Alexander Alekhine, My Best Games of Chess 1908–1923 (1927)
Game 52 of 100
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Event
Moscow-ch01 1919/20
Site
Moscow
Date
1919.??.??
White
Black
Isakov, Konstantin Ivanovic
Result
1-0
Game 52 in the book: Alekhin—K. Issakoff, Moscow Championship, October 1919 (first prize, without loss). A Danish Gambit annotated by Alekhine, who plays White.
- 3…dxc3 Declining the Gambit by 3. ....P—Q 4, or 3. ....Q—K 2 is, in my opinion, preferable.
- 4.Nxc3 White, by giving up only one Pawn, secures as vigorous an attack as in the Danish Gambit, which has been completely neglected since Schlechter's discovery: 4. B—Q B 4, P×P; 5. B×P, P—Q 4!; 6. B×Q P, Kt—K B 3!
- 4…Bb4 In a game Alekhin—Verlinski, played at Odessa in 1918, Black played 4. ....Kt—Q B 3. There followed: 5. B—Q B 4, P—Q 3; 6. Kt—B 3, Kt—B 3; 7. Q—Kt 3, Q—Q 2; 8. Kt—K Kt 5, Kt—K 4 (Kt—Q 1 is better); 9. B—Kt 5, P—B 3; 10. P—B 4!, P×B; 11. P×Kt, P×P; 12. B—K 3, B—Q 3; 13. Kt×Kt P, Castles; 14. R—Q 1, Kt—K 1; 15. Castles, Q—K 2; 16. Kt×Q B, Kt×Kt; 17. Q—R 3! (not 17. Q—Kt 4, because of Kt—B 4), R—Q 1; 18. Kt×B P, B—Kt 5; 19. R×Kt, R—K 1; 20. B—Kt 5, Q—B 2; 21. Q—Q Kt 3, B—K 7; 22. Kt×P ch, K—R 1; 23. R—B 1, R—K B 1, an ingenious resource which very nearly saves the game. 24. Q—Q 1!! (the only move), Q—R 4; 25. Q×B, Q×Kt; 26. R—Q 5, and Black resigns.
- 5…d6 Black need not fear 6. B×P ch, K×B; 7. Q—Kt 3 ch, B—K 3; 8. Q×K B, Kt—Q B 3!; 9. Q×P, Kt—Q 5; which, on the contrary, would give him a very strong attack.
- 9.Ba3 More in the spirit of the opening is at once 9. P—K 5, and if 9. ....P×P; 10. Q—Kt 3, with prospects of a strong attack for White. After the text-move Black could have secured a satisfactory game by 9. ....B—Kt 5; 10. Q—Kt 3, Kt—Q R 4!; 11. B×P ch, K—B 1; 12. Q—R 4, B×Kt; 13. P×B, K×B; 14. Q×Kt, R—K 1, etc.
- 10…Ng4 After 10. ....Kt—K 1; 11. P—K R 3!, B—B 4; 12. R—K 1, etc. Black would have a very precarious game, the K R and K Kt being immobilized. He therefore prefers to give back the Pawn in order to complete his development.
- 13.Re1 Preparing to sacrifice the K B eventually. It is clear that Black cannot play 13. ....R×R ch; 14. Q×R, Q×B; 15. Q—K 8 ch, Q—B 1; 16. B×P ch, K—R 1; 17. Q×Q mate.
- 13…Bf5 Preferable, however, would be 13. ....R×R ch; 14. Q×R, B—B 4; 15. R—Q 1, Q—K 1; 16. Kt—Q 4!, and Black, although having slightly the inferior game, is safe from immediate disaster.
- 14.Bxf7+ A pretty combination. Its object is to keep the K Kt from K B 3 by forcing the Black King to occupy that square.
- 15…Kf6 Evidently compulsory. If 15. ....B—K 3; 16. Kt—Kt 5 ch, etc., and if 15. ....K—Kt 3; 16. R×R, followed by 17. Kt—R 4 ch and White wins.
- 16…Be6 Or if 16. ....Kt—R 3; 17. P—Kt 4, etc.
- 18.g4 Regaining by force the piece he has sacrificed.
- 18…g6 The only resource. If 18. ....Kt—B 2 or K Kt 1, White wins with the following problem-like variation: 19. Q—B 4 ch, K—Kt 3; 20. B—K 7!!, Q×B; 21. R×B ch and mates.
- 19.g5+ Also very strong would be 19. Q×Kt, Q×B; 20. P—Kt 5 ch, K—B 2!; 21. Q×R P ch, K—B 1; 22. Q×K Kt P, with a winning attack. After the text-move, which wins back the piece, the Black King contrives to escape danger temporarily.
- 23…Bc4 Black hopes to take advantage of the fact that White's Q B is pinned, in order to seize the open King's file, but White's reply destroys this last hope.
- 24.Be7 The same move as in the variation referred to after Black's 18th move, but with an entirely different aim.