Italian Game and Evans Gambit
d5 and 9 4Jc3. The first we shall look at
now, while the second will be covered in
Games 33-35.
9 d5
Adolf Anderssen, one of the strongest
players in the 19th century, has the copyright of this move. Unfortunately for his
family, chess players do not like to pay for
intellectual rights...
9 ...ctJa5
Other moves are weaker (see the annotations to move 9 in Game 31).
10.i.b2ctJe7
That we are dealing with really old stuff
can be seen from the next note:
a) 10...f6 11 i.d3 4Je7 12 4Jc3 c5 13 e5
dxe5 14 4Jxe5 0-0 15 ~5 f5 16 :tad1
and White is better according to Bilguer's
Handb1Jch.
More interesting is:
b) 10...4Jf6 11 i..d3 0-0 12 4Jc3 c6 13
4Je2 i..g4, when White can try:
bl) 14 ~d2 cxd5 15 exd5 i..xf3 16
gxf3 4Jxd5 17 .txh7+ ~xh 7 18 "iixd5
.l:Ic8 19 "iVh5+ 'it>g8 20 'iig4 and White
has some compensation for the material.
b2) 14 4Jg3! is probably stronger
though, and after 14...cxd5 15 exd5 h6! (if
15....l:Ic8 16 h3 i..d7 17 4Jg5! and White is
better) 16 h3 i..d7 17 x:tel White has
good compensation for the pawn. Basically it is hard to think up a situation
where Black's extra b7-pawn will be a real
asset before move 40.
11 .i.d3
Pawn grabbing can be bad for your
health: 11 .txg7? ktg8 12 i..f6 4Jxc4 13
"ifa4+ ~d7 14 ~xc4 .l:Ixg2+!! 15 ~xg2
~3+ 16 'it>hl ~xf3+ 17 ~gl .th3 and
Black wins, as given by Anderssen.
11 ... 0-0 12 ctJe3 ctJg6
90
Another chess legend, Johannes
Zukertort, gave the line 12...c5?! 13 e5!
dxe5 14 4Jxe5 4Jg6 15 "iih5 'ilVd6 16
:tael i..c7 17 4Je4 with a deadly attack.
13ctJe2 e5
After 13...£6 14 4Jfd4 c5 15 4Jf5 .txf5
16 exf5 4Je5 17 4Jf4 White is better according to Matsukevich.
The idea of the text move is simple:
Black wants to keep control over the d4square. Now White has two equally good
possibilities: 14 ~c1 as in the next game,
and 14 "iid2 as below.
14 'ii'd2 f6 15 ~h1 i.e7 16 Iiae1
'ubS 17ctJg3 b5 1SctJf5 :b7 19 g4!
Typical for this kind of position, White
has good play for the pawn, if nothing
more.
19... .i.bS 20 .l::!.g1 ctJe5 21 i.xe5?!
In this structure the dark-squared
bishop is very useful. It can attack the g7pawn and the knight on as at the same
time. Better therefore was 21 4Jxe5 fxe5
22 f4 c4 23 .te2 and White would have
had full compensation.
21 ...fxe5 22 ttJg5 .:teS 23 !Ig3 h6?!
Violating the old rule of not advancing
pawns where you are defending, which
seems to give White a helping hand here.