f3 b5 $5 12. Ng3 Ba6 13. Nce2 b4 14. Bxa6 Rxa6 {Jobava-Mareco, World Rapid 2016, Two of my favourite players slugging it out!}) 10. Rc1 c5 11. Nf4 ({RR} 11. Bb5 Bd7 12. Bd3 Nc6 13. f3 g6 14. Kh1 Rb8 15. Bb1 Rc8 16. Be1 Bh6 17. Bh4 Be6 18. dxc5 Bxe3 19. cxb6 axb6 20. f4 Bg4 21. Bxf6 Qxf6 22. Nxd5 Qh4 23. g3 Qd8 24. Nxe3 Qxd1 25. Nxd1 Bxe2 {Jobava,B (2669)-Karjakin,S (2774) Almaty 2016 1-0}) 11... Bb7 (11... Ba6 {appears a bit risky because of the d5-pawn coming under assault after} 12. dxc5 Bxd3 13. Nxd3 bxc5 14. Na4 c4 15. Nf4 Nc6 16. Bc3 {but, perhaps, Black can just give it away:} d4 17. exd4 Rc8 18. d5 Nb4 $44) 12. Qf3 Na6 {Dull, standard play.} ({Ivan Saric tried to uphold Black's colors (Jolly Roger?) a couple of times. One of his efforts saw} 12... Nc6 $5 13. Ncxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Ne5 15. dxe5 Qxd5 16. Qxd5 Bxd5 17. Bc3 Bxa2 {Martinovic-Saric, 2017. Black doesn't look to be worse at all.}) ({I like} 12... Bc6 $5 {There's no white knight anywhere near e5, and Black is planning to follow up c5-c4 with b6-b5!}) ({RR} 12... Nc6 13. Nfxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 Ne5 15. dxe5 Qxd5 16. Qxd5 Bxd5 17. a4 Rxe5 18. Bc3 Ree8 19. Rfd1 Red8 20. Bb5 a6 21. Rxd5 Rxd5 22. Bc6 Rad8 23. Bxd5 Rxd5 24. Kf1 f5 25. Ke2 Kf7 26. h3 h5 27. b3 {Praggnanandhaa,R (2757)-Martirosyan,H (2661) Biel SUI 2024 ½-½ (40)}) 13. Rfd1 cxd4 $146 {True to his newfound identity of "MInister of Defence" Sergey dutifully accepts a slightly worse position.} ({Truth be told,} 13... Nc7 $6 14. dxc5 $1 bxc5 15. Na4 Ne4 16. Ba5 Qe7 17. b4 $1 {would have been a much worse outcome.}) ({RR} 13... Nc7 14. dxc5 bxc5 15. Na4 Nd7 16. Ba5 Bc6 17. Bxc7 Qxc7 18. Nxd5 Qb7 19. Qh3 g6 20. Bc4 Bxa4 21. Qf3 Bc6 22. b4 cxb4 23. Ba6 Bxd5 24. Bxb7 Bxf3 25. Bxf3 Nc5 26. Bxa8 Rxa8 27. Rd5 Rc8 28. Rd7 {Nguyen,C (2370)-Fayard,A (2212) Paris 2014 ½-½ (46)}) 14. exd4 Nc7 15. Bc2 Bd6 16. Be3 Ne4 $1 17. Ba4 Re7 18. Bb3 Qd7 19. h3 Nxc3 20. bxc3 $5 {Magnus is desperate to unbalance the position. Actually, the resulting pawn structure is not that bad: with d4 defended White can concentrate on the d5-pawn.} (20. Rxc3 Rae8 21. Rdc1 g6 {doesn't lead White anywhere.}) 20... Bc6 21. Nh5 Re6 22. Bc2 $2 {Oh, Magnus...} ({First} 22. Re1 $1 {then c2 to keep that bishop alive!}) 22... Ba4 $1 {Being Magnus at this moment in time: no wins to his credit, no chance to contend for first place, the media demanding explanations, the chess internet swirling with rumours, the damned glasses make his head ache... He just had to do something about it.} 23. c4 $5 dxc4 24. d5 Rg6 $1 {So far Sergey is showing himself up to the task.} 25. Bd4 (25. Bxg6 fxg6 26. Ng3 Bxd1 27. Rxd1 Qf7 $17) ({Objectively best was} 25. Bxa4 Qxa4 26. Nf4 Rf6 27. Qg4) 25... Bxc2 26. Rxc2 Qa4 27. Rcc1 Qxa2 $2 {I love the concrete approach to positions, but every once in a while we should think like Petrosian.} ({The natural defensive move} 27... Ne8 $1 {would leave Carlsen staring at the dreadful possibility of a third defeat in this tournament and the loss of the Number One position in the Live Ratings list for the first time since 2011.}) 28. Nxg7 $1 Rxg7 29. Bxg7 Kxg7 30. Qg4+ Kf8 31. Qh4 Qb2 32. Rxc4 $2 {In looming time trouble Magnus lets the black king escape.} (32. Qh6+ Ke7 33. Rxc4 Qe5 34. Kf1 {White's intiative should net him more pawns, such as is the case in} Kd7 35. Qxh7 Re8 36. Qxf7+ Kd8 37. Qf3 Qh2 38. g4 {although he's hardly better here.}) 32... Ne8 $2 ({The position after the obvious} 32... Kg7 33. g3 Kh8 {favours Black}) 33. Re1 Qf6 34. Qxh7 Qg7 35. Qc2 Qf6 36. Rg4 Bc5 37. Re2 Qh6 38. g3 Nf6 39. Rh4 Qg7 40. Kg2 Qg5 $6 ({If only Sergey had another minute to calculate} 40... Nxd5 {as completely safe he would have never lost this game.} 41. Qf5 Rd8 42. Re6 a5 43. Reh6 Bd4 {etc.}) 41. Qc3 Bd6 $2 {This howler was a product of a 25 minute think.} ({Still,} 41... Qg7 $11) 42. Rh8+ Ng8 43. Re4 Qg7 44. Rxg8+ $1 (44. Rxg8+ Qxg8 45. Qf6 Bc5 46. Rg4 Qh7 47. d6 $18) 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 5th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2017.08.08"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2822"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "188"]
[EventDate "2017.08.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 180"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.09.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Bb4+ 11. Nd2 {This doesn't look like a dangerous continuation. The knight will return to f3 losing precious time. Still, Black's isolated d5 pawn requires accurate play from him.} (11. Ke2 {is the main line.}) ({RR} 11. Ke2) 11... Nc6 12. O-O Be7 (12... Be6 13. Nf3 (13. Nb3 Qf6 14. a3 Be7 15. Qd2 Rfd8 16. Nd4 Nxd4 17. exd4 Bf5 $11 {1/2 (21) Yu,Y (2738)-Nakamura,H (2785) Caleta 2017}) 13... Be7 (13... Bg4 14. h3 Bh5 15. Be2 Re8 16. Rc1 Be7 17. Ne5 Bxe2 18. Qxe2 Qb6 19. Rfd1 Rad8 20. Qc2 Nxe5 21. Bxe5 Rd7 22. Rd3 $14 {1-0 (54) Gabriel,R (2255)-Klovans,J (2440) Schwaebisch Gmuend 1993}) 14. Rc1 Bf6 15. a3 Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 {1-0 (33) Nepomniachtchi,I (2742)-Nakamura,H (2792) Saint Louis 2017} h6 $11) 13. Rc1 (13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6 $11 {1/2 (34) Lputian,S (2495)-Timoscenko,G (2440) Irkutsk 1983}) (13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 (14. Rc1 g6 15. b4 a5 ({RR} 15... Qe7 16. Nf3 ({RR} 16. Bb5 Ne5 17. Nb3 Bg4 18. f3 Be6 19. Nd4 Rac8 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Qd2 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Be2 Qf6 25. f4 Bxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 27. exd4 f6 28. Bf3 Be6 29. f5 gxf5) 16... Rd8 17. h3 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Qd2 a5 20. bxa5 Bxf4 21. exf4 Qxa3 22. Ra1 Qd6 23. Rfb1 Qf6 24. Ra2 Rd6 25. Rc2 Rc6 26. Rxc6 bxc6 27. Qb4 Qd8 28. Ra1 Ba6 29. Bxa6 Rxa6) 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 {1/2 (41) Kalinitschew,S (2426)-Meier,G (2644) Apolda 2017} Nb2 ({RR} 21... Nb2 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4) 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4 $11) (14. Qc2 g6 (14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6 $11 {1/2 (24) Blagojevic,N (2300)-Abramovic,B (2500) Niksic 1997}) ({RR} 14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6) 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6 {1/2 (20) Korchnoi V (2634)-Kasimdzhanov R (2653) Bled (ol) 2002 2003}) ({RR} 14. Qc2 g6 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6) 14... Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3 28. Rxd3 f6 $11 {1/2 (76) Giri,A (2771)-Karjakin,S (2781) Stavanger 2017}) ({RR} 13. h3 Bf6 14. Nf3 h6 15. Rb1 a5 16. a3 d4 17. e4 Re8 18. Qd2 a4 19. Rbe1 Qa5 20. Qxa5 Rxa5 21. Bc7 Ra8 22. e5 Be7 23. Bb6 Be6 24. Rc1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Bb5 Bd5 27. Bxc6 bxc6 {Giri,A (2748)-Gukesh,D (2776) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (100)}) ({RR} 13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6) ({RR} 13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3) 13... Bf6 14. Nf3 (14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1 {1/2 (22) Nyback,T (2639)-Solozhenkin,E (2511) Finland 2009}) ({RR} 14. a3 g6 ({RR} 14... Be6 15. b4 Qb6 16. b5 Ne5 17. Bxe5 Bxe5 18. Bxh7+ Kxh7 19. Qh5+ Kg8 20. Qxe5 d4 21. Qxd4 Qxb5 22. Qa1 Rfd8 23. Nf3 Bd5 24. Nd4 Qd7 25. Rfd1 Rac8 26. h3 b6 27. Qb2 Bb7 28. Qe2 Rc5 29. Qg4) 15. Qb3 ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Be5 22. Rxc4 Bxf4 23. Nxe6 dxc4 24. Nxd8 Rxd8 25. Qc2 Bd6 26. Bxc4 Bc5 27. Rb1 Bb4 28. Rd1 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Kg7) 15... a5 16. Bb5 Be6 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. Bf1 Qe7 19. Qb5 Rfd8 20. h3 a4 21. b3 Qxa3 22. bxa4 Nd4 23. Qd3 Qxd3 24. Bxd3 Rxc1 25. Rxc1 Nc6 26. Nb3 g5 27. Bg3 d4 28. Nc5 dxe3 {Shevchenko,K (2622)-Carlsen,M (2828) Warsaw, Poland 2024 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1) 14... Qe7 $146 (14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2 {is favourable for White: the isolani is still on the board, and the position of Black's king is now weak.}) ({but} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6 {was probably more active.}) (14... Be6 $5 {transposes to Nepomniachtchi - Nakamura (see above).}) ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bd6 Rd8 16. Bc5 Qa5 17. Qb3 Rb8 18. Qb5 Qxb5 19. Bxb5 Bxb2 20. Rc2 b6 21. Bxc6 bxc5 22. Rxc5 Be6 23. Ng5 d4 24. Nxe6 fxe6 25. exd4 Bxd4 26. Rc2 Rb2 27. Rxb2 Bxb2 28. Ba4 Kf7 29. Rd1 {Swiercz,D (2638)-Meier,G (2651) Saint Louis 2017 ½-½}) ({RR} 14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6) ({RR} 14... Be6 15. a3 Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 h6) 15. h3 g6 16. Bb5 $5 Bd7 (16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 (17... bxc6 18. Rxc6 $14) ({RR} 17... bxc6 18. Rxc6) 18. Bxd5 {[%cal Rd1c1,Rf4d6]} Ba3 19. Bh6 {[%cal Rd1d4]} Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1 $14 {[%csl Rf8]}) ({RR} 16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 18. Bxd5 Ba3 19. Bh6 Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1) 17. Qxd5 Be6 (17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5 $36) ({RR} 17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5) 18. Qe4 (18. Qc5 $5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 (19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) ({RR} 19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6 $14 {, and Black should hold this ending with accurate defence.}) ({RR} 18. Qc5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6) 18... Bxb2 (18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4 $16) ({RR} 18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4) 19. Bxc6 f5 $1 {An excellent defence.} (19... Bxc1 $2 20. Bxb7 $16) (19... bxc6 20. Rxc6 $16) ({RR} 19... Bxc1 20. Bxb7) ({RR} 19... bxc6 20. Rxc6) 20. Bg5 (20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 (21. Bxb7 Bxe3 $1 22. fxe3 Rab8 $11) ({RR} 21. Bxb7 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rab8) 21... Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8 {, and Black should not lose.}) ({RR} 20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8) 20... fxe4 21. Bxe7 Bxc1 22. Bxb7 (22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5 $11) ({RR} 22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5) 22... Bxe3 $1 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. fxe3 exf3 25. Bxf3 Rb8 $14 {[%mdl 4096] White's extra e3-pawn (rather weak than passed) can hardly be converted but the World Champion manages to create good chances from nothing.} 26. a4 Rb4 27. Bc6 Rc4 28. Bb5 Re4 29. Rd1 a6 30. Bxa6 Rxa4 31. Bb7 Kf7 32. Kf2 Kf6 33. Bd5 Bf5 34. g4 Be6 35. Kf3 Ra5 36. Bxe6 Kxe6 37. h4 Ra2 (37... h5 $5 38. g5 Ra2 {[%cal Ya2h2]}) 38. Rb1 Ra7 39. Kf4 Ra4+ $2 {It was necessary to prevent the invasion of White's king:} (39... h6) 40. e4 Ra7 (40... h6 {is too late now:} 41. Rb6+ Kf7 42. h5 gxh5 43. gxh5 Kg7 44. Rg6+ Kh7 45. Kf5 $18) 41. Rb6+ $2 {The time control is over so Magnus Carlsen's indecision is strange.} (41. Kg5 $1 Ke5 42. Rf1 $1 Kxe4 43. Kh6 $18 {[%cal Yg4g5,Yf1f8,Yf8h8] (indicated by GM Sergey Grigoriants)}) 41... Kf7 42. Rc6 Rd7 43. g5 $2 {Closing the way for his own king, after which Black successfully defends without major problems.} ({According to various commentators,} 43. h5 $1 {was still winning - in a much more complicated way, though.}) 43... Ra7 44. Ke5 Re7+ 45. Kd5 Rd7+ 46. Rd6 Ra7 47. Rf6+ Ke7 48. Rc6 Rd7+ 49. Ke5 Ra7 50. Rc5 Rd7 51. Ra5 Kf7 52. Ra1 Re7+ 53. Kf4 Rb7 54. Ra6 Rc7 55. Kg4 Re7 56. Rf6+ Ke8 57. Kf4 Ra7 58. Rb6 Kf7 59. Ke5 Re7+ 60. Kd5 Rd7+ 61. Rd6 Ra7 62. Rd8 Ra5+ 63. Kd4 Ra4+ 64. Ke5 Ra5+ 65. Kf4 Ra7 66. Rd4 Ke6 67. Rb4 Rf7+ 68. Ke3 Ra7 69. Rb8 Re7 70. Rh8 Ra7 71. Re8+ Kf7 72. Rb8 Ke6 73. Rb6+ Kf7 74. Kf4 Re7 75. Rf6+ Ke8 76. h5 {The last attempt.} gxh5 77. e5 Rf7 $1 78. Ke4 (78. Kg3 Re7 79. e6 Ra7 80. Kh4 Ra1 81. Kxh5 Rh1+ 82. Kg4 Ke7 $11) 78... Rg7 79. Kf5 Rf7 80. Kf4 h4 81. Kg4 Re7 82. e6 Ra7 83. Rh6 (83. Kxh4 Ra1) 83... Kf8 84. Kxh4 Ra4+ 85. Kh5 (85. Kg3 Ke7) 85... Re4 86. Rf6+ Kg7 87. Rf7+ Kg8 88. Re7 Kf8 89. Rxh7 Rxe6 90. Rh6 Re1 91. Ra6 Kg7 92. Ra7+ Kg8 93. Kh6 Re6+ 94. g6 Re8 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Tbilisi"]
[Date "2017.09.06"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Dreev, Alexey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2648"]
[BlackElo "2827"]
[Annotator "Sagar,Shah"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2017.09.03"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GEO"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 181"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:57]} Bb4 $5 {[%emt 0:00:07] Dreev is a well known expert in the c2 variation in the Nimzo Indian. With this move order Magnus avoids that opening.} 4. Nf3 {[%emt 0:04:20]} (4. Qc2 dxc4 {is good for Black.}) 4... Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 5. Bg5 {[%emt 0:01:45]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 6. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:32]} Qxf6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 7. Qb3 {[%emt 0:00:54]} c5 {[%emt 0:00:28]} 8. cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:31]} exd5 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 9. a3 {[%emt 0:00:31]} Bxc3+ {[%emt 0:00:09]} 10. Qxc3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} c4 {[%emt 0:03:51] This is a relatively new idea.} 11. b3 {[%emt 0:03:34]} Be6 {[%emt 0:00:47]} (11... b5 12. a4) 12. Ne5 $6 {[%emt 0:16:57] This move was condemned by Magnus.} (12. e3 O-O 13. Be2 Rc8 14. O-O Nc6 15. a4 cxb3 16. a5 Qd8 17. a6 b6 18. Qxb3 Qd6 19. Rfb1 Rc7 20. h3 Rac8 21. Bd3 Kf8 22. Qb2 Qe7 23. Kf1 Na5 24. Ke2 Nc4 25. Qb4 Qxb4 26. Rxb4 Nd6 27. g4 g5 28. Nd2 Ke7 29. f3 f6 30. Nf1 Rc1 31. Rbb1 Rxb1 32. Rxb1 Rc3 33. Ra1 Nc4 34. Nd2 Nb2 35. Bb5 Bd7 36. Bxd7 Kxd7 37. Ra2 Rc2 38. e4 b5 39. Ra3 Rxd2+ 40. Kxd2 Nc4+ 41. Kc3 Nxa3 {0-1 (41) Skrondal,I (2277)-Hammer, J (2628) Sandefjord 2017}) (12. bxc4 dxc4 13. e4 {is the critical line, but here it seems Black is holding his own.} O-O 14. Be2 Nc6 $13) ({RR} 12. bxc4 dxc4 13. e4 O-O 14. Be2 b5 15. a4 b4 16. Qxb4 Nc6 17. Qc3 Rab8 18. Bxc4 Bxc4 19. Qxc4 Rb4 20. Qc5 Nxd4 21. Nxd4 Qxd4 22. Qxd4 Rxd4 23. f3 f5 24. exf5 Rxf5 25. O-O Ra5 26. Rfc1 Raxa4 {Kozak,A (2586)-Volokitin,A (2628) Fujairah City UAE 2025 ½-½ (31)}) 12... O-O {[%emt 0:05:27]} 13. e3 {[%emt 0:11:59]} Nc6 $146 {[%emt 0:16:21]} ({RR} 13... Rc8 14. Be2 Nd7 15. O-O cxb3 16. Qxb3 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. Qxb7 d4 19. Qb2 Rc3 20. exd4 Qxd4 21. Rfd1 Qc5 22. Rac1 Rc8 23. Rd8+ Rxd8 24. Qxc3 Qg5 25. Rd1 Rc8 26. Qd4 a5 27. h4 Qe7 28. a4 {Khademalsharieh,S (2494)-Lei,T (2505) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (38)}) ({RR} 13... Rc8 14. Be2 Nd7 15. O-O cxb3 16. Qxb3 Nxe5 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. Qxb7 d4 19. Qb2 Rc3 20. exd4 Qxd4 21. Rfd1 Qc5 22. Rac1 Rc8 23. Rd8+ Rxd8 24. Qxc3 Qg5 25. Rd1 Rc8 26. Qd4 a5 27. h4 Qe7 28. a4 {Khademalsharieh,S (2494)-Lei,T (2505) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (38)}) 14. Be2 {[%emt 0:20:19]} (14. Nxc6 bxc6 15. bxc4 Qg6 $1 {This key move gives Black the advantage.}) (14. bxc4 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Qg6 $1 $15) 14... Nxe5 {[%emt 0:02:59]} 15. dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:37]} Qg6 {[%emt 0:02:20]} 16. O-O {[%emt 0:03:25]} d4 $5 {[%emt 0:04:40]} 17. exd4 {[%emt 0:00:21]} cxb3 {[%emt 0:00:03] The b3-pawn is very strong.} 18. Bf3 {[%emt 0:08:07]} Rac8 {[%emt 0:03:21]} 19. Qe3 {[%emt 0:01:39]} Qg5 $1 {[%emt 0:02:23] With this queen exchange the b3-pawn gains in strength.} 20. Rab1 {[%emt 0:12:47]} (20. d5 Qxe3 21. fxe3 Bd7 {Black has a good position, but this might have been the best way to play.}) 20... Qxe3 {[%emt 0:01:20]} 21. fxe3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} Rfd8 {[%emt 0:05:50]} 22. Bxb7 {[%emt 0:02:15]} Rc3 {[%emt 0:03:49]} 23. d5 {[%emt 0:00:49]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:01:22]} 24. Rf4 {[%emt 0:03:25]} a5 {[%emt 0:02:59] Stopping b4.} 25. Kf2 $2 {[%emt 0:03:07]} (25. d6 {and the game goes on.}) 25... Rb8 $1 {[%emt 0:01:58]} 26. Bc6 {[%emt 0:00:51]} Bxc6 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 27. dxc6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Rxc6 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 28. Rd4 {[%emt 0:00:38]} Rc2+ {[%emt 0:00:10]} 29. Kf3 {[%emt 0:00:39]} b2 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 30. Rdd1 {[%emt 0:00:30]} Rb5 {[%emt 0:02:46]} 31. a4 {[%emt 0:01:23]} Rxe5 {[%emt 0:00:32]} 32. Rd8+ {[%emt 0:00:58]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:00:02] And Dreev, who is already a pawn down with a hopeless position, resigned the game.} 0-1

[Event "Douglas IoM op"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2017.09.24"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Perelshteyn, Eugene"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "2524"]
[BlackElo "2827"]
[Annotator "Ftacnik,Lubomir"]
[PlyCount "98"]
[EventDate "2017.09.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 181"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 g6 2. e4 d6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. Be3 a6 5. Nf3 b5 6. Bd3 Nd7 7. e5 {Black has invested lot of time in pawn moves, so White feels entitled to start active play.} Bb7 (7... e6 8. Bg5 Ne7 9. a4 bxa4 10. exd6 cxd6 11. Rxa4 O-O 12. O-O Bb7 13. Be4 d5 14. Bd3 f6 15. Bh4 Nf5 16. Qe2 Qb6 17. Bxf5 exf5 18. Bg3 g5 $15 {0-1 (59) Fishbein,A (2465)-Hansen,C (2565) Kerteminde 1991}) (7... dxe5 8. Be4 Rb8 9. dxe5 {10.a7,10.e6}) (7... Nb6 8. Qe2 (8. O-O Nh6 9. Re1 O-O 10. Qe2 Bb7 11. Rad1 Qc8 12. h3 Nf5 13. Ne4 Nxe3 14. Qxe3 f6 15. exf6 exf6 16. c3 Qd7 17. Qf4 Rae8 18. Ned2 f5 $17 {½-½ (18) Blomqvist,E (2508)-Hillarp Persson,T (2541) Gothenburg 2015}) 8... Nh6 9. O-O-O Nf5 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bd2 dxe5 12. dxe5 c5 13. Be4 Ra7 14. Bf4 Qc7 15. g4 Nd4 16. Nxd4 cxd4 17. Rxd4 Nc4 18. Bd5 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Nxe5 20. Re4 $16 {0-1 (69) Tkachiev,V (2615)-Spraggett,K (2575) Ponferrada 1997}) 8. e6 $5 {The pawn sacrifice is controversial, Black will have to play good moves to minimise White's compensation.} (8. exd6 cxd6 9. O-O Ngf6 $15) 8... fxe6 9. Ng5 (9. a4 b4 10. Ne4 Ngf6 11. Nfd2 Nxe4 12. Nxe4 Bxe4 13. Bxe4 d5 14. Bf3 c5 15. c3 bxc3 16. bxc3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Qa5+ 18. Kf1 O-O 19. h4 Nf6 20. h5 Rac8 21. hxg6 hxg6 22. g3 Kf7 $11 {½-½ (48) Rizouk,A (2489)-Moskalenko,V (2506) Barcelona 2017}) 9... Nf8 10. O-O (10. Qe2 Bxg2 $17) 10... Qd7 {Carlsen has probably prepared the line, but it is questionable to claim that his move is the best solution.} (10... e5 11. dxe5 Bxe5 12. Be4 $11) (10... Nf6 11. f3 (11. f4 Qd7 12. Qe2 b4 13. Nd1 h6 14. Nf3 Nd5 15. Bd2 c5 16. dxc5 Qc6 17. cxd6 exd6 18. c4 bxc3 19. Nxc3 Nxc3 20. bxc3 Qc5+ 21. Kh1 $16 {1-0 (27) Sedlak,N (2564)-Gallagher,J (2530) Turin 2006}) (11. a4 $142 $14 {Svidler}) 11... h6 (11... Nd5 12. Nxd5 exd5 13. Qe2 Qd7 14. f4 Ne6 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. f5 Qd7 17. fxg6 hxg6 18. Bxg6+ Kd8 19. c3 Bf6 20. a4 c6 21. axb5 cxb5 22. Bd2 $16 {0-1 (35) Najer,E (2658)-Malakhov,V (2694) Moscow 2015}) 12. Nge4 Nd5 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. Ng3 e5 15. c3 Qf6 16. f4 e4 17. Be2 Bc8 18. a4 b4 19. f5 gxf5 20. Bg4 h5 21. Bxf5 Bxf5 22. Rxf5 $16 {1-0 (38) Najer,E (2679)-Mchedlishvili,M (2601) Doha 2016}) (10... Nh6 $1 {[%cal Gh6f5] For some reason this natural move aas never been tried before, even though the black knight is perfectly placed on f5 putting pressure on d4 and protecting Black's kingside.} 11. a4 (11. Re1 Nf5 12. Be4 Bxe4 13. Ncxe4 h6 14. Nf3 Nd7 $15) 11... b4 12. Ne2 $6 (12. Na2 a5 13. c3 $13 {winning back the pawn or regaining the c3-square for the knight.}) (12. Nce4 Nf5 13. c3 Qd7 14. g4 h6 15. Nxe6 Qxe6 16. gxf5 Qf7 17. fxg6 Nxg6 18. Qh5 Rg8 19. Ng3 Bf6 20. f4 Kd8 $15 {0-1 (23) Almiron,A (2307)-Bachmann,A (2610) Asuncion 2015}) 12... Nf5 13. Nf4 Qd7 14. Qd2 $6 (14. Be4 Bxe4 15. Nxe4 e5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Nd3 Bg7 $13) 14... Bf6 $1 (14... Bxd4 $6 15. Bxf5 (15. Bxd4 Nxd4 16. Qxb4 c5 $17) 15... Bxe3 16. Bxg6+ hxg6 (16... Nxg6 17. fxe3 Nxf4 18. exf4 O-O-O $17) 17. fxe3 e5 18. Nd5 Nh7 $15) 15. Ne4 Bxd4 16. Bxd4 Nxd4 17. Qxb4 c5 $17 18. Qe1 e5 19. c3 Nfe6 $1 (19... Nde6 20. Nh3 d5 $2 21. Nd2 e4 22. Bc2 $44 {[%cal Gc3c4,Gf2f3]}) 20. Nh3 (20. Nxe6 Nxe6 21. Bc4 Nf4 $19 {[%cal Gd6d5,Gd7g4]}) 20... Nf5 21. Nd2 O-O $17 {½-½ (81) Agrest,E (2592)-Azmaiparashvili,Z (2672) Gothenburg 2005}) (10... h6 $2 11. Bxg6+ Nxg6 12. Nxe6 Qd7 13. Nxg7+ Kf7 14. Nh5 Nf6 (14... b4 $5 15. Nb1 Qb5 16. Nd2 Nf6 17. Nxf6 exf6 $16 {[%csl Gh5]}) 15. Nxf6 exf6 16. Qh5 (16. f3 $5) 16... Rag8 17. d5 Re8 (17... b4 18. Ne2 Ke7 19. Ng3 Kd8 20. c4 $1 $16) 18. Bd4 Bc8 19. f3 (19. Nd1 Re4 20. c3 Rh4 21. Qf3 Ne5 22. Bxe5 dxe5 23. Ne3 $16) 19... Qf5 20. Qxf5 Bxf5 $14 {1-0 (32) Svidler,P (2738)-McNab,C (2451) Gothenburg 2005}) 11. Re1 Nf6 {The knight might be better positioned on h6 as from f5 it will be more active.} (11... Nh6 12. Nce4 (12. a4 b4 13. Nce4 Nf5 14. Qf3 Rb8 (14... Bd5 15. c4 Bc6 16. d5 exd5 17. cxd5 Bb7 18. Ne6 Nxe6 19. dxe6 Qxe6 20. Ng5 Bxf3 21. Nxe6 Nxe3 22. Rxe3 $16) 15. c3 h6 16. Nh3 $44 {Waitzkin,J-Burnett,R/Agency 1998}) (12. Be4 Bxe4 13. Ncxe4 Nf5 14. a4 $14) 12... Nf5 13. c3 h6 14. Nf3 g5 15. a4 bxa4 16. Rxa4 Ng6 17. Qb3 O-O $36 {Duer,W-Horvath,J/AUT-chT9798}) 12. a4 {Attacking Black at the moment of stress is a very attractive idea as the defender's pieces are not well coordinated.} (12. Bd2 h6 {[%csl Rg6]} 13. Nf3 (13. Nge4 Nxe4 14. Bxe4 d5 15. Bf3 Bxd4 $17) 13... Rb8 (13... g5 14. a4 (14. Qe2 Kf7 15. a4 c6 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Bf6 18. Ra3 Rg8 19. Ne5+ dxe5 20. dxe5 Bxe5 21. Qh5+ Ng6 22. Rd3 $16 {0-1 (32) Kovalev,A (2533)-Shoker,S (2448) Vienna 2009}) (14. h3 Rg8 15. a4 b4 16. Ne4 Nxe4 17. Bxe4 Bxe4 18. Rxe4 Qc6 19. Qe2 a5 20. c3 bxc3 21. bxc3 Bf6 22. c4 $14 {1-0 (34) Magem Badals,J (2545)-Movsziszian,K (2483) Catalunya 2012}) 14... b4 15. Ne4 g4 (15... Nxe4 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Rxe4 a5 (17... Qc6 18. Qe2 Rb8 19. c3 bxc3 20. bxc3 Bf6 21. c4 Rb2 22. Re1 Qxa4 23. d5 e5 $16 {0-1 (32) Levin,F (2535)-Rausis,I (2500) Hamburg 2001}) 18. c3 Qc6 19. Qc2 bxc3 20. bxc3 Bf6 21. Rb1 Rg8 22. Rb5 $16 {1-0 (29) Yudasin,L (2540)-Kantsler,B (2535) Israel 1998}) 16. Nh4) (13... Rc8 $5 14. a4 b4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Rxe4 a5 18. c3 c5 19. Qe1 $6 (19. dxc5 dxc5 20. Qe2) 19... cxd4 20. cxb4 $6 (20. cxd4) 20... e5 $1 21. b5 $6 (21. bxa5 Ne6 22. b4 O-O) 21... Ne6 $17 {0-1 (36) Magomedov,M (2604)-Urban,K (2463) Koszalin 1999}) 14. a4 (14. Qe2 Kf7 15. a4 b4 16. Nd1 a5 17. Ne3 Bd5 18. c3 g5 19. h3 Bxf3 20. Qxf3 h5 21. Qe2 Bh6 22. Nc4 bxc3 23. bxc3 $16 {1-0 (35) Fressinet,L (2677)-Buchal,S (2338) Helsingor 2016}) 14... b4 15. Ne4 Nxe4 16. Bxe4 Bxe4 17. Rxe4 Qc6 $5 18. Re3 Qc4 (18... Qd5 {Yudasin,L} 19. c3 b3 20. Qe2) (18... g5 19. c3 bxc3 20. Bxc3 Qd5 21. Qd3 a5 22. Nd2 {c4-a5,c4,f3,e3}) 19. c3 (19. b3 $6 Qd5) (19. Rb3 Nd7 20. c3 O-O 21. cxb4 c6 $13) 19... b3 20. Re1 $11 {[%csl Rb3][%cal Yd2e3,Yf3d2,Ya1a3] 1-0 (42) Anand,V (2770)-Svidler,P (2690) Linares 1998}) (12. Qe2 h6 13. Nge4 $11) (12. f3 h6 13. Nh3 b4 14. Ne2 g5 15. Ng3 Rg8 16. a3 Nd5 17. Bf2 a5 18. c4 bxc3 19. bxc3 Ba6 20. c4 Nf6 21. Rb1 Bh8 22. Rb2 $16 {1-0 (40) Spraggett,K (2526)-Vassallo Barroche,M (2440) Maia 2003}) 12... b4 13. Na2 (13. Nce4 h6 14. Nxf6+ exf6 $13) 13... Qxa4 $146 (13... h6 14. Nf3 a5 15. Bd2 g5 16. c3 $14) ({RR} 13... a5 14. c3 h6 15. Nf3 Nd5 16. cxb4 axb4 17. b3 Ba6 18. Be4 Rb8 19. Qc2 g5 20. Rac1 Kd8 21. Nd2 Nf6 22. Bd3 Bxd3 23. Qxd3 Nd5 24. Nc4 Nh7 25. Na5 Rb6 26. Rc2 Nhf6 27. Rec1 Ng4 28. Nc6+ {Riff,J (2504)-Nebolsina,V (2240) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (51)}) ({RR} 13... a5 14. c3 h6 15. Nf3 Nd5 16. cxb4 axb4 17. b3 Ba6 18. Be4 Rb8 19. Qc2 g5 20. Rac1 Kd8 21. Nd2 Nf6 22. Bd3 Bxd3 23. Qxd3 Nd5 24. Nc4 Nh7 25. Na5 Rb6 26. Rc2 Nhf6 27. Rec1 Ng4 28. Nc6+ {Riff,J (2504)-Nebolsina,V (2240) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (51)}) 14. Qe2 h6 $2 {Carlsen is concerned about the active knight on g5, but instead of this passive move the champion had to find the active idea 14....c5!} (14... c5 $1 15. dxc5 Qc6 16. Nf3 (16. f3 dxc5 17. Bf4 Qb6 18. Bc4 Bd5 19. Bxd5 Nxd5 $15) 16... dxc5 17. c3 N8d7 18. cxb4 Ne5 19. b5 Nxf3+ 20. gxf3 Qxf3 21. Qxf3 Bxf3 22. bxa6 Nd5 $15) 15. Nf3 Kf7 (15... Nd5 16. Bd2 $16) 16. Bd2 b3 17. Nc3 ({Perelshteyn could have postponed the win of the b-pawn and preserved a sounder pawn structure with} 17. Nb4 Qd7 18. c3 Nd5 19. Nxd5 exd5 20. Qd1 c5 21. dxc5 dxc5 22. c4 $16) 17... Qd7 18. cxb3 Rb8 (18... g5 19. h3 Nd5 20. Be4 $14) 19. Ra3 Nd5 {Black has to be inventive to turn the tables in the difficult position. It would have been nice to get counterplay.} (19... Kg8 20. h3 Rh7 21. Bxa6 Bxa6 22. Qxa6 g5 23. Qc4 $16) 20. Ne4 (20. Nxd5 exd5 21. h3 $14) 20... Kg8 21. h4 Qe8 22. Bxa6 Bxa6 23. Qxa6 Bf6 $2 {For better or worse Black should have tried the proactive 23...g5!} (23... g5 $1 24. hxg5 hxg5 25. Bxg5 Bh6 $14) 24. Qc4 Nd7 25. Nc3 (25. b4 N7b6 26. Qe2 Rh7 27. Rc1 $16) 25... N7b6 26. Qe2 Qf7 27. Ne4 (27. Qxe6 Qxe6 28. Rxe6 Kf7 $11) 27... Rf8 (27... Nd7 28. b4 Rh7 29. Rea1 $16) 28. Nxf6+ $2 {The nerves have worked against the US player, it was much better to keep the tension and not take the pawn on e6 yet.} (28. b4 $5 Rh7 29. Ra7 $16) 28... exf6 29. Qxe6 Qxe6 30. Rxe6 Kf7 31. Re1 Rb8 32. Rc1 Nc8 33. Ne1 {White has lost all the advantage despite the extra pawn on the b-file.} (33. b4 Nce7 34. Ne1 Nxb4 35. Rxc7 Nbd5 36. Rc2 g5 $11) 33... Nce7 34. Nd3 g5 35. hxg5 (35. b4 $5 gxh4 36. f3 Rhg8 37. Kh2 $11) 35... hxg5 36. b4 Rh4 37. Bc3 $6 {Step by step White's ship has started to sink. It was time to think about damage limitation as now Carlsen manages to ccordinate all his pieces perfectly.} (37. f3 Nf5 38. Be1 Nxd4 39. Bxh4 Ne2+ 40. Kf2 Nxc1 41. Nxc1 gxh4 $15) 37... Rbh8 38. g3 (38. f3 Nf4 39. Nxf4 Rh1+ 40. Kf2 Rxc1 $19) 38... Rh1+ 39. Kg2 R8h2+ 40. Kf3 g4+ $1 41. Kxg4 (41. Ke2 Nf5 42. Re1 Nxg3+ 43. Kd1 Ne4 $19) 41... Rxc1 42. Nxc1 Rxf2 43. Be1 {White's king feels very lonely on g4, the position is extremely dangerous for him.} (43. Kh3 Nf5 44. Be1 Rxb2 $17) 43... f5+ 44. Kh3 (44. Kh4 Rh2+ 45. Kg5 Nf6 46. Kf4 Ned5+ 47. Kf3 Ne4 $19) 44... Rxb2 (44... Rc2 45. Nd3 Nf6 46. Bf2 Ne4 47. Kg2 Nxf2 48. Nxf2 Rxb2 $17) 45. Nd3 Rc2 46. b5 Nf6 47. Rb3 Re2 (47... Ned5 48. Rb2 Rc4 49. Bf2 Ra4 $17) 48. b6 $2 {Every chessplayer knows the situation of playing under pressure. No wonder White could not bear it and cracks against the world champion.} (48. Ba5 Ned5 49. Nf4 Nxf4+ 50. gxf4 Nd5 51. Kg3 Ra2 52. b6 cxb6 53. Bxb6 Ke7 $17) 48... cxb6 49. Rxb6 Ne4 (49... Ne4 50. Rb2 (50. Rb7 Ng5+ 51. Kh4 Nf3+ 52. Kh3 Rh2#) 50... Ng5+ 51. Kh4 Nf3+ 52. Kh3 Rxb2 53. Nxb2 Nxe1 $19) 0-1

[Event "Douglas IoM op"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2017.10.01"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2827"]
[BlackElo "2781"]
[PlyCount "36"]
[EventDate "2017.09.23"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 181"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2017.11.10"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 ({RR} 1... d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 {½-½ (18) Buckels,V (2353)-Hausrath,D (2495) Dieren 2018}) 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Qc2 Qa5 10. Rd1 Re8 11. Nd2 e5 12. Bg5 Nd4 13. Qc1 Bf5 14. Bxf6 Nc2+ 15. Ke2 Nd4+ 16. Ke1 Nc2+ 17. Ke2 Nd4+ 18. Ke1 Nc2+ $146 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 9th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2017.12.01"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2799"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,Alex "]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "2017.12.01"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 182"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 {Caruana successfully relied on the Queen's Gambit Accepted in his match with Grischuk, Champions Showdown, St. Louis 2017.} 3. e3 {The quietest line. White makes sure to get his pawn back.} ({Alexander focussed on} 3. e4) 3... Nf6 4. Bxc4 e6 5. Nf3 c5 6. O-O a6 7. Be2 $5 {Typical Magnus. This move is way down the list of White's options.} Nbd7 {Caruana is careful to sidestep Carlsen's preparation.} (7... cxd4 8. exd4 Nc6 9. Nc3 Be7 10. Be3 {was seen in Aronian-Caruana, Sinquefield Cup 2017. While the position of e2 doesn't lend a hand to White's usual attacking ambition on the kingside, he can choose a different plan. Fabiano reacted quickly} Ng4 $5 ({not allowing White to expand after} 10... O-O 11. Ne5) 11. Bf4 Nf6 {defended a slightly worse position very successfully, and later took advantage of Levon's blunder. The whole affair took 110 moves!}) 8. Nc3 b6 $5 (8... b5 {seems obvious, but there lies the point of Carlsen's idea.} 9. e4 b4 10. e5 bxc3 11. exf6 Nxf6 ({But} 11... cxb2 $6 {is much worse:} 12. fxg7 bxa1=Q $2 13. gxh8=Q {The same as in the similar position of the Meran Variation: the four queens on the board make the weak black king the decisive factor in the battle.}) 12. bxc3 {With his bishop on e2, instead of d3, White is much better suited for subsequent play with e5 and f3.}) ({RR} 8... b5 9. d5 exd5 10. Nxd5 Bb7 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. a4 b4 13. Ra2 Ne5 14. Nxe5 Qxe5 15. b3 Bd6 16. f4 Qe7 17. Bc4 O-O 18. Qg4 Kh8 19. Re2 f5 20. Qg3 Rad8 21. Bb2 Bc7 22. h4 Bd5 23. Bxd5 {Carlsen,M (2861)-Aronian,L (2759) chess24.com INT 2022 0-1 (52)}) ({RR} 8... b5 9. d5 exd5 10. Nxd5 Bb7 11. Nxf6+ Qxf6 12. a4 b4 13. e4 h6 14. Qc2 Bd6 15. Be3 O-O 16. Rad1 Rad8 17. Nd2 Bf4 18. Bxf4 Qxf4 19. g3 Qf6 20. a5 Qe7 21. Rc1 f5 22. Bc4+ Kh8 23. Bd5 {So,W (2757)-Abdusattorov,N (2766) Bucharest ROU 2024 ½-½ (86)}) 9. e4 $146 ({RR} 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. Bf3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 cxd4 12. exd4 Nxe5 13. dxe5 Nd7 14. Bf4 Be7 15. Rfd1 O-O 16. Ne4 Kh8 17. Rd3 Qc7 18. Rc1 Qb7 19. Qe2 Nc5 20. Nxc5 Bxc5 21. Rh3 Rad8 22. Qc2 g6 23. a3 Rd4 {Abrahamyan,T (2311)-Lee,A (2334) Saint Louis 2022 0-1 (64)}) ({RR} 9. Ne5 Bb7 10. Bf3 Qc7 11. Nxd7 Nxd7 12. d5 Rd8 13. e4 Bd6 14. Bg5 Nf6 15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. g3 O-O 17. Bg2 Be5 18. Qh5 b5 19. Bh3 Kh8 20. dxe6 fxe6 21. Bxe6 Bxc3 22. bxc3 Bxe4 23. Rfe1 f5 {Dardha,D (2580)-Teclaf,P (2585) Veli Losinj CRO 2023 ½-½}) 9... cxd4 10. Nxd4 Bb7 11. Be3 $5 {Still in Magnus's preparation. Now he offers a pawn sac.} ({The immediate} 11. f3 {would have pointed Black in the right direction:} Qb8 $1 12. Be3 Bd6 13. g3 h5 $5) 11... Bc5 {With this move Caruana accepts a slightly worse position.} ({One wonders about} 11... Nxe4 12. Nxe4 Bxe4 13. Bf3 Bxf3 14. Qxf3 Bc5 {Clearly, White has some play, but is it enough to claim an advantage? Practical testing is awaited.}) 12. f3 $14 {There are many classical examples, some from Kramnik's games, of White benefiting from his g2-f3-e4 pawn chain. Black's f6 and b7 are restricted.} O-O 13. Qe1 ({The more direct} 13. Qd2 Rc8 14. Na4 Be7 15. b4 b5 16. Nb2 {would leave Black searching for a suitable square for his queen, while a2-a4 won't be long in coming.}) 13... Rc8 14. Qf2 b5 15. Rac1 Qe7 {Now possible, as the c5 can retreat along the other diagonal.} 16. a4 ({I figure Kramnik would have preferred} 16. Nb3 Bxe3 17. Qxe3 {eyeing that a5-square.}) 16... bxa4 17. Nxa4 Bd6 $6 {A surprising choice.} (17... Ba7 {was safe, as} 18. Nf5 $2 exf5 19. Bxa7 fxe4 {loses a pawn for White.}) 18. Nb3 Bc6 19. Nc3 Rb8 20. Na5 Ba8 21. Nc4 Bc5 22. Rfd1 Rfc8 23. Na4 $6 {True to his style of play, Magnus seeks some clarification, but taking his knight to the edge of the board cost him a big chunk of his advantage.} ({The logical choice would have been} 23. Ra1 {to hit the weak pawn. White can also have plans for central expansion, such as in} Bxe3 24. Qxe3 Nc5 25. Nd6 Rc6 26. e5 Nfd7 27. f4) 23... Bxe3 24. Qxe3 Qb4 $1 {A timely activity to interfere with White's plans.} 25. Qa3 {This was expected from Magnus Carlsen.} (25. Nc3) 25... h6 26. Kf1 ({White could have accomplished more simplification with the help of a little tactic} 26. Ncb6 $5 Qxa3 27. Rxc8+ Rxc8 28. bxa3 Nxb6 29. Nxb6 Rb8 30. Nxa8 Rxa8 31. Rc1 $14) 26... g5 27. Rc3 a5 28. Qxb4 axb4 {A welcome pawn structure change if you're a Caruana fan. Still, White is a little better, and Magnus is Magnus.} 29. Rcc1 Kf8 30. Na5 Ke7 31. Kf2 Rxc1 32. Rxc1 Ne8 33. Ke3 Nd6 34. Nc5 Rc8 35. Nab3 f5 $6 (35... Ne5 {would have prevented White from trading rooks, which he needs to accomplish if he's serious about hitting that b4-pawn.}) 36. Nxd7 Rxc1 37. Nxc1 Kxd7 38. Nd3 $6 ({It is surprising to see Carlsen neglecting a chance to win a clean pawn after} 38. Bd3 fxe4 39. fxe4 {and there's no stopping the threat of a2. Truth to tell, White would still be a long ways from winning the game.} e5 40. Na2 Kc7 41. Nxb4 Kb6) 38... fxe4 39. fxe4 Ke7 40. e5 ({Another option was} 40. Bf3 g4 41. Bxg4 Bxe4 42. Bf3 Bxd3 43. Kxd3 e5 $14) 40... Nf5+ 41. Kf2 Nd4 42. Bd1 b3 43. Nb4 Bd5 44. g3 (44. Nxd5+ exd5 45. Ke3 Nf5+ 46. Kd3 Ke6 47. Bxb3 Kxe5 {An outside passer is always useful in  vs  endgames, but here Black is well centralised and therefore should hold.}) 44... Bc4 45. Ke3 Nf5+ 46. Ke4 $6 (46. Kd2 {seemed more promising:} Kd7 47. Bf3 Kc7 48. Kc3) 46... Kd7 47. g4 {This pawn will be a target for Black's counterplay.} Ne7 48. Kd4 Bf1 49. Bxb3 Be2 50. h3 Bf1 51. Nd3 Nc6+ 52. Kc5 $5 {A fancy way to reach a draw that seened inevitable anyhow.} Bxd3 53. Ba4 Be4 54. Kb6 Bd5 {Of course Black cannot unpin, but he can wait for the white pawn to come to b5, and then his knight can move away.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 9th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2017.12.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2874"]
[BlackElo "2770"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,Alex "]
[PlyCount "62"]
[EventDate "2017.12.01"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 182"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 dxc4 5. Nf3 c5 {Anand likes straighforward lines in his preparation to play with black pieces.} 6. O-O Nc6 7. Na3 $5 ({A similar version of the same idea is} 7. Ne5 Bd7 8. Na3 cxd4 9. Naxc4 Bc5) ({while, of course,} 7. Qa4 {remains White's top choice.}) 7... cxd4 8. Nxc4 Bc5 9. b3 $5 (9. a3 a5 10. Bd2 O-O 11. Rc1 a4 12. Nce5 {Artemiev-Zvjaginsev, 2015}) (9. Qc2 O-O 10. Nce5 {Nakamura-Kaidanov, 2012}) 9... Qe7 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. Bb2 d3 11. e3 Rb8 12. Rc1 b6 13. Nfe5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Bb7 15. Qxd3 Qxd3 16. Nxd3 Ba6 17. Rfd1 Bxd3 18. Rxd3 Rfd8 19. Rcd1 Rxd3 20. Rxd3 h5 21. Bf3 Be7 22. Bxf6 Bxf6 23. Rd7 a5 24. Bxh5 {Caruana,F (2828)-Harikrishna,P (2726) Saint Louis 2019 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 9... O-O 10. Bb2 Qc7 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. Qc2 Qe7 13. Rfd1 a6 14. Nfe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bb6 16. Qc4 Qd6 17. Nf3 e5 18. Ng5 Qe7 19. Ba3 Qe8 20. Ne4 Nxe4 21. Bxe4 Be6 22. Qd3 Rab8 23. Bxh7+ Kh8 24. Bf5 {Herbrig,A (2295)-Kadhi,H (2375) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (55)}) 10. Nfe5 {It seems Carlsen wasn't sure about his preparation.} ({A logical follow-up has to be} 10. Bb2 e5 11. b4 $1 {where Black's best may be} Nxb4 (11... Bxb4 12. Nfxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Bc3 14. Bxc3 dxc3 15. Qa4+ Nd7 16. Nc4 {quickly rounding up the c3-pawn and keeping some edge due to the vastly superior bishop.}) 12. Nfxe5 O-O 13. a3 Na6 {White then gets his pawn back and plays on.} 14. Bxd4 Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Rd8 16. Qf4 {etc.}) 10... Nxe5 11. Nxe5 {In such positions the key issue is to prevent Black from connecting his pawns.} Nd7 $146 {Vishy cuts to the chase. The issue of a strong white knight has to be addressed immediately.} (11... O-O 12. Bb2 Rd8 13. Rc1 Rb8 14. Qc2 Bb6 15. Rfd1 Nd7 16. Nc4 $1 {turned out to be better for White in Melkumian-Grachev, World Cup 2017.}) ({RR} 11... O-O 12. Bb2 Rd8 13. Rc1 Ne8 14. Qc2 Bb6 15. Rfd1 f6 16. Nc4 e5 17. Ba3 Bc5 18. Bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. Qa5 Bg4 21. Rd2 b6 22. Qd5+ Rxd5 23. Bxd5+ Kf8 24. Bxa8 Qc5 25. a4 a6 26. f3 {Gogolev,A (2301)-Tsaruk,M (2324) Grodno 2021 0-1}) ({RR} 11... O-O 12. Bb2 Rd8 13. Rc1 Ne8 14. Qc2 Bb6 15. Rfd1 f6 16. Nc4 e5 17. Ba3 Bc5 18. Bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qd2 Qe7 20. Qa5 Bg4 21. Rd2 b6 22. Qd5+ Rxd5 23. Bxd5+ Kf8 24. Bxa8 Qc5 25. a4 a6 26. f3 {Gogolev,A (2301)-Tsaruk,M (2324) Grodno 2021 0-1}) 12. Bf4 O-O 13. Rc1 Rd8 ({A more direct way was} 13... f6 14. Nxd7 Bxd7 15. Bxb7 Rae8 16. Qd3 Kh8) 14. Nd3 $6 {Magnus takes it a bit too far.} ({Perhaps he was not entirely satisfied with White's chances after} 14. Nxd7 Rxd7 (14... Bxd7 15. Bxb7 e5 {is enterprising.}) 15. Rc4 e5 16. Qc2 exf4 17. Rxc5 Rd8 {but nevertheless, it was the way to go.}) 14... Bb6 15. Bc7 Re8 16. Qc2 e5 {Black has accomplished his goal, and now it's up to White not to get worse.} 17. Rfd1 Nf8 18. a4 Bg4 19. Bxb6 axb6 20. h3 Rac8 21. Qd2 {Here we have it: Black is a clean pawn up.} Be6 $2 {One can only feel disappointment seeing the former World Champ settling for a draw.} (21... Bh5 22. Rc4 f6 23. Rdc1 Rxc4 24. bxc4 Bf7 $15) 22. Nxe5 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Bxb3 24. Nf3 Bxa4 25. Nxd4 Ne6 26. Nf5 Qf6 27. Ne3 Qd4 28. Qa2 Nc5 29. Rc4 Bb3 30. Rxd4 Bxa2 31. Rb4 Re6 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 9th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2017.12.11"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A43"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"]
[PlyCount "106"]
[EventDate "2017.12.01"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 182"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.01.17"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 {Earlier on in the Festival, in the open tournament, I employed this move order rather than ...f6 so as to permit the wrinkle 2.c4 b4+ followed by an ...f5 setup. The order also dodges the c3 Dutch and allows a quick ... c5 against f3 or g3. However, of course, the French must be in your repertoire.} 2. Nf3 c5 3. g3 (3. e4 {Some kind of Sicilian that is not the Dragon or Classical must also be in your repertoire. If you are a Najdorf player, you must be willing to play ...e6 rather than ...e5 setups.}) 3... cxd4 4. Nxd4 Qb6 (4... d5 {is main, and seems to equalise straightforwardly since White cannot really arrange to play c4 under desirable circumstances.}) 5. Bg2 Bc5 6. e3 (6. c3 Nf6 7. O-O d5 8. Nd2 {intending e4 is another valid way to play, though it sacrifices a pawn in various ways}) 6... d5 7. Qg4 $6 $11 {e3 goes with c4. In spite of this move appearing to force some concessions, maybe White should have stuck to the plan.} (7. O-O Nf6 8. c4 $36 {was probably the way to ask some probing questions.}) 7... Bf8 {Trying to play without weaknesses.} (7... g6 {is not ridiculous either.}) 8. O-O Nf6 9. Qe2 e5 $146 (9... Nc6 {avoids the doubled pawn scenario.}) ({RR} 9... Bd7 10. b3 Nc6 11. Bb2 Nxd4 12. Bxd4 Bc5 13. Rd1 Rc8 14. c4 Bxd4 15. exd4 dxc4 16. bxc4 Ba4 17. Rd2 Qb4 18. Rb2 Qxc4 19. Qxc4 Rxc4 20. Na3 Rc7 21. Rb4 Bc6 22. Bxc6+ Rxc6 23. Rxb7 Rd6 24. Nb5 {Salo,H (2267)-Lehtinen,H (2408) Finland 2013 0-1 (48)}) 10. Qb5+ Bd7 11. Qxb6 axb6 12. Nb3 Nc6 13. Bd2 Bd6 14. Nc3 Ne7 15. a4 O-O (15... Rc8 $11 {delays b5 by a tempo which may be important. Certainly since the rook came here anyway in the end this was a more internally consistent order.}) 16. Nb5 Bxb5 17. axb5 $14 {It seems to me that White has nevertheless managed to get a little something, though the position continues to be strategically confusing.} Rac8 18. Bc3 h5 19. Rfd1 Rfd8 20. Nd2 {White has an advantage, but as so often with the bishop pair in closed positions it is hard to work with it. White chooses a logical plan of trying to get the knight to g5.} (20. Ra7 {appeals somewhere round here; as White I would probably like to double rooks on the a-file, exchange one pair of them, arrange the bishops on e1 and d1 and maybe play toward g4. (As every grandmaster knows, the bishops control most squares from the back rank. Thus, you will often see them win the bishop pair and then store the two boys away on e1 and f1.)}) 20... h4 (20... Ne8 21. Nf3 f6 {deserved consideration.}) 21. Nf3 hxg3 22. hxg3 e4 {Keeping the game strategically messy.} (22... Ne4 $14 {was playable, but admits to being worse.}) 23. Ng5 (23. Nd4 $14 {was a much better move, not being constrained by his own previous plan of putting the knight on g5. For instance} Be5 24. Bh3 Rb8 25. Ra4 {and White will ultimately play for c4.}) 23... Ng6 24. Ra7 $14 {So White has acheived what I wanted anyway. It would have been much more fitting to annotate this game as a White win, but Black reminds us that there is still a lot going on in the game strategically (e.g. the idea of ...e5.)} Rb8 25. Bd4 Bc5 26. Bxc5 bxc5 27. c4 Ne7 (27... Re8 $14 {was better according to the engine, but would be depressing to play. As a human you want all your pieces to be doing some work, and here the knight on g6 isn't performing well.}) 28. cxd5 Nc8 29. Ra4 Nb6 30. Ra3 Nc4 31. Rc3 Nd6 32. Rxc5 Ra8 33. Bh3 {Probably a step in the wrong direction, even if the computer sees no problem. The problem is that White is now playing for strings of (albeit high level) tactical tricks.} (33. Nh3 $14 {was the right idea, if not the right implementation: this knight should be on f4 or d4 or something, not playing for tricks on the kingside.}) 33... Re8 {Playing with the motif of trapping the knight.} 34. Rc7 Kf8 (34... Re5 $4 {runs into a forced piece sacrifice:} 35. Nxf7 Nxf7 36. Be6 Rf8 37. Rxb7 $18) 35. b6 (35. Be6 {was tempting but Black will just ignore it.} Re7 36. Rxe7 Kxe7 37. Bh3 Rh8 $11) 35... Re5 36. Ne6+ (36. Nxf7 $11 {was a better way to give up the piece and now White probably keeps dynamic equality}) 36... fxe6 37. dxe6 Nfe8 38. Rd7 Raa5 {Now Black has completely turned the tables and gets to finish the event above 50%!} 39. b4 (39. R1xd6 Nxd6 40. Rxd6 Rad5 {was objectively best but in a human game this ending would be absolute hell to defend.}) 39... Rad5 40. Ra1 Rb5 $17 {Now the knights and e5-rook hold White's play back while the b5-rook takes stuff.} 41. Ra8 Rxb6 42. Bg4 Rd5 43. Kg2 Rxb4 44. Ra1 Rbb5 45. Be2 Rb2 46. Bg4 Rdd2 47. Kh3 Rxf2 48. Kh4 Rh2+ 49. Bh3 g5+ 50. Kh5 Rxh3+ 51. Kg6 Rf2 52. e7+ Kg8 53. Rxd6 Rh7 {Finally either taking the pawn or setting up mating tactics (...g7 and either ...g4 or ...f7)} 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 80th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2018.01.15"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2834"]
[BlackElo "2743"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "2018.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 183"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:50]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 3. g3 {[%emt 0:00:48]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:25]} 4. Bg2 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Be7 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 5. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:11]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:18]} 6. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:16]} c5 {[%emt 0:01:18]} 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:27]} cxd4 {[%emt 0:09:56]} 8. Nxd4 {[%emt 0:00:27]} Na6 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 9. cxd5 {[%emt 0:08:56]} Nb4 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 10. Qb3 {[%emt 0:02:10]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:58]} 11. Nb5 {[%emt 0:06:17]} Nbxd5 {[%emt 0:00:27]} 12. N1c3 {[%emt 0:02:42]} Be6 {[%emt 0:02:21]} 13. Nxd5 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Bxd5 {[%emt 0:00:33]} 14. Bxd5 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Qxd5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 15. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:21]} Qxb3 {[%emt 0:15:51]} 16. axb3 {[%emt 0:00:02]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 17. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:38]} h6 $146 {[%emt 0:02:44]} ({RR} 17... Rac8 18. Rfd1 Rfd8 19. Rxd8+ Bxd8 20. Rd1 Kf8 21. Bxf6 Bxf6 22. Rd7 Rb8 23. Kg2 Ke8 24. Rd3 Rd8 25. Nd5 Rd6 26. e4 Bd8 27. Kf3 Bb6 28. Rc3 Kd8 29. Ke2 Bd4 30. Rc2 Rc6 31. Rxc6 bxc6 32. Nb4 {Artemiev,V (2669)-Lysyj,I (2668) Sochi 2016 ½-½ (40)}) 18. Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:16]} Bxf6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 19. Nd5 {[%emt 0:01:24]} Rac8 {[%emt 0:01:28]} 20. Rac1 {[%emt 0:02:14]} e4 {[%emt 0:08:15]} 21. Rc4 {[%emt 0:00:59]} Rxc4 {[%emt 0:03:47]} 22. bxc4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Bxb2 {[%emt 0:08:30]} 23. Rb1 {[%emt 0:00:10]} Ba3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 24. Rxb7 {[%emt 0:00:14]} Rc8 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 25. Ra7 {[%emt 0:02:45]} Rxc4 {[%emt 0:04:35]} 26. Rxa6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bf8 {[%emt 0:05:13]} 27. Ra8 {[%emt 0:05:36]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 28. e3 {[%emt 0:00:44]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:39]} 29. Kg2 {[%emt 0:01:00]} h5 {[%emt 0:00:46]} 30. h3 {[%emt 0:00:36]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:03:06]} 31. Rd8 {[%emt 0:03:26]} Be5 {[%emt 0:00:25]} 32. Re8 {[%emt 0:01:12]} Bd6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 33. Rd8 {[%emt 0:00:40]} Be5 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 34. g4 {[%emt 0:00:57]} hxg4 {[%emt 0:00:14]} 35. hxg4 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Rc5 {[%emt 0:07:13]} 36. g5 {[%emt 0:00:48]} Rb5 {[%emt 0:01:08]} 37. Kh3 {[%emt 0:00:29]} Rc5 {[%emt 0:00:45]} 38. Ne7 {[%emt 0:01:02]} Rc2 {[%emt 0:06:06]} 39. Kg2 {[%emt 0:00:32]} Rc7 {[%emt 0:00:10]} 40. Rg8+ {[%emt 0:00:00]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 41. Re8 {[%emt 0:00:47]} Rc5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 42. Rc8 {[%emt 0:01:17]} Rb5 {[%emt 0:02:27]} 43. Rf8 {[%emt 0:01:06]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:11]} 44. Rg8+ {[%emt 0:00:08]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 45. Rf8 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kg7 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 46. Rg8+ {[%emt 0:00:13]} Kh7 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 80th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2018.01.26"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E34"]
[WhiteElo "2804"]
[BlackElo "2834"]
[Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2018.01.13"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 183"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.03.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.03.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[TimeControl "40/6000+30:20/3000+30:900+30"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:25]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} e6 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Bb4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 4. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} d5 {[%emt 0:00:20]} 5. cxd5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} (5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 {is another big main line, e.g.} O-O 7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5 $11 {, which was the path followed by Ivanchuk,V-Harikrishna,P Huaian 2017}) 5... Qxd5 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 6. e3 {[%emt 0:01:56]} (6. Nf3 Qf5 $1 $11 {has now become famous, and after some wrangling it has become clear that only Black can actually have a positional edge in the endgame, despite his doubled f-pawns!}) 6... c5 {[%emt 0:01:00]} 7. Bd2 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:22]} 8. Bxc3 {[%emt 0:00:05]} cxd4 {[%emt 0:00:44]} 9. Bxd4 {[%emt 0:00:05]} Nc6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 10. Bc3 {[%emt 0:00:04]} (10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Ne2 {is the initial computer recommendation, but this really isn't that good after say} Bd7 12. a3 Qa5+ 13. Nc3 Ne7 $11 {Dreev,A -Fedoseev,V Moscow 2014}) 10... O-O {[%emt 0:00:54]} 11. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:20]} Rd8 {[%emt 0:18:24] Else d1 is slightly annoying.} 12. Be2 {[%emt 0:12:37]} (12. Rd1 Qxd1+ 13. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 14. Kxd1 Ne4 15. Be1 e5 $11 {is another equal position, where White's bishop pair isn't yet active enough to give him any advantage.}) 12... Qe4 {[%emt 0:03:03]} 13. Rc1 {[%emt 0:05:05]} Qxc2 {[%emt 0:01:48]} 14. Rxc2 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Nd5 {[%emt 0:00:07]} (14... Bd7 15. Nd4 Ne7 $11 {could be worth considering for the future; White's bishop pair is a lot less scary when there is an extra pair of knights on the board.}) ({RR} 14... Bd7 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. Bxe5 Rac8 17. Rxc8 Rxc8 18. O-O Nd5 19. Rd1 f6 20. Bd4 Ba4 21. b3 Be8 22. Bc4 b5 23. Bxd5 exd5 24. Bxa7 Ra8 25. Bc5 Rxa2 26. h4 Bf7 27. e4 Ra8 28. exd5 Rd8 29. b4 {So,W (2754)-Carlsen,M (2875) Zagreb 2019 ½-½ (36)}) 15. Ne5 {[%emt 0:21:44]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:03:44] This is the novelty!} (15... Nxe5 16. Bxe5 b6 17. a3 f6 18. Bg3 Bb7 19. O-O Rac8 20. Rfc1 e5 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Kf1 {Grachev,B-Karjakin,S Antalya 2017. This somehow led to one of the world's best defensive players being ground down; the problem is that White can keep trying things and never runs any risk at all.}) 16. Nxc6 {[%emt 0:15:26]} Bxc6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 17. Bd2 $146 {[%emt 0:00:40]} ({RR} 17. Ba5 Re8 18. O-O e5 19. Rd1 h6 20. h3 Ba4 21. b3 Bc6 22. a4 Ne7 23. Bc4 Rac8 24. Rcd2 b6 25. Bb4 Nf5 26. Ba6 Ra8 27. Rc1 Re6 28. Rdc2 Bd5 29. Rc8+ Re8 30. Rxa8 Rxa8 31. Rc3 Nh4 {Ravlusevic,E (1703)-Butvilas,A (2052) Klaipeda 2019 0-1 (58)}) 17... Ne7 {[%emt 0:22:33]} 18. f3 {[%emt 0:01:06]} Rac8 {[%emt 0:00:37]} 19. e4 {[%emt 0:02:52]} (19. Ba5 $5 b6 20. Bb4 Nd5 21. Bd2 $14 {prevents Black from playing ... a6 and ...b5.}) 19... f6 {[%emt 0:00:57]} 20. Be3 {[%emt 0:02:47]} a6 {[%emt 0:00:46]} 21. Kf2 {[%emt 0:02:19]} (21. Bc4 $5 Kf7 22. Bb3 Bb5 23. Kf2 {and we can still talk about a White edge based on the bishop pair.}) 21... Bb5 $1 {[%emt 0:01:00] Black has equalised again.} 22. Rhc1 {[%emt 0:07:13]} Rxc2 {[%emt 0:01:24]} 23. Rxc2 {[%emt 0:00:08]} Bxe2 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 24. Kxe2 {[%emt 0:04:18]} Nc6 $11 {[%emt 0:00:28] There is nothing really left to play for. Black can choose between an ...e5 based plan, and a rook-exchange based plan.} 25. b4 {[%emt 0:01:04]} Rc8 {[%emt 0:01:52]} 26. Rc5 {[%emt 0:05:57]} b5 {[%emt 0:02:19]} 27. f4 {[%emt 0:05:40]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:19]} 28. a3 {[%emt 0:00:16]} Ne7 {[%emt 0:06:52]} 29. Rxc8 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Nxc8 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 30. Bc5 Ne7 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 31. Bxe7 {[%emt 0:01:32]} Kxe7 {[%emt 0:00:00]} 32. Kf3 {[%emt 0:01:50]} Kd6 33. Ke3 e5 {[%emt 0:00:40]} 34. f5 {[%emt 0:04:27]} Ke7 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 35. g4 {[%emt 0:00:39]} Kf7 {[%emt 0:00:31]} 36. h4 {[%emt 0:00:12]} Kg8 {[%emt 0:00:13]} 37. Kf3 {[%emt 0:00:13]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 38. h5 {[%emt 0:00:18]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 5th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2018.03.31"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E61"]
[WhiteElo "2784"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[Annotator "Stohl,Igor"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2018.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%mdl 2] Prematch games between the challenger and the title-holder always have an increased psychological significance. In this case Carlsen did put his opponent under serious pressure, but in the end Caruana escaped and went on to score a resounding tournament victory.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 {Already a slight surprise.} ({Carlsen more often plays} 2... e6 {, this appeared in round 5. After} 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Qc2 c6 9. Bf4 Ne4 10. h4 $5 ({Magnus undoubtedly wouldn't mind repeating} 10. Nc3 g5 $1 11. Be3 Nd6 12. b3 Nf5 13. g4 Nxe3 14. fxe3 b5 $1 15. e4 b4 16. exd5 bxc3 17. dxc6 Nb8 18. Qe4 f5 19. gxf5 exf5 20. Qd5+ Qxd5 21. cxd5 Na6 $17 {Eljanov,P (2760)-Carlsen,M (2844) Wijk aan Zee 2016.}) 10... Ndf6 ({Black has also tested} 10... h6 {, or the immediate}) (10... f5) 11. Nbd2 Nxd2 12. Nxd2 Nh5 13. Be3 f5 14. Bf3 Qe8 (14... f4 15. Bxh5 fxe3 16. fxe3 Qd6 17. Rxf8+ Bxf8 18. Kf2 e5 $44 {gives Black some compensation, but certainly not more than that.}) 15. Bg5 Nf6 16. e3 b6 17. Rac1 Ba6 18. a3 Ne4 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Be2 Bb7 21. b4 Rac8 22. c5 e5 23. dxe5 Qxe5 24. Nxe4 fxe4 25. Qc3 Qf5 $132 {Meier,G (2648)-Carlsen,M (2843) Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden 2018 Black had reasonable , but overestimated his chances, got into serious trouble and escaped only due to Meier's inaccuracy.}) 3. Nf3 {The World Champion plays the Grünfeld from time to time, but Fabiano is not interested.} ({However, after} 3. Nc3 {in round 3 we saw} Bg7 {After} 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. Be3 exd4 8. Nxd4 Re8 9. f3 c6 10. Bf2 d5 11. exd5 cxd5 12. O-O Nc6 13. c5 a6 14. Qd2 Qa5 15. Rfe1 Qxc5 16. Ne6 Qa5 17. Nxg7 Kxg7 18. a3 d4 19. Bxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Rd8 21. Qe3 Bd7 22. Rad1 Be6 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Rd1 Rxd1+ 25. Bxd1 Qd8 26. Be2 Qd6 27. f4 Bd7 28. Bf3 Bc6 29. Bxc6 Ng4 30. Qg3 Qc5+ 31. Kf1 Ne3+ 32. Ke2 Nf5 33. Qf2 Qxc6 34. g4 Qc4+ 35. Kd2 Nd4 36. Qe3 $11 {Bluebaum,M (2631)-Carlsen,M (2843) Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden 2018. Black even despite protracted efforts couldn't manage to disrupt the balance.}) 3... Bg7 4. e3 ({Caruana has already played} 4. Nc3 d5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 {in the past, this time he opts for the Anti-Grünfeld he had prepared already for the Berlin candidates.}) 4... O-O 5. Be2 d6 {Black puts his pawns on the dark squares in King's Indian fashion. This is an important moment, deciding the character of the game and he also had other options:} ({Transposing into a Benoni} 5... c5 6. d5 e6 7. Nc3 exd5 8. cxd5 d6 {was long considered a good solution:} {However, after} 9. Nd2 $5 (9. O-O Bg4 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Bxf3 Nbd7 12. a4 a6 13. g4 c4 (13... h6 $13) 14. Be2 Rc8 $6 (14... Ne5 15. f4 Nd3 16. Bxd3 cxd3 17. Qxd3 h5 $44) 15. g5 Ne8 16. f4 Qe7 17. Ra3 Rc5 18. Bf3 Ra5 19. Bd2 Nc5 20. Qe2 Nb3 21. Ne4 Nxd2 22. Qxd2 Qd8 23. Qb4 b5 24. axb5 Rxb5 25. Qxc4 Qb6 26. Qc6 Bxb2 27. Qxb6 Rxb6 28. Ra2 $16 {Morozevich,A (2758)-Kramnik,V (2769) Mexico City 2007. For details see the notes to this game in CBM 120 by Marin.}) 9... Na6 ({Black can play the setup with} 9... Nbd7 {, but then White has no reason to hurry with e4.}) 10. O-O Nc7 11. e4 {Black even despite his extra tempo due to e3-e4 still has his problems:} Re8 12. a4 Rb8 ({After the more usual} 12... b6 13. Re1 Rb8 {Black has to reckon with} 14. Bb5 $5) 13. f3 a6 14. a5 Bd7 15. Nc4 Bb5 16. Bg5 Bxc4 (16... h6 17. Bh4 Bxc4 18. Bxc4 b5 19. axb6 Rxb6 20. Qd2 $2 (20. Qc2 $13 {/ is similar to the following note}) 20... Nxe4 $1 21. Bxd8 Nxd2 22. Bxc7 Rb7 $17 {Granda Zuniga,J (2646)-Lopez Martinez,J (2508) Ayamonte 2006}) 17. Bxc4 b5 18. axb6 Rxb6 19. Na4 (19. Qc2 h6 20. Bh4 $13 {/ is similar to the following note} g5 21. Bf2 Nd7 22. Ra2 Qf6 {Hamitevici,V (2430)-Jumabayev,R (2599) London 2015} 23. Nd1 $1 $36 {[%cal Yd1e3,Ye3f5]}) 19... Rb4 20. b3 (20. Qd3 $5) 20... Qc8 21. Bf4 Qd7 22. Ra2 Nh5 23. Be3 (23. Bd2 {is more natural}) 23... Rbb8 24. Qd2 Nb5 25. g4 Nf6 26. Nb2 Qc8 (26... h5 27. g5 Nxe4 $1 28. fxe4 Nc3 29. Rxa6 Qh3 $1 $44 {is a fully valid engine suggestion, but even a strong human GM would hardly dare to play like this...}) 27. Bf4 Nd7 28. Bxb5 axb5 29. Bxd6 Rb6 30. Bg3 c4 31. bxc4 (31. Qc2 $5) 31... bxc4 32. Qe2 Rb4 33. Bd6 Rb6 34. Bg3 Rb4 {½, Caruana,F (2784)-Grischuk,A (2767) Berlin ct 2018}) ({Grünfeld intentions are represented by} 5... d5 6. cxd5 Nxd5 {and now:} {More direct and energetic is} 7. e4 (7. O-O Nb6 (7... c5 $5 8. dxc5 (8. e4 Nf6 9. e5 Nd5 10. dxc5 Nc6 11. Bc4 e6 12. Qe2 Qa5 13. a3 Qxc5 14. b4 Qe7 15. Bb2 a6 16. Nbd2 b5 17. Bxd5 exd5 18. Rac1 Bd7 19. Nb3 Rfc8 20. Rfe1 Bg4 21. h3 Bxf3 22. Qxf3 Nxe5 23. Qxd5 Qd7 $11 {Ginsburg,G (2526)-Ftacnik,L (2568) Nuremberg 2010}) 8... Na6 (8... Nf6 $6 9. Nbd2 Qc7 10. Nb3 Rd8 11. Nfd4 e5 12. Nb5 Qe7 13. Nd6 Ne4 14. Nxc8 Rxc8 15. Bf3 Nxc5 16. Nxc5 Rxc5 17. Qa4 Rc7 18. Bd2 Na6 19. Ba5 Rcc8 20. Bd5 Nc5 21. Qa3 e4 22. f3 $16 {[%csl Ga5,Gd5] Laznicka,V (2666)-Naumann,A (2560) Germany 2014}) 9. Bxa6 bxa6 10. e4 Nb4 11. Qxd8 Rxd8 12. Nc3 Bb7 13. Bg5 Kf8 14. Rad1 Nd3 15. Nd5 Bxd5 16. Rxd3 Bxa2 17. Rfd1 Rxd3 18. Rxd3 Ke8 19. c6 Rc8 20. Rd7 Bf6 21. Bxf6 exf6 22. Rxa7 Rxc6 $11 {Novkovic,M (2373)-Mesaros,F (2266) Austria 2014}) 8. Nc3 (8. e4 {transposes to 7.e4 and is still more usual.}) 8... Nc6 9. h3 a5 {is slightly similar to index D76, but here White's bishop is not fianchettoed and this lessens his chances to get an opening pull:} 10. Qd2 (10. Re1 a4 11. Bb5 a3 (11... e5 $5 12. Bxc6 exd4 $13) 12. bxa3 e5 13. Bxc6 exd4 14. exd4 bxc6 15. Bg5 f6 16. Qb3+ Kh8 17. Bf4 Bf5 18. Ne4 Nd5 19. Bg3 Bxe4 {½, Shengelia,D (2547)-Rustemov,A (2520) Germany 2009} 20. Rxe4 Qd7 $11 {[%cal Yf8b8]}) 10... e5 11. d5 Nb4 12. e4 f5 13. Ng5 fxe4 14. Ne6 Bxe6 15. dxe6 Qe7 16. Nxe4 Qxe6 17. Bg4 Qc6 18. Ng5 Rae8 19. Qc3 h6 20. Qxc6 Nxc6 21. Ne6 Rf7 22. Be3 Nc4 23. Rac1 Nxe3 24. fxe3 Rxf1+ 25. Kxf1 h5 26. Nxg7 Kxg7 27. Bd7 Rf8+ 28. Ke2 Nb8 29. Ba4 c6 30. Rc5 $11 {Laznicka,V (2672)-Ragger,M (2680) Chartres 2017 White's compensation was sufficient only to hold the balance.}) 7... Nb6 8. O-O {and now: transposes to 7.e4 and is still more usual.} Nc6 $5 (8... Bg4 9. Nbd2 Nc6 ({But} 9... e6 $6 {is too passive:} 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Nxf3 Nc6 12. Be3 Qe7 13. Qb3 Rad8 14. Rfd1 a6 15. Rac1 Qe8 16. Bf1 h6 17. d5 $16 {Grischuk,A (2785)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2717) Riga rpd 2013}) 10. d5 Nb8 (10... Bxf3 11. Nxf3 Ne5 12. Nxe5 Bxe5 13. f4 Bg7 14. a4 a5 15. Qb3 Qd6 16. Be3 Qb4 17. Qxb4 axb4 18. a5 Nd7 19. e5 b6 20. Bb5 Nc5 21. Bc6 Ra7 22. axb6 Rxa1 23. Rxa1 cxb6 24. Ra7 $16 {/+-, Ivanchuk,V (2710)-Tabatabaei,M (2482) Doha 2015}) 11. a4 c6 12. a5 N6d7 (12... Nc8 13. Re1 $6 (13. h3 $142) (13. Qb3 $5) 13... cxd5 14. Qb3 Nd6 15. e5 Ne8 16. Nd4 (16. Qxb7 Nc7 $11) 16... Bc8 17. N2f3 Nc6 18. a6 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 bxa6 20. Nc6 Qc7 21. Qxd5 Bb7 22. Bf3 Rb8 23. Qc4 Bxc6 24. Qxc6 Qxc6 25. Bxc6 Rb6 26. Ba4 Nc7 $15 {Belanoff,S (2049)-Koch,C (2141) Chessfriend.com 2003}) 13. h3 Bxf3 14. Nxf3 Nf6 15. Qb3 Qc8 16. Bg5 (16. dxc6 $1 Nxc6 17. e5 $36) 16... Nxe4 17. Bxe7 Re8 18. d6 Nxd6 19. Bxd6 Rxe2 20. Ng5 Qd7 $2 ({Black should have fought for the open file with} 20... Qe8 $1 21. Qxb7 Nd7 $132) 21. Rae1 Rxb2 22. Qc4 Na6 23. Re7 Qf5 24. Rxf7 Qd5 25. Rxg7+ Kxg7 {Grischuk,A (2785)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2717) Riga rpd 2013} 26. Be5+ $1 Qxe5 27. Qf7+ Kh6 28. Qxh7+ Kxg5 29. f4+ Qxf4 30. Qe7+ $18) 9. Be3 (9. d5 Ne5 10. Nxe5 Bxe5 11. a4 a5 12. Qb3 e6 13. Bf3 exd5 14. exd5 Qh4 15. g3 Qb4 16. Qxb4 axb4 17. Re1 {Krishna,C (2401)-Puranik,A (2469) Abu Dhabi 2016} Nc4 $1 $36) 9... Bg4 (9... f5 10. exf5 Bxf5 11. Nc3 Qd6 12. Qd2 Rad8 13. Rad1 Qb4 14. Qc1 Bg4 15. d5 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Nd4 17. Bxd4 Bxd4 18. Rfe1 Qc5 19. Re2 Nd7 20. Ne4 Qxc1 21. Rxc1 Bb6 22. Ng5 Nc5 23. b4 Nd3 24. Rd1 h6 25. Ne6 Nf4 26. Re4 Nxe6 27. Rxe6 Rd6 28. Rxe7 Rf4 $44 {/,Akdag,M (2560)-Cruzado Duenas,C (2595) email 2013}) 10. Nbd2 e5 $5 11. d5 Nd4 12. h3 Bd7 13. Nb3 Qe7 $6 (13... Nxf3+ 14. Bxf3 Nc4 $11) 14. Nfxd4 exd4 15. Bxd4 Qxe4 16. Bf3 Qf4 17. g3 Qg5 18. h4 Qf5 19. Bxg7 Kxg7 20. Nc5 Rab8 21. Re1 $14 {Dimakiling,O (2353)-Laylo,D (2497) Jakarta 2013}) ({There is also the interesting and flexible} 5... b6 6. O-O Bb7 7. Nc3 {, but here Black should already show his cards:} d5 (7... e6 8. b3 (8. d5 $5) 8... d5 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. cxd5 (10. Qc2 {or}) (10. Rc1 {give White better chances for an edge.}) 10... exd5 11. a4 a5 12. Ba3 Re8 13. Nb5 Ne4 14. Nd2 Ndf6 15. Nxe4 Nxe4 16. Bd3 Re6 17. Rc1 c6 18. Nc3 Nxc3 19. Rxc3 c5 20. Bb5 cxd4 21. exd4 Re4 $11 {/, Caruana,F (2795)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2788) chess.com blitz INT 2016}) 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bd2 (9. Qb3 e6 10. Rd1 Nd7 11. Bd2 c5 12. Rac1 Qe7 13. Nxd5 Bxd5 14. Qa3 Rfc8 15. Bc3 a5 16. dxc5 Bxc3 17. Rxc3 Rxc5 18. Bb5 Rd8 19. Bxd7 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Rxd7 21. Rxd7 Rg5+ 22. Kf1 Qxd7 23. Rd3 Rd5 24. Rxd5 Qxd5 $11 {Dubov,D (2629)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2751) Doha 2014}) 9... Nd7 (9... c5 $6 10. dxc5 Nxc3 11. Bxc3 Bxc3 12. bxc3 Nd7 (12... bxc5 13. Qa4 $36) 13. cxb6 axb6 14. Qd4 Qc7 15. Rfb1 Ra5 16. Qb4 e6 17. Qe7 Qd8 18. Qxd8 Rxd8 19. Rd1 Bc6 20. Nd4 Ba4 21. Rdb1 e5 22. Nb3 $14 {/, Giri,A (2793)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2744) Baku 2015 For more details see the notes to this game in CBM 169 by Marin.}) 10. Nxd5 Bxd5 11. Bc3 (11. Qc2 $142 $1 {} c5 12. e4 Bb7 13. d5) 11... c5 12. Rc1 e6 13. Qa4 a6 ({This complicates the issue; a simpler way was} 13... Qe7 $1 14. Rfd1 Rfc8 $11 {as in Dubov - Vachier Lagrave above.}) 14. Qa3 Qb8 15. dxc5 Bxc3 16. Qxc3 bxc5 $6 (16... Rc8 $142 $1 {is still close to equality.}) 17. Nd2 a5 18. a4 Qb7 19. e4 Bc6 20. b3 Rfb8 21. Qe3 Qc7 22. Rfd1 Rb4 23. Nc4 Rab8 24. Rc3 Nf6 25. f3 $16 {Nakamura,H (2793)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2751) Zuerich 2017}) 6. Nc3 Nc6 $5 ({Black more often plays} 6... Nbd7 7. O-O (7. d5 e5 8. dxe6 fxe6 9. O-O e5 10. b3 Kh8 11. Bb2 Qe7 12. Rc1 Nc5 13. b4 Nce4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 15. Nd2 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 {Harikrishna,P (2763)-Nakamura,H (2787) chess.com blitz INT 2016} Be6 $11) 7... e5 {, but this is practically the King's Indian Attack (C00) with opposite colours. I wrote an article about this line in CBM 181, the extra tempo should favour White. After} 8. Qc2 (8. b4 $5 {deserves attention now and on move 9.}) 8... Re8 9. Rd1 e4 10. Nd2 Qe7 11. b4 Nf8 12. Bb2 h5 13. Rac1 Bf5 14. Nb3 N8h7 15. d5 h4 16. Nd4 Bd7 17. c5 (17. h3 $5) 17... dxc5 $6 (17... h3 $1 $132 {[%csl Rg1]}) 18. bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qb3 Qb6 20. Ncb5 c5 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. Nd6 Rf8 23. Ba3 Qxb3 24. axb3 Rfb8 25. Nxc6 Bxc6 26. Rxc6 Rxb3 27. Bc5 $44 {, Grischuk,A (2785)-Caruana,F (2779) Elancourt 2013. White has more than enough for the  and Black must tread with great care. For details see the notes to this game in CBM 157 by Krasenkow.}) 7. d5 ({After} 7. O-O e5 {the pressure against d4 makes it more difficult for White to retain the central tension as in the 6...bd7 lines. The advance} 8. d5 (8. Qc2 Re8 9. dxe5 dxe5 10. Rd1 Bd7 11. e4 Qc8 12. h3 Be6 13. Nd5 Nd7 14. b4 Nd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Bb2 c6 17. Nf4 c5 18. bxc5 Qxc5 19. Qd2 Bxc4 20. Rac1 b5 21. Bxc4 bxc4 22. Bxd4 Bxd4 23. Qxd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Nb6 25. Nd5 Red8 26. Nxb6 axb6 $11 {Ragger,M (2632)-Onischuk,V (2594) Dubai blitz 2014}) 8... Ne7 9. b4 (9. e4 {is the Classical KID, but White is a tempo down - normally it's his move here.}) 9... a5 10. bxa5 Rxa5 11. Nd2 Nd7 12. Nb3 Ra8 13. a4 f5 14. Ba3 e4 15. Qc2 b6 16. Bb4 Nc5 17. a5 {Kuzubov,Y (2638)-Onischuk,V (2614) Lvov rpd 2016} Na6 18. Ba3 bxa5 $11 {} 19. Nxa5 c5 $1) 7... Nb4 {Here we are gradually entering uncharted territory.} ({The passive} 7... Nb8 8. O-O Na6 {gave White a distinct pull after} 9. Nd4 e5 10. dxe6 fxe6 11. Rb1 e5 12. Nc2 Be6 13. b4 Nb8 14. e4 Nc6 15. Be3 Nh5 16. Bxh5 gxh5 17. Nd5 h4 18. h3 Kh8 19. Qh5 a5 20. Bg5 Qd7 21. b5 Bxd5 22. cxd5 $16 {Hoffmeyer,F (2377)-Paehtz,E (2453) Germany 2018}) 8. a3 {Yermolinsky criticises this move and he is probably right.} (8. O-O $142 e6 $5 (8... c6 9. e4 a5 10. e5 dxe5 11. a3 e4 12. axb4 exf3 13. Bxf3 cxd5 14. cxd5 (14. Nxd5 $142 $5 Nxd5 15. Bxd5 $11 {/}) 14... Bf5 15. bxa5 Rxa5 16. Rxa5 Qxa5 17. Qb3 Nd7 18. Be3 Nc5 19. Bxc5 $6 (19. Qb5 $11) 19... Qxc5 20. Qxb7 Be5 $44 {Barcza,G-Taimanov,M Copenhagen 1965}) (8... a5 9. e4 e6 10. dxe6 (10. h3 $6 Re8 11. dxe6 Bxe6 12. Re1 Bd7 13. Bd3 a4 14. a3 Nxd3 15. Qxd3 Be6 16. Nd5 Nd7 17. Bg5 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Qxg5 19. Nf3 Qd8 20. Rad1 c6 21. Nf4 Qa5 22. Nxe6 Rxe6 23. Re2 Rae8 $11 {/, Lobron,E (2485)-Romanishin,O (2560) Reggio Emilia 1986}) 10... Bxe6 11. Nd4 $14) 9. e4 Re8 10. a3 Na6 11. Be3 (11. dxe6 $5 {followed by d4 is still a better position, than Caruana got in our game.}) 11... exd5 12. exd5 Nc5 13. Bd4 a5 14. b3 Bd7 15. Nd2 Nfe4 16. Ndxe4 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 Rxe4 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 $11 {Vrolijk,L (2433)-Heimann,A (2574) Karlsruhe 2018 Black has comfortable equality and it's White, who must tread with care.}) 8... Na6 9. Nd4 (9. O-O Nc5 10. Nd4 a5 11. b3 e5 12. dxe6 fxe6 13. Bb2 e5 14. Nf3 Be6 15. b4 Nce4 16. Nd2 Nxd2 17. Qxd2 Qd7 18. Nd5 Qf7 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Qc2 Bg7 21. Bd3 c6 22. e4 $11 h5 (22... Rfc8 $5 {[%cal Yd6d5]}) 23. c5 dxc5 24. bxc5 a4 25. Bc1 Rad8 26. Be3 Bb3 {½, Ginsburg,G (2443)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2794) Germany 2018 This game was played a month later, than ours.}) 9... e5 10. dxe6 $146 {A novelty, Caruana feels it's necessary to open the centre.} (10. Nc2 Nc5 11. b4 Nb3 12. Rb1 Nxc1 13. Rxc1 Nd7 14. O-O f5 15. Na4 a5 16. c5 axb4 17. Nxb4 dxc5 18. Nxc5 Nxc5 19. Rxc5 e4 20. Qb3 Kh8 21. Rfc1 Be5 $36 {Breutigam,M (2340)-Brendel,O (2375) Germany 1996}) (10. Nb3 Nd7 11. O-O f5 {is also a pleasant version of the King's Indian for Black.}) 10... fxe6 11. O-O e5 12. Nb3 ({White wants to keep his central pawns mobile. However, a more natural move was} 12. Nf3 $5 c6 (12... Nc5 13. b4 {and as the knight can't go to e4, Black is almost forced to play the adventurous} e4 $5 14. Nd4 $14) 13. b4 $13 {with similarities to Ginsburg-MVL above.}) 12... c6 $146 ({RR} 12... Be6 13. e4 Qd7 14. h3 Qf7 15. Nd2 c6 16. Qc2 Rac8 17. Nf3 h6 18. Nh4 Bxc4 19. Bxc4 Qxc4 20. Nxg6 Rf7 21. Nh4 Nc5 22. f3 Nb3 23. Rb1 Nxc1 24. Rbxc1 Qe6 25. Rfd1 Rd8 26. Qf2 Nh5 27. Nf5 {Kallweit,P (1740)-Schumann,L (1756) Mecklenburg VP 2018 ½-½ (37)}) 13. e4 Nc7 14. f4 $5 {Continuing in the spirit of 10.dxe6, Caruana seeks activity even if it weakens his setup.} (14. Be3 Ne6 $15 {[%cal Yc6c5,Ye6d4] is unattractive for White.}) 14... Ne6 {While the text move is very logical, even} (14... Nfe8 $5 $13 {makes good sense; Black wants to activate his g7.}) 15. f5 (15. fxe5 dxe5 {[%cal Ye6d4] is pleasant for Black, so Caruana continues to seek complications.}) 15... Nd4 ({The main alternative is} 15... Qb6+ $5 {However, Magnus maybe didn't like} 16. c5 $5 (16. Kh1 Nd4 17. Nxd4 (17. c5 Qxb3 18. Qxb3+ Nxb3 19. Bc4+ d5 20. Bxb3 Nxe4 $1 21. Nxe4 Bxf5 22. Ng3 Bd3 $36 {[%csl Gd5,Ge5]}) 17... exd4 18. Na4 Qa5 19. b4 Qd8 $15 {[%csl Gd4,Re4]}) 16... Nxc5 17. Bc4+ d5 ({Complications after} 17... Be6 18. fxe6 Nxb3+ 19. Kh1 Nxa1 20. e7+ Kh8 21. exf8=Q+ Rxf8 22. Ba2 $44 {[%csl Ra1]}) ({or} 17... Ne6+ 18. Kh1 d5 19. exd5 cxd5 20. Nxd5 Nxd5 21. Qxd5 gxf5 22. Bd2 $1 (22. Nc5 $2 Rd8 23. Na4 Qc7 24. Qc5 Qf7 $17) 22... Kh8 23. Ba5 Qc6 24. Qxc6 bxc6 25. Bb4 $13 {/ rather favour White.}) 18. Be3 dxc4 19. Nxc5 Qc7 (19... Qxb2 $2 20. N5a4 Qb3 21. Qc1 {[%csl Rb3][%cal Ra1b1]}) 20. Qe2 Qf7 21. g4 b6 22. N5a4 $15 {/ Although here the engine gives Black an advantage, the issue is not quite clear, as the extra pawn isn't making itself felt and White has kingside counterplay.}) 16. Be3 $2 {Only this definitely tips the scales in Black's favour.} (16. Nxd4 $6 exd4 17. Qxd4 Ng4 18. Qd3 (18. Qd2 Qb6+ 19. c5 Qxc5+ 20. Kh1 gxf5 $15) 18... Qb6+ 19. Kh1 Nf2+ 20. Rxf2 Qxf2 21. Be3 Qh4 22. g3 Qe7 (22... Qh3 $6 23. Bf1 {with repetition.}) 23. Bf4 Be5 $15 {also isn't ideal, White doesn't have enough for the exchange,}) ({The best was} 16. Bd3 $142 $1 Qb6 17. Nxd4 exd4 $5 (17... Qxd4+ $143 18. Kh1 gxf5 19. exf5 e4 20. Bc2 Qxd1 21. Bxd1 $11 {and White has nothing to fear}) 18. Na4 (18. Ne2 Ng4 (18... Nxe4 19. fxg6 $1 Rxf1+ 20. Qxf1 hxg6 21. Bxe4 d3+ 22. Kh1 dxe2 23. Qxe2 Qd4 24. Bxg6 Bg4 $132) 19. Rb1 $13) 18... Qd8 19. b4 $13) 16... Nxe2+ {Now Black's central pawns get moving.} (16... c5 $6 17. g4 $36 {suits White.}) 17. Qxe2 gxf5 18. exf5 d5 19. cxd5 cxd5 20. Rad1 d4 21. Bg5 {More or less forced.} ({The piece sacrifice} 21. Nxd4 exd4 22. Bxd4 Qe8 ({or} 22... Bd7 $15 {/ doesn't give sufficient compensation and is more suitable for shorter time-controls.})) 21... Qb6 22. Qc4+ Rf7 $1 23. Na4 (23. Nd5 Nxd5 24. Qxd5 Bd7 $17 {[%cal Rd7c6] only helps Black to get out his forces.}) 23... Qc7 24. Qxc7 (24. Nac5 Ne4 $17) 24... Rxc7 25. Nac5 b6 26. Bxf6 ({Relatively best, after} 26. Nd3 Ba6 27. Rfe1 Nd7 28. f6 Bxd3 29. Rxd3 Bf8 $17 {[%csl Gd4,Ge5,Rf6] Black's pawns are far more dangerous and have better support, than the lone warrior on f6.}) 26... bxc5 {[%csl Gc5,Gd4,Ge5]} (26... Bxf6 $143 27. Ne4 $132) 27. Bxg7 Kxg7 28. Nd2 $6 {The  won't gain a foothold on e4.} ({A more resilient way was} 28. Rc1 c4 29. Nd2 Ba6 30. f6+ Kf7 31. Rf5 Ke6 32. Rh5 $15 {/}) (28. f6+ {might transpose into the above line.}) 28... Bb7 29. f6+ Kf8 ({Carlsen wants to avoid complications, but} 29... Kf7 $5 {[%cal Ya8g8]} 30. Nc4 Ke6 $17 {is possibly even stronger.}) 30. Rde1 (30. Nc4 {gives Black a pleasant choice between} Ba6 ({and} 30... e4)) 30... Re8 31. Ne4 {[%cal Gf6f7]} Bxe4 (31... c4 $2 32. f7 $18 {indicates the threat, so Black chops off the e4.}) 32. Rxe4 c4 33. g4 Rb8 {Good, but Black was already spoilt for choice.} ({Both} 33... Kf7 $17 {and}) (33... d3 $17 {give him excellent winning chances. Yermolinsky gives the pretty line} 34. h4 Kf7 35. g5 Ke6 36. h5 Rg8 37. Rg4 Rb7 38. g6 hxg6 39. hxg6 Rf7 $1 $19 {and White's pawns drop off.}) 34. Rxe5 (34. Rf2 Rcb7 $19 {doesn't help, White must seek active counterplay.}) 34... Rxb2 35. Rd5 c3 36. Rd8+ Kf7 37. Rh8 $1 Rbb7 $1 38. Rxh7+ Kg6 39. Rxc7 Rxc7 40. Kf2 c2 (40... d3 $2 41. Ke3 d2 42. Kd3 $11 {and White retains the f6.}) 41. Rc1 d3 42. Ke3 Rd7 43. Kd2 Kxf6 {[%mdl 4096] A longer series of logical and more or less forced moves led to an interesting  endgame. Black has a distinct advantage, as his pawns are further advanced and can be quickly supported by his , but bringing home the full point still requires precision, as the position is already very simplified.} 44. h4 Ke5 45. Rf1 Kd4 46. h5 Re7 {Straightforward and should have been sufficient.} ({Even stronger was} 46... a5 $1 {, taking away the b4-square from White's . After} 47. h6 Re7 48. Rf4+ Kd5 49. Rf1 Kc4 50. Rf4+ Kb3 {White has to return} 51. Rf1 {and} Re2+ 52. Kxd3 Rh2 53. g5 Rh5 {disarms White's pawns, so the c2 will decide the issue.}) 47. Rf4+ Kd5 48. Rf1 Kc4 49. Rf4+ Kd5 50. Rf1 Kc4 51. Rf4+ Kb3 52. Rb4+ Kxa3 53. Rc4 Kb3 54. Rc8 (54. Rc5 a5 55. h6 a4 56. g5 Kb4 $1 ({Black's  is misplaced after} 56... a3 $2 57. g6 a2 58. g7 {so he improves it with tempo.}) 57. Rc8 a3 58. Kxd3 a2 59. Rb8+ Kc5 60. Ra8 Re8 $1 61. Rxe8 a1=Q 62. Rc8+ Kb6 63. Rxc2 Qe5 $19 {and the mobile queen picks up White's pawns.}) 54... a5 $2 {Here this advance doesn't have the idea from move 46, it's too slow and throws away the win.} ({This could be achieved only by the paradoxical prophylaxis} 54... Rh7 $3 {, but after} 55. Kxd3 ({Other moves don't help either:} 55. Rd8 Rc7 56. Kc1 Kc3 57. g5 Rb7 $19) (55. Rb8+ Ka2 56. Rc8 a5 57. Kxd3 Kb1 58. Rb8+ Kc1 59. Rc8 Kd1 $1 60. Rxc2 Rd7+ $19) (55. Rc5 {allows} a5 $1 {} 56. Rxa5 Rc7 57. Ra1 Kb2 58. Rh1 Rg7 $1 59. h6 Rxg4 60. h7 Rh4 $19) 55... Rd7+ 56. Ke4 a5 57. h6 a4 58. g5 a3 59. g6 {Black must in advance see another only move} Rd8 $1 60. Rxc2 (60. Rxd8 c1=Q) 60... Kxc2 61. g7 a2 62. h7 a1=Q 63. g8=Q Qa8+ $19 {Unlike for an engine, calculating this over the board would be really a great feat. Right after the game the players themselves were not aware of this "simple" win, thinking that Black had already squandered his chances earlier.}) 55. h6 Re2+ ({The golden moment is already gone,} 55... a4 56. g5 a3 (56... Rh7 57. Rb8+ Kc4 58. Ra8 $11) 57. g6 Kb2 (57... a2 $2 58. g7 $18 {[%csl Rb3] turns the tables}) 58. h7 Re8 59. Rc7 a2 60. Rb7+ $11 {leads only to repetition.}) 56. Kxd3 Rh2 57. g5 Rh3+ 58. Kd2 Rh2+ 59. Kd3 {White's pawns are too far advanced and Black must give a perpetual.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 5th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2018.04.02"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Bluebaum, Matthias"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E92"]
[WhiteElo "2631"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2018.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Nf3 O-O 6. Be2 e5 7. Be3 exd4 8. Nxd4 Re8 9. f3 c6 10. Bf2 d5 11. exd5 cxd5 12. O-O Nc6 13. c5 a6 14. Qd2 Qa5 15. Rfe1 Qxc5 16. Ne6 Qa5 17. Nxg7 Kxg7 18. a3 d4 19. Bxd4 Nxd4 20. Qxd4 Rd8 21. Qe3 Bd7 $146 ({RR} 21... Re8) 22. Rad1 Be6 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Rd1 Rxd1+ 25. Bxd1 Qd8 26. Be2 Qd6 27. f4 Bd7 28. Bf3 Bc6 29. Bxc6 Ng4 30. Qg3 Qc5+ 31. Kf1 Ne3+ 32. Ke2 Nf5 33. Qf2 Qxc6 34. g4 Qc4+ 35. Kd2 Nd4 36. Qe3 Nc6 37. Ne2 h5 38. h3 hxg4 39. hxg4 g5 40. fxg5 Qxg4 41. Qc3+ Kg8 42. Qf6 Qg2 43. Ke3 Qh3+ 44. Kd2 Qd7+ 45. Kc2 Ne7 46. Nc3 Ng6 47. b4 Nf8 48. Qe5 Qe6 49. Qxe6 Nxe6 50. Ne4 Kg7 51. a4 b6 52. Kc3 Kg6 53. Kc4 Nxg5 54. Nd6 f5 55. Nxf5 Kxf5 56. Kd5 Nf3 57. Kc6 b5 58. axb5 Nd4+ 59. Kc5 Nxb5 60. Kb6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 5th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden-Baden"]
[Date "2018.04.05"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Meier, Georg"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E08"]
[WhiteElo "2648"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2018.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Qc2 c6 9. Bf4 Ne4 10. h4 Ndf6 ({RR} 10... h6 11. Nc3 f5 12. Nxe4 fxe4 13. Ne5 Nxe5 14. Bxe5 Bf6 15. f3 Bxe5 16. dxe5 Qb6+ 17. Kh2 Bd7 18. fxe4 Qc5 19. Qb3 Qxc4 20. Qxb7 Rfd8 21. Rf4 Qxe2 22. Raf1 Qh5 23. Qc7 d4 24. Bf3 Qg6 25. Be2 {Xiong,J (2663)-Le,Q (2715) Saint Louis 2019 1-0 (51)}) ({RR} 10... h6 11. Nc3 g5 12. Be3 Nd6 13. b3 f5 14. hxg5 hxg5 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Nf7 17. f4 d4 18. Rad1 c5 19. Bc1 Qc7 20. Na4 Bd7 21. Nb2 Kg7 22. e4 dxe3 23. Bxe3 Rh8 24. fxg5 Rag8 25. Qd2 {Karpenko,A (2218)-Hayrapetyan,E (2161) Pozarevac SRB 2025 ½-½ (43)}) 11. Nbd2 Nxd2 12. Nxd2 Nh5 13. Be3 $146 ({RR} 13. e3 h6 14. Bf3 Nxf4 15. exf4 dxc4 16. Qxc4 Bf6 17. Nb3 a5 18. Rfd1 Qb6 19. Nc5 Rd8 20. Rd2 Qb4 21. Qxb4 axb4 22. b3 Rxd4 23. Rad1 Rxd2 24. Rxd2 Kf8 25. Ne4 Ke7 26. h5 Bc3 27. Nxc3 bxc3 {Chatterjee,D (2250)-Zia,T (2080) Dhaka 2019 0-1 (50)}) 13... f5 14. Bf3 Qe8 15. Bg5 Nf6 16. e3 b6 17. Rac1 Ba6 18. a3 Ne4 19. Bxe7 Qxe7 20. Be2 Bb7 21. b4 Rac8 22. c5 e5 23. dxe5 Qxe5 24. Nxe4 fxe4 25. Qc3 Qf5 26. a4 g5 27. hxg5 Qxg5 28. Kg2 Rc7 29. Rh1 Rg7 30. Rcg1 Qf5 31. Rf1 Ba6 32. b5 cxb5 33. Rh5 Qf7 34. Qe5 Bb7 35. cxb6 bxa4 36. bxa7 Ba8 37. Rg5 Qxa7 38. Bg4 Kh8 39. Ra1 Qe7 40. Qxg7+ Qxg7 41. Rxg7 Kxg7 42. Rxa4 Bc6 43. Rb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 5th"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2018.04.19"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D74"]
[WhiteElo "2814"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2018.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 Nc6 6. Nf3 d5 7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. O-O e5 9. Nxe5 Nxc3 10. Nxc6 Nxd1 11. Nxd8 Rxd8 12. Rxd1 Rxd4 13. Be3 Rxd1+ 14. Rxd1 Bf6 15. Bd4 Bxd4 $146 ({RR} 15... Be7 16. Bd5 c6 17. Bb3 Bf5 18. e4 Bg4 19. f3 Be6 20. Bxe6 Rd8 21. Bd5 cxd5 22. Bxa7 Ra8 23. Be3 dxe4 24. Rd7 Bf6 25. Rxb7 Rxa2 26. fxe4 Rxb2 27. Rxb2 Bxb2 28. Kg2 f6 29. Kf3 h5 30. h3 {Blagojevic,D (2482)-Ali,M (2411) Baku 2016 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 15... Be7 16. b4 c6 17. a3 Bg4 18. h3 Be6 19. Bc3 Rd8 20. Rxd8+ Bxd8 21. e4 Be7 22. f4 a5 23. bxa5 Bxa3 24. Kf2 Bc5+ 25. Ke2 Bc4+ 26. Kd2 h5 27. g4 hxg4 28. hxg4 Kf8 29. g5 Bd6 30. Ke3 {Vaganian,R (2449)-Sargissyan,S (2238) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (42)}) 16. Rxd4 Be6 17. f4 c6 18. Rb4 b6 19. Bxc6 Rc8 20. Bb5 Bxa2 21. Ra4 Be6 22. Rxa7 Rc1+ 23. Kf2 Rb1 24. Bd7 Bxd7 25. Rxd7 Rxb2 26. g4 b5 27. Rb7 b4 28. g5 b3 29. Kf3 Rb1 30. Ke4 Kg7 31. Ke5 Rb2 32. e4 Rxh2 33. Rxb3 h6 34. gxh6+ Rxh6 35. Rg3 Rh8 36. Rb3 Re8+ 37. Kd4 Ra8 38. Ke3 Ra7 39. Kf3 Ra8 40. Kg4 Ra7 41. Rc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 5th"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2018.04.22"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2748"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[PlyCount "38"]
[EventDate "2018.04.19"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 184"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.05.16"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. b3 O-O 8. Be2 b6 9. O-O Bb7 10. Bb2 Qe7 11. Rad1 Rad8 12. Rfe1 Rfe8 13. e4 Nxe4 ({RR} 13... dxe4 14. Nxe4 Nxe4 {½-½ (19) Arcuti,D (2390)-Brunner,N (2425) Switzerland 2021}) 14. Nxe4 dxe4 15. Qxe4 Bb4 16. Rf1 Bd6 17. Rfe1 ({RR} 17. Bd3 f5 18. Qh4 c5 19. d5 Qxh4 20. Nxh4 g6 21. dxe6 Rxe6 22. Nxf5 gxf5 23. Bxf5 Rh6 24. Rfe1 Bxh2+ 25. Kf1 Bf4 26. Bxd7 Kf8 27. Bh3 Rhd6 28. Bg4 Rxd1 29. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 30. Bxd1 Be4 31. g3 Bd6 {Giri,A (2780)-Duda,J (2730) Chess.com INT 2019 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 17. Ne5 f5 18. Qf3 Nxe5 19. dxe5 Bc5 20. Bc3 a5 21. Qf4 {½-½ (21) Radjabov,T (2741)-Giri,A (2762) Palma de Mallorca 2017}) 17... Bb4 18. Rf1 Bd6 19. Rfe1 Bb4 $146 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 6th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2018.06.01"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D60"]
[WhiteElo "2769"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[Annotator "Yermolinsky,Alex "]
[PlyCount "66"]
[EventDate "2018.05.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 185"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 O-O 7. e3 Nbd7 {The Orthodox Defence to the Queens Gambit was more popular in the 1910's than in the 2010's, but King Magnus can play anything he wants.} 8. Be2 {There's hardly any difference between the text} ({and the other bishop move} 8. Bd3) ({while} 8. Rc1 c5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Bxe7 Nxe7 {is currently considered a reliable defense, thanks to the pioneering efforts of Vladimir Kramnik. Although, Nakamura himself beat Fressinet in 2016 by going to the endgame:} 11. dxc5 Nxc5 12. Qxd8 Rxd8 13. b4 Nd7 14. Bd3) 8... dxc4 9. Bxc4 a6 10. a4 c5 11. O-O cxd4 12. Nxd4 {Hikaru goes safety first.} ({The more principled} 12. exd4 {is met by the solid defence} Nb6 13. Bb3 Bd7 14. Ne5 Bc6 {It's very hard for White to break through, while Carlsen would surely be looking to lay siege to the IQP.}) 12... Nb6 13. Be2 (13. Bb3 Nbd5 14. Nxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxe7 Nxe7 16. Bc2 Bd7 17. Qd3 g6 {Salem-Karjakin, World Rapid 2017, and Black eventually prevailed.}) 13... Nbd5 14. Nxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Qb3 $146 ({RR} 16. Bf3 Rd8 17. Qb3 Nb4 18. Rfd1 e5 19. Nc2 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 Nxc2 21. Qxc2 Be6 22. Qe4 Bb3 23. Rc1 Rb8 24. Rc3 Qe6 25. Qb4 Bd5 26. Bxd5 Qxd5 27. h3 f6 28. Rc7 Qd8 29. Qb3+ Kh8 30. Rxb7 Rxb7 {Belous,M (1806)-Eliseev,E Kramatorsk 2010 1-0 (55)}) 16... b6 17. Bf3 Bb7 {There's nothing White can do in terms of playing on, and Hikaru forces total liquidation.} 18. Nf5 exf5 19. Bxd5 Bxd5 20. Qxd5 Qf6 21. Qb3 Rad8 22. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Rxd8+ Qxd8 25. g3 g6 26. h4 h5 27. Qc4 a5 28. b3 Qd1+ 29. Kg2 Qd7 30. Kf1 Qd1+ 31. Kg2 Qd7 32. Kf1 Qd1+ 33. Kg2 Qd7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 6th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2018.06.03"]
[Round "6"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D13"]
[WhiteElo "2778"]
[BlackElo "2843"]
[Annotator "So,Wesley"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2018.05.28"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 185"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.07.13"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{People like to say that I don't play my best against Carlsen. Don't think I hadn't noticed that, but it took my dad Renato to explain it to me.   He told me it is like being a very young and talented soccer player and having pictures of Pele all over your room and knowing by heart every game he ever played. You think about him, dream about him, grow up wanting to be as good as him and when playing by yourself even pretend you are him. And then one day Pele suddenly appears on the field. You can’t move. You can't breathe. Everything is a blur. Which goal posts are yours? You feel like you might faint. Or die. You are overwhelmed because he is older, bigger and has years of experience on you. You see that you are a kid with over size dreams.   Playing Carlsen in Norway is probably like playing Pele in Brazil. It has good points in that the focus is always on him and no one really cares about your games unless you lose to him. You can be sure of a dismissive attitude from the Norwegian commentators and a local audience who only came to see one player (who is that brown boy anyway?).   I appreciate this because it’s very freeing not to carry the burden of expectation. It allows me to focus on the excellence of the Altibox Norway Chess experience (which is one of the best organized events in Europe - a professional chess players dream tournament).   I really love Stavanger and after a meal of my favorite food (salmon), I went to play my game against the favored son of Norway, whom in my 3.5 years of professional play, I had never beaten in a classical game.} 1. d4 {Considering how well prepared Magnus is in the opening these days, I decided to stick to normal lines and not challenge him on the intricacies of the Ruy Lopez.} d5 2. c4 c6 3. cxd5 (3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 {is usually how my games with Magnus go. I've had this position against him with both colors.}) 3... cxd5 {Apparently the commentators announced I was playing for a draw by taking on d5... A shocking analysis, as we'd only traded one pawn!} 4. Bf4 Nf6 ({I thought he'd start with} 4... Nc6 5. Nc3 {and now he has the extra option:} e5 $5 (5... Bf5 6. e4 $5)) 5. Nc3 Nc6 6. Nf3 a6 ({I was expecting} 6... Nh5 7. Bd2 Nf6 {which seems to be the most solid variation, but Magnus went for the sideline.}) (6... Bf5 7. e3 e6 8. Qb3 Bb4 9. Ne5 {has become very fashionable lately. Yaroslav Zherebukh beat Ray Robson with it just a couple of months ago in the US Championships.}) 7. Rc1 Bf5 8. e3 {I had a little experience with this variation, having played it against Ivanchuk almost a decade ago when I was thirteen!} Rc8 (8... e6 9. Qb3 Ra7 {is how my game with Ivanchuk went, in World Cup 2009.}) 9. Be2 e6 10. O-O Nd7 {He played this quite fast, so I assumed he was still following his opening ideas.} (10... Be7 11. Qb3 $1 Na5 12. Qa4+ {is supposed to be better for White due to} Nc6 13. Bxa6 $1) (10... Bd6 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. Na4 {is not a nice position for Black. Usually he wouldn't want to trade his dark-squared bishop in the Exchange Slav.}) 11. Na4 Be7 {This quietly threatens to attack on the kingside with ...g5-h5.} 12. h3 {Prophylaxis against the aforementioned idea.} O-O ({Magnus castled quite fast. Apparently still} 12... g5 $5 {is very good here. I won't give it an exclamation mark since the position remains very unclear, but it is definitely a good alternative.} 13. Bh2 h5 {Now the kingside pawns look threatening. The position is quite weird and analysis shows it's not easy to play for both sides:} 14. Nd2 (14. Ne1 g4 15. Bd3 Bxd3 16. Nxd3 Rg8 17. Kh1 $13) 14... g4 (14... b5 15. Nc3 Nf6 16. a4 b4 17. Ncb1) 15. hxg4 hxg4 16. Bxg4 Bd3 $1 17. Be2 Bb4 $1 18. Nf3 Be4 $132) 13. a3 {Preparing to push my pawns forward. White is simply faster and better equipped to seize the initiative on the queenside.} Na5 (13... b5 14. Nc5 Nxc5 15. dxc5 Bf6 16. Nd4 Bxd4 17. exd4 Qf6 18. Be3 e5 19. dxe5 Qxe5 20. Qd2 $14 {is a long forcing line that favors White.}) 14. Nc5 $1 Nc4 15. b4 Nxc5 (15... b5 16. Nxa6 Nxa3 17. Nc5 Nc4 18. Ra1 $14) 16. dxc5 ({And not} 16. bxc5 b6 $11) 16... Nxa3 $146 (16... b6 17. Bxc4 dxc4 18. Qxd8 Bxd8 19. Bd6 $16) ({With hindsight} 16... b5 $1 {bolsters the knight and it might be the best defense.} 17. a4 Nb2 18. Qd2 Nxa4 19. Nd4 Bg6 {is very unclear. White has compensation for the pawn but perhaps not much more.}) ({RR} 16... b5 17. a4 Nb2 18. Qd2 Nxa4 19. Nd4 Be4 20. f3 Bg6 21. Ra1 Bf6 22. Bd6 Be7 23. Bh2 Bf6 24. Bd6 Re8 25. Rxa4 bxa4 26. Bxa6 Ra8 27. b5 Rxa6 28. bxa6 Qa8 29. Qa5 Bd3 30. a7 Bxf1 31. Kxf1 {Jimenez Bernal,F (2183)-Alvarez Fernandez,E (2344) Linares 2022 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 16... b5 17. a4 Nb2 18. Qd2 Nxa4 19. Nd4 Be4 20. f3 Bg6 21. Ra1 Bf6 22. Bd6 Be7 23. Bh2 Bf6 24. Bd6 Re8 25. Rxa4 bxa4 26. Bxa6 Ra8 27. b5 Rxa6 28. bxa6 Qa8 29. Qa5 Bd3 30. a7 Bxf1 31. Kxf1 {Jimenez Bernal,F (2183)-Alvarez Fernandez,E (2344) Linares 2022 1-0 (35)}) 17. Nd4 Be4 18. f3 Bg6 19. Qb3 {I wasn't really worried about sacrificing the a-pawn since his knight is sidelined in many lines.} Nc4 20. Bxc4 dxc4 21. Qxc4 Qe8 $5 {Interesting option and one I could hardly expect. Black keeps the bishop pair for now and he wants to kick my knight away from its central outpost by making the ...e6-e5 break work.} ({I thought he would go for} 21... Bg5 {which is the most natural move, and now} 22. Bxg5 Qxg5 {since I am slightly better, but not much more than that. In fact during the game I couldn't see anything clearly. My dark squares are a little vulnerable and Black is ready to fight for control of the d-file.} 23. Qc3 {is what I was thinking to play, and then:} Rfd8 24. Rfd1 h5 (24... Qe5 25. Kf2 Qf6 26. Ne2 $14) 25. Nb3 Bf5 26. Kh1 $1 Qg3 27. Qe1 $14 {with a few accurate moves White will manage to keep a nagging edge, but over the board the position is never really crystal clear.}) 22. Bg3 {Just a quiet non-commital move, because I couldn't find anything definitive. I decided to just make a move and see what Magnus intended to do next.} (22. c6 $5 e5 $1 (22... b5 23. Qc3 $18 {is just winning for White, the c-pawn is simply too strong.}) 23. Bxe5 bxc6 24. Nxc6 Bxb4 {was the line that Magnus calculated. Black holds here.}) (22. e4 e5 23. Bxe5 Bxc5 24. bxc5 Qxe5 {is better for White, as the bishop on g6 is buried for the time being, but I think Black can hold here too.}) 22... e5 (22... Bg5 {is better.} 23. Rfe1 Qd7 $14 {it's not that easy to break Black's defenses.}) 23. Nb3 Bd8 $2 {This just blunders a pawn. Magnus missed 26.d6 in the variation below.} (23... e4 {is an option but I suppose he wasn't attracted to it.} 24. f4 Bf5 25. Nd4 Bd7 26. f5 $16) (23... Bf5 {also does not fully equalize:} 24. Bxe5 Be6 25. Qc3 Bxb3 26. Qxb3 Bxc5 27. Rxc5 Rxc5 28. Bxg7 $1 $36) (23... h6 $1 {is the best defense, but over the board it is hard to see why.}) 24. Qd5 {Grabbing the gift.} Qb5 $6 {Another mistake.} (24... Bc7 {is perhaps a better defense.} 25. Na5 (25. Qxb7 Bd3 26. Rfd1 Bb5 27. Nd2 $16) 25... Bxa5 26. bxa5 Qe7 27. Qxe5 Qxe5 28. Bxe5 Bd3 29. Rfd1 Bb5 {White is a clear pawn up, but the presence of opposite colored bishops give Black good holding chances. I would estimate Black's chances to draw around 30-40%.}) 25. Bxe5 Be7 (25... Qxb4 26. Bd6 {is what he overlooked.}) 26. Qd2 {I consolidate the pawn of course. Here I was very much delighted with my position.} (26. Na5 $1 b6 27. Nb7 {is the computer's fastest way to destroy any Black resistance. Suffice to say that I did not even see 27.b7 during the game.}) 26... Rfd8 27. Bd6 Bf6 28. e4 h6 {White is definitely winning now. The only question is how to convert my advantage. Having a winning position does not mean a thing unless you can carefully nurse your advantage to a win. As a famous player once pointed out: 'Anyone can get an advantage, but only the BEST players convert them.'} 29. Nd4 Bxd4+ 30. Qxd4 Re8 ({Trading pawns does not help at all:} 30... a5 31. bxa5 Qxa5 32. Ra1 $18 {when the b7 pawn is going to fall.}) 31. Rfe1 Kh7 32. g4 $1 {We were already quite short on time here that's why I didn't hesitate to attack!} (32. f4 f5 {is what I wanted to prevent. The last thing we want is for Black to have some sort of a light-square blockade.}) 32... f6 33. f4 Qc6 $2 {After this blunder Black should be totally 100% lost.} (33... Bf7 {is clearly a better defense. The queen is just better placed on b5.} 34. f5 a5 35. bxa5 Ra8 {and if Black can activate a rook along the a-file he has some saving chances.}) 34. f5 Bf7 35. h4 {Here I knew for a fact that I was winning, however converting advantages is never easy, as you can see from the past games. For example there is a famous game of Magnus back in 2014, in a 4.f3 Nimzo. His opponent was totally winning for many moves, even reaching (computer evaluation) +15 at some point, but nevertheless he managed to find all the worst moves and in the end succeeded in losing the game.} Ra8 36. Rc2 (36. Rc3 {was my first intention and would be very strong. I rejected it because of} a5 37. g5 axb4 (37... Bh5 38. Rg3 {and compared with the rook on g2 there is a big difference: Black has no 38...f3! counterplay.}) 38. g6+ Bxg6 39. fxg6+ Kxg6 {and Black has two pawns but hey, a piece is a piece!}) 36... a5 37. g5 Bh5 $1 {A very good sneaky last try, and one which I underestimated.} 38. g6+ {In Norway there is no time increment or delay until move 60, so time trouble is definitely an issue. Here I used up all my time calculating until I found a series of moves that would bring me to move 40 safely.} ({I was hesitant to open the g-file, but simplest is} 38. gxf6 gxf6 39. b5 $1 {(A very important move, closing the a-file and opening the b-file for White.)} Qxb5 40. Rb2 Qd7 41. Qxf6 Rg8+ 42. Kh2 {when Black has absolutely no counterplay.}) 38... Kh8 39. b5 $1 Qxb5 40. Rb2 Qc6 $2 {Magnus used up almost all of his remaining time and made another mistake. This makes the game very easy to convert.} (40... Qd7 {would have made the game harder for me, but as my friend Anish Giri pointed out White still wins easily with the right moves:} 41. Qd5 $1 (41. Reb1 Bf3 42. Rxb7 Qc6 43. e5 Qc8 $1 {is what I missed in my calculations back in move 37.}) 41... Qc6 42. Qd3 a4 43. Rb6 Qc8 44. Qd5 $1 {White just plays the same position a tempo down as in the game. No worries.} a3 (44... Ra7 45. Qf7 $1 a3 46. c6 a2 47. Rxb7 $18) 45. Rxb7 Rg8 (45... a2 46. Rxg7) 46. c6 a2 47. Ra1 $18) 41. Rb6 Qc8 42. Qd5 a4 (42... Ra7 43. Qf7 {threatens c6 and wins. Due to back rank issues Black's counterplay comes way too late.} Bf3 44. c6 Rxe4 45. Rxe4 Bxe4 46. Bf8 $18 {and mate next move.}) 43. Rxb7 Rg8 (43... Bxg6 44. fxg6 Qg4+ 45. Kf2 {does not do much either, as I have g3 to counter his check on h4.}) 44. c6 {Threatening c7 and b8, therefore Magnus finally resigned! This was a clear big win for me, being my first victory against him in classical chess, and it also evened up the standings in the tournament since we were now co=leaders with +1, and only three games to go.} (44. Rc7 Qe8 45. Qd2 a3 $2 46. Qxh6+ $3 {is another way to win. In the after game interview, Ian Rogers asked me if I played especially focused because I was provoked by a statement my opponent made before the game. It seems he said that I am a player who makes boring draws and he could draw me at will. Actually, having no interest in social media I was completely unaware of the comments. When they told me, I burst out laughing because after all, so what? Sometimes I do make boring draws. Sometimes.}) 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 51st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2018.07.22"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Navara, David"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2842"]
[BlackElo "2741"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "127"]
[EventDate "2018.07.22"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Bg5 Bb4+ 5. Nc3 h6 6. Bxf6 Qxf6 7. e3 O-O 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. dxc5 Nd7 (10... Bxc5 11. O-O Qe7 {looks like a simpler equaliser.}) 11. O-O (11. c6 {is not too dangerous:} bxc6 (11... Ne5 $6 12. Nxe5 Qxe5 13. Qb3 $1 (13. O-O bxc6 14. Qe2 Rd8 15. Rfd1 Bb7 16. Rxd8+ Rxd8 17. Rd1 Rxd1+ 18. Qxd1 Qc7 19. h3 Bxc3 20. bxc3 c5 $11 {1/2 (37) Giri,A (2790)-Carlsen,M (2863) Shamkir 2015}) 13... Ba5 $5 14. Qb5 (14. cxb7 $5 Rb8 15. Ba6 $1 {looks strong, too} ({but not} 15. bxc8=Q Rfxc8 {, and Black regains material}) {e.g.} 15... Bxb7 16. Bxb7 Qc7 17. O-O Rxb7 18. Qa3 $16) 14... Qxb5 15. Bxb5 bxc6 16. Bd3 Rb8 17. b3 c5 18. Ke2 Bb7 19. f3 $14 {1/2 (30) Abasov,N (2623)-Cheparinov,I (2712) Ankara 2018}) (11... Nb6 12. Bd3 (12. Qb3 $5) (12. Be2 $5) 12... bxc6 13. O-O Bxc3 14. Rxc3 Nd5 15. Rb3 a5 16. Qc1 a4 17. Ra3 Ba6 18. Bxa6 Rxa6 19. Nd4 $14 {1/2 (45) Ruck,R (2571)-Petkov,V (2564) Gabicce Mare 2013}) 12. O-O Ne5 (12... Nb6 13. Be2 Bb7 14. Qc2 c5 15. a3 Bxc3 16. Qxc3 Rac8 17. Qxf6 gxf6 18. Rfd1 Rc7 19. Nd2 Rd8 20. Nb1 Rxd1+ 21. Rxd1 Na4 22. b3 Nb6 23. Nc3 Bd5 24. Rb1 a5 25. e4 Bc6 26. f3 $14 {1/2 (84) Chuchelov,V (2553)-Dragun,K (2547) Germany 2013}) 13. Be2 Rb8 (13... Nxf3+ 14. Bxf3 Ba6 15. Re1 Rab8 16. Qa4 Rb6 17. Red1 Bxc3 18. bxc3 Rd8 19. Qa3 g6 20. h3 Kg7 21. Rd4 $14 {1/2-1/2 (54) Sasikiran,K (2658)-Sandipan,C (2478) Mumbai 2003}) 14. Qa4 Bxc3 15. bxc3 c5 $1 16. Qxa7 Bb7 17. Nxe5 Qxe5 18. Rfd1 Be4 19. Rd2 {1/2 (19) Gelfand,B (2735)-Matlakov,M (2682) Moscow 2016 CBM 171 [Besenthal,K]} Rfd8 $132) (11. Qc2 Nxc5 12. a3 Bxc3+ 13. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14. Rxc3 Bd7 (14... b6 $5 $11) 15. Ne5 Rfc8 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Ke2 Nb6 18. Rhc1 Kf8 19. f4 Ke7 20. h4 Nxc4 21. Rxc4 Rxc4 22. Rxc4 Kd7 $11 {1-0 (38) Salem,A (2591)-Berescu,A (2458) Abu Dhabi 2014}) 11... Nxc5 (11... Rd8 $5 12. Qc2 (12. Ne4 $5) 12... Bxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3 14. Rxc3 Nxc5 15. Be2 b6 16. Rfc1 {1/2 (29) Wang,Y (2737)-Yu,Y (2725) Shenzhen 2016} a5 $11) (11... Bxc3 $5 12. Rxc3 Nxc5 13. Be2 b6 14. Qd4 Qxd4 15. Nxd4 a5 16. Bf3 Ba6 17. Bxa8 Bxf1 $11 {1/2 (25) Krassowizkij,J (2439)-Ochsner,B (2462) Illertissen 2018}) 12. Nb5 {White tries to exploit the vulnerable position of Black's b4-bishop but it is not too painful for Black.} (12. a3 Bxc3 13. Rxc3 Rd8 14. Qe2 b6 $11 {0-1 (42) El Gindy,E (2486)-Ni,H (2666) Tromsoe 2014}) 12... a6 13. Nbd4 b5 (13... Ba5 $5 14. a3 Bb6 15. b4 Ne4 16. Qd3 Ng5 17. Nxg5 hxg5 18. Qe4 {1-0 (36) Salem,A (2638)-Peralta,F (2556) Sitges 2017} Bxd4 19. exd4 Rd8 20. Rfd1 Rb8 $11) 14. Be2 $146 (14. a3 $5 bxc4 15. Rxc4 Bb7 (15... Bxa3 $6 16. bxa3 Ne4 17. Nc6 Bb7 18. Nfe5 $16 {1-0 (30) Jakovenko,D (2749)-Cheparinov,I (2712) Ankara TUR 2018}) 16. Rxb4 Bd5 $44) ({RR} 14. a3 bxc4 15. Rxc4 Bxa3 16. bxa3 Ne4 17. Nc6 Bb7 18. Nfe5 Nc3 19. Qd2 Bxc6 20. Nxc6 Nd5 21. e4 Qf4 22. Qc2 Nb6 23. Rb4 Qc7 24. Rfb1 Nc8 25. Rb7 Qd6 26. Rd1 Qxa3 27. Rb3 Qa4 28. Rd4 Qa1+ {Jakovenko,D (2749)-Cheparinov,I (2712) Ankara 2018 1-0}) 14... e5 15. Nc2 $5 {[%mdl 512] An unexpected queen sacrifice.} (15. a3 exd4 16. axb4 Ne6 17. Nxd4 Rd8 18. Bf3 Rb8 $11) 15... Rd8 16. Nxb4 Rxd1 17. Rfxd1 $44 {White has a development advantage and controls central files; besides, there are weaknesses in Black's camp (e5-pawn, d5-square). Still, one can hardly believe that Black can lose this game.} a5 (17... Nd7 $5 18. Rc6 ({or} 18. Nd5 Qd8) 18... Qe7 {was quite possible but not easy to play.}) (17... e4 $5 18. Rxc5 exf3 19. Bxf3 Qe7 $1 {[%cal Yc8b7]}) 18. Nd5 Qd6 19. Nxe5 (19. Nc3 Qe7 20. Nxb5 Bb7 {, and Black comfortably develops his pieces. If} 21. Nd6 {then} Ba6 $5) 19... Bb7 20. Bf3 Rc8 21. Ng4 Qf8 22. h4 Nd7 23. Rxc8 Bxc8 24. a3 h5 25. Nh2 g6 26. Be2 Ne5 {There was no need to give up a second pawn:} (26... b4 $5 $11) {However, Black wants to activate his pieces as soon as possible.} 27. Bxb5 Bb7 28. Nc3 Qe7 29. Rd4 Qe6 30. Nf1 Qb3 31. Rd2 Nc4 32. Rd7 Nxb2 33. Rxb7 Qxc3 34. Be8 Kf8 35. Bxf7 Qc6 36. Rxb2 Kxf7 {[%mdl 4096]} 37. Rd2 {[%cal Yd2d4,Ya3a4]} Qa4 38. Rd3 Qxh4 {As a result of complications, Black has avoided material losses, and the game should end in a draw.} 39. Rd7+ Kg8 40. Rd4 Qe7 41. a4 Qa3 42. g3 Qa1 43. Kg2 g5 44. Nd2 g4 45. Ne4 Qc1 $2 {Black gives up a pawn once again.} (45... Kg7 $11) 46. Nf6+ Kf7 47. Nxh5 Qc6+ 48. Kg1 Qc1+ 49. Kh2 Kg6 50. Nf4+ Kf6 51. Ng2 Kg5 {It is very difficult to defend now, and Black quickly sinks.} (51... Qc8 $142) 52. Rf4 Qd1 53. Nh4 Qc2 $2 (53... Kh6 $1 54. Nf5+ Kh7 $1 {, and Black holds on.}) 54. Nf5 Qd3 55. e4 Qd7 56. e5 Qh7+ 57. Kg1 Qg6 58. Nd6 Qe6 $2 (58... Qb1+ $142 {but after} 59. Kh2 Qh7+ 60. Kg2 {White should gradually win.}) 59. Rf5+ Qxf5 60. Nxf5 Kxf5 {The pawn endgame is easily winning for White.} 61. f4 gxf3 62. Kf2 Kxe5 63. Kxf3 Kf5 64. Ke3 {White's g-pawn is below the crucial h3-c8 diagonal, and Black's king, after capturing it, can't get to c8.} 1-0

