FEDOSEEV vs GRANDELIUS – EUROPEAN CLUB CUP 2018 ROUND 7

This game is from round 7 of the 2018 European Club Cup. It is between Vladimir Fedoseev with White against Nils Grandelius with Black.

This game features a Slav Defence. To learn more about the Slav Defence, here is the best instruction book I could find on Amazon.

Fedoseev,Vladimir (2713) - Grandelius,Nils (2655)

34th European Club Cup 2018 Halkidiki (7), 18.10.2018

1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Qb3 e6 5.Bg5 [5.g3 dxc4 6.Qxc4 b5 7.Qb3 Bb7 8.Bg2 a6 9.a4 c5 10.axb5 c4 11.Qd1 axb5 12.Rxa8 Bxa8 13.0–0 Be7 14.b3 cxb3 15.Qxb3 b4 16.Bb2 1/2–1/2 (38) Caruana,F (2822)-Aronian,L (2767) Saint Louis 2018] 

5...h6 6.Bxf6 D11: Slav Defence: 3 Nf3 sidelines and 3...Nf6 4 e3 Bg4 

6...Qxf6 7.g3 dxc4 

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8.Qxc4 The position is equal. 

8...Nd7N [8...a5 9.a3 Qd8 10.Bg2 Be7 11.0–0 0–0 12.Rd1 Qb6 1/2–1/2 (101) Markowski,T (2611)-Malakhatko,V (2548) Warsaw 2011] 

9.Bh3 g6 10.Nc3 Bg7 11.0–0 0–0 12.Rfd1 Qe7 13.Ne4 a5 14.Rd2 a4 15.a3 Ra5 16.Qb4 Qxb4 17.axb4 Rb5 18.Rxa4 Nb6 19.Ra2 Rxb4 20.Nc5 Nd7 21.Nd3 Rb5 22.Rc2 Rd8 23.e3 Nb8 

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24.Bf1 Black must now prevent Nc5. 

24...Na6 25.Ra4 Bf8 

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26.Nde5ƒ White has the initiative. 

26...Nb4! 27.Rc1 Rb6! 28.Nd2 Nd5 29.Ra2 Nb4 30.Ra7 Be7 31.Rca1 

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31...c5? [Better is 31...Kg7² ] 

32.Ndc4+- Ra6 33.R1xa6 Nxa6 34.Nb6 cxd4 35.Nxc8 Rxc8 

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36.Bxa6 [Don't play 36.exd4 Nb4±; Much less strong is 36.Rxb7?! Nc7] 

36...dxe3 [¹36...Bf6] 

37.Rxb7 Bf6 38.Nxf7 exf2+ 39.Kxf2 Bg7 40.Bd3 1–0