Andre Lilienthal
Notable Games

Andre Lilienthal

15 celebrated games · 274 in the full archive
Player Index ◈ Biography 274 CURATED GAMES

Notable Games

  • 1935.01.01 Lilienthal, Andor vsCapablanca, Jose Raul 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation 26 moves Christmas Congress 1934/35-15 Premier Lilienthal's immortal queen sacrifice, Hastings 1934/35. Against Capablanca's central capture, 20.exf6! offers the queen (20…Qxc2 21.fxg7) and the open e-file plus the passed g-pawn crash through, 26.Rxe4+. His most celebrated game — the move Bobby Fischer greeted him with in 1992: “pawn e5 takes f6!”
  • 1936.05.28 Lasker, Emanuel vsLilienthal, Andor 0-1 French Defense: Classical Variation, Alapin Variation 57 moves Moscow International-03 Moscow 1936. A Black win in the French over 67-year-old former World Champion Emanuel Lasker, Lilienthal breaking through in the queen ending with connected passed pawns (…a4–a3, …c3).
  • 1937.08.07 Euwe, Max vsLilienthal, Andor 0-1 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Milner-Barry Variation 71 moves Olympiad-07 Stockholm Olympiad 1937. A 71-move Nimzo-Indian win over reigning World Champion Max Euwe — months before Euwe lost the crown to Alekhine — Lilienthal queening a pawn in the bishop ending with Black.
  • 1940.09.27 Lilienthal, Andor vsBotvinnik, Mikhail 1-0 Queen's Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Traditional Variation, Main Line 43 moves URS-ch12 Final USSR Championship 12 (1940). Lilienthal beats future World Champion Mikhail Botvinnik in a Queen's Indian, a kingside pawn and rook infiltration (40.Re7, 43.Rxe8+) deciding.
  • 1940.09.20 Lilienthal, Andor vsKotov, Alexander 1-0 Sicilian Defense: Moscow Variation 25 moves URS-ch12 Final USSR Championship 12 (1940). A 25-move Sicilian squeeze over Alexander Kotov — 13.Nf5 and the doubled e-file rooks win the e6 pawn and the seventh rank (24.Re7, 25.Ra7).
  • 1940.10.02 Lilienthal, Andor vsBondarevsky, Igor Tsakharovich 1-0 French Defense: Rubinstein Variation, Blackburne Defense 55 moves URS-ch12 Final USSR Championship 12 (1940). A French in which Lilienthal's central passed d-pawn grinds down Igor Bondarevsky, queening at the finish (55.d8=Q+). On his chessgames notable list.
  • 1941.04.12 Botvinnik, Mikhail vsLilienthal, Andor 0-1 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Reshevsky Variation 54 moves URS-ch Absolute USSR Absolute Championship 1941. A second scalp of Botvinnik, this time with Black in a Nimzo-Indian — Lilienthal outplays him into a won queen-and-pawn ending (…a3). On his chessgames notable list.
  • 1941.03.27 Lilienthal, Andor vsKeres, Paul 1-0 Queen's Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Traditional Variation, Main Line 44 moves URS-ch Absolute USSR Absolute Championship 1941. A Queen's Indian win over Paul Keres, Lilienthal's queenside play and 43.Qc7/44.Qxa7 mopping up the pawns.
  • 1945 Koblencs, Aleksandrs vsLilienthal, Andor 0-1 Scotch Game: Potter Variation 27 moves URS-ch14 Final USSR Championship 14 (1945). A sharp Black win in the Scotch over Aleksandrs Koblencs — later Mikhail Tal's famous trainer — with an early queen raid (7…Qh4) and the finish 26…Rxe4, 27…Re2+. On his chessgames notable list.
  • 1946.02.09 Lilienthal, Andor vsSmyslov, Vasily V 1-0 Grünfeld Defense: Russian Variation, Smyslov Variation 60 moves Moscow-ch25 Final Moscow Championship 1946. A win over future World Champion Vasily Smyslov in Smyslov's own Grünfeld line (the Russian/Smyslov Variation), Lilienthal converting a knight-versus-bishop ending with the king marching to c6.
  • 1947.02.17 Lilienthal, Andor vsBronstein, David Ionovich 1-0 Old Indian Defense 39 moves URS-ch15 Final USSR Championship 15 (1947). An Old Indian win over David Bronstein — four years before his World Championship match — the knight leaps 34.Nd5 and 35.Nf6+ forcing 39.Rd8.
  • 1948.07.22 Lilienthal, Andor vsNajdorf, Miguel 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Sämisch Variation, Capablanca Variation 25 moves Interzonal-01 Saltsjöbaden Interzonal 1948. A 25-move Nimzo-Indian brilliancy over Miguel Najdorf — 14.exf6 and the Greek-gift 17.Bxh7+ tear open the king, 18.Qh5+.
  • 1948.12.09 Lilienthal, Andor vsAverbakh, Yuri L 1-0 Queen's Gambit Declined: Ragozin Defense 44 moves URS-ch16 Final USSR Championship 16 (1948). A positional win over the endgame authority Yuri Averbakh — the d5 break and a rook lift to the seventh rank (37.Re6, 38.Re7) decide.
  • 1949.10.17 Lilienthal, Andor vsGeller, Efim P 1-0 King's Indian Defense: Petrosian Variation 43 moves URS-ch17 Final USSR Championship 17 (1949). A King's Indian win over the young Efim Geller, Lilienthal's extra pawns telling in a bishop-and-knight ending (43.Kc7).
  • 1962 Lilienthal, Andor vsLarsen, Bent 1-0 Nimzo-Indian Defense: Reshevsky Variation 25 moves Moscow Moscow 1962. A 25-move Nimzo-Indian win over Bent Larsen — soon a perennial World Championship Candidate — the b5 and Nb6–d5 clamp winning material, 25.Qa3.
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