[Event "Biel GM 51st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2018.07.27"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Navara, David"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2842"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2018.07.22"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Rc1 b6 12. Bd3 Ba6 13. Bxa6 Nxa6 14. O-O Rc8 15. Rxc8 Qxc8 16. Rc1 Qb7 17. Qc2 Nb4 18. Qc4 a5 19. a3 b5 20. Qc7 Qxc7 21. Rxc7 Nd3 22. g3 Rb8 23. Rc3 Nb2 24. Ne5 f6 $146 ({RR} 24... Na4 25. Rb3 Rb6 26. Nd7 Rb7 27. Nc5 Nxc5 28. dxc5 b4 29. axb4 axb4 30. c6 Rc7 31. Rxb4 Kf8 32. Rc4 e5 33. f4 exf4 34. gxf4 Ke7 35. e5 Ke6 36. Rc5 Kf5 37. Rc4 Ke6 38. Rc5 Kf5 39. Rc4 {Richter,N (2328)-Krassowizkij,J (2429) Eberstadt 2022 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 24... Na4 25. Rb3 Rb6 26. Nd7 Rb7 27. Nc5 Nxc5 28. dxc5 b4 29. axb4 axb4 30. c6 Rc7 31. Rxb4 Kf8 32. Rc4 e5 33. f4 exf4 34. gxf4 Ke7 35. e5 Ke6 36. Rc5 Kf5 37. Rc4 Ke6 38. Rc5 Kf5 39. Rc4 {Richter,N (2328)-Krassowizkij,J (2429) Eberstadt 2022 ½-½ (39)}) 25. Nc6 Ra8 26. Rb3 Nc4 27. Rxb5 a4 28. d5 exd5 29. exd5 Nxa3 30. Rc5 Kf7 31. Nd4 Ke7 32. Rc3 Nb1 33. Rc7+ Kd6 34. Nb5+ Kxd5 35. Rc1 a3 36. Rxb1 a2 37. Nc3+ Kd4 38. Nxa2 Rxa2 39. Rb7 Ke4 40. Kg2 g5 41. Rxh7 Kf5 42. Rg7 g4 43. Rh7 Kg6 44. Rh4 f5 45. h3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Biel GM 51st"]
[Site "Biel"]
[Date "2018.07.31"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E65"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2842"]
[Annotator "Mamedyarov,Shakhriyar"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2018.07.22"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "SUI"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{The tournament situation obliged Carlsen to play for the full point. As fror me conversely, I was hoping that this situation would give me additional prospects and thus early on the hope of winning the tournament and I waited for my chance...   Die Turniersituation verpflichtete Carlsen, auf den vollen Punkt zu spielen. Ich meinerseits hoffte im Umkehrschluss darauf, dass diese Lage mir zusätzliche Aussichten geben wird, diese Partie und somit vorzeitig auch das Turnier zu gewinnen, und wartete auf meine Chance...} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nc3 d6 6. Nf3 c5 7. O-O Nc6 8. e3 d5 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 Qxd5 11. Ne5 Qd6 12. Nc4 $146 {With this move White maintains the tension (both on the board and also psychologically) .  Mit diesem Zug hält Weiß die Spannung (sowohl auf dem Brett, als auch die psychologische) aufrecht.} ({RR} 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. dxc5 Qxc5 14. Qf3 Ba6 15. Rd1 Rfd8 16. e4 Qc2 17. Rxd8+ Rxd8 18. Bg5 Bxb2 19. Re1 f6 20. Bh6 g5 21. h4 Bc3 22. Re3 Rd1+ 23. Kh2 Bd4 24. Rb3 Bb6 25. hxg5 Qxf2 26. Qxf2 Bxf2 {Mader,L (1880)-Caliebe,N (1427) Erfurt 2017 0-1 (39)}) 12... Qc7 13. d5 Rd8 ({The move Der Zug} 13... Ne5 {is quieter and safer (after the game Carlsen expressed the same opinion), but Black had to take something of a risk. ist ruhiger und sicherer (nach der Partie äußerte Carlsen die gleiche Meinung), aber Schwarz musste etwas riskieren.} 14. Qc2 Bd7 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. Bd2) 14. Bd2 $1 Nb4 $6 ({The correct move is Richtig ist} 14... Ne5 {and after und nach} 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. Bc3 {the position is more or less level. ist die Stellung etwa ausgeglichen.}) 15. Bxb4 ({During the game I invested a lot of time in In der Partie investierte ich sehr viel Zeit in} 15. e4 $1 {I felt that it should lead to an advantage for White, but in the long run I did not manage to evaluate the position which arose after it - Ich fühlte, dass es zum weißen Vorteil führen soll, aber letztendlich ist es mir nicht gelungen, die daraus resultierende Stellung einzuschätzen -} b5 16. Bf4 $1 e5 (16... Qb7 17. Ne5 g5 (17... f6 18. Nd3 $16) (17... c4 18. a3 Bxe5 19. Bxe5 Nd3 20. Bc3 $16) 18. Nxf7 $1 Kxf7 19. Bxg5 Qb6 (19... c4 20. e5 Bf5 21. Qf3 $1 Kg6 22. g4 Bd3 23. e6 Rf8 24. Qh3 h6 25. Rad1 $1 Kxg5 26. Qh5+ Kf4 27. Rde1 Nc2 28. g5 Nxe1 29. Rxe1 Qb6 30. Qh4+ Kf5 31. Qh5 Kf4 32. Bf3 $1 (32. h3 Qxf2+ 33. Kxf2 Bd4+ 34. Re3 Bxe3+ 35. Ke1 Ke5)) 20. a3 Na6 21. e5) 17. d6 $16 {- this is precisely the move I missed when calculating. Pity! - gerade dieser Zug ist mir bei dem Berechnen entgangen. Schade!}) 15... cxb4 16. Rc1 a5 (16... Bd7 17. Qd2 a5 18. e4 {and White had no problems. und Weiß hat keine Probleme.}) 17. a3 bxa3 18. bxa3 a4 $1 {A very strong reply! Black prevents a3-a4. Sehr starke Erwiderung! Schwarz unterbindet a3-a4.} 19. Qd3 ({Playing Zu Spielvereinfachung und Ausgleich hätte} 19. Qd2 $1 Qc5 20. Qa2 Bd7 21. Ne5 Qd6 22. Nxd7 Qxd7 23. Rfd1 {would have sufficed to simplify the game and equalise. But I found a more interesting idea which also better suited my style. gereicht. Aber ich fand eine interessantere Idee, die auch meinem Stil besser entspricht.}) 19... Bf5 {After this move White gets more active play. After the game Carlsen explained that he had overlooked 21.e3. Nach diesem Zug bekommt Weiß aktiveres Spiel. Nach der Partie erklärte Carlsen, dass er 21.e3 übersah.} ({There was the very strong Sehr stark war} 19... Rb8 $1 {and after und nach} 20. f4 Bd7 21. Ne5 Qd6 22. Nxd7 Qxd7 23. e4 {the position is close to equality. ist die Stellung dem Ausgleich nahe.}) 20. e4 Bd7 21. Qe3 Ra6 22. e5 $1 {Now Black has to be very prcise so as not to fall into a bad position. Jetzt muss Schwarz sehr genau agieren, um nicht in eine schlechte Lage zu geraten.} b5 $1 23. d6 Qb8 $1 (23... exd6 24. Nxd6 Qa7 25. Qg5 Rf8 26. Bd5 {with a powerful attack. mit gewaltigem Angriff.}) 24. dxe7 Re8 25. Rfd1 $1 Rxe7 26. Qc5 $1 {Magnus obviously missed this move. At this moment he began to feel ill at ease, because his position appeared unpleasant to him.  What do you think: which reply would now allow Black to hold his position? Dieser Zug ist Magnus offensichtlich entgangen. In diesem Moment fing er an, sich unwohl zu fühlen, weil ihm seine Stellung unangenehm schien.  Was meinen Sie: welche Antwort würde dem Schwarzen jetzt erlauben, seine Stellung zu halten?} Qf8 (26... Qd8 $2 27. Qxb5 $1) (26... Qe8 27. Nd6) (26... Bf8 $1 {The only move which preserves Black from a bad position. Der einzige Zug, der den Nachziehenden vor einer schlechten Position bewahrt.} 27. Nd6 Re8 $1 28. Bd5 Bxd6 29. exd6 Rc8 (29... Rxd6 $4 30. Bxf7+ $18 (30. Qxd6 $2 Re1+ $1) 30... Kxf7 31. Rxd6 $18) 30. Bxf7+ (30. Qc7 Rxc7 31. dxc7 Qf8 $1 (31... Qc8 32. Bb7) 32. Bxf7+ Qxf7 33. Rxd7 Qxd7 34. c8=Q+ Qxc8 35. Rxc8+ Kg7 36. Rb8 Rd6 37. Rxb5 Rd3) 30... Kxf7 31. Qd5+ Kf8 32. Qe5 Rxc1 (32... Kg8 33. Rc7) 33. Qh8+ Kf7 34. Qxh7+ Kf8 35. Qh8+ $11 {Of course it is anything but simple to find all this over the board. Selbstverständlich ist es alles andere als leicht, das alles am Brett zu finden.}) 27. Ne3 $1 {Magnus had also overlooked this continuation. Auch diese Fortsetzung hat Magnus übersehen.} (27. Nb6 Bg4 28. Re1 Rea7) 27... Be6 (27... Bxe5 $2 28. Rxd7) 28. Qxb5 Raa7 29. Nd5 Bxd5 30. Rxd5 Reb7 31. Qd3 Rb8 32. h4 Qe8 33. Qd4 (33. Bh3 $1 {This option, which I did not notice during the game, gives White a clear advantage. Diese Option, die ich während der Partie nicht bemerkte, gibt dem Weißen klaren Vorteil.} Bxe5 (33... Qe7 34. h5 $16) 34. Re1 Re7 (34... f6 35. f4 Bd4+ 36. Kf1) 35. Bd7 Bb2 36. Bxe8 Rxe1+ 37. Kg2 Rexe8 38. h5 $16) 33... Qe7 34. f4 $6 {I felt a strong desire to win this game and decided to play sharply, but by doing so reduced White's advantage. Ich verspürte den starken Wunsch, diese Partie zu gewinnen, und habe mich entschlossen, scharf zu spielen, aber dabei reduziert sich der weiße Vorteil.} ({The correct way was the simple continuation Richtig war die einfache Fortsetzung} 34. Rc4 Bf8 35. Kh2 {and White is clearly superior. und der Anziehende steht klar überlegen.}) 34... Bf8 35. Kh2 Rab7 ({The best defence consisted of Die beste Verteidung bestand in} 35... Rc7 $1 {but it was not so easy to find in time trouble: , die aber in Zeitnot nicht so leicht zu finden war:} 36. Rxc7 Qxc7 37. Rd7 Qc2 38. Qd5 Qf5 $1 {(the point behind Black's idea - the rook is brought to the second rank) (die Pointe der schwarzen Idee - der Turm wird auf die zweite Reihe gebracht)} 39. Rc7 Rb2 40. Qc4 Bxa3 41. Qxa4 Bb4 {with good drawing chances, e.g. mit guten Remisaussichten, z. B.} 42. Qa8+ Kg7 43. Qa1 Rd2 44. e6+ Kh6 45. exf7 (45. Rxf7 Rxg2+ $1 46. Kxg2 Qe4+ $11) 45... Qd5 46. Qf1 Bf8 47. Kh1 Qd6 48. Rc6 Rd1 49. Rxd6 Rxf1+ 50. Bxf1 Bxd6 $11 {- to calculate all this to the end you need to have a brain like a computer :) - um das alles bis zum Ende auszurechnen, muss man funktionieren wie ein Computer :)}) 36. Qxa4 {I was already short of time here and did not want to take any risks, so I simply cashed in on the a4-pawn - it is not easy for Black to hold this position. But objectively speaking my decision was wrong. Hier hatte ich bereits wenig Zeit und wollte kein Risiko eingehen, somit kassierte ich einfach den Bauern a4 - es ist für Schwarz nicht einfach, diese Position zu halten. Aber objektiv gesehen war meine Entscheidung falsch.} ({But there was the very strong Sehr stark war aber} 36. Rd6 $1 Rb2 (36... Rc7 37. Rxc7 Qxc7 38. Rc6 $1 Qd8 39. Bd5 Bxa3 40. e6 $18) 37. Kh3 $1 $18 {(unfortunately I did not discover this move when calcualting the variations) (diesen Zug habe ich bei dem Variantenberechnen leider nicht entdeckt)} R8b3 38. Rc8 Re2 39. Rxf8+ $1 Kxf8 40. e6 f6 41. Rd8+ Kg7 42. Rd7 $18) 36... Qxa3 37. Qxa3 Bxa3 38. Rcd1 Be7 39. Kh3 (39. h5 gxh5) 39... Rc7 40. h5 $1 {The strongest continuation which gives my opponent the maximum of defensive difficulties to overcome. Die stärkste Fortsetzung, die dem Gegner maximale Verteidigungsschwierigkeiten bereitet.} gxh5 $1 41. f5 f6 42. e6 $1 (42. Rd7 Rxd7 43. Rxd7 Kf8 44. e6 {- here Black hangs on easily. - hier behauptet sich Schwarz leicht.}) 42... Rb3 $1 {Carlsen chooses the best defence. Carlsen verteidigt sich optimal.} 43. Rd7 Rbc3 44. Ra1 Kg7 45. Ra8 Kh6 {Black can hold by playing only moves. In my calculations I thought that this position is won for White, but in reality that does not seem to be the case.  Schwarz hält sich mit einzigen Zügen. Bei meiner Vorausberechnung dachte ich, dass diese Stellung für Weiß gewonnen ist, aber in Wirklichkeit scheint es nicht der Fall zu sein.} 46. Re8 (46. Be4 Re3 47. Rxc7 Bd6 48. Rd7) 46... Bb4 47. Rb8 Be7 48. Be4 {By this point I had already understood that the position, objectively speaking, is drawn; nevertheless I kept on looking for chances to win the game. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt hatte ich bereits verstanden, dass die Position objektiv gesehen Remis ist, nichtsdestotrotz suchte ich weiterhin nach Chancen, die Partie zu gewinnen.} R3c4 {This does not yet throw away the draw. Das wirft das Unentschieden noch nicht weg.} (48... Re3 $3 49. Rxc7 Bd6 50. e7 Rxg3+ $11 51. Kh4 Rg4+ 52. Kh3 Rg3+ $11) 49. Bd5 R4c5 50. Rb7 Rxd7 51. Rxd7 Ra5 (51... Bf8 $1 52. Kg2 (52. Rf7 Bd6 53. Ba8 Re5) 52... Rb5 $1 (52... Ra5 53. Be4 Ba3 54. Rf7 $16) 53. Kf3 (53. Be4 Ba3) 53... Ba3 $1 54. Ke4 Rb4+ 55. Kd3 Rg4 $11 56. e7 Rxg3+ 57. Kc2 Bxe7 58. Rxe7 h4 $11) 52. Bc6 $2 (52. Bc4 $1 $18 Rc5 53. Bd3 Rc3 54. Rxe7 $3 Rxd3 55. Re8 {- it is hard to believe but this position is a win - - kaum zu glauben, aber diese Position ist gewonnen -} Re3 (55... Kg7 56. Rc8 Re3 57. Kh4 Re5 58. Ra8 Re1 59. Kxh5) 56. Rg8 Re2 57. g4 hxg4+ 58. Kg3 Kh5 59. Rxg4 Re1 60. Kf3 Rb1 61. Rg7) 52... Ba3 53. Rf7 Re5 (53... Rxf5 $1 {Magnus suggested this reply after the game. He was probably correct - the position which arises in this case appears rather to be drawn. Diese Antwort schlug Magnus nach der Partie vor. Wahrscheinlich hatte er recht - die in diesem Fall entstehende Position scheint eher Remis zu sein.} 54. e7 Bxe7 55. Rxe7 Rc5 56. Be4 f5 57. Bd3 Rd5 58. Re3 Kg6 59. Rf3 Kg5 60. Bc2 Ra5 61. Rf1 Rd5) 54. Kh4 $1 {Carlsen did not consider this possibility. Diese Möglichkeit hat Carlsen nicht in Betracht gezogen.} Bc1 $4 (54... Bb4 $1 55. Rxf6+ Kg7 56. Rf7+ Kh6 $1 {- it is hard to believe but this position is probably a draw -  - schwer zu glauben, aber diese Stellung ist wahrscheinlich Remis -} 57. Bd7 Re3 58. f6 Kg6 {and White can make no further progress. und Weiß kommt nicht weiter.}) 55. e7 {1-0 (55) Mamedyarov,S (2801)-Carlsen,M (2802) Biel 2018 EXT 2019 [Mamedyarov,S]} 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 6th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2018.08.22"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "So, Wesley"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E14"]
[WhiteElo "2842"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[PlyCount "102"]
[EventDate "2018.08.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. e3 Nc6 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd3 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. Qe2 b6 10. Rd1 cxd4 11. Nxd5 Qxd5 12. exd4 Bb7 13. Be4 Qd6 14. g3 $146 ({RR} 14. d5 exd5 15. Bxd5 Qc7 16. Bg5 Rae8 17. Qc4 Bc5 18. Rac1 Ne5 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. Bxb7 Qxg5 21. b4 Be7 22. a3 Rd8 23. Qa6 Bd6 24. g3 Bb8 25. Qc4 g6 26. Bd5 Kg7 27. Rc3 Rd7 28. Rcd3 Rfd8 {Stork,O (2289)-Nagy,G (2439) Germany GER 2024 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 14. d5 exd5 15. Bxd5 Qc7 16. Bg5 Rae8 17. Qc4 Bc5 18. Rac1 Ne5 19. Nxe5 Qxe5 20. Bxb7 Qxg5 21. b4 Be7 22. a3 Rd8 23. Qa6 Bd6 24. g3 Bb8 25. Qc4 g6 26. Bd5 Kg7 27. Rc3 Rd7 28. Rcd3 Rfd8 {Stork,O (2289)-Nagy,G (2439) Germany GER 2024 ½-½ (32)}) 14... Bf6 15. Bg5 Qe7 16. Bxf6 Qxf6 17. Ne5 Rfc8 18. Qb5 Na5 19. Bxb7 Nxb7 20. Qd7 Nc5 21. dxc5 Qxe5 22. c6 h5 23. Rd6 Qxb2 24. Rad1 Qc2 25. h4 Rd8 26. Qxd8+ Rxd8 27. Rxd8+ Kh7 28. R8d7 a5 29. c7 b5 30. R1d2 Qc1+ 31. Rd1 Qc2 32. R1d4 f6 33. Rd2 Qc1+ 34. Rd1 Qc2 35. R1d6 Qb1+ 36. Rd1 Qc2 37. R1d6 Qb1+ 38. Kg2 Qe4+ 39. Kh2 Qc2 40. Rd2 Qc3 41. R2d6 Qc2 42. Rd2 Qc3 43. Re2 e5 44. Red2 b4 45. R2d6 Kg6 46. Kg2 Qc2 47. Re7 Qe4+ 48. Kg1 Qe1+ 49. Kg2 Qe4+ 50. Kg1 Qe1+ 51. Kg2 Qe4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 6th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2018.08.26"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D73"]
[WhiteElo "2801"]
[BlackElo "2842"]
[Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2018.08.18"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 186"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.09.14"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 c6 5. Bg2 d5 {Black indicates that he is fine with a draw, by entering the infamous ...c6, ...d5 setup against the Fianchetto KID.} 6. Nbd2 (6. O-O O-O 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. Nc3 {brings us to 'the big position', where Black decides between, in the first instance, ...c6, ...e6 or ...e4. My personal favourite, and the most commonly played, is ...e6.} e6 9. Ne5 {This is most testing.} (9. b3 Nc6 10. Ne5 (10. Ba3 Re8 11. e3 Qa5 12. Bb2 Bd7) 10... Nxe5 11. dxe5 Ng4 12. e4) (9. Bf4 Nc6 10. Ne5 Nh5 $132) 9... Bd7 $5 {Used in a previous Mamedyarov game.} (9... Nfd7 {is a common choice, inviting the repetition. An independent line now is:} 10. f4 $1 Nxe5 $5 (10... Nc6 11. b3 $1 Ndxe5 (11... Re8 12. Ba3 Qa5 13. Bb2 Ne7 14. Qd3 {is also nice for White.}) 12. dxe5 f6 13. exf6 Bxf6 14. Bb2 $14) 11. fxe5 f6 12. e4 $5 {A new idea of mine, as far as I know.} fxe5 13. Rxf8+ Qxf8 14. exd5 exd4 (14... exd5 15. Nxd5 Nc6 $14) 15. Ne4 exd5 16. Ng5 $1 h6 (16... Nc6 $2 17. Bxd5+ Kh8 18. Nf7+ Kg8 19. Qf3 h5 20. Bf4 $32) 17. Bxd5+ Kh8 18. Nf7+ Kh7 19. Bxh6 $1 Bxh6 20. Nxh6 Qxh6 21. Qxd4 $40 {Black has to find a series of precise moves to survive.}) 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bf4 Nc6 12. Qd2 Kh7 13. Rfd1 Nh5 14. e4 Nxf4 15. Qxf4 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Qe7 17. h4 Rad8 $1 $11 {Mamedyarov,S-Artemiev,V Moscow 2017}) 6... a5 7. b3 a4 8. Ba3 axb3 $5 {I don't always understand why Black players are so keen to resolve this tension, because the pawn on a4 is so rarely edible.} (8... O-O 9. O-O Ne4 $132) 9. axb3 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. e3 ({The most direct way is} 11. Bb2 Na6 12. Ne5 Bf5 13. f3 {but here Black can take care of himself, for instance after} Qb6 $11 {. Therefore White leaves the bishop on a3, which represents a form of tension.}) 11... Bf5 12. Qe2 {How very subtle.} Na6 $146 {This move tries to be too careful, and gives White a couple of interesting possibilities for play over the next 5 moves or so.} (12... Nbd7 {was also possible, but maybe Black was concerned about} 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb5 $36 {and White has a brief burst of activity.}) ({RR} 12... Nbd7 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. h3 e6 15. g4 Be4 16. g5 Bxf3 17. Bxf3 Nh5 18. Bxh5 gxh5 19. f4 Qb6 20. Bb2 Nf8 21. Qxh5 Ng6 22. Qe2 Ne7 23. Qd3 Nf5 24. Rxa8 Rxa8 25. Ra1 Rxa1+ 26. Bxa1 h6 27. gxh6 {Wojtaszek,R (2734)-Ivanchuk,V (2726) Berlin 2015 0-1 (33)}) 13. Ne5 Ne4 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nxe4 (15. Rfc1 $5) 15... Bxe4 16. Bxe4 (16. Qb5 $5) 16... dxe4 17. Qb5 Rb8 18. Qc4 Bxe5 $1 $11 {Fully equalising the game, even if this is not obvious yet.} 19. dxe5 Qd3 20. Rac1 (20. Qxd3 exd3 21. Rad1 b5 $3 {is one of the points, even if it doesn't get any objective advantage after} 22. Bb2 $11) 20... Qxc4 21. Rxc4 b5 {As in the previous note, Black targets b3.} 22. Rc6 (22. Rxe4 b4 23. Bb2 Nc5 24. Rc4 Nxb3 25. Rd1 Rec8 $1 $15) 22... Ra8 23. Rfc1 Nb8 24. Rc8 Kf8 25. Bb4 Na6 26. Rxa8 Rxa8 27. Ba5 Ke8 28. Rc6 Kd7 29. Rb6 Nc5 30. b4 (30. Rxb5 {requires either superhuman calculation or an appetite for suffering.} Nxb3 31. e6+ $1 (31. Rxb3 Rxa5 $15 {is certainly drawable, but definitely will not be fun.}) 31... Kxe6 32. Bb4 Nc1 33. Rb6+ {Black cannot escape with the pawn, but if you saw this position from afar, you would still be a lot more concerned than the engine is about White's survival chances after} Kd7 34. Rb7+ Kc6 35. Rxe7 Nd3 36. Bc3 f5 $5 $13) 30... Nd3 31. e6+ (31. Rxb5 Kc6 32. Rb6+ Kd5 33. Rb7 $1 {White keeps enough activity.}) 31... fxe6 32. Rxb5 Rc8 33. Rb7+ Kd6 34. b5 Rc1+ 35. Kg2 Rc2 36. Kg1 {A sign that the position has become practically difficult, and indeed, inaccuracies begin to creep in.} g5 37. Rb8 Rb2 (37... e5 $5) 38. Rd8+ Kc5 39. b6 Rb5 40. Kg2 $6 (40. g4 {still keeps the game level, because Black doesn't have any easy mating configurations.}) 40... g4 41. h3 h5 42. hxg4 hxg4 {Now it is a little bit troublesome to draw this.} 43. Bc3 e5 44. Rg8 Kc4 {One way to initiate the last roll of the dice.} (44... Rxb6 $5 45. Rxg4 Rb3 46. Ba5 Rb2 47. Rxe4 Rxf2+ 48. Kg1 Re2 $15 {White still has quite significant issues to surmount.}) 45. Rc8+ Kd5 46. Rd8+ Kc5 47. Rc8+ ({Why not} 47. Rg8 {?}) 47... Kxb6 48. Rb8+ Kc5 49. Rxb5+ {Clearly, White backed his intuition that this endgame would be drawn.} Kxb5 50. Kf1 Ka4 51. Ke2 e6 52. Kf1 Kb3 53. Ba5 Kc2 54. Ke2 Nc1+ 55. Ke1 Nd3+ (55... Kd3 $11 {is possible, but Black doesn't get anywhere near the progress that he needs, which is, very simply, forcing the White king to f1 at such a moment that ...d1/d2 is then possible.}) 56. Ke2 Nc1+ 57. Ke1 Nd3+ 58. Ke2 Nc1+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 34th"]
[Site "Porto Carras"]
[Date "2018.10.14"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D79"]
[WhiteElo "2727"]
[BlackElo "2839"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2018.10.12"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Novy Bor"]
[BlackTeam "Valerenga"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "CZE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 c6 6. Nc3 d5 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. Ne5 b6 9. O-O Bb7 10. Bf4 Nc6 11. Rc1 ({RR} 11. Qa4 Rc8 12. Rac1 a6 13. Nxc6 Rxc6 14. Be5 e6 15. Nxd5 Rxc1 16. Nxf6+ Bxf6 17. Rxc1 Bxe5 18. Bxb7 Qxd4 19. Qxd4 Bxd4 20. Bxa6 Bxb2 21. Rc8 Rxc8 22. Bxc8 Kg7 23. e3 h5 24. Kg2 Kf6 25. Bd7 Kg7 {Svidler,P (2732)-Caruana,F (2801) Bilbao 2014 ½-½ (33)}) 11... Rc8 12. Qd2 ({RR} 12. Qa4 a5 13. Rfd1 e6 14. Nb5 Nh5 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Be3 Qd7 17. Rxc6 Rxc6 18. Nc3 Rfc8 19. Qb5 Nf6 20. h3 Qb7 21. Na4 Ne8 22. Nc5 Qe7 23. Nd3 Nd6 24. Qb3 Nc4 25. Nf4 Qd7 26. Kh2 Nxe3 {Alizadeh,M (2015)-Aravindhan,A (2098) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (50)}) 12... e6 13. Rc2 $146 ({RR} 13. Bg5 Ne7 14. Rc2 Ne8 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 Nd6 17. Rfc1 f6 18. Nf3 Nef5 19. Qd2 Ne4 20. Qd3 Nfd6 21. Bh3 Qd7 22. Nxe4 dxe4 23. Qb3 Nf5 24. Bxf5 Bd5 25. Qe3 exf3 26. Be4 {½-½ (26) Glud,J (2550)-Andersen,M (2601) Denmark 2020}) ({RR} 13. Bg5 Ne7 14. Rc2 Ne8 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 Nd6 17. Rfc1 f6 18. Nf3 Nef5 19. Qd2 Ne4 20. Qd3 Nfd6 21. Bh3 Qd7 22. Nxe4 dxe4 23. Qb3 Nf5 24. Bxf5 Bd5 25. Qe3 exf3 26. Be4 {½-½ (26) Glud,J (2550)-Andersen,M (2601) Denmark 2020}) 13... Nxe5 14. Bxe5 Ne8 15. Bxg7 Kxg7 16. Rfc1 Nd6 17. b3 Qf6 18. e3 Ba6 19. a4 Qe7 20. Na2 Rxc2 21. Rxc2 Rc8 22. Rxc8 Bxc8 23. a5 Qc7 24. axb6 Qxb6 25. Qb4 Ba6 26. Qxb6 axb6 27. Nc3 Bd3 28. Bf1 Bc2 29. b4 Ne4 30. Nb5 Bd1 31. Bd3 Nd2 32. Nc3 Bb3 33. Kg2 Bc4 34. Bc2 Bf1+ 35. Kg1 Bc4 36. Kg2 g5 37. g4 Bf1+ 38. Kg3 Nc4 39. h4 h6 40. hxg5 hxg5 41. Ba4 Nb2 42. Bc2 Kf6 43. f4 Bd3 44. Bb3 Bc4 45. Bc2 Bd3 46. Bb3 Bc4 47. Bc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 34th"]
[Site "Porto Carras"]
[Date "2018.10.15"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Donchenko, Alexander"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D04"]
[WhiteElo "2839"]
[BlackElo "2610"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2018.10.12"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Valerenga"]
[BlackTeam "Aachen Aufwaerts"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "GER"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 c5 4. Nbd2 cxd4 5. exd4 Nc6 6. Bb5 Qb6 ({RR} 6... Bg4 7. c4 dxc4 8. Qa4 Bd7 9. Ne5 Nxe5 10. dxe5 Bxb5 11. Qxb5+ Qd7 12. Qxc4 Nd5 13. O-O Rc8 14. Qd4 e6 15. Ne4 a6 16. Bg5 h6 17. Bh4 Nf4 18. Nf6+ gxf6 19. Qxf4 fxe5 20. Qxe5 Rg8 21. Rfd1 {Carlsen,M (2832)-So,W (2815) Chess.com INT 2017 1-0}) 7. c4 dxc4 8. a4 a6 $146 ({RR} 8... Be6 9. O-O O-O-O 10. Nxc4 Bxc4 11. Bxc4 e6 12. Be3 Nd5 13. Ng5 Rd7 14. Qf3 Bb4 15. Rfc1 h6 16. Ne4 Rhd8 17. a5 Bxa5 18. Bxd5 Rxd5 19. Qxf7 Kb8 20. Qxe6 R5d7 21. Rxc6 bxc6 22. Qe5+ {1-0 (22) Zwirs,N (2454)-Groenewoud,J (2159) Hilversum NED 2025}) 9. Nxc4 Qc7 10. Bxc6+ Qxc6 11. Nce5 Qd5 12. O-O Bg4 13. Nxg4 Nxg4 14. a5 Nf6 15. Bg5 e6 16. Ne5 Be7 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Ng4 Rd8 19. Ra4 Qb5 20. b3 f5 21. Ne3 f4 22. Nc4 Bf6 23. Nb6 Qf5 24. d5 f3 25. g3 Be5 26. Rc4 h5 27. Re1 Rh6 28. Rh4 Bc3 29. Rf4 Qh3 30. Rxf3 Bxe1 31. Qxe1 h4 32. Qe4 hxg3 33. Qa4+ Kf8 34. Qb4+ Ke8 35. Qa4+ Kf8 36. Qb4+ Ke8 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 34th"]
[Site "Porto Carras"]
[Date "2018.10.16"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2820"]
[BlackElo "2839"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2018.10.12"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "GRE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Odlar Yurdu"]
[BlackTeam "Valerenga"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "AZE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 O-O 8. e3 Bf5 9. Qb3 Bxc3+ 10. Qxc3 Nbd7 11. Be2 c6 12. Nd2 Ne4 13. Nxe4 ({RR} 13. Bxd8 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Rfxd8 15. a4 Nf6 16. Nf1 Ne8 17. Ng3 Bh7 18. Kd2 Nd6 19. Ra2 a5 20. Rha1 Ra7 21. f3 Rda8 22. Bd3 Bxd3 23. Kxd3 b5 24. axb5 cxb5 25. e4 Nc4 26. Rb1 dxe4+ 27. fxe4 Rb8 {Grischuk,A (2777)-Carlsen,M (2862) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (114)}) ({RR} 13. Bxd8 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Rfxd8 15. Nf1 Rac8 16. g4 Bg6 17. a4 c5 18. Kd2 Rc7 19. h4 Rdc8 20. Ra3 Nf6 21. f3 h5 22. g5 Ne8 23. Ng3 Nd6 24. Rf1 Re7 25. Re1 cxd4 26. exd4 Rce8 27. Raa1 Re3 {Michalik,P (2562)-Mica,M (2383) Pardubice CZE 2025 ½-½ (94)}) 13... Qxh4 14. Nd6 Bg4 $146 ({RR} 14... Be4 15. Nxe4 Qxe4 16. O-O Nf6 17. f3 Qe7 18. Rae1 Rac8 19. Bd3 c5 20. dxc5 Rxc5 21. Qd4 b6 22. g4 Rfc8 23. Qf4 Nd7 24. Bf5 Rc4 25. Qg3 R8c5 26. h4 Nf8 27. g5 hxg5 28. hxg5 g6 29. Bd3 {Talu,M (2351)-Cvitan,O (2467) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 14... Be4 15. Nxe4 Qxe4 16. O-O Nf6 17. f3 Qe7 18. Rae1 Rac8 19. Bd3 c5 20. dxc5 Rxc5 21. Qd4 b6 22. g4 Rfc8 23. Qf4 Nd7 24. Bf5 Rc4 25. Qg3 R8c5 26. h4 Nf8 27. g5 hxg5 28. hxg5 g6 29. Bd3 {Talu,M (2351)-Cvitan,O (2467) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (41)}) 15. g3 Qf6 16. Bxg4 Qxd6 17. Qa3 Qc7 18. Rc1 Nf6 19. Bf3 a5 20. O-O Rfe8 21. Rc2 Qd7 22. Rc5 Qd8 23. b4 axb4 24. Qxb4 Ra7 25. a4 Ne4 26. Bxe4 Rxe4 27. a5 Re7 28. Rb1 Ra6 29. Qd2 Rd7 30. Rb3 g6 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Caruana"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2018.11.10"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[Annotator "Duda,Jan Krzysztof"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2018.11.09"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "GBR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Be7 {The ever solid Queen's Gambit Declined. Even though the challenger recently played a lot of games in the Vienna Game, the QGD must have been one of the top piorities of Magnus' team.} 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 {This is a small surprise. It's the first time, when Fabiano chooses this line in his life. In that way Nakamura drew quite recently 2 games against Carlsen, so it was kind of expected though. The real surprise will come later.} (6... Nbd7 {is the most common move, and the way Caruana played before this game. Perhaps he wasn't keen facing} 7. c5 {where White is enjoying some space advantage, and it might be kind of Carlsen-type position. Of course it's just a beginning of far-advanced theory.}) 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Qc2 {This is the main move, but White also may wish to play against the isolani with} (8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Bb4+ 11. Nd2 Nc6 {This is one of the tabiyas in the QGD with 6...c5. Usually Black gets enough counterplay for his isolani, for example Vishy Anand drew all three of his games with Black in this position in the Sinquefield Cup this year. In 2017, Carlsen was about outplaying Nakamura in this line, but the American managed to save himself. Now it's obvious to everyone that Caruana had some improvements, awaiting their hour.}) 8... Nc6 9. a3 Qa5 10. Rd1 {Again, one of the tabiyas, known since the infamous '78 Karpov-Korchnoi match. In contrast to the} (10. O-O-O {line which is slightly more popular, but can lead to an amazing mess, where either side can collapse easily, White is playing purely positionally. He just wants to develop with Be2 and 0-0, and is asking Black what he is going to do with his poor c8-bishop. Now Black has many choices, but what Caruana played was hardly predictible.}) 10... Rd8 $5 {Some time ago, this was considered dubious, because it isn't in any way preparing the freeing move e5. But of course computers change modern opening theory, also the effect of surprise these days is something everyone is trying for. The other lines are:} (10... Re8 $5 {is having a boost of popularity, the position can quickly become quite complicated:} 11. Nd2 e5 12. Bg5 Nd4 13. Qb1 (13. Qc1 {was basically a draw offer:} Bf5 14. Bxf6 Nc2+ 15. Ke2 Nd4+ 16. Ke1 Nc2+ 17. Ke2 Nd4+ 18. Ke1 Nc2+ {1/2 (18) Carlsen,M (2827)-Nakamura,H (2781) Douglas ENG 2017}) 13... Bf5 14. Bd3 Bxd3 (14... e4 $2 {was played in the famous 21st game in aforementioned K-K match. White is better after both} 15. Bc2 {(the game continuation. Even stronger is} (15. Bf1 $1 {where objectively Black is lost.}) 15... Nxc2+ 16. Qxc2 Qa6 17. Bxf6 Qxf6 18. Nb3 Bd6 19. Rxd5 $1 $16 {1-0 (60) Kortschnoj,V (2665)-Karpov,A (2725) Baguio City 1978}) 15. Qxd3 Ne4 {where as far as I am concerned Black is doing fine after both} 16. Nxd5 ({and} 16. Ncxe4)) (10... Ne4 $6 {is probably wrong. After} 11. cxd5 Nxc3 12. bxc3 exd5 13. Ng5 $1 g6 14. Rxd5 Qxa3 15. Bc4 $36 {White develops dangerous initiative}) (10... Be7 {is the classical main line. After} 11. Be2 Ne4 (11... dxc4) 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14. bxc3 exd5 15. Rxd5 Bxa3 16. Nd4 $36 {White has initiative 1/2 (95) Carlsen,M (2853)-Nakamura,H (2814) Saint Louis USA 2015}) 11. Be2 (11. Nd2 {is the most popular, with the idea to harass Black's queen. But this is the first thing Fabiano's team had a look at, so the Norwegian decides to deviate.} d4 {might be something like what the American prepared. The position is a mess after} (11... dxc4 12. Nxc4 Rxd1+ 13. Qxd1 Qd8 14. Qxd8+ Nxd8 15. Be2 $14) 12. Nb3 Qb6 13. Na4 Bb4+ 14. axb4 Qxb4+ 15. Nd2 $13 {but the computer not surprisingly is keen on White.}) 11... Ne4 {Now, where the d5-pawn is not hanging, this exchange maneouvre should gradually equalise the position} 12. O-O (12. Nd2 $5 Nxc3 13. Nb3 Qa4 14. Qxc3 Be7 15. cxd5 exd5 16. Nc5 Bxc5 17. Qxc5 Be6 18. O-O Rac8) ({RR} 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. bxc3 exd5 14. O-O h6 15. a4 Bd6 16. Bxd6 Rxd6 17. c4 Be6 18. c5 Rdd8 19. Rb1 Qc7 20. Qb2 Rab8 21. Nd4 Nxd4 22. Qxd4 b6 23. cxb6 Rxb6 24. h3 Rc8 25. Rfd1 Qc3 26. Qxc3 Rxc3 {Carlsen,M (2845)-Anand,V (2779) Shamkir 2019 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 12. cxd5 exd5 13. O-O Nxc3 14. bxc3 h6 15. c4 Be6 16. cxd5 Bxd5 17. Bc4 Bxc4 18. Qxc4 Bxa3 19. Ra1 Qc5 20. Qb3 Bb4 21. Rfc1 Qb6 22. h4 a5 23. Rc4 Qb5 24. Rac1 a4 25. Qa2 a3 26. Nd4 Nxd4 {Pujari,R (2071)-Divya,D (2427) FIDE Online Arena INT 2024 0-1 (32)}) 12... Nxc3 13. bxc3 h6 {Defending against any Ng5.} 14. a4 Ne7 $146 {I think Black equalised. Now not to become worse with his shaky queenside, the World Champion has to play actively.} ({RR} 14... Bd6 15. Bxd6 Rxd6 16. e4 Qc5 17. Qd2 Ne7 18. Qf4 Ng6 19. Qg3 Bd7 20. cxd5 exd5 21. c4 d4 22. e5 Re6 23. Rxd4 Nxe5 24. Rd5 Nxf3+ 25. Bxf3 Qe7 26. Bg4 Bxa4 27. Bxe6 Qxe6 28. Qd3 Bc6 29. Rd6 {Munoz Sanchez,J (2223)-Aspiazu Sibri,M (1835) Guayaquil 2019 1-0 (54)}) 15. Ne5 Bd6 (15... f6 16. Ng6 e5 17. Bg3 Be6 {is one of the favourites of the engine, but in such cases, when the game is at stake, players tend to avoid such committal decisions. The move Caruana played is fine.}) 16. cxd5 {From now on, there will be many exchanges, when Black gets developed finally, but White is too active to have any real issues} Nxd5 17. Bf3 {White goes the route of an interesting possibility, which looks risky but gets my approval.} (17. Nxf7 $5 Kxf7 18. Bxd6 (18. Bh5+ Kg8 19. Bxd6 Rxd6 {is the same thing}) 18... Rxd6 19. Bh5+ Kg8 20. e4 (20. c4 {It seems that White has to play precisely to hold the position.} Bd7 (20... Rc6) (20... Nb4) (20... Qc7) 21. cxd5 Bxa4 22. Qa2 $8 Rxd5 23. Bg4 Rxd1 24. Rxd1 Qb4 25. Bxe6+ Kh8 26. Rb1 Rd8 $13) 20... Bd7 (20... Nf4 $5 {is a winning try.} 21. Rxd6 Qxh5 22. Rd8+ Kf7 23. Rfd1 e5 $13 {with an unclear, but roughly equal position.}) 21. exd5 Qxa4 {One of many possibilities.} 22. Qb1 Rxd5 23. Qxb7 Qc6 $11) 17... Nxf4 {The simplest.} (17... Qc7 18. c4 Nxf4 19. exf4 {can only create difficulties for Black.}) 18. exf4 Bxe5 19. Rxd8+ Qxd8 20. fxe5 Qc7 (20... Bd7 $5 {Black has the luxury of not being afraid of losing the b7-pawn.} 21. Bxb7 Rb8 22. Bf3 Qa5 {and Black recaptures the missing pawn with equality.}) 21. Rb1 Rb8 22. Qd3 Bd7 (22... b6 $5 {was a nice try for Black, I think.} 23. a5 $1 {otherwise White may be worse with his bad pawn structure.} Bb7 (23... Qxe5 24. a6 $1 $44 {is a key White must have foreseen beforehand.}) 24. axb6 axb6 25. Bxb7 Rxb7 26. Qd4 $11 {with a drawn position.}) 23. a5 Bc6 24. Qd6 {White knows that the best he can do is exchange everything and make a draw - not very pleasing when the onus is on White to score, but that's life.} Qxd6 25. exd6 Bxf3 26. gxf3 Kf8 27. c4 Ke8 28. a6 $1 {From the human viewpoint the simplest. White exchanges all pawns on the queenside, and defends in a 3 vs 4 on the same wing rook endgame.} b6 29. c5 Kd7 30. cxb6 axb6 31. a7 Ra8 32. Rxb6 Rxa7 33. Kg2 e5 34. Rb4 f5 35. Rb6 Ke6 36. d7+ Kxd7 37. Rb5 $11 {The endgame is dead drawn. The doubled pawns are actually a strengh here, because Black is unable to create a passed pawn. Now White can just do nothing and marks time. Black has no meaningful plan available.} Ke6 38. Rb6+ Kf7 39. Rb5 Kf6 40. Rb6+ Kg5 41. Rb5 Kf4 42. Rb4+ e4 43. fxe4 fxe4 44. h3 {Funny, another 3 vs 2 rook endgame, but now Fabiano is the one with the pawn up. This means the game will last 60 moves shorter :)} Ra5 45. Rb7 Rg5+ 46. Kf1 Rg6 47. Rb4 Rg5 48. Rb7 Rg6 49. Rb4 {So, a relatively easy draw today by Fabiano Caruana. Perhaps the World Champion was frustrated a bit with yesterday's game, and decided to play a simple game today. My guess is that the day after tomorrow we will have quite a tense game in the 'Spanish torture', unless the challenger changes his first move. Of course, it's just a shot in the dark, but sometimes you are happy when you guess the right opening.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Caruana"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2018.11.18"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2018.11.09"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "12"]
[EventCountry "GBR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 187"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.11"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 {Straight into one of the thematic battlegrounds of the world champions! This is an opening that seems to be very much beloved by Nakamura, Anand, and more recently Caruana himself.} 7. dxc5 (7. cxd5 Nxd5 8. Nxd5 Qxd5 {holds less venom and was the battleground for an encounter between a Topalov second and a Carlsen second... Edouard,R -Hammer,J Drancy 2016}) 7... Bxc5 8. Qc2 (8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. a3 Nc6 11. Bd3 {To be honest, I am a little surprised Carlsen didn't choose this. He tends to like playing against the IQP, and while it might appear that Black can play ...d4, this is a mirage: either there will be some trick yielding an edge (like exd4 followed by Be3) or else White will simply push past with e4. The textbook encounter features a commentator from this match:} Bb6 12. O-O Bg4 13. h3 Bh5 14. b4 a6 15. Rc1 d4 16. g4 Bg6 17. e4 Re8 18. Re1 Rc8 19. Bc4 $1 $14 {Svidler,P-Harikrishna,P Shenzhen 2017}) 8... Nc6 9. a3 {During Norway Chess 2018, when I last looked at this variation, I commented that I did not believe the present move to be White's most critical, but I am now revising this assessment.} Qa5 10. Nd2 {On this move, my only earlier comment was that it "might be an interesting try for an advantage, but that it ultimately fails"- giving 10...Bb4. The challenger, however, did not play that move, indicating that neither player reads the details on chessbase. com!} (10. O-O-O $5 {See my detailed notes on this in Karjakin-Anand, Norway Chess 2018.} Ne4 $1 11. Nxe4 (11. Nb5 a6 12. Nc7 e5 $1 $40 {Originally played by Karjakin, but ultimately used against him by Anand in the above-mentioned encounter.}) 11... dxe4 12. Qxe4 Bxa3 $1 {There follows a forced line.} 13. bxa3 Qxa3+ 14. Kd2 Rd8+ 15. Ke2 Qb2+ 16. Rd2 Rxd2+ 17. Nxd2 e5 18. Bg3 Bg4+ $3 {New and detailed analysis now reveals that White needs to accept first the bishop and then the perpetual check which results after best play.}) ({Of course,} 10. Rd1 {is also possible. It is impossible to annotate the present game without paying attention to what occurred in the 2nd match game, and also more generally one of the defining decisions White faces in such games is the choice between long-castling and playing Rd1.} Re8 $1 (10... Be7 {is more common, but mistaken. In January 2018 I wrote that White has an edge after} 11. Be2 Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. bxc3 exd5 14. O-O $14 {and I see no reason to change this verdict.}) (10... Rd8 {was what happened in the 2nd game. I wonder what Fabi has in mind following 11.Nd2 here?} 11. Nd2 $5 (11. Be2 Ne4 12. O-O Nxc3 13. bxc3 h6 14. a4 Ne7 15. Ne5 Bd6 $1 $11 {Carlsen, M-Caruana,F London WC (2) 2018}) 11... dxc4 12. Bxc4 (12. Nxc4 $5 Rxd1+ 13. Qxd1 Qd8 14. Qxd8+ Nxd8 $14 {Caruana might have intended to defend this position, or a similar one, and make the structure into 'his Berlin'. Certainly, with the centre nearly bereft of pawns, it is difficult to turn the engine's '0.4' into something a human would recognise as a clear and lasting plus.}) 12... Be7 13. O-O Qh5 14. Nde4 Rxd1 15. Qxd1 Qxd1 16. Rxd1 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 e5 $1 $11 {Roiz,M-Khamrakulov,D Tashkent 2011}) 11. Nd2 (11. Be2 e5 $15 {is the point}) 11... e5 12. Bg5 Nd4 13. Qb1 $1 (13. Qc1 Bf5 {is liable to lead to a forced draw.} 14. Bxf6 Nc2+ 15. Ke2 Nd4+ $11 {Carlsen, M-Nakamura,H Douglas 2017}) 13... Bf5 14. Bd3 {White might have had a tiny something in Mamedyarov-Anand, Tata Steel 2018, but this was ultimately neutralised.}) (10. Ra2 $5 {This move is nice and experimental, but after the accurate retreats} Be7 11. b4 Qd8 12. h3 {Black should deviate from a Topalov game and play} d4 $1 $11) ({RR} 10. Ra2 Be7 11. b4 Qd8 12. h3 b6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Be2 Be6 15. Ng5 Rc8 16. Nxe6 fxe6 17. Ba6 Bxb4 18. Bxc8 Qxc8 19. O-O Bxc3 20. Qxc3 Ne4 21. Qc1 Qd7 22. Rc2 Nc5 23. Rd1 Na5 24. Rxc5 bxc5 {Topalov,V (2749)-Nakamura,H (2780) Saint Louis 2017 0-1 (53)}) 10... Qd8 {Perhaps Caruana is getting some kind of thrill out of playing this kind of thing: personally I don't consider Nd2 anywhere near the size of concession Black needs to extract to merit the 2 tempi. 10.Ra2, on the other hand, would do. The question was asked by a perplexed Anna Rudolf of exactly what Black has gained by these perambulations, as White always seems to win at least one tempo during them.} (10... Bb4 $5 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Nb3 Bxc3+ 13. bxc3 Qd8 $132 {This continuation was seen in Topalov,V-Nakamura,H Paris 2017, and perhaps slightly biased by the fact that Black won the game, I concluded it was unlikely anyone would play 10.Nd2 for an advantage. To be honest, I still don't know what White would do here.}) (10... Be7 {This move was the majority choice in the 'live commentary' room helmed by GM Judit Polgar, as well as among grandmasters who have reached this position.} 11. Rd1 {is main and now England's fast-rising talent Shreyas Royal opined, completely correctly, that Black has to go ...e5! and let the pawns take care of themselves!} (11. Bg3 $5 {is an interesting idea that may give chances}) 11... e5 12. Bg5 (12. Nb3 Qb6 {gives White an extra tempo, but there is still nothing after} 13. Bg5 d4 14. Bxf6 Bxf6 15. Nd5 Qd8 $11) 12... d4 $8 13. Nb3 Qd8 14. exd4 Nxd4 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Nb5 {Now, in my considered opinion, Black has to know about, and play, the ultra-precise} Bd7 $1 {and only then does he stand equal.}) 11. Nb3 ({RR} 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Bd3 h6 13. O-O Be6 14. Rfd1 Rc8 15. Nf3 Be7 16. Qe2 a6 17. h3 Qb6 18. Rac1 Qa7 19. Bb1 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nxd4 21. exd4 Rc4 22. Qd3 b5 23. Be5 Rdc8 24. Re1 Kf8 25. Qg3 Qd7 {Shuvalov,E (1986)-Zou,C (2443) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (50)}) 11... Bb6 $146 (11... Be7 {is maybe just a little bit too easy for White to play, as there isn't any idea of ...d4 left.} 12. cxd5 (12. Rd1 e5 {should again be fine}) 12... Nxd5 13. Rd1 $14) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Rd1 Bd7 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 exd5 15. Rxd5 Qe8 16. Bd3 h6 17. O-O Be6 18. Rb5 b6 19. Bf5 Rc8 20. Bxe6 fxe6 21. Qe4 Bf6 22. a4 Qd7 23. h3 Rfd8 24. Qg6 Qf7 25. Qxf7+ Kxf7 26. a5 {Hoffman,A (2459)-Patino Romaris,J (2144) Sanxenxo 2016 1-0 (48)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. O-O-O Bd7 13. g4 Rc8 14. Kb1 Na5 15. g5 Nh5 16. Nxa5 Qxa5 17. Be5 f6 18. gxf6 Nxf6 19. Rg1 Be8 20. cxd5 exd5 21. Qb3 Bf7 22. Qxb7 Bxa3 23. Bxf6 g6 24. Qa6 Qxa6 25. Bxa6 Rc6 26. Bd4 {Moradiabadi,E (2470)-Noori,A (2186) Teheran 2006 1-0 (44)}) 12. Be2 {Giving up on an opening advantage.} (12. Rd1 {This move springs to mind immediately for anyone with even a passing knowledge of the structure, and doesn't run the risks of castling. A process of logical elimination tells us that Carlsen must have seen, and disliked, the Black idea of} a5 $5 13. Bg5 a4 14. Nd2 d4 $5 $14 {when the battle for loss of frivolous tempi might actually be won by White. Certainly, over the board this could be difficult to assess.}) ({In this position, after} 12. O-O-O Bd7 $1 13. g4 $1 {the incredibly messy complications can be analysed almost to a forced draw.}) 12... Qe7 $11 {One last time: are you SURE you don't want me to have an IQP?} 13. Bg5 (13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. Nxd5 exd5 $11 {is nothing though; White's pieces are poorly placed to cope with Black's forthcoming ideas like ...Be6, ...Rac8, ...Rfd8.}) 13... dxc4 {This exchange made sense on the previous turn too, but here it is close to being forced.} 14. Nd2 ({Carlsen thought for some time about} 14. Bxc4 {,clearly wondering whether it was actually such an amazing idea to move the knight another 2 times. A bit of analysis, though, indicates that it is with the direct recapture that White risks becoming worse.} Bd7 15. O-O Ne5 16. Be2 Rfc8 $5 {Here, in a bizarre echo of the 6.Be3 Najdorf, Black is intending to put his opponent in a highly annoying double-pin with ...Ba4.} 17. Nd4 h6 $1 18. Bxf6 gxf6 $5 {and play is for 3 results.}) 14... Ne5 15. O-O (15. Nxc4 $2 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 Qc5 $1 $17 {simply gains the bishop pair for nothing.}) (15. Nce4 $5 {is a meaningful alternative, and Magnus said it was his 'main chance to play dynamically' but, as above, Black doesn't need to tremble in fear at the prospect of being left with doubled f-pawns. Indeed, neither player particularly believed it.} Bd7 16. Nxc4 (16. Qc3 $5 {was the move both players suggested in the press conference.} Nxe4 $1 17. Nxe4 f6 18. Qxe5 fxg5 19. Bxc4 Rac8 20. Bb3 h6 $132 {with a dynamically balanced game.}) 16... Nxc4 17. Bxc4 Rac8 18. O-O Bc6 $11 {The tactical issues faced by each side more or less balance each other out, and the most likely scenario is that all the pieces, save either 1 or 2 pairs of rooks, will be vacuumed off the board quite soon, leaving a draw.}) 15... Bd7 $1 16. Bf4 $1 {White should hurry to take back the pawn, in whichever way he chooses to do that.} (16. Rfd1 Rac8 17. Nde4 {is plausible, but without the engine around we don't actually know whether White will regain the pawn or not.} Bc6 (17... Bc7 $5 18. Bxc4 $1 Bc6 19. Bb5 Bxe4 20. Qxe4 a6 21. Be2 Nxe4 22. Bxe7 Nxc3 23. bxc3 Rfe8 $11 {and both sides play for a win. The position is reminiscent of my game against Gawain Jones in the British Championships 2018.}) 18. Nd6 Rcd8 19. Nce4 (19. Nxc4 Nxc4 20. Bxc4 Qc5 21. Bxf6 gxf6 22. Bd3 f5 $11 {Now White has to trade off light-squared bishops with some urgency, or else simply stand worse.}) 19... h6 $1 20. Bh4 g5 21. Nxf6+ Qxf6 22. Bg3 Bc7 23. Nxc4 Nxc4 $1 24. Bxc7 Rc8 25. Bxc4 Rxc7 $11 {The position is ever so slightly more comfortable for Black, but is still well within the 'equal' band in objective terms.}) (16. Nxc4 Nxc4 17. Bxc4 Qc5 18. Bxf6 Qxc4 19. Rfd1 Bc6 20. Bd4 $1 $11) 16... Ng6 $1 (16... Qc5 {is a hard move to make, because of all White's Ne4/b4 tactical ideas. Nevertheless, the computer sees it as best, and then obliges White to take the pawn back immediately:} 17. Bxe5 Qxe5 18. Nxc4 Qc7 19. b4 $5 (19. Rac1 Bc5 20. b4 Be7 $11 {is an equal position where Black might stand better after a few moves}) 19... Rac8 20. Rac1 Rfd8 21. Nxb6 Qxb6 22. Rfd1 $11) 17. Bg3 $1 {With their last moves, both players have shown that they appreciate the full value of the bishop pair in this position- even where the two flanks are largely distinct from each other and the engine doesn't mind White giving it up.} Bc6 {A correct response from Caruana, who understands that White's dark-squared bishop is better than his own, and takes steps to trade them off.} 18. Nxc4 Bc7 19. Rfd1 Rfd8 20. Rxd8+ {This move smacks of boredom; surely normally Magnus would ask himself whether it's impossible to gain some other minor edge while Black is troubling himself with the exact mechanics of the double-rook trade?} Rxd8 21. Rd1 {Possibly, somewhere at the back of Magnus' mind, there might have been an idea of eventually making an edge like 'slightly better light-squared bishop' or 'slightly better knight' count; however, as it turned out there wasn't a concrete opportunity to play for a win. From this point onwards, the objective evaluation never veered from complete equality, but I have tried to point out marginally more ambitious ideas for each side.} Rxd1+ 22. Qxd1 Nd5 23. Qd4 Nxc3 24. Qxc3 Bxg3 {My own personal feeling about this move was that it gives White unnecessary chances. After all, White's pawn structure is improved and furthermore there's a possibility that Black's kingside could become very cramped indeed. The engine, of course, doesn't think this is a problem.} (24... Bb5 {seemed a lot more normal to me.}) 25. hxg3 Qd7 26. Bd3 {At this point, White decided his plan, which was to make it inconvenient for Black to play ...f6/...e5, and to go for Bxg6, f3, e4 himself.} ({Otherwise there is a chance he might have seen the idea of} 26. f4 {followed by g4-g5 (if allowed) as being more auspicious.}) 26... b6 ({This was Black's chance to play} 26... f6 {but possibly he just found ideas like} 27. Qc2 Kf7 28. Na5 {to be a little annoying.}) 27. f3 Bb7 (27... f6 $5 28. g4 Kf7 29. g5 Bd5 $11 {Black's construction looks a little loose, but there is nothing objectively wrong with it. I would personally think of it as a reasonable choice if Black wanted to retain the possibility of perhaps one day winning the game.}) 28. Bxg6 $5 {This had been coming for a while- White was hardly going to play e4 without it- but I do wonder if maybe it could have been delayed a further move.} (28. g4 Qc7 29. f4 $11 {is quite ambitious.}) 28... hxg6 29. e4 Qc7 $1 {From a human perspective, this looks clearly correct. Black needs to make the queen trade White seeks as inefficient as possible.} (29... f6 30. e5 $1 {has become, practically speaking, a little difficult.}) 30. e5 Qc5+ 31. Kh2 (31. Ne3 Qxc3 32. bxc3 Ba6 $11 {One of the hardest things for a human player to realise in this position (and related ones which we shall come to) is that if Black can come with his king to c6, then in spite of his awful bishop, which possesses a grand total of no targets to aim at, he is the one playing for a win!}) 31... Ba6 (31... f6 $5 {leads to the same thing:} 32. Nd6 Qxc3 33. bxc3 Ba6) 32. Nd6 Qxc3 33. bxc3 f6 34. f4 ({The next note is the move suggested by a friend with whom I was watching the games, live and in person. Around this time, we made a bet (which I won) about the sequence of moves that would finish the game...} 34. Kh3 $6 fxe5 35. Kg4 Kf8 36. Kg5 Bd3 {It is White treading on thin ice here (though the position is still a draw.) It is not clear to me how White regains a pawn without suffocating his own knight, and g2 is also weak.}) 34... Kf8 35. Kg1 Ke7 36. Kf2 Kd7 {With Black's king active, it is difficult to be ambitious.} 37. Ke3 Bf1 ({I did wonder whether Black could play for a win:} 37... fxe5 $5 38. fxe5 Kc6 39. c4 Kc5 40. Kd3 b5 41. Ne4+ Kc6 {Now White has a choice of ways to draw, which differ only in the multiplicity of the choice that he has thereafter.} 42. Kd4 $1 (42. cxb5+ Bxb5+ 43. Kd4 Be2 (43... Bf1) 44. Nc5 Bg4 $11 {Both sides have fortresses, despite the World Champion's skepticism about the concept, but it is still easier for White to go wrong.}) 42... bxc4 43. g4 c3 44. Nxc3 g5 45. g3 Bf1 46. Ne4 Be2 47. Nxg5 Bxg4 48. a4 $11) 38. Kf2 Ba6 39. Ke3 Bf1 40. Kf2 {Here Caruana claimed a draw, by the approved method.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2019.01.13"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A65"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2019.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 188"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 e6 4. e4 c5 5. d5 d6 6. Nc3 Bg7 7. Nge2 exd5 8. cxd5 a6 9. a4 O-O 10. Ng3 Nbd7 11. Be2 Ne8 12. Bf4 ({RR} 12. O-O Rb8 13. Re1 Bd4+ 14. Kh1 Qh4 15. Rf1 Ne5 16. f4 Ng4 17. Bxg4 Bxg4 18. Qe1 Nf6 19. e5 Nd7 20. Nce4 dxe5 21. f5 f6 22. Be3 Kh8 23. Bxd4 cxd4 24. Rc1 gxf5 25. Nxf5 Qxe1 26. Rcxe1 Bxf5 {Ding,L (2811)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2776) Chess.com INT 2019 0-1 (42)}) 12... Rb8 ({RR} 12... Qe7 13. Qd2 Bd4 14. Nd1 Ng7 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 h5 17. O-O Rb8 18. Bd3 b5 19. axb5 axb5 20. Rae1 Ne5 21. f4 Nxd3 22. Qxd3 h4 23. Nh1 Re8 24. Nc2 b4 25. e5 Bf5 26. Qd2 Qc7 27. Ne3 {Schwarz,D (2270)-Pavlovic,M (2409) Bratislava SVK 2025 1-0}) 13. O-O c4 14. Bxc4 $146 ({RR} 14. Be3 b5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Bd4 Bxd4+ 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Rad1 Qf6 19. Qe3 b4 20. Nb1 Ba6 21. Nd2 c3 22. bxc3 bxc3 23. Bxa6 Nxa6 24. Nc4 Rb4 25. e5 dxe5 26. Qxc3 e4 27. Qc1 Nc5 28. Nxe4 Nxe4 {Haba,P (2451)-Baldauf,M (2501) Austria AUT 2022 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 14. Be3 b5 15. axb5 axb5 16. Bd4 Bxd4+ 17. Qxd4 Nc5 18. Rad1 Qf6 19. Qe3 b4 20. Nb1 Ba6 21. Nd2 c3 22. bxc3 bxc3 23. Bxa6 Nxa6 24. Nc4 Rb4 25. e5 dxe5 26. Qxc3 e4 27. Qc1 Nc5 28. Nxe4 Nxe4 {Haba,P (2451)-Baldauf,M (2501) Austria AUT 2022 ½-½ (42)}) 14... Qb6+ 15. Rf2 Bd4 16. Qd2 Ne5 17. Bf1 Bxf2+ 18. Qxf2 Qxf2+ 19. Kxf2 Bd7 20. Be3 f5 21. exf5 gxf5 22. Bd4 Nf6 23. Kg1 Rbc8 24. Ra3 Nc4 25. Rb3 b5 26. axb5 Nd2 27. Rb4 Nxf1 28. bxa6 Nxg3 29. hxg3 Rb8 30. Rxb8 Rxb8 31. Bxf6 Ra8 32. Nd1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2019.01.19"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir1"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D90"]
[WhiteElo "2724"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[PlyCount "147"]
[EventDate "2019.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 188"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. h4 c6 6. cxd5 cxd5 7. Bf4 Nc6 8. e3 O-O 9. Qb3 Na5 10. Qa3 Nc4 ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Bb5 Bd7 12. O-O a6 13. Be2 b5 14. Qb3 Na5 15. Qd1 Bg4 16. Ne5 Bxe2 17. Qxe2 e6 18. Nd3 Qe7 19. Rac1 Rfc8 20. Bg5 Qf8 21. Nc5 Nc4 22. Rc2 Qe8 23. Rfc1 Nd7 24. Nd3 Ndb6 25. Bf4 {Swiercz,D (2655)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2771) Astana 2019 ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 10... Nc6 11. Be2 Bg4 12. O-O Re8 13. Rfd1 e6 14. Rac1 Bf8 15. Qb3 Na5 16. Qa4 a6 17. Bc7 Qxc7 18. Nxd5 Qd8 19. Nxf6+ Qxf6 20. Qxa5 Bxf3 21. Bxf3 Qxh4 22. Bxb7 Rab8 23. Qxa6 Re7 24. g3 Qf6 25. Be4 {Fedoseev,V (2678)-Zubov,A (2589) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (41)}) 11. Bxc4 dxc4 12. O-O Bd7 $146 ({RR} 12... Be6 13. Be5 a5 14. Qa4 Rc8 15. Qc2 b5 16. Nxb5 Bf5 17. Qc1 Be4 18. Ne1 Bb7 19. Nc3 Nh5 20. Bxg7 Nxg7 21. Qd1 e5 22. dxe5 Qxh4 23. Nf3 Qe7 24. e4 Rfd8 25. Nd5 Bxd5 26. exd5 Qb7 27. d6 {Wojtaszek,R (2648)-Teclaf,P (2571) Polanica Zdroj POL 2025 ½-½ (38)}) 13. Ne5 b5 14. Qa6 Qc8 15. Qa5 Qd8 16. Qxd8 Rfxd8 17. Nxd7 Nxd7 18. Nxb5 e5 19. dxe5 Nxe5 20. Rac1 a6 21. Na3 Nd3 22. Rc2 Rac8 23. Bg5 Re8 24. Nxc4 h6 25. Bf4 Nb4 26. Rcc1 Nxa2 27. Ra1 Rxc4 28. Rxa2 Be5 29. b3 Rb4 30. Bxe5 Rxe5 31. Rxa6 Rxb3 32. Rd1 Rb4 33. Rd7 Kg7 34. Raa7 Rf5 35. f3 Rb2 36. e4 Rf4 37. e5 Re2 38. Re7 Rf5 39. e6 Kf8 40. Rxf7+ Rxf7 41. Rxf7+ Kg8 42. Re7 Kf8 43. Rf7+ Kg8 44. h5 gxh5 45. Rf5 Rxe6 46. Rxh5 Kg7 47. Kf2 Ra6 48. g4 Ra2+ 49. Kg3 Ra3 50. Rd5 Kf6 51. Kf4 Ra4+ 52. Ke3 Ra1 53. f4 Rg1 54. Rd6+ Kg7 55. Kf3 Re1 56. Rb6 Rg1 57. Re6 Ra1 58. Ke4 Ra4+ 59. Kf5 Ra5+ 60. Re5 Ra7 61. Rd5 Rf7+ 62. Ke4 Re7+ 63. Kd4 Re1 64. Rd7+ Kf6 65. Rd6+ Kg7 66. Kd5 Rg1 67. Ke6 Rxg4 68. Rd7+ Kg8 69. f5 Rf4 70. Kf6 Rf1 71. Rd8+ Kh7 72. Rd7+ Kg8 73. Rd8+ Kh7 74. Rd7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2019.01.22"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Shankland, Samuel L"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2725"]
[BlackElo "2835"]
[Annotator "Fernandez,Daniel Howard"]
[PlyCount "80"]
[EventDate "2019.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 188"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 a6 {A relatively major trend of the 2010's. Black threatens to take on d5 and obliges his opponent to enter a Carlsbad structure in which ...a6 will be useful rather than committal.} 4. cxd5 (4. Nf3 {is of course playable, but after} dxc4 5. a4 Nc6 6. e4 Na5 7. Be3 $44 {or similar, the compensation is less clear-cut than in a standard Moscow Gambit.}) (4. e4 {attempts a favourable comparison to the 3...c6 4.e4!? gambit, but} dxe4 5. Nxe4 Nf6 $11 {was just fine for Black in Roubalik,J-Zilka,S Czech Republic 2018}) 4... exd5 5. Nf3 h6 {This is maximalist, and provocative.} ({There isn't much reason why the} 5... Nf6 6. Bg5 Be6 7. e3 Nbd7 8. Bd3 h6 9. Bf4 {of Karjakin,S-Caruana,F Saint Louis 2018 should scare Black, but if the text can be played, then it should be.}) 6. Bf4 (6. Qb3 Nf6 7. e4 $5 Nxe4 $1 (7... dxe4 8. Ne5 Be6 9. Qxb7 $18) 8. Qxd5 Qxd5 9. Nxd5 Bd6 10. Bd3 Nf6 11. Nxf6+ gxf6 12. O-O Nc6 13. Re1+ Kf8 14. Be3 $11 {Here a draw was agreed in Parligras,M-Rakhmanov,A Banja Vrujci 2017, on the premise that in the absence of queens, the isolated d-pawn is as weak as the doubled f-pawns.}) 6... Nf6 7. e3 Bd6 8. Bxd6 Qxd6 9. Qc2 O-O 10. Bd3 Re8 ({RR} 10... Be6 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Rac1 Rac8 13. h3 c5 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Rfd1 Qe7 16. Nd4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rc7 18. Nce2 Rfc8 19. Rxc7 Rxc7 20. f3 Bd7 21. Qd2 Rc8 22. Nf4 Re8 23. Kf2 Qd6 24. Rc1 g5 25. Nfe2 {Erigaisi,A (2778)-Duda,J (2733) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (32)}) 11. h3 {It might turn out that this move is unnecessary, because Black wasn't planning ...Bg4 for some time yet.} ({Let us examine:} 11. O-O Bg4 ({If Black plays} 11... Be6 {with the idea of ... Nbd7 as in the game, then h3 could have been saved. For instance,} 12. b4 $14) 12. Ne5 c5 $1 (12... Nc6 13. f4 {should be something for White}) 13. Qa4 $5 (13. Qd2 b5 14. f4 Nc6 15. h3 cxd4 16. exd4 Be6 $132 {with play on both sides of the board}) 13... Be6 14. Qa3 b6 $14 {I think White has a nibble in this Barry-type position. The computer likes 13...Rxe5, but then Black is really playing for tricks.}) 11... Be6 ({RR} 11... b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Rac1 Nbd7 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. a3 c5 16. dxc5 bxc5 17. Be2 Rab8 18. Qa4 Ne5 19. b4 d4 20. exd4 Nxf3+ 21. Bxf3 Bxf3 22. gxf3 cxb4 23. axb4 Qe6 24. Kh2 Qd6+ 25. Kh1 Rxb4 26. Qa3 {Chen,Y (2206)-Pribelszky,B (2400) Budapest HUN 2025 0-1 (44)}) 12. O-O Nbd7 ({It is reasonable to ask, given the game continuation, why Black didn't go for} 12... c5 $5 {immediately, so that his knight could use the c6-square and (probably) ...b5 would still be an option?} 13. dxc5 Qxc5 14. Rac1 Nc6 15. Rfd1 $14) (12... c6 {is a more aggressive way to handle the position, inviting White to play b4 at some moment if he wishes, but reserving options like ...Nd7-b6 in that eventuality. For instance:} 13. a3 Nbd7 14. b4 a5 15. Qb2 b6 $5 $132 {Or ...Nb6.}) 13. a4 $146 (13. Na4 Ne4 $1 {This thematic counter-blow at first looks impossible, but in fact it's necessary to stop White developing a choke-hold on c5.}) ({RR} 13. Rac1 Rac8 14. Na4 Ne4 15. Nc5 Ndxc5 16. dxc5 Qd7 17. c6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 Qe7 19. Bxa6 Ra8 20. Bb5 Rxa2 21. Qxe8+ Qxe8 22. Bxe8 Rxb2 23. Rxc7 g5 24. Nd4 h5 25. Nxe6 fxe6 26. Bf7+ Kg7 27. Bxe6+ Kf6 {Mujumdar,S (2028)-Liyanage,R (2165) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (34)}) ({RR} 13. Rac1 Rac8 14. Na4 Ne4 15. Nc5 Ndxc5 16. dxc5 Qd7 17. c6 bxc6 18. Qxc6 Qe7 19. Bxa6 Ra8 20. Bb5 Rxa2 21. Qxe8+ Qxe8 22. Bxe8 Rxb2 23. Rxc7 g5 24. Nd4 h5 25. Nxe6 fxe6 26. Bf7+ Kg7 27. Bxe6+ Kf6 {Mujumdar,S (2028)-Liyanage,R (2165) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (34)}) 13... Rac8 14. Rfc1 c5 {On one hand, this move usually hands over a slight plus to White for the foreseeable future, but on the other, Black seems uniquely well placed in this case to carry out the standard mitigating procedures.} 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Nd4 Bd7 17. Qd1 {In case of any ...Nce4xf2 type ideas.} (17. Bf5 $5 {seeks to clarify matters a bit.} Nce4 (17... Ne6 $1 {seems best. Now say} 18. Rd1 {With e4 ideas in the pipeline.}) (17... Bxf5 18. Qxf5 g6 19. Qc2 Qe5 20. Nce2 $14) 18. Bxe4 Nxe4 19. Qb3 $14) 17... Rc7 18. Bc2 Rec8 19. Nde2 Ne6 20. Bb3 Bc6 21. Nd4 {White suffers in this phase from a lack of obvious plans, being that d5 is defended as many times as Black needs. He ends up not finding one, and Black gets to consolidate further.} Qb4 22. Nce2 Bd7 23. Rxc7 Rxc7 {This is now just dead equal.} 24. Qe1 Qxe1+ 25. Rxe1 Nc5 (25... Kf8 {Playing this first presents White with a small strategic problem. If he marks time, then ...Nc5 will come next.} 26. Rd1 Nc5 27. a5 Ke7 $11) 26. Rc1 a5 27. Bc2 Kf8 28. b3 Na6 29. f3 Nb4 {Starting to give White things to think about. There needs to be, for instance, a serious response to ...b5, both immediately and in the future.} 30. Kf2 Ne8 31. Ke1 Nd6 32. Bb1 {And this is a tacit offer of a draw.} (32. Kd2 b5 33. axb5 Bxb5 $132 {Black has his targets too.}) 32... Rxc1+ 33. Nxc1 Ke7 34. Bd3 Kf6 35. h4 b6 36. Kd2 Ke5 37. g4 g5 38. hxg5 hxg5 39. Nce2 Nxd3 40. Kxd3 Nb7 ({The attempt} 40... f5 $4 {is hugely ill-advised due to the tactic} 41. f4+ Kf6 42. fxg5+ Kxg5 43. Nf3+ $3 {and White is basically winning.}) (40... b5 $5 {is playable, though knights tend to be good in close combat such as this.} 41. f4+ Kf6 42. Nc3 bxa4 43. Nxd5+ Kg7 44. Nb6 $1 (44. bxa4 $6 Bxa4 45. fxg5 Kg6 $15 {is still a draw, but with Black having a very active king and passed a-pawn it could go wrong.}) 44... Bxg4 45. Nxa4 gxf4 46. exf4 $11 {and there isn't much left to play for.}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 81st"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2019.01.26"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D24"]
[WhiteElo "2835"]
[BlackElo "2738"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "141"]
[EventDate "2019.01.12"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 188"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2018.12.21"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,141,19,31,14,-14,-11,0,0,6,43,66,55,20,15,4,22,24,11,11,35,6,7,-10,-13,5,0,1,-12,-21,9,1,-9,-23,-23,-122,65,83,83,86,61,95,90,105,90,104,97,105,112,95,109,105,105,106,110,102,111,77,111,93,100,98,81,71,108,109,90,90,70,61,51,86,99,72,60,84,113,85,84,92,93,81,88,68,66,55,47,55,55,55,67,43,66,45,62,47,68,54,74,76,171,102,137,135,135,152,153,179,197,193,271,271,277,277,266,256,256,243,256,211,320,298,301,255,269,259,309,256,298,308,302,310,329,313,313,278,276,287,271,235,295,587,587,587]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 {Duda stays loyal to his tournament preparation, the Vienna had netted him 2 effortless draws in the tournament already.} 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bxc4 $5 {In the first round Vidit played the traditional 6 Bg5 whereafter Duda surprised with 6...b5!? 7.a4 c5. Magnus follows Duda's game with Mamedyarov, where White played the now popular pure pawn sacrifice, aiming for quick development.} Nxe4 7. O-O Nf6 $5 (7... Bxc3 8. bxc3 Nxc3 {gives Black even 2 extra pawns, but the white initiative becomes overwhelming. Danish IM Steffen Pedersen and Swedish GM Tiger Hillarp Pedersen showed me this idea way before it became popular, and I managed to win a blitz game agasnt Van Wely in the German Team Championship before forgetting about it, and being completely lost against Pedersen himself in an blindfold event in Denmark 2007. Won by Magnus himself, as it was organised in order to give him training for his first appearance in the Melody Amber Tournament.} 9. Qb3 Nd5 10. Ba3 Nc6 11. Rfe1 Nce7 12. Bxe7 Nxe7 13. d5 exd5 14. Bxd5 O-O 15. Bxf7+ $1 Rxf7 16. Rad1 Qf8 17. Ng5 {is the basic tactical point, and my game against Pedersen from 2007.}) 8. Qa4+ Nc6 9. Ne5 Rb8 {Obviously the line has evolved, and Black found more sensible solutions than the early greedy attempts. 9...Rb8 is Caruana's choice against Aronian from the Norway Chess tournament 2018, but obviously part of the American's preparation for the candidates tournament. Funnily it was already played by Magnus' second Laurent Fressinet in 2010, whose loss had nothing to do with his position after the opening.} 10. Rd1 $5 {Aronian took on c6, and Halkias played 10.d5. Magnus plays a less direct approach, but blitzed out the following moves obviously still in his preparation. Duda knew the risks. Playing Caruana's favourite line, which Magnus obviously must have prepared, with hindsight might seem like a bad idea, but the young Pole showed numerous times in Wijk that he is not afraid of a challenge.} O-O 11. Nxc6 bxc6 12. Qxa7 {Quite a typical scenario in modern chess: White threatened a blitz attack by sacrificing a pawn, Black choose a solid continuation, and now suddenly White changes gears, now playing for a better pawn structure and a potentially passed a-pawn.} Bd7 {Threatening a "perpetual" against White's queen with ...Ra8/...Rb8.} 13. Qa4 c5 14. Qc2 {This is why White included 10.Rd1 0-0, he needed the rook to protect the d4-pawn.} cxd4 ({RR} 14... Bc6 15. a3 Bxc3 16. bxc3 Qd6 17. Be2 Be4 18. Qd2 Rfd8 19. a4 Qc6 20. f3 Bg6 21. Bb5 Qa8 22. Ba3 cxd4 23. cxd4 e5 24. Qc1 exd4 25. Be7 Qa7 26. Bc5 Qa5 27. Rxd4 c6 28. Rxd8+ Rxd8 29. Bxc6 {Yakubboev,N (2659)-Abdusattorov,N (2767) Tashkent UZB 2025 1-0 (132)}) 15. Rxd4 Bc5 $146 {Magnus mentioned in a video interview after the tournament that he recalled asking some of his second trying to sell him on this concept and he asked why can black not just go 15...Bc5 followed by 16...h6? Somebody switched on the engine, and said 17.Bxh6 and 18.Qd2 is +1. But no one told me what this +1 consisted of.} ({RR} 15... h6 16. Bf4 Bc5 17. Rd2 Qe7 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bd6 20. Rad1 Bb5 21. b3 Bxc4 22. Qxc4 Bxf4 23. Qxf4 c5 24. h3 Rb4 25. Qe5 Rc8 26. Rd7 Qf6 27. Qxf6 gxf6 28. Rc1 c4 29. Rd4 Ra8 30. Rdxc4 {Giri,A (2764)-Svidler,P (2723) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (70)}) ({RR} 15... h6 16. Bf4 Bc5 17. Rd3 Bb6 18. Rad1 Qe7 19. Qe2 Rfd8 20. Qd2 e5 21. Be3 c5 22. Bxh6 gxh6 23. Qxh6 Bg4 24. Rg3 Bc7 25. Nd5 Rxd5 26. Rxd5 Qe6 27. h3 Qf5 28. b3 Qf4 29. Qxf4 exf4 30. Rxg4+ {Diermair,A (2469)-Menezes,C (2415) Vienna 2022 1-0 (34)}) 16. Rh4 $5 {It was notheworthy that the Norwegian supercomputer "sesse" preferred 16.Rd1, aiming for more positional methods.} h6 $2 {Played quickly, but walking straight into preparation. Or sort of preparation at least:} 17. Bxh6 $1 gxh6 18. Qd2 {Blacks problem is that h6 cannot be protected, and losing it basically leads to mate on h8.} Nh7 $1 {Or 18...Ne8 leading to the same thing.} (18... h5 19. Qg5+ Kh8 20. Ne4 $1 {also causes the game to end immediately, so Black has to praise himself lucky things are actually not worse than they are.}) 19. Qxh6 Bxf2+ $1 {Black sacrifices the bishop to force an exchange of queens. White cannot decline with 20.Kh1 as the bishop on f2 also threatens the white rook on h4.} 20. Kxf2 Qf6+ 21. Qxf6 Rxb2+ $1 {Not only did Black have a saving check forcing off the queens, but he even manages to pick up a pawn as well with this intermezzo equalling the material balance.} 22. Kg1 Nxf6 23. Rf1 $1 {Maybe this position does not look as much, but White's initiative still is very threatening. As Magnus knew the machines evaluated the sacrifice on h6 as advantageous for White, and he (correctly) saw no better option than this, it meant he could enter this seemingly innocent position with confidence.} Kg7 $5 {Duda realized his problems, and went for a practical solution.} (23... Ne8 24. Rf3 f5 25. Rg3+ Ng7 {is the computer's preferred line, but showing a considerable initiative for White after} 26. Ne2 {followed by 27.Nf4 or 27.Nd4.}) 24. Rf3 {Black's problem is the safety of his king. Rg3+ basically mating is the immediate threat.} Rg8 25. Rhf4 $1 {Blacks last move has a dual purpose of providing an escape route via f8 for the king, as well as then attacking g2 with the rook. White, however, is just in time to start his own attack in the f-line and Duda is now forced to give up material.} Bc6 26. Rxf6 $1 ({If} 26. Rg3+ $2 Kf8 27. Rxf6 {Black has} Rxg3 28. hxg3 Rxg2+ {followed by ...Rc2 winning back the piece.}) 26... Bxf3 27. Rxf3 Rd8 {White has 2 minor pieces for the rook, but the reduced remaining material as well as Black's activity makes it a kind of 50-50 situation if Black can manage the draw or not.} 28. Rf2 Rb4 29. Bb5 $6 {Too ambitious. More stable was 29.Bb3, but Magnus underestimated Black's strong resource at move 30.} Ra8 30. a4 c6 $1 31. Be2 ({Due to} 31. Bxc6 Rc8 $1 {winning a piece, Duda now manages to push White's bishop away from b5, meaning the knight is forces to stay at c3 to defend the pawn at a4.}) 31... Ra5 32. Rf3 f5 33. Kf2 Rc5 34. Bd1 {Defending the pawn on a4, and thus releasing the knight on c3 of its defensive duties.} e5 $6 {Logical, advancing the pawn exploiting that 35.Rxf5 can be met by 35...Rc3. However, it does weaken the f5 pawn, meaning Black will have to advance it further and thus allow White's knight to permanently settle on f4.} 35. Ne2 Kf6 36. Ra3 Rb1 37. Ke1 $1 {A good retreat, defending the d1 bishop and not fearing 37...Rcd5 due to 38 Nc3! forking the black rooks.} e4 38. g3 $1 ({Not falling for the trick} 38. a5 $2 Rbb5 39. a6 Ra5 $1 {winning the white a-pawn.}) 38... Ke5 39. h4 Ra5 40. h5 c5 41. Kd2 c4 42. Kc2 Rb8 43. Kc3 Rb1 44. Kc2 Rb8 45. Kc1 Rb6 46. Bc2 Rd6 47. Nf4 {White's pieces start landing on their ideal squares, even so breaking Black's resistance is not at all easy.} Rc5 48. Re3 Kd4 49. Re1 Rh6 $6 {Here Duda did not realize it was a crucial moment of the game, and just played a common sense move.} ({He had his chance, as} 49... Kc3 $1 {would ensure counterplay sufficient for serious drawing chances as after} 50. Ne2+ Kb4 {Black makes it much more difficult for White to improve his position than in the game.}) 50. Kd2 $1 {A very strong move either luring Black's pawn to c3, meaning b3 becomes available for the white bishop, or as in the game, White's king gets to c3.} Re5 51. Ne2+ Kc5 52. Rh1 $1 {Covering the h5-pawn and thus getting ready for Kc3.} Re8 (52... Kb4 53. Ke3 $1 {intending Kd4 and Rb1+ becomes decisive.}) 53. Kc3 Rg8 54. Rb1 $1 Rxh5 55. Bxe4 $1 Re8 56. Nf4 $1 {A fascinating tactical sequence, despite the limited amount of material. Its end result is just the elimination of the kingside pawns.} Rg5 57. Rb5+ Kd6 58. Bxf5 Rxg3+ 59. Kd4 $5 {Taking on c4 was also possible, but Magnus' idea with the previous moves was aiming exactly for this position: material has been reduced even further, but Black's king suddenly surprisingly finds itself under a devastating attack!} Rg1 60. Rb6+ Ke7 $1 {The good thing from Black's perspective is that he avoids getting mated. The problem is that the king ends up too far away from a8.} 61. Ng6+ Kf7 62. Ne5+ Kg8 63. Nxc4 {Materialistic, at last.} Ra8 64. a5 Ra1 65. Rb5 Ra7 66. Be4 Rc7 67. Rf5 Kg7 68. Bc2 Rc1 69. Kc3 Rf7 70. Rxf7+ $1 Kxf7 {An interesting observation was being made by the spectators following the game in the live chat. This ending is generally a draw as proved by Tablebases. Here, however, the black king is not close enough to a7, and with his next move Magnus shuts down any black hope of stopping the a-pawn with his rook from a1:} 71. Na3 $1 {Now White's a-pawn queens trivially, and not wanting the world champion to end the game by showing his skills mating with knight and bishop, Duda resigned.} 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2019.04.01"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2845"]
[BlackElo "2779"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2019.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 190"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. Qc2 Nc6 9. a3 Qa5 10. Rd1 Rd8 11. Be2 Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. bxc3 exd5 14. O-O h6 15. a4 Bd6 16. Bxd6 Rxd6 17. c4 ({RR} 17. Nd4 Ne5 18. Nb5 Rd8 19. c4 a6 20. Nc3 dxc4 21. Rxd8+ Qxd8 22. Rd1 Qa5 23. f4 Ng4 24. Qd2 Be6 25. h3 Nf6 26. Qd4 b5 27. axb5 axb5 28. e4 b4 29. Nd5 Bxd5 30. exd5 c3 31. Bc4 Qa7 {Amburgy,R (2230)-Stanojevic,I (2198) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (56)}) 17... Be6 18. c5 Rdd8 $146 ({RR} 18... Rd7 19. Nd4 Nxd4 20. exd4 Rc7 21. Rb1 Bd7 22. Bb5 Re8 23. Qb3 Bc6 24. Qb4 {½-½ (24) Muradli,M (2531)-Ter Sahakyan,S (2617) Sharjah UAE 2023}) ({RR} 18... Rd7 19. Nd4 Nxd4 20. exd4 Rc7 21. Rb1 Bd7 22. Bb5 Re8 23. Qb3 Bc6 24. Qb4 {½-½ (24) Muradli,M (2531)-Ter Sahakyan,S (2617) Sharjah UAE 2023}) 19. Rb1 Qc7 20. Qb2 Rab8 21. Nd4 Nxd4 22. Qxd4 b6 23. cxb6 Rxb6 24. h3 Rc8 25. Rfd1 Qc3 26. Qxc3 Rxc3 27. a5 Rxb1 28. Rxb1 Rc5 29. a6 g6 30. Rb7 Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc2 32. Bb5 Rb2 33. Kg3 Bc8 34. Rb8 Kg7 35. Rxc8 Rxb5 36. Rc7 Ra5 37. Rxa7 Kf6 38. Ra8 Ra3 39. Kh2 h5 40. a7 Ra2 41. h4 Kf5 42. f3 Ra1 43. g3 1-0

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2019.04.03"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Topalov, Veselin"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2740"]
[BlackElo "2845"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2019.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 190"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d5 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 h6 7. Bh4 O-O 8. e3 Bf5 9. Ne5 c5 10. Bd3 cxd4 11. exd4 Bxd3 12. Qxd3 Qd6 13. Bxf6 Qxf6 14. O-O Bxc3 15. Qxc3 Re8 ({RR} 15... Rd8 16. Rac1 Nc6 17. Nxc6 bxc6 18. Rfe1 Re8 19. b4 Rad8 20. Qc5 Re4 21. Rxe4 dxe4 22. Rd1 Qe6 23. Qxa7 e3 24. fxe3 Qxe3+ 25. Kh1 Re8 26. h3 Qf2 27. a4 g5 28. Qa6 g4 29. Qf1 Qg3 30. a5 {So,W (2770)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2792) Paris 2021 ½-½ (46)}) 16. Rac1 $146 ({RR} 16. Rfe1 Nc6 17. Nxc6 Qxc6 18. Qxc6 bxc6 19. Rxe8+ Rxe8 20. Kf1 a5 21. Rc1 Rb8 22. b3 Rb6 23. Rc5 a4 24. bxa4 Rb1+ 25. Ke2 Rb2+ 26. Kd3 Rxa2 27. Rxc6 Ra3+ 28. Rc3 Rxa4 29. Rc5 Ra3+ 30. Ke2 Ra2+ {Korobov,A (2684)-Giri,A (2774) Terme Catez 2021 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 16. Rfe1 Nc6 17. Nxc6 Qxc6 18. Qxc6 bxc6 19. Rxe8+ Rxe8 20. Kf1 a5 21. Rc1 Rb8 22. b3 Rb6 23. Rc5 a4 24. bxa4 Rb1+ 25. Ke2 Rb2+ 26. Kd3 Rxa2 27. Rxc6 Ra3+ 28. Rc3 Rxa4 29. Rc5 Ra3+ 30. Ke2 Ra2+ {Korobov,A (2684)-Giri,A (2774) Terme Catez 2021 ½-½ (36)}) 16... Nc6 17. Nxc6 Qxc6 18. Qxc6 bxc6 19. Rxc6 Re2 20. Ra6 Rxb2 21. g3 Re8 22. Rxa7 Ree2 23. Ra5 Rxa2 24. Rxd5 Red2 25. h4 Ra4 26. Kg2 Raxd4 27. Rxd4 Rxd4 28. Kf3 h5 29. Kg2 g6 30. Kf3 Kg7 31. Kg2 Rd5 32. Kf3 Rf5+ 33. Kg2 Rd5 34. Kf3 Rf5+ 35. Kg2 Rd5 36. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Gashimov Memorial 6th"]
[Site "Shamkir"]
[Date "2019.04.06"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Ding, Liren"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D79"]
[WhiteElo "2812"]
[BlackElo "2845"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2019.03.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "AZE"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 190"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 c6 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 cxd5 6. Nf3 Bg7 7. Ne5 O-O 8. Nc3 Bf5 9. O-O Ne4 10. Bf4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Qa4 e6 14. Qxc6 Rc8 15. Qa4 Rxc3 16. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 17. Rxc1 Qb6 18. e3 Qb2 19. Qd1 h5 $146 ({RR} 19... Bd3 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Rc2 Qb7 22. Qxf1 Rc8 23. Qb5 Qxb5 24. Rxc8+ Bf8 25. Bh6 {½-½ (25) Svane,F (2577)-Grandelius,N (2658) Vrnjacka Banja SRB 2023}) ({RR} 19... Bd3 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Rc2 Qb7 22. Qxf1 Rc8 23. Qb5 Qxb5 24. Rxc8+ Bf8 25. Bh6 {½-½ (25) Svane,F (2577)-Grandelius,N (2658) Vrnjacka Banja SRB 2023}) 20. a4 Bg4 21. Qe1 Be2 22. Bf1 Bxf1 23. Kxf1 Re8 24. Qc3 Qxc3 25. Rxc3 e5 26. dxe5 Bxe5 27. Rd3 Bxf4 28. gxf4 Rd8 29. a5 Kf8 30. Ke2 Ke7 31. Rb3 Kd6 32. Kd3 Rd7 33. h4 Rc7 34. Rb8 Rc5 35. Rb7 Rxa5 36. Rxf7 Ra3+ 37. Kd4 Ra4+ 38. Kd3 Ra3+ 39. Kd4 Ra4+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 6th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden Baden"]
[Date "2019.04.20"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Keymer, Vincent"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E92"]
[WhiteElo "2516"]
[BlackElo "2845"]
[PlyCount "162"]
[EventDate "2019.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 190"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 g6 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 Bg7 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Be2 e5 8. O-O Ne8 9. Ne1 f5 10. exf5 gxf5 11. f4 Nd7 12. Nd3 e4 13. Nf2 Bxc3 14. bxc3 Ndf6 15. Be3 Ng7 $146 ({RR} 15... Kh8 16. Kh1 Rg8 17. Qd2 b6 18. Nd1 Rb8 19. Bf2 Ng4 20. Bxg4 Rxg4 21. Ne3 Rg6 {½-½ (21) Filip,M-Langeweg,K Amsterdam 1965}) 16. Qe1 Bd7 17. Nd1 Ba4 18. h3 Bxd1 19. Qxd1 Qe8 20. Kf2 Qg6 21. Rg1 Kh8 22. a4 Rg8 23. Qf1 Nfh5 24. g3 Raf8 25. Qg2 Qf6 26. Rac1 Qd8 27. Qh2 Nf6 28. g4 Nd7 29. g5 Qa5 30. g6 h6 31. Rb1 Rb8 32. Qg3 Qd8 33. Ke1 Ne8 34. Kd2 Nf8 35. Bf2 Qe7 36. Ke3 Qf6 37. Kd2 Nxg6 38. h4 Ne7 39. Qh3 Rxg1 40. Rxg1 Qf7 41. h5 Nf6 42. Bh4 b6 43. Rb1 Qf8 44. Rg1 Qf7 45. Rb1 Qg7 46. Rg1 Qf8 47. Kc2 Nfg8 48. Kd2 Qf7 49. Kc2 Rf8 50. Kd2 Qe8 51. Ra1 Rf7 52. a5 bxa5 53. Rxa5 Nc8 54. Ra1 Qf8 55. Rb1 Nb6 56. Rg1 Rg7 57. Rxg7 Kxg7 58. Qg3+ Kh8 59. Qg6 a5 60. Bf1 a4 61. Kc2 a3 62. Kb3 Na4 63. Bh3 Qg7 64. Qxg7+ Kxg7 65. Bxf5 Nf6 66. Kxa3 Nxc3 67. Bf2 Ne2 68. Ka4 Nxh5 69. Ka5 Nf6 70. Kb6 Kf7 71. Kc7 Ke7 72. Be3 Nd4 73. Bg6 h5 74. Bf2 Nf3 75. Bf5 Nd2 76. Bh4 e3 77. Bd3 Nf3 78. Bxf6+ Kxf6 79. Kxd6 h4 80. Kc7 Nd4 81. Kc8 e2 0-1

[Event "Grenke Chess Classic 6th"]
[Site "Karlsruhe/Baden Baden"]
[Date "2019.04.27"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D39"]
[WhiteElo "2845"]
[BlackElo "2763"]
[Annotator "Krasenkow,Michal"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2019.04.20"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 190"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.06.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,75,19,8,20,-14,3,4,4,4,64,46,44,54,68,58,43,17,35,35,82,-20,28,51,39,6,23,22,37,38,37,30,33,29,17,17,24,19,23,5,27,0,1,0,0,-16,-13,-1,0,-1,2,16,26,31,76,95,88,76,77,82,132,125,128,117,117,108,163,165,174,167,198,176,270,170,223,229,256,249]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bg5 c5 7. Bxc4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Bd2 $5 $146 {[%mdl 8] An absolutely new move in this well-known position!} (10. Bb5+) (10. Bxf6) (10. Nb5 {have been seen in hundreds or even thousands of games.}) 10... O-O (10... Nxe4 11. Qg4 $1 Nxd2 12. Qxg7 {is White's idea although the position after} Rf8 (12... Nxc4 13. Qxh8+ Ke7 $1 14. O-O {[%csl Re7] with good attacking prospects for White}) 13. Kxd2 Qc5 {is far from clear}) 11. Qe2 e5 ({RR} 11... Nbd7 12. O-O a6 13. f3 Qc7 14. Bb3 Nc5 15. Rac1 e5 16. Nc2 Nxb3 17. axb3 Qb6+ 18. Ne3 Qxb3 19. c4 Be6 20. Rb1 Qa4 21. Rxb7 Rfb8 22. Rxb8+ Rxb8 23. Bc3 Nd7 24. Nd5 Qa3 25. Ra1 Qc5+ 26. Kh1 {Nihal,S (2620)-Sarana,A (2654) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (68)}) 12. Nb3 Qc7 13. O-O Bg4 $146 {Black has a lot of other options like} (13... Re8 {[%cal Yc8e6]}) ({or} 13... b6) ({RR} 13... Qc6 14. f3 Be6 15. Bxe6 Qxe6 16. Be3 Nc6 17. Rab1 b6 18. c4 Nd7 19. Rfc1 Rac8 20. c5 bxc5 21. Nxc5 Nxc5 22. Bxc5 Rfd8 23. Qa6 {½-½ (23) Martinovic,S (2542)-Bosiocic,M (2545) Rijeka CRO 2021}) ({RR} 13... Qc6 14. f3 Be6 15. Bxe6 Qxe6 16. Be3 Nc6 17. Rab1 b6 18. c4 Nd7 19. Rfc1 Rac8 20. c5 bxc5 21. Nxc5 Nxc5 22. Bxc5 Rfd8 23. Qa6 {½-½ (23) Martinovic,S (2542)-Bosiocic,M (2545) Rijeka 2021}) {The position he goes for is strategically risky.} 14. f3 Rc8 15. Bd5 Nxd5 16. exd5 {[%csl Gd5]} Bh5 (16... Bf5 17. Rac1 {[%cal Yc3c4]}) 17. c4 $1 {The pointe! This pawn is invulnerable, and White's protected d5 passer becomes strong.} Nd7 18. Rfc1 b6 19. a4 $36 {} a5 {[%csl Rb6]} (19... Qd6 $5 20. a5 $140 $6 b5) 20. Qf2 Qd6 21. Be3 Bg6 22. Qd2 f6 23. Qb2 Rc7 24. Nd2 Nc5 25. Qa3 Rd8 $6 (25... Qf8 $1 26. Rc3 Rb8 $14 {A.Tukhaev}) 26. Rc3 f5 $6 {This wrong advance weakens Black's position.} (26... Rb7) 27. Re1 $1 {[%csl Re5]} e4 28. fxe4 fxe4 29. Bxc5 Rxc5 30. Nxe4 Qe5 31. Rce3 {Black has lost a pawn without compensation.} Rcc8 (31... Rxc4 32. Nd2 $18) 32. h3 Qc7 (32... Qd4 33. Nd6) 33. Nd2 Re8 34. Re7 $1 Rxe7 35. Rxe7 Qd8 (35... Qf4 36. Qc3 Bf7 {was better but hopeless enough.}) 36. Qe3 Rc7 37. Re6 Rc5 38. Qb3 {[%csl Rb6]} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 7th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2019.06.04"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D39"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2767"]
[Annotator "Lupulescu,Constantin"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2019.06.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 {Compared to other QGD positions, the Vienna has been a rather rare guest in supertournaments lately.} 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bg5 c5 7. Bxc4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Nb5 {An interesting sideline.} (10. Bd2 {was almost a novelty when the world champion employed it succesfully against Aronian:} O-O 11. Qe2 e5 12. Nb3 Qc7 {with a complex struggle in: Carlsen,M (2845)-Aronian,L (2763) Karlsruhe/Baden Baden GER 2019, 1-0 (38).}) (10. Bb5+ {it is the most common move with many forced variations to follow.}) 10... Nxe4 11. Qd4 O-O 12. Qxe4 a6 13. O-O (13. Bd3 f5 14. Qe2 axb5 15. O-O {is a more usual move order.}) 13... axb5 14. Bd3 f5 15. Qe2 Nc6 (15... Bd7 {was also played quite often.}) 16. Bd2 ({RR} 16. Bxb5 f4 17. f3 Qxc3 18. Rac1 Qb4 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Rxc6 Qd4+ 21. Qf2 Qd7 22. Rfc1 h6 23. Rc7 Qd5 24. R7c5 Qd6 25. Bh4 Bb7 26. Qb2 Bd5 27. Rc7 Rf7 28. Rxf7 Kxf7 29. Rd1 Qc7 30. Ra1 Rb8 {Andreikin,D (2729)-Sarana,A (2688) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (49)}) 16... Qc7 {The first new move of the game.} (16... e5 17. Bxb5 Be6 18. a4 Qc7) 17. Bxb5 f4 {An interesting move, playing against White's dark-squared bishop while also preparing to enhance his own bishop's scope. However, it implies a strategic risk by handing White the e4 square.} (17... e5 {was a more conservative approach with the idea} 18. f3 Be6 19. Rfe1 (19. a4 Na5 $13 {[%cal Ga5b3]}) 19... e4 $1) 18. f3 {Obviously White cannot allow f4-f3.} e5 $146 ({RR} 18... Bd7 19. a4 e5 20. Qc4+ Kh8 21. Be1 Rae8 22. Bf2 Be6 23. Qc5 Qf7 24. Rfe1 Bd7 25. Rad1 e4 26. Rxe4 Bc8 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. a5 Re5 29. Rd8+ Nxd8 30. Qxe5 Ne6 31. Bc4 Qd7 32. Bd4 Nxd4 33. Qxd4 {Gozzoli,Y (2564)-Girel,J (2462) L'Alpe d'Huez FRA 2023 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 18... Bd7 19. a4 e5 20. Qc4+ Kh8 21. Be1 Rae8 22. Bf2 Be6 23. Qc5 Qf7 24. Rfe1 Bd7 25. Rad1 e4 26. Rxe4 Bc8 27. Rxe8 Rxe8 28. a5 Re5 29. Rd8+ Nxd8 30. Qxe5 Ne6 31. Bc4 Qd7 32. Bd4 Nxd4 33. Qxd4 {Gozzoli,Y (2564)-Girel,J (2462) L'Alpe d'Huez FRA 2023 1-0 (33)}) 19. Rfe1 Bd7 20. a4 $1 {We can say that the World Champion got the position he wanted from the opening: not so much to begin with, but plenty of play left to outplay his impressive opponent.} (20. Bxc6 {would most likely have called it a day even with Carlsen's fantastic technical abilities:} Bxc6 21. Qxe5 Qf7 $1 {The most precise as Black's queen will be more useful than White's.} (21... Qxe5 {is also possible:} 22. Rxe5 Rad8 {Black also has good drawing chances in view of White's split queenside pawns and the drawing tendencies of the opposite coloured bishops.}) 22. Qe6 Rad8 23. Qxf7+ Rxf7 24. Re2 g5 $44) 20... Kh8 21. Rad1 (21. Bxc6 Bxc6 22. Qxe5 Qxe5 23. Rxe5 Rxa4 24. Rxa4 Bxa4 {would not give many winning chances as the only way to get f4 would be via a rook swap:} 25. Re4 (25. h4 Bc6 26. Rc5 h6 $11 {[%cal Gg7g5]}) 25... Bc6 26. Rxf4 Rxf4 27. Bxf4 Kg8 {with a trivial draw.}) 21... Rae8 (21... h6 {to defend against back rank threats was safer for Black:} 22. Bc1 Bf5 23. Ba3 Rf6 $13) 22. Bc1 {Now it is not that easy to find a good plan for Black.} e4 {Here this thematic idea doesn't achieve its aim as the game is too open.} 23. fxe4 Ne5 24. Bxd7 Nxd7 25. Rf1 $1 {White shows that also f4 can be a weakness.} Nc5 26. Ba3 $1 {The point of the World Champion's idea.} Rxe4 27. Qb5 $6 {A very natural move but it allows Black to escape to an easily drawn endgame.} (27. Qh5 $1 {would give good winning chances:} Re5 (27... b6 28. a5 $16) 28. Rxf4 Rg8 (28... Rfe8 29. Rdf1 $1 {White needed to see this in advance.} Kg8 30. Qg4 $16) 29. Qf3 (29. Rf7 Rxh5 30. Rxc7 Nxa4 31. c4 b5 (31... b6 32. Rd5 $16 {again puts Black in trouble.}) 32. Rd5 $16) 29... Ne6 30. Bd6 Qb6+ 31. Qf2 Qb3 32. Bxe5 Qxd1+ 33. Qf1 Qd5 34. Rf5 $16) 27... Re5 28. Rde1 (28. Bxc5 Qxc5+ $1 (28... Rxc5 29. Rxf4 Rg8 30. Rf7 $1 Rxb5 (30... Qxf7 31. Qxc5 {With queens on Black is in trouble.}) 31. Rxc7 $16 {A different version as White's rooks are now very active.}) 29. Qxc5 Rxc5 30. Rxf4 Kg8 31. Rb4 (31. Rxf8+ Kxf8 {is very similar to the game.}) 31... Rxc3 32. Rxb7 h6 {Thanks to his very active rooks Black shouldn't have much trouble drawing.}) 28... Rc8 29. Rxe5 Qxe5 30. Bxc5 Qxc5+ 31. Qxc5 Rxc5 32. Rxf4 h6 33. Rf3 (33. Rb4 Rxc3 34. Rxb7 Ra3 {would also be trivial for Black.}) 33... Kg8 {Anand confidently shows the endgame is an easy draw.} 34. Rd3 Ra5 35. Rd7 Rxa4 36. Rxb7 Ra2 37. h4 Kh7 38. Kh2 Rd2 39. Rc7 Kg6 40. Kg3 (40. Kh3 {would not change much, for example} h5 41. Kg3 Kf6 42. Kf3 g6 43. g3 Rd3+ 44. Kf4 Ke6 {and White can hardly make any progress.}) 40... Kh5 41. Rc5+ g5 42. Kh3 Rd3+ 43. g3 Re3 44. Kg2 Rd3 45. Rc4 Re3 46. hxg5 hxg5 47. Kh3 Rd3 48. Rc8 g4+ 49. Kg2 Rd2+ 50. Kf1 Rc2 51. c4 Kg5 52. c5 Kf6 53. c6 Ke7 54. c7 Kd6 55. Rd8+ Kxc7 56. Rd4 Kc6 57. Kg1 Kc5 58. Rxg4 Kd5 {The longest game of the first round that probably left the World Champion thinking he could have achieved more.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 7th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2019.06.06"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Grischuk, Alexander"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2019.06.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 $1 {A curious moment. Norway Chess have for some years used a " Confession booth", intended for the players to give messages to the spectators during the games. Magnus took it a step further: "This is a small shout-out to Peter Heine, who thought Grischuk would play the Kings Indian, and not the Grunfeld: Clown!" The Norwegian media, as usual on the search for stories, took it seriously and as journalistic fairness dictates, contacted me during the game asking for a rebuttal!} 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 Qa5 {Grischuks stays loyal to his preferred move.} ({But in the next round Mamedyarov tried} 8... O-O {vs. Magnus both in the classical and the Armageddon game.} 9. Nf3 Nd7 10. Be2 Qa5 11. O-O Qxa2 12. Nd2 Qa5 13. h4 $5 b5 14. h5 Bb7 15. h6 $1 {was the classical game. I recently attributed the modern understanding of flank pawn attacks to Alphazero, and some pointed out to me that opening the h-file and giving mate is not exactly a new concept in chess! It's a fair point, so this diagram is a good opportunity to point to what Alphazero has a preference for according to Sadler and Regan in "Gamechanger": Exactly not going for the direct assualt in the h-line but instead the slow and more cunning putrting the pawn on h6, effectively closing the h-line but instead aiming for a slower and more longterm attack. The benefits are numerous: especially it controls space at the critical area next to Blacks king, and cramping his defence, like in the game forcing the bishop to h8 where it blocks the king's potential retreat. As well in tactical sequences the pawn is only 2 squares from promoting. Not at all as direct as the typical hxg6 and mate in the h-line, but at times, much more powerful the game being a good illustration.} Bh8 16. e5 Qc7 17. Bxb5 $1 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qb7+ 19. Qf3 Qxb5 20. Rb1 Qa6 21. Ne4 cxd4 22. cxd4 f6 23. Ng5 $1 {The "cramped" nature of Black's kingside is making itself felt with 24.Qd5+ being a deadly threat.} {Mamedyarov succesfully confused with} e6 ({After} 23... fxg5 24. Qd5+ e6 25. Qxd7 {Blacks position is hopeless with the bishop on h8 practically being dead due to the pawns on d4, e5 and h6.}) {upon which Magnus blundered with} 24. Ra1 $2 ({Instead,} 24. Qb7 $1 {would have been deadly, as after after the exchanges of queens with} Qxb7+ ({If} 24... Qe2 25. Qxd7 {wins as there is no perpetual after} Qg4+ 26. Kh2 fxg5 27. f3 $1 {as if Black takes twice on f3, Qxe6+ afterwards forces an eaisly winning ending, again due to the bishop being locked at h8.}) 25. Rxb7 Nxe5 {there is the strong} 26. Nxe6 $1) {having missed} 24... Qb6 $1) 9. Qd2 O-O 10. Nf3 Bg4 $5 {Grischuk's pet line, which he used twice at Norway Chess 2014.} 11. d5 {Karjakin tried 11 Ng5, but Magnus instead follows in the footsteps of Kramnik:} b5 $1 ({Despite winning the game vs. Kramnik} 11... Nd7 12. c4 Qa3 13. Be2 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 Bd4 $1 {Grischuk decides to avoid Magnus' preparation (!) and springs his new idea first.}) 12. Be2 ({Critical might be to take the pawn on c5, but after} 12. Bxc5 Bxf3 13. gxf3 Rc8 14. Bb4 (14. Bd4 Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Nd7 {is just fine for Black.}) 14... Qc7 {leaves an uncoordinated impression from White, so Magnus instead reverts to common-sense development}) 12... Nd7 13. O-O Bxf3 $6 {Grischuk after the game said that 11...b5 was old prep and that his recollection was that the computers back then said Black was better, meaning he was in "refutation mode", playing principled decisions to expose the flaws of the white position. Modern engines, however, have modified their views, and think Black is fine but not more.} ({RR} 13... Rac8 14. Rfd1 Nb6 15. Bh6 Bxf3 16. gxf3 b4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. cxb4 cxb4 19. Rc6 Rxc6 20. dxc6 Rc8 21. Rc1 Na4 22. Rc4 Nc3 23. Bf1 Qb6 24. a3 Rxc6 25. Rxc6 Qxc6 26. axb4 Nb5 27. Bxb5 Qxb5 28. Qd4+ {Carlsen,M (2863)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2784) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (36)}) ({RR} 13... Rac8 14. h3 Bxf3 15. gxf3 c4 16. f4 Nc5 17. e5 Rfd8 18. Rfd1 Qc7 19. Bg4 Rb8 20. Bxc5 Qxc5 21. Bf3 Bh6 22. Qe3 Rbc8 23. Rd4 a6 24. Kg2 Qa3 25. Rc2 Qc5 26. h4 a5 27. h5 Rc7 28. Qe4 {Drygalov,S (2560)-Mekhitarian,K (2564) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (48)}) 14. Bxf3 {Common sense, but 14.gxf3 followed by either f4, or h4 has definite potential too.} c4 15. Be2 {One does not have to be Alphazero to suggest 15 h4! here, Stockfish prefers it too! Magnus, however, goes for first setting up a broad centre, and then develop his attack on the wing.} (15. h4 $5) 15... Rfd8 $146 {As in move 13, Grischuk is too colored by the idea of having a good position and thus plays too ambitiously aiming for rooks on d8 and c8.} (15... Rad8 $1 {however was more to the point, caring about defensive details like the rook leaving tha a8-square this not being targeted by a white bishop on f3m but especially leaving the rook on f8, where it defends the upcoming assult in the f-line, as well as being ready to counter there itself.} 16. f4 Qa3 17. Bf3 {when now} Nc5 18. e5 f6 $1 {makes a considerable difference to the game.}) ({RR} 15... Rac8 16. f4 Nc5 17. e5 Rfd8 18. Rfd1 a6 19. Bf1 Qa3 20. Qc2 Rd7 21. Bf2 Rcd8 22. Bh4 Nd3 23. Bxd3 cxd3 24. Rxd3 Rxd5 25. Rxd5 Rxd5 26. Bf2 e6 27. c4 bxc4 28. Qxc4 Bf8 29. h3 h5 30. Qc2 {Cuenca Jimenez,J (2514)-Troff,K (2484) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (43)}) ({RR} 15... Rac8 16. f4 Nc5 17. e5 Rfd8 18. Rfd1 a6 19. Bf1 Qa3 20. Qc2 Rd7 21. Bf2 Rcd8 22. Bh4 Nd3 23. Bxd3 cxd3 24. Rxd3 Rxd5 25. Rxd5 Rxd5 26. Bf2 e6 27. c4 bxc4 28. Qxc4 Bf8 29. h3 h5 30. Qc2 {Cuenca Jimenez,J (2514)-Troff,K (2484) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (43)}) 16. f4 $1 Nb6 ({The big difference now is that} 16... Qa3 17. Bf3 Nc5 18. e5 f6 19. d6 $1 {hitting a8 is possible, when after} Rac8 20. Bd5+ e6 21. f5 $1 {Whites attack just crashes through.}) 17. Bf3 Qa3 18. h4 $5 {In a later interview Magnus mentioned Alphazero and Danil Dubov as his current chess heroes! One does see the inspiration, with the optimistic and untamed long-term aggression. There is no immediate threat, and Black's counterplay might even get there first, but White does aim after the king, and will hit substantially harder than Black's smaller threats when the attack arrives at the intended target.} e6 (18... b4 $5 {aims at distracting white immediately, but he will just ignore with} 19. h5 $1 {as} Bxc3 20. Qf2 {might have won Black a pawn and created two passed pawns on the queenside, but White couldn't care less as he intends to finish the game way before such becomes decisive. After} Bg7 21. hxg6 hxg6 {both} 22. Bg4 ({and} 22. f5 Rf8 23. e5 $5) 22... b3 23. f5 g5 24. f6 exf6 25. axb3 cxb3 26. Rc7 {gives White a very promising attack.}) 19. h5 $1 Na4 ({Grischuk's problem is that} 19... exd5 20. e5 $1 {just makes things even worse as again Black gets an useless extra pawn while speeding up Whites' attack, with Bd4, f5, Bg4 etc. being the next wave.}) 20. hxg6 {Not h6! this time but hxg6. Yes, White has thus spent two tempi opening the h-line, apparantly to little effect!? Partly it does weaken the g6 pawn, later being a subject to a possible attack, but as we soon will see, the open h-line very much do has relevance.} hxg6 21. f5 exf5 (21... Bxc3 {obviously is critical, but apart from just sidestepping with his queen, White has this even mightier exchange sac:} 22. Rxc3 $1 {when his attack becomes just unstoppable.} Qxc3 23. Qf2 {Now 24.Bd4 is a deadly threat, and} Qg7 24. fxe6 fxe6 25. Bg4 $1 {highlights why the h-line being open does make a major difference, with B(x)e6+ followed by Qh4+ as the deadly threat.}) 22. exf5 Qd6 23. Bf4 Qb6+ 24. Kh1 gxf5 25. d6 $1 {Grischuk staved off immediate defeat, but the next wave of attack he is helpless against.} Rab8 26. Bd5 Nc5 27. Bg3 Ne6 28. Rxf5 {Now Rxf7 is a threat.} Rxd6 29. Bxd6 Qxd6 30. Qe3 Qb6 31. Qf3 Rf8 32. Rf1 Nd8 33. Rh5 Qc7 34. Qe4 {And where fittingly the open h-line gets the final word. Mate on h7 is unavoidable so Grischuk resigned.} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 7th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2019.06.08"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2774"]
[PlyCount "92"]
[EventDate "2019.06.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 O-O 9. Nf3 Nd7 ({RR} 9... Qa5 10. Nd2 Qxa2 11. Bc4 Qa5 12. O-O Nd7 13. h3 Qc7 14. e5 a6 15. e6 fxe6 16. Bxe6+ Kh8 17. Ne4 Nf6 18. Ng5 b6 19. d5 Bd7 20. c4 Be8 21. f4 h6 22. Nf3 Nh5 23. Qd2 Nxf4 24. Bg4 {Fressinet,L (2700)-Ivanchuk,V (2766) Beijing 2012 1-0 (36)}) 10. Be2 ({RR} 10. Bd3 e5 11. d5 Qc7 12. O-O Nf6 13. h3 Ne8 14. c4 Nd6 15. Nd2 b6 16. a4 Qe7 17. a5 f5 18. f3 Bd7 19. axb6 axb6 20. Rb1 Rab8 21. Qe2 h5 22. Rb2 f4 23. Bf2 g5 24. Rfb1 Nc8 {Muradli,M (2449)-Mamedyarov,S (2770) Lichess.org INT 2021 0-1 (36)}) 10... Qa5 $146 ({RR} 10... b6 11. O-O e5 12. Qa4 Qe7 13. Bb5 a6 14. Bc6 Ra7 15. Rfe1 Nb8 16. Bd5 b5 17. Qa5 exd4 18. cxd4 c4 19. a4 Qd8 20. Qb4 Bd7 21. Ne5 Be8 22. Rb1 Rc7 23. axb5 axb5 24. Ra1 Qc8 25. Ra8 {Schneider Zinner,H (2347)-Schorn,C (2215) Austria 2003 1-0 (35)}) ({RR} 10... b6 11. O-O e6 12. Qd2 cxd4 13. cxd4 Bb7 14. Bd3 Nf6 15. e5 Nd5 16. Bg5 f6 17. exf6 Bxf6 18. Rfe1 Re8 19. Be4 Qe7 20. Bxf6 Qxf6 21. Ne5 Rad8 22. Bxd5 Bxd5 23. Rc7 Re7 24. Rec1 Rde8 25. a3 {Gallana,M (2251)-Dimitrov,A (2269) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 10... Nf6 11. Nd2 cxd4 12. cxd4 Qa5 13. O-O Qxa2 14. Ra1 Qe6 15. d5 Qe5 16. Bf3 Bd7 17. Rxa7 Rxa7 18. Bxa7 Bb5 19. Re1 Ra8 20. Be3 Bd3 21. g3 g5 22. Qb3 Bxe4 23. Nxe4 Nxe4 24. Qxb7 Ra1 25. Rxa1 {Weber,S-Wagman,S (2235) Caorle 1981 1-0}) 11. O-O Qxa2 12. Nd2 Qa5 13. h4 b5 14. h5 Bb7 15. h6 Bh8 16. e5 Qc7 17. Bxb5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qb7+ 19. Qf3 Qxb5 20. Rb1 Qa6 21. Ne4 cxd4 22. cxd4 f6 23. Ng5 e6 24. Ra1 Qb6 25. exf6 Bxf6 26. Qe4 Bxg5 27. Bxg5 Qd6 28. Rfe1 Qd5 29. Qxd5 exd5 30. Ra5 Rf5 31. f4 Nf6 32. Re7 Ne4 33. Rg7+ Kh8 34. Raxa7 Rxa7 35. Rxa7 Kg8 36. Rg7+ Kf8 37. Be7+ Ke8 38. Rxh7 Rf7 39. Rxf7 Kxf7 40. Kf3 Kg8 41. Kg4 Kh7 42. Bf8 Nf6+ 43. Kh4 Ne4 44. Bg7 Nd6 45. Kg5 Ne4+ 46. Kg4 Nd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 7th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2019.06.13"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Yu, Yangyi"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D15"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2738"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2019.06.04"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 b5 6. Be2 b4 7. e5 bxc3 8. exf6 exf6 9. bxc3 Bd6 10. O-O $146 ({RR} 10. Nd2 O-O 11. Nxc4 Bc7 12. O-O Ba6 13. Ne3 Bxe2 14. Qxe2 Nd7 15. Qg4 g6 16. Rd1 Nb6 17. c4 f5 18. Qf3 f4 19. Ng4 Qg5 20. h4 Qxh4 21. Bxf4 Bxf4 22. Qxf4 Qd8 23. Rd3 f5 24. Ne5 Qf6 {Sorensen,H (2352)-Pantzar,M (2357) Eskilstuna 2019 1-0 (38)}) 10... O-O 11. Nd2 Re8 12. Re1 Nd7 13. Nxc4 Bc7 14. Bf3 Ba6 15. Ne3 Nb6 16. Ba3 Nc4 17. Qd3 Rxe3 18. Rxe3 Nxe3 19. Qxa6 Nc2 20. Rd1 Nxa3 21. Qxa3 Qd6 22. Qxd6 Bxd6 23. c4 Rc8 24. c5 Be7 25. Kf1 f5 26. Ke2 g5 27. h3 Kg7 28. Kd3 Kg6 29. Rb1 h5 30. Rb7 Bf6 31. Rd7 g4 32. Bd1 Kg5 33. Ba4 f4 34. f3 Re8 35. fxg4 hxg4 36. hxg4 Re6 37. Bd1 Re3+ 38. Kc4 a5 39. Bf3 Ra3 40. Bxc6 Rxa2 41. Be4 a4 42. c6 Ra1 43. c7 a3 44. Kb3 1-0

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.06.27"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Anand, Viswanathan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D39"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2767"]
[Annotator "Pelletier,Yannick"]
[PlyCount "155"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 {Magnus Carlsen has had to face the Vienna Variation of the Queen's Gambit several times in 2019. In each game he came up with a different poisonous idea, which he had probably all prepared for his World Championship match against Fabiano Caruana.} 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bg5 ({In Wijk aan Zee, he tried the dangerous pawn sacrifice} 6. Bxc4) 6... c5 7. Bxc4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. Bb5+ ({Some months later against Levon Aronian, he came up with the "hit and run" novelty} 10. Bd2) ({Finally, a few weeks before the present game, Carlsen tried} 10. Nb5 Nxe4 11. Qd4 {against the same opponent, and tortured him for quite a long time.}) 10... Bd7 ({Who would like to test the World Champion in the main line} 10... Nbd7 {?}) 11. Bxf6 gxf6 12. Bxd7+ Nxd7 13. O-O Qxc3 ({This has been tried a few times by Alexander Morozevich and Radoslaw Wojtaszek in the past, and more recently by Wei Yi and Alexander Bluebaum. The main move} 13... a6 14. Rb1 {is considered holdable for Black, though not without considerable suffering.}) 14. Qa4 O-O 15. Nxe6 (15. Qxd7 $6 Rad8 16. Qxb7 Qxd4 $11 {let Black equalize too easily in Leitao-Morozevich, World Teams Championship Bursa 2010}) 15... Nb6 16. Qd4 Rfc8 (16... Qxd4 17. Nxd4 $14 {Antic-Zontakh, Jagodina 1998}) 17. Qxc3 Rxc3 {My own preparation simply ended on an equal sign here. However correct this assessment may objectively be, Magnus Carlsen understands that Black will have to solve practical problems. Indeed, in endgames with rook(s) and knight, activity and king safety are important factors.} 18. Nf4 (18. Nd4 Rc4 19. Rfd1 Na4 $1 $11 {Gajewski,G (2616)-Wojtaszek,R (2706) Warsaw 2012}) 18... Rc5 19. Rfd1 $146 ({Black held the balance after} 19. g4 Kf8 20. Nh5 Ke7 21. Ng3 Rd8 22. Rfc1 Na4 23. Rd1 Nc3 $11 {Ponomariov,R (2758)-Morozevich,A (2737) Saratov 2011}) ({RR} 19. g4 Kf8 20. Nh5 Ke7 21. Ng3 Rd8 22. Rfc1 Na4 23. Rd1 Nc3 24. Nf5+ Ke8 25. Ng7+ Ke7 26. Nf5+ Ke8 27. Ng7+ Ke7 {½-½ (27) Ponomariov,R (2758)-Morozevich,A (2737) Saratov 2011}) 19... f5 20. exf5 Rac8 ({I do not quite get Anand's logic behind delaying the capture on f5, as he actually slightly worsens his position compared with the line} 20... Rxf5 21. g3 (21. Rd4 Rc8) 21... Rc8 22. Rd3 Rc2 23. Ra3 a6 $11) 21. f6 $1 Rf5 22. g3 Rxf6 23. Rd3 {Now the difference is clear: the c8 cannot leave the back rank because of d8+ and h5+. This nuance allows White to grab the initiative.} Rfc6 24. Ra3 Rc1+ 25. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 26. Kg2 Nc8 ({After} 26... a6 27. Rb3 Rc6 28. Kf3 $14 {, both black pieces have difficulties to move.}) 27. Rd3 Rc7 28. Rd8+ Kg7 29. h4 Ne7 30. Nh5+ Kh6 $6 ({It is understandable that Vishy Anand rejected} 30... Kg6 {because of the dangerous line} 31. g4 f5 32. Nf4+ (32. Rd6+ Kf7 33. gxf5 Rc5 34. Rf6+ Kg8 35. Ng3 Ra5 $11) 32... Kf7 33. Rh8 fxg4 (33... Kg7 34. Rb8 Kf7 35. g5 $14) 34. Rxh7+ Kg8 35. Rh5 {. But Black should actually be able to hold after} Rc2 36. Ra5 b6 37. Rxa7 Nf5 $13 {The game continuation is definitely more unpleasant for him.}) 31. Nf6 Kg6 $6 ({Anand starts drifting and the position gets from unpleasant to worse. Obviously, no one will teach him that activity is paramount in endings. There must be something he did not like in the line} 31... Rc2 32. Rd7 Nf5 33. Ne4 Kg7 {, for instance} 34. Kf3 Rxa2 35. Kf4 Ra5 36. h5 {, but he should certainly have preferred this over the game continuation.}) 32. Ne8 Rc6 33. Rd7 Re6 (33... Nc8 34. f4 $16) 34. h5+ $1 ({Remember what I wrote about activity?} 34. Rxb7 Nc8 35. Nc7 Re7 {paralyzes both white pieces. White can still try to disentangle with} 36. g4 {, but after} h5 $1 {, things are anything but clear.}) 34... Kh6 35. Nd6 f5 (35... Kxh5 36. Nxf7 $16) 36. Nxb7 (36. Rxe7 $2 Rxd6 37. Rxb7 Ra6 $11) 36... Ng8 37. Nd6 Nf6 38. Nxf5+ Kg5 39. Nd4 (39. Ng7 Ra6 {is less convincing}) 39... Nxd7 ({It is always difficult to choose between variations which all lead to a worse position. Anand decides to exchange rooks right away in order to reduce his opponent's activity. The alternative} 39... Ra6 40. f4+ $1 Kxh5 41. Rg7 Rxa2+ 42. Kh3 Ra5 43. Nc6 Kh6 44. Rxh7+ Kxh7 45. Nxa5 {would lead to another knight ending where White is a clear pawn up. Assessing over the board whether it is winning is very difficult. I believe that Anand's feeling was right, and that the game continuation offers better practical chances.}) 40. Nxe6+ Kxh5 41. Kf3 Kg6 42. Kf4 $6 (42. Ke4 Kf6 43. Nd8 h5 44. Nc6 a6 45. Kd5 Kf5 46. f3 {was perhaps more unpleasant for Black, as his king is restricted.}) 42... Kf6 43. Ng5 h6 44. Ne4+ Ke6 45. Kg4 Ke5 46. f3 Kd4 $1 {This surprising idea might have been underestimated by Carlsen when he chose his 42nd move.} 47. Kf5 (47. Kf4 a5 $1 48. g4 Ne5 $132) 47... Ke3 $1 48. f4 h5 49. Ng5 (49. Nf6 $2 Nxf6 50. Kxf6 Kf3 51. Kg5 Kxg3 52. f5 h4 53. f6 h3 54. f7 h2 55. f8=Q h1=Q $11) 49... Nc5 (49... Kf2 50. g4 hxg4 51. Kxg4 Ke3 {is a draw as well.}) 50. Kg6 Kf2 51. f5 Kxg3 52. Ne6 $5 (52. Kxh5 Kf4 53. Kg6 Nd7 $11) 52... Nd7 53. Kxh5 Kf3 54. Kg5 Ke4 55. Nc7 a5 56. Nb5 Kd3 57. Kg6 a4 58. Kf7 Ne5+ 59. Kf6 Nf3 60. Ke7 Kc2 61. f6 Ng5 (61... Kb2 62. a3 Ng5 $11 {would have been possible as well}) 62. Nd4+ {My engine now proudly shows an evaluation of around +8 ... Evidently a case for programmers to work on! The position is still a draw.} Kb2 63. Ne6 Nh7 64. f7 Kxa2 65. Ng5 a3 66. Nxh7 Kb1 67. f8=Q a2 {Well done, Vishy! The white knight is so far away that this endgame can be evaluated exactly as a queen ending.} 68. Qf5+ Kb2 69. Qe5+ Kb1 70. Qe4+ Kb2 71. Qe2+ Kb1 72. Nf6 a1=Q 73. Nd5 Qg7+ 74. Kd6 Qf8+ 75. Ke5 Qe8+ 76. Kd4 Qxe2 77. Nc3+ Ka1 78. Nxe2 {A formidable battle, where Magnus Carlsen was close to inflicting yet another endgame defeat to Vishy Anand. But this time, the Indian managed to hold a draw. With hindsight, it is hard to point out a moment where White missed a win. Perhaps the alternative on move 42 would have been more difficult to deal with for Black.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.06.30"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2748"]
[BlackElo "2875"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {https://lichess.org/broadcast/-/-/8eCIEAp3} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 a6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nc3 h6 6. Bf4 Nf6 7. e3 Bd6 8. Be5 Be6 9. Qb3 Ra7 10. Bd3 Bxe5 11. Nxe5 O-O 12. O-O Nbd7 13. f4 $146 ({RR} 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. Qc2 Re8 15. b4 c6 16. a4 Qe7 17. Qb1 Rea8 18. Ra2 Nf6 19. Rb2 b5 20. Rc1 Ne8 21. e4 dxe4 22. Bxe4 Rc8 23. axb5 axb5 24. d5 {½-½ (24) Motuz,K (2299)-Godena,M (2435) Terme Catez, Slovenia 2024 [https://lichess.org/broadcast/-/-/8eCIEAp3]}) ({RR} 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. Qc2 Re8 15. b4 c6 16. a4 Qe7 17. Qb1 Rea8 18. Ra2 Nf6 19. Rb2 b5 20. Rc1 Ne8 21. e4 dxe4 22. Bxe4 Rc8 23. axb5 axb5 24. d5 {½-½ (24) Motuz,K (2299)-Godena,M (2436) Catez SLO 2024}) 13... c5 14. f5 c4 15. Qa3 cxd3 16. fxe6 fxe6 17. Nxd3 Ra8 18. Qd6 Qb6 19. Qxb6 Nxb6 20. Nc5 Rf7 21. b3 Re8 22. Rac1 e5 23. h3 Nc8 24. Nd3 exd4 25. exd4 Na7 26. Nf4 Nc6 27. Nfxd5 Nxd5 28. Nxd5 Rd7 29. Rc5 Nxd4 30. Rd1 Ne6 31. Rc4 Red8 32. Re1 Rxd5 33. Rxe6 R8d6 34. Rxd6 Rxd6 35. a4 b6 36. b4 Rd1+ 37. Kf2 Ra1 38. Rc6 Ra2+ 39. Kf3 Ra3+ 40. Kf2 Ra2+ 41. Kf3 Ra3+ 42. Kf2 Ra2+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.07.01"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2754"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Postny,Evgeny} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 ({RR} 6... Nbd7 7. c5) 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. a3 Nc6 9. Qc2 Re8 ({RR} 9... Qa5) 10. Bg5 ({RR} 10. b4 Bd6 ({RR} 10... e5 11. Bg5 d4 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Nd5 e4 14. bxc5 exf3 15. O-O-O) 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. c5 ({RR} 12. Be2 dxc4 13. Bxc4 Ne5) 12... Qe7 13. Rd1 Rd8 14. Be2 e5 15. O-O Bg4 16. Rfe1) ({RR} 10. Rd1 e5 11. Bg5 d4 12. Nd5 Be7 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Bd3 g6 15. Nxf6+ Qxf6 16. O-O Bg4) ({RR} 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Be2 d4 12. Rd1 Bg4 13. O-O Qe7 14. Na4 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 dxe3 16. Nxc5 e2 17. Bxe2 Qxe2) 10... Be7 ({RR} 10... d4 11. O-O-O e5 {RR} 12. Nd5 Be7 13. Nxe7+ Qxe7 14. exd4 Nxd4 ({RR} 14... Bg4 15. dxe5 ({RR} 15. d5 Nd4 16. Qd3 Bxf3 17. gxf3 b5) 15... Nxe5 16. Be2 b5 ({RR} 16... h6 17. Be3) 17. Rhe1 bxc4 18. Bxc4 Bxf3 19. gxf3 Qc7 20. Be2) 15. Nxd4 exd4 16. Rxd4 ({RR} 16. Kb1 h6 17. Bh4) 16... Qe5 17. Be3 b5 18. c5 Bf5 19. Bd3 Rac8 20. b4 Bxd3 21. Rxd3) 11. Rd1 ({RR} 11. cxd5 Nxd5 12. Bxe7 Qxe7) ({RR} 11. O-O-O Bd7 ({RR} 11... Qa5 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. cxd5) 12. Bxf6 Bxf6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Rxd5 Rc8) 11... Qa5 12. Bd3 ({RR} 12. Be2 Ne4 13. cxd5 Nxc3 14. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 15. bxc3 exd5 16. Bxe7 Nxe7 17. Nd4 Bd7) 12... dxc4 $146 ({RR} 12... h6 13. Bh4 dxc4 ({RR} 13... a6 14. O-O ({RR} 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Bxe7 Ncxe7) 14... dxc4) 14. Bxc4 a6 15. O-O b5 16. Ba2 Bb7 17. Bb1 ({RR} 17. Bxf6 Bxf6 18. Ne4 ({RR} 18. Rd7 Re7) 18... Be7 19. Rd7 ({RR} 19. Nc5 Bxc5 20. Qxc5 Red8) 19... Qb6 20. Bb1 g6 21. h4 Rac8) 17... Rad8 18. Ne4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 g6 20. Bxe7 Rxe7 21. Qh4 Kg7 22. Ne5 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Qc7 24. Ng4 h5 25. Qf6+ Kh7 26. Qh4 Kg7 27. Qf6+ {Ludvik,T (2201)-Kusa,J (2303) Czech Republic 2022 ½-½}) ({RR} 12... h6 13. Bh4 dxc4 14. Bxc4 a6 15. O-O b5 16. Ba2 Bb7 17. Bb1 Rad8 18. Bxf6 Bxf6 19. Ne4 ({RR} 19. Qh7+ Kf8) 19... Be7 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Qxc5 b4 22. Rc1 ({RR} 22. Qxa5 Nxa5 23. axb4 Nc4 24. b3 Bxf3 25. Rxd8 ({RR} 25. gxf3 Nd2) 25... Rxd8 26. bxc4 Be2 27. Rc1 Bxc4) 22... bxa3 23. bxa3 Qxc5 24. Rxc5 Ne7 25. Rfc1 Rc8 ({RR} 25... Bxf3 26. gxf3) 26. Bd3 Red8 27. Rxc8 {Anand,V (2792)-Carlsen,M (2863) Sochi 2014 CBM 164 [Postny,Evgeny] ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 12... h6 13. Bh4 Bd7 14. O-O dxc4 15. Bxc4 Red8 16. Ba2 Be8 17. Bb1 Rxd1 18. Rxd1 Rd8 19. Rxd8 Qxd8 20. h3 Kf8 21. Bg3 Bd6 22. Bxd6+ Qxd6 23. Nd2 Ne7 24. Nde4 Nxe4 25. Nxe4 Qc6 26. Qd2 Qd5 27. Qxd5 {Isik,A (2456)-Agdelen,H (2408) Ankara TUR 2025 ½-½}) 13. Bxc4 h6 14. Bf4 Bd7 15. O-O Rac8 16. e4 e5 17. Be3 Nd4 18. Bxd4 Rxc4 19. Bxe5 Ba4 20. b3 Nxe4 21. Rd3 Rec8 22. Qb2 Nc5 23. Re3 Bxb3 24. Bxg7 Rg4 25. Bxh6 Bf6 26. Ne5 Bxe5 27. Rxe5 Qb6 28. Qd2 Rg6 29. Be3 Qc6 30. Nd5 Bxd5 31. Qxd5 b6 32. g3 Nd7 33. Qxc6 Rgxc6 34. Rd5 Nf8 35. Rfd1 Ne6 36. a4 Rc4 37. a5 Rb4 38. Rd7 bxa5 39. Rxa7 a4 40. Rdd7 Nd8 41. Rd5 Ne6 42. Rda5 Rcc4 43. Kg2 1-0

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.07.04"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Ding, Liren"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2805"]
[BlackElo "2875"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,47,19,31,14,-14,-11,0,0,-24,1,16,14,12,2,6,28,28,23,10,18,24,38,44,107,125,94,109,97,126,197,145,87,89,105,-11,-37,-25,-10,-10,-31,-23,-8,0,30,-27,-16,-10,3,2]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 {Ding as often shows a great loyalty to his opening systems, and plays his favourite line in the catalan.} b5 $5 {Until a few years back, 7...a6 was considered mandatory, but now both 7 ...b6 and 7...c6 as well as the game move have gained in popularity.} 8. a4 b4 9. Nfd2 $5 {White's most critical move, intending to play a positional pawn sacrifice.} ({Interestingly, Magnus' second for the 2018WC-match, the World Rapid Champion Daniil Dubov, as White tried} 9. Nbd2 Bb7 10. Nxc4 c5 11. dxc5 Be4 12. Qd2 $5 {gaining a small endgame edge vs. Nakamura in the Moscow Grand Prix.}) 9... Nd5 $5 {This is however very rare, and stylistically very different from the main line.} (9... c6 {when} 10. Nxc4 Qxd4 11. Rd1 Qc5 {gives White good compensation for the pawn, again the recent action being from the Moscow Grand Prix with Grischuk beating Nakamura as White.}) 10. Nxc4 c5 11. dxc5 Ba6 $1 {Technically the novelty, Black used to take back on c5 in the few existing games. Magnus afterwards admitted that this was preparations for the WC-match and it is indeed typical "computer" chess where one pushes the position to its absolute maximum relying on tactics.} 12. Ne3 {Ding, not having the comfort of having checked this position with a computer, faced a difficult task evaluating the numerous options. Many ideas looks tempting for White, but the assumption being that the World Champion does not just play bad lines, one has to tread very carefully.} (12. Rd1 {is very logical, but after} Nd7 13. c6 Rc8 14. Ne3 Ne5 $1 {Black has excellent counterplay.}) 12... Nd7 13. Nxd5 exd5 14. c6 (14. Bxd5 Rc8 15. c6 Ne5 16. Rd1 {is just transposing to the line below.}) 14... Rc8 15. Bf4 {Ding keeps finding good moves.} (15. Rd1 Ne5 16. Bxd5 Nxc6 $1 17. Bxf7+ Rxf7 18. Rxd8+ Bxd8 {is a strong queen sacrifice giving excellent practical compensation, where the computer says White should better try forcing a draw straightaway in order not to be worse.}) 15... Nc5 16. c7 Qd7 17. Nd2 g5 $5 {Continuing in the modern computer style, not caring for common sense chess like17...Bd6 trying to round up the c7-pawn restoring material equality, but again instead pushing the position to its limits.} 18. Be5 f6 19. Bd4 Rxc7 20. Qd1 $146 {Carlsen later said that while obviously he was happy being in prep when his opponent was not, still his position did not leave him with that much confidence.Objectively Black is OK, but White's position is easier to play due to Black's weakened king and numerous pawn structure defects. So Black has to keep putting maximum pressure before White consolidates.} ({RR} 20. Nb3 Nxb3 21. Qxb3 Bxe2 22. Bxd5+ Kg7 23. Rfe1 Rd8 24. Be6 Qxd4 25. Rxe2 Qd3 26. Rae1 Bc5 27. Kg2 Qxb3 28. Bxb3 Rdd7 29. Be6 Re7 30. Re4 Bd6 31. R1e2 a5 32. b3 {½-½ (32) Cheparinov,I (2670)-Deac,B (2613) Douglas 2019}) 20... Ne6 21. Nb3 Bc4 $1 {An important move, disturbing just in time.} 22. Na5 ({If now} 22. Be3 {, then} d4 $1 23. Nxd4 Nxd4 24. Bxd4 Rd8 {wins back the temporarily sacrificed pawn with equality.}) 22... Nxd4 23. Qxd4 Kg7 $1 {A nice move, removing the king from the light squares meaning that e.g. Bxd5 will now never be a check, but noteworthy is that Magnus chooses the more active position on g7 instead of the by sight safer place at h8. However, in the game continuation it is obvious that protecting f6, and later being closer to the centrum, are important factors.} 24. Rfc1 Bxe2 25. Rxc7 Qxc7 26. Re1 Bc5 27. Qxd5 Re8 {White has no way of exploiting the pin in the e-line, and Ding has to start caring about safety. Here, however, he miscalculates.} 28. Qb7 $6 (28. Qc6 $1 {would be the correct way, the difference being after} Qxc6 29. Nxc6 Bh5 {White has} 30. Rc1 $1 {when he will manage to liquidate the queenside and make a draw.}) 28... Qxb7 29. Nxb7 Bf8 {Now, however ,it is another matter, as the game shows Black has excellent chances due to the queenside targets if the rooks are exchanged.} 30. Bc6 $2 ({Magnus thus during the game felt that} 30. Nd8 {was by far White's best move, and while} Rxd8 31. Rxe2 Rd1+ 32. Bf1 Bc5 {still is not excactly pleasant for White, he seems to make a draw by exact play, like} 33. Re4 b3 34. Rc4 Bd4 35. Rb4 Rd2 36. Rxb3 Bxf2+ 37. Kh1 {as while Black obviously has some initiative, it should not be enough for the win.}) 30... Re7 31. f3 Bc4 32. Rxe7+ Bxe7 {Blacks advantage is obvious, pair of bishops, and targets on both wings to attack. Is it enough to win? I assume its borderline, but to quote Larsen, practically what matters is if there is winning chances.} 33. Kf2 f5 34. Ke3 Bg8 $1 {A beautiful move, that even managed to get a praising Tweet from Giri. It exploits the whole board, and thus exemplifies the difference between the knight and the bishop in mobility.} 35. Kd3 g4 $5 {35...Bf6 is met by 36 Nd6 securing sufficient counterplay. Now, however, Magnus starts creating targets on the kingside, when ...h5 ...h4 will be next. White's choice is between which kind of fortress to go for. Playing f4 keeps the position closed, but risks the bishop landing on g1, while fxg4 exchanging pawns feels logical, but then leaves the black king a much easier path to the opponent camp via the center.} 36. Na5 (36. fxg4 fxg4 37. Bb5 Bd5 38. Na5 Bc5 39. Bd7 h5 40. Nc6 Kf6) ({The right decision would actually have been keeping positive thoughts and pushing the a-pawn to a6, starting with} 36. a5 $1 {After} h5 37. a6 {not only is the white pawn much closer to queening and thus Black has to be a bit more careful, but also is the knight stably protected on b7. Black has several tries keeping practical chances, but objectively the position seems drawn.}) 36... Bc5 {White's knight does get rerouted back to the defences, but at the huge price of allowing the bishop to penetrate on g1.} 37. Nc4 Bg1 38. Ne3 Be6 39. fxg4 fxg4 40. Ke2 {Tactically White is OK, as 40...Bxh2 41.Kf2 threatens 42.Nf1, but Black of course instead just increases the pressure having passified White completely.} h5 $1 41. Bd5 Bd7 42. Bb3 Bxh2 43. Kf2 h4 $1 44. gxh4 Be5 {In principle every exchange should get White closer to the draw, but Black creating a passed pawn is a much bigger factor.} 45. Nc4 g3+ 46. Kg1 Bf4 {It's been a common quote of Magnus that he does not really believe in fortresses, a feeling letting him down e.g.in the WC-game 4 vs Karjakin, but here everything is in order. Black's king will enter easily.} 47. Bd1 Bc6 48. b3 Kh6 49. a5 Be4 50. Kf1 Kg7 51. Kg1 Kf6 52. Kf1 Ke6 53. h5 Kd5 54. a6 Kd4 55. Bg4 Kc3 56. Be6 (56. Bd1 {only defends very temporarily as} g2+ 57. Kg1 Bd5 {puts White in a complete zugzwang.}) 56... Bc2 57. Na5 Bc7 58. Nb7 Bd3+ 59. Kg1 Bxa6 $5 {My computer says 59...Be4 is mate in 7, but criticising a move that forces instant resignation is too much. An excellent game from Magnus, showing his skills in all 3 phases of the game.} 0-1

