middlegame - tag
Every chess player has their own habits and views when it comes to training or chess in general. What might work for some strong players might be of no use for others and the other way around. You have to analyze your style of play and create your own training schedule that will help you […]
Improving at chess takes a lot of hard work and dedication. You have to give it some daily time, even if it is only one hour a day. However, you have to be constant and fully concentrated on your training. It is important to analyze your weaknesses (and be fair to yourself here) and then […]
Nowadays it is obviously very important to know theory and get out of this phase with some slight advantage or at least an equal, playable position. However, besides learning your lines well, it is useful to know how to play common structures and patterns that arise from different openings. Knowing the plans and the ideas […]
Mistakes are part of the learning process, they say. We have to go wrong in order to get better. However, it is safe to say that in chess everybody prefers to avoid mistakes, or at least make as little as possible. It can be frustrating to see how a good game turns into a nightmare […]
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 […]
Another important figure of classical chess is former World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik. He was born in the Soviet Union, in a region of what is now Saint Petersburg. He learned chess at the age of twelve, from a school friend of his older brother’s and fell in love with the game immediately. His first success […]
Perhaps the most common structure arising from the majority of queen’s pawn openings (1.d4) is the structure known as the Carlsbad pawn structure. It is a structure rich in ideas for both sides with many hidden subtleties and unique methods of playing. Of course, if you have followed our articles in the past you may […]
Akiba Rubinstein is probably a familiar name to every chess player, having left behind a precious legacy of games that new generations of chess players still study and learn from. Born in 1880, Rubinstein is one of the players who never got to be a World Champion due to the simple fact that he never […]
Knowing how to attack is an essential part of the chess struggle. An attack can emerge for several reasons – poor coordination of the opponent’s pieces or a weakness in his king’s shelter could be enough to launch a direct offensive. However, there are other types of attacks that arise very often and this is […]
The art of exchanging pieces is one of the most important and effective tools in a chess game. Knowing what piece of yours and which one of your opponents should be taken off the board is something that one learns through experience and deep study of classical games. However, for beginners and club-level players, this […]
