The study of basic chess strategy is one of the things that will help you improve your level and become a better player in time. It is amazing to see how many times strong masters win their games against lower-rated opponents by applying the very basics of chess strategy and showing a better positional understanding, overall. When replaying through their games, many of the moves will seem “easy”, but they only make it look so thanks to the hours they have invested in studying and then practicing and polishing their positional skills. It requires a lot of hard work, but the feeling of being in control throughout the whole game and understanding where your pieces should go and why is worth all the effort. [Tip: Missed our post on Chess Strategy for Beginners, well here it is.]
The Reti Opening has been, for a long time, a second or third opening choice for white, being considered a dull and harmless alternative to the more popular 1.d4 or 1.e4. However, things could not be farther from the truth. In fact, its founder, Richard Reti, considered these moves to be inferior, since black could immediately start and attack in the center and equalize.
We get tons of questions, all of which come down to this “I know what to do in the opening, I know how to start the game, but then I begin to struggle… unless I have a clear attack I really don’t know what to do in the middlegame”.
In this course, IM Kolosowski will address those concerns and questions. Mat will demonstrate how you can spot your opponent’s weaknesses and use them for your benefit.
The Najdorf Variation of the Sicilian Opening, named after the Argentinian Grandmaster Miguel Najdorf, is probably one of the most popular openings among chess players. Whether they play it or not, most players have already seen many famous games played in this particular variation.
Not only this, but beautiful games still spring every time the Najdorf appears in top-level games.
When we talk about attacks, most people automatically assume that it will be an attack against the opponent’s king. While these are a lot of fun and can lead to sharp positions with beautiful tactical possibilities, it is not always possible to start one. Some positions require different types of play and starting a pawn storm against the rival king could only create weaknesses instead. Besides, an attack against the king is not the only way to generate active play. In today’s article, we are going to explore fighting for the initiative by starting an attack on the queenside.
Chess is a very complex game. Not only you need to calculate very precisely, but also you need to understand the strategy of the game.
And when it comes down to strategy, one of the most important issues is to understand the “active value of pieces”. At the very beginning, everyone learns the so-called “static value of pieces”.
“What should I play today” is one of the most common questions among chess players. Even if you have a clear repertoire, it always happens to find that one opponent who plays exactly the line you feel most uncomfortable with.
It would be ideal to be prepared for this kind of situation and have a back-up plan – an opening that you can play from time to time and take your opponent on your own ground. An opening that can bring the element of surprise at the board and get you on comfortable grounds.
Studying the pawn structures and understanding the typical plans in each one of them is one important step to improving your chess level.
It will help you find the best plans in the position easier, you will already know where the pieces go, what you should be looking for, what to avoid and what your opponent usually wants to do. This will, first of all, save you time on the clock, but will also give you a certain trust in the position and in the moves you are about to play.
The concept of weakness is the most basic part of positional chess. Weak squares and weak pawns are ideas that you must juggle with throughout the whole game. The choice of a correct plan is most of the time based on correctly identifying targets of attack in the opponent’s position.
One of the most important steps for a chess player is deciding on a reliable repertoire that will become their trusted weapon in future games. There are so many things to address – where to start, how do I know which opening is best and most suitable for me?
Also, do you want a solid opening choice or do you want an immediate open, aggressive game? All these questions play an important part in the selection process and you’ll need to answer them objectively.