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.07.05"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D39"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2752"]
[PlyCount "97"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Bg5 dxc4 6. e4 c5 7. e5 cxd4 8. Nxd4 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Qa5 10. exf6 Qxg5 11. fxg7 Qxg7 12. Qd2 O-O 13. Bxc4 Rd8 14. Qe3 Bd7 15. O-O-O ({RR} 15. O-O Nc6 16. Nf3 Ne7 17. Ne5 Ng6 18. f4 Rac8 19. Be2 Bc6 20. Bf3 Bd5 21. Kh1 b6 22. a4 h6 23. Rae1 Nxe5 24. fxe5 Qg5 25. Qf2 Bc4 26. h4 Qg7 27. Re4 Bxf1 28. Rg4 Bd3 29. Rxg7+ Kxg7 {Ivanchuk,V (2768)-Grischuk,A (2746) Khanty-Mansiysk 2011 ½-½ (43)}) 15... Nc6 16. Bb3 Be8 $146 ({RR} 16... Rac8 17. Kb2 a5 18. h4 Kh8 19. h5 Qe5 20. Qf3 Nxd4 21. cxd4 Qg5 22. Qxf7 a4 23. Bxe6 Bxe6 24. Qxe6 Re8 25. Qd6 Re2+ 26. Ka1 Rcc2 27. Qf8+ Qg8 28. Qf6+ Qg7 29. Qd8+ Qg8 30. Qf6+ Qg7 31. Qd8+ {Duda,J (2729)-Aronian,L (2736) Dusseldorf GER 2023 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 16... Rac8 17. Kb2 a5 18. h4 Kh8 19. h5 Qe5 20. Qf3 Nxd4 21. cxd4 Qg5 22. Qxf7 a4 23. Bxe6 Bxe6 24. Qxe6 Re8 25. Qd6 Re2+ 26. Ka1 Rcc2 27. Qf8+ Qg8 28. Qf6+ Qg7 29. Qd8+ Qg8 30. Qf6+ Qg7 31. Qd8+ {Duda,J (2729)-Aronian,L (2736) Dusseldorf GER 2023 ½-½ (31)}) 17. Nxc6 Bxc6 18. h4 Qf6 19. Rh3 b5 20. Rg3+ Kh8 21. Rg4 a5 22. Rf4 Qg7 23. Rxd8+ Rxd8 24. g4 b4 25. g5 bxc3 26. Bc2 Bd5 27. Rf6 Qf8 28. Qxc3 Rc8 29. Qd3 Qg7 30. f4 Kg8 31. Kd2 h6 32. a3 hxg5 33. fxg5 Rc4 34. Qg3 Be4 35. Bb3 Rd4+ 36. Ke1 Bf5 37. h5 Rd3 38. Qb8+ Qf8 39. Qxf8+ Kxf8 40. Bc2 Rh3 41. Bxf5 exf5 42. h6 Kg8 43. a4 Rh4 44. Rxf5 Rxa4 45. Kf2 Rg4 46. Kf3 Rg1 47. Kf2 Rg4 48. Kf3 Rg1 49. Kf2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.07.06"]
[Round "10"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E34"]
[WhiteElo "2754"]
[BlackElo "2875"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Fernandez,Daniel Howard Golod,Vitali} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 d5 5. cxd5 ({RR} 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 O-O 7. Nf3 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Bg5) 5... Qxd5 6. e3 ({RR} 6. Nf3 Qf5) 6... c5 7. Bd2 Bxc3 8. Bxc3 cxd4 9. Bxd4 Nc6 10. Bc3 ({RR} 10. Bxf6 gxf6 11. Ne2 Bd7 12. a3 Qa5+ 13. Nc3 Ne7) 10... O-O 11. Nf3 Rd8 ({RR} 11... b6) ({RR} 11... Qc5) 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. Rd1 Qxd1+ 13. Qxd1 Rxd1+ 14. Kxd1 Ne4 15. Be1 e5) 12... Qe4 ({RR} 12... Qc5) 13. Rc1 ({RR} 13. Qb3 Nd5 ({RR} 13... b6 14. O-O Bb7 15. Rfd1 Qg6 16. Qa3 Ne8 17. Ba6) 14. Bd2 ({RR} 14. O-O Nxc3 15. Qxc3 Qb4 16. Qc2 Qe7 17. a3 Bd7) 14... Qg6 ({RR} 14... b6 15. Bd3 ({RR} 15. Qc4 Nf6) 15... Qg4 16. O-O Bb7 17. h3 Qh5 18. Qb5) 15. O-O e5 16. Rfd1 e4 ({RR} 16... Bh3 17. Ne1 ({RR} 17. Nh4 Qg5 18. Bc4 e4 19. Qxb7 Nce7 20. Bxd5 ({RR} 20. Ba5 Rdb8 21. Rxd5 Qxh4) ({RR} 20. g3 Rdb8 21. Qa6 Rxb2) 20... Nxd5 21. Ba5 Qxh4 22. gxh3 ({RR} 22. Bxd8 Qg4 23. Kf1 Qxg2+ 24. Ke1 Nxe3 25. Qxa8 ({RR} 25. fxe3 Bg4 26. Qb5 Qg1+ 27. Kd2 ({RR} 27. Qf1 Qxe3+) 27... Rxd8+) 25... Qf1+ 26. Kd2 Qd3+ 27. Ke1 ({RR} 27. Kc1 Qc2#) 27... Nc2#))) 17. Ne1 Qf5 ({RR} 17... Rb8) 18. Bc3 Rb8 19. g4 Qe6 20. Ng2 Nxc3 21. Rxd8+ Nxd8 22. Qxc3 Nc6 23. Rd1 ({RR} 23. b4 Qe5 24. Qxe5 Nxe5 25. h3 Be6) 23... Qe7 24. Nf4 Be6 ({RR} 24... Kh8 25. b4) ({RR} 24... h6 25. Nh5 f5 ({RR} 25... f6 26. Qc4+ Kh8 27. Ng3) 26. Ng3) 25. b4 ({RR} 25. Nxe6 Qxe6 26. Qc4 Qe7 27. Bf1 Re8) 25... Qxb4 ({RR} 25... Nxb4 26. Nxe6 fxe6 27. Qe5) 26. Qxb4 Nxb4 27. Nxe6 fxe6 {Kasparov,G (2838)-Kramnik,V (2802) Moscow 2001 CBM 087 [Golod,Vitali] ½-½}) ({RR} 13. Qb3 b6 14. O-O Bb7 15. Rfd1 Ne7 16. Qa3 Ned5 17. Rd4 Nxc3 18. Rxe4 Nxe2+ 19. Kf1 Bxe4 20. Kxe2 Bxf3+ 21. gxf3 Rd7 22. Rd1 Rxd1 23. Kxd1 Rd8+ 24. Ke2 Rd7 25. f4 Nd5 26. Qa4 Nf6 27. e4 Re7 {Arun,N (1992)-ORourke,E (1889) Enniscrone IRL 2025 ½-½ (68)}) 13... Qxc2 14. Rxc2 Bd7 ({RR} 14... Nd5 15. O-O Nxc3 16. Rxc3) ({RR} 14... Nd5 15. Ne5 Bd7 ({RR} 15... Nxe5 16. Bxe5 b6 17. a3 f6 18. Bg3 Bb7 19. O-O Rac8 20. Rfc1 e5 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Kf1) 16. Nxc6 Bxc6 17. Bd2 Ne7 18. f3 Rac8 19. e4 ({RR} 19. Ba5 b6 20. Bb4 Nd5 21. Bd2) 19... f6 20. Be3 a6 21. Kf2 ({RR} 21. Bc4 Kf7 22. Bb3 Bb5 23. Kf2) 21... Bb5 22. Rhc1 Rxc2 23. Rxc2 Bxe2 24. Kxe2 Nc6 25. b4 Rc8 26. Rc5 b5 27. f4 Kf7 28. a3 Ne7 29. Rxc8 {Mamedyarov,S (2804)-Carlsen,M (2834) Wijk aan Zee 2018 CBM 183 [Fernandez,Daniel Howard] ½-½ (38)}) 15. Ne5 ({RR} 15. Nd4 Ne7) 15... Nxe5 $146 ({RR} 15... Rac8 16. Nxd7 Rxd7 17. Rd2 Rxd2 18. Bxd2 Ne4 19. Bf3 Nxd2 20. Kxd2 Nb4 21. Be4 f5 22. Bb1 Kf7 23. a3 {½-½ (23) Martinovic,S (2552)-Markus,R (2586) Mali Losinj 2021}) ({RR} 15... Rac8 16. Nxd7 Rxd7 17. Rd2 Rxd2 18. Bxd2 Ne4 19. Bf3 Nxd2 20. Kxd2 Nb4 21. Be4 f5 22. Bb1 Kf7 23. a3 {½-½ (23) Martinovic,S (2552)-Markus,R (2586) Mali Losinj 2021}) 16. Bxe5 Rac8 17. Rxc8 Rxc8 18. O-O Nd5 19. Rd1 f6 20. Bd4 Ba4 21. b3 Be8 22. Bc4 b5 23. Bxd5 exd5 24. Bxa7 Ra8 25. Bc5 Rxa2 26. h4 Bf7 27. e4 Ra8 28. exd5 Rd8 29. b4 Rxd5 30. Rxd5 Bxd5 31. f3 h5 32. Bd4 Bc6 33. Bc3 Bd5 34. Bd4 Bc6 35. Bc3 Bd5 36. Bd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Croatia GCT"]
[Site "Zagreb"]
[Date "2019.07.07"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2875"]
[BlackElo "2779"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2019.06.26"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "CRO"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 191"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bg7 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 c5 8. Be3 Qa5 9. Qd2 Nc6 10. Rb1 cxd4 11. cxd4 O-O 12. Qxa5 Nxa5 13. Bd3 ({RR} 13. d5 Bc3+ 14. Bd2 Bxd2+ 15. Nxd2 f5 16. f3 fxe4 17. fxe4 e6 18. d6 e5 19. Rb5 b6 20. Rxe5 Nc6 21. Bc4+ Kg7 22. Rg5 Bb7 23. Bd5 Rad8 24. e5 Ba8 25. Bxc6 Bxc6 26. Nb3 Rde8 27. Nd4 Bd7 {Bukreev,S (2321)-Lisenkov,S (2207) Moscow RUS 2025 1-0 (81)}) ({RR} 13. d5 e6 14. Bd2 b6 15. Bxa5 bxa5 16. Bc4 exd5 17. Bxd5 Ba6 18. Bxa8 Rxa8 19. e5 Bf8 20. Rc1 Rd8 21. Rc2 Bb4+ 22. Nd2 a4 23. Kd1 Bd3 24. Nf3 Be4+ {0-1 (24) Bellahcene,B (2475)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2811) Bastia 2016}) 13... Bg4 14. O-O Bxf3 $146 ({RR} 14... b6 15. Rfc1 Rfd8 16. d5 e6 17. Bf4 exd5 18. exd5 Rac8 19. d6 Bf8 20. Rxc8 Bxc8 21. Rd1 Nb7 22. Bc4 Kg7 23. Ng5 Nxd6 24. Ne4 Nb7 25. Be5+ Kh6 26. Bf4+ Kg7 27. Be5+ Kg8 28. Nf6+ Kh8 29. Ne8+ {Wiedenkeller,M (2453)-Dominguez Perez,L (2732) Skopje 2015 ½-½ (34)}) ({RR} 14... Rfd8 15. d5 Bxf3 16. gxf3 e6 17. Bg5 f6 18. Bd2 b6 19. Bxa5 bxa5 20. Bc4 Rac8 21. Ba6 Rc7 22. dxe6 Bh6 23. Bb7 Rd3 24. Bd5 Kf8 25. Rb8+ Ke7 26. Rfb1 Rd2 27. R1b7 Rdc2 28. Rh8 Rxb7 29. Rxh7+ {Ragger,M (2698)-Sutovsky,E (2635) Skopje 2015 1-0 (37)}) 15. gxf3 e6 16. Rfd1 Rfd8 17. Bf1 b6 18. Ba6 Rd6 19. Rbc1 Rad8 20. Bg5 f6 21. Be3 h6 22. Bb5 f5 23. d5 g5 24. Bd2 fxe4 25. fxe4 a6 26. Ba4 exd5 27. Bb4 Re6 28. Rxd5 Rxd5 29. exd5 Re4 30. Rc8+ Kf7 31. a3 Be5 32. Be8+ Kg7 33. d6 Rd4 34. d7 Nb7 35. Be7 Re4 36. Rc6 Bd4 37. Rc7 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 7th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2019.08.19"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D24"]
[WhiteElo "2882"]
[BlackElo "2818"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2019.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bxc4 Nxe4 7. O-O Nf6 8. Qa4+ Nc6 9. Ne5 Bd6 10. Nxc6 bxc6 11. Qxc6+ Bd7 12. Qf3 O-O 13. Bg5 h6 14. Bh4 Rb8 15. b3 Rb6 16. Ne4 Be7 17. Nxf6+ Bxf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qxf6 gxf6 20. d5 e5 21. Rfc1 $146 ({RR} 21. Rac1 Rd8 22. Be2 c6 23. Rfd1 Rc8 24. dxc6 Rcxc6 25. Rxc6 Bxc6 26. Rd6 Be4 27. Rxb6 axb6 28. g3 Kf8 29. f4 Ke7 30. Kf2 Bd5 31. Ke3 Kd6 32. Bd1 b5 33. a3 Ke6 34. a4 b4 35. a5 Kd6 {Giri,A (2780)-Duda,J (2730) Chess.com INT 2019 1-0 (45)}) 21... a5 22. Be2 c6 23. dxc6 Rxc6 24. Rxc6 Bxc6 25. Rc1 Bd7 26. Rc5 Ra8 27. f4 exf4 28. Bf3 Ra6 29. Kf2 Be6 30. Be2 Ra8 31. Bf3 Ra6 32. Bb7 Ra7 33. Be4 Kg7 34. Kf3 a4 35. Bc2 axb3 36. Bxb3 Rb7 37. Kxf4 Bxb3 38. axb3 Rxb3 39. g3 Rb4+ 40. Kf3 Rb3+ 41. Kf4 Rb4+ 42. Kf3 Rb3+ 43. Kf4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 7th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2019.08.20"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2764"]
[BlackElo "2882"]
[PlyCount "135"]
[EventDate "2019.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. e3 e6 5. Nf3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 b5 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O a6 11. Rd1 Qc7 12. e4 e5 13. g3 Re8 14. a3 exd4 15. Nxd4 Be5 16. Bf3 c5 17. Nde2 Bb7 18. Be3 c4 19. b4 cxb3 20. Qxb3 Nc5 21. Bxc5 Qxc5 22. Rac1 Qb6 $146 ({RR} 22... Bxc3 23. Nxc3 Rac8 24. a4 Nxe4 25. Bxe4 Bxe4 26. Nxe4 Qxc1 27. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 28. Kg2 Rxe4 29. axb5 axb5 30. Qxb5 Rce1 {½-½ (30) Ftacnik,L (2580)-Svetushkin,D (2461) Panormo 2001}) 23. Na4 Qa7 24. Nc5 Rac8 25. Nd7 Rxc1 26. Nxc1 h6 27. Nxf6+ Bxf6 28. Rd7 Re7 29. Rd8+ Kh7 30. Qd3 Be5 31. Rh8+ Kxh8 32. Qd8+ Kh7 33. Qxe7 Bd4 34. Qxf7 Bxf2+ 35. Kg2 Bc8 36. Qa2 Bb6 37. e5 Bf5 38. g4 Bg6 39. Ne2 Qc7 40. Nf4 Qc2+ 41. Qxc2 Bxc2 42. Nd5 Bc5 43. Nb4 Bb3 44. Nxa6 Bxa3 45. Nc7 Bc4 46. e6 Bd6 47. Bc6 b4 48. Nd5 Kg6 49. e7 Bxd5+ 50. Bxd5 Bxe7 51. Kf3 Kf6 52. Ke4 Kg5 53. Kf3 Kh4 54. Be6 Bg5 55. Kg2 Bf4 56. h3 Kg5 57. Kf3 Kf6 58. Bg8 Ke5 59. h4 g5 60. hxg5 hxg5 61. Ke2 Kd4 62. Kd1 Kc3 63. Bf7 b3 64. Be6 Be3 65. Bf7 Bf4 66. Be6 Be3 67. Bf7 Bf4 68. Be6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 7th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2019.08.21"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Karjakin, Sergey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2882"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[PlyCount "93"]
[EventDate "2019.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 b6 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxc4 Ba6 9. Qe2 Bxc4 10. Qxc4 c5 11. dxc5 Bxc5 12. O-O Qc8 ({RR} 12... Nbd7 13. Rac1 Qc8 14. Ne5 Qb7 15. Nxd7 Nxd7 16. Rfd1 Rfc8 17. Qe4 Qxe4 18. Nxe4 Be7 19. g4 Nf6 20. Nxf6+ Bxf6 21. b3 h6 22. Bc7 Kf8 23. Kg2 Ke8 24. f4 Bb2 25. Rc4 b5 26. Rc6 a6 27. Rd2 {Grischuk,A (2777)-Carlsen,M (2863) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (62)}) 13. Rfd1 ({RR} 13. Rac1 Nbd7 14. Qe2 Qb7 15. e4 Bb4 16. Nb5 Rac8 17. Bd6 Rxc1 18. Rxc1 Bxd6 19. Nxd6 Qb8 20. e5 Nd5 21. Ng5 Nc5 22. Nxh7 Nf4 23. Qg4 Kxh7 24. Qxf4 f6 25. b4 Nd7 26. Qh4+ Kg8 27. Qg4 Nxe5 {David,A (2301)-Nastore,P (2327) Eforie Nord ROU 2025 1-0 (38)}) 13... Nbd7 14. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 14. Ng5 Be7 15. Qe2 Qb7 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. Qf3 Qa6 18. Qe2 Qxe2 19. Nxe2 Nd5 20. Ne4 N7f6 21. N4c3 Nxf4 22. Nxf4 Rfd8 23. Kf1 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Kf8 25. Nd3 a6 26. Ke2 b5 27. Rc1 Nd7 28. Ne4 Rxc1 {Cheparinov,I (2687)-Dominguez Perez,L (2723) Varadero 2016 ½-½ (71)}) ({RR} 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Be7 16. Qa4 a6 17. Ne4 b5 18. Nxf6+ Bxf6 19. Qf4 Bxe5 20. Qxe5 Rd8 21. Qe4 Ra7 22. Rac1 Rad7 23. Qb1 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 g6 25. g3 a5 26. a3 b4 27. axb4 axb4 28. Rxd8+ Qxd8 {Le,Q (2728)-Duda,J (2731) chess24.com INT 2022 ½-½ (34)}) 14... Re8 15. Nd2 Qb7 16. Qf3 Qxf3 17. gxf3 Rec8 18. Nde4 Bf8 19. Nd6 Rc6 20. Bg3 a6 21. Rac1 Bxd6 22. Rxd6 Rxd6 23. Bxd6 Rc8 24. Rd1 h6 25. f4 b5 26. Be7 Rc6 27. Kg2 Nb6 28. e4 Nc4 29. Rd8+ Kh7 30. Bxf6 gxf6 31. Nd1 Kg6 32. b3 Rd6 33. Rxd6 Nxd6 34. f3 Kh5 35. Kg3 b4 36. Ne3 f5 37. exf5 Nxf5+ 38. Nxf5 exf5 39. Kf2 Kh4 40. Kg2 a5 41. Kf2 Kh3 42. Kg1 h5 43. Kh1 h4 44. Kg1 f6 45. Kh1 a4 46. bxa4 b3 47. axb3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 7th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2019.08.24"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2882"]
[BlackElo "2774"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2019.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Qa4+ Nd7 8. Nf3 c5 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O Nb6 11. Qa3 cxd4 12. cxd4 Bg4 13. Rd1 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 $146 ({RR} 14. gxf3 Bxd4 15. Bh6 Re8 16. Bb5 e5 17. Bxe8 Qxe8 18. Rac1 Qd8 19. Be3 Qf6 20. Bxd4 exd4 21. Qd3 Rd8 22. Rc5 Qd6 23. Rdc1 Qf4 24. Kg2 h5 25. R1c2 h4 26. h3 Kg7 27. Qd2 Qd6 28. e5 Qe6 {Ismagilov,D (2173)-Prishita Gupta (2058) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (45)}) ({RR} 14. gxf3 Qd7 15. Bg5 Rfe8 16. Rab1 Qe6 17. Bb5 Red8 18. d5 Qh3 19. Bf1 Qh5 20. Bxe7 Be5 21. h3 Re8 22. d6 Nc4 23. Qb3 Nd2 24. Rxd2 Rxe7 25. dxe7 Qg5+ 26. Bg2 Qxd2 27. Qb5 {1-0 (27) Chan,L (2217)-Singh,E (1641) Hong Kong 2017}) 14... Bxd4 15. e5 Nc4 16. Qb4 Rc8 17. Bh6 Bxa1 18. Rxd8 Rfxd8 19. e6 Ne5 20. exf7+ Nxf7 21. Be3 Bd4 22. Qxe7 Re8 23. Qa3 b6 24. Bd5 Rc5 25. Bxf7+ Kxf7 26. Qxa7+ Re7 27. Qa6 b5 28. h3 Bxe3 29. fxe3 Rce5 30. Qb6 R7e6 31. Qb7+ Re7 32. Qb6 R7e6 33. Qb7+ Re7 34. Qb6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 7th"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2019.08.25"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Ding, Liren"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2882"]
[BlackElo "2805"]
[PlyCount "84"]
[EventDate "2019.08.17"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "22"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 192"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 O-O 5. Bg5 c5 6. Rc1 h6 7. Bh4 cxd4 8. Nxd4 d5 9. cxd5 g5 10. Bg3 Qxd5 11. e3 Qxa2 12. Qc2 Nd5 13. h4 Nxc3 14. bxc3 Qxc2 15. Rxc2 Be7 16. hxg5 hxg5 17. f4 Nc6 18. fxg5 Bxg5 19. Rh5 $146 ({RR} 19. Nf3 Bf6 20. Bd3 Rd8 21. Be4 a5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 a4 24. Ke2 a3 25. g4 a2 26. Ra1 Nb4 27. Rcc1 Nd5 28. Bd4 Rc7 29. Bxd5 Bxd4 30. Nxd4 exd5 31. Kd2 Rc5 32. Rc2 Rca5 33. g5 Kg7 {Moroni,L (2573)-Sebenik,M (2481) Mestre 2021 ½-½ (35)}) ({RR} 19. Nf3 Bf6 20. Bd3 Rd8 21. Be4 a5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 a4 24. Ke2 a3 25. g4 a2 26. Ra1 Nb4 27. Rcc1 Nd5 28. Bd4 Rc7 29. Bxd5 Bxd4 30. Nxd4 exd5 31. Kd2 Rc5 32. Rc2 Rca5 33. g5 Kg7 {Moroni,L (2573)-Sebenik,M (2481) Mestre 2021 ½-½ (35)}) 19... f6 20. Nf3 Bxe3 21. Re2 Bc1 22. Re4 e5 23. Bc4+ Kg7 24. Reh4 Kg6 25. Rh7 Bg4 26. Bd3+ f5 27. Nxe5+ Nxe5 28. Bxe5 Kg5 29. g3 Rg8 30. Rxb7 Rae8 31. Rb5 Rg6 32. Kf2 Rb6 33. Rxb6 axb6 34. Rh1 Rxe5 35. Rxc1 f4 36. gxf4+ Kxf4 37. Rb1 Rc5 38. Rb4+ Kg5 39. Rxb6 Rxc3 40. Ke3 Bf5 41. Rd6 Rxd3+ 42. Rxd3 Bxd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2019.10.10"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kuzubov, Yuriy"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D51"]
[WhiteElo "2876"]
[BlackElo "2636"]
[PlyCount "104"]
[EventDate "2019.10.10"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 193"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 c6 7. Qc2 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Bg3 Nh5 10. O-O-O Nxg3 11. hxg3 Nb6 12. e4 Be6 13. Bd3 Qf6 14. e5 Qg7 15. Nh2 g4 16. Ne2 O-O-O 17. Nf4 Qg5 $146 ({RR} 17... h5 18. Nf1 Qg5 19. Bh7 c5 20. Rxh5 Qe7 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Ne3 Nc4 23. Nfxd5 Kb8 24. Qxc4 Qxc4+ 25. Nxc4 Bxd5 26. Nd6 Bxa2 27. Rhh1 Bg7 28. Bb1 Rxh1 29. Rxh1 Bxe5 30. Bxa2 Rxd6 31. f4 gxf3 32. gxf3 {Radjabov,T (2763)-Ivanisevic,I (2604) Terme Catez 2021 ½-½ (47)}) ({RR} 17... h5 18. Nf1 Qg5 19. Bh7 c5 20. Rxh5 Qe7 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Ne3 Nc4 23. Nfxd5 Kb8 24. Qxc4 Qxc4+ 25. Nxc4 Bxd5 26. Nd6 Bxa2 27. Rhh1 Bg7 28. Bb1 Rxh1 29. Rxh1 Bxe5 30. Bxa2 Rxd6 31. f4 gxf3 32. gxf3 {Radjabov,T (2763)-Ivanisevic,I (2604) Terme Catez 2021 ½-½ (47)}) 18. Kb1 h5 19. Nf1 Rh6 20. Ne3 Kb8 21. Nf5 Bxf5 22. Bxf5 h4 23. Ne2 hxg3 24. Rxh6 Bxh6 25. Nxg3 Nc4 26. Bd3 Nd2+ 27. Ka1 Qf4 28. Nf5 Bg5 29. Nd6 Qxf2 30. Qc3 Rd7 31. Qb4 a5 32. Qxa5 Qxd4 33. Rxd2 Bxd2 34. Qxd2 Qxe5 35. Nf5 c5 36. Bb1 d4 37. Qd3 Qd5 38. Qg3+ Ka7 39. Qxg4 d3 40. Ne3 Qd4 41. Qf3 d2 42. Nd1 Qc4 43. Qe3 Rd4 44. a3 Qc1 45. Qb3 Rd6 46. Ka2 c4 47. Qf3 Rb6 48. Bf5 Rb5 49. Qe3+ Ka6 50. Bg4 Qc2 51. Qc3 Qb3+ 52. Kb1 Rd5 1-0

[Event "FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2019.10.18"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Wang, Hao"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D38"]
[WhiteElo "2726"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2019.10.10"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 193"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. Qb3 a5 6. Bg5 c5 7. dxc5 Na6 8. a3 Nxc5 9. Qc2 Bxc3+ 10. Qxc3 Nce4 11. Bxf6 Qxf6 12. Qxf6 Nxf6 13. cxd5 Nxd5 14. e4 Nf6 15. Bd3 Bd7 16. Ne5 Ke7 17. Rc1 Rhc8 18. Kd2 $146 ({RR} 18. Ke2 Be8 19. Ke3 Nd7 20. Nxd7 Bxd7 21. e5 Bc6 22. f4 h6 23. Rhg1 g5 24. g3 Rg8 25. Be4 gxf4+ 26. gxf4 Rxg1 27. Rxg1 Bxe4 28. Kxe4 Rc8 29. Kd3 b5 30. Rg4 a4 31. Rh4 Rc4 32. Rxh6 Rxf4 {Kreisl,R (2391)-Kuljasevic,D (2554) Austria 2020 ½-½ (50)}) ({RR} 18. Ke2 Be8 19. Ke3 Nd7 20. Nxd7 Bxd7 21. e5 Bc6 22. f4 h6 23. Rhg1 g5 24. g3 Rg8 25. Be4 gxf4+ 26. gxf4 Rxg1 27. Rxg1 Bxe4 28. Kxe4 Rc8 29. Kd3 b5 30. Rg4 a4 31. Rh4 Rc4 32. Rxh6 Rxf4 {Kreisl,R (2391)-Kuljasevic,D (2554) Austria 2020 ½-½ (50)}) 18... Be8 19. f4 Nd7 20. Nxd7 Bxd7 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rc1 Rxc1 23. Kxc1 e5 24. fxe5 Ke6 25. Kd2 Kxe5 26. Ke3 Bc6 27. g3 f6 28. Bc2 b6 29. Bd3 h6 30. Bc2 Bb7 31. Bd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE Chess.com Grand Swiss"]
[Site "Douglas"]
[Date "2019.10.21"]
[Round "11"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2758"]
[BlackElo "2876"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2019.10.10"]
[EventType "swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IOM"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 193"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2019.12.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. f3 c5 5. d5 b5 6. e4 d6 7. Bd2 Bxc3 8. Bxc3 b4 9. Bd2 O-O 10. Be3 exd5 11. cxd5 Nfd7 ({RR} 11... Nbd7 12. Ne2 Nh5 13. Qd2 Ne5 14. Ng3 Qh4 15. Bf2 Nxg3 16. Bxg3 Qe7 17. Be2 f5 18. exf5 Bxf5 19. O-O a5 20. Rae1 Qf6 21. Bb5 Nf7 22. b3 Rab8 23. Bc4 Rfe8 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8 25. Re1 Rxe1+ 26. Qxe1 {Ebrahimi Herab,H (2412)-Kollars,D (2642) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (60)}) 12. Ne2 f5 13. exf5 Rxf5 $146 ({RR} 13... Nb6 14. Ng3 Bb7 15. Bd3 Bxd5 16. Be4 Bc6 17. O-O Qe7 18. Rc1 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Rxf5 20. Qxd6 Qxd6 21. Nxd6 Rd5 22. Bxc5 Na6 23. Bxb6 axb6 24. Nc4 Rad8 25. Nxb6 Ra5 26. Ra1 Rc5 27. Rfc1 Rd2 28. Nc4 {Juksta,K (2416)-Melillo,L (2104) Austin, TX USA 2024 1-0 (36)}) ({RR} 13... Nb6 14. Ng3 Bb7 15. Bd3 Bxd5 16. Be4 Bc6 17. O-O Qe7 18. Rc1 Bxe4 19. Nxe4 Rxf5 20. Qxd6 Qxd6 21. Nxd6 Rd5 22. Bxc5 Na6 23. Bxb6 axb6 24. Nc4 Rad8 25. Nxb6 Ra5 26. Ra1 Rc5 27. Rfc1 Rd2 28. Nc4 {Juksta,K (2416)-Melillo,L (2104) Austin, TX USA 2024 1-0 (36)}) 14. Ng3 Re5 15. Kf2 Qh4 16. Qd2 Nf6 17. Rc1 Ba6 18. b3 Nxd5 19. Rc4 Qe7 20. Re4 Qe6 21. Bf4 Nxf4 22. Qxf4 Bxf1 23. Rxe5 dxe5 24. Qe4 Nc6 25. Rxf1 c4 26. Nf5 cxb3 27. Qxc6 Qxc6 28. Ne7+ Kf8 29. Nxc6 bxa2 30. Nxb4 Rb8 31. Ra1 Rxb4 32. Rxa2 Rb7 33. Ke3 Ke7 34. Ra6 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.04"]
[Round "1.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D87"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[PlyCount "118"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bc4 c5 8. Ne2 O-O 9. Be3 Nc6 10. h4 cxd4 11. cxd4 Qa5+ 12. Kf1 Bd7 ({RR} 12... h5 13. f3 Rd8 14. Qb3 e6 15. e5 b6 16. Kf2 Qb4 17. g4 Qxb3 18. Bxb3 hxg4 19. fxg4 Ba6 20. Rad1 Rac8 21. h5 Na5 22. h6 Bf8 23. Bg5 Rd7 24. Bf6 Kh7 25. Nf4 Nxb3 26. Nh3 g5 27. Nxg5+ {Chigaev,M (2616)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2779) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (38)}) 13. h5 Rac8 ({RR} 13... e5 14. hxg6 hxg6 15. d5 Nd8 16. Rc1 Rc8 17. Bb3 b6 18. Rxc8 Bxc8 19. Qc1 Ba6 20. Bh6 Qc5 21. Qxc5 bxc5 22. Be3 Nb7 23. Ke1 Rc8 24. Nc3 Bf8 25. Kd2 Be7 26. f4 Bd6 27. f5 Kg7 28. g4 {Joseph,M (2121)-Samuel Bisnath,K (2023) St Ann's TRI 2025 1-0 (45)}) 14. hxg6 hxg6 15. Bb3 $146 ({RR} 15. Rc1 Rfd8 16. Nf4 e6 17. Nxg6 fxg6 18. Qg4 Nxd4 19. Qxg6 Rxc4 20. Rxc4 Bb5 21. Rh7 Bxc4+ 22. Kg1 Qe5 23. Rh5 Ne2+ {0-1 (23) Melikhov,E (2269)-Jansa,V (2398) Tornelo INT 2023}) ({RR} 15. Rc1 Rfd8 16. Nf4 e6 17. Nxg6 fxg6 18. Qg4 Nxd4 19. Qxg6 Rxc4 20. Rxc4 Bb5 21. Rh7 Bxc4+ 22. Kg1 Qe5 23. Rh5 Ne2+ {0-1 (23) Melikhov,E (2269)-Jansa,V (2398) Tornelo INT 2023}) 15... Qa6 16. Kg1 Na5 17. Nf4 Rfe8 18. e5 Bf5 19. Kh2 Nxb3 20. axb3 Qc6 21. Rxa7 Red8 22. Qf3 Qxf3 23. gxf3 f6 24. Rxb7 fxe5 25. dxe5 Bxe5 26. Rxe7 Re8 27. Rxe8+ Rxe8 28. Kg2 Rb8 29. Nd5 Rxb3 30. Bf4 Bxf4 31. Nxf4 Kg7 32. Nd5 Rb5 33. Rd1 Be6 34. Ne3 Rg5+ 35. Kh2 Kf6 36. Rd6 Ke7 37. Rb6 Kf7 38. f4 Rc5 39. Kg3 g5 40. fxg5 Rxg5+ 41. Kf4 Ra5 42. f3 Ra4+ 43. Kg3 Ra3 44. Nc2 Ra4 45. Nb4 Ra3 46. Nc6 Bd5 47. Ne5+ Ke7 48. Kg4 Bxf3+ 49. Nxf3 Ra5 50. Kf4 Ra1 51. Nd4 Rf1+ 52. Ke5 Re1+ 53. Kd5 Rd1 54. Re6+ Kf7 55. Re4 Kf6 56. Kd6 Rf1 57. Re6+ Kf7 58. Rh6 Rf6+ 59. Rxf6+ Kxf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.04"]
[Round "1.6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2780"]
[PlyCount "108"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Nbd2 d5 4. b3 Bg7 5. Bb2 a5 6. a4 ({RR} 6. a3 O-O 7. e3 Bf5 8. Be2 Ne4 9. c4 e6 10. O-O Nd7 11. Nxe4 dxe4 12. Nd2 Qg5 13. Re1 Nf6 14. f4 Qh4 15. g3 Qh3 16. Bf1 Qh6 17. Bg2 g5 18. Qe2 Rfd8 19. Rf1 c5 20. fxg5 Qxg5 {Aziz,H (2286)-Phatak,A (2206) Fujairah City UAE 2025 1-0 (56)}) 6... O-O 7. e3 Bf5 8. Be2 Nc6 $146 ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Nxe4 Bxe4 10. O-O c5 11. c3 cxd4 12. exd4 Nc6 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Bd3 Bxf3 15. Qxf3 Rfd8 16. Rac1 e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Qg3 Qb6 19. Bb5 Nc6 20. Rfd1 Na7 21. Be7 Rdc8 22. Rxd5 Nxb5 23. Rxb5 {Giri,A (2761)-Tari,A (2654) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Nxe4 Bxe4 10. O-O c5 11. c3 cxd4 12. exd4 Nc6 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Bd3 Bxf3 15. Qxf3 Rfd8 16. Rac1 e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Qg3 Qb6 19. Bb5 Nc6 20. Rfd1 Na7 21. Be7 Rdc8 22. Rxd5 Nxb5 23. Rxb5 {Giri,A (2761)-Tari,A (2654) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (41)}) 9. O-O Nb4 10. Ne1 Ne4 11. c3 Nxd2 12. Qxd2 Nc6 13. Nd3 e5 14. Nxe5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 Bxe5 16. Rfd1 Qd6 17. Ba3 c5 18. Qxd5 Qxd5 19. Rxd5 Bxc3 20. Rad1 Bb4 21. Bxb4 cxb4 22. Bc4 Be6 23. Rb5 Rfd8 24. Rd4 Rac8 25. Rxd8+ Rxd8 26. Kf1 Bxc4+ 27. bxc4 Rd2 28. Rxb7 Ra2 29. c5 Rxa4 30. Ke2 Ra3 31. c6 Rc3 32. c7 Kg7 33. Ra7 b3 34. Rxa5 Rxc7 35. Rb5 Rc2+ 36. Kf3 b2 37. Rb6 h5 38. h3 Kf8 39. g4 h4 40. g5 Ke7 41. e4 Kd7 42. Ke3 Kc7 43. Rb5 Kc6 44. Rb8 Kc5 45. f4 Kc4 46. f5 Kc3 47. Kf4 Rg2 48. fxg6 fxg6 49. e5 Re2 50. Rb6 Kc2 51. Rc6+ Kd1 52. Rd6+ Kc1 53. Rc6+ Rc2 54. Rb6 Rc4+ 0-1

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.06"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "131"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. Nbd2 $5 {An interesting move order, threatening to take on c5.} cxd4 {Let's see two major nuances between the moves 5.c3 and 5.Nbd2.} (5... Qb6 6. dxc5 $1 Qxb2 (6... Qxc5 7. c4 e6 8. a3 Be7 9. b4 Qb6 10. Bd3 $14 {1-0 (39) Wei Yi (2748)-Le Tuan Minh (2485) Ashgabat 2017}) 7. Rb1 Qc3 (7... Qa3 8. Bb5 (8. Nd4 $2 e5 9. Nb5 Qa5 10. Bg3 Bxc5 $19 {0-1 (36) Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (2630)-Sethuraman,S (2646) Riyadh 2017}) 8... a6 9. Bxc6+ bxc6 10. O-O g6 11. c4 $1 $146 Bg7 (11... Qxc5 12. Qa4 $16) 12. cxd5 Nxd5 13. Be5 O-O 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. Qc2 $14) 8. Bb5 (8. Rb3 Qxc5 9. Qb1 e6 10. Rxb7 Bd6 11. Rb5 Qa3 12. Rb3 Qc5 $11 {½-½ (44) Gupta,A (2626)-Kollars,D (2503) Zalakaros 2017}) 8... e6 (8... Bd7 9. O-O e6 10. Be2 Na5 11. Ne5 Bxc5 12. Nb3 $36 {0-1 (49) Harikrishna,P (2726)-Caruana,F (2828) Saint Louis 2019}) 9. O-O Be7 (9... Qxc5 $6 10. c4 Be7 (10... a6 11. Bxc6+ bxc6 12. Ne5 Bd6 13. Nd3 {1-0 (13) Mikaelyan,A (2474)-Tabatabaei,M (2548) Yerevan ARM 2017}) 11. Nb3 Qa3 12. Ne5 a6 13. Bxc6+ bxc6 14. Nxc6 Bd7 15. Nxe7 Qxe7 16. Be5 O-O 17. cxd5 Nxd5 18. e4 f6 19. Bd4 Nf4 20. Bc5 $16 {1-0 (29) Naiditsch,A (2702)-Wells,P (2447) Antalya 2017}) (9... Bxc5 $6 10. Be5 Qa3 11. Bb2 Qa5 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. c4 $44 {1-0 (54) Deac,B (2549)-Schnider,G (2430) Graz 2018}) 10. Ne5 (10. Nd4 Qxc5 11. N2b3 Qb6 12. Nd2 Qc5 13. N2b3 Qb6 14. Nd2 Qc5 $11 {½-½ (15) Li Shilong (2495)-Harikrishna,P (2734) China 2018}) 10... Bd7 11. Nd3 {The latest trend.} (11. Ndf3 Qxc5 (11... O-O 12. e4 Rfd8 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. exd5 exd5 15. Re1 Qxc5 16. Bd3 Nb6 17. Rb5 Qa3 18. Rb3 Qc5 19. Ne5 $36 {1-0 (24) Kravtsiv,M (2655)-Ghosh,D (2536) Bhubaneswar 2018}) 12. c4 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Bxb5 14. Rxb5 Qc8 15. Qb1 O-O 16. Rxb7 Bc5 $11 {½-½ (38) Kravtsiv,M (2635)-Csonka,B (2481) Hungary 2019}) (11. Nxd7 Nxd7 12. e4 O-O $6 (12... a6 $1 $13) 13. exd5 exd5 14. Ne4 dxe4 15. Qxd7 Qxc5 16. Qxb7 Nd4 17. Be3 $14 {½-½ (49) Livaic,L (2474)-Loiseau,Q (2443) Zadar 2018}) 11... O-O (11... Rc8 12. Nb3 O-O 13. a3 $5 $146 {avoiding ...Nb4; White wants to go 14.f3 with the idea Bg3-Be1.}) 12. Bc7 $1 {White is trying to trap the black queen!} b6 $1 {With this move, Black seems to hold.} (12... Ne8 $6 13. Rb3 Qf6 14. Bg3 $1 {is already bad for Black, and was played in many games.}) (12... Rac8 $2 13. Rb3 $18) 13. a4 $5 Ne8 14. Be5 $5 (14. Rb3 $6 Qa5 15. Nb2 Nxc7 16. Ndc4 {White gets the black queen, but at the cost of too many pieces.} dxc4 17. Nxc4 Be8 18. Nxa5 Nxa5 19. Rb1 Nxb5 20. axb5 Bxc5 $15 {0-1 (41) Tang,A (2507)-Balakrishnan,P (2411) Saint Louis 2018}) 14... Nxe5 15. Rb3 Qa5 16. Nxe5 Bxb5 17. axb5 Bxc5 (17... bxc5 18. Nd7 c4 $44) 18. Nd7 Nd6 19. Nxf8 Rxf8 20. c3 Nxb5 21. Qa1 Na3 (21... Nd6 $1 $11) 22. Qb2 Nc4 23. Nxc4 dxc4 24. Rb5 Qa6 25. Ra1 Rd8 26. h4 Qc8 27. Qa2 a5 28. Qxc4 $14 {1-0 (54) Nabaty,T (2639)-Fridman,D (2627) Bremen 2019}) (5... Nh5 6. dxc5 Nxf4 7. exf4 Qa5 (7... e6 8. Nb3 Bxc5 9. Nxc5 Qa5+ 10. c3 Qxc5 11. Bd3 g6 12. g3 Bd7 13. Qe2 d4 14. Rc1 O-O 15. O-O $14 {½-½ (56) Blohberger,F (2447)-Blagojevic,D (2497) Skopje 2018}) 8. c4 $5 $146 (8. Bd3 Qxc5 9. O-O g6 $132 {0-1 (33) Gajewski,G (2623)-Santos Ruiz,M (2583) Dresden 2019}) 8... Qxc5 9. a3 e6 10. Bd3 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. Rc1 Qd6 13. g3 {and White's position looks more pleasant.}) 6. exd4 Qb6 $5 {Why not!? Against almost any move, White would follow with c3 and transpose into a regular London opening position.} 7. Nb3 Bg4 ({Later in the match, Aronian tried to improve on this game with} 7... a6 {but also failed to equalize:} 8. Be2 Bg4 9. a4 e6 10. a5 Qd8 11. Ne5 Bxe2 12. Qxe2 Rc8 13. c3 $36 {1-0 (36) Carlsen,M (2872)-Aronian,L (2775) London 2019}) (7... Bf5 8. a4 $5 a6 9. a5 Qd8 10. c3 (10. Bd3 Bxd3 11. Qxd3 e6 12. O-O Be7 13. Ne5 O-O 14. Nxc6 bxc6 15. Rfc1 Qd7 16. c4 Qb7 $11 {0-1 (45) Kravtsiv,M (2685)-Bok,B (2622) Batumi 2018}) 10... e6 11. Ne5 Be7 12. Be2 O-O 13. O-O Nd7 14. Nd3 {could be the kind of positions Magnus wanted to play.}) 8. a4 $5 ({RR} 8. c3 e6 9. h3 Bh5 10. Bd3 a5 11. O-O a4 12. Nbd2 Qxb2 13. c4 Nxd4 14. cxd5 Nxd5 15. Be5 Nxf3+ 16. Nxf3 Bxf3 17. Qe1 Qb4 18. gxf3 Qxe1 19. Bb5+ Ke7 20. Rfxe1 f6 21. Bd4 Kf7 22. Rac1 Ba3 {Khachatryan,A (2076)-Sokhor,N (2265) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (65)}) 8... a6 (8... a5 $6 9. Bb5 e6 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 Bb4+ 12. c3 Be7 13. Nd2 $14 {1-0 (66) Unuk,L (2343)-Pychova,N (2201) Rymanow-Zdroj 2017}) 9. a5 Qa7 $146 (9... Qd8 {was certainly a bit more natural.}) ({RR} 9... Qd8 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Qxf3 e6 12. c3 Be7 13. Bd3 O-O 14. O-O Rc8 15. Rfe1 Ne8 16. Re2 Bd6 17. Bd2 Be7 18. g3 Nd6 19. Qh5 g6 20. Qf3 Kg7 21. Qf4 Nc4 22. Qh6+ Kg8 23. Bc1 N6xa5 24. Nxa5 {Davi,A (2186)-Bergamaschi,E (2017) Parma ITA 2024 ½-½ (58)}) ({RR} 9... Qd8 10. h3 Bh5 11. g4 Bg6 12. Ne5 Nd7 13. Nxg6 hxg6 14. c3 e6 15. Bd3 Nf6 16. Qf3 Bd6 17. Kf1 Bxf4 18. Qxf4 Nd7 19. Kg2 g5 20. Qg3 Rc8 21. Rhe1 Qc7 22. Nd2 Qxg3+ 23. fxg3 Ke7 24. Nf3 {Aronian,L (2781)-Carlsen,M (2847) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (51)}) ({RR} 9... Qd8 10. c3 e6 11. Be2 Bd6 12. Bxd6 Qxd6 13. Nc5 Rb8 14. b4 O-O 15. O-O Bxf3 16. Bxf3 e5 17. dxe5 Nxe5 18. Be2 Rfd8 19. Qb3 Nfg4 20. g3 Qh6 21. h4 d4 22. cxd4 Rxd4 23. Rad1 Rd2 24. Bxg4 {Mitrabha,G (2510)-Tanenbaum,Z (2244) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (37)}) 10. c3 e6 11. Be2 ({I couldn't see a good reason not to play} 11. h3 $5 {except that after} Bxf3 12. Qxf3 b5 13. axb6 Qxb6 {the b3-knight is unprotected, but it isn't a big deal:} 14. Qd1 {and White is definitely better.}) 11... Nh5 12. Be3 (12. Be5 $5 $14) 12... Qb8 13. h3 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 Nf6 15. Be2 Bd6 16. Bd3 O-O 17. O-O Qc7 18. Re1 {Black's position is almost equal, but he's simply running out of useful moves. In order to get counterplay, he should play ...b6 or ...e5 at some point, but in the game he could never do it under good conditions.} Kh8 19. Qf3 Rae8 (19... e5 20. dxe5 Nxe5 21. Qf5 $14) 20. Bg5 Ng8 21. Re2 Nge7 (21... f6 22. Bd2 f5 $5 {is a good try.} (22... e5 $2 23. Qxd5 $18) 23. Rae1 Nf6 $1 24. Rxe6 Rxe6 25. Rxe6 Ne4 26. Bxe4 $1 dxe4 27. Qh5 Qd7 28. d5 Nd8 29. Rxd6 Qxd6 30. c4 $14) 22. Qh5 Ng6 23. Bc2 Kg8 24. Bd2 $5 {Not giving Black time for ...f6 and ...Qf7.} Nb4 25. Bb1 Nc6 26. Bd3 Rb8 (26... e5 27. Rae1 $1 e4 $2 28. Qxd5 $18) 27. Be3 Rfe8 $6 (27... b6 28. axb6 Rxb6 29. Nc5 $16) (27... Rbe8 $1 28. g3 f5 $1 29. Rae1 Rf7 30. Bd2 Nf8 $132 {The f-rook is important to prevent Bxf5 ideas.}) 28. g3 $1 {White slowly makes progress.} Nf8 (28... f5 29. Rae1 $16) 29. Bc2 b6 {Aronian probably felt like he had waited enough!} (29... Re7 30. h4 $14) 30. axb6 Rxb6 31. Bc1 $5 (31. Nc5 $5) 31... Reb8 32. Nc5 e5 {Again - this looks like desperation! But White's position is no longer that easy to play.} (32... a5 33. Nd3 $16) 33. Nxa6 Qa7 34. dxe5 g6 35. Qg4 Nxe5 36. Qa4 Rc8 37. Be3 d4 $1 38. Bxd4 $2 {And Carlsen blunders with an extra hour on the clock!} (38. Nc5 $1 {was the right move, with the idea of 39.cxd4, while} Qxa4 39. Nxa4 {is just bad for Black.}) (38. cxd4 $2 Nf3+ 39. Kh1 Qb7 $44) 38... Nf3+ $2 ({Missing} 38... Rc4 $1 39. b4 (39. Qa2 Nf3+ 40. Kg2 Nxd4 41. cxd4 Rxd4 42. Be4 Ne6 $44) 39... Nf3+ 40. Kg2 Nxd4 41. cxd4 Rxd4 $11) 39. Kg2 Nxd4 40. Qxd4 Ne6 41. Rxe6 $5 (41. Qe3 {is close to a win, but Black seems to hold with a series of only moves:} Bc5 $8 42. Nxc5 Qxa1 43. Nd7 Rxb2 44. Qh6 Kh8 45. Nf6 Nf8 46. Ne8 Qa8+ $8 47. Be4 Rxe8 48. Bxa8 Rbxe2 {with serious drawing chances for Black.}) 41... fxe6 42. Be4 Rf8 43. Ra2 Rb7 44. Qxa7 Rxa7 45. b4 Rb8 $2 {In time trouble, Aronian couldn't find how to limit the damage of the white pawns.} (45... Rc8 $1 {would have made White's task far more difficult:} 46. b5 Rxc3 47. b6 Rf7 48. Rd2 Rc4 $8 49. Bf3 Rc3 $8 {and there is no win for White, e.g.} 50. Bg4 Rc6 51. Bxe6 Rxb6 52. Bxf7+ Kxf7 $14) 46. c4 $1 {Now White pushes his pawn and wins.} Rb6 (46... Bxb4 47. Nxb4 $18) 47. b5 Kf7 48. Rc2 (48. Ra4 {with the idea Bc6 and c5 might have been stronger. A very instructive manoeuvre by the way!}) 48... Rbxa6 49. bxa6 Rxa6 50. c5 Be5 51. c6 Ra7 52. h4 {With a few minutes left and an hour less against the World Champion, chances to hold this endgame are close to zero.} Kf6 53. Rd2 Bc3 54. Rd3 Bb4 55. Kh3 Be7 56. f3 e5 57. Rc3 Bd6 58. Rc1 h6 59. Rd1 Be7 60. Kg4 Kf7 (60... h5+ 61. Kh3 {would be a success for White: he managed to get the black pawns on light squares and will now go the other way around with his king, or push g4.}) 61. Rb1 Bd6 62. h5 $1 {This is even worse for Black.} gxh5+ 63. Kxh5 Kg7 64. Rd1 Bb4 65. Rd5 Re7 66. Bf5 {The bishop goes to d7 and the gave is over.} 1-0

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.07"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "162"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. f3 Nc6 $5 4. d5 Ne5 5. e4 d6 6. Nc3 Bg7 (6... c6 7. f4 Ned7 8. Nh3 Nc5 9. Nf2 Bg7 10. Be2 O-O 11. Be3 cxd5 12. cxd5 Qa5 13. O-O $14 {wasn't satisfying for Black in the game Ding Liren (2804)-Svidler,P (2756) Porto Carras 2018, 1-0 (41).}) 7. f4 Ned7 8. Be3 $5 (8. Nh3 O-O 9. Be2 Nc5 10. Nf2 {used to be the main line, but then Black found} e5 $5 11. fxe5 (11. dxe6 fxe6 12. Be3 b6 13. Qc2 Bb7 14. O-O-O Nfd7 $13 {½-½ (51) Cheparinov,I (2703)-Najer,E (2706) Kocaeli 2017}) 11... Ne8 $1 12. Bf4 (12. exd6 Nxd6 $44 {0-1 (32) Laznicka,V (2679)-Salgado Lopez,I (2622) Dubai 2014}) 12... Qe7 $1 13. Rc1 Bxe5 14. Bxe5 Qxe5 15. b4 Nd7 16. O-O a5 17. a3 axb4 18. axb4 c5 $5 19. dxc6 bxc6 $13 {½-½ (33) Moiseenko,A (2635)-Baron,T (2531) Douglas 2019.}) 8... O-O 9. Be2 e6 ({RR} 9... Qe8 10. Nh3 e6 11. dxe6 Qxe6 12. Qc2 Re8 13. Nf2 Nxe4 14. Ncxe4 f5 15. O-O-O Nc5 16. Bxc5 dxc5 17. Nc3 Qe3+ 18. Rd2 Qxf2 19. Bf3 Qh4 20. Nd5 c6 21. Nc7 Re1+ 22. Rxe1 Qxe1+ 23. Bd1 Rb8 24. Rd8+ {Gukesh,D (2730)-Svidler,P (2683) Malmo SWE 2023 ½-½ (42)}) 10. dxe6 fxe6 11. h4 $5 ({Black could never prove equality after} 11. Nh3 {- so I actually wonder what was Magnus' idea.} b6 12. O-O Bb7 13. Qc2 (13. Bf3 $5 Rb8 14. Qc2 Qe7 15. Rad1 a6 16. b4 Ba8 17. a3 Bh6 18. Bc1 $14 {0-1 (50) Vocaturo,D (2607)-Svidler,P (2760) Antalya 2017}) 13... Nc5 14. Bf3 e5 (14... Nfd7 15. b4 Na6 16. a3 Qe7 17. Rad1 $16 {½-½ (58) Dziuba,M (2556)-Tomczak,J (2615) Poland 2017}) (14... Rb8 15. b4 Ncd7 16. Rae1 Qe7 17. a3 $14 {½-½ (35) Baldauf,M (2493)-Esipenko,A (2616) Karlsruhe 2019}) 15. f5 a5 16. g4 h6 17. Rad1 Nh7 18. Qg2 g5 19. Nf2 Bf6 20. Nh1 Bc6 21. Ng3 $16 {1-0 (69) Fedoseev,V (2680)-Trjapishko,A (2512) Yaroslavl 2019}) 11... b5 $146 (11... b6 12. h5 Bb7 (12... Nxh5 13. Bxh5 gxh5 14. Qxh5 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Qe7 {may be playable}) 13. hxg6 hxg6 14. Qc2 e5 15. f5 Nc5 16. Bxc5 dxc5 17. Rd1 Qe7 18. g4 Ne8 19. Nf3 $16 {1-0 (28) De Jong,J (2454)-Wagner,D (2490) Netherlands 2014}) (11... e5 $6 12. f5 $16) (11... Qe7 $5 $146 {may also be playable:} 12. h5 (12. g4 $5) 12... gxh5 13. Bxh5 Nxh5 14. Qxh5 Bxc3+ 15. bxc3 Rf7 $132) ({RR} 11... b6 12. h5 Bb7 13. hxg6 hxg6 14. Qc2 e5 15. f5 Nc5 16. Bxc5 dxc5 17. Rd1 Qe7 18. g4 Ne8 19. Nf3 Nd6 20. Rh3 Bf6 21. Bd3 Kg7 22. g5 Bxg5 23. Qg2 Nf7 24. fxg6 Kxg6 25. Nh4+ Kf6 26. Rf3+ {De Jong,J (2454)-Wagner,D (2501) Haarlem 2014 1-0}) 12. cxb5 Bb7 13. Qb3 $1 Kh8 (13... Nxe4 $4 14. Nxe4 Bxe4 15. Qxe6+ $18) 14. Bf3 e5 15. Nh3 $1 {Black has practical compensation for the pawn, but not enough of it objectively.} Nh5 (15... a6 {looked natural. After} 16. O-O-O $5 (16. Ng5 exf4 17. Ne6 Qe7 18. Nxf8 fxe3 19. Ne6 Ne5 $44) 16... axb5 17. h5 gxh5 18. f5 {Black's position remains difficult.}) 16. Bxh5 gxh5 ({Better may have been} 16... exf4 17. Nxf4 Nc5 $1 18. Bxc5 Rxf4 19. g3 Rf8 20. O-O-O gxh5 $16) 17. f5 Nf6 18. Nf2 {A good but timid move.} ({When watching the game, I was thinking Aronian would definitely have dared to play} 18. Ng5 {if his opponent wasn't Magnus Calsen!}) 18... a6 19. b6 $5 (19. bxa6 Bxa6 {opens columns and diagonals, which White prefer to avoid.}) 19... cxb6 20. Bxb6 (20. Rd1 b5 21. O-O {was enough for a clear advantage.}) 20... Qd7 21. Rd1 Rac8 (21... Rfb8 22. Qe6 $5 (22. Qc2 $5) 22... Qxe6 23. fxe6 Re8 24. Bc7 Rxe6 25. Rxd6 Rxd6 26. Bxd6 Rd8 27. Bxe5 Re8 28. Bd4 Bxe4 29. O-O {and Black is far from equalizing, for example:} Bg6 30. Nh3 Ne4 31. Bxg7+ Kxg7 32. Nxe4 Rxe4 33. Rf4 Re2 34. Rf2 Re4 35. Nf4 $16) (21... Rab8 22. Ba7 Rbc8 23. Be3 $16) (21... d5 22. exd5 Qxf5 23. O-O {doesn't bring Black enough compensation either.}) 22. Be3 h6 23. Rh3 d5 $5 (23... Ba8 24. Qe6 $16) 24. exd5 Ba8 25. Rf3 Rb8 26. Qc2 Rfc8 27. Qe2 (27. Qd2 Kh7 28. Nfe4 Nxe4 29. Nxe4 {looked winning to me, but after} Rb5 $1 {Black does keep some chances.}) 27... Qf7 28. Qd2 (28. Rg3 $1 {would have won the game:} Nxd5 (28... Bxd5 29. Qd2 $18) 29. Nxd5 Bxd5 30. Bxh6 $1 Bxh6 31. Rg6 $1 $18) 28... Kh7 29. Nfe4 Nxe4 30. Nxe4 Rd8 31. f6 Bf8 32. Qc2 Kh8 33. Nc3 Rb4 34. Qf2 Bxd5 35. Bc5 $2 {Tempting, but bad!} (35. Rf5 $5 {was strong.}) ({So was the clever} 35. Bb6 $5 Rd7 36. Bc5 $1 Bxf3 (36... Rd4 {no longer works due to} 37. Bxf8 $18) 37. Rxd7 Qxd7 38. Bxb4 Bxb4 39. Qxf3 Qd4 40. Qg3 $18) 35... Rd4 $3 {Suddenly Black is back in the game.} 36. Bxd4 Bxf3 37. gxf3 exd4 38. Rxd4 Rb8 $2 (38... Qxf6 39. Rxd8 Qxd8 {with great drawing chances for Black, due to the weakness of the h4-pawn.}) 39. Qh2 Rb6 40. Nd5 Qe6+ 41. Qe2 Qg8 42. Kf1 Re6 43. f7 $2 {At first, that looked to me like an amazing shot - but it is a bad move!} (43. Qh2 Rc6 44. Rd1 {and Black doesn't have any compensation.}) 43... Qxf7 44. Rf4 Qg6 $1 {Probably the ressource overlooked by Aronian.} 45. Rxf8+ (45. Re4 Rc6 $132) 45... Kg7 46. Qd1 (46. Rg8+ Kxg8 47. Ne7+ Rxe7 48. Qxe7 Qb1+ $11) 46... Kxf8 47. Nf4 Qe8 48. Nxe6+ Qxe6 {White has an extra pawn, but can't pary both of Black's threats: ...Qxa2 and ...Qh3+.} 49. Qd8+ Kf7 50. Qc7+ Ke8 51. Qb8+ Kd7 52. Qb7+ Kd8 53. Qb8+ Kd7 54. Qa7+ Ke8 55. b3 Qh3+ 56. Ke2 Qxh4 {The only thing Black should be careful of is not to exchange queens under bad circumstances. But it is certainly not going to happen!} 57. Qb8+ (57. Qxa6 Qh2+ 58. Kd3 h4 $11) 57... Ke7 58. Qc7+ Kf8 59. Qc5+ Kg7 60. Qe5+ Kg8 61. a4 Qh1 62. Qb8+ Kf7 63. Qf4+ Ke8 64. Qb8+ Kd7 65. Qa7+ Kd8 66. Qd4+ Ke8 67. Qe5+ Kd7 68. Qd4+ Ke8 69. b4 Qg2+ $5 ({There was nothing wrong with} 69... h4 {either.}) 70. Qf2 Qg5 $1 {Now it's an easy draw.} 71. f4 (71. Qe3+ Kd7 $11) 71... Qd5 72. Qe3+ Kf7 73. Qa7+ Ke8 74. Qc5 Qa2+ 75. Kf3 Qxa4 76. Qxh5+ Ke7 77. Qe5+ Kf7 78. Qd5+ Kg7 79. Qd4+ Kf7 80. Qd5+ Kg7 81. Qd4+ Kf7 1/2-1/2

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.08"]
[Round "2.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2775"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Nc6 5. Nbd2 cxd4 6. exd4 Qb6 7. Nb3 a6 8. Be2 Bg4 9. a4 e6 10. a5 Qd8 11. Ne5 Bxe2 12. Qxe2 Rc8 13. c3 Be7 14. h4 $146 ({RR} 14. Nxc6 Rxc6 15. O-O O-O 16. Nc1 Ne4 17. Nd3 Bg5 18. f3 Nd6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. f4 Be7 21. f5 Bf6 22. fxe6 fxe6 23. Rae1 Re8 24. Qh5 Re7 25. Rf3 Rc8 26. Rfe3 Rce8 27. h3 Qc7 28. Qg4 Qxa5 {Murzin,V (2635)-Moksh,A (2355) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (43)}) ({RR} 14. Nxc6 Rxc6 15. O-O O-O 16. Nc1 Ne4 17. Nd3 Bg5 18. f3 Nd6 19. Bxd6 Qxd6 20. f4 Be7 21. f5 Bf6 22. fxe6 fxe6 23. Rae1 Re8 24. Qh5 Re7 25. Rf3 Rc8 26. Rfe3 Rce8 27. h3 Qc7 28. Qg4 Qxa5 {Murzin,V (2635)-Moksh,A (2355) chess.com INT 2024 1-0 (43)}) 14... Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. h5 Nxe5 17. dxe5 O-O 18. Ra4 Qd7 19. Rg4 f5 20. exf6 Bxf6 21. O-O e5 22. h6 Kh8 23. hxg7+ Bxg7 24. Rd1 Qf7 25. Rd3 e4 26. Rh3 Rc6 27. Rgh4 h6 28. Qe3 Rf6 29. Nd4 Rxf2 30. Rxh6+ Kg8 31. Qg3 Rf1+ 32. Kh2 Qf4 33. Ne6 Qxg3+ 34. Rxg3 R8f7 35. Rhg6 e3 36. Rxe3 1-0

[Event "London Classic 11th"]
[Site "London"]
[Date "2019.12.08"]
[Round "2.7"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C16"]
[WhiteElo "2775"]
[BlackElo "2872"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2019.12.02"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "ENG"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 e6 2. e4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 Qd7 5. Nh3 b6 6. Nf4 Ba6 ({RR} 6... c5 7. a3 Bxc3+ 8. bxc3 Ne7 9. Nh5 Kf8 10. Qg4 Ng6 11. h4 Ba6 12. Nxg7 Kxg7 13. h5 Bxf1 14. Kxf1 Qb5+ 15. Kg1 Nd7 16. Rh3 Rag8 17. Bh6+ Kxh6 18. hxg6+ Kg7 19. gxh7+ Kf8 20. hxg8=Q+ Rxg8 21. Qf4 {Aronian,L (2729)-Sipahioglu,I (2061) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) 7. Bxa6 Nxa6 8. O-O Bxc3 $146 ({RR} 8... c6 9. Qg4 Bf8 10. Nh5 g6 11. Ng3 Nc7 12. Nd1 h5 13. Qf3 Be7 14. Re1 Nh6 15. Bxh6 Rxh6 16. Ne3 Rh7 17. Rac1 b5 18. c3 Kf8 19. h3 Kg7 20. Nef1 Rhh8 21. Nh2 Raf8 22. Qe3 Na8 23. Ngf1 {Mahia,G (2245)-Tempone,M (2330) Pehuaj 1983 ½-½}) ({RR} 8... g6 9. Qe2 Nb8 10. Nd1 h5 11. c4 c6 12. Ne3 Nh6 13. Bd2 Bxd2 14. Qxd2 Na6 15. Rac1 Kf8 16. Rc3 Kg7 17. cxd5 cxd5 18. Rfc1 Rac8 19. h3 Rxc3 20. Qxc3 Rd8 21. g3 Qe7 22. a3 Rd7 23. Qd3 {Piscopo,P (2392)-Radice,L (2070) Porto Mannu 2007 ½-½ (40)}) 9. bxc3 Ne7 10. Nh5 Kf8 11. a4 Nb8 12. g4 Nbc6 13. f4 Rg8 14. Qd3 Ke8 15. f5 exf5 16. gxf5 Kd8 17. Kh1 Kc8 18. f6 g6 19. Ng3 Nf5 20. Nxf5 gxf5 21. Qxf5 Nd8 22. Qxd7+ Kxd7 23. Rf3 Ne6 24. Rh3 Rh8 25. Be3 Rag8 26. Rg1 Rxg1+ 27. Kxg1 h5 28. Kf2 c5 29. Ke2 a5 30. Rg3 Kc6 31. dxc5 bxc5 32. Kd3 h4 33. Rg4 h3 34. c4 Rb8 35. Bd2 Rb1 36. Rh4 dxc4+ 37. Kxc4 Ra1 38. Kd3 Ra3+ 39. c3 Kd5 40. Rxh3 c4+ 41. Ke3 Rxa4 42. Rh7 Kxe5 43. Rxf7 Ra1 44. h4 a4 45. h5 a3 46. Ra7 Kxf6 47. h6 Rh1 48. Rxa3 Rxh6 49. Ke4 Rh5 50. Be3 Re5+ 51. Kf3 Rf5+ 52. Ke2 Ke5 53. Ra5+ Ke4 54. Ra4 Kd5 55. Ra5+ Ke4 56. Ra4 Kd5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Xiong, Jeffery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2712"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Bd3 Nc6 12. Bc2 Qe7 13. O-O Rd8 14. Qe3 b6 15. Rfd1 Bb7 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. h4 Na5 $146 ({RR} 17... h6 18. g4 Rc7 19. g5 hxg5 20. hxg5 Rdc8 21. g6 Nd8 22. gxf7+ Nxf7 23. Bd3 Qf6 24. Rxc7 Rxc7 25. Kf1 Rc3 26. Ke1 Ra3 27. Rd2 g5 28. d5 exd5 29. e5 d4 30. Qxd4 Qxf3 31. e6 Qh1+ 32. Bf1 {Pechac,J (2620)-Keymer,V (2693) Bydgoszcz 2022 1-0 (47)}) 18. Bd3 h6 19. g4 Nc6 20. Bb1 Qd7 21. Kh2 Qd6+ 22. Kg1 Na5 23. Bd3 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Nc6 25. Bb5 Nxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 27. Nxd4 Rxd4 28. f3 a6 29. Bf1 Rd7 30. a4 Kf8 31. Kf2 Ke7 32. Rb1 Rd6 33. e5 Rc6 34. Bd3 g5 35. h5 Bc8 36. Ke3 Rc5 37. f4 Ra5 38. Rxb6 gxf4+ 39. Kxf4 Rxa4+ 40. Kf3 Ra3 41. Ke4 f6 42. Rb8 Bd7 43. Rb7 fxe5 44. g5 hxg5 45. h6 Kd6 46. Rb6+ Bc6+ 47. Rxc6+ Kxc6 48. h7 Ra4+ 49. Kxe5 Rh4 50. Kf6 g4 51. Kg5 Rh2 52. Kxg4 Kd5 53. Bg6 Rh6 54. Kg5 Rxh7 55. Bxh7 e5 56. Kg4 Kd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D53"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2822"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e3 c5 8. Bxc4 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Bd7 10. O-O O-O 11. Rc1 Nc6 12. Nb3 Rc8 13. Be2 Nd5 14. Bg3 Nxc3 15. Rxc3 Nb4 16. Rxc8 Qxc8 17. Bd6 $146 ({RR} 17. a3 Nc6 18. Qc2 e5 19. Qc3 Be6 20. Rc1 Qd8 21. Nc5 Bxc5 22. Qxc5 Qd2 23. Qc2 Rd8 24. Kf1 Bb3 25. Qc3 e4 26. f3 exf3 27. gxf3 Qxc3 28. Rxc3 Bd1 29. b4 a6 30. Bxa6 bxa6 31. Rxc6 Ba4 {Dorfman,J (2580)-Van der Sterren,P (2490) Brussels 1993 ½-½ (47)}) 17... Nd5 18. Bxe7 Nxe7 19. Qd6 Nf5 20. Qa3 Qb8 21. e4 Qe5 22. exf5 Qxe2 23. Nd4 Qe5 24. fxe6 Qxd4 25. exd7 Rd8 26. g3 Rxd7 27. Re1 Kh7 28. Qf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.22"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kovalev, Vladislav"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D55"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2660"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 h6 7. Bf4 c5 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. a3 Nc6 10. Qc2 Nh5 ({RR} 10... Qa5 11. O-O-O Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14. bxc3 Bxa3+ 15. Kc2 exd5 16. Rxd5 Be6 17. Rb5 b6 18. Nd4 Nxd4+ 19. cxd4 Rac8+ 20. Kd2 Rc1 21. d5 Bf5 22. Rb3 Rc2+ 23. Kd1 Ra2 24. Rc3 Bb4 25. Rc4 {Mamedyarov,S (2764)-Dominguez Perez,L (2758) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 10... Qa5 11. O-O-O dxc4 12. Bxc4 a6 13. Nd2 b5 14. Nb3 Qb6 15. Nxc5 Qxc5 16. Bb3 Ne5 17. Nd5 Qxc2+ 18. Bxc2 Nxd5 19. Bxe5 Bb7 20. e4 Nf6 21. f3 Rfd8 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rd1 Rxd1+ 24. Kxd1 Kf8 25. Kd2 {Bryakin,M (2444)-Oliinyk,S (2252) Paracin SRB 2025 1-0 (49)}) 11. Bg3 dxc4 $146 ({RR} 11... d4 12. O-O-O Nxg3 13. hxg3 e5 14. Ne4 Be7 15. exd4 exd4 16. c5 Bf5 17. Nf6+ Bxf6 18. Qxf5 Qc8 19. Bd3 {½-½ (19) Polgar,I-Foldi,J Budapest 1965}) 12. Bxc4 Be7 13. Ba2 a6 14. Rd1 Qa5 15. Bb1 f5 16. O-O Nxg3 17. hxg3 Bf6 18. e4 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Qxa3 20. exf5 exf5 21. Rfe1 Qa5 22. g4 Qc7 23. Nh4 g5 24. Nxf5 Bxf5 25. gxf5 Rf6 26. Re6 Raf8 27. Rxf6 Rxf6 28. Ba2+ Kf8 29. Qd3 Ne5 30. Qe4 Rd6 31. Qb4 Ke7 32. f6+ Kd7 33. Re1 Rxf6 34. Qd4+ Qd6 35. Qxe5 Qxe5 36. Rxe5 Rc6 37. Re3 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Artemiev, Vladislav"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2731"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 Qa5 9. Qd2 O-O 10. Nf3 Rd8 11. Be2 cxd4 ({RR} 11... b6 12. d5 e6 13. O-O exd5 14. exd5 Ba6 15. Rfd1 Bxc3 16. Qc2 Bxe2 17. Qxe2 Nd7 18. d6 Bf6 19. Ng5 Qa4 20. Qf3 Re8 21. Nxh7 Kxh7 22. Qh3+ Kg8 {0-1 (22) Vidit,S (2726)-Svidler,P (2723) chess24.com INT 2020}) ({RR} 11... Nc6 12. d5 e6 13. c4 Nb4 14. a3 Qxa3 15. Bxc5 a5 16. O-O exd5 17. cxd5 Bg4 18. h3 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Rac8 20. Rfd1 Bb2 21. Rb1 Bc3 22. Qe3 Bb2 23. Rxb2 Rxc5 24. Qxa3 {1-0 (24) Filindash,N (2067)-Leenhouts,K (2454) chess.com INT 2024}) 12. cxd4 Qxd2+ 13. Bxd2 Na6 14. Be3 $146 ({RR} 14. d5 Bd7 15. O-O Rac8 16. Be3 Nb4 17. Rxc8 Bxc8 18. Bc4 b6 19. Rc1 Ba6 20. Bxa6 Nxa6 21. g4 f5 22. Ng5 fxe4 23. Ne6 Ra8 24. Rc4 Be5 25. Ra4 Nc7 26. Rxe4 Nxe6 27. dxe6 Bd6 28. Ra4 Bc5 {Sjugirov,S (2650)-Svidler,P (2765) St Petersburg 2017 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Bg4 15. Ne5 Bxe2 16. Kxe2 f5 17. Kf3 Rac8 18. h4 Nb4 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Rb1 a5 22. a3 Nd5 23. Rb5 e6 24. Rxa5 Bxe5 25. dxe5 Rc3 26. Ke2 Nxe3 27. fxe3 Rb3 28. Kf3 Kg7 29. g3 Kg6 30. a4 Rb4 31. Ra7 h6 32. Ra8 Re4 33. Ra5 Rb4 34. Ra7 Kh5 35. Ra8 Re4 36. Ra5 Rc4 37. Ra7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.03"]
[Round "2.12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Nielsen,Peter Heine} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 Qa5 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Nf3 Nd7 10. Be2 Qa5 11. O-O Qxa2 12. Nd2 Qa5 13. h4 b5 14. h5 Bb7 15. h6 Bh8 16. e5 Qc7 17. Bxb5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qb7+ 19. Qf3 Qxb5 20. Rb1 Qa6 21. Ne4 cxd4 22. cxd4 f6 23. Ng5 {RR} fxg5 24. Qd5+ e6 25. Qxd7) 9. Qd2 O-O 10. Nf3 Bg4 11. d5 b5 ({RR} 11... Nd7 12. c4 Qa3 13. Be2 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 Bd4) 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. Bxc5 Bxf3 13. gxf3 Rc8 14. Bb4 ({RR} 14. Bd4 Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Nd7) 14... Qc7) ({RR} 12. Bxc5 Rc8 13. Bd4 Bxf3 14. Bxg7 Bxe4 15. Bh6 Qb6 16. f3 Bf5 17. g4 Bd7 18. h4 Be8 19. h5 f6 20. hxg6 Bxg6 21. Be3 Qd6 22. Bxb5 Nd7 23. Kf2 Rab8 24. Be2 Qa3 25. Bd4 Rb2 26. Qe3 Ne5 {Ding,L (2791)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2784) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (45)}) 12... Nd7 13. O-O Rac8 ({RR} 13... Bxf3 14. Bxf3 c4 15. Be2 ({RR} 15. h4) 15... Rfd8 ({RR} 15... Rad8 16. f4 Qa3 17. Bf3 Nc5 18. e5 f6) 16. f4 Nb6 ({RR} 16... Qa3 17. Bf3 Nc5 18. e5 f6 19. d6 Rac8 20. Bd5+ e6 21. f5) 17. Bf3 Qa3 18. h4 e6 ({RR} 18... b4 19. h5 Bxc3 20. Qf2 Bg7 21. hxg6 hxg6 22. Bg4 ({RR} 22. f5 Rf8 23. e5) 22... b3 23. f5 g5 24. f6 exf6 25. axb3 cxb3 26. Rc7) 19. h5 Na4 ({RR} 19... exd5 20. e5) 20. hxg6 hxg6 21. f5 exf5 ({RR} 21... Bxc3 22. Rxc3 Qxc3 23. Qf2 Qg7 24. fxe6 fxe6 25. Bg4) 22. exf5 Qd6 23. Bf4 Qb6+ 24. Kh1 gxf5 25. d6 Rab8 26. Bd5 Nc5 27. Bg3 Ne6 28. Rxf5 {Carlsen,M (2875)-Grischuk,A (2775) Stavanger 2019 CBM 191 [Nielsen,Peter Heine] 1-0 (34)}) 14. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 c4 16. Bg4 Rcd8 17. f4 Qa3 18. Bxd7 Rxd7 19. f5 gxf5 20. Rxf5 e6 21. Rg5 f6 22. Rg3 exd5 23. exd5 Qd6 24. Qf2 Qxd5 25. Bxa7 Qd2 26. Rb1 Qxf2+ 27. Bxf2 Ra8 28. Bd4 Kf7 {Bosiocic,M (2598)-Ragger,M (2669) Zagreb 2019 1-0 (65)}) ({RR} 14. h3 Bxf3 15. gxf3 c4 16. f4 Nc5 17. e5 Rfd8 18. Rfd1 Qc7 19. Bg4 Rb8 20. Bxc5 Qxc5 21. Bf3 Bh6 22. Qe3 Rbc8 23. Rd4 a6 24. Kg2 Qa3 25. Rc2 Qc5 26. h4 a5 27. h5 Rc7 28. Qe4 Qb6 {Drygalov,S (2560)-Mekhitarian,K (2564) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (48)}) 14... Nb6 15. Bh6 Bxf3 16. gxf3 b4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. cxb4 cxb4 19. Rc6 Rxc6 20. dxc6 Rc8 21. Rc1 Na4 22. Rc4 Nc3 23. Bf1 Qb6 24. a3 Rxc6 25. Rxc6 Qxc6 26. axb4 Nb5 27. Bxb5 Qxb5 28. Qd4+ e5 29. Qxa7 Qxb4 30. Qc7 Qd4 31. Qe7 h5 32. h4 Qc3 33. Kg2 Qd4 34. Kg1 Qc3 35. Kg2 Qd4 36. Kg1 Qc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.03"]
[Round "2.14"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D78"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 ({RR} 1. Nf3 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 O-O 5. O-O d5 6. c4 c6 7. cxd5 {½-½ (13) Ricken,K (2206)-Damen,J (2313) Belgium BEL 2024}) 1... Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 c6 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 cxd5 6. Nf3 Bg7 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne5 Ne4 9. Nd2 Nxd2 10. Bxd2 Nd7 11. Nxd7 Bxd7 12. e3 e6 13. Qb3 Qb6 $146 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. Rfc1 Rfc8 16. Rxc8+ Rxc8 17. Rc1 Rxc1+ 18. Bxc1 Bb5 19. Bd2 Bf8 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Kxf1 f5 22. a4 Kf7 23. f4 h5 24. h4 Ke8 25. b4 Kd7 26. b5 Be7 27. Ke2 Bf8 28. Kd3 Be7 29. Kc2 Bf8 30. Kb3 Be7 31. Bb4 Bd8 32. Bf8 Ke8 33. Bd6 Kd7 34. Bb4 Bc7 35. Ba3 Bd8 36. Bb4 Bc7 37. Ba3 Bd8 38. Bb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.04"]
[Round "2.21"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. Be2 d6 6. O-O Nh5 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Nfd2 Nf6 10. Bg3 Nc6 ({RR} 10... Bf5 11. c4 c6 12. Nc3 d5 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb3 Qd7 15. Bf3 e6 16. Rfc1 Nc6 17. a3 g4 18. Be2 Ne4 19. Ndxe4 dxe4 20. Na4 Na5 21. Qd1 b6 22. b4 Nc6 23. Bxg4 Bxg4 24. Qxg4 f5 25. Qh4 {Chemin,V (2134)-Andrade,I (2161) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (38)}) 11. Nc3 ({RR} 11. c4 e5 12. d5 Ne7 13. Nc3 Nf5 14. Qc2 h5 15. Bd3 Nxg3 16. fxg3 Ng4 17. Rae1 Nh6 18. e4 g4 19. Nd1 c6 20. Ne3 Bd7 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. c5 dxc5 23. Bc4 Kh8 24. Nb3 Qe7 25. Nf5 Nxf5 {Tristan,L (2526)-Santos Latasa,J (2656) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (53)}) 11... e5 12. dxe5 $146 ({RR} 12. Nb3 Qe7 13. Qd2 Bf5 14. Rae1 Ne4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. c3 Bg6 17. Bc4 Kh7 18. e4 h5 19. f3 Bh6 20. Bf2 f6 21. Be3 Bf7 22. Bxf7 Qxf7 23. Qc2 Ne7 24. Nc1 Ng6 25. Qb3 Qxb3 26. Nxb3 f5 {Pantev,V (2419)-Danov,R (2248) Sunny Beach 2015 ½-½}) 12... Nxe5 13. f4 Neg4 14. Rf3 Re8 15. Nf1 Nh5 16. Be1 f5 17. Bc4+ Be6 18. Bxe6+ Rxe6 19. h3 Ngf6 20. fxg5 hxg5 21. Rxf5 Bh6 22. g4 Ng7 23. Rf3 Qd7 24. Ng3 Rae8 25. Bf2 Qc6 26. e4 Nd7 27. Nd5 1-0

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.04"]
[Round "2.23"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d6 2. e4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. Be2 Nc6 5. O-O e5 6. dxe5 dxe5 7. Qxd8+ Nxd8 8. Nc3 ({RR} 8. Na3 Ne6 9. Be3 Ne7 10. Rad1 Bd7 11. Bc4 a6 12. Rd2 h6 13. Rfd1 Bc6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Nc4 Bxe4 16. Rd7 Bd5 17. Rxc7 Bxc4 18. Rxc4 Nd5 19. Re4 O-O-O 20. Re1 Rhf8 21. Nxe5 g5 22. Nd3 Nf4 {Pourramezanali,A (2543)-Demuth,A (2538) Cap d'Agde 2017 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 8. a4 Ne7 9. a5 a6 10. Nc3 h6 11. Rd1 Ne6 12. Nd5 Bd7 13. c3 Rd8 14. Nd2 Bc6 15. Nb4 Bd7 16. Nb3 O-O 17. Be3 Bc8 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Nf4 20. Bc4 g5 21. Rd2 Rfe8 22. Bc5 Ng6 {Kubik,R (2137)-Fargac,M (2407) Bohumin CZE 2025 0-1 (49)}) 8... Ne6 9. Bc4 $146 ({RR} 9. Be3 h6 10. Rfd1 Ne7 11. Nd5 c6 12. Nxe7 Kxe7 13. Bc4 b6 14. a4 Bb7 15. c3 Rhd8 16. b4 f5 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Nh4 Kf6 19. f3 Bf8 20. g4 f4 21. Bf2 Ng5 22. Kg2 c5 23. bxc5 bxc5 {Burton,G (2042)-Hutchinson,P (2228) Calvia 2009 0-1 (65)}) 9... c6 10. Ng5 Nd8 11. Rd1 Nh6 12. a4 f6 13. Nf3 Nhf7 14. a5 Be6 15. Be2 Bf8 16. Be3 Nd6 17. Nd2 N8f7 18. f3 Bh6 19. Bf2 Rd8 20. Nb3 Bxb3 21. cxb3 a6 22. Na4 Nc8 23. Nc5 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Nfd6 25. Nxb7 Nxb7 26. Bxa6 Nbd6 27. Bxc8 Nxc8 28. a6 Rf8 29. a7 Nxa7 30. Bxa7 Rf7 31. Bc5 Rb7 32. b4 Bf8 33. Bxf8 Kxf8 34. Rd6 Ke7 35. Rxc6 Rxb4 36. Rc7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.05"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E51"]
[WhiteElo "2767"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. e3 O-O 6. Bd2 b6 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Rc1 Re8 9. Bd3 Ba6 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. O-O Bf8 12. Ne2 Qc8 13. Qa4 c5 14. Ng3 $146 ({RR} 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Qc2 Qa6 16. Bc3 Nfe4 17. a3 Rac8 18. Rcd1 Na4 19. Rxd5 Naxc3 20. Nxc3 Nxc3 21. bxc3 Qxa3 22. c4 Red8 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Nd4 g6 25. g3 Rc8 26. Rb1 Bg7 27. Nb5 Qe7 28. Qa4 a5 {Caruana,F (2835)-Carlsen,M (2863) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (54)}) 14... Qb7 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Qb5 Rac8 17. Rfd1 a6 18. Qf1 Nfe4 19. Be1 g6 20. Ne2 Na4 21. Rb1 Bg7 22. Nfd4 Nac5 23. Nf3 Ne6 24. Ned4 Nxd4 25. Nxd4 Rc4 26. b3 Rc7 27. Qd3 Nc5 28. Qd2 Ne4 29. Qd3 Nc5 30. Qd2 Ne4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.06"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Kapnisis,Spyridon"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,103,32,44,13,-24,-22,-14,0,-39,-32,-23,-10,-19,-10,-52,-7,-12,44,25,50,51,41,18,32,12,21,-4,20,0,34,-34,61,48,50,50,50,46,52,23,53,21,39,29,44,45,58,35,39,39,51,38,38,-26,38,20,63,63,48,15,11,-16,-14,-44,36,13,-5,-5,-5,-23,65,-16,15,2,1,-33,-33,-72,-72,-73,-107,-34,-25,-30,10,-13,-13,-21,-24,5,8,8,13,0,4,0,0,-20,-25,-27,-11,0,54,55,54,48]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Bd3 (8. Qc2 O-O 9. Nf3 {Carlsen decided to avoid d3, ge2 in the Armageddon game that followed our main game. His choice of 9.f3 didn't pose any problems to Firouzja.} Re8 10. Bd3 Ne4 $1 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Bxe4 (12. O-O Nd7 13. Rfc1 Ndf6 14. Ne5 Bf5 $13) 12... dxe4 13. Nd2 f5 14. O-O-O $2 {Carlsen tried to play for a win but soon ended up clearly worse.} (14. O-O Nd7 $13 {[%cal Yd7f6]} (14... Be6)) 14... Nd7 15. g4 fxg4 16. Ndxe4 Nb6 17. Ng3 Be6 $17 {1-0 (47) Carlsen,M (2863)-Firouzja,A (2728) Stavanger NOR 2020}) 8... O-O (8... Nbd7 {followed by h5 is a lot more common.}) 9. Nge2 Re8 10. O-O Nbd7 (10... Ne4 $6 11. Bxe7 Nxc3 (11... Qxe7 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. Ng3 f5 14. f3 exf3 15. Rxf3 $16) 12. Bxd8 Nxd1 13. Rfxd1 Rxd8 14. b4 $14) 11. f3 (11. Qc2 a5) 11... b5 $5 12. Bf2 (12. e4 $6 b4 13. e5 (13. Na4 $2 dxe4 14. fxe4 Nxe4 $1 $19) 13... bxc3 14. exf6 Nxf6 15. bxc3 Qa5 $132 {[%cal Yc8a6,Yc6c5]}) 12... Bb7 {[#]} (12... Nb6 13. b3 (13. Ng3 $5) 13... a5 14. Rc1 Bb7 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 $14 {1-0 (40) Rodshtein,M (2685)-Eljanov,P (2655) Netanya 2019}) ({RR} 12... a5 13. Ng3 Ba6 14. Kh1 b4 15. Nce2 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 c5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Qd2 Ne6 19. Nf5 Rf8 20. Rac1 Re8 21. Rc6 Bf8 22. Rfc1 Qd7 23. Nfd4 Rec8 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rxc8 Qxc8 26. g4 g6 27. Kg2 {Grischuk,A (2745)-Ding Liren (2811) chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (82)}) ({RR} 12... a5 13. Rc1 Ba6 14. Ng3 b4 15. Na4 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Rc8 17. e4 dxe4 18. fxe4 Ng4 19. Qf3 Nxf2 20. Qxf2 Rf8 21. Nf5 Kh7 22. d5 Ne5 23. Rcd1 cxd5 24. Rxd5 Qc7 25. Nxe7 Qxe7 26. Rxa5 Ra8 27. Qf5+ {Panda,V (2158)-Huston,G (2316) New York USA 2025 0-1 (48)}) 13. Ng3 (13. e4 $6 b4 14. Na4 $6 (14. e5 bxc3 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Nxc3 Nf8 $132 {[%csl Rd4][%cal Yf8e6]}) 14... dxe4 15. fxe4 c5 $1 16. e5 Ne4 $17 {Black is already in the driver's seat.}) (13. Rc1 $5 a6 14. Bb1 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nd4 Ne5 17. b3 Rc8 {Black's position seems quite solid.} (17... Qb6)) 13... b4 14. Na4 (14. Nce2 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nd4 a5) 14... c5 15. Nf5 $146 {[#]} (15. b3 $5 Qa5 (15... Rc8 16. Rc1 cxd4 17. exd4 {I would feel slightly better with White here although objectively Black should be ok.}) 16. Rc1 Rac8 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Nxc5 Rxc5 $13) (15. dxc5 Bc6 $5 16. Nf5 Bf8 17. Nd4 Bxa4 18. Qxa4 Nxc5 19. Qd1 Nxd3 20. Qxd3 Nd7 $13) (15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Nf5 Qb6 $13) ({RR} 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Bb5 Ncd7 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. Rc1 Qa5 19. Nd4 Rac8 20. b3 Rxc1 21. Qxc1 Rc8 22. Qd2 Nb6 23. Rc1 Rxc1+ 24. Qxc1 Nxa4 25. Bxa4 Bc5 26. Qc2 {½-½ (26) Stremavicius,T (2506)-Jacobson,B (2530) Charlotte 2021}) 15... Bf8 $6 {Firouzja hesitates and decides not to change the pawn structure by playing c4.} (15... c4 $5 16. Nxe7+ $1 (16. Bc2 Bf8 $17 {[%cal Yg7g6]}) 16... Qxe7 17. Bc2 a5 18. Re1 Qd6 $132 {Black seems to have everything under control. e4 is more or less stopped and Black will focus on trying to take advantage of the unfortunate position of the a4.}) 16. Nxc5 (16. dxc5 $6 Bc6 $5) 16... Nxc5 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Rc1 Qb6 19. Qa4 {[#]} Bc8 $1 {Black correctly kicks the knight out of f5 and transfers his bishop to d7.} 20. Nd4 Bd7 21. Qa6 (21. Qd1 a5 {is quite comfortable for Black.}) 21... Re7 (21... Rec8 $5) 22. Rfd1 (22. Rc2 {Doubling the rooks on the c-file was another rather obvious plan but still Black seems to have adequare resources:} Ne8 $1 {Black knight should move to c7 to force White's queen out of a6.} (22... Rc8 $2 23. Nb3 $16) 23. Rfc1 Nc7 24. Bh7+ $5 (24. Qxb6 axb6 {Black has everything under control.}) 24... Kxh7 $2 (24... Kh8 25. Qd3 Na6 (25... Bxd4 26. Qxd4 (26. exd4 $2 Ne6 $19) 26... Qxd4 27. exd4 Ne6 28. Bd3 Ree8 $1 29. Re1 a5 $14 {I wouldn't prefer being Black against Carlsen in this position although Black should be quite ok.}) 26. Bf5 b3 $1 27. Qxb3 Qxb3 28. axb3 Bxd4 29. Bxd7 Bxe3 30. Bxe3 Rxe3 $11) 25. Qd3+ Kg8 26. Rxc5 $18) 22... Ne8 {[#]} 23. Qxb6 $6 {It doesn't make much sense to me to take on b6 before Black commits his knight to c7.} (23. Bf1 {Making room for the white queen on d3 makes a lot of sense.} Nc7 (23... Nd6 $2 24. e4 (24. Rxc5 $5 Qxc5 25. e4 Ree8 26. Nb3 Qc6 27. Rxd5 Nb7 28. Nd4 Qc8 29. b3 $15) 24... Nc4 25. Bxc4 dxc4 26. Qxc4 $16) (23... Be6 $5) {Here White has a pleasant choice:} 24. Qd3 $5 {Black has difficulties equalising even if White keeps the queens on the board.} (24. Qxb6 axb6 25. Nb3 Bd6 26. Bg3 Bxg3 27. hxg3 Be8 (27... Ne8 28. Ra1 (28. Rxd5 Nf6 29. Rd2 Rxe3 30. Kf2 Re5 31. Rc7 {Black remains under pressure.}) 28... Rxe3 29. Nd4 Re7 30. Nc2 $14) (27... Ba4 $2 28. Rd4 $18) 28. Nd4 Rxa2 29. Nf5 $44 {Black hasn't fully solved his problems yet.}) 24... a5 (24... Rc8 25. Rc2 Ne8 26. Rdc1 {looks rather awkward for Black.} Rc7 {[#]} (26... Nd6 27. Qb3) 27. e4 $1 dxe4 28. fxe4 $16 {[%cal Yc2c5]}) 25. Kh1 $5 (25. Rd2 a4 26. Rdc2 Bxd4 27. Qxd4 Qxd4 28. exd4 Ne6 $14) 25... Bd6 $5 (25... a4 $6 26. e4 $1 {Opening the position is in White's favour.} dxe4 27. fxe4 Rae8 28. Qg3 $16) (25... Ree8) (25... Rae8 26. Qc2 Na6 27. Rd2 $16 {[%cal Yc2b3,Yc2d1,Yd2c2]}) 26. e4 (26. Qd2) 26... Qb7 $1 (26... dxe4 $2 27. fxe4 $18 {[%cal Yd4f5]}) 27. Nf5 (27. exd5 Nxd5 (27... Qxd5 $2 28. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 29. Qb1 $18) 28. Nb3 (28. Nf5 Bxf5 29. Qxf5 Bf4 $1 $14) 28... Be6 29. Nc5 $14) 27... Bxf5 28. exf5 $14) 23... axb6 24. Bb1 $14 Ba4 {Black feels the need to force b3 so that White will not have this square for his knight.} (24... g6 $5 {Taking away from the white knight the f5 square was a decent alternative.} 25. Ne2 (25. Nb3 Bxe3 26. Bxe3 Rxe3 27. Rxd5 Be6 28. Rd4 Re2 29. Nd2 Nf6 (29... Bxa2 $2 30. Be4 $18 {[%cal Yg1f1]}) 30. Kf1 Re5 31. Rxb4 Rd8 {Black is active enough not to be in real trouble.}) 25... Bf5 $5 (25... Nc7 $6 26. Nf4) (25... Bxe3 26. Bxe3 Rxe3 27. Kf2 $14) 26. Bxf5 gxf5 {Black's pawn structure is ridiculous but White fails to prove a clear advantage since his own pawns are under attack as well.} 27. Rxd5 Rxa2 28. Rd2 (28. Rb1 Rea7 $1 $13) 28... Rxe3 $1 29. Rxc5 Ra1+ $1 30. Rc1 Rxe2 31. Rxe2 Rxc1+ 32. Re1 $11) 25. b3 (25. Nf5 $5 Rd7 26. b3 Bb5 27. Bg3 $14) 25... Bd7 26. Ne2 Nc7 27. Rd2 {[#]} Bc6 $1 28. Nd4 (28. Nf4 $2 Nb5 $1 $15 {[%cal Yb5c3]}) 28... Bb7 29. g4 Ne6 (29... g6 $5 {Stopping f5 made a lot of sense.} 30. h4 Ne6 31. Bg3 (31. h5 Nxd4 32. exd4 Bd6 $11 {[%cal Yd6f4]}) 31... Ng7 $5 $13 {[%cal Yh6h5]}) 30. Nf5 Rc7 $6 {At this point Firouzja was running low on time and this certainly made his defensive task a lot more difficult.} (30... Rd7 $5 {Black should have tried to make d4 work as soon as possible.} 31. h4 (31. Kg2 g6 32. Ng3 $13) (31. Rcd1 g6) 31... d4 32. Nxd4 (32. e4 $6 Ba6 $15) (32. exd4 Bxf3) (32. Kg2) 32... Bxd4 33. Kg2 Bxe3 34. Rxd7 Nf4+ 35. Kh2 Bxc1 36. Rxb7 Rd8 {Again Black's activity provides enough counterplay for his weak pawn structure.}) 31. h4 {[#]} Rac8 $6 (31... Bxe3 {Simplifying the position was Black's best chance to equalise although it is perfectly understandable why he decided against this option.} 32. Rxc7 Bxf2+ 33. Kxf2 Nxc7 34. Nd6 $36) 32. Rcd1 Bf8 33. Bg3 $1 Rc3 (33... Rd7 34. Be5 $16) 34. Kf2 Bc5 {[#]} 35. Bd3 $2 {Here Carlsen probably thought that his position was good anyway and that he would take advantage of Black's time pressure by playing some solid moves. d3 is a very logical move since it stops any counterplay on the 3rd rank against e3 and f3, but it appears that there is a more concrete way to secure a winning advantage.} (35. Bd6 $1 d4 (35... Rd8 36. Bxc5 bxc5 37. Rxd5 Bxd5 38. Ne7+ Kf8 39. Nxd5 $18) (35... Ra8 36. Ne7+ Kh8 37. Nxd5 Bxd5 38. Bxc5 bxc5 39. Rxd5 $18) (35... Re8 36. Bxc5 Nxc5 37. h5 $18 {[%cal Yd2d4]}) 36. exd4 $1 (36. Ne7+ $2 Kh8 37. Bxc5 bxc5 38. exd4 Rxf3+ 39. Kg1 Rc7 $13) 36... Rxf3+ {If I had to guess I would say that Carlsen calculated up to this point and considered this position quite messy and searched for other moves.} 37. Kg1 Bxd6 38. Nxd6 Rg3+ 39. Kh2 Rcc3 40. Nxb7 $18) (35. Rd3 $5 $16 {[%cal Yg3e5]}) 35... d4 36. e4 Ra8 $1 {[%cal Yb7a6]} 37. Bc4 {[#]} Rc2 $1 {Very nice resource found by Firouzja with only a few minutes on the clock!} (37... d3+ $5 38. Kg2 Ba6 39. Bd5 (39. Bxa6 $2 Rxa6 $17 {[%cal Yf7f6,Ya6a7,Ya7d7]}) 39... Ra7 $13) (37... Ba6 $5) 38. Bd3 (38. Be5 Raxa2 39. Ke1 $11) 38... Rcxa2 39. Be5 Rxd2+ (39... f6 40. Bd6 {[%cal Yd3c4]}) 40. Rxd2 Ra5 41. Kg3 Ba6 $11 (41... Bf8 $5 42. Bd6 Bxd6+ 43. Nxd6 Ba6 44. Bxa6 Rxa6 45. Nb5 Ra8 46. Kf2 Rd8 {White should be able to make a draw without too much trouble.}) 42. Bxa6 Rxa6 43. Nxd4 Bxd4 44. Bxd4 Ra3 45. Rd3 Nxd4 46. Rxd4 Rxb3 47. Rd8+ Kh7 48. h5 Ra3 49. Rd4 Ra4 50. e5 Ra5 51. Rxb4 Rxe5 52. Rxb6 {A good result for Firouzja who handled a bad position and time pressure with remarkable maturity and posed enough problems to Carlsen to get away with half a point. On the other hand Carlsen managed to get a winning advantage from an equal position, in typical Carlsen style, but failed to get the point.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.08"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 h6 11. Bh4 Qd7 12. Qc2 Qc6 13. Qxc6 Nxc6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e3 Bxf1 16. Kxf1 Na5 17. Nf3 Nc4 $146 ({RR} 17... Rac8 18. Ke2 Nc4 19. Rb1 c5 20. Rhc1 Na5 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Rc3 Rc6 23. Nd2 c4 24. b4 cxb3 25. Rxc6 Nxc6 26. Rxb3 Rc8 27. Rb7 Kg7 28. Ne4 Ne5 29. f4 Nc4 30. Rxa7 f5 31. Nd2 Nd6 32. Rd7 {Plazuelo Pascual,J (2465)-Ponkratov,P (2624) Tornelo INT 2021 ½-½ (54)}) ({RR} 17... c5 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Rc1 c4 20. g4 Rab8 21. Rc2 Rb6 22. Kg2 Rfb8 23. Rb1 Kg7 24. Nd2 h5 25. h3 hxg4 26. hxg4 Kg6 27. Nxc4 Rc6 28. Rbc1 Rbc8 29. b3 Kg7 30. Rb2 Nxc4 31. bxc4 Rxc4 32. Rxc4 {Chu Wei Chao (2412)-Liu,Y (2573) Fuling CHN 2024 ½-½ (37)}) 18. Rb1 c5 19. Ke2 Rfc8 20. Rhc1 Nd6 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Rc2 Kf8 23. Nd2 c4 24. Rbc1 Rab8 25. Kf3 c3 26. bxc3 Rc5 27. c4 f5 28. Ke2 Ke7 29. Kd3 Kd7 30. Rc3 Rc6 31. c5 Ne8 32. Nf3 Ra6 33. Ne5+ Ke7 34. Ke2 Nf6 35. R1c2 Nd5 36. Rd3 Rc8 37. Rb3 Rc7 38. Rc4 Ra5 39. Nd3 e5 40. Nxe5 Raxc5 41. Rxc5 Rxc5 42. Rb7+ Ke6 43. Nxf7 Ra5 44. Nd8+ Kd6 45. Rb3 Ra6 46. Nf7+ Kc5 47. Ne5 h5 48. Kd2 h4 49. Nd3+ Kc4 50. Kc2 Rd6 51. Nf4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.11"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,51,13,31,35,-7,38,24,32,42,44,-33,32,9,28,17,29,9,9,9,12,-4,46,26,14,14,28,36,13,-13,-5,15,15,31,49,49,-35,-57,38,32,17,45,48,22,29,118,115,12,122,110,110,121,378,411]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. b3 b6 6. Bb2 Bb7 7. Bd3 Nbd7 8. Nge2 $5 (8. Nf3 {is the usual move.}) 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Ng3 c5 11. cxd5 {White's idea putting his knight on g3 becomes obvious: he wants to go to f5!} cxd4 (11... Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. Qg4 $1 {looked dangerous for Black too:} g6 (14... f6 15. Bc2 $14) 15. Bc4 Bxc4 16. Qxc4 $14) 12. Nce4 Bxg3 (12... Nxe4 13. Nxe4 $14) 13. Nxg3 $1 {An excellent pawn sacrifice.} (13. fxg3 Nxd5 14. Nd6 Qc7 $1 (14... Nxe3 $2 15. Bxh7+ $1 Kxh7 16. Qxd4 $16) 15. Nxb7 Qxb7 16. exd4 N7f6 {would be unclear: the pawn structure compensates for the two bishops.}) 13... dxe3 (13... Nxd5 14. Bxd4 $14 {is not what Black wants.}) 14. dxe6 exf2+ 15. Rxf2 fxe6 16. Qe2 {Black has an extra pawn, but look how beautifully the white pieces are coordinated!} Nc5 $146 ({RR} 16... Bd5 17. Raf1 Qe7 18. Nf5 Qf7 19. Nd6 Qe7 20. Nf5 Qf7 21. Ne3 Kh8 22. g4 Qg8 23. Nc4 h6 24. g5 Nh7 25. gxh6 Nhf6 26. Ne5 Nxe5 27. Qxe5 {1-0 (27) Kraus,T (2489)-Finek,V (2397) Skalica 2022}) 17. Bc2 Ba6 18. Qe1 Qe8 $6 {An imprecise move, in a position where Black was already on the verge of being lost.} (18... Nd5 $1 {was required, and White would only be slighly better:} 19. Rxf8+ (19. Rd1 Rxf2 20. Qxf2 Qg5 $132) (19. b4 Rxf2 20. Kxf2 Nxb4 $3 21. Qxb4 Qd3 $3 $13 {Wow!}) 19... Qxf8 20. b4 Nd3 21. Qxe6+ Qf7 22. Qxf7+ Kxf7 23. Rf1+ Ke6 {and Black has good chances to hold.}) 19. Rd1 $1 Rc8 (19... Rd8 $5 20. Rxd8 Qxd8 21. b4 Nd3 $1 22. Qxe6+ Kh8 23. Rd2 Qc8 $1 24. Qxc8 Rxc8 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Nh5 $1 {and Black is still in trouble.} (26. Bxd3 $2 Rd8 $132)) 20. b4 Nb7 {Oh, no! Putting the knight there is definitely a bad sign.} 21. Ne4 {White's superiority is just overwhelming now.} (21. a4 $5) 21... Nd5 (21... Nh5 22. Rxf8+ Qxf8 23. Bb1 Qe7 24. Ng5 $1 $18) (21... Qe7 22. Nxf6+ gxf6 23. Qe4 e5 24. b5 Bxb5 25. Qd5+ $18) 22. Rxf8+ Qxf8 23. Bb1 (23. Bb3 $5 {followed by g5 was also completely winning.}) 23... Qxb4 24. Nf6+ $1 Kh8 (24... gxf6 25. Qxe6+ $18) 25. Qxe6 Ra8 $6 (25... Ne7 26. Qh3 h6 27. Ba1 $18) 26. Qxd5 {This game was a work of art! There's little one can do when Magnus turns on to Beast mode.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.16"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D53"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2749"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 201 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.05.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.05.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,79,25,13,29,10,10,10,10,10,42,7,20,-28,32,31,35,28,28,9,9,13,13,13,8,13,32,23,32,19,13,46,58,56,55,71,61,54,60,16,30,16,41,46,41,41,23,-26,-26,-26,-26,-32,-24,-27,-10,0,-19,-16,-35,-29,-57,-43,-43,-43,-72,-122,-147,-84,0,-95,-95,-101,143,216,166,166,29989,29990,29991,29992,29993,29994]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 Be7 7. cxd5 {A move that White doesn't play that often.} (7. e3 {is the very main line.}) 7... Nxd5 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. e4 Nxc3 10. bxc3 O-O 11. Bd3 c5 12. O-O cxd4 13. cxd4 {The position is extremely similar to a Semi-Tarrasch (1.d4 f6 2.c4 e6 3.f3 d5 4 c3 c5 5.cxd5 xd5 etc.).} b6 (13... e5 14. d5 {would be a typical possible structure change, as it frees the c5-square for the black knight. However, although with the support of ...b6 it seems stable, it isn't necessarily: White will push a4, and whether Black allows a5 and axb6 or pushes ...a5 himself, then ...b6 will become a target.}) 14. a4 Bb7 15. a5 bxa5 $146 ({RR} 15... e5 16. a6 Bc8 17. Bc4 Rb8 18. Bd5 b5 19. Qc2 exd4 20. Rfc1 Ne5 21. Nxe5 Qxe5 22. Qc5 Be6 23. Bxe6 Qxc5 24. Bxf7+ Rxf7 25. Rxc5 b4 26. Kf1 b3 27. Rc6 d3 28. f3 Rd7 29. Ke1 d2+ 30. Kd1 {Deuer,M (2304)-Ioannidis,E (2481) Terme Catez 2022 ½-½ (51)}) 16. Rxa5 Nf6 17. Re1 Rfd8 18. Qa1 Qc7 {A typical way to "protect" th a7-pawn.} 19. h3 (19. Rxa7 Rxa7 20. Qxa7 Ra8 21. Qc5 Qxc5 22. dxc5 Rc8 $11 {and Black gets his pawn back.}) 19... a6 20. Rc5 Qf4 21. Re5 Nd7 22. Ra5 Nf6 23. d5 $5 {Also a typical sacrifice in Semi-Tarrasch pawn structures. However, here it definitely doesn't bring White any advantage objectively.} ({According to the engine White would be slightly better playing quiet moves like} 23. g3 Qd6 24. Kg2 {but afterwards I do not see a serious plan for him.}) 23... exd5 24. e5 Ne4 25. Qd4 Rdc8 $1 {The right rook, in order to keep the a-pawn protected!} 26. Raa1 a5 27. Rab1 Bc6 (27... Ba6 $5 28. Bxa6 Rxa6 29. Qxd5 Nc3 30. Qd7 Qc4 $1 31. Rb7 Qe6 $1 {would have been equal.ñ}) 28. e6 $5 {And a second pawn sacrifice, a bit in the same spirit as the first one: gaining initiative on the dark-squares!} fxe6 29. Ne5 Qf6 30. f3 Ng5 31. Rb6 Be8 32. Qe3 a4 $6 {Allowing Magnus to start a serious attack - even if Black still stands fine.} ({The prophylactic} 32... h5 {was better, avoiding Magnus' next move. It's not like playing ...h5 is very pretty, but not being able to play g4 is a serious problem for White! And Black's a-pawn will start running.}) 33. Ng4 Qd8 (33... Qc3 {would run into a pretty much forced variation, obviouly hinted by the engine:} 34. h4 a3 35. hxg5 a2 36. gxh6 Qxe1+ 37. Qxe1 a1=Q 38. h7+ Kh8 39. Qxa1 Rxa1+ 40. Kf2 {with an unclear (probably equal) position.}) 34. Rxe6 Nxe6 {Not a bad move. Instead though, the engine is showing two amusing drawing lines.} (34... Bf7 35. Nxh6+ gxh6 36. Rxh6 Kg7 37. Rb6 Kg8 38. Rh6 $11) (34... a3 35. f4 a2 36. fxg5 a1=Q 37. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 38. Kh2 Qc7+ 39. Re5 Bh5 40. Nxh6+ gxh6 41. gxh6 Rf8 42. g3 Ra2+ 43. Kg1 Ra1+ 44. Kh2 $11) 35. Qxe6+ Bf7 $4 (35... Kh8 $1 {was necessary:} 36. Nxh6 $1 (36. Qf5 $2 Qb6+ 37. Kh1 Bg6 $1 38. Qxg6 Qxg6 39. Bxg6 a3 {and Black is better}) 36... Bh5 $1 {avoiding a mate on g8, and Black is more or less out of danger.}) 36. Nxh6+ $1 gxh6 37. Qxh6 {Suddenly Black has no defence!} Qc7 (37... Rc7 38. Re5 $18) 38. Qh7+ Kf8 39. Qh8+ Bg8 40. Qh6+ {Albeit not a fully correct game, as a whole, Magnus has shown fantastic ideas - but obviously Alireza can be disappointed, as with one or two precise moves the result could have been totally different!} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tari, Aryan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 cxd4 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. e4 dxe4 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Ng5 Be6 10. Nxe6+ fxe6 11. Bg5 Nc6 12. O-O-O+ Ke8 13. Bb5 Rc8 14. Kb1 Bb4 15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Nxe4 f5 17. Ng5 Ke7 18. a3 Ba5 19. f4 h6 20. Nf3 Rhd8 21. Rxd8 Nxd8 22. Rd1 Rc7 23. Ne5 a6 ({RR} 23... Nf7 24. Nc4 Bb6 25. Nxb6 axb6 26. Be2 Nd6 27. Rd3 Rc8 28. Rb3 Rg8 29. g3 h5 30. Rxb6 h4 31. Rb3 hxg3 32. hxg3 Kd7 33. Kc2 Kc7 34. Rc3+ Kb6 35. Re3 Kc7 36. Bd3 Kd7 37. Kc3 Rh8 38. a4 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Vidit,S (2726) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (66)}) 24. Be2 Bb6 $146 ({RR} 24... Nc6 25. Nxc6+ Rxc6 26. Bf3 Rc7 27. Rc1 Rxc1+ 28. Kxc1 Bc7 29. g3 b6 30. Kd2 e5 31. fxe5 Bxe5 32. b3 Bd6 33. a4 a5 34. Ke2 Bc5 35. Bc6 Kf6 36. Kf3 Bd6 37. h3 Bc5 38. g4 fxg4+ 39. hxg4 {Fridman,D (2606)-Svane,R (2640) Magdeburg 2022 ½-½ (40)}) 25. Ng6+ Ke8 26. Bh5 Nc6 27. g4 fxg4 28. Rd6 Kf7 29. f5 Kf6 30. fxe6 Kg5 31. Rd5+ Kf6 32. Nf4 Be3 33. Ng2 Bg5 34. Bxg4 Ne5 35. Bh3 h5 36. Ka2 Re7 37. Ne1 Bf4 38. Nf3 Nxf3 39. Rf5+ Kg6 40. Rxf4 Nxh2 41. Kb3 Ng4 42. Bxg4 hxg4 43. Rxg4+ Kf5 44. Rb4 Kxe6 45. Rb6+ Kf7 46. Kb4 Ke8 47. Rd6 Rd7 48. Kc5 Rxd6 49. Kxd6 Kd8 50. b4 Kc8 51. a4 Kd8 52. b5 axb5 53. axb5 Kc8 54. b6 Kb8 55. Kd7 Ka8 56. Kc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.27"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bd6 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Qb3 ({RR} 10. O-O Qd8 11. c5 Bc7 12. e4 b6 13. b4 bxc5 14. bxc5 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Ba6 16. Re1 Bc4 17. Qa4 Bd5 18. Re3 Qc8 19. Nc3 Bd8 20. Rb1 Bf6 21. Bf1 Rd8 22. Nxd5 cxd5 23. Reb3 Re8 24. Rb7 Re7 {Ding,L (2797)-Topalov,V (2747) Wenzhou 2018 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 10. c5 Bc7 11. O-O b6 12. b4 bxc5 13. bxc5 e5 14. dxe5 Qe6 15. e4 d4 16. Qxd4 Nd7 17. Nd5 Bb8 18. Nf4 Qe8 19. e6 fxe6 20. e5 Rf7 21. Rfe1 a5 22. Nd2 Qe7 23. Bxc6 Ra6 24. Bb5 Nxc5 {Grapsa,G (2086)-Allahverdiyeva,A (2220) Batumi GEO 2025 1-0}) 10... Nd7 11. O-O Qe7 12. c5 $146 ({RR} 12. Rfd1 Rb8 13. e4 dxc4 14. Qxc4 e5 15. d5 Nb6 16. Qb3 Bg4 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 Bg6 19. a4 Rfd8 20. a5 Nd7 21. Qc4 Rbc8 22. Qe2 Nf6 23. Nh4 Bh7 24. Nf5 Bxf5 25. exf5 Bb4 26. a6 Bxc3 {Istratescu,A (2550)-Bluebaum,M (2646) Playchess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (56)}) 12... Bc7 13. e4 b6 14. exd5 exd5 15. Rfe1 Qf6 16. Nxd5 cxd5 17. Qxd5 Rb8 18. c6 Rd8 19. cxd7 Bxd7 20. Ne5 Be6 21. Qe4 Bxe5 22. dxe5 Qe7 23. Qe3 Rbc8 24. Be4 Qc5 25. Qxc5 Rxc5 26. f4 g6 27. Kf2 a5 28. Ke3 a4 29. Rec1 Rb5 30. Rc2 Rb4 31. Bd3 h5 32. Rd2 b5 33. a3 Rb3 34. Rc1 b4 35. axb4 a3 36. bxa3 Bf5 37. Rcd1 Rxa3 38. b5 Bg4 39. Rc1 Bf5 40. Rcd1 Bg4 41. Rc1 Bf5 42. Rcd1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.30"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2705"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c6 4. e3 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 Qe7 10. a3 a6 ({RR} 10... a5 11. h3 b5 12. Bd3 Bb7 13. e4 e5 14. Be3 Rfe8 15. Ne2 c5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Bxb5 Bxe4 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Reb8 21. a4 Bd3 22. Bd6 Rxb5 23. axb5 Nc4 24. Bc7 Bxe2 25. Rfe1 {Vrolijk,L (2478)-Rydl,J (2424) Czech Republic 2022 1-0}) 11. h3 $146 ({RR} 11. Ba2 b5 12. Bb1 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. b4 Bd6 15. Ne4 Bb7 16. Nxd6 Qxd6 17. Rd1 Qc6 18. Qxc6 Bxc6 19. Nd4 Bd5 20. f3 Rfc8 21. e4 Bc4 22. Be3 Kf8 23. Kf2 Ke7 24. g4 g6 25. Bc2 Ne8 {Lerner,K (2530)-Karolyi,T (2450) Amsterdam 1988 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 11. Rd1 b5 12. Ba2 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. Ne4 Bb7 15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. Qe2 Nfe4 17. Nd4 e5 18. Nf5 Qg5 19. Ng3 Rad8 20. Bd2 Nxd2 21. Rxd2 Ne4 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Rc1 Nxg3 24. hxg3 Qe7 25. b4 g6 {Korobov,A (2683)-Carlsen,M (2862) Chess.com INT 2021 ½-½ (72)}) 11... b5 12. Be2 Re8 13. Ng5 c5 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. b4 Ncd7 16. Nce4 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 Be5 18. Bb2 Bxb2 19. Qxb2 Bb7 20. Bd3 Rac8 21. Rfc1 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Nb6 23. Bd3 g6 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rc1 Rc7 26. g3 Rxc1+ 27. Qxc1 Qd6 28. Be2 Nc4 29. Bxc4 Qc6 30. Qc3 bxc4 31. Kf1 Qh1+ 32. Ke2 Qb1 33. Qxc4 Qb2+ 34. Kf3 Qxa3 35. b5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.31"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Qa4+ Qd7 8. Qa3 b6 9. Nf3 c5 10. Be3 O-O 11. Rd1 cxd4 12. cxd4 Qd6 13. Qxd6 exd6 14. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 14. Bc4 Bb7 15. Nd2 Na6 16. O-O Nb4 17. d5 f5 18. Bf4 Rad8 19. g3 h6 20. h4 Kh8 21. a3 Nc2 22. Bd3 Nd4 23. Rfe1 fxe4 24. Bxe4 Ba6 25. Bxg6 Ne2+ 26. Rxe2 Bxe2 27. Re1 Bg4 28. h5 Bf5 {Debashis,D (2503)-Cheparinov,I (2681) Caleta 2015 ½-½ (39)}) 14... Bb7 15. Bd3 Nc6 16. Kd2 Rac8 17. h4 Nb4 18. Bb1 Rce8 19. a3 Nc6 20. Ba2 Rxe4 21. Bd5 Na5 22. Bxe4 Bxe4 23. Rc7 a6 24. h5 b5 25. h6 Bf6 26. Bg5 Bh8 27. Rh4 Bd5 28. Kc3 Nc4 29. Nd2 Nxa3 30. Kb4 Nc4 31. Nxc4 Bxc4 32. Be7 Re8 33. Rf4 f5 34. g4 Kf7 35. Bxd6+ Ke6 36. Bc5 Bf6 37. gxf5+ gxf5 38. Rc6+ Kf7 39. Rxf5 Re6 40. d5 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.10"]
[Round "1.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Iturrizaga Bonelli, Eduardo"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2607"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 c6 6. Be2 h5 7. Nf3 Qb6 ({RR} 7... Bg4 8. Ne5 Bxe2 9. Qxe2 Nbd7 10. O-O-O Rc8 11. f3 b5 12. Kb1 Nb6 13. Qd3 Nfd7 14. e4 b4 15. Ne2 dxe4 16. Qxe4 Nf6 17. Qd3 Qd5 18. c4 bxc3 19. Nxc3 Qe6 20. Rde1 Nfd5 21. Bd2 Nxc3+ 22. Bxc3 {Nabaty,T (2692)-Rodshtein,M (2674) Czech Republic 2019 0-1 (60)}) ({RR} 7... Bg4 8. Ne5 Bxe2 9. Qxe2 Nfd7 10. g4 Nxe5 11. dxe5 e6 12. gxh5 Rxh5 13. Bg5 Qxg5 14. hxg5 Rxh1+ 15. Kd2 Rxa1 16. Qf3 Nd7 17. Qh3 Nxe5 18. b3 Rd8 19. f4 Nd7 20. a4 Nc5 21. Qh7 Kf8 22. Qh2 {Marino Bravo,M (2134)-Krzywda,A (2175) chess.com INT 2025 0-1}) 8. Na4 Qa5+ 9. c3 Bg4 $146 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b4 Qd8 11. Ne5 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 O-O 13. f3 Nd7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. g4 hxg4 16. fxg4 Rh8 17. h5 e5 18. dxe5 Qg5 19. Qd4 Qxe5 20. O-O-O Qxd4 21. exd4 Nf6 22. h6+ Kg8 23. Rdg1 b6 24. Bf3 {Fang,Y (2499)-Dai,C (2430) Tianjin 2018 1-0 (54)}) 10. b4 Qd8 11. Nc5 Qc8 12. a4 Nbd7 13. O-O O-O 14. a5 a6 15. c4 e6 16. Rc1 Re8 17. Qb3 Ne4 18. Rfd1 Ndf6 19. Qa2 Re7 20. Ne5 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 Qd8 22. Na4 Nd6 23. Nb6 Rb8 24. Nd3 Nfe8 25. c5 Nf5 26. Bxb8 Qxb8 27. g3 Nc7 28. Qf3 Nb5 29. Qf4 Qe8 30. Re1 f6 31. Qf3 Bh6 32. Rcd1 Nc3 33. Rc1 Ne4 34. Nf4 Qf7 35. Rcd1 Nc3 36. Rd3 Ne4 37. Kg2 Ng7 38. Nc8 Rd7 39. Nd6 Nxd6 40. cxd6 e5 41. dxe5 fxe5 42. Nxd5 Qxf3+ 43. Kxf3 cxd5 44. Rxd5 Nf5 45. Rc1 Bf8 46. Rc7 Rxd6 47. Rxd6 Nxd6 48. Rd7 Kh8 49. g4 Kg8 50. g5 Kh8 51. Ke2 Kg8 52. Kd3 Kh8 53. f3 Kg8 54. f4 exf4 55. exf4 Kh8 56. Kd4 Nf5+ 57. Kc4 Nd6+ 58. Kd5 Nb5 59. Rxb7 Bxb4 60. Rxb5 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. h3 Bxf3 6. Qxf3 e6 7. Nc3 Nbd7 8. a3 g6 9. Bd2 Bg7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 O-O 12. O-O a6 $146 ({RR} 12... Re8 13. Rfc1 Nf8 14. b4 Ne6 15. Ra2 a6 16. Qd1 Bf8 17. Na4 Bd6 18. Nc5 Qe7 19. a4 Ng5 20. Be1 Bb8 21. Bf1 Qc7 22. g3 h5 23. h4 Nge4 24. Rb2 Qe7 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. b5 axb5 27. axb5 {So,W (2794)-Rodshtein,M (2687) Douglas 2016 ½-½ (42)}) 13. Rfc1 Re8 14. b4 b5 15. Ne2 Rc8 16. a4 Nb6 17. axb5 axb5 18. Ra6 Nc4 19. Be1 Ne4 20. Nc3 Ned6 21. Rca1 Bh6 22. Ra7 Rc7 23. g3 Rxa7 24. Rxa7 Qb6 25. Ra2 Nxe3 26. Re2 Qxd4 27. Bb1 Nec4 0-1

