Openings
Philidor Defense is an excellent practical weapon to play for a win with the black pieces. The opening name is given thanks to the famous 18th-century player François Andre Danican Philidor, who advocated 2…d6 as an alternative to the common 2…Nc6. Philidor’s original idea was to play f7-f5 on the next move, challenging white’s center.
Trompowsky variation has been faced many times as black during tournaments or casual online blitz. It is certainly an awkward opening, especially if black does not know what he is doing. The Trompowsky has been employed by many attacking players, such as Nakamura, Grischuk, Mamedyarov, and many others.
Morra Gambit and what to do against it is one f the most common questions from our students. This line is a very popular choice among beginners because it leads to non-standard positions in which white usually has the initiative. It becomes even more effective when playing against unprepared opponents. The practical answer is to […]
King’s Gambit is a famous romantic variation from ancient times. This opening gave to the theory of chess incredibly beautiful games, full of tactics and material sacrifices. Concepts like material against time, fast development, and attacking the king in the center at all costs started with openings like this. The King’s Gambit was employed by […]
Queen’s Pawn Opening: Nowadays it is difficult to find new ideas in the opening. Most of the main lines have been thoroughly analyzed and some sidelines are too risky to even try. Nevertheless, there are still systems that have not been deeply examined yet, as is the case of the variation that we will present […]
French Winawer: The French Defense is one of black’s most popular responses to 1.e4. From amateurs to masters, the popularity of this defense never stops increasing. The reason is that it gives black the opportunity to fight for the initiative from a very early stage of the game.
The diagram shows the starting position of the so-called Bayonet Attack against the King’s Indian Defense. For many years, this move 9.b4 has been considered the main line and possibly black’s biggest problem in the whole Mar del Plata variation.
In today’s article, we will take a look at the 14 most important chess openings that chess players of all levels must know how to play. Many of the examples discussed here were used by the strongest players in the past. Also, they are still used to win world championship matches and 22nd category tournaments. […]
Caro Kann Defense is well known for being a solid defense against white’s 1.e4. For many years, it had a reputation of being a passive opening, suitable for a player who is happily playing for a draw. Nothing more distant from the truth! How to fight against it with 4.h4?!
Scandinavian has always been an awkward defense to meet for every 1.e4 player. Not because it is especially dangerous for white, but because the mainlines in which white is meant to obtain a theoretical advantage are quite complicated and difficult to remember. Being a defense seldom seen in practice, it makes it even more difficult […]
