defense - tag

Rapport-Jobava System: Sometimes, even a single move can change the course of a game—even so much as to turn a good opening into a GREAT one! That’s what the move 2.Nc3 does to the regular London System. Not that the London system is a bad opening or such, it has got a few drawbacks where […]

We have been talking a lot about attacking and finding active ideas in your games, but very little about how to defend and put up a good resistance when under pressure. Many players train their tactical skills, but very few know that defense can be trained in a similar way. Perhaps this is the reason […]

Being on the defensive side during a game is probably the most difficult tasks a chess player has to complete successfully. Everybody likes chess for a reason – some like to attack, others prefer strategy instead, but I’m sure that most of you will agree that defending is not one of them.

Getting a good positional understanding is an important step to improving your play and becoming a stronger player. Studying the basic themes, seeing the positional masterpieces played by the great players and solving many exercises can help you in this direction. One of the most important concepts, which appears in probably every single game is […]

Become Better At Defense by doing this. Everybody wants to attack. Sac, sac, mate, the ideal game for many club players. But what about the poor player on the receiving end? I can assure you that he does not derive the same pleasure! As much as we would want to, it simply is not possible […]

Today, I would like to discuss a topic, which in my opinion, is an important and interesting one, yet hasn’t been covered extensively in chess literature. How can sacrifices be used for a successful defense? Often, we cannot hope to survive an opponent’s attack by means of normal defensive moves that improve our pieces slowly […]

King’s Indian Defense has a well-deserved reputation for spectacular battles often terminated with a massacre on White’s kingside castle. What’s most popular than the King’s Indian Defense against 1.d4? Probably nothing. The philosophy behind this defense has always been the same, black plays a kingside fianchetto regardless of what white plays and then he attacks […]

The art of defense is probably one of the most difficult ones to master in chess. Here, it is not only about the knowledge one possesses, but also about the attitude towards the position on the board. Positions, where you have to defend, are difficult and unpleasant to play. This is why sometimes, even if […]

Defense is perhaps one of the most important chess skills you can have. World Championships and major tournaments are always won with a help of outstanding defense. Ability to play well in inferior positions and don’t collapse under pressure is the trait shared by all World Champions and greatest chess players. If you want to […]

Sicilian Defense is one of the most common openings that can be seen on all levels of chess competition. If you are the 1.e4 player, the chances are very high that your opponent will reply 1…c5 and transpose into some variation of This Opening. It is very important to know how to play this famous […]