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 d5 3. e3 Bg4 4. f3 Bd7 5. g4 c5 ({RR} 5... e6 6. c3 c5 7. Nd2 Bc6 8. Bd3 Qb6 9. Qb3 Nbd7 10. Qxb6 axb6 11. a3 b5 12. Rc1 Nb6 13. Ne2 Nc4 14. Rb1 Nd7 15. e4 Be7 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Nxc4 bxc4 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. fxe4 Nf6 20. Ng3 {Manafov,V (2419)-Ibrahimli,M (2438) Baku AZE 2025 0-1 (62)}) 6. c3 Nc6 ({RR} 6... e6 7. Nd2 Qb6 8. Qb3 Bc6 9. Ne2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 Qa5 11. Qd1 Ba4 12. Qb1 Rc8 13. Bd3 Bb5 14. h4 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 b5 16. a3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nb6 18. Ke2 Be7 19. g5 Nfd7 20. h5 Nc4 21. b3 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Aronian,L (2782) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (66)}) 7. Nd2 $146 ({RR} 7. h4 Qb6 8. Qb3 Qxb3 9. axb3 a6 10. Nh3 Bc8 11. Na3 Ra7 12. Nc2 e6 13. Be2 Be7 14. Bg3 b6 15. Kf2 O-O 16. Nf4 Nd7 17. Rhd1 b5 18. g5 Rd8 19. Kg2 Bb7 20. Kf2 Raa8 21. Nd3 b4 {Kamsky,G (2670)-Inarkiev,E (2686) Sochi 2016 ½-½ (48)}) 7... Qb6 8. Qb3 Na5 9. Qxb6 axb6 10. Bd3 e6 11. Ne2 Ba4 12. b3 Bc6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. a4 f6 15. Rhb1 e5 16. Bg3 Nxb3 17. Rxb3 c4 18. Nxc4 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rxa4 20. Rxa4 Bxa4 21. Rb1 Bd6 22. Bd5 Bc6 23. c4 Bxd5 24. cxd5 Ke7 25. dxe5 Bxe5 26. Bxe5 fxe5 27. Nc3 Rc8 28. Ne4 Rc2+ 29. Kg3 Re2 30. Rb3 Re1 31. h4 g6 32. g5 Rg1+ 33. Kf2 Rh1 34. Nf6 Nxf6 35. gxf6+ Kxf6 36. Rxb6+ Ke7 37. Rxb7+ Kd6 38. e4 Rxh4 39. Rb6+ Kd7 40. Kg3 Rh5 41. Kg4 Ke7 42. f4 exf4 43. Kxf4 Rh1 44. Ke5 Rh5+ 45. Kd4 Rh4 46. Ra6 g5 47. Ke5 g4 48. d6+ Kd7 49. Ra7+ Kd8 50. Rg7 Rh5+ 51. Ke6 Rh6+ 52. Kd5 Rg6 53. Rxg6 hxg6 54. Kd4 Kd7 55. e5 Ke6 56. Ke3 g5 57. Kf2 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "3.7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[PlyCount "132"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 d5 3. e3 Bg4 4. f3 Bd7 5. g4 c5 6. c3 e6 7. Nd2 Qb6 ({RR} 7... Bc6 8. Bd3 Qb6 9. Qb3 Nbd7 10. Qxb6 axb6 11. a3 b5 12. Rc1 Nb6 13. Ne2 Nc4 14. Rb1 Nd7 15. e4 Be7 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Nxc4 bxc4 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. fxe4 Nf6 20. Ng3 Nxg4 21. h3 Nf6 22. Ke2 {Manafov,V (2419)-Ibrahimli,M (2438) Baku AZE 2025 0-1 (62)}) 8. Qb3 Bc6 $146 ({RR} 8... c4 9. Qc2 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. e4 Qc7 12. e5 Ng8 13. Ne2 Nc6 14. f4 h5 15. gxh5 Rxh5 16. Rg1 Kf8 17. Nf3 Nge7 18. Ng3 Rh6 19. Qd2 b5 20. a3 a5 21. h4 f5 22. Be2 Nd8 23. Kf2 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Aronian,L (2781) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (66)}) 9. Ne2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 Qa5 11. Qd1 Ba4 12. Qb1 Rc8 13. Bd3 Bb5 14. h4 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 b5 16. a3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nb6 18. Ke2 Be7 19. g5 Nfd7 20. h5 Nc4 21. b3 Nxd2 22. Qxd2 Qxd2+ 23. Kxd2 b4 24. Rhc1 O-O 25. a4 f6 26. gxf6 gxf6 27. e4 dxe4 28. fxe4 Kf7 29. Be3 a5 30. Ne2 e5 31. Rxc8 Rxc8 32. Rc1 Rxc1 33. Kxc1 exd4 34. Nxd4 Bc5 35. Kd2 Ne5 36. Nf5 Bxe3+ 37. Kxe3 Ke6 38. Kd4 Nf3+ 39. Ke3 Ne5 40. Nd4+ Kd6 41. Kf4 Kc5 42. Ne6+ Kd6 43. Kf5 Nd7 44. h6 Ke7 45. Nd4 Kd6 46. Nc2 Nc5 47. Nd4 Nd7 48. Nf3 Nc5 49. Nd2 Ke7 50. e5 fxe5 51. Kxe5 Kd7 52. Kd5 Nd3 53. Nc4 Nf4+ 54. Ke5 Nd3+ 55. Kf6 Nc5 56. Nxa5 Ke8 57. Kg7 Ke7 58. Kxh7 Kf7 59. Nc6 Nxb3 60. Nxb4 Nc5 61. a5 Ne6 62. Nc6 Nf8+ 63. Kh8 Ng6+ 64. Kh7 Nf8+ 65. Kh8 Ng6+ 66. Kh7 Nf8+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.15"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Martinovic, Sasa"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bd2 c5 6. Rc1 Nc6 7. dxc5 Bg7 8. e4 Ndb4 9. Nf3 O-O 10. a3 Nd3+ 11. Bxd3 Qxd3 12. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 12. Be3 Qa6 13. Qe2 Qxe2+ 14. Kxe2 Be6 15. Nd5 Bxb2 16. Rb1 Bxa3 17. Rxb7 Rfb8 18. Rhb1 Rxb7 19. Rxb7 Kf8 20. Ng5 Bc8 21. Rb3 Bb4 22. Nxb4 Rb8 23. Nxc6 Rxb3 24. Nxa7 Ba6+ 25. Kd2 Ke8 26. c6 Ra3 {Antova,G (2313)-Antipov,M (2607) Lichess.org INT 2021 1-0 (43)}) 12... Qxe2+ 13. Kxe2 Be6 14. Nd5 Bxb2 15. Rc2 Bxa3 16. Ra1 f5 17. Rxa3 fxe4 18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 19. Nd4 Bd7 20. Rb2 Nc6 21. Be3 Nxd4+ 22. Bxd4 Bc6 23. Rba2 a6 24. Ke3 Rad8 25. Rd2 Rd5 26. Ke2 Rfd8 27. Be3 Rd3 28. Ra1 Kf7 29. g3 Rxd2+ 30. Bxd2 Bb5+ 31. Ke1 Rd3 32. Rb1 Ke6 33. Rb4 Bc6 34. Rb2 Kd5 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.22"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2691"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O a5 7. Qc2 c6 8. Nbd2 b6 9. e4 Bb7 10. Rd1 Na6 ({RR} 10... Ra7 11. e5 Nfd7 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Nf1 Nc6 14. Bf4 Nb4 15. Qd2 a4 16. h4 a3 17. b3 Ba6 18. Bg5 Bxg5 19. hxg5 Qe7 20. Rdc1 Rc8 21. Rxc8+ Bxc8 22. Rc1 Ba6 23. Ne3 Nf8 24. Ng4 Ra8 25. Bf1) 11. e5 Nd7 12. cxd5 ({RR} 12. a3 c5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne4 h6 15. Qe2 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nxe5 17. Nc3 Bxg2 18. Qxe5 Bf6 19. Qe3 Bd5 20. Nxd5 Qxd5 21. Qf3 Rfd8 22. Be3 Qxf3 23. Nxf3 Bxb2 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Rb1 Bxa3 26. Rxb6 Nb4 {Federer,C (2300)-Brkic,A (2578) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (54)}) ({RR} 12. h4 c5 13. dxc5 Naxc5 14. b3 Rc8 15. Bb2 Qc7 16. Rac1 Rfd8 17. Nf1 dxc4 18. bxc4 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Nxe5 20. Bxe5 Qxe5 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Rd1 Rxd1 23. Qxd1 Qc7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Qa4 Bc5 26. Nf1 Kf8) 12... Nb4 $146 ({RR} 12... cxd5 13. a3 b5 14. Nf1 Qb6 15. Qe2 Rfc8 16. h4 b4 17. Ne3 bxa3 18. bxa3 Rc3 19. Ng4 Rac8 20. Ne3 a4 21. Qa2 f6 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Bb2 Rb3 24. Rab1 Qd6 25. Nd2 Rb6 26. Ba1 Nab8 27. Nc2 {Sioutis,A (1816)-Antonioudakis,G (1990) Trikala GRE 2024 ½-½ (102)}) ({RR} 12... cxd5 13. a3 b5 14. Nf1 Qb6 15. Qe2 Rfc8 16. h4 b4 17. Ne3 bxa3 18. bxa3 Rc3 19. Ng4 Rac8 20. Ne3 a4 21. Qa2 f6 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Bb2 Rb3 24. Rab1 Qd6 25. Nd2 Rb6 26. Ba1 Nab8) 13. Qb1 cxd5 14. Nf1 Ba6 15. Ne3 Rc8 16. a3 Nc6 17. b3 b5 18. h4 b4 19. a4 Be2 20. Rd2 Bxf3 21. Bxf3 f6 22. Bg4 f5 23. Nxf5 exf5 24. Bxf5 Bxh4 25. gxh4 Qxh4 26. Be6+ Kh8 27. Qd3 Ndxe5 28. dxe5 Nxe5 29. Qxd5 Nf3+ 30. Qxf3 Rxf3 31. Bxc8 Rf8 32. Bb7 Qf6 33. Rda2 Qf7 34. Bg2 Qxb3 35. Be3 Rd8 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.24"]
[Round "4.3"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2691"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 a5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Qc2 c5 8. cxd5 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Qb6 10. e3 exd5 11. O-O Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Rc1 Qb8 14. Bxb4 axb4 15. Nd2 Bd7 16. Nb3 h5 17. Nc5 Bc8 18. h4 $146 ({RR} 18. a4 bxa3 19. bxa3 h4 20. Qc3 hxg3 21. hxg3 Qd6 22. a4 Ng4 23. a5 Qh6 24. Ra4 Re8 25. a6 g5 26. e4 dxe4 27. Nxe4 Rxe4 28. Rxe4 Qh2+ 29. Kf1 Bxa6+ 30. Rc4 Re8 31. Qd2 Ne5 32. Qxg5+ Kf8 {Besou,H (2332)-Droin,A (2436) Mali Losinj CRO 2023 0-1 (40)}) 18... Re8 19. a4 bxa3 20. bxa3 Re7 21. a4 Rea7 22. Qc3 Ra5 23. Nd3 Rxa4 24. Rxa4 Rxa4 25. Qxc6 Bd7 26. Qc5 Qb5 27. Qxb5 Bxb5 28. Nf4 Bc4 29. Rd1 Ra5 30. Bf3 g6 31. Kg2 Kg7 32. Rd4 Rb5 33. Rd1 Rb2 34. Rd4 Rb5 35. Rd1 Rb2 36. Rd4 Rb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.24"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E48"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2691"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nge2 d5 7. cxd5 cxd4 8. exd4 Nxd5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Nf4 Bd6 12. Be3 Bxf4 13. Bxf4 Qf6 14. Be3 Nb4 $146 ({RR} 14... Bf5 15. Be2 Rfe8 16. Rc1 Qg6 17. Bh5 Qd6 18. Qd2 Rac8 19. Be2 h6 20. Rc3 Ne7 21. Rfc1 Rxc3 22. Rxc3 Rc8 23. Rc5 Qe6 24. h3 Rxc5 25. dxc5 Nc6 26. Bb5 a6 {½-½ (26) Hoffmann,M (2517)-Meier,G (2648) Belgium 2011}) ({RR} 14... Bf5 15. Rc1 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Rfe8 17. Rfd1 Re7 18. a3 Rae8 19. h3 h6 20. Rc5 Rd7 21. b4 b6 22. Rc2 Ne7 23. Bc1 Nf5 24. Qf3 Re4 25. Bb2 Qe6 26. b5 Re7 27. a4 Nh4 28. Qg3 Ng6 29. Bc1 {Milov,V (2652)-Anand,V (2788) Bastia 2005 1-0 (46)}) 15. Bb1 Bf5 16. Qb3 Bxb1 17. Raxb1 Qd6 18. a3 Na6 19. Rbc1 Qd7 20. Bf4 Rac8 21. Qg3 f6 22. h4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Qxc8 25. b4 b5 26. h5 Qd7 27. Qf3 h6 28. Qc3 Qf5 29. g3 Qd7 30. Qc2 Kf8 31. Qh7 Nc7 32. Bxh6 Qg4 33. Be3 Ne6 34. Qh8+ Kf7 35. Qc8 Qe4 36. Qd7+ Kg8 37. Qxa7 Ng5 38. Bxg5 Qe1+ 39. Kg2 Qe4+ 40. Kh2 fxg5 41. Qb8+ Kf7 42. Qc7+ Kf6 43. Qd6+ Kf7 44. Qg6+ Qxg6 45. hxg6+ Kxg6 46. g4 Kf6 47. Kg3 Ke6 48. Kf3 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.25"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Bc3 c5 ({RR} 8... b6 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. e4 Nxc3 11. Nxc3 Bb7 12. Re1 Re8 13. Qc2 c6 14. Rad1 Qc7 15. e5 Rad8 16. h4 h6 17. Qe4 Qb8 18. Qg4 Bb4 19. Nd2 c5 20. Bxb7 Qxb7 21. Nde4 cxd4 22. Rxd4 Be7 23. Nd6 {Ding,L (2774)-Carlsen,M (2837) Saint Louis 2017 0-1 (72)}) ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Nfd2 Nxc3 10. Nxc3 c6 11. e4 e5 12. exd5 exd4 13. Ne2 c5 14. Nc1 Ne5 15. Re1 Bd6 16. Ne4 Nxc4 17. Nd3 b6 18. b3 Na3 19. Qh5 h6 20. Rac1 Nb5 21. f4 Nc3 22. Ne5 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 {Koelle,T (2275)-Esipenko,A (2682) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (47)}) 9. Nbd2 ({RR} 9. dxc5 Nxc5 10. Nbd2 Nfe4 11. Nxe4 Nxe4 12. Bd4 Bf6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 15. Rc1 Be6 16. Qd4 Qa5 17. a3 Rac8 18. Ne5 h6 19. Nd3 b6 20. Nb4 Qa4 21. e3 Qd7 22. Rcd1 Rfd8 23. Rd2 a5 {Kim,N (2080)-Moses,N (2135) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (91)}) 9... b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. Nxd7 $146 ({RR} 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. e3 Qb6 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Nc4 dxc4 16. Qxd7 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Bf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qd5 Qxb2 20. Qxc4 Rac8 21. Rab1 Qe5 22. Rb7 Rc7 23. Rfb1 h6 24. Rxc7 Qxc7 25. Rb5 Rc8 {Orian,N (1999)-Anustoop,B (2256) Monsaraz POR 2023 0-1 (55)}) 11... Qxd7 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. cxd5 exd5 14. e3 Rfd8 15. Re1 a5 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. Rc1 Qb5 18. Qb3 Qb4 19. Qxb4 axb4 20. Rxc5 Bxb2 21. Rb5 Bc6 22. Rc5 Bb7 23. Rb5 Bc6 24. Rc5 Bb7 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.27"]
[Round "5.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. b4 dxc4 ({RR} 8... c6 9. a4 Bd6 10. Qc2 e5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Bc3 Re8 14. Nbd2 Nxf3+ 15. Bxf3 Bh3 16. Rfc1 Qe7 17. Qb2 Rad8 18. b5 Ne4 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Bg2 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 f6 22. Bd4 Qe6 23. Qa2 {So,W (2778)-Karjakin,S (2782) Stavanger 2018 ½-½ (58)}) 9. Qc1 Nb6 10. a4 Bd7 $146 ({RR} 10... Ne4 11. Be1 Nd6 12. a5 Nd5 13. Ne5 Bf6 14. Na3 c3 15. Rb1 c6 16. e4 Nc7 17. Bxc3 Ndb5 18. Rd1 Nxa3 19. Qxa3 Nb5 20. Qc1 Nxc3 21. Qxc3 Qc7 22. Nc4 Rd8 23. e5 Be7 24. b5 cxb5 25. Rxb5 {Tikhonov,V (2201)-Sarana,A (2685) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (70)}) ({RR} 10... c6 11. a5 Nbd5 12. Qxc4 a6 13. Rd1 Qd6 14. Ne5 Nxb4 15. e4 Rd8 16. Bf4 Rf8 17. Nd3 {1-0 (17) Tikhonov,V (2183)-Sakhayi,M (2166) chess.com INT 2025}) 11. a5 Nbd5 12. Qxc4 Ne4 13. Ne5 Nxd2 14. Nxd2 Be8 15. b5 c6 16. bxc6 Rc8 17. Qb3 bxc6 18. Nd3 c5 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Bxd5 exd5 21. Rfc1 Rb8 22. Qc3 Be7 23. Qc7 a6 24. Qxd8 Bxd8 25. Rc5 Bb5 26. Rxd5 Bf6 27. Rc1 Rfd8 28. Rdc5 h6 29. Ne4 Bd4 30. R5c2 Bxd3 31. exd3 Rb5 32. Ra2 Rdd5 33. Rc6 Rxa5 34. Rxa6 Rxa2 35. Rxa2 f5 36. Nd2 Bc3 37. Nf1 Rxd3 38. Ra3 g5 39. Kg2 f4 40. gxf4 gxf4 41. h4 Kf7 42. Nh2 Kg6 43. Nf3 Kf5 44. Ra6 Bf6 45. h5 Rd5 46. Kh3 Rd3 47. Kg2 Rd5 48. Kh3 Rd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.27"]
[Round "5.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Qb3 Nb6 ({RR} 8... a5 9. Bf4 c6 10. Rd1 a4 11. Qc2 h6 12. h4 Qa5 13. Nc3 dxc4 14. a3 b5 15. e4 Bb7 16. Bh3 Rfe8 17. Bd2 Qa6 18. g4 Nh7 19. g5 hxg5 20. hxg5 Nhf8 21. Be3 Rad8 22. Bf4 Ng6 23. Bc7 {Berczes,D (2408)-Ostrovskiy,A (2394) Budapest HUN 2025 ½-½}) 9. c5 ({RR} 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bb4 Bxb4 11. Qxb4 a5 12. Qc3 c6 13. Ne5 Re8 14. Nd2 Ng4 15. Nxg4 Bxg4 16. e3 Qd6 17. Rfe1 Be6 18. Nb3 Qc7 19. Nc5 Nd7 20. Nxe6 fxe6 21. e4 Qd6 22. Re2 dxe4 23. Bxe4 Nf6 {Aronian,L (2780)-Caruana,F (2805) Stavanger 2015 1-0 (87)}) 9... Nc4 10. Bc3 $146 ({RR} 10. Qc2 b6 11. Bf4 bxc5 12. b3 Na5 13. b4 Nc4 14. bxc5 Bd7 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Ne4 17. c6 Be8 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Qxe4 Rb8 20. Nd2 Rb4 21. Qd3 Qxd3 22. exd3 Bxc6 23. Rfc1 Rb6 24. Be3 Ra6 {Gleizerov,E (2567)-Naroditsky,D (2503) Riga 2013 ½-½ (34)}) 10... b6 11. c6 a5 12. Nbd2 Ba6 13. Nxc4 Bxc4 14. Qc2 a4 15. Ne5 Bb5 16. Rfe1 Bd6 17. Bd2 a3 18. b3 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Nd7 f5 21. Nxf8 Qxf8 22. Bf4 Rd8 23. Be5 Bxe5 24. dxe5 h6 25. Rad1 Rxd1 26. Rxd1 Qb4 27. Kf1 e3 28. f3 h5 29. Rd7 h4 30. Rxc7 h3 31. Rd7 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.08.01"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D24"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2738"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bxc4 Nxe4 7. O-O Nf6 8. Qe2 O-O 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 Be7 11. Rad1 Nc6 12. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 12. d5 exd5 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. Rxd5 Qe8 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Ne5 Re8 17. Nxc6 Qxe2 18. Bxe2 bxc6 19. Rd2 Rxe2 20. Rxe2 Ba6 21. Rc2 Bxf1 22. Kxf1 Rb8 23. b3 Rb6 24. g4 Kf8 25. Re2 Rb4 26. h3 c5 {Hollan,M (2346)-Pniaczek,M (2211) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (57)}) 12... Nd5 13. Bxd5 Bxh4 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Qc4 Rb8 16. Nxh4 Qxh4 17. b3 Rd8 18. Qxc6 Bb7 19. Qc5 Qg5 20. Qxg5 hxg5 21. h3 Bd5 22. Re5 f6 23. Nxd5 fxe5 24. Ne7+ Kf8 25. Nc6 Ra8 26. Nxd8 Rxd8 27. Rc1 exd4 28. Rxc7 d3 29. Rc1 Ke7 30. f3 Rc8 31. Rd1 Rc2 32. Rxd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.08.04"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir1"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 204"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,82,58,42,26,-29,44,-40,13,4,14,19,6,15,15,-28,13,20,4,5,16,7,27,15,15,13,32,27,38,10,55,-11,21,-34,67,67,57,17,139,135,183,154,154,167,164,164,164,98,98,97,97,54,130,125,112,44,109,28,44,44,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,81,0,81,0,15,-113,-38,-129,-91,-111,-120,-145,-145,-178,-239]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. h4 $5 {Magnus has chosen the Grunfeld (or, less likely, a King's Indian) and Vladimir in his turn also shows readiness for a full fledged fight. White has a ton of safer options, but no guts no glory and so 3.h4!? was essayed. The system has been somewhat of a joke for a while, continued to be so after Topalov did it against me in what has been a terrible Candidates tournament for him in 2016, but it was only after Grischuk has reintroduced it in the Grand Prix 2019, when people have realized that it is there to stay. The computers are surprisingly optimistic for White in the ensueing lines, but at the same time, Black does have a choice between a good King's Indian, a good Volga and a good Benoni.} Bg7 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 Nc6 $5 {A cunning move order by Magnus, played after some thought. It is likely he was choosing from the plenty of options Black has at his disposal. The idea of Nc6 this early is that Black is ready to strike with e5, while the usual d4-d5 push is slightly less of an issue, as we will later see.} 6. d5 {Principled, but developing the g1 knight first is also sensible. 6.Nge2 happened in Shankland-Svidler, which ended Peter's tournament after he lost a complex game, but Vladimir has chosen another path, which seems critical as well.} Ne5 $1 {The point. The knight sits extremely well on this square, thanks to the far advanced h-pawn. Now f4 will always be met with Neg4. Note that this wouldn't be the case if white had the h2-h3! push, or if you could move pawns backwards in chess.} 7. Be2 h5 8. Bf4 $146 {In a position as complex as this one, every move is very critical and the smallest nuances can have serious impact. This feels very normal, but since White has no better next move than Nf3 anyway, he should have started with that instead and chosen a better destiny for the bishop later.} (8. Nf3 {is just a smarter move order in any case.} Nxf3+ 9. gxf3 O-O {and now that the pawn structure has clarified, it is easier to pick a good square for the c1 bishop. Placing it in front of the mobile f3 pawn looks unharmonious and instead Bg5 or Be3 is clearly to be preferred. As I understand such pawn structures, the position revolves around the f4-f5 push which White wants to time well. It isn't going to be easy, with Black having c6 break, followed by another break eventually, be it e6 or f5, or perhaps a queenside expansion with b5. White has a strong pawn center, but no clear shelter for his king, even in the long term.}) ({RR} 8. Nh3 O-O 9. Ng5 c6 10. O-O cxd5 11. cxd5 Bd7 12. Be3 a6 13. Rc1 b5 14. f3 Rc8 15. Qd2 b4 16. Nb1 a5 17. Rxc8 Qxc8 18. Rc1 Qb7 19. a3 Bb5 20. axb4 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 axb4 22. Nd2 Rc8 {Zemlyanskii,I (2541)-Dau Khuong Duy (2373) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (59)}) ({RR} 8. Nh3 c6 9. Ng5 Bd7 10. O-O O-O 11. Bf4 Rc8 12. b3 cxd5 13. exd5 Qa5 14. Bd2 Neg4 15. Nce4 Qd8 16. Nxf6+ exf6 17. Nf3 Re8 18. Rc1 Qb6 19. Bc3 Bh6 20. Rc2 Bf5 21. Rb2 Ne3 22. Qd4 Qxd4 {Maghsoodloo,P (2716)-Ragger,M (2631) Chartres FRA 2023 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 8. Nf3 Neg4 9. Ng5 c6 10. f3 Ne5 11. Be3 O-O 12. O-O Bd7 13. Rc1 c5 14. g3 a6 15. a4 Qc8 16. Qc2 e6 17. b3 exd5 18. cxd5 Rb8 19. Ra1 Re8 20. Bc1 b5 21. axb5 axb5 22. Bb2 Qc7 {Ratkovic,M (2471)-Omorjan,D (2343) Bajina Basta SRB 2025 ½-½ (81)}) 8... O-O 9. Nf3 {What else, but now the placement of the dark squared bishop is very questionable.} Nxf3+ 10. gxf3 c6 {it is good to get c6 and cxd5 trade in, to have the c-file open, better control over the b5 square and some room for the d8 queen to play with.} 11. Qd2 cxd5 12. cxd5 Kh7 {Classy. The kingside is now just a little bit more tight, the h6 square guarded and if Black pushes f5 the soft g6 pawn is guarded, which can gain Black time.} 13. a4 $6 {Often when you try preventing counterplay on the side where you are weaker, you only delay the inevitable and weaken urself further. Black was eventually going to push b5, likely, but the cure is worse than the disease, and now the b3 square is weakened and when b5 will eventually happen, Black will have more files and diagonals open for his queenside play.} Nd7 14. a5 {White gains some space, but it is not very useful and Black can already start considering b5 push, with or even without the preparatory a7-a6.} f5 $1 {Magnus hits on the kingside first. The weakened g6 pawn is out of reach, while Black's pressure along the f-file is the primary factor here.} 15. Ra3 Ne5 (15... b5 $5 {was very timed here, as well and after the game, Magnus has mentioned this motif as well.}) 16. Be3 $6 {The bishop moves to a more harmonious square, not in the way of the f3 pawn, but this allows a strong positional pawn sacrifice.} f4 $1 {Black gives up the f-pawn, but gains ultimate control over the f4 square, which is crucial, as that will guarantee the eternal outpost for the monster knight on e5.} 17. Bxf4 Bd7 {Setting up a beautiful positional exchange sacrifice. Instead, there was a more laconic solution to the problem of the f4 square.} (17... Rf7 $5 {is less spectacular than what Magnus has done in the game, but at the very least just as effective. Qf8 is a huge threat, and White has no better option than to give up the f4 bishop for the knight, giving Black the ultimate dark square control at the cost of just one pawn.}) 18. Nd1 {White guards f3 and is ready to move the f4 bishop. Obviously Magnus has anticipated exactly this.} Rxf4 $1 {Beautiful and even though objectively the computers say the position is around equal, it was very clear to me, that Black will be having all the fun from now on. The evaluation of the computer is meant to estimate the computer's own chances in a game against itself, which doesn't always correspond to how the chances between the two human players are actually split.} 19. Qxf4 Bh6 20. Qg3 Qf8 $1 {Gaining control over the f4 square- the whole point of the sacrifice.} 21. Ne3 Bf4 22. Qg2 Rc8 {Rooks are meant for open files.} 23. Rc3 {Trading the potentially active c8 rook is very sensible. The engine offers the bold Rb3!? as an alternative, estimating the position as around level, but it is pretty scary to just ignore Rc1+.} Rxc3 24. bxc3 Qc8 {Now the queen switches to the queenside. White's pieces are in disharmony, though from a point of view of defense, he does still have a very solid, although depressing, setup.} 25. c4 b5 $5 {Opening files and keeping the Bh3 idea, in case White castles short.} 26. axb6 {This is called en passant, noobs. :)} axb6 27. Qg1 $4 {White basically needs to get the king to the right, so the rook can go to the left. Here he is preparing Kf1-Kg2, but he is just not in time.} (27. Kf1 $1 {first would achieve the goal of regrouping the pieces the right way. White can follow it up with Kg1 Qf1 if needed, or Qg1 Kg2, depending on the situation.} b5 {This wins Black an important pawn, but White can defend if he continues with the right plan.} 28. Qg1 $1 bxc4 29. Kg2 $1 Qc5 30. Qa1 {White just has to make sure the h1 rook gets to participate.} Bxe3 31. fxe3 Qxe3 32. Re1 {and surprisingly White is actually alive. He has given up a bunch of pawns, but got some coordination and with Qc1 incoming Black's active queen will have to give up some ground.}) (27. O-O $5 {would in my opinion be a very practical way to try and setup a defense. The rook is now directly ready to get into the game and if Black chooses to take it, which he should, then the position simplifies a lot and the drawing tendencies rise.} Bh3 28. Qh1 Bxf1 29. Kxf1 {Black can just take on e3 and regain the c4 pawn as well, but that will mean that the material balance is only restored and if Black cashes out all of his positional compensation back into material, we are likely see the game end peacefully.}) 27... Qa8 $1 28. Kf1 Qa2 $1 {The key. Stopping the much needed Kg2 move, which would release White's heavy pieces that are stuck in the cage. Now all of a sudden white is totally paralyzed.} 29. Ng2 Qa1+ {this works out more than perfectly, but objectively the clean win was starting with 29...Qb1!+} (29... Qb1+ $1 30. Ne1 b5 $1 {well timed shot. Computers always do that well.} 31. cxb5 Bxb5 {and Black keeps White stuck, as 32.Bxb5? loses to Nxf3+! intermezzo. White doesn't have a move here and is just lost.}) 30. Ne1 Qb2 {The queen is methodically coming closer. Fedoseev had his last chance here.} 31. Ng2 $2 {Playing along, but White can't afford that any longer.} (31. Nd3 $1 {barely looks more fun, trading the only piece that can actually attack something, ever, but at the same time, this would rid Black of some horsepower, pun intended.} Nxd3 32. Bxd3 Qc3 33. Be2 Qc2 {White is almost in zugzwang.} 34. Rh2 $1 {But almost. Without the knights, Black actually doesn't have a clear way to win, as White just stands, but at the same time, to say that White is fine here, would be a gross exaggeration.}) 31... Qc1+ 32. Ne1 Qd2 {now White is truly stuck, as 33.Ng2 is losing to Nd3!. White now has to shuffles his queen and rook, inside a cage, waiting for the finishing blow, that Black inevitably will come up with. e6 is a resource to soften up white's pawn formation in the center and in the long run, the e5 knight is also free to roam around.} 33. Qg2 Kg7 34. Rg1 Kf8 $5 {taking the time and moving away from any Nd3 Nxd3 Qxg6 tricks.} 35. Qh1 e6 $1 {Gains Black some extra squares.} 36. Rg3 exd5 37. exd5 Bf5 {The bishop is better placed here and the e5 knight is now free to embark on a finishing journey.} 38. Rg1 Kf7 39. Rg3 Nd7 40. Rg5 Bxg5 $1 {In a dominating position, it is very important, at some point to just start cashing it out. The rook can and should be picked up now.} 41. hxg5 Ne5 {the threat was stronger than the excecution and White is just dead lost here. White has to move his queen and then Qc1 will create a deadly threat of Nd3. White has resigned. His position is helpless and he has been demolished and demoralized, but as it is often the case in chess, it didn't have to happen (28.0-0!/28.Kf1!).  It did though.} 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 36th"]
[Site "Struga"]
[Date "2021.09.22"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "2021.09.18"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "MKD"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 204 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.09.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.09.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Alkaloid"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill CC"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "MKD"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 d6 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 Nc6 7. O-O e5 8. h3 Re8 9. d5 Nb8 10. e4 a5 11. Be3 Na6 12. a3 Nc5 $146 ({RR} 12... Bd7 13. Nd2 Rf8 14. Rb1 Nc5 15. b4 axb4 16. axb4 Na4 17. Ne2 Nh5 18. c5 Bb5 19. Rb3 f5 20. exf5 gxf5 21. Re1 f4 22. gxf4 Nxf4 23. Bxf4 exf4 24. Nf3 Qf6 25. Ned4 Bc4 26. Re6 Bxb3 27. Qxb3 {Mamedyarov,S (2742)-Amin,B (2694) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (35)}) 13. Nd2 a4 14. Bxc5 dxc5 15. Nxa4 Qe7 16. b3 Bd7 17. Nb2 Ra6 18. Nd3 Rea8 19. Qc1 Ne8 20. Qb2 b6 21. b4 Nd6 22. bxc5 bxc5 23. Nxc5 Nxc4 24. Qb4 Nxd2 25. Nxa6 Qxb4 26. axb4 Nxf1 27. Bxf1 Bf8 28. Rc1 Bd6 29. b5 Ra7 30. h4 Kg7 31. Bd3 f5 32. f3 fxe4 33. fxe4 g5 34. hxg5 Kg6 35. Kf2 Kxg5 36. Be2 Be8 37. Ke3 Rb7 38. Nc5 Ra7 39. Na6 Rb7 40. Rc3 Ra7 41. Kf2 Rb7 42. Nc5 Ra7 43. Ne6+ Kf6 44. g4 Bg6 45. Rc6 Ke7 46. Ra6 Rb7 47. Ke3 Be8 48. Ra8 h6 49. Kf3 Bxb5 50. Bxb5 Rxb5 51. Rh8 Rb3+ 52. Kf2 Rb4 53. Rxh6 Rxe4 54. g5 Rg4 55. Kf3 Rg1 56. Rh7+ Ke8 57. Ke4 Re1+ 58. Kf5 Rf1+ 59. Kg6 e4 60. Nxc7+ Bxc7 61. Rxc7 e3 62. Rc4 Kd7 63. Re4 Re1 64. Re6 e2 65. Kg7 Rg1 66. Rxe2 Rxg5+ 67. Kf6 Rxd5 68. Re5 Rxe5 69. Kxe5 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2021.11.27"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2855"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[Annotator "McShane,Luke"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2021.11.26"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,116,28,35,27,-4,-4,-4,6,-23,-13,-2,14,-27,20,-4,42,3,-9,-19,27,-25,-25,-4,10,-69,-42,-54,-54,-60,-25,-25,-1,-1,-10,-41,-41,-21,-21,-106,-91,-91,-91,-93,-97,-97,-49,-105,-22,-78,-7,-161,-51,-51,-45,-11,-35,-41,-70,-32,-30,-44,-36,-47,-27,-39,-32,-27,-28,-27,-23,-1,0,0,6,0,55,55,55,61,111,113,113,110,130,96,123,109,129,116,120,123,120,111,120,126,121,119,112,110,114,114,114,60,78,73,60,85,85,85,85,85,85,85,83,83,83,52,83]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 {Nepomniachtchi is known to favour the Grünfeld defence (with 2...g6). But Carlsen would certainly be well prepared for that, so it is not a big surprise that we see a different second move. Carlsen now steers the game toward a Catalan, which Nepomniachtchi has already faced a few times in 2021. Nepomniachtchi ist dafür bekannt, dass er die Grünfeld-Verteidigung (mit 2...g6) bevorzugt. Aber Carlsen wäre sicherlich gut darauf vorbereitet, und so ist es keine große Überraschung, dass wir einen anderen zweiten Zug sehen. Carlsen steuert die Partie nun auf einen Katalanen zu, mit dem Nepomniachtchi im Jahr 2021 schon einige Male konfrontiert wurde.} 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 (7... a6 {is Black's most common move. ist der häufigste Zug von Schwarz.}) 8. Ne5 {A rare choice from Carlsen. Eine seltene Wahl von Carlsen.} (8. a4 {is the most common move ist der häufigste Zug.}) 8... c6 9. a4 {White can win back the pawn immediately, but after Weiß kann den Bauern sofort zurückgewinnen, aber nach} (9. Nxc6 Nxc6 10. Bxc6 Rb8 {Black is very comfortable. steht Schwarz sehr bequem.}) 9... Nd5 {Blocking the diagonal of the Catalan bishop is the only reasonable option. Die Diagonale des katalanischen Läufers zu blockieren ist die einzig sinnvolle Option.} (9... Qxd4 10. Nxc6 Nxc6 11. Bxc6 Rb8 12. axb5 {is very bad for Black. The queen will soon be chased away from d4. ist sehr schlecht für Schwarz. Die Dame wird bald von d4 weggejagt werden.}) 10. Nc3 f6 11. Nf3 {One might consider keeping the diagonal open for the g2-bishop. But in fact Man könnte erwägen, die Diagonale für den g2-Läufer offen zu halten. Aber in der Tat wäre} (11. Ng4 {would be a mistake, in view of ein Fehler in Anbetracht von} b4 {which forces White's knight back to a passive square, since was den weißen Springer zurück auf ein passives Feld zwingt, da} 12. Ne4 f5 {wins a piece eine Figur gewinnt.}) 11... Qd7 {A sensible move, supporting the pawn on b5 Ein vernünftiger Zug, der den Bauern auf b5 unterstützt} (11... b4 12. Ne4 {transposes into a wild game Gelfand - Shirov, from 1992. leitet über zu der wilden Partie Gelfand - Shirov aus dem Jahr 1992.} Ba6 13. Bh3 f5 14. Neg5 b3 15. Qd1 Rf6 16. e4 Nb4 17. exf5 exf5 18. Re1 Nc2 19. Nxh7 Kxh7 20. Ng5+ Kg6 21. Ne6 Qh8 22. Bxf5+ Kxf5 23. Qf3+ Kg6 24. Qe4+ Kf7 25. Ng5+ Kg8 26. Qxe7 Qh5 27. Ne6 Rxe6 28. Rxe6 Nxa1 29. Bh6 Qf7 30. Qg5 Kh7 31. Bxg7 Qxe6 32. Be5 Qg6 33. Qd8 Nd7 34. Qxd7+ Kg8 35. f4 c3 36. f5 cxb2 {Gelfand, Boris - Shirov, Alexei, 0-1, Paris Immopar rapid, 1992, https://lichess.org/STJ34wVf Gelfand, Boris - Shirov, Alexei, 0-1, Paris Immopar rapid, 1992, https://lichess.org/STJ34wVf}) ({RR} 11... b4 12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Nc5 Bxc5 14. dxc5 Nd7 15. e4 b3 16. Qd2 c3 17. bxc3 Bxf1 18. Bxf1 Nc7 19. Qd6 Qc8 20. Nd4 Ne5 21. Nxc6 Nxc6 22. Qxc6 e5 23. Bc4+ Kh8 24. Rb1 Rb8 25. Ba3 f5 26. Qd6 {Fedoseev,V (2701)-Nakamura,H (2766) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (37)}) 12. e4 Nb4 13. Qe2 Nd3 $146 ({RR} 13... Bb7 14. Rd1 Nd3 15. Be3 Na6 16. d5 cxd5 17. exd5 exd5 18. axb5 Nab4 19. Nd4 Bc5 20. Na4 Bd6 21. Qd2 f5 22. Ne2 f4 23. gxf4 d4 24. Bxd4 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 Qg4+ 26. Kf1 Bxf4 27. Be3 Bxe3 28. Qxe3 {Chigaev,M (2632)-Nihal,S (2662) Warsaw 2021 0-1}) 14. e5 {White has sacrificed a pawn, so it is natural that he tries to create threats while Black is not yet fully developed. Weiß hat einen Bauern geopfert, und so ist es nur natürlich, dass er versucht, Drohungen zu erzeugen, während Schwarz noch nicht voll entwickelt ist.} Bb7 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Ne4 Na6 17. Ne5 (17. Nxf6+ gxf6 18. Bh6 Rf7 {is the computer's first choice, though by no means the only option. The position is very complex. ist die erste Wahl des Computers, aber keineswegs die einzige Option. Die Lage ist sehr komplex.}) 17... Bxe5 (17... Qxd4 {doesn't work: funktioniert nicht:} 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 19. axb5 {is very bad for Black. ist sehr schlecht für Schwarz.}) 18. dxe5 Nac5 {During the press conference, Carlsen admitted that he had overlooked this possibility. However, his exchange sacrifice is a good response to the situation. Auf der Pressekonferenz gab Carlsen zu, dass er diese Möglichkeit übersehen hatte. Sein Qualitätsopfer ist jedoch eine gute Reaktion auf die Situation.} 19. Nd6 Nb3 20. Rb1 {White had two ways to sacrifice the exchange. Carlsen (characteristically, perhaps) opts for the strategically 'clean' version, where both the Black knights get exchanged off. However, the 'messy' version was also interesting. Weiß hatte zwei Möglichkeiten, die Qualität zu opfern. Carlsen entschied sich (vielleicht bezeichnenderweise) für die strategisch "saubere" Variante, bei der beide schwarzen Springer abgetauscht werden. Aber auch die "chaotische" Variante war interessant.} (20. Be3 {is the messy version, and well worth considering. ist die chaotische Version, die man durchaus in Betracht ziehen sollte.} Nxa1 21. Rxa1 {leaves one dangerous knight on d3, but there are two pluses from White's point of view. The pair of bishops is an asset, and secondly a later b2-b3 may undermine the knight on d3. One possible continuation is hinterlässt einen gefährlichen Springer auf d3, aber es gibt zwei Vorteile aus der Sicht von Weiß. Das Läuferpaar ist ein Vorteil, und zweitens kann ein späteres b2-b3 den Springer auf d3 untergraben. Eine mögliche Fortsetzung ist} Nxe5 22. Bc5 Nd3 23. Nxb7 Qxb7 24. Bxf8 Rxf8 25. axb5 Qxb5 26. Qxe6+ Kh8 27. Rxa7 {with equality probably not far off. und der Ausgleich ist wahrscheinlich nicht mehr weit entfernt.}) 20... Nbxc1 {As an alternative, Anand mentioned a fascinating counter-sacrifice of the exchange. Als Alternative erwähnte Anand ein faszinierendes Qualitätsgegenopfer.} (20... Rab8 21. Be3 c5 22. Nxb7 Rxb7 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 {when the powerful pair of knights would give Black good prospects. However, White could also consider declining the sacrifice. , wonach das starke Springerpaar Schwarz gute Aussichten bieten würde. Weiß könnte aber auch erwägen, das Opfer abzulehnen.}) 21. Rbxc1 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 {A fascinating situation has arisen. White has knight for rook and pawn, but what a beautiful knight on d6! The computer shows a preference for Black's position, but in practical play it is much easier to handle the White side. Es ist eine faszinierende Situation entstanden. Weiß hat einen Springer für Turm und Bauer, aber was für einen schönen Springer auf d6! Der Computer zeigt eine Präferenz der schwarzen Stellung, aber im praktischen Spiel ist es viel einfacher, die weiße Seite zu behandeln.} Rab8 23. Rd1 {It is important to realise that White's compensation has a long-term character. There is no rush to recover the material. Es ist wichtig zu erkennen, dass die weiße Kompensation einen langfristigen Charakter hat. Es besteht keine Eile, das Material zurückzugewinnen.} (23. axb5 {is significantly weaker: deutlich schwächer ist:} cxb5 24. Nxb7 Rxb7 25. Bxb7 Qxb7 {leaves White a clear pawn down belässt Weiß mit einem klaren Minusbauern}) 23... Ba8 {It is very natural to tuck this bishop away and open the file for the b8-rook. But, ugly as it looks, the immediate Es ist ganz natürlich, diesen Läufer wegzustecken und die Linie für den b8-Turm zu öffnen. Aber, so hässlich es auch aussieht, das sofortige} (23... bxa4 {was perhaps stronger. war vielleicht stärker.} 24. Be4 g6 25. Qxc4 c5 {is an important idea, using the pin on the d-file to exchange bishops. After, for example ist eine wichtige Idee, die die Fesselung auf der d-Linie zum Läufertausch nutzt. Nach zum Beispiel} 26. Rd2 Kh8 27. Qxc5 Bxe4 28. Nxe4 Qb7 {Black stands better, but there is a tough fight ahead. steht Schwarz besser, aber es steht ein harter Kampf bevor.}) 24. Be4 {A powerful move, which reveals a new dimension to White's compensation. There are serious chances of a mating attack on the kingside. Instead Ein starker Zug, der eine neue Dimension der weißen Kompensation offenbart. Es gibt ernsthafte Chancen für einen Mattangriff am Königsflügel. Stattdessen gibt} (24. Nxb5 Qb7 {gives Black counterplay on the b-file Schwarz Gegenspiel auf der b-Linie}) 24... c3 {At first sight, this move is hard to comprehend. Why give up a pawn? The purpose of this move is to open the b-file, to accelerate Black's counterplay in case White plays for mate on the kingside. Compare with the alternative: Auf den ersten Blick ist dieser Zug schwer zu verstehen. Warum einen Bauern aufgeben? Der Zweck dieses Zuges ist es, die b-Linie zu öffnen, um das Gegenspiel von Schwarz zu beschleunigen, falls Weiß am Königsflügel auf Matt spielt. Vergleichen Sie mit der Alternative:} (24... bxa4 25. Bxh7+ Kxh7 26. Qh5+ Kg8 27. Rd4 Rxb2 (27... Qe7 {is better: ist besser:} 28. Rh4 Qxh4 29. Qxh4 {with wild complications mit wilden Komplikationen}) 28. Rh4 Rb1+ 29. Kg2 c5+ 30. Kh3 {and Black is lost, since he must give up the queen to avoid being mated. und Schwarz ist verloren, da er die Dame aufgeben muss, um nicht matt gesetzt zu werden.}) 25. Qc2 (25. bxc3 bxa4 {and now, if White plays for mate, the purpose of 24...c3 becomes clear: und jetzt, wenn Weiß auf Matt spielt, wird der Zweck von 24...c3 klar:} 26. Rd4 c5 27. Bxh7+ Kxh7 28. Rh4+ Kg8 29. Qh5 (29. Qc2 {is little better: ist kaum besser:} Rf5 {wins gewinnt}) 29... Rb1+ {mate! Matt!}) 25... g6 {This weakens the seventh rank, and leaves a hole on f6 which the knight might later exploit. But Das schwächt die siebte Reihe und hinterlässt eine Lücke auf f6, die der Springer später ausnutzen könnte. Aber} (25... h6 {has its own drawbacks, e.g. hat seine eigenen Nachteile, z. B.} 26. Qxc3 bxa4 27. Bc2 {and White is teeing up for Qc3-d3-h7 mate. und Weiß bereitet sich auf das Matt mit Qc3-d3-h7 vor.}) 26. bxc3 bxa4 (26... Qg7 27. f4 g5 {was interesting, and the computer favours Black. But who would willingly blow open the kingside, with all their pieces sitting passively on the back rank? war interessant, und der Computer favorisiert Schwarz. Aber wer würde freiwillig den Königsflügel aufsprengen, wenn alle Figuren passiv auf der Grundreihe stehen?}) 27. Qxa4 Rfd8 {Defending the queen to allow the freeing move c6-c5. Verteidigung der Dame, um den Befreiungszug c6-c5 zu ermöglichen.} 28. Ra1 c5 29. Qc4 Bxe4 30. Nxe4 (30. Qxe4 Rb2 {and White has nothing better than returning the queen to c4. Carlsen's recapture with the knight is more accurate, since the threat of Ne4-f6+ forces Black to make a king move, instead of this more active rook move. und Weiß hat nichts Besseres, als die Dame nach c4 zurückzubringen. Carlsens Schlagzug mit dem Springer ist genauer, da die Drohung Ne4-f6 Schwarz zu einem Königszug zwingt, anstatt diesen aktiveren Turmzug zu machen.}) 30... Kh8 31. Nd6 Rb6 32. Qxc5 Rdb8 33. Kg2 a6 {A patient move. Since sacrificing the exchange, Carlsen has collected two pawns, and at this point certainly has full compensation. But Nepomniachtchi has succeed in exchanging bishops and the rooks have gained in scope. The knight on d6 remains a powerful piece, but there is no obvious way for Carlsen to improve his position. Ein geduldiger Zug. Seit er die Qualität geopfert hat, konnte Carlsen zwei Bauern einsammln und hat zu diesem Zeitpunkt sicherlich volle Kompensation. Aber Nepomniachtchi hat es geschafft, die Läufer zu tauschen, und die Türme haben an Spielraum gewonnen. Der Springer auf d6 bleibt eine starke Figur, aber es gibt keinen offensichtlichen Weg für Carlsen, seine Stellung zu verbessern.} (33... Qc6+ {would be too hurried: wäre zu überstürzt:} 34. Qxc6 Rxc6 35. Rxa7 Rxc3 36. Nf7+ Kg8 37. Ng5 {sees White collect a second pawn on the kingside. Black will not achieve a draw easily. sieht Weiß einen zweiten Bauern am Königsflügel gewinnen. Schwarz wird nicht leicht ein Remis erreichen.}) 34. Kh3 Rc6 35. Qd4 Kg8 36. c4 Qc7 37. Qg4 {This allows a liquidation, to a position where White has just a nominal advantage. That's an understandable decision since there was no obvious way to improve White's position. Dies ermöglicht eine Abwicklung zu einer Stellung, in der Weiß nur einen nominellen Vorteil hat. Das ist eine verständliche Entscheidung, da es keinen offensichtlichen Weg gab, die weiße Stellung zu verbessern.} Rxd6 38. exd6 Qxd6 39. c5 Qxc5 40. Qxe6+ Kg7 41. Rxa6 Rf8 (41... Qxf2 {would be a terrible blunder: wäre ein schrecklicher Fehler:} 42. Qe5+ Kh6 43. Qxb8 Qf1+ 44. Kh4 Qxa6 45. Qf8#) 42. f4 Qf5+ 43. Qxf5 Rxf5 44. Ra7+ Kg8 {With all the pawns on the kingside, the extra pawn is not sufficient to win, as both players knew well. The final moves were played fairly quickly. Da alle Bauern am Königsflügel stehen, reicht der Mehrbauer nicht aus, um zu gewinnen, wie beide Spieler sehr wohl wussten. Die letzten Züge wurden ziemlich schnell gespielt.} 45. Kg4 Rb5 46. Re7 Ra5 47. Re5 Ra7 48. h4 Kg7 49. h5 Kh6 (49... gxh5+ 50. Kxh5 {is still drawn, but Nepomniachtchi's move is safer. ist immer noch remis, aber Nepomniachtchis Zug ist sicherer.}) 50. Kh4 Ra1 51. g4 Rh1+ 52. Kg3 gxh5 53. Re6+ Kg7 54. g5 Rg1+ 55. Kf2 Ra1 56. Rh6 Ra4 57. Kf3 ({Nach} 57. Kg3 Ra3+ 58. Kh4 Ra4 59. Rf6 {ist} h6 {is the simplest am einfachsten.} 60. Kxh5 hxg5 61. Kxg5 {with a trivial draw mit einem trivialen Unentschieden}) 57... Ra3+ 58. Kf2 Ra4 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2021.12.03"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2855"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "271"]
[EventDate "2021.11.26"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

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Thus, he decides to return to his move from Game 2.} Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 {A sneaky move order, trying to go for a Catalan-like setup, but not exactly, as White delays the move c4. Eine raffinierte Zugfolge, die einen katalanischähnlichen Aufbau anstrebt, aber nicht exakt, da Weiß den Zug c4 verzögert.} e6 {Black had plenty of options, but not surprisingly Ian sticks to his repertoire and offers a transposition into the Catalan. Schwarz hatte viele Möglichkeiten, aber es überrascht nicht, dass Ian an seinem Repertoire festhält und einen Übergang zu Katalanisch anbietet.} 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 {'!?' Catalan without c4 being played? What is this? Is it even a challenging line? Frankly speaking, it is not. But as Peter Heine Nielsen (the loyal member of Team Carlsen) said, they don't dare getting opening-edge with White. Their goal is simply to avoid well-trodden lines and get into a fresh area where Magnus could try proving why he is a number one player in the world. The point of Carlsen's move order, trying to sidestep the main line with 6.c4, which is what happened (through the conventional Catalan move order) in game 2. Der Sinn von Carlsens Zugfolge besteht darin, die Hauptvariante mit 6.c4 zu umgehen, welche (durch die konventionelle katalanische Zugfolge) in Partie 2 aufs Brett kam.} (6. c4 dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 {is what happened in game 2.}) 6... c5 {Of course! Black doesn't miss the momentum to challenge the center!} 7. dxc5 {Here too 7.c4 transposes into some kind of theory. With this move, Magnus is hoping to take Ian into the relatively unknown territory. Auch hier verwandelt sich 7.c4 in eine Art Theorie. Mit diesem Zug hofft Magnus, Ian in ein relativ unbekanntes Gebiet zu führen.} Bxc5 {Given the reply, 7...Nc6!? also deserved attention. Angesichts der Antwort verdiente 7...Sc6!? ebenfalls Aufmerksamkeit.} 8. c4 {you don't see often a position that been played only couple of times by move 8. More natural is 8.Bb2, but it takes a lot to surprise a well prepared top player who fights for the World Championship crown and so another unusual move followed. Natürlicher ist 8.Bb2, aber es braucht viel, um einen gut vorbereiteten Spitzenspieler, der um die Weltmeisterschaftskrone kämpft, zu überraschen, und so folgte ein weiterer ungewöhnlicher Zug.} (8. Bb2 {is a more natural follow up.}) 8... dxc4 9. Qc2 $5 {'N' and here comes the official novelty! Creative opening play by Magnus. The c4 pawn is not being recaptured yet. Kreatives Eröffnungsspiel von Magnus. Der c4-Bauer wird noch nicht zurückerobert.} (9. bxc4 {was played in that single in the same year I was born - 1995!} Nc6 {looks totally comfortable for Black.}) 9... Qe7 {Protects the c5 bishop and forces White to recapture the pawn, or so you would think. Schützt den Läufer auf c5 und zwingt Weiß dazu, den Bauern zurückzuerobern, so könnte man meinen.} 10. Nbd2 $5 {another game Magnus is willing to sac a pawn in the opening! Very creative piece of preparation, sacrificing the pawn. Ein sehr kreatives Stück Vorbereitung, der Bauer wird geopfert.} Nc6 $1 {this time Nepo is not interested in having 'extra' pawn and I guess it was the right call! Ian wants to have none of it and doesn't accept the sacrifice. From now on, for some reason, Magnus started taking quite a bit of time. Strange, given that so far, all of Ian's moves have been the top choice of the engines. Ian will davon nichts wissen und nimmt das Opfer nicht an. Von nun an hat Magnus aus irgendeinem Grund angefangen, sich ziemlich viel Zeit zu lassen. Seltsam, wenn man bedenkt, dass bisher alle Züge von Ian die erste Wahl für die Maschinen waren.} (10... cxb3 11. Nxb3 Bd6 12. Nfd2 {bringing Knight to -c4} Nc6 13. Nc4 $132 {White looks to have enough compensation for sacrificed pawn and Black has some difficulties with the development.}) 11. Nxc4 b5 {'!?' Ian meets Carlsen's novelty with enthusiasm! Alternative was 11...e5 or the passive 11...Bd7, but this adventurous move got a lot of praise by the commentators. Die Alternative war 11...e5 oder das passive 11...Ld7, aber dieser abenteuerliche Zug wurde von den Kommentatoren sehr gelobt.} ({RR} 11... e5 12. Bb2 e4 13. Ng5 Bf5 14. Ne3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Bg6 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Nh3 Nb4 18. Qb2 Qe5 19. Qd2 a5 20. Rad1 Rac8 21. Nf4 Kg7 22. Qd7 Rfd8 23. Qxb7 Rb8 24. Qa7 Nc6 25. Qa6 Nb4 26. Qc4 {Dubov,D (2716)-Wei Yi (2722) Dubai UAE 2023 0-1 (66)}) 12. Nce5 Nb4 $146 {The point, now Black avoids losing material on the diagonal. Der Punkt, jetzt vermeidet Schwarz den Materialverlust auf der Diagonale.} (12... Bb7 {is no good due to simple tactical nuance} 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. b4 $1 {now Black is in trouble} Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Bd4 (15... Bxb4 16. Bxa8 Rxa8 17. Qc6 $18) 16. Bxa8 Bxa1 17. Bf3 Qxb4 18. Bd2 Qd4 19. Rb1 $18 {White eventually will return the pawn and yet remain with Bishop pair in an open position, whilst all Black pieces being disharmonized.}) ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Nd3 Bb6 14. Bb2 Rac8 15. Rac1 Nd4 16. Qd2 Nxf3+ 17. Bxf3 Bxf3 18. exf3 Nd5 19. Kg2 h6 20. Qe2 a6 21. Ne5 Qb7 22. Qe4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Ng4 Qc6 26. h4 Qc2 27. Qd4 {Nihal,S (2650)-So,W (2772) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (63)}) 13. Qb2 {There is no action around the h7 square (which could be the case if the bishop had been on b2 and the e5 knight not in the way, threatening Ng5 and Bxf6) and so the queen is better placed here than on b1. Um das Feld h7 herum gibt es keine Action (was der Fall sein könnte, wenn der Läufer auf b2 stünde und der Springer auf e5 nicht im Weg wäre, sodass Sg5 und Lxf6 drohen würde), und so ist die Dame hier besser platziert als auf b1.} Bb7 {Despite the fact Ian got surprised in this game, he handled the position well and now Black seems to have even easier play!} 14. a3 {An exciting deviation would have been 14.Bg5!?. Eine spannende Abweichung wäre 14.Lg5!? gewesen.} (14. Bg5 h6 15. Bh4 {Here Black can go after the h4 bishop with immediate 15...g5!? or 15... Bxf3 16.Bxf3 g5!? and the eventual complications lead to some sort of equality as well, as always, but the lines are much more exciting than after 14.a3. Hier kann Schwarz nach dem Läufer h4 greifen mit sofortigem 15...g5!? oder 15... Lxf3 16.Lxf3 g5!?, und die eventuellen Komplikationen führen wie immer zu einer Art von Ausgleich, wobei die Varianten viel spannender sind als nach 14.a3.}) 14... Nc6 15. Nd3 {typical for Catalan - Knight rethreat. In fact, more often we see the f3-Knight getting to to -e5 and then to -d3. Keeping more pieces on the board. Hält mehr Figuren auf dem Brett.} (15. Bg5 {Is quite drawish, for example ist ziemlich remislich, zum Beispiel} Nxe5 16. Qxe5 {was another way of handling the position.} Bxa3 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qxb5 {And now Black can just give up one of the bishops to simplify. Und jetzt kann Schwarz zur Vereinfachung einfach einen der Läufer aufgeben.} Rab8 19. Qa4 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Bc5 {A position like that is totally fine for Black, as with the full control over the dark squares, there is little danger to the somewhat open king. Eine solche Stellung ist für Schwarz völlig in Ordnung, denn mit der vollen Kontrolle über die dunklen Felder besteht wenig Gefahr für den etwas offenen König.}) 15... Bb6 {Surely, Black doesn't want to give away a powerful c5-Bishop.} 16. Bg5 (16. a4 {Seemed like a natural inclusion at first, but likely Magnus disliked the simplifications after schien zuerst eine natürliche Einschaltung zu sein, aber wahrscheinlich missfielen Magnus die Vereinfachungen nach} Rfd8 $5 17. axb5 Nd4 {And it looks like mass exchanges are likely. und es sieht so aus, als ob ein Massenabtausch wahrscheinlich ist.}) 16... Rfd8 {Useful move, there is no need to push White to take on f6. Nützlicher Zug, es besteht keine Notwendigkeit, Weiß zu drängen, auf f6 zu nehmen.} 17. Bxf6 {White takes anyway, as Nd4 was coming. Weiß nimmt trotzdem, denn Sd4 war zu erwarten.} (17. Rac1 Nd4 {looked good for Black}) 17... gxf6 {'!?' Interesting and ambitious decision! Seems like Nepo tries to play for something more than equality! An interesting choice, perhaps stemming from some ambition. Queen trade would have also been fine. Sometimes in those endgames White can claim a good d3 knight against a "bad" bishop, but with Black pieces so active and bishop being on b6, there is little talk of White fighting for anything. Eine interessante Wahl, die vielleicht aus einem gewissen Ehrgeiz heraus getroffen wurde. Damentausch wäre auch in Ordnung gewesen. Manchmal kann Weiß in diesen Endspielen einen guten d3-Springer gegen einen "schlechten" Läufer behaupten, aber da die schwarzen Figuren so aktiv sind und der Läufer auf b6 steht, ist kaum davon die Rede, dass Weiß um irgendetwas kämpft.} (17... Qxf6 {is what I was expecting from the challenger. By trading off the Queens Black gets pleasant endgame with the Bishop pair.} 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Rfc1 Rac8 {looks totally comfortable for Black}) 18. Rac1 Nd4 {Alternative 18...e5!? would be very double edged, weakening the f5 square, but it isn't easy to exploit that, as 19.Nh4 can be met with 19... Nd4!. Die Alternative 18...e5!? wäre sehr zweischneidig, da sie das Feld f5 schwächt, aber es ist nicht einfach, dies auszunutzen, da 19.Sh4 mit 19... Sd4! beantwortet werden kann.} (18... e5 {with the idea of forking the Knights with ...-e4 leaves f5-square weak.} 19. Nh4 Nd4 {Black controls f5-square with the Knight} 20. b4 $132 (20. e3 $6 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Qb7+ 22. Kg1 Ne6 $36 {followed by ...-Ng5})) 19. Nxd4 Bxd4 20. Qa2 {the Queen is placed weird on -a2. Yet defending the a3-pawn is a temporary task as White is planning to play either b4 or a4 with the next move and later bring back the Queen into the game.} Bxg2 {There were many ways to play this, but Ian chooses to activate the queen and send it to e4. Es gab viele Möglichkeiten, dies zu spielen, aber Ian entschied sich dafür, die Dame zu aktivieren und sie nach e4 zu schicken.} 21. Kxg2 Qb7+ 22. Kg1 Qe4 {Centralization! How to evaluate this position? From one side Black pieces look more active, on the other hand White's totally safe and has better pawn structure. If White manages to coordinate pieces, they can fight for something more than a draw. At the moment I'd call it dynamical equality.} 23. Qc2 {Sort of grabbing the c-file. From now on Rac8 is always an option, though it's never neccessary. Schnappt sich sozusagen die c-Linie. Von nun an ist Tac8 immer eine Option, obwohl es nie notwendig ist.} a5 24. Rfd1 Kg7 {This allows 25.e3!?, instead Black could have gone for 24...f5 when after 25.e3 the bishop has some nice squares to retreat to- f6/g7. Das erlaubt 25.e3!?, stattdessen hätte Schwarz 24...f5 wählen können, worauf der Läufer nach 25.e3 einige schöne Rückzugsfelder auf f6/g7 hat.} (24... f5 $5 {looks natural for Black, supporting the Queen and extending the a1-h8 diagonal for the Bishop.}) 25. Rd2 {As often it happens in chess, engines show trimple zeros in this position. It's not surprising, as sides have more or less symmetrical pawn formations (2 vs 2 on queenside and 4 vs 4 on the other flank) whilst three minor pieces already been traded off. Also, the further simplifications seemingly are not far away either. However, what happened next surprised me a lot. Over two (24.Rfd1 and 25.Rd2) moves the World Champion spent 33 (!) minutes. This actually tells us how, in fact, the position is complicated. These moves (reffering to move 24 and 25 of White) may seem slow, but they are quite deep. Magnus defends his e2-pawn and is ready to trade the Queen on two Rooks in case of ...-Rc8 Commentators like 25.e3, using the fact that the bishop has no comfortable retreating square and 25...Be5 26.Qe2 Bd6 27. Nc5! gives White some risk free pressure. Magnus maybe disliking 25...Rc8 or for some other reason, chose to keep the status quo. Kommentatoren mögen 25.e3, was die Tatsache nutzt, dass der Läufer kein bequemes Rückzugsfeld hat und 25...Le5 26.De2 Ld6 27.Sc5! Weiß gewissen risikolosen Druck gibt. Magnus mochte vielleicht 25...Tc8 nicht oder entschied sich aus einem anderen Grund, den Status quo beizubehalten.} Rac8 {And that's what we see on the board. I'm a bit surprised with Ian's decision, I should tell. No, not beucase that it's a bad move. In point of fact engines like and approve this continuation, however, it felt like there was no reason for Black to enter unbalanced position, whilst the solid play could maintain the equality. Maybe he was trying to play for a win?! This is absolutely not neccessary, but it did lead to chaos, so the fans should be grateful to Ian. Das ist absolut nicht notwendig, aber es hat zu Chaos geführt, also sollten die Fans Ian dankbar sein.} (25... f5 {again looked good} 26. Qd1 Rdc8 $11) 26. Qxc8 Rxc8 27. Rxc8 Qd5 {challenging White's queenside pawns.} 28. b4 a4 {now a3-pawn is Black's potential target} 29. e3 {First critical moment. 29...Bb2 forces the matters, but Ian chooses against it. Der erste kritische Moment. 29...Lb2 forciert die Sache, aber Ian entscheidet sich dagegen.} Be5 $6 {There was a reasonably easy draw in 29...Bb2, but maybe Ian didn't want to look for it from a position of weakness. Es gab ein relativ einfaches Remis mit 29...Lb2, aber vielleicht wollte Ian es nicht aus einer Stellung der Schwäche heraus suchen.} (29... Bb2 30. Rc5 Qd6 31. Rxb2 {Here this is a must. Hier ist dies ein Muss.} Qxd3 32. Rbc2 {Another only move, otherwise White can't keep the queenside pawn from falling, as 32.Ra2?? is met by 32...Qb1+!. Ein weiterer einziger Zug, sonst kann Weiß den Fall des Bauern am Damenflügel nicht verhindern, denn auf 32.Ta2?? kommt 32...Qb1+!.} Qxa3 33. Rxb5 {and now the natural 33...Qb3 is met by 34.Rc1! which is still within a draw, but the easiest is to setup a perpetual. und das natürliche 33...Db3 wird mit 34.Tc1! begegnet, was immer noch in der Remisbreite liegt, aber am einfachsten ist es, ein Dauerschach zu herbeizuführen.} Qa1+ 34. Kg2 Qb1 {And the threat of a3-a2 combined with the Qe4-Qb1 perpetual ideas secure Black a draw. und die Drohung a3-a2 in Kombination mit den Dauerschachideen De4-Db1 sichert Schwarz ein Remis.} 35. Rc4 a3 {looked like an easy draw for Black} 36. Ra5 a2 37. Rg4+ Kf8 38. Ra8+ Ke7 39. Ra7+ Kf8 {only but enough for a draw move.} (39... Kd6 $4 {loses due to} 40. Rd4+ Kc6 41. b5+ $1 {an important nuance} Kxb5 42. Rda4 $18 {and White manages to hold the a-pawn. Black King is way too far from its kingside pawns. White's winning.}) 40. Ra8+ Ke7 {and another game in the match could have ended by three-fold repetition.}) 30. h4 $5 {'!' in post-game commentry Magnus said he won this blockbuster mostly because he was more patient in the game. This is one of the moments where we can see how patiently and masterfully he handled the extremely complicated position. White does not rush, but slightly improve the position. Magnus realizing that Nepo has no follow up, makes a useful move and asks Ian if he wants to play Bb2 after all, but now in a worse version. Magnus erkennt, dass Nepo keine Fortsetzung hat, macht einen nützlichen Zug und fragt Ian, ob er nicht doch Lb2 spielen will, jetzt aber in einer schlechteren Version.} h5 $6 {Again, a move that is approved by the engines, however, for a human eye -h5 looks a bit "weakening". With other words, inclusion of h4-h5 in a long run is a concession for Ian. The pawn on -h5 now (and seems like forever) is fixed on a light square. It cannot be defended by the Bishop anymore. Ian makes another waiting move. But so does Magnus. Ian macht einen weiteren Wartezug. Aber das tut Magnus auch.} (30... Bb2 {still leads to a draw after was still alright here. war hier noch in Ordnung.} 31. Rc5 Qd6 32. Rxb2 Qxd3 33. Rbc2 Qxa3 34. Rxb5 Qa1+ 35. Kg2 Qb1 {'=' the h2 square is there, but the king can't escape. Das Feld h2 ist da, aber der König kann nicht entkommen.} 36. Rc3 Qe4+ 37. Kh2 Qb1 {intending Qf1. mit der Absicht Df1.}) 31. Kh2 $5 {another slow, prophylactic move, shows Magnus' titanic patience!} Bb2 $2 {'??' Black finally does this move, but at the very wrong moment! Actually exactly here, this idea that was always a bail out for Black, loses. Eigentlich genau hier war die Stelle, wo diese Idee, die immer eine Rettung für Schwarz war, verliert.} 32. Rc5 Qd6 (32... Qd7 {leads to a Bishop trap after} 33. Rcc2 $1 Bxa3 34. Ra2 e5 {last try} 35. e4 $1 ({after} 35. Rxa3 {White does not win due to} e4 $11) 35... Qc6 36. Rxa3 Qxe4 37. Raa2 $18) 33. Rd1 $2 {was played instantly, meanwhile 33.Rc2 was very strong! But go figure out without the assistance of the engine! The win was very hard to spot and calculate, but it was there. The sequence Magnus goes for, gives up a pawn and it is not entirely clear what he missed there (perhaps Qd7! idea). Der Gewinn war sehr schwer zu erkennen und zu berechnen, aber er war da. Die Sequenz, die Magnus anstrebt, gibt einen Bauern auf, und es ist nicht ganz klar, was er dort übersehen hat (vielleicht die Idee mit Dd7!).} (33. Rcc2 $1 {The move itself is not obvious, giving up both queenside pawns, but the attack is devastating. Der Zug selbst ist nicht offensichtlich, da er beide Bauern am Damenflügel aufgibt, aber der Angriff ist verheerend.} Bxa3 34. Nf4 $1 {and this line is actually showing why 30...-h5 was not the safest move.} Qxb4 {and now White goes all out for the king. und jetzt setzt Weiß alles auf den König.} (34... Qf8 35. Rc7 Kg8 36. Rdc2 $1 Qxb4 37. Rc8+ Kg7 38. Nxh5+ Kg6 39. Nf4+ Kg7 40. R2c7 Qe4 41. Rd8 $1 $18 {followed by either Rdd7 or Rcc8, White wins the game.}) 35. Rd7 {'!' was out of the radar, is what Magnus admitted in the press conference after the game. White creates a powerful attack on Black's King. Black needs to find a way how to defend from Nxe6 or Rcc7, attacking the f7-pawn.} e5 (35... Qb3 {is the only logical way to do so} 36. Rcc7 e5 37. Nxh5+ Kg6 38. Rc6 $1 {beautiful motif.} Kxh5 39. Rxf6 $18 {Black King is in a mating net! Rdxf7 or Rd8 followed by bringing the Rook onto the h-file with the final touch f3 is one of the main threats of White.}) 36. Nxh5+ Kg6 {You have to see what your follow up is here, otherwise the whole sequence makes little sense. Hier muss man sehen, wie es weitergeht, sonst macht die ganze Sequenz wenig Sinn.} 37. Rc6 $1 {The knight can go, as the Black king finds itself in the mating net and Black's pieces are unable to setup a defense. Der Springer kann weg, da sich der schwarze König im Mattnetz befindet und die schwarzen Figuren nicht in der Lage sind, eine Verteidigung aufzubauen.} Kxh5 {and now both Rxf6 as well as Rxf7 first just lead to checkmate eventually, as the king is basically inside a mating net. und nun führen sowohl Txf6 als auch erst Txf7 einfach zum Matt, da der König im Grunde in einem Mattnetz ist.} 38. Rxf7) (33. Rxb2 {was though a safe option, leading to a drawn endgame once again. war jedoch eine sichere Option, die erneut zu einem remisen Endspiel führte.} Qxd3 34. Rbc2 {here besides Qxa3 Black can also go 34...Qf1!?, when I don't see how White untangles, but Black also doesn't have any reasons to play this for a win. hier kann Schwarz neben Dxa3 auch 34...Df1!? spielen, wonach ich nicht sehe, wie Weiß sich entwirrt, aber Schwarz hat auch keinerlei Gründe, dies auf Gewinn zu spielen.} Qxa3 35. Rxb5 $11) 33... Bxa3 34. Rxb5 Qd7 $1 {is what Magnus overlooked! He believed he manages to hold the b4-pawn, but now he is fated to lose it!} 35. Rc5 {'' only move.} (35. Rxh5 $4 {is a losing move as the Rook gets trapped!} Bxb4 {and Black wins.} 36. Nb2 Qc6 $18 {wins easily} (36... Qxd1 {could be a fun but totally unnecessary line where} 37. Nxd1 a3 {White has two tempi to stop the a-pawn from promoting, but they are unable to do it. Yet, they are not lost and saving the game with.} 38. Rb5 a2 39. Rxb4 a1=Q 40. Rd4 {should be easily holdable.})) 35... e5 {'!?' Yet Ian doesn't take the pawn. He intends to win the game by playing ...-e4 next! Somehow the b4 pawn never got captured. Either Ian didn't see it hanging, or was afraid of some discovery on the queen after Bxb4 Rcc1. Irgendwie wurde der b4-Bauer nie geschlagen. Entweder hat Ian ihn nicht hängen sehen oder er hatte Angst vor einem Abzugsangriff auf die Dame nach Lxb4 Tcc1.} (35... Bxb4 $1 36. Rcc1 Be7 {Here White is on the defensive. Hier ist Weiß in der Defensive.} (36... Ba5 37. Nf4 Qb5 {looked decent for Black, but I bet Ian rejected playing it because of} 38. Rb1 Qf5 {keeping an eye on h5-pawn} (38... Qc6 {leaves the h5-pawn undefended, but with seconds on the clock it's impossible to understand that capturing it actually loses the game for White!} 39. Nxh5+ $2 Kh6 $1 40. Nxf6 (40. Nf4 Qc2 $19) 40... Qf3 41. Kg1 $8 Qxf6 42. Ra1 Qf3 43. Rd3 {[%cal Gd3a3,Ga3a4] maybe it's a fortress... maybe, not?}) 39. Rb7 {now White puts serious pressure along the 7th-rank. Especially in a time trouble situation it's extremely difficult to assess position correctly. Black would be totally fine after} e5 $1 40. Nh3 Qe6 41. Ra7 Qb3 $11) 37. Ne5 Qb5 38. Rd7 Qxe5 39. Rxe7 Qb2 40. Rf1 a3 41. Rd7 a2 42. Rdd1 {and 2 rooks should hold here, but White is very passive and the a-pawn is alive. und 2 Türme sollten hier halten, aber Weiß ist sehr passiv und der a-Bauer ist lebendig.}) 36. Rc2 $2 {Still giving up the b4 pawn. Instead, the rather loose looking 36.e4! is pointed out by the engine, intending 36....Bxb4 37.Rd5, while if 36...Qd4 then 37.Ra5!. Er gibt immer noch den b4-Bauern auf. Stattdessen weist die Engine auf das recht locker wirkend 36.e4! hin, beabsichtigend 36....Lxb4 37.Td5 bzw. auf 36...Dd4 dann 37.Ta5!} (36. e4 {gives Black an opportunity of playing} Qd4 {this doesn't look practically great for White, despite the fact that engines say White is safe after} 37. Ra5 Qc4 $1 38. Rxa4 Qb3 39. Rxa3 Qxa3 40. b5 Qb3 {and b5-pawn falls.} 41. Rd2 Qxb5 42. f3 {and I bet White has to hold it rather easily}) 36... Qd5 $2 {This move amazes me! Black is not into capturing the b4-pawn! Ian starts to drift. He could have collected the b4 pawn. Ian beginnt zu driften. Er hätte den b4-Bauern einsammeln können.} (36... Bxb4 $1 {is although something Black should have played without thinking!} 37. Rcc1 {Now White would be OK, but Black has a strong sequence, saving the extra pawn. Jetzt wäre Weiß okay, aber Schwarz hat eine starke Zugfolge, die den Mehrbauern rettet.} (37. Nb2 Qg4 $1 $19) 37... Ba3 $1 {Not giving White time for a break. Lässt Weiß keine Zeit für eine Pause.} 38. Ra1 (38. Nxe5 Qf5 $19) 38... Qg4 $1 {Black Queen gets out of the x-ray attack, keeps an eye on d1-Rook and yet defends a4-pawn. Next, Black is going to rethreat the Bishop and play ...-a3 The queen steps out of the x-ray. Die Dame entfernt sich aus dem Röntgenangriff.} 39. Rd2 Be7 {and Black could well be winning here, as he can combine the a-pawn with f5-f4 ideas. Very unpleasant for White, though very often you see that there are some fortress ideas eventually. und Schwarz könnte hier durchaus auf Gewinn stehen, da er den a-Bauern mit f5-f4-Ideen kombinieren kann. Sehr unangenehm für Weiß, obwohl man sehr oft sieht, dass es amn Ende einige Festungsideen gibt.} (39... Bf8 $17 {this doesn't look good for White!})) (36... e4 37. Nb2 Qe6 38. Nc4 Bxb4 39. Ra1 Qd7 {looks like what happened in the game with one significant difference. Black's e4-pawn is yet alive!}) 37. Rdd2 (37. Rcd2 {was an alternative}) 37... Qb3 38. Ra2 e4 {'?' Another blunder comes in time trouble! This is panic. It loses, but also in general, it is incredibly risky to kill the mobility of the kingside pawns. Das ist Panik. Es verliert, aber auch generell ist es unglaublich riskant, die Mobilität der Bauern am Königsflügel zu zerstören.} (38... Bxb4 {would probably hold, but not in a fun way. würde wahrscheinlich halten, aber nicht auf eine lustige Art und Weise.} 39. Rdb2 Qxd3 40. Rxb4 f5 (40... a3 41. Ra4 f5 42. R4xa3 Qf1 {seems to be drawish as Black keeps an eye on -f2 pawn and one of the Rooks of White should always be defending the pawn.}) 41. Rbxa4 Qf1 {With pawn on e5 and not on e4, Black has f4 push when neccessary and White is probably not able to pose any real problems here, though he can move around forever, without any risk. Mit dem Bauern auf e5 und nicht auf e4 hat Schwarz wenn nötig die Möglichkeit zu dem Vorstoß f4, und Weiß ist wahrscheinlich nicht in der Lage, hier wirkliche Probleme zu verursachen, obwohl er ewig ohne jedes Risiko herumziehen kann.}) (38... f5 {was best according to engine is the engine way to hold it, but it's a bit far fetched. ist der Engine-Weg, die Sache zu halten, aber es ist ein bisschen weit hergeholt.} 39. Nxe5 (39. Nc5 Qxb4 40. Nxa4 Qb3 {followed by ...-f4 and crushing White King's shield.}) 39... Bc1 40. Re2 a3 41. Rac2 Bb2 42. Nc4 Bf6 {with zeros. mit Nullen.}) 39. Nc5 Qxb4 40. Nxe4 $2 {sad for Magnus, he misses the winning opportunity on critical, the 'control' 40th move! Magnus was probably happy to survive the time trouble and that too, with what looks like a promising position. Instead, he had 40.Rdc2!!, winning the a4 pawn and reaching a won endgame. Magnus war wahrscheinlich froh, die Zeitnot zu überleben, und das auch noch in einer offenbar vielversprechenden Stellung. Stattdessen hatte er 40.Tdc2!!, was den Bauern a4 erobert und ein gewonnenes Endspiel erreicht.} ({Meanwhile} 40. Rdc2 $1 {was nearly winning on the spot!} f5 41. Nxa4 Qxa4 (41... Qb3 42. Nc3 $18 {Knight is getting to -e2 and next hopefully -f4 or -d4.}) (41... Qe7 42. Nc3 Bd6 43. Kg1 f4 44. Nd5 $18) 42. Rc3 {'+-' after the Bishop is taken, White will group the Rooks either on the fifth or seventh rank, after what either f5 or the f7 pawn is going fall.} Qd1 43. Rcxa3 {This endgame looks winning. The idea is that White can smoke the queen out of f1 by using zugzwang. A random example line: Dieses Endspiel sieht gewinnträchtig aus. Die Idee ist, dass Weiß mit Hilfe von Zugzwang die Dame f1 ausräuchern kann. Eine Beispielvariante:} f6 {White can anyway provoke this push later. Weiß kann diesen Vorstoß später sowieso provozieren.} 44. Ra4 Kg6 45. Rd4 Qf1 46. Rd8 Kh6 47. Rd5 Kg6 48. Rad2 {This is the zugzwang position. Once the queen moves, White goes Kg2, the queen is out and then White will join the rooks to target something, for example the 7th rank, or an f-pawn. Black probably has to push f4 and the conversion will take some time, but it feels inevitable and the high engine evaluation suggests the same. Dies ist die Zugzwangstellung. Sobald die Dame zieht, spielt Weiß Kg2, die Dame ist raus, und dann wird Weiß die Türme verbinden, um etwas anzuvisieren, zum Beispiel die 7. Reihe oder einen f-Bauern. Schwarz muss wahrscheinlich mit f4 vorgehen, und die Umwandlung wird einige Zeit in Anspruch nehmen, aber sie scheint unvermeidlich zu sein, und die hohe Engine-Bewertung deutet auf dasselbe hin.}) 40... Qb3 {The fortieth move has been played. The world witnessed Huge Drama! I can only imagine the emotions Team Magnus and Team Nepo had following this game. Despite numerous errors from both sides, position has again stabilized. Now another phase in the game is starting. Good move, Black stays in the game, as he keeps his a-pawn. Guter Zug, Schwarz bleibt im Spiel, da er seinen a-Bauern behält.} 41. Rac2 {prepares Nc5 with the next move, from where it most probably is being redeployed to f4.} Bf8 42. Nc5 (42. Rc8 {is fun, but there is not more than a draw, after macht Spaß, aber es gibt nicht mehr als ein Unentschieden nach} a3 43. Rdd8 a2 44. Rxf8 a1=Q {Black king is almost in a mating net, but not quite. White doesn't have a mate here, only different kinds of perpetual checks. Der schwarze König befindet sich fast in einem Mattnetz, aber nicht ganz. Weiß hat hier kein Matt, nur verschiedene Arten von Dauerschach.}) 42... Qb5 (42... Bxc5 $4 {cannot be played} 43. Rxc5 a3 44. Rc1 $18 {[%cal Gc1a1] followed by Ra1; Rda2 and winning the a-pawn.}) 43. Nd3 a3 {Black gets the passer quite far, protected by the f8 bishop. It is now hard for white to do much, though obviously it is White that can press without any risk here. Schwarz bekommt den Freibauern ziemlich weit, geschützt durch den Läufer auf f8. Jetzt ist es für Weiß schwer, viel zu tun, obwohl offensichtlich er derjenige ist, der ohne Risiko Druck machen kann.} 44. Nf4 {yes, Magnus does bring the Knight on f4. Still position shouldn't be bad for Black.} Qa5 45. Ra2 Bb4 46. Rd3 {White is not in time to pick up the h-pawn with Rd5 and then prevent Qa4-Qb3 counterplay. Weiß ist nicht in der Lage, mit Td5 den h-Bauern zu erobern und dann das Gegenspiel Da4-Db3 zu verhindern.} (46. Rd5 {might win a pawn but worsen White's chances.} Qa6 47. Nxh5+ $6 Kh6 48. Nf4 Qc4 {now White's pieces are discoordinated.} 49. Ra1 Qc3 50. Rdd1 Qc2 51. Nd3 Bf8 $36 {followed by ..-a2}) 46... Kh6 {King comes to a defense of the h5-pawn so now the Queen is free to move around.} 47. Rd1 Qa4 48. Rda1 Bd6 49. Kg1 Qb3 50. Ne2 {Magnus decides his Knight has no longer any potential on -f4 and brings it to -d4 and perhaps later c2-a3?} Qd3 51. Nd4 Kh7 {in order not to get any unpleasant forks from f5.} 52. Kh2 {White can move around endlessly, but Nc2 is not a threat, due to Be5. It seemed as though Black has achieved a fortress, but suddenly he decided to give White a chance to change the nature of the position. Weiß kann endlos herumziehen, aber Sc2 ist aufgrund von Le5 keine Drohung. Es schien, als hätte Schwarz eine Festung erreicht, aber plötzlich entschied er sich, Weiß eine Chance zu geben, den Charakter der Stellung zu ändern.} Qe4 $6 {another controversial decision by Ian. Perhaps another moment where we see Magnus' patience and endurance were superior 'that day'. Possibly a miscalculation. There was no need to trade the a-pawn for the h-pawn and the arising position is not too pleasant to defend, even if still holdable. Möglicherweise eine Fehlkalkulation. Es bestand keine Notwendigkeit, den a-Bauern gegen den h-Bauern zu tauschen, und die entstandene Stellung ist nicht allzu angenehm zu verteidigen, auch wenn sie noch zu halten ist.} (52... Kg6 {A waiting move is what I'd consider doing. The critical thing is, there's yet no direct plan for White how to improve the position!} 53. Nc2 {might look annoying as White's got already three (!) attacks on a3-pawn, but Black has got} Be5 $1 {now} 54. Nd4 {is best what White has got.} (54. Nxa3 {with the try of getting Rook+Knight+pawn against the Queen, in fact might cost White the game.} Qb3 $1 {and White's paralyzed. Next, ...-Bxa1, Rxa1-Qb2 is the idea.})) 53. Rxa3 $1 {Now White gets some hopes!} Qxh4+ (53... Bxa3 54. Rxa3 {[%csl Gh5][%cal Ga3a5,Ga5h5] should be very unpleasant for Black. All their pawns are isolated.}) 54. Kg1 Qe4 {moving to g4 seems more accurate, as it allows a pawn trade. Der Zug nach g4 scheint genauer zu sein, da er einen Bauerntausch ermöglicht.} (54... Qg4 55. Ra4 Be5 56. R1a2 {alternatively 56.Kg2 is met with either 56...Qd7!? or 56...h6!? 57.Rh1 Bxg3! which holds after 58.fxg3 Qe4+! and some further complications. Alternativ wird 56.Kg2 entweder mit 56...Dd7!? oder 56...h6!? beantwortet. 57.Th1 Lxg3!, was nach 58.fxg3 De4+! und einigen weiteren Komplikationen hält.} (56. Kg2 h4 57. Rh1 Bxg3 58. fxg3 Qe4+ 59. Nf3 Qc2+ $1 60. Kf1 Qd3+ $1 (60... Qxa4 $2 61. Rxh4+ $1) 61. Kf2 Qc2+ $1 {an important line, that is very hard to spot. eine wichtige Variante, die sehr schwer zu erkennen ist.}) 56... Qd1+ 57. Kg2 h4 $1 {Trading the weak h-pawn, definitely an achievement for Black. Tauscht den schwachen h-Bauern, definitiv ein Erfolg für Schwarz.} 58. Nf5 hxg3 59. Nxg3 {Black is still suffering, but he is closer to a draw I would feel than before h4-hxg3. Schwarz leidet immer noch, aber ich denke, er ist einem Remis näher als vor h4-hxg3.}) (54... Bxg3 $2 55. fxg3 Qxg3+ 56. Kf1 $18 {and it seems like Black has no eternal checks}) (54... Qh3 55. Ra7 (55. Ra4 $5 {would be quite a try} h4 56. Nf3 Bxg3 $1 57. Rf1 $1 {now White threatens to capture the BIshop, since f3-Knight is defended already} Qd7 $1 58. Rd4 Bd6 $1 59. Rxh4+ Kg7 {After numerous 'only moves', many pawns been removed from the board. I believe Black should be able holding this endgame rather easily.}) 55... h4 56. Rxf7+ Kg8 $1 57. Raa7 hxg3 58. Rg7+ Kh8 59. Rh7+ Qxh7 60. Rxh7+ Kxh7 61. f4 Kg6 62. Kg2 f5 {leads to a drawish endgame.}) 55. Ra4 $1 {Only move for fighting for some edge. With such little annoying moves, Magnus puts serious pressure on his opponents... Usual Magnus stuff...} Be5 (55... Bxg3 56. Ne2 $18) 56. Ne2 Qc2 57. R1a2 Qb3 58. Kg2 {Also Kh2 deserved attention here. Auch Kh2 verdiente hier Aufmerksamkeit.} (58. Kh2 Kg6 $1 {The move to hold on, but Black might not have such an easy task in the rook endgame. Der Zug zum Durchhalten, aber Schwarz könnte im Turmendspiel keine so leichte Aufgabe haben.} 59. Nf4+ Bxf4 60. gxf4 {though most likely it holds with patient defense. obwohl es höchstwahrscheinlich bei geduldiger Verteidigung hält.}) 58... Qd5+ 59. f3 {With last moves White was trying to stabilize and improve King's safety. Objectively, such positions (with perfect play) should end in a draw, however, the problem with Black's position is, they have no much of counterplay. Usually, in such positions White's strategy is to keep the tension and simply potter around. The longer game is, the more Black's chances of going wrong are! Intuitively one wouldn't be thrilled to push the pawn forward, creating the weaknesses, but Carlsen wanted to dislodge Ian's bishop and found a safe spot for his king on f2. Still, 59.Kh2 was definitely a worth alternative, trying to maneuvre around with ideas like Ng1!?. Intuitiv wäre man nicht begeistert, den Bauern nach vorne zu schieben und damit Schwächen zu erzeugen, aber Carlsen wollte Ians Läufer verdrängen und fand einen sicheren Platz für seinen König auf f2. Dennoch war 59.Kh2 definitiv eine lohnende Alternative, um mit Ideen wie Sg1!? herumzumanövrieren.} Qd1 {Black could push f5 right away, but he chooses not to commit yet. Schwarz könnte sofort mit f5 vorgehen, aber er entscheidet sich dafür, sich noch nicht festzulegen.} 60. f4 {In the following phase of the game a lot of random moves are happening. Black is trying to tie white's pieces to the weak e3 pawn, not to allow White to coordinated his forces and collect the pawn weaknesses, or even worse, deliver a checkmate somewhere. In der folgenden Phase der Partie finden viele zufällige Züge statt. Schwarz versucht, die weißen Figuren an den schwachen e3-Bauern zu binden, um Weiß nicht die Möglichkeit zu geben, seine Kräfte zu koordinieren und die Bauernschwächen einzukassieren oder, noch schlimmer, irgendwo ein Matt zu geben.} Bc7 61. Kf2 Bb6 62. Ra1 Qb3 {Black tries putting as much pressure as possible. White has to defend -e3 pawn now.} 63. Re4 {That's what they do} Kg7 64. Re8 {Now White's plan is to play Raa8 and create mating threats!} f5 {Ian opens an air for the King} 65. Raa8 Qb4 66. Rac8 {Again, despite the fact that engines show triple zeros, it's extremely hard to come up with some active plan for Black. Cause, it simply does not exist. Black should instead be in a waiting mode and parry all White's little ideas. That's one of the most difficult things to do in chess. Especially for ambitious Ian.} Ba5 {Black tries to get the Queen on e1} 67. Rc1 {Prevented.} Bb6 68. Re5 {now -f5 is being attacked.} Qb3 {-f5 is defended by attacking the -e3 pawn.} 69. Re8 {Rook return to the place where it came from. Magnus repeats position (had Black played 69...-Qb4). Not because he accepts the draw. It's done to extend the game and tire the opponent.} Qd5 70. Rcc8 Qh1 71. Rc1 Qd5 (71... Qh2+ 72. Kf3 h4 {trying to weaken White's King} 73. gxh4 $18 {[%cal Ge2g3] only weakens Black's! Knight on -g3 will be defending White and attacking Black's King!}) 72. Rb1 {as we can see, position hasn't changed for at least the last ten moves. In such cases the defending side often gets the illusion that he controls the position any way. This illusion may sometimes be misleading. With the next move Ian does small inaccuracy after what Magnus gets a chance to transform the position into Q vs R+N+2p, where the chances of White are higher than they were in case of Q vs 2R A lot of shuffling back and forth, Black must stay alert. Viel Hin- und Hergeschiebe, Schwarz muss wachsam bleiben.} Ba7 {Understandable to keep the bishop on the diagonal hitting the e3 pawn, but there are some concrete issues now. Alternative 72...Bd8! seems to have been better. Verständlich, den Läufer auf der Angriffsdiagonale zum e3-Bauern zu lassen, aber es gibt jetzt einige konkrete Probleme. Die Alternative 72...Ld8! scheint besser gewesen zu sein.} (72... Bd8 73. Re5 Qd3 74. Rbb5 h4 75. Rxf5 hxg3+ 76. Nxg3 Bh4 {Black is holding here, as the White king is too exposed. Schwarz hält sich hier, da der weiße König zu exponiert ist.}) (72... Bc7 {was better. But who would understand that in a practical game?!}) 73. Re7 Bc5 74. Re5 {Suddenly Black has to make only moves. Plötzlich muss Schwarz einzige Züge machen.} Qd3 75. Rb7 {now White Rooks found the ideal setup. How to defend the Bishop? The queen far from h1, allowing White to create all kinds of threats with the rooks. Die Dame ist weit weg von h1, was Weiß erlaubt, mit den Türmen alle möglichen Drohungen zu erzeugen.} Qc2 (75... Bd6 76. Rd7 $18) 76. Rb5 {seems like Black is totally lost now. But tactical nuance keeps them in the game} Ba7 {Black finds a way not to lose the f5 pawn for nothing, but the ensuing position is extremely unpleasant, even though objectively drawn. Schwarz findet einen Weg, den f5-Bauern nicht umsonst zu verlieren, aber die entstehende Stellung ist äußerst unangenehm, obwohl sie objektiv remis ist.} 77. Ra5 Bb6 78. Rab5 Ba7 79. Rxf5 {is what happened couple moves later} Qd3 {'!' Both Rooks are loaded by defending each other. Any Rook coming to e5 in fact doesn't defend the e3-pawn. Black managed to create some play now, as Bxe3+ is there, but now we reach another kind of endgame. Schwarz hat es jetzt geschafft, etwas Spiel zu schaffen, da es Lxe3+ gibt, aber jetzt erreichen wir eine andere Art von Endspiel.} 80. Rxf7+ $1 (80. Rfe5 Bxe3+ 81. Rxe3 Qxb5 $11) (80. Rbe5 Bxe3+ 81. Rxe3 Qxf5 $11) 80... Kxf7 81. Rb7+ Kg6 82. Rxa7 {That's the position we were talking about in our comments to move 72. With the given material on the board Black should still be able to hold the position, however, some precision is already being required from them! That's the position we were talking about on move 72. With given material on the board Black should still be able to hold the endgame, however, some precision is already being required now! We get a terribly unpleasant endgame for Black, which, with perfect defense should be holdable. A lot of shuffling ensues. Wir bekommen ein furchtbar unangenehmes Endspiel für Schwarz, das bei perfekter Verteidigung zu halten sein sollte. Es folgt eine Menge Hin und Her.} Qd5 83. Ra6+ {I remembered one more beautiful game with a similar material balance (R+N+p vs Q) by Carlsen. For those who are interested in studying more of such unbalanced endgame, I'd recommend seeing Carlsen,M - Navara,D game from Biel, 2018.} Kh7 84. Ra1 Kg6 85. Nd4 Qb7 86. Ra2 Qh1 87. Ra6+ Kf7 88. Nf3 Qb1 89. Rd6 Kg7 90. Rd5 Qa2+ 91. Rd2 Qb1 92. Re2 Qb6 93. Rc2 Qb1 94. Nd4 Qh1 95. Rc7+ Kf6 96. Rc6+ Kf7 97. Nf3 Qb1 98. Ng5+ Kg7 99. Ne6+ Kf7 100. Nd4 Qh1 {First 'Century' of the match! You don't see it in chess as often as in snooker!} 101. Rc7+ Kf6 102. Nf3 Qb1 103. Rd7 Qb2+ 104. Rd2 Qb1 105. Ng1 {Magnus decides for the Ne2, Rd4 and e4 setup. Magnus entscheidet sich für den Aufbau Se2, Td4 und e4.} Qb4 106. Rd1 Qb3 107. Rd6+ Kg7 108. Rd4 Qb2+ 109. Ne2 Qb1 110. e4 {with last nearly 40 moves Magnus did nothing much on the board but exhaust his opponent. Ian most probably has to defend for another 50 moves, until Magnus advanced the pawn again one may think...} Qh1 111. Rd7+ Kg8 112. Rd4 Qh2+ 113. Ke3 h4 {Ian takes some actions first. By trading off his last pawn he wants to open up the position of the White King, so he can check it from the flanks as well. On the other hand, g3-pawn was the weakest point in White's position. The e2-Knight was tied to it. Now, once it's gone, g3-square becomes vacant for the Knight. Opening more files should easen Black's defensive task. Das Öffnen von mehr Linien sollte die Verteidigungsaufgabe von Schwarz erleichtern.} 114. gxh4 Qh3+ 115. Kd2 Qxh4 116. Rd3 Kf8 117. Rf3 Qd8+ 118. Ke3 {Now as rightly pointed out by Magnus, getting the knight to g3 was of a great importance for him. Therefore Black had to give a check on b6, inviting the knight to a more central square, but giving White king less safe space on the board. Wie Magnus richtig hervorhob, war es jetzt für ihn von großer Bedeutung, den Springer nach g3 zu bringen. Daher musste Schwarz ein Schach auf b6 geben, was den Springer auf ein zentraleres Feld einlädt, aber dem weißen König weniger sicheren Raum auf dem Brett gibt.} Qa5 $2 119. Kf2 $1 Qa7+ 120. Re3 {Now Magnus gets quite some hopes, as he has a plan of pushing the pawns forwards and with the knight on g3 and king on f3, his king is quite well positioned. Jetzt macht sich Magnus durchaus einige Hoffnungen, denn er hat den Plan, die Bauern nach vorne zu treiben, und mit dem Springer auf g3 und dem König auf f3 steht sein König recht gut.} Qd7 121. Ng3 {Knight stands great on g3. It defends the -e4 pawn and guards the King from checks} Qd2+ 122. Kf3 Qd1+ 123. Re2 Qb3+ 124. Kg2 Qb7 125. Rd2 Qb3 126. Rd5 {The Rook is activated. Seems like White managed to improve the position significantly. Yet, this position is a draw, according to endgame databases.} Ke7 127. Re5+ Kf7 128. Rf5+ Ke8 129. e5 {As it's said in a well known quote: 'Once your all pieces stand well, push your passed pawn!"} Qa2+ 130. Kh3 Qe6 {'?' RIght it's past midnight in Dubai, after 7 hours and 35 minutes of battling, Nepo makes a crutial mistake! Now, according to Lomonosov's 7-piece endgame tablebase White's winning. The losing move according to the tablebases. Keeping the queen behind, would still hold objectively, but by this point it was no easy task. Practically speaking, I feel on move 118 a major mistake happened. Der Verlustzug laut Tablebases. Die Dame hinten zu halten würde objektiv immer noch remisieren, aber zu diesem Zeitpunkt war es keine leichte Aufgabe. Praktisch gesehen glaube ich, dass in Zug 118 ein größerer Fehler passiert ist.} (130... Qb1 {was one of the two moves that keeps Black in the game. Idea is to get the Queen to -d1.} 131. Rf6 Qd1 132. Kh4 (132. Rd6 Qf3 $1 {and Black is safe}) 132... Qe1 $1 {again strictly the only move!} 133. Kg4 Qg1 {and Black is safe. But it's unhuman way of defending!}) (130... Qc2 {with the same idea}) 131. Kh4 {Next is Nh5 and the White king gets to hide in front of the pieces, leaking in via g5-h6. Es folgt Nh5 und der weiße König kann sich vor den Figuren verstecken und über g5-h6 eindringen.} Qh6+ 132. Nh5 Qh7 {The problem with last move of Black is that it's not even threatening anything!} 133. e6 $1 {Carlsen shows extreme precision on 8th hour of the intense battle! The clincher, using the fact that the rook can't be taken because of the fork. Der Gewinnzug, die Tatsache nutzend, dass der Turm wegen der Gabel nicht genommen werden kann.} Qg6 (133... Qxf5 {loses to elementary} 134. Ng7+ $18) (133... Qe7+ 134. Kg4 (134. Rf6 $4 Qa7) 134... Qb7 135. Rd5 $1 {beautiful way of killing all Black's hopes}) (133... Qa7 134. Kg5 {only!} Qg1+ 135. Kf6 {activity of the King decides the game!}) 134. Rf7 Kd8 (134... Qh6 {in one of the live broadcasts a very strong GM suggested} 135. Rh7 $2 {it shows how tiring a chess game can be and how difficult it is to keep the concentration for the duration of 7-8 hours! It's never late to make a mistake and lose a game...} Qxh7 {and there's no Nf6 fork due to the pin. Black wins!}) (134... Qxe6 135. Ng7+ Kxf7 136. Nxe6 Kxe6 137. Kg5 {leads to a winning pawn endgame} Kf7 138. Kf5 $1 $18 {Last touch. The opposition.}) 135. f5 Qg1 136. Ng7 {'!' What a beautiful final touch! Carlsen creates an escape square on -g8 for the King. Black resigns. I bet this game will be remembered yet for a very long time. That's when Magnus turned the equal going match into his favor. A very elegant win. White runs the king up the board to g8, where it hides from checks and then e7-e8 decides. What a game! Ein sehr eleganter Sieg. Weiß lässt den König das Brett hinauf nach g8 laufen, wo er sich vor Schachs versteckt, und dann entscheidet e7-e8. Was für eine Partie!} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.15"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "42"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 b6 7. b3 Bb7 8. Bd3 Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bb2 c5 ({RR} 10... Re8 11. Rad1 Rc8 12. e4 e5 13. exd5 cxd5 14. Nb5 Bb8 15. dxe5 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Bxe5 18. Bxe5 Rxe5 19. Nd6 Nd5 20. Nxc8 Nf4 21. Kh1 Rh5 22. Bxf7+ {1-0 (22) Shankland,S (2725)-Dreev,A (2670) Chess.com INT 2019}) ({RR} 10... h6 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Nf6 14. c5 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Bc7 16. Ne5 Qd5 17. Qxd5 exd5 18. Rac1 b5 19. Rfe1 Rfd8 20. Bc3 Re8 21. f3 f6 22. Nd3 Kf7 23. Rxe8 Rxe8 24. Re1 Ra8 25. Bd2 {Yanchenko,R (2462)-Esipenko,A (2599) Yaroslavl 2018 ½-½ (56)}) 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. e4 d4 14. Nb5 Bf4 15. g3 Bb8 16. Ba3 Ng4 {½-½ (16) Czakon,J (2477)-Stohl,I (2533) Czech Republic 2005}) ({RR} 12. h3 Rc8 13. Qe2 Re8 14. Nb5 Bb8 15. Rfd1 Qe7 16. Rac1 Ne4 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Bb1 Ndf6 19. Nc3 Nxc3 20. Bxc3 d4 21. Bd2 Qd6 22. Bf5 Rcd8 23. Ba5 Bxf3 24. Qxf3 Qh2+ 25. Kf1 Rd5 26. e4 Rxf5 {Jian,A (2031)-Poormosavi,S (2381) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 12... Re8 13. Rac1 a6 14. Bf5 Rc8 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. Na4 Rc7 17. Bc3 Qe7 18. Ba5 Rc6 19. Bc3 Rc7 20. Ba5 Rc6 21. Bc3 Rc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.16"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2865"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,71,34,34,28,-11,-16,-16,-8,-50,-17,-11,4,-17,19,-70,-67,-67,17,-34,-34,-34,-11,-58,-23,-89,4,19,-9,-7,-37,-51,-22,-28,-28,-73,-53,-41,40,-47,-4,-11,-2,-26,59,16,16,-33,82,134,151,179,179,202,220,224,224,224,224,165,165,176,176,119,197,191,190,212,197,181,231,229,226,227]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Na3 $6 {Magnus had added the Catalan to his repertoire for the World Championship match, and there played the main move 7 Qc2. With Giri being an expert on the white side as well, it felt natural to try and surpise with a sideline, even at the price of it being perhaps somewhat dubious.} Bxa3 8. bxa3 Bd7 {The solid and sensible reply. 8...b5 is possible, as 9 a4 can be answered by 9...a6! due to white having doubled pawns in the a-line. White has ways to get decent compensation, but whe is objectively better is an open question.} 9. a4 $5 {Vey rare.} Bc6 10. Ba3 Re8 11. Qc2 Nbd7 12. Rac1 {It is a strange kind of position where white can get his pawn back by Qxc4, but only to immediately lose one back after the reply ...Nb6. For black it is not that trivial making a useful move here. 12...Bd5 is followed by13 Rfe1 with e4 to follow, and 12...Nb6 obviously is poked by 13.a5. The game move, along with 12...a5 are reasonable choices, and leads to position like in the game, where white will be a pawn down, but for sufficient compensation.} a6 13. Qxc4 Nb6 14. Qc3 $5 {Luring the knight to tale onm a4 instead of the bishop, and thus getting black a bit more out of balance.} ({RR} 14. Qd3 Be4 15. Qb3 Bd5 16. Qd3 Be4 17. Qb3 Bd5 18. Qc2 a5 19. Rfe1 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Qxd4 21. Bxb7 Rab8 22. Bc6 Red8 23. Red1 Qe5 24. e4 Qh5 25. Be7 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 Ng4 27. h4 f6 28. Bb5 Qg6 {Nilsen,J (2406)-Oye-Stromberg,A (2318) Norway NOR 2025 ½-½ (33)}) 14... Nxa4 15. Qb3 {Again Giri is left with atypical positions to evaluate.} Qd5 $146 (15... Nb6 16. Rxc6 bxc6) ({and} 15... Bb5 16. Rfe1 {followed by 17 e4 obviously leaves whote with compensation for either the exchange or the pawn. Again, it is not a given that it is white who is objectively better, but the pressure on black is considerable from a practical perspective.}) ({RR} 15... Bb5 16. Rfe1 Rc8 17. e4 c6 18. h4 Nd7 19. e5 c5 20. Ng5 cxd4 21. Be4 g6 22. Qf3 Nxe5 23. Qf4 Rxc1 24. Bxc1 f6 25. Nxh7 Kxh7 26. Bxg6+ Kg8 27. Rxe5 Qc7 28. Qxf6 Qxc1+ 29. Kh2 Rf8 30. Bh7+ {Ivanisevic,I (2601)-Cvitan,O (2458) Terme Catez 2022 1-0}) 16. Rxc6 $1 Qxc6 17. Ne5 Qb5 18. Qc2 $1 {Black is a pawn and an exchange up, but the threat of 19.Rb1 still leves him in a very critical situation.} Nd5 $2 (18... Reb8 19. Rb1 Qe8 {is the way to somewhat cordinate while still keeping the knight on a4 protected, but after} 20. Bxb7 {white wins back the pawn and the exchange, keeping some edge.}) ({It is however possible to cut the gordian knot by} 18... Nb6 $1 19. Bxb7 Nc4 $1 {when the tactics do work out in black's favor to the extend that he secures the draw after} 20. Bxa8 Nxa3 21. Qxc7 $2 ({and thus white is left with} 21. Qc6 {when} Qxe2 {holds the balance}) 21... Rxa8 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 23. Qxe6 Qe8 $1 {parries the attack,}) 19. Rb1 Qa5 20. Bxd5 $6 {Probably enough to keep a winning position,} ({but} 20. Be4 $1 {was a much cleaner solution. The point being that after} g6 21. Bxd5 {White gets a much improved version of the game. The f6 square is weakened, but even more importantly so is the 7. rank! The main point being} Qxd5 {now can be met by} 22. Qxc7 b5 23. Qxf7+ Kh8 24. Rc1 $1 {with an immediate win as 25 Rc7 is unstoppable with mate to follow.}) 20... exd5 $2 {Giri thought for quite a while here, making this a puzzling mistake.} (20... Qxd5 {now is possible as} 21. Qxc7 (21. Qxa4 f6 $1 22. Nd3 Qxa2) 21... b5 $1 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 {leaves white lacking an obvious next move to strengthen the attack. So he will have to settle for 21 Qxa4 f6! 22 Nd3 Qxa2.}) (20... Nc3 21. Bb4 $1 Nxe2+ 22. Qxe2 Qxd5 23. Rc1 c6 {In both scenarios white has the better position where his 2 pieces and attacking chances outweighs black's rook and 2 pawns. Still black very much has chances to defend, especially due to the black pawn still being on g7!}) 21. Rxb7 {Blacks position is worse than it perhaps seems. The threat is 22 Bb4 trapping the black queen, and while it can escape via 22...Qe1+ it just means that after 23 Kg2 the knight on a4 lacks protection. Thus black has to time to defend against the threat on the 7-rank. Giri takes drastic measures, but it is too late.} c5 22. Qf5 Rf8 23. Nxf7 Qd8 24. dxc5 $1 {Blacks problem is that while he did hame numerous way to prevent immediate mate, they all come at too high a price.} Qf6 $5 25. Qxf6 $1 {The only winning move, as} (25. Qxd5 $4 Nc3 $1 {turns the tables to the extend where it is white who then has to force the draw with} 26. Nh6+ Kh8 27. Nf7+) 25... gxf6 26. Nh6+ Kh8 27. c6 Rfc8 28. c7 {Black is doomed to passively await the transfer of the white knight to d6.} Nc3 29. Bb2 d4 30. Nf7+ Kg7 31. Nd6 Kg6 {oses trivialy.} (31... Nxe2+ 32. Kf1 Nc3 33. Bxc3 dxc3 34. Ke2 {oses trivially.}) 32. Kf1 Nb5 33. Nxc8 Rxc8 34. a4 Nxc7 35. Bxd4 Ne6 36. Be3 {And here Giri resigned.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.22"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Praggnanandhaa, Rameshbabu"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2612"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 dxc4 4. e3 a6 5. Bxc4 Nf6 6. O-O c5 7. b3 b6 8. Ba3 Nbd7 9. d5 exd5 10. Bxd5 Rb8 11. Bb2 Be7 12. Nc3 O-O 13. Qc2 b5 14. Rfd1 Qc7 15. a4 $146 ({RR} 15. Be4 Nb6 16. Bd3 Bg4 17. Ne4 Bxf3 18. gxf3 Nfd5 19. Ng3 g6 20. Be4 Rfd8 21. f4 Rbc8 22. a4 bxa4 23. Bxd5 Nxd5 24. Rxd5 Rxd5 25. Qc3 f6 26. Qc4 Qb7 27. e4 Qxb3 28. Qxd5+ Kf8 29. Qxb3 axb3 {Le,Q (2728)-Aronian,L (2759) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (57)}) 15... h6 16. axb5 axb5 17. Qe2 Qb6 18. e4 Re8 19. Qd2 Bf8 20. Qf4 b4 21. Na4 Nxd5 22. Rxd5 Qe6 23. Rad1 Ra8 24. Qc1 Qxe4 25. h3 Ra7 26. Qd2 Qg6 27. Nh4 Qe6 28. Nf5 c4 29. Qd4 Nf6 30. Nb6 c3 31. Nxc8 Qxd5 32. Qxd5 Nxd5 33. Nxa7 cxb2 34. Rb1 Re2 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.23"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Shankland, Samuel L"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D32"]
[WhiteElo "2708"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. cxd5 cxd4 5. Qa4+ Bd7 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. Qxd5 Nf6 8. Qb3 Na6 9. Nf3 Nc5 10. Qc2 Rc8 11. e3 Nce4 12. Bd3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nd5 14. O-O Nxc3 15. Bb2 Bb4 $146 ({RR} 15... Na4 16. Qe2 Nxb2 17. Qxb2 Qb6 18. Qe5+ Qe6 19. Rab1 b6 20. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 21. Rxc1 Qxe5 22. Nxe5 Bc5 23. Bc4 Be6 24. Bxe6 fxe6 25. Nd3 Kf7 26. Nxc5 bxc5 27. Rxc5 Rb8 28. g3 Kf6 29. Rc7 a5 30. Ra7 {Ismagilov,D (2173)-Tari,A (2636) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (56)}) 16. Bxc3 Bxc3 17. Rab1 Bf6 18. Qe2 Rc7 19. e4 O-O 20. e5 Be7 21. Nd4 Bc5 22. e6 Bxe6 23. Nxe6 fxe6 24. Qxe6+ Kh8 25. Qh3 h6 26. Qg3 Rd7 27. Rb3 Rf6 28. h3 b6 29. Be2 Rd2 30. Rd3 Rxd3 31. Bxd3 Qd6 32. Qxd6 Rxd6 33. Rd1 g5 34. Kf1 Kg7 35. Bc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.25"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2865"]
[BlackElo "2767"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,53,58,42,26,19,50,-24,-14,-55,-34,-40,-40,3,10,-24,11,-37,22,-75,3,-5,31,21,22,1,119,117,152,81,149,132,132,132,124,124,125,72,184,87,186,165,187,124,111,122,122,50,115,45,213,143,225,225,235,235]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 a5 {Perhaps a sideline against the Catalan, but a respectable one used by Topalov in both his WC matches against Kramnik and Anand. For Magnus it was perhaps bad memories, as back in 2010, in Wijk Aan Zee, he lost with the white pieces against excatly Kramnik. Then he tried the rare 7 Nc3, while by now 7 Qc2 has been accepted as the main line.} 7. O-O O-O 8. e3 $6 {While 7 0-0 is still quite respectable, this is considered dubious, and when Mamedyarov at the closing ceremony praised Magnus for playing like a computer, he highligthed exactly 8 e3 as the exception! And, like versus Giri, this does indeed initiate a sequence where one can argue that who is objectively better is an open question, then from a practical perspective it is white who has the fun of attacking the opposing king!} Ra6 $5 {Numerous moves exist, but this one is praised by the computer and it is likely that Mamedyarov recalled it from his preparations. Black now keeps his extra pawn and secures the long diagonal,} 9. Qc2 b5 10. a4 c6 11. Nc3 Rb6 12. e4 {White threatens to play 13 e5 followed by 14 Ng5 provoking ...g6 which would severely weaken the dark squares around the black king. Mamedyarovs move thus is logical, but the engines insists that 12...h6 is cirtical, where indeed white has to prove that his attack on the kingside is real. White has numerous tries, with 13 e5 followed by 14 Qe4 as the most obvious.} Be7 13. e5 Nd5 14. axb5 $146 ({Black's idea is that after} 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bxa5 b4 {his compensation for the exchange is obvious. The computer claims that after} 16. Bxb6 Qxb6 17. a5 $1 Qa7 18. b3 $1 {white still has hopes for an edge, but obviously he is also riunning strategic risk, and has a much version of the exchange sacrifice than in the game.}) ({RR} 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bxa5 b4 16. Bxb6 Qxb6 17. a5 Qa7 18. h4 Nc6 19. Qd2 Nxa5 20. h5 h6 21. g4 Qb6 22. Qe3 Bd7 23. Rfe1 Rc8 24. g5 hxg5 25. Nxg5 Nb3 26. Rad1 c3 27. h6 gxh6 28. Nh3 c2 {Sevian,S (2684)-Mamedyarov,S (2767) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (55)}) 14... cxb5 $6 {With hindsight a bad decision, but the kind of decision, if your opponent was not Magnus, perhaps would have won you the game. Mamedyarov insists on sacrificing the exchange, and leaves white no option, but to accept.} (14... Nb4 $5 {was the computers way of doing it, with} 15. Qe4 cxb5 16. Qg4 f5 $5 {being the plan with an unclear position evaluated as equal by the machines.}) 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Bxa5 Nc6 17. Bxb6 Qxb6 {Black's compensation is very visible. White has a weak pawn on d4, which black is set up well to attack, with ...Bg4 being next, undermining the vital defender. As well ...b4 will almost quarantee that black gets a passed pawn on the queen side, and add to that the pair of bishop the compensation does indeed seem more than sufficient.} 18. Ra8 $1 {This game is decided at move 18 & 19, and when Mamedyarov talks about Magnus playing like a computer, it can be boiled down to this sequence where he understands the position better than his opponent. The general factors in the postion, as described previously are noit unfavorubale for black, so white need to catch black when he is still unbalanced. Mamedyarov continiues making logical moves, but the position, despite perhaps looking to have slowed down after a tactical sequence hangs on very concrete specifics. That urgency also was required by white is illustrated that by 18 h3, preventing ...Bg4 then after 18...Be6 black already has a pleasant position.} h6 $2 {A very logical move.} (18... Be6 {allows} 19. Rxf8+ Bxf8 20. Ng5 {attacking both mate on h7, as well as the bishop on e6. Mamedyarov most likely stopped his calculations here, but after} g6 {black's position is actually fine, as white has no consequent follow-up, meaning the pawn on d4 will fall.}) ({Similarly} 18... b4 {intending to follow with ...b3! fixing the pawn structure just in time also would have given black decent counterplay.}) 19. Rfa1 {A good move, and if 19 Rxc8!? Rxc8 20 Qf5 followed by 21 e6 was even better is more of a philosophical question, as both leaves white with a considerable edge.} (19. Rxc8 $5 Rxc8 20. Qf5 {[%cal Ge5e6]}) 19... Be6 $2 {Another very logical looking move, whereafter however the position is completely lost!} ({The absolutely last chance was to play} 19... b4 {intending 20...b3, exploiting that} 20. b3 Nxd4 $1 {is possible with} 21. Nxd4 Qxd4 22. Rd1 Bf5 $1 {being the point.}) 20. Qd1 $1 {As innocent looking as it gets, but crushing. White coordinated his defences, and managed to double in the a-line before retreating his queen.} b4 {Forces events, but as white is in time with his defence, it just makes things worse from blacks perspective. But black has no reasonable other moves. He has to keep attacking d4, as else white regroups with Ne1-c2.} 21. b3 $1 c3 22. R8a6 $1 {Forcing the queen away from attacking d4.} Qc7 23. Ne1 $1 {2 key aims have been acheived: Black's passed pawn is solidly blocked, and the knight was released of its defensive duties, and can now re-route towards e3.} f6 $6 {Making things worse, but black's position was beyond repair anyway.} 24. Nd3 $1 fxe5 25. Nxe5 Nxe5 26. Rxe6 $1 c2 27. Qe1 {And as 27...Nd3 28 Rxe7 wins easily Mamedyarov resigned.} (27. Qe1 Nd3 28. Rxe7 $18) 1-0

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A32"]
[WhiteElo "2678"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Ukraine"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. Nf3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nf6 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd2 Be7 8. e4 Nxc3 9. Bxc3 O-O 10. Bd3 ({RR} 10. Be2 Qb6 11. O-O Rd8 12. Qb3 Na6 13. Qxb6 axb6 14. Bxa6 Rxa6 15. a3 Bd7 16. Rfd1 Kf8 17. Nc2 Raa8 18. Kf1 Bb5+ 19. Ke1 Bd3 20. Ne3 Bxe4 21. f3 Bc6 22. Nc4 b5 23. Ne5 Bd5 24. Rac1 f6 {Carlsen,M (2863)-So,W (2770) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (53)}) 10... Qb6 ({RR} 10... Nd7 11. O-O Bf6 12. f4 e5 13. Nf3 Re8 14. Kh1 exf4 15. e5 Be7 16. Qc2 Nf8 17. Rad1 Qb6 18. Qa4 Be6 19. Qxf4 Ng6 20. Qa4 Rad8 21. Ba5 Bd7 22. Qxd7 Qxa5 23. Qxb7 Qxa2 24. Bxg6 hxg6 25. Qxe7 {Bortnyk,M (2381)-Huston,G (2316) New York USA 2025 1-0}) 11. O-O Rd8 12. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 12. Nf3 Nc6 13. Qe2 Nb4 14. Bc4 Nc6 15. h4 Bb4 16. h5 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qc5 18. e5 Bd7 19. Qe4 h6 20. Bd3 Kf8 21. Rab1 Qd5 22. Rxb7 Bc8 23. Rc7 Qxd3 24. Qxc6 Qd5 25. Qa4 a5 26. Qa3+ Kg8 {Navaratnam,R (2071)-Rudzinska,M (2315) Bydgoszcz 2022 ½-½ (61)}) 12... Bd7 13. Qh5 Be8 14. Rfd1 Nc6 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Qg4 Bf8 17. h4 Rd7 18. h5 Rad8 19. Bc2 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 h6 21. Rxd8 Qxd8 22. a3 a6 23. g3 Qd6 24. Kf1 Qc5 25. Kg1 Qc4 26. Qf3 f5 27. Bd3 Qa4 28. Qe2 Bxe4 29. Bxe4 fxe4 30. Qg4 Qc4 31. Qg6 Qd5 32. Qe8 a5 33. a4 b6 34. Kh2 Qf5 35. Kg1 Kh7 36. Bd4 Bc5 37. Bxc5 bxc5 38. b3 Qg4 39. Kh2 Qf5 40. Kg1 e5 41. Qa8 e3 42. fxe3 Qb1+ 43. Kf2 Qc2+ 44. Kf3 Qd1+ 45. Kf2 Qxb3 46. Qxa5 Qc2+ 47. Kf3 Qf5+ 48. Kg2 e4 49. Qe1 Qxh5 50. a5 Qf7 51. Qa1 Qf3+ 52. Kh2 Qxe3 53. a6 Qf2+ 54. Kh3 Qf5+ 55. Kh2 e3 0-1

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Kuzubov, Yuriy"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2639"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Ukraine"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. e3 Bf5 4. Nc3 e6 5. Nge2 Nf6 6. Ng3 Bg6 7. Bd3 Nbd7 ({RR} 7... Bxd3 8. Qxd3 Nbd7 9. cxd5 exd5 10. O-O Be7 11. Nf5 O-O 12. Bd2 Re8 13. f3 c5 14. Rae1 Bf8 15. g4 g6 16. Ng3 Bd6 17. Kg2 cxd4 18. exd4 Nf8 19. g5 Bxg3 20. hxg3 Rxe1 21. Rxe1 Ne8 22. Rxe8 {Gyokbulut,J (1923)-Buyuk,E (1931) Gaziantep TUR 2024 1-0 (57)}) 8. O-O Bd6 $146 ({RR} 8... Be7 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Bxg6 hxg6 11. Qd3 Rc8 12. Bd2 a6 13. Rac1 O-O 14. Rc2 Nb6 15. b3 Ba3 16. Nb1 Rxc2 17. Qxc2 Bd6 18. Rc1 Ng4 19. Nf1 Qh4 20. g3 Qf6 21. Be1 g5 22. Qe2 Nh6 23. Kg2 {Kuzubov,Y (2643)-Holt,C (2549) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (62)}) 9. Re1 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Qa5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. Bd2 O-O 13. Nb5 Qa6 14. a4 Rfc8 15. f3 b6 16. e4 Bf8 17. e5 Ne8 18. f4 g6 19. h4 Qb7 20. h5 a6 21. Nc3 Ng7 22. h6 Ne8 23. f5 exf5 24. Nxf5 gxf5 25. Qxf5 Rc6 26. Rf1 Nb8 27. Nxd5 Rg6 28. Nf4 Bxh6 29. Nxg6 hxg6 30. Qg4 Bxd2 31. e6 f6 32. Qxg6+ Ng7 33. Ra3 Qd5 34. Qf7+ Kh7 35. Rh3+ Bh6 36. Qxf6 Nh5 37. Qf7+ Ng7 38. Rf6 Qxd4+ 39. Kh1 Qd1+ 40. Kh2 Qd6+ 41. Rg3 1-0

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A50"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2652"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Ukraine"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "UKR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Bf4 Qb6 4. Qd2 Ne4 5. Qc2 d5 6. e3 Bf5 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxe4 Bxe4 9. Qxe4 Qxb2 10. Bxb8 $146 ({RR} 10. Ne2 Qxa1 11. Qc2 e5 ({RR} 11... Na6 12. O-O Nb4 13. Qxc4 e6 14. a3 Qa2 15. Qxa2 Nxa2 16. Rd1 a5 17. Rd2 Nb4 18. axb4 axb4 19. Nc1 Be7 20. Rc2 g5 21. Bg3 Kd7 22. Nd2 Ra3 23. Kf1 Rha8 24. Ke2 h5 25. Nc4 h4 26. Be5) 12. O-O exf4 13. Nbc3 Qxf1+ 14. Kxf1 fxe3 15. Qe4+ Be7 16. d5 cxd5 17. Nxd5 Nc6 18. Nd4 Kd7 19. Nxc6 Kxc6 20. Nxe7+ Kc5 21. Qd5+ Kb4 22. Qxb7+ Ka3 23. Qa6+ Kb2 24. Qxc4 Rhd8 {Duda,J (2729)-Stribuk,A (2486) chess.com INT 2025 1-0}) 10... Qc1+ 11. Ke2 Rxb8 12. Nf3 Qxh1 13. Qe5 Rd8 14. Ne1 h5 15. Nc3 Rh6 16. Rb1 b6 17. h3 Re6 18. Qc7 g6 19. Qg3 h4 20. Qxh4 Qh2 21. g3 Bg7 22. Nf3 Qg2 23. Qh7 Rf6 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.01"]
[Round "2"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O h6 9. b3 e5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. Bb2 Qf6 15. Bxe5 Qxe5 16. Rac1 Bd7 17. Qc7 Qxc7 18. Rxc7 Bc6 19. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 19. b4 Rac8 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Rc1 Bd7 22. Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Kf1 Kf8 24. Ke2 Ke7 25. Bb5 a6 26. Ba4 b5 27. Bb3 Bb7 28. Kd3 f6 29. Kd4 Kd6 30. h4 g5 31. h5 Bc6 32. a3 Bb7 33. Bc2 Bc8 {Demir,B (2099)-Avci,A (1844) Konya 2016 ½-½ (43)}) 19... Rfc8 20. Rxc8+ Rxc8 21. Kf1 Kf8 22. Ke2 Bd7 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Kd2 Ke7 25. Kc3 Kd6 26. b4 b6 27. Kd4 a5 28. b5 Bd7 29. a4 Bc8 30. f4 f6 31. f5 Bb7 32. g3 Bc8 33. Bc2 Bd7 34. g4 Bc8 35. Bb3 Bb7 36. Ba2 Ba8 37. Bb3 Bb7 38. Ba2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.02"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2753"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. a4 Bb7 9. axb5 a6 10. bxa6 Nxa6 11. Qxc4 Bd5 12. Qc3 c5 13. Bf4 ({RR} 13. Be3 Ne4 14. Qe1 Nb4 15. Nc3 Nc2 16. Rxa8 Qxa8 17. Qc1 Nxe3 18. Qxe3 Nxc3 19. bxc3 cxd4 20. cxd4 Rd8 21. Qf4 h6 22. h4 Bf6 23. e3 Rc8 24. Ne1 Bxg2 25. Nxg2 Rc4 26. Qg4 e5 27. Qe2 Qc6 {Giri,A (2772)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2782) Warsaw 2021 ½-½ (43)}) 13... Ne4 14. Qc1 cxd4 15. Nxd4 Nec5 $146 ({RR} 15... Nb4 16. Nc3 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Rc8 19. Bd2 Bf6 20. Nf3 Nd5 21. Ra3 Rc4 22. Qb2 Qc7 23. Rc1 Rc8 24. Qa2 Nxc3 25. Bxc3 Rxc3 26. Raxc3 Bxc3 27. Qa6 Qd8 28. h4 Ra8 29. Rd1 Qe8 30. Qd3 {Rapport,R (2748)-Saric,I (2659) Budva MNE 2023 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 15... Nxf2 16. Nc6 Nh3+ 17. Bxh3 Qb6+ 18. Be3 Qxc6 19. Qxc6 Bxc6 20. Nc3 Nb4 21. Rxa8 Rxa8 22. Rd1 h6 23. Bg2 Bf6 24. Bd4 Bxg2 25. Bxf6 Nd5 26. Nxd5 Bxd5 27. Bc3 f6 28. Kf2 Kf7 29. Rd4 Ra1 30. e4 {Postny,E (2525)-Paravyan,D (2589) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (53)}) 16. Bxd5 Qxd5 17. Be3 Qb7 18. Nd2 Rac8 19. Qb1 Nb4 20. N4f3 Qb5 21. Re1 Rfd8 22. Kf1 h6 23. Rc1 Bf8 24. Ne4 Nb3 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Nc3 Qb7 27. Ra4 Nd5 28. Nxd5 Qxd5 29. Kg2 Qc6 30. Ra7 g5 31. Qd3 Nc5 32. Qc4 Qb6 33. Qa2 Qc6 34. b4 Nd7 35. b5 Qd6 36. Qa6 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.03"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D50"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2761"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 cxd4 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. Bg5 Be7 8. e3 O-O 9. Be2 Nc6 10. Qd3 h6 11. Bh4 Be6 12. O-O Qb6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Qxd5 Qxb2 16. Bc4 Qxa1 $146 ({RR} 16... Qa3 17. Rad1 Na5 18. Bd3 g6 19. Bxg6 Rad8 20. Qh5 fxg6 21. Qxg6+ Bg7 22. Qe6+ Kh7 23. Qe4+ Kg8 24. Qe6+ Kh7 25. Qe4+ Kg8 {½-½ (25) Berkes,F (2613)-Csonka,B (2479) Nova Gorica SLO 2024}) ({RR} 16... Rad8 17. Qf5 Qb4 18. Rac1 Qa5 19. Qb1 Rd7 20. Rfd1 Rfd8 21. Rxd7 Rxd7 22. g3 Ne5 23. Nxe5 Qxe5 24. Bb3 Rc7 25. Rd1 Qe7 26. Qf5 Kh8 27. Qf4 Kh7 28. Rd5 g6 29. h4 h5 30. g4 hxg4 31. h5 {Dai,C (2557)-Huang,R (2487) Beijing CHN 2025 ½-½ (34)}) 17. Rxa1 Bxa1 18. g4 Rae8 19. h4 Re7 20. g5 hxg5 21. Nxg5 Bf6 22. Qf5 Bxg5 23. hxg5 Re5 24. Qf4 Rc5 25. g6 Ne5 26. gxf7+ Nxf7 27. Be6 Rh5 28. Qc7 g5 29. Qxb7 Rh6 30. Bb3 g4 31. Qxa7 Kg7 32. e4 Rh5 33. Qc7 Kf6 34. a4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.09"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[PlyCount "157"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bb5+ c6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 a5 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O a4 12. Bc2 c5 13. Rb1 Bg4 ({RR} 13... Nc6 14. e5 Rb8 15. Be4 Bf5 16. Bxf5 gxf5 17. Qd3 Qd7 18. Rd1 Rfd8 19. Bf4 cxd4 20. cxd4 e6 21. Bg5 Rdc8 22. Qe3 Ne7 23. Bf6 h6 24. Qf4 Ng6 25. Qg3 Kh7 26. d5 exd5 27. Rb4 Rc4 28. Rxc4 {Carlsen,M (2864)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2750) Stavanger 2022 1-0 (54)}) 14. e5 $146 ({RR} 14. Rxb5 Bxf3 15. Qxf3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Nc6 17. Be3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Qxd4 19. a3 Rfd8 20. Rb4 Qd2 21. Rc4 Rd4 22. Rxd4 Bxd4 23. e5 Ra5 24. e6 fxe6 25. Bd3 Bf6 26. Bc4 Kg7 27. Bxe6 Re5 28. Bc4 Qc2 {Moroni,L (2588)-Deac,B (2679) Chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (83)}) 14... Nc6 15. Be4 Rc8 16. h3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Qd7 18. Bd3 cxd4 19. Bxb5 dxc3 20. Qxc3 Qd5 21. Bxa4 Qxa2 22. Ra1 Nxe5 23. Rxa2 Rxc3 24. Bd2 Rcc8 25. Bb5 Rc5 26. Be2 Nc6 27. Rc1 Rxc1+ 28. Bxc1 Rb8 29. Be3 Bd4 30. Bh6 Bg7 31. Be3 h5 32. g3 e6 33. Kg2 Nb4 34. Rd2 Nd5 35. Rd3 Nxe3+ 36. Rxe3 Bd4 37. Rd3 e5 38. Rd2 Kg7 39. h4 Kh6 40. f4 Be3 41. Rd7 exf4 42. gxf4 f5 43. Kf3 Bc1 44. Bc4 Rc8 45. Bf7 Rc3+ 46. Kg2 Bxf4 47. Bg8 g5 48. Be6 Kg6 49. Rd5 g4 50. Bxf5+ Kf6 51. Bh7 Be5 52. Bg6 g3 53. Ra5 Rc4 54. Ra6+ Kg7 55. Bxh5 Rxh4 56. Rg6+ Kh7 57. Rg5 Rh2+ 58. Kf3 Rf2+ 59. Kg4 Bf4 60. Rg6 Rf1 61. Kf5 Bg5+ 62. Ke4 Rf4+ 63. Kd3 Rf5 64. Ke4 Rf4+ 65. Kd3 Bh4 66. Re6 g2 67. Rg6 Rf5 68. Rxg2 Rxh5 69. Ke4 Bf6 70. Kf4 Bg7 71. Ke4 Kg8 72. Rg6 Kf7 73. Ra6 Bf6 74. Ra8 Rh4+ 75. Kf5 Rh5+ 76. Ke4 Rb5 77. Kf4 Be5+ 78. Ke4 Bd6 79. Rh8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.02"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Bwalya, Gillan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E53"]
[WhiteElo "2396"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Zambia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ZAM"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4 5. e3 O-O 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 c5 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Qc7 10. Nd2 ({RR} 10. Ba2 b5 11. O-O Bb7 12. Re1 Nbd7 13. Bb2 Nb6 14. Qe2 a6 15. c4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 bxc4 17. dxc5 Qxc5 18. Rac1 Rac8 19. Ne5 c3 20. Rxc3 Qd5 21. f3 Rxc3 22. Bxc3 Rc8 23. Qb2 Qb5 24. Rb1 Rxc3 {Korobov,A (2687)-Leko,P (2674) Hengshui 2019 0-1}) ({RR} 10. Ba2 Nbd7 11. O-O b6 12. Bb2 Bb7 13. c4 cxd4 14. exd4 Rfd8 15. Qe2 Nf8 16. Rac1 Ng6 17. Rc2 Be4 18. Rcc1 Nf4 19. Qe3 Nd3 20. Rb1 Nxb2 21. Rxb2 Qb7 22. Ne1 Rac8 23. f3 Bg6 24. Nc2 Qd7 {Cezar,R (1702)-Gomes,G (1879) Florianopolis 2021 0-1 (42)}) 10... Nc6 11. O-O $146 ({RR} 11. a4 cxd4 12. cxd4 e5 13. d5 Na5 14. Ba3 Nxc4 15. Rc1 Rd8 16. Rxc4 Qd7 17. d6 Ne8 18. Qh5 Nxd6 19. Rh4 h6 20. Qe2 b6 21. Rb4 Nf5 22. Nc4 Ba6 23. O-O Nd6 24. Rd1 Qc7 {0-1 (24) Popovich,S (2285)-Moiseenko,A (2419) Alushta 1999}) 11... Rd8 12. f4 Nd5 13. Bxd5 exd5 14. Qh5 cxd4 15. cxd4 Ne7 16. Nf3 Bf5 17. Bd2 f6 18. Nh4 Be4 19. f5 Rac8 20. Bb4 a5 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. Rf4 Rc3 23. Re1 Qxa3 24. Rg4 Rc1 25. Rxc1 Qxe3+ 26. Kf1 Bd3# 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.05"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stanojoski, Zvonko"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2412"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "North Macedonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "MKD"]

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 e6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 Bd6 5. Nbd2 Bxf4 6. exf4 c5 7. dxc5 Qc7 8. g3 Qxc5 9. Bd3 ({RR} 9. c3 Nc6 10. Bd3 O-O 11. O-O a5 12. Nb3 Qd6 13. Nbd4 b6 14. Re1 Ba6 15. Bc2 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Rfe8 17. a4 Rad8 18. Qf3 g6 19. h4 Kg7 20. Re3 Bb7 21. Rae1 Ne4 22. h5 Qe7 23. Bd3 Qf6 {Kamsky,G (2663)-Postny,E (2544) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (39)}) 9... Qb6 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Qe2 Qc7 12. c3 Nc5 13. Bc2 b6 14. Rfe1 Ba6 15. Qe3 Nb7 16. Nd4 Nd6 17. Qf3 Rfe8 18. Rad1 Rac8 19. g4 Bb7 20. Qd3 g6 21. Qh3 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Qg3 Nd5 24. Be4 {Janaszak,D (2282)-Olejarczyk,R (2087) Lublin POL 2025 1-0 (62)}) 10. Nb3 $146 ({RR} 10. Rb1 Nc6 11. c3 O-O 12. O-O Rd8 13. Re1 a5 14. Qe2 d4 15. c4 Nb4 16. Ne4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Nd7 18. Nxd4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Qxc5 20. Rbd1 b5 21. Nb3 Rxd3 22. Nxc5 bxc4 23. Nxd3 cxd3 24. Rxd3 Bb7 {Pino Perez,L (2142)-Garcia Almaguer,J (2090) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (42)}) 10... O-O 11. O-O Na6 12. c3 Bd7 13. a4 Nc5 14. Nxc5 Qxc5 15. Nd4 a5 16. Re1 Qb6 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Re5 Bc6 19. Qe2 Nd7 20. Re3 Nc5 21. Bc2 g6 22. b3 Ne4 23. Rd1 Rac8 24. h4 e5 25. fxe5 Rxe5 26. Qg4 Rce8 27. Rde1 Nf6 28. Qf4 Rxe3 29. Rxe3 Rxe3 30. Qxe3 Qc5 31. Qf4 Nd7 32. Qd2 Ne5 33. Qe3 Qd6 34. h5 Qf6 35. Bd1 Bd7 36. h6 g5 37. Nf3 Ng4 38. Qa7 Qxh6 39. Qxb7 Nf6 40. Qb8+ Kg7 41. Qe5 g4 42. Nd4 Qc1 43. Kg2 h6 44. Bc2 Qd2 45. Bf5 Qg5 46. b4 Bxa4 47. bxa5 Bd1 48. a6 Qc1 49. a7 Qa1 50. Qe7 Bf3+ 51. Nxf3 gxf3+ 52. Kxf3 Qh1+ 53. Ke2 Qh5+ 54. g4 Nxg4 55. a8=Q Ne5+ 56. Ke3 Qxf5 57. Qef8+ Kg6 58. Qa6+ f6 59. Qg8+ Kh5 60. Qe2+ Ng4+ 61. Kd4 Kh4 62. Qxd5 Qf4+ 63. Qde4 Qd6+ 64. Kc4 h5 65. f3 Qa6+ 66. Kb3 Qb6+ 67. Kc2 f5 68. Qh2+ Kg5 69. Qhf4+ 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.07"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Megaranto, Susanto"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2529"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Indonesia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "INA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 a5 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Nbxd2 d6 7. e3 Qe7 8. Bd3 e5 9. Qc2 Nbd7 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Ng5 h6 13. Nge4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Be6 15. Nc3 Nd7 16. Be2 Nb6 17. Na4 Nxa4 18. Qxa4 Qc5 19. Rfd1 Red8 20. h3 c6 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Rd1 Qb6 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 24. Qc2 {Dao,T (2510)-Ghaem Maghami,E (2599) Al Ain 2008 ½-½ (46)}) 10. O-O O-O 11. b3 $146 ({RR} 11. Ng5 h6 12. Nge4 Nxe4 13. Nxe4 Nf6 14. Rad1 Nxe4 15. Bxe4 c6 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. Qc3 f5 18. Bb1 e4 19. c5 Be6 20. Rd6 Bd5 21. Rd1 Qg5 22. R1xd5 cxd5 23. Ba2 Kh7 24. Bxd5 Rae8 25. Bxb7 f4 {Atakishiyev,E (2223)-Nader,A (2292) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 11. b4 Re8 12. Ng5 h6 13. Nge4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Nf6 15. Ng3 Kh8 16. Qc3 e4 17. Be2 b6 18. Rfc1 Be6 19. Bd1 Bg4 20. h3 Bd7 21. d5 Kg8 22. Qd4 Qe5 23. Qxe5 Rxe5 24. Bb3 Ree8 25. Ne2 c5 {Plotkin,V (2282)-Qian,A (2134) Guelph CAN 2025 1-0 (80)}) 11... Re8 12. e4 Nf8 13. Rfe1 Bg4 14. d5 N8d7 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Nxf3 g6 17. b4 Ra7 18. Nd2 Rea8 19. Nb3 b6 20. Qc3 axb4 21. axb4 h5 22. Rxa7 Rxa7 23. Ra1 Rxa1+ 24. Qxa1 Qd8 25. Nd2 h4 26. Be2 Kg7 27. Qa3 Nh7 28. Bg4 Ndf6 29. Bd1 Ng5 30. Qe3 Qa8 31. Kf1 Qa1 32. Ke1 Ngh7 33. c5 Nh5 34. g3 hxg3 35. fxg3 b5 36. Qd3 N7f6 37. c6 Qb2 38. Qxb5 Qc3 39. Bf3 Nxe4 40. Bxe4 Qc1+ 41. Ke2 Nxg3+ 42. Kf2 Qxd2+ 43. Kxg3 Qf4+ 44. Kg2 Qxe4+ 45. Kf2 Qc2+ 46. Ke1 e4 47. Kf1 Qd1+ 0-1

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.02"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2861"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,77,26,26,24,12,18,20,23,-20,-7,-16,12,19,21,24,36,7,42,19,12,16,22,18,22,15,31,20,21,25,18,1,2,1,1,19,1,11,13,6,3,2,5,0,5,0,1,1,36,-23,25,42,28,25,81,87,75,90,80,81,93,93,86,86,104,96,94,112,99,86,112,108,151,139,196,190,230,271,228,182]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nc3 c6 6. Bf4 Bf5 7. e3 Nbd7 8. h3 Be7 ({RR} 8... Qb6 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. Na4 Qb4 13. Qc2 a5 14. Rfc1 Rfe8 15. Rab1 Qc4 16. Qd1 Qa6 17. Ne1 Ne4 18. Nd3 Bd6 19. Bxd6 Nxd6 20. Nac5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Qb6 22. a4 Ne4 23. Nd3 {Erigaisi,A (2797)-Wei Yi (2763) London ENG 2024 1-0 (86)}) 9. g4 Be4 $146 ({RR} 9... Bg6 10. Nh4 Ne4 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. Bg2 Qa5+ 14. Kf1 Nf6 15. Qb3 Qa6+ 16. Kg1 Rd8 17. Be5 Bd6 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Bxe4 f5 20. gxf5 Rh5 21. Bd3 b5 22. fxg6 Rg5+ 23. Kf1 fxg6 24. Qe6+ {Matlakov,M (2625)-De Boer,E (2426) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 9... Bg6 10. Nh4 Qb6 11. Qb3 O-O 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Be2 Qxb3 14. axb3 Rfe8 15. h4 Nf8 16. g5 Nh5 17. Bh2 f6 18. Rg1 Kf7 19. Kd2 Ne6 20. Bd3 f5 21. Be5 a6 22. Kc2 Rad8 23. Be2 c5 24. Bf3 {Theodorou,N (2652)-Rodshtein,M (2647) Batumi GEO 2025 1-0 (53)}) 10. Be2 Qb6 11. Qb3 Qxb3 12. axb3 Bg6 13. Nh4 Bb4 14. Nxg6 hxg6 15. f3 Nf8 16. Kf2 Ne6 17. Bg3 Ke7 18. h4 a6 19. Kg2 Rad8 20. Bf2 Bd6 21. Bd3 Bb8 22. Na4 Bd6 23. Be1 c5 24. Nxc5 Nxc5 25. dxc5 Bxc5 26. Bd2 Rhe8 27. b4 Bb6 28. b5 a5 29. Bxa5 Bxa5 30. Rxa5 Kd6 31. Kf2 Re7 32. Rd1 Rh8 33. g5 Nd7 34. Ra4 Nc5 35. Rg4 Kc7 36. Bb1 Re5 37. Ba2 f6 38. gxf6 gxf6 39. Rxd5 Rxd5 40. Bxd5 Nd3+ 41. Kg3 Ne5 42. Rf4 Rd8 43. b6+ 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.03"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2861"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,72,24,24,27,18,13,18,41,38,41,28,22,30,30,38,46,38,63,67,60,65,46,46,40,36,36,47,48,8,0,0,3,10,-4,-4,-4,-4,35,34,33,25,31,-4,-6,-6,-13,-13,6,4,1,1,1,4,1,-13,-12,-15,-8,-8,-9,-7,-5,-10,0,-8,-6,-10,0,-7,-10,-9,-7,-8,-8]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 6. Nc3 O-O 7. e3 Qe7 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. dxc5 Rd8 11. Qe2 Qxc5 12. O-O Nc6 13. Bb3 ({RR} 13. Bb5 Bd7 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. h3 Be8 16. a3 Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 Rd8 18. Bd3 g6 19. Ne4 a6 20. Rc1 Rc8 21. Rc2 Na7 22. Rxc8 Nxc8 23. Qc2 Nxe4 24. Bxe4 Nd6 25. Bd3 e5 26. Nd2 Bb5 27. Bxb5 Nxb5 {Ushenina,A (2409)-Zhai Mo (2380) Samarkand UZB 2025 ½-½ (40)}) 13... Qa5 $146 ({RR} 13... Qh5 14. Rfd1 Bd7 15. Qb5 Qxb5 16. Nxb5 Na5 17. Nd6 Ne8 18. Nc4 {½-½ (18) Almeida Quintana,O (2520)-Noritsyn,N (2462) Toronto CAN 2023}) 14. Qc4 Ne5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. Bd1 Bd7 17. Bf3 Rac8 18. Qb4 b6 19. Rfd1 Qc5 20. Qxc5 Rxc5 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. Bxe4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Bxc8 25. f4 h6 26. Kf2 Kf8 27. Ke1 Ke7 28. Kd2 Kd6 29. g3 e5 30. a3 f6 31. Kc3 Kc5 32. b4+ Kd6 33. Kc4 Ba6+ 34. Kc3 Bc8 35. Kc4 Ba6+ 36. Kc3 Bc8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Niemann, Hans Moke"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2861"]
[BlackElo "2688"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,55,24,27,27,18,18,18,17,-7,-7,-9,-1,0,-13,-16,-16,-8,-29,-14,-28,-18,18,23,15,-9,10,17,0,-7,-7,-15,-2,2,-6,-33,-48,-45,-32,-30,-35,-39,-36,-21,-8,-36,-40,-36,-41,-43,-41,-71,-64,-54,-37,-62,-45,-82]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 dxc4 8. Nf3 c5 9. O-O cxd4 10. Qxd4 Nc6 11. Qxc4 e5 12. Bg5 h6 13. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 13. Bh4 Qe7 14. Rab1 Bf5 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Rb5 Rac8 17. Qh4 b6 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Nh4 Bg4 20. f3 Bd7 21. f4 Ne7 22. Rb3 Be6 23. Rb5 Rxc3 24. fxe5 Bd7 25. exf6 Bxb5 26. fxe7 Re8 27. Nf5 Bd7 {Kryvoruchko,Y (2650)-Kantor,G (2520) Ajka HUN 2024 0-1 (45)}) 13... Be6 14. Rxd8 Bxc4 15. Rxa8 Rxa8 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Kf1 Rd8 18. Ke1 Na5 19. Rd1 Rc8 20. Nd2 Be6 21. c4 Bxc4 22. Nxc4 Rxc4 23. Rd8+ Kg7 24. Bd5 Rc7 25. Ra8 a6 26. Rb8 f5 27. Re8 e4 28. g4 Rc5 29. Ba2 Nc4 30. a4 Nd6 31. Re7 fxg4 32. Rd7 e3 33. fxe3 Ne4 34. Kf1 Rc1+ 35. Kg2 Rc2 36. Bxf7 Rxe2+ 37. Kg1 Re1+ 38. Kg2 Re2+ 39. Kg1 Kf6 40. Bd5 Rd2 41. Rf7+ Kg6 42. Rd7 Ng5 43. Bf7+ Kf5 44. Rxd2 Nf3+ 45. Kg2 Nxd2 46. a5 Ke5 47. Kg3 Nf1+ 48. Kf2 Nxh2 49. e4 Kxe4 50. Be6 Kf4 51. Bc8 Nf3 52. Bxb7 Ne5 53. Bxa6 Nc6 54. Bb7 Nxa5 55. Bd5 h5 56. Bf7 h4 57. Bd5 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.03"]
[Round "1.7"]
[White "Meskovs, Nikita"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2566"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Vammalan Shakkikerho"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FIN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 c6 7. Qc2 O-O 8. O-O b6 9. Bf4 Ba6 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Rc1 Nbd7 12. Nc3 Nh5 13. Qa4 Nxf4 14. Qxa6 Nxg2 15. Kxg2 Qc8 16. Qxc8 Rfxc8 17. Nb5 Rd8 18. Nc7 Rab8 19. Rc6 $146 ({RR} 19. a4 Rb7 20. Rc3 Bd6 21. Rac1 Kf8 22. Ne1 Ke7 23. Nd3 f6 24. Nb5 Nb8 25. b4 a6 26. Nxd6 Rxd6 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 Rd8 29. Nb4 Re8 30. Rc8 Kd7 31. Rxe8 Kxe8 32. Rc8+ Kd7 33. Rh8 h6 {Saduakassova,D (2495)-Bhambure,S (2194) Abu Dhabi 2018 1-0 (44)}) 19... Rb7 20. Na6 g5 21. Rac1 g4 22. Ne1 Nf6 23. Nd3 Bd6 24. Rc8 Rxc8 25. Rxc8+ Kg7 26. h3 h5 27. hxg4 hxg4 28. Nab4 a5 29. Nc6 Nd7 30. a4 Kf6 31. f3 gxf3+ 32. exf3 Kg7 33. Kf2 Nf6 34. g4 Rc7 35. Rxc7 Bxc7 36. Ke3 Ne8 37. Na7 Bb8 38. Nb5 Nf6 39. b3 Nd7 40. f4 Nf6 41. Nf2 Ng8 42. Nd3 Nf6 43. Nf2 Ng8 44. Nd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.07"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Korobov, Anton"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D04"]
[WhiteElo "2672"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Silla Valencia"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ESP"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 a6 4. b3 Bf5 ({RR} 4... Bg4 5. Ba3 Nbd7 6. h3 Bxf3 7. Qxf3 e5 8. Bxf8 Kxf8 9. Be2 g6 10. O-O Kg7 11. Rd1 Re8 12. c4 c6 13. Nc3 Qa5 14. Rac1 exd4 15. Rxd4 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Ne5 17. Qf4 Nxc4 18. Rxc4 Rad8 19. Ra4 {Korobov,A (2661)-Carlsen,M (2853) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 4... e6 5. Nbd2 b6 6. Bb2 Bb7 7. Ne5 Nbd7 8. Bd3 Nxe5 9. dxe5 Nd7 10. O-O g6 11. f4 Bg7 12. Qe2 O-O 13. Rad1 Nc5 14. e4 Re8 15. Ba3 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Qd4+ 17. Qf2 Qxf2+ 18. Nxf2 Nxd3 19. Rxd3 {Rajandu,A (1869)-Lopes,S (2026) York ENG 2025 ½-½}) 5. Ba3 $146 ({RR} 5. Bb2 e6 6. Nbd2 h6 7. Be2 Nbd7 8. O-O Bd6 9. a4 c6 10. Ba3 Bxa3 11. Rxa3 Qe7 12. Ra1 e5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Rc1 O-O 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. Nf3 Qc7 17. Nd4 Bg6 18. Bd3 Bxd3 19. cxd3 Rfe8 {Maisuradze,N (2251)-Lou,Y (2472) Europe Echecs INT 2021 0-1 (48)}) 5... e6 6. Bxf8 Kxf8 7. Be2 Nc6 8. O-O h5 9. c4 h4 10. Nc3 Ne4 11. Rc1 Rh6 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Nd2 Nxc3 14. Rxc3 Qd6 15. Qc1 Re8 16. Bf3 Re7 17. Rc5 Nb4 18. Nc4 Qe6 19. Nb2 h3 20. g3 Nxa2 21. Qd2 Be4 22. Be2 b6 23. Na4 Bh7 24. Re1 Qe4 25. f3 Qxe3+ 26. Qxe3 Rxe3 27. Rxc7 Rhe6 28. Kf2 Bd3 29. Bxd3 Rxe1 30. g4 Nb4 31. Bf5 R1e2+ 32. Kg3 Rd6 33. Rb7 g6 34. Bd7 g5 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.09"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Maghsoodloo, Parham"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2721"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Clichy Echecs 92"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FRA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Bd3 O-O 9. Nge2 Ne8 10. Bg3 Nd6 11. O-O Re8 12. Qc2 Bf8 13. Rae1 a5 14. Nf4 ({RR} 14. Nd1 Na6 15. a3 Bd7 16. f3 Rc8 17. Nec3 c5 18. Qf2 Bc6 19. Bf4 b5 20. Ne2 Nc4 21. Qg3 h5 22. Qh3 g6 23. g4 Bd7 24. Qg2 h4 25. g5 Bg7 26. Kh1 Nd2 27. Rg1 c4 28. Bc2 b4 {Salem,A (2677)-Carlsen,M (2859) chess24.com INT 2022 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 14. a3 Nd7 15. Nf4 b5 16. Nb1 Bb7 17. Nd2 Nc4 18. Rd1 Nf6 19. a4 Qb6 20. b3 Nd6 21. Ne2 Rac8 22. Rc1 Nde4 23. Bxe4 dxe4 24. Be5 c5 25. Qb1 Nd7 26. axb5 Qxb5 27. Nc4 cxd4 28. Nxd4 Qa6 {Maghsoodloo,P (2684)-Moussard,J (2587) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (129)}) 14... Na6 15. a3 Qf6 $146 ({RR} 15... Nc7 16. f3 Nc4 17. e4 b5 18. Bf2 b4 19. axb4 axb4 20. Nd1 Ra1 21. exd5 Rxe1 22. Rxe1 Nxd5 23. Nxd5 cxd5 24. Bxc4 dxc4 25. Qxc4 Be6 26. Qd3 Be7 27. Ne3 Rxe1+ 28. Bxe1 Bc5 29. Kf2 Qxd4 30. Qxd4 {Maghsoodloo,P (2719)-Ter Sahakyan,S (2605) Almaty KAZ 2022 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 15... Bd7 16. f3 b5 17. e4 b4 18. Na4 bxa3 19. bxa3 dxe4 20. fxe4 Nb5 21. e5 Nxd4 22. Qc4 Ne6 23. Rd1 Qc7 24. h4 Nac5 25. Nxc5 Bxc5+ 26. Kh2 Bxa3 27. Qe4 {1-0 (27) Silva,M (2039)-Murthy,P (1836) chess.com INT 2025}) 16. f3 b5 17. Bf2 Nc4 18. g3 Qd8 19. e4 b4 20. exd5 Rxe1 21. Rxe1 Nd6 22. Na4 cxd5 23. Nxd5 Rb8 24. Nc5 Nb5 25. Bxb5 Rxb5 26. Qc4 Rb8 27. a4 Nxc5 28. dxc5 Bb7 29. c6 Rc8 30. Bb6 Qd6 31. Bc7 Qc5+ 32. Qxc5 Bxc5+ 33. Kg2 Bxc6 34. Rc1 Bxd5 35. Rxc5 Bb3 36. Bb6 Rxc5 37. Bxc5 Bxa4 38. Bb6 Bc6 39. Bxa5 b3 1/2-1/2

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.14"]
[Round "4.9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gazik, Viktor"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2561"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Slovakia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SVK"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 b6 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Nxd2 Bb7 7. e3 O-O 8. Bd3 ({RR} 8. b3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Bb2 d6 11. Bd3 Nbd7 12. O-O a5 13. Qc2 Qb6 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Rab1 Bc6 16. Bc3 Qb7 17. f3 Qa7 18. Nf1 h6 19. Qf2 Qc7 20. Qg3 Nh5 21. Qh4 Nhf6 22. a4 d5 {1-0 Van Foreest,J (2665)-Naiditsch,A (2661) TCh-FRA Top 16 Haute 2024 (1.19)}) ({RR} 8. b3 d6 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Qc2 c5 11. Bd3 Rc8 12. O-O cxd4 13. Bxd4 d5 14. Qb2 Qe7 15. Be2 e5 16. Bc3 d4 17. Bb4 Nc5 18. Nf3 a5 19. exd4 exd4 20. Bxc5 bxc5 21. Rfe1 Qd6 22. h3 Ne4 {1-0 Jumabayev,R (2575)-Bitoon,R (2374) Chess.com Speed Play-In 2024 (4)}) ({RR} 8. b3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Bb2 d6 11. Bd3 Nbd7 12. O-O a5 13. Qc2 Qb6 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Rab1 Bc6 16. Bc3 Qb7 17. f3 Qa7 18. Nf1 h6 19. Qf2 Qc7 20. Qg3 Nh5 21. Qh4 Nhf6 22. a4 d5 {Van Foreest,J (2665)-Naiditsch,A (2661) Chartres FRA 2024 1-0 (36)}) 8... d5 9. O-O dxc4 $146 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. Nf3 Qe7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. b3 Ne4 13. Bb2 f5 14. Rc1 c6 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 c5 17. Qc2 Qe6 18. f3 Ng5 19. h4 Nf7 20. Bxf5 Qh6 21. f4 Nd8 22. Rf3 Ne6 23. Bxe6+ Qxe6 24. f5 {½-½ Dudas,P (2257)-Dobai,S (2179) HUN-chT2 Barcza 1314 2013 (3)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b3 Re8 11. Bb2 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Be2 dxc4 {½-½ Gmeiner,P (2230)-Ochs,H Schoeneck 1992 (4)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. Nf3 Qe7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. b3 Ne4 13. Bb2 f5 14. Rc1 c6 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 c5 17. Qc2 Qe6 18. f3 Ng5 19. h4 Nf7 20. Bxf5 Qh6 21. f4 Nd8 22. Rf3 Ne6 23. Bxe6+ Qxe6 24. f5 {Dudas,P (2257)-Dobai,S (2179) Hungary 2013 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b4 dxc4 11. Nxc4 Qe7 12. Bb2 Rfd8 13. Qc2 h6 14. Rac1 Rac8 15. Rfd1 Nd5 16. Bf1 Nf8 17. Ne5 c6 18. Qa4 a6 19. Qb3 Rc7 20. Rc2 f6 21. Nd3 Rcd7 22. a4 f5 23. Rdc1 b5 24. Nc5 {Doroodgar,A (2403)-Ahmadi,E (2161) Urmia IRI 2025 1-0 (61)}) 10. Nxc4 Qd5 11. f3 Rd8 12. Be2 Nc6 13. Qc2 Rac8 14. b3 b5 15. Nb2 e5 16. Nd3 e4 17. Nc5 Nxd4 18. exd4 Qxd4+ 19. Kh1 exf3 20. gxf3 Ba8 21. Bg5 Rd5 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. Ne4 Qf4 24. Qc1 Qh4 25. Rg1 Re5 26. Qc3 Rce8 27. Bxb5 R8e7 28. Rad1 1-0

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.15"]
[Round "5.5"]
[White "Yilmaz, Mustafa"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2587"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Turkiye"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 c6 7. e3 Qa5 8. Bd3 Ne4 9. Qc2 Nxg5 10. Nxg5 h6 11. Nf3 Bd6 12. O-O Nf6 ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qd8 14. b4 a6 15. Rab1 Re8 16. h3 Nf6 17. a4 Qe7 ({RR} 17... Qe7 18. b5 axb5 19. axb5 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Ne2 Rec8 23. Qb2 Ne4 24. Ra1 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bd7 26. Nfd4 Qe5 27. Rc1 Ra8 28. Qc2 Bd6 29. Nf3 Qe8 30. Qb3 Nc5 31. Qxd5 Nxd3 32. Qxd3) 18. b5 axb5 19. axb5 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Ne2 Rec8 23. Qb2 Ne4 24. Ra1 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bd7 26. Nfd4 Qe5 27. Rc1 {0-1 Sarana,A (2654)-Moranda,W (2605) Titled Tuesday intern op 9th June blitz 2020 (4)}) ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qd8 14. b4 Qe7 15. Na4 Nf6 16. Nc5 Bg4 17. Rfc1 Bxf3 18. gxf3 b6 19. Nb3 Rac8 20. Bf5 Rc7 21. Kg2 g6 22. Bd3 Nh5 23. h4 Qxh4 24. Rh1 Qg5+ 25. Kf1 Kg7 26. Nc1 c5 27. bxc5 {1-0 Hajiyev,K (2084)-Plasek,Z (1865) Prague Golden Blitz op 17th 2022 (4)}) ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qc7 14. Rac1 Qd8 15. h3 Re8 16. e4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Nf6 18. Nc5 Bxc5 19. dxc5 Be6 20. Rcd1 Bd5 21. Bc4 Qc7 22. Bxd5 Nxd5 23. Nd4 Re5 24. Nf5 Rae8 25. Nd6 R8e6 26. b4 Qe7 27. Qc4 {Agrest,E (2574)-Godena,M (2517) Ajaccio 2008 1-0 (45)}) 13. Rae1 ({RR} 13. h3 O-O 14. a3 a6 15. b4 Qd8 16. Rab1 Re8 17. a4 Bd7 18. Rfc1 Qe7 19. b5 cxb5 20. axb5 a5 21. Na4 Ba3 22. Rd1 Rac8 23. Qa2 Be6 24. Ra1 Bb4 25. Rdc1 Ne4 26. Bf1 Qf6 27. Qe2 Bf5 {Johansson,L (2408)-Movahed,S (2586) Rhodes GRE 2025 0-1 (51)}) 13... O-O 14. Ne5 a6 $146 ({RR} 14... c5 15. f4 c4 16. Be2 b5 17. a3 Bb7 18. Bf3 Rfe8 19. g4 Re7 20. h4 Rae8 21. g5 hxg5 22. hxg5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Bxe4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 Qd8 26. Rf2 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Re6 28. Rg2 Rg6 29. Qf5 {1-0 Vunder,A (2273)-Egorov,Z St Petersburg White Nights op1 2002 (5)}) ({RR} 14... Qc7 15. f4 Ng4 16. h3 Nf6 17. a3 a5 18. g4 Qe7 19. Qg2 Nd7 20. Kh1 Qh4 21. Re2 Nxe5 22. fxe5 Be7 23. e4 h5 24. exd5 hxg4 25. dxc6 gxh3 26. Qe4 bxc6 27. Rf4 Qh6 28. Re1 Bg5 29. Rff1 {0-1 Hu,Z-Nguyen,H (1701) ASEAN-ch U10 15th 2014 (8)}) ({RR} 14... c5 15. f4 c4 16. Be2 b5 17. a3 Bb7 18. Bf3 Rfe8 19. g4 Re7 20. h4 Rae8 21. g5 hxg5 22. hxg5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Bxe4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 Qd8 26. Rf2 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Re6 28. Rg2 Rg6 29. Qf5 {Vunder,A (2273)-Egorov,Z St Petersburg 2002 1-0 (34)}) 15. f4 c5 16. Qf2 b5 17. Bb1 Bb7 18. g4 Qc7 19. h4 Ne4 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. g5 f6 22. gxf6 gxf6 23. Qg2+ Qg7 24. dxc5 Bxe5 25. fxe5 fxe5 26. Rxf8+ Rxf8 27. Rd1 b4 28. Rd6 Qxg2+ 29. Kxg2 Rc8 30. Rb6 Bd5 31. Rxb4 Rxc5 32. Bxe4 Bxa2 33. Ra4 Bf7 34. Rxa6 Rb5 35. Rxh6 Rxb2+ 36. Kf3 Rb4 37. Bf5 Kg7 38. Rh7+ Kf6 39. e4 Rb1 40. Rh6+ Kg7 41. Rh7+ Kg8 42. Rh6 Kg7 43. Rd6 Bh5+ 44. Kg3 Rb3+ 45. Kf2 Rf3+ 46. Kg2 Rf4 47. Kg3 Rf3+ 48. Kh2 Rf2+ 49. Kg1 Rf4 50. Rd7+ Kf6 51. Rd6+ Kf7 52. Rd7+ Kf6 53. Rd6+ Kf7 54. Rd7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.19"]
[Round "8.6"]
[White "Le, Quang Liem"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D52"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Vietnam"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "VIE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Rc1 O-O 9. a3 a6 10. cxd5 ({RR} 10. c5 Ng4 11. Bg3 f5 12. Be2 g5 13. Qd2 Ngf6 14. h4 Ne4 15. Nxe4 fxe4 16. Ne5 gxh4 17. Bf4 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Bf6 19. Bd6 Rf7 20. f3 Rg7 21. fxe4 Rxg2 22. Qd3 Qe8 23. e5 Bg5 24. Rf1 Bd7 {1-0 Barp,A (2470)-Kobalia,M (2542) Titled Tue 30th Apr Late 2024 (10)}) 10... exd5 ({RR} 10... cxd5 11. Bd3 b5 12. O-O Bb7 13. Nd2 Nb6 14. Qe2 Nc4 15. Nb3 Rc8 16. a4 b4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Ne4 Nxb2 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxb2 Qd6 21. Nc5 Rxc5 22. Qxb4 Rc6 23. Qxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qa3 25. Qb1 {1-0 Rapport,R (2735)-Shankland,S (2731) Saint Louis Champions Showdown rapid 2019 (3.5)}) ({RR} 10... cxd5 11. Bd3 b5 12. O-O Bb7 13. Nd2 Nb6 14. Qe2 Nc4 15. Nb3 Rc8 16. a4 b4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Ne4 Nxb2 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxb2 Qd6 21. Nc5 Rxc5 22. Qxb4 Rc6 23. Qxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qa3 25. Qb1 {Rapport,R (2735)-Shankland,S (2731) Saint Louis 2019 1-0 (71)}) 11. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 f5 13. Qb3 Kh7 14. Qc2 g6 15. Bf4 g5 16. Be5 g4 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 fxe4 20. h3 gxh3 21. g4 Qd5 22. Rxh3 Bf6 23. f4 Bxe5 24. Rh5 Bxg4 25. Rxe5 Qf7 {0-1 Yates,F-Maroczy,G Karlsbad-04 International Masters 1929 (15)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. O-O Re8 14. Bxe4 dxe4 15. Nd2 Nf6 16. Na4 Bg4 17. Qb3 Rad8 18. Rfe1 Rd5 19. Rc5 b5 20. Nc3 Rxc5 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Qc2 Qg5 23. Ne2 c5 24. Nf4 Qe5 25. h3 g5 {0-1 Bogoljubow,E-Tartakower,S Bled International 1931 (26)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 Re8 14. Bb1 {½-½ Hardicsay,P (2307)-Lengyel,B (2333) Balatonlelle IM 2004 (1)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 f5 13. Qb3 Kh7 14. Qc2 g6 15. Bf4 g5 16. Be5 g4 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 fxe4 20. h3 gxh3 21. g4 Qd5 22. Rxh3 Bf6 23. f4 Bxe5 24. Rh5 Bxg4 25. Rxe5 Qf7 {Yates,F-Maroczy,G Karlovy Vary 1929 0-1 (60)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne8 12. Bg3 Nd6 13. Qc2 Re8 14. O-O Bf8 15. Kh1 Nf6 16. Bh4 Be7 17. Ne5 Ng4 18. Bg3 Bh4 19. Bf4 Bg5 20. Bg3 Bh4 21. Bf4 Bf6 22. Nf3 Be7 23. h3 Nf6 24. Ne5 Be6 25. Bh2 Rc8 {Indjic,A (2661)-Shimanov,A (2578) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (58)}) 11... Ne8 12. Bg3 Bd6 13. Bd3 Bxg3 14. hxg3 Ndf6 15. Ne5 Nd6 16. f3 Re8 17. Ne2 Nd7 18. Rh5 f6 19. Nxd7 Bxd7 20. Kf2 f5 21. Re1 Rxe3 22. Kxe3 Qe8+ 23. Kf2 Qxh5 24. Qc5 Qg6 25. Qb6 Qf6 26. Qc7 Be8 27. Nf4 Rc8 28. Qxc8 Nxc8 29. Rxe8+ Kf7 30. Rxc8 Qxd4+ 31. Kf1 g5 32. Rf8+ Ke7 33. Ng6+ Kd6 34. Bxf5 Qxb2 35. f4 Qxa3 36. Kf2 a5 37. Ne5 a4 38. Rf7 Qb2+ 39. Kf1 Qb5+ 40. Bd3 Qb3 41. Bf5 a3 42. Nd3 Qxd3+ 43. Bxd3 a2 44. Rxb7 a1=Q+ 45. Ke2 Qg1 0-1

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.20"]
[Round "9.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Fedoseev, Vladimir3"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2692"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Slovenia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SLO"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 c5 3. c4 cxd4 4. cxd5 Nf6 5. Nxd4 Nxd5 6. e4 Nf6 7. Bb5+ Bd7 8. Nc3 e5 9. Bxd7+ Qxd7 10. Nf5 ({RR} 10. Nc2 Qxd1+ 11. Kxd1 Bc5 12. Ke2 Nbd7 ({RR} 12... Nc6 13. Rd1 Rc8 ({RR} 13... h6 14. f3 Rc8 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 Nd4+ 17. Kf2 O-O 18. Rac1 Rfd8 19. Ncd5 Nxd5 20. Nxd5 Kf8 21. Ke3 Rc6 22. Rxc6 bxc6 23. Nc3 Ke7 24. Rc1 Kd6 25. Na4 Ne6 26. Rd1+ Nd4 27. Rc1 Ne6 28. Rd1+) 14. f3 Ke7 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 Nd4+ 17. Kf2 g6 18. Rd2 Rc5 19. Ne2 Ne6 20. Rad1 Rhc8 21. a4 Rd8 22. Rxd8 Nxd8 23. Nc1 Rc8 24. Nd3 Nd7 25. Nb4 f6 26. Nbd5+ Ke6 27. Kf1) 13. f3 Rc8 14. Bd2 Ke7 15. b4 Bd6 16. Ne3 Ke6 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. Rab1 g6 19. Ne3 Nb6 20. Rhc1 Bh6 21. Nc4 Rxc4 22. Bxh6 Rhc8 23. Bd2 Nh5 24. Nb5 Nf4+ {Tang,A (2548)-Dlugy,M (2496) New Jersey USA 2025 0-1 (48)}) 10... Qxd1+ 11. Kxd1 Nc6 12. Bg5 Ng4 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Nd5 Rc8 14. Ke2 f6 15. Be3 g6 16. Ng3 Kf7 17. Rac1 h5 18. Rhd1 Bh6 19. Rc3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 h4 21. Nf1 Ne7 22. Rb3 Nc5 23. Rb4 a5 24. Rb6 Rc6 25. Rb5 Rb8 26. Nd2 Nc8 27. Rxa5 {0-1 Borrmann,L (2345)-Skotheim,A (2225) Titled Tue 14th May Early 2024 (7)}) ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Nd5 Rc8 14. Ke2 f6 15. Be3 g6 16. Ng3 Kf7 17. Rac1 h5 18. Rhd1 Bh6 19. Rc3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 h4 21. Nf1 Ne7 22. Rb3 Nc5 23. Rb4 a5 24. Rb6 Rc6 25. Rb5 Rb8 26. Nd2 Nc8 27. Rxa5 {Borrmann,L (2345)-Skotheim,A (2225) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (59)}) 13. Ke2 f6 14. Bh4 h5 15. f3 Nh6 16. Bf2 Nxf5 17. exf5 O-O-O 18. Rhd1 Rxd1 19. Rxd1 h4 20. Kd3 Rh5 21. Ke4 Rg5 22. Rg1 g6 23. Bxh4 gxf5+ 24. Kd5 Rg6 25. Ke6 Bc5 26. Rh1 Nd4+ 27. Kd5 b6 28. f4 Kd7 29. g4 fxg4 30. fxe5 fxe5 31. Ne4 Nf3 32. Nxc5+ bxc5 33. Bg3 Rd6+ 34. Kxc5 Rd2 35. Rc1 Ke6 36. Rc4 Kf5 37. Ra4 Nxh2 38. Bxh2 Rxh2 39. Rxa7 Rxb2 40. a4 Rc2+ 41. Kb5 g3 42. Rg7 Kf4 43. a5 Rb2+ 44. Kc6 Ra2 45. Kb6 e4 46. a6 e3 47. Rf7+ Ke4 48. Re7+ Kf3 49. Rf7+ Kg2 50. a7 e2 51. Re7 Kf2 52. Rf7+ Ke3 53. Re7+ Kd2 54. Rd7+ Kc1 55. Rc7+ Kb1 0-1

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.21"]
[Round "10.10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Schitco, Ivan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2527"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Moldova"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "MDA"]

1. d4 {Huebner,Robert} d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. e3 Bf5 4. c4 c6 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Be4 7. f3 Bg6 8. Qb3 Qc7 9. Bd2 a5 ({RR} 9... Be7 10. O-O-O ({RR} 10. g3 Bh5 11. Be2 g5 12. Ng2 h6 13. Rc1 Qb6 14. Qc2 Bg6 15. Bd3 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Qa6 17. b3 Nbd7 18. Ke2 O-O-O 19. c5 Qxd3+ 20. Kxd3 Ne8 21. b4 Nc7 22. a4 b6 23. Ne2 Kb7 24. Rb1 f5) 10... Nbd7 11. cxd5 ({RR} 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. g3) 11... Nxd5 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. h3 ({RR} 13. e4) 13... a5 14. a3 ({RR} 14. e4) 14... b5 15. Nxd5 ({RR} 15. e4 b4 ({RR} 15... a4 16. Qc2 b4 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Bxb4 ({RR} 18. exd5 bxa3 19. Qxc6 Qb8 20. Bb5 O-O 21. Qxd7 Ra7) 18... Bxb4 19. axb4 Qb6 20. Qc3) 16. exd5 ({RR} 16. axb4 axb4 17. Na2 N5f6) 16... cxd5 17. Kb1 bxc3) 15... exd5 16. Kb1 ({RR} 16. e4 Nb6) 16... Nb6 17. e4 Nc4 18. exd5 a4 19. Qc2 cxd5 20. Bd3 ({RR} 20. Bxc4 bxc4 21. Rhe1 O-O 22. Rxe7 Qxe7 23. Bb4 Qe3 24. Bxf8 Kxf8) 20... Rb8 21. Rhe1 O-O 22. Bxc4 ({RR} 22. Bf4 Qxf4 23. Rxe7 Qd6 24. Re2 ({RR} 24. Rde1 b4) 24... Rfc8) 22... bxc4 23. Qxa4 ({RR} 23. Bf4 Qxf4 24. Rxe7 Rb3) 23... Ra8 ({RR} 23... c3) 24. Qb5 {0-1 Bareev,E (2707)-Ivanchuk,V (2717) FIDE GP Dubai rapid 2002 (1.4)}) 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. g3 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Kg2 g5 15. Rc1 Nxc3 16. bxc3 b5 17. c4 b4 18. c5 e5 19. Bc4 O-O 20. Qc2 Rad8 21. h4 g4 22. fxg4 exd4 23. exd4 Nf6 24. Bf4 Qd7 25. g5 Nd5 26. Rhf1 {1-0 Gretarsson,H (2475)-Sai Agni Jeevitesh,J (2289) 2nd Leca Chess Open 2023 (7.4)}) ({RR} 11... Nxc3 12. bxc3 b5 13. Nxg6 hxg6 14. Kf2 Nd7 15. Be2 Be7 16. e4 a4 17. Qb2 O-O 18. Be3 f5 19. Kg2 Rad8 20. c4 Rb8 21. Qc2 Qa7 22. Rab1 b4 23. c5 e5 24. Rhc1 exd4 25. Bxd4 Kh7 26. exf5 {1-0 Ushenina,A (2418)-Zawadzka,J (2351) 24th ch-EUR Indiv w 2024 (4.8)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. Kg2 e5 16. dxe5 Nc5 17. Qc2 Qxe5 18. Rad1 g5 19. h3 Rd8 20. Bc1 Rxd1 21. Bxd1 Nd5 22. Nxd5 Qxd5 23. Be2 Qe5 24. b3 g4 25. Qb2 gxf3+ 26. Bxf3 {½-½ Keymer,V (2700)-Grandelius,N (2660) 28th Sigeman & Co 2023 (1.4)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. Kg2 e5 16. dxe5 Nc5 17. Qc2 Qxe5 18. Rad1 g5 19. h3 Rd8 20. Bc1 Rxd1 21. Bxd1 Nd5 22. Nxd5 Qxd5 23. Be2 Qe5 24. b3 g4 25. Qb2 gxf3+ 26. Bxf3 {Keymer,V (2700)-Grandelius,N (2660) Malmo SWE 2023 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. f4 c5 16. Bf3 cxd4 17. Nb5 Qb6 18. Nxd4 Bb4 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. a3 Nc5 21. Qc4 bxa3 22. bxa3 Nfe4+ 23. Kg2 Qb2+ 24. Qc2 Qxc2+ 25. Nxc2 O-O 26. Bxe4 {Ustiyanovich,N (2293)-Wadsworth,M (2500) Karlsruhe GER 2025 ½-½ (40)}) 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 b5 14. a3 Be7 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. Kf2 Rb8 17. Be2 g5 18. Be3 Nb6 19. Kg2 Kf8 20. Rhf1 Kg8 21. Rf2 Nd7 22. f4 gxf4 23. Bxf4 Bd6 24. e5 Be7 25. Bg4 a4 26. Qa2 Nf8 27. Raf1 Rh7 28. h4 Qd8 29. Be3 g5 30. h5 Qd5+ 31. Bf3 Qxa2 32. Rxa2 Rc8 33. g4 f5 34. exf6 Bxf6 35. Be4 Rh6 36. Raf2 Kg7 37. Kg3 Rc7 38. Bxg5 Bxg5 39. Rxf8 Rh8 40. Rxh8 Kxh8 41. h6 Be7 42. g5 1-0

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.15"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B13"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2894"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "105"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "FRA"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:07"]
[BlackClock "0:00:12"]

{[%evp 9,105,6,19,19,23,-11,19,-23,-22,-21,-19,-29,-15,-44,-49,-88,-6,2,-1,0,1,0,19,1,95,21,117,117,112,112,102,100,187,171,175,175,182,187,170,169,178,93,97,70,105,103,284,313,287,313,317,317,307,312,305,178,175,107,131,8,7,0,105,107,115,101,364,121,253,-20,0,0,0,0,226,225,228,227,229,228,253,0,0,0,0,-4,-9,-10,0,0,2,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 {ChessBase} d5 2. Bf4 c5 $146 ({RR} 2... e6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nd2 Be7 5. h3 O-O 6. Ngf3 b6 7. Bd3 Bb7 8. O-O Nbd7 9. Ne5 Ne4 10. f3 Nxd2 11. Qxd2 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 Bd6 13. f4 f6 14. Bxd6 Qxd6 15. c3 e5 16. Qf2 e4 17. Be2 {Martinez Butron,L (2251)-Nunez Miranda,M (2368) Buxton/ Derbyshire 2019 The Week in Chess 1267 [ChessBase] 1-0 (31)}) 3. e3 cxd4 4. exd4 Nc6 5. c3 f6 6. Nf3 g5 7. Bg3 ({But not} 7. Nxg5 fxg5 8. Qh5+ Kd7 $15) 7... Bf5 8. Nbd2 h5 9. h3 e6 10. Bb5 Bd6 11. O-O $146 ({RR} 11. Bxd6 Qxd6 12. Nb3 Nge7 13. Nc5 b6 14. Nb3 Kf7 15. Bd3 g4 16. Nh4 gxh3 17. Nxf5 Nxf5 18. Rxh3 h4 19. Bxf5 exf5 20. Qf3 Rae8+ 21. Kd2 f4 22. Rah1 Qe6 23. Nc1 Na5 {1-0 (23) Regadera Mateos,N (1959)-Blazquez Sanz,O (1924) Zafra ESP 2025}) 11... Nge7 12. Nb3 a6 13. Bd3 Bxg3 14. fxg3 Qd6 15. Qe2 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 b6 (16... O-O-O $11 {keeps the balance.}) 17. Nh2 f5 (17... Nf5 $11) 18. Rae1 $16 g4 19. h4 Kd7 20. Rf2 Ng8 (20... Rhf8 $16) 21. Rfe2 $18 Nd8 22. c4 dxc4 23. Qxc4 Nf6 24. Nf1 Re8 25. Qd3 ({White should try} 25. a4 $18) 25... Nc6 $16 26. a3 Ne4 27. Kh2 Nc5 $2 (27... Kc7 $16) 28. Nxc5+ $18 bxc5 29. Ne3 Nxd4 30. Nc4 Qc7 31. Re5 {Hoping for b4.} Rad8 32. b4 (32. Qc3 $142) 32... Ke7 33. Qe3 ({Don't go for} 33. Rxc5 $2 Qxc5 $1 {[%mdl 512]} 34. bxc5 Nf3+ 35. Qxf3 gxf3 $19) 33... cxb4 34. Qg5+ (34. Qh6 $16 {[%cal Rh6g7]} Qxc4 35. Rc1 Qxc1 36. Qxc1) 34... Kf8 $1 $11 35. axb4 Qg7 (35... Qxc4 $11 36. Qf6+ Kg8 37. Qg6+ Kh8 38. Qh6+ Kg8 39. Qg6+ Kf8 40. Qf6+ Kg8 41. Qg6+) 36. Qf4 $16 {[%mdl 1024] White has strong compensation.} Qf6 37. Rc5 Nc2 $2 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} (37... Kg8 $16 {was worth a try.}) 38. Rb1 $2 (38. Rxe6 $1 $18 {[%mdl 512] and the rest is easy.} Qxe6 (38... Rxe6 39. Rxf5) 39. Rxf5+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} Ke7 40. Rxh5) 38... Rd4 {[#]} (38... Nd4 $16 {was called for.}) 39. Ne5 $2 ({White has to play} 39. Qc1 $1 $18) 39... Rxf4 40. Nd7+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} Ke7 41. Nxf6 Kxf6 $2 (41... Rxb4 $11 42. Rxb4 Nxb4 43. Nxe8 Kxe8) 42. gxf4 $11 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRR-KRN} Ne3 43. Re1 g3+ 44. Kxg3 Rg8+ 45. Kf3 $2 (45. Kf2 $18 Nd5 46. Rc6) 45... Nxg2 {[%mdl 64] Double Attack. The position is equal.} 46. Rh1 {Strongly threatening Rc2.} Rg4 {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} 47. Rc6 Nxh4+ 48. Ke2 Rxf4 49. Rb1 Re4+ 50. Kf2 Rf4+ 51. Ke2 Re4+ 52. Kf2 Rf4+ 53. Ke2 {Accuracy: White = 58%, Black = 64%.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.11"]
[Round "2.4"]
[White "Lazavik, Denis"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2788"]
[BlackElo "2897"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "124"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "BLR"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:10"]
[BlackClock "0:03:31"]

{[%evp 9,124,10,12,12,25,13,13,18,18,30,34,10,5,5,5,4,4,6,2,3,3,3,3,11,7,4,6,5,7,9,34,25,64,60,56,65,108,81,75,65,93,25,25,24,21,25,27,23,28,23,27,27,19,16,18,20,26,22,21,2,14,13,28,25,31,5,5,9,10,16,17,14,21,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,3,10,486,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Bf5 4. c4 e6 5. Qb3 dxc4 6. Qxb7 Be4 7. Qxc7 Bb4+ 8. Nbd2 Qxc7 9. Bxc7 {a3 is the strong threat.} Ke7 10. a3 c3 $1 {[%cal Rc3b2]} 11. bxc3 Bxc3 12. Rc1 Bb2 13. Bd6+ {[%mdl 64] [#] Decoy} Kxd6 14. Nc4+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} Ke7 15. Nxb2 Nbd7 16. Nd2 Rhc8 17. Nbc4 Nb6 18. f3 Bd5 {[%cal Rd5c4]} 19. e4 Bxc4 $146 ({RR} 19... Rc6 20. Kf2 Bxc4 21. Nxc4 Rd8 22. Be2 Nxc4 23. Rxc4 Rxc4 24. Bxc4 Rxd4 25. Rc1 Rd7 26. Bb5 Rb7 27. a4 Ne8 28. Bxe8 Kxe8 29. Rc5 Kd7 30. Ra5 Kc6 31. Ke3 Kb6 32. Rb5+ Kc6 33. Ra5 {½-½ (33) Galyas,M (2448)-Csonka,B (2496) Douglas 2021}) 20. Bxc4 Rc6 {aiming for ...Rac8.} 21. Ke2 $1 Rac8 {[%cal Rb6c4]} 22. Kd3 e5 23. d5 ({But not} 23. dxe5 Nfd7 $14) 23... Rc5 24. Rc2 Nfd7 25. Bb3 Rxc2 $1 26. Bxc2 Nc5+ 27. Ke3 Ne6 28. dxe6 Rxc2 29. exf7 $11 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} Rc3+ 30. Ke2 Rxa3 31. Rc1 Kxf7 32. Rc7+ Kf6 33. g3 Ra2 34. f4 exf4 35. gxf4 h6 36. Rc6+ Kf7 37. f5 Nd7 38. Rc7 Ke7 39. Ke3 Kd6 40. Rc8 Ne5 41. Nc4+ (41. Re8 {is interesting.} Ng4+ 42. Ke2 Nf6 43. e5+ Kd7 44. Rb8) 41... Nxc4+ 42. Rxc4 Rxh2 {KR-KR} 43. Ra4 Ke7 44. Kf4 Rf2+ 45. Ke5 Rb2 46. Rxa7+ Kf8 47. Kf4 (47. Ra8+ {keeps more tension.} Ke7 48. Ra7+ Kf8 49. Ra8+) 47... Rb4 48. Kf3 Rb3+ 49. Kg4 Rb4 50. Kf4 Rc4 51. Ke5 Rc6 52. Kd5 Rf6 53. e5 Rxf5 $2 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} (53... Rb6 $1 $11 {and Black is okay.}) 54. Ke6 $2 (54. Kd6 $1 $18 Rf1 55. Ra8+ Kf7 56. e6+ Kg6 57. e7) 54... g6 {The position is equal.} 55. Kd6 {Threatens to win with e6.} Rf1 56. e6 {Hoping for Ra8+.} Rd1+ 57. Ke5 Re1+ 58. Kf6 {[%cal Ra7a8]} Rf1+ 59. Kxg6 Ke8 60. Rf7 Rxf7 61. exf7+ Kf8 62. Kxh6 {Kg6 would kill now.} Kxf7 {Accuracy: White = 86%, Black = 86%.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.11"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "Lazavik, Denis"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2903"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "167"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "BLR"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:15"]
[BlackClock "0:00:18"]

{[%evp 9,167,30,38,36,38,41,38,38,38,41,41,41,35,35,42,39,40,16,16,18,32,42,44,33,48,17,23,19,17,13,27,2,2,3,3,4,6,0,7,0,0,-20,-22,-27,-29,-128,-136,-146,-108,-278,-279,-242,-107,-113,-119,-122,-111,-105,-114,-108,-37,-126,0,0,64,92,85,-29998,-552,-29997,-292,-303,-307,-300,-305,-304,-308,-310,-222,-214,-211,-202,-204,-189,-102,-110,-67,-171,-173,-167,-10,-10,-10,-10,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,-10,-10,-10,-10,-10,0,-10,-10,-10,-10,-10,-10,-10,-10,-9,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,-1,0,0,0,0,-1,-5,-6,-8]} 1. d4 {ChessBase} d5 2. c4 e6 $146 ({RR} 2... Nc6 3. Nc3 dxc4 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. e4 Bg4 6. d5 Ne5 7. Bf4 ({RR} 7. Qa4+) ({RR} 7. Be2) 7... Nfd7 ({RR} 7... Ng6 8. Be3 ({RR} 8. Bg3 e5 9. dxe6 Qxd1+ 10. Rxd1 Bxe6 11. Nd4 Bb4 12. Nxe6 fxe6 13. f3 e5 14. Bxc4 Ke7 15. Ke2 ({RR} 15. O-O Rad8)) 8... e5 9. Bxc4 Bd6 10. O-O a6 11. Be2 O-O 12. Nd2 Bxe2 13. Qxe2 h6 14. g3 Qd7 15. f3 Nh7 16. Rac1 f5 17. exf5 Rxf5 18. Nce4 Raf8 19. Nc4 Ne7 20. Rcd1 b5 21. Na5 Bb4 22. Nb3) 8. Be2 Bxf3 9. gxf3 g6 10. Be3 Bg7 11. f4 Nd3+ 12. Bxd3 cxd3 13. Qxd3 O-O ({RR} 13... Nf6 14. Qb5+ Qd7 15. O-O-O Qxb5 16. Nxb5 Kd7 17. e5 Nh5 18. e6+ Kc8 19. f5 a6 20. Nd4 Bxd4 21. Bxd4 f6 22. Be3 b6 23. fxg6 hxg6 24. Rhg1 Rg8 25. h4 Kb7 26. Rg4 Rad8 27. a4 Rd6 28. a5) 14. O-O-O Nf6 15. e5 Nh5 16. Ne4 e6 17. Ng3 {Akhmad,F (1607)-Nowicki,E (1454) Sao Paulo 2013 CBM 168 Extra [ChessBase] 0-1} ({RR} 17. d6 cxd6 18. Nxd6 Qa5 19. Kb1)) 3. Nf3 a6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nc3 h6 6. Bf4 Nf6 7. e3 Bd6 8. Be5 {White is slightly better.} c6 9. Bd3 O-O 10. h3 Re8 11. O-O Bxe5 12. Nxe5 c5 13. a4 {[%cal Ba2a4,Ba4a5][%mdl 32]} cxd4 14. exd4 Nc6 15. Nxc6 bxc6 16. a5 Rb8 17. Qd2 Ne4 $146 ({RR} 17... Qd6 18. Na4 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Nc5 Qg6 21. Ra3 Rd8 22. Rd1 f5 23. Qc1 Qf6 24. Ra4 Rb5 25. Qc3 Qe7 26. Re1 Qf7 27. b3 Kh7 28. f3 exf3 29. Qxf3 Qf6 30. Qf4 Rd5 31. Kh2 Qd8 32. Re5 {Predke,A (2580)-Grandelius,N (2651) Riga 2021 ½-½ (45)}) 18. Nxe4 dxe4 19. Bc4 Qd6 20. Rfe1 c5 21. d5 Bd7 22. Rac1 f5 23. Qc3 f4 24. Bf1 Rbc8 25. Qb3 e3 26. fxe3 f3 27. e4 (27. Qd1 $11 {keeps the balance.} f2+ 28. Kxf2) 27... f2+ $1 $17 28. Kxf2 Qh2 $1 29. Qe3 $2 (29. Bxa6 $2 Rf8+ 30. Ke2 Rb8 $19) (29. d6+ $17 {was forced.} Kh8 30. Re3) 29... Rb8 $1 $19 (29... Rf8+ 30. Ke2 $11) 30. b3 {[#]} (30. Rxc5 $2 Rxb2+ 31. Re2 Rf8+ 32. Ke1 Rb1+ 33. Rc1 Rxc1+ 34. Qxc1 Rxf1+ $1 {[%mdl 512]} 35. Kxf1 Qh1+ 36. Kf2 Qxc1 $19) 30... Rf8+ (30... Rb4 $1 $19 31. Bc4 (31. Rxc5 $2 Rf8+ 32. Ke2 Qb8 $19) 31... Rf8+ 32. Ke2 Qxg2+ 33. Kd1 Rf3) 31. Ke2 $17 c4 32. bxc4 Rb2+ 33. Kd3 {And now e5 would win.} Qe5 34. Rc3 Ba4 35. Be2 ({White has to play} 35. Qc1 $1 $15 Rff2 36. Re3) 35... Rf2 $40 {[%mdl 128] White needs to defend precisely.} (35... Bc2+ $1 $17 36. Rxc2 Rb3+ {[%mdl 64] Skewer} 37. Kd2 Rxe3 38. Kxe3 Qg3+ 39. Kd2 Qxg2) 36. Qc1 $1 $11 {[%cal Rc1b2]} (36. Qxf2 {[#] gets mated.} Bc2+ $1 {[%mdl 512]} 37. Kd2 Bxe4+ 38. Kd1 Qxc3 39. Qf7+ Kh7 40. Qg6+ Bxg6 41. h4 Qd2#) 36... Rxg2 37. Qxb2 Rg3+ 38. Kd2 $2 {[%mdl 8192]} (38. Bf3 $16 Rxf3+ 39. Re3) 38... Qd4+ (38... Qf4+ $142 39. Re3 Qxe3#) 39. Bd3 Rxd3+ $2 (39... Qf2+ {mates} 40. Re2 Qf4+ 41. Ke1 Rg1#) 40. Rxd3 $19 Qxb2+ 41. Ke3 Bc2 42. Re2 Qc1+ 43. Rdd2 {White hopes to continue with d6.} Qg1+ 44. Rf2 Qe1+ 45. Rfe2 Qg1+ 46. Rf2 Ba4 ({Better is} 46... Qe1+ $19 47. Rfe2 Qc1) 47. c5 $17 Qc1 48. c6 (48. Kd4 $15) 48... Qc5+ $19 49. Kf3 Bb5 $2 (49... h5 $19 50. Kg2 h4) 50. Rc2 $11 {The position is equal.} Qa3+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} 51. Kg2 {Black should prevent c7.} Bd3 52. c7 $1 {[%cal Rc7c8]} Bxe4+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} 53. Kh2 Qd6+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} 54. Kg1 Qg3+ 55. Rg2 Qe3+ 56. Kh2 Qf4+ 57. Rg3 Bf5 58. c8=Q+ Bxc8 59. Rxc8+ {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KQ-KRR} Kh7 60. Rcc3 Qd2+ {[%mdl 64] Double Attack} 61. Kg1 Qxd5 62. Ra3 g5 63. Rgd3 Qc5+ 64. Kg2 Kg6 65. Rdc3 Qd5+ 66. Rf3 Kh5 67. Kg3 Qd4 {[%cal Rd4g1]} 68. Kg2 Kh4 {White must now prevent ...h5.} 69. Rg3 h5 {Hoping for ...Qd5+.} 70. Rgf3 g4 71. hxg4 hxg4 72. Rg3 Qd2+ 73. Kf1 Kg5 74. Rgd3 Qc1+ 75. Kg2 Qb2+ 76. Kf1 Qb4 {...Qb1+ is the strong threat.} 77. Kg2 Kf4 78. Kf2 Qb2+ 79. Kf1 Ke4 {aiming for ...Qb4.} 80. Rg3 Qc1+ 81. Kf2 Qd2+ 82. Kf1 Kf4 {Strongly threatening ...Qc1+.} 83. Rgd3 Qc1+ 84. Kf2 {Accuracy: White = 83%, Black = 84%.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.15"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2856"]
[BlackElo "2900"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "FRA"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:07"]
[BlackClock "0:00:09"]

{[%evp 11,101,23,37,18,19,1,2,0,7,8,8,1,0,7,7,-18,-8,-62,-41,-69,64,55,169,163,135,159,198,179,185,7,10,7,8,6,10,3,18,23,49,50,50,50,57,46,80,81,83,78,94,57,57,53,55,12,16,28,31,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,-381,-314,-311,283,291,372,353,446,436,602,674,673,671,651,620,676,669,636,615,600,569,1130,29943,29958,29958,29959,1169]} 1. d4 {Chess.com} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Nge2 h6 8. Bh4 Nbd7 9. f3 {The position is equal.} Be7 10. Bf2 Bh7 11. Ng3 Qb6 12. Qd2 O-O 13. Be2 Rfe8 14. e4 dxe4 $1 15. fxe4 c5 ({Black should play} 15... Rad8 $15) 16. e5 $1 $14 {[%cal Re5f6]} cxd4 (16... Rad8 $1 $14 17. exf6 Nxf6) 17. Bxd4 $18 Bc5 18. Na4 Qc6 19. Nxc5 ({Not} 19. exf6 Qxa4 20. Bxc5 Nxc5 $11) 19... Nxc5 20. exf6 $2 ({Better is} 20. Bxc5 $18 {And now Qd6 would win.} Ne4 21. Nxe4) 20... Rad8 $1 $11 {[#] aiming for ...Nd3+.} 21. O-O ({Avoid the trap} 21. fxg7 $2 Nd3+ 22. Kf1 Rxd4 $19) 21... Ne6 $36 {[%mdl 2048] White is under pressure.} 22. Bf3 Qd6 23. fxg7 {Nh5 is the strong threat.} Qxd4+ 24. Qxd4 Nxd4 25. Bxb7 Ne2+ 26. Nxe2 Rxe2 27. b4 Kxg7 28. Rf4 Rb2 29. a4 Bb1 30. Bf3 (30. h3 {is more complex.} f5 31. b5 Rdd2 32. Kh2 Kf6 33. Ra3) 30... f5 31. h3 Kf6 32. Ra3 Ke5 33. Rh4 {Hoping for Re3+.} Be4 34. Bxe4 fxe4 $14 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRR-KRR} 35. Rh5+ Kd4 36. Rxh6 Rg8 37. g4 Rc8 {[%cal Rc8c1]} 38. Rf6 $2 {[%mdl 8192]} (38. Rd6+ $11 {and White is okay.} Ke5 39. Rd1) 38... Rc1+ 39. Rf1 Rcc2 $4 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} (39... Rxf1+ $19 {avoids the disaster.} 40. Kxf1 e3) ({RR} 39... Rxf1+ 40. Kxf1 e3 41. b5 Ke4 42. Rc3 Kf3) ({RR} 39... Rbb1 40. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 41. Kf2 Rc2+ 42. Kf1 e3) 40. Rg3 $1 $18 e3 41. g5 Rf2 42. Re1 Rfe2 43. Rxe2 Rxe2 {KR-KR} 44. g6 Re1+ 45. Kg2 Re2+ 46. Kf1 Rf2+ 47. Ke1 {Strongly threatening g7.} Rb2 {intending ...Rb1+.} 48. g7 Kd3 {[%cal Rb2b1]} 49. Kf1 Rb1+ 50. Kg2 Rb2+ 51. Kf3 $146 {Accuracy: White = 77%, Black = 67%.} 1-0

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.15"]
[Round "4.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2891"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "120"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "NOR"]
[BlackTeam "FRA"]
[WhiteClock "0:01:11"]
[BlackClock "0:01:17"]

{[%evp 10,120,45,18,15,16,33,18,19,10,21,7,11,11,11,11,5,11,19,10,17,19,11,7,5,5,20,-16,-45,-40,-40,-39,-3,-12,8,-60,-67,-101,-105,-100,-90,-75,-20,-44,-37,-40,-49,-71,-72,-71,-77,-85,-88,-88,-60,-125,-118,-119,-117,-135,-138,-144,-120,-114,-113,-155,-149,-194,-180,-191,-128,-192,-121,-154,-158,-177,-67,-71,-68,-81,-23,-30,-9,-9,-10,-11,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 $146 ({RR} 2... dxc4 3. e4 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. Bxc4 Bf5 6. a3 e6 7. Ne2 Be7 8. O-O O-O 9. Nbc3 c6 10. Ng3 Bg6 11. Nge4 Nxc3 12. Nxc3 Nd7 13. f4 Nb6 14. Bb3 Qd7 15. Be3 Rad8 16. Qf3 Kh8 17. Rad1 {Barumba,E (1416) Dublin 2020 [ChessBase] 0-1 (40)}) 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 c5 6. Qa4+ Bd7 7. Qxc4 b5 8. Qc2 Na6 {[%cal Bb8a6,Ba6c5,Bc5b3,Bb3d4][%mdl 32]} ({RR} 8... Nc6 9. dxc5 Nb4 10. Qd2 Bxc5 11. Ne5 Rc8 12. Nc3 Bd4 13. Nxd7 Qxd7 14. O-O O-O 15. Ne4 Nc2 16. Nxf6+ gxf6 17. Rb1 Rfd8 18. Qh6 Qe7 19. Bf4 f5 20. e4 Bg7 21. Qh5 fxe4 22. Bxe4 f5 23. Bxc2 {Carlsen,M (2832)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2755) chess.com INT 2024 ½-½ (78)}) 9. O-O Rc8 10. a3 $146 ({RR} 10. Qd3 Be7 11. Nc3 Qb6 12. e4 b4 13. e5 bxc3 14. exf6 Bxf6 15. bxc3 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nc5 17. Qe3 O-O 18. Ba3 Rfd8 19. Rab1 Qc7 20. Nb5 Bxb5 21. Rxb5 Na4 22. Rb7 Qxc3 23. Rxa7 Bd4 24. Qxc3 Nxc3 {Tran,N (2346)-Lam,D (2341) Hanoi 2022 0-1 (45)}) ({RR} 10. dxc5 Bxc5 11. Qb3 Qb6 12. Nc3 O-O 13. Ne5 Be8 14. Bg5 Be7 15. Rac1 Nc5 16. Qd1 b4 17. Nb1 Bb5 18. Nd2 Rfd8 19. Qe1 h6 20. Be3 Qa6 21. Ndc4 Na4 22. b3 Nc3 23. Rc2 Rd1 24. Qxd1 Nxd1 {Braun,M (2109)-Koppe,C (1996) Bamberg GER 2024 ½-½ (45)}) 10... cxd4 11. Qd1 Nc5 12. Nxd4 e5 13. Nf3 Be6 {[#] aiming for ...Qxd1.} 14. Qxd8+ (14. Nxe5 Nb3 $15) 14... Rxd8 15. Nc3 (15. Nxe5 Nb3 $17) 15... Nb3 16. Rb1 Bf5 17. Nxe5 Bxb1 18. Bc6+ Ke7 19. Nxb1 Ke6 ({Don't play} 19... Nxc1 20. Rxc1 Rc8 21. Nd2 $11) 20. Nd3 Nd4 {[%mdl 64] [#] Double Attack} ({Of course not} 20... Nxc1 $6 21. Rxc1 Bd6 22. Nc3 $11) 21. Nf4+ Kf5 $132 {[%mdl 2048] Black is not holding back} 22. Bg2 (22. e4+ $5 Ke5 23. Bb7 $15) 22... g5 23. Bh3+ g4 24. Bg2 Bd6 25. Nc3 Rhe8 (25... Bxf4 $5 26. Bxf4 Kg6 $11) 26. f3 {Black must now prevent fxg4+.} Bxf4 $1 27. fxg4+ Kg6 28. Bxf4 Nxe2+ 29. Nxe2 Rxe2 30. g5 Nd5 31. Bc1 Ne3 32. Bf3 Nxf1 33. Bxe2 $17 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KB} Nd2 34. h4 a6 35. Kf2 f6 36. gxf6 Kxf6 37. g4 Ke5 38. Ke1 Ne4 39. Be3 Rc8 40. Bd1 Rd8 41. Bc2 Rf8 42. Bd1 Nd6 ({Better is} 42... Ng3 $19 43. Bb6 Rf7) 43. h5 $15 Nc4 44. Bc1 Kd4 {And now ...Ne5 would win.} 45. Bc2 Ne3 (45... Rf7 {is interesting.} 46. Ke2 Re7+ 47. Kf2 Rc7 48. Bb1 Ke5) 46. Bxe3+ $1 {The position is equal.} Kxe3 47. Bxh7 $11 {Hoping for g5. KR-KB} Kf4 48. Bf5 Kg5 49. Kd2 Rd8+ 50. Kc3 a5 51. b4 axb4+ 52. axb4 Rd6 53. Kb3 Rd4 54. Be6 Rd6 55. Bf5 Rd4 56. Ka3 Rd6 57. Kb2 Rd4 58. Kb3 Rd6 59. Kc3 Rd8 60. Bd3 Kxg4 {[%mdl 32768] Accuracy: White = 79%, Black = 81%. . Sensor Board Error (Ke4/e5)?} 0-1

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.11"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Lazavik, Denis"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2897"]
[BlackElo "2788"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "139"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "NOR"]
[BlackTeam "BLR"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:50"]
[BlackClock "0:00:06"]

{[%evp 11,139,39,37,-23,2,6,16,0,2,-32,-32,-69,-69,-69,-57,-77,-37,-42,-46,-48,-54,-46,-52,-40,13,7,9,12,37,38,48,47,47,47,47,47,45,46,46,45,56,42,98,105,108,17,159,14,13,10,94,8,9,5,8,3,3,3,3,5,5,3,5,3,3,3,5,3,3,5,5,5,5,6,7,6,7,6,7,2,2,2,3,3,5,7,16,14,14,10,51,36,48,43,304,299,328,320,323,324,369,360,372,381,353,317,356,308,302,284,543,540,533,421,421,421,421,421,421,421,421,421,420,420,420,421,421,426,399,405]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. h4 c5 ({RR} 7... b5 8. Qc2 Bb7 9. Bg5 Nbd7 10. Nc3 a6 11. e4 h6 12. Bf4 Bb4 13. e5 Nd5 14. Bd2 Bxc3 15. bxc3 c5 16. Rae1 cxd4 17. cxd4 c3 18. Bg5 hxg5 19. Nxg5 g6 20. Nxe6 Qe7 21. Nxf8 Nxf8 22. f4 {Grot,B (2190)-Tavernier,L (2082) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (32)}) 8. dxc5 Bxc5 $146 ({RR} 8... Qxd1 9. Rxd1 Nc6 10. Nbd2 Rd8 11. Rf1 c3 12. Nb3 c2 13. Ne1 a5 14. Nxc2 a4 15. Nd2 Bxc5 16. Nc4 e5 17. Bxc6 bxc6 18. Be3 Bxe3 19. N2xe3 Be6 20. Nxe5 Rd2 21. b3 Nd5 22. N5c4 {½-½ (22) Petkov,M (2545)-Bernadskiy,V (2546) Skopje MKD 2024}) ({RR} 8... Qxd1 9. Rxd1 Bxc5 10. Ne5 Nc6 11. Nxc4 Nd5 12. Nc3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 e5 14. Rd5 Be7 15. Nxe5 Nxe5 16. Rxe5 Bf6 17. Rc5 b6 18. Rc7 Be5 19. Re7 Bxc3 20. Bxa8 Bxa1 21. Bd5 Be6 22. Bxe6 fxe6 23. Rxa7 {Van Foreest,J (2707)-Kryvoruchko,Y (2656) Durres ALB 2023 1-0 (45)}) 9. Qc2 {The position is equal.} Nbd7 10. Nc3 Qc7 11. Bf4 e5 12. Bd2 h6 13. a4 a6 14. Ne4 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Rb8 16. a5 b5 {And now ...Re8 would win.} 17. axb6 $1 Qxb6 18. Bc3 Bb7 19. Qf5 e4 20. Qxd7 $40 {[%mdl 128] Threatens to win with Ne5. White is up to no good.} exf3 21. Qg4 {[%csl Gc3][%cal Rg4g7]} Qg6 22. Bxf3 Bxf3 23. exf3 Qxg4 24. fxg4 Bb4 25. Rxa6 Bxc3 26. bxc3 $14 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRR-KRR} Rb3 27. Rc1 Re8 28. Kg2 (28. Ra5 $16) 28... Re2 (28... Rb2 $1 $11 {remains equal.}) 29. Rc6 (29. Ra8+ $16 Kh7 30. Ra7) 29... Rbb2 $11 30. Rf1 Rec2 {[#]} (30... Kh7 $11) 31. Rc8+ (31. h5 $1 $16) 31... Kh7 32. Rxc4 Rb3 33. Rf4 f6 34. Ra1 {Hoping for Ra7.} Rbxc3 35. Raa4 Rc7 36. Rfe4 Rd7 37. Ra5 Rcd2 38. Raa4 Rc2 39. Rf4 Rcd2 40. Rfb4 Re2 41. Rb8 Rdd2 42. Rf4 Re7 43. Rb5 Red7 44. Rff5 Kg6 45. g5 hxg5 46. hxg5 Re7 47. gxf6 gxf6 48. Rf4 {With the idea Rb6.} Rd6 49. Rg4+ Kf7 50. Rh5 Re2 51. Rh7+ Ke6 52. Rf4 Ra2 $2 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} ({Black should try} 52... Red2 $1 $14) 53. g4 $1 $18 Ra5 54. Kg3 Re5 55. Ra4 Rd3+ 56. f3 Ree3 57. Ra6+ Rd6 58. Ra4 Rdd3 59. Rf4 Rd6 60. Rf5 Re5 $2 (60... Re1 61. Rh6 Ke7) 61. Rxe5+ Kxe5 {KR-KR} 62. f4+ Ke6 63. f5+ Ke5 64. Re7+ Kd5 65. g5 fxg5 66. Kg4 Rd8 67. f6 Rg8 68. f7 Rf8 {intending ...Kd6.} 69. Kxg5 Kd6 70. Kf6 {Accuracy: White = 80%, Black = 69%.} 1-0

[Event "Division I"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.15"]
[Round "4.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2893"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1"]
[PlyCount "117"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "NOR"]
[BlackTeam "FRA"]
[WhiteClock "0:00:35"]
[BlackClock "0:00:02"]

{[%evp 15,117,11,30,14,11,10,13,14,13,16,16,12,33,27,38,31,32,31,44,27,41,17,61,61,58,47,61,58,77,73,76,40,49,40,49,44,56,58,77,73,86,78,122,110,256,237,244,206,189,212,217,217,217,188,207,187,261,69,160,170,175,146,237,200,210,209,210,210,233,237,233,240,235,249,333,333,336,338,333,294,367,348,402,387,381,383,476,465,479,461,672,561,525,329,561,562,685,685,29950,29951,29948,836,29958,29952]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. Qc2 Nbd7 8. O-O c6 9. Rc1 a5 10. a3 b6 11. cxd5 {The position is equal.} cxd5 12. Bf4 Ba6 13. Nc3 Rc8 14. Qa4 Rc4 $146 ({RR} 14... b5 15. Nxb5 Rxc1+ 16. Bxc1 Ne4 17. Qb3 Qb6 18. a4 Rb8 19. Bf1 Ndf6 20. h3 Bxb5 21. Qxb5 Qxb5 22. axb5 Rxb5 23. e3 Rb8 24. Rxa5 Rc8 25. Ra1 g5 26. Ne1 h5 27. Be2 g4 28. hxg4 Nxg4 29. Nd3 {Karthik,V (2590)-Aczel,G (2502) Prishtina KOS 2024 1-0 (39)}) 15. Qd1 b5 16. e3 Qb6 17. Bf1 Rc6 18. a4 b4 19. Nb5 Rfc8 20. Rxc6 Rxc6 21. Rc1 Ne8 22. h4 h6 23. h5 Bb7 24. Nd2 Ndf6 25. Be2 Ne4 26. Nb3 Bd8 27. f3 {Black must now prevent Rxc6.} Ng5 28. Kg2 Nf6 29. Nc5 Nxh5 (29... Bc8 $16 {was necessary.}) 30. Bb8 $18 {[#] Ba7 is the strong threat.} Rc8 31. Nd7 Rxc1 32. Qxc1 Qc6 33. Qxc6 Bxc6 34. Ne5 Be8 35. f4 f6 36. Nd6 $2 (36. fxg5 $18 {Hoping for Nd6.} fxe5 37. g4) 36... Bxa4 ({Black should play} 36... Ne4 $14 37. Nxe8 Nhxg3) 37. Bxh5 fxe5 38. fxg5 {Strongly threatening Bf7+.} Bxg5 (38... exd4 $16 {is a better defense.} 39. exd4 Bxg5) 39. Bf7+ Kf8 40. Bxe6 exd4 41. exd4 ({Weaker is} 41. Bxd5 d3 $14) 41... Bc1 42. Bxd5 Bxb2 {[#]} 43. Ba7 $1 Ke7 44. Bc5 {aiming for Nc4+.} Bc3 45. Ne4+ Kd7 46. Nxc3 bxc3 47. Kf2 Bc6 48. Bc4 c2 49. Ba3 g5 50. d5 Bb7 51. Ke3 h5 52. Kd4 h4 (52... Ke8 $142 53. Bb5+ Kd8) 53. gxh4 gxh4 54. Bd3 Kd8 $2 (54... Bxd5 55. Kxd5 Ke8 56. Bg6+ Kd7 57. Bxc2 Kd8) 55. Bxc2 h3 56. Bd6 Ba6 57. Bf5 Bf1 58. Bg3 (58. Be5 $142 Bb5 59. Bxh3 Ke8 60. Kc5 Ba4 61. Bc7 Kf8 62. d6 Kf7 63. Bxa5) 58... a4 59. d6 {Accuracy: White = 89%, Black = 48%.} 1-0

[Event "Champions Chess Tour Chess.com Classic "]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.05.13"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2856"]
[BlackElo "2900"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,101,16,56,5,-12,1,2,0,-38,-39,-44,-6,-19,36,-21,-4,-46,-62,-76,-47,-78,-64,-61,-49,-56,-46,-50,-36,-36,-36,-36,27,102,198,198,251,170,233,234,287,287,355,150,198,122,65,65,67,73,73,79,82,82,82,62,75,64,90,70,86,75,71,43,89,61,72,10,60,0,14,-8,-8,-13,10,29,26,22,38,32,71,113,161,113,200,185,228,228,269,255,255,255,386,299,386,308,881,881,881,881,949,949,1058,881]} 1. d4 {Stockfish 16.1} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 Bf5 7. Nge2 h6 8. Bh4 Nbd7 9. f3 Be7 10. Bf2 Bh7 11. Ng3 Qb6 12. Qd2 O-O 13. Be2 Rfe8 14. e4 dxe4 15. fxe4 c5 ({RR} 15... Rad8) 16. e5 cxd4 ({RR} 16... Rad8 17. exf6 Nxf6) 17. Bxd4 Bc5 18. Na4 Qc6 19. Nxc5 ({RR} 19. exf6 Qxa4 20. Bxc5 Nxc5) 19... Nxc5 20. exf6 ({RR} 20. Bxc5 Ne4 21. Nxe4) 20... Rad8 21. O-O ({RR} 21. fxg7 Nd3+ 22. Kf1 Rxd4) 21... Ne6 22. Bf3 Qd6 23. fxg7 Qxd4+ 24. Qxd4 Nxd4 25. Bxb7 Ne2+ 26. Nxe2 Rxe2 27. b4 Kxg7 28. Rf4 Rb2 29. a4 Bb1 30. Bf3 ({RR} 30. h3 f5 31. b5 Rdd2 32. Kh2 Kf6 33. Ra3) 30... f5 31. h3 Kf6 32. Ra3 Ke5 33. Rh4 Be4 34. Bxe4 fxe4 35. Rh5+ Kd4 36. Rxh6 Rg8 37. g4 Rc8 38. Rf6 ({RR} 38. Rd6+ Ke5 39. Rd1) 38... Rc1+ 39. Rf1 Rcc2 $4 (39... Rxf1+ {estava vencendo.} 40. Kxf1 e3 41. b5 Ke4 42. Rc3 Kf3 {Os peões passados brancos não estão indo a lugar nenhum, enquanto o Preto ameaça xeque-mate e empurrando seu próprio peão para vitória.}) (39... Rbb1 40. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 41. Kf2 Rc2+ 42. Kf1 e3 {transpõe para a linha vencedora acima.}) ({RR} 39... Rxf1+ 40. Kxf1 e3) 40. Rg3 $1 {Não só isso é um salvamento, mas o Branco está vencendo $1 O Branco defende contra Rg2+ e ameaça empurrar seu próprio peão.} e3 41. g5 Rf2 42. Re1 Rfe2 43. Rxe2 Rxe2 44. g6 Re1+ 45. Kg2 Re2+ 46. Kf1 Rf2+ 47. Ke1 Rb2 48. g7 Kd3 49. Kf1 Rb1+ 50. Kg2 Rb2+ 51. Kf1 $146 {Após outra repetição, o Branco pode colocar seu rei em f3 e promover seu peão primeiro. Precisão Chess.com: Brancas 92.2 Pretas 86.4 Precisão Chessbase: Brancas 77 Pretas 67} ({RR} 51. Kf3) ({RR} 51. Kf3) 1-0

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.09"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal Krasenkow,M} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Bb4+ 11. Nd2 ({RR} 11. Ke2) ({RR} 11. Ke2) 11... Nc6 12. O-O Be7 13. Rc1 ({RR} 13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6) ({RR} 13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 ({RR} 14. Qc2 g6 ({RR} 14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6) ({RR} 14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6) 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6) ({RR} 14. Qc2 g6 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6) 14... Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3) ({RR} 13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6) ({RR} 13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3) ({RR} 13. h3 Bf6 14. Nf3 h6 15. Rb1 a5 16. a3 d4 17. e4 Re8 18. Qd2 a4 19. Rbe1 Qa5 20. Qxa5 Rxa5 21. Bc7 Ra8 22. e5 Be7 23. Bb6 Be6 24. Rc1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Bb5 Bd5 27. Bxc6 bxc6 {Giri,A (2748)-Gukesh,D (2776) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (100)}) 13... Bf6 14. a3 ({RR} 14. Nf3 Qe7 ({RR} 14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6) ({RR} 14... Be6 {RR} 15. a3 ({RR} 15. a3 Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 h6) 15... Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 h6) ({RR} 14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6) ({RR} 14... Be6) 15. h3 g6 16. Bb5 Bd7 ({RR} 16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 ({RR} 17... bxc6 18. Rxc6) ({RR} 17... bxc6 18. Rxc6) 18. Bxd5 Ba3 19. Bh6 Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1) ({RR} 16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 18. Bxd5 Ba3 19. Bh6 Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1) 17. Qxd5 Be6 ({RR} 17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5) ({RR} 17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5) 18. Qe4 ({RR} 18. Qc5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 ({RR} 19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) ({RR} 19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6) ({RR} 18. Qc5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6) 18... Bxb2 ({RR} 18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4) ({RR} 18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4) 19. Bxc6 f5 ({RR} 19... Bxc1 20. Bxb7) ({RR} 19... bxc6 20. Rxc6) ({RR} 19... Bxc1 20. Bxb7) ({RR} 19... bxc6 20. Rxc6) 20. Bg5 ({RR} 20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 ({RR} 21. Bxb7 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rab8) ({RR} 21. Bxb7 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rab8) 21... Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8) ({RR} 20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8) 20... fxe4 21. Bxe7 Bxc1 22. Bxb7 ({RR} 22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5) ({RR} 22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5) 22... Bxe3 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. fxe3 exf3 25. Bxf3 Rb8 26. a4 Rb4 27. Bc6 Rc4 28. Bb5 Re4 {Carlsen,M (2822)-Nakamura,H (2792) Saint Louis 2017 CBM 180 [Krasenkow,M] ½-½ (94)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1) ({RR} 14. Nf3 Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Bb5 Bd7 17. Qxd5 Be6 18. Qe4 Bxb2 19. Bxc6 f5 20. Bg5 fxe4 21. Bxe7 Bxc1 22. Bxb7 Bxe3 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. fxe3 exf3 25. Bxf3 Rb8 26. a4 Rb4 27. Bc6 Rc4 28. Bb5 Re4 {Carlsen,M (2822)-Nakamura,H (2792) Saint Louis 2017 CBM 180 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (94)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1) 14... g6 ({RR} 14... Be6 15. b4 Qb6 16. b5 Ne5 17. Bxe5 Bxe5 18. Bxh7+ Kxh7 19. Qh5+ Kg8 20. Qxe5 d4 21. Qxd4 Qxb5 22. Qa1 Rfd8 23. Nf3 Bd5 24. Nd4 Qd7 25. Rfd1 Rac8 26. h3 b6 27. Qb2 Bb7 28. Qe2 Rc5 29. Qg4 {Yilmaz,M (2626)-Nogerbek,K (2356) chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (48)}) 15. Qb3 $146 ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Be5 22. Rxc4 Bxf4 23. Nxe6 dxc4 24. Nxd8 Rxd8 25. Qc2 Bd6 26. Bxc4 Bc5 27. Rb1 Bb4 28. Rd1 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Kg7 {Kalinitschew,S (2426)-Meier,G (2644) Apolda 2017 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Nb2 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4) ({RR} 15. b4 Qe7 16. Nf3 Rd8 17. h3 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Qd2 a5 20. bxa5 Bxf4 21. exf4 Qxa3 22. Ra1 Qd6 23. Rfb1 Qf6 24. Ra2 Rd6 25. Rc2 Rc6 26. Rxc6 bxc6 27. Qb4 Qd8 28. Ra1 Ba6 29. Bxa6 Rxa6 {Caruana,F (2822)-Anand,V (2768) Saint Louis USA 2018 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 15. b4 Qe7 16. Bb5 Ne5 17. Nb3 Bg4 18. f3 Be6 19. Nd4 Rac8 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Qd2 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Be2 Qf6 25. f4 Bxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 27. exd4 f6 28. Bf3 Be6 29. f5 gxf5 {Bindrich,F (2598)-Zatonskih,A (2424) Douglas 2017 ½-½ (63)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 a4 18. Nb1 Be6 19. Nc3 Rc8 20. Qxa4 Nc4 21. Ne4 Be7 22. Bxc4 Rxc4 23. Rxc4 dxc4 24. Be5 f6 25. Rd1 Qa8 26. Qxa8 Rxa8 27. Bxf6 Bxf6 28. Nxf6+ Kg7 29. Ne4 Rxa3 {Shabalov,A (2510)-Boensch,U (2525) Rhodes 2019 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Nb2 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4) 15... a5 16. Bb5 Be6 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. Bf1 Qe7 19. Qb5 Rfd8 20. h3 a4 21. b3 Qxa3 22. bxa4 Nd4 23. Qd3 Qxd3 24. Bxd3 Rxc1 25. Rxc1 Nc6 26. Nb3 g5 27. Bg3 d4 28. Nc5 dxe3 29. fxe3 Bb2 30. Rc2 Be5 31. Bxe5 Nxe5 32. Nxe6 fxe6 33. Be4 b6 34. a5 bxa5 35. Rc5 Nf7 36. Rxa5 Kg7 37. Ra6 Re8 38. Ra7 h5 39. Bf3 Rh8 40. Ra6 Kf6 41. Bd5 Re8 42. Bf3 Rh8 43. Bd5 Nd8 44. Bc4 h4 45. Ra8 Nf7 46. Rxh8 Nxh8 47. g3 Nf7 48. Kg2 Ne5 49. Bb3 Ke7 50. Ba2 Kf6 51. Bb3 Ke7 52. Ba2 Kf7 53. Bb3 Kf6 54. Ba2 Kf5 55. Bb1+ Kf6 56. Ba2 Kf5 57. Bb1+ Kf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.11"]
[Round "18.1"]
[White "Erigaisi Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2671"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "180"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Bf5 4. e3 e6 5. Bd3 Bg6 6. O-O Bd6 7. Ne5 Nh5 ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 Bxd3 9. cxd3 O-O 10. Rc1 Bxe5 11. dxe5 Ne8 12. d4 c6 13. Qg4 Qe7 14. Nf3 f5 15. exf6 Nexf6 16. Qh4 Rae8 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rf7 19. h3 Qb4 20. Rc2 Nd7 21. Qg3 Nxe5 22. Qxe5 {Grachev,B (2614)-Petrosyan,M (2613) Moscow RUS 2019 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 7... c6 8. Re1 Qc7 9. Bg3 Nbd7 10. f4 Ne4 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. Nd2 f5 14. Nc4 O-O-O 15. c3 Be7 16. Qb3 Bh4 17. Ne5 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Nxe5 19. dxe5 Rd5 20. Rad1 g5 21. c4 Rxe5 22. fxe5 {Covington,M (1723)-Roy,E Grapevine USA 2021 0-1 (76)}) ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 Bxd3 9. cxd3 O-O 10. Rc1 Bxe5 11. dxe5 Ne8 12. d4 c6 13. Qg4 Qe7 14. Nf3 f5 15. exf6 Nexf6 16. Qh4 Rae8 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rf7 19. h3 Qb4 20. Rc2 Nd7 21. Qg3 Nxe5 22. Qxe5 {Grachev,B (2614)-Petrosyan,M (2613) Moscow 2019 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 O-O 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. Bxd6 cxd6 11. c3 Nb6 12. Qb3 Qc7 13. Rfc1 Rfc8 14. Qd1 Nc4 15. Rab1 b5 16. h3 Rab8 {½-½ (16) Demidov,M (2523)-Smirnov,P (2475) Sochi RUS 2025}) 8. Nxg6 hxg6 9. Bxd6 Qxd6 10. c4 $146 ({RR} 10. f4 Nf6 11. c4 c5 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Nb5 Qd7 14. Nxd4 O-O 15. Qf3 Nc6 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Rac1 Qb6 18. Rf2 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rfd8 20. Rcc2 Nd5 21. Bxd5 Rxd5 22. Rfd2 Qa5 23. Rxd5 exd5 24. Qd1 Qxa2 {Hock,H-Kannenberg,K Germany South 1986 ½-½}) ({RR} 10. f4 Nf6 11. c4 c5 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Nb5 Qd7 14. Nxd4 O-O 15. Qf3 Nc6 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Rac1 Qb6 18. Rf2 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rfd8 20. Rcc2 Nd5 21. Bxd5 Rxd5 22. Rfd2 Qa5 23. Rxd5 exd5 24. Qd1 Qxa2 {Hock,H-Kannenberg,K Germany South 1986 ½-½}) 10... c6 11. Nc3 Nd7 12. g3 Nhf6 13. Rb1 dxc4 14. Bxc4 O-O 15. e4 Rfd8 16. Bb3 e5 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. f4 Qe7 19. Qf3 Nc5 20. e5 Nxb3 21. axb3 Ne8 22. Rbd1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Kf1 Nc7 25. Ne4 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 f6 27. Qd6 Kf7 28. Qd4 Nb5 29. Qc4+ Kf8 30. Nc5 fxe5 31. fxe5 Qf7+ 32. Ke2 b6 33. e6 Qf5 34. Nd3 Ke7 35. Nf4 g5 36. Qb4+ Nd6 37. Nd3 Qxe6+ 38. Kd2 c5 39. Qa4 a5 40. Ne1 Qd5+ 41. Kc1 Ne4 42. Nf3 g4 43. Nh4 g5 44. Ng6+ Kf6 45. Qe8 Qe6 46. Qxe6+ Kxe6 47. Kc2 Nd6 48. Kd3 Kf6 49. Nf8 Ke7 50. Ng6+ Kf6 51. Nf8 Ke7 52. Ng6+ Ke6 53. Nf8+ Kd5 54. Nd7 c4+ 55. bxc4+ Nxc4 56. Kc3 Ne5 57. Nxb6+ Ke4 58. Nc4 Nxc4 59. Kxc4 Kf3 60. Kb5 Kg2 61. Kxa5 Kxh2 62. b4 Kxg3 63. b5 Kh3 64. b6 g3 65. b7 g2 66. b8=Q g1=Q 67. Qh8+ Kg2 68. Qh5 Qc5+ 69. Ka6 Qc6+ 70. Ka7 Qc7+ 71. Ka8 Qc8+ 72. Ka7 Qd7+ 73. Ka6 g4 74. Qe5 Qc6+ 75. Ka7 Qc4 76. Qe3 g3 77. Ka8 Qd5+ 78. Ka7 Qd7+ 79. Ka6 Qd6+ 80. Ka5 Kh2 81. Qe4 Qc5+ 82. Ka6 Qg5 83. Qh7+ Kg2 84. Qe4+ Kh3 85. Qh1+ Kg4 86. Qd1+ Kf5 87. Qd5+ Kg6 88. Qg8+ Kh5 89. Qc4 g2 90. Qe2+ Kh6 0-1

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.12"]
[Round "19.4"]
[White "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B07"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 g6 2. e4 d6 3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Be3 Nbd7 6. Qd2 b5 ({RR} 6... Qa5 7. Bd3 e5 8. h3 Bg7 9. O-O O-O 10. a4 Re8 11. Rfd1 Qc7 12. a5 exd4 13. Bxd4 Nc5 14. e5 Nfd7 15. exd6 Qxd6 16. Bf1 Nf8 17. Bxg7 Qxd2 18. Nxd2 Kxg7 19. b4 Nce6 20. Nc4 Rd8 21. Ne4 {Nunn,J (2580)-Azmaiparashvili,Z (2655) Wijk aan Zee 1993 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 6... e5 7. h3 Bg7 8. a4 Qe7 9. Bd3 O-O 10. O-O b6 11. Rfe1 a6 12. Bg5 Bb7 13. Rad1 Rfe8 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Bc4 b5 16. Ba2 b4 17. Nb1 Rad8 18. Qe3 Nc5 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Nbd2 Ne6 21. Nc4 {Degraeve,J (2559)-Fressinet,L (2667) Nimes 2009 ½-½ (42)}) 7. a3 $146 ({RR} 7. e5 Ng4 8. Bf4 dxe5 9. dxe5 Bg7 10. O-O-O Qb6 11. e6 fxe6 12. h3 Ngf6 13. Ng5 Nf8 14. Be3 Qa5 15. Kb1 Bd7 16. Be2 h6 17. Nge4 Qb4 18. Nxf6+ Bxf6 19. a3 Bxc3 20. axb4 Bxd2 21. Bxd2 Kf7 {Anagnostopoulos,D (2446)-Martinsen,S (2076) Bergen 2002 1-0}) ({RR} 7. e5 dxe5 8. dxe5 Ng4 9. e6 fxe6 10. Ng5 Nxe3 11. Qxe3 Bh6 12. Qd4 e5 13. Qh4 Bxg5 14. Qxg5 Nf6 15. Bd3 Qd4 16. O-O Qf4 17. h4 Bf5 18. g3 Qxg5 19. hxg5 Nd7 20. Ne4 h6 21. Rfe1 hxg5 {Biti,O (2366)-Galyas,M (2474) Mali Losinj CRO 2019 ½-½ (33)}) ({RR} 7. e5 b4 8. exf6 bxc3 9. Qxc3 Nxf6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qc3 Rb8 12. Bc4 Bg7 13. O-O O-O 14. Bb3 Bb5 15. Rfc1 a5 16. a4 Be2 17. Ng5 h6 18. Nh3 g5 19. f3 g4 20. fxg4 Nxg4 21. Nf4 Nxe3 {Adams,M (2615)-Anagnostopoulos,D (2395) London 1991 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 7. e5 Ng4 8. Bf4 dxe5 9. dxe5 Bg7 10. O-O-O b4 11. Nb5 cxb5 12. h3 Nxf2 13. Qxf2 Qa5 14. Kb1 O-O 15. h4 Nb6 16. Nd4 Be6 17. Nb3 Qa6 18. Qc5 Nc4 19. Qxe7 Rfc8 20. Qxb4 Bf8 21. Rd6 Nxd6 {Sarwat,W (2388)-Abdel Fadil,M (2259) Egypt 2007 1-0 (52)}) ({RR} 7. e5 b4 8. exf6 bxc3 9. Qxc3 Nxf6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qa6 Rb8 12. b3 Qc7 13. c4 Nd5 14. Bd2 Nb4 15. Bxb4 Rxb4 16. Qa3 a5 17. Qc1 Bg7 18. Be2 O-O 19. O-O a4 20. Qe3 Rfb8 21. bxa4 Bxa4 {Vestby-Ellingsen,M (2389)-Smirin,I (2596) Stockholm SWE 2023 0-1 (53)}) 7... Bg7 $146 ({RR} 7... Nb6 8. d5 Bd7 9. e5 Nfxd5 10. exd6 Nxe3 11. Qxe3 e6 12. Ne4 Bg7 13. Rb1 O-O 14. b3 Qb8 15. c4 f5 16. Ned2 e5 17. Qc5 Nc8 18. cxb5 cxb5 19. Qc7 Qxc7 20. dxc7 e4 21. Ng5 h6 22. Nh3 {Luther,A (1595)-Henselin,F (1292) Malchow 2009 0-1 (38)}) 8. Bh6 Bxh6 9. Qxh6 e5 10. O-O-O Qe7 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Bxb5 cxb5 13. Nxb5 Qc5 14. Nd6+ Ke7 15. Ng5 Rf8 16. f4 Rb8 17. Qh4 Qe3+ 18. Kb1 Qxf4 19. Qh6 Ng4 20. Nf5+ Qxf5 21. Qxf8+ Nxf8 22. exf5 Nf2 23. fxg6 hxg6 0-1

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.12"]
[Round "20.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Praggnanandhaa R"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2828"]
[BlackElo "2704"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 O-O 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 d5 7. e3 b6 8. b3 Bb7 ({RR} 8... dxc4 9. bxc4 Bb7 10. Be2 Ne4 11. Qc2 c5 12. O-O Ng5 13. d5 exd5 14. Nxg5 Qxg5 15. Bf3 Nd7 16. Rd1 Ne5 17. Bxd5 Nf3+ 18. Kh1 Qe5 19. Bxf3 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Qxa1 21. Bb2 Qxd1+ 22. Qxd1 Rad8 23. Qc2 {Isik,A (2456)-Tarhan,A (2474) Ankara TUR 2025 1-0}) 9. Bb2 ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 ({RR} 10... a5 11. a4 Ne4 12. Qc2 f5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 c5 16. f3 Ng5 17. Bb2 Qe7 18. Rad1 Rfd8 19. Rd2 Bc6 20. Rfd1 Rxd2 21. Qxd2 Bd5 22. Qc3 Rd8 23. Kf2 Nf7) 11. a4 dxc4 12. bxc4 Rc8 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Rfc1 Ng4 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qh2+ 17. Kf1 Ngf6 18. Bb2 Rfd8 19. d5 exd5 20. Bxd5 Ne5 21. Qc3 Nxd5 22. cxd5 f6 23. f4 c4 {Wang,H (2713)-Zhou,J (2578) China 2015 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O a5 11. a4 Ne4 12. Qc2 f5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 c5 16. f3 Ng5 17. Bb2 Qe7 18. Rad1 Rfd8 19. Rd2 Bc6 20. Rfd1 Rxd2 21. Qxd2 Bd5 22. Qc3 Rd8 23. Kf2 Nf7 {Ginsburg,M (2329)-Meidinger,C Orlando USA 2019 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 11. a4 dxc4 12. bxc4 Rc8 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Rfc1 Ng4 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qh2+ 17. Kf1 Ngf6 18. Bb2 Rfd8 19. d5 exd5 20. Bxd5 Ne5 21. Qc3 Nxd5 22. cxd5 f6 23. f4 c4) 9... Nbd7 10. Be2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 $146 ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Qe7 ({RR} 12... Qe7 13. a4 Rfd8 14. a5 e5 15. d5 Ne4 16. Qc2 Nd6 17. e4 f6 18. Nd2 Kh8 19. g3 g5 20. Bg4 Nf8 21. Bh5 Bc8 22. f4 Bh3 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Qc3 Qf6) 13. a4 Rfd8 14. a5 e5 15. d5 Ne4 16. Qc2 Nd6 17. e4 f6 18. Nd2 Kh8 19. g3 g5 20. Bg4 Nf8 21. Bh5 Bc8 22. f4 Bh3 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Qc3 Qf6 {Rios,C (2362)-Parraga,A (2163) Cochabamba 2013 1-0}) ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rac1 Qc7 14. h3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nf8 16. Ne5 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Qe1 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf4 20. Bf1 Rd7 21. a4 Ne4 22. Rd3 Nd6 ({RR} 22... Qg5 23. a5 Qxa5 24. Qxa5 bxa5 25. Ra3 Nd2 26. Be2 Rdc7 27. c5 Bd5 28. Bc3) 23. Rg3 ({RR} 23. c5 Nf5) 23... Nf5 ({RR} 23... Qf6 24. Rg4 Nf5 25. Qd2 Qd8 26. Qf4 Qc7 27. Qg5 Qd8 28. Qf4) 24. Rg4 Qd6 25. a5 Rdc7 {Firouzja,A (2737)-Praggnanandhaa,R (2747) Stavanger NOR 2024 1-0 (60)} ({RR} 25... Nh6 26. Rg3 Nf5 27. Rd3 Rcd8 28. axb6 axb6 29. Rcd1 Ba6 30. Rb3 Bb7 31. Bc3)) ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rac1 Qc7 14. h3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nf8 16. Ne5 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Qe1 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf4 20. Bf1 Rd7 21. a4 Ne4 22. Rd3 Nd6 23. Rg3 Nf5 24. Rg4 Qd6 25. a5 Rdc7 {Firouzja,A (2737)-Praggnanandhaa R (2747) Stavanger, Norway 2024 [Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase] 1-0 (60)}) 11... c5 12. Qe2 cxd4 13. Bxd4 a6 14. Qb2 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Qe7 16. O-O b5 17. Be2 e5 18. Bc3 Nd5 19. Ba5 Qe6 20. Rac1 Rac8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rc1 Rxc1+ 23. Qxc1 Ne7 24. Qc7 g6 25. a4 bxa4 26. Bc4 Nd5 27. Qc8+ Kg7 28. bxa4 Qd6 29. Qxa6 N5b6 30. Be2 Qc5 31. Qb5 Qc2 32. Bxb6 Nxb6 33. Qxe5+ Kg8 34. Bb5 Qc8 35. a5 Qc1+ 36. Kg2 Nc8 37. Bd7 1-0

[Event "GRENKE Chess Classic"]
[Site "Karlsruhe, Germany"]
[Date "2024.03.31"]
[Round "9.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Keymer, Vincent"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16"]
[PlyCount "145"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,145,27,27,27,4,4,7,7,30,26,16,40,5,-4,-9,0,-2,23,7,16,10,8,7,14,17,41,21,62,50,104,19,87,11,36,23,99,92,100,95,78,78,77,78,81,69,81,70,81,71,73,74,73,61,73,61,88,71,99,80,88,85,90,81,94,99,103,97,88,94,95,87,98,95,110,82,83,79,83,79,96,66,96,73,82,63,55,55,94,37,55,53,83,38,53,34,49,17,25,14,15,30,36,41,45,42,42,22,31,33,32,44,41,153,171,167,166,161,154,151,138,142,142,142,188,188,178,188,190,186,183,197,185,185,252,221,229,205,249,205,185,254,329,316,321,237,1299,1527]} 1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 ({RR} 5. Qc2 Nbd7 6. g3 b6 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rd1 a6 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 b5 12. b3 bxc4 13. bxc4 Rb8 14. Be3 h6 15. Qa5 Ne4 16. c5 Ndf6 17. Rac1 Bd5 18. Qxa6 Ng4 19. Rd3 Qe7) 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6 7. Nd2 ({RR} 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. d5 Nbd7 10. Nd4 Ne5 11. dxe6 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Qe8 13. exf7+ Qxf7 14. Qb3 Nxc4 15. Bf4 Rae8 16. Rad1 Re4 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Rfe1 Ng4 19. Nf3 Rxf4 20. Kg1 Rf6 21. Rd4 Rxf3) 7... Bb7 8. f3 e5 9. e4 O-O 10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Nb3 Ne7 12. O-O h6 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Qc2 c5 14. d5 ({RR} 14. f4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4) 14... f6 15. a4 a5 16. Be3 Rf7 17. Nd2 Nf8 18. f4 Bc8 19. f5 g5 20. h4 h6 21. hxg5 hxg5 22. Kf2 Ra7 23. Rh1 Rh7 24. Nf3 Ba6 25. Nh2 Nc8 26. Ng4 Rxh1 27. Rxh1 {Chatalbashev,B (2545)-Bauer,C (2621) Vaujany 2016 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (59)}) 13. Rb1 Ba6 $6 {Inaccuracy. c5 was best.} (13... c5) 14. f4 Nh7 15. f5 Kh8 16. Na1 $6 {Inaccuracy. Rb2 was best.} (16. Rb2 Ng8 17. h4 Re8 18. Rg2 c6 19. g4 Qxh4 20. g5 hxg5 21. Rh2 Qg3+ 22. Kh1 g4) 16... Ng8 17. Nc2 g5 18. Ne3 Ngf6 19. Rb2 Re8 20. Qf3 c5 21. d5 Rg8 22. h3 Kg7 23. a4 Bc8 24. Ra2 Bd7 25. Qd1 Rb8 26. Bd2 Rb7 27. Be1 Kf8 28. Rff2 Ke7 29. Rfb2 Qc7 30. g4 a6 31. Qe2 a5 32. Qf3 Qd8 33. Rh2 Qe8 34. Bc2 Qf8 35. Kf1 Kd8 36. Bd1 Kc7 37. Ke2 Rb8 38. Kd2 Qg7 39. Kc1 Rh8 40. Rh1 Rbg8 41. Rah2 Qf8 42. Kb2 Qe8 43. Ka3 Qf8 44. Bd2 Qe8 45. Bc1 Qf8 46. Nf1 Qe7 47. Ng3 Qf8 48. h4 Qg7 49. Qg2 Bc8 50. hxg5 Nxg5 51. Nh5 Nxh5 52. Rxh5 f6 53. Qh2 Nxe4 54. Bxh6 Qe7 55. Kb2 Bd7 56. Rh4 Be8 57. Bc2 Rxh6 58. Rxh6 Ng5 59. Rh8 Rxh8 60. Qxh8 e4 61. Qh2 Nf3 $6 {Inaccuracy. e3 was best.} (61... e3 62. Qf4) 62. Qf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qh7 was best.} (62. Qh7) 62... Ng5 63. Kb3 Bd7 64. Re1 Qf8 65. Ka3 Qh8 66. Bxe4 Qh3 67. Kb2 Qh7 68. Bc2 Qg7 69. Re6 Nf7 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qf8 was best.} (69... Qf8) 70. g5 Qxg5 71. Qxg5 fxg5 72. f6 Ne5 73. Rxe5 1-0

[Event "GRENKE Chess Classic"]
[Site "Karlsruhe, Germany"]
[Date "2024.03.31"]
[Round "9.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Keymer, Vincent"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[Annotator "https://lichess.org/@/ralphptorres"]
[PlyCount "145"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,145,16,28,35,-23,-7,-3,28,28,37,23,9,-9,-10,-3,5,3,29,14,-1,-5,5,-1,17,11,20,17,33,76,121,31,69,11,41,41,104,96,103,72,74,75,74,79,76,76,80,71,77,72,73,74,74,71,74,71,72,67,90,90,98,87,90,83,101,98,105,88,90,98,98,98,98,98,110,90,83,73,77,80,83,63,71,75,78,62,63,64,88,33,57,53,67,31,46,33,49,9,30,15,27,31,36,48,53,58,60,35,31,31,64,30,154,162,162,156,158,158,152,151,124,125,132,132,196,180,185,185,183,174,174,174,189,199,224,202,202,202,283,183,197,240,289,323,327,238,1313,1519]} 1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 ({RR} 5. Qc2 Nbd7 6. g3 b6 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rd1 a6 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 b5 12. b3 bxc4 13. bxc4 Rb8 14. Be3 h6 15. Qa5 Ne4 16. c5 Ndf6 17. Rac1 Bd5 18. Qxa6 Ng4 19. Rd3 Qe7) 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6 7. Nd2 ({RR} 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. d5 Nbd7 10. Nd4 Ne5 11. dxe6 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Qe8 13. exf7+ Qxf7 14. Qb3 Nxc4 15. Bf4 Rae8 16. Rad1 Re4 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Rfe1 Ng4 19. Nf3 Rxf4 20. Kg1 Rf6 21. Rd4 Rxf3) 7... Bb7 8. f3 e5 9. e4 O-O 10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Nb3 Ne7 12. O-O h6 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Qc2 c5 14. d5 ({RR} 14. f4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4) 14... f6 15. a4 a5 16. Be3 Rf7 17. Nd2 Nf8 18. f4 Bc8 19. f5 g5 20. h4 h6 21. hxg5 hxg5 22. Kf2 Ra7 23. Rh1 Rh7 24. Nf3 Ba6 25. Nh2 Nc8 26. Ng4 Rxh1 27. Rxh1 {Chatalbashev,B (2545)-Bauer,C (2621) Vaujany 2016 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (59)}) 13. Rb1 Ba6 $6 {Inaccuracy. c5 was best.} (13... c5) 14. f4 Nh7 15. f5 Kh8 16. Na1 $6 {Inaccuracy. Rb2 was best.} (16. Rb2 Ng8 17. h4 Re8 18. Rg2 c6 19. g4 Qxh4 20. g5 hxg5 21. Rh2 Qg3+ 22. Kh1 g4) 16... Ng8 17. Nc2 g5 18. Ne3 Ngf6 19. Rb2 Re8 20. Qf3 c5 21. d5 Rg8 22. h3 Kg7 23. a4 Bc8 24. Ra2 Bd7 25. Qd1 Rb8 26. Bd2 Rb7 27. Be1 Kf8 28. Rff2 Ke7 29. Rfb2 Qc7 30. g4 a6 31. Qe2 a5 32. Qf3 Qd8 33. Rh2 Qe8 34. Bc2 Qf8 35. Kf1 Kd8 36. Bd1 Kc7 37. Ke2 Rb8 38. Kd2 Qg7 39. Kc1 Rh8 40. Rh1 Rbg8 41. Rah2 Qf8 42. Kb2 Qe8 43. Ka3 Qf8 44. Bd2 Qe8 45. Bc1 Qf8 46. Nf1 Qe7 47. Ng3 Qf8 48. h4 Qg7 49. Qg2 Bc8 50. hxg5 Nxg5 51. Nh5 Nxh5 52. Rxh5 f6 53. Qh2 Nxe4 54. Bxh6 Qe7 55. Kb2 Bd7 56. Rh4 Be8 57. Bc2 Rxh6 58. Rxh6 Ng5 59. Rh8 Rxh8 60. Qxh8 e4 61. Qh2 Nf3 $6 {Inaccuracy. e3 was best.} (61... e3 62. Qf4) 62. Qf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qh7 was best.} (62. Qh7) 62... Ng5 63. Kb3 Bd7 64. Re1 Qf8 65. Ka3 Qh8 66. Bxe4 Qh3 67. Kb2 Qh7 68. Bc2 Qg7 69. Re6 Nf7 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qf8 was best.} (69... Qf8) 70. g5 Qxg5 71. Qxg5 fxg5 72. f6 Ne5 73. Rxe5 1-0

[Event "GRENKE Chess Classic"]
[Site "Karlsruhe, Germany"]
[Date "2024.03.31"]
[Round "9.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Keymer, Vincent"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16"]
[PlyCount "145"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,145,27,27,27,4,4,7,7,30,26,16,40,5,-4,-9,0,-2,23,7,16,10,8,7,14,17,41,21,62,50,104,19,87,11,36,23,99,92,100,95,78,78,77,78,81,69,81,70,81,71,73,74,73,61,73,61,88,71,99,80,88,85,90,81,94,99,103,97,88,94,95,87,98,95,110,82,83,79,83,79,96,66,96,73,82,63,55,55,94,37,55,53,83,38,53,34,49,17,25,14,15,30,36,41,45,42,42,22,31,33,32,44,41,153,171,167,166,161,154,151,138,142,142,142,188,188,178,188,190,186,183,197,185,185,252,221,229,205,249,205,185,254,329,316,321,237,1299,1527]} 1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 ({RR} 5. Qc2 Nbd7 6. g3 b6 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rd1 a6 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 b5 12. b3 bxc4 13. bxc4 Rb8 14. Be3 h6 15. Qa5 Ne4 16. c5 Ndf6 17. Rac1 Bd5 18. Qxa6 Ng4 19. Rd3 Qe7) 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6 7. Nd2 ({RR} 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. d5 Nbd7 10. Nd4 Ne5 11. dxe6 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Qe8 13. exf7+ Qxf7 14. Qb3 Nxc4 15. Bf4 Rae8 16. Rad1 Re4 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Rfe1 Ng4 19. Nf3 Rxf4 20. Kg1 Rf6 21. Rd4 Rxf3) 7... Bb7 8. f3 e5 9. e4 O-O 10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Nb3 Ne7 12. O-O h6 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Qc2 c5 14. d5 ({RR} 14. f4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4) 14... f6 15. a4 a5 16. Be3 Rf7 17. Nd2 Nf8 18. f4 Bc8 19. f5 g5 20. h4 h6 21. hxg5 hxg5 22. Kf2 Ra7 23. Rh1 Rh7 24. Nf3 Ba6 25. Nh2 Nc8 26. Ng4 Rxh1 27. Rxh1 {Chatalbashev,B (2545)-Bauer,C (2621) Vaujany 2016 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (59)}) 13. Rb1 Ba6 $6 {Inaccuracy. c5 was best.} (13... c5) 14. f4 Nh7 15. f5 Kh8 16. Na1 $6 {Inaccuracy. Rb2 was best.} (16. Rb2 Ng8 17. h4 Re8 18. Rg2 c6 19. g4 Qxh4 20. g5 hxg5 21. Rh2 Qg3+ 22. Kh1 g4) 16... Ng8 17. Nc2 g5 18. Ne3 Ngf6 19. Rb2 Re8 20. Qf3 c5 21. d5 Rg8 22. h3 Kg7 23. a4 Bc8 24. Ra2 Bd7 25. Qd1 Rb8 26. Bd2 Rb7 27. Be1 Kf8 28. Rff2 Ke7 29. Rfb2 Qc7 30. g4 a6 31. Qe2 a5 32. Qf3 Qd8 33. Rh2 Qe8 34. Bc2 Qf8 35. Kf1 Kd8 36. Bd1 Kc7 37. Ke2 Rb8 38. Kd2 Qg7 39. Kc1 Rh8 40. Rh1 Rbg8 41. Rah2 Qf8 42. Kb2 Qe8 43. Ka3 Qf8 44. Bd2 Qe8 45. Bc1 Qf8 46. Nf1 Qe7 47. Ng3 Qf8 48. h4 Qg7 49. Qg2 Bc8 50. hxg5 Nxg5 51. Nh5 Nxh5 52. Rxh5 f6 53. Qh2 Nxe4 54. Bxh6 Qe7 55. Kb2 Bd7 56. Rh4 Be8 57. Bc2 Rxh6 58. Rxh6 Ng5 59. Rh8 Rxh8 60. Qxh8 e4 61. Qh2 Nf3 $6 {Inaccuracy. e3 was best.} (61... e3 62. Qf4) 62. Qf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qh7 was best.} (62. Qh7) 62... Ng5 63. Kb3 Bd7 64. Re1 Qf8 65. Ka3 Qh8 66. Bxe4 Qh3 67. Kb2 Qh7 68. Bc2 Qg7 69. Re6 Nf7 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qf8 was best.} (69... Qf8) 70. g5 Qxg5 71. Qxg5 fxg5 72. f6 Ne5 73. Rxe5 1-0

[Event "GRENKE Chess Classic"]
[Site "Karlsruhe, Germany"]
[Date "2024.03.31"]
[Round "9.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Keymer, Vincent"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E21"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2627"]
[Annotator "https://lichess.org/@/ralphptorres"]
[PlyCount "145"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,145,16,28,35,-23,-7,-3,28,28,37,23,9,-9,-10,-3,5,3,29,14,-1,-5,5,-1,17,11,20,17,33,76,121,31,69,11,41,41,104,96,103,72,74,75,74,79,76,76,80,71,77,72,73,74,74,71,74,71,72,67,90,90,98,87,90,83,101,98,105,88,90,98,98,98,98,98,110,90,83,73,77,80,83,63,71,75,78,62,63,64,88,33,57,53,67,31,46,33,49,9,30,15,27,31,36,48,53,58,60,35,31,31,64,30,154,162,162,156,158,158,152,151,124,125,132,132,196,180,185,185,183,174,174,174,189,199,224,202,202,202,283,183,197,240,289,323,327,238,1313,1519]} 1. d4 {ChessBase II} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 d6 5. g3 ({RR} 5. Qc2 Nbd7 6. g3 b6 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. Rd1 a6 10. a3 Bxc3 11. Qxc3 b5 12. b3 bxc4 13. bxc4 Rb8 14. Be3 h6 15. Qa5 Ne4 16. c5 Ndf6 17. Rac1 Bd5 18. Qxa6 Ng4 19. Rd3 Qe7) 5... Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 b6 7. Nd2 ({RR} 7. Bg2 Bb7 8. O-O O-O 9. d5 Nbd7 10. Nd4 Ne5 11. dxe6 Bxg2 12. Kxg2 Qe8 13. exf7+ Qxf7 14. Qb3 Nxc4 15. Bf4 Rae8 16. Rad1 Re4 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Rfe1 Ng4 19. Nf3 Rxf4 20. Kg1 Rf6 21. Rd4 Rxf3) 7... Bb7 8. f3 e5 9. e4 O-O 10. Bd3 Nc6 11. Nb3 Ne7 12. O-O h6 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Qc2 c5 14. d5 ({RR} 14. f4 cxd4 15. cxd4 exd4) 14... f6 15. a4 a5 16. Be3 Rf7 17. Nd2 Nf8 18. f4 Bc8 19. f5 g5 20. h4 h6 21. hxg5 hxg5 22. Kf2 Ra7 23. Rh1 Rh7 24. Nf3 Ba6 25. Nh2 Nc8 26. Ng4 Rxh1 27. Rxh1 {Chatalbashev,B (2545)-Bauer,C (2621) Vaujany 2016 EXT 2017 [ChessBase II] 1-0 (59)}) 13. Rb1 Ba6 $6 {Inaccuracy. c5 was best.} (13... c5) 14. f4 Nh7 15. f5 Kh8 16. Na1 $6 {Inaccuracy. Rb2 was best.} (16. Rb2 Ng8 17. h4 Re8 18. Rg2 c6 19. g4 Qxh4 20. g5 hxg5 21. Rh2 Qg3+ 22. Kh1 g4) 16... Ng8 17. Nc2 g5 18. Ne3 Ngf6 19. Rb2 Re8 20. Qf3 c5 21. d5 Rg8 22. h3 Kg7 23. a4 Bc8 24. Ra2 Bd7 25. Qd1 Rb8 26. Bd2 Rb7 27. Be1 Kf8 28. Rff2 Ke7 29. Rfb2 Qc7 30. g4 a6 31. Qe2 a5 32. Qf3 Qd8 33. Rh2 Qe8 34. Bc2 Qf8 35. Kf1 Kd8 36. Bd1 Kc7 37. Ke2 Rb8 38. Kd2 Qg7 39. Kc1 Rh8 40. Rh1 Rbg8 41. Rah2 Qf8 42. Kb2 Qe8 43. Ka3 Qf8 44. Bd2 Qe8 45. Bc1 Qf8 46. Nf1 Qe7 47. Ng3 Qf8 48. h4 Qg7 49. Qg2 Bc8 50. hxg5 Nxg5 51. Nh5 Nxh5 52. Rxh5 f6 53. Qh2 Nxe4 54. Bxh6 Qe7 55. Kb2 Bd7 56. Rh4 Be8 57. Bc2 Rxh6 58. Rxh6 Ng5 59. Rh8 Rxh8 60. Qxh8 e4 61. Qh2 Nf3 $6 {Inaccuracy. e3 was best.} (61... e3 62. Qf4) 62. Qf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qh7 was best.} (62. Qh7) 62... Ng5 63. Kb3 Bd7 64. Re1 Qf8 65. Ka3 Qh8 66. Bxe4 Qh3 67. Kb2 Qh7 68. Bc2 Qg7 69. Re6 Nf7 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qf8 was best.} (69... Qf8) 70. g5 Qxg5 71. Qxg5 fxg5 72. f6 Ne5 73. Rxe5 1-0

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.09"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D37"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "114"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {Krasenkow,Michal Krasenkow,M} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bf4 O-O 6. e3 c5 7. dxc5 Bxc5 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Nxd5 exd5 10. Bd3 Bb4+ 11. Nd2 ({RR} 11. Ke2) ({RR} 11. Ke2) 11... Nc6 12. O-O Be7 13. Rc1 ({RR} 13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6) ({RR} 13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 ({RR} 14. Qc2 g6 ({RR} 14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6) ({RR} 14... h6 15. Nb3 Re8 16. Rab1 Qe7 17. Qc5 Ne5 18. Qxe7 Rxe7 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Be6) 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6) ({RR} 14. Qc2 g6 15. Rac1 Be6 16. Nb3 Rc8 17. Nc5 Ne5 18. Bxe5 Bxe5 19. f4 Bg7 20. Nxe6) 14... Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3) ({RR} 13. Nb3 Bf6 14. Qd2 Be6 15. Rac1 Rc8 16. Nc5 Qe7 17. Rc2 Ne5 18. Nxe6 Qxe6 19. Bxe5 Bxe5 20. Rfc1 Rxc2 21. Qxc2 g6) ({RR} 13. a3 Bf6 14. Nf3 Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Qd2 Be6 17. Rac1 Rfd8 18. b4 a6 19. Rc2 Qd7 20. Rfc1 Bf5 21. Bxf5 Qxf5 22. Bc7 Rd7 23. Bb6 Qe4 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Qd3 Rad8 27. Rcd2 Qxd3) ({RR} 13. h3 Bf6 14. Nf3 h6 15. Rb1 a5 16. a3 d4 17. e4 Re8 18. Qd2 a4 19. Rbe1 Qa5 20. Qxa5 Rxa5 21. Bc7 Ra8 22. e5 Be7 23. Bb6 Be6 24. Rc1 Bd8 25. Bc5 Bc7 26. Bb5 Bd5 27. Bxc6 bxc6 {Giri,A (2748)-Gukesh,D (2776) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (100)}) 13... Bf6 14. a3 ({RR} 14. Nf3 Qe7 ({RR} 14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6) ({RR} 14... Be6 {RR} 15. a3 ({RR} 15. a3 Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 h6) 15... Qe7 16. b4 a6 17. h3 Rac8 18. Rc5 a5 19. Qb1 axb4 20. axb4 h6) ({RR} 14... Bxb2 15. Bxh7+ Kxh7 16. Qc2+ Kg8 17. Qxb2) ({RR} 14... Re8 15. h3 Qb6) ({RR} 14... Be6) 15. h3 g6 16. Bb5 Bd7 ({RR} 16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 ({RR} 17... bxc6 18. Rxc6) ({RR} 17... bxc6 18. Rxc6) 18. Bxd5 Ba3 19. Bh6 Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1) ({RR} 16... Bxb2 17. Bxc6 Bxc1 18. Bxd5 Ba3 19. Bh6 Be6 20. Qd4 f6 21. Bxf8 Kxf8 22. Bxe6 Qxe6 23. Rd1) 17. Qxd5 Be6 ({RR} 17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5) ({RR} 17... Bxb2 18. Rb1 Be6 19. Qd2 Ba3 20. Bh6 Rfc8 21. Ng5) 18. Qe4 ({RR} 18. Qc5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 ({RR} 19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) ({RR} 19... Bxb2 20. Ng5) 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6) ({RR} 18. Qc5 Qxc5 19. Rxc5 Bxa2 20. Bxc6 bxc6 21. Rxc6) 18... Bxb2 ({RR} 18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4) ({RR} 18... Bxa2 19. Bxc6 bxc6 20. Qxe7 Bxe7 21. Nd4) 19. Bxc6 f5 ({RR} 19... Bxc1 20. Bxb7) ({RR} 19... bxc6 20. Rxc6) ({RR} 19... Bxc1 20. Bxb7) ({RR} 19... bxc6 20. Rxc6) 20. Bg5 ({RR} 20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 ({RR} 21. Bxb7 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rab8) ({RR} 21. Bxb7 Bxe3 22. fxe3 Rab8) 21... Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8) ({RR} 20. Qb1 Bxc1 21. Qxb7 Qxb7 22. Bxb7 Rac8 23. Bxc8 Rxc8) 20... fxe4 21. Bxe7 Bxc1 22. Bxb7 ({RR} 22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5) ({RR} 22. Bxf8 bxc6 23. Nd4 Bxa2 24. Rxc1 Kxf8 25. Nxc6 Bd5 26. Nb4 Be6 27. Na6 Rc8 28. Rxc8+ Bxc8 29. Nc5 a5) 22... Bxe3 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. fxe3 exf3 25. Bxf3 Rb8 26. a4 Rb4 27. Bc6 Rc4 28. Bb5 Re4 {Carlsen,M (2822)-Nakamura,H (2792) Saint Louis 2017 CBM 180 [Krasenkow,M] ½-½ (94)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1) ({RR} 14. Nf3 Qe7 15. h3 g6 16. Bb5 Bd7 17. Qxd5 Be6 18. Qe4 Bxb2 19. Bxc6 f5 20. Bg5 fxe4 21. Bxe7 Bxc1 22. Bxb7 Bxe3 23. Bxf8 Rxf8 24. fxe3 exf3 25. Bxf3 Rb8 26. a4 Rb4 27. Bc6 Rc4 28. Bb5 Re4 {Carlsen,M (2822)-Nakamura,H (2792) Saint Louis 2017 CBM 180 [Krasenkow,Michal] ½-½ (94)}) ({RR} 14. Qb3 Qb6 15. Qxd5 Nb4 16. Qe4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Rd8 18. Qc2 Qxb2 19. Ne4 Qxc2 20. Nxf6+ gxf6 21. Rxc2 Be6 22. Rfc1) 14... g6 ({RR} 14... Be6 15. b4 Qb6 16. b5 Ne5 17. Bxe5 Bxe5 18. Bxh7+ Kxh7 19. Qh5+ Kg8 20. Qxe5 d4 21. Qxd4 Qxb5 22. Qa1 Rfd8 23. Nf3 Bd5 24. Nd4 Qd7 25. Rfd1 Rac8 26. h3 b6 27. Qb2 Bb7 28. Qe2 Rc5 29. Qg4 {Yilmaz,M (2626)-Nogerbek,K (2356) chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (48)}) 15. Qb3 $146 ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Be5 22. Rxc4 Bxf4 23. Nxe6 dxc4 24. Nxd8 Rxd8 25. Qc2 Bd6 26. Bxc4 Bc5 27. Rb1 Bb4 28. Rd1 Rxd1+ 29. Qxd1 Kg7 {Kalinitschew,S (2426)-Meier,G (2644) Apolda 2017 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Nb2 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4) ({RR} 15. b4 Qe7 16. Nf3 Rd8 17. h3 Ne5 18. Nxe5 Bxe5 19. Qd2 a5 20. bxa5 Bxf4 21. exf4 Qxa3 22. Ra1 Qd6 23. Rfb1 Qf6 24. Ra2 Rd6 25. Rc2 Rc6 26. Rxc6 bxc6 27. Qb4 Qd8 28. Ra1 Ba6 29. Bxa6 Rxa6 {Caruana,F (2822)-Anand,V (2768) Saint Louis USA 2018 ½-½ (39)}) ({RR} 15. b4 Qe7 16. Bb5 Ne5 17. Nb3 Bg4 18. f3 Be6 19. Nd4 Rac8 20. Bxe5 Bxe5 21. Qd2 Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Be2 Qf6 25. f4 Bxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 27. exd4 f6 28. Bf3 Be6 29. f5 gxf5 {Bindrich,F (2598)-Zatonskih,A (2424) Douglas 2017 ½-½ (63)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 a4 18. Nb1 Be6 19. Nc3 Rc8 20. Qxa4 Nc4 21. Ne4 Be7 22. Bxc4 Rxc4 23. Rxc4 dxc4 24. Be5 f6 25. Rd1 Qa8 26. Qxa8 Rxa8 27. Bxf6 Bxf6 28. Nxf6+ Kg7 29. Ne4 Rxa3 {Shabalov,A (2510)-Boensch,U (2525) Rhodes 2019 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 15. b4 a5 16. b5 Ne5 17. Be2 Be6 18. Nb3 Qe7 19. a4 Rfd8 20. Nd4 Nc4 21. b6 Nb2 22. Qb3 Bxd4 23. exd4 Nc4) 15... a5 16. Bb5 Be6 17. Rfd1 Rc8 18. Bf1 Qe7 19. Qb5 Rfd8 20. h3 a4 21. b3 Qxa3 22. bxa4 Nd4 23. Qd3 Qxd3 24. Bxd3 Rxc1 25. Rxc1 Nc6 26. Nb3 g5 27. Bg3 d4 28. Nc5 dxe3 29. fxe3 Bb2 30. Rc2 Be5 31. Bxe5 Nxe5 32. Nxe6 fxe6 33. Be4 b6 34. a5 bxa5 35. Rc5 Nf7 36. Rxa5 Kg7 37. Ra6 Re8 38. Ra7 h5 39. Bf3 Rh8 40. Ra6 Kf6 41. Bd5 Re8 42. Bf3 Rh8 43. Bd5 Nd8 44. Bc4 h4 45. Ra8 Nf7 46. Rxh8 Nxh8 47. g3 Nf7 48. Kg2 Ne5 49. Bb3 Ke7 50. Ba2 Kf6 51. Bb3 Ke7 52. Ba2 Kf7 53. Bb3 Kf6 54. Ba2 Kf5 55. Bb1+ Kf6 56. Ba2 Kf5 57. Bb1+ Kf6 1/2-1/2

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.11"]
[Round "18.1"]
[White "Erigaisi Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2671"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "180"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. Bf4 Bf5 4. e3 e6 5. Bd3 Bg6 6. O-O Bd6 7. Ne5 Nh5 ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 Bxd3 9. cxd3 O-O 10. Rc1 Bxe5 11. dxe5 Ne8 12. d4 c6 13. Qg4 Qe7 14. Nf3 f5 15. exf6 Nexf6 16. Qh4 Rae8 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rf7 19. h3 Qb4 20. Rc2 Nd7 21. Qg3 Nxe5 22. Qxe5 {Grachev,B (2614)-Petrosyan,M (2613) Moscow RUS 2019 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 7... c6 8. Re1 Qc7 9. Bg3 Nbd7 10. f4 Ne4 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. Nd2 f5 14. Nc4 O-O-O 15. c3 Be7 16. Qb3 Bh4 17. Ne5 Bxg3 18. hxg3 Nxe5 19. dxe5 Rd5 20. Rad1 g5 21. c4 Rxe5 22. fxe5 {Covington,M (1723)-Roy,E Grapevine USA 2021 0-1 (76)}) ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 Bxd3 9. cxd3 O-O 10. Rc1 Bxe5 11. dxe5 Ne8 12. d4 c6 13. Qg4 Qe7 14. Nf3 f5 15. exf6 Nexf6 16. Qh4 Rae8 17. Ne5 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Rf7 19. h3 Qb4 20. Rc2 Nd7 21. Qg3 Nxe5 22. Qxe5 {Grachev,B (2614)-Petrosyan,M (2613) Moscow 2019 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 7... Nbd7 8. Nd2 O-O 9. Nxg6 hxg6 10. Bxd6 cxd6 11. c3 Nb6 12. Qb3 Qc7 13. Rfc1 Rfc8 14. Qd1 Nc4 15. Rab1 b5 16. h3 Rab8 {½-½ (16) Demidov,M (2523)-Smirnov,P (2475) Sochi RUS 2025}) 8. Nxg6 hxg6 9. Bxd6 Qxd6 10. c4 $146 ({RR} 10. f4 Nf6 11. c4 c5 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Nb5 Qd7 14. Nxd4 O-O 15. Qf3 Nc6 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Rac1 Qb6 18. Rf2 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rfd8 20. Rcc2 Nd5 21. Bxd5 Rxd5 22. Rfd2 Qa5 23. Rxd5 exd5 24. Qd1 Qxa2 {Hock,H-Kannenberg,K Germany South 1986 ½-½}) ({RR} 10. f4 Nf6 11. c4 c5 12. Nc3 cxd4 13. Nb5 Qd7 14. Nxd4 O-O 15. Qf3 Nc6 16. Nxc6 Qxc6 17. Rac1 Qb6 18. Rf2 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rfd8 20. Rcc2 Nd5 21. Bxd5 Rxd5 22. Rfd2 Qa5 23. Rxd5 exd5 24. Qd1 Qxa2 {Hock,H-Kannenberg,K Germany South 1986 ½-½}) 10... c6 11. Nc3 Nd7 12. g3 Nhf6 13. Rb1 dxc4 14. Bxc4 O-O 15. e4 Rfd8 16. Bb3 e5 17. dxe5 Qxe5 18. f4 Qe7 19. Qf3 Nc5 20. e5 Nxb3 21. axb3 Ne8 22. Rbd1 Rxd1 23. Rxd1 Rd8 24. Kf1 Nc7 25. Ne4 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 f6 27. Qd6 Kf7 28. Qd4 Nb5 29. Qc4+ Kf8 30. Nc5 fxe5 31. fxe5 Qf7+ 32. Ke2 b6 33. e6 Qf5 34. Nd3 Ke7 35. Nf4 g5 36. Qb4+ Nd6 37. Nd3 Qxe6+ 38. Kd2 c5 39. Qa4 a5 40. Ne1 Qd5+ 41. Kc1 Ne4 42. Nf3 g4 43. Nh4 g5 44. Ng6+ Kf6 45. Qe8 Qe6 46. Qxe6+ Kxe6 47. Kc2 Nd6 48. Kd3 Kf6 49. Nf8 Ke7 50. Ng6+ Kf6 51. Nf8 Ke7 52. Ng6+ Ke6 53. Nf8+ Kd5 54. Nd7 c4+ 55. bxc4+ Nxc4 56. Kc3 Ne5 57. Nxb6+ Ke4 58. Nc4 Nxc4 59. Kxc4 Kf3 60. Kb5 Kg2 61. Kxa5 Kxh2 62. b4 Kxg3 63. b5 Kh3 64. b6 g3 65. b7 g2 66. b8=Q g1=Q 67. Qh8+ Kg2 68. Qh5 Qc5+ 69. Ka6 Qc6+ 70. Ka7 Qc7+ 71. Ka8 Qc8+ 72. Ka7 Qd7+ 73. Ka6 g4 74. Qe5 Qc6+ 75. Ka7 Qc4 76. Qe3 g3 77. Ka8 Qd5+ 78. Ka7 Qd7+ 79. Ka6 Qd6+ 80. Ka5 Kh2 81. Qe4 Qc5+ 82. Ka6 Qg5 83. Qh7+ Kg2 84. Qe4+ Kh3 85. Qh1+ Kg4 86. Qd1+ Kf5 87. Qd5+ Kg6 88. Qg8+ Kh5 89. Qc4 g2 90. Qe2+ Kh6 0-1

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.12"]
[Round "19.4"]
[White "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B07"]
[WhiteElo "2622"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 g6 2. e4 d6 3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Be3 Nbd7 6. Qd2 b5 ({RR} 6... Qa5 7. Bd3 e5 8. h3 Bg7 9. O-O O-O 10. a4 Re8 11. Rfd1 Qc7 12. a5 exd4 13. Bxd4 Nc5 14. e5 Nfd7 15. exd6 Qxd6 16. Bf1 Nf8 17. Bxg7 Qxd2 18. Nxd2 Kxg7 19. b4 Nce6 20. Nc4 Rd8 21. Ne4 {Nunn,J (2580)-Azmaiparashvili,Z (2655) Wijk aan Zee 1993 1-0 (57)}) ({RR} 6... e5 7. h3 Bg7 8. a4 Qe7 9. Bd3 O-O 10. O-O b6 11. Rfe1 a6 12. Bg5 Bb7 13. Rad1 Rfe8 14. dxe5 dxe5 15. Bc4 b5 16. Ba2 b4 17. Nb1 Rad8 18. Qe3 Nc5 19. Rxd8 Rxd8 20. Nbd2 Ne6 21. Nc4 {Degraeve,J (2559)-Fressinet,L (2667) Nimes 2009 ½-½ (42)}) 7. a3 $146 ({RR} 7. e5 Ng4 8. Bf4 dxe5 9. dxe5 Bg7 10. O-O-O Qb6 11. e6 fxe6 12. h3 Ngf6 13. Ng5 Nf8 14. Be3 Qa5 15. Kb1 Bd7 16. Be2 h6 17. Nge4 Qb4 18. Nxf6+ Bxf6 19. a3 Bxc3 20. axb4 Bxd2 21. Bxd2 Kf7 {Anagnostopoulos,D (2446)-Martinsen,S (2076) Bergen 2002 1-0}) ({RR} 7. e5 dxe5 8. dxe5 Ng4 9. e6 fxe6 10. Ng5 Nxe3 11. Qxe3 Bh6 12. Qd4 e5 13. Qh4 Bxg5 14. Qxg5 Nf6 15. Bd3 Qd4 16. O-O Qf4 17. h4 Bf5 18. g3 Qxg5 19. hxg5 Nd7 20. Ne4 h6 21. Rfe1 hxg5 {Biti,O (2366)-Galyas,M (2474) Mali Losinj CRO 2019 ½-½ (33)}) ({RR} 7. e5 b4 8. exf6 bxc3 9. Qxc3 Nxf6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qc3 Rb8 12. Bc4 Bg7 13. O-O O-O 14. Bb3 Bb5 15. Rfc1 a5 16. a4 Be2 17. Ng5 h6 18. Nh3 g5 19. f3 g4 20. fxg4 Nxg4 21. Nf4 Nxe3 {Adams,M (2615)-Anagnostopoulos,D (2395) London 1991 1-0 (39)}) ({RR} 7. e5 Ng4 8. Bf4 dxe5 9. dxe5 Bg7 10. O-O-O b4 11. Nb5 cxb5 12. h3 Nxf2 13. Qxf2 Qa5 14. Kb1 O-O 15. h4 Nb6 16. Nd4 Be6 17. Nb3 Qa6 18. Qc5 Nc4 19. Qxe7 Rfc8 20. Qxb4 Bf8 21. Rd6 Nxd6 {Sarwat,W (2388)-Abdel Fadil,M (2259) Egypt 2007 1-0 (52)}) ({RR} 7. e5 b4 8. exf6 bxc3 9. Qxc3 Nxf6 10. Qxc6+ Bd7 11. Qa6 Rb8 12. b3 Qc7 13. c4 Nd5 14. Bd2 Nb4 15. Bxb4 Rxb4 16. Qa3 a5 17. Qc1 Bg7 18. Be2 O-O 19. O-O a4 20. Qe3 Rfb8 21. bxa4 Bxa4 {Vestby-Ellingsen,M (2389)-Smirin,I (2596) Stockholm SWE 2023 0-1 (53)}) 7... Bg7 $146 ({RR} 7... Nb6 8. d5 Bd7 9. e5 Nfxd5 10. exd6 Nxe3 11. Qxe3 e6 12. Ne4 Bg7 13. Rb1 O-O 14. b3 Qb8 15. c4 f5 16. Ned2 e5 17. Qc5 Nc8 18. cxb5 cxb5 19. Qc7 Qxc7 20. dxc7 e4 21. Ng5 h6 22. Nh3 {Luther,A (1595)-Henselin,F (1292) Malchow 2009 0-1 (38)}) 8. Bh6 Bxh6 9. Qxh6 e5 10. O-O-O Qe7 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Bxb5 cxb5 13. Nxb5 Qc5 14. Nd6+ Ke7 15. Ng5 Rf8 16. f4 Rb8 17. Qh4 Qe3+ 18. Kb1 Qxf4 19. Qh6 Ng4 20. Nf5+ Qxf5 21. Qxf8+ Nxf8 22. exf5 Nf2 23. fxg6 hxg6 0-1

[Event "GCT Warsaw 2024"]
[Site "Warsaw, Poland"]
[Date "2024.05.12"]
[Round "20.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Praggnanandhaa R"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2828"]
[BlackElo "2704"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase} Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 O-O 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Qxd2 d5 7. e3 b6 8. b3 Bb7 ({RR} 8... dxc4 9. bxc4 Bb7 10. Be2 Ne4 11. Qc2 c5 12. O-O Ng5 13. d5 exd5 14. Nxg5 Qxg5 15. Bf3 Nd7 16. Rd1 Ne5 17. Bxd5 Nf3+ 18. Kh1 Qe5 19. Bxf3 Bxf3 20. gxf3 Qxa1 21. Bb2 Qxd1+ 22. Qxd1 Rad8 23. Qc2 {Isik,A (2456)-Tarhan,A (2474) Ankara TUR 2025 1-0}) 9. Bb2 ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 ({RR} 10... a5 11. a4 Ne4 12. Qc2 f5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 c5 16. f3 Ng5 17. Bb2 Qe7 18. Rad1 Rfd8 19. Rd2 Bc6 20. Rfd1 Rxd2 21. Qxd2 Bd5 22. Qc3 Rd8 23. Kf2 Nf7) 11. a4 dxc4 12. bxc4 Rc8 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Rfc1 Ng4 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qh2+ 17. Kf1 Ngf6 18. Bb2 Rfd8 19. d5 exd5 20. Bxd5 Ne5 21. Qc3 Nxd5 22. cxd5 f6 23. f4 c4 {Wang,H (2713)-Zhou,J (2578) China 2015 0-1 (50)}) ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O a5 11. a4 Ne4 12. Qc2 f5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. dxe5 c5 16. f3 Ng5 17. Bb2 Qe7 18. Rad1 Rfd8 19. Rd2 Bc6 20. Rfd1 Rxd2 21. Qxd2 Bd5 22. Qc3 Rd8 23. Kf2 Nf7 {Ginsburg,M (2329)-Meidinger,C Orlando USA 2019 ½-½ (37)}) ({RR} 9. Be2 Nbd7 10. O-O c5 11. a4 dxc4 12. bxc4 Rc8 13. Ba3 Qc7 14. Rfc1 Ng4 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Bxf3 Qh2+ 17. Kf1 Ngf6 18. Bb2 Rfd8 19. d5 exd5 20. Bxd5 Ne5 21. Qc3 Nxd5 22. cxd5 f6 23. f4 c4) 9... Nbd7 10. Be2 dxc4 11. Bxc4 $146 ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Qe7 ({RR} 12... Qe7 13. a4 Rfd8 14. a5 e5 15. d5 Ne4 16. Qc2 Nd6 17. e4 f6 18. Nd2 Kh8 19. g3 g5 20. Bg4 Nf8 21. Bh5 Bc8 22. f4 Bh3 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Qc3 Qf6) 13. a4 Rfd8 14. a5 e5 15. d5 Ne4 16. Qc2 Nd6 17. e4 f6 18. Nd2 Kh8 19. g3 g5 20. Bg4 Nf8 21. Bh5 Bc8 22. f4 Bh3 23. fxe5 fxe5 24. Rxf8+ Rxf8 25. Qc3 Qf6 {Rios,C (2362)-Parraga,A (2163) Cochabamba 2013 1-0}) ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rac1 Qc7 14. h3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nf8 16. Ne5 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Qe1 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf4 20. Bf1 Rd7 21. a4 Ne4 22. Rd3 Nd6 ({RR} 22... Qg5 23. a5 Qxa5 24. Qxa5 bxa5 25. Ra3 Nd2 26. Be2 Rdc7 27. c5 Bd5 28. Bc3) 23. Rg3 ({RR} 23. c5 Nf5) 23... Nf5 ({RR} 23... Qf6 24. Rg4 Nf5 25. Qd2 Qd8 26. Qf4 Qc7 27. Qg5 Qd8 28. Qf4) 24. Rg4 Qd6 25. a5 Rdc7 {Firouzja,A (2737)-Praggnanandhaa,R (2747) Stavanger NOR 2024 1-0 (60)} ({RR} 25... Nh6 26. Rg3 Nf5 27. Rd3 Rcd8 28. axb6 axb6 29. Rcd1 Ba6 30. Rb3 Bb7 31. Bc3)) ({RR} 11. bxc4 c5 12. O-O Rc8 13. Rac1 Qc7 14. h3 Rfd8 15. Rfd1 Nf8 16. Ne5 Ng6 17. Nxg6 hxg6 18. Qe1 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf4 20. Bf1 Rd7 21. a4 Ne4 22. Rd3 Nd6 23. Rg3 Nf5 24. Rg4 Qd6 25. a5 Rdc7 {Firouzja,A (2737)-Praggnanandhaa R (2747) Stavanger, Norway 2024 [Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase] 1-0 (60)}) 11... c5 12. Qe2 cxd4 13. Bxd4 a6 14. Qb2 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Qe7 16. O-O b5 17. Be2 e5 18. Bc3 Nd5 19. Ba5 Qe6 20. Rac1 Rac8 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rc1 Rxc1+ 23. Qxc1 Ne7 24. Qc7 g6 25. a4 bxa4 26. Bc4 Nd5 27. Qc8+ Kg7 28. bxa4 Qd6 29. Qxa6 N5b6 30. Be2 Qc5 31. Qb5 Qc2 32. Bxb6 Nxb6 33. Qxe5+ Kg8 34. Bb5 Qc8 35. a5 Qc1+ 36. Kg2 Nc8 37. Bd7 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2024"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2024.05.27"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Ding, Liren"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E08"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2830"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"]
[PlyCount "27"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,27,34,35,22,-7,-8,-5,1,-23,-11,-3,-4,-30,61,-5,22,41,37,6,6,-27,3,-13,-35,-35,-29,-35,-34,-11]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 ({RR} 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Nf3 O-O 7. O-O c6 8. Qc2 b6 9. Rd1 Bb7 {½-½ (15) Ding,L (2799)-Carlsen,M (2847) chess24.com INT 2021}) 3... d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O c6 7. Qc2 b6 8. Bf4 Bb7 9. Rd1 Nbd7 10. Ne5 Nh5 11. Bd2 Nhf6 12. Bf4 Nh5 13. Bd2 Nhf6 $146 14. Bf4 ({RR} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Qxc6 Qc8 17. Qa4 Qb7 18. Nc3 Rac8 19. e3 a6 20. Rdc1 Rc7 21. Ne2 Rfc8 22. Rxc7 Rxc7 23. Rc1 Rxc1+ 24. Nxc1 Qc8 25. Nd3 Ne4 26. Be1 g6 27. Bf1 Kg7 28. Kg2 Bf8 {Donchenko,A (2563)-Neiksans,A (2599) Chartres 2017 ½-½ (60)}) ({RR} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Qxc6 Rc8 17. Qb5 Ne8 18. Qd3 Nd6 19. Bc3 f5 20. Nd2 Ne4 21. Rac1 Ndf6 22. f3 Nd6 23. e4 fxe4 24. fxe4 Nfxe4 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. Bxe4 dxe4 27. Qxe4 Qd5 28. Re1 Bf6 {Saduakassova,D (2519)-Keymer,V (2527) Wijk aan Zee NED 2020 0-1 (80)}) ({RR} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Qxc6 Rc8 17. Qa4 Qc7 18. Nc3 Qb7 19. e3 a6 20. Qb3 Rc7 21. Rac1 Rfc8 22. Ne2 Ne4 23. Be1 h6 24. Rxc7 Rxc7 25. Rc1 Nd6 26. Bf1 Rxc1 27. Nxc1 Qc6 28. Qd1 a5 {Sethuraman,S (2573)-Grachev,B (2668) Basel 2014 ½-½ (79)}) ({RR} 14. cxd5 cxd5 15. Nc6 Bxc6 16. Qxc6 a6 17. e3 b5 18. Rc1 Qb8 19. Ba5 Rc8 20. Qxc8+ Qxc8 21. Rxc8+ Rxc8 22. Nc3 b4 23. Nd1 Ne4 24. a3 bxa3 25. bxa3 Nd6 26. Bb4 Kf8 27. Bf1 Nc4 28. Bxc4 Rxc4 {Fridman,D (2576)-Kuzubov,Y (2597) Tallinn EST 2025 ½-½ (34)}) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2024"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2024.06.03"]
[Round "13.1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E25"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2830"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {[%eval 17,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 17,0]} 2. c4 {[%eval 21,0]} e6 {[%eval 21,0]} 3. Nc3 {[%eval 18,0]} Bb4 {[%eval 17,0]} 4. f3 {[%eval 6,0]} d5 {[%eval 1,0]} 5. a3 {[%eval 8,0]} Bxc3+ {[%eval 12,0]} 6. bxc3 {[%eval 1,0]} c5 {[%eval 8,0]} 7. cxd5 {[%eval 1,0]} Nxd5 {[%eval 19,0]} 8. dxc5 {[%eval 21,0]} Qa5 {[%eval 12,0]} 9. e4 {[%eval 18,0]} Ne7 {[%eval 15,0]} 10. Be3 {[%eval 15,0]} ({RR} 10. Qb3 O-O 11. a4 Nec6 12. Bb5 e5 13. Ne2 Be6 14. Bc4 Bxc4 15. Qxc4 Nd7 16. Be3 Rac8 17. O-O Qc7 18. Rfd1 Na5 19. Qb5 Nxc5 20. Rd5 b6 21. Bxc5 bxc5 22. Rad1 g6 23. h4 h5 24. Rd7 Qb6 {0-1 Erigaisi,A (2727)-Aronian,L (2723) World Blitz 2023 Samarkand UZB (20.5)}) ({RR} 10. Qb3 O-O 11. a4 Nec6 12. Bb5 e5 13. Ne2 Be6 14. Bc4 Bxc4 15. Qxc4 Nd7 16. Be3 Rac8 17. O-O Qc7 18. Rfd1 Na5 19. Qb5 Nxc5 20. Rd5 b6 21. Bxc5 bxc5 22. Rad1 g6 23. h4 h5 24. Rd7 Qb6 {Erigaisi,A (2727)-Aronian,L (2723) Samarkand UZB 2023 0-1 (51)}) 10... O-O $146 {[%eval 14,0]} ({RR} 10... Nd7 11. Qb3 O-O 12. Bb5 Nc6 13. Bxc6 bxc6 14. Qb4 Qc7 15. Ne2 Ba6 16. c4 Ne5 17. Qc3 Nxc4 18. Bf4 e5 19. Bg3 Qe7 20. Kf2 Qxc5+ 21. Ke1 Rfd8 22. Rc1 Rab8 23. Bf2 Qe7 24. Ng3 Nb2 25. Nf5 {0-1 Parra Gomez,A (2208)-Masruri,R (2281) Titled Tue 23rd Jan Early chess.com INT 2024 (2)}) 11. Qd2 {[%eval 13,0]} Rd8 {[%eval 26,0]} ({RR} 11... Nec6 12. Nh3 Rd8 13. Qb2 Qc7 14. Bb5 Na5 15. Nf4 Bd7 16. O-O Nbc6 17. a4 Ne5 18. Qf2 Nec4 19. Bxc4 Nxc4 20. Nd3 Rac8 21. Rfd1 Be8 22. Bg5 f6 23. Qa2 Rxd3 24. Rxd3 Qxc5+ 25. Be3 Nxe3 26. Qxe6+ {Simacek,P (2411)-Marakovits,N (2291) Pardubice CZE 2025 0-1 (78)}) 12. Qb2 {[%eval 26,0]} Na6 $146 {[%eval 19,0]} ({RR} 12... e5 13. Bc4 Na6 14. Ne2 Nxc5 15. Qb4 Nd3+ 16. Bxd3 Qxb4 17. axb4 Rxd3 18. Rxa7 Rxa7 19. Bxa7 Be6 20. Kf2 Bc4 21. Be3 f5 22. Bg5 Kf7 23. Bxe7 Kxe7 24. exf5 Rd2 25. Re1 Kf6 26. g4 Rc2 27. h4 {Grover,S (2485)-Prince,B (2227) Al Ain 2013 ½-½ (40)}) 13. Nh3 {[%eval 0,0]} e5 {[%eval 0,0]} 14. Nf2 {[%eval 3,0]} Be6 {[%eval 1,0]} 15. Nd3 {[%eval 0,0]} Qc7 {[%eval 0,0]} 16. Qb5 {[%eval 0,0]} Bd7 {[%eval 0,0]} 17. Qb2 {[%eval 0,0]} Be6 {[%eval 0,0]} 18. Qb5 {[%eval 0,0]} Bd7 {[%eval 0,0]} 19. Qb2 {[%eval 0,0]} Be6 {[%eval 2,0]} 20. Qb5 {[%eval 0,0]} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2024"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2024.06.03"]
[Round "14.1"]
[White "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2794"]
[BlackElo "2830"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {[%eval 17,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 17,0]} 2. c4 {[%eval 21,0]} e6 {[%eval 21,0]} 3. Nc3 {[%eval 18,0]} d5 {[%eval 23,0]} 4. cxd5 {[%eval 35,0]} exd5 {[%eval 36,0]} 5. Bg5 {[%eval 24,0]} Be7 {[%eval 25,0]} 6. e3 {[%eval 22,0]} h6 {[%eval 21,0]} 7. Bh4 {[%eval 23,0]} Bg4 {[%eval 39,0]} 8. f3 {[%eval 24,0]} Be6 {[%eval 32,0]} 9. Bd3 {[%eval 2,0]} c5 {[%eval 25,0]} 10. Nge2 {[%eval 17,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 24,0]} 11. O-O {[%eval 26,0]} O-O {[%eval 21,0]} 12. Re1 $146 {[%eval 17,0]} ({RR} 12. Rc1 cxd4 13. exd4 Rc8 14. a3 Re8 15. Na4 Nh5 16. Bf2 Bg5 17. Rc3 Nf4 18. Nxf4 Bxf4 19. Nc5 Rc7 20. Bb5 Bc8 21. Qa4 Qd6 22. g3 Bd2 23. Rc2 Be3 24. Bxc6 Bxf2+ 25. Rfxf2 Qxc6 26. Qxc6 Rxc6 {1-0 Janssen,R (2499)-Levin,F (2431) TCh-BEL 2023-24 Belgium BEL (11.3)}) ({RR} 12. Bf2 Rc8 13. Qd2 a6 14. Rad1 b5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nd4 Qb6 17. Nxc6 Rxc6 18. Ne2 Re8 19. Nd4 Rc7 20. Bb1 Rce7 21. Qd3 g6 22. Nb3 Bd6 23. Nd4 Bc5 24. Rc1 Nd7 25. Bg3 Bxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 {1-0 Krush,I (2430)-Kurmangaliyeva,L (2261) World Blitz Women 2023 Samarkand UZB (3.43)}) ({RR} 12. Bf2 cxd4 13. exd4 Bd6 14. g4 h5 15. h3 Nd7 16. Qd2 Nb6 17. b3 Rc8 18. Rac1 f5 19. gxh5 f4 20. Kh2 Qg5 21. Bg6 Bf5 22. Rg1 Qh6 23. Bxf5 Rxf5 24. Rg6 Qxh5 25. Rxd6 Qxf3 26. Ng1 Qh5 {Krush,I (2447)-Divya,D (2372) Kolkata IND 2023 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 12. Bf2 cxd4 13. exd4 Bd6 14. Bh4 Re8 15. Rc1 Rc8 16. Bb1 Be7 17. Qd3 g6 18. Qd1 Qd7 19. Qd2 Kg7 20. Bc2 Na5 21. Ba4 Nc6 22. Bf2 a6 23. Nf4 b5 24. Bb3 Na5 25. Rce1 Bd6 26. Bh4 Nxb3 {Abdusattorov,N (2777)-Nihal,S (2676) Tashkent UZB 2024 ½-½ (42)}) ({RR} 12. dxc5 Bxc5 13. Bf2 a6 14. Rc1 Ba7 15. Bb1 Rc8 16. Nd4 Qd7 17. Nxc6 Rxc6 18. Qd3 d4 19. Ne4 Nxe4 20. Qxe4 f5 21. Qe5 dxe3 22. Bxe3 Qd6 23. Qxe6+ Qxe6 24. Bxa7 b6 25. Bc2 Kh8 {0-1 (25) Yu,J (2283)-Juksta,K (2403) Charlotte USA 2025}) 12... Re8 {[%eval 17,0]} 13. Bc2 {[%eval 2,0]} Rc8 {[%eval 22,0]} 14. Nf4 {[%eval 27,0]} cxd4 {[%eval 66,0]} 15. Nxe6 {[%eval 6,0]} fxe6 {[%eval 63,0]} 16. exd4 {[%eval 75,0]} Nxd4 {[%eval 73,0]} 17. Bg6 {[%eval 64,0]} Rf8 {[%eval 68,0]} 18. Bf2 {[%eval 65,0]} Nc6 {[%eval 78,0]} 19. Rxe6 {[%eval 75,0]} d4 {[%eval 72,0]} 20. Ne2 {[%eval 71,0]} Bc5 $6 {[%eval 133,0] Inaccuracy. Nd5 was best.} (20... Nd5) 21. Nf4 {[%eval 85,0]} Nd5 $6 {[%eval 200,0] Inaccuracy. Bd6 was best.} (21... Bd6 22. Bg3) 22. Qb3 {[%eval 207,0]} Nxf4 {[%eval 203,0]} 23. Rd6+ {[%eval 201,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 214,0]} 24. Rxd8 {[%eval 200,0]} Rcxd8 {[%eval 207,0]} 25. Qxb7 {[%eval 213,0]} Ne5 {[%eval 202,0]} 26. Be4 {[%eval 109,0]} Bb6 {[%eval 209,0]} 27. a4 {[%eval 233,0]} Nc4 {[%eval 262,0]} 28. Qa6 {[%eval 253,0]} Nd2 {[%eval 254,0]} 29. a5 {[%eval 204,0]} Bc5 $6 {[%eval 319,0] Inaccuracy. Nxe4 was best.} (29... Nxe4 30. axb6 Nxf2 31. bxa7 N2d3 32. b4 Ra8 33. b5 Rfe8 34. b6 Re2 35. Rf1) 30. Bb7 {[%eval 271,0]} Nb3 {[%eval 326,0]} 31. Rd1 {[%eval 318,0]} d3 {[%eval 351,0]} 32. Bxc5 {[%eval 367,0]} Nxc5 {[%eval 355,0]} 33. Qxa7 {[%eval 338,0]} Nxb7 {[%eval 359,0]} 34. Qxb7 {[%eval 365,0]} Rfe8 {[%eval 347,0]} 35. g3 {[%eval 383,0]} d2 {[%eval 338,0]} 36. Qb4 $4 {[%eval 4,0] Blunder. Kf1 was best.} (36. Kf1 Nd5 37. Rxd2 Ne3+ 38. Ke1 Ng2+ 39. Kd1 Re1+ 40. Kc2 Ne3+ 41. Kc3 Rc1+) 36... Rd4 {[%eval 56,0]} 37. Qxd2 {[%eval 63,0]} Rxd2 {[%eval 6,0]} 38. Rxd2 {[%eval 68,0]} Ne6 {[%eval 67,0]} 39. b4 $6 {[%eval 1,0] Inaccuracy. Re2 was best.} (39. Re2 Kg8 40. f4 g6 41. b4 Kf7 42. b5 Rb8 43. Rb2 Nc5 44. Kg2 Ke7) 39... Kg8 $6 {[%eval 87,0] Inaccuracy. Rb8 was best.} (39... Rb8 40. Rb2 Nd4 41. b5 Ra8 42. b6 Nc6 43. b7 Rxa5 44. Kf2 Kg8 45. Rb6) 40. b5 {[%eval 77,0]} Ra8 {[%eval 87,0]} 41. Ra2 {[%eval 68,0]} Kf7 {[%eval 78,0]} 42. Kf2 {[%eval 5,0]} Ke7 {[%eval 46,0]} 43. b6 {[%eval 19,0]} Nc5 {[%eval 2,0]} 44. Ke3 {[%eval 23,0]} Kd6 {[%eval 24,0]} 45. Kf4 {[%eval 24,0]} g6 {[%eval 25,0]} 46. h4 {[%eval 35,0]} Kd5 {[%eval 51,0]} 47. Kg4 {[%eval 51,0]} Kc6 {[%eval 51,0]} 48. h5 {[%eval 58,0]} Rg8 {[%eval 64,0]} 49. Rc2 {[%eval 14,0]} Kb5 {[%eval 23,0]} 50. hxg6 {[%eval 17,0]} Rxg6+ {[%eval 26,0]} 51. Kh5 {[%eval 2,0]} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2024"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2024.06.04"]
[Round "16.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Praggnanandhaa R"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2830"]
[BlackElo "2747"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 16.1 - Chessbase"]
[PlyCount "133"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]

1. d4 {[%eval 17,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 17,0]} 2. Bf4 {[%eval 5,0]} d5 {[%eval 12,0]} 3. e3 {[%eval 3,0]} Bf5 {[%eval 16,0]} 4. c4 {[%eval 13,0]} e6 {[%eval 17,0]} 5. Nc3 {[%eval 7,0]} ({RR} 5. Qb3 Nbd7 6. Nc3 dxc4 7. Bxc4 Nb6 8. Be2 a5 9. a3 c6 10. Bg5 Be7 11. f3 a4 12. Qd1 Nfd7 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. e4 Bg6 15. Nh3 O-O 16. O-O f6 17. f4 e5 18. dxe5 fxe5 19. f5 Bf7 {1-0 Maghsoodloo,P (2715)-Praggnanandhaa,R (2747) 6th Prague Masters 2024 Prague CZE (2.5)}) 5... Bd6 {[%eval 3,0]} 6. Bxd6 {[%eval 3,0]} Qxd6 {[%eval 24,0]} 7. Qb3 $146 {[%eval 25,0]} ({RR} 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Qb3 b6 9. Nf3 O-O 10. Be2 Nbd7 11. O-O c6 12. Rac1 Rac8 13. Qa4 Rc7 14. h3 Ne4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. Rfd1 Bxf3 17. Bxf3 Re8 18. Rc3 Re6 19. Rdc1 g6 20. b4 b5 21. Qa6 Nb6 {1-0 Timerkhanov,A (2308)-Khazhatuly,A (1958) Titled Tue 6th Feb Early chess.com INT 2024 (4)}) 7... b6 {[%eval 34,0]} 8. Nf3 {[%eval 26,0]} O-O {[%eval 36,0]} 9. Be2 {[%eval 28,0]} dxc4 $146 {[%eval 32,0]} ({RR} 9... a6 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Rac1 dxc4 12. Bxc4 b5 13. Be2 c5 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Qb4 Rfc8 16. a4 Qb6 17. axb5 Bd3 18. Na4 Qxb5 19. Qxb5 axb5 20. Nxc5 Bxe2 21. Rfe1 Bc4 22. Nb7 Ne4 23. Red1 Bd5 24. Rxc8+ {Kamsky,G (2662)-Nakamura,H (2736) Chess.com INT 2021 0-1 (34)}) ({RR} 9... c5 10. O-O dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nc6 12. dxc5 Qxc5 13. Na4 Qe7 14. Bb5 Be4 15. Bxc6 Bxc6 16. Nd4 Bd5 17. Qd3 Qb7 18. f3 e5 19. Nf5 e4 20. Qe2 exf3 21. gxf3 Qd7 22. e4 Qxa4 23. exd5 Nxd5 24. Qe5 {Nguyen Thanh Nghia (2124)-Mena,M (2044) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (33)}) 10. Qxc4 {[%eval 26,0]} a6 {[%eval 27,0]} 11. O-O {[%eval 33,0]} Nbd7 {[%eval 31,0]} 12. Rfd1 {[%eval 27,0]} b5 {[%eval 27,0]} 13. Qb3 {[%eval 3,0]} c5 {[%eval 35,0]} 14. dxc5 {[%eval 32,0]} Qxc5 {[%eval 32,0]} 15. Nd4 {[%eval 27,0]} Bg6 {[%eval 26,0]} 16. Bf3 {[%eval 14,0]} Ra7 $6 {[%eval 76,0] Inaccuracy. Bh5 was best.} (16... Bh5 17. Bxh5 Qxh5 18. Rac1 Rfc8 19. Nce2 Rxc1 20. Rxc1 Qd5 21. Qa3 h6 22. h3) 17. Rac1 {[%eval 71,0]} Qg5 {[%eval 96,0]} 18. Nc6 $6 {[%eval 18,0] Inaccuracy. Qa3 was best.} (18. Qa3 Ne5 19. Be2 Qh4 20. h3 Rd7 21. Qxa6 b4 22. Na4 Ne4 23. Rf1 Qg5) 18... Ne5 {[%eval 22,0]} 19. Nxe5 {[%eval 24,0]} Qxe5 {[%eval 22,0]} 20. a4 {[%eval 9,0]} bxa4 {[%eval 12,0]} 21. Qb6 {[%eval 0,0]} Qb8 {[%eval 3,0]} 22. Nxa4 {[%eval 9,0]} h6 {[%eval 1,0]} 23. Be2 {[%eval 0,0]} Nd5 {[%eval 33,0]} 24. Qd4 {[%eval 23,0]} a5 {[%eval 39,0]} 25. Nc5 {[%eval 43,0]} Qb6 {[%eval 39,0]} 26. Bf3 {[%eval 41,0]} Rb8 {[%eval 44,0]} 27. Bxd5 {[%eval 29,0]} exd5 {[%eval 14,0]} 28. b3 {[%eval 21,0]} Rc7 {[%eval 56,0]} 29. Ne6 {[%eval 55,0]} Qxd4 {[%eval 56,0]} 30. Nxd4 {[%eval 44,0]} Rbc8 {[%eval 58,0]} 31. Ra1 {[%eval 64,0]} Bc2 $6 {[%eval 137,0] Inaccuracy. Ra8 was best.} (31... Ra8 32. h4 f6 33. Ra3 Be8 34. Rda1 Rca7 35. Rc1 a4 36. bxa4 Rxa4 37. Rxa4) 32. Rdc1 $6 {[%eval 69,0] Inaccuracy. Rf1 was best.} (32. Rf1 Rc5 33. h3 g6 34. Ra3 Bf5 35. Kh2 Bd7 36. Rfa1 a4 37. bxa4 Ra5) 32... Bd3 $6 {[%eval 153,0] Inaccuracy. Bg6 was best.} (32... Bg6 33. Rf1 Ra7 34. Ra3 f6 35. h4 Be8 36. Rfa1 Rca8 37. Ne2 Kh7 38. Kh2) 33. Rxc7 $6 {[%eval 7,0] Inaccuracy. Re1 was best.} (33. Re1 Rc5) 33... Rxc7 {[%eval 76,0]} 34. f3 {[%eval 52,0]} Rc5 {[%eval 55,0]} 35. Kf2 {[%eval 21,0]} h5 {[%eval 21,0]} 36. Ke1 {[%eval 2,0]} g6 {[%eval 27,0]} 37. Kd2 {[%eval 12,0]} Bf5 {[%eval 17,0]} 38. Rc1 {[%eval 4,0]} Rxc1 {[%eval 3,0]} 39. Kxc1 {[%eval 5,0]} Bd7 {[%eval 7,0]} 40. Kb2 {[%eval 0,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 0,0]} 41. Kc3 {[%eval 2,0]} Ke7 {[%eval 1,0]} 42. Ne2 {[%eval 0,0]} Kd6 {[%eval 0,0]} 43. Kd4 {[%eval 0,0]} a4 {[%eval 5,0]} 44. bxa4 {[%eval 0,0]} Bxa4 {[%eval 0,0]} 45. Nf4 {[%eval 15,0]} Bb3 {[%eval 12,0]} 46. h4 {[%eval 1,0]} Ba2 {[%eval 1,0]} 47. g4 {[%eval 1,0]} hxg4 {[%eval 14,0]} 48. fxg4 {[%eval 0,0]} Ke7 {[%eval 38,0]} 49. Nxd5+ {[%eval 39,0]} Ke6 {[%eval 45,0]} 50. e4 {[%eval 33,0]} Bb3 {[%eval 35,0]} 51. Nf4+ {[%eval 39,0]} Kf6 {[%eval 44,0]} 52. g5+ {[%eval 44,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 34,0]} 53. Ke5 {[%eval 34,0]} Bc2 {[%eval 35,0]} 54. Nd5 {[%eval 44,0]} Bd3 $4 {[%eval 577,0] Blunder. Kf8 was best.} (54... Kf8 55. Nb4 Bb1 56. Kd4 Ke7 57. Kd5 Ke8 58. Na6 Ke7 59. Ke5 Ke8 60. Nb8) 55. Nf6 {[%eval 647,0]} Kf8 {[%eval 638,0]} 56. Kd6 {[%eval 583,0]} Bb1 $6 {[%eval 808,0] Inaccuracy. Bb5 was best.} (56... Bb5 57. e5 Ba4 58. Nd7+ Ke8 59. e6 fxe6 60. Ne5 Kf8 61. Nxg6+ Kg7 62. Ne5) 57. Kd7 {[%eval 791,0]} Bc2 {[%eval 909,0]} 58. Kd8 {[%eval 858,0]} Bb1 {[%eval 909,0]} 59. Nd7+ {[%eval 909,0]} Kg7 {[%eval 900,0]} 60. e5 {[%eval 698,0]} Bf5 $4 {[%eval 32692,0] Checkmate is now unavoidable. Ba2 was best.} (60... Ba2 61. Ke7 Bc4 62. Nf6 Bb3 63. Ne8+ Kg8 64. Nd6 Kg7 65. Nb7 Ba2 66. Nd8) 61. Ke7 {[%eval 32686,0]} Bb1 {[%eval 1185,0]} 62. Nc5 {[%eval 1169,0]} Bc2 $6 {[%eval 32712,0] Checkmate is now unavoidable. Kg8 was best.} (62... Kg8 63. Nb7 Kg7 64. Nd6 Ba2 65. Nxf7 Bxf7 66. e6 Bg8 67. Kd7 Kh7 68. e7) 63. Nb7 {[%eval 32714,0]} Bb1 {[%eval 32714,0]} 64. Nd6 {[%eval 32710,0]} Ba2 {[%eval 32710,0]} 65. Nxf7 {[%eval 32726,0]} Bxf7 {[%eval 32726,0]} 66. e6 {[%eval 32726,0]} Bg8 {[%eval 32726,0]} 67. Kd7 {[%eval 32716,0]} 1-0

[Event "July 23 Late 2024"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2024.07.23"]
[Round "3.1"]
[White "Urazayev, Arystanbek"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A50"]
[WhiteElo "2773"]
[BlackElo "3241"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2024.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "KAZ"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[TimeControl "180+1"]
[WhiteClock "0:01:27"]
[BlackClock "0:01:06"]

1. d4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Nf6 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 2. c4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} b6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 3. Nc3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Bb7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 4. e3 {[%emt 0:00:02]} g6 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 5. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Bg7 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 6. Bd3 {[%emt 0:00:01]} d6 $146 {[%emt 0:00:01]} ({RR} 6... O-O 7. O-O d6 8. b3 e5 9. dxe5 dxe5 10. Nxe5 Nfd7 11. Nxd7 Bxc3 12. Nxf8 Bxa1 13. Nxh7 Na6 14. f4 Nc5 15. Ba3 Nxd3 16. Qxa1 Kxh7 17. Rd1 Be4 18. Qc3 Qh4 19. Rxd3 Bxd3 20. Bb2 f6 21. g3 {Coleman,T (2333)-Rozman,L (2343) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (48)}) ({RR} 6... O-O 7. O-O e6 8. b3 d6 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Qe2 c5 11. Rad1 Qe7 12. Rfe1 a6 13. h3 Rac8 14. Bb1 Rfd8 15. Rd2 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nc5 17. Red1 Nce4 18. Nxe4 Nxe4 19. Bxe4 Bxe4 20. Nf3 Bxb2 21. Rxb2 {Rakhmanov,A (2645)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2780) Moscow 2019 1-0 (38)}) ({RR} 6... O-O 7. O-O d5 8. Qe2 e6 9. Bd2 Ne4 10. Rac1 Nd7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Ba6 Bxa6 13. Qxa6 c6 14. Ne2 Qc7 15. Rc2 Rfc8 16. Rfc1 c5 17. Nf4 Qc6 18. dxc5 Ndxc5 19. Qe2 a5 20. Nd4 Qb7 21. Nb5 {Rakhmanov,A (2585)-Erigaisi,A (2771) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (88)}) 7. O-O {[%emt 0:00:00]} Nbd7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 8. b3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} e5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 9. d5 {[%emt 0:00:08]} e4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 10. Nd4 {[%emt 0:00:25]} exd3 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 11. Qxd3 {[%emt 0:00:00]} O-O {[%emt 0:00:01]} 12. Bb2 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Re8 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 13. Rad1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} a5 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 14. a4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Nc5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 15. Qc2 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Bc8 {[%emt 0:00:12]} 16. Rfe1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Bd7 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 17. e4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Nh5 {[%emt 0:00:15]} 18. Bc1 {[%emt 0:00:04]} f5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 19. f3 {[%emt 0:00:09]} fxe4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 20. fxe4 {[%emt 0:00:00]} Qh4 {[%emt 0:00:09]} 21. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Qf6 {[%emt 0:00:08]} 22. e5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} dxe5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 23. Bg5 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Qd6 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 24. Nd2 {[%emt 0:00:07]} Bf5 {[%emt 0:00:05]} 25. Qa2 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Nf4 {[%emt 0:00:07]} 26. Nb5 {[%emt 0:00:02]} Qd7 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 27. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} Ncd3 {[%emt 0:00:03]} 28. Rf1 {[%emt 0:00:02]} h6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 29. Bxf4 {[%emt 0:00:02]} exf4 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 30. Nh4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Be4 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 31. Nf3 {[%emt 0:00:17]} c6 {[%emt 0:00:04]} 32. dxc6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Qxc6 {[%emt 0:00:01]} 33. Ne1 {[%emt 0:00:09]} Qc5+ {[%emt 0:00:21]} 34. Kh1 {[%emt 0:00:01]} Nxe1 {[%emt 0:00:06]} 35. Rdxe1 {[%emt 0:00:06]} Rad8 {[%emt 0:00:02]} 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.13"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Xiong, Jeffery"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2712"]
[PlyCount "112"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 Nxd5 6. e4 Nxc3 7. bxc3 cxd4 8. cxd4 Bb4+ 9. Bd2 Bxd2+ 10. Qxd2 O-O 11. Bd3 Nc6 12. Bc2 Qe7 13. O-O Rd8 14. Qe3 b6 15. Rfd1 Bb7 16. Rac1 Rac8 17. h4 Na5 $146 ({RR} 17... h6 18. g4 Rc7 19. g5 hxg5 20. hxg5 Rdc8 21. g6 Nd8 22. gxf7+ Nxf7 23. Bd3 Qf6 24. Rxc7 Rxc7 25. Kf1 Rc3 26. Ke1 Ra3 27. Rd2 g5 28. d5 exd5 29. e5 d4 30. Qxd4 Qxf3 31. e6 Qh1+ 32. Bf1 {Pechac,J (2620)-Keymer,V (2693) Bydgoszcz 2022 1-0 (47)}) 18. Bd3 h6 19. g4 Nc6 20. Bb1 Qd7 21. Kh2 Qd6+ 22. Kg1 Na5 23. Bd3 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Nc6 25. Bb5 Nxd4 26. Qxd4 Qxd4 27. Nxd4 Rxd4 28. f3 a6 29. Bf1 Rd7 30. a4 Kf8 31. Kf2 Ke7 32. Rb1 Rd6 33. e5 Rc6 34. Bd3 g5 35. h5 Bc8 36. Ke3 Rc5 37. f4 Ra5 38. Rxb6 gxf4+ 39. Kxf4 Rxa4+ 40. Kf3 Ra3 41. Ke4 f6 42. Rb8 Bd7 43. Rb7 fxe5 44. g5 hxg5 45. h6 Kd6 46. Rb6+ Bc6+ 47. Rxc6+ Kxc6 48. h7 Ra4+ 49. Kxe5 Rh4 50. Kf6 g4 51. Kg5 Rh2 52. Kxg4 Kd5 53. Bg6 Rh6 54. Kg5 Rxh7 55. Bxh7 e5 56. Kg4 Kd4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.17"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D53"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2822"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e3 c5 8. Bxc4 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Bd7 10. O-O O-O 11. Rc1 Nc6 12. Nb3 Rc8 13. Be2 Nd5 14. Bg3 Nxc3 15. Rxc3 Nb4 16. Rxc8 Qxc8 17. Bd6 $146 ({RR} 17. a3 Nc6 18. Qc2 e5 19. Qc3 Be6 20. Rc1 Qd8 21. Nc5 Bxc5 22. Qxc5 Qd2 23. Qc2 Rd8 24. Kf1 Bb3 25. Qc3 e4 26. f3 exf3 27. gxf3 Qxc3 28. Rxc3 Bd1 29. b4 a6 30. Bxa6 bxa6 31. Rxc6 Ba4 {Dorfman,J (2580)-Van der Sterren,P (2490) Brussels 1993 ½-½ (47)}) 17... Nd5 18. Bxe7 Nxe7 19. Qd6 Nf5 20. Qa3 Qb8 21. e4 Qe5 22. exf5 Qxe2 23. Nd4 Qe5 24. fxe6 Qxd4 25. exd7 Rd8 26. g3 Rxd7 27. Re1 Kh7 28. Qf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.22"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Kovalev, Vladislav"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D55"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2660"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 h6 7. Bf4 c5 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. a3 Nc6 10. Qc2 Nh5 ({RR} 10... Qa5 11. O-O-O Ne4 12. cxd5 Nxc3 13. Qxc3 Qxc3+ 14. bxc3 Bxa3+ 15. Kc2 exd5 16. Rxd5 Be6 17. Rb5 b6 18. Nd4 Nxd4+ 19. cxd4 Rac8+ 20. Kd2 Rc1 21. d5 Bf5 22. Rb3 Rc2+ 23. Kd1 Ra2 24. Rc3 Bb4 25. Rc4 {Mamedyarov,S (2764)-Dominguez Perez,L (2758) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 10... Qa5 11. O-O-O dxc4 12. Bxc4 a6 13. Nd2 b5 14. Nb3 Qb6 15. Nxc5 Qxc5 16. Bb3 Ne5 17. Nd5 Qxc2+ 18. Bxc2 Nxd5 19. Bxe5 Bb7 20. e4 Nf6 21. f3 Rfd8 22. Rxd8+ Rxd8 23. Rd1 Rxd1+ 24. Kxd1 Kf8 25. Kd2 {Bryakin,M (2444)-Oliinyk,S (2252) Paracin SRB 2025 1-0 (49)}) 11. Bg3 dxc4 $146 ({RR} 11... d4 12. O-O-O Nxg3 13. hxg3 e5 14. Ne4 Be7 15. exd4 exd4 16. c5 Bf5 17. Nf6+ Bxf6 18. Qxf5 Qc8 19. Bd3 {½-½ (19) Polgar,I-Foldi,J Budapest 1965}) 12. Bxc4 Be7 13. Ba2 a6 14. Rd1 Qa5 15. Bb1 f5 16. O-O Nxg3 17. hxg3 Bf6 18. e4 Bxc3 19. bxc3 Qxa3 20. exf5 exf5 21. Rfe1 Qa5 22. g4 Qc7 23. Nh4 g5 24. Nxf5 Bxf5 25. gxf5 Rf6 26. Re6 Raf8 27. Rxf6 Rxf6 28. Ba2+ Kf8 29. Qd3 Ne5 30. Qe4 Rd6 31. Qb4 Ke7 32. f6+ Kd7 33. Re1 Rxf6 34. Qd4+ Qd6 35. Qxe5 Qxe5 36. Rxe5 Rc6 37. Re3 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 82nd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2020.01.25"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Artemiev, Vladislav"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2872"]
[BlackElo "2731"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2020.01.11"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 194"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.01.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 Qa5 9. Qd2 O-O 10. Nf3 Rd8 11. Be2 cxd4 ({RR} 11... b6 12. d5 e6 13. O-O exd5 14. exd5 Ba6 15. Rfd1 Bxc3 16. Qc2 Bxe2 17. Qxe2 Nd7 18. d6 Bf6 19. Ng5 Qa4 20. Qf3 Re8 21. Nxh7 Kxh7 22. Qh3+ Kg8 {0-1 (22) Vidit,S (2726)-Svidler,P (2723) chess24.com INT 2020}) ({RR} 11... Nc6 12. d5 e6 13. c4 Nb4 14. a3 Qxa3 15. Bxc5 a5 16. O-O exd5 17. cxd5 Bg4 18. h3 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Rac8 20. Rfd1 Bb2 21. Rb1 Bc3 22. Qe3 Bb2 23. Rxb2 Rxc5 24. Qxa3 {1-0 (24) Filindash,N (2067)-Leenhouts,K (2454) chess.com INT 2024}) 12. cxd4 Qxd2+ 13. Bxd2 Na6 14. Be3 $146 ({RR} 14. d5 Bd7 15. O-O Rac8 16. Be3 Nb4 17. Rxc8 Bxc8 18. Bc4 b6 19. Rc1 Ba6 20. Bxa6 Nxa6 21. g4 f5 22. Ng5 fxe4 23. Ne6 Ra8 24. Rc4 Be5 25. Ra4 Nc7 26. Rxe4 Nxe6 27. dxe6 Bd6 28. Ra4 Bc5 {Sjugirov,S (2650)-Svidler,P (2765) St Petersburg 2017 ½-½ (35)}) 14... Bg4 15. Ne5 Bxe2 16. Kxe2 f5 17. Kf3 Rac8 18. h4 Nb4 19. exf5 gxf5 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Rb1 a5 22. a3 Nd5 23. Rb5 e6 24. Rxa5 Bxe5 25. dxe5 Rc3 26. Ke2 Nxe3 27. fxe3 Rb3 28. Kf3 Kg7 29. g3 Kg6 30. a4 Rb4 31. Ra7 h6 32. Ra8 Re4 33. Ra5 Rb4 34. Ra7 Kh5 35. Ra8 Re4 36. Ra5 Rc4 37. Ra7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.03"]
[Round "2.12"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 {Nielsen,Peter Heine} Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Be3 c5 8. Rc1 Qa5 ({RR} 8... O-O 9. Nf3 Nd7 10. Be2 Qa5 11. O-O Qxa2 12. Nd2 Qa5 13. h4 b5 14. h5 Bb7 15. h6 Bh8 16. e5 Qc7 17. Bxb5 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Qb7+ 19. Qf3 Qxb5 20. Rb1 Qa6 21. Ne4 cxd4 22. cxd4 f6 23. Ng5 {RR} fxg5 24. Qd5+ e6 25. Qxd7) 9. Qd2 O-O 10. Nf3 Bg4 11. d5 b5 ({RR} 11... Nd7 12. c4 Qa3 13. Be2 Bxf3 14. Bxf3 Bd4) 12. Be2 ({RR} 12. Bxc5 Bxf3 13. gxf3 Rc8 14. Bb4 ({RR} 14. Bd4 Bxd4 15. Qxd4 Nd7) 14... Qc7) ({RR} 12. Bxc5 Rc8 13. Bd4 Bxf3 14. Bxg7 Bxe4 15. Bh6 Qb6 16. f3 Bf5 17. g4 Bd7 18. h4 Be8 19. h5 f6 20. hxg6 Bxg6 21. Be3 Qd6 22. Bxb5 Nd7 23. Kf2 Rab8 24. Be2 Qa3 25. Bd4 Rb2 26. Qe3 Ne5 {Ding,L (2791)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2784) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (45)}) 12... Nd7 13. O-O Rac8 ({RR} 13... Bxf3 14. Bxf3 c4 15. Be2 ({RR} 15. h4) 15... Rfd8 ({RR} 15... Rad8 16. f4 Qa3 17. Bf3 Nc5 18. e5 f6) 16. f4 Nb6 ({RR} 16... Qa3 17. Bf3 Nc5 18. e5 f6 19. d6 Rac8 20. Bd5+ e6 21. f5) 17. Bf3 Qa3 18. h4 e6 ({RR} 18... b4 19. h5 Bxc3 20. Qf2 Bg7 21. hxg6 hxg6 22. Bg4 ({RR} 22. f5 Rf8 23. e5) 22... b3 23. f5 g5 24. f6 exf6 25. axb3 cxb3 26. Rc7) 19. h5 Na4 ({RR} 19... exd5 20. e5) 20. hxg6 hxg6 21. f5 exf5 ({RR} 21... Bxc3 22. Rxc3 Qxc3 23. Qf2 Qg7 24. fxe6 fxe6 25. Bg4) 22. exf5 Qd6 23. Bf4 Qb6+ 24. Kh1 gxf5 25. d6 Rab8 26. Bd5 Nc5 27. Bg3 Ne6 28. Rxf5 {Carlsen,M (2875)-Grischuk,A (2775) Stavanger 2019 CBM 191 [Nielsen,Peter Heine] 1-0 (34)}) 14. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 14. h3 Bxf3 15. Bxf3 c4 16. Bg4 Rcd8 17. f4 Qa3 18. Bxd7 Rxd7 19. f5 gxf5 20. Rxf5 e6 21. Rg5 f6 22. Rg3 exd5 23. exd5 Qd6 24. Qf2 Qxd5 25. Bxa7 Qd2 26. Rb1 Qxf2+ 27. Bxf2 Ra8 28. Bd4 Kf7 {Bosiocic,M (2598)-Ragger,M (2669) Zagreb 2019 1-0 (65)}) ({RR} 14. h3 Bxf3 15. gxf3 c4 16. f4 Nc5 17. e5 Rfd8 18. Rfd1 Qc7 19. Bg4 Rb8 20. Bxc5 Qxc5 21. Bf3 Bh6 22. Qe3 Rbc8 23. Rd4 a6 24. Kg2 Qa3 25. Rc2 Qc5 26. h4 a5 27. h5 Rc7 28. Qe4 Qb6 {Drygalov,S (2560)-Mekhitarian,K (2564) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (48)}) 14... Nb6 15. Bh6 Bxf3 16. gxf3 b4 17. Bxg7 Kxg7 18. cxb4 cxb4 19. Rc6 Rxc6 20. dxc6 Rc8 21. Rc1 Na4 22. Rc4 Nc3 23. Bf1 Qb6 24. a3 Rxc6 25. Rxc6 Qxc6 26. axb4 Nb5 27. Bxb5 Qxb5 28. Qd4+ e5 29. Qxa7 Qxb4 30. Qc7 Qd4 31. Qe7 h5 32. h4 Qc3 33. Kg2 Qd4 34. Kg1 Qc3 35. Kg2 Qd4 36. Kg1 Qc3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.03"]
[Round "2.14"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D78"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 ({RR} 1. Nf3 g6 2. d4 Bg7 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 O-O 5. O-O d5 6. c4 c6 7. cxd5 {½-½ (13) Ricken,K (2206)-Damen,J (2313) Belgium BEL 2024}) 1... Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 c6 4. Bg2 d5 5. cxd5 cxd5 6. Nf3 Bg7 7. O-O O-O 8. Ne5 Ne4 9. Nd2 Nxd2 10. Bxd2 Nd7 11. Nxd7 Bxd7 12. e3 e6 13. Qb3 Qb6 $146 14. Qxb6 axb6 15. Rfc1 Rfc8 16. Rxc8+ Rxc8 17. Rc1 Rxc1+ 18. Bxc1 Bb5 19. Bd2 Bf8 20. Bf1 Bxf1 21. Kxf1 f5 22. a4 Kf7 23. f4 h5 24. h4 Ke8 25. b4 Kd7 26. b5 Be7 27. Ke2 Bf8 28. Kd3 Be7 29. Kc2 Bf8 30. Kb3 Be7 31. Bb4 Bd8 32. Bf8 Ke8 33. Bd6 Kd7 34. Bb4 Bc7 35. Ba3 Bd8 36. Bb4 Bc7 37. Ba3 Bd8 38. Bb4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.04"]
[Round "2.21"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 g6 3. Bf4 Bg7 4. e3 O-O 5. Be2 d6 6. O-O Nh5 7. Bg5 h6 8. Bh4 g5 9. Nfd2 Nf6 10. Bg3 Nc6 ({RR} 10... Bf5 11. c4 c6 12. Nc3 d5 13. cxd5 cxd5 14. Qb3 Qd7 15. Bf3 e6 16. Rfc1 Nc6 17. a3 g4 18. Be2 Ne4 19. Ndxe4 dxe4 20. Na4 Na5 21. Qd1 b6 22. b4 Nc6 23. Bxg4 Bxg4 24. Qxg4 f5 25. Qh4 {Chemin,V (2134)-Andrade,I (2161) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (38)}) 11. Nc3 ({RR} 11. c4 e5 12. d5 Ne7 13. Nc3 Nf5 14. Qc2 h5 15. Bd3 Nxg3 16. fxg3 Ng4 17. Rae1 Nh6 18. e4 g4 19. Nd1 c6 20. Ne3 Bd7 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. c5 dxc5 23. Bc4 Kh8 24. Nb3 Qe7 25. Nf5 Nxf5 {Tristan,L (2526)-Santos Latasa,J (2656) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (53)}) 11... e5 12. dxe5 $146 ({RR} 12. Nb3 Qe7 13. Qd2 Bf5 14. Rae1 Ne4 15. Nxe4 Bxe4 16. c3 Bg6 17. Bc4 Kh7 18. e4 h5 19. f3 Bh6 20. Bf2 f6 21. Be3 Bf7 22. Bxf7 Qxf7 23. Qc2 Ne7 24. Nc1 Ng6 25. Qb3 Qxb3 26. Nxb3 f5 {Pantev,V (2419)-Danov,R (2248) Sunny Beach 2015 ½-½}) 12... Nxe5 13. f4 Neg4 14. Rf3 Re8 15. Nf1 Nh5 16. Be1 f5 17. Bc4+ Be6 18. Bxe6+ Rxe6 19. h3 Ngf6 20. fxg5 hxg5 21. Rxf5 Bh6 22. g4 Ng7 23. Rf3 Qd7 24. Ng3 Rae8 25. Bf2 Qc6 26. e4 Nd7 27. Nd5 1-0

[Event "Legends of Chess Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2020.08.04"]
[Round "2.23"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2020.07.31"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "2"]
[EventCountry "GER"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 197"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.07.27"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d6 2. e4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. Be2 Nc6 5. O-O e5 6. dxe5 dxe5 7. Qxd8+ Nxd8 8. Nc3 ({RR} 8. Na3 Ne6 9. Be3 Ne7 10. Rad1 Bd7 11. Bc4 a6 12. Rd2 h6 13. Rfd1 Bc6 14. Bxe6 fxe6 15. Nc4 Bxe4 16. Rd7 Bd5 17. Rxc7 Bxc4 18. Rxc4 Nd5 19. Re4 O-O-O 20. Re1 Rhf8 21. Nxe5 g5 22. Nd3 Nf4 {Pourramezanali,A (2543)-Demuth,A (2538) Cap d'Agde 2017 1-0 (47)}) ({RR} 8. a4 Ne7 9. a5 a6 10. Nc3 h6 11. Rd1 Ne6 12. Nd5 Bd7 13. c3 Rd8 14. Nd2 Bc6 15. Nb4 Bd7 16. Nb3 O-O 17. Be3 Bc8 18. Nd5 Nxd5 19. exd5 Nf4 20. Bc4 g5 21. Rd2 Rfe8 22. Bc5 Ng6 {Kubik,R (2137)-Fargac,M (2407) Bohumin CZE 2025 0-1 (49)}) 8... Ne6 9. Bc4 $146 ({RR} 9. Be3 h6 10. Rfd1 Ne7 11. Nd5 c6 12. Nxe7 Kxe7 13. Bc4 b6 14. a4 Bb7 15. c3 Rhd8 16. b4 f5 17. exf5 gxf5 18. Nh4 Kf6 19. f3 Bf8 20. g4 f4 21. Bf2 Ng5 22. Kg2 c5 23. bxc5 bxc5 {Burton,G (2042)-Hutchinson,P (2228) Calvia 2009 0-1 (65)}) 9... c6 10. Ng5 Nd8 11. Rd1 Nh6 12. a4 f6 13. Nf3 Nhf7 14. a5 Be6 15. Be2 Bf8 16. Be3 Nd6 17. Nd2 N8f7 18. f3 Bh6 19. Bf2 Rd8 20. Nb3 Bxb3 21. cxb3 a6 22. Na4 Nc8 23. Nc5 Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 Nfd6 25. Nxb7 Nxb7 26. Bxa6 Nbd6 27. Bxc8 Nxc8 28. a6 Rf8 29. a7 Nxa7 30. Bxa7 Rf7 31. Bc5 Rb7 32. b4 Bf8 33. Bxf8 Kxf8 34. Rd6 Ke7 35. Rxc6 Rxb4 36. Rc7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.05"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E51"]
[WhiteElo "2767"]
[BlackElo "2863"]
[PlyCount "60"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Bb4 5. e3 O-O 6. Bd2 b6 7. cxd5 exd5 8. Rc1 Re8 9. Bd3 Ba6 10. Bxa6 Nxa6 11. O-O Bf8 12. Ne2 Qc8 13. Qa4 c5 14. Ng3 $146 ({RR} 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. Qc2 Qa6 16. Bc3 Nfe4 17. a3 Rac8 18. Rcd1 Na4 19. Rxd5 Naxc3 20. Nxc3 Nxc3 21. bxc3 Qxa3 22. c4 Red8 23. Rxd8 Rxd8 24. Nd4 g6 25. g3 Rc8 26. Rb1 Bg7 27. Nb5 Qe7 28. Qa4 a5 {Caruana,F (2835)-Carlsen,M (2863) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (54)}) 14... Qb7 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Qb5 Rac8 17. Rfd1 a6 18. Qf1 Nfe4 19. Be1 g6 20. Ne2 Na4 21. Rb1 Bg7 22. Nfd4 Nac5 23. Nf3 Ne6 24. Ned4 Nxd4 25. Nxd4 Rc4 26. b3 Rc7 27. Qd3 Nc5 28. Qd2 Ne4 29. Qd3 Nc5 30. Qd2 Ne4 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.06"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2728"]
[Annotator "Kapnisis,Spyridon"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,103,32,44,13,-24,-22,-14,0,-39,-32,-23,-10,-19,-10,-52,-7,-12,44,25,50,51,41,18,32,12,21,-4,20,0,34,-34,61,48,50,50,50,46,52,23,53,21,39,29,44,45,58,35,39,39,51,38,38,-26,38,20,63,63,48,15,11,-16,-14,-44,36,13,-5,-5,-5,-23,65,-16,15,2,1,-33,-33,-72,-72,-73,-107,-34,-25,-30,10,-13,-13,-21,-24,5,8,8,13,0,4,0,0,-20,-25,-27,-11,0,54,55,54,48]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Bd3 (8. Qc2 O-O 9. Nf3 {Carlsen decided to avoid d3, ge2 in the Armageddon game that followed our main game. His choice of 9.f3 didn't pose any problems to Firouzja.} Re8 10. Bd3 Ne4 $1 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Bxe4 (12. O-O Nd7 13. Rfc1 Ndf6 14. Ne5 Bf5 $13) 12... dxe4 13. Nd2 f5 14. O-O-O $2 {Carlsen tried to play for a win but soon ended up clearly worse.} (14. O-O Nd7 $13 {[%cal Yd7f6]} (14... Be6)) 14... Nd7 15. g4 fxg4 16. Ndxe4 Nb6 17. Ng3 Be6 $17 {1-0 (47) Carlsen,M (2863)-Firouzja,A (2728) Stavanger NOR 2020}) 8... O-O (8... Nbd7 {followed by h5 is a lot more common.}) 9. Nge2 Re8 10. O-O Nbd7 (10... Ne4 $6 11. Bxe7 Nxc3 (11... Qxe7 12. Bxe4 dxe4 13. Ng3 f5 14. f3 exf3 15. Rxf3 $16) 12. Bxd8 Nxd1 13. Rfxd1 Rxd8 14. b4 $14) 11. f3 (11. Qc2 a5) 11... b5 $5 12. Bf2 (12. e4 $6 b4 13. e5 (13. Na4 $2 dxe4 14. fxe4 Nxe4 $1 $19) 13... bxc3 14. exf6 Nxf6 15. bxc3 Qa5 $132 {[%cal Yc8a6,Yc6c5]}) 12... Bb7 {[#]} (12... Nb6 13. b3 (13. Ng3 $5) 13... a5 14. Rc1 Bb7 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 $14 {1-0 (40) Rodshtein,M (2685)-Eljanov,P (2655) Netanya 2019}) ({RR} 12... a5 13. Ng3 Ba6 14. Kh1 b4 15. Nce2 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 c5 17. dxc5 Nxc5 18. Qd2 Ne6 19. Nf5 Rf8 20. Rac1 Re8 21. Rc6 Bf8 22. Rfc1 Qd7 23. Nfd4 Rec8 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rxc8 Qxc8 26. g4 g6 27. Kg2 {Grischuk,A (2745)-Ding Liren (2811) chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (82)}) ({RR} 12... a5 13. Rc1 Ba6 14. Ng3 b4 15. Na4 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Rc8 17. e4 dxe4 18. fxe4 Ng4 19. Qf3 Nxf2 20. Qxf2 Rf8 21. Nf5 Kh7 22. d5 Ne5 23. Rcd1 cxd5 24. Rxd5 Qc7 25. Nxe7 Qxe7 26. Rxa5 Ra8 27. Qf5+ {Panda,V (2158)-Huston,G (2316) New York USA 2025 0-1 (48)}) 13. Ng3 (13. e4 $6 b4 14. Na4 $6 (14. e5 bxc3 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Nxc3 Nf8 $132 {[%csl Rd4][%cal Yf8e6]}) 14... dxe4 15. fxe4 c5 $1 16. e5 Ne4 $17 {Black is already in the driver's seat.}) (13. Rc1 $5 a6 14. Bb1 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nd4 Ne5 17. b3 Rc8 {Black's position seems quite solid.} (17... Qb6)) 13... b4 14. Na4 (14. Nce2 c5 15. dxc5 Bxc5 16. Nd4 a5) 14... c5 15. Nf5 $146 {[#]} (15. b3 $5 Qa5 (15... Rc8 16. Rc1 cxd4 17. exd4 {I would feel slightly better with White here although objectively Black should be ok.}) 16. Rc1 Rac8 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Nxc5 Rxc5 $13) (15. dxc5 Bc6 $5 16. Nf5 Bf8 17. Nd4 Bxa4 18. Qxa4 Nxc5 19. Qd1 Nxd3 20. Qxd3 Nd7 $13) (15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. dxc5 Bxc5 17. Nf5 Qb6 $13) ({RR} 15. dxc5 Nxc5 16. Bb5 Ncd7 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. Rc1 Qa5 19. Nd4 Rac8 20. b3 Rxc1 21. Qxc1 Rc8 22. Qd2 Nb6 23. Rc1 Rxc1+ 24. Qxc1 Nxa4 25. Bxa4 Bc5 26. Qc2 {½-½ (26) Stremavicius,T (2506)-Jacobson,B (2530) Charlotte 2021}) 15... Bf8 $6 {Firouzja hesitates and decides not to change the pawn structure by playing c4.} (15... c4 $5 16. Nxe7+ $1 (16. Bc2 Bf8 $17 {[%cal Yg7g6]}) 16... Qxe7 17. Bc2 a5 18. Re1 Qd6 $132 {Black seems to have everything under control. e4 is more or less stopped and Black will focus on trying to take advantage of the unfortunate position of the a4.}) 16. Nxc5 (16. dxc5 $6 Bc6 $5) 16... Nxc5 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Rc1 Qb6 19. Qa4 {[#]} Bc8 $1 {Black correctly kicks the knight out of f5 and transfers his bishop to d7.} 20. Nd4 Bd7 21. Qa6 (21. Qd1 a5 {is quite comfortable for Black.}) 21... Re7 (21... Rec8 $5) 22. Rfd1 (22. Rc2 {Doubling the rooks on the c-file was another rather obvious plan but still Black seems to have adequare resources:} Ne8 $1 {Black knight should move to c7 to force White's queen out of a6.} (22... Rc8 $2 23. Nb3 $16) 23. Rfc1 Nc7 24. Bh7+ $5 (24. Qxb6 axb6 {Black has everything under control.}) 24... Kxh7 $2 (24... Kh8 25. Qd3 Na6 (25... Bxd4 26. Qxd4 (26. exd4 $2 Ne6 $19) 26... Qxd4 27. exd4 Ne6 28. Bd3 Ree8 $1 29. Re1 a5 $14 {I wouldn't prefer being Black against Carlsen in this position although Black should be quite ok.}) 26. Bf5 b3 $1 27. Qxb3 Qxb3 28. axb3 Bxd4 29. Bxd7 Bxe3 30. Bxe3 Rxe3 $11) 25. Qd3+ Kg8 26. Rxc5 $18) 22... Ne8 {[#]} 23. Qxb6 $6 {It doesn't make much sense to me to take on b6 before Black commits his knight to c7.} (23. Bf1 {Making room for the white queen on d3 makes a lot of sense.} Nc7 (23... Nd6 $2 24. e4 (24. Rxc5 $5 Qxc5 25. e4 Ree8 26. Nb3 Qc6 27. Rxd5 Nb7 28. Nd4 Qc8 29. b3 $15) 24... Nc4 25. Bxc4 dxc4 26. Qxc4 $16) (23... Be6 $5) {Here White has a pleasant choice:} 24. Qd3 $5 {Black has difficulties equalising even if White keeps the queens on the board.} (24. Qxb6 axb6 25. Nb3 Bd6 26. Bg3 Bxg3 27. hxg3 Be8 (27... Ne8 28. Ra1 (28. Rxd5 Nf6 29. Rd2 Rxe3 30. Kf2 Re5 31. Rc7 {Black remains under pressure.}) 28... Rxe3 29. Nd4 Re7 30. Nc2 $14) (27... Ba4 $2 28. Rd4 $18) 28. Nd4 Rxa2 29. Nf5 $44 {Black hasn't fully solved his problems yet.}) 24... a5 (24... Rc8 25. Rc2 Ne8 26. Rdc1 {looks rather awkward for Black.} Rc7 {[#]} (26... Nd6 27. Qb3) 27. e4 $1 dxe4 28. fxe4 $16 {[%cal Yc2c5]}) 25. Kh1 $5 (25. Rd2 a4 26. Rdc2 Bxd4 27. Qxd4 Qxd4 28. exd4 Ne6 $14) 25... Bd6 $5 (25... a4 $6 26. e4 $1 {Opening the position is in White's favour.} dxe4 27. fxe4 Rae8 28. Qg3 $16) (25... Ree8) (25... Rae8 26. Qc2 Na6 27. Rd2 $16 {[%cal Yc2b3,Yc2d1,Yd2c2]}) 26. e4 (26. Qd2) 26... Qb7 $1 (26... dxe4 $2 27. fxe4 $18 {[%cal Yd4f5]}) 27. Nf5 (27. exd5 Nxd5 (27... Qxd5 $2 28. Nc6 $1 Bxc6 29. Qb1 $18) 28. Nb3 (28. Nf5 Bxf5 29. Qxf5 Bf4 $1 $14) 28... Be6 29. Nc5 $14) 27... Bxf5 28. exf5 $14) 23... axb6 24. Bb1 $14 Ba4 {Black feels the need to force b3 so that White will not have this square for his knight.} (24... g6 $5 {Taking away from the white knight the f5 square was a decent alternative.} 25. Ne2 (25. Nb3 Bxe3 26. Bxe3 Rxe3 27. Rxd5 Be6 28. Rd4 Re2 29. Nd2 Nf6 (29... Bxa2 $2 30. Be4 $18 {[%cal Yg1f1]}) 30. Kf1 Re5 31. Rxb4 Rd8 {Black is active enough not to be in real trouble.}) 25... Bf5 $5 (25... Nc7 $6 26. Nf4) (25... Bxe3 26. Bxe3 Rxe3 27. Kf2 $14) 26. Bxf5 gxf5 {Black's pawn structure is ridiculous but White fails to prove a clear advantage since his own pawns are under attack as well.} 27. Rxd5 Rxa2 28. Rd2 (28. Rb1 Rea7 $1 $13) 28... Rxe3 $1 29. Rxc5 Ra1+ $1 30. Rc1 Rxe2 31. Rxe2 Rxc1+ 32. Re1 $11) 25. b3 (25. Nf5 $5 Rd7 26. b3 Bb5 27. Bg3 $14) 25... Bd7 26. Ne2 Nc7 27. Rd2 {[#]} Bc6 $1 28. Nd4 (28. Nf4 $2 Nb5 $1 $15 {[%cal Yb5c3]}) 28... Bb7 29. g4 Ne6 (29... g6 $5 {Stopping f5 made a lot of sense.} 30. h4 Ne6 31. Bg3 (31. h5 Nxd4 32. exd4 Bd6 $11 {[%cal Yd6f4]}) 31... Ng7 $5 $13 {[%cal Yh6h5]}) 30. Nf5 Rc7 $6 {At this point Firouzja was running low on time and this certainly made his defensive task a lot more difficult.} (30... Rd7 $5 {Black should have tried to make d4 work as soon as possible.} 31. h4 (31. Kg2 g6 32. Ng3 $13) (31. Rcd1 g6) 31... d4 32. Nxd4 (32. e4 $6 Ba6 $15) (32. exd4 Bxf3) (32. Kg2) 32... Bxd4 33. Kg2 Bxe3 34. Rxd7 Nf4+ 35. Kh2 Bxc1 36. Rxb7 Rd8 {Again Black's activity provides enough counterplay for his weak pawn structure.}) 31. h4 {[#]} Rac8 $6 (31... Bxe3 {Simplifying the position was Black's best chance to equalise although it is perfectly understandable why he decided against this option.} 32. Rxc7 Bxf2+ 33. Kxf2 Nxc7 34. Nd6 $36) 32. Rcd1 Bf8 33. Bg3 $1 Rc3 (33... Rd7 34. Be5 $16) 34. Kf2 Bc5 {[#]} 35. Bd3 $2 {Here Carlsen probably thought that his position was good anyway and that he would take advantage of Black's time pressure by playing some solid moves. d3 is a very logical move since it stops any counterplay on the 3rd rank against e3 and f3, but it appears that there is a more concrete way to secure a winning advantage.} (35. Bd6 $1 d4 (35... Rd8 36. Bxc5 bxc5 37. Rxd5 Bxd5 38. Ne7+ Kf8 39. Nxd5 $18) (35... Ra8 36. Ne7+ Kh8 37. Nxd5 Bxd5 38. Bxc5 bxc5 39. Rxd5 $18) (35... Re8 36. Bxc5 Nxc5 37. h5 $18 {[%cal Yd2d4]}) 36. exd4 $1 (36. Ne7+ $2 Kh8 37. Bxc5 bxc5 38. exd4 Rxf3+ 39. Kg1 Rc7 $13) 36... Rxf3+ {If I had to guess I would say that Carlsen calculated up to this point and considered this position quite messy and searched for other moves.} 37. Kg1 Bxd6 38. Nxd6 Rg3+ 39. Kh2 Rcc3 40. Nxb7 $18) (35. Rd3 $5 $16 {[%cal Yg3e5]}) 35... d4 36. e4 Ra8 $1 {[%cal Yb7a6]} 37. Bc4 {[#]} Rc2 $1 {Very nice resource found by Firouzja with only a few minutes on the clock!} (37... d3+ $5 38. Kg2 Ba6 39. Bd5 (39. Bxa6 $2 Rxa6 $17 {[%cal Yf7f6,Ya6a7,Ya7d7]}) 39... Ra7 $13) (37... Ba6 $5) 38. Bd3 (38. Be5 Raxa2 39. Ke1 $11) 38... Rcxa2 39. Be5 Rxd2+ (39... f6 40. Bd6 {[%cal Yd3c4]}) 40. Rxd2 Ra5 41. Kg3 Ba6 $11 (41... Bf8 $5 42. Bd6 Bxd6+ 43. Nxd6 Ba6 44. Bxa6 Rxa6 45. Nb5 Ra8 46. Kf2 Rd8 {White should be able to make a draw without too much trouble.}) 42. Bxa6 Rxa6 43. Nxd4 Bxd4 44. Bxd4 Ra3 45. Rd3 Nxd4 46. Rxd4 Rxb3 47. Rd8+ Kh7 48. h5 Ra3 49. Rd4 Ra4 50. e5 Ra5 51. Rxb4 Rxe5 52. Rxb6 {A good result for Firouzja who handled a bad position and time pressure with remarkable maturity and posed enough problems to Carlsen to get away with half a point. On the other hand Carlsen managed to get a winning advantage from an equal position, in typical Carlsen style, but failed to get the point.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.08"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E36"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2828"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Qc2 O-O 5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. Qxc3 d5 7. Bg5 dxc4 8. Qxc4 b6 9. Rd1 Ba6 10. Qa4 h6 11. Bh4 Qd7 12. Qc2 Qc6 13. Qxc6 Nxc6 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. e3 Bxf1 16. Kxf1 Na5 17. Nf3 Nc4 $146 ({RR} 17... Rac8 18. Ke2 Nc4 19. Rb1 c5 20. Rhc1 Na5 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Rc3 Rc6 23. Nd2 c4 24. b4 cxb3 25. Rxc6 Nxc6 26. Rxb3 Rc8 27. Rb7 Kg7 28. Ne4 Ne5 29. f4 Nc4 30. Rxa7 f5 31. Nd2 Nd6 32. Rd7 {Plazuelo Pascual,J (2465)-Ponkratov,P (2624) Tornelo INT 2021 ½-½ (54)}) ({RR} 17... c5 18. dxc5 bxc5 19. Rc1 c4 20. g4 Rab8 21. Rc2 Rb6 22. Kg2 Rfb8 23. Rb1 Kg7 24. Nd2 h5 25. h3 hxg4 26. hxg4 Kg6 27. Nxc4 Rc6 28. Rbc1 Rbc8 29. b3 Kg7 30. Rb2 Nxc4 31. bxc4 Rxc4 32. Rxc4 {Chu Wei Chao (2412)-Liu,Y (2573) Fuling CHN 2024 ½-½ (37)}) 18. Rb1 c5 19. Ke2 Rfc8 20. Rhc1 Nd6 21. dxc5 bxc5 22. Rc2 Kf8 23. Nd2 c4 24. Rbc1 Rab8 25. Kf3 c3 26. bxc3 Rc5 27. c4 f5 28. Ke2 Ke7 29. Kd3 Kd7 30. Rc3 Rc6 31. c5 Ne8 32. Nf3 Ra6 33. Ne5+ Ke7 34. Ke2 Nf6 35. R1c2 Nd5 36. Rd3 Rc8 37. Rb3 Rc7 38. Rc4 Ra5 39. Nd3 e5 40. Nxe5 Raxc5 41. Rxc5 Rxc5 42. Rb7+ Ke6 43. Nxf7 Ra5 44. Nd8+ Kd6 45. Rb3 Ra6 46. Nf7+ Kc5 47. Ne5 h5 48. Kd2 h4 49. Nd3+ Kc4 50. Kc2 Rd6 51. Nf4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 8th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2020.10.11"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D31"]
[WhiteElo "2863"]
[BlackElo "2757"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "51"]
[EventDate "2020.10.05"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "10"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 199"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2020.12.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,51,13,31,35,-7,38,24,32,42,44,-33,32,9,28,17,29,9,9,9,12,-4,46,26,14,14,28,36,13,-13,-5,15,15,31,49,49,-35,-57,38,32,17,45,48,22,29,118,115,12,122,110,110,121,378,411]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. b3 b6 6. Bb2 Bb7 7. Bd3 Nbd7 8. Nge2 $5 (8. Nf3 {is the usual move.}) 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Ng3 c5 11. cxd5 {White's idea putting his knight on g3 becomes obvious: he wants to go to f5!} cxd4 (11... Nxd5 12. Nxd5 Bxd5 13. dxc5 Nxc5 14. Qg4 $1 {looked dangerous for Black too:} g6 (14... f6 15. Bc2 $14) 15. Bc4 Bxc4 16. Qxc4 $14) 12. Nce4 Bxg3 (12... Nxe4 13. Nxe4 $14) 13. Nxg3 $1 {An excellent pawn sacrifice.} (13. fxg3 Nxd5 14. Nd6 Qc7 $1 (14... Nxe3 $2 15. Bxh7+ $1 Kxh7 16. Qxd4 $16) 15. Nxb7 Qxb7 16. exd4 N7f6 {would be unclear: the pawn structure compensates for the two bishops.}) 13... dxe3 (13... Nxd5 14. Bxd4 $14 {is not what Black wants.}) 14. dxe6 exf2+ 15. Rxf2 fxe6 16. Qe2 {Black has an extra pawn, but look how beautifully the white pieces are coordinated!} Nc5 $146 ({RR} 16... Bd5 17. Raf1 Qe7 18. Nf5 Qf7 19. Nd6 Qe7 20. Nf5 Qf7 21. Ne3 Kh8 22. g4 Qg8 23. Nc4 h6 24. g5 Nh7 25. gxh6 Nhf6 26. Ne5 Nxe5 27. Qxe5 {1-0 (27) Kraus,T (2489)-Finek,V (2397) Skalica 2022}) 17. Bc2 Ba6 18. Qe1 Qe8 $6 {An imprecise move, in a position where Black was already on the verge of being lost.} (18... Nd5 $1 {was required, and White would only be slighly better:} 19. Rxf8+ (19. Rd1 Rxf2 20. Qxf2 Qg5 $132) (19. b4 Rxf2 20. Kxf2 Nxb4 $3 21. Qxb4 Qd3 $3 $13 {Wow!}) 19... Qxf8 20. b4 Nd3 21. Qxe6+ Qf7 22. Qxf7+ Kxf7 23. Rf1+ Ke6 {and Black has good chances to hold.}) 19. Rd1 $1 Rc8 (19... Rd8 $5 20. Rxd8 Qxd8 21. b4 Nd3 $1 22. Qxe6+ Kh8 23. Rd2 Qc8 $1 24. Qxc8 Rxc8 25. Bxf6 gxf6 26. Nh5 $1 {and Black is still in trouble.} (26. Bxd3 $2 Rd8 $132)) 20. b4 Nb7 {Oh, no! Putting the knight there is definitely a bad sign.} 21. Ne4 {White's superiority is just overwhelming now.} (21. a4 $5) 21... Nd5 (21... Nh5 22. Rxf8+ Qxf8 23. Bb1 Qe7 24. Ng5 $1 $18) (21... Qe7 22. Nxf6+ gxf6 23. Qe4 e5 24. b5 Bxb5 25. Qd5+ $18) 22. Rxf8+ Qxf8 23. Bb1 (23. Bb3 $5 {followed by g5 was also completely winning.}) 23... Qxb4 24. Nf6+ $1 Kh8 (24... gxf6 25. Qxe6+ $18) 25. Qxe6 Ra8 $6 (25... Ne7 26. Qh3 h6 27. Ba1 $18) 26. Qxd5 {This game was a work of art! There's little one can do when Magnus turns on to Beast mode.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.16"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Firouzja, Alireza"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D53"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2749"]
[Annotator "Edouard,Romain"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 201 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.05.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.05.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,79,25,13,29,10,10,10,10,10,42,7,20,-28,32,31,35,28,28,9,9,13,13,13,8,13,32,23,32,19,13,46,58,56,55,71,61,54,60,16,30,16,41,46,41,41,23,-26,-26,-26,-26,-32,-24,-27,-10,0,-19,-16,-35,-29,-57,-43,-43,-43,-72,-122,-147,-84,0,-95,-95,-101,143,216,166,166,29989,29990,29991,29992,29993,29994]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 Be7 7. cxd5 {A move that White doesn't play that often.} (7. e3 {is the very main line.}) 7... Nxd5 8. Bxe7 Qxe7 9. e4 Nxc3 10. bxc3 O-O 11. Bd3 c5 12. O-O cxd4 13. cxd4 {The position is extremely similar to a Semi-Tarrasch (1.d4 f6 2.c4 e6 3.f3 d5 4 c3 c5 5.cxd5 xd5 etc.).} b6 (13... e5 14. d5 {would be a typical possible structure change, as it frees the c5-square for the black knight. However, although with the support of ...b6 it seems stable, it isn't necessarily: White will push a4, and whether Black allows a5 and axb6 or pushes ...a5 himself, then ...b6 will become a target.}) 14. a4 Bb7 15. a5 bxa5 $146 ({RR} 15... e5 16. a6 Bc8 17. Bc4 Rb8 18. Bd5 b5 19. Qc2 exd4 20. Rfc1 Ne5 21. Nxe5 Qxe5 22. Qc5 Be6 23. Bxe6 Qxc5 24. Bxf7+ Rxf7 25. Rxc5 b4 26. Kf1 b3 27. Rc6 d3 28. f3 Rd7 29. Ke1 d2+ 30. Kd1 {Deuer,M (2304)-Ioannidis,E (2481) Terme Catez 2022 ½-½ (51)}) 16. Rxa5 Nf6 17. Re1 Rfd8 18. Qa1 Qc7 {A typical way to "protect" th a7-pawn.} 19. h3 (19. Rxa7 Rxa7 20. Qxa7 Ra8 21. Qc5 Qxc5 22. dxc5 Rc8 $11 {and Black gets his pawn back.}) 19... a6 20. Rc5 Qf4 21. Re5 Nd7 22. Ra5 Nf6 23. d5 $5 {Also a typical sacrifice in Semi-Tarrasch pawn structures. However, here it definitely doesn't bring White any advantage objectively.} ({According to the engine White would be slightly better playing quiet moves like} 23. g3 Qd6 24. Kg2 {but afterwards I do not see a serious plan for him.}) 23... exd5 24. e5 Ne4 25. Qd4 Rdc8 $1 {The right rook, in order to keep the a-pawn protected!} 26. Raa1 a5 27. Rab1 Bc6 (27... Ba6 $5 28. Bxa6 Rxa6 29. Qxd5 Nc3 30. Qd7 Qc4 $1 31. Rb7 Qe6 $1 {would have been equal.ñ}) 28. e6 $5 {And a second pawn sacrifice, a bit in the same spirit as the first one: gaining initiative on the dark-squares!} fxe6 29. Ne5 Qf6 30. f3 Ng5 31. Rb6 Be8 32. Qe3 a4 $6 {Allowing Magnus to start a serious attack - even if Black still stands fine.} ({The prophylactic} 32... h5 {was better, avoiding Magnus' next move. It's not like playing ...h5 is very pretty, but not being able to play g4 is a serious problem for White! And Black's a-pawn will start running.}) 33. Ng4 Qd8 (33... Qc3 {would run into a pretty much forced variation, obviouly hinted by the engine:} 34. h4 a3 35. hxg5 a2 36. gxh6 Qxe1+ 37. Qxe1 a1=Q 38. h7+ Kh8 39. Qxa1 Rxa1+ 40. Kf2 {with an unclear (probably equal) position.}) 34. Rxe6 Nxe6 {Not a bad move. Instead though, the engine is showing two amusing drawing lines.} (34... Bf7 35. Nxh6+ gxh6 36. Rxh6 Kg7 37. Rb6 Kg8 38. Rh6 $11) (34... a3 35. f4 a2 36. fxg5 a1=Q 37. Rxa1 Rxa1+ 38. Kh2 Qc7+ 39. Re5 Bh5 40. Nxh6+ gxh6 41. gxh6 Rf8 42. g3 Ra2+ 43. Kg1 Ra1+ 44. Kh2 $11) 35. Qxe6+ Bf7 $4 (35... Kh8 $1 {was necessary:} 36. Nxh6 $1 (36. Qf5 $2 Qb6+ 37. Kh1 Bg6 $1 38. Qxg6 Qxg6 39. Bxg6 a3 {and Black is better}) 36... Bh5 $1 {avoiding a mate on g8, and Black is more or less out of danger.}) 36. Nxh6+ $1 gxh6 37. Qxh6 {Suddenly Black has no defence!} Qc7 (37... Rc7 38. Re5 $18) 38. Qh7+ Kf8 39. Qh8+ Bg8 40. Qh6+ {Albeit not a fully correct game, as a whole, Magnus has shown fantastic ideas - but obviously Alireza can be disappointed, as with one or two precise moves the result could have been totally different!} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.18"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Tari, Aryan"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D41"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2625"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 cxd4 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. e4 dxe4 8. Qxd8+ Kxd8 9. Ng5 Be6 10. Nxe6+ fxe6 11. Bg5 Nc6 12. O-O-O+ Ke8 13. Bb5 Rc8 14. Kb1 Bb4 15. Bxf6 gxf6 16. Nxe4 f5 17. Ng5 Ke7 18. a3 Ba5 19. f4 h6 20. Nf3 Rhd8 21. Rxd8 Nxd8 22. Rd1 Rc7 23. Ne5 a6 ({RR} 23... Nf7 24. Nc4 Bb6 25. Nxb6 axb6 26. Be2 Nd6 27. Rd3 Rc8 28. Rb3 Rg8 29. g3 h5 30. Rxb6 h4 31. Rb3 hxg3 32. hxg3 Kd7 33. Kc2 Kc7 34. Rc3+ Kb6 35. Re3 Kc7 36. Bd3 Kd7 37. Kc3 Rh8 38. a4 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Vidit,S (2726) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (66)}) 24. Be2 Bb6 $146 ({RR} 24... Nc6 25. Nxc6+ Rxc6 26. Bf3 Rc7 27. Rc1 Rxc1+ 28. Kxc1 Bc7 29. g3 b6 30. Kd2 e5 31. fxe5 Bxe5 32. b3 Bd6 33. a4 a5 34. Ke2 Bc5 35. Bc6 Kf6 36. Kf3 Bd6 37. h3 Bc5 38. g4 fxg4+ 39. hxg4 {Fridman,D (2606)-Svane,R (2640) Magdeburg 2022 ½-½ (40)}) 25. Ng6+ Ke8 26. Bh5 Nc6 27. g4 fxg4 28. Rd6 Kf7 29. f5 Kf6 30. fxe6 Kg5 31. Rd5+ Kf6 32. Nf4 Be3 33. Ng2 Bg5 34. Bxg4 Ne5 35. Bh3 h5 36. Ka2 Re7 37. Ne1 Bf4 38. Nf3 Nxf3 39. Rf5+ Kg6 40. Rxf4 Nxh2 41. Kb3 Ng4 42. Bxg4 hxg4 43. Rxg4+ Kf5 44. Rb4 Kxe6 45. Rb6+ Kf7 46. Kb4 Ke8 47. Rd6 Rd7 48. Kc5 Rxd6 49. Kxd6 Kd8 50. b4 Kc8 51. a4 Kd8 52. b5 axb5 53. axb5 Kc8 54. b6 Kb8 55. Kd7 Ka8 56. Kc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.27"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E01"]
[WhiteElo "2823"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Bd6 6. Bg2 c6 7. Nc3 O-O 8. Bg5 h6 9. Bxf6 Qxf6 10. Qb3 ({RR} 10. O-O Qd8 11. c5 Bc7 12. e4 b6 13. b4 bxc5 14. bxc5 dxe4 15. Nxe4 Ba6 16. Re1 Bc4 17. Qa4 Bd5 18. Re3 Qc8 19. Nc3 Bd8 20. Rb1 Bf6 21. Bf1 Rd8 22. Nxd5 cxd5 23. Reb3 Re8 24. Rb7 Re7 {Ding,L (2797)-Topalov,V (2747) Wenzhou 2018 1-0 (40)}) ({RR} 10. c5 Bc7 11. O-O b6 12. b4 bxc5 13. bxc5 e5 14. dxe5 Qe6 15. e4 d4 16. Qxd4 Nd7 17. Nd5 Bb8 18. Nf4 Qe8 19. e6 fxe6 20. e5 Rf7 21. Rfe1 a5 22. Nd2 Qe7 23. Bxc6 Ra6 24. Bb5 Nxc5 {Grapsa,G (2086)-Allahverdiyeva,A (2220) Batumi GEO 2025 1-0}) 10... Nd7 11. O-O Qe7 12. c5 $146 ({RR} 12. Rfd1 Rb8 13. e4 dxc4 14. Qxc4 e5 15. d5 Nb6 16. Qb3 Bg4 17. h3 Bh5 18. g4 Bg6 19. a4 Rfd8 20. a5 Nd7 21. Qc4 Rbc8 22. Qe2 Nf6 23. Nh4 Bh7 24. Nf5 Bxf5 25. exf5 Bb4 26. a6 Bxc3 {Istratescu,A (2550)-Bluebaum,M (2646) Playchess.com INT 2020 ½-½ (56)}) 12... Bc7 13. e4 b6 14. exd5 exd5 15. Rfe1 Qf6 16. Nxd5 cxd5 17. Qxd5 Rb8 18. c6 Rd8 19. cxd7 Bxd7 20. Ne5 Be6 21. Qe4 Bxe5 22. dxe5 Qe7 23. Qe3 Rbc8 24. Be4 Qc5 25. Qxc5 Rxc5 26. f4 g6 27. Kf2 a5 28. Ke3 a4 29. Rec1 Rb5 30. Rc2 Rb4 31. Bd3 h5 32. Rd2 b5 33. a3 Rb3 34. Rc1 b4 35. axb4 a3 36. bxa3 Bf5 37. Rcd1 Rxa3 38. b5 Bg4 39. Rc1 Bf5 40. Rcd1 Bg4 41. Rc1 Bf5 42. Rcd1 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.30"]
[Round "12"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2705"]
[BlackElo "2862"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c6 4. e3 Nf6 5. Nc3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O dxc4 9. Bxc4 Qe7 10. a3 a6 ({RR} 10... a5 11. h3 b5 12. Bd3 Bb7 13. e4 e5 14. Be3 Rfe8 15. Ne2 c5 16. dxe5 Bxe5 17. Nxe5 Nxe5 18. Bxb5 Bxe4 19. Qxc5 Qxc5 20. Bxc5 Reb8 21. a4 Bd3 22. Bd6 Rxb5 23. axb5 Nc4 24. Bc7 Bxe2 25. Rfe1 {Vrolijk,L (2478)-Rydl,J (2424) Czech Republic 2022 1-0}) 11. h3 $146 ({RR} 11. Ba2 b5 12. Bb1 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. b4 Bd6 15. Ne4 Bb7 16. Nxd6 Qxd6 17. Rd1 Qc6 18. Qxc6 Bxc6 19. Nd4 Bd5 20. f3 Rfc8 21. e4 Bc4 22. Be3 Kf8 23. Kf2 Ke7 24. g4 g6 25. Bc2 Ne8 {Lerner,K (2530)-Karolyi,T (2450) Amsterdam 1988 ½-½ (32)}) ({RR} 11. Rd1 b5 12. Ba2 c5 13. dxc5 Bxc5 14. Ne4 Bb7 15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. Qe2 Nfe4 17. Nd4 e5 18. Nf5 Qg5 19. Ng3 Rad8 20. Bd2 Nxd2 21. Rxd2 Ne4 22. Rxd8 Rxd8 23. Rc1 Nxg3 24. hxg3 Qe7 25. b4 g6 {Korobov,A (2683)-Carlsen,M (2862) Chess.com INT 2021 ½-½ (72)}) 11... b5 12. Be2 Re8 13. Ng5 c5 14. dxc5 Nxc5 15. b4 Ncd7 16. Nce4 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 Be5 18. Bb2 Bxb2 19. Qxb2 Bb7 20. Bd3 Rac8 21. Rfc1 Bxe4 22. Bxe4 Nb6 23. Bd3 g6 24. Rxc8 Rxc8 25. Rc1 Rc7 26. g3 Rxc1+ 27. Qxc1 Qd6 28. Be2 Nc4 29. Bxc4 Qc6 30. Qc3 bxc4 31. Kf1 Qh1+ 32. Ke2 Qb1 33. Qxc4 Qb2+ 34. Kf3 Qxa3 35. b5 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel 83rd"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2021.01.31"]
[Round "13"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2862"]
[BlackElo "2784"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2021.01.16"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "19"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 200"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.02.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Qa4+ Qd7 8. Qa3 b6 9. Nf3 c5 10. Be3 O-O 11. Rd1 cxd4 12. cxd4 Qd6 13. Qxd6 exd6 14. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 14. Bc4 Bb7 15. Nd2 Na6 16. O-O Nb4 17. d5 f5 18. Bf4 Rad8 19. g3 h6 20. h4 Kh8 21. a3 Nc2 22. Bd3 Nd4 23. Rfe1 fxe4 24. Bxe4 Ba6 25. Bxg6 Ne2+ 26. Rxe2 Bxe2 27. Re1 Bg4 28. h5 Bf5 {Debashis,D (2503)-Cheparinov,I (2681) Caleta 2015 ½-½ (39)}) 14... Bb7 15. Bd3 Nc6 16. Kd2 Rac8 17. h4 Nb4 18. Bb1 Rce8 19. a3 Nc6 20. Ba2 Rxe4 21. Bd5 Na5 22. Bxe4 Bxe4 23. Rc7 a6 24. h5 b5 25. h6 Bf6 26. Bg5 Bh8 27. Rh4 Bd5 28. Kc3 Nc4 29. Nd2 Nxa3 30. Kb4 Nc4 31. Nxc4 Bxc4 32. Be7 Re8 33. Rf4 f5 34. g4 Kf7 35. Bxd6+ Ke6 36. Bc5 Bf6 37. gxf5+ gxf5 38. Rc6+ Kf7 39. Rxf5 Re6 40. d5 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.10"]
[Round "1.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Iturrizaga Bonelli, Eduardo"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2607"]
[PlyCount "119"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 c6 6. Be2 h5 7. Nf3 Qb6 ({RR} 7... Bg4 8. Ne5 Bxe2 9. Qxe2 Nbd7 10. O-O-O Rc8 11. f3 b5 12. Kb1 Nb6 13. Qd3 Nfd7 14. e4 b4 15. Ne2 dxe4 16. Qxe4 Nf6 17. Qd3 Qd5 18. c4 bxc3 19. Nxc3 Qe6 20. Rde1 Nfd5 21. Bd2 Nxc3+ 22. Bxc3 {Nabaty,T (2692)-Rodshtein,M (2674) Czech Republic 2019 0-1 (60)}) ({RR} 7... Bg4 8. Ne5 Bxe2 9. Qxe2 Nfd7 10. g4 Nxe5 11. dxe5 e6 12. gxh5 Rxh5 13. Bg5 Qxg5 14. hxg5 Rxh1+ 15. Kd2 Rxa1 16. Qf3 Nd7 17. Qh3 Nxe5 18. b3 Rd8 19. f4 Nd7 20. a4 Nc5 21. Qh7 Kf8 22. Qh2 {Marino Bravo,M (2134)-Krzywda,A (2175) chess.com INT 2025 0-1}) 8. Na4 Qa5+ 9. c3 Bg4 $146 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b4 Qd8 11. Ne5 Nxe5 12. Bxe5 O-O 13. f3 Nd7 14. Bxg7 Kxg7 15. g4 hxg4 16. fxg4 Rh8 17. h5 e5 18. dxe5 Qg5 19. Qd4 Qxe5 20. O-O-O Qxd4 21. exd4 Nf6 22. h6+ Kg8 23. Rdg1 b6 24. Bf3 {Fang,Y (2499)-Dai,C (2430) Tianjin 2018 1-0 (54)}) 10. b4 Qd8 11. Nc5 Qc8 12. a4 Nbd7 13. O-O O-O 14. a5 a6 15. c4 e6 16. Rc1 Re8 17. Qb3 Ne4 18. Rfd1 Ndf6 19. Qa2 Re7 20. Ne5 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 Qd8 22. Na4 Nd6 23. Nb6 Rb8 24. Nd3 Nfe8 25. c5 Nf5 26. Bxb8 Qxb8 27. g3 Nc7 28. Qf3 Nb5 29. Qf4 Qe8 30. Re1 f6 31. Qf3 Bh6 32. Rcd1 Nc3 33. Rc1 Ne4 34. Nf4 Qf7 35. Rcd1 Nc3 36. Rd3 Ne4 37. Kg2 Ng7 38. Nc8 Rd7 39. Nd6 Nxd6 40. cxd6 e5 41. dxe5 fxe5 42. Nxd5 Qxf3+ 43. Kxf3 cxd5 44. Rxd5 Nf5 45. Rc1 Bf8 46. Rc7 Rxd6 47. Rxd6 Nxd6 48. Rd7 Kh8 49. g4 Kg8 50. g5 Kh8 51. Ke2 Kg8 52. Kd3 Kh8 53. f3 Kg8 54. f4 exf4 55. exf4 Kh8 56. Kd4 Nf5+ 57. Kc4 Nd6+ 58. Kd5 Nb5 59. Rxb7 Bxb4 60. Rxb5 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "2.2"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D11"]
[WhiteElo "2772"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "54"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. e3 Bg4 5. h3 Bxf3 6. Qxf3 e6 7. Nc3 Nbd7 8. a3 g6 9. Bd2 Bg7 10. cxd5 exd5 11. Bd3 O-O 12. O-O a6 $146 ({RR} 12... Re8 13. Rfc1 Nf8 14. b4 Ne6 15. Ra2 a6 16. Qd1 Bf8 17. Na4 Bd6 18. Nc5 Qe7 19. a4 Ng5 20. Be1 Bb8 21. Bf1 Qc7 22. g3 h5 23. h4 Nge4 24. Rb2 Qe7 25. Nxe4 Nxe4 26. b5 axb5 27. axb5 {So,W (2794)-Rodshtein,M (2687) Douglas 2016 ½-½ (42)}) 13. Rfc1 Re8 14. b4 b5 15. Ne2 Rc8 16. a4 Nb6 17. axb5 axb5 18. Ra6 Nc4 19. Be1 Ne4 20. Nc3 Ned6 21. Rca1 Bh6 22. Ra7 Rc7 23. g3 Rxa7 24. Rxa7 Qb6 25. Ra2 Nxe3 26. Re2 Qxd4 27. Bb1 Nec4 0-1

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 d5 3. e3 Bg4 4. f3 Bd7 5. g4 c5 ({RR} 5... e6 6. c3 c5 7. Nd2 Bc6 8. Bd3 Qb6 9. Qb3 Nbd7 10. Qxb6 axb6 11. a3 b5 12. Rc1 Nb6 13. Ne2 Nc4 14. Rb1 Nd7 15. e4 Be7 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Nxc4 bxc4 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. fxe4 Nf6 20. Ng3 {Manafov,V (2419)-Ibrahimli,M (2438) Baku AZE 2025 0-1 (62)}) 6. c3 Nc6 ({RR} 6... e6 7. Nd2 Qb6 8. Qb3 Bc6 9. Ne2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 Qa5 11. Qd1 Ba4 12. Qb1 Rc8 13. Bd3 Bb5 14. h4 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 b5 16. a3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nb6 18. Ke2 Be7 19. g5 Nfd7 20. h5 Nc4 21. b3 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Aronian,L (2782) chess24.com INT 2021 ½-½ (66)}) 7. Nd2 $146 ({RR} 7. h4 Qb6 8. Qb3 Qxb3 9. axb3 a6 10. Nh3 Bc8 11. Na3 Ra7 12. Nc2 e6 13. Be2 Be7 14. Bg3 b6 15. Kf2 O-O 16. Nf4 Nd7 17. Rhd1 b5 18. g5 Rd8 19. Kg2 Bb7 20. Kf2 Raa8 21. Nd3 b4 {Kamsky,G (2670)-Inarkiev,E (2686) Sochi 2016 ½-½ (48)}) 7... Qb6 8. Qb3 Na5 9. Qxb6 axb6 10. Bd3 e6 11. Ne2 Ba4 12. b3 Bc6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. a4 f6 15. Rhb1 e5 16. Bg3 Nxb3 17. Rxb3 c4 18. Nxc4 dxc4 19. Bxc4 Rxa4 20. Rxa4 Bxa4 21. Rb1 Bd6 22. Bd5 Bc6 23. c4 Bxd5 24. cxd5 Ke7 25. dxe5 Bxe5 26. Bxe5 fxe5 27. Nc3 Rc8 28. Ne4 Rc2+ 29. Kg3 Re2 30. Rb3 Re1 31. h4 g6 32. g5 Rg1+ 33. Kf2 Rh1 34. Nf6 Nxf6 35. gxf6+ Kxf6 36. Rxb6+ Ke7 37. Rxb7+ Kd6 38. e4 Rxh4 39. Rb6+ Kd7 40. Kg3 Rh5 41. Kg4 Ke7 42. f4 exf4 43. Kxf4 Rh1 44. Ke5 Rh5+ 45. Kd4 Rh4 46. Ra6 g5 47. Ke5 g4 48. d6+ Kd7 49. Ra7+ Kd8 50. Rg7 Rh5+ 51. Ke6 Rh6+ 52. Kd5 Rg6 53. Rxg6 hxg6 54. Kd4 Kd7 55. e5 Ke6 56. Ke3 g5 57. Kf2 1-0

[Event "San Fermin Masters Final"]
[Site "chess24.com INT"]
[Date "2021.07.11"]
[Round "3.7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Aronian, Levon"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[PlyCount "132"]
[EventDate "2021.07.10"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "3"]
[EventCountry "ESP"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.09.30"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 d5 3. e3 Bg4 4. f3 Bd7 5. g4 c5 6. c3 e6 7. Nd2 Qb6 ({RR} 7... Bc6 8. Bd3 Qb6 9. Qb3 Nbd7 10. Qxb6 axb6 11. a3 b5 12. Rc1 Nb6 13. Ne2 Nc4 14. Rb1 Nd7 15. e4 Be7 16. exd5 Bxd5 17. Nxc4 bxc4 18. Be4 Bxe4 19. fxe4 Nf6 20. Ng3 Nxg4 21. h3 Nf6 22. Ke2 {Manafov,V (2419)-Ibrahimli,M (2438) Baku AZE 2025 0-1 (62)}) 8. Qb3 Bc6 $146 ({RR} 8... c4 9. Qc2 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. e4 Qc7 12. e5 Ng8 13. Ne2 Nc6 14. f4 h5 15. gxh5 Rxh5 16. Rg1 Kf8 17. Nf3 Nge7 18. Ng3 Rh6 19. Qd2 b5 20. a3 a5 21. h4 f5 22. Be2 Nd8 23. Kf2 {Carlsen,M (2847)-Aronian,L (2781) chess24.com INT 2021 1-0 (66)}) 9. Ne2 Nbd7 10. Ng3 Qa5 11. Qd1 Ba4 12. Qb1 Rc8 13. Bd3 Bb5 14. h4 Bxd3 15. Qxd3 b5 16. a3 cxd4 17. cxd4 Nb6 18. Ke2 Be7 19. g5 Nfd7 20. h5 Nc4 21. b3 Nxd2 22. Qxd2 Qxd2+ 23. Kxd2 b4 24. Rhc1 O-O 25. a4 f6 26. gxf6 gxf6 27. e4 dxe4 28. fxe4 Kf7 29. Be3 a5 30. Ne2 e5 31. Rxc8 Rxc8 32. Rc1 Rxc1 33. Kxc1 exd4 34. Nxd4 Bc5 35. Kd2 Ne5 36. Nf5 Bxe3+ 37. Kxe3 Ke6 38. Kd4 Nf3+ 39. Ke3 Ne5 40. Nd4+ Kd6 41. Kf4 Kc5 42. Ne6+ Kd6 43. Kf5 Nd7 44. h6 Ke7 45. Nd4 Kd6 46. Nc2 Nc5 47. Nd4 Nd7 48. Nf3 Nc5 49. Nd2 Ke7 50. e5 fxe5 51. Kxe5 Kd7 52. Kd5 Nd3 53. Nc4 Nf4+ 54. Ke5 Nd3+ 55. Kf6 Nc5 56. Nxa5 Ke8 57. Kg7 Ke7 58. Kxh7 Kf7 59. Nc6 Nxb3 60. Nxb4 Nc5 61. a5 Ne6 62. Nc6 Nf8+ 63. Kh8 Ng6+ 64. Kh7 Nf8+ 65. Kh8 Ng6+ 66. Kh7 Nf8+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.15"]
[Round "2.1"]
[White "Martinovic, Sasa"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2548"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. Bd2 c5 6. Rc1 Nc6 7. dxc5 Bg7 8. e4 Ndb4 9. Nf3 O-O 10. a3 Nd3+ 11. Bxd3 Qxd3 12. Qe2 $146 ({RR} 12. Be3 Qa6 13. Qe2 Qxe2+ 14. Kxe2 Be6 15. Nd5 Bxb2 16. Rb1 Bxa3 17. Rxb7 Rfb8 18. Rhb1 Rxb7 19. Rxb7 Kf8 20. Ng5 Bc8 21. Rb3 Bb4 22. Nxb4 Rb8 23. Nxc6 Rxb3 24. Nxa7 Ba6+ 25. Kd2 Ke8 26. c6 Ra3 {Antova,G (2313)-Antipov,M (2607) Lichess.org INT 2021 1-0 (43)}) 12... Qxe2+ 13. Kxe2 Be6 14. Nd5 Bxb2 15. Rc2 Bxa3 16. Ra1 f5 17. Rxa3 fxe4 18. Nxe7+ Nxe7 19. Nd4 Bd7 20. Rb2 Nc6 21. Be3 Nxd4+ 22. Bxd4 Bc6 23. Rba2 a6 24. Ke3 Rad8 25. Rd2 Rd5 26. Ke2 Rfd8 27. Be3 Rd3 28. Ra1 Kf7 29. g3 Rxd2+ 30. Bxd2 Bb5+ 31. Ke1 Rd3 32. Rb1 Ke6 33. Rb4 Bc6 34. Rb2 Kd5 0-1

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.22"]
[Round "4.1"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2691"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O a5 7. Qc2 c6 8. Nbd2 b6 9. e4 Bb7 10. Rd1 Na6 ({RR} 10... Ra7 11. e5 Nfd7 12. cxd5 cxd5 13. Nf1 Nc6 14. Bf4 Nb4 15. Qd2 a4 16. h4 a3 17. b3 Ba6 18. Bg5 Bxg5 19. hxg5 Qe7 20. Rdc1 Rc8 21. Rxc8+ Bxc8 22. Rc1 Ba6 23. Ne3 Nf8 24. Ng4 Ra8 25. Bf1) 11. e5 Nd7 12. cxd5 ({RR} 12. a3 c5 13. cxd5 Bxd5 14. Ne4 h6 15. Qe2 cxd4 16. Nxd4 Nxe5 17. Nc3 Bxg2 18. Qxe5 Bf6 19. Qe3 Bd5 20. Nxd5 Qxd5 21. Qf3 Rfd8 22. Be3 Qxf3 23. Nxf3 Bxb2 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Rb1 Bxa3 26. Rxb6 Nb4 {Federer,C (2300)-Brkic,A (2578) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (54)}) ({RR} 12. h4 c5 13. dxc5 Naxc5 14. b3 Rc8 15. Bb2 Qc7 16. Rac1 Rfd8 17. Nf1 dxc4 18. bxc4 Bxf3 19. Bxf3 Nxe5 20. Bxe5 Qxe5 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Rd1 Rxd1 23. Qxd1 Qc7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Qa4 Bc5 26. Nf1 Kf8) 12... Nb4 $146 ({RR} 12... cxd5 13. a3 b5 14. Nf1 Qb6 15. Qe2 Rfc8 16. h4 b4 17. Ne3 bxa3 18. bxa3 Rc3 19. Ng4 Rac8 20. Ne3 a4 21. Qa2 f6 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Bb2 Rb3 24. Rab1 Qd6 25. Nd2 Rb6 26. Ba1 Nab8 27. Nc2 {Sioutis,A (1816)-Antonioudakis,G (1990) Trikala GRE 2024 ½-½ (102)}) ({RR} 12... cxd5 13. a3 b5 14. Nf1 Qb6 15. Qe2 Rfc8 16. h4 b4 17. Ne3 bxa3 18. bxa3 Rc3 19. Ng4 Rac8 20. Ne3 a4 21. Qa2 f6 22. exf6 Bxf6 23. Bb2 Rb3 24. Rab1 Qd6 25. Nd2 Rb6 26. Ba1 Nab8) 13. Qb1 cxd5 14. Nf1 Ba6 15. Ne3 Rc8 16. a3 Nc6 17. b3 b5 18. h4 b4 19. a4 Be2 20. Rd2 Bxf3 21. Bxf3 f6 22. Bg4 f5 23. Nxf5 exf5 24. Bxf5 Bxh4 25. gxh4 Qxh4 26. Be6+ Kh8 27. Qd3 Ndxe5 28. dxe5 Nxe5 29. Qxd5 Nf3+ 30. Qxf3 Rxf3 31. Bxc8 Rf8 32. Bb7 Qf6 33. Rda2 Qf7 34. Bg2 Qxb3 35. Be3 Rd8 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.24"]
[Round "4.3"]
[White "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2691"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. g3 d5 4. Bg2 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 a5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Qc2 c5 8. cxd5 cxd4 9. Nxd4 Qb6 10. e3 exd5 11. O-O Nc6 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Rc1 Qb8 14. Bxb4 axb4 15. Nd2 Bd7 16. Nb3 h5 17. Nc5 Bc8 18. h4 $146 ({RR} 18. a4 bxa3 19. bxa3 h4 20. Qc3 hxg3 21. hxg3 Qd6 22. a4 Ng4 23. a5 Qh6 24. Ra4 Re8 25. a6 g5 26. e4 dxe4 27. Nxe4 Rxe4 28. Rxe4 Qh2+ 29. Kf1 Bxa6+ 30. Rc4 Re8 31. Qd2 Ne5 32. Qxg5+ Kf8 {Besou,H (2332)-Droin,A (2436) Mali Losinj CRO 2023 0-1 (40)}) 18... Re8 19. a4 bxa3 20. bxa3 Re7 21. a4 Rea7 22. Qc3 Ra5 23. Nd3 Rxa4 24. Rxa4 Rxa4 25. Qxc6 Bd7 26. Qc5 Qb5 27. Qxb5 Bxb5 28. Nf4 Bc4 29. Rd1 Ra5 30. Bf3 g6 31. Kg2 Kg7 32. Rd4 Rb5 33. Rd1 Rb2 34. Rd4 Rb5 35. Rd1 Rb2 36. Rd4 Rb5 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.24"]
[Round "4.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wojtaszek, Radoslaw"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E48"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2691"]
[PlyCount "95"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e3 O-O 5. Bd3 c5 6. Nge2 d5 7. cxd5 cxd4 8. exd4 Nxd5 9. O-O Nc6 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Nf4 Bd6 12. Be3 Bxf4 13. Bxf4 Qf6 14. Be3 Nb4 $146 ({RR} 14... Bf5 15. Be2 Rfe8 16. Rc1 Qg6 17. Bh5 Qd6 18. Qd2 Rac8 19. Be2 h6 20. Rc3 Ne7 21. Rfc1 Rxc3 22. Rxc3 Rc8 23. Rc5 Qe6 24. h3 Rxc5 25. dxc5 Nc6 26. Bb5 a6 {½-½ (26) Hoffmann,M (2517)-Meier,G (2648) Belgium 2011}) ({RR} 14... Bf5 15. Rc1 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Rfe8 17. Rfd1 Re7 18. a3 Rae8 19. h3 h6 20. Rc5 Rd7 21. b4 b6 22. Rc2 Ne7 23. Bc1 Nf5 24. Qf3 Re4 25. Bb2 Qe6 26. b5 Re7 27. a4 Nh4 28. Qg3 Ng6 29. Bc1 {Milov,V (2652)-Anand,V (2788) Bastia 2005 1-0 (46)}) 15. Bb1 Bf5 16. Qb3 Bxb1 17. Raxb1 Qd6 18. a3 Na6 19. Rbc1 Qd7 20. Bf4 Rac8 21. Qg3 f6 22. h4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Qxc8 25. b4 b5 26. h5 Qd7 27. Qf3 h6 28. Qc3 Qf5 29. g3 Qd7 30. Qc2 Kf8 31. Qh7 Nc7 32. Bxh6 Qg4 33. Be3 Ne6 34. Qh8+ Kf7 35. Qc8 Qe4 36. Qd7+ Kg8 37. Qxa7 Ng5 38. Bxg5 Qe1+ 39. Kg2 Qe4+ 40. Kh2 fxg5 41. Qb8+ Kf7 42. Qc7+ Kf6 43. Qd6+ Kf7 44. Qg6+ Qxg6 45. hxg6+ Kxg6 46. g4 Kf6 47. Kg3 Ke6 48. Kf3 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.25"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "48"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Bc3 c5 ({RR} 8... b6 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. e4 Nxc3 11. Nxc3 Bb7 12. Re1 Re8 13. Qc2 c6 14. Rad1 Qc7 15. e5 Rad8 16. h4 h6 17. Qe4 Qb8 18. Qg4 Bb4 19. Nd2 c5 20. Bxb7 Qxb7 21. Nde4 cxd4 22. Rxd4 Be7 23. Nd6 {Ding,L (2774)-Carlsen,M (2837) Saint Louis 2017 0-1 (72)}) ({RR} 8... Ne4 9. Nfd2 Nxc3 10. Nxc3 c6 11. e4 e5 12. exd5 exd4 13. Ne2 c5 14. Nc1 Ne5 15. Re1 Bd6 16. Ne4 Nxc4 17. Nd3 b6 18. b3 Na3 19. Qh5 h6 20. Rac1 Nb5 21. f4 Nc3 22. Ne5 Nxe4 23. Bxe4 {Koelle,T (2275)-Esipenko,A (2682) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (47)}) 9. Nbd2 ({RR} 9. dxc5 Nxc5 10. Nbd2 Nfe4 11. Nxe4 Nxe4 12. Bd4 Bf6 13. cxd5 exd5 14. Bxf6 Nxf6 15. Rc1 Be6 16. Qd4 Qa5 17. a3 Rac8 18. Ne5 h6 19. Nd3 b6 20. Nb4 Qa4 21. e3 Qd7 22. Rcd1 Rfd8 23. Rd2 a5 {Kim,N (2080)-Moses,N (2135) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (91)}) 9... b6 10. Ne5 Bb7 11. Nxd7 $146 ({RR} 11. dxc5 bxc5 12. e3 Qb6 13. Nxd7 Nxd7 14. cxd5 exd5 15. Nc4 dxc4 16. Qxd7 Bxg2 17. Kxg2 Bf6 18. Bxf6 Qxf6 19. Qd5 Qxb2 20. Qxc4 Rac8 21. Rab1 Qe5 22. Rb7 Rc7 23. Rfb1 h6 24. Rxc7 Qxc7 25. Rb5 Rc8 {Orian,N (1999)-Anustoop,B (2256) Monsaraz POR 2023 0-1 (55)}) 11... Qxd7 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. cxd5 exd5 14. e3 Rfd8 15. Re1 a5 16. Bxf6 Bxf6 17. Rc1 Qb5 18. Qb3 Qb4 19. Qxb4 axb4 20. Rxc5 Bxb2 21. Rb5 Bc6 22. Rc5 Bb7 23. Rb5 Bc6 24. Rc5 Bb7 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.27"]
[Round "5.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "96"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. b4 dxc4 ({RR} 8... c6 9. a4 Bd6 10. Qc2 e5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Bc3 Re8 14. Nbd2 Nxf3+ 15. Bxf3 Bh3 16. Rfc1 Qe7 17. Qb2 Rad8 18. b5 Ne4 19. Nxe4 dxe4 20. Bg2 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 f6 22. Bd4 Qe6 23. Qa2 {So,W (2778)-Karjakin,S (2782) Stavanger 2018 ½-½ (58)}) 9. Qc1 Nb6 10. a4 Bd7 $146 ({RR} 10... Ne4 11. Be1 Nd6 12. a5 Nd5 13. Ne5 Bf6 14. Na3 c3 15. Rb1 c6 16. e4 Nc7 17. Bxc3 Ndb5 18. Rd1 Nxa3 19. Qxa3 Nb5 20. Qc1 Nxc3 21. Qxc3 Qc7 22. Nc4 Rd8 23. e5 Be7 24. b5 cxb5 25. Rxb5 {Tikhonov,V (2201)-Sarana,A (2685) chess.com INT 2023 ½-½ (70)}) ({RR} 10... c6 11. a5 Nbd5 12. Qxc4 a6 13. Rd1 Qd6 14. Ne5 Nxb4 15. e4 Rd8 16. Bf4 Rf8 17. Nd3 {1-0 (17) Tikhonov,V (2183)-Sakhayi,M (2166) chess.com INT 2025}) 11. a5 Nbd5 12. Qxc4 Ne4 13. Ne5 Nxd2 14. Nxd2 Be8 15. b5 c6 16. bxc6 Rc8 17. Qb3 bxc6 18. Nd3 c5 19. dxc5 Bxc5 20. Bxd5 exd5 21. Rfc1 Rb8 22. Qc3 Be7 23. Qc7 a6 24. Qxd8 Bxd8 25. Rc5 Bb5 26. Rxd5 Bf6 27. Rc1 Rfd8 28. Rdc5 h6 29. Ne4 Bd4 30. R5c2 Bxd3 31. exd3 Rb5 32. Ra2 Rdd5 33. Rc6 Rxa5 34. Rxa6 Rxa2 35. Rxa2 f5 36. Nd2 Bc3 37. Nf1 Rxd3 38. Ra3 g5 39. Kg2 f4 40. gxf4 gxf4 41. h4 Kf7 42. Nh2 Kg6 43. Nf3 Kf5 44. Ra6 Bf6 45. h5 Rd5 46. Kh3 Rd3 47. Kg2 Rd5 48. Kh3 Rd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.07.27"]
[Round "5.5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2716"]
[PlyCount "61"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 8. Qb3 Nb6 ({RR} 8... a5 9. Bf4 c6 10. Rd1 a4 11. Qc2 h6 12. h4 Qa5 13. Nc3 dxc4 14. a3 b5 15. e4 Bb7 16. Bh3 Rfe8 17. Bd2 Qa6 18. g4 Nh7 19. g5 hxg5 20. hxg5 Nhf8 21. Be3 Rad8 22. Bf4 Ng6 23. Bc7 {Berczes,D (2408)-Ostrovskiy,A (2394) Budapest HUN 2025 ½-½}) 9. c5 ({RR} 9. cxd5 exd5 10. Bb4 Bxb4 11. Qxb4 a5 12. Qc3 c6 13. Ne5 Re8 14. Nd2 Ng4 15. Nxg4 Bxg4 16. e3 Qd6 17. Rfe1 Be6 18. Nb3 Qc7 19. Nc5 Nd7 20. Nxe6 fxe6 21. e4 Qd6 22. Re2 dxe4 23. Bxe4 Nf6 {Aronian,L (2780)-Caruana,F (2805) Stavanger 2015 1-0 (87)}) 9... Nc4 10. Bc3 $146 ({RR} 10. Qc2 b6 11. Bf4 bxc5 12. b3 Na5 13. b4 Nc4 14. bxc5 Bd7 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 Ne4 17. c6 Be8 18. Bxe4 dxe4 19. Qxe4 Rb8 20. Nd2 Rb4 21. Qd3 Qxd3 22. exd3 Bxc6 23. Rfc1 Rb6 24. Be3 Ra6 {Gleizerov,E (2567)-Naroditsky,D (2503) Riga 2013 ½-½ (34)}) 10... b6 11. c6 a5 12. Nbd2 Ba6 13. Nxc4 Bxc4 14. Qc2 a4 15. Ne5 Bb5 16. Rfe1 Bd6 17. Bd2 a3 18. b3 Ne4 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Nd7 f5 21. Nxf8 Qxf8 22. Bf4 Rd8 23. Be5 Bxe5 24. dxe5 h6 25. Rad1 Rxd1 26. Rxd1 Qb4 27. Kf1 e3 28. f3 h5 29. Rd7 h4 30. Rxc7 h3 31. Rd7 1-0

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.08.01"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Duda, Jan Krzysztof"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D24"]
[WhiteElo "2847"]
[BlackElo "2738"]
[PlyCount "63"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 203"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. e4 Bb4 6. Bxc4 Nxe4 7. O-O Nf6 8. Qe2 O-O 9. Bg5 h6 10. Bh4 Be7 11. Rad1 Nc6 12. Rfe1 $146 ({RR} 12. d5 exd5 13. Nxd5 Nxd5 14. Rxd5 Qe8 15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. Ne5 Re8 17. Nxc6 Qxe2 18. Bxe2 bxc6 19. Rd2 Rxe2 20. Rxe2 Ba6 21. Rc2 Bxf1 22. Kxf1 Rb8 23. b3 Rb6 24. g4 Kf8 25. Re2 Rb4 26. h3 c5 {Hollan,M (2346)-Pniaczek,M (2211) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (57)}) 12... Nd5 13. Bxd5 Bxh4 14. Bxc6 bxc6 15. Qc4 Rb8 16. Nxh4 Qxh4 17. b3 Rd8 18. Qxc6 Bb7 19. Qc5 Qg5 20. Qxg5 hxg5 21. h3 Bd5 22. Re5 f6 23. Nxd5 fxe5 24. Ne7+ Kf8 25. Nc6 Ra8 26. Nxd8 Rxd8 27. Rc1 exd4 28. Rxc7 d3 29. Rc1 Ke7 30. f3 Rc8 31. Rd1 Rc2 32. Rxd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "FIDE World Cup"]
[Site "Krasnaya Polyana"]
[Date "2021.08.04"]
[Round "8.1"]
[White "Fedoseev, Vladimir1"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E60"]
[WhiteElo "2696"]
[BlackElo "2847"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "82"]
[EventDate "2021.07.12"]
[EventType "k.o."]
[EventRounds "8"]
[EventCountry "RUS"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 204"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2021.10.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2021.10.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,82,58,42,26,-29,44,-40,13,4,14,19,6,15,15,-28,13,20,4,5,16,7,27,15,15,13,32,27,38,10,55,-11,21,-34,67,67,57,17,139,135,183,154,154,167,164,164,164,98,98,97,97,54,130,125,112,44,109,28,44,44,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,81,0,81,0,15,-113,-38,-129,-91,-111,-120,-145,-145,-178,-239]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. h4 $5 {Magnus has chosen the Grunfeld (or, less likely, a King's Indian) and Vladimir in his turn also shows readiness for a full fledged fight. White has a ton of safer options, but no guts no glory and so 3.h4!? was essayed. The system has been somewhat of a joke for a while, continued to be so after Topalov did it against me in what has been a terrible Candidates tournament for him in 2016, but it was only after Grischuk has reintroduced it in the Grand Prix 2019, when people have realized that it is there to stay. The computers are surprisingly optimistic for White in the ensueing lines, but at the same time, Black does have a choice between a good King's Indian, a good Volga and a good Benoni.} Bg7 4. Nc3 d6 5. e4 Nc6 $5 {A cunning move order by Magnus, played after some thought. It is likely he was choosing from the plenty of options Black has at his disposal. The idea of Nc6 this early is that Black is ready to strike with e5, while the usual d4-d5 push is slightly less of an issue, as we will later see.} 6. d5 {Principled, but developing the g1 knight first is also sensible. 6.Nge2 happened in Shankland-Svidler, which ended Peter's tournament after he lost a complex game, but Vladimir has chosen another path, which seems critical as well.} Ne5 $1 {The point. The knight sits extremely well on this square, thanks to the far advanced h-pawn. Now f4 will always be met with Neg4. Note that this wouldn't be the case if white had the h2-h3! push, or if you could move pawns backwards in chess.} 7. Be2 h5 8. Bf4 $146 {In a position as complex as this one, every move is very critical and the smallest nuances can have serious impact. This feels very normal, but since White has no better next move than Nf3 anyway, he should have started with that instead and chosen a better destiny for the bishop later.} (8. Nf3 {is just a smarter move order in any case.} Nxf3+ 9. gxf3 O-O {and now that the pawn structure has clarified, it is easier to pick a good square for the c1 bishop. Placing it in front of the mobile f3 pawn looks unharmonious and instead Bg5 or Be3 is clearly to be preferred. As I understand such pawn structures, the position revolves around the f4-f5 push which White wants to time well. It isn't going to be easy, with Black having c6 break, followed by another break eventually, be it e6 or f5, or perhaps a queenside expansion with b5. White has a strong pawn center, but no clear shelter for his king, even in the long term.}) ({RR} 8. Nh3 O-O 9. Ng5 c6 10. O-O cxd5 11. cxd5 Bd7 12. Be3 a6 13. Rc1 b5 14. f3 Rc8 15. Qd2 b4 16. Nb1 a5 17. Rxc8 Qxc8 18. Rc1 Qb7 19. a3 Bb5 20. axb4 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 axb4 22. Nd2 Rc8 {Zemlyanskii,I (2541)-Dau Khuong Duy (2373) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (59)}) ({RR} 8. Nh3 c6 9. Ng5 Bd7 10. O-O O-O 11. Bf4 Rc8 12. b3 cxd5 13. exd5 Qa5 14. Bd2 Neg4 15. Nce4 Qd8 16. Nxf6+ exf6 17. Nf3 Re8 18. Rc1 Qb6 19. Bc3 Bh6 20. Rc2 Bf5 21. Rb2 Ne3 22. Qd4 Qxd4 {Maghsoodloo,P (2716)-Ragger,M (2631) Chartres FRA 2023 ½-½ (57)}) ({RR} 8. Nf3 Neg4 9. Ng5 c6 10. f3 Ne5 11. Be3 O-O 12. O-O Bd7 13. Rc1 c5 14. g3 a6 15. a4 Qc8 16. Qc2 e6 17. b3 exd5 18. cxd5 Rb8 19. Ra1 Re8 20. Bc1 b5 21. axb5 axb5 22. Bb2 Qc7 {Ratkovic,M (2471)-Omorjan,D (2343) Bajina Basta SRB 2025 ½-½ (81)}) 8... O-O 9. Nf3 {What else, but now the placement of the dark squared bishop is very questionable.} Nxf3+ 10. gxf3 c6 {it is good to get c6 and cxd5 trade in, to have the c-file open, better control over the b5 square and some room for the d8 queen to play with.} 11. Qd2 cxd5 12. cxd5 Kh7 {Classy. The kingside is now just a little bit more tight, the h6 square guarded and if Black pushes f5 the soft g6 pawn is guarded, which can gain Black time.} 13. a4 $6 {Often when you try preventing counterplay on the side where you are weaker, you only delay the inevitable and weaken urself further. Black was eventually going to push b5, likely, but the cure is worse than the disease, and now the b3 square is weakened and when b5 will eventually happen, Black will have more files and diagonals open for his queenside play.} Nd7 14. a5 {White gains some space, but it is not very useful and Black can already start considering b5 push, with or even without the preparatory a7-a6.} f5 $1 {Magnus hits on the kingside first. The weakened g6 pawn is out of reach, while Black's pressure along the f-file is the primary factor here.} 15. Ra3 Ne5 (15... b5 $5 {was very timed here, as well and after the game, Magnus has mentioned this motif as well.}) 16. Be3 $6 {The bishop moves to a more harmonious square, not in the way of the f3 pawn, but this allows a strong positional pawn sacrifice.} f4 $1 {Black gives up the f-pawn, but gains ultimate control over the f4 square, which is crucial, as that will guarantee the eternal outpost for the monster knight on e5.} 17. Bxf4 Bd7 {Setting up a beautiful positional exchange sacrifice. Instead, there was a more laconic solution to the problem of the f4 square.} (17... Rf7 $5 {is less spectacular than what Magnus has done in the game, but at the very least just as effective. Qf8 is a huge threat, and White has no better option than to give up the f4 bishop for the knight, giving Black the ultimate dark square control at the cost of just one pawn.}) 18. Nd1 {White guards f3 and is ready to move the f4 bishop. Obviously Magnus has anticipated exactly this.} Rxf4 $1 {Beautiful and even though objectively the computers say the position is around equal, it was very clear to me, that Black will be having all the fun from now on. The evaluation of the computer is meant to estimate the computer's own chances in a game against itself, which doesn't always correspond to how the chances between the two human players are actually split.} 19. Qxf4 Bh6 20. Qg3 Qf8 $1 {Gaining control over the f4 square- the whole point of the sacrifice.} 21. Ne3 Bf4 22. Qg2 Rc8 {Rooks are meant for open files.} 23. Rc3 {Trading the potentially active c8 rook is very sensible. The engine offers the bold Rb3!? as an alternative, estimating the position as around level, but it is pretty scary to just ignore Rc1+.} Rxc3 24. bxc3 Qc8 {Now the queen switches to the queenside. White's pieces are in disharmony, though from a point of view of defense, he does still have a very solid, although depressing, setup.} 25. c4 b5 $5 {Opening files and keeping the Bh3 idea, in case White castles short.} 26. axb6 {This is called en passant, noobs. :)} axb6 27. Qg1 $4 {White basically needs to get the king to the right, so the rook can go to the left. Here he is preparing Kf1-Kg2, but he is just not in time.} (27. Kf1 $1 {first would achieve the goal of regrouping the pieces the right way. White can follow it up with Kg1 Qf1 if needed, or Qg1 Kg2, depending on the situation.} b5 {This wins Black an important pawn, but White can defend if he continues with the right plan.} 28. Qg1 $1 bxc4 29. Kg2 $1 Qc5 30. Qa1 {White just has to make sure the h1 rook gets to participate.} Bxe3 31. fxe3 Qxe3 32. Re1 {and surprisingly White is actually alive. He has given up a bunch of pawns, but got some coordination and with Qc1 incoming Black's active queen will have to give up some ground.}) (27. O-O $5 {would in my opinion be a very practical way to try and setup a defense. The rook is now directly ready to get into the game and if Black chooses to take it, which he should, then the position simplifies a lot and the drawing tendencies rise.} Bh3 28. Qh1 Bxf1 29. Kxf1 {Black can just take on e3 and regain the c4 pawn as well, but that will mean that the material balance is only restored and if Black cashes out all of his positional compensation back into material, we are likely see the game end peacefully.}) 27... Qa8 $1 28. Kf1 Qa2 $1 {The key. Stopping the much needed Kg2 move, which would release White's heavy pieces that are stuck in the cage. Now all of a sudden white is totally paralyzed.} 29. Ng2 Qa1+ {this works out more than perfectly, but objectively the clean win was starting with 29...Qb1!+} (29... Qb1+ $1 30. Ne1 b5 $1 {well timed shot. Computers always do that well.} 31. cxb5 Bxb5 {and Black keeps White stuck, as 32.Bxb5? loses to Nxf3+! intermezzo. White doesn't have a move here and is just lost.}) 30. Ne1 Qb2 {The queen is methodically coming closer. Fedoseev had his last chance here.} 31. Ng2 $2 {Playing along, but White can't afford that any longer.} (31. Nd3 $1 {barely looks more fun, trading the only piece that can actually attack something, ever, but at the same time, this would rid Black of some horsepower, pun intended.} Nxd3 32. Bxd3 Qc3 33. Be2 Qc2 {White is almost in zugzwang.} 34. Rh2 $1 {But almost. Without the knights, Black actually doesn't have a clear way to win, as White just stands, but at the same time, to say that White is fine here, would be a gross exaggeration.}) 31... Qc1+ 32. Ne1 Qd2 {now White is truly stuck, as 33.Ng2 is losing to Nd3!. White now has to shuffles his queen and rook, inside a cage, waiting for the finishing blow, that Black inevitably will come up with. e6 is a resource to soften up white's pawn formation in the center and in the long run, the e5 knight is also free to roam around.} 33. Qg2 Kg7 34. Rg1 Kf8 $5 {taking the time and moving away from any Nd3 Nxd3 Qxg6 tricks.} 35. Qh1 e6 $1 {Gains Black some extra squares.} 36. Rg3 exd5 37. exd5 Bf5 {The bishop is better placed here and the e5 knight is now free to embark on a finishing journey.} 38. Rg1 Kf7 39. Rg3 Nd7 40. Rg5 Bxg5 $1 {In a dominating position, it is very important, at some point to just start cashing it out. The rook can and should be picked up now.} 41. hxg5 Ne5 {the threat was stronger than the excecution and White is just dead lost here. White has to move his queen and then Qc1 will create a deadly threat of Nd3. White has resigned. His position is helpless and he has been demolished and demoralized, but as it is often the case in chess, it didn't have to happen (28.0-0!/28.Kf1!).  It did though.} 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 36th"]
[Site "Struga"]
[Date "2021.09.22"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E62"]
[WhiteElo "2762"]
[BlackElo "2855"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "2021.09.18"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "MKD"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 204 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.09.12"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.09.12"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Alkaloid"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill CC"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "MKD"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 g6 2. c4 Bg7 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 d6 5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 Nc6 7. O-O e5 8. h3 Re8 9. d5 Nb8 10. e4 a5 11. Be3 Na6 12. a3 Nc5 $146 ({RR} 12... Bd7 13. Nd2 Rf8 14. Rb1 Nc5 15. b4 axb4 16. axb4 Na4 17. Ne2 Nh5 18. c5 Bb5 19. Rb3 f5 20. exf5 gxf5 21. Re1 f4 22. gxf4 Nxf4 23. Bxf4 exf4 24. Nf3 Qf6 25. Ned4 Bc4 26. Re6 Bxb3 27. Qxb3 {Mamedyarov,S (2742)-Amin,B (2694) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (35)}) 13. Nd2 a4 14. Bxc5 dxc5 15. Nxa4 Qe7 16. b3 Bd7 17. Nb2 Ra6 18. Nd3 Rea8 19. Qc1 Ne8 20. Qb2 b6 21. b4 Nd6 22. bxc5 bxc5 23. Nxc5 Nxc4 24. Qb4 Nxd2 25. Nxa6 Qxb4 26. axb4 Nxf1 27. Bxf1 Bf8 28. Rc1 Bd6 29. b5 Ra7 30. h4 Kg7 31. Bd3 f5 32. f3 fxe4 33. fxe4 g5 34. hxg5 Kg6 35. Kf2 Kxg5 36. Be2 Be8 37. Ke3 Rb7 38. Nc5 Ra7 39. Na6 Rb7 40. Rc3 Ra7 41. Kf2 Rb7 42. Nc5 Ra7 43. Ne6+ Kf6 44. g4 Bg6 45. Rc6 Ke7 46. Ra6 Rb7 47. Ke3 Be8 48. Ra8 h6 49. Kf3 Bxb5 50. Bxb5 Rxb5 51. Rh8 Rb3+ 52. Kf2 Rb4 53. Rxh6 Rxe4 54. g5 Rg4 55. Kf3 Rg1 56. Rh7+ Ke8 57. Ke4 Re1+ 58. Kf5 Rf1+ 59. Kg6 e4 60. Nxc7+ Bxc7 61. Rxc7 e3 62. Rc4 Kd7 63. Re4 Re1 64. Re6 e2 65. Kg7 Rg1 66. Rxe2 Rxg5+ 67. Kf6 Rxd5 68. Re5 Rxe5 69. Kxe5 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2021.11.27"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2855"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[Annotator "McShane,Luke"]
[PlyCount "116"]
[EventDate "2021.11.26"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,116,28,35,27,-4,-4,-4,6,-23,-13,-2,14,-27,20,-4,42,3,-9,-19,27,-25,-25,-4,10,-69,-42,-54,-54,-60,-25,-25,-1,-1,-10,-41,-41,-21,-21,-106,-91,-91,-91,-93,-97,-97,-49,-105,-22,-78,-7,-161,-51,-51,-45,-11,-35,-41,-70,-32,-30,-44,-36,-47,-27,-39,-32,-27,-28,-27,-23,-1,0,0,6,0,55,55,55,61,111,113,113,110,130,96,123,109,129,116,120,123,120,111,120,126,121,119,112,110,114,114,114,60,78,73,60,85,85,85,85,85,85,85,83,83,83,52,83]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 {Nepomniachtchi is known to favour the Grünfeld defence (with 2...g6). But Carlsen would certainly be well prepared for that, so it is not a big surprise that we see a different second move. Carlsen now steers the game toward a Catalan, which Nepomniachtchi has already faced a few times in 2021. Nepomniachtchi ist dafür bekannt, dass er die Grünfeld-Verteidigung (mit 2...g6) bevorzugt. Aber Carlsen wäre sicherlich gut darauf vorbereitet, und so ist es keine große Überraschung, dass wir einen anderen zweiten Zug sehen. Carlsen steuert die Partie nun auf einen Katalanen zu, mit dem Nepomniachtchi im Jahr 2021 schon einige Male konfrontiert wurde.} 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 (7... a6 {is Black's most common move. ist der häufigste Zug von Schwarz.}) 8. Ne5 {A rare choice from Carlsen. Eine seltene Wahl von Carlsen.} (8. a4 {is the most common move ist der häufigste Zug.}) 8... c6 9. a4 {White can win back the pawn immediately, but after Weiß kann den Bauern sofort zurückgewinnen, aber nach} (9. Nxc6 Nxc6 10. Bxc6 Rb8 {Black is very comfortable. steht Schwarz sehr bequem.}) 9... Nd5 {Blocking the diagonal of the Catalan bishop is the only reasonable option. Die Diagonale des katalanischen Läufers zu blockieren ist die einzig sinnvolle Option.} (9... Qxd4 10. Nxc6 Nxc6 11. Bxc6 Rb8 12. axb5 {is very bad for Black. The queen will soon be chased away from d4. ist sehr schlecht für Schwarz. Die Dame wird bald von d4 weggejagt werden.}) 10. Nc3 f6 11. Nf3 {One might consider keeping the diagonal open for the g2-bishop. But in fact Man könnte erwägen, die Diagonale für den g2-Läufer offen zu halten. Aber in der Tat wäre} (11. Ng4 {would be a mistake, in view of ein Fehler in Anbetracht von} b4 {which forces White's knight back to a passive square, since was den weißen Springer zurück auf ein passives Feld zwingt, da} 12. Ne4 f5 {wins a piece eine Figur gewinnt.}) 11... Qd7 {A sensible move, supporting the pawn on b5 Ein vernünftiger Zug, der den Bauern auf b5 unterstützt} (11... b4 12. Ne4 {transposes into a wild game Gelfand - Shirov, from 1992. leitet über zu der wilden Partie Gelfand - Shirov aus dem Jahr 1992.} Ba6 13. Bh3 f5 14. Neg5 b3 15. Qd1 Rf6 16. e4 Nb4 17. exf5 exf5 18. Re1 Nc2 19. Nxh7 Kxh7 20. Ng5+ Kg6 21. Ne6 Qh8 22. Bxf5+ Kxf5 23. Qf3+ Kg6 24. Qe4+ Kf7 25. Ng5+ Kg8 26. Qxe7 Qh5 27. Ne6 Rxe6 28. Rxe6 Nxa1 29. Bh6 Qf7 30. Qg5 Kh7 31. Bxg7 Qxe6 32. Be5 Qg6 33. Qd8 Nd7 34. Qxd7+ Kg8 35. f4 c3 36. f5 cxb2 {Gelfand, Boris - Shirov, Alexei, 0-1, Paris Immopar rapid, 1992, https://lichess.org/STJ34wVf Gelfand, Boris - Shirov, Alexei, 0-1, Paris Immopar rapid, 1992, https://lichess.org/STJ34wVf}) ({RR} 11... b4 12. Ne4 Ba6 13. Nc5 Bxc5 14. dxc5 Nd7 15. e4 b3 16. Qd2 c3 17. bxc3 Bxf1 18. Bxf1 Nc7 19. Qd6 Qc8 20. Nd4 Ne5 21. Nxc6 Nxc6 22. Qxc6 e5 23. Bc4+ Kh8 24. Rb1 Rb8 25. Ba3 f5 26. Qd6 {Fedoseev,V (2701)-Nakamura,H (2766) Chess.com INT 2022 0-1 (37)}) 12. e4 Nb4 13. Qe2 Nd3 $146 ({RR} 13... Bb7 14. Rd1 Nd3 15. Be3 Na6 16. d5 cxd5 17. exd5 exd5 18. axb5 Nab4 19. Nd4 Bc5 20. Na4 Bd6 21. Qd2 f5 22. Ne2 f4 23. gxf4 d4 24. Bxd4 Bxg2 25. Kxg2 Qg4+ 26. Kf1 Bxf4 27. Be3 Bxe3 28. Qxe3 {Chigaev,M (2632)-Nihal,S (2662) Warsaw 2021 0-1}) 14. e5 {White has sacrificed a pawn, so it is natural that he tries to create threats while Black is not yet fully developed. Weiß hat einen Bauern geopfert, und so ist es nur natürlich, dass er versucht, Drohungen zu erzeugen, während Schwarz noch nicht voll entwickelt ist.} Bb7 15. exf6 Bxf6 16. Ne4 Na6 17. Ne5 (17. Nxf6+ gxf6 18. Bh6 Rf7 {is the computer's first choice, though by no means the only option. The position is very complex. ist die erste Wahl des Computers, aber keineswegs die einzige Option. Die Lage ist sehr komplex.}) 17... Bxe5 (17... Qxd4 {doesn't work: funktioniert nicht:} 18. Nxf6+ Rxf6 19. axb5 {is very bad for Black. ist sehr schlecht für Schwarz.}) 18. dxe5 Nac5 {During the press conference, Carlsen admitted that he had overlooked this possibility. However, his exchange sacrifice is a good response to the situation. Auf der Pressekonferenz gab Carlsen zu, dass er diese Möglichkeit übersehen hatte. Sein Qualitätsopfer ist jedoch eine gute Reaktion auf die Situation.} 19. Nd6 Nb3 20. Rb1 {White had two ways to sacrifice the exchange. Carlsen (characteristically, perhaps) opts for the strategically 'clean' version, where both the Black knights get exchanged off. However, the 'messy' version was also interesting. Weiß hatte zwei Möglichkeiten, die Qualität zu opfern. Carlsen entschied sich (vielleicht bezeichnenderweise) für die strategisch "saubere" Variante, bei der beide schwarzen Springer abgetauscht werden. Aber auch die "chaotische" Variante war interessant.} (20. Be3 {is the messy version, and well worth considering. ist die chaotische Version, die man durchaus in Betracht ziehen sollte.} Nxa1 21. Rxa1 {leaves one dangerous knight on d3, but there are two pluses from White's point of view. The pair of bishops is an asset, and secondly a later b2-b3 may undermine the knight on d3. One possible continuation is hinterlässt einen gefährlichen Springer auf d3, aber es gibt zwei Vorteile aus der Sicht von Weiß. Das Läuferpaar ist ein Vorteil, und zweitens kann ein späteres b2-b3 den Springer auf d3 untergraben. Eine mögliche Fortsetzung ist} Nxe5 22. Bc5 Nd3 23. Nxb7 Qxb7 24. Bxf8 Rxf8 25. axb5 Qxb5 26. Qxe6+ Kh8 27. Rxa7 {with equality probably not far off. und der Ausgleich ist wahrscheinlich nicht mehr weit entfernt.}) 20... Nbxc1 {As an alternative, Anand mentioned a fascinating counter-sacrifice of the exchange. Als Alternative erwähnte Anand ein faszinierendes Qualitätsgegenopfer.} (20... Rab8 21. Be3 c5 22. Nxb7 Rxb7 23. Bxb7 Qxb7 {when the powerful pair of knights would give Black good prospects. However, White could also consider declining the sacrifice. , wonach das starke Springerpaar Schwarz gute Aussichten bieten würde. Weiß könnte aber auch erwägen, das Opfer abzulehnen.}) 21. Rbxc1 Nxc1 22. Rxc1 {A fascinating situation has arisen. White has knight for rook and pawn, but what a beautiful knight on d6! The computer shows a preference for Black's position, but in practical play it is much easier to handle the White side. Es ist eine faszinierende Situation entstanden. Weiß hat einen Springer für Turm und Bauer, aber was für einen schönen Springer auf d6! Der Computer zeigt eine Präferenz der schwarzen Stellung, aber im praktischen Spiel ist es viel einfacher, die weiße Seite zu behandeln.} Rab8 23. Rd1 {It is important to realise that White's compensation has a long-term character. There is no rush to recover the material. Es ist wichtig zu erkennen, dass die weiße Kompensation einen langfristigen Charakter hat. Es besteht keine Eile, das Material zurückzugewinnen.} (23. axb5 {is significantly weaker: deutlich schwächer ist:} cxb5 24. Nxb7 Rxb7 25. Bxb7 Qxb7 {leaves White a clear pawn down belässt Weiß mit einem klaren Minusbauern}) 23... Ba8 {It is very natural to tuck this bishop away and open the file for the b8-rook. But, ugly as it looks, the immediate Es ist ganz natürlich, diesen Läufer wegzustecken und die Linie für den b8-Turm zu öffnen. Aber, so hässlich es auch aussieht, das sofortige} (23... bxa4 {was perhaps stronger. war vielleicht stärker.} 24. Be4 g6 25. Qxc4 c5 {is an important idea, using the pin on the d-file to exchange bishops. After, for example ist eine wichtige Idee, die die Fesselung auf der d-Linie zum Läufertausch nutzt. Nach zum Beispiel} 26. Rd2 Kh8 27. Qxc5 Bxe4 28. Nxe4 Qb7 {Black stands better, but there is a tough fight ahead. steht Schwarz besser, aber es steht ein harter Kampf bevor.}) 24. Be4 {A powerful move, which reveals a new dimension to White's compensation. There are serious chances of a mating attack on the kingside. Instead Ein starker Zug, der eine neue Dimension der weißen Kompensation offenbart. Es gibt ernsthafte Chancen für einen Mattangriff am Königsflügel. Stattdessen gibt} (24. Nxb5 Qb7 {gives Black counterplay on the b-file Schwarz Gegenspiel auf der b-Linie}) 24... c3 {At first sight, this move is hard to comprehend. Why give up a pawn? The purpose of this move is to open the b-file, to accelerate Black's counterplay in case White plays for mate on the kingside. Compare with the alternative: Auf den ersten Blick ist dieser Zug schwer zu verstehen. Warum einen Bauern aufgeben? Der Zweck dieses Zuges ist es, die b-Linie zu öffnen, um das Gegenspiel von Schwarz zu beschleunigen, falls Weiß am Königsflügel auf Matt spielt. Vergleichen Sie mit der Alternative:} (24... bxa4 25. Bxh7+ Kxh7 26. Qh5+ Kg8 27. Rd4 Rxb2 (27... Qe7 {is better: ist besser:} 28. Rh4 Qxh4 29. Qxh4 {with wild complications mit wilden Komplikationen}) 28. Rh4 Rb1+ 29. Kg2 c5+ 30. Kh3 {and Black is lost, since he must give up the queen to avoid being mated. und Schwarz ist verloren, da er die Dame aufgeben muss, um nicht matt gesetzt zu werden.}) 25. Qc2 (25. bxc3 bxa4 {and now, if White plays for mate, the purpose of 24...c3 becomes clear: und jetzt, wenn Weiß auf Matt spielt, wird der Zweck von 24...c3 klar:} 26. Rd4 c5 27. Bxh7+ Kxh7 28. Rh4+ Kg8 29. Qh5 (29. Qc2 {is little better: ist kaum besser:} Rf5 {wins gewinnt}) 29... Rb1+ {mate! Matt!}) 25... g6 {This weakens the seventh rank, and leaves a hole on f6 which the knight might later exploit. But Das schwächt die siebte Reihe und hinterlässt eine Lücke auf f6, die der Springer später ausnutzen könnte. Aber} (25... h6 {has its own drawbacks, e.g. hat seine eigenen Nachteile, z. B.} 26. Qxc3 bxa4 27. Bc2 {and White is teeing up for Qc3-d3-h7 mate. und Weiß bereitet sich auf das Matt mit Qc3-d3-h7 vor.}) 26. bxc3 bxa4 (26... Qg7 27. f4 g5 {was interesting, and the computer favours Black. But who would willingly blow open the kingside, with all their pieces sitting passively on the back rank? war interessant, und der Computer favorisiert Schwarz. Aber wer würde freiwillig den Königsflügel aufsprengen, wenn alle Figuren passiv auf der Grundreihe stehen?}) 27. Qxa4 Rfd8 {Defending the queen to allow the freeing move c6-c5. Verteidigung der Dame, um den Befreiungszug c6-c5 zu ermöglichen.} 28. Ra1 c5 29. Qc4 Bxe4 30. Nxe4 (30. Qxe4 Rb2 {and White has nothing better than returning the queen to c4. Carlsen's recapture with the knight is more accurate, since the threat of Ne4-f6+ forces Black to make a king move, instead of this more active rook move. und Weiß hat nichts Besseres, als die Dame nach c4 zurückzubringen. Carlsens Schlagzug mit dem Springer ist genauer, da die Drohung Ne4-f6 Schwarz zu einem Königszug zwingt, anstatt diesen aktiveren Turmzug zu machen.}) 30... Kh8 31. Nd6 Rb6 32. Qxc5 Rdb8 33. Kg2 a6 {A patient move. Since sacrificing the exchange, Carlsen has collected two pawns, and at this point certainly has full compensation. But Nepomniachtchi has succeed in exchanging bishops and the rooks have gained in scope. The knight on d6 remains a powerful piece, but there is no obvious way for Carlsen to improve his position. Ein geduldiger Zug. Seit er die Qualität geopfert hat, konnte Carlsen zwei Bauern einsammln und hat zu diesem Zeitpunkt sicherlich volle Kompensation. Aber Nepomniachtchi hat es geschafft, die Läufer zu tauschen, und die Türme haben an Spielraum gewonnen. Der Springer auf d6 bleibt eine starke Figur, aber es gibt keinen offensichtlichen Weg für Carlsen, seine Stellung zu verbessern.} (33... Qc6+ {would be too hurried: wäre zu überstürzt:} 34. Qxc6 Rxc6 35. Rxa7 Rxc3 36. Nf7+ Kg8 37. Ng5 {sees White collect a second pawn on the kingside. Black will not achieve a draw easily. sieht Weiß einen zweiten Bauern am Königsflügel gewinnen. Schwarz wird nicht leicht ein Remis erreichen.}) 34. Kh3 Rc6 35. Qd4 Kg8 36. c4 Qc7 37. Qg4 {This allows a liquidation, to a position where White has just a nominal advantage. That's an understandable decision since there was no obvious way to improve White's position. Dies ermöglicht eine Abwicklung zu einer Stellung, in der Weiß nur einen nominellen Vorteil hat. Das ist eine verständliche Entscheidung, da es keinen offensichtlichen Weg gab, die weiße Stellung zu verbessern.} Rxd6 38. exd6 Qxd6 39. c5 Qxc5 40. Qxe6+ Kg7 41. Rxa6 Rf8 (41... Qxf2 {would be a terrible blunder: wäre ein schrecklicher Fehler:} 42. Qe5+ Kh6 43. Qxb8 Qf1+ 44. Kh4 Qxa6 45. Qf8#) 42. f4 Qf5+ 43. Qxf5 Rxf5 44. Ra7+ Kg8 {With all the pawns on the kingside, the extra pawn is not sufficient to win, as both players knew well. The final moves were played fairly quickly. Da alle Bauern am Königsflügel stehen, reicht der Mehrbauer nicht aus, um zu gewinnen, wie beide Spieler sehr wohl wussten. Die letzten Züge wurden ziemlich schnell gespielt.} 45. Kg4 Rb5 46. Re7 Ra5 47. Re5 Ra7 48. h4 Kg7 49. h5 Kh6 (49... gxh5+ 50. Kxh5 {is still drawn, but Nepomniachtchi's move is safer. ist immer noch remis, aber Nepomniachtchis Zug ist sicherer.}) 50. Kh4 Ra1 51. g4 Rh1+ 52. Kg3 gxh5 53. Re6+ Kg7 54. g5 Rg1+ 55. Kf2 Ra1 56. Rh6 Ra4 57. Kf3 ({Nach} 57. Kg3 Ra3+ 58. Kh4 Ra4 59. Rf6 {ist} h6 {is the simplest am einfachsten.} 60. Kxh5 hxg5 61. Kxg5 {with a trivial draw mit einem trivialen Unentschieden}) 57... Ra3+ 58. Kf2 Ra4 1/2-1/2

[Event "World-ch Carlsen-Nepomniachtchi"]
[Site "Dubai"]
[Date "2021.12.03"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2855"]
[BlackElo "2782"]
[Annotator "Giri,Anish"]
[PlyCount "271"]
[EventDate "2021.11.26"]
[EventType "match"]
[EventRounds "14"]
[EventCountry "UAE"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

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Thus, he decides to return to his move from Game 2.} Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. g3 {A sneaky move order, trying to go for a Catalan-like setup, but not exactly, as White delays the move c4. Eine raffinierte Zugfolge, die einen katalanischähnlichen Aufbau anstrebt, aber nicht exakt, da Weiß den Zug c4 verzögert.} e6 {Black had plenty of options, but not surprisingly Ian sticks to his repertoire and offers a transposition into the Catalan. Schwarz hatte viele Möglichkeiten, aber es überrascht nicht, dass Ian an seinem Repertoire festhält und einen Übergang zu Katalanisch anbietet.} 4. Bg2 Be7 5. O-O O-O 6. b3 {'!?' Catalan without c4 being played? What is this? Is it even a challenging line? Frankly speaking, it is not. But as Peter Heine Nielsen (the loyal member of Team Carlsen) said, they don't dare getting opening-edge with White. Their goal is simply to avoid well-trodden lines and get into a fresh area where Magnus could try proving why he is a number one player in the world. The point of Carlsen's move order, trying to sidestep the main line with 6.c4, which is what happened (through the conventional Catalan move order) in game 2. Der Sinn von Carlsens Zugfolge besteht darin, die Hauptvariante mit 6.c4 zu umgehen, welche (durch die konventionelle katalanische Zugfolge) in Partie 2 aufs Brett kam.} (6. c4 dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 {is what happened in game 2.}) 6... c5 {Of course! Black doesn't miss the momentum to challenge the center!} 7. dxc5 {Here too 7.c4 transposes into some kind of theory. With this move, Magnus is hoping to take Ian into the relatively unknown territory. Auch hier verwandelt sich 7.c4 in eine Art Theorie. Mit diesem Zug hofft Magnus, Ian in ein relativ unbekanntes Gebiet zu führen.} Bxc5 {Given the reply, 7...Nc6!? also deserved attention. Angesichts der Antwort verdiente 7...Sc6!? ebenfalls Aufmerksamkeit.} 8. c4 {you don't see often a position that been played only couple of times by move 8. More natural is 8.Bb2, but it takes a lot to surprise a well prepared top player who fights for the World Championship crown and so another unusual move followed. Natürlicher ist 8.Bb2, aber es braucht viel, um einen gut vorbereiteten Spitzenspieler, der um die Weltmeisterschaftskrone kämpft, zu überraschen, und so folgte ein weiterer ungewöhnlicher Zug.} (8. Bb2 {is a more natural follow up.}) 8... dxc4 9. Qc2 $5 {'N' and here comes the official novelty! Creative opening play by Magnus. The c4 pawn is not being recaptured yet. Kreatives Eröffnungsspiel von Magnus. Der c4-Bauer wird noch nicht zurückerobert.} (9. bxc4 {was played in that single in the same year I was born - 1995!} Nc6 {looks totally comfortable for Black.}) 9... Qe7 {Protects the c5 bishop and forces White to recapture the pawn, or so you would think. Schützt den Läufer auf c5 und zwingt Weiß dazu, den Bauern zurückzuerobern, so könnte man meinen.} 10. Nbd2 $5 {another game Magnus is willing to sac a pawn in the opening! Very creative piece of preparation, sacrificing the pawn. Ein sehr kreatives Stück Vorbereitung, der Bauer wird geopfert.} Nc6 $1 {this time Nepo is not interested in having 'extra' pawn and I guess it was the right call! Ian wants to have none of it and doesn't accept the sacrifice. From now on, for some reason, Magnus started taking quite a bit of time. Strange, given that so far, all of Ian's moves have been the top choice of the engines. Ian will davon nichts wissen und nimmt das Opfer nicht an. Von nun an hat Magnus aus irgendeinem Grund angefangen, sich ziemlich viel Zeit zu lassen. Seltsam, wenn man bedenkt, dass bisher alle Züge von Ian die erste Wahl für die Maschinen waren.} (10... cxb3 11. Nxb3 Bd6 12. Nfd2 {bringing Knight to -c4} Nc6 13. Nc4 $132 {White looks to have enough compensation for sacrificed pawn and Black has some difficulties with the development.}) 11. Nxc4 b5 {'!?' Ian meets Carlsen's novelty with enthusiasm! Alternative was 11...e5 or the passive 11...Bd7, but this adventurous move got a lot of praise by the commentators. Die Alternative war 11...e5 oder das passive 11...Ld7, aber dieser abenteuerliche Zug wurde von den Kommentatoren sehr gelobt.} ({RR} 11... e5 12. Bb2 e4 13. Ng5 Bf5 14. Ne3 Bxe3 15. fxe3 Bg6 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Nh3 Nb4 18. Qb2 Qe5 19. Qd2 a5 20. Rad1 Rac8 21. Nf4 Kg7 22. Qd7 Rfd8 23. Qxb7 Rb8 24. Qa7 Nc6 25. Qa6 Nb4 26. Qc4 {Dubov,D (2716)-Wei Yi (2722) Dubai UAE 2023 0-1 (66)}) 12. Nce5 Nb4 $146 {The point, now Black avoids losing material on the diagonal. Der Punkt, jetzt vermeidet Schwarz den Materialverlust auf der Diagonale.} (12... Bb7 {is no good due to simple tactical nuance} 13. Nxc6 Bxc6 14. b4 $1 {now Black is in trouble} Bxf3 15. Bxf3 Bd4 (15... Bxb4 16. Bxa8 Rxa8 17. Qc6 $18) 16. Bxa8 Bxa1 17. Bf3 Qxb4 18. Bd2 Qd4 19. Rb1 $18 {White eventually will return the pawn and yet remain with Bishop pair in an open position, whilst all Black pieces being disharmonized.}) ({RR} 12... Bb7 13. Nd3 Bb6 14. Bb2 Rac8 15. Rac1 Nd4 16. Qd2 Nxf3+ 17. Bxf3 Bxf3 18. exf3 Nd5 19. Kg2 h6 20. Qe2 a6 21. Ne5 Qb7 22. Qe4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rd1 Bd8 25. Ng4 Qc6 26. h4 Qc2 27. Qd4 {Nihal,S (2650)-So,W (2772) Chess.com INT 2021 1-0 (63)}) 13. Qb2 {There is no action around the h7 square (which could be the case if the bishop had been on b2 and the e5 knight not in the way, threatening Ng5 and Bxf6) and so the queen is better placed here than on b1. Um das Feld h7 herum gibt es keine Action (was der Fall sein könnte, wenn der Läufer auf b2 stünde und der Springer auf e5 nicht im Weg wäre, sodass Sg5 und Lxf6 drohen würde), und so ist die Dame hier besser platziert als auf b1.} Bb7 {Despite the fact Ian got surprised in this game, he handled the position well and now Black seems to have even easier play!} 14. a3 {An exciting deviation would have been 14.Bg5!?. Eine spannende Abweichung wäre 14.Lg5!? gewesen.} (14. Bg5 h6 15. Bh4 {Here Black can go after the h4 bishop with immediate 15...g5!? or 15... Bxf3 16.Bxf3 g5!? and the eventual complications lead to some sort of equality as well, as always, but the lines are much more exciting than after 14.a3. Hier kann Schwarz nach dem Läufer h4 greifen mit sofortigem 15...g5!? oder 15... Lxf3 16.Lxf3 g5!?, und die eventuellen Komplikationen führen wie immer zu einer Art von Ausgleich, wobei die Varianten viel spannender sind als nach 14.a3.}) 14... Nc6 15. Nd3 {typical for Catalan - Knight rethreat. In fact, more often we see the f3-Knight getting to to -e5 and then to -d3. Keeping more pieces on the board. Hält mehr Figuren auf dem Brett.} (15. Bg5 {Is quite drawish, for example ist ziemlich remislich, zum Beispiel} Nxe5 16. Qxe5 {was another way of handling the position.} Bxa3 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Qxb5 {And now Black can just give up one of the bishops to simplify. Und jetzt kann Schwarz zur Vereinfachung einfach einen der Läufer aufgeben.} Rab8 19. Qa4 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Bc5 {A position like that is totally fine for Black, as with the full control over the dark squares, there is little danger to the somewhat open king. Eine solche Stellung ist für Schwarz völlig in Ordnung, denn mit der vollen Kontrolle über die dunklen Felder besteht wenig Gefahr für den etwas offenen König.}) 15... Bb6 {Surely, Black doesn't want to give away a powerful c5-Bishop.} 16. Bg5 (16. a4 {Seemed like a natural inclusion at first, but likely Magnus disliked the simplifications after schien zuerst eine natürliche Einschaltung zu sein, aber wahrscheinlich missfielen Magnus die Vereinfachungen nach} Rfd8 $5 17. axb5 Nd4 {And it looks like mass exchanges are likely. und es sieht so aus, als ob ein Massenabtausch wahrscheinlich ist.}) 16... Rfd8 {Useful move, there is no need to push White to take on f6. Nützlicher Zug, es besteht keine Notwendigkeit, Weiß zu drängen, auf f6 zu nehmen.} 17. Bxf6 {White takes anyway, as Nd4 was coming. Weiß nimmt trotzdem, denn Sd4 war zu erwarten.} (17. Rac1 Nd4 {looked good for Black}) 17... gxf6 {'!?' Interesting and ambitious decision! Seems like Nepo tries to play for something more than equality! An interesting choice, perhaps stemming from some ambition. Queen trade would have also been fine. Sometimes in those endgames White can claim a good d3 knight against a "bad" bishop, but with Black pieces so active and bishop being on b6, there is little talk of White fighting for anything. Eine interessante Wahl, die vielleicht aus einem gewissen Ehrgeiz heraus getroffen wurde. Damentausch wäre auch in Ordnung gewesen. Manchmal kann Weiß in diesen Endspielen einen guten d3-Springer gegen einen "schlechten" Läufer behaupten, aber da die schwarzen Figuren so aktiv sind und der Läufer auf b6 steht, ist kaum davon die Rede, dass Weiß um irgendetwas kämpft.} (17... Qxf6 {is what I was expecting from the challenger. By trading off the Queens Black gets pleasant endgame with the Bishop pair.} 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Rfc1 Rac8 {looks totally comfortable for Black}) 18. Rac1 Nd4 {Alternative 18...e5!? would be very double edged, weakening the f5 square, but it isn't easy to exploit that, as 19.Nh4 can be met with 19... Nd4!. Die Alternative 18...e5!? wäre sehr zweischneidig, da sie das Feld f5 schwächt, aber es ist nicht einfach, dies auszunutzen, da 19.Sh4 mit 19... Sd4! beantwortet werden kann.} (18... e5 {with the idea of forking the Knights with ...-e4 leaves f5-square weak.} 19. Nh4 Nd4 {Black controls f5-square with the Knight} 20. b4 $132 (20. e3 $6 Bxg2 21. Kxg2 Qb7+ 22. Kg1 Ne6 $36 {followed by ...-Ng5})) 19. Nxd4 Bxd4 20. Qa2 {the Queen is placed weird on -a2. Yet defending the a3-pawn is a temporary task as White is planning to play either b4 or a4 with the next move and later bring back the Queen into the game.} Bxg2 {There were many ways to play this, but Ian chooses to activate the queen and send it to e4. Es gab viele Möglichkeiten, dies zu spielen, aber Ian entschied sich dafür, die Dame zu aktivieren und sie nach e4 zu schicken.} 21. Kxg2 Qb7+ 22. Kg1 Qe4 {Centralization! How to evaluate this position? From one side Black pieces look more active, on the other hand White's totally safe and has better pawn structure. If White manages to coordinate pieces, they can fight for something more than a draw. At the moment I'd call it dynamical equality.} 23. Qc2 {Sort of grabbing the c-file. From now on Rac8 is always an option, though it's never neccessary. Schnappt sich sozusagen die c-Linie. Von nun an ist Tac8 immer eine Option, obwohl es nie notwendig ist.} a5 24. Rfd1 Kg7 {This allows 25.e3!?, instead Black could have gone for 24...f5 when after 25.e3 the bishop has some nice squares to retreat to- f6/g7. Das erlaubt 25.e3!?, stattdessen hätte Schwarz 24...f5 wählen können, worauf der Läufer nach 25.e3 einige schöne Rückzugsfelder auf f6/g7 hat.} (24... f5 $5 {looks natural for Black, supporting the Queen and extending the a1-h8 diagonal for the Bishop.}) 25. Rd2 {As often it happens in chess, engines show trimple zeros in this position. It's not surprising, as sides have more or less symmetrical pawn formations (2 vs 2 on queenside and 4 vs 4 on the other flank) whilst three minor pieces already been traded off. Also, the further simplifications seemingly are not far away either. However, what happened next surprised me a lot. Over two (24.Rfd1 and 25.Rd2) moves the World Champion spent 33 (!) minutes. This actually tells us how, in fact, the position is complicated. These moves (reffering to move 24 and 25 of White) may seem slow, but they are quite deep. Magnus defends his e2-pawn and is ready to trade the Queen on two Rooks in case of ...-Rc8 Commentators like 25.e3, using the fact that the bishop has no comfortable retreating square and 25...Be5 26.Qe2 Bd6 27. Nc5! gives White some risk free pressure. Magnus maybe disliking 25...Rc8 or for some other reason, chose to keep the status quo. Kommentatoren mögen 25.e3, was die Tatsache nutzt, dass der Läufer kein bequemes Rückzugsfeld hat und 25...Le5 26.De2 Ld6 27.Sc5! Weiß gewissen risikolosen Druck gibt. Magnus mochte vielleicht 25...Tc8 nicht oder entschied sich aus einem anderen Grund, den Status quo beizubehalten.} Rac8 {And that's what we see on the board. I'm a bit surprised with Ian's decision, I should tell. No, not beucase that it's a bad move. In point of fact engines like and approve this continuation, however, it felt like there was no reason for Black to enter unbalanced position, whilst the solid play could maintain the equality. Maybe he was trying to play for a win?! This is absolutely not neccessary, but it did lead to chaos, so the fans should be grateful to Ian. Das ist absolut nicht notwendig, aber es hat zu Chaos geführt, also sollten die Fans Ian dankbar sein.} (25... f5 {again looked good} 26. Qd1 Rdc8 $11) 26. Qxc8 Rxc8 27. Rxc8 Qd5 {challenging White's queenside pawns.} 28. b4 a4 {now a3-pawn is Black's potential target} 29. e3 {First critical moment. 29...Bb2 forces the matters, but Ian chooses against it. Der erste kritische Moment. 29...Lb2 forciert die Sache, aber Ian entscheidet sich dagegen.} Be5 $6 {There was a reasonably easy draw in 29...Bb2, but maybe Ian didn't want to look for it from a position of weakness. Es gab ein relativ einfaches Remis mit 29...Lb2, aber vielleicht wollte Ian es nicht aus einer Stellung der Schwäche heraus suchen.} (29... Bb2 30. Rc5 Qd6 31. Rxb2 {Here this is a must. Hier ist dies ein Muss.} Qxd3 32. Rbc2 {Another only move, otherwise White can't keep the queenside pawn from falling, as 32.Ra2?? is met by 32...Qb1+!. Ein weiterer einziger Zug, sonst kann Weiß den Fall des Bauern am Damenflügel nicht verhindern, denn auf 32.Ta2?? kommt 32...Qb1+!.} Qxa3 33. Rxb5 {and now the natural 33...Qb3 is met by 34.Rc1! which is still within a draw, but the easiest is to setup a perpetual. und das natürliche 33...Db3 wird mit 34.Tc1! begegnet, was immer noch in der Remisbreite liegt, aber am einfachsten ist es, ein Dauerschach zu herbeizuführen.} Qa1+ 34. Kg2 Qb1 {And the threat of a3-a2 combined with the Qe4-Qb1 perpetual ideas secure Black a draw. und die Drohung a3-a2 in Kombination mit den Dauerschachideen De4-Db1 sichert Schwarz ein Remis.} 35. Rc4 a3 {looked like an easy draw for Black} 36. Ra5 a2 37. Rg4+ Kf8 38. Ra8+ Ke7 39. Ra7+ Kf8 {only but enough for a draw move.} (39... Kd6 $4 {loses due to} 40. Rd4+ Kc6 41. b5+ $1 {an important nuance} Kxb5 42. Rda4 $18 {and White manages to hold the a-pawn. Black King is way too far from its kingside pawns. White's winning.}) 40. Ra8+ Ke7 {and another game in the match could have ended by three-fold repetition.}) 30. h4 $5 {'!' in post-game commentry Magnus said he won this blockbuster mostly because he was more patient in the game. This is one of the moments where we can see how patiently and masterfully he handled the extremely complicated position. White does not rush, but slightly improve the position. Magnus realizing that Nepo has no follow up, makes a useful move and asks Ian if he wants to play Bb2 after all, but now in a worse version. Magnus erkennt, dass Nepo keine Fortsetzung hat, macht einen nützlichen Zug und fragt Ian, ob er nicht doch Lb2 spielen will, jetzt aber in einer schlechteren Version.} h5 $6 {Again, a move that is approved by the engines, however, for a human eye -h5 looks a bit "weakening". With other words, inclusion of h4-h5 in a long run is a concession for Ian. The pawn on -h5 now (and seems like forever) is fixed on a light square. It cannot be defended by the Bishop anymore. Ian makes another waiting move. But so does Magnus. Ian macht einen weiteren Wartezug. Aber das tut Magnus auch.} (30... Bb2 {still leads to a draw after was still alright here. war hier noch in Ordnung.} 31. Rc5 Qd6 32. Rxb2 Qxd3 33. Rbc2 Qxa3 34. Rxb5 Qa1+ 35. Kg2 Qb1 {'=' the h2 square is there, but the king can't escape. Das Feld h2 ist da, aber der König kann nicht entkommen.} 36. Rc3 Qe4+ 37. Kh2 Qb1 {intending Qf1. mit der Absicht Df1.}) 31. Kh2 $5 {another slow, prophylactic move, shows Magnus' titanic patience!} Bb2 $2 {'??' Black finally does this move, but at the very wrong moment! Actually exactly here, this idea that was always a bail out for Black, loses. Eigentlich genau hier war die Stelle, wo diese Idee, die immer eine Rettung für Schwarz war, verliert.} 32. Rc5 Qd6 (32... Qd7 {leads to a Bishop trap after} 33. Rcc2 $1 Bxa3 34. Ra2 e5 {last try} 35. e4 $1 ({after} 35. Rxa3 {White does not win due to} e4 $11) 35... Qc6 36. Rxa3 Qxe4 37. Raa2 $18) 33. Rd1 $2 {was played instantly, meanwhile 33.Rc2 was very strong! But go figure out without the assistance of the engine! The win was very hard to spot and calculate, but it was there. The sequence Magnus goes for, gives up a pawn and it is not entirely clear what he missed there (perhaps Qd7! idea). Der Gewinn war sehr schwer zu erkennen und zu berechnen, aber er war da. Die Sequenz, die Magnus anstrebt, gibt einen Bauern auf, und es ist nicht ganz klar, was er dort übersehen hat (vielleicht die Idee mit Dd7!).} (33. Rcc2 $1 {The move itself is not obvious, giving up both queenside pawns, but the attack is devastating. Der Zug selbst ist nicht offensichtlich, da er beide Bauern am Damenflügel aufgibt, aber der Angriff ist verheerend.} Bxa3 34. Nf4 $1 {and this line is actually showing why 30...-h5 was not the safest move.} Qxb4 {and now White goes all out for the king. und jetzt setzt Weiß alles auf den König.} (34... Qf8 35. Rc7 Kg8 36. Rdc2 $1 Qxb4 37. Rc8+ Kg7 38. Nxh5+ Kg6 39. Nf4+ Kg7 40. R2c7 Qe4 41. Rd8 $1 $18 {followed by either Rdd7 or Rcc8, White wins the game.}) 35. Rd7 {'!' was out of the radar, is what Magnus admitted in the press conference after the game. White creates a powerful attack on Black's King. Black needs to find a way how to defend from Nxe6 or Rcc7, attacking the f7-pawn.} e5 (35... Qb3 {is the only logical way to do so} 36. Rcc7 e5 37. Nxh5+ Kg6 38. Rc6 $1 {beautiful motif.} Kxh5 39. Rxf6 $18 {Black King is in a mating net! Rdxf7 or Rd8 followed by bringing the Rook onto the h-file with the final touch f3 is one of the main threats of White.}) 36. Nxh5+ Kg6 {You have to see what your follow up is here, otherwise the whole sequence makes little sense. Hier muss man sehen, wie es weitergeht, sonst macht die ganze Sequenz wenig Sinn.} 37. Rc6 $1 {The knight can go, as the Black king finds itself in the mating net and Black's pieces are unable to setup a defense. Der Springer kann weg, da sich der schwarze König im Mattnetz befindet und die schwarzen Figuren nicht in der Lage sind, eine Verteidigung aufzubauen.} Kxh5 {and now both Rxf6 as well as Rxf7 first just lead to checkmate eventually, as the king is basically inside a mating net. und nun führen sowohl Txf6 als auch erst Txf7 einfach zum Matt, da der König im Grunde in einem Mattnetz ist.} 38. Rxf7) (33. Rxb2 {was though a safe option, leading to a drawn endgame once again. war jedoch eine sichere Option, die erneut zu einem remisen Endspiel führte.} Qxd3 34. Rbc2 {here besides Qxa3 Black can also go 34...Qf1!?, when I don't see how White untangles, but Black also doesn't have any reasons to play this for a win. hier kann Schwarz neben Dxa3 auch 34...Df1!? spielen, wonach ich nicht sehe, wie Weiß sich entwirrt, aber Schwarz hat auch keinerlei Gründe, dies auf Gewinn zu spielen.} Qxa3 35. Rxb5 $11) 33... Bxa3 34. Rxb5 Qd7 $1 {is what Magnus overlooked! He believed he manages to hold the b4-pawn, but now he is fated to lose it!} 35. Rc5 {'' only move.} (35. Rxh5 $4 {is a losing move as the Rook gets trapped!} Bxb4 {and Black wins.} 36. Nb2 Qc6 $18 {wins easily} (36... Qxd1 {could be a fun but totally unnecessary line where} 37. Nxd1 a3 {White has two tempi to stop the a-pawn from promoting, but they are unable to do it. Yet, they are not lost and saving the game with.} 38. Rb5 a2 39. Rxb4 a1=Q 40. Rd4 {should be easily holdable.})) 35... e5 {'!?' Yet Ian doesn't take the pawn. He intends to win the game by playing ...-e4 next! Somehow the b4 pawn never got captured. Either Ian didn't see it hanging, or was afraid of some discovery on the queen after Bxb4 Rcc1. Irgendwie wurde der b4-Bauer nie geschlagen. Entweder hat Ian ihn nicht hängen sehen oder er hatte Angst vor einem Abzugsangriff auf die Dame nach Lxb4 Tcc1.} (35... Bxb4 $1 36. Rcc1 Be7 {Here White is on the defensive. Hier ist Weiß in der Defensive.} (36... Ba5 37. Nf4 Qb5 {looked decent for Black, but I bet Ian rejected playing it because of} 38. Rb1 Qf5 {keeping an eye on h5-pawn} (38... Qc6 {leaves the h5-pawn undefended, but with seconds on the clock it's impossible to understand that capturing it actually loses the game for White!} 39. Nxh5+ $2 Kh6 $1 40. Nxf6 (40. Nf4 Qc2 $19) 40... Qf3 41. Kg1 $8 Qxf6 42. Ra1 Qf3 43. Rd3 {[%cal Gd3a3,Ga3a4] maybe it's a fortress... maybe, not?}) 39. Rb7 {now White puts serious pressure along the 7th-rank. Especially in a time trouble situation it's extremely difficult to assess position correctly. Black would be totally fine after} e5 $1 40. Nh3 Qe6 41. Ra7 Qb3 $11) 37. Ne5 Qb5 38. Rd7 Qxe5 39. Rxe7 Qb2 40. Rf1 a3 41. Rd7 a2 42. Rdd1 {and 2 rooks should hold here, but White is very passive and the a-pawn is alive. und 2 Türme sollten hier halten, aber Weiß ist sehr passiv und der a-Bauer ist lebendig.}) 36. Rc2 $2 {Still giving up the b4 pawn. Instead, the rather loose looking 36.e4! is pointed out by the engine, intending 36....Bxb4 37.Rd5, while if 36...Qd4 then 37.Ra5!. Er gibt immer noch den b4-Bauern auf. Stattdessen weist die Engine auf das recht locker wirkend 36.e4! hin, beabsichtigend 36....Lxb4 37.Td5 bzw. auf 36...Dd4 dann 37.Ta5!} (36. e4 {gives Black an opportunity of playing} Qd4 {this doesn't look practically great for White, despite the fact that engines say White is safe after} 37. Ra5 Qc4 $1 38. Rxa4 Qb3 39. Rxa3 Qxa3 40. b5 Qb3 {and b5-pawn falls.} 41. Rd2 Qxb5 42. f3 {and I bet White has to hold it rather easily}) 36... Qd5 $2 {This move amazes me! Black is not into capturing the b4-pawn! Ian starts to drift. He could have collected the b4 pawn. Ian beginnt zu driften. Er hätte den b4-Bauern einsammeln können.} (36... Bxb4 $1 {is although something Black should have played without thinking!} 37. Rcc1 {Now White would be OK, but Black has a strong sequence, saving the extra pawn. Jetzt wäre Weiß okay, aber Schwarz hat eine starke Zugfolge, die den Mehrbauern rettet.} (37. Nb2 Qg4 $1 $19) 37... Ba3 $1 {Not giving White time for a break. Lässt Weiß keine Zeit für eine Pause.} 38. Ra1 (38. Nxe5 Qf5 $19) 38... Qg4 $1 {Black Queen gets out of the x-ray attack, keeps an eye on d1-Rook and yet defends a4-pawn. Next, Black is going to rethreat the Bishop and play ...-a3 The queen steps out of the x-ray. Die Dame entfernt sich aus dem Röntgenangriff.} 39. Rd2 Be7 {and Black could well be winning here, as he can combine the a-pawn with f5-f4 ideas. Very unpleasant for White, though very often you see that there are some fortress ideas eventually. und Schwarz könnte hier durchaus auf Gewinn stehen, da er den a-Bauern mit f5-f4-Ideen kombinieren kann. Sehr unangenehm für Weiß, obwohl man sehr oft sieht, dass es amn Ende einige Festungsideen gibt.} (39... Bf8 $17 {this doesn't look good for White!})) (36... e4 37. Nb2 Qe6 38. Nc4 Bxb4 39. Ra1 Qd7 {looks like what happened in the game with one significant difference. Black's e4-pawn is yet alive!}) 37. Rdd2 (37. Rcd2 {was an alternative}) 37... Qb3 38. Ra2 e4 {'?' Another blunder comes in time trouble! This is panic. It loses, but also in general, it is incredibly risky to kill the mobility of the kingside pawns. Das ist Panik. Es verliert, aber auch generell ist es unglaublich riskant, die Mobilität der Bauern am Königsflügel zu zerstören.} (38... Bxb4 {would probably hold, but not in a fun way. würde wahrscheinlich halten, aber nicht auf eine lustige Art und Weise.} 39. Rdb2 Qxd3 40. Rxb4 f5 (40... a3 41. Ra4 f5 42. R4xa3 Qf1 {seems to be drawish as Black keeps an eye on -f2 pawn and one of the Rooks of White should always be defending the pawn.}) 41. Rbxa4 Qf1 {With pawn on e5 and not on e4, Black has f4 push when neccessary and White is probably not able to pose any real problems here, though he can move around forever, without any risk. Mit dem Bauern auf e5 und nicht auf e4 hat Schwarz wenn nötig die Möglichkeit zu dem Vorstoß f4, und Weiß ist wahrscheinlich nicht in der Lage, hier wirkliche Probleme zu verursachen, obwohl er ewig ohne jedes Risiko herumziehen kann.}) (38... f5 {was best according to engine is the engine way to hold it, but it's a bit far fetched. ist der Engine-Weg, die Sache zu halten, aber es ist ein bisschen weit hergeholt.} 39. Nxe5 (39. Nc5 Qxb4 40. Nxa4 Qb3 {followed by ...-f4 and crushing White King's shield.}) 39... Bc1 40. Re2 a3 41. Rac2 Bb2 42. Nc4 Bf6 {with zeros. mit Nullen.}) 39. Nc5 Qxb4 40. Nxe4 $2 {sad for Magnus, he misses the winning opportunity on critical, the 'control' 40th move! Magnus was probably happy to survive the time trouble and that too, with what looks like a promising position. Instead, he had 40.Rdc2!!, winning the a4 pawn and reaching a won endgame. Magnus war wahrscheinlich froh, die Zeitnot zu überleben, und das auch noch in einer offenbar vielversprechenden Stellung. Stattdessen hatte er 40.Tdc2!!, was den Bauern a4 erobert und ein gewonnenes Endspiel erreicht.} ({Meanwhile} 40. Rdc2 $1 {was nearly winning on the spot!} f5 41. Nxa4 Qxa4 (41... Qb3 42. Nc3 $18 {Knight is getting to -e2 and next hopefully -f4 or -d4.}) (41... Qe7 42. Nc3 Bd6 43. Kg1 f4 44. Nd5 $18) 42. Rc3 {'+-' after the Bishop is taken, White will group the Rooks either on the fifth or seventh rank, after what either f5 or the f7 pawn is going fall.} Qd1 43. Rcxa3 {This endgame looks winning. The idea is that White can smoke the queen out of f1 by using zugzwang. A random example line: Dieses Endspiel sieht gewinnträchtig aus. Die Idee ist, dass Weiß mit Hilfe von Zugzwang die Dame f1 ausräuchern kann. Eine Beispielvariante:} f6 {White can anyway provoke this push later. Weiß kann diesen Vorstoß später sowieso provozieren.} 44. Ra4 Kg6 45. Rd4 Qf1 46. Rd8 Kh6 47. Rd5 Kg6 48. Rad2 {This is the zugzwang position. Once the queen moves, White goes Kg2, the queen is out and then White will join the rooks to target something, for example the 7th rank, or an f-pawn. Black probably has to push f4 and the conversion will take some time, but it feels inevitable and the high engine evaluation suggests the same. Dies ist die Zugzwangstellung. Sobald die Dame zieht, spielt Weiß Kg2, die Dame ist raus, und dann wird Weiß die Türme verbinden, um etwas anzuvisieren, zum Beispiel die 7. Reihe oder einen f-Bauern. Schwarz muss wahrscheinlich mit f4 vorgehen, und die Umwandlung wird einige Zeit in Anspruch nehmen, aber sie scheint unvermeidlich zu sein, und die hohe Engine-Bewertung deutet auf dasselbe hin.}) 40... Qb3 {The fortieth move has been played. The world witnessed Huge Drama! I can only imagine the emotions Team Magnus and Team Nepo had following this game. Despite numerous errors from both sides, position has again stabilized. Now another phase in the game is starting. Good move, Black stays in the game, as he keeps his a-pawn. Guter Zug, Schwarz bleibt im Spiel, da er seinen a-Bauern behält.} 41. Rac2 {prepares Nc5 with the next move, from where it most probably is being redeployed to f4.} Bf8 42. Nc5 (42. Rc8 {is fun, but there is not more than a draw, after macht Spaß, aber es gibt nicht mehr als ein Unentschieden nach} a3 43. Rdd8 a2 44. Rxf8 a1=Q {Black king is almost in a mating net, but not quite. White doesn't have a mate here, only different kinds of perpetual checks. Der schwarze König befindet sich fast in einem Mattnetz, aber nicht ganz. Weiß hat hier kein Matt, nur verschiedene Arten von Dauerschach.}) 42... Qb5 (42... Bxc5 $4 {cannot be played} 43. Rxc5 a3 44. Rc1 $18 {[%cal Gc1a1] followed by Ra1; Rda2 and winning the a-pawn.}) 43. Nd3 a3 {Black gets the passer quite far, protected by the f8 bishop. It is now hard for white to do much, though obviously it is White that can press without any risk here. Schwarz bekommt den Freibauern ziemlich weit, geschützt durch den Läufer auf f8. Jetzt ist es für Weiß schwer, viel zu tun, obwohl offensichtlich er derjenige ist, der ohne Risiko Druck machen kann.} 44. Nf4 {yes, Magnus does bring the Knight on f4. Still position shouldn't be bad for Black.} Qa5 45. Ra2 Bb4 46. Rd3 {White is not in time to pick up the h-pawn with Rd5 and then prevent Qa4-Qb3 counterplay. Weiß ist nicht in der Lage, mit Td5 den h-Bauern zu erobern und dann das Gegenspiel Da4-Db3 zu verhindern.} (46. Rd5 {might win a pawn but worsen White's chances.} Qa6 47. Nxh5+ $6 Kh6 48. Nf4 Qc4 {now White's pieces are discoordinated.} 49. Ra1 Qc3 50. Rdd1 Qc2 51. Nd3 Bf8 $36 {followed by ..-a2}) 46... Kh6 {King comes to a defense of the h5-pawn so now the Queen is free to move around.} 47. Rd1 Qa4 48. Rda1 Bd6 49. Kg1 Qb3 50. Ne2 {Magnus decides his Knight has no longer any potential on -f4 and brings it to -d4 and perhaps later c2-a3?} Qd3 51. Nd4 Kh7 {in order not to get any unpleasant forks from f5.} 52. Kh2 {White can move around endlessly, but Nc2 is not a threat, due to Be5. It seemed as though Black has achieved a fortress, but suddenly he decided to give White a chance to change the nature of the position. Weiß kann endlos herumziehen, aber Sc2 ist aufgrund von Le5 keine Drohung. Es schien, als hätte Schwarz eine Festung erreicht, aber plötzlich entschied er sich, Weiß eine Chance zu geben, den Charakter der Stellung zu ändern.} Qe4 $6 {another controversial decision by Ian. Perhaps another moment where we see Magnus' patience and endurance were superior 'that day'. Possibly a miscalculation. There was no need to trade the a-pawn for the h-pawn and the arising position is not too pleasant to defend, even if still holdable. Möglicherweise eine Fehlkalkulation. Es bestand keine Notwendigkeit, den a-Bauern gegen den h-Bauern zu tauschen, und die entstandene Stellung ist nicht allzu angenehm zu verteidigen, auch wenn sie noch zu halten ist.} (52... Kg6 {A waiting move is what I'd consider doing. The critical thing is, there's yet no direct plan for White how to improve the position!} 53. Nc2 {might look annoying as White's got already three (!) attacks on a3-pawn, but Black has got} Be5 $1 {now} 54. Nd4 {is best what White has got.} (54. Nxa3 {with the try of getting Rook+Knight+pawn against the Queen, in fact might cost White the game.} Qb3 $1 {and White's paralyzed. Next, ...-Bxa1, Rxa1-Qb2 is the idea.})) 53. Rxa3 $1 {Now White gets some hopes!} Qxh4+ (53... Bxa3 54. Rxa3 {[%csl Gh5][%cal Ga3a5,Ga5h5] should be very unpleasant for Black. All their pawns are isolated.}) 54. Kg1 Qe4 {moving to g4 seems more accurate, as it allows a pawn trade. Der Zug nach g4 scheint genauer zu sein, da er einen Bauerntausch ermöglicht.} (54... Qg4 55. Ra4 Be5 56. R1a2 {alternatively 56.Kg2 is met with either 56...Qd7!? or 56...h6!? 57.Rh1 Bxg3! which holds after 58.fxg3 Qe4+! and some further complications. Alternativ wird 56.Kg2 entweder mit 56...Dd7!? oder 56...h6!? beantwortet. 57.Th1 Lxg3!, was nach 58.fxg3 De4+! und einigen weiteren Komplikationen hält.} (56. Kg2 h4 57. Rh1 Bxg3 58. fxg3 Qe4+ 59. Nf3 Qc2+ $1 60. Kf1 Qd3+ $1 (60... Qxa4 $2 61. Rxh4+ $1) 61. Kf2 Qc2+ $1 {an important line, that is very hard to spot. eine wichtige Variante, die sehr schwer zu erkennen ist.}) 56... Qd1+ 57. Kg2 h4 $1 {Trading the weak h-pawn, definitely an achievement for Black. Tauscht den schwachen h-Bauern, definitiv ein Erfolg für Schwarz.} 58. Nf5 hxg3 59. Nxg3 {Black is still suffering, but he is closer to a draw I would feel than before h4-hxg3. Schwarz leidet immer noch, aber ich denke, er ist einem Remis näher als vor h4-hxg3.}) (54... Bxg3 $2 55. fxg3 Qxg3+ 56. Kf1 $18 {and it seems like Black has no eternal checks}) (54... Qh3 55. Ra7 (55. Ra4 $5 {would be quite a try} h4 56. Nf3 Bxg3 $1 57. Rf1 $1 {now White threatens to capture the BIshop, since f3-Knight is defended already} Qd7 $1 58. Rd4 Bd6 $1 59. Rxh4+ Kg7 {After numerous 'only moves', many pawns been removed from the board. I believe Black should be able holding this endgame rather easily.}) 55... h4 56. Rxf7+ Kg8 $1 57. Raa7 hxg3 58. Rg7+ Kh8 59. Rh7+ Qxh7 60. Rxh7+ Kxh7 61. f4 Kg6 62. Kg2 f5 {leads to a drawish endgame.}) 55. Ra4 $1 {Only move for fighting for some edge. With such little annoying moves, Magnus puts serious pressure on his opponents... Usual Magnus stuff...} Be5 (55... Bxg3 56. Ne2 $18) 56. Ne2 Qc2 57. R1a2 Qb3 58. Kg2 {Also Kh2 deserved attention here. Auch Kh2 verdiente hier Aufmerksamkeit.} (58. Kh2 Kg6 $1 {The move to hold on, but Black might not have such an easy task in the rook endgame. Der Zug zum Durchhalten, aber Schwarz könnte im Turmendspiel keine so leichte Aufgabe haben.} 59. Nf4+ Bxf4 60. gxf4 {though most likely it holds with patient defense. obwohl es höchstwahrscheinlich bei geduldiger Verteidigung hält.}) 58... Qd5+ 59. f3 {With last moves White was trying to stabilize and improve King's safety. Objectively, such positions (with perfect play) should end in a draw, however, the problem with Black's position is, they have no much of counterplay. Usually, in such positions White's strategy is to keep the tension and simply potter around. The longer game is, the more Black's chances of going wrong are! Intuitively one wouldn't be thrilled to push the pawn forward, creating the weaknesses, but Carlsen wanted to dislodge Ian's bishop and found a safe spot for his king on f2. Still, 59.Kh2 was definitely a worth alternative, trying to maneuvre around with ideas like Ng1!?. Intuitiv wäre man nicht begeistert, den Bauern nach vorne zu schieben und damit Schwächen zu erzeugen, aber Carlsen wollte Ians Läufer verdrängen und fand einen sicheren Platz für seinen König auf f2. Dennoch war 59.Kh2 definitiv eine lohnende Alternative, um mit Ideen wie Sg1!? herumzumanövrieren.} Qd1 {Black could push f5 right away, but he chooses not to commit yet. Schwarz könnte sofort mit f5 vorgehen, aber er entscheidet sich dafür, sich noch nicht festzulegen.} 60. f4 {In the following phase of the game a lot of random moves are happening. Black is trying to tie white's pieces to the weak e3 pawn, not to allow White to coordinated his forces and collect the pawn weaknesses, or even worse, deliver a checkmate somewhere. In der folgenden Phase der Partie finden viele zufällige Züge statt. Schwarz versucht, die weißen Figuren an den schwachen e3-Bauern zu binden, um Weiß nicht die Möglichkeit zu geben, seine Kräfte zu koordinieren und die Bauernschwächen einzukassieren oder, noch schlimmer, irgendwo ein Matt zu geben.} Bc7 61. Kf2 Bb6 62. Ra1 Qb3 {Black tries putting as much pressure as possible. White has to defend -e3 pawn now.} 63. Re4 {That's what they do} Kg7 64. Re8 {Now White's plan is to play Raa8 and create mating threats!} f5 {Ian opens an air for the King} 65. Raa8 Qb4 66. Rac8 {Again, despite the fact that engines show triple zeros, it's extremely hard to come up with some active plan for Black. Cause, it simply does not exist. Black should instead be in a waiting mode and parry all White's little ideas. That's one of the most difficult things to do in chess. Especially for ambitious Ian.} Ba5 {Black tries to get the Queen on e1} 67. Rc1 {Prevented.} Bb6 68. Re5 {now -f5 is being attacked.} Qb3 {-f5 is defended by attacking the -e3 pawn.} 69. Re8 {Rook return to the place where it came from. Magnus repeats position (had Black played 69...-Qb4). Not because he accepts the draw. It's done to extend the game and tire the opponent.} Qd5 70. Rcc8 Qh1 71. Rc1 Qd5 (71... Qh2+ 72. Kf3 h4 {trying to weaken White's King} 73. gxh4 $18 {[%cal Ge2g3] only weakens Black's! Knight on -g3 will be defending White and attacking Black's King!}) 72. Rb1 {as we can see, position hasn't changed for at least the last ten moves. In such cases the defending side often gets the illusion that he controls the position any way. This illusion may sometimes be misleading. With the next move Ian does small inaccuracy after what Magnus gets a chance to transform the position into Q vs R+N+2p, where the chances of White are higher than they were in case of Q vs 2R A lot of shuffling back and forth, Black must stay alert. Viel Hin- und Hergeschiebe, Schwarz muss wachsam bleiben.} Ba7 {Understandable to keep the bishop on the diagonal hitting the e3 pawn, but there are some concrete issues now. Alternative 72...Bd8! seems to have been better. Verständlich, den Läufer auf der Angriffsdiagonale zum e3-Bauern zu lassen, aber es gibt jetzt einige konkrete Probleme. Die Alternative 72...Ld8! scheint besser gewesen zu sein.} (72... Bd8 73. Re5 Qd3 74. Rbb5 h4 75. Rxf5 hxg3+ 76. Nxg3 Bh4 {Black is holding here, as the White king is too exposed. Schwarz hält sich hier, da der weiße König zu exponiert ist.}) (72... Bc7 {was better. But who would understand that in a practical game?!}) 73. Re7 Bc5 74. Re5 {Suddenly Black has to make only moves. Plötzlich muss Schwarz einzige Züge machen.} Qd3 75. Rb7 {now White Rooks found the ideal setup. How to defend the Bishop? The queen far from h1, allowing White to create all kinds of threats with the rooks. Die Dame ist weit weg von h1, was Weiß erlaubt, mit den Türmen alle möglichen Drohungen zu erzeugen.} Qc2 (75... Bd6 76. Rd7 $18) 76. Rb5 {seems like Black is totally lost now. But tactical nuance keeps them in the game} Ba7 {Black finds a way not to lose the f5 pawn for nothing, but the ensuing position is extremely unpleasant, even though objectively drawn. Schwarz findet einen Weg, den f5-Bauern nicht umsonst zu verlieren, aber die entstehende Stellung ist äußerst unangenehm, obwohl sie objektiv remis ist.} 77. Ra5 Bb6 78. Rab5 Ba7 79. Rxf5 {is what happened couple moves later} Qd3 {'!' Both Rooks are loaded by defending each other. Any Rook coming to e5 in fact doesn't defend the e3-pawn. Black managed to create some play now, as Bxe3+ is there, but now we reach another kind of endgame. Schwarz hat es jetzt geschafft, etwas Spiel zu schaffen, da es Lxe3+ gibt, aber jetzt erreichen wir eine andere Art von Endspiel.} 80. Rxf7+ $1 (80. Rfe5 Bxe3+ 81. Rxe3 Qxb5 $11) (80. Rbe5 Bxe3+ 81. Rxe3 Qxf5 $11) 80... Kxf7 81. Rb7+ Kg6 82. Rxa7 {That's the position we were talking about in our comments to move 72. With the given material on the board Black should still be able to hold the position, however, some precision is already being required from them! That's the position we were talking about on move 72. With given material on the board Black should still be able to hold the endgame, however, some precision is already being required now! We get a terribly unpleasant endgame for Black, which, with perfect defense should be holdable. A lot of shuffling ensues. Wir bekommen ein furchtbar unangenehmes Endspiel für Schwarz, das bei perfekter Verteidigung zu halten sein sollte. Es folgt eine Menge Hin und Her.} Qd5 83. Ra6+ {I remembered one more beautiful game with a similar material balance (R+N+p vs Q) by Carlsen. For those who are interested in studying more of such unbalanced endgame, I'd recommend seeing Carlsen,M - Navara,D game from Biel, 2018.} Kh7 84. Ra1 Kg6 85. Nd4 Qb7 86. Ra2 Qh1 87. Ra6+ Kf7 88. Nf3 Qb1 89. Rd6 Kg7 90. Rd5 Qa2+ 91. Rd2 Qb1 92. Re2 Qb6 93. Rc2 Qb1 94. Nd4 Qh1 95. Rc7+ Kf6 96. Rc6+ Kf7 97. Nf3 Qb1 98. Ng5+ Kg7 99. Ne6+ Kf7 100. Nd4 Qh1 {First 'Century' of the match! You don't see it in chess as often as in snooker!} 101. Rc7+ Kf6 102. Nf3 Qb1 103. Rd7 Qb2+ 104. Rd2 Qb1 105. Ng1 {Magnus decides for the Ne2, Rd4 and e4 setup. Magnus entscheidet sich für den Aufbau Se2, Td4 und e4.} Qb4 106. Rd1 Qb3 107. Rd6+ Kg7 108. Rd4 Qb2+ 109. Ne2 Qb1 110. e4 {with last nearly 40 moves Magnus did nothing much on the board but exhaust his opponent. Ian most probably has to defend for another 50 moves, until Magnus advanced the pawn again one may think...} Qh1 111. Rd7+ Kg8 112. Rd4 Qh2+ 113. Ke3 h4 {Ian takes some actions first. By trading off his last pawn he wants to open up the position of the White King, so he can check it from the flanks as well. On the other hand, g3-pawn was the weakest point in White's position. The e2-Knight was tied to it. Now, once it's gone, g3-square becomes vacant for the Knight. Opening more files should easen Black's defensive task. Das Öffnen von mehr Linien sollte die Verteidigungsaufgabe von Schwarz erleichtern.} 114. gxh4 Qh3+ 115. Kd2 Qxh4 116. Rd3 Kf8 117. Rf3 Qd8+ 118. Ke3 {Now as rightly pointed out by Magnus, getting the knight to g3 was of a great importance for him. Therefore Black had to give a check on b6, inviting the knight to a more central square, but giving White king less safe space on the board. Wie Magnus richtig hervorhob, war es jetzt für ihn von großer Bedeutung, den Springer nach g3 zu bringen. Daher musste Schwarz ein Schach auf b6 geben, was den Springer auf ein zentraleres Feld einlädt, aber dem weißen König weniger sicheren Raum auf dem Brett gibt.} Qa5 $2 119. Kf2 $1 Qa7+ 120. Re3 {Now Magnus gets quite some hopes, as he has a plan of pushing the pawns forwards and with the knight on g3 and king on f3, his king is quite well positioned. Jetzt macht sich Magnus durchaus einige Hoffnungen, denn er hat den Plan, die Bauern nach vorne zu treiben, und mit dem Springer auf g3 und dem König auf f3 steht sein König recht gut.} Qd7 121. Ng3 {Knight stands great on g3. It defends the -e4 pawn and guards the King from checks} Qd2+ 122. Kf3 Qd1+ 123. Re2 Qb3+ 124. Kg2 Qb7 125. Rd2 Qb3 126. Rd5 {The Rook is activated. Seems like White managed to improve the position significantly. Yet, this position is a draw, according to endgame databases.} Ke7 127. Re5+ Kf7 128. Rf5+ Ke8 129. e5 {As it's said in a well known quote: 'Once your all pieces stand well, push your passed pawn!"} Qa2+ 130. Kh3 Qe6 {'?' RIght it's past midnight in Dubai, after 7 hours and 35 minutes of battling, Nepo makes a crutial mistake! Now, according to Lomonosov's 7-piece endgame tablebase White's winning. The losing move according to the tablebases. Keeping the queen behind, would still hold objectively, but by this point it was no easy task. Practically speaking, I feel on move 118 a major mistake happened. Der Verlustzug laut Tablebases. Die Dame hinten zu halten würde objektiv immer noch remisieren, aber zu diesem Zeitpunkt war es keine leichte Aufgabe. Praktisch gesehen glaube ich, dass in Zug 118 ein größerer Fehler passiert ist.} (130... Qb1 {was one of the two moves that keeps Black in the game. Idea is to get the Queen to -d1.} 131. Rf6 Qd1 132. Kh4 (132. Rd6 Qf3 $1 {and Black is safe}) 132... Qe1 $1 {again strictly the only move!} 133. Kg4 Qg1 {and Black is safe. But it's unhuman way of defending!}) (130... Qc2 {with the same idea}) 131. Kh4 {Next is Nh5 and the White king gets to hide in front of the pieces, leaking in via g5-h6. Es folgt Nh5 und der weiße König kann sich vor den Figuren verstecken und über g5-h6 eindringen.} Qh6+ 132. Nh5 Qh7 {The problem with last move of Black is that it's not even threatening anything!} 133. e6 $1 {Carlsen shows extreme precision on 8th hour of the intense battle! The clincher, using the fact that the rook can't be taken because of the fork. Der Gewinnzug, die Tatsache nutzend, dass der Turm wegen der Gabel nicht genommen werden kann.} Qg6 (133... Qxf5 {loses to elementary} 134. Ng7+ $18) (133... Qe7+ 134. Kg4 (134. Rf6 $4 Qa7) 134... Qb7 135. Rd5 $1 {beautiful way of killing all Black's hopes}) (133... Qa7 134. Kg5 {only!} Qg1+ 135. Kf6 {activity of the King decides the game!}) 134. Rf7 Kd8 (134... Qh6 {in one of the live broadcasts a very strong GM suggested} 135. Rh7 $2 {it shows how tiring a chess game can be and how difficult it is to keep the concentration for the duration of 7-8 hours! It's never late to make a mistake and lose a game...} Qxh7 {and there's no Nf6 fork due to the pin. Black wins!}) (134... Qxe6 135. Ng7+ Kxf7 136. Nxe6 Kxe6 137. Kg5 {leads to a winning pawn endgame} Kf7 138. Kf5 $1 $18 {Last touch. The opposition.}) 135. f5 Qg1 136. Ng7 {'!' What a beautiful final touch! Carlsen creates an escape square on -g8 for the King. Black resigns. I bet this game will be remembered yet for a very long time. That's when Magnus turned the equal going match into his favor. A very elegant win. White runs the king up the board to g8, where it hides from checks and then e7-e8 decides. What a game! Ein sehr eleganter Sieg. Weiß lässt den König das Brett hinauf nach g8 laufen, wo er sich vor Schachs versteckt, und dann entscheidet e7-e8. Was für eine Partie!} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.15"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Esipenko, Andrey"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D45"]
[WhiteElo "2714"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "42"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 b6 7. b3 Bb7 8. Bd3 Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bb2 c5 ({RR} 10... Re8 11. Rad1 Rc8 12. e4 e5 13. exd5 cxd5 14. Nb5 Bb8 15. dxe5 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Bxe5 18. Bxe5 Rxe5 19. Nd6 Nd5 20. Nxc8 Nf4 21. Kh1 Rh5 22. Bxf7+ {1-0 (22) Shankland,S (2725)-Dreev,A (2670) Chess.com INT 2019}) ({RR} 10... h6 11. e4 dxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Nf6 14. c5 Nxe4 15. Qxe4 Bc7 16. Ne5 Qd5 17. Qxd5 exd5 18. Rac1 b5 19. Rfe1 Rfd8 20. Bc3 Re8 21. f3 f6 22. Nd3 Kf7 23. Rxe8 Rxe8 24. Re1 Ra8 25. Bd2 {Yanchenko,R (2462)-Esipenko,A (2599) Yaroslavl 2018 ½-½ (56)}) 11. cxd5 exd5 12. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 12. dxc5 bxc5 13. e4 d4 14. Nb5 Bf4 15. g3 Bb8 16. Ba3 Ng4 {½-½ (16) Czakon,J (2477)-Stohl,I (2533) Czech Republic 2005}) ({RR} 12. h3 Rc8 13. Qe2 Re8 14. Nb5 Bb8 15. Rfd1 Qe7 16. Rac1 Ne4 17. dxc5 bxc5 18. Bb1 Ndf6 19. Nc3 Nxc3 20. Bxc3 d4 21. Bd2 Qd6 22. Bf5 Rcd8 23. Ba5 Bxf3 24. Qxf3 Qh2+ 25. Kf1 Rd5 26. e4 Rxf5 {Jian,A (2031)-Poormosavi,S (2381) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 12... Re8 13. Rac1 a6 14. Bf5 Rc8 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. Na4 Rc7 17. Bc3 Qe7 18. Ba5 Rc6 19. Bc3 Rc7 20. Ba5 Rc6 21. Bc3 Rc7 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.16"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2865"]
[BlackElo "2772"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,71,34,34,28,-11,-16,-16,-8,-50,-17,-11,4,-17,19,-70,-67,-67,17,-34,-34,-34,-11,-58,-23,-89,4,19,-9,-7,-37,-51,-22,-28,-28,-73,-53,-41,40,-47,-4,-11,-2,-26,59,16,16,-33,82,134,151,179,179,202,220,224,224,224,224,165,165,176,176,119,197,191,190,212,197,181,231,229,226,227]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Na3 $6 {Magnus had added the Catalan to his repertoire for the World Championship match, and there played the main move 7 Qc2. With Giri being an expert on the white side as well, it felt natural to try and surpise with a sideline, even at the price of it being perhaps somewhat dubious.} Bxa3 8. bxa3 Bd7 {The solid and sensible reply. 8...b5 is possible, as 9 a4 can be answered by 9...a6! due to white having doubled pawns in the a-line. White has ways to get decent compensation, but whe is objectively better is an open question.} 9. a4 $5 {Vey rare.} Bc6 10. Ba3 Re8 11. Qc2 Nbd7 12. Rac1 {It is a strange kind of position where white can get his pawn back by Qxc4, but only to immediately lose one back after the reply ...Nb6. For black it is not that trivial making a useful move here. 12...Bd5 is followed by13 Rfe1 with e4 to follow, and 12...Nb6 obviously is poked by 13.a5. The game move, along with 12...a5 are reasonable choices, and leads to position like in the game, where white will be a pawn down, but for sufficient compensation.} a6 13. Qxc4 Nb6 14. Qc3 $5 {Luring the knight to tale onm a4 instead of the bishop, and thus getting black a bit more out of balance.} ({RR} 14. Qd3 Be4 15. Qb3 Bd5 16. Qd3 Be4 17. Qb3 Bd5 18. Qc2 a5 19. Rfe1 Bxf3 20. Bxf3 Qxd4 21. Bxb7 Rab8 22. Bc6 Red8 23. Red1 Qe5 24. e4 Qh5 25. Be7 Rxd1+ 26. Qxd1 Ng4 27. h4 f6 28. Bb5 Qg6 {Nilsen,J (2406)-Oye-Stromberg,A (2318) Norway NOR 2025 ½-½ (33)}) 14... Nxa4 15. Qb3 {Again Giri is left with atypical positions to evaluate.} Qd5 $146 (15... Nb6 16. Rxc6 bxc6) ({and} 15... Bb5 16. Rfe1 {followed by 17 e4 obviously leaves whote with compensation for either the exchange or the pawn. Again, it is not a given that it is white who is objectively better, but the pressure on black is considerable from a practical perspective.}) ({RR} 15... Bb5 16. Rfe1 Rc8 17. e4 c6 18. h4 Nd7 19. e5 c5 20. Ng5 cxd4 21. Be4 g6 22. Qf3 Nxe5 23. Qf4 Rxc1 24. Bxc1 f6 25. Nxh7 Kxh7 26. Bxg6+ Kg8 27. Rxe5 Qc7 28. Qxf6 Qxc1+ 29. Kh2 Rf8 30. Bh7+ {Ivanisevic,I (2601)-Cvitan,O (2458) Terme Catez 2022 1-0}) 16. Rxc6 $1 Qxc6 17. Ne5 Qb5 18. Qc2 $1 {Black is a pawn and an exchange up, but the threat of 19.Rb1 still leves him in a very critical situation.} Nd5 $2 (18... Reb8 19. Rb1 Qe8 {is the way to somewhat cordinate while still keeping the knight on a4 protected, but after} 20. Bxb7 {white wins back the pawn and the exchange, keeping some edge.}) ({It is however possible to cut the gordian knot by} 18... Nb6 $1 19. Bxb7 Nc4 $1 {when the tactics do work out in black's favor to the extend that he secures the draw after} 20. Bxa8 Nxa3 21. Qxc7 $2 ({and thus white is left with} 21. Qc6 {when} Qxe2 {holds the balance}) 21... Rxa8 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 23. Qxe6 Qe8 $1 {parries the attack,}) 19. Rb1 Qa5 20. Bxd5 $6 {Probably enough to keep a winning position,} ({but} 20. Be4 $1 {was a much cleaner solution. The point being that after} g6 21. Bxd5 {White gets a much improved version of the game. The f6 square is weakened, but even more importantly so is the 7. rank! The main point being} Qxd5 {now can be met by} 22. Qxc7 b5 23. Qxf7+ Kh8 24. Rc1 $1 {with an immediate win as 25 Rc7 is unstoppable with mate to follow.}) 20... exd5 $2 {Giri thought for quite a while here, making this a puzzling mistake.} (20... Qxd5 {now is possible as} 21. Qxc7 (21. Qxa4 f6 $1 22. Nd3 Qxa2) 21... b5 $1 22. Qxf7+ Kh8 {leaves white lacking an obvious next move to strengthen the attack. So he will have to settle for 21 Qxa4 f6! 22 Nd3 Qxa2.}) (20... Nc3 21. Bb4 $1 Nxe2+ 22. Qxe2 Qxd5 23. Rc1 c6 {In both scenarios white has the better position where his 2 pieces and attacking chances outweighs black's rook and 2 pawns. Still black very much has chances to defend, especially due to the black pawn still being on g7!}) 21. Rxb7 {Blacks position is worse than it perhaps seems. The threat is 22 Bb4 trapping the black queen, and while it can escape via 22...Qe1+ it just means that after 23 Kg2 the knight on a4 lacks protection. Thus black has to time to defend against the threat on the 7-rank. Giri takes drastic measures, but it is too late.} c5 22. Qf5 Rf8 23. Nxf7 Qd8 24. dxc5 $1 {Blacks problem is that while he did hame numerous way to prevent immediate mate, they all come at too high a price.} Qf6 $5 25. Qxf6 $1 {The only winning move, as} (25. Qxd5 $4 Nc3 $1 {turns the tables to the extend where it is white who then has to force the draw with} 26. Nh6+ Kh8 27. Nf7+) 25... gxf6 26. Nh6+ Kh8 27. c6 Rfc8 28. c7 {Black is doomed to passively await the transfer of the white knight to d6.} Nc3 29. Bb2 d4 30. Nf7+ Kg7 31. Nd6 Kg6 {oses trivialy.} (31... Nxe2+ 32. Kf1 Nc3 33. Bxc3 dxc3 34. Ke2 {oses trivially.}) 32. Kf1 Nb5 33. Nxc8 Rxc8 34. a4 Nxc7 35. Bxd4 Ne6 36. Be3 {And here Giri resigned.} 1-0

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.22"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Praggnanandhaa, Rameshbabu"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D27"]
[WhiteElo "2612"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 dxc4 4. e3 a6 5. Bxc4 Nf6 6. O-O c5 7. b3 b6 8. Ba3 Nbd7 9. d5 exd5 10. Bxd5 Rb8 11. Bb2 Be7 12. Nc3 O-O 13. Qc2 b5 14. Rfd1 Qc7 15. a4 $146 ({RR} 15. Be4 Nb6 16. Bd3 Bg4 17. Ne4 Bxf3 18. gxf3 Nfd5 19. Ng3 g6 20. Be4 Rfd8 21. f4 Rbc8 22. a4 bxa4 23. Bxd5 Nxd5 24. Rxd5 Rxd5 25. Qc3 f6 26. Qc4 Qb7 27. e4 Qxb3 28. Qxd5+ Kf8 29. Qxb3 axb3 {Le,Q (2728)-Aronian,L (2759) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (57)}) 15... h6 16. axb5 axb5 17. Qe2 Qb6 18. e4 Re8 19. Qd2 Bf8 20. Qf4 b4 21. Na4 Nxd5 22. Rxd5 Qe6 23. Rad1 Ra8 24. Qc1 Qxe4 25. h3 Ra7 26. Qd2 Qg6 27. Nh4 Qe6 28. Nf5 c4 29. Qd4 Nf6 30. Nb6 c3 31. Nxc8 Qxd5 32. Qxd5 Nxd5 33. Nxa7 cxb2 34. Rb1 Re2 0-1

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.23"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Shankland, Samuel L"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D32"]
[WhiteElo "2708"]
[BlackElo "2865"]
[PlyCount "69"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. cxd5 cxd4 5. Qa4+ Bd7 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. Qxd5 Nf6 8. Qb3 Na6 9. Nf3 Nc5 10. Qc2 Rc8 11. e3 Nce4 12. Bd3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nd5 14. O-O Nxc3 15. Bb2 Bb4 $146 ({RR} 15... Na4 16. Qe2 Nxb2 17. Qxb2 Qb6 18. Qe5+ Qe6 19. Rab1 b6 20. Rfc1 Rxc1+ 21. Rxc1 Qxe5 22. Nxe5 Bc5 23. Bc4 Be6 24. Bxe6 fxe6 25. Nd3 Kf7 26. Nxc5 bxc5 27. Rxc5 Rb8 28. g3 Kf6 29. Rc7 a5 30. Ra7 {Ismagilov,D (2173)-Tari,A (2636) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (56)}) 16. Bxc3 Bxc3 17. Rab1 Bf6 18. Qe2 Rc7 19. e4 O-O 20. e5 Be7 21. Nd4 Bc5 22. e6 Bxe6 23. Nxe6 fxe6 24. Qxe6+ Kh8 25. Qh3 h6 26. Qg3 Rd7 27. Rb3 Rf6 28. h3 b6 29. Be2 Rd2 30. Rd3 Rxd3 31. Bxd3 Qd6 32. Qxd6 Rxd6 33. Rd1 g5 34. Kf1 Kg7 35. Bc2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Tata Steel-A 84th"]
[Site "Wijk aan Zee"]
[Date "2022.01.25"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Mamedyarov, Shakhriyar"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2865"]
[BlackElo "2767"]
[Annotator "Nielsen,Peter Heine"]
[PlyCount "53"]
[EventDate "2022.01.15"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "13"]
[EventCountry "NED"]
[EventCategory "20"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 206"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.02.28"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,53,58,42,26,19,50,-24,-14,-55,-34,-40,-40,3,10,-24,11,-37,22,-75,3,-5,31,21,22,1,119,117,152,81,149,132,132,132,124,124,125,72,184,87,186,165,187,124,111,122,122,50,115,45,213,143,225,225,235,235]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. c4 e6 4. g3 dxc4 5. Bg2 Bb4+ 6. Bd2 a5 {Perhaps a sideline against the Catalan, but a respectable one used by Topalov in both his WC matches against Kramnik and Anand. For Magnus it was perhaps bad memories, as back in 2010, in Wijk Aan Zee, he lost with the white pieces against excatly Kramnik. Then he tried the rare 7 Nc3, while by now 7 Qc2 has been accepted as the main line.} 7. O-O O-O 8. e3 $6 {While 7 0-0 is still quite respectable, this is considered dubious, and when Mamedyarov at the closing ceremony praised Magnus for playing like a computer, he highligthed exactly 8 e3 as the exception! And, like versus Giri, this does indeed initiate a sequence where one can argue that who is objectively better is an open question, then from a practical perspective it is white who has the fun of attacking the opposing king!} Ra6 $5 {Numerous moves exist, but this one is praised by the computer and it is likely that Mamedyarov recalled it from his preparations. Black now keeps his extra pawn and secures the long diagonal,} 9. Qc2 b5 10. a4 c6 11. Nc3 Rb6 12. e4 {White threatens to play 13 e5 followed by 14 Ng5 provoking ...g6 which would severely weaken the dark squares around the black king. Mamedyarovs move thus is logical, but the engines insists that 12...h6 is cirtical, where indeed white has to prove that his attack on the kingside is real. White has numerous tries, with 13 e5 followed by 14 Qe4 as the most obvious.} Be7 13. e5 Nd5 14. axb5 $146 ({Black's idea is that after} 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bxa5 b4 {his compensation for the exchange is obvious. The computer claims that after} 16. Bxb6 Qxb6 17. a5 $1 Qa7 18. b3 $1 {white still has hopes for an edge, but obviously he is also riunning strategic risk, and has a much version of the exchange sacrifice than in the game.}) ({RR} 14. Nxd5 cxd5 15. Bxa5 b4 16. Bxb6 Qxb6 17. a5 Qa7 18. h4 Nc6 19. Qd2 Nxa5 20. h5 h6 21. g4 Qb6 22. Qe3 Bd7 23. Rfe1 Rc8 24. g5 hxg5 25. Nxg5 Nb3 26. Rad1 c3 27. h6 gxh6 28. Nh3 c2 {Sevian,S (2684)-Mamedyarov,S (2767) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (55)}) 14... cxb5 $6 {With hindsight a bad decision, but the kind of decision, if your opponent was not Magnus, perhaps would have won you the game. Mamedyarov insists on sacrificing the exchange, and leaves white no option, but to accept.} (14... Nb4 $5 {was the computers way of doing it, with} 15. Qe4 cxb5 16. Qg4 f5 $5 {being the plan with an unclear position evaluated as equal by the machines.}) 15. Nxd5 exd5 16. Bxa5 Nc6 17. Bxb6 Qxb6 {Black's compensation is very visible. White has a weak pawn on d4, which black is set up well to attack, with ...Bg4 being next, undermining the vital defender. As well ...b4 will almost quarantee that black gets a passed pawn on the queen side, and add to that the pair of bishop the compensation does indeed seem more than sufficient.} 18. Ra8 $1 {This game is decided at move 18 & 19, and when Mamedyarov talks about Magnus playing like a computer, it can be boiled down to this sequence where he understands the position better than his opponent. The general factors in the postion, as described previously are noit unfavorubale for black, so white need to catch black when he is still unbalanced. Mamedyarov continiues making logical moves, but the position, despite perhaps looking to have slowed down after a tactical sequence hangs on very concrete specifics. That urgency also was required by white is illustrated that by 18 h3, preventing ...Bg4 then after 18...Be6 black already has a pleasant position.} h6 $2 {A very logical move.} (18... Be6 {allows} 19. Rxf8+ Bxf8 20. Ng5 {attacking both mate on h7, as well as the bishop on e6. Mamedyarov most likely stopped his calculations here, but after} g6 {black's position is actually fine, as white has no consequent follow-up, meaning the pawn on d4 will fall.}) ({Similarly} 18... b4 {intending to follow with ...b3! fixing the pawn structure just in time also would have given black decent counterplay.}) 19. Rfa1 {A good move, and if 19 Rxc8!? Rxc8 20 Qf5 followed by 21 e6 was even better is more of a philosophical question, as both leaves white with a considerable edge.} (19. Rxc8 $5 Rxc8 20. Qf5 {[%cal Ge5e6]}) 19... Be6 $2 {Another very logical looking move, whereafter however the position is completely lost!} ({The absolutely last chance was to play} 19... b4 {intending 20...b3, exploiting that} 20. b3 Nxd4 $1 {is possible with} 21. Nxd4 Qxd4 22. Rd1 Bf5 $1 {being the point.}) 20. Qd1 $1 {As innocent looking as it gets, but crushing. White coordinated his defences, and managed to double in the a-line before retreating his queen.} b4 {Forces events, but as white is in time with his defence, it just makes things worse from blacks perspective. But black has no reasonable other moves. He has to keep attacking d4, as else white regroups with Ne1-c2.} 21. b3 $1 c3 22. R8a6 $1 {Forcing the queen away from attacking d4.} Qc7 23. Ne1 $1 {2 key aims have been acheived: Black's passed pawn is solidly blocked, and the knight was released of its defensive duties, and can now re-route towards e3.} f6 $6 {Making things worse, but black's position was beyond repair anyway.} 24. Nd3 $1 fxe5 25. Nxe5 Nxe5 26. Rxe6 $1 c2 27. Qe1 {And as 27...Nd3 28 Rxe7 wins easily Mamedyarov resigned.} (27. Qe1 Nd3 28. Rxe7 $18) 1-0

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "1.1"]
[White "Ivanchuk, Vassily"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A32"]
[WhiteElo "2678"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Ukraine"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5 4. Nf3 cxd4 5. Nxd4 Nf6 6. cxd5 Nxd5 7. Bd2 Be7 8. e4 Nxc3 9. Bxc3 O-O 10. Bd3 ({RR} 10. Be2 Qb6 11. O-O Rd8 12. Qb3 Na6 13. Qxb6 axb6 14. Bxa6 Rxa6 15. a3 Bd7 16. Rfd1 Kf8 17. Nc2 Raa8 18. Kf1 Bb5+ 19. Ke1 Bd3 20. Ne3 Bxe4 21. f3 Bc6 22. Nc4 b5 23. Ne5 Bd5 24. Rac1 f6 {Carlsen,M (2863)-So,W (2770) chess24.com INT 2020 ½-½ (53)}) 10... Qb6 ({RR} 10... Nd7 11. O-O Bf6 12. f4 e5 13. Nf3 Re8 14. Kh1 exf4 15. e5 Be7 16. Qc2 Nf8 17. Rad1 Qb6 18. Qa4 Be6 19. Qxf4 Ng6 20. Qa4 Rad8 21. Ba5 Bd7 22. Qxd7 Qxa5 23. Qxb7 Qxa2 24. Bxg6 hxg6 25. Qxe7 {Bortnyk,M (2381)-Huston,G (2316) New York USA 2025 1-0}) 11. O-O Rd8 12. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 12. Nf3 Nc6 13. Qe2 Nb4 14. Bc4 Nc6 15. h4 Bb4 16. h5 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Qc5 18. e5 Bd7 19. Qe4 h6 20. Bd3 Kf8 21. Rab1 Qd5 22. Rxb7 Bc8 23. Rc7 Qxd3 24. Qxc6 Qd5 25. Qa4 a5 26. Qa3+ Kg8 {Navaratnam,R (2071)-Rudzinska,M (2315) Bydgoszcz 2022 ½-½ (61)}) 12... Bd7 13. Qh5 Be8 14. Rfd1 Nc6 15. Nxc6 Bxc6 16. Qg4 Bf8 17. h4 Rd7 18. h5 Rad8 19. Bc2 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 h6 21. Rxd8 Qxd8 22. a3 a6 23. g3 Qd6 24. Kf1 Qc5 25. Kg1 Qc4 26. Qf3 f5 27. Bd3 Qa4 28. Qe2 Bxe4 29. Bxe4 fxe4 30. Qg4 Qc4 31. Qg6 Qd5 32. Qe8 a5 33. a4 b6 34. Kh2 Qf5 35. Kg1 Kh7 36. Bd4 Bc5 37. Bxc5 bxc5 38. b3 Qg4 39. Kh2 Qf5 40. Kg1 e5 41. Qa8 e3 42. fxe3 Qb1+ 43. Kf2 Qc2+ 44. Kf3 Qd1+ 45. Kf2 Qxb3 46. Qxa5 Qc2+ 47. Kf3 Qf5+ 48. Kg2 e4 49. Qe1 Qxh5 50. a5 Qf7 51. Qa1 Qf3+ 52. Kh2 Qxe3 53. a6 Qf2+ 54. Kh3 Qf5+ 55. Kh2 e3 0-1

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "3.3"]
[White "Kuzubov, Yuriy"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D10"]
[WhiteElo "2639"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "81"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Ukraine"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "UKR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. e3 Bf5 4. Nc3 e6 5. Nge2 Nf6 6. Ng3 Bg6 7. Bd3 Nbd7 ({RR} 7... Bxd3 8. Qxd3 Nbd7 9. cxd5 exd5 10. O-O Be7 11. Nf5 O-O 12. Bd2 Re8 13. f3 c5 14. Rae1 Bf8 15. g4 g6 16. Ng3 Bd6 17. Kg2 cxd4 18. exd4 Nf8 19. g5 Bxg3 20. hxg3 Rxe1 21. Rxe1 Ne8 22. Rxe8 {Gyokbulut,J (1923)-Buyuk,E (1931) Gaziantep TUR 2024 1-0 (57)}) 8. O-O Bd6 $146 ({RR} 8... Be7 9. cxd5 cxd5 10. Bxg6 hxg6 11. Qd3 Rc8 12. Bd2 a6 13. Rac1 O-O 14. Rc2 Nb6 15. b3 Ba3 16. Nb1 Rxc2 17. Qxc2 Bd6 18. Rc1 Ng4 19. Nf1 Qh4 20. g3 Qf6 21. Be1 g5 22. Qe2 Nh6 23. Kg2 {Kuzubov,Y (2643)-Holt,C (2549) Chess.com INT 2020 0-1 (62)}) 9. Re1 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Qa5 11. cxd5 cxd5 12. Bd2 O-O 13. Nb5 Qa6 14. a4 Rfc8 15. f3 b6 16. e4 Bf8 17. e5 Ne8 18. f4 g6 19. h4 Qb7 20. h5 a6 21. Nc3 Ng7 22. h6 Ne8 23. f5 exf5 24. Nxf5 gxf5 25. Qxf5 Rc6 26. Rf1 Nb8 27. Nxd5 Rg6 28. Nf4 Bxh6 29. Nxg6 hxg6 30. Qg4 Bxd2 31. e6 f6 32. Qxg6+ Ng7 33. Ra3 Qd5 34. Qf7+ Kh7 35. Rh3+ Bh6 36. Qxf6 Nh5 37. Qf7+ Ng7 38. Rf6 Qxd4+ 39. Kh1 Qd1+ 40. Kh2 Qd6+ 41. Rg3 1-0

[Event "NOR-UKR Solidarity m"]
[Site "Tornelo INT"]
[Date "2022.04.23"]
[Round "4.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Shevchenko, Kirill"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A50"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2652"]
[PlyCount "46"]
[EventDate "2022.04.23"]
[EventType "team-match"]
[EventRounds "4"]
[EventCountry "UKR"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 207 Extra"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.05.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Ukraine"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "UKR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Bf4 Qb6 4. Qd2 Ne4 5. Qc2 d5 6. e3 Bf5 7. Bd3 dxc4 8. Bxe4 Bxe4 9. Qxe4 Qxb2 10. Bxb8 $146 ({RR} 10. Ne2 Qxa1 11. Qc2 e5 ({RR} 11... Na6 12. O-O Nb4 13. Qxc4 e6 14. a3 Qa2 15. Qxa2 Nxa2 16. Rd1 a5 17. Rd2 Nb4 18. axb4 axb4 19. Nc1 Be7 20. Rc2 g5 21. Bg3 Kd7 22. Nd2 Ra3 23. Kf1 Rha8 24. Ke2 h5 25. Nc4 h4 26. Be5) 12. O-O exf4 13. Nbc3 Qxf1+ 14. Kxf1 fxe3 15. Qe4+ Be7 16. d5 cxd5 17. Nxd5 Nc6 18. Nd4 Kd7 19. Nxc6 Kxc6 20. Nxe7+ Kc5 21. Qd5+ Kb4 22. Qxb7+ Ka3 23. Qa6+ Kb2 24. Qxc4 Rhd8 {Duda,J (2729)-Stribuk,A (2486) chess.com INT 2025 1-0}) 10... Qc1+ 11. Ke2 Rxb8 12. Nf3 Qxh1 13. Qe5 Rd8 14. Ne1 h5 15. Nc3 Rh6 16. Rb1 b6 17. h3 Re6 18. Qc7 g6 19. Qg3 h4 20. Qxh4 Qh2 21. g3 Bg7 22. Nf3 Qg2 23. Qh7 Rf6 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.01"]
[Round "2"]
[White "So, Wesley"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D46"]
[WhiteElo "2776"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "75"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Qc2 Bd6 7. Bd3 O-O 8. O-O h6 9. b3 e5 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. Nxd5 cxd5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Nxe5 Bxe5 14. Bb2 Qf6 15. Bxe5 Qxe5 16. Rac1 Bd7 17. Qc7 Qxc7 18. Rxc7 Bc6 19. Rc1 $146 ({RR} 19. b4 Rac8 20. Rxc8 Rxc8 21. Rc1 Bd7 22. Rxc8+ Bxc8 23. Kf1 Kf8 24. Ke2 Ke7 25. Bb5 a6 26. Ba4 b5 27. Bb3 Bb7 28. Kd3 f6 29. Kd4 Kd6 30. h4 g5 31. h5 Bc6 32. a3 Bb7 33. Bc2 Bc8 {Demir,B (2099)-Avci,A (1844) Konya 2016 ½-½ (43)}) 19... Rfc8 20. Rxc8+ Rxc8 21. Kf1 Kf8 22. Ke2 Bd7 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Kd2 Ke7 25. Kc3 Kd6 26. b4 b6 27. Kd4 a5 28. b5 Bd7 29. a4 Bc8 30. f4 f6 31. f5 Bb7 32. g3 Bc8 33. Bc2 Bd7 34. g4 Bc8 35. Bb3 Bb7 36. Ba2 Ba8 37. Bb3 Bb7 38. Ba2 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.02"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Radjabov, Teimour"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2753"]
[PlyCount "71"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 b5 8. a4 Bb7 9. axb5 a6 10. bxa6 Nxa6 11. Qxc4 Bd5 12. Qc3 c5 13. Bf4 ({RR} 13. Be3 Ne4 14. Qe1 Nb4 15. Nc3 Nc2 16. Rxa8 Qxa8 17. Qc1 Nxe3 18. Qxe3 Nxc3 19. bxc3 cxd4 20. cxd4 Rd8 21. Qf4 h6 22. h4 Bf6 23. e3 Rc8 24. Ne1 Bxg2 25. Nxg2 Rc4 26. Qg4 e5 27. Qe2 Qc6 {Giri,A (2772)-Nepomniachtchi,I (2782) Warsaw 2021 ½-½ (43)}) 13... Ne4 14. Qc1 cxd4 15. Nxd4 Nec5 $146 ({RR} 15... Nb4 16. Nc3 Nxc3 17. bxc3 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 Rc8 19. Bd2 Bf6 20. Nf3 Nd5 21. Ra3 Rc4 22. Qb2 Qc7 23. Rc1 Rc8 24. Qa2 Nxc3 25. Bxc3 Rxc3 26. Raxc3 Bxc3 27. Qa6 Qd8 28. h4 Ra8 29. Rd1 Qe8 30. Qd3 {Rapport,R (2748)-Saric,I (2659) Budva MNE 2023 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 15... Nxf2 16. Nc6 Nh3+ 17. Bxh3 Qb6+ 18. Be3 Qxc6 19. Qxc6 Bxc6 20. Nc3 Nb4 21. Rxa8 Rxa8 22. Rd1 h6 23. Bg2 Bf6 24. Bd4 Bxg2 25. Bxf6 Nd5 26. Nxd5 Bxd5 27. Bc3 f6 28. Kf2 Kf7 29. Rd4 Ra1 30. e4 {Postny,E (2525)-Paravyan,D (2589) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (53)}) 16. Bxd5 Qxd5 17. Be3 Qb7 18. Nd2 Rac8 19. Qb1 Nb4 20. N4f3 Qb5 21. Re1 Rfd8 22. Kf1 h6 23. Rc1 Bf8 24. Ne4 Nb3 25. Rxc8 Rxc8 26. Nc3 Qb7 27. Ra4 Nd5 28. Nxd5 Qxd5 29. Kg2 Qc6 30. Ra7 g5 31. Qd3 Nc5 32. Qc4 Qb6 33. Qa2 Qc6 34. b4 Nd7 35. b5 Qd6 36. Qa6 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.03"]
[Round "4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Giri, Anish"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D50"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2761"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c5 5. cxd5 cxd4 6. Qxd4 exd5 7. Bg5 Be7 8. e3 O-O 9. Be2 Nc6 10. Qd3 h6 11. Bh4 Be6 12. O-O Qb6 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nxd5 Bxd5 15. Qxd5 Qxb2 16. Bc4 Qxa1 $146 ({RR} 16... Qa3 17. Rad1 Na5 18. Bd3 g6 19. Bxg6 Rad8 20. Qh5 fxg6 21. Qxg6+ Bg7 22. Qe6+ Kh7 23. Qe4+ Kg8 24. Qe6+ Kh7 25. Qe4+ Kg8 {½-½ (25) Berkes,F (2613)-Csonka,B (2479) Nova Gorica SLO 2024}) ({RR} 16... Rad8 17. Qf5 Qb4 18. Rac1 Qa5 19. Qb1 Rd7 20. Rfd1 Rfd8 21. Rxd7 Rxd7 22. g3 Ne5 23. Nxe5 Qxe5 24. Bb3 Rc7 25. Rd1 Qe7 26. Qf5 Kh8 27. Qf4 Kh7 28. Rd5 g6 29. h4 h5 30. g4 hxg4 31. h5 {Dai,C (2557)-Huang,R (2487) Beijing CHN 2025 ½-½ (34)}) 17. Rxa1 Bxa1 18. g4 Rae8 19. h4 Re7 20. g5 hxg5 21. Nxg5 Bf6 22. Qf5 Bxg5 23. hxg5 Re5 24. Qf4 Rc5 25. g6 Ne5 26. gxf7+ Nxf7 27. Be6 Rh5 28. Qc7 g5 29. Qxb7 Rh6 30. Bb3 g4 31. Qxa7 Kg7 32. e4 Rh5 33. Qc7 Kf6 34. a4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 10th"]
[Site "Stavanger"]
[Date "2022.06.09"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Vachier Lagrave, Maxime"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D85"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2750"]
[PlyCount "157"]
[EventDate "2022.05.31"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "NOR"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "CBM 209"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.08.31"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 Nxd5 5. e4 Nxc3 6. bxc3 Bg7 7. Bb5+ c6 8. Ba4 b5 9. Bb3 a5 10. Nf3 O-O 11. O-O a4 12. Bc2 c5 13. Rb1 Bg4 ({RR} 13... Nc6 14. e5 Rb8 15. Be4 Bf5 16. Bxf5 gxf5 17. Qd3 Qd7 18. Rd1 Rfd8 19. Bf4 cxd4 20. cxd4 e6 21. Bg5 Rdc8 22. Qe3 Ne7 23. Bf6 h6 24. Qf4 Ng6 25. Qg3 Kh7 26. d5 exd5 27. Rb4 Rc4 28. Rxc4 {Carlsen,M (2864)-Vachier Lagrave,M (2750) Stavanger 2022 1-0 (54)}) 14. e5 $146 ({RR} 14. Rxb5 Bxf3 15. Qxf3 cxd4 16. cxd4 Nc6 17. Be3 Nxd4 18. Bxd4 Qxd4 19. a3 Rfd8 20. Rb4 Qd2 21. Rc4 Rd4 22. Rxd4 Bxd4 23. e5 Ra5 24. e6 fxe6 25. Bd3 Bf6 26. Bc4 Kg7 27. Bxe6 Re5 28. Bc4 Qc2 {Moroni,L (2588)-Deac,B (2679) Chess.com INT 2022 ½-½ (83)}) 14... Nc6 15. Be4 Rc8 16. h3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Qd7 18. Bd3 cxd4 19. Bxb5 dxc3 20. Qxc3 Qd5 21. Bxa4 Qxa2 22. Ra1 Nxe5 23. Rxa2 Rxc3 24. Bd2 Rcc8 25. Bb5 Rc5 26. Be2 Nc6 27. Rc1 Rxc1+ 28. Bxc1 Rb8 29. Be3 Bd4 30. Bh6 Bg7 31. Be3 h5 32. g3 e6 33. Kg2 Nb4 34. Rd2 Nd5 35. Rd3 Nxe3+ 36. Rxe3 Bd4 37. Rd3 e5 38. Rd2 Kg7 39. h4 Kh6 40. f4 Be3 41. Rd7 exf4 42. gxf4 f5 43. Kf3 Bc1 44. Bc4 Rc8 45. Bf7 Rc3+ 46. Kg2 Bxf4 47. Bg8 g5 48. Be6 Kg6 49. Rd5 g4 50. Bxf5+ Kf6 51. Bh7 Be5 52. Bg6 g3 53. Ra5 Rc4 54. Ra6+ Kg7 55. Bxh5 Rxh4 56. Rg6+ Kh7 57. Rg5 Rh2+ 58. Kf3 Rf2+ 59. Kg4 Bf4 60. Rg6 Rf1 61. Kf5 Bg5+ 62. Ke4 Rf4+ 63. Kd3 Rf5 64. Ke4 Rf4+ 65. Kd3 Bh4 66. Re6 g2 67. Rg6 Rf5 68. Rxg2 Rxh5 69. Ke4 Bf6 70. Kf4 Bg7 71. Ke4 Kg8 72. Rg6 Kf7 73. Ra6 Bf6 74. Ra8 Rh4+ 75. Kf5 Rh5+ 76. Ke4 Rb5 77. Kf4 Be5+ 78. Ke4 Bd6 79. Rh8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.02"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Bwalya, Gillan"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E53"]
[WhiteElo "2396"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Zambia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ZAM"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. Nf3 Bb4 5. e3 O-O 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 c5 8. Bd3 dxc4 9. Bxc4 Qc7 10. Nd2 ({RR} 10. Ba2 b5 11. O-O Bb7 12. Re1 Nbd7 13. Bb2 Nb6 14. Qe2 a6 15. c4 Nxc4 16. Bxc4 bxc4 17. dxc5 Qxc5 18. Rac1 Rac8 19. Ne5 c3 20. Rxc3 Qd5 21. f3 Rxc3 22. Bxc3 Rc8 23. Qb2 Qb5 24. Rb1 Rxc3 {Korobov,A (2687)-Leko,P (2674) Hengshui 2019 0-1}) ({RR} 10. Ba2 Nbd7 11. O-O b6 12. Bb2 Bb7 13. c4 cxd4 14. exd4 Rfd8 15. Qe2 Nf8 16. Rac1 Ng6 17. Rc2 Be4 18. Rcc1 Nf4 19. Qe3 Nd3 20. Rb1 Nxb2 21. Rxb2 Qb7 22. Ne1 Rac8 23. f3 Bg6 24. Nc2 Qd7 {Cezar,R (1702)-Gomes,G (1879) Florianopolis 2021 0-1 (42)}) 10... Nc6 11. O-O $146 ({RR} 11. a4 cxd4 12. cxd4 e5 13. d5 Na5 14. Ba3 Nxc4 15. Rc1 Rd8 16. Rxc4 Qd7 17. d6 Ne8 18. Qh5 Nxd6 19. Rh4 h6 20. Qe2 b6 21. Rb4 Nf5 22. Nc4 Ba6 23. O-O Nd6 24. Rd1 Qc7 {0-1 (24) Popovich,S (2285)-Moiseenko,A (2419) Alushta 1999}) 11... Rd8 12. f4 Nd5 13. Bxd5 exd5 14. Qh5 cxd4 15. cxd4 Ne7 16. Nf3 Bf5 17. Bd2 f6 18. Nh4 Be4 19. f5 Rac8 20. Bb4 a5 21. Bxe7 Qxe7 22. Rf4 Rc3 23. Re1 Qxa3 24. Rg4 Rc1 25. Rxc1 Qxe3+ 26. Kf1 Bd3# 0-1

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.05"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Stanojoski, Zvonko"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[WhiteElo "2864"]
[BlackElo "2412"]
[PlyCount "137"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "North Macedonia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "MKD"]

1. d4 d5 2. Bf4 e6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 Bd6 5. Nbd2 Bxf4 6. exf4 c5 7. dxc5 Qc7 8. g3 Qxc5 9. Bd3 ({RR} 9. c3 Nc6 10. Bd3 O-O 11. O-O a5 12. Nb3 Qd6 13. Nbd4 b6 14. Re1 Ba6 15. Bc2 Nxd4 16. Nxd4 Rfe8 17. a4 Rad8 18. Qf3 g6 19. h4 Kg7 20. Re3 Bb7 21. Rae1 Ne4 22. h5 Qe7 23. Bd3 Qf6 {Kamsky,G (2663)-Postny,E (2544) chess.com INT 2023 1-0 (39)}) 9... Qb6 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Qe2 Qc7 12. c3 Nc5 13. Bc2 b6 14. Rfe1 Ba6 15. Qe3 Nb7 16. Nd4 Nd6 17. Qf3 Rfe8 18. Rad1 Rac8 19. g4 Bb7 20. Qd3 g6 21. Qh3 Nc4 22. Nxc4 dxc4 23. Qg3 Nd5 24. Be4 {Janaszak,D (2282)-Olejarczyk,R (2087) Lublin POL 2025 1-0 (62)}) 10. Nb3 $146 ({RR} 10. Rb1 Nc6 11. c3 O-O 12. O-O Rd8 13. Re1 a5 14. Qe2 d4 15. c4 Nb4 16. Ne4 Nxd3 17. Qxd3 Nd7 18. Nxd4 Nc5 19. Nxc5 Qxc5 20. Rbd1 b5 21. Nb3 Rxd3 22. Nxc5 bxc4 23. Nxd3 cxd3 24. Rxd3 Bb7 {Pino Perez,L (2142)-Garcia Almaguer,J (2090) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (42)}) 10... O-O 11. O-O Na6 12. c3 Bd7 13. a4 Nc5 14. Nxc5 Qxc5 15. Nd4 a5 16. Re1 Qb6 17. Qc2 Rfe8 18. Re5 Bc6 19. Qe2 Nd7 20. Re3 Nc5 21. Bc2 g6 22. b3 Ne4 23. Rd1 Rac8 24. h4 e5 25. fxe5 Rxe5 26. Qg4 Rce8 27. Rde1 Nf6 28. Qf4 Rxe3 29. Rxe3 Rxe3 30. Qxe3 Qc5 31. Qf4 Nd7 32. Qd2 Ne5 33. Qe3 Qd6 34. h5 Qf6 35. Bd1 Bd7 36. h6 g5 37. Nf3 Ng4 38. Qa7 Qxh6 39. Qxb7 Nf6 40. Qb8+ Kg7 41. Qe5 g4 42. Nd4 Qc1 43. Kg2 h6 44. Bc2 Qd2 45. Bf5 Qg5 46. b4 Bxa4 47. bxa5 Bd1 48. a6 Qc1 49. a7 Qa1 50. Qe7 Bf3+ 51. Nxf3 gxf3+ 52. Kxf3 Qh1+ 53. Ke2 Qh5+ 54. g4 Nxg4 55. a8=Q Ne5+ 56. Ke3 Qxf5 57. Qef8+ Kg6 58. Qa6+ f6 59. Qg8+ Kh5 60. Qe2+ Ng4+ 61. Kd4 Kh4 62. Qxd5 Qf4+ 63. Qde4 Qd6+ 64. Kc4 h5 65. f3 Qa6+ 66. Kb3 Qb6+ 67. Kc2 f5 68. Qh2+ Kg5 69. Qhf4+ 1-0

[Event "Olympiad-44"]
[Site "Chennai"]
[Date "2022.08.07"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Megaranto, Susanto"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2529"]
[BlackElo "2864"]
[PlyCount "94"]
[EventDate "2022.07.29"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "11"]
[EventCountry "IND"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Indonesia"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "INA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. c4 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 a5 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Nbxd2 d6 7. e3 Qe7 8. Bd3 e5 9. Qc2 Nbd7 ({RR} 9... O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. dxe5 dxe5 12. Ng5 h6 13. Nge4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Be6 15. Nc3 Nd7 16. Be2 Nb6 17. Na4 Nxa4 18. Qxa4 Qc5 19. Rfd1 Red8 20. h3 c6 21. Rxd8+ Rxd8 22. Rd1 Qb6 23. Rxd8+ Qxd8 24. Qc2 {Dao,T (2510)-Ghaem Maghami,E (2599) Al Ain 2008 ½-½ (46)}) 10. O-O O-O 11. b3 $146 ({RR} 11. Ng5 h6 12. Nge4 Nxe4 13. Nxe4 Nf6 14. Rad1 Nxe4 15. Bxe4 c6 16. dxe5 dxe5 17. Qc3 f5 18. Bb1 e4 19. c5 Be6 20. Rd6 Bd5 21. Rd1 Qg5 22. R1xd5 cxd5 23. Ba2 Kh7 24. Bxd5 Rae8 25. Bxb7 f4 {Atakishiyev,E (2223)-Nader,A (2292) Chess.com INT 2020 1-0 (37)}) ({RR} 11. b4 Re8 12. Ng5 h6 13. Nge4 Nxe4 14. Nxe4 Nf6 15. Ng3 Kh8 16. Qc3 e4 17. Be2 b6 18. Rfc1 Be6 19. Bd1 Bg4 20. h3 Bd7 21. d5 Kg8 22. Qd4 Qe5 23. Qxe5 Rxe5 24. Bb3 Ree8 25. Ne2 c5 {Plotkin,V (2282)-Qian,A (2134) Guelph CAN 2025 1-0 (80)}) 11... Re8 12. e4 Nf8 13. Rfe1 Bg4 14. d5 N8d7 15. h3 Bxf3 16. Nxf3 g6 17. b4 Ra7 18. Nd2 Rea8 19. Nb3 b6 20. Qc3 axb4 21. axb4 h5 22. Rxa7 Rxa7 23. Ra1 Rxa1+ 24. Qxa1 Qd8 25. Nd2 h4 26. Be2 Kg7 27. Qa3 Nh7 28. Bg4 Ndf6 29. Bd1 Ng5 30. Qe3 Qa8 31. Kf1 Qa1 32. Ke1 Ngh7 33. c5 Nh5 34. g3 hxg3 35. fxg3 b5 36. Qd3 N7f6 37. c6 Qb2 38. Qxb5 Qc3 39. Bf3 Nxe4 40. Bxe4 Qc1+ 41. Ke2 Nxg3+ 42. Kf2 Qxd2+ 43. Kxg3 Qf4+ 44. Kg2 Qxe4+ 45. Kf2 Qc2+ 46. Ke1 e4 47. Kf1 Qd1+ 0-1

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.02"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nepomniachtchi, Ian"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2861"]
[BlackElo "2792"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,77,26,26,24,12,18,20,23,-20,-7,-16,12,19,21,24,36,7,42,19,12,16,22,18,22,15,31,20,21,25,18,1,2,1,1,19,1,11,13,6,3,2,5,0,5,0,1,1,36,-23,25,42,28,25,81,87,75,90,80,81,93,93,86,86,104,96,94,112,99,86,112,108,151,139,196,190,230,271,228,182]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nc3 c6 6. Bf4 Bf5 7. e3 Nbd7 8. h3 Be7 ({RR} 8... Qb6 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 Be7 11. O-O O-O 12. Na4 Qb4 13. Qc2 a5 14. Rfc1 Rfe8 15. Rab1 Qc4 16. Qd1 Qa6 17. Ne1 Ne4 18. Nd3 Bd6 19. Bxd6 Nxd6 20. Nac5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Qb6 22. a4 Ne4 23. Nd3 {Erigaisi,A (2797)-Wei Yi (2763) London ENG 2024 1-0 (86)}) 9. g4 Be4 $146 ({RR} 9... Bg6 10. Nh4 Ne4 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. Nxe4 dxe4 13. Bg2 Qa5+ 14. Kf1 Nf6 15. Qb3 Qa6+ 16. Kg1 Rd8 17. Be5 Bd6 18. Bxf6 gxf6 19. Bxe4 f5 20. gxf5 Rh5 21. Bd3 b5 22. fxg6 Rg5+ 23. Kf1 fxg6 24. Qe6+ {Matlakov,M (2625)-De Boer,E (2426) chess.com INT 2024 1-0}) ({RR} 9... Bg6 10. Nh4 Qb6 11. Qb3 O-O 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Be2 Qxb3 14. axb3 Rfe8 15. h4 Nf8 16. g5 Nh5 17. Bh2 f6 18. Rg1 Kf7 19. Kd2 Ne6 20. Bd3 f5 21. Be5 a6 22. Kc2 Rad8 23. Be2 c5 24. Bf3 {Theodorou,N (2652)-Rodshtein,M (2647) Batumi GEO 2025 1-0 (53)}) 10. Be2 Qb6 11. Qb3 Qxb3 12. axb3 Bg6 13. Nh4 Bb4 14. Nxg6 hxg6 15. f3 Nf8 16. Kf2 Ne6 17. Bg3 Ke7 18. h4 a6 19. Kg2 Rad8 20. Bf2 Bd6 21. Bd3 Bb8 22. Na4 Bd6 23. Be1 c5 24. Nxc5 Nxc5 25. dxc5 Bxc5 26. Bd2 Rhe8 27. b4 Bb6 28. b5 a5 29. Bxa5 Bxa5 30. Rxa5 Kd6 31. Kf2 Re7 32. Rd1 Rh8 33. g5 Nd7 34. Ra4 Nc5 35. Rg4 Kc7 36. Bb1 Re5 37. Ba2 f6 38. gxf6 gxf6 39. Rxd5 Rxd5 40. Bxd5 Nd3+ 41. Kg3 Ne5 42. Rf4 Rd8 43. b6+ 1-0

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.03"]
[Round "2"]
[White "Aronian, Levon"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E11"]
[WhiteElo "2759"]
[BlackElo "2861"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,72,24,24,27,18,13,18,41,38,41,28,22,30,30,38,46,38,63,67,60,65,46,46,40,36,36,47,48,8,0,0,3,10,-4,-4,-4,-4,35,34,33,25,31,-4,-6,-6,-13,-13,6,4,1,1,1,4,1,-13,-12,-15,-8,-8,-9,-7,-5,-10,0,-8,-6,-10,0,-7,-10,-9,-7,-8,-8]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Bd2 Bxd2+ 5. Qxd2 d5 6. Nc3 O-O 7. e3 Qe7 8. Rc1 dxc4 9. Bxc4 c5 10. dxc5 Rd8 11. Qe2 Qxc5 12. O-O Nc6 13. Bb3 ({RR} 13. Bb5 Bd7 14. Rfd1 Qe7 15. h3 Be8 16. a3 Rxd1+ 17. Rxd1 Rd8 18. Bd3 g6 19. Ne4 a6 20. Rc1 Rc8 21. Rc2 Na7 22. Rxc8 Nxc8 23. Qc2 Nxe4 24. Bxe4 Nd6 25. Bd3 e5 26. Nd2 Bb5 27. Bxb5 Nxb5 {Ushenina,A (2409)-Zhai Mo (2380) Samarkand UZB 2025 ½-½ (40)}) 13... Qa5 $146 ({RR} 13... Qh5 14. Rfd1 Bd7 15. Qb5 Qxb5 16. Nxb5 Na5 17. Nd6 Ne8 18. Nc4 {½-½ (18) Almeida Quintana,O (2520)-Noritsyn,N (2462) Toronto CAN 2023}) 14. Qc4 Ne5 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. Bd1 Bd7 17. Bf3 Rac8 18. Qb4 b6 19. Rfd1 Qc5 20. Qxc5 Rxc5 21. Ne4 Nxe4 22. Bxe4 Rxc1 23. Rxc1 Rc8 24. Rxc8+ Bxc8 25. f4 h6 26. Kf2 Kf8 27. Ke1 Ke7 28. Kd2 Kd6 29. g3 e5 30. a3 f6 31. Kc3 Kc5 32. b4+ Kd6 33. Kc4 Ba6+ 34. Kc3 Bc8 35. Kc4 Ba6+ 36. Kc3 Bc8 1/2-1/2

[Event "Sinquefield Cup 9th+"]
[Site "Saint Louis"]
[Date "2022.09.04"]
[Round "3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Niemann, Hans Moke"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E20"]
[WhiteElo "2861"]
[BlackElo "2688"]
[PlyCount "113"]
[EventDate "2022.09.02"]
[EventType "tourn"]
[EventRounds "9"]
[EventCountry "USA"]
[EventCategory "21"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]

{[%evp 0,55,24,27,27,18,18,18,17,-7,-7,-9,-1,0,-13,-16,-16,-8,-29,-14,-28,-18,18,23,15,-9,10,17,0,-7,-7,-15,-2,2,-6,-33,-48,-45,-32,-30,-35,-39,-36,-21,-8,-36,-40,-36,-41,-43,-41,-71,-64,-54,-37,-62,-45,-82]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. g3 O-O 5. Bg2 d5 6. a3 Bxc3+ 7. bxc3 dxc4 8. Nf3 c5 9. O-O cxd4 10. Qxd4 Nc6 11. Qxc4 e5 12. Bg5 h6 13. Rfd1 $146 ({RR} 13. Bh4 Qe7 14. Rab1 Bf5 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Rb5 Rac8 17. Qh4 b6 18. Qxf6 gxf6 19. Nh4 Bg4 20. f3 Bd7 21. f4 Ne7 22. Rb3 Be6 23. Rb5 Rxc3 24. fxe5 Bd7 25. exf6 Bxb5 26. fxe7 Re8 27. Nf5 Bd7 {Kryvoruchko,Y (2650)-Kantor,G (2520) Ajka HUN 2024 0-1 (45)}) 13... Be6 14. Rxd8 Bxc4 15. Rxa8 Rxa8 16. Bxf6 gxf6 17. Kf1 Rd8 18. Ke1 Na5 19. Rd1 Rc8 20. Nd2 Be6 21. c4 Bxc4 22. Nxc4 Rxc4 23. Rd8+ Kg7 24. Bd5 Rc7 25. Ra8 a6 26. Rb8 f5 27. Re8 e4 28. g4 Rc5 29. Ba2 Nc4 30. a4 Nd6 31. Re7 fxg4 32. Rd7 e3 33. fxe3 Ne4 34. Kf1 Rc1+ 35. Kg2 Rc2 36. Bxf7 Rxe2+ 37. Kg1 Re1+ 38. Kg2 Re2+ 39. Kg1 Kf6 40. Bd5 Rd2 41. Rf7+ Kg6 42. Rd7 Ng5 43. Bf7+ Kf5 44. Rxd2 Nf3+ 45. Kg2 Nxd2 46. a5 Ke5 47. Kg3 Nf1+ 48. Kf2 Nxh2 49. e4 Kxe4 50. Be6 Kf4 51. Bc8 Nf3 52. Bxb7 Ne5 53. Bxa6 Nc6 54. Bb7 Nxa5 55. Bd5 h5 56. Bf7 h4 57. Bd5 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.03"]
[Round "1.7"]
[White "Meskovs, Nikita"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E06"]
[WhiteElo "2566"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "87"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Vammalan Shakkikerho"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FIN"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Bb4+ 5. Bd2 Be7 6. Bg2 c6 7. Qc2 O-O 8. O-O b6 9. Bf4 Ba6 10. cxd5 cxd5 11. Rc1 Nbd7 12. Nc3 Nh5 13. Qa4 Nxf4 14. Qxa6 Nxg2 15. Kxg2 Qc8 16. Qxc8 Rfxc8 17. Nb5 Rd8 18. Nc7 Rab8 19. Rc6 $146 ({RR} 19. a4 Rb7 20. Rc3 Bd6 21. Rac1 Kf8 22. Ne1 Ke7 23. Nd3 f6 24. Nb5 Nb8 25. b4 a6 26. Nxd6 Rxd6 27. b5 axb5 28. axb5 Rd8 29. Nb4 Re8 30. Rc8 Kd7 31. Rxe8 Kxe8 32. Rc8+ Kd7 33. Rh8 h6 {Saduakassova,D (2495)-Bhambure,S (2194) Abu Dhabi 2018 1-0 (44)}) 19... Rb7 20. Na6 g5 21. Rac1 g4 22. Ne1 Nf6 23. Nd3 Bd6 24. Rc8 Rxc8 25. Rxc8+ Kg7 26. h3 h5 27. hxg4 hxg4 28. Nab4 a5 29. Nc6 Nd7 30. a4 Kf6 31. f3 gxf3+ 32. exf3 Kg7 33. Kf2 Nf6 34. g4 Rc7 35. Rxc7 Bxc7 36. Ke3 Ne8 37. Na7 Bb8 38. Nb5 Nf6 39. b3 Nd7 40. f4 Nf6 41. Nf2 Ng8 42. Nd3 Nf6 43. Nf2 Ng8 44. Nd3 1/2-1/2

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.07"]
[Round "5.1"]
[White "Korobov, Anton"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D04"]
[WhiteElo "2672"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Silla Valencia"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "ESP"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 d5 3. e3 a6 4. b3 Bf5 ({RR} 4... Bg4 5. Ba3 Nbd7 6. h3 Bxf3 7. Qxf3 e5 8. Bxf8 Kxf8 9. Be2 g6 10. O-O Kg7 11. Rd1 Re8 12. c4 c6 13. Nc3 Qa5 14. Rac1 exd4 15. Rxd4 dxc4 16. Bxc4 Ne5 17. Qf4 Nxc4 18. Rxc4 Rad8 19. Ra4 {Korobov,A (2661)-Carlsen,M (2853) chess.com INT 2023 0-1 (41)}) ({RR} 4... e6 5. Nbd2 b6 6. Bb2 Bb7 7. Ne5 Nbd7 8. Bd3 Nxe5 9. dxe5 Nd7 10. O-O g6 11. f4 Bg7 12. Qe2 O-O 13. Rad1 Nc5 14. e4 Re8 15. Ba3 dxe4 16. Nxe4 Qd4+ 17. Qf2 Qxf2+ 18. Nxf2 Nxd3 19. Rxd3 {Rajandu,A (1869)-Lopes,S (2026) York ENG 2025 ½-½}) 5. Ba3 $146 ({RR} 5. Bb2 e6 6. Nbd2 h6 7. Be2 Nbd7 8. O-O Bd6 9. a4 c6 10. Ba3 Bxa3 11. Rxa3 Qe7 12. Ra1 e5 13. dxe5 Nxe5 14. Rc1 O-O 15. Nxe5 Qxe5 16. Nf3 Qc7 17. Nd4 Bg6 18. Bd3 Bxd3 19. cxd3 Rfe8 {Maisuradze,N (2251)-Lou,Y (2472) Europe Echecs INT 2021 0-1 (48)}) 5... e6 6. Bxf8 Kxf8 7. Be2 Nc6 8. O-O h5 9. c4 h4 10. Nc3 Ne4 11. Rc1 Rh6 12. cxd5 exd5 13. Nd2 Nxc3 14. Rxc3 Qd6 15. Qc1 Re8 16. Bf3 Re7 17. Rc5 Nb4 18. Nc4 Qe6 19. Nb2 h3 20. g3 Nxa2 21. Qd2 Be4 22. Be2 b6 23. Na4 Bh7 24. Re1 Qe4 25. f3 Qxe3+ 26. Qxe3 Rxe3 27. Rxc7 Rhe6 28. Kf2 Bd3 29. Bxd3 Rxe1 30. g4 Nb4 31. Bf5 R1e2+ 32. Kg3 Rd6 33. Rb7 g6 34. Bd7 g5 0-1

[Event "EU-Cup 37th"]
[Site "Mayrhofen"]
[Date "2022.10.09"]
[Round "7.1"]
[White "Maghsoodloo, Parham"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2721"]
[BlackElo "2856"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2022.10.03"]
[EventType "team-swiss"]
[EventRounds "7"]
[EventCountry "AUT"]
[SourceTitle "EXT 2023"]
[Source "ChessBase"]
[SourceDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.10.05"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
[WhiteTeam "Clichy Echecs 92"]
[BlackTeam "Offerspill"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "FRA"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 c6 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Bd3 O-O 9. Nge2 Ne8 10. Bg3 Nd6 11. O-O Re8 12. Qc2 Bf8 13. Rae1 a5 14. Nf4 ({RR} 14. Nd1 Na6 15. a3 Bd7 16. f3 Rc8 17. Nec3 c5 18. Qf2 Bc6 19. Bf4 b5 20. Ne2 Nc4 21. Qg3 h5 22. Qh3 g6 23. g4 Bd7 24. Qg2 h4 25. g5 Bg7 26. Kh1 Nd2 27. Rg1 c4 28. Bc2 b4 {Salem,A (2677)-Carlsen,M (2859) chess24.com INT 2022 0-1 (37)}) ({RR} 14. a3 Nd7 15. Nf4 b5 16. Nb1 Bb7 17. Nd2 Nc4 18. Rd1 Nf6 19. a4 Qb6 20. b3 Nd6 21. Ne2 Rac8 22. Rc1 Nde4 23. Bxe4 dxe4 24. Be5 c5 25. Qb1 Nd7 26. axb5 Qxb5 27. Nc4 cxd4 28. Nxd4 Qa6 {Maghsoodloo,P (2684)-Moussard,J (2587) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (129)}) 14... Na6 15. a3 Qf6 $146 ({RR} 15... Nc7 16. f3 Nc4 17. e4 b5 18. Bf2 b4 19. axb4 axb4 20. Nd1 Ra1 21. exd5 Rxe1 22. Rxe1 Nxd5 23. Nxd5 cxd5 24. Bxc4 dxc4 25. Qxc4 Be6 26. Qd3 Be7 27. Ne3 Rxe1+ 28. Bxe1 Bc5 29. Kf2 Qxd4 30. Qxd4 {Maghsoodloo,P (2719)-Ter Sahakyan,S (2605) Almaty KAZ 2022 ½-½ (31)}) ({RR} 15... Bd7 16. f3 b5 17. e4 b4 18. Na4 bxa3 19. bxa3 dxe4 20. fxe4 Nb5 21. e5 Nxd4 22. Qc4 Ne6 23. Rd1 Qc7 24. h4 Nac5 25. Nxc5 Bxc5+ 26. Kh2 Bxa3 27. Qe4 {1-0 (27) Silva,M (2039)-Murthy,P (1836) chess.com INT 2025}) 16. f3 b5 17. Bf2 Nc4 18. g3 Qd8 19. e4 b4 20. exd5 Rxe1 21. Rxe1 Nd6 22. Na4 cxd5 23. Nxd5 Rb8 24. Nc5 Nb5 25. Bxb5 Rxb5 26. Qc4 Rb8 27. a4 Nxc5 28. dxc5 Bb7 29. c6 Rc8 30. Bb6 Qd6 31. Bc7 Qc5+ 32. Qxc5 Bxc5+ 33. Kg2 Bxc6 34. Rc1 Bxd5 35. Rxc5 Bb3 36. Bb6 Rxc5 37. Bxc5 Bxa4 38. Bb6 Bc6 39. Bxa5 b3 1/2-1/2

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.14"]
[Round "4.9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gazik, Viktor"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E14"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2561"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Slovakia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SVK"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 Bb4+ 4. Nbd2 b6 5. a3 Bxd2+ 6. Nxd2 Bb7 7. e3 O-O 8. Bd3 ({RR} 8. b3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Bb2 d6 11. Bd3 Nbd7 12. O-O a5 13. Qc2 Qb6 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Rab1 Bc6 16. Bc3 Qb7 17. f3 Qa7 18. Nf1 h6 19. Qf2 Qc7 20. Qg3 Nh5 21. Qh4 Nhf6 22. a4 d5 {1-0 Van Foreest,J (2665)-Naiditsch,A (2661) TCh-FRA Top 16 Haute 2024 (1.19)}) ({RR} 8. b3 d6 9. Bb2 Nbd7 10. Qc2 c5 11. Bd3 Rc8 12. O-O cxd4 13. Bxd4 d5 14. Qb2 Qe7 15. Be2 e5 16. Bc3 d4 17. Bb4 Nc5 18. Nf3 a5 19. exd4 exd4 20. Bxc5 bxc5 21. Rfe1 Qd6 22. h3 Ne4 {1-0 Jumabayev,R (2575)-Bitoon,R (2374) Chess.com Speed Play-In 2024 (4)}) ({RR} 8. b3 c5 9. dxc5 bxc5 10. Bb2 d6 11. Bd3 Nbd7 12. O-O a5 13. Qc2 Qb6 14. Rfd1 Rfd8 15. Rab1 Bc6 16. Bc3 Qb7 17. f3 Qa7 18. Nf1 h6 19. Qf2 Qc7 20. Qg3 Nh5 21. Qh4 Nhf6 22. a4 d5 {Van Foreest,J (2665)-Naiditsch,A (2661) Chartres FRA 2024 1-0 (36)}) 8... d5 9. O-O dxc4 $146 ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. Nf3 Qe7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. b3 Ne4 13. Bb2 f5 14. Rc1 c6 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 c5 17. Qc2 Qe6 18. f3 Ng5 19. h4 Nf7 20. Bxf5 Qh6 21. f4 Nd8 22. Rf3 Ne6 23. Bxe6+ Qxe6 24. f5 {½-½ Dudas,P (2257)-Dobai,S (2179) HUN-chT2 Barcza 1314 2013 (3)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b3 Re8 11. Bb2 e5 12. dxe5 Nxe5 13. Be2 dxc4 {½-½ Gmeiner,P (2230)-Ochs,H Schoeneck 1992 (4)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. Nf3 Qe7 11. cxd5 exd5 12. b3 Ne4 13. Bb2 f5 14. Rc1 c6 15. Ne5 Nxe5 16. dxe5 c5 17. Qc2 Qe6 18. f3 Ng5 19. h4 Nf7 20. Bxf5 Qh6 21. f4 Nd8 22. Rf3 Ne6 23. Bxe6+ Qxe6 24. f5 {Dudas,P (2257)-Dobai,S (2179) Hungary 2013 ½-½ (49)}) ({RR} 9... Nbd7 10. b4 dxc4 11. Nxc4 Qe7 12. Bb2 Rfd8 13. Qc2 h6 14. Rac1 Rac8 15. Rfd1 Nd5 16. Bf1 Nf8 17. Ne5 c6 18. Qa4 a6 19. Qb3 Rc7 20. Rc2 f6 21. Nd3 Rcd7 22. a4 f5 23. Rdc1 b5 24. Nc5 {Doroodgar,A (2403)-Ahmadi,E (2161) Urmia IRI 2025 1-0 (61)}) 10. Nxc4 Qd5 11. f3 Rd8 12. Be2 Nc6 13. Qc2 Rac8 14. b3 b5 15. Nb2 e5 16. Nd3 e4 17. Nc5 Nxd4 18. exd4 Qxd4+ 19. Kh1 exf3 20. gxf3 Ba8 21. Bg5 Rd5 22. Bxf6 Qxf6 23. Ne4 Qf4 24. Qc1 Qh4 25. Rg1 Re5 26. Qc3 Rce8 27. Bxb5 R8e7 28. Rad1 1-0

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.15"]
[Round "5.5"]
[White "Yilmaz, Mustafa"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D52"]
[WhiteElo "2587"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[PlyCount "107"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Turkiye"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. cxd5 exd5 6. Bg5 c6 7. e3 Qa5 8. Bd3 Ne4 9. Qc2 Nxg5 10. Nxg5 h6 11. Nf3 Bd6 12. O-O Nf6 ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qd8 14. b4 a6 15. Rab1 Re8 16. h3 Nf6 17. a4 Qe7 ({RR} 17... Qe7 18. b5 axb5 19. axb5 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Ne2 Rec8 23. Qb2 Ne4 24. Ra1 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bd7 26. Nfd4 Qe5 27. Rc1 Ra8 28. Qc2 Bd6 29. Nf3 Qe8 30. Qb3 Nc5 31. Qxd5 Nxd3 32. Qxd3) 18. b5 axb5 19. axb5 c5 20. dxc5 Bxc5 21. Rfd1 Be6 22. Ne2 Rec8 23. Qb2 Ne4 24. Ra1 Rxa1 25. Rxa1 Bd7 26. Nfd4 Qe5 27. Rc1 {0-1 Sarana,A (2654)-Moranda,W (2605) Titled Tuesday intern op 9th June blitz 2020 (4)}) ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qd8 14. b4 Qe7 15. Na4 Nf6 16. Nc5 Bg4 17. Rfc1 Bxf3 18. gxf3 b6 19. Nb3 Rac8 20. Bf5 Rc7 21. Kg2 g6 22. Bd3 Nh5 23. h4 Qxh4 24. Rh1 Qg5+ 25. Kf1 Kg7 26. Nc1 c5 27. bxc5 {1-0 Hajiyev,K (2084)-Plasek,Z (1865) Prague Golden Blitz op 17th 2022 (4)}) ({RR} 12... O-O 13. a3 Qc7 14. Rac1 Qd8 15. h3 Re8 16. e4 dxe4 17. Nxe4 Nf6 18. Nc5 Bxc5 19. dxc5 Be6 20. Rcd1 Bd5 21. Bc4 Qc7 22. Bxd5 Nxd5 23. Nd4 Re5 24. Nf5 Rae8 25. Nd6 R8e6 26. b4 Qe7 27. Qc4 {Agrest,E (2574)-Godena,M (2517) Ajaccio 2008 1-0 (45)}) 13. Rae1 ({RR} 13. h3 O-O 14. a3 a6 15. b4 Qd8 16. Rab1 Re8 17. a4 Bd7 18. Rfc1 Qe7 19. b5 cxb5 20. axb5 a5 21. Na4 Ba3 22. Rd1 Rac8 23. Qa2 Be6 24. Ra1 Bb4 25. Rdc1 Ne4 26. Bf1 Qf6 27. Qe2 Bf5 {Johansson,L (2408)-Movahed,S (2586) Rhodes GRE 2025 0-1 (51)}) 13... O-O 14. Ne5 a6 $146 ({RR} 14... c5 15. f4 c4 16. Be2 b5 17. a3 Bb7 18. Bf3 Rfe8 19. g4 Re7 20. h4 Rae8 21. g5 hxg5 22. hxg5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Bxe4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 Qd8 26. Rf2 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Re6 28. Rg2 Rg6 29. Qf5 {1-0 Vunder,A (2273)-Egorov,Z St Petersburg White Nights op1 2002 (5)}) ({RR} 14... Qc7 15. f4 Ng4 16. h3 Nf6 17. a3 a5 18. g4 Qe7 19. Qg2 Nd7 20. Kh1 Qh4 21. Re2 Nxe5 22. fxe5 Be7 23. e4 h5 24. exd5 hxg4 25. dxc6 gxh3 26. Qe4 bxc6 27. Rf4 Qh6 28. Re1 Bg5 29. Rff1 {0-1 Hu,Z-Nguyen,H (1701) ASEAN-ch U10 15th 2014 (8)}) ({RR} 14... c5 15. f4 c4 16. Be2 b5 17. a3 Bb7 18. Bf3 Rfe8 19. g4 Re7 20. h4 Rae8 21. g5 hxg5 22. hxg5 Ne4 23. Nxe4 dxe4 24. Bxe4 Bxe4 25. Qxe4 Qd8 26. Rf2 Bxe5 27. fxe5 Re6 28. Rg2 Rg6 29. Qf5 {Vunder,A (2273)-Egorov,Z St Petersburg 2002 1-0 (34)}) 15. f4 c5 16. Qf2 b5 17. Bb1 Bb7 18. g4 Qc7 19. h4 Ne4 20. Nxe4 dxe4 21. g5 f6 22. gxf6 gxf6 23. Qg2+ Qg7 24. dxc5 Bxe5 25. fxe5 fxe5 26. Rxf8+ Rxf8 27. Rd1 b4 28. Rd6 Qxg2+ 29. Kxg2 Rc8 30. Rb6 Bd5 31. Rxb4 Rxc5 32. Bxe4 Bxa2 33. Ra4 Bf7 34. Rxa6 Rb5 35. Rxh6 Rxb2+ 36. Kf3 Rb4 37. Bf5 Kg7 38. Rh7+ Kf6 39. e4 Rb1 40. Rh6+ Kg7 41. Rh7+ Kg8 42. Rh6 Kg7 43. Rd6 Bh5+ 44. Kg3 Rb3+ 45. Kf2 Rf3+ 46. Kg2 Rf4 47. Kg3 Rf3+ 48. Kh2 Rf2+ 49. Kg1 Rf4 50. Rd7+ Kf6 51. Rd6+ Kf7 52. Rd7+ Kf6 53. Rd6+ Kf7 54. Rd7+ 1/2-1/2

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.19"]
[Round "8.6"]
[White "Le, Quang Liem"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D63"]
[WhiteElo "2741"]
[BlackElo "2832"]
[PlyCount "90"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Vietnam"]
[BlackTeam "Norway"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "VIE"]
[BlackTeamCountry "NOR"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. Nc3 c6 5. Bg5 Nbd7 6. e3 h6 7. Bh4 Be7 8. Rc1 O-O 9. a3 a6 10. cxd5 ({RR} 10. c5 Ng4 11. Bg3 f5 12. Be2 g5 13. Qd2 Ngf6 14. h4 Ne4 15. Nxe4 fxe4 16. Ne5 gxh4 17. Bf4 Nxe5 18. Bxe5 Bf6 19. Bd6 Rf7 20. f3 Rg7 21. fxe4 Rxg2 22. Qd3 Qe8 23. e5 Bg5 24. Rf1 Bd7 {1-0 Barp,A (2470)-Kobalia,M (2542) Titled Tue 30th Apr Late 2024 (10)}) 10... exd5 ({RR} 10... cxd5 11. Bd3 b5 12. O-O Bb7 13. Nd2 Nb6 14. Qe2 Nc4 15. Nb3 Rc8 16. a4 b4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Ne4 Nxb2 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxb2 Qd6 21. Nc5 Rxc5 22. Qxb4 Rc6 23. Qxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qa3 25. Qb1 {1-0 Rapport,R (2735)-Shankland,S (2731) Saint Louis Champions Showdown rapid 2019 (3.5)}) ({RR} 10... cxd5 11. Bd3 b5 12. O-O Bb7 13. Nd2 Nb6 14. Qe2 Nc4 15. Nb3 Rc8 16. a4 b4 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Ne4 Nxb2 19. Nxf6+ Bxf6 20. Qxb2 Qd6 21. Nc5 Rxc5 22. Qxb4 Rc6 23. Qxb7 Rxc1 24. Rxc1 Qa3 25. Qb1 {Rapport,R (2735)-Shankland,S (2731) Saint Louis 2019 1-0 (71)}) 11. Qc2 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 f5 13. Qb3 Kh7 14. Qc2 g6 15. Bf4 g5 16. Be5 g4 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 fxe4 20. h3 gxh3 21. g4 Qd5 22. Rxh3 Bf6 23. f4 Bxe5 24. Rh5 Bxg4 25. Rxe5 Qf7 {0-1 Yates,F-Maroczy,G Karlsbad-04 International Masters 1929 (15)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bxe7 Qxe7 13. O-O Re8 14. Bxe4 dxe4 15. Nd2 Nf6 16. Na4 Bg4 17. Qb3 Rad8 18. Rfe1 Rd5 19. Rc5 b5 20. Nc3 Rxc5 21. dxc5 Qxc5 22. Qc2 Qg5 23. Ne2 c5 24. Nf4 Qe5 25. h3 g5 {0-1 Bogoljubow,E-Tartakower,S Bled International 1931 (26)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 Nxg3 13. hxg3 Re8 14. Bb1 {½-½ Hardicsay,P (2307)-Lengyel,B (2333) Balatonlelle IM 2004 (1)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne4 12. Bg3 f5 13. Qb3 Kh7 14. Qc2 g6 15. Bf4 g5 16. Be5 g4 17. Nxe4 dxe4 18. Bxe4 Nxe5 19. Nxe5 fxe4 20. h3 gxh3 21. g4 Qd5 22. Rxh3 Bf6 23. f4 Bxe5 24. Rh5 Bxg4 25. Rxe5 Qf7 {Yates,F-Maroczy,G Karlovy Vary 1929 0-1 (60)}) ({RR} 11. Bd3 Ne8 12. Bg3 Nd6 13. Qc2 Re8 14. O-O Bf8 15. Kh1 Nf6 16. Bh4 Be7 17. Ne5 Ng4 18. Bg3 Bh4 19. Bf4 Bg5 20. Bg3 Bh4 21. Bf4 Bf6 22. Nf3 Be7 23. h3 Nf6 24. Ne5 Be6 25. Bh2 Rc8 {Indjic,A (2661)-Shimanov,A (2578) chess.com INT 2025 1-0 (58)}) 11... Ne8 12. Bg3 Bd6 13. Bd3 Bxg3 14. hxg3 Ndf6 15. Ne5 Nd6 16. f3 Re8 17. Ne2 Nd7 18. Rh5 f6 19. Nxd7 Bxd7 20. Kf2 f5 21. Re1 Rxe3 22. Kxe3 Qe8+ 23. Kf2 Qxh5 24. Qc5 Qg6 25. Qb6 Qf6 26. Qc7 Be8 27. Nf4 Rc8 28. Qxc8 Nxc8 29. Rxe8+ Kf7 30. Rxc8 Qxd4+ 31. Kf1 g5 32. Rf8+ Ke7 33. Ng6+ Kd6 34. Bxf5 Qxb2 35. f4 Qxa3 36. Kf2 a5 37. Ne5 a4 38. Rf7 Qb2+ 39. Kf1 Qb5+ 40. Bd3 Qb3 41. Bf5 a3 42. Nd3 Qxd3+ 43. Bxd3 a2 44. Rxb7 a1=Q+ 45. Ke2 Qg1 0-1

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.20"]
[Round "9.4"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Fedoseev, Vladimir3"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D06"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2692"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Slovenia"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "SLO"]

1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 c5 3. c4 cxd4 4. cxd5 Nf6 5. Nxd4 Nxd5 6. e4 Nf6 7. Bb5+ Bd7 8. Nc3 e5 9. Bxd7+ Qxd7 10. Nf5 ({RR} 10. Nc2 Qxd1+ 11. Kxd1 Bc5 12. Ke2 Nbd7 ({RR} 12... Nc6 13. Rd1 Rc8 ({RR} 13... h6 14. f3 Rc8 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 Nd4+ 17. Kf2 O-O 18. Rac1 Rfd8 19. Ncd5 Nxd5 20. Nxd5 Kf8 21. Ke3 Rc6 22. Rxc6 bxc6 23. Nc3 Ke7 24. Rc1 Kd6 25. Na4 Ne6 26. Rd1+ Nd4 27. Rc1 Ne6 28. Rd1+) 14. f3 Ke7 15. Be3 Bxe3 16. Nxe3 Nd4+ 17. Kf2 g6 18. Rd2 Rc5 19. Ne2 Ne6 20. Rad1 Rhc8 21. a4 Rd8 22. Rxd8 Nxd8 23. Nc1 Rc8 24. Nd3 Nd7 25. Nb4 f6 26. Nbd5+ Ke6 27. Kf1) 13. f3 Rc8 14. Bd2 Ke7 15. b4 Bd6 16. Ne3 Ke6 17. Nf5 Bf8 18. Rab1 g6 19. Ne3 Nb6 20. Rhc1 Bh6 21. Nc4 Rxc4 22. Bxh6 Rhc8 23. Bd2 Nh5 24. Nb5 Nf4+ {Tang,A (2548)-Dlugy,M (2496) New Jersey USA 2025 0-1 (48)}) 10... Qxd1+ 11. Kxd1 Nc6 12. Bg5 Ng4 $146 ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Nd5 Rc8 14. Ke2 f6 15. Be3 g6 16. Ng3 Kf7 17. Rac1 h5 18. Rhd1 Bh6 19. Rc3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 h4 21. Nf1 Ne7 22. Rb3 Nc5 23. Rb4 a5 24. Rb6 Rc6 25. Rb5 Rb8 26. Nd2 Nc8 27. Rxa5 {0-1 Borrmann,L (2345)-Skotheim,A (2225) Titled Tue 14th May Early 2024 (7)}) ({RR} 12... Nd7 13. Nd5 Rc8 14. Ke2 f6 15. Be3 g6 16. Ng3 Kf7 17. Rac1 h5 18. Rhd1 Bh6 19. Rc3 Bxe3 20. fxe3 h4 21. Nf1 Ne7 22. Rb3 Nc5 23. Rb4 a5 24. Rb6 Rc6 25. Rb5 Rb8 26. Nd2 Nc8 27. Rxa5 {Borrmann,L (2345)-Skotheim,A (2225) chess.com INT 2024 0-1 (59)}) 13. Ke2 f6 14. Bh4 h5 15. f3 Nh6 16. Bf2 Nxf5 17. exf5 O-O-O 18. Rhd1 Rxd1 19. Rxd1 h4 20. Kd3 Rh5 21. Ke4 Rg5 22. Rg1 g6 23. Bxh4 gxf5+ 24. Kd5 Rg6 25. Ke6 Bc5 26. Rh1 Nd4+ 27. Kd5 b6 28. f4 Kd7 29. g4 fxg4 30. fxe5 fxe5 31. Ne4 Nf3 32. Nxc5+ bxc5 33. Bg3 Rd6+ 34. Kxc5 Rd2 35. Rc1 Ke6 36. Rc4 Kf5 37. Ra4 Nxh2 38. Bxh2 Rxh2 39. Rxa7 Rxb2 40. a4 Rc2+ 41. Kb5 g3 42. Rg7 Kf4 43. a5 Rb2+ 44. Kc6 Ra2 45. Kb6 e4 46. a6 e3 47. Rf7+ Ke4 48. Re7+ Kf3 49. Rf7+ Kg2 50. a7 e2 51. Re7 Kf2 52. Rf7+ Ke3 53. Re7+ Kd2 54. Rd7+ Kc1 55. Rc7+ Kb1 0-1

[Event "45th Olympiad 2024"]
[Site "Budapest HUN"]
[Date "2024.09.21"]
[Round "10.10"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Schitco, Ivan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D12"]
[WhiteElo "2832"]
[BlackElo "2527"]
[PlyCount "83"]
[EventDate "2024.09.11"]
[WhiteTeam "Norway"]
[BlackTeam "Moldova"]
[WhiteTeamCountry "NOR"]
[BlackTeamCountry "MDA"]

1. d4 {Huebner,Robert} d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. e3 Bf5 4. c4 c6 5. Nc3 e6 6. Nh4 Be4 7. f3 Bg6 8. Qb3 Qc7 9. Bd2 a5 ({RR} 9... Be7 10. O-O-O ({RR} 10. g3 Bh5 11. Be2 g5 12. Ng2 h6 13. Rc1 Qb6 14. Qc2 Bg6 15. Bd3 Bxd3 16. Qxd3 Qa6 17. b3 Nbd7 18. Ke2 O-O-O 19. c5 Qxd3+ 20. Kxd3 Ne8 21. b4 Nc7 22. a4 b6 23. Ne2 Kb7 24. Rb1 f5) 10... Nbd7 11. cxd5 ({RR} 11. Nxg6 hxg6 12. g3) 11... Nxd5 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. h3 ({RR} 13. e4) 13... a5 14. a3 ({RR} 14. e4) 14... b5 15. Nxd5 ({RR} 15. e4 b4 ({RR} 15... a4 16. Qc2 b4 17. Nxd5 exd5 18. Bxb4 ({RR} 18. exd5 bxa3 19. Qxc6 Qb8 20. Bb5 O-O 21. Qxd7 Ra7) 18... Bxb4 19. axb4 Qb6 20. Qc3) 16. exd5 ({RR} 16. axb4 axb4 17. Na2 N5f6) 16... cxd5 17. Kb1 bxc3) 15... exd5 16. Kb1 ({RR} 16. e4 Nb6) 16... Nb6 17. e4 Nc4 18. exd5 a4 19. Qc2 cxd5 20. Bd3 ({RR} 20. Bxc4 bxc4 21. Rhe1 O-O 22. Rxe7 Qxe7 23. Bb4 Qe3 24. Bxf8 Kxf8) 20... Rb8 21. Rhe1 O-O 22. Bxc4 ({RR} 22. Bf4 Qxf4 23. Rxe7 Qd6 24. Re2 ({RR} 24. Rde1 b4) 24... Rfc8) 22... bxc4 23. Qxa4 ({RR} 23. Bf4 Qxf4 24. Rxe7 Rb3) 23... Ra8 ({RR} 23... c3) 24. Qb5 {0-1 Bareev,E (2707)-Ivanchuk,V (2717) FIDE GP Dubai rapid 2002 (1.4)}) 10. cxd5 Nxd5 11. g3 Nd7 $146 ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Kg2 g5 15. Rc1 Nxc3 16. bxc3 b5 17. c4 b4 18. c5 e5 19. Bc4 O-O 20. Qc2 Rad8 21. h4 g4 22. fxg4 exd4 23. exd4 Nf6 24. Bf4 Qd7 25. g5 Nd5 26. Rhf1 {1-0 Gretarsson,H (2475)-Sai Agni Jeevitesh,J (2289) 2nd Leca Chess Open 2023 (7.4)}) ({RR} 11... Nxc3 12. bxc3 b5 13. Nxg6 hxg6 14. Kf2 Nd7 15. Be2 Be7 16. e4 a4 17. Qb2 O-O 18. Be3 f5 19. Kg2 Rad8 20. c4 Rb8 21. Qc2 Qa7 22. Rab1 b4 23. c5 e5 24. Rhc1 exd4 25. Bxd4 Kh7 26. exf5 {1-0 Ushenina,A (2418)-Zawadzka,J (2351) 24th ch-EUR Indiv w 2024 (4.8)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. Kg2 e5 16. dxe5 Nc5 17. Qc2 Qxe5 18. Rad1 g5 19. h3 Rd8 20. Bc1 Rxd1 21. Bxd1 Nd5 22. Nxd5 Qxd5 23. Be2 Qe5 24. b3 g4 25. Qb2 gxf3+ 26. Bxf3 {½-½ Keymer,V (2700)-Grandelius,N (2660) 28th Sigeman & Co 2023 (1.4)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. Kg2 e5 16. dxe5 Nc5 17. Qc2 Qxe5 18. Rad1 g5 19. h3 Rd8 20. Bc1 Rxd1 21. Bxd1 Nd5 22. Nxd5 Qxd5 23. Be2 Qe5 24. b3 g4 25. Qb2 gxf3+ 26. Bxf3 {Keymer,V (2700)-Grandelius,N (2660) Malmo SWE 2023 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 11... Be7 12. Nxg6 hxg6 13. Kf2 Nd7 14. Be2 N5f6 15. f4 c5 16. Bf3 cxd4 17. Nb5 Qb6 18. Nxd4 Bb4 19. Bxb4 axb4 20. a3 Nc5 21. Qc4 bxa3 22. bxa3 Nfe4+ 23. Kg2 Qb2+ 24. Qc2 Qxc2+ 25. Nxc2 O-O 26. Bxe4 {Ustiyanovich,N (2293)-Wadsworth,M (2500) Karlsruhe GER 2025 ½-½ (40)}) 12. e4 Nxc3 13. bxc3 b5 14. a3 Be7 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. Kf2 Rb8 17. Be2 g5 18. Be3 Nb6 19. Kg2 Kf8 20. Rhf1 Kg8 21. Rf2 Nd7 22. f4 gxf4 23. Bxf4 Bd6 24. e5 Be7 25. Bg4 a4 26. Qa2 Nf8 27. Raf1 Rh7 28. h4 Qd8 29. Be3 g5 30. h5 Qd5+ 31. Bf3 Qxa2 32. Rxa2 Rc8 33. g4 f5 34. exf6 Bxf6 35. Be4 Rh6 36. Raf2 Kg7 37. Kg3 Rc7 38. Bxg5 Bxg5 39. Rxf8 Rh8 40. Rxh8 Kxh8 41. h6 Be7 42. g5 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh, D."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Bg4 5. Be2 Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 {D00: 1 d4 d5: Unusual lines.} ({RR} 6. Ngxe2 e6 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. Nb5 Rc8 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Ned4 Ne4 11. Qd1 O-O 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Nd4 Qb6 14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Nb3 Bf8 16. O-O c5 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. Nf3 Ne4 19. c3 c4 20. Qc2 Bd6 {Duarte Cramer,L (1828)-Brancaleoni,M (2185) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (49)}) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 e6 8. c3 {The position is equal.} Be7 $146 (8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) Titled Tuesday intern op 24th Oct Late Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (5)}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Nh5 9. Be5 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Ng3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 h6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. g4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rh5 Qe6 19. g5 Qg6 20. Qxg6 fxg6 21. Rh4 Kh7 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rdh1 {Bazan Romero,O (2289)-Khanbutaev,A (2139) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (84)}) 9. Ng3 O-O 10. Qe2 h6 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 Qa4 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 17. Qf3 Bd6 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 {[#]} e5 20. Qg3 {[%csl Gh5][%cal Rg3g7]} (20. dxe5 $5 Qg6 21. g4 $14) 20... Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 c4 24. Ne2 b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 Rab8 27. f3 a5 28. b4 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 (30... axb4 31. Na4 $14 (31. Na2 Ra8 $11)) 31. Ra3 Re8 32. Kd2 {[%cal Oh1b1]} Rb2+ 33. Kd3 {Black should prevent g4.} Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 36. hxg5 Rxg5 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 39. Rxa8+ $11 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 h3 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ (44... h1=Q $5 45. f8=Q $8 (45. f8=R $2 Rg3+ 46. Kc2 Qg2+ 47. Kb3 Qc6 $19) 45... Rg3+ 46. Kd2 Rg2+ 47. Ne2 (47. Kd3 Rg3+ 48. Kd2 Rg2+ 49. Ne2 Qh6+ 50. Ke1 Qh4+ 51. Kd2 Qh6+ 52. Ke1 Qh4+ 53. Kd2 Qh6+ $11) 47... Qh6+ 48. Ke1 Qh4+ 49. Kd1 Qh1+ 50. Kd2 $11) 45. Kd2 h1=Q 46. f8=Q (46. f8=R Qh6+ 47. Kc2 Rg2+ 48. Kb3 Qb6+ 49. Kc4 Qc6+ 50. Kb3 Rg3 51. Rh8+ Kg6 52. Rac8 Rxc3+ 53. Kb2 Qxc8 (53... Rc2+ 54. Kb1 Rc1+ 55. Ka2 Qe6+ 56. Kb2 Qxc8 57. Rxc8 Rxc8 58. d5 Kf5 59. d6 Ke6 60. Kb3 Kxd6 61. Kb4 g5 62. Kb5 g4 63. Ka6 g3 64. Kb7 Rc6 65. Kb8 Rb6+ 66. Ka8 Kc7 67. Ka7 Rh6 68. Ka8 Ra6#) 54. Rxc8 Rxc8 55. Kb3 Kf5 56. d5 Ke5 57. Kb4 Kxd5 58. Kb3 g5 59. Kb4 g4 60. Ka5 g3 61. Kb5 g2 62. Ka6 g1=Q (62... g1=R 63. Kb6 Rb1+ 64. Ka7 Rc4 65. Ka8 Ra4#) 63. Kb7 Rc3 64. Ka8 Rc7 65. Kb8 Qa7#) 46... Qh6+ $2 {[%eval 552,18] [%wdl 1000,0,0][%mdl 8192] Gukesh needed to check with his rook. He was down to less than 10 seconds on his clock.} (46... Rg2+ $1 $11 {[%eval 0,20] [%wdl 3,994,3] and Black is okay.} 47. Kd3 Rg3+ 48. Kd2 Rg2+) 47. Kc2 $18 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 {[%csl Ga8][%cal Rf8h8]} Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ 50. Ka3 Qb2+ 51. Ka4 {Qh8+ would kill now.} Qxc3 52. Qh8+ {White mates.} Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ ({Not} 55. Qa8+ Kxd4 56. Qxg2 Qc4+ 57. Ka5 Qc5+ 58. Ka4 Qc4+ 59. Ka5 Qc5+ 60. Ka4 Qc4+ $11) 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh, D."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Bg4 5. Be2 Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 {D00: 1 d4 d5: Unusual lines.} ({RR} 6. Ngxe2 e6 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. Nb5 Rc8 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Ned4 Ne4 11. Qd1 O-O 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Nd4 Qb6 14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Nb3 Bf8 16. O-O c5 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. Nf3 Ne4 19. c3 c4 20. Qc2 Bd6 {Duarte Cramer,L (1828)-Brancaleoni,M (2185) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (49)}) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 e6 8. c3 {The position is equal.} Be7 $146 (8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) Titled Tuesday intern op 24th Oct Late Chess.com INT blitz 2023 (5)}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Nh5 9. Be5 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Ng3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 h6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. g4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rh5 Qe6 19. g5 Qg6 20. Qxg6 fxg6 21. Rh4 Kh7 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rdh1 {Bazan Romero,O (2289)-Khanbutaev,A (2139) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (84)}) 9. Ng3 O-O 10. Qe2 h6 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 Qa4 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 17. Qf3 Bd6 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 {[#]} e5 20. Qg3 {[%csl Gh5][%cal Rg3g7]} (20. dxe5 $5 Qg6 21. g4 $14) 20... Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 c4 24. Ne2 b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 Rab8 27. f3 a5 28. b4 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 (30... axb4 31. Na4 $14 (31. Na2 Ra8 $11)) 31. Ra3 Re8 32. Kd2 {[%cal Oh1b1]} Rb2+ 33. Kd3 {Black should prevent g4.} Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 36. hxg5 Rxg5 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 39. Rxa8+ $11 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 h3 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ (44... h1=Q $5 45. f8=Q $8 (45. f8=R $2 Rg3+ 46. Kc2 Qg2+ 47. Kb3 Qc6 $19) 45... Rg3+ 46. Kd2 Rg2+ 47. Ne2 (47. Kd3 Rg3+ 48. Kd2 Rg2+ 49. Ne2 Qh6+ 50. Ke1 Qh4+ 51. Kd2 Qh6+ 52. Ke1 Qh4+ 53. Kd2 Qh6+ $11) 47... Qh6+ 48. Ke1 Qh4+ 49. Kd1 Qh1+ 50. Kd2 $11) 45. Kd2 h1=Q 46. f8=Q (46. f8=R Qh6+ 47. Kc2 Rg2+ 48. Kb3 Qb6+ 49. Kc4 Qc6+ 50. Kb3 Rg3 51. Rh8+ Kg6 52. Rac8 Rxc3+ 53. Kb2 Qxc8 (53... Rc2+ 54. Kb1 Rc1+ 55. Ka2 Qe6+ 56. Kb2 Qxc8 57. Rxc8 Rxc8 58. d5 Kf5 59. d6 Ke6 60. Kb3 Kxd6 61. Kb4 g5 62. Kb5 g4 63. Ka6 g3 64. Kb7 Rc6 65. Kb8 Rb6+ 66. Ka8 Kc7 67. Ka7 Rh6 68. Ka8 Ra6#) 54. Rxc8 Rxc8 55. Kb3 Kf5 56. d5 Ke5 57. Kb4 Kxd5 58. Kb3 g5 59. Kb4 g4 60. Ka5 g3 61. Kb5 g2 62. Ka6 g1=Q (62... g1=R 63. Kb6 Rb1+ 64. Ka7 Rc4 65. Ka8 Ra4#) 63. Kb7 Rc3 64. Ka8 Rc7 65. Kb8 Qa7#) 46... Qh6+ $2 {[%eval 552,18] [%wdl 1000,0,0][%mdl 8192] Gukesh needed to check with his rook. He was down to less than 10 seconds on his clock.} (46... Rg2+ $1 $11 {[%eval 0,20] [%wdl 3,994,3] and Black is okay.} 47. Kd3 Rg3+ 48. Kd2 Rg2+) 47. Kc2 $18 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 {[%csl Ga8][%cal Rf8h8]} Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ 50. Ka3 Qb2+ 51. Ka4 {Qh8+ would kill now.} Qxc3 52. Qh8+ {White mates.} Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ ({Not} 55. Qa8+ Kxd4 56. Qxg2 Qc4+ 57. Ka5 Qc5+ 58. Ka4 Qc4+ 59. Ka5 Qc5+ 60. Ka4 Qc4+ $11) 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 h5 6. Nf3 {A45: Trompowsky Attack.} (6. Nb5 $5 Na6 $8 7. Nc3 $11) 6... O-O 7. Ne5 c5 $1 8. Qd2 {The position is equal.} Bf5 9. f3 cxd4 10. exd4 {[%cal Og2g4]} Nc6 11. Bb5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Bxd7 $146 (13. O-O-O {keeps more tension.} Nxe5 14. Qe3 Qc7 15. Rhe1) (13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Rc8 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Bxc6 Rxc6 18. g4 hxg4 19. fxg4 {0-1 Praggnanandhaa,R (2741)-Wei,Y (2755) Chessable Masters Winners Chess.com INT rapid 2025 (1.1)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 e6 17. g4 hxg4 18. h5 Qf6 19. fxg4 Bxg4 20. Rg1 Ne5 21. Rde1 Bf5 22. Qf4 Nc6 23. Bd3 Qd4 24. Qg3 Bxd3 25. cxd3 Nb4 26. Kd2 Kg7 27. hxg6 f5 {Erigaisi,A (2725)-Paravyan,D (2592) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 e6 17. g4 hxg4 18. h5 Qf6 19. fxg4 Bxg4 20. Rg1 Ne5 21. Rde1 Bf5 22. Qf4 Nc6 23. Bd3 Qd4 24. Qg3 Bxd3 25. cxd3 Nb4 26. Kd2 Kg7 27. hxg6 f5 {Erigaisi,A (2725)-Paravyan,D (2592) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) ({RR} 13. Qxd5 Nb6 14. Qxd8 Rfxd8 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. O-O Nc4 17. Bxc4 Rxc4 18. g3 a6 19. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 b5 21. Rd2 f6 22. Nd5 fxe5 23. Nxe7+ Kf7 24. Nxf5 gxf5 25. Bg5 Ke6 26. Kf2 e4 27. c3 a5 {Erigaisi,A (2712)-Grischuk,A (2732) Kolkata IND 2023 1-0 (55)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) 13... Qxd7 14. O-O-O {[%eval -76,27] [%wdl 0,759,241]} (14. Nxd5 $15 {[%eval -40,23] [%wdl 1,949,50]} Rfd8 15. c4) 14... Rac8 15. Qxd5 {[#]} Rxc3 $1 {[%mdl 64] Remove Defender} 16. Qxd7 (16. bxc3 $2 Qa4 17. Qd2 Rc8 $19 (17... Qxa2 18. Qe2 $17)) 16... Rxc2+ 17. Kb1 {[%cal Od7f5] and Qxf5! should not be overlooked} Rxg2+ 18. Qxf5 $1 gxf5 19. Rd7 Rc8 {[%eval -5,24] [%wdl 2,994,4]} ({Better is} 19... e6 $15 {[%eval -65,22] [%wdl 0,887,113]}) 20. Rxe7 $11 Rc4 21. Bc1 {[%cal Ob2b3]} b5 22. Rd1 Rxh4 23. Rd8+ Kh7 $1 24. Rxf7 $2 {[%eval -181,19] [%wdl 0,9,991] A mistake.} ({Only move:} 24. Rd1 $1 $15 {[%eval -33,21] [%wdl 0,979,21]}) 24... Rh1 $19 {and ...h4 should not be overlooked This costs White the game.} 25. Rxf5 $2 {[%eval -528,24] [%wdl 0,0,1000] A second an now fatal blunder.} (25. Rc7 $17 {[%eval -155,21] [%wdl 0,40,960]}) 25... Kg6 {[%mdl 64] Deflection} 26. Rf4 Rgg1 {[%csl Gh1][%cal Rg1c1]} 27. Rd6+ Kh7 {[%csl Gh1][%cal Rg1c1]} 28. a4 (28. Rc6 Rxc1+ (28... Bxe5 29. Rf7+ Bg7 30. Rxa7 $17) 29. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 30. Kxc1 Bh6 (30... Bxe5 $2 {perishes.} 31. Rf5 $18)) 28... Rxc1+ 29. Ka2 Bxe5 30. Rf7+ Kg8 31. Rdd7 bxa4 32. Ka3 Rc4 0-1

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 {E05: Open Catalan: 5 Nf3 Be7.} Bb4 $1 {[%mdl 4] [#] ...Qd5 is the strong threat. is more profitable than 13...Nb4 at the moment.} 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 {Against Nd7} 20. Qb1 $146 (20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 {1-0 Injac,T (2431)-Milovic,A (2130) EU-chT (Women) 24th Budva 2023 (1.15)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 {[%csl Ba5,Bc5]} cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 {[%eval 77,26] [%wdl 219,781,0]} (23... Rc2 $14 {[%eval 33,28] [%wdl 26,973,1]} 24. Rf1 Nc6) 24. Rdc1 $16 Qd8 25. Qb4 {White is much more active.} Rc7 26. Rc3 {[%eval 7,25] [%wdl 6,991,3]} (26. h4 $16 {[%eval 114,26] [%wdl 681,319,0]}) 26... Rxc3 $1 $11 27. Qxc3 Rd6 $1 {[%cal Bd5d6,Bd6c6,Bc6c4][%mdl 32]} 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 {[%csl Ba4,Bg6]} 30. Qc2 {Black is weak on the dark squares} Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 $6 {[%eval 76,23] [%wdl 201,799,0] Giving Carlsen some chances.} (34... Rxa4 $11 {[%eval 0,30] [%wdl 3,994,3]} 35. Rb6 Rc4) 35. Nf4 $1 $16 Ke7 36. g4 $2 {[%eval 6,26] [%wdl 4,994,2] The position is now equal.} (36. Nd3 $16 {[%eval 82,26] [%wdl 264,736,0]}) 36... e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 $1 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 $1 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 {Threatens to win with Nf5.} Ne4+ 51. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 h5 6. Nf3 {A45: Trompowsky Attack.} (6. Nb5 $5 Na6 $8 7. Nc3 $11) 6... O-O 7. Ne5 c5 $1 8. Qd2 {The position is equal.} Bf5 9. f3 cxd4 10. exd4 {[%cal Og2g4]} Nc6 11. Bb5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Bxd7 $146 (13. O-O-O {keeps more tension.} Nxe5 14. Qe3 Qc7 15. Rhe1) (13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Rc8 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Bxc6 Rxc6 18. g4 hxg4 19. fxg4 {0-1 Praggnanandhaa,R (2741)-Wei,Y (2755) Chessable Masters Winners Chess.com INT rapid 2025 (1.1)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 e6 17. g4 hxg4 18. h5 Qf6 19. fxg4 Bxg4 20. Rg1 Ne5 21. Rde1 Bf5 22. Qf4 Nc6 23. Bd3 Qd4 24. Qg3 Bxd3 25. cxd3 Nb4 26. Kd2 Kg7 27. hxg6 f5 {Erigaisi,A (2725)-Paravyan,D (2592) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 Bxh6 16. Qxh6 e6 17. g4 hxg4 18. h5 Qf6 19. fxg4 Bxg4 20. Rg1 Ne5 21. Rde1 Bf5 22. Qf4 Nc6 23. Bd3 Qd4 24. Qg3 Bxd3 25. cxd3 Nb4 26. Kd2 Kg7 27. hxg6 f5 {Erigaisi,A (2725)-Paravyan,D (2592) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) ({RR} 13. Qxd5 Nb6 14. Qxd8 Rfxd8 15. Rc1 Rac8 16. O-O Nc4 17. Bxc4 Rxc4 18. g3 a6 19. Rfd1 Rxd1+ 20. Rxd1 b5 21. Rd2 f6 22. Nd5 fxe5 23. Nxe7+ Kf7 24. Nxf5 gxf5 25. Bg5 Ke6 26. Kf2 e4 27. c3 a5 {Erigaisi,A (2712)-Grischuk,A (2732) Kolkata IND 2023 1-0 (55)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) 13... Qxd7 14. O-O-O {[%eval -76,27] [%wdl 0,759,241]} (14. Nxd5 $15 {[%eval -40,23] [%wdl 1,949,50]} Rfd8 15. c4) 14... Rac8 15. Qxd5 {[#]} Rxc3 $1 {[%mdl 64] Remove Defender} 16. Qxd7 (16. bxc3 $2 Qa4 17. Qd2 Rc8 $19 (17... Qxa2 18. Qe2 $17)) 16... Rxc2+ 17. Kb1 {[%cal Od7f5] and Qxf5! should not be overlooked} Rxg2+ 18. Qxf5 $1 gxf5 19. Rd7 Rc8 {[%eval -5,24] [%wdl 2,994,4]} ({Better is} 19... e6 $15 {[%eval -65,22] [%wdl 0,887,113]}) 20. Rxe7 $11 Rc4 21. Bc1 {[%cal Ob2b3]} b5 22. Rd1 Rxh4 23. Rd8+ Kh7 $1 24. Rxf7 $2 {[%eval -181,19] [%wdl 0,9,991] A mistake.} ({Only move:} 24. Rd1 $1 $15 {[%eval -33,21] [%wdl 0,979,21]}) 24... Rh1 $19 {and ...h4 should not be overlooked This costs White the game.} 25. Rxf5 $2 {[%eval -528,24] [%wdl 0,0,1000] A second an now fatal blunder.} (25. Rc7 $17 {[%eval -155,21] [%wdl 0,40,960]}) 25... Kg6 {[%mdl 64] Deflection} 26. Rf4 Rgg1 {[%csl Gh1][%cal Rg1c1]} 27. Rd6+ Kh7 {[%csl Gh1][%cal Rg1c1]} 28. a4 (28. Rc6 Rxc1+ (28... Bxe5 29. Rf7+ Bg7 30. Rxa7 $17) 29. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 30. Kxc1 Bh6 (30... Bxe5 $2 {perishes.} 31. Rf5 $18)) 28... Rxc1+ 29. Ka2 Bxe5 30. Rf7+ Kg8 31. Rdd7 bxa4 32. Ka3 Rc4 0-1

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Crowther,Mark"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 {E05: Open Catalan: 5 Nf3 Be7.} Bb4 $1 {[%mdl 4] [#] ...Qd5 is the strong threat. is more profitable than 13...Nb4 at the moment.} 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 {Against Nd7} 20. Qb1 $146 (20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 {1-0 Injac,T (2431)-Milovic,A (2130) EU-chT (Women) 24th Budva 2023 (1.15)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 {[%csl Ba5,Bc5]} cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 {[%eval 77,26] [%wdl 219,781,0]} (23... Rc2 $14 {[%eval 33,28] [%wdl 26,973,1]} 24. Rf1 Nc6) 24. Rdc1 $16 Qd8 25. Qb4 {White is much more active.} Rc7 26. Rc3 {[%eval 7,25] [%wdl 6,991,3]} (26. h4 $16 {[%eval 114,26] [%wdl 681,319,0]}) 26... Rxc3 $1 $11 27. Qxc3 Rd6 $1 {[%cal Bd5d6,Bd6c6,Bc6c4][%mdl 32]} 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 {[%csl Ba4,Bg6]} 30. Qc2 {Black is weak on the dark squares} Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KRN-KRN} 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 $6 {[%eval 76,23] [%wdl 201,799,0] Giving Carlsen some chances.} (34... Rxa4 $11 {[%eval 0,30] [%wdl 3,994,3]} 35. Rb6 Rc4) 35. Nf4 $1 $16 Ke7 36. g4 $2 {[%eval 6,26] [%wdl 4,994,2] The position is now equal.} (36. Nd3 $16 {[%eval 82,26] [%wdl 264,736,0]}) 36... e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 $1 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 $1 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 {Threatens to win with Nf5.} Ne4+ 51. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.02"]
[Round "7.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2804"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. g3 b5 6. Bg2 e6 7. O-O Bb7 8. Ne5 {[%mdl 1024] White has compensation.} Qc8 {E04: Open Catalan: 5 Nf3.} 9. b3 b4 (9... c5 $14) 10. Na4 $1 $16 {White has more active pieces.} (10. Ne4 Nxe4 11. Bxe4 c3 $11) 10... c3 {White is better.} 11. a3 $1 Nbd7 12. axb4 Bxb4 13. Ba3 a5 $146 {[%cal Ba7a5,Ba5b4][%mdl 32] [#]} ({Predecessor:} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Titled Tuesday intern op 31st Aug Chess.com INT blitz 2021 (2)}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 O-O 15. Nc5 Nxc5 16. dxc5 Rd8 17. Qc1 Nd5 18. Nc4 Ba6 19. Re1 Bxc4 20. bxc4 Ne7 21. Qxc3 Qc7 22. Ra6 h6 23. Rea1 Rd7 24. Bf3 f5 25. Qa5 Qxa5 26. R1xa5 Rc7 27. e4 fxe4 28. Bxe4 {Kanter,E (2407)-Yudin,S (2548) Khanty-Mansiysk 2013 ½-½ (41)}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) 14. Nxc3 $1 O-O (14... Bxa3 15. Rxa3) 15. Bxb4 axb4 16. Nxd7 $1 Nxd7 17. Na4 Ba6 18. Qd2 $1 Bb5 19. Rfc1 Ra6 20. e3 (20. Qxb4 $6 Bxe2 21. Qd6 Rd8 $14) 20... Qa8 21. Qxb4 Nb6 {[%cal Rb6a4] [#]} 22. Rc5 $1 Nd5 23. Bxd5 exd5 {Black is weak on the dark squares} 24. Rcc1 h5 {[%cal Bh7h5,Bh5h4][%mdl 32]} 25. h4 (25. Qd2 $16) 25... Re8 (25... Be2 $14) 26. Qc3 Qc8 {[%cal Og7g5] [#]} 27. Nc5 ({Better is} 27. Qc2 $1 $16) 27... Rxa1 $14 28. Rxa1 g5 29. hxg5 {[%cal Oe3e4] Hoping for e4!.} h4 30. e4 $1 (30. gxh4 Qg4+ 31. Kh2 Qxh4+ 32. Kg2 Qg4+ (32... Qxg5+ 33. Kf3 f5 34. Rg1 Qxg1 35. e4 dxe4+ 36. Kf4 Qg4+ 37. Ke3 Qg5+ 38. f4 exf3+ 39. Kxf3 Qg4+ 40. Kf2 Re2+ 41. Kf1 Qg2#) 33. Kh2 Bf1 (33... Qxg5 $2 34. Rg1 $18 {[%mdl 64] Pin}) (33... Kg7 $2 34. Ne6+ Qxe6 35. e4 $19) 34. Rxf1 Kg7) 30... dxe4 {[%cal Oe4e3]} 31. Re1 (31. gxh4 $2 e3 32. f3 Qh3 $19) (31. Qe3 $1 $14 hxg3 32. Qxg3 (32. Nxe4 $2 gxf2+ 33. Kxf2 Qf5+ 34. Qf3 Qxe4 $19)) 31... Qg4 $11 32. Qe3 {[%cal Rc5e4]} hxg3 33. fxg3 (33. Nxe4 gxf2+ 34. Kxf2 Kg7 $17) 33... Kg7 34. Kg2 {[%cal Rc5e4]} Rh8 (34... Qf3+ $11 {remains equal.} 35. Kg1 (35. Qxf3 exf3+ 36. Kf2 Be2 $14) 35... Qg4) 35. Qxe4 {This move loses the game for Black.} Qh3+ {[%mdl 8192]} (35... Qxg5 $16 {is tougher.} 36. Qe5+ Qxe5 37. dxe5 (37. Rxe5 Ra8 $16) 37... Rd8) 36. Kf3 $18 Bf1 {and ...Bg2+ should not be overlooked} 37. Kf4 (37. Qxc6 $2 {loses.} Bg2+ 38. Kf4 Bxc6 $19) 37... Qh2 (37... Bg2 $18 38. Qe5+ (38. Qe7 Rh4+ {[%mdl 64] Deflection} 39. Ke3 Qxg3+ 40. Kd2 Qf2+ 41. Kc1 Bd5 $15) 38... Kg8) 38. Qe5+ {White mates.} ({Weaker is} 38. Rxf1 Rh4+ 39. Ke5 Rxe4+ 40. Nxe4 Qe2 $11) 38... Kg8 39. Rxf1 Qg2 {An entertaining game by Carlsen.  Weighted Error Value: White=0.11 (very precise) /Black=0.40} 40. Ra1 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,103,20,28,28,-16,-10,-40,-25,-59,-17,14,3,-7,-3,2,5,-18,-36,-39,-40,-31,-44,-44,-44,-55,-8,-10,-14,-15,-14,2,7,-2,25,19,15,22,15,10,0,0,0,-6,0,0,34,37,41,25,62,53,82,86,112,98,116,126,135,121,130,139,135,95,125,125,156,156,150,150,156,158,158,121,128,136,171,128,135,136,136,158,151,97,151,97,159,138,159,159,159,142,138,138,159,89,89,187,197,192,381,283,309,387,397,449]} 1. d4 d5 {[%cal Bd7d5,Bd5c4][%mdl 32]} 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. Rd1 {E05: Open Catalan: 5 Nf3 Be7.} (8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qd3) 8... b5 $1 $11 {Black wants to play ...Bb7.} 9. Ne5 Nd5 10. b3 {The position is equal.} cxb3 11. axb3 Bb7 {aiming for ...Nb4.} 12. Ba3 Bd6 {The modern move.} 13. Nd3 Nd7 (13... a5 {feels stronger.}) 14. e4 Bxa3 $1 15. Rxa3 ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 16. Nd2 a5 $146 ({Predecessor:} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 {1-0 Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) MrDodgy Online Inv Finals 3rd Chess.com INT blitz 2022 (3.5)}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 {[%cal Oa3a2]} c5 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. b4 axb4 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Rc1 {[%cal Oc5c6] [#]} Rc8 22. Qb2 h6 23. Qxb4 Bc6 24. Qb2 {Wards off Ne5} Ra8 25. Nb4 Ne5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Nxc6 ({Don't take} 28. Rxc4 $6 Rd8 $16) 28... Qxc6 29. Rxc4 Rc8 (29... Ra5 $11) 30. e5 (30. h3 $16) 30... Nd5 31. f5 Qa6 $1 (31... exf5 $2 {too greedy.} 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 $18) 32. Rc1 Qa7 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Bxd5 exd5 $14 {[%mdl 4096] Endgame KQR-KQR. White is a pawn up.} 35. Qd4 Qd7 36. Kg2 Qc6 37. h4 Kh8 38. Rc2 Kg8 39. h5 Kh8 40. Kh3 Kg8 41. Kh2 Qe6 42. Rd2 Rd8 43. Kg2 Qc6 44. Rd1 Qa6 45. Re1 Qe6 46. Rb1 Qf5 47. Rb2 {Loses the game.} Qxh5 $2 {[%mdl 8192]} (47... Qe6 $14 48. g4 Rf8) 48. c6 $18 {White is clearly winning.} Kh7 {[#]} (48... Qf7 $142 49. Rb7 Qf5) 49. e6 $1 {Active counter play!} Qg6 {Dodges Qd3} 50. Re2 {Black must now prevent e7.} Ra8 51. Qxd5 Ra3 {Weighted Error Value: White=0.05 (flawless) /Black=0.45} 52. Qe4 {PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 98% PRETAS 88% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 96.8% PRETAS 91.5%} 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. Bh4 c6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 10. O-O $1 {10.0-0 is better than 10.Qc2.} a5 {D35: Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation.} ({RR} 10... Nh5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Qd2 Re8 13. Rae1 Nb6 14. Nf4 Nf6 15. f3 c5 16. g4 Be6 17. h4 Nh7 18. Qh2 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf6 20. Re5 g6 21. Rfe1 Bd7 22. Ncxd5 Qd6 23. Nxg6 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Be6 25. Nge7+ {Ding,L (2808)-Abdusattorov,N (2677) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) 11. f3 ({RR} 11. Rc1 Re8 12. f3 b5 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Qb8 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 c5 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Qb1 Bf8 20. Rfd1 Qb5 21. Nf4 Ne6 22. Nf5 Rac8 23. h3 Nxf4 24. exf4 Nh5 25. Nd4 Qd7 {Duda,J (2725)-Carlsen,M (2839) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (65)}) 11... b5 {[%cal Bb7b5,Bb5b4][%mdl 32]} 12. Qc2 Re8 13. e4 $146 ({RR} 13. a3 Ba6 14. Kh1 Qb8 15. Bg3 Qb7 16. e4 b4 17. Nd1 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Qe4 21. Nf2 Qxd3 22. Nxd3 Nd5 23. dxc5 Nxc5 24. Nxc5 Bxc5 25. Rfd1 Ne3 26. Rdc1 Bf8 27. Nd4 bxa3 {Mesaros,F (2415)-Sebenik,M (2509) Austria 2022 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 13. Rae1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Nb6 15. Ng3 b4 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. Nd1 Nbd7 18. e4 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Nd5 21. Nf5 Bf8 22. Bh4 Qb6 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Qf5 N7f6 25. exf6 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Qc6 27. fxg7 cxd4 {Bercaru,V (2065)-Sabuk,P (2375) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2025 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bf2 Rad8 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 Ng4 18. Bg1 Qb8 19. h3 Ngf6 20. e5 Nd5 21. Bh7+ Kh8 22. Rxf7 Nb4 23. Qg6 Bf8 24. Rdf1 Nd5 25. Nxd5 cxd5 26. Nf4 b4 27. Qxa6 Kxh7 28. Qg6+ Kh8 29. Qh5) 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Bb7 14. h3 Rc8 15. Bf5 g6 16. Bxg6 fxg6 17. Qxg6+ Kh8 18. e4 Nh7 19. e5 b4 20. Nd1 Ba6 21. Re1 Rg8 22. Qxh6 Bg5 23. Qd6 Qe8 24. e6 Qg6 25. Bg3 Ndf6 26. Nf2 Be3 27. Qe5 Bxe2) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb6 15. Rfe1 b4 16. Na4 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Qb5 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. Nf4 c5 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Qd2 Rec8 23. Qd4 b3 24. axb3 Qxb3 25. Qe5 Bf8 26. Nd3 Rc2 27. Qf5 R8c6 {Anas Khwaira (2173)-Aradhya,G (2383) Al Ain UAE 2025 0-1 (65)}) 13... b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Nxe4 16. Bxe7 (16. Bxe4 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6 $17) 16... Qxe7 17. Qxc6 Nef6 $146 ({Predecessor:} 17... Rb8 18. Rae1 Bb7 19. Qb5 Qd6 20. Qf5 Ndf6 21. b3 Rbd8 22. Qxa5 Ng4 23. Qh5 Nef6 {0-1 Wu,D (2225)-Kravtsiv,M (2598) Titled Tuesday intern op 26th Nov Late Chess.com INT blitz 2024 (3)}) 18. Qxa8 $16 (18. Rxf6 $2 Nxf6 19. Qc1 Bg4 $19) 18... Qe3+ 19. Kh1 $1 Qxd3 20. Nf4 Qxd4 21. Rad1 (21. Qxa5 Ng4 $11) 21... Qe5 (21... Qe3 $16) 22. Rc1 $1 $18 Nf8 23. Rxc8 Qxf4 {[%cal Rf4f1][%mdl 64] Deflection, Back Rank} 24. Qa6 $36 {[%mdl 2048] White is on the roll.} Qxf1+ {[%mdl 64] Deflection} 25. Qxf1 Rxc8 26. h3 $1 Rd8 27. Qa6 Rd5 28. Nb6 Rc5 29. Nc4 Ne6 (29... Ng6 $16) 30. Nxa5 g5 31. Nc4 g4 32. b3 gxh3 33. gxh3 Rh5 34. Kh2 (34. Kg2 $1 $16) 34... Kg7 35. Qb7 {[%cal Oc4d6]} Ng5 $1 36. Nd6 {[%cal Oh2g2]} (36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 (37. Kg1 h5 $16) 37... Rf3 $16) 36... Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 {[%cal Od6f7]} Rd3 38. Nf5+ Kg6 39. Ne7+ Kh5 40. Qxb4 {[%mdl 8192]} ({White should try} 40. Qa6 $15 Rd2+ 41. Kg3) 40... Nfe4 $19 41. Kf1 Rd2 42. Qb5 $2 (42. Qxd2 Nxd2+ 43. Ke2) 42... Rd1+ 43. Kg2 {White wants to mate with Qe2+.} Rd2+ 44. Kf1 (44. Kg1 {only move.}) 44... Kg4 {(  ...Ng3+)} 45. Qf5+ Kg3 {[%cal Og5f3]} 46. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 47. Qf5+ Kg3 {[%cal Og5f3] (  ...Nf3!)} 48. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 49. Qf5+ {[#]} Ke3 $1 50. Nd5+ Kd4 51. Ke1 Rxa2 {and ...Ra1+ should not be overlooked} 52. Qd7 (52. Nb4 $2 Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ng3+ 54. Kf2 Rf1+ (54... Nxf5 55. Nc2+ Kc3 56. Nxa1 $19) 55. Kxg3 Rxf5 $19) 52... Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ra2+ 54. Ke1 {[#]} (54. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 55. Kc1 Ke5 $19) 54... Ra1+ ({Black should try} 54... Nc5 $1 {[%cal Rc5d7]} 55. Qd8 (55. Qf5 $2 Nce4 $19) 55... Nge6 (55... Nxb3 $2 {is the wrong capture.} 56. Nb4+ {[%csl Od4][%mdl 64] Discovered Attack (Check)} Kc4 57. Nxa2 $18)) 55. Ke2 $17 {and Ne3+ should not be overlooked. The board is on fire.} Ra2+ {White used his chance. A brilliant game!  Weighted Error Value: White=0.36/Black=0.29 (precise)} 56. Ke1 $1 ({Don't blunder} 56. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 57. Kc1 Ke5 $19) 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. Bh4 c6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 10. O-O $1 {10.0-0 is better than 10.Qc2.} a5 {D35: Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation.} ({RR} 10... Nh5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Qd2 Re8 13. Rae1 Nb6 14. Nf4 Nf6 15. f3 c5 16. g4 Be6 17. h4 Nh7 18. Qh2 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf6 20. Re5 g6 21. Rfe1 Bd7 22. Ncxd5 Qd6 23. Nxg6 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Be6 25. Nge7+ {Ding,L (2808)-Abdusattorov,N (2677) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) 11. f3 ({RR} 11. Rc1 Re8 12. f3 b5 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Qb8 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 c5 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Qb1 Bf8 20. Rfd1 Qb5 21. Nf4 Ne6 22. Nf5 Rac8 23. h3 Nxf4 24. exf4 Nh5 25. Nd4 Qd7 {Duda,J (2725)-Carlsen,M (2839) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (65)}) 11... b5 {[%cal Bb7b5,Bb5b4][%mdl 32]} 12. Qc2 Re8 13. e4 $146 ({RR} 13. a3 Ba6 14. Kh1 Qb8 15. Bg3 Qb7 16. e4 b4 17. Nd1 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Qe4 21. Nf2 Qxd3 22. Nxd3 Nd5 23. dxc5 Nxc5 24. Nxc5 Bxc5 25. Rfd1 Ne3 26. Rdc1 Bf8 27. Nd4 bxa3 {Mesaros,F (2415)-Sebenik,M (2509) Austria 2022 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 13. Rae1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Nb6 15. Ng3 b4 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. Nd1 Nbd7 18. e4 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Nd5 21. Nf5 Bf8 22. Bh4 Qb6 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Qf5 N7f6 25. exf6 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Qc6 27. fxg7 cxd4 {Bercaru,V (2065)-Sabuk,P (2375) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2025 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bf2 Rad8 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 Ng4 18. Bg1 Qb8 19. h3 Ngf6 20. e5 Nd5 21. Bh7+ Kh8 22. Rxf7 Nb4 23. Qg6 Bf8 24. Rdf1 Nd5 25. Nxd5 cxd5 26. Nf4 b4 27. Qxa6 Kxh7 28. Qg6+ Kh8 29. Qh5) 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Bb7 14. h3 Rc8 15. Bf5 g6 16. Bxg6 fxg6 17. Qxg6+ Kh8 18. e4 Nh7 19. e5 b4 20. Nd1 Ba6 21. Re1 Rg8 22. Qxh6 Bg5 23. Qd6 Qe8 24. e6 Qg6 25. Bg3 Ndf6 26. Nf2 Be3 27. Qe5 Bxe2) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb6 15. Rfe1 b4 16. Na4 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Qb5 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. Nf4 c5 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Qd2 Rec8 23. Qd4 b3 24. axb3 Qxb3 25. Qe5 Bf8 26. Nd3 Rc2 27. Qf5 R8c6 {Anas Khwaira (2173)-Aradhya,G (2383) Al Ain UAE 2025 0-1 (65)}) 13... b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Nxe4 16. Bxe7 (16. Bxe4 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6 $17) 16... Qxe7 17. Qxc6 Nef6 $146 ({Predecessor:} 17... Rb8 18. Rae1 Bb7 19. Qb5 Qd6 20. Qf5 Ndf6 21. b3 Rbd8 22. Qxa5 Ng4 23. Qh5 Nef6 {0-1 Wu,D (2225)-Kravtsiv,M (2598) Titled Tuesday intern op 26th Nov Late Chess.com INT blitz 2024 (3)}) 18. Qxa8 $16 (18. Rxf6 $2 Nxf6 19. Qc1 Bg4 $19) 18... Qe3+ 19. Kh1 $1 Qxd3 20. Nf4 Qxd4 21. Rad1 (21. Qxa5 Ng4 $11) 21... Qe5 (21... Qe3 $16) 22. Rc1 $1 $18 Nf8 23. Rxc8 Qxf4 {[%cal Rf4f1][%mdl 64] Deflection, Back Rank} 24. Qa6 $36 {[%mdl 2048] White is on the roll.} Qxf1+ {[%mdl 64] Deflection} 25. Qxf1 Rxc8 26. h3 $1 Rd8 27. Qa6 Rd5 28. Nb6 Rc5 29. Nc4 Ne6 (29... Ng6 $16) 30. Nxa5 g5 31. Nc4 g4 32. b3 gxh3 33. gxh3 Rh5 34. Kh2 (34. Kg2 $1 $16) 34... Kg7 35. Qb7 {[%cal Oc4d6]} Ng5 $1 36. Nd6 {[%cal Oh2g2]} (36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 (37. Kg1 h5 $16) 37... Rf3 $16) 36... Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 {[%cal Od6f7]} Rd3 38. Nf5+ Kg6 39. Ne7+ Kh5 40. Qxb4 {[%mdl 8192]} ({White should try} 40. Qa6 $15 Rd2+ 41. Kg3) 40... Nfe4 $19 41. Kf1 Rd2 42. Qb5 $2 (42. Qxd2 Nxd2+ 43. Ke2) 42... Rd1+ 43. Kg2 {White wants to mate with Qe2+.} Rd2+ 44. Kf1 (44. Kg1 {only move.}) 44... Kg4 {(  ...Ng3+)} 45. Qf5+ Kg3 {[%cal Og5f3]} 46. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 47. Qf5+ Kg3 {[%cal Og5f3] (  ...Nf3!)} 48. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 49. Qf5+ {[#]} Ke3 $1 50. Nd5+ Kd4 51. Ke1 Rxa2 {and ...Ra1+ should not be overlooked} 52. Qd7 (52. Nb4 $2 Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ng3+ 54. Kf2 Rf1+ (54... Nxf5 55. Nc2+ Kc3 56. Nxa1 $19) 55. Kxg3 Rxf5 $19) 52... Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ra2+ 54. Ke1 {[#]} (54. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 55. Kc1 Ke5 $19) 54... Ra1+ ({Black should try} 54... Nc5 $1 {[%cal Rc5d7]} 55. Qd8 (55. Qf5 $2 Nce4 $19) 55... Nge6 (55... Nxb3 $2 {is the wrong capture.} 56. Nb4+ {[%csl Od4][%mdl 64] Discovered Attack (Check)} Kc4 57. Nxa2 $18)) 55. Ke2 $17 {and Ne3+ should not be overlooked. The board is on fire.} Ra2+ {White used his chance. A brilliant game!  Weighted Error Value: White=0.36/Black=0.29 (precise)} 56. Ke1 $1 ({Don't blunder} 56. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 57. Kc1 Ke5 $19) 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 Nbd7 6. Be3 {E73: King's Indian: Averbakh Variation without 6...c5.} e5 7. d5 {White is more active.} (7. Nf3 $16) 7... Nc5 $14 8. Qc2 {White is slightly better. is cutting edge theory.} a5 9. Nf3 ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) 9... Ng4 (9... b6 $14) 10. Bg5 (10. Bxc5 $16 dxc5 11. Rd1 (11. h3 Nh6 $14)) 10... f6 $11 {[%cal Bf7f6,Bf6f5,Bf5f4][%mdl 32]} 11. Bh4 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 O-O 12. h3 Nh6 13. h4 Nf7 14. h5 f5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Nh4 Qf6 17. exf5 gxf5 18. g4 e4 19. O-O-O Ne5 20. Kb1 fxg4 21. Be3 Ned3 22. Rd2 Nxb2 23. Bd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Bxd4 25. Kxb2 Rxf2 {Milikow,Y (2412)-Maksimovic,B (2468) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 O-O 12. h3 Nh6 13. h4 Nf7 14. h5 f5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Nh4 Qf6 17. exf5 gxf5 18. g4 e4 19. O-O-O Ne5 20. Kb1 fxg4 21. Be3 Ned3 22. Rd2 Nxb2 23. Bd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Bxd4 25. Kxb2 Rxf2 {Milikow,Y (2412)-Maksimovic,B (2468) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 11... g5 $146 ({Predecessor:} 11... h5 12. h3 Nh6 13. Nd2 Nf7 14. O-O-O {½-½ Kopjonkin,G (2345)-Kalinin,O (2420) Frydek Mistek op 1996 (9)}) 12. Bg3 f5 13. Nd2 f4 14. Bxg4 (14. h3 $14) 14... Bxg4 15. f3 $1 Bd7 $36 {[%mdl 2048] Black has the initiative.} 16. Bf2 b6 17. b3 (17. Bxc5 $11 bxc5 18. b3) 17... g4 18. O-O-O (18. h3 $1 $11) 18... Rg8 (18... Bf6 $15) 19. Kb2 gxf3 20. Nxf3 Bf6 21. Rhg1 Bg4 (21... Rg6 {deserves consideration.}) 22. a3 Qd7 23. Nb5 Ke7 (23... a4 $11) 24. Rde1 (24. b4 $1 $14) 24... Rg7 25. Nd2 Kf7 26. g3 Bh5 (26... Kg8 $11) 27. gxf4 (27. b4 $1 $14) 27... exf4+ $15 28. Bd4 {[#] Hoping for Bxf6.} Qh3 (28... Rxg1 $15 {stays ahead.} 29. Rxg1 Rg8 (29... Be5 30. Bxe5 dxe5 31. Rg5 $16) 30. Rxg8 (30. e5 Rxg1 31. Qxh7+ Kf8 $17) 30... Bxd4+ 31. Nxd4 Kxg8) 29. Bxf6 $16 (29. Nxc7 $2 Bxd4+ 30. Ka2 Bxg1 $19 (30... Rxg1 $2 31. Rxg1 Bxg1 32. Nxa8 $19)) 29... Rxg1 (29... Kxf6 $16 {is a better defense.} 30. Rxg7 {[%mdl 64] Remove Defender} Kxg7 (30... Nd3+ 31. Ka1 $16) 31. Qc3+ (31. Nxc7 Nd3+ 32. Ka2 Nxe1 $15) 31... Qxc3+ 32. Kxc3 Na6) 30. Rxg1 $18 Kxf6 31. e5+ $2 {Chess con chili.} ({White should play} 31. Nxc7 $16 Rf8 32. Qc3+ (32. e5+ dxe5 33. Qxh7 Bg4 $14) 32... Qxc3+ 33. Kxc3) 31... Kxe5 $2 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} (31... dxe5 $11 32. Qxh7 (32. Nxc7 Rh8 $17) 32... Bg4 33. Qxc7 Qe3 34. Qxb6+ (34. Rxg4 {gets mated.} Qxd2+ 35. Kb1 Qd1+ 36. Kb2 Qxb3+ 37. Kc1 Nd3+ 38. Kd2 Qb2+ {[%mdl 64] Skewer} 39. Kxd3 e4+ {[%mdl 64] Decoy} 40. Kxe4 Re8+) (34. Rg2 $2 f3 $17) 34... Kf7 35. Qc7+ (35. Rxg4 Qxd2+ 36. Kb1 Qd1+ 37. Kb2 Qxb3+ 38. Kc1 Qe3+ 39. Kd1 Qd3+ 40. Ke1 Qb1+ 41. Kd2 Ne4+ 42. Ke2 Qc2+ {[%csl Oc4,Oe2][%mdl 64] Skewer, Double Attack} 43. Ke1 Qd2+ 44. Kf1 Qd1+ 45. Kg2 f3+ 46. Kh3 Qf1+) 35... Nd7) 32. Qxh7 {White mates.} Bg4 33. Qg7+ Kf5 {An entertaining game by Erigaisi.  Weighted Error Value: White=0.28 (precise) /Black=0.45} 34. Nd4# 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 Nbd7 6. Be3 {E73: King's Indian: Averbakh Variation without 6...c5.} e5 7. d5 {White is more active.} (7. Nf3 $16) 7... Nc5 $14 8. Qc2 {White is slightly better. is cutting edge theory.} a5 9. Nf3 ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) 9... Ng4 (9... b6 $14) 10. Bg5 (10. Bxc5 $16 dxc5 11. Rd1 (11. h3 Nh6 $14)) 10... f6 $11 {[%cal Bf7f6,Bf6f5,Bf5f4][%mdl 32]} 11. Bh4 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 O-O 12. h3 Nh6 13. h4 Nf7 14. h5 f5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Nh4 Qf6 17. exf5 gxf5 18. g4 e4 19. O-O-O Ne5 20. Kb1 fxg4 21. Be3 Ned3 22. Rd2 Nxb2 23. Bd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Bxd4 25. Kxb2 Rxf2 {Milikow,Y (2412)-Maksimovic,B (2468) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 O-O 12. h3 Nh6 13. h4 Nf7 14. h5 f5 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Nh4 Qf6 17. exf5 gxf5 18. g4 e4 19. O-O-O Ne5 20. Kb1 fxg4 21. Be3 Ned3 22. Rd2 Nxb2 23. Bd4 Qxd4 24. Rxd4 Bxd4 25. Kxb2 Rxf2 {Milikow,Y (2412)-Maksimovic,B (2468) chess.com INT 2022 1-0 (33)}) ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 11... g5 $146 ({Predecessor:} 11... h5 12. h3 Nh6 13. Nd2 Nf7 14. O-O-O {½-½ Kopjonkin,G (2345)-Kalinin,O (2420) Frydek Mistek op 1996 (9)}) 12. Bg3 f5 13. Nd2 f4 14. Bxg4 (14. h3 $14) 14... Bxg4 15. f3 $1 Bd7 $36 {[%mdl 2048] Black has the initiative.} 16. Bf2 b6 17. b3 (17. Bxc5 $11 bxc5 18. b3) 17... g4 18. O-O-O (18. h3 $1 $11) 18... Rg8 (18... Bf6 $15) 19. Kb2 gxf3 20. Nxf3 Bf6 21. Rhg1 Bg4 (21... Rg6 {deserves consideration.}) 22. a3 Qd7 23. Nb5 Ke7 (23... a4 $11) 24. Rde1 (24. b4 $1 $14) 24... Rg7 25. Nd2 Kf7 26. g3 Bh5 (26... Kg8 $11) 27. gxf4 (27. b4 $1 $14) 27... exf4+ $15 28. Bd4 {[#] Hoping for Bxf6.} Qh3 (28... Rxg1 $15 {stays ahead.} 29. Rxg1 Rg8 (29... Be5 30. Bxe5 dxe5 31. Rg5 $16) 30. Rxg8 (30. e5 Rxg1 31. Qxh7+ Kf8 $17) 30... Bxd4+ 31. Nxd4 Kxg8) 29. Bxf6 $16 (29. Nxc7 $2 Bxd4+ 30. Ka2 Bxg1 $19 (30... Rxg1 $2 31. Rxg1 Bxg1 32. Nxa8 $19)) 29... Rxg1 (29... Kxf6 $16 {is a better defense.} 30. Rxg7 {[%mdl 64] Remove Defender} Kxg7 (30... Nd3+ 31. Ka1 $16) 31. Qc3+ (31. Nxc7 Nd3+ 32. Ka2 Nxe1 $15) 31... Qxc3+ 32. Kxc3 Na6) 30. Rxg1 $18 Kxf6 31. e5+ $2 {Chess con chili.} ({White should play} 31. Nxc7 $16 Rf8 32. Qc3+ (32. e5+ dxe5 33. Qxh7 Bg4 $14) 32... Qxc3+ 33. Kxc3) 31... Kxe5 $2 {[%mdl 8192] [#]} (31... dxe5 $11 32. Qxh7 (32. Nxc7 Rh8 $17) 32... Bg4 33. Qxc7 Qe3 34. Qxb6+ (34. Rxg4 {gets mated.} Qxd2+ 35. Kb1 Qd1+ 36. Kb2 Qxb3+ 37. Kc1 Nd3+ 38. Kd2 Qb2+ {[%mdl 64] Skewer} 39. Kxd3 e4+ {[%mdl 64] Decoy} 40. Kxe4 Re8+) (34. Rg2 $2 f3 $17) 34... Kf7 35. Qc7+ (35. Rxg4 Qxd2+ 36. Kb1 Qd1+ 37. Kb2 Qxb3+ 38. Kc1 Qe3+ 39. Kd1 Qd3+ 40. Ke1 Qb1+ 41. Kd2 Ne4+ 42. Ke2 Qc2+ {[%csl Oc4,Oe2][%mdl 64] Skewer, Double Attack} 43. Ke1 Qd2+ 44. Kf1 Qd1+ 45. Kg2 f3+ 46. Kh3 Qf1+) 35... Nd7) 32. Qxh7 {White mates.} Bg4 33. Qg7+ Kf5 {An entertaining game by Erigaisi.  Weighted Error Value: White=0.28 (precise) /Black=0.45} 34. Nd4# 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh, D.."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Chessbase"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Bg4 5. Be2 Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 ({RR} 6. Ngxe2 e6 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. Nb5 Rc8 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Ned4 Ne4 11. Qd1 O-O 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Nd4 Qb6 14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Nb3 Bf8 16. O-O c5 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. Nf3 Ne4 19. c3 c4 20. Qc2 Bd6 {Duarte Cramer,L (1828)-Brancaleoni,M (2185) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (49)}) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 e6 8. c3 Be7 $146 ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Nh5 9. Be5 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Ng3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 h6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. g4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rh5 Qe6 19. g5 Qg6 20. Qxg6 fxg6 21. Rh4 Kh7 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rdh1 {Bazan Romero,O (2289)-Khanbutaev,A (2139) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (84)}) 9. Ng3 O-O 10. Qe2 h6 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 Qa4 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 17. Qf3 Bd6 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 e5 20. Qg3 Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 c4 24. Ne2 b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 Rab8 27. f3 a5 28. b4 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 31. Ra3 Re8 32. Kd2 Rb2+ 33. Kd3 Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 36. hxg5 Rxg5 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 39. Rxa8+ Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 h3 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ 45. Kd2 h1=Q 46. f8=Q Qh6+ 47. Kc2 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ 50. Ka3 Qb2+ 51. Ka4 Qxc3 52. Qh8+ Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "CB-RR"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,101,28,20,20,-4,-4,-4,-4,-23,3,3,-7,-27,1,-7,-7,-15,-15,-2,-2,1,0,0,17,-8,-15,-7,-4,4,-2,0,0,0,11,17,46,46,46,36,36,29,56,42,44,63,64,48,62,72,53,70,70,46,46,46,26,38,28,28,26,15,43,16,3,0,12,17,17,17,43,58,58,17,36,33,33,33,33,0,9,0,33,-12,7,4,4,4,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 Bb4 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 20. Qb1 $146 ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 24. Rdc1 Qd8 25. Qb4 Rc7 26. Rc3 Rxc3 27. Qxc3 Rd6 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 30. Qc2 Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 35. Nf4 Ke7 36. g4 e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 Ne4+ 51. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,101,16,28,27,-16,-9,4,4,-25,-11,-19,11,-26,21,-9,-3,-19,-24,-12,3,-10,1,-31,5,-36,-7,-15,7,-32,-7,-9,-8,-6,14,13,32,24,38,47,40,55,50,45,21,19,54,-2,64,68,69,73,65,45,27,34,21,28,27,34,34,16,42,0,26,18,7,0,0,8,48,60,61,6,22,36,36,37,39,0,6,0,39,0,13,0,5,0,17,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 Bb4 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 20. Qb1 $146 ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 24. Rdc1 Qd8 25. Qb4 Rc7 26. Rc3 $6 {A move that seems to give away much of White's advantage.} (26. h4 {or other waiting moves, and Carlsen remains clearly better, though there's no obvious knockout blow.}) 26... Rxc3 $1 27. Qxc3 Rd6 $1 {This square is now available after the queen was deflected from b4.} 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 30. Qc2 Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 35. Nf4 Ke7 36. g4 $6 (36. Nd3 $1 {and White preserves more chances.} e5 (36... Rxa4 37. Nc5 Ra2 38. Rb6 e5 39. d5 Rd2 40. e4 Kf8 {illustrates the kind of chances Carlsen could have got.}) 37. Ke4 {In the game the e5-pawn attacks the knight, so there's no option to play like this.}) 36... e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 {Black has powerful connected passed pawns on the queenside, so Carlsen decides it's time to shut things down.} Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 Ne4+ 51. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "CB-RR"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]
[WhiteTeam "IND"]
[BlackTeam "NOR"]
[WhiteClock "0:05:24"]
[BlackClock "0:00:23"]

{[%evp 0,111,18,18,18,-18,-2,-3,-14,-22,-24,-51,13,21,14,22,37,15,35,31,30,30,39,40,36,25,38,40,66,73,62,40,40,-52,-47,-51,63,75,97,83,111,62,53,53,53,53,49,42,51,46,38,48,46,46,65,58,69,102,110,84,143,141,154,118,136,102,90,90,90,77,72,85,85,29,51,0,0,0,0,-17,0,-145,-145,-145,-145,-387,-202,-228,-151,-387,0,0,0,-312,-312,-312,0,-309,-309,-309,-315,-315,-321,-321,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291,-291]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. Bh4 c6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 10. O-O a5 ({RR} 10... Nh5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Qd2 Re8 13. Rae1 Nb6 14. Nf4 Nf6 15. f3 c5 16. g4 Be6 17. h4 Nh7 18. Qh2 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf6 20. Re5 g6 21. Rfe1 Bd7 22. Ncxd5 Qd6 23. Nxg6 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Be6 25. Nge7+ {Ding,L (2808)-Abdusattorov,N (2677) Chess.com INT 2022 1-0}) 11. f3 ({RR} 11. Rc1 Re8 12. f3 b5 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Qb8 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 c5 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Qb1 Bf8 20. Rfd1 Qb5 21. Nf4 Ne6 22. Nf5 Rac8 23. h3 Nxf4 24. exf4 Nh5 25. Nd4 Qd7 {Duda,J (2725)-Carlsen,M (2839) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (65)}) 11... b5 12. Qc2 Re8 13. e4 $146 ({RR} 13. a3 Ba6 14. Kh1 Qb8 15. Bg3 Qb7 16. e4 b4 17. Nd1 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Qe4 21. Nf2 Qxd3 22. Nxd3 Nd5 23. dxc5 Nxc5 24. Nxc5 Bxc5 25. Rfd1 Ne3 26. Rdc1 Bf8 27. Nd4 bxa3 {Mesaros,F (2415)-Sebenik,M (2509) Austria 2022 ½-½ (44)}) ({RR} 13. Rae1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Nb6 15. Ng3 b4 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. Nd1 Nbd7 18. e4 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Nd5 21. Nf5 Bf8 22. Bh4 Qb6 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Qf5 N7f6 25. exf6 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Qc6 27. fxg7 cxd4 {Bercaru,V (2065)-Sabuk,P (2375) Roquetas de Mar ESP 2025 1-0 (44)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bf2 Rad8 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 Ng4 18. Bg1 Qb8 19. h3 Ngf6 20. e5 Nd5 21. Bh7+ Kh8 22. Rxf7 Nb4 23. Qg6 Bf8 24. Rdf1 Nd5 25. Nxd5 cxd5 26. Nf4 b4 27. Qxa6 Kxh7 28. Qg6+ Kh8 29. Qh5) 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Bb7 14. h3 Rc8 15. Bf5 g6 16. Bxg6 fxg6 17. Qxg6+ Kh8 18. e4 Nh7 19. e5 b4 20. Nd1 Ba6 21. Re1 Rg8 22. Qxh6 Bg5 23. Qd6 Qe8 24. e6 Qg6 25. Bg3 Ndf6 26. Nf2 Be3 27. Qe5 Bxe2) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb6 15. Rfe1 b4 16. Na4 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Qb5 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. Nf4 c5 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Qd2 Rec8 23. Qd4 b3 24. axb3 Qxb3 25. Qe5 Bf8 26. Nd3 Rc2 27. Qf5 R8c6 {Anas Khwaira (2173)-Aradhya,G (2383) Al Ain UAE 2025 0-1 (65)}) 13... b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Nxe4 16. Bxe7 Qxe7 17. Qxc6 Nef6 18. Qxa8 Qe3+ 19. Kh1 Qxd3 20. Nf4 Qxd4 21. Rad1 Qe5 22. Rc1 Nf8 23. Rxc8 Qxf4 24. Qa6 Qxf1+ 25. Qxf1 Rxc8 26. h3 Rd8 27. Qa6 Rd5 28. Nb6 Rc5 29. Nc4 Ne6 30. Nxa5 g5 31. Nc4 g4 32. b3 gxh3 33. gxh3 Rh5 34. Kh2 Kg7 35. Qb7 Ng5 36. Nd6 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 Rd3 38. Nf5+ Kg6 39. Ne7+ Kh5 40. Qxb4 Nfe4 41. Kf1 Rd2 42. Qb5 Rd1+ 43. Kg2 Rd2+ 44. Kf1 Kg4 45. Qf5+ Kg3 46. Qe5+ Kf3 47. Qf5+ Kg3 48. Qe5+ Kf3 49. Qf5+ Ke3 50. Nd5+ Kd4 51. Ke1 Rxa2 52. Qd7 Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ra2+ 54. Ke1 Ra1+ 55. Ke2 Ra2+ 56. Ke1 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Bojkov,Dejan"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,103,25,28,28,-10,-10,-15,-17,-21,14,3,8,-7,7,-3,1,-36,-40,-31,-44,-38,-32,-41,-32,-41,-18,-20,2,2,-4,18,19,19,15,0,0,0,0,0,0,-3,-25,-18,0,0,41,25,25,34,47,63,119,118,118,133,133,127,127,80,135,129,129,125,77,79,150,158,158,158,158,158,158,135,141,132,141,141,136,127,151,124,148,101,148,94,151,138,159,151,151,151,151,151,147,151,187,197,174,174,381,264,417,421,444,458]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 {Caruana comfortably entered a line that he used just a few weeks ago, but as White.} 8. Rd1 ({As White the American chose instead:} 8. a4 Nc6 9. Qxc4 h6 10. Bd2 Qd5 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. Qxd5 exd5 13. e3 {and this game eventually ended in a draw, Caruana,F (2776)-Abdusattorov $146 (2771) Bucharest 2025}) 8... b5 9. Ne5 {Carlsen replies quickly and confidently.} Nd5 10. b3 cxb3 11. axb3 Bb7 12. Ba3 Bd6 {All of this \"is cutting edge theory\" according to the Megabase. White gets ample compensation for the pawn, but Black can look for a good moment to give it back and trade a few pieces in the process.} 13. Nd3 Nd7 14. e4 Bxa3 15. Rxa3 ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 16. Nd2 a5 $146 {Here it is, the novelty. Black certainly should not allow his opponent a chance to clamp the queenside.} ({The predecessor saw White getting everything that he wanted to after:} 16... Qe7 $2 17. b4 $1 Rac8 (17... e5 18. Qxc7) 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) Chess.com INT 2022. It should be said that a younger Carlsen learned the hard way how bad this structure is against Kramnik.}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 c5 $1 {The point behind Caruana's play.} ({Keeping the extra pawn is not worth it} 17... c6 18. e5 Nd5 19. Ne4 {and the white knights get the better outposts.}) 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. b4 axb4 {This should be an equalizer. But one can never be certain when facing Carlsen...} ({There is more complex play after} 19... a4 20. Qb2 ({Or} 20. Rc3 Nb8 $1)) 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Rc1 $1 {White plays for a win $1} ({More trades will follow after} 21. Rxa8+ Bxa8 22. Qa2 Bc6) 21... Rc8 {The most obvious and logical move. Caruana targets the last of the white queenside pawns. If it disappears, the draw would become inevitable.} ({However, there was a strong argument for blocking it with} 21... Nb8 $5 22. Nxb4 Nc6 23. Qb2 Nxb4 24. Qxb4 Bc6 {with a perfectly safe position for the second player.}) 22. Qb2 h6 {Another useful move, giving air to the king.} ({The \"activity\"} 22... Qa5 23. Nb3 Qa4 $4 {backfires to} ({Also} 23... Qa3 24. Qc2 $1 {is less than convincing.}) 24. Ra1) ({But it made sense to try and get rid of a pair of knights at once with} 22... Ng4 $5 23. Qxb4 Bc6 {followed by Ng4-e5.}) 23. Qxb4 Bc6 24. Qb2 $1 {Highlighting the fact that Black is a bit cramped, and clumsy.} Ra8 ({Here too} 24... Ng4 $5 {seems good, for example} 25. Nb4 Nge5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Rxc4 Bb5 29. Rc1 Nxc5 {when the pin is only a temporary issue.}) 25. Nb4 Ne5 {Finally Caruana decided to bring the knights into the game.} ({This time it was too late for} 25... Ng4 $4 26. Nxc6 Qxc6 27. e5) 26. f4 Nc4 $1 {The best chance from a human standpoint.} ({The knight is offside after} 26... Ng6 {and White has a bunch of interesting options, like} 27. e5 ({Or} 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. f5) 27... Bxg2 28. exf6 Bc6 29. fxg7 {White should be better.}) 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Nxc6 $1 {An accurate move.} ({Annihilating the important bishop later might come with a price, as in the line} 28. Rxc4 Qb7 29. Qd4 Ra4 30. Nxc6 Qb1+ $1 31. Bf1 Ra1 {And suddenly Black has enough counterplay. One funny drawing line runs} 32. Qf2 Ng4 $1 33. Qe2 Ne3 34. Kf2 Ng4+ 35. Kg1 Ne3) 28... Qxc6 29. Rxc4 Rc8 $6 {It's easy to criticize this move armed with the computer's megapower.} ({but calculating all the counterplay after} 29... Ra5 $1 {was definitely impossible. The rook is kept active and ready to bother the white king. The logic is clear. The problem is, though, that the c-passer can become a queen before that. Still, the machine is not afraid. Some beautiful lines run:} 30. Qd4 ({In case of} 30. Qc3 {a nice line shown in the studio by Chirila goes} Qa6 (30... Ra2 $5 {also looks enough for counterplay.}) 31. c6 $6 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 Rxf1+ $3 33. Kxf1 Nxe4 $1 {Now} 34. Qc2 $4 {even loses to} ({Therefore White needs to fight for the draw with} 34. c7 Nd2+ 35. Qxd2 Qxc4+ 36. Kg2 Qxc7) 34... Qxc4+ $1 35. Qxc4 Nd2+ 36. Ke2 Nxc4 37. c7 Nd6 $19) ({In comparison to the game} 30. e5 Nd5 31. f5 {does not yield White anything due to the simple} Rxc5) ({There is also no time for prophylaxis} 30. h3 Rxc5 31. Qb8+ Ne8 {with equality} ({But not} 31... Kh7 $4 32. e5)) 30... Ra2 31. h3 Qb5 32. Qc3 Qb1+ 33. Qc1 ({White has to be careful} 33. Kh2 $4 Qf1) 33... Qd3 $1 {And it turns out that Black is just in time in the line} 34. c6 Qe2 35. Qf1 Qe3+ 36. Kh2 Nxe4 37. c7 Qxg3+ 38. Kg1 Qe3+ 39. Kh2 Qg3+ 40. Kh1 Nf2+ 41. Kg1 ({Or} 41. Qxf2 Qxf2 42. c8=Q+ Kh7 43. Qc6 Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qf1 {and Black does not risk losing.}) 41... Nxh3+) 30. e5 $1 Nd5 31. f5 $1 {Now Carlsen creates additional weaknesses on the kingside.} Qa6 ({Certainly not} 31... exf5 $2 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 {and this time the pin will be painful for Black.}) 32. Rc1 Qa7 {Black keeps his queen closer to the pawn.} ({This looked like a good moment to activate the queen with} 32... Qd3 $1 33. fxe6 Qe3+ 34. Kh1 fxe6 35. c6 (35. Bxd5 exd5) 35... Kh8) 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Bxd5 $1 {With such a knight on the board the win would be impossible.} exd5 35. Qd4 Qd7 36. Kg2 {This and the next few moves are trademark Carlsen.} (36. Rd1 {is nothing due to} Qc6) 36... Qc6 37. h4 $1 {Fixing some squares around the black king.} Kh8 38. Rc2 Kg8 39. h5 Kh8 40. Kh3 Kg8 41. Kh2 Qe6 42. Rd2 Rd8 43. Kg2 Qc6 44. Rd1 Qa6 45. Re1 Qe6 46. Rb1 {After some improvements, White gets ready to infiltrate into the enemy camp.} Qf5 {Caruana goes for a wrong plan $1} ({True} 46... Re8 {does not even create a threat and White can calmly react with} 47. Rb2 $5 {As the rook endgame after} Qxe5 $4 48. Qxe5 Rxe5 49. c6 {is lost for Black.}) ({However} 46... Rf8 $1 47. Rb2 {And now the neat} Kh8 $1 {should have been tried. Black is looking for a proper moment for a counterplay along the f-file.} ({Not} 47... Qf5 48. Qxd5+)) 47. Rb2 Qxh5 {The last mistake. This pawn is not worth as much as it seems, and the white king is sufficiently defended.} ({The immediate attack} 47... Rf8 $2 {still does not work due to} 48. Qxd5+ Kh7 49. c6 Qf1+ 50. Kh2) ({But the last chance was} 47... Qe6 $1 {When White can keep on grinding with many moves, like} 48. Rb6 (48. Rd2 $5) (48. g4 $5) ({Or the preliminary} 48. Rc2 $5 Qc6 49. g4) 48... Qf5 49. Rb7 Qc2+) 48. c6 $1 {The pawns are too strong.} Kh7 49. e6 $1 ({Perhaps Caruana only calculated} 49. c7 Rc8 50. Rc2 Qf7 {with chances to hold.}) 49... Qg6 50. Re2 $1 (50. c7 $1 {would do as well.}) 50... Ra8 51. Qxd5 Ra3 52. Qe4 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Bojkov,Dejan"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,103,18,30,27,-14,-3,-46,-27,-59,-5,8,8,-26,34,8,-5,2,-31,-31,-45,-45,-49,-33,-33,-80,-8,-23,-9,-10,0,-13,-11,-8,-9,-8,35,32,20,25,-25,-25,1,-8,10,0,42,34,46,37,51,51,50,50,115,89,128,127,119,140,129,134,134,55,142,89,120,150,150,150,158,137,122,122,122,125,141,139,125,149,139,127,139,131,139,131,152,152,152,152,152,152,152,131,152,152,113,162,173,264,316,283,314,314,430,445]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 {Caruana comfortably entered a line that he used just a few weeks ago, but as White.} 8. Rd1 ({As White the American chose instead:} 8. a4 Nc6 9. Qxc4 h6 10. Bd2 Qd5 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. Qxd5 exd5 13. e3 {and this game eventually ended in a draw, Caruana,F (2776)-Abdusattorov $146 (2771) Bucharest 2025}) 8... b5 9. Ne5 {Carlsen replies quickly and confidently.} Nd5 10. b3 cxb3 11. axb3 Bb7 12. Ba3 Bd6 {All of this \"is cutting edge theory\" according to the Megabase. White gets ample compensation for the pawn, but Black can look for a good moment to give it back and trade a few pieces in the process.} 13. Nd3 Nd7 14. e4 Bxa3 15. Rxa3 ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 16. Nd2 a5 $146 {Here it is, the novelty. Black certainly should not allow his opponent a chance to clamp the queenside.} ({The predecessor saw White getting everything that he wanted to after:} 16... Qe7 $2 17. b4 $1 Rac8 (17... e5 18. Qxc7) 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) Chess.com INT 2022. It should be said that a younger Carlsen learned the hard way how bad this structure is against Kramnik.}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 c5 $1 {The point behind Caruana's play.} ({Keeping the extra pawn is not worth it} 17... c6 18. e5 Nd5 19. Ne4 {and the white knights get the better outposts.}) 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. b4 axb4 {This should be an equalizer. But one can never be certain when facing Carlsen...} ({There is more complex play after} 19... a4 20. Qb2 ({Or} 20. Rc3 Nb8 $1)) 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Rc1 $1 {White plays for a win $1} ({More trades will follow after} 21. Rxa8+ Bxa8 22. Qa2 Bc6) 21... Rc8 {The most obvious and logical move. Caruana targets the last of the white queenside pawns. If it disappears, the draw would become inevitable.} ({However, there was a strong argument for blocking it with} 21... Nb8 $5 22. Nxb4 Nc6 23. Qb2 Nxb4 24. Qxb4 Bc6 {with a perfectly safe position for the second player.}) 22. Qb2 h6 {Another useful move, giving air to the king.} ({The \"activity\"} 22... Qa5 23. Nb3 Qa4 $4 {backfires to} ({Also} 23... Qa3 24. Qc2 $1 {is less than convincing.}) 24. Ra1) ({But it made sense to try and get rid of a pair of knights at once with} 22... Ng4 $5 23. Qxb4 Bc6 {followed by Ng4-e5.}) 23. Qxb4 Bc6 24. Qb2 $1 {Highlighting the fact that Black is a bit cramped, and clumsy.} Ra8 ({Here too} 24... Ng4 $5 {seems good, for example} 25. Nb4 Nge5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Rxc4 Bb5 29. Rc1 Nxc5 {when the pin is only a temporary issue.}) 25. Nb4 Ne5 {Finally Caruana decided to bring the knights into the game.} ({This time it was too late for} 25... Ng4 $4 26. Nxc6 Qxc6 27. e5) 26. f4 Nc4 $1 {The best chance from a human standpoint.} ({The knight is offside after} 26... Ng6 {and White has a bunch of interesting options, like} 27. e5 ({Or} 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. f5) 27... Bxg2 28. exf6 Bc6 29. fxg7 {White should be better.}) 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Nxc6 $1 {An accurate move.} ({Annihilating the important bishop later might come with a price, as in the line} 28. Rxc4 Qb7 29. Qd4 Ra4 30. Nxc6 Qb1+ $1 31. Bf1 Ra1 {And suddenly Black has enough counterplay. One funny drawing line runs} 32. Qf2 Ng4 $1 33. Qe2 Ne3 34. Kf2 Ng4+ 35. Kg1 Ne3) 28... Qxc6 29. Rxc4 Rc8 $6 {It's easy to criticize this move armed with the computer's megapower.} ({but calculating all the counterplay after} 29... Ra5 $1 {was definitely impossible. The rook is kept active and ready to bother the white king. The logic is clear. The problem is, though, that the c-passer can become a queen before that. Still, the machine is not afraid. Some beautiful lines run:} 30. Qd4 ({In case of} 30. Qc3 {a nice line shown in the studio by Chirila goes} Qa6 (30... Ra2 $5 {also looks enough for counterplay.}) 31. c6 $6 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 Rxf1+ $3 33. Kxf1 Nxe4 $1 {Now} 34. Qc2 $4 {even loses to} ({Therefore White needs to fight for the draw with} 34. c7 Nd2+ 35. Qxd2 Qxc4+ 36. Kg2 Qxc7) 34... Qxc4+ $1 35. Qxc4 Nd2+ 36. Ke2 Nxc4 37. c7 Nd6 $19) ({In comparison to the game} 30. e5 Nd5 31. f5 {does not yield White anything due to the simple} Rxc5) ({There is also no time for prophylaxis} 30. h3 Rxc5 31. Qb8+ Ne8 {with equality} ({But not} 31... Kh7 $4 32. e5)) 30... Ra2 31. h3 Qb5 32. Qc3 Qb1+ 33. Qc1 ({White has to be careful} 33. Kh2 $4 Qf1) 33... Qd3 $1 {And it turns out that Black is just in time in the line} 34. c6 Qe2 35. Qf1 Qe3+ 36. Kh2 Nxe4 37. c7 Qxg3+ 38. Kg1 Qe3+ 39. Kh2 Qg3+ 40. Kh1 Nf2+ 41. Kg1 ({Or} 41. Qxf2 Qxf2 42. c8=Q+ Kh7 43. Qc6 Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qf1 {and Black does not risk losing.}) 41... Nxh3+) 30. e5 $1 Nd5 31. f5 $1 {Now Carlsen creates additional weaknesses on the kingside.} Qa6 ({Certainly not} 31... exf5 $2 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 {and this time the pin will be painful for Black.}) 32. Rc1 Qa7 {Black keeps his queen closer to the pawn.} ({This looked like a good moment to activate the queen with} 32... Qd3 $1 33. fxe6 Qe3+ 34. Kh1 fxe6 35. c6 (35. Bxd5 exd5) 35... Kh8) 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Bxd5 $1 {With such a knight on the board the win would be impossible.} exd5 35. Qd4 Qd7 36. Kg2 {This and the next few moves are trademark Carlsen.} (36. Rd1 {is nothing due to} Qc6) 36... Qc6 37. h4 $1 {Fixing some squares around the black king.} Kh8 38. Rc2 Kg8 39. h5 Kh8 40. Kh3 Kg8 41. Kh2 Qe6 42. Rd2 Rd8 43. Kg2 Qc6 44. Rd1 Qa6 45. Re1 Qe6 46. Rb1 {After some improvements, White gets ready to infiltrate into the enemy camp.} Qf5 {Caruana goes for a wrong plan $1} ({True} 46... Re8 {does not even create a threat and White can calmly react with} 47. Rb2 $5 {As the rook endgame after} Qxe5 $4 48. Qxe5 Rxe5 49. c6 {is lost for Black.}) ({However} 46... Rf8 $1 47. Rb2 {And now the neat} Kh8 $1 {should have been tried. Black is looking for a proper moment for a counterplay along the f-file.} ({Not} 47... Qf5 48. Qxd5+)) 47. Rb2 Qxh5 {The last mistake. This pawn is not worth as much as it seems, and the white king is sufficiently defended.} ({The immediate attack} 47... Rf8 $2 {still does not work due to} 48. Qxd5+ Kh7 49. c6 Qf1+ 50. Kh2) ({But the last chance was} 47... Qe6 $1 {When White can keep on grinding with many moves, like} 48. Rb6 (48. Rd2 $5) (48. g4 $5) ({Or the preliminary} 48. Rc2 $5 Qc6 49. g4) 48... Qf5 49. Rb7 Qc2+) 48. c6 $1 {The pawns are too strong.} Kh7 49. e6 $1 ({Perhaps Caruana only calculated} 49. c7 Rc8 50. Rc2 Qf7 {with chances to hold.}) 49... Qg6 50. Re2 $1 (50. c7 $1 {would do as well.}) 50... Ra8 51. Qxd5 Ra3 52. Qe4 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.02"]
[Round "7"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2883"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Carvalho,Carlos"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]
[TimeControl "600"]

{[%evp 0,79,20,20,28,-20,31,30,25,-1,12,-3,18,-5,60,17,4,-11,35,-10,-23,-61,-15,-15,-3,-3,5,-15,60,24,19,47,59,69,63,78,71,113,109,108,115,119,125,125,127,107,108,99,99,94,153,89,111,109,127,112,116,114,160,114,82,63,82,82,82,82,82,82,82,83,104,94,298,335,319,193,685,971,1029,1087,1200,1714]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. g3 b5 6. Bg2 e6 7. O-O Bb7 8. Ne5 Qc8 9. b3 b4 $6 {White is well-positioned to meet this.} (9... cxb3 {The engine marks this as best and equal, though White will have full compensation typical of the Catalan.}) 10. Na4 c3 11. a3 Nbd7 (11... a5 $4 {If Black could keep the pawns on b4 and c3 permanently, he'd be in great shape. But this is not possible for tactical reasons.} 12. Nb6) 12. axb4 Bxb4 13. Ba3 a5 $146 (13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) 14. Nxc3 $3 {A piece sacrifice, though it should not be taken.} O-O $2 (14... Bxc3 15. Nc4 {The black king is in decisive trouble, with Nd6+ coming next.}) (14... Bxa3 15. Rxa3 O-O {was better than the game.}) 15. Bxb4 axb4 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Na4 {White often sacrifices a pawn for this pressure on the c-file. Here, he's not even a pawn down.} Ba6 18. Qd2 {Reminding Black he also has a weak pawn on b4.} Bb5 19. Rfc1 (19. Qxb4 $2 {It's too early to take.} Bxe2) 19... Ra6 20. e3 Qa8 21. Qxb4 {White wins a pawn, but Nakamura proves to be resourceful.} Nb6 22. Rc5 Nd5 23. Bxd5 exd5 24. Rcc1 (24. Qd2 $1 {was best. White wins by:} h5 25. Rac1 h4 {Not best, but it shows White's idea.} 26. Nc3 {Black's pawn base comes under heavy fire now.}) 24... h5 {Now we see inaccurate moves by both sides, but the main turning point is 28...g5.} 25. h4 Re8 26. Qc3 Qc8 27. Nc5 $2 (27. Qc2 $1 g5 28. Nc3 {Black is not in time to continue his attack. White already threatens taking on b5 and trading queens.} gxh4 29. Nxb5) 27... Rxa1 28. Rxa1 g5 $1 {Nakamura equalizes, sacrificing a pawn to open the white king.} 29. hxg5 h4 30. e4 $1 {Giving a pawn back to include the queen in the defense on the third rank. White is still a pawn up.} (30. gxh4 $4 Qg4+ {is even losing for White.} 31. Kh2 Qxh4+ 32. Kg2 Qg4+ 33. Kh2 Kg7 {is the mating net.}) 30... dxe4 31. Re1 Qg4 32. Qe3 hxg3 33. fxg3 Kg7 34. Kg2 Rh8 (34... Qf3+ $1 35. Qxf3 exf3+ 36. Kf2 {To keep the rook protected.} Re2+ 37. Rxe2 fxe2 {Black can draw this endgame, though this isn't so clear in an armageddon game with a minute or two.} 38. Nd7 Kg6 39. Ne5+ Kxg5 40. Nxf7+ Kg4 {White cannot make progress, despite the extra pawn.}) 35. Qxe4 Qh3+ $2 {The losing move. Nakamura goes for a king hunt, but one that isn't there.} (35... Qxg5 {was the only move for equality. It's important to realize endgames are drawn, even a pawn down for Black.} 36. Qe5+ Qxe5 37. Rxe5 {This is objectively equal, though holding it against Carlsen could be a different story.}) 36. Kf3 {There isn't any follow-up. Nakamura goes for what's probably the best try.} Bf1 {Threatening to win the queen with ...Bg2+.} 37. Kf4 $1 {Simply stepping out of the way. Black doesn't even have a check.} Qh2 38. Qe5+ (38. Rxf1 $2 {is the trick. Black wins the queen.} Rh4+) 38... Kg8 39. Rxf1 Qg2 40. Ra1 {White is a piece up and the computer announces a forced mate from here. Nakamura resigns. PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 99% PRETAS 100% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 99.2% PRETAS 99.4%} 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "5"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 17.1"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:0"]

{[%evp 0,101,28,28,20,-11,0,5,-4,-21,3,3,-7,7,-3,1,-7,-10,-17,-15,-2,-12,7,-6,1,-53,-58,-16,-8,-3,7,-5,6,-3,11,2,48,46,46,46,53,36,56,54,61,47,44,63,70,64,48,70,62,45,47,39,36,22,35,36,24,27,40,16,3,7,0,0,8,17,37,57,59,14,5,36,42,33,24,15,23,0,24,-4,13,7,5,5,4,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 Bb4 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 20. Qb1 $146 ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 24. Rdc1 Qd8 25. Qb4 Rc7 26. Rc3 $6 {A move that seems to give away much of White's advantage.} (26. h4 {or other waiting moves, and Carlsen remains clearly better, though there's no obvious knockout blow.}) 26... Rxc3 $1 27. Qxc3 Rd6 $1 {This square is now available after the queen was deflected from b4.} 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 30. Qc2 Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 35. Nf4 Ke7 36. g4 $6 (36. Nd3 $1 {and White preserves more chances.} e5 (36... Rxa4 37. Nc5 Ra2 38. Rb6 e5 39. d5 Rd2 40. e4 Kf8 {illustrates the kind of chances Carlsen could have got.}) 37. Ke4 {In the game the e5-pawn attacks the knight, so there's no option to play like this.}) 36... e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 {Black has powerful connected passed pawns on the queenside, so Carlsen decides it's time to shut things down.} Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 Ne4+ 51. Kf3 {PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 97% PRETAS 98% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 97.4% PRETAS 97.5%} 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2883"]
[BlackElo "2711"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]
[TimeControl "600"]

{[%evp 0,64,26,12,19,17,45,40,39,39,27,31,34,37,27,11,39,14,28,13,13,11,11,1,37,38,51,24,34,-18,36,19,2,6,-11,-3,-1,0,0,-48,-12,-12,25,25,29,31,0,0,46,0,0,-111,-167,-165,-50,-353,-376,-521,-522,-522,-540,-831,-831,-1127,-1516,-1516,-1626] 0-} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 h5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Ne5 c5 8. Qd2 Bf5 9. f3 cxd4 10. exd4 Nc6 11. Bb5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Bxd7 $146 (13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 {was Praggnanandhaa 0-1 Wei Yi from the Chessable Masters 2025.}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) 13... Qxd7 14. O-O-O $2 {Combining the two lines, but there's a big difference.} (14. Qxd5 Qc7 15. O-O-O {is playable.}) 14... Rac8 15. Qxd5 Rxc3 $3 {A beautiful blow $1} 16. Qxd7 (16. bxc3 $4 Qa4 $1 {wins for Black, e.g.} 17. Qd2 Qa3+ 18. Kb1 Rc8 {and there's no defense, with Be6 one of the additional threats.}) 16... Rxc2+ $1 17. Kb1 Rxg2+ 18. Qxf5 gxf5 19. Rd7 {Black is on top, but White has excellent chances to hold. Winning the endgame, as required, is a tougher ask $1} Rc8 20. Rxe7 Rc4 21. Bc1 b5 {Wei Yi: \"It looks uncomfortable for me at first, but then I saw I have some counterplay, so maybe it was ok $1\"} 22. Rd1 Rxh4 23. Rd8+ Kh7 24. Rxf7 $2 {Now White is in trouble, but retreating with} (24. Rd1 $1 {isn't particularly promising.}) 24... Rh1 25. Rxf5 $2 {And after this move White is completely lost.} Kg6 26. Rf4 Rgg1 27. Rd6+ (27. Rc8 {shows the problem:} Rxc1+ $1 28. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 29. Kxc1 {and all would be good for White, if not for} Bh6 {picking up the rook.}) 27... Kh7 28. a4 {Pure desperation to continue the game.} Rxc1+ 29. Ka2 Bxe5 30. Rf7+ Kg8 31. Rdd7 bxa4 32. Ka3 Rc4 {Wei finds the quickest finish, locking down the white king. Carlsen resigned.} (32... Rc4 33. Ka2 Rc2 34. Rb7 Rxb2+ 35. Rxb2 Kxf7 {is the kind of thing that would have happened otherwise. PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 86% PRETAS 97% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 85.7% PRETAS 97.8%}) 0-1

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

1. d4 {[%eval 17,0]} d5 {[%eval 2,0][%cal Bd7d5,Bd5c4][%mdl 32]} 2. c4 {[%eval 18,0]} e6 {[%eval 17,0]} 3. g3 {[%eval 5,0]} Nf6 {[%eval 12,0]} 4. Bg2 {[%eval 14,0]} Be7 {[%eval 18,0]} 5. Nf3 {[%eval 16,0]} O-O {[%eval 25,0]} 6. O-O {[%eval 2,0]} dxc4 {[%eval 16,0]} 7. Qc2 {[%eval 1,0]} a6 {[%eval 17,0]} 8. Rd1 {[%eval 7,0] E05: Open Catalan: 5 Nf3 Be7.} (8. Qxc4 b5 9. Qd3) 8... b5 $1 {[%eval 2,0] Black wants to play ...Bb7.} 9. Ne5 {[%eval 4,0]} Nd5 {[%eval 1,0]} 10. b3 {[%eval 2,0] The position is equal.} cxb3 {[%eval 4,0]} 11. axb3 {[%eval 2,0]} Bb7 {[%eval 5,0] aiming for ...Nb4.} 12. Ba3 {[%eval 12,0]} Bd6 {[%eval 18,0] The modern move.} 13. Nd3 {[%eval 11,0]} Nd7 {[%eval 22,0]} (13... a5 {feels stronger.}) 14. e4 {[%eval 12,0]} Bxa3 $1 {[%eval 16,0]} 15. Rxa3 {[%eval 2,0]} ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 {[%eval 5,0]} 16. Nd2 {[%eval 3,0]} a5 $146 {[%eval 1,0]} (16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 {1-0 Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) MrDodgy Online Inv Finals 3rd Chess.com INT blitz 2022 (3.5)}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 {[%eval 4,0][%cal Ba3a2]} c5 {[%eval 6,0]} 18. dxc5 {[%eval 4,0]} Qc7 {[%eval 1,0]} 19. b4 {[%eval 1,0]} axb4 {[%eval 0,0]} 20. Rxa8 {[%eval 1,0]} Rxa8 {[%eval 1,0]} 21. Rc1 {[%eval 21,0][%cal Bc5c6] [#]} Rc8 {[%eval 3,0]} 22. Qb2 {[%eval 3,0]} h6 {[%eval 5,0]} 23. Qxb4 {[%eval 6,0]} Bc6 {[%eval 12,0]} 24. Qb2 {[%eval 1,0] Wards off Ne5} Ra8 {[%eval 3,0]} 25. Nb4 {[%eval 24,0]} Ne5 {[%eval 22,0]} 26. f4 {[%eval 24,0]} Nc4 {[%eval 29,0]} 27. Nxc4 {[%eval 33,0]} bxc4 {[%eval 34,0]} 28. Nxc6 {[%eval 29,0]} (28. Rxc4 $6 Rd8 $16) 28... Qxc6 {[%eval 32,0]} 29. Rxc4 {[%eval 44,0]} Rc8 {[%eval 8,0]} (29... Ra5) 30. e5 {[%eval 5,0]} (30. h3 $16) 30... Nd5 {[%eval 53,0]} 31. f5 {[%eval 41,0]} Qa6 $1 {[%eval 39,0]} (31... exf5 $2 {too greedy.} 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 $18) 32. Rc1 {[%eval 43,0]} Qa7 {[%eval 65,0]} 33. fxe6 {[%eval 65,0]} fxe6 {[%eval 65,0]} 34. Bxd5 {[%eval 68,0]} exd5 $14 {[%eval 66,0][%mdl 4096] Endgame KQR-KQR. White is a pawn up.} 35. Qd4 {[%eval 74,0]} Qd7 {[%eval 7,0]} 36. Kg2 {[%eval 7,0]} Qc6 {[%eval 72,0]} 37. h4 {[%eval 81,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 65,0]} 38. Rc2 {[%eval 67,0]} Kg8 {[%eval 7,0]} 39. h5 {[%eval 73,0]} Kh8 {[%eval 7,0]} 40. Kh3 {[%eval 56,0]} Kg8 {[%eval 56,0]} 41. Kh2 {[%eval 56,0]} Qe6 {[%eval 59,0]} 42. Rd2 {[%eval 63,0]} Rd8 {[%eval 54,0]} 43. Kg2 {[%eval 56,0]} Qc6 {[%eval 57,0]} 44. Rd1 {[%eval 61,0]} Qa6 {[%eval 63,0]} 45. Re1 {[%eval 56,0]} Qe6 {[%eval 57,0]} 46. Rb1 {[%eval 59,0]} Qf5 {[%eval 59,0]} 47. Rb2 {[%eval 67,0] Loses the game.} Qxh5 $4 {[%eval 293,0][%mdl 8192] Blunder. Qc8 was best.} (47... Qe6 $14 48. g4 Rf8) (47... Qc8) 48. c6 $18 {[%eval 274,0] White is clearly winning.} Kh7 $6 {[%eval 349,0] Inaccuracy. Qf7 was best. [#]} (48... Qf7 49. Rb7 Qf5 50. e6 Qc2+ 51. Qf2 Qe4+ 52. Qf3 Qxe6 53. c7 Rc8 54. Rb8) 49. e6 $1 {[%eval 349,0] Active counter play!} Qg6 $6 {[%eval 462,0] Inaccuracy. Rc8 was best. Dodges Qd3} (49... Rc8 50. Qd3+) 50. Re2 {[%eval 499,0] Black must now prevent e7.} Ra8 {[%eval 589,0]} 51. Qxd5 {[%eval 534,0]} Ra3 {[%eval 608,0] Weighted Error Value: White=0.05 (flawless) /Black=0.45} 52. Qe4 {[%eval 556,0] 1-0 White wins. PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 98% PRETAS 91%} 1-0

[Event "13th Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "122"]
[EventDate "2025.05.26"]

{[%evp 0,111,19,16,18,-2,0,-2,-11,-19,-19,-1,-6,13,22,5,23,8,30,31,24,34,33,24,23,24,37,-14,58,79,48,53,53,-47,-95,-44,91,44,78,84,96,30,33,55,61,22,105,63,65,73,73,59,71,59,76,88,95,107,99,108,108,122,145,129,139,85,92,101,114,68,78,84,83,0,36,0,0,0,0,0,0,-82,-105,-140,-114,-67,-233,-219,-238,-241,-25,-19,0,0,-29,-177,-177,-175,-218,-220,-245,-295,-287,-301,-297,-327,16,16,-233,-327,-238,-238,-238,-312]} 1. d4 {Tactical Analysis 7.0 Rafael Leitao} d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. Bh4 c6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 ({RR} 9... Ne8) 10. O-O $1 {10.0-0 is better than 10.Qc2.} a5 {D35: Queen's Gambit Declined: Exchange Variation.} ({RR} 10... Re8 11. Qc2) ({RR} 10... Nh5 11. Bxe7 Qxe7 12. Qd2 Re8 13. Rae1 Nb6 14. Nf4 Nf6 15. f3 c5 16. g4 Be6 17. h4 Nh7 18. Qh2 cxd4 19. exd4 Qf6 20. Re5 g6 21. Rfe1 Bd7 22. Ncxd5 Qd6 23. Nxg6 Rxe5 24. Rxe5 Be6 25. Nge7+) 11. f3 ({RR} 11. a4) ({RR} 11. Qc2 Re8) 11... b5 {[%cal Bb7b5,Bb5b4][%mdl 32]} 12. Qc2 Re8 13. e4 ({RR} 13. a3 Ba6 14. Kh1 Qb8 15. Bg3 Qb7 16. e4 b4 17. Nd1 Bxd3 18. Qxd3 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Qe4 21. Nf2 Qxd3 22. Nxd3 Nd5 23. dxc5 Nxc5 24. Nxc5 Bxc5 25. Rfd1 Ne3 26. Rdc1 Bf8 27. Nd4 bxa3) ({RR} 13. Rae1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Nb6 15. Ng3 b4 16. Bxa6 Rxa6 17. Nd1 Nbd7 18. e4 dxe4 19. fxe4 c5 20. e5 Nd5 21. Nf5 Bf8 22. Bh4 Qb6 23. Nd6 Bxd6 24. Qf5 N7f6 25. exf6 Rxe1 26. Rxe1 Qc6 27. fxg7 cxd4) ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4) 13... b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Nxe4 ({RR} 15... c5 16. e5 ({RR} 16. dxc5 Ng4) 16... Nd5) 16. Bxe7 (16. Bxe4 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6 $17) ({RR} 16. Bxe4 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6) ({RR} 16. Bxe4 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6) 16... Qxe7 17. Qxc6 Nef6 $2 $146 {Mistake. Rb8 was best.} (17... Rb8 18. Rae1 Bb7 19. Qb5 Qd6 20. Qf5 Ndf6 21. b3 Rbd8 22. Qxa5 Ng4 23. Qh5 Nef6 {0-1 Wu,D (2225)-Kravtsiv,M (2598) Titled Tuesday intern op 26th Nov Late Chess.com INT blitz 2024 (3)}) ({RR} 17... Nd2 18. Qxa8 Qe3+ 19. Rf2 Nf6 ({RR} 19... Qxd3 20. Rc1) 20. Qb8 Qxd3 21. Nc5 Qc4 22. b3 Qd5) ({RR} 17... Rb8 18. Rae1 Bb7 19. Qb5 Qd6 20. Qf5 Ndf6 21. b3 Rbd8 22. Qxa5 Ng4 23. Qh5 Nef6) 18. Qxa8 $16 (18. Rxf6 $2 Nxf6 19. Qc1 Bg4 $19) ({RR} 18. Rxf6 Nxf6 19. Qc1 Bg4) 18... Qe3+ 19. Kh1 $1 Qxd3 20. Nf4 Qxd4 21. Rad1 (21. Qxa5 Ng4) ({RR} 21. Rac1 Kh7 ({RR} 21... Ng4 22. h3 Nf2+ 23. Rxf2 Qxf2 24. Nd3) ({RR} 21... Ne4 22. Ne2) 22. Rxc8 ({RR} 22. Qxa5) 22... Ng4 ({RR} 22... Qxf4 23. Qa6 Qxf1+ 24. Qxf1 Rxc8)) ({RR} 21. Qxa5 Ng4) 21... Qe5 $6 {Inaccuracy. Qe3 was best.} (21... Qe3 22. Rc1 Ne4 23. Nh3 Qe2 24. Rfe1 Nf2+ 25. Kg1 Nxh3+ 26. gxh3 Qxe1+ 27. Rxe1) ({RR} 21... Qe3 22. Rc1 Ne4 23. Nh3) ({RR} 21... Qe3) 22. Rc1 $1 $18 Nf8 23. Rxc8 ({RR} 23. Nc5) 23... Qxf4 {[%cal Rf4f1][%mdl 64] Deflection, Back Rank} 24. Qa6 $36 {[%mdl 2048] White is on the roll.} Qxf1+ {[%mdl 64] Deflection} ({RR} 24... Qe5 25. Rxe8 Nxe8 26. Qc6 Nf6 27. Qc5 Qe2 28. Qf2 Qe5 29. Nc5) 25. Qxf1 Rxc8 26. h3 $1 Rd8 27. Qa6 ({RR} 27. Nb6) 27... Rd5 28. Nb6 Rc5 29. Nc4 Ne6 $6 {Inaccuracy. Ng6 was best.} (29... Ng6 {RR} 30. Ne3) ({RR} 29... Ng6 30. Nxa5 Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc2) ({RR} 29... Ng6) 30. Nxa5 g5 31. Nc4 $6 {Inaccuracy. Nc6 was best.} (31. Nc6) ({RR} 31. Nc6 g4 32. Nd4 Ng5 ({RR} 32... Nxd4 33. Qxf6) 33. Nf5 ({RR} 33. Qxf6 Rc1+ 34. Kh2 g3+ 35. Kxg3 Ne4+) 33... Rxf5 34. Qc8+) ({RR} 31. Nb7 Rc1+ 32. Kh2 g4 33. Nd6) ({RR} 31. Nb3) 31... g4 32. b3 ({RR} 32. Kh2) 32... gxh3 33. gxh3 Rh5 34. Kh2 $2 {Mistake. Kg2 was best.} (34. Kg2) ({RR} 34. Kg2 Kg7) ({RR} 34. Kg2) 34... Kg7 ({RR} 34... Ng5 35. Qxf6 Rxh3+ 36. Kg2 Rg3+ 37. Kxg3 Ne4+) 35. Qb7 {[%cal Bc4d6]} Ng5 $1 36. Nd6 $6 {[%cal Bh2g2] Inaccuracy. Qxb4 was best.} (36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 (37. Kg1 h5 $16) ({RR} 37. Kg1 h5) 37... Rf3 $16) ({RR} 36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 Rf3 38. Nd2 Rd3) ({RR} 36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 Rf3) 36... Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 {[%cal Bd6f7]} Rd3 38. Nf5+ Kg6 39. Ne7+ ({RR} 39. Ng3) 39... Kh5 {Esse é o Rei de Carlsen. Num final o rei precisa unir forças.} 40. Qxb4 $4 {[%mdl 8192] Isso émuito ganancioso.} (40. Qa6 $15 Rd2+ 41. Kg3) (40. Kf2 {foi chamado, por exemplo:} Nfe4+ 41. Ke2 Rd2+ 42. Ke3 Rd3+ 43. Ke2 $11) ({RR} 40. Kf2) ({RR} 40. Qa6 Rd2+ 41. Kg3) 40... Nfe4 $19 {As forças da preta estão em plena harmonia.} 41. Kf1 Rd2 42. Qb5 $4 {Blunder. Qb7 was best.} (42. Qxd2 Nxd2+ 43. Ke2) (42. Qb7) ({RR} 42. Qxd2 Nxd2+ 43. Ke2) 42... Rd1+ 43. Kg2 {White wants to mate with Qe2+.} Rd2+ 44. Kf1 (44. Kg1 {only move.}) ({RR} 44. Kg1) 44... Kg4 $5 {Rei de Carlsen entra no ataque. (  ...Ng3+)} ({O incrível} 44... f5 $1 {é ainda melhor, por exemplo:} 45. Qxf5 (45. Nxf5 Rf2+ 46. Ke1 Nf3+ 47. Kd1 Nc3+ $19) ({RR} 45. Qxf5 Ng3+) ({RR} 45. Qe8+ Kg4) 45... Ng3+ 46. Ke1 Nxf5 47. Kxd2 Nxe7 $17) ({RR} 44... f5 45. Nxf5 Rf2+ 46. Ke1 ({RR} 46. Kg1 Nf3+ 47. Kh1 Rh2#) 46... Nf3+ 47. Kd1 Nc3+ 48. Kc1 Nxb5) 45. Qf5+ Kg3 {[%cal Bg5f3]} 46. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 47. Qf5+ Kg3 $6 {[%cal Bg5f3] Inaccuracy. Ke3 was best. (  ...Nf3!)} (47... Ke3) 48. Qe5+ Kf3 {[%cal Rd2d1]} 49. Qf5+ {[#]} Ke3 $1 50. Nd5+ Kd4 51. Ke1 Rxa2 {and ...Ra1+ should not be overlooked} ({RR} 51... Rh2) 52. Qd7 (52. Nb4 $2 Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ng3+ 54. Kf2 Rf1+ (54... Nxf5 55. Nc2+ Kc3 56. Nxa1 $19) ({RR} 54... Nxf5 55. Nc2+ Kc3 56. Nxa1) 55. Kxg3 Rxf5 $19) ({RR} 52. Nb4 Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ng3+ 54. Kf2 Rf1+ 55. Kxg3 Rxf5) 52... Ra1+ 53. Ke2 Ra2+ 54. Ke1 {[#]} (54. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 55. Kc1 Ke5 $19) 54... Ra1+ $6 {Inaccuracy. Nc5 was best.} (54... Nc5 55. Qd8 (55. Qf5 $2 Nce4 $19) 55... Nge6 (55... Nxb3 $2 {is the wrong capture.} 56. Nb4+ {[%csl Bd4][%mdl 64] Discovered Attack (Check)} Kc4 57. Nxa2 $18)) 55. Ke2 $17 {and Ne3+ should not be overlooked. The board is on fire.} Ra2+ {White used his chance. A brilliant game! Weighted Error Value: White=0.36/Black=0.29 (precise)} 56. Ke1 $1 {Carlsen força o empate. PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 92% PRETAS 95% PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 88.8% PRETAS 90.5%} (56. Kd1 $2 Rd2+ 57. Kc1 Ke5 $19) ({RR} 56. Kd1 Rd2+ 57. Kc1 Ke5) {Veja que interessante linha que o computador recomenda:} 56... Nc5 $146 57. Qd8 ({RR} 57. Qf5) 57... Nge6 ({RR} 57... Nxb3 58. Nb4+ Kc4 59. Nxa2) 58. Qd6 Ne4 59. Qd7 Ke5 60. Qe7 (60. Qxf7 Ra1+ 61. Ke2 Nd4+ 62. Kd3 Rd1+ 63. Ke3 Nc2+ 64. Ke2 Rd2+ 65. Kf1 Rf2+ 66. Qxf2 Nxf2 67. Kxf2 Kxd5 68. Kf3 Ke5 69. Kg4 Kf6 70. Kh5 Kg7 $19) 60... Kxd5 61. Qxf7 Ra6 $19 1/2-1/2

[Event "13th Norway Armageddon"]
[Site "Stavanger NOR"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi, Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Tactical Analysis 7.0"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,67,20,16,27,-15,60,35,35,31,40,37,60,19,51,23,18,14,22,7,107,31,46,9,24,-3,-3,-102,-107,-94,-91,-91,-2,-12,-14,-21,-17,-26,3,-21,15,-1,-5,-16,0,-10,-14,-27,-12,-20,-1,-20,-15,-44,-17,-17,-5,-4,121,132,172,172,172,146,1192,1016,29997,29998,29999,-30000]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 Nbd7 6. Be3 {E73: King's Indian: Averbakh Variation without 6...c5.} e5 7. d5 {White is more active.} (7. Nf3 $16) 7... Nc5 $14 8. Qc2 {White is slightly better. is cutting edge theory.} a5 9. Nf3 ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) 9... Ng4 (9... b6 $14) 10. Bg5 $6 {Inaccuracy. Bxc5 was best.} (10. Bxc5 dxc5 11. Rd1 (11. h3 Nh6 $14)) 10... f6 {[%cal Bf7f6,Bf6f5,Bf5f4][%mdl 32]} 11. Bh4 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 11... g5 $146 (11... h5 12. h3 Nh6 13. Nd2 Nf7 14. O-O-O {½-½ Kopjonkin,G (2345)-Kalinin,O (2420) Frydek Mistek op 1996 (9)}) 12. Bg3 f5 13. Nd2 f4 14. Bxg4 (14. h3 $14) 14... Bxg4 15. f3 $1 Bd7 $36 {[%mdl 2048] Black has the initiative.} 16. Bf2 b6 17. b3 $6 {Inaccuracy. Bxc5 was best.} (17. Bxc5 bxc5 18. b3) 17... g4 18. O-O-O (18. h3 $1) 18... Rg8 $6 {Inaccuracy. Na6 was best.} (18... Bf6 $15) (18... Na6) 19. Kb2 gxf3 $6 {Inaccuracy. h5 was best.} (19... h5) 20. Nxf3 Bf6 21. Rhg1 Bg4 (21... Rg6 {deserves consideration.}) 22. a3 Qd7 23. Nb5 Ke7 (23... a4) 24. Rde1 (24. b4 $1 $14) 24... Rg7 25. Nd2 Kf7 26. g3 Bh5 (26... Kg8) 27. gxf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. b4 was best.} (27. b4 Na6) 27... exf4+ $15 28. Bd4 {[#] Hoping for Bxf6.} Qh3 $4 {Blunder. Rxg1 was best.} (28... Rxg1 29. Rxg1 Rg8 (29... Be5 30. Bxe5 dxe5 31. Rg5 $16) 30. Rxg8 (30. e5 Rxg1 31. Qxh7+ Kf8 $17) 30... Bxd4+ 31. Nxd4 Kxg8) 29. Bxf6 $16 (29. Nxc7 $2 Bxd4+ 30. Ka2 Bxg1 $19 (30... Rxg1 $2 31. Rxg1 Bxg1 32. Nxa8 $19)) 29... Rxg1 (29... Kxf6 $16 {is a better defense.} 30. Rxg7 {[%mdl 64] Remove Defender} Kxg7 (30... Nd3+ 31. Ka1 $16) 31. Qc3+ (31. Nxc7 Nd3+ 32. Ka2 Nxe1 $15) 31... Qxc3+ 32. Kxc3 Na6) 30. Rxg1 $18 Kxf6 31. e5+ $2 {Mistake. Nxc7 was best. Chess con chili.} (31. Nxc7 Rf8 32. Qc3+ (32. e5+ dxe5 33. Qxh7 Bg4 $14) 32... Qxc3+ 33. Kxc3) 31... Kxe5 $4 {[%mdl 8192] Blunder. dxe5 was best. [#]} (31... dxe5 32. Qxh7 (32. Nxc7 Rh8 $17) 32... Bg4 33. Qxc7 Qe3 34. Qxb6+ (34. Rxg4 {gets mated.} Qxd2+ 35. Kb1 Qd1+ 36. Kb2 Qxb3+ 37. Kc1 Nd3+ 38. Kd2 Qb2+ {[%mdl 64] Skewer} 39. Kxd3 e4+ {[%mdl 64] Decoy} 40. Kxe4 Re8+) (34. Rg2 $2 f3 $17) (34. Qc6+ Kg5 35. Qxa8 Qxd2+ 36. Ka1 Nxb3+ 37. Kb1) 34... Kf7 35. Qc7+ (35. Rxg4 Qxd2+ 36. Kb1 Qd1+ 37. Kb2 Qxb3+ 38. Kc1 Qe3+ 39. Kd1 Qd3+ 40. Ke1 Qb1+ 41. Kd2 Ne4+ 42. Ke2 Qc2+ {[%csl Bc4,Be2][%mdl 64] Skewer, Double Attack} 43. Ke1 Qd2+ 44. Kf1 Qd1+ 45. Kg2 f3+ 46. Kh3 Qf1+) 35... Nd7) 32. Qxh7 {White mates.} Bg4 $2 {Checkmate is now unavoidable. Ne6 was best.} (32... Ne6 33. dxe6 Qf5 34. Qg7+ Qf6 35. Re1+ Kf5+ 36. Nd4+ Qxd4+ 37. Qxd4 Rg8 38. Qd5+) 33. Qg7+ Kf5 {An entertaining game by Erigaisi. Weighted Error Value: White=0.28 (precise) /Black=0.45} 34. Nd4# {PRECISÃO LICHESS: BRANCAS 91% PRETAS 78%    PRECISÃO CHESS.COM: BRANCAS 91.1 PRETAS 84.7} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Erigaisi Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 17.1"]
[PlyCount "67"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,67,29,26,33,2,27,27,43,32,32,37,54,10,42,2,24,20,20,20,61,-1,-1,9,-26,-26,-26,-101,-99,-93,-93,-101,-10,-10,-10,-14,-20,-20,0,-6,-2,-8,-4,-13,-6,-12,-14,-27,-14,-10,-8,-16,-17,-44,5,-33,-33,-2,162,209,209,209,209,200,1192,1192,29997,29998,29999,-30000] Armagedon} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 Nbd7 6. Be3 e5 7. d5 Nc5 8. Qc2 a5 9. Nf3 ({RR} 9. h3 b6 10. Nf3 h5 11. Nd2 h4 12. Bg5 Bh6 13. Bxh6 Rxh6 14. O-O-O Bd7 15. Rdf1 Qe7 16. b3 c6 17. f4 exf4 18. Rxf4 g5 19. Rff1 O-O-O 20. Re1 Re8 21. dxc6 Bxc6 22. Nd5 Bxd5 23. cxd5 Kb8 {Bernard,I (2077)-Deak-Sala,E (2079) Trencin SVK 2025 ½-½ (51)}) 9... Ng4 10. Bg5 f6 11. Bh4 $146 ({RR} 11. Bd2 f5 12. Ng5 O-O 13. O-O f4 14. Nf3 g5 15. b3 Nh6 16. Ne1 g4 17. f3 g3 18. h3 Nf7 19. Nd3 Qh4 20. Nxc5 dxc5 21. Be1 Ng5 22. Nb5 Bxh3 23. gxh3 Nxh3+ 24. Kg2 Nf2 25. Rxf2 Qh2+ {Southcott-Moyers,I (2218)-Weetik,V (2423) chess.com INT 2024 0-1}) 11... g5 12. Bg3 f5 13. Nd2 f4 14. Bxg4 Bxg4 15. f3 Bd7 16. Bf2 b6 17. b3 $6 {Inaccuracy. Bxc5 was best.} (17. Bxc5) 17... g4 18. O-O-O Rg8 19. Kb2 gxf3 20. Nxf3 Bf6 21. Rhg1 Bg4 22. a3 Qd7 23. Nb5 Ke7 $6 {Inaccuracy. a4 was best.} (23... a4 24. b4) 24. Rde1 $6 {Inaccuracy. b4 was best.} (24. b4) 24... Rg7 25. Nd2 Kf7 26. g3 Bh5 27. gxf4 $6 {Inaccuracy. b4 was best.} (27. b4) 27... exf4+ 28. Bd4 Qh3 $2 {Mistake. Rxg1 was best.} (28... Rxg1 29. Rxg1) 29. Bxf6 Rxg1 $6 {Inaccuracy. Kxf6 was best.} (29... Kxf6 30. Rxg7 Nd3+ 31. Ka1 Kxg7 32. Qc3+ Kf7 33. c5 bxc5 34. Nxc7 Bg4 35. Rb1) 30. Rxg1 Kxf6 31. e5+ $2 {Mistake. Nxc7 was best.} (31. Nxc7) 31... Kxe5 $4 {Blunder. dxe5 was best.} (31... dxe5 32. Qxh7 Bg4 33. Qxc7 Qe3 34. Qc6+ Kg5 35. Qxa8 Nd3+ 36. Kc2 Ne1+ 37. Kb1) 32. Qxh7 Bg4 $6 {Checkmate is now unavoidable. Qd7 was best.} (32... Qd7) 33. Qg7+ Kf5 34. Nd4# 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Rafael Leitao"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:0"]

{[%evp 0,109,16,16,16,12,12,18,73,61,84,83,77,26,15,6,9,1,9,-14,-15,-23,-19,-25,-19,-53,-28,-50,-16,-58,-35,-35,-40,-46,5,-69,-33,-31,-41,-29,35,-8,-5,0,0,0,16,19,12,-6,31,-14,-14,-22,-12,-8,0,-15,0,0,0,0,0,10,51,13,30,23,16,20,64,52,52,43,48,47,37,28,28,28,32,20,0,22,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,350,352,370,350,370,317,347,369,615,615,788,788,788,788,685,1104,962,1626]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 {Uma escolha surpreendente, embora Carlsen tenha jogado esse lance em algumas partidas online de blitz e rápido.} d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 (4. e4 {é um lance muito popular em partidas online, e eu já o enfrentei muitas vezes nas minhas partidas de lazer no Chess.com.}) 4... Bg4 $5 {Um lance muito mais raro do que capturar o peão em d4.} (4... cxd4) 5. Be2 {A partida rapidamente se afasta da teoria.} (5. f3 {é a resposta mais comum, quando as Negras precisam jogar} Bd7 $1 {para controlar o salto do cavalo para b5. A partida permanece complicada e com chances para ambos os lados após} 6. dxc5) 5... Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 {Jogado apenas uma vez, em uma partida do Titled Tuesday. Capturar com a dama ou com o cavalo de g1 também leva a um jogo equilibrado.} (6. Ngxe2) (6. Qxe2) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 {A abertura de Carlsen foi discreta, e é difícil imaginar que as Brancas tenham alguma vantagem aqui. Claro, agora todos sabemos que ele fica feliz apenas por ter uma partida para jogar sem tanta teoria, mas mesmo assim, já o vi jogando ideias mais inspiradoras para conseguir isso.} e6 8. c3 Be7 $146 {Um lance novo.} (8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {com um empate em Naroditsky-Galchenko, Titled Tuesday blitz 2023.}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Nh5 9. Be5 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Ng3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 h6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. g4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rh5 Qe6 19. g5 Qg6 20. Qxg6 fxg6 21. Rh4 Kh7 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rdh1 {Bazan Romero,O (2289)-Khanbutaev,A (2139) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (84)}) 9. Ng3 (9. O-O {também é possível, mas Carlsen não está interessado em rocar.}) 9... O-O 10. Qe2 h6 {Um lance útil. As Negras têm outras boas opções e sua posição é confortável.} 11. Rd1 Qa5 {Forçando as Brancas a defenderem o peão de a2 e a criar fraquezas nas casas claras.} 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 {As Brancas têm uma posição sólida na ala da dama, então especulam com um plano com h4-h5, Ce5 e talvez até Th3 e Ch5, iniciando alguma ação na ala do rei. Claro, isso é sonhar alto demais: tanto com o roque quanto com o lance da partida, a avaliação não muda: igualdade confortável para as Negras.} Qa4 {Dominando as casas claras e preparando Dc4.} (13... Qa6 {Também é bastante lógico trocar as damas. Os peões dobrados na coluna \"a\" não são ruins para as Negras.} 14. Qxa6 bxa6 {com igualdade.}) (13... Rac8 {também é possível, simplesmente melhorando a torre. As Brancas podem jogar como na partida com} 14. Ne5) 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 (15. dxe5 $6 {As Brancas não estão justificado em prejudicar a estrutura de peões na esperança de tentar criar um ataque. As Negras ficam muito sólidas após} Nd7) 15... Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 (16... Rac8 {As Negras também poderiam esperar um pouco mais com um lance útil como este. $146ão está claro que elas precisem trocar damas em a6.} 17. Nh5 Bf8 18. g4 $5 {Talvez Gukesh tenha medo de um ataque assim, mas não parece tão assustador.}) 17. Qf3 (17. Qxa6 {é uma escolha sólida.} bxa6 {O final está igual segundo a máquina, embora pareça mais confortável para as Negras em uma partida humana.}) 17... Bd6 (17... Bf8 $1 {Cria mais problemas para as Brancas, já que o rei branco está preso em e1, e as Negars têm a ideia de trocar em d4 e depois preparar o avanço e6-e5, por exemplo:} 18. Nh5 cxd4 19. exd4 Re8 $1 {Quando as Brancas agora são aconselhadas a jogar} 20. Qe2 Qxe2+ 21. Kxe2 {com um bom final para as Negras.}) 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 (19. Nxf4 {também é possível, mas é compreensível que Carlsen quisesse o cavalo em h5.}) 19... e5 $5 {Um lance ousado e difícil, muito no estilo direto e calculista de Gukesh.} (19... cxd4 20. Qxd4 e5 $1 {é outra solução. Depois de} 21. Qxd5 Rac8 {as Negras preparam Cc5 e têm boa compensação. Uma continuação possível é} 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Nc5 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Ke2 Ne4 $1 26. Kf3 Nd2+ 27. Ke2 Ne4 {com um empate.}) 20. Qg3 {Carlsen decide ir para o final.} (20. dxe5 {é o lance crítico.} Qg6 (20... Qe6 $2 {é um erro tático:} 21. Qg3 Qxe5 22. Rxd5 $1 {ganhando um peão.}) 21. g4 $1 (21. Ng3 {permite} Qe6 {recuperando o peão com igualdade.}) 21... Re8 {O lance mais natural.} (21... d4 $5 {também é possível:} 22. cxd4 cxd4 23. Rxd4 (23. exd4 $2 Nxe5 $1 {e as Brancas não podem capturar o cavalo.}) (23. O-O d3 {com compensação suficiente pelo peão.}) 23... Qb1+ 24. Rd1 Qxb2 {e as Negras provavelmente têm contra-jogo suficiente para alcançar a igualdade.}) 22. Rxd5 Nxe5 $1 23. O-O {O cavalo não pode ser capturado devido ao xeque em b1.} Nxg4 24. Ng3 Nf6 {A posição é mais confortável para as Brancas devido às peças mais ativas, mas as Negras podem lutar pela igualdade e pelo empate. Mesmo assim, essa situação parece mais problemática para o segundo jogador do que a escolha das Brancas.}) 20... Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 (23. exd4 {leva à igualdade fácil depois de} Re8+) 23... c4 24. Ne2 $1 {Melhorando o cavalo.} b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 $1 {Isto é necessário para combater a expansão da ala da dama das Negras.} Rab8 27. f3 {A única pequena esperança que as Brancas têm de vencer a partida é criar um peão passado com e3-e4, graças aos peões dobrados das Negras em g6 e g7.} a5 (27... b4 {é pior: as Brancas ficam com uma estrutura de peões melhor após} 28. axb4 Rxb4 29. Kd2) 28. b4 $1 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 (30... axb4 $6 31. Na4 {é perigoso para as Negras.}) 31. Ra3 {31.Txb4 e 31.Tb1 são possíveis, mas não há vantagem.} Re8 32. Kd2 {As Brancas abandonam o peão de g, deixando a partida um pouco aguda.} (32. Kf2 {As Negras têm várias maneiras de alcançar o empate, uma delas é} Rb2+ 33. Ne2 Ng4+ 34. fxg4 Rf8+ 35. Kg3 Rxe2) 32... Rb2+ 33. Kd3 Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 (35... Rd8 {também é bom:} 36. Ne2 Rh3 37. Nf4 Rxh4 38. Nxg6 Rh2 {com um empate provável.}) 36. hxg5 Rxg5 (36... hxg5 {Até isso é possível, mas não há necessidade de defender estando um peão a menos depois de} 37. Nxd5 g4 38. Nxf6+ gxf6 39. Rf5) 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 (38... h4 {é outra possibilidade:}) 39. Rxa8+ Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 {Meu computador afirma que as Negras têm pelo menos cinco lances diferentes que levam ao empate neste momento.} h3 {Gukesh decide seguir por uma linha forçada de empate, mas talvez fosse mais prático simplesmente mover o cavalo. A posição continua igual, mas sem a necessidade de encontrar um lance forçado no final da variante.} (42... Nh5 $1) 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ 45. Kd2 h1=Q (45... Rg2+ {também é bom:} 46. Ne2 h1=Q 47. f8=Q Qh6+ $1 48. Kd3 Qh3+ $1 {com xeque perpétuo. Se as Brancas jogarem para ganhar com} 49. Kc4 $4 {as Negras ganham com} Qe6+ $1) 46. f8=Q Qh6+ $2 {Basicamente o único erro nesta partida, mas às vezes um erro basta para perder.} (46... Rg2+ $7 {leva a um empate:} 47. Kd3 (47. Ne2 Qh6+ $1 48. Kd3 Qh3+ 49. Kd2 Qh6+) 47... Rg3+ $7 48. Kc2 Qg2+ 49. Kb3 Qd5+ (49... Qb7+ {também é suficiente.}) 50. Kc2 (50. Kb2 Qg2+ 51. Ka1 Qg1+ $1 52. Kb2 Qg2+ $1) 50... Qg2+ {com xeque perpétuo.}) 47. Kc2 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 $1 {O único lance vencedor.} (48. Kb3 $2 Qb1+) 48... Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ (49... Rxc3 50. Qf5+ $1 g6 (50... Qg6 51. Rh8+) 51. Qf7+ Kh6 52. Qf4+ {com um ataque de mate.}) 50. Ka3 Qb2+ 51. Ka4 Qxc3 (51... Qa1+ 52. Kb4 {e os xeques acabam rapidamente.}) 52. Qh8+ Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 (53... Kf7 54. Qh5+ {termina em mate em breve.}) 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ (55. Re6+ Kd3 (55... Kxd4 56. Qd6+ Kc4 57. Re4+) 56. Qf3+) 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.05.25"]
[Round "1.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D01"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Stockfish 17.1"]
[PlyCount "110"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,110,23,23,20,20,20,28,66,64,89,58,61,18,7,3,3,10,3,-17,-13,-29,-21,-37,-15,-20,-2,-29,-29,-58,-37,-37,-39,-39,-6,-56,-20,-26,-35,-23,22,-8,-8,0,0,0,15,14,12,2,33,6,6,-11,-15,-30,22,-6,-6,-6,6,16,19,14,31,19,21,28,36,46,58,46,46,52,51,47,47,47,38,46,55,5,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,351,362,377,377,377,356,373,373,532,532,678,777,777,788,788,974,1882,2021,29993]} 1. d4 {Crowther,Mark} Nf6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 Bg4 5. Be2 Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 ({RR} 6. Ngxe2 e6 7. Qd2 Nc6 8. Nb5 Rc8 9. dxc5 Bxc5 10. Ned4 Ne4 11. Qd1 O-O 12. Nxc6 bxc6 13. Nd4 Qb6 14. Rb1 Rfe8 15. Nb3 Bf8 16. O-O c5 17. Nd2 Nf6 18. Nf3 Ne4 19. c3 c4 20. Qc2 Bd6) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 e6 8. c3 Be7 ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5) 9. Ng3 O-O 10. Qe2 h6 11. Rd1 Qa5 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 Qa4 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 17. Qf3 Bd6 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 e5 20. Qg3 ({RR} 20. dxe5 Qg6 21. g4) 20... Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 c4 24. Ne2 b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 Rab8 27. f3 a5 28. b4 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 ({RR} 30... axb4 31. Na4 ({RR} 31. Na2 Ra8)) 31. Ra3 Re8 32. Kd2 Rb2+ 33. Kd3 Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 36. hxg5 Rxg5 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 39. Rxa8+ Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 h3 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ 45. Kd2 h1=Q 46. f8=Q ({RR} 46. f8=R Qh6+ 47. Kc2 Rg2+ 48. Kb3 Qb6+ 49. Kc4 Qc6+ 50. Kb3 Rg3 51. Rh8+ Kg6 52. Rac8 Rxc3+ 53. Kb2 Qxc8 54. Rxc8 Rxc8 55. Kb3 ({RR} 55. d5 Kf5 56. d6 Ke6 57. Kb3 Kxd6 58. Kb4 g5 59. Kb5 g4 60. Ka6 g3 61. Kb7 Rc6 62. Kb8 Rb6+ 63. Ka8 Kc7 64. Ka7 Rh6 65. Ka8 Ra6#) 55... Kf5 56. d5 Ke5 57. Kb4 Kxd5 58. Kb3 g5 59. Kb4 g4 60. Ka5 g3) 46... Qh6+ $4 {Blunder. Rg2+ was best.} (46... Rg2+ 47. Kd3 ({RR} 47. Ne2 Qh6+ 48. Ke1 Qh4+ 49. Kd1 ({RR} 49. Kd2) 49... Qh1+ 50. Kd2) 47... Rg3+ 48. Kc2 Qg2+ 49. Kb1 Qg1+ 50. Ka2 Qg2+) ({RR} 46... Rg2+) 47. Kc2 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ 50. Ka3 Qb2+ $6 {Inaccuracy. Qc6 was best.} (50... Qc6 51. Qf5+ Rg6 52. Qh3+ Rh6 53. Qd3+ Rg6 54. Ra4 Kg8 55. Kb3 Rf6 56. d5) 51. Ka4 Qxc3 $4 {Checkmate is now unavoidable. Qa1+ was best.} (51... Qa1+ 52. Kb3 Qb2+ 53. Kc4 Qb6 54. Qh8+ Kg6 55. Qe8+ Kh7 56. Qh5+ Qh6 57. Qf5+) 52. Qh8+ Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ ({RR} 55. Qa8+ Kxd4 56. Qxg2 Qc4+ 57. Ka5 Qc5+ 58. Ka4 Qc4+ 59. Ka5 Qc5+ 60. Ka4 Qc4+) 55... Kd5 $146 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "3.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2758"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "101"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:0"]

{[%evp 0,101,19,16,18,4,4,4,4,-34,13,13,13,-6,14,-7,3,-15,-2,-2,-2,-7,4,-28,5,-8,-41,-1,7,-37,-2,0,0,-13,1,1,36,46,46,46,53,41,41,42,26,38,48,66,72,53,72,75,63,46,38,38,38,33,33,33,44,33,43,16,0,12,1,12,21,15,58,43,45,17,36,33,33,39,33,0,0,0,33,-12,0,4,4,4,32,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0,0]} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 Be7 5. Bg2 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 8. a4 Bd7 9. Qxc4 Bc6 10. Bg5 Bd5 11. Qc2 Be4 12. Qc1 Nc6 13. e3 Bb4 14. Qd1 h6 15. Bxf6 Qxf6 16. Nc3 Bxc3 17. bxc3 Na5 18. Ne5 Bxg2 19. Kxg2 Rfd8 20. Qb1 $146 ({RR} 20. Rb1 c5 21. Qe2 Rac8 22. Rfc1 Rc7 23. Nd3 c4 24. Nc5 e5 25. Qf3 Qg6 26. Rd1 exd4 27. exd4 Qc2 28. Re1 Nb3 29. Ne4 Qa2 30. Nc5 Qc2 31. Qf4 Rdc8 32. Ne4 Rd7 33. Nf6+ gxf6 34. Qg4+ Qg6 {Injac,T (2431)-Mijovic,A (2130) Budva MNE 2023 1-0 (41)}) 20... Rac8 21. Rd1 c5 22. Qb6 cxd4 23. cxd4 Rd5 24. Rdc1 Qd8 25. Qb4 Rc7 26. Rc3 $6 {A move that seems to give away much of White's advantage.} (26. h4 {or other waiting moves, and Carlsen remains clearly better, though there's no obvious knockout blow.}) 26... Rxc3 $1 27. Qxc3 Rd6 $1 {This square is now available after the queen was deflected from b4.} 28. Rb1 f6 29. Ng6 Qe8 30. Qc2 Kf7 31. h4 Qc6+ 32. Qxc6 Rxc6 33. h5 Rc4 34. Kf3 Ke8 35. Nf4 Ke7 36. g4 $6 (36. Nd3 $1 {and White preserves more chances.} e5 (36... Rxa4 37. Nc5 Ra2 38. Rb6 e5 39. d5 Rd2 40. e4 Kf8 {illustrates the kind of chances Carlsen could have got.}) 37. Ke4 {In the game the e5-pawn attacks the knight, so there's no option to play like this.}) 36... e5 37. Ng6+ Ke6 38. dxe5 fxe5 39. Rb6+ Rc6 40. Rb2 Rc4 41. Ra2 Nb3 42. Nh4 Nc5 43. Nf5 Rxa4 44. Rc2 b6 45. Rd2 Ne4 46. Nxg7+ Kf6 47. Rd7 {Black has powerful connected passed pawns on the queenside, so Carlsen decides it's time to shut things down.} Ng5+ 48. Kg3 Ne4+ 49. Kf3 Ng5+ 50. Kg3 Ne4+ 51. Kf3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.05.28"]
[Round "6"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Wei, Yi"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A45"]
[WhiteElo "2883"]
[BlackElo "2711"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,64,19,16,11,8,42,55,65,69,45,9,48,22,35,18,39,5,11,4,4,18,20,-1,53,34,11,25,7,-20,41,-29,28,18,-4,-2,-2,-12,-20,-63,-6,-11,15,15,42,36,0,0,0,0,0,-135,-160,-159,-361,-384,-372,-455,-455,-461,-493,-818,-827,-1101,-499,-1199,-1398] 0-} {Armagedom} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Bf4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. e3 Bg7 5. h4 h5 6. Nf3 O-O 7. Ne5 c5 8. Qd2 Bf5 9. f3 cxd4 10. exd4 Nc6 11. Bb5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 Nd7 13. Bxd7 $146 (13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 {was Praggnanandhaa 0-1 Wei Yi from the Chessable Masters 2025.}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 d4 15. Bxe5 Bxe5 16. Rxe5 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Qb6 18. Qd4 Rac8 19. c3 Qxd4 20. Rxd4 Rc7 21. g4 hxg4 22. fxg4 Be6 23. a4 Kg7 24. h5 Rh8 25. Bd3 gxh5 26. gxh5 b6 27. Be2 Rc5 {Erigaisi,A (2718)-Giri,A (2764) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (56)}) ({RR} 13. O-O-O Nxe5 14. Rhe1 Nc6 15. Bh6 e5 16. Bxg7 Kxg7 17. Qxd5 Qxh4 18. Bxc6 bxc6 19. Qxe5+ Qf6 20. Qxf6+ Kxf6 21. Rd6+ Kg5 22. Rxc6 Rfe8 23. Re2 Kf4 24. Kd2 Rad8+ 25. Ke1 Kg3 26. Ne4+ Rxe4 27. fxe4 Bg4 {Jyotshnav Talukdar (1990)-Kandi Santosh Sai Karthik (2097) Bhubaneswar IND 2025 ½-½}) 13... Qxd7 14. O-O-O $2 {Combining the two lines, but there's a big difference.} (14. Qxd5 Qc7 15. O-O-O {is playable.}) 14... Rac8 15. Qxd5 Rxc3 $3 {A beautiful blow $1} 16. Qxd7 (16. bxc3 $4 Qa4 $1 {wins for Black, e.g.} 17. Qd2 Qa3+ 18. Kb1 Rc8 {and there's no defense, with Be6 one of the additional threats.}) 16... Rxc2+ $1 17. Kb1 Rxg2+ 18. Qxf5 gxf5 19. Rd7 {Black is on top, but White has excellent chances to hold. Winning the endgame, as required, is a tougher ask $1} Rc8 20. Rxe7 Rc4 21. Bc1 b5 {Wei Yi: \"It looks uncomfortable for me at first, but then I saw I have some counterplay, so maybe it was ok $1\"} 22. Rd1 Rxh4 23. Rd8+ Kh7 24. Rxf7 $2 {Now White is in trouble, but retreating with} (24. Rd1 $1 {isn't particularly promising.}) 24... Rh1 25. Rxf5 $2 {And after this move White is completely lost.} Kg6 26. Rf4 Rgg1 27. Rd6+ (27. Rc8 {shows the problem:} Rxc1+ $1 28. Rxc1 Rxc1+ 29. Kxc1 {and all would be good for White, if not for} Bh6 {picking up the rook.}) 27... Kh7 28. a4 {Pure desperation to continue the game.} Rxc1+ 29. Ka2 Bxe5 30. Rf7+ Kg8 31. Rdd7 bxa4 32. Ka3 Rc4 {Wei finds the quickest finish, locking down the white king. Carlsen resigned.} (32... Rc4 33. Ka2 Rc2 34. Rb7 Rxb2+ 35. Rxb2 Kxf7 {is the kind of thing that would have happened otherwise.}) 0-1

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2025.06.02"]
[Round "7.2"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Nakamura, Hikaru"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E04"]
[WhiteElo "2883"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Chess.com"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,79,19,16,18,-10,39,35,28,22,22,-8,28,26,0,-11,-7,8,25,7,-23,-61,-5,-5,-28,-28,-15,24,59,24,47,59,63,61,64,40,123,97,122,113,126,101,126,126,124,99,92,115,115,104,132,94,127,121,112,111,113,93,114,83,51,79,87,83,87,95,95,94,83,81,138,88,258,252,246,238,830,1029,1074,1097,1381,1552]} {Armagedom} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 dxc4 5. g3 b5 6. Bg2 e6 7. O-O Bb7 8. Ne5 Qc8 9. b3 b4 $6 {White is well-positioned to meet this.} (9... cxb3 {The engine marks this as best and equal, though White will have full compensation typical of the Catalan.}) 10. Na4 c3 11. a3 Nbd7 (11... a5 $4 {If Black could keep the pawns on b4 and c3 permanently, he'd be in great shape. But this is not possible for tactical reasons.} 12. Nb6) 12. axb4 Bxb4 13. Ba3 a5 $146 (13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) ({RR} 13... Bxa3 14. Rxa3 c5 15. Bxb7 Qxb7 16. Nxc5 Nxc5 17. dxc5 O-O 18. c6 Qb5 19. Qd4 c2 20. Qc3 Ne4 {0-1 (20) Sarkar,J (2338)-Nasuta,G (2518) Chess.com INT 2021}) 14. Nxc3 $3 {A piece sacrifice, though it should not be taken.} O-O $2 (14... Bxc3 15. Nc4 {The black king is in decisive trouble, with Nd6+ coming next.}) (14... Bxa3 15. Rxa3 O-O {was better than the game.}) 15. Bxb4 axb4 16. Nxd7 Nxd7 17. Na4 {White often sacrifices a pawn for this pressure on the c-file. Here, he's not even a pawn down.} Ba6 18. Qd2 {Reminding Black he also has a weak pawn on b4.} Bb5 19. Rfc1 (19. Qxb4 $2 {It's too early to take.} Bxe2) 19... Ra6 20. e3 Qa8 21. Qxb4 {White wins a pawn, but Nakamura proves to be resourceful.} Nb6 22. Rc5 Nd5 23. Bxd5 exd5 24. Rcc1 (24. Qd2 $1 {was best. White wins by:} h5 25. Rac1 h4 {Not best, but it shows White's idea.} 26. Nc3 {Black's pawn base comes under heavy fire now.}) 24... h5 {Now we see inaccurate moves by both sides, but the main turning point is 28...g5.} 25. h4 Re8 26. Qc3 Qc8 27. Nc5 $2 (27. Qc2 $1 g5 28. Nc3 {Black is not in time to continue his attack. White already threatens taking on b5 and trading queens.} gxh4 29. Nxb5) 27... Rxa1 28. Rxa1 g5 $1 {Nakamura equalizes, sacrificing a pawn to open the white king.} 29. hxg5 h4 30. e4 $1 {Giving a pawn back to include the queen in the defense on the third rank. White is still a pawn up.} (30. gxh4 $4 Qg4+ {is even losing for White.} 31. Kh2 Qxh4+ 32. Kg2 Qg4+ 33. Kh2 Kg7 {is the mating net.}) 30... dxe4 31. Re1 Qg4 32. Qe3 hxg3 33. fxg3 Kg7 34. Kg2 Rh8 (34... Qf3+ $1 35. Qxf3 exf3+ 36. Kf2 {To keep the rook protected.} Re2+ 37. Rxe2 fxe2 {Black can draw this endgame, though this isn't so clear in an armageddon game with a minute or two.} 38. Nd7 Kg6 39. Ne5+ Kxg5 40. Nxf7+ Kg4 {White cannot make progress, despite the extra pawn.}) 35. Qxe4 Qh3+ $2 {The losing move. Nakamura goes for a king hunt, but one that isn't there.} (35... Qxg5 {was the only move for equality. It's important to realize endgames are drawn, even a pawn down for Black.} 36. Qe5+ Qxe5 37. Rxe5 {This is objectively equal, though holding it against Carlsen could be a different story.}) 36. Kf3 {There isn't any follow-up. Nakamura goes for what's probably the best try.} Bf1 {Threatening to win the queen with ...Bg2+.} 37. Kf4 $1 {Simply stepping out of the way. Black doesn't even have a check.} Qh2 38. Qe5+ (38. Rxf1 $2 {is the trick. Black wins the queen.} Rh4+) 38... Kg8 39. Rxf1 Qg2 40. Ra1 {White is a piece up and the computer announces a forced mate from here. Nakamura resigns.} 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Bojkov,Dejan"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

{[%evp 0,103,19,16,18,-10,-11,-22,-24,-13,11,11,19,14,14,-24,-8,-38,-38,-43,-43,-39,-39,-35,-24,-16,-16,-12,-4,-7,-3,-1,-3,-3,10,10,13,10,16,-7,8,8,8,-7,0,0,37,16,33,47,63,61,113,116,108,114,114,114,114,114,125,127,131,77,77,111,158,158,150,150,157,135,135,128,134,134,141,141,129,151,144,144,148,116,148,102,156,145,156,144,159,159,144,144,156,144,189,186,153,176,366,279,401,425,461,463]} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 {Caruana comfortably entered a line that he used just a few weeks ago, but as White.} 8. Rd1 ({As White the American chose instead:} 8. a4 Nc6 9. Qxc4 h6 10. Bd2 Qd5 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. Qxd5 exd5 13. e3 {and this game eventually ended in a draw, Caruana,F (2776)-Abdusattorov $146 (2771) Bucharest 2025}) 8... b5 9. Ne5 {Carlsen replies quickly and confidently.} Nd5 10. b3 cxb3 11. axb3 Bb7 12. Ba3 Bd6 {All of this \"is cutting edge theory\" according to the Megabase. White gets ample compensation for the pawn, but Black can look for a good moment to give it back and trade a few pieces in the process.} 13. Nd3 Nd7 14. e4 Bxa3 15. Rxa3 ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 16. Nd2 a5 $146 {Here it is, the novelty. Black certainly should not allow his opponent a chance to clamp the queenside.} ({The predecessor saw White getting everything that he wanted to after:} 16... Qe7 $2 17. b4 $1 Rac8 (17... e5 18. Qxc7) 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) Chess.com INT 2022. It should be said that a younger Carlsen learned the hard way how bad this structure is against Kramnik.}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 c5 $1 {The point behind Caruana's play.} ({Keeping the extra pawn is not worth it} 17... c6 18. e5 Nd5 19. Ne4 {and the white knights get the better outposts.}) 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. b4 axb4 {This should be an equalizer. But one can never be certain when facing Carlsen...} ({There is more complex play after} 19... a4 20. Qb2 ({Or} 20. Rc3 Nb8 $1)) 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Rc1 $1 {White plays for a win $1} ({More trades will follow after} 21. Rxa8+ Bxa8 22. Qa2 Bc6) 21... Rc8 {The most obvious and logical move. Caruana targets the last of the white queenside pawns. If it disappears, the draw would become inevitable.} ({However, there was a strong argument for blocking it with} 21... Nb8 $5 22. Nxb4 Nc6 23. Qb2 Nxb4 24. Qxb4 Bc6 {with a perfectly safe position for the second player.}) 22. Qb2 h6 {Another useful move, giving air to the king.} ({The \"activity\"} 22... Qa5 23. Nb3 Qa4 $4 {backfires to} ({Also} 23... Qa3 24. Qc2 $1 {is less than convincing.}) 24. Ra1) ({But it made sense to try and get rid of a pair of knights at once with} 22... Ng4 $5 23. Qxb4 Bc6 {followed by Ng4-e5.}) 23. Qxb4 Bc6 24. Qb2 $1 {Highlighting the fact that Black is a bit cramped, and clumsy.} Ra8 ({Here too} 24... Ng4 $5 {seems good, for example} 25. Nb4 Nge5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Rxc4 Bb5 29. Rc1 Nxc5 {when the pin is only a temporary issue.}) 25. Nb4 Ne5 {Finally Caruana decided to bring the knights into the game.} ({This time it was too late for} 25... Ng4 $4 26. Nxc6 Qxc6 27. e5) 26. f4 Nc4 $1 {The best chance from a human standpoint.} ({The knight is offside after} 26... Ng6 {and White has a bunch of interesting options, like} 27. e5 ({Or} 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. f5) 27... Bxg2 28. exf6 Bc6 29. fxg7 {White should be better.}) 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Nxc6 $1 {An accurate move.} ({Annihilating the important bishop later might come with a price, as in the line} 28. Rxc4 Qb7 29. Qd4 Ra4 30. Nxc6 Qb1+ $1 31. Bf1 Ra1 {And suddenly Black has enough counterplay. One funny drawing line runs} 32. Qf2 Ng4 $1 33. Qe2 Ne3 34. Kf2 Ng4+ 35. Kg1 Ne3) 28... Qxc6 29. Rxc4 Rc8 $6 {It's easy to criticize this move armed with the computer's megapower.} ({but calculating all the counterplay after} 29... Ra5 $1 {was definitely impossible. The rook is kept active and ready to bother the white king. The logic is clear. The problem is, though, that the c-passer can become a queen before that. Still, the machine is not afraid. Some beautiful lines run:} 30. Qd4 ({In case of} 30. Qc3 {a nice line shown in the studio by Chirila goes} Qa6 (30... Ra2 $5 {also looks enough for counterplay.}) 31. c6 $6 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 Rxf1+ $3 33. Kxf1 Nxe4 $1 {Now} 34. Qc2 $4 {even loses to} ({Therefore White needs to fight for the draw with} 34. c7 Nd2+ 35. Qxd2 Qxc4+ 36. Kg2 Qxc7) 34... Qxc4+ $1 35. Qxc4 Nd2+ 36. Ke2 Nxc4 37. c7 Nd6 $19) ({In comparison to the game} 30. e5 Nd5 31. f5 {does not yield White anything due to the simple} Rxc5) ({There is also no time for prophylaxis} 30. h3 Rxc5 31. Qb8+ Ne8 {with equality} ({But not} 31... Kh7 $4 32. e5)) 30... Ra2 31. h3 Qb5 32. Qc3 Qb1+ 33. Qc1 ({White has to be careful} 33. Kh2 $4 Qf1) 33... Qd3 $1 {And it turns out that Black is just in time in the line} 34. c6 Qe2 35. Qf1 Qe3+ 36. Kh2 Nxe4 37. c7 Qxg3+ 38. Kg1 Qe3+ 39. Kh2 Qg3+ 40. Kh1 Nf2+ 41. Kg1 ({Or} 41. Qxf2 Qxf2 42. c8=Q+ Kh7 43. Qc6 Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qf1 {and Black does not risk losing.}) 41... Nxh3+) 30. e5 $1 Nd5 31. f5 $1 {Now Carlsen creates additional weaknesses on the kingside.} Qa6 ({Certainly not} 31... exf5 $2 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 {and this time the pin will be painful for Black.}) 32. Rc1 Qa7 {Black keeps his queen closer to the pawn.} ({This looked like a good moment to activate the queen with} 32... Qd3 $1 33. fxe6 Qe3+ 34. Kh1 fxe6 35. c6 (35. Bxd5 exd5) 35... Kh8) 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Bxd5 $1 {With such a knight on the board the win would be impossible.} exd5 35. Qd4 Qd7 36. Kg2 {This and the next few moves are trademark Carlsen.} (36. Rd1 {is nothing due to} Qc6) 36... Qc6 37. h4 $1 {Fixing some squares around the black king.} Kh8 38. Rc2 Kg8 39. h5 Kh8 40. Kh3 Kg8 41. Kh2 Qe6 42. Rd2 Rd8 43. Kg2 Qc6 44. Rd1 Qa6 45. Re1 Qe6 46. Rb1 {After some improvements, White gets ready to infiltrate into the enemy camp.} Qf5 {Caruana goes for a wrong plan $1} ({True} 46... Re8 {does not even create a threat and White can calmly react with} 47. Rb2 $5 {As the rook endgame after} Qxe5 $4 48. Qxe5 Rxe5 49. c6 {is lost for Black.}) ({However} 46... Rf8 $1 47. Rb2 {And now the neat} Kh8 $1 {should have been tried. Black is looking for a proper moment for a counterplay along the f-file.} ({Not} 47... Qf5 48. Qxd5+)) 47. Rb2 Qxh5 {The last mistake. This pawn is not worth as much as it seems, and the white king is sufficiently defended.} ({The immediate attack} 47... Rf8 $2 {still does not work due to} 48. Qxd5+ Kh7 49. c6 Qf1+ 50. Kh2) ({But the last chance was} 47... Qe6 $1 {When White can keep on grinding with many moves, like} 48. Rb6 (48. Rd2 $5) (48. g4 $5) ({Or the preliminary} 48. Rc2 $5 Qc6 49. g4) 48... Qf5 49. Rb7 Qc2+) 48. c6 $1 {The pawns are too strong.} Kh7 49. e6 $1 ({Perhaps Caruana only calculated} 49. c7 Rc8 50. Rc2 Qf7 {with chances to hold.}) 49... Qg6 50. Re2 $1 (50. c7 $1 {would do as well.}) 50... Ra8 51. Qxd5 Ra3 52. Qe4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.05.26"]
[Round "1"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Gukesh D"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D00"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2787"]
[Annotator "Rafael Leitao"]
[PlyCount "109"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:0"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nc3 {A surprising choice, although Carlsen has played this move in a few online blitz and rapid games.} d5 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 (4. e4 {is a very popular move in online games, and I have faced it many times in my leisure time playing on Chess.com.}) 4... Bg4 $5 {A much rarer move than capturing the pawn on d4.} (4... cxd4) 5. Be2 {The game quickly moves away from theory.} (5. f3 {is the most common reply, when Black has to play} Bd7 $1 {in order to control the knight jump to b5. The game remains complicated and with chances for both sides after} 6. dxc5) 5... Bxe2 6. Ncxe2 {Played only once, in a Titled Tuesday game. Taking with the queen or with the g1-knight also leads to an equal game.} (6. Ngxe2) (6. Qxe2) 6... Nc6 7. Nf3 {Carlsen's opening was unassuming, and it's hard to imagine White having any advantage here. Of course, by now we all know that he is happy just having a game to play without so much theory, but even so, I've seen him playing more inspiring ideas to achieve this.} e6 8. c3 Be7 $146 {A new move.} (8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {with a draw in Naroditsky-Galchenko, Titled Tuesday blitz 2023.}) ({RR} 8... Bd6 9. O-O O-O 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Nf4 Ne4 12. dxc5 Qxc5 {½-½ (12) Naroditsky,D (2619)-Galchenko,M (2438) chess.com INT 2023}) ({RR} 8... Nh5 9. Be5 Bd6 10. Bxd6 Qxd6 11. Ng3 Nxg3 12. hxg3 h6 13. Qd3 O-O 14. g4 e5 15. dxe5 Nxe5 16. Nxe5 Qxe5 17. O-O-O Rfd8 18. Rh5 Qe6 19. g5 Qg6 20. Qxg6 fxg6 21. Rh4 Kh7 22. gxh6 gxh6 23. Rdh1 {Bazan Romero,O (2289)-Khanbutaev,A (2139) chess.com INT 2025 ½-½ (84)}) 9. Ng3 (9. O-O {is also possible, but Carlsen isn't interested in castling.}) 9... O-O 10. Qe2 h6 {A useful move. Black has other good options and his position is pleasant.} 11. Rd1 Qa5 {Forcing White to defend the a2-pawn and create weaknesses on the light squares.} 12. a3 Rfd8 13. h4 {White has a solid position on the queenside, so he speculates with a plan with h4-h5, Ne5, and maybe even Rh3 and Nh5, starting some action on the kingside. Of course, this is dreaming too high: both with castling and with the move in the game, the assessment doesn't change: comfortable equality for Black.} Qa4 {Dominating the light squares and preparing Qc4.} (13... Qa6 {is also quite logical, exchanging queens. The doubled pawns on the a-file aren't bad for Black.} 14. Qxa6 bxa6 {with equality.}) (13... Rac8 {is also possible, simply improving the rook. White can play like in the game with} 14. Ne5) 14. Ne5 Nxe5 15. Bxe5 (15. dxe5 $6 {White isn't justified in damaging the pawn structure in the hope of trying to create an attack. Black is very solid after} Nd7) 15... Nd7 16. Bf4 Qa6 (16... Rac8 {Black could also wait a bit longer with a useful move like this. It's not clear that he needs to exchange queens on a6.} 17. Nh5 Bf8 18. g4 $5 {Maybe Gukesh was afraid of an attack like this, but it doesn't seem too scary.}) 17. Qf3 (17. Qxa6 {is a solid choice.} bxa6 {The endgame is equal according to the machine, although it looks more comfortable for Black in a human game.}) 17... Bd6 (17... Bf8 $1 {creates more problems for White as White's king is stuck on e1 and Black has the idea of exchanging on d4 and then preparing to advance e6-e5, for instance:} 18. Nh5 cxd4 19. exd4 Re8 $1 {When White is now advised to play} 20. Qe2 Qxe2+ 21. Kxe2 {with a good endgame for Black.}) 18. Nh5 Bxf4 19. Qxf4 (19. Nxf4 {is also possible, but it's understandable that Carlsen wanted the knight on h5.}) 19... e5 $5 {A bold and difficult move, very much in Gukesh's direct and calculating style.} (19... cxd4 20. Qxd4 e5 $1 {is another solution. After} 21. Qxd5 Rac8 {Black prepares Nc5 and has good compensation. A possible continuation is} 22. Qd6 Qxd6 23. Rxd6 Nc5 24. Rxd8+ Rxd8 25. Ke2 Ne4 $1 26. Kf3 Nd2+ 27. Ke2 Ne4 {with a draw.}) 20. Qg3 {Carlsen decides to go for the endgame.} (20. dxe5 {is the critical move.} Qg6 (20... Qe6 $2 {is a tactical mistake:} 21. Qg3 Qxe5 22. Rxd5 $1 {winning a pawn.}) 21. g4 $1 (21. Ng3 {allows} Qe6 {regaining the pawn with equality.}) 21... Re8 {The most natural move.} (21... d4 $5 {is also possible:} 22. cxd4 cxd4 23. Rxd4 (23. exd4 $2 Nxe5 $1 {and White cannot capture the knight.}) (23. O-O d3 {with enough compensation for the pawn.}) 23... Qb1+ 24. Rd1 Qxb2 {and Black probably has enough counterplay for equality.}) 22. Rxd5 Nxe5 $1 23. O-O {The knight cannot be captured due to the check on b1.} Nxg4 24. Ng3 Nf6 {The position is more pleasant for White due to the more active pieces, but Black can fight for equality and a draw. Still, this looks more problematic for the second player than White's choice.}) 20... Qg6 21. Qxg6 fxg6 22. Ng3 exd4 23. cxd4 (23. exd4 {leads to easy equality after} Re8+) 23... c4 24. Ne2 $1 {Improving the knight.} b5 25. Nc3 Nf6 26. Rb1 $1 {This is necessary in order to fight against Black's queenside expansion.} Rab8 27. f3 {The only small hope White has to win the game is creating a passed pawn with e3-e4, thanks to Black's doubled pawns on g6 and g7.} a5 (27... b4 {is worse: White remains with a better pawn structure after} 28. axb4 Rxb4 29. Kd2) 28. b4 $1 cxb3 29. Rxb3 b4 30. axb4 Rxb4 (30... axb4 $6 31. Na4 {is dangerous for Black.}) 31. Ra3 {31.Rxb4 and 31.Rb1 are possible, but there's no advantage.} Re8 32. Kd2 {White gives up the g-pawn, sharpening the game a little bit.} (32. Kf2 {Black has many ways to achieve a draw, one of them is} Rb2+ 33. Ne2 Ng4+ 34. fxg4 Rf8+ 35. Kg3 Rxe2) 32... Rb2+ 33. Kd3 Rxg2 34. Rxa5 Rg3 35. Rf1 g5 (35... Rd8 {is also good:} 36. Ne2 Rh3 37. Nf4 Rxh4 38. Nxg6 Rh2 {with a likely draw.}) 36. hxg5 Rxg5 (36... hxg5 {Even this is possible, but there's no need to defend a pawn down after} 37. Nxd5 g4 38. Nxf6+ gxf6 39. Rf5) 37. Rfa1 h5 38. Ra8 Rxa8 (38... h4 {is another possibility:}) 39. Rxa8+ Kh7 40. e4 dxe4+ 41. fxe4 h4 42. e5 {My computer claims that Black has at least five different moves that lead to a draw at this point.} h3 {Gukesh decides to embark on a forced drawing line, but perhaps it would be more practical to simply move the knight. The position remains equal, but without the need to find a forced move at the end of the variation.} (42... Nh5 $1) 43. exf6 h2 44. f7 Rg3+ 45. Kd2 h1=Q (45... Rg2+ {is also good:} 46. Ne2 h1=Q 47. f8=Q Qh6+ $1 48. Kd3 Qh3+ $1 {with perpetual check. If White plays for a win with} 49. Kc4 $4 {Black wins with} Qe6+ $1) 46. f8=Q Qh6+ $2 {Essentially the only mistake in this game, but sometimes one mistake is enough to lose.} (46... Rg2+ $7 {leads to a draw:} 47. Kd3 (47. Ne2 Qh6+ $1 48. Kd3 Qh3+ 49. Kd2 Qh6+) 47... Rg3+ $7 48. Kc2 Qg2+ 49. Kb3 Qd5+ (49... Qb7+ {is also enough.}) 50. Kc2 (50. Kb2 Qg2+ 51. Ka1 Qg1+ $1 52. Kb2 Qg2+ $1) 50... Qg2+ {with perpetual check.}) 47. Kc2 Qg6+ 48. Kb2 $1 {The only winning move.} (48. Kb3 $2 Qb1+) 48... Qb6+ 49. Ka2 Rg2+ (49... Rxc3 50. Qf5+ $1 g6 (50... Qg6 51. Rh8+) 51. Qf7+ Kh6 52. Qf4+ {with a mating attack.}) 50. Ka3 Qb2+ 51. Ka4 Qxc3 (51... Qa1+ 52. Kb4 {and the checks are soon over.}) 52. Qh8+ Kg6 53. Ra6+ Kf5 (53... Kf7 54. Qh5+ {ends with mate soon.}) 54. Qf8+ Ke4 55. Re6+ (55. Re6+ Kd3 (55... Kxd4 56. Qd6+ Kc4 57. Re4+) 56. Qf3+) 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.06.05"]
[Round "9"]
[White "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Black "Caruana, Fabiano"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "E05"]
[WhiteElo "2837"]
[BlackElo "2776"]
[Annotator "Bojkov,Dejan"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 Be7 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O dxc4 7. Qc2 a6 {Caruana calmly enters a line that he used just a few weeks ago, but as White.} 8. Rd1 ({As White the American chose instead:} 8. a4 Nc6 9. Qxc4 h6 10. Bd2 Qd5 11. Rc1 Rd8 12. Qxd5 exd5 13. e3 {and this game eventually ended in a draw, Caruana,F (2776)-Abdusattorov $146 (2771) Bucharest 2025}) 8... b5 9. Ne5 {Carlsen replies quickly and confidently.} Nd5 10. b3 cxb3 11. axb3 Bb7 12. Ba3 Bd6 {All of this \"is cutting edge theory\" according to the Megabase. White gets ample compensation for the pawn, but Black can look for a good moment to give it back and trade a few pieces in the process.} 13. Nd3 Nd7 14. e4 Bxa3 15. Rxa3 ({RR} 15. exd5 Bd6 16. dxe6 Bxg2 17. exf7+ Rxf7 18. Kxg2 Qf6 19. Nc3 Qxd4 20. Nf4 Qc5 21. Qe4 Raf8 22. Ncd5 Ne5 23. Rac1 Qa7 24. Ne3 Nd7 25. Nh3 Nf6 26. Qf3 h6 27. Nf5 Nd7 28. Qd5 Nf6 29. Qc6 Ba3 {Kornev,A (2500)-Tang,A (2529) chess.com INT 2025 0-1 (36)}) 15... N5f6 16. Nd2 a5 $146 {Here it is, the novelty. Black certainly should not allow his opponent a chance to clamp down the queenside.} ({The predecessor saw White get everything he wanted after:} 16... Qe7 $2 17. b4 $1 Rac8 (17... e5 18. Qxc7) 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) Chess.com INT 2022. It should be said that a younger Carlsen learned the hard way how bad this structure is against Kramnik.}) ({RR} 16... Qe7 17. b4 Rac8 18. Qc3 Rfd8 19. Re1 h5 20. Nb3 h4 21. Nbc5 Nxc5 22. Nxc5 Ba8 23. Rxa6 hxg3 24. hxg3 Ng4 25. f3 Nf6 26. Kf2 Rd6 27. Rea1 Qd8 28. Nb3 e5 29. dxe5 Rd3 30. Qc2 Bxe4 31. fxe4 {Dubov,D (2708)-Grischuk,A (2745) chess24.com INT 2022 1-0 (49)}) 17. Rda1 c5 $1 {The point behind Caruana's play.} ({Keeping the extra pawn is not worth it} 17... c6 18. e5 Nd5 19. Ne4 {and the white knights get the better outposts.}) 18. dxc5 Qc7 19. b4 axb4 {This should be an equalizer. But one can never be certain when facing Carlsen...} ({There is more complex play after} 19... a4 20. Qb2 ({Or} 20. Rc3 Nb8 $1)) 20. Rxa8 Rxa8 21. Rc1 $1 {White plays for a win $1} ({More trades will follow after} 21. Rxa8+ Bxa8 22. Qa2 Bc6) 21... Rc8 {The most obvious and logical move. Caruana targets the last of the white queenside pawns. If it disappears, the draw would become inevitable.} ({However, there was a strong argument for blocking it with} 21... Nb8 $5 22. Nxb4 Nc6 23. Qb2 Nxb4 24. Qxb4 Bc6 {with a perfectly safe position for the second player.}) 22. Qb2 h6 {Another useful move, giving air to the king.} ({The \"activity\"} 22... Qa5 23. Nb3 Qa4 $4 {backfires to} ({Also} 23... Qa3 24. Qc2 $1 {is less than convincing.}) 24. Ra1) ({But it made sense to try and get rid of a pair of knights at once with} 22... Ng4 $5 23. Qxb4 Bc6 {followed by Ng4-e5.}) 23. Qxb4 Bc6 24. Qb2 $1 {Highlighting the fact that Black is a bit cramped, and clumsy.} Ra8 ({Here too} 24... Ng4 $5 {seems good, for example} 25. Nb4 Nge5 26. f4 Nc4 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Rxc4 Bb5 29. Rc1 Nxc5 {when the pin is only a temporary issue.}) 25. Nb4 Ne5 {Finally Caruana decides to bring the knights into the game.} ({This time it was too late for} 25... Ng4 $4 26. Nxc6 Qxc6 27. e5) 26. f4 Nc4 $1 {The best chance from a human standpoint.} ({The knight is offside after} 26... Ng6 {and White has a bunch of interesting options, like} 27. e5 ({Or} 27. Nxc6 Qxc6 28. f5) 27... Bxg2 28. exf6 Bc6 29. fxg7 {White should be better.}) 27. Nxc4 bxc4 28. Nxc6 $1 {An accurate move.} ({Annihilating the important bishop later might come with a price, as in the line} 28. Rxc4 Qb7 29. Qd4 Ra4 30. Nxc6 Qb1+ $1 31. Bf1 Ra1 {And suddenly Black has enough counterplay. One funny drawing line runs} 32. Qf2 Ng4 $1 33. Qe2 Ne3 34. Kf2 Ng4+ 35. Kg1 Ne3) 28... Qxc6 29. Rxc4 Rc8 $6 {It's easy to criticize this move armed with the computer's megapower} ({but calculating all the counterplay after} 29... Ra5 $1 {was definitely impossible. The rook is kept active and ready to bother the white king. The logic is clear. The problem is, though, that the c-passer can become a queen before that. Still, the machine is not afraid. Some beautiful lines run:} 30. Qd4 ({In case of} 30. Qc3 {a nice line shown in the studio by Chirila goes} Qa6 (30... Ra2 $5 {also looks enough for counterplay.}) 31. c6 $6 Ra1+ 32. Bf1 Rxf1+ $3 33. Kxf1 Nxe4 $1 {Now} 34. Qc2 $4 {even loses to} ({Therefore White needs to fight for the draw with} 34. c7 Nd2+ 35. Qxd2 Qxc4+ 36. Kg2 Qxc7) 34... Qxc4+ $1 35. Qxc4 Nd2+ 36. Ke2 Nxc4 37. c7 Nd6 $19) ({In comparison to the game} 30. e5 Nd5 31. f5 {does not yield White anything due to the simple} Rxc5) ({There is also no time for prophylaxis} 30. h3 Rxc5 31. Qb8+ Ne8 {with equality} ({But not} 31... Kh7 $4 32. e5)) 30... Ra2 31. h3 Qb5 32. Qc3 Qb1+ 33. Qc1 ({White has to be careful} 33. Kh2 $4 Qf1) 33... Qd3 $1 {And it turns out that Black is just in time in the line} 34. c6 Qe2 35. Qf1 Qe3+ 36. Kh2 Nxe4 37. c7 Qxg3+ 38. Kg1 Qe3+ 39. Kh2 Qg3+ 40. Kh1 Nf2+ 41. Kg1 ({Or} 41. Qxf2 Qxf2 42. c8=Q+ Kh7 43. Qc6 Qe1+ 44. Kh2 Qf1 {and Black does not risk losing.}) 41... Nxh3+) 30. e5 $1 Nd5 31. f5 $1 {Now Carlsen creates additional weaknesses on the kingside.} Qa6 ({Certainly not} 31... exf5 $2 32. Qd4 Rd8 33. Rc2 {and this time the pin will be painful for Black.}) 32. Rc1 Qa7 {Black keeps his queen closer to the pawn.} ({This looked like a good moment to activate the queen with} 32... Qd3 $1 33. fxe6 Qe3+ 34. Kh1 fxe6 35. c6 (35. Bxd5 exd5) 35... Kh8) 33. fxe6 fxe6 34. Bxd5 $1 {With such a knight on the board the win would be impossible.} exd5 35. Qd4 Qd7 36. Kg2 {This and the next few moves are trademark Carlsen.} (36. Rd1 {is nothing due to} Qc6) 36... Qc6 37. h4 $1 {Fixing some squares around the black king.} Kh8 38. Rc2 Kg8 39. h5 Kh8 40. Kh3 Kg8 41. Kh2 Qe6 42. Rd2 Rd8 43. Kg2 Qc6 44. Rd1 Qa6 45. Re1 Qe6 46. Rb1 {After some improvements, White gets ready to infiltrate into the enemy camp.} Qf5 {Caruana goes for a wrong plan $1} ({True} 46... Re8 {does not even create a threat and White can calmly react with} 47. Rb2 $5 {As the rook endgame after} Qxe5 $4 48. Qxe5 Rxe5 49. c6 {is lost for Black.}) ({However} 46... Rf8 $1 47. Rb2 {And now the neat} Kh8 $1 {should have been tried. Black is looking for a proper moment for counterplay along the f-file.} ({Not} 47... Qf5 48. Qxd5+)) 47. Rb2 Qxh5 {The last mistake. This pawn is not worth as much as it seems, and the white king is sufficiently defended.} ({The immediate attack} 47... Rf8 $2 {still does not work due to} 48. Qxd5+ Kh7 49. c6 Qf1+ 50. Kh2) ({But the last chance was} 47... Qe6 $1 {When White can keep on grinding with many moves, like} 48. Rb6 (48. Rd2 $5) (48. g4 $5) ({Or the preliminary} 48. Rc2 $5 Qc6 49. g4) 48... Qf5 49. Rb7 Qc2+) 48. c6 $1 {The pawns are too strong.} Kh7 49. e6 $1 ({Perhaps Caruana only calculated} 49. c7 Rc8 50. Rc2 Qf7 {with chances to hold.}) 49... Qg6 50. Re2 $1 (50. c7 $1 {would do as well.}) 50... Ra8 51. Qxd5 Ra3 52. Qe4 1-0

[Event "Norway Chess 2025"]
[Site "Stavanger, Norway"]
[Date "2025.06.06"]
[Round "10"]
[White "Erigaisi Arjun"]
[Black "Carlsen, Magnus"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "D35"]
[WhiteElo "2782"]
[BlackElo "2837"]
[Annotator "Rafael Leitao"]
[PlyCount "111"]
[EventDate "2025.??.??"]
[TimeControl "40/7200:0"]

1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6 {Knowing a draw might suffice, Carlsen chooses one of the most solid and reliable defenses against the Queen's Pawn.} 4. cxd5 {The Exchange Variation was Kasparov's favorite line when facing the Queen's Gambit.} exd5 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Bd3 h6 8. Bh4 c6 9. Nge2 Nbd7 (9... Ne8 {is another popular plan these days.}) 10. O-O a5 $5 {The modern way of playing the Queen's Gambit Declined. Advancing on the queenside for Black wasn't common some 50 years ago, but chess understanding has evolved.} (10... Re8 {is more common, and Black can use the same plan after} 11. Qc2 a5) 11. f3 (11. a4 {I've seen strong players trying this with White in similar positions, but the inclusion of a4-a5 no doubt improves Black's position.}) (11. Qc2 {is more possible when Black can play} Re8 {and White may think of something different from the classical plan with f3-e4, although I'm not sure that most players try 12.f3 anyway.}) ({RR} 11. Rc1 Re8 12. f3 b5 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Bf2 Qb8 15. Ng3 b4 16. Nce2 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 c5 18. dxc5 Nxc5 19. Qb1 Bf8 20. Rfd1 Qb5 21. Nf4 Ne6 22. Nf5 Rac8 23. h3 Nxf4 24. exf4 Nh5 25. Nd4 Qd7 {Duda,J (2725)-Carlsen,M (2839) Zagreb CRO 2025 ½-½ (65)}) 11... b5 $1 {This the whole point of Black's opening system; he reacts with b5-b4 against the plan of f3-e4.} 12. Qc2 Re8 13. e4 $146 {Arjun plays the opening in the most direct way possible. He could try to play a move like 13.Bf2 and maybe Kh1 next, but he decides to strike immediately. Given the quality of the move and the time spent, it's unlikely that he had this prepared beforehand.} ({RR} 13. Kh1 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb8 ({RR} 14... Qb6 15. Bf2 Rad8 16. e4 dxe4 17. fxe4 Ng4 18. Bg1 Qb8 19. h3 Ngf6 20. e5 Nd5 21. Bh7+ Kh8 22. Rxf7 Nb4 23. Qg6 Bf8 24. Rdf1 Nd5 25. Nxd5 cxd5 26. Nf4 b4 27. Qxa6 Kxh7 28. Qg6+ Kh8 29. Qh5) 15. e4 b4 16. Nb1 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 dxe4 18. fxe4 Nxe4 19. Qxe4 Bxh4 20. Qxc6 Ra7 21. Nf4 Nf6 22. Qf3 Rae7 23. Rd3 Re1 24. Nd2 Bg5 25. g3 Qc8 26. Rxe1 Rxe1+ 27. Kg2 Bxf4 {Sele,T (1699)-Silva,M (2005) Budapest HUN 2024 0-1 (42)}) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Bb7 14. h3 Rc8 15. Bf5 g6 16. Bxg6 fxg6 17. Qxg6+ Kh8 18. e4 Nh7 19. e5 b4 20. Nd1 Ba6 21. Re1 Rg8 22. Qxh6 Bg5 23. Qd6 Qe8 24. e6 Qg6 25. Bg3 Ndf6 26. Nf2 Be3 27. Qe5 Bxe2) ({RR} 13. Bf2 Ba6 14. Rad1 Qb6 15. Rfe1 b4 16. Na4 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 Qb5 18. Qc2 Rac8 19. Nf4 c5 20. dxc5 Nxc5 21. Nxc5 Rxc5 22. Qd2 Rec8 23. Qd4 b3 24. axb3 Qxb3 25. Qe5 Bf8 26. Nd3 Rc2 27. Qf5 R8c6 {Anas Khwaira (2173)-Aradhya,G (2383) Al Ain UAE 2025 0-1 (65)}) 13... b4 14. Na4 dxe4 15. fxe4 Nxe4 $1 {Black has a big alternative in 15...c5, but the move played in the game is objectively better, although it will soon be followed by a mistake.} (15... c5 {is the typical break. Big complications start.} 16. e5 $1 (16. dxc5 $2 {leads to problems for White after} Ng4 $1) 16... Nd5 {Now White has several ideas after 16.Bxe7, 16.Bg3, or even 16.Bc4. With the engine on, it seems that Black's position can be held, although it seems a little shaky and dangerous in a practical game.}) 16. Bxe7 (16. Bxe4 $2 Bxh4 17. Bxc6 Ba6 {is horrible for White.}) 16... Qxe7 17. Qxc6 Nef6 $2 {The wrong way to sacrifice.} (17... Nd2 $1 {is a theoretical novelty and the best move when Black has excellent counterplay after} 18. Qxa8 Qe3+ 19. Rf2 Nf6 $1 {With the bishop attacked and the threat of Ng4, Black has the initiative. White has played very accurately in order to hold the balance.} (19... Qxd3 {is worse.} 20. Rc1) 20. Qb8 $1 Qxd3 21. Nc5 Qc4 22. b3 Qd5 {with excellent compensation for the exchange.}) 18. Qxa8 Qe3+ 19. Kh1 Qxd3 20. Nf4 Qxd4 21. Rad1 (21. Rac1 {is also tempting. Black has to find} Kh7 $1 {with the idea} (21... Ng4 $2 {loses a piece after} 22. h3 Nf2+ 23. Rxf2 Qxf2 24. Nd3 $1 {followed by capturing the bishop on c8.}) (21... Ne4 {is refuted by} 22. Ne2 $1) 22. Rxc8 $6 (22. Qxa5 {is better.}) 22... Ng4 $1 {when suddenly Black has dangerous threats.} (22... Qxf4 $2 23. Qa6 Qxf1+ 24. Qxf1 Rxc8 {is similar to the game.})) 21... Qe5 $2 (21... Qe3 $1 {offers better chances of defending.} 22. Rc1 Ne4 {forces White to play} 23. Nh3 $1 {and now either 23...Nd6 or 23...Qe2, when White is better, but the position remains very complicated.}) 22. Rc1 $1 Nf8 {Carlsen finds a clever way to defend.} 23. Rxc8 $6 {tempting, but there's a better move.} (23. Nc5 $1 {seems to better, followed by the capture of the a-pawn. Although White is technically winning, there are still practical chances for Black to create something on the kingside.}) 23... Qxf4 $1 {The point of Black's previous move, exploiting the back-rank weakness.} 24. Qa6 {Absolutely forced.} Qxf1+ $1 {Carlsen decides to give up his queen, a difficult but entirely correct decision. He has more chances of surviving here than an exchange down after} (24... Qe5 25. Rxe8 Nxe8 26. Qc6 Nf6 27. Qc5 Qe2 28. Qf2 Qe5 29. Nc5 {when he lacks counterplay and White will gradually attack the queenside pawns.}) 25. Qxf1 Rxc8 26. h3 {Despite the material advantage, it's not easy for White to convert the advantage. The knight is out of play, and Black's rook and knights can become very tricky if allowed near the white king.} Rd8 27. Qa6 (27. Nb6 {is a good alternative, preparing Nc4.}) 27... Rd5 28. Nb6 Rc5 29. Nc4 Ne6 $2 {Not the best way to coordinate the pieces.} (29... Ng6 $1 {is stronger. The point is that after the dubious capture of the a5-pawn, Black is ready to start an attack.} 30. Nxa5 (30. Ne3 {is more prudent.}) 30... Rc1+ 31. Kh2 Rc2 {with the idea of playing Nh4 next.}) 30. Nxa5 g5 $5 {An interesting plan. Black wants to play g5-g4 and destroy the king's shelter.} 31. Nc4 {White has many winning moves. His task for now is to improve the knight's position.} (31. Nc6 g4 32. Nd4 $1 {An important move that decides the game.} Ng5 {The last trick.} (32... Nxd4 33. Qxf6) 33. Nf5 $1 (33. Qxf6 $4 {ends in sadness after} Rc1+ 34. Kh2 g3+ $1 35. Kxg3 Ne4+) 33... Rxf5 34. Qc8+ {picking up the rook.}) (31. Nb7 {is also possible:} Rc1+ 32. Kh2 g4 33. Nd6 $18 {White is ready to start an attack on f7.}) (31. Nb3 {is also winning but less incisive.}) 31... g4 32. b3 $2 ({The prophylactic} 32. Kh2 {is better, securing the h-pawn.}) 32... gxh3 33. gxh3 Rh5 34. Kh2 $2 {Another mistake and now Black has adequate counterplay.} (34. Kg2 $1 {is the right move, but to be honest, I think Black already has considerable practical chances of saving the game after} Kg7) 34... Kg7 (34... Ng5 $5 {shows again that the knights are tricky pieces (a theme that showed up in other games of this tournament as well). The idea is} 35. Qxf6 Rxh3+ 36. Kg2 Rg3+ $3 {forcing a draw, either by perpetual check or in the endgame after} 37. Kxg3 Ne4+) 35. Qb7 Ng5 36. Nd6 ({After} 36. Qxb4 Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 {Black should play} Rf3 $1 {cutting off the king and preparing Nfe4.} 38. Nd2 Rd3 {The rook and knights are very active.}) 36... Rxh3+ 37. Kg2 Rd3 38. Nf5+ Kg6 39. Ne7+ (39. Ng3 {is better, bringing the knight closer to the king. The endgame has become very tactical but objectively equal.}) 39... Kh5 $1 {The king goes forward. Now the attacks consist of rook, two knights, and the king.} 40. Qxb4 $2 {Losing by force.} (40. Kf2 {is necessary.}) 40... Nfe4 {The white king is trapped.} 41. Kf1 Rd2 42. Qb5 Rd1+ 43. Kg2 Rd2+ 44. Kf1 Kg4 $6 {Complicating the win.} (44... f5 $1 {is a pretty move that decides the game instantly.} 45. Nxf5 (45. Qxf5 Ng3+ {takes the queen.}) (45. Qe8+ Kg4 {The king is sheltered by the pawn on f5.}) 45... Rf2+ 46. Ke1 (46. Kg1 Nf3+ 47. Kh1 Rh2#) 46... Nf3+ {The point of the move 44...f5. The knight on f5 unpins its colleague on g5.} 47. Kd1 Nc3+ 48. Kc1 Nxb5) 45. Qf5+ Kg3 46. Qe5+ Kf3 47. Qf5+ Kg3 48. Qe5+ Kf3 49. Qf5+ Ke3 $1 {A brave decision $1 Though Black is winning, due to the shortage of time I think the general feeling of the spectators was that anything could happen.} 50. Nd5+ Kd4 51. Ke1 Rxa2 $6 (51... Rh2 $1 {is recommended by the machine as the right winning move, but who could find such subtleties with seconds on the clock $2 Not even Carlsen.}) 52. Qd7 $1 Ra1+ (52... Nc5 {offers good winning chances, but it's not easy after} 53. Qd8) 53. Ke2 Ra2+ {Carlsen makes the professional decision of forcing a draw and clinching the title of this spectacular tournament.} 54. Ke1 Ra1+ 55. Ke2 Ra2+ 56. Ke1 1/2-1/2

